It's off-topic, but I can't pass up the opportunity to spread news of cane toads in danger!

(AFP) April 11, 2005 — An Australian lawmaker outraged animal rights activists Monday by suggesting that an invasion of poisonous cane toads be fought with several hard whacks from a cricket bat or golf club. David Tollner, a member of parliament from Prime Minister John Howard's Liberal Party, said he grew up using the brute force method against the toad — a dangerous and despised pest that is spreading across northern Australia. "We hit them with cricket bats and golf clubs and the like," Tollner said on ABC Radio. "I think if people could be encouraged rather than discouraged (to attack them), the better the chance will be of stopping the cane toads arriving in Darwin and other parts of the top of Australia," said the lawmaker, who represents the Northern Territory. Animal rights groups clubbed the lawmaker's suggestion "We don't want children picking up their golf club or their cricket bat in the backyard and having a go at any animal," said Fiona Cummins, chief executive of The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Darwin. Cummins said encouraging children to bash cane toads could lead to attacks on other animals. "We've had cases recently in Darwin where we've had children having violent acts towards bats. Interstate we've had violence towards kittens," she said. Cane toads were introduced into Queensland state in the 1930s to control another pest — beetles that were ravaging the sugarcane fields of the tropical northern coasts. But the toads now number in the millions and are spreading westward into the Northern Territory, posing a deadly danger to native wildlife. Cane toads have poisonous sacs on the back of their head full of a venom so powerful that it can kill crocodiles, snakes or other predators in minutes. The animals, explosive breeders, have spread into the wetlands of world heritage Kakadu National Park and were recently found in the outskirts of Darwin, capital of the Northern Territory. All attempts to fight the spread of the toads so far have failed. The Northern Territory government last month announced it would spend a million dollars ($770,000 U.S.) to research biotechnological remedies to the invasion. The state earlier launched a competition with a cash prize for the best cane toad trap. Tollner meanwhile was unimpressed by criticism of his suggestion. "When you talk about animal rights I think you've got to think about the rights of our native animals as well," Tollner said. "A cane toad can cause a slow death in a crocodile or a goanna (monitor lizard) or any other animal that eats it," he said. "My view is we've got to eradicate them by any means possible."

Aww, Baby Texas Hold'em is adorable. Coochy-coo, Goldie [or Commie?]

Virginian Woman’s Unborn Triplets Go For $12,000 On eBay

Babies’ Naming Rights Sold To GoldenPalace.com

View the eBay Auction.

APRIL 11, 2005, NORFOLK, VA -- Three is a lucky number for mother-to-be Natasha, as Internet casino GoldenPalace.com scored a hat trick by purchasing the right to name her soon-to-be-born triplets due in August. One of the babies will be called ‘GoldenPalace.com’.

Using eBay’s “Buy It Now” option, GoldenPalace.com immediately added the triplets’ naming rights to their ever-growing collection of eBay oddities and advertising signage that include the Virgin Mary Grilled Cheese Sandwich ($28,000), the Ghost Cane ($65,000), one silicon breast implant belonging to a former Playboy Cover Girl ($16,766), a pretzel shaped in the image of the Madonna and Child ($10,600), and dozens more outlandish auctions.

This triple play comes shortly after the casino announced they will be permanently re-naming Tennessee resident Terri Ilagan ‘GoldenPalace.com’ as well. At this rate, a significant percent of the country’s population could be named GoldenPalace.com by the end of the month.

“One of the children will be named GoldenPalace.com for sure,” said GoldenPalace.com CEO Richard Rowe. “The other two names will be revealed in August when the children are born.”

Creative, edgy advertising is the name of the game for GoldenPalace.com, who is credited for a surge of popularity in outrageous eBay auctions. Sources from the casino say that they have received thousands of emails over the past few months from would-be sellers of eccentric and extraordinary items.

Ooh, ooh! Who likes Britcoms?

“AS TIME GOES BY” RETURNS TO PBS WITH TWO NEW SPECIALS
-- Stars Dame Judi Dench and Geoffrey Palmer to Revive Popular Characters --

(4/11/2005; New York, New York) -- PBS and DLT Entertainment announced today that two new specials based on the hit series AS TIME GOES BY, starring Dame Judi Dench and Geoffrey Palmer, will be broadcast this fall on PBS. The shows were produced in London last month by DLT Entertainment and its sister company, The Theatre of Comedy. The series, on which these specials are based, has been popular on Britain’s BBC and PBS stations since it originated in 1992.

“We were so pleased to be able to reunite Judi, Geoffrey and the rest of the cast to produce these specials and now the fans will be able to enjoy the shows on PBS,” said Don Taffner, Jr., Vice President, DLT Entertainment.

The new specials, written by Bob Larbey (A Fine Romance) and produced and directed by Syd Lotterby, pick up some time after the original series left off and reveal Jean Pargetter’s (Dench) great anticipation for grandchildren much to husband Lionel’s (Palmer) dismay. With son-in-law Alistair and daughter Judy having problems things don’t look too promising especially when it’s left to Lionel to convince Alistair to visit the doctor for some tests. But will Jean’s dream of becoming a grandmother come true when Sandy and her husband Harry return from Canada?

“The combination of great new storylines, the return of a stellar cast and more smart fun is bound to be a hit with the PBS audience,” said John F. Wilson, Sr. Vice President, PBS Programming.”

The deal also gives PBS the North American home video/DVD rights to the two programs.

DLT Entertainment Ltd. is a New York and London based company engaged in every aspect of television distribution and production in US, the UK and around the world, as well as stage production in the US and in the UK.

Press Contacts:

For DLT:
Henri Bollinger
Bollinger Associates
818-784-0534
henri@bollingerpr.com

For PBS:
Carrie Johnson, Media Relations
703/739-5129
cjohnson@pbs.org

A sequel?

Fox has let the cat out of the bag again; a big old lazy cat named Garfield, and he is headed back to movie screens with a sequel to last year's CGI animated adaptation of the Garfield comic strip. The movie is currently set for release July 28, 2006, according to published reports. Tim Hill (director/Muppets From space, writer/SpongeBob SquarePants movie) will reportedly direct. And there is no word on whether Bill Murray will again lend his voice to Garfield the cat.

--CYNTHIA TURNER'S Cynopsis: Kids! 04/11/05

Have you seen this?

Clocky, An MIT Media Lab Research Project
Profile By Gauri Nanda, Research Associate

Clocky is, quite simply, for people who have trouble waking up.

When the alarm clock goes off and the snooze button is pressed, Clocky will roll off the bedside table and wheel away, bumping mindlessly into objects on the floor until it eventually finds a spot to rest. Minutes later, when the alarm sounds again, the sleeper must get up out of bed and search for Clocky. This ensures that the person is fully awake before turning it off. Small wheels that are concealed by Clocky's shag enable it to move and reposition itself, and an internal processor helps it find a new hiding spot every day.

I don't like being told when to wake up but I've come to terms with the idea that I have to. In designing Clocky, I was in part inspired by kittens I've had that would bite my toes every morning. Clocky is less of an annoying device as it is a troublesome pet that you love anyway. It's also a bit ugly. But its unconventional look keeps the user calm, and inspires laughter at one of the most hated times of the day.

I've been known to hit the snooze bar for up to two hours or even accidentally turn it off. I've known people who put the alarm clock in the living room, but then forget to set it before going to sleep. Others say they are trying to wean themselves off of snoozing, as if it was a bad habit like smoking or drinking. In the foggy logic of our drowsiness, we disable the very device that is meant to wake us up. Having the alarm clock hide from me was just the most obvious way I could think of to get out of bed.

Clocky is not trying to solve all of the problems of alarm clocks—for example how they disrupt other people in the room—but I think maybe someday it can. I think the answer rests in the usage of multiple Clockies. Let's say there are two people with different sleep schedules sharing a room. Maybe one person's Clocky can tell the other to hush up if it has sounded off one too many times. Or, maybe they can form an alliance and simultaneously target the offending over-sleeper. I have adopted the philosophy that when two devices communicate, they can solve more problems—that is, two Clockies are better than one.

My work typically focuses on industrial design projects that add some intelligence into the mix in a way that is very simple. So objects do their intended jobs better without additional complexity. I don't want to have to use things that require me to know or learn something beforehand. So those are the kind of designs I try to create.

Clocky is an academic research project and is not commercially available at this time.

Press Contact:
Alexandra Kahn, Press Liaison, MIT Media Lab
akahn **at** media.mit.edu or 617 253-0365

Project Contact:
Gauri Nanda
nanda **at** media.mit.edu

"Grouch Eye for the Nice Guy" and more...

SESAME STREET, BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE LETTER 'H'

Award-Winning PBS KIDS Series Premieres April 4, New Curriculum Focuses on Health

36th Season Also Features "Healthy Moments" With Top Celebrities Plus Parody Segments Including 'Desperate Houseplants' and 'Grouch Eye for the Nice Guy'

New York, February 10, 2005 - For 36 years, Sesame Street has sought to meet the critical needs of children while preparing them for school and for life. This season premieres April 4 on PBS KIDS (check local listings). In addition to literacy, numeracy, and science, Sesame Street, the world's largest informal educator of children, will tackle an issue facing many families today: children's health. The new season features a new curriculum designed to address the importance of establishing an early foundation of healthy habits.

Sesame Street's newest curriculum is part of a larger Sesame Workshop company-wide initiative, "Healthy Habits for Life," created in response to the growing crisis of childhood obesity among children. The preschool years are a crucial time in children's lives to foster healthy habits. Recent data reflect both the immediate and long-term consequences of poor dietary behaviors. Tackling the critical issues of health and well being, Sesame Workshop continues to set the benchmark in educational television with Sesame Street storylines that guide preschoolers and their caregivers through lessons related to healthy eating, the importance of active play and other key activities such as hygiene and rest.

"It was particularly important for us when dealing with a topic such as health to choose child relevant issues such as trying new healthy foods, and simple exercises and make them exciting and attractive," said Dr. Lewis Bernstein, Executive Producer of Sesame Street. "As always with Sesame Street, the shows are written with humor and messages to entertain both children and adults. In this fit and fun season, we also give parents and caregivers the tools to help them extend these health messages into their homes and daily routines."

"There¡¦s a real need to educate young people, and their caregivers, about healthy lifestyles," adds Rosemarie Truglio, PhD, Vice President Education and Research, Sesame Workshop. "Our goal is to lay a strong foundation for healthy habits in order to put children on a positive trajectory for a healthy life, so that healthy living becomes a normal, everyday experience. Who better to guide preschoolers towards a healthier life than Elmo, Oscar, Big Bird and the rest of the gang on Sesame Street?"

At the top of each episode, well-known figures in entertainment, sports, music and science including Alicia Keys, Joe Torre, Alison Krauss, Buzz Aldrin, Shirley Jones, Richard Kind and Dominique Dawes share a "Healthy Moment." For example:

• Alicia Keys teaches Elmo the benefits of moving your body fast or slow;
• Yankee's Joe Torre informs Elmo and Rosita that playing sports is a fun way to stay healthy;
• and Buzz Aldrin shares the importance of food for energy to Telly.

Along with the “Healthy Moments,” the new season will feature all-new Muppet “street” scenes, new animations and original live-action films that all tout activities and behaviors that are good for you. Storylines include: “The Healthy Foods Name Game,” hosted by Mr. Healthy Foods, Elmo must find four healthy foods of various colors on Sesame Street before the mouse can climb to the top of the refrigerator; and “American Fruit Stand,” Sesame’s take on the 50s variety series that features a singing Miles rhapsodizing about the nutritional benefits of fruits and vegetables. Other segments include a song entitled, “A Cookie is a Sometimes Food,” where Hoots the Owl explains that there are anytime foods and sometimes foods: cookies are foods that you can eat sometimes, but fruits are delicious and healthy anytime! Additionally, every other show will feature a “Health Module;” a cluster of four segments related to health, exercise and nutrition.

New animations that address the healthy habits curriculum include: “Colorful Carrots,” a song about the different ways you can eat them and how they are good for the body; and “TJ: Fruit Snack Samba,” featuring TJ with his dog Bernie, who sing about choosing fruits as a healthy “anytime” snack. Original live-action films that depict the healthy habits curriculum include “Make Your Own Sundae Sunday,” featuring two boys who make a low-fat sundae topped with lots of healthy fruit!

In addition to the core curriculum, Sesame Street continues to introduce preschoolers to other cultures with all-new “Global Grover” segments. This season, Grover travels to Bangladesh where he learns about fishing and toy making; to England to find out about a new sport called cricket; Paris, where he shops in a French market for healthy items; and to the Netherlands, where Grover discovers that lots of people ride their bikes to get around the city.

New parodies, that take their cue from the world of pop culture, include: “Desperate Houseplants;” “Grouch Eye for the Nice Guy;” “Chasing the Cheese,” with a new Muppet created in the likeness of sportscaster Chris Berman; “24,” based on the TV series of the same name; “Cookie Monster: Food Investigator,” a parody of Dragnet; and the series introduces Donald Grump, a Muppet who looks suspiciously like one of America’s real estate moguls.

Season 36 will also feature five new “Elmo’s World” segments where Elmo will be thinking about Jumping, Cameras, Skin, School and Cats. Additionally, there will be a “Spanish Moment of the Day,” an expansion of the “Spanish Word of the Day” that will focus on Latino culture.

Season 36 of Sesame Street is funded in part by a Ready To Learn, No Child Left Behind grant from the U.S. Department of Education through the Public Broadcasting Service and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Public Television Viewers and PBS. Sesame Street is underwritten in part by Beaches Family Resorts and McDonald’s Corporation.

Information and images for Sesame Street’s 36th season can be found at www.sesameworkshop.org/presskit.

Sesame Workshop announced the multi-year, company-wide initiative, “Healthy Habits for Life,” in May 2004 on Capitol Hill with the support of Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and Senator Wyden. Featuring a coalition of partners and an advisory board of health, nutrition, fitness and education experts, the program was created to develop and distribute multi-media, age-appropriate content targeted to preschoolers and their caregivers; empowering them with knowledge and positive attitudes about healthy habits.

The components of the campaign developed directly for children are under the umbrella of “Happy, Healthy, Monsters.” In addition to the season’s curriculum, the initiative includes a new line of home videos, book titles, workbooks and interactive media that use the loveable Sesame Street characters to teach these important lessons. Happy,Healthy, Monsters, the home video, released on February 1, 2005, features Grover working out and eating right. In addition, Sesame Workshop has announced a partnership with Thinkwell Design and Production to create Sesame Street Presents: The Body; a museum exhibit that brings the familiar neighborhood of Sesame Street to life and invites young people to explore their world and learn about the human body and how it works. The exhibit, which will tour the country until 2010, will launch at the Arizona Science Center on May 14, 2005. For more information about the initiative, please visit www.sesameworkshop.org

Sesame Workshop is a nonprofit educational organization making a meaningful difference in children's lives around the world. Founded in 1968, the Workshop changed television forever with the legendary Sesame Street. Today, the Workshop continues to innovate on behalf of children in 120 countries, using its proprietary research methodology to ensure its programs and products are engaging and enriching.Sesame Workshop is behind award-winning programs like Dragon Tales and Sagwa, The Chinese Siamese Cat and ground breaking multimedia productions in South Africa, Egypt and Russia. As a nonprofit, Sesame Workshop puts the proceeds it receives from sales of Sesame Street,Dragon Tales and Sagwa products right back into its educational projects for children around the world. Find the Workshop online at www.sesameworkshop.org.

PBS KIDS® is committed to providing the highest quality commercial-free content and learning environment for children across the country. Providing age-appropriate, diverse programming for kids, PBS KIDS’ programs consistently earn more prestigious awards than any other broadcast or cable network. Only PBS KIDS has earned the unanimous endorsement of parents, children, industry leaders and teachers. With additional PBS resources to complement its programming, including PBS KIDS online (www.pbskids.org), PBS Parents(www.pbsparents.org), PBS TeacherSource, PBS Ready To Learn services and literacy events across the country, PBS KIDS is providing the tools necessary for positive child development. PBS is a nonprofit media enterprise owned and operated by the nation’s 349 public television stations, serving nearly 90 million people each week and reaching 99% of American homes.

"kosher-style fabulosity"

MAN-O-MANISCHEWITZ! URBAN SCHMATTA BY JEWCY.COM LICENSES KOSHER LOGOS TO MAKE DELICIOUS TEES

Urban Schmatta by Jewcy.com, the clothing line that brought Jewcy T-shirts to fashion-forward Jews around the globe, is giving Torah worshippers and their comrades something new to 'nosh on.'

In an unprecedented licensing agreement with the B. Manischewitz Company, Urban Schmatta has produced a brand new line of vintage-style t-shirts boasting the name of the famous matzoh maker. A staple in grandma's kitchen and signpost of Jewish-American culture since 1888, Manischewitz brings to mind all things Hebrew. This reinvention of the Manischewitz brand in such a fashionable form brings out not only the hungry, but also the hip Heeb in all of us.

Unlike the green and orange gefilte fish jars that adorn supermarket shelves, Urban Schmatta's t-shirts display the classic Manischewitz logos (collected from vintage cookbooks) of the 30s, 40s and 50s. The vintage logos lend an air of cool nostalgia to these stylish Tees, making them perfect for observing the Sabbath, or going out on a Saturday night.

Urban Schmatta will also release a brand new line of Manischewitz t-shirts for babies and toddlers. The t-shirts and onesies feature the one of the same vintage logos as the adult shirts, but in little pisher sizes. It's more fun to wipe the schmutz off your little tottela if he/she is wearing the ultimate sign of baby-Jew pride.

The entire Manischewitz, Baby Manischewitz, and original Jewcy product lines are viewable/available at www.jewcy.com. Prices range from $21.00 - $30.00. Clothing/product samples sent upon request.

Urban Schmatta by Jewcy.com is the name of the line of apparel that is created and sold by Jewcy.com.

Jewcy represents kosher-style fabulosity and has garnered international press and attention since it went live in November 2002. Aimed at today's members of the Tribe, Jewcy celebrates the life via a line of lifestyle products and events that sizzle like fresh latkes. You don't have to be Jewish to be Jewcy (although it doesn't hurt!) - it's also good for Jew-Lovers, Honorary Jews, and even gentiles. It would be a SHANDA to wear anything else.

About MANISCHEWITZ

The B. Manischewitz Company, founded in 1888, is the nation's largest manufacturer of kosher food products including matzos, noodles, crackers, cakes, cookies, soups and processed fish products. Through its specialty food group, R.A.B. Holdings, Inc. manufactures and markets Manischewitz®, Horowitz Magareten®, Goodman's®, Gold Boat®, Season®, and Guiltless Gourmet® brand products.

About IMC

IMC Licensing is the nation's leading full-service licensing agency specializing in consumer product brands. Firmly grounded in the middle of the U.S. where brands grow and interact with consumers, IMC turns brands into great new consumer products that delight consumers and expand the long-term value of our clients' iconic trademarks.
For more information, please visit www.imclicensing.com.

I'm born.

This is the first posting.