PRINCE REMEMBERED (ANNIVERSARY OF HIS DEATH)

PRINCE REMEMBERED (ANNIVERSARY OF HIS DEATH):

WAS HE MURDERED FOR HIS MASTER TAPES?


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**** Inside Paisley Park on the anniversary of Prince’s death


CHANHASSEN, Minn. – Of all the eerily beautiful moments while spending time in Paisley Park on the anniversary eve of Prince’s death, the most bittersweet was provided by the man himself.
On a massive screen inside the massive soundstage Prince frequently used for performances, a clip played from a 2014 concert with 3rdeyegirl.

As he steered “Purple Rain” through its moody intervals, Prince paused to tell the crowd, “If you come to my house, you have to take care of it…at Paisley Park we sing together, we dine together, we love together.”

It was a fitting comment at that moment, with close to 1,000 fans from across the world assembled in the Paisley Park audience, all staring in the dark at video footage of the performer who died on April 21, 2016 just a few hundred feet from that screen, and exactly a week after thrilling crowds at the Fox Theatre at what became his final concerts.

While the mourning process continues for many – Matt Fink of The Revolution said earlier in the week that he still grieves for his former boss – this weekend at Paisley Park is supposed to be about rejoicing in Prince’s musical contributions and preserving his legacy.

The four-day Celebration 2017 kicked off Thursday with waves of fans who spent between $500 and $1,000 to bask in the Prince-ly aura, wander through parts of the Paisley compound (the Atrium houses Prince’s ashes – out of reach – in a “symbol”-shaped urn, guitar displays and, on the second floor, his white doves in a white cage), attend panels with members of The New Power Generation and soak in a surprise performance from George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic.

A gambler would have lost some cash that Clinton, at 75, would outlive Prince, who died at 57.

For more than an hour, Clinton and P-Funk bulldozed through one seamless groove that included “Get Up for the Down Stroke,” “Flashlight” and “Give Up the Funk.” Clinton alternately led the adrenalized crowd through arm calisthenics and slumped in a purple chair in front of the drum riser, content to direct his ace musicians as they paid tribute to Prince with their funk-steeped rock ‘n’ roll.

The afternoon concert – which would be repeated for a second round of Celebration attendees that evening – was the first live music event at Paisley Park since Prince’s death.

But there Clinton was, a tamer, less-colorful, shorter-haired version, barking through “Atomic Dog” in a silver-sequined military hat and long silver jacket, a dozen or so musicians in varying degrees of costumes whirling around him.

Because cell phones are prohibited at Paisley Park – a Prince rule even before his death – and were placed in Yondr pouches upon entry into the building, fans could experience the music uninterrupted by camera screens and glaring Facebook pages.

Damaris Lewis, who joined New Power Generation in 2012 as a dancer, served as lithe hostess and told the assembled throng after P-Funk’s set, “Live music. Real musicians. Real music. Nothing like it.

Inside the soundstage, a giant lighted Prince symbol hung from a back corner, while a banner of Prince’s face, silhouetted against a moon, looked toward the stage, his guidance omnipresent.

That same stage was the setting for a panel featuring NPG members Levi Seacer, Morris Hayes, Tony Mosley and Damon Dickson, who offered hilarious accounts of their time with Prince, as well as stories about his notorious work ethic.

“We would pull three-day straight sessions,” Hayes said. “He was so dedicated to the creation process. If you start it, finish it.”

Throughout the weekend, Celebration 2017 will present performances and panels from The Revolution, Morris Day & The Time, 3rdeyegirl and Paisley Park mainstays.

If there was a message to receive on Thursday, Seacer provided it: “Prince was all about r

Pres. Obama Reads Psalm 46 During 9-11 10th Anniversary Ceremony

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Michelle Bachmann Celebrates Elvis Presley's Birthday On 34th Anniversary Of His Death (More Gaffes)

Michele Bachmann's Elvis Birthday Message Comes On Anniversary Of 'The King's' Death

During a stop in South Carolina on Tuesday, Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann wished the late Elvis Presley a "Happy Birthday."

The problem: the message from the conservative congresswoman comes on the anniversary of the death of the "King of Rock and Roll."

"Before we get started, let's all say 'Happy Birthday' to Elvis Presley today," said Bachmann while speaking in the Palmetto State. "We played you a little bit of promise land when we pulled up. You can't do better than Elvis Presley."

Elvis was born on January 8, 1935.

While it's unlikely the gaffe will cost Bachmann, the presidential contender is no stranger to making questionable remarks. Over the weekend, Bachmann emerged victorious in the Ames Straw Poll, a table-setter for next year's Iowa caucuses.


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Michael Jackson Video Tribute: 1 Yr Anniversary R.I.P.

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"Pac Man" vs The Annoying Orange, Pac's 30th Anniversary (Videos)

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Obama W.H. Pushes Stimulus Anniversary Media Blitz; Was It Effective?

Silver Lining Hard To Find For Some On Anniversary Of Stimulus

While the Obama administration and congressional Democrats are out in force this week touting the success of the $787 billion economic stimulus package signed exactly one year ago, critics are pointing to a still-dismal jobs picture and deflating public confidence as signs that the ballyhooed benefits of the stimulus bill, as one GOP leader put it, were a "fiction" and not worth the cost.

The United States of America owes $1.6 trillion more today than it did a year ago. The jobless rate has climbed from 8.1 percent to 9.7 percent. And the deficit has soared to record levels, with another record likely to be set this year.

Happy anniversary.

While the Obama administration and congressional Democrats are out in force this week touting the success of the $787 billion economic stimulus package, signed exactly one year ago, critics are pointing to a still-dismal jobs picture and deflating public confidence as signs that the ballyhooed benefits of the stimulus bill, as one GOP leader put it, were a "fiction." And certainly not worth the cost.

President Obama and Vice President Biden argued Wednesday that the stimulus has saved or created 2 million jobs.

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele called that estimate "nonsense."

"I don't know what that is. I don't know what that looks like. If I can't put my fingers on it, if I can't touch it and if I can't get up at 6 o'clock in the morning and go to work there, then it's not happening, and that's the reality of a lot of people right now," Steele told Fox News.

While employers are shedding far fewer jobs than they were last year, the stimulus hasn't jolted hiring in the way it was advertised -- 49 states saw a net job loss in 2009, according to recent statistics. It's also contributed to record debt and deficits -- the national debt has reached nearly $12.4 trillion, while this fiscal year's deficit is expected to hit about $1.6 trillion. At the same time, President Obama is creating a panel to study ways to bring those numbers down.

The public is losing faith. A recent CBS News/New York Times survey showed only 6 percent of Americans believe the stimulus has created a significant number of jobs.

But here's the good news: The national economy as a whole is growing, a strong sign that the nation is not sliding back into recession. The jobless rate has pulled back from a high of 10.2 percent. Advocates of the stimulus argue that while unemployment is bad, the situation is better than it would have been without the stimulus -- a claim that can neither be proved nor disproved -- and that Republicans are talking out of both sides of their mouths, railing against the package while reaping its benefits in their home states.

"We acted because failure to do so would have led to catastrophe," Obama said Wednesday. "One year later, it is largely thanks to the recovery act that a second depression is no longer a possibility."

Biden said Wednesday on CBS' "The Early Show" that the package is only "halfway" done. Christina Romer, head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, said on ABC's "Good Morning America" that state aid, a huge part of the package, has kept hundreds of thousands of state workers on the payroll and that the next step is to "translate" the GDP growth into more jobs. She and Biden both predict job growth by spring.

"We've seen a dramatic turnaround in this economy in the last year," Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine told Fox News on Wednesday. "We're not where we want to be yet, but it's great that we were able to ... stop the freefall in jobs."

But positive GDP growth isn't exactly the kind of thing that outside-the-Beltway Americans are going to notice on a day-to-day basis. Home values, 401k's, jobs and other real-world indicators are the proof many are looking for. While the stock market is back from the rock-bottom lows of early 2009, it's far from where it was before the crisis on Wall Street.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in a statement Wednesday that the first anniversary of the stimulus is nothing to celebrate.

"In the first year of the trillion-dollar stimulus, Americans have lost millions of jobs, the unemployment rate continues to hover near 10 percent, the deficit continues to soar and we're inundated with stories of waste, fraud and abuse," he said. "This was not the plan Americans asked for or the results they were promised."

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Asian Tsunami Anniversary: 230,000 Killed (Videos Actual Footage)

Tears, Prayers Mark Asian Tsunami Anniversary


Buddhist monks chanted on white-sand beaches in Thailand and thousands prayed at mosques in Indonesia to mark the fifth anniversary of the Asian Tsunami that left 230,000 people dead.

The devastating Dec. 26, 2004, tsunami struck a dozen countries around the Indian Ocean rim. Its towering waves wiped out entire coastal communities, devastated families and crashed over tourist-filled beaches the morning after Christmas. Survivors waded through a horror show of corpse-filled waters.

In Thailand, hundreds of residents and foreigners returned to the beaches on the island of Phuket to recall one of the worst natural disasters of modern times.

A moment of silence was observed on Phuket's Patong Beach, a popular strip of hotels and restaurants, to mark the moment the tsunami struck.

Buddhist monks in bright orange robes chanted prayers. Onlookers wept and embraced.

Giorgio Capriccioli, an Italian who lives on Phuket, carried a bouquet of white flowers into the ocean.

He waded knee-deep in water that five years ago was clogged with corpses and cast the flowers adrift to honor the memory of two friends. His wife owns several beach-front shops but decided not to go to work the morning the tsunami struck.

"My wife would be dead if it weren't for the fact that she were pregnant and didn't go to work that day," he said at a ceremony that also attracted suntanned tourists in skimpy swimsuits, as well as Thai villagers.

The ceremonies on Phuket were to culminate in the evening with candle-lighting ceremonies and the release of hundreds of light-filled lanterns into the sky.

Aceh hardest hit

Thousands of survivors in Indonesia's Aceh province, which was hardest-hit, held prayer services at mosques and beside the mass graves where tens of thousands were buried. Indonesia's loss of about 167,000 accounted for more than half the total death toll.

The tsunami was sparked by a 9.2-magnitude underwater earthquake off the Indonesian island of Sumatra — the mightiest earthquake in 40 years.

In Aceh, on the island of Sumatra, the quake toppled homes and buildings and sent panicked communities rushing into the streets. About 20 minutes later, a wall of water up to six stories high surged in from the sea. Traveling at jetliner speed, the wave carried with it toppled trees, crumpled cars and refrigerators. It sent people scrambling up the sides of buildings and in search of higher ground.

More than $13 billion in aid money poured in from around the world, nearly half for Aceh, where bridges, homes and full city blocks of cement buildings had collapsed. In some communities of the devout Muslim province only the mosque was left standing.

A huge reconstruction effort has rebuilt Aceh, providing more than 140,000 new homes, 2,227 miles of roads, 1,500 schools and 1,047 hospitals.

"After five years ... the people of Aceh have risen and have a new life," Indonesia's Vice President Boediono told a crowd gathered near Ulee Lheue port in Aceh. Like many Indonesians he uses only a single name

"Their struggle to rise from tsunami tragedy has inspired the people in this country, and around the region," said Boediono.

Traffic across Sri Lanka came to a standstill Saturday as people around the country observed two minutes of silence for the 35,000 people who died there. Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayake presided over a ceremony in northwestern Kurunegala that was broadcast on live television.



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