Shuff's General Chat Thread ... #73 - Talk about anything and everything...  

THE TRUE AND SAD STORY OF CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL

They were the Californian rock 'n roll band with a quirky, nonsensical name. Creedence Clearwater Revival burst onto the scene in 1968 with their distinct sound of blues and roots mixed with swamp rock. It defined the hippy era of the late 60's.

But today, at age 70, the three surviving members have been feuding for so many years they only speak through lawyers.

Turn on the radio, and there's a good chance a Creedence song will come on, such is the legacy they left behind.

The dream began in their high school music room as 12 year olds; John Fogerty was the lead singer and songwriter for Creedence Clearwater Revival, Doug Clifford the drummer and Stu Cook played piano, then bass.

John’s older brother Tom became the fourth member, playing rhythm guitar.

But it was John's gift of song writing that propelled them to become one of the biggest bands in the world, selling more than 100 million albums and headlining Woodstock.

John Fogerty told Sunday Night's PJ Madam the band's entry-level contract robbed him of the rights to his own songs, and sparked the feud that would destroy them.

Saul Zaentz, owner of Fantasy Records, offered them a contract, which gave him ownership of their music and their royalty rate was just 10 percent.

As the band’s leader John Fogerty also acted as manager and he and the band decided to sign.

"It was the only contract being offered. It was sort of a take it or leave it situation. We had no leverage or money to spend on hiring someone to work on our behalf to make it better," John said.

"I didn't know, I just knew we were signing with Fantasy Records did I know all of the specifics no… I was 22."

John, Doug and Stu all remember a verbal agreement they made with Saul that would come to haunt them.

"[The promise was] When you guys are successful we will tear this contract up and all share equally in the pie," Stu said.

Susie Q was climbed up the charts in Summer of 1968, then Born on the Bayou and Proud Mary — a song that would be played around the world. But Saul refused to tear up the contract.

"When that didn’t transpire then I said yeah well now we are stuck with one of the worst contracts for a major band," Stu said.

For John this meant he owned none of his songs.

The band, which produced three hit albums in 12 months and toured the world, should have made billions. Instead, each member walked away with a measly $2 million.

"What if you were Walt Disney and you had created Disneyland and then somebody stole it from you and all the people are enjoying Disneyland it's wonderful but your ownership has been stolen that's kind of how it feels."

The disappointment about the deal they had signed as well as sibling rivalry haunted the band, the brothers fighting even on Tom's deathbed.

Creedence was finished and bitterness set in.

"I think it was happiest when we were struggling to go up the mountain and when we got to the top of the mountain it was not happy at all," John said.

When the band toured Australia in 1972 they were on the cusp of their break-up.

"You know what a dysfunctional families do you know they lie and we put on a pretty good face but things were falling apart.

"I wrote 'Have You Ever Seen the Rain' about the band breaking up …because it seemed like that was what we were doing we had achieved all our dreams but we were miserable, we weren't happy about it at all."

A decade later, Creedence went to court over royalties still owed by Fantasy Records.

The judge found in their favour and awarded a payout of $8.4million all together.

"For all the music we made, for all those years all over the world, $8.3 million dollars for the four of us — I mean that is a lot of money by any normal person's stretch of imagination — but when you consider 100 million records … that really wasn't much money at all."

Today, Stu Cook and Doug Clifford play the old hits – John’s songs - in a new band, they’ve called Creedence Clearwater Revisited.

"The idea that they formed a band using those words it’s tacky to me," John said.

Today though, Doug has a more pressing concern.

"This is kind of a first for me, but I am battling cancer," he said.

"So I have a different perspective on a lot of things and a lot of things that were important before that aren’t as important."

Controversial Auburn deputy mayor reveals quest for Prime Ministership 1/13

Salim Mehajer has finally broken his silence, defending his extravagant wedding and denying he is corrupt or threatened the father of a Sydney siege survivor.

The controversial deputy mayor of Auburn and property developer says allegations he threatened to have the children of a personal trainer kidnapped were not just "false and misleading” but “sheer evil and un-Australian".

In an exclusive interview with 9NEWS, Mr Mehajer said everything he does on council is above board, all his development properties were purchased before he entered local government, and his extravagant wedding - in which he shut down Lidcombe streets without permission, was all for love.

"The wedding was only an event to show gratitude to my wife," he said, with his immaculately groomed new wife Aysha beside him.

"Not only show the world how a female should be treated but also I think it's a lead up to my future brothers-in-law they've got big shoes to fill in."

9NEWS had requested a sit-down interview with the man who made headlines for his extravagance, his somewhat questionable associations (there were bikies at his wedding) and the muscle men that often accompany him to council meetings.

When he agreed to talk to us, he insisted on speaking from behind a lectern, prime ministerial style.

And the reason soon became clear.

Mr Mehajer has dreams of one day leading the nation - first trying his hand at state politics before heading to the nation’s capital.

"I would like to start off by being in state, federal and I'd like to make my way up to the very top spot," he said.

"That would be my dream come true."

He even wrote to the recently deposed PM Tony Abbott, telling him he wanted to follow in his footsteps. But that was before he was booted out by his own party.

Mr Mehajer, accused by fellow Auburn councillors of voting in a block with fellow developers, but he has denied being part of the “super six”.

"We never actually always vote together, being the so-called super six. If you look at the council records there have been a number of times I've voted with the poor four if I may call them that," he said.

Asked if everything he's done on council has been above board: "Absolutely, but I always say I'll do the best I can”.

With a lengthy string of driving convictions, allegations of threatening behaviour, the arrogance displayed in staging his wedding and conflict of interest claims in his role on council, Mr Mehajer admits his reputation has taken a hit.

But he says he won't let anything distract him and he'll continue to overcome adversity.

"I don't believe I have what it takes to be a superstar but we'll see what happens," he said. With the flashy cars and designer suits, he's at least trying to live the superstar life.

ohai

Yeah, I don't know WHAT he does hey. Seems unlikely that he funds his lifestyle selling trinkets on the internet.

Boy, 11, Shoots Dead 8-Year-Old 'Over Puppy' 4/12

McKayla Dyer, 8, was killed by her 11-year-old neighbour in Tennessee

An 11-year-old boy has been charged with murder after he allegedly shot dead his eight-year-old neighbour and schoolmate over a puppy.

McKayla Dyer died on Sunday after she was shot in the chest outside her home in Tennessee.

The girl's mother, Latasha, told local TV station WATE-TV her daughter had refused the boy's request to play with her puppy before he shot her.

Jefferson County Sheriff Bud McCoig said the boy, whose name is not being released because of his age, used his father's shotgun.

She was pronounced dead at hospital.

Ms Dyer described her daughter as "a precious little girl".

"No matter how bad of a mood you were in she could always make you smile," she said.

The boy's family has not commented on the shooting.

Getting Ruthless, Blown Triple-Rotor Style

name='Shuffs' date='Sep 30 2015, 11:13 AM'[/b] post='2088909009']
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V8 Supercars: David Reynolds fined $25,000 for ‘pussy wagon’ slur to female drivers at Bathurst 1000

UPDATE: FORD driver Dave Reynolds has apologised after being fined a whopping $25,000 for using a sexist slur to refer to the car driven by the all-female Bathurst 1000 pairing of Renee Gracie and Simona De Silvestro.

During an official V8 Supercars post-practice press conference at Mount Panorama on Thursday, Reynolds said “Do you mean the pussy wagon?’’ when asked about Ford teammates Gracie and De Silvestro.

It was an embarrassing foot-in-mouth moment for the renowned V8 joker and partner of former Big Brother star and model Tahan Lew-Fatt.

“I unreservedly apologise for a comment I made in a press conference earlier today in relation to my female teammates,” Reynolds said on Thursday night.

“While it was intended to be humorous, I understand it has caused offence. As I stated in the press conference I genuinely hope they perform well as they are both highly-talented as they showed today with their pace.”

Reynolds had little time to bask in the glory of clocking the third fastest time on the opening day of the Bathurst 1000, as V8 Supercars officials issued the $25,000 fine less than two hours after the incident.

“Reynolds’ comments were disgraceful and completely unacceptable in our sport and he has been fined $25,000,” a statement from V8 Supercars chief executive James Warburton read.

“Women are an integral part of our sport, whether they are fans, drivers or team members. And V8 Supercars will continue to support and promote female participation at all levels of our sport.”

Paramount's New YouTube Channel Lets You Watch Full Movies For Free

Here's an interesting strategy. Paramount Pictures has created a YouTube channel called The Paramount Vault that allows you to stream a selection of Paramount movies for free. To be fair, it's not like that selection is full of famous Paramount titles (although the sizzle reel video might have you believe that's the case), but there's a mixture of obscure older films, awful B-movies, Elvis Presley musicals, and much more. It's worth clicking around to see what's available in case there's something you've been dying to see that isn't on Netflix.

The Dolph Lundgren vehicle Masters of the Universe film is there, as well as the little-seen horror film The Loved Ones (which has something of a cult following since it was never given a big enough release by the studio after it acquired the Aussie movie a few years ago). You can also watch something called Turtle Power, a documentary about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles phenomenon, if that's more up your alley. There are a lot of small clips mixed in with the full features, but you can scroll through the list and see for yourself if there's anything you think is worthwhile right now.

I'm not really sure why exactly Paramount would do this, other than maybe to generate some good will and to get people watching movies on YouTube with the hopes that maybe they'll pay to rent or purchase a Paramount film they really want to see that isn't available in the Vault. But either way, this is a service worth keeping an eye on, since it's possible they'll switch movies in and out similar to how Netflix operates.

Published on Oct 5, 2015
October 3, 2015 - Mt.Colah, Australia
A bus dashcam records a car hauling a trailer lose control on the M1 in Australia.

Yup, China Has The Most Insane Traffic Jams Of All Time

China’s staggering population of nearly 1,700,000,000 people has its consequences. Especially when it comes to driving on the highways. Not only is China the number one contributor of the Earths pollution, but its nearly impossible to get to anywhere and it not look like you’re in an LA traffic jam, no matter the time of the day it is.

This is what coming home from summer vacation looks like in Beijing China. Almost makes you not want to go in vacation at all. I mean what is the point of distressing vacation if you’re just going to have to drive through the most painful and agonizing traffic jam know to man, just to get back to your bed.

The sheer amount of people is scary, to see this from an aerial view really give you perspective on what the Chinese experience every day. This literally seems like modern day torture, I could see a judge sentencing someone to a Chinese traffic jam.

Smith's discretely announce discontinuation of Tasty Toobs

It's been a bad year for fans of nostalgic Australian junk food snacks.

At the end of June, confectionery company Allen's quietly downsized their line of classic products - discontinuing Green Frogs and Spearmint Leaves.

Now, the Smith's Snackfood Company have stopped manufacturing Tasty Toobs due to a slump in sales.

Created by Albert Cranum in 1954, the tubular tomato wheat and potato puffs peaked in popularity during the 1970s - the same era as the Sunnyboy and the Chiko Roll.

Earlier today, Sydney-based salesman Russell Hayter took to social media to share his official response from Smith's, after he wrote to them regarding what he believed was simply a stock shortage at his nearby supermarkets.

The response from Smith's Consumer Information Centre representative Karen Mackay confirmed that it wasn't a shortage, but that the production of the snack food had ceased.

"It is with a heavy heart that we advise Toobs is no longer available," Ms Mackay said.

"Consumer demand for the tangy, tomatoey treat has declined and it is no longer possible to justify on-going production."

On his original Facebook post, many of Mr Hayter's friends have shared their memories of the Cheezel-alternative.

"It is a heavy heart that I let them go again. No family gathering or any party for that matter will EVER be the same again," Emma Phibbs wrote.

"The top of my mouth won't miss u (sic) but my taste buds will," Arron Foley said.

Man Makes The Staff At Walmart Lose Their Minds. This Is Genius.
POSTED 2 WKS 18 COMMENTS
Over the past 6 months, I have been playing a fun game with my credit card company. The game finally backfired on me today and led me through the most hilarious moment of my life. Most people would have been embarrassed, but me, I'm a little twisted, so I laughed all the way through it like an a**hole.

With any story, there is a setup process. Here is the setup to this story. About 6 months ago, I was making a purchase with my credit card and when I went to sign the electronic signature machine, it was broken. By broken, I mean that when I touched the pen to the machine, it went crazy and didn't look anything like my signature. It looked like a drunk 4 year old signed my name for me. It accepted the signature without any problems. So this really made me wonder what I could do to give my credit card company something to laugh about. I mean, they obviously don't review the signatures since they never called me or declined a purchase. It could have been a stolen card.

I started out modest by signing with a line or an "X". Occasionally I would do last name first. After a couple of months, I became bolder. I wrote goofy ****, drew pictures, etc. Here's a list of some of my favorite signatures over the past few months:

I AM NOT KINGPIN

I STOLE THIS

**** OFF

**** YOU

WALMART SUCKS

CALL ME

CROTCHY CROTCHINGTON

MY BALLS ITCH

911

I'M A CRIMINAL

THANKS FOR THE STUFF

Today at Walmart I went the extra mile. When it came time to sign my name, a thought popped in my head. I should draw a picture. But what picture should I draw? I smirked as something completely juvenile came to me. This is a rough drawing of the signature that I provided:
...
Yes, I know, it's not my best artwork, but I didn't have the time to be elaborate with the drawing. I had to look like I was providing a signature. Right after I hit "OK", there was a pause. The register then said "COMPARE SIGNATURE ON SLIP TO CARD." One thought popped in my head: "OH *!"

It then printed the receipt and there in black and white was my drawing of a johnson and balls. The lady at the register didn't immediately look at it. She asked for the card. I handed her the card and she flipped it over. Then she brought up the receipt and she smirked, but then took a stern tone and said "These signatures don't match."

At this point I was in tears from trying to hold back my laughter. I tried to explain to her why I had done it, but it didn't matter. I probably didn't make sense as I laughed hysterically through the explanation. She then paged the manager and I erupted in laughter. The guy behind me in line got a glimpse of my signature on the receipt and began laughing. The manager comes up and the woman from the register begins whispering to him. I then hear a few words "he drew a penis..." as she holds up the receipt. The manager blurts out a short laugh and then controls it. He turns to me and I'm out of breath from laughing and I'm still giggling like a schoolgirl.

Manager: Sir, your signature...heh...umm...doesn't match the signature on your card.
Me: I know and there is a good reason for that.
Manager: (quietly) You drew a penis on my credit card machine.
**The guy behind me bursts into laughter.**
Me: Yeah, I didn't think this would happen. I've been trying to see how far I could go with my signature before the credit card company did something about it.
Manager: I guess you learned your lesson.
Me: Yeah, the credit card doesn't accept penis.
**The guy behind me now can't stop laughing.**
Manager: OK, I'm going to decline the signature and have you sign it again.
Me: Fair enough.
Manager: This time, really sign it.

So I had to sign it again and they wouldn't let me keep my artwork. Those bastards. I had single handedly broken up the monotony of their daily routine and given them something that they will be talking about for years to come and they wouldn't let me keep it. They will tell their grandchildren about the guy that drew a johnson and balls as his credit card signature.

So I have a plan now. I'm going to get a new credit card and sign the back with my johnson and balls drawing. Then I will consistently use that as the signature. That way, if I ever get caught in the same situation, the signatures will match. That will really mess with them.