PRISON BREAK RETURNS (AGAIN? STILL?)
Is Wentworth Miller reason enough to tune in?

For anyone who is still a fan of Prison Break, TGIF is about to take on a whole new meaning.

Prison Break comes back to TV for a new season this Friday night (April 17) and will show on that night thereafter.

I'm hangin' in there, but just barely. After the extremely intriguing early days of this series, it all got to be a bit much when the focus turned to Panama.

Since then, I'm watching it mostly only because it's a case of "I've watched it this long, I may as well see how it ends".

And also because Wentworth Miller is, quite simply, a whole wide world of deee-lish!

That said, it's entirely possible that the following video is way more entertaining than Prison Break will be on Friday night:

WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO DESERVE THIS?
Pet Shop Boys receive odd request from PETA

There's quite a hilarious story coming from the Pet Shop Boys today.

PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) sent a letter to Neil Tennant & Chris Lowe of Pet Shop Boys with a request they officially change their name to Rescue Shelter Boys.

Sounds like yet another in a long list of creative, guerilla tactics employed by PETA to get folks rethinking the ways humans interact with our friends from kingdom animalia.

But despite the urgency and significance of the PETA request, Pet Shop Boys didn't take long to ponder the unusual suggestion.

Check this out, it's from the BBC

Pop group Pet Shop Boys have revealed they have turned down a request by animal rights group Peta to rename themselves the Rescue Shelter Boys.

"Peta Europe has written to Pet Shop Boys with a request they are unable to agree to," reads a post on the band's official website.

But the band admits the request "raises an issue worth thinking about".

Peta's letter requests the name change because of the cruelty it alleges takes place in the pet trade.

If the band were to agree to the name change, it continues, it would "encourage your millions of fans to consider giving a home to an abandoned or unwanted animal from an animal shelter".

In her letter, Peta's special projects manager Yvonne Taylor admits that her request "may at first seem bizarre".

It goes on to list a series of criticisms against the way pet shops obtain, maintain and house their animals.

Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe were inspired to call themselves the Pet Shop Boys by friends who worked in a pet shop in west London.

Originally named West End, the electronic pop duo won a Brit award for their outstanding contribution to music earlier this year.

The group - whose hits include West End Girls, Heart and It's A Sin - released Yes, their 10th studio album, last month.

HA! Love it. PETA has a very unique way of getting attention. And I appreciate Pet Shop Boys decency in acknowledging the issue raised by PETA's query.

It'll never ever happen, but you gotta give props to PETA for having the cajones.

Bee-tee-double-u, have you heard/seen the new Pet Shop Boys single, Love Etc.? It's from their new album "Yes" and ya know, it's not too shabby at all.

U-F-Ok
Monsters vs. Aliens = Good vs. Times

What better way to spend Thank Goddess It’s GOOD Friday than a matinee of Monsters vs. Aliens 3D.

I’ve been kinda dying to see this movie since it came out a couple weeks ago, so this afternoon Me and M-dub went down to the old Paramount to check it oot.

The film has a great cast which had me looking forward to the voice work; Reese Witherspoon, Seth Rogen, Will Arnett & Hugh Laurie voice the four main characters. But it wasn’t until after the film that I also realized my lover Paul Rudd is in it, too! He voices Derek, a self-absorbed TV anchorman wedded to Susan at the film’s opening.

Monsters vs. Aliens follows the classic good vs. evil theme and is teeming with imaginative animated effects and clever dialogue. There’s quite a good amount of LOL-worthy scenes, especially Stephen Colbert’s synthesizer-playing U.S. president who gets down with his bad self in a hilarious music sequence set to Harold Faltermeyer’s gem Axel F.

Another great, funny scene is with the high school kids on a date, making out in the front seat of a car, the boy portrayed as a jock – a gymnast to be exact – with a personalized license plate which reads GYM-NASTY who would rather sing along to an old Journey tune on the radio than get hot n’ heavy with his girl.

Despite laughs and wit, me and M-dub later agreed that Monsters vs. Aliens is forgettable.

That sentiment doesn't result from a lack of enjoyment in watching this film. The movie is quite good, and it’s a whole lotta fun to watch while it’s on the screen in front of you (playing out in Intel’s gorgeous InTru3D technology).

But as soon as it's over, so is the feeling generated by watching it. Methinx it just kinda lacked some depth, some heart, some relatable elements that let you connect on an emotional level.

Movies like Shrek, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles… all those films live in my memory as among the greatest animated films I’ve ever seen. And it’s not just the pleasure of the creativity of those films I recall, but also the lasting feeling I have from having basically fallen in love with those films when I first watched them.

As for Monsters vs. Aliens, I can definitely say that my favourite character is B.O.B. voiced by Seth Rogen. B.O.B. is just so funny, so cute, so totally dumb... ya can't help but love him. He's described in the film as 'goop that somehow gained consciousness', a description portrayed perfectly hilarious by Seth Rogen.

We were interested to note in the end credits something I’ve never seen before... which was Dreamworks (the studio which produced the film) preferred processor is Intel. I think the credits also included that HP is the preferred hardware or something like that, but I could be wrong on the specifics of that one.

Overall, Monsters vs. Aliens is a good film and well-worth seeing, but for me it’s already come and gone and I’m on to the next one.

Which in this case I think will be “Partly Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”, coming out this Fall. Seriously, this move looks GREAT! Check out the trailer:

TWEETS & TWITS & TWATS... OH MY!!!
Twitter gets skewered like souvlaki

If you're on Twitter (like I am), or you know someone who's on Twitter, are curious about Twitter, couldn't care less about Twitter, hate that thing called Twitter, hooked on Twitter like a whore on crack or any combination of the above, well then...

This Vid's For You!

L to the O to the L!

Interestingly enough, it was the "Twitter nation" today which informed Madonna's manager Guy O'Seary of the plea from an Italian mayor for Madonna to help the victims of the Italian earthquake with a financial donation.

MADONNA DONATES $$$ TO ITALIAN EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS
"Rescue me, your love has given me hope"

This'll show the haters who think that Madonna doesn't deserve to be allowed to adopt a child.

Madonna today responded to a call from the mayor of Pacentro, Italy for financial assistance to aid in the recovery efforts after Tuesday's devastating earthquake in Italy.

Here's a photo from BBC of a road near Fasso, Italy clearly showing the effects of the earthquake.

Reports estimate the donation to be in the half a million dollar range which is about 376,480 Euros. Here's more from People Magazine on Madonna's donation:

When a devastating earthquake struck the Abruzzo region of Italy on Monday, the mayor of the hamlet of Pacentro made an appeal for help to the granddaughter of two former townspeople. The following morning, that granddaughter responded in a big way.

Madonna, whose paternal grandparents lived in Pacentro until 1919, made a "substantial donation" for the relief effort following the 6.3 magnitude quake that left more than 200 dead, says her publicist Liz Rosenberg. The rep wouldn't give the amount, but a source says it's about $500,000.

"I am happy to lend a helping hand to the town that my ancestors are from," Madonna tells PEOPLE. "My heart goes out to the families that have lost loved ones or their homes."

I, for one, am impressed by Madonna's responsiveness to the disaster in Italy. I'm not at all surprised that she has offered some financial aid to the Italians in her grandparent's home town.

After all, for a long time now Madonna has demonstrated deep pride in her heritage:

You go, Madge!

In an interesting related story, an Italian geophysicist continues to stir the scientific pot by claiming in media interviews since the earthquake struck that he predicted its occurrence.

There's a story from Reuters about this, check it out...

Earthquakes like the one that killed more than 200 people in Italy this week are still impossible to predict, and a local scientist's claims to have done so should be treated with caution, geophysicists say.

Gioacchino Giuliani is at the center of a debate about the limits of seismology after Italian officials shrugged off his warnings last month that a devastating earthquake in the central Abruzzo region was imminent.

In fact Giuliani, who works at the National Institute of Physics, was even reported to police for spreading panic.

You can read the rest of that story right about here

One last thing... I just came across a photo of Madonna from her most recent trip to Malawi. I hadn't seen this one before.

Not only does her jacket look like a Hefty Hefty Cinch Sack with zippers, but I swear the woman to her left is a dead ringer for Whoopi Goldberg circa The Color Purple.

Keep on reading... here's the link to Madonna's RAISING MALAWI website.

MADONNA REJECTED! LIKELY FEELS TRULY BLUE
Founder of Raising Malawi gets no Mercy

In a surprising development, the BBC has reported that Madonna has lost her bid to adopt a 4 year old girl named Mercy, in Malawi:

A Malawian court has ruled that US pop star Madonna has failed in her bid to adopt a second child from the country.

"I must have to decline to grant the application to Madonna," judge Esmie Chondo said in a ruling following a closed-door hearing on Friday.

According to reports, the application has been rejected over residency rules.

The 50-year-old singer flew into the southern African state on Sunday and applied to adopt four-year-old Chifundo James the following day.

The Associated Press news agency said Madonna's application had been rejected because of a requirement that prospective parents be resident in the country for 18 to 24 months.

It is not clear if Madonna was in court to hear the ruling or whether she plans to appeal against it.

Had Madonna's application been successful, the 14-month-old baby would have been a sister to David Banda, the first child Madonna adopted from the African country.

Chifundo, whose name translates into English as Mercy, is in the same orphanage that previously housed David, now three years old.

This is really shocking news! Can't wait to hear Madonna go on the record about THIS!

I wonder if this will affect her plans to build a learning academy for children in Malawi... it's a major new project funded by the charity she founded, Raising Malawi

VANCOUVER'S NEXT GAY TOP MODEL
And The Winner Is... CALAN!!!!!!

Calan is the winner of 2009's Vancouver's Next Gay Top Model!

That's right kids, it's time to give ginger snaps to somebody who I'm thinkin' is the happiest redhead in Vancouver :-)

Here's the look on Calan's face at the very moment his name was announced as the winner (he's in the middle with Joel and Adam on either side of him):

There must be a good reason the old saying, "May the best man win" rings true through the ages. Tonight was proof.

We had a great time at the show and I'll be posting a complete wrap of the event later today. Check back for that... in the meantime if you're interested in getting to know a little more about the winner of Vancouver's Next Gay Top Model 2009, here's a bit about Calan- in his own words - from the official Gay Top Model website

Age: 22
Ethnic roots: Scottish
Height: 6' 2.5
Weight: 175lbs
Shoe Size: 12
Hair Colour: Auburn/Red
Eye Colour: Hazel
Education: Completed High School
Vancouver… is the best city in the world - travelling tought me that!
Favourite place: the view from Grousse Mountain on a crystal clear day, or night.
Favourite quote: "Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose." - Janis Joplin

Not satisfied with that? Need to know more about Calan, winner of Vancouver's Next Gay Top Model 2009? Here's more about the man, again in his own words, but this time from his MySpace page

About me:
Hey I'm Calan, welcome to my page. I like going out with my friends and having an all around good time. If you look up the work "Aquarius" you will find my picture right next to it. I’m usually the one who randomly walks off and then you find me 10 minutes later talking to some random about almost anything. I’m a pretty confident guy but I have my shy moments around people I like, it’s rare but it happends. I’m not afraid to speak my mind when I feel strongly about something or when it comes to defending my friends. Friends and family mean the world to me and I would do pretty much do anything for them. I’m pretty laid back and easy going doing just about anything, bad drivers is the only thing that really gets me going. I feel comfortable in my own skin and in knowing who I am, not everyone will get the chance to find out who they really are so I’m glad I have. I’m nowhere near naive but I always believe the best in people and in second chances, people make mistakes, change and move on. As long as you learn from it that’s all that matters. I’m not into drugs and I’m only a social drinker, meaning once ever month or two and most of my friends are the same. I like to surround myself with people who have the same philosophy on life as I do, we’re only on this Earth for so long and I don’t want to waste anytime on pointless drama or being emo. Life is about enjoying it and being your own personal best, you only have to live up to your own standers and not everyone else’s. Coquitlam is my hometown and I love living here and so close to Vancouver, it’s one of the best places in the world. I'm currently traveling all over Europe for 2 1/2 months but after I will be living in London for about 2 years! Anyway, Peace!

I'm definintely happy for Calan - it's really great for him that he won this contest. Danny and I had the pleasure of meeting him back in January at Score and he is quite the charmer. Let's go back in time a few months, shall we, and remember our first meeting with Calan, the new winner of Vancouver's Next Gay Top Model.

The grand finale at Celebrities was a packed house (at least for most of the night) so I'm hoping that translates into alot of money raised for Friends for Life, the beneficiary of VNGTM.

I look forward to hearing what the numbers are once Mr. Costa's had a chance to get a little shut eye ;-)

Way to go, Calan! You worked hard and totally deserved to win. Besides, it only stands to reason that anything "made in the 80's" will do well ;-)

WELCOME TO NEW TORI AMOS MUSIC
Yahoo! for Welcome To England video premiere

Aaaaah, that's better ... I can now move slightly back from the the edge of my seat because I've just watched the NEW Tori Amos video for her NEW single "Welcome To England" from her NEW forthcoming album ABNORMALLY ATTRACTED TO SIN (Oh Tori, aren't we all my dear!?)

But I can only move slightly back, because truth be told I'm still all kinds of anxious and a whole wide world of excited for Tori's new disc to drop like manna from heaven.

But that's not until next month....

In the meantime, I'm pretty darn happy with what I've heard - and now seen - so far. So go on ahead and check it out for yourself. Here it is, the new Tori Amos video ... behold the goddess:



YEE to the HAW! Love Love LOVE it! I really like that song a whole lot. It is absolutely classic Tori. Although watching this video for Welcome To England could easily lead one to believe it should perhaps be re-titled as Welcome to London since there are so many great shots of jolly old London town in the video.

Ya just gotta totally dig the old school camera Tori (that would be blonde Tori) is using to take photos in the sequences filmed from inside one of the London Eye modules. Even the way she's holding it, she just drips from another era. But then again, Tori always did do that which is part of why I love her music. She's not only a timeless visionary, but she's also... era-less! (if that's even a word which I'm sure it's not but who cares I like it anyway ;-)

This video and song gets a Grade A from me.

Matter of fact, so does the Tori Amos co-founded RAINN - Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. It's there to help people who need the help, so check 'em out at RAINN.org