Is it reasonable to squeeze a gallon’s worth of lemonade out of one lemon? Of course its not. Then why is Green Day trying to squeeze every ounce of popularity out of their 2004 album American Idiot? Because they’re sell-outs, thats why. Not since the days of Dookie back in the early 90’s has Green Day sounded like Green Day. The now emo pop band just recently greenlit a musical based off their 12 time platinum record American Idiot that will follow working-class characters based off their single’s as they seek redemption in a world filled with frustration. WTF?  Even Billie Joe finds the concept a little confusing. It doesn’t make a lot of sense, but that’s what I love about it. When people see it, it’s going to be my wildest dream. Armstrong said the concept is not the most linear in the world but it can be said to follow young American Jesus of Suburbia as he struggles with his drug dealing alter ego St Jimmy and falls in love with anarchist Whatsername. The musical, also titled “American Idiot,” will run at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre from September 4th through October 11th. All we can hope now is that one day America will realize its an idiot and their favorite punk band has completely sold out.



An ode to the The Green ol’ Days.

Looks like this week’s Fight Night is getting off to a rocky (road) start. It appears that a few of the fighters failed to make weight, coming in well over the one pound limit to be eligible to participate. Jeremy Stephens weighed in a full two pounds heavier than his 156 lightweight limit allows, and his opponent Gleison Tibau weighed in a half pound heavy. Instead of having the men cut the extra weight, the fight has been re-classified as a 158 lbs. catch weight bout. Steven Steinbeiss and Ryan Jensen did not weigh in for their middleweight fight along with the other fighters (due to administrative issues) but eventually hit the scales about 20 minutes after the weigh-ins were supposed to be over. Their weights have not yet been announced at the time of release. Here is a list of the other fighters that did weigh in.



Update: Ryan Jensen weighed in at 186 lbs. while his opponent Steve Steinbeiss weighed in the same



Carlos Condit (170.5) vs. Martin Kampmann (170)
Ryan Bader (206) vs. Carmelo Marrero (205)
Tyson Griffin (156) vs. Rafael dos Anjos (156)
Junie Browning (156) vs. Cole Miller (156)
Gleison Tibau (156.5) vs. Jeremy Stephens (158)
Ricardo Almeida (185.5) vs. Matt Horwich (185)
Brock Larson (171) vs. Jesse Sanders (171)
Tim Credeur (186) vs. Nick Catone (186)
Nissen Osterneck (186) vs. Jorge Rivera (185)
Rob Kimmons (184) vs. Joe Vedepo (184)
Tim McKenzie (184.5) vs. Aaron Simpson (186)
Ryan Jensen (186) vs. Steve Steinbeiss (186)

UFC Fight Night 18 features a mildly entertaining but not overwhelming fight card. Headlining the event are two solid contenders in the welterweight division, Carlos Condit and Martin Kampmann.
Kampmann vs. Condit poses an intriguing matchup as both fighters are looking to make their names known in a division already overflowing with top of the line talent. Martin Kampmann is new to the welterweight division but is no new comer when it comes to the UFC. Kampmann was a rising star in the middleweight division earlier in his career till a fight with Nate Marquardt made him look like more like practice fodder than a title contender. The fight all but forced him to move down to welterweight where he had an impressive showing defeating Alexandre Barros at UFC 93.
Carlos Condit is also considered a top ten welterweight. He is a very good ground fighter with more than half of his wins coming from submissions. Kimura, arm bar, rear naked choke, you name it, he can do it. His standup is also nothing to snicker at. Nine of his twenty-two wins come from TKO’s.



The rest of the fight card features some very interesting talent such as the undefeated Ryan Bader and the skidmark on your jockstrap, Junie Browning. Bader will defend his unbeaten record against Carmelo Marrero while Browning will stand up with a talented striker, Cole Miller. Watch all the action April 1st on Spike TV at 8 ET/PT.



MAIN CARD
Carlos Condit vs. Martin Kampmann
Efrain Escudero vs. Jeremy Stephens
Ryan Bader vs. Carmelo Marrero
Junie Browning vs. Cole Miller



PRELIMINARY CARD
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Tyson Griffin
Ricardo Almeida vs. Matt Horwich
Brock Larson vs. Jesse Sanders
Nissen Osterneck vs. Jorge Rivera
Rob Kimmons vs. Joe Vedepo
Tim McKenzie vs. Aaron Simpson
Ryan Jensen vs. Steve Steinbeis

 Season nine of The Ultimate Fighter premieres April 1 on Spike TV and will feature a revolutionary (no pun intended) twist this time around.  The format is the same, 32 fighters, 16 welterweights and 16 lightweights each representing either the United Kingdom or the United States.  Only the fighters will be pitted country against country (just like in real life).  Michael “The Count” Bisping will be counted upon to lead the UK squad while Dan Henderson is handed the reigns to lead a very young and talented group of American fighters. While some may find the mechanic of country versus country a tad trivial, UFC President Dana White made it clear as to what he thinks about the gimmick.



It’s dumb, I don’t like it.  It’s not USA vs the UK, we’re looking for the best fighter in the world. We put on a card one time, the USA v Canada, it was retarded. I don’t care if you’re from the UK, Croatia or Brazil because at the end of the day, when Michael Bisping comes to America, Americans don’t boo him. When GSP comes down and fights in the US more people cheer for him than the guy who’s from America! When Tim Sylvia from the United States fought Antonio Nogueira from Brazil, everybody booed Sylvia on the way in and cheered for Nogueira. The reason is because in this sport it’s not country versus country. You either like the guy’s fighting style or personality. Nationality has nothing to do with it. We’re looking for the best fighters in the world. This country versus that country is irrelevant.



Regardless of what Mr. White thinks, the producers have made their decision and are confident fans will respond positively to the new twist on one of cables most watched programs.  Here is a look at the 32 fighters who will be competing on the show.  The survivors in each weight class will meet head to head and be declared The Ultimate Fighter, live on June 20 in Las Vegas.



 
U.S. welterweights

• Ryan Biglar (2-1)
• Ray Elbe (20-11)
• Christian Fulgium (6-2-1)
• DaMarques Johnson (13-6)
• Kevin Knabjian (10-3-1)
• Mark Miller (10-4)
• Jason Pierce (9-0)
• Kiel Reid (8-1)

U.S. lightweights

 
• Paul Bird (4-1)
• Santino DeFranco (13-4)
• Jason Dent (19-9)
• Cameron Dollar (4-1)
• Tom Hayden (4-0)
• Waylon Lowe (5-2)
•  Josh Souder (7-2)
•  Richie Whitson (4-0)

U.K. welterweights

• Dean Amarasinghe (4-1)
• James Bateman (2-1)
• David Faulkner (2-1)
• Tommy Maguire (5-2)
• Che Mills (7-2)
• Nicholas Osipczak (3-0)
• Alex Reid (10-9-1)
• James Wilks (5-2)

U.K. lightweights

• James Bryan (3-1)
• Dan James (3-0)
• Gary Kelly (2-1)
• Jeff Lawson (13-2)
• Ross Pearson (9-3)
• Martin Stapleton (5-1)
• A.J. Wenn (7-2)
• Andre Winner (9-2-1)

I gotta start off by saying that my hate for the MPAA just continues to escalate with every passing month. But that’s a whole ‘nother topic on its own. So lets focus on whats at hand right now. Comic genius Sasha Baron Cohen’s first cut of the upcoming mockumentary, Brüno, just received a rating of NC-17 by the MPAA.


So if you are like me the first thought going through your mind is what could be soo bad that the MPAA refuses to give it an R rating. Well one of the scenes that seem to be really stirring up some problems is where you see Brüno engaging is what appears to be anal sex with another man. (I’m pointing t’words the R rated Brokeback Mountain right now) Also another scene where Brüno sneaks, naked, into a tent, unbeknownst to its male occupant.


22 minutes of the film was premiered at South by Southwest to rave reviews, and yes those 22 minutes were uncensored much to the distaste of the MPAA. E! Online reports on the Brüno preview:


“Three scenes were shown in their MPAA-offending entirety. One reveals the setup for the film: Brüno and his boyfriend decide to jump on board the latest Hollywood trend and adopt an African baby (which arrives via a cardboard box). Unfortunately, the beaus quickly break up, and Brüno loses custody of the child. He spends the rest of the movie attempting to get it back by proving himself to be one of the most heterosexual men in the country.


Along the way, he plans a photo shoot featuring his newest baby/accessory and auditions child actors to take part; shocking hilarity ensues when he gets the OK from stage mothers to administer liposuction to their apparently hefty toddlers, throw them from buildings in the name of art and dress them up like baby Hitlers.


The second previewed scene shows Brüno appearing on a Springeresque talk show to show off his newest acquisition. Unfortunately, it’s done with the aid of (Photoshopped) images of him and his boyfriend in the throes of passion with the baby looking on.


The final scene, by most accounts one of the movie’s most shocking, features the newly butch Bruno, going by the name Straight Dave, in an ultimate fighting ring, challenging his ex-boyfriend. After they beat each other into a bloody state, they passionately reconcile—in front of the clearly scandalized audience.”


It’s no surprise the movie is garnering a lot of controversy. Just as Borat did, I truly believe Brüno will also be released with only minimal editing and I’m sure whatever we don’t see in theaters we’ll be able to see when the DVD is released. The movie is currently set for a July 10th 2009 release.

Alright I know the whole situation in reality is fucked up. But as far as fucked up situations go this one is easily one of the funniest.
So that queermo from the Sham-WoW infomercials, you know the one that looked like an even fruitier Ryan Seacrest. Well the word going around town is that he went ahead and Chris Browned a prostitute, yeah I went there.


Vince Shlomi allegedly beat this women after she bit his tongue during there pre-arranged “business” meeting.


Both Vince Shlomi, and Sasha Harris (from the picture above) were both booked in Miami Beach for aggrivated assault. But the DA opted to not press charges on either one of them. I guess they figured an eye of an eye, she bit him, he punched her. Or maybe they just thought the whole situation is just too ridiculous and not even worth anyone’s time.


All I know is if there’s a god out there, after this incident we’ll never have to sit through another annoying Sham-WoW commercial at 2am with Vince’s annoying voice.


By the way, Sasha Harris, thanks for taking one for the team. There’s plenty of people that wanted to hurt that man, but you had what it took to fallow through and for that we salute you.

HP Pavilion at San Jose
Saturday, April 11, 2009 – 7:00PM (prelims at 5:00PM)





MAIN CARD (BEGINNING AT 7:00PM – PST):


Frank Shamrock (23-9-2) vs. Nick Diaz (18-7) – 3X5 – 179lbs (Catch Weight)


Josh Thomson (16-2) vs. Gilbert Melendez (14-2) – 5X5 – Lightweight Championship Rematch


Scott “Hands of Steel” Smith (14-5) vs. Benji “Razor” Radach (19-4) – 3X5 – Middleweights


Chris “Cyborg” Santos (6-1) vs. Hitomi “Girlfight Monster” Akano (14-5) – 3X5 – 140lbs


Brett “Grimm” Roger (8-0) vs. Abongo Humphrey (12-0) – 3X5 - Heavyweights





UNDERCARD (BEGINNING AT APPROXIMATELY 5:00PM – PST)


Luke Rockhold (3-1) vs. Buck Meredith (3-2) – 3X5 - Middleweights


Eric Lawson (8-2) vs. Waylon Kennell (4-1) – 3X5 – Middleweights


Raul Castillo (5-0) vs. Brandon Michaels (2-2) – 3X5 – Middleweights


James Terry (5-1) vs. Zak Bucia (3-1) – 3X5 – Welterweights


Jeremy Tavares (0-3) vs. Shingo Kohara (debut) – 3X3 – Bantamweights


Fight card subject to change

Bout Finalizes Fight Card for Strikeforce: “Shamrock vs. Diaz”;
Live on SHOWTIME® (10 p.m. ET/PT)
From the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.


New York (March 27, 2009)–Heavyweight mixed martial arts (MMA) forces, Brett “The Grim” Rogers (8-0) and “Abongo” Humphrey (12-0) will put their unbeaten records on the line when they face off on the live SHOWTIME televised portion of Strikeforce’s “Shamrock vs. Diaz” mega-fight card at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. on Saturday, April 11.


“I feel like a new and improved person who’s not just in the sport to be in the sport. I’m in this to take it all the way,” said the 28 year-old Rogers, a 6-foot 5-inch, 265 pound human weapon, whose aggressive, unforgiving style of cage combat has ended each of his eight fights in the first round.


“There’s certain things in that first minute of the fight that people do and they do the same thing in every fight. The last couple of fights, I knew what my opponent was going to do and I just waited for him to do it,” explained Rogers of his calculated approach. “For the most part, I try to be as smart a fighter as I can.”


The majority of fans are familiar with Rogers’s kickboxing and Jiu-Jitsu skills, but what they have not yet seen put into play by the Minneapolis native is his background in Wing Chun, a Chinese martial art known for its aggressive striking techniques in close quarter combat.


“The way I see it, I just got to get to the point where I feel comfortable enough to use it,” said Rogers of his Wing Chun skill set. “I don’t know if I’m going to use it this time around but, once I do, it’s gonna be on.”


Humphrey, who hails from Atlanta, Ga., introduced himself to a national audience last year as a contestant on BET’s MMA reality series “Iron Ring” where he was a member of a fight team coached by MMA star, “Mr. International” Shonie Carter, and managed by hip-hop artist and producer Lil’ Jon.


“Some people are under the impression that most of the fighters on the show were push overs, but I fought and defeated some pretty well-known contenders,” said the 31-year-old Humphrey, who stands 5-11 and weighs approximately 245 pounds.


Amongst the fighters Humphrey defeated during his stint on “Iron Ring” were former K-1 USA contender, Jeff “Big Diesel” Ford, and Carlos Moreno, who Humphrey knocked out with a head kick.


“I move more like a 205-pounder than I do a 245. I bring a lot of athleticism and skill into the cage,” Humphrey asserted.


While his birth name is “Ronald,” Humphrey prefers to be addressed as “Abongo,” the name of an African warrior spirit believed to protect a village located in The Republic of Ghana. The moniker was bestowed upon him two and a half years ago after he endured a series of mentally and physically grueling tasks during a rites of passage trip to Africa.


Humphrey’s experience there inspired him to establish a non-profit organization that allows him to introduce other African-Americans to their heritage by bringing them to Africa.


“There’s certain things that are lacking in the black community here and one of them has to do with cultural identity,” explained Humphrey. “Fighting and doing the community work in Africa is something that really drives me and motivates me in life.”