Happy 40th, Mr. Howard
Actor Terrence Howard, of Hustle and Flow fame, turns 40 today.
The Who2 Blog
Extreme Makeover: Historical Edition
What did William Shakespeare really look like? Most of us have seen the same image for the last five hundred years, from an engraving by Martin Droeshout, done about seven years after Shakespeare died.It shows us a Shakespeare who was a big-headed, little fella, in plain garments and looking a tad shabby.
News Flash: Barbie and Ken Are “Just Friends”
Mattell sets the record straight:Barbie has never been married (she just likes wearing wedding gowns), she is “just friends” with Ken and her “real” measurements are 5 inches (bust) x 3 1/4 inches (waist) x 5 3/16 inches (hips). Her weight is 7 1/4 ounces.
Barbie Turns 50
Today, 50 years after her debut at New York Toy Fair, Barbie doll celebrates five decades as the world’s most popular fashion doll by unveiling a new face and throwing a pink-carpet birthday bash at her real Malibu Dream House.So says Mattel, in a press release datelined “Malibu, Calif.”Yes, Barbie is 50.
Joe Lieberman Now Pro-Bama
After campaigning across the country for Republican John McCain in 2008 and attacking Obama as naive, untested and unwilling to take on powerful special interests, Lieberman now showers praise on the popular new Democratic president.
A Swingset for the White House
The 100 percent cedar and North American Redwood structure has four swings, including a tire swing, a slide, a fort, a climbing wall and climbing ropes. There’s also a picnic table with brass plates etched with the names of all 44 presidents.Malia and Sasha Obama now have their own swingset.The AP has photos.
Second-Tier Twins
Pretty-famous actors Catherine O’Hara and Adrian Zmed were both born on this day in 1954. 441 miles apart: Zmed in Chicago and O’Hara in Toronto.Both were very big in the ’80s, Zmed as a star of cop show T.J. Hooker and O’Hara as a continuing part of the Second City TV comedy gang.
Keith Richards, Voice of Moderation
You know you’ve got problems when you get a “booze ultimatum” from Keith Richards.Even China Daily is on the story.
Paul Harvey Goes to That Great Broadcast Studio in the Sky
Known for his resonant voice and trademark delivery of “The Rest of the Story,” Harvey had been heard nationally since 1951, when he began his “News and Comment” for ABC Radio Networks.
Tom Brady and Giselle Bundchen Married, With Dogs
The bride, 28, donned a form-fitting ivory lace strapless gown with a trumpet skirt, scalloped edges, long train and a floor-length veil with attached handmade satin roses and attached satin headband, all by Dolce & Gabbana.
Presidential Limos
President Barack Obama, in his speech to a joint session of congress the other night, promised a lifeline to the U.S. auto industry. It reminded us that his administration came along at a time when the Secret Service was upgrading the presidential limousine.
Stevie Wonder! Yeah!
“I think it’s fair to say that had I not been a Stevie Wonder fan, Michelle might not have dated me. We might not have married.” Stevie Wonder received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song last night at the White House, after handsome remarks by both President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.
Today in Nixonology
In our new profile of Illinois senator Roland W. Burris we include a link to photos of a his mausoleum — no, he’s not dead — in Chicago’s Oak Woods Ceremony. The sizable monument to Burris lists the senator’s many accomplishments under the heading “Trail Blazer.”
R.I.P + 3
Rest in peace, Don Knotts. You died three years ago today.TV’s Barney Fife is buried near a swaying palm tree in Westwood Memorial Park in LA. (Same cemetery as Marilyn Monroe and Dean Martin!)
Oscar Winners of 2008 (or 2009)
These were the winners in the major categories at the Academy Awards held last night.(The Academy’s clumsy system means that the awards for 2008 films are held in 2009, leading to constant future confusion about which year the awards were “for.” But let’s not be bitter.)Best actress: Kate Winslet for The ReaderBest actor: Sean Penn for Milk
Woody Allen, A Supporting Actor’s Best Friend
It’s the fifth time an Allen film has earned a performer a supporting-acting honor.
Bridget Jones Turns 50
…Or author Helen Fielding does, at any rate. She was born on this day in 1959.She must weigh 15 stone by now. Jones, that is, not Fielding.
Chappaquiddick Revisited
“You just knew it would never be the same again. It didn’t mean he couldn’t have a life in public service, but it wouldn’t be a charmed life. It was going to be different.”The Boston Globe is running an excellent multi-part series on Ted Kennedy, apparently prompted by Kennedy’s poor health.
Happy Birthday, Oregon
Happy 150th birthday to Oregon, my home state.You were born on 14 February 1859 — in the same year as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Billy the Kid.
A Pair of Aces
We don’t care who was born first. Happy 200th birthday, Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin. You studs.