Pop Goes the Culture

Popular pitchman Billy Mays, 50, dies at his Florida home

Okay, now it's just getting creepy. I'm tired of reporting celebrity deaths.

Product pitchman Billy Mays died at his Tampa, Florida, home this morning.

Mays, 50, known for his high-energy OxiClean ads was pronounced dead at 7:45 a.m. The Hillsborough County medical examiner will perform an autopsy, Tampa police Lt. Brian Dugan said.

Mays was on a US Airways flight from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Tampa on Saturday that had a rough landing at Tampa International Airport when the plane's front tire blew out. While there where were no reported injuries on Flight 1241, there were some bums and bruises.

In an interview with a Tampa TV station, Mays said: "All of a sudden as we hit you know it was just the hardest hit, all the things from the ceiling started dropping. It hit me on the head, but I got a hard head."

"We were very sad to learn of Billy Mays' passing and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family," Airline spokesman Jim Olson said. Tampa officials say the Medical Examiner's Office expects to complete an autopsy by Monday afternoon. In a statement, Deborah Mays said that although "Billy lived a public life," the family does not plan immediate public statements about his death.

Mays was a spokesman for Orange Glo and detergent OxiClean and appeared in commercials for other products.

He is featured on the reality TV show ''Pitchmen'' on the Discovery Channel, which follows pitch people in their jobs.

"It is with incredible sadness that we have to report that Billy Mays died in his sleep last night," said a statement from the Discovery Channel. "Everyone that knows him was aware of his larger-than-life personality, generosity and warmth. Billy was a pioneer in his field and helped many people fulfill their dreams. He will be greatly missed as a loyal and compassionate friend. Our deepest sympathies go out to his family at this time of incredible loss."

- Jason

Michael Jackson dies in Los Angeles at 50

Bad week day to be a celebrity.

The Los Angeles Times, the Associated Press and numerous other sources are reporting that the king of pop Michael Jackson has died.

Jackson, 50, had been in a coma at the hospital since this afternoon, reportedly due to cardiac arrest he suffered at a house he was renting in LA. He was preparing for a comeback tour set to begin in July.

Fire Capt. Steve Ruda reported to media that a 911 call came in from a west Los Angeles residence at 12:21 p.m. Ruda said Jackson was then treated and transferred to the UCLA Medical Center. It was there that he reportedly slipped into a coma and died soon after, sources report.

The Gary, Indiana native had many No. 1 hits and his "Thriller" is the best-selling album of all time.

Jackson is the seventh of nine children in a well-known musical family. He has three children, Prince Michael I, Paris and Prince Michael II.

At the medical center, every entrance to the emergency room was blocked by security guards. Even hospital staffers were not permitted to enter. A few people stood inside the waiting area, some of them crying.A large crowd was also gathering outside the hospital.

Outside Jackson's Bel Air home, police arrived on motorcycles. The road in front of the home was closed in an attempt to hold traffic back, but several people were gathered outside the home.

- Jason

Farrah Fawcett passes away after battle with cancer

Farrah Fawcett, the iconic sex symbol and actress best known for her roll on Charlie's Angels, has passed away after battling anal cancer on and off for the past three years. She was 62.

Fawcett's battle with the disease was documented in a television special shown earlier this year. Fawcett began shooting "Farrah's Story," by taking a camera to a doctor's appointment. Eventually, the film expanded to include trips overseas in hopes of treating the cancer.

Ryan O'Neal, Fawcett's romantic partner since the mid-1980s, had recently told People magazine that the her health on the decline. "She stays in bed now. The doctors see that she is comfortable. Farrah is on IVs, but some of that is for nourishment. The treatment has pretty much ended," he said in an interview.

Fawcett is known as one of the most famous pin-up girls ever, and in 1976 a poster of her in a red swimsuit sold a reputed 12 million copies.

Fawcett also starred on TV and in movies, her debut being Charlie's Angels, the show that started the movement known as "jiggle TV," a series where beautiful young actresses appeared in bikinis at any time, any place. Later on she reinvented herself as a serious actress and starred in shows and films such as Logan's Run, Saturn 3, The Cannonball Run, The Apostle and Dr. T and the Women.

Her beau, Ryan O'Neal, released this statement on her death: "She's gone. She now belongs to the ages. She's now with her mother and sister and her God. I loved her with all my heart. I will miss her so very, very much. She was in and out of consciousness. I talked to her all through the night. I told her how very much I loved her. She's in a better place now."

He also says that Fawcett was surrounded by her doctors and close friends when died. He says, "She was with her team when she passed … Her eyes were open, but she didn't say anything. But you could see in her eyes that she recognized us."

- Jason

Back through the (kinda' creepy) rabbit hole...

For those of you still scratching your heads over Tim Burton's take on the classic film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, a new conundrum is coming our way: Burton through the looking glass.

Next year,the visionary's latest LSD trip...er...visionary project...yeah, that's better...is his own take on the classic tale Alice in Wonderland and, in true Burton style, he's twisted it into a darker tale than before. This movie actually takes place 10 years after the original story, when Alice is proposed to by a snobbish suitor surrounded by snooty high-society types. She takes off running and, yep, follows a rabbit down a hole...

A few stills were just released over the interwebs, giving us a look at just how different the characters are this time around (click on the photos to enlarge them).

The pictures are: Mia Wasikowska as Alice, Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen, Matt Lucas as Tweedledum and Tweedledee, and Anne Hathaway as the White Queen and a look at Burton's version of Wonderland.

 

 

 

The movie is slated to hit theaters in March 2010. What do you think? Cool or a bit too trippy?

- Jason

Ed McMahon dies at 86

It was reported this morning that Ed McMahon, longtime sidekick of the Tonight Show's Johnny Carson and delivery man of giant checks, passed away in Los Angeles at the age of 86. McMahon passed just after midnight at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center surrounded by his wife, Pam, and other family members, said his publicist, Howard Bragman.

The well-loved comedian (and sometimes comic foil) was host and "second banana" of several TV shows over the years, including The Tonight Show, Star Search, TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes and numerous others.

While I barely remember McMahon form The Tonight Show, I do remember him from Star Search and especially Bloopers where I enjoyed his fun-loving attitude and trademark deep laugh.

Recently, the TV icon had fallen on hard times with the bank ready to foreclose on his $6 million dollar home. The public outporing of support was enormous, and, true to his nature, McMahon even had a little fun at his own expense...

I think it's safe to say that Ed McMahon has cemented his status as the ultimate beloved, friendly sidekick who can (more than) hold his own.

- Jason

Would YOU get pizza from "The Hut?"

I know things are tight and everyone's cutting back, but this??

In a move that's making consumers scratch their heads, Pizza Hut will officially be cutting the word "Pizza" from some of their restaurants names, referring to these particular locales as "The Hut."

The idea behind this is that the chain has expanded their food selection over the years and has recently gotten into offering up pasta. On the other hand, marketing experts see this as a way for the restaurant to rebrand themselves as a "hip and happening" place to hang out. along with the name change, some of the 10,000 locations worldwide will also install TVs that will show CBS programming like Entertainment Tonight and Wheel of Fortune.

Because that's what all the cool kids do. Watch Wheel.

Of course, this isn't the first time the company has tried something like this. In April, it introduced us to the dreaded Pizza Hut "Twintern," (ugh) an employee who uses Twitter updates to let customers know about store events and pop culture news.

What do you think? Would you buy a pizza from "The Hut?" Should they change their name to something else? Does anyone even like Pizza Hut pizza? Oh, wait, I do...

- Jason

Homer can take you anywhere (for a little extra D'OH!)

Any owner of a GPS knows that they can choose from a variety of voices to get them to their destination: the British dame, the American gentleman and so on. But now there's a whole person who can get you to where you need to go.

TomTom GPS just announced that they're adding Homer Simpson to their line up of over 70 celebrity celebrity voices that will give you directions from your GPS. For a simple fee of $12.95, Homer will take you anywhere.

"Celebrity voice downloads are one of the many features TomTom offers to our customers to personalize their driving experience," said Jocelyn Vigreux, president of TomTom. "With Homer Simpson's voice helping them to navigate their trip, TomTom customers will not only travel safely and with less stress, but will also be highly entertained along the way."

This sounds like an entertaining feature, as long as Homer doesn't always guide you to Moe's...

- Jason

Summer 2009 at the movies thus far...

Usually by now I would have regaled you with my adventures at the theater this summer but, alas, I've been busy with technology upgrades at work along with the usual slew of graduation parties and weddings that this time of year bring. And I'm lazy. That's all I've got.

So, in the interest of your movie-going experience, I'm here to tell you what I've thought of the crop of films I've seen so far this season...

Wolverine: Stay away. Pure and simple.

I was really let down by this movie. I enjoyed the first two X-Menfilms. Then the third came along and left a bad taste in my mouth. I saw this as a way to redeem the franchise but it wasn't meant to be, I guess. A convoluted script short on action and shudder-inducing special effects (check out his claws when he's looking in the bathroom mirror) made for an experience that left me checking my watch every 10 minutes.

Star Trek: Now this is how you get the summer started!

I was a little leery of Star Trek, even with the great reviews that came in before the movie's release. I'll admit, I was pleasantly surprised. The visuals were top-notch while each younger actor portrayed their classic character to a T (props to Simon Pegg as Scotty, though he could've used more screen time. Just sayin'.) The story left you scratching your head in a few places but, hey, in a movie with a galactic federation, time travel, warp drives and Romulans, who am I to judge?

Terminator: Salvation: Worth a look, but nothing great.

Another franchise film that left something to be desired but, having said that, it wasn't a bad film, really. This film took place in the not-to-far-at-all future, so no time travel ling terminators were involved. This movie reminded me a lot of the Matrix films: a bleak future where machines rule while humanity puts forth a half-assed effort to regain their footing. Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, descent special effects and a computer-generated "Ah-nold" keep the film from sinking into a so-so plot line.

Night At The Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian: A fun film for the whole family - just don't expect a whole lot.

I went into NATM2 not expecting too much and got what I wanted: a special-effects-laden film that was thin on the plot but fun never the less. Too many characters and a hokey storyline weighed down the film, but you could tell the actors were enjoying themselves (Amy Adams hammed it up nicely as a spunky Amelia Earhart while Hank Azaria lisped his way through as the evil pharaoh Khumanra). It's worth a shot - just don't keep it at the top of your list.

Up: A must-see, but remember to bring some Kleenex for you sensitive types.

Pixar always cooks up something good, and this time is no exception. A very heartfelt story about an old man fulfilling his promise to his late wife, this movie has it all: a house that flies via helium balloons, a wilderness scout with a heart of gold, a giant bird that would put Big Bird to shame and plenty of talking canines. Sound strange? It is, but in thye end it all comes together into a great story that tugs at the ole' heart strings. Definitely worth the money, even in 3D.

I still haven't gotten around to seeing Angels & Demons, Drag Me To Hell or Land of the Lost yet, and I honestly don't know if I'll get to. Movies Like The Proposal, Year One and Transfomers 2 are already looming on my schedule.

What do you think? Was I right about these films? What did you think of these movies? What are you looking forward to at the theater? Let me know below!

- Jason