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Helen Bernaciak awoke in her Sunnyvale home Thursday to the sound of gunfire and later watched officers slowly wheel a shrouded body -- believed to be that of suspected Cupertino gunman Shareef Allman -- to an ambulance.
“I was in bed, sleeping. It’s the shots that woke me up,” said Bernaciak, 75, a retiree who lives two houses from where the man was killed. “I’d never heard that sound before. All I know it was a horrible, horrible sound -- horrible.”
Later, she said, she spoke with three police officers, all of whom told her the man was dead.
Photos: Shooting at California quarry
“They didn’t drive in with their paramedic car," Bernaciak said by phone. "They wheeled him down the street all the way to Peacock [Avenue], eight or nine houses away.”
The shooting ended 24 hours of intense police activity along Lorne Way, a four-block street known more for well-groomed lawns, young children and a suburban Silicon Valley lifestyle.
That quiet was disrupted after a man believed to be Allman was spotted Wednesday morning leaving his brown Mercury Cougar at a gas station at Homestead and Wolfe roads a couple of blocks away. For the rest of the day, nothing was the same on Lorne Way.
“Helicopters woke me up yesterday,” Bernaciak said. “They searched our yards and they had the SWAT team up and down all day long, and guns -– oh gosh, everybody had a gun.
"We weren’t allowed to leave or come in," she said. "They kept everybody in. If you went out, they told you to go in. The kids all stayed home from school.”
Bernaciak watched as a bloodhound sniffed the street and seemed to respond to something at a house across from hers.
Come nightfall, all the activity gave Bernaciak confidence Allman could not be in the area.
“I wasn’t a bit worried,” she said. “I thought he’s so far gone from here or I never would have been able to sleep last night. I went to bed feeling fine.”
Bernaciak said she now wonders where Allman could have been hiding as she and her neighbors slept through the night.
“I’d like to know all that -- I guess I will, eventually,” she said.
2.
Steve Jobs' Estranged Father Never Got Phone Call He Waited For
Steve Jobs' estranged father, who had given up his infant son for adoption, had been hoping that his grown son would call him. That hope died today.
Abdulfattah John Jandali had emailed his son a few times in a tentative effort to make contact. The father never called the son because he feared Jobs would think the dad who had given him up was now after his fortune.
And Jobs never responded to his father's emails.
"I really don't have anything to say," Jandali, vice president at Boomtown Hotel Casino in Reno, Nev., told the International Business Times.
Jandali, a Syrian immigrant, had been quoted by the New York Post recently saying he didn't know until just a few years ago that the baby he and his ex-wife, Joanne Simpson, gave up grew to be Apple's CEO.
Jandali told the Post that had it been his choice, he would have kept the baby. But Simpson's father did not approve of her marrying a Syrian, so she moved to San Francisco to have the baby alone and give him up for adoption.
Steve Jobs Secretive Private Life
Jandali, who is 80, said at the time that he would have been happy to just have a cup of coffee with the son he never knew before it was too late. Stories of Jobs' battle with a form of pancreatic cancer and his liver transplant were public and Jobs' health had deteriorated to the point where he was forced to resign as CEO of Apple.
PHOTOS: Steve Jobs Through The Years
He was quoted as saying, "This might sound strange, though, but I am not prepared, even if either of us was on our deathbeds, to pick up the phone to call him."
Though he was one of the world's most famous CEOs, Steve Jobs has remained stubbornly private about his personal life, ignoring the media and the public's thirst for knowledge about him ever since he co-founded Apple Computer in 1976.
He was so successful at keeping the details of his life out of the celebrity pages that a Pew poll in June 2010 found that only 41 percent of Americans correctly identified Jobs as head of Apple. A CBS poll that year concluded that 69 percent of Americans didn't know enough about Jobs to have an opinion about him.
Jobs personal life was a story of extremes. Given up for adoption, he created a worldwide giant of a company in his garage, dated movie stars, and had a child out of wedlock who he denied for many years.
Many fans know that Jobs and his wife, Laurene Powell, have been married for more than 20 years; the two were married in a small ceremony in Yosemite National Park in 1991, live in Woodside, Calif., and have three children: Reed Paul, Erin Sienna, and Eve.
Less well-known are the other members of his family. He has a daughter, Lisa Brennan Jobs, born in 1978 with his high school girlfriend, Chris Ann Brennan.
His sister is Mona Simpson, the acclaimed writer of books like "Anywhere But Here." Jobs did not meet Simpson until they were adults, when he was seeking information on his birth parents. Simpson later wrote a book based on their relationship. In the book, "A Regular Guy," Simpson shed light on Jobs's relationship with Brennan and his daughter, Lisa.
PHOTOS: Apple Products Since the Beginning
Fortune magazine reported that Jobs denied paternity of Lisa for years, at one point swearing in a court document that he was infertile and could not have children. According to the report, Chris Ann Brennan collected welfare for a time to support the child, until Jobs later acknowledged Lisa as his daughter.
The college dropout was a millionaire by the age of 25 and on the cover of Time by 26. By 30, he was starting a second company, NeXT.
During those years, though, Jobs also lived an exciting personal life. He also began a relationship with singer Joan Baez, according to Elizabeth Holmes, a friend and classmate. In "The Second Coming of Steve Jobs," Holmes tells biographer Alan Deutschman that Jobs broke up with his serious girlfriend to "begin an affair with the charismatic singer-activist." Holmes confirmed these details to ABC News.
Deutschman's book also says Jobs went on a blind date with Diane Keaton; went out with Lisa Birnbach, author of "The Preppy Handbook;" and hand delivered computers to celebrities he admired.
3. Steve Jobs, dead at 56, had a rare form of pancreatic cancer
Abdulfattah John Jandali had emailed his son a few times in a tentative effort to make contact. The father never called the son because he feared Jobs would think the dad who had given him up was now after his fortune.
And Jobs never responded to his father's emails.
"I really don't have anything to say," Jandali, vice president at Boomtown Hotel Casino in Reno, Nev., told the International Business Times.
Jandali, a Syrian immigrant, had been quoted by the New York Post recently saying he didn't know until just a few years ago that the baby he and his ex-wife, Joanne Simpson, gave up grew to be Apple's CEO.
Jandali told the Post that had it been his choice, he would have kept the baby. But Simpson's father did not approve of her marrying a Syrian, so she moved to San Francisco to have the baby alone and give him up for adoption.
Steve Jobs Secretive Private Life
Jandali, who is 80, said at the time that he would have been happy to just have a cup of coffee with the son he never knew before it was too late. Stories of Jobs' battle with a form of pancreatic cancer and his liver transplant were public and Jobs' health had deteriorated to the point where he was forced to resign as CEO of Apple.
PHOTOS: Steve Jobs Through The Years
He was quoted as saying, "This might sound strange, though, but I am not prepared, even if either of us was on our deathbeds, to pick up the phone to call him."
Andy Freeberg/Getty Images
A young Steve Jobs of Apple Computers smiles... View Full Size
Steve Jobs: Inspiration in His Own Words Watch Video
Steve Wozniak on the Death of Steve Jobs Watch Video
Steve Jobs: 1955-2011 Watch Video
He was so successful at keeping the details of his life out of the celebrity pages that a Pew poll in June 2010 found that only 41 percent of Americans correctly identified Jobs as head of Apple. A CBS poll that year concluded that 69 percent of Americans didn't know enough about Jobs to have an opinion about him.
Jobs personal life was a story of extremes. Given up for adoption, he created a worldwide giant of a company in his garage, dated movie stars, and had a child out of wedlock who he denied for many years.
Many fans know that Jobs and his wife, Laurene Powell, have been married for more than 20 years; the two were married in a small ceremony in Yosemite National Park in 1991, live in Woodside, Calif., and have three children: Reed Paul, Erin Sienna, and Eve.
Less well-known are the other members of his family. He has a daughter, Lisa Brennan Jobs, born in 1978 with his high school girlfriend, Chris Ann Brennan.
His sister is Mona Simpson, the acclaimed writer of books like "Anywhere But Here." Jobs did not meet Simpson until they were adults, when he was seeking information on his birth parents. Simpson later wrote a book based on their relationship. In the book, "A Regular Guy," Simpson shed light on Jobs's relationship with Brennan and his daughter, Lisa.
PHOTOS: Apple Products Since the Beginning
Fortune magazine reported that Jobs denied paternity of Lisa for years, at one point swearing in a court document that he was infertile and could not have children. According to the report, Chris Ann Brennan collected welfare for a time to support the child, until Jobs later acknowledged Lisa as his daughter.
The college dropout was a millionaire by the age of 25 and on the cover of Time by 26. By 30, he was starting a second company, NeXT.
During those years, though, Jobs also lived an exciting personal life. He also began a relationship with singer Joan Baez, according to Elizabeth Holmes, a friend and classmate. In "The Second Coming of Steve Jobs," Holmes tells biographer Alan Deutschman that Jobs broke up with his serious girlfriend to "begin an affair with the charismatic singer-activist." Holmes confirmed these details to ABC News.
Deutschman's book also says Jobs went on a blind date with Diane Keaton; went out with Lisa Birnbach, author of "The Preppy Handbook;" and hand delivered computers to celebrities he admired.
3. Steve Jobs, dead at 56, had a rare form of pancreatic cancer
Steve Jobs arrives with the team from the best-picture-nominated film "Up" at the 82nd Academy Awards in Hollywood. The Apple co-founder and former CEO died Wednesday at the age of 56, after a years-long and highly public battle with cancer. (Lucas Jackson / Reuters / March 7, 2010)
Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, who passed away today at the age of 56, had a rare form of pancreatic cancer called pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer, which produces islet cell or neuroendocrine tumors.
This form is usually less aggressive than pancreatic exocrine cancer and patients can live longer, with the average survival rate more than three years. Some people with the neuroendocrine form can live as long as 20 years.
Several forms of treatment are available. Jobs was diagnosed in 2003, had a liver transplant in 2009 and took an extended medical leave from Apple last January.
During his public appearances before he retired as Apple's CEO in August, it was evident Jobs had lost a significant amount of weight.
“Weight loss when it comes to advanced cancer is never a good thing,” said Dr. Jack Jacoub, a medical oncologist at MemorialCare Cancer Institute at Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in Fountain Valley. Keeping body weight up and healthy while fighting the disease is key, he added. “We use 10% weight loss as being a negative prognosticator.”
There’s a propensity for the disease to spread from the pancreas to the liver, Jacoub said -- which is why many local treatments focus on attacking cancer cells in the liver, including destroying them with heat or surgically removing them.
In some cases, removing a diseased liver entirely and replacing it with a donor liver is an option -- but liver transplants aren’t that common among people with this type of pancreatic cancer, Dr. Craig Devoe said in August. Devoe is an an oncologist at the North Shore-LIJ Health System in New Hyde Park, N.Y., who specializes in pancreatic cancer. But a transplant can be done when other options have run out or when the disease has spread to the liver. It’s not typically thought of as a cure.
Even after a liver transplant, the cancer can recur, Jacoub said, which may have been what happened in Jobs' case. “Probably nine out of 10 times it’s the recurrence of the cancer, but it’s also possible that he suffered from the toxicity of the drugs that he was taking,” Jacoub said. Infections can also occur because the drugs keeping the body from rejecting the liver transplant suppress the immune system.
Neuroendocrine tumors can grow slowly; ones that are functional can secrete hormones and cause symptoms such as stomach ulcers, high blood sugar or skin rashes. Nonfunctioning tumors can grow without being noticed, and they don't produce hormones or symptoms.
The disease is sometimes treated like a condition, much like diabetes. Therapies include medication and low-toxic oral chemotherapy. Two drugs, Sutent and Afinitor, were shown in two 2011 New England Journal of Medicine studies to slow the progression of tumors. Peptide receptor radiotherapy is another form of treatment in which peptides radiate neuroendocrine tumor cell receptors.
Jobs, Jacoub said, likely had many resources available to fight the cancer, and there was little that could have been done differently. Living in the public eye, Jobs dealt with the disease “in such a graceful way -- you’d be hard pressed to find another person that did it on his terms,” Jacoub said.
This form is usually less aggressive than pancreatic exocrine cancer and patients can live longer, with the average survival rate more than three years. Some people with the neuroendocrine form can live as long as 20 years.
Several forms of treatment are available. Jobs was diagnosed in 2003, had a liver transplant in 2009 and took an extended medical leave from Apple last January.
During his public appearances before he retired as Apple's CEO in August, it was evident Jobs had lost a significant amount of weight.
“Weight loss when it comes to advanced cancer is never a good thing,” said Dr. Jack Jacoub, a medical oncologist at MemorialCare Cancer Institute at Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in Fountain Valley. Keeping body weight up and healthy while fighting the disease is key, he added. “We use 10% weight loss as being a negative prognosticator.”
There’s a propensity for the disease to spread from the pancreas to the liver, Jacoub said -- which is why many local treatments focus on attacking cancer cells in the liver, including destroying them with heat or surgically removing them.
In some cases, removing a diseased liver entirely and replacing it with a donor liver is an option -- but liver transplants aren’t that common among people with this type of pancreatic cancer, Dr. Craig Devoe said in August. Devoe is an an oncologist at the North Shore-LIJ Health System in New Hyde Park, N.Y., who specializes in pancreatic cancer. But a transplant can be done when other options have run out or when the disease has spread to the liver. It’s not typically thought of as a cure.
Even after a liver transplant, the cancer can recur, Jacoub said, which may have been what happened in Jobs' case. “Probably nine out of 10 times it’s the recurrence of the cancer, but it’s also possible that he suffered from the toxicity of the drugs that he was taking,” Jacoub said. Infections can also occur because the drugs keeping the body from rejecting the liver transplant suppress the immune system.
Neuroendocrine tumors can grow slowly; ones that are functional can secrete hormones and cause symptoms such as stomach ulcers, high blood sugar or skin rashes. Nonfunctioning tumors can grow without being noticed, and they don't produce hormones or symptoms.
The disease is sometimes treated like a condition, much like diabetes. Therapies include medication and low-toxic oral chemotherapy. Two drugs, Sutent and Afinitor, were shown in two 2011 New England Journal of Medicine studies to slow the progression of tumors. Peptide receptor radiotherapy is another form of treatment in which peptides radiate neuroendocrine tumor cell receptors.
Jobs, Jacoub said, likely had many resources available to fight the cancer, and there was little that could have been done differently. Living in the public eye, Jobs dealt with the disease “in such a graceful way -- you’d be hard pressed to find another person that did it on his terms,” Jacoub said.
Even someone who’s not a total Apple fan girl could easily see why someone would be, while at Apple’s flagship store in New York City Wednesday night, following the news of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs’s death. At the NYC store, there were throngs of mourners, shoppers and people simply trying to get on camera. Media presence was high. People were chastised for loitering, and repeat offenders were asked to leave the premises.
Security and police removed letters, confiscated flowers, and blew out memorial candles consistently for three hours after news of Jobs’s death surfaced. One frustrated man ripped three bouquets away from security and demanded to know where he could place them without fear of removal. After that, security eased, and a shrine slowly began to form.
Here are a few of the notes left for Steve, presented anonymously.
If you saw this notebook on the steps, what would you have written?
"You inspired me"
Dear Steve, You inspired me to care deeply about the things I make, people I spend my time with, and choices I make every day. I learned about thinking different and embracing it. Your innovations have changed me and our world. I hope we can continue your legacy by continuing to work in your likeness by being overwhelmingly passionate about what we do and caring about the people around us.
Thank you.
- Nick
Thank you.
- Nick
Letters to Steve
5.Steve Jobs' Legacy, And Apple's Record, Will Live On
The first time Steve Jobs left Apple, in 1985, he was fired. In short, his partners in upper management and the board of directors at that time did not share Jobs' vision for Apple. His friend Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle Corp. (ORCL), recently quipped upon the firing of another high-profile CEO that it was "the second-dumbest decision by a board of directors next to Apple's firing of Steve Jobs.” What follows will be a review of the consequences of Steve Jobs’ firing, followed by what he accomplished upon his return.
Apple’s Earnings After Jobs Was Fired
The following graphical review looks at Apple Computer's operating track record from 1992 to 1997, the year upon which Steve Jobs was hired back. Unfortunately, the F.A.S.T. Graphs™ earnings and price-correlated research tool only goes back 20 years, and therefore cannot go all the way back to 1985, the year Jobs was fired. However, the six-year period 1992 to 1997 clearly depicts the ultimate consequences of Apple’s fateful decision. Earnings per share were on a steady downward trajectory from $1.08 per share in 1992 to losses in 1996 and 1997.
This second graph shows how Apple's stock price followed its earnings down during this dark period in Apple's history. The price of Apple stock fell from a high of $17.50 in 1992 to a low of $3.19 by the end of 1997.
The following performance results for the period 12/31/1991 to12/31/1997 shows that Apple shareholders suffered a compounded annual loss of 21.5% per annum during these last six years of Jobs' absence. To put that into perspective, a $100,000 investment fell to $23,280 for a cumulative 77% loss of shareholder capital.
After Steve Jobs was fired from Apple, he founded NeXT Computer and bought the company The Graphics Group, which he eventually renamed Pixar. In 1996, Apple Computer purchased NeXT Computer, which led to Steve Jobs retaking the reins, first as interim CEO, then permanent CEO by calendar year 2000, until his recent resignation earlier this year. Although it took Jobs a few years to recalibrate his beloved Apple Computer, the long-term results that followed were extraordinary. It is said that Jobs once quipped that he was iCEO, obviously referring to the great success of his "iProduct" launches. The graphical presentation below says it all.
When Steve Returned
Since calendar year 1997, Apple Computer, under Steve Jobs’ guidance, generated earnings growth of 34.4% per annum. The first few years were a struggle as Jobs reengineered Apple's products and culture and recalibrated it back to his own vision. Utilizing his NeXT technology as its new foundation, and under his direct order for the development of his iVision, Apple Computer’s lineup of offerings was transformed in just one short year. The rest, as they say, is history. From calendar year 2001 to current, Apple Inc.’s earnings per share have been on an uninterrupted upward trajectory.
However, as can be seen from the graph below, depicting monthly closing stock prices since his return, it is crystal clear that shareholders were rewarded handsomely with Jobs' return. Apple Inc.'s stock price has risen from its low of $3.19 in 1997 to its closing price on October 5, 2011 of $378.25.
Shareholder performance after Steve Jobs’ return has been extraordinary, averaging 33.6% per annum during a time when the S&P 500 only returned 4.5% per annum. A $100,000 investment on 12/31/1996 and held until yesterday's close would have grown to over $7.25 million, and this is without the company paying a dividend. The same $100,000 investment in the S&P 500 would have only grown to $192,467, which includes over $38,000 in dividends.
The astounding returns that Apple shareholders enjoyed under Jobs' guidance, although extraordinary, do not, in our opinion, reflect the full value of Apple’s shares. We believe that a strong case could be made that Apple’s stock should be trading at a P/E ratio north of 20 instead of the meager 13.6 P/E ratio it currently commands. In other words, we think that Mr. Market is significantly undervaluing Apple’s shares, possibly from a fearful anticipation of his tragic loss of a life too short.
Considerations of Apple's Future
Based on what has been seen and written thus far, it would be easy to conclude that Apple may be in trouble now that Steve Jobs is gone. However, as we alluded to in the opening paragraph of this article, we believe that this second, and unfortunately permanent, departure of Steve Jobs will have an entirely different impact on Apple's future than did his first, temporary, sojourn.
Upon his first departure, the Apple Computer Co. rejected Steve Jobs’ vision and took the company in a very different and obviously disastrous direction. However, this time we believe the company continues to embrace the vision that this extraordinary visionary of a man has instilled within every fiber of the company's current culture. We believe Jobs' legacy lives on in the hearts and minds of all the Apple employees and culture. Therefore, we further believe that Steve's contribution will be a lasting one, and that Apple's future profitability and growth will continue into the distant future.
Steve Jobs on Trust
I personally believe that Steve Jobs is more than an iconic computer genius and legendary businessman. I believe that Steve Jobs is also a great teacher, and that his legacy transcends his computer company. In the technology section of today's Wall Street Journal, there is an article titled "Jobs: 'Find What You Love.'" I have printed copies for my children to read. They are two excerpts that I would like to share in this article.
The first excerpt discusses Steve Jobs’ basis for optimism -- trust. In the recent past, I have written optimistic articles that have been well received by many, but also scoffed at by a few.
Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.This second excerpt speaks to not only the secret to happiness in life, but also the secret to long-term success. I feel blessed to, like Jobs did, have found an occupation that I love. When you're lucky enough to do this, there is no job, instead you have the means to pursue your passion. This is where true happiness lies, and why I felt so strongly about sharing it with my children. There's also a lesson on perseverance in dealing with life's inevitable challenges.
I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.In addition to the life lessons Steve Jobs has provided as discussed above, his legacy as a businessman also provides important lessons on investing. This little study on Apple Computer, both with and without Steve Jobs, clearly illustrates the importance and benefits of owning great American businesses. There's a lot of doom and gloom in the world today, and with it a lot of rejection regarding the ownership of common stocks. We believe that this portends to create tragic consequences. Apple Inc. is just one of many great American businesses that are very attractively valued today. The best time to invest is when prices are low; we believe that time is now. We intend to own Apple for a long time to come.
Disclosure: I am long AAPL at the time of writing.
Disclaimer: The opinions in this document are for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell the stocks mentioned or to solicit transactions or clients. Past performance of the companies discussed may not continue, and the companies may not achieve the earnings growth predicted. The information in this document is believed to be accurate, but under no circumstances should a person act upon the information contained within. We do not recommend that anyone act upon any investment information without first consulting an investment advisor as to the suitability of such investments for his specific situation
6.Character actor Charles Napier dies at 75
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) — Character actor Charles Napier, whose granite jaw and toothy grin earned him tough-guy roles in movies like "Rambo: First Blood Part 2," has died in California at 75.
Longtime friend Dennis Wilson tells the Bakersfield Californian (http://bit.ly/nzMUen ) that Napier died Wednesday at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital. No other details are being released.
Napier may be best known as the scheming intelligence officer facing Sylvester Stallone in the 1985 "Rambo" sequel.
He's also remembered as Good Ole Boys front man Tucker McElroy in the 1980 musical comedy film "The Blues Brothers."
Napier was the judge in 1993's "Philadelphia," and he was Lt. Bill Boyle in 1991's "Silence of the Lambs."
7.Sprint iPhone Will Come With Unlimited Data Plan Option
(Reuters) - Sprint Nextel plans to offer customers who buy the Apple Inc iPhone its unlimited data service for a flat monthly fee, potentially putting pressure on bigger rivals Verizon Wireless and AT&T Inc. Sprint will become the third U.S. mobile provider to start selling the next iPhone model along with AT&T and Verizon Wireless, which both charge consumers for services like mobile web-surfing on the basis of how much they use.
Sprint will be banking on the iPhone to bolster customer numbers as it has been losing subscribers for years.
While analysts say that unlimited data could give Sprint an edge over Verizon and AT&T among heavy data users, they still say that the majority of Sprint iPhone customers will be people who are already on the Sprint network.
Nomura Securities analyst Mike McCormack estimated that only about 10 percent of Sprint's iPhone customers will move from another carrier compared with 33 percent at AT&T and Verizon Wireless.
Verizon Wireless is a venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group Plc.
8. ‘American Horror Story’: Why It’s the Best New Show of the Fall
We realize this is a pretty bold statement, but after watching all the new broadcast and cable TV shows, we feel confident in saying it: FX's supremely creepy horror/drama "American Horror Story" is hands down the best new show of the fall.
Not that the praise is unanimous. This latest creation from "Glee" and "Nip/Tuck" masterminds Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk has received a decidedly mixed reaction from critics: The New York Times chides the show for its "hollow theatricality" while allowing that it has "the potential to be a lot of fun"; Hitfix's Alan Sepinwall simply calls it "an overwrought mess." And some viewers are bound to be turned off by the show's copious amounts of sex and violence. But we love the way "AHS" takes a well-worn premise -- a family moves into a haunted house -- and transforms it into a mind-bending, pulse-pounding, gasp-inducing, utterly compelling piece of television.
Before "AHS" makes its much-anticipated debut this Wednesday, read on to see why we think it's well worth checking out… if you dare.
It's got a killer cast
TV vets Dylan McDermott ("The Practice") and Connie Britton (who we'll love forever as Tami Taylor on "Friday Night Lights") star as estranged husband and wife Ben and Vivien Harmon, who bring inner demons of their own into the house (her miscarriage, his infidelity). The supporting cast is uniformly strong, too, including Taissa Farmiga as Violet, the Harmons' sullen teen daughter; Evan Peters as Tate, a troubled teen with violent tendencies; and Oscar winner Jessica Lange as nosy neighbor Constance, who coats her insults in sugary-sweet Southern charm.
It's genuinely scary
AMC's "The Walking Dead" opened the door for truly frightening horror on cable TV, but "AHS" kicks that door down with authority. From the chilling flashback prologue, in which troublemaking twin boys get what's coming to them, to the countless jumps and frights throughout, the pilot (directed by Murphy) expertly builds a sense of almost-unbearable tension that doesn't let up for the entire hour. Take our word for it: Don't watch this right before bed.
But it's more freaky than gory
Sure, there's a decent amount of blood in "American Horror Story" -- enough to fully justify its TV-MA rating. But most of the show's scares are more of the freaky psychological nature, a la "Twin Peaks." (And we always prefer being freaked out to being grossed out.) Once the Harmons move into the house, Ben starts sleepwalking and having crazy visions, so we can't be sure if what we're seeing is really happening or all in his mind. And while we get a few vivid glimpses of the house's bloody history, much of that is left to our imagination -- and the episodes to follow, of course.
[Check Out Photos from the 'American Horror Story' Red Carpet Premiere]
It looks fantastic
Murphy and Falchuk have said they were consciously trying to evoke classic '70s horror films like "The Shining" with the look of "AHS," and they succeeded. The spotless cinematography by Christopher Baffa has a rich and textured vintage feel to it that helps ground the show's more off-the-wall plot developments in reality -- and makes overly-glossy network dramas look phony by comparison. Heck, even the old-timey font used in the credits looks great.
It's not afraid to get "sexy"
Yes, "AHS" pushes the envelope with its adults-only sexual content. But we have to put "sexy" in quotes because the show's sex scenes always have a disturbing undercurrent to them. For example: The house comes with a loyal old maid (Frances Conroy, "Six Feet Under") who's maintained the home for decades. But when Ben looks at the maid, he sees a beautiful young temptress (Alexandra Breckenridge) he can't help but fantasize about. So is he really getting all hot and bothered about an old lady? And we won't even mention the rubber bondage suit hanging in the attic. Oh shoot… we just did.
It's not for everyone
This may sound like a strange selling point, but we kind of like how not everyone is onboard with this show. While the major TV networks endlessly tweak and water down their shows to appeal to every possible demographic (hi, "Terra Nova"!), it's nice to see a show take some artistic chances and risk offending some people. We're sure there will be plenty of people who hate "American Horror Story"… but we think there'll be just as many who absolutely love it.
[Check Out Photos of the 'American Horror Story' Cast]
We're intrigued by the possibilities
The premiere ends with a shocking twist that nicely sets up the season to come, and there are plenty of storylines to watch going forward: the thawing divide between Ben and Vivien; the unsettling romance developing between Violet and Tate; and, most importantly, what happened in that house before the Harmons got there -- and what's going to happen to them now that they're in it. All in all, we can't wait to watch the next chapter in this "Horror Story" unfold.
Get a sneak peek at "American Horror Story" right here:
"American Horror Story" premieres Wednesday, 10/5 at 10pm on FX.
9.Semper Fi: Marines Coming To Protect Protesters On Wall Street
The thousands of indefatigable Wall Street protestors, risking their eyes and recording equipment against Wall Street’s personal jack-booted thugs in the NYPD, recently garnered even more support– the US Marines. That’s the type of support that may make an NYPD cop think twice before he decides to go all Tiananmen Square on a group of teenage girls, armed with chalk and cardboard signs (maybe it’s because they are spelled properly?).
The Occupy Wall Street movement may have thought it broke new ground when the NYC Transit Union joined their movement, but that ground just tipped the Richter Scale with news that United States Army and Marine troops are reportedly on their way to various protest locations to support the movement and to protect the protesters.
10.Check PAGE RANK of Web site pages Instantly
On your web pages the tool will look like this:
Page Rank Icons: If you'd like to add a PageRank Button to your site, i.e. the small PR icon that can display the CURRENT Page Rank value of your site right on your pages - click here
Longtime friend Dennis Wilson tells the Bakersfield Californian (http://bit.ly/nzMUen ) that Napier died Wednesday at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital. No other details are being released.
Napier may be best known as the scheming intelligence officer facing Sylvester Stallone in the 1985 "Rambo" sequel.
He's also remembered as Good Ole Boys front man Tucker McElroy in the 1980 musical comedy film "The Blues Brothers."
Napier was the judge in 1993's "Philadelphia," and he was Lt. Bill Boyle in 1991's "Silence of the Lambs."
7.Sprint iPhone Will Come With Unlimited Data Plan Option
(Reuters) - Sprint Nextel plans to offer customers who buy the Apple Inc iPhone its unlimited data service for a flat monthly fee, potentially putting pressure on bigger rivals Verizon Wireless and AT&T Inc. Sprint will become the third U.S. mobile provider to start selling the next iPhone model along with AT&T and Verizon Wireless, which both charge consumers for services like mobile web-surfing on the basis of how much they use.Sprint will be banking on the iPhone to bolster customer numbers as it has been losing subscribers for years.
While analysts say that unlimited data could give Sprint an edge over Verizon and AT&T among heavy data users, they still say that the majority of Sprint iPhone customers will be people who are already on the Sprint network.
Nomura Securities analyst Mike McCormack estimated that only about 10 percent of Sprint's iPhone customers will move from another carrier compared with 33 percent at AT&T and Verizon Wireless.
Verizon Wireless is a venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group Plc.
8. ‘American Horror Story’: Why It’s the Best New Show of the Fall
We realize this is a pretty bold statement, but after watching all the new broadcast and cable TV shows, we feel confident in saying it: FX's supremely creepy horror/drama "American Horror Story" is hands down the best new show of the fall.
Not that the praise is unanimous. This latest creation from "Glee" and "Nip/Tuck" masterminds Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk has received a decidedly mixed reaction from critics: The New York Times chides the show for its "hollow theatricality" while allowing that it has "the potential to be a lot of fun"; Hitfix's Alan Sepinwall simply calls it "an overwrought mess." And some viewers are bound to be turned off by the show's copious amounts of sex and violence. But we love the way "AHS" takes a well-worn premise -- a family moves into a haunted house -- and transforms it into a mind-bending, pulse-pounding, gasp-inducing, utterly compelling piece of television.
Before "AHS" makes its much-anticipated debut this Wednesday, read on to see why we think it's well worth checking out… if you dare.
It's got a killer cast
TV vets Dylan McDermott ("The Practice") and Connie Britton (who we'll love forever as Tami Taylor on "Friday Night Lights") star as estranged husband and wife Ben and Vivien Harmon, who bring inner demons of their own into the house (her miscarriage, his infidelity). The supporting cast is uniformly strong, too, including Taissa Farmiga as Violet, the Harmons' sullen teen daughter; Evan Peters as Tate, a troubled teen with violent tendencies; and Oscar winner Jessica Lange as nosy neighbor Constance, who coats her insults in sugary-sweet Southern charm.
It's genuinely scary
AMC's "The Walking Dead" opened the door for truly frightening horror on cable TV, but "AHS" kicks that door down with authority. From the chilling flashback prologue, in which troublemaking twin boys get what's coming to them, to the countless jumps and frights throughout, the pilot (directed by Murphy) expertly builds a sense of almost-unbearable tension that doesn't let up for the entire hour. Take our word for it: Don't watch this right before bed.
But it's more freaky than gory
Sure, there's a decent amount of blood in "American Horror Story" -- enough to fully justify its TV-MA rating. But most of the show's scares are more of the freaky psychological nature, a la "Twin Peaks." (And we always prefer being freaked out to being grossed out.) Once the Harmons move into the house, Ben starts sleepwalking and having crazy visions, so we can't be sure if what we're seeing is really happening or all in his mind. And while we get a few vivid glimpses of the house's bloody history, much of that is left to our imagination -- and the episodes to follow, of course.
[Check Out Photos from the 'American Horror Story' Red Carpet Premiere]
It looks fantastic
Murphy and Falchuk have said they were consciously trying to evoke classic '70s horror films like "The Shining" with the look of "AHS," and they succeeded. The spotless cinematography by Christopher Baffa has a rich and textured vintage feel to it that helps ground the show's more off-the-wall plot developments in reality -- and makes overly-glossy network dramas look phony by comparison. Heck, even the old-timey font used in the credits looks great.
It's not afraid to get "sexy"
Yes, "AHS" pushes the envelope with its adults-only sexual content. But we have to put "sexy" in quotes because the show's sex scenes always have a disturbing undercurrent to them. For example: The house comes with a loyal old maid (Frances Conroy, "Six Feet Under") who's maintained the home for decades. But when Ben looks at the maid, he sees a beautiful young temptress (Alexandra Breckenridge) he can't help but fantasize about. So is he really getting all hot and bothered about an old lady? And we won't even mention the rubber bondage suit hanging in the attic. Oh shoot… we just did.
It's not for everyone
This may sound like a strange selling point, but we kind of like how not everyone is onboard with this show. While the major TV networks endlessly tweak and water down their shows to appeal to every possible demographic (hi, "Terra Nova"!), it's nice to see a show take some artistic chances and risk offending some people. We're sure there will be plenty of people who hate "American Horror Story"… but we think there'll be just as many who absolutely love it.
[Check Out Photos of the 'American Horror Story' Cast]
We're intrigued by the possibilities
The premiere ends with a shocking twist that nicely sets up the season to come, and there are plenty of storylines to watch going forward: the thawing divide between Ben and Vivien; the unsettling romance developing between Violet and Tate; and, most importantly, what happened in that house before the Harmons got there -- and what's going to happen to them now that they're in it. All in all, we can't wait to watch the next chapter in this "Horror Story" unfold.
Get a sneak peek at "American Horror Story" right here:
"American Horror Story" premieres Wednesday, 10/5 at 10pm on FX.
9.Semper Fi: Marines Coming To Protect Protesters On Wall Street
The thousands of indefatigable Wall Street protestors, risking their eyes and recording equipment against Wall Street’s personal jack-booted thugs in the NYPD, recently garnered even more support– the US Marines. That’s the type of support that may make an NYPD cop think twice before he decides to go all Tiananmen Square on a group of teenage girls, armed with chalk and cardboard signs (maybe it’s because they are spelled properly?).
The Occupy Wall Street movement may have thought it broke new ground when the NYC Transit Union joined their movement, but that ground just tipped the Richter Scale with news that United States Army and Marine troops are reportedly on their way to various protest locations to support the movement and to protect the protesters.
Here’s the message Ward Reilly relayed from another Marine, on his facebook page:
“I’m heading up there tonight in my dress blues. So far, 15 of my fellow marine buddies are meeting me there, also in Uniform. I want to send the following message to Wall St and Congress:I didn’t fight for Wall St. I fought for America. Now it’s Congress’ turn.
My true hope, though, is that we Veterans can act as first line of defense between the police and the protester. If they want to get to some protesters so they can mace them, they will have to get through the Fucking Marine Corps first. Let’s see a cop mace a bunch of decorated war vets.I apologize now for typos and errors.
Typing this on iPhone whilst heading to NYC. We can organize once we’re there. That’s what we do best.If you see someone in uniform, gather together.
A formation will be held tonight at 10PM.
We all took an oath to uphold, protect and defend the constitution of this country. That’s what we will be doing.10.Check PAGE RANK of Web site pages Instantly
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