Schmoes Know
Actor, comedian, and co-founder of the movies and culture website Schmoes Know
PROFILE
Mark Ellis
Guest
FROM Mark Ellis
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Friday Film: “Fifty Shades” Drops It’s Friday, and the day before Valentine’s Day, so we can all admit what news story is on our minds today: Fifty Shades of Grey” hits theaters this weekend. The movie already took in nearly $9 million from midnight showings last night, and it’s expected to hit the $70 million mark by Sunday. When it comes to pre-sale tickets, Fifty Shades has already been crowned the biggest Valentine’s release of all time. So, is it any good? We talk about that and more in our regular Friday film segment.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Birdman, Fury, and More On Friday, we talk movies in our weekly film roundup. On the docket this week: Birdman, Fury, The Book of Life, and more.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Dystopias, Sly Stallone and an Enormous Head Today on our weekly film roundup, things look a bit dystopic. New releases include a world without color, a world in which Sly Stallone is our only hope, and a world in which Michael Fassbender stars in a movie but we never see his face.
Recommended
The Treatment
Kenya Barris: Black-ish Black-ish creator Kenya Barris joins Elvis Mitchell to discuss utilizing his show as a conversation starter.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Why is Trump so behind on filling staff jobs, establishing concrete policies? Yesterday Donald Trump signed a “decision memo” to revamp the air traffic control system. But there was little legislative detail in the plan. There’s not much to other splashy announcements from the White House, including tax cuts and the arms deal with Saudi Arabia. And hundreds of positions are unfilled in federal agencies.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Accusations of lying fly between James Comey and White House During his testimony Thursday, former FBI Director James Comey accused President Trump and other White House officials of lying when they said the FBI was in disarray and its staff had lost confidence in him. President Trump’s lawyer said Comey was wrong -- that the president never asked for his loyalty, and never asked him to back off the investigation into former NSA director Michael Flynn.
Design and Architecture
Securing Public Spaces, Super Wealthy Asians Vehicles are increasingly being used as weapons, as seen in the London Bridge attack over the weekend and in New York’s Times Square last month. The Compton-based company Calpipe is designing security bollards to help make public spaces safer. And novelist Kevin Kwan satirizes the “crazy rich” Asian jet set and their luxurious tastes in his latest book, “Rich People Problems.”