ONE OF THE BEST WEDDING STORIES I HAVE HEARD

I kind of want to go to a bar in a wedding dress now. Also: word on the importance of cake, man.

"FROSTY THE SNOWMAN... IS MELTED"

I'm no fan of Christmas music myself, so it's nice to see Sars skewer it over at Tomato Nation.

"THE PHANTOM OF THE FICTION WORKSHOP"

UNREALITY TV

Apparently it's even less real than we thought.

ALEXANDER!

Moviehole doesn't go so far as to say that Baz Luhrmann's epic is dead, but apparently both Nicole Kidman and Leonardo DiCaprio are moving on, at any rate.

SUPERMAN

I'm not even all that interested in Superman, but if Shawn Ashmore were to play Jimmy Olsen, it would make me very happy. (P.S. Please thump your brother Troy Vandertwin for me, Shawn.)

THE CHEESIEST MOMENTS IN FILM

My favorite part about this is not that Titanic snags the top slot. My favorite part is that the survey was run in honor of Warburtons launching... new cheese-flavored crumpets.

THE DIARIST AWARDS

Open voting has been extended until December 8th, if there's a blogger or diarist you'd like to see recognized (not me, jeez).

"ORLANDO BLOOM CONVERTS TO BUDDHISM"

The odd thing is that I'm... not really all that surprised, somehow.

MY EVIL PLAN


Congratulations on being the creator of a new Evil Plan (tm)!

Your objective is simple: World Domination

Your motive is a little bit more complex: Power

Stage One:

To begin your plan, you must first Kidnap a Famous Actor/Actress. This will cause the world to sit up and take notice, stunned by your arrival. Who is this Unholy Menace? Where did they come from? And why do they look so good in Classic Black?

Stage Two:

Next, you will Seize control of New York. This will cause countless hordes of Supernatural Creatures to flock to you, begging to do your every bidding. Your name will become synonymous with Fear, as lesser men whisper your name in terror.

Stage Three:

Finally, you will Unleash your Great Supernatural Forces, bringing about Pain, suffering, the usual. This will all be done from a Floating Fortress, an excellent choice if we might say. These three deeds will herald the end, and the citizens of this planet will have no choice but to elect you their new god.

Trust us, it'll all come together in the end.



Consider yourself warned.

BOOK OF THE YEAR

What's Publishers Weekly's Book of the Year? Jon Stewart's America (The Book), that's what.

AMERICAN CINEMATOGRAPHER

Got an email from American Cinematographer about its issue lineup, which includes Alexander in the current issue, Lemony Snicket and A Very Long Engagement in December, and Phantom of the Opera, The Aviator, and The Life Aquatic in January. And in February?

Here's an advance look at the February 2005 issue of American Cinematographer magazine, which will highlight teleproduction.

Lost (ABC)

One of the runaway hits of the new TV season, Lost concerns a group of plane-crash survivors who find themselves stranded on a remote island rife with mysterious threats. The show's pilot was shot by Larry Fong, who alternates episodes of the series with ASC member Michael Bonvillain. Both cinematographers will offer insights into their methods on the show, which is shot on location in Hawaii.

"SQUICK AND SQUEE"

There's an interesting discussion of "The Id Vortex," as coined by Ellen Fremedon, on Teresa Nielsen Hayden's blog, but the real gems are in the links at the end of the entry: a series of essays on writing sex by Sara Donati.

I DREAM OF LINDSAY

This is as wrong as anything I've ever seen. And you know she'll record a song for it, too.

WOMAN AUCTIONS FATHER'S GHOST ON EBAY

Okay, so my initial reaction to the title of the article was, "Oh, Lord, another one of those rip-off joke auctions. But listen:

"Mary Anderson said she placed her father's 'ghost' on the online auction site after her son, Collin, said he was afraid the ghost would return someday. Anderson said Collin has avoided going anywhere in the house alone since his grandfather died last year.

"Anderson also put her father's metal walking cane up for auction so she would have something to actually send the winning bidder. The proceeds from the auction will go to buy Collin a special present, she said.

"Anderson makes one special request of the winner bidder: 'I would like to ask you to write a letter after you've received the cane (and the ghost) to my son letting him know that he's there with you and you're getting along great.'"

Awww!

LEMONY SNICKET

The NY Times has an interesting roundtable interview up with director Brad Silberling and child psychiatrist Alvin Rosenfeld on the successful adaptation of the darkness of the "Unfortunate Events" series.

"GWYNETH LANDS MARTINI AD"

IMDB: "Gwyneth Paltrow has signed up to appear in a sexy new Martini ad in Italy and Australia, in which she wears only a man's shirt. The Hollywood beauty is seen hopping over a bar to pour vermouth for locals in the commercial. She agreed to star in the ads after Martini bosses reassured her the campaign would never be seen in Britain or America."




Apple... Martini. Apple... Martini...

BATMAN BEGINS

New poster's out. Also: There are far more pictures out there than I was aware of. This is what happens when you don't update your movie site for six months.

WAR OF THE WORLDS

New site's up. Also: Miranda Otto is in this?

ATTICA! ATTICA!

All right. After a really bad, prolonged bout with the flu and some scary coursework, I've got to get back to using this blog, because my journal is becoming swamped with randomosity. But first: You have heard about the proposed bill here in Alabama to ban books with any mention of homosexuality from federally funded schools and libraries, right?

So I'm organizing protests over at my journal.

>> In which we are indignant

>> In which we get advice from Neil Gaiman

>> In which a House representative and I exchange emails (scroll down)

>> Just out: a statement from the American Library Association.

The three journal entries have some useful information on what you can do and who you can contact. Let me know if you're interested in helping.