Whew

[cleolinda]

So I had pizza for breakfast... because it was 3 pm. I went to bed at 10 pm, slept, got up a few times to hit the bathroom, occasionally checked my email, but just kept going back to bed--because I am determined to hit the ground running tomorrow. And the fact that I am able to sleep around the clock, given that I've just had that stomach bug, says that I probably needed to. But tomorrow, I hope to be rested and ready to rip through some old drafts I've been scared to revisit (the Radcliffe ball chapter that was originally online, for those of you at all familiar with Black Ribbon). I have new material that I'm about to go through and intersperse, as it's now the third chapter instead of--what, the second?--and there's two full chapters of mostly new material to wrestle with before that. I'm getting a little scared, actually, as I pretty much have four weeks now until my birthday, which was my self-set deadline. And maybe being a little scared is the jolt I need; the last two weeks have been fairly unproductive, with a couple of bright spots here and there.

(Also, I don't know who sent me an LJ v-gift, but thank you! I have a feeling it's in regards to writing--being a quill and all, sort of a keep-on-truckin' sentiment--so thank you. I need it right now. : )

Things That Make Me Irrationally Squeeful: I have an aunt who works for a magazine, and she had mentioned at Sister Girl's Culinard graduation shindig that Victoria was going to come back. We were standing in a crowded hallway balancing plates of food (this was the evening I had the coconut ice cream and mojito truffles) and I honestly, literally, had to restrain myself from screaming "OH SHIT NO WAY!!!" in public. I flipped the hell out as it was, but I think I managed to put a cork in the profanity. I'm not even sure; I kind of had an out-of-body experience as it was. I freakin' LOVED Victoria, as if you couldn't tell, to the point where I actually bought three back issues on eBay after it went under, and apparently I am only one of many fanatical devotees of the magazine, which also include a number of people in the magazine industry itself, according to my aunt. I can't really explain it--it's this lovely, slim, unassuming little magazine that looks at both surviving Victoriana (this month's has photos of early Victorian gowns from Tasha Tudor's collections) and sort of a neo-Victorian lifestyle. Kind of like a much lower-key Martha Stewart--Victorian styles for gardens, casual wear, jewelry, travel, stationery, recipes, entertaining that kind of thing. It's much more about taking general aesthetic inspiration from the Victorian, Regency and Edwardian eras (and I think they've even done features with Renaissance or 1700s styles, even) than actually being like, you know, how can I wear this bustle to the office? It's more the kind of magazine where they'd have features on decorating with toile de jouy, or places you could visit in Italy to feel like you were in A Room with a View. Nothing really scary.

The key phrase in that preceding paragraph, by the way, was "this month's," because OMG IT HAS COME BACK AND IT IS JUST THE SAME AS IT EVER WAS. My mother and I dropped by Publix to pick up a couple of things on the way to get dinner and even she was like, "Go! Check the newsstand! Be free!" But it wasn't there. I stared and stared and pored through the Magazines About Lifestyles None of Us Actually Have and it just wasn't there, even though my aunt had said it would come back in October and it was already getting on mid-November. And then I walked away, glanced around for my mother, went back, and IT WAS THERE.

ME: "Victoria! NEVER LEAVE ME AGAIN!" *huggles*

MY MOTHER: "Stop, stop, you're going to bend it!"

The website's a bit skimpy at the moment, but that's because they've only got the one new issue and obviously they don't want to give away the whole thing. I'm sure more will go online as they get a few issues under their belt. Also: "Now, four years later, Victoria is being relaunched by Hoffman Media, the Birmingham, Ala., publisher." We were meant to be together, I'm telling you.

Okay, so: massive backlog of linkspam. We're going to go quickly, there's going to be a lot, and I apologize. It's either do it this way or leave off about four days of it. The odds of borking a link are not in my favor, so tell me what I've messed up and I'll fix it.

Because so many people have sent it to me--I thought I'd linked it, and I know I've played it, but I guess not: freerice.com.

Norman Mailer: Norman Mailer, Towering Writer With Matching Ego, Dies at 84; An interesting look back from Gawker.

The writers' strike: The WGA's YouTube channel of picket line footage; WGA strike grows stronger. Pamela Ribon (pamie.com) reports from the front lines.

Showrunners turn strike into a show stopper. Season 7 of 24 canceled due to writer's strike. FOX happily plans for writerless television; viewers mourn.

Hiatuses for serialized shows a ‘Lost’ cause ("Strike could mean a long break, viewer drop-off — again — for TV series").

WGA Strike Striking Other Workers. NBC fires 102 Workers From The Office. Leno and O'Brien Staffers May Be Laid Off.

Ellen on why she's a scab. WGAE States Ellen "Not Welcome In NY." In Defense of Ellen: One Writer's Experience.

WGA Negotiators Felt Betrayed, Says Columnist.

More celebs show solidarity at writers' picket lines. What are the stars saying about the strike? Robin Williams, Ray Romano support strikers.

Eisner: Writers' Strike Is "Stupid." Angry Writers, Sympathetic Actors, And Clever Babies Taunt Rupert Murdoch At Fox Rally.

Sign this online petition to show solidarity with the WGA. It might actually do some good, by the way.

Miscellaneous news: Will a Child Be Charged in the Fires? "Though too young to be charged as an adult, the boy could still face millions of dollars in fines, removal from his home and possible detention as a ward of the state. For now the boy's fate - and that of his parents, who would be partially liable for any restitution payments he would have to pay - rests with Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley."

Australian scientists decode whale sounds.

Girl born with 8 limbs undergoes surgery. "The girl, Lakshmi, is named after the four-armed Hindu goddess of wealth, and some in her village in the northern state of Bihar revere her as a goddess.... Others sought to make money from Lakshmi. Her parents kept her in hiding after a circus apparently tried to buy the girl, they said."

Teen gets strippergram at school.

Scriptwriter Peter Viertel, who recently lost wife Deborah Kerr, dies at 86.

Priest accused of stalking Conan O'Brien.

Underwear-obsessed stalker jailed. Not Conan's stalker, a different stalker.

Music: Elvis Costello turns his back on Britain. If there is a more fabulous mugshot, I do not know of it. Britney Spears "Real" VMA Choreography. Prince takes legal action against fan Web sites; Prince releases fan diss track.

Are Facebook’s Social Ads Illegal?

Heartthrobs Clooney, Fabio get into scuffle.

New York eatery offers $25,000 dessert. Shit, I just want one of the regular hot chocolates right now.

911 call for beer.

Climate change denialists winning the race for "Best Science Blog."

lolcats: Fluffy… reporting live; Can I Has Nother Red Bull; LAZORS CHARGED; is it can be u forgivez u too nao pls?

Movie news:

Harry Potter: Helen McCrory is now Narcissa Malfoy? And there goes my pipe dream of Narcissa being played by an Australian blonde. Any Australian blonde, really; I can think of at least three offhand. OotP deleted scenes. HP cast reacts to gay Dumbledore. David Thewlis - 'I can't handle the fake hugs and air kisses.'

Sweeney Todd: New pictures. The MySpace. The Sweeney Todd mini-poster now on my TV cabinet.

Golden Compass: I knew we could depend on the Noble Collection for a good alethiometer. Start saving your pennies! Golden Compass TV Spot; Second Golden Compass TV Spot. MTV opportunity to ask director questions. “Everything I’ve ever learned in the last 35 years” went into Ruth Myers' costumes. Donna Freitas interviews Philip Pullman. Butterfly Soup: An evening with Philip Pullman. Armored Bears Conquer Myspace. $50 million going into marketing and promo support.

The Dark Knight: The Dark Knight in Hong Kong; More of Bale on 'Dark Knight' set - HQ. Heath Ledger Says His Joker Has ‘Zero Empathy’; Who’s Laughing? Jack Nicholson ‘Furious’ He’s No Longer Joker in Batman Films. Nolan Debunks Dark Knight Pollution Story.

Star Trek: Winona Ryder to play Spock's mom; Bruce Greenwood to Play Captain Pike in 'Star Trek XI.'

Beowulf: What is that, a shot from Shrek 4? See Beowulf Early on Nov. 15 at 9pm. Also, I think I just now realized that Grendel is Crispin Glover.

Bond: Paul Haggis Joins WGA Strike; Comments On 'Bond 22' Script; Daniel Craig urges Activision to make a winning Bond game, reveals addiction to video games. Adorable.

New stills: Lars and the Real Girl, The Kite Runner, Valkyrie; First Official 'Righteous Kill' Pics; First Pics of 'Nim's Island', First Look at 'Nim's Island', Gerard Butler's Halloween Costume; 'The Eye' Poster AUGH WTF NO.

Clips and trailers: 'Alvin and the Chipmunks' Full Trailer! ("According to descriptions of each chipmunk I'm given in the trailer, Alvin is a flamboyantly seductive hula hooper, Simon has a servant fetish, and Theodore is a nocturnal frotteur"); Debut of Bryan Singer's Valkyrie Trailer; Exclusive Clips: ‘The Mist’; Final Web Only Trailer for Stephen King's The Mist; De Niro-Pacino Righteous Kill Promo Trailer Online

Malkovich Makes A ‘Changeling.’

JLA, G.I. Joe , TF2 and Wolverine Updates.

'Incredible Hulk' Shooting in Brazilian Slums.

Dita Von Teese to play Mata Hari in new movie.

Mel Brooks' 'Young Frankenstein" Musical Gets Critical Lashing.

The way we were: Movie themes no longer top charts.

Scoop: Cruise ‘extremely worried’ about ‘Lions.’

Guillermo del Toro to Direct 'Champions.'

Sarandon The ‘Comic Relief’ For ‘Lovely Bones’?

Spacey Has Super Fun In Fred Claus; Fred's Vaughn Tones It Down.

Newell Approached for Prince of Persia.

Paul Verhoeven to Direct 'Thomas Crown Affair 2.'

After Villain Turn In ‘No Country For Old Men,’ Bardem Readies For Woody.

Jack Nicholson Reveals Plans For A Third ‘Chinatown’ Film.

Juno 's Diablo Cody: From Ex-Stripper to A-Lister.

Forest Whitaker Wants to Empower People with the Help of Mountain Dew.


Off to forage for dinner.

Comments

[incogra.livejournal.com]

Bowie's mugshot, man. I can't even. *fans self*

[sualocin.livejournal.com]

Victoria: I found bunch of issues at my local library for free and loved them so much i grabbed them all (ha ha ha I'm mean). I never knew it went under, but I did notice it today at the newstand at my work (b&n) and just about squee'd at our holiday meeting. I need to grab a copy. Hmm .. next work day. Yay for lovely magazines!

[christwise.livejournal.com]

I don't understand this writers strike. I don't understand people who hold a few select jobs that many many other people would gladly take going on strike. And these other people (read: ME!) would do it for whatever they're being paid. Why are the producers just not saying "ok, go on strike. We'll just hire someone else to do your job." Because they could find other people in a second.

I must not know the whole story. What is going on?

[cleojones.livejournal.com]

It's because writers want the missing profits from online and Ipod distribution. They aren't getting their cut, in that end.

And not every writer gets lots of money, so in this case every little bit would really count.

[cleojones.livejournal.com]

I have imagined a Mist movie for over 15 years...THEY BETTER NOT MESS THIS UP!

[theatre-angel.livejournal.com]

Okay, I love that hardcore rock going on in the second Golden Compass TV spot.

[gornishka.livejournal.com]

If Victoria's resurrection sends you into of flights of rapture, then you might also like Victorian Trading Co. (http://www.victoriantrading.com/)'s offerings. :)

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Oh, dude, I've gotten their catalogues for years now. I actually found them through the ads in the back of Victoria. : )

[artemis-archer.livejournal.com]

And there goes my pipe dream of Narcissa being played by an Australian blonde. Any Australian blonde, really; I can think of at least three offhand.

Agreed, I was really rooting for Naomi Watts on this one.

[thyroyalmajesty.livejournal.com]

I'm kind of torn about the writer's strike because, uh... I just lost my job because of it. I work in casting for a network show, and we've halted production because we've run out of scripts. And since I am poor, I cannot sit around and wait for the strike to end so I can go back to work. Hopefully I can find something in the film/tv industry, in an area that's not as affected, but if I can't, it's off to Starbucks I go. This totally blows; it's going to be a bleak Christmas.

And yet, I am completely on the writer's side. What they are asking for is more than fair, and long overdue. No, I'm pissed at those motherfucking douchebag producers and studio execs. I'm trying hard to think of one I've met that wasn't a greedy asshole, and... it's not coming to me.

Sorry to vent here in the comments. But hey -- if any of your LA readers needs an assistant...?

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

No, I totally know what you mean (and I'm sorry to hear about your job, too)--my mother and I were talking about what a bleak Christmas it's going to be with all the writers and therefore all the crews, etc., also out of work. And I bet a lot of people are angry at the writers, because there wouldn't be a strike without them. But on the other hand, there also wouldn't be a strike if the execs would pony up a smidge of their millions and billions (like you're saying). So yeah, it's unpleasant all around.

[singeaddams.livejournal.com]

ME: "Victoria! NEVER LEAVE ME AGAIN!" *huggles*

Me, too! Although I did think the dresses looked pretty horrendous. Or was it the models?

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Weren't the dresses actual antique dresses? They looked like they were from about the 1840s or so. In which case, fabric colors tended to be kind of odd (to us) because they were generally seen under dim, yellow candlelight or gaslight.

[wenchsenior.livejournal.com]

VICTORIA!!!!!!


My dreamy youth returns!

[crumpeteer.livejournal.com]

How did David Bowie manage to look so dapper in his mug shot?

[gannet-guts.livejournal.com]

He has his special powers of hotness, of course!

[gannet-guts.livejournal.com]

Oh total shivers at that The Mist clip. Need to see this, now!

[word-herder.livejournal.com]

Lost...Noooo....

*whimper*

[evilbearhunter.livejournal.com]

Hey Cleo, could you pimp something for me in your next linkspam? This (http://www.stopcorporateabusenow.org/stopcorporateabuse/advocacy/ealarson-569000) is a pledge for people to sign to say that they won't drink bottled water. Bottled water is bad for a number of reasons: the water is taken from third world countries and then sold back with a huge mark-up, what's not shipped half-way around the world is just regular tap water, filtered and poured into bottles, the promotion of corporate interests has led to the dismantling of local water systems (think about how few places you can find a water fountain, then how many places you can find a soda machine with bottled water in it), the bottles themselves are unnecessary waste, you get the idea. If you don't mind (this is by far the less important point), please come back to evilbearhunter.livejournal.com to leave a comment saying that you took the pledge so I can get some idea of how many people are signing it because of me.

If people reading the comments are going to sign, please leave a comment on this comment so I can get some kind of count.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Can do. I'll link to your comment so people can get all the info here.

[skyblade.livejournal.com]

In theory, I don't hold it against Degenres for not holding up the show. It is a different format than late night talk shows. They're simply living up to contractual obligations. As I understand it, Neil Gaiman is still doing press rounds for Beowulf. Actors are still doing premieres for their movies, and believe me, if they can revel in the opulent splendor side of the business without getting shit, I think they should be able to fill out a contractual assignment--I'd rather the crews on set still have a job than all the vapid psuedojouranlists who write about stars of and premieres for movies they have no intention of seeing. I think there is a gray area between "industry solidarity" and "leave other people holding the bag".

However, it'd be nice if Degeneres was you know, a little less fickle about it, and stood firm on whatever position. Publicity-wise, that could do a lot of damage, if studios think people can cave on the matter.

[lovefromgirl.livejournal.com]

Mother and I were both so pleased to find Victoria in our mailbox this month, yes. *happy sigh* Every month, they used to come, like clockwork. Now it's bimonthly, but I don't care; it's a piece of my childhood back, and much better days for all of us.

[wirrrn.livejournal.com]

I'll always remember Mailer for the hilarious trailer for his film TOUGH GUYS DON'T DANCE, in which he read, to camera, both the positive and negative reviews for the film "Excellent, Crazy entertainment, very funny" "...a giant death orgy with lots of maniacs"

Has Crispin Glover had some work done? His face looks a bit different...

[thegeneralerin.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the info about the writers' strike. Those are some different perspectives that I hadn't seen on my Google Reader.

[koritsimou.livejournal.com]

YOur icon..... MST3K quote?

[chorusgirl.livejournal.com]

Hey, I haven't seen anything in your recent posts (but maybe I'm just blind), do you know anything about how Project Download is going?

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

I haven't had a chance to update--Neil Gaiman and the Something Positive guy both linked to it, so it's doing well, but not as well as I'd like in terms of meeting the goal. Which is why I wanted to talk about it again, when I get a chance.

[aqeldroma.livejournal.com]

I'm working for Hearst/Sterling atm and they are all very excited about the new Victoria too :D

[mialoubug.livejournal.com]

I have EVERY ISSUE EVER of Victoria! I subscribed from the beginning and can't bear to part with them. AND I just got my NEW ONE in the mail!

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Omg I am so jealous. I have issues scattershot over the whole run that I hoard jealously. Actually, I'm not sure where half of them are--I think they may have gotten misplaced over a couple of moves. D :

(There totally needs to be some Scan In Your Old Victoria project.)

[newsong.livejournal.com]

You should put a link to the Free Rice site on your bottom links for awhile so people can bookmark it =)

[thegeneralerin.livejournal.com]

I just really like that your icon looks like it was drawn on Post-It notes. It's very cute!

[cosette-esk.livejournal.com]

Ok I officially have to subscribe to that magazine, NOW. The toned-downess doesn't bother me even though I'm the kind of person who would wear a bustle to work. Oh and also I'm hyperventilating over those Golden Compass TV spots.

Lions for Lambs

[promise19.livejournal.com]

OK... I just wanted to share my moment of Tom Cruise schaedenfreud. There was a "related story" link at the bottom of one of your MSNBC links to one captioned "Tom Cruise Worried About Lions" (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21693933/)-- so I click and find out that he's concerned about Lions for Lambs, his first foray with the new film company, bombing at the box office. So I checked boxoffice.com and their estimate for the weekend take as of 1 a.m. cst Monday was a mere $6.71M (4th place). Fred Claus racked up more than 3 x the box office coming in at $19.23M (3rd place. To give you an even better idea of how bad that is, Dan in real life brought in $5.87M (around $800K less) and it's in it's THIRD weekend! Sorry Tommy Boy!

[msilverstar]

You give the best links!