Boycott Dancing with the Stars! (See post from 11-06-2007) The inversion lifted on Saturday -- just as I was finishing two days of outside work, installing Xmas lights at the Hockaday Museum of Art.

Sitemeter Sez: Visitors from Madrid, Spain and Montana.

REAL SLC Punk, not the movie, at: Theater X-Net

Starring: Ida Rubinstein Belle Epoch Russian/Parisian beauty.
Ida's Places in Paris -- from my first jet-lagged day by the Seine.
Read more about Ida in Sisters of Salome by Toni Bentley

Visit: Michael's Montana Web Archive
Theater, Art, Flash Gordon, Funky Music and MORE!
Spitfires of the Spaceways
Wilma Deering & Dale Arden to the rescue; Bodacious Princess Aura I; Hapless Aura II; The fiery Emperor Ming; The Orson Welles Rumor Debunked; and BOTH incarnations of Jean Rogers!





Thanks to Jim Keefe (Visit his Website) -- the LAST Flash Gordon illustrator of the 20th Century, and Flash's first illustrator of the 21st, for his recommendations -- HERE!

Charity Alert: Make a Holiday Resolution to click on The Hunger Site every day. Also check into Terra Sigilata blog -- donate $$$ to cancer patients just by clicking onto the site.

In The Community: The Northwest Ballet School's Nutcracker was pretty much a senior recital, with the seniors being all of 18. However, the solos, duets, and single ensemble piece were EXCELLENT, especially in the second half! Congratulations to their new artistic director Marisa Roth, and her predecessor/teacher Carol Jakes.

Media Watch: Remember my dread about a Queen Elizabeth I soap-opera? I saw a big chunk of Helen Mirren's mini-series about Lizzie Numbah One, and there it was! Judi Densch's petulant QE01 from Shakespeare in Love was definitely an influence. (BTW -- the later movie is a good-natured romp, IF the viewer remembers it is FANTASY.)
I frankly hope this plodding BBC sneer-fest scares director Shekhar Kapur away from trying to coax another dollar or two out of Cate Blanchett's reputation, even though their first collaboration helped make her a star. (His crappy sequel died at the box office, and I don't want a third movie pandering Essex, Raleigh, or the London theatrical scene.)
The real nature of the reign of the last Tudor monarch was too complex and under-documented to make authoritative historical movies about, but the real dramas within that history make it SO tempting to try. It was too bad that Good Queen Bess played favorites with undeserving courtiers like the Earl of Essex to any extent at all, but her immmediate successor damn near bankrupted the kingdom by submerging himself in the practice, then his miserable egocentric progeny were responsible for recurring civil wars all the way into the 1700s. There were very many dimensions to Anne Boelyn's daughter -- the only one of Henry VIII's children to inherit any of his brain power.

Funky News: From bassmaster Bootsy Collins: Hey Funkateers, let's face it. We got some screwed up issues going on all around the world. But it is truly a blessing for a long head sucker like me to be able to reach out and funk someone...Speaking of which on Saturday Dec.22nd at the Madison Theater in Covington Ky. We, Bootzilla Productions will be doing the very first Annual "James Brown Tribute show" feat: FreekBass, BucketHead, Chuck D of Public Enemy, Clyde & Jabo the funky drummers from the original JB's along with Catfish Collins and myself, we will be jammin' live music to honor my father that I did not have, my Mentor, and friend Mr. James Brown.
...Wow! IT'S GETTING CRAZY OUT HERE, but I am going to call my friends and fello funkateer's to support this show so we can re-build King Records where I met Mr.Dynamyte, Bobby Byrd and the rest of the JB Crew. Mr. Bobbit will be here along with MC Danny Ray, and I spoke to "Slash" who is trying to change his dates around right now so he can come and help out. Go to www.Madisontheateronline.com or call 1859-491-2444 To get all the details -- this will be a blessing for me along with James Brown's son Darrly ... who will also bring the Soul General, James' back up band to perform as well. If you want to be a part of history a part of a funky good time, then come on down and jam to the sounds of James Brown, BucketHead, FreekBass, iCandi, DJizzle, Chuck D, and many other very special surprises.
Did I mention that BET will be doing a live behind the scenes, while Bootzilla mobile will be doing a live recording from the top of the show until they throw us out. A James Brown Dance contest will be going down too...You can also go to: www.bootsycollins.com to check out the info about the show.


If you thought I was going to show the fearless Academy Award-winning actor Helen Mirren with her kit unpacked, you are CORRECT! However, this is a fairly recent image instead of the many she did when she was younger.