Randy Twizzle

November 16, 2006 -- About the last thing blogger Michael Arrington expected to get from YouTube, a video-sharing site that has been accused of copyright infringement, was a letter accusing him of copyright infringement. Arrington, the force behind TechCrunch.com and a self-proclaimed YouTube fan, was dumbfounded yesterday when the company sent him a cease-and-desist letter. YouTube's attorneys claim he aids people in making unauthorized copies of videos posted on YouTube's site. His offense? He created a piece of software that allows users to download and save YouTube videos to their computer hard drives. He also walked them through how to use the software in a recent posting. "Your practice of inducing users to violate their contractual agreement with YouTube constitutes a tortious interference of a business relationship, and in fact, many business relationships," according to the letter, which Arrington posted on his site. YouTube argues that under its "terms of use," users can only stream the videos on the Web; they can't download them to their computers. But Arrington said on his blog that he can't find that language anywhere on YouTube's site. A spokeswoman for YouTube told The Post, "We believe our Terms of Use are clear on this point, but in light of the recently-expressed confusion we will consider revising our Terms of Use to avoid any further confusion." The charge is ironic considering YouTube is struggling with similar issues. The company has said it complies with copyright laws and removes unauthorized clips when notified, but users continue to post clips from popular TV shows and music videos without permission. YouTube has tried to ward off potential lawsuits by striking revenue-sharing agreements with big media and music companies. Still, Google, which is acquiring YouTube for $1.65 billion, disclosed that has set aside $200 million to deal with legal liabilities. "Of course, the irony of YouTube accusing others of copyright infringement is delicious," Arrington said. Arrington said he will remove the software rather than fight. But his loyal readers, who look to his blog for Silicon Valley scoops were all to happy to point out the proverbial pot calling the kettle black.

He makes an unbilled cameo appearance in this trombone ad

That's no big deal. Here in northern New Jersey I've seen pregnant women slopping pigs, plowing fields, and raising barns side by side with the menfolk.

The Jazz Store is offering The Ultimate Jazz Archive for only $599.98. Just don't ask for a track listing because it isn't available. However their catalogue does promise that "YOU'LL NEVER NEED ANOTHER JAZZ BOX!"

"Johnson Paint" at Mass Ave used to be one of the best. If your gonna say "hey" you better be prepared! Tony would have been impressed. Yeah well it was my first visit to Boston in 20 years and I knew nothing, and having seen Tony at least 4 other times in NY I felt we were old friends. In fact each time I've seen him I've said "Hey Tony" He's the kind of kind of guy that inspires that kind of neigborhood familiarity. Though admittedly this was the first time he ever responded to my Hey

Instead of naming musicians who I might recognize here's some that I did recognize: Barry Harris coming out of an OTB parlor in Times Square, Red Rodney standing in front of a Broadway theatre, Dexter Gordon walking down 5th Avenue, Kenny Washington in J&R and Joe Pass in a Chicago hotel elevator. I've also seen Tony Bennett several times in Manhattan and once on Newbury St in Boston. In Boston after I said "Hey Tony" he stopped and asked me if I knew where there was an art supply store in the area. I didn't know.

Vido Musso and Boots Mussulli

Or he can sign Jayne's guestbook.

How right you are. According to his Times obituary among the people at Bradley's bedside at the time of his death was that noted black nationalist Jimmy Buffett

In 1969 working at Newsradio 88 in NYC

Do you really think that someone so obsessed with an issue that he's willing to kill himself in such a gruesome manner is going to sit around and wait until the final results in the Virginia senate race are available before he decides whether to set himself on fire.

Well even if it's true I don't understand why opening the slot and wedging the mail in it was any safer than opening the slot and quickly pushing the mail all the way through.

I lived in an apartment that had a mail slot on the front door. After years of having the mail pushed all the way in to my apartment the mailman started sticking the mail half in and half out of the slot. This greatly increased the risk of someone coming along and stealing my mail. When I called the post office to complain, after my note to the mailmanwas ignored, the local supervisor told me that many people in my area had dogs and that the mailman was probably leery of getting bitten if he pushed the mail all the way in. I told her that was the stupidest excuse I've ever heard and she hung up on me.

BY WAYNE PARRY Star-Ledger Staff A fisherman who found a bag of 300 letters to God floating in the ocean off Atlantic City will give most of them to the daughter of the dead minister for whom they were intended. Bill Lacovara, a Ventnor insurance adjuster, said yesterday he plans to give the letters to Vanessa Cooper, the daughter of Rev. Grady Cooper, a former associate pastor of the Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Jersey City who died nearly two years ago. Lacovara found the letters in a shopping bag in the surf under the Steel Pier last month. About 150 of the letters were too damaged by the water to be legible. He placed the remaining ones up for auction on eBay, but canceled the auction after more than 25 people pushed the price past $550. He said he and his family have received many hostile letters and phone calls from people upset that the letters were put up for auction, and said it never was his intention to profit from them. "I apologize to anyone who was insulted," he said. "It was never my intention to offend anyone. I was looking at these more like antiques." Lacovara said he heard from individuals and churches across the country who were interested in obtaining the letters so their own congregations could pray over them. Many of the letters were addressed to the Rev. Cooper, but many more simply said "Altar." According to the text of several of the letters, they were intended to be placed on a church's altar and prayed over by the minister, the congregation or both. It's still not clear how the letters, some dating to 1973 and most unopened, ended up in the ocean. Lacovara speculated that someone cleaning out Cooper's former home found the letters and, instead of tossing them in the garbage, set them out to sea as a sort of final tribute to the authors. Vanessa Cooper could not be located for comment yesterday. Lacovara said he will probably ask her to meet him next week on the beach by the Steel Pier -- the same spot where he found the letters.

What were you wearing when you found this out? How hard was it... to find this out? Were your buttocks clenched in disapointment?

Last night I met a neighbor on the street. The IRS is after him for 45K. He doesn't have the money, but he's been a heavy smoker for 40 yrs and he figures he'll be dead before they're able to put him in jail. He was coming back from Atlantic City where he says he could have won at least $4000 if his old lady would have given him more money to play with. Then he borrowed $20 from me.

I'm sitting looking out on an empty KMart parking lot while a car alarm goes off and a guy in a black leather jacket takes a leak against a dying elm tree. Life sucks....

I think the day will soon come when people who use dude in conversation will seem as silly as those who once bought Mitch Miller records.

My grandmother loved him. One of my earliest memories was of sitting with her while she watched "Sing Along with Mitch." She didn't sing along because until her dying day she had trouble with the English language, but she loved MM and that's good enough for me. Of course Frank Sinatra hated Miller with a passion because he sabotaged Sinatra's Columbia recording career, but Grandma Libby didn't travel in Sinatra's circle.

He's obviously trying hard to become one of those supposedly lovable NY characters that people write about in the Times' Metropolitan Diary ("You can imagine my surprise when I was awakened at 4:45 by a man playing a tuba...") Buy a rottweiler..

Never mind the R&R HOF, let's celebrate Joan Jett, Perry Como, Twisted Sister, KISS and John Coltrane, among the first inductees in the Long Island Music Hall of Fame

Vic was arrested with Louis Armstrong in the early 30s while both were smoking a joint in the parking lot of a club. http://www.ukcia.org/potculture/30/louis.html

Mickey Rooney always comes up short

I remember sitting at the bar of Syracuse's Casa de Lisa Lounge on Erie Blvd East in 1977, listening to the bartender telling another customer that she was looking forward to seeing Natalie Cole next week. After that it's all a blur. [End of Anecdote]