Maher Poops on the Pope

What’s up with Catholics calling for the resignation, though preferably termination, of popular HBO show host Bill Maher?

Well, the host of HBO’s show “Real Time” made a rather engaging comment on his live April 11 show in which he blatantly called Pope Benedict XVI a former Nazi. Maher criticized the aged religious leader for having once been a member of Hitler Youth. The Pope maintains he was forced to join the group as a young boy and that he eventually fled from its members.

Maher also criticized the Catholic Church for the special treatment it received after many sexual scandals surfaced between Catholic priests and young boys.

Maher said:

"If you have a few hundred followers and you let some of them molest children, they call you a cult leader. If you have a billion, they call you 'pope.' "

While Maher’s comments were received with comedic responses, many Catholic viewers have responded negatively to HBO, claiming Maher’s comments were blasphemous and insulting.

Maher responded to protests with a public apology on his April 18 show, though many believe he has only further perpetuated his joke from a week before. He jokingly told viewers that he now understands he cannot, and will never again, make “the pope is a Nazi” joke.

While he could have simply ended the so-called “apology” there, Maher went on to say:

“[…] it distracts from the main point. And the main point I was making was that if the pope, instead of a religious figure, was the CEO of a chain of nationwide day care centers who had thousands of employees who had been caught molesting children and then covering it up, he would have been in jail.”

President of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, Bill Donohue, replied:

"We accept Maher's apology for accusing the pope of being a Nazi. Too bad he didn't stop there. For him to suggest that Pope Benedict XVI was in charge of policing molesters, and failed in doing so, is patently absurd.”

Personally, I think Catholics should really just get over it already. Maher has a right, just like every American, to express his opinion. He wasn’t advocating anything terrible, simply his views on what has proven to be one of the most controversial topics from the 21^st century: namely, the sexual scandals surrounding the Catholic Church.

I don’t think Maher should be fired for being able to turn a terrible historical truth into a laughable opinion. Nothing he said, except for his opinion on the Pope’s Nazism, could be proven false. In fact, I agree with Maher on the Pope’s outfits. Totally unfashionable.

Nixon pardon #2?

What's up with Cynthia Nixon revealing her year-and-a-half battle with breast cancer? Well, the Sex and the City star was diagnosed with breast cancer in the midst of her starring role in the Broadway play The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie in 2006, but chose to conceal the diagnosis from the media, and the world, for fear of persecution from paparazzi and the public. Now cancer-free, Nixon is coming out about her battle, which wasn't a big surprise to her, as her mother fought, and defeated, the same disease when Nixon was 12 years old.

"I always sort of thought, 'I'm probably going to get breast cancer," she said. "There's a really good chance." --Cynthia Nixon

Nixon discovered the cancer during a routine mammogram where she learned of a "small" cancer spot that needed to be removed. Following the surgery, which was scheduled the very Sunday after the discovery so she wouldn't miss any performances, she underwent six-and-a-half weeks of daily radiation treatment. Now, Nixon is the new spokeswoman for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation.

I think it is actually kind of sad that Nixon had to be so careful to keep her sickness a secret. Her fans could have supported her, but instead, Nixon had to hide because the media is so obsessed with knowing everything. This subject coincides with the final project I am doing for my Journalism class, in that the media may go too far in its obsession with the lives of celebrities.

What would have happened if Nixon had died? Her fans would have felt powerless and guilty for not being able to support her. I mean, I am glad she is healthy and cancer-free, but I feel like she should have been able to have the extra strength from her fan base. I mean, without fans, how can you be a celebrity?

Simpson Family Getting Bigger

What's up with Ashlee Simpson getting engaged to boyfriend Pete Wentz? Well, the younger sister of reality reject Jessica Simpson, has publicly announced her engagement to the Fall Out Boy bassist and boyfriend of almost 3 years.

After months of dodging speculations of a pregnancy and an engagement, the little Simpson has only admitted to the latter. Many tabloids, however, are pushing the pregnancy rumor, insisting that it is the true reason for the engagement.

The rumors have circulated for months, though, so if she were truly pregnant than I feel like she would be showing by now. Additionally, it has been said that Wentz asked Joe Simpson, the famed father and manager for Jessica, for Ashlee's hand in marriage. Father Simpson has been quoted to say,

"Pete did ask. I told him that I would be honored to have him as part of my family."

I think it is wonderful that Ashlee is settling down, although I fear for her and her hubby's future considering the media is probably responsible for the demise of Jessica and ex-husband Nick Lachey.

Let's just hope Ashlee and Pete don't take the same route as Jess and Nick and start their own reality series. As tempting as it will be, as it always is for celebrity couples who believe everyone wants to know everything about their lives, which is probably true, I hope, for their sake, they say "no" to reality and yes to a future. Congrats!

What's a little sex between friends?

What's up with rumors of a steamy sex scene between longtime actor friends John Leguizamo and Rosie Perez?

Well, the two nominated actors will be appearing in a new movie entitled "The Take" in which Leguizamo plays an armored car driver named Felix whose life is ruined when he is shot in the head during a heist. Felix returns home to his wife, played by Perez, and the couple's son, but suffers from brain damage and becomes obsessed with hunting down the gunman, who is played by actor Tyrese Gibson.

In the movie, Leguizamo and Perez have a sex scene that is said to be pretty intense. While Leguizamo called the scene "the illest," Perez had a differentt perspective. The actress was quoted to say

"I respect him [Leguizamo] so much and he respects me so much. I know his wife, he knew my husband and introduced me to my boyfriend. It was very awkward. Like brother and sister having to do a sex scene."



It makes me wonder, after seeing this quote from Perez, whether or not the sex scene will be believable between the two actors. If Perez felt awkwardness emulating from their scene then how could the awkwardness be hidden on film? While both actors are extremely talented, especially Leguizamo, as he is one of my favorites actors, I have my doubts on the chemistry that will exist between the two on screen. I suppose only time will tell, or just the sex.

Move over for Mandy, Miley

What's up with the best new show to hit YouTube? Well, the Miley and Mandy Show, like of course!!



Okay, so I really couldn't get through this blog without bringing up a post on Miley Rae Cyrus. The 15-year-old girl is always in the news, most recently for changing her legal name of Destiny Hope Cyrus to the current. She also happens to be the center of one of my best friend's greatest obsessions, and my best friend is 22.

But, the real story here isn't necessarily little miss Miley, but her friend Mandy. While Miley is an underage hottie making people laugh, Mandy is of legal age, 21 years to be exact, and posing pictures on the internet that would make people question why she isn't on television yet. Miley herself had some "controversial" pictures that popped up online a few months ago, but these were merely cute pictures of herself in a bathing suit that any 15-year-old girl would take.

I suppose the real issue here is "influence."

Many people probably believe that Miley supports her friend for putting such seductive pictures of herself online. My response? Who cares? How many girls out there put pictures of herself online in some sexy type of pose, wishing she were a model? I think it was smart of Mandy, actually, because she was able to get the attention she needs from the show her and ultra famous best friend Miley, put online.
The pictures that are circulating will only make sure she gets center stage long enough to get a deal of her own, perhaps a stint on Hannah Montana? I say, get over it already. At least she isn't touching herself inappropriately or getting DUIs.

Heath can't get a break

What's up with the latest piece of controversy to break its way into the death and after-life of late actor Heath Ledger? Well, claims are now surfacing of a possible love child that may have been fathered by Ledger when he was only a 17-year-old. The woman, who Ledger reportedly had an affair with and is stepping forward as the mother of this 11-year-old child, says that she discovered the pregnancy after her and Ledger's relationship ended and is only now revealing the truth.

If DNA tests can confirm that the child is Ledger's then the child will be entitled to a part of the late actor's estate, something already under careful scrutiny considering that his will was never updated to include his already publicly known child with actress Michelle Williams.

Now, can anybody call a nice big BULL S$#@ on this one? If the secret of the child's father was so important to be kept, why only bring it out once he has died? The issue of money is important here, and fame as well, but if that's the case the woman could have gotten both by coming out when the actor was alive.

Personally, I think the woman may have stupidly believed that it would be harder to prove that the child is Ledger's. Either that, or she may have been unsure of who the father was, and realized this is the only way to prove it. Maybe she believed that Ledger would have refused a paternity test when he was alive, or maybe he already did?

Either way, the joke's on us because Ledger will be making millions off of the insanely increased interest in the new Batman movie coming out; then again, his kid(s) will.

First comes divorce then comes marriage...and another divorce

What's up with divorce number two for movie star/ comedian Robin Williams? Well, the ultra famous 56-year-old actor's wife of nearly 19 years, Marsha Garces Williams, filed for a petition for dissolution of marriage citing irreconcilable differences. While underlying reasons for their divorce have not yet been manifested into rumors, the real juiciness of this piece of gossip actually comes from how the two got married in the first place. Marsha Garces met Williams when she became the nanny for his son Zachary, from his first marriage to Valerie Velardi.

Williams divorced Velardi after ten years of marriage, and a two-year affair with a cocktail waitress who later sued him for giving her Herpes without telling her. (I know, crazy, right? How does Williams avoid being in the tabloids?) Williams then went on to marry Garces and have two children, Zelda and Cody.

Now, I don’t know if I am the only one here who didn’t know this, but since when is Robin Williams an adulterer, a drug addict and an alcoholic. Yes, he is both of the latter two, which I shockingly discovered after doing more research on pending divorce number two. Apparently, Williams was a cocaine addict, a problem he was once quoted as jokingly saying, “is God’s way of telling you that you make too much money.”

As for being an alcoholic, it is said that Williams was sober for twenty years until recently falling off the wagon, something that provoked his marriage to Garces who reportedly told the award-winning actor that he had to check into rehab or check out of their marriage. While Williams did, in fact, check into rehab, I suppose there may have been other things not working for them. The longer I think about it, however, the more I can see the possibility of a dangerous lifestyle for the comedian, considering the raunchiness of his stand-ups and outrageous public statements. I suppose the shock comes from the fact that I grew up with Williams’ movies; laughing and loving his characters as if they were my closest friends.

A shame, really.

I feel bad for Williams, but he’s already been through one divorce, so I think he can make it through another one. Although it may hurt him more this time around, if he remembers any of his stand-up routines: “Ah yes, divorce, from the Latin word meaning to rip out a man's genitals through his wallet.”