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Defamer's Top 10 Halloween Specials

Brett Singer — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 17:30:00 GMT

Some of these – Roseanne, for example – wouldn’t crack my list, but there are some truly bizarre discoveries, such as the Paul Lynde Halloween Special, and "the discoriffic 1979 TV movie…'The Halloween That Almost Wasn't'", which stars none other than Judd Hirsch as Dracula, proving perhaps that actors will do anything – ANYthing – for money. The list is automatically valid because the number one spot goes to, "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown." He got a rock. A ROCK. Heh heh.

Defamer commenters leave a few list suggestions of their own, including Gary Larson's "Tales from the Far Side":

And here's the Paul Lynde entry. This one was unfamiliar to me, but it should be seen:

Watching these made me think about how much television viewing has changed. In our house, we have a DVD player and Tivo, so there's very little "appointment TV" except for sporting events, which are usually on too late for the kids to watch anyway (and they aren't all that interested, although they did want the Red Sox to lose, which warmed this father's heart.) Back in the day I used to look forward to holiday specials popping up annually. It's great to be able to watch whatever you want whenever you want to watch it, but it's definitely less "special" in some ways.

How about you? What are your favorite Halloween specials?

Source: Defamer

Image: Wikipedia

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Retarded movie boycott

Brett Singer — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 13:45:00 GMT

So – how do you get disparate groups representing the mentally challenged to get together on something?

Release a movie that makes gratuitous use of the word 'retard'.

That's what "Tropic Thunder" does, and some people are fighting mad about it. Timothy P. Shriver, chairman of the Special Olympics, told the New York Times that a boycott of the film, "Not only might…happen, it will happen."

What's their beef? Well, Ben Stiller plays a character named Tugg Speedman. Tugg appeared in a film called "Simple Jack", which was about "a mindless dolt" (according to the New York Times). Tugg did "Simple Jack" in an attempt to win an Oscar and show off his acting chops. Apparently there is "an off-color discussion with Robert Downey Jr.'s character about the merits of going 'full retard' for a role in the pursuit of Oscar gold."

This isn't the first complaint about "Thunder." There was a fake promotional web site for "Simple Jack" that included the line, "Once upon a time there was a retard." The site is now gone, presumably because of the outcry from various groups. That didn't appease them, though; Defamer says the demands were, "Paramount/DreamWorks should pull all scenes and clips that include Ben Stiller’s portrayal of Simple Jack from the movie, DVD, trailers, promotional material and merchandising" – um, yeah, and the executives will come over and do your laundry while giving you a foot massage. Defamer also mentions "Sean Penn's grossly condescending role in 'I Am Sam'", which makes me wonder why it's OK for someone to make a movie with a mentally challenged character, but it's not OK to make a movie that makes fun of someone for making a movie about a mentally challenged character. (Now say that ten times fast.) You know, as a joke. Anyone who saw even the trailer for 'Radio' will probably know what's being poked at. ("Tropic Thunder" screenwriter Justin Theroux explains what he and Stiller were trying to do here.)

So it's a joke, and as near as I can tell, the only group being made fun of is actors. The problem seems to be the very use of the word "retard." The n-word is verboten (but that doesn't stop movies featuring racist characters from getting made). You don't hear a lot of the f-a-g-g-o-t word, although "gay" is still thrown around a lot. Should "the r-word" be added to the list of words we can't say, or does everyone need to lighten up?

image: Defamer

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Scientology Parenting: Are Tom and Katie Feeding Suri Poison?

Cole Gamble — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:04:00 GMT

The good folks at Defamer have paid much attention to how many bottles famous Scientology mothers are giving their kids. Leah Remini has confessed to still bottle feeding her three-year-old and Suri here looks like she has no intention of stopping the “ba-ba.” Critics have called a lot of supposedly regular parenting practices of Scientology into question (“silent birth” anyone?). Now there is speculation as to what is in that bottle two-year-old Suri clutches so dearly. And that magic liquid might be toxic to kids… If you read into Scientology practices, and Defamer has, you’ll find Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard advocated feeding babies and children a homemade formula comprised of barley water, homogenized milk, and oodles of sugar-heavy honey. Funny thing is, honey can be toxic to young children. Furthermore, other Scientology moms and dads say Hubbard’s formula made their children thin, colicky and destroyed their teeth. Here’s the best part: Hubbard claims he discovered this formula when he time traveled back to ancient Rome. Well you know what they say: when in Rome…go bat-shit crazy.

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