Fordham Professor to Choose Subjects for Stamps

Photo Courtesy shadamai

The only word I can think of to describe this story is “Kooky.”

“Clara E. Rodríguez, professor of sociology and former dean of Fordham’s College of Liberal Studies, has been appointed by Postmaster General John E. Potter to serve on the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee, which recommends subjects to appear on U.S. postage stamps.”

Just giving the blog some school spirit.

In the comments, leave who you would like to see on postage stamps. Maybe Professor Rodriguez reads the Observer Blog.

Kanye West and Dinosaurs, Finally Together

photos by Charlotte Coleman

As you have maybe gathered from the title of this post (or any of the other Internet coverage), Kanye West played a short, surprise set Friday at the Museum of Natural History during the One Step Beyond show featuring some other talented Chicago natives–A-Trak, Kid Sister and The Cool Kids (aka Why Hip-Hop Is Good). If you want to hear about the set, what songs he played, how amped the crowd was or what kind of fur his coat might have been, you must search elsewhere. Adam and I missed his entire performance because we were in the planetarium. We blew it. We know this. I don’t want to speak of it again. We do have some great pictures to offer, however, taken by FCLC’s own Charlotte Coleman. So, please, follow us after the jump for more. (Adam thinks these pictures are better than Pitchfork’s).

Don’t Forget Norbit

Photo courtesy etchasketchist

While it’s obvious what Tuesday’s most important film news was, there was another story of note (be it a far less devastating note) buried in the understandably overlooked Oscar nominations: Norbit was nominated for an Academy Award.

Coming on the tail of an impressive, if not admirable, five Razzie nominations, the Eddie Murphy film has now earned an Oscar nomination for Achievement in Makeup. Quite simply, this is plain silly. The movie has a 9% on Rotten Tomatoes and 27 on Metacritic, but maybe more aggravating is that the film came out last February. The Academy never bothers to remember good movies from that early in the year, but they had no problem recalling how hilarious Eddie Murphy looked in all those different costumes?

I would be failing you if I didn’t mention that the two men nominated for the award, Rick Baker and Kazuhiro Tsuji, have been up for Osacrs before: Tsuji once, for Click, and Baker a staggering ten times, with six wins. I’m not trying to knock the skill of these two men, but it’s just a little strange to visit the official Oscar Web site and see Norbit listed two spots away from No Country For Old Men.

It does raise a few interesting questions about the Academy, namely: Did any of them really watch Norbit? And: Are we really prepared for that answer?

Golden Raspberry Awards Announce Nominations

Photo courtesy qwghlm

In a few hours we’ll get the Oscar nominations, but Monday already brought us cinema news of equal worth: the Golden Raspberry Award nominations. The mock awards show, known to close friends as the Razzies, announced the nominations for their 28th annual ceremony celebrating the year’s worst movies.

There were really no surprises. Lindsay Lohan got a bunch of nominations for a movie that nobody remembers (I Know Who Killed Me), Eddie Murphy got a record-setting five nominations for his most recent “Come-Watch-Eddie-Murphy-Play-A-Bunch-Of-Crazy-Characters” project (Norbit) and Jessicas Biel and Alba each got few of their own for…does it even matter?

Some notable omissions: Alvin and the Chipmunks, Fred Claus, In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale, Underdog, Wild Hogs, Sweeney Todd. (I am the only one that thought Sweeney Todd was really really boring? I get it, Johnny Depp and Tim Burton are creepy and Helana Bonham Carter is super creepy, but c’mon.)

The actual ceremony takes place on Saturday, February 23. For the full list of nominees hit up www.razzies.com.

Coachella Comes East!

Photo courtesy scubapup

Or at least of version of it will. It has just been announced, first by Perez Hilton and then by Billboard, that concert promoters AEG Live/Goldenvoice will be bringing their insanely successful music festival formula to the east coast. Not much information has been released, but it has been made clear that the festival will not bear the Coachella moniker. This yet-to-be-named musical orgy will take place at Liberty State Park in Jersey City, a park previously best known for boasting prime views of downtown Manhattan and housing the Liberty Science Center. (Honestly, has anyone seen a nature movie on the “Omnimax” screen there? It is bananas.)

According to Mr. Hilton’s source, the festival will take place sometime in August, putting it in close competition with the Vineland Festival, another musical smörgåsbord taking place in New Jersey in August. Unless, of course, some Vineland residents get their way and that festival doesn’t take place.

While this may not be Coachella: New Jersey Edition, the idea is definitely promising. Certainly good news for people who like good news.

(Also of note: Is this the first Observer Blog post to link to Perez Hilton? If so, awesome.)

WeTube So You Don’t Have To: Iowa Caucus Edition

So the returns from the Iowa caucuses are in and, as our mighty Managing Editor Adam Kaufman reported, the victors were Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee. I’ll leave any sort of commentary to any of our other esteemed editors because, well, they’re all smarter than me, but one arena where I feel my input is valuable is the YouTube.

Two videos from the winners:

This is far from an official Obama campaign video, but by gosh it should be. And just for the uninitiated, YouTube is rife with Soulja Boy mash-ups in the same ilk. Do yourself a favor spend three or four hours browsing the catalog.

A reminder: This man won. Just saying.

Check back often for more traditional (and informative) campaign coverage by the other members of the Observer staff. (And don’t forget that Adam already posted what might be the best officially endorsed campaign clip.)

Livin’ La Vida Loca

Photo courtesy sgerstenzang

On Monday Nov. 12, The New Oxford American Dictionary announced its Word of the Year for 2007. The announcement was made through the Oxford University Press Blog. (Just a hunch, but I think these “blog” things are really going to catch fire.) The word is thus: Locavore.

According the Oxford Blog:

The “locavore” movement encourages consumers to buy from farmers’ markets or even to grow or pick their own food, arguing that fresh, local products are more nutritious and taste better. Locavores also shun supermarket offerings as an environmentally friendly measure, since shipping food over long distances often requires more fuel for transportation.

Yeah, I’ve never heard the word either, but I do like the choice. And it makes sense that in year in which “going green” became so trendy, Oxford would acknowledge a word that’s part of said movement (even if the word is not the most popular). For more information on the locavore movement, visit locavores.com. And even though most local farmers’ markets here in the city are closed for the winter, Whole Foods notes where all its produce is grown, making it that much easier to jump on the locavore bandwagon.

Most Valuable Runner(s)-Up for Word of the Year:

bacn and cougar (In reference to older women who seek younger men for romantic engagements.)

WeTube So You Don’t Have To: This is Your Brain on Paul Reubens

Now, I’m not here to make jokes about crack. I agree with Mr. Reubens on this one, crack is…well you know, wick wick whack. But c’mon, Pee-wee Herman? Really? I know his HBO Special was a big deal a while back and the kids looked up to him and all, but there is no instance where this is not at least a little bit funny.

You have to love that he’s still talking in the Pee-wee Herman voice, but due to the serious subject matter, he tones it down a bit. And you know when he got in the Pee-wee outfit he started doing to voice full boar, and the director had to say something like, “Um, Paul, maybe we could try it a little more somber. You know? Take it down a few notches? Because, we’re uh, we’re talking about crack cocaine and all.” Thank goodness the Secret Word of the Day wasn’t “addictive.”