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So, let's imagine that you're hungry one night. You go to the fridge, but all that's in there is an old take-out box from Applebee's containing a half-eaten hunk of steak that, for some reason, you just had to take home with you. It's been in there for a week and seems a bit dry and leathery. You're not sure it's even edible anymore, but you are really, really hungry (this story assumes that you do not, in fact, still live in your parents' basement, which might rule out 75% of my reading audience). Ah, but you're in luck, because you do have a tupperwear full of curry you stole from the fridge in the breakroom at work the other day. And Rajit knows how to cook up a mean curry, so you just know it's yummy. So you plop the desiccated steak on a plate and pile it high with your pilfered curry and put it in the microwave. Ding. Well, it doesn't look that bad now. The curry smells nice, and what you can see of the steak poking out of the pile doesn't look all that horrible. So you eat it, quickly, as your cats are circling like vultures, and wash it down with some lukewarm Zima. It's only a few hours later that you begin to regret your decision to eat that steak, curry or no curry. And later still, as the diarrhea is volcanoing out of your anus at amazing velocities, you fully comprehend your mistake in trying to mix new stuff with old stuff. And then your gums start bleeding.
Mesa of Lost Women is almost exactly like that. From what I can determine (and the sources differ on the details), a director started filming something about mutants and a mad scientist back around 1949 or '50 or so, but ran out of money and had to pull the plug (and probably had to file for bankruptcy or hide out in Tijuana for a while). A few years later, in early 1953, another director (this one with some money and some connections) bought up the old footage (the fetid steak, if you will) and shoehorned in enough newly-shot footage (Rajit's yummy curry) to make a rough approximation of a feature-length movie. In the hands of a deft filmmaker, such a trick can turn out pretty well (witness the first Godzilla movie and some of Corman's Eurasian buy-ups), but, unfortunately for us all, the people associated with Mesa of Lost Women were like a dark room full of drunken blacksmiths. And much like that culinary concoction, watching their attempts at Frankensteining all that disconnected footage into Mesa of Lost Women can only result in you parked on the toilet, bucket in hand, tears and blood mingling freely. You have been warned.
Anyway, on to the show!
We open in the Mexican desert, a desolate and arid wasteland filled with scorpions and coyotes (of both types). An ever-present voice-over guy helpfully tells us what we are seeing, because, you know, we'd never know this was a desert unless he told us. Thanks, guy. When did the voice-over go out of style? Not that I'm not glad it's gone, it rarely improved a movie's plot enough to justify its presence, and always seemed to me like a cheap way to avoid having to write decent character dialogue. Can you imagine a voice-over in Star Wars or Iron Man?
Very desert-y.
Oh, oh, oh, and I cannot go any further until I rage about the annoying-as-fuck guitar music, which seems to never, ever stop playing, regardless of what is happening on screen. It's like the worst mariachi cover band working the floor of the cheesiest Mexican restaurant known to man, or like having Antonio Banderas in that most egotistical Desperado stage of his career sitting in your lap playing his flamencio guitar incessantly while your soul withers. I'm not sure what sadist decided this would be a good soundtrack decision, but I've never wanted to punch another human being in the face more than I do that guy.
This soundtrack needs 100 cc's of Yanni! Stat!
Ok, so, anyway, we see this guy and this chick stumbling through the desert, looking all ragged and exhausted. Why are they there? I don't know. Why is the lady wearing heels? I have no idea. Why are neither of them sunburned in the least? Pssht. Just know that they are near death and if something doesn't happen soon they're going to be bleached disarticulated skeletons covered in buzzard beak scratches. Her hair looks nice, though.
If he wasn't so scrawny, he'd pick her up and carry her like a true 1950's man.
Luckily for them, in this very same patch of sand and scrub is an American oil prospector! And he has a jeep, which is handy. The oil guy picks up the wanderers and takes them back to the oil company's field hospital. I should probably take a few moments here to mention how, considering how contentious foreign investment in the oil business was since Mexico nationalized its petroleum industry in 1938, these American might very well be illegally in the country (not that it really matters, though).
Nice jeep.
Anyway, the guy regains his senses first, thanks to the nurse's House-like application of a wet washcloth on his forehead. The guy is desperate that they should go back and kill off the mutant monster spider-women, babbling on and on about how they'll take over the world if they don't. The Americans just nod their heads and smile at the crazy person, but Pepe, the wise old local vaquero with the sombrero, knows the legends of what he speaks. So the guy begins to tell his fantastic story in a flashback. Now this is actually a joint review, and I'll turn it over now to the lovely and talented Pam to explain the guy's twisted story...
That's some fine doctorin'.
Hi, it's Pam. The guy explains that the mysterious mesa cannot be climbed, but he got there in an airplane that landed on the mesa because it had engine trouble. Pepe looks as though he already knows what the guy is going to find there, suggesting that whatever it is, it's been around for quite some time. Pepe, by the way, is a walking Mexican stereotype, a pudgy Frito-Bandido kind of guy in a sombrero, but then those are the kind of people that always know things that we sophisticated Americans don't, aren't they? We all know that Pepe is right and the haughty Americans are wrong, so we can agree right now that there really are dangerous mutant spider-women on the mesa, turn off this piece of recycled garbage, and go watch something good. I'll see you all later...
Sorry, Nate says I'm not allowed to quit in mid-review. Something about "indentured servitude?" Oh, well, I tried. Back to the movie, beginning of flashback. Which seems to be someone else's flashback, because instead of a man in a sputtering airplane, we are introduced to a Dr. Leland Masterson, driving along a desert road. In case you were wondering, Dr. Masterson is not the guy in the hospital, so who knows what he's doing in the flashback, but whatever. The car stops and Dr. Masterson gets out, accompanied by his young female driver, whose presence is otherwise unexplained. All we see is him staring blankly at a large rocky hill, but the helpful voiceover informs us that he's flabbergasted that the eminent researcher, Dr. Aranya, would build his laboratory in such an inaccessible spot. So, okay, this means that the good Dr. Aranya is pretty well known in his field, whatever that is.
Masterson.
Dr. Masterson sees two figures climbing on the rocks. One is a very short man, in fact a dwarf, the other is a blonde woman dressed with extreme inappropriateness for rock-climbing in a long white dress and high heels(!). Dr. Masterson seems to be the dreamy, impractical sort of scientist, because he accepts the rock-climbing dwarf and the well-dressed blonde simply as signs that he's come to the right place. Not bothering to ask them any questions, he strides off confidently across the desert, impeccably dressed in a suit and tie. His female companion follows him. She has yet to say one word.
That's a chick on the wall.
Luckily for Dr. Masterson, the guy in the hospital was wrong about the mesa being unclimable. The good doctor is either an expert tracker who can detect faint signs of a trail that most people can't see, or he's unbelievably lucky, because he arrives at a wooden door somewhere in the pile of rocks. He is completely matter-of-fact as the door is opened by the dwarf and he is greeted by a sultry brunette in a strapless dress. I can only gather from this that in his field, it's the normal thing for researchers to live in the middle of nowhere with dwarf servants. (By the way, his mute female companion stayed in the desert while he ascended the rocks. The voiceover has not bothered to tell us who she is and why she came, but a little later we'll learn that she lives here, too.)
"Avon calling."
Dr. Masterson does begin to look a little bewildered as he tries to hand his hat to the dwarf, who stares at it blankly and refuses to take it. Too well-brought-up to show his disdain for such a poorly-trained servant, he looks around the room and sees several women, all dressed in long white dresses. They don't say anything to him, and he doesn't say anything to them. Not only that, he doesn't seem even slightly surprised to see the women in what seems to be a research lab.
Dreds like Bo Derek's younger sister.
Finally Dr. Aranya walks into this room of silence. It's Uncle Fester! Well, not quite, he won't be Uncle Fester for about 10 more years. But it really is Jackie Coogan, once the biggest child star in the world, now reduced to acting in this sorry patchwork quilt of a movie. Some sources say that he somehow incurred the wrath of Louis B. Mayer, who made sure he couldn't get a part in any decent movie. Other sources suggest that large quantities of alcohol had a lot to do with his failing career. Whatever the reason, Jackie Coogan is the only famous actor in the movie. It would not be correct to say he distinguishes himself, and as a matter of fact, the acting skills he displays are pretty much on par with the rest of the undistinguished cast.
Doctor Aranya (nice mole).
Instead of asking, "Just what the hell is going on here? Why is your laboratory in a pile of rocks, for godsake? And why are your lab assistants wearing evening gowns?", Dr. Masterson starts discussing Dr. Aranya's research. Dr. Aranya takes him into his lab, which has even more strange lights and mysterious glassware than the typical mad scientist's lab, so we know he must be doing some powerful research. By the way, how does he get electricity to operate all his equipment? There were no power lines anywhere in the desert, and it would probably be impossible to run them into the rocks, anyway. And what about water to wash Dr. Aranya's lab coat and the ladies' dresses? This might be the reason most scientists like to have their laboratories in inhabited areas, not miles from anything except rattlesnakes and coyotes.
The smartyheads chat.
In the lab, there is what seems to be the corpse of a young woman lying on a table, and for the first time Dr. Masterson seems a little puzzled. Dr. Aranya explains that he wanted to see what would happen if he transplanted human pituitary glands into animals. Unfortunately he had only moderate success with animals and none at all with birds. Being a dedicated scientist, however, he was undaunted by his failure, and one happy day it occurred to him to try transplanting a human pituitary gland into a tarantula. He doesn't bother to explain how he did this, probably assuming that everybody was familiar with such a simple everyday procedure. Turnabout is only fair play, though, so he transplanted the "control substance" from tarantulas into human bodies. Turns out that this was of great benefit to his subjects, all attractive young women, because it enables them to regenerate any body parts that become damaged (and also gives them peculiar hairdos and makes them want to wear skimpy dresses). Sadly it doesn't work so well on men but just turns them into dwarfs. Any endocrinologist who reads this, please feel free to weigh in with your comments, if you're not laughing too hard to type.
Is he even a qualified medical professional?
Dr. Aranya states that his goal is to produce a super female spider with the intelligence of a human. Like me, you're probably wondering why he'd want one, but in the fine old tradition of mad scientists, he believes his new creatures would be able to control the world – under his direction, of course. Dr. Masterson seems surprisingly calm about this news, and really only displays emotion when a large insect-like leg appears above a screen, which is then pulled aside to reveal a giant spider. The sight finally makes him realize that something is just not right about Dr. Aranya and his research, that perhaps it may not be of benefit to mankind after all. He is unable to keep his opinion to himself, and while he's vowing to put a stop to such evil, the smoldering brunette who met him at the front door injects him with something. A quick succession of images denotes delirium, and then one of the images stops at a newspaper headline which states, "Doctor Saved From Desert Death." Now it's Nate's turn.
Raaahhh!
Thanks, Pam. Ok, we reopen in a dingy, dirty cantina south of the border, filled with locals and gringos, every one of which is smoking like a chimney. A doddering old man and hottie young woman enter stage right and have a seat at a table. The woman is actually the same chick from the opening scene, the one wandering in the desert (it took me a few minutes to realize this, much to my girl-watching discredit). She will be, of course, our female lead, and a pretty effective one at that. Her name is Doreen, which is one of those names that you rarely hear anymore outside of the Sunday lunch buffet line at Denny's, and she sure does love her curling iron.
Doreen (ok, ok, this is a promotional pic from the studio, but I couldn't get a decent screen capture of her and she's pretty enough for you not to notice).
They lament how they are stuck in this miserable Mexican village in the middle of nowhere as their light plane has broken down. Worse yet, this is supposed to be their wedding day, which is unsettling to my sense of right and wrong as she's around 25 and he's at least 137 and Dutch or Belgian or something equally foreign (*shudder*). They're not really a happy couple, separate from their current predicament, and begin to drown their sorrows in rotgut hootch. Trust me, honey, there's not enough tequila in the world to wash away the hurt once you wake up and realize that you just married Abraham Lincoln.
Doreen blows through a whole pack of Camels in this movie.
Doctor Masterson, from the last scene, is also here, having escaped from the mental hospital and is now enjoying some scotch in a folding camp cup. Where before he was a bright, articulate man of science, after his mind was blown by the mad scientist's crazy plans Masterson is now just dazed and confused, shambling along doing the Thorazine shuffle and mumbling to himself. He has managed to get dressed, however, and even found a slick fedora to wear on his day about town. Masterson takes an instant shine to Doreen and sits down with them, uninvited. He keeps saying suggestive things to her, complimenting her obvious beauty, though her fiance doesn't seem to care as he's a milquetoast (maybe he's French?).
Good lord, is that Patrick Macnee from The Avengers?
Meanwhile, a sultry buxom Latino girl is sitting over in a corner, burning a hole through Masterson with her eyes. We saw her earlier in Doctor Aranya's lab, she was one of his scantily-clad spider-woman mutants with fabulous taste in evening wear. It's never said, but we can assume she's here keeping tabs on Masterson, as he's still important to the mad doctor (too-late spoiler alert!). Masterson, for his part, once he sees her, senses evil afoot, even if he doesn't seem to recognize her.
Oh, my.
The girl gets up now and starts dancing a slow and sexy Mexican salsa to the delight of the sweaty, inebriated patrons, giving us a lot of swiveling hip and a Basic Instinct flash. Her dance seems to last forever, a clear sign of a director looking to pad out the running time in the absence of anything better to film. As sizzling as the dance (and the dancer) is, this is yet another case where bad editing and inept camerawork can suck the hotness out of any scene.
Everyone seems inordinately mesmerized, is this a spider thing?
Oh, maybe that's why...
A male nurse named George shows up now, he's from the sanatorium and he's here to get Masterson back. The genial way in which he talks to Masterson suggests that the old man likes to wander and is not seen as any threat at all. When pushed to give up his field trip, however, Masterson slowly pulls a .45 automatic out of his pocket and waves it around. This gets everyone's attention immediately, as crazy people with firearms in public places tend to do.
Masterson seems particularly worried about the dancer chick, and, after out-of-context quoting an obscure psalm about sand and blood, he shoots her! Oddly, no one seems too upset about this, kinda like this sort of thing happens a lot in their town. Masterson, somewhat satisfied that the dancer is down, agrees that it's time to leave. He's taking Doreen with him, however, and since she's a package deal, they all walk out together. And with that, back to Pam for part four...
Aiy carumba!
I'm back! It seems the shooting death of a girl is not going completely unnoticed in this town after all. The cantina owner is bothered enough by it to phone the sheriff and report the crime, but as he's talking, he turns around to see the "dead" girl get to her feet, seemingly none the worse. There isn't even any blood on her dress! (Listen closely to the owner's conversation: he says "right where she fed..." instead of "fell," but whoever made this movie apparently didn't think it was worth reshooting for this.) The owner seems a little shaken when he sees her get up, but we'll have to wait to find out what the sheriff does, if anything, because the next scene picks up with Masterson and his kidnapees at the airstrip.
You can't keep her down.
The plane's pilot tells them the plane is still busted, which fact seems to elude Masterson as he grins crazily at the airplane and says he's always wanted to fly. The pilot seems unhappy at the thought of being in the sky with a grinning maniac aboard and says that he alone will decide who flies, but Masterson reveals his gun and the pilot evidently decides that discretion is the better part of valor. The pilot, by the way, is the guy we saw staggering through the desert with Doreen at the start of the movie and looks appropriately manly and stalwart. If Doreen ends up ditching her elderly fiancee in favor of the pilot, I for one applaud her taste. I'm skeptical she will, though, she has "gold-digger" written all over her.
The pilot.
Remember the cantina owner who called the sheriff? It seems he listened in on Doreen and Old Guy's conversation enough to tell the sheriff where they were likely to go, as we hear a siren and see a police car speeding toward the airstrip. Masterson waves his gun and herds Doreen, Old Guy, George, and some white-coated man who was hanging around the strip into the plane, which is able to take off without any trouble, despite what the pilot said two minutes ago. They're crammed into the cockpit like sardines in a can, but Masterson continues to enjoy himself. No one else seems to share his enjoyment, especially not his beloved Doreen, although they don't seem as stressed as you might think they'd be.
Masterson wants to fly like a bird.
Recall that the pilot said one of the engines was malfunctioning, although it sounds okay now, but it appears that something is wrong with the gyrocompass, too. Just by looking at it, the pilot can tell it's been tampered with and they've been flying 100 degrees off-course. Since they've only been airborne about a minute, one would assume that they can't have gone too far off-course, but the pilot looks worried. Just then the left engine starts smoking, but the pilot is a lot calmer about this than I would be if I were flying in the middle of nowhere in a twin-engine plane with one of the engines malfunctioning (it's very hard to fly a twin-engine plane with one engine out, and the safest thing to do would be to land as quickly as possible). Masterson appears to be in his own happy world and is not commenting, but the pilot makes no attempt to turn back to the airstrip (best choice) or pick a clear spot in the desert to land (last resort, since you can't tell from the air what the ground surface is like).
Cramped, can you imagine a cross-country flight in that thing?
The smoke from the engine gets heavier and blacker, and the pilot finally decides he has to land. The view from the window doesn't look promising, since all the land in sight is uneven and covered with sand, and there's no sign of human habitation. Masterson wants to keep on flying and orders the pilot not to land, but the pilot is adamant, and Masterson doesn't press the matter further. Just then the pilot spots a mesa ahead and is going to try to land on it. The glimpse we catch of the mesa shows it as a flat tableland rising from a sandy desert, with the top of the mesa covered with trees and brush with an open strip down the middle. In other words, nothing whatsoever like the pile of rocks Masterson climbed through before, and for that matter, the empty desert looks nothing like the hilly, rocky, sagebrush-covered desert we saw the mesa in before. The landing is a rough one, and one of the wings breaks. However, no one is hurt. Over to you, Nate.
Pretty nice model-work here, best special effect in the movie.
Thanks, Pam. Ok, so to recap we have a crash landed plane and six survivors. They are: the pilot (whose name is Grant and looks like Indiana Jones' aviator alter ego), Masterson the crazy dude, his nurse George, the couple Doreen and Old Guy, and Old Guy's uber-subservient Chinese manservant Wu.
The line up.
After determining that it's safe to smoke after a cursory glance at the gas tanks, Grant pulls out a folded map, doesn't unfold it, glances at it for all of a half second, and announces that they are exactly 120 miles south of the Mexican border and exactly 600 feet up on a tabletop mesa. Grant then shoots off their only flare, which zooms off with an amusing pop-whistle sound. Apparently, the plane doesn't have a radio, and no one has a Blackberry with a decent 3G plan.
Grant with George.
In the woods around them (which, by the way, are the wrong type of woods for a desert environment, being mostly oaks and maples) are a swarm of mutant spider women and creepy Gypsy-like dwarfs. This is Doctor Aranya's private mesa, of course, and by an amazing stroke of luck (or is it...) they have landed right in his territory. The watchers will soon become the hunters, and our isolated and frightened group of crash survivors will have to fight for their lives (hey, is this an Alien-rip-off or what?).
Hey, even mutants need hair care products.
Dwarf.
Let's talk about Wu the servant for a second. Even though he does have the best line in the entire movie ("The curtain of darkness veils the softest eyes.") he's still just a coolie in a tuxedo to the rest of them. Wu has to go alone into the darkness to get firewood, Wu has to tend said fire by himself, Wu is not included in any decision-making conversations, and, most insultingly, when Grant finds a bottle of brandy in the plane, he hands it to Wu to open for them. Of course, I'd feel more sympathy for Wu if we didn't just see him talking to one of the spider girls in the woods, almost like he knew her...
Wu.
Anyway, the nurse George decides to take a stroll into the dark woods (it's ok, he's really non-essential to the plot). Masterson is sure he's bringing back food, because that's what he did back in the sanatorium, but it looks more like George is just looking for a quite place to get away from the annoyingly squeaky Doreen and her geriatric boyfriend. Sadly, but predictably, George becomes snack food for the evil chicks/dwarfs.
George about to croak.
Back at the plane, they hear George's death screams. Masterson insists that they all go together to see what's going on, so Grant has everyone form a line and hold hands (which is just an excuse for him to hold Doreen's hand...). Poor Wu, being an expendable foreigner (though clearly more ethnic than the Old Guy, and thus even more foreign) is forced to bring up the rear. After some wandering, they find George's corpse face-down in the dirt. Cause of death would be the nasty bite marks on his neck, like what a giant spider would cause.
I hate movies with night scenes...
So they walk back through the spooky forest in the dark. The director valiantly tries to build some tension into this scene, but his single-camera set-up and weak candle lighting, coupled with the incessant flamenco guitar track, combine to make you more sleepy than terrified. The Old Guy comes up with a scratch on his arm. Or is that a mutant spider bite? Is he going to turn into a zombie mutant spider now? But ignore that, because Doreen has tripped and fallen into Grant's arms (jesus christ...), and is now gazing up into this eyes with unabashed desire.
She also says her "skirt is ruined", though it looks fine to me.
Sprinkled in amongst all these scenes on the top of the mesa are some insert shots of Doctor Arayna in his secret laboratory. We see him several times, just tinkering around with bubbling beakers and boiling glasswear, not really too concerned by what's going on above him. He's fully aware, of course, and apparently has "plans" for them. This really can't be old beef, so to speak, as the doctor is involved in the plot both before and after this scene, but it certainly looks like it. Both the film grain and the fps seem...off, in comparison to the other scenes. I'd love to know if the actor (poor Jackie Coogan) filmed both the beef and the curry for this movie (the internet is maddingly vague on this).
The good (bad) doctor in his lab.
Anyway, the five of them make it back to the plane, where they pass the bottle, stoke the fire, and talk about their options. They don't have many (especially since Grant already cooked off their only flare...) and it's getting too dark to see. Instead of sleeping in the plane where they could control the avenues of approach, they all just bunk down in the open, apparently having never seen a slasher movie. Doreen and Grant end up talking by the fire late into the night, having one of those intimate, personal conversations that no one except characters in a movie would ever have. Doreen is worried that Grant sees her as a gold digger (he does) and wants him to know that she doesn't really "love" the Old Guy (she's just "fond of him").
Fireside chat.
Grant says, and I quote, that he "Wants a girl who is sincere, real, someone who'd stick by me when the chips are down. One who wants me for who I am, not what I have." Sure, don't we all, man. But Doreen is a uptown girl with fancy tastes, and you're just a rumpled bush pilot without a penny to your name and a busted plane. Any romance she's going to give you is just temporary and your illusion will shatter the first minute some hunky, rich dude comes along to whisk her away. And true to the nature of the skank, Doreen forces a kiss on Grant, desperately using the only power she has (her womanly charms) to manipulate a man. But Grant breaks it off, bitter about the pointlessness of it all. Good for you, buddy!
Ick.
Oh, hey, by the way, Masterson is asleep there on the ground five feet away from you. You know, the crazynutjob with the gun? Asleep? As in, unable to resist you. Hey, maybe one of you should go over there and take the gun away from him, might come in handy, eh? No? Ok, just keep slobbering on each other then, whatever. Dumbasses. And with that thought, back to Pam to finish this disaster out...
Found a cool promotional pic of this movie, if only this actually happened...
Well, let's get this puppy finished. It's amazing how clean and tidy everybody looks after hiking through the woods and sleeping on the ground. Doreen wins the prize, because somehow she's managed to keep her light-colored suit spotless and her elaborate coiffure intact. Sadly, the sweet interaction between Doreen and Grant is broken when Doreen sees something in the trees. The others get up to see what's happened, and the Old Guy notices she's lost the hair comb he gave her. He's dismayed because he claims it's a valuable family heirloom, and he insists that Wu go out and look for it. Wu goes meekly, saying that "He who serves well also serves in danger," only asking Grant for the flashlight. Masterson generously presents him with the gun, and Wu heads off with the parting words "There is a day to be born and a day to die." I'm wondering if the Old Guy might not have given Wu a lobotomy somewhere along the line.
Wu sets off.
However, Wu is not the doormat he seems. He abandons the search to drop in on Dr. Aranya. Dr. Aranya is not at all surprised to see him, and Wu reports that he's brought Masterson. Brought Masterson? I suppose this means it was Wu who tampered with the gyrocompass and sabotaged the engine? How did this happen? Was Wu instructed by Dr. Aranya to get a job with the Old Guy, since Dr. Aranya somehow knew (how?) that the Old Guy and Doreen were heading in the Doctor's direction to get married, and they could stop and pick up Masterson? Or had he been working for the Old Guy for some time, and did he contact Dr. Aranya to find out if there was anything he could do for him since he was heading that way with his boss? In either case, it was sheer good luck that Masterson decided to kidnap the Old Guy and Doreen and commandeer the plane. Why couldn't Dr. Aranya just have some of his minions kidnap Masterson from the sanitarium and bring him to the lab? It can't be that inaccessible, since Masterson was driven there before by one of Aranya's spider-women. I'm sure this is another sign of the cut-and-paste nature of this movie. Wu gets a poor reward for his loyalty to Dr. Aranya, for the good doctor gestures at the spider women, who grab Wu and drag him off somewhere. Actually, I guess this might be a reward for Wu after all, since we don't see what they do to him.
Reporting to his boss.
Alas, no it wasn't. Grant, who didn't want to send Wu out in the first place, is searching through the woods with a flaming torch and stumbles over Wu's body. Wu not only held onto the flashlight and the gun, but at some point he found the hair comb, which looks like just a plain hair comb to me. Perhaps it was made of some rare and expensive material? Anyway, Grant storms back to the fire and throws the comb at the Old Guy. To give the Old Guy credit, he is distraught at the news of Wu's death. Doreen throws herself into Grant's arms, but the emotional moment is quickly ended when they hear something coming.
Spooky things in the dark...
The Old Guy panics and runs, unfortunately straight into a giant spider. The others are attacked and overcome by an assortment of beautiful women and stunted, misshapen dwarves. Too bad Dr. Aranya's potion works so differently on men and women, isn't it? Makes women beautiful (and silent) and men ugly? (By the way, how can it "make" a man into a dwarf? How does a grown man lose so much body mass?) I think we can deduce from this who the target audience was.
...like bigass spiders!
We are now back in the lab, where Dr. Aranya gives Masterson an injection which, he assures his crew, will make Masterson perfectly sane again. Grant and Doreen are in the background, finally looking somewhat bedraggled, although Doreen's hairdo is still holding up surprisingly well. From what Dr. Aranya says, he never intended to let Masterson leave the lab in his state of insanity, although this was never mentioned before. Now back in his right mind, Masterson refuses to help Aranya, and Aranya summons Tarantella, the girl from the cantina, who is back here looking as good as new. Doreen jumps to the conclusion that Tarantella means to torture Masterson, although I would think that it's possible she intended to use, ahem, "gentler" means of persuasion.
Hey, I was just kiddin' about that injection of Yanni, seriously.
Unexpectedly, considering what we've seen of Doreen so far, she attacks Tarantella to protect Masterson. Grant grabs Aranya, Doreen and Tarantella continue to wrestle, and Masterson hastily mixes some chemicals and threatens to blow up the lab. By this we can see what a truly great scientist Masterson must be, because he can seemingly recognize chemicals by sight alone, as none of the containers appears to be labeled in any way. Oddly, there are three spider women standing in the background who do nothing to help either Aranya or Tarantella. Masterson tells Grant and Doreen to run, then he hurls the chemicals and sets the entire lab on fire. There's a brief cut of a giant spider poised over a supine Aranya, then we're finally back to Grant in the hospital.
Girl fight! Woo!
The Americans, of course, still don't believe a word Grant says, but wise old Pepe nods knowingly. I'm not surprised that Pepe believes that something was going on up on the mesa, because with all those dwarfs and beautiful mute women running around, the locals had to have noticed. There must have been periodic trips into town for supplies, and people must have noticed some coming and going toward the mesa. Dr. Aranya got his research published some way, because Dr. Masterson was familiar with it. The narrator suggests that the Americans consider the tale of spider women on the mesa to be mere native superstition, but surely there's enough physical evidence to convince the most skeptical gringo that something unsavory really was going on there. And just how did Wu get involved, anyway?
"Is it over yet? When do I get paid?"
After watching this movie, I can assure everybody that it more than deserves a place on the list of the worst movies ever made. Jackie Coogan must have been absolutely desperate to accept a part. This would still have been a bad movie even if some care had been taken to maintain continuity between the old and the new parts, so I suppose I can't blame the filmmakers for not bothering. Obviously the goal was to make a movie as cheaply as possible, and I'm sure that was accomplished.
Written in April 2010 by Nathan Decker and Pam Burda.
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From oak to wine bottle cork - “commitment to the client, the product and the environment”- the business of Lafitte Cork Portugal
погода Харьков
The evergreen cork oak trees grown in the hills and flatlands of the „montados“ make a part of the typically Portuguese landscape. Cork is one of the best known products of Portugal and one of the biggest industries and exports of the country, which supplies more than 50% of cork worldwide. The Manufacturing Journal had the opportunity to talk to Fernando Silva - the Chief Commercial Officer of Lafitte Portugal, an enterprise that specializes in bottle cork production and counts among the best known in the branch.
How it all came to be: history and milestones
The whole story began not in Portugal itself but ….in the southwest of France. The French family Lafitte, nowadays a renown name with reputation in the wine industry, created the first cork stopper manufacturing business in 1918. Some few years later the company also takes in the capsules factory - COLIEGE METALCO EMBALLAGES. Today it is already the fifth generation that continues to develop its activities in the wine and cork branch. The first crucial moment was the year 1956, when the company moved to Portugal, building there its major production plant, so as to participate in the selection of the raw material and be able to single out the cork of fine quality at the place of its origin. The enterprise kept developing and in 1982 it expanded once again, establishing LAFITTE CORK AND CAPSULES in Napa, in California, in order to respond to the growing interest and demand of the American markets and process the products for direct sell to American customers. 2001 and 2009 Lafitte established the next entities in Chile – Lafitte Chile and Metalco Chile. In the meantime, in the year 2003, the company purchased a second processing plant in Portugal to meet the permanently growing demands for cork production. Today Lafitte Portugal maintains a family-owned business with production and distribution facilities for wine corks and capsules on three continents, having its subsidiaries in Chile, France, Italy, Portugal and the United States. With its long years of industrial experience and dedication the company can ensure the continuous improvement and production of highest quality corks.
Unique material, production process and products
Every tourist in Portugal must have stumbled across the omnipresent cork souvenirs. Cork oaks, grown in agro-forestry systems of the so called „montados” are one of the main earners for Portugal. These beautiful, powerful and majestic trees like the National Monument of Sobreiro Monumental (Monumental Cork Oak) in Águas de Moura are also considered to be excellent soil builders and are playing a key role in soil conservation, regulation of the water cycle and water quality, counteracting the desertification. Oak trees are also highly ecological: aside from being oxygen producer and repairing damage done by carbon emissions, they are also sustainable, which is why it is illegal to cut a cork tree down without the official permit from the Portuguese Ministry of Agriculture. This unique material - a natural plant tissue from the bark of the cork oak tree expands when it is warm and the cork harvesting usually takes place between May and September. The whole process is handmade, done with the usage of axes, with no machines involved. The trees aren’t damaged when the cork is harvested- the tiradores (cork strippers) peel the cork off from the tree and leave it to dry out. Then the cork will be boiled, pressed and separated into batches. The bark is the only part to be extracted, so that a new layer of cork can regrow in the next years. The usual life span of a cork tree (Quercus suber) is about 200 years and the first harvesting occurs twenty to thirty years after seeding. The trees can be commonly harvested every nine years in their life time. At each production stage the material undergoes many levels of scrutiny and thorough, detailed lab inspection, which can only be done by specialists. The outcome of this dedication is a pure, exquisite product that “crowns the achievement of fine wine”. The cork itself is also increasingly being sold to the construction and fashion industries and even used in decorative objects and in space industry. As a recycled material it is also often used in other products like furniture, panels, printing, book covering and clothing manufacture; and last but not least- cork powder finds application even in facilities for electricity cogeneration. The main specialization of the Lafitte Group lies in the production of cork closures for wine and beer bottle stoppers, but the company offers also a complete range of stock PVC, Polylaminate, Alustar and Tin capsules.
Commitment to innovation: investments & plans
Lafitte’s most important aim is to become preferred partner in the world’s main wine sectors and leader in the quality of supplied products. Few companies are as focused and driven as Lafitte - the commitment to innovation and quality, paired with a generational family approach to business, results in growing developments of new technologies and big investments done over the last few years. They include, among others, also the development of PerfectGo - the single cork TCA detection technology that has revolutionized the wine industry. PerfectGO technology is a scientific method of single cork analysis, able to create 100% TCA free lots. This innovative process marks a real revolution: the total elimination of the so called “corked flavour” in the cork stoppers. In the meantime Lafitte is already delivering the first orders of 100% safe corks to their numerous customers. Among many other plans for the next future the most significant include the further development of the PerfectGo technology, as well as improving the own performance in the international markets. Lafitte’s quest for perfection can be best summarized in the words of William A. Foster: “Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.”
Clients & quality control
The markets, the customers and their satisfaction have always been of crucial importance to the company- this is why it invests in continuous development, improvement facilities and investigation processes that allow to deliver the best cork quality. The Group, all its entities and subsidiaries work hard to provide best products and services to its clients and partners, trying to be close, meet or even anticipate their needs and build long term relationships. As a consequence the biggest wine producers trust the brand and its products, finding there the very quality they are looking for. Lafitte Portugal sees its mission as “fidelity to tradition and quality”. One of the ways to guarantee this excellence is hard work of the specialists involved in the production process. The chemical, physical and mechanical tests performed throughout the production process help to guarantee the pre- established quality standards. The company follows also the policy of precise selection and often control of its regular suppliers. Due to these tireless efforts, in 1977 the facility was certified ISO9001:2000 and soon also the ISO9002(2003). Lafitte Cork and Capsule is also a founding member of the CQC (Cork Quality Council), entity that sets standards on corks to be sold on the international markets. The company takes pride in the many certifications it got, because every and each of them demonstrates the ability to achieve standards of excellence and is a sign of responsible, efficient development. Lafitte has transitioned to ISO9001: 2015 in 2017 and has been implementing a HACCP system since 2006.
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Hadith Search
Imam Malik's Muwatta
Sunan At-Tirmidhi
Sunan Abu Dawood
Sunan ibn Majah
Sunan An Nasai
27 Jumadi-ul-Awwal 1441
Hadith Search Results
Search For ten days dhul hijjah Returned 395 result(s)
Found In: Sahih Bukhari Chapter No: 12, Characteristics of Prayer
Narrated: Aisha
Once Allah's Apostle delayed the 'Isha' prayer till 'Umar informed him that the women and children had slept. Then Allah's Apostle came out and said: "None from amongst the dwellers of earth have prayed this prayer except you." In those days none but the people of Medina prayed.
Relevance: 2.440577268600464
Found In: Imam Malik's Muwatta Chapter No: 19, Itikaf in Ramadan
Narrated:
Yahya related to me from Ziyad from Malik that he saw some of the people of knowledge who, when they did itikaf in the last ten days of Ramadan, would not go back to their families until they had attended the Id al-Fitr with everybody. Ziyad said that Malik said, "I heard this from the people of excellence who have passed away, and it is what I like most out of what I have heard about the matter."
Found In: Sunan Ibn Majah Chapter No: 2, The Chapters of Purification and its Sunnah
Narrated: Abdur Rahman bin Abu Bakrah
from his father, that the Prophet (saw) granted a concession to travellers: “If a traveller performed ablution and put on leather socks, then he performed a fresh ablution, he could wipe over the leather socks for three days and nights; the resident could do so for one day and one night.” (Hasan)
Found In: Sunan Ibn Majah Chapter No: 9, The Book of Fasting
Hadith no: 1681
Narrated: Abu Qilabah
that when Shaddad bin Aws was walking with the Messenger of Allah (saw) in Al-Baqi’, he passed by a man who was being cupped, after eighteen days of the month (of Ramadan) had passed. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said: "The cupper and the one for whom cupping is done both break their fast." Sahih
Relevance: 2.4363033771514893
Found In: Sunan An-Nasai Chapter No: 6, The Book of the Times (of Prayer)
Narrated: Al-Husain bin Bashir bin Sallam
that his father said: “Muhammad (SAW) bin Ali and I entered upon Jabir bin Abdullah Al-Ansari. We said to him: ‘Tell us about the prayer of the Messenger of Allah (saw).’ That was at the time of Al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf. He said: ‘The Messenger of Allah (saw) came out and prayed Zuhr when the sun had passed its zenith and the shadow (of a thing) was the length of a sandal-strap. Then he prayed Asr when the shadow of a man was the length of a sandal-strap plus his height. Then he prayed Maghrib when the sun had set. Then he prayed Isha when the twilight disappeared. Then he prayed Fajr when dawn broke. The next day he prayed Zuhr when a man’s shadow was equal to his height. Then he prayed Asr when a man’s shadow was twice his height, and (the time between the prayer and sunset) lasted as long as it takes a swift rider to reach dhul-Hulaifah. Then he prayed Maghrib when the sun set, then he prayed ‘Isha’ when one-third of one-half of the night had passed.’” - (One of the narrators) Zaid, was not sure - “then he prayed Fajr when it had become bright.” (Sahih)
Narrated: Abdullah bin Abdullah
I saw 'Abdullah bin 'Umar crossing his legs while sitting in the prayer and I, a mere youngster in those days, did the same. Ibn 'Umar forbade me to do so, and said, "The proper way is to keep the right foot propped up and bend the left in the prayer." I said questioningly, "But you are doing so (crossing the legs)." He said, "My feet cannot bear my weight."
Found In: Sahih Muslim Chapter No: 1, Faith (Kitab Al Iman)
Narrated: Abdullah bin Masud
that the Holy Prophet (saw) observed: He is not one of us (one among the Ummah of Islam) who beat the cheeks or tore the front opening of the shirt or uttered the slogans of (the days of) Jahiliya (ignorance). Ibn Numair and Abu Bakr said (instead of the word "au" (or) it is "wa" [and] the words are) and tore and uttered (the slogans) of Jahiliya without" alif".
Found In: Sahih Bukhari Chapter No: 9, Virtues of the Prayer Hall (Sutra of the Musalla)
Narrated: Nafi
'Abdullah bin 'Umar said, "Allah's Apostle entered the Ka'ba along with Usama bin Zaid, Bilal and 'Uthman bin Talha Al-Hajabi and closed the door and stayed there for some time. I asked Bilal when he came out, 'What did the Prophet do?' He replied, 'He offered prayer with one pillar to his left and one to his right and three behind.' In those days the Ka'ba was supported by six pillars." Malik said: "There were two pillars on his (the Prophet's) right side."
Found In: Imam Malik's Muwatta Chapter No: 17, Zakat
Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi from Aslam, the mawla of Umar ibn al-Khattab, that Umar ibn al-Khattab imposed a jizya tax of four dinars on those living where gold was the currency, and forty dirhams on those living where silver was the currency. In addition, they had to provide for the muslims and receive them as guests for three days.
Found In: Sahih Bukhari Chapter No: 31, Fasting
Narrated: Abdullah
The Prophet fasted for days continuously; the people also did the same but it was difficult for them. So, the Prophet forbade them (to fast continuously for more than one day). They said, "But you fast without break (no food was taken in the evening or in the morning)." The Prophet replied, "I am not like you, for I am provided with food and drink (by Allah)."
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Morbid Anatomy Library Open Hours This Weekend!
This weekend--December 3rd and 4th--the Morbid Anatomy Library (seen above) will be hosting open, no-appointment-necessary drop in hours! On Saturday the 3rd, open hours will run from 12:30 to 6, and on Sunday the 4th from 3 until 6 PM. So feel free to drop in for a perusal of the stacks and to meet our latest addition.
For more about the Morbid Anatomy Library and for directions and other such information, click here.
Photo of The Library by Shannon Taggart
Labels: morbid anatomy library, opening
"Human Zoos: The Invention of the Savage," Exhibition, Musée du Quai Branly, Paris, Through June 2012
Half-naked Africans made to gnaw bones and presented as "cannibals" as they shivered in a mock tribal village in northern France; Native American children displayed at fairgrounds; families from Asia and the South Pacific behind railings in European zoos and dancing Zulus on the London stage.
Paris's most talked-about exhibition of the winter opened on Tuesday with shock and soul-searching over the history of colonial subjects used in human zoos, circuses and stage shows, which flourished until as late as 1958...
--Paris show unveils life in human zoo, The Guardian, Tuesday 29 November 2011
Wow. Finally. The exhibition I have long been waiting to see (and which just might inspire a pilgrimage!)
"Human Zoos: The Invention of the Savage," now on view at the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris through June 2012, "brings together hundreds of bizarre and shocking artefacts, ranging from posters for 'Male and Female Australian Cannibals' in London... to documentation for mock villages of 'Arabs' and 'Sengalese'" in the recounting of the under-discussed history of "exotic" humans on display from the 19th through the mid 20th Century. These kinds of display were prevalent not only abroad but also here in the United States, where they could be seen at sites ranging from World's Fairs to museums to Coney Island, as explored in the exhibit The Great Coney Island Spectacularium (on view through this summer).
More about the exhibit, from the museum website:
HUMAN ZOOS, The invention of the savage unveils the history of women, men and children brought from Africa, Asia, Oceania and America to be exhibited in the Western world in circus numbers, theatre or cabaret performances, fairs, zoos, parades, reconstructed villages or international and colonial fairs. The practice started in the 16th Century royal courts and continued to increase until the mid-20th Century in Europe, America and Japan.
A wide array of paintings, sculptures, posters, postcards, movies, photographs, mouldings, dioramas, miniatures and costumes provide insight on the scope of the phenomenon and on the success of the exotic performance industry, which captivated over a billion spectators who, between 1800 and 1958, marvelled at more than 35,000 individuals throughout the world.
Through 600 items and the screening of many film archives, the exhibition shows how this type of performance, when used as propaganda and entertainment, has fashioned the Western perspective and deeply influenced a certain perception of the Other for nearly five centuries.
The exhibition explores the sometimes fine lines between exotic individuals and freaks, science and voyeurism, exhibitionism and spectacle. It also questions visitors on their own contemporary biases.
While the exhibitions gradually disappear in the 30s, they have by then already had their effect, of setting a boundary between the exhibited and the spectators. Which begs the question: does that line still remain today?
Exhibition Path
Human zoos, The invention of the savage aims at giving back their name to women, men and children used as extras, circus freaks, actors and dancers, by telling their diverse and forgotten stories.
Based on research started over ten years ago (Pascal Blanchard, Human zoos: Science and Spectacle in the Age of Empire, Liverpool University Press, 2008), a corpus of several thousand documents from over 200 international museums and private collections (including the Prado Museum, the Paris Musée des Arts Décoratifs, the British Library, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, the Frankfurt historical museum, the musée du quai Branly and the private collection gathered by the Achac research group), and cross cooperation with over thirty countries, this is the first major exhibition to internationally approach what has been called the ‘human zoos’.
In a scenography inspired by the world of theatre, the exhibition historically and thematically approaches the staging of so-called ‘exotics’ or ‘freaks’, as well as the reactions to these popular scientific or avant-garde shows throughout the world. In an audio guide, Lilian Thuram provides his comments to visitors as they walk through the exhibition to view posters, photographs, sculptures and other items, putting them in their specific context.
ACT 1 - DISCOVERING THE OTHER: REPORT, COLLECT, PRESENT
The first Act features the 15th and 18th Century arrival of exotic people in Europe, and their consideration as ‘strange foreigners’, categorized in four archetypes throughout the exhibition: the savage, the artist, the freak and the exotic ambassador.
Various media reported on the parade of Brazil’s Tupinamba ‘savages’ for the royal entrance of King Henri II in 1550 in Rouen, on the arrival of Siamese ambassadors at the Court of Versailles in 1686, on the 1654 presentation of Inuits to King Frederik II in Copenhagen and on the return of Captain James Cook to England with Tahitian ‘Noble Savage’ Omai in 1774. The latter inspired a play that was presented in Paris and London for many years…
The exhibition also features a famous portrait of Antonietta Gonsalvus painted by Lavinia Fontana (1585), depicting one of the Gonsalvus children, a family of the Canary Islands known in the 16th Century for its legendary hairiness.
ACT 2 – FREAKS & EXOTICS: OBSERVE, CLASSIFY, CATEGORIZE
The early 19th Century brings the emergence of a new genre: ethnic shows. They first develop in theater cafés before spreading to larger and larger venues and being included in exhibitions and circuses.
This process of staging the difference blurs the difference between the deformed and the foreign: physical, psychological and geographical abnormalities are first staged, and then become the focus of performances.
The first ethnic and freak shows add a new dimension to popular culture by more and more regularly bringing together exotic people alongside freaks. Case in point: Saartje Baartman, nicknamed the “Hottentot Venus”, exhibited in London and Paris in the early 19th Century. She represents a new phase of the exhibition process.
The first shows fashion and structure the Western view on otherness, specifically from regions such as the various regions Europe hopes to conquer or in the process of colonizing.
In the early stages of imperial colonization, theories arise on the classification and organization of humanity and on the concept of race: an academic way of thinking that marked humanities throughout the 19th century.
ACT 3 – THE SPECTACLE OF DIFFERENCE: RECRUIT, EXHIBIT, SHARE
Between 1870 and WWII, many venues start specializing in ethnic performance as the Crystal Palace, Barnum and Bailey in Madison Square, the Paris Folies Bergères or the famous Panoptikum in Berlin. It is the time of the professionalization of the activity, and exotic performance morphs into mass entertainment.
Visitors are introduced to “actors of savageness” who become true genre professionals: Aboriginals, ‘lip-plate women’, Amazons, snake charmers, Japanese tightrope walkers or oriental belly dancers, but also the first black clown in France called “Chocolat” and drawn by Toulouse-Lautrec and legendary Buffalo Bill, whose show revolves on the native American Indian archetype, which forever brands the Far West imagery.
Unbeknownst to them, audiences encounter made-up ‘savages’. Generally paid, the exhibited actively participate in building the imagery.
ACT 4 – STAGING: EXHIBIT, MEASURE, PROFILE
Reconstructed ethnic villages, zoos, colonial and international fairs, science and spectacle merge in multiple places. Exotic peoples and physical strangeness are brought together on stage as if they both equally represented the realm of abnormality.
Excess, grandeur and ephemeral reconstructions characterize this section of the exhibition with posters and painted dioramas, film ,screenings, photographs, automates and postcards.
The practice starts in public gardens, following the one in Paris which, in 1877, is the first in Europe to exhibit tribes and groups. Such exhibitions lead to the invention of travelling Villages, like Carl Hagenbeck’s. Major tours start in 1874, and in 1878 until the 30s, international and colonial fairs include an exotic dimension to their programs.
While this trend primarily hits Europe, it also reaches America, Japan and the colonies themselves (Australia, India and Indochina), and attracts hundreds of million visitors.
You can also read the entire article from which the introductory quote was drawn by clicking here. More can be found on the museum website by clicking here. For more on The Great Coney Island Spectacularium, click here.
Thanks so much to my buddy John Troyer for sending this along.
Bottom two images from News.com.au. Captions: Top: Nineteenth century models of heads of Botoduco men on display in Human Zoos: The invention of the savage. Picture: AFP; Bottom: Busts of an English man, a Chinese man, an Algerian man and a Brazilian man as part of Human zoos, The invention of the savage. Picture: AFP
Labels: anthropology, exhibition, history, museum, spectacle
Four Open Slots for Tonight's Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class!
Four slots have just opened up for tonight's anthropomorphic mouse taxidermy class with Susan Jeiven class at Observatory! Full details follow; if interested in attending, please email me ASAP at morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com. Emails will be considered in the order received.
Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Back by Popular Demand
Date: TONIGHT Tuesday, November 29th
Time: 7 PM-11 PM
Admission: $60
Presented by Morbid Anatomy
Anthropomorphic taxidermy–the practice of mounting and displaying taxidermied animals as if they were humans or engaged in human activities–was a popular art form during the Victorian and Edwardian eras. The best known practitioner of the art form is British taxidermist Walter Potter who displayed his pieces–which included such elaborate tableaux as The Death of Cock Robin, The Kitten Wedding, and The Kitten Tea Party–in his own museum of curiosities.
Tonight, please join Morbid Anatomy and taxidermist, tattoo artist and educator Susan Jeiven for a beginners class in anthropomorphic taxidermy. All materials–including a mouse for each student–will be provided, and each class member will leave at the end of the day with their own anthropomorphic taxidermied mouse. Students are invited to bring any miniature items with which they might like to dress or decorate their new friend; some props and miniature clothing will also be provided by the teacher. A wide variety of sizes and colors of mice will be available.
No former taxidermy experience is required.
Also, some technical notes:
We use NO harsh or dangerous chemicals.
Everyone will be provided with gloves.
All animals are disease free.
Although there will not be a lot of blood or gore, a strong constitution is necessary; taxidermy is not for everyone.
All animals were already dead, nothing was killed for this class. All mice used are feeder animals for snakes and lizards and would literally be discarded if not sold.
Please do not bring any dead animals with you to the class
More information can be found here. Mouse shown above was created in our last class, created by attendee Ronni Ascagni. More mice from that class can be found here.
Labels: creative taxidermy, education, mouse, observatory
Call for Work for 2nd Annual Morbid Anatomy Holiday Fair, December 17th and 18th
This year, Morbid Anatomy will be teaming up with our sister spaces Observatory and Proteus Gowanus to host a 2-day holiday fair over the weekend of December 17th and 18th, from 12-6. If any of you local artists, craftspeople, photographers and/or makers of macabre, uncanny or unusual objects, artifacts, or curiosa out there are interested in selling work, please contact us at morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com for more details. Please note: in order to participate, must be able to man your own table for the duration of the event.
Image: Crocheted Skulls by Dewey Decimal Crafts, a featured seller at last year's fair. More of her work can be found here.
Labels: art, crafts
"Dissection as Studio Practice" Illustrated Lecture and Studio Art Class with Artist Laura Splan at Observatory
I am super excited to be announcing the upcoming class "Dissection as Studio Practice" at Observatory on Sunday, January 8th. I met the teacher--Laura Splan--at a conference many years back now. Since then, I have been a big fan of her work, a few examples of which can be seen above, including--top to bottom-- an installation view of her current solo show Reformulations; a blood-on-watercolor composition entitled "Elaborative Encoding"; and 3 images from her "Doilies"series of 2004, a set of computer machine embroidered doilies with the design of each doily based on a different viral structure; pictured here, top to bottom: Herpes, Sars, and Influenza.
This class--open to all experience levels--will "survey the use of dissection in contemporary art practice through an illustrated lecture, discussion and collaborative art project"; it will also provide a terrific opportunity to work with an accomplished and sophisticated conceptual artist while gaining insight into process and method behind the creation of iconic and powerful works dealing with dissection and the body. I, for one, simply cannot wait!
Full description of the class follows. Class size is limited; if interested, be sure to RSVP via email to morbidanatomy[at]gmail.com. You can see more of Laura Splan's work by clicking here. Hope very much to see you there!
CLASS: Dissection as Studio Practice
Lecture and Studio Art Class with artist Laura Splan
Date: Sunday, January 8th
*** Class size is limited to 20; please RSVP to morbidanatomy[at]gmail.com
This class will survey the use of dissection in contemporary art practice through an illustrated lecture, discussion and collaborative art project. We will examine the conceptual and cultural significance of cutting, excavating, disassembling, labeling, observing and displaying “bodies.” The lecture will present a brief history of dissection as well as work by contemporary artists exploring imagery, tropes and methods of dissection. The collaborative project will be a fun and lively hands on exploration of the meaning of dissection in a work of art. Participants should bring an object, artifact or specimen to “dissect” for the group exercise. Additional supplies, tools and materials will be provided. No prior art training is required.
Laura Splan is a Brooklyn based visual artist. Her mixed media work explores historical and cultural ambivalence towards the human body. She was recently a Visiting Lecturer at Stanford University where she taught “Art and Biology” in the Art & Art History Department. She has been a Visiting Artist at the New York Academy of Sciences, California College of Art, San Francisco Art Institute, Maryland Institute College of Art, and Cal Arts. She curates the visual portal DomesticatedViscera.com. Images of her artwork can be found on her website: LauraSplan.com.
You can contact Laura through her website with any questions about the class by clicking here.
If you are interested in signing up for this class, please email me at morbidanatomy[at]gmail.com. To see more of Laura Splan's fantastic work, click here. This class is one of the newest installments in the series newly termed The Morbid Anatomy Artist Academy; to find out more about that--including a full class list thus far--click here.
Labels: art, dissection, education, morbid anatomy artist academy, observatory
Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!
Via Abduzeedo's collection of vintage Thanksgiving postcards; more here.
Labels: holiday
Grand Guignol Spectacular: Tickets Now Available, Fundrasing Drive, and Film of Final Performance!
Above is a narrated scene from the final performance--circa 1962--of the Grand Guignol, a Parisian theatre infamous from its opening in 1897 until it final performance in 1962 for naturalistic theatrical productions merging horror and elegance, sex and death, fear and humor.
To celebrate my 40th birthday this year, my friend John Del Gaudio and I are putting together a Grand Guignol-inspired variety show that will take place at The Coney Island Museum in Brooklyn this December 10th at 8:00 PM. Tickets are $25 and include not only a night of horror variety theatre, but also a masquerade after party and complementary Hendricks Gin Cocktails prepared by Friese Undine.
The evening was developed in conversation with UC Berkeley's Mel Gordon, author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror and will feature a newly commissioned set by NYU’s Chris Muller, stagings of classic Grand Guignol plays, a toy theater version of Bryusov’s “The Sisters,” short films, song and dance, WWI 3D glass plate projection with theremin accompaniment, and more.
We are in the process of trying to raise funds with which to pay all participators a modest stipend and expenses. If you are interested in contributing to this campaign--and/or in finding out more about the evening, including the full lineup thus far--click here. Donations of $100 or more earn contributers a free ticket to the festivities, while donations of lesser amounts earn you a listing in the program; donations of any amount will earn our deepest and heartfelt gratitude!
Whether you are able to contribute or not, I would love to see you at the event! Tickets for the event have just gone on sale, so if you are interested in attending, please click here to purchase.
Thanks so much, and hope to ring in a new decade with you at Coney Island!
Labels: coney island, grand guignol, spectacle
William Cheselden Giving an Anatomical Demonstration to Six Spectators in the Anatomy-theatre of the Barber-Surgeons' Company, London, Circa 1730/1740
In Cheselden’s time, surgeons trained through an apprenticeship during which, they would attend private anatomy lessons. Before the Anatomy Act of 1832, the only legal supply of bodies for anatomical purposes where those of criminals condemned by the courts. The Barber-Surgeons’ Company kept scrupulous control over the use of bodies dissected in their hall, with the macabre ritual of often later displaying the dissected bodies of executed criminals in niches around the walls. Cheselden himself was fined by the Company in 1714 for carrying out dissections without permission, which drew away audience members from regular lectures at the Company. With students having little opportunity to take part in dissections themselves, teachers would rely on models or anatomical preparations for class...
Image and text from The Wellcome Collection blog; you can learn more about this fabulous painting--and read the text in its entirety--by clicking here.
Full image credit: William Cheselden giving an anatomical demonstration to six spectators in the anatomy-theatre of the Barber-Surgeons' Company, London. Oil painting, ca. 1730/1740. Wellcome Images.
Labels: anatomical theatre, wellcome
Anthropomorphic Taxidermy Classes! Powerpoint Film! The Occult in Art! Upcoming Events at Observatory
Anthropomorphic taxidermy! Powerpoint films! The occult in art! Hope to see you at one or more of these great upcoming events at Observatory.
Also, please note: although the next two mouse taxidermy classes are now sold out, there are newly scheduled classes taking place on Tuesdays January 10, January 24, February 14 (special Valentine's Day edition!) and February 21. There is also a very special Holiday-themed Anthropomorphic Chick Taxidermy Class on the first night of Hanukkah, December 20 (click here for more). If interested, please send number of party and first and second date choice to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com. Please note: these classes tend to sell out VERY quickly, sp email me as soon as possible!
Date: Tuesday, November 15th
*** SOLD OUT
On Tuesday November 15th, please join Morbid Anatomy and taxidermist, tattoo artist and educator Susan Jeiven for a beginners class in anthropomorphic taxidermy. All materials–including a mouse for each student–will be provided, and each class member will leave at the end of the day with their own anthropomorphic taxidermied mouse. Students are invited to bring any miniature items with which they might like to dress or decorate their new friend; some props and miniature clothing will also be provided by the teacher. A wide variety of sizes and colors of mice will be available.
Please do not bring any dead animals with you to the clas
You can contact Sue with any more questions by clicking here.
The Occult in Modern Art 101
An illustrated lecture by Pam Grossman
Date: Friday, November 18th
Presented by: Phantasmaphile
Though few history books make mention of it, many of our most lauded artists — Picasso, Kandinsky, Mondrian, Duchamp, to name but a few — were deeply influenced by the occult. The imagery and tenets of arcane traditions including alchemy, Spiritualism, Theosophy, and shamanism have infused the work of artists through the ages. Beginning with the Symbolists, then spiraling through such periods as Cubism, Dada, Surrealism (with its wonderfully witchy women), Abstract Expressionism, and the visionary art of today, this evening’s lecture will be a visual primer on the existence of magic in our museums and galleries.
Pam Grossman is an independent curator and lifelong student of magical practice and history. She is the creator of Phantasmaphile, a blog which specializes in art and culture with an esoteric or fantastical bent. Her group art shows, Fata Morgana: The New Female Fantasists, VISION QUEST, and Alchemically Yours have been featured by such outlets as Boing Boing, CREATIVE TIME, Time Out New York, Juxtapoz, Arthur, 20×200, UrbanOutfitters.com, and Neil Gaiman’s Twitter. She is a co-founder of Observatory, where her programming aims to explore mysticism via a scholarly yet accessible approach. By day, she is the Creative Planning Manager for Getty Images North America.
Image: Leonora Carrington "La maja del tarot" 1965
“No Computer Is An Island” : PowerPoint Film with Live Musical Accompaniment
Film by James Bell and music by Paul Deuth (a.k.a. Meteorologeist)
Runtime approx 1 hr.
Date: Saturday, November 19th
“No Computer Is An Island” is a silent movie animated entirely in PowerPoint and accompanied by electronic music, mixed live during the presentation. Utilizing inventive music and limited animation presets, a depressing world of office life, shallow relationships and adult responsibility is presented in 256 colors. The presentation follows a day in the life of one workflow shape, appropriately named Bubbles, as he goes about the business of being a detached thought bubble. Other workflow characters overlap and interrupt his story, creating images that exploit the constraints of PowerPoint as an animation tool by using the conventions of silent film. “No Computer Is An Island” engages the timeless need for narrative, inviting the viewer to create meaning slide by slide.
James E. P. Bell regularly makes PowerPoint presentations in an office building in midtown Manhattan. A founding member of the interactive performance group PowerPoint, James has explored the aesthetic potential of MicroSoft Office applications in productions such as “Introduction to Change Management” (1999), “Violence in the Workplace” (2003), and now “No Computer Is An Island” (2010).
Paul Deuth is an electronic musician/composer/producer (A.K.A. Meteorologeist) and director of photography. With an extensive career in television, Paul most enjoys expressing himself in multi-media artistic ventures including projects with PowerPoint, Fire and Ice, Hold Please, and the Prospects. You can experience some of Paul’s music at http://www.myspace.com/meteorologeist
Onwards and Upwards:
Tuesday, November 29: Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Back by Popular Demand. 7-11pm/$60 *** SOLD OUT
Monday, December 5: Photographing the Dead: The History of Postmortem Photography from The Burns Collection and Archive: Illustrated Lecture and book signing with Stanley B. Burns, MD, FACS 8pm/$5
Saturday, December 10: Grand Guignol Variety Show at The Coney Island Museum: Featuring classic Grand Guignol performances, antique 3D stereoscopic slides, puppet and toy theatre, song, dance, film and more, followed by after-party with cocktails courtesy of Hendrick’s Gin; support this project on IndieGoGo by clicking here 8pm/$25
Tuesday, December 13: The Missing Dimension: A Cultural History of 3D Images - Anaglyphs, Stereographs, View-Masters, Holograms, and Flaming Arrows Coming Right at You!: Illustrated lecture on and in 3D (glasses provided) by artist and NYU Professor Chris Muller 8pm/$5
Saturday, December 17: “Oddities” Marathon and Season Launch Party: Screening of TV’s “Oddities” followed by after party with MC Lord Whimsy, giveaways, special drinks, and DJ 8pm/$8
Tuesday, December 20: Anthropomorphic Chick Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Limited class size; must RSVP to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com 7-11pm/$60
Sunday, January 8: CLASS: Dissection as Studio Practice: Lecture and Studio Art Class with artist Laura Splan *** Class size is limited; Must RSVP to morbidanatomy[at]gmail.com 1-4pm/$60
Thursday, January 26: The Search for Granny-Dump Mountain: Illustrated lecture by Journalist Justin Nobel 8pm/$5
Sunday, January 29: Class: Mummification: Learn the art and ritual of animal mummification with instructor Sorceress Cagliastro *** Limited Class Size; Please RSVP to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com 1-4pm/$65
Thursday, February 2: PERFORMANCE: Buried Alive! A Matchbox Theatre: A matchbox theatre performance by Deborah Kaufmann 8pm/$12
Friday, February 3: PERFORMANCE: Buried Alive! A Matchbox Theatre: A matchbox theatre performance by Deborah Kaufmann 8pm/$12
More on Observatory can be found here. To sign up for events on Facebook, join our group by clicking here. To sign up for our weekly mailer, click here.
Labels: education, observatory, spectacle, taxidermy
Decadent Paris Weekend (with Complementary Absinthe!): Tonight and Tomorrow Night!
This weekend, you are cordially invited to join Morbid Anatomy at Observatory for a "Decadent Paris Weekend" comprised of two amazing lectures devoted to cornerstones of fin de siècle Paris--Grand Guignol horror theatre and diabolical liquors--augmented by complimentary absinthe (!!!) provided by our weekend's sponsor La Fée Absinthe.
Night one--Tonight, Friday November 11th--of our weekend will feature one of my alltime favorite rogue scholars and public speakers, Mel Gordon, delivering an illustrated lecture on The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962. Copies of his out-of-print and groundbreaking book by the same name will be on hand, substantially discounted and available for signing.
Night two-Tomorrow night, Friday November 12th--will bring many time Observatory lecturer (1, 2, 3) and Midnight Archive creator Ronni Thomas back to Observatory for an ode to "Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris" in the form of an illustrated lecture, a screening, and a liquor tasting.
You wil find full information below for both events; Hope to see you there!
The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962
Illustrated lecture/booksigning with author and scholar Mel Gordon
Complimentary absinthe provided by our sponsor La Fée Absinthe, the first traditional absinthe distilled in France since the 1915 ban and is the only absinthe endorsed by the Musée de l'Absinthe, Auvers-sur-Oise
***Signed copies of Gordon's long out-of-print Grand Guiginol will be available for sale at $30 (copies generally go for $60-150)
Decadent Paris Weekend Event # 1 (For Decadent Paris Event #2, Click here)
Hidden among the decadence and sleaze of Pigalle with its roughnecks and whores, in the shadows of a quiet, cobbled alleyway, stands a little theatre... --"Grand Guignol: The French Theatre or Horror," Hand and Wilson
From its beginnings in turn-of-the-century Paris and through its decline in the 1960s, the Theatre of the Grand Guignol--literally "grand puppet show"--gleefully celebrated horror, sex, and fear. Its infamous productions featured innocent victims, mangled beauty, insanity, mutilation, humour, sex, and monstrous depravity in a heady mix that attracted throngs of thrill-seekers from all echelons of society. By dissecting primal taboos in an unprecedentedly graphic manner, the Grand Guignol became the progenitor of all the blood-spilling, eye-gouging, and limb-hacking "splatter" movies of today.
Tonight, join Professor Mel Gordon--author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror--to learn about the largely forgotten history of the Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol in this heavily-illustrated and highly engaging lecture.
Mel Gordon is the author of Grand Guiginol: Theatre of Fear and Terror, Voluptious Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, and many other books. Voluptuous Panic was the first in-depth and illustrated book on the topic of erotic Weimar; The lavish tome was praised by academics and inspired the establishment of eight neo-Weimar nightclubs as well as the Dresden Dolls and a Marilyn Manson album. Now, Mel Gordon is completing a companion volume for Feral House Press, entitled Horizontal Collaboration: The Erotic World of Paris, 1920-1946. He also teaches directing, acting, and history of theater at University of California at Berkeley.
Image: Grand Guignol Poster, from the collection of Mel Gordon
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Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris: Lecture and Tasting
Illustrated lecture and liquor tasting with film maker Ronni Thomas
On Saturday November 12th, join Ronni Thomas and Observatory for an exploration of the exotic and often diabolic liquids of France's antiquity featuring absinthe, a liquor known in fin de siècle Paris as "the green fairy" for its bewitching allure and poetically transporting nature. Among history's most infamous and romanticized liquors, absinthe became a symbol of decadence and was drink of choice of such bohemian luminaries as Oscar Wilde, Charles Baudelaire, Vincent van Gogh, Alfred Jarry, Édouard Manet, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, and Pablo Picasso. By 1915, it was widely banned after having been publicly tied to sensational stories of madness, murder and degeneracy; recently re-legalized, it has developed a passionate contemporary fan base.
Tonight, absinthe devotee Ronni Thomas will deliver an illustrated lecture on the history of absinthe and other great elixirs of fin de siècle Paris--such as green chartreuse, armagnac, and ricard--complete with artwork and video excerpts; he will also screen his own contribution to the absinthe mythos: a promotional video he produced for contemporary absinthe maker Le Tourment Vert. Liquor samples for tasting will also be available throughout the evening, including complimentary absinthe from our sponsor La Fée. There will also a Francophile music-filled after party. It will be a night straight out of Brassaï's Paris right in the heart of Brooklyn.
Ronni Thomas filmmaker and creator of The Midnight Archive web series is an avid drinker who appreciates both the history of antique spirits and the effects they have on his self esteem. Incidentally, his favorite absinthe is tonight's sponsor La Fée.
Image: "La Muse Verte" (The Green Muse), Albert Maignan, 1895
Labels: events, observatory, spectacle
Decadent Paris Weekend (with Complementary Absinthe!): Morbid Anatomy Presents at Observatory Tonight and Tomorrow Night!
Night one--Friday November 11th--of our weekend will feature one of my alltime favorite rogue scholars and public speakers, Mel Gordon, delivering an illustrated lecture on The Grand Guignol: Parisian Theatre of Fear and Terror 1897-1962. Copies of his out-of-print and groundbreaking book by the same name will be on hand, substantially discounted and available for signing.
Night two-Friday November 12th--will bring many time Observatory lecturer (1, 2, 3) and Midnight Archive creator Ronni Thomas back to Observatory for an ode to "Absinthe and Other Liquors of Fin de Siècle Paris" in the form of an illustrated lecture, a screening, and a liquor tasting.
You wil find full information below for both events, followed by a list of newly announced events including a lecture on postmortem photography by Stanley Burns, the man who literally wrote the book on the topic; a class by the amazing Laura Splan on Dissection as Studio Practice; a lecture on the cultural history of 3D images in full 3D (glasses provided!); and an Oddities season launch party and viewing marathon MCed by the ever charming Lord Whimsy.
Hope to see you at some or all of these fantastic events!
Morbid Anatomy Library Open Hours This Weekend, 12:30-6
This weekend--Saturday the 12th and Sunday the 13th--the Morbid Anatomy Library--pictured above--will have open hours from 12:30 until 6 PM. So feel free to drop in for a perusal of the stacks and to meet our latest addition.
Decadent Paris Weekend (with Complementary Absinthe!): Morbid Anatomy Presents at Observatory, This Week and Beyond
Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Back by Popular Demand. *** SOLD OUT; email morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com to be added to wait list (November 15:)
“No Computer Is An Island” : PowerPoint Film with Live Musical Accompaniment (November 19)
Anthropomorphic Mouse Taxidermy Class with Susan Jeiven: Back by Popular Demand. *** SOLD OUT; email morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com to be added to wait list (November 29)
Photographing the Dead: The History of Postmortem Photography from The Burns Collection and Archive: Illustrated Lecture and book signing with Stanley B. Burns, MD, FACS (December 5)
The Missing Dimension: The Missing Dimension: A Cultural History of 3D Images - Anaglyphs, Stereographs, View-Masters, Holograms, and Flaming Arrows Coming Right at You!: Illustrated lecture on and in 3D (glasses provided) by artist and NYU Professor Chris Muller (December 13)
"Oddities" Marathon and Season Launch Party: Screening of TV's "Oddities" followed by after party with MC Lord Whimsy, giveaways, special drinks, and DJ (December 17)
CLASS: Dissection as Studio Practice: Lecture and Studio Art Class with artist Laura Splan *** Class size is limited; Must RSVP to morbidanatomy[at]gmail.com (January 8)
The Search for Granny-Dump Mountain: Illustrated lecture by Journalist Justin Nobel (January 26)
Class: Mummification: Learn the art and ritual of animal mummification with instructor Sorceress Cagliastro *** Limited Class Size; Please RSVP to morbidanatomy [at] gmail.com (January 29)
Labels: lecture, observatory, spectacle
Morbid Anatomy Library Open Hours This Sunday, November 6
This Sunday November 6th, the Morbid Anatomy Library--pictured above--will have open hours from 12 until 6 PM. So feel free to drop in for a perusal of the stacks and to meet our newest addition.
Posted by JE at 12:50 PM No comments:
NetherWorld: A Morality Vaudeville, The Cosmic Bicycle Theatre and ClockWorks Puppetry Studio, Through Saturday
Tomorrow and Saturday night at The Cosmic Bicycle Theatre and ClockWorks Puppetry Studio: NetherWorld: A Morality Vaudeville, the newest production of the very talented and lovely Mr. Jonathan Cross.
NetherWorld: A Morality Vaudeville
The Cosmic Bicycle Theatre and ClockWorks Puppetry Studio
196 Columbia Street Brooklyn, 11231
Thursday to Saturday at 8 PM
Saturdays & Sundays Matinee at 4 PM
The Follies of Humanity… Enacted by Demonic Puppets!
Grimly Comical Vignettes… and Surreal Melodramas!
Journey Beyond the Grave… and Return!
“NetherWorld, A Morality Vaudeville” is a variety show in hell, interwoven with an operetta which tells the tale of the Demon King, Mister Scratch, and his search for an heir to the throne of NetherWorld. It features creepy & surreal marionettes, live sound effects, and an original live score performed on accordian, piano, and toy piano. NetherWorld was an Off-Off Broadway Review Award recipient for one of the Best Performances of 1995.
You can find out more by clicking here.
Labels: puppet, theater
Amazing Baroque Bone Chapels and Real Life Mad Scientists: Episodes 5 and 6 of The Midnight Archive
The Midnight Archive, as mentioned previously, is a new web-based documentary series "centered around the esoteric and always exotic personalities that spring from Observatory," the Brooklyn-based event/gallery space I founded a few years ago. The series is created and directed by film-maker Ronni Thomas, who has plans to upload approximately one new episode per week to the new Midnight Archive website.
Episodes five and six of The Midnight Archive--A. Head B. Body and Empire of Death--have just been uploaded is now available for viewing! You can view them above or on The Midnight Archive website.
For more on the series, to see former episodes, or to sign up for the mailing list so as to be alerted to future uploads, visit The Midnight Archive website by clicking here. You can also "like" it on Facebook--and thus be alerted--by clicking here.
Posted by JE at 10:42 AM 2 comments:
Labels: death, medicine, midnight archive, observatory, TV
"Of Pictures & Specimens: Natural History in Post-Revolutionary and Restoration France," Interdisciplinary Symposium, American Philosophical Society
Another excellent looking symposium! Free and open to the public:
Of Pictures & Specimens: Natural History in Post-Revolutionary and Restoration France
Interdisciplinary Symposium
American Philosophical Society (APS) Museum, Philadelphia
Of Pictures & Specimens: Natural History in Post-Revolutionary and Restoration France is organized by the APS Museum in conjunction with its current exhibition, Of Elephants & Roses: Encounters with French Natural History, 1790 - 1830. The symposium includes French and American scholars, and addresses key ideas raised by the displays in the exhibition. Included are presentations exploring how Empress Josephine became shepherdess, botanist, and estate manager, how top scientists and artists pictured nature, and how natural science influenced everything from Balzac's novels to the 19th century's romanticized notions of long-lost worlds.
Of Elephants & Roses celebrates the life sciences during a time when Paris was the center of natural history in the Western world. On view are more than sixty objects from France never before seen in the U.S., including Josephine's black swan, gorgeous renderings of flowers on Sèvres porcelain, a mastodon fossil bone sent by Thomas Jefferson to Paris, an herbarium specimen of the flowering Franklinia tree, and everyday objects decorated with charming images of a giraffe who walked 550 miles across France to greet the king.
For information on speakers and program: apsmuseum.org/symposium
For online registration, required by Nov. 28, 2011: apsmuseum.org/registration
SYMPOSIUM IS FREE OF CHARGE
The symposium is made possible through generous funding by the Richard Lounsbery Foundation.
More on this symposium can be found here.
Labels: natural history, symposium
"Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race" Exhibition and Symposium, Museum of Jewish Heritage, NYC, Through January 16
I have long been enthralled with the chilling Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race, a catalog for a touring exhibition of the same name organized by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. I have just found out that this exhibition is now on view right here in New York City, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage, through January 16th. If the catalog is any indication, this exhibit is simply not to be missed.
As a further lure, this Sunday, November 6th, the museum is hosting a fascinating looking symposium entitled "Medicine and Medical Ethics in Nazi Germany" preceded by a guided tour of the exhibition.
Full info follows for both exhibition and symposium; hope very much to see you there!
Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race
36 Battery Place, New York City
“Nazism is applied biology.”
— Rudolf Hess, Deputy to Adolf Hitler
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s traveling exhibition, Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race, examines how the Nazi leadership, in collaboration with individuals in professions traditionally charged with healing and the public good, used science to help legitimize persecution, murder and, ultimately, genocide...
Eugenics theory sprang from turn-of-the-century scientific beliefs asserting that Charles Darwin’s theories of “survival of the fittest” could be applied to humans. Supporters, spanning the globe and political spectrum, believed that through careful controls on marriage and reproduction, a nation’s genetic health could be improved.
The Nazi regime was founded upon the conviction that “inferior” races and individuals had to be eliminated from German society so that the fittest “Aryans” could thrive. The Nazi state fully committed itself to implementing a uniquely racist and antisemitic variation of eugenics to “scientifically” build what it considered to be a “superior race.” By the end of World War II, six million Jews had been murdered. Millions of others also became victims of persecution and murder through Nazi “racial hygiene” programs designed to cleanse Germany of “biological threats” to the nation’s “health,” including “foreign-blooded” Roma and Sinti (Gypsies), persons diagnosed as “hereditarily ill,” and homosexuals. In German-occupied territories, Poles and others belonging to ethnic groups deemed “inferior” were also murdered...
And the symposium:
Medicine and Medical Ethics in Nazi Germany
Sunday, November 6, 1 P.M.
Prof. Sander Gilman, Emory University; and Prof. Arthur Caplan, University of Pennsylvania; moderated by Museum Director Dr. David G. Marwell
Lectures by Prof. Gilman, a cultural historian who has written on Nazi science, and Prof. Caplan, a leading scholar in the field of medical ethics, will be followed by a conversation about the origins and legacies of Nazi medical practices.
$10, $7 students/seniors, $5 members
Co-presented by FASPE (Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics). mjhnyc.org/faspe
This program has been made possible by a generous grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany: Rabbi Israel Miller Fund for Shoah Research, Documentation and Education.
Presented in conjunction with Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race. Tour the exhibition at 12 P.M. Space is limited and pre-registration is required. Call 646.437.4202.
You can find out more about the exhibition by clicking here and more about the symposium by clicking here. You can watch an exhibition overview video by clicking here. You can order a copy of the fantastic catalog by clicking here, or peruse it anytime in The Morbid Anatomy Library.
Images top to bottom:
International Hygiene Exhibition, 1911 promotional poster: The eugenics movement pre-dated Nazi Germany. A 1911 exhibition at the German Hygiene Museum in Dresden included a display on human heredity and ideas to improve it. The exhibition poster features the Enlightenment’s all-seeing eye of God, adapted from the ancient Egyptian “Eye of Ra,” symbolizing fitness or health. Credit: Deutsches Historisches Museum, Berlin
Students at the Berlin School for the Blind examine racial head models circa 1935. Students were taught Gregor Mendel’s principles of inheritance and the purported application of those laws to human heredity and principles of race. During the Third Reich, German born deaf or blind, like those born with mental illnesses or disabilities, were urged to submit to compulsory sterilization as a civic duty. Credit: Blinden-Museum an der Johann-August-Zeune-Schule fur Blinde, Berlin
Head shots showing various racial types. Most western anthropologists classified people into “races” based on physical traits such as head size and eye, hair and skin color. This classification was developed by Eugen Fischer and published in the 1921 and 1923 editions of Foundations of Human Genetics and Racial Hygiene. Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Nazi officials at the “The Miracle of Life” exhibition, German Hygiene Museum, Dresden, 1935. The new Nazi museum leadership asserted that societies resembled organisms that followed the lead of their brains. The most logical social structure was one that saw society as a collective unit, literally a body guided by a strong leader. Credit: National Archives and Records Administration
The head of a Jewish youth was sculpted from wood by the Jewish artist M. Winiarski for German officials in the occupied Polish city of Lodz. Credit: Zydowski Instytut Historyczny, Instytut Naukowo-Badawyczy, Warsaw
Labels: exhibition, history, medicine
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Hot off the Press! UNDP and ILCN launch a new report on Privately Protected Areas, analysing status in 30 countries
Forum Post By Heena Ahmed / 4 September, 2019 - 03:40
The United Nations Development Programme and the International Land Conservation Network (a project of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy) have today launched a report entitled, "
Cambodia Country Profile: International Outlook for Privately Protected Areas
By Heena Ahmed / 4 September, 2019 - 01:20
This country profile is part of a study entitled, "Myron, E., Fabiano, C., and Ahmed, H. International Outlook for Privately Protected Areas: Argentina Country Profile. International Land Conservation Network (a project of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy) - United Nations Development Programme, 2019.". The summary report provides an overview of the status of Privately Protected Areas in 30 countries throughout Latin America, Asia, the Pacific, and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Draft Biodiversity Status Maps for Your 6NR – Cambodia
By Annie Virnig / 1 March, 2019 - 22:25
At the beginning of the 6NR process, we challenged Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity to double the number of maps used from your 5NR to your 6NR. Are you on track to meet this challenge? We have exciting news for you! Using the UN Biodiversity Lab, and the global datasets available within it, we created 18 draft biodiversity status maps for your country.
[EN-FR-ES] Survey on small nature-based enterprises: What do you want to learn?
Forum Post By Martin Sommerschuh / 18 October, 2018 - 01:50
Risk Assessment of Living Modified Organisms for Direct Use as Food, Feed, or for Processing (FFP) | Webinar presentation
By Diego Ochoa / 12 September, 2018 - 03:50
Mr. Pisey Oum, with 15 years of experience implementing the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and handling biosafety regulations on a national level in Cambodia, made this presentation during the NBSAP Forum webinar session on the 15th Anniversary of the Entry into Force of Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety.
For more information on the webinar session, please click here. Watch this recording and all other NBSAP Forum sessions in the NBSAP Forum Youtube channel.
Eye on Earth Webinar: Effective Communication for Sustainable Development - Distracting People with Reality
Forum Post By Heena Ahmed / 1 May, 2017 - 17:01
Date: May 03, 2017 at 1:30 PM GMT Register: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3724766445296304642 ABSTRACT: Over the last 4 years, World Resource Institute, a global research organization, and Vizzuality, a missio
Biodiversity Mainstreaming
Ibis Rice: Conserving Critically Endangered Birds And Supporting Local Livelihoods In Protected Areas Through A Certified Sustainable Agriculture PES Scheme In Northern Cambodia
By Vinamra Mathur / 1 February, 2017 - 03:22
IBIS.png
Ibis Rice is a scheme, active since 2007 in three Protected Areas in Northern Cambodia, whereby communities are incentivized to protect critical habitat through sales of a high-quality agricultural product. Under the scheme, farmers that abide by the rules, including agreed land-use plans and no-hunting laws, are able to sell their rice through the village committee, which is legally mandated to administer the land-use plan.
Wildlife-Friendly Ibis RiceTM Of Cambodia’s Northern Plains
By carolina hazin / 15 August, 2016 - 17:32
‘Wildlife-Friendly Ibis RiceTM’ is grown in the paddy fields of Preah Vihear province, on Cambodia’s Northern Plains. The Ibis RiceTM project aims to protect critically endangered birds and mammals, and prevent further loss of their habitat, which is being replaced by large and small-scale agriculture. Small-scale farmers from fifteen villages receive a price premium on their rice, in exchange for implementing conservation agreements. These limit the conversion of wetland areas to rice fields, and ban hunting of rare water birds.
ENERGY EFFICIENCY NAMA IN THE GARMENT INDUSTRY IN CAMBODIA
By Heena Ahmed / 12 August, 2016 - 12:45
It is proposed that the energy efficiency NAMA described in this document be embedded in the national energy efficiency policy so that it will help the Government of Cambodia to provide financial incentives to interested garment manufacturing companies to implement energy efficiency measures by replacing old inefficient equipment with new more efficient technologies.
Sustaining The Natural Capital Stocks And Flows Contained Within Cambodia’s Protected Areas To Fuel Economic Development
By Christina Supples / 3 November, 2014 - 05:55
The solution proposes to work with the Cambodian government to help reposition its protected area system as part of the means for realizing, rather than hindering, development objectives, in particular as they relate to poverty alleviation. Conservation International (CI) has completed a preliminary assessment that indicates 68 percent of Cambodia’s critical natural capital is still intact. Approximately 42 precent is covered by its protected area system.
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Are you ready for the new year? Take an inventory
Jim Pumarlo
Posted Monday, February 20, 2017 11:00 pm
About Jim Pumarlo
Jim Pumarlo writes, speaks and provides training on community newsroom success strategies. He is author of “Journalism Primer: A Guide to Community News Coverage,” “Votes and Quotes: A Guide to Outstanding Election Coverage” and “Bad News and Good Judgment: A Guide to Reporting on Sensitive Issues in Small-Town Newspapers.” He can be reached at www.pumarlo.com and welcomes comments and questions at jim@pumarlo.com.
It’s standard procedure at newspapers to chronicle the year. Headlines typically include the passing of noteworthy individuals; the success, or maybe failure, of a civic project; milestones in sports achievements, election results or key community benchmarks.
Convene a brainstorming session with your newsroom – better yet, with a cross-section of employees from your entire “newspaper family” – and you’ll quickly have a list of noteworthy headlines. You may well be surprised at the scope of stories.
That prompts the question: Are you ready for 2017? All newsrooms should prepare an editorial calendar and review it regularly. Many of the things you cover are the same year in and year out. Use the opportunity to explore new approaches for coverage.
Think across the spectrum of your community. Here are three areas.
Public affairs always demands attention. There are the regular meetings of city councils, county boards and school boards plus the numerous commissions and task forces. Do you preview the important agenda items? Do you go beyond the votes and report the impact of the actions in real and understandable terms? Think beyond the meetings as you examine how to broaden your coverage. The mayor presents a state of the city speech. Government bodies spend weeks, even months, reviewing and adopting budgets. Capital improvement projects are previewed.
Also, brainstorm stories that may warrant special coverage. Has a longtime elected official announced that this will be his or her last term of service? Are single issues dominating a government body? Did the election produce new voting blocs?
Sports present a regular staple of stories: the preview, the rigors of the regular season, the playoffs. Team performance can present challenges and opportunities. How do you keep readers interested if a team suffers through a losing season, possibly not even winning a game? In contrast, what kinds of stories can be pursued if a team is headed for a championship season, maybe even going undefeated?
Also, brainstorm stories that may warrant special coverage. Is an athlete on the verge of achieving a scoring milestone? Might a coach notch a noteworthy victory? Is this the last season for a school in a sports conference due to league realignment?
Civic clubs are the fabric of communities. The number of groups and their range of contributions mean editors are routinely approached with requests for coverage. The “asks” range from the Lions Club annual brat feed fund-raiser to volunteer of the year recognition to a candidate forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters. It’s impossible to produce a story and photo for each event. Communicate with organizations early and discuss the two elements of publicity – promotion and actual coverage. An even better idea is to produce a simple set of guidelines that can be distributed to publicity chairs.
Also, brainstorm stories that may warrant special coverage. Is a club celebrating a significant anniversary? Is a local club officer rising through the ranks in the affiliated state or national organization? Is there a special fund-raiser or other project planned that has extra significance to the community?
Planning a calendar can be overwhelming. These are but three areas in your entire range of news. So take a slow approach. Explore and outline your editorial calendar for the tried and true elements of news.
Then identify one new area where you’d like to bolster coverage. Announce it in a column, and set up a process for soliciting feedback from your community. Lay out a plan of action and present it to readers.
Every newsroom is stretched for time and resources as you strive to produce stories that people like to read and stories that people should read. Any additional time you give to planning your calendar is a win-win-win scenario for your newspaper, your readers and your community.
Planning_calendar
Since 1873 NCPA has supported North Carolina newspapers, readership and advertising. We work to protect the public's right to know through the defense of open government and First Amendment freedoms, and we help maintain the public's access to local, state and federal governments. NC Press Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary, works with clients to provide one-call advertising solutions (online, mobile and print) and press release services in North Carolina and nationwide.
We’re here to help our members and their customers. Please feel free to call or email us with your questions or any issues we can help with.
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-: C :-
Gloss:Home Intro A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T Th U V W X Y Z
cantic*
Norman Johnson's stem for the second marked node, so also cantellated, cantetruncate.
#-cantellated*
A process of deriving a figure, by taking the mid-points of the edge of a #-rectate. In four and higher dimensions, this produces a set of distinct uniform figures.
The Dynkin symbol for a cantellated figure marks every node connected to the rectate node, but leaves the rectate node unmarked.
cantitruncate*
The result of truncating the #-rectate of a figure. In four and higher dimensions, this produces a uniform figure.
The Dynkin symbol for a cantellated figure marks the rectate node and all nodes directly connected to it.
captian*
The notional unit, to which all units of a company share all vertices, edges, and surhedra to. The unit is one of the army terms.
cartesian*
A product in Euclidean space, relying on parallel straight lines.
One can implement the prism and comb products through the Cartesian product, but the prism and comb products give rise to different surtope polynomials. Note that the comb and prism products exist in non-Euclidean geometries, where the cartesian product does not.
catalan*
A class of margin-uniform figures, which are not platonic, tegums, or antitegums. In practice, these are defined as the duals of the Archimedean figures.
An inclusive or outer sense is also known: it corresponds to the duals of uniform figures. The term used for this sense is margin-uniform.
cavity*
An interior region of a shape, that is disconnected from the outer surface.
Such become proper holes in , Treating cavities and dyads as proper holes gives a rich insight into the nature of holes at a lesser dimension.
cell *
A solid surtope. The sense is that a cell is taken to be as a bubble in a foam covering .
The sense of surchoron or 3d surtope comes from regarding the surface of a 4d polytope as a 3d foam.
chord*
The straight line drawn between two points on a curve.
In the theory of circle-drawing, a connecting line of zero-curvature.
A shortchord is the base of a triangle formed by two consecutive edges of a polygon.
CHEVN letters *
A code formed by the last five dimensions of surtope. The letters derive from surChoron, surHedron, Edge, Vertex, Nulloid. The normal style is to write the highest dimensions to the left.
chorix *
A 3-manifold or cloth of three dimensions. One might cut solid chora or polyhedra from the fabric of a chorix. See hedrix
Note that it is piecewise 3d, and can contain things like loops and wormholes in it.
choron *
A mounted 3d polytope, or a 3d 'hedron'
circle*
The locus of points equidistant from a real point.
circle-drawing *
An approach to non-Euclidean geometry by treating all circles as Euclidean.
The geometry is inspired by the sphere, where the surface is Spheric, and internal chords might be taken in terms of some Euclidean space.
circum*
The sense of circum is the same as that of surround, normally by means of touching the most distant points.
A number system of class N is a discrete set that resolves co-metrically and ly over N dimensions. The usual examples are the Zp deriving from the span of chords of a polygon, which lead to the N solutions of J(2p). Some other systems have been given class numbers.
The set by closing '/n' (Bn) is always 'class 2'.
Fractions are held to be higher than class-2, but they have many class-2 features.
Class-2 can be sequenced through the entire set uniquely.
Clifford *
A name allocated to non-planar equidistants in S3, or the rotation of a glomocloron (4-sphere), such that perpendicular rotations are at the same speed. The effect of this is that every point moves on a great circle around the centre of the sphere.
One can demonstrate clifford parallels, by noting that every even dimension corresponds to a Complex-Euclidean of half as many dimensions, and then introduce a time-scalar wt, when multiplied by every point, causes it to go in a great circle around the centre.
The natural mode of planets is to equalise the energy in each mode of rotation, is to tend towards clifford rotations.
Clifford rotations come in left and right parity, corresponding to left and right product of quarterions.
See also Lissajous, Wheel rotations.
coherent *
A series of measures, where the units are defined with unit proportionality.
For example, the representation of angle as a fraction of space is coherent to the function of orthoexpansion: the vertex of an octagon and the edge of an octahedral prism both have an angle of 0:45 = 3/8.
The volumes measured in the prism, tegum and spheric scales are coherent to the respective products: the x-volume of an x-product is the product of the x-volumes of the bases.
Different names are given for the different coherent products in one dimension, even though these are equal in measure. However, in one system of using names, the name refers to the resulting dimension, rather than the scale (ie cubic X is X as a 3-volume, regardless of what X is, eg one might convert cubic acres into cubic gallons). Accordingly, the linear, dyadic and digonal acres are not equal, while the square, rhombic and circular acres are equal (to one acre).
See prism product, tegum product spheric product.
cohort*
A set of separate polytopes, derived by blending on the same sets of faces. Such are common among the uniform polychora discovered by Jonathan Bowers.
Among the seventy-five uniform polyhedra, there are 13 cohorts, covering 38 polytopes. These share common vertices and edges, and a large number of faces as well. A set might consist of figures with faces AB, AC and BC.
colonel*
The leader of a regiment. This is the polytope that the regimental members share their vertices and edges with. See also army.
comb *
A product derivable from the regular tiling of measure polytopes.
In Euclidean space, this is the Cartesian product applied to tilings, but it also applies in spaces where the cartesian product does not exist, such as hyperbolic space.
The word is a backform from honeycomb.
The surtope polynomial is the product of the polynomials of the bases, ignoring both the bulk and nulloid terms.
The comb product of polytopes is the cartesian products of their surfaces. For example, the comb product of 2 pentagons gives a connected sheet in 4d of 25 squares. This is also hight hotel.
comb product *
A surtope product of two figures, excluding both the nulloid and bulk. It reduces dimension by every application.
The comb-product of tilings gives a tiling, but because it is really only meaningful to take cartesian products in horic space, the comb product is noted there. The comb product of a horogon gives rise to the infinite family of cubics in every dimension.
A set of polytopes having the same set of vertices, edges and surhedra. The figure that these are notionally shared with hight captian.
complex polytope*
A class of polytope derived by relaxing the dyadic rule, and allowing more than two N-surtopes to be mutually incident on the same N-1 and N+1 surtope.
In practice, the margin figure becomes a complex multiplication, rather than a reflection.
compound*
A polytope for which one can not access all faces by traversing the margins.
While such figures have a unity of purpose, the surface is now falls into separate parts, giving the impression that it is a composite of separate figures.
composite*
A number of separate polytopes considered together. Normally, these are solid in the same subspace, but have no 'unity of being'.
concentric *
Having the same centre.
When horopoints and bollopoints are taken into consideration, this gives rise to an equidistant curve situation.
Concentricness is one of the two aspects of parallelism.
#-content*
The measure of extent of a #-manifold, made by one or more figures.
One might derive a specific term for n-content from the n-manifold as,
2-content hedrage, 3-content chorage &c.
Conway-Kepler rule*
A rule that says in polyhedra, that expand = ambo ambo. In higher dimensions this does not give a runcinate but a cantellate. In 3d, it happens that the cantellate is the same as the runcinate.
Conway Operators*
A series of surface operators, particularly for polyhedra.
One treats the flags of the source polytope as if it were a Wythoff mirror-group, and constructs the wythoff mirror-edge and mirror-margin figures accordingly.
Such figures are pennant-transitive on the flags of the source figure.
polygloss
x4o3o
- - d dual - o4o3x
k - truncate
kis truncate
apiculate x4o3o
m4o3o
p ambo
propeller rectate
surtegmate
- o4x3o
o4m3o
o - expand
ortho runcinate
strombiate x4o3x
m4o3m
m - bevel
meta - x4x3x
m4m3m
r snub
reflect - s4s3s
See also George Hart's page: [Conway Notation] This page contains a very good java applet for displaying these.
copycat*
Jonathan Bower's term for a pair of figures that have the same periform. Examples are known in four dimensions.
corner *
Incident on. A corner is a surtope as seen from within another surtope. For example, a pentagonal face of a dodecahedron has five corners. A vertex is three corners, one to each of the incident pentagons. We could say both that the vertex is a corner surtope of a pentaton, and that the pentagon is a corner surtope of a pentagon.
A surcorner is where the corner is part of the surtope,
An orthocorner is where the corner contains the surtope. For example, the vertex is corner to three pentagons, and hence the pentagons being incident on the corner, become orthocorners.
cotangent *
Two isocurves are cotangential, if the line drawn from the centres of two isocurves cross the surface at the same point.
Any straight line passing through the centre is perpendicular to the surface.
Cotangency is one of the two aspects of the theory of parallels. Euclid's fifth postulate is a form of the general case of 'if circles are cotangent at K, then any circle crossing these at K makes the same interior angle with any of the cotangent circles.'
countable *
A class of gauge infinity, where every member is separately instanced. Note that the counting can be done by members of a large organisation.
While one might not readily count to a million, it is not inconcievable that a large organisation, such as a tax office, can instance a million separate files.
A smaller gauge-infinity might be the permutated infininty, that is, the size of a set where all permutations have been instanced. For our example above, a set of a million records corresponds to the complete instancing of all six-digit numbers, and so six would be the permutation infinity.
The common mathematical rule of countable is one for which an integeral value might be allocated. Such a number is catalogued here as discrete infinities (ie one for which one can between any two members, find a instance that is not a member).
Coxeter-Dynkin construction *
A construction of polytopes by way of using symmetry generators. The method is of great utility, since any subset of generators makes also a subgroup.
Coxeter-Dynkin diagram
Another name for the Dynkin Symbol.
Coxeter derived the symbol as a means of describing reflective groups. It was after he read Wythoff's 1912 reconstructions of Stott's construction that he realised that polytopes could also be symmetry motifs.
E B Dynkin independently discovered the graph later, in relation to families of Lie groups.
crind product
A coherent radiant product, based on the rss() or root-sum-square product. The crind power of a unit line, gives rises to unit-spheres, both of nature and of measure.
cross-polytope*
Coxeter's name for the family of regular polytopes formed by the tegum product.
In practice, the cross polytope family may be used as a basis of coherent units for the cross and pyramid products, where the diagonal of the cross is taken as a unit.
Cross-polytopes are the first polytope of bouyland, and one might describe the regular form as a regular poly-bouy tegum.
cube*
The name for the tri-slab prism, or measure polyhedron.
In Non-euclidean geometry, the cube shape is pressed out of alignment with the measure: that is, a cube is no longer the measure. One must read that the cube defines a measure of chorix equal to the content of a zero-curvature or horospace cube.
cubic*
The adjective describing both cubes and the tiling of cubes, four at a margin.
When used as a noun, it refers to the tiling of measure-polytopes in all dimensions.
Semicubic refers to the symmetry of alternate vertices or cells of the cubic.
Half-cubic refers to the symmetry of alternate vertices of the measure polytope
Quarter Cubic refers to the symmetry of alternate vertices and cells of the cubic.
cupola*
In three dimensions, this refers to the lace prism oxPxx&#x. In higher dimensions, it refers to lace-prisms, where the marked nodes of one base are a subset of the bases of the other.
A cuploid is derived from a oxP/2Dxx&#x, by removal of the doubly- wound xP/2Dx, and reconnecting squares to triangles as appropriate.
CZn, CZZ*
The set CZn is the complex cyclotomic numbers, defined by the span of 1^(1/2n). This intersects the reals in the set Zn, the span of chords of a {N}-gon.
Te set CZZ is the union of all CZn. No proper fraction is a member of the set CZZ.
© 2003-2009 Wendy Krieger
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28 days in New York City Itinerary
Created using Inspirock New York City trip planner
You'll find plenty of places to visit near New York City: Bronx Zoo (in Bronx), Bury The Hatchet Cherry Hill - Axe Throwing (in Cherry Hill) and Urban Axes Philadelphia (in Philadelphia). And it doesn't end there: go for a walk through Central Park, explore the world behind art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, admire the landmark architecture of Rockefeller Center, and stroll around The High Line.
To find more things to do, traveler tips, reviews, and other tourist information, read New York City trip itinerary builder app .
If you are flying in from Kenya, the closest major airports are La Guardia Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport and John F Kennedy International Airport. Expect a daytime high around 5°C in January, and nighttime lows around -5°C. Finish your sightseeing early on the 20th (Thu) to allow enough time to travel back home.
Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Bronx Zoo, Urban Axes Philadelphia, Bury The Hatchet Cherry Hill - Axe Throwing
Find places to stay Jan 24 — Feb 20:
2:00pm, Sat Jan 25
10:00am, Sat Jan 25
30 days in United States BY A USER FROM BELGIUM July, teens, kids, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: July, teens, kids, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 49 days in New York City BY A USER FROM AUSTRALIA August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, slow & easy, popular sights PREFERENCES: August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Slow & easy 31 days in New York City BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES August, culture, historic sites, museums, shopping, fast-paced, popular sights PREFERENCES: August, culture, historic sites, museums, shopping ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Fast-paced 60 days in United States BY A USER FROM AUSTRALIA June, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: June, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 32 days in United States BY A USER FROM AUSTRALIA December, teens, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, shopping, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: December, teens, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, shopping ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 33 days in United States BY A USER FROM BELGIUM July, teens, kids, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: July, teens, kids, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 31 days in New York City & Washington DC BY A USER FROM INDIA September, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: September, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 40 days in New York City BY A USER FROM INDIA August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 4 days in New York City BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES December, teens, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: December, teens, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 4 days in New York City BY A USER FROM CANADA August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 38 days in United States BY A USER FROM UNITED KINGDOM July, teens, culture, outdoors, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: July, teens, culture, outdoors, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium
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The Best Cultural Activities in New York City
The Best Things to Do in New York City with Kids
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About Olivia
Theatre and radio
Olivia Colman was born on the 30 January 1974 and is an English actress best known for her comedic performances. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and has appeared in radio, television and theatre.
Olivia has appeared in many BBC and Channel 4 television programmes such as Green Wing where she played Harriet Schulenburg, Look Around You, Black Books, The Office and Peep Show. She regularly features in BBC Radio 4 comedies, including Think The Unthinkable and That Mitchell and Webb Sound. She also appears in every episode of the television version, That Mitchell and Webb Look. She provided the voice over for the Five poll for Britain’s Funniest Comedy Character.
Her film credits include the British mockumentary film, Confetti, in which she played a practicing naturist, I Could Never Be Your Woman and as Doris Thatcher in Hot Fuzz alongside many of the British television comedy actors she has been known for working with. She appeared as ‘Bev’ alongside Mark Burdis as ‘Kev’ in a memorable television commercial for AA car insurance.
Olivia Colman Online is your oldest fansite dedicated to actor Olivia Colman who is widely known for her roles as Sophie in Peep Show, DS Miller in Broadchurch as well as many other roles in film, TV and theatre. We’ll do our best to provide you with all the latest news, pictures, videos and more. Candids and paparazzi pictures will not be featured on this site.
The Father – FilmThe Crown – TV seriesLandscrapers – miniseries
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UK Air Dates
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Site Name: Olivia Colman Online
Online Since: 2005
Webmistress: Beverley
Contact Us: email
Layout Info: Version 10
Designed By: Beverley
OCO is in no way affiliated with Olivia. I am just a friendly fan showing my appreciation and dedication towards the amazing Actress. All Photos & Media belong to their respectful owners and are being used under Fair Copyright Law 107. I own none of the images if you would like credit added or any images removed please email. This is a fansite run for no profit and only here to support Olivia Colman and her career.
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The One Ring Forums: Tolkien Topics: Movie Discussion: The Hobbit:
Elijah Wood will be in 'The Hobbit'
News from Bree
spymaster@theonering.net
Jan 6 2011, 11:20pm
Post #1 of 379 (53813 views)
Elijah Wood will be in 'The Hobbit' Can't Post
Deadline hinted first but TheOneRing.net can confirm that Elijah Wood will step in front of Peter Jackson's cameras and return to Middle-earth for a part in 'The Hobbit' and we even know how. Despite how some fans will respond at first, the reasons are organic and natural and shouldn't upset even the most ardent purists.
***MAJOR HOBBIT MOVIE SPOILERS AFTER THE BREAK***
As readers of "The Hobbit" know, the tale of "The Downfall of The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit or There and Back Again," are contained in the fictional "Red Book of Westmarch." In Peter Jackson's LOTR films, the books are shown on screen and written in by Bilbo and Frodo and handed off to Sam Gamgee. (Not explained on film are Sam's progeny later having the book and being Wardens of the Westmarch - hence the book's title.)
The fictional book, and either the telling from or the reading of, will establish Frodo in the films, leaving viewers to experience the tale of 'The Hobbit' through Bilbo's point of view.
Since the speculation is now everywhere around the interwebs, TORn can confirm that as of now, the plans are to feature Frodo in the opening sequence of the films. It is unlikely that studio Warner Bros. or Team Jackson would change the script at this point in response to the web buzz so we may have just "spoiled" December 2012 for some, but we warned you. (And, sat on the spoiler until leaks started to appear!)
Rumors have suggested Wood is "in talks" to appear in the film but that isn't an issue as it very likely the role was discussed with the actor at the scripting phase of the films and he was agreeable to reprise his part then. It is likely but less certain that the same can be said of Orlando Bloom who is rumored (and TORn cannot currently lock-down confirm) to be playing his LOTR Elf character Legolas.
The status of other actors' whose characters would have been living during the plot line of the Hobbit, are varied. Cate Blanchett is confirmed as Galadriel while Hugo Weaving's Elrond is a prominently featured character in the source material but not confirmed. Liv Tyler's Arwen could logically be present as could other ancient Elves like Marton Csokas' Celeborn.
Frodo's return, makes it possible that Sean Astin could appear as Sam and other Hobbits such as Merry or Pippin can not be ruled out. TORn's information indicates however, that Frodo and the young Bilbo are the primary Hobbit connections between the film series.
Dwarves will play a prominent role of course in the new films, and LOTR character Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) is the son Gloin, one of one of Bilbo's companions for the journey of the titular Hobbit. Readers can view our Hobbit cast page to see the status and information on all known characters from the film.
Two very obvious absences from any press releases so far are signings of Ian McKellan as Gandalf and Andy Serkis as Gollum. Both actors are believed to be in negotiations and the studio and actors have elected not to conduct talks through the press. Fans including those on TheOneRing.net message boards, are worried about the actors' signings.
(This post was edited by Silverlode on Jan 7 2011, 6:25am)
Mooseboy018
Grey Havens
Jan 7 2011, 5:52am
I knew it! [In reply to] Can't Post
As soon as I read "Frodo will be in the Hobbit", him reading the book was what popped into my head.
On one hand...I'm not a big fan of the idea of basically forcing this story to be seen as a prequel. But on the other hand...I'm excited to see how they'll do this.
I think this could be a fun way to connect the two films and show how it all comes full circle.
(This post was edited by Mooseboy018 on Jan 7 2011, 5:52am)
Ainu Laire
Tol Eressea
Wow! [In reply to] Can't Post
What a spoiler!
The internet was, of course, getting big when LOTR was filmed... but with everyone carrying phones with cameras, and a much larger audience this time around, the Hobbit leaks will be interesting to see in the coming years!
My LiveJournal ~ My artwork and photography
NARF since age 8, when I refused to read the Hobbit because the cover looked boring and icky.
duats
Not a fan of this [In reply to] Can't Post
I want The Hobbit to be its own stand-alone, present-tense narrative, not a glorified Lord of the Rings flashback.
This is completely unnecessary. Color me disappointed.
(This post was edited by duats on Jan 7 2011, 6:21am)
Milknut
My reaction is the same, but... [In reply to] Can't Post
I think they'll find a way to make it work well.
I do agree, though, this makes it firmly a tie-in sequel, not a stand-alone movie.
On the whole, I wish this weren't so, but I'll live with it.
Edit: let it also be noted that I posted that I hoped this wouldn't happen RIGHT BEFORE IT HAPPENED. Talk about putting your foot in your mouth...
(This post was edited by Milknut on Jan 7 2011, 6:26am)
Junesong
I love it [In reply to] Can't Post
The movies are the movies and the books are the books. A statement so true it's not worth saying.
I can't wait for these movies! With such a rich mythology and all the great juicy info we know about the events surrounding Bilbo's journey with the dwarves it would be a mistake not to use those things to make two great films.
Plus I loved the LOTR movies and I can't wait to see some familiar faces! Watching the EE behind the scenes and commentaries I know that I don't always agree with Jackson and co.'s choices but I respect that they are always trying to tell a good story and make sure everything serves the story. So I trust them to use the old characters in clever ways that aren't superfluous.
Purists will shed some tears but they'll still be in line with the rest of us in December '12
"Tim... Canterbury... Canterbury Tales... Chaucer... Shakespeare."
It just strikes me [In reply to] Can't Post
As the filmmakers not having faith in this project being able to stand up on its own. That it needs all these superfluous LoTR tie-ins. That instead of being its own story, it needs to be a LoTR sequel (assuming Frodo is reading the book after the events of LoTR).
Does The Hobbit need to be told through Frodo's reading of Bilbo's book? Not in the least bit.
Now The Hobbit has to be viewed in the context of The Lord of the Rings, instead of it being the other way around.
Remember, from a storyline perspective, The Hobbit doesn't need The Lord of the Rings. The Lord of the Rings needs The Hobbit.
Remark about "upsetting the most ardent purists" [In reply to] Can't Post
Didn't think about this when I originally post, and couldn't edit the original post, hehe.
As for "not upsetting the most ardent of purists", you forget you're dealing with Fans, MrCere! ;)
After all, a lot of the 'Hobbit purists' are not advocating simply for the story to be told as true to the text as possible (with all the animal talking and even the talking purse debate there was a couple months ago), but also in the separation of the story from LOTR. Quite a few fans- who can say if they are in the minority, majority, or if it's evenly split- don't want constant references to LOTR; they want 'The Hobbit', not 'LOTR prequel'. And that is a valid opinion to have.
I'm afraid that these fans were kidding themselves ever since Jackson was tied to the project. LOTR made little under 3 billion in theatres worldwide, and surely that amount, if not closer to double, on VHS/DVD/Blu-ray sales, and all the merchandise sales. And, of course, ROTK won all 11 oscars. Because of this, there is no way in heck that LOTR is not going to be referenced in several ways. While I am sure that Jackson and co. have quite a bit of freedom in this project, I don't think the suits at WB would let them get away with it (if they wanted to- and who is to say they do?)
Anyways, if all we see is less than a few minutes of each character that can be tied in logically, we'll be lucky. I will be jumping with joy if Legolas is only a captain in The Battle of the Five Armies and doesn't end up killing Smaug. I'll be ecstatic if all we see is Frodo and friends chilling at Bag End while Bilbo is writing the book, a one-time scene only being a few minutes long. If we hear of, goodness, Viggo Mortensen suddenly being cast, we'll be really lucky if all he is a shadowy figure turning in Gollum to Mirkwood, nothing more.
Because of the success of LOTR, its references in The Hobbit were inevitable, IMO. If we're lucky, they'll be well done, not too jarring, fit well with the lore, and, most importantly, short.
Now I'd like to hear about the casting of Bard, because hearing about Orlando Bloom's rumored return and nothing about Bard makes me worried about my "Hollywood prediction" above. Because OMG! who wouldn't want Leggy to shoot down the big mean dragon?
HUH? [In reply to] Can't Post
So is this tying into the idea of linking " The Pentology" narratively? Color me confused....
So let me get this straight:
1)The Hobbit Part 1 begins with an extreme "Flash-Forward" scene 65 yrs from the beginning of the Story (the beginning of the Red Book, ie "The Hobbit"), featuring Frodo reading from the completed "Red Book" in Bag End?
2) Since this is going to a single scene, Film 2 will begin in Medias Res, just as TTT did, with no Frodo voice-over.
3) LOTR films, festuring Frodo's part in the Story, so no Frodo narration. (Unless Peter decides to change this in the Ultimate Edition, adding voiceovers sporadically through LOTR..not bloody likely, thnak God, but I'm nervous now!)
4) So Bilbo beginning the Red Book in the FOTR EE will now be a flashback of sorts? (oh my brain hurts)
5)Elijah at the end of ROTK finishing the Red Book, visually linking perhaps with the Opening Scene of TH 1.
So will we see Elijah in the same costume as he wore in that scene? What time-frame will this be in--set before he completes writing the Red Book (before that scene), so he doesn't yet look ill, etc. (Oh my brain really hurts:).
If it's just a single scene linking the Pentology, I don't see the harm in it. But here's another problem: will Frodo be using the "first-person" ? Will he be standing in for the "I"/"voce of Tolkien" establishing a different tone for TH?
Why is this needed in the first place, since the Red Book isn't begun until Bilbo returns?
On another subject--I suppose casting announcement of Elrond and Gandalf ans Gollum are taking so long b/cx these actors are playing hardball with WB and hashing it out, saying they don't want to be screwed out of their rightful share, like New Line did to them. And if any of them are in the MEAA...maybe they wanted out. after Mr Whipp...but that is a different kettle of fish...so I'll not bring that up ny more. *goes off whistling and looking innocent* (just speculation, all innocent!)
At any rate--should be interesting seeing Elijah again in the hobbit gear. There's a big difference between 18 and almost 30!
And--DROGO has ben cast?!? What have I missed? HUH!>! Have they cast Primula then too? Are they going to show THIS? Linkie to sotry and discussion please?!
(This post was edited by Sunflower on Jan 7 2011, 6:52am)
Owain
Post #10 of 379 (42364 views)
Hmmm... [In reply to] Can't Post
TORn can confirm that as of now, the plans are to feature Frodo in the opening sequence of the films.
Does that mean only the opening sequence? If he is the narrator, or we get cutaways, like The Princess Bride (which worked) from story back to narrator, then I'm not a fan of the idea. If there is to be a narrator, it should be Ian Holm and how hard would it have been to bring him back for the opening sequence? It's his story. It would also somewhat satisfy those fans that wanted him to play Bilbo for The Hobbit films (I don't agree with this).
Middle Earth is New Zealand!
"Question everything, embrace the bad, and hold on to the good."
(This post was edited by Owain on Jan 7 2011, 6:45am)
The filmmakers, or the film's budget providers? [In reply to] Can't Post
We've all heard of studio interference in films. Sometimes it helps films, sometimes it breaks them. LOTR was certainly not devoid of it- the prologue in FOTR exists because of it.
I honestly would not be surprised if one of the first questions the guys reading the script asked was, "How many of the original actors can we bring back?" After all, it is Hollywood.
While I imagine the filmmakers will have an incredible amount of freedom with this project- the choosing of so many unknowns in their cast, for instance, as we've seen- I can see some appeasement of the suits by bringing back some LOTR characters. The White Council only brings in minor LOTR characters, and certainly none of the Fellowship (other than Gandalf of course). As I mentioned in my other post, we will be lucky if the filmmakers only puts them in smaller parts and does it in a way that fits the lore, fits the overall flow of the story, and remains minor.
Some of you may remember in one of the EE extras how a suit at New Line suggested killing off one of the Hobbits for more drama. I can imagine a suit with a similar thought pattern suggesting to scrap Bard and put Legolas in his role instead. After all, they're both archers who happen to come from royalty; no big difference, right?
With LOTR's success, there was no way in years that there were not going to be some tie ins, some simply perhaps the guys at the studio want to make more money with the already-proven LOTR brand. Let us hope that these tie-ins are done well and do not detract from the overall story.
Agreed. [In reply to] Can't Post
Let us hope that these tie-ins are done well and do not detract from the overall story.
Methinks Peter has been watching too much LOST.// [In reply to] Can't Post
Great points by the way.// [In reply to] Can't Post
Good point [In reply to] Can't Post
As usual someone says what I am trying to get at, which I never evenmanage to before writing an encyclopedia.
And let me add---if gthey were worried about Ian's age, they could have had him read from his half-completed "red Book" in old age makeup in the courtyard in Rivendell! ( "Flash-forward" halfway thrugh the films, so to speak).
How can we bde sure this isn;'t just Elijah doing a really good job of selling himself back into this thing via nostalgic Peter?
(and this "for now" bit...if Frodo is going to be doing voiceovers, establishing the gentle "voice of Tolkien"/faaiy-tale vibe, then it destaablizes the narrative linking of the Pentology (I still love Guillermo'
s term for the Saga). .
Is their goal to have 2 distinct films/tales, or seek to link them? I suppose 2 distinct narrative flows, would satisfy purists who want a more childlike TH; while those arguing for a narrative linking...ugh...not sure if I am linking this idea, and I'm usually open-minded....
It would fit with the Hobbit's narrative style! [In reply to] Can't Post
The Hobbit's narrative style, unlike LOTR's, is constantly addressing the reader. The reader is addressed as 'you' several times, and the narrator especially likes to foreshadow, claiming after Bilbo wishes he were home that it would not be the last time he wished it.
If they kept this lighthearted narrative style in the films, using Bilbo as the reader and Frodo (plus others?) as the recipients, it would certainly keep the 'Hobbit' feel many here have wished for, only in a way they did not imagine, nor necessarily want. I, for one, have always been part of the 'make the Hobbit fit the LOTR tone a bit more' crowd, so I cannot say how I would feel if this happened to be the case.
And, of course, if Bilbo was reading from his book, it would break from the continuity of FOTR EE, where he was just beginning to write it.
Though he could be telling this story aloud, and then Frodo could say something like, "You should write this down!" and... there you go. Seamless flow to the beginning of FOTR.
At this point of time, so long as Bilbo remains the star and Frodo a bit character, I'm not bothered if this happens to be the case. And the Hobbit itself can be rather dark with the goblins and the spiders and the dragon... even while Bilbo is telling the story. To Frodo.
Of course, that does not explain why Drogo would be in the films, since he died while Frodo was still young, and Elijah's a bit old to act as an 11 year old...
titanium_hobbit
making freeman the earlier version of holmes [In reply to] Can't Post
So, this doesn't have to be all bad- I don't think we'll have Frodo as a 15th member of the company or anything like that.
As much as Martin Freeman looks like a young version of Ian Holmes, I reckon it would be a fun way if Ian is reading the red book to Frodo and says: "I was sitting on the grass outside smoking a pipe full of old toby, when... "
fade to MF meeting Ian McKellan as young Bilbo.
Problem: doesn't Bilbo write the Hobbit when he is at Rivendell?
Speaking of Rivendell, I'm waiting for Elrond... come on Hugo Weaving! (and Ian McKellan, of course. When those two are signed I'll be very happy)
LOL [In reply to] Can't Post
As a Lostie...:)
ON the other hand, I seem to recall an article that said that JJ Abrams was inspired by Peter and Co's vaqrious flashbacks during LOTR in creating the narrative style of Lost. So it would come full circle..OH GOD...
My brain hurst as well. [In reply to] Can't Post
I also want to keep an open mind... but this one is definitely puzzling.
MrCere
Sr. Staff
You are right [In reply to] Can't Post
It was written quickly but I should know that something will upset anybody. I suppose it was my personal bias shinning through.
I should edit it actually, but it wouldn't change the message board version anyway.
I have no choice but to believe in free will.
It would fit the narrative style for sure... [In reply to] Can't Post
but I always find when the author addresses his/her readers it takes you out of the story. In some context I guess it's warranted. The thing is I've never looked at The Hobbit as being just a children's book (not saying you are). It's a story that matures as it progresses. The Princess Bride came to mind because it the extraction from the story to readers works. I guess that could work for The Hobbit but Sunflower brought up some interesting and valid plot holes that would be a huge stumbling block for people that value continuity.
Of course he won't be the 15th member... [In reply to] Can't Post
You do realize that would be completely impossible, right?
And technically Gandalf could already be considered the 15th member anyway.
Kangi Ska
Half-elven
Now I have to go home and dig out a letter I wrote and sent [In reply to] Can't Post
back when Return of the King had just finished its run in the theaters. It was an idea of how to bring back a lot of the cast from the Lord of the Rings for a Hobbit movie. It involved a scenario where the story of the Hobbit was being told by Samwise to his children thus bringing back any or all of the Fellowship Hobbits in a giant cameo and then telling the actual story of the Hobbit as a flashback. I have long since decided that this was a weak idea as it would rob the Hobbit of its independence. Well it looks like I need to go back and study the details. It did seem brilliant at the time. Now I am really not so sure.
The biggest reason I can think of for doing it this way is to give the guys we love a chance to put on the feet again without messing up the story of the Hobbit.
Kangi Ska Resident Trickster & Wicked White Crebain
New Zealand is Middle-earth & today life is good.
At night you can not tell if crows are black or white.
about the Princess Bride.. [In reply to] Can't Post
In the Princess Bride there is less and less narration as it goes on, so maybe that would work in the Hobbit??
TH, who's feeling a bit eeeeee about all this.
RaoulJ
And what about Sir Ian Holm? [In reply to] Can't Post
After the casting of Freeman as Bilbo I've noticed that not many are talking about Ian Holm. But this changes everything. What is the point of Frodo? The only way that makes any sense (to me) is when Bilbo (old version) is reading to Frodo from the Book.
Ofcourse that would raise some questions.. As said; the first scene of LotR would be some kind of flashback..
Ofcourse it is possible that Bilbo isn't reading the book, but is just narrating the story to Frodo (and maybe some other hobbits ), The scene in FotR would me a nice little nod to this; Bilbo is always telling his grand adventure, he is proud of it.
I don't know what the rumour is. That Elijah Wood will return/has been cast/is in negotiations? Or that he/Frodo is in the script? Has some part of the script been leaked?
I believe Ian Holm has retired from acting. Health issues I believe. [In reply to] Can't Post
Please correct me if I am wrong as I am on my fourth night without sleep. Trying to sleep in the daytime does not work well.
Oh yes, I just said this in MrCere's poll in the pollantir... [In reply to] Can't Post
he has a movie coming out next year, but most of his stuff has been voice acting for the last few years. I expect there are health issues.
Permanent address: Into the West
Must. Have. The Precious! Give us the LotR EE Blu-ray Ultimate Box Set!
Heh! [In reply to] Can't Post
Something will always upset somebody! We are Fans, after all!
I do share your bias, though, so I do not blame you for thinking that.
sharku
Relax [In reply to] Can't Post
In PJ we trust - I'm sure he and the rest of the team, including GdT, have some nice conceits worked out. Can't please all rabid fans any of the time, only hope to placate the majority some of the time.
I was more intrigued by this:
The status of other actors� whose characters would have been living during the plot line of the Hobbit, are varied. Cate Blanchett is confirmed as Galadriel while Hugo Weaving�s Elrond is a prominently featured character in the source material but not confirmed. Liv Tyler�s Arwen could logically be present as could other ancient Elves like Marton Csokas� Celeborn.
No mention of Christopher Lee. Sigh.
Speaking of conceits, since 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of the Rings' are actually retellings by Tolkien based on the Redbook of Westmarch, who is anyone to say that JRR's writings were a definitive, correct representation of that book? Perhaps PJ and the team have, with the latest research, uncovered more accurate details and are committing these to the films even as we debate such weighty matters?
It's going to be a fun couple of years at this rate :)
(This post was edited by sharku on Jan 7 2011, 7:37am)
I don't view it as one, either [In reply to] Can't Post
The Chronicles of Narnia are children's books. The Hobbit, while more 'children friendly' when it comes to reading level and some descriptions, is not. I view the later Harry Potter books in the same light.
I'll have to read her post, but I mentioned a couple things that could bring it back to being continuous- the story being told as opposed to read aloud from a completed book, for instance. How Drogo will fit into it, however, is another story.
I don't know if I'd want a Princess Bride-like storytelling for this. I think it could work, but I also think it could be disastrous. Honestly, I'd have to see it in action to really make up my mind.
"No mention of Christopher Lee" [In reply to] Can't Post
I hadn't caught that. *sigh* indeed.
Sort of like my unwavering belief [In reply to] Can't Post
That Tolkien misread the details about the Battle of Amon Hen and PJ got it completely right, from Aragorn outright rejecting the Ring and fighting a gazillion orcs to Boromir's completely and utterly awesome dying words?
Like that, right?
I suspect Guillermo del Toro had nothing to do with this. [In reply to] Can't Post
Kind of like 3-D.
guitarzankansasfan
Lorien
The Neverending Hobbit [In reply to] Can't Post
Opening scene: Frodo, being chased by Black Riders on the mean streets of Bree, ducks into a secluded bookstore and finds an old guy reading Bilbo's book.
"That's strange, " he says, "uncle Bilbo hasn't published it yet!"
While the old guy gets up to answer the phone, Frodo's curiosity gets the best of him and he steals the book. Frodo then runs to the local school, hides in the attic, lights a candle, opens the book and begins to read, and his voice fades into the voice of Ian Holm and then cut to wide shot of Bag end, then zoom in to Martin Freeman standing in front of the door smoking a pipe...
Ending scene: Frodo suddenly finds himself riding on the back of Smaug, shouting "Yeah! Yeah!" and pumping his fists in the air as he and Smaug chase after the Black Riders through the mean streets of Bree...
But wasn't there a car chase in there some where?// [In reply to] Can't Post
yes [In reply to] Can't Post
He isn't retired, but he has health issues. The new movie you are talking about, 'This side of the Looking Glass', is about an old man 'who's fame and health is rapidly fading', played by Ian Holm. So, he isn't in the prime of his life anymore.. but ofcourse we don't know what Bilbo he would play (if any), maybe the old one?
On a sidenote: The old Bilbo always reminds me of Jan Wolkers, a dutch writer, and especially the impersonation. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icDqdHnbxJ0
Not really surprised.. [In reply to] Can't Post
I think Jackson has said all along that if he could come up with a smart way to fit some of the old cast into the story then he would... Since it's a small part in two movies, colour me interested !
the man in black fled across the desert and the gunslinger followed
Welsh hero
sniff sniff. [In reply to] Can't Post
Anyone else smell that?
I expected a press release, this looks like speculation
http://www.facebook.com/hobbitnz
(This post was edited by Welsh hero on Jan 7 2011, 9:06am)
Imladris18
Agreed! [In reply to] Can't Post
It's nice to see that I'm not the only one whose interest is piqued by this. I'd love to see our old favorites come back in creative ways. I'm not a rabid Orlando fangirl, but I'd love to see Legolas wreck havoc on some gobblins for a scene or so. I really don't see them trying to insert them everywhere possible, but rather going about it intelligently.
Maiarmike
I like it... [In reply to] Can't Post
I was really skeptical about Frodo or Elijah being in The Hobbit, as it would have been impossible. But I didn't think about this scenario, and it actually makes sense, and doesn't screw with the actual plot. Just a prologue of sorts. I'm guessing you'll get the historical FotR type prologue with scenes of Smaug taking the Lonely Mountain, etc., then you'll get the short intro with Frodo reading from the Red Book, then we're quickly whisked into the actual story. Can't wait to see this all come together. I think everyone has to remember that this film is being made in 2011, not the 1930's when Tolkien hadn't yet expanded his universe of Middle-Earth. But with Middle-earth later expanded, for continuity, it only makes sense to include extra elements that clarify important historical events, or show relationships between certain characters.
I'm just delighted!!! [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm so glad they found a way - a real, congruent way, I mean - to bring back Frodo, and perhaps more of the other young Hobbits, etc, to introduce this story!...
And my own feeling is that PJ & Co are doing it quite deliberately, not to please anyone but themselves first of all: during the 18 months spent together for the three LOTR films, most of the actors and everyone else had bonded so deeply and were so happy working together, and the parting in the end has been so emotionally difficult (those filmed last moments in the ROTK EE supplements still bring tears to my eyes), I feel they are simply bringing them back together, as many of them as can possibly be done realistically - even if it is for a short while only. If the suits too are pleased, fine, but I don't see it as the primary motivation. And PJ & team know that many of the fans will, like me, be overjoyed too!...
'Is everything sad going to come untrue?'
(Sam, 'The Field of Cormallen', in 'The Return of the King'.)
Forum Admin / Moderator
Jan 7 2011, 11:01am
Well, it does make sense to do it that way [In reply to] Can't Post
And I have a feeling that even those who don't like the idea will move quickly past it when they watch the movie. If Frodo's only going to show up at the beginning and then disappear, fans will forget him pretty quickly when they get absorbed in Bilbo's story.
Those left standing will make millions writing books on the way it should have been. --Incubus
macfalk
Yes, actor Ryan Gage [In reply to] Can't Post
was cast as Drogo 1 month ago. Primula should be in shortly.
The greatest adventure is what lies ahead.
Also, what most of the nay-sayers are forgetting [In reply to] Can't Post
Is that The Hobbit book actually did have a narrator. Why not Frodo?
There will be blood... [In reply to] Can't Post
hehe.. don't mind the subect title.
I think people will be upset no matter what. I think people need to relax (if possible) and judge the movies on their own merits. You've got over 23 months to wait and complian before you even see the first movie.
Regarding purists [In reply to] Can't Post
I regard myself as a purist, and I didn't like some of the scenes in the original movies for that reason.
I think 'purist' can be broken down into different types, though.
I wouldn't, for example, call myself a 'Hobbit purist', but I do see myself as a 'Tolkien purist'. By that, I mean, I'm comfortable with changes being made to the Hobbit, as long as they fit in with the lore, mythos and story that Tolkien was trying to tell.
So, adding bits of Tolkien lore from LOTR (and other sources if allowable) into The Hobbit would not bother me at all. Adding something in that Tolkien doesn't mention does bother me.
I've always loved the telling of the Hobbit backstory in 'Unfinished Tales' for example, and I'd love to see some of that, though sadly it appears off limits.
Tolkien himself changed things to fit the overall story, of course, we all know that. The 'Riddles in the Dark' chapter of the Hobbit differs between early and late versions.
So, if small changes are made, to allow the telling of the whole story of the ring and it's characters, from the start of the Hobbit to the end of the appendices in LOTR, this purist won't complain.
If Legolas kills Smaug, different story entirely.
Mawr yw ein braint i berthyn i'r gwm Llynfi
Vangalad
Narrator [In reply to] Can't Post
The Hobbit book actually did have a narrator. Why not Frodo?
Yes, Frodo actually did a brief narration towards the end of ROTK, perhaps PJ will have him do some TH narration as well.
It's good to finally have some casting information,even non fully official.The Deadline article also suggests that 'Returning actors will need to be locked in shortly',so there won't be long before we have the announcements.
sphdle1
I may have read it wrong but [In reply to] Can't Post
I didn't get the sense that Frodo would be narrating, as it is supposed to be from Bilbo's point of view, so I think Wood is just playing Frodo in a opening scene. Hopefully that means either Holm is narrating with voice only, or is both narrating throughout and starting the movie off with a live appearance playing older Bilbo who is reading his story to Frodo and maybe Sam..!?, before it fades into the main movie...?? One can hope...this was how I envisioned them doing the opening scene/narration since we started discussing if/how Holm could play a part in these movies.
Who would like to hear Holm's voice narrating and possibly see him sitting reading his story to Frodo and Sam??
Seanwise
Re: The Neverending Hobbit [In reply to] Can't Post
Boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew... Lovely big golden chips with a nice piece of fried fish.
Jan 7 2011, 1:19pm
This is fun! [In reply to] Can't Post
And I think you're right about the 'cast reunion' aspect of this being for the cast's sake rather than something forced on them from outside.
Of course, the success or failure of any change to the published story will depend entirely on how it's done but we won't know that until we see the film and I refuse to get angsty about it now. I have confidence. They made all sorts of changes in the previous films which would have horrified me if I'd heard rumours about them beforehand and most of them turned out fine. The ones I don't like I find I can forgive because I enjoy the films so much. For me they captured 'something' above and beyond any individual part of the story which felt so right and which still excites my imagination. I'm looking forward to seeing Peter Jackson and co. work that magic again and I believe they will. I might even say that one of the keys to that magic is sympathetic changes made in the adaptation. For me at least, to really enjoy the film I need something which takes me out of the 'I know this story back to front' position into the wide-eyed 'wondering what's coming next' which I felt reading the book for the first time.
But what I really, really want to hear now is some resolution to the question of Gandalf, Elrond, Gollum and Saruman .... and the casting of a Bard
Oh. My. Gahd... No [In reply to] Can't Post
There goes the last vestige of my interest in and curiosity about these movies.
(This post was edited by geordie on Jan 7 2011, 1:30pm)
Very interesting [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm not too pleased about this, but I'll give it a chance. One particularly noticeable implication is that The Hobbit is, for the most part, going to be a sequel to The Lord of the Rings. Frodo is reading the Red Book after his return from Mordor, and the entire story of Bilbo is told as a very long flashback. I guess that's the filmmakers' way of tailoring The Hobbit for an audience which has already experienced The Lord of the Rings.
I wonder: will the White Council/Necromancer/Dol Guldur scenes be included in Bilbo's tale in the Red Book of Westmarch? Any other way would necessitate the interruption of the storytelling, so that Gandalf can contribute the parts of the story for which Bilbo wasn't present (or something along those lines).
I think it would have been better to make Sam the narrator, and have him read Bilbo's part of the Red Book aloud to his children. That way flows better with The Lord of the Rings, as we saw Frodo hand Sam the book towards the end of the third film, and we also saw Sam's children. Establishing a connection between the Red Book and Sam's progeny would also flow better with Tolkien's writings, as they inherited it. Since Sean Astin is older now, it would make sense for him to play the older Sam � much more sense than it makes for the older Elijah Wood to be playing the younger Frodo. Maybe the second film could have ended with Sam saying goodbye to Elanor at the Grey Havens, and giving the Red Book into her keeping... but making Frodo the narrator means that these films, as a whole, will have to slot in somewhere in between the multiple endings of Return of the King � talk about awkward storytelling chronology!
That's a tad melodramatic. [In reply to] Can't Post
Give them a chance at least!
The narrator's voice [In reply to] Can't Post
One way it could be done would be to have Frodo start reading from the Red Book of Westmarch � at first we hear Frodo's voice, reciting Bilbo's story in the first person. Then the scene fades to '60 years ago', and Bilbo's voice takes over from Frodo's. This voice could be provided by either Martin Freeman or Ian Holm (I would prefer the latter).
Also, I think 'an extreme flash-forward' is a very complicated way of looking at it. It sound to me more like The Hobbit actually opens towards the end of The Return of the King, and that Bilbo's entire story is presented as an enormous flashback.
I'm for it. [In reply to] Can't Post
I've been doubtful they could pull off the story without having a narrator, and hoped it would be Ian Holm as older Bilbo. Make-up and a chair too sit in, now that's not asking too much. I guess it could be Frodo...or both of them better still.
<<< There is a long road yet >>>
(This post was edited by Pipe Dream on Jan 7 2011, 2:11pm)
Daeorn Aldal�m�
Could Frodo be "reading" Bilbo's story in Rivendell? [In reply to] Can't Post
So basically:
The Lord of the Rings: The Hobbit, Part 1
Hmm, I might need to warm up to the idea of Frodo introducing The Hobbit films. I think -- and don't ask me why this would make it any better -- but I would prefer Frodo reading about this story while in Rivendell, still recovering from his Ringwraith wound -- not after the Fall of Sauron. Maybe because in The Two Towers flashbacks were already used to converge story plots at that point in the story.
Nai hiruvaly� Valimar.
Oh yes, I agree there are different levels of 'purity' [In reply to] Can't Post
I am a bit of a Tolkien purist myself.
My comment was more thinking of the very, very staunch Tolkien purists. Many of them did not like Jackson's LOTR. I am a bit surprised that they thought these movies would be any "purer" in some aspects, such as the most limited ties to LOTR as possible. I just never saw that happening.
Yes! Sam would be a better choice to flow off of tRotK [In reply to] Can't Post
Every thing you said, I agree with! Why Yoda, I am speaking like? Excited I must be!!
Honest question [In reply to] Can't Post
IIRC from different conversations, you are not a big fan (if at all a fan) of Jackson's LOTR, especially when it comes to the script; what made you believe you would like these movies any better? It's being made by nearly the exact same people.
I would also say to "not count your eggs before they hatch" or something of the like, but you seem rather resolved. Perhaps your opinion of having interest in seeing it will change two years from now, when all the hype is afoot, and you feel 15 bucks (ugh 3D film tickets...) is not *that* bad, even if it slaughters your personal vision.
Cheers, georgie.
We're Fans. Of course we're going to cry, moan, complain, and bicker about every little detail! What else did you expect? ;) // [In reply to] Can't Post
nobofthepony
The Hobbit is not a LOTR prequel, it's a sequel [In reply to] Can't Post
Looks like PJ and the team are viewing the Hobbit as a sequel to LOTR. And I'm alright with that. I believe Frodo will be laboring over the red book after his quest, as he writes The Lord of the Rings, perhaps looking to Bilbo's text for clues on how the ring came to the Baggins. They're probably bring back Elijah because Ian Holm is retired (?) and I can't say I mind seeing Frodo back. I guess I'm not a "purist" and think the movies will be improved by seeing old friends (as long as the cameos are done well.)
But if Elijah is reading the book after the fact, perhaps he is the one making the connections...(Mirkwood...Legolas would have been there!) I wouldn't mind a FEW cutaways to Frodo during the course of the films..but not too many. The last film can end with Frodo and Bilbo going to the Grey Havens (Bilbo can be played by Freeman under prosthetics?) and can focus on them saying goodbye...maybe with Bilbo repeating..."It's a dangerous business going out your front door...") I think it would be a great, emotional place to end the series, and would be better served if watched after LOTR as a sequel, not a prequel.
Perhaps [In reply to] Can't Post
MrCere was wrong about this tidbit would not upset the most stubborn purists
As everybody else said, we have not seen the finished product yet. In fact, we have seen nothing yet. In there is also the possibility of this being cut (like Arwen in Helm's deep)
But geordie, weren't you also the one who commanded us to "scupper these movies"?
jarrellj
This is NOT a shock... tho is is sad. [In reply to] Can't Post
I could not possibly agree more. But PJ has never been a respecter of Tolkien's written word so color me NOT surprised that he puts financial gain (by linking it with his big moneymaker) ahead of fidelity to Tolkien's work. I'm sure they'll find a zillion ways to rationalize it... like Faramir-the-evil-street-thug of the movies had to be that way for 'cinematic' reason. Won't make it more palatable to us 'purists' who are silly enough to favor Tolkien over Jackson. But it'll make money... and that IS their only real goal. Making money.
PJ, Fran and Philippa Boyens are huge fans of Tolkien. [In reply to] Can't Post
That is the truth.
And let's not forget Guillermo del Toro [In reply to] Can't Post
who co-wrote the script and certainly would have removed this sequence if he thought it wasn't working.
Geordie.... come back.... ;-) [In reply to] Can't Post
I think it's fair to say that you already have a pretty low opinion of Peter Jackson's previous films, don't you, so It's not as if you were expecting very much. Supposing the film begins with Frodo looking at the Red Book or talking or listening to Bilbo and then swings back to the story of The Hobbit and tells it, pretty straight by the book, would that really be so dreadful? After all, Frodo must have heard the story from Bilbo, mustn't he?
Don't give up on it yet, they might still surprise you (pleasantly, of course!).
Sequel? How can it be.... [In reply to] Can't Post
... when the last film ended with Frodo and Bilbo sailing off from the Grey Havens. There's no concievable way they can follow on from that. If this is right and Frodo is to be in the opening sequence of the first Hobbit film we still don't know what the context will be. Will Bilbo be telling him the story before the book is written (so setting the scene some time before the action of Fellowship of the Ring). Or will they be in Rivendell? Or will Frodo be reading from the book after his own adventure but before he leaves Middle Earth? Or have they come up with some completely different scenario? Or will they change their minds about how to begin the film several times between now and 2012, so that what they're intending now might not happen at all in the final film?
The one thing The Hobbit cannot be is a sequel to Return of the King (unless we join them on the deck of the ship or in Aman!)
I'm not so sure on GDT. [In reply to] Can't Post
GDT is a great chap which he shown here on the messsage boards but, I can recall that interview some years ago before being attatched to the project that he "hated hobbits, wizards and hairy feet and all that" or something similar, if someone can dig that interview up ( I think it was in connection with his movie Pan's labyrinth).
Maybe he changed his mind later on, but that's quite a statement.
Lindele
Every time I come on here [In reply to] Can't Post
(which is several times a day) all I see is whine whine whine!
I'm starting to think no one really wants this movie!!!
(This post was edited by Ataahua on Jan 7 2011, 7:55pm)
Is it sure that Frodo will experience the story through the book? [In reply to] Can't Post
Is it sure that Frodo will experience the story through the book? If I'm reading the post right TORn has seen the script and knows it for sure.
I am hoping actually that they haven't seen the script and they are making a guess with the Red Book. This because of strange timelines. The Book wasn't ready till Bilbo finished it in Rivendell. After the Quest for the Ring is done Frodo receives it and a few years later Frodo gives it to Sam. So between the destroying of the Ring and Frodo going to the Grey Havens he must have read it.
According to this news, that will be 'The Hobbit'; the reading of the Red Book by Frodo.
But that would be kind of strange.. It would me better (in my opinion) that the narration of 'The Hobbit' would be the first time Frodo hears the story... At the end of Lotr Frodo has heard the story (the Hobbit) a million times and it isn't new to him anymore. Bilbo even tells the little (Jackson) kids the story, so Frodo must've heard it before. There wouldn't be much excitement...
So wouldn't it make more sense that Bilbo is telling the story to (a younger) Frodo? Not reading it from his/a book? Frodo would be in awe of the awesomeness of the story...
A bit too much complaining, yes // [In reply to] Can't Post
The impression I got [In reply to] Can't Post
was that Frodo is reading the Red Book in Bag End, towards the end of The Return of the King. This would mean that the bookend scenes featuring Frodo chronologically take place after 99% of the events depicted in The Lord of the Rings have already occurred, which effectively makes them sequels to the trilogy. The little-used term for a new story taking place partway through an already-published one is 'interquel' � I don't much like the word, and since The Hobbit will be bookended by scenes which occur almost at the end of LotR (as opposed to, say, halfway through it), I thought the term 'sequel' was more fitting.
SirDennisC
Since Frodo is back, Strider should make an appearance as well. // [In reply to] Can't Post
Boromir too // [In reply to] Can't Post
Darkstone
If you think this is bad.... [In reply to] Can't Post
...just wait until it finally comes out.
"The ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli, son of Gloin, by any craft that we here possess. The ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. The ring must be taken deep into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came. One of you must do this."
I wonder how are they going to get Lurtz in there? / [In reply to] Can't Post
In my crystal ball [In reply to] Can't Post
<Looking through crystal ball>
HOW DARE PJ REMOVE THE TALKING PURSE!!!!
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 more
DarthNeeson
What I'm More Concerned About... [In reply to] Can't Post
Christopher Lee.
Saruman would have to play a crucial role in all of these White Council meetings, setting the stage for his turn to evil. Now, given Lee's feelings about his exclusion from ROTK and his age, the last I heard was he couldn't travel all the way to New Zealand any more. That doesn't mean they couldn't set him in front of a blue screen in London and finish all his scenes in a few days. If Radagast is in, he must be as well. But will they cast a new actor or finally convince him to come back to Middle Earth?
As for Frodo, I am leary, but I trust Peter.
Or else... [In reply to] Can't Post
HOW DARE PJ LEAVE IN THE TALKING PURSE!!!!
Christopher Lee would love to play Saruman in The Hobbit [In reply to] Can't Post
as long as his parts can be filmed in London. He said so himself in an interview with IGN. I'd be over the moon if we got him back, but at this stage I'd settle for Frank Langella. As long as they don't try to 'write around' Saruman � that would be a terrible mistake and would cause a whole plethora of missed opportunities.
Voronw�_the_Faithful
I think he was being tongue in cheek [In reply to] Can't Post
I could be wrong, but my interpretation of geordie's post was that he was somewhat jokingly referring to the fact that he expected all along that the films wouldn't be any more faithful to the source (or enjoyable) than he found Jackson's LotR films. I doubt that he was genuinely expressing any real disappointment with this news beyond his already low expectations.
But of course I could be wrong.
'But very bright were the stars upon the margin of the world, when at times the clouds about the West were drawn aside.'
www.arda-reconstructed.com
petesimac
I trust Pete! [In reply to] Can't Post
If we learned anything about Pete during the LOTR trilogy, it was that he (and co.) can write a good story. While I love the LOTR book, I think the films present a better story, mostly because it combines parts of other Tolkein writings. Pete left out much from the LOTR, but nothing was left out in the end; lines from deleted characters were given to others, etc, and so much was added in from other Tolkein sources. I adore the LOTR trilogy and consider myself part of the fellowship thanks, in no small part, to the "making of" sequences in the extended additions. I trust Pete to do the job well.
As for The Hobbit, my desire has always been to have Bilbo (Holm) narrate the story, beginning with him (before the LOTR) telling his tale to a young Frodo, and perhaps Sam and others as well. Perhaps Holm was simply unable to do so, and as a result the idea of Frodo telling the tale came to pass. The timing is tricky, to be sure, but I think we can trust Pete to get it right. Pete has always maintained that he wants The Hobbit to be able to stand on it's own, and I think it will. Don't you remember how painstakingly Pete went through the trilogy, making sure it made sense, that the story flowed? Don't you recall how some ideas were tried before Pete realized it wouldn't work that way, so they tried something else? Remember Arwen at Helms Deep? There were countless ideas that, in the end, didn't pass muster with Pete (and co.), and I'm sure if the Frodo idea doesn't pan out, Pete will change it.
To me, the best idea (knowing so little of Pete's thinking) would be to have Frodo reading the newly finished book in Rivendale. Then the line that "our journey didn't turn out like Bilbo's" or something to that effect which Frodo says to Sam in Rivendale takes on new meaning. Or, perhaps it will just be Elijah Wood narrating the film (as Frodo or not); those who have not seen the LOTR certainly wouldn't know any better. In the end, it's all conjecture. Many would have (and probably did) moaned and groaned about the "murder" (lol) of Tom Bombadil (sp?) in the LOTR; but in the end, all was well, and all was great, and we have a film(s) for the ages. Let me repeat, I trust Pete!
We see a flashback where Lurtz attacks Itaril... // [In reply to] Can't Post
For instance, on the planet Earth, man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much -- the wheel, New York, wars, and so on -- while all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man, for precisely the same reasons. -- Douglas Adams
RosieLass
Well, if we're allowed only to agree with everything... [In reply to] Can't Post
...what's the point of calling it "discussion"?
It is always those with the fewest sensible things to say who make the loudest noise in saying them. --Precious Ramotswe (Alexander McCall Smith)
sorry [In reply to] Can't Post
- sorry, Dormouse - and al those of my friends who expressed concern. But this is too much. This really took me off guard. The thought of that foul-mouthed young man* in another movie with a link to Tolkien is more than I can stomach. In fact, I've gone right off the idea of the movies altogether.
I'm off - I've enjoyed my short stay here on ToRn. I wish you all the best. Bye.
*I shan't go into details, because this is a family-friendly site. Those who've been around as long as I have will know what I mean.
Lord Maegmoth
Quite Intriguing [In reply to] Can't Post
Not quite certain how to react to this, certainly not against it, but neither unreservedly for it. I believe that execution would be the key, and the extent to which Frodo shall occupy screen time. Ultimately, I can't really be assured of the viability of inserting Frodo into TH until I actually view the final product, therefore I shall adopt the 'cautiously optimistic' stance for the time being. Intriguing times.
Now I await, with bated breath, the announcement of the return of Sir Christopher Lee. Hopefully one shall be forthcoming within the next couple of weeks.
Rivendweller
" the most famousest of hobbits " [In reply to] Can't Post
was actually Frodo so why not have him narrate , or at least introduce the beginning of Bilbo's tale ?
I agree, I am fine with this and I've missed " the boys ", so I'd love to see them all sitting around Bag End's fireplace, with Sam's children on his lap as Frodo begins the tale...
There's something of everything here, The Shire and the Golden Wood and Gondor and kings' houses and inns and meadows and mountains all mixed.
....and there are Elves when you want them.
Formerly A'amel from days gone by.
Elentari03
Right. [In reply to] Can't Post
Some people have concerns about how Frodo would logically fit into the story. Expressing concern is not whining. Are we to just go ahead and agree to whatever changes the studio makes without any discussion of the positives and negatives? That seems rather silly.
Well... goodbye geordie. [In reply to] Can't Post
That was strange.
I have been supportive of casting Legolas in The Hobbit, provided he does not kill Smaug, because he would have been alive at the time and likely present in Mirkwood.
Frodo's inclusion makes me slightly more concerned about the story, but I hope the filmmakers keep his presence to a minimum and only put him in as a narrator or something along those lines. Until we see the final product it is impossible to know how this will play out. "Cautiously optimistic" was a good way of putting it.
Shireling
Relieved! [In reply to] Can't Post
This is the news I've been waiting for!! I'm so relieved they've found a way to bring Frodo into 'The Hobbit':)
That is by no means what I'm saying [In reply to] Can't Post
The point is, it doesn't matter what bit of news has been released...I come on here and 80% of the comments are negative, complaining, or sarcastic remarks about how the filmmakers' only real desire is to destroy this story.
I wish there was a positive discussion thread sometimes.
Lindele.. [In reply to] Can't Post
Let me introduce you to a sweet lady named Grammaboodawg...
Alex Maglor
GREAT [In reply to] Can't Post
Excellent IDEA!!
Una idea fant�stica poder volver a ver a Frodo y compa�ia, al menos como elementos introductorios en THE HOBBIT.
Ah, the youth of today... [In reply to] Can't Post
I am in his generation, so I must admit I chuckled a bit-- my mouth can be vicious at times. Different times, and a different class- he is from Hollywood, after all, and I know enough in the industry to know that their mouths can be real icky!
Best of luck in your travels, geordie. I enjoyed reading your posts, different opinion or no :) Please stop by anytime! Perhaps another board where talks of the Hobbit are not so rife? :) *hug*
Must... resist... fangirl.. urge... to agree... seriously... // [In reply to] Can't Post
Seamless transition... [In reply to] Can't Post
So I just had a thought of how they could do the Hobbit-to-LOTR transition. At the beginning of the first Hobbit movie a young Frodo (Elijah looks perpetually young so he'll be fine) sneaks "the Red Book" out of Bilbo's study and starts reading it bringing us into the world of The Hobbit adventure. Maybe we see Frodo reading it a few more times between then and the end of the 2nd movie. But the end of the second movie should come out of "The Hobbit" story to show Frodo finishing reading The Hobbit in the Red Book while sitting under a tree, effectively ending his narraration - and the camera pans out and Frodo hears Gandalf's singing - and we realize that the famous opening shot of Fellowship of Frodo reading under a tree was actually him reading The Hobbit?
Yes? Fine... I won't quit my day job...
It's only going to get worse :) [In reply to] Can't Post
I wasn't here during 2001-2003, but man, I've heard stories!
Fans will never agree with one another about anything, and complaints *do* tend to stand out the loudest. More people take time to write out grievances than joys, at least if online reviews are to be believed.
Just sit back and enjoy the ride, and don't take any of it too seriously-- certainly not seriously enough to shout ;)
E�rwen Swan Maiden Of Alqualond�
I have to be honest [In reply to] Can't Post
I really can't find any way to be upset at this. It just makes me feel all warm and happy inside. And I am someone who read all the books first, many times, starting in early childhood, and had a very strong attachment and respect for all things Tolkien long before the movies appeared. But this just feels right to me.
Post #100 of 379 (24766 views)
You are correct, sir! [In reply to] Can't Post
I love the books AND the movies! While it's fair to say that I found some of the changes in LOTR jarring, I was never offended by them as some folks seem to be. I have a distinct memory of seeing FOTR for the first time and thinking, "Boy, they got out of the Shire awful fast," but upon repeated viewings of the film, I came to understand the logic of compressing the time-frame of the early chapters. I've written stage adaptations of literary works, and even though I have to make changes to fit the constraints of a different medium, I always do it with the utmost affection for the original source material. I think it's clear if one listens to the DVD commentary tracks that Peter, Fran, and Phiippa feel the same way. I MAINTAIN THAT ONE CAN BE A "PURIST" AND STILL LOVE THE FILMS!! I am, I do, and I am confident that come December 2012, I will!!
moreorless
What I thought from the start... [In reply to] Can't Post
As soon as the rumours of the film being made started to appear the Red Book being read as a framing device by an old Bilbo/Frodo/Sam was the first thing I thought of.
Looking to bring back LOTR characters is one way to look at it but another is as you say to allow for a more direct adaptation of the Hobbit with a marked change in tone from LOTR. By altering the presentation of the films you can also alter the audiences expectations, no longer are they seeing the direct gritter view of ME from LOTR but rather a single Hobbits perspective of it.
Mithrand�r
Great narrating [In reply to] Can't Post
I think Frodo being a kind of narrator in the start and perhaps one or two times during the plot, for instance changing the perspective to gandalvs part in the events taking place during bilbos adventure, the white council, the necromancer etc, will work really really well!
Imo it's keeping with Tolkien, it's necessary to link the hobbit film with the lotr, and this handle is as good as any other imo. PJ has said before that he views the hobbit and lotr as a continuous story in movie terms. anyway, if the frodo-news is true there is little point disagreeing, seeing as it's gonna happen anyway.
Social Science's biggest problem, is social science.
"The ring has awoken. It's heard its masters call"
I think that statement was taken out of context. [In reply to] Can't Post
This is what Guillermo had to say on the subject back around the time when he first started posting here:
I have read Moorcock, Clark Ashton Smith, Lord Dunsany, Lloyd Alexander, Fritz Leiber and a few others. At the age of 11 I read THE HOBBIT and it enchanted me as only a classic Fairy Tale can- it had enough darkness and dread and emotion to make a profound impression that lasted me until now. Beorn, Mirkwood, the Wargs, Smaug, the Riddles in the Dark, they all have lived in me for many years...
Nevertheless at that early age, the rest of Tolkien proved to contain Geography and Genealogy too complex for my prepubescent brain...
As if he grasped an existing universe outside our Platonic cave, Tolkien channels an entire world, weaving expertly from myth and lore. The oustanding virtue is that all this scholarly erudition doesn't reduce his tales to mere Taxidermy. He achieves an Alchemy all of his own: he writes new life in the freshly sculpted clay of his creatures.
I have, through the years become familiar with the very roots of Tolkien's myths and the roots of Fafhrd or Elric or Hyperborea and many a time I have relished the intricate ways in which demonic wolves, shape-shifter and spindly-limbed pale warriors can be woven into those many tales that become, at the end, the single tale, the single saga- that of what is immortal in us all.
In creating Pan's Labyrinth I drank deep of the most rigid form of Fairy Lore and tried to contextualize the main recurrent motifs in an instinctive rhyme between the world of fantasy and the delusions of War and Politics (the grown man's way of playing make-believe) and in re-reading THE HOBBIT just recently I was quite moved by discovering, through Bilbo's eyes the illusory nature of possession, the sins of hoarding and the banality of war- whether in the Western Front or at a Valley in Middle Earth. Lonely is the mountain indeed.
http://newboards.theonering.net/...forum.cgi?post=92296
Reading him talk about Tolkien's work so enthusiastically makes me doubtful of that single statement he made in that interview several years ago, when he said that he hated hairy feet or something like that. To be honest, I'd be even more inclined to trust del Toro with Tolkien's work than I would be to trust Jackson.
without even reading ... [In reply to] Can't Post
I was hoping for less LOTR reunions. First Legolas and now Frodo. Saruman would be the one logical choice, yet we got more Radagast evidently.
Was he even born at the time of the Hobbit ? He was 33 when Bilbo was having his 111th birthday, minus 60 years between LOTR and the Hobbit...
KingofAncients
Frank Langella as Saruman.... [In reply to] Can't Post
Flagg I have to admit that I didn't know who this "Frank Langella" you mentioned was, call me uncivilized or uncultured or whatever you like but, at any rate I decided to check him out on youtube.
WOW! I agree with you 100% if someone is going to replace the legendary Christopher Lee as Saruman I am now convinced it must be Frank Langella! Not only is his voice superb (and eerily similar to Lee's) but, he actually LOOKS like him too! That's craziness. You have made a believer of me, just throw Saruman prosthetics on him and we're good to hook for a more vibrant/active/less evil Saruman who helps kick Necromancer @$$ in these two films!
"Stout men and lordly they are, and the Riders of Rohan look almost as boys beside them; for they are grim men of face, worn like weathered rocks for the most part, even as Aragorn himself; and they are silent."
Hear hear! [In reply to] Can't Post
No, he was nor born [In reply to] Can't Post
But as the post said... he would not be around at the time of Bilbo's adventure. Someone mentioned "Princess Bride", and while I doubt it will be exactly like Princess Bride, I can imagine it being something like that.
It would certainly fit the Hobbit's lighter tone, being told from the point of view of Bilbo with Frodo listening, substituting Tolkien's unnamed, fourth-wall-breaking narrative voice and the reader.
It wasn't my idea [In reply to] Can't Post
We've been talking about the possibility of Frank Langella playing Saruman for a good while now, and I sort of took it for granted that everyone would know who I was talking about. I think duats was the first one who came up with the idea, but I'm not completely certain.
Langella [In reply to] Can't Post
Some months ago I thought no, absolutely not. But as I have sort of given up on the hopes of sir C reprising Saruman, this Langella fellow looks like an OK replacement. It will never be as good as the original, but it should work.
Lindele [In reply to] Can't Post
I think both you and RosieLass has fair points.
Financial gain first? [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm sorry, I don't see that at all.
Clearly the films have to make money, there's no question about that. The studios would not bother were that not the case.
Watching all the appendices on the EE editions many times, though, there are few, if any people involved in making those films who I feel were putting financial gain first. The overriding impression I get from everyone, from the writers, art design, WETA, music, actors, everyone, was the love of the project, and of Tolkien.
The Hobbit and LOTR are inextricably linked. Not just in the ring, Gollum, Gandalf and so on, but the White council, and even the importance of Smaug not becoming a weapon for Sauron, these and many other events tie the two books, and the two sets of films together.
It would have been wonderful if Jackson could have made the Hobbit and then gone on to LOTR. He didn't, but I see no problem in him in tweaking things slightly to make the progression from one set of films to the other a little easier, as if he had done that.
Agree with duats... [In reply to] Can't Post
This just seems like a bad move to cash-in on the success of the original trilogy, (a lot like how Christopher Nolan's third Batman will now be called "The Dark Knight Rises"), for obvious reasons. Very disappointed with this news...
Samuel L. Jackson for Bilbo, Woody Allen for Thorin, Lewis Black for Bard and Gilbert Gottfried for Smaug!
MAKE IT HAPPEN, PETER!!!
Red Book reading [In reply to] Can't Post
Flagg, there is no reason why Frodo could not be reading the Red book prior to the events of LOTR, is there? He could even be reading an early version of the book, before Bilbo adds the finishing touches?
Lee as Saruman [In reply to] Can't Post
Some way of including Chris Lee is my biggest hope, assuming McKellan and Serkis join, naturally.
I suspect Lee might be amenable if some blue screen work could be done. He is a huge Tolkien fan, and I think adding to his body of work as the Definitive Saruman might appeal to him.
DrDeath153
As good a way as any [In reply to] Can't Post
While i'm not enamoured with the idea of framing The Hobbit within the strict bounds of the existing Lord of the Rings films, which i would have preferred them to build up to on their own terms- consistent with and exploring events within the timeline only revealed in the latter book but nevertheless standing well enough alone, the 'let me tell you a story' format has always been on the cards and to be fair will likely work well enough. It's also a far better way of featuring LotR cast cameos than compressing the timeline by half a century (that said, given the existing compression i consider it entirely possible to show Aragorn and Arwen's first meeting within the narrative of the Hobbit).
So yeah, basically i'm non-plussed about it all. If that turned out to be the film's biggest sin then we could all breathe a sign of relief.
Dr Death
No conclusive reason. [In reply to] Can't Post
I got the impression that the bookend scenes would be set towards the end of Return of the King, around the scene where Frodo is writing in the Red Book in his study in Bag End. The earlier they set the scene, the harder it will be to make Elijah Wood look the right age. I suppose they could set the scenes before Lord of the Rings if they really wanted to, but for the purposes of my speculations I assumed that the scenes would be after Frodo's quest.
I like it!! [In reply to] Can't Post
Wow! Great idea! I think that could work! Man, I'm excited!
No probs [In reply to] Can't Post
It just seems to me that Frodo reading that book could theoretically occur anytime between Bilbo adopting him and the Grey Havens, although clearly Frodo is too young for Wood to play him at the start of that time.
A mechanism that could be used, were the timeframe for the reading to be set, say 15 years before FOTR, might allow us to see other events we know happened, and the brief introduction of other characters or story fills. That sort of thing really would not surprise me.
(This post was edited by Bran on Jan 7 2011, 6:07pm)
LoremIpsum
Great news if true [In reply to] Can't Post
I have no problem with this at all, especially if we get to see Ian Holm in there too (hopefully)
Not so much positive or negative, [In reply to] Can't Post
to me at least, most comments seem sideways or neutral around here. With every bit of confirmed news -- regardless of what may have been said when an item was just rumoured -- the general consensus defaults to "we trust the film makers/writers." Again to me, this indicates that most everyone here does in fact want these films to be made. (One might add, "at any cost" but that is an over simplification of our collective true feelings on the matter. A fandom we are and a fandom we shall remain.)
For instance, the idea that the films would be structured as if read from a book (Bilbo's book) was first floated here when the bridge film concept was still on the table. IIRC Guillermo himself participated in a thread where that was being discussed (though hovering at the edge of actually spilling the beans, as was his way). At the time there seemed to be general agreement that this was an acceptable, if not desirable, approach to bringing in some characters from LOTR that are not mentioned (which is not the same as did not exist) in The Hobbit and/or the period between the two tales.
As for the joking around that goes on here (such as my recent comment: "Itaril of the Ewok Realm"), for the most part, it is not intended to be negative. It is a way of celebrating our shared interests.
edit: to break up post
(This post was edited by SirDennisC on Jan 7 2011, 6:16pm)
Agreed [In reply to] Can't Post
but not simply because of the age issue...
The period between Frodo and co's return to the Shire and Frodo's departure to Valinor (about 4 years at the end of ROTK) seems the most likely place for the Red Book of the Westmarch to be visited; a time when Frodo would be writing about his adventures, at times reading what Bilbo wrote, and at times connecting the dots between the two tales and filling in the gaps.
Alternately they might go beyond that time and incorporate what Sam wrote and of (correct me if I'm wrong) Aragorn's death and Legolas and Gimli's departure for Valinor. Of the two approaches I favour the first, even more so than the idea of Bilbo spinning his tale of "The Hobbit" in a time just before LOTR, or at Rivendell.
Sorry. [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm just tetchy about it.
The TORN boards are great, but there was a time back during the years the LOTR films were being made and released when I stopped visiting for a long time because there was a loudmouthed minority who made it very clear that any dissenting opinion was unwelcome, and I got tired of being told to shut up and go away any time I expressed any disappointment over anything Peter Jackson did.
Jettorex
What happens to.... [In reply to] Can't Post
"In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit" beginning to the Hobbit Movie? Is that off the table now? or will Frodo now say these words?
I always thought that it would be a great way to start the movie, just like the book.
- "I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve."
Especially since... [In reply to] Can't Post
...the whole series ends with Sam's "Well, I'm back."
The Party Tree
I knew as soon as they started announcing cameos that I'd get addicted.// [In reply to] Can't Post
That depends [In reply to] Can't Post
Did Bilbo write his memoirs in the third person, beginning with 'In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit'? Or did he write them in the first person, leaving Tolkien (who discovered a copy of the Red Book) to translate his tale and rewrite it as a children's story?
But you forget [In reply to] Can't Post
It's actually 65 years (60 between TH and FOTR, the year of the War of the Ring, and 4 more years after the end of the War, to the last scene in Bag End. Unless they show Frodo reading from the almost-completed Red Book say, 3 after. )
MrCere, does the rumor say we are actually going to SEE Frodo onscreen in the opening scene of TH 1? If we merely hear him doing a voice-over, it presents far less problems. It would b easier for me to accept the occaisional voice-over during TH as well. Then, you are still in the dark about who this mysterious "narrator" is, and the existence of Frodo and the timeframe of the narrative/identity of the Narrator is gradually revealed as the story goes on. (at the beg. of FOTR the future viewer realizes, "Oh, so this is who it is! Frodo, son of Drogo and Primula, and Bilbo adopted him!" --it seems we are going to be seeing the tragic deaths of, or at least a Hobbiton scene of, Drogo and Primula).
This is the Problem: this is all a lot easier to believe if the future viewer is watching the EE's. But if they are watching the Theatricals, this won't make any sense at all. ""60 years later" at the beginning of FOTR, as we see Frodo under the tree? And we've just seen the Prologue which takes you 3000 years back in tim. I remember watching the Prologue in the theater the first time, and if I hadn't known the story well, I imagine that "60 yrs later" would have confuse me at first. 60 yrs after what? Oh, right, 60 yrs after Bilbo finds a ring in a cave. That Prologue was seemingly straightforward but really asked a lot of movie-firsters, I'm thinking. (I'd love to hear reactions from movie-firsters if the Prolgue confused you at all, the first time you saw it?)
You have to remember, that Peter is facing the same problem George Lucas faced with the SW prequels. Fans of now may grouse, but this is really being made for future generations, where they'll sit down and watch the Pentology in order. So if we hear Frodo as a narrator in TH long before we see him onscreen, it would work wonderfully. (Except the theatrical would present some problems--that "60 yrs later" would have to be removed--as well as Ian Holm not looking like Martin in that brief flash-back? forward? scene in the FOTR Prologue --OUCH MY POOR BRAIN )--
If WB is pressuring Peter into doing a sort of "Super-Prologue" to tie all this up for the movie-firster, when it really isn;t necessary, we're screwed. They have to have faith that it makes far more sense for the viewer to gradually find out who the narrator is, and the story would flow a lot better. OH God nightmare visions of Dune here*
But if the script calls for the audience to *see* Frodo in the very first scene of The Pentology, this would cause problems. How do you explain this character to the first-time movie-firster of the future? We see a mysterious scene of a hobbit reading a book he is writing in a house we don't know, yet, is Bag End. Is he alone, reading it as he writies it, as we later see Bilbo doing at the beginning of FOTR EE? Maybe that would work--if it's a brief teaser, just to get our curiosity piqued--if we are told nothing, If Frodo tells us nothing. IS Elijah really going to be reading the first pages word for word--"IN the hole in the groumd there lived a Hobbit?" etc. And when Gandlaf appears, he's say, "Gandalf! If you'd half of what I heard" etc.
Will he be reading to Elanor maybe? That would be a problem, since we'd only be able to see the back of Elanor's head, it being a miracle if they could find a 3-yr-old who looks exactly like 3-yr-old Alexandra did. (Although the aspect of the Saga having evolved, as Sam wished it, into a "fireside-tale for young Hobbits" is a charming one, if it is realized on the screen.It was hinted at at the end of TTT< in Sam's speech, just as it was in the book. That would be a nice evolving transition. )
Would we see Sam as well? Increasingly I think that Sean should narrate the darned thing, since "the very last pages were really his." I wish if Peter ever adds anything in the Ultimate Edition, it would be for a middle-aged or older Sean Astin handing the Red Book off to grown-up Alexandra, and hey, his other 2 grown kids, playing Goldilocks and Rosie-lass,etc--that woul be **absolutely enchanting**--I think they'd do it too! --not likely though--but hey a gal can dream can't she? )
(Ok Sunflower, you're going insane. Stop the madness now. )
Count on us fans to make a mountain out of a mol-hill-or in this case a Hobbit-hill. I'll bet Peter and Co and Guillermo (if he still reads this) are laughing their heads off. This is all probsbly hoo-hah, as HM says, over nothing.
(This post was edited by Sunflower on Jan 7 2011, 6:49pm)
That would be perfect. [In reply to] Can't Post
I always thought the point of having a narrator at all for TH would be so that this line could start off the movie.
I'm guessing.. [In reply to] Can't Post
I know Geordie seems to be leaving these forums.. and his last comments - if about Elijah Woods seem rather odd. Did you meet him in real life and was rude to you.. is this the origin of your hatred??
Knowledge of the ring [In reply to] Can't Post
Might have a part to play in this.
I suspect the film makers will not want to give away anything about the true nature of the ring in these films. That would potentially spoil the start of FOTR for future film goers unfamiliar with the story.
Doesn't that suggest that Frodo narrating the Hobbit from a time before FOTR makes more sense? When he, himself would not know what the ring was?
I agree, it seemed as a strange comment to make // [In reply to] Can't Post
Brandybuckled
Thanks! You just gave me an idea for my sig line! [In reply to] Can't Post
I never participated in the great NARF wars of the Fourth Age, but now I can be a NAArP'er
NAArP since 2011!
Both. [In reply to] Can't Post
I see both of those, followed by
U GUYZ ARNT REAL FANS REAL FANS WOUD ARGREE WITH ME I AM THE BIGEST LOTR FAN EVAR I SAW ALL THE MOVIES 3 TIMS!!!!!!!!!!
HOW DARE PJ LEAVE IN THE TALKING PURSE!!!
"Of all faces those of our familiares are the ones both most difficult to play fantastic tricks with, and most difficult really to see with fresh attention. They have become like the things which once attracted us by their glitter, or their colour, or their shape, and we laid hands on them, and then locked them in our hoard, acquired them, and acquiring ceased to look at them.
Creative fantasy, because it is mainly trying to do something else [make something new], may open your hoard and let all the locked things fly away like cage-birds. The gems all turn into flowers or flames, and you will be warned that all you had (or knew) was dangerous and potent, not really effectively chained, free and wild; no more yours than they were you." -On Fairy Stories
Who knows? [In reply to] Can't Post
I think it would be good to begin that way too, but if there's to be some sort of prologue-ey Frodo-reads-book opening then there is, and we might as well make the best of it for now - at least, that's the way I'm trying to look at it.
But if the cinema darkens and the titles go up and the first words we hear are "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit...", no matter who says them, I shall start watching with a big satisfied smile!
Lindele, I see your point. [In reply to] Can't Post
And I feel your pain. I don't know if this will help or not, but part of the reason every thread is peppered with complaints is that there are always many schools of thought on any issue concerning the books or the movies. This means that everyone is happy at some news and unhappy at other news. So when one group is happy, another group isn't, and vice versa. This means that while there are a few wet blankets around who apparently don't like anything at all, a lot of the complaining is spread around - different people complaining at different things. It helps somewhat to know the people as individuals, because then instead of a big group complaining en masse, you get to the point where you know that this person loves this idea and hates that one, but that person is the opposite, and that one over there can be trusted to bring up ______ at every opportunity. I don't know that it makes it less whiny, but at least it gives some variety to the chorus of moans.
If you're waiting for the news that makes everyone happy....I'm not sure we've ever heard it. Perhaps the announcement of Ian McKellan's signing will be the closest, though I'm sure there's someone who's secretly hoping he'll be out and someone else will be in, and they'll make sure to come and tell us so. It's just the nature of things in a place like this.
It's not a purse! It's a Middle Earthian carry-all!! [In reply to] Can't Post
As a purist (but not an ardent purist), I will be satisfied with nothing until I get to see the movie.
Until then I shall complain (but not ardently) about the tune in my head not being in the same key as the tune in TPTB's heads.
Or maybe Lurtz *is* Itaril! [In reply to] Can't Post
"She was an elf once, taken by the dark powers, tortured and mutilated. A ruined and terrible form..."
peleowyn
Wonderful news!! [In reply to] Can't Post
We were all so hoping to see all our friends again! Hooray!!
You're right about the McKellen announcement [In reply to] Can't Post
Even that won't totally satisfy everybody. I remember Gandalf'sMother saying that she (or he?) would like The Hobbit to get a new director, a new Saruman and a new Gandalf, but that's the only person as far as I'm aware.
*mods up* [In reply to] Can't Post
But hopes it doesn't come true.
Haha. Good one, Darkstone // [In reply to] Can't Post
I think [In reply to] Can't Post
I think maybe 99% of the fans (this is just my estimation) accepts Ian McKellen as Gandy. It may not have been their first choice, but he worked. Another estimation is that maybe 80 % loves Ian McKellen as Gandy (as myself). Like Silverlode I think this announcement is the closest we can get to a mutual Yay-feeling around here. Or a mutual Nay-feeling for that matter, if he does not reprise his role as Gandalf.
Well, I was hoping that everyone would be new, too. [In reply to] Can't Post
Not because I disliked McKellen's Gandalf, because I didn't. I thought he did a terrific job.
I was just hoping to see a different Middle-earth from a different director's perspective, just for variety's sake.
Maybe this is where they're moving the Trolls' purse. // [In reply to] Can't Post
(This post was edited by RosieLass on Jan 7 2011, 7:29pm)
I agree [In reply to] Can't Post
that it would be nice to get a different director and a different perspective on Middle-earth (there are several that I would have preferred to direct The Hobbit), but recasting iconic characters solely for the sake of mixing things up is just going too far in my view.
So they're making a troll's purse from an elf's ear? / [In reply to] Can't Post
Here's a thought [In reply to] Can't Post
What if they somehow tie Frodo into Gandalf The White's long talk with Tom Bombadil at the end of ROTK where Gandalf would tell the tale of how all this business of the ring started?
It is a gift. // [In reply to] Can't Post
I love the idea of working Bombadil in somehow [In reply to] Can't Post
If only they'd left the line in RotK where Gandalf says he's going off to meet him...
Maybe Frodo could narrate Bilbo's tale while sitting in Bag End and reading the Red Book, and Gandalf could narrate the adventures of the White Council while telling his parts of the story to Tom Bombadil?
Well, no. [In reply to] Can't Post
It would be silly for Peter Jackson to cast a different Gandalf.
But if we'd gotten a different producer and director, I would have wanted them to start with a clean slate and give us all new casting.
Doriath
Guess I'll jump in [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm realizing, finally, that there's no way to get exactly what you want from these films even if you are the one making them. I had problems with the first films but I still enjoy them. I will have problems with the next films but I'm sure I'll enjoy them enough. As I've talked about before, I hope to see these films done again someday in my lifetime by a whole new team. Perhaps England based. Perhaps Scandinavian. Maybe a mix. I would ultimately like to see films that stay completely true to the source material and long for the day when 3D is looked back on and laughed at. I think I'd even be happy with a considerably smaller budget so you don't have the money men calling the shots and demanding that it have break dancing robots in it or whatever the soup du jour is at that time. Another idea is to have it done as a series on cable. I always think about how terrible the movie "Dune" was and how great the series on cable was. So I look forward to those possibilities and will get a decent amount of enjoyment out of whatever we get in the next couple of years. Welcome back Elijah.
Gives it to us in glorious 2D!
If you ask me, [In reply to] Can't Post
it doesn't make a lot of sense to have either Bilbo or Frodo say those words...at least not if they're going to follow it up with the comments about Hobbit Holes. But I can easily hear Gandalf saying it. In fact, I could hear Gandalf saying nearly all the narrator's lines. It will be interesting to see what they actually do. The Galadriel-narrated opening to FOTR was a surprise to me, but I loved it even though I'd been secretly hoping for the Ring Verse, which we never got at all.
(This post was edited by Silverlode on Jan 7 2011, 7:41pm)
LOL! [In reply to] Can't Post
The typos are a nice touch!
hobbit2012
How the heck must these movies then be viewed in future? [In reply to] Can't Post
I don't know, this news sounds problematic, just purely from a viewing point of view.
If it is just a narration, or if the end of The Hobbit is a transition to FOTR with Frodo reading the book, that would work fine.
However, it sounds like this movie will open with Frodo. Depending when the book is read, how the heck is the pentology supposed to be viewed by future audiences? For example, will they play FOTR and TTT, start up ROTK, switch it off halfway wherever the book is read, then jump to the Hobbit movies as a flashback story, after that jump back to the ROTK and view the remainder of that movie? That will be horribly cumbersome, and an awkward way for future fans to view the series.
Why not a linear story? A future viewer should be able to start the series with The Hobbit without first having viewing the LOTR. The Hobbit can then seamlessly transition to the LOTR trilogy and voila! the pentology can be viewed chronologically in a straightforward pattern. And I think that the opening to FOTR would work, as it is a brief flashback fleshing out the mythology and will compliment the story, rather than 2 whole flashback movies.
Hopefully it will be limited to a narration, but from the spoiler it looks like this thing is going to be some stupid flashback in the middle of the LOTR trilogy . Not to mention I hate movies which are pointless in story in a story (i.e. as opposed to narration, the story really revolves around our protagonist having some dream / reading a book / etc, and ends when he him wakes up, or walks out the shower, or some such rubbish).
What you are talking about sounds like a reboot [In reply to] Can't Post
and that's the last thing I want. The Hobbit films should be prequels to the Lord of the Rings ones, and should maintain a strong sense of continuity with them. I think very few people would be happy if the director (Peter Jackson or anyone else) decided to throw out the trilogy and just start from scratch. That would only make sense if the trilogy was a huge critical and/or commercial failure � a good example would be the appalling Batman & Robin, which was rebooted into the excellent Batman Begins, complete with a new director and an all-new cast.
Two points [In reply to] Can't Post
Perhaps Jackson will re-edit the pentalogy into chronological order for the Ultimate Edition? The Hobbit bookends and flashbacks would be placed at whatever point they occur in the story (presumably somewhere amongst RotK's multiple endings). I think it could work.
The Red Book of Westmarch which Frodo is reading is actually Bilbo's memoirs, not a fictional book within the film or anything like that. The framing device is just a way to present a flashback. It's not going to be a metafictional dream sequence or anything like that!
Ataahua
Superuser / Moderator
Yes he did change his mind [In reply to] Can't Post
and he made that statement on TORN. You can find that post through the board's search function.
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron�s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded b*****d with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Ataahua's stories
I like the idea [In reply to] Can't Post
of Tolkien's work passing into the public domain and joining such classic, near-mythological stories as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The War of the Worlds, the Lovecraft mythos and so on. That would allow everyone to do whatever they like with the stories and adapt them in as many ways as they can imagine. What I don't like is the idea of Warners just going ahead and producing a remake of any of Jackson's films ten or twenty years from now. I don't want to see another version until the copyright has expired and Tolkien's legendarium becomes the property of humanity as a whole � just like any other self-respecting mythology!
So it takes Frodo [In reply to] Can't Post
to draw you out of lurkerdom, hmmm? *makes note*
Nice to see you here Swan Maiden. :)
Middle-earth I: The Phantom Hobbit [In reply to] Can't Post
I concluded some time ago, that the Hobbit would be best served if it were neither prequel nor sequel but dealt with as a worthy story onto itself. Now it appears that it will be turned into a cast reunion film in an attempt to protect the half billion dollar investment. This is very disappointing.
I'm just glad they won't swap Gollum with Jar-Jar. // [In reply to] Can't Post
Eruonen
My guess is that we could possibly see Ian Holm telling Wood [In reply to] Can't Post
about his youthful adventures (sometime before the LOTR) and then the movie cuts away.....
You said it, Macfalk... [In reply to] Can't Post
Jar-Jar is my least favorite non-villain character in all of moviedom.
I always envisioned Gandalf/Ian saying these lines (In a hole in the ground...)to open the beginning of The Hobitt movie as the first shot zeroes in on Bilbo's front door. I don't see how they could possibly have this saying now that Frodo is going to be in it as some sort of introduction to the movie/story in flashback?
BTW-I totally have the same feeling with you on the Galadriel opening to LOTR. I always thought they should have had the Ring Verse, either spoken or text (on the screen) as one of the first things as LOTR starts.
Boromir as the first ghost of Yules past.// [In reply to] Can't Post
That's exactly what I wanted. [In reply to] Can't Post
And I daresay some of the film purists would have been unhappy at first, but if it was done well, why couldn't it work?
I'm not as sold on the concept of The Hobbit being a "prequel" to LOTR anyway. It is a separate book, and it can stand on its own merits. It doesn't need to ride LOTR's coattails to be successful.
(Does anyone notice that I'm using the same arguments always given for why movie-LOTR could take liberties with book-LOTR and still be good? Hmmm??? )
What makes you so certain? [In reply to] Can't Post
Wezza needs the precious!
(This post was edited by Kangi Ska on Jan 7 2011, 8:45pm)
Audiences don't want excellent series to be rebooted. [In reply to] Can't Post
And that's what Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings is � an excellent series. There's no reason to alienate everyone who liked the trilogy (read: a lot of people) by disconnecting it from The Hobbit. Why should they deliberately reboot the series and give us a different-looking Bilbo, Gandalf, Shire, Rivendell, Dwarves, Elves, hobbits, orcs, trolls etc when all these characters looked perfect in the trilogy? It's not just 'film purists' (whatever that means) who would dislike this move: it's practically everyone outside of a very small purist minority.
I don't think I ever said that The Hobbit wasn't good enough to work as a stand-alone film. It does not 'need to ride LotR's coat-tails to be successful', but I see no reason to attempt the sort of segregation of the pentalogy that you're suggesting.
Drogo and Primula [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm surprised that no one has mentioned the potential ramifications of having Frodo in some way involved in the films (even as a narrator) and having his parents, Drogo and Primula apparently also involved in some way. I find it hard to believe that the two things will be completely unconnected.
Post #170 of 379 (223209 views)
Everyone? Who is this "everyone"? [In reply to] Can't Post
"Everyone who loved Peter Jackson's LOTR" maybe.
But what about those of us who only "liked" it? Or those who actively disliked it? Or those who haven't seen it and don't care what it was about but might be interested in a movie based on another great book by a great author?
Or, heck, the people who just like to see movies for the filmcraft?
I appreciate your point of view, Flagg, but I think you're presuming too much to speak for "everyone" or even to claim that you're the vast majority.
I don't think I'm being unreasonable. [In reply to] Can't Post
As I'm sure you're aware, Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films were released to great critical acclaim and commercial success, breaking box-office records, winning many prestigious awards and satisfying most fans of Tolkien's work.
I don't see why those that only 'liked' them would want The Hobbit to be reboot, set in a new continuity and with all-new actors. The same goes for those who haven't seen The Lord of the Rings, those who don't care about it, those who are mildly curious about an adaptation of a Tolkien book or those who appreciate good filmmaking. The only people who really want the series to be rebooted are those who disliked or hated the Peter Jackson films, and I suspect that they are a very small (albeit vocal) minority when compared to the masses who would be satisfied with a simple cohesive series taking place in one continuity.
(This post was edited by Flagg on Jan 7 2011, 9:18pm)
I'm sorry but [In reply to] Can't Post
This is simply a full load of hog wash. If you think PJ cares not about the works and is only concerned about financial gain you are simply lost in the woods friend. It's ludicrous.
Yes that occured [In reply to] Can't Post
to me after posting, and likely it occurred to others in this thread who think situating the tale near the end of ROTK is the way to go.
Statements have been made to the effect that when all is said and done TH and LOTR could be viewed as a continuous narrative in future. But I do not think that was meant to imply that the movies would be best viewed in the order the books were written or in a linear manner. It may be that the preferred order will be to view the original film (ie LOTR) followed by the prequel (ie TH) which is sometimes the case (for example Hannibal followed by Hannibal Rising or as seems to be the case with the two Star Wars trilogies).
This mirrors the way we experience many great stories... we happen upon a tale such as Tennyson's Idylls of the King and then seek out its source Le morte d'Arthur. I wonder how many LOTR fans read The Lord of the Rings after seeing the movies and then delved further back to The Hobbit and then perhaps even Beowulf?
But you raise a fair concern if this is the approach they (being them) adopt. Certainly the treatment of knowledge of the Ring would be a tricky element but not really a deal breaker. How often do we slip into nostalgia, fondly embracing a time when our understanding was simpler or our world view less jaded?
Yes it looks as if the Bridge Film is being reborn as a Wrapper for the Hobbit. [In reply to] Can't Post
I almost expect the farm hand scene from the end of the Wizard of Oz to be re-imaged. Gandalf, Aragorn and Gollem look down at Frodo regaining consciousness lying on the tarmac in front of The Green Dragon.
"You were there and so were you and you. There is no place like the Shire!"
I mentioned it, Voronwe [In reply to] Can't Post
See my post above.
I sincerely hope that we see them in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot of them holding baby Frodo, a la Bail Organa and his wife holding and smiling down at baby Leia,...but please God NOT a macabre re-enactment of them being "drownded". We don't need to see that. Bilbo already tells us that they died at the Party. We don't need to know how. Though knowing Peter that's just the sort of grisly thing he'd love to focus upon. But I don't want to see it, no thanks. Not even if it was indeed "Drogo's weight as sunk the boat"--that might sound humurous in print, but it's not amusing on the screen at all.
silneldor
You always make good sense Flagg [In reply to] Can't Post
and i feel the same way about Sam. If it cannot be Bilbo because of Sir Ian, it should be Sam's telling of the story to his kids. The time framing would feel much better as you say.
In one sense it does pulls on the heart that Frodo did after all traveled west across the sea and it would have been comforting to have him contribute such history to the shirefolk old and new. But it would have been very endearing to have Sam with all his children around him, even later in life. Perhaps they are using Frodo/Elijah because he is prettier lol.
Your Gandalf idea makes just as much sense.
''Sam put his ragged orc-cloak under his master's head, and covered them both with the grey robe of Lorien; and as he did so his thoughts went out to that fair land, and to the Elves, and he hoped that the cloth woven by their hands might have some virtue to keep them hidden beyond all hope in this wilderness of fear...But their luck held, and for the rest of that day they met no living or moving thing; and when night fell they vanished into the darkess of Mordor.'' - - -rotk, chapter III
May the grace of Manw� let us soar with eagle's wings!
In the air, among the clouds in the sky
Here is where the birds of Manwe fly
Looking at the land, and the water that flows
The true beauty of earth shows
With the stars of Varda lighting my way
In all the realms this is where I stay
In the realm of Manw� S�limo
Just to add -- already looking forward to [In reply to] Can't Post
dissecting the scene where we shift from Bag End as we left it to Bag End as it might have been at the beginning of The Hobbit.
With his patented weird angles and everything [In reply to] Can't Post
welcome back Sunflower.
I wonder how much GDT is really still involved in the script writing. [In reply to] Can't Post
-If at all anymore.
Haha [In reply to] Can't Post
I can tell you are just joking because you like the idea of Itaril... there's no way you're getting all negative about Frodo being included in TH. Right?
Thanks, silneldor � I appreciate it. // [In reply to] Can't Post
The script should be very close to completion by now [In reply to] Can't Post
All of the important writing decisions will have been made during the early days, when Guillermo was still in charge.
Most likely true, [In reply to] Can't Post
but how far down the rewrite chain does one finally say, yeaaah...maybe you should take my name off that, it's to far removed from where I wanted to go.
I think this whole approach is new. [In reply to] Can't Post
It really does not sound like the Guillermo del Toro i know and love. It also rubs against a lot of what was said earlier about the layout of the Hobbit films.
Going out on a limb here [In reply to] Can't Post
but this seems to be just the kind of brilliant approach GDT would come up with. Just saying...
Not necessarily so. 3-D is a big for instance.// [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm not saying I mind... [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm just saying that GDT's vision would most likely have been different from PJ's take on some things.
I would beg to differ. [In reply to] Can't Post
This is exactly the opposite. It is much more like pandering to the studio's desires, and we all know how GdT feels about that.
Not new [In reply to] Can't Post
Assuming that Mr. C knows what he is talking about (and I have never doubted that to be the case; quite the contrary) this is something that was in the works back when the four writers were writing the scripts. He says:
Rumors have suggested Wood is "in talks" to appear in the film but that isn't an issue as it very likely the role was discussed with the actor at the scripting phase of the films and he was agreeable to reprise his part then.
There is no way that this can be interpreted any way other than that this was the plan when the scripts were originally submitted, long before GdT left the project. Of course, we have no way of knowing (or at least Mr. C has not revealed) whether it was Jackson's idea, or GdT's (or FW's or PB, for that matter), but it is clear that all the writers signed off on it, including GdT
It may have escaped my attention [In reply to] Can't Post
but while it appeared that GDT wanted to remain true to The Hobbit proper, it did not seem like he was opposed to the idea of book-ending (or even peppering) it with elements from LOTR or the space/time between them. But maybe my read of his intentions -- someone I only "know" through this forum (if that even counts) and his commentaries -- is wide of the mark? Hence "going out on a limb."
Come to think of it, it is not entirely fair to say this is pandering to "the studio's desires." Even I am torn between seeing The Hobbit and seeing as many LOTR characters again as possible (and I should know better lol). Maybe that's why we call this place TORn?
Altaira
Please take this to PM if you must continue [In reply to] Can't Post
RosieLass is entitled to her opinion whether you agree with it or not. I'm sure she's not alone, and it doesn't take two, or two thousand, other people to make it valid.
Either way, please take this to PM if you want to continue, as you've both stated the same points several times now.
Koru: Maori symbol representing a fern frond as it opens. The koru reaches towards the light, striving for perfection, encouraging new, positive beginnings.
"Life can't be all work and no TORn" -- jflower
"I take a moment to fervently hope that the camaradarie and just plain old fun I found at TORn will never end" -- LOTR_nutcase
TORn Calendar
True dat [In reply to] Can't Post
I can't wait for the book G is free to write (and said he might write) after his NDA wears off.
NDA? [In reply to] Can't Post
Guessing Non-disclosure agreement. [In reply to] Can't Post
No wonder she wouldn't take it back / [In reply to] Can't Post
ah right... [In reply to] Can't Post
Can't be any more whiney then Sean-everythingwassoterrible-Astin's book.
One thing is for certain. [In reply to] Can't Post
Elijah Wood is going to be hounded by the press a bit more now. I wonder if he'll deny it or just say no comment?
He's pretty savvy and/or [In reply to] Can't Post
never far from his publicist. I saw him on Mad TV one time where a "correspondent" of their's was covering the premier of Happy Feet. The correspondent asked Elijah for a kiss but the publicist (off camera) said "NO!"
**Content advisory**: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Awjd_7Oco5g
Perhaps you are correct but there is new and NEW. [In reply to] Can't Post
and I guess my point is this. Looking at how GdT has structured the films he has made, this wrapping of the main story with a structure that is primarily aimed at bringing back LotR cast members does not seem like his idea. Of course there were three other writers who would be much more likely to like this direction and he would be out voted. I hate to say it but this could have been one more small reason for leaving the production. (I still think time was the primary motivation).
Her I would like to say that I do not believe that the story within a story structure is necessarily bad. It depends on how it is implemented and if it does justice to both plots.
and don't forget the slo-mo! [In reply to] Can't Post
A haunting shot of the two of them holding on and flailing in a beautiful last embrace, as they sink down and down, with an angelic light about their heads, Drodo looking especially majestic, and all set to Shore's poignant music--so the viewer can later tie it in with Sam at the end of FOTR.. "They're dying as martyrs--like Tuor and Idril giving life to Earendil, and then departing Midde-Earth!"
Sorry, Sir Dennic, I couldn';t help it.
Hola to you too--Yeah, I went away for a while--RL is like that. But I wrote a long Christmas mathom (look for it in the Mathom thread in OT) and posted a bit in the Holday Fiesta thread. Happy New Year! I missed everybody.
(This post was edited by Sunflower on Jan 7 2011, 10:51pm)
lurtz2010
Everything is different now [In reply to] Can't Post
...Not really. I never actually thought something like this would happen and just thought TH would be a stand alone movie but this could be cool. This will be the last MiddleEarth/PJ 'thing' ever so I say PJ should do whatever he wants. Wasn't the ROTK cartoon version done like this? I remember the story was told by the hobbits at the dinner table at Rivendell or something.
Both Kangi and I take exception to that appraisal [In reply to] Can't Post
and Ataahua too. And every Sean Astin fan. So yeah, you offended just about everyone on the planet.
Anyway, getting back to this thread, it is hard to say where this approach was born. If it is simply fan driven I do not believe that means GDT didn't sign off on it. What is clear from the release is that Wood (and anyone else who was handed a script (we can assume that includes Viggo)) has known for some time about it and there has been no discernible anti-PJ and co. outcry.
Props to Mr. Cere for being able to keep a secret so well!
Preach it sista! [In reply to] Can't Post
Yeah hopefully RED cameras are not slo-mo enabled.
Ah this has been a good thread to start the year with...
Forgive my ignorance, but [In reply to] Can't Post
what does NARF stand for?
NARF: Not a real fan. // [In reply to] Can't Post
They can do a bazillion frames a minute... [In reply to] Can't Post
Makes the bullets in Matrix look fast.
Many thanks.// [In reply to] Can't Post
Most things like that can be found at the TORNspeak dictionary [In reply to] Can't Post
Apologies... [In reply to] Can't Post
Sean did a great job as Sam. I just found his behind the scenes stuff a little whiney and self absorbed.
Sorry if i offended the Sean Astin fan club members :)
It was at dinner at Ozzie & Harriet's house [In reply to] Can't Post
if I remember right, and it ended with little Ricky Nelson singing "The Greatest Adventure".
Sam would have been a logical choice... [In reply to] Can't Post
I agree that it would make more sense for Sam to read from the book, and there's something so wonderfully circular about that idea. But Frodo was the central character of the LotR movies, so perhaps they've decided to use him to tie TH with LotR for that reason, no matter how awkward the time-frame is.
But whatever they do, I don't want it to be one big happy gratuitous hobbit reunion that distracts too much from Bilbo's story.
(This post was edited by The Party Tree on Jan 7 2011, 11:07pm)
They both have played Dracula, did you know?// [In reply to] Can't Post
-Pretty close. [In reply to] Can't Post
It was at dinner at Ozzie & Harriet's house with Ricky Nelson singing.
Did they play the same Dracula? [In reply to] Can't Post
That is to say, was Lee's Dracula film a sequel to Langella's Dracula film, or vice-versa? Or were they completely unrelated adaptations (reboots, if you like)?
Wait, what? [In reply to] Can't Post
and Ataahua too.
I haven't read the book and have no plans to because, although I think he's a darn good actor, if find Sean's point of view of the world tends to trigger my eye-rolling reflex. He wouldn't be my first choice as a dinner companion, let alone author.
LOL!! [In reply to] Can't Post
Not a Real Ardent Pure Fan. I'm laughing in reality at the moment.
You are fantastic, man.
Me too [In reply to] Can't Post
And I am not too picky as to who says it... so long as it is said. Doesn't seem right to start the movie without that famous line.
carrioncrow
torn [In reply to] Can't Post
hmm...having myself previously suggested a sort of 'Princess Bride' sort of narrator (in my scenario with Sean Astin's Sam Gamgee doing the Peter Falk-ish bits)...this may sound hypocritical ...but...this Frodo thing....I'm agin' it!
(This post was edited by carrioncrow on Jan 7 2011, 11:24pm)
mtsquad
The Hobbit or the Hen? [In reply to] Can't Post
*Y-A-W-N* I hear ya, but can't really care.
Oh! Your and you are now colored disappointed!
Book? Movie?
Movie? Book?
They don't match! Hmm ...
Yarp... [In reply to] Can't Post
He was a fine actor but you are right eye rolling is about the best way to describe it.
I always remember the story of the cast all going up on stage at the oscars after winning the last award and Sean Astin turns to Stephen Spielberg - Oh Stephen, I hear people talking about doing a sequel of the Gooneys. And Spielberg just stopped him dead by saying - Not now Sean.
Continuity [In reply to] Can't Post
I agree with Flagg. 5 films, one long story, continuity. In years to come, long after these discussions are forgotten, I want to reach into my DVD cabinet (or whatever I have at the time) and pull out the 5 film box set, open a bottle of wine and watch the whole thing through. If I run out of wine, I'll get more........
So it was you huh? When was your last visit to France? [In reply to] Can't Post
They can do a bazillion frames a minute... Makes the bullets in Matrix look fast.
It's bazillion and one frames actually, and how would you know that? Done a bit of quick burgling have you?
First RED EPIC Camera Stolen From Executive's House In France -Cinema Blend
It's time to collect my $100,000 reward!
(This post was edited by Pipe Dream on Jan 7 2011, 11:29pm)
Love him to pieces, but... [In reply to] Can't Post
Half the time I don't know whether to giggle or cringe during his interviews.
But I would argue that a lot of people in Hollywood are just like that, and at least he's honest about how egocentric he can be. And if any of that kind of attitude had anything to do with more screen-time for Sam, etc., that's fine by me.
*Points at Kangi....."Burn him!" [In reply to] Can't Post
Just kidding. But seriously, wouldn't that be too funny if they credit a letter by some anonymous fan in the appendices for why they did it this way?
"Alas for Boromir! It was too sore a trial!"
-Faramir
I think that's right [In reply to] Can't Post
I agree about not necessarily reading/watching in order. It's 'neater' but by no means essential.
I'm also in agreement about it not being a deal breaker. I'm probably biased in that I love the more in-depth aspects of Tolkiens work, so it's always more more more backstory for me. Showing some of the time period between the Hobbit and FOTR is a way for some of that backstory to be added, but I'm only one fan. There are many ways to tell the tale.
I'm new to this board, and find the posting method slightly strange, so apologies for addressing more than one point in a post:
re: reboots. I agree with Flagg. IMO, no need, and I think it would potentially spoil things. It's a huge risk, and I see no reason to take it.
re: Jackson's films. My guess is that the vast majority of Tolkien fans range from mildly happy to delighted with the LOTR films. I've talked to people who are annoyed at one detail or another, but those of us who grew up with Tolkien, and waited eagerly to see the Bakshi version in the 70s will realise what a fantastic job, overall, Jackson's crew did with these films. I do not expect TH to be markedly different.
Honesty the best policy.. [In reply to] Can't Post
I agree, he never seems to BS at all.
But to be honest I've seen other actors that seem very honest and yet in not egotastic.
But hey I'm not turning this into a I HATE SEAN ASTIN thread... It's all good... Peace and love !!!
Elijah Wood 10 years on [In reply to] Can't Post
I know there's alot of talk about Woods' "perpetually youthful" appearance...but it is nearly a decade on since principal photography of LOTR and he may not be so convincing back in the ole wig & feet....and before someone suggests "but CGI...", let me remind you we're (reportedly) talking about a narrator. If the creative minds on this movie ( THE HOBBIT let us not forget) are wasting time and money on making Frodo Baggins look 10 years younger, this project is shaping up as a (hopefully at least hilarious) fiasco.
So Frodo will probably end film 1 [In reply to] Can't Post
He'll close the red book and say "And that's the end of that chapter... We'll have to wait a while to get the rest of Bilbo's adventure as I'm too tired for today now who's up for some Longbottom leaf?"
"ME!" says Sam.
"I am!" says Pippin.
"Right here!" says Merry.
Roll credits
...or something like that.
Bringing back cast members [In reply to] Can't Post
I honestly don't see it as 'bringing back cast members'. Many of these characters existed at the time of the Hobbit, and the rest were born and grew up before LOTR. The two hobbit films will, I guess, be 6 hours or so in Theatrical versions, maybe 7 hours in EE. If Legolas gets a minute or two, a boy Estel at Rivendell, a flash of Balin at Moria, even a young Gimli, it would hardly detract from the vast bulk of the Hobbit at all, and could set up FOTR very nicely when watching the films as a set.
I love Sean [In reply to] Can't Post
to peices too, but I have to admit, I DID read his book, and I have to give him credit for not holding back and including stories of things he said that offended several people and for which he later repented. For instance, he came out in the press and was angry at Peter and Fran for the take of the famous Mount Doom sequence that made it to the screen. Peter did about 30 takes of the "Do you remember the Shire?" scene (OH GOD I still tear up just thinking of this), and Sean and Elijah got better and better as it went on. According to Sean, his best work, where he was the most emotional, was in the closing takes, but Peter ended up putting something around Take 15 in the final version, and Sean thought it wasn't good enough, he was po'd about it and splashed it all over the media. (Hard to believe that Sean could have been any better than THAT, remembering that scene, and I've always been curious ever since to be able to see Take 30...but the way I see it is, Peter wanted more of the "even as hope seemed to die in Sam, a new strength rose up in him, as if he were steel that could not bend or break" or however that phrase went, and he wanted to evoke that "sam finding new reserves of strength and defiance" look rather than a weepy and emotional Sam.
But for Sean it was a cop-out I suppose. For the life of me, after he experienced the audience reaction to that scene, I don't know what in heck he had to complainb about. Planet Earth was pretty much reduced to a puddle of mush by that scene, and it has become famous in modern film.
Then again, didn't he admit he was bipolar? Suppose it explains "I SO wanted to be up there!" (Oscars stage).
You have to remember too, that Sean more than any one of them, is a total creature of Hollywood. His parents wrre Hollywood royalty, and from an early age he was active in the biz. Most child actors who are in high-profile by the age of 10 end up screwed up in some way. On drugs, with busted relatiohips or whatever. I think considering all went through Sean turned out relatively well. GOing to an elite school for Hollywood progeny can't have helped matters either. Its a screwed up place. (Hollywood, not LA< I mean...sorry Ainu!)
Parts of the book shocked me, but he's past all that now. Nobody's perfect, and I forgive Sean his flaws.
(This post was edited by Sunflower on Jan 8 2011, 12:03am)
Except that, of all of those... [In reply to] Can't Post
the only one that could be a "returning cast member" is Orlando Bloom.
Obviously Viggo Mortensen can't play a 10-year-old boy (at least, not convincingly), and I don't see John Rhys-Davies as a young dwarf, either.
Did they show Balin at Moria in LOTR? I don't remember.
for what its worth [In reply to] Can't Post
here is a rough outline of what i had in mind from over a year ago:
A Hobbit, Master Samwise Gamgee (a respectable 102 years old), stands alone with the aid of a walking stick in contemplation in what appears to be a beautiful well tended garden in the midst of the glade where Frodo first appears in Peter Jackson�s FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING. (It is, in truth, now the gravesite of Sam�s wife, Rose Gamgee)
CUT TO: A few more scenes of morning in Hobbiton.
CUT TO: A "well-to-do" Hobbit is shown tidying up on the doorstep of Bag End and preparing to settle down and enjoy a "pipe of tobacco out of doors". This hobbit is Samwise Gamgee, Master of Bag End. His morning regimen is disrupted by an intrusion...several of his own grandchildren (including a young Holfast Gardner) and other children from the holes of the Lower Hill. Up to mischief or actually seeking Samwise for entertainment�a tale is called for�"Frodo of the Nine-Fingers"�no�here on the doorstep of Bag End on this morning it is the Tale of Bilbo and "The Road going ever on and on�" that Sam has in mind. Sam sits down with the children all around and begins the tale of Bilbo�s adventure with Gandalf and the Quest for Erebor�
The events of THE HOBBIT � CHAPTER 1 "An Unexpected Party" � PAGES 11-36
events of THE HOBBIT � CHAPTER 2 "Roast Mutton"� PAGES 37-43 up to the point where Bilbo steps into the firelight of the three trolls�"and this is what he saw�" One of the trolls turns from the fire to face Bilbo. It is a terrible creature just as full of menace as those trolls portrayed in Moria or the Black Gate of Peter Jackson�s LOTR�
CUT TO: A trembling hobbit child (Holfast Gardner?). The story has become a bit too intense for the young hobbit. Sam interrupts the tale to speak a word of comfort, pauses to consider�The story resumes, but now in a gentler (strictly PG-rated) tone more reminiscent of JRRT�s original HOBBIT as written. The tone of the Film will only slowly build back to the PG-13 intensity of Jackson�s LOTR films.
FADE BACK: The story picks up again at the trolls� camp. They are still threatening creatures, but now with intelligible speech and a slightly comic aspect to their character. Proceed with the story:
THE HOBBIT � PAGES 44-106
Sam�s presence as "THE NARRATOR" will be keenly felt from the point Bilbo finds the ring until Bilbo is reunited with the dwarves on the Mountain side. Perhaps we�ll hear the children shout out the answer to the riddles�
proceed with THE HOBBIT � CHAPTER 6 � PAGES 107-226
CUT TO: Sam looking into the eyes of the hobbit children. "�Going on from there was the bravest thing Bilbo ever did. The tremendous things that happened afterwards were as nothing compared to it. He fought the real battle in that tunnel alone, before he ever saw the vast danger that lay in wait�" Sam pauses and looks into the eyes of young Holfast. Holfast sets his jaw and nods deliberately as if to say "Yes. Go on." At this point the tone of the film has returned to the PG-13 level and intensity of Peter Jackson�s LOTR films. The image of Bilbo walking down the dark tunnel toward the light and heat of the dragon�s lair draws obvious parallels to Sam�s own experience at Mount Doom.
FADE TO: THE HOBBIT � CHAPTER 12 � PAGES 227-278
Gandalf, Balin and Bilbo settle down with their evening pipes outside the doorstep of Bag End.
FADE TO: Sam and the children sitting on the very same doorstep all those years later. It has changed little. It is now evening for Sam and the children as well. He finishes the tale and sends the children off to home and bed. Some reside at Bag End. Sam takes a moment alone to look at the stars. He recites a bit of his own poetry. As a few of the children enter the front hall of Bag End, Elanor (Sam�s eldest daughter) steps outside. She brings a satchel and Sam�s Elvish cloak. He has a moment with his daughter. A company of Elves comes around the hill on their way west to the sea. Sam has been expecting them. He heads off to join them with walking stick in hand.
Are you kidding? [In reply to] Can't Post
Where would Peter be without his beloved slo-mo? It's like Guillermo's tentacles.
(EDIT: I relaize how that sounds..oh GOD. Let me just say that those of you who are familar with Guillermo's portfolio know what I mean..it's like someone getting stabbed in every Jackson film.)
Ah, not knocking ya Peter. At least not yet. <g>. Sometimes that slo-mo made me cry.
I hope the threads get better--I can't wait for the Sir Ian confirmation thread myself.
Well yes [In reply to] Can't Post
But I did say 'before the time of LOTR' as well, and we don't know that that time period will categorically be excluded from these films.
The point I was making, though, is that there is nothing intrinsically wrong, imo, with using characters from LOTR in these prequels - Tolkien gives us immense detail on their whereabouts. Whether we see the same actor, or the character as a child with a different actor, it still serves the prupose of introducing the character into the five movies.
The only thing I would object to, as I said earlier, is if the character is shown with a major difference in story.
Sean Astin [In reply to] Can't Post
While I thought he was the coolest of the hobbits behind the scenes, for instance that "safety sam" part with helicopters was a lot of fun, I have also heard that his book is whiney. I have to read it myself though to form a better opinion.
But he'll always be Sam to me
This is a charming idea! [In reply to] Can't Post
Although it reminded me of the unfortunate fact that The Return of the King film didn't end with Sam living in Bag End.
But aside from that, I think that some way of bringing in those wonderful narrative lines that otherwise might not make it into the movie would be great, whichever hobbit they choose in order to do it.
(This post was edited by The Party Tree on Jan 8 2011, 12:16am)
The thought of being responsible makes me queasy. [In reply to] Can't Post
I can picture being stoned by frenzied fans of the book. I would probably join in. (Kangi hit himself in the head with a large stone.)
I've always wonderd about that. [In reply to] Can't Post
I don't remember the end of LOTR or appendices on this...but in the book, Sam does not live in Bag End? I know he did the first couple of years after his marriage, Frodo says "There's as much room in Bag End for as big a family as you'd wish for" and Sam does move in. But after Frodo departs?
He can certainly afford to keep Bag End, I imagined he returned well recompensed from Gondor. Did Sam's giving up Bag End come from his regret over losing Frodo--hard to stay in a place that reminds of of your best friend who "died"--or was it just good politics on the part of the Mayor of the Shire--hobbits can be tetchy about those who "returned from living in foreign parts" and it makes good political sense for Master Samwise to love to humbler dwellings? Or did he think Bag End was cursed...Hey I don't admit toknowing as much as you guys do.
Only Balin's tomb was shown // [In reply to] Can't Post
Lee did several Dracula & vampire films. [In reply to] Can't Post
Sam inherits Bag End and stays there in the book, but they must have just abandoned that whole idea in the movie [In reply to] Can't Post
They must have left that out of the movie for pacing reasons, but I honestly don't think it would have been that difficult to incorporate it. So I'm not sure what the movie-verse explanation is for him not living there (if there is one).
Wrong target [In reply to] Can't Post
you, Kangi and I are united in our outrage at the notion that any future book by GDT could be as whinny as Sean Astin's book (which I admit to only have skimmed at a local bookstore).
(This post was edited by SirDennisC on Jan 8 2011, 12:38am)
Not really [In reply to] Can't Post
as much as I like PJ's films so far, his signature techniques (which between us we outlined fully) have been over done.
Sadly, I have never been to France. [In reply to] Can't Post
But I LOVE French Fries (Even if they were not invented in France). As to the Camera...that would be a hard one to fence. I am sure each one is heavily documented.
I found the letter. I thought I had deleted it but It got saved on disk when I backed up My Doccuments [In reply to] Can't Post
Mr. Jackson,
I have been impressed with your work and especially enjoy your off tilt dark sense of humor.
Your postings on the Kong is King web site are fun and remarkably informative. I am 56 years of age and recall King Kong as one of my earliest TV experiences. I watched most of it from behind the couch. The Dino remake was a disappointment to say the least. I am looking forward to The King�s release.
I am also looking forward to what hopefully will come beyond. I am referring to the possible production of the Hobbit as a sequel to LOTR.
I am and have been a serious scholar involved in the study of Tolkein�s work since 1973. I will say up front that I enjoyed your version of the myth immensely. Every single person that worked on that project deserves congratulations and well done.
I recently attended the Fiftieth Anniversary Conference at Marquette University , Milwaukee WI, USA and became involved in discussions with several of the leading writer/experts on Tolkein�s work. There were a number of people there who had found their first taste of the Professor�s work in your work. There was a bit of mostly unspoken animosity toward these �movie people�. I approached a couple of the presenters during breaks and questioned them about their response to the films. I did this as by introducing myself as a �book & movie person. I detected a good deal of resentment in the responses I received.
�It�s a boy�s action adventure movie.� One man said. I pointed out that I had been involved with those fans that loved the films and that by far this group was made up disproportionately of women. His response was something to the effect that it was just a response to the �Hunks� cast in the leading roles. I actually laughed. These women are mostly in the age range of 30 to 60. Some had read the books, some had not: all of them are. He did not want to talk after that.
Some of the scholars fear that the popularization will diminish the stature of LOTR as literature. Some appear to be a bit possessive and don�t want to share. Others riled against �unnecessary� story changes that were made by the films. I spoke on behalf of the idea that, as the storyteller you gave your version of the myth, and it was not necessary to judge one against the other but to appreciate each for what it was. I truly thank you for the years of your life that you put into this film.
Last but not least I am writing to share an insight that you may or may not take to heart. It involves an Idea about a possible structure for the script� The Hobbit� as a sequel for LOTR. Please do not run shrieking into the woods. I am sure you get thousands of suggestions both good and bad but please hear me out.
You should maximize the connection to LOTR: this could be done by setting up the body of the story as a flashback. The story could start in the shire at the end of The War of The Ring and be introduced in several possible ways by one or another of the Hobbits. This beginning could incorporate some unshown part of the LOTR story line and include cameos by some or all of the original actors. This action sequence could lead into the Hobbit, which could come back around again to LOTR. I offer this only out a deep feeling of gratitude and strange feeling of kinship. It would be truly remarkable to hear from you, but I consider this letter a message in a bottle.
Yours in Fellowship
P.S. I belong to a chapter of the Tolkien Society here in Minnesota. (Barry Osborne�s home). We are screening the Extended trilogy (got the rights from New Line) on the big screen on New Years Eve for about 1300 of our friends and family. It will be fun. Wish you could be here. It would be a hoot.
Note: I clipped out addresses and I am now 62 so that dates the note. I also put the pertinent text in bold.
(This post was edited by Kangi Ska on Jan 8 2011, 1:41am)
Oh, well, [In reply to] Can't Post
in that you are indeed correct.
I would go so far as to say that 'whiney' is to Guillermo as 'cuddly and loving' is to Gollum.
If you wrote that letter then why are you dissappointed by this news? // [In reply to] Can't Post
As I said earlier: [In reply to] Can't Post
I have come to the opinion that the book can best be served by an adaption that makes it neither a prequel nor a sequel. I also said that I was ambivalent about the whole thing. It will all depend on how the story is handled. I am of two minds about a lot of things involved in the making of the Hobbit film. It really could go so many ways. I just do not want it to fail for stupid reasons like greed or ego. It will be harder to make great cinema with the play within the play structure, but it is possible.
Oh no, I agree completely [In reply to] Can't Post
Hollywood is completely nutty, and LA has it's less-than-savory areas, too!
While I want to enter the industry, there are many reasons why I want to be behind the scenes, not on screen, and I consider myself lucky that I was not born into the industry. It's really a hit or miss with childhood actors, and children born with parents in the industry.
However, I've met enough fans, and enough people in the industry, to know that both are eccentric in many similar ways... which is why I think I'll fit well, if I ever make it ;)
As for Sean, he was always... very blunt. Perhaps less humble than expected by society. But his heart seems to be in the right place, and that is all one can ask for.
So [In reply to] Can't Post
basically PJ will do exactly what he's been advised not to do, which is to remind us that the Hobbit is in fact a prequel.
I have a mixed feelings. I don't know. I love the Hobbit. I think we all Tolkien fans and LOTR movies fans don't necessarily need to be reminded what the Hobbit is.
respectfully disagree [In reply to] Can't Post
"Reading him talk about Tolkien's work so enthusiastically makes me doubtful of that single statement he made in that interview several years ago, when he said that he hated hairy feet or something like that. To be honest, I'd be even more inclined to trust del Toro with Tolkien's work than I would be to trust Jackson."
That's quite a statement. I think Peter Jackson went out of his way to let Tolkien be Tolkien. I guess we'll be playing the "what if" game for next two years..."Would GDT have been okay with _______________?" I guess I'm in the camp that was okay with GDT directing the Hobbit as long as Jackson was producing and screenwriting, but I wouldn't have been ok with GDT apart from Jackson, mainly for continiuity, but also because of their differences as directors. Jackson's films are bombastic and over-the-top. Jackson doesn't do subtle. I get the sense that he is a kid in a candy store and there's a sense of inbridled joy in the creating. The LOTR screenplays were surprisingly good-natured (from the director of Meet the Feebles it was a shock to me at least!) GDT excels also at what he does, but I don't know that I would implicitly trust him with the Hobbit. During the course of his posts here, on more than a few times, he would make remarks about what he believed was in the story that seemed gnostic and very different from anything Tolkien the Catholic would have intended. Even that statement about Plato's cave...it's just out of left field...I doubt Tolkien was doing anything platonic w/ Middle Earth...Lewis had more Plato than Tolkien and Tolkien loathed spiritual allegorizing. I didn't get the sense that del Toro got that. His posts were always laced with spiritual meanings that I didn't see as being compatible with Catholic Tolkien. With Jackson, I get the sense that he couldn't care less about overloading the films with spiritual meanings and would rather just tell a damn good story. Obviously they probably had their differences...but I'm not going to nitpick PJ's decisions because in my mind he's already proved himself. But then again, if we don't nitpick, this will be a dull 2 years >:-)
As far as GDT in Middle Earth, after The Hobbit, I would give him Children of Hurin and tell him to go wild. His natural sensibilities would be perfect for the story and he wouldn't have to worry about continuity because it takes place in a different age. I think he would be better than PJ at capturing Beleriand!
Gandalf to Balrog: "Why do I get the feeling you will be the death of me?"// [In reply to] Can't Post
Really? [In reply to] Can't Post
Peter has not always "been content to "let Tolkien be Tolkien" (shall I count the ways? Oh for that epic list by the Second Ager Angalacon The Black! And let others count the ways, ad nauseum!) . And I don't think he is prepared to be as faithful to Tolkien this time around either. Example that we know of already: Reports of Guillermo's reaction to re-reading the end of TH where Bilbo is unconscious through the Battle of Five Armies: he said in effect that that was such a fantastic, un-novel plotline, and "we musthave this in the film!"
Quick poll: how many of y'all beleive that Peter Jackson is going to have Bilbo waking up to find the Battle of Five Armies all over and he played no active part in it? Or is Peter going to go all Hollywood and have Bilbo take some Heroic Stand? Can you see Warner Brothers allowing that? The Big Action Scene and Our Hero gets no Money Shots?
And welcome to TORN!
If so, [In reply to] Can't Post
I find it curious that it wasn't corrected in the EE. A really striking bit of laziness on Peter and Co's part. And quite curious. Thanks for clearing that up!
Thanks for being understanding [In reply to] Can't Post
I had a friend from LA once, and she told me a bit about the town. I've never been to yr part of the woods and hope to go someday! I'd confess I'd love to do the whole Hollywood Tourist thing (even though I know that many historical landmarks are in parts of toen that now are no longer so great, sadly.)
And good luck! I remember you and yr art. I think you'll go far.
I'm afraid PJ will turn him into at least a bit of an "action-hobbit", sadly.// [In reply to] Can't Post
The couldn't have easily changed it for the EE, though. [In reply to] Can't Post
That would have involved changing the last shot of the movie. And it is beautiful and wonderful, and while I watch the movie I don't really think about how upset the change makes me.
really! [In reply to] Can't Post
Yes, Jackson made changes to the books...I remember HATING the decision to cut Saruman's death out of ROTK and (still think) the scouring of the Shire was vital to the story. I'm not arguing about changes...no matter the director, millions of changes will have to be made in a film adaptation. The question is...which changes will make the film better and more engaging while allowing the source material to shine? I guess the majority of PJ's changes didn't bug me. Although I remember posting here the day I found out Saruman would be cut from ROTK and overreacting...saying PJ just kissed the chance of getting an oscar goodbye. (Umm...guess I was wrong..;))
It's probably just me but GDT just rubbed me the wrong way. He always had a little spiritual lesson for us all. Hey, I love Pan's Labyrinth but the gnostic little fairy tale it opens with is about as un-Tolkien as it gets and GDT seems very earnest about his beliefs. Which is fine but I guess I never quite trusted him to keep them out of the Hobbit. So PJ made changes but he seemed to always find ways to get some of Tolkien's great lines in the film..even if another character said them. I guess I never trusted GDT not to replace Tolkien's lines with his own pithy spiritual comments. "Remember Bilbo, this world is an illusion, only spirit matters." I guess I would be less irked at Bilbo slaying orcs in battle than Gandalf espousing neo-platonist philosophy.
Maybe it's just because I've just sat through Dawn Treader, where some mediocre screenwriters tried to "improve" Lewis. Having cheesy "Faith and Family" lines like "We have nothing if not belief." And "sometimes you just have to believe in these things." Blech. Lewis would stab his own hand before he let it write any tripe like that. Still bitter from that experience, I'd trust PJ to make the changes that have to be made, keep the heart of things and not try to slip in his own viewpoint as much as GDT would.
is it that much of a stretch?? [In reply to] Can't Post
We'll get plenty of "action-hobbit" with the spiders in Mirkwood...by this time in the story is it really THAT much out of character? In the book, wasn't it told from Bilbo's POV? When he woke up the battle was pretty much over. You know that wouldn't fly in a big-budget adaptation...the ONE huge battle in the book goes unseen? I doubt PJ will have Bilbo on a white horse leading the army of men. He'll probably just slip on the ring and comically pick off orcs. Maybe he'll save a dwarf's life or something. By this point in the book it wouldn't be out of character at all.
A couple of questions: [In reply to] Can't Post
Just what do you refer to in your use of the term gnostic?
And to what do you refer in noting GdT's "little spiritual lesson"? Please elaborate.
I certainly hope not. [In reply to] Can't Post
They should at least retire to the Green Dragon for a few rounds and a dance.
... [In reply to] Can't Post
Gnostic = neo-platonist...material world an illusion, spirit is real. Lewis goes there with his "shadowlands" analogy and in the last Narnia book...somewhat. I've never seen Tolkien go there, and he sneered at any attempt to "spiritualize" his stories. There are many variations on gnosticism but they all seem to hold esoteric knowledge above sensory experience.
As for GDT's little spiritual lessons - how do I do a search of his posts..? I'l dig them up and give you examples if you want. In the quote above, he almost does with his Plato's cave analogy...i.e. Tolkien must go OUTSIDE "Plato's cave" and construct his world. If you know Plato's cave and what it refers to, baiscally he is saying that Tolkien must travel beyond the illusion of his senses and construct Middle Earth. That's GDT's point of view, but I don't share it. I don't particularly want to go dig up old posts but I remember wincing a lot reading his posts because of these spiritual viewpoints he presents as "just so."
Balin's tomb [In reply to] Can't Post
The fact that only Balin's tomb was shown in the LOTR films is, for me, one of the greatest hints for the need for some 'bridging work' to be done in these new films. If the story of the Hobbit is stuck to rigidly, we see a major character from the first two films ending happily then suddely turning up dead in the third film, in a different location hundreds of miles away with no explanation. I don't think Jackson et al will do that.
Some 'filling in' of the time period between the end of the Hobbit and FOTR is inevitable, I feel. I'm fairly certain that's where the Drogo stuff fits, and would not be surprised to see other stuff there as well as the Balin stuff.
Best example... [In reply to] Can't Post
Of Peter's techniques being over used is in King Kong. Where Jack Black tells Adrian Brody the name of the Island they are heading to... that scene is so over the top I cringe and laugh at the same time...
Why not run with the book version? [In reply to] Can't Post
I have no idea which post to reply to, so I've picked one at random.
I don't see why a pre-LOTR events sequence including Frodo at the beginning of TH couldn't be made to fit. In the book, Bilbo tells Frodo the true story of the ring soon after he arrives at Bag End, as Frodo tells Gandalf in "A Long-Expected Party". The Red Book is partly written at the time of LOTR because Merry has read about the ring prior to Frodo's flight.
For continuity in the movie-verse one could have it that as Frodo and Bilbo are planning the said Party, Bilbo sits Frodo down, pulls out the ring and says words to the effect of "It's time you knew the truth".... cue story. This would also then set up Frodo and Gandalf's opening scene in Fellowship, where Frodo comments that Bilbo is up to something, and that Gandalf knows about it. An idea that Gandalf then relays back to Bilbo. Okay, so everyone's 10yrs older, but it's not impossible.
UPDATE [In reply to] Can't Post
UPDATE: Less than 24 hours after Deadline suggested that Elijah Wood would be returning, ComingSoon.net has received confirmation from the actor's reps that Wood will indeed be returning and that he's confirmed to star in the film. They've also informed us that Wood and comedian Eddie Izzard will be starring in the SKY TV mini-series based on Robert Louis Stevenson's literary classic "Treasure Island," playing Ben Gunn. It will be directed by Steve Barron, who directed the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as well as some of the classic music videos of the '80s including "Video Killed the Radio Star."
Earlier, TheOneRing.net suggested that Wood, at least, is a near certainty and offered some spoilers as to how his appearance is planned to play out, which you can read about by clicking here.
Read more: UPDATE: Elijah Wood Confirmed for The Hobbit - ComingSoon.net http://www.comingsoon.net/...=73066#ixzz1ARCdMtcP
The bridge film is dead. [In reply to] Can't Post
Now we are going to set a Lord of the Rings stage on which to play out the story of The Hobbit. If the wrapper gets too big the story at the center will be diminished. I really want the Hobbit's heart and soul. The wrapper is just gloss. It is nice but it does not have to be there. The Hobbit is enough.
Guillermo's tentacles are only an ugly rumor. // [In reply to] Can't Post
Now we know who is replacing Bard for the killing of Smaug! [In reply to] Can't Post
I just don't know how they are going to work out the time line, but I am sure they will have thought of something. Also if all else fails they can always ignore the discrepancy.
I know the bridge film is dead [In reply to] Can't Post
But there are still stories that need to be bridged. Just because we are not getting a 3 hour film on the time between TH and FOTR, does not mean we will be getting nothing.
I did not say that such events would not be drug in. [In reply to] Can't Post
I said that they are not necessary. I also said that the more unnecessary events that get drug in the more "The Hobbit" is diminished. The Hobbit is not a chapter in the Lord of the Rings. To force it to become one misses entirely what the book is.
Balin [In reply to] Can't Post
Do you think the story of Balin is unneccessary (see my point above)?
Bridge film is dead, but [In reply to] Can't Post
The bridge-material is somewhat (?) alive. If you would believe the reddit chap, we have expanded Gollum material and that kind of stuff. Like other Im hoping for some dwarf-bridging (like backstory on Moria)
The telling of the failed effort to colonize Moria by Balin & company [In reply to] Can't Post
is not necessary for the telling of The Hobbit. If it had been I am sure the Professor would have included it. The existance of Aragorn in the guise of Estel at Rivendel is not necessary to the telling of the Hobbit. Even the action of the White Wizards against the Necromancer does not need to be elaborated to tell the story of the Hobbit. Any and all of these things may be included in the Hobbit movies but they will not add to the story that Tolkien wrote and published as the Hobbit. However the additions may serve other ends that some (but not all) might deem desirable.
FarFromHome
It seems like a deliberate change to me [In reply to] Can't Post
Sam never moves into Bag End in the movie, perhaps because in the few scenes they had to work with, they wanted to show Frodo alone and withdrawn ("How do you pick up the threads of an old life?"), wandering around in that empty, echoing, unnaturally tidy Bag End.
I figure we're meant to imagine that the Sackville-Bagginses inherit Bag End after Frodo leaves, and that Sam never gave up his simple life as a gardener or his humble hobbit-hole. There's a certain bitter-sweetness to that, really - different from Tolkien's imagined rise in social status for Sam and family, but then Sam never takes over from Frodo as the "true hero" of the story in the film as he does in the book. And the social status thing is much less important in the films anyway - Sam doesn't need a big imposing home to show he's grown in stature, I think it's that moment when he leaves the other hobbits and goes up to make his move on Rosie that tells us he's not the shy, retiring hobbit he used to be!
They went in, and Sam shut the door.
But even as he did so, he heard suddenly,
deep and unstilled,
the sigh and murmur of the Sea upon the shores of Middle-earth.
From the unpublished Epilogue to the Lord of the Rings
Kangi [In reply to] Can't Post
Admit it, your fanfic part of the brain wants this, and more
I am not trying to champion a purist approach to the Hobbit. [In reply to] Can't Post
I just want to make the point that this is the Hobbit and not Lord of the Rings chapter one. It deserves some respect. Saying that Elijah Wood will star in the Hobbit (as I have read on several websites)makes my concern clear. There are those that hope for that which I fear most. i want The Hobbit. I can accept a bit of nostalgic framing to set it up and a bit of background story to make it even more meaningful but only a bit. If the set up and background becomes the story then I will not live to see the Hobbit done justice on the big screen.
I want the heart and soul of the Hobbit. A little frosting is OK, but only a little.
Balin in Moria not necessary for the Hobbit [In reply to] Can't Post
True, but most definitely IS necessary for the films to make sense as a quintet. Galadriel is not necessary for the Hobbit, but has been cast. Drogo has been cast, not in The Hobbit. We never see or hear Radagast in The Hobbit, but a well known actor has been cast. We know these things. It's clear that we are going to be seeing more than just the Hobbit story, and, imo, the reason for that is to tell the whole story over 5 films. I cannot see that these two new films will only tell the Hobbit story. In fact, It's obvious that they won't by the castings.
Jackson et al made the first three films for people who have, and have not read the books. Balin going to Moria may not need to be explained for the Hobbit story per se, and not for readers of Tolkien's works. For the movies though, that has to be explained. It makes no sense otherwise.
It's pretty clear to me why the bridge film concept was abandoned, but it was abandoned as a film. I think some of that material will still be included, and the castings support that.
(This post was edited by Bran on Jan 8 2011, 12:03pm)
The letter I quoted in an earlier post was from the fanfic part of my brain. [In reply to] Can't Post
Seven or so years of thought has helped the hormones settle and self examination mellow my desires.
It would take one line of dialog [In reply to] Can't Post
added to the final scene of the book (You know where Balin and Gandalf visit Bilbo at Bag End some years after Bilbo's return) to completely set up the Moria colony. Balin says: "By the way me and some of the boys are going back to Khazad-dum to set up shop."
Let's agree to differ! [In reply to] Can't Post
Perhaps film-Frodo liked to live alone [In reply to] Can't Post
and Sam moved in to Bag End shortly following the end of the third film? But not the Sackville-Bagginses... no!
There's an easy solution to this [In reply to] Can't Post
At some point in The Hobbit, while the Company is travelling, Balin walks alongside Bilbo and they start chatting. This will help to establish Balin as Bilbo's best friend amongst the Dwarves. They end up discussing what they want to do with themselves once they get their share of Smaug's treasure (reminding the audience of the film's purpose). Balin mentions that he'd like to take a colony of Dwarves and restore the abandoned underground city of Khazad-d�m to its former glory.
There's no need for Balin to mention this in the scene at the very end of the second film where he and Gandalf visit Bag End � The Hobbit shouldn't end on such a downbeat note reminding us that there is plenty of death and failure to come.
I agree with that [In reply to] Can't Post
Flagg, the point about the 'end' of film 2. In the original film appendices, the film makers talked about why they couldn't put the Saruman scene after the End of Helm's deep. In essence, it's more story after the film has ended, and that's a bad idea. I'm not sure how, but any exposition leading us into film 3 (FOTR) may well have to be done earlier. It's certainly interesting to speculate how that will be achieved.
I wouldn't say [In reply to] Can't Post
that Jackson 'went out of his way to let Tolkien be Tolkien' � he did quite a good job of keeping the films faithful to the books, but many changes were made that were not needed, some of them very un-Tolkien. I think Jackson's trilogy is excellent � perhaps even a masterpiece � but it is by no means a perfect adaptation of the books. We've already seen three Jackson-directed, Jackson-scripted, Jackson-produced Tolkien films, and I was quite excited to see something somewhat different � I was not only OK with the GdT/PJ team, I was highly enthusiastic about it. I would have been just as enthusiastic if del Toro had been given free reign and allowed to go crazy with The Hobbit � perhaps even more enthusiastic. I don't get why people often say they want Jackson to direct 'for continuity' � they seem to have a different definition in mind for the term than I do. If the characters are all portrayed by the same actors, and if the returning sets and props and costumes all look the same as they looked before, that's continuity. Different storytelling techniques or camera angles don't break the cohesion of a fictional universe.
I think you are misinterpreting del Toro's statements regarding Tolkien's work. He did not say that Tolkien was a neo-platonist or that he used spiritual allegory; he was comparing Tolkien to the man in the story of the cave. By the shadows on the wall, Tolkien was able to sense an other world � what he himself called the 'secondary universe' � beyond the mundane reality to which we are all confined. Del Toro's comments related to the magnitude and quality of Tolkien's writings, not to their spiritual or allegorical significance. He made a number of other statements in the quote I posted, reflecting his deep knowledge and familiarity with the myths Tolkien drew from. He expresses what I think is a genuine understanding of The Hobbit's core themes � greed, war, hoarding, the loss of innocence � not platonism and Catholic allegory!
I have no doubt that Guillermo would have produced an astounding rendition of The Hobbit � I don't think I'll ever completely get over his departure. But one thing I totally agree with you on is The Children of H�rin...
Hi Ataahua!! *waves* [In reply to] Can't Post
I emerge from the dark caves of Lurkdom...pale...wide-eyed...and ready for redemption
According to what Frodo is writing in the Red Book in those final scenes... [In reply to] Can't Post
...Sam was elected Mayor, all the same (I'm not absolutely sure on this because his arm is covering the book, but it seems to say):
"Samwise Gamgee was elected...[hand blocks page]
...Hobbiton, and though it took [???]
courage, he finally asked [???]
of fair Rosie Cotton [etc]."
Although I suppose that was just a little added gift to book fans and we shouldn't read into it. But I can't really accept the Sackville-Bagginses living in Bag End. That's just too much.
(This post was edited by The Party Tree on Jan 8 2011, 4:12pm)
I was pointing out that many of these side issues can be taken care of inside the story of The Hobbit. [In reply to] Can't Post
No need for time eating side trips when a bit of good writing takes care of the whole process. I only picked the books end scene because it exists and could be used as an example.
"Star" in the film? [In reply to] Can't Post
I'd hope that by 'starring' they mean 'maybe 5 minutes of screentime'. Because, well, the Hobbit stars Bilbo. I don't mind if it co-stars Gandalf with the whole White Council/Dol Guldur debacle, but... I hope that the 'future' scenes are limited.
I think and hope [In reply to] Can't Post
... the references to Elijah Wood 'starring' in The Hobbit are just a bit of lazy journalism which started with someone who knew nothing of the books and assumed 'hobbit' = 'Frodo', and repeated by others.
I can't conceive of any way in which Frodo could have a starring role in these films - that's Bilbo's job.
The way it works: [In reply to] Can't Post
Any named cast appearing before the proper credit crawl -- sorted by size or importance of role and/or by seniority -- would rightly be described as "starring" in a film. Usually we see big names with small roles included at the end of the list following the words "and" or "and featuring." Likewise when a relatively unknown or young actor has a big part their name usually appears at the end of the list after the words "and introducing." Regardless, if they are listed before the crawl, they are a star of that work.
Don't quote me of course but no matter the size of his role, Wood is entitled to the descriptor "starring in" or "star of" because of his status, seniority, and/or the contribution he has already made to the franchise.
In common usage (ie among fans), if he is just one of many named cast members we might refer to him as "a star of The Hobbit movies." However, if his part is small, tangential, or otherwise insignificant we might call him "featured" or in "cameo" both of which acknowledge his star status. Conversely, even in common usage he would never (correctly) be called a "featured extra" or "extra."
dormouse [In reply to] Can't Post
Yeah, a lot of newspapers/sites are just recycling the same thing all over again.
I'd forgotten that Sam becoming Mayor [In reply to] Can't Post
is in the movie's Red Book. It's true it's just a glimpse, but I figure if it's there it must mean something...
But Sam doesn't need to move into Bag End to be Mayor - it's more important, I'd say, that he starts to take charge in the way that we see him doing when he goes to talk to Rosie. Once he's taken that one courageous step, he's on his way to greater things.
But I can't really accept the Sackville-Bagginses living in Bag End. That's just too much.
Well we're never told that, so no need to accept it! I know a lot of people have made up endings that suit them better, such as Sam finding the deeds to Bag End inside the Red Book, and moving in after the end of the movie. I guess it's left open enough that we can imagine whatever we like.
I suppose I I imagine it different ways depending what mood I'm in, but I think it's quite possible to imagine that the Sackville-Bagginses got Bag End. Sam's reward is his happy family, and I think they'd be just as happy in that cosy hobbit-hole as they would in Bag End. But I bet Mayor Sam shook up those smug hobbits, like the S-Bs, the Proudfeet, and the hobbits with the pumpkin, once he got to be Mayor!
case in point... [In reply to] Can't Post
There were choices PJ made that I probably would pulled the trigger on, yet he backed off because it wasn't true to Tolkien. The case in point is your avatar! If I were directing I would have done it! To have Sauron come out at the end like that...I would have done it. I'm surprised PJ stopped himself. Same with Arwen at Helm's Deep, etc.
I don't know...I guess it's just when GDT waxes philosophical it's like listening to Bono talk about world peace. For me at least. I guess my sensibilites just naturally lean toward a Peter Jackson. I like GDT in smaller doses.
What irks me is what seems like a measuring rod on this board - "Would GDT have signed off on this?" I don't necessarily think the standard for validity is GDT's opinion. He's entitled to it, but I trust Peter Jackson. That's what my posts are responding to. The unspoken assumption that GDT signing off on something makes it legitimate.
According to the EE appendices [In reply to] Can't Post
Jackson removed the 'Aragorn vs Sauron' fight because using fourteen-foot bad guys in suits of armour as the climax for an entire epic trilogy just didn't work very well. He didn't remove that sequence out of a sense of loyalty to Tolkien � if that was the reason, it never would have made it past the storyboards. Once the battle had been filmed and intercut with the Cracks of Doom sequence, the filmmakers saw that it simply wasn't working very well, so they digitally replaced Sauron with a mountain troll.
let me check [In reply to] Can't Post
Ok - let me check the appendices on that point. I specifically remember the words being said "It just wasn't Tolkien" but I'll defer if it's not there. I thought they said it was because they didn't want everything Frodo went through to hinge on a battle between Aragorn and Sauron, because that was anti-climactic, trivialized Frodo's sufferings and wasn't Tolkien.
I think the other reasons [In reply to] Can't Post
(that it was anti-climactic and that it trivialised Frodo's quest) were probably more influential in the decision to cut that sequence than the fact that it wasn't very Tolkienesque. There are plenty of aspects to the films that are very unlike Tolkien's writings.
question [In reply to] Can't Post
Any film will be very unlike Tolkien's writings. Just so I have a sense of where your coming from, what changes would you have made/reversed to make the films better?
exact quote... [In reply to] Can't Post
"It was not what Tolkien imagined, and we realized that was actually totally demeaning to what Aragorn was doing."
Well [In reply to] Can't Post
There are plenty of newly-added sequences in the films that I just didn't want, such as Aragorn falling off a cliff in The Two Towers, apparently dying, then turning out to be okay after all. I would have significantly decreased the length of the Battle for Helm's Deep, because in retrospect, having seen the whole trilogy, it seems like Minas Tirith-lite. Jackson's Faramir was a very different character than Tolkien's � that change didn't bother me personally, but many people hated it. Much criticism has also been levelled at Jackson's reworking of the Shelob sequence, which has Gollum manipulating Frodo into sending Sam packing. There was the simplification of previously complex characters like Saruman and Denethor. And of course there's the very unsubtle, physical, gigantic flaming eyeball attached to the top of Barad-d�r. I also missed the Scouring of the Shire, which Tolkien himself said was a necessary and integral part of the story.
I would have reversed (or at least reconsidered) all of the above if I had been in charge � some changes go against the spirit of what Tolkien wrote, and some I just don't like. On the whole, I am very happy with what Jackson did with the trilogy � but I still wish we were getting a different director's take on Middle-earth for once.
Well they were hardly going to say something like [In reply to] Can't Post
'We filmed the whole sequence, then realised it looked silly so we decided to cut it.' Why would they, when they can give a reason that makes them sound concerned about staying close to the book? I think this is a bit like that time they fired Stuart Townsend 'because he was too young'. These explanations shouldn't always be taken at face value.
But sometimes they should [In reply to] Can't Post
These explanations shouldn't always be taken at face value.
The quote Mooseboy posted is hardly the only instance of PJ, Phillipa, Richard Taylor and many others associated with the LOTR movies talking about the care they took to 'get back to Tolkien.' Taken in the context of all the other instances, I think it *can* be taken at face value.
Did they sometimes stray outside of what Tolkien would have done? Of course they did. I don't think anyone can argue that they didn't. Still, I think for every instance where they made significant changes, there are many more where they took the greatest care they could to be as true as they could to the books.
I meant no disrespect to them [In reply to] Can't Post
but I think if the scene they filmed with Aragorn and Sauron had turned out really fantastic, then they would have included it in spite of its differences from the books. Faithfulness to Tolkien was probably a factor in the decision, but I don't think it was the only one.
Lets also not forget [In reply to] Can't Post
That they were trying to make the best movie they could. And there are some excellent and integral parts of Tolkien's books that just don't work as well in a movie. The scouring of the shire is a great example of this. It's one of the most potent chapters in the book, to have Frodo come back from the cracks of doom to find the same evil has come even to the shire.
But it would kill the movie. Especially a movie that necessitates a lot of endings as it is - lots of plot to tie up etc, to have the Scouring left in would have been very anticlimactic.
In so many situations any attempt to transfer Tolkien to the screen must be purchased with some amount of unfaithfulness to the text. It's usually only the geography, and the "iconic moments" that can remain exactly as Tolkien described. And even then everyone's imaginations work differently.
I'm not too worried. Jackson and co seem to try and be as faithful to Tolkien as possible while keeping priority number one making the best movie possible. That compromise worked well enough for me for the trilogy.
The only way Scouring of the Shire could have worked: if LOTR would have been made as a TV-series with 1 hour long episodes, so it could have an episode of it's own.
I concur [In reply to] Can't Post
Reading your post I realize that Jackson's LOTR is the one thing in this world that I am a complete fanboy about. At the time though, I remembered cursing him for not leaving in Saruman's death and the mouth of Sauron...but looking back, I wouldn't change the films at all. I would LOVE to see another director take on Tolkien in the future but I can't say I'm disappointed he's doing the Hobbit. Having Frodo at the beginning of the film doesn't bother me personally...it would be great to see GDT take on Bereliand but I doubt the Tolkien estate would allow it...
Sam and his family were [In reply to] Can't Post
only visiting the Gaffer at #3 Bagshot Row at the end of Return of he King. They lived up on the hill in Bag End.
Oh, well, welcome to TORn then Bran [In reply to] Can't Post
as for keeping things in order, near the top right of your screen you will see a button that either says "View Flat Mode" or "View Threaded." Click on it if it says "View Threaded" and the thread will change to a branch-like set up. In Threaded mode, though you can only see the content of one post at a time, you can see the direction the main thread (conversation) and side discussions are going. It is also easier to target your replies so they are more likely to be read by the member whose post you are commenting on.
In short, Flat Mode sorts the conversation by date and time while Threaded sorts posts into linear conversations and it's tangents (aka asides, side discussions, sub-threads) such as this one
In both Threaded and Flat Mode if you are not sure who is responding to whom you can trace a comment to the post that inspired it by clicking the blue "In reply to" tag next to the subject line (aka post heading).
Hint to Bran: [In reply to] Can't Post
Flat mode is better.
yes yes yes! [In reply to] Can't Post
I love that idea!
Except, he would have read riddles in the dark, and isn't he fairly clueless about where the Ring comes from until Gandalf fills him in? (someone with better movie knowledge, or book knowledge, please fill me in!)
Also, what about the white council stuff?
Love the tie-in idea though!
No-no Threaded always! [In reply to] Can't Post
Ardam�r�
don't like it [In reply to] Can't Post
I absolutely hate this idea. I would have been fine with seeing Frodo in a sort of epilogue, but not this. I would so much rather that the two hobbit films be set in the present and stand on their own feet, not be forced to be seen through the lens of LOTR. I'm all for connecting the two stories, but this just seems like a gratuitous way to shove cameos into the hobbit.
Frodosfriend
Well this changes everything [In reply to] Can't Post
I don't know if I like this news or not, it gave me a knot in my stomach so maybe I'm not too keen but I guess I'll learn to like it. As good as it will be to see Frodo again I always imagined these movies to be stand alone. I really hope the whole movie isn't narrated by Frodo or anyone else. Oh well bring on the next big news.
Ruijor
Call Guiness World Of Records! [In reply to] Can't Post
as this is turning into a hyper-casted kind of blockbuster as never seen before!
Thanks Silverlode [In reply to] Can't Post
I am angered easily by naysayers. I trust PJ and Weta's filmmaking abilities on the same level that I trust Tolkiens writing abilities. And therefore, i trust their decisions.
and I also think that by tying the Hobbit movies with LOTR they have a great chance of enhancing the story and making Bilbo's journey more powerful than it is in the book. I always thought that Jackson's greatest strength as a filmmaker is foreshadowing and creating a sense of inevitable doom, so I rather can't wait to see what he does with the one ring in the Hobbits.
*runs away and hides*
(This post was edited by LoremIpsum on Jan 9 2011, 8:02am)
If that's not Sam's own door closing [In reply to] Can't Post
at the very end of the movie, I think the sense of bittersweet homecoming expressed in the words "Well, I'm back" would be lost. To me, whether or not Sam inherits Bag End is secondary to the knowledge that he "inherits" the life that Frodo's sacrifice has bought ("...you have so much to be, and to do. Your part in the story will go on.") The last scene is about coming home, and starting to live that life.
I can imagine that Sam found out after this that Frodo had left him Bag End, but reading the scene as if he already lived there, and that when he closes the yellow door he's not in his own home, would just spoil the scene for me.
14 foot bad guys [In reply to] Can't Post
They may come up against that same problem again, depending on how and if the cover Dol Guldur.
Aragorn and the cliff [In reply to] Can't Post
I never bought the reasons for Aragorn falling from the cliff either. There was no need for it, and I didn't like it. I didn't particularly like some of the Legolas stuff either, particularly the snowboarding, and JRD's Gimli grated at times, especially the Dwarf tossing and swimming nonsense.
SirDennis, Macfalk [In reply to] Can't Post
Thanks for that. I've tried the various formats, but still struggle. I don't want to come on and start criticising, it's fine. It would be nice if there was a 'quote' option, so it's immediately clear who one is responding to, or indeed a 'multiquote' option, which I would have used in responding to you both at the same time, but I can live with it.
I've lurked for many years, btw.
For anyone who's interested, I live in Wales and, spend my summers in Dale. The real Dale!
Tying in The Hobbit with LOTR [In reply to] Can't Post
Tolkien himself did this, don't forget. He originally wrote the Hobbit as a stand alone book, then went back and changed it so that it fitted in with LOTR. He then went further, in The Silmarillion and Unfinished Tales, to explain how the events in the Hobbit came about, and explained what went on to make them happen.
Whilst it is clear that the story originally started out as a single tale, it's very, very clear that Tolkien saw this tale as part of the whole picture, one piece in the jigsaw puzzle. To my mind, it's absolutely fine to replicate that in the films.
and then... [In reply to] Can't Post
and then he wisely gave up on trying to make THE HOBBIT something it wasn't. The End.
Well he didn't need to [In reply to] Can't Post
Having altered the Hobbit from the original, and then added to the story in LOTR, UT and TS, the tale was complete.
You are free to believe what ever you want as am I. [In reply to] Can't Post
Bag End belonged to Sam & Family at the end of the book and I like it the way The Professor told it much better than PJ's revision.
"And so it was settled. Sam Gamgee married Rose Cotton in the Spring of
1420, which was also famous for its weddings, and they came and lived at Bag
End. And if Sam thought himself lucky, Frodo knew that he was more lucky
himself; for there was not a hobbit in the Shire that was looked after with such
care. When the labours of repair had all been planned and set going he took to a
quiet life, writing a great deal and going through all his notes."
Not so much belief as a matter of perspective -- [In reply to] Can't Post
It is established that Lady FarFromHome's knowledge of the books is firm and her observations on Tolkien's work often profound.
However, if I may go out on a limb once more, her perspective seems to be that it is important that the movies remain true to themselves, regardless of any deviation from Tolkien's written version of events. I might add, this perspective seems to be shared by many around here.
But you are correct that we are all entitled to our own beliefs. It is interesting how both works (PJ's and Tolkien's) spark our imaginations, wondering about and filling in gaps before, during, and after the tales are told.
I wish there was a like option like facebook [In reply to] Can't Post
because I would like the hell out of your post Bran!
I've hung out on TORN for long enough to know the very loud dissenting opinion of fans of The Hobbit who are mad that the film won't be a stand alone story like the book is. They are worried that the filmmakers or the *evil* studio are trying to piggyback The Hobbit onto the shoulders of the trilogy for more $ or whatever but that doesn't hold much weight with me.
The fact is that The Hobbit is not a stand alone story anymore - in any form. Even the book has been altered since it's 1937 publication and the story has been absorbed into the amazing mythos of Tolkien's universe.
To not bring this into the movies would be a huge mistake - it makes the story even more epic and it allows for a more grown up tone to the whole thing.
They are still telling Bilbo's story - the casting clearly proves this - but they are going to do it in a way that brings more of Tolkien's Middle Earth to life!
If you want a faithful stand alone Hobbit movie watch the Rankin Bass cartoon - it's actually still pretty good even after all these years! (Even without Beorn)
But we have two years to wait and it's clear as a button now that Jackson and co are making The Extended Hobbit (if you will) so I wonder how much longer we're still going to be hearing the fan backlash of "I wish they hadn't" - hopefully not for the whole two years!
Bag End [In reply to] Can't Post
In the 'Tale of the Years' Sam is still living in Bag End. There's a passage which mentions him riding out from there to go to Gondor to see Aragorn. I also thought there was a passage somewhere which refers to Frodo giving Sam the keys to Bag End, although I cannot for the moment remember which text it is in. It may even be in a version in 'The History of Middle Earth'.
I think that was in Sauron Defeated [In reply to] Can't Post
It was a sort of epilogue chapter that Tolkien cut from Return of the King, if I recall correctly.
Quite possibly [In reply to] Can't Post
I get confused, especially after reading 'The History of Middle Earth'. I thought I recalled a paragraph or two about Gandalf explaining his thoughts behind killing Smaug to prevent Sauron using him, but I cannot find where I read that either!
That was The Quest of Erebor [In reply to] Can't Post
from Unfinished Tales.
"Naysayers" [In reply to] Can't Post
This is more or less a reply to you agreeing with you--but I'd like to address our new friends like Bran, Nob, Arda etc
Some of us are not "naysayers" as much as merely VERY concerned, and there are good reasons. I consider myself neither "naysayer" nor cheerleader--my position might be a bit complicated.
Tying TH inside an LOTR "candy-wrapper" Prologue/Epilogue, with a bit of TH "voice-oever" narration by Elijah, does not concern me. If it is done carefully and jusiciously, in that it ensures a smooth flowing of the story, is fine with me. I was always of the opinion that some sort of "tie-in" with LOTR was inevitable, on tghe part of the film-makers--a film franchise/story being much different than the book. And maybe it is for the best, since the four screenwriters had a much more difficult task this time around. At first blush, adapting LOTR seems like the harder task, b/c of its massive scope. But it was a single version of a single dtory, written for adults, with elements that made it more adaptable for modern audiences. But with TH we have a conundrum: which "Hobbit" to use? The 1937 origional fireside-tale for 6 yr old children, which the world fell in love with and which is the basis for every school stage play worldwide down the years, OR Tolkien's later revision of his middle-aged years, seemingly tyoing in closer with LOTR? With its more "adult" tone? (We shall see if this is the case.) And how to sneak in any Unfinished Tales material, if they decided to do so, and I think they may have tried to? SO there isn't even one version of TH.
(Makes me wonder: if the world had been introduced to Tolkien's later version first,, would TH have been as beloved as it has been? The charming sugar-coated tale is qwuite complelling. When you get down to barss tacks, TH is a pretty grim tale.)
I always thought that a happy medium could be reached: the story beginning light-hearted and whimscial as LOTR did, with the Party, and getting darker. Are people upset that this seems to confirm a darker more LOTR-like tone and look and feel to TH, no "whimsy" (and that is a loaded word), that this means the film version of the 1937 Hobbit is dust, or that they don't want a repeat of Jackson's LOTR?
Myself, I had no concerns about the story at the scriptwriting stage. I have no doubts about the team of Peter, Fran, Philippa, and Guillermo to craft a compelling and awe-inspiring tale, every bit as faiythful to the spirit and heart and soul of Tolkien's tale. And I can tolerate some slight deviatins. What concerns me though are elements of the storytelling every bit as important as words on the page. And thismay interfere with the effect of the words on the page.
Statements like" I trust Peter's writing/story-telling abilities as much as I trust Tolkien's writing abilities" are a bit (pardon me, I am not trying to put down anbybody, just stating an opinion) very presumptuous. You have to remember that no film is independant of the times it is birthed in--it does not exist in blank space. Many factors go in to it to make it what it is. TH has had a long and torturous history even before it was green-lit, and thingsd are not going to get easier from here.
The thing that concerns me is that we are working wigth a different person in a different era. 10-12 yrs ago The Peter Jackson that we fell in love with was a solid film-maker with a string of middle-brow "hits" in his pocket: little film gems that had placved him just bubbling under the radar,. He was in that best of times for a film-maker, as for a muscian, in some aspects: when you are enough in the spotlight for people to be noting what you do, but you still have the freedom from heat to be allowed that innicebtly questing spirit, that senese of fun and excitement and adventure. The Peter Jackson we came to know and love was a jolly "hobbit" who was building his kingdom down in NZ and still looked upon the world with a wondering eye--in his film at least. Even HC had its sense of playful mischeviousness in the midde passages of the film. Then the "Beautiful madness" of 2001-03 came and went and we saw him transform before our eyes. Mr Cere I remember wrote a fascinating article about "the new Peter Jackson" a few yrs back. (I widh a link could be found).
But that was before King Kong, before The Lovely Bones, and before all the manifold troubles of TH's birth. Before he became a Mogul. In some aspects, he has not changed--less so than you would think. He is a fascinating dicotomy--a lot more is hidden behind that placid experior than you think,, and maybe the Kiwis have seen more of it than the world at large. Some would argue that this sideof him came out with a bang during the recent labor dispute, and maybe it did, but I think there was also a lot of genuine reactionary and well-deserved angler there.
I think there were many reasons why Jackson did not origionally want to direct. (and maybe why he still doesn;t.) Fear of haivng to top himself (and how much more is that fear now, it will permeate every hour in the editing room). And a desire, perhaps, to hand Middle-Earth off into different hands. Not a passing of the torch as much as a sense that the franchise did indeed need fresh new blood. Many of us don't as much "defer to Del Toro';s opinions" as much as continue to remember and pay homage to the fact that for more than *two years* he was Peter's hand-picked DIRECTOR of this massive project, and such a deciusion is not made lightly. Someday we might ask Peter point-blank why he wanted to hand Middle-Earth off to someone else, at least in the director's chair. Which is a HUGE deal.
It is a director's ethis that pervades an entire project. Even if he (or she) did niot write the thing, it is their look, their vision, that shows up onscreen, if they are an illustragtor it is their vision you see. It;s their DoP, their Art Directors, their production design and FX teams,. It's their worldview that we experience. It's any last-minute script revisions that we get in the final cut (and we know how Peter works on this:). I think that having Del Toro collaberating on the writing phase was the BEST thing that could have happened to Peter, as it reminded him of why he fell in klove with the moviesL: he rediscovered (from what we we have heard of the collabveration) the sense of FUN and JOY, that sense of chilld-like excitement, that it is so easy to lose wheb one becomes a MOGUL--and when your worldview and film-making aesthtics are set in stone,. Let's hopw these elements of the process will survive onscreen.
NOw we have a Jackson who has been gthrough, for better or worse, Pelennor Fields. It reminds me of how the film Mery and Puippin remained hobbit-like ungtil that final battle, which changed them forever. Now Jackson is sans his "brother in arms" director (for whatever reason, though I think it had a lot more to do than scheduling conflicts), and permanently scarred by the Pelennor Fileds of the labor dispute, which IMO went on for far longer than the public saw. And now he has had a confrontationakl meeting with his WB bosses in NZ, and who knows what artistic consessions they got from him? And he is in the exact postion he sought so stringly to avoid: rushing to meet frantic deadlines before a camera has rolled, making up for lost time, under pressure from the studio. struggling tio top himself, and cosncious of the fwct thq Del Toro is *still* mourned by many fans worldwide in this projecft--and the world;s media will betaqlking about TLB and remembering Del Toro also.
THe one aspect of Del Toro that I was eagerly looking forward to onscreen was that he was a man of "OLd WOrld" sensibilty. That is, he is an intellectual in the truw sense of the word--he , unlike many American and British contemporaries (or NZ for that matter) still viewes the world primarily through lirerature, through books--while Jackosn, Spileberg, Lucas, even Coppola and Scorcese and almost every other Hollywod director are products of the TV age: their main cinemastic insopirations are from the world of TV, movies, video. Thwy get the big second-hand. I could go off on tbis, It doesn;t make one better or worse..it;'s a different way of working, that's all.
There are other aspects f Del Toro I could go on about--and since Nob addressed PL I could reply to that, but I won't (yet). For me that's a whole nother topic. But there are those of us who felt that this franchise needed an Irvin Kershner, as Peter Jackson needed to re-discover himself. And he desperately needs that sense of fun and adventure back...and someine to tell him when to rein it in. Fran and Philippa couk do that...but they haven;t ben winning the battles lately, it seems..CGU or otherwise.
It's in The Return of the King [In reply to] Can't Post
'In the next day or two Frodo went through his papers and his writings with Sam, and he handed over his keys'.
('The Grey Havens')
Sunflower, Thanks for that [In reply to] Can't Post
I appreciate your point of view. I really don't want to start getting involved in calling people Naysayers and so on. Tolkien's works have sold hunderds of millions of copies, and yet I doubt any two fans would make exactly the same films. Ultimately, what we all see when we imagine Tolkiens worlds are different. Unless the professor himself was here to settle arguments about what is, and what is not the right thing to do, we'll never know the 'truth'.
I said earlier, that if I had my way, I'd squeeze every tiny piece of Tolkien in from all his works, but that's just my opinion. Copyright prevents that, and so does the movie making process. I'm still a fan of adding in as much of what we know was happening at the time of the Hobbit as possible, others will say that it should be strictly what Tolkien writes about in that one book. No problem, both viewpoints are born out of a love of the material, so it's all good.
Ultimately, my position comes from nearly 40 years of devouring new Tolkien material, and remaining hungry.
When I heard that LOTR was being made into a film, and Bakshi's cartoon came out, I was blown away. I loved it, and remember being so dissapointed when I found out the second half would not be made.
Compare that with what Peter Jackson did, and it's the difference in depth between The Hobbit and The Silmarillion. I'll always love PJ for that.
I'm still hungry. I still want more. And more.
I'm not sure how I feel about GDT. I trusted him, love his films and I'm sure the new films would have been great with him at the helm. I do firmly believe that the whole crew, not just PJ, will give their all in these new films. I'll love much of it, and wince at other biits, I'm sure, but they are just fans too, and that's their view. Mine might be different, but I don't make films!
Thanks [In reply to] Can't Post
Ah, thanks for that Geordie. I thought I remembered it from somewhere. I forget the detail that is in LOTR sometimes, having read so many of the other worls.
That's the book. [In reply to] Can't Post
I thought we were talking about the movie...
In the book, as geordie says, Frodo gives the keys of Bag End to Sam before they ride away to the Grey Havens.
Earlier, of course, the hobbits had returned from their adventure to find Bagshot Row destroyed and Bag End badly damaged and full of filth. Sam organises the rebuilding of Bagshot Row and then moves back there while overseeing the repairs to Bag End, while Frodo remains at the Cottons'. When Frodo finally moves back, after Sam has everything ready, he invites Sam to move in with him - at this point Frodo doesn't know that Sam has "spoken" to Rosie and is planning to get married. When he finds out, he invites them both to move in. And then, when he leaves, he gives the keys to Sam - and on the way to the Havens, once Sam understands what's happening, he makes it explicit: "...you are my heir: all that I had and might have had I leave to you."
But that's the book. In the film, there's no Scouring of the Shire - no desecration of Bag End, no heroics to shake the Shire hobbits out of their smug beliefs, no need to Sam to repair Bag End and replant the trees of the Shire. And, as far as I can see, no need to have Sam move into Bag End for us to understand that Frodo has left him "all that I had and might have had" - simple happiness like Sam's is the fundamental thing that Frodo had to give up to save the Shire, and it's what he explicity gifts to him at the Havens ("you have so much to enjoy, and to be, and to do..."). The house is just a symbol of that, in the book. And it's not a symbol that's used in the movie. In the movie, I'd say, it's seeing Sam stay in his own humble home, neither wanting nor expecting any other reward, that makes the final scene so moving. Or at least, it is for me...
My apologies, FFH [In reply to] Can't Post
I must have been being a bit thick.
No argument about that. [In reply to] Can't Post
In fact, if you read my post carefully, you'll see that I never mentioned "belief" at all. I only talked about "imagining". This is, after all, just a story. And stories can be retold many ways, and still be "true" in the ways that matter. I love Tolkien's version too. But I also like PJ's version, and in particular I love having another version of the story - looking at things from more than one perspective is very enriching, I find. But I find it much easier to appreciate the film if I try not to crowbar bits of the book into it, and simply let the film tell the story in its own way. That way, I don't need to decide which version to "believe", or even to choose between them at all - I get to have them both!
But certainly, if you do prefer to mix and match, I wouldn't presume to suggest you shouldn't. Every story speaks to everyone in its own way.
Just to clarify [In reply to] Can't Post
"The naysayers will still be there opening day."
I'm sorry, but comments like this always annoy the cuss out of me.
I never said I'd be boycotting these films. I never said these movies would be horrible and an insult to Tolkien.
I expressed my personal disappointment in some of the choices being made with this project - Elijah Wood's inclusion being the most recent. I, like many others, have the right to disagree with the filmmakers from time to time. As much as I love the LoTR trilogy, there are plenty of changes, omissions, and additions that had me rolling my eyes and shaking my head. Loving the trilogy doesn't mean that I have to love every single aspect about them, nor does it mean that I am obligated, as a fan, to put my absolute trust in PJ from here on out.
I wanted the story told in the present tense. I wanted the story to be able to stand on its own. I wanted no more LoTR tie-ins than what was absolutely necessary. These are individual, personal wishes, mind you. But they explain why I am adamantly against the proposed inclusion of Elijah Wood.
To have story of The Hobbit read by Frodo during the LoTR timeline is absolutely unnecessary. It adds nothing to the story of The Hobbit. All it does is change The Hobbit into a LoTR flashback, and a LoTR prequel/sequel (depending on whether Frodo is reading Bilbo's book before or after the events of LoTR).
The Hobbit already contains enough tie-ins with LoTR as is. We have Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf the Grey, Elrond, Gollum, and the One Ring. We see Bilbo meeting Gollum and finding the One Ring - the event that sets up the very events of LoTR. Why do these films need more tie-ins to LoTR other than these characters and this crucial scene?
I am not a naysayer. I haven't condemned the films, and I haven't called PJ a hack. I am simply a fan of The Hobbit who is disappointed with some choices PJ and Co. have made (this includes GDT, who was involved in the script-writing process). I don't appreciate being accused of something I am not. I am no less of a fan for not keeping blind faith in every decision PJ makes.
(This post was edited by duats on Jan 9 2011, 9:15pm)
No need... [In reply to] Can't Post
to apologise! I enjoyed having an excuse to revisit my favourite chapter of LotR!
Why, thank you Sir Dennis [In reply to] Can't Post
That's a great way of putting it - "it is important that the movies remain true to themselves". I guess that is how I feel. Although I also agree with you that everyone is entitled to their own beliefs, and their own way of seeing the story. I didn't mean to imply otherwise, and I'm glad you made that point yourself so clearly.
I wanted no more LoTR tie-ins than what was absolutely necessary. [In reply to] Can't Post
The difficulty, duats, is when it comes down to defining 'absolutely necessary'. It's a subjective opinion - what some people here feel may be 'absolutely necessary' may not be what others feel. What the film makers see as 'absolutely necessary' may not seem so for the rest of us. I know, from watching the appendices, that some sequences they felt were 'absolutely necessary' for the movie version, I did not, and vice versa.
If I remade the flims and they grossed more than the original films, I guess I could say I was right and they were wrong. Until I do that, I can disagree, but have to accept they knew what they were talking about!
I think we can all agree that Bilbo stumbling into the cave, meeting Gollum, and finding/taking The One Ring is absolutely necessary.
I think we can all also agree that the inclusion of Gandalf the Grey is necessary.
Outside of that, I really don't know what other tie-ins to LoTR are necessary. You have two major characters from LoTR, and you have the single scene that brought about the events of LoTR. Plus, as mentioned in the past, we also have:
-Elrond
-The Shire and Bag-End
-Rivendell
-The Misty Mountains
-The Eagles
-Balin (mentioned by name in LoTR)
A brief cameo by Legolas, while unnecessary, can at least be argued to make sense - given that he is Thranduil's son and could very well have been present in Mirkwood when Bilbo and the Dwarves passed through. So while I'm not a particular fan of it (mostly because I dislike Bloom), it is relatively harmless (so long as it is a brief cameo and nothing more).
I've already expressed my concerns regarding the White Council/Dol Guldur scenes, so that doesn't need repeating.
I am genuinely curious. What else, in your opinion, is necessary to connect these films to LoTR? I'm not arguing what you said about this matter being subjective. I just honest-to-God can't think of anything else that PJ could think was absolutely crucial - to the point that it HAS to happen.
P.S., your adaptation making more or less money wouldn't make you right or wrong. As that is also a matter of subjectivity .
I agree with basically everything you said [In reply to] Can't Post
but a lot of people seem to forget that PJ was very busy (or supposed to be) at the time the Hobbit was finally starting. He was still working on the Lovely Bones, and he had other projects that he was committed to at the time:
-District 9
-the Tintin movies
-the Dam Busters
-a potential video game
Those projects are either done now or never happened, so it's easier for us to say now "well why didn't he just want to do the Hobbit in the first place?" But I'm not saying these projects were the only reason he didn't choose to direct from the beginning.
I don't think it was even really an option for him at the time. What was it? Three or four years ago? A lot has changed since then, and am I the only one that remembers him saying something "now I kind of regret not being the one directing it"? I think he said something like that in the last year or so as the script writing process was underway. He was obviously getting sucked into Middle-earth again, and I think he wanted to stay longer. Not that he regretted GDT being involved.
I wish I could find where/when he said that.
(This post was edited by Mooseboy018 on Jan 9 2011, 9:57pm)
Making Bilbo's journey more powerful than it is in the book. [In reply to] Can't Post
Just what do you think is weak about Bilbo's journey as it was written?
OK, I'm repeating myself, too..... [In reply to] Can't Post
Firstly, the point about the films gross value was meant to explain how you measure their success. If the films attract a lot of paying customers, they have been successful in the eyes of the filmmakers. Now yes, technically, they could be very poorly attended, lose money and still be loved by a few Tolkien fans and the critics and you COULD call that successful but.....anyway, I digress.
As for essential, as I said earlier, I see Balin's story as essential. If it's not covered, you end up with a major character who seemingly lives happily ever after at the end of the Hobbit, turning up dead somewhere else in FOTR.
For me, the White Council stuff is essential. Gandalf disppears in the Hobbit, meets up with Elrond, Galadriel, Saruman and so on, and launches an attack on Sauron. Not told in the Hobbit, and not seen in LOTR, so needs to be told.
I'd go further. I'd want an explanation of why the Dwarves turn up at Bag End in the first place. Unfortunately, I don't think we are going to be allowed to see that part of the story.
Legolas, for me, is far from essential. He MIGHT have been present when Bilbo's party passed, Tolkien doesn't say either way. Aragorn (as Estel) MIGHT have been at Rivendell when they passed, as might Arwen, but these facts tell us nothing. No story, no exposition, nothing. To me, they are unnecessary. Story pertaining to how and why the quest for Erebor came about, Sauron's story/White Council, Balin, even how Frodo came to be with Bilbo, are important, and fill in lots of detail.
To me, essential, but as I say, it's subjective, and that's just one fan's opinion.
Thanks geordie [In reply to] Can't Post
You saved me from quoting the whole chapter.
Here's another question [In reply to] Can't Post
Frodo will be reading "There and Back Again," so we are seeing the events of The Hobbit as written by Bilbo.
So given this format, how are they going to make the White Council and Dol Guldur scenes work, given that Bilbo wasn't present for those events? How would he have them recorded? How would he know what all was said? Or how they drove the Necromancer from the tower. I doubt Gandalf would have told him every single detail regarding the Council and their seige on Dol Guldur. To my knowledge, all Gandalf told Bilbo of the whole affair was that he went away to deal with the Necromancer - without getting into too many specific details. I'll have to double check.
If the events of The Hobbit were being told in real-time, and not strictly through Bilbo's eyes, this wouldn't be an issue.
(This post was edited by duats on Jan 9 2011, 10:35pm)
Regarding Balin [In reply to] Can't Post
All we need is one line from Balin detailing his plans to return to Moria.
As for the White Council/ Dol Guldur scenes, considering these events were not addressed at all in the LoTR trilogy, I don't think they are altogether necessary.
Gandalf going in and out of the narrative not only keeps emphasis on Bilbo and the Dwarves, but it adds tension to the story (the Company is without their powerful guide). His comings and goings can be chalked up to the fact that he is a wizard, and has other dealings around Middle-earth. I think not knowing where he is adds mystery to the character, and thus makes him more compelling and wizardy.
Just my opinion, of course. I love Balin, and making mention of Moria would certainly be welcomed. But we don't need to actually see him journey there after-the-fact.
Just Say Nay! [In reply to] Can't Post
It is really interesting how these events turn and how people, blinded by their desires, feel free to cast those who do not agree with them into categories of convenience. I willfully say nay to many things he see expounded on these pages. I also say yes upon occasion.
Now when is it that the thirty seven fully armed Mumakils show up at The Battle of the Fife Armies? Is that before of after Smaug is resurrected and the Balrog from Moria comes out to join the battle?
It appears that the only non-essential things that might be included in these two films [In reply to] Can't Post
are the events that actually take place within the book.
My pleasure - [In reply to] Can't Post
- and, the same goes for bran, too. Hope you don't mind my replying to both of you good gents at once.
'Just say Nay' [In reply to] Can't Post
Oh, I shall - just as often as I feel there's a need.
Jan 10 2011, 12:10am
I don't know how those things work [In reply to] Can't Post
Duats, but, it seems, given teh castings, that we will find out.
Whilst I don't think it is necessary [In reply to] Can't Post
to have half an hour backstory on Balin, I don't think a sentence will do either. I expect to see maybe a couple of minutes dealing with it, no more, really.
As I said earlier Kangi [In reply to] Can't Post
It's subjective. What you feel is essential and what I see as essential are two viewpoints. Two fans with different opinions. Both are valid.
shadowdog
Speculation is not fact [In reply to] Can't Post
We don't know that Frodo will narrate The Hobbit. That is speculation. We have no idea what role, or how big a role, Frodo will have in The Hobbit. I prefer to wait for the actual film to see what it will contain.
As long as the opening is set during "The Hobbit" timeline [In reply to] Can't Post
I'd be more inclinded to go with LOTR-era cameos if they didn't open the film. Opening on Bag End with Old Bilbo reading the story of Frodo would be nice (we saw as much in the FOTR EE) but I think the opening should be "Hobbit"-centric.
Who said Bilbo's journey was weak? [In reply to] Can't Post
Just because something can be improved in some way does not mean that it was originally poor. I believe that viewing the story of Bilbo through the lens of Frodo's nostalgia could be a powerful augmentation to the story, but that doesn't mean that I think there was something wrong with the way the story was presented in the book itself. Both angles are good... but one, I think, has the potential to be better if done right.
Remember what Frodo said to Bilbo in Rivendell?
I miss the Shire. I spent all my childhood pretending I was off somewhere else... off with you on one of your adventures! My own adventure turned out to be quite different... I�m not like you, Bilbo.
This is exactly the nostalgic, regretful, moving feel I'm talking about. It's the story of The Hobbit, viewed through the eyes of Frodo. I'm sure we'll see this aspect of both Bilbo's story and Frodo's character explored much more deeply in the bookend scenes... and I'm really starting to think it was a good idea to add them.
I raised the same question earlier [In reply to] Can't Post
I wondered if perhaps Gandalf would interrupt Frodo's reading of the Red Book to tell his own side of the story, or if the filmmakers would just plough straight into the White Council scenes and hope that nobody remembers there was no way Bilbo would have those things recorded in his memoirs.
Improvement is a very relative term [In reply to] Can't Post
The Hobbit has been around 70+ years. It seem to me that it really does not need to be improved.
I suppose the question is........ [In reply to] Can't Post
...... if Frodo is to be our doorway into the story of Bilbo's adventure, how far do the filmmakers want us to go on being aware of his presence as the story unfolds? If they do then perhaps there will be little chunks of narration, or Gandalf breaking in to describe the Dol Guldur story...
I can't imagine that making for a very satisfactory film. Maybe I'm wrong and they've seen possibilities I'm missing, but it seems to me that if they follow that route there's too much risk of ending up with a neither-one-thing-nor-the-other presentation in which we as audience can't get really involved in Bilbo's story because we keep being taken out of it. Too much will be told and not shown.
I prefer the idea of a pre-'The Shadow of the Past' Frodo leading us in and then stepping back to let 'The Hobbit' take over completely, perhaps returning at the end of film one, beginning of film two, or not returning at all until the very end. that way 'The Hobbit' is as independent as it can be while still being drawn into the overall film adaptation.
But of course I might change my mind completely when I see how they've done it!
Maybe nobody knows [In reply to] Can't Post
watching the EE behind the scenes you really get a glimpse into Jackson's film making style and he does quite a bit of story work in post production. From what I saw on the documentaries the Rings scripts were evolving all the time during shooting and even with lots of pre-planning the stories really came together in the editing bay.
That being said all we know for sure is who is in the movie - a press release says Elijah Wood is back - TORN says it has something to do with the Red Book.
Everything else is just our imaginations trying to force square pegs into triangular holes. We don't know how big the role is, or how the Red Book is involved.
I'm trying to expand my mind beyond just the story being read from that book and when I do that I can see many cool ways of incorporating Frodo in at the beginning or ending of The Hobbit in a way that augments the viewing of the trilogy.
But I'll be really surprised if they overlap timelines - I think it more likely to keep the whole time line of The Hobbit movies as lead up to the trilogy.
From what I remember about the movies there is no reason we can't assume that the whole "There and Back Again" story was already completely written in the Red Book by the time Fellowship starts. Bilbo continues to write in the book, of course, throughout the movie but only "Concerning Hobbits" and other things that would have been written after Bilbo wrote down his other adventures.
As to how it will eventually be done, it's possible that even Peter Jackson won't really know until he's sitting in the editing room with the footage in front of him.
Agreed... [In reply to] Can't Post
Who knows if the frodo material will even make it into the final film. As you say so much is done in the editing room.
Perhpas the decide after the shoot the material that it doesnt work and the movies become a straight forward telling of the hobbit... we just don't know enough about the script and even if we did - Anything can change from now until the first screening of the movie !
Do you really think so? [In reply to] Can't Post
It has existed for seventy years, therefore no attempts to improve the story should be made? I don't think any work of fiction deserves that sort of untouchable, unquestionable status. Of course it doesn't 'need to be improved' � it is already very good � but thoughtful enhancements certainly have the potential to be beneficial to the story.
Strangely absent here: "A squeee heard round the world." / [In reply to] Can't Post
But we know [In reply to] Can't Post
that JRRT made several attempts to 'improve' the tale, to add to it and make it fit better with his full vision. We know he altered Riddles in the Dark, we know he fleshed out the Necromancer backstory and Radagast in LOTR, we know the detail of where the map and key came from and why the Dwarves turned up at Bag End in the first place from UT. We know Gollum's full story from LOTR. Tolkien 'improved' the tale many times and in many ways.
What JRRT did in 'fleshing out' the tale of TH in this way all improved it, for me.
I think it's safe to assume Bilbo knew about Dol Guldur, etc. [In reply to] Can't Post
Bilbo spent what must have been months traveling back from Dale with Gandalf and Beorn, and stayed with Elrond in Rivendell on they way home too. As inquisitive as Hobbits are, I can't imagine he didn't hear many of the details of Gandalf's adventures and maybe even more details from Elrond.
True, Bilbo didn't include those things as part of his There and Back Again tale, but the Red Book is much more than just the story contained between the book-covers of The Hobbit; it ends up containing the entire tale from the Unexpected Party to long after Frodo, and even Sam, sail to the West. From the forward and appendices to LOTR, we already know that not all of the story was published in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings proper. So, I don't think it's too much of a stretch to assume that bits of the story were added after Bilbo finished There and Back Again and, that in the years between when Bilbo adopted Frodo and the Long Expected Party, Frodo would have had many opportunities to both read The Red Book and pick Bilbo's brain about the adventures.
An additional angle might be that Gandalf visited Bilbo many times in The Shire, and Frodo might have sat by the fire listening to them talk about their old adventures.
Anyway, my point (and I do have one ), is that there are plenty of ways both Bilbo and Frodo would have known some (if not many) of the details of Dol Guldur & the White Council before Frodo picks the book up to read it in the movie.
I very much agree with that altaira [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm fairly certain Gandalf would have used any excuse to smoke some pipeweed and eat some seed cake at Bag End, and the two hobbits would, I'm sure, have quizzed him endlessly on wher he'd been, and what he'd been up to, as well as asking for news of people they knew, or had heard of.
Jan 10 2011, 10:14pm
Posted by Jettorex: CNN.com quoting EW on Elijah Wood appearing in The Hobbit... [In reply to] Can't Post
....says he will be seen narrating Bilbo's story at the beginning of both part 1 and 2. Interesting.
(This post was edited by Altaira on Jan 10 2011, 10:15pm)
He did, to an extent [In reply to] Can't Post
From the last chapter of The Hobbit:
It was in this way he learned where Gandalf had been too; for he overheard the words of the wizard to Elrond. It appeared that Gandalf had been to a great council of white wizards, masters of lore and good magic; and that they had at last driven the Necromancer from his dark hold in the south of Mirkwood.
It looks like I may have been mistaken. He did know of the Council and the expulsion of the Necromancer from Mirkwood. So I guess the question is: would Gandalf really have given him the specifics?
(This post was edited by duats on Jan 10 2011, 11:11pm)
And add to that.... [In reply to] Can't Post
... the little snippet in the Deadline article about Andy Serkis linked on the main page, which says sources tell them Ian Holm is in talks to make a return appearance as Bilbo... Surely that has to be at the beginning or end of the films as well, or as a voice-over, if it's true.
right on [In reply to] Can't Post
I absolutely agree with everything you said. I assumed that the movie would be told in present, and I'm holding out hope that it will be in the finished film. Shoving The Hobbit into a superfluous faming device does nothing to help the story. All it does it add extra time to the movie that could be used for other purposes, or cut for pacing reasons. I'm really hoping that by the time they come to editing that this ends up on the cutting room floor.
grammaboodawg
WAHOOOO!!!!! :D [In reply to] Can't Post
\THIOS IS AWESOMEQ@!!!!!!!! Maybe both!? But to have Elijah as Frodo again.... having Frodo with maybe Bilbo!? OMG!!!!!! I Can't BREAHTE!!!!!!! *runs for meds*
I really need these new films to take me back to, and not re-introduce me to, that magical world.
TORn's Observations Lists
Unused Scenes
After a little thought, in the "it's good" camp [In reply to] Can't Post
The more the two stories are interconnected on film the better as far as I'm concerned. It is after all, one big story. Since time travel machines are not available in Middle Earth, Frodo will be involved either in some narration or some kind of flashback - don't have a problem with that and I like to see some of the actors returning. It's all good.
King Arthur: Who are you who can summon fire without flint or tinder?
Tim: There are some who call me... Tim?
Questions. Questions??? [In reply to] Can't Post
.....Since Frodo will be seen in the beginning of each movie reading from Bilbo's book (EW.Com),presumably narrating/introducing the events of The Hobbit, when in the context of Middle Earth time/place will he be in when he is doing this? In between events of TH and LOTR? After the events of LOTR? Where will he be? The Shire, Rivendell...Valinor???
I'd really like to see peoples thoughts on this!
Artistic licence [In reply to] Can't Post
I don't think it matters that Bilbo may not have known the specifics of the White Council's adventures. The flashback won't need to follow Bilbo's writings word-for-word � once we get the idea that Bilbo is vaguely aware of the Dol Guldur episode, the flashback can naturally expand itself beyond the scope of his narration and into the Necromancer storyline. At least I think that might work...
Otaku-sempai
Gandalf's report [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm guessing, not at that time. Gandalf probably wrote up a fuller account years later to be included as part of Bilbo's Red Book.
Bregolas
This could work really well. [In reply to] Can't Post
I am reading Unfinished Tales right now and The Quest of Erebor actually illustrates perfectly how Frodo might fit into The Hobbit movie. In Quest of Erebor, Gandalf and Frodo are in Minas Tirith some time after Aragorn's coronation and Gandalf is telling Frodo about how he bumped into Thorin in Bree and how that "chance" meeting started the chain of events that led to Bilbo going with the dwarves on their journey. If Frodo is going to be in the movie, it seems to me that he will actually just be listening to Gandalf tell the story. It's not my ideal beginning for the movie, but I think it could work really well. I haven't read all 377 of these posts, so forgive me if I'm repeating something that has been said already.
If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.
-Thorin Oakenshield
meltsar
Skeptical... [In reply to] Can't Post
I'm skeptical of Frodo being in this film. I'm getting flashbacks of the Rankin Bass 'Return of the King' wrap-around, and I certainly hope that's not what they're up to here. 'The Hobbit' needs to be told as a legitimate chapter in the Lord of the Rings story, not as a weird flashback from the imagination of Frodo. It doesn't make any sense to me that 'The Hobbit' film would have such a decidedly un-epic introduction as Frodo reading the book ~ followed up by the completely-epic intro to the Rings trilogy as narrated by Galadriel. If narration is needed, let it be Galadriel, for continuity's sake. Let the introduction be about Gandalf, Thrain and the Necromancer. Hopefully, the insertion of Frodo will be a pleasant surprise and not what I fear it will be.
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Epson Launches New Workforce Pro WF-C579R Business Inkjet Printer with A4 Replaceable Ink Pack System (RIPS)
Press release • Jul 22, 2019 15:04 +08
Epson’s WorkForce Pro WF-C579R Business Inkjet Printer
SINGAPORE, 22 July 2019 – Epson, a leading provider of printing solutions, today announced the new WorkForce Pro WF-C579R business printer, a high-yield colour A4 inkjet printer that offers low printing costs in colour while delivering outstanding print performance as a compact network printer.
The newest addition to Epson’s Replaceable Ink Pack System (RIPS) printer line-up, the WF-C579R comes with high-capacity ink packs that yields up to 50,000 pages in black or up to 20,000 pages in colour, helping to minimise printer downtime for improved cost and time savings.
Powered by Epson’s proprietary PrecisionCore technology, the WF-C579R has a fast print speed of up to 24ipm, offering a first page-out time of 5.3 seconds in colour with no warm up time required. Productivity is enhanced with a maximum monthly duty cycle of 50,000 pages. The WF-C579R is also more environmentally friendly, with a reduced power consumption as well as the use of less consumables compared to laser printers.
Alvin Tan, Regional Director of Epson Singapore said, “Our WorkForce Pro printers with Replaceable Ink Pack Systems helps businesses save on running costs and reduce downtime with our high-capacity ink and paper options in a space-saving design. The printers are designed to help businesses enhance productivity and streamline workflows with its print management tool that enhances output security and enables busy workgroups to protect their office printing environments.”
The WF-C579R is designed to provide significantly greater paper capacity in a smaller footprint, supporting a maximum of up to 1,330 pages when equipped with the optional 500-page paper cassette tray. It also offers automatic duplex printing and scanning as well as copy and fax with an Automatic Document Feeder (ADF).
The WF-C579R is suited for business with its DURABrite™ Ultra pigment ink, which delivers laser-like quality prints that are water-resistant, fade-resistant and smudge-resistant.
The WF-C579R is also compatible with Epson Device Admin, Epson’s fleet management software, and Epson Print Admin – Epson’s print management software. The print management software helps businesses enhance output security, track printing costs and improve workflow. It includes security features like device authentication through passwords, PIN codes and card readers as well as secure job release from any registered printer.
The WF-C579R is available now and retails at SGD1,028. For product and purchase enquiries, please contact Epson Singapore for more details.
Epson is a global technology leader dedicated to becoming indispensable to society by connecting people, things and information with its original efficient, compact and precision technologies. The company is focused on driving innovations and exceeding customer expectations in inkjet, visual communications, wearables and robotics. Epson is proud of its contributions to realizing a sustainable society and its ongoing efforts to realizing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
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Epson Launches New Replaceable Ink Pack System, The Workforce Pro WF-C869R, For Reduced Printing Costs In The Office
Press releases • Jul 21, 2017 11:10 +08
Epson has announced the launch of its new Replaceable Ink Pack System (RIPS) printer, the WorkForce Pro WF-C869R, that delivers high-speed and high-quality printing while drastically reducing printing costs with its high capacity ink packs for businesses.
Epson Launches New A4 Business Inkjet Printers with Revolutionary Replaceable Ink Pack System
Press releases • Jun 04, 2018 12:04 +08
Epson’s WorkForce Pro printers delivers 50% lower running costs and higher energy savings
Epson Bolsters Business-to-Business Solutions for a Smart and Sustainable Singapore
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Ohio (Not Georgia) On My Mind: New Dem Message Should Be For Base To Get Out And Vote
By John Michael Spinelli On June 26, 2017 · 1 Comment
President Donald Trump smiled like a very pleased Cheshire Cat after the great hope for Georgia, Democrat Jon Ossoff, lost his Sixth District House race last Tuesday to his Republican challenger, Karen Handel, by about four points.
The race turned out to be closer than once thought, but at the end of the day Trump bellowed that he still can’t be beat. More than half the country doesn’t like him and the job he’s doing so far as President of the United States, but his dislike nationwide didn’t translate into a win locally in suburban Atlanta, in a long-time GOP district that came home to vote for Handel on Election Day, nullifying Ossoff’s early vote lead of 1.4 percent.
The Democratic loss in Georgia marked the fourth U.S. House race that Republicans have won this year. They haven’t won by the whopping margins that Trump beat Hillary Clinton by last fall in similarly red districts, but by enough to proclaim that Democrats who want to win seats next year in the House or the Senate better fashion a new message sometime soon. They’ll need to lure Democrats who switched to Trump last year back into the fold, and entice independents who felt snookered by voting for a pig in a poke like Trump to cross the great divide.
Ohio U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, one of just four Democrats in Ohio’s 16-member U.S. House delegation, has decried the failure in Democratic messaging, especially the economic message that many say Clinton couldn’t deliver in Ohio and other key states with the same bombast and over-the-top rhetoric Trump used. Calling for a new national leader other than House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to deliver a new national message, Ryan, who declined to run for Ohio governor next year, mounted an unsuccessful challenge to Pelosi earlier this year. He called the Democratic brand “toxic.”
What happened in Georgia might just stay in Georgia, though. In battleground Ohio, Ryan’s plea for a new message may hit bedrock before it hits pay dirt if the contours of the new message differ widely from long-held positions on workers wages and rights and health care benefits, among many other issues that push people’s buttons.
Despite Trumps descending poll numbers, Georgia won’t be on the minds of Democrats going forward.
As pundits work their worry beads in light of the loss in Georgia, Democrats have to be bold enough to stick to long-held principles. Otherwise, their agenda will be a Republican-light version that betrays what they stand for by trying to assimilate with a GOP agenda that has it out for the average American who isn’t a billionaire.
Now that Senate Republicans have shown a card from their otherwise secret health care poker hand, the new Democratic message must maintain solidarity with the old Democratic message. This message is that the ranks of the poor will rise while access to affordable health care will fall if Trump’s agenda is made possible as legislation is rammed through Congress by Majority Caucus Republicans who refuse to hold public hearings or conduct debate all Americans can be privy to.
Ohio candidate for governor, former Democratic U.S. Rep. Betty Sutton, was out with a response to the Senate bill Thursday. Sutton, one of four women running for governor (three Democrats and one Republican), said that the Senate healthcare bill is Ohioans’ worst nightmare come to life.
“It guts Medicaid, defunds Planned Parenthood, and will kick millions off healthcare, all the while giving the most privileged of our society massive tax cuts,” she said. “It is a betrayal to Ohioans pure and simple.”
Sutton was in the U.S. House in 2010 and worked in tandem with then Speaker Pelosi to help pass the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
The Ohio Democratic Party joined Sutton in whacking the GOPs plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which includes erasing Medicaid.
“The Senate Republican plan takes away health care from millions, while giving away a huge tax break for millionaires and billionaires,” Ohio Democratic Party Chairman David Pepper said in prepared remarks for the occasion. “The devastating Medicaid cuts in the bill would be effectively throwing gasoline on the raging fire of Ohio’s opioid crisis because Medicaid provides $650 million in funding to fight the opioid crisis. Ohio taxpayers would be forced to make up the difference if Congress takes away this funding.”
While Republicans are busy trying to throw the nation into crisis in Washington, Republicans in the Ohio Statehouse approved a budget that cuts off enrollment for the Medicaid expansion program. More than 150,000 Ohioans with mental health or addiction issues have coverage through the Medicaid expansion.
Pepper salted his response with comments aimed at GOP gubernatorial hopefuls, including Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, Secretary of State Jon Husted, U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci and Lt. Gov. Mary Taylor.
If this bill becomes law, Pepper said, Ohio families will suffer higher premiums and deductibles; Ohioans with pre-existing conditions will lose protections; and Ohioans will die when they lose health coverage.
“The voters of this state deserve to know whether the Republican candidates for governor stand with Ohio families or if they stand with insurance company CEOs and millionaires and billionaires,” Pepper said.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who opposes the ACA has championed Medicaid spending after 700,000 Ohioans obtained health insurance because it expanded eligibility. Kasich didn’t like what a small group of Republicans senators, (including Ohio’s own U.S. Sen. Rob Portman) are doing to shutdown expanded Medicaid. Analysts say the Senate GOP bill will carve even deeper cuts than the House healthcare bill that jettisons 23 million off insurance.
The bill was odious enough that Kasich has lined up with Democrats calling for bi-partisanship on the bill’s design.
“I have deep concerns with details in the U.S. Senate’s plan to fix America’s health care system and the resources needed to help our most vulnerable, including those who are dealing with drug addiction, mental illness and chronic health problems and have nowhere else to turn,” Kasich tweeted.
The secrecy in Washington forced Ohio’s normally secret governor in Columbus to say more than one party approach is needed if complex problems are to be solved.
With some luck, Portman might listen to his political bro to work with Democrats.
“That’s the only way to address the flaws of Obamacare that we can all agree need to be fixed,” Kasich said.
For seniors, children with disabilities, people combating addiction and rural hospitals who might go out of business if Trumpcare goes operation, the Senate bill should contain the message public officials like Ryan and Sutton and many more are seeking that could be in plain sight.
The bill is scheduled for a vote next week. But if three Senate Republicans reject so-called Trumpcare, it won’t pass. Had Jon Ossoff made the ACA and what Republicans want to do to it a major focus of his campaign, which he didn’t do, maybe, just maybe, he might have been a winner instead of a loser Tuesday.
Georgia ought not to be on the minds of Buckeye voters going forward. Instead what should be on their minds, especially the minds of registered Democrats, is just voting, a basic American value. The core new message should be, “Please, just get out and vote.”
If you do, you win. If you don’t, the self-fulling prophecy that Democrats can’t beat Trump, no matter how mean or crazy he gets, will prove alluring despite being patently false.
Josh Mandel Claims ISIS Is “Infiltrating The Heartland” As We Deal With The Fake News Epidemic, Librarians Might Be Our Real Superheroes
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23Dec04 — 0
Blonde Celebrity In Least Convincing “I Am Not A Bimbo” Protest Ever
Read all abaht it!
I’m fuming,’ said the 21-year-old. ‘I sat there with a fleshcoloured bikini on and they have air-brushed the whole thing out.
‘That’s not my belly button. I’ve got a sticky out belly button and it’s pierced,’ she added.
‘They’re not my boobs either.’ Ellison, currently starring in the film version of Phantom Of The Opera, may sue over the picture. ‘I vowed never to take all my clothes off in pictures,’ she said.
Ellison claimed she thought nothing of it when photographers asked her to cross her arms and legs to give the illusion she was naked.
But she was ‘mortified’ when she saw the magazine, the Liverpudlian told a radio station in the city.
‘I don’t want my dad to see anything like that,’ she added.
It was to be her last glamour shoot, so she could be taken more seriously as an actress.
A spokeswoman for Maxim claimed Miss Ellison’s agent had seen the pictures before publication and raised no objections.
Tales From The Pride/Embarrassment Border
Dumber And Dumberer
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Phone: 905-571-1075 Email: peter@pstaylor.com
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Experts in Condensed Matter Physics
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PDT as Primary Therapy for Choroidal Metastases From Carcinoid Tumor
These malignancies may be well-suited to treatment with this modality.
By Roshun Sangani, BS; Mehdi Mazloumi, MD, MPH; Lauren A. Dalvin, MD; and Carol L. Shields, MD
Choroidal metastases from carcinoid tumors are rare, constituting only 2% of all uveal metastasis.1 These tumors classically appear as an orange-colored mass with associated subretinal fluid (SRF) that can lead to decreased vision.2-4 In an analysis of 1,111 patients with uveal metastasis, it was apparent that the best long-term survival was achieved in those originating from arcinoid tumor.1
• PDT is an effective therapeutic option for choroidal metastases, mostly for those from epithelial malignancies.
• Choroidal metastases are generally highly vascular tumors, similar to choroidal hemangioma, in which PDT has been used to resolve subretinal fluid.
• PDT can be considered as a primary treatment option for choroidal metastases from carcinoid tumors.
Regarding management, few case reports have evaluated the role of external beam radiotherapy, plaque radiotherapy, proton beam radiotherapy, or photocoagulation for carcinoid metastasis.5,6 Complications from the various forms of radiotherapy, such as retinopathy and papillopathy, limit the use of these modalities.7
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has been documented to be an effective therapeutic option for choroidal metastasis, mostly for those from epithelial malignancies.8 There have been only a few cases published in which PDT was used to treat carcinoid metastasis. In some of these reports, PDT was used as a secondary treatment after the tumor failed to respond to radiation and/or chemotherapy.9-11 Herein, we describe primary use of PDT for multiple choroidal metastases from lung carcinoid tumor.
A 51-year-old white man with a 3-week history of blurred vision in the right eye was referred to the Ocular Oncology Service at Wills Eye Hospital for further evaluation. He had no prior ocular history. His medical history included lung carcinoid tumor treated with resection and systemic chemotherapy 12 years prior to presentation and subsequent liver metastases 2 years prior to presentation that were treated with radiotherapy and systemic chemotherapy.
On examination, VA was 20/50 OD and 20/20 OS. Anterior segment examination of each eye was unremarkable.
On funduscopy, the right eye showed six amelanotic choroidal lesions scattered throughout the fundus. The two largest tumors were located superior to the macula, each with an approximate basal dimension of 3.0 mm and thickness of 3.3 mm on ultrasonography. The lesion nearest the foveola had produced SRF extending dependently under the foveola (Figure 1A).
Figure 1. Choroidal metastasis from lung carcinoid tumor in a middle-aged man. At presentation, the right eye revealed six choroidal metastases (A). Ultrasonography documented the tumors with acoustic density and thickness of 3.3 mm (B). OCT showed the tumor immediately superior to the fovea demonstrating a trough of SRF under the foveola, accounting for VA of 20/50 (C).
The left eye showed two amelanotic choroidal lesions inferonasal to the optic disc with the largest mass 3.0 mm in basal dimension and 2.0 mm in thickness.
Ultrasonography documented the tumors with acoustic density (Figure 1B). OCT confirmed SRF under the foveola in the right eye (Figure 1C). OCT of the left eye demonstrated a normal foveola. These features were consistent with choroidal metastases from lung carcinoid tumor.
Options for management included external beam radiotherapy, plaque radiotherapy, laser photocoagulation, anti-VEGF therapy, and PDT. Given the vision loss in the right eye from SRF, PDT was advised.
A single intravenous dose of verteporfin (Visudyne, Bausch + Lomb) 6 mg/m2 was infused, followed by 689-nm diode laser, administered at an intensity of 600 mW/cm2, applied directly to the mass superior to the fovea for 83 seconds (50 J/cm2).
Five days after PDT, there was modest increase in SRF under the foveola, which resolved in 3 weeks following intravitreal injection of bevacizumab (Avastin, Genentech).
At 1-year follow up, the treated metastasis in the right eye showed a 50% reduction in thickness (from 3.3 mm to 1.6 mm) (Figure 2A and B). OCT showed complete resolution of subfoveal fluid (Figure 2C), and VA improved to 20/30.
Figure 2. At 1 year after treatment with single session of PDT, the main tumor appeared yellow (A), with reduction in thickness to 1.6 mm (B) and complete resolution of subfoveal fluid with VA of 20/30 (C).
Choroidal metastasis from carcinoid tumor has distinct clinical and therapeutic considerations that distinguish this lesion from choroidal metastasis due to other epithelial tumors. Clinically, in contrast to the typically yellow-colored appearance of epithelial metastasis, choroidal metastasis from carcinoid tumor is usually orange or orange-yellow in color.12 Regarding treatment, although carcinoid metastases are slow-growing tumors with less aggressive behavior and more favorable prognosis than metastases of epithelial origin, these characteristics cause carcinoid metastases to be more resistant to radiotherapy and chemotherapy than those of epithelial origin.10,13
In a recent analysis of 1,111 patients with choroidal metastasis from all primary sites, the five most common primary sites were breast (37%), lung (26%), kidney (4%), gastrointestinal tract (4%), and skin melanoma (2%).1 Carcinoid tumor ranked sixth in frequency (2%). For all metastases, the 5-year survival rate was poor, at 23%, but lung carcinoid metastasis demonstrated the most favorable 5-year survival rate, at 92%.1
Choroidal metastases are generally highly vascular tumors, similar to choroidal hemangioma, in which PDT has been successfully used to resolve SRF.14,15 Kaliki et al demonstrated the success of PDT for treatment of choroidal metastasis in six of eight cases.16 PDT acts through two mechanisms on choroidal tumors: through direct tumor destruction via selective cytotoxic activity toward malignant cells,17 and through promotion of intraluminal photothrombosis in the vascular endothelial cells supplying the tumor.18
There have been only a few reports on the topic of PDT for carcinoid metastasis to the choroid. In 2004, PDT was used to secondarily treat a carcinoid metastasis that showed no response to external beam radiation and chemotherapy. PDT resulted in a 33% reduction in basal diameter and a 25% reduction in thickness of the mass, as well as resolution of serous retinal detachment with improved VA.10 In 2013, primary PDT was used to treat carcinoid metastasis, resulting in a reduction in tumor size but visual loss from 20/80 to 20/125 due to photoreceptor damage from chronic SRF.9 In 2018, PDT was employed for secondary treatment of choroidal carcinoid metastasis that had not responded to external beam radiotherapy and somatostatin analogue. In that patient, VA improved from 20/200 to 20/60 following resolution of SRF.11
THE CASE FOR PRIMARY PDT
In this patient, we employed primary PDT for choroidal carcinoid metastasis. A 50% reduction in tumor thickness was noted, with complete resolution of SRF allowing VA improvement from 20/50 to 20/30. The slow-growing nature of neuroendocrine-derived cells in carcinoid metastasis could account for the less impressive response to radiotherapy and chemotherapy in these lesions, as previous reports have described.9-11 Therefore, we believe that application of PDT can be considered as a primary treatment option for choroidal metastases from carcinoid tumors.
1. Shields CL, Welch RJ, Malik K, et al. Uveal metastasis: clinical features and survival outcome of 2214 tumors in 1111 patients based on primary tumor origin. Middle East Afr J Ophthalmol. 2018;25(2):81-90.
2. Shields CL, Shields JA, Gross NE, Schwartz GP, Lally SE. Survey of 520 eyes with uveal metastases. Ophthalmology. 1997;104(8):1265-1276.
3. Fan JT, Buettner H, Bartley GB, Bolling JP. Clinical features and treatment of seven patients with carcinoid tumor metastatic to the eye and orbit. Am J Ophthalmol. 1995;119(2):211-218.
4. Harbour JW, De Potter P, Shields CL, Shields JA. Uveal metastasis from carcinoid tumor. Clinical observations in nine cases. Ophthalmology. 1994;101(6):1084-1090.
5. Gragoudas ES, Carroll JM. Multiple choroidal metastasis from bronchial carcinoid treated with photocoagulation and proton beam irradiation. Am J Ophthalmol. 1979;87(3):299-304.
6. Minning CA Jr, Davidorf FH, Makley TA Jr, Bruce RA Jr. Metastatic carcinoid to the choroid. Retina. 1982;2(4):223-230.
7. Durkin SR, Roos D, Higgs B, Casson RJ, Selva D. Ophthalmic and adnexal complications of radiotherapy. Acta Ophthalmol Scand. 2007;85(3):240-250.
8. Ghodasra DH, Demirci H. Photodynamic therapy for choroidal metastasis. Am J Ophthalmol. 2016;(6):104-109.
9. Kawakami S, Wakabayashi Y, Goto H. A case of presumed choroidal metastasis from carcinoid tumor treated by photodynamic therapy with verteporfin. Clin Ophthalmol. 2013;(7)2003-2006.
10. Harbour JW. Photodynamic therapy for choroidal metastasis from carcinoid tumor. Am J Ophthalmol. 2004;137(6):1143-1145.
11. Chu CK, El-Annan J. Photodynamic therapy for choroidal carcinoid metastasis. Can J Ophthalmol. 2018;53(1):13-16.
12. Arepalli S, Kaliki S, Shields CL. Choroidal metastases: origin, features, and therapy. Indian J Ophthalmol. 2015;63(2):122-127.
13. Berman EL, Eade TN, Shields CL, et al. Choroidal metastasis from carcinoid tumour: diagnosis by fine-needle biopsy and response to radiotherapy. Australas Radiol. 2007;51(4):398-402.
14. Neudorfer M, Waisbourd M, Anteby I, et al. Color flow mapping: a non-invasive tool for characterizing and differentiating between uveal melanomas and choroidal metastases. Oncol Rep. 2011;25(1):91-96.
15. Cerman E, Çekiç O. Clinical use of photodynamic therapy in ocular tumors. Surv Ophthalmol. 2015;60(6):557-574.
16. Kaliki S, Shields CL, Al-Dahmash SA, Mashayekhi A, Shields JA. Photodynamic therapy for choroidal metastasis in 8 cases. Ophthalmology. 2012;119(6):1218-1222.
17. Battaglia Parodi M, La Spina C, Berchicci L, Petruzzi G, Bandello F. Photosensitizers and photodynamic therapy: verteporfin. Dev Ophthalmol. 2016;(55):330-336.
18. Agostinis P, Berg K, Cengel KA, et al. Photodynamic therapy of cancer: an update. CA Cancer J Clin. 2011;61(4):250-281.
Lauren A. Dalvin, MD
• Assistant Professor, Ocular Oncology Service, Department of Ophthalmology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota
• Dalvin.Lauren@mayo.edu
• Financial disclosure: None
Mehdi Mazloumi, MD
• Research Fellow, Ocular Oncology Service, Wills Eye Hospital, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia
Roshun Sangani, BS
• Research Intern, Ocular Oncology Service, Wills Eye Hospital, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia
Carol L. Shields, MD
• Director of the Ocular Oncology Service, Wills Eye Hospital, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia
• Editorial Advisory Board Member, Retina Today
• carolshields@gmail.com
Tags: Choroidal Tumor, Photodynamic Therapy
Researchers Test Stem Cell–Based Retinal Implant for Dry AMD With Encouraging Results
Physicians and researchers at the USC Roski Eye Institute have collaborated with other California institutions to show that a first-in-kind stem cell-based retinal i…
GenSight Biologics Announces Topline Results from Phase 3 Clinical Trial of GS010 in Patients with Leber Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON)
GenSight Biologics announced that a phase 3 study of GS010 (rAAV2/2-ND4) in patients with Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) failed to meet its primary endpoint, with sh…
Treat-Extend-Stop Protocol for Wet AMD: Long-term Outcomes
A retrospective chart review was performed for 71 eyes of 67 patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) treated with intravitreal anti-vascular endotheli…
A Choroidal Mass: An Unusual Metastasis With Unusual Treatment
Gene Therapy Approach Demonstrated Safety With Durable Effect in Interim Wet AMD Trial Results
Optic Disc Melanocytoma
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We are incredibly proud of the film and are hoping it will match (if not surpass) the success of its predecessor, the mutiple-award winning ARCHON DEFENDER. The official DVD artwork is below, along with some of the links where you can either rent or purchase the film. Box 1560 Beverly Hills, CA 90213-1560 TEL 310 786-7700 FAX 310 777-5455 ALONSO MAYO, DIRECTOR Celebrity Photo Syndication of Hollywood Celebrity Photos since 1970 Kendall Schmidt, James Maslow, Carlos Pena, Jr. It's been a while but we've returned with plenty of activity over the last few months and a big apology to our fans for our tardiness in updating the website since the summer. This will change in the coming months as we have a few new projects in release and upcoming projects that will surely generate much buzz as we aim to unleash them onto the unsuspecting world. Producer Morgan Muscat supplied us with this cool picture of his trek through Cinema 1 at Burlington Mall and the discovery of ARCHON sitting within some pretty good company.
The first official trailer from our latest short film, MASSACRE AT FEMUR CREEK, has been unveiled online via writer-director Kyle Hytonen's You Tube channel. Box 1560 Beverly Hills, ANA GARCIA Celebrity Photo Syndication of Hollywood Celebrity Photos since 1970 Amy Pascal, Co-Chairman, Sony Pictures Entertainmen Photo by Scott Downie The L.A. We are excited to be collaborating with award-winning filmmaker Kyle Hytonen and his A Henry Krinkle Production company on this fun little short film.
Enjoy the picture below of actor John Migloire in character as The Shape and keep checking back for more updates on the film's completion and release date.
Box 1560 Beverly Hills, CA 90213-1560 TEL 310 786-7700 FAX 310 777-5455 ALISON BRIE Celebrity Photo Syndication of Hollywood Celebrity Photos since 1970! Filming has commenced in Hamilton, Ontario and Burlington, Ontario under the direction of Hytonen and starring John Migliore and Heather Dicke. Recently, the film launched a campaign on Indiegogo to raise $1100 and wound up (to date) collecting a surprising $2414. Check out the teaser poster below and visit the Indiegogo campaign for more info about the film. As we continue to develop short and feature films, as well as promote our new demo reel feature, we are hard at work promoting local artists and community events. Such is the case with the upcoming June 8th Car-Free street festival happening on Palladium Way in Alton Village. We are proud to be a part of this amazing community event and are happy to finally unveil our freshly completed new video to help raise awareness of said event.
We were approached a few weeks back to create this video by local artists and have done so using footage from last year's event. Enjoy the world exclusive premiere of the promotional video by visiting this link or check it out via our WELCOME page. We are excited to formally announce thatA Moonlit Road Entertainment has the privilege of being among the many talented artists and vendors at the Ward 6, North Burlington festival.
The event will be held on Palladium Way, between Walkera€™s and Appleby Lines, in Alton Village.
Please feel free to visit the Ward 6 Car-Free Street Festival page on Facebook for more information about the event. Our tiny horror-film noir short film THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU recently added another festival date to its successful roster, this time for the 2014 edition of the Sudden Impulse Film Festival in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
We are excited to promote our award-winning title yet again and hope that people turn out to support great independent films such as this one.
The screening happens on Saturday May 10th at the Big Picture Cinema on Gerard Street East at 8:30pm. Not only are we focused on inspired filmmaking and photography opportunities, we are how branching out into offering services for Demo Reels.
We understand just how important a demo reel is to emerging and talented filmmakers and actors, so we are offering top-notch, professional service along with affordable prices to help showcase what you have to offer the world.
If you are looking to have us create your demo reel or are merely wanting to browse around, we invite you to check out our newly added DEMO REELS page where you can look into our rates and what we can offer you. With ARCHON DEFENDER currently in distribution around the world, distirbution plans ramping up for ORIGIN: A CALL TO MINDS and production underway onA COLD DARK MIRRORA along with a slew of short film projects in development, we trust that 2014 will be our busiest year yet.
And we hope for your continued support as we grow and expand into different areas, which will be announced soon.
From all of us at Moonlit Road Entertainment, we welcome 2014 and wish you all a very Happy New Year.
Also, Morgan was featured in the 2013 edition of the Burlington community guide, which he also spoke about his humbling beginnings as a student filmmaker and to where he is today.
The article and photo are available only in print, but a photograph has been made available below.
The film gets an exclusive digital engagement with Google Play starting tomorrow, October 1, 2013. Since 2008, the film has been turning heads and it has been nominated and has won several awards for is achievement in special effects and production design. Congratulations to the directors and cast who combined to make a special type of film that continues to wow audiences. Dates and specifics will be released as soon as they are available.A September 25, 2013 - Hamilton Film Festival selects ARCHON DEFENDER and ORIGINA The city of Hamilton appears to have taken a liking to Moonlit Road Entertainment productions.
Both films will screen as a double bill during the festival, which runs from November 4th to the 10th at the Staircase Theatre (27 Dundurn St. While ARCHON has had a fairly successful festival run over the years leading up to its upcoming DVD release, ORIGIN: A CALL TO MINDS will be making its exclusive world premiere during the festival. Just yesterday, the film screened at the 2013 Hamilton Music and Film Festival at the Factory Media Centre (227 James Street North in Hamilton). Earlier in the month (on September 13th), the film was selected to screen at the 2013 Supercrawl event held in Hamilton. Expect more festival announcements in the next little while.A A August 28, 2013 - Pre-order ARCHON DEFENDER on DVD now at Amazon!!!
Here is your exclusive first look at a pair of colourful teaser posters for our upcoming animated feature film COLD DARK MIRROR, currently in production under the direction of David Krupicz.The film is expected to continue production throughout 2013 and the early part of 2014, with a release expected for later next year.
2013 - THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU is an Official Selection at HMFF 2013!More great news for our horror film noir hybrid THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU. The award-winning short has become an Official Selection at the 2013 Hamilton Music and Film Festival, taking place in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada on September 22nd. This will mark the third time that the film has screened in Hamilton as part of the film festival circuit, following the 2012 edition of the Hamilton Film Festival as well as earlier this year as part of the Little Nightmares Canadian Horror Shorts Festival. We announced earlier this year that ARCHON DEFENDER, our first animated feature film, is scheduled to premiere on DVD and VOD during the fourth quarter of 2013.
Today comes word that the film will indeed premiere this fall and in the United States on October 22nd.A Furthermore, we are excited to bring you the exclusive world premiere of the DVD cover art for the film, to be distributed by Ytinifni Films.
Morgan was one of eleven people nominated, which ranged from enviromental, community, heritage as well as senior, junior and citizen of the year.
This marks Morgan's second award win for his contributions to the community as a filmmaker, following his 2010 MARTY Award win for Emerging Media Arts. Below is a photograph of the Burlington's Best Award and Certificate presented to Morgan Muscat last week as well as the Burlington Post photograph from the event, printed in Wednesday May 15th's edition.A May 16, 2013 - More THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU and SEVERANCE Movie Reviews!!!The reviews continue to trickle in for Moonlit Road Entertainment productions. The first is a positively glowing one from Bleeding Dead Film Reviews for THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU, which once again praises the performances of stars Robert Nolan and Sandra da Costa, as well as the production design and direction. Andrews will be among the guests lined up to heavily promote some top notch Canadian content. The festival takes place between May 31st and June 2nd at the Best Western Hotel (173 - Sunrise Highway, Rockville Centre, NY 11570). April 19, 2013 - Morgan Muscat featured in Mississauga magazine MISSISSAUGA ARTSThe promotion continues for busy producer-writer Morgan Muscat, who is now featured in the Spring edition of MISSISSAUGA ARTS, a magazine published quarterly that recognizes talents who have contributed to the arts in Mississauga. Morgan is featured on Page 4 as part of the 2013 MARTY Award nominees and again on Page 15, which is the press release about his involvement in the upcoming June 27th Media Arts Mash Up. The cover page for MISSISSAUGA ARTS is below, pick up your copy at the Mississauga Arts Council office.April 17, 2013 - THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU movie review!A positive, spoiler-free review of THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU from Horror Movie Diary has made it online and it rocks.
The reviewer praises actor Robert Nolan's performances as Devil, as well as goes on to say that the film itself is "hellishly great" and supported by a great cast. The ever busy producer will be on hand discussing his past films as well as current productions including the soon-to-be-released ORIGIN: A CALL TO MINDS and the currently in development COLD DARK MIRROR. Additionally, the filmmaker will be screening a never-before-seen 10 minute clip from ORIGIN as well as discuss the making of the film. The event will be held at the Art Gallery of Mississauga (300 City Centre Drive) and will begin at 7:00pm. Just today, Mike Haberfelner over at the website Search My Trash recently conducted two interviews, one with CDM producer Morgan Muscat and the other with David Krupicz himself about the making of the film. Click below to check out the interviews where both filmmakers talk about CDM, as well as other upcoming projects from Moonlit Road Entertainment and Original Sine Productions. Additionally, an article conducted by Mississauga journalist Louise Peacock for the Film Annex website made it online today.
That article, entitled "Glimpse in the Mirror", features an on-set journal and behind-the-scenes photos of the cast and crew in action. Click on the respective links below to check out the interviews.A Morgan Muscat "Cold Dark Mirror" Interview (Search My Trash - Mike Haberfelner) David T. Today we are proud to report that Morgan has once again been nominated, this time for a 2013 Burlington's Best award nomination, which honours citizen in Burlington who have contributed to the arts within the city. Morgan is proud to call Burlington is new home town and is honoured that he and his work has been recognized by the community collectively. Today we are proud to announce the cast for our upcoming sci-fi animated epic COLD DARK MIRROR, which is being produced by Morgan Muscat and will once again be directed by David T. The cast includes Sandra da Costa (Sick), Caleigh Le Grand (Inspiration), Daniel Wyse (Origin: A Call to Minds), Morgan Muscat (Archon Defender), Paul Nicholls (A Cry in the Dark), Ryan Barrett (Neverlost), Astrida Auza (Sick), Christopher Lee Grant (Dead Genesis), Neil Green (Black Eve) and Laura Collu (Severance). COLD DARK MIRROR follows young Witch-Hunter Lydia (Sandra DaCosta), who stumbles upon the dark secret of the Unseen World; a shadow world of dreams and nightmares which lies just beyond the mirror's edge. A dark and ancient power, the Time Shadow (Neil Green), seeks entry into the corporeal world, a power some on the Alchemic Council are in league with, and whose existence they seek to keep secret above all else. Together with her Cat Familiar Callista (Caleigh La Grand), Lydia must face the Shadow Council, and avenge the death of her mentor, the Maegis Acheroni»?.A A In addition to the casting announcement, we are also today releasing the first couple of production stills from COLD DARK MIRROR. New Moonlit Road business cards!A Earlier this year we reported that ARCHON DEFENDER would be getting a DVD and VOD release later this year. In addition to the Facebook group released a few months ago, you can now follow ARCHON DEFENDER on Twitter for all the most up-to-date information surrounding the film.
Simply click on the links above to visit the respective pages.A In other news, we are proud to report that for the first time in five years we have new business cards that are hot off the presses and about ready for distribution to the masses. Our multiple award-winning short film is now an Official Selection at the 3rd Macabre Faire Film Festival in Long Island, New York, honouring films within the genres of Horror, Thrillers, Suspense and Sci-Fi.
While there are no concrete showtimes or dates as of yet, please feel free to visit the festival's Facebook page, which will make a more formal announcement closer to the festival date this summer. As we keep you in anticipation with our casting, we are proud to present the first official production still from the film. We now have a Facebook group were you will be able to keep up to date on the developments of our films as they move through production.
Please note that press releases and latest news will appear on here first, and then make their way onto our new Facebook group. Keep it here, there's lots happening.A March 6, 2013 - Morgan Muscat 2013 MARTY Award nomination and interviews Having stepped back to focus on his family last year, Moonlit Road Entertainment founder Morgan Muscat is gearing up for what is looking like a very busy year ahead. The talented writer-producer is releasing the animated feature ORIGIN: A CALL TO MINDS as well as producing a new animated film (COLD DARK MIRROR), which starts production this month. Amidst all that, Morgan is seeking funding for his long awaited Stephen King adaptation SUFFER THE LITTLE CHILDREN as well as developing some other short film projects. In the meantime, we would like to congratulate Morgan and his fourth MARTY award nomination since 2009, this one for Established Media Arts for the 2013 awards ceremony.
More information about the MARTYs can be found by visiting the Mississauga Arts Council link.
We would also like to congratulate SEVERANCE crew members David O'Hearn and Alvin Campana for their MARTY nominations also; David is nominated for Established Performing Arts while Alvin is in the running for Established Media Arts. In the interview, he speaks about his early career as a filmmaker to some of his recent producing projects, specifically SEVERANCE and THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU. The episode aired on Rogers TV at the end of February.A February 25, 2013 - THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU gets another Hamilton screening!!!We are proud to report that THE DEVIL WALKS AMONG YOU will once again be gracing screens in Hamilton, as it is an Official Selection at the 2013 Little Nightmares Canadian Horror Shorts Festival. COLD DARK MIRROR is slated to go into production in the next few weeks and is tentatively set for release in late 2014.
A dark and ancient power, the Time Shadow, seeks entry into the corporeal world, a power some on the Alchemic Council are in league with, and whose existence they seek to keep secret above all else.
Together with her Cat Familiar Callista, Lydia must face the Shadow Council, and avenge the death of her mentor, the Maegis Acheron.i»?January 27, 2013 - ARCHON DEFENDER signed to US Distribution dealBig news to start the new year off. ARCHON DEFENDER, our 2009 multiple award-winning animated feature film (written and directed by David T.
Krupicz and produced by Morgan Muscat) has been signed to a US distribution deal with Ytinifni Pictures.
The deal will provide North American DVD and US Video on Demand (VOD) distribution in late 2013. While an official date has yet to be announced, expect the film to be released sometime in the fourth quarter. The film follows the path of a young woman, Colette, as she seeks her way through adversity to redemption, as the world she once knew is torn apart by war and tyranny. The first official trailer from our latest short film, MASSACRE AT FEMUR CREEK, has been unveiled online via writer-director Kyle Hytonen's You Tube channel. Enjoy the picture below of actor John Migloire in character as The Shape and keep checking back for more updates on the film's completion and release date. We were approached a few weeks back to create this video by local artists and have done so using footage from last year's event.
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BEST MOMENT
Tatran with no room for mistakes at home against Metalurg
Tatran Presov will on Wednesday in Presov (16.30 CET), in what will be their final home match of the SEHA season, welcome Metalurg. Hosts are in desperate need of a victory in order to keep their hopes of reaching final tournament alive.
Metalurg are on the other side going to finish the season on ninth position but it is clear coach Brestovac and his players will be determined to deliver a solid outing in order to boost their self-confidence prior to Macedonian Championship matches. They will also be motivated by the fact they’ve already managed to defeat Tatran this season in Skopje (30:28) so make sure not to miss this one.
Match will be broadcasted on Arena Sport channels, MRT (Macedonia), RTSV (Slovakia), Sport TV (Slovenia), Sport klub (Poland).
Slavko Goluza, Tatran Presov coach:
This will be our final home match of the season. Despite of the position they are on, we know they have a good team and will most definitely be highly motivated. We have to play a good, tough game, be physical because this will surely be a fighting match. No calculations for us – only victory can keep our hopes of reaching the final tournament alive. I’d like to invite all the fans to come and support us in what will, as I said, be our final SEHA home match of the season.
Mario Cvitkovic, Tatran Presov goalkeeper:
We have to do everything we can in order to prepare in the best possible way and celebrate against Metalurg. No doubt they have a good team, especially with some of their most recent reinforcements. Tough one is ahead of us but we know what this one means for us. We don’t really expect many new things from Metalurg because we’ve already played them on multiple occasions and know what it takes to defeat them.
Danilo Brestovac, Metalurg coach:
Goal is to give our best and see what it eventually brings us in the end. Unfortunately, we’ll once play without Aleksander Spende. However, we’ve already managed to defeat Tatran once this season so why not again? We have two more SEHA matches scheduled for us this season and then we’re fully turning towards Macedonian Championship.
Dimitar Dimitrioski, Metalurg player:
We’ve already played Tatran three times this season and I can say I feel like we know them quite well. We’ve prepared well for this one and the goal is to deliver best possible outing in order to boost ourselves with self-confidence ahead of national championship.
#Metalurg
#Tatran Presov
EHF EURO 2020, Day 13: Hungarian battle for semi-finals spot continues
(Group II) Hungary - Sweden 18:24 (9:10) Fourth match of the Main round did not go as planned for Hungary. They...
EHF EURO 2020, Day 12: Croatia deliver 6th victory, Spain too strong for Belarus
(Group I) Croatia - Czech Republic 22:21 (11:9) Croatia is proving their...
EHF EURO 2020, Day 11: narrow win for Hungary
Day 11 at the EHF EURO 2020 was reserved for clashes in Group II of the Main round. The only SEHA League country that was placed in that group, Hungary delivered narrow win against Slovenia and got back on the winning...
EHF EURO 2020, Day 10: outstanding victories for Croatia and Belarus
Day 10 at the EHF EURO 2020 was truly magical for Belarus and Croatia. Both of these teams secured important victories in...
EHF EURO 2020, Day 9: Hungary defeated in their first Main round match
All SEHA League countries have played their first matches in the Main round of EHF EURO 2020. After Croatia and...
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Remis velisque.
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Peel secondary schools not affected by potential one-day OSSTF strike on Jan. 15
In a news release, the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation (OSSTF) announced one-day strikes in some Ontario school boards on Jan. 15, 2020. Peel District School Board schools are NOT impacted by this potential strike. All Peel secondary schools will be open to students on Jan. 15.
OSSTF announced that their members in these boards will be on a one-day strik e on Jan. 15:
Moose Factory Island District Area School Board
James Bay Lowlands Secondary School Board
Conseil scolaire de district catholique de l'Est ontarien
Provincial Schools Authority
In addition, OSSTF-represented teachers and staff in the following French Catholic and French public school boards will also be on strike on Jan. 15: Conseil scolaire public du Grand Nord de l'Ontario, Conseil scolaire catholique du Nouvel-Ontario, Conseil scolaire Viamonde, Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir, Conseil des écoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario and Conseil des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est.
Again, Peel District School Board OSSTF members will not be engaged in a full withdrawal of service on Jan. 15. OSSTF members will, however, be continuing their current job action, including information pickets.
Thank you for your ongoing understanding during these challenging times.
TFSS Library Catalogue
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Synthesis and Electrical Properties of TiO2 Nanoparticles Using a Wet Chemical Technique
Received: May 7, 2013; Published: Jun. 10, 2013
Suresh Sagadevan, Department of Physics, Sree Sastha Institute of Engineering and Technology, Chembarambakkam, Chennai
TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized using a wet chemical technique. The as prepared nanopowder was used for further characterization. The prepared TiO2 nanoparticles were characterized for phase composition, using X-ray diffractometry. The particle size and morphology were studied using Scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscopy. The dielectric properties of TiO2 nanoparticles were studied in the different frequency range of 50Hz-5MHz at different temperatures. The frequency dependence of the dielectric constant and dielectric loss is found to decrease with an increase in the frequency at different temperatures. Further, the electronic properties like valence electron plasma energy, average energy gap or Penn gap, Fermi energy and electronic polarizability of the TiO2 nanoparticles were calculated.
TiO2, Wet chemical, SEM, TEM, Dielectric Studies
Suresh Sagadevan, Synthesis and Electrical Properties of TiO2 Nanoparticles Using a Wet Chemical Technique, American Journal of Nano Research and Applications. Vol. 1, No. 1, 2013, pp. 27-30. doi: 10.11648/j.nano.20130101.16
H. Xu, X. Wang and L. Zhang (2008) Selective preparation of nanorods and micro- octahedrons of Fe2O3 and their catalytic performances for thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate. Powder Technol.185:176-180.
O. Harizanov and A. Harizanova (2000) Development and investigation of sol-gel solutions for the formation of TiO2 coatings. Sol. Energy Mater. Sol.Cells.63 :85-195
B. Li, X. Wang, M. Yan and L. Li (2003)Preparation and characterization of nano-TiO2 powder. Mater. Chem. Phys. 78:184-188.
M. A. Behnajady, N. Modirshahla, M. Shokri, H. Elham and A. Zeininezhad (2008)The effect of particle size and crystal structure of titanium dioxide nanoparticles on the photocatalytic properties. J. Environ. Sci. Health. Part A.43:460-467.
K.M. Lee, V. Suryanarayanan and K .-C. Ho (2009) A Study on the Electron Transport Properties of TiO2 Electrodes in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells. J. Power Sources.188:635.
M. Ni, M. K. H. Leung, D. Y. C. Leung and K. Sumathy(2006) An analytical study of the porosity effect on dye- sensitized solar cell performance. Sol. Energy Mater. Sol.Cells. 90:1331-1334.
B.M. Kulwicki (1984)Ceramic sensors and transducers. J. Phys. Chem. Solids 45:1015–1031.
A.L. Micheli(1984)Fabrication and performance evaluation of a Titania automotive exhaust gas sensor. Am. Ceram. Soc. Bull. 63:694–698.
B. Levy (1997)Photochemistry of nanostructured materials for energy applications. J. Electoceram. 1:239–272.
C.J. Barbe, F. Arendse, P. Comte, M. Jirousek, F. Lenzmann, V. Shklover, and M. Gratzel (1997) Nanocrystalline titanium oxide electrodes for photovoltaic applications. J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 80: 3157–3171.
J.H. Noh, H.S. Jung, J.L. Lee, J.R. Kim, and K.S. Hong (2007) Microwave dielectric properties of nanocrystalline TiO2 prepared using spark plasma sintering, J. Eur. Ceram. Soc. 27: 2937–2940.
E. Veena Gopalan, K. A. Malini, S. Saravanan, D. Sakthi Kumar, Y. Yoshida, and M. R. Anantharaman (2008) Evidence for polaron conduction in nanostructured manganese ferrite. Journal of Physics D, vol. 41, no. 18, Article ID 185005
S. D. Shenoy, P. A. Joy, and M. R. Anantharaman(2004)Effect of mechanical milling on the structural, magnetic and dielectric properties of coprecipitated ultrafine zinc ferrite. Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials. 269:217–226
B. V. Prasad, G. Narsinga Rao, J.W. Chen, and D. Suresh Babu, (2011) Abnormal high dielectric constant in SmFeO3 semiconductor ceramics. Materials Research Bulletin. 46:1670–1673
A. Kumar, B. P. Singh, R. N. P. Choudhary, and A. K. Thakur, (2006) Characterization of electrical properties of Pb-modified BaSnO3 using impedance spectroscopy.Materials Chemistry and Physics. 99: 150–159
Ravindra NM, Bharadwaj RP, Sunil Kumar K and Srivastava VK (1981) Model based studies of some optical and electronic properties of narrow and wide gap materials. Infrared Phys. 21:369-381.
Kumar V. and Sastry BSR (2005) Heat of formation of ternary chalcopyrite semiconductors. J. Phys. Chem. Solids, 66: 99-102
Penn DR (1962) Wave-Number-Dependent Dielectric Function of Semiconductors.Phys. Rev. 128:2093-2097.
Ravindra NM and Srivastava VK (1980) Properties of liquid lead monosulfiede, lead selenide and lead telluride. Infrared Phys. 20:399-418.
Reddy RR, Nazeer Ahammed Y, and Ravi Kumar M (1995) Variation of magnetic susceptibility with electronic polarizability in compound semiconductors and alkali halides. J. Phys. Chem. Solids 56: 825-829.
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Watson leads Texans past rallying Patriots, Broncos break Chargers hearts
Deshaun Watson produced a stunning display to help the Houston Texans upstage the New England Patriots, while the Los Angeles Chargers succumbed to a last-gasp field goal.
Watson finished with four touchdowns as the Texans trumped the Patriots 28-22 in NFL action on Sunday.
Elsewhere, the Chargers succumbed to the Denver Broncos and the Kansas City Chiefs humbled the Oakland Raiders.
PATRIOTS KNOCKED FROM AFC SEED BY WATSON'S TEXANS
Reigning Super Bowl champions the Patriots lost top spot in the AFC after Watson dazzled in Houston, and the Baltimore Ravens prevailed against the San Francisco 49ers in a blockbuster earlier in the day.
Watson threw three touchdown passes and had the first TD reception of his career as Patriots dropped to 10-2 for the season.
Got the primetime dub.#NEvsHOU | #WeAreTexans pic.twitter.com/j8MFcMlC0a
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) December 2, 2019
Houston's Watson had 234 yards passing to help the Texans (8-4) take a 21-3 lead against the Patriots, while he also caught a touchdown from receiver DeAndre Hopkins.
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady managed two of his three touchdown passes in the final four minutes – the veteran finishing 24 of 47 for 326 yards and an interception.
CHARGERS FALL TO LATE DEFEAT
It was a heartbreaking outing for the Chargers, who went down 23-20 to the Broncos as time expired in Denver.
Brandon McManus' 53-yard field goal saw the Broncos (4-8) past the luckless Chargers (4-8), who had levelled the clash via Michael Badgley's 46-yard attempt with 14 seconds remaining.
McManus converted after a 38-yard pass interference call on Charges cornerback Casey Hayward Jr.
"I thought it was OPI [offensive pass interference]," Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn said post-game.
Denver's rookie quarterback Drew Lock was 18 of 28 for 134 yards, two touchdowns and an interception on debut.
While one Los Angeles team were left frustrated, another celebrated a comprehensive victory.
Jared Goff threw for 424 yards and two touchdowns as the Rams defeated the Arizona Cardinals 34-7.
CHIEFS SEIZE CONTROL OF AFC WEST
Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs were too good for AFC West rivals the Raiders, triumphing 40-9.
The Chiefs raced out to a 31-0 lead before the Raiders managed to get on the scoreboard in Kansas City.
Chiefs quarterback Mahomes was 15-of-29 for 175 yards and a touchdown, while the reigning MVP also rushed for a TD.
Juan Thornhill's pick-six also inspired the Chiefs (8-4), who opened a two-game lead over the Raiders in the race for the division.
The Raiders (6-6) struggled as QB Derek Carr finished with 222 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions.
EAGLES 'SELF-DESTRUCTED'
It was a forgettable outing for the Philadelphia Eagles as head coach Doug Pederson reflected on the team's 37-31 loss to the lowly Dolphins.
The Eagles led 28-14 in the third quarter before being outscored 23-3 for the remainder of the game in Miami.
"We self-destructed in a couple of areas today, and it just hurt us," said Pederson, whose team have lost three in a row. "And we didn't make enough plays; they made 'em, we didn't. So those are the things that I talk about when I talk about being a disciplined team."
WEEK 13 SCORES:
Tennessee Titans 31-17 Indianapolis Colts
Cincinnati Bengals 22-6 New York Jets
Washington Redskins 29-21 Carolina Panthers
Baltimore Ravens 20-17 San Francisco 49ers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 28-11 Jacksonville Jaguars
Pittsburgh Steelers 20-13 Cleveland Browns
Green Bay Packers 31-13 New York Giants
Miami Dolphins 37-31 Philadelphia Eagles
Los Angeles Rams 34-7 Arizona Cardinals
Denver Broncos 23-20 Los Angeles Chargers
Kansas City Chiefs 40-9 Oakland Raiders
Houston Texans 28-22 New England Patriots
12:58 AM Chiefs through to AFC title game after scoring 41 unanswered points in incredible comeback
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Category -> Comedy
AMOS AND ANDY SHOW, THE - 1951 - Alvin Childress, Spencer Williams, Tim Moore - over 70 episodes on 8 discs (DVD-R)
AMOS BURKE, SECRET AGENT - 1965 - Gene Barry, Carl Benton Reid - Balance of Terror/Operation Long Shadow/Steam Heat - guest stars James Best, Nehemiah Persoff, Antoinette Bower, Gerald Mohr, Michele Carey (DVD-R)
AMOS BURKE, SECRET AGENT - 1965 - Gene Barry, Carl Benton Reid - Or No Tomorrow/Mans Men/Whatever Happened... - guest stars Albert Paulsen, Jocelyn Lane, Nancy Gates, Whit Bissell, Abbe Lane, Ziva Rodann (DVD-R)
AMOS BURKE, SECRET AGENT - 1965 - Gene Barry, Carl Benton Reid - Password to Death/Man With the Power/Nightmare in the Sun - guest stars Janette Scott, Thomas Gomez, John Abbott, Ed Asner, Barbara Luna (DVD-R)
AMOS BURKE, SECRET AGENT - 1965 - Gene Barry, Carl Benton Reid - Peace its a Gasser/Prisoner of Mr. Sin - guest stars Michael Dunn, France Nuyen, Paul Carr, Henry Jones, Brooke Bundy(DVD-R)
AMOS BURKE, SECRET AGENT - 1965 - Gene Barry, Carl Benton Reid - The Weapon/Deadlier Than the Male - guest stars Dyan Cannon, Bernard Fox, David Sheiner, Julie Adams, Arnold Moss, Lisa Gaye (DVD-R)
AMOS BURKE, SECRET AGENT - 1966 - Gene Barry, Carl Benton Reid - Terror in a Tiny Town Part 1 & 2 - guest stars Kevin McCarthy, Lynn Loring, Skip Homeier, Robert Middleton, Patricia Owens - episode with echoes of Invasion of the Body Snatchers (DVD-R)
AN AFFECTIONATE LOOK AT GEORGE BURNS(1966 - Hosted by Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne & Frank Shuster - aprox. 60 minutes)
AN AFFECTIONATE LOOK AT HOPE AND CROSBY (1966 - Hosted by Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne & Frank Shuster - aprox. 60 minutes)
AN AFFECTIONATE LOOK AT JACK BENNY(1966 - Hosted by Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne & Frank Shuster - aprox. 60 minutes)
AN AFFECTIONATE LOOK AT THE MARX BROTHERS(1966 - Hosted by Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne & Frank Shuster - aprox. 60 minutes)
AN AFFECTIONATE LOOK AT THE MONSTERS (1966 - Hosted by Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne & Frank Shuster - aprox. 60 minutes)
AN AFFECTIONATE LOOK AT THE WESTERNS(1966 - Hosted by Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne & Frank Shuster - aprox. 60 minutes)
AN AFFECTIONATE LOOK AT W.C. FIELDS (1966 - Hosted by Canadian comedians Johnny Wayne & Frank Shuster - aprox. 60 minutes)
AN ORCHID FOR THE TIGER (1965 - Roger Hanin, Margaret Lee, Michel Bouquet - directed by Claude Chabrol - French with English subtitles - a.k.a. Le Tigre se parfume � la dynamite) DVD-R
AND DEBBIE MAKES SIX - 1968 - Debbie Reynolds, Bob Hope, Frank Gorshin, Bobby Darin, Jim Nabors (DVD-R)
AND SUDDEN DEATH (1936 - Randolph Scott, Frances Drake, Tom Brown - directed by Charles Barton)
AND THE ANGELS SING (1944 - Fred MacMurray, Dorothy Lamour, Betty Hutton, Diana Lynn - directed by George Marshall) DVD-R
Androcles and the Lion (1952 - Victor Mature, Jean Simmons & Robert Newton)DVD-R
ANDROCLES AND THE LION (Made for TV 1967 - Norman Wisdom, No�l Coward, Ed Ames, Brian Bedford, John Cullum, William Hickey, Geoffrey Holder, Kurt Kasznar, William Redfield, Inga Swenson - directed by Joe Layton) DVD-R
Andy Warhol\'s Bad (Carroll Baker)
ANDY WILLIAMS SHOW 1971 - guest stars Don Rickles, Tommy Roe, The New Seekers, Bobby Gentry and Janos Prohaska as the Cookie Bear plus THE MILTON BERLE SHOW 1966 - guest stars Steve Allen, Jayne Meadows, Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs, Martha Ray (DVD-R)
ANDY WILLIAMS SHOW, THE (1963 - guests Anna Maria Alberghetti, Johnny Mercer, Pete Fountain & Vaughn Meader - 1963 - with Art Carney, Janet Leigh, The Osmond Brothers) DVD-R
ANDY WILLIAMS SHOW, THE (1965 - guests Bobby Darin, Robert Goulet & Woody Allen)DVD-R
ANDY WILLIAMS SHOW, THE (1966 - guests Tony Bennett, Peggy Lee & Frank Gorshin)DVD-R
ANDY WILLIAMS SHOW, THE (2 episodes 1966 - guest stars Bobby Darin, Herb Shriner with his hilarious home movies routine, Nancy Wilson, Anthony Newley, Lesley Gore, Count Base, Tony Bennett)DVD-R
ANDY WILLIAMS SHOW, THE - airdate October 3, 1970 - guests Donald O\'Connor, Jo Anne Worley, Little Richard , Bread, Charlie Callas and the Cookie Bear (DVD-R)
ANGEL - 1960 - Starring Annie Fargue, Marshall Thompson - 5 episodes - guest starring James Garner, Mel Blanc, Doris Singleton, Parley Baer, Frank Wilcox, Gale Gordon (DVD-R)
Angel and the Trumpet, The (English - 1949 - Eileen Herlie, Basil Sydney, Oskar Werner & Maria Schell)
ANGEL IN MY POCKET (1969 - Andy Griffith, Lee Meriwether, Jerry Van Dyke, Kay Medford, Edgar Buchanan, Henry Jones, Gary Collins)DVD-R
ANGEL ON THE AMAZON (1948 - George Brent, Vera Ralston, Brian Aherne, Constance Bennett, Richard Crane, Ross Elliott - directed by John H. Auer)DVD-R
ANGEL THAT PAWNED HER HARP, THE (English - 1954 - Felix Aylmer, Diane Cilento, Jerry Desmonde) DVD-R
ANGEL\'S HOLIDAY (1937 - Jane Withers, Joan Davis, Sally Blane, Lon Chaney Jr., - directed by James Tinling) DVD-R
Ang�lique et le Roi (French - 1965 - Michele Mercier, Robert Hossein - directed by Bernard Borderie - novel by Anne & Serge Golon - French language only no English subtitles a.k.a Angelique and the King)
Ang�lique et le Sultan (French - 1967 - Michele Mercier, Robert Hossein - directed by Bernard Borderie - novel by Anne & Serge Golon - French language only no English subtitles a.k.a Angelique and the Sultan)
ANGELS WITH BROKEN WINGS (1941 - Binnie Barnes, Gilbert Roland, Leo Gorcey of Bowery Boys fame, Mary Lee, Billy Gilbert, Jane Frazee, Edward Norris)DVD-R
ANHEUSER BUSCH MARKETING CONVENTION - 1988 - Hosted by Charlton Heston - Milton Berle, Norm Crosby, Lucille Ball, Tommy Tune, Lou Rawls, Natalie Cole, Ed McMahon, Al Hirt, Chuck Mangione, John Forsythe, Frank Sinatra, Liza Minnelli, Sammy Davis Jr.(DVD-R)
ANN MARGRET:RHINESTONE COWGIRL 1977 - Bob Hope, Perry Como, Chet Atkins, Minnie Pearl (DVD-R)
ANN-MARGRET TV SPECIAL - guest stars Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Danny Thomas (DVD-R)
ANN-MARGRET: RHINESTONE COWGIRL - 1977 - Ann-Margret, Perry Como, Minnie Pearl, Chet Atkins, Bob Hope (DVD-R)
ANNIE GET YOUR GUN (1950 - Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, Louis Calhern and Edward Arnold)
ANNIE GET YOUR GUN (1957 - Mary Martin, John Raitt - Made for television)DVD-R
ANNIE GET YOUR GUN - DVD (1950 - Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, Louis Calhern and Edward Arnold)
Anniversary, The (English - 1968 - Hammer - Bette Davis - directed by Roy Ward Baker)
ANYONE CAN PLAY (1968 - Ursula Andress, Virna Lisi, Claudine Auger, Marisa Mell, Brett Halsey, Jean-Pierre Cassell) DVD-R
Anyone For Sex?? (English - 1972 - Nanette Newman, Hywel Bennett & John Cleese - a.k.a. The Love Ban & It\'s a 2\'6\" Above the Ground World)DVD-R
ANYTHING GOES (1936 - Bing Crosby, Ethel Merman, Charles Ruggles, Ida Lupino, Arthur Treacher, Margaret Dumont, Chill Wills, John Carradine, Keye Luke, Dennis O\'Keefe, Jane Wyman - directed by Lewis Milestone - a.k.a. Tops is the Limit) DVD-R
ANZACS (Australian - 1985 - Andrew Clarke, Paul Hogan, Megan Williams - directed by Pino Amenta, John Dixon, George Miller - aproximate running time 9 hours on 3 tapes - complete miniseries)
ANZACS: THE WAR DOWN UNDER (Australian - 1985 - Paul Hogan, Andrew Clarke, Megan Williams, Jon Blake, Tony Bonner, Shane Briant - North American version of famed Australian miniseries set in WWI)
APPASSIONATA (Italian 1974 - Gabriele Ferzetti, Ornella Muti, Eleonora Giorgi, Valentina Cortese - English language version) DVD-R
-40 << >> +40
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| 0.840869
| 0.840869
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The Life and Career of the Actress Robin Johnson
Robin Johnson, signing autographs, late 1980
Times Square UK Lobby Cards, 1st Set (post 4 of 4)
New Times Square digital transfer
Joseph Wegesa on Justina Johnson
Toni H on You’re Probably Wondering Why I’m Here
Vince on Times Square Program Book, Japan, June 1981, pages 14-19 (post 3 of 5)
Sean on Times Square Program Book, Japan, June 1981 (post 1 of 5)
Vince on Times Square Program Book, Japan, June 1981 (post 1 of 5)
"Times Square"
Code Name: Foxfire
1979 1980 1981 1982 advertising AFD Allan Moyle Artie Weinstein Australia costuming EMI Germany interview Jacob Brackman Japan Kent lobby cards locations magazine Mexico Mick Rock Nicky Nicky Marotta Norman Ross Pammy Peter Coffield photograph poster Press Kit production promotion review Rickenbacker Robert Stigwood Robin Johnson RSO screenplay soundtrack Tim Curry Times Square Towa Trini Alvarado UK WJAD Yugoslavia
"Times Square" Fandom
Living the Romantic Comedy
Vintage Salt
Fans of Robin Johnson
Posted on 17th October 2019 in "Times Square"
“I’m convinced that if I do this long enough, I’ll have to start laying low in public, to endure the intrusion of strangers asking for autographs. I deeply admire Bette Midler, but I would never dare to ask her for an autograph; I wouldn’t bother her with nonsense like that.”
— Robin Johnson, August 1981
Okay, this is the last item I’ve yet found dating from Times Square’s theatrical run, which started 39 years ago today.
I’ve been unable to find out anything about the photographer David Loar.
[Robin Johnson signing autographs], [approximately October-December 1980] : color slide, AAT ID: 300128366 : 35mm
inscription: [on mount] [printed on screen side:] COLOR TRANSPARENCY
[stamped on view side:] © DAVID LOAR
HOLLYWOOD PHOTO
[handwritten in pen:] Robin Johnson
[3?] (work)
1980_35mm_slide_David_Loar_01_1080px_a.jpg
1080 px (H) x 749 px (W), 96 dpi, 216 kb (image)
© David Loar
Times Square ©1980 StudioCanal/Canal+
comments: 0 » tags: 1980, autograph, David Loar, Hollywood Photo, promotion, Robin Johnson
Times Square newspaper movie ad negatives, 1980
Posted on 22nd January 2019 in "Times Square"
Exactly what it says on the label – four pieces of black-and-white film apparently used to print newspaper ads with, dating from October 1980 or shortly before.
The seller of these items thought they were for printing posters, but the images are of such low quality, and black-and-white, that even though they don’t quite match up to any of the ads offered in the American campaign pressbook, they’re obviously made for newspaper use. They look pretty good here, though:
The first is just the film’s title; the second adds Trini and Robin’s faces from the poster, side-by-side; the third uses the image from the poster including Tim Curry on Nicky’s badge; and the fourth reproduces almost the entire poster. You can tell they’re American ads, produced fairly early on, since on the second-largest, Tim Curry is given top billing (as he has in the movie) and Robin, although pictured, isn’t mentioned. As we’ve seen, by the time the film had passed through Europe towards the Pacific, Robin had become the first name associated with it.
[ Four Times Square newspaper advertisement negatives
USA : black-and-white negatives : AAT ID: 300128343 : 1.9 x 9.6 cm.; 4.4 x 9.9 cm.; 8.4 x 9.8 cm.; 13 x 9.8 cm. : 1980 (works);
Times_Square_newspaper_ad_negatives_unreversed.jpg
946 x 1080 px, 96 dpi, 425 kb
Times_Square_newspaper_ad_negatives.jpg
Times_Square_newspaper_ad_negative_1_of_4.jpg
167 x 800 px, 96 dpi, 60 kb
352 x 800 px, 96 dpi, 156 kb
1080 x 778 px, 96 dpi, 374 kb
Times_Square_newspaper_ad_negative_4_of_4_negative.jpg
photos ©2019 Sean Rockoff
comments: 0 » tags: 1980, advertising, newspaper, promotion
Bravo, No. 21, Germany, May 19, 1982
Posted on 9th January 2019 in "Times Square"
May 1982, and Times Square was about to have its final premiere, in West Germany. Why did it take this long, over a year and a half after its initial premiere, and a year after the rest of Europe had seen it? I have no idea. But someone still had hope for the movie, as shown by the two-page spread in Bravo, featuring the same sort of excited plot synopsis published in Filmstar No. 3, Sonido No. 56 and Film Review Vol. 31 No. 2.
The big picture across the two pages was last seen in the February 1981 Movie 81 and on the Japanese movie poster. The picture on the top left of page 34 was the top middle image on the Mexican movie poster. The center photo on page 34, of Mr. Pearl attacking Johnny, is I think making its first appearance here. We last saw the bottom photo in the Japanese souvenir program book and flyer, and on a British lobby card. On page 35, the shot of Johnny at the mic was also a British lobby card, and appeared in Movie 81. And the bottom photo was also a British lobby card, last seen in Joepie No. 365 in March 1981, and first seen in the “Robert Stigwood Presents Times Square” folder from sometime in 1980 well before the movie’s release.
Here’s the text by Peter Rauscher in German, followed by my attempt at a translation.
Jetzt im Kino: TIMES SQUARE
IHR KONNT UNS ALLE MAL
Ein irrer Film mit heißer
Musik über die ausgeflipptesten
Teenager von New York
Die 16jährige Nicky Marotta (Robin Johnson) und die 13jährige Pamela Pearl (Trini Alvarado) liegen zusammen im Zimmer eines New Yorker Krankenhauses. Beide sollen auf ihren Geisteszustand untersucht werden. Nicky, weil sie eine notorische Streunerin ist; Pamela, weil ihr Vater, ein ehrgeiziger Politiker, mit ihr nicht mehr klarkommt.
Eines Tages überredet Nicky Pamela zur Flucht. Im Nachthemd entwischen sie aus dem Krankenhaus, schnappen sich einen Krankenwagen und brausen los. In einem alten Schuppen am Times Square, einem der berühmtesten und berüchtigtsten Plätze New Yorks, finden sie Unterschlupf.
So beginnt der Film „Times Square“ (in Deutschland hat er noch den Untertitel „Ihr könnt uns alle mal“). Die beiden Mädchen finden ihr „freies“ Leben herrlich. Sie tragen die ausgefallensten Klamotten, hören pausenlos heiße Musik und jobben abends in einer Kneipe. Nicky, die gut Gitarre spielt, singt mit einer Band,| Pamela arbeitet als Go-go-Girl.
Natürlich hat Pamelas Vater alle Hebel in Bewegung gesetzt, um seine Tochter zu finden. In den Fall hat sich auch der beliebte Discjockey Johnny LaGuardian (Tim Curry, der Dr. Frank N. Furter aus der „Rocky Horror Picture Show“) eingeschaltet. Er ist so eine Art Thomas Gottschalk. Ihm vertrauen die Teens, wenn er täglich am Mikrofon zu ihnen spricht.
Johnny findet die beiden und verspricht, ihnen zu helfen. So dürfen die Mädchen ein von Nicky komponiertes Lied über den Sender singen. Die jugendlichen Hörer sind begeistert. Johnny erzählt ihnen die Geschichte der beiden Ausreißerinnen.
Nicky und Pamela werden auf ihre Art zu „Heldinnen“. Einer der Höhepunkte des Films ist die Aufforderung von Nicky und Pamela, dem Götzen „Fernsehen“ abzuschwören. Und Hunderte machen mit: Zum Entsetzen der Eltern werfen die Teenager die Fernseh-Apparate einfach auf die Straße.
Doch die beiden Mädchen sehen bald ein, daß ihr Leben so nicht mehr weiterlaufen kann. Und wieder erweist sich der Discjockey Johnny als Retter. Er organisiert für Nicky ein Konzert auf dem Dach eines Kinos.
Aus allen Richtungen New Yorks strömen die Kids in gleicher Aufmachung wie Nicky und Pamela zum Times Square. Das Konzert, obwohl von der Polizei nicht genehmigt, wird ein Riesenerfolg. Nicky ist ihrem Traum, ein Rock- Star zu werden, nähergekommen.
Pamela kehrt zu ihrem Vater, der eingesehen hat, daß auch er viele Fehler gemacht hat, zurück.
Die beiden Hauptdarstellerinnen sind Neulinge. Nicky (Robin Johnson) wurde von der Schule weg engagiert, Pamela (Trini Alvarado) drehte bereits einen Film. Toll natürlich Tim Curry. Die Musik stammt unter anderem von Suzi Quatro, Pretenders, Roxy Music, Gary Numan, XTC, Ramones und Robin Gibb von den Bee Gees.
Text: Peter Raschner
Auf dem Dach eines Kinos gibt Nicky ihr erstes, umjubeltes Rock-Konzert
Wutenbrannt stürzt sich Pamelas Vater auf Disc-jockey Johnny
Die 13jährige Pamela Pearl jobbt als Go-go-Girl, nachdem sie zu Hause ausgerissen ist
Nicky (rechts) und Pamela träumen von einer Rock-Karriere — Disc-Jockey Johnny (rechts) hilft ihnen dabei
Nicky und Pamela auf dem Times Square. Sie sind in dieser Gegend bekannt wie bunte Hunde
In theaters now: TIMES SQUARE
YOU CAN ALL (KISS OUR ASSES)
A crazy film with hot
music about the freaky
teenagers of New York
16-year-old Nicky Marotta (Robin Johnson) and 13-year-old Pamela Pearl (Trini Alvarado) lie together in the room of a New York hospital. Both to have their mental health examined. Nicky because she is a notorious stray; Pamela because her father, an ambitious politician, can’t handle her any more.
One day Nicky persuades Pamela to escape. In their nightgowns they escape from the hospital, steal themselves an ambulance and zoom off. In an old shack in Times Square, one of the most famous and most notorious places in New York, they find shelter.
So begins the film “Times Square” (in Germany it also has the subtitle “You can all […] our […]”). Both girls find their “free” life wonderful. They wear outrageous clothes, listen to hot music nonstop and in the evening work in a bar. Nicky, who plays guitar well, sings with a band; Pamela works as a go-go girl.
Naturally Pamela’s father has pulled out all the stops to find his daughter. On this case the popular disc jockey Johnny LaGuardian (Tim Curry, Dr. Frank N. Furter from “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”) is also involved. He is a Thomas Gottschalk type. The teens trust him when he speaks daily through the microphone to them.
Johnny finds them both and promises to help them. So the girls sing a song composed by Nicky over the radio. The young listeners are inspired. Johnny tells them the story of the runaways.
Nicky and Pamela become in their own way “heroines.” One of the highlights of the film is the call of Nicky and Pamela to renounce the idol “television.” And hundreds join in: to the horror of their parents the teenagers simply throw their television sets to the street. But both girls soon see that their life cannot continue this way. And again Johnny the disc jockey comes to the rescue. He organizes a concert on the roof of a cinema for Nicky.
The Kids stream from all areas of New York to Times Square in outfits identical to Nicky and Pamela. The concert, although not authorized by the police, becomes a huge success. Nicky has come closer to her dream to become a rock star.
Pamela returns to her father who has realized that he also has made many mistakes.
Both leading actresses are newcomers. Nicky (Robin Johnson) was hired away from her school, Pamela (Trini Alvarado) previously made a film. Of course Tim Curry is terrific. The music is by, among others, Suzi Quatro, Pretenders, Roxy Music, Gary Numan, XTC, Ramones and Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees.
On the roof of a cinema Nicky gives her first rock concert performance
Pamela’s father falls furiously on disc jockey Johnny
13-year-old Pamela Pearl works as a go-go girl, after she has run away from home
Nicky (right) and Pamela dream of a rock career – disc jockey Johnny helps (right) them at it
Nicky and Pamela in Times Square. They are known in this neighborhood as colorful dogs
I think that last caption might be better translated as “they are well known to the locals,” but I had a hard enough time rendering the German subtitle into colloquial and printable English.
Movie 81 No. 2, February 1981
Times Square movie poster, Japan, June 1981
Guerreras de Nueva York (Times Square movie poster, Mexico, 1981)
Times Square Program Book, Japan, June 1981, pages 14-19 (post 3 of 5)
U.K. Lobby Cards (post 2 of 3)
Joepie, No. 365, March 15, 1981
Times Square Press Folder
Bravo No. 21, May 19, 1982, Germany (monthly (publication) (AAT ID: 300311879))
28 x 21.1 cm. (work);
Bravo No 21 p 1_1080px.jpg
1080 px (H) x 797 px (W), 96 dpi, 622 kb
Bravo No 21 pp 34-35_layers_1080px.jpg
1080 px (H) x 1633 px (W), 96 dpi, 1.03 MB
detail 1 p34 a_800px.jpg
611 px (H) x 800 px (W), 96 dpi, 344 kb
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585 px (H) x 800 px (W), 96 dpi, 313 kb (images)
comments: 0 » tags: 1982, Bravo, Germany, magazine, Peter Rauscher, promotion, Tim Curry, Trini Alvarado
Times Square Hits US Cable TV, October 1981
Posted on 15th December 2018 in "Times Square"
ROBIN JOHNSON is an uninhibited product of the streets who sets New York City on edge as a wild runaway from authority in “Times Square.” See it in October on THE MOVIE CHANNEL.
A year after its brief run in theaters, Times Square made it to HBO, and I watched it every single time it ran. This was before my family had a VCR, but my dad had access to a Sony Porta-Pak open-reel video recorder, and I recorded the movie across four reels, during four broadcasts, in glorious black-and-white, and watched it many times over the next few years, until I went off to college and the Porta-Pak went back to wherever it came from. I do still have the reels, but nothing to play them them on, assuming there’s still a signal on them. There’s a slim possibility that the American trailer is also on one of those reels: it was used to promote the movie on HBO, and I remember poring over the movie every time I saw it wondering how I kept missing the scene where Nicky and Pammy were splashing each other in the river.
The only thing inaccurate about the above is, although I and everybody else I’ve spoken to who also watched those cable screenings remember vividly that it was on HBO, the only evidence I’ve ever found indicates that it was actually The Movie Channel. And so far, I’m also the only one willing to admit that my memory may be faulty on that one detail. Times Square fans can be obstinate.
This photo is TS-57-26/1 from the US Press Material folder, with The Movie Channel’s logo replacing AFD’s on the now slightly expanded white border. The caption is edited from the one supplied with that photo, over a year before. After all the variants and previously unseen promotional photos that came out as Times Square was released around the world, its television debut was promoted with one of the first shots ever released.
[TS-57-26 Movie Channel variant]
black-and-white photograph, AAT ID: 300128347
US, 1981 ; 8″ x 10″ (work)
1981-10 Head shot Movie Channel variant_1080px.jpg
comments: 0 » tags: 1981, cable, Movie Channel, Nicky, Nicky Marotta, promotion
Filmstar, Vol. 1 No. 6, Thailand, October 1981
Posted on 3rd December 2018 in "Times Square"
I would think that by October of 1981, a year after its initial release in New York, and two or three months after its Thai release, Times Square would have long since closed in Thailand and become a distant memory. But that didn’t stop Filmstar magazine from running an article promoting Robin herself, very much like the interviews with Robin published during her publicity tour nine months previous.
A quick-witted likeable young lady
Do you still remember Nicky, a quick witted rebelliously likable young girl from Times Square? If you are also someone who fell in love with that Nicky, here is a tiny reminiscence that she is happy to share. Even though it is not going to be as exciting as in the film, I bet you wouldn’t mind learning from her.
Nicky is Robin Johnson, 17 year old teenager from Brooklyn. Her accent is clearly a unique and gravelly Brooklynese when she speaks. When we met her, Robin Johnson’s hair was still chopped in a shaggy cut. “It would be too expensive to go to a beauty shop and have it stripped out.” she says, “And it would take hours. I’ll just wait till it grows back in the real way.”
Robin still remembers the role of Nicky so well even though a year has passed by. She and Trini Alvarado are friends on and off screen. Trini wants to be a song-writer. Robin, a rock singer — finally, she does give a street concert in Times Square.
“I love rock.” Robin says. “Van Halen. Led Zeppelin. Music makes you feel good — and sometimes sad. I remember the song called Damn Dog so well. It’s not punk. I hate punk music, the real punk that comes from England—The Clash. Sex Pistols. They’re maniacs: they want to die. I don’t mind New Wave so much. It has the same kind of roots, but it’s mellower.”
Robin starts to giggle when she thinks about one scene in the movie. “I’m really very wild-looking. I wear a mask like the Lone Ranger and a blue turtleneck sweater with blue glitter tights and a plastic-garbage-bag belt!”
Acting in the film was the first job Robin ever had. “That matures you. learning how to work and deal with people. Being street-smart helps in making a movie. There are certain rules you pick up— when to keep your mouth shut, when to do certain things. It’s like being in a different neighborhood — some people might give you a hassle, but if they do. you should keep your mouth shut, even if you get mad, and just walk the other way and get out of there. I learned responsibility. You become more considerate. I liked everybody I worked with except two out of a hundred. One woman really gave me a fit — she was such a big complainer. she must have gotten a B.A. in complaining! After a while. I just avoided her except when I absolutely had to work with her. ‘What am I going to get upset for?’ I asked myself. ‘I’m the one you see on the screen.’”
Robin goes to Brooklyn Tech high school. “I never get along with my teachers,” she says. “I’m rebellious. I don’t like people in authority.”
Robin remembered a casting scout, who arranged for Robin to go to an audition in Manhattan. That audition feels like it wrecks her brains. Back then, in her head she thought “I just wanted to go home to sleep but my friend Cindi was with me, and she says. ‘No. no. no. you’ve got to go. “I had to fill out a sheet with height, weight, eye color, hair color—stuff like that. Then, they’re putting me on tape, inside the studio room I was sitting there like a dummy and read the script. I don’t know why they have chosen me but I got a part in Times Square.”
“It’s a nice feeling to be picked out of so many.” Robin says. “People call me a natural talent, but what I say to that is that the character I play is very close to me so that my actions are natural. It’s easy to play someone like yourself.”
Around her neck, she wears a couple of gold chains. One has her birth sign. Gemini, dangling from it; the other, a tiny round gold circle, contains a diamond chip. “Trini and I were given diamonds by the crew at a party when the movie was finished,” Robin explains, her eyes wide. “When I saw the Tiffany bag it came in. I said. ‘My God!’ I put it on, and I haven’t taken it off since.”
I managed to have this article translated professionally by Joy Busai (whose website, www.thaienglishhq.com, unfortunately seems to be down at the moment), and she noticed that it seemed itself to be an almost word-for-word translation into Thai of Robin’s interview in Seventeen Magazine from October 1980. While it got me a discount on the translation, it was something of a disappointment to find that one of the last contemporary Times Square articles contained absolutely nothing new.
Photo roundup: Page 40 is cropped from the image used most prominently for a UK lobby card.
Bottom left on p. 41 is the shot published in Playboy, Vol. 28 No. 1, January 1981. Top to bottom at right: a shot of the final concert previously used on the UK soundtrack sampler; Nicky cutting Pammy’s hand, with a boom microphone front and center, as seen in the Japanese souvenir program book; a previously-unpublished, as far as I know, full frame from the film showing the extra empty space at the top; and a shot of Robin as Nicky that accompanied her October 1980 interview in Seventeen, which itself was translated into Thai in the issue of Filmstar three months before this one.
Page 41, top left, is the Yoram Kahana shot that first appeared, again as far as I know, in Movie 81 No. 2. Directly below is UK publicity still 21. Below that, captioned “ROBIN”, is TS-69-34A/4. To its right is a shot taken within seconds of the UK lobby card but itself seems to be making its first appearance here. To the right is TS-82-30/4, and finally at the bottom right is another frame from the film with extra space at the top and bottom.
UK Promo Photos 4, 13, and 21, 1980-81
Times Square Press Material folder (post 4 of 5)
Times Square (article, AAT ID: 300048715)
Filmstar Vol. 1 No. 6, 1 October 1981, pp. 40-42 (magazine (periodical), AAT ID: 300215389)
25.9 x 18.9 cm. (work);
Filmstar_v1_n6_19811001_p 01_layers_1080px.jpg
Filmstar_v1_n6_19811001_p 41_1080px.jpg
comments: 0 » tags: 1981, interview, magazine, promotion, Thailand
Filmstar, Vol 1 No. 3, Thailand, August 1981
Posted on 9th November 2018 in "Times Square"
By August 1981, Robin might already have figured out that neither she nor Andy Gibb were going to get a call telling them when to report to the Grease 2 set. Most of the world had already forgotten about Times Square. But it wasn’t quite over yet.
Thailand’s Filmstar magazine devoted four pages and the back cover to the upcoming release of Times Square. I tried and failed to get a professional translation of the article. Google Translate makes nearly as bad a hash of Thai as it does Japanese, but from what I can make out, this is a purely promotional article summarizing the plot, like the articles in Sonido No. 56 and Film Review Vol. 31 No. 2.
The caption and drawing on page 63, the first page of the article, are from the European movie poster, and the photo of Pammy and Nicky is TS-72-8A/14, the most-used photo of the girls together.
The image from the poster also appears on page 64, above UK Press Kit photo #4 of Tim Curry. The large photo of Robin, as far as I know, made its first appearance here. As she’s looking directly into the camera, I suspect it was taken at the same time as this pre-take shot, but since the background is cut out there’s just as good a chance it was taken at Pier 56.
The large image of Trini on page 65 looks to be from the same origin as that photo of Robin. Based on what I can make out of the lighting, I tend to think it’s from the outside location. It’s the only photo I’ve seen of Trini in that costume where she isn’t holding the boom box. The inset of the cops pushing Nicky into the back seat is another previously, and as far as I know, otherwise unpublished publicity still. The only matching shots in the film are from the opposite side of the car, and the film camera’s setup from this reverse angle is several feet to the left.
The shot of Robin as Nicky as Aggie Doone singing “Damn Dog” in the Cleo Club is yet another photo making its first appearance. But not its last… there’s a slightly better version yet to come.
So, amazingly, the Times Square publicity campaign was nearing its end, yet the places it was being published were being furnished with new material, despite it being highly unlikely that the local audiences would have seen any of the already-used photos. Unless, perhaps, the EMI/AFD publicity departments had decided that what they’d been doing was failing, and if they could only find the right photos, they could turn Times Square into a hit in the next country…
The back cover of Filmstar was a reproduction of the collage first published in Screen International No. 246 in June 1980 and used in February 1981 as the Australian movie poster, with the addition of Robin’s name in English. If there’s one thing all the local contemporary film publicity outlets agreed on, it’s that Robin herself was the most marketable aspect of the movie.
Posts mentioned above but not linked to:
Times Square UK Press Kit (post 2 of 4)
Times Square Australian Daybill
Filmstar Vol. 1 No. 3, 15 August 1981, pp. 63-66 (magazine (periodical), AAT ID: 300215389)
Filmstar Vol 1 No 3_front_cover_1080px.jpg
Filmstar Vol 1 No 3_p63_1080px_2.jpg
Filmstar Vol 1 No 3_p64_1080px.jpg
Filmstar Vol 1 No 3_back_cover_1080px.jpg
comments: 0 » tags: 1981, Filmstar, magazine, Mick Rock, promotion, Thailand, Tim Curry, Trini Alvarado
More stills from the UK series
I nearly passed over this lot of five black and white stills, except it had one photo I’d never seen. Rather than try to haggle for just the one photo, I bought the lot, and I’m glad I did, because they’re all from the UK series, three of them were new numbers, and the others are slightly different again from the previous copies I have.
This shot is number 41, and the highest number I’ve yet found. (I have 18 of them.) It’s the one I thought I’d never seen, but I was wrong: it was published on the back of the “Times Square Trailer” UK soundtrack sampler record sleeve.
The other four are numbers 20, 23, 34, and 40.
All five have borders, where most of the series are printed full-bleed, all the way to the edges. Number 20 is the third copy and the third variant I’ve found. The first had the number printed to the right, against the grey background. The second was cropped more generously at the bottom, and had the number against the black of Nicky’s coat, but cut off at the bottom.. This one is cropped like that second version, and has the number in almost the same place, but up a few millimeters so it can be seen clearly. It also looks like it’s the exact same number stuck on the print – the handwriting looks identical in all three. I suppose this is obvious to anyone who works in movie promotion, but I am not one of those people — it would seem that whenever they needed more copies of an image, they dug out the negative, stuck on the number, and ran off a few prints, and every run ended up slightly different from every other.
Number 23 is TS-82-30/4, but cropped more generously at the top and bottom and more narrowly on the left and right. Number 34 is a second copy of the first photo I ever found from this series, but it’s printed much lighter, washing out Pammy’s face, and the number has moved from just to the left of the neon “Q” in “TIMES SQUARE” to inside the curve at the right. And number 40 is TS-42-11A/2, printed lighter with higher contrast, and cropped more generously at the left and bottom. Although it seems obvious now, seeing this is the first time I’ve realized that this shot, along with this one and this one, were taken as Robin was kneeling on top of the theater marquee, and the blurred lights behind her are the street below.
These prints were distributed in Israel by Stiller Film Ltd., whose partially visible stamp on their backs indicates that they had a local office in Tel Aviv. The prints also have the TIMES SQUARE stamp found on the backs of many, but not all, of the UK series, and what I believe is Times Square in handwritten Hebrew.
Pages referred to but not linked directly above:
Times Square Blue
UK Promo Photo #29
UK ; 8″ x 10″ (work)
UK still 20_1080px.jpg
863 px (H) x 1080 px (W), 96 dpi, 362 kb (image)
UK still 23 back b_1080px.jpg
UK ; 10″ x 8″ (work)
comments: 0 » tags: 1980, 1981, EMI, Israel, promotion, Stiller Film Ltd., Trini Alvarado, UK
JUKE, No. 302, February 7, 1981
The soundtrack album cover image on the cover of Australia’s Juke no. 302 is the only Robin content in the issue, but it’s still a remarkable piece of Times Square history. In Melbourne at least, PolyGram Records promoted the heck out of the film’s premiere for an entire weekend, and the magazine gave away posters and copies of the soundtrack. If there’s anybody reading this who remembers any of this happening, I’d be very interested in hearing about it.
BIG PUSH ON ‘TIMES SQUARE’
By Brian Jones
To promote the opening of the Times Square movie in Melbourne this week, PolyGram Records have come up with a unique idea.
To take Time Square to the city square. Over the weekend they hired out the huge video screen at the Melbourne city square where excerpts of the movie were flashed with lots of plugs for the double soundtrack LP and other PolyGram product. If you caught the screening, you’d have noticed that JUKE Magazine got its whack of plugging as well.
To celebrate the release of the movie, not to mention Roxy Music coming into Melbourne (certainly a big plus in their promotion as Roxy are featured on the soundtrack as well!) JUKE is this week giving away 12 copies of the soundtrack LP. Write to “Times Square” competition, care of this magazine, and tell us three of the artists on the LP, with your name and address on the back of the envelope.
And for Melbourne readers, the first 20 to waltz up to the Juke offices during business hours and ask for it gets a special colour poster.
The movie, which premiers on Feb 5, is about two runaways who end up at Times Square in New York, and is produced by Robert Stigwood.
In the “Times Square” movie, Tim Curry plays an all night disc jockey who gives his listeners a running account of the two runaway girls’ progress.
Pages 6, 7, and 13 contained articles on three of the bands with songs on the soundtrack, one of whom (Roxy Music) was playing in Melbourne that week — although the interview with Phil Manzanera had been conducted a week previous, while the band was still in England. The articles are all branded with a big Times Square logo (unique to this magazine), but make absolutely no references to the movie. I’m reproducing the text below because they’re a bit of a window into the world the movie was being released into, but they have nothing to do with Times Square, and even less to do with Robin Johnson.
And note that one of the articles in the magazine was written by “Betty Page,” and another by “Brian Jones.” I don’t know what to make of that.
XTC in NEW YORK
Betty Page finds them slaving for the Yankee dollar
Once big in trousers, now big in the States? Five minutes into New York and the taxi driver (always good for copy, dese guys) wants to know in his best Brooklynese “are dey like da Beatles?”
Funny he should say that! Here’s the city mourning not only a death but the fact that any Beatles reunion of any sort is over, and you have XTC who have similar characters — Terry Chambers like Ringo (whacky/moody), Colin Moulding is a Paul (pretty bassist), Andy Patridge is a John with pebble specs and aggressive humour and Dave Gregory is George, the strong silent type with a schoolboy’s face.
Four individuals, churning out pop song after commercial pop song, yet experiencing the ultimate frustration of being denied enormous popular acclaim, after so much hard grafting.
Due to some particular warped business logic, XTC have been touring constantly for 20 weeks (although Andy reckons they haven’t stopped since 1977!) the last half of which has been spent in the USA. This tour’s had its peaks and troughs but, with the backing of the big guns at RSO, Black Sea has launched into the Top 100 and a prestigious support for the Cars at Madison Square Gardens.
I arrived to find the boys a bit ruffled (they’d just seen the sleeve of their next single ‘‘Sgt. Rock” botched by the art department into a variation of Corporal Clot) and homesick for home in Swindon. They’d just been to New Orleans and recounted the constant sun, desert and cacti of Arizona, “we’d only seen them drawn in the Beano (a British comic book — ed) and I made up some cactus jokes especially. What’s the difference between a Scotsman and a cactus? At least you can get a drink out of a cactus!”
The show on Long Island was lacklustre. Their superb soundman Steve Warren had quit after an argument with their manager, and it showed. So too did tour exhaustion. There was so much cussing that even the groupies held back! Groupies haven’t been a XTC forte but, for a band that virtually celebrates its ase-xuality, they now attract a particular brand of predatory females.
Andy: “It’s getting worse. Some of them are real elephant dogs! Others just want to show you their portfolios. I’d rather take to my bed with my plastic tanks”.
XTC are clearly very tired. Despite that, they had to fly back to Britain in a few days to start another tour, and they angrily knocked back offers to do a visit to Scandinavia.
“It’s just piled up since ’77” Andy explained. “I refuse to do anything for at least a couple of months. I want to work on some singles, concentrate on that before the next album.”
The next day was concentrated on doing interviews — and the American press still seem preoccupied with Barry Andrews, who left two years ago, and refer to Dave Gregory as “the newcomer”.
Dave takes it all in good humour. He talks about his dreams and nightmare. His nightmare is to come out on stage on day, plug in and “sound like Ted Nugent”. The dream is to own as many perfectly formed guitars as possible — maybe form his own guitar harem with all of them wearing veils! He tells of the time when they did a tour with Police, and manager Copeland ticked off XTC for not giving everything onstage. The talk made them think; now they gyrate onstage.
Andy was lambasted for “not wearing a decent shirt”. Couldn’t he afford one?
“To be frank, no!”
Not even Sting’s cast-offs?
“No! (recoils in horror) I’m living in that man’s shadow. Been in a bloody coach with him for eight weeks. He nicked all my ideas in the first place. All three of the Police used to come down the Fulham Greyhound (pub) and watch us. He said his favourite song was ‘All Along The Watchtower’ so you can see where they’re coming from!”
The Police spectre looms large. When Police travel the world and play exotic places like Bombay and Cairo, they’re huge. When XTC play the same places then they’re just working hard. Could XTC have such a superhero? Men in backrooms have toyed with the idea of making a sex symbol out of Colin Mulding, trundling him forward more often and pinching some limelight from Andy.
But isn’t Colin too passive, isn’t it too late for a change of image into some sort of double-fronted Cheap Trick style combo?
According to Andy, it’s already started to happen. “I think he’s got a lot more teen appeal than I’ll ever have. I always thought I looked like a tortoise who’d just had his shell ripped off! He comes forward already; he sings the singles, it’s him on Top Of The Pops, not me. I think people associate Colin with singing the singles. A lot of people think he’s our lead singer, those that know our singles. There’s a split identity.”
XTC are having a series of hit singles including “General And Majors”, “Living Through Another Cuba” and “Towers Of London” continually increasing their hit records. In England they have a passionate following but really no image except for Patridge’s cynical persona. In America, they can be easily manipulated; in fact, because all five have such strong personalities, a TV series of films could catapault them into the big time. As yet, America hasn’t decided if they’re clever, banal or intriguing; so they just love them!
First night at Madison Square Gardens. Patridge is nervous and limits his onstage patter. But they go down well. “The next band on is the Cars — don’t be too hard on them”. After a record company guy comes over and ticks them off, in case the Cars feel insulted. Wha-a-t! Come on, oh well, tough shit.
So the struggle goes on. They’re confident that they’ll break through, it takes a bit of time. But at the moment they’re all very tired and very homesick.
Andy: “I just want to re-evaluate our whole position. It may turn out that we may never tour again, hahaha, what a scoop! We’ve been whoring our arses up and down the world too much, it’s obviously, not the way to do it.
“We want to try and be a little bit more exclusive. We were rather lukewarmly received at home last time. We’ll be even more knackered this time. We do need to recharge our batteries, new ideas, new approaches, this really is the end-of-a-long-piece-of-knotted-string tour, the frayed end …”
I’VE GOT ROXY IN MY HEAD
Roxy Music’s Phil Manzanera Speaks to Vince Lovegrove
“If it weren’t for the Beatles I wouldn’t be playing music”, Phil Manzanera told me by phone one week before Roxy Music arrived in Australia.
“They were a great influence on all of us. You know, when you’re a certain age you really get excited by certain groups. But it’s a bummer about Lennon. A great tragedy. We’ve started doing a tribute to him. Sometimes we do “Jealous Guy”.
Manzanera had just rushed back to his hotel after a sellout concert in Manchester, England. The reason for the rush from the concert hall wasn’t to take my pre-arranged phone call, but to order some food before the hotel kitchen closed.
“It’s the typical rock scenario. Most hotel kitchens close early and then you can only order sandwiches. We have to get back from the gig in a hurry so that we can have a decent meal.
“New York’s different, of course. It’s a twenty four hour city. It’s a bit dangerous, but exciting and stimulating-for a short time”.
Phil Manzanera is an articulate, quietly spoken man … on a Manchester to Sydney telephone call, at least. Although I’m not a diehard Roxyite, I quite like the band, and found myself locked into Manzanera. In fact, as Bert Newton once said to Mohommad Ali, “I like the boy!”
I found his casual thoughts on rock’n’roll and life in general very honest and realistic. Not at all like rock’n’rollers whose conversations begins and ends with the ‘virtues’ of rock music.
In fact, from his early 1970 experimental days in Quiet Sun to his 1976 ‘one off’ album band 801, Manzanera has always seemed to me to be the one who has taken Roxy Music into the provocative areas of rock music. Obviously, Brian Eno added his eccentricity, but he has never really stayed within the confines of Roxy Music like Manzanera.
And it was Manzanera’s honesty that first told us about dissatisfaction within the group after their fourth album, Country Life.
And while it was Ferry who announced in 1976, that Roxy Music were about to enjoy a trial separation, it was Phil Manzanera who immediately rushed headlong into producing 801, ensuring that the genius of Brian Eno would finally be recognised outside the confines of Roxy Music.
“Actually, that was an incredible period. It made me realise just how much the business side of rock’n’roll can ruin the very essence of the music itself.
“It was the business side of it that stopped Roxy moving for three years.
“You get caught on this incredible momentum, that just doesn’t stop. You have to deliver an album, then go on tour to promote it, and by the time you’ve finished you’ve go to deliver another album. Consequently, you don’t get time to write any material.
“You get locked into a cocoon, getting transported around in an unreal world and just don’t get time to develop as a human being.
“We just had to stop the merry-go-round, get off and become human beings again”.
It was during that re-kindling period that Johnny Rotten spearheaded the movement that saved rock’n’roll from a pathetic, self indulgent, financially bloated, slow agonising death. And one of its staunchest supporters was Phil Manzanera.
“I think Johnny Rotten is a very interesting character. He has a great sense of humour. I admire him greatly.
“The entire punk movement was fantastic. It gave rock music a much needed kick in the arse. It provided heaps of enthusiasm, inspired amateurs and showed that anyone could start a group”.
In total contrast, it was the pure jazz/classical influences of English contemporary band Sky that smashed the snob inspired anti rock music feeling that once existed amongst highly trained, technical musicians.
“Rock isn’t about technical prowess, it’s about feel, “Manzanera enthused.
“Sky are great musos, and they smashed that anti rock snobbery”.
Did he know two members of Sky, Kevin Peak and John Williams were Australian?
“No, I didn’t”.
Roxy Music, during their ‘rest periods’ are quite a sporting bunch of fellas, and super whizz kid guitarist Phil Manzanera is no exception. He plays a lot of golf, tennis, and water skis when he can. That is, when he’s not spending time with his two dogs, two cats, several horses, or simply lounging around home with his pregnant wife listening to music.
And what sort of music would Phil Manzanera listen to?
“Well, I love UB40’s. They have great feel, fantastic lyrics, and memorable melodies. Then there’s Steely Dan — I love their new album. Bowie I like, Dire Straits, a band called Black Uhuru, and of course Talking Heads.
“But I think their latest album is more of an Eno album that a Heads set. They seem to have lost some of themselves, and given way to more of Brian”.
Well, I don’t know who’s going to pay for this bloody phone call. Maybe I should finish off.
After all, the group will be in Australia by the time I get off my backside and get it into Juke. And you can bet your last pair of safety pins that Roxy’s record company won’t pay for it. And I just KNOW the promoter won’t pay for it. I better finish. I’ll probably end up footing the bill again.
One last question, Phil. Is there anything special in Roxy Music’s staging this time around?
“As a matter of fact, there is. We have a very interesting stage set… not like anything else around at the moment. It’s electric in a mechanial sort of way. I won’t give it away, let me say that I still like looking at it after six months”.
with Jillian Hughes
NO RUTS ABOUT IT
Very few bands are willing to carry on when their focal point leaves. When that person dies suddenly in an accident — or a heroin overdose as in the case of Malcolm Owen the lead singer of the Ruts — then it takes awhile to get over the shock.
But the Ruts, one of the original punk bands, came up trumps. Renaming themselves Ruts DC (DC stands for Da Capo which is Latin for “a new beginning”) they went back to their original audiences, tore them apart, and are now off to America to try their luck there. Meantime there’s also a new LP of old material called Grin and Bear It.
“Last summer was probably the worst time for us” says bassist Vince Segs, who has stepped in as their main vocalist. ‘‘We’ve always known that Malcolm was doing heroin. He also had problems with his throat, which just went on him. It was very frustrating for us, because we couldn’t work a lot of the time, and it was very frustrating for Malcolm, which is probably why he went back on the hard stuff again.
“The pressure was on us — everyone was aware that the kids out there wanted to hear us, but we were being held up. We started to drift apart.”
Right after Owen died, the Ruts came up with one of their best singles yet, ‘‘West One (Shine On Me)”. But partly because it was such a change from their rock-reggae, and partly because they made no appearances to promote it, the disc died. Then the Damned stepped in and took the three — the other two are drummer Dave Ruffy and guitarist Paul Fox — on tour with them, just to give them a helping hand. The Ruts re-discovered their audience, and found enough confidence to write new songs.
Grin and Bear It is seen by some as a shoddy cashing in on Malcolm’s death by their record company Virgin, well known for Sid Vicious/-Pistols re-issues.
“It is an album we put together for Malcolm’s memory, that’s all. We wanted it out, not the record company. We didn’t have enough studio material with Malcolm to make up an LP so we put in some live things. Some people say it’s a con because Ruts fans would have all the tracks.
“That’s not so. Fans wouldn’t have the live version of ‘Babylon’s Burning’ or the John Peel (radio) session recording of ‘Demolition Dancing’ — the LP’s not intended to tear about the charts, it’s just there for anyone who wants it. The album we aim for the charts is the one we start work on soon. If anything, we wanted to bring ‘Love in Vein’ back — it was hidden on the b-side of ‘Staring at the Rude Boys’ the first time.”
Ruts DC are touring and recording with a sessions sax/keyboards player called Garry Barnacle who was on their first LP The Crack as well as Grin and Bear It.
Juke No. 302, February 7, 1981 (weekly (publication) (AAT ID: 300312030))
44 x 28 cm.;
Brian Jones, Big push on ‘Times Square’; p. 5
Betty Page, XTC in New York; p. 6
Vince Lovegrove, I’ve got Roxy in my head; p. 7
Jillian Hughes, No Ruts about it; p. 13 (works);
Juke No 302 p1_1080px.jpg
Juke No 302 p5_image_800px.jpg
Juke No 302 p13_1080px.jpg
©1981 Newspress Pty. Ltd.
comments: 0 » tags: 1981, Andy Partridge, Australia, Betty Page, Brian Jones, Jillian Hughes, Juke, magazine, Phil Manzanera, promotion, Roxy Music, The Ruts, Tim Curry, Vince Lovegrove, Vince Segs, XTC
Times Square UK Pressbook, 1980-81, pages 6-7
Posted on 4th October 2018 in "Times Square"
This is the center spread of the glossy UK pressbook for Times Square. Of the seven images circling the European logo, four are cropped from photos used on UK lobby cards (clockwise from top left, that would be One, Two, Five, and Seven). Of the three remaining: Four is a more complete version of a shot that would later be printed in Joepie No. 365, March 15, 1981; and Six may be making its first appearance here. It looks like it was taken a fraction of a second after UK black-and-white publicity still #34. That shot looks to me like she’s jumping up, and this looks like she’s coming down. I’m fairly certain this color shot was used elsewhere later on, but as I’ve complained abut other items recently… I can’t seem to find it.
That leaves image Three, which I thought was the gorgeously lit shot from the center of the Japanese souvenir program book but with the microphone cropped out, until a second look made it obvious that it’s from a completely different angle. I think it may be making its only appearance here, unless, as above, I’ve just mislaid it. It does seem to be from the same vantage point as US publicity still TS-109-16/12 from the AFD Press Material folder.
If we’re keeping score of appearances, in the collage above the film’s stars rank: Robin Johnson 6, Trini Alvarado 3, Tim Curry 1.
Times Square pressbook, pp. 6-7
UK : pressbook (theatre manual) : AAT ID: 300213184 : 35.7 x 27.8 cm. : 1980 (work);
TIMES_SQUARE_UK_Pressbook_p6-7_1080px.jpg
1080 x 1703 px, 96 dpi, 819 kb (image)
Times Square©1980 StudioCanal/Canal+
comments: 0 » tags: 1980, EMI, promotion, Tim Curry, Trini Alvarado, UK
Times Square UK Pressbook, 1980-81, pages 8-12
Posted on 22nd September 2018 in "Times Square"
The second half of the US pressbook was entirely made up of variations of the movie poster for different sized newspaper ads. The UK version relegates the available promotional materials to the last three pages, and devotes pages 8, 9, and 10 to reprinting biographical articles from the US Press Material folder. It’s strange how some of this material was rewritten for the UK press kit, but those versions weren’t used for the UK pressbook. Perhaps the pressbook was prepared well in advance of the press kit. Although, the pressbook uses the finished art for the UK movie poster. So, it’s a mystery.
Another tantalizing mystery is exactly what may have been included in the sets of 50 black and white stills, 8 8×10″ color stills, and 16 11×14″ color stills. Is 50 the total number of shots from the series I’ve found about 16 of so far? There were 8 8×10″ color lobby cards… I haven’t come across any 11×14″ stills. And what transparencies were available? Are they the slides that turn up so rarely? And what were the “blow-ups, any size available”?
On page 10, the photo of Robin is TS-57-26/1, UK number 36, the photo by Yoram Kahana used for the North American movie poster and the soundtrack album cover. The photo of Tim Curry comes from the shooting of the twenty second scene where Johnny is informed that “the Zombie Girl is the daughter of the boy wonder at the mayor’s office, and she’s missing,” and may be making its only appearance here. The unusually sultry photo of Trini Alvarado is making its first appearance here, as far as I know, but was later printed in the February 1981 Film Review.
You can read the text of “‘Times Square’ Star Robin Johnson Is A Natural In Screen Bow” here. If anyone is desperate to read the read of the articles, let me know and I’ll post the text.
Times Square pressbook, pp. 8-12
TIMES_SQUARE_UK_Pressbook_p08_1080px.jpg
1080 x 844 px, 96 dpi, 466 kb (images)
comments: 0 » tags: 1980, EMI, pressbook, promotion, Tim Curry, Trini Alvarado, UK
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Nasa selects ideas for space robotics, 3D printing and alien technologies
September 5, 2016 by Sam Francis
Nasa has selected 21 research and technology proposals from American small businesses and research institutions that will enable Nasa’s future missions into the solar system and alien worlds further out in space.
The agency says its selections also consider America’s technology-driven economy here on Earth.
The Phase II selectees of Nasa’s Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program are permitted to enter negotiations for possible contract awards worth a combined total of approximately $15.8 million.
The program selected 21 innovative technology and projects from 41 US firms and research institutions in 20 different states.
Steve Jurczyk, associate administrator for the Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) at Nasa Headquarters in Washington, says: “Just as small businesses are driving our economy, technology is driving exploration.
“These selected proposals demonstrate the creativity of American entrepreneurs and, along with our other technology investments, will contribute to ensuring the US remains a leader in technology development and space exploration.”
A sampling of proposals from the selected small businesses and research institutions demonstrates the breadth of research these awards will fund, including technology developments and advancements in the following areas:
Autonomous communications systems
Gas sensing technology advancements for spacesuits
Space weather prediction
Technologies for planetary compositional analysis and mapping
Information technologies for intelligent and adaptive space robotics
Advanced propulsion system ground test and launch technology
One study will explore the use of a fuel grain as propellant. The proposed green propellant system offers significant advantages over competing technologies in the areas of cost, safety and mission capability. This effort will build on the successful studies, design, and testing activities completed during Phase I research.
Nasa says the resulting technology will fulfill the ever-growing mission demands of the extensive small satellite market, including CubeSats and NanoSats, by enabling dedicated launch for CubeSat-scale payloads. Comparable launch vehicle stages in this size class currently are not commercially available.
A second study involves a new generation of CubeSats that take advantage of in-situ resources – living off the land — while exploring space. The proposal combines existing CubeSat technology with 3D printing technology and an in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) water extraction system.
The 3D printing technology enables development of steam thrusters, as well as tanks that fit within the available space within the CubeSat. The ISRU module captures and extracts water, and takes advantage of the heat generated by the CubeSat electronics system, with supplemental power from solar charged batteries.
Nasa’s STTR Program uses a highly competitive, three-phase award system that provides collaborative opportunities between qualified small businesses, including women-owned and disadvantaged firms, and research institutions, to address specific technology gaps in Nasa programs. Selected projects provide a foundation for future technology developments and are complementary to other Nasa research investments.
STTR Phase II projects will expand on the results of recently completed Phase I projects, which received six-month contracts valued as much as $125,000. Phase II projects will last up to two years and receive contracts valued as much as $750,000 per award. Phase III, the commercialization of an innovation, may occur after successful completion of Phase II.
Selection criteria for these awards included technical merit and feasibility, along with experience, qualifications and facilities. Also, selectees must meet requirements of effectiveness of the work plan, and commercial potential and feasibility.
Nasa’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California, manages both the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and STTR Programs for STMD, with individual project oversight from across the agency’s 10 field centers.
Filed Under: News Tagged With: businesses, nasa, projects, proposals, selected, space, sttr, system, technologies, technology
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CJ betsa delisting nears 03/23/2010
CJ betsa delisting nears
Senior Supreme Court (SC) Justices Antonio Carpio and Conchita Carpio Morales, two magistrates who had accepted the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC)’s nominations for the top judicial post on condition that the appointing power will not be President Arroyo but the next president, are in danger of being delisted as nominees for the position of chief justice, following the mandatory retirement of Chief Justice Reynato Puno on May 17, 2010.
This was bared yesterday by Justice Secretary Alberto Agra, who is a member of the JBC by virtue of his position as Department of Justice Secretary.
During a press conference yesterday, Agra said he plans to suggest to the other JBC members to get a clarification from Justices Carpio and Carpio-Morales, if they still stand by their position of accepting the nomination only if it is not Arroyo who will be appointing the next CJ..... MORE
ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/headlines/20100323hed1.html
Villar accused of land grabbing in fight over sequestered property
Erap reminds Noynoy on Cory pardons
Aquino drops again, Villar up by 2%, Estrada a strong third
WHO challenges RP bishops' advice on condoms
AFP chief walks out of interview; GMA snubs PNP chief in Army event
Erap reminds Noynoy on Cory pardons By Jason Faustino 03/23/2010
By Jason Faustino
Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP) standard bearer former President Joseph Estrada reminded Liberal Party presidential bet Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III that his mother, the late former President Corazon Aquino, freed Communist Party of the Philippines founder Jose Maria Sison and other rebel leaders in reference to a statement of Aquino that he was not in favor of the pardon President Arroyo gave Estrada after he was convicted of plunder.
In a short rebuttal to the alleged remark of Aquino, Estrada said former President Aquino also issued pardons to Sison, Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) chairman Nur Misuari and New People’s Army (NPA) leader Bernabe Buscayno or Kumander Dante during her term.
Estrada then criticized the prevailing problem with communist rebels in the country. MORE
Junking the post-poll scenarios EDITORIAL 03/23/2010
Junking the post-poll scenarios
Even if a new Senate president is elected before June 30, 2010, purportedly to stave off a junta by having a legitimate constitutional successor to vacancies created in the offices of the President and Vice President, due to a failure of elections, there really is nothing that a new Senate president, as the acting president, can do to stop the junta from being established. This was already proved in 1972, when then President Ferdinand Marcos staged a Palace-military coup and reinstalled himself as President under a martial law regime.
The military, as well as the police force, can be called to action by Gloria, as their still Commander in Chief to prevent or suppress lawless violence, and this can come about should the automated polls fail. But to establish a junta is another thing altogether, mainly because even if elections fail, the fact remains that Gloria will still be the Malacañang occupant until June 30, 2010, Noli de Castro will still be the Vice President until June 30, 2010, Juan Ponce Enrile will still be Senate President and Prospero Nograles will still be the Speaker until June 30, 2010.
Stated differently, there will be no leadership vacuum as far as constitutional succession goes, simply because all these constitutional successors will be in place — at least until June 30, 2010..... MORE
ALTERNATE URL: http://www.tribune.net.ph/commentary/20100323com1.html
Un-Islamic
Heard on the grapevine: Uruguay is wine world’s rising star
The greater sin
When bipartisanship means surrender
South Sudan independents rattle ex-rebels in poll campaign
Un-Islamic FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 03/23/2010
Just as there is no solid Catholic vote, so too, is there no solid Muslim vote.
But like the Catholic bishops who meddle in political affairs, so too do the Muslim religious leaders, or Immans, meddle in politics, with these leaders issuing a "fatwa" on former President Joseph Estrada, Sen. Mar Roxas and former Sen. Franklin Drilon.
Yet that fatwa issued is clearly partisan, in the sense that these Muslim religious leaders issued such on account of (a) Erap’s 2000 all-out war against the Muslim secessionists, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and (b) Roxas and Drilon’s opposition to the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MoA-AD) which, if it had not been struck down by the high court, would have carved up the Republic and handed over to the MILF a sizable chunk of the Philippines, including lands populated by Christian settlers, apart from giving in to the Moro rebels their move to establish an independent Islamic state, within the Philippine state.
What these Muslim religious leaders are mouthing, in issuing the fatwa, is what the MILF is demanding, which make these Islamic leaders highly partisan toward the MILF, and not necessarily toward the entire Muslim community in the country..... MORE
Heard on the grapevine: Uruguay is wine world’s rising star FEATURE 03/23/2010
Heard on the grapevine: Uruguay is wine world's rising star
MONTEVIDEO — Argentina has its Malbec. Chile has its Carmenere. Now Uruguay, not to be out-muscled by its more famous wine-producing neighbors, is taking the world of viticulture by storm, with its distinctive Tannat wines.
Uruguay, the fourth most important wine-producing country in South America, grows a variety of grapes, but none more celebrated than Tannat, which is fueling this tiny country’s rise to prominence in the wine world.
Over the years Tannat has come to be seen as the quintessential Uruguayan grape and wine, representing about 40 percent of the country’s entire wine production.
Now bold and full-bodied Tannat wines are putting upstart Uruguay on the map, and winning prizes against competition fronted by more established regional rivals..... MORE
The greater sin NO HOLDS BARRED Armida Siguion-Reyna 03/23/2010
On Facebook, just yesterday morning: A young boy, at most three years old, humps his mother frontally, and when she turns on her side, humps her again from behind, then stops but only long enough to follow an older female voice’s off-scene instruction for him to take out his penis and try inserting it. This, while adult laughter is heard in the background.
The video has mercifully been stricken off the popular social networking site and YouTube "due to terms of use violation," a phrase I can’t really say I understand.
But what I had seen stunned me, to say the least. The boy had either been allowed to watch his parents have sex or was taught by the adults around him to simulate sex, and then captured on video. Gross doesn’t define it well enough..... MORE
When bipartisanship means surrender AN OUTSIDERS VIEW Ken Fuller 03/23/2010
Paul Krugman had an interesting opinion piece in the New York Times last month ("The Bankruptcy Boys," Feb. 22) in which he argued that conservative Republicanism, while virulently opposed to "big government," lacks the courage to grasp the opportunity before it. This, says Krugman, is due to the fact that the big-spending government programs — Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security — have, understandably, significant public support.
The neocon strategy since the late 1970s has been one of "starving the beast" — pushing popular tax-cuts which create or contribute to a fiscal deficit and then arguing that spending-cuts were required to cure it. Now that "Bush-era tax cuts (and Bush-era unfunded wars)" have created a deficit that will outlive the current recession, the neocons have their opportunity. Indeed, that opportunity was handed to them by President Obama with his call for a bipartisan deficit commission..... MORE
South Sudan independents rattle ex-rebels in poll campaign focus 03/23/2010
BENTIU — Shouting and dancing, thousands of supporters of south Sudan’s rebel turned ruling party waited two days in the blazing sun to see their presidential candidate Salva Kiir.
"We want him to stay as president of the south," said former guerrilla fighter Peter Kwong, at the election rally for the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM) in Bentiu, the capital of Unity state.
"He was a strong army leader who was never afraid of the fight against the north," said Kwong, referring to the 22-year long civil war that ended five years ago.
But the flag-waving supporters in the crowded stadium left deeply disappointed... . MORE
Hell hath no fury SILVER LINING Dean Ernest Maceda 03/23/2010 Resign.
Dean Ernest Maceda
Resign.
GMA snubbed the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) graduation rites in Silang, Cavite on Wednesday. She sent DILG Secretary Ronnie Puno as her stand-in. One hundred ninety eight cadets graduated this year.
GMA was reportedly upset by PNP Director General Jesus Verzosa’s statement that he would not support any move of AFP Chief of Staff, Gen. Delfin Bangit to extend her term.
But why would she resent such a statement by General Verzosa if she has no plans to extend her term as she has insisted many times? Still, reports of "Oplan August Moon" to extend her term due to a failure of elections are "in the air."
The PNPA is headed by Tingting Cojuangco, wife of Peping Cojuangco, Noynoy’s uncle, as president. With this snub, there is added reason for Tingting to now resign.
q q q
Erap in Bulacan.
The Erap-Binay Caravan then visited Bustos, San Rafael, San Miguel, Calumpit, ending in a grand rally at Northville, Meycauayan with 8,000 hysterical supporters applauding Erap who also sang his song "Kahit" in a duet with Marissa Sanchez.
At the motorcade in Calumpit, the route took Erap to parts of Apalit, Pampanga.... MORE
Erap reminds Noynoy on Cory pardons By Jason Faus...
Junking the post-poll scenarios EDITORIAL 03/23/...
Un-Islamic FRONTLINE Ninez Cacho-Olivares 03/23/...
Heard on the grapevine: Uruguay is wine world’s ...
The greater sin NO HOLDS BARRED Armida Siguion-Re...
When bipartisanship means surrender AN OUTSIDERS ...
South Sudan independents rattle ex-rebels in poll ...
Hell hath no fury SILVER LINING Dean Ernest Maced...
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Oscar Talk with Mike Tyson
Oscar Talk with Mike Tyson & Leonard Maltin from Mike Tyson
The Champ still has it. Without the Funky Bunch Marky Mark has no chance of winning best film for "The Fighter." Tyson knows his shit. Who am I to argue with his brilliant commentary?
I think the chances are pretty good Leonard Maltin shit himself during this sketch. I would.
Emmy Rossum makes "Shameless" must-see TV
If you have Showtime you owe it to yourself to watch "Shameless" because actress Emmy Rossum is basically butt naked in every other episode. The show is good too and the chances are it will make you laugh at the Gallagher family because of the toxicity of the family and their relationships. But Rossum is the star and if you enjoy nudity (seriously who doesn't?) then I definitely recommend putting "Shameless" on your DVR or on your Netflix when season 1 ends.
By the way what in the hell happened to HBO? Granted they had "Boardwalk Empire" this past year which was incredible but they have really struggled to put out good shows while Showtime is just killing it. "Big Love" is awful. "Entourage" is old news. "Curb Your Enthusiasm" comes on once every five years. Meantime Showtime puts out hits like "Californication" and "Dexter" and "Nurse Jackie" and even "Episodes" with Matt LeBlanc had hilarious writing.
Come on HBO. Step it up.
Anyways enjoy these very NSFW clips of Rossum in "Shameless"...
Emmy Rossum Topless Pool Scene in Shameless
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emmy-rossum-shameless-sexy-clip
Emmy Rossum Shameless Love Scene
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Posted by Matt Fairchild (matt@sportscrack.com) at 11:12 AM 0 comments Links to this post
Another Blake Griffin Epic Dunk
Blake Griffin messed around and nearly got a triple-double last night in a homecoming of sorts in Oklahoma City. Unfortunately for him the rest of his team kind of sucks (Baron Davis still has some game left in him) and Kevin Durant led a blowout for the Thunder. The Clippers aren't going to make the playoffs but one could argue The Blake Show has been the most exciting thing to watch in the NBA this season. The Clippers should just go balls to the wall and try to sign Chris Paul and Dwight Howard in 2012. It's time for the Clippers to stop being the shit on the bottom of the NBA's massive shoes. Be the cock for once. With that being so eloquently put Paul will probably go join Melo and Amare in New York and Howard will sign with the other LA team.
Cardinals lose Adam Wainwright for the season
Spring Training hasn't even technically started their games and already the St. Louis Cardinals have been dealt with two huge blows to the ribs. Or in this case elbow. Cardinal's ace Adam Wainwright has a "significant injury" to his right pitching elbow according to general manager John Mozeliak. The injury happened Monday during a bullpen session and it looks like there is a significant tear in the ligament which means Wainwright, who finished 2nd place for the Cy Young last season with a 20-11 record and a 2.42 ERA, would need Tommy John surgery and be lost for the season if not more.
This is yet another crushing blow to the Cardinals organization. Just last week they found out Albert Pujols would not be resigning before the season started and could lose the future Hall of Famer in free agency after this season. With the cloud already lingering over the organization with the failure to secure a contract for the best player in the game they might have just lost the best pitcher in the National League in Wainwright (with all due respect to Doc Halladay). Not to mention one of their rivals in the Milwaukee Brewers made significant improvements with the additions of starters Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum to go along with Yovani Gallardo and Randy Wolf in the starting rotation and it is clear that the Cardinals will finish no better than third in the NL Central this season. Division champ Cincinnati is the favorite and the Cubs have a good chance to be much improved with the additions of Matt Garza and Carlos Pena.
So where do the Cardinals go from here? They still have Chris Carpenter as their other ace but we all know his injury issues. They are going to have to rely on Jaime Garcia repeating his stellar rookie numbers and newcomer Jake Westbrook catching some of that Dave Duncan magic to compete in the Central. The season isn't over by any means but it became a hell of a lot harder to see the Cardinals competing for a playoff berth in 2011 without Wainwright.
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Published on Sunday Examiner (http://sundayex.catholic.org.hk)
Home > Catholic schools push for the Bangsamoro
Catholic schools push for the Bangsamoro
Print Version [1] Email to Friend [2]
MANILA (UCAN): Just eight days before the national congress adjourned, Catholic educational institutions joined in the call for the immediate passage of Bangsamoro Basic Law that will create an autonomous Muslim region in Mindanao, known as the Bangsamoro in Mindanao.
If congress fails to pass the law many observers fear a peace deal with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which has been fighting for autonomy for four decades, could break down.
“The executive branch has done its part to forge lasting peace,” Rene Salvador San Andres, the executive director of the Catholic Educational Association of The Philippines, said. “It is time for legislators to pass the law.”
Gus Miclat, the convener of the All-Out Peace Movement, said the Filipino people are losing significant time as he urged the congress to see the urgency of the passing of the law as a vital component for the peace roadmap to continue.
San Andres told students of Catholic schools during a January 19 peace rally in Manila that the proposed law is not ordinary legislation.
“It is crafted to do social justice,” San Andres explained, adding that the proposed law seeks to rectify past errors and to reverse injustices committed against Muslims in Mindanao.
Sister Arnold Maria Noel, an advocate for the passage of the law, said a negotiated peace deal in Mindanao is the only way to end the long drawn out conflict in the region.
“As Catholics we should promote peace and push congress to do the same,” Sister Noel commented.
“It is ridiculous that we profess Christianity, but we continue to discriminate against Muslims,” she said. “We have been discriminating against them for almost 500 years since the Spaniards came.”
Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, the government peace negotiator with Islamist groups in Mindanao, warned that the decommissioning of Moro Islamic Liberation Front fighters might be scuttled should congress fail to pass the proposed law.
The Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, the peace agreement signed in 2014 by the government and the front, states that the decommissioning of rebel forces will be done gradually and in sync with identified milestones in the legislative timetable of the proposed basic law.
Sat, 01/30/2016 - Fri, 02/05/2016
More from this section [3]
Previous: A red rag to a bull [4]
Next: A Catholic politician is not a Church whipping boy [5]
Bangsamoro [6]
Mindanao [7]
The Philippines [8]
Source URL: http://sundayex.catholic.org.hk/node/2623
[1] http://sundayex.catholic.org.hk/print/2623
[2] http://sundayex.catholic.org.hk/printmail/2623
[3] http://sundayex.catholic.org.hk/intl
[4] http://sundayex.catholic.org.hk/node/2621
[6] http://sundayex.catholic.org.hk/taxonomy/term/786
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Ultrathin multi-band planar metamaterial absorber based on standing wave resonances
Xiao-Yu Peng, Bing Wang, Shumin Lai, Dao Hua Zhang, and Jing-Hua Teng
Xiao-Yu Peng,1, 4 Bing Wang,1 Shumin Lai,2 Dao Hua Zhang,3 and Jing-Hua Teng1,*
1Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, A*STAR, 3 Research Link, 117602, Singapore
2National Junior College, 37 Hillcrest Rd, 288913, Singapore
3School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 639798, Singapore
4pengxy@imre.a-star.edu.sg
*Corresponding author: jh-teng@imre.a-star.edu.sg
X Peng
B Wang
S Lai
D Zhang
J Teng
Xiao-Yu Peng, Bing Wang, Shumin Lai, Dao Hua Zhang, and Jing-Hua Teng, "Ultrathin multi-band planar metamaterial absorber based on standing wave resonances," Opt. Express 20, 27756-27765 (2012)
Evanescent waves
Metamaterial absorbers
Resonant modes
Subwavelength structures (050.6624)
Metamaterials (160.3918)
Resonance (260.5740)
Manuscript Accepted: November 14, 2012
We present a planar waveguide model and a mechanism based on standing wave resonances to interpret the unity absorptions of ultrathin planar metamaterial absorbers. The analytical model predicts that the available absorption peaks of the absorber are corresponding to the fundamental mode and only its odd harmonic modes of the standing wave. The model is in good agreement with numerical simulation and can explain the main features observed in typical ultrathin planar metamaterial absorbers. Based on this model, ultrathin planar metamaterial absorbers with multi-band absorptions at desired frequencies can be easily designed.
©2012 Optical Society of America
Far-infrared absorber based on standing-wave resonances in metal-dielectric-metal cavity
Janardan Nath, Sushrut Modak, Imen Rezadad, Deep Panjwani, Farnood Rezaie, Justin W. Cleary, and Robert E. Peale
Transmission line model and fields analysis of metamaterial absorber in the terahertz band
Qi-Ye Wen, Yun-Song Xie, Huai-Wu Zhang, Qing-Hui Yang, Yuan-Xun Li, and Ying-Li Liu
Multi-band metamaterial absorber based on the arrangement of donut-type resonators
Jin Woo Park, Pham Van Tuong, Joo Yull Rhee, Ki Won Kim, Won Ho Jang, Eun Ha Choi, Liang Yao Chen, and YoungPak Lee
An extremely broad band metamaterial absorber based on destructive interference
Jingbo Sun, Lingyun Liu, Guoyan Dong, and Ji Zhou
Broadband thermal tunable infrared absorber based on the coupling between standing wave and magnetic resonance
Lin Yang, Peiheng Zhou, Taixing Huang, Guoshuai Zhen, Li Zhang, Lei Bi, Xiaolong Weng, Jianliang Xie, and Longjiang Deng
Opt. Mater. Express 7(8) 2767-2776 (2017)
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Azad, A. K.
Cai, G.
Chen, F.
Chen, H.-T.
Chen, Q.
Cheng, Q.
Cui, T. J.
Cumming, D. R. S.
Ding, P.
Dong, G.
Fan, C.
Feng, Q.
Grant, J.
Hao, J.
Hao, Q.
He, S.
He, S. L.
Hu, C. G.
Hu, W.
Huang, C.
Huang, T. J.
Jiang, W. X.
Jiang, Z. H.
Jin, Y.
Khalid, A.
Khoo, I.-C.
Kiraly, B.
Landy, N. I.
Liang, C.
Liang, E.
Liu, L.
Liu, Y.-L.
Liu, Z.
Luo, X. G.
Ma, H. F.
Ma, Y.
Mayer, T. S.
Mock, J. J.
Mortensen, N. A.
O’Hara, J. F.
Padilla, W. J.
Pu, M. B.
Qiu, M.
Saha, S.
Saha, S. C.
Sajuyigbe, S.
Shchegolkov, D. Y.
Shen, X.
Shen, X. P.
Simakov, E. I.
Smith, D. R.
Soukoulis, C. M.
Starr, A. F.
Starr, T.
Taylor, A. J.
Toor, F.
Wang, C. T.
Wang, M.
Wegener, M.
Wen, Q.-Y.
Werner, D. H.
Xiao, S.
Xie, Y.-S.
Xue, Q.
Yang, Q.-H.
Yang, Y.
Ye, Y. Q.
Yuan, L. H.
Yun, S.
Zhang, H.-W.
Zhao, J.
Zhao, Y.
Zhao, Z. Y.
Zhou, B.
Zhou, J.
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ACS Nano (1)
Appl. Phys. Lett. (1)
J. Appl. Phys. (3)
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B (1)
Nat. Mater. (1)
Phys. Rev. B (2)
Phys. Rev. Lett. (3)
Fig. 1 Illustration of standing wave resonance model of a typical ultrathin planar metamaterial absorber. (a) Structure of the waveguide and the incident EM wave; (b) Zoomed vectors and their components of the diffractive EM waves from adjacent gaps; (c) Normalized electric field of the fundamental mode and its odd harmonic modes at x = 0 and z = - d/2 in the case of strong diffraction effect calculated according to Eq. (3).
Fig. 2 Diagram of the ultrathin THz planar metamaterial absorber based on standing wave resonances and the simulation results in the case of incident wave with TM polarization. (a) Front view at the top and side view at the bottom of the structure; (b) Simulated absorption spectra induced by incident EM wave with TM (black line) and TE Polarization (red line). The dashed line represents the frequencies of the standing wave modes calculated according to Eq. (6). (c) Simulated absorption vs. the thickness d of the dielectric spacer layer of the absorber; (d) Electric field component Ey at x = 0 corresponding to different absorption peaks at different phase when the strength of Ey is strongest; (e) Electric field component Ez at x = 0 corresponding to different absorption peaks at different phase when the strength of Ez is strongest; (f) The power loss density distribution at x = 0.
Fig. 3 Distributions of electric field component Ez at z = −1.7µm corresponding to eight absorption peaks shown in Fig. 2(b) in the case of incident EM wave with TM polarization. The inset shows the front view of the unit cell.
Fig. 4 Ultrathin planar metamaterial absorber with a cross metallic top layer. (a) The front view of the unit cell (top) and the side view of the unit cell (bottom); (b) Simulation result of the absorption spectrum of an infrared absorber. The dashed line represents the fundamental mode calculated with Eq. (6). (c) Electric field component Ez at x = 0 µm; (d) Electric field component Ez at z = - 0.065 µm. (e) Simulation results of the 1st and 3rd modes of the cross-waveguide style absorber working at the infrared and THz domain vs. the results calculated with Eq. (6) at different dimension L of the cross. (f) Simulation results of the optimized thicknesses d1 and d3 corresponding to the 1st and the 3rd modes at different dimension of the cross, respectively. The straight lines are the linear fits.
(1) E z + = E z0 exp[i( k y y− ω 0 t+ ϕ 0 +π)]
(2) E z − = E z0 exp[i(− k y y− ω 0 t+ ϕ 0 )]
(3) E zsw = E z + + E z − =−2Esinθexp[ −μ( L 2 −| y | ) ]sin( 2πnsinθ λ 0 )sin( 2πc λ 0 t+ ϕ 0 )
(4) f sw =(2j−1) c 2nLsinθ ,j=1,2,3,...
(5) λ sw = 2nLsinθ (2j−1) ,j=1,2,3,...
(6) f sw ≈(2j−1) c 2nL ,j=1,2,3,...
(7) λ sw ≈ 2nL (2j−1) ,j=1,2,3,...
(8) L≈ λ 1 2n( λ 1 ) = c 2n( f 1 ) f 1
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Welcome to the paradise on earth – the bahamas
Explore Nature
Get to Know the Islands
Andros Island
Acklins & Crooked Island
Eleuthera & Harbour Island
Mayaguana
Nassau & Paradise Island
Ragged Island
Rum Cay & San Salvador
The Abacos
The Berry Islands
The Exumas
Travel to The Bahamas
Things To Do for Couples
Wedding & Honeymoon Locations
Myths & Legends in the Bahamas
One of the most interesting things about the Bahamas is its culture. Bahamas culture is rich with traditions and beliefs as well as legends and folklore. While some of its myths were passed down from the first generation of settlers on the islands, others were born through the natural phenomena that the locals saw in their environment. Below are some of the most well-known and interesting legends and folklore in the Bahamas:
Lusca in Andros Bahamas
Lusca is akin to Scotland’s Loch Ness Monster. Some describe this huge mythical creature as part octopus, part shark while others believe it to be part octopus, part dragon. Regardless of what this underwater creature looks like, the locals believe that it is the cause of any water accidents, such as drowning, that occur in the blue holes. According to the folklore, Lusca uses her long and strong tentacles to drag humans and fishing boats into its underwater lair in one of the blue holes of Andros Bahamas. In addition to living in the blue holes, locals believe that the tidal currents are a result of Lusca’s breath. Skeptics think that Lusca sightings were actually giant squid sightings. However, many citizens still believe in her existence and steer clear of the blue holes of Andros Bahamas.
Pretty Molly on Exuma Bahamas
In the island of Little Exuma, locals believe in the legend of Pretty Molly. There are two stories attached to the legend. Some believe Pretty Molly to be an elusive mermaid that lives in Pretty Molly Bay. Others say that Pretty Molly is the ghost of a slave that committed suicide by walking into the water. Many locals claim that she can be seen haunting the beach every night.
The Chickcharnies of Andros Bahamas
If you see an owl in a tree, walk around it for good luck. This is a traditional English belief. There is a similar belief in the Bahamas culture. When you are in the Bahamas, specifically in Andros, locals recommend that you grab some flowers and wear brightly colored clothes before going sightseeing. Why? Doing so will help increase your chances of being favored by a Chickcharnie. Locals believe this to be a three-fingered, three-toed, red-eyed, 360-degree-head-rotating bird-like mythical creature. According to the legend, anyone who gets to see a Chickcharnie and pay respect to it will enjoy good fortune for the rest of his life. Legend goes that these mischievous creatures will turn your head around completely should they find you lacking in respect. They live in the tallest pine trees of Andros where they create their nesting site by joining together the tops of two pine trees. One legend tied to that of the Chickcharnies is about Billy Bowleg who was a great Seminole medicine man. According to the story, he was adopted by the Chickcharnies when he was 14 and trained for 5 years. It is believed that when he was returned to his community, his healing prowess spread across the Bahamas.
There is actually a grain of truth to this mythical creature. There used to be a three-toed, burrowing owl that once lived in the forests of Andros Bahamas called Tyto pollens, cousin to the smaller common Barn owl. Sad to say, the specie totally disappeared in the 1500s.
THE LOST CITY OF ATLANTIS on Bimini Bahamas
Atlantis, according to Greek legend, is a lost ancient city which had highly developed technology. It sank into the abyss after it experienced earth-shattering quakes caused by underwater volcanic eruptions. Many locals believe that the remnants of the road leading to the lost city are actually in Bimini. The Bimini Road in the Bahamas is made up of neatly laid flat giant stones submerged 20 feet below the water level of North Bimini. While scientists dispute this belief, there is no current explanation as to how these neatly aligned blocks ended up there.
BOSEE ANANSEE (ANANSI) of the Bahamas
The Bosee Annansee is a mythical creature in the Bahamas that is of African origin whose legend was brought over by the slaves. It is comparable to the West African spider-god that can appear as part-spider/part-human, a human, or a spider. Bosee Annansee is both a trickster and a hero. He has the power to endow people with the spirit of rebellion, the courage to fight for freedom, and the desire to unite or destroy kingdoms. He can also trick Death and the Devil. In the Bahamas, the tales of Bosee Annansee were passed on from one generation to the next to impart the lesson that dignity and freedom are always worth fighting for.
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Tags: andros bahamas, bahamas culture, the bahamas
Category: People and Culture, The Bahamas
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Review: “Learning” by Andrew Choate
By TNB Poetry
On “Learning” by Andrew Choate, a review by Rebecca Ramirez
Andrew Choate’s Learning is unconventional by default. Indeed, by the third page, the author has invoked Henri Michaux, “The Tin Drum” (Günter Grass), and “The Last Novel” (David Markson) – each a vanguard in their own right of definitively genre-blurring, “anti-literary” works. For the entirety of “Learning,” Choate continues this referential gesture, both buoying and defending his own work, which he generates by attaching a wide variety of topics to the book’s only refrain: “Something I learned from…,” for example:
“Something I learned from Living with Moths
Don’t clap a moth over your head between your palms
It could fall into your upturned shirt sleeve
and ride down your arm
possibly across your chest
and then tickling will never feel the same” (39)
The refrain, as a structural element, is as generative as it is referential. The result is an engaging onset of “lessons” which meld exacting analyses and emotional reaction. Each refrain at once builds, redirects, and softens the readers pace as one travels through Choate’s own inner nature. Examples range from darker, Michaux-esque musings “Things I learned from The Tin Drum – Light attracts all/ but only some will linger in semidarkness” to tongue-in-cheek literary commentary, “Things I learned from Oblomov – Lovers are terribly long winded” (108). From its distaste for intellectual brouhaha to its “tiddly-winkishness” (29), the result is writing that is intellect-stirring at its least and heart-jostling at its best. Though it sometimes arrives in a form which blurs the borders between anecdote, aphorism, syllogism, and poetry, the divisive forward slash (which appears constantly) suggests that these variations on form, in chorus, function as a body of Choate’s own poetics.
Yet the writer, at the books epigraph, also invokes his wariness of language: “we should not hunt out archaic or far-fetched words and eccentric metaphors and figures of speech…we should seek precepts which will help us, utterances of courage and spirit which may at once be turned into facts. We should so learn them that words become deeds.” (Seneca, ca. AD 65) For how transcendent, really, are the allusive, sometimes ostentatious, and oft- profound—musings of a poet? The author’s interjection of a second, autobiographical narrative gives this interrogation form. In a comparably simple prose that reads as part-memoir, part-tragedy, Choate ensconces a narrative of events both leading up to and following his father’s death. The book, by its center, reaches a climactic level of interchange between this narrative and the writer’s own poetics.
A context for the evaluation of language—and learning—thus emerges. Take, for example, the lines which the author has copied verbatim from David Markson’s The Last Novel: “James Joyce said he was quite content to go down to posterity as a scissors and paste man”. At once, the quote defends the collage-like style that Choate has so clearly put to task and questions the ontological usefulness of Markson’s collection of oft-absurd, biographical anecdotes. By default, this reckons with the usefulness of Choate’s own industrious observations. As the reader travels with Choate’s narrator through his experience of personal tragedy, we are armed with his writing—yet does it soothe us, as readers? Does it soothe the writer? How does language function within Choate’s own experience of grief?
One of the biggest risks that the author takes is the potential disconnect between these two limbs of the book. For Choate, as poet, never directly addresses the narrative of his father’s demise. Similarly, it is rarely writing or literature that Choate, as narrator, turns to for courage. Rather, he chooses rock’n’roll and improvised jazz, nostalgic recollections of his father’s own sense of humor and cultural taste, recipes for perfect biscuits. Though the crossing point between the two narratives is not as simple as a forward slash (and at times remains mysterious), the result, to this reader, is successful. The writing is at once accessible and exacting, interior and grand. By its end, “Learning” reads as a slender treatise on reading, writing, and how each can aid us as we reckon with our own mortality – and that of the ones we love.
– Rebecca Ramirez
TAGS: Andrew Choate, poetry review, Rebecca Ramirez
TNB Poetry features poems and self-interviews from some of the world's finest poets. Past and future writers include Catherine Tufariello, Lewis Turco, Timothy Steele, Amber Tamblyn and Wanda Coleman. Our editorial team comprises: UCHE OGBUJI (uche.ogbuji.net, @uogbuji) is a Nigerian-American poet, editor ( Kin) & computer engineer living near Boulder, Colorado, USA. His short collection of poems Ndewo, Colorado is available from Aldrich Press. RICH FERGUSON (YouTube) has been published and anthologized by various journals and presses. He is also a featured performer in the film, What About Me?. WENDY CHIN-TANNER is a poet, an editor (Kin), interviewer (Lantern), a sociology instructor (Cambridge, UK), and co-founder of A Wave Blue World, a publishing company for graphic novels. DENA RASH GUZMAN, is author of Life Cycle—Poems, Dog On A Chain Press, 2013, Founding Editor of Unshod Quills, Poetry Editor and Managing Director at HAL Publishing (Shanghai & Hong Kong). Uche, Wendy & Dena are founding members of The Stanza Massive poetry/media collective.
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Tag: Freeh
Former FBI Director Louie Freeh’s Law Firm to Merge with Prominent Group
The Wilmington-based law firm of former FBI Director Louis J. Freeh is to merge with prominent Center City-based law firm, Pepper Hamilton L.L.P., the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
The merger is designed to prepare Pepper Hamilton to expand its white-collar defense practice, according to the Inquirer.
Freeh started his own law firm in 2006 and has headed numerous investigations, including one on the failure of Pennsylvania State University to address sexual assault allegations.
The merger follows four years of collaboration between the two firms, according to Philadelphia Inquirer.
Posted: August 29th, 2012 under FBI, Milestone, News Story.
Tags: FBI, Freeh, merger, Pepper Hamilton
Legal Experts Say Louie Freeh’s Penn State Report is Lacking
By Steve Neavling
Some legal experts criticize former FBI director Louis Freeh for not delving deeper into the past of accused molester Jerry Sandusky while investigating the Penn State University sex-abuse scandal, The New York Daily News reports.
Freeh’s report, which was released Thursday, didn’t explore Sandusky’s relationship with children prior to 1998, when the mother of one of Sandusky’s victims told police that the then-defensive coordinator fondled her boy in the shower.
But some legal experts say Freeh should have investigated Sandusky’s time at The Second Mile, his charity for disadvantaged kids that dates back to 1977.
“We know Sandusky used Second Mile to draw together children from precarious situations, and those are the kids who predators target,” Marci Hamilton, professor at New York’s Cardozo School of Law, told the Daily News. “Given the science of sexual abuse, we know Sandusky didn’t start in 1998, when he was in his mid-50s.”
Posted: July 13th, 2012 under FBI, News Story.
Tags: Freeh, penn state, penn state report, sandusky
Another Job for Ex-FBI Director Louie Freeh
By Danny Fenster
Louis Freeh is a busy man these days.
After being tapped to look into the unfolding scandal at Penn State, the former FBI director is now taking part in MF Global’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, reports the Associated Press. He has been appointed trustee for the company. Media reports say up to $1.2 billion in customer accounts is missing from the firm.
Freeh headed the bureau from 1993 through 2001 and is now chairman of Freeh Group International Solutions LLC, a global risk-management firm. MF Global filed for bankruptcy protection after placing bad bets on European debt and is currently being investigated by the FBI over actions that may have violated securities and criminal law. The financial firm asked Freeh to act as its trustee in seeking bankruptcy protection.
OTHER STORIES OF INTEREST:
Feds Seek Man Who Robbed Same TCF Twice (Chicago Tribune)
Jefferson Parish Court Investigation Leak Worried FBI (nola)
Beyond Fighting Crime, FBI Reaches Out to Victims (NPR)
Tulsa Crime Reporter was Friend of J. Edgar Hoover (Tulsa World)
FDA Takes Legal Action Against Dietary Supplement Maker in Pennsylvania (MNT)
Most GOP Governors Refuse to Call for AG Holder’s Resignation (The Hill)
Feds Seize 130+ Domain Names in Mass Crackdown (TorrentFreak)
NY U.S. Attorney Names New Criminal Chief (NY Times)
Posted: November 28th, 2011 under FBI, News Story.
Tags: Freeh, MF Global
Current ticklethewire.com Poll: Who has Been a Better FBI Director?
I invite more of you to vote on the current ticklethewire.com poll (to the right): Who has been the better director of the FBI?
Louis Freeh or Robert Mueller III. The voting has been has been neck-and-neck. The poll will close on Friday at midnight.
Allan Lengel
editor/ticklethewire.com
Posted: January 20th, 2009 under FBI, News Story.
Tags: Best FBI director, Freeh, Mueller, Poll
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Vancouver, livin' the Dreamliner this summer with WestJet
Travellers on the West Coast and across the Atlantic get daily 787 service
CALGARY, Oct. 22, 2019 /CNW/ - WestJet today announced daily 787 Dreamliner service between Vancouver and London, Gatwick giving the airline's guests on the West Coast and across the Atlantic the opportunity to experience WestJet's new Business, Premium and Economy cabins. Service starts April 26, 2020.
"As we receive our next 787 Dreamliner deliveries, we're thrilled to offer our business and leisure travellers this same convenient daily flight but on our newest, state-of-the-art aircraft," said Arved von zur Muehlen, WestJet Chief Commercial Officer. "By increasing capacity by over forty per cent between Vancouver and London, Gatwick guests can enjoy a superior travel experience featuring our award-winning service on either side of the Atlantic."
"We are very excited that WestJet is bringing the game-changing 787 Dreamliner aircraft to YVR in 2020," said Craig Richmond, President & CEO, Vancouver Airport Authority. "We have enjoyed a great relationship with WestJet since they first started operations at YVR in 1996 and now, with the introduction of the 787 and moving to daily London-Gatwick service, I have no doubt we have a lot to look forward to. The aircraft will not only provide a great experience for guests but will further establish YVR as a world-class hub and a key WestJet partner."
The WestJet Dreamliner features 320 seats in three cabins: Business, Premium and Economy, all of which contain a high-level of comfort and WestJet's award-winning guest service. The Dreamliner's Business cabin features all-aisle-access, lie-flat seats with on-demand dining and entertainment. The upscale Premium cabin is the ideal combination of comfort, value and guest service including a separate cabin, elevated meal service and signature welcome perks featuring champagne and an amenity case. WestJet's improved Economy cabin features on-demand inflight entertainment, blankets and pillows and complimentary food and beverages with a select number of extra legroom seats available for purchase.
Today the airline also announced its transatlantic Dreamliner service between Paris and Calgary resumes March 12, 2020 and daily 787 service between Toronto and London, Gatwick will operate year-round. Domestically guests will benefit from year-round daily Dreamliner service between Calgary and Toronto, while service between Calgary and Dublin on the Dreamliner will remain three-times weekly in peak season.
This summer WestJet will operate 28 weekly flights to London Gatwick from Calgary, Vancouver, Toronto and Halifax.
Details of WestJet's 787 summer service between Vancouver and London, Gatwick:
London- Gatwick
5:25 p.m
10:30 a.m. (+1)
London, Gatwick-
10:55 a.m
12:27 p.m
For more information on new routes and increased frequencies in WestJet's 787-9 summer schedule, please visit westjet.com/flight-schedules-new.
Together with WestJet's regional airlines, WestJet Encore and WestJet Link, we offer scheduled service to more than 100 destinations in North America, Central America, the Caribbean and Europe and to more than 175 destinations in over 20 countries through our airline partnerships. WestJet Vacations offers affordable, flexible vacations to more than 60 destinations and the choice of more than 800 hotels, resorts, condos and villas. Members of the WestJet Rewards program earn WestJet dollars on flights, vacation packages and more. Members use WestJet dollars towards the purchase of flights and vacations packages to any WestJet destination with no blackout periods, and have access to Member Exclusive fares offering deals to WestJet destinations throughout our network and those of our partner airlines.
WestJet is proud to be recognized for three consecutive years as Best Airline in Canada (2017-19) and awarded among travellers' favourite Mid-Sized Airlines in North America (2019). From 2017-2018, WestJet was also awarded among travellers' favourite Mid-Sized and Low-Cost Airlines in North America. The airline was also recognized among the Economy Class winners in North America, 2018. All awards are based on authentic reviews from the travelling public on TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel site. We are one of very few airlines globally that does not commercially overbook.
WestJet is publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol WJA. For more information about everything WestJet, please visit westjet.com.
2019/2018/2017 Best Airline in Canada (TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice awards for Airlines)
2019 Winner Among Mid-Sized Airlines in North America (TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice awards for Airlines)
2019 Number-One Ranked Canadian Airline Loyalty Program in Member Engagement (Bond Brand Loyalty)
2019/2018 Number-One-Ranked Airline Credit Card in Canada (Rewards Canada)
2018/2017 Winner Among Mid-Sized and Low Cost Airlines – North America (TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice awards for Airlines)
2018 Winner – Economy, North America (TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice awards for Airlines)
2018 North America's Best Low-Cost Airline (Skytrax)
2018/2017/2016 Canada's Most Trusted Airline (Gustavson School of Business at the University of Victoria)
Follow WestJet on Instagram instagram.com/westjet/
SOURCE WESTJET, an Alberta Partnership
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KirkFM’s Top 5
Color Commentary
Loikamania
Kirk FM’s Top 5
Comics on Film
Comics ‘N Coffee
Sequential Sunday
Cosplay Spotlight
Cosplay Girl of The Month
Comics ‘N Coffee: MARVEL TEAM-UP #75
by bucky· March 10, 2014· in Comics 'N Coffee· 0 comments tags: Chris Claremont, Marvel, Marvel Comics, Marvel Team-Up, Ralph Macchio
Costumed Heroes and Their Real-Life Counterparts When I got back into comics in the early 2000s, I discovered the world of podcasting and was introduced to the joys of Queen & Country, Maus, Strangers in Paradise and other books I never knew before (not to mention the delightful works of Jeffrey Brown). But the thing all these books had in common was their level of seriousness – their realism, even – and it made me wonder: where were all the funny-books? Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy both thoughtful fare and inconsequential cartoons as much as anyone. It was the meaningless fluff of the 1990s which lost my interest in comics, and now I found myself looking at comics in a new light, one which was vying for a place among legitimate literature. In 2014, I believe we have struck a balance, one where all types of stories are created, read and celebrated throughout the world of comics. These include biographical, historical and political stories; romance, horror, intrigue and science fiction galore; and traditional super-hero comics which continue to push the boundaries of credulity with their wonderful ridiculousness.
Comics ‘N Coffee: X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills
by bucky· July 23, 2013· in Comics 'N Coffee· 0 comments tags: Brent Eric Anderson, Chris Claremont, Marvel, X-Men: God Loves Man Kills
NOT THE COLOR OF THEIR COSTUMES, BUT THE CONTENT OF THEIR CHARACTER (or… I can haz justice?) A young man runs. Beads of sweat fall from his dark-skinned brow, and he knows that an armed gunman is not far behind. He doesn’t know why he being pursued, but he darts through this residential neighborhood hoping against hope to make it past the playground and find sanctuary in the woods ahead. He fears not only for himself, but also for his nine year-old sister, and those fears become realized as a shot rips through his thigh, dropping him to the cool grass below. He screams for his sister to run, yet it is too late as the gunman is joined by her cohorts who surround the children. The boy looks his assailant with eyes that burn with fury, determined that his final moments be ones of truth and dignity, not fear. The gunman pulls out a gleaming sidearm and – without hesitation – kills the young boy in front of his sister. The girl feels the life ebb out of her brother and flow red onto her hands. She looks at his killers with innocent, bewildered eyes and asks her final […]
Comics ‘N Coffee: Marvel Preview Presents: Star-Lord
by bucky· May 19, 2013· in Comics 'N Coffee· 0 comments tags: Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Marvel, Marvel Preview Presents
IN SPACE, NO ONE HEARS YOU SCREAM (But your blaster still goes “Shrak!”) Every so often, your author comes across a comic book which presents such a dynamic story and bountiful beauty that it leaves me virtually speechless. This is one of those times, dear reader, and it is glorious. Most readers of modern comics are familiar with the Guardians of the Galaxy, particularly their enigmatic leader, Star-Lord.
Comics ‘N Coffee: Heroes for Hope – X-Men
by bucky· March 24, 2013· in Comics 'N Coffee· 0 comments tags: Alan Moore, Chris Claremont, Denny O’Neil, John Romita Jr, Stan Lee
We are the World … We are the Children of the Atom In 1985, I was still adjusting to a new house, neighborhood and school away from everything I had ever known, but somehow became aware of an upcoming television program called “Live Aid”. There had been a devastating famine in Ethiopia that year and a large group of musicians, bands and other performers were getting together for a gigantic fundraiser/telethon to raise both money and awareness of the plight of Africa’s starving population.
TOP 5 Comics: September 16th 2015
Pick of the Week: September 9th 2015 Star Wars: Shattered Empire #1
Top 5 Comics: September 9th 2015
Pick of the Week: September 2nd 2015 Miracleman by Gaiman & Buckingham #1
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Archive | Taxes
IRS Will Recongize Same-Sex Marriages Regardless of Where Couples Reside
By Will Baude on August 29, 2013 4:52 pm in Conflict of Laws, Same-Sex Marriage, Taxes
Did the Taxman Make Howard a Rocket?
By Jonathan H. Adler on July 6, 2013 12:09 pm in Sports and Games, Taxes
Congressional Inquiry of IRS Targeting of Israel Groups
By Eugene Kontorovich on May 14, 2013 7:24 pm in Congress, Israel, Taxes, Tea Party
The Media Push for IRS Action Against Pro-Israel Groups
By Eugene Kontorovich on May 14, 2013 3:47 pm in International Law, Israel, Taxes, Tea Party
Is citizen control of taxes and spending unconstitutional?
By David Kopel on February 11, 2013 1:40 pm in Constitutional History, Constitutional Law, Judicial Power, Taxes
Tax Rates and Political Ignorance
By Ilya Somin on January 11, 2013 10:50 am in Political Ignorance, Taxes
Will the Mortgage Interest Deduction Sacred Cow Finally Get Slaughtered?
By Ilya Somin on November 30, 2012 3:44 pm in Property Rights, Taxes
Over 30% of President Obama’s 2009-2011 Gross Income Came From Foreign Sources
By Jim Lindgren on July 13, 2012 4:02 am in Politics, Taxes
Chief Justice Roberts and the window tax
By David Kopel on July 9, 2012 2:27 pm in Constitutional History, Constitutional Law, Health Care, Individual Mandate, Originalism, Taxes, Taxing and Spending Clause
Of Silver Linings and Clouds
By Ilya Somin on June 29, 2012 10:07 pm in Federalism, Health Care, Individual Mandate, Taxes, Taxing and Spending Clause
Next step: Repeal the individual mandate because it is unconstitutional
By David Kopel on June 29, 2012 7:30 pm in Congress, Constitutional History, Equal Protection, Health Care, Individual Mandate, Necessary and Proper, Politics, Popular Constitutionalism, Presidency, Separation of Powers, Supreme Court, Taxes, Taxing and Spending Clause, Uncategorized
Neal Katyal on the Federal Government’s “Pyrrhic Victory” in the Health Care Decisions
By Ilya Somin on June 29, 2012 6:31 pm in Commerce Clause, Federalism, Health Care, Individual Mandate, Taxes, Taxing and Spending Clause
Do the Court’s Commerce Clause and Necessary and Proper Clause Rulings in the Individual Mandate Case Matter?
By Ilya Somin on June 29, 2012 2:44 pm in Commerce Clause, Federalism, Health Care, Individual Mandate, Necessary and Proper, Taxes, Taxing and Spending Clause
Where Richard Friedman and I Agree
My SCOTUSblog Discussion of the Individual Mandate Decision
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Bob Levy blames Howard Stern for Artie Lange’s suicide attempt and quits The Miserable Men Show
April 23, 2010 by WCQJ
Comedian and long time friend of the Howard Stern Show “Reverend Bob Levy” pointed the finger squarely in the face of the King of All Media Tuesday, blaming him for co-host Artie Lange’s violent suicide attempt in early January.
Levy made the controversial statement during a live recording he posted on his page at Stickam.com in response to a question from an online listener.
“Did Howard fire Artie? No. They just killed him. There’s a difference there. You know what I mean? He should have been in rehab a year ago, but I’m not even gonna talk about that, but it’s sad. It’s really sad. He shoulda been off the show a year ago, gettin’ help. If it’s funny to watch someone fall apart and become a f—ing junky? Then, to me? I’d rather watch TV. I’d rather watch ‘The View’ than listen to bulls–t.”
Wednesday, Levy posted a message announcing his resignation from his regular Sunday night gig at ‘The Miserable Men Show’ which airs weekly on Howard Stern’s secondary Sirius XM channel, Howard 101. Levy stated he was resigning because courtesy plugs for his stand-up performances had been pulled from the main Howard Stern Show, and because of a reportedly miserable ‘Miserable Men’ salary.
Levy made the following post on his Facebook page Wednesday:
BREAKING NEWS FROM BOB LEVY: Bob Levy. after alot of thought over the last few weeks ive decided to resign from the miserable men there has been alot of stuff since my plugs being pulled for no reason and other thing that made me decide its not worth it for me i wish the others well and find someone to take my spot but i,d rather be home with my family on sunday then running from a airport to the studio for no money.
Categories News & Politics Tags Bob Levy 22 Comments Post navigation
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22 thoughts on “Bob Levy blames Howard Stern for Artie Lange’s suicide attempt and quits The Miserable Men Show”
And Levy once again runs his mouth before engaging his brain. Good luck fixing this one with Howard…
welcom back to obscurity,Hes as dumb as artie!
LarryL
Bob, goodluck I totally agree with you 100% Artie should have gotten help well over a year ago and Howard is responsible he thrived on watching Artie fall apart LIVE on his show and it is FUC%^& shame that it came to Artie tyring to take his own life, Howard or Sirius should have seen to it that Artie got help , well Bob I am sure you will do well …good luck my friend…Larry
Tera Hungler
I have been following this story as a fan of Howard and MM. Found it interesting that Bubba on his show Friday made a quick comment on this story and just said, “maybe Bob Levy is just a jackass”.
terra cloth
This whole Artie thing is obviously a touchy subject for all involved… but look… if this is how the guy, Levy, feels… then there’s nothing at all wrong… or shouldn’t be… with him saying so! After all, Howard is the one who is constantly saying how he’s all about honesty ad nauseum… and “ya gotta be honest on the radio” and so forth… then the minute that Levy does that… and it doesn’t jive with Stern… he’s out of job??? WTF?!?!? THAT IS TOTAL BULLSHIT! Further, this incident will only serve to keep all others involved with the Howard Stern show from being honest about how they feel for fear of rocking the boat and being dismissed. Now, having said that, myself and many others find Bob Levy only marginally funny at the roasts on Howard’s show and even down right boring at any other time he’s heard on the Howard channels… FIRE HIM FOR THAT… Not for speaking his… rather small… mind! No big loss to the Sirius channels in any event. I mean, let’s face it… THE MISERABLE MEN SHOW IS MISERABLY UNFUNNY… WITH OR WITHOUT BOB LEVY!
More reason for you to start posting the miserable men show, instead of reading this we could be listening to it.
jen b
UMMM……..These guys are the best… I got the opportunity to see Bob live in Mass this weekend ( We drove down from Maine) He will be missed terribly……. Although maybe some of you dont find him that funny WE DO! We love you…. all of you…. I have quit a job myself as I had to do what i felt what morally right as well. I doubt I made even close to Levy but he sticks to his principles……… Thats a REAL MAN! WE are proud of you but will miss you very much… FK HOWARD! I never thought he was much more than an arrogant asshole who talks alot of shit and doesnt know wtf he is talking about….. I love Aritie tho. He was/ is real… It is a shame it took this…… I dont believe in sensorship but how can you live w/ yourself Mr Stern knowing Artie’s demise what just what you wanted… Shame on you. And may Karma bite that ass soon and HARD!
K-9 Savage
I can understand why Bob gets frustrated at various issues he has with the the Miserable Men Show and the Howard Show, but personally I think he has seriously shot himself in the foot with this move. As I have been listening regularly to the show Sunday nights while I am at work, it slowly has taken shape and has started to crawl into a show so good, it could run 5 days a week. However, now that he has pulled the plug himself, he has just walked away to the potential successor to the Howard channels on Sirius when Howard leaves. I’m not saying it would replace the Stern show, but clearly it could hold it’s own through their true comedy genius they have developed. Too bad Bob…
Wow! Bob is truly a bigger idiot than I thought he was. If Howard Stern is to blame for Artie Lange’s SECOND suicide attempt, then who’s to blame for his first attempt, Mad TV? After all, Artie was on Mad TV when he first tried to commit suicide so surely that most have been their fault! Bob, you are truly a moron. Artie suffers from severe depression and the only way anyone would have been able to help him is if he was honestly ready to help himself. Bob Levy’s comments about Howard Stern was a bitter reaction to having his plugs pulled from the Stern show and the fact that he wasn’t paid by Sirius to host Miserable Men. I would think that the exposure that Bob was getting on his Sirius show, which was really catching on, would have been sufficient motivation to continue his hosting duties for at least the next eight months. After that, if Howard retires, Bob would have been in a position to become a prominent radio host on Sirius Radio. Instead, he will now be relegated back to obscurity.
Bob is an ass. Howard is not responsible for someone elses actions. Howard wasnt there plunging the knife into Arties chest or giving him the drugs. What about those days when Bob was drugging it up with Artie , so the same can be said about you Bob..you enabler. Good luck being a loser again Bob, maybe Danny B will kick your ass one more time.
bob is so correct, stop and think for two seconds, he is right, bottom line. and schuli rode bobs coat tails now he has the show , just look back sorry the guy is right , i like them all , but it is sooo sad
Joey Mama
People seem to be mad at Howard “firing” Bob – uhhhh no – HE RESIGNED you idiots.
Loraluvsartie
I look like a hideous space alien that bones midgets. Levy is even more of a loser than I am.
yah,no we get that not rocket science ,he resigned. the issue at hand is bobs initial comment re-artie play tape listen to show there is your anwser.
You're idiots
Wow…what stupidity…no one enabled Artie to do drugs…it was his choice…how can you blame Howard? That means you should blame every co-worker and boss at every job that has an alcoholic, junkie, food addict or whatever on staff…Maybe you should blame Artie’s own family…they benefitted from his career…never made him go into rehab….OH WAIT A MINUTE…YOU CAN’T MAKE SOMEONE GO TO REHAB!…THEY HAVE TO WANT TO DO IT THEMSELVES OTHERWISE IT WON’T WORK! I hope Artie gets better and is getting the help he needs…Bob Levy is a jackass…he wouldn’t have a career if it wasn’t for Stern. Stop being so god damn stupid.
Artie Fan
In my opinion,the show sucks without Artie. Sal and Richard prank calls are horrible. Sal’s marital problems were funny the first couple of times they were exploited on air.
Howard without Fred feeding him line is as funny as Ralph Cirella. life is not fair,the least talented guy of the fab four makes the most money.
JONESY
Truth be told. Before the Artie attempt on his life the show was becoming the Artie Lange show. He overcommented on everything and often interrupted Howard’s enjoyable and timely interviews with great guests I believe he was told to tone it down because after the Christmas break he was totally more laid back behind the scenes with fewer interuptions; it became a stronger show. Maybe he couldn’t accept a lesser part and it sentk him over the edge. I truly do hope he recovers and finds piece but he doesn’t belong on the Stern show. Good luck Artie. I would love to see him get bak on his own.
Chrissy Levy
Why did I marry this fucking asshole?!
Look guys Howard is not to blame.
It was Levy that used to get me my heroin on the road. Blame him for what happened if anyone, but not Howard.
These days Bob is doing a cheese penis podcast making racists comments https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsXEOYcxv5I
Billy East
Hey guys–this whole thing is dumb. Bob Levy is an untalented hack, and Artie was a less talented version of Jackie. The show began its slow and steady decline the moment Billy left, and it really hasn’t been the same since.
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Weaver Wednesday [192] - Discovery [75]: Marsh Widowbird
Marsh Widowbird Euplectes hartlaubi
Marsh Widowbird
figure from Delacour (1933)
Marsh Widowbird, female, male,
non breeding male, figure from
Bannerman (1949)
The Marsh Widowbird was formally described by Jose Vicente Barbosa du Bocage, a Portuguese zoologist and politician. He was curator of the Lisbon Museum, and described several other weavers.
The Marsh Widowbird was collected by Jose Alberto de Oliveira Anchieta, a Portuguese explorer and naturalist, who collected a large number of birds in Angola. In 1867 the Portuguese government hired Anchieta as a naturalist but probably also as a secret agent and informer in the Caconda region of Angola. Anchieta lived in Caconda, explored the area and sent many specimens and letters to his scientific correspondents in Lisbon. Anchieta discovered the Marsh Widowbird near Caconda, and sent a single male specimen to the Lisbon Museum. Bocage measured the tail as 160 mm, while tail length in the nominate subspecies is usually 163-201 mm.
The first illustration of the Marsh Widowbird was published in Delacour (1933). The second illustration was published by Bannerman (1949), as a black and white sketch, but also showing the female and non-breeding male.
Penthetria hartlaubi Bocage 1878 Jorn. Sci. Math. Phys. Nat. Lisboa, 6, p.259 Caconda, Angola.
hartlaubi, After Karl Johann Gustav Hartlaub (1814-1900) German ornithologist and author.
Hartlaub's Widow Bird (Layard 1884).
Hartlaub's Marsh Whydah, Hartlaub's Marsh Widowbird, Marsh Whydah, Uganda Marsh Whydah.
Before 1878.
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Information on Copyright and Related Rights
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Biotech's Shell Game
Need Public Market Access? Go Knock On Heaven's Door (Corp.)
Back in the early 1990s when I was toiling as editor-in-chief of then-startup BioWorld, I came across a strange press release. It announced the acquisition of two Canadian biotech companies by Consolidated Mining, a public company on the Vancouver stock exchange. Being a naive scientist “gone bad,” I could not figure out what the heck mining had to do with biotech.
The nice man at Consolidated introduced me to the entertaining world of public shells - those strange zombies on stock exchanges, those undead entities able to confer access to public investors on the lucky acquisition.
That shell evolved into Micrologix, now Migenix, which acquired two other companies and evolved away from its original fish vaccines to include anti-infectives and treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.
These days, the shell game has taken on a new urgency thanks to the refusal of investors to indulge in cash infusions at the pace and valuation desired by the 3,000-plus biotech companies out there spending.
Mean Markets
History tells us that when public markets are recalcitrant, bankers show great creativity in finding ways for transactions (and those lovely fees) to occur.
Are private investors not biting, and are the public markets not valuing your company nearly as highly as your current investors wish? Bankers with M&A books almost always show up in times like these, but experience has shown us that biotech teams hate being acquired. Arguments over relative valuation and whose management team gets to run the show have killed many mergers.
But reverse mergers just might give biotech teams a chance to have it both ways - access additional capital and still stay in control! Many of the deals to date have merged private biotech firms into essentially empty public shells that used to encapsulate businesses far removed from the biotech world. Some of my favorites: Advanced Cell Technologies and a maker of Hopi Indian dolls, Minster Pharmaceuticals and RII plc (former soviet insurance companies), Halozyme Therapeutics and Global Yacht Services, Rexahn Pharmaceuticals and Corporate Roadshow.com, and DNAPrint Genomics with S.D.E. Holdings I Inc., which used to handle restaurants and prepaid phone cards. Polymedix Inc. won't even reveal the identity of its public shell.
Role Reversals
The approach has become so popular that articles about reverse mergers and how to use them have shown up on Nature Magazine's Bioentrepreneur website, along with more conventional business journals. In most cases, the transaction is used to keep the biotech part of the business afloat.
Nathan Drona, managing director of Challiss, a New York based investment bank specializing in life sciences, says there are two types of public shells: failed businesses and acquisition entities.
“Failed business” are just that, leading to restructurings where all business activities of the company are halted. The 1990s provided many failed internet/ecommerce companies or resource/mining exploration companies around the globe.
“Acquisition entities,” sometimes called “blank check companies,” are formed specifically to find a private company suitable for an acquisition via a reverse merger. They are often referred to as “clean shells” - since there was no prior business, they should be relatively free of liabilities.
Usually, the shareholders of the company to be acquired by the shell control the combined entity by owning the majority of shares, and thereafter refocus the newly designed public company toward the business aims of the acquired company.
Typically, the shell company has three possible types of assets: cash, a pre-existing SEC registration and public listing, and sometimes management or directors with relevant experience. Drona pointed out that new investors can forget there are two sides to a balance sheet, and hidden, unidentified or unresolved liabilities often are reasons to stay away from shells.
Drona said: “Investors continue to believe that attaching their business to a NASDAQ-listed entity will create a Shangri-La of wealth. Shells are successful only a very small percentage of the time and only when very sophisticated investors are involved.”
My favorite strange merger took place in the rough market of 1999, when investors wanted only dot.com stocks, and even Kleiner Perkins had turned away from biotech. Procept Inc., of Cambridge, Mass., was working on a gel to prevent sexually transmitted diseases and chemosensitizers to make cancer cells more susceptible to chemotherapy. It also was running out of cash.
Management put out a press release with that ominous phrase, “in order to maximize shareholder value,” announcing its decision to merge with Heaven's Door Corp., of Coral Springs, Fla., a website providing one-stop shopping for the funeral services industry. The CEO, John Dee, predicted the potential market for pre-planned funerals in the U.S. alone was $85 billion! All I know is that Google has 40 million references to funeral services, but none appears to refer to the former Procept.
Biotechs Becoming Empty Shells
Perhaps all this is a sign that biotech has turned into a mature industry, generating its very own shells. A recent news report showed the tide of shells that started flowing into biotech back in the early 1990s has reversed itself.
Montreal-based Nexia Biotechnologies Inc. had been creating transgenic goats that made spider silk in their milk. The company raised C$67(US $57.4) million by 2003 but was going broke by 2005. A big chunk of the biotech assets were sold to Pharmathene (which itself is using a reverse merger with Siga to gain access to public markets).
Late last year, Alberta lawyer David Tonken and an associate bought 26.5 percent of Nexia, with an eye to making good use of what they saw as a “clean shell” possessing a neat balance sheet, updated financial statements, and a $50 million loss for a new owner to use against its own tax bill.
Tonkin is thinking that oil and gas is the right industry for Nexia, leaving biotech behind. Hey, maybe Consolidated Mining will be reborn!
-- March 27, 2006
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Beauty and fragrances
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BEST TV SHOWS TO WATCH ON NETFLIX
1 CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA
2 THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE
3 BLACK MIRROR
4 STRANGER THINGS
6 DAREDEVIL
7 THIRTEEN REASONS WHY
Don’t we all love to just chill and flix? Well that term came from nowhere else but our very own Netflix. This one has become so popular in recent times that people have stopped watching normal Tv. The reason behind the enormous popularity are the great shows that come up every day on Netflix. The people behind it make sure that only the best content is put up for us to watch.
Every month we see that Netflix brings in so many great new shows along with many old ones. You can check what is coming your way every month and have your couch and popcorn ready to watch it all. We have narrowed down a few of the best shows that Netflix has.
Genre: Fantasy and Horror
Don’t we all love supernatural? Supernatural is the world many of us dream of and shows like Chilling adventures of Sabrina turn it all into reality. Actually, the show is way more than that. It’s about a girl who is battling with her dual nature of being a witch and a mortal. It’s not easy having dual lives and especially when both lives are miles apart.
The fun lies in the way Sabrina tries to manage both of these lives and also trying to save everyone and herself from forces battling against her. It’s all about fighting one’s own nature and using it to fight against what threatens you and your dear ones.
Netflix is full of shows that literally won’t let you sleep at night. If you feel lonely, watch this and you won’t be alone anymore. We have seen a lot of horror movies and shows but nothing compares to this one. It throws light on the lives of Crain family members who lost everything to a house, starting from their mother and the show ends with the house taking a lot from them again. It’s not the ghosts inside that haunts them, it’s all in the house itself. The show starts with, “whatever walks there, walks alone.” And you already get a hint of things coming your way. Truth is you will go crazy trying to figure out what’s happening, one moment you are in the past and one moment you are in the present which is how the characters also feel. You will feel every inch of the terror the characters have felt in that house.
Usually, very less people find science fictions interesting or so we assume. This one isn’t like that at all. Black mirror shows us the reality and the near future that we might and how dark it actually might be. In this show, science has completely taken over our lives and technology is what we humans stand for. Some people are so obsessed with this show, they are using Netflix coupons just so they could watch this show. Each episode of this show puts focus on various aspects in which technology is killing our brains. Each episode will be different and it will play with your brain in a different way.
You will sit there wondering what exactly is happening for the half of the episode and when you realise what exactly is happening, you will be shocked. Its all about the black mirror of reality we are probably about to face in the near future and mind you, its for sure is broken.
READ 10 Memorable Personalized Gifts Anyone Would Love
Genre: Horror Fiction
As strange as the name is, so is the show. What exactly the show is truly in the name. Set in a town in 1984, in the show we will see how weird things start happening when a boy disappears and how things just escalate from there on. After that, there is no stopping anything. It mainly centres around four friends and their families and how one of them disappears and goes into another realm.
You will actually see strange monsters on your screen when you watch which might haunt you during the night. It gets a little scientific sometimes but it is not entirely a science fiction but more of a combination with horror. You will see lives going up and down and a poor mother just waiting for her sweet boy to come home.
If you want a cheesy show to watch with bae and just snuggle, there couldn’t be anything more perfect than this one. It’s right in the name of the show. The adorable couple in this show is played by the very talented Paul Rust and Gillian Jacobs, who without a doubt make an adorable couple. You can see them loving each other, fighting with each other and again making up because that is what you do in a relationship.
You will find yourself saying ‘aww’ a few times and maybe crying with them too. At some points you will laugh at their stupidity too. It is the perfect entertainment when you want a light-hearted show to just cheer you up or restore your faith in love.
Genre: Crime drama
Its true that the devil lives among us. Matt Murdock in the show is the man living normally as a lawyer but no one knows he is the daredevil who most criminals fear. Above that he portrays as a blind human who sees nothing but in true sense he is the vigilante who sees everything. Three seasons have already been released and the show has nothing but positive reviews from the audience. For the ones who are huge fans of the marvel universe, this is your show. Everything in it is based around it and two spin offs from this have already been released. Underworld fears the vigilante and he is no less than any other superhero that you might have encountered till now.
Genre: Teen Drama
American teen drama is the best kind of genre to watch. It has all the great parts of high school that make you go back to those good days that you spent with your friends. This one is based on the novel that came out in 2007. It starts with a girl committing suicide and you are made to go through why it happened and how it happened. You will find yourself so attached to the girl, Hannah Baker, who committed suicide that it almost brings you to tears.
The second season shows Clay Jensen being haunted by Hanna dying as he is the one who discovers why she is dead today. The horrors, the drama, the fun and everything else makes you jump every time something exciting happens.
All of these shows are definitely worth watching and worth spending your time. Some people might even get addicted to it all. So, take a pick at your own risk.
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PKL-6: Holders Patna Pirates to open account against Tamil Thalaivas
Chennai, Oct 5 (IANS) Defending champions Patna Pirates will take on home team Tamil Thalaivas in the first clash of the season six of Pro Kabaddi which will see 12 captains unveil the coveted trophy here.
Captains from all the teams came together on one stage to unveil the trophy and decoded their strategy for the season.
Talking about the famous Dubki, Pardeep Narwal said, “I will never stop doing the dubki. This season along with the dubki, I have worked on multiple strategic moves to counter our opponents. For Patna Pirates, one of the most challenging teams we believe is Puneri Paltan because their defence is very strong.
Talking about the team composition, Tamil Thalaivas captain Ajay Thakur said: “In the previous season our team composition was heavy on youngsters. So, if it happened that I was not on the mat, taking instant decisions was tough. This year, the team has a perfect balance of young and experienced players.”
Commenting on the biggest rivals for Bengaluru Bulls this season, captain Rohit Kumar, said: “According to me, the team that puts its best foot forward will win, it is a competition, and everyone will come prepared. In my opinion Tamil Thalaivas is the most prepared team for this season, under the able guidance from Ajay Thakur.
The inaugural ceremony will be a star-studded affair, with eminent sports icons and film personalities expected to attend.
With many firsts this season, the caravan will travel to Kochi for the play-offs and the grand finale will be held in Mumbai on January 5.
dm/gau/sed
Tags: account against holders patna pirates tamil thalaivas
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Japan’s 1st LNG-fuelled ferries
david 2019-11-29T23:06:04+00:00 November 29th, 2019|Ships|
Mitsui OSK Lines. (MOL) and its subsidiary, Ferry Sunflower Limited, are to build the first two LNG-fuelled ferries in Japan.
MOL said that it planned to order the vessels from Mitsubishi Shipbuilding next month.
Ferry Sunflower will charter the ferries upon their delivery and operate them on the Osaka-Beppu route from the end of 2022 through the first half of 2023, as replacements for vessels currently in service.
The ferries will be equipped with high-performance dual-fuel engines and will provide passengers with comfortable accommodations and reliable schedules. They will also be less noisy than current vessels.
The use of LNG fuel will achieve excellent environmental performance, reducing CO2 emissions by 20%, compared to current vessels, and virtually eliminating sulfur oxides emissions, MOL claimed.
Each 17,300 gt ferry will have a pax capacity of 763 and a truck capacity of 136.
© International Cruise Ship Industry. Registered in England & Wales Number 8356111 | VAT GB 214 7065 29. Published by www.onlypublishers.com
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homesubmissionsabout dhqdhq peoplecontact
2019: 13.3
Preview Issue
2015: 9.4
DHQ: Digital Humanities Quarterly
Volume 9 Number 02
2015 9.2 | XML | Discuss ( Comments )
Introduction to Feminisms and DH special issue
Jacqueline Wernimont <jwernimo_at_asu_dot_edu>, Arizona State University
Introduction to the special issue of Digital Humanities Quarterly on Feminisms and DH, which offers both background on the origins of the special issue and an overview of the pieces therein.
Special issues often capture a moment in time, an efflorescence of critical engagement, or an urgent and timely shift in a field. If most special issues are snapshots, “Feminisms and DH” is something more like a long-exposure photograph, a surreal composite that is simultaneously fiction and fact.
Let me indulge in a bit of scene-setting to help elucidate what I mean about the surrealism of this issue and as way of practicing the kind of self-disclosure that Chris Bourg and Bess Sadler argue is an important design and accessibility feature in feminist work [Bourg and Sadler 2015]. Katherine D. Harris and I first proposed this special issue to the editorial board of DHQ in January of 2012. We had been part of ongoing discussions about “silences” in archives and were relatively fresh off of a challenging roundtable titled “Editing Digital Feminisms” at the 2011 meeting of the Society of Textual Scholarship (STS), which also included Marilee Lindeman and Martha Nell Smith. The roundtable was great; what was challenging from my perspective was the clear gender profile of those in attendance – ours was a room full of women. While it was (is) disheartening to imagine that our male colleagues weren’t interested in feminist DH work, it struck us as particularly strange given the history of the field. As Harris and I noted in our call for this special issue, “several of the major DH projects that are now at the forefront of the field had feminist imperatives at the outset (for example: Women Writers Project, the Orlando Project, and the Dickenson Archive), but it does not seem to us that there has been a sustained inquiry into the evolving relationships between feminist theory and DH work.”
In calling for a more sustained consideration of relationships between feminist theories and digital humanities, we were calling for engagements that helped enrich our sense of why feminisms mattered to DH, beyond simply getting more women in the rooms. In addition to issues of equity and access, at stake in the conception of this special issue were the ethics and commitments in digital humanities scholarship and teaching. Within a 12-month span leading up to the proposal, there were discussions at the Modern Language Association meeting about who was in and who was out of DH,[1] Jamie Skye Bianco’s “This Digital Humanities Which is Not One” and Tara McPherson’s “Why is the Digital Humanities So White?” came out in print, and the seeds of the three-site THATCamp Feminisms were sown by debates about coding, gender, and the politics of DH. In response, the creative and critical pieces in this special issue work to think not just about gender parity and recovery, modes central to second wave feminisms, but also about intersectional identities, labor, affect, and materiality in ways aligned with third-wave and decolonizing feminisms. Several of the pieces also reach outside of the admittedly porous boundaries of DH to include Library and Information Studies, Postcolonial Studies, Ethnography, and Game Studies as explicitly feminist interventions in a field that can feel dominated by literary and textual studies.
By invoking the surreality of long-exposure photography I mean to point to the ways the interventions here are as necessary and fresh as they might have been in 2012 or 2013. Given the production time, this should be a blurry photograph, but the lack of sustained engagement with feminist theory within DH makes it still rather clear. Rather than being superseded, the interventions of each piece, and of the collection as a whole, have only become more urgent and it is striking that the field has not yet seen another special issue on feminisms and digital humanities. As I write this introduction the annual ADHO Digital Humanities conference is taking place in Sydney, Australia. In some ways it seems as if nothing has changed. As Scott Weingart has observed is his series of blog posts on the ADHO conference, while 46% of DH2015 attendees are women, they make up only 35% of authors with accepted papers.[2] What’s more, his analysis suggests that part of what makes DH so white (to paraphrase McPherson) is that “there’s a very clear bias against submissions by people with names non-standard to the US.”[3] Now, it is worth noting that a single year does not a trend make (although he sees stable numbers over three years with respect to gender) and that the ADHO conference is not necessarily representative of the entirety of digital humanities scholarship. Nevertheless, the questions we posed in the call for this issue about the presence of a masculinized research/tools track and a feminized pedagogy track, the elided histories of feminist intervention, and exclusionary cultures within DH are as urgent today as they were in 2012
“Feminisms and DH” confronts a number of methodological and topical biases that continue to haunt the field according to Weingart’s analysis. Jamie Skye Bianco’s “Man and His Tool, Again?: Queer and Feminist Notes on Practices in the Digital Humanities and Object Orientations Everywhere” uses a performative mode, previously theorized in her 2012 “This Digital Humanities Which is Not One,” to critique heteropatriarchal biases in a textual studies dominated digital humanities. Her piece exemplifies the “socially engaged critical creativity” advocated by feminist scholars like Sarah Kember and Joanna Zylenska; a thinking with and through the tools that we critique [Kember and Zylinska 2013]. Her piece and the companion teaching reflection by Nicole Starosielski push the boundaries of traditional academic argument by insisting that “creative critique” is central to how we communicate amongst ourselves as scholars and with and to our students.
Equally critical, argues Roopika Risam, is intersectionality as “a lens for scholarship in the digital humanities [that] resists binary logic, encourages complex analysis, and foregrounds difference.” This is an important corrective that we have seen recently emerge in projects like the Digital Diversity Timeline, Amy Earhart’s Diverse Histories of DH, and Global Outlook DH to tell more diverse histories of digital humanities work and thereby imagine alternative futures. Risam draws on Sandra Harding’s work in feminist and postcolonial Science and Technology Studies (STS), to foreground the relationships between difference and technology. In addition to suggesting the value of alternative histories, Risam does the difficult work of charting theoretical foundations for alternative digital humanities “methods that advocate inclusion and critical analysis but are situated in the materiality of technologies.” In ways that blend the kind of theoretical and historiographic work of both Risam and Bianco, Gabrielle Dean’s “The Shock of the Familiar: Three Timelines about Gender and Technology in the Library” offers a set of provocations about not only the history of librarianship and information technology, but also about its possible futures. Like Bianco, Dean plays with argumentative form, drawing on the timeline as both a critical and speculative genre. Both Dean and Tanya Clement draw on Library and Information Science disciplines to push digital humanists to grapple with both the physical and epistemological sites of DH work, which is very often housed in libraries and archives either literary, metaphorically, or both.
Clement’s “The Information Science Question in DH Feminism” brings the question of infrastructure and its situated relations to the fore specifically through Information Science and architectures and systems of knowledge. Like Bianco, Risam, and Losh, Clement is interested the ways that a feminist insistence on situated knowledge and “technologies of self-consciousness” draws attention to technocultures and their underlying epistemic commitments. Drawing on her own work on the Baroness von Freytag, Clement deftly demonstrates how tools and subject become entangled as she pursues the social text/body/network. The social body/network is central as well to Moya Bailey’s “#transform(ing)DH Writing and Research: An Autoethnography of Digital Humanities and Feminist Ethics.” Bailey further expands the question of how we communicate amongst ourselves when undertaking research by blurring the boundaries between the researcher and her “subjects.” Prioritizing “collaborative connections” in order to enact a praxis of care that she sees at work in Black trans women’s use of Twitter, Bailey’s autoethnography charts a different mode of scholarly engagement than that envisioned by standard protocols in the social sciences.
Elizabeth Losh looks to feminist Media and Game Studies and STS to suggest that it is critical to move networks and power formations from ground to figure in feminist digital humanities. Citing the example of the Ludica collective (Celia Pearce, Jacki Morie, Tracy Fullerton and Janine Fron), she also imagines new ways for collaborative, communal feminist work to unfold within DH. Collaboration and social networks might be keywords for this special issue. Bailey and Losh both point us to scholarly practitioners who act as and within communities. Similar modalities have histories within scholarly and activist communities of women of color, trans, and queer folks. Work like that of the Crunk Feminist Collective (http://crunkfeministcollective.tumblr.com/), Electronic Disturbance Theater 2.0/b.a.n.g lab (http://bang.transreal.org/about/), the LatiNegrxs Project (http://lati-negros.tumblr.com/) and GO::DH (http://www.globaloutlookdh.org/ demonstrate that interdisciplinary and inclusive collaborative communities have long been present if not centered in digital humanities work. They also illuminate how powerful community-driven mixed-media scholarship can be — both as models of scholarly practice and as arguments that illuminate technologies and practices of oppression.
Constance Crompton, Ray Siemens, Alyssa Arbuckle, and the DMSEG team use “Enlisting 'Vertues Noble & Excelent' Across Scholarly Cultures: Digital Collaboration and the Social Edition” to reflect on the affordances and limitations of social editing for the Devonshire Manuscript, a text that is itself deeply social and networked. The team sought to create an inclusive, visible editorial process as a way of prioritizing the processes of editing and social networking over a traditional model of consumption. In this they are perhaps the most conventional of all of the projects discussed here, in so far as they are producing a digital edition of an early modern text. But their efforts to expand beyond traditional scholarly platforms and communities place their work firmly in line with the other feminist interventions in this special issue. These efforts were repaid with insights on the ways that wiki platforms might enact social support functions akin to early modern marginalia and, as if responding to Losh and Clement, they foreground their own feminist epistemological commitments through both their processes and their platform. But they also had to grapple with the presence of trolls in their open edition, making it clear that digital platforms are always “contact zones” of the kind discussed by Mary Louis Pratt [Pratt 1991]. Spaces where difference, dissensus, and even abuse can mingle in the social text.
I began this introduction by invoking the analogy of long-exposure photography, which produces surreal images in part because it obscures differences across time. Streaky starry night images preserve the traces of celestial bodies that appear at the beginning of an evening, but are no longer visible by morning. We don’t have a good equivalent of this in academic publishing. The contributors to this volume are doing the hard work of bringing feminist theories and practice together, each in her/their own way and their important work is preserved here in this issue. Process — the additions, deletions, revisions evoked by the social edition of the Devonshire Manuscript project — is far less visible. Perhaps this is a way in which the special issue is more surreal that the long-exposure photograph; in advancing itself as a snapshot it erases the long arc, privileging just the final product. Without this introduction, “Feminisms and DH” could well appear to be the labor of a single issue editor when it was inaugurated by two and significantly supported by DHQ staff. It could look like a collection of eleven authors across eight pieces, instead of an issue that contains within it the traces and published work of seventeen authors across fourteen pieces.
As feminist theory has long known, our work is embodied and this embodiment manifests in this issue as institutional and professional limits, geographic moves, pregnancies, illnesses, and self-determining redirections. In some instances this has left gaps in the final product – spaces where voices were to be heard, but aren’t for a variety of reasons. These absent voices register for me as faded streaks in the long exposure image. Harris and I invited more experimental pieces for an “assemblage” section in our original call, which is realized in Bailey, Bianco, and Dean’s pieces but was envisioned to be larger and more experimental still. A vibrant discussion of the distance between the representation of women in the profession and feminist agendas is absent and much needed. Engagement with queer theories and praxis are similarly limited despite the great work being done in venues like ada: the journal of gender, new media, and technology (see for example issue #5 on Queer Feminist Media Praxis).
The pieces herein are working to redefine DH and they all point to larger, often marginalized fields of creative and critical work. Bailey and Rissam’s articles function as entrée points to the work being done by women and feminists of color both in the U.S. and internationally that has too often had to find home outside of DH as such but is nevertheless transforming both how scholarship is done and on what terms. Crompton et al.’s chapter similarly points to the rich vein of work being done and still to be done on the various affordances and risks of social media and open platforms for feminist digital production and scholarship. As suggested by Bianco, Dean, and Clement, a more robust theorization of feminist digital humanities requires understanding the ways in which academic structures subsume feminist innovation and critique, appropriating both the insights and power of subversive work. Finally, as nearly every piece herein demonstrates, if we are to have a more just feminist digital humanities, we must attend to the ways that academic practices and digital spaces and tools are being leveraged by those with power — very often to limit marginalized people and at the most extreme in order to consume or promote violence against women, people of color, and trans people.
Gaps and silences aren’t unique to this special issue – there are always declined invitations, rejected articles, pieces withdrawn or delayed or never written – but having had the privilege of watching the process, they strike me as important traces. Affect, another feminist keyword, was everywhere present in struggles over and in reviews, anxieties about timelines, celebrations of new directions, and the mourning of losses. Anger, frustration, sorrow, and joy are co-present on these pages and in the margins of this issue, and yet are nearly absent from the reader’s perspective. From the privileged position of editor, I am acutely aware of how disciplinary, technical, and personal constraints have shaped this volume.
I draw attention to this as a way of testifying obliquely to the challenges that continue to shape feminist engagements within digital humanities (probably within academia more generally as well). I want to observe openly that this volume is shaped in ways that may well be inarticulable but are at the heart of feminist commitments to seeing knowledge production as material, embodied, affective, situated, and labor. bell hooks writes about citing gaps in archives and histories as a way to “let the reader know that something has been missed” and I want to mark that the pressures that come to bear on women’s bodies, lives, and work mean that there are known gaps here [hooks 2004]. One of the great insights, I think, of the contributions to this volume is that there are also many unknown gaps and that intersectional, interdisciplinary, and multimodal work is essential to that process of seeing what we do not yet know is missing. Ellen Rooney argues that “feminist address” is a performative, critical act that creates constituencies and brings feminist positions into being – it is a generative, poetic process through which alternative futures are created [Rooney 2006]. Herein are eight different modes of feminist address and they are powerful but partial beginnings.
- Jacqueline Wernimont
[1] see Stephen Ramsay’s write up of the MLA Roundtable http://stephenramsay.us/text/2011/01/08/whos-in-and-whos-out/
[2] http://www.scottbot.net/HIAL/
Bourg and Sadler 2015 Chris Bourg and Bess Sadler, “Feminism and the Future of Library Discovery” code{4}lib Issue 28 (April), 2015. Stable URL: http://journal.code4lib.org/articles/10425
Kember and Zylinska 2013 Sarah Kember and Joanna Zylinska, Life After New Media (MIT, 2013), 177.
Pratt 1991 Mary Louise Pratt “Arts of the Contact Zone,” Profession (1991), pp. 33-40. Published by: Modern Language Association. Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25595469
Rooney 2006 Ellen Rooney, “Introduction,” Cambridge Companion to Feminist Literary Theory (Cambridge, 2006), 16.
hooks 2004 bell hooks, “Choosing the Margin as a Space of Radical Openness,” The Feminist Standpoint Theory Reader: Intellectual and Political Controversies , Sandra G. Harding (ed.), (Routledge, 2004), 154.
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URL: http://www.digitalhumanities.org/dhq/vol/9/2/000217/000217.html
Comments: dhqinfo@digitalhumanities.org
Published by: The Alliance of Digital Humanities Organizations
Affiliated with: Literary and Linguistic Computing
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Vocal Ranges
[Watch] Christina Aguilera Sings "We Remain" Duet, Live @ The Voice USA
Christina Aguilera tackling her contribution to the The Hunger Games: Catching Fire soundtrack, live, was something I've been itching to witness ever since hearing the mid-tempo ballad. However, her choice to turn We Remain into a duet for the finale of The Voice (USA) wasn't the greatest idea.
Christina, for the most part, was pretty great. Her voice sounded very much like the recording, with her coarse belt being beautifully suited to the song. However, there were definitely parts where she was out of tune- especially when attempting to harmonise on the held notes with her duetting partner Jackquie Lee- and where her falsetto sounded weaker than usual.
But my real problem was with Jackquie Lee, who, I admit, I've never heard of before. Her voice just wasn't up to the song, or being pitted against Christina. She also sounded pretty strained at the end, which makes me think Christina has been passing on that dreaded "technique" to those under her mentorship- which is not a good thing.
Still, Jackquie must have something about her to have gotten this far in the contest. It's just a shame this performance didn't do much to show what that something was.
Submitted by divadevotee at 15:53
Labels: christina aguilera, live
Macabre 17 December 2013 at 16:53
Well, Christina looks nice :)
COCK! 17 December 2013 at 16:58
No the fuck she doesn't! Don't even give her that!
alaneasable 17 December 2013 at 19:17
^your name pretty much it all.
Yes, the harmonies were pretty painful to listen to. Totally butchered an otherwise decent song for me. I blame the rookie for that, Usually contestants/singers from these kind of shows are dreadful.
Christina is very well capable of harmonizing. Her harmonies in 'Say Something' performances almost sounded like...uh...DNA! It was that perfect and easy on the ears. And yes, I also agree that XTina's falsetto sounded very weak, almost as if she lacked enough air and volume in it and she did fall off tune, but I blame it entirely on the mediocre arrangement for this song. It is not meant to be a duet to begin with.
OT: Fault her for her dreadful technique. At least Christina doesn't act like an elitist beeyotch, lipping every second live performance ('oh its just for the TV, so what?').
rebel 17 December 2013 at 20:38
lol I just read on atrl that Xtina is performing with Gaga tonight on the voice
Eric Gewlas 17 December 2013 at 20:47
This isn't working for me. I can't stand Christinas' straining.
Black Robin 17 December 2013 at 21:36
Lord, please give her neck the strength to carry on...
jeremiahsaint 17 December 2013 at 21:54
yeah it was confirmed that gaga and xtina will duet together - hope gaga does an acoustic DWUW performance and blows xtina away
i dont mean to be rude but i dont understand why you keep posting about her live performances because even this one shows apparent straining
on the plus side she loooks smoking hot and takes me back to her back to basic era
Coleman 17 December 2013 at 21:59
Well, Christina...
1) That 'Red Dress' is EVERYTHING and 3/4.
2) As for your voice... Only Jesus himself can save it now.
Prince Azulon 17 December 2013 at 23:10
SOMEONE SAVE HER VOICE!!! IT'S THE ONLY "GOOD" VOICE WE HAVE TO SAVE THIS INDUSTRY!
duncs 17 December 2013 at 23:53
There's plenty of better voices than Christina in the industry, and there are far, far, far, far better vocalists around.
Nicolet Foster 18 December 2013 at 02:56
The contestant threw her off. I think they lacked rehearsals...
Looking at other duets she had with other singers like Toni Benett, Aretha tribute, Blake, Adam, Etta James, Lady Marmalade, she is more than capable.
at least her strain sounds natural and much more effortless than the contestant's. that girl sounds like a squealing pig when strains.
I love how Christina just pulls out those coarse notes so easily and exactly like her studio work. Her voice and effects are in sentiment of the song. I, for one, like it. Don't wish that technique or style on others but I like it.
Brian 18 December 2013 at 05:23
I honestly don't keep up with the contestants of the show but from what I have seen of this season, Christina is mentoring that girl as a tiny Xtina. I don't think her voice is up to handle the torture Christina puts her own through and definitely doesn't sound nearly as good. I have learned to like Christinas voice for the most part but the really harsh parts of the song were quite...hard to bear in this song. And what was Christina going wayyyy off in the harmonies in this? Weird. On Another note, her duet with Gaga was actually pretty good. As much as I wish it never happened.
Am I the only one amazed at Christinas ability to screech so loudly that she can pull the Mic all the way down to her Vagimus and can still be heard clear as day?
did you just edit the word 'vagina' to 'Crotchimus'? lol. I love it.
And yes, you are not the only one amazed by her ability to do that. I have seen her do this a LOT of times, its like her signature thing. But I guess its a form of public service from her, cos she literally screams into the mic.
Just watched the show's finale and their duet was quite good. Hilarious, for my tastes but entertaining. Loved the lesbian romp, weird costumes and general disarray. I didn't like the song at all but they both made it work so much as a live performance. The vocals were pretty much on-point for my liking, except for a few patches that always exist.
That is how 'real' singers entertain.
I wonder how harsh it is to be next to her when she does that if the Mic can retain it from such a distance. Im hoping one day someone dueting with her might feel it slapping them in the face and try to clean out their ears when she does it. XD
Im still in disbelief that the performance actually happened.
Guest 18 December 2013 at 16:18
Hi there... I am pretty much useless when it comes to vocal pedagogy, nor do I actually care for it, but could you explain tome why Christina Aguilera isn't a Dramatic Mezzo? I always thought she was but I know I could be very wrong. Thanks. :)
thedigblackbick 18 December 2013 at 18:23
Yeah, here it is.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRd8D1ll7_U
I was going to actually type a whole seminar on the subject, but decided instead to send you this video that'll explain it more than I could. : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWVF469OLUo
>Her voice is small
>Weak lower register
>She lacks the tonal qualities of a dramatic mezzo.
For a dramatic mezzo, see: Tina Turner, Anastacia, Nina Hagen, Mina Mazzini, just to name a few.
The reason why is because:
1. She lacks to vocal colour and timbre of a dramatic.
2. She lacks the volume of a dramatic. Though she can get incredibly loud, she warps her voice to do so which isn't healthy at all.
3. She doesn't have the lower register or ability to project her lows the way a dramatic can.
Primo Uomo Assoluto 19 December 2013 at 14:17
It's called a compressor :)
Young Tan 19 December 2013 at 15:23
This wasn't a great performance but it certainly wasn't bad - Christina sounded good (in parts) but there were areas where she didn't sound as good - her falsetto/head voice is nice but rather inaudible, but I'm not sure if it was meant to sound soft rather than piercing? I hear her "stylistic" rasp more than strain which a lot of people seem to believe it is (I'm not saying she doesn't strain but I do think she adds rasp for artistic purposes, especially on here). Jacquie on the other hand is given too many big songs that she can't handle (the song from Dreamgirls, for example and when she sang a MJ medley - don't know if DD wrote about that? Because that was a good performance by Xtina).
Then how come whenever Mariah belts with the Mic at distance she doesn't desire for the same effect? She just lets it drown out and dub it later.
DtheArtist 19 December 2013 at 22:08
Christina sounded good, she had a few parts that weren't all that, but the comments people are making about her voice are definitely doing the utmost, but what can you expect? This is nothing new. I don't agree that Christina is passing on her "dreaded" technique onto Jacquie, that's on Jacquie. Jacquie used to sound great from like the beginning to the middle of the show as Christina was coaching her, lately she just hasn't been up to par.
Yes. I can name a few vocalists up on par with Christina's voice in the industry right now. The industry right now is lacking good voices apart from our debut artists who I hope will allow the industry to regain back it's Golden years. Christina's voice is one of the best out there in my opinion as of right now. I don't care what people say about her. That girl can SANG. Remember her Golden years?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlT26rr3CU8
Watch the whole thing or just start watching starting at 11:02
She def is one of the best out there....
Haters will pull out every voice theory under the table to discredit her, yet they are always on her videos secretly listening to her songs.. lol
musicjunkie 25 January 2014 at 23:34
You, COCK! can crawl back to the rock from under which you came and never leave!
You forgot the 'maximus' lol! That was ridiculously hilarious, dude!
DivaDevotee, you HAVE TO HAVE TO HAVE TO listen to Jacquie's version of "The House of the Rising Sun" and the Battle Rounds version with Briana Cuoco (yes, she is related to Kaley Cuoco. Briana is her younger sister)! You can tell that Jacquie totally idolizes Christina. I also recommend you listen to her versions of "Back to Black", "Stompa", "I Put a Spell on You", and Christina's "The Voice Within". She has great potential, and I think she's gonna stay under Xtina's guidance, even post "The Voice". I just hope she realizes how painful it is to do Christina's technique, and strays away from it in her own future.
DivaDevotee status
Currently it's dead. Thought I'd state because I'm still getting emails.I've left it up because people are still reading the profiles.
Was a ride!
What Sis be saying
Christina Aguilera on Connan and The 2010 American Music Awards
In spite of gaining a little weight- by Hollywood standards-and looking a little tired , Christina Aguilera is still out there promo...
Idina Menzel- Vocal Profile/ Range
Idina Menzel Vocal Type Mezzo-Soprano Vocal Range: 2 Octaves 3 notes a semitone E3-Bb5 Whistle Register: No Vocal Pluses: ...
[Vocal Profile] P!nk
Pink Vocal Type: Lyric Mezzo-Soprano Vocal Range: A2 - A5 - E6 (3 octaves, 4 notes) Whistle Register: No Vocal Strengths: A powerf...
[Vocal Profile] Judy Garland
Judy Garland Vocal Type: Middle-weight contralto Vocal Range: 2 Octaves 3 notes (D3-G5) Tessitura: E3-Bb4 Whistle Register: ...
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Statistical Review: Houston #92
Two [football programs], both alike in [going through a coaching change],
In fair [Texas], where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star [quarterbacks] take their [game to the NFL];
Program A gets a new coaching staff and loses its quarterback to the NFL. They follow up a 13 win season with 5 wins in 2012. In ONE game three different quarterbacks throw two interceptions each.
Program B gets a new coaching staff and loses its quarterback to the NFL. They go 11-2 after losing 6 games in 2011. Their new quarterback throws only 9 picks all season . . . and wins the Heisman.
Yeah, if I were a Houston fan I'd hate A&M, too.
At this point it shouldn't surprise you that Houston suffered at the hand of the turnover. They added 15 fumbles lost to their 20 interceptions. But the defense forced 31 turnovers, so Houston actually had a better turnover margin than Texas A&M.
Outside of the turnovers, the Houston offense was typical. They averaged 32 points per game (a far cry from 49 a year ago), but needed almost 16 possessions per game, the most nationally, to score those points. The offense was also plagued by bad starting field position, more than 72 yards from the opponents' end zone (even though the defense forced two and a half turnovers per game).
The defense was fairly typical. They were fairly bad at defending the run. But they were among the worst in the country at getting stops on third down. But the real story of the Houston Cougar 2012 season is turnovers. The defense forced five or more in three games and at least two in nine of 12. The offense, on the other had, turned the ball over 15 times total in two games and 10 more times in another three games combined. These games are not being decided by yards per carry.
The Statistical Review breaks down teams along a number of performance categories, everything from red zone scoring to field goal percentage, and compares that performance against the rest of the FBS. All 124 teams will be reviewed from 124 to 1 by the hybrid rankings. You can find short descriptions of the stats used in the table below.
Statistical Review: UTSA #89
Statistical Review: Maryland #90
Statistical Review: Auburn #91
Statistical Review: South Florida #93
Statistical Review: Air Force #94
Daily Dose, 4/15/13
Statistical Review: Western Michigan #95
Statistical Review: Washington State #96
Statistical Review: Buffalo #97
Daily Dose, 4/9/13
Statistical Review: Miami (OH) #98
Statistical Review: North Texas #99
Statistical Review: Kentucky #100
Daily Dose of Statistical Minutiae, 4/4/13
Statistical Review: Wyoming #101
Statistical Review: Memphis #102
Statistical Review: Texas State #103
Statistical Review: Boston College #104
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In "The Amazing Spider-Man 2", for Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield), life is busy - between taking out the bad guys as Spider-Man and spending time with the person he loves, Gwen (Emma Stone), high school graduation can`t come quickly enough. Peter hasn`t forgotten about the promise he made to Gwen`s father to protect her by staying away - but that`s a promise he just can`t keep. Things will change for Peter when a new villain, Electro (Jamie Foxx), emerges, an old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, and Peter uncovers new clues about his past.
Subtitle: Chinese
Classification: PG13
Genre: Action / Adventure / Fantasy
Distributor: SONY PICTURES RELEASING INTERNATIONAL
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan, Colm Feore, Paul Giamatti, Sally Field, B. J. Novak
Format: 2D, 3D, IMAX 3D, 2D ATMOS, 3D ATMOS, 2D D-BOX, 3D D-BOX
Writer: Casey Chong
Writer Ratings:
Cinematography:
Watch this if you liked: “Spider-Man” trilogy and “The Amazing Spider-Man”
After the less-than-amazing reboot of "The Amazing Spider-Man" in 2012 (but still made enough money at the worldwide box office), director Marc Webb returns for a second round with "The Amazing Spider-Man 2". From the look of the heavily-promoted trailers all over the Internet, it looks like as if Marc Webb has realized his mistake for attempting to go the Christopher Nolan route (read: comic-book movie has to be so-called "dark" nowadays) in the reboot style shaped in "Batman Begins"-like mould and finally puts all the 'fun' back into the sequel. Well, trailers can be really deceiving nowadays but rest assured that "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" is a much improved sequel over the draggy and flawed original.
In this sequel, Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) is trying to move on with his life after the event of the first movie as he finally approaching graduation day. Although he has made a promise to Gwen Stacy's (Emma Stone) dying father (Denis Leary) that he will stay away from his daughter because of his superhero identity, both of them are still together. However, the death of Gwen's father constantly haunts him from time to time and it doesn't take long before his rekindled relationship with Gwen becomes bumpy. Meanwhile, Peter's alter-ego, Spider-Man, is now facing a new breed of supervillains that threatens to wreak havoc in New York City. One of them is Max Dillion (Jamie Foxx), a nerdy Oscorp employee who becomes Electro. Then there's the psychotic Russian mercenary Aleksei Sytsevich a.k.a. Rhino (Paul Giamatti) and Peter's old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), son of Oscorp's founder Norman Osborn (Chris Cooper).
While the plot above may sound like Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man 3" (as in too many villains crammed into one movie) all over again, director Marc Webb surprisingly manages to pull it off in a satisfying manner. Unlike the more depressing original in the reboot, the sequel is decidedly more colourful and entertaining. The effects-laden action sequences are first-class entertainment, while Webb and his cinematographer Daniel Mindel have a field day playing around with their creative camerawork (e.g. slow motion, suspended-motion effect) to ensure that the action is as dazzling and visually kinetic as possible.
But the real winner here is the way Webb and his screenwriters manage to conjure up a familiar but engaging storyline that offsets the crowded premise filled with too many characters' agendas and backstories. The romance angle between Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker and Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy is especially more assuring this time around. In fact, as proven in his romantic comedy debut "(500) Days Of Summer", Webb shows a great flair of developing their love story that's easily relatable to the general audiences with lots of genuine warmth and heartfelt moments.
Speaking of Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy, both Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone continue to show how great and plausible they are playing onscreen couple. Individually, Garfield is perfect for this Peter Parker/Spider-Man role. This reviewer particularly enjoyed the way he displays his playful charm when he cracks jokes during the action scenes or shows a wide range of emotional flare whenever he encounters a series of difficult ordeals. As Gwen Stacy, Stone is equally delightful and earnest in her performance.
As for supporting roles, Dane DeHaan proves to be a worthy successor to James Franco's original role as Harry Osborn from Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" trilogy, but Jamie Foxx is wasted in his role as Electro. While he manages to display a certain nerdy outlook to his Max Dillon character, it's pitiful that Webb and his screenwriters failed to make him more than just a misunderstood villain. Still, Webb redeems Foxx's lacklustre performance with two big action sequences where Electro first encounters Spider-Man at the heart of New York's Times Square and again during the show stopping climactic finale. The always-reliable Paul Giamatti, who shows up in a minor appearance as Aleksei Sytsevich/Rhino, is nothing more than a glorified cameo.
"The Amazing Spider-Man 2" is a well-worth sequel that surpasses the original in many ways, and this reviewer can't wait to see what Webb and his company would come up next for the confirmed third movie, "The Amazing Spider-Man 3", due in 2016.
Cinema Online, 24 April 2014
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Home » News » Features » From bleak future to world stage
From bleak future to world stage
Click to see more pictures
July 11, 1979, a tiny sickly infant breathes its first.
Under Dr Alfred Merryweather’s medical care, it is immediately whisked away and frantically placed into an incubator.
Its future uncertain.
In the evening, Dr Merryweather, a doctor at Scottish Livingstone Memorial Hospital would narrate to his wife, Mary, a sad story about this little precious life.
Overcome by emotions, the British natives then agree on adoption, but on one condition – that its mother gives the couple full custody of her little princess.
The following morning Dr Merryweather would break the news to the nursing mother.
Hapless and still trapped in wild thoughts, unsure whether her little princess would make it, the mother would all the same wish for a silver spoon for her.
Only seven-days-old and as fate would have, Mpho would now become a Merryweather - adoption deal sealed.
Come November 22, 2019 and 40 years later, Mpho makes her reality TV - The Real Housewives of Johannesburg Season 2 - debut.
One of South Africa’s leading reality TV shows, Season 2 chronicles the lives of seven enviably wealthy Johannesburg women as family women, businesswomen and friends.
“I am happy my mother had that vision and gave me a silver spoon. I could not even be where I am today if I was not given up for adoption,” reveals Mpho in an interview, who in her four decades of existence, only met her biological parents once.
Dr Merryweather would later move from Molepolole to Gaborone, where he also served as the country’s first president, Sir Seretse Khama’s personal physician.
Mpho would then start schooling at Northside Primary School.
“I was raised to be a little fearless warrior. My mom prepared me to conquer the world,” the mother of three girls and two boys gives all credit to Mary, whom together with her husband have departed this world.
Born in Molepolole, Mpho never had to stay long in one place.
She refers to herself as a global nomad.
From Gaborone to UK, she later pursued her tertiary education in South Africa in the then Bophuthatswana region.
She pursued jewellery- making in London, where upon completion she joined De Beers, becoming the first Motswana female jewellery designer for the company.
She is a dream chaser.
Her stay at De Beers was short-lived.
Instead, she joined the world of Public Relations, focusing much on advertising for agencies.
“I did PR courses because I’m reinventing, learning and evolving.”
Indeed, being a global nomad, she moved to South Africa, where she stayed for 11 years, upon which she joined the events industry.
At some stage, she had to quit her job because it was too demanding, given that she was also nursing a newborn.
Diverse! A more apt word to define someone of her character.
Six years ago, this go-getter shifted to project management.
Her conviction being that for one to deliver the best, it was critical to arm herself with another certificate.
Given that her creative juices are always on steroids, she easily gets bored, then hopping to more challenging pursuits.
Today Mpho, who grew up in a family of five girls; one, a biological daughter to the Merryweathers while the other four were either through adoption or under foster care, now resides in South Africa, where she works with international companies such as AfroPunk and A’frequency - a show that showcases African music to the rest of the world.
Always in pursuit of life’s next journey experiential, Mpho has throughout the years been involved in a wide spectrum of vocations ranging from journalism, education to entertainment and entrepreneurship.
“I am such a great character. I am amazing.”
Indeed she is. Such character earned her a role in the reality show.
Instead of being tossed between interviews and screening, she explains that producers approached her instead.
She adds that she enjoys being a cast member of a reality show because she remains true to herself instead of faking personality.
Though she missed a few episodes while celebrating her 40th birthday abroad, the moment she landed, she disrupted the flow of the show, in a friendly way though, earning herself a name; The mid-season shaker.
Draped in an African outfit, Mpho stresses, “I refuse to go to expensive brands, and those designers don’t care about us.
I support young and upcoming women around us. If we don’t support each other who will?”
Growing up surrounded by great minds, the environment molded her into an appreciative and grounded woman who easily juggles between being a ‘housewife’, sister, daughter, mother and a business woman.
Indeed, great minds in the sense that, former government spokesperson, Dr Jeff Ramsay once wrote, “For over five decades Rev. Dr. Alfred Musgrave Merriweather (1918-99) tirelessly devoted himself to the wellness of Batswana.
Also known as the ‘Desert Doctor’, ‘Ramosesane’ and ‘RaBoitumelo’, he took up residence in Botswana in 1944 after being released from wartime service in Burma to join the staff of Scottish Livingstone Memorial Hospital. Ends
Author : Ndingililo Gaoswediwe
Location : Gaborone
Event : Interview
Date : Dec 04 Wed,2019
Mophane worms - Treat for taste buds
Story of Kebotlogetse backyard hatchery
Chamo: Journalist turned farmer
Knowledge imperative in economic spheres
Desalination pilot project begins
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Deluxu / fashion / Luxury's storytelling
Luxury's storytelling
The new Virgo platform was presented during the Milan Fashion Global Summit. It will allow manufacturers to self-certify every single lot, using several best-in-class technologies, from RFID UHF and NFC to blockchain certification, the latest promising innovation in the luxury goods’ certification market.
"Temera, PwC, Luxochain and Var Group, four world-class leaders, have been contributed to create the first integrated, safe and transparent solution for value chain’s tracking, certifying the authenticity of luxury goods, from raw materials’ purchase to goods’ manufacturing and sale, up to the ownership transfer on the secondary market", company says. "Virgo is an open and modular solution, able to integrate multiple technologies, from IoT to Blockchain, maintaining an agnostic and integration-oriented philosophy. The platform allows brands and customers to track the whole life cycle of the product, which can be integrated with existing ERPs; it aims at reaching maximum flexibility and at being easy to use for every player involved, focusing on the user-experience for brands, suppliers and end-consumers".
Virgo reshapes luxury and fashion’s storytelling, also turning the supply chain operators into real protagonists, opening up new dialogue perspectives with consumers, allowing them to know the garments’ origin, as well as collecting information on the raw material used, the product’s ethical sustainability and its environmental and social impact.
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Evil Crossing Review
Submitted by Kenneth Scott on Sat, 28 Aug '10 7.41am
Edinburgh Academy
Tempo Musical Productions
John Naples-Campbell (director (devised with James Dickson)), Martin McLachlan (technical director), Andrew Kirkby, Darren Coutts, and Martin McLachlan (sound designers)
James Dickson
Evil Crossing is a faithful adaptation of one chapter from an iconic Gothic horror novel. I won’t say which in order to maintain some suspense – although the programme notes do give it away. It doesn’t attempt to tackle the wider themes of the book but sticks with the idea of telling a good “ghost story”.
The tale is picked up by a local journalist as he describes the daily happenings in the little port of Whitby. It’s clearly a slow news day as he has time to give us details of the fine weather. But a storm is approaching and with it a strange foreign schooner that will provide a macabre mystery revealed in part by its log book.
A flashback sequence allows the captain of the unlucky ship to give a day by day account of the apparently doomed crossing. It would appear that the crew were growing increasingly unhappy; convinced they had an unwelcome passenger onboard and that the captain felt compelled to take extreme measures to save his soul and honour.
It’s a reasonable proposition to take this single chapter as inspiration for a one-man performance, indeed it has already been produced as a radio play and it looks likely that a film will follow. The problem with this production is that it sticks almost too devotedly to the source material, which draws on letters, log book and diary entries. The moments of drama are interspersed with these and the suspense is never sustained over the seemingly interminable voyage. Much of the action is reduced to little more than readings, which is a pity as James Dickson can clearly act when given a chance.
The stage-set, lighting and sound design provides a suitably sinister atmosphere but can’t save the foundering production which is as choppy as the crossing and drowns in a sea of unnecessary detail.
23-28 August 2010, 5.40pm
The Basement Tapes, Summerhall, Review
22 Jun, '19
Roman Candle, Greenside @ Infirmary Street, Review
Shackleton's Stowaway, theSpace@Surgeon's Hall, Review
28 Oct, '19
Signals, Pleasance Courtyard, Review
In Loyal Company, Pleasance Courtyard, Review
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Yo naci con la luna de plata
Y naci con alma de pirata
He nacido rumbero y jarocho
Trovador de veras
Y me fui lejos de Veracruz
Veracruz, rinconcito donde hacen sus nidos
Las olas del mar
Veracruz, pedacito de patria
Que sabe sufrir y cantar
Veracruz, son tus noches
Diluvio de estrellas, palmera y mujer
Veracruz, vibra en mi ser
Algun dia hasta tus playas lejanas
Tendre que volver
A La Orilla Del Mar
Amor De Mis Amores
Aquel Amor
Cuando Calienta El Sol
Cuando Vivas Conmigo
Echame A Mi La Culpa
En Mi Viejo San Juan
En Tu Dia
En Tu Pelo
Esclavo Y Amo
Esta Tristeza Mia
Flor De Azalea
La Mano De Dios
La Retirada
Las Rejas No Matan
Lloraras Lloraras
La Media Vuelta
No Me Platiques Mas
Noche De Ronda
Pa Todo El Ano
Que Bonita Es Mi Tierra
Que Seas Feliz
Regalame Esta Noche
Renunciacion
Solamente Una Vez
Agustin Lara
One of Mexico's seminal songwriters during the pre-war era, Agustin Lara wrote favorites including Granada, Solamente Una Vez, Maria Bonita, Farolito, and Palabras de Mujer. Lara excelled in a variety of song styles -- ranchera, bolero, tropical songs, even the occasional tango -- and brought a cosmopolitan flair to the Old West while enervating many early Mexican films with his rich music. Born in 1897 in Mexico City (though he would often place Veracruz as his birthplace), Lara took piano lessons and ended up playing in a bordello until his father sent him to military school. He was soon back in the music world however, playing piano around Mexico City and, by 1928, having his compositions recorded. ("Imposible" was the first, by Adelaido Castelleda's orchestra.) He wrote most of his legendary songs between 1930 and 1939, while touring around South America and performing often on national radio. He also began composing for film, and contributed much to a golden era of Mexican film (basically from the mid-'30s to the late '40s) that roughly paralleled America's. During the '50s and early '60s, Lara cemented his international star status by touring Europe to wide acclaim. Though his popularity diminished in the '60s, he stepped back into the limelight several times before his death from a heart attack in 1970. Dozens of artists have performed Lara's songs, including Xavier Cugat, Desi Arnaz, Nat King Cole, Bing Crosby, Lola Beltran, and Celia Cruz.
-- John Bush, All Music Guide
Javier Solis
Javier Solis born Gabriel Siria Levario on Sept. 1, 1931, in Tacubaya, Mexico City; died April 19, 1966, Mexico City
With his incredible smooth baritone and impeccable air of authority, Javier Solis became Mexico's quintessential bolero ranchero singer in the late '50s. His versatile vocals could inject a wealth of emotions but perhaps more impressively, like the American pop singer Frank Sinatra, Solis could describe the hellish torture of love's addiction or the dark fear of being abandoned while projecting a cool, exquisite detachment.
Solis was born to a modest family in Mexico City though early on he was raised by his uncle Valentine Levario and his wife Angela, because Solis' father was reportedly a violent alcoholic.
Like many Mexicans of modest means, Solis began working as a child at a variety of jobs to help the family. He dropped out of school at 10 to work at a bakery and then a mechanic's shop. In his free time he played soccer, baseball and boxing. He practiced amateur boxing for six years, competing with the later-famous boxers Raton Macias and Jose Medel. While still in his teens Solis entered an amateur singing contest at Teatro Salon Obregon -- the prize was a pair of shoes -- and he won. He kept entering and winning until the owners paid him to sing at the place and not compete. Encouraged, Solis hooked up with longtime friend Pablo Flores and formed Trio Mexico but had little success. When he turned 16 he went to Puebla and sang with Mariachi Metepec for a year.
Returning to Mexico City Solis debuted at the famed Centro Tipico Guadalajara in the two-block square that was Garibaldi Plaza, the world-renowned gathering place for mariachis. It was during a stint at the Azteca Bar in downtown Mexico City that Solis' luck turned. One fortuitous night, singers Julito Rodriguez and Alfredo Gil of the famed Trio Los Panchos (see entry) heard Solis, then going by the name Javier Luquin. Sufficiently impressed, Rodriguez got Solis an audition with CBS Mexico. In short order, Solis then took his stage name of Javier Solis, signed a one-year contract with CBS and cut his first record in 1950. Shortly after, he was hired to work at Teatro Lirico where he met his future wife, the dancer Blanca Estela Saenz.
After Pedro Infante's death in 1957, Solis rose quickly as the undisputed ranchera king in Mexico. That Solis emerged after Infante passed away is no devaluation of Solis' natural ability. But clearly, Infante was such a powerful force, having recorded dozens of classics and appeared in 50-odd movies that he was a national icon. And like Jorge Negrete (see entry) before him Infante died young -- he was only 39. It would seem only natural to expect some of the love, admiration and national pride to be transferred to Solis. He was all of 25 at the time but Solis was already on an upward trajectory.
The big hit for Solis came in 1958 with "Cenizas," followed by "Payaso," two bittersweet songs that impacted solidly. The former described a great love that dies on the vine; the latter is the melancholy stance of maintaining an outward smile while one's world is collapsing."
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forthcoming contributions
forthcoming reviews
ephemera events
ephemera events archive
what is ephemera?
FUL’s free work
Free work
Committee – The Free University of Liverpool
13-1freeul.pdf
The Free University of Liverpool (FUL) was set up in November 2010 to explore an alternative model of Higher Education. First and foremost conceived as a protest, FUL stands in direct opposition to the radical free market practices implemented by the coalition government in the UK. FUL’s protest has been joined by over eighty leading academics and artists who have signed up as ‘visiting artists and scholars’ (www.thefreeuniversityofliverpool.wordpress.com). FUL is currently running its Foundation Degree in Culture and Performance and will embark on a BA in Cultural Praxis in 2012. At any other university in the UK a BA will cost up to £9,000 a year. At FUL it will cost the student nothing.
The Free University of Liverpool is part of a growing movement of alternative education practices in the UK and helped co-organise a national conference with the Free University Network (or ‘FUN’ for short) in Oxford earlier this year. (www.sustainingalternatives.wordpress.com/conference/). What seems to characterise this movement so far in the UK, is the enthusiasm participants have to resist the marketisation, instrumentalisation and dehumanisation of mainstream educative practices. People involved are all working ‘for free’ to protest and establish alternative, sustainable spaces of co-learning.
The practice of free work, therefore, is a key issue. Below, the founders of FUL (the Committee, an anonymous group of three artists and academics) reflect on their own subjective positions in relation to ‘free work’ and FUL. The text has been divided into three separate voices where each ‘voice’ expresses a particular aspect of how FUL grapples with free work. In order to emphasise the multivalency, the voices have chosen to present themselves according to the standard typeface settings available with most word processors: ‘normal’ ‘italics’ and ‘bold’. The following attempt to flag up issues with free work is meant to be read more as an artwork than an academic essay. For example, we have deliberately left out contemporary debates regarding notions of ‘unproductive labour’ (Harvie, 2003) or entrenched neoliberal managerialist notions of ‘macroeconomics’ and its relation to free work (Blanchard, 2011) in order to leave as much room as possible for the connective interplay between the three voices and what they are seeking to articulate. The first voice cites some academic references by way of offsetting the interpersonal reflections of ‘Voice 2’ and ‘Voice 3’, whilst at the same time making sure that FUL locates itself in relation to academic, cultural discourses, some of which are explicitly politicised. In the context of a struggle around ‘free work’ we feel it is important not just to reference that politicisation but to try to demonstrate it as much as possible. The sometimes contradictory nature of the beliefs of the Committee (and FUL more generally) are not just questions of temporality theory (Hammer, 2011) or productive labour (Harvie, 2003) but also a question of clashing personalities and priorities. The Committee feels it is crucial that those elements are included in a discussion of free work. The net result is, hopefully, a melody, composed of three different octaves that sing a relevant and complex song about the productive but always-already problematic practice of ‘free work’ in the context of the struggle against the instrumentalisation of higher education in the UK.
The dialogue
Voice 1: ‘normal’
‘Shifts’ and ‘Free Time’
‘Capitalist production therefore drives, by its inherent nature, towards the appropriation of labour throughout the whole 24 hours in the day’ (Marx, 1990:367).
About a quarter of the way through Volume 1 of Capital Marx is keen to understand what working ‘shifts’ are. This is in order to understand how surplus value is produced via the miserable working conditions of employees of the bakery, wallpaper, match and linen industries of the 19th century. It is not rocket science to deduct that the more you exploit your labour force the higher your profits are likely to be. Marx is keen to point out that a very significant factor of this exploitation is the constant cutting away of free time for labourers; at meal times, toilet breaks etc. This means that the labour power - the only commodity the worker can offer to guarantee their own survival - is under constant, unending and relentless pressure. If a balance is not struck between what is demanded of a worker and what that worker is capable of, then the result is, what Japanese companies call, karōshi - death by overwork.
David Harvey tells us that, after Marx’s insights we might conclude ‘there is no such thing as a natural working day just various constructions of it [...] in order to maintain a continuity of flow at all costs.’ (Harvey 2010:144).
For the capitalist, part of the solution to the problem of maximising surplus value is to introduce working ‘shifts’. This goes as far as any measure might to maintain the constant use of the machines. Time is money or more accurately: the maximisation of the potential of time through the exploitation of labour power results in the highest levels of surplus value for the capitalist. In essence what this delivers for the worker is ‘time to rest’ or some free time. When the worker has eaten and slept, taken some leisure time, albeit very little, or, in other words, has ‘replenished their labour power’, they have to get back to work.
Adorno, about a century later builds on this basic insight in his work on ‘free time’, stating that ‘organised freedom is compulsory’ (Adorno, 1991:164). In other words, the illusion of free time exists as a function of the maximisation of working time. Or to put it yet another way: essentially there is no distinction between working time and free time. All time is at the service of the production of surplus value. Under present conditions we are always working.
In this light, from the 19th century to today, what the labour movement, unions and collective bargaining have won for workers is the right to continue working at all times. Perversely what we are entitled to at the moment is access to the conditions that allow us to never stop working.
At FUL this right is acknowledged, negotiated, cursed and carried out. There is an understanding amongst The Committee that our capitalistic subjectivities are developed to such a degree that we organise our lives into ‘shifts’. This way everything gets done between the three of us, within the working day. The machines are never switched off and the production line is always moving.
This is done in order to maximise something. But given that we are alter-capitalist anarchists, against the production of surplus value that involves exploitation of others or ourselves, what is that ‘something’? Marx, Adorno and Harvey’s insights have helped, but there’s something missing.
For us the existence of FUL is the best guarantor of conditions within which we are able to engage in the processes of humanisation with each other as Committee members (and other participants) in relation to higher education and knowledge production. Our ‘surplus value’, the thing to which everything at FUL is directed, is our own humanisation, as fully as possible, in an increasingly dehumanising knowledge industry, replete with managerialism, worker exploitation and the maximisation of surplus value in financial terms. FUL’s methods are to protest wherever and whenever it can. To this end we put in long, long shifts at FUL, even at the risk of committing small acts of karōshi.
Voice 2: ‘italics’
‘Whispers about Free Work - reflexive provocation foregrounded through lived experience’
Listen, this is not free work. This is my research day. I am being paid for this. I might not be able to cash in this work in terms of REF 2014 as this work is written under the collective name of The Committee, but I will still benefit. This is me being a critical thinker. This is me being a scholar. This is about recognition.
Listen, the Committee (of which I am a part) gets to contribute to the debate about Free Work. We have been recognized by the editorial team. We decided that recognition was worth us writing this ‘provocation’ for free.
Listen, when did we stop being surprised at the fact that academic writing does not pay? Why have we naturalized non-payment for critical thinking/writing? Do we assume that it is scholars in full time employment who usually write the articles, and therefore are already paid for by their institutions?
Listen, I am in full time employment, but I am also an artist-activist. I work overtime, I work all the time. I reckon that most of my labour is for free: the raising of the family, the household duties, the extended family, the social appearances. And, clearly, such free labour blends into life - life becomes labour. It is impossible to keep account of the differences. And some would argue that it is not productive to delineate. Says who, for whom? My full time university work pays me exactly the same every month regardless of the amount of work I give. Does that mean that some ‘free labour’ is paid for?
Listen, I am now engaged in the Free University of Liverpool. This is my activist work. This is free work, but it is also paid for from time to time. Occasionally the members of the Committee get invited to give talks and get paid £250 or so. Once the members of the Committee got £1000 for facilitating two weekend workshops. I can say that I am in between the two strands, the waged and unwaged work. The world of both waged and unwaged work is flexible and exploitative. At the end of the day, it demands productivity regardless of it being waged or not. We are here, producing, working away, thinking, writing. There’s a luxury in paid work, there’s also a luxury in deciding not to do paid work.
Listen, this is my big point. I am more concerned with my productivity than with ‘free work’. What is it that keeps me going, over and over and over again? Productivity is even more apparent in so called ‘free work’ than with ‘paid work’. See, paid work brings in money, it soothes me and my family. It sedates, it helps, it gets things ticking over. There is less concern about it; it is routine. ‘Free work’ is dangerous and risky. It is uncomfortable and compromising. It is validating. It is about recognition. It can also be about social change
Listen, it’s Sunday 7pm and here I am playing with words, composing my thoughts, restructuring my mind, making my processes more articulate, edited for you. For the moment, I conclude: there is free thinking, but this writing is labour-some. It is yet to be reviewed by the members of the Committee and the editorial team, and the readers. It is for someone else.
[deletion of three sections:
always productive,always saying ‘yes’, always eager to be heard...
free to answer, free to provoke, free to listen...
stop work, stop email, stop commands... live.]
Listen, this is my final note. I estimate that it took me some three hours to write this up - with edits and deletions and re-writes and hesitations. It took me twenty-one days of thinking as well. There are supposed to be 700 words here. There are three of us in the Committee; each one is supposed to write 700. Too many words as it stands (803). Let me get rid of the overflow, delete the surplus and set them free...
Voice 3: ‘bold’
‘On positionalities, free work, utopia and vertigo’
The meaning of working for free at FUL shifts depending on the different positions we occupy, so does FUL…
I became engaged with FUL while I was working as an hourly paid lecturer in HE where I assumed I would eventually win a contract and stay in academia. For diverse reasons I didn’t get a contract and I doubt if now I will ever find a way back in; at the moment the level of personal and ideological compromise feels too high, but who knows, the whole point is that our positions shift…
Not working in academia but being involved in a protest like FUL that positions itself in opposition to the current HE system in the UK affects the very purpose of working for free at FUL. Free work at FUL is not anymore a form of finding a space to think critically outside what was becoming an oppressive institution. In theory I am already ‘free’ from it, but to which level do I want that? FUL should be free work done with joy because it is premised on the practice of the transformation of the world. Reality though tells me that the work is hard, not only in terms of time commitment but also emotionally. In addition, in situations of precarity, working or engaging with FUL, can be a double-edged sword that situates me in the risky position of becoming unemployable at HE institutions.
Some questions become more urgent. Who and what benefits mostly from FUL? Students that don’t get nationally recognised qualifications? How fragile is this initiative and is it able to support processes of people really searching for an alternative? Would it be more valuable if our effort was mainly geared towards the latter rather than as a protest against the existing HE system? Or on the contrary do we need to fight and get back our right to use knowledge and the structures generated by universities through many hundreds of years, to be able to then imagine and build something new? There is a difficult tension within these sets of operations…
Still, working for free at FUL offers a space to question one’s own position. Like radical pedagogies, FUL can be a tool to find positions in life that we can live with, psychically and socially. But again, lets not forget that FUL is a protest, and it is very different to protest from a safe financial position than from one of precarity. For some it might improve their psychic and intellectual position, so they find freedom and a way of dissenting without having to give up a job that satisfies their economic needs. Others, like myself, are looking to find not only how to improve their psychic and intellectual position but also how to find a sustainable economic position.
The opposing forces generated by people’s positionalities are operating everywhere, including any HE Institution. There is a radical difference though in a space that acknowledges that and explores it critically and openly and a space that uses hierarchies in the classroom to naturalize or even neutralize it. But once again, for the ones that are not already in stable financial positions studying/teaching at FUL pushes them further to find ways of being that might not be financially safe at least for the forseeable future.
So yes, on the one hand free work at FUL can be the means of accessing a new world, or of creating a space to imagine one when the current state of affairs around us does not allow it. On the other hand, it seems, that in times of real transition, when somehow an alternative has to be found if one is to survive, and going back to old models is not so easy anymore, some people might get lost … it feels like a vertiginous process and I suffer from a fear of heights…
Adorno T. (1991) ‘Free time’, in The culture industry: Selected essays on mass culture. London: Routledge.
Harvey, D. (2010) A companion to Marx’s Capital. London: Verso.
Marx, K. (1990) Capital. London: Penguin.
the author(s)
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Dis/organization and mis/management: Exploring relations of order and disorder in critical organization studies
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Organised ignorance: The practices and politics of the organisation of ignorance
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Crawling from the wreckage: Does critique have a future in the business school?
Materialities and socialities of postcapitalism: Commons, peer to peer sharing and solidarity
25 May 2020 to 26 May 2020
The ethico-politics of whistleblowing: Mediated truth-telling in digital cultures
Peak neoliberalism
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What are the alternatives? Organising for a socially and ecologically sustainable world
Thinking like Apple’s recycling robots: Toward the activation of responsibility in a postenvironmentalist world
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Planned Maintenance – 10th-11th September 2019
Russian hackers are trying out this new malware against US and European targets
Be careful what you open!!!
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« Be careful what you open!!!
Planned Maintenance – 10th-11th September 2019 »
Published 21 November 2018 | By Brian Dowding
A new phishing campaign from a Russian-state backed hacking group targets American and European inboxes.
This article by Danny Palmer originally appeared on ZDNet.
A Russian government-backed hacking group is distributing a new form of trojan malware as part of a cyber espionage campaign targeting the US and Europe, according to security researchers.
Named Cannon after references in the malicious code, the malware gathers system information and takes screenshots of infected PCs and has been operating since at least late October.
The campaign has been detailed by security analysts at security company Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42 research unit, who say Cannon is just one form of malware still being actively distributed by Sofacy – their codename for Fancy Bear, a group also known as APT28, a hacking group which is with strong links to the Kremlin.
The group has been linked to a number of campaigns in recent years – including the cyber attacks and disinformation interference around the US Presidential election. It’s also thought to have conducted additional espionage campaigns against a number of nation-states and international organisations.
The new campaign begins with phishing emails which reference the recent Lion Air crash just off the coast of Indonesia. The Microsoft Word document is named Lion Air Boeing 737.docx and claims to have an author named ‘Joohn’. The reason this subject has been chosen for the lure is likely simply that people respond to emails which are related to current events.
If the user opens the attachment, they’re told that the document was created in an earlier version of Microsoft Word and that macros need to be enabled in order to view it. By choosing to enable the macros, the process of installing the malware begins – however, in order to help evade detection, the malicious code isn’t activated until after the Word session is closed.
This campaign has been spotted delivering two different forms of similar malware. One is Zebrocy, a trojan which has previously been observed being used as part of cyber espionage attempts working out of Russia.
The other is Cannon, with this campaign representing the first time the malware has been seen. It functions in a similar way to Zebrocy, by establishing communication with a command and control server which provides malware with instructions.
Cannon is designed to be persistent, set to take screenshots of the desktop every 10 seconds and gathering full system information every five minutes. In an effort to subtly pass stolen data on, Cannon uses email to forward attachments to one of three accounts hosted by a Czech Republic based service provider. From here, emails go to accounts controlled by the attackers.
The researchers are pinning the campaign on Sofacy because of how similar the Cannon malware is to Zebrocy – which is known to be the work of the hacking group. There’s also a number of other similarities, including reuse of author names in documents associated with the campaigns and the reuse of the same command and control servers.
The latest round of Fancy Bear attacks have targeted “a government organization dealing with foreign affairs in Europe” according to Palo Alto Networks, although researchers won’t go into the specifics of what governments have been targeted by the attacks, or if the campaigns have been successful for the attackers. It’s also unclear what specific information the attackers are targeting in this campaign.
“This is another example of how the Sofacy group is willing and able to develop new tools in support of their tactical and strategic aims,” said Bryan Lee, principal researcher for Unit 42 at Palo Alto Networks.
“While we can’t say how this specifically fit in to the overall Sofacy picture, based on the body of collective research we have as an industry, nearly all would agree that there is an overall picture: the Sofacy group doesn’t do things on a whim or for no reason.”
The discovery of new Fancy Bear activity comes shortly after researchers discovered a new phishing campaign targeting both government and private sector in the United States. That particular campaign is being carried out by Cozy Bear, another Russian state-sponsored hacking group.
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Music Relases Music Video Now Available For Download SoundCloud Stream on: Video
November 16, 2018 June 11, 2019 docthamadman 0
Interview Music Relases New School DropOUT Now Available For Download Now Playing On: Radio
Music Relases New School DropOUT Now Available For Download Now Playing On:
June 11, 2019 docthamadman 0
Doc ThaMADMan Bio
While he’s had very few projects released since beginning his journey in building his music archives, Doc ThaMADMan brings an interesting twist to Hip Hop and music in general. The Las Vegas native brings together his detailed artistic ability in drawing, his crazy imagination in writing, and his distinct ear for music to create a Hip Hop Comic book character, named ThaMADMan. The twist lies where Doc is the character in ThaMADMan comics, while ThaMADMan comic book character is Doc on stage. His style in music mixes Hip Hop in all it’s elements with a superhero-esque approach.
Doc ThaMADMan comes from a very musical family, being the oldest son of former rapper Doc Rock who debuted in 1995 with the Knight Society album. While his father didn’t quite get the respect and the opportunity to shine like he deserved, Doc ThaMADMan seeks to follow in those footsteps and pick up where his father left off.
Over the years, he’s opened shows for the likes of Ludacris, Usher, Da Mafia 6, Dub-O & Tezo, MGK, and Bone Thugs N Harmony among other major acts. His showmanship was embedded in him at a young age, making him more than just a very lyrically skilled rapper, but also an entertainer.
His most recent projects include an EP available on SoundCloud called, ‘Hope You Like It’, and the coming of the first edition of ‘ThaMADMan: The Coming Storm’ Comic Book. He is also currently preparing to release his first major music project called, ‘The New School DropOUT’, an LP consisting of an intricate and twisted approach to expressing his views of hip hop while introducing himself with a dropout approach to today’s music scene.
https://youtu.be/vvukBcjjlbc
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Board index World of Blue Twin Peaks Movie, TV, Books Season 3 (2017) The Return
The Random Season 3 Thread
Agent Sam Stanley
Re: The Random Season 3 Thread
Postby Agent Sam Stanley » Sat Jul 06, 2019 11:50 am
Mr. Reindeer wrote: No one has a trailer due to the shoestring budget—just a minivan with the heat on, which they duck into between takes.
Yep, according to what I hear when it comes to low budget films that's how I thought things worked most of the time. Shooting is usually pretty tough for everyone involved but they know the type of film they're in so everyone copes and tries to make the best they can.
Jerry Horne wrote:
Agent Sam Stanley wrote:
Better than giving her a blanket and a tent I suppose.
I'm not in the movie business, don't know how these things work, but I thought only the stars of the film got their own trailers. Seems like a luxury for a low budget film to give someone who has two lines a private trailer.
She filmed more than two lines. Those trailers are common on location and not a luxury.
Agent Sam Stanley wrote: And why was she complaining about lack of heat? I thought they shot that film in the middle of summer.
I'm assuming she was complaining because she was genuinely cold.
Hopefully she recovered from that hellish experience.
bosguy1981
Contact bosguy1981
Postby bosguy1981 » Tue Jul 09, 2019 9:36 am
Sherilyn Fenn did a Q&A at Sinister Creature Con (assume this was recently?). It was uploaded today to YouTube.
I haven't watched all of it yet but she discusses Twin Peaks at the beginning. She's candid, as always, and says she "got much better scenes" than the other returning TP actors because she rejected the original material written for her. Says she feels like they wrote something original and then just randomly plopped the returning TP characters in because they had to be there. She seems to feel Audrey turned out a lot better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLqAmMspoPg
Location: Under the Sycamore trees
Postby Rainwater » Tue Jul 09, 2019 9:43 am
I wonder what her original role was, exactly.
Was she supposed to have Sylvia's scenes, or is that just a rumor? I'm not sure if I agree with her at all that what she got in the end was better.
Postby bosguy1981 » Tue Jul 09, 2019 10:03 am
At the end, she's asked by an audience member if she's satisfied with how season 3 ended.
Her response: "Look, I wish they went back to regular Twin Peaks. I don't know what happened, I don't know who these people were, I don't know what was going on. Mind you, who am I? It's David's thing. He gets to do what he gets to do. I think it's really good for David to have had ABC [try to have him put the original Twin Peaks in a box]. I think that's good for him not to be able to go woooowwwww, where everybody's (confused). On the one hand, you don't want everybody to (understand) everything at the same time, it's bad filmmaking. But on the other hand, when you're just like What the Fuck? Like, I'm not getting anything. I'd like to get something. I mean, my mom... she hated it. "This is the stupidest show!" ... but the last thing I'll say about David is, don't try to understand it because there is no understanding. This is the beauty.... understanding is overrated. It's what YOU get from it. And what YOU get from it says something about YOU."
Last edited by bosguy1981 on Tue Jul 09, 2019 10:05 am, edited 1 time in total.
Rainwater wrote: I wonder what her original role was, exactly.
All that's known is that, yes, she would have been attacked by Richard Horne in the first draft of the scene with Sylvia. And she owned a beauty salon in Twin Peaks. Nothing else has been confirmed, really.
Finally, she says her favorite scene she did in all of Twin Peaks was smoking with Donna in the girls bathroom and discussing the murder investigation together.
Postby Jerry Horne » Tue Jul 09, 2019 10:12 am
She was to own a hair salon and yes she was supposed to have that scene with Richard and Johnny. Her frequent mantra of 'trusting Lynch' apparently stopped when she didn't like her role.
Screen Shot 2019-06-21 at 9.47.53 AM.png (127 KiB) Viewed 1887 times
Postby Rainwater » Tue Jul 09, 2019 10:30 am
Well, her behavior is disappointing to say the least, but at least she didn't pull an MJA. That being said, if I could choose, I think I'd rather have had MJA in the show, in the apparently sizeable role he was supposed to have. I guess we'll never know what that would've been like.
Postby Audrey Horne » Tue Jul 09, 2019 11:23 am
Ha, still love her.
And trying to be as objective (as possible) but I think she’s right. Especially about the constraints.
Mr. Strawberry
Location: Nevada City, CA
Contact Mr. Strawberry
Postby Mr. Strawberry » Tue Jul 09, 2019 12:51 pm
This is petty and superficial but did anyone else find it distracting to see a virtually unchanged Cooper visiting with an almost unrecognizable Laura? Why did they give her such heavy eyeliner and a new hairstyle? Did the One Armed Man get into cosmetology over the past 25 years?
Not taking any calls.
Postby N. Needleman » Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:02 pm
I see both sides. I think Sherilyn means well and is also a complicated person who at times has had an over-inflated sense of her role in the show or what it should be. But I also think yeah, Audrey's character did get screwed and unfairly marginalized way back when. And I also think the love between Sherilyn and Lynch is very clear in the BTS documentary on-set; I think people who think he hates her and is getting back at her have just never seen that. And I think ending it on that truncated cliffhanger in S3 is both good and bad.
Am I thrilled we don't know WTF is going on with Audrey and have no closure there with what may well be the final glimpse of Twin Peaks? No. But I also think Season 3, in its use of Audrey and placement of her role in story, with Cooper/Mr. C, with Richard, even in her absence and especially in terms of her cryptic dreamworld, made Audrey much more integral to the larger foundations and overall mystery of Twin Peaks than she had become by the end of Season 2, when she'd been relegated to a supporting character.
Today, everybody's questions are: What happened to Cooper and Carrie/Laura, and WTF happened to Audrey? Those questions may never go away. Audrey bore the evil Cooper's child, both consummating and perverting the longstanding will they/won't they of the Cooper/Audrey relationship. The violation of Audrey (and Diane) was a major plot point that has ties back to the deeper themes of violence against women which permeate Lynch's work, especially TP and FWWM - Audrey is now anchored to characters like Laura. And Audrey is at the center of a new and enduring, if frustrating mystery.
Audrey has not been this centralized to the overall questions or thoughts surrounding TP since the midpoint of Season 2, at the very least. So that makes me very happy, even if I still want much more for her. If that makes sense.
Postby Audrey Horne » Tue Jul 09, 2019 9:32 pm
Well, I will say back in the day when the show was actually on television, it was primarily the Kyle, Sherilyn, Lara Flynn show. I mean that’s why Audrey had all those insipid JJW scenes, to give something to one of the fan favorites. And aside from Cooper, Lynch and co. did draft the season finale to make Audrey (and Pete) in the most peril to make viewers want to tune in. I mean sure she wants a job, but I don’t think she’s inflating the importance of the character. Personally, I think besides the constant cypher of Laura’s ghost, you can’t have Peaks without the anchors of Cooper and Audrey. Ha, her face was practically the actual words. Arched eye brow, arched eye brow, beauty mark. Peak. Peak. Period. I mean, that was pretty synchronicity in 1990.
I do think she’s right in her hunch that they had a story and then figured out where they could plug original characters in if they were available. And that’s perfectly fine. I’ve watched The Return a few times again, and I can’t believe not how mad or in love with it I am, but just indifferent. I love everyone involved with it, and think there are stellar moments, but overall can’t believe how just indifferent I am to it.
Postby Mr. Reindeer » Tue Jul 09, 2019 9:41 pm
While I don’t love her methods sometimes (publicly accusing L/F of sexism and ageism at one point), I think Fenn genuinely is being protective of the character (as she was when she rightly refused to participate in the Miss Twin Peaks pageant in E28). And while I think as a rule, actors should be respectful of the material written by professional writers and directors, it’s pretty undeniable that we ended up with a much stronger Audrey storyline due to her complaining and holding out.
I am intrigued to know (perhaps Jerry can tell?) if Charlie (or a Charlie-type character) figured into Audrey’s initial storyline. Frost’s book implies that he was an accountant she married. Was that the initial plan on the show, and did Lynch just repurpose the character into a more mythical/ambiguous purpose?
Postby N. Needleman » Tue Jul 09, 2019 10:09 pm
I mean, I watched back then, I remember! They were huge and that certainly included Sherilyn and Audrey. But I also think it's undeniable that Audrey was marginalized - the Wheeler story was there, but the character and actor became decentralized, in favor of LFB and other things. And certainly, once FWWM was in place that had a big impact. I'm not saying it was right, because IMO it was wrong how she was handled in the latter half of Season 2. There were a lot of mistakes. It shouldn't have happened. At the same time, a massive part of what Twin Peaks means to me overall comes from the first half of Season 2 and especially FWWM.
I think hearing from fans that it should have become or remained the Cooper and Audrey show for years on the fan circuit created a false expectation for Sherilyn, and I think that influenced some of her behavior during production, not all of which I agree with. People don't have to agree with me there. But I am glad the story was changed, and I think the new material is far more compelling. I don't bear her any ill will; I think she takes too much stick from fans online, especially in recent years. She's a sweet person. I don't think Lynch hates her or she hates Lynch. I never believed the new show would be as good without Audrey, and I hope if there is more we get much more. I think it was a mistake for her to not remain as integral as a Laura or a Cooper (at least, I don't feel she did). I think Season 3, in a roundabout or imperfect way, went a fair bit of the way towards that. She is now an immortal part of a much deeper foundation and mystery than just the echoes of 1990, pre-Episode 14, pre-FWWM, LH, MD, etc.
I do think they had a large, strange story in mind for Season 3, and it was not all about Twin Peaks proper. But that was fine with me. I don't think they just slotted the characters in wherever they could haphazardly, though. I think the approach to the overall town and character landscape was much more episodic and vignette-like, much more similar to the structure of MD or the Missing Pieces than the original show. I get why that doesn't work for some people, but it did for me, for the most part. It bears little resemblance to the classical TV structure of the original series, yes. But that's okay for me too.
I know Sherilyn isn't alone in having mixed feelings on Season 3; I know Ray Wise has some. I'd have loved to see more of both of them. But as I've said recently, this is not new - a lot of the cast had issues with FWWM. They're entitled to that. And I think there's something to be said for a possible Season 4 being a bold attempt at 'classicism' - maybe going back to a more conventional episodic TV format of A, B and C-plots a la the '90s than the rambling wormhole of Season 3's structure. But the truth is I wouldn't mind more of the same either.
Put it this way: The difference between Season 3 and something like, say, Stranger Things 3 is elemental. I love Stranger Things, I really enjoyed its third season. But it's apples and oranges. ST3 gives me everything I want and expect from its characters and structure while expanding its narrative world, but it never expands it so far that my expectations of what it does or can be are truly ruptured or changed. And that's fine - it's not looking to change TV as we know it. It is a blockbuster movie in an eight-hour experience, it has specific notes and touchstones, that's great. I had a blast, I love the show, it does what it does very well.
By contrast, Season 3 of Twin Peaks did not give me everything I wanted and hoped for over lo however many years. It loved to turn left on my expectations or perceived wants or needs. It did not function or behave, as a program, the way a conventional narrative show does. Yet it gave me all I needed and more. It changed the show, and it changed me. Did I love every second? No. But I loved it just the same. I was fascinated and spellbound every week, I was constantly surprised. It has not left my mind since; there's always some trace there. Could I watch it every day: No. And it's imperfect. But it always was. And it just thrills me that this show still has that power.
Last edited by N. Needleman on Wed Jul 10, 2019 1:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
Return to “Season 3 (2017) The Return”
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Junior League of Champlain Valley Scholarship
Applicant must be a resident of Addison, Chittenden, Franklin, Grand Isle, or Lamoille County, VT who is a single parent of at least one minor child and will attend an accredited school approved for federal Title IV funding. Financial need and a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA required.
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LISA HOLZER
Article by Katharine Doyle, Studio Photos by Yishay Garbasz in Berlin // Tuesday, Sep. 12, 2017
“I used to cry a lot at parties.” This revelation jumps out from the press release for the opening of Lisa Holzer’s first solo exhibition in Berlin, ‘I come in you – The Party Sequel (Berlin)’ at Gillmeier Rech. The text doubles up as an artist statement meets stream-of-consciousness prose, printed on a large page and tacked onto the wall. As if to drive the absurd melodrama of her text even further, you can just make out some tear-soaked mascara stains smeared on the page. Having attended the opening on the Saturday prior to my meeting with the Austrian artist, this phrase remained stuck in my head. The scenario seemed so contradictory in its nature, but was also a startlingly honest admittance of a relatable experience, an outburst of emotion that I realised I could easily sympathize with. Holzer’s whole exhibition seemed to simmer with an energy of intense emotional release, gradually eroding away its frontal façade of calm. There is both an aesthetic beauty in the colours and shapes of her photographs, but also something vulgar and abject in their manufacture.
In contrast to the cathartic ejaculation happening within the exhibition, Holzer’s studio-flat in Schöneberg was imbued with a tranquil aura. Upon our arrival, she takes us through to her living-room, which is bathed in warm sunlight. Most of the available surfaces are occupied by her prints, half-clothed in bubble-wrap, stationed in the process of being shipped to Paris for Foire internationale d’art contemporain (FIAC), where she’ll be showing her work with Galerie Emanuel Layr. As we speak, we are surrounded by an array of different colours, thanks to the polychromatic bursts in her photographic representations of sugar icing spills alongside smeared and squashed vegetables. Having lived and worked in this space for the past six years, Holzer does not need much space for producing her work; her living-room provides enough room and light for taking her photographs. It is also an ideal setting for working on her computer afterwards, and boasts a close proximity to her kitchen now that much of her work involves food.
Holzer’s exhibition at Gillmeier Rech revolves around the act of purging, through both bodily processes and mental states, all hovering within a tense space between humour and seriousness. Playfulness underlies her process of creation, yet it also often springs from less carefree, hyper-emotive outbursts. “I guess I am also really angry,” she says, jokingly but it’s clear that this idea of quelling frenzy fascinates her. Each work in her studio is contained within a glass frame that has translucent drips stretching down them, a reference to our often unsuccessful efforts to suppress emotions beneath our outer bodily casing. As Holzer and I pass by the mashed carrot picture to look at one showing spilled pink icing sugar, she elaborates how she has come to realise the passive aggressiveness by using photography to capture her actions. “It makes me think of when you are angry, but don’t know how to mediate it.” By displaying these photographs within glass frames, the character of the food seems even more suppressed, their emotions overflowing in a form of controlled chaos.
Holzer is interested in the parallel between food and our bodies, but her work also explores the link between extremities of our mental and physical states. “The idea for me was that the colour gets out of the picture, so they are crying or sweating or puking or spitting out colour,” she explains. Upon hearing this, my imagination instantly kicks in, and I now find it possible to see the works as small, clammy bodies. Holzer uses polyurethane to create the dripping effect: bottles of it are clustered next to various colourants on a table. Laid out next to them, one work-in-progress showing puréed carrot seems to sunbathe, its sweat drips still drying. Yet the human presence is not only apparent in their overall anthropomorphism, but in the signs of physical intervention within the form of food. In the smeared pea photographs, there is a clear sign of a performed action to destroy their form; I detect a dark yet almost slapstick humour in this act of violence upon a helpless plant.
At one point, a childhood memory springs to mind, in which my parents told me not to play with my food during meals. I used to find this strange; it seemed related to a certain dinner table decorum, but also implied that I should hold my food with a divine respect. When I share this anecdote with her, Holzer responds that she regards each piece as a protagonist, revealing that this re-imagining of the status of food is important to her. She taps into a more childish side of her imagination to achieve this.
“I think that you cannot make art without making some fun of what you are doing.” Holzer’s work often returns to this tongue-in-cheek self-reflection. She laughs frequently while we are talking, which reveals to me her ability to detach herself from the gravity of subject-matter underlying her work; she can perceive it with the same humour she hopes that her viewers will experience. At the same time, Holzer demonstrates a boldness in approaching an array of taboo issues—food, emotion, bodies and their processes—that our society repeatedly forces us to keep separate from each other.
lisaholzer.net
http://www.berlinartlink.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/berlinartlink-Lisa-Holzer-The-Party-Sequel-Berlin-2017-pigment-print-on-cotton-paper-polyurethane.jpg
Lisa Holzer: 'The Party Sequel' (Berlin), 2017 // Courtesy of the artist and Gillmeier Rech, Berlin
http://www.berlinartlink.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Berlin-Art-Link_Lisa-Holzer-I-come-in-you-The-Party-Sequel-Berlin-2017-install-view-3.jpg
Lisa Holzer: 'I come in you - The Party Sequel' (Berlin), 2017, install view // Courtesy of the artist and Gillmeier Rech, Berlin
http://www.berlinartlink.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/berlinartlink-Lisa-Holzer-The-Party-Sequel-Berlin-2017-1.jpg
http://www.berlinartlink.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/berlinartlink-Lisa-Holzer-The-Party-Sequel-Berlin-2017.jpg
http://www.berlinartlink.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Lisa-Holzer-The-Party-Sequel-Berlin-2017-2.jpg
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Game #41: Die Hard
The Porn Version Has the Same Name
Oh, man, this movie!
I mean, it starts and it's like BANG, ShOOOOOM! And then the terrorists arrive and they're all like "POWPOWPOW", and Bruce Willis is like "Fuck this!" and a bunch of people die, and there are cops that totally don't do anything because Bruce Willis is doing their jobs better, and then Alan Rickman's like "AAAAAAAH" and then Christmas music plays!
That makes it a Christmas movie!
Yeah, the world is divided in two on this movie, between people who've never seen it and people who consider it a Christmas classic. A franchise that launched Bruce Willis' career, that gave us the magic of Alan Rickman for the first time, and taught us all a little bit about the importance of ingenuity and good footwear, Die Hard lives up to expectations. There are already many drinking games for Die Hard floating around the internet.
But how many of those games were crafted while watching the movie for the first time?
Game #40: In Bruges
"I've Done Something Terrible!"
Happy Holidays, everyone! Christmas is here, and we here at For Your Inebriation couldn't be more excited. We love a good Christmas movie as much as the next guy. But you know what we love just as much?
Random senseless violence.
That's right, our Holiday drinking games are going to involve the baddest, bloodiest movies that have ever graced the winter season (without going into campy territory. Nobody wants to play a drinking game to "Jack Frost", right?). We begin with a game for our favorite "Christmas" movie: In Bruges. The story of two hitmen who get sent on holiday by their potty-mouthed boss after an assasination gone awry, to the most magical town in all of Belgium.
Never seen this movie? Experience the wonder and delight in Martin McDonagh's tight, beautiful story of guilt, friendship, and the beliefs people are willing to die for. All in fucking Bruges.
Game #38: Looper
"Bruce Willis, You Can Fight Anything ...but YOURSELF!"
Is it just me, or has the action genre been a little weird this past decade or so? Maybe it has to do with the rise of CGI in feature length films, or maybe it's just as simple as a change in the aesthetics movie-goers look for when they see a film, but action lately movies have lacked punch. They feel the need to over explain, to drive exposition into the ground, dragging down the pace of the movie at the same time. Even Transformers, one of the highest grossing action movies ever, is bogged down by tedious dialogue-driven scenes; the movie doesn't get going until it's nearly over.
It's not that Looper doesn't do this, but that it threads its exposition and "character driven" scenes pretty well together with the guns and blood. It delivers its plot to the audience at breakneck speed, and only gives you just enough downtime to catch up with it...mostly.
I guess what I'm saying is what makes it a successful movie, and makes our drinking game successful as well, is Bruce Willis and Young Bruce Willis (I mean, Joseph Gordon-Levitt). What bogs it down is...everything else.
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Posted on October 15, 2016 October 19, 2016 Author ilenCategories Posts, Uncategorized
Last Saturday the final deck plank on the sailing vessel Ilen was laid at a traditional decking out ceremony, in Hegarty’s Boatyard, Skibbereen. The ceremony, hosted by the Ilen Project, Limerick, marked a significant milestone in a re-build project whose primary goal is to bring Ireland’s sole surviving wooden sailing ship back to Limerick.
The occasion revealed the beauty of the vessel to all those who attended – the high quality materials, the exemplary craftsmanship, and most significantly the marine educational role the vessel can be expected to play when she takes up her operational life on the Shannon Estuary, and beyond, from her new home port of Limerick.
Brother Anthony Keane of Glenstal Abbey, a key promoter of the Ilen Project, officiated at the ceremony and said that what has been achieved so far showed that there was not alone a great work ethic in the Ilen Project but also a spiritual commitment to the work being done.
“This is an amazing achievement to have come so far. It’s an amazing act of faith and commitment, and this boat and the people involved with it rock! It is heading for the sea, like a salmon, of that there is no doubt, even if the Minister for Finance isn’t yet aware of it, but it will go in the water. The faith, energy and skill of Liam Hegarty, John Hegarty, Fachtna O’Sullivan, and their team at Hegarty’s Boatyard are sufficient to tell a tree to be uprooted and launched into the sea, and see it happen. Their work is a phenomenon which outside administrators might better observe and study rather than direct or control.”
Brother Anthony Keane officiates at the decking-out ceremony
Ceremony guest speaker Lord David Puttnam said that
“the project underlined what could be done by a determined community, a community that could make their decisions for themselves, not to be dependent upon others beyond their community, but to be self-sufficient, and the project of the Ilen showed that. It also demonstrated that the skills involved, and which were being taught, were skills which younger people could learn, use and remain in their community, without having to leave, and thus strengthen communities. This is a message from the Ilen project.”
Lord David Puttnam gives the keynote talk at Ilen’s decking-out ceremony
Dr Edward Walsh, founding president of the University of Limerick, also spoke, and told of how he had at the outset of the project exhorted all to simply “go ahead and buy the boat” and “pretend” that the money was there, and it was a source of great pride for him to see how it had advanced so far.
The good ship Ilen has advanced to this moment in time where she happily accepts this final plank. It has been a long journey, an arduous journey, which continues, but one which has reached a plateau, a place and time of wonder and of thanks.
In 1926 the Ilen, Ireland’s sole surviving wooden sailing ship, sailed from Limerick to an active 70 year working life in the South Atlantic, and the completion last Saturday of her new weather deck brings her return a lot closer.
Saturday’s decking-out ceremony afforded all those who attended the unique opportunity to view the classic lines of the vessel, feel the reel of the heaving keel, admire her sheer, walk the new old growth Douglas Fir deck, or stand below deck amid her massive Irish oak frames – a tactile experiences unique to big wooden sailing ships.
And so Sinead Hegarty and Mary Jordan, Baltimore, hammered home the final deck plank with blows swift sweet and true. The ship seemed imperceptibly to roll a little, looking forward to her sea trials.
Mary Jordan, Baltimore, hammered home the final deck plank with blows swift sweet and true. The ship seemed imperceptibly to roll a little, looking forward to her sea trials.
Further information from Gary MacMahon
Photographs ©Kevin O’Farrell
More photographs from the decking-out ceremony can be seen here >
Background information on this significant ship is available here >
12-06-15: Historic sailing vessel AK Ilen will return to waters
17-05-12: Gandelow Races Perpetual Bell
24-01-15: Irish sail training “shipshape” in spite of Asgard II loss
Previous Previous post: 10-12-15: Two New Jaws for Ilens Main Gaff
Next Next post: Heritage award for Ilen restoration project
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Peace Agreement 2015
30 Church Leaders Trained On Contents Of Peace Agreements
A US-based advocacy group is continuously educating South Sudanese religious leaders and its citizens about the contents of the August peace agreement between government and the SPLM-IO.
Church leaders during the workshop on the contents of the peace agreement in Aweil [Photo| Agoth Abraham]
By Agoth Abraham
AWEIL, 07 July 2016 [Gurtong]- Democracy International officials who travelled to Aweil this week to conduct training to church leaders believe once church leaders and citizens are informed about what is in the deal, they will own it and support its implementation.
Democracy International is implementing the USAID-funded project known as Systems to Uphold the Credibility and Constitutionality of Elections in South Sudan. The group of facilitators from Democracy International who came to conduct a training wrapped up a three-day Campaign in Aweil on Thursday aimed at creating awareness about the peace agreement and how similar peace, reconciliation, healing and peaceful coexistence messages can reach the grass root communities.
In order to have wider coverage on these Peace messages, 30 church leaders from different churches concluded a three-day training organized by Democracy International.
Democracy International Civic Education Officer and a facilitator for the training, Caroline Kibos, says her organization needs to bring peace messages to everyone at the grass root level in South Sudan.
“We chose to come and work with South Sudan Council of Churches in peace dissemination because these people have big congregation, like they command a big crowd, so we think if they know the contents of the peace agreement, they will be able to disseminate further to their congregation. They will capture a very big number of people at once since they have access to the people and people keep praying every Sunday so you get the number like there are two to three services in each Church, so there will be a very huge number of people that will be told about the contents of the peace agreement.”
Kibos says South Sudanese themselves are the only people who can bring about an end to the conflict and be able to live peacefully if they understand and utilize the importance of peace at their homes.
“We’re trying as much as possible to make sure that all the citizens of South Sudan get to know about this peace agreement. So we urge that the few people who have known about these peace contents should also spread the message to everyone they can get to listen to this message so that all of us get to know the contents of this agreement because if we know the contents of this agreement, we shall monitor its implementation. We shall urge the government to implement it and we shall be in better position to inform other people and make right decisions towards implementation and we shall also have a better ground to have reconciliation and to have peace and stability in the country.”
One of the participants, a Catholic Church member, Lual William Malong who was trained for three days now on the peace contents says he understood an important role they will play as youth of this country to engage the grass root people to know the contents adding that many people need to learn about the peace contents.
“Here as a church, we are very glad to speak about peace because we’re the ambassadors of peace, we are the voice of the voiceless and we’re the role models of peace as we resemble our Lord Jesus Christ, he was a peace maker. Here I represent the youth to talk; we are the weapons to be used in any incident that happened.”
Lual says the training he has had has been meaningful to him and to the entire youth. He says it will help in disseminating the messages of peace, unity, healing and reconciliation to the rest who have not heard about it.
Reverend Daniel Lual Lual, from the Episcopal Church of South Sudan and one of the church leaders who attended the training says the training will be incorporated in their daily masses so that peace, healing and reconciliation messages go to grass root people.
“I think this training gives me courage more than what I was doing before in my church through the community I was leading. We came here to get new contents of the resolutions of conflict of South Sudan, to go out and preach to the people in South Sudan that the peace has come and this peace will solve our problems as we have learnt it. Also we have to carry another message of peace, reconciliation and healing to preach to everybody, to church leaders, to community leaders, to women and children at school levels. This peace is giving us a chance to come again and live peacefully in our country when we preach it well and we accept it to forgive ourselves.”
Lual I urging the government of South Sudan to implement all the contents of the peace agreement. He also appeals to the international community to help in timely implementation of the agreement so that stability comes back to South Sudan as soon as possible.
“To the government, we are saying that you work very hard to achieve what was mentioned in the resolutions of conflict of South Sudan peace agreement, we urge also other communities like the international communities to listen to us and to support the peace process, if anything comes, we also pray to God because God can do more than people do.”
Bishop Emannuel Achuil from the South Sudan Pentecostal Church says they will work hard to deliver trainings from State Counties, Payams and Bomas so that everyone understands better.
“The South Sudan Council of Churches has action plans, action plans for peace and development, our role and the message we shall take back to the grass root levels, from Counties, Payams, Bomas and every corner of communities and in the church. We came up with an action plan that we call the churches on Sunday to preach to them, tell them about the importance of peace.”
Democracy International has been holding similar campaigns in other Counties and Payams across the country to enable citizens to learn and ask questions about the contents of the peace agreement.
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O‘ahu in 1958: The Man Who Wears Two Hats
O‘ahu in 1947: The Coconut Island International Club
O‘ahu in 1967: “The Flop That Flipped”
Swing Dancing Returns to O‘ahu in the Nineties and More From Hawai‘i’s History
Extracts From an Interview With Tom Selleck, The O.G. Thomas Magnum
O‘ahu in 1957: The Day the Pali Highway Opened
Stories From When the Vanderbilts, George F. Baker and Henry Robinson Luce Visited Hawai‘i
O‘ahu in 1963: Housing the Royal Household Guards at the Halekoa
Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong Declared Rocks and Dust at U.S. Customs After Walking on the Moon
O‘ahu in 2010: The Neon Signs of Honoulu
O‘ahu in 1934: Honolulu’s Vanishing Street Car Tracks
O‘ahu in 1978: Housing Prices on the Rise in Hawai‘i
O‘ahu in 1957: A Hotel and Restaurant School Opens in Waikīkī
O‘ahu in 1937: Hawai‘i’s Barefoot Football Season Opener Draws 15,000
Bette Midler Returns Home to Perform in Honolulu and More From Hawai‘i’s History
The Three-Ring Circus Comes to Honolulu and More From Hawai‘i’s History
From Our Files: Moments from Hawai‘i’s History – November Edition
From Our Files: Moments from Hawai‘i’s History – December Edition
Inside HONOLULU: One of Hula’s Living Legacies Graced Our Cover Twice, 60 Years Apart
From Our Files: Moments from Hawai‘i’s Past–June Edition
From Our Files
By Ronna Bolante
Published: 2010.02.03 04:04 PM
Gov. Lawrence Judd and his party land at Kii on the scarcely populated island of Niihau, shown above. Henry E. Dougherty, associate editor of Paradise of the Pacific, predecessor to HONOLULU Magazine, accompanied the group on the daylong trip from Oahu. “As we approached the shore, the forms of humans came out of the haze,” Dougherty writes. “Our launch came alongside. Great brawny, brown men snatched at it with long poles, on which were attached wicked hooks. The governor stepped ashore, and he was welcomed by Alymer Robinson, son of the owner of the island. It seemed so quiet and remote and so faraway here on this landing—but friendliness greeted us.”
“Every other day Richard T. Araki, milk deliveryman, has a route which takes him up Wilhemina Rise and through Maunalani Heights and Carnation place,” writes Paradise of the Pacific, see photo, at left. “When he reaches Mana place, at about 8:15, he finds waiting for him Queenie, Shepherd dog belonging to Mr. And Mrs. Edward Z. Buck.” Queenie and another neighborhood dog, Pobi, trot alongside Araki’s truck on the 38-mile Kaimuki route. The dogs “wait patiently, while Dick makes his deliveries. Often they are petted by children, who eagerly await the dogs’ scheduled arrival.”
“Such pale people!” writes local public relations exec John W. McDermott in HONOLULU Magazine, about his first impression of Beatles George Harrison and John Lennon. As a favor to a client, McDermott let the pair hole up at his Windward Oahu home to avoid mobs of fans and the media in Waikiki. Harrison and Lennon spent a day at his house, swimming at a nearby beach, eating dinner with his family on the living room floor and posing for this photo, below, with his daughters, Duffi and Kelli. “Afterward, people asked, How were they?’” McDermott writes. “They were gentle, kind, soft-spoken people. At times you could sense a bit of remoteness, as if they lived on an island not shared by other people.”
Financial consultant Ron Rewald is accused of scamming investors of millions of dollars to support his lifestyle—lavish soirees, polo parties, luxurious estates. Amid one of the largest and most perplexing corporate scandals in Hawaii history, HONOLULU sits down with Rewald for an exhaustive interview. “I’ve got about $6 in my pocket, and that’s every penny I own,” Rewald tells the magazine. “I’ve got a lot of passes that people give me from Burger King, … but once these passes are gone I’m going to have problems.” Despite the circumstances, Rewald insists he’ll triumph in court. In 1985, however, Rewald is convicted and sentenced to 80 years in federal prison. He was released just 10 years later, after a back injury confined him to a wheelchair.
Grading the Public Schools: The 2004 Grades
Grading the Public Schools: What It Means
Our Town: The Torii Gate, Moiliili Triangle Park
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Everything You Need to Know About Local Fruit in Hawai‘i
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A Local’s Guide to Buying Reef-Safe Sunscreen
Five Hawai‘i brands have created reef-safe sunscreens that are safe for your ʻohana and the ocean.
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Timberland and the Smallholder Farmers Alliance Celebrate Haiti’s First Commercial Cotton Harvest in Three Decades
Feb 11, 2019 10:15 AM ET
.@Timberland teamed up with Smallholder Farmers Alliance in #Haiti to facilitate the island's first commercial #cotton harvest in three decades, clearing a path for #sustainable cotton for the future http://bit.ly/2DXW9P8
Last week three representatives from Timberland joined smallholder farmers in Haiti to pick cotton as part of Haiti’s’ first commercial cotton harvest in 30 years. Since 2016, Timberland has partnered with the Smallholder Farmers Alliance (SFA) on an initiative to reintroduce cotton farming - once the country’s fourth-largest export crop - to Haiti. The recent harvest was a key milestone in the project, which aims to create a new sustainable supply chain of organically grown cotton while simultaneously providing social and environmental benefits to Haitian farm communities.
“Our work with the Smallholder Farmers Alliance to reintroduce cotton growing touches on each of Timberland’s key commitments – to create responsible products, protect the outdoors and serve communities around the world,” said Atlanta McIlwraith, Timberland’s senior manager community engagement and communication. “Before long, we will have a new source of sustainable cotton for our products through a model that also reforests Haiti and improves farmers’ lives.”
Timberland’s director of material development, Alison Spahr, shared a different perspective. “Designing products usually starts in the office. But now it begins here, with the smallholder farmers growing the cotton. I am thrilled to be in this field today, at the very start of the supply chain for a new material that offers such a powerful social and environmental impact story to share with our consumers.”
Timberland initially partnered with the SFA on its 2010 public commitment to plant five million trees in five years. The SFA fulfilled the commitment by applying a new model through which farmers grow trees to earn a range of crop seeds, tools, training and other agricultural services. Over five years, the SFA planted five million trees (more than seven million to date), and participating farmers saw an average 40% increase in crop yield and 50-100% increase in income. The SFA named its innovative new model “tree currency.”
Now that Timberland has evolved from being a sponsor to a customer of Haitian-grown organic cotton, this tree currency remains central to the operation. Fueled by additional support from the VF Foundation to invest in program infrastructure, the SFA model will expand to allow farmers to continue to grow trees to finance food and cotton crops side by side (and in rotation). Over the next five years the SFA expects to plant an additional 25 million trees and grow cotton exports to 10 million pounds a year.
The farmers also see the potential. “We are all very happy that cotton is back,” commented smallholder Jean Alcide, “It is a good sign for the future of agriculture in Haiti.”
About Timberland
Timberland is a global leader in the design, manufacturing and marketing of premium footwear, apparel and accessories for the urban outdoor lifestyle. Timberland’s dedication to making quality products is matched by an unwavering commitment to make it better, with goals to create responsible products, protect and restore the outdoors and serve communities around the world. To learn more about Timberland’s corporate social responsibility work visit: https://www.timberland.com/responsibility.html.
About Smallholder Farmers Alliance
The Smallholder Farmers Alliance (SFA) is a Haitian non-profit organization that applies business solutions to help feed and reforest a renewed Haiti by establishing market-based farmer cooperatives, building agricultural export markets, creating rural farm businesses and contributing to community development. For more information visit www.smallholderfarmersalliance.org.
Eco-Living, Consumption & Travel
VF Corp
VF Corp Foundation
Thomas Noreille/SFA
Smallholder Farmers Alliance
Timote Georges
Hugh Locke co-founder and President Smallholder Farmers Alliance
Allison Spahr director material development at Timberland
Jean Alcide
Atlanta McIlwraith Timberland senior manager community engagement and communication
commercial cotton harvest
More from Timberland
On the Eve of the Earthquake’s 10th Anniversary, Timberland Reflects on a Decade of Investment in Haiti
Timberland Announces Move to Source Leather from Regenerative Ranches
Jan 6, 2020 11:10 AM ET
Nature Needs Heroes: Kathleen Ellie on Living a Sustainable Lifestyle
Nature Needs Heroes: Environmental Communicator Summer Rayne
Dec 20, 2019 8:00 AM ET
Nature Needs Heroes: Jon Freidman & Brad Mcnamara Bring Farming to Inner Cities
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Language Science Press
Support a New Way of
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Led by the renowned linguistic scholars Stefan Müller (Humboldt-Universität Berlin) and Martin Haspelmath (Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History), Language Science Press publishes high quality, peer-reviewed Open Access books in the fields of linguistics. By leveraging existing institutional infrastructures and utilising highly efficient work processes, Language Science Press titles are offered at significantly lower prices compared to traditional publishers. At the same time, these titles are made freely accessible to readers worldwide, broadening the impact of the works.
Language Science Press publishes fully Open Access books under CC-BY. They are a community-based worldwide organisation with supporters from MIT, Harvard, Yale, Zurich, Berlin, Sydney, Hong Kong, and others. To name but a few, Noam Chomsky, Adele Goldberg, and Steven Pinker have all lent their support to Language Science Press and the library partnership model set up by Knowledge Unlatched.
The original goal of 100 supporting institutions has been reached successfully! However, Language Science Press would like to give more libraries & institutions the opportunity to support this initiative. Therefore, 15 more slots have been opened which will enable LSP to publish even more than the original amount of 90 titles and, additionally, provide more extensive support for authors or subfields, create nice maps and other services. You can find the supporting institutions on this page below.
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Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History
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If you would like to know more about KU Partners, don't hesitate to contact us!
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Role of symmetry in driven propulsion at low Reynolds number
Sachs, J., Morozov, K. I., Kenneth, O., Qiu, T., Segreto, N., Fischer, P., Leshansky, A. M.
Phys. Rev. E, 98(6):063105, American Physical Society, December 2018 (article)
We theoretically and experimentally investigate low-Reynolds-number propulsion of geometrically achiral planar objects that possess a dipole moment and that are driven by a rotating magnetic field. Symmetry considerations (involving parity, $\widehat{P}$, and charge conjugation, $\widehat{C}$) establish correspondence between propulsive states depending on orientation of the dipolar moment. Although basic symmetry arguments do not forbid individual symmetric objects to efficiently propel due to spontaneous symmetry breaking, they suggest that the average ensemble velocity vanishes. Some additional arguments show, however, that highly symmetrical ($\widehat{P}$-even) objects exhibit no net propulsion while individual less symmetrical ($\widehat{C}\widehat{P}$-even) propellers do propel. Particular magnetization orientation, rendering the shape $\widehat{C}\widehat{P}$-odd, yields unidirectional motion typically associated with chiral structures, such as helices. If instead of a structure with a permanent dipole we consider a polarizable object, some of the arguments have to be modified. For instance, we demonstrate a truly achiral ($\widehat{P}$- and $\widehat{C}\widehat{P}$-even) planar shape with an induced electric dipole that can propel by electro-rotation. We thereby show that chirality is not essential for propulsion due to rotation-translation coupling at low Reynolds number.
pf Sachs, J., Morozov, K. I., Kenneth, O., Qiu, T., Segreto, N., Fischer, P., Leshansky, A. M. Role of symmetry in driven propulsion at low Reynolds number Phys. Rev. E, 98(6):063105, American Physical Society, December 2018 (article)
Swimming Back and Forth Using Planar Flagellar Propulsion at Low Reynolds Numbers
Khalil, I. S. M., Tabak, A. F., Hamed, Y., Mitwally, M. E., Tawakol, M., Klingner, A., Sitti, M.
Advanced Science, 5(2):1700461, 2018 (article)
Abstract Peritrichously flagellated Escherichia coli swim back and forth by wrapping their flagella together in a helical bundle. However, other monotrichous bacteria cannot swim back and forth with a single flagellum and planar wave propagation. Quantifying this observation, a magnetically driven soft two‐tailed microrobot capable of reversing its swimming direction without making a U‐turn trajectory or actively modifying the direction of wave propagation is designed and developed. The microrobot contains magnetic microparticles within the polymer matrix of its head and consists of two collinear, unequal, and opposite ultrathin tails. It is driven and steered using a uniform magnetic field along the direction of motion with a sinusoidally varying orthogonal component. Distinct reversal frequencies that enable selective and independent excitation of the first or the second tail of the microrobot based on their tail length ratio are found. While the first tail provides a propulsive force below one of the reversal frequencies, the second is almost passive, and the net propulsive force achieves flagellated motion along one direction. On the other hand, the second tail achieves flagellated propulsion along the opposite direction above the reversal frequency.
pi Khalil, I. S. M., Tabak, A. F., Hamed, Y., Mitwally, M. E., Tawakol, M., Klingner, A., Sitti, M. Swimming Back and Forth Using Planar Flagellar Propulsion at Low Reynolds Numbers Advanced Science, 5(2):1700461, 2018 (article)
Optical and Thermophoretic Control of Janus Nanopen Injection into Living Cells
Maier, C. M., Huergo, M. A., Milosevic, S., Pernpeintner, C., Li, M., Singh, D. P., Walker, D., Fischer, P., Feldmann, J., Lohmüller, T.
Nano Letters, 18, pages: 7935–7941, November 2018 (article) Accepted
Devising strategies for the controlled injection of functional nanoparticles and reagents into living cells paves the way for novel applications in nanosurgery, sensing, and drug delivery. Here, we demonstrate the light-controlled guiding and injection of plasmonic Janus nanopens into living cells. The pens are made of a gold nanoparticle attached to a dielectric alumina shaft. Balancing optical and thermophoretic forces in an optical tweezer allows single Janus nanopens to be trapped and positioned on the surface of living cells. While the optical injection process involves strong heating of the plasmonic side, the temperature of the alumina stays significantly lower, thus allowing the functionalization with fluorescently labeled, single-stranded DNA and, hence, the spatially controlled injection of genetic material with an untethered nanocarrier.
pf Maier, C. M., Huergo, M. A., Milosevic, S., Pernpeintner, C., Li, M., Singh, D. P., Walker, D., Fischer, P., Feldmann, J., Lohmüller, T. Optical and Thermophoretic Control of Janus Nanopen Injection into Living Cells Nano Letters, 18, pages: 7935–7941, November 2018 (article) Accepted
A swarm of slippery micropropellers penetrates the vitreous body of the eye
Wu, Z., Troll, J., Jeong, H. H., Wei, Q., Stang, M., Ziemssen, F., Wang, Z., Dong, M., Schnichels, S., Qiu, T., Fischer, P.
Science Advances, 4(11):eaat4388, November 2018 (article)
The intravitreal delivery of therapeutic agents promises major benefits in the field of ocular medicine. Traditional delivery methods rely on the random, passive diffusion of molecules, which do not allow for the rapid delivery of a concentrated cargo to a defined region at the posterior pole of the eye. The use of particles promises targeted delivery but faces the challenge that most tissues including the vitreous have a tight macromolecular matrix that acts as a barrier and prevents its penetration. Here, we demonstrate novel intravitreal delivery microvehicles slippery micropropellers that can be actively propelled through the vitreous humor to reach the retina. The propulsion is achieved by helical magnetic micropropellers that have a liquid layer coating to minimize adhesion to the surrounding biopolymeric network. The submicrometer diameter of the propellers enables the penetration of the biopolymeric network and the propulsion through the porcine vitreous body of the eye over centimeter distances. Clinical optical coherence tomography is used to monitor the movement of the propellers and confirm their arrival on the retina near the optic disc. Overcoming the adhesion forces and actively navigating a swarm of micropropellers in the dense vitreous humor promise practical applications in ophthalmology.
Video: Nanorobots propel through the eye link (url) DOI [BibTex]
pf Wu, Z., Troll, J., Jeong, H. H., Wei, Q., Stang, M., Ziemssen, F., Wang, Z., Dong, M., Schnichels, S., Qiu, T., Fischer, P. A swarm of slippery micropropellers penetrates the vitreous body of the eye Science Advances, 4(11):eaat4388, November 2018 (article)
Deep Inertial Poser: Learning to Reconstruct Human Pose from Sparse Inertial Measurements in Real Time
Huang, Y., Kaufmann, M., Aksan, E., Black, M. J., Hilliges, O., Pons-Moll, G.
ACM Transactions on Graphics, (Proc. SIGGRAPH Asia), 37, pages: 185:1-185:15, ACM, November 2018, Two first authors contributed equally (article)
We demonstrate a novel deep neural network capable of reconstructing human full body pose in real-time from 6 Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs) worn on the user's body. In doing so, we address several difficult challenges. First, the problem is severely under-constrained as multiple pose parameters produce the same IMU orientations. Second, capturing IMU data in conjunction with ground-truth poses is expensive and difficult to do in many target application scenarios (e.g., outdoors). Third, modeling temporal dependencies through non-linear optimization has proven effective in prior work but makes real-time prediction infeasible. To address this important limitation, we learn the temporal pose priors using deep learning. To learn from sufficient data, we synthesize IMU data from motion capture datasets. A bi-directional RNN architecture leverages past and future information that is available at training time. At test time, we deploy the network in a sliding window fashion, retaining real time capabilities. To evaluate our method, we recorded DIP-IMU, a dataset consisting of 10 subjects wearing 17 IMUs for validation in 64 sequences with 330,000 time instants; this constitutes the largest IMU dataset publicly available. We quantitatively evaluate our approach on multiple datasets and show results from a real-time implementation. DIP-IMU and the code are available for research purposes.
data code pdf preprint video DOI Project Page [BibTex]
ps Huang, Y., Kaufmann, M., Aksan, E., Black, M. J., Hilliges, O., Pons-Moll, G. Deep Inertial Poser: Learning to Reconstruct Human Pose from Sparse Inertial Measurements in Real Time ACM Transactions on Graphics, (Proc. SIGGRAPH Asia), 37, pages: 185:1-185:15, ACM, November 2018, Two first authors contributed equally (article)
Universal Custom Complex Magnetic Spring Design Methodology
IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, 54(1):1-13, October 2018 (article)
A design methodology is presented for creating custom complex magnetic springs through the design of force-displacement curves. This methodology results in a magnet configuration, which will produce a desired force-displacement relationship. Initially, the problem is formulated and solved as a system of linear equations. Then, given the limited likelihood of a single solution being feasibly manufactured, key parameters of the solution are extracted and varied to create a family of solutions. Finally, these solutions are refined using numerical optimization. Given the properties of magnets, this methodology can create any well-defined function of force versus displacement and is model-independent. To demonstrate this flexibility, a number of example magnetic springs are designed; one of which, designed for use in a jumping-gliding robot's shape memory alloy actuated clutch, is manufactured and experimentally characterized. Due to the scaling of magnetic forces, the displacement region which these magnetic springs are most applicable is that of millimeters and below. However, this region is well situated for miniature robots and smart material actuators, where a tailored magnetic spring, designed to compliment a component, can enhance its performance while adding new functionality. The methodology is also expendable to variable interactions and multi-dimensional magnetic field design.
pi Woodward, M. A., Sitti, M. Universal Custom Complex Magnetic Spring Design Methodology IEEE Transactions on Magnetics, 54(1):1-13, October 2018 (article)
A Value-Driven Eldercare Robot: Virtual and Physical Instantiations of a Case-Supported Principle-Based Behavior Paradigm
Anderson, M., Anderson, S., Berenz, V.
Proceedings of the IEEE, pages: 1,15, October 2018 (article)
In this paper, a case-supported principle-based behavior paradigm is proposed to help ensure ethical behavior of autonomous machines. We argue that ethically significant behavior of autonomous systems should be guided by explicit ethical principles determined through a consensus of ethicists. Such a consensus is likely to emerge in many areas in which autonomous systems are apt to be deployed and for the actions they are liable to undertake. We believe that this is the case since we are more likely to agree on how machines ought to treat us than on how human beings ought to treat one another. Given such a consensus, particular cases of ethical dilemmas where ethicists agree on the ethically relevant features and the right course of action can be used to help discover principles that balance these features when they are in conflict. Such principles not only help ensure ethical behavior of complex and dynamic systems but also can serve as a basis for justification of this behavior. The requirements, methods, implementation, and evaluation components of the paradigm are detailed as well as its instantiation in both a simulated and real robot functioning in the domain of eldercare.
am Anderson, M., Anderson, S., Berenz, V. A Value-Driven Eldercare Robot: Virtual and Physical Instantiations of a Case-Supported Principle-Based Behavior Paradigm Proceedings of the IEEE, pages: 1,15, October 2018 (article)
Probabilistic Solutions To Ordinary Differential Equations As Non-Linear Bayesian Filtering: A New Perspective
Tronarp, F., Kersting, H., Särkkä, S., Hennig, P.
ArXiv preprint 2018, arXiv:1810.03440 [stat.ME], October 2018 (article)
We formulate probabilistic numerical approximations to solutions of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) as problems in Gaussian process (GP) regression with non-linear measurement functions. This is achieved by defining the measurement sequence to consists of the observations of the difference between the derivative of the GP and the vector field evaluated at the GP---which are all identically zero at the solution of the ODE. When the GP has a state-space representation, the problem can be reduced to a Bayesian state estimation problem and all widely-used approximations to the Bayesian filtering and smoothing problems become applicable. Furthermore, all previous GP-based ODE solvers, which were formulated in terms of generating synthetic measurements of the vector field, come out as specific approximations. We derive novel solvers, both Gaussian and non-Gaussian, from the Bayesian state estimation problem posed in this paper and compare them with other probabilistic solvers in illustrative experiments.
pn Tronarp, F., Kersting, H., Särkkä, S., Hennig, P. Probabilistic Solutions To Ordinary Differential Equations As Non-Linear Bayesian Filtering: A New Perspective ArXiv preprint 2018, arXiv:1810.03440 [stat.ME], October 2018 (article)
Deep Neural Network-based Cooperative Visual Tracking through Multiple Micro Aerial Vehicles
Price, E., Lawless, G., Ludwig, R., Martinovic, I., Buelthoff, H. H., Black, M. J., Ahmad, A.
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(4):3193-3200, IEEE, October 2018, Also accepted and presented in the 2018 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). (article)
Multi-camera tracking of humans and animals in outdoor environments is a relevant and challenging problem. Our approach to it involves a team of cooperating micro aerial vehicles (MAVs) with on-board cameras only. DNNs often fail at objects with small scale or far away from the camera, which are typical characteristics of a scenario with aerial robots. Thus, the core problem addressed in this paper is how to achieve on-board, online, continuous and accurate vision-based detections using DNNs for visual person tracking through MAVs. Our solution leverages cooperation among multiple MAVs and active selection of most informative regions of image. We demonstrate the efficiency of our approach through simulations with up to 16 robots and real robot experiments involving two aerial robots tracking a person, while maintaining an active perception-driven formation. ROS-based source code is provided for the benefit of the community.
ps Price, E., Lawless, G., Ludwig, R., Martinovic, I., Buelthoff, H. H., Black, M. J., Ahmad, A. Deep Neural Network-based Cooperative Visual Tracking through Multiple Micro Aerial Vehicles IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(4):3193-3200, IEEE, October 2018, Also accepted and presented in the 2018 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). (article)
Softness, Warmth, and Responsiveness Improve Robot Hugs
International Journal of Social Robotics, 11(1):49-64, October 2018 (article)
Hugs are one of the first forms of contact and affection humans experience. Due to their prevalence and health benefits, roboticists are naturally interested in having robots one day hug humans as seamlessly as humans hug other humans. This project's purpose is to evaluate human responses to different robot physical characteristics and hugging behaviors. Specifically, we aim to test the hypothesis that a soft, warm, touch-sensitive PR2 humanoid robot can provide humans with satisfying hugs by matching both their hugging pressure and their hugging duration. Thirty relatively young and rather technical participants experienced and evaluated twelve hugs with the robot, divided into three randomly ordered trials that focused on physical robot characteristics (single factor, three levels) and nine randomly ordered trials with low, medium, and high hug pressure and duration (two factors, three levels each). Analysis of the results showed that people significantly prefer soft, warm hugs over hard, cold hugs. Furthermore, users prefer hugs that physically squeeze them and release immediately when they are ready for the hug to end. Taking part in the experiment also significantly increased positive user opinions of robots and robot use.
hi Block, A. E., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Softness, Warmth, and Responsiveness Improve Robot Hugs International Journal of Social Robotics, 11(1):49-64, October 2018 (article)
Mobile Microrobots for Active Therapeutic Delivery
Pelin Erkoc, , I Ceren Yasa, , Hakan Ceylan, , Oncay Yasa, , Yunus Alapan, , Sitti, M.
Advanced Therapeutics, pages: 1800064, October 2018 (article)
pi Pelin Erkoc, , I Ceren Yasa, , Hakan Ceylan, , Oncay Yasa, , Yunus Alapan, , Sitti, M. Mobile Microrobots for Active Therapeutic Delivery Advanced Therapeutics, pages: 1800064, October 2018 (article)
First Impressions of Personality Traits From Body Shapes
Hu, Y., Parde, C. J., Hill, M. Q., Mahmood, N., O’Toole, A. J.
Psychological Science, 29(12):1969-–1983, October 2018 (article)
People infer the personalities of others from their facial appearance. Whether they do so from body shapes is less studied. We explored personality inferences made from body shapes. Participants rated personality traits for male and female bodies generated with a three-dimensional body model. Multivariate spaces created from these ratings indicated that people evaluate bodies on valence and agency in ways that directly contrast positive and negative traits from the Big Five domains. Body-trait stereotypes based on the trait ratings revealed a myriad of diverse body shapes that typify individual traits. Personality-trait profiles were predicted reliably from a subset of the body-shape features used to specify the three-dimensional bodies. Body features related to extraversion and conscientiousness were predicted with the highest consensus, followed by openness traits. This study provides the first comprehensive look at the range, diversity, and reliability of personality inferences that people make from body shapes.
ps Hu, Y., Parde, C. J., Hill, M. Q., Mahmood, N., O’Toole, A. J. First Impressions of Personality Traits From Body Shapes Psychological Science, 29(12):1969-–1983, October 2018 (article)
Fast spatial scanning of 3D ultrasound fields via thermography
Melde, K., Qiu, T., Fischer, P.
Applied Physics Letters, 113(13):133503, September 2018 (article)
We propose and demonstrate a thermographic method that allows rapid scanning of ultrasound fields in a volume to yield 3D maps of the sound intensity. A thin sound-absorbing membrane is continuously translated through a volume of interest while a thermal camera records the evolution of its surface temperature. The temperature rise is a function of the absorbed sound intensity, such that the thermal image sequence can be combined to reveal the sound intensity distribution in the traversed volume. We demonstrate the mapping of ultrasound fields, which is several orders of magnitude faster than scanning with a hydrophone. Our results are in very good agreement with theoretical simulations.
pf Melde, K., Qiu, T., Fischer, P. Fast spatial scanning of 3D ultrasound fields via thermography Applied Physics Letters, 113(13):133503, September 2018 (article)
Microalga‐Powered Microswimmers toward Active Cargo Delivery
Yasa, O., Erkoc, P., Alapan, Y., Sitti, M.
Advanced Materials, pages: 1804130, September 2018 (article)
Microalga‐Powered Microswimmers toward Active Cargo Delivery DOI Project Page [BibTex]
pi Yasa, O., Erkoc, P., Alapan, Y., Sitti, M. Microalga‐Powered Microswimmers toward Active Cargo Delivery Advanced Materials, pages: 1804130, September 2018 (article)
Playful: Reactive Programming for Orchestrating Robotic Behavior
Berenz, V., Schaal, S.
IEEE Robotics Automation Magazine, 25(3):49-60, September 2018 (article) In press
For many service robots, reactivity to changes in their surroundings is a must. However, developing software suitable for dynamic environments is difficult. Existing robotic middleware allows engineers to design behavior graphs by organizing communication between components. But because these graphs are structurally inflexible, they hardly support the development of complex reactive behavior. To address this limitation, we propose Playful, a software platform that applies reactive programming to the specification of robotic behavior.
playful website playful_IEEE_RAM link (url) DOI [BibTex]
am Berenz, V., Schaal, S. Playful: Reactive Programming for Orchestrating Robotic Behavior IEEE Robotics Automation Magazine, 25(3):49-60, September 2018 (article) In press
ClusterNet: Instance Segmentation in RGB-D Images
Shao, L., Tian, Y., Bohg, J.
arXiv, September 2018, Submitted to ICRA'19 (article) Submitted
We propose a method for instance-level segmentation that uses RGB-D data as input and provides detailed information about the location, geometry and number of {\em individual\/} objects in the scene. This level of understanding is fundamental for autonomous robots. It enables safe and robust decision-making under the large uncertainty of the real-world. In our model, we propose to use the first and second order moments of the object occupancy function to represent an object instance. We train an hourglass Deep Neural Network (DNN) where each pixel in the output votes for the 3D position of the corresponding object center and for the object's size and pose. The final instance segmentation is achieved through clustering in the space of moments. The object-centric training loss is defined on the output of the clustering. Our method outperforms the state-of-the-art instance segmentation method on our synthesized dataset. We show that our method generalizes well on real-world data achieving visually better segmentation results.
am Shao, L., Tian, Y., Bohg, J. ClusterNet: Instance Segmentation in RGB-D Images arXiv, September 2018, Submitted to ICRA'19 (article) Submitted
Light-Triggered Drug Release from 3D-Printed Magnetic Chitosan Microswimmers
Ugur Bozuyuk, , Oncay Yasa, , I. Ceren Yasa, , Hakan Ceylan, , Seda Kizilel, , Sitti, M.
ACS Nano, 12, pages: 9617-9625, September 2018 (article)
pi Ugur Bozuyuk, , Oncay Yasa, , I. Ceren Yasa, , Hakan Ceylan, , Seda Kizilel, , Sitti, M. Light-Triggered Drug Release from 3D-Printed Magnetic Chitosan Microswimmers ACS Nano, 12, pages: 9617-9625, September 2018 (article)
Visual Perception and Evaluation of Photo-Realistic Self-Avatars From 3D Body Scans in Males and Females
Thaler, A., Piryankova, I., Stefanucci, J. K., Pujades, S., de la Rosa, S., Streuber, S., Romero, J., Black, M. J., Mohler, B. J.
Frontiers in ICT, 5, pages: 1-14, September 2018 (article)
The creation or streaming of photo-realistic self-avatars is important for virtual reality applications that aim for perception and action to replicate real world experience. The appearance and recognition of a digital self-avatar may be especially important for applications related to telepresence, embodied virtual reality, or immersive games. We investigated gender differences in the use of visual cues (shape, texture) of a self-avatar for estimating body weight and evaluating avatar appearance. A full-body scanner was used to capture each participant's body geometry and color information and a set of 3D virtual avatars with realistic weight variations was created based on a statistical body model. Additionally, a second set of avatars was created with an average underlying body shape matched to each participant’s height and weight. In four sets of psychophysical experiments, the influence of visual cues on the accuracy of body weight estimation and the sensitivity to weight changes was assessed by manipulating body shape (own, average) and texture (own photo-realistic, checkerboard). The avatars were presented on a large-screen display, and participants responded to whether the avatar's weight corresponded to their own weight. Participants also adjusted the avatar's weight to their desired weight and evaluated the avatar's appearance with regard to similarity to their own body, uncanniness, and their willingness to accept it as a digital representation of the self. The results of the psychophysical experiments revealed no gender difference in the accuracy of estimating body weight in avatars. However, males accepted a larger weight range of the avatars as corresponding to their own. In terms of the ideal body weight, females but not males desired a thinner body. With regard to the evaluation of avatar appearance, the questionnaire responses suggest that own photo-realistic texture was more important to males for higher similarity ratings, while own body shape seemed to be more important to females. These results argue for gender-specific considerations when creating self-avatars.
ps Thaler, A., Piryankova, I., Stefanucci, J. K., Pujades, S., de la Rosa, S., Streuber, S., Romero, J., Black, M. J., Mohler, B. J. Visual Perception and Evaluation of Photo-Realistic Self-Avatars From 3D Body Scans in Males and Females Frontiers in ICT, 5, pages: 1-14, September 2018 (article)
Diffusion Measurements of Swimming Enzymes with Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy
Günther, J., Börsch, M., Fischer, P.
Accounts of Chemical Research, 51(9):1911-1920, August 2018 (article)
Self-propelled chemical motors are chemically powered micro- or nanosized swimmers. The energy required for these motors’ active motion derives from catalytic chemical reactions and the transformation of a fuel dissolved in the solution. While self-propulsion is now well established for larger particles, it is still unclear if enzymes, nature’s nanometer-sized catalysts, are potentially also self-powered nanomotors. Because of its small size, any increase in an enzyme’s diffusion due to active self-propulsion must be observed on top of the enzyme’s passive Brownian motion, which dominates at this scale. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a sensitive method to quantify the diffusion properties of single fluorescently labeled molecules in solution. FCS experiments have shown a general increase in the diffusion constant of a number of enzymes when the enzyme is catalytically active. Diffusion enhancements after addition of the enzyme’s substrate (and sometimes its inhibitor) of up to 80\% have been reported, which is at least 1 order of magnitude higher than what theory would predict. However, many factors contribute to the FCS signal and in particular the shape of the autocorrelation function, which underlies diffusion measurements by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy. These effects need to be considered to establish if and by how much the catalytic activity changes an enzyme’s diffusion.We carefully review phenomena that can play a role in FCS experiments and the determination of enzyme diffusion, including the dissociation of enzyme oligomers upon interaction with the substrate, surface binding of the enzyme to glass during the experiment, conformational changes upon binding, and quenching of the fluorophore. We show that these effects can cause changes in the FCS signal that behave similar to an increase in diffusion. However, in the case of the enzymes F1-ATPase and alkaline phosphatase, we demonstrate that there is no measurable increase in enzyme diffusion. Rather, dissociation and conformational changes account for the changes in the FCS signal in the former and fluorophore quenching in the latter. Within the experimental accuracy of our FCS measurements, we do not observe any change in diffusion due to activity for the enzymes we have investigated.We suggest useful control experiments and additional tests for future FCS experiments that should help establish if the observed diffusion enhancement is real or if it is due to an experimental or data analysis artifact. We show that fluorescence lifetime and mean intensity measurements are essential in order to identify the nature of the observed changes in the autocorrelation function. While it is clear from theory that chemically active enzymes should also act as self-propelled nanomotors, our FCS measurements show that the associated increase in diffusion is much smaller than previously reported. Further experiments are needed to quantify the contribution of the enzymes’ catalytic activity to their self-propulsion. We hope that our findings help to establish a useful protocol for future FCS studies in this field and help establish by how much the diffusion of an enzyme is enhanced through catalytic activity.
pf Günther, J., Börsch, M., Fischer, P. Diffusion Measurements of Swimming Enzymes with Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy Accounts of Chemical Research, 51(9):1911-1920, August 2018 (article)
Uphill production of dihydrogen by enzymatic oxidation of glucose without an external energy source
Suraniti, E., Merzeau, P., Roche, J., Gounel, S., Mark, A. G., Fischer, P., Mano, N., Kuhn, A.
Nature Communications, 9(1):3229, August 2018 (article)
Chemical systems do not allow the coupling of energy from several simple reactions to drive a subsequent reaction, which takes place in the same medium and leads to a product with a higher energy than the one released during the first reaction. Gibbs energy considerations thus are not favorable to drive e.g., water splitting by the direct oxidation of glucose as a model reaction. Here, we show that it is nevertheless possible to carry out such an energetically uphill reaction, if the electrons released in the oxidation reaction are temporarily stored in an electromagnetic system, which is then used to raise the electrons' potential energy so that they can power the electrolysis of water in a second step. We thereby demonstrate the general concept that lower energy delivering chemical reactions can be used to enable the formation of higher energy consuming reaction products in a closed system.
pf Suraniti, E., Merzeau, P., Roche, J., Gounel, S., Mark, A. G., Fischer, P., Mano, N., Kuhn, A. Uphill production of dihydrogen by enzymatic oxidation of glucose without an external energy source Nature Communications, 9(1):3229, August 2018 (article)
Chemical micromotors self-assemble and self-propel by spontaneous symmetry breaking
Yu, T., Chuphal, P., Thakur, S., Reigh, S. Y., Singh, D. P., Fischer, P.
Chem. Comm., 54, pages: 11933-11936, August 2018 (article)
Self-propelling chemical motors have thus far required the fabrication of Janus particles with an asymmetric catalyst distribution. Here, we demonstrate that simple, isotropic colloids can spontaneously assemble to yield dimer motors that self-propel. In a mixture of isotropic titanium dioxide colloids with photo-chemical catalytic activity and passive silica colloids, light illumination causes diffusiophoretic attractions between the active and passive particles and leads to the formation of dimers. The dimers constitute a symmetry-broken motor, whose dynamics can be fully controlled by the illumination conditions. Computer simulations reproduce the dynamics of the colloids and are in good agreement with experiments. The current work presents a simple route to obtain large numbers of self-propelling chemical motors from a dispersion of spherically symmetric colloids through spontaneous symmetry breaking.
pf Yu, T., Chuphal, P., Thakur, S., Reigh, S. Y., Singh, D. P., Fischer, P. Chemical micromotors self-assemble and self-propel by spontaneous symmetry breaking Chem. Comm., 54, pages: 11933-11936, August 2018 (article)
Instrumentation, Data, and Algorithms for Visually Understanding Haptic Surface Properties
Burka, A. L.
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA, August 2018, Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering (phdthesis)
Autonomous robots need to efficiently walk over varied surfaces and grasp diverse objects. We hypothesize that the association between how such surfaces look and how they physically feel during contact can be learned from a database of matched haptic and visual data recorded from various end-effectors' interactions with hundreds of real-world surfaces. Testing this hypothesis required the creation of a new multimodal sensing apparatus, the collection of a large multimodal dataset, and development of a machine-learning pipeline. This thesis begins by describing the design and construction of the Portable Robotic Optical/Tactile ObservatioN PACKage (PROTONPACK, or Proton for short), an untethered handheld sensing device that emulates the capabilities of the human senses of vision and touch. Its sensory modalities include RGBD vision, egomotion, contact force, and contact vibration. Three interchangeable end-effectors (a steel tooling ball, an OptoForce three-axis force sensor, and a SynTouch BioTac artificial fingertip) allow for different material properties at the contact point and provide additional tactile data. We then detail the calibration process for the motion and force sensing systems, as well as several proof-of-concept surface discrimination experiments that demonstrate the reliability of the device and the utility of the data it collects. This thesis then presents a large-scale dataset of multimodal surface interaction recordings, including 357 unique surfaces such as furniture, fabrics, outdoor fixtures, and items from several private and public material sample collections. Each surface was touched with one, two, or three end-effectors, comprising approximately one minute per end-effector of tapping and dragging at various forces and speeds. We hope that the larger community of robotics researchers will find broad applications for the published dataset. Lastly, we demonstrate an algorithm that learns to estimate haptic surface properties given visual input. Surfaces were rated on hardness, roughness, stickiness, and temperature by the human experimenter and by a pool of purely visual observers. Then we trained an algorithm to perform the same task as well as infer quantitative properties calculated from the haptic data. Overall, the task of predicting haptic properties from vision alone proved difficult for both humans and computers, but a hybrid algorithm using a deep neural network and a support vector machine achieved a correlation between expected and actual regression output between approximately ρ = 0.3 and ρ = 0.5 on previously unseen surfaces.
hi Burka, A. L. Instrumentation, Data, and Algorithms for Visually Understanding Haptic Surface Properties University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA, August 2018, Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering (phdthesis)
Chemotaxis of Active Janus Nanoparticles
Popescu, M. N., Uspal, W. E., Bechinger, C., Fischer, P.
Nano Letters, 18(9):5345–5349, July 2018 (article)
While colloids and molecules in solution exhibit passive Brownian motion, particles that are partially covered with a catalyst, which promotes the transformation of a fuel dissolved in the solution, can actively move. These active Janus particles are known as “chemical nanomotors” or self-propelling “swimmers” and have been realized with a range of catalysts, sizes, and particle geometries. Because their active translation depends on the fuel concentration, one expects that active colloidal particles should also be able to swim toward a fuel source. Synthesizing and engineering nanoparticles with distinct chemotactic properties may enable important developments, such as particles that can autonomously swim along a pH gradient toward a tumor. Chemotaxis requires that the particles possess an active coupling of their orientation to a chemical gradient. In this Perspective we provide a simple, intuitive description of the underlying mechanisms for chemotaxis, as well as the means to analyze and classify active particles that can show positive or negative chemotaxis. The classification provides guidance for engineering a specific response and is a useful organizing framework for the quantitative analysis and modeling of chemotactic behaviors. Chemotaxis is emerging as an important focus area in the field of active colloids and promises a number of fascinating applications for nanoparticles and particle-based delivery.
pf Popescu, M. N., Uspal, W. E., Bechinger, C., Fischer, P. Chemotaxis of Active Janus Nanoparticles Nano Letters, 18(9):5345–5349, July 2018 (article)
Programmable collective behavior in dynamically self-assembled mobile microrobotic swarms
B Yigit, , Y Alapan, , Sitti, M.
Advanced Science, July 2018 (article)
Collective control of mobile microrobotic swarms is indispensable for their potential high-impact applications in targeted drug delivery, medical diagnostics, parallel micromanipulation, and environmental sensing and remediation. Lack of on-board computational and sensing capabilities in current microrobotic systems necessitates use of physical interactions among individual microrobots for local physical communication and cooperation. Here, we show that mobile microrobotic swarms with well-defined collective behavior can be designed by engineering magnetic interactions among individual units. Microrobots, consisting of a linear chain of self-assembled magnetic microparticles, locomote on surfaces in response to a precessing magnetic field. Control over the direction of precessing magnetic field allows engineering attractive and repulsive interactions among microrobots and, thus, collective order with well-defined spatial organization and parallel operation over macroscale distances (~ 1 cm). These microrobotic swarms can be guided through confined spaces, while preserving microrobot morphology and function. These swarms can further achieve directional transport of large cargoes on surfaces and small cargoes in bulk fluids. Described design approach, exploiting physical interactions among individual robots, enables facile and rapid formation of self-organized and reconfigurable microrobotic swarms with programmable collective order.
pi B Yigit, , Y Alapan, , Sitti, M. Programmable collective behavior in dynamically self-assembled mobile microrobotic swarms Advanced Science, July 2018 (article)
3D-Printed Biodegradable Microswimmer for Drug Delivery and Targeted Cell Labeling
Hakan Ceylan, , I. Ceren Yasa, , Oncay Yasa, , Ahmet Fatih Tabak, , Joshua Giltinan, , Sitti, M.
bioRxiv, pages: 379024, July 2018 (article)
Miniaturization of interventional medical devices can leverage minimally invasive technologies by enabling operational resolution at cellular length scales with high precision and repeatability. Untethered micron-scale mobile robots can realize this by navigating and performing in hard-to-reach, confined and delicate inner body sites. However, such a complex task requires an integrated design and engineering strategy, where powering, control, environmental sensing, medical functionality and biodegradability need to be considered altogether. The present study reports a hydrogel-based, biodegradable microrobotic swimmer, which is responsive to the changes in its microenvironment for theranostic cargo delivery and release tasks. We design a double-helical magnetic microswimmer of 20 micrometers length, which is 3D-printed with complex geometrical and compositional features. At normal physiological concentrations, matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) enzyme can entirely degrade the microswimmer body in 118 h to solubilized non-toxic products. The microswimmer can respond to the pathological concentrations of MMP-2 by swelling and thereby accelerating the release kinetics of the drug payload. Anti-ErbB 2 antibody-tagged magnetic nanoparticles released from the degraded microswimmers serve for targeted labeling of SKBR3 breast cancer cells to realize the potential of medical imaging of local tissue sites following the therapeutic intervention. These results represent a leap forward toward clinical medical microrobots that are capable of sensing, responding to the local pathological information, and performing specific therapeutic and diagnostic tasks as orderly executed operations using their smart composite material architectures.
pi Hakan Ceylan, , I. Ceren Yasa, , Oncay Yasa, , Ahmet Fatih Tabak, , Joshua Giltinan, , Sitti, M. 3D-Printed Biodegradable Microswimmer for Drug Delivery and Targeted Cell Labeling bioRxiv, pages: 379024, July 2018 (article)
Robust Visual Augmented Reality in Robot-Assisted Surgery
Forte, M. P.
Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy, July 2018, Department of Electronic, Information, and Biomedical Engineering (mastersthesis)
The broader research objective of this line of research is to test the hypothesis that real-time stereo video analysis and augmented reality can increase safety and task efficiency in robot-assisted surgery. This master’s thesis aims to solve the first step needed to achieve this goal: the creation of a robust system that delivers the envisioned feedback to a surgeon while he or she controls a surgical robot that is identical to those used on human patients. Several approaches for applying augmented reality to da Vinci Surgical Systems have been proposed, but none of them entirely rely on a clinical robot; specifically, they require additional sensors, depend on access to the da Vinci API, are designed for a very specific task, or were tested on systems that are starkly different from those in clinical use. There has also been prior work that presents the real-world camera view and the computer graphics on separate screens, or not in real time. In other scenarios, the digital information is overlaid manually by the surgeons themselves or by computer scientists, rather than being generated automatically in response to the surgeon’s actions. We attempted to overcome the aforementioned constraints by acquiring input signals from the da Vinci stereo endoscope and providing augmented reality to the console in real time (less than 150 ms delay, including the 62 ms of inherent latency of the da Vinci). The potential benefits of the resulting system are broad because it was built to be general, rather than customized for any specific task. The entire platform is compatible with any generation of the da Vinci System and does not require a dVRK (da Vinci Research Kit) or access to the API. Thus, it can be applied to existing da Vinci Systems in operating rooms around the world.
hi Forte, M. P. Robust Visual Augmented Reality in Robot-Assisted Surgery Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy, July 2018, Department of Electronic, Information, and Biomedical Engineering (mastersthesis)
Task-Driven PCA-Based Design Optimization of Wearable Cutaneous Devices
Pacchierotti, C., Young, E. M., Kuchenbecker, K. J.
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(3):2214-2221, July 2018, Presented at ICRA 2018 (article)
Small size and low weight are critical requirements for wearable and portable haptic interfaces, making it essential to work toward the optimization of their sensing and actuation systems. This paper presents a new approach for task-driven design optimization of fingertip cutaneous haptic devices. Given one (or more) target tactile interactions to render and a cutaneous device to optimize, we evaluate the minimum number and best configuration of the device’s actuators to minimize the estimated haptic rendering error. First, we calculate the motion needed for the original cutaneous device to render the considered target interaction. Then, we run a principal component analysis (PCA) to search for possible couplings between the original motor inputs, looking also for the best way to reconfigure them. If some couplings exist, we can re-design our cutaneous device with fewer motors, optimally configured to render the target tactile sensation. The proposed approach is quite general and can be applied to different tactile sensors and cutaneous devices. We validated it using a BioTac tactile sensor and custom plate-based 3-DoF and 6-DoF fingertip cutaneous devices, considering six representative target tactile interactions. The algorithm was able to find couplings between each device’s motor inputs, proving it to be a viable approach to optimize the design of wearable and portable cutaneous devices. Finally, we present two examples of optimized designs for our 3-DoF fingertip cutaneous device.
hi Pacchierotti, C., Young, E. M., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Task-Driven PCA-Based Design Optimization of Wearable Cutaneous Devices IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(3):2214-2221, July 2018, Presented at ICRA 2018 (article)
Convergence Rates of Gaussian ODE Filters
Kersting, H., Sullivan, T. J., Hennig, P.
arXiv preprint 2018, arXiv:1807.09737 [math.NA], July 2018 (article)
A recently-introduced class of probabilistic (uncertainty-aware) solvers for ordinary differential equations (ODEs) applies Gaussian (Kalman) filtering to initial value problems. These methods model the true solution $x$ and its first $q$ derivatives a priori as a Gauss--Markov process $\boldsymbol{X}$, which is then iteratively conditioned on information about $\dot{x}$. We prove worst-case local convergence rates of order $h^{q+1}$ for a wide range of versions of this Gaussian ODE filter, as well as global convergence rates of order $h^q$ in the case of $q=1$ and an integrated Brownian motion prior, and analyse how inaccurate information on $\dot{x}$ coming from approximate evaluations of $f$ affects these rates. Moreover, we present explicit formulas for the steady states and show that the posterior confidence intervals are well calibrated in all considered cases that exhibit global convergence---in the sense that they globally contract at the same rate as the truncation error.
pn Kersting, H., Sullivan, T. J., Hennig, P. Convergence Rates of Gaussian ODE Filters arXiv preprint 2018, arXiv:1807.09737 [math.NA], July 2018 (article)
Teaching a Robot Bimanual Hand-Clapping Games via Wrist-Worn IMUs
Frontiers in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence, 5(85), July 2018 (article)
Colleagues often shake hands in greeting, friends connect through high fives, and children around the world rejoice in hand-clapping games. As robots become more common in everyday human life, they will have the opportunity to join in these social-physical interactions, but few current robots are intended to touch people in friendly ways. This article describes how we enabled a Baxter Research Robot to both teach and learn bimanual hand-clapping games with a human partner. Our system monitors the user's motions via a pair of inertial measurement units (IMUs) worn on the wrists. We recorded a labeled library of 10 common hand-clapping movements from 10 participants; this dataset was used to train an SVM classifier to automatically identify hand-clapping motions from previously unseen participants with a test-set classification accuracy of 97.0%. Baxter uses these sensors and this classifier to quickly identify the motions of its human gameplay partner, so that it can join in hand-clapping games. This system was evaluated by N = 24 naïve users in an experiment that involved learning sequences of eight motions from Baxter, teaching Baxter eight-motion game patterns, and completing a free interaction period. The motion classification accuracy in this less structured setting was 85.9%, primarily due to unexpected variations in motion timing. The quantitative task performance results and qualitative participant survey responses showed that learning games from Baxter was significantly easier than teaching games to Baxter, and that the teaching role caused users to consider more teamwork aspects of the gameplay. Over the course of the experiment, people felt more understood by Baxter and became more willing to follow the example of the robot. Users felt uniformly safe interacting with Baxter, and they expressed positive opinions of Baxter and reported fun interacting with the robot. Taken together, the results indicate that this robot achieved credible social-physical interaction with humans and that its ability to both lead and follow systematically changed the human partner's experience.
hi Fitter, N. T., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Teaching a Robot Bimanual Hand-Clapping Games via Wrist-Worn IMUs Frontiers in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence, 5(85), July 2018 (article)
Real-time Perception meets Reactive Motion Generation
(Best Systems Paper Finalists - Amazon Robotics Best Paper Awards in Manipulation)
Kappler, D., Meier, F., Issac, J., Mainprice, J., Garcia Cifuentes, C., Wüthrich, M., Berenz, V., Schaal, S., Ratliff, N., Bohg, J.
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(3):1864-1871, July 2018 (article)
We address the challenging problem of robotic grasping and manipulation in the presence of uncertainty. This uncertainty is due to noisy sensing, inaccurate models and hard-to-predict environment dynamics. Our approach emphasizes the importance of continuous, real-time perception and its tight integration with reactive motion generation methods. We present a fully integrated system where real-time object and robot tracking as well as ambient world modeling provides the necessary input to feedback controllers and continuous motion optimizers. Specifically, they provide attractive and repulsive potentials based on which the controllers and motion optimizer can online compute movement policies at different time intervals. We extensively evaluate the proposed system on a real robotic platform in four scenarios that exhibit either challenging workspace geometry or a dynamic environment. We compare the proposed integrated system with a more traditional sense-plan-act approach that is still widely used. In 333 experiments, we show the robustness and accuracy of the proposed system.
arxiv video video link (url) DOI Project Page [BibTex]
am Kappler, D., Meier, F., Issac, J., Mainprice, J., Garcia Cifuentes, C., Wüthrich, M., Berenz, V., Schaal, S., Ratliff, N., Bohg, J. Real-time Perception meets Reactive Motion Generation IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(3):1864-1871, July 2018 (article)
Innate turning preference of leaf-cutting ants in the absence of external orientation cues
Endlein, T., Sitti, M.
Journal of Experimental Biology, The Company of Biologists Ltd, June 2018 (article)
Many ants use a combination of cues for orientation but how do ants find their way when all external cues are suppressed? Do they walk in a random way or are their movements spatially oriented? Here we show for the first time that leaf-cutting ants (Acromyrmex lundii) have an innate preference of turning counter-clockwise (left) when external cues are precluded. We demonstrated this by allowing individual ants to run freely on the water surface of a newly-developed treadmill. The surface tension supported medium-sized workers but effectively prevented ants from reaching the wall of the vessel, important to avoid wall-following behaviour (thigmotaxis). Most ants ran for minutes on the spot but also slowly turned counter-clockwise in the absence of visual cues. Reconstructing the effectively walked path revealed a looping pattern which could be interpreted as a search strategy. A similar turning bias was shown for groups of ants in a symmetrical Y-maze where twice as many ants chose the left branch in the absence of optical cues. Wall-following behaviour was tested by inserting a coiled tube before the Y-fork. When ants traversed a left-coiled tube, more ants chose the left box and vice versa. Adding visual cues in form of vertical black strips either outside the treadmill or on one branch of the Y-maze led to oriented walks towards the strips. It is suggested that both, the turning bias and the wall-following are employed as search strategies for an unknown environment which can be overridden by visual cues.
pi Endlein, T., Sitti, M. Innate turning preference of leaf-cutting ants in the absence of external orientation cues Journal of Experimental Biology, The Company of Biologists Ltd, June 2018 (article)
Motility and chemotaxis of bacteria-driven microswimmers fabricated using antigen 43-mediated biotin display
Schauer, O., Mostaghaci, B., Colin, R., Hürtgen, D., Kraus, D., Sitti, M., Sourjik, V.
Scientific Reports, 8(1):9801, Nature Publishing Group, June 2018 (article)
Bacteria-driven biohybrid microswimmers (bacteriabots) combine synthetic cargo with motile living bacteria that enable propulsion and steering. Although fabrication and potential use of such bacteriabots have attracted much attention, existing methods of fabrication require an extensive sample preparation that can drastically decrease the viability and motility of bacteria. Moreover, chemotactic behavior of bacteriabots in a liquid medium with chemical gradients has remained largely unclear. To overcome these shortcomings, we designed Escherichia coli to autonomously display biotin on its cell surface via the engineered autotransporter antigen 43 and thus to bind streptavidin-coated cargo. We show that the cargo attachment to these bacteria is greatly enhanced by motility and occurs predominantly at the cell poles, which is greatly beneficial for the fabrication of motile bacteriabots. We further performed a systemic study to understand and optimize the ability of these bacteriabots to follow chemical gradients. We demonstrate that the chemotaxis of bacteriabots is primarily limited by the cargo-dependent reduction of swimming speed and show that the fabrication of bacteriabots using elongated E. coli cells can be used to overcome this limitation.
pi Schauer, O., Mostaghaci, B., Colin, R., Hürtgen, D., Kraus, D., Sitti, M., Sourjik, V. Motility and chemotaxis of bacteria-driven microswimmers fabricated using antigen 43-mediated biotin display Scientific Reports, 8(1):9801, Nature Publishing Group, June 2018 (article)
Multifunctional ferrofluid-infused surfaces with reconfigurable multiscale topography
Wang, W., Timonen, J. V. I., Carlson, A., Drotlef, D., Zhang, C. T., Kolle, S., Grinthal, A., Wong, T., Hatton, B., Kang, S. H., Kennedy, S., Chi, J., Blough, R. T., Sitti, M., Mahadevan, L., Aizenberg, J.
Nature, June 2018 (article)
Developing adaptive materials with geometries that change in response to external stimuli provides fundamental insights into the links between the physical forces involved and the resultant morphologies and creates a foundation for technologically relevant dynamic systems1,2. In particular, reconfigurable surface topography as a means to control interfacial properties 3 has recently been explored using responsive gels 4 , shape-memory polymers 5 , liquid crystals6-8 and hybrid composites9-14, including magnetically active slippery surfaces12-14. However, these designs exhibit a limited range of topographical changes and thus a restricted scope of function. Here we introduce a hierarchical magneto-responsive composite surface, made by infiltrating a ferrofluid into a microstructured matrix (termed ferrofluid-containing liquid-infused porous surfaces, or FLIPS). We demonstrate various topographical reconfigurations at multiple length scales and a broad range of associated emergent behaviours. An applied magnetic-field gradient induces the movement of magnetic nanoparticles suspended in the ferrofluid, which leads to microscale flow of the ferrofluid first above and then within the microstructured surface. This redistribution changes the initially smooth surface of the ferrofluid (which is immobilized by the porous matrix through capillary forces) into various multiscale hierarchical topographies shaped by the size, arrangement and orientation of the confining microstructures in the magnetic field. We analyse the spatial and temporal dynamics of these reconfigurations theoretically and experimentally as a function of the balance between capillary and magnetic pressures15-19 and of the geometric anisotropy of the FLIPS system. Several interesting functions at three different length scales are demonstrated: self-assembly of colloidal particles at the micrometre scale; regulated flow of liquid droplets at the millimetre scale; and switchable adhesion and friction, liquid pumping and removal of biofilms at the centimetre scale. We envision that FLIPS could be used as part of integrated control systems for the manipulation and transport of matter, thermal management, microfluidics and fouling-release materials.
pi Wang, W., Timonen, J. V. I., Carlson, A., Drotlef, D., Zhang, C. T., Kolle, S., Grinthal, A., Wong, T., Hatton, B., Kang, S. H., Kennedy, S., Chi, J., Blough, R. T., Sitti, M., Mahadevan, L., Aizenberg, J. Multifunctional ferrofluid-infused surfaces with reconfigurable multiscale topography Nature, June 2018 (article)
Colloidal Chemical Nanomotors
Alarcon-Correa, M.
Colloidal Chemical Nanomotors, pages: 150, Cuvillier Verlag, MPI-IS , June 2018 (phdthesis)
Synthetic sophisticated nanostructures represent a fundamental building block for the development of nanotechnology. The fabrication of nanoparticles complex in structure and material composition is key to build nanomachines that can operate as man-made nanoscale motors, which autonomously convert external energy into motion. To achieve this, asymmetric nanoparticles were fabricated combining a physical vapor deposition technique known as NanoGLAD and wet chemical synthesis. This thesis primarily concerns three complex colloidal systems that have been developed: i)Hollow nanocup inclusion complexes that have a single Au nanoparticle in their pocket. The Au particle can be released with an external trigger. ii)The smallest self-propelling nanocolloids that have been made to date, which give rise to a local concentration gradient that causes enhanced diffusion of the particles. iii)Enzyme-powered pumps that have been assembled using bacteriophages as biological nanoscaffolds. This construct also can be used for enzyme recovery after heterogeneous catalysis.
pf Alarcon-Correa, M. Colloidal Chemical Nanomotors Colloidal Chemical Nanomotors, pages: 150, Cuvillier Verlag, MPI-IS , June 2018 (phdthesis)
Oncilla robot: a versatile open-source quadruped research robot with compliant pantograph legs
Sproewitz, A., Tuleu, A., Ajallooeian, M., Vespignani, M., Moeckel, R., Eckert, P., D’Haene, M., Degrave, J., Nordmann, A., Schrauwen, B., Steil, J., Ijspeert, A. J.
Frontiers in Robotics and AI, 5(67), June 2018, arXiv: 1803.06259 (article)
We present Oncilla robot, a novel mobile, quadruped legged locomotion machine. This large-cat sized, 5.1 robot is one of a kind of a recent, bioinspired legged robot class designed with the capability of model-free locomotion control. Animal legged locomotion in rough terrain is clearly shaped by sensor feedback systems. Results with Oncilla robot show that agile and versatile locomotion is possible without sensory signals to some extend, and tracking becomes robust when feedback control is added (Ajaoolleian 2015). By incorporating mechanical and control blueprints inspired from animals, and by observing the resulting robot locomotion characteristics, we aim to understand the contribution of individual components. Legged robots have a wide mechanical and control design parameter space, and a unique potential as research tools to investigate principles of biomechanics and legged locomotion control. But the hardware and controller design can be a steep initial hurdle for academic research. To facilitate the easy start and development of legged robots, Oncilla-robot's blueprints are available through open-source. [...]
dlg Sproewitz, A., Tuleu, A., Ajallooeian, M., Vespignani, M., Moeckel, R., Eckert, P., D’Haene, M., Degrave, J., Nordmann, A., Schrauwen, B., Steil, J., Ijspeert, A. J. Oncilla robot: a versatile open-source quadruped research robot with compliant pantograph legs Frontiers in Robotics and AI, 5(67), June 2018, arXiv: 1803.06259 (article)
Self-Sensing Paper Actuators Based on Graphite–Carbon Nanotube Hybrid Films
Amjadi, M., Sitti, M.
Advanced Science, pages: 1800239, May 2018 (article)
Abstract Soft actuators have demonstrated potential in a range of applications, including soft robotics, artificial muscles, and biomimetic devices. However, the majority of current soft actuators suffer from the lack of real-time sensory feedback, prohibiting their effective sensing and multitask function. Here, a promising strategy is reported to design bilayer electrothermal actuators capable of simultaneous actuation and sensation (i.e., self-sensing actuators), merely through two input electric terminals. Decoupled electrothermal stimulation and strain sensation is achieved by the optimal combination of graphite microparticles and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in the form of hybrid films. By finely tuning the charge transport properties of hybrid films, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of self-sensing actuators is remarkably enhanced to over 66. As a result, self-sensing actuators can actively track their displacement and distinguish the touch of soft and hard objects.
pi Amjadi, M., Sitti, M. Self-Sensing Paper Actuators Based on Graphite–Carbon Nanotube Hybrid Films Advanced Science, pages: 1800239, May 2018 (article)
Bioinspired microrobots
Palagi, S., Fischer, P.
Nature Reviews Materials, 3, pages: 113–124, May 2018 (article)
Microorganisms can move in complex media, respond to the environment and self-organize. The field of microrobotics strives to achieve these functions in mobile robotic systems of sub-millimetre size. However, miniaturization of traditional robots and their control systems to the microscale is not a viable approach. A promising alternative strategy in developing microrobots is to implement sensing, actuation and control directly in the materials, thereby mimicking biological matter. In this Review, we discuss design principles and materials for the implementation of robotic functionalities in microrobots. We examine different biological locomotion strategies, and we discuss how they can be artificially recreated in magnetic microrobots and how soft materials improve control and performance. We show that smart, stimuli-responsive materials can act as on-board sensors and actuators and that ‘active matter’ enables autonomous motion, navigation and collective behaviours. Finally, we provide a critical outlook for the field of microrobotics and highlight the challenges that need to be overcome to realize sophisticated microrobots, which one day might rival biological machines.
pf Palagi, S., Fischer, P. Bioinspired microrobots Nature Reviews Materials, 3, pages: 113–124, May 2018 (article)
Assisting Movement Training and Execution With Visual and Haptic Feedback
Ewerton, M., Rother, D., Weimar, J., Kollegger, G., Wiemeyer, J., Peters, J., Maeda, G.
Frontiers in Neurorobotics, 12, May 2018 (article)
ei Ewerton, M., Rother, D., Weimar, J., Kollegger, G., Wiemeyer, J., Peters, J., Maeda, G. Assisting Movement Training and Execution With Visual and Haptic Feedback Frontiers in Neurorobotics, 12, May 2018 (article)
Learning 3D Shape Completion under Weak Supervision
Stutz, D., Geiger, A.
Arxiv, May 2018 (article)
We address the problem of 3D shape completion from sparse and noisy point clouds, a fundamental problem in computer vision and robotics. Recent approaches are either data-driven or learning-based: Data-driven approaches rely on a shape model whose parameters are optimized to fit the observations; Learning-based approaches, in contrast, avoid the expensive optimization step by learning to directly predict complete shapes from incomplete observations in a fully-supervised setting. However, full supervision is often not available in practice. In this work, we propose a weakly-supervised learning-based approach to 3D shape completion which neither requires slow optimization nor direct supervision. While we also learn a shape prior on synthetic data, we amortize, i.e., learn, maximum likelihood fitting using deep neural networks resulting in efficient shape completion without sacrificing accuracy. On synthetic benchmarks based on ShapeNet and ModelNet as well as on real robotics data from KITTI and Kinect, we demonstrate that the proposed amortized maximum likelihood approach is able to compete with fully supervised baselines and outperforms data-driven approaches, while requiring less supervision and being significantly faster.
avg Stutz, D., Geiger, A. Learning 3D Shape Completion under Weak Supervision Arxiv, May 2018 (article)
Nonlinear decoding of a complex movie from the mammalian retina
Botella-Soler, V., Deny, S., Martius, G., Marre, O., Tkačik, G.
PLOS Computational Biology, 14(5):1-27, Public Library of Science, May 2018 (article)
Author summary Neurons in the retina transform patterns of incoming light into sequences of neural spikes. We recorded from ∼100 neurons in the rat retina while it was stimulated with a complex movie. Using machine learning regression methods, we fit decoders to reconstruct the movie shown from the retinal output. We demonstrated that retinal code can only be read out with a low error if decoders make use of correlations between successive spikes emitted by individual neurons. These correlations can be used to ignore spontaneous spiking that would, otherwise, cause even the best linear decoders to “hallucinate” nonexistent stimuli. This work represents the first high resolution single-trial full movie reconstruction and suggests a new paradigm for separating spontaneous from stimulus-driven neural activity.
al Botella-Soler, V., Deny, S., Martius, G., Marre, O., Tkačik, G. Nonlinear decoding of a complex movie from the mammalian retina PLOS Computational Biology, 14(5):1-27, Public Library of Science, May 2018 (article)
Graphene-silver hybrid devices for sensitive photodetection in the ultraviolet
Paria, D., Jeong, H. H., Vadakkumbatt, V., Deshpande, P., Fischer, P., Ghosh, A., Ghosh, A.
Nanoscale, 10, pages: 7685-7693, April 2018 (article)
The weak light-matter interaction in graphene can be enhanced with a number of strategies, among which sensitization with plasmonic nanostructures is particularly attractive. This has resulted in the development of graphene-plasmonic hybrid systems with strongly enhanced photodetection efficiencies in the visible and the IR, but none in the UV. Here, we describe a silver nanoparticle-graphene stacked optoelectronic device that shows strong enhancement of its photoresponse across the entire UV spectrum. The device fabrication strategy is scalable and modular. Self-assembly techniques are combined with physical shadow growth techniques to fabricate a regular large-area array of 50 nm silver nanoparticles onto which CVD graphene is transferred. The presence of the silver nanoparticles resulted in a plasmonically enhanced photoresponse as high as 3.2 A W-1 in the wavelength range from 330 nm to 450 nm. At lower wavelengths, close to the Van Hove singularity of the density of states in graphene, we measured an even higher responsivity of 14.5 A W-1 at 280 nm, which corresponds to a more than 10 000-fold enhancement over the photoresponse of native graphene.
pf Paria, D., Jeong, H. H., Vadakkumbatt, V., Deshpande, P., Fischer, P., Ghosh, A., Ghosh, A. Graphene-silver hybrid devices for sensitive photodetection in the ultraviolet Nanoscale, 10, pages: 7685-7693, April 2018 (article)
Nanoparticles on the move for medicine
Physics World Focus on Nanotechnology, pages: 26028, (Editors: Margaret Harris), IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors, April 2018 (article)
Peer Fischer outlines the prospects for creating “nanoswimmers” that can be steered through the body to deliver drugs directly to their targets Molecules don’t move very fast on their own. If they had to rely solely on diffusion – a slow and inefficient process linked to the Brownian motion of small particles and molecules in solution – then a protein molecule, for instance, would take around three weeks to travel a single centimetre down a nerve fibre. This is why active transport mechanisms exist in cells and in the human body: without them, all the processes of life would happen at a pace that would make snails look speedy.
pf Fischer, P. Nanoparticles on the move for medicine Physics World Focus on Nanotechnology, pages: 26028, (Editors: Margaret Harris), IOP Publishing Ltd and individual contributors, April 2018 (article)
Mixture of Attractors: A Novel Movement Primitive Representation for Learning Motor Skills From Demonstrations
Manschitz, S., Gienger, M., Kober, J., Peters, J.
IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(2):926-933, April 2018 (article)
ei Manschitz, S., Gienger, M., Kober, J., Peters, J. Mixture of Attractors: A Novel Movement Primitive Representation for Learning Motor Skills From Demonstrations IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, 3(2):926-933, April 2018 (article)
Soft erythrocyte-based bacterial microswimmers for cargo delivery
Alapan, Y., Yasa, O., Schauer, O., Giltinan, J., Tabak, A. F., Sourjik, V., Sitti, M.
Science Robotics, 3(17):eaar4423, Science Robotics, April 2018 (article)
Bacteria-propelled biohybrid microswimmers have recently shown to be able to actively transport and deliver cargos encapsulated into their synthetic constructs to specific regions locally. However, usage of synthetic materials as cargo carriers can result in inferior performance in load-carrying efficiency, biocompatibility, and biodegradability, impeding clinical translation of biohybrid microswimmers. Here, we report construction and external guidance of bacteria-driven microswimmers using red blood cells (RBCs; erythrocytes) as autologous cargo carriers for active and guided drug delivery. Multifunctional biohybrid microswimmers were fabricated by attachment of RBCs [loaded with anticancer doxorubicin drug molecules and superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs)] to bioengineered motile bacteria, Escherichia coli MG1655, via biotin-avidin-biotin binding complex. Autonomous and on-board propulsion of biohybrid microswimmers was provided by bacteria, and their external magnetic guidance was enabled by SPIONs loaded into the RBCs. Furthermore, bacteria-driven RBC microswimmers displayed preserved deformability and attachment stability even after squeezing in microchannels smaller than their sizes, as in the case of bare RBCs. In addition, an on-demand light-activated hyperthermia termination switch was engineered for RBC microswimmers to control bacteria population after operations. RBCs, as biological and autologous cargo carriers in the biohybrid microswimmers, offer notable advantages in stability, deformability, biocompatibility, and biodegradability over synthetic cargo-carrier materials. The biohybrid microswimmer design presented here transforms RBCs from passive cargo carriers into active and guidable cargo carriers toward targeted drug and other cargo delivery applications in medicine.
link (url) DOI Project Page Project Page [BibTex]
pi Alapan, Y., Yasa, O., Schauer, O., Giltinan, J., Tabak, A. F., Sourjik, V., Sitti, M. Soft erythrocyte-based bacterial microswimmers for cargo delivery Science Robotics, 3(17):eaar4423, Science Robotics, April 2018 (article)
Automatically Rating Trainee Skill at a Pediatric Laparoscopic Suturing Task
Surgical Endoscopy, 32(4):1840-1857, April 2018 (article)
hi Oquendo, Y. A., Riddle, E. W., Hiller, D., Blinman, T. A., Kuchenbecker, K. J. Automatically Rating Trainee Skill at a Pediatric Laparoscopic Suturing Task Surgical Endoscopy, 32(4):1840-1857, April 2018 (article)
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MainJudaismChalom - dream
Chalom - dream
The Torah Portion of VaYeiShev Genesis 37:1–40:23,
Insights into “Word Concepts” in Torah: Everything is possible in a dream.
Moshe Kempinski, 30/11/18 13:47 | updated: 13:37
Soldiers sleep.
צילום: PR
Moshe Kempinski
Moshe Kempinski, author of "The Teacher and the Preacher", is the editor of the Jerusalem Insights weekly email journal and co-owner of Shorashim, a Biblical shop and learning center in the Old City of Jerusalem.
More from the author ►
The children of Leah and of Rachel were gripped in a struggle of rivalry. The emotional turmoil that accompanied the marriage of Leah and the births of the children inevitably impacted the children, children who grew up under the intricate shadow of these events.
Then we read the following;
And Israel loved Joseph more than all his sons, because he was a son of his old age; and he made him a fine woolen coat.
And his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, so they hated him, and they could not speak with him peacefully.( Genesis 37:3-4)
Then Joseph has a dream. In his young and impulsive way, he shares that dream with his brothers
and Joseph dreamed a dream ( a Chalom) and told his brothers and they increased (VaYosifu) their hatred of him ( ibid:5)
Yet in spite of their reaction , Yosef continues to share a second dream. This additional “sharing” brings about the inevitable result
And he again dreamed ( VaYachlom) another dream, (Chalom) and he related it to his brothers, and he said, 'Behold, I have dreamed another dream, (Chalom), and behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were prostrating themselves to me.' And he told [it] to his father and to his brothers, and his father rebuked him and said to him, 'What is this dream, (Chalom )_that you have dreamed? Will we come I, your mother, and your brothers to prostrate ourselves to you to the ground?'So his brothers envied him, but his father awaited the matter.”(ibid 9-11)
What possessed Yosef to continue to anger his brothers with a description of his dream . After all it was just a dream, Chalom? Furthermore what can be understood by the mysterious words “But his father kept the matter”?
The mystery and power of a dream,(Chalom ) lies in the fact that all things can coexist in a dream. Emotions that contradict each other can permeate a dream where even the impossible coexists with the possible. They seem to come out of the deepest parts of our souls and whisper of hopes and hidden desires. Yet, at the same time, they rage with the passion of the greatest fears along with the most delicate of hopes.
The first exile of the Jews began with dreams. The dreams of Jacob, followed by the dreams of Joseph and Pharaoh all culminated in the long exile of Egypt. Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi , the Baal HaTanya, explains that exile was born out of a succession of dreams because exile is the ultimate dream.
It is in this world of spiritual exile that white is seen as black and black is seen as white. It is a situation in which opposites reign, and seven fat cows in Pharaoh’s dream can be eaten by seven lean cows and the lean remain lean.
Spiritual exile is exile from simple unadulterated truth, just as it is in a dream. It is a dream that is cluttered with unwarranted exaggeration, muddled and confused metaphors, with consistent inconsistency.
Everything is possible in a dream.
Yet, as Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook writes, everything is possible in a dream - both the negative and the positive. A single dream may contain conflicting messages, since it reflects the conflicting qualities within each soul. Such is true of the collective soul of a people as well. When the wine butler tells Pharaoh about the unusual slave he met in prison called Joseph, he says, "Just as he interpreted, so (my dream) came to be." (Genesis 41:13)
This prompted our sages to declare a fact that has been increasingly adopted by modern psychology: "Dreams are fulfilled according to their interpretation." (Berachot 55b)
The interpreter does not refashion the future, rather he reaches into the positive depths of each conflicted dreamer. Look to the dreamers who may be found in all the various political spheres and ideologies. The Dream empowers the dreamer to live up to those qualities.
There are those in this country who will interpret the dream that is our reality with predictions of doom and gloom. There are others, though, who will reach deeper and find the qualities of hope and vision that will lead this people into a safe harbor.
Moving forward in life, then, is about making a choice as to what one must do with the dream that rises up in one’s heart and soul. Many will ignore them. Many will be fearful of them because the unknown remains too overwhelming. Yet there will be those who will seize the hopeful and the sacred underpinning of the dream,(Chalom) and breathe life into it. It will be those dreamers that will make the impossible possible.
"A Song of Ascents: When Hashem brought back those that returned to Zion, we were as dreamers." (Psalms 126:1)
LeRefuat Yehudit bat Golda Yocheved and Yehudit bat Esther
Tags:sleep, dreamers
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Home » Ara, Devices, Google, google, Handsets, Lenovo, Mergers & Acquisitions, Motorola Mobility, Patents
How Google Sold Motorola At A Loss And Still Won
NT Balanarayan
By NT Balanarayan balu@medianama.com January 30, 2014
Google decided to sell parts of Motorola Mobility, it had bought for $12.5 billion to Lenovo for $2.9 billion and at a glance it looks like Google has suffered a big loss with the whole deal, but the truth couldn’t be more different.
This deal will help Lenovo get a stronger foothold in US market and help eliminate competition for its lower end products in markets such as India and South East Asia. However, Google has a bigger goal in mind and it will be able to achieve that with this move.
The big win: Google will hold on to Advance Technology Group that’s working on Ara project. This group has been building modular phones, the components of which can be easily upgraded much like in a PC. By holding on to this unit, Google has ensured that it has an R&D team working on mobile phones that can now start working on Nexus line of devices.
Since it no longer controls Motorola, this unit can be rolled into the Google juggernaut. SEC or FCC cannot raise anti-competitive concerns either since Google then no longer manufactures its own devices. If Motorola was part of Google, the company would not have been able to make such a move without all its partners crying foul. After Google purchased of Motorola, bigger smartphone manufacturers such as Samsung had started working on their own operating systems while LG bought Web OS allegedly to power its smart TVs.
If Google can come up with a price sensitive set-up to build, sell and maintain modular smart phone devices, they can then license the technology to these vendors and one-up Apple and Microsoft. Or it could start manufacturing its own phones in the distant future by outsourcing the manufacturing work to companies such as Foxconn and selling the handsets exclusively online like it does with Nexus devices.
Patents: Google will hold on to most of the Motorola patents according to Techcrunch, which was reportedly one of the reasons it decided to pay top dollars for the American phone manufacturer. Buying Motorola in 2012 gave Google access to 17,000 patents, plus an extra 7,500 that were awaiting approval then.
Out of these, Google is only transferring 2,000 patents to Lenovo. It’s not clear how many of these are FRAND category, but it’s worth noting that Google has not been able to win any case against Apple using Motorola’s patents to date. Even then, the fact that Google has managed to hold on to most of them is a big win as it gives it the freedom to work on pushing the smartphone technology without being sued at every step in the process.
How much money lost? To begin with Google had sold Motorola’s home video business to Arris for $2.2 billion cash and 10.6 million Arris shares (which is worth $2.56 billion with each Arris share priced at $25.56 now). So the value of the deal is more than $2.2 billion that everyone is reporting and around $4.7 billion+ territory.
Then deduct the $2.9 billion it’s getting from Lenovo and the $3 billion Motorola had in bank when it was bought, Google only lost $1.9 billion or so with Motorola Mobility takeover. For that $1.9 billion though, Google got Motorola’s R&D division that is working on the next evolution of smartphones and lion’s share of the patents.
So Google did not lose in this deal, instead they have figured out a clever workarounds to all the regulations and ensured that the company can play a direct role in the smartphone game which it couldn’t do with Motorola as a separate entity. They have taken all the parts of Motorola that makes sense to Google and sold of the rest at very competitive prices
So Lenovo’s the sucker? Not at all, Lenovo gets a leg up in an over saturated US smartphone market. Instead of spending billions building their smartphone brand, relationships with carriers, assembly plants etc. the company will now use Motorola branding, relations and infrastructure in US as it now has the rights for ‘Motorola Mobility’. The only sucker in this deal are the regulators who cannot raise any objection to this deal, but could have objected to Google merging Motorola into its folds.
I'm passionate about technology and gaming. You can follow me @chupchap
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There seem to be 2 discrepancies here:
1) If Arris paid stock with 10.6mil shares and current share price is $25.56, then
the worth is 0.27 billion, not $2.56 bil (adjustment = $2.2bil)
2) The fact that Motorola had $3bil in the bank at the time of acquisition does
not mean that Google paid $3bil less than the stated value of $12.5bil.
The $12.5 bil is Total Enterprise Value (TEV), which takes into account existing
cash in the company being acquired (here, $3bil). The amount a company is acquired
for is always reported as TEV. It makes intuitive sense too, right - why would
Google pay $12.5 bil only to get back $3bil in cash? If so, the acquisition
price would be $12.5 - $3 = $9.5bil
Given these adjustments, the total loss is ($1.9+$2.2+$3) = $7.1bil
Chor January 30, 2014
The patents are worth far less than they were at that time. Factor in alternate uses of the cash, and the money lost is likely to be a good deal more. But nevertheless, Google seems to have gotten what it wanted. Samsung on its side again, peace with regulators, access to patents and Motorola's R&D group, which might produce interesting results with Ara, and getting rid of the hardware business for good.
chupchap January 30, 2014
Good point about the value of the patents.
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Maserati Stamps
Stamps from around the world featuring Maseratis
When Roger, here in the UK, sent me an email containing an image of a stamp from the Caribbean Island of St Vincent featuring a Maserati Ghibli, I decided to do a little research to see how many other countries have featured a Maserati, or a Maserati related theme, on their stamps.
I was pleasantly surprised by the results !
"Ciao Enrico,
Here is a scan of the stamp from St Vincent with a Maserati Ghibli on it. Part of a series issued across 15 islands in the Commonwealth in the 80s to celebrate 100 years of the auto.
There is a Citroen SM on one of the stamps, but I believe no other Maseratis. As and when I come across other Maseratis on stamps, postcards, etc I’ll send copies of them to you.
Roger."
Maserati Ghibli Coupe
From the Island of St Vincent
From Island of Nui in the South Pacific State of Tuvalu
Other stamps that feature Maseratis that originate from Islands in the Caribbean and South Pacific.
Maserati 8CTF "Boyle Special"
From Island of Bequia in the Grenadines of St. Vincent
From the Caribbean Island of Nevis
From the Caribbean Islands of Turks & Caicos
From the République Fédérale Islamique des Comores
From the Caribbean Island of Grenada
More Maserati stamps.
From Monaco
Maserati 4CL
Maserati Quattroporte III
Maserati 4CLT/48 "San Remo"
From Uruguay
Maserati 4CLT/48 "Reg Parnell"
From the Isle of Man
From Malawi
Maserati Indy Coupe
From Ajman, United Arab Emirates
1951: Reg Parnell at the wheel of his Maserati 4CLT
Isle of Man stamp 20p value
The Castletown Trophy for Formula Libre was won by Reg Parnell, one of Britain's top drivers in 1951, driving a Maserati. The beginning of the race was massed with the Manx Cup and there were two non-starters and five entries, three of whom retired. Parnell won nearly a lap ahead of rival David Murray, the only other finisher who was defeated by a series of unlucky events from the start. The race was held over 18 laps, a 70 mile course, which Parnell completed in 59 mins 49 sees at an average speed of 70.04mph. He created new time and speed records for cars of unlimited capacity - the last time had been in 1948, when Ken Bear won in 66 mins 37secs at 66.29mph.
In 1951 there was a battle for the BRDC Gold Star award which included the title of "Champion Driver of Great Britain". Moss was leading with 34 points, Parnell was in 4th place, but moved into second place as the other competitors, Whitehead and Brown were not competing.
The Isle of Man Post Office gratefully acknowledges the assistance of the Manx Motor Racing Club Ltd, the Manx Museum, the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu and Brian Crookall, Isle of Man, in the preparation of this issue.
"Hello Enrico:
I hope you are well.
You can add this one to your collection.
Australian issue, apparently it is possible to produce tailor made stamps there with anything you like within reason, for local use.
Obviously the photo is from a factory Khamsin brochure.
Bought this off Ebay a few years ago. There are 2 or 3 other versions.
Curious to know if anybody knows of any Khamsins on stamps form other countries?
Marc Sonnery - Maserati Khamsin Registry"
To enter Enrico's Maserati Pages CLICK HERE!
Copyright: Enrico's Maserati Pages - © 2011. All rights reserved.
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中南大学学报:医学版:Medical sciences(161)
Association of valproic acid and 2-propyl-4-pentenoic acid concentrations with adverse reaction in 254 Chinese patients with epilepsy 期刊论文
Zhong nan da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Central South University. Medical sciences ISSN:1672-7347 Volume:44 Issue:7 Page:775
Ma Hongying; Zhu Wu; Wang Can; Pan Jing; Yang Xue; ...
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To investigate the correlation of the concentrations of valproic acid (VPA) and 2-propyl-4-pentenoic acid (4-ene-VPA) with their adverse reactions, and to guide the clinical safety and rational use of VPA.
Methods: We collected 254 epilepsy outpatients who took long-term use of sodium valproate oral solution single or combined with other antiepileptic drugs from Xiangya Hospital. The plasma concentrations of VPA and 4-ene-VPA in patients were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The double variable correlation analysis was performed to analyze the effect of plasma 4-ene-VPA and VPA concentrations on adverse reactions.
Results: The correlations between the PLT level and the dosage of VPA (P0.05), and the levels of ALT also did not show positive correlation with the concentrations of 4-ene-VPA and VPA (r=-0.064, r=-0.089, all P>0.05).
Conclusion: VPA may affect blood routine indexes. Age and combination therapy with the non-enzyme-induced anti-epileptic drugs are risk factors for VPA-related liver dysfunctions and renal impairment. The determination of VPA and 4-ene VPA is not a suitable tool for early warning of the VPA-induced liver dysfunction.
Association between cancer concealment and the survival of the patients with non-small cell lung carcinoma 期刊论文
Jiang Ying; Luo Fanyan; Zhou Wolong; Ouyang Yanlan; Lin Yaqiong;
To explore the relationship between cancer awareness and the survival of the patients with non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC).
Methods: A total of 865 NSCLC patients were screened for the risk factors, including age, gender, address, tumor/lymph nodes/metastasis (TNM) stage, and cancer awareness. Survival of the patients was calculated by Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression analysis.
Results: After an average observation time of 304 d (ranging from 0 to 4 718 d), 62 of the 394 patients in the cancer awareness group survived, whereas 26 of the 471 patients in the cancer concealment group survived. Cancer-specific and all-cause survival was poorer in the cancer concealment group (P<0.001 for each, log-rank test). Cox multivariate regression analysis showed that cancer concealment displayed significantly lower cancer-specific survival [hazard ratio (HR)=1.534, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.320 to 1.784, P<0.001] and all-cause survival (HR=1.558, 95% CI 1.346 to 1.803, P<0.001).
Conclusion: Cancer concealment is associated with a poor survival of NSCLC patients, which may prohibit the patients from obtaining the real "right to survival".
Transumbilical endoscopic surgery in the diagnosis of ascites of unknown origin 期刊论文
Long Yu; Tang Anliu; Tian Li; Luo Weiwei; Liu Rui; ...
To explore whether transumbilical endoscopic surgery (TUES) can effectively and safely elucidate the causes of ascites of unknown origin.
Methods: A total of 23 consecutive patients with ascites of unknown origin who undertook TUES procedures in the Department of Gastroenterology of The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University between January 2014 and January 2016 were retrospectively investigated. Clinical manifestations, laboratory examinations and findings from radiological examinations and endoscopic investigations were noted before the procedure. Conditions of the abdominal cavity under endoscope, final diagnosis and outcome of patients were carefully recorded.
Results: TUES procedure was successfully performed in all 23 patients with an operation time of (58.2±13.9) min. Twenty-two patients were undertaken biopsy on the nodules or masses that found in the abdominal cavity. Definite diagnoses were established in the overwhelming majority of patients (22/23). The most common causes of ascites for the 23 cases was tuberculosis (8 cases), followed by peritoneal carcinomatosis (6 cases), and pseudomyxoma peritonei (5 cases). Operation-related complications, such as postoperative bleeding, perforation, peritonitis, intraabdominal chronic abscesses, were not observed, except one case showed a transient moderate fever in 24 hours after operation. No mortality related to TUES occurred. We concluded that TUES was a feasible, economic and minimally invasive approach to access the peritoneal cavity.
Conclusion: TUES combinated with biopsy can effectively elucidate the causes of ascites of unknown origin.
POEMS syndrome presenting with abdominal distension, lower limb edema and shortness of breath: A case report and literature review 期刊论文
Zhang Jiayi; Ouyang Zeying; Li Rong; Leng Aiming; Liu Ting;
POEMS syndrome is a rare paraneoplastic disorder. A 60-year-old female patient was admitted to the Department of Gastroenterology, Xiangya Hospital of Central South University (Changsha, China), complaining of abdominal distension, severe edema of both lower limbs and shortness of breath for more than 1 year. After intensive and careful medical investigations, the patient manifested with polyneuropathy, M-proteinemia, splenomegaly, lymphadenopathy, hypothyroidism, extravascular volume overload, sclerotic bone lesions, elevated VEGF and pulmonary hypertension. According to the latest diagnostic criteria of POEMS syndrome, this patient met two mandatory major criteria, two other major criteria and three minor criteria, the diagnosis was clear after ruling out differential diagnosis. The patient was treated with dexamethasone and lenalidomide, which relieved her clinical symptoms. The pathogenesis of POEMS syndrome is not fully understood; however, increased levels of vascular endothelial growth factor may contribute to most of the clinical manifestations. This patient had been in physical discomfort for more than 14 months, which seriously affected her quality of life. Clinically, the awareness of early diagnosis and treatment of POEMS syndrome should be improved.
Clinical applications of ear reconstruction with Medpor 期刊论文
Zhang Bihang; Zeng Xiaoling; Yang Xinghua;
To discuss clinical practice, efficacy and surgical techniques for ear reconstruction with Medpor.
Methods: Medpor ear reconstructions were used to treat 19 microtia in 17 patients (including 2 bilateral patients) in Xiangya Hospital, Central South University from January 2011 to December 2015. Reconstructions included 2 patients with one-stage ear reconstruction with temporoparietal fascial flap, 2 patients with one-stage operation implanting Medpor directly into skin pocket, and 13 patients with two-stage ear reconstruction.
Results: After 1-3 years of follow-up, 16 microtia in 14 patients gained ideal appearance. Scaffold exposure occurred in 3 unilateral cases, among which one patient who underwent debridement, removal of superficial exposed scaffold and transposition of local flap to salvage exposure was not significantly influenced, and the other 2 patients' scaffolds were still exposed after repairs and finally removed. One stent was removed at the patient's urging because it induced an exacerbation of periarthritis of the right shoulder.
Conclusion: Medpor ear scaffold has advantages, such as easy assembly, good immunologic compatibility, fast vascular ingrowth, simple operation, short operative time and ideal appearance of the reconstructed ear. Medpor is an alternative for microtia repair when patients are unwilling to use autologous rib cartilage or costal cartilages are calcified. However, the relatively high incidence of scaffold exposure reminds us that the indications of Medpor should be taken seriously, and measures to avoid skin necrosis and scaffold exposure should be implemented. Long-term follow-up efficacy needs to be proved.
Research advances in TET enzyme and its intermediate product 5hmC 期刊论文
Zhong nan da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Central South University. Medical sciences ISSN:1672-7347 Volume:44 Issue:4 Page:449-454
Wu Jingni; Fang Xiaoling; Xia Xiaomeng; Zhang Mengmeng;
DNA methylation is a significant epigenetic modification mode, which plays an important role in embryo reprogramming, stem cell differentiation and tumor occurrence. The ten-eleven translocation (TET) enzyme is a crucial demethylation enzyme, which can catalyze 5-methylcytosine(5mC) to 5-hydroxymethylcytosine(5hmC), 5-formylcytosine (5fC), and 5-carboxylcytosine(5caC). These bases represent the epigenetic modifications of DNA and regulate the process of DNA methylation. Understanding the role of TET enzyme in regulating the DNA methylation modification and gene expression can help us to gain the knowledge for the normal growth development and epigenetic regulation in human diseases.
Expression of ZNF207 in hepatocellular carcinoma and its significance 期刊论文
Zhou Chenghui; Li Nianfeng;
To investigate the expression of zinc finger protein 207 (ZNF207) in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues, and analyze the correlation of ZNF207 with clinicopathological factors and HCC patients' survival.
Methods: Real-time PCR was used to detect ZNF207 mRNA expression in 10 paired fresh HCC and adjacent non-tumor liver tissue samples. Immunohistochemical (IHC) analysis was used to detect ZNF207 protein expression in 135 cases of randomly selected paraffin-embedded HCC tissues. The correlation of ZNF207 expression with clinicopathological factors and survival of HCC was analyzed.
Results: The ZNF207 mRNA expression level in HCC was significantly higher than that in the adjacent non-tumor liver tissue (P<0.01). IHC results showed that ZNF207 protein level was elevated in HCC tissues and ZNF207 expression was correlated with cirrhosis, nodule number, tumor capsule, vascular invasion, and TNM stage (P<0.05). Survival analysis showed that patients with high ZNF207 expression had poorer overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) than those with the low ZNF207 expression (P<0.01), and ZNF207 was an independent risk factor for OS and DFS of HCC (P<0.05).
Conclusion: ZNF207 expression is elevated in HCC and associated with adverse clinicopathological factors, indicating poor prognosis for HCC.
Establishment and differential protein identification of two-dimensional gel electrophoresis for proteomics in the spinal cord of morphine-tolerant rats 期刊论文
He Liqiong; Song Zongbin; Xing Manyu; Li Zhengyiqi; Wu Jing; ...
To establish a two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) map for comparative proteomic analysis of rat spinal cord with chronic morphine tolerance, and to detect differentially expression proteins that are associated with chronic morphine tolerance.
Methods: Sixteen male SD rats received the intrathecal catheterization operation and they were randomly divided into a morphine tolerance group (MT group, n=8) and a saline group (NS group, n=8). The lumbar enlargement segments of the MT group and the NS group spinal cord were harvested and proteins were separated by 2-DE. Differential proteome profiles were established and analyzed by means of immobilized pH gradient-based two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE). The 2-DE maps were visualized after coomassie blue staining and analyzed using PDQuest analysis software. Identification of differential protein spots was conducted by MALDI-TOF-MS, and the Mascot query software was used to search Swiss-Prot database for bioinformatics analysis. Western blotting was used to verify the expression of some differentially expressed proteins.
Results: A total of 1 000 spots were identified in 2-DE maps of rat spinal cord tissues from the MT group and the NS group, and 36 proteins were significantly differentially expressed in the MT group compared with the NS group. Identification was conducted by MALDI-TOF-MS and Swiss-Prot database through Mascot query software, and a total of 14 proteins were obtained. Among them, 2 protein spots were down-regulated in the MT group compared with that in the NS group, and 12 protein spots were up-regulated in the MT group compared with that in the NS group. Two kinds of proteins (NUDAA, ENOG) were verified by Western blotting and the results were consistent with proteomics data.
Conclusion: The optimized 2-DE profiles for the proteome of spinal cord tissue in rats with chronic morphine tolerance is established preliminarily, which showed that morphine tolerance can cause changes in the expression of various proteins in the spinal cord.
Research progress in perioperative ventilator-induced lung injury 期刊论文
Liu Shuai; Zhang Liming;
Lung-protective ventilation (such as low tidal volume and application of positive end-expiratory pressure) is beneficial for patients with acute lung injury or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and has become the standard treatment in intensive care unit (ICU). However, some experts now question whether the protective ventilation strategy for ARDS patients in the ICU is equally beneficial for patients after surgery, especially for most patients without any pre-existing lung lesions. This review will discuss preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative lung protection strategies to reduce the risk of complications associated with anesthesia.
Role of spinal P2X4 receptor in remifentanil-induced postoperative hyperalgesia 期刊论文
Qing Wenxiang; Yan Jianqin; Zhang Chengliang; Zhang Junjie; Zhai Zhenping; ...
To explore the role of P2X4 receptor in opioid-induced hyperalgesia (OIH).
Methods: A total of 30 Sprague-Dawley (SD) male rats were randomly divided into 5 groups: a saline (N0) group, a remifentanil at 0.5 μg/(kg.min) (R1) group, a remifentanil at 1.0 μg/(kg.min) (R2) group, a remifentanil at 1.5 μg/(kg.min) (R3) group, and a remifentanil at 5.0 μg/(kg.min) (R4) group. The paw withdrawal mechanical threshold (PWMT) and paw withdrawal thermal latency (PWTL) were measured at follow time points to optimize the dosages: the day before treatment (T1), 30 min after tail intravenous catheterization (T2), and 30 min (T3), 1 h (T4), 2 h (T5), 24 h (T6) after withdrawal from remifentanil. Then, the rats were randomly divided into 2 groups: a saline group (N group), a remifentanil at 1.0 μg/(kg.min) group (R group). The PWMT and PWTL were measured at follow time points: T1, T2, and T4. The lumbar enlargement of spine was selected at 1 h after withdrawal from remifentanil, and the expression of P2X4 receptor mRNA and protein was examined in OIH. Additional male rats were selected and randomly divided into 2 groups: a plantar incision surgery followed by saline treatment group (I+N group), a plantar incision surgery followed by remifentanil treatment group (I+R group). The PWMT and PWTL were measured at follow time points: T1, T2, T3, T4, T5, T6, 48 h (T7) and 72 h (T8) after withdrawal from remifentanil. The lumbar enlargement of spine was selected at 1 h after withdrawal from remifentanil, the expression of P2X4 receptor mRNA and protein was examined by PCR and Western blotting, and the microglial activation in spine 1 h after withdrawal from remifentanil were assessed by immunofluorescence.
Results: The pain thresholds including PWMT and PWTL in different groups were as follows: R4 group<0.05). At T4, the PWMT and PWTL in the R4 group were lower than those in the R2 group, while in the R4 group they were lower than those in the R3 group (both P<0.05). Meanwhile, the PWMT and PWTL in the R2 group, the R3 group and the R4 group at T4 were lower than those in the other time points (all P<0.05). Compared with the N group, the rats in the R group had a lower PWMT and PWTL at T4 (both P<0.05), but there was no significant difference in P2X4 receptor protein and mRNA expression in the lumbar enlargement of spine between the R group and the N group. Compared with the I+N group, the pain threshold including PWMT and PWTL at T4, T5, and T6 in the I+R group was significantly decreased (all P<0.05). Meanwhile, compared with the I+N group, the expressions of P2X4 receptor mRNA and protein in rat spinal cord in the I+R group were significantly up-regulated, and the microglia was activated (all P<0.05).
Conclusion: Remifentanil pumped via tail intravenous can result in the hyperalgesia, but the spinal P2X4 receptor might be not relevant to remifentanil-induced hyperalgesia. Remifentanil incision pain can cause significant hyperalgesia in rats, and the spinal P2X4 receptors and microglial activation is involved in the remifentanil-induced postoperative hyperalgesia.
Percutaneous mechanical devices for supporting the left ventricular failure 期刊论文
Franklin Michael; Mcgough Edward; Peng Yonggang;
This article reviews the indications, contraindications, functionality, and complications for various percutaneous devices that can be used to support the left ventricular failure. We also reviews the anesthetic effect for these devices. A literature review was performed using PubMed. When the heart experiences end-stage systolic ventricular failure, it is generally unable to restore its practical function with pharmacological therapy alone. Percutaneous ventricular support devices have been introduced and used successfully to support a failing ventricle in a variety of settings. These devices include intra-aortic balloon pump, TandemHeart, and Impeller, as well as veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for left ventricular support. These devices are typically accessed percutaneously through the femoral vessels and/or the jugular vein(s), although other sites are possible in unique cases.
Research advance in urosepsis 期刊论文
Liang Xia; Zou Wangyuan;
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Radiomics and its advances in hepatocellular carcinoma 期刊论文
Ma Mengtian; Feng Zhichao; Peng Ting; Yan Haixiong; Rong Pengfei; ...
Liver cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide, so early detection and prediction for response to treatment is of great benefit to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. Currently, needle biopsy and conventional medical imaging play a significant and basic role in HCC patients' management, while those two approaches are limited in sample error and observer-dependence. Radiomics can make up for this deficiency because it is an emerging non-invasive technic that is capable of getting comprehensive information relevant to tumor situation across spatial-temporal limitation. The basic procedure for radiomics includes image acquisition, region of interest segmentation and reconstruction, feature extraction, selection and classification, and model building and performance evaluation. The current advances and potential prospect of radiomics in HCC studies are involved in diagnosis, prediction for response to treatment, prognosis evaluation and radiogenomics.
Preoperative prediction for lymph node metastasis of rectal nonmucinous adenocarcinoma based on radiomics classifier 期刊论文
Journal of Central South University (Medical Sciences) ISSN:1672-7347 Volume:44 Issue:3 Page:271-276
Tan Xianzheng; Chen Hao; Zhang Ting; Wu Hanhui; Zeng Yanfeng; ...
To determine the value of radiomics in identifying lymph node (LN) metastasis in patients with rectal nonmucinous adenocarcinoma.
Methods: Imaging data of 91 patients were retrospectively analyzed (61 in the training set and 30 in the test set). A total of 1 301 radiomics features were extracted from high-resolution T2-weighted images of the whole primary tumor. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) logistic regression was performed to choose the optimal features and construct a radiomics classifier in the training set. Its discrimination performance was compared with that of morphological criteria by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, which was validated in the test set.
Results: The radiomics classifier combined with five key features was significantly associated with LN metastasis, which distinguished LN metastasis with an area under curve (AUC) at 0.874 (95% CI 0.787 to 0.960) in the training set, and the performance was similar in the test set (AUC 0.878, 95% CI 0.727 to 1.000). The AUCs according to the morphological criteria in the training set and test set were 0.619 (95% CI 0.487 to 0.752) and 0.556 (95% CI 0.355 to 0.756), respectively. Discrimination of the radiomics classifier was superior to that of morphological criteria in both the two datasets (both P <0.05).
Conclusion: The radiomics classifier provides individualized risk estimation for LN metastasis in rectal nonmucinous adenocarcinoma patients and it has the advantage over the morphological criteria.
Effects of chemerin/chemR23 axis on Th9/Treg in patients with psoriasis 期刊论文
Wang Yuan; Zhang Dingwei; Huo Jia; Hu Gang; Wu Jiawen;
Combination of prostate imaging reporting and data system with the apparent diffusion coefficient map for the diagnosis of peripheral zone prostate cancer 期刊论文
Feng Zhichao; Yan Zhimin; Luo Muqing; Liao Yunjie; Rong Pengfei; ...
Retraction: Differential expression of exosomal miRNAs in osteoblasts in osteoarthritis [Journal of Central South University. Medical Science, 2018, 43(12):1294-1300. DOI... 期刊论文
Liu Bohao; Wu Pengfei; Mei Lin; Luo Yong; Li Hongxing; ...
The article entitled "Differential expression of exosomal miRNAs in osteoblasts in osteoarthritis" published on Journal of Central South University (Medical Science), in Volume 43, Issue 12, 2018 (DOI: 10.11817/j.issn.1672-7347.2018.12.003) may have an unclear risk of bias due to insufficient understanding for some results. Further experimental studies are needed. We all agree to retract this article, and apologize to the Journal and readers for the possible negative impact.
Effect of different surface zirconium oxide treatments on binding strength between zirconia and veneering ceramics 期刊论文
Journal of Central South University (Medical Sciences) ISSN:1672-7347 Volume:44 Issue:1 Page:53-58
Xia Yuhong; Xu Fei; Chen Lei; Zhou Xiongwen; Cao Yang; ...
To compare the effect of three different surface zirconium oxide treatments on binding strength and fracture patterns between zirconia and veneering ceramics.
Methods: A total of 40 zirconia specimens and 10 nickel-chromium alloy were divided into 5 groups (n=10 in each group): a treatment group by zirconium oxide sand-blaste (Group A), a zirconia bonded porcelain group (Group B), a hot-etching solution group (Group C), a non-treatment zirconia (Group D) and a non-treatment nickel-chromium alloy group (Group E). After all treatments, a veneering porcelain (4 mm×4 mm×2 mm) was formed onto the center of all substrate specimens by plastic coating method. Shear bond strength (SBS) test with a universal testing machine was used in each group. Scanning electron microscopy was used to observe the surface morphology of the damaged specimen interface, which was randomly selected from each group.
Results: The SBS test showed that there was no significant difference in SBS results between the Group A, the Group B and the Group D (both P>0.05), and both of them were significant less than that in the group E (both P<0.05). The SBS results in the Group C were significantly higher than that in the Group D, the Group A, and the Group B (all P<0.05), but there were no significant difference compared with that in the Group E (P<0.05). Conclusion: Sand-blaste and liner application on zirconia ceramic contribute no effect to binding strength between zirconia and veneering ceramics, but hot-etching solution can increase the binding strength between zirconia and veneering ceramics.
Research advance in gastric neuroendocrine tumors 期刊论文
Wang Zhenjiang; Gu Yuxian; Ren Yanxian; Wang Keshen; Ma Zhijian; ...
Gastric neuroendocrine tumors are rarely seen in the gastric tumors, because there are few case reports and the clinical diagnosis rate is low. There is no consensus treatment method in the world. However, with the benefit of esophagogastrodenoscopy and widespread use of proton pump inhibitors, the diagnostic rate of gastric neuroendocrine tumors is on the increase, which gives us an updated understanding for the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of the disease. By studying its pathogenesis, scholars have found that hypergastrinemia caused by various causes is closely related to its occurrence. Gastric neuroendocrine tumors are classified into different types or pathological grades depending on the state of progression of the disease and the unique clinical manifestations. Clinically used diagnostic methods include gastroscopy, medical imageology, nuclear medicine, gastrin, CgA, etc. There are also differences in treatments depending on the clinical classification. If the disease progresses rapidly and the grade is high, surgical resection of the lesion plus postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy should be actively performed. Other better treatments are still being explored.
Research progress in adiponectin and cognitive impairment 期刊论文
Wu Lifeng; Tang Yahui; Shi Zhengang; Zeng Guirong; Wang Yuhong; ...
Adipocytokines are polypeptides or proteins that are secreted by fat cells with a wide range of biological activities. Adiponectin is a fatty cytokine with insulin sensitization. It possesses the function of anti- diabetes, atherosclerosis and anti-inflammation. Adiponectin may participate in regulating the development of cognitive impairment, which is considered as a new regulatory factor for cognitive impairment.
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Home » Online » Blogs » ROSE Blog: Rikk... » Book Review: Th...
Book Review: The Manga Guide to Databases
ROSE Blog: Rikki's Open Source Exchange
Mar 01, 2009 GMT
Rikki Kite
Recently I requested a review copy of The Manga Guide to Databases. Without a doubt, The Manga Guide to Databases was the most enjoyable tech book I've ever read.
Although I'm not a manga expert, my daughter is and she said that the manga quality was excellent. (Well, her exact words were, "I'm impressed. It's pretty good, despite being a boring book." But she's only 12 and can be a bit of a manga-snob, so I took that as a ringing endorsement.)
But what about the content of the book?
I'm happy to say that The Manga Guide to Databases was a quick, easy read on a lazy weekend afternoon. After a brief preface, the book starts readers out with a chapter that explains why we need databases. The manga story revolves around our heroine, Princess Ruruna, who is left in the castle with the task of organizing her country's fruit export business while her father, the king, is gallivanting off to who knows where. A female database admin left holding down the castle? We're off to a good start.
The king sends the princess a package from his journey to a faraway land, and I won't go into too much more detail because the last thing I want to do is ruin a perfectly good action-adventure manga database book. For readers who love a little romance story in their tech books, you'll be pleased with The Manga Guide to Databases. For those of you who'd prefer not to read a love story along with your database design howto, you'll also be happy because the love story is minimal, not too distracting, and won't make you gag.
I'm not a huge fan of reading comics because I think it's a bit tedious, particularly if the font is tiny. However, I'm impressed with how much information is crammed into the 200+ pages of this book, and how easy it is to follow. I'm a visual learner and thought that the book broke concepts down into easy-to-understand chunks of information, such as database terms, types of data models, and data extraction operations. The author, Mana Takahashi, makes clever use of database diagrams (with fruit export examples) to illustrate lessons in each chapter, and concludes chapters with a few test questions to help readers check their understanding of what was covered. She also provides a concise summary of what was covered, followed by answers to the test questions. Takahashi ends the book with a brief list of frequently used SQL statements.
I loved this book and highly recommend it if you'd like a beginner's book with a fun overview of databases, served up manga-style. I can't wait to get my mitts on other upcoming No Starch manga books, including The Manga Guide to Calculus, The Manga Guide to Physics, and The Manga Guide to Molecular Biology. Learning everything should be this easy and enjoyable.
Visit http://nostarch.com/mg_databases.htm to read an excerpt from Chapter 2: What is a Relational Database?
Issue 231/2020
Order Print Issue
Buy this issue as a PDF
Digital Issue: Price $12.99
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Outreach at Lion Walk Church is about raising awareness of human need and supporting community projects worldwide. We regularly support projects in our local community and across the world, with funds raised from our lunchtime concerts and from donations from members.
We collect for the Christian Aid door-to-door collections during Christian Aid Week. Through the period of Harvest Thanksgiving, we have gathered in donations for the local Soup Run, which teams from our congregation support each month, as well as our substantial contributions from the congregation for Commitment for Life. At Christmas-time we raise funds from the Christmas Tree Festival and from Christmas services for the Colchester Night Shelter and the Colchester and Tendring Women’s Refuge, which is now called Next Chapter.
In 2019 we raised the following:
£ 8573.50 (including Gift Aid) in the autumn for Commitment for Life – Christian Aid work in Bangladesh – a wonderful result.
£ 2970.07 in January, from the Christmas Collections and Christmas Tree Festival – this includes £992.36 raised at the art exhibition at the Festival – enabling us to send £1485.03 to both the Colchester Night Shelter and the Colchester and Tendring Women’s Refuge
Our spring/summer Christian Aid house-to-house collections raised £816.39
We normally support one ‘focus charity’ which changes once a year in the autumn, and then we also donate smaller sums of money to other charities, with a particular focus on those based in our own community or smaller charities. Our focus charity is Acorn Village. Here are details of the charities to which we donated in December 2019, to a total of £1400.
Acorn Village
Acorn Village is our Focus Charity from September 2019. People First, Disability Second is the Acorn Village philosophy with the motto ‘Life is For Living’. Every individual, whatever their disability, is encouraged to follow their dreams and are supported to be as independent as physically possible. Acorn Village offers high quality care and accommodation to adults with learning disabilities. Within two models of care, residential and supported living services, they provide support to meet a number of needs within large or small care packages.
Catherine Bullen Foundation
Named in memory of Catherine Bullen, a medical student from West Mersea who died in 2002 of an illness contracted in Namibia, this local charity, run by her parents, works for the relief of poverty, sickness and distress, and the preservation of health in rural Namibia.
Christian Blind Mission – the overseas disability charity – transforms the lives of people with disability, their families and communities, in the poorest parts of the world.
Jubilee Debt Campaign
A UK charity working to end poverty caused by unjust debt through education, research and campaigning.
Marie Curie works to support people living with any terminal illness, and their families, offering visits from nurses and helpers, and running a number of hospices.
Practical Action puts ingenious ideas to work so people in poverty can change their world. Their innovative approach is helping to build climate resilience that protects lives and livelihoods, transform food production for smallholder farmers, make cities fit places for people to live and work, and improve access to clean energy that transforms lives.
In some parts of the world, the Scriptures are difficult to access or are simply unavailable. In this country, the Bible is readily available but has lost its significance and its value is unrecognised by millions. The Bible Society is working hard here at home and in key areas across the world to change this. They take the Bible and find ways to translate and distribute it, create digital formats, advocate for its place in society and help people relate to and make sense of it in their everyday lives.
Freedom from Torture
Torture causes long-lasting mental and physical pain. It can take many years for someone to recover from it. The aim of Freedom from Torture is to help people come to terms with their experiences and enjoy lives that are as full and happy as possible. Many people think that once people fleeing torture arrive in the UK, they are safe and can get on with their lives. That is not the case. They work alongside survivors to raise awareness and campaign for survivors’ rights in the UK.
The Coram story began more than 275 years ago when it was established by Thomas Coram as the Foundling Hospital, London’s first home for babies whose mothers were unable to care for them themselves. The charity evolved to begin pioneering work in adoption, early years and parenting from the original London site. The Thomas Coram Foundation for Children, today known as Coram, developed new approaches to childcare and education, informed by developments in child psychiatry which highlighted the importance of children’s emotional wellbeing and need for secure family placement. Over the centuries, more than 25,000 children’s lives were saved. Today, as the children’s charity Coram, Thomas Coram’s legacy is continued by creating better chances for thousands of children across the UK.
Donations made in March-September 2019:
TEECH
Haven Project
Carers Trust
Homestart Colchester (Focus Charity 2018-19)
Integration through Language
DEC Cyclone Idai Appeal
Tools for Self-Reliance
Colchester Gateway
The Eagle’s Nest Worship Centre, Kabula
Donations made in December 2018:
Benin Christian Support
Colchester Korban Project
Mines Advisory Group (MAG)
Send a Cow
Suffolk Refugee Support Group
Tools with a Mission
UNHCR (The UN Refugee Agency)
Donations made in September 2018
Homestart Colchester
Stepping Stones Play and Learn
New Bridge Foundation
Mzimkhulu Trust
Young Dementia UK
Felsted Aid for Deprived Children (UK-Aid)
Donations made in May 2018
Samaritans of Colchester, Tendring and Suffolk Borders (Lion Walk Focus Charity)
Child Health International
Grapevine Essex
The Suffolk Law Centre
Trinity Homeless Project (Trinity Methodist Church, Clacton)
Donations made in February 2018
Praxis Community Projects
Emmaus UK – Colchester branch
Iceni Ipswich
The Haven Project
Donations made in December 2017
Christian Aid Rohingya Appeal
Book Aid
Amnesty International – we have having regular presence at their conferences and support activities, such as card signing around Christmas-time.
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CEO PROFILE
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Home HEALTH DOCTOR PROFILES Demetrice H. Smith, FNP-C, CNM
February 29, 2016 Maria Muro 0
Demetrice H. Smith, FNP-C, CNM
“My first experience delivering a baby as a student was a little bit intimidating for me,” says nurse practitioner and certified nurse midwife Demetrice H. Smith, FNP-C, CNM. “You realize you have an enormous amount of responsibility. It’s scary and exhilarating at the same time. You’re a witness to the beauty of birth. You are a small part of bringing life into the world — It is simply breathtaking.”
While Smith will soon have her first experiences as a certified nurse midwife at the LSU Healthcare Network clinic Uptown, her education and career path to becoming a midwife has always involved a love for women’s health.
After receiving her Bachelor of Science in nursing from the University of Southern Mississippi, Smith became a registered nurse in labor and delivery at Memorial Medical Center, her first professional experience attending to laboring women, their postnatal care and newborns. She also held the same position, while working for Ochsner Clinic Foundation, formerly Meadowcrest Hospital, in Gretna.
Smith earned her master’s degree in nursing from LSU Health Sciences Center in 2006. She focused on becoming a family nurse practitioner over other specialties because it offered her an array of options, including the opportunity to work in women’s health — “because that’s what fascinated me,” Smith says.
As a family nurse practitioner, Smith worked in acute care and women’s health at various facilities in Louisiana and Texas, where she moved temporarily following Hurricane Katrina. But it was in her time spent with women and assisting them with their prenatal and postnatal care that Smith found her calling.
However, Smith — and her patients — found out one crucial drawback to her nursing position. After spending months providing care and building a rapport with her patients, they would be disappointed to find out that Smith herself would not be performing the births, but rather the collaborating physician.
“I take care of women throughout their entire pregnancy, into the postpartum period and back to their pre-pregnancy status and beyond, but I miss the birthday party,” Smith says. “I wanted to ensure continuity, while providing complete holistic care for my patients. So with the love and support of my husband, I decided to go back [to school] and study midwifery.”
After completing her post-master’s degree from Frontier Nursing University in Aug. 2015, Smith became a certified nurse midwife and could officially perform births for the patients she saw throughout their pregnancies as a nurse practitioner.
In educating her patients and other nursing students as a preceptor, Smith discovered her love of teaching. She first taught as a clinical nursing instructor at Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond for nearly a year. Smith is now a virtual clinical instructor for the Master’s in Nursing program hosted by Walden University.
“I wanted to be able to give back to the profession and afford students the same opportunity to have a solid foundation and quality training needed before they graduated,” Smith says.
As a caretaker of women through adolescence, pregnancy, birth, menopause and beyond, Smith applies what she knows about women’s health, both from schooling and real-life experiences. But Smith connects with women on another level that not all healthcare providers can — a personal one.
As a mother of three, with all high-risk pregnancies, Smith can empathize with women at every stage of their pregnancy, let them know firsthand what to expect, and assure them that what they’re feeling and experiencing is normal. But while Smith can share experiences as a mother, she also understands what it’s like to have pregnancy losses, having gone through four losses herself.
“I can connect and sympathize with my patients because I’m able to put myself in their shoes when they experience a loss,” Smith says. “ I care for them through the good as well as bad times. But what a wonderful celebration to partake in when the next pregnancy comes to fruition and you’re holding this tiny miracle in your hands. It’s an indescribable experience.”
Smith can go beyond her duties as a healthcare provider and offer her patients something even deeper than medical advice and treatment: a true connection.
“You grow with your patients and assist them through the natural transitions of life. You become more than just a provider,” Smith says. “You build a trustworthy relationship, offering guidance and support all while empowering women to take charge of their care.”
LSU Healthcare Network Clinic – Uptown
3700 St. Charles Ave., 5th Floor
Graduate School: Nursing, LSU Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA
Post-Masters Certification: Certified Nurse Midwifery, Frontier Nursing University, Hyden, KY
Board Certification: Family Nurse Practitioner (American Association of Nurse Practitioners), Certified Nurse Midwife (American Midwifery Certification Board) Advanced Practice Registered Nurse, Louisiana State Board of Nursing
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Setting Up An Amazon Music Affiliate Program
amazon music labels No Comments
Within the first place, the competition among rivals is carried out on the basis of popularity of the performer and songs recorded by their corporations. The player is properly conceived, freely customizable (particularly concerning dimension) and it not only gives access to online shops, but also to the artist’s bio or even to a video clip. Before the internet there have been many independent record distributors in the UK. But sadly they’ve all disappeared now as the brand new enterprise model won’t assist the outdated enterprise mannequin of record distribution. They’re based by unbiased artists for recording and selling their merchandise.
You’re wondering, “How do I sell my songs, particularly in a bad economy?” In a foul economic system money gets tight for nearly everyone and the whole lot, the music enterprise included. It’s actually your choice when getting the limitless music downloads from the music download websites. Additionally, one other issue that greatly influences CD gross sales is advertising of songs and radio promotion and transmission. Amazon play and HMV are the remaining big players in bodily distribution of music in the UK with iTunes being the large beast of digital downloads. Given the truth that just about all in style artists have already signed contracts with main recording studios, that is vital barrier for brand new entrants. Earlier than the internet there have been many unbiased record distributors within the UK. But sadly they have all disappeared now as the brand new business mannequin won’t support the old enterprise model of file distribution. Recording studios intensively compete to attract widespread of promising artists to signal contracts with them. An SMS message (In the event that they equipped a phone quantity) containing a hyperlink that downloads the content material directly to their telephone.
So so long as the music download site has it, you understand this is the place to obtain music in an effort to enjoy limitless music downloads on your player. The concept behind Zimbalam is very simple: they put your songs in 20 on-line outlets in 240 countries for a hard and fast rate underneath a non-unique distribution agreement. Every artist is aware of that so as to promote music it’s best to upload tracks to your various social network profiles, do an email marketing campaign, e-book gigs, woo bloggers and magazine editors to evaluate your music, schmooze, network, beg, cajole and speak to anyone on-line and off who offers you 2 minutes of their time. To fix missing music data, all you have to do is obtain and launch TidySongs. It must be famous that for music industry in complete, teenagers and 20-years-olds are primary customer segment, however CCM aims at attracting individuals of forty-60 age vary. But, because the old adage goes- “it is not the quantity however the high quality that counts”, and an iTunes distribution is usually a lot extra priceless than distribution in 50 lesser identified shops.
How To Sell Country Songs
The Amazon Kindle Fireplace has already turn out to be a tablet to be reckoned with since its introduction on Sept. Be it one thousand songs or 10,000 songs that you intend to download, it does not matter. It forces an artist to wear many hats lately, and to dedicate more time than ever earlier than to the enterprise of selling music. The iPad prices start at $499, however when the usability and the 1000’s of apps are taken in to consideration, the value is just reasonable, though a bit larger than Amazon’s Kindle. Between the two platforms the viability of premium music downloads for online game platforms has become a actuality. Do keep in mind that all information assigned to the files cannot be modified once the songs have been uploaded to the net retailers, which takes somewhere between two and 6 weeks depending on the store. These music download sites would cost you solely once for unlimited music downloads at an inexpensive rate that even teenagers have the ability to get their memberships. If we have been to ask all on-line outlets to present us the quantity akin to non-members in order that we may give it on to artists who aren’t affiliated to a gathering society, they wouldn’t be capable of do it.
Imagine having a little black field that lets you watch over 100,000 movies, anytime you want. Although, if the new entrant makes use of the identical recording technologies, distribution channels and targets the same niche out there, the actual fact might develop into an issue of major significance. You will solely discover a few “teasers” meant to make you need to buy the artists’ CD. Independent, much less well-recognized artists are an exception – lots of them will let you down their complete song catalog to advertise themselves. Microlabels have less then 10 artists below contract and are tightly centered on particular style of music. Music distribution helps new artists and musicians in establishing their careers by getting their albums into totally different shops. Music distribution is done by distribution firms which signal offers with file labels and artists for the suitable to sell the merchandise to information shops. Michael Porter’s model of competition (Porter, 1980), if applied to music recoding trade, comprises the following parts: Rivalry amongst sellers of recorded music (competitors for higher market place and competitive advantage); artists and different suppliers of music to producers or sellers of recorded music; distributors, retailers and particular person customers of the music; competitive pressure coming from substitutes of recorded music in direction of successful clients; and menace of recent entrants to the business of recorded music.
Therefore, right here The Bizmo launched a service whereby it acts as the ‘tremendous label’ and also you give it the non-unique rights to submit your music to digital retailers on your behalf to iTunes, Amazon and over 130 retailers for $34.ninety five US per year regardless of what number of tracks or albums. Typically such distributors prefer to deal with stock CDs of the extremely popular artists or no less than nicely-known artists and sometimes they are not all in favour of going into distribution of CDs of unknown performers. Major online music shops like HMV, Amazon and so forth carry many labels and their choice is improbable with a great deal of music items, film soundtracks, songs, music movies and practically limitless music downloads can be found so that you can download. However, if the artist is lesser-identified or songs recorded are not highly regarded, value does play role because the competitors and technique factor. Generally, such firms survive competitors on account of low cost of digital recording. Music is a deeply personal expertise and other people have their own preferences in what they listen to. The Web lets people who desire a specific style to group together simpler and permits them to talk about new artists that they never would have had the chance to hear otherwise.
affiliate amazon music program setting
Free Trumpet Sheet Music
Music Rating
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America’s First Formula One World Champion – A Half Century ago
Italian GP – Monza, Italy
Whilst scribblin’ my Nostalgia earlier this season – recollecting upon some of my fleeting memories of the Portland Hystericals, Err Historics, it hit me like a “Two Ton Heavy Thing!” That not only was it some ‘Ol Coot known as ‘SuperTex, aka A.J. foyt’s 50th Anniversary of his debutant Indy 500 victory; it was also fifty years ago that Phil Hill won the F1 Drivers World Championship, albeit under tragic conditions... Becoming America’s first ever World Champion, a rarefied feat that has only occurred twice in the past half century...
Can it really already be three years since Messer Hill’s untimely passing – occurring during his treasured Monterey Historics weekend, which reputedly he was a Concurs de Elegance Judge for 40-years! As the transplanted Floridian continued his passion for vintage automobiles after he’d hung up his driving helmet, forming the vintage automotive restoring house of Hill & Vaughn.
Thus, on that ultimately sweet ‘N sad day of September 10th, Phil Hill would become America’s first ever Formula 1 World Champion - as history denotes; Hill’s teammate and title competitor Count Wolfgang Von Trips was killed after colliding with Jimmy Clark and his errant Ferrari ultimately caused the deaths of 14-spectators...
Interestingly, Ferrari ran four “Works” chassis that day, with Hill, Von Trips, Richie Ginther and Ricardo Rodriguez; while a fifth Ferrari was chauffeured by Giancarlo Baghetti.
And not only did Von Trips start the race on Pole, but the German too held a 5-point advantage in the Drivers title fight: 38-33 vs. arch rival Hill; with Lotus’s Stirling Moss having a mathematical, albeit slim chance of clinching the Drivers crown over the two Ferrarista’s.
And although two of the four remaining Ferrari’s retired from the race, Phil Hill ran away and won the event ahead of Dan Gurney in a Porsche and Bruce McLaren in a Cooper-Climax on Monza’s notoriously bumpy Oval-Road course combination; which reputedly ‘Ol ‘Hobbo, aka David Hobbs won the last event on this circuit configuration in one of the overly potent JWA Gulf Ford GT 40’s...
And speaking of those magnificent GT 40’s, how many people recall that Messer Hill was part of ‘Ol Shel’s (Carroll Shelby) original crew ‘O merry-men chosen to drive the untested chassis at Circuit de la Sarthe in 1964, as I’d liken to think it was due to the results of drivers such as Hill, Dan Gurney, Ken Miles and others development skills which honed the GT 40 into such a BAD ARSE racecar!
Recall that Hill was a gifted Sports Car driver of his era, ultimately winning le 24 Heurs du Mans three times for la Scuderia (Ferrari) in those ‘Uber-dominant 250 GT’s - all three wins coming with Belgian Co-driver Olivier Gendebien, (1958, 1961-62) becoming the first ever American born winner of LeMans in the process.
Yet having grown tired of “Il Commendatore’s” (Enzo Ferrari) Machiavellian dealings with his drivers, Phil had the ‘Kuhoona’s to walk out on enzo, albeit to an outfit that’s Grand Prix exploits were a total disaster. As I still recall reading of Hill’s later exploits driving for Jim Hall and those narly Igloo-white Chaparral’s. With Phil’s last major victory coming aboard a Chaparral 2F at the 1000km of Brands Hatch; but I liken to remember Philip Toll Hill, Jr., in a different light, having previously mentioned that I met the man twice; first in 1992 at Portland International Raceway before spending a week-plus with Messer Hill in Italy in 1999 where amongst other things, he was my amiable Co-Tour guide at the Ferrari Factory!
Viva Italiano recollections
Yet my fondest memory of Phil is the ’94 Monterey Historics where I witnessed Hill throwing a bright blue Bugatti T-37 around masterfully, albeit giving the car a tiring workout as its tyres howled in protest each lap past my vantage point towards the bottom of the hill after the famous Corkscrew corner...
Labels: Features, Nostalgia, Racing Drivers, Sports Cars, Tributes
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How we change lives
RAISE A SMILE
NCF founder Dr George Teturswamy is a “Point of Light”
We are delighted to announce that Dr. George Teturswamy, Founder and Head of the Northern Cleft Foundation, has been awarded the UK Prime Minister’s Points of Light Award.
The daily Points of Light award recognises outstanding individual volunteers – people who are making a change in their community.
First established by President George H. W. Bush in 1990, over 5,000 US Points of Light have been recognised in the USA. UK Points of Light was developed in partnership with the US programme and launched in the Cabinet Room at 10 Downing Street in April 2014.
In a personal letter to George, Prime Minister Theresa May said:
“By leading a volunteer team of NHS surgeons to perform free corrective surgery, you are transforming the lives of hundreds of children with cleft palate deformities in India. It is commendable that the organisation you head up, the Northern Cleft Foundation, ensures our expert NHS surgeons share their skills with local medical professionals during your visits.”
George’s MP, Nigel Evans said:
“George’s work for children with cleft palates in India is remarkable. He has changed many children’s lives for the better at absolutely no cost to them or their families. What is more, it is also empowering doctors in India to provide the best support to children who need corrective surgery in the future. He embodies the true spirit of charity and of selflessness. He is thoroughly deserving of a Point of Light volunteering award and I am glad that the Prime Minister is honouring him in this way.”
“I am very honoured to have been given this prestigious award. I would like to accept it on behalf of all the volunteers and partners in India who have always been dedicated and diligent in their service to Northern Cleft Foundation. The award is also a salute to everyone involved with the Foundation throughout the last sixteen years and we are grateful to be recognised.”
We say:
Congratulations George! It’s smiles all round.
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Steed! The Venusians! I told you! They’re here! They’ve landed.
5.4: From Venus With Love
Not the return of Venus Smith (although you can readily imagine the rumours a title like that would provoke today), From Venus With Love is the best of the season so far, which is to say the avenging business still isn't quite on top form, but there's a winning line in amiable quirkiness running through the proceedings, and as an added bonus, it's another of the series' relative rarities that keep its cards close to its chest regarding who is doing what and how until quite late in the game.
It's also further evidence of the makers' Scooby Doo approach to magic, supernatural, or in this case, aliens this season, setting up apparently death by Venusians only to reveal the truth as rather more mundane skulduggery. Someone or something is killing enthusiasts for the titular planet, members of the British Venusian Society, their corpses left with bleached white hair and faces. And the only evidence of rum doing is a strange sound and a shiny orb diminishing into the distance.
The first victims are knocked off without much chance to get to know them – Paul Gillard's Cosgrove, and Michael Lynch's Sir Frederick Hadley – as, later, is Lord Mansford (Kenneth Benda, the Minister in The Claws of Axos). Mansford's butler Jennings (Adrian Ropes) is notable for his passing resemblance to Chris Barrie.
Bertram Fortescue Winthrop Smith: Sir Michael Fortescue Winthrop Smythe was actually knighted for services rendered to Queen Anne's flu.
Two more illustrious Venusiasts make a stronger impression. Jeremy Lloyd's Bert Smith ("Actually, it's Bertram Fortescue Winthrop Smythe. To be absolutely accurate") is an instant hit, and like Alan Gerrard in 4.19: Quick-Quick Slow Death, you get the impression Rigg is genuinely amused in their scene together. In a very Avengers turnabout, Bertram is a devoted chimney sweep, forced to go by an abbreviated name due to reasons of practicality and prejudice ("Too long to fit on a card and a terrible disadvantage in this business. After all, whoever heard of anyone having their chimney swept by a Fortescue Winthrop Smythe?") His family have been up chimneys since William the Conqueror, astronomy being only his second love. Alas, he gets zapped when Emma is in the next room ("Even the soot was white").
Steed: He died as he lived, in the thick of battle, bravely facing the enemy.
Mrs Peel: An enemy without a face.
Steed: Made some very funny noises.
Then there's the only Doctor Who to appear in The Avengers (unless you count Peter Cushing and Richard Hurndall – no, I'm not mentioning Big Finish), Jon Pertwee as Brigadier Whitehead. We meet him recording battle re-enactments, a nicely involved bit of business as he roams the room cueing up sound effects records while he narrates. Appropriate for someone then best known as a radio performer. When chairperson of the society Venus Brown (Barbara Shelley, Sorasta in Planet of Fire, Plaxton in Blake’s 7 Stardrive, she was also in the final first season Avengers episode Dragonsfield) arrives asking for more cash ("Would you like a drink?": "I'd rather have a contribution"), the only thing missing is Pertwee telling her she's in his eyeline.
Venus Brown: I am Venus Brown. You have beautiful golden aura.
Steed: Oh, how very nice of you to say so.
Suspicion naturally falls on the head of the Venusian Society, so it’s something of a surprise than neither Venus nor her henchman Crawford (Derek Newark, previously in 3.22: The Trojan Horse) have any involvement in the machinations at all. Steed indulges in some de rigueur flirtation ("We're not composed of elderly eccentrics, Mr Steed" suggests Crawford; "I can see that" comes the admiring reply), and pretends to be wastrel ("Following father's footsteps. He spent his life depositing money, I spend mine withdrawing it"), such that they're instantly keen to have him on board (that they want to milk him for cash – to fund their space programme – only lends credence to their presumed guilt).
Primble: Excellent.
Mrs Peel: Not from where I’m sitting.
Primble: Ah, a sense of humour. Admirable.
If they're more eccentric in motivation than personality, the true villain Dr Henry Primble (Philip Locke, 1.15: The Frighteners, 3.21: Mandrake) is the opposite, coming on as a bumbler who can't find a dropped contact lens and proceeding to give Steed an eye test (a requirement for effective Venus spotting) based on his ability to recognised types of hat ("Trilby, homburg, ger-bowler, cap, jockey, porkpie, topper, boater, busby, fez"). Primble also shows a humorous streak when he captures and ties up Emma. The reason he's doing this? His funding has been, diverted by The Cuthbert Foundation to the Society's interest in the space project and since he couldn't beat them, he decided to destroy them.
Primble: And what are you doing here, Mrs Peel?
Mrs Peel: Well, I haven't come for an eye test.
The reveal then, of the cause of the deaths (one victim is a dummy of Steed in a chair in the observatory), is more of an "Okay…" than anything you want to scrutinise too closely; Primble's been sending a henchman about the countryside in a silver sports car with a laser gun on board (a laser beam explaining the bleaching effect – including Steed's bowler – and the boiling of liquid – including Steed's beer) and how something can blast a hole through six inches of solid steel. The sound effect is much more impressive, an echoing, reverberating ricochet.
Emma is practicing her fencing when Steed enters with the "We're needed" card pinned to the end of his brolly. The coda finds them invited to dinner by the British Venusian Society, in gratitude for services performed. It's an unusual direct call back to the events of the episode; they are having dinner on Venus ("A table for two, overlooking the galactic sea"). Not the planet, a relief since Steed's claret doesn't travel well.
Diana Rigg Jon Pertwee Patrick Macnee The Avengers
Labels: Diana Rigg Jon Pertwee Patrick Macnee The Avengers
I've killed him! I've killed him again!
I will unheal the shit out of you!
You’ll note, gentlemen, the correct way of doing e...
It means murder, Watson. Cold-blooded, refined, de...
The best place to hide a needle is not in a haysta...
Well, in this case, the cats are going to kill the...
What if I tell you to un-punch someone, what you d...
Perhaps I am dead. Perhaps we’re both dead. And th...
Dirty is exactly why you're here.
He’d been clawed to death, as though by some bird....
Invisible man? Ha-ha-ha! I could see through that ...
The trouble with Scotland is that it’s full of Sco...
Steed! The Venusians! I told you! They’re here! Th...
Toodle-oo, comrades.
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Nurses for Newborns in the News
Families First: Nurses for Newborns (Town & Style 1.19.19)
Children’s Trust Fund Award Recipients Announced (The Boone County Connection 3/14/2018)
Nurses for Newborns Continues to Help At-Risk Infants Get a Healthy Start (St. Louis Public Radio 2/16/2018)
Family Care: Nurses for Newborns (Town & Style 1/2/2018)
Working Together for Healthy Babies (The St. Louis American 11/16/2017)
Nurses for Newborns: Saving Babies. Strengthening Families. (Webster-Kirkwood Times 10/13/2017)
Charity Awards Winner: Nurses for Newborns (Ladue News 6/16/2017)
Lincoln County Establishes Early Childhood Task Force (The Lincoln County Journal 6/16/2017)
Safety Net: Nurses for Newborns (Town & Style 1/04/2017)
Tennessee Titans host diaper drive (10/27/16)
STL Bucking for Babies (Ladue News 9/23/16)
Rapid Rise in Newborns Dependent on Opioids (St. Louis Post-Dispatch 8/29/2016)
Nurses for Newborns help women struggling with new motherhood (KSDK 8/27/16)
Rapid rise in newborns dependent on opioids has hospitals scrambling (St. Louis Post Dispatch 8/29/16)
Bucking for Babies to benefit Nurses for Newborns (The Tennessean 8/15/16)
Grant awards for Perinatal Behavioral Health Initiative (St. Louis American 7/27/16)
Bucking for Babies fundraiser scheduled for Nashville (WBRC 7/27/16)
A Night for Newborns (Town & Style 4/17/16)
Combating Infant Mortality in St. Louis – a discussion with Nurses for Newborns (KWMU 4/13/16)
25th Anniversary Celebration – A Night for Newborns (Town & Style 2/24/16)
Life Support – Nurses for Newborns (Town & Style 2/22/16)
NFN News Archive
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Lebanon Middle East World
Business Sports Climate Change & Environment
Entertainment Offbeat Culture Science Obituaries Technology Health Entrepreneurship Roundup
Qahwaji Says Army Keen on Safety of Arsal Residents
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
by Naharnet Newsdesk 25 September 2014, 12:04
Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji said on Thursday that the military was keen on the safety of the residents of the northeastern border town of Arsal, and denied that troops had laid a siege on them.
The state-run National News Agency said Qahwaji visited Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Daryan, who was elected last month, to explain to him “how the army was resolving the crisis in Arsal and the North.”
It quoted him as saying that “the military is keen on the safety and security of our brethren in Arsal.”
“There is no siege on the town of Arsal and its residents,” the general said.
He also stressed that the military was exerting all efforts to guarantee the safety of the Lebanese in all regions without any discrimination.
Jihadists overran Arsal last month and engaged in deadly gunbattles with the army.
The militants from the al-Qaida-linked al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State group also took with them hostages from the army and the Internal Security Forces.
They later killed three of them and vowed to execute more captives if the authorities did not meet their demands.
The battles and the ensuing threats, sparked extra measures by the army in and around Arsal.
It blocked roads on the outskirts of Arsal used by the militants to get their supplies, and carried out raids, arresting hundreds of suspects, including militants who had attacked the army.
M.T.
LebanonPolitics
Real Talk (Guest) 25 September 2014, 12:17 66
The biggest liar and tool in the region. You have no shame, honor or professionalism! No other military in the world would allow itself to be subservient to a militia...instead, you continue to take orders from them and harass Lebanese Sunnis, Syrians and Palestinians while you let the dogs of Iran roam free.
shahin shah (Guest) 25 September 2014, 14:16 43
Hey flamethrower...you are one man army...in this site so many person against you and you never backdown you tweet them back...I salute your spirit..
dehablo (Guest) 25 September 2014, 16:22 00
LOL, you are always right and factual
coolmec 25 September 2014, 12:21 65
It is time to replace this guy and put someone capable of running our LAF
mohammad_ca 25 September 2014, 13:28 63
How by burning refugee tents?
.karim-. 25 September 2014, 14:36 36
The people in Arsal can't complain about being oppressed when they're harboring terrorists. If they dont like it, they can leave Lebanon and join the FSA-Nusra-ISIS jihadist terrorist caliphate.
There is no army in the world that would allow a militia to exist besides it, let alone be stronger than it. The Lebanese "army" doesn't even have the backbone to stop Hezb cars in checkpoints. Instead it decides to arrest "Syrian infiltrators", crush scooters and burn tents. How heroic.
As for Flame Thrower, your an uneducated child. You should be stripped of your citizenship and shipped back to Tehran with the rest of your ilk.
calling out the army when it does wrong is not insulting. It's called holding institutions accountable but of course you would know nothing of it as you support hizbollaat...7aret kul meen ido ilo that answers to no one...
even when the army is being killed and kidnapped it does not give the army the right to violate human rights.
it seems you are a close friend of Putin and in the know hahaha!
.samy.. 25 September 2014, 17:20 22
The genius had spoken
where are your "saints"...?
Lebanon New Lebanese Government Formed after 3 Months of Political Vacuum 21 January 2020, 22:03
Lebanon Lebanon to Get New Govt. 'This Evening', Marada Given 2 Seats, SSNP Excluded 21 January 2020, 17:26
Lebanon Many Lebanese Say Bassil Has No Business Being at Davos 21 January 2020, 19:05
Lebanon Lebanon Protesters Rally, Block Roads in Rejection of New Govt. 21 January 2020, 21:46
Lebanon Lebanon Money Changers Cap Dollar Exchange Rate at LBP 2,000 21 January 2020, 23:34
Lebanon Strong Lebanon Bloc Urges Quick Electricity and Economy Reform 21 January 2020, 18:28
Lebanon New Govt. Holds First Meeting as Protests Persist 22 January 2020, 11:23
Lebanon Diab: Govt. Will Seek to Meet Protesters Demands, Recover Stolen Funds 21 January 2020, 23:10
eagledawn The day this evil sectarian iranian terrorist is brutally and violently murde... 13 January 2020, 10:36
joebustani Bless anyone person, entity, organization, brigade or country that inflicts e... 17 January 2020, 14:13
justice No more uncivilized ashura processions in Kensington and Hyde Park. 17 January 2020, 15:41
s.o.s Hallelujah! 13 January 2020, 11:14
s.o.s haha so true! His cancer is eating him, we'll get there. 13 January 2020, 11:15
ashtah and we are paying for this filth and his entourage. 22 January 2020, 14:13
ashtah وزيرة المهجرين: أنا لا أنتمي إلى التيار الوطني الحر وتعرفت أمس على الوزير جبر... 22 January 2020, 14:13
___flamethrower___ Never has Lebanon known or seen a government as technocrat or as independent ... 22 January 2020, 12:27
ex-fpm corrupt evil sectarian along with his ailing father-in-law. 22 January 2020, 12:03
justin "mtv": باسيل غادر فجر اليوم الى دافوس في طائرة خاصّة ۔10:59 22 January 2020, 11:51
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2019 Tours Century Media Records Mayhem New Album News Signed Signing Tours
MAYHEM ANNOUNCES SIGNING, NEW ALBUM, AND TOUR DATES!
Century Media Records is proud to announce the worldwide signing of notorious Norwegian Black Metal forefathers MAYHEM. Founded in 1984, MAYHEM has released five studio albums as well as a number of demos, EP's and live albums since. Their debut full length De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994) is considered by many to be the most influential Black Metal album of all time. Having left behind the controversy surrounding their early years, MAYHEM continues to push boundaries and is now considered one of the most innovative forces of extreme metal and sinister art, which applies to both their live shows and their recent studio recordings.
"Once again Mayhem is writing a new chapter in its 35 year history," states the band about the signing to Century Media Records. "We are excited to now have joined forces with Century Media and are eager to see what this partnership can do for us both in the future."
MAYHEM's sixth album will be released on October 25th. Soon after, they will embark on a European headline tour with special guests Gaahls, WYRD and Gost. Please find the dates below:
October 31 - Nijmegen, Netherlands - Doornroosje
November 1 - Leiden, Netherlands - Gebr De Nobel
November 5 - Paris, France - La Machine Du Moulin Rouge
November 6 - Rennes, France - L'etage
November 7 - Toulouse, France - Metronum
November 10 - Lyon, France - CCO
November 12 - Milano, Italy - Magazzini Generali
November 14 - Vienna, Austria - Szene
November 15 - Prague, Czech Republic - Meet Factory
November 16 - Berlin, Germany - Astra
November 17 - Lille, France - Tyrant Fest
November 19 - Kassel, Germany - Musik Theater 130BPM
November 21 - Mannheim, Germany - MS Connextion Complex
November 22 - Vosselaar, Belgium - Biebob
November 23 - Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinehalle
November 24 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Pumpehuset
November 26 - Tampere, Finland - Pakkahuone
November 27 - Helsinki, Finland - Tavastia
November 29 - Stockholm, Sweden - Fryshuset Klubben
November 30 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Pustervik
MAYHEM is Necrobutcher (bass), Hellhammer (drums), Attila Csihar (vocals), Teloch (guitar), and Ghul (guitar).
MAYHEM Discography (selected):
Deathcrush EP (1987)
De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas (1994)
Wolf's Lair Abyss EP (1997)
Grand Declaration of War (2000)
Chimera (2004)
Ordo ad Chao (2007)
Esoteric Warfare (2014)
Labels: 2019 Tours Century Media Records Mayhem New Album News Signed Signing Tours
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Wonderous Stories – Ommen, The Netherlands – United Kingdom – INCA (International Network for Culture and Arts) – Romania – Lorgean Theatre – Finland – Postmodern Square – Greece – Ludens Labs – France – Inform’ART – Italy – Orma Fluens – Ireland – Makeshift Ensemble
BOOKS ARE SPACES | 6th November 2014 Athens | invited by 3 137 | Ludens in-situ situation guided by Vici Theodoropoulou and Ioanna Leykaditi | at 3 137 for BABYLON RADIO | Babylon Radio was part of the project New Babylon Revisited, a Goethe Institut-Athen project in collaboration with the Circuits and Currents project space and the career office of the Faculty of Fine Arts, the Common Media Lab of the Center for Digital Cultures and the University of Leuphana, 3 137, Space under and the Athens Wireless Metropolitan Network.
So BOOKS ARE SPACES. And what does that mean? Well, let’s say a friend comes back maybe one day with their impressions from a dérive in a Book/Space and stir us up. It will be the moment that this Book/Space will become a desire. On the map of our desires a mark will then be added. It might have the form of a crossroad where two or three roads meet, it might look like a square or a park or a bench on the sidewalk, where we will one day stop to rest. And just like that we have wandered one day in some books/spaces and we would like to lose our selves in many more but haven’t managed just yet. It is about those unfulfilled dérives that we talk about during this Ludens in-situ Situation: BOOKS ARE SPACES.
So let’s talk -yes, why not?- for these unfulfilled desires, our unread books, let’s sketch the map of our books of desire. Book titles that were found scribbled on papers and paper scraps of different colors and shapes; or clippings that have gone through different stages of desire decluttering. We throw out this and the other one but that little paper over there, with that title, we don’t throw it out. We leave it there, along with other papers, that are not supposed to be thrown out just yet. Notes and clippings that have been treasured, held together by a clothespin on the desk; or pushed into an organizer found in a trash bin after a theft; or mixed with receipts in a brand new crimson wallet; or stuffed in a cardboard box where we keep whatever we don’t want to throw away and one day that it will be raining -outside rain and inside calmness- we will empty it and remember the books/spaces we wanted to wander in, the writings/spaces we once longed to read and where we would like to find our selves today, following in the footsteps on our map of desires. G o o d E v e n i n g
This is Babylon Radio, this is Ludens Labs, I am Vici Theodoropoulou, she is Ioanna Leykaditi, these are the books, The BOOKS that ARE SPACES, and it is 3 137 that brought us together. This wooden stair that was erected on the pavement and a while ago we climbed it to arrive here. On the mezzanine. Just a week ago these books/spaces were playing around -a bunch of asymmetrical papers- on my desk and Ioanna’s musical pieces could not even imagine that they would play today along with them. . .
John Barth, The Sot-weed factor, Atlantic Books, in greek by Polis publishers
Thomas More, Utopia, Penguin Classics, in greek by Kalvos publishers
John Hopkins, The Tangier Diaries, Cadmus Editions, in greek by Metaixmio publishers
Jack Kerouac, Writings of Eternity, in greek by Apopeira Publishers
Pierre Vidal-Naquette, L’histoire est mon combat, Albin Michel, in greek by Olkos publishers
Edgar Alan Poe, The Raven, 1845
Henry Lefebvre, Le droit à la ville, ECONOMICA edition, in greek by Koukida publishers
Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, New York Review Books, in greek by Iridanos publishers
Savvas Michail, Types of Derive, in greek by Agra publishers
Jan Morris, Trieste and the meaning of nowhere, Da Capo Press, in greek by Metaixmio publishers
Andreas Embirikos, Oedipus Rex, (..?)
Mark Rowlands, The philosopher and the wolf, Pegasus, in greek by Ikostou Protou publishers
Angelos Elefantis, MINIMA MEMORIALIA, Polis publishers
Petros Aylidis, The driver, in greek by Gavriilidis publishers
Travel writing lab Serifos
Tuesday 17 June – Saturday 21 June 2014 Vinyl microstore – Didotou 34, Exarchia OPENING: Tuesday 17 June 8pm
I had the conviction that the Homo Ludens theory, Man the Player [1938] of Johan Huizinga, was an untapped resource, when it comes to the teaching of creative writing. During the theoretical wandering in the process of planning a creative writing lab that would incorporate play as basic practice, I came to believe that it was important to knead together the theory of Homo Ludens, the psychogeographical games of the situationists, The Grammar of Fantasy of Rodari and Calvino’s sublime text, Lightness. All this in order to bake the welcoming slice of bread, to spread the jam on – as Calvino calls Imagination – which, he says, is best eaten spread on a slice of bread. The same is said – in other words – by Huizinga, when he speaks of the sacred game.
Thus, with a method that I would call intuitive, by kneading for days and nights and months the theoretical knowledge along with the teaching practice, in 2007 the “Closed Letter or Open Book?” Creative Writing Lab for adults was established. The Lab has been carried out since 2009 under the umbrella of the bold venture LUDENS LABS. To put it plainly situation (in-situ) has been created, which consists of 12 sessions of psychogeografic structure, with two weeks deliberate interruption between the 9th and the 10th session. The sessions use playful methodological tools that were specifically studied and constructed for this very purpose, folders of selected writers that were set up for the Lab and which follow the sessions of theoretical approaches, an opportunity for the participants to interview a writer, many hours of commenting on the fiction writings of the participants and a lot of time dedicated to the backstage support of the group. The teaching cycle is designed to close every so often with the exposure of the experience, the exposure of the fictional texts and the exposure of the reader. The participants in the “Closed Letter or Open Book?” aggree to practice: writing fiction primarily as an experience; exposing their work of fiction as the primary challenge for the writer they wish to become; considering surprise element as a desirable and unexpected occurance; and, of course, fictional narrative.
After seven years of teaching practice in selected small groups of maximum six paricipants, this year is the time to expose ourselves with five works of fiction that were born and completed during the lab. Through these works got exposed firstly to themselves and their teams: Manolia Kitsou, Zoi Bazaki, Vassilis Baroutis, Tijana Prodanovic, Anthi Psomiadou. The five writers are now invited to get exposed in public by recreating the experience of writing in any way they choose – collage, photography, video, painting, construction etc. At the same time, each text is prepared and printed in separate fanzines, the first copies of which are delivered to five readers who are invited to reveal themselves in turn through their spontaneous markings or comments in the margins of the texts. Everyone and everything mentioned above, as a playful ensemble resulting from the participation in this very adventure of writing, are exhibited in a place chosen by the group and this action or feast, prepared by everyone with joy and called In Other Words, is the last step of the laboratory and the first towards the outside.
I am confident that Homo Ludens deserves a place among us and that if through this laboratory we focus on exposure -instead of publication- as primary motivation for engaging in the adventure of writing, the space will be found that asks the human-player to wander and to narrate. A big thank you to all those who honored “Closed Letter or Open Book?” to this day with their participation. A great ludic wish for the five writers who dare this spring to be exposed, and a huge thank you to the visual artist Kosmas Nikolaou for the collaboration and support that he offered with joy and resulted in the creation of the artworks that depict the experience of writing.
In Other Words, my dear Homo Ludens this cycle closes, for others to open.
Vicky Theodoropoulou, June 2014.
Magnolia Kitsou is from Kokkinia and it shows. She is a Panteio University graduate and proud of it. She introduces herself as a journalist and cultural manager, knowing that no one cares about those things except from the Social Insurance Institute, where -thanks to her degrees- she enjoys direct and efficient services. She adores Merenda (a popular Nutella-type spread) and believes that those who write about themselves in the third person suffer from schizophrenia. In a few years she hopes that she won’t be working in television any more and will define herself as a writer with no hesitation. Her name is Tijana Prodanović. Her Greek friends have been mispronouncing her name for so long, that she gave up the efforts to correct them. She spends her life writing, both for pleasure and work. She loves inventing new words and ignoring (the) articles. Recently she discovered that the whale shark is an actual fish and not a Google translate creation and since then she can’t stop using her new favorite word. She defines herself as professional foreigner with a fifteen-year (literary) service in the Greek capital. Anthi Psomiadou: She grew up touting she would be an actress. She didn’t. She attended acting seminars and loves theater. She studied at the University of Piraeus. She has been working since the age of 16 and is proud of it. The last seven years she is engaged in sales and salesmen training. She has enjoyed writing since she was little but she did not intend to reveal her writings to other people’s eyes. Finally she did. For several years she has been expressing her self through writing via her blog and she writes short stories as well. She has noticed that whatever she declares loudly that she will get done, keeps getting postponed. The things that she manages to complete are actually the ones that she works on calmly and in private. She is 31 years old. She often feels older. Vasilis Baroutis: He was born July 1980 in Chalkida and forgot to read when he started school. He always spent summers in Thasos. Later he followed his roots to study at the Technological Educational Institution of Kavala, in the department of Business and Economics. He preferred sociology courses and music while he traveled wherever there were friends and a positive vibe. He lives in Athens since 2007, he met and married Despoina and works at the sales department of a company. He is till trying to figure out what he will be when he grows up. In 1972 I saw the light. Everything went smoothly from my childhood till my high school years. From my graduation till this day, it has been a long journey. Nothing “normal”. No rational flow of events. But countless experiences. Hundreds of people of all sorts. Jobs plenty and varied. Radio, magazines, a career turn oriented towards the shipping industry, a career turn towards secretarial support and again a turn towards computer manipulation along with “flexible” manipulation of colleagues and seniors to keep existing with dignity. Before the final report, another turn, again towards humanitarian science from the literature perspective. In other words, street-life university of academic standards. With a deep bow to the people who fight, Zoi Bazaki. take a sneak peek
John S. Latsis Public Benefit Foundation / application for funding the research project : Creative writing and Homo Ludens: the serious levity of play as equilibrium for the didactic act. (Δημιουργική Γραφή και Homo Ludens: η σοβαρότητα της ελαφρότητας ως το equilibrium για τη διδακτική πράξη). Coordinator Vici Theodoropoulou, researchers Tijana Prodanovic and Elina Constandinou The research project seeks to address the lack of academic engagement with creative writing and to spotlight play’s status as an important practice in the teaching of creative writing. The study focuses on play theory and Homo Ludens. It seeks both to link theoretical knowledge with didactic practice and to propose playful modes of implementation. The current research activity seeks: a) to translate theoretical knowledge into concrete objectives and to focus attention on the “sacred game” –in short, to highlight both the seriousness of play as an academic approach revealing of the equilibrium that exists between it and the levity that generally typifies playful activities; b) to document both the way in which the fictional text can function as a conduit for practical knowledge and its centrality to the teaching of creative writing; c) to create a digital environment which will serve as a guide for creative writing actions in education. This study aspires to pave the way for further studies and to serve as a springboard for new educational actions.
LABS Athens
LABS Serifos
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PEEL - The Futurama Message Board › General Disscussion › intergalactic travel « previous next »
Author Topic: intergalactic travel (Read 1064 times)
i_wesley125
so is leaving the galaxy a big deal in Futurama or is it an everyday thing?
Only if it's a really dangerous part of the universe I guess, full of Space Pirates and other unfriendly locals.
The Planet Express ship (which goes as fast as the average space ship of the 30th century as far as I know) takes just one weeks to get to the end of the known universe, that means it's only as long or less than one week to get anywhere in the universe (Well that might depend on where Earth is in the universe, and where you're going to.). From what Fry said: The address was on Dogdoo 8 but the universe ends right after Dogdoo 7. And what is said on screen: 1 week later: in episode "The Route of All Evil".
It would of only taken 3 and half days to get to Dogdoo 7 and taken 3 and half days to get back to Earth. Wow, that's fast space travel speed alright.
From A Clone of My Own:
Farnsworth: "These are the dark matter engines I invented. They allow my starship to travel between galaxies in mere hours. "
hobbitboy
Sir Rank-a-Lot
So how far away was Nigel 7 if they had to go into hibernative-naptosis to get there?
Its worse than that, its physics, Jim.
I don't think it's uncommon in the Futurama universe, I mean cars don't exist... Well, Hover Cars do but still....
I think it's an everyday thing. Not just for PE, but for everyone.
jeepdavetj
Starship Captain
Similar to taking a plane trip I would guess, but less groping.
Quote from: hobbitboy on 05-11-2011 13:28
It was at the distance the plot demanded in order for the episode to make fun of that particular space-travel trope.
Good way to put it.
If they can get from one side of the universe to the other in a week, doesn't it seem a bit long that it takes 5 seconds to get to the moon?
Xanfor
Not really, if you consider that they may have to dampen their velocity a bit as they travel through the atmosphere so that they don't create a sonic boom of such magnitude that it wipes out every physical structure on the planet.
That and they'd have to be going slow enough to be able to land on the moon rather than crash into it.
Quote from: futurefreak on 05-14-2011 21:34
They do need time to get up to intergalactic cruising speed, presumably.
Louiswuenator
Quote from: Xanfor on 05-14-2011 21:38
I think you're right. Although Leela obviously doesn't care in this case.
That looks more like an effect from the dark matter engines than a sonic boom. She probably broke a few laws for that bit of acceleration though.
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All posts tagged Vikings stadium
You are here: Home / Latest news / All posts tagged Vikings stadium
World’s biggest transparent roof for Minnesota Vikings
Tags: ETFE roof, Minneapolis, sports architecture, stadium design, Vikings stadium
Comments Off on World’s biggest transparent roof for Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority (MSFA), the Minnesota Vikings and HKS Sports & Entertainment Group have together unveiled the design of the State’s new multipurpose stadium. The design package will now be submitted to the Minneapolis Stadium Implementation Committee and the City of Minneapolis for review. Michele Kelm‐Helgen, Chair of the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority, said:
We wanted a design that encourages a connection into the neighbourhoods, that will spur economic development and that will act as a destination rather than a barrier. The design, the amount of glass and light and the transparency makes this an iconic building that will attract a Super Bowl, NCAA basketball and baseball tournaments, world class concerts and other great events. The benefits to the state’s economy will be incredible.
Architect HKS has designed the largest transparent roof in the world to overcome climate challenges while providing an outdoor feel. With ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) on the roof’s southern half, fans will feel as if they are sitting outside without being exposed to the elements. Sustainable characteristics will be utilised to produce lower operating costs in winter and summer. HKS said that the stadium’s sloped roof will be the most efficient roof structure in the USA, even considering the snow‐loading requirements with Minnesota’s climate. Heating technology is reported to be involved.
The final design departs from earlier concept designs which showed a rounder shape and is more obviously by the designers of Indianapolis Colts and Dallas Cowboys stadiums. The roof is fixed but the end doors open.
Groundbreaking for the 65,000‐seat stadium will take place in October 2013, and demolition of the Metrodome will begin early in 2014. The new stadium is scheduled to be open in time for the Vikings 2016 season.
Bryan Trubey, Design Principal, HKS Sports & Entertainment Group, said:
The design reflects the true story of the Minnesota community with its international style driven by climatic response and energy conservation. The interior volume makes it the most versatile, multi‐use building in the country with the most advanced digital age technology.
Vikings Owner/Chairman Zygi Wilf added:
Vikings fans will be closer to the action than any stadium in the country. The combination of operable end walls with a clear roof and large windows throughout the facility will give fans the opportunity to experience the best of both worlds: an outdoor feel with protection from the elements.
John Wood, Senior Vice President at Mortenson Construction, the stadium builder, said:
We look forward to bringing this wonderful design to life and beginning construction in a few short months.
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Home > Vol 8, No 25 > Choi
Published in Oncotarget V8N25, Jun 20, 2017
Inhibiting translesion DNA synthesis as an approach to combat drug resistance to DNA damaging agents
Jung-Suk Choi, Seol Kim, Edward Motea and Anthony Berdis _
Jung-Suk Choi1, Seol Kim2, Edward Motea3 and Anthony Berdis1,2,4,5
1Department of Chemistry, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
2Department of Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
3Departments of Radiation Oncology and Pharmacology, Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
4Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
5Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA
Anthony Berdis, email: a.berdis@csuohio.edu
Keywords: DNA damage, DNA polymerization, chemotherapy, nucleoside analogs, leukemia
Received: February 24, 2017 Accepted: April 11, 2017 Published: April 19, 2017
Anti-cancer agents exert therapeutic effects by damaging DNA. Unfortunately, DNA polymerases can effectively replicate the formed DNA lesions to cause drug resistance and create more aggressive cancers. To understand this process at the cellular level, we developed an artificial nucleoside that visualizes the replication of damaged DNA to identify cells that acquire drug resistance through this mechanism. Visualization is achieved using "click" chemistry to covalently attach azide-containing fluorophores to the ethynyl group present on the nucleoside analog after its incorporation opposite damaged DNA. Flow cytometry and microscopy techniques demonstrate that the extent of nucleotide incorporation into genomic DNA is enhanced by treatment with DNA damaging agents. In addition, this nucleoside analog inhibits translesion DNA synthesis and synergizes the therapeutic activity of certain anti-cancer agents such as temozolomide. The combined diagnostic and therapeutic activities of this synthetic nucleoside analog represent a new paradigm in personalized medicine.
Inhibiting translesion DNA synthesis as an approach to combat drug resistance to DNA damaging agents | Choi | Oncotarget
Cellular DNA is constantly exposed to a wide variety of internal and external DNA damaging agents. While cells possess several pathways to correct damaged DNA, some lesions unfortunately escape repair and their presence can produce devastating cellular effects ranging from mutagenesis and genomic rearrangements to cell death. One conserved mechanism to tolerate unrepaired DNA lesions involves their efficient by-pass in a process termed translesion DNA synthesis (TLS). Since most high-fidelity DNA polymerases involved in chromosomal replication cannot efficiently replicate and bypass damaged DNA, cells rely heavily on the activity of specialized DNA polymerases to accomplish this task [1]. A complete understanding of how these polymerases function at the cellular level has been hindered by the diversity of DNA lesions that form inside a cell coupled with the large number of DNA polymerases that participate in their replication. In humans, for example, at least seven of the 15 different DNA polymerases can replicate structurally diverse DNA lesions such as thymine dimers, abasic sites, and double strand DNA breaks [2–6].
Understanding how TLS activity is regulated at the cellular level is especially relevant in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy [7–11]. For example, a significant complication of TLS is the onset of drug resistance caused by misreplicating the DNA lesions produced by agents such as temozolomide (TMZ) and cisplatin [7–9] (Figure 1A). Furthermore, the pro-mutagenic outcomes of TLS can increase the frequency of genetic mutations and create more aggressive cancers. Indeed, Johnson et al. recently reported that brain tumors isolated from patients treated with TMZ became drug resistant as a result of acquired somatic mutations in genes associated with DNA mismatch repair [10]. These tumors were hypermutated and contained more than 30 mutations per megabase whereas initial untreated tumors had significantly lower mutation frequencies (0.2 to 4.5 mutations per Mb) [10].
Figure 1: (A) Generalized model for translesion DNA synthesis. In this model, a DNA polymerase misinserts a nucleotide opposite a DNA lesion and then extends beyond it. The biological consequences of translesion DNA synthesis include the onset of drug resistance and an increase in mutagenesis. (B) Comparison of the chemical structures of dATP and 3-Eth-5-NITP.
Despite the importance of TLS, there are no chemical compounds that can monitor this process at the cellular level. We have addressed this problem by developing nucleotide analogs that are efficiently and selectively incorporated opposite DNA lesions generated by DNA damaging agents. One therapeutically important DNA lesion is the abasic site which is non-enzymatically formed by DNA alkylating agents such as TMZ and enzymatically by DNA glycosylases [12]. We developed an artificial nucleotide designated 3-ethynyl-5-nitroindolyl-2’-deoxyriboside triphosphate (3-Eth-5-NITP) (Figure 1B) that functions as an efficient surrogate for the natural nucleotide, dATP, that is preferentially utilized during TLS [13]. In this report, we use the corresponding nucleoside, 3-Eth-5-NIdR, to track TLS activity in cancer cells treated with compounds that generate abasic sites. Visualizing the replication of these lesions was achieved using copper-catalyzed “click” chemistry to tag the ethynyl moiety present on the nucleotide with fluorogenic probes. This represents a new diagnostic technique to quantify drug resistance caused by TLS activity. In addition, co-treating leukemia cells with 3-Eth-5-NIdR and anti-cancer agents that generate abasic sites causes a synergistic increase in cell death and correlates with the amount of 3-Eth-5-NITP incorporated into genomic DNA. Collectively, the diagnostic and therapeutic activities of this novel artificial nucleoside provide a new paradigm in personalized medicine for cancer treatment.
Measuring the cellular replication of abasic sites
In order to study the cellular replication of damaged DNA, it was necessary to generate abasic sites inside cells. This was achieved by using the enzymatic activity of uracil DNA glycosylase to produce abasic sites by excising uracil from DNA (Figure 2A). In these experiments, MOLT4 leukemia cells were treated with 5 μM uracil 2-deoxyribose (UdR) or DMSO (vehicle control). After 72 hours post-treatment, genomic DNA was isolated and the number of abasic sites in DNA was quantified using the aldehyde reactive probe (ARP) assay [14]. Figure 2B shows that cells treated with 5 μM UdR have a ~4-fold higher number of abasic sites compared to cells treated with DMSO.
Figure 2: (A) Strategy for generating abasic sites under cellular conditions by using uracil DNA glycosylase to excise uracil from DNA in cells treated with UdR. (B) Exposure to uracil 2-deoxyribose increases the number of abasic sites in MOLT4 cells. MOLT4 cells were used at an initial density of 200,000 cells/mL and treated with 5 μM uracil 2-deoxyribose (UdR) or DMSO (vehicle control). After 72 hours post-treatment, genomic DNA was isolated, quantified, and diluted in TE buffer to a final concentration of 100 μg/μl. The number of abasic sites in DNA was quantified using the aldehyde reactive probe (ARP) assay. All assays were performed in triplicate, and the means were calculated. Data were calculated on the basis of a linear calibration curve with ARP-DNA standard solution and expressed as number of apurinic sites per 100,000 nucleotides. (C) Combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with UdR generates a synergistic cytotoxic effect compared to treatment with either UdR or 3-Eth-5-NIdR alone. In all cases, the initial density of MOLT4 leukemia cells was maintained at 200,000 cells/mL prior to treatment. Cells were treated with 0.1% DMSO (vehicle), 5 μM UdR, 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and 5 μM UdR with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR for 72 hours. At this time interval, cell viability was assessed using trypan blue staining to count the number of viable versus non-viable cells using a hemocytometer. Cell viability was also assessed with a Muse Cell Count (EMD Millipore). Both assays yield results that are identical within experimental error to each other. (D) MOLT4 cells treated with DMSO or 5 μM UdR have low levels (< 0.5%) of AlexaFluor488 labeled DNA while cells treated with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR have slightly higher levels of AlexaFluor488 labeled DNA (1.1%). Co-treatment with 10 μg/mL Eth-5-NIdR and 5 μM UdR results in a 6-fold increase in AlexaFluor488 labeled DNA (6.4%). Treatment with 10 μM EdU generates considerably higher levels “clicked” genomic DNA (35.2%).
The viability of MOLT4 cells treated with 5 μM UdR was also measured using two independent biochemical assays (visualization by microscopy and flow cytometry). Figure 2C shows that cells treated with 5 μM UdR have a ~3-fold higher level of cell death compared to DMSO treatment. Cells treated with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR (which corresponds to a molar concentration of 33 μM) show a 2-fold increase in cell death. More importantly, cells treated with a low concentration of 3-Eth-5-NIdR (10 μg/mL) and 5 μM UdR show a synergistic increase in cell death that is 2.5-fold higher than the additive effects of UdR and 3-Eth-5-NIdR treatment (Figure 2C). The ability of 3-Eth-5-NIdR to increase the cell killing effects of UdR likely reflects the ability of the corresponding nucleoside triphosphate, 3-Eth-5-NITP, to effectively block the replication of unrepaired abasic sites.
We verified that this synergistic effect is caused by inhibiting TLS activity using dual parameter flow cytometry (propidium iodide (PI) and fluorescence detection of the artificial nucleotide) to measure the amount of AlexaFluor488 covalently attached to 3-Eth-5-NIdR incorporated into genomic DNA. Figure 2D shows that MOLT4 cells treated with DMSO or 5 μM UdR have low levels (< 0.5%) of AlexaFluor488 labeled DNA. Cells treated with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR for two days display low but appreciable levels of AlexaFluor488 labeled DNA (1.1%). This low level is consistent with previous results demonstrating that 3-Eth-5-NIdR can detect the cellular activity of terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) which is overexpressed in MOLT4 cells [15]. However, cells co-treated with 10 μg/mL Eth-5-NIdR and 5 μM UdR show more robust effects as there is a ~6-fold increase in AlexaFluor488 labeled DNA (6.4%). The increase in “clicked” DNA likely occurs by the incorporation of 3-Eth-5-NITP opposite abasic sites formed after uracil excision. The amount of 3-Eth-5-NIdR utilized during TLS was compared to the amount of 5-ethynyl-2’deoxyribose uracil (EdU) incorporated during normal DNA synthesis (Figure 2D). As expected, cells treated with 10 μM EdU have considerably higher levels “clicked” genomic DNA (35.2%) compared to cells treated with UdR and 3-Eth-5-NIdR (6.4%). In general, the higher amount of "clicked" DNA with EdU treatment results from the efficient insertion of the thymine analog opposite adenine which occurs with a significantly higher frequency in genomic DNA compared to unrepaired abasic sites.
Specialized DNA polymerases preferentially insert 3-Eth-5-NITP opposite abasic sites
We next investigated which cellular DNA polymerases may be responsible for incorporating 3-Eth-5-NITP opposite abasic sites formed after UdR treatment. In vitro approaches measured the kinetic parameters, kcat, Km, and kcat/Km, for the utilization of dATP and 3-Eth-5-NITP by pol δ, the high-fidelity polymerase involved in chromosomal replication and pol η, a specialized DNA polymerase that produces drug resistance by replicating damaged DNA [16, 17]. Michaelis-Menten plots for the utilization of dATP by each polymerase are provided as Supplementary Figure 1, and the kinetic parameters derived from these plots are summarized in Table 1. In this analysis, the most important parameter is the kcat/Km value as this reflects the overall catalytic efficiency of the polymerase to utilize a nucleotide substrate under physiological conditions. These data indicate that pol δ inserts dATP opposite an abasic site very poorly as the low kcat/Km value of 5.5 M-1sec-1 is caused by a high Km value for dATP (560 ± 180 μM) coupled with a low kcat value (0.0031 ± 0.0004 sec-1). In contrast, pol η is 500-fold more efficient at incorporating dATP opposite the lesion. The high kcat/Km value of 2,600 M-1sec-1 is caused by a 12-fold lower Km value for dATP coupled with a ~40-fold faster kcat value. The observed differences in catalytic efficiencies suggest that pol η is more efficient than pol δ at incorporating dATP opposite abasic sites and thus likely contributes more to the error-prone replication of this lesion under cellular conditions.
Table 1: Kinetic parameters for the incorporation of dATP and 3-Eth-5-NITP opposite an abasic site catalyzed by human pol δ and pol η
Km(μM)
kcat(sec-1)
kcat/Km(M-1sec-1)
dATP
pol δ
0.0031 ± 0.0004
pol η
46 ± 11
0.12 ± 0.01
3-Eth-5-NITP
0.013 ± 0.001
Similar experiments were performed using 3-Eth-5-NITP as the substrate (Supplementary Figure 2) and the resulting kinetic parameters are provided in Table 1. In the case of pol δ, the kcat/Km value of 6,400 M-1sec-1 for 3-Eth-5-NITP is ~1,200-fold higher than dATP while the catalytic efficiency of ~68,000 M-1sec-1 measured with pol η is ~30-fold higher than dATP. Thus, both high- and low-fidelity DNA polymerases utilize 3-Eth-5-NITP more efficiently than dATP. However, the higher efficiency observed with pol η suggests that specialized polymerases are primarily responsible for utilizing 3-Eth-5-NITP during TLS. Note that exonuclease proofreading activity with this particular nucleotide is extraordinarily low. Thus, the kinetic parameters measured here are not complicated by idle turnover activity and represent an accurate measurement of nucleotide incorporation.
We next examined the ability of both high-fidelity and specialized DNA polymerases to extend beyond dAMP or 3-Eth-5-NIMP paired opposite an abasic site. Both mispairs were formed in situ by adding a fixed concentration of nucleotide substrate was added to a solution containing DNA substrate pre-incubated with DNA polymerase. After 4 half-lives, an aliquot of dTTP and dGTP (500 μM final concentration) was added to initiate the elongation reaction. Supplementary Figure 3 provides gel electrophoresis data demonstrating that high-fidelity DNA polymerases such as pol δ and the bacteriophage T4 DNA polymerase efficiently insert 3-Eth-5-NITP opposite an abasic site but are unable to elongate beyond the artificial nucleotide when supplied with natural dNTPs. These results validate the chain termination capabilities of this artificial nucleotide.
Results obtained using pol η (provided as Supplementary Figure 4) are more complicated as the specialized DNA polymerase shows a unique ability to elongate one nucleotide beyond 3-Eth-5-NIMP when paired opposite an abasic site. Although pol η can elongate one base beyond the lesion, it is unable to continue primer elongation when supplied with high concentrations (> 500 μM) of natural dNTPs. Similar behavior is observed when pol η is supplied with dATP. In this case, the specialized DNA polymerase incorporates the artificial nucleotide opposite the lesion and also extends one nucleotide beyond the abasic site. However, pol η possesses significantly higher activity toward elongating beyond dAMP when supplied with natural dNTPs. This activity contrast data obtained with 3-Eth-NIMP which hinders extension beyond the DNA lesion. These results validate that the synthetic analog is a chain terminator of TLS whereas lesion by-pass can more easily occur with natural nucleotides. Collectively, these data validate that the artificial nucleotide analog likely induces cell death by inhibiting the by-pass of abasic sites catalyzed by either high-fidelity or specialized DNA polymerases.
Measuring translesion DNA synthesis activity in response to chemotherapeutic agents
We next assessed the ability of 3-Eth-5-NIdR to potentiate the cell killing effects of TMZ, an anti-cancer agent that generates abasic sites via alkylation of the N7-position of guanine [18]. Cell viability was directly compared in cells treated with DMSO, 100 μM TMZ, 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and 100 μM TMZ combined with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR. Figure 3A shows that treatment with either TMZ or 3-Eth-5-NIdR alone for three days produces weak cytostatic and cytotoxic effects. However, more significant effects are observed when TMZ is combined with a sub-lethal dose of 3-Eth-5-NIdR as the number of viable cells decreases with a concomitant increase in the number of non-viable cells. The data provided in Figure 3B normalizes the percentage of non-viable cells as a function of drug exposure against treatment with DMSO to more easily visualize the synergistic effects caused by combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ. As illustrated, combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ produces a synergistic increase in cell death (27.5%) compared to the additive effects of 11.9% from cells treated individually with 100 μM TMZ (7.5%) or 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR (4.4%).
Figure 3: (A) Combining sub-lethal doses of 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ produces greater cytostatic and cytotoxic effects compared to treatment with 100 μM TMZ or 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR alone. In all cases, the initial density of MOLT4 leukemia cells was maintained at 200,000 cells/mL prior to treatment. Cells were treated with 0.1% DMSO (vehicle), 100 μM TMZ, 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and 100 μM TMZ with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR for 72 hours. At this time interval, cell viability was assessed using trypan blue staining and flow cytometry as described in the text. Open (white) bars represent viable cells while gray bars represent non-viable cells. ** represents a p value of > 0.01 while *** represents a p value of > 0.001. (B) Secondary plot based on primary data provided in Figure 2A comparing the % non-viable cells as a function of various drug treatments. In all cases, the values representing percent apoptosis caused by various treatment are normalized for cell death measured in the presence of DMSO (vehicle control). This analysis demonstrates that combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ produces a 27.5% increase in the percentage of non-viable cells compared to increases of 7.5% and 4.4% with 100 μM TMZ or 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, respectively. Thus, the combination of 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ generates a synergistic increase in apoptosis as it is greater than the predicted additive effects. *** represents a p value of > 0.001 (C) Combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ increases the number of abasic sites. MOLT4 cells were used at an initial density of 200,000 cells/mL and treated with DMSO (vehicle control), 100 μM TMZ, or 100 μM TMZ with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR. After 72 hours post-treatment, genomic DNA was isolated, quantified, and diluted in TE buffer to a final concentration of 100 μg/μl. The number of abasic sites in DNA was quantified using the aldehyde reactive probe (ARP) assay. All assays were performed in triplicate, and the means were calculated. Data were calculated on the basis of a linear calibration curve with ARP-DNA standard solution and expressed as number of apurinic sites per 100,000 nucleotides. (D) MOLT4 cells treated with 3-Eth-5-NIdR and TMZ have significantly higher levels of early and late stage apoptosis compared to cells treated with TMZ or 3-Eth-5-NIdR alone. Cells (100,000 – 200,000 cells/mL) were treated with 0.1% DMSO (vehicle), 100 μM TMZ, 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and 100 μM TMZ with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR for 48 hours. Cells were harvested by centrifugation, washed in PBS, and re-suspended in 100 μL of binding buffer containing 5 μM of Annexin V-Alexa Fluor 488 conjugate. Cells were treated with 1 μg/ mL PI and incubated at room temperature for 15 min followed by flow cytometry analysis. Cells were analyzed using either Muse Cell analyzer or Beckman Coulter EPICS-XL with EXPO 32 Data Acquisition software. 15,000-gated events were observed for each sample. (E) Analysis of cell-cycle progression in MOLT4 treated with TMZ in the absence and presence of 3-Eth-5-NIdR. Cells (100,000–200,000 cells/mL) were treated with 0.1% DMSO (vehicle), 100 μM TMZ, 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and 100 μM TMZ with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR for 48 hours. Cells were harvested by centrifugation, washed in PBS, and treated with 1 μg/ mL PI. Cells were incubated at room temperature for 15 min followed by flow cytometry analysis. Cells were analyzed using either Muse Cell analyzer or Beckman Coulter EPICS-XL with EXPO 32 Data Acquisition software. 15,000-gated events were observed for each sample.
To verify that this synergistic effect reflects the inhibition of TLS activity, we quantified the number of abasic sites produced by TMZ treatment using the aldehyde reactive probe (ARP) assay [14]. As illustrated in Figure 3C, MOLT4 cells treated with 100 μM TMZ have a 15% increase in the number of abasic sites compared to DMSO treatment. The number of abasic sites formed with 3-Eth-5-NIdR with treatment is identical, within experimental error, to the number of abasic sites produced using DMSO. For convenience, this data point has been omitted from Figure 3C. More importantly, however, we observe that combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ produces a 35% increase in the number of abasic sites. This increase could result from two interrelated effects. First, incorporation of 3-Eth-5-NITP opposite an abasic site inhibits the ability of a DNA polymerase to extend beyond the lesion. Secondly, the incorporation of 3-Eth-5-NITP may hinder the efficient repair of abasic sites formed by TMZ treatment. Note that this inhibition does not immediately cause cell death as cells likely attempt to repair stalled replication forks before undergoing apoptosis. Regardless, the combined effects of the inhibition of DNA repair and TLS activity is consistent with the synergistic cell-killing effects caused by combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ.
We also tested the ability of 3-Eth-5-NIdR to potentiate the cell killing effects of other anti-cancer drugs such as cisplatin, chlorambucil, carmustine, doxorubicin, and hydroxyurea. These agents were chosen as they produce DNA lesions that are structurally distinct from abasic sites [19–23]. Data provided in Supplementary Table 1 shows that co-treatment with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR does not increase the cell killing effects of anti-cancer agents that form DNA crosslinks (cisplatin, chlorambucil, and carmustine) or single-strand DNA (hydroxyurea). However, treatment with a sub-lethal concentration of 3-Eth-5-NIdR increases the cytotoxic effects of doxorubicin by 2-fold, and this could reflect the ability of 3-Eth-5-NITP to inhibit the ability of TdT to replicate DSBs formed by doxorubicin [15]. Collectively, these data coupled with the inability of 3-Eth-5-NIdR to potentiate the cytotoxic effects of crosslinked or alkylated DNA lesions indicate that the artificial nucleoside selectively inhibits TLS activity against non-instructional DNA lesions. i.e., abasic sites and DSBs.
Inhibiting TLS activity increases apoptosis
The cellular mechanisms accounting for the synergistic cell killing effects caused by combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ were interrogated using PI uptake and annexin V staining to distinguish live cells from those undergoing early and late stage apoptosis or necrosis. Representative data provided in Figure 3D show that MOLT4 cells co-treated with 3-Eth-5-NIdR and TMZ have significantly higher levels of early and late stage apoptosis (15.9% and 22.9%, respectively) compared to cells treated with TMZ (8.5% and 10.1%, respectively) or 3-Eth-5-NIdR (6.9% and 7.3%, respectively). Values provided in Table 2 represent an average of three independent determinations and are normalized for the effects of DMSO used as the co-solvent. As indicated, the net apoptotic effect (Δ = 28.7%) for combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ is 1.6-fold greater than the additive effects of TMZ or 3-Eth-5-NIdR treatment (Δ = 18.2%).
Table 2: Summary of dual parameter flow cytometry measuring apoptosis in MOLT4 cells
Early Apoptotic
Late Apoptotic
Total Apoptotic
90.0 ± 2.3%
4.4 ± 0.8%
100 μM TMZ
(12.1%)
10 μg/mL
3-Eth-5-NIdR
(6.1%)
Values represent an average of three (3) independent determinations performed on different days. Values in parenthesis represent the difference in percent apoptosis of treatment compared to treatment with DMSO (vehicle control).
The effect of this drug combination on cell cycle progression was next examined using PI staining to measure cellular DNA content. Representative histograms are provided in Figure 3E and a summary of three independent determinations are provided in Table 3. A baseline in cell-cycle progression was established by first examining cells treated with DMSO. The histogram displays a pattern consistent with an asynchronous cell population as the majority of cells exist at G0/G1 (40.0 ± 3.2%) with smaller populations at S-phase (27.1 ± 2.5%), G2/M (25.0 ± 3.1%), and sub-G1 (7.9 ± 1.4%). Treatment with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR over a three day period produces a similar profile (G0/G1 = 40.8 ± 3.9%, S-phase = 23.1 ± 3.2%, G2/M =21.5 ± 2.1%, and sub-G1= 14.6 ± 1.9%). Treatment with 100 μM TMZ also generates a negligible effect on the population of cells at G0/G1 (41.0 ± 4.1%). However, treatment with the DNA damaging agent produces small reductions in cell populations corresponding to S-phase (19.8 ± 1.5%) and G2/M (21.4 ± 2.4%) that occur concomitant with an increase in sub-G1 cells (17.8 ± 2.5%). This increase is consistent with the induction of apoptosis caused by DNA damage after TMZ treatment. More importantly, combining 3-Eth-5-NIdR with TMZ produces higher levels in sub-G1 DNA (30.9 ± 2.9%). This effect appears cell cycle independent as it occurs concomitant with decreases in cell populations at every stage of the cell cycle (G0/G1 = 34.8 ± 2.5%, S-phase = 18.9 ± 1.9%, and G2M = 15.4 ± 1.5%). The synergistic increase in sub-G1 DNA again suggests that inhibiting lesion by-pass and/or the timely repair of lesions produced by TMZ increases apoptosis.
Table 3: Summary of the effects of drug treatment on cell cycle progression in MOLT4 cells
S-Phase
G2/M
SubG1
Values represent an average of three (3) independent determinations performed on different days. Values in parentheses represent the difference in percent sub-G1 DNA measured with various treatments compared to treatment with DMSO (vehicle control).
Using “Click” chemistry to visualize translesion DNA synthesis
To verify that 3-Eth-5-NIdR inhibits TLS activity, high-field microscopy techniques were used to visualize the nucleoside in cellular DNA using “click” chemistry to covalently attach fluorogenic probes to the nucleotide incorporated into DNA. Microscopy images provided in Figure 4A show that MOLT4 cells treated with DMSO show insignificant levels of green fluorescence. This negative result is expected since this compound does not contain an alkyne moiety that can react with the azide-containing fluorophore. Cells treated with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR consistently display slightly elevated levels of green fluorescence. The merged image of green fluorescence with DAPI staining shows nuclear co-localization of the AlexaFluor488 label, indicating that 3-Eth-5-NIdR is incorporated into genomic DNA even in the absence of exogenous DNA damage. However, cells co-treated with 100 μM TMZ and 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR show significantly higher levels of green fluorescence which again co-localizes in the nucleus (panel D). Confocal microscopy images provided as Supplementary Figure 5 validate that the green fluorescence emanating from the “clicked” nucleoside co-localizes within the nucleus. The increased incorporation of 3-Eth-5-NITP into genomic DNA coincides with a higher number of abasic sites produced by TMZ treatment and this provides direct visual evidence for the replication of these DNA lesions inside cells.
Figure 4: (A) Microscopy analyses monitoring the incorporation of 3-Eth-5-NIdR opposite abasic sites generated by TMZ treatment. Cells were co-treated with 100 μM TMZ, 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and a combination of 100 μM TMZ and 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR for three days. Cells treated with a combination of 100 μM TMZ and 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR display significantly higher levels of green fluorescence that co-localizes in the nucleus compared to cells treated with 100 μM TMZ or 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR alone. (B) Microscopy images of MOLT4 cells treated with increasing concentrations of EdU (0.05 to 5 μM). The fluorescence signal reflecting EdU incorporation increases as the concentration of EdU is raised from 0.05 to 1 μM. See text for experimental details. (C) The standard curve for the fluorescence of DNA “clicked” with EdU versus the concentration of EdU is linear (r2 = 0.98). DNA isolated from MOLT4 cells treated with 3-Eth-5-NIdR and TMZ (■) shows a level of fluorescence comparable to 0.5 μM EdU. See text for experimental details regarding the generation of the standard curve used to determine the amount of 3-Eth-5-NITP incorporated into genomic DNA.
We next compared the extent of 3-Eth-5-NITP incorporation during TLS to cells treated with variable concentrations of EdU (0.05 to 5 μM). Images provided in Figure 4B show that the fluorescence signal caused by EdU incorporation increases as the concentration of EdU is raised from 0.05 to 1 μM. Above a concentration of 1 μM, the level of fluorescence appears to plateau, and this may reflect saturation kinetics in the uptake of EdU and/or its metabolism to the corresponding nucleoside triphosphate [24, 25]. Regardless, microscopy images provided in Figure 4A show that cells treated with 3-Eth-5-NIdR and TMZ display fluorescence levels that are similar to cells treated with 0.5 μM EdU. This conclusion was verified by quantifying the amount of fluorescently labeled DNA isolated from cells treated with 3-Eth-5-NIdR and TMZ and comparing it to DNA isolated from cells treated with variable concentrations of EdU (0.05–5 μM). Figure 4C provides a standard curve showing an excellent linear correlation (r2 = 0.98) in fluorescence signal as a function of increasing EdU concentrations (from 0.01 to 1 μM). This standard curve was used to determine that DNA isolated from cells treated with TMZ and 3-Eth-5-NIdR displays a level of fluorescence that is comparable to DNA isolated from cells treated with 0.5 μM EdU. Collectively, the results from the microscopy analyses coupled with quantitation of purified DNA from cells verify that 3-Eth-5-NIdR is incorporated opposite DNA lesions generated by TMZ treatment.
TLS is an important biological pathway that provides cells with an effective way to survive genomic stress caused by unrepaired DNA lesions. Unfortunately, this process can also produce detrimental effects at the cellular and organismal levels. Indeed, unregulated TLS activity is involved in the initiation and progression of diseases such as cancer as well as in generating drug resistance to therapeutic agents used to treat this disease. Despite the importance of TLS, a complete understanding of this process has been hindered by the lack of biochemical tools that can directly measure the replication of damaged DNA inside cells. This report addresses this deficiency by using an artificial nucleoside to quantify TLS activity in cells treated with DNA damaging agents. Our results provide key insights into three fundamentally important areas. These include defining the roles of high-fidelity and low fidelity DNA polymerases toward replicating damaged DNA, the development of a diagnostic assay to predict how TLS activity affects therapeutic responses to anti-cancer agents, and a new therapeutic strategy to improve the efficacy of DNA damaging agents used in chemotherapy. Each area is discussed in more detail below.
Currently, there are two accepted models for how DNA polymerase activity is coordinated during TLS [26, 27]. In the first model, a high-fidelity DNA polymerase such as pol δ encounters an unrepaired DNA lesion during chromosomal replication. After incorporating a nucleotide opposite the lesion, the polymerase is unable to extend beyond it. Subsequent stalling of the replication fork the recruits a specialized DNA polymerase such as pol κ or pol ζ to extend beyond the lesion. Once lesion by-pass occurs, pol δ displaces the specialized polymerase and resumes DNA synthesis downstream of the damaged DNA. The second model varies slightly as the intrinsic high-fidelity of pol δ prevents it from incorporating a nucleotide opposite the lesion. Instead, a specialized DNA polymerase such as pol η is recruited to incorporate a dNTP opposite the lesion. After pol η by-passes the lesion, pol δ replaces the specialized polymerase and continues chromosomal replication. In general, the in vitro kinetic data provided here are consistent with this second model as pol δ displays low TLS activity as evident in a remarkably low catalytic efficiency for incorporating dATP opposite an abasic site. In contrast, pol η is far more proficient at incorporating dATP and 3-Eth-5-NITP opposite the non-instructional DNA lesion. More importantly, pol η utilizes 3-Eth-5-NITP ~10-fold more efficiently than dATP. This higher efficiency coupled with the chain-termination capabilities of the artificial nucleotide suggests that 3-Eth-5-NITP preferentially inhibits TLS catalyzed by pol η. The inhibitory effects against this specialized DNA polymerase explains how 3-Eth-5-NIdR increases the cytotoxic effects of compounds such as UdR and TMZ that create non-instructional DNA lesions such as abasic sites.
Expanding on these results, we applied “click” chemistry to selectively and covalently attach fluorogenic probes to 3-Eth-5-NIdR to visualize the cellular activity of pol η during TLS. This has important clinical applications, particularly with respect to developing diagnostic tests to determine patient responses to anti-cancer agents that damage DNA. Accurately measuring the effects of chemotherapeutic agents has obvious implications for facilitating successful patient responses to drug treatment. This is especially relevant with therapeutic agents such as cisplatin, doxorubicin, and TMZ which are widely used to treat breast, pancreatic, and brain cancer. To date, most efforts in the area of personalized medicine have focused on using genomic and/or proteomic profiling techniques to identify prognostic biomarkers for therapeutic intervention. Several groups have shown that higher POLH expression correlates with poor patient outcomes, particularly with respect to treatment with DNA damaging agents [28–30]. Unfortunately, similar genetic approaches have failed to produce clear correlations in patient responses to chemotherapy with other specialized DNA polymerases such as pol k and pol z [31–33]. These discrepancies likely reflect the complexities associated with the large number and diversity of human DNA polymerases that can cause drug resistance by replicating damaged DNA. We propose that 3-Eth-5-NITP can overcome these complications since this artificial nucleotide behaves as a universal and highly selective substrate for chromosomal and specialized DNA polymerase that replicate abasic sites. The unique ability of 3-Eth-5-NIdR to directly measure TLS activity against this lesion can be used in activity-based assays to quantify the collective activity of all cellular DNA polymerases that perform TLS. This activity based assay would provide more physiologically relevant data compared to genomic and proteomic techniques which simply infer enzyme activity by measuring mRNA or protein levels.
Finally, the data provided here clearly show the potential therapeutic utility for inhibiting TLS activity as a way to increase the cell killing effects of anti-cancer agents that damage DNA. Our data demonstrate that low concentrations of 3-Eth-5-NIdR significantly increase the cytotoxicity of TMZ by inhibiting TLS activity. This inhibition could produce several beneficial effects in patients receiving chemotherapy. For instance, sensitizing cancer cells to the effects of a DNA damaging agent provides a strategy to administer lower drug doses which would reduce the risk of potential side effects. Again, this is particularly important with drugs such as cisplatin and cyclophosphamide that produce severe and debilitating side effects. Indeed, the ability of the these agents to non-selective kill of healthy yet rapidly proliferating cells such as B- and T-cells accounts for side effects such as leukopenia and thrombocytopenia that can compromise a patient’s response to chemotherapy [34]. Finally, targeting TLS activity also provides a rationale way to combat drug resistance caused by the up-regulation of pro-mutagenic DNA synthesis.
Cells and cell culture
MOLT4 cells were cultured in a humidified atmosphere of 5% CO2 at 37° C. Cells were maintained in ATCC-formulated RPMI-1640 media supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS), 5% L-glutamine, and 0.5% penicillin/streptomycin (Invitrogen, NY).
Phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), antibiotic and antifungal agents, amphotericin, propidium iodide, PrestoBlue, DAPI, Alexa Fluor 488, and apoptosis assay kit containing Alexa Fluor 488-labeled Annexin V were from Invitrogen. 3-Eth-5-NIdR and 3-Eth-5-NITP were synthesized and purified as previously described [13, 15]. DNA including that containing an abasic site were obtained from Operon and purified as described [13, 15]. Recombinant human polymerase delta (pol δ) and human polymerase eta (pol η) were purified as previously described [35, 36]. Each polymerase was judged to be > 97% pure as assessed by sodium dodecylsulfate-polyacrylamide denaturing gel electrophoresis.
Cell viability assays
3-Eth-5-NIdR was added to wells in a dose-dependent manner (1−100 μg/mL) and treated for variable time periods (24−72 hr). In all cases, the final concentration of the co-solvent, DMSO, was maintained at 0.1%. Cell viability was assessed using trypan blue staining to count the number of viable versus non-viable cells using a hemocytometer. Cell viability was also assessed with a Muse Cell Count (EMD Millipore). IC50 values for the artificial nucleoside and anti-cancer agents were obtained using a non-linear regression curve fit of the data to Equation 1.
y = 100% / (1 + (IC50/[Compound])) (1)
LD50 values for the artificial nucleoside were calculated using identical approaches.
Apoptosis measurements
Cells (100,000 – 200,000 cells/mL) were treated with 0.1% DMSO (vehicle), 5 μM UdR, 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and 5 μM UdR with 10 μg/mL 3-Eth-5-NIdR for 48 hours. Cells were harvested by centrifugation, washed in PBS, and re-suspended in 100 μL of binding buffer containing 5 μM of Annexin V-Alexa Fluor 488 conjugate. Cells were treated with 1 μg/ mL PI and incubated at room temperature for 15 min followed by flow cytometry analysis. Cells were analyzed using either Muse Cell analyzer or Beckman Coulter EPICS-XL with EXPO 32 Data Acquisition software. 15,000-gated events were observed for each sample.
“Click” reactions were performed using cells harvested after 2 days of treatment with DMSO, EdU (0–5 μM), TMZ (100 μM), 3-Eth-5-NIdR (10 μg/mL), or TMZ (100 μM) with 3-Eth-5-NIdR (10 μg/mL). All cells were fixed with cold methanol overnight. Cells were treated with 0.3 mL of saponin-based permeabilization and wash buffer for 45 min at 37 °C. Click reactions were initiated with click-iT reaction cocktail followed by incubation at 37 °C for 90 min. Cells were washed twice with wash buffer. Cell pellets were dislodged using 0.5 mL solution of 10 μg/mL PI and RNAase A in saponin-based permeabilization buffer. Cells were incubated for 15 min with 1 μg/mL DAPI prior to analysis. Images were obtained using an EVOSfl Advanced microscope (40X magnification).
Kinetic parameters for nucleotide incorporation
Kinetic studies using polymerase delta and polymerase eta were performed using an assay buffer consisting of 50 mM TrisOAc, 1 mg/mL bovine serum albumin, 10 mM DTT, and 5 mM MgCl2 at pH 7.5. All assays were performed at 37°C. kcat, Km, and kcat/Km values for nucleotides were measured as described (37). Data for the dependency of rate as a function of nucleotide concentration were fit to the Michaelis–Menten equation (Equation 3):
ν = Vmax * [dXTP] / (Km + [dXTP]) (3)
where ν is the rate of product formation analysis, the most important parameter (nM/s), Vmax is the maximal rate of polymerization, Km is the Michaelis constant for dXTP, and [dXTP] is the concentration of nucleotide substrate. The turnover number, kcat, is Vmax divided by the final concentration of polymerase used in each assay.
Chain-termination experiments
Assays were performed using pseudo-first order reaction conditions in which a limiting concentration of DNA polymerase (25 nM) was pre-incubated with 500 nM DNA containing an abasic site in assay buffer and then mixed with a fixed concentration of dATP (500 μM) or 3-Eth-5-NITP (5 μM) to initiate insertion opposite the lesion. After 4 half-lives, an aliquot of dTTP and dGTP (500 μM final concentration) was added to initiate the elongation reaction. Aliquots of the reactions were quenched with 200 mM EDTA at variable times (0-30 minutes) and analyzed by denaturing gel electrophoresis to assess elongation beyond dATP or 3-Eth5-NITP.
Quantifying abasic site formation
DNA was isolated using the genomic DNA mini kit as described by the manufacturer (IBI Scientific). The concentration and purity of isolated DNA was measured using agarose gel electrophoresis and spectrophotometric analyses (Spectramax M4, Molecular Devices). Genomic DNA was diluted in TE buffer to a final concentration of 100 μg/μl. Measurements were performed with the use of a commercially available kit for abasic sites site counting (DNA Damage Quantification Kit, Dojindo Molecular Technologies). All assays using the aldehyde reactive probe (ARP) were performed in triplicate, and the means were calculated. Data were calculated on the basis of a linear calibration curve with ARP-DNA standard solution and expressed as number of apurinic sites per 100,000 nucleotides.
All data showing error bars are presented as mean ± s.e.m. The significance of difference in the mean value was determined using a two-tailed Student’s t-test and normal distribution was assumed in all cases. A one-way ANOVA analysis was used to compare the effects of cells treated with the combination of 3-Eth-5-NIdR and DNA damaging agent versus treatment with DMSO, 3-Eth-5-NIdR, and DNA damaging agent alone to determine p-values. P-values < 0.05 were considered significant. All calculations were performed using KaleidaGraph software. All cell culture experiments were reproduced at least three times independently. For each experiment, the number of samples and replicates are provided in the text or figure legend.
Jung-Suk Choi performed experiments, interpreted data, and participated in writing the manuscript. Seol Kim performed experiments, interpreted data, and participated in writing the manuscript. Edward Motea performed experiments and interpreted data. Anthony Berdis performed experiments, interpreted data, and participated in writing the manuscript.
The authors declare no financial involvement or other actual or perceived conflicts of interest with the results and interpretations in this work.
This work was supported by grants to AJB from the Department of Defense (W81XWH-13-1-0238), Cleveland State University (Faculty Innovation Award and the Summer Undergraduate Research Program), the Glide Innovation Fund, and the Ohio Third Frontier Foundation.
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Mod+ 281. DR. EVAN THOMPSON FINDS NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE EVIDENCE UNCONVINCING
Neil said:
Ok, go ahead and keep claiming that a correlation was established with a phemomenon that was not even studied in the paper.
I will thanks, yes...
Max_B said:
So then tell me, how strong was the correlation with NDEs? How many of the mice had an NDE?
Hopefully you can help me understand your position since I have been unable to find the strength of this correlation in Borjigin et al's paper.
I guess the main reason for this suggestion is that that surge is very curious - and seems to occur about the time you might expect the separation to begin. However, note Max's contribution above - he thinks the experiments picked up human brain waves, and were simply flawed.
Yes, when I pointed out to Borjigin that a Faraday cage is not sufficient to rule out external field effects on the rats brain... she cut me off. There is just an assumption that the brain isn't sensitive to this stuff... so they don't even mention types of shielding in the paper. But nobody has done these sorts of detailed EEG studies on dying brains before... and I think Borjigin has stumbled across a field effect, because the rats werent sufficiently shielded. If you note on Borjigins second rat paper, she mentions IIRC an EM field effect (from equipment) shown in the data that should be ignored.
We've got evidence of weak magnetic field effects on the brain that suggest that some mechanism in the brain can transduce them. The network itself also appears to be more sensitive to these weak fields than individual neurons.
And we simply don't know how sensitive the brain is in an energy compromised state.
I would love to see the experiment repeated, with belt-n-braces Electric and Magnetic shielding, I would put money on a change in their results.
Granted, very few people like my ideas...
The Borjigin paper is here:
http://www.pnas.org/content/110/35/14432.full.pdf html
The abstract says:
The brain is assumed to be hypoactive during cardiac arrest.
However, the neurophysiological state of the brain immediately
following cardiac arrest has not been systematically investigated. In
this study, we performed continuous electroencephalography in
rats undergoing experimental cardiac arrest and analyzed changes
in power density, coherence, directed connectivity, and cross-frequency
coupling. We identified a transient surge of synchronous gamma
oscillations that occurred within the first 30 s after cardiac arrest
and preceded isoelectric electroencephalogram. Gamma oscillations
during cardiac arrest were global and highly coherent; moreover,
this frequency band exhibited a striking increase in anterior–posterior-
directed connectivity and tight phase-coupling to both theta
and alpha waves. High-frequency neurophysiological activity in
the near-death state exceeded levels found during the conscious
waking state. These data demonstrate that the mammalian brain
can, albeit paradoxically, generate neural correlates of heightened
conscious processing at near-death.
Whoa! Where is the evidence that mammals other than human beings experience "heightened conscious processing" at near-death? Who the heck knows what the rats were experiencing? Even if the rats had recovered, could they have reported what they'd experienced?
Ethically, one can't do this experiment in human beings, though conceivably one could track people liable to cardiac arrest and look for 30 seconds' worth or so of gamma activity if and when they did. If you could do enough studies like this on humans, some of them might recover and could be asked if they'd had an NDE. It'd be doubtful that all of them would so report, as is already known.
In Borjigin's study, all 9 of 9 rats showed the gamma activity. If recovered rats could talk, it's anyone's guess whether they'd report an NDE.
Rats aren't human beings, and one should be very cautious about extrapolating from one to the other. In addition, there's the question of timing to consider. The timing of veridical reports would have to be compared to the time when gamma signals were detected. They'd have to correspond with the time of the gamma signals in order to verify that those signals were associated with NDE phenomena such as OBEs.
There's a heck of a lot of ifs, ands and buts in making the extrapolation, and the first of those is confirming the presence of gamma activity in human beings during cardiac arrest. Then there's confirming that such activity does more than merely correlate with heightened conscious processing. No one is denying that in most circumstances, there is a correlation between brain activity and consciousness; but correlation is not causation, is it?
Whatever, were gamma signals to be detected in human beings, the question of how long they might persist would be crucial: any perceptions occurring beyond that time couldn't be explained by them, could it?
All in all, this study, while very interesting and by all accounts well-conducted, doesn't merit the weight of interpretation being placed on it in some quarters. One is left with the impression that some are ready to abandon due diligence in their scepticism and grasp at straws to bolster the view that there's a material cause for NDEs. An awful lot more evidence would be required before that could be stated with any confidence.
And no evidence of NDEs, so no correlation with NDEs.
I think you and Max are talking past each other. He is saying that the fact that the rat signal resembled that of wakeful humans suggest electromagnetic contamination with the brainwaves of the experimenters (I think).
EEG signals are pretty weak anyway, and are presumably rat signals have even less energy.
The only 'correlation' with NDE's is the time after cardiac arrest, which is, I suppose about right.
It is a pity you didn't push Evan on a few other things - such as terminal lucidity, other deathbed phenomena etc. As well as trying to pin him down on just how he thinks people manage to report details of their resuscitation - I mean, does he buy into the idea that somehow they take in the scene and create a narrative later?
It occurs to me that people can only see as a result of continual shifts of focus known as saccades:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saccade
I wonder if these happen during cardiac arrest, because if they don't, it just isn't possible for people to collect visual information conventionally while their heart is stopped! This might remove the need for AWARE studies completely!
Either way there was no correlation with NDEs.
I suspect the term 'correlation' was used rather vaguely.
malf
Excellent show Alex!
Isn't this only an issue because proponents have historically insisted that NDEs correlated with an absence of this type of activity?
malf said:
It's an issue because claiming the brain activity in the mouse study is correlated with NDEs is wrong.
We do know, however, that there are NDEs that occur without this activity.
There are plenty of cases where this data doesn't match, but the largest category would be 25% of NDEs occur during general anesthesia, which Borjigin et al investigated and did not see this response. So if this brain activity is supposed to explain NDE, then why would we see NDEs during anesthesia without this brain activity?
Vaguery in scientific debate is not very productive, especially when trying to justify a position.
You don't think that that type of activity could explain some NDEs?
Or to put it another way, is it realistic to think that there is one single explanation for all the various reports of these experiences?
I think there is a chance that it may play a role in at least some NDEs, but it certainly needs more research to attempt to answer the question. I find the results interesting, but skeptics are jumping to conclusions.
At this point, one single explanation doesn't seem likely, but who knows what we may discover if more research is devoted to this subject.
Likes: malf
I think it is worth putting all this into some context. The traditional idea of the brain is that the neurons are connected as a neural net, so that they perform a sort of statistical computation. This, of course doesn't attempt to explain why we experience anything as a result of such action.
However leaving that aside, there seems to be no reason at all to expect uncoordinated neural activity - caused for example by the build-up of glutamate - to 'compute' anything - the concept that this process would generate an NDE seems to me to be as crazy as if someone poured water into their computer and it suddenly computed Pi to 10000 decimal digits!
Likes: Reece and Neil
This is an interesting point but didn't they say in the paper that the activity was highly synchronous?
Borjigin's rat study presented EEG data measured from each rat during wakefulness, anesthesia, and induced cardiac arrest. Cardiac arrest was induced by injection whilst the rat was still anesthetized. Therefore the rat went into cardiac arrest whilst it was anesthetized.
I don't know the particular 25% figure you refer to, but as far as I'm aware, the typical veridical type NDE OBE which is recalled by patients following a period of anesthesia, often includes imagery where the patient sees themselves on the operating table being resuscitated.
In this sense, Borjigin's study emulates the conditions of the typical NDE OBE where an anesthetized patient sees themselves being resuscitated. I'm also aware that the NDE OBE can occur during particularly deep anesthesia (burst suppression).
I think you're being too generous, Neil... I mean, no correlation is no correlation.
NDE science gets real murky real fast... past lives... parallels lives... simultaneous lives. I think we really gotta try and stuck to the best evidence. this kinda speculation doesn't make the cut.
No correlation doesn't mean that there might not be something to it. I think it is worth more research. It wouldn't explain the paranormal aspects of NDEs though, but it might turn out to be a piece of the puzzle.
So in this case, is it possible that while maybe an NDE may occur under anesthesia without cardiac arrest, that it just didn't happen in this study?
There is a (possible) explanation for this. There are well known feedback mechanisms that inhibit and regulate our experiences for the sake of efficiency etc. If these higher circuits are the first to fail, or last to come back, at times of crisis then it may give us some pointers towards the underlying nature of hyperlucidity reports.
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Smile-on News
Struck-off dentist wins High Court appeal, given “reprimand”
Omar Narayan was struck off following a hearing with the GDC’s Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) in April 2014. Mr Narayan was neither present nor represented at the hearing.
In their determination, the Committee stated: “The Committee is satisfied that Mr Narayan’s dishonest conduct is so serious that it is fundamentally incompatible with him remaining on the Dentists Register. For these reasons, the Committee has determined that the only appropriate and proportionate sanction to protect patients and maintain public confidence in the dental profession, is to erase the name of Omar Narayan from the Dentists Register.”
Mr Narayan, however, appealed this decision and, on 10 February 2015, the High Court quashed the GDC’s decision and remitted the case back to the PCC for reconsideration of sanction. In their latest determination, from a hearing on 15 June 2015, the GDC has decided to allow Mr Narayan to practise dentistry again, with a reprimand concerning his future conduct. Crucially, his successful appeal was based on the decision to erase him being taken in his absence.
Despite behaviour which they described as “misleading and dishonest”, the GDC acknowledged the decision of the court to reconsider sanction. They said: “The Committee has seen the Joint Note of argument for the parties regarding your appeal in which it was accepted that fairness required the reconsideration of the decision on sanction in a manner which allowed you present your arguments in mitigation.”
In presenting his case, Mr Narayan provided a body of evidence that showed that he had remedied the “failings” that the GDC had found “proven” in the 2014 hearing. Highlighting that his altering of records was “an isolated incident”, that it “was not deliberate”, done under “duress” and that Mr Narayan had shown “genuinely expressed remorse”, the GDC chose not to impose a suspension or erasure.
They concluded: “In the circumstances, the Committee considers that a reprimand is a proportionate sanction and is sufficient to satisfy the public interest… Any repetition of such conduct would have serious consequences.”
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Last Chapter
Chapter 6, Page 16
Latest Page
Top Web Comics
Vote on TWC for a sneak peek preview!
Gencon
Chapter 6 Page 16
Almanac References: Cienan yr Tuathal, Sacre, Vivienne de Carailles
Snow-by-Night and Blaise meet some old friends after the opera on Chapter 6 Page 16. Well, old friends might not be the right word. Terrifying acquaintances? To see a peek at next Monday’s page, please vote for Snow by Night on Top Web Comics.
The art contest entries have all moved over to the Extras page where you can peruse them at your leisure. My thanks again to all the talented artists who submitted entries. Just a head’s up. There’s a good chance we’ll be doing this contest again next year.
We got another review. Ram Lama reviewed Snow by Night and gave us 3 stars out of 5. Alas, he does not care for my humor, but he likes the vignettes.
I *LIKE* her!
bet the price was for a date…or marriage!
Crystalwind
Not unlikely. According to his section on the cast page, he has a lot of affairs (though he said he was asking for a fortune for what he sold her, implying that he was asking for money on the side if nothing else). However, I doubt the marriage idea.
Hmm… Snow seems to dislike him. I wonder what that’s about.
His cast page says relationships & courtships, not affairs – the distinction being that as he’s a bachelor, he’s not cheating on anyone (which would be an affair).
Leriel
Why do I still see on page 16 the comic of page 15? :(
galadhion
Network Solutions crashing around us last night caused all sorts of issues. This was one of them. It should be fixed now.
MalikTous
Quality opera is enjoyable to me; most of the music and singers are good to excellent, the acting is usually good, and as long as it’s in English or Norse I don’t need a score. I still enjoy it with a score when done in Spanish, German, Italian, Russian, Chinese, Hindi, or Japanese. I tend to evaluate it as both a theatrical performance and a musical event.
Opera is also an excellent cross platform browser with none of the security issues of IE or Chrome and none of Firefox’s memory management problems. http://www.opera.com
FYI, Creators – on the front cast page (http://snowbynight.com/cast.php), Pénélope has an accurate portrait. But if you click through to the bona fide supporting cast page (http://snowbynight.com/cast_minor.php#Lia), you’ll see that Pénélope is mistakenly using Liaze’s picture.
Ty, we’ll get that fixed.
dianalw
That one would be my mistake. :( This is why I shouldn’t be editing at 1 AM, whoops! It’s fixed now, thank you for pointing it out.
I’m really enjoy both the story and the art. Can I ask on a matter of style? Aren’t single women addressed as “Mademoiselle?” Madame would be reserved for married women (Mrs/Missus?)
On this page, Blaise is using Madame as a title of respect to Vivienne, who is far above his social station. Normally she would be mademoiselle, to another noble or other rich person. Blaise is a habitant and all nobility gets the higher honorific. You’ll see this again in “Engagement on Vineyard Hill” where Vivienne is addressed as “Madame la Capitaine.” Madame Capitaine would imply that she was the wife of the captain. Adding the “la” in there makes it clear that it’s “Madame, THE captain.”
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Solo Jamz to promote local music talents
Author Editor
WARRIOR records, Radical Events, and Creative media are collaborating in a bid to hype up Honiara’s music scene by hosting SOLO JAMZ underground 2017.
Warrior Records Liason officer and Creative media’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Duane Baiabe said the initiative aims to showcase talents and make their voices heard in the local music scene.
The event is scheduled for the 19th Saturday at the Red Mansion and will feature Lipi, Andrei and Jethro, with performances by Radikol, Kera, Bibao and DJ Tua.
“Solo Jamz is another event to salute and promote young talents in Honiara and around the Solomon’s to showcase and bring to the ears of our local people what the younger generation are creating, producing and putting out in terms of music genres to the public.
Baiabe said the initiative was created to invite artists who have the passion in music and have them exposed.
“We came up with the idea not because we want to compete in anyway or with anyone else, we came up with the idea of creating an event, inviting artists who have passion for music and give them the opportunity on stage to showcase their skills and talent.
With the support from friends and families, the event aims to expand the idea to a bigger platform internationally.
“The idea of expansion to a bigger platform also depends on big companies and organizations and whether they support it or not. We like to think that in order for these bigger sponsors to help out, we have to prove to them first that we can bring good results from our shows in terms of marketing and that entire corporate obligation.
“But we do this for the love and passion for music and how it positively brings together young and old.
The CEO also said that Solomon Islands have a rich talent of musicians and ambassadors throughout the region.
“Solomon Islands are a gold mine of great talents. We have so many musical ambassadors moving our music throughout the Pacific region and it’s for their hard work that we salute them by keeping the music fire burning.
He added that Music in the Solomon’s is a culture, a norm and a God given gift.
“You walk through the streets of the Solomon’s and music is everywhere, but finding the right medium to expose these talents to the wider audience has always been the Solomon challenge.
He stated that the music barrier has taken a new twist with the use of social media and personal studios, the organizers step in to boost local talents to the Pacific and wider world.
By Peter Zoleveke Jr
Latest from Editor
Futsal U14 side thank supporters
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You are here: Home / OOXML / The Disharmony of OOXML
The Disharmony of OOXML
2008/03/14 By Rob 33 Comments
I sometimes hear it said that formats like OOXML, or ODF for that matter, are simply XML serializations of a particular application’s native data representation. This is said, seemingly, in an attempt to justify quirky or outright infelicitous representations. “We had no choice. Office 95 represents line widths in units of 1/5th of a barleycorn, so OOXML must as well”. This technological determinism indicates poor engineering judgment, laziness, or both.
An easy counter-example is HTML. Does HTML reflect the internals of NCSA Mosaic? Does it represent the internals of Netscape Navigator? Firefox? Opera? Safari? Are any faults in HTML properly justified by what a single browser does internally? Applications should follow standards, not the other way around.
The question we should be asking is not whether a standard is similar to an application’s internal representation. That in itself is not necessarily a fault. We need to go a step further, and ask if this encoding represents reasonable engineering decisions, not just for that one application, but for general use? Or in ISO terms, does it represent the “consolidated results of science, technology and experience”? If it is a good, reasonable engineering choice with general applicability, and the original application already found that solution, then this is a good thing. We should be encouraging standards to encode the best practices of industry.
Take colors for example. There are only so many ways one can represent colors in markup. You can have an RGB value encoded as triplets where red= (255,0,0). Or you can have a hexadecimal integer encoded as RRGGBB, where red=FF0000. You can do it W3C style, like CSS or XSL-FO with a hash mark in front, like #FF0000″. There are variations on this, adding an alpha channel, using a different color model, etc. These are all reasonable engineering choices, and no one would fault a standard for choosing any one of them, even if the choice happens to match what a particular application does. They are all reasonable choices.
The final arbiter is engineering judgment. Making a capricious choice, merely because a particular application made that same choice, in spite of contrary engineering judgment, this would be a bad thing.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at how OOXML and ODF represent a staple of document formats: text color and alignment. I created six documents: word processor, spreadsheet and presentation graphics, in OOXML and ODF formats. In each case I entered one simple string “This is red text”. In each case I made the word “red” red, and right aligned the entire string. The following table shows the representation of this formatting instruction in OOXML and ODF, for each of the three application types:
OOXML Text <w:color w:val=”FF0000″/> <w:jc w:val=”right”/>
OOXML Sheet <color rgb=”FFFF0000″/> <alignment horizontal=”right”/>
OOXML Presentation <a:srgbClr val=”FF0000″/> <a:pPr algn=”r”/>
ODF Text <style:text-properties fo:color=”#FF0000″/> <style:paragraph-properties fo:text-align=”end” />
ODF Sheet <style:text-properties fo:color=”#FF0000″/> <style:paragraph-properties fo:text-align=”end”/>
ODF Presentation <style:text-properties fo:color=”#FF0000″/> <style:paragraph-properties fo:text-align=”end”/>
What is the engineering justification for this horror? I have no doubt that this accurately reflects the internals of Microsoft Office, and shows how these three applications have been developed by three different, isolated teams. But is this a suitable foundation for an International Standard? Does this represent a reasonable engineering judgment? ODF uses the W3C’s XSL-FO vocabulary for text styling, and uses this vocabulary consistently. OOXML’s representation, on the other hand, appear incompatible with any deliberate design methodology.
I fear that before we can tackle harmonization of ODF and OOXML, we will first need to harmonize OOXML with itself!
Filed Under: OOXML
Steven G. Johnson says
As another data point to underscore your thesis, let me point out a passage from Antonis Christofides’ BRM account: The changes that actually passed in Friday morning did add the possibility to store dates in ISO 8601 format, but they also keep the old ways, and in addition they add all ways proposed in the Disposition of Comments. Therefore we now have five different ways of representing the same thing.
The scary thing is that new flaws keep being uncovered in OOXML, because its sheer size masks even “obvious” internal inconsistencies like the ones you pointed out here.
It will be truly sad if ISO lowers its standards so far that it will accept this monstrosity. It is equally sad that some of us have been convinced that drastically lowering ISO’s standards, destroying its reputation, and crippling future efforts to get the world behind a single common data format for office applications are an acceptable price to pay for getting a “seat at the table” with Microsoft.
Aside: you have a couple of typos in the first two paragraphs: s/had not/had no/ and s/Mosiac/Mosaic/.
Vexorian says
w? a? srgbClr? pPr ? jc? OOXML : Because obfuscation must be an open standard.
Hans Erik says
With the docs being that cryptic, it’s a good thing we have computers to decipher them for us.
you gotta be pleased you didn’t have to do that table in O2007XML!
@Hans, computers don’t program themselves. This is a labor intensive industry, and a well-designed format is easier/less-expensive to program than a poorly-designed one. Otherwise what is the argument for moving from the binary formats to XML? Computers could decipher the old formats also.
So imagine you are writing a simple program to find all red text in a set of documents and change it to blue. Maybe this program is to help with readers who are colorblind (something like 10% of all men). What is easier, writing this for a format that has a uniform principle for encoding text colors? Or one that will take you days to find all the different ways in which text colors are encoded?
The point is that any format will have its essential complexity, the complexity that matches the real-world task, and which you cannot simplify further. But a poor design will also layer on “accidental” complexity, complexity entirely due to poor modeling, inconsistency, lack of naming principles, poor factoring of concerns, etc. This complexity benefits no one. It doesn’t make the format more expressive or more capable. It simply makes it harder to use.
I find Microsoft’s insistence that the format reflect the internal representation… interesting. This is due to the fact that Microsoft has a fairly well respected usability lab, and one of the key tenets in UI design is that UI should represent the task, not the application architecture.
Yet with all this knowledge about proper UI design — and in a sense, a data format can be considered a form of UI — they’ve thrown this out the window.
Michael S Collins says
Thank you for providing an object lesson in why so many of us IT people have serious concerns about OOXML. All of the emotional arguments can easily be set aside when concrete, irrefutable evidence is presented in the light of day. What you’ve shown is empirical evidence that OOXML is not truly ready for the big time. I have no objection to it being an ISO standard once it is cleaned up and, as you put it, good engineering decisions prevail over the head-scratchers littered in those 6000 pages.
Please keep up the good work.
With the docs being that cryptic, it’s a good thing we have Microsoft Office to decipher them for us.
Thank you Microsoft, you have convinced me ! i will spend this u$s 300 and buy the wonderful decipher-machine Office 2007.
Microsoft will try and paint ODF as a serialization of ODF’s internal representation because that’s what they’ve done with OOXML.
It was designed according to the needs of the file format, not the needs of any one application. Open Office had to be modified to fit ODF, once it was finalized.
OOXML, on the other hand, is directly and explicitly based on MS Office, and the OASIS base terms of reference actually says that it’s not allowed to contain anything that’s not already in MS Office.
Tying yourself so tightly to a single vendor’s implementation is a bad thing to do for something that wants to be declared a ‘standard’ — even if that implementation is well engineered.
In the case of OOXML’s tie to MS-Office, you don’t even seem to have ‘well engineered’ as an excuse.
Of course an interesting fact about HTML is that the available form elements are the same as those available to Tim Berners-Lee on the NeXTSTEP system that he wrote the first graphical browser.
David Gerard says
“Are any faults in HTML justified by what a single browser does internally?”
Minor note: the HTML 5 effort is very concerned with what the development versions of Firefox, Opera and Safari actually do now. They want to avoid the disaster of CSS, where a pie-in-the-sky spec was written with no regard for interoperability.
But then, they’re trying to make sure HTML 5 is clearly implementable and useful and hits the ground running, with multiple working implementations available :-) Which is turning out to be a pretty good way to update a standard they want people to actually use.
ANSI C was also developed with an eye to what existing implementations of the predecessor product did.
However, in the case of OOXML, there is no effective predecessor product – converting from the binary representations of the past to XML is enough of a leap that backward compatibility (in the sense that files output by the new program will be understandable by the old) is completely impossible. The best you can do is have the new product convert old files to the new format, and make an update to the old products to enable them to convert from the new (and possibly even use it natively.)
Since effortless backward compatibility is impossible, any excuses they make citing compatibility with older formats is completely invalid. It would be like the US demanding that the UK defend its colonies in the Americas, after our revolution. It just doesn’t work.
Also note that both HTML 5 and ANSI C were paying attention to what *multiple* implementations did, not just one.
funnybroad says
Absolutely BRILLIANT post!
Inconsistency… all over the place.
Does any of it explain the non-backward compatibility of Excel colors described in detail here?:
http://dearmicrosoftofficeteam.blogspot.com/2008/03/dear-microsoft-office-2007-team-please_03.html
I love the other distinguishing feature of your brief example – to which you did not alude:
‘right’ (OOXML) versus ‘end’ (ODF).
Obvious difference in either heritage, development, or both.
“end” is from the W3C’s XSL-FO text-align feature. So rather than say “left” or “right” align, we say “start” or “end”. This makes the markup more robust for different writing systems, whether RTL or LTR.
cayhorstmann says
It is good to see that OOXML is firm in the knowledge that there is only one true text orientation. If left-to-right text was good enough for Jesus, it is good enough for ISO. In contrast, ODF’s politically correct waffling (“end”) is truly pathetic.
Meneteqel says
@cayhorstmann
I always thought Jesus wrote right-to-left. His native language was Aramaic which is written right-to-left. He was a Jew. So he probably wrote Hebrew, too.
However, I might have missed the irony in your post.
skc says
Finally Rob. This is a much better mode of attack than the FUD and politics most people are using against OOXML. I’ve always said it’s better to do a side by side comparison of ODF vs OOXML rather than pontificate about how evil MS is.
After all, thats what we developers are mostly interested in. To hell with politics.
Nate says
“If left-to-right text was good enough for Jesus, it is good enough for ISO.”
I’m sure you’re being ironic, but for the sake of less-historically accurate minds reading here…
Jesus read Hebrew, which is a right-to-left language.
So this is funny because left-to-right WASN’T good enough for Jesus.
Yes, I know I’ve destroyed the subtlety in the original comment. But subtlety and engineering precision are rare bedmates.
You may have written that as tongue in cheek, but if literate, Jesus was probably familiar with Latin (written Left to Right), Greek (written Left to Right, but occasionally boustrophedonic [forwards and backwards]), Hebrew (written Right to Left), and Aramaic (written Right to Left). It is indeed possible that Jesus spoke Aramaic primarily, with some Hebrew and Greek; and would certainly have come across Latin inscriptions.
Remember, Cay is from Northern Germany. So even his humor sounds serious.
Rob Brown says
Hmm, drifted off-topic a bit here! I thought Cay’s comment was very funny just as it was :-)
Rob, we’re coming down to the wire here and it seems to me that since Microsoft is represented in most NBs (or at least their advisory groups), then Microsoft will probably know the outcome of the final vote before anyone else (even ISO). Do you know if individual NBs are going to make their decisions public before the 29th?
As an example, the Microsofties are very open about the US NB’s decision (which is not final yet, is it?)…
I seem to recall that NB’s that don’t want to change their September vote don’t even need to contact ISO, so perhaps ISO won’t know the outcome until the deadline actually passes – unless of course the received votes are decisively on one or other side of the thresholds.
I’m sure that ISO themselves won’t make any announcement until the 30th, but maybe “inside sources” will leak clues before then?
Rob, Microsoft has a tell They are at their loudest where they are the weakest. The last “open letter” we got from Microsoft came right before the OOXML defeat last September. If you recall, at that point they were also trumpeting the US vote. As then, I have a fuller picture of where the votes are going, and it isn’t so rosy for Microsoft. And as then, I will respect NB’s desires to go public only if or when they desire, and I won’t be breaking news of their voting positions here. I wish I could, since there would be some great news to tell. But I can’t.
As for timing, some NB’s have already decided, while others have continuing discussions through the month and will come to final positions only at the end of the months. Considering how close the vote was in September, and the complexity of the approval criteria, I don’t think anyone will have a good sense of the outcome until we see the official announcement.
Not sure is this a sign of tell or not but at least yet more PR activity:
http://www.microsoft.com/interop/letters/ChrisCapOpenLetter.mspx
For the OOXML presentation text alignment – is the “algn” a typo, or is it even worse than I thought?
The OOXML specification says “algn” and PowerPoint 2007 writes out “algn”, so I assume that is intentional.
Remember, they save a byte by doing this.
Karl says
Cay’s Comment was an allusion to people who were protesting updating of the King James version of the Bible. The joke being that someone said: “If the King’s English was good enough for Jesus, it should be good enough for us.” This is funny because Jesus most certainly would *not* have spoken, read, or written in “The King’s English.” And was used to prove what a narrow world view many people have.
ΤΖΩΤΖΙΟΥ says
@Meneteqel:
I think Cay was correct. Everyone knows that Jesus was a citizen of the US of A —so help Him God— and when I say everyone, I mean many of the other citizens of US of A.
Check also the already mentioned “If the King’s English was good enough for Jesus” quote.
O.J. says
@cay: Please do drop in a joke in your comments, us guys think you were serious! I seriously think ODF has the upper hand in terms of coding, reusability, and style.
1) CSS 2, being largely a specification created without an implementation does not to this day, have a 100% implementaiton.
2) ISO C++/89, again, a spec written largely without implementation is also unimplemented in it’s entirety to this day.
It would seem that specifications derived from implemented specifications have a much better chance of having other full implementations than unimplemented ones.
Coincidentally, that’s also why ODF has been so well implemented. Without OpenOffice’s full and complete implementation, it would be unlikely that anyone else would be able to either.
Raf says
HTML forms were not yet present in the first version of HTML (implemented by timbl’s WorldWideWeb browser).
Forms were introduced in HTML 2.0, which in its turn does not yet contain all form elements that are present in HTML 4.01 (such as BUTTON, INPUT TYPE=”file” and OPTGROUP).
Õpikeskkondadega seotud tehnoloogiad ja standardid | Õpikeskkonnad says:
[…] uuema kirjeldamiseks? Vana kana kitkuda aga üks võimalik näide suletud ning avatud standardite erinevusest (põhinevad XML-il) Rob Wieri poolt. Sama kehtib ka õpikeskkondade puhul – mida rohkem […]
ISO Looks to Reject OOXML Again – 40 Years In The Desert says:
[…] as is made clear here, OOXML was written around the specific internals of Microsoft […]
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US May Have Arranged 'Self Defense' Attack On Syrian Government Forces
By Moon of Alabama - February 08, 2018 at 08:38AM
Last night the illegal US occupation force in north-east Syria attacked a group of Syrian government aligned troops and their Russian support. The incident happened north-east of Deir Ezzor city on the east side of the Euphrates. The US claims that it killed some 100 Syrian soldiers that were allegedly attacking its proxy forces in an attempt to recover oil fields.
There is a factual separation of areas south-west of the Euphrates under Syrian government control and north-east of the Euphrates under US occupation. But several locations around Manbij, Raqqa and Deir Ezzor contradict that and are under control of the respective other side. The US claims that a "de-confliction line" along the Euphrates is agreed upon. The Syrian government says that no such agreement exists.
A small area across the Euphrates north-east of Deir Ezzor had been taken by Syrian government forces months ago. It is near some oilfields which the US wants to keep away from the Syrian government.
"The US wants to keep Syria weak and poor," says Prof. Joshua Landis. According to Landis the US is keeping the north-east of Syria under occupation to deny Syria access to its oil and its best agricultural land. It wants to turn Syria into a swamp for Russia and Iran to the benefit of mostly Israel.
The valuable oil and gas fields are currently in the hands of local Arab tribes who earlier worked with the Islamic State and are now, the US claims, allied with the YPG/PKK Kurds under the name Syrian Democratic Forces. The SDF is the US local proxy force for its occupation.
On the Syrian government side in Deir Ezzor are a few Syrian troops, local militia from the area, as well as members of Russian private military contractor named Wagner Group. Wagner allegedly has a contract with the Syrian government that will give it some 25 percent of all revenues from oil-fields it recovers and protects.
Last night the US military announced that it had "self defended" against an attack by Syrian government troops on Syrian ground:
Syrian pro-regime forces initiated an unprovoked attack against well-established Syrian Democratic Forces headquarters Feb. 7. Coalition service members in an advise, assist, and accompany capacity were co-located with SDF partners during the attack eight kilometers east of the agreed-upon Euphrates River de-confliction line.
In defense of Coalition and partner forces, the Coalition conducted strikes against attacking forces to repel the act of aggression against partners engaged in the Global Coalition's defeat-Daesh mission.
Reuters reports:
More than 100 fighters aligned with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad were killed overnight when US coalition and coalition-backed local forces repelled their attack in eastern Syria, a US official said on Thursday.
The heavy death toll underscored the large size of the attack, which the US official said included about 500 opposing forces, backed by artillery, tanks, multiple-launch rocket systems and mortars. The official spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
No American troops were killed or wounded in the incident, officials said.
Some US troops had been embedded at the time with Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), whose headquarters in Syria’s Deir al-Zor province had been a target of the attack.
One SDF fighter was wounded, the official said.
The US also claims that it had seen preparations for the Syrian move and had warned the Russian command in Syria in advance:
The US-led coalition had alerted Russian officials about the presence of SDF forces in the area far in advance of the thwarted attack, the US official said.
Other sources say that there have been talks between Wagner and locals Arabs guarding the currently unproductive "Conoco" oil and gas field operation near the town of Khisham.
Hassan Hassan @hxhassan - 12:17 AM - 8 Feb 2018
5. Interesting, about a week ago, local reports also suggested an imminent deal to hand over the plant to the regime through an Arab faction within the SDF.
A translation of an earlier report from the opposition Al-Etihad media seems to confirm that some deal had been made:
Activists said Assad forces and Shiite militias have gathered near the villages of Bakkara Akidat, Dahla and Sabah in the eastern suburbs of Deir-ez-Zor (east of the Euphrates) near the Conoco gas field, which is controlled by Kurdish forces.
The sources added that the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces informed the US-led coalition forces of these developments. The coalition urged SDF fighters not to resist the regime forces and surrender the area.
The activists added that the SDF has already withdrawn heavy weapons from their areas held by Arab and Turkmen factions.
Might this whole operation have been a trap? The US military clearly knew that something was going to happen in the area. Local deals were made between the Syrian government side and locals Arabs holding the oil fields. The US told the SDF to move out of the way. When the government aligned groups started to take over the field, as presumably agreed upon, the US bombed them.
The "attack on coalition forces" the US claimed as justification for its bombing seems not to have taken place at all. How else does one explain that sole casualty of the claimed battalion size attack with strong artillery support is "one wounded SDF" fighter? A later US military statement to a journalist seems to be vague about the reality of an attack:
After 20 to 30 artillery and tank rounds landed within 500 meters of the SDF headquarters location, Syrian Democratic Forces supported by the Coalition targeted the aggressors with a combination of air and artillery strikes.
Is the US military emphasizing the "SDF headquarters location" because the headquarter was no longer there as the SDF had already withdrawn from it? And why is a tank round landing some 500 meters away seen as a direct attack? Tanks rounds may deviate from the targeted point by a meter or two. There is no chance that rounds landing some 500 meters away were intended to hit the headquarter location.
The story the US military is trying to sell here stinks.
The incident seems comparable to the unprovoked US attack on Syrian troops in September 2016. That air attack killed 100 Syrian troops who were then encircled and holding out against Islamic State forces. At that time it nearly enabled the Takfiris to eliminate that last Syrian government position in the east.
There has recently been a chain of provocations against Russian and Syrian forces in Syria. Two massive drone swarm attacks were directed against the Russian air-port in Hememim and its naval base in Tartus. This week well targeted mortar rounds from east-Ghouta have hit the Russian trade mission in Damascus and severely damaged it. A Russian aid-distribution point in Damascus was similarly attacked just while leaders of some Russian non-government organizations were visiting it. Over Idleb a Russian jet was shot down with a rare MANPADS. All three were beyond the material and intelligence capabilities of the "rebel" forces.
The ludicrous "chlorine gas attack" propaganda against Syria is back in full force. Despite an Russian-Turkish-Iranian de-escalation agreement with Turkey, al-Qaeda and other "rebel" forces in Idleb governorate still seem to receive unlimited supplies through Turkish borders. Israel is attacking targets in Syria and tries to extend its occupation of the Golan heights.
The US war against Syria and its allies continues with full forces even while the US pretends that no such war is happening at all. The intend to create the swamp Prof. Landis talks about is hidden behind clandestine operations, "self defense" action and "humanitarian" blubber.
The US should be careful. More than one side can play dirty games. Its troops in north-east Syria have thin supply lines and are not well protected. They, as well as US forces in Iraq, are vulnerable to clandestine activities of the other side. I would not be surprised at all should they suddenly receive some unwanted and very bloody attention.
Reprinted with permission from Moon of Alabama.
from Ron Paul Institute Featured Articles
Labels: constitution, Individual, Liberty, Liberty Report, Ron Paul, Ron Paul Institute, Ron Paul Institute Featured Articles, ronpaulinstitute.org
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adam oates dishes assist to melchiori
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Centrica PLC of Britain and Qatar Petroleum International will pay about $1 billion cash to acquire a majority of Suncor Energy’s (TSX:SU) conventional natural gas and crude oil assets in three western provinces. Suncor (TSX:SU) says the deal excludes the majority of its unconventional natural gas properties in the Montney region of British Columbia and its Wilson Creek unconventional oil assets in Alberta. Suncor shares shed $1.04 to $27.78..
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Russell “Texas” Bentley
American volunteer soldier and information activist for Novorossiya
German antifascists visit the Donetsk People's Republic
video on channel • source
Labels: aid, interviews, videos
My First Battle, Troishka, New Year’s Day 2015
Published in The Greanville Post. »
Left to right: Spartak, Archangel, (Italy) Texac, (USA) Alfonzo (Spain) and Orion (Russia)
“Reem” means “Chrome”, and “Mir” means “Peace” or “Earth”. (Mir’s face blurred for the safety of his family, which still resides in Kiev controlled territory).
Texas on guard duty. The bitter cold makes things even more interesting.
Reem, Poet, and Texas. Poet joined the NAF in Summer 2014. He was 16, told ’em he was 19, they let him in. He served 6 months in Vostok Bn. Artillery, then came to CB in March 2015. He was at the front line Ushi position and Milnitsa with me and also at the hottest of them all, Blisna. We tried to protect him as much as we could, but he still got in the thick of things many times. He was a good soldier, tough and brave. He’s 18 now, and retired. But he’ll come back if we need him. Spetznaz Donbass.
I woke up on New Year’s Day 2015 without a hangover though the night before I had drunk some champagne and a fair amount of vodka. Not a lot, but about as much as I would have drunk on a regular NYE back in the States. I was always pretty careful in that respect, I never got a single DWI. But I didn’t wake up back in the States, I woke up in a convent in the middle of a graveyard in Southeast Ukraine that was a major battlefield in the opening salvos of the Third World War.
Inside my sleeping bag, I was fully clothed in the Russian Army winter fatigues I had bought, along with the sleeping bag, in Rostov before crossing the border into Novorussia. Disrobing for sleep the night before had consisted of removing my boots, steel Class IV armored vest and kevlar helmet and hanging my AK-74 on a hook with my webgear. Across the room from me, in the frozen pitch black darkness, snored the two Italian volunteers, Spartak and Archangel. Below me, Lataishik, the sniper, and in the bunk next to his, Bielka, the PKM machine-gunner. Above them, the only guy on a top bunk, lay Texas, the New Kid on the Block, who wasn’t from anywhere around there. That would be me, your humble narrator…
IT WAS PITCH DARK, totally dark, and it was freezing. The temp was not so bad as long as I only stuck my nose out of the bag. The bag itself was rated for the Arctic, and that, along with my heavy Russian uniform, kept me pretty warm. Except for my nose. The windows were filled with sandbags, to the point that they were almost airtight. They were certainly light tight, and pretty good protection against bullets and artillery shrapnel, which was the main idea. The doors were covered, inside and out by heavy rugs nailed in place over the doors. They too were pretty much airtight. The walls of the building were almost 18 inches thick, including the interior walls and doorways. Airtight, light tight, freezing cold, it was almost like being in a crypt. The only difference was I had to take a piss.
I reached around and felt for my flashlight. Besides guns, food and bullets, a flashlight is one of the most important things you can have at the Front. I’d been in some pretty primitive situations before, and I had an idea about what to bring. I brought three. Two were the kind you wear on your head, and another handheld that could be charged by cranking. I found the one I was feeling around for and turned it on. The wood stove below me was cold and dark. I climbed down and lit a candle, the only source of illumination, besides flashlights. Since I was going outside to piss, I donned my steel vest and grabbed my Kalash. I walked to the end of the hallway and walked down the stairs. There were a few openings in the windows on the first floor, and the dim light of dawn filtered through. Which meant the snipers could see me.
Our position, our building, faced enemy positions on two sides – to the North, straight ahead, the Donetsk Airport control tower raised its head like a ragged viper, 400 meters away. About halfway between was a woodline that was the launching site for the almost daily Ukrop attacks. To the right, to the West, in the direction of Freedom and Prosperity, the New Terminal of the Donetsk Airport was held by the “Cyborgs” a supposedly elite unit of the Ukrainian Army, backed by Pravy Sektor Nazis and Western mercenaries. Our toilet was a small building about 50 meters across open ground, covered by Ukrop sniper fire from the control tower. I asked the guy on guard duty (in sign language, of course) if that was where I had to go to piss. It turned out that I could piss on the floor in one of the downstairs rooms, it was only if I had to take a shit that I’d have to brave the sniper fire. I decided to try that later, and settled for a piss.
That morning it occurred to me that I was among true Freedom Fighters, men who were defending their own homes and families from foreign invaders who were bent on nothing less than enslavement of the locals. These men were not “defending freedom” by going to a foreign country and shooting people there, they were defending their own freedom, literally in their own backyards, and doing it quite well. We faced 150 infantry, Pravy Sektor and Regular Army, armor and artillery, including Grads (rocket batteries). There were never more than 20 of us there at once, usually a lot less. Firefights every night, and almost every day. Thousands of rounds, each way. Artillery every few days, fifty to a hundred rounds, incoming. But we held our own.
I returned upstairs, where things were starting to stir. The first stove to be lit was in the kitchen. Ammo crates were the preferred firewood, and the majority of what we had to burn. Coffee, nyet, but there was tea, “chai” black and strong, with too much sugar. Breakfast was the leftover potato soup from the night before. As the morning progressed, I began to interact with my comrades, and take stock of them, and them of me. The two combat commanders were Reem and Mir (“Chrome” and “Peace”.) The following equation may not make sense to the civilians or mathematicians among us, but combat vets will know what I mean – Reem was worth any 10 regular soldiers, and Mir was worth 5, but together they were worth 30, and there were plenty of times when 30 Ukrops were scared to go up against just those two. They ran the “Utes”, and they ran it heavy. The Utes is a heavy machine gun, equal to the US M-2 50 cal. Reem was the gunner, and Mir was his sideman and spotter. Reem was a big man, but he seemed even bigger. Mir was a short guy, but the scarier of the two.
Reem didn’t say much, and everything that Mir said to me seemed somehow tinged with a threat. When Mir told me he was a dentist, I figured he really meant “dentist” in the mafia sense – he knocked people’s teeth out with his fists for a living. He wasn’t the kind of guy who needed pliers. That evening, over dinner, Mir peppered me with questions, what I knew about Russian history, Russian culture. Well, I knew a bit. Come and See by Elim Klimov, Eta Vso by DDT. The Sacred War. Reem just sat back and listened. He didn’t say much, but like E. F. Hutton, when Reem talked, everybody listened. I did too, of course, but the only difference was I couldn’t understand anything he said. He was that kind of guy, a big, dark Russian with a rumbling voice like the sound of distant artillery that was slowly coming closer. He could say “Merry Christmas” and it would sound like the voice of impending doom. But I could tell he liked me, even if I was pretty sure Mir didn’t. After dinner, Mir invited me back to the Commander’s Room, at the suggestion of Reem. Of course, I went.
Each room, including the Commander’s, had two double bunks on the North and South walls, for a total of 8 bunks in each room, usually with 4 or 5 soldiers in each. Candles were the only illumination, but Reem’s stove worked better than most, and the room was actually warm. We sat down for some Green Tea.
Sitting there, warmed by a wood stove, lit by a candle, listening to the soft, deep and ominous rumble of Reem’s voice, I felt about as far away as it was possible to be from the conventional reality of my friends and family back in the States. I was living like an outlaw cowboy from the 1800’s, but I was doing so in Eastern Europe in the 21st Century. It was crazy, it was weird, it was hard and it was scary, but there was no place on Earth I would rather have been.
We had some tea, a Russian tradition that while not as formal as the Japanese ceremony, had its protocols. I sat in a dark room, lit by a single candle and listened to Reem give combat instructions to the other 3 soldiers who were there, then he turned to me and made me understand it was time to fight. The Ukrops would start their attack within the next 10 minutes. I was to get to my room, don my vest, helmet and webgear with 4 loaded magazines and be ready to work. In Russian military circles, the word “robota”, “to work”, means to start shooting. I did as I was told. In my room, I paused for a moment to say a prayer, then donned my gear and reported to the guys who were setting up near the Utes at the front of the building, facing the control tower. I was instructed to take a firing position on the 3rd floor, along with Arik the sniper. It was about 8PM, and a light snow had started to fall. We took up our position just as the Ukrops began to open fire.
One of the first things you learn, instinctively and without instruction, is to tell the difference between bullets being fired in your general direction and bullets being fired directly at you. The latter have a distinctive “crack!”, a mini-sonic boom as they pass, or else you can hear their impact on whatever cover you happen to be using for protection. The tempo and intensity of fire from the Ukrops quickly increased. There were at least 3 separate groups in the woodline, 150 meters to our front – one on the left and two to the right. Probably between 12 and 20 soldiers, laying down a steady stream of fire. …It was a surreal existence, dark, cold, deadly danger. In a strange language. Operating mostly on vibes. They’d look at me and tell me something important, and I’d have absolutely no idea what the words they’d just said meant, but I could catch the vibe. And I have to say I caught on pretty quick. It only took me two days to figure out I was wearing my body armor backwards. Russians don’t teach you, they let you figure it out. And we all had a good laugh when I did. The trick to doing everything the right way, the best way it can be done, is to do it like they do.
Arik and I would take turns firing out the window, then take cover and await the return fire. I would pop up, fire off 5 or 6 rounds in 4 seconds or so, then get down. Arik would wait about 10 or 15 seconds, then take a position at the window and fire 2 or 3 aimed shots with his SVD. We were effective, and soon came under sustained fire. At one point, a green Ukrop tracer came through the window right between us. And of course, when you see a tracer, there are 3 or 4 more non-tracer bullets that you do not see, coming along with it. We both saw the tracer come through the window. We looked at each other and laughed, then got back to work. It did not take for me to empty my 5 magazines, and I headed down to the second floor to reload. The battle was in full pitch. Reem and Mir manned the Utes, and Bielka had the PKM working from the window to the left of the Utes. Reem had a highly effective method of shooting – although the Utes is a fully automatic machine gun, Reem had perfected the technique of firing single shots. It was a steady drumbeat of fire, about one round per second, each round at a different target. The PKM and other shooters developed a rhythm with the Utes, which created a solid stream of hot lead covering all Ukrop firing positions almost constantly. Though we were outnumbered, we maintained the initiative, and controlled the battle.
I reloaded my mags as quickly as I could, and learned many important lessons in the process. Often, in battles at Troishka, both sides would need to reload at pretty much the same time. Being able to reload quickly is as important as being able to unload accurately. I was pretty slow that first night, but soon learned to get much, much better. I returned to the window where Arik was still working, and took up my firing position. I fired a round, then pulled the trigger again. Nothing happened. I looked down at my rifle and saw the bolt was jammed in a half open position. I tried pushing forward and pulling back, but it was stuck. Fuck…CB-tower-scope2 The Kalashnikov series of rifles are among the best combat weapons ever produced, and their superior quality has always been their reliability. I thought that either a Ukrop bullet had hit my rifle, or a bad bullet had exploded in the chamber. I went downstairs, not relishing the idea of sitting out the rest of the raging firefight with an inoperable weapon. I showed my rifle to Mongoose, the commander. He also tried to get it to function, to no avail. So he gave me an RPK that was in the arms room, and I continued the fight with that. The battle continued for several hours, until the Ukrops finally withdrew back to the control tower complex. We gathered in the arms room to reload and to smoke cigarettes. It was about midnight, and it had been a long night. I left my AK in the arms room, and took the RPK with me to my bunk. I removed my webgear, helmet, boots and vest, and crawled up onto my bunk. The room was still of course freezing cold, no fire in the stove, only a candle for illumination. I slid into my bag, said a prayer of thanks, and went to sleep, with only my nose sticking out. Tomorrow would be another busy day.
The days and nights consisted of taking care of day to day chores while waiting, and being ready, to be attacked by numerically superior forces at any time. We usually had about 5 minutes warning, from radio intercepts or observation that the attack was coming in the next few minutes, or some Ukrop would open fire early, and let us know they were coming. When we hit back, it was hard. Reem and Mir were on the Utes heavy machine gun, and we had an AGS automatic grenade launcher, plus maybe 10 or 12 more guys with rifles. Plenty of ammo. Supplies were delivered every day or so, water, food, ammo. At dawn the car or van would arrive, 3 or 4 of us would run across the open terrain to the relative cover in front of the church. And back with heavy burdens, two or three trips. Firewood was a rarity, though there was a big pile of wooden construction debris about 300 meters away, across sniper scanned fields. And we went and got it there too. Nobody got hit, but in retrospect, it seemed crazy. No matter. Within a few days of my arrival, we were shooting so much ammo we had plenty of wooden ammo crates to burn. Plenty.
One night, I was assigned to AGS duty. The AGS is a machine gun that shoots grenades that will cut any exposed meat within a 5 meter radius of where they hit. But totally ineffective against armor. As the nightly Ukrop attack began, Lataishik, Mas and I unsheathed the monster and prepared for battle. It was pitch dark, and I couldn’t see a thing. We couldn’t use our flashlights because light draws fire, so it was literally touch and go. Lataishik let off about 5 rounds and then turned to me and said “Te agon”, “You shoot”. I felt my way over and went ahead and did. All the while, bullets are impacting within a foot or two of the edge of the window we are firing out of. You just have to ignore them and keep on working. When they shoot at you, you can see the muzzle flash from the rifles. Then you know where to shoot back with a grenade machine gun. I laid some down. I had learned from Mir on the Utes that you never shoot the same target twice, a different one every time, every few seconds, so they never know if the next one’s for them. We ran through six 25 round drums, then it was time to reload. Quickly, because the battle was not over.
Lataishik assumed sniper duty at the window with his SVD. Mas and I headed up to the ammo room to reload. Reloading AGS belts, under optimum conditions is not an easy task. Barehanded in the freezing dark, for the first time, in the middle of a battle, I have to rate as among the toughest things I have ever done. And that’s how it went. OJT, On the Job Training, but I was catching on. I hadn’t gotten killed yet, or gotten anyone else killed, so I was doing pretty good. I did my share of guard duty – on the stairs by the AGS, guarding the entrance against “surprise visitors” in the form of Pravy Sektor commandos stationed half a kilometer away. The other guard post, manned 24 hours a day, was the PKM window beside the Utes. We had a night vision (light amplification) scope for the Utes, and a handheld thermal imager for observation. Beyond bullets, beyond Grads, my biggest fear was that I would drop the thermal imager on guard duty. I t was one of our most important weapons. Technically, “Non-lethal”, but it multiplied the power of every weapon 20 times, because it could show us where to shoot. Remember that when US government hacks talk about non-lethal aid. Some of the most important weapons in war cannot kill people by themselves.
THE BATTLES OCCURRED WITH REGULARITY, pretty much every day, and every night. Battles lasted at least an hour, sometimes many hours, with literally thousands of rounds fired by each side. One night, Mongoose was at the next position, Milnitsa, (“Windmill”) meeting with other commanders when the Ukrops attacked Troishka. It was a heavy battle, and we soon needed to reload. Unfortunately, Mongoose had the key to the main ammo room, and fire was too heavy for him to make his way back. It was not a pleasant situation – We were literally running out of bullets for all our weapons, and it wouldn’t take the Ukrops and Pravy Sektor nazis long to figure it out. 150 meters across semi-open ground, and they would be at the door. We would be fighting with knives against psychos with loaded machine guns.
Fortunately, Orion, who had arrived a few days after me, came up with a solution, not elegant, but effective – a wood-splitting maul makes a passable field expedient door key when your life is on the line, and within minutes, the door was in splinters, and we were opening ammo cans and reloading mags and ammo belts as if our lives depended on it. Which, of course, they did. Reloading is as important a skill as shooting. There are tricks to it, as with everything here. When you’ve loaded up all your mags, you take a big handful of loose rounds and put them in the right hand pocket of your coat. Not the left side pocket, because then you have to transfer every round to the right hand before you put it in the mag, and it takes almost twice as long to re-load. With our mags topped off, we suddenly began returning heavy fire towards the Ukrops who were advancing, much to their surprise and dismay. We owed a debt of thanks to Orion, and after the battle, we all gave him a pat on the back.
Each day was like a week, and filled with learning experiences. I was promoted to a front firing position, to the right of the Utes, my “office” with a small firing port that had been chipped out of the wall. I often shared my office with Mars, the top sniper in the Essence of Time combat unit and one of the best snipers in the NAF.
I was asked if I wanted to train as a sniper, but declined. Sniper is a young man’s job, and I was a bit old, and my eyesight was not quite up to snuff. I was pretty good with the Kalashnikov and PKM, but was reluctant to take up the sniper’s SVD. The war continued…
On the 12th of January, Motorola and Spartak Battalion moved into the Cachigarka position under heavy fire. Cachigarka is halfway between Troishka and the New Terminal. That evening, the Utes was moved from it’s usual position to a window facing New Terminal. We were given a warning order that Sparta would assault the New terminal that night, and we would provide covering fire for their approach.
At 22:00 Hours (10 PM) the attack began. The entire New terminal was lit by muzzle flashes and incoming tracers. Mortar and artillery fire was constant. It was an important engagement with more than a hundred soldiers on each side. As Sparta entered the Terminal on the left, we were instructed to shift our fire to the right end of the Terminal. At about 1 AM, a magazine of green tracer was fired straight up into the air, the signal that the New Terminal had been taken. It was a major victory for the NAF. At 4 AM, I was posted to guard duty at the door. In the last few minutes of my 3 hour shift, exhausted, I started to doze off, only to awaken moments later to Mars standing above me on the stairs, understandably very angry. I would be assigned “robot duty” as punishment for my infraction. Orion would also be joining me. Under artillery attack the night before, he was reporting to Milnitsa, and was saying over open radio frequencies that Ukrop rounds were landing “300 meters to our left.” As Mars pointed out, he was inadvertently acting as an artillery spotter for the Ukrops. So, the next day, Orion and I made our way under intense artillery fire to the Gavin position.
They had a basement there that was to be used as a bomb shelter, but was filled with junk, old food and other miscellaneous debris. Our job was to clean the basement. Although it was a punishment mission, the weather was clear and not too bitterly cold, and we were several hundred meters back from Troishka, in relative safety. It was almost a holiday. We spent a few hours working hard to clear out the basement, then lounged around in the sunlight and clean, crisp, smoke-free air. While we were there, Somali Brigade brought up several tanks and began a sustained fire attack on the control tower. Just after lunch, it was cut down. The ukrops still held the buildings in the control tower complex, but had been deprived of an important observation post, at the probable cost of several of their lives. Another major victory for us. We were kickin’ ass and taking names…
I had picked up a bad lung infection in training at Ysynavada, and I continued to have a serious cough. During my weeks at Troishka, it had not gotten any better. It could not have gotten any worse, because it was already as bad as it could get. The frigid temperatures and dense smoke that were ever-present did not help any, either. It was really bad, but not bad enough for me to ask to go to the hospital. I had not come to Donbass to check into a hospital of my own volition. But on the 14th of January, the Vostok Battalion doctor came to Troishka to visit me. He asked many questions, listened to my chest and noted the lung-crushing conditions of smoke and cold. He did his best to talk me into coming back with him, but I refused. I did not intend to leave before my comrades did. But the next evening, having green tea with Reem, a message came over the radio – I was ordered to be ready to move to the hospital the next morning at dawn, and to leave when the supply van departed. Conditions were very harsh, and honestly, I was very sick, but I was more dismayed than relieved by the order. In my rudimentary Russian, I conveyed to Reem that I did not want to go and had not asked to. He understood.
At dawn on the 16th of January, I bid my comrades good luck and boarded the van back to civilization. After a little over two weeks in heavy combat, my entire perspective on life had changed, and I finally had a realistic idea about what my new life was really going to be like. As the van made its way from combat zone to city center, it was like going from one world to another, though separated by only a few thousand meters. At the Vostok hospital, I was prescribed 4 days of bed rest. Rather than stay at the hospital, I prevailed on my doctor to allow me to stay ay the apartment of my friend Christian Malaparte. Ti was warmer and more comfortable, the food was better and most of all I could communicate in English. Between basic training and combat at Troishka, it had been over a month without a single day off, without a doubt, the hardest month I had ever spent in my life. I was ready for a little R&R, and felt I deserved it. I got to Christian’s apartment, was fed royally, chugged down most of a bottle of Armenian cognac and passed out for the next 16 hours. Meanwhile, back at the airport, Troishka was about to become the scene of one of the biggest and most important battles of the war…
Labels: articles, chronicles, front
Delivery of humanitarian aid to the hospital of Gorlovka
Labels: aid, videos
Children of Gorlovka received gifts from the children of Moscow
We brought balls for kids in Gorlovka
video on channel
Eastern Orthodox icon of Virgin Mary in Saint-Iversky monastery in Donetsk
video on channel • source 1 • source 2
Labels: front, videos
Hemingway of the Donbass
video on channel • source • article
Labels: chronicles, interviews, videos
Children living on the front line visit the aquapark in Donetsk
Labels: aid, front, videos
Texas visits a hospital in Amvrosiivka, DPR
Labels: aid, reporting, videos
Humanitarian aid for Gorlovka residents
Opening of the memorial to Bosse tragedy victims
Labels: reporting, videos
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German antifascists visit the Donetsk People's Rep...
Delivery of humanitarian aid to the hospital of Go...
Children of Gorlovka received gifts from the child...
Eastern Orthodox icon of Virgin Mary in Saint-Iver...
Children living on the front line visit the aquapa...
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Forecaster's Discussion- 2/28/15- First Call Snowfall Map for 3/1-3/2 2015
A quick look at current conditions across the state shows partly cloudy skies and temperatures ranging from the upper teens inland, to the low and mid 20s at the shore. I expect these temperatures to moderate slowly but surely throughout the day for highs inland of about 25 degrees and highs at the shore around 30. Looking ahead to the evening, temperatures will drop back into the teens statewide with skies clouding over late in advance of our next weather maker, by the middle of the morning tomorrow skies look to be overcast.
For the most part, the morning looks to be mainly snow-free statewide wiith temperatures gradually rising through the teens into the low to mid 20s, with upper 20s to around 30 at the shore. Snow starts to move into the state from the west and southwest, beginning with a few early snow showers right around lunchtime in the southwestern part of the state, and overspreading the rest of the state by the mid afternoon. Snow will continue, in varying intensities, throughout Sunday evening and the early morning hours of Monday morning, it does look as if the morning rush will be impacted by snow, so delays and even closings around the state look likely. There is also a chance that the rain/snow line reaches the shoreline, especially far southeastern Connecticut, as the shortwave system becomes a coastal low pressure system and tracks south of Long Island and moves in a northeast trajectory. That said I expect all of the state down to the shoreline to be mainly snow. Current thoughts on snow accumulations are on the order of 3-6 inches, with slightly more possible in southwest and northeast Connecticut where we could find some isolated accumulations up to 8 inches.
Snow and possibly rain and mixed precipitation will end from southwest to northeast as we head through the mid morning hours of Monday, and completely clear of the state by around lunchtime. As we head through Monday afternoon we will see clearing skies and breaks of of sun, high temperatures look to approach the low 30s inland to mid 30s at the shore. Looking toward Monday night, temperatures will again tumble as a cold front moves through the state, lows look to range from the upper single digits inland, to the mid teens at the shore, so it looks as if these cold "blasts" are starting to become less potent. Tuesday will serve as a brief respite before next week's event, high temperatures will range from the low to mid 20s inland to the low 30s at the shore with clear skies.
A quick look at the mid-week storm shows much of the same, if not slightly colder on the front end and back end of the event. Right now it looks as if snow and frozen precipitation will move in later Tuesday night and bring some plowable accumulations, as the low pressure begins to wind up and track to the west of the state, gradually the entire state looks to change over to rain for the day on Wednesday, and we could see the first widespread 40 degree highs across the state in many, many weeks. As the storm pulls away late Wednesday night and Thursday, winds will flip around to the northwest and promote colder temperatures. We could see some wraparound snow on the backside of the storm on early Thursday morning, so we are watching this one very closely. There will be a more indepth discussion on this storm sometime tomorrow.
Enjoy your day everyone! We will have another update sometime this evening or tomorrow morning. Stay tuned!- Tim
Forecasters Discussion- February 26th 2015
Today we had a little snow as we were scraped by a coastal storm which tracked well to our south. Areas that normally see rain this time of the year such as North and South Carolina were solidly in the snow and cold temperatures, picking a few inches of accumulation. The current air mass in place which brought cold temperatures to the state, actually worked to suppress the storm south and spare us yet another major snowfall.
Currently, we have clearing skies and temperatures ranging from the teens inland, to the 20s at the shore. As we head through the evening, skies will become completely clear promoting radiational cooling, in turn, temps will drop to the lower to middle single digits inland and lower teens at the shore. Looks to be another cold night in a period that has featured many, many cold nights, the only caveat here is that winds will be calm for the most part, so no below zero windchills.
As we head through tomorrow morning, winds do look to still be light with temperatures around the state ranging from the upper single digits inland, to the mid teens at the shore, so make sure to bundle up the kids as they head to the bus stop, or yourself as you head off to work. Temperatures do look to 'rebound' into the low to mid 20s, possibly approaching 30 at the shore during the afternoon hours. Conditions look to to be mostly dry tomorrow, outside of a chance of a few flurries or snow showers, especially after lunchtime in advance of yet another cold,front, which will put our temperatures back into freezer. Skies will be cleared out again Friday, but temperatures will plummet to near zero or below statewide. Again, winds look to be light, so wind chills will not be too severe.
Looking ahead to the early part of weekend and your Saturday, temperatures will range from the low to mid 20s across the state, so par for the course as far as this extended cold pattern is concerned, but still far below what the normal high temperatures are supposed to be for this time of the year. Conditions during the day on Saturday look to be dry and sunny, so other than cold temperatures, we will not have to contend with frozen precipitation. Looking ahead to Saturday night, much of the same is to be expected, temperatures ranging from a few degrees below zero inland, to the mid single numbers at the shore with clear skies.
After Saturday night, the quiet weather looks to come to an end. Right now we are watching for a northern jet stream disturbance to impact the state from Sunday afternoon through Monday morning. The European model looks to move a weak storm system through the state and bring a minor snowfall accumulation statewide. The GFS on the other hand has a slightly more amplified system impacting the state through the same time frame, at this time we are thinking snow is pretty solid bet for Sunday through Monday morning, with accumulations being on the light side. We will probably have a first call map out on this system tomorrow night or Saturday morning.
Things look to clear out later Monday morning, but there are signs of yet another storm system moving in for later Tuesday through the mid week. Right now it is much too soon to speculate on track or snowfall from this system as it is about 5 days away. Current modeling shows both northern and southern jet stream interaction with this storm, so a much more potent disturbance than the Sunday-Monday storm looks possible. Currently the GFS, Canadian GGEM, and Euro show low pressure systems tracking either over us or to the west of us promoting a warmer, rainier system as opposed to a snowy, cold system. In all cases, it does look as though precipitation will start as an extended period of frozen precipitation which will gradually change to rain from south to north as warm air over takes the region from the strengthening low pressure system tracking through the Great Lakes region. Although, I would not rule out the chance of a change over back to snow on the backside of the storm as the winds flip back around to the northwest. Again, this system is 5 to 7 days out, so much too early to speculate on track, precipitation type, accumulations and the like. Just know the signal is there for a potent storm system to effect the state and region.
In the longer term, Arctic intrusions look to be less, let's say, potent. Seasonal changes will start to gradually take effect as pattern changes will start to trend in a more spring-like direction. I'm not saying that it won't be cold, because I do still see temperatures through the middle of March still being below average, but it does look as though there is a light at the end of the Arctic temperature tunnel. It does look as though it will be a while before we start seeing any major moderation of temperatures to springtime levels though. It solidly looks as though there won't be a thaw through the vernal equinox, or the official first day of spring on March 20th. As far as the pattern goes with storms, it looks as if we will start trending away from major coastal storms and more into smaller nickel and dime events.
Have a good rest of your night everyone and stay warm! More on the Sunday and mid-week disturbances tomorrow. Stay tuned.- Tim
Good early early morning to you from Southern Connecticut Weather!
It's another very cold night in the state, with locations across the state hovering on either side of zero and steadily dropping. Radiational cooling will continue throughout the night, and by morning, everywhere in the state should be below zero, and northern parts of the state and higher elevations will be in the double digit negatives! As a result, a Wind Chill Advisory has been issued until mid-day for the northern four counties from the NWS for wind chills of fifteen to twenty degrees below zero. Bundle up when you're heading outside! Some school districts have announced delayed openings for this morning, so make sure to check with your district before you wake the kids up to get ready!
For those of you who are sick of this cold, unfortunately, the upcoming week looks like we'll be seeing a lot of it, although in general we will be a bit more moderated this week than we were last week, especially as we push towards the weekend. However, the dailies will remain below normal throughout the period, so don't get your hopes up for the arrival of spring anytime soon. As far as precipitation goes, we are watching a chance for a bit of snow in eastern areas late tomorrow evening into Wednesday morning from an Inverted Trough that develops to our east on the NW flank of a coastal low. This could bring an inch or two of snow to the SE corner of the state and perhaps some flurries or snow showers across the remainder, but in general, not expecting this to be a big deal at all and in fact think most areas west of I91 will see nothing at all. Otherwise, dry conditions look to continue throughout the period. There is a system that is currently modeled to pass well SE of us for Thursday night into Friday that we are keeping an eye on just in case, but for now, think it will be far enough out to sea to spare us from accumulating snow. Overall, a quiet and cold week looks to be in the cards.
Here are the dailies:
Tuesday: Sunny and cold, with highs in the upper teens.
Wednesday: A chance of snow in the morning, then partly sunny, with highs in the upper 20s to lower 30s. Chance of precipitation is 20% west of I91, 50% east of I91, and 70% in SECT where an inch or two is possible.
Thursday: Sunny and cold, with highs in the lower 20s.
Friday: Mostly cloudy and cold, with highs in the mid 20s.
Saturday: Sunny and a bit warmer, with highs in the upper 20s to near 30.
Sunday: Sunny and warmer, with highs in the mid 30s(Still 5 to 10 degrees below normal though).
We'll be back with more info on Wednesday morning's light snow this evening, but until then, stay warm and thank you for reading Southern Connecticut Weather!
First Call Snowmap and Discussion for 2/21-22/2015 Storm
As discussed yesterday, a storm system will ride the gradient to our west between two areas of high pressure, bringing a round of mixed precipitation to the area. All precipitation looks to start as snow, but as the system comes north, it draws warm air further north with it as well given that there is no block or area of high pressure to provide resistance, and therefore most if not all areas of the state will eventually flip to mixed precipitation and/or plain rain over the course of the evening and overnight Saturday before precipitation tapers off Sunday morning. As always, this discussion is split into three parts; Models and Trends, Forecast and Timing, and Impacts. If you’re just looking for the snowmap, scroll down to the Forecast and Timing section, otherwise, read on and enjoy!
Models and Trends
All guidance in relatively good agreement on the track of the storm, however, some discrepancies remain related to surface temperatures and precipitation amounts. Most guidance keeps our area in the 33-35 range during the storm, however, I’m a bit skeptical of temperatures going much above freezing in interior areas during the duration of the precipitation. Models are typically too warm with surface temperatures when we are dealing with such a cold antecedent airmass, and the storm itself is relatively weak and hence does not have a strong mechanism to bring up warm air with it. We saw this in the 1/24 storm that kicked off this wintry bonanza where most guidance got the state into the 35-36 range and the end result was temperatures locked around freezing and an over performance of snow and ice as a result. Have leaned on that analog heavily for this forecast.
The one wildcard on temperatures is Sunday morning, where some guidance attempts to warm us up into the low 40s as the system clears out and the sun comes out, while other guidance says we rot at 33 for much of the day and then go back into the freezer overnight. Leaning towards the colder solutions for now due to the reasons explained above.
As far as precipitation amounts, generally stayed towards consensus or a bit under due to the weak system having issues with developing a large area of heavy snow. There will be isolated bands that deliver an hour or two of heavy snow to some areas and bust totals a bit low there as a result, but I don’t have the confidence in a more widespread heavy precipitation shield to forecast widespread warning criteria snowfall. Generally expecting between a half to three quarters of an inch of QPF across the state with the highest amounts along the coastline where perhaps an isolated report of an inch may be found.
We have seen generally consistent runs from the models, and if anything, the trend has been towards a slightly colder and hence snowier solution. However, have not seen anything to suggest that models will dramatically trend colder or warmer and hence have essentially taken them at face value for the purposes of this forecast.
Forecast and Timing
Here’s a look at our forecast snowmap for this event.
In the SE corner of the state, where precipitation will be slowest to arrive and where the changeover will occur first, we’re expecting one to three inches of snow. Elsewhere, we’re expecting three to six inches of snow, with the quicker changeover in SW areas being balanced out by being the first area to see precipitation. We have included a zone of four to eight inches in the far NW corner of the state to account for the possibility of those areas remaining all snow, but generally I think amounts there will be in the four to six inch range with 8" as an insurance policy if the storm is a bit colder than expected. It should be noted that this will be a heavier and wetter snow compared to the fluff that we’ve been seeing recently.
We are also worried about some icing, especially away from the coastline in the traditionally colder spots. As of now, models agree that surface temperatures will get up into the 33-34 degree range once we flip to rain and as a result icing would appear to be no big deal, but I’m skeptical for two reasons. First off, models always overdo surface temperatures, especially in situations where we have a cold antecedent airmass like we do here, and secondly, ground temperatures are so cold from all the arctic shots that we’ve been experiencing that even if the two meter(the level at which surface temps are measured at) temperature is 33 or 34 degrees, the ground could still be well below freezing and as a result ice accretions would still be possible. As a result, I have included a chance for up to a quarter of an inch of ice accretion in the 3-6” zone of the map. In general, I think amounts will fall a bit lower than that, but we decided to be fairly bullish on the upper bound of icing because of the significant impacts that ice can have.
As far as timing goes, guidance is in relatively good agreement. . Precipitation approaches from the SW Saturday afternoon and overspreads the state from the mid afternoon on, increasing in intensity as we head towards the evening hours. By 7 PM or so, I’m expecting moderate snow to be falling across much of the state, with an inch or two on the ground for western areas and a bit less further east considering that precipitation will take longer to break out there.
As the storm moves northeast and gets us into the heavier precipitation, it will at the same time bring up a push of warm air from the south and begin to change areas over to rain. Generally, this transition will be from SE to NW, although likely a bit more dependent on latitude rather than longitude. By 10 PM at the latest, I expect that the transition to rain will have begun in the SE corner of the state, and it will continue to push NW through the evening and overnight. By 1 AM, most of the state except for possibly the far NW corner will have gone over to a mix or rain. Precipitation moves out over the early morning hours on Sunday, and by 7 AM, all we’ve got left is some rain showers, which move out soon after.
Here’s a look at the progression of the system on the RGEM model, which I think has a good handle as far as timing and precipitation types go. Times are in GMT, so subtract 5 to convert to EST(So 00:00:00 is 7 PM our time).
· A plowable snowfall for the entire state
· Tricky driving conditions later Saturday into Saturday night due to a combination of snow and ice.
· Potential infrastructure issues, especially on roofs, due to the combination of existing snowpack weight, additional heavy wet snow and ice, and melting. Ice jams and roof collapses are possible.
· Slippery surfaces Sunday evening from a flash freeze
· Minor flooding possible depending on the amount of rain that we get and how warm we get Sunday as a result of both melting snowpack and clogged drains.
We’ll keep an eye on the guidance and issue a final call tomorrow with a revised map if needed and of course will be updating continuously throughout the event as always. Thank you for reading Southern Connecticut Weather!
Temperatures are currently falling off a cliff in the state, with most areas down into the single digits and plummeting towards below zero by morning. To make it feel even colder, we’ve wind gusts of 15-25 miles per hour across the state, resulting in wind chills in the negative single digits to low double digits statewide. These values will continue to drop, with temperatures bottoming out in the negative single digits and wind chills in the negative teens, and therefore the National Weather Service has issued a wind chill advisory for the entire state that is valid until mid-morning tomorrow(Friday).
One potential wildcard that’s worth mentioning is the potential for some icing. As of now, models agree that surface temperatures will get up into the 33-34 degree range once we flip to rain and as a result icing would appear to be no big deal, but I’m skeptical for two reasons. First off, models always overdo surface temperatures, especially in situations where we have a cold antecedent airmass like we do here, and secondly, ground temperatures are so cold from all the arctic shots that we’ve been experiencing that even if the two meter(the level at which surface temps are measured at) temperature is 33 or 34 degrees, the ground could still be well below freezing and as a result ice accretions would still be possible. We’ll continue to keep an eye on this as a possibility, and will keep you updated as we start to get a better picture of what that might entail on the guidance.
As far as impacts go, snow amounts should be relatively manageable, but still high enough to require the plows to come out, so that’s a strain on towns that have already had their snow budgets pushed to the max. One thing that we are concerned about is the potential for infrastructure issues depending on how much rain we do get after the initial snowfall. Unlike our last several storms, this will be a heavy wet snow, which combined with the weight of the current snowpack and additional water weight from rain may be enough to cause potential roof collapses and ice jams, especially if we do see some melting from this system. I’m not an expert on roofs by any means, but if you have a roof with a lot of snow on it, taking action of some sort is probably a good idea (If you aren’t 100% sure that you can remove snow from your room safely yourself, it’s best to contact a professional and avoid needless accidents).
Behind the storm, colder air moves back in for Sunday, likely sparking a flash freeze of any rain that did fall. That could make things very slippery, so use caution when you’re heading out! More frigid temperatures are expected to start next week(Highs in the teens are again possible for Monday and Tuesday) before a possible storm system approaches for the middle of next week. We’re a long way out on that one though, so we’ll leave it at a mention for now and touch on it a bit more as we get closer in if it’s still a legitimate threat.
Stay tuned for a snowmap to be issued tomorrow(Friday) along with an updated discussion. Until then, have a great night and thank you for reading Southern Connecticut Weather!
For tomorrow, we’re expecting sunny skies but frigid temperatures, with highs generally in the lower to mid teens. Wind chills will remain below zero the entire day however, so bundle up when you’re venturing out and try to limit the time that skin is exposed to prevent frostbite. Some school delays are possible tomorrow morning due to cold weather, although it’s difficult to pinpoint what the whims of each individual district will be.
All eyes then turn to Saturday as a system passes to our northwest and brings a mixed bag of precipitation to the state. Unlike our last several events, there is no block in place or high pressure to our north to keep warm air from being pulled north with the system, and as a result we have precipitation type issues to worry about. The first part of the day will be dry, with clouds building throughout the morning, but by the early afternoon, precipitation will begin to break out from southwest to northeast. All areas will initially start as snow, with a quick inch or two being seen in most spots by sunset.
What happens next depends on the timing of the system vs. the push of the warm air. As the system passes our latitude, we will be pushed into the warm sector of it, and the state will begin to change over to rain from SE to NW over the course of the evening and early overnight hours. At the same time however, precipitation intensity will begin to increase, and snowfall rates will pick up for those areas that remain all snow. Therefore, if the timing of the changeover is off by a relatively small margin, it can have a significant impact on the total snowfall amounts. In general, we’re expecting the lighest totals to be in the SE corner of the state, with the heaviest in the NW corner of the state, but the vast majority of areas should remain below that 6” threshold that would be required for a Winter Storm Warning to be issued. It’s possible that we could see some isolated totals of over 6”, especially if the system continues to trend colder and wetter, but I don’t think widespread warning criteria snows are likely.
All areas except for possibly the NW hills eventually change to rain overnight before precipitation moves out Sunday morning. I expect that by 7-10 AM on Sunday, the state is dry except for some isolated showers along the coastline, so really this system will have a relatively minor impact on your weekend plans.
Here’s a look at the timeline of the system on the NAM model, which is the model that I think has the best handle on the system right now. At 4 PM(The first panel), we’ve got light snow overspreading the state with a bit more moderate snow working into western areas. At 7 PM, we’ve got moderate snow across the state, but by 1 AM, the rain/snow line has shot up to encompass the entire state on the warm side except for the far northern tier, which is still mix or snow. By 7 AM, all the precipitation has moved out except for some lingering showers along the coastline, and we’re set up for a dry Sunday.
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Dipula Income Fund today reported its maiden interim results which confirm it is on track to achieve both its forecast results for the year ending 31 August 2012 and its investment growth strategy.
Dipula announced distributions per A-linked unit of 39,685 cents and per B-linked unit of 27,741 cents in its interim results for the six months ended 29 February 2012.
Izak Petersen, CEO of Dipula Income Fund, attributes the positive performance to meeting its rental income target, increased operating expense efficiencies and effective interest rate management.
“The global economic environment remains challenging as does the South African economy with a forecast growth rate of around 2.5% for the year ahead. Tenants, and consequently rentals, will remain under pressure, notes Petersen
Petersen points to fuel price increases, electricity costs and municipal rates increases above inflation and secondary costs pressures throughout the economy that may pose challenges going forward. “Despite these factors we expect Dipula to perform in line with its forecast for 31 August 2012, as reported in the prospectus dated 28 July 2011. We expect the portfolio to deliver growth in 2013 and beyond,” says Petersen.
Dipula was formed through the merger of Mergence Africa Property Fund and Dipula Property Fund, two majority black-owned property funds. It listed on the JSE on 17 August 2011 following a successful capital raising. At listing, each fund introduced approximately R700 million of properties to the company. In addition, Dipula acquired two property portfolios totalling R700 million.
At 29 February 2012, Dipula’s asset value was R2.1 billion and its market capitalisation was approximately R1.5 billion.
Dipula is externally managed by Dipula Asset Management Trust, a company with exceptional BEE credentials. It recently announced a transaction where management and a broad-based consortium will acquire additional Dipula linked units. Following this transaction, black unitholders will own up to 25% of Dipula. The transaction is still subject to certain conditions.
As the JSE listed property company with the highest black ownership and black management control, Dipula hopes to unlock value through partnerships with other companies which may look for partners with its BEE credentials. Dipula may also be in a position to transact in the government space given its 100% black owned management company. “A sizeable stake by management also ensures complete interest alignment between management and other unitholders,” says Petersen.
Although it is one of the ‘new kids’ on the listed property block, both Dipula’s founding companies have been around since 2005 and the Dipula management team has a solid seven-year track record.
Dipula owns a sectorally and geographically diversified portfolio of 175 properties, comprising 50% retail, 23% offices and 27% industrial properties, by gross lettable area (GLA). Approximately 75% of the portfolio, by GLA, is situated in Gauteng with properties in all other provinces.
Since listing, Dipula has acquired Bochum and Blouberg Plaza and Nquthu Plaza for R250 million. These retail properties, which are in the process of being transferred, advance Dipula’s strategy of improving the quality of its portfolio and investing in emerging market retail. These acquisitions also meet Dipula’s objective of increasing the value of its individual properties to between R20 million and R200 million. The transaction came into effect on 1 May 2012 and transfer of the properties is imminent.
Petersen reports that acquisitions of around R800 million are under negotiation.
“Portfolio growth is a priority,” says Petersen. “We aim to acquire existing properties as well as new developments on a turnkey basis when income enhancing opportunities arise”.
Dipula maintained a 95% retention rate on leases renewed during the period. Vacancies increased from 7.9% at listing to 8.9% at 29 February 2012. Much of this is due to the refurbishment of a property known as Arbeid Street in Strydom Park which was substantially let at listing
With rental income of R137,4 million, Dipula achieved a cost-to-income ratio of 24.6%. Petersen notes that management will continue to manage costs in a disciplined manner whilst not compromising on quality management. “Besides acquisitive growth and the disposal of non-performing assets, there is room to optimise rental levels at several properties. We are also looking at increasing the energy efficiency at our buildings to achieve costs savings, as well as environmental benefits,” says Petersen.
Interest rate management is another focus area which Dipula will continue to manage efficiently. To further diversify its sources of funding, Dipula has been exploring opportunities of raising cheaper funding in the debt capital markets During the period Dipula accessed a new line of credit from Nedbank to part fund the Bochum and Blouberg Plaza and Nquthu Plaza acquisition. This facility of R125 million is for a five-year period.
Petersen says he is pleased with Dipula’s first six months’ performance as a listed company. “Our strategy is to continue to prudently grow the portfolio to more than R10 billion in the next four to six years, with specific focus on sustainable income growth”
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One Man’s Trash: Dominic Caserta Caught ‘Illegally Dumping’
By The Fly / April 17, 2019 18
Looks like Dominic Caserta was doing a bit of spring cleaning.
As tenants of the historic Morse Mansion—one of the few Queen Anne Victorians left in Santa Clara and the only one in the city listed on the National Register of Historic Places—members of the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority are more than a little guarded about who’s on or around the property.
So it raised some alarm when one sorority sister watched a middle-aged man traipse over and proceed to dump what looked like “electronics and documents and stuff like that” into the mansion’s big green trash bin.
The Santa Clara University student who witnessed the incident last month snapped a photo of the trash-tossing scofflaw to share with fellow sorority sisters and one of the Old Quad neighbors, who recognized the uninvited guest as none other than accused sexual harasser Dominic Caserta.
“It weirded them out,” a source familiar with the situation tells Fly. “And I can see why: The man did not look well.”
The Old Quad neighbor advised the sorority sister to lodge a complaint with the city to report the potentially illegal dumping by one of the city’s former elected leaders.
According to records obtained by Fly, she obliged.
Caserta—a councilman and aspiring Santa Clara County supervisor whose political career was derailed in May of 2018 by revelations of his allegedly longstanding history of sexual harassment and bullying—has laid low for the better part of this past year while ostensibly plotting litigation and, as of earlier this month, dealing with his divorce.
Well, really, it sounds like his wife’s been the one dealing with the marriage dissolution. In an impassioned phone call Wednesday, Caserta denied any marital troubles.
“I am not getting divorced,” he repeatedly insisted.
“My wife and I are married,” he added, echoing text messages he’s lately been sending to former political operatives who worked on his 2018 supervisorial campaign. (“I am still standing,” he told one consultant in a text earlier this month, “and I will always have my son, wife and a record of leadership for working families ... And call me an asshole to my face and I will be there you loser!”)
When told the divorce case number filed April 2, Caserta seemed genuinely taken aback.
“I have not been served anything,” he claimed. “Nothing.”
Fly’s been hearing about more Caserta sightings around his abode, which happens to lie kitty corner from the sorority house. That positioning must be awkward for Kappa Alpha Theta, considering how no small number of the high school girls he taught over the years have accused him of unwanted touching, hugging, hair-stroking and chest-ogling.
Caserta’s coed neighbors would be well advised to lock the dumpster and draw the blinds.
This article has been updated to include a statement from Caserta.
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Beating a Dead Horse Apr 17, 2019 @ 3:19 pm
This does not sound like reporting, this and one other news site are pulling same tactic. This is another hit piece that sounds more like opinion piece rather than actual news. So he used a dumpster? I am happy it’s not in the street or polluting or the hoarding all the homeless seem to be doing lately
But to write a petty article like this makes no sense but to open up old wounds from a year ago.
Caserta was a jerk, he was shady at times…. he was also someone that was a huge cheerleader to get things passed. He had to go
yet…. all the allegations and accusations, all the police reports and the giant media circus led to nothing. Not one charge, not one crime, only the media, and jury of public opinion decided his fate.
I get it, he was foul, he lusted for women, but also that is all men (Have you seen gay men- yes im gay) it is all that testosterone.
But seeing this “opinion” that is not earth shattering news, it’s just a former elected official trying to put back together his life(or whats left of it). Isn’t there such things as forgiveness? or hell he got what was coming to him? maybe it was a learning lesson.
This is by no means a pass for his actions, or sympathy for what happened to him. But if there is a crime I would love to see the court decide that and him serve his punishment. But i guess this is punishment……to have media publish things about getting rid of trash. To me sounds like a permit patty again,
That song “Dirty Laundry” really means a lot now.
hardtobeamoderate Apr 18, 2019 @ 1:01 pm
Wow. You stereotype all gay men. No matter if you are gay you are still indulging in stereotypes. As for Caserta – he obviously things he is above the law whether it be sexual harassment or illegal dumping. This guy is a loser
sjoutsidethebubble Apr 22, 2019 @ 10:49 am
> Wow. You stereotype all gay men. No matter if you are gay you are still indulging in stereotypes.
What’s the stereotype?
The only “stereotype” seems to be a gay activist claiming victimhood by whining about a “stereotype”.
sjoutsidethebubble Apr 17, 2019 @ 3:34 pm
Leaked information from the Mueller Report that will get Trump impeached:
https://sjoutsidethebubble.files.wordpress.com/2019/04/caserta-trump01.png
Robert Cortese Apr 17, 2019 @ 3:47 pm
Sort of a family Pet Peeve here.
So we used to have a fruit stand in Evergreen, next to Evergreen College. Routinely someone would come by and dump their crap in it. My grandfather Jerome tired of seeing our dumpster prematurely filled one day decided to dig through the trash to see who was behind it.
Low and behold it was some doctor that lived in the area.
So he got in touch with the guy, who flat out lied and said it wasn’t his, he didn’t know how things with his name got in there, must have been the devil, etc. Grandpa had some laborers load the trash into his truck, had them sit back there with it (because in those days, riding in a truck bed was A-OK), drove to the guys house and dropped every bag of trash in his driveway. Dumpster never was prematurely filled up again.
I think these sorority girls should do the same.
V.S. Prin Apr 17, 2019 @ 4:44 pm
To all the Caserta defenders out there —
There are 15 police reports filed against him by his female students. That cannot be dismissed. But the DA didn’t have enough evidence to charge him. He was fortunate that he had a good defense attorney. The teachers’ union is known for being good at defending their own — even the worst and most vile ones.
Caserta clearly behaved inappropriately. That’s the nicest way to put it. But he has never publicly acknowledged his despicable behavior. Caserta thinks he’s a victim. He’s not. Guys like him try to repair their reputations and hope everyone forgets. He’s been trying to do that. He sent out some laughable press release about passing a polygraph test. The real victims should publicly challenge him to take one and they should, too. That would tell us a lot.
Agree Apr 17, 2019 @ 5:26 pm
Hey man, what do you expect when you leave a dumpster with the top open out in the street? If it was rolled out into the street…means its a pick up day….and if there is space, why not put trash there? I do it myself all the time.
And shouldn’t the students be in class or studying, instead of watching and take pictures of their dumpster?
What I am personally going to do now is watch for that dumpster and as soon as it is not rolled back onto the property in time, I will take my own pictures and call code enforcement…
Oh, and Morse Mansion is public property, and being our property, we have a right to use it, including its dumpster…..
Smokey Apr 22, 2019 @ 3:39 pm
I agree, Mr. ‘AGREE’ (or should I say, ‘Dominic’), this is petty.
But this is no ordinary jamoke, this is a self-serving conniver who has consistently turned the government to his own personal advantage:
http://www.savesantaclara.org/Dominic_Caserta.php
And let’s have a show of hands: does anyone believe Casserta had no idea his wife was divorcing him?
Personally, I think he’s lying thru his teeth; it’s not like he has a reputation for probity…
Isn’t it time the citizens of our once honest and uncorrupted area voted for candidates based on their morality, instead of head-nodding along with their slick campaigns?
And it’s not just Casserta, it’s ‘Pierluigi’ Oliverio (caught on video stealing his opponent’s lawn signs), and the imnsufferably pompous DA, Jeffrey Rosen, and the equally creepy ex-mayor Mahan, and Mayor Liccardo, and Rabble Rouser Opportunist Extraordinaire Dauber… etc., etc., &etc.
These self-serving pols don’t represent We The People. They represent only themselves.
The ONLY remedy:
Vote ’em OUT!
A new crop feeding at the public trough can’t be much worse. And who knows, we could get lucky for a change…
Ted Apr 23, 2019 @ 4:19 pm
The Morse Mansion is public property??? Uhhh no, it’s no. Typical of the Old-Almost Dead-Quad residents to think they have control of others private homes.
The City of Santa Clara purchased it in 2016 for $3,875,000. The City leases it to a sorority associated with Santa Clara University.
SJ Kulak Apr 17, 2019 @ 8:48 pm
This is petty. Dumping is leaving your mattess on a curb in the dark of night. If you want to do something, capture people doing that and get some convictions.
Again, this is petty. Be better.
WeCanDoBetter Apr 17, 2019 @ 8:56 pm
Maybe Dominic and Pierluigi can double date now!
FEXXNIST Apr 17, 2019 @ 9:32 pm
I just hope the the Corrupted Santa Clara Family court does not make this marriage dissolution a three year process so attorneys can be paid $350 per hour and “legally” take possession of the family’s savings. It is clear Mr. Carseta needs MH support. His wife as many women in these situations maybe taken all the stress. Most importantly there is a child that needs support not the abusive tactics of SANTA CLARA COUNTY corrupted Family Court. I wish the best to the wife and Child. It is a child’s right to have a relationship with mother and father after a separation. Make sure dad is emotionally stable. Do not blame wife for this man’s sexual deviation and ilegal acts. RECALL SANTA CLARA COUNTY Family Court, Julie Emede, and JEFF ROSEN, the enemies of local families, health and safety.
Bill Conrad Apr 17, 2019 @ 9:50 pm
Fantastic work Fly! Keep the heat on this scum bag! If he so much as jay walks, report it! if only to honor the 13 young women who courageously stepped forward at great risk to make credible allegations against this creep. The good ole boy network of the SCC DA and the incompetent school district will not bring justice so it is up to the media to keep the heat on! Not to mention that Caserta seeks remuneration to the tune of $38 Million for his bad actions! What a creep! Go Fly!
Remember OJ Apr 18, 2019 @ 7:51 am
Dear V.S. Prin,
I like your idea of the polygraph challenge. But a better idea would be a civil suit against Dominic Caserta. Remember how OJ Simpson was cleared of criminal charges and then he lost in civil court. The victims should get together and raise money online. I’d contribute. I bet a bunch of others would too.
The Prince of Sparta Apr 18, 2019 @ 8:19 am
Caserta is the most loathsome person in local politics. There is no equal. For fans of a Fish Called Wanda, you’ll remember Otto, a first-rate narcissistic asshole. Otto was dumb, too. It was said of him that he thought the Gettysburg Address was where Lincoln lived. Caserta should play Otto in the sequel.
Many of Caserta’s former associates will concur. Caserta only had associates, not friends. He was as transactional as they come and those around him were equally so. Even his financial patron the 49ers have no use for him now. Will they help him as if he’s a fallen comrade. The decision has been made and the answer is absolutely not. Caserta once had power and could help the Yorks. But now they know, as do we all, that a weak man without power is just a weak man. In Caserta’s case, he is a eunuch.
Thereliableinformer Apr 18, 2019 @ 7:41 pm
I can understand dumping a few things in a dumpster that is open although its wrong. So many losers are dumping huge piles of garbage in residential neighborhoods on the east side. My issue here is this mans arrogance and bold dumping in the middle of the day with people in the area. It shows his state of mind and demeanor. He thinks he is above the rules. Dump your stuff in a large container but do it more covert. Unless you think you can do what you want.
M.T.GUNN Apr 19, 2019 @ 9:50 pm
As much as I hate giving any politician a brake, at least he’s putting in a trash container and not dumping it at the end of my street. That’s more than I can for the new vagrants that are moving into the city.
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In the Booklight – Leanne Bridgwater & Confessions of a Cyclist
April 9, 2016 editor No comments
In my fifth interview for In the Booklight, I talk to Leanne Bridgewater about her poetry collection Confessions of a Cyclist from Knives Forks And Spoons Press…
‘Confessions of a Cyclist’ has to be one of the most intriguing poetry collection titles that I’ve heard in a while. Are you a cyclist? And can you tell me a bit about how the title came about?
Thank you. The title first started out as The Bicycle Diaries, inspired by Manic Street Preachers’ ‘The Motorcycle Diaries’ but I realised I don’t really like Manic Street Preachers,so that got scrapped. I’ve always enjoyed the book title “Confessions of a GP” – with working in libraries, I constantly see this book – maybe it follows me – doubt it. I really liked the idea of “Confessions of” as it introduces the fact there’s a diary element to it but it mostly opens up the idea of something, which I think sums up interesting poetry, called Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR), which is
“a previously unstudied sensory phenomenon, in which individuals experience a tingling, static-like sensation across the scalp, back of the neck and at times further areas in response to specific triggering audio and visual stimuli. This sensation is widely reported to be accompanied by feelings of relaxation and well-being. The current study identifies several common triggers used to achieve ASMR, including whispering, personal attention, crisp sounds and slow movements.”
Barrat, Emma and Davis, Nick (2015). ‘Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR):a flow-like mental state’. PeerJ, 3, e851.
Having Confessions of a Cyclist as the title really introduces the text well. It’s personal, a little bit intrusive but delicate too.Yes, I am a cyclist. I am a big lover of situationalism and trying to capture poetry from anything. I had been cycling to and fro work, one side of the city to the other, then back again, everyday, 5 days a week. I confirmed with myself that cycling is great because you’re helping the world (no car fumes) and you are also helping yourself (physical exercise). I was greedy and wanted more out of it though. I thought, there must be something else to make these travels more fulfilling and exciting. Cycling, in my opinion, is one of the most liberating things you can do. Being in the moment, cycling, and overhearing people’s conversation is temporal, fresh, random and spontaneous.
I love the book’s cover and your artwork included within. How would you describe the interaction of words and images in this collection?
Cheers. The artwork was created before the writing, for a project called ‘Landscapes’, which is, poetically drawing on the landscape, resulting in lots of linear drawings of industrial bits, like cranes; train tracks; telephone poles. The landscapes are drawings of areas in Coventry. Coventry is good for industrial bits of rust and roadworks, with its ring-road looping round the city and the amount of potholes cyclists have to swerve. In total, I probably have about 100 linear drawings. So, the images came first. But I never intended to write poetry to fit around these images. They were separate projects. When writing the book it naturally became an epic poem, a flow of word. I saw the opportunity of putting the images to good use by using them to change the scene and break up the epic. Sometimes in a text, it’s hard to place natural break away from the word – the importance of space – especially when the dialogue is dynamic and flows page after page. An image is a clear STOP, Break, Rest – a visual full-stop saying “hey, stop reading, just pause and grasp”. I vote for more visual in poetry!.. and space!
For me, the poems seem to blend many elements, including a haikuesque concision, modern, urban and sometimes surreal imagery/juxtaposition, and fantastic sound-play and word-play. How do you mix all these things together? Do you have a particular creative process or is it more an instinctive/natural reaction to the world we live in?
Definitely a reaction to the world we live in. It’s natural for us to associate and connect things like lego. I was talking to someone about elephants yesterday, and two hours after, elephants popped into my head. We are what we see; feel; witness; read.
The collection started by seeing a man on my way from work, cycling on the London Road, a main road that leads you back to Coventry centre. This man was walking away from the centre – opposite way to me. I would see him every Friday on my way back on this route, around 7.15pm. He was bearded, old and looked like a lover of nature. I questioned to myself where he would be going or coming from – what is this weekly occasion he attends? It was exciting to keep it “the unknown” – I contemplated asking him, but after a while, we ended up just giving each other a slight nod, and then a hello until it hit me – these occurrences are poetic and I am going to capture them. I then investigated that in certain seasons he would disappear. So you can see in the collection that there is a focus on season-change. The book plays on seasons and light – the natural changes in the climate. The people and occurrences control and/or orchestrate the text.Language play is a must!
Language play keeps something dynamic, naturally unconventionality rhythmical, unforced, leading to an experiment in sounds. It is a healthy way to keep writing dynamic, fun and in return, becomes somewhat surreal, not just to the reader but even the writer. It means itself and doesn’t need an analysed explanation. It can be interpreted in more deeper ways – mathematical; artistic; spacial; phonetically. I enjoy experimenting with our surroundings, making one feel closer to the environment. I’ve tried to approach that in the book. With cycling too, there is a play on pace/speeds – part of the book (e.g. the Nicky Mor-Gan-Gun part) was conducted through the rhythm I was pedalling at. There’s always a metronome somewhere – a tempo you can talk to. Pedalling brings a constant metronome.
Which do you find most inspirational out of, for example, people, places, politics, emotions…? And why?
All of them. People, I suppose, make a place. They live on land; they eat; consume products. People that live with the thought of others (including other animals) in mind, are the people that are inspiring. There is a big wildlife hospital in Gloucester called The Vale, and the amount of wildlife they mend amazes me. I find those people amazing! Weird people inspire me. We’re all weird in ways, but the odd quirks we all have are the things that are lovable.
Recently, I was at a launch of Alan Van Wijgerden’s poetry film called Blood and Ink. It’s a documentary on Coventry’s poetry scene. I need to quote my good friend Adam Steiner who said “The personal is the political and the political is the personal”. This is too true not to quote. I believe this. We become our interests, our politics and we choose to live in a certain place, and these things contribute to how we feel. I find wild land inspiring; free; liberating. I also like cupboards big enough you can hide away in. Add a small lamp and viola, nest! A writer’s in-house shed! Miranda July is an inspiring artist. Change is inspiring – women’s rights and the right of animals – gay rights – I watched a film called Wadjda, a ten-year old Saudi girl living in a conservative world. She meets sexist views on how females are not supposed to cycle, so her mum doesn’t allow her to have a bike. But in the end of the film, and after Wadjda working in anyway possible to try and buy the bike, her mum finally gets her one as she realises what she wants, not as a female or male, but as her daughter. Pushing boundaries leads to fairer places.
There are many lines that I love and could ask more about. But for now, can I just ask you to say a little more about “My earlobes are marshmallows”?
That line relates back to the ASMR, which we spoke about in the first question. It’s about the way that when we open up our ears to everything that is going on around us, sometimes we try to filter the noises because they can be too overbearing/overpowering. Hearing too much, too loud – your ears become sensitive. The ears are soft like a marshmallow – ready to be eaten by the noises that surround them.
I’ve seen you perform and also enjoyed your video poem for ‘Confessions of a Cyclist’ (shared below). What part or influence does performance play in your poetry on the page?
I like experimenting with forms and enjoy creating visual poetry – bonding/merging visuals and text. I like making the text stand out in a way that suits its context. The context becomes the text’s layout.
The thing about the page’s performance is that the page comes to a standstill as soon as it is printed (like a still image, captured) and, as a writer, you can’t change it, unless you want to make pen markings in every book you’ve just had printed. The words on that printed page aren’t going to move or be fluid – they’re printed in ink in the place you arranged them – they’re not going anywhere. And that’s fine, because the context of the text is still animate. Reading from the page keeps it new and mobile. It’s up to the reader’s interpretation. A page can perform text in may ways – diagonal, shape, cut up, blacking out or crossing out of words. There are many ways to play with text on paper. The language and sound play is the main performance in Confessions of a Cyclist, that’s why I mostly kept a more formal layout, although centring the text and making sure there wasn’t too much text on one page. Words need room to breathe. That’s why in some parts you will just see one word, expanded, taking over an entire page – because that one word has the same impact as, say, a page with 30 words on.
What haven’t I asked that the poems would absolutely insist that I should question? And what is the answer?
I think all areas have been questioned! Bikes; poetry; places; faces. I suppose the people I’ve written about in the book would question whether I had right to listen in on their conversations and then steal parts to make the text. I don’t think they would even remember their “contributions” if they read through the book – well, apart from the bearded man on the London Road! Warning public: a poet’s ears are like CCTV: they’re tuned in and listening to you. Sadly, the book contains no juicy local gossip but there is an odd rabbit dilemma, a happy story about an elderly woman urinating up a tree and some mention of something like Star Wars…
Where can people get hold of a copy of ‘Confessions of a Cyclist’?
Here, from Knives Forks and Spoons website: http://www.knivesforksandspoonspress.co.uk/confessionsofacy.html or if I am ever reading, around the Midlands or non Midland UK, I always have a few copies on me.
Thank you, Leanne, for sharing the origins and workings of ‘Confessions of a Cyclist’ with us In the Booklight.
Writing none
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http://www.theaterjones.com/images/large/l_001024054812.jpg~!~Michael Federico and Denise Lee~!~Courtesy~~~http://www.theaterjones.com/images/large/l_001024043107.jpg~!~Chrisie Vela~!~Courtesy Theatre Three~~~http://www.theaterjones.com/images/large/l_001024043014.jpg~!~Christie Vela and Jeffrey Schmidt~!~Courtesy Theatre Three~~~http://www.theaterjones.com/images/large/l_001024042955.jpg~!~Christie Vela and Jeffrey Schmidt~!~Courtesy Theatre Three
2019-2020 for Theatre Three
T3 has new works by Michael Federico, Denise Lee and Danielle Georgiou next season, plus Noises Off, Elephant Man. Also, Christie Vela is named Associate Artistic Director.
by Mark Lowry
published Thursday, March 14, 2019
Photo: Courtesy Theatre Three
Christie Vela and Jeffrey Schmidt
Dallas — For its 58th season, Theatre Three scales back on the number of mainstage productions and adds a late-night experience, but also has a major addition: A new full-time staffer. Christie Vela, an actress and director in DFW for more than two decades, will become the Associate Artistic Director.
Vela will be charged with increasing the theater’s community outreach and educational programming, as well as direct and contribute to season planning and the artistic vision of the theater. “Our aesthetic is not the same,” says Vela of Artistic Director Jeffrey Schmidt, “it’s a good fit.”
In the 2019-2020 season, she will also direct two shows, and they happen to be world premieres by local playwrights: An adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula by Michael Federico, who co-wrote the current season’s The Manufactured Myth of Eveline Flynn and the previous season’s edition of Solstice (as well as On the Eve, seen at T3 five years ago); and the first play by local actress, singer and community conversation organizer Denise Lee, Funny, You Don’t Act Like a Negro, which was announced as a future commission last year.
For Dracula, Vela says, the characters of Mina and Lucy will be more prominent than is usually seen in adaptations of the famous vampire story, with less emphasis on Van Helsing. “Lucy and Mina are talked about a lot [in many versions], but they’re not driving the action. I wanted to see the story through a female perspective.” As for the Dark Lord himself, Vela hints that it might not be traditional casting. It will also infuse Romanian lore. That show kicks off a Halloween event that will be paired with a late-night showing in Theatre Too! of a new work by Danielle Georgiou Dance Group, The Bippy Boppy Boo Show, a ghost show that’s inspired by the photographs of previous productions seen on the wall of the stairs that lead down to the Theatre Too! space.
For Lee’s Funny, You Don’t Act Like a Negro, Schmidt says it was an idea that bloomed in personal conversations with Lee, who, for three years, has run a successful and important Community Conversations event about various topics, but often fostering thoughtful conversations about race in the theater community. It focuses on three couples, one white, one black, and another mixed-race, and will incorporate an element of audience feedback during the show. “We didn’t want to save the talk-back for after the show,” Schmidt says.
One big surprise on this season is Michael Frayn’s masterful farce, Noises Off. It’s a popular and very funny show, but the big question is how this work will be staged in a theatre-in-the-round, considering the demands of the set and seeing the play-within-a-play from the front and behind the scenes. Schmidt says one option is to block off the west side of the seats (that’s the area most people don’t want to sit in, anyway), and make T3 a thrust configuration for that show.
The season also includes two plays, Bernard Pomerance’s The Elephant Man and Mark Harelik’s The Immigrant, and a fundraiser that will be a to-be-announced musical revue.
Gone is the holiday piece Solstice. Schmidt says they tried to stay in the holiday-theater space, but there’s too much competition. The holiday focus this year will be Halloween, with Dracula and Bippy Boppy. The Monday Night Playwright series will continue, showcasing new works by local writers, with hopes to develop some of those further. Also, having fewer shows on the Norma Young mainstage means they can rent out the space to theater companies and other organizations (and Theatre Too is always available for rentals as well).
Below is the complete news release from Theatre Three, with dates and descriptions:
Michael Federico and Denise Lee
Theatre Three Artistic Director Jeffrey Schmidt has announced the 2019-20 season to be produced on the Norma Young Arena Stage and downstairs in Theatre Too. Theatre Three, Dallas’s 58-year-old theatre-in-the-round, is located in the Quadrangle in the heart of uptown at 2800 Routh Street, Suite 168, Dallas, TX 75201.
In his third year as Artistic Director, Jeffrey Schmidt announces the addition of Associate Artistic Director Christie Vela, who returns to T3 after directing last season’s Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde.
“Christie is a longtime colleague and friend. Her work both as a director and actor here in the Metroplex as well as regionally is impressive, to say the least.” Artistic Director Jeffrey Schmidt exclaimed, “Many will remember when both Norma Young and Jac Alder were the artistic forces behind Theatre Three. I'm thrilled to see where Theatre Three will head by combining our aesthetics and visions.”
Kicking off the 58th season is an adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, written by Michael Federico, who recently provided the book for The Manufactured Myth of Eveline Flynn. Playing simultaneously on the Theatre Too stage will be a haunting variety show co-produced by Danielle Georgiou Dance Group titled The Bippy Boppy Boo Show. Michael Frayn’s Noises Off will creatively be staged on the T3 mainstage to close out 2019. A musical revue will kick off 2020 followed by another Theatre Three commissioned play: Funny, You Don’t Act Like A Negro, written by Denise Lee. The final two plays of the season are both inspired by true stories: Benard Pomerance’s The Elephant Man and Mark Harelik’s The Immigrant.
Theatre Three performances run Thursdays at 7:30 p.m.; Fridays – Saturdays at 8:00 p.m.; and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. Season tickets (which range from $60-$225) will go on sale on Tuesday, May 14, 2019. Single tickets will be available at a later date. For ticket information, call the Theatre Three Box Office at 214-871-3300 x1 or visit www.theatre3dallas.com.
In addition to the production season, Theatre Three is inviting local arts groups to utilize both the Norma Young Arena Stage and the Theatre Too performance spaces. Rental arrangements can be made by contacting Sarah Barnes at sarah.barnes@theatre3dallas.com and are subject to availability. Additionally, Theatre Too will continue to provide a home for Theatre Three’s Monday Playwright series, which provides local writers an opportunity to showcase their works-in-progress.
The shows:
DOUBLE SCREAM HALLOWEEN
By Michael Federico
Conceived by Christie Vela and Michael Federico
Directed by Christie Vela
You’ve long heard the story of DRACULA, everyone’s favorite blood-sucking Transylvanian; but what stories might we learn through the eyes of his mysterious mistress Mina? This fresh adaptation of the Bram Stoker Gothic horror novel takes a deeper look into the Romanian folklore with an update on the undead. Be prepared for plenty of bloody plot twists and turns. An original play.
THE BIPPY BOBBY BOO SHOW
By Danielle Georgiou
Directed by Danielle Georgiou
A Co-Production with Danielle Georgiou Dance Group
Dazzling with glitz and glamour of a 1960s musical variety show, THE BIPPY BOBBY BOO SHOW is a two-week haunting of Theater Too, the delightful downstairs space at Theatre Three Dallas. Bippy Bobby, the crooning, cocktail-toting ne’er-do-well, hosts this late-night limited engagement featuring performances by the six ghosts living in the belly of the uptown basement. Inspired by the plays they saw performed by Norma Young, Esther Ragland, Robert Dracup, and Jac Alder, the ghosts of Theater Too bring the works of Pirandello, Pinter, Albee, and Beckett into their acts. Come on down to the Boo Show Lounge, and enjoy the music, dance, and hilarity of this fall’s swankiest night of theater! A never-before-seen haunted holiday experience!
By Michael Frayn
Directed by Kara-Lynn Vaeni
They say all the world is a stage, but perhaps the drama behind-the-scenes is where the real story is at. NOISES OFF provides a sneak peek onstage and backstage of an amateur traveling theatre production from final rehearsals through opening night and the subsequent touring season. But can this troupe keep their offstage antics behind the curtain, or will the drama waiting in the wings find its way center stage? Sardines, sight lines, and slammed doors are the glue that holds this gut-busting farce together. A farce where everyone gets caught in the act!
SPECIAL FUNDRAISING EVENT: T3 MUSICAL REVUE
Late January – Early February 2019
Something Appealing. Something Appalling. Something for everyone: A Musical Revue. Theatre Three scratches your musical theatre itch with an evening jam-packed with Broadway’s biggest hits. Stay tuned for more details coming soon! A Musical Revue.
FUNNY, YOU DON’T ACT LIKE A NEGRO
By Denise Lee
You know what they say happens when you assume…but then again, there’s also that saying about people who live in glass houses. Denise Lee’s FUNNY, YOU DON’T ACT LIKE A NEGRO explores the prejudgments we make on our neighbors, the biases we inadvertently pass on to our children and how the simple act of talking to one another is being subverted by social media. This comedic drama invites you to share your experience and opinions throughout the course of the play. A world premiere play!
By Benard Pomerance
Directed by Jeffrey Schmidt
What’s behind the façade of a living, breathing, sideshow ‘freak’? Meet John Merrick, an intelligent and friendly man shunned by Victorian-era society due to his dramatically deformed body. But a chance meeting with a caring surgeon provides him hope and an opportunity for a better quality of life. THE ELEPHANT MAN is inspired by the true story of Joseph Merrick, whose medical diagnosis remains inconclusive today. A biographical drama.
June 4 – 28, 2020
By Mark Harelik
Grab your tickets for Hamilton…Texas, where Russian-Jewish immigrant Haskell Harelik settles into America at the turn of the century. Unable to speak English, the outsider pulls his banana cart through the staunch Christian community begging for shelter. Over the course of 30 years, this tiny town becomes the home for his young family as religion meets religion, culture meets culture, fear meets fear, and love meets love. A timely play based on the true story of Haskell Harelik, the author’s grandfather of the same name.
Meet Theatre Three’s New Associate Artistic Director, Christie Vela
Joining Theatre Three in September 2019 is Christie Vela as Associate Artistic Director. Vela was an original member of Dallas Theater Center’s Diane and Hal Brierley Resident Acting Company and is an artistic associate at Second Thought Theatre and a company member with Kitchen Dog Theater. She is well respected as one of the area’s top directors as well, working on Straight White Men and Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again at Second Thought Theatre; Titus Andronicus with Shakespeare Dallas; Don’t Dress for Dinner at Stage West; and Paper Flowers at Kitchen Dog Theater. Recently at Theatre Three, Ms. Vela directed Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Vela also teaches at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.
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Travel Archives
Eat & Drink Reviews
Complaining sets you free
It's International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Let's look at some actual complaints about the memorial museum at Auschwitz that real, living people have left on TripAdvisor:
"The tour guide was unfriendly and the headset was faulty. There is human ashes on display in one part of the museum."
"I didn't realize Nazis destroyed nearly everything and all that was left at Auschwitz were the brick buildings, cell blocks, with large rooms painted battleship gray, with large photos on walls, the same ones you can see in any book on Auschwitz or in any Holocaust museum."
"Auschwitz doesn't feel like a concentration camp."
"Movies of horribly starved inmates do exist and would have greatly improved the displays."
"Mass processing from 11 am till 3 pm."
Conrad Hilton will f***ing kill you
We got excited when we saw a headline (sans photo) imagining an eccentric, aging hotel mogul having an old-person meltdown on a transatlantic flight. Sadly it wasn't to be, not least because the gentleman in question died in 1979 (it says on Wikipedia). I mean, the rantings of an elderly gazillionaire would at least have had some semblance of quaint charm. Less so when it's just torrents of abuse being distastefully ejected from the mouth of one of his more objectionable descendants, also named Conrad Hilton.
Among the delights from the 20-year old airborne charmer were the following verbal emissions:
- "If you wanna square up to me bro, then bring it and I will f*cking fight you."
- "I am going to f*cking kill you."
- "I will f*cking rip through you."
- "I will f*cking own anyone on this flight; they are f*cking peasants."
According to gossip-monging website TMZ, witnesses told officials that Hilton grabbed a flight attendant's shirt and informed him, "I could get you all fired in five minutes. I know your boss. My father will pay this out. He has done it before. Dad paid $300k last time." The sleepy little lamb then passed out, which was a cue for flight staff to promptly handcuff him to the seat. Reports say he was so out of control and aggressive that children (peasant children, presumably) on the flight were crying.
Recalling the 2002 protests of similarly wealthy flier Peter Buck (of REM fame), a rogue sleeping pill was allegedly the culprit, these little air-rage-bombs apparently the bane of celebrity flying. Buck famously attacked the flight crew on his flight with yoghurt (did any newspapers at the time go with the headline 'Everybody (yog)Hurts"? and if not, WHY not?). Presumably the HIlton millions will keep young Conrad out of official legal trouble, though as to his claims that he "buried" the flight attendants? Sure you did, bro...sure you did.
I kind of hate I Hate Thailand
Full disclosure: I really like Thailand.
I’ve travelled there around 20 times, seen most of the country, had some really memorable experiences and promoted it in countless travel features as somewhere I recommend – I was even recognised by the Thai government for doing so and was given an award which, though relentlessly waning in relevance, is something I’m still proud of.
This video recently came out. It has been hailed as a masterstroke of reverse psychology and an impressively inventive way for travel marketing to go viral. It’s also been panned as cheesy, patronising and portraying a fantasy world.
Shall we watch?:
I think it’s important to remember the context here. Thailand is a recently-converted military dictatorship. It’s fine, I think, to approach this with a ‘love this country, hate this nation’ attitude, but the sub-plot is worth bearing in mind. The country is also reeling from the murders of two young backpackers – a horrific incident that was bound to have implications for tourism there.
Context aside, I think it’s a tweak heavy handed, especially considering the agency (and the Tourism Authority of Thailand) chose to film it in a way that looks as if they’re trying to disguise the source of the film. I’m sure they hoped that some people would watch it and think it was user-generated (no obvious branding/logos/mystical eastern soundtrack).
Fair play: for an official tourism video, it actually IS pretty edgy. How many promotional films for destinations have you seen where the lead guy says the word “fucking” in the first 30 seconds and then goes posh-white-boy raggo on a passing taxi with a brick? Is this a sly dig at foreigners by the Thai authorities (because if so it’s probably a fair one – I’ve been to Phuket and it’s essentially Magaluf in the tropics).
There are obvious signs – the way the camera switched to a third person filming things, the dodgy acting, the fairytale romance – but it’s a laudable attempt, especially considering the absolute excrement that tourist boards have been cinematically responsible for.
I think my problem with it is more with the subtle messages. Reddit user astronoob summarises the narratives of the video with impressive accuracy:
“I hate Thailand because I didn't keep track of my belongings! I love Thailand because I showed this hot woman my dick and now we're totally having sex!”
Hey, at first that island girl is all straw-haired and rural-looking (giveaway cheekbones, mind), and then in the end she’s made up and chic and talks great English and kicks water at his camera like a true Manic Pixie Dream Girl. James don’t care she endangered his GoPro! He’s in love!
“I lived the way of the Buddhist.” Ehhhhhhh….let’s just leave that there.
And I’m not sure how James is staying there for two years in what looks like a pretty casual teaching job. I might be wrong but I think those freshly-tightened visa laws make that a logistical impossibility (unless he’s building up to burning that passport as he looks at it wistfully).
Is it even possible to promote an entire country without inherent cheesiness? Maybe it’s not. Maybe James and the Giant Beach is as good as it gets. At least there’s some curse words.
I love Thailand. I lost my bag there once. I just kind of hated myself for being an idiot. I’m glad it worked out differently for James, though. He seems like the kind of entitled farang things WOULD work out like that for. Now he's a Buddhist, I'm sure he sees things this way, too. We can only hope.
The things we do at 35,000ft
There are things I do. Things I do that I only do on planes. These include, but are not limited to:
- Read current issues of The Economist, GQ and Esquire Magazines.
- Consult novelty gift catalogues.
- Take melatonin.
- Watch episodes of network sitcoms.
- Congratulate myself enthusiastically on not having children (actually I do this pretty regularly on terra firma, too, but the intensity of the self-congratulation is multiplied exponentially in the air).
It appears that one of the most common things other people do in the air - and only in the air - is drink canned tomato juice. Now, I do this a fair amount on land as well, mostly out of the perceived need to combat all the cancers that the Daily Mail say I'm going to get from immigrants, opening letters and, er, tomatoes, probably. Looking at my habits, though, I do pretty much exclusively drink tomato juice on a flight AND it's the only real time I drink it with Worcester Sauce. So far from being a lone freak, I DO have tomato-juice-based idiosyncratic behaviour on a flight.
This article was recently published, based on research by "Guillaume De Syon, a professor at Albright College and an aviation historian." He submits that drinnking tomato juice is a long-standing aviation tradition (um, OK). The article goes on to suggest a number of reasons we drink tomato juice in the air - it tastes better at altitude, it's learned/suggestible behaviour, it's simply because it's on the menu...before settling on the deafeningly unedifying ALL OF THE ABOVE. Thanks for that. I hope in 20 years we'll have the same academic insight into why we're watching old episodes of The Big Bang Theory.
The wrong side of jazzstory
Oh, how New Orleans loves to hate on the hipsters, moving to a city from places and living here with their clothes and their legs like it's the most natural thing in the world. Yet the animosity for their brethren is part of a dance that's as old as time, or at least as old as a 64-year old trombonist, as this newspaper clip proves. It relates the fist use of the word in this city's newspaper of record, as part of the Great Jazz Wars of the 1950s, when progressive jazz musicians took up brass against the be-bop hipster musicians, in a time that historians now call a watershed moment of jazz on jazz violence. Here, Stan Kenton is, perhaps, standing on the wrong side of jazzstory with his stance against be-bop, and name-calling of the "cool, phoney and pseudo" hipsters - words now reclaimed by hipsters and used freely on the streets of the Bywater.
Censor-y deprivation in paradise
The thing about yer Maldives, of course, is that although they are, on the surface, a bucket-list topping chain of islands that have visitors and journalists scrambling for beauty-driven superlatives, they are also a massively controlling Islamic state who barely tolerate visitors.
Let's cast our minds back to 2010 and that infamous wedding ceremony, where a couple of unwitting newlyweds had a local ceremony to celebrate their nuptials, only to secretly be called 'infidels' and 'swine' in the local tongue. An isolated incident, perhaps, but since 2011 the government has been flexing its censorship muscles as the hardline Ministry of Islamic Affairs takes down dissenting blogs, arrests journalists and generally acts like an insecure bully.
Having been myself, I can tell you that's a side of the islands that tourists rarely see, being whisked off to their hotel-chain-owned islands (if you don't know, each tourist island is basically run by a different hotel) and there's little need to worry about human rights when you're sitting down to your coconut shrimp starter in the underwater restaurant of the Ritz-Carlton, on the Ritz-Carlton Island. Head to the capital, Malé, and you can see much clearer signs of fundamentalism, in the mosques especially.
Anyway, the latest reports are that this (from The Guardian): "Poetry and literature will have to be approved by the Maldivian government before they are published in the country, according to new regulations which have been described as a “disaster for freedom of expression” by free speech campaigners."
It's unclear as yet as to whether the Ministry will go so far as to snatch copies of 50 Shades of Grey from incoming honeymooners (OK, some of them might bring in Tolstoy, I'm not being presumptuous) because heaven forbid they leave a copy lying around for the underpaid hotel staff to glance at. But at best, the national bureau and its role as the enforcement arm of a creeping autocracy are sure to heighten the tense relationship that hardline Islamic countries which depend on western tourism all seem to have. Yes, Dubai, we're looking at you. As usual.
Welcome to Meanhattan
New York, New York...so good they tell you to get off their island multiple times in a really snarky voice. The Manhattan tourism industry received a much-needed shot in the arm from professional curmudgeon Fran Lebowitz who, in an interview with Papermag.com, outlined her multiple objections to people not from New York visiting New York.
Among the choice comments were:
- "Tourism as a number-one industry is a terrible, terrible idea for any city, especially New York."
- "I would like to see fewer and fewer tourists and I'm tired of hearing about how much money they bring to the city because the kind of jobs the tourists bring to the city are the worst jobs."
- "I object to Airbnb. I don't want these people to come here; I frankly do not care where they are staying. Stay home."
- "I would like to stand at the border -- I would volunteer -- and say, "You can come here, but you have to live here. If you're coming here for four days, you can't come"
Oh my. Here's someone with a little case of the Moan-days. If she sold flowers professionally, she'd be Florist Grump, amiright? The thing is, Ms Lebowitz, who presumably doesn't travel anywhere for less than four days, or anywhere that has a residential centre, is unwittingly making us want to go to Manhattan more than ever.
Doesn't she realise, half the fun of going to NYC is seeing the most abrasive, pugnacious and outright rude people on earth (outside of Paris, natch) in their natural environment. Every server who overtly belittles me as I very slightly mis-order something from the unnavigable breakfast menu in a diner, I tip with extra gusto just for the typical NYC experience. I figure they get paid to do that by the tourist board, just so we're not disappointed. Going to Manhattan for me is like sneaking back to the haughty mistress who I gladly pay to humiliate me.
I hate to break this to you, Fran, but if you really want us to stop coming to Manhattan, you're going to have to start being much, much nicer...
(photo via cc, Christopher Macsurak)
I feel the need...the need for...a repeat of the safety demonstration
Among the more spurious surveys that pop onto the Shandy Pockets radar was this one, carried out by travel compensation-garnerers, refund.me. Air passengers were asked which characters form the big screen they would like to see in their cabin crew, the winner by a sizable nose (no offence), being the character of Maverick from Top Gun, played by thespianic colossus, Mr Thomas Cruise, esq.
Yes, the majority of the great flying public would choose an emotionally unstable, borderline sociopathic risk-taker with a gung-ho military mentality as the pilot of choice for their charter plane to Majorca. Presumably because he looks good in uniform. Forget your chances of survival and the person responsible for them being one step above Howlin' Mad Murdoch from The A-Team, as long as our man has a winning smile and lustrous hair, we'll take our chances, thank you very much.
Among the other preferences expressed were Little Leo DiCaprio from Catch Me If You Can (borderline sociopath engaged in massive fraudulence with no formal training but good looking) and Dishy Denzel Washington from Flight (borderline sociopathic substance abuser, albeit a heroic one, though even more albeit: very good looking).
Among the female dream crew were Catherin Zeta-Jones (Terminal), Kirsten Dunst (Elisabethtown) and Ellen Pompeo (Catch Me If You Can), a list containing a noticeable lack of sociopathic risk-takers, partly because you can better imagine being offered chicken or beef by them, but mostly because Hollywood has yet to give out those kinds of parts to women. Who would you like to see showing you how to orally top up your life jacket?
You are free! To stay where we tell you!
"Now, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ground you. But look, you've got LOTS of great things you can do in your bedroom. You've got that jigsaw you've never opened, and how about a game of Monopoly or something with your brother?"
"Aw, mum...all my mates are out drinking strong continental lager and snorting suncream on a sun-drenched tropical idyll..."
"I really think this is the perfect time for you to rediscover how much fun your bedroom is."
And so seems to be the rhetoric of Helen Grant, as she issues forth her regal decree from a five star suite in Rio as she watches England try and play football. The Passport Office - as badly managed and beleaguered as our national side's defence - has collapsed under the weight of its own application process with a similarly reassuring sense of predictability. Grant - Minister for Tourism (and Sport - coincidence?) spins this by telling people whose holiday plans lie in ruins that they've won the summer lottery and they'll have so much fun just, er, staying in Britain. Hear are the actual, real words she spoke from her mouth:
"If they don't want to go away, we have some fantastic places to visit and holiday not that far from here. I think there's a lot to be said for the 'staycation'. People need to do what they like."
She added: "I think we are going to have a great summer, we are certainly going to have a great summer of sport, too, there's lots of opportunities to build your holiday around a spoilt-for-choice list of events, the Tour de France Grand Départ, we've got the golf, we've got the Commonwealth Games, we've got football that we can watch on the TV. It's a wonderful place to have your holiday."
Cue bouts of everyman and woman fury in the press, as people perhaps rightly see their basic right to cross international borders with timely applications for a passport being stripped away before their astonished faces. And then being told how lucky they are. A bit like...being peed on and told it's a refreshing summer rain shower.
All together, now: There ain't no staycation like a Helen Grant staycation 'cos a Helen grant staycation is COMPULSORY.
An unexpected journey
Alright, we KNOW that the title is a reference to The Hobbit and the post is about Game of Thrones, but you think we've got all morning to think up strictly accurate fantasy-related travel puns? OK, we DO, but that doesn't mean we're going to.
So we've been indisposed for a week or so, but we came back to someone sending us this Buzzfeed link.
As if arsing around on aggregating travel sites isn't time consuming enough, Kayak are now offering the chance to spoddy dork geeks to work out the holidaying possibilities in completely fictional worlds. Yes, if you're the kind of person who uses a 20-sided dice to make major life decisions, you can now fritter away your finite life by working out the best way to get from Westeros to King's Landing OR WHATEVER, I KNOW THEY MIGHT BE THE SAME PLACE I DON'T CARE. I hope they ARE the same place, just so it's vaguely annoying. Anyway. Your vacation from reality can take place via ships, carts and the backs of flying unicorns (probably). We take enough time trying to get cheap ACTUAL flights to indulge in this kind of thing, but if you're already imagining your and Danny's honeymoon in a dragon-themed boudoir in a castle somewhere pretend, then this search engine isn't too much of a stretch for you, we expect. Happy trails, nerds.
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Ukraine urges Iran to return black boxes
KYIV, Jan 20 - Ukraine on Monday urged Iran to return the black boxes from a Ukrainian passenger plane shot down by the Iranian military with the loss of all 176 people on board, Reuters reported. | More
IMF praises Cabinet, NBU for ‘prudent macroeconomic policy’ in Ukraine
KYIV, Jan 17 – The International Monetary Fund (IMF), Ukraine’s largest creditor, praised the government and the National Bank of Ukraine for ‘prudent macroeconomic policy’ that is aimed at boosting economic growth. | More
Ukraine’s shadow economy to shrink to 20% of GDP by 2025: report
KIYV, Jan 20 – Reforms will reduce the share of Ukraine’s shadow economy will drop to 20% of the GDP by 2025, down from 30% in 2019, the Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture reported. | More
Ukrainian businesses expect 7% inflation during next 12 months
KYIV, Jan 17 – Ukrainian businesses forecast inflation in 12 months at 7%, which is 0.1 percentage point (p.p.) worse than expected a quarter earlier. | More
Ukraine’s VRI rise to breach 100% for first time, NBU official says
KYIV, Jan 17 – The rate of Ukraine's value recovery instruments (VRIs) issued during the restructuring of the country's foreign debt in 2015 first passed the mark of 100% on Friday and was around 100.3% of the nominal value, bankers said. | More
JTI praises legislation opening door for e-cigarettes in Ukraine
KYIV, Jan 17 – The law with amendments to the Tax Code regarding improvement of tax administration, removal of technical and logical ambiguities in tax legislation (bill No. 1210) sets the rules for the e-cigarette market and would have a positive impact on the market, Manager for Regulatory Issues at JTI Ukraine Yulia Yuschenko has said. | More
NEFCO to lend EUR 12-mln to modernize water supply in Ukraine
KYIV, Jan 17 – The Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO) will provide Ukrainian municipalities with loan financing of EUR 12 million to modernize water supply facilities, increase their energy efficiency and for wastewater treatment. | More
Iran returns Ukrainian plane crash bodies
KYIV, Jan 19 - The bodies of the 11 Ukrainian citizens who died when a passenger plane was accidentally shot down by Iran this month were brought back to Ukraine on Sunday in a solemn ceremony at Kyiv airport, Reuters reported. | More
Ukraine completes EUR 320-mln dry spent fuel storage at Chernobyl Plant
KYIV, Jan 17 - Ukraine completed construction of a dry storage for spent nuclear fuel at the site of decommissioned Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, the state exclusion zone management agency reported Friday. | More
Credit Suisse sees 4% annual growth in Ukraine in 2020, 2021
KYIV, Jan 16 – Ukraine’s economy is likely to grow at the rate faster than 4% annually in 2020 and 2021, Credit Suisse Bank reported in its forecast.
"Our main expectation from the Ukrainian economy is that in the coming years it will grow at or above 4%, which is slightly higher than its potential," the report said. | More
Ukraine’s coal producers cut output 6.2% in 2019
Energy Ministry creates Ukrvuhillia state coal mining group
DTEK to lead European renewable energy roundtable at Davos
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This Is Why The Decade Of The 2010s Is Important
December 24, 2019 /0 Comments/in Newsletters /by VREG Editors
“Do not suffer your good nature…to say yes when you ought to say no.”
As the 21st century teeters between the 2010s and the 2020s, it’s a perfect time to take stock of an eventful decade. Over the last ten years, several key events changed Ventura forever. Let’s look at what happened and the effect these incidents had.
How We’ll Remember The 2010s
We’ll remember the 2010s as a decade that began with the city struggling to get out of a recession, followed by ten years of decisions made with good intentions gone wrong. Bureaucrats and politicians pushed their agendas on the city. And like Sisyphus pushing the boulder up the hill, we kept falling backward.
It’s remarkable that the city accomplished anything in the 2010s. We had three City Managers and three Interim City Managers. No one person was in the role for more than three years. Turnover created a leadership vacuum that minimized any chance for meaningful change.
Key Events In The Decade Of The 2010s
The 2010s started as “business as usual.” Then the Thomas Fire happened. Citizens quickly became interested in how the Ventura would handle two issues: public safety during and after the fire, and rebuilding. After twelve months of intense interest, citizens have returned to “business as usual.”
Here are the key events of the decade: the Thomas Fire, December 2017; the Wishtoyo Consent Decree, 2012; Pension Inflation, 2010-2019; Homelessness, 2010-2019; the Anthony Mele, Jr. murder, April 2018; Brooks Institute’s failure, 2016; the WAV Building, 2012; Ventura’s Grand Jury Finding against Ventura’s building & safety inspectors, 2013; and district elections. Let’s look at what happened in each case and how it affects you.
The Thomas Fire
The biggest misfortune in Ventura’s history was the Thomas Fire, which began on December 4, 2017. The fire destroyed 535 structures in the city, displacing hundreds of residents and impacting everyone’s lives.
During the fire, Ventura’s public safety performed admirably. Despite the widespread devastation, police and fire protected the lives of everyone living in the city. Evacuations were orderly, albeit slow. There were many stories of heroic efforts by police and fire going beyond the call of duty.
Other aspects of the city’s performance didn’t go so well. Several groups pilloried Ventura Water for inadequate water supply to fire hydrants in the affected areas. An investigation is on-going. So are lawsuits.
The City Council added to the misery of the victims in an example of good intentions gone bad. The Council waffled on second-story height restrictions for rebuilding victims’ homes. Indecisiveness delayed the rebuilding process for many. They attempted to please fire victims wanting to improve their homes and doing so delayed rebuilding for everyone.
After two years, only 80 families have returned to their rebuilt homes.
The Wishtoyo Consent Decree
The Consent Decree stems from a federal complaint filed by Whistoya Foundation [WISHTOYA VS. CITY OF SAN BUENAVENTURA, CASE NO. CV 10-02072]. The Consent Decree requires Ventura to stop putting 100% of its treated wastewater into the Santa Clara River estuary. The city must divert a percentage of the 7.5 million gallons-per-day starting in 2025. The balance must be redirected by 2030. That decree is silent on how and where Ventura diverts the wastewater.
Ventura Water seized the opportunity to make the city the first to use recycled wastewater for drinking. Ventura Water calls the project VenturaWaterPure. No cities in the world have used recycled water except Windhoek, Namibia and a small town in Texas. Neither place had other water options.
Ventura Water has confused the City Council by combining two different ideas to falsely heighten the urgency to drink wastewater.
VenturaWaterPure will cost $1 billion over 30 years. That’s a considerable sum of money for the community to absorb. Expect your water bill to double to pay for VenturaWaterPure’s infrastructure alone. Remember, water costs already went up by $220 million with water and wastewater increases in 2012-13.
The Wishtoyo Consent Decree is a fiscal calamity for the city. More cost-effective options exist, but the City Council and Ventura Water fail to consider them. Times change. Circumstances change. Now is the time to reconsider options to be sure we’re making the best choice available.
Pension Inflation Throughout The 2010s
Retirement pensions are the city’s number one problem. Ventura currently has a $215.1 million unfunded pension liability, and that number continues to grow. CalPERS (the California Public Employees retirement fund) demands rapidly increasing contributions from Ventura. We will have permanent increases of at least $2 million per year for five to six consecutive years.
We respect the work city employees do. There is no denying that fire and police preform a vital job that is both dangerous and requires a high level of training and responsibility. Our concern is not about their work. It’s about the structure by which their retirement is accumulated and paid after retirement.
It is undeniable that city employees’ retirement pensions are crowding out the city’s ability to provide the service itself. Moreover, chronic underfunding of pensions will eventually hit a breaking point jeopardizing the employees’ benefits too. Expect your taxes to increase (á la Measure O) and the services the city provides to decrease.
Homelessness In Ventura In The 2010s
You may remember Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Farewell Speech when he described the Military-Industrial Complex. Now, we have something new, the Homelessness-Industrial Complex. Today’s Homelessness-Industrial Complex shares some of the same characteristics as the Military-Industrial Complex. There is an alliance of special interests. It includes government bureaucracies, homeless advocacy groups operating through nonprofit entities, and large government contractors, especially construction companies and land development firms.
Here’s how the process works: Developers accept public money to build projects to house the homeless – either “bridge housing,” or “permanent supportive housing.” Cities and counties collect building fees and hire bureaucrats for oversight. The projects are then handed off to nonprofits with long term contracts to run them.
Sounds good, right? That is until you see the price tag. Developers don’t just build housing projects; they construct ridiculously overpriced, overbuilt housing projects. (Keep in mind Ventura’s permitting fees and stringent building codes). Cities and counties create massive bureaucracies. The nonprofits don’t just run these projects; they operate vast bureaucratic empires. These fiefdoms have overhead, marketing budgets, and executive salaries that do nothing for the homeless. They do not overpay the workers in the shelter.
Set Up For Failure
Ventura selected Mercy House from Orange County to run its homeless shelter. Larry Haynes, Marcy House’s president, said in a speech in Ventura, “Housing is, ‘An inalienable right.’”
Mr. Haynes believes a cornerstone to Mercy House’s success in Ventura depends on developing affordable housing. Herein lies the rub. If Ventura doesn’t build affordable housing, how does that impact Mercy House’s performance? Affordable housing isn’t something Ventura has been able to do historically. “It makes it harder,” he said.
The City of Ventura has 555 homeless people. Of those, 387 are unsheltered. The Homeless Shelter will house 55 people from Ventura, leaving 332 people vulnerable.
Ventura will spend $712,000 each year for its 55 beds in the new homeless shelter. That equates to $12,945 per bed per year. And if what Mr. Haynes says is true, expect the city to pay more and more on homelessness and less on other services.
Anthony Mele, Jr. Murder
Jamal Jackson stabbed Anthony Mele, Jr. to death on Ventura’s Promenade in April 2018, thrusting the city into the national news.
Jackson was a repeat offender and was homeless. Many citizens jumbled his criminal act and his impoverished state. Of Ventura’s 555 homeless, 85 (32.7%) have mental health problems, and 93 (35.8%) have substance abuse problems.
The crime prompted an immediate reaction by Ventura Police. First, patrols along the promenade increased. At first, two officers patrolled the boardwalk 20 hours per day. Shortly after that, police expanded the patrol radius to include downtown. In July 2018, the City Council approved funds to continue the patrols. Now two officers patrol 12 hours per day. Arrest data increased since the incident. Ventura Police still deal with a significant number of recidivist criminal homeless.
Following the incident, the Police department reviewed its procedures. Chief Ken Corney admitted poor judgment. Substituting video monitoring for an officer responding was not the right choice.
Since then, there have been changes to the security camera monitoring. The changes include:
Extra cameras, active surveillance, more training, changes in monitoring policy, and re-prioritization of Calls for Service response. The review also concluded that the police adequately prioritized the call when it came in.
Public outcry diminished, but the problem of criminal vagrancy continues beyond the 2010s.
Real Estate Blunders Throughout The 2010s
The city mismanages taxpayer money on real estate deal routinely. In the past decade, there have been several notable instances: Brooks Institute, the WAV Building, the Harbor Church and the city parking garage. In each case, the mistakes have cost taxpayers’ money.
With Brooks Institute, the City Council believed relocating the school downtown would benefit the city. The City Council’s good intention went wrong. Brooks Institute was financially insolvent. It pulled out of town contractors and the city money.
The folks at City Hall tried hard to put on a brave and jubilant face in trying to explain why their decision to accept $71,000 to settle a lawsuit against Brooks Institute is a victory. Readers of this letter know better. The settlement does not even cover the rents and security deposit that Brooks was to have paid in the first six months of their lease. Nor does it account for the future lost rents and property damages. By our best estimate, the city lost well over $261,000 in this settlement.
The WAV Building
Ventura completed construction on the WAV (Working Artists of Ventura) Building at the beginning of the decade. The building included 82 low income and subsidized housing units, commercial spaces and 13 condos for sale at market rate.
What did the WAV Building cost? $55 million according to the city. That figure is too low, however. It doesn’t consider the cost of the 1.7 acres of city-owned property Ventura sold to the developer for $1. It also doesn’t include the $1.5 million in deferred permit fees. A reasonable estimate put this at $65 million.
The city acquired tax money from many sources to pay for construction, but it was not enough. Then city officials did something devious to finance completing construction. They took $1 million from the Ventura Water funds, transferred it to the Public Art Fund, then loaned the money to the project. Even worse, the city subordinated the loan to a $4.5 million mortgage from Chase. Selling the 13 condos for between $725,000 to $850,000 each would repay the city’s inter-department loan.
The concept flopped. The condos finally sold in 2018 for a fraction of what the city hoped to get. Buyers paid $413,000-$470,000 for the units. Once the sale completed, the mortgage holder, Chase, was repaid both principal and interest. Ventura Water was left holding the bag, however, for the $1 million “loaned” to the city. The city received only $105,893 from the sale of the condos after paying the Construction Loan, sales commissions, sales expenses, the City Deferred Impact Fee Loan and the developer.
What’s more, the city loaned $2 million to the Regional Development Agency (RDA) to build the WAV project. The city expected to be repaid $1 million before the California Assembly eliminated RDAs statewide. Ventura wrote off $1 million when the RDA disappeared. Ventura is pursuing the outstanding principal and interest through the Recognized Obligation Payment Schedule (ROPS), but has received nothing so far.
All totaled, Ventura lost $1,894,107 on the sale of the condos.
Former Mayor Bill Fulton projected the project would “produce 25,000 visitors a year and would stimulate the local economy, resulting in $75,000,000 in new investments.” He also said the city used no local tax dollars to build the WAV Building.
The reality is that most of the money came from Federal and State taxes. But the funds noted above came from the city, plus another $334,176 to offset various construction fees.
As for the $75 million in new investment, we will never know because the estimator, Bill Fulton, left town.
At the time, we noted our elected representatives lack the understanding, the capacity to ask the more profound questions or political will to stop these types of actions.
Harbor Church
The city paid church officials $2.3 million to buy the Harbor Church property in 2016. City Hall and Harbor Church agreed the value of both the land and the church building was $1.6 million. The actual sales price included an extra $700,000 to pay the Church to move. By any measure, Ventura overpaid for the property.
Downtown Parking Garage
And there was a mistake with the city parking garage—the city grants private, reserved parking spaces to select businesses downtown as an incentive to operate. The city approved ten parking spaces to entice Cinemark Theaters to remain downtown. The trouble was when Lure Restaurant opened at 66 California, and the city staff provided them the same ten spots. This may not seem like a big blunder, but it shows that the city is inept at managing real estate, or the staff lacks good leadership to make sure mistakes don’t occur.
We’ve believed the city should get out of the real estate business throughout the 2010s. The litany of poor decisions grows. Ventura owns commercial real estate throughout the city. As these examples demonstrate, the city has not made responsible decisions regarding these properties. At the very least, the city should seek advice from licensed realtors and experts whenever making a real estate decision.
Grand Jury Finding
The 2011-2012 Ventura County Grand Jury opened an inquiry and issued a report condemning the City of Ventura’s Code Enforcement practices. The report addresses the aggressive collection of fees by Code Enforcement, motivated by the need to raise more revenue.
City government and Code Enforcement officers serve a valuable and essential service to our community until they start acting like bullies with their use of force, intimidation, abuse of power and excessive punishment of the citizenry.
At the time, the city’s response to this report demonstrated their lack of understanding or constituted a brazen and irresponsible attempt to obfuscate the truth when they dismissed the report as vague. It was not.
For much of the 2010s, citizens overlooked or forgot the Grand Jury’s report until we had the Thomas Fire. Suddenly, city permitting and inspection of new buildings was of paramount importance. Sadly, stories from the fire’s victims indicate nothing has changed at City Hall.
For the first time in Ventura’s history, voting districts divide the city. The districting forced Mayor Neal Andrews and Councilmember Mike Tracy to retire. Councilmember Jim Monahan decided to retire after forty years of service. New Councilmembers are bringing fresh perspective and energy to the Council. They also are facing a steep learning curve to be effective.
Governing by districts means inexperienced new Councilmembers will lead the city. Inexperience leads to two possible outcomes. First, existing Councilmembers and city staff may marginalize them until they gain experience and knowledge. Second, the new City Manager and the city staff may take more control without voter accountability. Neither of these is good.
Citizens will now expect their elected officials to represent their district’s interests. As a result, concern for the city as a whole may take a backseat to districtwide issues. The loss of a citywide perspective on the Council is distressing.
Nowhere was this more evident than in the first forum for District 1 candidates. Citizens expressed concern for a Westside pool, learning how governing by districts will work, affordable housing and labor force opportunities. Very few of these issues aligned with what the outgoing City Councilmembers thought was most important: 1) growth 2) water 3) homelessness and 4) staff accountability.
We will remember the 2010s as one of the most significant decades in Ventura’s history. It was a decade that saw our city leaders allow uninformed good intentions to overrule good governing. As a result, the city finds itself with budget deficits for the next five years. This is due, in part, to a growing pension debt obligation. The city is poised to pass along the most substantial rate increase for water in its history. The money the city spends on homelessness will grow. So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the city will have to raise taxes, cut services or a combination of the two.
The groundwork laid by city leaders in the 2010s provides a shaky foundation for the 2020s. The specter of higher taxes and reduced city services looms. Several things must happen to overcome the city’s current situation.
First, The City Council must have a cohesive, long-term vision. That vision must focus on the fundamentals of governing: public safety, maintained streets, safe neighborhoods, clean, affordable water, and business growth. In the early 2010s, the Council had a vision, but it didn’t concentrate on the fundamentals. As a result, the Council left the city with the Wishtoyo Consent Decree and the WAV Building. From 2013 on, the Council was divided and lacked any vision. The landmark accomplishment of those Councils was to push the Measure O sales tax increase. Yet, if you ask ordinary citizens how the extra money helps them, they’d be hard-pressed to answer.
Second, Ventura must retain a City Manager for more than three years. The City Manager leads the city staff to fulfill the City Council’s vision. Constant turnover disrupts that vision. A City Manager needs time to build a team and get them performing at a high level. We hope our current City Manager, Alex McIntyre, will have the opportunity to show the city what he’s capable of doing.
Third, voters must get involved. District voting means every vote is more important than it’s ever been. Your vote is one in 15,000 potential voters in your district. Your ballot carries more value than it did when we had citywide elections and your vote was one of 64,976. If the city is to overcome the current obstacles, we can’t have districts in which only 3,781 voters cast ballots.
Tell City Council, “Don’t Repeat The Mistakes Of The 2010s.”
Below you’ll find the photos of our current City Council. Click on any Councilmember’s photo and you’ll open your email program ready to write directly to that Councilmember.
For more information like this, subscribe to our newsletter, Res Publica. Click here to enter your name and email address.
http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/Decade-In-Review—WP.jpg 666 1000 VREG Editors http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/vreg-logo-1.jpg VREG Editors2019-12-24 04:01:342020-01-19 21:32:04This Is Why The Decade Of The 2010s Is Important
It Was The Best And Worst Of Times For Ventura In 2018
January 15, 2019 /0 Comments/in Newsletters /by VREG Editors
“Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it.”— Winston Churchill
Last year was a most transformational year in Ventura’s history. Every aspect of life in Ventura was affected. The city was in the national spotlight, twice. Leadership changed but at a high price. Old ways of doing business didn’t change, though. Overall, it was a year to remember.
To understand 2018, you must appreciate December 2017 and the Thomas Fire. The fire destroyed 535 houses in Ventura. The city was the epicenter of the national news.
Thirteen months later, Ventura had the opportunity for the most significant economic stimulus since the oil boom but failed to capitalize on it. Rebuilding the homes will stimulate the local economy by $350 million. The only thing standing in the way of that economic windfall is the city.
What are the lessons we learned from the Thomas Fire? Good question. Thirteen months later we still don’t know that answer. The city has yet to produce a report on its findings. [Read More]
The Montecito mudslides closed off transportation into and out of Santa Barbara along the 101. Many Venturans that work in Santa Barbara were unable to commute.
The City Council waffles on second-story height restrictions for rebuilding Thomas Fire victims’ homes, delaying the rebuilding process and adding costs for many. [Read More]
Jamal Jackson slays Anthony Mele, Jr. on Ventura’s promenade. Once again, the city was thrust into the national news.
Ventura Police increased patrols along the promenade. The City Council approved funds to continue the patrols. Arrests increased after the incident.
Post-incident, the Police department reviewed its procedures. There have been changes to the security camera monitoring as a result. The review also concluded the call was not improperly prioritized when it came in two and a half hours before the murder.
Since May, the community has returned to business as usual. [Read More]
Ventura Police officers sign a new contract with a 5% pay increase. The timing of the announcement was questionable, but the contract was a fair one. [Read More]
The City Council instructs Ventura Water to focus on connecting to State Water over Direct Potable Reuse (DPR). DPR takes recycled wastewater and injects it back into the drinking supply.
The City Council approves a $600,000 per year “roving” fire engine and three paramedics over the objections of Interim City Manager Dan Paranick. Ventura Fire hired two of the three paramedics before the Council approved the funding. [Read More]
Ventura Water hires eight new positions. The City Council approved the department’s budget that included these positions. Ventura Water based that budget on Direct Potable Reuse (DPR) projects being the city’s top priority. When the Council realigned Ventura Water’s priorities in July, the department didn’t adjust its manpower requirements.
Ventura Water begins installing new digital water meters. It is a $9 million project that will take three years to complete. The new meters allow more precise leak protection. The new meters also measure water usage more precisely. You can expect your water bill to be more accurate, too.
Ventura held its first City Council elections by voting district. Lorrie Brown (District 6), Jim Friedman (District 5), Erik Nasarenko (District 4) and Sofia Rubalcava (District 1) won. The candidates raised a record amount of money, despite campaigning in districts instead of citywide. The cost-per-vote skyrocketed to win a seat from $2.75 per vote in the last election with an open position to a record-high $26.42. [Read More]
Alex McIntyre starts as City Manager. He replaces Mark Watkins who resigned in November 2017. The city had operated with an interim-City Manager since January 2018. McIntyre comes to Ventura from Menlo Park where he was City Manager for six years.
Ventura’s new City Councilmembers are sworn in. The Council has four female members: Lorrie Brown (District 6), Cheryl Heitmann (District 7), Sofia Rubalcava (District 1) and Christy Weir (District 2). Ventura has its first female-majority City Council in history. It’s also the most diverse set of Councilmembers the city has ever had.
Wish The Councilmembers Good Luck In 2019
http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/2018-Montage—WP.jpg 666 1000 VREG Editors http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/vreg-logo-1.jpg VREG Editors2019-01-15 04:00:412019-02-06 05:29:27It Was The Best And Worst Of Times For Ventura In 2018
Special Precaution Continues After Murder On the Promenade
January 9, 2019 /0 Comments/in General News /by VREG Editors
Jamal Jackson stabbed Anthony Mele, Jr. to death on Ventura’s Promenade in April 2018. Once again, the city was in the national news.
Poor Judgment Exercised With The Murder On The Promenade
Jamal Jackson
Jackson was a repeat offender and homeless. Many citizens jumbled his criminal act and his impoverished state. Ventura Police received a call that Jackson was acting suspiciously. Patrol units were not immediately available. Instead, the dispatch center observed Jackson via remote camera. Two and a half hours after the initial call, Jackson committed the murder.
Police Response To The Murder On The Promenade
Following the incident, the Police department reviewed its procedures. Chief Ken Corney admitted lousy judgment. Substituting video monitoring for an officer responding was not the right choice. Since then, there have been changes
to the security camera monitoring. The changes include:
Extra cameras
More training
Changes in monitoring policy
Re-prioritization of Calls for Service response.
The review also concluded police adequately prioritized the call when it came in.
Policing The Homeless Gets Harder
In September 2018, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion in Martin v. Boise. The ruling hinders Ventura Police’s ability to curb homelessness. The court concluded that imposing criminal penalties for sleeping outside on public property violates homeless persons’ Eighth Amendment rights. They deem it cruel and unusual punishment.
Within two months, the community returned to business as usual. Public outcry diminished, but the problem of criminal homelessness continues.
http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/Anthony-Mele-Jr.-Memorial—WP.jpg 666 1000 VREG Editors http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/vreg-logo-1.jpg VREG Editors2019-01-09 18:00:052019-01-09 16:11:50Special Precaution Continues After Murder On the Promenade
Update On the Measure O Citizens’ Tax Oversight Committee
September 13, 2017 /0 Comments/in Newsletters /by VREG Editors
“Reason is, And Ought Only To Be The Slave Of Our Passions”
EARLY SIGNS OF A TRAIN WRECK
The city’s Measure O Oversight Committee has shown signs of being inadequately trained and poorly prepared for the job they were appointed to do. This is not the fault of the committee members themselves but a reflection of the City Council and City Staff.
The Measure O Citizens Oversight Committee conducted their third public meeting on August 10,2017 at the Sanjon Maintenance Yard (Ventura Water Department). Each of the three meetings has been at a different location. They are not televised or recorded in any manner. Few members of the public attend.
This new tax oversight committee, appointed following the sales tax increase approved by the voters in the last election, serves ostensibly to provide recommendations to the City Council on how the new $10 million, in new sales tax money should,or presumably, not be spent.
The City of Ventura Finance Department did a yeoman’s job in attempting to provide the committee with a draft of proposed future spending of Measure O funds for the next 5 years. It was a suffocating spreadsheet which required detailed comments and direction on the evening of the meeting. If the purpose was to provide clear, informed and relevant information for the public and the committee as a basis for making decisions on how to spend the new tax money, it fell short.
The City Finance Department made a good effort to explain everything but the complexity of the subject required more than a brief meeting.
SPENDING PROJECTED TO EXCEED INCOME
For most citizens seeing this spreadsheet for the first time, be prepared to understand that
there is a projected deficit by the second year, and each year after that. See this detailed projection here.
Measure O overspends by $1.76 million in the second year
At first glance, the Measure O funding will be overspent by $1.761m in the second year. By the fiscal year 2022, the City of Ventura will be over budget (spending more than they expect to receive) by $3.732m. We must all keep in mind that this is a draft worksheet for discussion purposes only; but even so, to learn at the outset that the head of our finance department predicts a deficit in just 5 years for a new tax that will last 25 years does not bode well.
What is clear however is that the Committee is being asked to approve thisprojection, and that a very large percentage of those projections are for long term contracts for public safety and city personnel. History has demonstrated quite clearly that those “contracts” are never reduced thus we can expect more and more of this new tax money to be consumed for personnel and benefits. Everything else – roads etc. – will be low on the list of priorities.
There were two things that the Measure O Committee needed to concentrate on. One was that the only annual budget recommendation that really needed to be discussed was for fiscal year 2018. The second was that they were only seeing a small percentage of the financial picture. The general budget line items were not presented, thus there was no way for anybody to perform an analysis of where money “should” or “should not” be spent, or to determine if the general budget had been modified and then back filled with the new tax money. Without a comparison to the general budget, it is impossible to perform that task.
For example, by not having the general budget for a specific department, side by side to that departments proposed Measure O Funding, the Measure O committee had no way to determine if say $700,000 for sidewalks made sense because they have no idea if Public Works is spending another $1.0m or zero out of the General Fund Budget for sidewalks.
CITY DEPARTMENT PRESENTATIONS
Each of the three sought the Measure O Oversight Committee’s approval to present their spending to the City Council. Public Works Director, Tulson Clifford, presented his department’s request for $6.1 million in 2017-2018. Police Chief, Ken Corney, presented his department’s request for hiring new officers in time to enter them into the training academy in October 2017. And, Nancy O’Connor, Parks Director, presented her department’s request.
Police Chief Ken Corney’s request was approved by the Oversight Committee
There were only 5 of the 7 Committee members present and this would present a potential problem for the Measure O Committee. After about 2 hours, the Committee Chair person suggested that no recommendations be made until all 7 committee members were in attendance. This was after hearing Chief Corney explained that timing was crucial and the funding for the Neighbor Drug & Crime Prevention required the hiring and training of 7 new officers at the police academy in October. .
If it had not been for Committee Board Member Kristopher Hansen’s quick thinking and motion, to recommend to City Council the Police Chief’s request for funds, the outcome could have been detrimental to the Ventura citizens. Measure O Citizens Committee did their job and funds were approved for the police department and postponed for all other requests.
To assist this new committee in their task and to maintain transparency for all citizens in the community VREG makes the following suggestions and recommendations:
Have the entire department’s general funds budgets side by side the Measure O budget.
The Department Heads provide a detailed cost breakdown on how the funds will be spent which matches the line items on the general budget.
Discussing department spending five years is helpful but misleading. There are too many variables to factor over that period, such as personnel, maintenance costs, contracts, natural resources, safety, technology and public demand.
Increase and improve the training for current and future committee members. Be satisfied they understand their roles,duties and responsibilities.
Be sure they know Parliamentary procedures, so they help, not hinder, city government such as what constitutes a quorum to act.
As needed, provide in-meeting guidance and direction from city officials whenthe committee appears confused or aimless.
Hold the meetings in places that permit cable TV coverage. Transparency isimportant to Measure O. Thus far, it has not been transparentI nhibits transparency and confuses the public on where to attend meetings.
Hold the meetings in the same facility. Moving from location to location
THE STAFF PRESENTATION/REQUESTS FOR FUNDS
To help you better understand, we have included both Public Works and the Parks and Recreation presentations so you may judge for yourself that there is no correlation to the Measure O budget requests on a line by line analysis to the general budget. Here is a verbatim of what they were told:
The Public Works Department is charged with designing, building, operating and
maintaining the City’s infrastructure including:
75 buildings;• 700 lane miles of pavement and adjacent sidewalks;
138 traffic signals;• 26 miles of alleys;
22 parking lots; and
An extensive storm drain system (110 miles of storm drain lines, 2,400 storm drain inlets, and 9 miles of drainage ditches).
Some of this infrastructure was installed over 100 years ago, and much of it has
reached or exceeded its useful life. The following infrastructure improvements are needed to protect the environment for the safety, enjoyment and prosperity of future generations:
Improve streets, sidewalks, alleys, and provide safe facilities for pedestrians and cyclists – $191 million;
Clean and protect the beaches with storm water and drainage repairs – $34 million;• Protect and seismically improve bridges $27 million and
Repair public buildings and facilities $27 million.
Public Works has reviewed the infrastructure needs and prioritized projects based on existing conditions, risk, liability, and other factors. While we recognize that not all of these improvements can be made in year one, this proposal contributes to the long-term sustainability and resilience of Ventura’s infrastructure. The proposed Measure O budget for Public Works projects in FY 2017-18 is $6.1 million. These projects include pavement overlay on Telegraph Road (Main St. to N. Mills Dr.) and replacing the storm drain at Harbor Blvd. and Olivas Dr.
PARKS, RECREATION AND COMMUNITY PRESENTATION
PRCP focus for Measure O will be aimed at delivery of service to activities that “reduce blight, assist the homeless, and maintain or improve existing facilities and infrastructure”.
Safe and Clean. Expansion of current program allows for additional staff to respond to homeless debris cleanup as well as general trash, debris, weeds, in right of ways, sidewalks and roads.
Urban Forestry Tree Maintenance. This proposal provides resources to prune 10,000 trees each year, in addition to the approximately 6500 trees that are currently trimmed annually. Expected outcomes will allow for all city maintained trees to be on a 3 to 5 year pruning cycle (species dependent). The current pruning cycle is 7-9 years.
Median Maintenance. Current maintenance of medians is approximately once per month, medians only, minimal sidewalk maintenance at best. Expanded funding of the program will allow median and sidewalk maintenance on main arterials to be performed twice per month.
Aquatic Center Maintenance. The Aquatic Center, at Community Park, opened in 2002 and most of the hard components of the center-pumps, motors, tanks, and the pools themselves, have a finite useful life, and need regular maintenance and replacement. There is no sinking fund associated with the pools and adding ongoing funding allows optimal maintenance, and helps keep the pools operating safely.
Preserving Park and Recreational Facilities. Community Park has one entrance, at Kimball Road. The master plan for the park includes an additional entrance from Telephone Road, at Ramelli Avenue. Hundreds of people enjoy Community Park daily, and on weekend the number of visitors is oftentimes in the thousands. A second entrance improves access to the park, and allows for larger softball, soccer, and swimming events.
Restroom at Arroyo Verde. Many of the park restrooms are closed on a regular basis due to issues with cleanliness and safety. The City of Portland, Oregon developed a stainless-steel restroom. These restrooms have been installed in their downtown areas, and are frequented by tourists and the homeless. The restroom’s main features are fabrication-alone piece, ease of cleaning, and drastically reduced cost due to prefabrication.
Have An Opinion? Share It With A City Councilmember.
Click on the photo of a Councilmember to send him or her a direct email.
Erik Nasarenko,
Neal Andrews,
Cheryl Heitmann
Matt LaVere
Jim Monahan
Mike Tracy
Christy Weir
R. Alviani K. Corse T. Cook B. Frank
J. Tingstrom R. McCord S. Doll C. Kistner
http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/Measure-O-Oversight-Committee—WP.jpg 666 1000 VREG Editors http://www.vregventura.org/wp-content/uploads/vreg-logo-1.jpg VREG Editors2017-09-13 08:58:412017-12-17 18:21:26Update On the Measure O Citizens' Tax Oversight Committee
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Home /Design Your Own Sweatshirt/Shirt Printing York
Shirt Printing York
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Thank you for the support. Giants hope what Berhe gave San Diego State can transfer to the next level even though, at 5 foot 10 and weighing in with the Giants this week at 198 pounds, he looks more like a cornerback than a safety. His timed speed is ordinary, but that did not stop him from leading his team in tackles the past two seasons.
He also asserted without evidence that Obama had wiretapped Trump Tower, peddled the debunked idea that millions of illegal votes cost him the popular vote and associated the father of Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas with the assassin who shot John F. Kennedy..
You do come, in theory, for convincing chemistry. Monaghan holds up her end of the deal, continuing to impress as both an attractive screen presence and as an appealing actress. But Made of Honor takes a real chance by making Tom rival Colin not an obvious cad, but a seemingly perfect guy whose only apparent flaw is that he doesn like people eating off of his dessert plate.
I discussed this a number of times with the previous mayoral administration and they did not want to open what they saw as a can of worms. There are a number of buildings and institutions that bear the same name. The sale of the Red Sox by John Harrington helped to fund a number of very good works in the city done by the Yawkey Foundation (we had no control over where any monies were spent).
Customer ServiceDigital SupportDirectoryAbout Our AdsAdvertise with UsPAY YOUR AD BILLPrivacy policyTerms of useOklahoma Joe Mixon (25) scores a touchdown in the first quarter during a college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and Texas Tech Red Raiders at Jones AT Stadium in Lubbock, Texas, Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016. Photo by Nate Billings, The OklahomanOklahoma’s Joe Mixon (25) scores a touchdown in the first quarter during a college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and Texas Tech Red Raiders at Jones AT Stadium in Lubbock, Texas, Saturday, Oct.
KDKA Investigates: Priest Still Not Listed As Abuser Despite Old New AllegationsA man says his relative allegations of clergy sex abuse by a priest in the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh are being kept under wraps. Catholic bishops gather for their national assembly, the clergy sex abuse crisis dominates their agenda amid calls from critics that church leaders finally bring about meaningful reforms to root out misbehaving priests. Justice Department has opened an investigation of child sexual abuse inside the Roman Catholic Church in Pennsylvania..
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The Island of Sark – a microcosm of Capitalist Representative Democracy
The Barclay Twins: Capitalist Democratic Reformers
An excellent profile of Sark by Sarah Montague can be heard here.
The Island of Sark with a population of 600, became probably the most representative democracy in the world in 2008, with a ratio of one elected representative for every 18 constituents. It also has an “free” press as in free from state control, local GP who has been ousted by the press, a hereditary “Lord” who can delay new laws and a third of the land owned by wealthy capitalists, the Barclay Twins. The transition to democracy was championed by the Barclays and they sponsored their preferred candidates during the election.
However when the people of Sark voted contrary to the wishes of the Barclays, the twins’ withdrew their investment and saying “the voters of Sark have no-one else to blame but themselves”. When the local GP was targeted by the newsletter believed to be funded by the Twins, 100 people came out to show their support for the GP but it was of no consequence.
The democratic representatives have no power to challenge the economic might of the twins yet despair at their influence over the Island. The Islanders themselves are portrayed as cowering to the Barclays as their livelihoods are held to ransom by the threat of the removal of the Barclays’ financial investment. Ineffective government seemingly dragged into submission by the creeping influence of those who hold unaccountable economic power.
Welcome to capitalist democracy, choose either: to do as the capitalists say or accept destitution. Elected representatives can either follow the economic interests of the powerful or be ousted through inertia and economic stagnation.
The Coalition Government now and Labour Government before that realised this, without the support of leading Capital, local or foreign then economic depression awaits. This is why Labour must support the cuts, they can posture to be against it but cannot promise to actually *do* anything about it. Soliciting donors and holding secret dinners are only for minor details which political parties use to differentiate themselves to competing capitalists, however the major parameters of economic policy have already been set and are communicated through the corporate owned by state-free press. Â The Island of Sark today is a microcosm of all capitalist representative democracies, liberal or otherwise.
Written by Justin
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