James Brown Died on Christmas Day

James Brown, left, was known as the "Godfather of Soul" and the "Hardest Working Man in Show Business." James Brown fulfilled his life and did not leave one thing undone. He did it with his very might.

AP has an excellent retrospective on his life.

1933 - 2006

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NBC Universal Cuts Decimate Wash DC Legends

WRC-TV (Channel 4) in Washington, DC is losing anchor Susan Kidd, movie critic Arch Campbell and sports director George Michael due to NBC Universal's $750 million in opersting budget cuts.

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Joseph Barbera of Hanna-Barbera Catoon Fame Dies

Hanna-Barbera Productions produced Tom & Jerry, Yogi Bear, The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo, Johnny Quest, The Smurfs, and The Jetsons, among others. Joseph Barbera died at 95. William Hanna died in 2001. Their shows earned MGM seven Oscars and 13 Oscar nominations.

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Black Women Endangered Species on Morning Talk

First there was Star Jones. Now Rene Syler, left, has gotten the axe. Julie Chen married management and remains safe during each purge. Okay. So the ratings are the rifle in the hunt for a hit. And CBS morning talk has been in the cellar forever. Not even Bryant Gumble could pull it out after he came out of retirement following his successful run at NBC.

Syler is a professional but you can see the hurt behind her eyes. In television, she is the equivalent of the walking dead. But she still has to show up and act like she is happy. Torture. Somebody pass a law to protect the sisters from this sort of abuse. Then again, CBS was very good to Syler. She probably has a luxury condo overlooking Central Park. Her kids are probably in exclusive private schools. She probably has a house keeper. And lastly, she knew what she was getting in to. Hang in there Rene. You are talented. Like a cat, you will land on your feet.

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Subways: NY Graffiti Explodes & DC to get Entertainment

New York graffiti 'artists' vandalized 162 subway cars in 2005, including spray-painting train exteriors, scratching messages on train windows or otherwise damaging equipment. It costs millions of dollars to repair the damage.

Meanwhile, Washington DC is proposing to allow musicians, mimes, dancers and other entertainers to perform outside of Metro stations. Metro will ask local arts councils to recommend appropriate acts. Performances will be outdoors at designated station entrances from April to October primarily during lunchtime. All genres of music will be provided. Metro has 86 stations but performances will be limited to 25 spots. Performers will be paid about $130 for 2 1/2 hours. Panhandling would not be allowed. (NY Daily News, Wash Post)

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Erin Brockovich Loses Hollywood High Oil Rig Lawsuit

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Wendell Mortimer Jr dismissed 12 lawsuits brought by Erin Brockovich-Ellis' law firm (Masry & Vititoe in Westlake Village) against Beverly Hills, its school district, Venoco (owner of the oil rig) and Sempra Energy (owner of a power plant near the rig) alleging that an oil well at Beverly Hills High School caused cancers in students between 1975 and 1997.

The oil rig has operated for decades at Hollywood High School and is shrouded with brightly collered flower panels. The rig is located at the northwest corner of Spalding Drive and Olympic Boulevard. The city and school district have received millions of dollars in royalties from the operation of the oil rig.

Brockovich, above left, became famous by winning a $333 million settlement from Pacific Gas & Electric for polluting the waters of Hinkley, Calif, near Barstow. The case was recounted in "Erin Brockovich," a 2000 film for which Julia Roberts, above right, won a best actress Oscar in the title role. (L.A. Times)

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Comic Book Environment Features Black Christian Heroes

Code, Joe and Max are black religious superheroes in The Guardian Line of of comic boiks published by Milestone Media. Milestone Media joined forces with Chicago-based Urban Ministries Inc to increase market penetration. Urban Ministries Inc, founded in 1970, is an independently owned and operated African American Christian media company with a distribution network of 40,000 churches and 1,500 bookstores for its books, CDs and DVDs.

The Genesis 5 comic book has five angels as high school students, whereas Code pursues a wealthy evildoer. The Seekers comic book features Joe and Max as the guardian angel and his guardian angel. (Wash Post)

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The Nativity Story: Black Wise Man Puts Food First

Okay. It is a very small thing, but we are here to nitpik. The film is minimalist and great. Go see it. The Three Wise Men provide comic relief in the film. When they are expressing concern about traveling for months to visit baby Jesus the black Wise Man expresses concern for his food and spices.

It sounded like he couldn't go camping because he might miss his bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken. We told you it was nitpiking over a small thing. But so many big things have been pushed on us over the decades. And remember.....KRAMER.

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NIGGER: Our Reparation and Whites Cannot Say It

White people should gladly refrain from using the term nigger anytime, anywhere, for any reason. Although present day whites did nothing to blacks in paticular, the vestiges of past racism can be seen everywhere in the U.S. - - mostly in separate communities. Resource disparities are also apparent due to America's racial history. Thus, whites should acknowledge the bloody and brutal history of their ancestors by paying this small reparation. No land. No money. No apology. And no NIGGER. The brilliant reporter Darryl Fears wrote a great article on this issue in The Washington Post.

Jesse Jackson and some other activisits and entertainers are calling for the complete elimination of the word. We don't think so. It is one of the most endearing terms in the black community. Yo nigger. My nigger. Nigger, nigger nigger. When blacks are conversing with blacks it is a term of great affection. Blacks are careful in trying not to use the term in front of whites. Even though it is freely used as an expression in music culture, whites should feel no loss in preventing themselves from using this term. Of course, some people, like Michael Richards, sometimes cannot resist the urge to scream "Fire" in the theater. All we have to say is that if you will not honor this small reparation, then good luck with the consequences. (Wash Post)

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