Briefly News and Comment: Blues great John Lee Hooker dead at 83
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emailplus: SFX may purchase another promoter. Marilyn Manson-related rallies in Denver. What's going on between Microsoft and AOL. What's going on between Congress and Hollywood.
Blues singer-guitarist John Lee Hooker died on Thursday (6/21) in San Francisco. Reuters quoted a woman at his agency as saying, "He passed away peacefully in his sleep ..." He was 83.
The veteran Mississippi Delta bluesman--who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award at last year's Grammys--had five West Coast dates scheduled for this summer.
The Denver Post, quoting "a source at the highest level of negotiations," reported that concert promoter SFX is buying concert promoter Concerts West. SFX is the world's largest concert promoter.
Two groups held Marilyn Manson-related rallies in Denver on Wednesday (6/20), the day before Manson's Denver concert, Sonicnet reported. First were the Citizens for Freedom of Choice, which reportedly wasn't pro-Manson so much as it was anti-the-anti-Manson-group, named the Citizens for Peace and Respect, which rallied second.
It was in the Denver suburb of Littleton, at Columbine High School, that two students killed 13 people, then themselves, in 1999. Many people claimed Manson's music influenced the killers.
The leader of the anti-Manson group was quoted as saying, ""We don't think Manson caused Columbine, but he encourages and legitimizes Columbine-like behavior." How? When?
Music writer Dave Marsh spoke to the anti-the-anti-Manson-group group, reportedly saying, "Instead of telling him to shut up, the censors ought to listen to Manson." What censors?
What's Going On Between Microsoft and AOL:
They were pursuing a deal that, according to the Washington Post, "would have given AOL software for Internet access prominent placement in Windows XP, which is to debut Oct. 25. In exchange, AOL would have incorporated Microsoft's browser for accessing Web pages in its software."
But the deal hit a snag regarding RealPlayer software, which reportedly is the market's most popular music-streaming software (Microsoft's Windows Media Player ranks second), and the deal broke down sometime last weekend.
According to the Post, "In one proposal, Microsoft wanted to prevent AOL online subscribers from using RealNetworks' RealPlayer software in Windows XP."
An AOL software engineer reportedly interpreted Microsoft's proposal as requiring AOL to hide RealPlayers's program file folder and icons.
The article quotes Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer as not denying that, but asking rhetorically, "Will Real be able to install on Windows? Of course they can."
What's Going On Between Congress And Hollywood:
In April, senators including Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) introduced the Media Marketing Accountability Act of 2001 (S. 792).
The Los Angeles Times summarized the bill as "[slapping] financial penalties on entertainment companies that peddle adult material to children."
Lieberman has called on President Bush to support the bill, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
A bunch of actors and producers have formed a coalition to fight passage of the bill.
Do the senators really believe they can come up with a constitutional method of determining when marketing is directed toward children? Are they stupid or venal?
The entertainment industry, of course, is both, but we can't constitutionally change that.
The bill won't pass the Senate. And if it does, it won't pass the House. And if it does Bush, will veto it. And if he doesn't, the first marketer to get fined will appeal, and the verdict will be overturned. And if it isn't, it will make it's way to the Supreme Court, which will call the law unconstitutional. And if it doesn't, we are truly screwed. Which is possible, so we shouldn't make light of it too much.
John Lee Hooker tickets at Ticketmaster
John Lee Hooker ringtones at Thumbplay
