Link-Off

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Sunday Link-Off: That’s No Moon…

michea-crawford-paindusucre13-03Another week, another… Well, I can’t say dollar any more since WP’s in-house ad service doesn’t seem to be showing ads. Anyhow, I’ve been a little torn between here and et geekera which probably means posts are or will get a little thin between the two blogs. If you want to write for either site to make my life a little easier get your name out there and have a little fun at the same time, you can email me at thelowdown [at] live.ca.

As for today’s links, let’s start with Canadian model Michea Crawford.

For a while, it looked touch and go as to who would win the US Presidential election but Barack Obama pulled it out. What really helped him stretch his lead early in the campaign was that Reddit AMA. It was a big risk but it paid off with a big reward. (BuzzFeed)

The petition to have America build a Death Star got enough signatures to require a response from the White House. They responded in absolutely epic fashion. (The White House)

Alabama won their 15th national title in college football last Monday. The game was the highest-rated program in cable TV history and the BCS TV deal is worth hundreds of millions of dollars. So where does all that money go? (The Fiscal Times)

After the jump, a big change at Gawker, the science of Serenity and changes coming soon to YouTube. Continue reading →

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Entertainment Link-Off: And The Globe Goes To

keira-knightley-allure12-03Since I’m drawing in to cover this week’s entertainment and pop culture links, we have to assume that Jackie has melted in the Australian heat wave… Anyway, the Golden Globes are this weekend so we’ll get our first indication at who or what will be the front runners at the Oscars. Speaking of which, the Academy Awards nominees were announced this week because the Academy says they don’t want to appear influenced by the Globes… So they moved the nomination announcement up because of the Globes? Makes sense…

Anyway, this weekend at the theatres gives us two big releases. There’s a new release in the form of Gangster Squad which actually has a cast despite the fact that the ads are only promoting Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling. It also boasts a 32% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. If you want to watch a good movie that opens this weekend, Zero Dark Thirty goes to wide release this weekend so you can finally see it. But just for fun, let’s start this edition of the ELO with Keira Knightley. We don’t feature her on the blog nearly enough. Continue reading →

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Wednesday Link-Off: A Week at the Movies

jessica-chastain-gquk13-01Have you been reading Scott’s list of the Top 45 Movies of 2012? If you haven’t, you’re missing the most thorough breakdown of the year in movies that I’ve seen. Today, he’s dropping Part Three which covers #15 to #1. Therefore, I thought it was fitting to lead off this linkdump with actress Jessica Chastain.

Blue Brothers is one of the all-time great comedies. This oral history looks at how the movie almost never got made. (Vanity Fair)

If comedies aren’t your speed, maybe you’d rather read about Ben and Matt got their big breaks with Good Will Hunting. (Boston Magazine)

Okay, so Notre Dame got hilariously beaten by Alabama for the BCS Championship. My question is whether they even deserved to be there. After Penn State was nearly sanctioned out of existence for the Jerry Sandusky affair, the Notre Dame rape scandal was swept under the rug allowing them to get within one game of a national championship. (The Nation)

After the jump, did Dalhousie women’s hockey get screwed out of a season, Tony Bourdain vs. Travel Channel and a montage of montage. Continue reading →

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Sunday Link-Off: Deal or No Deal

eva-longoria-gqmexico12-01After a few rather slim linkdumps, the internet is back up and running which means we have a regular sized set of links today. Since I have some photos queued up that I keep meaning to run at the start of the links, here’s Eva Longoria.

America’s fiscal cliff was solved just in time by the US Congress. It’s just a temporary thing because there is a debt ceiling crisis looming in which the Republicans will play chicken with the world economy again by threatening to default on their debt. Anyway, the bad blood between Democrats and Republicans almost meant that this deal didn’t get done. (Politico)

The folks at Bloomberg did an in-depth recap of this summer’s infamous maple syrup heist. Yes, it was that big a story. (Businessweek)

The hacking group Anonymous scares a lot of people but they’re often a force for good. For example, they uncovered evidence in the case of a rape allegedly committed (innocent until guilty) by high school football players in Stubenville, Ohio. (The Atlantic Wire)

After the jump, Normstradamus has a golf column, Guy Fieri has more crappy food for you and a massive NYE TV fail. Continue reading →

2 Comments Posted on by J Entertainment, Link-Off

Entertainment Link-Off: Face Off!

alexandra daddarioThe new year is here! Since the Christmas movies are still out in full force, don’t expect many wide releases to compete for the box office crown for a little while. Opening this weekend is Texas Chainsaw 3D. Whether this will revive the flailing franchise will be up to the audiences to decide. Starring in this movie is Alexandra Daddario, who can also be seen in first season of White Collar. Anyway, let’s just kick off the first ELO of 2013 with her.

After the jump, a few trailers to see, Quentin Tarantino loves his pop culture references, some Star Trek stuff and eat a Hobbit meal in 20 minutes. Continue reading →

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Wednesday Link-Off: Happy New Year

genevieve-morton-miraclesuit12-02Well, I’d like to say that I had a better start of 2013 linkdump for you but the internet’s pretty much been shutdown since, well, Christmas. I do have a few links but it’ll be a pretty short post. Anyhow, let’s start with Genevieve Morton.

If you live in a Canadian border town, you’ll probably have been the victim of random roaming charges because your phone picked up the stronger American signal. It’s not just happening to you. It happens to a lot of people and the cell phone companies aren’t too worried about being proactive about it. (CBC News)

Scientists believe that garbled text messages could be a sign of serious neurological issues such a stroke. (CNET)

You might not consider pickpocketing a form of magic but the way the world’s greatest pickpocket, Apollo Robbins, does it, it may just be. (The New Yorker)

After the jump, a look inside NBC’s Sunday Night Football, new year’s resolutions for video game journalists and Stephen Harper style. Continue reading →

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Sunday Link-Off: Ending 2012

nina-agdal-aerie12-26As the year comes to an end, we’ve reached the last linkdump of 2012. I probably should have made this the year-in-review post but there were almost no other links to choose from for last Wednesday’s linkdump apart from the year-in-review links. Mind you, this linkdump isn’t looking too long either. Anyway, start the last linkdump of the year with Nina Agdal. You’ll be seeing her again when I do the annual SI Swimsuit cover odds post.

The courts may have bounced Toronto mayor Rob Ford out of office but it certainly hasn’t solved all of Toronto’s problems. (MacLean’s)

The most interesting story of the US Presidential election may have come two months after the vote. Tagg Romney says his father, Mitt, never really wanted to be President. (Daily Kos)

Wikipedia has finished up its annual fundraising drive. The problem is, though, how Wikipedia uses the money. They don’t seem to need all of it. (The Register)

After the jump, why it’s okay to not lower expectations, plenty of oral histories and some best of 2012 videos. Continue reading →

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Entertainment Link-Off: Fight. Dream. Hope. Love.

Emma WatsonIt’s time for another edition of the Entertainment Link-Off. Due to the holidays, it has been a bit slow on the news, but there are still a few noteworthy things to check out. There’s not many new releases this weekend, but if you haven’t had a chance to check out The Hobbit, Jack Reacher or Les Miserables, this might be your chance. Let’s kick off the last ELO of 2012 with Emma Watson only because I recently saw The Perks of Being A Wallflower and thought it was a fantastic film.

After the jump have another look at the lack of creativity in poster design, check out the most pirated TV shows and movies, a few Star Trek tidbits, How I Met Your Mother is sticking around for another season, the worst movies of 2012 review themselves, watch the first four minutes of Warm Bodies and Ed the Sock shares a story about Christina Aguilera. Continue reading →

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Wednesday Link-Off: Year-in-Review 2012

kate-upton-vogue12-07It’s time for our year-in-review linkdump. Rather than the usual assortment of fun and/or timely links, it’s time to look back at the year that was. It’ll also make our lives easier if we end up doing a year-in-review podcast but that would mean we do a podcast which means it’s not likely to happen.

Anyway, let’s kick this post off with our 2012 woman of the year, Kate Upton. If you’re wondering how we select the blog’s woman of the year, we use maths and search results. If you don’t like our pick, you only have the internet to blame.

For the second time, Barack Obama was named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year. The other time was after he won the 2008 Presidential Election. (Time)

From proper news to the terribly written news, it’s a look at the worst columns of 2012. (The Atlantic Wire)

But if you’d like to read something a little better, the NYT has their 100 most notable books of 2012. (New York Times)

After the jump, we look at 2012 in pop culture, sports and more. Continue reading →

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Sunday Link-Off: ‘Twas 48 Hours Before Christmas

bar-refaeli-underme12-05It’s time for our last linkdump before Christmas. Don’t worry, we’ll still be posting over the holidays. I still haven’t sorted out what is going up on Tuesday but we’ll even have something then. For now, here’s a Christmas-themed Bar Refaeli.

The NRA finally spoke about the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting on Friday. Their solution, as expected, was more guns. The problem is that what they’re asking for to protect people’s freedoms is going to have the exact opposite effect. (Slate)

The other problem with more guns is that giving every Tom, Dick and Harry guns won’t solve anything. Armed civilians only solve problems when they’re trained police or military personnel who happen to be in the right place at the right time. (Mother Jones)

The right might think more guns is the answer but the man who owns the loudest “news” voice of the right disagrees. Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch is advocating for gun control while Fox News isn’t. (New York Magazine)

After the jump, more about the Newtown shooting, the history of Fire Joe Morgan, and a modernized Home Alone sequel. Continue reading →