Those cats couldn't care less about a stupid hunk of snow, but bless 'em for humoring you guys anyway. Hope Santa is good to everyone this year!

I couldn't believe I was actually making a point of watching this last night (appointment TV!), but when Snooks busted out with the backflips, I raised my glass to MTV. And to you, sir.

Wasn't "Down with Snookie" an old Robin Williams / Jon Stewart movie that flopped at the box office?

@gif #4 - photographic proof that La Toya Jackson invented the fingerbang. Clever girl.

Thanks for the insightful transcription work, Rich. Based on your uncanny knack for interpreting alien cultural cues, I'd say there's a post at the UN with your name on it. It's great you're wading into this for our sakes, but beware the hazards of anthropological osmosis - i.e. "going native" - there could be a tanning bed purchase in your near future if you're not careful!

Hilarious as always, Rich. I might've watched this mess had it featured wall-to-wall Whitney, but apparently, all we got was a little taste of heaven. Oh, and RIP Nicole's face. :(

All the best on your B-Day Rich. I knew there must've been a reason you showed up in a dream of mine last night. You were eating peanuts from the shell at a bar and I tried to talk to you, but I kept having sudden fits of narcolepsy so the bouncers threw me out...

Why no love for TLI, Rich? Also, while I get that you and Gabe are busy guys, I figure the next "Rich & Gabe Watch (...)" video is long overdue. Since he has an aversion to scary movies, why not tie him down, prop open his eyelids with toothpicks, and have a good old-fashioned horror marathon? And Vanessa, I know what you mean, and it's been - god - 25 years since I saw Breakfast Club. Wait, that can't be right...twenty-five YEARS? *dies of old age*.

A lot of blame for this confusion can be laid at the feet of industry publicists, agents, managers and promoters for blurring the lines between new genres (which urban radio stations themselves set up and capitalized on in the first place). The rappification (for lack of a better term) of seemingly unrelated urban musical styles has been going on for decades. Forget the NY Post - blame the Harvard MBA grads in the recording industry who successfully marketed the rap culture to a generation of white kids who didn't (and weren't supposed to) know any better. Also, I'm willing to bet that a lot of artists are themselves unhappy with the "R&B" label they get saddled with. It seems like there's a forced soft/hard adult/youth dichotomy at work here that's so pernicious. It's like black music is being decocted down to two flavors - R&B or Rap. Sadly, a lot of people now think that's all urban artists have to offer. And just as the industry fused "rhythm" and "blues" into a meaningless umbrella term, don't be surprised if you start hearing people refer to black musicians in the future as "RBR" arists. (That would be Rhythm, Blues & Rap, and damn the distinctions and subtleties, because after all, the important denominator is their skin color, right?)

If you can't control your dog's behavior without launching terrifying noise-grenades at it, then you might be better off with a goldfish. Yes...an infinitely patient, deaf goldfish would be just right for you.

Just saw the movie and was quite impressed. I guess everything depends on what sort of expectations you bring in to the experience. Sometimes it's good to be out of the loop, (as I was).

Mychael Knight's face is frozen in mid-lisp on my screen as we speak. I was watching the Project Runway All-Star Challenge last night and paused it before I went to bed. That's a little freaky. And I'm totally on board with you jabbing a hole through your finger, as per Whitney's helpful/horrifying advice. Just make sure you film it and post the gory results here on Halloween. (Erin the Evil Imp suggests you use a rusty awl.)

And also, Rich? You're gonna give somebody a heart attack posting a tombstone picture under a post titled "All Blogs Go to Heaven". Because if fourfour went to heaven, it would be hell.

That girl just need a hug (AKA love) and now is too late,lol I still like her though.

I couldn't get the thing to play either, not even on the Twi-Cats page. And yesterday, I couldn't even get this comment text box to appear... Although all that really needs to be said is: "Winston, don't let all this fame go to your (edible) head!"

What a lovely, reflective, honest and delightful post, Rich. You don't usually share a lot of personal stuff, except for tantalizing crumbs left here and there, and it was a rare pleasure to read (and identify with) such private recollections. Madonna definitely qualifies as a fearless fag-magnet. Many wouldn't put her on par with the likes of Billie Holiday, Edith Piaf, Ethel Merman and Judy Garland simply because tragedy bounces off her, and failure refuses to even register on her radar. She's that rare performer who's more fearsome than her own inner demons. She commands attention and will not go quietly. And in a way, that's a victory for all modern artists, women, and gays alike.

Erin looks like a cat flinging a white mouse with her teeth in that GIF! Come to think of it, we haven't had a good critter-themed photoshoot in a while. Unless you count horses as vermin, which only giant people can really do, and let's face it - these girls are pretty much the opposite of giants. I hope after this someone puts Laura in a slasher movie. She'd be a perfect Final Girl. Instead of being a shell-shocked, hollowed-out husk of a human being at the end, she'd emerge from the carnage with a spring in her step and a carefree smile on her sweet face. Great recap, Rich. You should get some kind of Olde Timey Award for that Elixer GIF.

Seeing the BF in the shower is another excellent reason to wash your cat. (Also, RIP Winston)

I don't know, Christina, maybe modeling is the PERFECT thing for a nine-year-old to be doing. It's just dress-up and making faces, after all. Kids do that anyway. When Diva gets all that out of her system, grows up, graduates from college with a PHD in Bioengineering and gets her first grant from an international medical research conglomerate, well...at least she won't be tempted to ditch it all in a misguided, naive attempt at being a famous swimsuit model. Because she knows better. And because her name will still be "Diva Davanna". Great recap, Rich. That fading Oompa Loompa GIF was da shizzle! (-ish!)

Now that your mention it, Rich, I've never found your GIFs slowing down my page loads at all. Obviously, you've perfected the fine art of GIFing to such a degree they're like gossamer, or those fine boutique-bakery puff pastries. And when I finally DO visit Times Square, there's no chance of me getting out of your way. No chance in hell, buddy. Great recap.

Great analysis - too bad the mindless Shapes that make the opening-weekend box-office bean-counters drool won't be reading it. Is there an irony in the fact that Carpenter and Hill were basically leveraged/contractually arm-twisted into making Halloween 2, whereas Zombie was under no such legal obligation? Y'know, I like Rob Zombie...he's very well-spoken and articulate, but am I to gather then, that he felt an artistic obligation to remake what was primarily a creatively bankrupt retread? Because that's just ridiculous.

I think I like her new voice, too. With this track, she almost reminds me of Anita Ward. Very bouncy, groovy and fun.

It's always a shame when something so trashy-looking turns out to be just plain garbage.

Oh man, this makes me feel old - the Universal tour I saw in CA featured Cylons (from the original series) shooting their laser cannons into the crowd. The term "butthead" hadn't yet entered the public lexicon. 'Scuze me while I go break a hip.

I think "celebrity glaucoma" is an outstanding turn of a phrase, Rich. Unfortunately, its metaphoric nature will be lost on the producers of VH1's inevitable new series Celebrity Glaucoma!. (OTOH, watching Jeff Conaway stumble around bumping into things never gets old.)