Winning excuses everything. And so Brett Favre’s ceaseless I’m-going-to-play (no, I’m not!) (yes, I am!) act, capturing and then breaking the hearts of Jet fans in less than a season (usually players have the courtesy to take two or three years to inflict this kind of pain), and somehow in the twilight of his career becoming a bigger story than the rest of the NFL combined — and that counts Tom Brady and Gisele — doesn’t matter, because with his ridiculous last second touchdown pass against the 49ers and then leading the Vikings over his former Packers, the undefeated nearly-40 QB won and looked good doing it while earning a reported $10 million this season. [Read more →]

Tags: sports by Sean Cunningham
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July 17, 2009
I dream I’m on the way to my apartment in New York and a small group of elderly Jewish people are stopped on the street. They see me going up to the door of my building and ask if they can come in to use the bathroom. I check with Gail and she agrees to let them in. When they get into my apartment they make themselves at home. In fact, they start cooking and eating and hanging around and playing the soundtrack of the movie The Producers. I’m a little put off. Then, people start arriving for a show, a series of comic pantomimes performed in my apartment. Elderly Jews enjoy comedy.

[Read more →]

Tags: Fred's dreams by Fred Siegel
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After all the credits for Whip It have rolled, the film ends with the words “To all the girls who believe you can… You can.” It is hard not to like a film with this message, especially when this point is made twice. First time director Drew Barrymore seems like a seasoned pro and is aided by Shauna Cross ‘s tight screenplay based on Cross’s 2007 book Derby Girl.  The film boasts strong performances from women ranging in age from twenty to fifty. Oh yeah, this female fest also has exciting action sequences, believable characters, a good story and it is fun. [Read more →]

Tags: Gail sees a movie, movies by Gail D. Rosen
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The FTC recently announced that bloggers who review books that they received for free from publishers should make readers aware that the books were provided for free. There have been threats of fines for those who fail to do so. See a post by our Lisa Hura on this subject. Edward Champion discusses it here. Reason magazine discusses it here and provides some links.

The official, considered opinion of the management of When Falls the Coliseum (me) is that the FTC’s position, particulary in regard to reviews of books and other entertainment products, is bullshit. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, politics & government by Scott Stein
5 Comments »

I’ve never had a desire to obtain a samurai sword, but there clearly are people out there who feel differently.

While they haven’t just broken big, samurais have been popping up in the news lately. There was the story last month about a college student who killed an intruder with a blade.  Then on Tuesday, some developments came to light in the case of a Brooklyn man accused of slashing his neighbor, a reggae performer, with the performer’s own sword. Being rooted in Japanese history, it makes sense for the samurai to have international appeal, although I don’t think its creators ever intended for one of them to be used in the way that one English man did late last year when he chose to end a dispute by stabbing a father of three to death. [Read more →]

Tags: ends & odd by Glenn Giangrande
2 Comments »

As a general rule, foods that are brightly colored are really good for you. Pumpkin is no exception. Beta-Carotene is the nutrient that turns produce orange (carrots, bell peppers, etc..) and obviously pumpkin is loaded with it. Why do you want to consume lots of Beta-Carotene? Because it protects you against cancer and heart attacks, and keeps you looking younger.

Pumpkins are native to Mexico (dating back to at least 5500 BC), and are now grown and eaten all over the world, excluding Antarctica. I love Fall partly because I love roasted pumpkin. If you do too, try my easy weeknight Pumpkin and Lentil Salad.

[Read more →]

Tags: easy weeknight dinners, recipes & food by Jessica Alfreds
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 If you decide you’d like to upgrade your Kindle, Sony Reader, or other eReader to a nifty new model, I’ll purchase your old one from you for the full retail price you paid, including the sales tax. How cool is that? There are only a couple of paltry little provisos. Read on, and I’ll explain. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, environment & nature by Michael Antman
2 Comments »

The Brutal Telling is a first-rate detective novel.  The mystery is complex and well-plotted, while the beautiful Canadian scenery and charming characters breathe life into the story.  It is a look into the very darkest corners of the human heart, a reminder that we never truly know what another person is capable of, or what secrets they may keep.

The book starts with a story, told in the dead of night by a crackling fire.

“Chaos is coming, old son, and there’s no stopping it. It’s taken a long time, but it’s finally here.”

[Read more →]

Tags: books & writing, Lisa Reads by Lisa Hura
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According to MediaBistro and The Washington Post, the FTC has issued new guidelines governing endorsements and testimonials.  Normally, this wouldn’t effect me in the least; however, these new guidelines could cost me — up to $11,000 in fines.

The new guidelines require that bloggers like me who review books online and receive free copies (generally referred to as ARCs or Advance Reader Copies) must disclose their “material connection” with the publisher, or be in violation. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing by Lisa Hura
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Over the weekend the Daily Telegraph published a very amusing story about Mahmoud ‘there are no gays in Iran’ Ahmadinejad. According to the paper: [Read more →]

Tags: politics & government, trusted media & news by Daniel Kalder
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Modern Family & Cougar Town (Wednesday, ABC, 9-10PM) — Sorry I left you hangin’ last week. Life happens. But I’m back this week and I made sure I watched ABC’s new comedies, Modern Family and Cougar Town… again. ABC, typically known for awesomely dramatic hourly sagas, has gotten funny. [Read more →]

Tags: Lauren Likes TV, television by Lauren LaBumbard
5 Comments »

Over the past few years, the NFL has made a lot of rules aimed at protecting quarterbacks. A quick look around the league shows that there really aren’t enough good quarterbacks to go around, and so protecting them does make some sense. Late hits and helmet-to-helmet hits rapidly draw penalties and fines, these days, as they should. However, I believe the NFL has gone too far in its attempts to protect its players. This is still football. Tackle football. Unless they are going to start putting flags in players’ back pockets, they need to ease up on the ridiculous penalties being called in games this season. [Read more →]

Tags: bad sports, good sports by Alan Spoll
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10. “So Much Reality! So Little Content!”

9. “The Only Network with an Organ Transplant Drama Set in Pittsburgh!”

8. “Catch This Crap Before It Vanishes Forever!”

7. “Nielsen Families: Watch Our Shows and Get a Kitty!”

6. “Better than a Poke in the Eye with a Sharp Stick! Much Better!”

5. “This is Why Benjamin Franklin Invented TV!”

4. “More Professional-Looking Than YouTube!”

3. “Our Commercials Kick Ass!”

2. “All Jay All the Time!”

1. “Swill! – Now in Hi-Def!”
 

Bob Sullivan’s Top Ten Everything appears every Monday.

Tags: Bob Sullivan's top ten everything, television by Bob Sullivan
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New York City’s Mayor Bloomberg was on TV recently, touting the expansion of the Lower Manhattan Security Initiative to include midtown Manhattan. Bloomberg is asking for $24 million in Homeland Security funds to complete this project.

Bloomberg cited London’s “Ring of Steel” that was erected in response to a series of IRA bombings in the early 90′s as an example of how it should be done. The closed circuit tv cameras, radiation detectors and license plate reading cameras are designed to monitor the citizens and protect them against both crime and terrorist attack.
[Read more →]

Tags: black helicopter watch, terror & war by David "Preacher" Slocum
2 Comments »

Justice in Roman Polanski’s case will never be served, because his case is not about justice. It’s about this week’s opportunity for everyone who weighs in on it to grandstand as a defender of justice and protector of the underdog, each side conspicuously yanking the blanket of public attention to keep its own listing stack of arguments warm while leaving the salient points of the other side hanging. There’s no blanket big enough.

“He’s a child rapist!” — “He’s an artist!” — “He’s a child rapist!” — “He’s an artist!” — “A child rapist!” — “An artist!” — “A child rapist!” — “An artist!”

A plague o’ both their houses. He’s a child rapist and an artist. [Read more →]

Tags: on the law, trusted media & news by Olga Gardner Galvin
4 Comments »

Dear Hollywood and any celebrities who signed the petition calling for Roman Polanski to be freed:

Hi there, it’s me, Scott. You don’t know me, but I watch Entourage, so I feel like I know you.

Anyway, look, we out here in not-Hollywood know you lead really interesting lives. We know that you drive cooler cars, travel to more countries, and drink more expensive wine than we do. We don’t hold it against you. [Read more →]

Tags: art & entertainment, on the law by Scott Stein
3 Comments »

It’s a late summer evening on Martha’s Vineyard and I’m playing cards with my friend Heidi at the kitchen table as breezes waft through our rented farmhouse. It’s one of my favorite things about summer: how the wind fills the house like a welcome tide. Lie down near an open window and it drifts across your body in waves like gentle surf. [Read more →]

Tags: ends & odd by Jeff Scheuer
1 Comment »

Katha Pollitt at the Nation clears up the confusion with Roman Polanski Has a Lot of Friends. At National Review, Jonah Goldberg sees the upside to the Polanski case. At Reason, David Harsanyi writes about Rosemary’s Crybabies.

Jim Treacher offers a top ten list about David Letterman’s creepy office affairs in Top Ten Reasons to Accept That Job Offer From David Letterman (via Instapundit).

[Read more →]

Tags: trusted media & news by Scott Stein
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So it was just announced that Chicago was eliminated in the first round of voting for the 2016 Olympics. The first round! I don’t care about this for two reasons:

1. The Olympics are boring and I hate when they’re on TV.
2. In 2016 I will be about 64 years old, possibly dead.

But who knows, maybe you care about this. Obama probably cares about this, at least. How embarrassing! He shouldn’t have made it so public that he wanted the Olympics to be in Chicago. Make them want it, you know. “Oh, you want to hold the Olympics in Chicago? Yeah, I guess we can make some room,” or whatever. Now we’ll all be put to shame by Rio de Janeiro, apparently. Where is that place even located? Literally no one knows.

Luckily there’s still time for Obama to save face. I have a few suggestions:

1. Public option for health care.
2. Soda in the water fountains.

Think about it, get back to me.

Tags: politics & government, sports by Kelly Conaboy
7 Comments »

Well it’s October, or as I call it: Horror Movie Month. It’s baffling to me how movie studios release titles like Halloween 2 (the new Rob Zombie version) in late August. Or February in the case of the new Wolfman, which I’d love to see any weekend in October, but not sure I’m interested in it as a Valentine’s Day date flick. Granted, I’m not a numbers guru but basic fucking logic dictates that you release horror movies around Halloween and Christmas movies in December. Anyway, since there isn’t really a cool horror movie in theaters I’d like to take the next five weeks to do a video round up — Yes, I’m that egomaniacal. This first installment will focus on classic and old horror movies.

[Read more →]

Tags: fan boy says, movies by Steve Mazzeo
1 Comment »

After his injury in the war, his leaders told the soldier, “thanks for your service, but we don’t need you anymore.” The soldier was sent home, without much help, or rehab, and no occupation, that was for sure. So he got work doing odd jobs for an economist; some days he’d dig holes, other days he’d pick up garbage at the side of the road and sell it to the economist; it was just enough to live on, but not enough to improve his situation. [Read more →]

Tags: creative writing by Mark A. Rayner
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Certain words in the English language make me cringe. There is one in particular that I have never liked, even before I had a child. Now that I have one, I really don’t want to hear this word. It’s not the “F” word. It’s the fucking “A” word. Autism. [Read more →]

Tags: family & parenting, health & medical by Nancy DeGregorio
3 Comments »

At a competency hearing for Brian David Mitchell, the man who kidnapped Elizabeth Smart when she was 14 years old, Elizabeth, now 21, ”testified Thursday she was raped repeatedly each day after she was abducted from her bedroom seven years ago and told she would be killed if she yelled or tried to escape.”

We at PWSBKTW don’t hold competency hearings for men who kidnap girls and rape them repeatedly. Competency? [Read more →]

Tags: on the law, people who should be killed this week by Scott Stein
5 Comments »

This is for real. This actually happened. A woman adopted a little boy, and then terminated the adoption after 18 months, claiming she couldn’t bond with the child. Seriously? That’s even allowed? [Read more →]

Tags: family & parenting, going parental by Jaclyn Roth
6 Comments »

Two weeks after President Obama said he would not be lobbying the International Olympics Committee on behalf of Chicago, he has changed his mind and is flying to join his wife, a coterie of celebrities and the elite of the historically corrupt Chicago political machine in Copenhagen.

Never mind that he has met with General McChrystal only once since the General asked, in August, for help in Afghanistan; that the healthcare debate is still on the rocks; unemployment is still out of control; that Obama has been spouting “Green” propaganda every chance he gets; that both Canada and Australia have announced that hosting the Olympics ended up costing the taxpayers money (that we can’t afford) — what is obviously more important is getting Oprah in front of the committee.

[Read more →]

Tags: politics & government by David "Preacher" Slocum
1 Comment »

I grew up loving books. I’m also a novelist and an English professor and I run a little online magazine-y blog called When Falls the Coliseum (maybe you’ve heard of it?), so I’ve followed the discussion about the rise of digital readers like the Kindle and the concerns about the inevitable-yet-maybe-still-far-off demise of the book with interest. Our Michael Antman argues that the stakes are high in such pieces as “Is print really dead?” and “Today’s librarian: Hip, delusional, and doomed.” In “Google my codex,” our Eva Thury refers to bibliophilia as idol-worship and says she doesn’t care about the medium or reading books on paper.

I’m a book person. [Read more →]

Tags: books & writing by Scott Stein
4 Comments »