Sunday, July 22, 2012

Thin Rex Ryan, a new Superman and book burnings


- Any time you can evoke images and memories of some of the more heinous moments of the most murderous regime in world history over a silly romance book, you have to do it, right? Much credit to two Cleveland radio DJs, Chad Zumock and Alan Cox of WMMS 100.7 FM, decided that they had heard just about enough of the racy book (becoming a movie as well) “Fifty Shades of Grey,” which millions of women of all ages have read and become devoted fans of. E.L. James’ book is the bestselling series of all time, with over 20 million copies sold in the United States alone. Some have termed the books “mommy porn,” and linked them to a surge in sex toy sales. In short, the book is about worldly billionaire Christian Grey seducing and falling in love with an innocent college graduate named Anastasia Steele. According to Zumock and Cox, the books have been a consistent topic of conversation on their talk show. . “People were calling and complaining how it was just horrible,” Zumock said. “So it was something we had to do.” That “something we had to do” turned out to be a book-burning party hosted live during their afternoon drive time show from 3 to 7 p.m., on 100.7 FM. So they gathered at a restaurant on the outskirts of Cleveland and had them a good ol’ fashioned book burning, just like the Nazis did in Berlin when they torched tens of thousands of books they found offensive. Zumock and Cox drew a modest crowd of about 50 for their ode to Nazi-like book treatment and didn’t seem too concerned about the message it sent. “Men can’t live up to this book, and it becomes an issue,” Zumock added. “They’re more interested in this and go to bed alone.” “This is giving voice to people who think it’s a piece of garbage,” Cox said before admitting, “I don’t know what we’re standing up for.” And that just about says it all………….


- The reels and the projector had barely cooled down from the first showings of “The Dark Knight
Rises” when the next superhero movie reboot made its presence known. With the world still reeling from the tragic shootings at the “Dark Knight” showing in Colorado, focusing on the movies themselves became tougher. Still, director Zack Snyder is hoping that his spin on the Superman franchise will find a fond place in the hearts of movie fans. “Man of Steel” is the name of the project and a teaser for the movie has been released online and is playing ahead of screenings of “The Dark Knight Rises.” Snyder has plenty of action movie credibility, having directed films such as Watchmen” and “300.” His take on the man from Krypton movie stars Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Russell Crowe as Jor-El and Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent. With some big, established names attached to the project, the movie has at least a fighting chance even though a Superman film starring Kate Bosworth and Brandon Routh is only a few years in the rearview mirror. In the trailer, a slightly arty approach suggests a more high-end motif for the film, with shots of wildlife, no evil villains to be found and Superman showing up only for the final seconds to break to sound barrier and zoom off screen. Given the tepid response to 2006’s “Superman Returns” with Routh and Bosworth, Snyder seems to be reaching on this one and shamelessly recycling an oft-told story because he somehow can put a different spin on it……….


- Riot Watch! Riot Watch! Now that the San Fermin festival is over and there are no more large, angry, 2,000-lb. quadrupeds with horns to run with, Spaniards need a new direction for their energy and they appear to have found it in Madrid this weekend as hundreds unemployed Spaniards who traveled hundreds of miles on foot joined up with massive protests on Saturday against Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's government and its handling of an economic crisis in the country. Protests have become the norm across Spain since the center-right government announced 65 billion euros in new spending cuts two weeks ago to satisfy the conditions of a euro zone bailout. The uprising gained strength when firefighters and police joined a mass protest on Thursday. Their numbers were bolstered two days later when several hundred jobless people journeyed on foot from the southern region of Andalucia, which has one of the worst unemployment rates in the country, northern Catalonia and other areas in an attempt to highlight the plight of the unemployed in Spain, where almost one in four is without a job. A massive march took place Saturday night near Madrid's Puerta del Sol, a central square that has been the scene of protests involving hundreds of thousands of demonstrators. Police and protestors clashed in a protest at the square earlier this month and riot troops responded with used tear gas and rubber bullets. On Saturday, protestors chanted Unemployed, wake up!" and were joined by members of Spain's "Indignados"(Indignant) movement, which has organized regular sit-ins at the square for more than a year. In addition to dealing with this drama, the government is on the brink of financial collapse after it was forced to ask euro zone leaders for up to 100 billion euros to help ailing banks in the zone's fourth-largest economy. Even so, being poor and down and out should never preclude on from rioting when the time comes for such action………..


- There will be plenty of weighty issues for the New York Jets this season, but head coach Rex Ryan’s weight problems won't be among them. The cherubic Ryan, whose big mouth has long been matched and maybe even surpassed by his massive girth, is on his way to being half the man he used to be. When Ryan stepped on a scale a few days before the 2009 AFC Championship Game, he weighed in at 348 pounds. That stunning moment left him searching for ways to slim down and he underwent lap-band surgery. Now, more than two years later, he has shed more than 100 pounds and he cheerily happily announced Thursday that he now weighs in at 242 pounds. His waistline has shrank from 48 inches to 38 and with his (relative) newfound slimness, he is looking forward to erasing the memory of a disappointing 8-8 2011 season. "I think I've looked forward to this season probably more than any season I've had in my life," he said. "I have something to prove. Shoot, I'm excited about it." Having the weight off his body will be good for a man who is under immense pressure after last year’s disappointing result, when he admitted he "lost the pulse" of his team. The Jets collapsed down the stretch and lost their final three games to miss the playoffs after reaching the AFC title game in Ryan’s first two seasons. He took even more heat for his much-publicized Super Bowl guarantee before last season, the sort of heat his stomach once took back when he would regularly down 12 tacos in a single sitting. Now, Ryan shares an entree with his wife when they go out to dinner, his cholesterol is below 150, and his blood pressure is 120 over 75. "I obviously look a lot better," he said. "I may not be a box of chocolates, but I look a hell of a lot better than I did." At about 6-foot-3, he walks at least 45 minutes each day and he feels so good that he actually has thought about running again. He is a spokesman for the lap-band surgery and even convinced his twin brother, Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, to have the surgery -- and Rob has dropped 60 pounds. Rex Ryan said he underwent the procedure so he can live longer and see his children grow up and at this rate, his odds for doing so are much better………….

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