Work Starts on the New WTC

Finally they have gotten 'round to re-building after September 11. I feel this is incredibly important, especially as a way of telling terrorists that the US have moved on. I think re-building should have started earlier... this is good news, and proves America is finally healing. Two September 11 movies are out this year, "United 93", about the flight that crashed into the field and Oliver Stone's "World Trade Centre", focussing on the firefighters role.

The planned project is quite impressive:

At 1,776 feet tall, the tower will be the tallest structure in New York, casting a beam of light from its peak. Five towers will rise from the 16-acre site by 2012, joining a memorial and transit hub scheduled to open in 2009, and a performing arts center.

More info can be found HERE

Madonna's new DVD

Details and artwork of the long awaited "I'm Going To Tell You A Secret" DVD have finally been made available to the media, and one exciting news for Madonna fans is that the new release will feature a special gem in its extra bonuses. The commercial release of the re-Invention tour documentary directed by Jonas Akerlund will not only include never-before-seen footage in its bonuse features, but also the director's cut of the American Life video will finally see the light of day.


The DVD will contain the documentary movie and includes live and stage performances of:
Vogue
American Life
Mother and Father
Nobody Knows Me
Music
Hollywood (Remix)
Lament
Like A Prayer
Holiday
Imagine
Bonus Features include: Never before seen footage
American Life video (director's cut)

The CD will feature live songs from Re-Invention Tour and highlights from the documentary soundtrack:
01 The Beast Within
02 Vogue
03 Nobody Knows Me
04 American Life
05 I Love New York
06 Hollywood (Remix)
07 Die Another Day
08 Lament
09 Like A Prayer
10 Mother and Father
11 Susan MacLeod/Into The Groove Medley
12 Music
13 Holiday
14 Imagine

Madonna will release her documentary "I'm Going To Tell You a Secret" as a CD/DVD package on June 13

Originally posted at Madonna Tribe

Can't wait to get this lot... the documentary is alot like "In Bed with Madonna", hopefully she will also release a DVD of her "Re-invention" tour. I have her "Drowned World" tour, and it's fantastic. I still remember when it was shown on TV and they played it at the Wickham.... awesome night, that was. Now she needs to bring her "Confessions" tour down-under.

David out of the Closet!!

Big Brother's resident gay farmer has finally come out of the closet! Last night, after awkwardly fumbling his way through the housemates' speed dating task, David decided enough was enough and finally revealed his secret to the house and to Australia.

After dinner, David gathered the HMs together and told them he hadn't been completely honest with them since entering the House. "I've skipped questions and I've allowed you guys to assume things," admitted David.
"I wouldn't normally be speed dating where guys are on one side and girls are on the other," said David. "I'd be speed dating where guys are on one side and guys are on the other... I'm the token farmer and the token gay guy."
At this, the HMs all jumped to their feet to hug and reassure him - all of them, that is, except Camilla. She stayed seated on the couch, tears running down her face, claiming she felt deceived. Eventually David approached her to talk, explaining that he'd wanted to tell her all along but it had just been too hard for him. After a brief chat, Camilla gave David a big hug and assured him that all was forgiven. For more news click HERE

It's awesome to have a non-stereotypical gay role model in the house... he reminds me alot of myself actually. He's more normal than your average queen, in fact, most of the house had no idea, especially when there's a straight guy running around saying "it would be easier to be gay"

I'm really enjoying the first week of BB 06 so far... even tho there are no confilicts yet, they are all very interesting people, and the presence of BB's "insider" should make things extremely fun. BB seems to be building up to something, everything he does seems to have a consequence somewhere down the line... all the information collected during this week's task will be used in some way. He's messing with their heads already in subtle ways, and I'm sure the pressure will build :)


And here's some shower shots from BB 06....

Aliens

Larry Knox was commissioned to produce a cover for a reprint of HG Wells's War of the Worlds, on the cheap. So he headed to a Chinatown fish-market, bought some squid, and faked it! Link

Its pretty cool how you can fake so much for the camera, and still have it look so good. Reminds me of SFX for 50's sci-fi movies. While he had the squid fresh, he actually posed it as a 50's alien, complete with oversized brain!

Its great to have my creative mind and juices flowing again, especially after the dark storm of late last year... it's really amazing what a change in scenery can do for a person :)

Marilyn

Purchased this cheap print on canvas at a chinese junk shop for a big $11.95! I have never seen this particular shot of her before and something about it speaks to me. Not sure what, but she looks so fragile. This would look good hanging on a dark coloured wall.... have to wait to hang it, cause I don't really have anywhere it can go around here.

BTW... currently working on a painting to hang above the bed... more later when I finish it.

I hate it when....

... you lose your wallet. It happened to me the other day, when I was sick too. I was finally feeling hungry enough to eat something, so I was goin to go downstairs to grab some food and ..... NO WALLET!!! Couldn't find it anywhere, then I realised where it was..... at work :( Called up, and yep, you guessed it, it was at work on the floor of the office. So I had to then walk into work on my sick day to retrieve it. I'm not sure what was worse... the walk in or going into work when I was sick. Not fun.

The Lament of Icarus

Painting done by Herbert Draper. First time I've ever seen this painting... very beautiful. Would be nice to re-do it with hot guys standing round Icarus instead of sea nymphs.

Ice

Wouldn't it be nice to have your very own wall of ice.... reserved for those times mega-coporations piss you off with stupid ideas?

Digital Painting

Started my first serious digital painting today. I've had a graphics tablet for nearly a year, but have never really put it to serious use. The only thing I've been doing with it is editing photos. I have learnt alot along the way and now I feel confident to start a major project. I've been wanting to do a Kong inspired piece ever since I saw PJ's movie. If everything turns out well, I might even get it printed on a large canvas to display with my Kong vs Rex Statue. Here's a little preview of my progress so far. Not much (just some background really), but it is a start.

Tom Cruise is a Cannibal *updated*

Tom Cruise says he will eat the placenta after fiancee Katie Holmes has their baby. In an interview with GQ, Cruise said:

"I'm gonna eat the placenta, too. I thought that would be good. Very nutritious. I'm going to eat the cord and the placenta right there."

Eeeeeeeewwwww!!!! No wonder Nicole left him... she was probably scared that he'd start gnawing on her while she slept. What sort of mind bending drugs is Tom on that would make him think that it would be ok??? Let alone announce it in a magazine?!?!

Maybe I should re-name this post "Tom Cruise is a Nutbag!"

Originally posted HERE

*Update*
Tom and Katie have had their kid... a little girl named "Suri" -wtf!
Wonder if he had ketchup with the placenta?

McWhirter's

Finally got a very nice photo of our apartment building... been wanting to get one for ages, as it's a beautiful old building that has been converted into apartments. Can't believe I took such a great photo thru the car's windscreen at the red light out the front.

Pelican

This pelican was posing for the camera at Victoria point.....

Happy Birthday Gordy!!!

Happy 26th birthday sweetie!!!

Birthday celebrations kicked off last night when we went for drinks at 5pm... got a bit tipsy and made the mistake of going for dinner at a place nearby called "Plan B"... cheap food and not the best either.... definately not recommended. I had the fisherman's basket which had a thin strip of battered fish, two calamari rings, one prawn and a couple of fish bites... all put on a pile of soggy chips. Not the best food I'd ever had, especially for $13.... oh, it included a tiny side salad :(
Gordy had beef lasagne which gave him an upset tummy for the rest of the night.... after food, we went to the Sportsman's Hotel in Spring Hill. We both haven't been there for years and years, so it was a bit of a culture shock to say the least. A very different crowd than what we're used to, not a bad thing tho. We didn't stay long however, Gordy's tummy was playing up, so we decided to leave. On the way out we ran into the head security guard of the Myer Centre where I work.... I had no idea he did security at a gay bar on the weekends. Gordy embarassed me by asking if downstairs (called the "Mineshaft") had a cover charge. The Mineshaft has a backroom... so Gordy dragged me downstairs and then I chickened out... all in front of this security guard... I'm so going to cop shit from this at work.

Today we went for a nice relaxing drive out Cleveland way to Victoria Point for lunch... have to go out to some of the islands in the bay there one day.

Plum Blossoms

.... in Autumn mind you. I pruned my flowering bonsai earlier this month, obviously too early, as my plum decided it was spring and popped out a few little blossoms. I'd love to one day have a full sized tree covered in flowers.... I totally understand why the Japanese prize them so, absolutely beautiful.

Parents

... should be there to look after their kids. Imagine the horror yesterday, when we witnessed this little kid run out into traffic in front of my work yesterday. I don't know what was louder, the squeal of tires, or the screams from everyone who saw it happen. You were just waiting to hear that awful bang... but thankfully it didn't happen. How the kid got out of the stroller in the first place, I'll never know.... all I can say is that either the kid was really fast, or the parents weren't paying attention....

The poor kid got such a shock and was crying for days... wonder how traumatic it was staring at death like that... ah well, he's prolly already forgotten.... betcha his parents won't forget it in a hurry.

Arwen

Bought the lovely Arwen to add to my Gondorian display... she complements King Elessar perfectly.

The shop girl actually dropped the statue while it was in its box, luckily there was another there if it was broken. Amazingly tho, it was whole, not a scratch on her..... got a $40 discount too :)

I have been working on my display of my collection lately and I should have display platforms for my statues and busts completed in the next week or so. I'm really proud of my displays and the pieces I have, nearly time to start slowing down. I want to hopefully put a few finishing touches on later this year in the form of banners and the like. For now tho, enjoy pics of Arwen :)

Kong's Revenge

This is what happens if Kong catches you dissing his movie.... 'nuff said really.

Oh My Gods!

Oh My Gods! is a great strip by Shivian, dealing with all different religions and sexualities..... and is very funny. Take a peek here: http://ohmygods.timerift.net/

Kong DVD!!!!

I absolutely love this movie.... extremely glad to actually have it on dvd... now I just have to find 3 hours to sit down and watch it. The extras on the 2 disc version are pretty good... enjoyed the two doco's immensely, the New York segment has some amazing facts, the Skull Island doco shows how much fun the Weta team had making the movie.

Now, I can't wait for the Extended Edition... and the commentary track, this is just the appetizer. :)

Metrosexuals....

.... make me feel inadequate as a gay guy. What need is there for 4 racks of shoes? I have alot of clothes, but shoes? Nope... just a couple of pair that I wear into the ground.

A snippet from a conversation at work between two of my male co-workers.* We were discussing the colour pink and it went something like this....

"I don't have any pink shirts, only one I bought for an eighties retro party", said I.
"Wow, I've got more pink shirts than a gay guy", said co-woker #1.
"Speaking of colours, what do you think of that lime green?", said co-worker #2.
"What, that pastely type of green?", said #1.
"Yeah, that one... it looks pretty good, as long as you match it with the right colour", said #2
"You wouldn't want to wear the green with black pants", said #1.
"Nah, not black, was thinking about a brown, dark brown", said #2
"Yeah, It'd look tops with a chocolatey brown.... it would look really cool", said #1

At this moment I could not fathom this conversation any longer... I exclaimed (and pretty loudly too), "What is going on here?!?!?! You guys are gayer than me!!!"

No wonder there is so many single metrosexuals... that behaivour is designed to attract gay guys, not women. Has the world gone mad????

*Conversation changed to add comic effect, no offence intended towards the participating conversationalists.

New LOTR Helms!

Finally got the two Rohan helms from Lord of the Rings that have elluded me for so long, Theoden's helm (top) and the Royal Rohan Guard helm. This completes the collection of five Rohan helms: Theoden's, Eomer's, Eowyn's, Merry's and the Royal Rohan Guard. I missed out when these were still available to order, but I found a great Aussie chick who was willing to part with hers. The detailling in these are fantastic, especially seeing tho they are only a couple of inches high, and very heavy as well.
Getting new poly always put me in the mood to take photos, here is my fave of the lot. Liked it so much I even entered it in a competition at Weta NZ's website. Wish me luck :)

Tattoos

Was watching "Ocean's 12" when I really had a good look at Rusty's tattoo, there's only one scene that actally shows the full arm, and that's pretty brief. So I decided to search for it on the 'net, thinking it would be pretty easy to find a pic of it. No pic except the one above, but I did find the pattern from the company that applies fake tats to Hollywood.

Now I've got a few small tats and eager to get more, but I'd really love to one day get a sleeve done.
Unfortunately, even tho tats are becoming mainstream, full sleeve tats are still unacceptable, especially if you hold a job :-P While I was searching the 'net, I did find this site - Click Here Could this even catch on? They look pretty good in the photos.... but in real life? The other thing is that they aren't taken very seriously, found them on many joke sites..... 'wanna bluff your boss? Sad really, that they have to resort to selling them on sites like that. I did find a legit photospread of Brad endorsing their product, can't get a better endorsement than that really.

The Simpson Movie

Maybe about 15 years too late? See the teaser trailer here: http://www.apple.com/trailers/fox/thesimpsonsmovie/teaser/

Moulin Rouge

I absolutely love this movie, just finished watching it but it still gets me every time. A very misunderstood movie, one that encapsulates the definition of "heightened reality", a purely cinematic experience that can't be replicated in any other medium. I think its one of Australia's greatest achievements in film... yet such a simple story, told with such strong emotions....

... and yes, I cried like a bitch.

King Kong EE is Official!!!!!

Thanks to {8thWonder} and mrgrooism over at the KongIsKing.net Boards for this news!
While at KiKnFest Groo used my phone to ring Richard Taylor’s personal phone while trying to set up an appearance by PJ and RT at the luncheon. RT saved that number to call back and apparently didn’t label the number anything he remembered because he rang trying to figure out if mine was a number he should know.
Once the reason for my number had been figured out, I brazenly asked him a few questions.
First I asked about “Neon Genesis Evangelion” which is a favorite project of RT’s. He really wants to see it get to the screen. He sas that artists are dividing thier time between NGE, “Prince Caspian” the second Narnia film, and a third project.
The third project is what they are calling “The Eighth Wonder Edition” of King Kong. November 21st, the tuesday before Thanksgiving is the release date, in time for the Christmas shopping rush. Weta Digital has 235 shots to complete between now and their target date for handing the finished film over to be printed. Over 46 minutes of new footage is being included. Some of this is new scenes, specifically the Swamp, a “Triceratops” scene, and “It’s you”, but much of it is insert shots within scenes we already know. The bronto scene is longer, as is the V.rex fight. I asked if all of the added footage was on Skull Island and was told the split is about 60 Skull/40 New York. Universal wants it all on 3 discs, but with Pellerin’s documentary and all the marketing stuff they want to put in the set RT thought it would end up being 4 discs. The official announcement will be at the start of the 3rd fiscal quarter, after the initial sales push for the current release has peaked.
He then stated that he needed to get back to his errands as Sunday is the only day he can do “Family Taylor” things.
So that’s it, mark your calendars for November 21st, THE EXTENDED EDITION IS A GO!!!

Originally posted at http://www.black-magic.co.nz

This is something I've been really itching for... not just for the added scenes, but to hear the PJ's commentary.... just to hear his passion for the project always gets me excited, it'll be great to hear him discuss the project in detail. And he's funny too, in one of the LOTR commentaries, he comes up with the idea of doing a TV series about Treebeard the ent, as he solves crimes in Fangorn forest. "The cases get solved, they just take a very long time." :)