Derek McGinty Reads AAEA Prez Email On Evening News

WUSA Channel 9 AnchorDerek McGinty, left, has the best newscast in Washington, D.C. at 7 p.m. He read the following email written by AAEA President Norris McDonald, right, on the newscast this evening:

"Everybody wants air conditioning on these hot summer days but nobody wants a power plant or electricity lines in their backyard. The Washington Metropolitan Area needs more power and nuclear power plants do not emit smog or greenhouse gases. Oh? No nukes? Then sit out on the front porch like inner city folk with a nice ice tea and stop complaining about high prices for energy."

Read More

Elitists at Madame Tussauds Ignore Zahara & Maddox

Madame Tussauds Wax Museum near New York's Times Square unveiled its Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie-Pitt exhibit, above, with their newborn Shilou but without adoptees Maddox, right, and Zahara, left. Ignored again. Some racist elitist types are determined to make minorities, particularly blacks, invisible. Will they correct the oversight or will they dig in and maintain their arrogance?

Read More

Congress Provides No Protection From Different Treatment

Cynthia McKinney has a run-in with Capitol Hill police and she is threatened with assault charges and possible censure. Patrick Kennedy almost hits a Capitol Hill policeman with his car as he is driving under the influence of prescription medication (right) and he is driven home by the Capitol Hill police.

Read More

Different Treatment For Different People

Katie Couric makes a fuss on an airplane and they stop, return to the terminal and pick up her producer at her request. Mo'Nique makes a fuss and they threaten her with arrest, call her belligerent and put her off the airplane.

Read More

Moon Landing : Rare Video Shows True Environment

We were really shocked to see this new footage. Watch the full one-minute video and your eyes will be opened to a never before seen environmental condition on the Moon. Click Play twice.

Read More

Flavor Flav and "Flavor of Love 2" on MTV

The second season of Public Enemy front man Flavor Flav's monster hit, "Flavor of Love 2," starts on August 6 at 10 pm on MTV. This show is high art. Flav has moved from the Hood to Hollywood. Last seasons highlight was when the white girl hocked a huge wad of spit on the hoochie momma black chick. They slow motioned it and showed it over and over. The ladies fighting over Flav was a rave. Flav has much personality. Star quality.

The second season should be a riot. The gals acting like they like or even love Flav and passionately kissing him to gain favor is television at its finest. The cat fights over Flav shouldn't be missed. And please, please, please bring back Brigette Nielsen (remember her from Beverly Hills Cop III and Red Sonja?). It was in MTV's "Strange Love" show that broke Flav out as a TV star. Strange Love was a huge hit too. Go Flav.

GREAT REVIEW BY A LESBIAN

Read More

Miami Vice - - Old School Versus New School

Can Colin Ferrell and Jamie Foxx replace Don Johnson and Phillip Michael Thomas? We haven't seen the movie yet but will update you when we do. Sonny Crocket and Ricardo Tubbs are a part of 1980's pop culture. The clothes, the music, the ladies, all meshed into one cool ensemble. Elvis the alligator, the cars, boats and Edward James Olmos made it happen. No way can the movie top the TV show. We'll let you know.

XYBORG'S VIEW

Read More

Barbara Walters Sees Black People

After killing off Star Jones, Barbara Walters is parading potential replacements through The View. Clearly they are looking for the right look and chemistry. Barbara probably realizes that her black audience could be put off if she does not replace Star with another black woman. The parting was messy. Relax Barbara. We still like you.

But you are acting a little strange with the black folk. You're touching their hair. Don't you know that is a no-no. You're asking if the hair is real. Another no-no, particularly when you know the answer. So far Mo' Nique, Brandy and others have auditioned live on the show. AAEA Hollywood has recommended Samara Swanston to replace Star.

Read More

AAEA's Norris McDonald Up For Aquaman Movie Role

Informal talks have been launched about the feasibility of making a Warner Brothers “Aquaman” movie. Interestingly, AAEA President Norris McDonald has been approached to play a guru to the Aquaman character. Think Morgan Freeman in “Batman Returns.” Aquaman was a key plot line in HBO’s “Entourage,“ where James Cameron, who made a cameo appearance on the show, directed the fictional movie. The fictional movie opened bigger than “Spiderman,” which had the highest grossing opening before “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.”

The character’s film rights are controlled by DC Comics, which is a part of Time Warner, Inc. Conversations about McDonald resulted from a Time Warner exec's familiarity with McDonald’s environmental work. Several people involved in the preliminary discussions about a feature film said untangling the movie and licensing rights from DC Comics could prove difficult.

Aquaman is a fast-swimming superhero that debuted in a 1941 comic book. Aquaman will be a young environmental activist grappling with his responsibilities as the prince of the lost city of Atlantis, hidden in the Bermuda Triangle. Aquaman can breathe underwater and he possesses supernatural power when wet, which diminishes as he dries off. McDonald will provide Aquaman with state-of-the-art weaponry and sage advice. The TV pilot below was not picked up and McDonald will play the Ving Rhames role in the movie, except he will not be from Atlantis, but will be a smart environmentalist. View the TV Pilot trailer below.

Read More

Prince & Wife Divorcing

According to People magazine Prince and wife Manuela Testolini Nelson are divorcing. Prince's lawyer, Alan Eidsness, has confirmed that a divorce action was filed at Minnesota's Hennepin County District Court on May 24. Prince Rogers Nelson, 48, and Testolini Nelson, 29, a Toronto, Canada native and former employee at Prince's charitable foundation, were married in 2001. Prince was previously married to backup singer and dancer Mayte Garcia from 1996 through 1998. Photo by: George Pimentel / WireImage

Read More

Will Smith & Jada Pinkett-Smith March Against Violence

Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith, right, took it to the street last Saturday in Philadelphia to protest gun violence. Will grew up in Philadelphia and Jada grew up in Baltimore. It is good that they are using their fame to address the most serious environmental issue in the black community today. Philly had 385 homicides in 2005 (More Murder Stats). Charles "Charlie Mack" Alston is a long-time friend and former employee of Jada and Will Smith. He moved back to Philly in 2003 and is bringing Hollywood stars to the streets of Philly and using their star power to draw attention to important causes.

Activities included a visit to the Youth Study Center, a VIP gala at the African American Historical & Cultural Museum and a march from 50th Street and Chester Avenue to the Frances J. Myers Rec Center at 58th Street and Kingsessing Avenue. After the march, there was a youth rally at the center followed by a concert by Young Leek. More black Hollywood stars need to step up and draw attention to the black violence epidemic that is ruining inner city communities all over the country. (Photo by H. Rumph, Jr. courtesy Associated Press)

Read More

Tiger Woods Spews Toxic Waste From His Mouth

Tiger Woods is a Buddhist. He also curses God like he is in a Hollywood movie. Hollywood has an unwritten contract that God must be cursed at least once in every movie, except children's animations. When Tiger hits a bad shot he lets loose with a shouted God curse. Of course since Tiger probably worships Tiger, he evidently does not care about the children present on the golf course or people who find cursing God quite offensive.

Tiger tries to justify his blaspheming by saying that nobody complained when Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer cursed. Well what does one gain even if he gains the whole world (or majors) but loses his soul? Tiger has so much discipline in his golf game and personal life. Why can't he exercise that same discipline over his toxic mouth? We are sure his sponsors, the PGA and the networks wince everytime he curses on live TV. Save your soul Tiger. Preserve the innocence of children. Give your sponsors a break. And wash your dirty mouth out with soap.

Read More

Redskins Offensive to Indians But Not To Football Fans

The complaint by indians that 'redskins' is offensive was ignored by Jack Kent Cooke and is being ignored by Dan Snyder. It is also ignored by the high-paid players and the fans, including blacks and Latinos. The name comes from the color of the scalps of indians sold by animal skin traders. Jack Kent Cooke always said he was complimenting indians by using the name. Susanne Harjo has always insisted otherwise.

So we had mixed emotions when we heard that Zema "Chief Zee" Willians, right, was ailing with an aneurysm in his stomach. A blood clot in his left leg has also crippled the 65-year old retired used car salesman. Chief Zee was inducted in 2000 into the special fans section of the NFL Hall of Fame as the Washington football team's No. 1 fan. He has not missed a home or away game in 30 years and he lives on a fixed income of $1,000 per month. His leg was broken by Philadelphia Eagles fans in 1983. We guess one person's pursuit of happiness can be insulting to another person.

Read More

Tom Brokaw Takes On Global Warming

Tom Brokaw, the former NBC anchorman hosts "Global Warming: What You Need to Know," on the Discovery Channel. Like former Vice President Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth," and Laurie David's "Too Hot Not To Handle," it covers the same doomsday scenario. We see the melting ice, the polar bear and President Bush is bashed.

All of the films use Princeton's Michael Oppenheimer and NASA's James Hansen. They must be on retainer. We're just cynical because they always use the same people and not AAEA. We have never seen a black person comment on the global warming issue. Of course, environmentalists and the environmental movement secretly take great pride in being elitist. It apears that they have a deal with the media to limit who speaks about this issue.

Read More

Eureka : A Superior Community on Sci Fi Channel

Eureka, located in the Pacific Northwest, looks like an ordinary town with ordinary residents leading ordinary lives. Shrouded in secrecy, the picturesque hamlet is actually a community of scientific geniuses assembled by the government to conduct top-secret research. This would look like a futuristic Nazi Germany Aryan Nation if not for the blacks and Latinos sprinkled throughout the town. And they are as superior as everyone else. In television land there is someimes no black side of town. This is one of those cases. Joe Morton fits right in though. Remember that he got his start with the movie, "Brother From Another Planet." His distinguishing alien characteristics in that film were his big feet and he couldn't speak.

The top quantum physicist's experiment gets out of control and ....time is unraveling. The laws of physics are breaking down. A seven-year old genius black kid saves the day in the two-hour first episode. Isn't life in Hollywood great. With the kid's calculations, Morton operates the machine. Of course, something goes terribly wrong.

Read More

The CW : And Its New Green Logo

(Edited from The Washington Post) During a Q&A session with executive producers of the CW's four black-cast Sunday sitcoms, talk got heated when it turned to the lack of black-cast dramas. "I may stand alone but I kind of feel like that notion in and of itself is kind of unnecessary," said Ali LeRoi, exec producer of "Everybody Hates Chris." "Shows like 'Grey's [Anatomy]' are the model. 'The Wire' is the model. J.J. Abrams has done a fantastic job of involving ethnic people in his shows. You don't need a black drama, you just need a drama that's realistic and involves people in the world. One reporter said it sounded as if LeRoi and the others were resigned to the fact you can't get a black-cast drama on the air.

"Well, you are black, I think," Chris Rock, above left, the other exec producer of "Chris," said to the reporter. "Do you ever think your life is going to be as good as white people's? I don't. Have you given that one up yet?" "It's not a resignation. It's a business," "You know, if you don't like dealing with network executives, then write a book. Nobody has the right to be in show business. Nobody has the right to be on a TV show. We all argue about 'I'd like to see more representation about this and more representation about that.' But at the end of the day, dude, you got to sell some soap. . . . So, black drama, smack drama, man, I don't care. It's about making a good show for the audience that's buying the product. Find your audience and sell them what you can sell them." Excerpts from Washington Post "Putting the Chartreuse in CW"

Read More

Black Neighborhood in Pirates of the Caribbean

Tia is the voodoo queen and evidently had an affair with Captain Jack Sparrow sometime in the past. She flirts with Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom in the movie. Tia lives in an elevated swamp house and Jack visits her to learn how to defeat Davey Jones. Tia, played by Naomie Harris, right, of 28 Days Later, is pretty even as she is portrayed in the film with bad teeth, dirty lips and scraggly hair. We find out that Tia lives in a black neighborhood because at the end of the film her neighbors come out to mourn Jack with a candlelight vigil. Ms. Harris will also appear in the new Miami Vice film later this summer.

Read More

YouTube Hottest New Thing on the Internet

Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, left, are the new darlings of the internet because they created a Web site that streams 100 million videos a day. Now anyone with a webcam or video recorder can upload a 10-minute video for viewing. How long will it be before they sell the service for billions to one of the big boys? First they have to deal with potential copyright problems. Their current solution is to remove any uploaded content if it is requested. This is giving new life to old acts by providing a vehicle to view vintage performances. It also provides a venue for new talent to share their art. Brilliant. Their server farm must be awesome.

Read More

European Union Court Not Friendly To Hollywood

An EU court rejected the 2004 merger of Sony's music division with BMG's music division on antitrust grounds. The ruling casts a cloud over the pending Warner Music and EMI merger plans. Now Viacom is eyeballing BMG's music publishing arm. Universal Music is interested in bidding on the BMG division too. Citigroup and J.P. Morgan are managing the invitation only auction.

Read More

The Day The Earth Stood Still - Electricity

One of our favorite movies has Klaatu arranging for a demonstration of his power by neutralizing electricity all over the world for 30 minutes. We are curious as to how he would do that. The movie did not explain how he, or Gort, right, did it. We invite you to speculate about how you would neutralize electricity worldwide and then turn it back on.

Read More

Robert Johnson Forms Hollywood Film Studio

Robert L. Johnson, the cable pioneer who founded Black Entertainment Television 25 years ago and sold it for $3 billion in 2000 to Viacom, has formed a film studio with independent producers Harvey and Bob Weinstein. Johnson's Our Stories Films will produce family-friendly features about African Americans that will be distributed in theaters by the Dimension Films unit of Weinstein Co., which will be part-owner of the venture. New York bank J.P. Morgan Chase has agreed to raise up to $175 million to fund the company. With Weinstein's Dimension Films as a distribution partner, Johnson is partnering with one of the most successful marketers of low-budget films to young audiences. Dimension is known for producing highly profitable horror, comedy and action films such as the "Scream" franchise, as well as "Spy Kids" and "Bad Santa."

Johnson, whose holding company is based in Bethesda, will be chairman and chief executive of Our Stories. The studio is to have its headquarters in Los Angeles with offices in New York. Johnson plans to hire a chief operating officer who knows Hollywood better than he does. There was no major movie studio where African Americans had the green-light authority to make broadly distributed films

Read More

Jill Scott Defends Oprah & Calls Some Hip Hop Polluted

Jill Scott, right, agrees with Oprah that some rap music and videos are misogynistic and not in the best interest of the black community or the image of black women. Ludacris, Ice Cube and 50 Cent have been criticizing Oprah for either not having them on her show or editing their comments when she does. Oprah has stated that she likes some hip hop music and videos but does not like those that denegrate women. Oprah and Jill Scott are calling on the community to find a way to change these images. Jill Scott was quoted in The Washington Times concerning the negative portrayal of women in rap, "It is dirty, inappropriate, inadequate, unhealthy and polluted."

Read More

Wedding Crashers Did Not Crash A Black Wedding

They crashed a white wedding, an Asian wedding and a Jewish wedding, but not a black wedding. We are sure the creators of the movie discussed it and decided that the best way to avoid controversy would be to skip a black wedding. Here's why. Although both Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are very comfortable around blacks, having them basically 'play' black women would be 1) probably completely unbelievable, and 2) smack of white guys further abusing black women. But if this is the case then they shouldn't have based it in Washington, D.C., a majority black city.

There will be a sequel and the two wedding crasher couples might crash a black wedding. The possibilities there are intriguing and probably avoid the racial land mines that would have two white playboys using and disposing of black women. Moreover, this is the exclusive territory of the Hip Hop misogynists and misogymists. With the couples the black guys can hit on the white women while the white guys are hitting on the black women. And heaven forbid they should add an interracial romance to this romantic comedy.

Read More

Kerry Washington Is An Environmentalist

Kerry Washington is costarring in "Little Man" with Marlon and Shawn Wayans. The New York Daily News," described her:

• Washington's desire to cut her own path also extends to her and fiance David Moscow's renovation of their Harlem brownstone. The environmentally conscious couple made sure their home incorporated recycled concrete, eco-friendly paints and bamboo floors. Proud owners of a Prius hybrid automobile, and fans of organic and free-range food, they strive to live a socially conscious life.

Well we don't know about those bamboo floors, but the rest sounds okay. Washington also costarred in "Ray," "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" and "Fantastic Four."

Read More

Can The Wayans Green Light & Produce A Movie?

According to Spike Lee, no black or group of blacks have the power to green light a Hollywood movie. There is no black-owned equivalent to Paramount Studios or Miramax. Blacks in Hollywood are actors sprinkled with a few directors. Although the Wayans family has established a Hollywood dynasty, they cannot independently produce and distribute a movie. We know it is late in the game, as it is in other industries, particularly the energy sector, but we hope blacks in Hollywood will figure out a way to cooperate to establish a black-owned movie studio and distribution company.

Marlon Wayans was quoted in the New York Post stating that, "We learned that you don't label yourself as an 'African-American filmaker.' Black is what I am, but 'black' is not the ceiling we're trying to hit - - we're trying to go past that. Our dreams are limitless and colorless." Unfortunately, Hollywood and Wall Street are not colorblind. And the noveau rich black entertainers do not appear to have the capacity to cooperate to create a studio. Although the Wayans are credited with making Scary Movie (I &II) , it was produced by Lee R. Mayes and distributed by Miramax.

UPDATE:

A few days after we posted this article Bob Johnson announced Our
Stories Films as the first black-owned movie studio established to
greenlight movies.

Read More

Emmy Award Nominations Announced

Two shows with black lead characters received Emmy nominations: 1) "Everybody Hates Chris," and 2) "The Unit." They received one nomination each. Of course, Grey's Anatomy, created and produced by a black woman, Shonda Rhimes, right, received 11 nominations. So maybe racial characterizations do not matter in Hollywood or America anymore. Right! There are blacks sprinkled throughout the shows that are nominated (Complete List).

Alfre Woodard received a supporting actress nomination for her role as Betty Applewhite on Desperate Housewives. The show "Black - White" about makeup being used to make a black family white and a white family black received a makeup nomination. "American Idol" producers were nominated in the Outstanding Reality-Competition Program category and one of its three judges is black (Randy Jackson). We know. We know. This race stuff doesn't matter. Right!

Read More

Randy Jackson Fights Oreo Stereotype?

If you're black and you're called an Oreo it means you are an Uncle Tom. You are basically being told that you are black on the outside but white on the inside. In other words, you have black skin but you act white. Well Randy Jackson of "American Idol" fame is having none of it.

Jackson is the new advertising pitchman for Oreo cookies. He is pictured on their cookie wrapper and is pitching in the funny television commercials. It is clearly a very big campaign. One scene is really visually funny: he is sitting in a bathtub where the suds make it look like he is sitting in milk. Various bands, including singer Pharrel Williams, break in while he is bathing, evidently to impress him because of his "American Idol" credential. Simon and Paula couldn't be far behind. Simon already producing another television talent show. Paula will probably show her hand next.

Read More

Steve Harvey & His Great Morning Radio Show

Steve Harvey is quickly becoming the King of All Media. He has succeeded in television, movies, the stage and radio. His Steve Harvey syndicated radio show is hilarious. His associates on the show, particularly Jackie Reid, help to add an ensemble brilliance to Harvey's grandmaster. The Steve & Mary Harvey Foundation works to improve the educational environment of public schools.

Steve Harvey has somehow perfectly fused country and city into a highly effective comedic persona. Born in West Virginia, he now resides in Dallas, Texas. He jumped into radio at 100.3 The Beat in Los Angeles, California and then became Host of The Steve Harvey Morning Show for L.A's 93.5 KDAY. That show is now syndicated and broadcast all over the country. He is heard on Howard University's WHUR radio in Washington, D.C.

Read More

Screen On The Green: Washington Mall

The 7th Annual Screen On The Green begins on the National Mall on July 17 with the 1951 sci-fi classic "The Day the Earth Stood Still." The outdoor film series is produced by HBO, which procures the permit for the event from the National Park Service. HBO sponsors similar events in New York's Bryant Park, Atlanta and Boston. Other movies: July 24: "The Band Wagon," July 31: "Bullitt," Aug 7: "To Have and Have Not," and Aug 14: "Rocky."

So bring your blanket or folding chair and enjoy the walk-in movie on the Mall.

Read More

The Best Pop Funk Rock Band Of All Time

Sly & The Family Stone perform Love City below with portions of their hit Stand thrown in for good measure. This group not only dominated the Woodstock stage performances, but also the Woodstock album and film. The group genuinely represented the Woodstock Nation by its makeup of men, women, blacks and whites. The black pop, soul, r&b, rock and jazz environments would never be the same after this band.

Read More

The Best Rock Power Trio Of All Time

The Band of Gypsies (Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Miles and Billy Cox) perfected the power trio. You can even hear the buzz of the amps before they start playing. Their Filmore performances were perfect and the performance of Machine Gun below perfectly captures their perfection.

The rock & roll environment would never be the same after Jimi Hendrix. Many followed from Led Zeppelin and The Mahavishnu Orchestra to Guns & Roses and The Motley Crue. Yet for some reason, blacks abandoned Rock & Roll. Fortunately, The Band of Gypsies left a clear record of what a power trio should really be.

Read More

NASA Shuttle Video Coverage Poor

NASA evidently does not get the fact that Americans want easy access to Space Shuttle activities. Navigating NASA's web site to get LIVE coverage is impossible. They give some canned videos but we want to have webcam access to real time views of the astronauts. And it should be one click away on the Home Page of the NASA Web site. The only exciting live experience the public gets is the launch. NASA seems to want its program to be boring. Don't they know we grew up on Spock and Captain Kirk beaming up and down from the Starship Enterprise. Why don't we at least have real time Webcam video from a helmet cam during the spacewalks. AND IT SHOULD BE ONE CLICK AWAY ON THE HOME PAGE. GEEZ.

Read More

Animal Activists Protest Japan at Graceland

Animal and environmental activists sometimes act stupid by protesting at inappropriate times and places. Activists from the International Fund for Animal Welfare dressed as Elvis impersonators held up signs saying "Don't Be Cruel" during the tour of Graceland by President Bush and Japan Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. They hurt the whale protection cause with such untimely protests. Most people oppose cruelty to animals, but protesting at the homes of innocent icons crosses the line. Plus there is no way you can compete with the picture of the prime minister and president with Priscilla and Lisa Marie Presley. Of course, many of these activists think acting stupid in public is an effective promotional strategy. Good thing The King wasn't around to deal with the protestors.

Read More