Join us FRIDAY at the Cadieux Café for Soul Night! Two bands, lots of great VIP experiences and free swag for Soulmates are on tap, along with Max Prokop and TWO of his bands. ML, Shawn, Erika and Marc will be there to mix and mingle.







STRAIGHT DOPE: This week’s outstanding intro sets up a discussion of what’s on tap for Soul Night at the Cadieux Café on Friday night. Soulmates – members of our Patreon supporter group – get in free. (Soulmates should have received an access code to the email address you used to sign up.) In addition to free admission, Soulmates get free feather bowling with the crew from 7 to 8 p.m., and some free swag. EVERYONE gets free Miller Lite from 8:45 to 10 p.m.







If you’re not a Soulmate but want to get in at a discount, save $5 on admission by buying your ticket in advance on EventBrite using this link.







Back to that intro, which is from the C. Thomas Howell movie “Soul Man.” ML, Marc, Shawn and Max discuss whether it could be made today. The rub is that Howell plays a white guy who pretends to be a Black guy – something no one thought twice about back in the 1980s.







Shawn wonders whether a much more recent movie — “Tropic Thunder” — could be made today, because Robert Downey Jr. is a white guy who pretends to be a Black guy. Marc and Max think it could be made. Listen and learn why.







While we’re on the subject of cultural appropriation, Marc asks whether “White Chicks” could be made today. ML and Shawn say yes.







Why is casting people in roles that don’t match their race, nationality or sexual orientation so controversial? The crew acknowledges that opportunity is one factor, then debate whether acting talent should also be a factor, prompting ML to share an anecdote about what Sir Laurence Olivier said to method-acting maven Dustin Hoffman during the filming of “Marathon Man.”







One thing we can all agree on is that Eddie Murphy’s Saturday Night Live skit in which he dresses up as a white guy is one of the funniest skits ever!







Musician Max opines on the poignancy of Ozzy Osbourne’s final performance with Black Sabbath. ML – with no disrespect to Ozzy intended – says it’s about time someone’s final tour will REALLY BE THEIR FINAL TOUR!!!







Speaking of dearly departed entertainers, Shawn recounts his encounter with Hulk Hogan last year at Detroit Lions’ training camp.







Marc recalls how the Hulkster’s sex video killed Gawker. ML loves the First Amendment – and is willing to tolerate some extremes to protect the routine – but even he says the news site crossed the line when it published Hulk and a buddy’s wife cavorting.







Shawn talks about his attempt to visit a psychic while in Las Vegas. Spoiler alert: The psychic didn’t know Shawn was coming! Here’s his column on the mountains, the mob and trip to Sin City.







ML mentions his latest columns on the mayoral candidate who was convicted of beating his first wife back in 1993. Read them here.