Rolling Stone has what looks to be an interesting--and previously untold--cover story on Mad Men this week: "How a band of Hollywood rejects created the smartest and most seductive show on TV."

A sample:

After three seasons on AMC, a basic-cable network previously known for endless reruns of second-rate movies, Mad Men established a hold on America's fantasy life like no show since The Sopranos. "The big question the show is trying to answer through Don has to do with identity," Weiner says. "Who am I? -- It's only the biggest theme in all of Western literature."

To make it happen, Weiner assembled a cast he could relate to -- veteran actors who had spent their careers toiling in relative obscurity. Jon Hamm, who plays Draper, had a few scenes in We Were Soldiers. January Jones, who plays his brittle and ethereal ex-wife, Betty, showed up in the third American Pie movie as Stifler's love interest. Christina Hendricks, who rules the offices of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce as Joan, appeared in a video for the Nineties rock band Everclear. Nobody wanted them. Today, everybody knows their names, everybody covets their careers, everybody wants to get next to them.

A sample is all you'll get out of Rolling Stone on the web though. Their recently unveiled paywall blocks access to the piece. It'll cost you $3.95 to check it out. Or, you could go all 20th century and just pick up the mag, we suppose.

Longtime "Access Hollywood" host and leaver of hilarious phone messages Pat O'Brien has penned an open letter to Lindsay Lohan on The Hollywood Reporter's website.

I've been through it, Lindsay. For me, there has been no jail, no courtroom antics, no ankle bracelet and, thankfully, I don't have the paparazzi snapping my every move. But I, too, have the same demons you have, and it's no fun. But there is good news and bad news about these demons. The bad news is that they never go away: We're wired differently. The good news is that with a certain amount of willingness, structure and personal inventory, those demons can be arrested. And the ones who survive, like myself so far, are the ones who accept that these are the cards that were handed us and we don't have to always gamble our lives away.

The important thing to remember is that this is your life and nobody else's. And there's no blame; it's not the media's fault or the paparazzo's fault or even your father's fault. He's got enough problems of his own. It has nothing to do with growing up too fast or being too young or even the jungle Grace Kelly hated called Hollywood. It's a seemingly simple, yet incredibly complicated disorder that millions of Americans share. It's a brain disease that brings terrible and embarrassing consequences. There's no cure, but with the right focus it can be tamed. [It's] not my place to tell you how to do this because, by now, you know where to seek help.

O'Brien, of course, had a very public battle with alcoholism after his drunk dials found there way to the Interwebz and every comedy show in America back in 2005.

Ever the trailblazer, the LBC's own Cordozar Calvin Broadus is set to become the first rapper to have his songs made available on the popular video game "Rock Band." Soon, you too will be able to rock out to "Drop It Like It's Hot," and "Sensual Seduction" in your underwear.

Love the Snoop, breaking down boundaries.

Photo: Reuters

"Scientology is supported, in fact, by a few thousand wealthy members. Some of these, like Tom Cruise, Nancy Cartwright, Craig Jensen (Diskeeper), Sky Dayton (Earthlink) and a few others are very wealthy and contribute millions.

"My own opinion is that organized Scientology is dead. I do not see them recovering from Miscavige's abusive rule - he has destroyed the entire management structure of the Church and has 'revised' the 'tech' of Scientology to the point where it is largely useless."

Read the whole piece here. Get the book here.

What kind of story starts with President Carter's crippling hemorrhoids and ends with fat Americans unable to squat when they poop? An awesome story, that's what kind.

Maybe it's just because this Fishie is Jewish--our people seem to have an endless fascination with bowel movements--but Daniel Lametti's recent story in Slate on the benefits of employing the Asian squat when pooping is the greatest and most practically informative thing we've read in months.

Take a gander:

People can control their defecation, to some extent, by contracting or releasing the anal sphincter. But that muscle can't maintain continence on its own. The body also relies on a bend between the rectum--where feces builds up--and the anus--where feces comes out. When we're standing up, the extent of this bend, called the anorectal angle, is about 90 degrees, which puts upward pressure on the rectum and keeps feces inside. In a squatting posture, the bend straightens out, like a kink ringed out of a garden hose, and defecation becomes easier.

Proponents of squatting argue that conventional toilets produce an anorectal angle that's ill-suited for defecation. By squatting, they say, we can achieve "complete evacuation" of the colon, ridding our bowels of disease-causing toxins.

God bless the Internet. Don't think a story like this would have ever made it to print.

Oh come on. What happened to context? What decade did Romero file from?

Ready to show off those journalistic guns? Livestrong.com is looking for a new director of editorial to steer the content experience for the highly trafficked site. If you're all about fitness and living a healthy lifestyle, this is gig the for you.

The ideal candidate will drive the focus and vision of the website's features, while collaborating with the marketing, PR, community and SEO teams on promotion and content strategy. You'll also manage budgets, track site performance and work closely with the Livestrong Foundation on Lance Armstrong's global fight against cancer.

To be considered, you'll need six or more years of editorial experience, plus four or more years in management with a focus on nutrition and/or fitness. It's all about social media these days, so you should be familiar with the most popular platforms and their reach. If you're media trained and can manage a stable of freelance writers, even better. Interested? Apply here.

RE/Search has just published a 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition of "Modern Primitives," and it despite being a year late, it looks lovely.

via Laughing Squid

Futurama's second life on Comedy Central has been an undeniable success--the show's return last June after a 7-year hiatus was the network's highest rated program of 2010. Tonight, Futurama will air its 100th episode. Wired is celebrating the occasion by asking members of the show for their favorite moments.

We especially like this one, as told by the show's executive producer David X. Cohen.

"In the fabulous guest performance by Bea Arthur as Femputer in 'Amazon Women in the Mood,' she gives a speech that's loaded with gibberish about 'femputers' and 'fembots,' and their subjugation by 'manputers' and 'manbots.' Yet the emotion is so heartfelt, it's hilarious."

Aw, we're so proud.

He writes:

That's my "scandalous" Mexican flag cartoon on the front page of today's edition of Reforma (below right), the conservative national newspaper in Mexico. Below my cartoon is on the front page of today's El Norte newspaper in Monterrey. It seems this cartoon has struck a nerve with Mexican readers.

The Mexican embassy to the U.S. is writing a formal letter of protest about the cartoon to Msnbc.com. I'm impressed with the passion that so many people have about the cartoon here on my blog.

That is damn fine satire. It's true and it pissed people off. We're kvelling.

Previously on FBLA: Daryl Cagle Reports From Colombian Cartoonists Conference

From SFGate:

What would it cost, the caller asked the founder of DonorsChoose.org, to fund every California teacher's wish list posted on the Web site?

The founder, Charles Best, thought perhaps the female caller would hang up when he tossed out his best guess: "Something over $1 million," he told her.

Twelve hours later, the woman, Hilda Yao, executive director of the Claire Giannini Fund, sent Best an e-mail.

It said, in short, OK.

A day later, Yao mailed a check of more than $1.3 million to cover the entire California wish list, 2,233 projects in all, with an extra $100,000 tossed in to help pay for other teacher needs across the country.

And it's not even Christmas.