Tuesday - November 18, 2008 -

ON THIS DAY
The Roman Emperor Vespasian was born on this date in 9 AD. Vespy was credited with building the Coliseum, where the Rome Red Sandals played their home games.

In 1307, it's said that William Tell shot an apple off of his son's head. Why an apple? A raisin was too small and a watermelon gave his son a stiff neck.

On this date in 1883, the U.S. and Canada agreed to adopt standard time zones before Angelina Jolie could adopt them.

The Teddy Bear is introduced way, way back in 1902 -- President Theodore Roosevelt had just gone to Mississippi hunting for a bear, but none was found. In an effort to please him, his host captured a cub that Roosevelt refused to shoot. A political cartoonist then published a cartoon about the incident. After reading the story, New York toy store owner Morris Mitchtom got Roosevelt's permission to call his new stuffed animal a "Teddy Bear," and the name stuck. Mitchton went on to found the Ideal Novelty and Toy Company.

· People who collect teddy bears are called arctophiles.

· At the height of the toy's early popularity, a priest in Michigan publicly denounced it as an enemy of the American family. He claimed that the stuffed toy would take over the mother's nurturing role and would eventually lead to racial suicide.

· Bears from the German toy maker Steiff are among the world's most prized collectibles. In 2000, one Steiff bear made in 1904 was priced at almost $18,000, according to one collectibles website.


TODAY IS

"Wedding Crashers" star Owen Wilson turns 40 today, despite his best efforts.

Mickey Mouse turns 80 today. These days he can only eat soft cheese.


THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

· Catherine Zeta-Jones' latest role: she was in Prague last week, filming a Lux shampoo commercial.

· This Friday's "20/20" on ABC will feature an interview with Ashley Dupree, or the prostitute that brought down New York Governor Elliott Spitzer.

· A woman in England is divorcing her husband after she caught him cuddling with another woman in the on-line game, "Second Life."

· CBS' "60 Minutes" had its highest overnight ratings in nearly a decade with when Steve Kroft interviewed President-Elect Obama. It was seen by 24.5 million people on Sunday.

· Comedian Wanda Sykes says she's "proud to be gay" and feels she needs to be more outspoken, following the approval of proposition 8 in California.

· A busboy is suing Justin Timberlake, saying the singer's Manhattan barbecue place didn't pay him enough of a salary.

· John Mayer is dropping hints like he's planning to propose to Jennifer Aniston.

· Times Square is getting its first green billboard that is powered completely by solar and wind energy.

· The son of an Arab monarch is taking Michael Jackson to court, charging that he $7 million as an advance on an album and an autobiography that he never produced.

· Sharon Stone and her 24-year-old boy toy Chase are history.

· Paul McCartney says he's close to releasing a lost Beatles track from 1967.

· "Big Fat Greek Wedding" star Nia Vardalos and husband Ian Gomez have adopted a baby girl.

· One friend tells the New York Post that Paula Abdul is so freaked about that stalker committing suicide out in front of her house that she's hired "cleaners" to remove any ghosts that might be trying to hang around her house.

· Rod Stewart headlined a 60th birthday party for Prince Charles on Saturday. Other guests included Rowan Atkinson and Dame Judi Dench.


WEIRD NEWS

Lovesick Murderer - In Germany, a 22-year-old man has been charged with murder after a suicide attempt went very wrong. Apparently the young man got a call from his 17-year-old girlfriend who told him she was breaking up with him. As a result he opened up all the natural gas taps in his apartment intending to commit suicide. But then the girlfriend showed up to pick up her stuff and unwittingly lit a cigarette which ignited the gas and blew up half of the building, injuring 15 people and killing a 45-year old neighbor. The breaking-up couple both survived but now the guy is charged with murder, attempted murder and grievous bodily harm. (myway.com)

Eye Jewelry - 29-year-old Dutch designer Eric Klarenbeek has developed jewelry consisting of tiny crystals or flowers that hang directly from the eye! No kidding. The design uses a micro-thin medical wire which is attached to either prescription or blank contact lenses. In the light, they give the appearance of tears streaming down the cheek. Because we all want to look like we're crying all the time. Eric plans to have his first eye jewelry on the market soon and it'll set you back about $325. Though the adornments appear to be painful or dangerous, Eric insists users of his prototypes so far have been "amazed" at their comfort. (Daily Mail)

Our Government at Work - Monroe Street in Austin, Texas is undergoing a federally mandated sewer replacement and residents on the street have noticed that, for several weeks, the work crews would spend the first three hours of their 12-hour days digging a huge hole in the street, and the last three hours re-filling and paving over it. And they repeat this process daily. So what's up with this? Apparently the big 20-by-20-foot hole in the street was too big to be covered with temporary metal plates and the city has a "policy" of minimal traffic disruption during construction, thus the work crew is required to repave the street each day for nighttime use. And yes -- as you probably figured out, this has doubled the cost of the work and the use of your tax dollars! (Austin American-Statesman)

Dental Care in Other Cultures - Dentists in other countries apparently don't always abide by the same set of healthcare standards dentists we know do. In Bavaria, police are investigating a dentist who allegedly barged into the home of a 35-year-old patient -- then tied her hands, forced her mouth open, and removed the dentures he had made for her -- dentures worth about $500. All this because the woman's insurance company had declined to pay up. (The Berlin Local)

Real Life Barbie - 49-year-old Briton Sarah Burge has made her way into the Guinness Book of World Records in a most unusual way. She holds the record for the world's most cosmetic surgery, having now spent a total of $850,000 on more than 100 procedures. Her dream has been to transform herself into a real life Barbie doll and she's pretty much done it. She does now look an awful lot like Barbie after extensive work including having her nose made smaller, her cheekbones bigger, her chin more prominent, her breasts lifted, fat sucked from her face, hips, thighs and jawline, and excess skin cut from her tummy and eyes. About the only pars of her body that remain "plastic surgery virgins" are her feet. Sarah has become somewhat of a cult figure in Japan after her "Life as Barbie" documentary was broadcast to 14 million viewers on Japan's largest national television network. She now she needs bodyguards to hold back the crowds when she visits Japan! (Daily Mail)

A Very Lucky Dog - Maybe cats aren't the only domestic pet to have nine lives. A dog in Italy is very lucky to be alive after he clung to a speeding car for more than 15 miles after being hit. The motorist, Marco Menozzi, didn't even stop when he mowed down the one-year-old pooch while doing 70mph on a side road in Cozze, southern Italy. But the dog was hit so hard he became embedded in the grill under the hood of the car and managed to cling on until the car eventually stopped. As horrible as it sounds, vets say had he not been hit so hard, he would have probably bounced off the car and died. As a result of clinging on, he was treated for a broken leg and bruising and he's now in a police pound looking for new owner. (AHN News)

No Parents of the Year Here - In Medford, Oregon, Laramie and Carley Torres won't be winning any "Parent of the Year" contests anytime soon. Instead they face up to 90 days in jail and will have to make restitution after they sent their children door to door seeking donations for a trip to a volleyball camp. The kids collected more than $3,000 but the thing is the money wasn't for volleyball camp. Instead the parents spent the money on shopping mall trips, monster truck rallies and weekends at the movies. Actually Laramie will only be required to help his wife make restitution and perform community service instead of jail time for his guilty plea to theft charges. Mrs. Torres though will most likely go to jail. So does that mean the kids stay with dad? (Mail Tribune)

I Demand To See the Manager! - In York, Pennsylvania, a would-be robber threatened to complain to the management after trying to rob a Susquehanna Bank branch and finding the teller's cash drawers empty! The tellers were waiting for their cash drawers to be filled when our friend entered the bank and demanded money. The first teller fainted and the next two showed him their empty cash drawers. The crook then threatened to file a complaint with bank manager before leaving. A customer at the drive-through, who saw the whole thing, called 911. Police then arrested a suspect fitting witness's description about 10 blocks away. His name has not been released. (myway.com)


TOP FIVE POSSIBLE TITLES FOR SARAH PALIN'S NEW BOOK

1. "I Can See the Russian Cooking Section From This Shelf"
2. "NOW I remember what magazines and newspapers I've read"
3. "Tina Fey owes me"
4. "Moose is not just a dessert"
5. "McCain and Able"

HUNTER'S HUMOR by Tim Hunter

The new James Bond movie had a $70 million opening... or, as bankers would describe it, "a small bailout."

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill have put their Beverly Hills home up on the market, for $14.8-million. It comes complete with six bedrooms, 7-1/2 bedrooms and even a cement pond!

Sarah Palin is being asked to write a book that could bring in around $7 milion. That would keep her in new clothes until at least early next year.

Barack Obama supposedly is considering Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State and a Boston Terrier for a first dog. Boy, I hope he doesn't get those mixed up.


FHM's 5 THINGS YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT JAMES BOND

1. Ian Flemming, who penned the original 007 novels, stole the name for his secret agent from the book "Birds of the West Indies," which he would occasionally read during trips to his vacation home in Jamaica. The book's author? Respected ornitholgist James Bond.

2. The Bond character is also partially inspired by Dr. John Dee, a real man from the 16th century. Known as the first British secret agent, Dee advised Queen Elizabeth as England warred with Spain. He even created the 007 insignia for secret messages to the Virgin Queen: The two zeroes signified "for your eyes only," while the seven was chosen simply because it was a cryptic number.

3. In the first 19 official Bond films, James has sex 85 times with 60 different women, 21 of whom eventually die. Among other locations, the rumpty occurs 21 times in hotel rooms, twice in a gypsy tent and 25 times in, on or under water. Bond's satisfied conquests moan "Oh, Jaaames" 16 times.

4. Roger Moore never specifically asked for a vodka martini "shaken, not stirred" because he didn't want to seem as if he were copying Sean Connery's performance.

5. A clause in Pierce Brosnan's contract specified that as long as he was playing Bond, he couldn't wear a tuxedo in any other movie because the outfit is such a 007 trademark.


On to the good stuff – ROCK NEWS –


SAMMY HAGAR SAYS VAN HALEN MAKES 'BAD DECISIONS'…Former Van Halen singer Sammy Hagar recently spoke with Classic Rock Revisited about the rumored fight that ended his last run with the group, his feelings on bassist Michael Anthony being excluded from the latest reunion tour and his own upcoming project featuring Anthony and others. Regarding the alleged fight on an airplane between Hagar and guitarist Eddie Van Halen on the group's 2004 tour, in which Van Halen reportedly tried to break the plane's window, Hagar said, "Yes, it is true. He tried to smash the window out with his hand until he hurt his hand...I refused to fly with the guy ever again. He was completely out of his mind drunk. He was completely wasted. He was so wasted that he was actually stupid enough to take 12 people down. People that act like that shouldn't be allowed to fly on airplanes, and they probably can't, but we were flying privately."

Hagar added that he almost quit the band right there, but there were still 40 shows to go and he "couldn't do that to the fans." But he insisted on flying separately for the rest of the trek.

As for the band's exclusion of founding bassist Michael Anthony from last year's reunion tour with original singer David Lee Roth, Hagar said, "He got f***ed and it was horrible. I am not going to go on about 'why and what,' because I have no idea...(The fans) have been waiting for this reunion and they (Van Halen) did it wrong. It is one more strike against those guys. They are not healthy, mentally, and they make bad decisions. They don't take the fans in mind for one second and it is not good."

Last year's tour with Roth on the mic featured the debut of Eddie Van Halen's teenage son Wolfgang on bass.

Hagar releases a new solo album, called Cosmic Universal Fashion, on Tuesday (November 18th).

The vocalist has also launched a new band, tentatively called Chickenfoot, with Anthony, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith and guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani. Hagar hopes to release the group's debut album by next summer, saying, "This band is too good."


EX-GUNS N' ROSES DRUMMER DREAMS OF REUNION …Former Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler pleaded no contest on Friday (November 14th) to a charge of possessing heroin, according to Reuters. Adler entered the plea so that he could possibly avoid jail time and enter a rehab program instead. The plea stems from a July 18th arrest in which the police were called to stop Adler from causing a disturbance. Ironically, he had just been in a drug treatment program shortly before his arrest as part of the second season of the VH1 reality series Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.

Adler is scheduled to appear in court on December 12th to determine if he is eligible for drug treatment instead of jail. If he enters a program, the charges against him could be dismissed.

Adler's attorney, Barry Gerald Sands, revealed that the 43-year-old drummer hopes to reunite with his ex-bandmates at some point, saying, "When he gets sober they'll accept him into the band and then they'll do a comeback album and a world tour, that's the dream of Steven Adler."

Sands apparently has not been keeping up on current events, since a new Guns N' Roses album, Chinese Democracy, is coming out this Sunday (November 23rd) and features none of the original band except singer Axl Rose. Adler was fired in 1990 for his excessive drug use. There has been no comment from Guns N' Roses on Adler's case.

A new track from Chinese Democracy, called "Better," was made available to rock radio stations on Monday (November 17th).


MOTLEY CRUE HAS BIG PLANS FOR 'CRUE FEST II' …Motley Crue just announced the dates and venues for an upcoming North American arena tour on Friday (November 14th), but the band also revealed that it will launch a second Crue Fest package next year. This past summer's debut Crue Fest featured the Crue, Buckcherry, Papa Roach and others, and drummer Tommy Lee told us that the band wants to build on its success: "You know what, it's so cool, like, it's been a dream for us. Like, we've done a bunch of festivals and to have your own is insane. We're like, 'Dudes, I can't believe this, we finally got our own festival, this is incredible!' So we're gonna do a Crue Fest II, and hopefully we're gonna add another stage, which we didn't have on this one. You know, it was the first one. But hopefully we'll have a second stage and more bands too."

In the meantime, the Crue's next trek will hit indoor arenas beginning on February 9th in San Diego and finishing up on March 18th in Portland, Maine.

The bill will also include Hinder, Theory of a Deadman, and band search contest winners The Last Vegas. Tickets for the road trip go on sale Friday (November 21st) in most markets, with prices ranging from $25 to $75.

Motley Crue is hitting the road in support of its latest studio album, Saints of Los Angeles, which has sold 236,000 copies since coming out last June.


BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN'S 'WORKING ON A DREAM' SET FOR JANUARY 27th ..Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will release their new album Working On A Dream on January 27th. The 12-track disc also features two bonus songs -- "The Wrestler," which Springsteen wrote for the recent Mickey Rourke film of the same name, and "A Night With The Jersey Devil," which Springsteen offered as a free download this past Halloween on his official site (brucespringsteen.net).

Springsteen talked about the album, his 16th studio set, in a press release, saying, "Towards the end of recording Magic, excited by the return to pop production sounds, I continued writing. When my friend and producer Brendan O'Brien heard the new songs, he said, 'Let's keep going.' Over the course of the next year, that's just what we did, recording with the E Street Band during the breaks on last year's tour. I hope Working On A Dream has caught the energy of the band fresh off the road from some of the most exciting shows we've ever done. All the songs were written quickly, we usually used one of our first few takes, and we all had a blast making this one from beginning to end."

Nils Lofgren, who appears on the new album, says that Springsteen values having the world's most dependable band at his disposal both on the road and in the studio: "Not putting words into someone's mouth, if I was the caretaker of something like that, I would... I know Bruce takes it very seriously. It kind of an extraordinary thing to be the caretaker of."

The track listing for Bruce Springsteen's Working On A Dream is: "Outlaw Pete," "My Lucky Day," "Working On A Dream," "Queen Of The Supermarket," "What Love Can Do," "This Life," "Good Eye," "Tomorrow Never Knows," "Life Itself," "Kingdom Of Days," "Surprise, Surprise," "The Last Carnival." The bonus tracks are: "The Wrestler," "A Night With The Jersey Devil."

A portion of the album's title song was played on Sunday (November 17th) night on NBC's Sunday Night Football. Springsteen and his wife Patti Scialfa duetted on an acoustic version of the tune earlier this month in Cleveland, at a pre-election rally for President-elect Barack Obama.

Working On A Dream is Springsteen's fourth collaboration with Brendan O'Brien, who produced previous E Street Band albums The Rising and Magic, as well as Springsteen's solo set Devils And Dust.

Working On A Dream will be released just five days before the E Street Band's appearance during the half time slot at the Super Bowl in Tampa, Florida on February 1st, 2009. No other live dates have been announced yet.

In other Springsteen news:

Backstreets.com reported that Springsteen has donated a signed 1957 butterscotch Fender Telecaster guitar for an upcoming auction to benefit World Hunger Year (WHY). WHY's co-founder Bill Ayres said, "In addition to his signature, Bruce has added these little drawings -- it's not like anything I've seen him do before." The guitar will be auctioned on November 25th, between 5:00 and 6:30 p.m. ET. For more information and to bid, call 1-800-5-HUNGRY.

Springsteen has also donated his 1987 cover of the late Harry Chapin's "Remember the Music" to the charity album Serve3, which is the third Hard Rock benefit album for World Hunger Year. Springsteen's live cover was originally released on The Harry Chapin Tribute album, which has been out of print for well over a decade. For ordering info, log on to hardrock.com.

WHY is a not-for-profit organization founded by radio talk show host and present executive director Bill Ayres and Harry Chapin in 1975.


ROD STEWART SAYS THE FACES WILL HIT THE ROAD THIS SUMMER ..Rod Stewart confirmed that he and the surviving Faces -- Ron Wood, Ian MacLagan, and Kenney Jones -- will hit the road for the first time since 1975. The band held their first rehearsal on Monday (November 16th). On Friday (November 13th) Stewart was asked by mirror.co.uk if the tour rumors were to be believed: "Yes, absolutely...It will be next summer and I am looking forward to it. It'll be great."

When asked about bandmate Ron Wood's current problems, including splitting from his wife, falling off the wagon which resulted in yet another rehab stint -- as well as living with a 20-something Russian model -- Stewart said, "Ronnie is up to it. He is full of energy and very excited. We try not to mix our family problems with work. I'll say you said 'hi.'"

No firm dates for the reunion have been announced. A touring member of Stewart's live band was said to be on hand for Monday's rehearsal, but there has been no word as to whether he'll be the permanent bassist for the tour.

The Faces formed in 1969 when Small Faces frontman Steve Marriott quit the band to form Humble Pie with Peter Frampton. The band -- which included cofounder and bassist Ronnie Lane -- enlisted the help of Stewart and Wood -- who, being several inches taller than their diminutive bandmates, forced the group to drop the "Small" from their name.

Prior to that, both Stewart and Wood were in the Jeff Beck Group. Between leaving the band and and linking up with the Faces, Stewart had signed a solo deal with Mercury Records. In the six years that the band was together, Stewart ran double duty recording numerous solo hit albums -- with Wood's help -- and recording harder, less commercial rock albums with the Faces for Warner Bros. The Faces incorporated all of Stewart's solo work into their repertoire, which led the band to feel at times they were merely backing Stewart. Their best known band hit was 1972's "Stay With Me" which peaked at Number 17.

Ronnie Lane left in 1973 following the band's 1973 swan song, Ooh La La, and was replaced by Japanese bassist Tetsu Yamauchi, who returned to Japan following the band's 1975 split. Ron Wood began touring with the Rolling Stones in 1975 -- while still in the Faces -- becoming an official member the following year. Ronnie Lane died in 1997 due to complications from Multiple Sclorosis. Kenney Jones replaced Keith Moon in the Who in late 1978 and was kicked out of the band in 1988. Ian MacLagan went on to record and tour with the Stones and Stewart, and also married Keith Moon's ex-wife Kim Kerrigan, who died in 2006.

Back in 2004, MacLagan oversaw the band's box set called Five Guys Walk Into A Bar... He says that he'd forgotten just how good a band the Faces were until he went back over their music for the four-CD set: "I was surprised, constantly, you know, in the playing, (and) the singing, you know? I fell in love with the band again, 'cause I hadn't really listened to the stuff -- I knew what the records sounded like, kind of, but I hadn't sat down and listened to them. Strong stuff -- we rocked!"

Rod Stewart's next U.S dates are set for January 29th and 30th in Hollywood, Florida at the Seminole Hard Rock Live.


PAUL MCCARTNEY RETURNS AS 'THE FIREMAN'…Out today (November 18th) is Paul McCartney's third album under the Fireman moniker, Electric Arguments. For the past 15 years, McCartney's Fireman collaborator, DJ/producer Youth, has helped him take his improvised studio pieces and form them into musically diverse and off-beat records.

Electric Arguments, which is the first to feature vocals and lyrics, is much more like a standard commercial McCartney album than the two previous collaborations, 1993's Strawberries Oceans Ships Forest and 1998's Rushes. Critics, fans -- and even McCartney himself -- have stated that the quality of the new set probably would have fared better under the McCartney name, rather than the obscure side project label.

Like his last mainstream studio album, Memory Almost Full, Electric Arguments features some of McCartney's most up-front bass playing since his Wings days. Wings co-founder Denny Laine thought that among McCartney's many musical strengths, his bass work was always inventive: "He was a very tuneful bass player and that's an art in itself. You know, it's even harder to play bass and sing than it is, than playing chords on a guitar and singing, you know?"

McCartney has just launched a separate website for Electric Arguments at thefiremanmusic.com. In addition to videos of McCartney and Youth painting mosaics using the album's title and the Fireman name, they discuss his early solo work immediately after the Beatles' split for 1970's McCartney album.

Another video clip shows McCartney laying down various tracks for the album, switching between lap steel guitar, electric lead guitar, bass, piano, mandolin, and drums.


THE PRETENDERS RELEASE CHRISTMAS E.P. ..The Pretenders have just issued their first E.P. of Christmas music. The four-track collection features the band's own holiday standard "2000 Miles," along with yuletide evergreens "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," "Blue Christmas," and "Blue Christmas Part 2."

Next month the band will perform four holiday shows on the West Coast before heading out on the road for a proper, extended road trek in January. Last month, the Pretenders released their first album in six years, called Boots Of Concrete.

The Pretenders holiday shows (subject to change):
December 10 - Los Angeles, CA - Club Nokia
December 11 - Oakland, CA - Paramount Theatre
December 12 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
December 13 - Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre


That’s it for now, as always, if you can’t be good, be good at it and don’t get caught!!

Jonathan