MUSIC TELEVISION turned 30 yesterday. The first 20 minutes, included The Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star," while the rest of the first day included Pat Benatar's cover of "You Better Run," Rod Stewart's "She Won't Dance With Me," The Who's "You Better You Bet," PH.D's ""Little Susie's On The Up," Cliff Richard's "We Don't Talk Anymore," The Pretenders' "Brass In Pocket", Todd Rundgren's "Time Heals", REO Speedwagon's "Take It On The Run," Styx's "Rockin' The Paradise", and many more. A couple of years back, Gawker did 30 years in 3 minutes.

COLIN MELOY played a solo set at the Newport Folk Festival, though The Decemberists make an appearance.

BLACK PRAIRIE, featuring members of The Decemberists, played a set at the Newport Folk Festival, including a cover of "The Song Remains The Same."

MILK CARTON KIDS  played a set at the Newport Folk Festival.

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED: tracks from Yuck, the Lone Bellow, Jackson Scott and more highlight the latest edition. 

FRANKIE ROSE expresses "Sorrow" ahead of Herein Wild.

THE DEATH RATTLE: Why The '60s Really Ended In 1973.  A slightly different take on an idea expressed in Almost Famous, which means we must hear "Tiny Dancer."

ARCADE FIRE's Richard Reed Parry has started a folk band.

HARRY NILSSON: Alyn Shipton, author of a new Nilsson biography, offers 5 quirky facts about the singer-songwriter. (Thx, LHB.)

LOLLAPALOOZA's best and worst lineups, according to SPIN.

SOUL ASYLUM: An oral history of their big hit, "Runaway Train."

CUTOUT BIN: From RJD2 to Nancy Sinatra, from James Brown to lou Reed, from Them to Bananarama, plus the Who, Stealer's Wheel, King Khan, the Beatles, the Bangles and more  -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM. BTW, I'm advised this here blog is one of the top 100 all-time users of the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases are The Smurfs 2, which opened Wednesday with 14 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; and 2 Guns, which is currently scoring 58 percent. Also select theaters will be running Sharknado at Friday midnight shows.

SIMON COWELL, having impregnated an ex-friend's wife, finds himself named in the inevitably nasty divorce.

JENNIFER LOPEZ is close to returning to American Idol.

AMANDA BYNES is doing better on a cocktail of psych meds, but was shut down in her bid to leave the psychiatric hospital.

ROBERT PATTINSON is "hanging out and hooking up" with Riley Keough, Elvis Presley's granddaughter.

JENNIFER ANSITON: Not a fan of Katie Couric.

AMBER HEARD is profiled in Flare magazine.

THE UNITED STATES said it would close an unspecified number of embassies around the world on Sunday over security concerns. The White House said said it is "extremely disappointed" that Russia has given temporary asylum to NSA leaker Edward Snowden. A sweeping House of Representatives vote yesterday approved tough new sanctions on Iran; Senate approval is expected soon.

SYRIA: President Assad made his first known public trip outside Damascus since March 2012, visiting the former rebel stronghold of Daraya.

AFGHANISTAN decided not to impose fines on outgoing Coalition cargo after the US Senate passed a measure that would have cut aid to Afghanistan 5 bucks for every dollar of fines.

IRAQ is once again, a full-blown sectarian war zone, with armed factions that hold territory and kill civilians at will.

A CORGI's first pool.

A MASS CHIMPANZEE ESCAPE was diffused by zoo officials with ice cream and fizzy drinks.

BAMBI seized from a no-kill shelter by armed agents who killed her.

A FEROCIOUS WATER BUG stalks and devours a fish.