ARF's Celebrity 2010 calendar: Sully (of course), Warren Buffet, some other cool (and sexy) people--but Greta Van Susteren?

The East Bay's patron saint of animal rescue, former Oakland Athletics and current St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, has put out a 2010 celebrity calendar to raise money for his worthy and well-regarded Walnut Creek-based Animal Rescue Foundation.

On the cover of the calendar is none other than America's favorite hero commercial pilot, Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, with his wife, Lorrie. The Danville couple are posed with "Twinkle," a retired canine member of Guide Dogs for the Blind, and an Animal Rescue Foundation adopted kitty. Sully and Lorrie, who have become international celebrities since Sully's last year's "miracle" landing of his crippled jet on the Hudson River in New York, are also featured in the calendar's month of April.

Other celebrities--local, national, and international--and pets who grace this "one-of-a-kind' calendar are: The Office star Jenna Fischer: Iron Chef Cat Cora; uber-cool filmmaker Steven Soderbergh (friend of George, Julia, and Brad); and iconic businessman and philanthropist Warren Buffett. Each calendar costs $15 and benefits ARF's various programs: pet adoption; pet spay and neutering' and children's animal care education. ARF also provides financial assistance for veterinary care for low-income families in Contra Costa County. You can purchase one of your own calendars at ARF's website.

Also in the calendar is--va-va-va-voom--Holly Madison, described as a TV personality, model, and Vegas star. In the ARF calendar, the blond bombshell is more modestly attired, posing with two dogs. 

OK, now my quibble: Fox News Anchor Greta Van Susteren.  Ewww. "Mike," the big furry cat she's clutching is cute, but Greta?  BFF to Sarah and Todd Palin? Greta, who traded in her authentic hangdog legal analyst look of her O.J. Simpson trial coverage days for her current obnoxious, and highly publicized plasticized Fox Anchor persona?

Greta is, along with Nancy Grace, on my top 10 list of annoying TV cable "news" personalities. Couldn't ARF have done without her?

Are you going to buy Sully's book?

I don't know. In all honesty, Highest Duty: My Search for What Really Matters, Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger' autobiography, sounds like a bit of a snooze fest.

The book was released today to much fanfare and press.

No doubt, the Danville hero pilot is a nice, straight-arrow fellow, a true professional who, in his own words, used all his decades of training--studying the science of crashes, his stint as a military fighter pilot--to land that crippled jet on the Hudson River last January.

But 320 words (er, PAGES!) of Sully's wit and wisdom? And haven't we heard the story of the miracle landing in his own words before? In that interview with Katie Couric on 60 Minutes?

I don't know. Tell me I'm wrong, and I do need to rush out and spend $25.99 to acquire a copy. Maybe you already have a copy and have read it and can set me straight.

I have been a bit wary of the book ever since the book deal was announced. The $3 million deal will allow Sully to publish not one but two books. Sully will follow up this autobiography with a book of, um, his inspirational poetry and writings.

Okay, okay, with regard to Sully's poetry, maybe he is the next Robert Frost or Wallace Stevens or Richard Bach. Remember Bach's Jonathan Livingston Seagull, a best-selling totally '70s inspirational novella about a seagull learning about life and flight, and a homily about self-perfection?

How much more there is now to living! Instead of our drab slogging forth and back to the fishing boats, there’s reason to life! We can lift ourselves out of ignorance, we can find ourselves as creatures of excellence and intelligence and skill. We can be free! We can learn to fly!

Then again, I started to wonder if I had jumped to a wrong conclusion about what the 58-year-old father of two has to say about his life and his flying career.

I was intrigued to read in accounts in the San Francisco Chronicle and the Contra Costa Times that Sully might give insight into the current woes of the airline industry, from a personal and professional perspective.

Apparently, Sully, like many of us, was facing serious money woes, in the current economic climate. His salary had been cut in half, he had lost half his pension, he was looking for side jobs, and he and his wife were talking about selling their house. Very relatable, right? The book, according to the Times, paints "an ominous picture of an atmosphere where cost-cutting is increasingly valued over safety, and passengers are largely unaware of the implications."

I was trying to find reviews of it, and, so far all I could come across was this from Entertainment Weekly. The reviewer says that he has nothing but admiration for Sully, but he has few nice things to say about his "drearily written book."

The reviewer makes a recommendation I can go with. It is to instead turn to a fresh take on the crash, written by William Langewiesche. He's an award-winning journalist for The Atlantic and Vanity Fair; Actually, he's an amazing writer, one of the best writers of long-form investigative and narrative journalism around these days. His book is called Fly by Wire: The Geese, the Glide, the Miracle on the Hudson and it's due out next month.