Explaining the Enduring Pop Culture Fascination with Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie

Well, since I've been writing about celebrity marriages, I'll admit this is something I've given some thought.

At Married Man Sex Life, "Why Brad Pitt is With Angelina Jolie and Not Jennifer Aniston":

Jennifer Aniston comes off as a "good girl" and possibly in need of fresh sheets on the bed to be able to come to orgasm. Well okay, maybe that's a bit much, I was saving that line for a Martha Stewart joke and got tired of waiting. Anyway... Angelina Jolie comes off as a fair bit slutty and into having sex. When she was married to Billy Bob Thornton she used to have a vial of his blood in a necklace - I think once bodily fluids become jewelry for a chick, anal is actively ruled in. Plus the tattoos are a fairly good sign of brazen sexuality too. Jennifer Aniston did get that whole cult following of women getting their hair cut in "The Rachel", but guys didn't give a toss about it. Angelina Jolie was Lara Croft for crying out loud, so guys care about that seeing polygon count was involved.

There's a lot more at the link, and that's an explicit analysis, but Angelina's no doubt got the rougher edges.

Image: "Angelina Jolie Quashes Rumors of a Secret Wedding and Admits to Fears About Writing and Directing Her First Feature Film."

HAT TIP: Kathy Shaidle.

The Myth of the Digital Native

An interesting piece from Josh Sternberg, at The Atlantic, "Social Media's Slow Slog Into the Ivory Towers of Academia." The "myth" of the digital native holds that students don't actually know as much about digital technology as some professors claim, and the myth holds because professors are afraid of being shown up by savvy students. At community college there's something of a digital divide ---- so there really is a myth of the digital native --- but there's still a core of students on the cutting edge of technology. So, we can learn from our students, but it takes professors to give up some control over learning so that it's a conversation in the classroom rather than a disquisition. That doesn't work all the time, since I believe students need frequent chalk and talk lectures to impart the important stuff that they simply don't know. But soliciting feedback on an area of learning where students have a homefield advantage creates win-win situations. Besides, it's a lot more fun to talk about the cool stuff.

America's Taken a Hammering Since 9/11, But ...

From Richard Littlejohn, at London's Daily Mail, "America's taken a hammering in the decade since 9/11. But never doubt that it can rediscover its awesome self-belief":

My family connections with the U.S. stretch back almost half a century. I’ve been a regular visitor since 1969, the year of the moon landing and Woodstock.



Although it is a vast continent, there are ties which bind all Americans from New York’s wealthy Upper East Side to the kind of tumbleweed, one-horse towns familiar from movies like The Last Picture Show.



The proud patriotism which European liberals despise and mock is both genuine and sincere. It cuts across class, religious and racial divides.



Most people in the U.S. still subscribe to the notion of American ‘exceptionalism’: the idea that theirs is a unique nation, forged from revolution; underpinned by a properly functioning democracy and the rule of law; blessed with abundant natural resources, human ingenuity and endeavour; and insulated by geography and military might ...



The American Century may have come crashing to a tragic halt on 9/11, but we must all hope the U.S. soon recovers its sense of purpose and self-belief.



I still have faith in the American capacity for ingenuity, enterprise and reinvention. The idea of American exceptionalism may be battered, but it hasn’t been extinguished.



We need a strong, confident, optimistic, outward-looking America. It’s still the planet’s last best hope. If you doubt that, imagine living in a world dominated by those bastions of liberty, China and Russia. The EU is a basket case, riddled with corruption and duplicity.



The U.S. has always emerged stronger from wars and economic depression. Despite the traumas of the past decade, it still can.



As we prepare to remember those who died on 9/11, let’s pray nothing else bad happens.

Do RTWT.



I agree with Littlejohn entirely, and the something else bad happening would be Obama's reelection, so it's not as if things are outside of our control. The GOP has work to do, and I won't be sitting on the sidelines. When the going gets rough, Americans roll up their sleeves. But sometimes it feels as though only half the nation represents heartland America, which is the repository of our historical goodness. That other half just hates our exceptionalism and wants to destroy all that has held us together for so long.



More on this later, as always ...

FYF Festival

Off! is playing.



See L.A. Weekly, "FYF Preview: Keith Morris of OFF! Speaks on Friends and Foes."

And at LAT, "FYF addresses last year's problems so it can focus on the music."

'For All We Know'

If you clicked through at the Sheri Donovan interview the other day, recall she confesses that she's got The Carpenters on her iPod, but "don't worry, I won't play them on The Sound."



Actually, I wouldn't mind hearing The Carpenters once in a while. I had a crush on Karen Carpenter when I was a kid:

Britney Spears at VMAs: The Modern-Pop Definition of 'Statuesque'

From Spencer Kornhaber, at The Atlantic, "Lady Gaga and Britney Spears Share a Surreal Moment at the MTV VMAs." Here's the kicker:

The two almost kissed, and then broke off at the last moment. But Gaga kept leering, standing uncomfortably close to Britney as she attempted to give a barely felt acceptance speech. What's more, Britney had to simultaneously thank the world and introduce the next performer, Beyonce Knowles. It was a moment of weird indignity for Spears: a younger star awkwardly hogging the spotlight, a roughly contemporary diva waiting in the wings to take the stage.



But the optics of the things were the most striking. Britney, at 29, remains sturdily, conventionally beautiful. Outfitted in boots and a short but glamorous black dress, she appeared the modern-pop definition of "statuesque." And then there was Gaga as Calderone: blonde hair replaced by dark mop, her features elfin and unspectacular, her get-up shapeless and drab, her stature tiny. By pairing the two for a kind of lifetime achievement award, MTV was necessarily asking us to contrast the women. Gaga, it seemed, had picked out her shtick for the night in part to play up that contrast. And why not? With her endless parade of costume changes and her guilt-free lyrical message, Gaga's obsessed with remaking standards of beauty and achievement so that they're set by individuals, not establishments. She's the incredible, cross-dressing, anti-Britney.

Video at the link, in case this one gets yanked.



RELATED: At London's Daily Mail, "What a difference four years makes: Britney Spears gets her sparkle back as she returns to scene of THAT awful MTV performance."

Pianist Yuja Wang's Sexy Dress Rocks the Hollywood Bowl

Except she wasn't there to rock the house.



At LAT, "Classical gasp: Yuja Wang's dress at the Bowl causes a crescendo":

Pianist Yuja Wang struck a chord at the Hollywood Bowl this month and not just with her performance of Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto. The 24-year-old Chinese soloist had necks craning, tongues wagging and flashbulbs popping when she walked on wearing an orange, thigh-grazing, body-hugging dress atop sparkly gold strappy stiletto sandals.



In particular, Wang's outfit was a hot topic at the concert and continued after Times music critic Mark Swed's review appeared in print and online. While Swed praised her delicacy, speed and grace at the piano, his fashion comments — including the observation: "Her dress Tuesday was so short and tight that had there been any less of it, the Bowl might have been forced to restrict admission to any music lover under 18 not accompanied by an adult" — have touched off a spirited debate among music critics and bloggers about what constitutes appropriate concert attire and conversely, whether a critique of a performer's clothes has any place in a music review.



It should be noted that while the Los Angeles Philharmonic has a very specific dress code for members of its orchestra (several ones, actually, depending on the time of day and season), it does not apply to soloists. They, according to an L.A. Phil representative, are informed what the orchestra will be wearing and can choose whatever they feel is most appropriate. "For women that's traditionally an evening gown," the rep said, "but that's not always the case."

God, that staid. Bunch of poofters.



More pics at the link. (And Cameron Carpenter's cool.)

'Sorrow'

David Bowie. I haven't played him around here much lately:

More blogging tonight.

On the Road to Vegas for Beatles LOVE Cirque du Soleil

I imentioned it a week or so back. As this post goes live, I'm heading out the I-15 to catch up with my family at the MGM Grand Las Vegas. My oldest boy invited his (sorta) girlfriend along, so it's a big deal. A couple of weekends ago my wife and I went over to talk with (sorta) girlfriend's mom for a couple of hours. We shared stories and (sorta) girlfriend's mom laid down the line. She said she trusted her daughter. It was everybody else she was worried about. We assured her that we don't give our son too much free rein, that he's only allowed to walk across to the New York New York Hotel to ride the roller coaster there. All the hotels are connected by walkways so it's not like you're being accosted by a bunch of drunks or beggars down on the Strip. Anyway, girlfriend's mom loves my son so much permission for her daughter to go with us was a foregone conclusion.



The show's tomorrow night. I'll have regular blogging tonight, once I get set up in Vegas.



PREVIOUSLY: "The Beatles LOVE Cirque du Soleil." Plus, "'A Day in the Life'," and "Impressions: The Beatles LOVE Cirque du Soleil."

Farrah Fawcett Barbie Becomes Instant Collectors' Item

I love this story, at Daily Mail, "Mattel's Angel: Bikini-clad Farrah Fawcett Barbie doll becomes an instant collectors' item."



Some of the proceeds go to the Farrah Fawcett Foundation for the benefit of cancer research.

Etnies Skatepark Expansion

Etnies Skatepark in Lake Forest has opened a huge new skatepark addition. See O.C. Register, "Expansion done, skaters enjoy 'perfect' Etnies Skatepark." And at TransWorld Skateboarding, "Final Expansion Will Make It the Largest Free Public Skatepark in the U.S."

I'm taking my kid over there right now. I'll post some pics later.

That's Creepy? ABC's Lara Spencer Runs Her Hand Through Jon Bon Jovi's Hair During On-Air Interview

It's not that creepy, but check NYDN, "Lara Spencer and other reporters getting too close for comfortm creepy in on-air segments." Looks like Bon Jovi doesn't mind either. See, "The Hair Is Shorter, but the Career Goes On and On: Jon Bon Jovi on Longevity, Jersey and Outselling Justin Bieber."

Rawley's

Good stuff at Maggie's Farm, "Best Hot Dog in the Northeast, right off I-95 in Fairfield, CT."