This mashup makes me feel sad, but in a completely different way. So, obviously they nailed it!
Former Chicago Bears great Devin Hester announced his retirement from the NFL today.
“To all the Bears fans, you brought me in and made a Florida boy feel at home in the Midwest from Day 1,” he wrote on Twtter. “I grew into a man, built a family and became who I am today in the city of Chicago. I’ll always remember the noise y’all made whenever I hit the open turf at Soldier (Field) — never heard anything quite like it. I’d also like to especially thank coach Lovie Smith for taking a chance on me in the draft and getting this whole thing started.”
CURTAINS ✌🏾 Appreciate all of the love for all these years!!! Y’all made the ride incredible!!! pic.twitter.com/jkcVrRLcNI
— Devin Hester (@D_Hest23) December 12, 2017
(from altpress.com)
It turns out France will be banning students from using phones in the country’s elementary and middle schools, The Guardian reports.
The Guardian explains that students will be allowed to bring their phones to school, but will not be allowed to use phones until they leave school for the day.
“Sometimes you need a mobile for teaching reasons…for urgent situations, but their use has to be somehow controlled,” Jean-Michel Blanquer, the French education minister, explains. “It’s good that children are not too often, or even at all, in front of a screen before the age of seven.” (MORE HERE)
Disney could announce a deal this week to purchase the movie and TV studio properties of 21st Century Fox. This huge $60 billion dollar deal has been reported for weeks now, with Fox talking to several other big media companies including Comcast but today’s near-confirmation comes from CNBC. According to Variety, Fox would retain Fox News, the Fox broadcast network, and Fox Sports 1, which will be re figured into a new, independent company. Disney would seek to acquire the lost pieces of some of their owned properties to expand their work in films, merchandise, and beyond with Fox movie and TV shows.
Disney would get control over all the movie and various TV shows under the Fox umbrella that includes the X-Men which could lead to a huge addition to the D’s established ‘Marvel Cinematic Universe’ series.The Marvel films have generated a whopping $13 billion following the release of ‘Thor: Ragnarok, so adding more synergy creating more exciting team-ups and battles means more blockbuster box office success. We could finally see Wolverine meet the Avengers on the big screen. Deadpool could crack wise next to Iron Man.. What would Disney do with these new characters at their theme parks in Florida and California? There is a lot possibilities of fun things happening here but the recent more adult R-rated vibe of ‘Logan’ and ‘Deadpool’ on the Fox side could get pulled back under Disney. Polygon reported this week Bob Iger, Disney’s chief executive, confirmed with investors in a recent call that Disney, including subsidiaries like Lucasfilm and Marvel Studios, would never make a hard R-movie.
So what does that mean for risque FOX TV shows like ‘Family Guy’? How does this affect the beloved ‘Simpsons’? Can ‘Bob’s Burgers’ still have burgers or do they have go vegetarian? So many questions arise, but only the future holds the answers.
A major influence for this deal is Disney planned launch of their own digital streaming service which will feature all of their movies, TV shows, and many originally produced shows. It’s a massive venture on the Mouse’s part basically making them a direct competitor with Netflix. With these new Fox shows and movies under it’s white gloved grip, it could fill out a tasty on-demand offering for this future over-the-top service.
Just remember ‘the Simpsons’ predicted this.
With the possibility of 20th Century Fox being sold to Disney, let me be one of the first to point out the Simpsons predicted it: pic.twitter.com/U1uN5VjiEp
— A Very Ryan W. Meady Christmas (@rwmead) November 6, 2017
Beyond the Trailers breaks down all of the Hollywood politics behind this massive deal between Fox and Disney.
An ice cream shop in New Jersey has changed this logo because people felt the cartoon cow was too sexy and an inappropriate logo.
They are now going with…
Is this fake outrage or was the cow logo too much? You can read more about it from the AP.
(from techowiz.com)
(from altpress.com)
Stranger Things star David Harbour (aka Jim Hopper) has hinted towards when we’ll see Season 3 on Netflix, and it’s a little later than we’d hope—but it only makes sense.
“I mean, one of the things that’s annoying for fans is that it takes us a long time to do them,” he tells Variety. “You probably won’t get [Season 3] until sometime in 2019. But also part of the thing is, like any good thing, they need time. And those guys work so hard. I mean, they just sit in their apartment and write for 12, 14 hours a day.”
And, of course, we want Season 3 to be the best it can be, so I guess we can patiently wait until 2019 for a new season.
Season 3 was officially confirmed earlier this month and, of course, this is no surprise whatsoever. Everyone’s ready for more, and there are already speculations about what’ll happen in Season 3. There might even be some hints from the writers and cast members… See everything we know so far here. (One thing we can expect? More ‘80s references. Heck yes.)
(from timeout.com)
In the four years since the release of the Ventra card, commuters have become accustomed to tapping the drab, grey pass when taking CTA buses and trains. With the original cards nearing their expiration date (is there a single person who has managed to not misplace their first Ventra card?), the CTA is introducing a new look for the transit cards alongside a campaign educating customers about how to obtain a replacement. (MORE HERE)
(from consequenceofsound.net)
Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme has issued a second apology to the photographer he kicked during the band’s concert in Los Angeles on Saturday night. The photographer, Chelsea Lauren, said Homme’s kick caused her camera to hit her in the face. She spent the evening in the ER and planned to file a police report on Sunday. (MORE HERE)
As we countdown to the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi this week , we look back all the out-there things from the galaxy far, far away.
Yeah, as if the Star Wars Holiday Special was not weird enough but then there was the ‘Christmas in the Stars’ album. It was released in November 1980 through RSO Records with producer Meco Menardo and music composed by Broadway song-smith Maury Yeston. It is beyond odd with a kiddie feel and mad takes on various Star Wars side characters all doing some holiday themed songs that sound like songs that you would think written by comedy music titan Weird Al Yankovic, except they weren’t. Chalk it up as “so bad, it’s good”.
Here is the track list.
The album did well on the popularity of Star Wars at the time, but never saw a second pressing due to the RSO Records going out of business due to an unrelated lawsuit. That makes the vinyl a real collectors item for fans. It’s also worth noting this album features the first known recorded vocal performance of Jon Bon Jovi. Yes, he’s on this record performing “R2D2, We Wish You a Merry Christmas”. Yes, that’s a real song with the lyrics ” And if the snow becomes too deep, just give a little beep / We’ll go in by the fire and warm your little wires / Spreading Christmas cheer will be easy with you here.” It is a real song, and for many reasons I can not defend, it is my all-time favorite Christmas song.
Over the years around Christmas, I pull together an oddball holiday playlist of eccentric deep tracks from this album and others that I heard on the “Dr. Demento Show’ on 97.9 The Loop, This music files in that novelty category of just zany over-the-top and though it’s not necessarily great, it’s delightful in a genuine way for Star Wars fans of all ages.
It’s demented influence continued to make impact generations later. Tarquin Records, an indie rock label out of Connecticut put out this brilliant holiday compilation of non-traditional holiday songs, and it won me over when alt solo artist Brian Dewan crushed a cover from the ‘Christmas in the Star Wars’ album. It’s honestly better than the original with sound effects, keyboard blips, and soft electric organ plus a gang vocals. It’s nerdy and neat to think of someone this holiday out there drinking the egg nog in a turtle neck and giving a robot a meaningful gift.
Not sure what was up with Josh Homme at last night’s Queens of the Stone Age appearance in Los Angeles. He intentionally cut his forehead open, cursed the headliner of the festival show…and then, there’s this, video courtesy of Consequence of Sound:
Even if he’s just trying to take out the camera, I’m not exactly sure where his head is at kicking a ridiculously expensive piece of equipment.
Anyways, the photographer ended up going to the E.R. and plans on pressing charges. Not a good look. Not at all. — [eric]
UPDATE: Josh Homme’s apology, from Twitter:
— QOTSA (@qotsa) December 10, 2017
Will Ferrell’s ‘ELF” stands the test of time as a vivid mix of over-the-top humor with a heart-warming holiday message, but the talented deviants at Mashable have flipped it on it’s head with a horror remixed trailed that gives it a whole new spooky vibe. Yeah, now Buddy does not seem so nice does he?
It’s clever how just some musical adjustments and choice cuts of dialogue work this joke into you so easily.
WGN’s Pat Tomasulo reports from the drunken weirdness that is TBOX back in 2012
TBOX, the 12 Bars of Christmas in the past few years has morphed into ugly christmas sweater bacchanal of booze, costumes, non-milk cereal consumption, and public intoxication. It went down yesterday and Twitter had a field day covering all of the madness in Wrigleyville. Here is the best (or worst?) of TBOX 2017 from across the social medias.
Yeah for those of us that don’t like that MANY drunk people in once place this is amusing.
Sidewalk inspector. "He's intoxicated, down. He cracked his head." Clark and Addison.#TBOX2017 #TBOX #ChicagoScanner
— CWBChicago (@CWBChicago) December 9, 2017
#TBOX #TBOX2017 2pm – The alcohol is starting to take effect. Noticed one TBOXer down in her puke. @CWBChicago https://t.co/rdybLUKd62
— Mike C (@the1stMikeC) December 9, 2017
Big s/o to everyone sincerely regretting going to #TBOX yesterday. I would totally help if I could…but I can’t. Have fun with the two day hangover and depleted bank account.
Love,
Mikey ❤️— Michael Bolling (@mikealexbolling) December 10, 2017
Mary is a fourteen year old girl from Cleveland. That’s not even half as mature as the Toto classic, “Africa.” But it appears as though the prospect of Weezer covering a pop hit from 1982 is something she desires greatly, no matter the motivation:
@RiversCuomo it’s about time you bless the rains down in africa
— weezer cover africa by toto (@weezerafrica) December 6, 2017
Weezer has been known to cover a tune or two. And frankly, they’ve picked some great ones: Radiohead, Wheatus, Psychedelic Furs, among a handful of other ones that I’ve enjoyed. But one girl has made it her mission to get Toto into the mix, who talked with Noisey about her mission.
Mary joked that the new album Daydream must have been inspired by “Africa,” and somehow that evolved into the thought that maybe…just maybe…the band might be up for covering it.
She’s created a Twitter account, fired off messages towards the band, and begged and pleaded everywhere to get this done. So far, only Patrick Wilson has responded (he said it made him laugh). But really, what we need is…an official position statement from Rivers Cuomo.
It doesn’t need to be on social media. I think fans would be okay if they just ripped into the famous refrain as confirmation. — [eric]
Following the bright Disney revamped to the Star Wars movie series in ‘Force Awakens’ and the spin-off ‘Rogue One’ , we now come to ‘the Last Jedi’ so what is the early word on this much-anticipated blockbuster following last night’s official premiere in Los Angeles? Well, it looks like it’s going to be a great Christmas for SW fans.
Here is what various movie critics and reporters shared on Twitter following the screening.
IT DOES NOT GET BETTER THAN STAR WARS THE LAST JEDI!!!!!!
— robertliefeld (@robertliefeld) December 10, 2017
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is everything. Intense, funny, emotional, exciting. It’s jam-packed with absolutely jaw dropping moments and I loved it so, so much. I’m still shaking. pic.twitter.com/fHddWjo201
— Germain Lussier (@GermainLussier) December 10, 2017
Luke was right: "This is not going to go the way you think." #TheLastJedi will shatter you – and then make you whole again. pic.twitter.com/PJyYpH5loP
— Anthony Breznican (@Breznican) December 10, 2017
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is so very different, exciting, surprising. So many emotions, so many amazing moments. Stay away from spoilers.
— Peter Sciretta (@slashfilm) December 10, 2017
'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Early Buzz: A Surprising, Funny and Jaw-Dropping Sequel https://t.co/GN7XH6o1rp pic.twitter.com/xC2N6feJ5k
— Peter Sciretta (@slashfilm) December 10, 2017
Video of the year by far! Omg pic.twitter.com/B4Cjds8mOc
— Bob Menery (@BobMenery) December 7, 2017
Is there anything this guy can’t do? I’m thinking the answer is no. Another reason (Besides Brian & Lou) to wake up early. Check out Chance The Rapper on WGN news this morning. -wALT
Chance the Rapper tries his hand as a WGN weatherman
Carrie Fisher’s dog has a cameo in Star Wars: The Last Jedi
At the closing ceremonies for 2016’s Star Wars Celebration, the world’s largest convention for the franchise, both Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill had a very exact complaint to be made: why are there no dogs in the Star Wars universe?
Love Bleachers’ latest album “Gone Now!: Watch Jack Antonoff and the band perform “I Miss Those Days” on Colbert
