Phil Spector And Joan Baez Rocked Together

Los Angeles, CA—As I puke over the injustice of Phil Spector’s trial I can’t help but not forget was an incredible talent he is. Here he plays the piano as Joan sings one of Spector’s masterpieces. Enjoy a slice of Spector’s heyday.

Spector is langushing in the L.A. County jail as he waits for an appeal and a sentencing over a death and a bad jury's guess.

Gloria Kirkpatrick Murdered 37 years ago today at Marina City in Chicago

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Here is a link.

Desperate Measures during Desperate Times For TV News

Chicago, IL—From now on four out of five TV stations will share video. For viewers that means the end of channel surfing during news broadcasts. WLS-ABC7 will continue to gather exclusive video and not participate in this scheme.

The perceived benefit is that the stations participating will save a bundle as they jettison photographers, vehicles and expenses off their payrolls. Pink slips continue to rain during the first ever depression for TV news in its entire history.

I don’t see this as a cure to stop the hemorrhaging of profits. On the contrary I expect a viewer revolt that will eventually bring on entertainment TV reruns instead of local news.

Nationwide, local TV news has resisted any change as they’ve religiously copycatted each other’s style and format to death. I ask, why not have just one TV news provider broadcast to every channel? There has been so little in the way of enterprising news stories outside of the ratings or sweeps periods. Why bother at all?

TV news has progressively spiraled down to the lamest of the lame anyway. In Chicago and other large cities they advocate for only Liberal political agendas and distort facts. This is most prevalent in stories involving gun control and violence.

They always love to display of murdered gang punk’s eighth grade graduation pictures depicting the now 17 through 21 year-olds who died flashing gang signs in drive by shootings. What they don't show you are the tattoos, needle tracks, rap sheets and the risky behavior that led to the shooting. Of course they never miss getting the tears of the welfare fueled, baby-making machines that spawned these young creeps.

This will only provide better opportunities for current and start up video news blogs founded by creative folks who will make their own formats and rules. The good thing is the days of a unified political slant are over. This will hasten the death of local TV news as we knew it and that may be a good thing.

Those laid off news workers can now band together and use those ideas they’ve been unsuccessfully pitching various news directors over their entire careers. The cost of equipment has dropped as the quality of it has skyrocketed. Frankly I can’t wait to see what the evolution will bring. One thing for sure I expect both creativity and an overall improvement of news products outside of TV.

A step Back In Time

Frankfurt, Germany—Instead of being sent to Viet Nam when I was drafted into the Army I served as a medical corpsman in Germany. I was in a Sachsenhausen club called Le Carousel in 1968-70. I was enjoying the company of some young beautiful women that year and here were a few songs they’d play for my enjoyment.

Gitmo Detainees Released On American Soil And Homicide

Washington, DC—Barack Obama’s latest wet dream is to release the Muslim enemy combatants onto American soil. I suspect that I’m not alone in my concerns for the safety of Americans if this insane policy is ever enacted. So far even the Democrats in Congress are smart enough to know that approving this policy would end their political careers.

Imagine if Obama told the public of his plans to do this during the campaign. He would be anywhere at all other than in the Whitehouse.

During conventional wars soldiers are usually conscripted and are normally peace loving productive people. Had we released Japanese and German POWs because they had nowhere to live it would have had minimal risk. They were after all somewhat civilized.

This case is very different, the Gitmo detainees are willing suicidal warriors fighting a religious war and view killing Americans as a sure way to Heaven. The danger of releasing these fanatical killers would be more menacing than letting out every inhabitant of every death row in every American prison. Even Charles Manson would in fact be far less dangerous to release on America's streets.

Personally I’d feel a duty to take prophylactic measures and simply assonate any Gitmo detainees released near me. To not take such extreme measures would all but guarantee a jihad fueled bloodbath against my fellow Americans.

Any American politicians involved in this deserve to be hanged for treason.

Carmen Trutanich For Los Angeles City Attorney

Los Angeles, CA-- Carmen Trutanich is running for the Los Angeles City Attorney. He is opposed by city councilman and career gun-rights hater Jack Weiss. Weiss is out of touch and does not want to see law-abiding people stopping murder, rape or armed robbery with lawfully possessed firearms. He’d rather see victimization.

Trutanich is a law and order kind og guy that wants to do whatever he can to insure public safety in this city. As the California Department of Corrections is set to release tens of thousands of convicted felons on our streets early because of budget problems the law abiding need all the help they can get.

Weiss has been running countless ads smearing Trutanich with blatantly false allegations suggesting he’s soft on crime for defending gun owners as a defense attorney.

There is a lot more to being a prosecutor than making prosecutorial war on middle-aged gun owners for having gun collections. The US Supreme court and the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has made it clear in recent times that owning firearms is a valid individual, Constitutional right. Jack Weiss hates the Constitution and wants to violate those rights as City Attorney.

Weiss can be counted to rack up millions in legal bills and damage awards after wrongfully charged gun owners sue the city over his unlawful gun crusade against them.

Vote early and often for Carmen Trutanich as your City Prosecutor.

Having Lunch With A Celebrity Murder Suspect

Chicago, IL—This week I took Chicago lawyer Joel Brodsky up on his offer for a lunch. We went to the swank GAGE restaurant on Michigan Avenue. Also there was retired Bolingbrook police sergeant and so called murder suspect Drew Peterson.

Prosecutors and Illinois State Police investigating the death of one of Peterson’s former wives and the strange disappearance of another have called Peterson a suspect. I take exception to that moniker that’s usually reserved only for people who are arrested and prosecuted. Peterson has not been charged or even arrested.

Unfortunately there are so many people who believe that Peterson is a double murderer without the presence of so much as minimal evidence required to bring that matter to a criminal court.

Is Peterson a killer? If anyone really knows they’re not telling and I’m not clairvoyant. What’s wrong with giving Peterson the presumption of innocence any accused American deserves? In this case Peterson has not even been accused by authorities.

I found that Peterson himself has charm and is very personable. He’s bright and just does not strike me as the type of person that would murder anyone.

Peterson’s life right now is a really bad movie. Strangers recognize him, approach and introduce themselves to him like they do with Hollywood celebrities. That while acquaintances try and make money through Peterson’s new found celebrity.

The investigation of Peterson has been ongoing and relentless. I have no problem with that at all. When the evidence is not there Peterson and his children deserve the right to move on without people pointing fingers at them.

Some people have accused me for being on Drew Peterson’s side. They’re dead wrong; I’m on the side of Due Process. How soon we forget how many American soldiers gave their lives to insure we have a Bill of Rights that protects all of us.

Let me not forget to say the food and service at the Gage was first rate.

Doing The Overnight With Geoff Pinkus In Chicago

Chicago, IL—Geoff Pinkus is a Chicago radio personality with two talk shows. One is on Sunday, Livin’ Large With Geoff Pinkus and the other is Overnight With Geoff Pinkus. He's on 560 WIND.

The Pinker as his pals call him is Conservatism with fun. He’s much more than politics as he celebrates women, cigars, sports, cars, gun rights, human rights and more importantly the right to have fun is what his shows are all about. This may seem like a show geared for men but his audience demographics and callers prove otherwise.

The Pinker’s shows are guest driven and he’s got no shortage of entertaining guests. TV news reporter turned radio personality, Amy Jacobson connected Pinkus to me and this blog and I’ve been a Pinker guest a few times by telephone.

This week I was invited to do the Overnight show and was in studio doing the fun eye to eye. I learned that Pinkus is afraid of no callers except for the rare boring ones. He’ll take the conversation in almost any direction that moves examination of the show’s themes.

The Pinker’s shows are streamed on the Internet right here.

If you haven’t heard the Pinker’s show give him a listen while you Live Large!

The Pinker's website is right here!

Chicago’s Most Notorious Criminal History Site

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Chicago, IL—I went to my home town to assist a good cop in need of my help to clear his name. This effort required a trip to 26th and California where I spent so much time working in my younger days.

The Southwest corner of this intersection is home to the Criminal Court Buildings and what they today call the Cook County Department of Corrections. Over the years I’ve witnessed a lot of history being made inside those buildings

The old Criminal Court building, Cook County Jail, Chicago House of Correction and Cermak Memorial Hospital sit here with a lot of newly added buildings. This was and is the epicenter of where Chicago’s most infamous criminals were incarcerated, tried, convicted and in many cases executed in the electric chair.

Mob boss, Al Capone, killers Richard Speck, John Wayne Gacy, Nathan Leopold, Jr., Richard Loeb along with Teamsters President Jimmy Hoffa, and former Chicago Mayor Harold Washington had all spent time in the notorious old Cook County Jail.

When the feature film I’m making, Come Friday get’s financed, I fully intend to film portions of it in the historic locations here where a lot of that remarkable story actually unfolded.

I’d love to gather photos both inside and out of the sprawling complex. I’d want to capture photographs and document the history before it’s too late. Creating one of those large coffee table picture books of this place and providing the salacious details of its rich history would be so cool.

Lawsuit Dropped Against Convicted Killer Scott Peterson

San Quentin, CA—Death row inmate, Scott Peterson got bad news today. His dead wife’s parents Sharon and Dennis Rocha dropped their lawsuit against him.

Normally for a defendant that would be a good thing. But in this case Scott Peterson could use the litigation to bring to light new evidence needed to destroy the conviction that got him condemned to die. Peterson was free to examine witnesses, test, re-test and review all the additional evidence he wanted as long as the civil case was ongoing.

I predicted that this lawsuit could do just that on this blog when it was filed long ago.

Peterson’s conviction was a result of disgraceful excuse or a trial. Not a shred of evidence was presented as to how Laci Peterson and her unborn child died. Peterson was a world class cad, womanizer and jerk. There was never a case or murder without the corpus delecti.

I was hoping the greed of the Rochas was going to be their undoing but they finally figured out Peterson would greatly benefit from the lawsuit and dismissed it.

I suspect that the last entries in the civil court file are clues that would tell us just what Scott Peterson’s lawyer was uncovering that led to the Rochas backing out of the civil action.

Now, Peterson will have to wait for his appeal to slowly grind through the system and rely on other tools to force disclosure of new evidence.

Geoff Pinkus Examines Chicago Policewoman’s Life And Film Making

Chicago, IL—Tonight at midnight (Chicago time) I will be live in Studio at WIND 560 radio with Goeff Pinkus talking about the life of Chicago policewoman Ann Leybourne Erwin Biebel.

As many of my readers know I’m working on making a feature film on this great lady’s early career and amazing brush with death. The Film is called, Come Friday and you can learn more about it here.


You’re invited to listen in by actual broadcast or though live streaming audio right here!

Hijacking At The L.A. Festival of Books

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Westwood Village, Los Angeles, CA—Unfortunately, this event has a small but rather goofy dark side. Some people want to push their own political agendas down the throats of others. I have no problem with political discussion provided it’s germane to the place, time and targeted people.

I met one author who came in with his lovely wife to sell his books and set up a booth to do just that. The author, Neville W. Cramer wrote, Immigration Chaos. Cramer is a retired INS special agent. His premise is a simple one, American politicians will support any immigration enforcement efforts as long as they don’t work.

Okay, opinions are divided between those that do and don’t want laws regulating immigration. Apparently free speech is only welcome by some if they agree with the message. At least one fist fight broke out at the booth stared by an open border supporter.

I can’t wait to read Cramer’s book and can be counted on to review it here. You can learn more about Immigration Chaos right here.

Next I attended a discussion panel called, “Memoir: The KaBoom Generation” . That title was a little spin on baby boomers.

This panel was moderated by writer and TV producer, Sara Davidson and the other panelist were long time music writer, Danny Goldberg and writer, producer and actor Mike Farrell. Farrell is also an anti-death penalty and human rights activist. The discussion was about book writing, entertainment and the trials and tribulations of the panelist while writing their books.

This was an enjoyable panel discussion until the audience was invited to ask questions. The panel was hijacked by five total morons fighting both sides of Mideast political matters. When this began audience members by the scores began racing for the exits. Finally order was restored. If these clowns are so passionate about this matter they should go there and detonate suicide bombs on each other and leave the rest of us alone.

I have to say the panelist handled the troublemakers with absolute grace.