Porrista Pics O' The Day

Here is the latest installment. These women cheer for Club America in the Mexican soccer league. America is one of the most beloved teams in Mexico. Something about a girl in soccer socks.

5 Friends On Voting

It's always cool when a bunch of famous people get together and do these public service videos. These "5 Friends" videos are especially entertaining. In this latest one, I especially enjoyed the Borat parts. "Do not vote -- not!"


Here's the first one, whose highlight for me was Sarah Silverman removing her bra. It's uncensored (words that is; no SS boobage) so be careful where you watch this:

Early Start To Hack-A-Shaq

And who thought San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had a sense of humor? The usually stoic, all-business and military backgrounded Popovich injected a little humor on opening night of the NBA when he ordered one of his players to foul Shaquille O'Neal seconds after the tip-off. It was a joke in response to criticism the Spurs took from Shaq and others last spring when San Antonio employed the Hack-a-Shaq strategy during the playoffs. It's funny how Shaq, at first, seems pissed in the video but then realizes what's happening and breaks into a big grin. Love Pop's new beard by the way.

Barack Obama-latern

Some nice handy work here in the spirt of the season:

Mike Singletary Tells It

Mike Singletary, the former All-Pro linebacker and Super Bowl champion with the Chicago Bears and he of the crazy eyes, experienced his first game as a head coach Sunday with the San Francisco 49ers and he lost. That didn't make him very happy, as evidenced during his postgame news conference. He singled out one of his players, Vernon Davis, for his lack of commitment and made it clear that he will not tolerate any me-first behavior from anyone. In this day of selfish, overpaid athletes I applaud Singletary though I have my doubts if this type of approach will work over the long haul in this era. I can hope and I definitely know that if I were a player on Singletary's team, this is one dude I wouldn't want to cross.

We All Can Be Guitar Heroes

My son Matt showed me this video and I have to say when I first saw it, I thought it was fake. It seems fake at the beginning for some reason, not sure why, perhaps because it almost looks computer-generated. Anyway, it's Kobe Bryant, Alex Rodriguez, Michael Phelps and Tony Hawk recreating the famous Tom Cruise scene from "Risky Business" to promote the latest Guitar Hero game. It's actually kinda cool to see all these megastars together acting silly.

Figure Skating Has Its Qualities

Figure skating doesn't really rate in my bo0k when it comes to being an actual sport, but that's not to say there isn't ANY redeeming value. Skate America, the first big event of the season, is taking place this weekend in Everett, Wash., and already we have something to keep track of as the competitions wind their way through the calendar, culminating in the World Championships at Staples Center in March. Oooh, can't you feel the excitement? In the meantime, here are some "action" shots from this weekend's event.

This is Keauna McLaughlin and Rockne Brubaker of the United States:

Adeline Canac and Maximin Coia of France:

Katherine Copely and Deividas Stagniunas of Lithuania:

Ekaterina Rubleva and Ivan Shefer of Russia:

Allie Hann-McCurdy and Michael Coreno of Canada:

Jane Summersett and Todd Giles of the United States:

Katherine Copely and Deividas Stagniunas of Lithuania:

And finally ... not sure the message that Pernelle Carron and Mathieu Jost of France are trying to send here:

And there's not even a photo of Tanith Belbin on here yet... stay tuned.

Ron Howard's Call To Action

Ron Howard, who most of us know as Opie or Richie Cunningham, explains why he will vote for Barack Obama. Watch closely during the Henry Winkler scene. Is that the Forum in Inglewood in the background?

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

Jack Black Is Barry Jive

Saw part of the movie "High Fidelity" this morning on cable (a highly underrated flick if I should say so myself, especially if you're a music junkie) and wanted to post one of my all-time favorite scenes when Jack Black, who plays Barry in the film, sings Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" in what in my opinion was his (Black's) breakout role. Barry Jive and the Uptown Five indeed.

Stewie, Hitler, Harpo and Lucy

In last Sunday's "Family Guy" Stewie and Brian go back in time to rescue Mort, who had inadvertently zapped himself into the past by accidentally using Stewie's time machine. Once back in World War II Germany, Stewie dresses as Hitler to score some uranium to fuel the trip back but ends up running into the real Hitler as the clip below shows.


The scene was a tribute to one in the Marx Brothers movie "Duck Soup" but also one that was, more famously recreated perhaps, in "I Love Lucy" during the Ricardos time in Hollywood when Lucy, dressed as Harpo Marx, runs into the real Harpo. One of my favorite Lucy scenes ever.


Another great scene from that Lucy episode was when Harpo plays "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" on the harp. A strange, haunting version, but beautiful nonetheless.

Drysdale's Call Of Gibson HR

With Game 1 of the World Series taking place as I write this, it seems apropos to go back in time, 20 years ago, when the Dodgers played the Oakland Athletics in the 1988 Fall Classic. As most of you know, in Game 1 Kirk Gibson hit arguably the most dramatic home run in Series history to propel the underdog Dodgers to an improbable championship. If you are familiar with this moment, you undoubtedly remember the call by Vin Scully ("High fly ball to right field... she is gone!") or perhaps you've heard Jack Buck's national radio call ("I don't believe what I just saw!"), but for many Dodgers fans the forgotten call is by Don Drysdale, who was doing local radio for the Dodgers. Thanks to a reader of the website, Dodger Thoughts, Drysdale's call lives on and you can access it at this link. Great to hear Don's voice again and to relive the Gibson moment through the eyes of someone different than what we are used to.

Barney Frank vs. Bill O'Reilly

An amazing exchange between Congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts and Fox wacko Bill O'Reilly, who definitely forgot to take his meds that day.

Ref Decks South Carolina QB

It's the play everyone in college football is talking about. You be the judge: Did this referee deliver a hit on purpose to the South Carolina quarterback or was it incidental contact? Both coaches and representatives from the Southeastern Conference said the ref did nothing wrong.

Arnel Pineda And Journey

The first concert I ever saw was in 1980 at the L.A. Coliseum. It was called the "Summer Blowout" with Cheap Trick as the headliner. Also on the bill were Russia, the Babys, Molly Hatchett, Black Sabbath and Journey. I was 11 years old and I still have vivid memories of that amazing day that turned into night by the time Cheap Trick hit the stage. Journey also left an impression on me and I saw them several other times over the years. But when Steve Perry left the band in 1987 and again in 1998 after a three-year reunion, it just wasn't the same and I admit that I lost interest. But then along came Arnel Pineda, a Filipino who the group picked to replace Perry. His voice is amazing and I only recently became aware of him though he has been touring with Journey for quite some time now. Anyway, I watched a few clips of him and the band and I have to say that he's pretty dead on. Not perfect, but he hits the high notes the way Perry did. Here are some videos.

This is Pineda's first live performance with Journey, recorded in Chile:


Performing "Don't Stop Believin'" at the same show:


Performing "Faithfully" on the Ellen DeGeneres Show:


Performing "Separate Ways" on the Ellen DeGeneres Show:

Tina Fey Discusses Sarah Palin

Tina Fey went on Letterman on Friday and discussed what everyone's talking about -- her impersonation of vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. Good stuff.

Obama, McCain Roast Each Other

This is footage from this week's Alfred E. Smith dinner in Washington where all the political and media bigwigs get together for a night of comedy. This is the final time before the presidential election that the candidates will be in public together. John McCain and Barack Obama take turns roasting each other and poking fun at their campaigns and associated stuff.
First, here's McCain:

Now, here's Obama:


It's actually kinda nice to see leaders yucking it up a little bit after what has been such a contentious campaign.

New Family Guy On Sunday

The only bad thing about "Family Guy" is that there sometimes is way too much time between new episodes. Well, there's a new one coming this Sunday and here's a little preview. The See 'n Say bit is priceless. "It most certainly does not!"

GOP: The Party Of Inclusion

Not that Barack Obama's campaign hasn't become used to this, but still when you see the overt racism that is being fueled from the other side, it still leaves you stunned that we are living in the year 2008. The above image was depicted on a newsletter sent out by a Republican women's group from the Inland Empire. What's more amazing is the story that KCAL 9 did on this. Click this link to see the video and you will be amazed at the responses you hear from the family of the woman responsible and their attempts to defend the image. Also, here is a link to an article by the Riverside Press Enterprise.

McCain Finally Goes On Letterman

Since we spent so much time on the subject of John McCain skipping David Letterman's show recently, we figured we'd post this video of McCain finally going on the show. Letterman, to his credit, tried to reign in McCain's bullshit about the William Ayers thing, among other subjects.

I wish Letterman had been stronger in his defense of Ayers, who NEVER said "We didn't bomb enough" as McCain would like to have you believe. In fact, here is Ayers' explanation of a quote from a New York Times article where he had used the phrase, "We didn't do enough" (about ending the Vietman War) and people interpreted it in ways that would help their own political point of view.

"The one thing I don't regret is opposing the war in Vietnam with every ounce of my being.... When I say, 'We didn't do enough,' a lot of people rush to think, 'That must mean, "We didn't bomb enough shit."' But that's not the point at all. It's not a tactical statement, it's an obvious political and ethical statement. In this context, 'we' means 'everyone.'"

How McCain can espouse the crap he claims in the video is amazing.

Obama Responds To McCain

I didn't see the debate last night, but this clip probably sums it up well. Keep your eye on McCain while Obama is talking. I wonder if McCain wet his pants.

The McCain-Palin Mob

These people live among you. All I can say is, wow, just wow. Gotta love guerilla journalism:


Here's part two:

Porrista Pics O' The Day

Here is the latest installment of our occasional feature. This first picture is a photo of a porrista from the soccer club Atlas in Mexico:


I think the photographer's zoom lens got stuck when he tried to take another picture of the porrista above:


There is little left to the imagination with this one from the club UNAM Pumas:

U2's One

Not really sure why I was thinking about this song, but it's one of my favorites of all time. Despite Bono's explanation about this not being a love song but rather about coming together and getting along with each other in the world despite our differences, for me it's a song about triumphing in the end and about love being the most important ingredient when all is said and done, and for that love to be enough to get anything or anyone, whether it be a couple, two friends, a group of friends, an organization, or even an entire country, through a rough patch and realize what the greater good means and how that is really all that matters in the end. There were several videos of this song made and I present them to you below.







This one features Mary J. Blige:


This one wrapping up World Cup 2006:

Sarah Palin Booed In Philly

Our favorite vice presidential candidate from Alaska, Sarah Palin, was roundly booed during an appearance to drop the ceremonial first puck at Saturday night's Flyers-Rangers game in Philadelphia. The hockey mom booed at a hockey game, how quaint. The arena had to turn up the music loud in an attempt to drown out the boos. I'm sure that was a condition by Palin's handlers for her to even appear. If you listen to the video, you can the booing the WHOLE time. It does not let up. What a joke. Also, I love the Obama-Biden signs in the background.

Jessica Simpson Makes Faces

Jessica Simpson, trying to forge her way into country music lately, had a captive audience Saturday in Concord, N.C., where she performed before Saturday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Jessica really gets into her singing huh? Very expressive. I love that she's wearing a Dale Jr. black T-shirt. The necks must be eatin' this stuff up. Are ya ready boots?

McCain Tries To Be Decent

Wow! Just wow! Nice base of constituents we have here. At least McCain tried to nip it in the bud, but geez this is a perfect example of reaping what you sow, isn't it? Now, let's elect that Arab president before anyone notices.

DirecTV's New Ad Just Wrong

I've been thinking about this one for a while and figured I'd blog about it. Is anyone else as bothered as I am when you see the new DirecTV television ad featuring a spoof of the movie "Poltergeist" with Craig T. Nelson and dead child actress Heather O'Rourke? It's just plain creepy, not to mention seemingly disrespectful to O'Rourke's family. It was played ad nauseam during the Dodgers-Phillies game tonight.

I'd really like to know the background on how this one made it from boardroom to small screen. Did Stephen Spielberg have to approve this? Was O'Rourke's family consulted for its approval? Was DirecTV simply hoping it had been long enough since O'Rourke's death that few would notice? There is plenty of talk in the blogosphere about this (you can find posts here, here, here and here, among other places if you're interested) and most of it is similar to what you read here. Someone made a good point in a comment forum saying that regardless of whether you think this is tasteful or not, most people will get an immediate impression when they view the ad and that's really what matters most since for me it puts DirecTV in a bad light and makes me not want to be a consumer of its product.

John McCain Is A Sad Codger

Classy move by John McCain in this clip from the recent debate, referring to Obama as "that one." And spare me the he's-just-an-old-man-he's-confused excuse or that he forgot Obama's name. These were calculated words. Just watch the glee in his eyes and listen to the tone of his voice when he says it.


And here's the latest evidence that the guy is losing it. Calling a group of your constituents "my fellow prisoners" isn't a misspeak, it's a sign of Alzheimer's -- or a really brief flashback to Vietnam. Watch Sarah Palin's ever so subtle change in expression.

A Stanley Cup Accident?

With so many names needing to be added to the Stanley Cup each year, the NHL has decided on a new design, unfortunately during the fun and frolic of passing around one of the world's most famous trophies, as is tradition among the players, one of the players' wives got so drunk one night that she jammed herself inside the Cup and couldn't get out. That would be a good story, wouldn't it? Actually, what you see above is called fashion. Really. I'm not kidding. This is fashion and a dress that someone is supposed to walk around wearing in public. Really. Really? The real description is below:

A model wears a piece by French fashion designer Pierre Cardin during the presentation of his entire Spring-Summer 2009 and Autumn-Winter 2009 collections at his villa in Theoule sur Mer, southern France, Monday, Oct. 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau)

This Is Wasilla

This clip is from "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" and you couldn't have written this more perfectly if you tried. Sarah Palin says she's a Washington outsider and that what this country needs is more "reality from Wasilla Main Street," in reference to the city she used to be mayor of. Real tolerant-sounding folks I must say. Jason Jones is classic.


And then there's Stewart's "Moment of Zen" ... If we let that go on too much longer, McCain might've snorted his way into a heart attack. I know it's what he HAS to say, but can he really believe it way down in the deepest darkest recesses of his soul?

Letterman Rolling Along

I've been laid up the last five days for personal reasons, so I haven't had time or energy to post in that span. But I see that David Letterman is still not letting go of the John McCain issue. He taped a special Friday show last week just so he could fresh stuff after the vice presidential debate. Here is a bit on Sarah Palin.

Sarah Palin Not A Reader

Oh, Sarah Palin! I really just have to let this video speak for itself. But I will say I love the "vast variety" of ways it makes our Republican vice presidential candidate look even more dimwitted than I ever imagined possible. Amazing. Or to paraphrase a line from Bill Maher: "Even stupid people look at Sarah Palin and say, 'Boy, she's stupid.' "