This Town Paid Ted Nugent $16,000 To NOT Appear At A Local Event

Ted Nugent Longview Festival Ted Nugent Obama Ted Nugent Texas Ted Nugent Longview Texas Obama Subhuman Mongrel Ted Nugent Longview Ted Nugent Appearance Canceled Politics News

Rocker Ted Nugent just made big bucks to not show up somewhere.
The town of Longview, Texas paid Nugent $16,000 to not appear at the town's Fourth of July Festival. According to KLTV, a city spokesman said Nugent was "not the right feel for this kind of community event."
The city had reached a verbal agreement with Nugent, scheduling the rocker as the headliner who would play inside the Maude Cobb Convention and Activity Center during the town's Independence Day celebration. To break that agreement, the town paid Nugent half of his guaranteed performance fee of $32,000 from Maude Cobb's annual budget.
The move comes amid criticism of comments Nugent made about President Barack Obama in January 2014, calling him a "subhuman mongrel." Nugent, who campaigned with Texas Attorney General and gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott amid the controversy, apologized for those comments in February.
Abbott said he was moving on from the controversy over Nugent in late February, but his ties to the rocker remain a prominent talking point of both sides of the governor's race. Abbott's rival, Texas state Sen. Wendy Davis (D), called the Attorney General's embrace of Nugent an "insult," while former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin (R) cited the rocker in her endorsement of Abbott.
"If he is good enough for Ted Nugent, he is good enough for me!" Palin wrote on her Facebook page.
The situation with Longview is not unique. Nugent was removed from a concert lineup at a prominent military base in 2012 after saying he would be "dead or in jail by this time next year" if Obama were re-elected that year.

AdChoices

Unrated ‘Nymphomaniac’ Hits Theaters Friday – But Audiences Will Get Busy at Home

• View PhotoUnrated ‘Nymphomaniac’ Hits Theaters Friday – But Audiences Will Get Busy at Hom …

The steamy Danish drama “Nymphomaniac: Volume 1” hits multiplexes in limited release Friday as somewhat of a box office wildcard.

The sexually-explicit saga from writer-director Lars von Trier is expected to do most of its business in the on-demand space, where it has been available since March 7. U.S. distributor Magnolia Pictures wasn't talking numbers on the early business, other than to say that “it's doing very well.”
Also read: ‘Nymphomaniac’ Reviews: Is Lars von Triers’ Latest Sexy or Stupid?
While online downloads and VOD will provide the bulk of the returns, the box office is an unpredictable part of Magnolia's plan for the film. “Nymphomaniac” will roll out in roughly 25 large-city U.S. theaters this weekend. It's divided into two parts, and “Nymphomanic: Volume 2” will be available on demand Thursday and open in theaters on April 4.
The limited theatrical/VOD approach can help smaller fare or challenging films like “Nymphomaniac” find an audience, as Roadside Attractions discovered with their 2012 release of the Richard Gere drama, “Arbitrage.” This release strategy is a natural for Magnolia; it's the theatrical and home entertainment distribution arm of the Wagner/Cuban Companies, a group of media properties co-owned by Todd Wagner and Mark Cuban that also includes the Landmark Theatres chain and AXS TV.
“Volume 1” follows a self-diagnosed sex addict (Charlotte Gainsbourg), who is discovered beaten in an alley by an older bachelor (Stellan Skarsgård). As he helps her recover from the trauma, she shares stories of her erotic exploits with a host of notables played by such actors as Shia LaBeouf and Jamie Bell.
LaBeouf, Christian Slater and Uma Thurman will all appear in part one, while part two will pick up with Bell, Willem Dafoe, Mia Goth and Jean-Marc Barr.
Magnolia submitted the sexually-graphic “Nymphomaniac” to the Motion Picture Association of America ratings board earlier this year, and — not surprisingly — it came back with an NC-17. Instead of submitting to the MPAA's edit suggestions, Magnolia decided to release the film unrated.
Also read: ‘Nymphomaniac': 5 WTF Moments, From Penis Montages to Christian Slater Bathroom Accidents
“It's not a huge distinction,” Magnolia's sr. vice-president of marketing and publicity Matt Cowal told TheWrap. “But we went this route rather than accept the restrictions on promotions and marketing materials that an NC-17 would require.”
Last year, Sundance Selects faced a similar choice with Abdellatif Kechiche's sexually explicit coming-of-age tale ”Blue is the Warmest Color,” the Palme d'Or winner at the Cannes Film Festival. They opted to go with the NC-17 and it took in just over $2 million at the domestic box office.
In the last five years, more than 1,000 movies have been released without a rating, while only three have gone out with an NC-17. The most recent prior to”Blue is the Warmest Color” was William Friedkin's “Killer Joe,” which grossed almost $2 million in 2012; the top-grossing was Steve McQueen's “Shame,” which grossed $3.9 million in 2011.
As a rule, major exhibition chains like AMC Theaters and Regal Cinema don't play movies that are available on demand. So while many exhibitors shy away from unrated fare, Magnolia will turn to independents and smaller chains for screens when it expands over the next few weeks. “We'll have it in every major market eventually,” said Cowal.
Awareness won't be a problem. The film's subject matter and edgy trailers have generated buzz for months, buzz that spiked when LaBeouf stormed out of a bizarre Berlin Film Festival news conference. The company has built further heat with an ad campaign featuring posters of the stars’ faces in the throes of orgasm.
Also read: O-Faces Abound in New ‘Nymphomaniac’ Posters: Shia LeBeouf, Uma Thurman, Jamie Bell (Photos)
“We're not afraid of controversy,” said Thomas Ashley, chief executive at FlixFling, which is offering the film online.
“A lot of folks have been afraid of those films, saying that they were too extreme and that we shouldn't release them but this is our business, whether a film is hard to watch or not. We like to release films the way the filmmaker intended.”
The critics have been impressed — it's at 87 percent “fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes — but at this point no one expects “Nymphomaniac” to run up major grosses.
Also read: Shia LeBeouf ‘Borrows’ Message From Footballer in Bizarre ‘Nymphomaniac’ Press Session

Von Trier is a giant in European cinema, but a niche taste for U.S. movie audiences. The director has a range of controversial and acclaimed films to his credit, including “Breaking the Waves,” “Dancer in the Dark” and “Dogville.” “Nymphomaniac” has taken in more than $9 million overseas for several local distributors, but his films have never found major commercial success in the U.S.

“Nymphomaniac” is the third film in von Trier's “Depression Trilogy,” having been preceded by “Antichrist,” which took in less than a million dollars in 2009, and “Melancholia,” which grossed a solid $3 million for Magnolia in 2011.

The financial risk isn't considerably high; “Nymphomaniac's” budget was under $5 million, and Magnolia acquired U.S. rights from TrustNordisk in February for a reported $2 million. 

“Maybe people will see ‘Volume 1' in theaters and then watch the second part at home,” said Cowal.

Music News

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© AP / Mick Jagger and L'Wren Scott

Mick Jagger posts tribute to companion L'Wren Scott

March 18, 2014, 12:39 PM EST

NEW YORK (AP) -- Mick Jagger has posted a poignant tribute on Facebook to his late companion, L'Wren Scott, saying he is still struggling to understand her death and will never forget her.

The rocker, who canceled a concert in Australia to fly to New York in the wake of Scott's death, said the couple had spent many wonderful years together and made a great life for themselves.
Calling Scott his "lover and best friend," he paid tribute to her talent as a designer, and what he called her "great presence."
He ended his message by saying: "I will never forget her."
Scott, a noted fashion designer, died on Monday of an apparent suicide.

AP Exclusive: FBI balks at pot background checks

© AP Photo: Elaine Thompson, File

SEATTLE (AP) — The FBI is refusing to run nationwide background checks on people applying to run legal marijuana businesses in Washington state, even though it has conducted similar checks in Colorado — a discrepancy that illustrates the quandary the Justice Department faces as it allows the states to experiment with regulating a drug that's long been illegal under federal law.

Washington state has been asking for nearly a year if the FBI would conduct background checks on its applicants, to no avail. The bureau's refusal raises the possibility that people with troublesome criminal histories could wind up with pot licenses in the state — undermining the department's own priorities in ensuring that states keep a tight rein on the nascent industry.
It's a strange jam for the feds, who announced last summer that they wouldn't sue to prevent Washington and Colorado from regulating marijuana after 75 years of prohibition.
The Obama administration has said it wants the states to make sure pot revenue doesn't go to organized crime and that state marijuana industries don't become a cover for the trafficking of other illegal drugs. At the same time, it might be tough for the FBI to stomach conducting such background checks — essentially helping the states violate federal law.
The Justice Department declined to explain why it isn't conducting the checks in Washington when it has in Colorado. Stephen Fischer, a spokesman for the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services Division, referred an Associated Press inquiry to DOJ headquarters, which would only issue a written statement.
"To ensure a consistent national approach, the department has been reviewing its background check policies, and we hope to have guidance for states in the near term," it said in its entirety.
In Washington, three people so far have received licenses to grow marijuana — without going through a national background check, even though the state Liquor Control Board's rules require that that they do so before a license is issued.
"The federal government has not stated why it has not yet agreed to conduct national background checks on our behalf," Washington state Liquor Control Board spokesman Brian Smith said in an email. "However, the Liquor Control Board is ready to deliver fingerprints as soon as DOJ is ready."
In the meantime, officials are relying on background checks by the Washington State Patrol to catch any in-state arrests or convictions. Applicants must have lived in Washington state for three months before applying, and many are longtime Washington residents whose criminal history would likely turn up on a State Patrol check. But others specifically moved to the state in hopes of joining the new industry.
"Both Washington state and Washington, D.C., have been unequivocal that they want organized crime out of the marijuana business," said Alison Holcomb, the Seattle lawyer who authored the legal pot law. "Requiring, and ensuring, nationwide background checks on Washington state licensees is a no-brainer."
The FBI has run nationwide background checks since 2010 on applicants who sought to be involved in medical marijuana dispensaries in Colorado, Daria Serna, a spokeswoman for that state's Department of Revenue, said in an email. The applicants provide fingerprints to Revenue's Marijuana Enforcement Division, which turns them over to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. The agency conducts a statewide background check and supplies the prints to the FBI for a national check.
Because Colorado launched its marijuana industry by converting medical dispensaries to recreational pot shops, it's likely that no additional background checks were required for the key employees of those shops, Serna said. However, all new employees of recreational or medical shops must undergo the same background checks — and those are still being processed, Serna said.
In Washington, officials use a point system to determine whether someone's criminal history is too concerning to grant them a license to grow, process or sell marijuana under the state's law, passed by voters in 2012. A felony within the past 10 years normally disqualifies an applicant, as does being under federal or state supervision for a felony conviction.
The state received more than 7,000 applications during a monthlong window that began in November. Applicants are required to supply fingerprints and disclose their criminal history, with omissions punishable by license forfeiture or denial. But without a federal background check, there's no way for state officials to verify what the applicants report.
Under rules adopted by the Liquor Control Board, the applicants' fingerprints must be submitted to the State Patrol and the FBI for checks as a condition of receiving a license. Asked whether issuing licenses without the FBI check contradicted that rule, Smith wrote: "Applicants have provided the prints necessary for running the check."
Deborah Collinsworth, manager of the Washington State Patrol's Identification and Criminal History Section, said she first asked the FBI in April 2013 about conducting national background checks on pot-business applicants.
"They haven't responded because marijuana is still federally illegal," Collinsworth said. "That's the rub."

Anheuser-Busch doubles down on margaritas

The company adds mango and raspberry flavors to its 'Rita' line, citing impressive sales with non-beer drinkers.

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Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD +0.98%), the maker of Bud Light, is doubling its Bud Light Lime-A-Rita product line with two new flavors: Mang-O-Rita and Raz-Ber-Rita.

The new flavors hit shelves earlier this week.

The original Lime-A-Rita was introduced in 2012. Bud Light introduced Straw-Ber-Rita as a permanent flavor and Cran-Brrr-Rita as a seasonal, limited-release in 2013.

"Lime-A-Rita and Straw-Ber-Rita are two of our most successful innovations to-date.
They allowed us to introduce the Bud Light brand into occasions it hadn't traditionally played in," Bud Light Vice President Rob McCarthy said in a press release. "We anticipate Raz-Ber-Rita and Mang-O-Rita to continue extending the brand successfully into the popular margarita space."

• Benzinga: Is the beverage industry now like the high-tech sector?

Straw-Ber-Rita was the largest share gainer in the beer industry in 2013, Bud Light Director of Marketing Tyler Simpson told Benzinga. Straw-Ber-Rita and Lime-A-Rita represented the No. 1 and No. 2 brands in the flavored malt beverage category.

"Over the last 2 years, the Ritas have combined to drive the most share growth and be one of the most successful new innovations in the beer industry," Simpson said. "Combined, the Ritas are larger than the category's next seven brands."

The Ritas are flavored malt beverages meant to taste like margaritas with eight percent alcohol by volume. The drinks are offered in a "Mix-A-Rita" 18-pack with each of the four flavors.

'Share of throat'
In a press release announcing full-year and fourth-quarter profits for 2013, Anheuser-Busch said its strategy is to capture an increasing "share of throat" by attracting customers who normally drink wine, hard liquor and other alcoholic beverages.

"Bud Light Lime-A-Ritas were developed using our insights that consumers are seeking both variety and refreshing, convenient cocktail solutions," Simpson said. "Lime-A-Rita was able to extend the Bud Light brand into occasions it hadn't traditionally played."

Simpson said the Ritas are marketed toward both beer and non-beer drinkers, and drinkers are almost a 50-50 split in regards to gender.

But the company said in the press release said that the Ritas have been especially popular with women. Other efforts to tap into the non-beer drinker market last year include introducing Stella Artois Cidre, a hard cider.

Anheuser-Busch reported a total revenue increase of 3.3 percent to $43.2 billion for 2013.

"Cute convict" suing website over use of her mug shot

A Florida woman whose mugshot has gone viral is suing a website that she claims is using the photo without her permission.
Meagan Simmons became known as the "cute convict" and the "model inmate" after an attractive mugshot from a DUI arrest in 2010 was shared online. She is suing the website InstantCheckmate.com, a background check company, for using her image for commercial purposes without her consent and causing her to feel "humiliated and embarrassed" and suffer "mental pain and anguish."
The company denies her claim, saying her photo was a widely-published public record that did not suggest Simmons endorsed any product.

TODAY

Florida woman Meagan Simmons claims in a lawsuit that the use of her mugshot by the website InstantCheckmate.com was done without her permission.

"The only issue really involved in our case is the narrow use of her mugshot to promote this particular product in a way without her consent,'' Simmons' attorney, Matthew Crist, told TODAY.
Simmons' mugshot became an online meme, with people writing things like "Guilty — of taking my breath away," and "Can I have her cell number?"
"It was flattering at first,'' she told WTSP-TV in Tampa. "You know, people thought it was pretty. I thought it was awful, but I have kids and people now know where I live."
More and more private citizens are seeing their images used for unauthorized purposes. A California woman told NBC National Investigative Correspondent Jeff Rossen last month that her before-and-after images were used in a weight loss advertisement for a product she had never used or heard of.
"We often forget that people still do have the legal right to control the use of their image, and that's especially true when it's used by private companies in advertising,'' NBC News legal analyst Lisa Bloom told TODAY.

Movie News

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Movie

veteran Dan Aykroyd has expressed his sadness after learning of the death of his "Ghostbusters" co-star Harold Ramis. The actor, writer and filmmaker died on Monday from complications of a rare blood disease, and celebrities including Jon Favreau, Seth MacFarlane, Eli Roth and Stephen Fry were among the first to honour the late star via Twitter.
Now Aykroyd has added his tribute to his friend and collaborator.
A statement issued to The Hollywood Reporter reads: "(I am) deeply saddened to hear of the passing of my brilliant, gifted, funny friend, co-writer/performer and teacher Harold Ramis. May he now get the answers he was always seeking."
Aykroyd had been working with Ramis for some time to bring "Ghostbusters 3" to the big screen, but it is not yet known how his death will affect the project.
Meanwhile, comedian Steve Martin has commented on Ramis' passing via Twitter, writing, "So sorry to hear about the death of Harold Ramis, a comedy master. Ghostbusters, Groundhog Day, and more", and actress Julianne Moore adds, "Very sad to hear that we lost Harold Ramis. Exceptionally talented, exceptionally kind."
And his "Year One" co-star Christopher Mintz-Plasse has also expressed his thoughts online, tweeting, "SO lucky I got to work with Harold Ramis, even if just for a couple weeks. The nicest, most talented gentleman. God damnit. RIP."
Prehistoric comedy "Year One," which was released in 2009, was Ramis' final movie as both an actor and director.