Pet Rock: The Pop Culture Blog

It's been a long time, I shouldn't have left you with a ridiculous YouTube video to laugh to.

YouTube Friday has been away for a while but we're back with a vengeance, thanks to Pet Rock reader Cocoa Dooley's keen ability to send us hilarious links.

While I doubt this message actually was left on someone's answering machine, it's still hilarious. Enjoy the day and thank heaven you're not Olga or Dmitri.

OK, I have to admit, I just can't get enough of Tom Cruise. It's like looking at a two-headed chicken or an eight-legged baby, I just can't stop myself from watching! He's so freaky!

Ever since the couch-jumping incident on Oprah, I've enjoyed watching Tom's wacky behavior, proselytizing for the Church of Scientology, and tense tangles with the media ("You're glib, Matt!")

Recently, Tom has tried to better control his public image by launching an official Web site to celebrate his 25 years in the industry -- www.tomcruise.com -- but you won't see any of his hilarious antics. Can anyone say borrriiiiing!

Here's a couple of my favorite zany Tom Cruise moments/parodies for your enjoyment.
Happy Friday!

Tom Cruise zaps Oprah with his maniacal force:

Tom Cruise's insane birthday bash:

Jerry O'Connell impersonates Tom Cruise:

Tom Cruise gives Matt Lauer a tongue-lashing on the "Today" show:

I don't know a lick of French, but when I saw this clip from a French TV show I had to share it. Brad Pitt and a very pregnant Angelina Jolie are in Cannes promoting "Kung Fu Panda" and the paparazzi got very (ahem) up close and personal with the lovey-dovey duo.

OK, it's time for where in the world is Brad's hand ... watch this clip very closely ... there's some major ass-grabbing going on. Talk about language of love! Ooh-la-lah! I think Brad is a rump man. What do you think?

By Adam Abramson

Want an easy laugh? Watch mascots do people things.

Want an easier laugh? Watch mascots do things that people look funny doing ... and get knocked out doing them.

Example below: Toronto Raptor vs. Minnesota Timerwolf. Two words: Sumo suits.

Our favorite Internet garage funk-power pop-rock band Deck of Jack is back with a new video released this week.

It's called "Starter Jacket" and it basically hammers all those kids we used to be and also make fun of at the same time in the early 1990s. Enjoy the show as you prepare for the weekend.

This is hilarious, and in the spirit of March Madness, perfect for this week's edition of YouTube Friday.

- Mark La Monica

Tucked away 13 miles east of downtown Pittsburgh is the small community of Monroeville.

It's this small, sports-crazed town that produced the greatest 29 seconds in TV commercial history, below.

Note: The fine editors of this commercial made the first 10 seconds of the clip blank, but it's worth the wait.

Where do we begin?

Let's just go in order.

1. Colby Armstrong. His supreme comfort on camera really sets the tone for the auto commercial. Actually, the "right on" almost sounded natural. But it all fell apart when Max Talbot had to blow up his scene. You can literally see Armstrong accessing the part of the brain that controls "acting," and it's painful. However, he saved himself with the almost-casual reference to him being a hockey player. In fact, I was at first worried about buying a car from A&L because I'm not an NHL player. I wasn't sure they would take care of me, but Armstrong was quickly reduced to nothing by his upstaging teammate.
2. Talbot. His eight-second monologue should be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. The unintentional comedy of Talbot's beatbox is mind blowing. He clearly was trying to be funny, but his attempt was completely superseded by the unintentional comedy of its awkward length and pauses. It's simply brilliant.
3. Sergei Gonchar. It would be hard for Steve-O to maintain the energy that Talbot brings, but Gonchar gives it his all. The bottom line is that all of my insecurities about not being a Pittsburgh Penguin are put to rest with Gonchar's reaffirmation of A&L's service. If anyone can figure out what he says before he tosses the keys, leave a comment.
4. Evgeni Malkin. Great catch by Pittsburgh's Wonder Kid II (Sidney Crosby being the true Wonder Kid). Judging by his reaction to holding a set of keys, I'll guess Malkin has more assists this year (54) than number of times he's driven a car.

The next time I'm passing through Monroeville, and I have passed through it more than once, there will be a 100% chance I'm stopping at A&L, where everyone's a superstar.

--Adam Abramson

"Risk" is back.

The game is actually 51 years old, but I'm calling for a resurgence.

Why?

Well, how many board games are about global domination?

And the Newman-Kramer battle, as featured in this week's edition of YouTube Friday, is unforgettable.

I rest my case.

I rediscovered "Risk" because a few of my college friends who live afar have been playing the actual board game and gloating about it on our listserv. Frankly, it made me jealous.

So I did a little Googling...

If you have Facebook, you can install the "Attack!" application here. I've played this version. It's awesome. I'm currently coordinating battles with said friends and trying to figure out how to get my work firewall to give me access.

No Facebook? There's also Riskattack.com. I have yet to try, but I am sure it's a great way to go.

Now, some of you may be saying, "Wait a minute, 'Risk' never went anywhere for me." If that's the case, you rule.

Just remember: The Ukraine is not a game.

-Adam Abramson

Every now and again, Pet Rock gets an email that we need to share with the masses. Lucky for us, this email arrived on Friday. Even luckier for us, it's a YouTube video.

You've probably (hopefully!) heard the recent "Barack Obama is jacking for speeches" news about his public speaking being eerily similar to that of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick.

Well, this enterprising YouTuber named 395v0538527 -- a Hillary alias, perhaps? -- shows the power of editing and political influence in today's world. And if you can't laugh at the usage of the second greatest interview of all time, then go away and read something else.

Props to Blastmaster friend Scurvy Scurv for doing my job for me.

- Mark La Monica

Every now and again, we all need a little Gino the Ginny. This is one of the few completely clean vids from Gino that I can post. So sit back and prepare for the weekend as YouTube Friday presents "Gino the Ginny goes shopping for a new wife beater."

- Mark La Monica

Super Bowl-themed fight songs sung in the 1980s with 1980s mullets, mustaches and synthesizers. What a world it was then.

- Mark La Monica

If you can't laugh at this video, then there is no hope for you in life, much less in embracing the spirit of YouTube Friday.

Thanks for the find, C.

- Mark La Monica

Awwwww, yeah!

It's Friday. It's Pet Rock. It's YouTube time!

We checked in with our pals at Deck of Jack again, and in honor of the 14-day countdown to the new "Rambo" flick, we've got a little Stallone-themed treat for this week.

If this doesn't get you ready for the weekend, at the very least it may make you want to hug someone in the ocean soon.

- Mark La Monica

By Mark La Monica

Seeing how Christmas is just a few days away and quite a number of folks have Monday off for an extended holiday weekend, we here at Pet Rock decided to make YouTube Friday slightly more time-sensitive in its approach this week.

So here we go with perhaps Alec Baldwin's best SNL skit ever. Of course, it's a spoof of himself in "Glengarry Glen Ross," but that was his best movie role ever, so this all makes sense. Anyway, stop reading these words and start watching this video.

By Mark La Monica

Given the shell-shocking the baseball world received on Thursday with the Mitchell Report, I thought we'd use YouTube Friday to go back in time to an era when baseball felt pure and performance-enhancing was done on the field!

You know how it is. Fridays. The weekend is here. Time to get your mind right.

And what better way to do that than with some 1980s pro wrestling? Don't be such a yo-yo!

By Mark La Monica

In between the 34 courses of an Italian-style Thanksgiving, the family gets to talking. Those conversations range from family news to old stories to things in the news to crazy, random things.

One of those crazy random things yesterday at our table involved Mighty Mouse and who could remember the entire theme song. With people ranging in age from 1 to 67, the results were mixed.

That's why YouTube exists, so we can all learn from the past. And seeing how it's Friday, it seems Mighty Mouse is a perfect fit for YouTube Friday here at Pet Rock. So enjoy the Mighty Mouse clip below (and the special bonus clip below that).

And the special bonus clip

By Mark La Monica

The knock on "Saturday Night Live" in the past several years is that it's no longer funny. One viewing of "Bronx Beat" with Amy Poehler and Maya Rudolph and you'll know that knock has been reduced to a soft tap.

SNL's site won't let us embed video, which is fine by me, so here's a link to my favorite Bronx Beat skit, the one with Jake Gyllenhaal. What are you, Sioux?

However, if you want to get your mind right for the weekend -- which is the entire point here at YouTube Friday, by the way -- you're going to want to watch this clip below of four girls imitating Bronx Beat. In a word, awesome. In two words, it's awesome.

Now this is old school!

Hope that helps you get in the right frame of mind for the weekend.

By Mark La Monica

Who's my bigger hero today?

Is it Mike Barry, the dude who had the onions to do what everyone who ever watched "Grease" do?

Or is it Ana, a dear friend who had the smarts to send me this video?

Tough call. So many pros to argue on each side.

While I struggle with the question, bask in YouTube Friday and feast your eyes on this insanely hilarious video.

By Mark La Monica

You know how we do, right here every Friday.

It's time to prepare to mail it in for the rest of the day and start focusing on the weekend. And how do we do that? By watching some hilarity, compliments of the good people of this world who love to post funny videos on YouTube. Seriously, if YouTube didn't exist, I wouldn't have a job. Or is it the other way around?

Either way, enjoy this video tribute to 1980s wrestling sensation (and 1990s wrestling hanger-on and 2000s wrestling comeback attempter) Rowdy Roddy Piper.

By Mark La Monica

Check your calendar, good people. In the regular world, it's just a regular Friday. In the Pet Rock world, it's another YouTube Friday. So take a few minutes to get primed for the weekend with this trip down memory lane.

P.S. Is that X-Pac on lead vocals?

By Mark La Monica

As much as this culture thrives on the collapse of its pop culture icons, the continued fame of Danny Bonaduce makes very little sense.

But, seeing how it's YouTube Friday here at Pet Rock, we'll let you all enjoy once more the latest Bonaduce mishap.

By Mark La Monica

We spend much of the week at Pet Rock studying/wasting time watching the silly and the stupid on YouTube. It's one of those new high-tech pop culture phenomenons. Every Friday, we post one of the more amusing videos for everyone here to enjoy. Props to Office friends Joey and Erik for keying me into this one.

It is something special.

And of course, where would we be without the remix?

By Mark La Monica

Is there anything out there that better symbolizes current pop culture than YouTube? We think not.

Which is why every Friday, we'll hit you with a different YouTube video to get you in the right frame mind for the weekend.

For all you Hills fans out there, this one is a gem.