Tag: bob dylan

AARP’s Movies For Grownups Film Festival Opens in Los Angeles — Magic Ensues

20 FEET FROM STARDOMThe AARP officially achieved the unachievable. In a bid to highlight “movies for grownups” at their first-ever film festival, they miraculously made their content appealing for the under 50 crowd as well. Every selected film was more moving than the next, and each airing was followed by a question and answer session from the stars themselves. In fact, when Julia Louis-Dreyfus offered inside insight into the inner-workings of James Gandolfini’s last film, I instantly pinched myself. And when Merry Clayton sang an A capella rendition of Bob Dylan’s ‘Times They Are a-Changin’ for the audience of ‘Twenty Feet From Stardom,’ I texted every person I knew in the music industry to brag.

There are moments when living in Los Angeles lives up to the Tinseltown tales you grew up hearing about. The AARP’s Movies for Grownups Film Festival was one of those times.

Jon Stewart Gives Bill O’Reilly the Smackdown — Discuss Rapper Common

On a recent Bill O’Reilly appearance, Jon Stewart further escalated my love for him by trouncing Bill O’Reilly in a debate about rapper Common. According to O’Reilly, Common should not have been invited to the White House because he supports a “cop killer.” O’Reilly is referring to Common’s support for Assata Shakur. Stewart rightly pointed out that Common is supporting Shakur because he thinks she’s innocent, and not because he generally supports killing cops. Stewart also added that Bono wrote a song about Leonard Peltier, and Bono was invited to the White House, as was Bob Dylan, who wrote a song about Hurricane Carter. Watch Bill O’Reilly attempt to “pettifog” his way out of Jon Stewart’s comparisons.

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Joni Mitchell Calls Bob Dylan a "Fake" and a "Plagiarist"

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times Joni Mitchell wasn’t happy when the interviewer compared her to Bob Dylan.  She said that she and Dylan are like “night and day,” and that Dylan is “not authentic at all. He’s a plagiarist, and his name and voice are fake. Everything about Bob is a deception.”  Yikes.  I find it particularly interesting that the interviewer just rolled right over that comment.  She just accused a legend of faking an entire persona and you don’t have a follow up question?!  How about, “aren’t you a giant hypocrite considering that your real name is Roberta Joan Anderson?”  Or “Gee Joni, what do you mean his voice is fake?  Who would fake a terrible voice?”  Hats off to this guy who is clearly reading off a list of questions and can’t improvise on any level.  That being said, I take her comments with a grain of salt, because the entire interview sounds pretty angry.