Annette Funicello, One of the Original and Most Beloved Mouseketeers, Dies at Age 70 … Rest in Peace

One of America’s original Mouskeeteer sweethearts has passed …

Annette Funicello, one of the original and most beloved ‘Mousketeers’ from the 1950′s Mickey Mouse Club has died at the age of 70. According to a Disney statement,  Funicello “died peacefully from complications due to multiple sclerosis, a disease she battled for over 25 years” at a Mercy Southwest Hospital in Bakersfield, CA. Annette Funicello went on from a Mouseketeer to one of America’s sweethearts acting in numerous movies, including those memorable beach party movies in the early 1960′s with Frankie Avalon like “Bikini Beach” and ”Beach Blanket Bingo”. She also recorded more than 30 albums. Annette Funicello represents a time and innocence in America long since past and a movie star that with such incredible fame, always remained humble. Doctors diagnosed Funicello with multiple sclerosis, a degenerative neurological disease, in 1987. She kept the illness a secret until 1992, the year she established The Annette Funicello Research Fund for Neurological Diseases.

Annette Funicello: October 22, 1942 – April 8, 2013 … RIP

“We are so sorry to lose Mother,” her three children said in a statement. “She is no longer suffering anymore and is now dancing in heaven. We love and will miss her terribly.”

Funicello was just 13 when she was selected by Walt Disney himself to be one of the original Mouseketeers of the “Mickey Mouse Club,” the 1950s television variety show aimed at children.

Funicello, who had a background in dance, quickly became one of the most popular Mouseketeers.

She “was and always will be a cherished member of the Disney family, synonymous with the word Mouseketeer, and a true Disney Legend,” Disney chairman and CEO Bob Iger said.

She remained with Disney after leaving the “Mickey Mouse Club,” appearing in TV shows including “Zorro” (1957), “The Nine Lives of Elfego Baca” (1958) and starring in the Disney feature films “The Shaggy Dog” (1959), “Babes in Toyland” (1961), “The Misadventures of Merlin Jones” (1964) and “The Monkey’s Uncle” (1965).

The most enduring images of Funicello, though, may be of her in a swimsuit, her primary wardrobe when she co-starred with teen idol Frankie Avalon in beach party movies in the early 1960s. These included “Beach Party” (1963), “Muscle Beach Party” (1964), “Bikini Beach” (1964), “Beach Blanket Bingo” (1965), and “How to Stuff a Wild Bikini” (1965).

NY Times Obit.

Annette Joanne Funicello was born on Oct. 22, 1942, in Utica, N.Y., and as the first grandchild on either side of the family was indulged to the point of being, in her own words, a “spoiled brat.” At age 2, she learned the words to every song on the hit parade, her favorite being “Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive.”

In 1946, her parents decided to move to Southern California in the hope of doing better economically. They lived in a trailer park until her father, a mechanic, found work. They settled in Studio City and later moved to Encino.

Disney: Beloved Disney Mouseketeer and Iconic Teen Star Annette Funicello Dies at Age 70.

“Annette was and always will be a cherished member of the Disney family, synonymous with the word Mousketeer, and a true Disney Legend. She will forever hold a place in our hearts as one of Walt Disney’s brightest stars, delighting an entire generation of baby boomers with her jubilant personality and endless talent. Annette was well known for being as beautiful inside as she was on the outside, and she faced her physical challenges with dignity, bravery and grace. All of us at Disney join with family, friends, and fans around the world in celebrating her extraordinary life.”

- Bob Iger, Chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company.

Beach Blanket Bingo … Annette Funicello & Frankie Avalon

One thing is for certain, this is truly a sad day.

F.B.I. Investigating Former Rutgers Assistant Whistle Blower Eric Murdock Who Brought Down Coach Mike Rice & AD Pernetti … Accused of Extortion

 Is there anyone wearing a white hat in this scandal? Where have all the cowboys gone?

The Rutgers University basketball scandal will just not go away. Gone is head coach Mike Rice for his abusive behavior after the VIDEO was released and went viral displaying his despicable acts. Gone is the Athletic Director Tim Pernetti, who resigned as the heat became too much for him to stay after his poor decision to only suspend the coach as his initial punishment, rather than fire him.  Some are now questioning whether the Rutgers University president should resign. However, the New York Times is reporting that the FBI is investigating the whistle blower Eric Murdock and whether he attempted to extort the university for  $950,000.

The F.B.I. is investigating whether the assistant at Rutgers who first voiced concerns about the abusive behavior of his boss, Mike Rice, tried to extort the university.

As part of its investigation, an F.B.I. agent recently visited the office of Tim Pernetti, the athletic director, according to two people familiar with the investigation, one of whom is a university official who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly. Pernetti resigned as the Rutgers athletic director on Friday.

In December, a lawyer representing the former assistant, Eric Murdock, a retired N.B.A. player, sent a letter to the university demanding $950,000, according to a copy of the letter. The letter — which was first reported by ESPN on Friday — was sent two weeks after Rice was suspended for three games for the abusive behavior that eventually led to his firing Wednesday.

Are you kidding me? Could this scandal get any worse?

Moonbats of Westboro Baptist Church to Picket Roger Ebert’s Funeral

Keeping it classy, NOT!

Looks like the moonbats at the Westboro Baptist Church need more media attention. It would appear that the Westboro Baptist Church members are going to picket movie critic Roger Ebert’s funeral. Roger Ebert passed away last week after his battle with cancer. Sorry, but whether one agrees with the guy or does not, have an ounce of class. Picketing a funeral, really? I know, I know, if these folks would protest a child’s funeral or a US soldiers funeral, what’s picketing a Hollywood movie critic’s one.

Leaders of Kansas’ Westboro Baptist Church, notorious for picketing at the funerals of soldiers and gay teenagers, have revealed that they plan to picket the funeral of late movie critic Roger Ebert on Monday.

In its news release, the group calls Ebert a “f-g enabler” and complains that he used his Twitter “to mock the faithful servants of God at Westboro Baptist Church.”

On March 25, Ebert did in fact tweet a link to a Salon post that features an excerpt from a book by Jeff Chu titled Does Jesus Really Love Me?: A Gay Christian’s Pilgrimage in Search of God in America. Chu, a gay man, spent a day at Westboro as part of his research.

Ebert tweeted the link twice, once with the message “Just another day at Westboro Baptist” and again with a similar message: “One more day at the Westboro Baptist church.”

Westboro also calls Ebert a “fool sold his soul for some fame & fortune.”

WOW, really? What do they say about those who live in glass houses and what did the Bible say about  those that cast the first stone?

Daily Commentary – Monday, April 8, 2013 – Rich Neighborhoods in Oakland, California Hire Private Security

• After police layoffs due to budget cuts lead to an increase in crime

Margaret Thatcher, The Iron Lady Dead at Age 87 of a Stroke … RIP

Sad and breaking news from across The Pond … Margaret Thatcher has passed away following a stoke. The iconic,  longest serving and most influential British Prime Minister of post WWII history has passed.

Baroness Thatcher has died at the age of 87 after suffering a stroke, her spokesman Lord Bell has announced.

Lord Bell said: “It is with great sadness that Mark and Carol Thatcher announced that their mother Baroness Thatcher died peacefully following a stroke this morning.

 From the UK Telegraph: She will go down in history not only as Britain’s first female prime minister, but as the woman who transformed Britain’s economy in addition to being a formidable rival on the international stage.

THE IRON LADY: 1925-2013

Margaret Thatcher, the “Iron Lady,” the former UK Prime Minister and the first and only British female Prime Minister, has passed away at the age of 87. Margaret  Thatcher served as Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 as leader of the Conservative Party in England. The United States knew no better friend and ally than the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The Iron Lady along with US President Ronald Reagan helped end Soviet communism and helped bring down the “Iron Curtain”. She certainly put the “Great” back into Great Britain after years of floundering socialism.

Thatcher won the nation’s top job only six years after declaring in a television interview, “I don’t think there will be a woman prime minister in my lifetime.”

During her time at the helm of the British government, she emphasized moral absolutism, nationalism, and the rights of the individual versus that of the state — famously declaring, “There is no such thing as society” in 1987.

Nicknamed the “Iron Lady” by the Soviet press after a 1976 speech declaring that “the Russians are bent on world dominance,” Thatcher later enjoyed a close working relationship with U.S. President Reagan, with whom she shared similar conservative views.

Margaret Thatcher Bio.

Read the many tributes and condolences to the death of former British Prime Minister go to the UK Guardian. Current British PM David Cameron tweets a tribute to the “Iron Lady”.

BBC: Ex-Prime Minister Baroness Thatcher dies, aged 87, tributes pour in for Margaret Thatcher.

Lady Thatcher’s government privatized several state-owned industries. She was also in power when the UK went to war with Argentina over the Falkland Islands in 1982.

In a statement on the Downing Street Twitter feed, Mr Cameron said: “It was with great sadness that l learned of Lady Thatcher’s death. We’ve lost a great leader, a great prime minister and a great Briton.”

A Buckingham Palace spokesman said: “The Queen was sad to hear the news of the death of Baroness Thatcher. Her Majesty will be sending a private message of sympathy to the family.”

London Mayor Boris Johnson tweeted: “Very sad to hear of death of Baroness Thatcher. Her memory will live long after the world has forgotten the grey suits of today’s politics.”

Take a good listen America, Great Britain, Barack Obama, Democrats and gutless Republicans. Listen to the brilliant words of Margaret Thatcher on government taxing the people … “No Nation ever grew more prosperous by taxing its citizens beyond their capacity to pay”.

Thatcher: There is no such thing as public money

Margaret Thatcher Eulogizes her friend Ronald Reagan … President Reagan Now welcoming PM Thatcher into Heaven

AMERICA, TAKE A GOOD LISTEN TO THE LIBERALS OF THE UK AND THE QUESTIONS THEY CONFRONTED THATCHER WITH … LIBS SOUND LIKE OBAMA

Margaret Thatcher owns the liberals and proves that Capitalism is better than socialism. Wake up America, England and Europe … her words still work today.

Sadly, the miserable LEFT is just too quick to come out with the hideous comments following Thatcher’s death. Check out Jammie Wearing Fool for the soulless Left’s comments. These fools do not even comprehend the good this woman did and how their lives were made better. Legal Insurrection has it correct, we lost a giant of freedom and human dignity. Check them out for even more amazing videos and the words of Margaret Thatcher.