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06-10-08 EUR ALL ON ONE PAGE
THE DEFENSE RESTS IN R. KELLY CASE: Rebuttal witnesses expected today; closing arguments could begin Thursday.
*After two days of testimony, defense attorneys rested their case yesterday in R. Kelly's child pornography trial in Chicago, according to reports.
The singer's attorney, Ed Genson, wrapped things up early Monday without calling any witnesses to the stand. Jurors sat in court for several minutes before they were dismissed by the judge and sent home for the day.
Today, prosecutors plan to call two rebuttal witnesses. According to the Chicago Tribune, one is Grant Frederics, a forensic video analyst who found what appeared to be a mole on the back of the man in the sex tape.
The defense told jurors in opening statements that Kelly has had a mole on his back since childhood and that since there was no mole on the back of the male participant in the video, Kelly could not be the man on the tape. Frederics is expected to rebut testimony from the defense's forensic expert, Dr. Charles Palm, who said in his examination of the videotape that he could not find a mole.
The prosecution also plans to call Robert Wolf, an assistant district attorney from Atlanta who is expected to deny suggestions that Lisa Van Allen, who testified she had a three-way sexual encounter with Kelly and the alleged underage victim, was given a deal to testify in the Kelly case.
The defense suggested that Van Allen's boyfriend, a felon who was recently arrested for possession of a loaded AK-47 and drugs in his suburban Atlanta home, was given probation by the Fulton County district attorney's office because Van Allen testified in the trial.
Cook County Circuit Judge Vincent Gaughan told jurors closing arguments are likely to begin on Thursday.
WHY WAS MAGIC JOHNSON SO AMPED OVER HILLARY: Former Laker explains loyalty and switch to Obama in EUR exclusive.
*"This is going to be a tough, tough race, but I feel that he's the man for the job," said former Los Angeles Lakers star Earvin "Magic" Johnson of Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama.
The one time supporter of Hillary Clinton says he is fully on board with the Illinois senator now that Sen. Clinton's race has officially been suspended. The NBA vet also says there's no time for angry Hillary fans to vote for Republican nominee John McCain out of spite.
"If we go with McCain, we'll only get the same thing that we got, and right now that's not good," said Magic, who appeared with Spike Lee at a press event to promote their new PSAs aimed at boosting AIDS awareness.
"We have to now make sure that we all rally behind [Obama], even myself, who was a Clinton supporter," Magic continued. "That's over with now. When she lost, that was over. I jumped right on [Obama's] bandwagon, I called him [and said], 'Hey, I'm a foot soldier. What you need me to do? I'm ready to go to work.'"
But why Hillary over Obama in the first place, asked EUR's Lee Bailey.
"The Clintons did more to empower African Americans and Latinos than anybody else when it wasn't fashionable to do it," Magic said. "So I've been supporting both of them a long time. I asked her to run a long time ago. So you don’t ask someone to run and then not support them. I'm happy that she ran, she ran a good race, but sometimes you end up short in the Finals."
Spike Lee, an avid supporter of Obama, chimed in: "I want to commend Magic, because no one has ever said that every single African American has to endorse Obama. But it's a testament to Magic that he never bad-mouthed the man. There were a whole lot of people – I'm not gonna say no names – they were saying a lot of things about brotherman that I thought were uncalled for."
Lee said the significance of Obama's nomination has yet to fully sink in.
"I think we still haven't truly understood the historic nature of what happened the other day," he said. "I'm a little older than Magic, but growing up my idols were Joe Namath, Willie Mays and Walt Frazier. As kids of color, so often our idols have always been actors and entertainers. No one is going to know the significance it's going to have on young black boys having a black man as a President of the United States of America, having a black man in the most powerful office in the world. It changes everything."
Magic said he's anxious to get on to the 10 proposed town hall showdowns between Obama and McCain: "I can't wait for the debates, because I'm telling you right now, I've seen [Obama] live. Nobody better. Nobody better.
Spike interrupted: "Oooh, he's gonna tear McCain up."
FOXY BROWN REPORTEDLY DATING RICK ROSS: Allhiphop.com says it has confirmed the rumored relationship.
*The Boss and The Ill Na Na have apparently hooked up and are deeply in love. According to Allhiphop.com, Miami's Rick Ross and Brooklyn's Foxy Brown have been seriously dating for some time now.
“They are in fact a couple. Rick Ross swept her off of her feet and this is going to [be] the next big hip-hop couple,” AllHipHop.com quoted of a source. “They both are in love.”
The source also claims that Brown, fresh out of prison, is trying to leave Brooklyn and move to Miami so she and Ross can be closer together. She has already developed a good relationship with Rick's family, his kids and his mother, according to the source.
Both of the lovebirds are working on new albums. Foxy, born Inga Marchand, is in the studio working on her oft-delayed project "Black Roses," while Ross is chipping away at a new album titled "Deeper Than Rap." He is also working to launch his record label, The Maybach Music Group.
SNOOP WANTS 'BEYON-JAY' TO START MULTIPLYING: Rapper wishes they would get crackin' on some kids.
*For some reason, Snoop Dogg is anxious to hear the pitter patter of little BeyJays running around now that Jay-Z and Beyonce are husband and wife.
"I told them to go home and make babies," he told reporters at the Dodge Celebrity Event in Rosamond, Calif. "They should, that's the next step as far as marriage, having kids ... add on to the family, so hopefully that's what they'll do."
When asked if he's planning on giving his three kids a little sister or brother in the near future, he shook his head, grinning. "No. I'm good."
Snoop's key to lasting marriage? "Communication, and being able to fight and get back up," he says. "To have misunderstanding and [then] get some understanding."
WARREN G. CALLS RECENT ARREST 'BOGUS': Rapper explains details regarding drug possession charges.
*Rapper Warren G. is calling his Hollywood drug bust on Sunday a big ol' overblown misunderstanding.
The rapper, whose real name is Warren Griffin, was a passenger in a car driven by Ryan Butler when the vehicle was pulled over for allegedly running a red light. Butler was found to be driving with an expired license.
A search of the car turned up marijuana and cash in the vehicle's trunk.
They were taken into custody and charged with possession of marijuana with intent to sell.
In an interview with Allhiphop.com, Warren explains: “I was a passenger, I wasn’t driving. And we didn’t run a red light. We just happened to be in a long line of traffic on Hollywood Boulevard and got caught in the intersection. The whole thing was bogus."
As for the amount of weed in the trunk, “From what I’m hearing, what they said at the police station, it wasn’t even an ounce,” Warren said. “They basically was just f**king with me because I’m Warren G. and they just wanted to get the publicity for arresting me.”
Warren and Butler, 29, were released some eight hours later on $20,000 bail each. The rapper is due back in court on July 3.
LIL WAYNE TO RECORD SONG FOR WHITAKER FILM: Rapper also co-stars in movie set in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
*Lil Wayne, one of the stars of the upcoming sports drama "Hurricane Season" (formerly entitled, "Patriots"), will write and record a new song for the film.
Entitled, "Tie My Hands," the song will be a duet with Robin Thicke and will be on Lil Wayne's new album "Tha Carter III," due in stores today. The digital edition of his album will include an exclusive film version of the song featuring an ad lib about the basketball team depicted in the Dimension Films movie.
The film takes place a year after Hurricane Katrina when Al Collins, a high school basketball coach in Marrero, Louisiana, assembles a team of players who had previously attended five different schools before the disaster and leads them on the path to the state championships.
"With all the tragedy that my home has suffered these last few years since Katrina, I was glad to see that someone wanted to show that through everything New Orleans also has some positive things going on," said Lil Wayne in a statement. "I am also very happy that 'Hurricane Season' is not only my first major part in a motion picture movie, but a movie about where I grew up."
Bob Weinstein, co-chair of The Weinstein Company stated, "We are very excited about "Hurricane Season" and thrilled that the film has now inspired Lil Wayne's powerful song. Today's announcement is a huge addition to this highly anticipated film and will only help broaden the audience appeal. We look forward to continuing to work with Tim Story, Forest Whitaker, Lil Wayne, Raymond Brothers and the rest of the team as we get closer to the Christmas Day release date."
SHARPTON PLANS MARCH AT MLB ALL-STAR GAME: Sean Bell protest designed to disrupt annual event next month at Yankee Stadium.
*Rev. Al Sharpton is attempting to make good on promises that he would "shut New York City down" to protest the acquittals of three NYPD detectives in the 50-shot barrage that killed Sean Bell on his wedding day.
On Sunday, the civil rights activist threatened to disrupt baseball's historic All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium on July 15 unless the state passes new laws to curb police misconduct.
"It's the time the whole world will be looking at New York," said Sharpton. "It would be very dramatic."
He would not elaborate on the nature of the planned protests at the All Star Game, which is being held at the Bronx venue to mark its final season.
The package of new laws would reform the Civilian Complaint Review Board, require drug testing when cops fire their guns and ban arrest quotas, according to a 28-page report. Sharpton insisted that he is not against the police and the new laws are designed to support law enforcement.
"I believe this is a pro-police legislative package," he said. "It will remove a cloud of suspicion for the majority of police that are not engaged in misconduct and not engaged in brutality."
Sharpton noted that Bell was a budding baseball star before he died on his wedding day in a hail of 50 police bullets.
"Sean Bell may have been an All Star if he hadn't been killed," he said.
Last month, Sharpton led citywide protests that clogged bridges and tunnels during rush hour.
LUNIZ RAPPER CHARGED WITH RAPE: Numskull has been in custody since Jan; faces 15 felony counts, including sodomy.
*Bay Area rapper Numskull of the hip hop duo The Luniz has been in police custody since Jan. 24 on multiple felony sexual assault charges, reports Allhiphop.com.
Three charges were added during a court appearance in May for a grand total of 15, including two counts of sodomy, one count of rape of a victim incapable of consent, one count of oral copulation against the victim’s will and three counts of corporal injury to a cohabitant.
He is also charged with three counts of possession of a firearm by a felon, two counts of dissuading a victim from reporting a crime, one count of making criminal threats and two counts of vandalism over $400.
The artist, born Garrick Demond Husbands, is in the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, CA near his home base of Oakland. The complaint from "Jane Doe," filed on May 22 by the Alameda County Deputy District Attorney stems from several incidents that occurred between March 15 and April 9, 2007.
Numskull faces a minimum of 25 years to life and would have to register with the State of California as a sex offender if found guilty. Bail has been set at $245,000. His next court date is June 18.
GNARLS BARKLEY SETS 'ODD' TOUR DATES: Duo to touch down in various cities here and abroad throughout the summer.
*Gnarls Barkley continues to add shows to a tour promoting its latest studio album, "The Odd Couple."
The duo--multi-instrumentalist/producer Danger Mouse and rapper/vocalist Cee-Lo Green—have booked gigs throughout the summer months in both Europe and the United States.
"The Odd Couple" was released in March – three weeks earlier than scheduled – due to an Internet leak. The video for "Run," the first single from "The Odd Couple," was banned in early March by MTV UK, which said it failed to pass the Harding Test, which determines if strobe effects have potential to trigger epileptic seizures, according to published reports.
An edited version of the video, which features Justin Timberlake, was submitted to the network and is now running in the UK, while the unedited version continues to air on MTV in the US.
Below is Gnarls Barkley's tour schedule:
June 2008
21 - Las Vegas, NV - Outernational Music Festival
28 - Denver, CO - SoCo Music Experience
July 2008
27 - Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Bowl
30 - Kansas City, MO - City Market
August 2008
3 - Chicago, IL - Lollapalooza
9 - Pittsburgh, PA - South Side Works
27 - St. Paul, MN - Minnesota State Fair
September 2008
28 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Festival
PASSING STRANGE HAS 'KEY' TO TONYS: Musical chooses song to perform at Sunday's ceremony. Also, Laurence Fishburne added as presenter.
*The cast of the Tony-nominated Best Musical Passing Strange will perform "Keys" – the call-and-response portion of the musical – on the 62nd Annual Tony Awards telecast June 15.
Playbill.com has also learned that In the Heights, which has been nominated for 13 Tonys — the most of any show of the season — will perform Lin-Manuel Miranda's "96,000," a joyous song about the hope of a lottery windfall.
As previously announced, the 2008 Tony Awards will also include performances from the casts of Rent and The Lion King. The original principal cast of Jonathan Larson's Rent will join the show's current company to celebrate the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical's lengthy run, which ends Sept. 7 at the Nederlander Theatre.
The current company of the Tony-winning musical The Lion King will also open the telecast with "Circle of Life" to celebrate the show's 10th anniversary.
Whoopi Goldberg will host the affair, which will be broadcast on CBS live from Radio City Music Hall, 8-11 p.m. ET.
Presenters for the program include Laurence Fishburne, Gabriel Byrne, Julie Chen, Harry Connick, Jr., Mandy Patinkin, David Hyde Pierce, Lily Tomlin, John Waters, Alec Baldwin, Kristin Chenoweth, Glenn Close, Richard Griffiths, Laura Linney, John Lithgow, Liza Minnelli, Mary-Louise Parker, Daniel Radcliffe, Brooke Shields and Marisa Tomei.
PRINCE QUIETLY TURNS 50: Artist reportedly spends milestone birthday weekend with friends at L.A. hotspots.
*Prince celebrated his 50th birthday over the weekend without much fanfare.
According to E! Online, the musician dipped into his regular spot Teddy's at the Hollywood Hotel on Friday to have drinks with friends.
Afterwards, he exited the hotel and simply "strolled down Hollywood Blvd.
among the regular folk."
On Saturday, his actual birthday, he took two young brunettes to the "Lo Hi Fi" party at Hollywood spot Green Door, according to E! Online. The artist and his lady friends set down roots at a table and kept to themselves, the Web site reports.
Also at Green Door that night was "Iron Man" Robert Downey Jr., who held court with 10 friends, including comic Richard Lewis.
MISSY ELLIOTT ORGANIZING HER 'BLOCK PARTY': Rapper's next album due in August.
*Missy Elliott's first album in three years is finally on the horizon. Tentatively titled "Block Party," the Atlantic project will arrive in August with two of the tracks - "Ching-a-Ling" and "Shake Your Pom Pom" - having already sold a combined 296,000 copies digitally.
According to Billboard, "Block Party" also features the drum-heavy "Hip-Hop Don't Die"; the sensual "Milk & Cookies," on which Elliot lightheartedly harmonizes about her capabilities in the bedroom; and first single "Best Best."
The album is Elliott's seventh and will be promoted with the artist hosting a couple of block parties around the July 4 and Labor Day weekends.
The CD will be preceded with the mid-summer release "Fanomenal," which was titled by fans in an online vote and will include exclusive tracks and videos.
The four-time Grammy winner sat down with Billboard to talk about her new projects, the state of hip-hop, and her lack of interest in digital downloads and ringtones.
YOU RECENTLY HELD A CONTEST WHERE YOUR FANS WERE ABLE TO SUBMIT TITLES FOR THE UPCOMING ALBUM. HAVE YOU CHOSEN ONE YET?
• I actually chose two. I'm releasing a preview to the album in the summer titled "Fanomenal." When I saw all the people that entered the contest, I was overwhelmed. So I'm dedicating that one to my fans because they've rolled with me since day one. I'm still up in the air about the name for the actual album, but for now it's "Block Party." The reason for that is because there are a lot of dance joints on there. It's one of those albums you can play out in the streets.
LAST WE CHECKED, YOU WERE EIGHT SONGS IN ON THE ALBUM. HOW FAR ALONG ARE YOU WITH IT NOW?
• It's pretty much done. I probably have one more song to do. I want to keep the album short and sweet. I don't want one of those albums where you have 20 tracks but only two joints rock.
WHAT SHOULD WE EXPECT FROM IT?
• This album is probably more musical and melodic than my previous ones. A lot of my albums are really hip-hop-driven, with tinges of other music genres. But this album is hip-hop, with a sort of U.K. hip-hop sound to it.
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE INFLUENCE OF GO-GO ON THE NEW SONGS?
• I love go-go. It has somewhat of an African twist to it with the drums.
Something about it feels really good. I have friends that live in
(Washington) D.C. and back in the day I didn't understand that music at all.
It sounded like a bunch of trash cans. It wasn't until I went to see the D.C.-based group Rare Essence at a club. I tell you, I've been to a trillion clubs, but none like a go-go club. People are in there dirty dancing. It was hot. It's a whole different ballgame. Ever since then, I've been wanting to do a go-go record. Go-go's been around for so long but it's never made it across the country or across the world even. The world hasn't had a chance to see D.C. people get off on their music. That's why I did the track "Shake Your Pom Pom," which is most definitely go-go-esque.
WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE SONGS ON THE ALBUM SO FAR?
• "Best, Best." I love that one. It's not your typical R&B record. It's more like club R&B with a U.K. hip-hop sound to it. It's a feel-good record, but at the same time super sexy. It reminds me of when I did "Hot Boyz." It's got that same feeling. "Hip-Hop Don't Die" is another one of my favorites. I love it because I just went in on that record. I don't think I've ever made a record that deep. It was straight rapping, like old-school hip-hop. I'm usually more comical than that. Plus, it makes sense considering the state of hip-hop.
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE CURRENT STATE OF HIP-HOP?
• Well, if anyone knows me, they'd know I try not to listen to the radio or watch TV. I've been doing that since my very first album. I think you can be easily influenced by other music, and before you know it you start doing records that sound like someone else just because you think it's music that's working. I hear a lot of great songs. And then I hear some that aren't so original and creative. Back in the day artists had their own styles. You couldn't say Heavy D sounded like Rakim, or Salt-N-Pepa sounded like MC Lyte, or Big Daddy Kane sounded like Erick Sermon. These days, people try to follow a formula because they see it's worked for others. But that keeps them from being original and creative, (or) at least not as original and creative as it used to be before.
HOW DO YOU KEEP UP WITH THE TIMES, CONSIDERING PEOPLE DON'T BUY PHYSICAL ALBUMS ANYMORE?
• That's a whole other ballgame. I was listening to Chico DeBarge the other day and started to wonder what happened to people who wanted to get the track list and the credits and the lyrics to songs. We don't have those longevity artists anymore because they cater to the times, focus on ringtones and don't put efforts into making a great full album. I think people might want to buy albums again if artists stop catering to the times and start making music that makes people want to go out and buy them again.
But, it might be a while before that happens since things are so accessible with computers and downloading.
DON'T GET MAGIC STARTED ON THE LAKERS: Earvin is a little upset with the team's level of play so far in the Finals.
*Tonight can't come soon enough for Los Angeles Lakers fans. NBA's Western Conference champs are down two games to zero going into their first home matchup against the Boston Celtics in the Finals.
EUR's Lee Bailey caught up with NBA analyst and former Laker, Magic Johnson, to find out what the squad needs to do to start winning some games.
"First of all we haven't been physical," said Magic. "We've been going soft to the basket, we've been turning the ball over with unforced turnovers. We've gotta play with a sense of purpose. See right now, our sense of purpose is not there."
"[The Celtics] get all the loose balls, they're getting too many second shots, and there's no way you can only shoot four, six, [or] eight free throws. That means that you're going soft. That means that you're not taking it to the basket. That means you're not aggressive.
"What drives me crazy is that you know Ray Allen, you know Paul Pierce can shoot threes. Why are you running back to the paint when you know they are great three point shooters? So we can't let Paul Pierce have four wide open – and I'm talking about wide open without anybody running at him – three point shots."
He wasn't finished there.
"And then that bench who we've been counting on all season long playing great - where are you? Where's the bench? Our bench has gotten outscored twice. I'm mad!"
CHUCK TAYLOR TAPS PHARRELL FOR PROMO SONG: Converse corrals producer, Santogold and Julian Casablancas to record track.
*Pharrell Williams and his group N.E.R.D. have joined forces with Santogold and Julian Casablancas to record a new original track for Converse sneakers to support its new Century celebration.
Titled “My Drive Thru,” the free track will be distributed digitally today on converse.com and authorized Converse Web sites around the world.
“I’ve always wanted to work with Julian and I’m a big fan of The Strokes. Santogold is super-talented and she cares about music so much that it’s not just about sound, it’s a visual aesthetic,” said Pharrell, the track’s producer. “Working together on original music that crossed all of our inspirations was completely refreshing and I love the track. As for partnering with Converse, I only wear and support the things that I like.
The Chuck Taylor is the golden goose egg.”
“Converse has been embraced by an amazingly diverse group of musicians and artists over the years,” said Geoff Cottrill, Chief Marketing Officer of Converse. “As we celebrate the brand’s first century, we thought it would be fun to bring together Pharrell, Santogold, and Julian, to create new music together that bridges the styles they are known for. The results are everything we hoped for and we’re excited to add ‘My Drive Thru’ into the mix of music that fans will listen to this summer."
In addition to collaborating on the track, the artists also participated in the creation of a music video that will be released during the summer. The song will be promoted, in part through Converse print, outdoor and online advertising tagged Three Artists, One Song.
ESTELLE CALLS LONDON'S MAYOR 'RACIST': British artist says he once called black children 'piccaninnies.'
*British rapper/singer Estelle has called London's new mayor Boris Johnson a racist, citing several comments he made in 2002 – including referring to black children as "piccaninnies" and describing blacks as having "watermelon smiles."
"Look at how ignorant that is," she tells Britain's Attitude magazine. "And he's going to be running our city? Look at that. Let's think about that. Better the devil you know - I go with [campaign rival] Ken Livingstone with his enlightened mind over someone that ignorant. Imagine what else he's going to do and say."
In a column published in the Daily Telegraph six years ago, the Conservative Johnson mocked Tony Blair's globetrotting, saying: "What a relief it must be for Blair to get out of England. It is said that the Queen has come to love the Commonwealth, partly because it supplies her with regular cheering crowds of flag-waving piccaninnies," he wrote. The column also mentioned that Johnson used the term "watermelon smiles" in reference to blacks.
In January, during a debate for the London mayoral race, Johnson said he was "sad" that people had been offended but insisted the words had been taken out of context. Moderator Michael Eboda, former editor of New Nation, said to Johnson: "These things are an extremely big obstacle to being able to work with what is 12% of London's population."
Johnson responded: "I feel sad that people have been offended by those words and I apologize for them."
In other Estelle news, the video for her single "No Substitute Love,"
from her new album "Shine," features cameos from Kelly Rowland, Amanda Dive and "Project Runway" winner Christian Siriano. View clip here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2iSIdiEGNE
ITTY BITTY BITS: McCrary vs. Superhead; Lionel 'survives' Nicole; Jessica Alba gives birth.
*Actor Darius McCrary has filed a retaliatory restraining order against his girlfriend Karrine "Superhead" Steffans. According to TMZ.com, the "Family Matters" vet didn't hit her with his car as she claimed. She "jumped on the trunk of my car and then the roof of my car. She started beating my vehicle and windows," he said in the complaint. He further states that she then attempted to get into the car by breaking the windows "with her fist." In another incident, Darius claims Karrine "slapped me so hard that she hit a bystander." Other claims: multiple accounts of stalking, damage to property totaling $3,500 -- and more physical and verbal abuse.
*Lionel Richie was presented with the Icon Award at the sixth annual "TV Land Awards," which was taped Sunday (June 8) and will premiere this Sunday, June 15 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Samuel L. Jackson presented Richie with the award, which salutes a performer whose talent is unmatched and whose fame and longevity are immeasurable. "Forget about surviving 40 years in the music business," Richie told the audience. "Just surviving 27 years of [daughter] Nicole Richie has been a struggle-and-a-half, I want to tell you.
I stand here as a survivor, I want you to know, for all the parents out there." For a complete list of TV Land Awards winners, log onto
www.tvland.com.
*Jessica Alba has given birth to a baby girl with husband Cash Warren, reports US Weekly magazine. The actress, who married her long-time Warren three weeks ago after a long courtship, delivered the baby at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles over the weekend. The 27-year-old announced last December that she was pregnant and engaged to Warren.
EUR FILM REVIEW: Mother of Tears (La Terza Madre)
Grisly Trilogy Closes with Another Gruesome Snuff Flick
Film Review by Kam Williams
*Although Suspiria (1977) and Inferno (1980) were also directed by her famous father, Dario, Asia Arguento was only born in 1975 and was thus too young to appear in either of those first two installments of his grisly trilogy of splatter flicks.
But now the accomplished actress has taken over the lead role of Sarah Mandy for The Mother of Tears, the high attrition-rate affair completing the series.
Filled with plenty of gratuitous bloodletting from beginning to end, the low-budget movie looks like a slapdash film school project by a D-student with a weird agenda.
From highly eroticized violence to disturbing decapitations to the ritualistic gutting of females leading to the spilling of intestines, the picture offers an experience strictly for fans with an almost insatiable lust for such disgusting displays.
Despite the fact that this is supposedly a sequel, the production is practically plot-free. The point of departure is a cemetery in Italy where an ancient urn is unearthed attached to a coffin belonging to Oscar De La Valla inscribed with the date 1815. It turns out that inside the urn is a tunic and other artifacts belonging to Mater Lacrimarum (Moran Atias), the last surviving of three evil witches who have spread death and destruction around Rome for eons.
Mater had been resting dormant, but the disturbing of the grave, of course, triggers a new wave of horrifying events. As the daughter of a white witch killed by Mater Suspiriorum, it falls to Sarah to save the day and thereby avenge her mother’s (Daria Nicolodi) death.
Fortunately, Sarah happens to be an art restoration student and also romantically-linked to Michael (Adam James), the curator of the Museum of Ancient Art of Rome. So, in the midst of slaughter, chaos and utter depravity (such as mass suicides, sacrificial lesbian orgies and babies being dropped to their deaths off bridges), the couple is called upon to solve the mystery by deciphering a set of esoteric clues.
A kinky alternative to The Da Vinci Code for conspiracy theorists with cast iron stomachs.
Poor (0 stars)
Unrated
In English and Italian with subtitles.
Running time: 98 minutes
Studi Myriad Pictures
STEVEN IVORY: A Word about Black Fatherhood
*Three black men sit at a table in the bar area of a Los Angeles restaurant one Saturday afternoon, engaged in animated conversation.
One, in a green Ralph Lauren Polo shirt and khakis, looks to be about 50. The other two, card-carrying citizens of the Hip Hop nation in dutifully oversized, sagging jeans and cocked baseball caps, are in their mid thirties, tops.
Ignoring High Definition sports blaring on a flat TV screen above the bar, the three are preoccupied with digital images each have pulled up on their cell phones and a Blackberry, which they enthusiastically pass to one another to see.
Naked women? Video games? Strategic eavesdropping reveal the images on the screens to be those of children--specifically, their sons and daughters. Accordingly, the men share stories among themselves regarding both the never-ending challenge and unrelenting joy of fatherhood.
Swigging imported brew, they are bantering about private school and college tuition, the conundrum of teenage clothing trends (Humph--the brothers in the sagging designer denim should talk) and the expense of feeding youngsters with furnaces for digestive systems.
They discuss the secret to braiding the perfect pigtail for a little girl, and joke about the proverbial shotgun that subsequently becomes the humble greeting of choice at the front door the day bumptious boys come calling on said little girl.
The men speak over one another, often boisterously, regarding the miscellaneous woe and probity of nurturing "little people" who will ultimately morph into adults with independent ideas and concepts, and perhaps one day, children of their own. Heard loudest, however, is the untempered pride these men have in being fathers.
Fatherhood is arguably the closest mortal man comes to Godliness.
It's true. According to the Good Book, God created man in His own image. Man, with profound and unparalleled assistance from a woman, more or less does the same thing when his seed creates a child.
However, biology is usually where comparisons to the sanctified end. For fatherhood is also where mortal man's love and hubris often intersect to commit shameless, impassioned acts of self-importance--like the bouncing baby boy who gets dubbed Junior. Or Daddy's Girl, who, in honor of daddy Michael, is christened Michaela, or Frankie derived from Papa Frank.
In any case, despite the grim stats, honorable black fathers are not an anomaly; the institution of American black fatherhood simply suffers a monumental case of bad public relations. Not that the lousy black dad doesn't exist. To be sure, he does. However, Black men fail as fathers for many of the same reasons fathers of any hue and background fail. Quite often, they themselves lack strong, sound examples of fatherhood.
But unlike the depressing reports of a lack of principled parenting in The Community, great fatherhood seldom makes headlines. That is, unless you are Wesley Autrey, the construction worker and Navy vet who, as his frightened four and five year-old daughters looked on, one morning in 2007 jumped into action in a Manhattan subway to save Cameron Hollopeter, a first year film student whose sudden epileptic seizure caused him to fall into the path of the train. As the train roared just inches above their bodies, the then 50-year old Autrey lay atop Hollopeter between the tracks inside the trough, keeping him from moving and thus, alive.
After the media hoopla subsided, Autrey went back to what he was doing before he saved a man's life--fathering his two little girls. No reality show contract, no clothing line, just day-to-day dignity. Autrey's girls aren't likely to one day end up some playa's bitch or hoe; thanks to daddy's stunning illustration of heroism and dynamic, selfless compassion, a seed has been planted in their young psyche as to what a real man is.
ASK ADVICE CHICK: Answers to YOUR Dating, Sex, Life, & Love Questions!
By - AdviceChick@ameritech.net
Send YOUR questions to AdviceChick@ameritech.net !
Dear Advice Chick,
*I am a female and I have a female co-worker whom I believe thinks I am a lesbian. She puts her arms around me & touches my hair. When she speaks to me she always is in my face, or whispering in my ear. She says she has a boyfriend, and she has never been married. I know that there are people who are just touchy-feely when they talk to you, and I tried to believe that this was the case, but I think hers is kind of much.
How can I tell her that I am not really comfortable with her doing that without offending her, or her trying to turn it on me and try to say that I might have the issue?
Advice Chick replies,
Just say, “Listen, I’m not comfortable with the way you express yourself to me. You might not even be aware of it, that’s why I’m bringing it to your attention. No offense, but the touching, hugging, and whispering in my ear has to stop. Thanks girl. I appreciate your understanding.”
Dear Advice Chick,
I met a guy, we went out four times (all great dates) and emailed and talked to each other during the week. we didn't kiss until the third date (kind of taking it slow). since our last date, he has emailed and called twice but has not asked me out again nor has he really told me what he has been up to (it's been three weeks)...I’m just wondering whether I should forget about it and move on or just give it more time?
Advice Chick replies,
At face value it seems like dude is no longer interested. What did you and he talk about the last two times he called? Who initiated dates one through four? Do you have that damned little sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach?
The fat lady is warming up, but she's not necessarily singing --- yet. Get to the bottom of this dilemma by calling him and suggesting a movie. If he st, st, stutters - there ya go.
Send YOUR questions and comments to Advice Chick right NOW! Please put “Dear Advice Chick” in the subject line so your email isn’t deleted as spam. Thanks! Send your emails t advicechick @ ameritech.net
----------
Ask Advice Chick about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING related to dating, sex, love, and life! She is THE resident dating expert at EURweb.com, and calls on over 11 years of dating and relationship industry experience.
THE MO'KELLY REPORT: Spike and Clint Are Both Right
*It’s hard to find fault with director Spike Lee in terms of his pride, passion and advocacy for African-Americans in film. He’s been speaking on our behalf for quite some time and arguably has received less credit than deserved, above and beyond just the films he’s made.
If there was another director would have dared touch upon the harsh realities of race in contemporary society in the manner that Do the Right Thing did…feel free to remind me accordingly.
If Lee is anything, he is consistent. He has been consistent in his love for African-Americans on and off the screen. He has been diligent in creating images of us in which we can be both proud and point to as truthful. Such authenticity from an artist is rare.
For those reasons and many others, I appreciate who Spike Lee is and what he does.
When one looks at Spike Lee through such a lens (no film pun intended) it puts his recent dispute with venerable director Clint Eastwood in a more proper perspective. At the same time, Clint Eastwood should be looked upon in an equally comprehensive sense. Clint Eastwood is a film legend and it’s fair to treat him as such. He’s not infallible, but let’s be both honest and fair; Eastwood’s directorial history has been more inclusive than exclusive in nature.
For those who aren’t up to date, Lee launched the first war-movie-salvo with the following:
“He (Eastwood) did two films about Iwo Jima back to back and there was not one black soldier in both of those films. Many veterans, African-Americans who survived that war are upset at Clint Eastwood in his vision of Iwo Jima, Negro soldiers did not exist. Simple as that. I have a different version.”
To Spike’s credit, it’s a fair criticism in terms of highlighting where documented history differs from “his-story.” To Eastwood’s credit, he didn’t set out to create a documentary, he made a film…a dramatization. One can not and should not look upon Flags of Our Fathers in the same way we do 4 Little Girls.
You have to compare apples with apples.
Where Eastwood may have trod down the wrong path was in responding with disrespect of a fellow colleague…a reputable director in his own right. When the underlying discussion is racial in nature, such disrespect reeks of having its own racial component attached.
“The story is ‘Flags of Our Fathers,’ the famous flag-raising picture. If I go ahead and put an African-American actor in there, people’d go, ‘This guy’s lost his mind.’ I mean, it’s not accurate. A guy like him should shut his face.”
A guy…”like him?”
It calls into question what is “like him?” Last I checked, Spike Lee had been nominated twice for Academy Awards for his work, only one less than Eastwood. A guy like Spike…with two Academy Award nominations, should shut his face and have nothing to say about films? Is that the message that Eastwood is trying to send?
It calls into question whether Eastwood would have been so quick to openly disrespect a non-African-American director who also had two Oscar nominations to his credit. In the context of this particular discussion of Black respect or lack thereof in regards to cinema, it’s relevant.
Very relevant. In fact, one could argue that such flagrant disrespect of Lee proved his point.
Conversely, it’s relevant to acknowledge that Morgan Freeman does not win his Oscar previously without being cast in Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby. It’s fair to cite the fact that the movie Bird, telling the story of music legend Charlie Parker likely doesn’t get made AT ALL if not for Eastwood’s labor; and neither does its star Forest Whitaker become a leading man (and eventual Oscar-winner) in Hollywood.
All of these facts are relevant. In fact, one could argue that such flagrant disregard of Eastwood’s directorial history proved Clint’s point.
Lee, sensing the seemingly disparate treatment from Eastwood had this response:
“First of all, the man is not my father and we’re not on a plantation. The thing about it though, I didn’t personally attack him. And a comment like ‘a guy like that should shut his face’ – come on Clint, come on. He sounds like an angry old man right there.”
It’s at this point that that both of these directors, though talented in their own right, had officially reverted to somewhere right around the 4th grade with the name-calling. It’s a bit disingenuous to criticize someone’s “personal attack” with one of your own Spike, just FYI. But the main point missed amongst the childish behavior is that there is merit in each of their “professional” criticisms.
Spike is right to remind Hollywood of the egregious omission of African-Americans from movies “based on true events” or allegedly historical depictions. There is “historical” precedent for Lee’s concern. Films like Cleopatra starring Elizabeth Taylor instead of Lena Horne or some other actress of color come to mind. Egypt has been in Africa for quite some time, although Hollywood historically would have you believe otherwise.
Such precedent is connected to why until relatively recently, the only African-American contributions taught in American schools outside of Black History Month were one man who had a dream and another who was pretty inventive with a peanut. Historical omissions of African-Americans hit a particular nerve within our community and Clint Eastwood should have addressed his fellow colleague accordingly.
Eastwood should know better and not have to have it explained to him.
At the same time, Lee should also remember that film is an art form first and foremost, complete with all of the freedom art implies. Clint Eastwood’s responsibility as a director is NOT to meet the historical accuracy litmus test of Spike Lee but to make good films true to Eastwood’s own vision as a director. That, and also not be so damn sensitive when “a guy like that” criticizes said vision.
Lee should have known better and should not have to be reminded of such.
Both of these directors have served Black Hollywood well in different ways. There’s no Malcolm X, if it weren’t for Spike Lee. And to be fair, there is no Bird without Clint Eastwood. I appreciate both Eastwood and Lee as they have both been important benefactors of Black Hollywood. And no, I would never expect Eastwood to ever be about the business of uplifting Black Hollywood, but undeniably he’s done more than most.
This isn’t about who’s right or wrong, as they both have legitimate reasons to stand their ground. I will say this; the next time Clint Eastwood gets beside himself in a similar fashion, I and other members of the African-American press might not be as forgiving.
The Mo'Kelly Report is an entertainment journal with a political slant; published weekly at www.eurweb.com. It is meant to inform, infuse and incite meaningful discourse...as well as entertain. The Mo’Kelly Report is syndicated by Newstex and Blogburst. For more Mo’Kelly, http://www.mokellyreport.blogspot.com.
Morris W. O'Kelly can be reached at mokellyreport@sbcglobal.net and he welcomes all commentary.
THE BRIDGE: Hillary’s Racism & Misandry Won’t Be Missed
By Darryl James
*Now that Barack Obama is the Democratic Presidential Nominee and all the dust is starting to settle in the Democratic Party, people will be taking some deep breaths and refocusing the race.
Some people will miss the daily blow-by-blow between Hillary Clinton and Obama. Some will miss the hopefulness of Hillary’s charge to be the first female president. And, still others will miss the shock value of the extent to which Hillary was willing to go to win.
However, there are a few things that I won’t miss about the primary campaign.
I won’t miss the accusations of “hatred of all women” lodged against people who simply do not like Hillary. The accusers charged the nation with hating women vicariously through Hillary Clinton’s failure to reach the White House. It is sad and silly to take the dislike of Clinton and give it universal application.
But that has been a staple of Clinton’s campaign, which is why young, hopeful women of all colors and men who think independently rejected her.
Typically, many people dislike Hillary because she is note very likeable, not because they hate women. The “hate women” rhetoric is wrong, ignorant and silly.
I won’t miss the irrational support for a woman because she is a woman, even though she is unable to beat John McCain. And I won’t miss the backward logic of Clintonites, who are fine with such irrational support for a woman, but opposed to the same irrational support for a Black candidate.
I won’t miss the whining of women who believe that Clinton was denied the White House because women are hated. They are blind not to recognize the throngs of women who support Obama, unless they believe those women also hate women.
I won’t miss Hillary playing the gender card, even shedding crocodile tears over her alleged mistreatment. I wonder where those tears were when her husband’s cheating was played out on the world stage.
I won’t miss Clinton playing the “white woman in distress card,” with those same tears and hints of being attacked by a Black man.
Personally, I resent Clinton because her camp played the race card in addition to the gender card. I won’t miss the racist remarks from her camp, including the ones from their resident slave Bob Johnson, who dances quite well to prove to Ol’ Massah that he “ain’t lak dem udder darkies.”
They should have realized that Barack Obama is not Jesse Jackson, the clown pimp of poverty who fancied himself the eternal “Go-to” man for all things Black. Obama couldn’t be dismissed as a token candidate because he is just as qualified as Clinton. And, contrary to political rhetoric, Obama, as the Black son of a single white mother, represents more Americans than does the rich, white, privileged Hillary Clinton.
Clinging to a campaign that had been dying for months, I wonder if Hillary would have gone to such great, futile lengths to hold on if she were being trounced by a white man.
I won’t miss the duplicity of Hillary and her feminist supporters who wanted to simultaneously claim that women are hated, yet, also claim her time as the First Lady as “experience” in order to trump Obama.
I won’t miss the throngs of over the hill, angry women who were vesting hope in Hillary for all the failed hopes and dreams of their lives. The nation can not pay for dreams that were deferred and consequently, died, because some of those dreams could only come true to the detriment of men.
I’m not talking about dreams of equality for women in society, I’m talking about dreams of marriage and happiness for women who chose careers over relationships and personal goals over motherhood. Personal choices that found many of them over 40 and alone, blaming men for “an inability to commit,” or “being intimidated by strong women,” when, really these women failed to commit when they were young and began to confuse intimidation with disinterest.
The decrease in marriage is not representative of any hatred of women, but of a far more complicated cocktail of societal shifts as well as the growing fear of negative results in divorce for men.
If America hated women so much, the court system would not be so heavily tilted towards mothers in child support and custody cases, or towards wives in divorce/alimony and palimony cases.
Certainly now that Clinton has finished tarnishing the Democratic party as well as the Democratic process, many of her blind supporters may come to realize the destruction done in the name of electing the first woman president.
The only thing that would have been different in a Hillary Clinton White House is the raising of a feminist flag, which wouldn’t be a bad thing if she were really about the empowerment of all women.
Frankly, I don’t think Hilary cares about women of color, or even white women, just women of Hilary, which may or may not include Chelsea. I don’t think she cares about some woman who works at Wal-Mart in Iowa being called a bitch.
Which brings me to this point: Calling someone a bitch is not the same as calling someone a Nigger, as has been asserted by some women who attempted to paint Hillary as “oppressed.”
Personally, I am repulsed by the inane comparisons of alleged sexism to real life racism.
Sorry, feminists, but there is an historical attachment of savage violence, inhumane treatment and enslavement to racism that makes sexism in this nation pale by comparison. America has mistreated no other group as horribly, and no group should make comparisons, unless they are Black women who were mistreated mostly because of being Black.
I won’t miss the misandry demonstrated by women who supported Hillary simply because she is a woman, based on what her election portended for women, not for all Americans.
In many of their words and actions, they are actually demonstrating hatred of men.
Using their own logic, we must assume that they hate men if they assert their potential achievements as women over any potential achievements of their husbands, their sons, their brothers or their fathers.
And, when it comes to my own people, I have long since called it a grave mistake for Black women to begin asserting their status as women above their status as Black people as though sexism could somehow be separated from racism and classism.
For that position, I have been repeatedly rewarded with accusations of hating Black women, which is never accompanied by any sound reasoning or proof from the ignorant and vile feminists who make the accusations.
And how could I hate Black women when my mother raised me with love? When I have two sisters who also loved me? When I have never done anything to hold a woman back or harm a woman?
My defense is starkly divergent from the racist who claims to have Black friends. I can repel charges of sexism because I came from a Black woman, and was raised in an environment without gender issues.
I can repel those charges because I was also raised with a working brain, functioning emotions and critical thinking.
With my critical thinking and world view, I realize that Hillary Clinton and her supporters are the real haters. They hate men and many men hate them right back.
There is no doubt that some of the men who hate Hillary may also hate women. But the two groups are not mutually inclusive.
I don’t hate Hillary because she’s a woman.
I dislike her because she has revealed herself to be disingenuous, less than a good person and less than scrupulous. I dislike her because she is a radical feminist, a covert racist and frankly, not a solid presidential candidate.
I won’t miss her when she’s gone.
Darryl James is an award-winning author of the forthcoming powerful anthology “Notes From The Edge.” Discounted Autographed and Numbered Pre-Release copies can be ordered at www.darryljames.com. He released his first mini-movie, “Crack,” and this year, will release his first full-length documentary. View previous installments of this column at www.bridgecolumn.proboards36.com. Reach James at djames@theblackgendergap.com.
BETWEEN THE LINES: On This Day…In This Time
Anthony Asadullah Samad
*I, too, sing America. I am the darker brother. They send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes, But I laugh, And eat well and grow strong. Tomorrow, I’ll be at the table When company comes.
Nobody’ll dare Say to me, “Eat in the kitchen,” Then. Besides, They’ll see how beautiful I am And be ashamed — I, too, am America. -- I, Too, Sing America - Langston Hughes, 1925
For the first time in the history of the United States, the nation let its darker brother out of the kitchen and into the dining room of its national politics.
A major political party gave him a seat at the table of democratic power, to lay claim for a legitimate opportunity to sit at the head of this nation’s table as President of the United States.
Political reciprocity has avoided Black America for 221 years (since the nation’s constitutional formation in 1787). Yet, on last Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008, on that date, in this time, America finally recognized the beauty of its darker brother, got over being ashamed of its past (at least in making the first big step) and gave Illinois Senator, Barack Obama, enough votes to secure the Democratic Party’s nomination for President of the United States. In many regards, part of America grew up last week.
Another part grew this past Saturday when Senator Hillary Clinton (finally) conceded. Hillary Clinton tried to coronate herself the next President of the United States, had the power and influence to set up the primary races in her favor and tried to will the American people into believing that it was her time by February 5th. It was not her time. Not because Barack Obama said so, not because the America People said so, but because destiny has said so. Destiny defines any great moment in time. People do not define great moments. People are defined by great moments. Any moment considered “great” produces it’s own energy, its own euphoria and its own outcome. Despite the routers (that tried to steer this race in Hillary’s direction), the doubters (who didn’t believe it could happen) and the haters (who want to prevent it from happening), the construction of the political equality agenda in America took a major step (social equality, currently in regression, is another matter).
Let us not be naïve or misguided in wh
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