Quick Links
    The time is now 7:23 pm | NBey6's Blog
March 8, 2010, 3:42 pmMeditation NumbersMonday 3-8-10 441, 439, 455, 205, 217, 191, 651, 095, 873 593, 362, 657, 073, 792, 906, 148, 507, 333
March 8, 2010, 3:40 pmBrittney Griner's punch on Jordan BarncastleIs that really a girl...............I'm just saying?
March 8, 2010, 3:26 pmAnd you thought Kanye's moment was bad?!
March 8, 2010, 3:21 pmWhy small film 'Hurt Locker' blew away giant 'Avatar'Why small film 'Hurt Locker' blew away giant 'Avatar'
This isn't exactly the kind of Blue Monday that disappointed "Avatar" fans were expecting.
Oscar voters passed over the top-grossing film of all time, and instead gave Best Picture to "The Hurt Locker," which sold the fewest tickets of any Best Picture winner in academy history.
The academy also made history by choosing Kathryn Bigelow of "The Hurt Locker" as the first woman ever to win the Oscar for Best Director -- over her ex-husband, "Avatar" director James Cameron.
"Avatar" and Cameron seemed unbeatable in January after winning at the Golden Globes and becoming a genuine international cultural phenomenon.
But experts say the film's Oscar campaign failed to capitalize on its momentum and allowed the flick to get swamped in the inevitable backlash.
"Avatar" was widely mocked by the chattering classes for being derivative ("Dances With Smurfs"). A lightly revised script for the Disney cartoon "Pocahontas," underlining the similarities between the two films, circulated through the blogosphere.
Meanwhile, the film's campaigners pushed unsuccessfully to get a Best Supporting Actress nomination for Zoe Saldana, who appears in the film only in animated form.
"The campaign was overly defensive, focusing too much on convincing the voters that the motion-capture performances were real acting," says a veteran Oscar consultant.
"Instead, they should have emphasized on what a game-changer 'Avatar' is for the way movies will be made."
It probably didn't help that many Oscar voters still remember Cameron's boastful "king of the world" speech from the night when his "Titanic" won 11 Oscars in 1998.
So Oscar voters continued the recent trend of embracing small, art-house flicks such as "The Hurt Locker." Last Edited: March 8, 2010, 3:22 pm March 8, 2010, 1:02 pmDid you know that on March 8, 19731973, Paul McCartney was fined £100 ($170) for growing cannabis at his farm in Campbeltown, Scotland. McCartney claimed some fans gave the seeds to him and that he didn’t know what they would grow. March 8, 2010, 12:56 pmOldest person in US dies at 114Oldest person in US dies in NH at age 114 1 hr 44 mins ago WESTMORELAND, N.H. – Mary Josephine Ray, the New Hampshire woman who was certified as the oldest person living in the United States, has died at age 114 years, 294 days. She died Sunday at a nursing home in Westmoreland but was active until about two weeks before her death, her granddaughter Katherine Ray said. "She just enjoyed life. She never thought of dying at all," Katherine Ray said. "She was planning for her birthday party." Even with her recent decline, Ray managed an interview with a reporter last week, her granddaughter said. The Gerontology Research Group says that Ray was the oldest person in the United States and the second-oldest in the world. She was also recorded as the oldest person ever to live in New Hampshire. The oldest living American is now Neva Morris, of Ames, Iowa, at age 114 years, 216 days. The oldest person in the world is Japan's Kama Chinen at age 114 years, 301 days. Ray was born May 17, 1895, in Bloomfield, Prince Edward Island, Canada. She moved to the United States at age 3. She lived for 60 years in Anson, Maine. She lived in Florida, Massachusetts and elsewhere in New Hampshire before she moved to Westmoreland in 2002 to be near her children. Ray's husband, Walter, died in 1967. Survivors include two sons, eight grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and five great-great grandchildren. March 8, 2010, 12:22 pmNC/SC WildcardMidday & Evening ** until 3-12-10 ** 976, 087, 198, 209, 310, 421, 532, 643, 754, 865, 333, 888 6590, 6591, 6592, 6953, 6594, 6595, 6596, 6597, 6598, 6599
March 8, 2010, 8:58 amQuote of the Day"It's not enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what's required." - Winston Churchill - March 7, 2010, 1:36 pmMeditation NumbersHelios' Day 3-7-10 082, 162, 407, 056, 372, 362, 052, 482, 498 332, 572, 702, 322, 152, 942, 472, 962, 182 000, 555, 1886, 1228, 6138, 2180, 6948, 8943
March 6, 2010, 6:38 amJulius Peppers, Chicago Bears finalize $91.5M dealFriday, March 5, 2010
By John Clayton
The contract is worth $91.5 million with $42 million guaranteed. Peppers will make $40.5 million over the first three years. The number could increase if he makes the Pro Bowl, records a certain number of sacks or is defensive player of the year. "It's one thing to play football in this league and make a living, but it's a totally different thing to come to a place with a rich tradition like the Bears," Peppers said.
Peppers and his representatives believe his contract compares favorably with the seven-year, $100 million contract Albert Haynesworth received last year from the Washington Redskins.
Peppers received $18.2 million from the Carolina Panthers last season. He turned down a four-year, $54 million contract offer from the Panthers last year.
Peppers has the potential to make close to $110 million in the seven-year period between 2009 and 2016.
"The guy's a monster, he's an animal," Bears defensive end Alex Brown said Thursday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "He's the biggest guy and fastest guy I think I've ever seen.
"He's as gifted as [linebacker Brian] Urlacher, I think. He's just about 30 pounds heavier. He's unbelievable."
The 6-foot-7 Peppers brings uncanny athletic ability but questionable consistency, along with the 81 sacks he collected in eight seasons with Carolina -- 10½ last year. In Chicago, he'll get to play alongside Lance Briggs, Urlacher and Tommie Harris and give a much-needed boost to a defense that ranked 17th overall and tied for 13th in sacks with 35. And maybe, he'll shoot down a reputation for taking plays off, one that he feels is unwarranted.
"Sometimes, you're on the field, you get tired," he said. "If I'm not playing as hard on play 66 as I was on play No. 1, then ... come on." "It's one thing to play football in this league and make a living, but it's a totally different thing to come to a place with a rich tradition like the Bears," Peppers said.
Peppers and his representatives believe his contract compares favorably with the seven-year, $100 million contract Albert Haynesworth received last year from the Washington Redskins.
Peppers received $18.2 million from the Carolina Panthers last season. He turned down a four-year, $54 million contract offer from the Panthers last year.
Peppers has the potential to make close to $110 million in the seven-year period between 2009 and 2016.
"The guy's a monster, he's an animal," Bears defensive end Alex Brown said Thursday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "He's the biggest guy and fastest guy I think I've ever seen.
"He's as gifted as [linebacker Brian] Urlacher, I think. He's just about 30 pounds heavier. He's unbelievable."
The 6-foot-7 Peppers brings uncanny athletic ability but questionable consistency, along with the 81 sacks he collected in eight seasons with Carolina -- 10½ last year. In Chicago, he'll get to play alongside Lance Briggs, Urlacher and Tommie Harris and give a much-needed boost to a defense that ranked 17th overall and tied for 13th in sacks with 35. And maybe, he'll shoot down a reputation for taking plays off, one that he feels is unwarranted.
"Sometimes, you're on the field, you get tired," he said. "If I'm not playing as hard on play 66 as I was on play No. 1, then ... come on." March 6, 2010, 6:33 amHigh cost of McCourts' divorce: $19 million in feesHigh cost of McCourts' divorce: $19 million in fees
By Bill Shaikin latimes.com 6:16 PM PST, March 5, 2010 Frank and Jamie McCourt's divorce could become one of the costliest splits in California history, with attorneys and accountants commanding as much as $19 million in fees — more than the Dodgers will spend on their starting infield this season.
March 6, 2010, 5:38 amMeditation NumbersSaturday 3-6-10 430, 384, 606, 248, 917, 370, 305, 049 047, 683, 097, 923, 613, 111, 555, 666
March 6, 2010, 5:14 am2010 WTA Tour RankingsAs of March 1, 2010
March 6, 2010, 5:08 am2010 ATP Tour RankingsAs of March 1, 2010
Last Edited: March 6, 2010, 5:18 am March 6, 2010, 2:06 amThought of the Day"The ideal man bears the accidents of life with dignity and grace, making the best of circumstances." - Aristotle -  Page of 138  |
