WASHINGTON – In what some are calling the first public acknowledgement that Al Franken may be more than a funnyman with quaint political aspirations, Republican Sen. Norm Coleman’s campaign is calling out the former Saturday Night Live star over his seeming contradictions on Iraq. Franken still has to win the …

The hamburger is moving up in the world. A staple of the all-American meal, it’s always been the taste of summer, barbecues and the Fourth of July — and the hottest item at fast-food restaurants and greasy spoons. But now, it’s so much more. The hamburger has gone all fancy …

Say it ain’t so, G.I. Joe. The popular all-American comic-book military man and action figure dating back to the 1940s is undergoing a significant transformation for the Paramount Pictures-distributed “G.I. Joe” film, which begins production in February and is scheduled for release in summer 2009. No longer will G.I. Joe …

He was branded a terrorist and a murderer. For a while, he was Scotland Yard’s most wanted man. He’s Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Fein — once deemed by Britons to be Ireland’s most murderous rogue group. But then Gerry put down the gun and talked up peace. It took …

The ACLU exposes itself. That is the subject of this evening’s “Talking Points” memo. Over the past few weeks, the ACLU has taken out three attack President Bush ads in The New York Times, full-page ads. Quoting the civil liberties people, “Mr. Bush broke the law in the NSA phone …

If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. We all know people like this: the ones who do nothing to solve problems but are there to be heard. They’ll yell and scream and generally cause people around them to waste time dealing with their destructive behavior, …

‘Dreamgirls’ | Penelope Cruz | ‘Babel’ ‘Dreamgirls’ Gets Standing Ovations, Cheers “Dreamgirls” premiered last night at the Ziegfeld in New York — and Jennifer Hudson got a standing ovation in the middle of the movie when she finished singing “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going.” When the film was …

Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine: Reparations Claim Rejected A federal appeals court has rejected most claims by slave descendants that they deserve reparations from some of the country’s biggest banks, insurers and transportation companies. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that slave descendants have no …

NEW YORK – There’s nothing like putting sexy star Brittany Murphy in a pregnant suit and wedding dress to attract an audience for an independent film with a lower-than-low budget (even by indie standards). Add a motley crew of funnymen playing blue-collar, 30-something friends with Peter Pan complexes and a …

If I were a billionaire, I’d be Mark Cuban. After all, Cuban is a better Grrr! guy than I am. OK, maybe not better at Grrring, but richer anyway. I think that if I had enough money to own my very own high definition television network, I’d take the Grrr! …