Agents Mulder and Scully in The X-Files: I Want to Believe Hollywood has always been fascinated by the FBI, which celebrates its 100th birthday today. In honor of the good G-men and G-women, let's take a look through the Yahoo! Directory movie categories for movies featuring this most-wanted agency. One of the earliest portrayals of the FBI was in the 1935 film "G-Men," starring James Cagney. Cagney had spent the first four years of his career as a tough guy and a public enemy, so when he was cast as a young federal agent (who was put through school by a mobster), the screen image of FBI agents became as hard-boiled as that of the gangsters they fought. The film portrayed federal agents as such heroes that FBI director J. Edgar Hoover actually wanted to start a movie studio within the Bureau itself! Hoover's foray into the film industry never took off, but the agency continued to be a mainstay on celluloid in such films as "The FBI Story" (with James Stewart as an agent who managed to work on every major case the Bureau took on), "Mississippi Burning," "Catch Me If You Can," and "Donnie Brasco" -- not to mention the long-running TV series, "The FBI." But along with being tough, strong, and stoic, on-screen FBI agents stayed mostly male. That all soon changed when films like "Silence of the Lambs," and "Breach" featured hard-boiled yet glamorous female agents. And how can we forget the great X-Files, which, coincidentally, also opens today on the big screen. Ah, the X-Files! The television series-turned-movie that brought us perhaps the most well-known and well-loved federal agents, Dana Scully and Fox Mulder. With their unresolved sexual tension clouding over every alien chase, Mulder and Scully have given the agency a sexy new image and inspired legions of die-hard X-Files fans, many of whom have longed to participate in more personal investigations. Suggested Sites... The FBI Academy - see what it takes to become an FBI agent. FBI at 100: From Al Capone to al Qaeda - CNN explores the history of the agency. Ali G. FBI Interview - Ali G. tests the patience of the Feds. The X Files Ultimate - super fan site.

Directory categories: The FBI, FBI Most Wanted Lists, Spy Movies, X Files, Alien Abductions

Archived under: American History, Anniversaries, FBI, Government, Movies, TV

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Poster for Martin and Lewis' 1953 comedy The Caddy Before there was a Rat Pack, a "Rio Bravo," or an "Everybody Loves Somebody," Dean Martin was known to America as Jerry Lewis' partner and straight man in a series of hilarious duets, movies, and television shows. For exactly a decade -- starting on July 24, 1946 and ending on the same date in 1956 -- the pair was America's favorite entertainers. The team-up began when the two were booked at Atlantic City's 500 Club. The audience was ice cold, so instead of sticking to the prepared material, Lewis pretended to be a waiter, noisily interrupting Martin's act. The singer improvised back, and the crowd was soon in hysterics. The act became the hottest in show business, and the duo never looked back. Their recipe for success never failed: Dino would sing -- or try to -- while Lewis would embellish the crooner's act by making faces, interrupting the songs with his awful nasal, twangy voice, and using all the tricks of vaudeville and slapstick. Their peak may have come in the early '50s, when 75,000 people turned out to see them appear at New York's Paramount Theatre. But after 16 movies, bored by being seen as nothing but a foil for Lewis, Martin decided to go solo. His last performance with Lewis took place at 2:30 a.m. at the Copacabana in New York. They played three shows that night, taking the audience from laughter to tears. The pair reunited briefly in 1960 -- for 15 minutes. But in 1976, Frank Sinatra arranged for Martin to surprise Lewis on his telethon, an appearance which ended the team's feud. Lewis also appeared at Martin's 72nd birthday, presenting him with a cake and joking, "Why we broke up, I'll never know." Neither do we, but we're glad for their time together. Suggested Sites... Martin and Lewis on the Radio - a collection of Dino and Jerry's on-air performances. Dean Martin, Forever Cool - the Italian crooner at his best. Jerry Lewis Comedy Museum - Jerry Lewis from A to Z. Martin and Lewis - photo history of the team. Jerry Lewis on "Dean and Me: A Love Story" - Terri Gross interviews Jerry about his partnership with Dean.

Directory categories: Martin and Lewis, Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, The Rat Pack, Comedy Groups

Archived under: 1950s, Actors, Comedians, Comics, Entertainment, Humor, Martin and Lewis, Parody, TV, Vaudeville

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(Courtesy of Goldenrectangle) Out among the dust and debris in our solar system are notable bodies not quite worthy of dwarf planet status, but still worthy of our notice -- asteroids. Millions of these irregularly shaped chunks of rock are out there orbiting the sun and humbly going about their business. As they drift along in the void, little do they suspect that we Earthlings have come to view them as potential planet-killers! The 1994 collision of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter caught the public's attention and made it quite clear that astronomical run-ins aren't just theoretical, but a reality. We hardly needed to look so far into the solar system to find evidence, though. The pockmarked surface of our moon keeps a running tab on impacts, and we even have video of meteorites slamming into it. Furthermore, there is plenty of terrestrial evidence of our planet's own violent history. So, do we need to worry about aggressive asteroids in the coming centuries? Perhaps. Fortunately for us, the fine folks at NASA are on top of Near Earth Objects (NEOs) and have even developed an Impact Risk Scale to allow us to appropriately match our level of alarm to any asteroid in question. And should NASA make some faulty calculations, there are other organizations searching for ways to deflect the next dinosaur killer. So for the time being, since it seems our doom is not so imminent, let us then think of asteroids not as ruinous rocks of annihilation, but rather as gentle space neighbors who are just as keen on avoiding us as we are on avoiding them. Suggested Sites... Earth Impact Effects Program - design your own disaster with this impressive impact calculator. NASA: Near Earth Object Program - check out the orbits of potentially risky asteroids. NASA: Images of Eros - view an asteroid up close with these Eros images taken by the NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft. NASA: Friday the 13th, 2009 - asteroid 2004 MN4 pays us an uncomfortably close, but potentially stunning, visit.

Directory categories: Asteroids, Earth Impact, Solar System, Astronomy Instruments, Dwarf Planets

Archived under: Asteroids, Astronomy, Disasters, Physics, Planets, Science, Space

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Sports coat: $55. Plane ticket: $89. Looking like this on national television: Priceless Alex Trebek turns 68 today -- looks good, doesn't he? Nice guy; does charity work, never a scandal. But I'm still a little mad at him -- though I have no one to blame but myself. Let me explain. Like millions of folks, I love Jeopardy! -- going back to the original version with Art Fleming. I also have a knack for memorizing useless facts -- to the point where people were always saying, "You should be on Jeopardy!" (like I had any say in it). In May, 2006, I finally got the call, asking me come in for an interview. Well, I played well enough and was sufficiently personable that they told me I'd be in the pool for a year, and if I didn't hear from them to try again. That year passed and I wrote it off -- until November of 2007, when the magical call came from Culver City. They wanted me! I went to L.A., and after a morning of instructions, was called on to play -- for real. Thanks to a lucky group of categories -- and a Final Jeopardy that I didn't know, but made an educated guess at -- I was an honest-to-goodness Jeopardy! champion. Then my second game came. I was slow on the buzzer, but the final blow was a Daily Double about Shakespeare. In spite of my background in theatre history -- and Alex trying to help -- I blanked, and it was all downhill from there. I rallied, but it was too late, and after a reign of one day, I was a Former Jeopardy! Champion. I exited the studio with a feeling of "what just happened?" but feeling proud that I'd actually done it. I can never go back on the show, but if you do, give Alex my best. And watch out for those Shakespeare categories.... Suggested Sites... Jeopardy! - official site for the world's favorite answer-and-question show. J! Archive - every game since 1983. J! Archive: March 26, 2008 - think you can beat me? J! Archive: March 27, 2008 - my day of infamy. Curse you, Bill Shakespeare! Jeopardy! Message Board - discuss the show with other fanatics.

Directory categories: Alex Trebek, Game Show Hosts, Jeopardy!, Game Shows, Merv Griffin

Archived under: Alex Trebek, Birthdays, Celebrities, Entertainment, Flops, Game Shows, Jeopardy, TV, William Shakespeare

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"Wild Bill" Hickok (1837-1876) James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok was famous for many things -- his long, curly hair; the buckskin clothing he wore; his career as a lawman, a scout, and a gunfighter; and the "dead man's hand" of cards he held on the day he was murdered. But above all, he was involved in the first of what would become an icon of the Old West and the quintessential event in dozens of Westerns and other films: the quick-draw showdown. In Springfield, Missouri, on July 20, 1865, Wild Bill won a substantial amount of money in a card game against a man named Davis Tutt. Humiliated at losing so much in one game, Tutt reminded Hickok of a previous debt, and Hickok promptly paid him. Still unsatisfied, however, Tutt hurled out another debt Bill owed him, but this time, Bill disputed it. Davis leaned over and grabbed Wild Bill's pocket watch and said that he would keep the watch as collateral. Wild Bill was furious, but could do nothing at the time, as he was surrounded by a number of Tutt's allies. So Hickok told Tutt he could keep the watch, but threatened that if he ever saw Tutt wear it in public, he would shoot him on sight. Not afraid of Bill and concerned about his own reputation, Tutt accepted the challenge and said he'd wear the watch the very next day. July 21, 1865, the next day: Word quickly spread to Wild Bill that Davis Tutt was in town and wearing the watch. When the two met in the street, they faced each other from several yards away. Tutt drew first and fired a round, but missed. Wild Bill drew, fired, and hit his opponent straight through the heart -- killing him almost instantly. This account may sound too Hollywood to be true, but it was indeed documented in Harper's Weekly in 1867, in an article that launched Hickok to stardom as a gunslinger. The event is even engraved on Davis Tutt's tombstone. Poor guy -- even at his final resting place, he's humiliated by Hickok. Suggested Sites... Wikipedia: Wild Bill Hickok - Davis Tutt Shootout - details about the event. Legends of America: 1867 Harper's Weekly Article About Wild Bill - full text of the original 1867 article that made Wild Bill famous. YouTube: High Noon Finale - not exactly the mano a mano that some remember it as, but it is indeed a classic among Western showdowns. YouTube: Wild Bill's Poker Game on Deadwood - scene from HBO's Deadwood between Wild Bill and his future murderer, Jack McCall.

Directory categories: Wild Bill Hickok, American West, Famous Figures of the American West

Archived under: American History, Gunslingers, History, Old West, Westerns, Wild Bill Hickok

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