CBS rejects gay dating site Super Bowl ad

Super Bowl commercials usually garner more buzz than the actual game, so it should come as no surprise that the talk before this year’s showdown in Miami is all about a pair of controversial ads. Over the weekend, CBS rejected an ad from ManCrunch, a new gay dating website, but still plans on airing a pro-life commercial featuring college football star Tim Tebow. Basically, NBC is releasing a huge sigh of relief because the heat has been taken off them…for now.

Check out the rejected ad and judge for yourself:

(Via BuzzFeed)

Really cool pizza cutter designs

Perfectly cut pizza slices are a luxury most hungry eaters take for granted. If you’ve ever hacked away at your own homemade pizza, you get the idea. The good news, however, is that with the help of these merciless cutters, you will divide your next pizza with ease. You’ll probably look really cool while you do it too.

(Via GadgetHer/HolyKaw)

Urban Outfitters uses ‘Obama/Black’ as shirt color choice

Overpriced, watered-down hipster fashions purveyor Urban Outfitters fielded a slew of criticism recently by describing the color of a shirt as “Obama/Black.” Side note: the shirt actually looks sort of gray, so someone in the marketing department is apparently not only racist, but color blind too.

The clothing company pulled the shirt Monday morning without comment.

(Via Huffington Post)

Monopoly board undergoes makeover

Board game purists will likely throw a plastic house-chucking hissy fit after seeing the newly revamped Monopoly game. In celebration of the classic game’s 75th anniversary, Parker Bros. has ditched the old square board and replaced it with a circular one and made the switched from cash to credit. “Monopoly Revolution” hits shelves this Fall with a $35 price tag.

Oh, and before you whip up anti-Monopoly protest signs and organize a Facebook group, take comfort in knowing the old-school boards will still be available.

(Via Gizmodo/HolyKaw-Alltop)

Zucker threatening to keep Conan off air for 3 1/2 years

Jeff Zucker's finally lost it. From Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood this morning:

ZUCKER THREATENS TO ICE CONAN! Says "I'll Keep You Off The Air For 3 1/2 Years"; Conan Reps Counter: "This Will End Up In Front Of A Judge If NBC Doesn't Wise Up"

By NIKKI FINKE

 | Category: Uncategorized | Thursday January 14, 2010 @ 8:22am

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BREAKING NEWS!

 EXCLUSIVE! 2ND UPDATE: NBC Universal, faced with Conan O'Brien's defiance, is taking what insiders tell me is "a super tough threatening position" over his refusal to host The Tonight Show at 12:05 AM instead of 11:35 PM. "Someone's got to show NBCU that big greedy corporate dickheads can't win," one of Conan's manager-agent-lawyer-public relations "Team Conan" representatives told me. And while Jeff Zucker has not stepped up and taken responsibility for this mess he set in in motion in the first place — by replacing Leno with Conan O'Brien as host of The Tonight Show even though Jay was No. 1 in his time slot at the time — he's been busy behind the scenes. I've already reported how Zucker has been privately blaming Conan for the current debacle, saying "He let me down" because The Tonight Show for the last 7 months since O'Brien took over has been losing out to David Letterman in both eyeballs and advertiser-coveted demographics. (Bullshit, Zucker, you can't keep blaming others for your Zuck-ups.) Bad enough that Zucker made Conan hear about the planned move in the first place from the media.

But now the NBCU chief has been talking tough during the negotiations with Team Conan. To counter O'Brien's principled public statement which the late night host issued this week, Zucker "is threatening to ice Conan", according to his reps. "Zucker said, 'I'll keep you off the air for 3 1/2 years.' Which doesn't have a chance in hell of happening. What I really think Zucker wants is to hold him off the market for at least six months to a year until the dust settles and Leno is secure and Conan is squelched." One rep even compared Zucker to "Darth Vader" because the NBCU chief "has been so evil" about this.  

According to NBC's stated plans, The Jay Leno Show would leaves its unsuccessful primetime 10 PM time slot on February 12th, and then move to 11:35 PM after NBC finishes broadcasting the Vancouver Winter Olympics on February 28th. That's when The Jay Leno Show arrives in late night, and Conan's show pushes back by 1/2 an hour. To NBC's way of thinking, it can kill two birds with one stone: it won't have to pay Jay that hefty $80 million penalty for takingThe Jay Leno Show off the air because the program has "merely" moved timeslots. And it won't have to pay Conan that fat $60 million penalty for removing him from The Tonight Show because that program, too, has "merely" moved timeslots. But, as David Letterman so succinctly put it this week, "At 12:05 AM, that's not The Tonight Show, that's The Tomorrow Show! As I've written previously, the Pottery Barn rule is applicable here: "You break it, you buy it." It could and it should cost NBC.  

But I've learned O'Brien's reps now believe that Zucker wants to jettison Conan altogether and put Jay back at The Tonight Show at its usual starting time. So, to prevent O'Brien competing at NBC or elsewhere with Leno's attempt to lure back his late night audience, NBCU's Zucker has come up with this plot to "ice" Conan for the length of his NBC Tonight Show contract. It's dastardly, it's cowardly, and it could be damn effective. But there's no way Team Conan says they're going to let that happen. Bad enough NBCU horribly humiliated Conan and, as he so rightly pointed out in his statement, will damage The Tonight Show by moving it down a half-hour. With the 12:05 AM start, its ratings will never recover. After NBC made that decision, the phones at his WME agency rang off the hook with calls from every network, cable, and pay channel looking to hire O'Brien. And there's every reason for him to flee. But, if Conan exits voluntarily or involuntarily, it will take at least a year before a new show is readied and on the air. He risks losing his fan base during that time. And he'll be forever tagged by the failure. So now it's open warfare between NBC and O'Brien's reps.

Zucker's hardline stance became evident during that 1:45 PM Tuesday meeting at NBC Universal this week shortly after Conan issued his statement of defiance. On one side of the room were NBCU bigwigs Jeff Gaspin and Marc Graboff. On the other were O'Brien's reps: manager Gavin Palone, WME agent and board member Rick Rosen, and the newest member of Team O'Brien, Hollywood litigator Patty Glaser, who was hired last Sunday and is WME's legal shark of choice. Not attending were Zucker (hiding back in NYC), or WME boss Ari Emanuel (leading the WME retreat in Rancho Mirage). One of Hollywood's toughest negotiators and the model for Entourage agent Ari Gold played by Jeremy Piven, Ari. Even so, Gavin can be as mean as a rabid dog, Rick's agency reps 60% of the TV talent, and Glaser is a pitbull. For them, this kind of mano-a-mano negotiation is bloodsport. But even they were shocked by Zucker's scheming.

"Patty came in and said, 'You can't do this.' They claim they can legally, but everyone knows it's ambiguous. The contract is not clearly expressed and they are misinterpreting it," one of my sources related. "So everything now is at a standstill. There's been a proposal, and a counter-proposal. This will end up in front of a judge if someone [at NBCU] doesn't wise up."

I'd learned both NBCU chief Jeff Zucker as well as Gaspin were told about Conan's statement publicly promising to protect the integrity of The Tonight Show he'd inherited. It made Zucker furious.  O'Brien's reps didn't want O'Brien to speak out. "They were not thrilled. They told him it would undercut his negotiating leverage," one source revealed to me. "But Conan wouldn't listen to them. He wanted to make it." And yet, because of the controversy, O'Brien's Tonight Showratings have risen. While Leno hasn't received a similar bump, Conan's number went up to 1.9 in the overnights. Certainly, that has to give NBC pause, right? Apparently not. Sources tell me there's only "the slightest of chances" that Zucker will relent and keep O'Brien and The Tonight Show intact at 11:35 PM. As for Conan, if he's released, he wants to ensure his executive producer Jeff Ross and other staff who moved out from New York to Los Angeles "are taken care of". As for himself, "he's not thinking about strategy. He's saying, "I just want enough money to feed my family.'"

Pat Robertson is out of his freakin’ mind….

Pat Robertson made a complete ass of himself on The 700 Club this morning with a single quote.

“Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it. They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the Devil. They said, we will serve you if you’ll get us free from the French. True story. And so, the Devil said, okay it’s a deal.”

And as far I’m concerned, Robertson is so full of used food that it’s not funny. He gives good Christians a bad name, and unfortunately, there are so many who buy into his brand of crap that it’s just plain sad.

I’ll just leave it at that, and leave him out of my thoughts.

Better yet, text HAITI to 90999 for Red Cross relief efforts, or text YELE to 501501 to donate to Wyclef Jean’s Yele Foundation’s Haitian relief efforts. We’ve got other places where you can donate listed at 11Alive.com. And pray real hard. Because, whether you want to believe it or not, there, but for the Grace of God, we go.

Arenas wants to cop a plea — hopefully it will involve losing his job

Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas — currently under suspension by the NBA for bringing a handgun into the team’s locker room and pointing it at another player on Christmas Eve is finally trying to cop a plea, according to TMZ.But why? After all, Arenas has been telling everyone who would listen that it was “just a joke” and not a big deal — and insisting that he hadn’t done anything wrong.

Well, it looks like he may be facing felony charges in connection with the incident. Personally, I don’t know why anyone is giving him the time of day — in any other job, possessing a weapon at work is grounds for immediate dismissal. Period. But then again, there’s the bloody players’ union — who, at least with the NBA, protects petulant children like Arenas, who obviously do not have any sort of self control or what we used to call home training.

There is also his $111 million contract that is at stake.

Washington Wizards player Gilbert Arenas and the U.S. Attorney are negotiating a plea bargain … law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

Our sources say Arenas’ lawyer and prosecutors are discussing a plea in which Arenas would cop to misdemeanor gun charges. We’re told a deal hasn’t been struck yet, but it could come as early as today.Sources say the filing of charges would coincide with the plea, so it would all go down quickly. We do not know what they are discussing with respect to a sentence … the prosecutor would recommend a sentence but ultimately it’s the judge’s decision.

As for what a plea would do to Arenas’ status as a member of the Washington Wizards, we’re told G.M.Ernie Grunfeld and Arenas were text messaging each other shortly after the incident. In one of the text messages, Grunfeld wrote that Arenas had violated his NBA contract which prohibits players from possessing a firearm in a team or league facility. As a result Grunfeld texted the team had a right to void his contract … worth $111 million.

If this really came from Cos, then I’m all for it!

Just got an e-mail from my dad that gives a “platform” purported to be from the mind of Bill Cosby. If, it indeed came from Cosby, I’m all for it. In any event, I love this platform for anyone running for office, but our politicians don’t have the wherewithal to to anything remotely as radical as this.
Then again, that’s why I’m not running for office either….

Bill Cosby

has done it again…
Nothing we haven’t all said.. but not so eloquently.

Bill Cosby has a great way of “distilling” things.  Looks like he’s done it again!

AMERICA NEEDS A CANDIDATE WITH THIS PLATFORM!!

I  HAVE DECIDED TO BECOME A WRITE-IN CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT IN THE YEAR 2012..

HERE IS MY PLATFORM:

(1). Any use of the phrase: ‘Press 1 for English’ is immediately banned.    English is the official language;   speak it or wait outside of our borders until you can.

(2). We will immediately go into a two year isolationist attitude in order to straighten out the greedy big business posture in this country.. America will allow NO imports, and we’ll do no exports.     We will use the ‘Wal-Mart’s policy,  ’If  we ain’t got it, you don’t need it.’ We’ll make it here and sell it here!

(3). When imports are allowed, there will be a 100% import tax on it coming in here.

(4). All retired military personnel will be required to man one of the many observation towers located on the southern border of the United States  (six month tour). They will be under strict orders not to fire on SOUTHBOUND aliens.

(5). Social Security will immediately return to its original state. If you didn’t put nuttin in, you ain’t gettin nuttin out. Neither the President nor any other politician will be able to touch it.

(6). Welfare.. — Checks will be handed on Fridays, at the end of the 40 hour school week, the successful completion of a urinalysis test for drugs, and passing grades…
(7). Professional Athletes — Steroids?  The FIRST time you check positive you’re banned from sports … for life.

(8). Crime – We will adopt the Turkish method, i.e., the  first  time you steal,  you lose your right hand. There is no more ‘life sentences’. If convicted of murder, you will be put to death by the same method you chose for the victim you killed: gun, knife, strangulation,  etc.

(9). One export of ours will be allowed: wheat; because the world needs to eat. However, a bushel of wheat will be the exact price of a barrel of oil.

(10). All foreign aid, using American taxpayer money, will immediately cease and the saved money will help to pay off the national debt and, ultimately, lower taxes. When disasters occur around the world, we’ll ask The American People if they want to donate to a disaster fund, and each citizen can make the decision as to whether, or not, it’s a worthy cause.

(11). The Pledge of Allegiance  will be said  every  day at  school and  every day  in  Congress.

(12). The National Anthem  will  be played at all appropriate ceremonies,  sporting events,  outings, etc.

My apology is offered if I’ve stepped on anyone’s toes …. nevertheless….

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Sincerely,  Bill Cosby

Did IMAX crew get pics of Bigfoot during 2001 documentary?

Sharp-eyed Bigfoot hunters have noticed something odd in the the background of an 2001 IMAX nature film.

The film, Great North, described by producers as featuring "the wild vistas of some of the world's most spectacular landscapes," may have picked up something a little bit wilder than the average reindeer.  During a sequence showing migrating caribou a dark figure – apparently a bipedal hominid – is shown for a tantalizingly brief few seconds. The figure rises from a ditch, moves to the right of the screen, then squats back down out of sight.

Bigfoot or big nothing? Hard to say with the evidence at hand.

The clip in question is below and the entire film can be viewed on Hulu here. The figure makes its appearance at 9:18. Look to the right center of your screen just beyond the water.

The Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization (BFRO) has been in contact with the producers and the cameraman who filmed this particular segment and they concede that it could be – could be – a production assistant charged with directing the herd (nature films are not completely natural it seems). But no one has said with certainty that it is a crew member and no crew member has come forward as of this date.

Watch out for that OOOHHH!!—Sheep!

State authorities in Montana are warning motorists about hitting bighorn sheep on the roads in the state. One truck took out 8 of them Monday on a stretch of Montana Highway 1 near the town of Anaconda. Apparently, the critters like to lick the salt left on the roads after the snow and ice melts…

That's gonna leave a mark…