Bettie Page in a coma

1950's pinup model, Playboy bunny and cult figure Bettie Page is in the hospital in serious condition.

LOS ANGELES ˆ Bettie Page, a 1950s pinup known for her raven-haired bangs
and saucy come-hither looks, was hospitalized in intensive care after
suffering a heart attack, her agent said Friday.

"She's critically ill," Mark Roesler of CMG Worldwide told The Associated
Press.

He said the 85-year-old had the heart attack Tuesday and was hospitalized
Friday in the Los Angeles area.

A family friend, Todd Mueller, said Page was in a coma. When asked to
confirm, Roesler said, "I would not deny that," but he would not comment
further on her condition.

Page, a secretary turned model, is credited with helping set the stage for
the sexual revolution of the rebellious 1960s. She attracted national
attention with magazine photographs of her sensuous figure that were tacked
up on walls across the country.

Her photos included a centerfold in the January 1955 issue of then-fledgling
Playboy magazine, as well as controversial sadomasochistic poses.

Page later spent decades away from the public eye, and during that time
battled mental illness and became a born-again Christian.

After resurfacing in the 1990s, she occasionally granted interviews but
refused to allow her picture to be taken.

Mueller credits his business dealings with Page for bringing her out of
seclusion. He said he first met her in 1989 when he offered her "a bunch of
money" to show up at autograph signings.

"I probably sold 3,000 of her autographs, usually for $200 to $300," he
said. "Eleanor Roosevelt, we got $40-$50. ... Bettie Page outsells them
all."

Bettie Page was the inspiration for the character and love interest of Cliff Secord, the hero of "The Rocketeer"

Our thoughts are with her.

Forrest J. Ackerman 1916-2008

We received word that long time Sci-Fi legend Forrest J. Ackerman has passed away.

Here's the story.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Forrest Ackerman, a writer and editor who coined the term "Sci-Fi" and helped inspire the likes of author Ray Bradbury and film maker George Lucas, has died. He was 92.
Ackerman died of heart failure on Thursday at his home in Los Angeles, said Kevin Burns, president of Prometheus Entertainment and a trustee of his estate.
He is widely credited with coining the term Sci-Fi in 1954. Science fiction had been around as a genre for years before, but Ackerman was a big promoter of it.
"He was really considered the godfather, or what I call the Pied Piper of science fiction and horror," Burns said on Friday.
Ackerman encouraged Bradbury, who went on to write classics such as "The Martian Chronicles" and "Fahrenheit 451," early on in the author's writing career.
Ackerman edited the magazine Famous Monsters of Filmland, which was launched in 1958 and lasted more than 20 years.
And he filled his eight-bedroom Los Angeles home with tens of thousands of science fiction books and props from Sci-Fi and horror movies. The house became a repository for fans of the those genres, who often visited for tours on Saturdays.
Lucas, the film maker behind the "Star Wars" franchise, said in a statement that Ackerman "never stopped believing in the magic of the movies and the possibilities presented by science fiction."
Ackerman died with no surviving family members.

It has to be pointed out that Forrest was also the first person to dress up as a character to a Sci-Fi gathering in LA in 1935. So he was the first "cosplayer" in the world.

The world is a sadder place today.

Another example why countries run by religions don't work!

This is why Teocracies (Goverments run by certain religions) are a bad idea all around!

Read the snippet and ponder...

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Police have arrested 49 people this week in a northern Iranian city during a crackdown on "satanic" clothes, IRNA news agency reported Thursday.

The measures are the latest in a country-wide campaign against Western cultural influence in the Islamic Republic, where strict dress codes are enforced.

"Police confronted rascals and thugs who appeared in public wearing satanic fashions and unsuitable clothing," Qaemshahr city police commander Mahmoud Rahmani told IRNA.

Rahmani also said that five barber shops were shut and 20 more warned for "promoting Western hairstyles."

More on the report here.

That's why I'm a firm believer in the separation of Church and State!!!

The 10 worst movies of 2008

The New York Post has compiled the 10 worst stinkeroos of this year.
Here's the list!

10. "Beverly Hills Chihuahua"
We thought the whole talking dogs fad was over, but apparently, it's not. George Lopez and Drew Barrymore provide voices for this 2008 flop about zany California dogs.

9. "Witless Protection"
Larry the Cable Guy followed up 2006's "Larry The Cable Guy: Health Inspector" and 2007's "Delta Farce" with this "Witless" effort. Larry's 0-for-3. So bad, we didn't bother reviewing it.

8. "Rambo"
Did we need another "Rambo"? No, but Sly Stallone gave us one - an ultra-gorefest, even by Stallone standards.

7. "You Don't Mess With The Zohan"
Adam Sandler makes the list with his tale of an Israeli special forces soldier who dreams of being a hairstylist. Childish humor from a familiar source.

6. "Babylon A.D."
Starring master thespian Vin Diesel, "Babylon A.D." went way over budget and there were reports of ego clashes between Diesel and director Mathieu Kassovitz. Released six months after its original release date, the film wasn't even screened for New York critics.

5. "10,000 B.C."
"10,000 B.C" could be called the movie the Museum of Natural History doesn't want you to see. Full of special effects but lacking a shred of authenticity, the film was widely panned.

4. "What Happens In Vegas"
"What Happens In Vegas" stars Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz as two people who get married after a booze-fueled night in Sin City, and the wacky adventures that transpire after they also win a large sum of money. The easy joke is that this bomb should have stayed in Vegas. We took the easy way out.

3. "Mad Money"
With a trio of actresses like Diane Keaton, Katie Holmes and Queen Latifah, what could have possibly gone wrong with "Mad Money"? Everything, apparently. But mostly the fact that this comedy had no laughs.

2. "The Hottie & The Nottie"
Is it worth describing the plot to this Paris Hilton-starred stinker? We won't bother, because you shouldn't bother watching it. According to Box Office Mojo, the film grossed less than $1.6 million as of Nov. 26, which sounds generous.

1. "The Love Guru"
Our number one worst movie is "The Love Guru," co-written and starring "SNL" alum Mike Myers as Guru Pitka, a man on a quest to become the #1 guru. Films like "Guru" and 2003's "The Cat in the Hat" are destroying all the comedy credibilty Myers built through the "Wayne's World" and "Austin Powers" films. Thank goodness for "Shrek." "Guru" also stars acting legends Jessica Alba and Justin Timberlake.

Man! They still stink!!!!

Save us, chocolate Baby Jesus!

I'm serious. The Germans are having problems.

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's churches criticized a businessman on Tuesday for selling thousands of Jesus chocolates.

Frank Oynhausen set up his "Sweet Lord" chocolate Jesus-making business saying he wanted to restore some traditional religious values to Christmas in Germany.

But the German Protestant Church criticized the idea as "tasteless" and the Roman Catholic Church was not amused.

"I started thinking about how I could reintroduce traditional religious values into this commercial world," said Oynhausen, who had been unemployed since losing a recycling business two years ago.

Together with a friend, a local chocolatier, Oynhausen, 54, developed the concept of "Sweet Lord." It is growing fast in his home town of Duisburg and on the internet (www.goldjesus.com).

Oynhausen said thousands of people have put in orders for the figures wrapped in gold foil.

But church associations expressed dismay.

"It is terrible that Jesus is being wrapped up in gold foil and sold along with chocolate bunnies, edible penguins and lollipops," said Aegidius Engel, a spokesman for the archbishopric of nearby Paderborn.

"This is ruining the symbol of Jesus himself," he added.

Oynhausen is now custom-producing the chocolate Jesus figures, but by Easter he hopes to have a partnership with a mass producer.

"We're hoping to be able to export them around the world one day," Oynhausen said. He reckons there are parts of the United States where they will be especially popular.

In 2007, a life-size chocolate sculpture of a naked Jesus caused an outcry from Roman Catholics when an art gallery in New York wanted to exhibit it in a window.

Hey! I have an idea! On Easter, we should have a chocolate Jesus crucified and when you bite him, strawberry "blood" should flow!

No.

Come On!? Mel Gibson loved it!!!!

When mating Polar Bears go wrong.

Ok. You have to read this to believe it!

TOKYO (Reuters) - Handlers of a popular polar bear, brought to mate with a female in a zoo in northern Japan, found their breeding plan was doomed when they noticed that he, in fact, was a she.

Tsuyoshi, a four-year-old, 200 kg (441 lb) cream-colored polar bear, had been living in harmony with a female polar bear since June, the two often playing together, Masako Inoue, a zookeeper at the Kushiro Municipal Zoo, said on Wednesday.

"We thought he was a male, so we never had any doubts as we took care of him," she said.

"But one day we realized that the two bears urinate in the same way, and we thought, is that how males do it? And once we started to look at things that way, we weren't quite so sure."

After two DNA examinations of Tsuyoshi's hair and a manual exam, the Kushiro Municipal Zoo found Tsuyoshi to be a female.

"We do have mixed feelings," said Inoue.

"But because Tsuyoshi was supposed to be a male, she came here, and because she came here, we were able to take care of her since she was very small."

It is not uncommon for the sex of polar bears to be misread, Inoue said, as their long hair makes it difficult to distinguish, especially when the bears are young. Tsuyoshi was pegged as a male three months after birth, Inoue said.

The Kushiro Municipal Zoo will talk with other zoos in the area to see what to do about their breeding plan, she added.

Ok. Nothing wrong with that. But if you want them breeding...aren't they supposed to be of different sexes?
Just asking!

Death by Breadfruit!

Filed under only in Puerto Rico!

Early Sunday morning, Aníbal Vázquez Dávila, 48, from Luquillo was driving it's Daimo motorcycle near High Park Hotel in the direction to Trujillo Alto, when he encountered some breadfruit laying on the road from a nearby tree.

Trying to evade them, he lost control of the vehicule, falling into a ditch. He hit his head on the concrete embankment, and even thou he was wearing a helmet, the hit was so severe, he died instantly.

Víctor Candela García, a friend of the victim and in another motorcycle when the accident happened, identified his friend's body to authorities.

Jeez! Even Breadfruit can get you killed!
Enjoy while it lasts!