Madonna

Anderson says she wants to focus on the future, one that now looks glamorous. But her liabilities, brought on by years of financial missteps, keep her tethered to the past—and to Central Indiana.

At a time when most TV talk shows were safe, choreographed showcases for celebrities to sell themselves, Late Night offered the possibility of seeing something real.

Via @notthatjohnking: “Attention All Local Business Owners: You do not have to put your kid in your TV commercial.”

Twice in the clip below from today’s episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Madonna refers to her Indy-based helpers at the Super Bowl XLVI halftime show as “villagers.” She appears to use that word when referencing both those who set up her staging in all of eight minutes, and also when speaking to the aid of 150 gladiators she “employed.” (Truth be told, she paid them in the currencies of Panera and Papa John’s, relative pigspittle for the help they gave this self-loving “Cleopatra” with her ballyhooed entrance. But then again, they are peasants, right?)

Mercifully losing the British accent (for good?), Madonna spoke with–of all people–Ryan Seacrest in what is actually a very fun, informative conversation on L.A. station KIIS-FM about her Super Bowl XLVI halftime show, Indianapolis, and more.

For three nights, their every public move lit up the Twittersphere, with sightings at all of the well-trodden downtown haunts and as far north as Geist, where Madonna was spotted jogging.

If we’re going to pillory hip-hop sensation M.I.A.—and plenty of folks have done so since she flipped the bird while performing with Madonna Sunday night—we had better consider what that reaction implies. In a word: sexism. Plain and simple. Hear me out before bringing on the bromides.

Fifty pizzas from Papa John’s: That’s what Sunday night’s halftime show performer fed her posse on Wednesday night, if that bastion of journalism known as TMZ is to be believed. Indiana-born “Papa” John Schnatter’s store reported a reduced-rate bill of $467, with a “very decent” tip. Madonna footed the bill herself. (Duh.)

The Queen of Pop is now vying for another title: the Queen of Pigskin.

First, see the queen—and her sinewy arms—enter the hotel for her conference with reporters.

Super City sources heard that Madonna has rented out a somewhat unlikely palindromic restaurant in Broad Ripple for a bash (it better have spicy fried chicken for Nicki Minaj), and Cher was trying to rent a house in Carmel for mega money … Ryan Gosling threatened to dethrone Jimmy Fallon as toast of the town as word of his bar-hopping kept tweeters up late on Tuesday night. Kilroy’s and Scotty’s Brewhouse debunked the rumor that the shoulda-been Sexiest Man Alive visited their joints, although a source close to the actor’s team indicated that he had been downtown. Maybe someone meant to tweet that they had seen Colts general manager Ryan Grigson or Jon Gosselin. Damn you, autocorrect! … Julio Iglesias and Reggie Wayne were spotted on the Circle enjoying the balmy Wednesday … New England Patriots receiver Chad Ochocinco hit up the Starbucks inside Barnes & Nobles at the IUPUI Campus Center, across from University Place Hotel, where the Patriots are staying … Miss America Laura Kaeppeler, who will be a guest at the Taste of the NFL Saturday night, needed a cop’s help hailing a cab outside Palomino last night, and evidently the cop thought the taxi driver needed help knowing that his fare, who wore a supersized crown, was Miss America. 

Last week, the Super Bowl Stage Crew hosted an orientation for those who signed up to volunteer for the Halftime Show, which involves assembling and tearing down Madonna’s stage in about eight minutes. Run by Cap Spence, the staging supervisor for the Halftime Show for the past 11 years, the meeting served as a reality check for some volunteers who expected some nice perks. Here’s the real deal:

>> Super City went on the air with Ed Wenck at 93 WIBC on Thursday. (Hear the audio below the photo at right.) The spot aired at 6:10 p.m. and focused on reader and public reactions to the freshly revealed official Super Bowl poster by Walter Knabe and the Host Committee’s (ahem) super-important parking and traffic announcement.

The official poster for Super Bowl XLVI was revealed last night in the Conrad hotel’s west foyer. The artwork depicts the Soldiers and Sailors Monument’s iconic Victory statue bursting up and out of a football, with a kinetic explosion of starry confetti and Lucas Oil Stadium as a backdrop.

So you’ve been kicking yourself for not signing up to volunteer at the Super Bowl. Now you have another chance to express yourself: Super Bowl Productions and our local Stage Crew Committee are enlisting volunteers—reportedly 500 of them. McKenze Rogers, marketing and communications coordinator for the Host Committee, verified that the recruitment is legit. The Halftime Show rig has to be set up in eight minutes, which is one of the main things the star is fretting about. The rehearsal schedule is demanding, but if you can’t hack a few dry runs, you probably shouldn’t be working around Madonna.