New America, New Regime

Note: This portion of this blog was done on a WordPad late Tuesday night because my modem has lost connection to the network. The extended version will follow.

On Wednesday, January 20, 2009, a whole new America was born as 47- year-old Barack Hussein Obama raised his right hand and took the Oath of Office to officially become the 44th President of the United States and the first ever African-American to take that job. Along with being the most powerful CEO in the world, he is awarded the keys to the White House, possession of Air Force One, and a brand new presidential limousine.

Upwards of 2 million people right at Washington D.C. witnessed every historic moment, and if estimations are correct, the inauguration may be watched by close to 3 billion television viewers around the world (yes, 3 BILLION)...which could be more than the funerals of Pope John Paul II and Princess Diana, the Prince Charles/Lady Diana wedding, and even the Apollo 11 mission; it could even surpass the "M*A*S*H" series finale, Super Bowl XLII, and the "Who Shot J.R.?" episode of "Dallas" to become most-watched television event of all time!

But of course, the atmosphere surrounding the Nation's Capital even right up to the big moment was already at a high. Millions braved the 30-degree temperatures all day throughout every corner of Washington, from the National Mall where they watched the inauguration on giant Jumbotrons to Pennsylvania Avenue where they would get their first public glimpses of the new First Couple.

The ceremony had Aretha Franklin singing "America" (what the hell was that on her hat, by the way?), while Saddleback Church pastor Rick Warren (who was criticized for being one of the masterminds behind the passing of Proposition 8 in California) delivered the invocation. That was followed by Joe Biden being sworn in as Vice President moments later.

Then, at a few minutes past noon, the moment generations have been waiting for finally arrived when Obama, despite the slip-up by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, took the oath of office. And I tell you, it was quite a sight to behold with the sea of flags waving immediately after he said "So help me God."

From there came the speech and whatever choice quote from it that would follow the lead of FDR's "Only thing we have to fear is fear itself" and John F. Kennedy's "Ask not what your country can do you." After his first paragraphs as President came the luncheon inside the Capitol, where the mood changed as Senators Edward Kennedy and Robert Byrd experienced health problems and were rushed to the hospital; they were both doing fine.

After a fond farewell to now former President George W. Bush as he made his final trip aboard Marine One to Andrews Air Force Base, the Obamas would later make their trip down Pennsylvania Avenue where a throngs of people would await them as they stepped out of the limo for their traditional walk down a few blocks.

Meanwhile, the Bushes returned to Midland, Texas for a homecoming rally. No longer in power after eight tumultuous years and back to civilian life, George can now have all the vacation time he wants without being scrutinized about his job. But the only bright spots from his term were the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and the capture of Saddam Hussein. Everything else? Who cares!

Now that all the inauguration balls are over and the majority of celebrities (too many to name, but they were all over Washington these last few days) about to head back to work, it's now on to the first 100 days of the Obama administration and solving a series of crises that faced us under Bush. The economy is of course the prime issue, and we could be seeing the founding of a 21st Century New Deal that would put America back to work and make our country much love livable.

In 1963, Martin Luther King gave his milestone "I Have A Dream" speech that was the turning point of the Civil Rights Movement. And now, over 40 years after his death, that dream is now a reality as the world's top job belongs to an African-American. Here's hoping that Barack H. Obama maintains that dream for the next four to eight years in office, and to paraphrase his motto: Yes, he will!

And now, the extended version...

All night long Tuesday, the Obamas and Bidens hit all eight inaugural balls, but the highlight of them all was Beyonce belting out "At Last" during Barack and Michelle's first dance at the Neighborhood Ball. It was a moment she'll never forget.

The following day of course, newspapers all over the world put out banner headlines that would become collector's items. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner screamed "A day of change" while the Anchorage Daily News had "The 44th President: Barack Obama"; both filled out their front pages with the ultimate money shot of President Obama being given the Oath of Office.

And speaking of which...also on the first full day of his presidency yesterday, it was take two for Chief Justice John Roberts, this time without any flubs and it was privately in the Map Room.

By the way, concerned about father Ted's health after being released from the hospital, Caroline Kennedy decided to withdraw her bid for the New York Senate seat left behind by Hillary Clinton, who is now the new Secretary of State.

Now...among the countless number of celebrities that hit the balls all throughout Washington on Tuesday was Anne Hathaway, and come next month, she might become the belle of the biggest ball of them all!

Nominations for the 81st Annual Academy Awards were out this morning, and leading the pack is "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" with 13 nods including Best Actor (Brad Pitt), Supporting Actress (Taraji P. Henson), and Best Picture of 2008. The four other films battling it out for the latter prize include "Frost/Nixon", "Milk", "The Reader", and the surprise Golden Globe winner, "Slumdog Millionaire".

Up for Best Actor besides Pitt are Richard Jenkins ("The Visitor"), Frank Langella ("Frost/Nixon"), Sean Penn ("Milk"), and some guy named Mickey Rourke ("The Wrestler"). Hathaway ("Rachel Getting Married") has plenty of company on the Best Actress side, with Angelina Jolie ("Changeling"), Melissa Leo ("Frozen River"), Meryl Streep in her 15th general nomination ("Doubt"), and Kate Winslet ("The Reader"). And of course, the late Heath Ledger is up for Supporting Actor ("The Dark Knight").

Meanwhile, "Bolt", "Kung Fu Panda" and "Wall-E" go for the Animated Feature Film prize; but there's some good news for one Kevin O'Connell: No 21st nomination for him!!!

Last year's show got the lowest ratings ever, all thanks to the acting Euro-sweep. But you can sure bet that with this field and with Hugh Jackman as host, there's a good chance that Brangelina, Meryl, Anne, maybe Sean, maybe Mickey will bring Hollywood's biggest prize back to American soil when the 81st Annual Academy Awards will be handed out on February 22.

With all that including my belated take on the inauguration, so long and stay strong!

The final countdown to an inauguration for the ages

Hello, everybody. The eyes of the entire world right now are focused on Washington, D.C., where tomorrow morning, a new America and new world will be born as Barack Hussein Obama raises his right hand and takes the Oath of Office to officially be christened as the 44th President of the United States.

And over the weekend, the festivities have been underway, kicking off with a star-studded concert at the Lincoln Memorial broadcast on HBO that featured the likes of Beyonce, Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen (who has another big afterwards, I'll explain later), Oscar winners Jamie Foxx, Tom Hanks, and Forrest Whitaker, Shakira, and others. Ben Affleck (who is now the proud father of a second baby girl he and Jennifer Garner gave birth to recently), Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, Rosario Dawson, Hayden Panettiere, Jessica Alba, Samuel L. Jackson, Queen Latifah, and of course, Oprah Winfrey have also descended to the Nation's Capital to not only witness history in the making, but to also have even livelier parties than last week's Golden Globes!

But not everybody will make the red-eye flight to Washington...unless if they're flying US Airways! The Sundance Film Festival is going on in Utah, while some of the big names are premiering their films in Europe; among them, Tom Cruise ("Valkyrie"), Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"), Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet ("Revolutionary Road"), and Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway ("Bride Wars"). Of course, they will be watching the inauguration on TV.

Meanwhile, security all over Washington is at its tighest ever, and police estimates say that upwards of over 3 to even 4 million people from all over the world are there. And unlike George W. Bush's inaugurations in 2001 and 2005, there will be tolerance and civility, especially when Obama and his family make their traditional walk down Pennsylvania Avenue.

One of the attendees who'll be at tomorrow's inauguration is Chelsey "Sully" Sullenberger, the heroic US Airways pilot who landed his plane to safety down the Hudson River last week without a single life lost.

Anyway, this will be a 56th Presidential Inauguration that'll be remembered for generations to come, all with a hefty price tag: Over $150 million! Now that is disputed, but it'll still be the most expensive ever at around $50 million. That's a sharp contrast to the two $40 million inaugurations for Bush, $33 million for Bill Clinton's first in 1993, and $30 million for the senior George Bush. We're not sure how much Ronald Reagan's were, but I think the government footed the bills.

We have come a long way from Martin Luther King's dream, and tomorrow afternoon, that dream will become a reality as the old regime under George W. Bush will be out and a new regime under Barack H. Obama will begin. And like I said when I commented on the election, I wished my grandmother Mildred lived a few months longer to witness what will sure be every historic moment of the inauguration.

Now as I stated a few paragraphs ago, Springsteen's next big gig will be halftime during Super Bowl XLIII...and speaking of which, it's on as only the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers remain for sole possession of the Vince Lombardi Trophy on February 1 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa!

"The Boss" is not alone; Journey will kick things off with their pre-game performance while in her first public appearance since the tragic family murders last fall, Jennifer Hudson will do the national anthem. And of course, there are the million dollar commercials, especially from the old standbys Anheuser-Busch and Pepsi.

Since the Steelers prevented the Seahawks' chances at a Super Bowl title three years ago, I'm now leaning towards the Cardinals to pull it off, and for good reason: I grew up living in the Phoenix area in the early '80s, back when I...oh, who the hell cares how I looked!

Till tomorrow and my inaugration recap, so long and stay strong!

Hello, everybody, as we begin our first blog of 2009 with what else--the 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards!

After last year's show which was reduced to a 30-minute news conference thanks to the writers' strike, the awards were back in full force last night picking up where they left off. And in the case of underdogs, it was "Slumdog Millionaire" who ruled the show with three awards including Motion Picture-Drama, Director (Danny Boyle), and Screenplay. Kate Winslet picked up two honors for Drama ("Reservation Road") and Supporting Actress ("The Reader"), while in a surprise, it was Mickey Rourke who upset everyone for Motion Picture-Drama Actor. And of course, the late Heath Ledger received Supporting Actor for "The Dark Knight."

Meanwhile, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" got Motion Picture-Musical or Comedy, Foreign Language Film went to Israel's "Waltz With Bashir", and Motion Picture-Animated went to "WALL-E." Musical or Comedy acting prizes went to Colin Farrell ("In Bruges") and Sally Hawkins ("Happy-Go-Lucky")

On the television side, "30 Rock" and "Mad Men" continued their winning ways with Drama and Comedy/Musical honors respectively, while Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin ("30 Rock"), Anna Paquin ("True Blood"), and Gabriel Byrne ("In Treatment") took home acting Globes themselves.

Now of course, we in Fairbanks ended the old year and started the new with two weeks of super-cold temperatures that dipped way past 40 below zero; it was reminiscent of 1989 when we suffered through hellish colds that went from 50 to even 60 below zero!! So what we saw on the red carpet definitely warmed us up thanks to hot fashions by Eva Mendes, Beyonce, Drew Barrymore, Jennifer Lopez, and Cameron Diaz. But the hottest of them all belonged to Anne Hathaway and Eva Longoria Parker as my best-dressed picks, while Miley Cyrus and Renee Zellweger? We love you both, but please...fire your stylists!!

The Golden Globe Awards may long be billed as "the party of the year" when the biggest names in entertainment mingle with each other, but let's face it, folks...they're nothing but a warmup to the REAL party of the year that's going to happen in Washington D.C. next week when Barack Obama is inaugurated as the 44th President of the United States! Planners for the several of inauguration parties that'll be scattered throughout the nation's capital are right now in the middle of finalizing their guest lists, and you can bet that some of the same celebrities who were at the Globes last night will have a second encounter with paparazzi and fans when they land at Dulles International Airport outside Washington this coming weekend for what is definitely a couple of days and nights to remember. And oh yeah...I'd love to see our new Senator Mark Begich hobnob with Anne Hathaway; maybe he could use his political power to give me her contact info! So long and stay strong!