5 Tips To Make Money on Craigslist

Craigslist is one of the most visited sites on the internet today, with millions upon, millions of visitors a day. With this many visitors
daily, it is very easy to get a nice chunk of traffic with your postings. I have put some tips together for you guys, apply these, and you WILL
make money!

Tip 1: DON'T POST DUPLICATE POSTS!
Posting duplicate posts will do nothing for you but get your ads taken down.  Yes, it is easy to just copy and paste, and make over 100 ads within minutes, but it won't do you any good.

Tip 2: USE DIFFERENT IPS!
Using different IPs is another way to avoid getting your ad flagged.  One way Craigslist will know to flag your posts is by looking at the IP you are using.  If they see multiple ads from the same IP, they will most likely flag your ad, thus your profits will suffer. (Wait, you won't have any.) One way you can
change your IP is by using a proxy.  If you want a list of them, check out proxy.org.  They have thousands of them.

Tip 3: DONT BE AN IDIOT!
Being an idiot is the easiest way to not make money on Craigslist. Do not post something, blatantly spamming your URL. This is an example of what NOT to do:

Doing this is also a good way to get banned from your CPA network as well, which also is not a good thing.

Tip 4: CATCH THE CURIOSITY OF THE READER!
This is one of the most important tips of all. By catching the curiosity of the reader you have a much higher chance of getting an email from them, or getting a click on your link.  Also, make sure to keep your ad short - this will help catch their curiosity.

Tip 5: DON'T GIVE UP, EVER!
That's it, DON'T GIVE UP.  Giving up is the easiest way to not make money online.  To make money you must stick with it.  I know it will be hard, but when you finally do get that first sale, or that first lead, it's the greatest feeling ever. If you can do it once, you can do it a million times.

How To Make Big Money With Your Band

Being a musician for many years now, all I ever wanted to do was to be able to make a good living by doing what I can't do without, which is performing and writing music. Its a blessing to be on a stage looking out over a big room full of people to share your music with. You'll never experience a feeling like it. Just the satisfaction of knowing that for that moment in time you are completely understood. Its extremely gratifying and addictive.

Over the years, its become evident to me that I'm not the only one who feels this way. Its only natural to want the band that your in to be a success. I've received letters for years from people just like you wanting to know how to grow their fan base and how to turn their craft into something profitable. Well, you can do these two things at the same time. Right now, I'm putting the finishing touches on a book that actually shows you everything you need to know about how to become a successful band. And its not just for beginners either, this book should be an essential for any band who wants to quickly become a fan favorite and start making serious money. I will tell you how you can get your hands on a copy of it a little bit later, but first I want to touch on a few things that's in the book.

First, I hate to be the one who has to tell you this, but these days its practically impossible to be a success on the music alone. There are actually a few things that fans take into consideration when deciding to like your band, and all of these things will be explained in the book. I will show you how to get out of the garage and onto a stage. And, yes it does matter where the guitar player, the bass player, the keyboardist(if you have one), the drummer, and the singer is positioned on stage. Or if you have anybody else in your band, such as back up singers and/or a horn section, I will also teach you all of that too, in a chapter called "the successful band formula".

The real important thing to know if your in a band is you need a forever growing following. That's essential for the success of a band. And the only way to know that is as a band, you are a creative entity and a business. I know as the artist that you are, I know the last sentence is a hard one to swallow, and deservingly so, but for the public to like you, they have to be able to take you home with them and think about you. And they do that with products such as c.d.'s, shirts,etc. It is very important to bring band recordings to your shows to sell. If you don't have any other products, you should at least have c.d.'s. It gives you extra income and more importantly, it gives your ever growing audience the opportunity to get familiar with your music.

Presentation is the key to being well liked at your shows. Your first shows should be all about winning the whole crowd over, and the only way you can do that is very good, well rehearsed presentation. And that's not just rehearsing your music. Presentation is the show as a whole. From the stage show to your backdrop to the table where your products are sold and the people behind the table helping you sell the products. It should be a well oiled, fine tuned machine. All of that will be explained in entirety in the book.

Another point to take into consideration is to not only have a band onstage, but an act. Every member in the band plays a different character. That is also very important and all to often overlooked in a band. To have each member of the band's character relate to everybody. It gives the audience the feeling that they know you and can relate to you. And that draws them in even closer and that's what you want to happen, because it enhances the overall product that your providing to them. And you are the only band around that they can get that from. In the book, I will teach you how to make a character and bring it to life, as well as to develop that character as more time passes.

If you are serious about having a devout following, you should seriously consider getting this book. Your going to get so much more important information for you to have. And like I said, its not just for a band that's just starting out. Any band that's interested in making good money and giving the audience a really good, memorable, and professional show should have this book. It will show you how to put on a really good show.

If you had a professional manager or agent, this book will teach you everything that they would want you to know. That in itself will attract them to you. Not to mention teach you how to get the major record labels to pay attention to you.

You could pay hundreds of dollars for this information and it would be worth every penny, but you won't. In fact, you won't pay anywhere near it. For the price of four packs of guitar strings you will get all of the valuable information inside this book. Satisfaction guaranteed. Just write to me to receive more information and how to order: Barry Ford 205 Terry Loop Rd. Cordova, Alabama 35550.
As always, I hope you found this article both informative and entertaining. And may GOD bless you always, and in always.

The Talented Mr. Ripley

"The Talented Mr. Ripley" is an Hitchcockian and blood-curdling study of the psychopath and his victims. At the centre of this masterpiece, set in the exquisitely decadent scapes of Italy, is a titanic encounter between Ripley, the aforementioned psychopath protagonist and young Greenleaf, a consummate narcissist.

Ripley is a cartoonishly poor young adult whose overriding desire is to belong to a higher - or at least, richer - social class. While he waits upon the subjects of his not so hidden desires, he receives an offer he cannot refuse: to travel to Italy to retrieve the spoiled and hedonistic son of a shipbuilding magnate, Greenleaf Senior. He embarks upon a study of Junior's biography, personality, likes and hobbies. In a chillingly detailed process, he actually assumes Greenleaf's identity. Disembarking from a luxurious Cunard liner in his destination, Italy, he "confesses" to a gullible textile-heiress that he is the young Greenleaf, traveling incognito.

Thus, we are subtly introduced to the two over-riding themes of the antisocial personality disorder (still labeled by many professional authorities "psychopathy" and "sociopathy"): an overwhelming dysphoria and an even more overweening drive to assuage this angst by belonging. The psychopath is an unhappy person. He is besieged by recurrent depression bouts, hypochondria and an overpowering sense of alienation and drift. He is bored with his own life and is permeated by a seething and explosive envy of the lucky, the mighty, the clever, the have it alls, the know it alls, the handsome, the happy - in short: his opposites. He feels discriminated against and dealt a poor hand in the great poker game called life. He is driven obsessively to right these perceived wrongs and feels entirely justified in adopting whatever means he deems necessary in pursuing this goal.

Ripley's reality test is maintained throughout the film. In other words - while he gradually merges with the object of his admiring emulation, the young Greenleaf - Ripley can always tell the difference. After he kills Greenleaf in self-defense, he assumes his name, wears his clothes, cashes his checks and makes phone calls from his rooms. But he also murders - or tries to murder - those who suspect the truth. These acts of lethal self-preservation prove conclusively that he knows who he is and that he fully realizes that his acts are parlously illegal.

Young Greenleaf is young, captivatingly energetic, infinitely charming, breathtakingly handsome and deceivingly emotional. He lacks real talents - he know how to play only six jazz tunes, can't make up his musical mind between his faithful sax and a newly alluring drum kit and, an aspiring writer, can't even spell. These shortcomings and discrepancies are tucked under a glittering facade of non-chalance, refreshing spontaneity, an experimental spirit, unrepressed sexuality and unrestrained adventurism. But Greenleaf Jr. is a garden variety narcissist. He cheats on his lovely and loving girlfriend, Marge. He refuses to lend money - of which he seems to have an unlimited supply, courtesy his ever more disenchanted father - to a girl he impregnated. She commits suicide and he blames the primitiveness of the emergency services, sulks and kicks his precious record player. In the midst of this infantile temper tantrum the rudiments of a conscience are visible. He evidently feels guilty. At least for a while.

Greenleaf Jr. falls in and out of love and friendship in a predictable pendulous rhythm. He idealizes his beaus and then devalues them. He finds them to be the quiddity of fascination one moment - and the distilled essence of boredom the next. And he is not shy about expressing his distaste and disenchantment. He is savagely cruel as he calls Ripley a leach who has taken over his life and his possessions (having previously invited him to do so in no uncertain terms). He says that he is relieved to see him go and he cancels off-handedly elaborate plans they made together. Greenleaf Jr. maintains a poor record of keeping promises and a rich record of violence, as we discover towards the end of this suspenseful, taut yarn.

Ripley himself lacks an identity. He is a binary automaton driven by a set of two instructions - become someone and overcome resistance. He feels like a nobody and his overriding ambition is to be somebody, even if he has to fake it, or steal it. His only talents, he openly admits, are to fake both personalities and papers. He is a predator and he hunts for congruence, cohesion and meaning. He is in constant search of a family. Greenleaf Jr., he declares festively, is the older brother he never had. Together with the long suffering fiancée in waiting, Marge, they are a family. Hasn't Greenleaf Sr. actually adopted him?

This identity disturbance, which is at the psychodynamic root of both pathological narcissism and rapacious psychopathy, is all-pervasive. Both Ripley and Greenleaf Jr. are not sure who they are. Ripley wants to be Greenleaf Jr. - not because of the latter's admirable personality, but because of his money. Greenleaf Jr. cultivates a False Self of a jazz giant in the making and the author of the Great American Novel but he is neither and he bitterly knows it. Even their sexual identity is not fully formed. Ripley is at once homoerotic, autoerotic and heteroerotic. He has a succession of homosexual lovers (though apparently only platonic ones). Yet, he is attracted to women. He falls desperately in love with Greenleaf's False Self and it is the revelation of the latter's dilapidated True Self that leads to the atavistically bloody scene in the boat.

But Ripley is a different -and more ominous - beast altogether. He rambles on about the metaphorical dark chamber of his secrets, the key to which he wishes to share with a "loved" one. But this act of sharing (which never materializes) is intended merely to alleviate the constant pressure of the hot pursuit he is subjected to by the police and others. He disposes with equal equanimity of both loved ones and the occasional prying acquaintance. At least twice he utters words of love as he actually strangles his newfound inamorato and tries to slash an old and rekindled flame. He hesitates not a split second when confronted with an offer to betray Greenleaf Sr., his nominal employer and benefactor, and abscond with his money. He falsifies signatures with ease, makes eye contact convincingly, flashes the most heart rending smile when embarrassed or endangered. He is a caricature of the American dream: ambitious, driven, winsome, well versed in the mantras of the bourgeoisie. But beneath this thin veneer of hard learned, self-conscious and uneasy civility - lurks a beast of prey best characterized by the DSM IV-TR (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual):

"Failure to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behavior, deceitfulness as indicated by repeated lying, use of aliases, or conning others to personal profit or pleasure, impulsivity or failure to plan ahead... reckless disregard for safety of self or others... (and above all) lack of remorse." (From the criteria of the Antisocial Personality Disorder).

But perhaps the most intriguing portraits are those of the victims. Marge insists, in the face of the most callous and abusive behavior, that there is something "tender" in Greenleaf Jr. When she confronts the beguiling monster, Ripley, she encounters the fate of all victims of psychopaths: disbelief, pity and ridicule. The truth is too horrible to contemplate, let alone comprehend. Psychopaths are inhuman in the most profound sense of this compounded word. Their emotions and conscience have been amputated and replaced by phantom imitations. But it is rare to pierce their meticulously crafted facade. They more often than not go on to great success and social acceptance while their detractors are relegated to the fringes of society. Both Meredith and Peter, who had the misfortune of falling in deep, unrequited love with Ripley, are punished. One by losing his life, the other by losing Ripley time and again, mysteriously, capriciously, cruelly.

Thus, ultimately, the film is an intricate study of the pernicious ways of psychopathology. Mental disorder is a venom not confined to its source. It spreads and affects its environment in a myriad surreptitiously subtle forms. It is a hydra, growing one hundred heads where one was severed. Its victims writhe and as abuse is piled upon trauma - they turn to stone, the mute witnesses of horror, the stalactites and stalagmites of pain untold and unrecountable. For their tormentors are often as talented as Mr. Ripley is and they are as helpless and as clueless as his victims are.

Neil Young - Prairie wind

It is really hard to find a musician with such a large and admired discography as Neil Young. Since the late 60s, the Canadian has released more than 40 albums, many of them as memorable as the Harvest, the Rust never sleeps or the Freedom. But, at age 60, Young is still at his best, as he shows in his last album, Prairie wind.

After a series of doubtful albums that culminate in the criticised Are you passionate? (2002) many music critics and fans think that Neil Young was finally in his decadence. But then Young surprises the music world realising the epic Greendale (2003), musically interesting and conceptually admirable: emulating the best Steinbeck, Young invents an entire town in his loved California, and, focusing in the Green family, give free rein to values such as Freedom, Peace and Ecology that he has been defended since the late sixties. To complete this particular revived, in 2005 Young delighted his fans with the excellent Prairie wind, with no doubt his best work of the last 10 years.

With the release of the Prairie wind, Young return to his personal folk-rock style he showed in the early 70s, with two top-quality albums that catapulted him to the stardom: After the gold rush (1970) already fulfilled all the main elements that characterize the particular Young’s Universe: complex, suggestive verses with smart deal of surrealism, a brilliant musical accompaniment, and the unmistakable Young’s nasal voice over all them. Nevertheless, the success of this album can not be compared with the Harvest (1971), released the following year, and considered by many (not by me) as his masterwork. This album includes the wonderful single Heart of Gold -considered by many fans as Young’s greatest song- which gave Young his first nº 1 in the USA.  Prairie Wind is Young’s most “essential” album since the release of the Harvest Moon in 1992.

The album opens with The painter, a nice, classic, melodic Young song about a female painter, and continues with No wonder, where Young’s values that we commented are evident in lyrics as “Somewhere a senator sits in a leather chair / Behind a big wooden desk / The caribou we killed mean nothing to him / He took his money just like all the rest”  The third song, Falling off the face of the Earth, continues this accoustic series.

In Far from home, Young’s piano begin to shines, and it is more evident in It’s a dream, arguably the album’s most beautiful song. With its reflective lyrics and beautiful piano sound the song will make Young’s fans to remember songs as Heart of gold or the more recent Western hero. This is the song that wou’ll probably find yourself singing after the album ends… It’s a dream, only a dream…

In the song entitled Prairie wind the piano dissapear, and the accoustic guitar takes the main role. Here for you is a beautiful song that will make you remember From Hank to Hendrix, one of Young’s most loved songs. The old guitar is one of the most personal songs in the entire album, with Young’s nasal voice accompanied by a very listenable chorus.

In He was the King Young sings about the King, you know, Elvis Presley, as he did in one of hist most famous songs, Hey,hey; my, my (…the King is gone but is not forgotten…) although the style is very different, and the album closes with When God mades me, an intimal, reflective song about life, God, and Faith

Red Hot Chili Peppers Hold the Most No. 1 Modern Rock Hits

The Red Hot Chili Peppers are a popular rock band formed in 1983, based out of California.  Current band members include: Anthony Kiedis (lead vocals), Michael Balzary, or Flea (Bass), John Frusciante (Guitar/Backing vocals), and Chad Smith (Drums).  While the rock band has gone through several line-up changes and personal conflicts, the band has managed to consistently create very diverse music that combines elements of funk, punk, metal, psychedelic rock, rap, and even pop rock.  The band holds the record for the most #1 Modern Rock hits with nine under their belt, having sold a combined estimate of 50 million copies of their nine studio albums over the past 23 years.  

The band was originally formed for what was going to be a one-time performance in 1983, but would later land a record deal with EMI.  1987’s The Uplift Mofo Party Plan was the group’s first album to enter the Billboard Top 200, but it was not until the band moved to Warner Brothers Records did the group achieve major success.  In 1991, the band released their fifth album, Blood Sugar Sex Magik, which would go on to sell seven million copies in the U.S.  A year after its debut, the album still managed to climb to the #3 spot on the U.S. album charts.  The band would win a Grammy award for Best Hard Rock Performance with Vocal in 1992 for the album’s single, Give it Away.

Dave Navarro made his first appearance with the band at Woodstock 1994 and would again appear on the band’s album One Hot Minute, released in 1995.  The album turned out to be another commercial success, achieving double-platinum status in the U.S. and selling five million copies outside the U.S.  The band would later part ways with Navarro in 1998.  That same year, the band would come out with another album, Californication, which went on to become an even bigger success than Blood Sugar Sex Magik.  The album climbed to #3 in U.S. album charts and several of its songs became major hits, including: the Grammy award-winning Scar Tissue, Otherside, Californication, Around the World, Road Trippin, and Parallel Universe.

In 2001, the band released By The Way, which entered the charts at #2 and produced hit singles, including: By The Way, The Zephyr Song, Can’t Stop, Dosed, and Universally Speaking.  The group would later release their Greatest Hits album and also their first ever live album, Live in Hyde Park.  In May 2006, the band released their ninth studio album, Stadium Arcadium.  The 28-track double album garnered the band their first ever chart topper, debuting at #1 on U.S. album charts and remaining there for two weeks.    

Red Hot Chili Peppers Ringtones

Metallica - St. Anger

1. St. Anger
2. Metallica Reloaded
3. The Early Early Early Days
4. Under The Influence
5. Monsters Of Rock
6. Nabbing Napster
7. Master Of Puppets
8. Ride The Lightning
9. Worn Justice
10. Headbangers' Ball

1. St. Anger

The band that put the Metal in Heavy Metal returns with one of their heaviest albums yet. It is a return to the early days of Metallica, resembling their first album, Kill 'Em All. Unlike their albums of the past decade, there isn't a single mellow song on this new release. It is simple flat out full throttle metal guitar with the hardest drumming Lars Ulrich has turned out in years. This album is all about, hard and fast, straight down-to-business heavy metal.

2. Metallica Reloaded

A great addition to the album is the bonus DVD with over an hour of video footage of the band and their recording sessions. Every band should do this, then again not every band is as much fun to watch as Metallica. This album is one of the must-haves of this summer of rock.

3. The Early Early Early Days

In a recent Rolling Stones interview, Metallica lead singer James Hetfield recounted some of his early days as a hard rock fan, "Probably the most memorable was the California World Music Festival. It was one of those two-day things. The first night was Ted Nugent and Van Halen -- no, Aerosmith. I must have been fifteen or sixteen. I remember following around my buddy, who was selling drugs. He tore up a part of his ticket -- it had a kind of rainbow edge -- and he cut it into bits and sold it as acid. I was like, "What are you doing, man?" He used the money to buy beer."

4. Under The Influence

In the same interview, Hetfield cited one of his early influences, "I was a huge Aerosmith fan. I could not believe I was seeing them so close. I worked my way up there as far as I could. There was something magical about seeing them as actual live people, not just pictures on an album. The real coolness of Joe Perry, especially. It's impossible for him to be uncool. And I remember I was blown away by the fact that Steven was calling the crowd "*************." I was like, "Whoa -- are you supposed to do that?".

5. Monsters Of Rock

The Jagermeister days. James Hetfield admits that the days during the Monsters of Rock tour were a big fog. Complete with a Jagermeister shellacking. He says it was okay to feel drunk and messed-up back in those days, but ultimately it just wasn't a great thing. Too many negative ramifications. There were a lot of dads and moms and husbands and boyfriends looking for him when the band came back to those towns. Not good.

6. Nabbing Napster

Set your CD burners on stun. Metallica rocked the music world when they sued Napster, the company that provided the free-swapping file-sharing app that altered the course of music history. Fans were outraged and felt Metallica was bullying the free system. But, ultimately the industry sided with the band; after all it was the band that was being hurt by their enthused fans. In time it would have been the parasite that bled the tuneful turnip dry.

7. Master Of Puppets

Oddly enough however, many fans were quick to site that Metallica gained their foothold on heavy metal when the band provided a few tape-trading friends with a demo tape called, "No Life 'Til Leather." The seven-song album was dubbed and redubbed and dubbed some more until the tape had hop scotched across the globe from California to Germany. Within a few short months the band had risen from obscurity with a legion of worldwide fans, all due to the free trade of their music.

8. Ride The Lightning

Here's a fan listing of Metallica's albums in the must-have order:

1. …And Justice For All
2. Master of Puppets
3. Ride the Lightning
4. Metallica (The Black Album)
5. Reload
6. Kill 'Em All
7. Load

Over time, no doubt their latest outing, St. Anger, will join these favorites.

9. Worn Justice

For a recent Ramones tribute album, Metallica has joined the ranks of U2, Tom Waits, Garbage, Eddie Vedder, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Billy Corgan, Offspring, Static-X, Rancid, Motorhead, Green Day and Marilyn Manson. The whole project was helmed by shock-rocker, Rob Zombie. According to Zombie in an interview with Rolling Stone, "The whole thing started with Johnny Ramone. He really wanted people to do the tracks in their own way, not like they're trying to imitate the Ramones. Everyone who ever heard the Ramones started a band, and this record demonstrates that."

10. Headbangers' Ball

Hetfield concludes, "We're looking forward to spreading this new lust for life we have. There's a new strength in Metallica that's never been there before. There are still fearful parts, too. But I'm pretty well set up. And I'm really proud of the new music. I think we did something where the pedal does not let up."

Green Day - Jesus of Suburbia

The final single off Green Day's rock-operatic album American Idiot is Jesus of Suburbia. To understand the song Jesus of Suburbia it is first crucial to understand that American Idiot was created as a cohesive rock-opera in the form pioneered by The Who. Jesus of Suburbia is the protagonist of the whole album and the song itself is a chronicling of this disaffected youth's life and times.

Since Jesus of Suburbia stands for all young rebels he is not given a name and he hails from Jingletown, USA. He is the child of a divorced mother and dates a girl called Whatshername. He spent most of his time watching TV, doing drugs and just hanging around - and was fed as the song states a “steady diet of soda pop and Ritalin”. Even with his okay life, this young punk feels trapped and bored in his hometown and wants to get away from it all. As such, by the end of the song, he decides to leave Jingletown, USA to explore The City. What he does in the city is described in detail in the rest of the album - especially in the songs Holiday and Boulevard of Broken Dreams.

This conceptual song is made up of five parts and runs a whopping nine minutes long although for radio broadcast it was cut down to about six-and-a-half minutes. The five different parts are actually five different songs transitioned together. They are:

- Jesus of Suburbia
- City of the Damned
- I Don't Care
- Dearly Beloved
- Tales of Another Broken Home

Released only one month ago on October 25, 2005 the song has yet to prove its shelf life. Although its unusual length means that it might only see limited airplay given its content and the fact that it is a thematic conclusion to Green Day's biggest album to date, it would be very surprising indeed if the song did not see at least some success.

The video for the single was planned as a mini-movie with the original video running a staggering fourteen minutes long with scripted dialogue while the shorter more airplay-friendly version sticks to the original song content and format. The director of the video was Samuel Bayer and it stars Lou-Tayler Pucci - a relatively unknown actor of Indie movie fame who has started to see his star rise lately thanks to such film releases as Thumbsucker and The Chumscrubber.  

The members of Green Day are especially well place to comment on the plight of the youth of the nation. Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt grew up knowing first hand the hardships of living in a single parent family. When Billie Joe's father passed away when the charismatic lead singer was only ten years old his mother was left to care for him and his five siblings on a waitress' salary. Mike Dirnt's parents were divorced when he was seven and he lived with his mother who worked three jobs to support them. As a result he never saw her. Jesus of Suburbia is definitely a nod to their past and a shout-out to their fans many of whom probably come from very similar backgrounds as their heroes.

American Idiot is a revolution in punk-rock music making and marks a turning point for Green Day; with this rich album they have effectively catapulted themselves to the next level of their careers.

The History Of The Star Wars Films

Star Wars was one of those magnificent films that was an instant phenomenon when it hit the box office and continues to be a hit today. Why not take a moment to follow the intriguing history of Star Wars.

After a successful run in the early 1970s with the box office hit American Graffiti; in 1975 George Lucas writes a basic story about Anakin Skywalker’s rise, fall, and redemption. The story is so long that it needs to be divided into 2 trilogies.

The first trilogy focuses on Anakin Skywalker’s young life while the second focuses on the life of Anakin’s son Luke Skywalker. Since the second trilogy is the most interesting, Lucas decides to film it first.

He offers the film to Universal Studios who had financed his American Graffiti film, but they chose to pass thinking it was a ridiculous movie. They would live to regret this decision which would cost millions of dollars in lost profits. But they wouldn’t be alone in those regrets as every Hollywood studio passed on the movie. That is except for 20th Century Fox who came up with $10 million for Lucas to make his first Star Wars movie a reality.

In May of 1977 Fox released Episode 4 of Star Wars, A New Hope. The tone was quickly set. The film was instantly seen as the biggest adventure ever on film. The special effects were considered magnificent and outstanding. In fact, nothing remotely close had ever made it to the big screen before.

On opening day, the Star Wars movie ran in only 32 theaters, but it still produced an amazing $254,309 in ticket sales. By the end of its first run it had become the most successful film ever in North American history grossing more than $290 million.

Lucas reportedly received $50 million of those profits. When Lucas cut his deal with Fox he was more interested in control of the film then he was in his percentage. He wanted all rights to the final cut and all rights to future sequels, Star Wars merchandise rights, and 40% of the gross. This deal ultimately made Lucas a billionaire.

By 1978 Lucas had purchased the more than 1800 acre Bulltail Ranch in San Rafael and soon production of the sequel to Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, was underway. Lucas was financing it out of his own pocket and it had a budget of $18 million; however due to budget overruns the actual filming cost more than $30 million. In May of 1980, The Empire Strike Back, hit the theaters grossing $222 million, making it the highest grossing film of the year.

In May of 1983, Return of the Jedi, hit the theaters grossing $265 million in North America and Lucas decides to retire from Star Wars projects to pursue some of his other interests. He made a vague promise to make the Prequel Trilogy someday if special effects ever become advanced enough.

That day arrived in 1994 when Lucas announces he will begin working on the Prequel Trilogy with a tentative release scheduled for 1998. In 1996 Lucas signs the biggest deal ever seen in the industry with PepsiCo for movie tie ins, and later in the year he announces that the pre-production has started, and in May of 1999 Episode 1 titled, The Phantom Menace, was released, followed by Episode 2 titled, The Attack of the Clones.

Many believe that 100 years from now Star Wars will still have a following. In fact by then it may have grown to epidemic proportions.

The Golden Compass

Well even after seeing the film, I am still left to wonder what the big controversy is all about.

I had never read the book series that New Line Cinema is hoping to be the next Harry Potter and if the film is an indication of what is to come. I am not even sure that i want to see part 2 nor 3, if they ever get made.

I could somewhat see why the Catholic League is protesting this film, but in the end its a lot to do about not a really good film.

For those who have no ideal about the film or anything about it please click on to this link for a better understanding, but please be wary this is a heavy spoiler preview also.

Now what I liked about the film, The casting of Sam Elliott as Lee Scoresby was exactly what the role required. When you see him in the film, you soon realize that he is a lot more that what he seems at first.

The casting of Ian McKellen as the voice of Iorek Byrnison, as an armored bear. Now I had no idea what a bear would do with some serious armor protection, but with the voice of Sir Ian, you believe that he will protect the hero of the film.

Now I realize that this film is part 1 of a 3 part film, but the first one should have been so much better that what we were given. I had said earlier that I had not read any of the books yet but even I could tell that something just was not right nor was it making sense in the way that it was told in the movie, it just seemed like way too many holes were in this film. It looks about 40-60 minutes too short.

From what I could tell if you are a huge fan of the book then do not see the film at all, you will leave the movie palace, very angry. If you have young children (10 years old and up) then this looks like it would be a good film for them to see.

For the parents, it will leave you frustrated. I can see a good film in this film, but all we get in another mess by the end of the day.

The Roots of Nirvana

No band develops in a vacuum; every band starts out thinking, at least a bit, of other musicians that they want to take after or rebel against. But Nirvana was the first great band of actual music snobs: record fiends who wanted to make it very clear exactly what they listened to. They all loved Led Zep and Aerosmith and CCR and Black Sabbath and Kiss and then some more Led Zep on top of that. Mostly, though, Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic had grown up as Pacific Northwest punk rock kids. They hung out with the Melvins in Aberdeen, Washington, were required by circumstance to define their position with respect to K Records and the Olympia scene and carried Flipper and Bad Brains records like shields to ward off poseurs. (Dave Grohl had a roughly equivalent experience growing up in the DC area.) When they hit the big time, they covered their favorite bands, got them to open for Nirvana, wore their T-shirts every chance they got. Kurt even oversaw reissues of his beloved Raincoats' lost work.

In case there was any ambiguity left about who Nirvana considered their ancestors, it's all laid out in Kurt's Journals -- the scribblings of an inveterate listmaker who clearly loved even writing the names of his favorite records, like talismans of good luck and good punk rock karma. Certain discs turn up again and again in Kurt's pantheons of music: some are multiplatinum warhorses (Meet the Beatles, Aerosmith's Rocks), others are hopelessly obscure (Fang's Land Shark, the self-titled Tales of Terror album). Most of them, though, are remarkable American indie-rock and hardcore albums from the '80s, with a few artier European post-punk records and the inevitable Leadbelly album thrown in. They're worth investigating for anyone who loves Nirvana: these are not just the raw materials Cobain and Novoselic and Grohl transmuted into gold, they're what the band aspired to.

The Best Of Leadbelly
Artist: Lead Belly
Release Date: 2003

When Nirvana played their wrenching cover of Leadbelly's "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?" (a.k.a. "In the Pines") on MTV Unplugged, it looked like an unexpected gesture toward the blues blood that still courses so powerfully through rock's veins. Actually, though, Kurt doesn't seem to have been so into vintage blues in general -- he just loved Leadbelly obsessively (and had previously recorded four Leadbelly songs with Screaming Trees' Mark Lanegan). This collection is a solid introduction to the "King of the Twelve-String Guitar," a roaring ex-con who miraculously pulled joyful music out of his personal horrors.

Surfer Rosa / Come On Pilgrim
Artist: The Pixies
Release Date: 1988

Kurt called this 1988 album "a die-cast metal fossil from a spacecraft," and some of the Pixies' favorite tricks -- endlessly looping riffs that had never quite been used before, tense clean-toned verses that bloom into explosive, distorted choruses -- showed up on Nevermind a few years later. Steve Albini's drumstick-to-your-skull engineering work here pretty obviously inspired Nirvana to hire him for In Utero, too. But most of what Nirvana got from the Pixies was an attitude: the sense of being off-balance and screaming while keeping one foot in tightly controlled structure.

Over The Edge
Artist: Wipers
Release Date: 1983

Kurt's "Top 50" list ultimately included three albums by Portland, Oregon's Wipers: Is This Real?, Youth of America and 1983's Over the Edge. Singer-guitar monster Greg Sage's band was ferociously chugging and deeply into its own alienation -- and operated independently of the music-business machine -- years before anyone else in the Pacific Northwest caught on to their techniques. Nirvana and Hole both eventually covered Wipers songs; "So Young," from this album, could very easily be mistaken for a Cobain original.

Singles 1-12
Artist: Melvins
Release Date: 1997

If you were a punk rock kid in Aberdeen, Washington in the mid-'80s, the Melvins were IT: they spiked their hardcore with brutal metal, they could play scorchingly fast or tortuously slow, they got to play in Olympia and Seattle and their practice space was the locus of the local punk scene. They also had a knack for doing screwed-up things on their recordings, and the 1996 series of singles collected here is classic Melvins -- tributes to the Germs, Flipper and Butthole Surfers, corrosive audio experiments and straight-up blasts of the grunge style they helped to invent.

Jamboree
Artist: Beat Happening
Release Date: 1988

In some ways, Kurt never quite fit in with Olympia's K Records, their flagship band Beat Happening and the "love-rock" scene around them -- too much tummy-rubbing, not enough gut-punch -- but he loved it enough that he got the K logo tattooed on his left arm, and its fascination with childhood fed his own. 1988's Jamboree, evidently his favorite Beat Happening record, is half pastel nostalgia, half savage dread, a la-la pop album that collapses into a puddle of screeching noise at the end.

Bayou Country
Artist: Creedence Clearwater Revival
Release Date: 1969
Like a lot of other punk bands, Nirvana adored classic rock; unlike most of their peers, they embraced it -- one of Cobain and Novoselic's first attempts to play music together was a Creedence cover band. Kurt cited this 1969 album as a favorite of his, and you can hear a lot of John Fogerty's throaty bellow on "Born on the Bayou" in the way he taught himself to sing; you can also hear how Creedence's sturdy chording and simple melodies resurfaced in Nirvana's music. What Nirvana might also have picked up from Creedence, though, was the art of self-reinvention and presentation: remember, Fogerty's really a Cali kid, not a bayou native.

LiliPUT
Artist: Kleenex / LiliPUT
Release Date: 2003
 
"Anything by Kleenex" was the way Kurt usually put it on his lists of favorite records. The young Swiss women who recorded first as Kleenex and then as LiLiPUT between 1978 and 1983 had a garbled discography, and this compilation of everything by them didn't appear in the US until 2001. So start with their delirious, glorious singles "Split," "Ain't You" and "Eisiger Wind," full of shrieks and chirps, and powered by the rhythms of people who are determined to play their way and nobody else's.

Kill Rock Stars
Artist: Various Artists - Kill Rock Stars
Release Date: 2003

In the summer of 1991, Nirvana were just another well-loved Washington band, and the other bands compiled here -- on the anthology that launched the label of the same name -- were their contemporaries and scenemates: their old pals the Melvins, Bikini Kill (featuring Kurt's ex-girlfriend Tobi Vail), label owner Slim Moon's band Witchypoo, Steve Fisk (who'd recorded the Blew EP), Heavens to Betsy (with a very young Corin Tucker, later of Sleater-Kinney) and a duo of Lois Maffeo and Pat Maley that went by the name of Courtney Love -- no relation... or almost none.

Extended Play
Artist: The Raincoats
Release Date: 1995

In the liner notes of Incesticide, Kurt told the story of how he'd tracked down "that wonderfully classic scripture," the Raincoats' 1979 debut album, in England. Songwriters Ana da Silva and Gina Birch reformed the group in 1994 to open for Nirvana on the tour that never happened. They did, however, tour America, and recorded this EP for a BBC radio session: two new songs and two early favorites, performed with the sure-footed power and fresh-minded re-conception of the proper language, subject and sound for pop songs that had drawn Cobain to them in the first place.

U2s Bono From Rock Star To Designer To Humanitarian

U2s lead singer Bono isn’t content with being part of a top band.   Fashion and Music – well I’m sure they can mix!

Bono was born Paul David Hewson in 1960 in Dublin Ireland.  His stage name  is Bono.  Bono is the lead singer of US, he is also a songwriter.  He married Ali Stewart in August 1982 and they have 5 children.  Bono is also actively involved in as an activist and screenwriter.

Paul was a curious child who seemed to see the world from a different perspective from the rest of the world.  When Paul was 15 he suffered the loss of his mother who he was very close to.  In high school Paul found himself drawn to music and playing the guitar, spending a great deal of time involved with the school theater.  The name Bono was the brain child of his close friend Guggi who took it from a Hearing Aide store located in Dublin.  Bono Vox also means good voice in latin.

In 1976 a flyer was posted at his high school by Larry Mullen who was looking to form a band.  Paul was jumped at the opportunity.  The band became U2 which is now known around the globe.

Ali Hewson [nee Alison Stewart] grew up in the suburbs of north Dublin.  She met Bono at high school.  He tried to chat her up but she ignored him.  Over the years he continued to pursue her.  Their relationship moved very slowly because Alison wasn’t interested in becoming one of the Bono girls.  After his mother died, Ali being the practical person she is, helped Bono with the essentials like food and clothing. Ali was 22 when they wed.

Ali Hewson appears to be open and down to earth in all respects.  She appears honest and never puts on that she knows more about a topic than she does.  She smiles often and appears to be a happy human being.  She earned her degree in social science, politics, and sociology at the age of 33.  She also became involved with Greenpeace.

It was having children that put Ali Hewson on the path of thinking more about the environment.  She became concerned about what they would grow up to have, what would be left of the environment.  Ali got involved with Greenpeace campaigning against the Sellafield nuclear power plant.

Over time, U2 also became actively involved in the protest against the Sellafield nuclear power plant.  She had not direct responsibility for U2 becoming involved but because Bono and Ali share the same concerns, it was a natural outcome.  Ali feels as a wealthy person she has a responsibility to do what she can to raise awareness on such issues.

So isn’t it natural that Bono and Ali have now evolved to another level of involvement with social politics.  Bono and his wife Ali Hewson now have their fingers in the Fashion industry.  But wait – this isn’t just any old fashion venture.  This one has a new twist.  Their goal is to involve developing countries in the producing of their clothing line, improving the quality of life for these people and their economic welfare.

A new line of clothing has hit the market – Edun – anyone catch that Edun is Nude spelt backwards? The Eden line consists of a casual collection of jeans, T-shirts, chiffon dresses, and blazers.  The line is available at Saks Fifth Avenue.

Bono and his wife are attempting to become actively involved in social activism and the betterment of people in developing countries.  Their goal is for the Edun collection to be soooo hot that it will be able to provide employment for people in developing nations around the world, developing stable long term relationships with these countries.

Great thought goes into selecting which country will produce which clothing.  Selection is based on the resources and talent of the developing countries.  They attempt to make “good” matches which are beneficial to Edun and the developing country.  They believe that the developing countries and their people will benefit financially and emotionally.  But the big picture also means that these developing countries can become part of the global economy.

Bono and his wife might be on the right track with this concept with Edun, as the consumers are becoming much more interested in knowing where and by whom the clothes they purchase are made.  The consumer has become social conscious.  So this concept could be a win win for everyone!

The Rolling Stones

1. You Can't Always Get What You Want
2. Only Rock 'n Roll
3. Get Off My Cloud
4. She's A Rainbow
5. Under My Thumb
6. It's All Over Now
7. Don't Stop
8. Happy
9. The Last Time

1. You Can't Always Get What You Want

Mere days after their release of "Beggar's Banquet" in 1968, the band pulled together a real-life circus of a show. Designed as a television spectacle consisting of real circus performers, and some top rock acts of the day. Jethro Tull, The Who and Eric Clapton were in attendance, as were lions, trapeze artists, John Lennon and Yoko Ono. The kind of show you might only now see on the very best of David Letterman.

The idea was to produce a unique showcase, but the footage was eventually shelved and hidden away for nearly 3 decades due to what was deemed sub-standard performances. It was not shown publicly for 27 years, except for brief excerpts in home videos. The Who's performance of "A Quick One" was used in their own film/career documentary, "The Kids Are Alright". The true landmark of the show for The Rolling Stones was it was Brian Jones' last performance with the band.

2. Only Rock 'n Roll

Before the Rolling Stones had galvanized their name as the World Greatest Rock & Roll Band in the late '60s, they had already laid a handsome claim to the title. The Beatles had paved the way for the British Invasion, but the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, hard-pounding blues-infused rock and roll that now defines the genre. Mick Jagger might be a tiny little man by many standards, but with no question he is the biggest front man to ever grace a rock stage. Wild. Macho. Campy. Sexy. He created the role of the rockstar.

3. Get Off My Cloud

To nightcap their hugely successful 1969 North American tour, the band planned a large, free concert in San Francisco similar to a successful concert they had done in London's Hyde Park earlier that summer. But between permit denials, greed and a last-minute change of venue, the event spiraled from what was potentially a West Coast Woodstock to a jumbled chaotic mess.

Things turned for the worse with their bad choice of security, the biker gang the "Hell's Angels", contributing to a day-long sideshow of brutal violence and truly bad vibes. By the time the Stones took the stage that evening, things had already come undone with a dramatic stabbing of spectator by one of the Hell's Angels. The stabbing was captured on film in the documentary, "Gimme Shelter".

4. She's A Rainbow

The band's longtime acquaintance with law enforcement started with an infamous 'pissing' incident in March of 1965. Bill Wyman needed to use the restroom at a gas station, but was refused admittance and told to promptly vacate the premises. Mick Jagger and Brian Jones joined Bill in pissing against a wall, and the Rolling Stones' image as bad boys was firmly established. In a remarkable show of solidarity and opportunism, which was not to be repeated, all five-band members showed up at court, several weeks later.

5. Under My Thumb

How can you be the next Keith Richards? Well, asides from several obvious personal decisions, to get his legendary sound, first you're going to need to go out and get yourself a Fender Telecaster. Keith plays in open G tuning with his own customized 5-string version. Take your low E string off the guitar and then tune it low to high as GDGBD. You can always tune the low E string to D as well if you're not into removing the sixth string. Keith sums up his approach with a simple phrase that only he could truly relate, "5 strings, 3 fingers, and one ***hole." There's no one like Keith Richards.

6. It's All Over Now

The famous tongue and lip design and countless variations of such has graced countless official and unofficial Rolling Stones memorabilia and products since it first appeared when the band formed "Rolling Stones Records" in 1971. Credit for the creation of the original design has been mistakenly given to several people over the years. Many have stated that Andy Warhol was the originator. He did design two album covers for the band, but not the tongue design. In 1995, Billboard Magazine printed that it was from the mind of Ruby Mazur. Discovering their mistake, they later corrected their statement, identifying Mazur as the designer of the first official variation of the tongue design. With further research later that year, Billboard definitely uncovered that the original classic design came from John Pasch. Two years later, Mick Jagger confirmed that Pasch was the originator of the fabled logo.

7. Don't Stop

Rolling Stones museum, anyone? Former Rolling Stones member, Bill Wyman operates a restaurant entitled, "Sticky Fingers" in the well-to-do Kensington section of London. The food is nothing to write home about, unless you consider the cuisine at the Hard Rock Café something to die for. The prices are so-so, no more than the one-two punch inflicted by Planet Hollywood fare.

What's special here is that the whole place is a shrine the legendary rockers. Jam-packed with posters, magazine covers, guitars, gold discs and the like. Most of time, as you might imagine, you'll be enjoying the soothing sounds of Stones tune while you munch your fish and chips.

8. Happy

If you never get a chance to stand live in the crowd and soak the sound waves as they emit straight from the wall of loud speakers, then the next best chance at the excitement is one many films made from their various shows. Perhaps the most famous is from their 1972 North American tour. Titled, "Ladies and Gentlemen, The Rolling Stones", unfortunately the screening of it can prove difficult. Originally released in Quadraphonic sound, the original soundtrack, record as it is on the film in an unusual manner requires considerable labor to view properly. The effort is occasionally undertaken, as it was done in a September 1996 screening at New York's Lincoln Center. Hmmm, maybe it would be easier to just see them live after all.

9. The Last Time

Is this their last world tour? They've been fielding that question ever since they were first asked it way back in 1966. Mick Jagger turned 59 this past July 26th and Keith Richards turns 59 on December 18th. Jagger will be 60 by the time they wrap up their European tour, perhaps that's old enough to retire, but we're betting that they'll be back as long as they're around. Why stop now?

“V For Vendetta” The Movie And These Days.

I must confess that the day I watched the trailer of “V For Vendetta” at the movie theater I wasn't any close to be willing to pay a ticket for watching that guy with a funny mask on his face. It seemed to me it would be one more of those simple movies extracted from a not very known “comic” (at least for me) that are appearing in theaters quite often these days. But now that I watched it, I think I was judging this movie wrong and not being totally fair with the writer and director.

It was quite surprising to follow the story and its continuous resemblance to what is happening today in a not too far away country and not too strange neighborhoods. In the movie is England that has been taken over by a group of fanatics that have concluded that their reason to live is power and the imposition of his world model and ideas over everyone and everywhere. There is a continuous war outside the borders and inside democracy is over; meanwhile fear is alive. People has lost the power of questioning reality and take conscience of the terrible consequences of living under such a decadent regime. It is a model based not in reason not in justice. Is the model “fascists” preach, where obedience and a “clock-like” functioning of the society in the interest of a few “chosen ones” is needed.

But suddenly there is a problem menacing the “status-quo”, they (without knowing) have created their own finisher. It is a figure that appears to us as a mix of revenge with a revolutionary mind, its name is “V”. Though the movie makes it closer to a simple vengeance thirst of this character, which is a bad point for the writer, but anyway; the film put us in front of tyranny being challenged by a single questioner, a single doubt of what has been happening to that society and his menace to multiply those doubts once the right time has come, this is…The 5th of November.

There is also the human side of “V”, he meets the girl in the movie thanks to his opportune showing while she is about to be raped by a group of secret agents of the “fascist” regime that have catch her walking at the wrong hours. You are not even the owner of your time as long as the preachers of “England Prevails” are in power. She escapes safe thanks to “V” but only to be initiated into the world of those who will change that world. She will be the guest and prisoner of “V” until she finally learns that there is nothing to fear but fear itself.

At the end there seems to be a split of the vengeance appetites of “V” and the revolutionary intentions that have been growing as the story develops. It becomes somewhat clear that everything coming from the old regime must die, including “V”, but he has left a final gift and maybe a lesson for those who want to learn it. Passions belong to individuals and can be very powerful forces; but revolutions can not be made by one or two individuals, revolutions are made by the conscience and willing of the people.

GT5 Prologue On Playstation3 (Gran Turismo 5 For PS3)

The launching of the first Gran Turismo game for the Playstation was such a huge success that it marked the start of racing game dominance in the gaming consoles. We all know that racing simulations had been making a home in the PC for quite some time now, and although there were games such as Sega Rally, Mario Kart, and Polyphony Digital's Motor Toon Grand Prix, those games were not promising enough in terms of what the racing genre could actually offer to the gamers.

After it was initially released in Japan on 1997, and then shortly in the US and Europe, the game became an instant success. It was definitely a racer that has never been seen on the console before, therefore it does not come as a surprise that Gran Turismo and its preceding sequels collectively sold over 50 million copies worldwide. With over 250 cars to race with and 11 courses, it's astounding how you still have such personalized access to car specifications to make the game feel like what a real racing should be like.

And now, with the upcoming Gran Turismo 5, you'll get more than a glimpse of this much-awaited installment with the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. Although this is not the full sequel, GT5 Prologue is a full insight into the much-anticipated 5th installment of the ever-popular racing game. You can choose to purchase this as a standalone game or you can download it via the Playstation Network. It will surely keep you all geared up until the GT5 hits market next year.

Even though this is not the full version of the game and you do not have access to the full roster of cars and racetracks, your list of choices still total an impressive 40 cars. And these cars are not a bunch of trash either, with such racing giants as Ferrari and Lotus sports cars, what better choice can you have? Not only that, you can also compete in racetracks that are based in some of the more popular racing tracks in the world, such as the Suzuka racetrack in Japan.

Son'y partnership with Polyphony Digital, which is known as the premier videogame designer, ensures that fans will have utmost fun racing in these tracks. If you find these stuffs you're hearing quite too good to be true, there is still so much in store as this is primarily only a sort of “demo” for the main game, GT5. And as if they haven't offered quite a promise yet, you can also make use of the GT5 Prologue Online mode. So long as you have a broadband connection, you can join in on the online racing fun which is able to support up to 16 players. This may be a good time to test you and your friends' racing skills.

Just like in the offline version of the game, you can also play using the Garage Mode while engaging in online play. While playing in this mode, you will be able to specify your car settings like hydraulics, engine settings, brake and suspension, tires, etc. By doing this, you can ensure optimum performance from your chosen vehicle when you compete in a race like the Global Online Rankings Challenge. The competition can be quite stiff but winning each race you've ran can be quite fulfilling.

If you're still not convince with the racing prowess of this game, these few extras that have been bundled for this game might just as well tickle your fancy. The Gran Turismo 5 Prologue has got a My Page option, which enables you to either Race, go to the Garage, watch TV, or look at the Album where pictures taken while in Race mode are stored. One other interesting feature in GT5 Prologue is the Calendar, which enables you to view scheduled Races, as well as weather reports for each racing day.

Although the PS3 SixAxis joypad can be quite responsive while playing GT5, plugging in a steering wheel can prove more rewarding. This will enable you to view the action clearly via the point of view of a real racer, and see other cars disappear behind you as you run past them.

Since GT5 Prologue is rendered in full High Definition, you can be guaranteed to get the highest picture quality with every single race you run. With all its features, it's hard to imagine why this game can't be a full title. Well, this means there'll be so much more in store for the Gran Turismo 5. Until then, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue will surely work up your appetite.

BBC Banned Music: Top Singles Banned By the BBC

In 1977, when England was celebrating the Queens Jubilee, the Sex Pistols had released their second single titled God Save the Queen. The single includes controversial lyrics that rhyme the national anthem title with fascist regime. Moreover, the record cover displayed a picture of the Queen with a safety pin stuck in her nose.

The single was found to offensive to be air played by the BBC, but it did not stop it from reaching number two on the BBC official singles chart. According to the myth, God Save the Queen was the top selling single in the UK at the time, but it was held back of number one to avoid controversies.

Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin scandalous duet Je TAime ... Moi Non Plus, translated: I love you... me neither, was the first ever number one hit to be banned by the BBC. Although at the time of its release, in 1969, the sexual revolution was celebrated, the British radio still was not able to cope with such explicit lyrics, not to mention Birkins moans and groans.

The BBC ban and The Vatican denounce, did not stop Je TAime ... Moi Non Plus from being a top selling single in the UK and worldwide. In October 7, 1969, the single reached number one in the BBC official singles chart. At the same time, it had reached number 69 at the US singles chart.

Je TAime ... Moi Non Plus was a major influence on another BBC banned single, Donna Summers disco pioneer from 1976 titled Love to Love You Baby. After counting 23 faked orgasms performed by Summer in Love to Love You Baby, the British Broadcasting Corporation banned the song. However, it did not stop it from becoming a massive hit. Love to Love You Baby reached number four on the UK single charts but peaked to number two on the Billboard pop chart.

Relax by Frankie Goes to Hollywood is one of the most controversial singles as well as commercially successful singles in history. The BBC did not only ban the song it also did not stop BBC Radio 1 DJ Mike Read to publicly express his feelings of disgust from the single's explicit lyrics. In 1984, Relax stayed in the UK singles charts for 42 weeks. In five of them, it stayed in number one. By the end of 1984, embarrassed Auntie Beeb removed the ban. Relax is still very popular worldwide and it is one of the most recognized symbols of the era. The arguments on whether it gained such a huge success despite the BBC ban or the BBC ban helped promoting it have not been settled yet.

Paul McCartney and the Wings response to the 1972 Bloody Sunday events titled Give Ireland Back to the Irish, was banned by every media resource in the UK. It was forbidden from being broadcast by the BBC, Radio Luxembourg and the Independent Television Authority. In addition, the song title was not allowed to be pronounced on the air, so when it arrived to the BBC Radio 1 chart show it was presented as a record by the group Wings. However, Give Ireland Back to the Irish hit the top of the Irish singles charts.

Sun Sign Astrology: An Intriguing Scorpion

Astrology sun sign details happen to be the main source of astrological assessment. Every sun sign possesses certain distinct traits with the help of which people of one sun sign could be easily distinguished from others. Scorpio is one such peculiar astrological sun sign.

People borne on a date that lies on or in between October 22 to November 22 are called Scorpions as their sun sign happens to be Scorpio.

Scorpions are ruled by Mars and Pluto. This sun sign possesses some negative traits along with a good number of positive qualities. Scorpions happen to be very cunning. They are very probing by nature and happen to be very much inquisitive of others.

Purple and gold are colors assigned to scorpions. Their stone is Topaz and Iron is their metal. Scorpions hail from the water element.

Scorpions are known for having great sexual cravings. Their high sexual drive is difficult to be satisfied. That's why they need a partner who is equally sexually active. For scorpions sexual compatibilities are of utmost importance. Women say, scorpion males are rocking in bed. They don't have emotional hangovers attached with themselves. At times scorpions are very brutal. If a scorpion could sublime his/her distorted sexual urges, the energy saved could be used to make the scorpion a great human being.

On the other hand scorpions have n-number of qualities. They happen to be very intelligent and try their level best to achieve their target. They are very intense people who can, to any extent, make things work for themselves. They are very passionate about their career. And they can't afford to loose in life. They happen to be very protective of their near and dear ones.

Scorpions are known for their expertise as strategy makers. They plan out things in advance and don't lose their patience till the right time arrives to change their fortune.

All in all, scorpions possess great resilience capability. Nothing could change their perception. They could be easily out of the worst of situations. Scorpions know the art of figuring out things that can't be expressed in words. They could easily read psychology of a person.

I suggest all scorpions to let their positive traits dominate over certain darker shades that usually make a scorpion a suspicious creature in other's eye.

Scorpios rule, even the geeky ones! Check out these 15 famous celebs. 

http://vmzews.amazeworthy.com/famous-scorpios

3 Steps To Getting More Traffic From Youtube

YouTube is a very powerful social site. It’s the first thing that people check when they are looking for video clips; and YouTube videos can be and have been conveniently passed on to other internet users worldwide. Due to its extremely viral nature, YouTube is a wonderful tool for internet marketing. Here are the steps that you should follow in order to do so.

You probably have heard of YouTube. Well, who hasn’t? Millions of people are uploading, watching, downloading, or linking to videos in YouTube everyday. If you want to see a video of something, you can always check it out from YouTube.

YouTube is a free video sharing website that utilizes adobe flash technology in order to be able to display videos uploaded by its millions of members. These videos are watched and seen by around 20 million YouTube visitors every month. Videos in YouTube feature thousands of unknown and known people daily.

If you have a website, an account with YouTube would certainly benefit you. You can take advantage of its free video sharing and the extremely vast network of people you could market your product to. Just imagine how much traffic your website would generate through your own videos. There is no better way to advertise to millions of people for free than YouTube. Using this service, you can maximize all internet marketing opportunities. Here’s how you can use YouTube more effectively in your internet marketing efforts.

Step 1: Create a definite genre for your video

Deciding on what kind of video you will be creating depends on what kind of target audience you intend to create the video for. Colorful and interactive videos would work best for teenagers or college students. A more classic presentation will suit the professional and working market.

The idea is to create a video that would most attract its target market. Make sure that your video’s message is clear but concise. Make sure that your clip won’t play for more than 5 minutes.

Create an impact with your message. Try to shock and move people out of their usual indifference. Make them curious about your product, business or service and make them want to possess what you sell through the content of your video.

Make sure that you are clearly identifying yourself with the video. It should contain your logo or your company name. This is a way to make sure that your message won’t be lost to the viewers. Take your time in creating your video. Make sure that the finished product would give out the message that you want to convey.

Step 2: Strategically place your video in the net

A strategic placement of your videos in YouTube will raise people’s interest and would get them to watch your video. Make it a top-watch video. Chances are your video will appear on YouTubes’s home page, generating more possible interest. This is where viral marketing would start to work. Your videos will be watched and passed on by more and more people.

Step 3: Create a link to your website

Remember that the purpose of your video is to attract more people to visit your website. However, a direct sales pitch from a video is frowned upon by YouTube. To avoid having your video deleted (yet still being able to make a subtle advertisement), put a teaser trailer at the end of the video. Put your company name on the trailer and make sure the person watching it would know whom to associate the video with.

The DA VINCI CODE: a must see movie or an example of blasphemy?

The first time I heard of Da Vinci Code, I didn’t pay much attention. All I know is that it is a novel and that’s it. But when it made noise because of its controversial twists, mysteries, arguments, and why Catholics does condemn this book, I got so curious to the point of asking my parents (who are so religious) to buy me a copy of the book. Of course they didn’t buy me one but I made a way to have a copy. I didn’t have enough money to buy the book that time so I just asked my friend to lend me her book. She was so kind enough to entrust her copy to me. I read the book and finished it after two weeks (I’m not a book worm that’s why I’m kind slow in reading books). And yes, it is true and I can attest that the story is unbelievable. There are some parts in the story where it lets me think and analyze, and there are parts that makes me ask ‘what?’ and ‘how is that?’

Some of us think that this is a genius book. Some consider it as a typical novel. Others say that this is a story that must not be published. But let’s face it, Dan Brown can really write a book that makes noise and controversy. His other works like between angels and demons, and deception point also got the attention of many people. But now Da Vince Code has its own movie, this is now the new talk of the town.

It is now on almost all of the movie screens but it passed through many obstacles such as rejections, objections, and criticisms coming from different kinds of people, sectors, and religions. Up to now, it is still being turned down by the Catholics because they say that it is disrespecting God, Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and many others whom they considered as holy.

Open-mindedness in things or movies such as this doesn’t mean that your faith in God is weak. Oftentimes you will learn many things and gain knowledge if you posses this quality. But many times, you will be misunderstood by the people. Here try to picture this, people are so intelligent that whatever you prohibits them to do, to say, or to watch will make them more curious leading them to do it, to say it, and to watch it. In simple terms, the more you ban the movie, the more they will watch it.

Now, it’s your time to decide. Are you confident with your faith in God that you think it can’t be destroyed by anyone or anything? Do you see that Da Vinci Code the movie is just purely fictional? Or you intend to believe in anything that you see and anything you watch? This is a matter of how shallow or how deep is your intelligence, analyzations, and belief in God.

Movie Buffs On The Internet

Films, film series and film stars all have warranted websites dedicated to them by fans. There seems to be a level of cooperation among film studios and fan sites - at least, the responsible ones. Movie companies recognize the value of Internet exposure and are eager to take advantage of it: that is as long as they feel that the Internet sites are not taking advantage of them.

There are two basic types of film related fan sites, those devoted to actors and those devoted to films. Film sites are generally run or commissioned by the studios as part of the film's marketing, whereas sites devoted to a particular actor may be more numerous and run the gamut between small, "one fan" operations to "official" sites set up by the actor or the actor's representation. This is not to say that all film sites are run by studios, as many very successful films or film series have fan sites devoted to them that are completely independent of the studios.

For example, a fan site on Johnny Depp has photos and screensavers along with the standard filmography and biography - and a fairly active fan forum; almost entirely worshipful. Alternately, the studio-run official film site for "Pirates of the Caribbean" is nicely laid out, featuring still photos, trailers and bios on all the actors along with an active - and moderated - forum. The rules for posting: no profanity, no double posting and no insults directed at other posters. In both cases, the movie and the star get excellent exposure, while negative commentary seems limited to "they could had made a great film better if..."

The Issue of Fair Use

Here it's worth exploring the notion of "fair use" as applied to film clips, audio bites and other representations taken from commercial movie fare. The law that applies to the use of copyrighted material by independent parties is guided by a principal called fair use. This principal holds that limited use of copyrighted material is permissible for the purposes of "commentary and criticism".

Fair Use is primarily the concern of the private, non-affiliated fan sites. Studio-run film sites use clips without concern, as the studio that owns the clips is running the site.

Fair Use and the Courts

There have been many lawsuits over this issue and many interpretations of the law. Generally, the less material you lift the less exposure you incur. It has also been held that if you are using copyrighted material without a license, you may not take the "heart" of the product you are lifting from. Neither may you compromise the financial rights of the copyright holder; reproducing content in such a way as the rights holder is denied future commercial gain.

Video Segments Online

That said, the Internet is jammed with video segments lifted from movies. Often, you will find a fan site with film excerpts on it that has an advertisement for an upcoming studio release displayed on the page. The studios understand that these fan pages are the best example of targeted advertising that can be found. While the fan page may be about an actor or actress that has no role in the advertised film, nonetheless people who visit the site are going to be reliable filmgoers.

General Fan Sites

One of the interesting sites dedicated to a film series is the Star Wars Library at http://takeoff.to/starwarslibrary. This site contains no film clips, but instead features fan fiction, parodies, photos, fan art, and articles. There's a fair amount of thoughtful material on the site, and some hilarious pictures as well: for example, the Krispy Kreme donut wedding cake with Luke Skywalker and the Princess on top, nested in satin hearts. The list of fan sites provided in the Library is broken into categories: movies; actors and actresses; rivalries and relationships; and groups and factions. That is a list of fan sites that should meet any need.

Some sites take a broader approach. A site like http://www.thefilmfrontier.com covers multiple franchises, including Star Trek, Star Wars, and the Superman films. The diversity in the site covers the owner's varying tastes, so it's not limited to a single film, actor, or even film franchise. The broad umbrella of sci-fi / fantasy applies, but it appeals to a wider cross-section of fans, providing something for anyone interested in the individual elements or all of them as a whole.

The Dennis Kucinich Incident: UFO Encounters By Politicians And Celebrities

Shirley MacLaine had some things to say about Dennis Kucinich and UFOs in her new book, Sage-ing While Age-ing. According to Ms MacLaine, Dennis Kucinich had a UFO sighting while he was visiting her home in Graham, Washington, about fifteen years ago. She writes, “And then the smell of roses drew him out to my balcony, where he looked up. He saw a gigantic, triangular craft, silent and observing him. He said it hovered, soundless, for ten minutes or so and sped away with a speed he couldn't comprehend." Kucinich was later asked if he really did see a UFO by Tim Russert of NBC News during a debate involving the 2008 Democratic presidential candidate hopefuls and replied, “I did…you have to keep in mind that Jimmy Carter saw a UFO." I’m guessing that the Congressman felt a need to play the Carter card to add credibility to his answer.

There are a number of important politicians and celebrities connected to the UFO subject in one way or another. Former U.S. Presidents Reagan and Carter have openly talked about experiencing UFO sightings, while President John F. Kennedy had a close encounter that was a little too close for comfort. Carter saw a classic nocturnal light while standing around waiting for a meeting to begin with ten members of the Lion’s Club of Leary, Georgia in October of 1969. The object appeared to change color and shape during the roughly ten to twelve minutes they watched it.

During the 1976 Presidential Campaign, Jimmy Carter talked about his sighting and promised to reveal anything he could find out about UFOs if elected. Although a former Navy Officer, he was considered a dove by members of the military hierarchy. They didn’t trust him and believed Carter was trying to starve them down into smaller and less influential departments through funding cuts. It’s assumed that he was never told anything of substance about UFOs by military insiders.

While many historians choose to paint Carter as having a cozy relationship with intelligence gathering agencies because of his less threatening assessment of the Soviet Union’s military abilities that agreed with some of theirs, this doesn’t mix well with the facts. During his first briefing by then CIA Director George H.W. Bush, President Elect Carter asked to see documents related to UFOs. Bush told him that any documents which might exist about such things were classified above his immediate need to know. If he wanted to see any, he would have to ask the appropriate congressional committee to declassify them. As president, Carter sought to dismantle the CIA superstructure into smaller agencies, but failed.

Ronald Reagan was a completely different story. As a member of Army Air Force Intelligence during World War II, a supporter of military modernization and a president with a vice president that once served as CIA Director, we assume he was told more about UFOs than most elected officials. Reagan’s own interest in and experience with the phenomenon is well known. His daughter, Patti Davis, said he was "fascinated with stories about unidentified flying objects and the possibility of life on other worlds."

Ronald Reagan had two UFO sightings that we know about. The first occurred while he was still acting in films sometime during the 1950s. After showing up late for a dinner party attended by other Hollywood celebrities, Ronald and Nancy Reagan said they saw a UFO. This story was later confirmed by the Kitty Kelly, Lucille Ball and Steve Allen. The second sighting occurred in 1974 while he was Governor of California.

Less than a month after leaving the presidency in 1989, Ronald Reagan reiterated a story he first told to a Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal in 1974:

“I was in a plane last week when I looked out the window and saw this white light. It was zigzagging around. I went up to the pilot and said, ‘Have you seen anything like that before?’ He was shocked and said, ‘Nope.’ And I said to him: ‘Let’s follow it!’

We followed it for several minutes. It was a bright greenish-white light. We followed it to Bakersfield, and all of a sudden to our utter amazement it went straight up into the heavens. When we got off the plane, I told Nancy all about it.”

During his first summer as President, John F. Kennedy retreated to the Kennedy compound along the Nantucket Sound in Hyannis, Massachusetts, for some rest and relaxation. While cruising around in one of the Kennedy motor boats, the president and a few guests reportedly saw a classic disc-shaped object suddenly appear at a low altitude near their vessel. At one point, the disc may have been as close as one hundred feet away. This sent secret service agents in nearby launches scrambling to get the president’s boat to safety. After the object vanished and the motor boat was back on shore, the president told his guests not to talk about what happened.

While Carter, Reagan and Kennedy saw unidentified flying objects and George H.W. Bush probably knew all about them, UFO stories involving Presidents Truman and Eisenhower have become legendary. The story of an alleged meeting between Alien dignitaries and President Dwight D. Eisenhower is one that refuses to die. It stems from a report that the president disappeared briefly during a trip to a Palm Springs resort which occurred in February of 1954.

On Saturday, February 20, 1954, some members of the white house press corps noticed that President Eisenhower missed a planned event. They contacted his spokesperson who seemed unable to provide an immediate explanation for the absence. After it became obvious that the president was no longer at the Palm Springs resort, rumors flew that he might have become seriously ill and been moved to a military infirmary or hospital for treatment. Finally, a besieged spokesperson told the press that the president chipped a tooth during a meal and was taken to visit a nearby dentist.

A steak barbeque was held a few days later and the dentist who allegedly treated Eisenhower was introduced to the press. The man seemed embarrassed and nervous. Years later his widow was unable to provide any particulars about the president’s visit to the dentist’s office that was located in their home. Instead, a number of stories have surfaced about a late night trip that President Eisenhower made to Edwards Air Force Base.

Eisenhower’s alleged visit to Edwards has always been a point of conspiratorial contention. Some say it had to do with an invitation to view some new super weapon or secret military aircraft. Others claim that Eisenhower actually met and signed agreements with some type of Aliens. Personally, I believe he was shown what remained of a crashed UFO and its occupants from any one of several crashes that may have taken place in the Southwest USA during the late 1940s or early 1950s.

President Harry Truman has become an enigmatic figure within UFO research thanks to a series of documents that tell the tale of a quickly-formed scientific advisory committee known as Majestic Twelve. The committee was ordered into existence by Truman in 1947 and consisted of twelve people which included prominent scientists, members of the military and elected officials. Originally created to study all available evidence that UFOs might be extraterrestrial crafts and offer advice to the President, the group may have evolved into a government within a government to deal with UFOs and Aliens in a manner that was completely separate from other U.S. Government departments or agencies.

John Lennon’s UFO experiences are among the most popular and controversial celebrity UFO events ever discussed and all are said to have occurred in New York City. Most people have heard about the August, 1974 sighting, so I will relate that story first. It began with the return of Lennon and May Pang from a long day at the Record Plant East where Lennon was working on tracks for his upcoming Walls and Bridges album. The two were staying at his 52nd Street Apartment which had a commanding view of the East River and the sky.

Sometime after 8:30pm, May was taking a shower while Lennon went up to the roof. After a few minutes, he began yelling for her to come up there. May rushed to the roof and found John pointing to what looked like a classic disc-shaped UFO that was silently hovering about 100 feet from them. The object seemed to change shape as it rotated and moved slowly towards the United Nations Building and out over the East River. Before it moved away, May ran and retrieved a 35mm camera from the apartment. She was able to get back to the roof in time to snap off a few photos of the object.

After the disc moved away, Lennon and May returned to the apartment. John made arrangements to have the film developed immediately by a photographer who was also a friend. Bob Gruen came and picked up the film. He returned to his studio and developed the film along with two rolls of his own. Gruen’s film developed perfectly, but he said that Lennon’s was blank. Fortunately, Lennon started making sketches of what he and May saw while it was all still fresh in his mind.

Another story about Lennon and a possible UFO experience comes from Uri Geller. He met Lennon in November of 1974 during a concert that Elton John was giving at Madison Square Garden. Geller was a kind of mystic to the Stars in those days and Lennon was in need of any help he could find. Distraught over his separation from Yoko, he wanted her back and asked Geller to use his alleged psychic powers to help. Yoko phoned John within thirty-six hours, the lovers reunited and John and Uri became friends.

Sometime after their reconciliation, Geller was eating with John and Yoko in a New York City restaurant. Yoko was pregnant, so it had to be sometime before Sean Lennon was born in October of 1975. Geller says that John became very serious and asked him to step over to a smaller table in a quiet corner of the restaurant. Once seated, Lennon spoke in discreet tones and told Uri about an incident that happened six months before. He and Yoko were asleep in bed when John suddenly woke up and noticed a blazing light shining through the cracks and keyhole of their bedroom door.

Thinking there was a fire or someone with a powerful flashlight trying to get into the room; he jumped out of their bed and opened the door. He was confronted by four beings. Lennon said, “They were, like, little. Bug-like. Big bug eyes and little bug mouths and they were scuttling at me like roaches.” He tried to resist the beings, but they kept coming at him. Lennon said that his next memory was of being back in bed with Yoko.

Yoko didn't wake up during the incident, but later when she did it was obvious that John was very upset and confused. He couldn't tell her what happened right away and waited for an unspecified period of time before he did. Exclaiming that he was sober and wasn't doing any drugs at that time, Lennon said it wasn’t some sort of hallucination or lucid dream. According to Geller, John’s assertion about the reality of what happened was backed up by physical evidence.

When Lennon woke up, he claimed to be holding a small egg-shaped object in his hand. After eventually telling Yoko about the incident, he showed it to her. He also showed it to Geller. None of them had ever seen anything like it. However, apart from the golden color and egg shape, little is none about the object and it would be up to Geller to proceed with any investigation of its properties. Many abductees have told stories of being given various objects by their Alien abductors, only to have them taken back later

Having met many celebrities over the years, I can appreciate their need to weigh any statement they might consider making about anything carefully in the balances before speaking or writing it for public consumption. A fickle public and press can easily turn on someone famous for the smallest indiscretion. Imagine how they might react to news that a famous celebrity or important politician has had a UFO or other paranormal experience.

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