Thursday, January 31, 2008

still ROCKIN' around with Britney, a sad case of hell on wheels



A note to everyone reading this continuing blog: I took some time off in January to initiate some new projects but it also looks as though ROCKIN' TV is picking up steam. More on this long-term goal--creating episodes based on the book and on this blog--in the weeks ahead.
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January also was the month in which Britney Spears imploded, her state of affairs involving nightly coverage of her automotive adventures, from trips to convenience stores to forceable evacuations to hospitals. And, from Sherman Oaks to Palm Desert, we've witnessed mobile papparazzi exascerbating the whole ordeal. Britney clearly has mental problems and I hope she gets the care she obviously needs. But I continue to be fascinated by the automotive connection. Case in point, this morning's coverage in the Los Angeles Times:
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"Los Angeles Police officers physically removed pop star Britney Spears from her home early today, placing the troubled celebrity on a "mental health evaluation hold," authorities said.
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"More than a dozen motorcycle officers and a Los Angeles Fire Department ambulance swept through the front gates of Spears' hilltop Studio City residence shortly before 1:00 a.m. January 31st, as a police helicopter hovered overhead.
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"Spears was rushed from a side entrance of her home into an ambulance. As she was driven down Coldwater Canyon Boulevard, her vehicle was escorted by more than a dozen motorcycle officers, two cruisers, and two police helicopters. Her final destination (this morning) was the UCLA Medical Center.
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"The Summit, the winding street on which Spears lives in Studio City, was jammed with the vehicles of journalists and photographers for several hours prior to the police operation.
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"Unlike the first welfare hold (in early January, when she was strapped to a gurney and removed to Cedars-Sinai Hospital), in which Spears' ambulance was closely pursued by a throng of photographers, vehicles today were blocked from following the same route. The motorcade that whisked Spears to the hospital also showed a large investment in resources. The line of emergency vehicles stretched longer than a football field."
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That last line really got to me. In an automotive-built city, I guess it's only reasonable that a football field-long file of vehicles would be necessary to escort a troubled pop star to a hospital.
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But it begs the question . . . would any other pop star receive that amount of automotive-based concern? Just sayin' . . .