Apple Introduces "iPad," Internet Jokes Ensue. iTampon, Anyone?

MadTV was all over the iPad before Steve Jobs had a clue. (OK, he apparently still doesn't.) Video from 2007.

Whatever one thinks of the technology or functions of the iPad that Steve Jobs introduced today, two things are clear: 1. Jobs doesn't have any women in his inner circle, and 2. he doesn't watch MadTV. The blogosphere and Twitterverse were buzzing Wednesday with jokes about the name iPad and how it sounds like some kind of, um, feminine protection.

For much of Wednesday night, "iTampon" and "iPeriod" were trending topics, ahead of the product's name. Jokes floated around beginning immediately after Jobs spoke the word iPad: wondering if the high-capacity version called a Maxi-iPad; remarking that the gizmo is "bloody brilliant," etc. You get the idea.

And yes, MadTV saw the comic gold in iPad as a feminine hygiene product back in 2007, as the clip above shows. Seriously, no one in the top levels of Apple watches MadTV? No woman was privvy to the product information and said, "Umm, bad name, guys"?

Having the most unbridled fun at the iPad's expense was Rachel Sklar, editor-at-large for the Mediaite Web site. Sklar's Twitter stream was full of iPad cracks Wednesday, and I couldn't stop reading them.

Fortunately, Sklar wrote a column collecting many of the funny iPad jokes, as well as the MadTV video and a photo of Steve Jobs speaking in front of a blowup of the iPad (with wings for added protection PhotoShopped in). And she announced the article with the following tweet:

"My Bloody iValentine: Welcome, Apple iPad! More iPad jokes! Absorbent + fresh!"

A couple of Sklar's previous tweets on the iPad:
"Convenient! When your iPad spends a lot of time with other iPads, they sync up."
and:
"If you take your iPad with you in the ocean, you're more likely to get eaten by a shark."

Of course, if the iPad functions well and becomes a big seller, all this joking will just be a one-day story in the Twitterverse. If not, it'll be an even bigger blunder than Apple's Newton.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to Split, Sources Say

Say it ain't so! Hollywood power couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are splitting, a number of sources are reporting. The Sunday Times of London is one newspaper reporting the Brad and Angelina split on Sunday, and you can read the story from News of the World below.

The stories say that the couple had been meeting with a divorce lawyer recently and that papers have been signed. The couple have six children, three of which are adopted. The couple, who have been together since 2004 but never married, will have joint custody of the children, but they will live with Jolie, the stories say.

"I Already Work Around the Clock!" - Harrison Ford Line Lights Up the Internet

There's nothing like a new Internet meme to create a warm and fuzzy feeling of community, and the latest catch phrase buzzing around is a line from the new Harrison Ford movie, "Extraordinary Measures": "I already work around the clock!" (the blessed words are spoken about a minute and a half into the trailer above).

As an article on NowPublic.com notes, "I already work around the clock!" has gone viral, with an ESPN sportscaster claiming to have used it 25 times in a day. The article also refers to a Web site, ialreadyworkaroundtheclock.ytmnd.com, where you can hear the line repeated on infinite loop, with a photo of the angry Harrison Ford for inspiration.

"Extraordinary Measures" is about a father, Brendan Fraser, who seeks the help of a scientist (Ford) to find a cure for the disease that has stricken his children. Ford utters the now-famous line when Fraser tells him they must work around the clock to find the answer to the disease.

Will "I already work around the clock!" claim a place in the pantheon of other famous movie lines that have become Internet and pop-culture memes? Will it have the staying power of "Put the coffee down!," Alec Baldwin's classic from "Glengarry Glen Ross"? We'll find out when "Extraordinary Measures" opens January 22nd.

The A-Team Movie Trailer Hits the Web

"The A-Team" is the latest bygone TV show to be turned into a movie, and the trailer for the big-screen version in now online (only in a low-resolution version, from what I've seen). The movie doesn't open until June 11th, but the A-Team trailer will be screened in theaters this weekend.

The movie is directed by Joe Carnahan stars Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Sharlto Copley, Jessica Biel, Quinton Jackson and Yul Vazquez.

Justin Bieber, from YouTube Phenom to Genuine Star - NY Times

Justin Bieber at a signing at the Nintendo Store, New York City, Sept. 1, 2009. Photo: Kevin Aranibar

Teen heartthrob Justin Bieber is the subject of a good-sized article in the Sunday, Jan. 3rd edition of the New York Times. The article notes:
"But as he takes his place in the venerable line of Leifs and Shauns who have ruled the Tiger Beat princedom, he is also a creature of this era: a talented boy discovered first by fans on YouTube, then cannily marketed to them through a fresh influx of studiedly raw videos on the Web site."

The Justin Bieber article notes how the R&B star Usher has taken Bieber, a native of Ontario, Canada, under his wing and is part of a team that includes a "swagger coach," a former assistant to Usher who advises Bieber in fashion, moves, and attitude.