The Red Carpet

Our 2012 Oscar Picks:

Supporting Actress – Jessica Chastain in “The Help”

Supporting Actor – Christopher Plummer in “Beginners”

Animated Feature – “Puss in Boots”

Leading Actress – Michelle Williams in “My Week with Marilyn”

Leading Actor – George Clooney in “The Descendants”

Directing – “Hugo”

Best Picture – “Hugo”

Best Supervisor in an Unsupporting Role – Mr. 30 Hour Work Week

Best Performance by a Hypocrite – Newt Gingrich

The 54th Grammy Awards: RECORD OF THE YEAR - 'Rolling In The Deep' Adele ... ALBUM OF THE YEAR - '21' Adele ... SONG OF THE YEAR - 'Rolling In The Deep' Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth (song writer award) ... BEST NEW ARTIST - Bon Iver ... BEST POP SOLO PERFORMANCE - Adele 'Someone Like You' ... BEST ROCK ALBUM - Foo Fighters 'Wasting Light' ... BEST POP DUO - Tony Bennett and Amy Winehouse 'Body and Soul' ... BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM - Adele '21' ... BEST RAP ALBUM - Kanye West 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy' ... BEST POP INSTRUMENTAL ALBUM - Booker T. Jones 'The Road From Memphis' ... BEST DANCE RECORDING - Skrillex 'Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites' ... BEST DANCE/ELECTRONICA ALBUM - Skrillex 'Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites' ... BEST TRADITIONAL POP VOCAL ALBUM - Tony Bennett & Various Artists 'Duets II' ... BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE - Foo Fighters 'Walk' ... BEST HARD ROCK/METAL PERFORMANCE - Foo Fighters 'White Limo' ... BEST ROCK SONG - Foo Fighters (songwriters) 'Walk' ... BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM - Bon Iver 'Bon Iver'.

MOST-WATCHED PROGRAMS IN U.S. TELEVISION HISTORY: 1. 111.3 Million - Super Bowl XLVI, NBC (Last Night's Game) ... 2. 111.0 Million - Super Bowl XLV, Fox ... 3. 106.5 Million - Super Bowl XLIV, CBS ... 4. 106.0 Million - M.A.S.H. Finale, CBS [1983].

PRIMARY RESULTS: Colorado (100%): Santorum 40.2% 26,372 ... Romney 34.9% 22,875 ... Gingrich 12.8% 8,394 ... Paul 11.8% 7,713 ... Write-In 0.1% 56 ... Perry 0.1% 52 ... Huntsman 0.1% 46 ... Bachmann 0.0% 27.

Minnesota (95.2%; count ended there at 3:04 a.m.): Santorum 44.8% 21,420 ... Paul 27.2% 13,023 ... Romney 16.9% 8,090 ... Gingrich 10.7% 5,128 ... Total Write-Ins 0.3% 140.

Missouri (100%): Santorum 55.2% 138,957 ... Romney 25.3% 63,826 ... Paul 12.2% 30,641 ... Uncommitted 3.9% 9,859 ... Perry 1.0% 2,463 ... Cain 0.9% 2,314 ... Bachmann 0.7% 1,690 ... Huntsman 0.4% 1,045 ... G. Johnson 0.2% 547 ... M. Meehan 0.1% 364 ... K. Drummond 0.1% 162.

WHAT IT MEANS - Santorum slips into "not Romney" pole position, knocking out Newt Gingrich, as the campaign shifts to a long slog toward Super Tuesday on March 6th. Much of the focus will be on Ohio given its general election swing state status, big delegate haul and new status as Newt's Last Stand. ... But will Gingrich and Santorum cancel each other out and hand a solid win to Romney? ... Expect the Romney attack machine to turn the dials up on its Santorum attacks on ear-marks and other issues starting this morning. Will Santorum have the cash to counter across so many expensive media markets over multiple weeks? Not likely. More broadly, the case for the GOP taking out Obama in 2012 looks as weak now as it ever has given an improving economy and a deeply muddled primary featuring a front-runner no one seems keen to rally around.

OFFICIAL OBAMA 2012 PLAYLIST FOR CROWD EVENTS (rallies, ropelines, etc.), to be released today: "Different People" (No Doubt) ... "Got to Get You in My Life" (Earth, Wind & Fire) ... "Green Onions" (Booker T & The MG's) ... "I Got You" (Wilco) ... "Keep on Pushing" (The Impressions) ... "Keep Reachin' Up" (Nicole Willis & the Soul Investigators) ... "Love You I Do?" (Jennifer Hudson) ... "No Nostalgia" (AgesAndAges) ... "Raise Up" (Ledisi) ... "Stand Up" (Sugarland) ... "This" (Darius Rucker) ... "We Used To Wait" (Arcade Fire) ... "You've Got the Love" (Florence and the Machine" ... "Your Smiling Face" (James Taylor) ...

... "REO Speedwagon" (Roll with the Change) ... "Everyday America" (Sugarland?) ... "Learn to Live" (Darius Rucker) ... "Let's Stay Together" (Al Green) ... "Mr. Blue Sky" (Electric Light Orchestra) ... "My Town" (Montgomery Gentry) ... "The Best Thing about Me Is You" (Ricky Martin, featuring Joss Stone) ... "You are the Best Thing" (Ray Lamontagne) ... "Keep Marchin'" (Raphael Saadiq) ... "Tonight's The Kind of Night" (Noah and the Whale) ... "We Take Care of Our Own" (Bruce Springsteen) ... "Keep Me In Mind" (Zac Brown Band) ... "The Weight" Aretha Franklin ... "Even Better Than The Real Thing" (U2) ... "Home" (Dierks Bentley).

BIRTHDAYS THIS WEEK – Birthday wishes and thoughts this week to: Geoff Ball …famous street hockey goaltender, Michael Bloomberg (70), Jim Brown (76), Jaromir Jagr (40), John McEnroe (53), Gretchen Pugliese …famous hockey Mom, Smokey Robinson (72), Rene Russo (58), Cybill Shepherd (62), Jerry Springer (68), Ice-T (54), John Travolta (58), Chuck Yeager (89).

GET WELL – Loyal Rink Rats supporter Jim Douthit is under the weather and we wish him a speedy recovery and all our prayers.

COLLEGE HOCKEY PICK OF THE WEEK – Saturday 2/18, 7:00 PM ET, SLUTV, the annual central New York brawl in Canton; #13 ranked Cornell University Big Red (13-6-6) visit St. Lawrence University (12-15-3). The Skating Saints have won four in a row and will prove a tough team to beat in Appleton Arena. We pick St. Lawrence to win. Season to date (3-4).

THE SWAMI’S TOP PICKS – St. Lawrence 5 Cornell 3. Season to date (10-8).

QUEBEC PEE WEE HOCKEY TOURNAMENT – Good luck to the Anaheim Junior Ducks as they travel to Quebec City this week to play in the International Hockey Tournament taking place during the Winter Carnival. Today the Junior Ducks play game #1 vs. the Moncton Wildcats. Game time temperature outside a chilly 7 degrees.

SPORTS BLINK - Major League Baseball teams start reporting for spring training on SUNDAY:: "Tim Lincecum thought about the seismic shifts of baseball's offseason, the ones that saw Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder migrate to the American League. 'I think it's great. I won't have to pitch to them anymore,' San Francisco's two-time Cy Young Award winner joked. Baseball returns this weekend when Seattle Mariners' pitchers and catchers report to spring training in Peoria, Ariz."

--Schedule of spring-training report dates - for pitchers and catchers, and for full squads -- of the 30 Major League Baseball clubs pitchers and catchers and full squads of the 30 Major League clubs http://atmlb.com/xXyaYc

FORTY YEARS – This week in 1972 Richard Nixon began his trip to China. The economic and political world would never be the same.

GOOD LUCK – To three wonderful women who are about to begin new challenges; BE, LP, and SV. We wish them good fortune, happiness and love.

DRIVING THE WEEK - U.S. markets will get their first chance this morning to react to the Greek vote and riots. Not likely the Obama budget will be much of a market mover as its broad outlines were well known and its mostly discounted as a political statement ... President Obama delivers his budget remarks in Annandale at 11:00 a.m. Expect to hear the phrase "dead on arrival" from Republicans at least a few times before that ... Obama and VP Biden meet with Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping on Tuesday before the president starts a budget/jobs road trip to Milwaukee (Master Lock) on Wednesday and Seattle on Friday with stops for fundraising Thursday in northern and southern California.

Next week, a mid-winter recipe, words of the month and Dear Rink Rats.

Until Next Monday, Adios.

Claremont, CA
February 13, 2012

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