When newspapers cross the

When newspapers cross the line: The New York Times' Tolkien Archives.

Is the "Sponsored Feature" label enough to denote this page as paid advertising? Why didn't the Times simply and clearly label the page "Paid Advertisement"?

A friend tells me

A friend tells me that this intense unrest that many people my age are feeling -- something that I suspect is brought on by this generation’s inaugural recession -- is best referred to as a quarter-life crisis.

As if I didn't

As if I didn't have enough to worry about these days... Reuters now tells me that Job Woes Cause Adults to Wet Beds. Apparently 60,000 adults in Hong Kong make a little splash at night because they're worried about work performance.

Since World War II,

Since World War II, the average recession in the United States has lasted 11 months. The longest recession in that time was 18 months, and the shortest was six. If you believe, like some economists do, that the current recession began in March, and that this is bound to be one of the worst in a long time -- because it combines the burst of the technology bubble and the shock of September 11 -- then we may have another nine months to go.

If you're interested, the history of US business contractions (and expansions) is worth a look. (Hint: the "trough from previous peak" column refers to recession length in months.)

Guess who I get

Guess who I get to see this weekend? And I don't even have to clean my apartment this time. Life tastes good.

Mystery solved! Well, it

Mystery solved! Well, it was a mystery to me, at least. If you, too, have been trying for years to understand why Francis Ford Coppola let his daughter, Sofia, ruin Godfather part III, then what I'm about to tell you will free your mind:

Sofia Coppola was never intended to play the role of Michael Corleone's daughter. She was a last-minute replacement for Winona Ryder. According to Winona's standard bio, she had a respiratory infection and was too exhausted to play the part. (Apparently, everyone's favorite Heather was also picked up the other day on charges of shoplifting.) I can't tell you how much of a relief it is to know that Francis wasn't just putting nepotism before the fate of the trilogy.

To the man on

To the man on the bus this morning who smelled like rotting cabbage: Have some compassion, man. For god's sake, have some compassion.

Click and giggle. Click

Click and giggle. Click and giggle? Tickle Me Elmo is always good for a laugh or two. And now he's online. (If you're at work, make sure your volume is turned down before you start tickling.)

MediaBistro has some great

MediaBistro has some great photo excerpts from Talk Miramax's The National Enquirer: Thirty Years of Unforgettable Images. Although the pics of a bug-eyed Hillary Clinton, the pregnant Madonna, and a stripping Darva Conger are all enough to make you want to poke your eyes out with a hot iron, there is one artistic gem in the bunch: Charlie Sheen transcending gravity as he chases down a photographer just outside a police station.

But what happened to his other sock?

There is Megawati Sukarnoputri,

There is Megawati Sukarnoputri, president of Indonesia. And there's Khaleda Zia, prime minister of Bangladesh. And before her, there was Sheikh Hasina Wajed. In India there was prime minister Indira Gandhi. Pakistan had Benazir Bhutto. And Burundi had Sylvie Kinigi.

So why is it that these predominantly Hindu and Muslim countries have all had women leaders, while in the United States, we still refer to the failed campaigns of Geraldine Ferraro and Elizabeth Dole with some sort of pride?