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Part 3: Top 25 Christmas films and shows of all time – WTOP.com

EDITOR’S NOTE: Jason is WTOP’s Morning Drive Writer and founder of The Film Spectrum, which The Washington Post hailed for its “lengthy, spirited reviews … with the ethos of a true film aficionado.” He also recently received his M.F.A in Film & Electronic Media from American University, where his thesis film won a 2011 CINE Golden Eagle Award.

Jason Fraley, wtop.com

WASHINGTON – From Miracle on 34th Street to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, we’re counting down the 25 essential Christmas movies and TV specials of all time. Here are Nos. 25-16 and Nos. 15-6 in case you missed them. Otherwise, it’s time for the Top 5.

5. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)When we think of John Hughes, we think of the Brat Pack: The Breakfast Club (1985), Pretty in Pink (1986), Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986). Too often we forget he was also behind a “trilogy” of holiday flicks: Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987), Home Alone (1990) and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Indeed, it was Hughes who had penned the original National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983), sending the Griswold family off to Wally World. Six years later, he had them stay home, as Clark (Chevy Chase) and Ellen (Beverly D’Angelo) host a “full-blown, four-alarm holiday emergency.”

How does one choose a favorite scene? Clark getting flustered while buying lingerie. His attempts to string Christmas lights. The waxed saucer sled. The pool daydream. Aunt Bethany’s senile comments. The tree squirrel. The exploding turkey. Indeed, Tim “The Toolman” Taylor stole his holiday decorating gaffs from Clark Griswold, backed by a stellar supporting cast: Randy Quaid (Independence Day), Diane Ladd (Wild at Heart), John Randolph (Serpico), Doris Roberts (Everybody Loves Raymond), E.G. Marshall (The Defenders), William Hickey (Prizzi’s Honor), Brian Doyle-Murray (Groundhog Day), Juliette Lewis (Cape Fear), Johnny Galecki (Roseanne) and Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Seinfeld).

Best Scene: Uncle Eddie takes Clark literally as he sounds off about his lousy holiday bonus.

Best Line: “Is your house on fire, Clark? Is Rusty still in the Navy?” –Aunt Bethany

4. White Christmas (1954)

Landing one spot ahead of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989) is the very film Chevy Chase references when he says, “We’re gonna have the hap-hap-happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tapdanced with Danny [freakin'] Kaye.” With the exception of Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor in Singin’ in the Rain (1952), you won’t find a male dancing duo like this one. Add Rosemary Clooney (George Clooney’s aunt) and Vera-Ellen (On the Town) and you have a fabulous foursome dropping some of the fanciest footsteps ever to hit the silver screen.

Directed by Michael Curtiz (Casablanca) and choreographed by Bob Fosse (Cabaret), the film was the first ever shot in VistaVision — Paramount’s answer to CinemaScope — and its vibrant Technicolor shows off the costumes of Edith Head (Vertigo). Still, the biggest contributor is songwriter Irving Berlin (Top Hat), who provides a string of gems, including “Sisters,” “Snow,” the Oscar-nominated “Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep” and the title song, which he first penned for Crosby in Holiday Inn (1942). To this day, it remains the most played song in history. Add up all these pieces and you get the perfect fireside family flick, summed up by Crosby himself: “A lot of schmaltz and plenty of heart.”

Best Scene: Crosby teaches Clooney to “count her blessings” at the Vermont lodge’s empty piano bar. This was the same lodge used in Holiday Inn.

Best Line: “When what’s left of you gets around to what’s left to be gotten, what’s left to be gotten won’t be worth getting, whatever it is you’ve got left.” –Phil Davis

3. Scrooge (1951)Over the years, there have been so many great versions of the classic Dickens tale, including the early 1938 talkie with Reginald Owen, the 1970 musical with Albert Finney, the 1983 Disney animation, the 1984 version with George C. Scott, the 1988 spinoff with Bill Murray and the 1992 Muppet rendition. Still, none have nailed the tale of Ebeneezer Scrooge quite like this 1951 British classic. The film paints the fullest picture of Scrooge’s past, present and future, full of heartache and nuance, without the frills of dance numbers or hand puppets. This is gritty black-and-white, a true depiction of the cold streets of London — the way Dickens intended.

Above all, no actor has come close to nailing the character of Scrooge like the legendary Alastair Sim. Fresh off Hitchcock’s Stage Fright (1950), Sim’s “bah humbug” is as cold as they come, and his “second chance” jubilation on Christmas morning will never be topped. For some reason, this one rarely airs on television, perhaps because it was a British production. But do yourself a favor and get your hands on a copy. To these eyes, it’s the definitive version of one of literature’s greatest works.

Best Scene: The terrifying arrival of Jacob Marley with clocks tolling and spirits moaning.

Best Line: “Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?” –The Ghost of Christmas Present using Scrooge’s own words against him.

2. A Christmas Story (1983)Stand by Me (1986). The Wonder Years (1988). The Sandlot (1993). Each is classic in its own right, but all three pull their nostalgic, comedic voiceover from the monumental classic that came before: A Christmas Story. Writer/director Bob Clark (Porky’s) and writer/narrator Jean Shepherd pulled the story from semi-autobiographical events. It follows young Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley) in 1940s Indiana as he tries desperately to convince his parents, teachers and Santa Claus that all he wants for Christmas is a “Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-Shot Range Model Air Rifle.” One by one, they tell him the painful truth about his elusive B.B. gun: “You’ll shoot your eye out.”

Starring Darren McGavin (Billy Madison) and Melinda Dillon (Close Encounters of the Third Kind), the film is full of priceless moments: Randy’s stubborn approach to meatloaf; Flick’s tongue on a frozen playground pole; Ralphie’s Orphan Annie decoder ring revelation; the arrival of the leg lamp; Ralphie whipping bully Scut Farkas; a department store Santa’s slide; and a “pink nightmare” pajama gift. The pop culture impact is everywhere, from Jeff Daniels sticking his tongue to a pole in Dumb and Dumber (1994) to ESPN featuring the leg lamp on the set of Pardon the Interruption. Since 1997, the Turner networks have aired 24-hour marathons on Christmas Day, meaning you could conceivably watch the film 12 times in a row. For this reason alone, you could easily call A Christmas Story the greatest Christmas movie of all time. It’s the only one I would consider swapping for the top spot.

Best Scene: Ralphie spills his father’s lug nuts and says, “Fudge.” Only he doesn’t say “fudge.”

Best Line: “Schwartz created a slight breach of etiquette by skipping the Triple Dare and going right for the throat.” –Ralphie’s narration

1. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)For a film that’s become such a fixture in our homes each holiday season, it’s amazing how much Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life still has the ability to shock viewers with the same reaction: “I forgot how dark it is. How serious. How little it actually focuses on Christmas.” Indeed, Capra uses the holidays as a framing device for an in-depth character study into one man’s life of disappointment. As critic David Thomson writes, “The film that had failed in 1947 had become a token of uplifting fellowship, yet it was a film noir full of regret, self-pity and the temptation of suicide. How could so many people convince themselves that it was cheery?”

The answer can only be that Capra shines through the darkness with such blinding truth. It’s a fable of mankind’s interconnectedness, where each of us is an irremovable cog in a wheel where you can only take that which you have given and where no man is a failure who has friends. The infamous “Capra-corn” had finally found its proper doses, proving we need the darkness to see the light; the lows to feel the highs; the despair to feel the inspiration. Steven Spielberg called it “a five hanky movie,” saying it’s one of the three movies he watches before shooting every film, and the AFI recently named it the most inspirational film of all time. What better tribute than the fact that Frank Capra and Jimmy Stewart always considered It’s a Wonderful Life the best film either of them ever made?

Best Scene: After preventing a bank run during the Great Depression, George Bailey returns “home” to a makeshift honeymoon, the answer to Mary’s wishes the night they threw rocks and roped moons.

Best Line: “Just remember this, Mr. Potter, that this rabble you’re talking about, they do most of the working and paying and living and dying in this community. Well, is it too much to have them work and pay and live and die in a couple of decent rooms and a bath? Anyway my father didn’t think so. People were human beings to him, but to you – a warped, frustrated old man – they’re cattle. Well in my book he died a much richer man than you’ll ever be.” — George Bailey to Mr. Potter (played by Drew Barrymore’s great uncle, the great Lionel Barrymore)

Why is “It’s a Wonderful Life” considered such a masterpiece? Find out here.

Honorable Mentions

A Christmas Carol (1938), Holiday Inn (1942), The Bishop’s Wife (1947), Holiday Affair (1949), Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol (1962), The Little Drummer Boy (1968), Scrooge (1970), Black Christmas (1974), The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974), Trading Places (1983), Gremlins (184), A Christmas Carol (1984), Ernest Saved Christmas (1988), Scrooged (1988), Prancer (1989), Batman Returns (1992), The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992), Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), The Preacher’s Wife (1996), Jingle All the Way (1996), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000), Serendipity (2001), Love Actually (2003), The Polar Express (2004), The Holiday (2006), Four Christmases (2008), A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas (2011).

What’s your favorite Christmas movie? Tell us on Facebook and Twitter.

Related Stories:

Part 1 – Top movies: No. 25 to No. 16
Part 2 -Top movies: No. 16 to No. 6

You also can read more on Jason’s film appreciation site, The Film Spectrum.

Cruz makes like Dasher on 99-yard TD

Steve Serby

It was Victor Cruz who slid down Rex Ryan’s chimney last night and left him a Big Blue piece of coal emblazoned with NYG, Kings of New York, stuffed in his stocking. Big Brother of the New York Jets.

Ho-ho-ho from Santa Cruz.

Merry Rex-mas, big fella!

Ryan, the 29-14 loser, was forced to eat a heaping helping of humble pie yesterday for plenty of reasons: an angry Big Blue defense out of yesteryear that shook, rattled and rolled Mark Sanchez and refused to crack in the fourth quarter … a Giants will to win with their season on the line, exemplified by Tom Coughlin coaching hurt at the end, that the Jets could not match … and most of all, Santa Cruz.

Reuters LEAP SERVICE: Victor Cruz hops up in front of the Jets bench after a big reception in the Giants’ 29-14 victory yesterday. The second-year wideout also had a 99-yard touchdown catch-and-run to become the franchise single-season receiving yards record holder.

At a time when the Giants desperately needed a spark, any spark, Cruz delivered. The spark he delivered was only the longest scoring play in franchise history.

It was Jets 7, Giants 3, and Eli Manning was pinned at his 1-yard line on third-and-10.

And then he wasn’t. Then he was a spectator to history.

Santa Cruz ran a hook route and caught Manning’s pass at the 11, Kyle Wilson behind him, Antonio Cromartie in front of him.

“I was just kind of hoping that he could maybe fall forward to get the first down in that situation,” Manning said.

The first down hardly was enough for Santa Cruz. He planted and lost a fallen Cromartie.

“My initial reaction was just to go upfield and try to get that first down and make the most out of it, and I was able to kinda hurdle a defender, and I was scot free and I was running up the sideline,” Cruz said.

Eric Smith dove at Santa Cruz.

“I saw another defender kind of had the angle on me, so I tried to keep running, hopefully I could outrun his angle,” Cruz said. “And he tried to dive. I jumped so he wouldn’t get me … and I just kept going right up the sideline.”

Santa Cruz was in the end zone with his 99-yard TD.

“I knew we needed some momentum-changer, man, and I was just glad that I could be the person to do that,” Cruz said.

He fired the football against the wall.

“That was a little anger I had inside me,” Santa Cruz said.

“Just an anger I had inside me, no specific reason, or not one that I want to tell you, I guess,” Santa Cruz said.

“I plead the Fifth,” Santa Cruz said.

Santa Cruz, of Paterson, N.J. — the second-year undrafted free agent out of nowhere who yesterday broke Amani Toomer’s franchise season-single receiving mark with 1,358 yards — began doing the salsa as jubilant teammates mobbed him.

“I was just aiming at the wall, it wasn’t no specific thing on the wall,” Cruz said.

It wasn’t a Jets logo or anything?

“Um, it might have been, I don’t know what was over there,” Cruz said. “I think it was some Jets stuff over there, that’s a strong possibility.”

It was Santa Cruz who publicly expressed no fear of Darrelle Revis, a bold proclamation that prompted the Jets to mock his audacity.

“I really didn’t do too much talking,” Cruz said. “You guys did a good job of switching my words around a little bit and making it seem like I was doing some talking.”

He was asked now whether some of his anger might have been based on the Jets’ reaction to his comments.

“A little bit,” Cruz conceded. “Because it was like I really didn’t say anything that was like trying to belittle them or anything of that nature. I was speaking to our team and responding to a question that was asked of me.”

The third quarter was a punting contest between Steve Weatherford and T.J. Conley.

Until Santa Cruz, whose 29-yard catch had set up a field goal in the second quarter, who had torched the Jets with three TD catches during their 2010 preseason meeting, struck again.

Manning fired a perfect missile down the right sideline for Cruz against Wilson for 36 yards.

“I just needed to make that grab in order to propel our team back down the field,” Cruz said.

It infused the Giants with swagger. Brandon Jacobs rumbled around left end for 28 yards and began baying at the moon. Ahmad Bradshaw obliterated Brodney Pool en route to the end zone and it was 17-7. The Jets weren’t coming back.

“The kid is a Jet killer, it seems like,” Ryan said.

Santa Cruz was a Christmas killer, too.

CD reviews: T-Pain, Jonti & more

T-Pain says his latest album, ‘REVOLVER’ is the best record he’s ever done. Picture: Matt Sayles. Source: Supplied

HIT Writers review the latest albums released in stores this week.

T-PAINREVOLVER (SONY) Rating: 2 Stars

THAT "evolve" bit in rEVOLVEr is so ironic – absurd, really. Auto-Tune "pioneer" T-Pain has made a formulaic comeback of grinding club bangers, electro-hop, tuneless ballads and Chris Brown cameos.

It is all very dated, the rapper-cum-singer long left in the dust by Kanye West and Drake. If his lyrics are not gimmicky (the R Kelly-ish Default Picture about social media romancing), then they are embarrassingly gauche (Mix’d Girl).

Better is 5 O’Clock, incongruously sampling a Dido-esque Lily Allen, or the mock drama Bang Bang Pow Pow from Drake producer T-Minus and featuring Lil Wayne. T-Pain weans himself off Auto-Tune for the piano-led Drowning Again – and sounds much fresher for it.

Sounds like: any other T-Pain albumIn a word: passeCyclone Wehner –

ROBIN THICKELOVE AFTER WAR (UNIVERSAL) Rating: 3 Stars

BEFORE Bruno Mars we had slick Californian soulster Robin Thicke. Thicke might turn into Lenny Kravitz on opener An Angel on Each Arm, but there is more Buble-style light jazz than vintage funk rock on this mature fifth album.

Never Give Up has all the hip-hop ingenuity of Thicke’s breakthrough When I Get You Alone, sampling Mexican composer Jose Pablo Moncayo. Thicke’s old homie Lil Wayne intros the poppy Pretty Lil’ Heart. Boring is a ’70s jetsetter’s ballad with Thicke’s falsetto. As always, Thicke plays the (tormented) lover best. As a social commentator, however … Retro ’90s swingbeat number The New Generation could only be written by someone watching TV in a secure Hollywood mansion.

Sounds like: R&B for yachtingIn a word: escapistCW –

JONTITWIRLIGIG (MISTLETONE) Rating: 4 Stars

IMAGINE a world where The Avalanches collaborated/celebrated with Beck at Cornelius’s house and they recorded all the thoughtful mischief they got up to. You can get into an idea like that, right?

Twirligig is that record, a splendiferous debut by Jonti, the hip-hop-ish dude formerly known as Danimals. Locking on to his underwater grooves and kitchen-plink approach, the likes of Mark Ronson are frothing over this boy’s future. Jonti takes us on a Sunday cruise through the mountains of his mind.

The title track is all cow-grazing beats and synths. Hornet’s Nest ushers you into a cubbyhouse where the bees aren’t stingy with the honey and Firework Spraying Moon is the feeling of a stray cat weaving between your legs as you walk into a lush green forest that may or may not contain a Magic Faraway Tree.

Sounds like: Enid Blyton’s great-great-nephew in Howl’s Moving Castle.In a word: fantastical Mikey Cahill –

SNOOP DOGG & WIZ KHALIFAMAC + DEVLIN GO TO HIGH SCHOOL (WARNER) Rating: 2.5 Stars

WATCH the Throne this is not. That OG Snoop Dogg, at 40 a calculated parody of himself, has teamed with young gun Wiz Khalifa for an unlikely high school flick. This is less a soundtrack than a (dubious) low-budget spin-off. Both Snoop and the no-charisma Wiz have dropped solo albums lately, so any expectations of classic material should be low.

Still, Mac + Devlin has its surprises – chiefly an old skool ’90s hip-hop orientation. I Get Lifted is smooth, weed-obsessed G-funk produced by Warren G of Regulate fame. Among the cameos, the R&Beige Bruno Mars provides the hook for chart fluff Young, Wild & Free. Sounds like: a ’90s urban soundtrack

In a word: nostalgicCW

76ers roster: Ready to take next step?

Issac Baldizon/NBAE/Getty ImagesCan Philly keep the forward momentum going after a hard-fought first-round series against Miami?

After finishing the 2010-11 regular season even in wins and losses (41-41) — still good enough for the No. 7 seed in the East — which way will things turn in Philadelphia?

John Hollinger broke down each player on the 76ers’ roster. Now our 5-on-5 crew weighs in on what lies ahead for Philly in 2011-12.

1. For which 76ers player is the 2011-12 season most important?

Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN.com: Andre Iguodala enters his eighth season with a hefty annual salary and one of the most unique — and confounding — skill sets in the league. He’s one of the game’s five best defenders and can run the point from the small forward spot. Is there still time to develop a reliable jumper? If so, Iguodala could have a renaissance. Remember, he’s still only 27.

Patrick Hayes, PistonPowered: Evan Turner. The 76ers could use a good, young big man with upside, and they passed on three — DeMarcus Cousins, Derrick Favors and Greg Monroe — to take Turner. Turner has a well-rounded skill set, but unless he shows he’s more than just a versatile complementary player, Philly fans will always lament drafting him.

Beckley Mason, HoopSpeak: Thaddeus Young, because he could be on the track to buying his own private island if he can show the defensive capability to play more than 30 minutes per game. The 76ers have tons of money to spend in the next two years and are desperate for scoring, a skill that comes as naturally to Young as breathing.

Danny Savitzky, Nets Are Scorching: Jrue Holiday. He’s on the cusp of becoming a top point guard, and while he won’t come near the top of the list in the NBA given all the competition at the position, he can become a solid building block for the organization. And the sooner that happens, the better for Philadelphia.

Noam Schiller, Hardwood Paroxysm: Evan Turner. Coming in to the season, he was hailed as a star-in-the-making; after it, he was dismissed as a semi-effective eighth man. His talents suggest that he can still be closer to the former than the latter, but unless he shows that he can actually score on an NBA level, he’ll be relegated to career bench duty.

2. Who is the most intriguing player on the 76ers’ roster?

Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN.com: Left-handed savant and restricted free agent Thaddeus Young has a neat bag of tricks, most notably an incredible ability to find easy shots at the basket. Now it’s time for Thad to round out his game. With a more refined jumper, better ball skills and a steadier right hand, Young can put to rest the old rap that he doesn’t have a natural position.

Patrick Hayes, PistonPowered: Jrue Holiday. He’s not a freakish athlete like Russell Westbrook, Derrick Rose or John Wall, but Holiday is already a talented playmaker at point guard, and he’s only 21 years old. Aside from the three aforementioned players and Kyrie Irving, Holiday might be the next-best still-improving point guard prospect in the league.

Beckley Mason, HoopSpeak: Jrue Holiday. I was and still am a Jrue believer, but I wonder whether his youth (still 21!) exaggerates expectations. Clearly, Holiday will be very good for many years, probably peaking at about where Chauncey Billups did in his prime. But there’s still a chance he could be really special, and I’ll be watching closely for signs of greatness.

Danny Savitzky, Nets Are Scorching: Thaddeus Young, if he returns. Young, a restricted free agent, is a force around the rim but is hampered by the inability to use his off-hand and the fact that he doesn’t have a true NBA position. If he can figure out a way to use his right hand and find a better outside stroke, he can be a very good player.

Noam Schiller, Hardwood Paroxysm: Lou Williams. If you compare Williams’ per-40-minute stats to Monta Ellis’, you’ll find something pretty incredible: They’re near-identical. The only difference between the two diminutive scoring masters? Ellis plays 40 minutes a night; Williams plays 23. Lou’s defensive struggles are a big part of that, but given the minutes, he could be a top scorer in this league.

3. What’s the most surprising take in Hollinger’s 76ers profiles?

Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN.com: That there’s a better chance of a coordinated moon landing before New Year’s than Spencer Hawes drawing a foul.

Patrick Hayes, PistonPowered: Jodie Meeks’ free throw rate. As Hollinger points out, Meeks is primarily a spot-up shooter who doesn’t create his own shot all that well, so it’s really surprising that he’s as good at getting to the line as he is.

Beckley Mason, HoopSpeak: I was surprised by how many useful players the 76ers have who either can’t create looks near the rim (like Elton Brand) or simply don’t (like Iguodala). That makes Young and Holiday, two players with the game to get inside (could Evan Turner be one of these guys?), all the more important to Philadelphia’s season.

Danny Savitzky, Nets Are Scorching: Turner still has a chance to be a very good player? He looked hopeless as a rookie last season.

Noam Schiller, Hardwood Paroxysm: That Holiday still has a long way to go defensively. As a big part of one of the league’s best defensive squads, it’s easy to assume Holiday has already made it; but at just 21 years old, he still has a lot to learn, and the numbers reflect that inexperience.

4. Based on Hollinger’s profiles, what do the 76ers need most?

Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN.com: The willingness to attack: the paint, opposing defenders, the offensive glass. They’re a relatively strong, athletic group, but for whatever reason they struggle to find shots inside, ranking 28th in free throw rate and 23rd in offensive rebounding rate.

Patrick Hayes, PistonPowered: Toughness seems to be lacking. According to Hollinger, Holiday struggles to fight over screens, Hawes shies away from contact, Marreese Speights is an “unmotivated defender,” Nikola Vucevic is “a bit on the soft side.” If the Sixers could find another physical big man to match their perimeter athletes, they could be exciting.

Beckley Mason, HoopSpeak: Pure scoring. The 76ers are loaded with excellent passers and good ball handlers. But outside of Young and Williams, two players with serious warts, they lack someone to create solid shot opportunities when their ball-reversal offense breaks down. They were hoping Turner could be that player. Prognosis: doubtful.

Danny Savitzky, Nets Are Scorching: Scoring — and a lot of it. Nobody on the team is really a scorer, and the Sixers need someone they can give the ball to when they need a basket.

Noam Schiller, Hardwood Paroxysm: An interior presence on both ends. Philly’s most effective scorer at the rim was combo forward Thaddeus Young. Meanwhile, the center rotation is built around the defensively inept Hawes; Vucevic, a rookie, projects to be more of the same. Unless Brand finds a time machine, that elite post scorer and defender will have to come from the outside.

5. Will a shortened season help or hurt the 76ers?

Kevin Arnovitz, ESPN.com: If it takes the Sixers two months to find their footing like it did in 2010-11, they’re in trouble. But if they can sustain the momentum they built during their playoff run, they’re in fine shape.

Patrick Hayes, PistonPowered: Any team with young, developing players like Holiday, Turner, Vucevic and Speights is bound to be hurt some without the benefit of summer league, training camp and preseason (although the time off shouldn’t hurt vets like Iguodala, Williams and Brand much). If they can pick up the slack, the young players should be comfortable by midseason or so.

Beckley Mason, HoopSpeak: I don’t think it matters. They return all their core players and have an experienced head coach in Doug Collins, whom the players trust. This seems like a fairly knucklehead-free club headed in the right direction. But in a shortened season, they probably can’t afford to begin the season 3-13 again, though they did recover by the 66th game in 2011-12.

Danny Savitzky, Nets Are Scorching: Hurt. The Sixers want to get Holiday as much run as possible to help him develop. With fewer games on the schedule, he’s not going to get as many minutes, which will likely stunt his improvement. There’s no one particularly old on the team that would benefit from a short season except Brand, and he’ll surely get hurt anyway.

Noam Schiller, Hardwood Paroxysm: Help. The Sixers are a young team with a virtually unchanged roster, and a condensed season will do well for those with fresh legs and pre-existing chemistry. However, if the Sixers pull the trigger on the long-awaiting Iguodala trade, the lack of adjustment time will send them into a tailspin.

Dogs rescued in moonshine raid looking for new homes

Dozens of dogs rescued in a moonshine raid are looking for a new start in Hampton Roads.

When police found the dogs last month they were living with hundreds of sick, starving and injured animals in Central Virginia.

Now they’re recovering in Norfolk and will soon be looking for new homes.

“They all had medical issues. They were very emaciated, they hadn`t been fed well. They were all very infested with fleas, but all the issues that they had we`ll be treating and they`ll all be healthy and definitely happy,” says Michelle Williams of the Norfolk SPCA.

More than 100 animals were taken from a Roseland Virginia home. Police initially raided the house looking for moonshine and found the abused animals. Twenty eight of them made their way to the Norfolk SPCA. While they recover, people like Michelle Williams are taking action to find them new homes.

“The HSUS is donating 100$ per dog which we`re gonna pass on to the adopters. Our normal adoption fee is 150, so all of these guys will go home for 50$,” says Williams.

A rabbit was seized as well and he will go home with someone for free.

“As sweet as they are, they`re going to make sweet family pets and they`re going to be so appreciative,” says Williams.

In a week, the dogs and the rabbit will be healthy enough to meet new families who can give them the lives they deserve.

Al Thornton, DeShawn Stevenson are reportedly potential Jeff Green replacements

After announcing that Jeff Green will miss the entire 2011-12 season after undergoing surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm, the Boston Celtics have a crater on their bench and only veteran’s minimum contracts to throw at potential replacements. And they will certainly need replacements. If the regular season began today, the Celtics would begin the year with and injured Paul Pierce and two backup small forwards: Marquis Daniels (coming off spinal surgery) and Sasha Pavlovic (coming off a vomitacious four-year stretch during which he was literally one of the NBA’s worst offensive players).

The pickings will be slim and whoever the Celtics sign (assuming they do sign somebody) will likely be a marginal role player. Comcast’s A. Sherrod Blakely reports the Celtics will look at Al Thornton, DeShawn Stevenson and James Posey, but the Celtics will be hard-pressed to find legitimate help available for the veteran’s minimum.

With only the veteran’s minimum to offer, it becomes even less likely that the C’s will be able to find a player not currently on the roster, to help replace Green’s contributions.

Some of the possibilities for the C’s include former Celtic James Posey, Al Thornton and DeShawn Stevenson.

For now, the Celtics will try to make due with the current roster.

Because the 6-foot-8 Green could play both forward positions, a team source said the C’s are likely to rely on multiple players to fill the void he leaves behind.

Al Thornton is green beans. I despise green beans. Hate everything about them — their texture, taste, even the way they look on my plate. But if I was starving for a few days and green beans was the only thing I had in my pantry, they’d start to look a lot more appetizing. Same goes for most of the other small forwards Boston will be able to target using the minimum. Fucking green beans.

I would actually like Stevenson, who played a role on a contender last season and would surely be an upgrade to Sasha Pavlovic. I love Posey, but he’s about 95 years old in NBA years. Other names I’ll toss out there that I wouldn’t mind include Peja Stojakovic (washed-up, but still a pure shooter), Michael Redd (ditto) and, um — am I really going to say this? — Jamario Moon. Other than that, green beans. Unless I’m missing someone. Feel free to tell me if I am.

James Posey, Boston Celtics could reunite if Jeff Green is lost for awhile
Jeff Green reportedly may need procedure, likely okay long-term, short-term iffy
On re-signing Jeff Green
Michael Redd reportedly still an option for Boston Celtics
Jeff Green falling short of expectations, unless you expected him to remain Jeff Green

The Point Forward » Posts Stats show Chris Paul’s value to Clips «

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Chris Paul ranked 14th among all players in the entire NBA last season in points per possession scored on isolation plays. (AP)

In the euphoria over the Chris Paul trade and Blake Griffin’s general awesomeness, we tend to forget how bad the Clippers were last season. They ranked 22nd in points scored per possession and 18th in points allowed per possession, which means they were varying degrees of lousy on both sides of the ball. Paul is the league’s best orchestrator of scoring, but over his career the Hornets have actually been better at defense than offense. They ranked above the league’s average in points per possessions just twice in Paul’s six seasons, though those two seasons — 2007-08 and 2008-09 — represent his best seasons and times when the Hornets had their healthiest, most productive supporting casts.

On the flip side, the Hornets were better than average defensively in four of those six seasons and ranked among the league’s top 10 three times.

Paul is one of the league’s best defenders for his position, a steals machine who swipes the ball without gambling his way out of position or compromising his team’s defensive integrity. Given the personnel Paul will be surrounded with in L.A., he should provide immediate help on both ends of the floor in several key ways:

• Turnovers

The Clippers turned the ball over more than any other team last season, and only seven teams forced them more rarely on defense. That kind of turnover differential is like starting the game down by six points. DeAndre Jordan’s turnover rate was awful considering how rarely he touched the ball, and two of the Clippers’ point guards — Mo Williams and Eric Bledsoe — turned the ball over much more often than average for their position. Bledsoe’s turnover rate was an astronomical 26.3, meaning he coughed the ball up on more than one-quarter of the possessions he finished.

Enter Paul, whose turnover rate has been amazingly consistent — and consistently low. Here are Paul’s season-by-season turnover rates: 13.7, 13.5, 12.1, 13.5, 13.5, 13.9. That’s crazy, and those numbers are well below average for a point guard, let alone a point guard who has to do so much with the ball. For perspective, Steve Nash’s career turnover rate is about 18 percent, and he has pushed past 20 percent in several seasons.

The Hornets never ranked worse than eighth in team turnover rate during Paul’s six seasons. The Clippers were dead last in 2010-11. Jordan especially should do a bit better with Paul around to deliver passes at the right times and in the right places. No one has a better rhythm and sense of timing.

Paul should help on defense, too, even though the Clips’ point guard brigade actually posted solid steal numbers last season. Forcing turnovers isn’t just about individual steals; it’s about a team defending an opponent’s go-to plays in ways that squeeze space and make decisions harder.

Paul, provided he has good personnel behind him, forces turnovers in bunches on the pick-and-roll. Opposing point guards turned the ball on nearly 25 percent of pick-and-roll plays they finished — via a shot, turnover or foul — against Paul, according to Synergy Sports. That is way beyond what the league’s elite ball-hawking teams forced on the pick-and-roll overall. Paul doesn’t — and shouldn’t — get credit for all those steals and errant passes, but he helps by pressuring opponents, reaching at the right times and funneling guys to the right places as part of a broader defensive system.

Expect the Clippers to come out even, or better, in the turnover battle this season.

• Defensive Rebounding

The Clippers ranked just 19th in defensive rebounding percentage despite boasting two leapers in the front court. Dig in, and you’ll see all of their guards and wing players, save the seldom-used Jamario Moon and the departed Al-Farouq Aminu, put up defensive rebounding numbers well below the league average for their positions. Paul, despite his height and knee issues, has always been a good rebounder, and his defensive rebounding rate last season was higher than those of Eric Gordon, Davis, Williams, Randy Foye and even small forward Ryan Gomes. Every little bit helps on the glass.

• Isolation

Everyone hates isolation plays. The very word “isolation” denotes both selfishness and a breakdown of the team’s system. But the shot clock lasts only 24 seconds, and there will be a handful of possessions every night on which some player will have to create something out of nothing on his own.

Guess what? Paul ranked 14th among all players in the entire stinking NBA last season in points per possession scored on isolation plays, according to Synergy Sports. He averaged a hair better than 1.0 points per possession on 44 percent shooting overall, and 42 percent from deep. The Clippers as a team scored 0.74 points per possession on isolation plays, good for exactly last in the league, per Synergy. Gordon was the team’s only real one-on-one creator on the perimeter, and he shot just 35.5 percent on isolation plays. Gordon will get better with experience, though he’ll find the going tougher on the Hornets’ depleted roster; Paul is already elite at emergency creation.

• The pick-and-roll

This is obvious, since Paul has already shown what he can do with two threatening pick-and-roll big men. Jordan has no perimeter game, but neither does Tyson Chandler, and Chandler proved on both the 2007-08 Hornets and last season’s Mavericks that there is huge value in a big man who can finish dunks and alley-oops on the pick-and-roll, since extra defenders must sink into the lane to stop him.

When that happens, Griffin can either slide into open space along the baseline or curl out behind the play near the elbow, from which he can shoot or drive on the pass. And if a defense closes that option, Paul will have Chauncey Billups and Caron Butler — who shot lights-out from three last season — lurking on the outside. Butler probably can’t reproduce the elite three-point shooting he showed last season–it was a huge career outlier–but playing with all this talent will help.

The Clippers were a middling pick-and-roll team last season, per Synergy; the Hornets cracked the top 10 in points per possession on the play, despite a season-ending injury to David West (a pick-and-pop beast) and the presence of inconsistent shooters on the perimeter.

Everyone loves to mock Vinny Del Negro’s uncreative playbook, but in a compressed 66-game season, with very little prep or practice time, you can do worse than calling 70 pick-and-rolls with this personnel.

• The pace question

Here’s the interesting one: The Clippers played at an above-average pace last season, and they’ve got dynamic, young athletes all over the place, even after this trade. The Hornets under Paul’s stewardship have been snails, and the snail pace has persisted now across three coaches. Paul is a control freak, with good reason, and he exercises that control in part by milking the shot clock until he finds the hole in the defense he likes best. Heck, the guy likes to avoid the touching the ball as long as possible, walking as it rolls alongside him, not because he’s in a rush, but rather because he wants as many of those 24 seconds as possible to take place across the mid-court line.

This is thorny territory to negotiate, and you can bet the Clips will play faster when Bledsoe replaces Paul at point guard. But it will be interesting to see if the Clips finds a happy pace medium, or if Paul imposes his preferred slow tempo.

Regardless, the numbers show Paul is a great fit for reasons that go beyond the obvious Griffin/Jordan pick-and-roll potential.

Cavaliers release Baron Davis under amnesty rule

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — Baron Davis will be best remembered as the player who brought the Cavaliers Kyrie Irving, but he’ll never get the opportunity to mentor the rookie. Davis was waived by the Cavaliers on Wednesday night using the league’s amnesty provision, wiping the $28 million left on his contract off their salary cap.

Davis will still collect the money and will be offered to teams under the cap on secondary waivers, but he has a herniated disc in his back that could keep him out for much of this lockout-shortened season.

If he goes unclaimed by teams under the cap, he’ll be free to sign with any team in the league.

Davis was diagnosed Wednesday with a herniated L2-3 disc in his lower back, but a league source indicated the Cavs’ move was more for financial reasons. By waiving Davis now, the Cavs will be about $7 million under the salary cap (if they don’t use their trade exception that expires Friday) to use before the league’s trade deadline around the All-Star break.

“We want to thank Baron for his professionalism while he was here,” Cavs General Manager Chris Grant said. “This move gives us additional flexibility this year and next year and that’s one of the characteristics we’re constantly looking for as we move forward with this team.”

Davis averaged 13.9 points and 6.1 assists in 15 games with the Cavs last season (nine starts). The Cavs acquired Davis and an unprotected lottery pick from the Los Angeles Clippers at the trade deadline in February for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon. They spun that pick into Irving atop the draft.

“I’m going to miss cleveland fans and the organization!” Davis wrote on his Twitter account Wednesday night. “When I was down and out you believed in me and embraced me! will always be a cav!”

Davis’ time in Cleveland helped him repair a relationship with coach Byron Scott that was fractured while the two were together in New Orleans. Davis tweeted Wednesday how much respect he has for Scott and how grateful he was to have a second chance.

“I love Baron,” Scott said earlier in the day. “I want the best for him and the best for this team and the organization.”

Manny Harris has yet to practice with the Cavs because he was injured during the lockout at Nike’s facilities in Oregon. Details surrounding the injury remain sketchy. Nike referred all calls to Harris’ agent, Henry Thomas, who works for Creative Artists Agency. CAA was handling the event where Harris was injured.

“Manny just sustained some sort of freezer-type burn on his foot working out before he headed to training camp,” Thomas wrote in a text.

Now Harris’ roster spot could be in jeopardy. An undrafted rookie free agent last year, he is playing on a non-guaranteed contract and was already on the bubble to make the team. The Cavs have 16 players under contract (not counting camp invitations) and will have to release one before rosters are due to the league Dec. 24.

“It’s hard when you have all these other guys out here on the floor and he’s not,” Scott said. “I want him to be able to get out there because it would be a shame to have to let go of a guy that hasn’t had his chance to fight for his job. But the bottom line is when we have to make decisions, we’re going to make the decisions for the best of this team.”

Harris averaged 5.9 points and 2.6 assists in 54 games last year with the Cavs, who brought in undrafted rookie free agent shooting guard Mychel Thompson for training camp.

Scott said he knew as soon as he saw the burn on the outside area of Harris’ right foot that he would be unable to play right away. Harris was not made available to reporters Wednesday.

2012 SAG Award Nominations Announced

West Hollywood – The Deep South drama “The Help” cleaned up with four nominations Wednesday for the Screen Actors Guild Awards, among them honors for Viola Davis, Jessica Chastain and Octavia Spencer.

The adaptation of the best-selling novel also was nominated for best ensemble cast, along with the silent film “The Artist,” the wedding comedy “Bridesmaids,” the family drama “The Descendants” and the romantic fantasy “Midnight in Paris.”

Davis is up for best actress and Spencer for supporting actress as black maids who agree to share stories of their tough lives with an aspiring white writer at the start of the civil-rights movement in 1960s Mississippi. Chastain also was nominated for supporting actress as Spencer’s lonely, needy new boss.

“The Artist” ran second with three nominations, including a best-actor honor for Jean Dujardin as a silent star falling from grace amid the advent of talking pictures and supporting actress for Berenice Bejo, who plays a rising sound-era movie star.

Along with Davis, best-actress contenders are Glenn Close as a woman disguising herself as a male butler in 19th-century Ireland in “Albert Nobbs”; Meryl Streep as British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady”; Tilda Swinton as a grief-stricken woman coping with her son’s horrible deeds in “We Need to Talk About Kevin”; and Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe in “My Week With Marilyn.”

Joining Dujardin in the best-actor category are Demian Bichir as a hard-working illegal immigrant father in “A Better Life”; George Clooney as a neglectful dad tending his two daughters in “The Descendants”; Leonardo DiCaprio as FBI boss J. Edgar Hoover in “J. Edgar”; and Brad Pitt as Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane in “Moneyball.”

The SAG Awards will be presented Jan. 29.

The nominations are among the first major honors on the long road to the Feb. 26 Academy Awards.

____________________ Here is a complete list of nominees announced today for the 18th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards: MOTION PICTURES

Outstanding Performance By A Cast In A Motion Picture — “Bridesmaids” — “The Artist” — “The Descendants” — “The Help” — “Midnight in Paris”

Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Leading Role — George Clooney, “The Descendants” — Demian Bichir, “A Better Life” — Leonardo DiCaprio, “J. Edgar” — Jean Dujardin, “The Artist” — Brad Pitt, “Moneyball”

Outstanding Performance By A Female Actor In A Leading Role — Michelle Williams, “My Week With Marilyn” — Glenn Close, “Albert Nobbs” — Viola Davis, “The Help” — Meryl Streep, “The Iron Lady” — Tilda Swinton, “We Need to Talk About Kevin”

Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Supporting Role — Nick Nolte, “Warrior” — Kenneth Branagh, “My Week With Marilyn” — Armie Hammer, “J. Edgar” — Jonah Hill, “Moneyball” — Christopher Plummer, “Beginners”

Outstanding Performance By A Female Actor In A Supporting Role — Octavia Spencer, “The Help” — Berenice Bejo, “The Artist” — Jessica Chastain, “The Help” — Melissa McCarthy, “Bridesmaids” — Janet McTeer, “Albert Nobbs”

Outstanding Performance By A Stunt Ensemble In A Motion Picture — “The Adjustment Bureau” — “Cowboys & Aliens” — “Harry Potter and the Deahtly Hallows: Part II” — “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” — “X-Men: First Class”

Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Television Movie Or Miniseries — Laurence Fishburne, “Thurgood” — Paul Giamatti, “Too Big to Fail” — Greg Kinnear, “The Kennedys” — Guy Pearce, “Mildred Pierce” — James Woods, “Too Big to Fail”

Outstanding Performance By A Female Actor In A Television Movie Or Miniseries — Diane Lane, “Cinema Verite” — Maggie Smith, “Downton Abbey” — Emily Watson, “Appropriate Adult” — Betty White, “The Lost Valentine” — Kate Winslet, “Mildred Pierce” Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Drama Series — Patrick J. Adams, “Suits” — Steve Buscemi, “Boardwalk Empire” — Kyle Chandler, “Friday Night Lights” — Bryan Cranston, “Breaking Bad” — Michael C. Hall, “Dexter”

Outstanding Performance By A Female Actor In A Drama Series — Kathy Bates, “Harry’s Law” — Glenn Close, “Damages” — Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story” — Julianna Margulies, “The Good Wife” — Kyra Sedgwick, “The Closer”

Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Comedy Series — Alec Baldwin, “30 Rock” — Ty Burrell, “Modern Family” — Steve Carell, “The Office” — Jon Cryer, “Two and a Half Men” — Eric Stonestreet, “Modern Family”

Outstanding Performance By A Female Actor In A Comedy Series — Julie Bowen, “Modern Family” — Edie Falco, “Nurse Jackie” — Tina Fey, “30 Rock” — Sofia Vergara, “Modern Family” — Betty White, “Hot In Cleveland”

Outstanding Performance By An Ensemble In A Drama Series — “Boardwalk Empire” — “Breaking Bad” — “Dexter” — “Game of Thrones” — “The Good Wife”

Outstanding Performance By An Ensemble In A Comedy Series — “30 Rock” — “The Big Bang Theory”

The Geminid annual meteor shower to peak Tuesday night

The Geminid meteor shower, billed by NASA as the best of the year, is expected to peak on Tuesday night.

Shooting stars appearing to originate from the constellation Gemini are expected to streak across the skies between Dec. 12 and 16, peaking between Dec. 13 and 14, the U.S. space agency says.

Between 80 and 120 shooting stars per hour are regularly seen during the peak of the annual celestial show. Unfortunately, this year the sky will be lit brightly with a nearly full waning gibbous moon, making some of the meteors hard to see. Even so, sky watchers may be able to see up to 40 shooting stars per hour during the peak if skies are clear, NASA predicts.

The Geminid meteor shower takes place in mid-December each year as the Earth passes through a stream of debris from an object called 3200 Phaetheon. Astronomers aren’t sure whether it is a comet or an asteroid, since it has an asteroid-like orbit, but brightens like a comet as it approaches the sun.

This annual meteor shower was first reported in the 1830s, and since then has increased from a peak intensity of 20 meteors per hour to up to 120.

“It is now the best annual meteor shower,” NASA said on its website.

NASA is holding a public online chat with three meteor experts at its Marshall Space Flight Center from 11 p.m. ET Tuesday to 5 a.m. ET Wednesday.

Quadrantids: Visible each year in early January, this meteor shower appears to originate within the constellation Bootes. The meteors are often bright blue, and peak at an hourly rate of about 40.

Lyrids: This shower begins every year in mid-April. The Lyrids can sometimes produce fireballs with smoky trails that can linger for a few minutes. They appear to come from the star Vega, in the Lyra constellation.

Perseids: Debris left behind from the 109P/Swift-Tuttle comet, which passes through the inner solar system every 130 years, is responsible for the Perseid meteor showers. The event begins in mid-July, but peaks in mid-August.

Orionids: Known to produce fireballs, these meteor showers will peak in late October with a maximum hourly rate of about 20. The yellow and green meteors are fast moving and come from fragments left behind by Halley’s comet.

Leonids: The Leonids are visible every year around mid-November when Earth passes through the debris field left by comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle. Leonids hit the Earth’s atmosphere at 70 kilometres per second, or 255,600 km/h. That’s about 133 times faster than an F-18 fighter jet can fly at top speed.

Geminids: The Geminids are known for their multi-coloured streaks and moderate speeds — they travel at half the speed of the Leonids — making them easy to spot. The shower peaks in mid-December, with an average maximum rate of 50 meteors an hour.