The State Returns!

Finally,  The State is set for DVD release on Bastille Day.  Posted below is a hilarious skit from back in the day when it was on MTV.  Not my favorite, but the best that I could locate on YouTube: 

The Plight of the Journalist

L.A. Citybeat's pages are fluttering closed after its last issue, which featured L.A.'s hottest bands at SXSW in about three pages of coverage.  The dread must have been impending. L.A. Citybeat's staff was informed of their publication's demise last Fri., during a meeting with Southland Publishing, Inc.

Such a shame.  The alternative weekly was one of the few publications available to pick up most places and flip through during a lunch break or a stop at a cafe.

Will nothing save print media, besides private investors and the skeptical consideration of government intervention?  It's not like newsprint is an archaic drudgery of the past, even with getting all that ink on your hands.

Video is the new wave of media consumption for online publications and newspapers alike. Media consumers can also check out behind-the-scenes of photos shoots for glamazons in Vanity Fair, or funny moments from TV shows like Late Night with Jimmy Fallon distilled into video clips from a favored blogger's perspective.

Kumquats: An On-the-Go Treat

I have encountered the kumquat in the produce aisle at the grocery store.  This tiny orange fruit is great to munch on as a snack, or toss into a salad.  The best part is that the skin has more flavor than the actual fruit itself, which is way more convenient than fretting over the disposal of a banana peel at an inopportune moment.

Posted below is an informative how-to-video on eating a kumquat.  It is tempting to try and peel them, but to no avail.

Bulldog Beauty

I recently worked on a show for Animal Planet, Outrageous Animals.  I always thought that bulldogs had a certain je ne sais quoi, ferocious yet stalwart.  But after attending a bulldog beauty pageant here in L.A. at Long Beach's Marina Stadium, my horizons have been expanded.

Although they drool from a jaw that looks as if it could gnaw into a tree trunk resembling a dog bone, bulldogs also have an endearing quality of humility about them.  Especially the ones that sported a tutu or homemade dress by Grandma at the pageant.

And if watching over 100 bulldogs trot across a makeshift red carpet to cheers from their owners and fans doesn't convince you of this, nothing else will.

A Ball of an Inauguration

Aside from the historic inauguration of the lovely Mr. and Mrs. President Obama, a key topic of discussion worldwide is the First Lady's both edgy and elegant unique personal style. This has left a vibrant presence in Washington, notwithstanding the election. Move over, Jackie Kennedy Onassis? Although they are such a youthful and accessible couple, if history is a teacher of mistakes from the past, I hope that the dark shadow which accompanies the unknown never follows them on the road ahead.

SAVE ANNA!

The September Issue, a film by R.J. Cutler, the director of the The War Room and Executive Producer of 30 Days with Morgan Spurlock, is one of the the films featured at Sundance this week. The documentary film features the creative process and months leading up to when the September issue of Vogue, its biggest yet, hits newsstands.

In a side note, these T-shirts are running rampant in New York! I'd get the Rachel Zoe T-shirt, if they weren't like 70 bucks.

Sample Sale Crazy in L.A.!

BUST Magazine is holding their 2008 Holiday Craftacular sale this month in L.A., New York, and London.

Some designers and consignment in attendance include Mucha Muchacha, Cut x Paste, Eleven Eleven, Classic Hardware, Sleep Pictures and Nous Avon:

Nichole Muchacha's lovely fused glass jewelry line...















Eleven Eleven's eclectic assortment of wallets, card holders and notebooks...
















































... and some great hewn metal by EDM Designs, available on Etsy. Am into this steampunk thing, very bullets and brains over brawn, per se.