Latest news with #GoodNightandGoodLuck
New York Post
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Hollywood is fresh out of ideas — so now we have a ‘Freakier Friday'
Telling tales as old as time America. Land of the free, home of the brave. Lurching backward. Everything old is getting retold. TV in May did a tribute to Joan Rivers who left us in 2014. We just got a Barbara Walters documentary. Clooney schlepped back from Italy where he lives — not the USA — to reprieve 'Good Night and Good Luck,' which opened back when Jill Biden was brunette. You don't have to stay home and watch old movies. You can now watch new movies with old stars. People is an ancient magazine. Its new cover's big story is who? WHO? Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis. Nice to see Lindsay — she's had addiction stuff, setbacks, legal misery, near bankruptcy, parent trouble, sobriety issues, career fallout and no front and center top shot hot spot since Thomas Jefferson did it with his mistress. Full on, front and center, with her on that magazine cover? Jamie Lee Curtis. Lovely. Talented. Great actress. But hasn't carried a movie since Marilyn Monroe needed a training bra. We're now seeing specks of survival of the FFs: Formerly Famous. Clint Eastwood? Recently directed something called 'Juror #2.' In it, remember J.K. Simmons? Remember Clint whose last previous shot was 2021's 'Cry Macho' for Warner Bros. for whom he worked from 1971 until 2014. How about great Dick Van Dyke? Still dancing barefoot at nearly 100 and yet he recently knocked off Coldplay's new music thing 'All My Love.' And Broadway? Oy. Rejuicing Shakespeare who hasn't written anything new in weeks. Let's re-applaud everybody's favorite 'Chicago'? The thing's been around since before the city began. 'Hamilton'? A re-re-re-do. It's lasted longer than the human Hamilton. How about rejuicing 'The Rocky Horror Show' which opened 1975 — and — ready? — one of the revivals had me in it. Broadway — now known as Shrivelway — just had — again- again — 'Glengarry Glen Ross.' It recently had — again — again — 'Sunset Boulevard' with Nicole Scherzinger, who just closed in the over-trafficked musical, which hasn't changed except for its prices. And rejuiced Clooney, 64, who reopened in rererevivalled 'Good Night and Good Luck.' Wait. More. Comes now a TV birth. Neil Patrick Harris will host TV's new thing, 'What's in the Box?' New? Its contestants guess what's in a box. Wow! Sounds great. Right out of what went out in the '60s. Wait. More. Sept. 12. Joe's Pub is bringing us 'The Ballad of JonBenét Ramsey.' It's a musical. Supposedly high camp about a child who was murdered years ago. Not sure exactly what songs go with death but just letting you know. And if scratching around for the smell of an oldie movie, there's the newie 'Jurassic World: Rebirth.' Spielberg exec-produced the thing with Mahershala Ali and Scarlett Johansson, who says: 'It's like a version of 'Jaws' having maybe a baby with 'Jurassic,' ' and if you understand that you're a better man than I am Gunga Din. So three New York mice were lapping up the spilled scotch on the floor. Stoned, said one: 'I'm going to find Obama and knock him out.' Said the second: 'I'm going to take on that useless ex FBI chief.' The third mouse, in from The Bronx, said: 'You guys do what you want. I'm going upstairs to make love to the cat.' Only in New York, kids, only in New York.
Sky News AU
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Sky News AU
Hunter Biden goes on foul-mouthed tirade against George Clooney, Democrats
Scandal-scarred former first son Hunter Biden went on a scorched-earth rant against actor George Clooney and other Democratic Party luminaries who urged his father Joe to drop out of the 2024 presidential race. During an interview with YouTube personality Andrew Callaghan released Monday, the 55-year-old Hunter bristled at Clooney, 64, over his July 10, 2024, New York Times op-ed that urged Democrats to pick a new presidential nominee due to Biden's advancing age. 'F*** him and everybody around him, I don't have to be f****** nice,' Hunter said of the 'Good Night and Good Luck' star. 'Number one, I agree with [director] Quentin Tarantino, George Clooney is not a f****** actor … he is a brand,' he added. 'He's great friends with [former President] Barack Obama. F*** you. What do you have to do with f****** anything? Why do I have to f****** listen to you?' Clooney had co-hosted a June 15, 2024, Hollywood fundraiser for Biden's re-election campaign — during which the 46th president froze up onstage before being led away by former President Barack Obama. In their recent book 'Original Sin,' co-authors Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson revealed that Biden did not recognize Clooney at that same event, despite having known the 'Ocean's Eleven' and 'The Descendants' heartthrob for more than two decades. 'George Clooney wasn't going to show up to that fundraiser and he was b******* to the White House staff,' Hunter recalled. 'He was so angry that the president would criticize the arrest warrant that was executed for [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu.' Clooney's wife, Amal, a human rights lawyer, had been one of six experts who recommended the International Criminal Court seek to haul in Netanyahu for purported war crimes against Palestinians in Gaza, a move that the Biden administration rebuked. In response, Clooney sent 'reams' of text messages threatening that he was 'going to embarrass the president and pull out of the fundraiser,' Hunter claimed. According to Tapper and Thompson, Biden had to be helped walking into the event by an aide who initially told the president 'you know George' before clarifying 'George Clooney' after the Democrat gave a perfunctory greeting. 'Oh, yeah … Hi, George!' Biden reportedly responded after perking up. In the interview released on the anniversary of Joe Biden ending his re-election bid, Hunter claimed Clooney had fabricated the story of the 46th president having to be introduced to him — and claimed it was standard practice for aides to formally identify supporters to the commander in chief. Hunter suggested that Clooney was 'given the blessing' by Obama allies to throw Joe Biden under the bus and lashed out at each of them in turn. 'James Carville, who hasn't run a race in 40 f****** years, and David Axelrod, who had one success in his political life, and that was Barack Obama — that was because of Barack Obama, not because of f****** David Axelrod,' Hunter began. 'And David Plouffe and all of these guys in the 'Pod Save America,' guys who were junior f****** speech writers on Barack Obama's Senate staff who have been dining out on the relationship with him for years, making millions of dollars, the Anita Dunns of the world, who's made $40, $50 million off the Democratic Party they're all going to insert their judgment,' he added. Clooney's reps declined to comment when contacted by The Post. Originally published as Hunter Biden goes on foul-mouthed tirade against George Clooney, Democrats
New York Post
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Hunter Biden goes on foul-mouthed tirade against George Clooney: ‘F— him and everybody around him'
Scandal-scarred former first son Hunter Biden went on a scorched-earth rant against actor George Clooney and other Democratic Party luminaries who urged his father Joe to drop out of the 2024 presidential race. During an interview with YouTube personality Andrew Callaghan released Monday, the 55-year-old Hunter bristled at Clooney, 64, over his July 10, 2024, New York Times op-ed that urged Democrats to pick a new presidential nominee due to Biden's advancing age. 'F— him and everybody around him, I don't have to be f—ing nice,' Hunter said of the 'Good Night and Good Luck' star. Advertisement 5 Hunter Biden didn't mince words about George Clooney in a new interview — and chided that he isn't a real actor. YouTube / Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan 5 Hunter Biden claimed that George Clooney had given his father's team grief before the Los Angeles fundraiser last summer. X/Chris Jackson 'Number one, I agree with [director] Quentin Tarantino, George Clooney is not a f—ing actor … he is a brand,' he added. 'He's great friends with [former President] Barack Obama. F— you. What do you have to do with f—ing anything? Why do I have to f—ing listen to you?' Clooney had co-hosted a June 15, 2024, Hollywood fundraiser for Biden's re-election campaign — during which the 46th president froze up onstage before being led away by former President Barack Obama. Advertisement In their recent book 'Original Sin,' co-authors Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson revealed that Biden did not recognize Clooney at that same event, despite having known the 'Ocean's Eleven' and 'The Descendants' heartthrob for more than two decades. 'George Clooney wasn't going to show up to that fundraiser and he was bitching to the White House staff,' Hunter recalled. 'He was so angry that the president would criticize the arrest warrant that was executed for [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu.' Clooney's wife, Amal, a human rights lawyer, had been one of six experts who recommended the International Criminal Court seek to haul in Netanyahu for purported war crimes against Palestinians in Gaza, a move that the Biden administration rebuked. Advertisement In response, Clooney sent 'reams' of text messages threatening that he was 'going to embarrass the president and pull out of the fundraiser,' Hunter claimed. 5 George Clooney's wife had been one of the lawyers who pushed for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's to Tapper and Thompson, Biden had to be helped walking into the event by an aide who initially told the president 'you know George' before clarifying 'George Clooney' after the Democrat gave a perfunctory greeting. 'Oh, yeah … Hi, George!' Biden reportedly responded after perking up. Advertisement 5 Hunter Biden impassionately defended his father and lashed out against every Democrat who turned against him. AFP via Getty Images In the interview released on the anniversary of Joe Biden ending his re-election bid, Hunter claimed Clooney had fabricated the story of the 46th president having to be introduced to him — and claimed it was standard practice for aides to formally identify supporters to the commander in chief. Hunter suggested that Clooney was 'given the blessing' by Obama allies to throw Joe Biden under the bus and lashed out at each of them in turn. 'James Carville, who hasn't run a race in 40 f—ing years, and David Axelrod, who had one success in his political life, and that was Barack Obama — that was because of Barack Obama, not because of f—ing David Axelrod,' Hunter began. 5 The 'Pod Save America' hosts had questioned former President Joe Biden's decision to run for reelection. CBS via Getty Images 'And David Plouffe and all of these guys in the 'Pod Save America,' guys who were junior f—ing speech writers on Barack Obama's Senate staff who have been dining out on the relationship with him for years, making millions of dollars, the Anita Dunns of the world, who's made $40, $50 million off the Democratic Party they're all going to insert their judgment,' he added. A rep for Clooney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Winnipeg Free Press
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Good night — and good luck
Opinion First, a disclaimer: the following remarks do not apply to MSNBC TV journalists Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O'Donnell, or to contemporary independent commentators Heather Cox Richardson or Robert Reich, or to the online political guerrilla site Fear and Loathing: Closer to the Edge. They are all yelling as loudly as they possibly can. Everyone else in the American media? It's well past time for you to slap yourselves upside the head and try to remember one essential aspect of competent journalism: context is everything. An average Grade 2 student could accurately connect the dots on the map that is U.S. President Donald Trump's now-detailed sketch of the American police state that is no longer just on the horizon. It's here. It marched into Los Angeles, garbed in military camouflage costumes, on a restive weekend filled with protests over ICE gestapo raiding, of all places, a Home Depot, looking for people with the wrong skin colour (if they're brown, they must be illegals). What to make of Trump's magnificent June 14 military parade, the one purportedly celebrating the American military's 250th anniversary, but which we all know is his big, beautiful birthday gift to himself? The one he so obviously modelled after all those tawdry spectacles in countries led by dictators he has so publicly admired— both the dictators and their pretty masses of toy soldiers and tanks? Icing on the cake he's already baked. On a weary Monday morning, one CNN anchor raised, during her interview with Los Angeles's mayor, the latest poll showing 54 per cent of Americans approve of Trump's immigration policy. The mayor pushed back, suggesting the anchor might look more deeply into that poll. The anchor clumsily conceded that more Americans are uncomfortable with the details of how that policy is being carried out — and hastily concluded the interview. She did not cut to a commercial break; she just didn't want to go there any further with the mayor. Less than an hour later, another CNN anchor gushed about the network's Saturday night simulcast of the Broadway play Good Night and Good Luck, cooing about how Edward R. Murrow's journalistically, stubbornly ethical stand (the play is about the infamous McCarthy era in the U.S., for those too young to remember), and remarking 'that is something we journalists all aspire to.' Is it? Is it really? Fascinating that the simulcast effectively displaced any live breaking news coverage of the Saturday night protests in Los Angeles. Let's examine all the dots to see the picture they create. Commentator Robert Reich recently noted the defining characteristics of a police state: • Declaring an emergency, citing rebellion, insurrection, or invasion as the cause. Done; • Using that to justify the use of force by federal agents (ICE, the FBI, DEA, and national guard… and the Marines and American military are positioned to join the fray at some point). Done; • Ordering those agents to make 'dragnet' arrests and abductions with no due process. Done; and • Building more prison space and detention camps for the prisoners rounded up. That's happening now. He listed one more point — the next one. The shoe that's about to drop: using the inevitable escalation of public pushback, driven by fury over the enactment of the first four, as the excuse to declare martial law. With the notable exception of that small group I cited at the beginning of this piece, the American media (and the vast bulk of the Canadian media, too — don't think for a minute you folks are handling this mess any better) has completely failed to connect the dots. They're too busy examining each individual dot, turning each one over and over, to step back and look at the context. It is worth noting that, fixated on each little dot, they failed to examine the comment Trump threw out in an off-the-cuff newser over that tipping point of a weekend for American democracy. Having said he would order in the Marines if the protests went over the line, he was asked by an unusually perceptive reporter where that line is. Weekday Evenings Today's must-read stories and a roundup of the day's headlines, delivered every evening. His reply: 'It is where I say it is.' Pair that with his remark to a rally of ultra-right white Christians during the election campaign: 'Vote for me, and you'll never have to vote again.' How much more obvious does this have to get before the media starts to perform the role for which it is intended in a democracy? America, your police state has arrived. Just remember: once they have come for everyone else, they will be coming for you. MAGA hat or not. Judy Waytiuk is a grey-haired, wrinkled old Winnipeg journalist who remembers when she was proud her profession ranked among the most trusted by the public. These days, she's ashamed to admit she was one.
Gulf Today
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Gulf Today
Unjust retaliation
The Trump administration could declare a US travel ban on widely acclaimed rights lawyer Amal Clooney for her role in advising the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor who issued arrest warrants against Israeli leaders. The warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant were made public in November 2024 after the US imposed sanctions on ICC prosecutor Karim Khan. Donald Trump warned at that time he could instigate measures against 'those responsible' for building the case. In a May 2024 statement published on the Clooney Foundation for Justice (CFJ) website, Clooney said she served on the panel recommending the warrants 'because I believe in the rule of law and the need to protect civilian lives.' She added, 'As a human rights lawyer, I will never accept that one child's life has less value than another's.' In 2016, she and her husband, US actor George Clooney, co-founded the CFJ which provides legal support for victims of abuse and injustice and 'fight systematic injustice against vulnerable communities,' such as journalists, women and girls, democracy defenders, individual dissenters and monitories. Since its establishment, the CFJ has expanded its reach to 40 countries, representing victims in court cases, getting journalists out of prison, triggering trials of genocide perpetrators, and helping girls to access school and jobs when under pressure to marry. The potential threat against Amal Clooney coincided with George Clooney's Broadway production of 'Good Night and Good Luck.' The play is a historical drama about CBS television journalist Edward R. Murrow who, in the 1950's, battled Senator Joseph McCarthy's campaign against people he accused of being Communists or Communist sympathisers. By compelling accused persons to defend themselves in Senate hearings, McCarthy caused many to lose their jobs and others to flee the US. When Murrow exposed his terror tactics and lies, McCarthy accused Murrow of being a Communist. After Murrow denied the charge and one of the accused committed suicide, the tide turned against McCarthy. The Broadway play, an adaptation of a 2005 film written by George Clooney and Grant Heslov, coincides with Trump's crusade against liberal media and educational institutions, especially Harvard University, the oldest and most prestigious in the US. Amal Alamuddin Clooney is a British citizen of Lebanese descent. Her father is a Druze businessman from the village of Baakleen in the Chouf mountains overlooking Beirut and her mother a Sunni rights activist from Tripoli. The family emigrated to London during the Lebanese civil war (1975-90) when Amal was two. She attended St. Hugh's College, Oxford, and graduated in 2000 with a degree in jurisprudence. She proceeded to the New York School of Law where she received a Master of Laws degree. She is qualified to practice law in England, Wales, and the US. After clerking for high profile US judges and engaging in key cases, she became involved in prosecutions for war crimes in the former Yugoslavia and in the Special Tribunal for Lebanon trying suspects for the 2005 assassination of ex-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. As well as Khan, Trump has imposed sanctions on four ICC female judges investigating possible war crimes committed by the US in Afghanistan and Israel in occupied Palestine. ICC Second Vice-President Reine Alapini-Gansou (Benin), Solomy Balungi Bossa (Uganda), Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza (Peru) and Beti Hohler (Slovenia) have been targeted. The European Union promptly extended bloc support for the ICC, calling it 'a cornerstone of international justice whose independence and integrity must be protected.' In a post on X, European Council President Antonio Costa wrote: 'The ICC does not stand against nations, it stands against impunity. The rule of law most prevail over the rule of power.' The governments of the Netherlands, Belgium and Slovenia have denounced the sanctions as an effort to halt the work of the ICC. Neither the US nor Israel are signatories of the 2002 Rome Statute which established the ICC which has jurisdiction over genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. As non-signatories, the US and Israel argue they cannot be compelled to submit to ICC jurisdiction. However, their citizens can be prosecuted of they commit crimes in countries – such as Afghanistan and Palestine – which have joined the Rome Statute. While the International Court of Justice deals with crimes committed by states, the ICC investigates and prosecutes war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by individuals if their home countries fail to deal with accountability. The US argues that joining the ICC would undermine US sovereignty, infringe on national security and the independent of the government and target US personnel for political reasons. The latest round of sanctions is nothing new. In April 2019, the US revoked the US visa of ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda, a prominent Gambian lawyer, who prepared to investigate possible war crimes committed by US servicemen during the war in Afghanistan. After the investigation began, Trump authorised the imposition of sanctions against her and Phakiso Mochochoko who served as head of the court's jurisdiction division. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo charged the ICC with being a 'kangaroo court.' Shortly after taking office in 2021, US President Joe Biden lifted the sanctions against ICC personnel although Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed Washington's objection to ICC efforts to assert jurisdiction of citizens of non-ICC members such as the US and Israel. As usual, 'double standards' have come into play. Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Biden welcomed the ICC arrest warrant issued for President Vladimir Putin on charges of transporting Russian children into Russia from Ukraine. However, once the ICC began considering warrants over Gaza for Netanyahu and Gallant, Biden – a fervent Zionist – denounced the ICC's action as 'outrageous' and vowed 'ironclad' backing for Israel. Photo: TNS
