Beastie Boys Rock for Barack

Taking the phrase "rock the vote" to a whole new level, The Beastie Boys have added three additional dates to their performance schedule in an effort to get out the vote.

Lucky ticket holders in Charlotte, NC, Richmond, VA, Youngstown, OH, St. Paul, MN, and Milwaukee, WI will get polling site and early voting information along with a rocking good time, including various guest performances from the likes of Norah Jones, Sheryl Crow, Jack Johnson, Ben Harper, Crosby & Nash, Santogold, and Tenacious D.

'We are going to do a few shows in hopes that we can remind people to vote,' the Beastie Boys said in a joint statement, adding that they are endorsing Sen. Barack Obama. 'This election is too important, too much is at stake to stay at home. We hope that you can come out, have a nice night, dance, sing, get your freak on, and then wake up the next morning and get everyone that you possibly can to get out and vote.'

Yeah, well, let's hope all those fans don't party too hardy. Otherwise, no one will be getting their "freak on" for Barack at the polls.

Wisely, the boys gave everyone at least a day to shake off the inevitable hangover.

[Source]

Babs Slams Palin, Garth Goes Wailin', and Gandolfini Sets Sail'n

In today's wrap of mundane celebrity gossip...


In a surprise weekend wedding, The Sopranos big kahuna, James Gandolfini married fashion model fiance Deborah Lin. The happy couple tied the knot before 200 friends and family in Lin's hometown of Honolulu, Hawaii.

Does anyone care that the boy they said who couldn't might be quietly dating the girl of his dreams? Rumor has it that eight time in one Olympic champ Michael Phelps is planning a cozy rendezvous with American Idol star Carrie Underwood when he visits Nashville, Tennessee.

Still coming off its record breaking ratings, the Democratic National Convention continues to tally up the stars. Compiled from various sources, A-listers on the scene in Denver include Stevie Wonder, Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg, Kanye West, Jamie Foxx, Charlize Theron, Anne Hathaway, John Legend, Jennifer Garner, Jessica Alba, Jennifer Lopez, Ashley Judd, Bono, Spike Lee, Ben Affleck, Cicely Tyson, Lou Gossett Jr., Alfre Woodard, Blair Underwood, Danny Glover, Pete Wentz, Cyndi Lauper, Ellen Burstyn, Kal Penn, Tony Goldwyn, Alan Cumming, Susan Sarandon, Tim Daly, Josh Lucas, Rachael Leigh Cook, Angela Basset, Matthew Modine, Rufus Wainright, Melissa Etheridge, Annette Bening, Sheryl Crow, Fergie, Rosario Dawson, will.i.am, Lily Cole, Kerry Washington, Richard Dreyfuss, Ashanti, Sarah Silverman, Chevy Chase, Giancarlo Esposito, Dave Matthews, Dana Delaney, Tim Daly, Gloria Reuben, Richard Schiff, Herbie Hancock, Chris Daughtry, Charles Barkley, Muhammad Ali, Idina Menzel, and Forest Whitaker, just to name a few.

And speaking of stars mixing their noses in politics, Barbra Streisand lashes out at candidate John McCain for his choice of a running mate. The former Hillary Clinton supporter who now backs Barack Obama calls Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin "a transparent and irresponsible decision all in the name of trying to win this election." Guess certain people don't need people as badly as the presumptive Republican nominee had hoped.

"There were times when being in the show was worse than high school. The environment there was like, 'Are you kidding me?' There was a lot of tension and unnecessary drama on the set, a certain amount of competition, and a certain, probably, anger about different salaries as the years progressed." So says Jennie Garth about her days in the 1990s fast lane, Beverly Hills 90210. The actress who is slated to star in the CW's 90210 sequel also claims turmoil on the original set turned her into an agoraphobic.

In a sad role reversal of victim and victimizer, Dame Helen Mirren recounts being date-raped, yet downgrades the possibility of sending perpetrators to prison. Women's rights groups are seeing red. Guess all those years of cocaine binging may have addled someone's brain.

Keely Bares Icky, Madonna Tour Sticky, and Phelps Gets Wicky

Pierce Brosnan's wife, Keely Shaye Smith, gets tongues wagging by going boogie boarding in an itsy bitsy teeny weeny very mismatched blue bikini.

Director Christopher Nolan's first choice to play Catwoman in his next Batman movie may already come with a lifetime supply of whips and masks. Rumor has it that Cher is in negotiations to join the tentatively titled "Caped Crusader" film which begins shooting in Vancouver early next year.

France's new First Lady may be with child. Speculation is running rampant after paparazzi photographed President Nicolas Sarkozy affectionately patting Carla Bruni's rounded tummy during a seaside vacation.

Celebrate the Sweet 16 of Miley Cyrus at Disneyland this October. Be the first of 5,000 outrageously ga-ga fans to splurge $250 a ticket, and you too can party like a teenage rock star. Tickets go on sale August 30th at 9 a.m.

Sticky and sweet doesn't do justice to these photographs from Madonna's new world tour. The 50-year old pop sensation still has the moves of a woman half her age. Go Madge!

Could Jennifer Love Hewitt be getting cold feet? After shedding 18 pounds, the Ghost Whisperer star postponed her wedding to Sottish fiance Ross McCall, claiming different shooting schedules caused a strain on their relationship.

A hospital reportedly run by Celebrity Rehab star Dr. Drew Pinsky is under investigation. Within the past five months, three patients have died under mysterious conditions at the Pasadena facility.

To kick off Rock The Vote's voter registration drive, singer Sheryl Crow will give away digital copies of her new album Detours to the first 50,000 people who register three friends to vote. People who log on to the Rock the Vote website or join the group mailing list can also get a free download of her new song, Gasoline.

Before the Olympics wrapped, there was Olympic freestyle. Or maybe it was doggie style. No joke. Read all the sordid details direct from an Olympic insider.

Sure, everyone wanted to see photographs of Fred Phelps, estranged father of Olympic superstar Michael Phelps. But now comes word that Michael bought a multi-million dollar Baltimore condominium, snagged a book deal, AND is snogging fellow Olympian, the "racy Aussie dolphin" Stephanie Rice. Bet Fred must be kicking himself about now.

Wyatt Steven Crow is Sheryl's Son - Period

Dear Wyatt Steven Crow:

I heard through the grapevine about your birth on Sunday, April 29, 2007. Welcome and congratulations.

I don’t know what they told you in heaven, but planet earth isn’t all that. We’ve got our share of problems. You, on the other hand, have your whole life ahead of you. Just relax and enjoy. Nothing beats having your every whim met, every need satisfied, every desire satiated 24/7. This very well may be the best time of your life.

Before your arrival, your mom, the very famous, conservation conscious, successful singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow, went through a pretty rough patch. I know all about how she thought she might marry the athlete of her dreams and become an instant stepmother, only to realize she had chosen a self-centered clod. I think that was after her cancer diagnosis, but crafty woman that she is, she probably deluded the press into believing the break-up happened before. No matter. Speculation is pointless and the truth is between her and Mr. Nobody.

I also know about the fizzle of your mom’s biological clock due in part to the pursuit of her career. Please don’t hold that against her. I’d be ecstatic with just half of her career accomplishments. Unfortunately, that kind of success often comes with a price. Women from my generation were told we could have it all: successful careers, beautiful well-adjusted children, and the man of our dreams. Wyatt, I don’t know a lot of women who won this trifecta. Something somewhere had to give. For your mom, it was babies. At least that’s the rumor.

Soon enough, you will learn your talented and beautiful mom is not your birth mother. This is a fact every adopted child has a right to know and as far as I’m concerned, the sooner the better. Personally, I think it’s no big deal, but I must be in the minority. Everywhere I look, the print media is making a point to refer to you as Sheryl Crow’s “adopted baby” or “adopted son.” As if someone had issued an edict from the top down and no one dare disobey.

Research has shown adoption can be an early life stressor causing personality disorders and adjustment difficulties in children, especially boys. Putting aside your status as an adopted child of a famous celebrity, which must certainly increase the probability of future difficulties, it seems to me, Wyatt, that you are especially vulnerable.

That’s why I go medieval whenever I see the media going out of its way to remind everyone you are, in fact, adopted. This constant barrage of labeling must stop. Otherwise, I may blow a gasket. Dear sweet Wyatt, I need your help. First and foremost, please make this book required reading for anyone writing anything about you. I’ll deal with the rest later.

Babies are an incredibly special gift and responsibility, wherever they come from. What really matters is how they are raised. As a mother, I can definitively say that your mom has her work cut out for her. Let’s hope that with forty-five years of life experience under her belt, she’s ready to get down and dirty.

I wish you and your family the best of the best. You should only grow to be a fine young man and productive member of society. Never forget, you were chosen. That’s more than a lot of us can say.



Sincerely Yours,

Cheryl Snyder Taragin

P.S. Tell your mom I still intend to use as much toilet paper as necessary, although I appreciate her earnest attempt to stop global warming.

P.S.S. Tell your mom it’s spelled with a “C.”

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