I'm feelin' mighty lonesome
Haven't slept a wink
I walk the floor an' watch the door
In between I drink
Black coffee
Love's a hand-me-down brew
I'll never know a Sunday
In this weekday room.
Been talkin' to the shadows
One o'clock ?'til four
An' Lord how slow the moments go
When all ya do is pour
Black coffee
Since the blues caught my eye
I'm hangin' out on Monday
My Sunday dreams to dry.
You know a man is born to love a woman
To work and slave to pay her debts
Just because he's only human
To drown his past regrets
In coffee and cigarettes.
I'm moonin' all the mornin'
Mournin' all the night
In between it's nicotine
Not much heart to fight
Black coffee ...
Feelin' low as the ground
I'm waitin' for my baby
To maybe come around.
Gonna drown my past regrets
In some coffee and a few cigarettes.
I'm moonin' all the mornin'
Mournin' all the night
In between it's nicotine
And not much heart to fight
Black coffee
Feeling low as the ground
It's driving me crazy!
Just waitin' for my baby
To maybe come around.
Please come around
Please come
Well, Walter. That must be a Spanish song. I did recognize sombrero, and a few other words, Germany.
What an unpleasant reminder that Americans are not too well versed in other languages. I guess it is because we haven't had to be.
ehBeth, that song sounds familiar. Lady Day?
How about something from Fats Domino this morning?
Blue Monday
Blue Monday how I hate Blue Monday
Got to work like a slave all day
Here come Tuesday, oh hard Tuesday
I'm so tired got no time to play
Here come Wednesday, I'm beat to my socks
My gal calls, got to tell her that I'm out
'Cause Thursday is a hard workin' day
And Friday I get my pay
Saturday mornin', oh Saturday mornin'
All my tiredness has gone away
Got my money and my honey
And I'm out on the stand to play
Sunday mornin' my head is bad
But it's worth it for the time that I had
But I've got to get my rest
'Cause Monday is a mess
Well, tomorrow is America's celebration of those who remember The Declaration of Independence. <smile>
George Sanders
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
George Sanders (July 3, 1906 - April 25, 1972) was an English actor in British and American films.
Birth in Russia
Sanders was born in St Petersburg, Russia of British parents. When he was eleven the family returned to Britain on the outbreak of the Russian Revolution and he attended Brighton College. After graduation he worked at a British advertising agency. It was there that the company secretary, an aspiring actress named Greer Garson, suggested a career in acting. His elder brother Tom Conway was also a film actor, to whom Sanders handed over the role of 'The Falcon'.
Film
He made his British film debut in 1934 and after a series of British films made his American debut in 1936 with a role in Lloyd's of London. His British accent and sensibilities, combined with his suave, snobbish and somewhat menacing air was utilised in American films during the next decade. He played memorable supporting roles in prestige productions such as Rebecca, in which he goaded the sinister Judith Anderson as Mrs Danvers, in her persecution against Joan Fontaine and he played leading roles in lesser pictures such as Rage in Heaven. During this time he was also the lead in both The Falcon and The Saint film series. He played Lord Henry Wotton in a film version of The Picture of Dorian Gray.
All about Eve
In 1950 he gave his most widely recognised performance and achieved his greatest success as the acid-tongued, manipulative, cold-blooded theatre critic "Addison DeWitt" in All About Eve, winning an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role.
Preceded by:
Dean Jagger
for Twelve O'Clock High Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
1950
for All About Eve Succeeded by:
Karl Malden
for A Streetcar Named Desire
Television
He moved into the field of television and was responsible for the successful series George Sanders Mystery Theatre and provided the voice for the malevolent Shere Khan in the Walt Disney production of The Jungle Book.
Benita Hume
Offscreen Sanders cultivated the image of a cultured playboy, a role not far removed from his screen characterisations, but in reality he was very happily married to actress Benita Hume from 1959 until her death in 1967. It was during this period that he completed his autobiography Memoirs of a Professional Cad, a work that, though now out of print, is still celebrated for its wit.
Singing
Sanders not only had dramatic flair, he was a talented singer. He released an album entitled The George Sanders Touch: Songs for the Lovely Lady and went to great lengths to get himself signed to sing in South Pacific, but severe anxiety over the role caused him to quickly drop it. Sanders' voice can be heard in one of his later films, Call Me Madam.
Zsa Zsa Gabor
He had been married from 1940 - 1949 to Susan Larson and ended up in divorce. From 1949 until 1954, he was married to the Hungarian actress Zsa Zsa Gabor. He and Zsa Zsa remained close friends after their divorce; it was Zsa Zsa that urged Sanders to marry another of the Gabor sisters - Magda - after Hume's death, but this union lasted less than a year.
Death
For many years Sanders had lived in Spain and it was in Castelldefels (a coastal town near Barcelona, Catalonia) that he committed suicide with an overdose of barbituates, leaving behind a suicide note that attributed his action to boredom (seen below). One of his final screen roles was in the 1972 feature film version of the popular television series Doomwatch.
"Dear World: I am leaving because I am bored. I feel I have lived long enough. I am leaving you with your worries in this sweet cesspool. Good luck."
Legacy
Sanders' smooth voice, urbane manner and upper-class British accent were the inspiration for the Peter Sellers' character "Hercules Grytpype-Thynne" in the famous BBC radio comedy series The Goon Show.
He has been honoured with two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame - for Motion Pictures at 1636 Vine St, and for Television at 7007 Hollywood Blvd.
He is mentioned in the Kinks' song Celluloid Heroes: "And if you covered him with garbage/George Sanders would still have style," referring in fact to his star on Hollywood Blvd and referring allegorically to Sander's screen persona.
Susan Peters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Susan Peters (July 3, 1921 - October 23, 1952) was an Academy Award-nominated American film actress.
Peters was born Suzanne Carnahan in Spokane, Washington. She began working for MGM Studios after completing high school. Her first job was to read with potential actors in their screen tests. Before long she had impressed studio executives with her own talent, and they began casting her in films.
For the first two years she used her given name and played small, often uncredited parts in films such as Meet John Doe (1941), before adopting her stage name. Her first substantial role, in Random Harvest (1942), earned her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress nomination. MGM began to groom her for starring roles, casting her in several lesser productions that allowed her to learn her craft. A starring role in Song of Russia (1943) earned her critical acclaim but the film was not a commercial success.
Married to the actor Richard Quine, she was with him on a hunting vacation in early 1945, when a rifle accidentally discharged, causing a bullet to be lodged in her spine. The accident left her permanently paralysed from the waist down and confined to a wheel chair, however she attempted to continue her acting career. An unsympathetic role in The Sign of the Ram (1948) failed to win an audience, and a starring role as a detective in the television series Miss Susan (1951) was also unsuccessful. She toured in stage productions of The Glass Menagerie and The Barretts of Wimpole Street, and her performances were highly regarded, but her disability made her a difficult actress to cast.
Her career faltered, and as her marriage ended, Peters suffered from depression. Her health continued to deteriorate until her death, in Visalia, California, from kidney disease and pneumonia, complicated by anorexia nervosa.
Susan Peters has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her contribution to Motion Pictures, at 1601 Vine St.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_Peters"
Tom Cruise
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Born: July 3, 1962
Syracuse, New York
Occupation: Actor and producer
Tom Cruise (born Thomas Cruise Mapother IV on July 3, 1962) is an Academy Award-nominated and Golden Globe Award-winning American actor and film producer. He has starred in a number of top-grossing movies and remains one of the most successful movie stars in Hollywood. His first leading role in a blockbuster movie was in 1983's Risky Business.[1] In recent years, he has received additional media coverage regarding his support of Scientology (and his related criticism of psychiatry), and his relationship with Katie Holmes.
Early life
Cruise was born to Thomas Mapother III and Mary Lee Pfeiffer in Syracuse, New York.[2] Cruise has German ancestry from his paternal great-grandparents, William Reibert and Charlotta Louise Voelker; and Welsh ancestry from his paternal great-great-grandfather, Dylan Henry Mapother, who emigrated from Flint, Wales to Louisville, Kentucky in 1850.[3] [4] His maternal ancestry is half Irish and half German (including Alsatian). [5]
Cruise had a transient existence as a child with his family residing in near-poverty throughout various locations in the United States and Canada because Cruise's father refused to pay child support after his estrangement from the family when his son was eleven. Cities where he lived included Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Louisville, Kentucky, Winnetka, Illinois and Wayne, New Jersey. In all, Cruise attended eight elementary schools and three high schools. He briefly attended a Franciscan seminary in Cincinnati and aspired to become a Catholic priest. He eventually graduated from Glen Ridge High School in New Jersey.
It was recently discovered that Cruise had suffered from child abuse when he was younger. He stated that when something went wrong, his father came down hard on him. He told Parade Magazine that his father was "a bully and a coward" and "a merchant of chaos". Cruise said he learned early on that his father was, and, by extension, some people were not to be trusted: "I knew from being around my father that not everyone means me well"[6]. Having gone through fifteen schools in twelve years, Cruise, who dropped his father's name at age twelve, was also subject to bullying at school.
Cruise started acting after being sidelined from his high school's wrestling team due to a knee injury. While injured, he successfully auditioned for a lead role in his high school's production of Guys and Dolls and decided to become an actor after his success in the role . Cruise graduated from High School in 1980.
Hollywood
Acting career
Cruise's first acting role came in 1981, when he had a small role in Endless Love, a drama/romance film starring Brooke Shields. He had a much larger role in a substantially bigger film, Taps, starring alongside George C. Scott, Timothy Hutton and Sean Penn. The film about military cadets was moderately successful. In 1983, he was one of many young teenage stars to appear in Francis Ford Coppola's The Outsiders. The cast for this film included Rob Lowe, Matt Dillon, Patrick Swayze, and Ralph Macchio. That same year Cruise appeared in the teen comedy Losin' It with Shelley Long. Also in 1983, Risky Business was released, Risky Business is thought to be the film that propelled Cruise to stardom. One sequence in the film, featuring Cruise lip-syncing Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock and Roll" in his underwear, has become an iconic moment in film history. The film has been described as "A Generation-X classic, and a career-maker for Tom Cruise".[7] A fourth film that was released in 1983 was the high-school football drama, All the Right Moves.
Cruise as Maverick in the 1986 blockbuster, Top Gun.Cruise's next film was Ridley Scott's Legend. Cruise was picked as the first choice by big producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson for an upcoming American fighter pilot film. Cruise at first apparently turned down the project, but helped to alter the script he was given and developed the film. After being taken for a flight with the Blue Angels, Cruise changed his mind and signed on with the project. Top Gun opened in May of 1986 and became the highest grossing film of the year, taking in $353,816,701 in worldwide figures. He also starred in Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money that same year. In 1988 he starred in the light hearted drama, Cocktail, the film received mixed reviews and Cruise was subsequently nominated for a Razzie award in 1989. Later that year, Rain Man was released, which also starred Dustin Hoffman. The film was praised by critics and was nominated for four Academy Awards, and won all four.
Cruise was welcomed with similar success the following year when he received Academy Award nominations for Born on the Fourth of July. In 1990, Cruise starred as hot-shot Cole Trickle as a race car driver in Days of Thunder. Days of Thunder is where Cruise first met American born and Australian raised actress Nicole Kidman, who was his co-star. Cruises' next film was Far and Away where he again was starring with Nicole Kidman. Cruise starred in A Few Good Men with Jack Nicholson and Demi Moore, the well received military thriller earned Cruise Golden Globe and MTV nominations. The following year he starred in The Firm which won Favorite Dramatic Motion Picture at the People's Choice Awards.
In 1994, Cruise starred in Interview with the Vampire, a drama/horror film that was also very well received. In 1996, Cruise starred in (as well as produced) Mission: Impossible. The film grossed $456,494,803 worldwide, and was the third highest grossing film that year. In 1996 he starred in Jerry Maguire. The film earned him an Academy Award Best Actor nomination as well as winning co-star Cuba Gooding Jr. an Academy Award, the film was in total, nominated for five Academy Awards. The film also saw the line "Show me the Money!" become part of popular culture. Jerry Maguire saw Tom Cruise become the first actor in history to star in five consecutive films that grossed at least $100 million in domestic release. Eyes Wide Shut (1999) which took two years to finish as director Stanley Kubrick's last film, alongside then spouse Nicole Kidman. Cruise also performed as a misogynistic male guru in Magnolia (1999), which netted him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination.
In 2000, Cruise returned as Ethan Hunt in the Mission Impossible films, releasing Mission: Impossible II, the film continued the series' blockbuster success at the box office, taking in $545,902,562 Dollars or 3,958,876,456 Yen in worldwide figures, like its predecessor, being the third highest grossing film of the year. The following year Cruise starred in the erotic thriller remake of 1997's Abre Los Ojos, Vanilla Sky. In 2002, Cruise starred in the dystopian thriller, Minority Report as well as The Last Samurai, which saw Cruise perform some of his own stunts, as he did in M:I-III.
In the 2004 action thriller film Collateral, Cruise combatted a good-guy stereotype which had been attributed to him. A number of Cruise's more well-known and popular movies have cast him in a similar role, one which has been half-jokingly referred to by movie fans (and some critics) as the "Generic Tom Cruise Character." In this role, Cruise portrays a character who, as the film begins, is seen as a cocky, stuck-up, self-centered egoist who cares for little other than himself. As the events of the movie unfold, his character learns to become more open-minded and altruistic, until by the time the climax has been reached, he has undergone a radical change and been transformed into a better human being. Collateral saw a surprising turn as a sociopathic gray-haired hitman with a killer smile, Vincent, who hijacks the cab to be transported to five hits in one night. His trademark smile and handling of guns took a 180-degree turn for an unlikable character who is very organized and thoroughly nasty, as opposed to his popular good-guy characters.
Cruise in War of the Worlds.In 2005, Cruise starred in Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds. The events leading up to the release of the film, notably, Cruise's very public advocation of Scientology and anti-psychiatry statements, coupled with the criticism of his relationship with actress Katie Holmes, many expected the film to be a bomb at the box office. However, the film earned $234,280,354 becoming his most successful film in domestic figures (not taking deflation into account), and ultimately earning $591,416,316 in worldwide figures. He was however, the loser of three Razzie nominations at the end of the year.
Producing career
Cruise teamed with producer Paula Wagner to form Cruise/Wagner Productions, which has co-produced several of Cruise's films[7], the first being Mission: Impossible in 1996, Cruises' first work as a producer. He won a Nova Award (shared with Paula Wagner, Cruise's producing partner at Cruise/Wagner Productions) for Most Promising Producer in Theatrical Motion Pictures at the PGA Golden Laurel Awards in 1997 for his work as a producer on Mission Impossible.
His next project as a producer was the 1998 film, Without Limits, a film about famous runner Steve Prefontaine. Cruise returned to work as a produced in 2000, continuing work on the Mission Impossible sequel. He then served as an executive producer for The Others which starred Nicole Kidman, also that year, he again worked as actor/producer in Vanilla Sky. He subsequently worked on (but did not star in) Narc, Hitting It Hard and Shattered Glass, with Shattered Glass being particularly successful. His next project, which he also starred in, was The Last Samurai, he was jointly nominated for the Motion Picture Producer of the Year Award at the 2004 PGA Golden Laurel Awards. He then worked on Suspect Zero, Elizabethtown and Ask the Dust. he reprised his role as actor/producer in the third 'Mission Impossible film.
Tom Cruise is noted as having negotiated some of the most lucrative movie deals in Hollywood, and was described in 2005 by Hollywood economist Edward Jay Epstein as "one of the most powerful - and richest - forces in Hollywood". Epstein argues that Cruise is one of the few producers (the others being George Lucas, Steven Spielberg and Jerry Bruckheimer) who are regarded as able to guarantee the success of a billion-dollar movie franchise. Epstein also contends that the public obsession with Cruise's tabloid controversies obscures full appreciation of Cruise's exceptional commercial prowess in the industry [8].
Cruise-Wagner Productions, Tom Cruise's film production company, is said to be developing a screenplay based on Erik Larson's New York Times bestseller, "The Devil in the White City" about a real life serial killer at the Chicago World's Fair. Kathryn Bigelow is attached to the project to produce and helm. Meanwhile, Leonardo DiCaprio's production company, Appian Way, is also developing a film about Holmes and the World's Fair, in which DiCaprio will star. [9]
Popularity
In 1990, 1991 and 1997, People magazine rated him among the 50 most beautiful people in the world.[1] In 1995, Empire magazine ranked him among the 100 sexiest stars in film history.[1] Two years later, it ranked him among the top 5 movie stars of all time.[1] In 2002 and 2003, he was rated by Premiere among the top 20 in its annual Power 100 list.[1]
In 2006, Premiere magazine established Cruise as Hollywood's most powerful actor, as Cruise came in at number 13 on the magazines 2006 Power List, being the highest ranked actor.[8]
On 16 June, 2006, Forbes magazine published 'The Celebrity 100', a list of the most powerful celebrities, in which Cruise came top. The list was generated using a combination of income (between June 2005 and June 2006), web references by Google, press clips compiled by LexisNexis, television and radio mentions (by Factiva), and the number of times a celebrity appeared on the cover of 26 major consumer magazines.
Relationships
Mimi Rogers
Cruise was married to Mimi Rogers (married on May 9, 1987, divorced February 4, 1990)[1]. Scientology took interest in the divorce because Rogers was disaffected from Scientology (although she introduced Cruise to the religion in the first place); in managing the divorce for Cruise, they were able to convince her to accept a relatively paltry $10 million for the settlement. [10].
Nicole Kidman
Cruise met Nicole Kidman on the set of their film Days of Thunder. The couple married on December 24, 1990 and divorced on August 8, 2001.[1] He and Kidman adopted two children, Isabella (born 1993) and Connor (born 1995).[1] Cruise left Kidman three months pregnant, just shy of their 10 year wedding anniversary; she lost the child[11]. Reportedly, Kidman refused to explore Scientology and remained Catholic during their marriage.
Penélope Cruz
Cruise was next romantically linked with Penélope Cruz, the lead actress in his film Vanilla Sky. In March 2004, he announced that his relationship with Penélope Cruz had ended in January. It was suggested that Scientology played a role in the relationship failing. [12]
Katie Holmes
Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes at a Yahoo! press conference in March 2006.In April 2005, Cruise began dating Katie Holmes, before announcing on 17 June 2005 that he had proposed to her at the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. [13] She accepted his proposal, and the couple were expected to be married in the summer or autumn of 2006. On April 18, 2006 Katie gave birth to a baby girl named Suri, whose name was chosen with its relation to Scientology, the Persian Rose, the birthplace and the "Hebrew word" (which Cruise had erroneously believed to mean princess). [9] She is the first child for Holmes and third for Cruise, who (as previously mentioned) has two adopted children with Nicole Kidman. [10] Coincidentally, Suri was born on the same day that Brooke Shields, whom Cruise had criticized less than a year earlier for treating her postpartum depression with antidepressants, gave birth to her second child.
Controversy
Scientology
Cruise is arguably Hollywood's most outspoken member of the Church of Scientology. He became involved with Scientology in 1990 through his first wife, Mimi Rogers.[11] It has been claimed that Cruise belongs to one of the highest echelons of the "Church of Scientology", known as "Operating Thetan Seven" or OT-VII [12], and it has been suggested that Cruise's increasing willingness to talk openly about Scientology may be a reflection of this. [13]
Wikinews has news related to:
Tom Cruise debates psychiatry on Today showA controversy erupted in 2005 after he openly criticized actress Brooke Shields for using the drug Paxil, an anti-depressant, of which Shields attributes her recovery from postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter in 2003. Cruise asserted that there is no such thing as a chemical imbalance, and that psychiatry is a form of pseudoscience. This led to a heated argument with Matt Lauer on The Today Show on June 24, 2005.[14] Brooke Shields responded to Cruise's comments as "irresponsible and dangerous"[15].
Cruise has publicly said that Scientology, specifically the L. Ron Hubbard Scientology Study Tech, helped him overcome his dyslexia.[16]
Cruise with Dr. Szasz shown at a CCHR annual dinner.Cruise also claimed in an Entertainment Weekly interview that psychiatry "is a Nazi science" and that methadone was actually originally called Adolophine after Adolf Hitler, a myth well-known as an urban legend. [17] In an interview with Der Spiegel magazine, Cruise claimed that "In Scientology, we have the only successful drug rehabilitation program in the world. It's called Narconon... It's a statistically proven fact that there is only one successful drug rehabilitation program in the world. Period". While Narconon claims to have a success rate over 70% [18], the accuracy of this figure has been widely disputed. [19] It has been reported that Cruise adopted his anti-psychiatry philosophies from Dr. Thomas Szasz, a leading critic of the moral and scientific foundations of psychiatry. [20]
As of 2005, Tom Cruise has begun campaigning on behalf of the Church of Scientology before politicians and government officials around the world. Such advocacy does not go well in several European countries where this organization is considered to be a cult. As an example, on July 13th, 2005, after it was learned that he lobbied Nicolas Sarkozy and Jean-Claude Gaudin (the mayor of Marseille), the city council of Paris vowed "never to receive [before the council or the mayor] the actor Tom Cruise, spokesman for Scientology and self-declared militant for this organisation" [21][22]
He has also campaigned and raised donations for Downtown Medical, which he co-founded, to offer New York 9/11 rescue workers detoxification therapy based on the works of L. Ron Hubbard. This has drawn criticism from the medical profession[23], as well as firefighters.[24]
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Isaac Hayes quits South Park over Scientology episodeOn March 13, 2006 (L. Ron Hubbard's birthday), Scientologist Isaac Hayes quit the television show South Park, reportedly because of a controversial episode that satirized Scientology. Dubbed "Closetgate" by the Los Angeles Times, the controversy continued as Comedy Central, the channel that broadcasts South Park in the U.S., pulled the "Trapped in the Closet" episode at the last minute from a scheduled repeat on March 15, 2006. It was alleged that Cruise threatened Paramount with withdrawal from promotion of his latest film Mission Impossible 3 if the episode was broadcast. Viacom owns both Paramount and Comedy Central. Paramount and Cruise's representatives denied any threats. Trey Parker and Matt Stone, in a typically satirical response, claimed to be "servants of Xenu" and declared that the "million-year war for Earth" had only just begun. The LA Times reported that, "For Stone and Parker, Closetgate will be the gift that keeps on giving." [25]
Concern has also been voiced about Holmes and her relationship to Scientology. Roger Friedman of the Fox News Channel claimed that Katie Holmes disappeared for sixteen days in April 2005 when even her own family did not know her whereabouts. [26] Allegedly, the last time she had been seen, Holmes had flown to meet with Tom Cruise for a possible role in Mission Impossible 3. When she re-appeared, Holmes stated she was in love with Tom Cruise and studying Scientology. The actress then fired her long-time manager and agent and acquired Jessica Rodriguez, a prominent member of the Church of Scientology. [27]
2005 Oprah appearance
Tom Cruise jumps ecstatically on Oprah's couchCruise has indulged in over-the-top media-friendly expressions of his deep love for Holmes, most notably the "couch incident" which took place on the popular talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show of May 23, 2005: Cruise ?- in the words of The New York Times ?- "jumped around the set, hopped onto a couch, fell rapturously to one knee and repeatedly professed his love for his new girlfriend." This scene has been parodied in numerous venues in film (Scary Movie 4) and TV (Family Guy) (the "couch incident" was voted #1 of 2005's "Most Surprising Television Moments" on a countdown on E! [28] ), and the Internet (including one YTMND reworking of the scene to make it look like Cruise kills Oprah with Sith lightning emanating from his hands).[29] Comedian Dane Cook parodied the incident a week later on Jimmy Kimmel, professing his love for Katie Holmes with a home-made tattoo on his back (A photograph affixed with tape) and going all the way to the female restroom to get her. In early 2006, when James Frey made his infamous appearance on Oprah, Best Week Ever released a mashup of Cruise's appearance and Frey's[30], in which Oprah appears to call Cruise a liar.
Litigation
The Daily Express newspaper ?- During his marriage to actress Nicole Kidman, the couple endured public speculation about their sex life and rumors that Cruise was gay. In 1998, he sued a British tabloid that alleged that the marriage was a sham designed to cover up his homosexuality.[31]
David Ehrenstein - Tom Cruise's lawyers threaten to sue Ehrenstein for his book titled "Open Secret: Gay Hollywood 1928-1998", that discussed Cruise's appeal to both men and women [14].
Chad Slater ?- In May 2001 he filed a lawsuit against gay porn actor Chad Slater (aka Kyle Bradford). Slater had allegedly told the celebrity magazine Actustar that he had engaged in an affair with Cruise. Both Slater and Cruise denied this, and in August 2001 Slater was ordered to pay $10 million to Cruise in damages.[32]
Michael Davis ?- He also sued Michael Davis, a magazine publisher, who alleged that he had photographs that would prove Tom Cruise was homosexual; this suit was dropped in exchange for a public statement by Davis that Tom Cruise was heterosexual.[33]
Buffalo Beast newspaper - After The Beast's publication of their 50 Most Loathsome People of 2004 (which included Cruise in the list), Cruise's lawyer Bertram Fields threatened to sue the small independent publication. The Beast, seeing the opportunity for nationwide exposure (particularly after the story broke on the entertainment program Celebrity Justice and later in mainstream newspapers) actively encouraged the lawsuit, effectively calling Fields' bluff. No lawsuit was ever filed and Cruise was included more prominently in the 2005 list. [34]
Publicist
Cruise's more open attitude to Scientology has been attributed to the departure of his publicist of 14 years, Pat Kingsley, in March 2004. He replaced her with his sister, fellow Scientologist Lee Anne DeVette, who served in that role until November 2005 [15]. He then demoted his sister and replaced her with veteran publicist Paul Bloch, from the publicity firm Rogers and Cowan. Such restructuring is seen as a move to curtail publicity about his Scientology views, as well as the hard-sell of the Tom/Kat relationship backfiring with the public [16], [17]. DeVette explained that it was her decision to work on philanthropic projects rather than publicity[18].
Miscellaneous
In April 2005, Cruise began dating Katie Holmes. This very public love affair took a dramatic turn when Cruise and Holmes got engaged in Paris [19] while on a world publicity tour for their two most recent movies (War of the Worlds for Cruise, and Batman Begins for Holmes). War of the Worlds director Steven Spielberg indicated that he was frustrated by media coverage of Cruise's relationship during promotion of the film, though he believed it to be genuine. [20] On October 5, 2005, it was reported by People magazine that Holmes was pregnant. Cruise came under fire from various medical professionals after he bought a sonogram machine to monitor his baby. The American College of Radiology claims that overuse or misuse of the medical equipment is unnecessary and could be harmful to the baby's health, and that it may be illegal to own. [21] On May 4, 2006 the California Assembly passed a bill to ban distribution of ultrasound machines to non-licensed practitioners, though the law must still go through the Senate.[35] On April 18, 2006 Holmes gave birth to a baby girl named Suri, the first child for Holmes and the third child for Cruise who had adopted two children with Nicole Kidman [1]: Connor Antony (born January 17, 1995) and Isabella Jane (born December 22, 1992).
Cruise's behavior in recent interviews and his very public romance with Katie Holmes led him to become the butt of numerous jokes on late night television shows such as Late Night with Conan O'Brien. [22] The jokes commonly referred to Cruise being insane or parody the Lauer interview.
In February 2006 an article in Life & Style magazine reported that Cruise and Holmes were splitting up, but keeping up a public pretense until the Spring (when the birth of their child will roughly coincide with the release of Mission Impossible 3, Cruise's next film). Arnold Robinson, a publicist for the couple, denied there being any truth to the story. A representative for Life & Style magazine responded, "We stand 100 percent behind our story", and claimed it had been verified by two anonymous friends of Cruise. [23]
In an April 2006 interview with GQ magazine taken while Holmes was pregnant, Cruise jokingly suggested that he might eat her placenta after birth - a health practice known as placentophagy. He was quoted as saying "I'm gonna eat the placenta. I thought that would be good. Very nutritious. I'm gonna eat the cord and the placenta right there." But when the interviewer said it would be a big meal, Cruise replied: "OK, maybe I won't." In a later interview with Diane Sawyer, Cruise joked about the comments and said he wasn't really going to eat it. [24][25][26]
During the London premiere of War of the Worlds, Cruise was on one of his familiar walkabouts when much to his surprise he was squirted with a water pistol (disguised as a microphone) by a performer working on a TV program for the Channel Four Station in the UK, in which various famous people were targeted for practical jokes. While nearly losing his composure, the actor called the perpetrator a "jerk" and said he was "incredibly rude". Police later made arrests after the incident, but no charges were later brought.[27] The program in question was entitled Balls Of Steel.
Tom Cruise's height has also been a subject of much speculation. IMDB.com previously listed it at 5'11', but has revised it to 5'7". The Web site bigheadedpygmies.com [28] suggests that figure is also inflated by wearing boots and potentially shoe lifts, which are common among many celebrities.
A magazine recently ran a "Dilbert Quotes" contest. They were looking for people to submit quotes from their real-life Dilbert-comic-strip-type managers. These were voted the top ten quotes from the managers we work for in corporate America.
"As of tomorrow, employees will only be able to access the building using individual security cards. Pictures will be taken next Wednesday, and employees will receive their cards in two weeks." (This was the winning quote from Fred Dales, Microsoft Corp. in Redmond WA)
"What I need is an exact list of specific unknown problems we might encounter." (Lykes Lines Shipping)
"E-mail is not to be used to pass on information or data. It should be used only for company business." (Accounting manager, Electric Boat Company)
"This project is so important we can't let things that are more important interfere with it." (Advertising/Marketing manager, United Parcel Service)
"Doing it right is no excuse for not meeting the schedule." (Plant Manager, Delco Corporation)
"No one will believe you solved this problem in one day! We've been working on it for months. Now go act busy for a few weeks and I'll let you know when it's time to tell them." (R&D supervisor, Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing/3M Corp.)
Quote from the Boss: "Teamwork is a lot of people doing what I say." (Marketing executive, Citrix Corporation)
My sister passed away and her funeral was scheduled for Monday. When I told my Boss, he said she died on purpose so that I would have to miss work on the busiest day of the year. He then asked if we could change her burial to Friday. He said, "That would be better for me." (Shipping executive, FTD Florists)
"We know that communication is a problem, but the company is not going to discuss it with the employees." (Switching supervisor, AT&T Long Lines Division)
Well, listeners, we are so glad to have our hawkman back with us. Thanks, Boston Bob, for all the background on the rich and famous.
Ah, corporate America. Methinks they are cryptic on purpose. Loved those reminders, honey.
In looking at the info on Tom Cruise, and the conjectures of his height, I was reminded of "The Real Measure of a Man."
The Measure Of A Man
The real measure of a man
Is not how well he takes a fall.
It is in how well he rises
If that man should go down at all.
If he blusters with bravado,
He's blowing wind into his sail.
But the day that sail starts to tear,
Will be the day that man will fail.
And men who challenge other men,
Of lesser skill or smaller size,
Will retreat from even combat,
Or they will try to compromise.
The man dependant on his looks,
Will later learn he can't depend,
On what the ravages of time,
Will cause to crumble, in the end.
Those who believe it is money,
The biggest house, or fastest car;
Are not unlike an empty box,
For the wrapping is all they are.
To know the measure of a man,
You will have to know where to start.
You won't find it on the surface,
It's only found within the heart.
Lovely poem, no?
I guess the only movie that showcased Tom Cruise for me, was Collateral. Dustin Hoffman stole the show in Rain Man.
I know that I read a book called The Sign of the Ram when I was a kid, but I can't find the damned thing on google, cause everything is commercial now. That's probably why I have such a difficult time locating places.
Here is a poem that is intriguing:
Amphora
Catherine Daly
Once the clay is formed, human terms describe the pots, because handles are arms or ears, because clay means adam or my feet are clay, the first instance, opposite an hourglass in shape. Women are time or pregnant. Time sifts down, mixing with inevitable water. Time becomes mud becomes clay. History builds.
Once the clay is spun on the wheel, it is shaped into anything he desires; he -- men made forms -- women decorated, maybe, anathema. Clay cures.
Once the form is made, slip is painted, and for once, the pot is fired.
Once the pot is hard and durable, it is a vessel. Not a ship, a shape to store and transport liquid, perhaps on a ship, stores of wine, grain, olives.
Once carried, I carried an amphora once.
big smile for you, hbg. I don't know what it is, but I have lost my taste for alcohol. I do have a screwdriver once in a great while.
When I go out to eat, I have a martini with three olives and Tangeray gin. You only need one martini, because it's a sipping drink.
A song by Pink Martini:
PINK MARTINI » Sympathique
Ma chambre a la forme d'une cage
Le soleil passe son bras par la fenêtre
Les chasseurs à ma porte
Comme les p'tits soldats
Qui veulent me prendre
Je ne veux pas travailler
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
Je veux seulement l'oublier
Et puis je fume
Déjà j'ai connu le parfum de l'amour
Un million de roses n'embaumerait pas autant
Maintenant une seule fleur dans mes entourages
Me rend malade
Je ne veux pas travailler
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
Je veux seulement l'oublier
Et puis je fume
Je ne suis pas fière de ça
Vie qui veut me tuer
C'est magnifique être sympathique
Mais je ne le connais jamais
Je ne veux pas travailler
Non
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
Je veux seulement l'oublier
Et puis je fume
Je ne suis pas fière de ça
Vie qui veut me tuer
C'est magnifique être sympathique
Mais je ne le connais jamais
Je ne veux pas travailler
Non
Je ne veux pas déjeuner
Je veux seulement l'oublier
Et puis je fume.
I searched for that song for quite a while, and got it in French.
I should have done Pink Champagne.
Jealous Guy
I was dreaming of the past.
And my heart was beating fast,
I began to lose control,
I began to lose control,
I didn't mean to hurt you,
I'm sorry that I mad you cry,
I didn't want to hurt you,
I'm just a jealous guy,
I was feeling insecure,
You night not love me any more,
I was shivering inside,
I was shivering inside,
I was trying to catch your eyes,
Thought that you were trying to hide,
I was swallowing my pain,
I was swallowing my pain.
I didn't mean to hurt you,
I'm sorry that I mad you cry,
I didn't want to hurt you,
I'm just a jealous guy,
I'm just a jealous guy,
Watch out
I'm just a jealous guy...
Artist: John Lennon Lyrics
Hi all. Talking about drinks, how about a
SHERRY DARLING
Bruce Springsteen Lyrics
Your Mamma's yappin' in the back seat
Tell her to push over and move them big feet
Every Monday morning I gotta drive her down to the unemployment agency
Well this morning I ain't fighting tell her I give up
Tell her she wins if she'll just shut up
But it's the last time that she's gonna be ridin' with me
(Chorus)
You can tell her there's a hot sun beatin' on the black top
She keeps talkin' she'll be walkin' that last block
She can take a subway back to the ghetto tonight
Well I got some beer and the highway's free
And I got you, and baby you've got me.
Hey, hey, hey what you say Sherry Darlin'
Now there's girls melting on the beach
And they're so fine but so far out of reach
Cause I'm stuck in traffic down here on 53rd street
Now Sherry my love for you is real
But I didn't count on this package deal
And baby this car just aint big enough for her and me
(Chorus)
So you can tell her there's a hot sun beatin' on the black top
She keeps talkin' she'll be walkin' that last block
She can take a subway back to the ghetto tonight
Well I got some beer and the highway's free
And I got you, and baby you've got me.
Hey, hey, hey what you say Sherry Darlin'
Well let there be sunlight, let there be rain
Let the brokenhearted love again
Sherry we can run with our arms open before the tide
To all the girls down at Sacred Heart
And all you operators back in the Park
Say hey, hey, hey what you say Sherry Darlin'
Hey, hey, hey, what you say Sherry Darlin'
Ah, Rex. Lennon did a lot of music, and it changed from phase to phase, no? Thanks, Maine.
I was thinking of a song by Johnny Mercer today, because our travel forum inspired it.
Ella Fitzgerald version:
Midnight Sun
Your lips were like a red and ruby chalice, warmer than the summer night
The clouds were like an alabaster palace rising to a snowy height.
Each star its own aurora borealis, suddenly you held me tight
I could see the Midnight Sun.
I can't explain the silver rain that found me--or was that a moonlit veil?
The music of the universe around me, or was that a nightingale?
And then your arms miraculously found me,suddenly the sky turned pale,
I could see the Midnight Sun.
Was there such a night, it's a thrill I still don't quite believe,
But after you were gone, there was still some stardust on my sleeve.
The flame of it may dwindle to an ember, and the stars forget to shine,
And we may see the meadow in December, icy white and crystalline,
But oh my darling always I'll remember when your lips were close to mine,
And we saw the Midnight Sun.
Solo (Xilophone)
The flame of it may dwindle to an ember, and the stars forget to shine,
And we may see the meadow in December, icy white and crystalline,
But oh my darling always I'll remember when your lips were close to mine,
And I saw the Midnight Sun, the Midnight Sun, the Midnight Sun --
The Midnight Sun----
I'm always missing you, Try. Why? Cause you're fast. <smile> Well, since tomorrow is our big celebration day, how about this one from the Boss.
The U.S.A. Lyrics
by Bruce Springsteen
Born down in a dead man's town
The first kick I took was when I hit the ground
You end up like a dog that's been beat too much
'Til you spend half your life just covering up
[chorus:]
Born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
I got in a little hometown jam
And so they put a rifle in my hands
Sent me off to Vietnam
To go and kill the yellow man
[chorus]
Come back home to the refinery
Hiring man says "Son if it was up to me"
I go down to see the V.A. man
He said "Son don't you understand"
[chorus]
I had a buddy at Khe Sahn
Fighting off the Viet Cong
They're still there, he's all gone
He had a little girl in Saigon
I got a picture of him in her arms
Down in the shadow of the penitentiary
Out by the gas fires of the refinery
I'm ten years down the road
Nowhere to run, ain't got nowhere to go
I'm a long gone Daddy in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
I'm a cool rocking Daddy in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Letty, can't play that one without playing Cheech Marin's reply
the final adlibbed stanza i transcribed as best i could. i used to live scant blocks from the corner of Soto St. & Brooklyn Ave. by the way
(Cheech:)
Took a walk to the corner store
Just to buy a loaf of bread and a box of s`mores
Up pulled a guy in a yellow van
Shiny gold badge flashing in his hand
(Chong:)
He said, alright all you mojados down here
I want you all to hit the floor
I got one thing to ask you and nothing more
So answer in English, if you can
Where were ya born, man
(Cheech:)
Huh? Where was I born?
(Chong:)
That`s right, I said
Where were ya born?
(Cheech:)
Hey, are you one of those dudes who do horoscopes, man
Hey, I`m a Cancer with a bad moon rising
(Chong:)
Look here el fago, watch my lips
Where were ya born?
(Cheech:)
I was BORN IN EAST L.A.
Man, I was BORN IN EAST L.A.
(Chong:)
Oh yeah, you were BORN IN EAST L.A.
Let`s see your green card
(Cheech:)
Huh? Green card?
I`m from East LA
(Chong:)
Alright, then who`s President of the United States
(Cheech:)
Oh, that`s easy, man
That guy that used to be on Death Valley Days, John Wayne
(Chong:)
Alright, let`s go, come on
(Cheech:)
Next thing I know, I`m in a foreign land
People talkin so fast, I couldn`t understand
There was nobody there to lend a helping hand
I was cold, it was dark where is a burger stand
I want to go back to East LA
I wish I was back in East LA
I don`t belong here in downtown T.J.
Cause I was born in East LA, Ole!
I crawled under barbed wire, swam across a stream
Rode in six different trucks packed like a sardine
Walked all day in the burning sun
Now I know what it`s like to be born to run
Up ahead was the promised land
Shining like a star just beyond my hand
All I could see was a golden door
I looked up, a sign said five billion sold
And I was back in East LA
Yes, I was back in East LA
You know I`m never gonna stray
Cause I was born in East LA Orale!
I'm a low rider vato from East LA Cuidate!
Born in East LA Orale!
Soto Street Orale!
Brooklyn Avenue Orale!
City Terrace Orale!
Whittier Boulevard Orale!
I'm a lowrider vato from far away Orale!
EAST LA!!!
) !