Posted by: Fenton Bailey contact

Of Interest

Media mogul (Wallpaper, Monocle) Tyler Brûlé and tawdry toreador in blue at the Brüno premiere in Spain.  



| E-Mail

Posted by: Thairin contact

Infant Born with Second Penis in the Middle of His Back

I still can not believe this one but it is true! 

Fetus in Fetu (FIF) is a rare and very mysterious medical condition that is said to have occurred (or at least is recorded to have occurred) less than ninety times throughout medical history.

For the little boy born in Tianjin’s Children Hospital in China, the second penis in the middle of his tiny back is a medical first and even weirder than some other instances of this highly unusual phenomenonFetus in Fetu (FIF) is a rare and very mysterious medical condition that is said to have occurred (or at least is recorded to have occurred) less than ninety times throughout medical history.

For the little boy born in Tianjin’s Children Hospital in China, the second penis in the middle of his tiny back is a medical first and even weirder than some other instances of this highly unusual phenomenon. (t/u you know who)

| E-Mail

Posted by: Fenton Bailey contact

Elements of Spin

Punk marketer Richard Laermer alerted me to this: a periodic table classifying the elements of spin, which apparently are more science than art.

As Business Week explains "Kelly's table consists of 25 PR "plays" that encompass the entire spectrum of PR maneuvers available, from the defensive "pause" (a deliberate suspension of activity to assess the opposition) to the swift and decisive "pre-empt," a kind of PR judo that limits your opponent's ability to exploit a weakness".

There are various exciting terms, such as The Crazy Ivan (McCain picking Palin for a running mate), The Disco (Nike's mea culpa over its Asian sweatshops), The Peacock (Oprah giving cars to her studio audience), and The Bear Hug (Mcdonald's giving up on supersize).

It looks pretty, and I have never seen the art of Spin spun finer.

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Aniston: Playboy's No Gentleman

Jennifer Aniston has said no to a whopping $4 million from Playboy magazine to recreate her nude spread that appeared in the January ish of Gentleman's Quarterly, a mag she's posed for before. It's said the turning-40 actress told Hugh Hefner she thought of GQ as art and Playboy as sex. She's deluded, of course – nude is nude wherever it's spread – and losing what could have turned into $10 million if she'd struck a percentage deal with Playboy. A more believable excuse for saying no to the bunny book would have been that her boyfriend John Mayer is playboy enough for her. (Tinsel Gurus) 



| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

All President and Accounted For

He actually won one symbolic euro as compensation for the use of his image, but the voodoo doll (along with the pins) can still be bought anywhere. These posters seem to be more of a compliment. So why is he chasing the perps? Because of his thirst for power? Because he's too insecure? One certain thing is these one-euro compensation deals won't pay for Carla's new dresses. That's right Sarko, as you say so strongly: Vive la Republique et Vive la liberte d'expression!

- Kevin Andreu

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Left Banksy?

Posters depicting French president Nicolas Sarkozy in the style of Shepard Fairey's Barack Obama campaign posters have been popping up all over Paris, causing Sarkozy's camp and the media to scratch their heads. Whodunnit? The French news website L'Express has launched an appeal to readers to identify the poster perps -- who posted photos of their masked selves plastering the posters at sites across the city and on a couple of file-sharing websites. We don't know why it's such a big effing deal, but Sarkozy has previously sued media and some companies over unlicensed use of his image -- most amusingly recently when he tried to block the sale of a Nicolas Sarkozy voodoo doll.



| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Sexy Hitler Shocks the Nation

More from our Belgian friend Dirk Hendrickx:

A new media issue in Belgium. What do you do if you host a new travel TV show and you want the whole country to know about it? You put a sexy, muscled Hitler lookalike in a tiny swimtrunk and – there you go, everybody knows about your show. The CANVAS channel has defended itself by saying it just wants to indicate that you should discover the real Europe and not the clichés. Needless to say, a lot of people are upset and the picture will not be published anymore. (nieuws.be)

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

If You're Going to San Francisco Be Sure to Wear Some Spare Change in Your Hair

American traditionalist and bloviator Bill O'Reilly is afraid that if Barack Obama is pushed too hard by the "far left" to adopt its values, the whole country will turn into a "secular liberal culture" like the San Francisco depicted in this skewed documentary made by his producer. Honestly though, we wish San Francisco were more like it's represented here. We've always found it too adorable and touristy. (HuffPo; t/y James)

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Hugh Jackman Sexiest Man Alive?

Not always. (Photo: PacificCoastNews)

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Bat Boy Goes to Bat for Gays

We take Weekly World News seriously here at World of Wonder, so when we saw this photo of the rag's silent mouthpiece Bat Boy marching in support of gay marriage at a recent "No on Prop 8" rally, we were heartened. It's just the push the movement needed – and that's not an intentional toilet metaphor.

Bat Boy was seen outside City Hall with "PROP 8" with an X through it painted across his chest. While Bat Boy was unable to convey his feelings through words, he did send his high-pitched squeaks of dissent echoing across the plaza. Many mutants turned out for these protests. Mutant rights organizers explained that a number of mutants, such as the Manigator, are born from interspecial relations. Legalizing gay marriage is one step closer to allowing these unconventional unions to be officially recognized.

(WWN; t/y Steven)

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Keeping Up with the Jones

To celebrate the demise of Playgirl magazine's print version (saving paper for tissues), the editors have found Randy Jones, the original Cowboy from the Village People, in New York City (where he's not that hard to find) and asked the man be a part of its 35th-anniversary issue by replicating the pose he struck for the mag back in 1979. He was more than happy to oblige, what with his memoir, Macho Man, and a new album coming out, as it were. (The Sword)

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Coyote Ugly

Thairin Smothers sent this story to the WOW Report just shortly after we put the CLOSED sign in the door last night. But here it is for you now:


I just came from a public meeting @ El Coyote restaurant where the co-owner Marjorie Christofferson was supposed to apologize to the community for donating to the passage of Prop 8.

Well, it didn't go down well. She stood there shaking & crying, begging the crowd not to take their business elsewhere while two people supported her on each side so she wouldn't fall down with grief. She basically begged the very angry crowd to please not take it out on the restaurant for her personal choice.

After her long-winded prepared speech, an ex- Mormon in the audience asked if she still supported the ban on gay marriage. She hemmed and hawed, but basically said, "I stand by my church, my opinion is my own." Well, the crowd's opinion was also their own and people erupted in anger and disbelief and shouted, "BOYCOTT!" One person commented, "She just made matters even worst for herself and the restaurant." There were many news crews outside and people had a lot to say, including me.

The ban is on. BOYCOTT EL COYOTE and any business that supports yes on 8. These are our civil rights. There is no backing down now.

– Thairin Smothers

[Ed note: On August 8, 1969, Sharon Tate and her friends ate their last meal at El Coyote before heading off to the house where members of the Manson family would slaughter them.]

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Young, Gifted, and...Gay?

A black friend of the LA Times columnist Steve Lopez told him that the attitude toward homosexuality and gay marriage among African Americans won't improve until someone of stature in that don't ask-don't tell community comes out and makes it socially acceptable to be gay. His friend said they need a black Elton John or David Geffen. After much thought, Lopez couldn't come up with a single candidate other than RuPaul. Can that be true? Sylvester is long dead and Michael Jackson is not gay and no longer black, but surely there's someone.

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

Keith Olbermann on Gay Marriage

"I have never been a fan of Keith Olbermann," writes AguynamedWayne. "I’ve often thought his election coverage made a mockery of journalism. Which is why I sat in stunned amazement as I watched his Special Comment about the passage of Prop 8. I have rarely if ever heard such an eloquent defense of gay marriage on television. It moved me more than I can say."

"It's pretty great. Definitely a tear jerker," says WOW alum Kristin Rasmussen.

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

But Shouldn't They Really Be in Alphabetical Order?

Click on Obama 2008.

"Cumulatively fabulous"
– James St James

| E-Mail

Posted by: Stephen Saban contact

God Knows We Tried

Looks like the ayes have it on the hot issue of Proposition 8. The California media is reporting that with 90% of polls heard from, 52% of the voters have upheld Proposition 8, California's marriage-protection amendment that fucks with the Constitution. The counting isn't over yet and there could be a surge of no votes, but it's unlikely. Nevertheless, fingers crossed.

| E-Mail