They say that your name reveals a lot about you. If you have the same name as trouble-making TV cartoon character, should it be any surprise if you find life imitating art one day?
Let's ask Bart Simpson. Or rather, Barton Simpson of Eccleshall, England. He appeared before Mr. Burns in a courtroom recently, reports The Huffington Post.
No, really, he did. In real life.
No, this title is not quite as catchy as "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!", but that's why Dr. Seuss got the big bucks. At this time of year, children, it's not sugarplums that dance in legal bloggers' heads, it's whimsy such as: Exactly what crimes did the Grinch commit during his reign of terror over Whoville?
In other words, would a legally accurate title for the Great Seuss' work be:
"How the Grinch Committed Conspiracy, Trespass, Burglary, Domestic Terrorism and Will No Doubt Be Sued by the Whos for Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress After He Attempted to Steal Christmas"?
Like we said, not as catchy, yet it has a certain ring to it. But is it correct? Let's break it down.
These are strange times we live in. Slighted politicians, justices, and their supporters are turning to song parodies for solace after a Supreme Court ruling doesn't go their way.
After the "Call Me Maybe" parodies were completely overdone with the likes of President Obama, the Cookie Monster, and even Stars Wars chiming in, now people have turned to Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know" to make a point.
Not surprisingly, Chief Justice John Roberts has been the target of this parody.
One can only hope that these tired copycats stop with these music parodies. After all, a pretentious rant is a pretentious rant, regardless of the soundtrack you put it to.
Wouldn't you be ecstatic if the cops took down 30 drug dealers in your neighborhood? If they arrested known gang members who possessed half a kilo of cocaine, 20 lbs. of marijuana 8 oz. of crack and a number of firearms?
One would think elation would be the normal reaction, but it seems this is not always the case. Some residents in Ferriday, Louisiana are enraged that law enforcement carried out the above arrests. They say the Ferriday drug bust was just another way to knock them down.
A tip of the hat to comedian Stephen Colbert's Super PAC, which is reportedly buying airtime for commercials ahead of South Carolina's GOP primary, the Palmetto Public Record blog reports.
Colbert, legally, can no longer have anything to do with that, or else he'll get a wag of the finger -- and perhaps a hefty fine.
The host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" announced on his show last night that he's forming an exploratory committee for a possible run "for President of the United States of South Carolina." It's Colbert's home state, where a recent poll showed him with 5% of GOP voter support -- ahead of candidate Jon Huntsman's 4%.
Kurt Shore is an advertising man. So naturally he fancies himself quite clever. When a thief stole his MacBook computer out of his car, he decided to pursue the thief with a unique angle, by offering an ounce of pot as a reward. He also posted surveillance footage of the incident on YouTube.
I think Shore's idea is half baked. (Get it? I know, lame.) The ad says, "Reward. Fabulous drug stash." Then at the bottom there is an asterisk with the words "actual reward may vary." Is that what passes for clever these days? No wonder most advertisements make me want to gouge my eyes out.
It was only a matter of time before someone sued that cuddly, teddy bear of a man, Mr. Simon Cowell. It may come as some surprise, however, that the suit is not taking place in what many (at least outside our borders) call the most litigious country in the world, the good ol' U.S. of A. No, this suit for exploitation and degradation, otherwise known as reality TV, comes to us courtesy of our cousins across the pond, England. A booted contestant, Emma Czikai, says she was humiliated and degraded on the show Britain's Got Talent. She is seeking £300,000 ($458,000) for injured feelings, compensation of £1 million ($1.5 million) and loss of earnings of £1.25 million ($1.9 million).
ABC News reports Ms. Czikai says not only did she suffer the slings and arrows of the judge's harsh words during her spot on the show in March of 2009, but she was also the victim of disability discrimination because the show did not make the necessary adjustments for her, such as lowering the level of backing music and microphone levels. Czikai suffers from cervical spine neuritis, which can cause head and shoulder pain, which in turn caused her singing to suffer.
White House No-Fly Zone Enforced by Commander-in-Chief Himself
A common house fly found itself in the rare air of the White House this week, but paid the ultimate price for lingering too long in the presence of the President. And the incident unleashed PETA's hair-trigger (actually made entirely of faux-fur) outrage, as the group tried to ensure that the next fly receives a Presidential pardon.
When Obama sat down for an interview with CNBC's John Harwood on Wednesday, the normally unflappable Commander-in-Chief became distracted by a fly buzzing around his head.
The bug landed on his arm, and that's when the President paused to gather himself in dead-still concentration, then delivered a death blow in a blur of crisp white shirt cuff and blue coat sleeve.
Network Hoping "The Hair" Plus Jungle Humidity Equals Ratings Gold
NBC has apparently reached a tentative deal with Rod Blagojevich to have the painfully shy former Illinois governor appear as a cast member on "I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here," or "Who the @#*! is That?", as the show is known informally.
The Chicago Tribune is reporting that Blagojevich would get paid $80,000 per week to appear on the reality show, which is set to start taping on June 1 in the Costa Rican jungle. Blagojevich would join the hollow halls of former "I'm a Celebrity" cast members like "Downtown" Julie Brown, "Stuttering" John Melendez, and Chris "Not a Judd Sister" Judd.
UK Media Regulator Blindsided by Explicit Content in "Sexy Girls Next Door"
Playboy Television has been fined by a British media agency for what can only be described as a Trojan-horse style assault on unsuspecting UK living rooms: sneaking sexually explicit and offensive images into programs called "Sexy Girls Next Door", "Sexy Urban Legends", "and "Adult Stars Close-Up."
According to Reuters, the fine was levied by Ofcom (the UK's answer to the FCC) and amounted to 22,500 pounds -- about $33,000, or what Playboy founder Hugh Hefner likes to call "what I make in the time it takes Miss February to help me put on my diamond-encrusted pajamas."
