Show Biz: Tuesday 12/09/08

*** Happy birthday to Donny Osmond. I'm sure my wife has been smiling all morning. My daughters like him, too. They watch the DVD of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat fairly often -- Osmond plays Joseph.

We saw him when he was touring that show in Chicago many moons ago.

Our tie-in this morning was a slam dunk. How can you go wrong with a Donny Osmond Christmas tune? We went with his version of "It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year".


*** Our internet was down for a few hours this morning, so apologizes if the show was running (even) slower than usual. Tough day to be without internet, considering all of the breaking news surrounding Gov. Blagojevich.

Some of the juicy details so far, courtesy of the Chicago Tribune...

• Gov. Rod Blagojevich and his chief of staff, John Harris, were arrested today by FBI agents on federal corruption charges...that included Blagojevich conspiring to sell or trade the Senate seat left vacant by President-elect Barack Obama in exchange for financial benefits for the governor and his wife. The governor was also accused of obtaining campaign contributions in exchange for other official actions.
• Federal prosecutors alleged Blagojevich sought appointment as Secretary of Health and Human Services in the new Obama administration, or a lucrative job with a union in exchange for appointing a union-preferred candidate.
• Blagojevich and Harris conspired to demand the firing of Chicago Tribune editorial board members responsible for editorials critical of Blagojevich in exchange for state help with the sale of Wrigley Field, the Chicago Cubs baseball stadium owned by Tribune Co.
• Blagojevich and Harris, along with others, obtained and sought to gain financial benefits for the governor, members of his family and his campaign fund in exchange for appointments to state boards and commissions, state jobs and state contracts.
• Blagojevich also was alleged to be using a favors list, made up largely of individuals and firms that have state contracts or received taxpayer benefits, from which to conduct a $2.5 million fundraising drive before year's end. Even Blagojevich's recently announced $1.8 billion plan for new interchanges and "green lanes" on the Illinois Tollway was subject to corruption, prosecutors alleged.

But, at least his hair looks good.


*** The 80's Escape for today was "In My House" by the Mary Jane Girls