I haven’t seen “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.” In fact, that’s the first time I’ve written it (Editor’s note: I copied-pasted it) and I’ve never spoken it. Has anyone? It’s obvious Sacha Baron Cohen is willing to do anything for a laugh, but you know, that doesn’t mean everything he does is funny. Just ask Eminem. And Eminem’s face.

Considering it’s a boring, frustrating subject even (or especially) if it’s happening to you, there are a surprising number of films about writer’s block. There’s “Adaptation,” which somehow becomes the story of the writing of its own story. And there’s “The Shining,” with Jack Nicholson desperately trying to write his novel over a long, cold winter in a big spooky hotel. But as odd as those two are, the strangest focuses on another desperate writer in another creepy hotel — the Coen brothers’ 1991 intellectual horror film “Barton Fink.”

When it comes to creating memorable images, few picture book illustrators are as prolific and appealing as Steve Jenkins.

Celebrate Bill Cosby and E.B. White, observe World Population Day, celebrate National Pecan Pie Day and get ready for Harry Potter.

In the December 1984 cover illustration of Mad magazine, Michael Jackson is front and center. Backing him are not his brothers, but a group of other famous Jacksons — the Rev. Jesse Jackson, former baseball star Reggie Jackson, “Charlie’s Angels” actress Kate Jackson and the ghost of President Andrew Jackson. The tongue-in-cheek “Mad salutes the Jacksons” cover is a favorite of Mark Kessler, the owner of Recycled Records which has been doing brisk business in Jackson memorabilia since the singer’s death June 25.

After his wife, Pearl, died at age 95 in 2007, Frank D’Andrea discovered nearly 50 poems she had written. Grief-stricken, the retired Quincy, Mass., school principal has published her poems as a way of remembering her, and he says it has eased his sorrow.

As television stations and Internet sites streamed footage of celebrities paying tribute to "The King of Pop," "The King of Pop Culture" warned radio listeners to beware of fraud.

Bad or blockbuster, movies opening on July 4 are some of the most unforgettable films of all time.

A holiday weekend plus warm weather plus lawn work adds up to me not focusing on a new movie for this week’s column. So here are some short takes and quick observations:

“How to Win A Cosmic War: God, Globalization, and The End of the War on Terror,” by Reza Aslan. Random House. $26. Hardcover.