How the First Earth Day Came About
By Senator Gaylord Nelson, Founder of Earth Day
What was the purpose of Earth Day? How did it start? These are the questions I am most frequently asked.
Actually, the idea for Earth Day evolved over a period of seven years starting in 1962. For several years, it had been troubling me that the state of our environment was simply a non-issue in the politics of the country. Finally, in November 1962, an idea occurred to me that was, I thought, a virtual cinch to put the environment into the political “limelight” once and for all. The idea was to persuade President Kennedy to give visibility to this issue by going on a national conservation tour. I flew to Washington to discuss the proposal with Attorney General Robert Kennedy, who liked the idea. So did the President. The President began his five-day, eleven-state conservation tour in September 1963. For many reasons the tour did not succeed in putting the issue onto the national political agenda. However, it was the germ of the idea that ultimately flowered into Earth Day.
I continued to speak on environmental issues to a variety of audiences in some twenty-five states. All across the country, evidence of environmental degradation was appearing everywhere, and everyone noticed except the political establishment. The environmental issue simply was not to be found on the nation’s political agenda. The people were concerned, but the politicians were not.
After President Kennedy’s tour, I still hoped for some idea that would thrust the environment into the political mainstream. Six years would pass before the idea that became Earth Day occurred to me while on a conservation speaking tour out West in the summer of 1969. At the time, anti-Vietnam War demonstrations, called “teach-ins,” had spread to college campuses all across the nation. Suddenly, the idea occurred to me – why not organize a huge grassroots protest over what was happening to our environment?
I was satisfied that if we could tap into the environmental concerns of the general public and infuse the student anti-war energy into the environmental cause, we could generate a demonstration that would force this issue onto the political agenda. It was a big gamble, but worth a try.
At a conference in Seattle in September 1969, I announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment and invited everyone to participate. The wire services carried the story from coast to coast. The response was electric. It took off like gangbusters. Telegrams, letters, and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country. The American people finally had a forum to express its concern about what was happening to the land, rivers, lakes, and air – and they did so with spectacular exuberance. For the next four months, two members of my Senate staff, Linda Billings and John Heritage, managed Earth Day affairs out of my Senate office.
Five months before Earth Day, on Sunday, November 30, 1969, The New York Times carried a lengthy article by Gladwin Hill reporting on the astonishing proliferation of environmental events:
“Rising concern about the environmental crisis is sweeping the nation’s campuses with an intensity that may be on its way to eclipsing student discontent over the war in Vietnam…a national day of observance of environmental problems…is being planned for next spring…when a nationwide environmental ‘teach-in’…coordinated from the office of Senator Gaylord Nelson is planned….”
It was obvious that we were headed for a spectacular success on Earth Day. It was also obvious that grassroots activities had ballooned beyond the capacity of my U.S. Senate office staff to keep up with the telephone calls, paper work, inquiries, etc. In mid-January, three months before Earth Day, John Gardner, Founder of Common Cause, provided temporary space for a Washington, D.C. headquarters. I staffed the office with college students and selected Denis Hayes as coordinator of activities.
Earth Day worked because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. We had neither the time nor resources to organize 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated. That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself.
Breaking Dawn Sticks Its Fangs Into Director?
Don’t be surprised if, in between all that life-and-death vampire action, Edward Cullen suddenly feels the need to express himself in song.
Oscar-winning writer-director Bill Condon (Dreamgirls, Chicago, Gods and Monsters) has become the front-runner to direct Breaking Dawn, the final installment (or two) in the Twilight franchise, emerging from a pack of contenders that reportedly included Sofia Coppola, M. Night Shyamalan, Stephen Daldry and Gus Van Sant.
According to Variety, Condon was not only approached but is now in negotiations to direct the movie, which follows as (SPOILER ALERT! If such a thing still applies two years after the book came out) Bella and Edward get married, spawn the half-human, half-vampire baby Renesmee who nearly kills her mother, and sparks Bella’s ultimate transformation into a vampire. You know, the usual.
Filming on the final chapters of the franchise will begin this November. But, as fans are already well aware, they won’t have to wait that long to get their Robert Pattinson/Kristen Stewart/Taylor Lautner fixes. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse hits theaters June 30.
Not So Fast! Oprah Sets Prime-Time Return
Yeah, like she was really gonna leave.
Already the undisputed (albeit outgoing) queen of daytime, Oprah Winfrey has nowhere to go but night, and will be doing so next year with Oprah’s Next Chapter, a prime-time hourlong talk show of sorts that will air on Winfrey’s own, um, OWN.
The show will air just two or three times a week and debut in late 2011. She will wrap up 25 seasons of The Oprah Winfrey Show in September of next year.
The show will take on something of a familiar format, featuring Oprah talking to the movers and shakers she deems most interesting and newsworthy, but—and here’s the twist—instead of confabbing in front of a studio audience, the conversations won’t be boxed in, with Oprah traveling the world to places like Egypt and China for the sit-downs.
But that’s not the only place her name is going to show up on OWN’s listings grid.
Winfrey will also earn some screen time with Your OWN Show: Oprah’s Search for the Next TV Star, a competition which sees Winfrey and reality uber producer Mark Burnett join forces to find the next Dr. Phil. Or Rachael Ray. Or Dr. Oz. Or Nate Berkus. Basically, anyone with a televisable skill.
The search will begin with a bang this May with some special promotion on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Here are the other star-studded series that have been given the greenlight from OWN, which itself launches on Jan. 1, 2011:
• Oprah Presents: Master Class. In this hourlong show, stars handpicked by Oprah will tell their inspiring stories, with Jay-Z, Bono, Simon Cowell, Lorne Michaels, Toni Morrison and Condoleeza Rice among those slated to appear.
• Visionairies: Inside the Creative Mind. Pretty much all in the title on this one. Each episode will be devoted to detailing the creative process of the world’s top talent (as selected by Miss O) and participants for the first season include James Cameron, Lady Gaga, Annie Liebovitz, Tom Ford and will.i.am.
• Why Not? With Shania Twain. Shania Twain hasn’t had it easy these past few years, and in her new hourlong series, will show viewers just how rough a time she’s having. But! Heartbreak aside, she’ll also chronicle her attempt at a personal and professional comeback. Expect lots of tears.
• Gayle King Live! Because no Oprah project is complete without an assist from her BFF, King will adapt her daily radio show for the small screen, appearing in an hourlong show in which she talks to and about all manner of watercooler subjects.
• Behind the Scenes: The Oprah Show Final Season. The documentary series will follow the behind-the-scenes goings-on for the 25th and final season of Oprah’s talk show and will introduce viewers to her Harpo family.
The shows will join previously announced series from several Oprah show mainstays: investigative reports from Lisa Ling, sex therapy from Dr. Laura Berman and decluttering expertise from Peter Walsh.
The “news” that Charlie Sheen wants out of Two and a Half Men is nothing but a bargaining tool for more money.
So says a source close to the actor. “He leaked it to light some fire under their asses to get what he wants,” the source says.
His rep, however, insists, “Charlie did not leak the story.”
If Sheen really does want out, a show insider tells us, he hasn’t bothered to break the bad news to anyone actually involved with the sitcom…
“When everyone saw the first story about him wanting to leave, it was like, ‘What the f–k? Where did that come from?’ ” the insider says. “No one heard anything about this—not his costars, the studio, no one.”
People was the first to report that Sheen has said he was done with the show. “People magazine reported that Charlie told friends that he did not wish to come back to the show,” his rep tells me. “While he has told friends that, he has made no announcement, made no statement or addressed any aspect of this story.”
Sheen’s current contract ends with this season’s final episode, which will be shot April 9. A rep for Warner Bros. told E! News yesterday that the studio does not comment on “contracts or negotiations.”
The insider says if Sheen actually does walk, he probably won’t be getting a goodbye party. “The show really can’t go on without him,” the insider explains. “That could mean a lot of people out of work and looking for new jobs.”
Can Sheen really be serious about moving on? “That makes no sense,” the insider says. “Why on earth would he walk away from all that money? The show has stood behind him through all his personal stuff. He owes it to them and, more important, it’s just too much money not to keep on going.”
Plus, where would Sheen go after Two and a Half Men? “He’s an insurance liability,” the insider explains. “He’d probably have a hard time getting other roles because things aren’t exactly stable with Charlie. He already cost Two and a Half Men some big money when they had to stop production so he could go to rehab.
Moving Day at Sandra and Jesse’s House
Jesse James is in Arizona rehabbing. Sandra Bullock is in Hollywood recovering. That left the coast clear at the estranged couple’s former headquarters for some removing.
A moving truck emblazoned with the logo L.A. Delivery Services was photographed Friday at the Seal Beach, Calif., home that James and Bullock had shared until mid-March, when news of his alleged adultery broke, sending the Oscar-winning actress to the (Hollywood) Hills.
Among the items removed, according to photo agency X17, were a couch, a loveseat and several boxes. No immediate word on the truck’s destination.
Except for a quick visit to a friend earlier this week, Bullock, 45, has remained in hiding at her home in the Hollywood Hills. But she has hardly been alone. Staffers at her production company have been paying visits all week long, including being on hand to accept a pizza delivery.
James, 40, meanwhile, has checked into a treatment center to save his marriage. His lawyer, Joe Yanny, told the Associated Press earlier this week that “this whole thing has destroyed Jesse’s entire universe [and] right now he is a broken man.” Yanny added that James “is in love with Sandra” and “the single most important thing to Mr. James and the children is that marriage somehow survive.”
James’ mother, Carol, has been taking care of his children at the Seal Beach home in his absence. TMZ photographed Carol and James’ daughter Sunny carrying boxes out of the home earlier Saturday.
In a brief statement shortly after word of his alleged infidelities broke, James didn’t cop to any philandering but did say, “It’s because of my poor judgment that I deserve every bad thing that is coming my way.”
Bullock has yet to comment on the mess—and her silence is deafening.
Kim Kardashian Mops Up Maid Suit
Kim Kardashian is cleaning up on the legal front.
The Keeping Up With the Kardashians star has fended off a lawsuit from a former housekeeper who sued Kardashian and her ex-hubby, music producer Damon Thomas, alleging the couple screwed the maid out of $29,000.
Isabel Hernandez alleged that she was owed back pay for work performed between 2006 and 2008.
However, Kardashian’s attorney, Shawn Chapman Holley, was able to quash the claim, pointing out that the 29-year-old reality star had moved out of the house in 2003, the year before she divorced Thomas, so there’s no way she could be on the hook for those wages.
After pointing out the discrepancy, the maid agreed to drop her beef with Kardashian. But Hernandez is still gunning for the cash from Thomas.
Recently, all indications were that Ghostbusters 3 was go with original franchise producer and director Ivan Reitman in the director’s chair. Even Bill Murray seemed, finally, to be on board. Now though, NY Mag says there’s trouble.
The problem is Reitman himself who, along with Murray, Ramis, and Akyroyd all have a contract which gives them veto power over any sequel. Only, word is that Sony doesn’t want Reitman involved. Instead the studio wants to take a Spider-Man approach to the franchise by hiring a hot young director (like Marc Webb) to take it over and reboot it with twentysomethings in the lead roles. Unlike Spider-Man they aren’t starting the whole story over exactly, the old Busters would be involved, but it sounds like their goal is to launch a new franchise with a bunch of kids… and they don’t want those kids directed by the rapidly aging Reitman.
Reitman is directing a rom-com for Paramount called Friends with Benefits, so there’s some hope that he might get busy and let Sony go ahead on Ghostbusters 3 without him. Yet, word is that Reitman thinks he can do both movies and Vulture makes it sound as though he has no intention of getting out of the way. Sony doesn’t want him, Reitman isn’t going to let them do it without him… Ghostbusters 3 could be in trouble.
Though I’m not exactly eager to see Ghostbusters without Reitman at the helm, you can almost see Sony’s point of view here. The man hasn’t had a hit since the early 90s. His last few movies have been flops at best and cinematic travesties at worst. Reitman is now the director of Evolution and My Super Ex-Girlfriend. It’s been a long time since he made anything worth watching. Are we sure we want him in charge of Ghostbusters 3? Maybe he’s just not that guy anymore.
Singer Talks X-Men: First Class
This week, Bryan Singer sat down with the L.A. Times and discussed some upcoming ideas and movement within the X-Men film universe. Singer is coming back on board with the franchise to direct X-Men: First Class, a prequel to the first X-Men movie released in 2000. The movie will focus on the relationship between Professor X and Magneto. The newest X-Men installment looks to dive into how these two united, formed the school for mutants, and what exactly lead to their eventual split. Additionally, the feature will use younger versions of the original X-Men to detail how it is they came to Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.
Having Singer back in the X-Men mix has this fan more than a little excited. X2 remains one of my all-time favorite comic book movies and really showed how an adaptation could handle the depth and humanity of characters whose genetic makeup allows them to perform the extraordinary. And while X-Men pales somewhat in comparison, I found it fascinating to read how exactly that movie turned the world of comic book flicks up on its head. Singer will bring a singular focus back to a franchise needing more than a little tweaking. X-Men: Evolution and X-Men Origins: Wolverine were decidedly inferior products after the first two movies, and proved a cast of characters like these super freaks need a deft touch. There are some timing issues with Singer’s quasi-reboot, but this is a franchise that needs a comeback. Singer is just the man to do it.
We caught up with Transformers star Josh Duhamel at ShoWest today, and he offered an update on the status of Transformers 3. In case you’re were wondering, it sounds like he’ll be in it.
What’s more Duhamel says he met with Michael Bay yesterday and the Transformers 3 script is now complete. They’re preparing to start filming it this summer. If Bay sticks to what he told us a few weeks ago, that should mean at some point this summer Duhamel and the Transformers cast will show up in Chicago and Moscow, where scenes from the film are slated to be shot. Chicago Blenditos: Beware of evil transforming robots.
Mickey Rourke Reveals Whiplash’s Iron Man 2 Fate?
Someone should probably explain spoiler alerts to Mickey Rourke. Comic Book Movie uncovered an interview with him in the May 2010 issue of Total Film, where he seems to reveal the ending of Iron Man 2 or, if not the ending of the film then the ending for his character Whiplash.
Here’s what Rourke revealed. Warning: This could be a huge spoiler so don’t read any further if you don’t want to know.
Well, the only thing I can tell you is that they had decided to kill me and we did film it with Gwyneth PaltrowAnd then they came to New Mexico and re-shot it and now it’s left up in the air…
So could be a spoiler… or maybe not. It sounds like even Rourke isn’t entirely sure what Whiplash’s ultimate fate is. Is he killed by Pepper Pots? Shouldn’t his death scene involve Robert Downey Jr.? We’ll find out May 7th.
