#Whaddup for Thursday, August 15, 2002

Yo, yo, yo. How goes, kiddios?

Just a reminder, no Saturday Night Karaoke this week- it's Jazz (not really) in the Alley week. We'll be back on the 24th.

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Is it just me, or do you kind of have a mini-panic attack when someone posts a photo of some musician or actor or something that you're a fan of and it uses the past tense in the description, or- even worse- there's no caption at all?

Twice this week that's happened- first, a buddy posted a photo of Pete Townshend (no caption) Tuesday afternoon, setting me on a mad scramble to interwebs to scour my regular sources (AP, Variety, Consequence of Sound, NME) to make sure there wasn't some terrible news. Then, early this morning, my sister posted a circa-early-1970s photo of Ringo- with a definitely past-tense description that sent me into another bout of panic searching!

Yes, both of them are older fellows. Hell, most of the artists I like are older (even Debbie Gibson, whose music is just okay, but I find her cute as hell is my age- i.e., old) but I'd still like them to stick around for a while.

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When we get back at it next week, there'll be just five weeks to go until the 12th Annual Costumes & Karaoke Party- got your costume yet?

Acceptable costume. If you're her doppelganger. Or Charlize Theron.

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Speaking of Consequence of Sound, they had an interesting companion article to their "100 Greatest Albums of All Time" post titled "How Do We Grapple with Great Music by Terrible People?" I highly recommend giving it a read.

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By the way, COS rates Purple Rain as the greatest album of all time. In all, I find it hard to argue with their top five- from Joni Mitchell's Blue, to Prince's powerhouse soundtrack. 

Rumours comes in at #2, Let It Be #3, and London Calling at #4. The full list is here. 

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Musical biopics keep on coming- and Sublime will be coming to a screen near you. The untitled film will the band's rise from Long Beach to alt-rock radio mainstays despite the death of founding vocalist Bradley Nowell- who died shortly before the band gained national recognition.

Members Bud Gaugh and Eric Wilson are executive producers on the project, along with Nowell's widow and son. In a statement, Wilson and Gaugh said they were "excited" and "honored" to be working on the film, and "grateful ... (for the) years of persistence and vision in getting this film going and thankful to Sony’s 3000 Pictures and Chernin Entertainment for believing in us and getting it on the big screen. We know Bradley’s talent and spirit will be part of this incredible journey."

No castings or release date have been announced.

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I think I'd blocked out the fact that there's Whitney Houston biopic on the way this December. Mainly, it's because I was never really a fan. Yes, there are a few of her songs I think are decent pop songs, but I got burned out on her real quick when she debuted because the radio station I worked for played four of the six songs from her sophomore album so I had to hear at least two of them during every four hour shift I worked (well, didn't have to- I was notorious for not playing songs I didn't want to hear). Mainly- much like Adele or Mariah Carey after her- I never cared for her vocal histrionics she worked into so many of her songs.

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R. Kelly was found guilty on three of 13 counts of child pornography, including the sexual exploitation of his then 14 year old goddaughter. Kelly was also found guilty on three counts of child sex trafficking through coercion and enticement. Each of the child pornography charges carry a mandatory-minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.

The jury heard than four weeks' worth of evidence- including a video that depicted him raping his goddaughter- and debated their verdict for nearly 11 hours. Three other women testified that Kelly made tapes of himself sexually abusing them when they were underage.

Two co-defendants were acquitted of all charges, including conspiracy to receive child pornography and conspiracy to obstruct justice.

Kelly still faces state sex crime charges in Illinois and Minnesota.

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A New York parole board has denied John Lennon murderer Mark David Chapman's petition for the 12th time. Chapman, serving a 20 to life sentence for the 1980 killing, has been eligible for parole since 2000.

In a statement, the New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision said "Following an interview with the Board of Parole on August 31, 2022, Mr. Chapman was denied release with a hold of 18 months. His next appearance date is scheduled for February 2024."

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Birthdays today include: Kelly Keagy of Night Ranger (70); Mitch Dorge of Crash Test Dummies (62); Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein of the Misfits (58); DJ Kay Gee of Naughty By Nature (53); Paul Thomson of Franz Ferdinand (46); and Zach Filkins of OneRepublic (44) #MusicalBirthdays