RAY'S DAY
Ray Charles celebrated his 73rd birthday this week with a cakeshaped like a piano and visits from big-time peers Quincy Jones andWillie Nelson. "I've been lucky to have done so many things these73 years, but there's a lot more I want to do in life, especiallywith longtime friends like Willie and Quincy," the legendarymusician said at his L.A. studio.
Charles announced a blues songwriting contest, which he'll judgewith help from Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alicia Keys andRoger Waters of Pink Floyd. Teens can submit the lyrics to a bluessong; five winners will be flown to L.A. to work with Charles inproducing the song.
SCALDING REMARKS
It must be hard to be a member of People for the EthicalTreatment of Animals. PETA members hear turkey sandwiches screamingin agony at lunchtime. At night, they sleep fitfully, knowing thatsomeone, somewhere is doing the mambo in leather shoes. And nowthey must live with the horror of Martha Stewart's crabs.
Having recently cooked soft-shell crabs on an episode of TV'sMartha Stewart Living show, the shellfish murderess is the subjectof a PETA letter-writing campaign, according to the New YorkPost.
"Just a few episodes previously, Martha boiled live lobsters andcommented that lobsters don't have a central nervous system," abreathless PETA spokesman said. He was upset with the image ofStewart "allowing (the crabs) to writhe in a hot pan, cooking themto death as they struggle." We suggest that the PETA folk relax andconsider the potential karmic payback: Shellfish can carry disease,and food poisoning is nature's way of evening things out.
