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WASHINGTON POST: Sen. Larry E. Craig, the Idaho Republican caught in a police crackdown on sexual solicitation in an airport men’s room, today announced his resignation from the Senate, effective Sept. 30, succumbing to an erosion of support in his home state and from members of his own party. In a brief public statement in Boise, Craig issued a general apology but did not refer to any specific actions or admit wrongdoing.

“To Idahoans I represent, to my staff, my Senate colleagues, but most importantly to my wife and my family, I apologize for what I have caused,” Craig said. “I am deeply sorry.”

THEM (2006, directed by Xavier Palud & David Moreau, 77 minutes, France)
HALLOWEEN (2007, directed by Rob Zombie, 109 minutes, U.S.)

BY DAN BUSKIRK FILM CRITIC

In my gloriously misspent youth, I lived for a time in a tent and worked in a fish cannery in Petersburg, Alaska. One night a woman from our camp was cleaning the fish gutting machine when her hand became clamped in the conveyor belt and like a particularly nasty Chaplin gag she was dragged kicking and screaming across the slippery gutty floor all the way down the line towards “the header,” a blurry pair of revolving blades. At the late moment she was able to wrestle her hand away and although she wasmedivac’d away for years of painful surgery, I’d like to think that she would take comfort in the fact that she inspired a handy cinematic metaphor for the guy two tents down: when it comes to thriller I just want to be efficiently dragged flailing and wailing towards the whirling blades.

Them, a French import (titled Ils in France) snags your collar and pulls you into its jabbing daggers with the mechanized precision of Alaskan cannery equipment, which is no small trick, although by design it does little else. Still, if you’re not going to make it to the shore this Labor Day weekend Them should jolt you like a good boardwalk spook house.

Part of Them’s strength is in its running time, a daringly brief seventy-seven minutes. Back when the feature was just one part of a theater’s programming - when newsreels, cartoons and short subjects were still in the mix - many low and medium budget films had running times of less than eighty minutes and that leanness was a benefit to countless filmnoir and horror films. With less than eighty minutes a director wields just enough time to establish character, conflict and consequence and he can shear away any musical numbers or comic relief or any of the other crowd-pleasing distractions. Them has a limited number of tricks up its sleeve, just a few expertly executed ones, so getting on and off stage before the audience can ask many questions is probably the smartest of the smart choices this film’s directing duo has made.

Set in sleepy modern day Hungary, Them opens with a sniping mother and daughter whose van swerves off the road during a rainy night. They stick around only long enough to provide an ominous warning to the film’s main couple, a good-looking though rather generic French couple. She’s a school teacher, he’s a novelist who has sought the solitude of a good-sized Hungarian estate to finish his novel. They have some very nondescript naturalistic banter and fall asleep before something finally goes bump in the night and wakes them…

That’s really all we have in the way of character development but these characters are underwritten by design, the directing/writing team of XavierPalud & David Moreau have stripped them of all unneeded baggage to focus their attentions solely on how to sustain the cat and mouse stalking that takes up most of the film.

Stubbornly resisting the urge to overly inflate its horrors, Them doesn’t attempt to give motivation or metaphoric meaning to the things that are terrifying our couple. Instead its thrills are all visceral as the man and woman creep slowly across their spooky rental estate not quite able to see what has them under siege. Palud and Moreau are resourceful in obscuring the threat till the final moments (audiences will probably split pretty evenly on whether they’ll accept the threat once unmasked) but I was finally impressed with Them’s purposeful purity, delivering an experience that is pure “movies”, one that could not be told as well on the page or on the stage. This impressive debut has not gone unnoticed in Hollywood, the pair are set to direct the English language version of the J-Horror hit The Eye next year.

(more…)

[illustration by STEVE BRODNER]

FRESH AIR

Director, screenwriter, musician and actor Christopher Guest co-wrote the rock parody This Is Spinal Tap, as well as the mockumentaries Best in Show and A Mighty Wind. Actor, comedian, composer and musician Michael McKean is best known for co-starring in the spoofs This is Spinal Tap, Best in Show and A Mighty Wind. He got his start playing Lenny in the 1970s sitcom Laverne and Shirley.Vocal coach Melissa Cross is known as the “Scream Queen” for her work teaching metal, punk and hardcore performers how to use their voice without ruining their vocal chords. She teaches them how to growl, bark, bellow and scream. Gene Simmons is leader and bassist of the band Kiss, which rose to prominence and popularity in the mid 1970s. They were known for their face paint, black-leather outfits, eight-inch platform heels and grandiose stage shows.

RADIO TIMES

Hour 1
(Rebroadcast tonight at 11)
The 2008 Summer Olympics in China has renewed criticism on that country’s human rights record. We’ll talk with SOPHIE RICHARDSON, Asia advocacy director for Human Rights Watch, ERIC REEVES, a specialist on Sudan which has economic relations with China, and VICTOR CHA an associate professor of government at Georgetown University and who is currently writing a book on sports diplomacy in Asia and the Beijing Olympics. Listen to this show via Real Audio | mp3
Hour 2
A rebroadcast of our interview with SUSAN BELL author of The Artful Edit: On the Practice of Editing Yourself. Bell who has spent the past 20 years as a professional editor talks how to self-edit and why editing is key to great writing. Originally aired 8/15/07 Listen to this show via Real Audio | mp3

THE WORLD CAFE

Back by popular demand, the World Café revisits David Dye’s interview with Flight Of The Conchords. Calling themselves “New Zealand’s fourth most popular folk-parody duo,” the Conchords recently premiered as television stars in their own HBO series. Combining deadpan humor with the pair’s catchy melodies, the show documents their struggles to make it big in New York City.

FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS: The Humans Are Dead

INQUIRER: The state Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Pennsylvanians will be able to walk into their local grocery or corner store and pick up a six-pack of beer along with toilet paper and a carton of milk. The case grew out of a central Pennsylvania chain’s long-running attempt to capitalize on the state’s arcane liquor laws and sell six-packs at one of its convenience stores. A victory for Sheetz Inc. could produce new profits for such chains and supermarkets. It could also mean major competition for the hundreds of traditional beer distributors. They worry that customers will stop buying the cases they sell and start buying six-packs elsewhere. “It’s the nail in the coffin,” said Chris Fetfatzes, part of the family that owns Bella Vista Beer Distributors at 11th and Fitzwater Streets. “This is our passion. This is our blood, our source of income.” [Yeah, but you close at 8 PM on a Saturday night. –The Ed.]

The University of Pennsylvania and Brandywine Realty Trust will announce plans today for a dramatic residential, commercial and hotel project on 30th Street. The 14-acre Cira Centre South project, which includes a 40- to 50-story office tower on Walnut Street and a 25- to 30-story residential tower on Chestnut Street, will be developed by a partnership of the university and Brandywine, which is based in Radnor. Penn president Amy Gutmann said in an interview yesterday that the project would help unite University City with Center City and provide a gleaming “Gateway to the University.” The post office conversion and construction of a 2,400-space parking garage will be the $365 million first phase of the project, to be completed by 2010. The office and residential towers will follow, to be completed by 2012 at a cost of about $400 million. [via the INQUIRER]

KYW: Ground will be broken in November for the 16½-acre plant at the base of Waste Management’s GROWS landfill in Falls Township.Tim Brown is a spokesman for Excelon, which is partnering with the German firm Epuron and SunTechnics Energy Systems. “We’re gonna have 17,000 solar panels, which is gonna result in the fourth largest solar project in the country.” Governor Rendell is hoping it will spur the legislature to pass his proposed energy independence initative. “The impact of this for the environment is obvious.The impact for helping us free our dependence on foreign natural gas and oil is dramatic and the impact for our economy is dramatic.” The plant is scheduled to go online next spring.

WILLS POINT, Tex., Aug. 29 � Most spiders are solitary creatures. So the discovery of a vast web crawling with millions of spiders that is spreading across several acres of a North Texas park is causing a stir among scientists, and park visitors.

Sheets of web have encased several mature oak trees and are thick enough in places to block out the sun along a nature trail at Lake Tawakoni State Park, near this town about 50 miles east of Dallas.

The gossamer strands, slowly overtaking a lakefront peninsula, emit a fetid odor, perhaps from the dead insects entwined in the silk. The web whines with the sound of countless mosquitoes and flies trapped in its folds.The web may be a combined effort of social cobweb spiders. But their large communal webs generally take years to build, experts say, and this web was formed in just a few months.

Record-breaking rains that flooded Texas earlier this summer inspired outbreaks of crickets and �webworms,� the caterpillar larvae of the white moth. Mr. Quinn said the rains might have something to do with the web, too.

The staff expects the web to last until colder weather this fall, when the spiders begin dying off. For now the concern is to defend this marvel from teenagers who might take a stick and knock it all down, or little boys wanting to push their little sisters into it.

NEW YORK TIMES: They Are Creepy And They Are Kooky, They Are Altogether Ooky

MSNBC: A source close to Owen Wilson revealed to “Access” that Wilson did not overdose as other outlets have reported. While Owen did slit his wrists, his stomach was never pumped at the hospital. There were no drugs in his system, the source claims, other than the antidepressants he was taking at the time.

DAILY MAIL: Courtney Love, 43, who had an affair with Steve Coogan after he moved to the U.S. three years ago, said: “Under normal circumstances I would not comment but I care too much about Owen. I went through it with Steve. I was just out of rehab and he was right there with the drugs. I tried to warn Owen. I tried to warn his friends. I hope from the bottom of my heart that Owen stays the hell away from that guy.”

Wilson has allegedly been battling an addiction to cocaine and heroin as well as struggling with depression. Rows about his wild ways were said to have contributed to the break-up with Kate Hudson two months ago. While they were dating Miss Hudson, 27, reportedly banned visits from Wilson’s friend Coogan, whose real life persona is a world away from his frumpy TV character Alan Partridge. Wilson’s friends have privately placed the blame for Owen’s problems squarely on Coogan, who has battled his own demons.

FORBES: In order for any film to be made, its stars–track record or not–must be insured. The rationale: With production costs on a typical feature film already at exorbitant sums, any delay–be it from weather, an injury or a star’s poor health–can set movie makers back between $100,000 and $400,000 per day. The more likely a star is to cause that delay, the more costly he or she will be to insure.

But just how much more is a decision left up to insurance or underwriting companies. With only a handful in the business, including Fireman’s Fund and the Chubb Group, these firms make it their business to understand the film industry and its players. Among other things, each has confidential files on every actor, which include everything from prior medical certificates to claims histories to newspaper or Web clippings pertaining to the star. With that information, and the medical exam and affidavit a star must complete some 30 days before the cameras roll, firms are able to assess the risk.

PEOPLE: But Extra reports that Wilson attempted suicide over the weekend after being depressed for several months, and that it was his brother Luke Andrew who found him.

After more than a year’s work, KHOU-TV in Houston and its investigative unit, 11 News Defenders, have obtained a world-exclusive first look at the FBI’s file on Coretta Scott King. Comprised of nearly 500 pages, with some of those documents partially or totally censored, the intelligence file paints a disturbing picture: The FBI very closely spied and did surveillance on Scott King for years, keeping close track of her public appearances, speeches and especially anytime she traveled.

Why would a federal agency go to such trouble?

For most of his life FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover ruled the Bureau with a tight grip. In addition he opposed the civil rights movement as being an “un-American” and “subversive cause” and even called Martin Luther King Jr. “the Black Messiah,” saying he was too powerful. In public statements Hoover also called the leader “immoral” and accused him of being influenced by the Communists. Hence began an intense “counter-intelligence” campaign of surveillance, bugging, and harassment by the FBI’s “Racial Intelligence Section” that centered around MLK, his relatives, and associates.

But KHOU has found that even after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968, the FBI’s Scott King file shows the Bureau actually intensified their spying and surveillance of the new widow.

The newly released documents show the Bureau closely tracked and scrutinized Scott King’s comings and goings, including public appearance and what was said there. But the file also shows that the Bureau’s real worry about Scott King was not the civil rights movement but instead her involvement with the peace and “anti-Vietnam War” movement. Government officials were afraid that she might try to complete what her husband had been doing when he died: “attempt to tie the anti-Vietnam war movement to the civil rights movement,” as one FBI agent put it.

During the late ‘60s, the anti-war movement was snowballing in strength and was considered a real danger to the war effort by both the Johnson and Nixon administrations. Adding the hundreds of thousands involved in the civil rights effort to the war protest was thus considered “a danger.” In fact, the file shows the FBI was copying various military intelligence organizations on her activities including the 115th M.I. of the U.S. Army, the Office of Naval Intelligence, and a number of military bases. Other reports also show the White House being in the loop on this surveillance.

KHOU requested an interview with the FBI regarding the Scott King file and what we found. However the FBI declined comment except to say that the Bureau has changed.

And the Scott King file may back up that claim.

Several months after J. Edgar Hoover died in 1972, finally the Atlanta FBI office sent a memo to the Acting Director saying, “no information has come to the attention of Atlanta which indicates a propensity for violence or affiliation with subversive elements,” and concluded, “In view of all of the above, Atlanta is closing the case concerning Mrs. King.”

The FBI’s reply? “Yes, definitely.”

KHOU: Hey, Wasn’t J. Edgar Hoover A Tranvestite?

STRAIGHT DOPE: “The alleged transvestitism of John Edgar Hoover, director of the FBI from 1924 until his death in 1972, has never been established, and reputable historians say it’s an urban legend. The story probably got its start because of much more plausible rumors that J. Edgar was gay. He and his right-hand man, Clyde Tolson, were constant companions for more than 40 years, even vacationing together, and both remained lifelong bachelors. (Hoover lived with his mom until she died in 1938.) They say Richard Nixon, on hearing of Hoover’s death, exclaimed with his customary delicacy, “Jesus Christ! That old cocksucker!”

Which brings us back to Tolson, and to Hoover’s rumored homosexuality. There were hints about this throughout the FBI boss’s career, some of them admittedly a little silly. A 1930s magazine article describes Hoover’s mincing step. He was a bit dandyish, favoring white linen suits as a young man; he had classical statues of male nudes at his home, and one of his hobbies was antique collecting. On the more serious side, many people sensed that his long relationship with Tolson was more than a friendship–the pair never lived together, but they’re buried side by side. Today some gay activists include Hoover and Tolson in their pantheons of famous gay couples. But appearances notwithstanding, no one has found concrete evidence that the two men were anything other than buds. Given Hoover’s ability to cover his tracks–his associates, with Tolson’s help, destroyed many of his files upon his death–it’s unlikely anyone ever will.”

RELATED: But perhaps the most disturbing single document in the Scott King file is a March 1969 report from the FBI’s Atlanta office to Hoover. The subject was the Rev. Ralph Abernathy, MLK’s No. 2 man [pictured left, seated next to MLK], and the then-new president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the spearhead organization for the civil rights movement. In the report the FBI details an uncertain and “shaky” Abernathy who was “concerned about his possible assassination as well as his position as President of the SCLC…” So the agent makes a recommendation: “It is felt that by notifying Abernathy directly upon receipt of information relating to threats against his life, some rapport may be developed with him…” The report also adds that doing this would give the benefit of “the disruptive effect of confusing and worrying him by reminding him of continuous threats against his life.” [via KHOU]

ASSOCIATED PRESS: FOIA Request Forces FBI To Reveal New Surveillance Techniques 

BY M. EMANUEL For the sake of hip hop, on Sept. 11, make tracks to your local music spot, your iTunes, your friendly neighborhood Target store, or wherever you legally buy music and purchase two copies of Kanye West’s eagerly anticipated Graduation. Why two? Well, the extra copy will go a long way in assuring that Kanye wins round one of his faux-WWE Smackdown-esque showdown with Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson.

The infamous date and ensuing hype surrounding the respective releases is to be expected, as West and 50 are considered in most circles as the two biggest rap stars in the hip-hop galaxy. West, who counts production for some of the biggest names in the industry and brings to the table two classic albums of his own, The College Dropout and Late Registration, is fresh off supplying the musical backing for Common’s Finding Forever (Phawker-certified Hip-Hop album of the summer, doncha know). Fiddy, the G-Unit general, readies Curtis, his third solo release, following subpar showings from G-Unit Soldiers Lloyd Banks, Tony Yayo and Mobb Deep. Fiddy is expected to straight-up and singlehandedly resurrect his G-Unit empire. The Massacre was the best-selling release of 2005, moving 1.14 million copies in its first week, while the same year, West’s Late Registration sold more than 860,000 copies its first week.

Fast forward to the present. West and 50 have enjoyed a working relationship with one another, even allegedly collaborating on a track that didn’t make the final cut for Curtis. But upon confirmation of their shared 9/11 release dates, 50 declared that if West’s first week’s sales beat his, he would not release any more solo albums. The gauntlet lost some of its luster when 50 softened his position by adding that if West outsells him, he’ll “write music and work with his other artists, but won’t put out any more solo albums,” possibly insinuating some uncertainty about the success of his project. Kanye remained uncharacteristically humble and refused to fully trade barbs about record sales. From 50’s side, the verbal jousting bordered on ridiculous, even challenging West to a debate on BET’s 106 & Park.

The weeks following the “challenge” found 50 retreating from his original position even further, backing out of the retirement rhetoric completely, and even sharing the stage with West during the Madison Square Garden incarnation of the Scream Tour, a show for which neither artist was originally listed on the bill. Nevertheless, the “challenge” and notion of a battle for supremacy between West and 50, contrived or not, leaves an important statement to be made regarding the future of commercial hip-hop as the two serve as diametrically-opposed examples of how diverse the genre can be, and where it could be headed.

My support of West in the “battle” between him and 50 is not indicative of my views on 50 Cent. He’s certainly a talented artist, capable of crafting incredibly catchy songs whose appeal knows no geographic boundaries, from the blighted streets of Everyhood, U.S.A. to the well-manicured lawns of Middle America, U.S.A. (surely we all remember that “It’s your birthday song?). But the reality is that lately 50 has gotten lazy. A quick look at his recent track record includes four — yes, four — lead-off singles for Curtis, each of which have been formulaic at best and often uninspired. The most recent of the four, “Ayo Technology,” a duet with the pop go-to-guy of the moment, Justin Timberlake, revisits the tried-and-true gentleman’s club theme that has been done with more enthusiasm by [insert your favorite drrty southern rap star here]. While Timbaland’s production is well-suited for the inside of your neighborhood strip club, and the song is pre-packaged with an incredibly glossy high-priced video, it’s not groundbreaking material. Further telling is that the album has had four lead-ins. It’s as if the powers that be just can’t find the right hit. In an era where most artists are unable to get three singles out, Fiddy has managed to release four singles without even dropping an album. We won’t even include the recently leaked “Follow My Lead,” featuring Robin Thicke. Upon finding the video had been leaked, allegedly by his own label, 50 went on a plasma screen bashing and cell phone throwing tirade that hasn’t been seen this side of Naomi Campbell. After catching the leaked video on YouTube, it proves to be simply another well calculated but contrived attempt at the pop charts.

Which brings me to Mr. West, and why Kanye must outsell Fif in his first week. Hip-hop fans need to send a message to the major record labels that the same music repackaged with movie-budget video clips is tired. The only way to effectively get this message across to a business that is primarily concerned with the bottom line is to allow money to talk.

In contrast to 50’s missteps, for Kanye, the lead-up to Graduation has been rife with creative innovation and growth. On the introspective “Can’t Tell Me Nothing,” Kanye delivers heavy lines like “had a dream I could buy my way to Heaven/woke up spent it on a necklace,” and explains his much crticized candor with the media when he admits he’s “on TV talking like it’s just you and me.” The follow-up, “Stronger” (sampling Daft Punk), coupled with a slick Akira-inspired video, while irreverent at times (”you could be my black Kate Moss tonight”) is unlike most of what is in heavy rotation on today’s radio, with its futuristic production.

Hip-hop needs more songs like “Stronger” and “Can’t Tell Me Nothin’,” songs that show thought, innovation and self-reflection. Hip-hop needs more artists willing to take chances and break outside of the preconceived notions of what makes a hit, what is “radio enough” and what executives think the public wants to put its money behind. I seriously doubt that at first listen, “Can’t Tell Me Nothin’” would have fit neatly into a radio landscape alongside current hits like “Crank dat Souljah Boy” and “Ay Bay Bay.” While I’m using two extremes here, it’s still reality that West took a chance with his first single, and in order to spur more artists to take the chances, the public needs to show that it is open to change.

If you want to hear something new, and see form lead over substance, buy West’s album and let’s see if it shakes up the industry. While these may be the musings of an eternal optimist, I’d still like to see if the message is felt and hope that we can see our artists pushing artistic boundaries in ways that will inspire future generations of hip hoppers.

Now take that to the bank.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: The easiest word to describe M. Emanuel is “complex.” At least as it relates to tastes and interest, he offers a varied palate for that which inspires thought or emotion. Typically framed against the backdrop of hip-hop culture, but with a sharp awareness of what preceded the culture and what is now influenced by it, he’s intrigued by the intersection of commerce and art. It’s a rather natural position and balance of contrast that one would expect from a former college radio DJ turned corporate attorney who collects sneakers on the side and still writes rhymes from time to time. While we can’t expect to hear a full- length anytime soon, you can expect unique and hopefully enlightening insight from someone who, while navigating the world of corporate politics, has always kept his ear to the pavement. Hailing from Virginia, but now firmly entrenched in the 215, M. Emanuel focuses his daily grind in the areas of intellectual property and entertainment law. His many interests include music, film, the arts, fashion, sports, and travel, holding hands on the beach, shots of Patron, and making it rain.

WASHINGTON POST: The Justice Department is investigating whether departing Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales gave false or misleading testimony to Congress on a broad range of issues, including the Bush administration’s warrantless surveillance program and the removal of nine U.S. attorneys last year, the lead investigator said today. The disclosure by Inspector General Glenn A. Fine shows that internal investigations that began with the prosecutor firings have widened substantially to include a focus on Gonzales’s actions and statements.