Friday, October 30, 2009

Screaming toddler booted off plane



In a decision that must have warmed the hearts of frequent fliers everywhere, Southwest Airlines flight 637 from Amarillo, Texas to San Jose, California returned to the gate and deplaned a screaming two-year old named Adam Root and his mom, Pam. The cabin crew after listening to endless top of the lungs screams and crying during boarding "Go! Plane! Go!" and "I want Daddy!" decided it was a no-go. Southwest admits this is very, very rare and only happens in extreme circumstances. It is investigating. The San Jose Mercury News notes that his mother had a hare-brained scheme to keep the kid quiet which included not feeding him until the flight was airborne. It didn't work and when Ms. Root and son re-booked and boarded another flight home the next day she admitted, "she chose a 5 p.m. departure and fed Adam well before takeoff." The Mercury News reported that he behaved, "beautifully."

Read the whole story here.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

What are they watching... Episode V

Our weekly look at what the teens and tweens of America are watching. You may have caught our first couple of episodes. This clip is a little racier, not so polite, but it is what it is. It is an except from the Boondocks cartoon series, part of the Adult Swim on Cartoon Network.

The Boondocks

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

What they are watching...Episode IV

Our weekly look at what the teens and tweens of America are watching. You may have caught our first couple of episodes. We knew the 80's had made a big comeback. Seriously, who ever figured Journey, without Steve Perry, would be huge again? But we did not know it had gone this far.

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air? Really?



Apparently so. Kind of cool in a strangely twisted way.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Fan with no blades, what!?!


.....................Yup, this is a fan!

For those of you disappointed about the lack of flying cars there is, that's right, a fan with no blades. Apparently Dyson engineers spent four years in the lab working on brushless fluid dynamics (Laser Doppler Annometry) to come up with this bad boy. According to CNET the Dyson Air Multiplier works pretty well. And there is no way your little kid can stick his fingers into the whirling blades. There are none. Unfortunately, despite looking so cool and working like a charm, it is still a little costly. $330 for a 12 inch fan. Eeeeeek!

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Beyond wow in the clouds



Wow simply does not cover it. Holy blank, might begin to get there, but not if you were one of the passengers on Air India Flight IC-844. We have to say this is the first time anyone on the Clarion Content staff can remember a fight on airplane between the cabin crew and the flight attendants!

The multi-person brawl spilled out into business class in front of mortified passengers. It allegedly began with an incident of sexual harassment by the pilots. The fisticuffs occurred in flight with the plane at approximately 30,000 feet in the air over Pakistan. The LA Times says that reportedly, "both pilots were well out of their seats during the melee." One of them was left with a bloody lip. Fortunately the flight landed safely leaving the passengers with nothing more than a horrifying tale to tell.

Read the whole story here. The list of recent Air India mishaps at the end of the LA Times article is scary. We would have to question the sanity of hopping aboard one of their planes.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Fashion Trends



Lindsay Lohan's debut as a fashion designer for Parisian fashion house Emanuel Ungaro was not a hit with the critics. It may not matter. Lohan is part of trend that has Hollywood mega-stars crossing over to clothing, some with huge results.

The biggest success is two young ladies who are right in Lohan's age and fashion demographic, the Olsen twins. The Los Angeles Times estimates that Mary Kate and Ashley have seen total sales of their clothing and shoe line reach into the 8 digit range. They have been a big hit with the teens and tweens. The Times attributes that in part to the omni-present media culture, "the whole world is a red carpet." Celebrity fashion is a growth industry whether the Paris fashion snobs like it or not. The ability to constantly see what one's favorite celebrities are wearing and immediately run to the store to imitate it strikes a chord with today's vapid, culture starved youth.

The Times notes that the Olsens were recently admitted into the prestigious industry trade group, the Council of Fashion Designers of America, and that this fall they are expanding their brand to include menswear. Other stars including Miley Cyrus, Gweneth Paltrow, Gwen Stefani, and Justin Timberlake have clothing and apparel lines that are succeeding. Sounds like a trend.