1. Steven Seagal is being sued by an Arizona man named Jesus Sanchez Llovera after taking part in a raid in which police — who were attempting to bust an alleged cockfighting ring — arrived on the scene in a tank and shot and killed the guy’s puppy. What Llovera wants: $100,000 in damages and a formal written apology from Seagal. [via The Daily Beast]
2. A controversial new kid’s coloring book that graphically depicts the events of 9/11 has already completely sold out in its initial run of 10,000 copies. [via GalleyCat]
3. Did you know that Richard Linklater is planning to direct a movie about Karl Rove back in his early days at the University of Utah? Even curiouser: Paul Dano is set to star in the project. [via BBC]
4. In case you were wondering, this is supposedly the ugliest new building to go up in Great Britain in the past year.
5. The Smashing Pumpkins have launched a record club, and while we’re not sure what it really entails, if you sign up now you get a free download of an early 8-track demo version of “Drown,” with promises of more freebies to come. [via Stereogum]
Bonus Buzz: 9 Reasons Why Pennies Are A Nuisance (Presented By Abe Lincoln Photoshops)
In a series he calls “Perfect Happiness,” Toronto/Brooklyn-based artist Michael Caines creates irreverent portraits of political figures as characters in fairytales or as if painted in 18th century Christian religious tradition. Though making a distinct nod to political cartooning, there is something refreshingly tender in Caines’ work — it manages to comment on the ridiculousness of our culture of political pageantry while simultaneously affirming its place in our society. Besides, who can resist Karl Rove in a gingham dress? Click through to see Michael Caines’ paintings – including Kim Jong-Il in a ballgown – and let us know what you think in the comments!
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1. Kanye West is launching his own line of loafers with shoemakers Stubbs and Wooton that’s scheduled to hit shelves next spring. [via Wonderwall]
2. Ozzy Osbourne is (rightfully!) disgusted that the Westboro Baptist Church decided to play his song “Crazy Town” during an anti-gay protest on the steps of the United States Supreme Court yesterday. [via E!]
3. Ryan Seacrest is in talks to launch his own TV channel. The only problem: He’s not Oprah. [via THR]
4. If Shia LaBeouf plays a young Karl Rove in an upcoming biopic about the conservative politician’s college days, what could that mean for his career? [via LAT]
5. In case you missed it on Community last night, Betty White explained Inception. [via Vulture]
Bonus link: Incredible Aerial Images from Around the World
Yesterday, Obama visited Iowa City and stopped by the Prairie Lights bookstore, expressing to the public how the now-passed health care plan will help small businesses. He pretended he was there for Karl Rove’s memoir and owner Jan Weissmiller responded: “We believe in freedom of expression so we have to carry the book.” Instead of buying Rover and Mitt Romney’s latest, he went for the following:
1. The Secret of Zoom
by Lynne Jonell
2. Journey to the River Sea
by Eva Ibotson
3. Star Wars: A Pop-Up Guide to the Galaxy
by Matthew Reinhart
That’s right. Star Wars: A Pop Up Guide to the Galaxy. Sure, our geeky Commander-in-Chief claimed that he “purchased it for a friend.” He probably ordered the special edition hardcover on Amazon. We began thinking, “Well, what other books should he have picked up?” This is what we came up with.
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Analyze Words is a new and super useful tool for determining other people’s personalities via their posts on Twitter. Developed by James W. Pennebaker, a University of Texas Professor of Psychology, along with his daughter Teal, Roger Booth and Chris Wilson, the program analyzes tweets based on not the “content words” but rather the “style words” — like articles and prepositions — to determine the mental state of the author.
Basically this means that you can plug in anyone’s Twitter handle — including your own — and watch it ranked in Emotional Style, Social Style and Thinking Style. We’ve been playing with this for hours. After the jump, check out some of our favorite tweet analyses of famous people.
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Last night, Radio City Music Hall hosted an apocalyptic meeting of the minds, pitting Bush strategist Karl Rove against Clinton guru James Carville. I sat in row A, watching as Charlie Rose attempted in vain to keep the vitriol from spilling into the audience. Several rounds of protesters emerged, boos abounded, Rose lost control, both speakers screamed, and the whole thing descended into anarchy. While much of what was said is already flying around the internet, we’ve got ten anecdotes that you won’t see anywhere else.
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Today at Flavorpill when we were supposed to be busy working, which is really hard the day before a major holiday… we chortled at this creepy New York Times interview with Karl Rove; we felt strangely excited by news that the Fat Boys are reuniting; we contemplated Jack Handley’s brilliantly hilarious plan; we cranked our favorite new office rap courtesy of the Sniper Twins; we donned our monocles to discuss the future of the city; we scratched our heads over the trailer for the upcoming Ace Venture Jr. movie; we played a few invigorating rounds of Super Obama World; we enjoyed poking a little harmless fun at a few photoshop disasters; and finally, we found new evidence that suggests that Dakota Fanning is most certainly an actor robot.
