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February 17, 2009

FEB 21: "TAG THE WORLD" TO HOST LA LAUNCH ON OSCAR EVE WITH HOLLYWOOD'S BRIGHTEST STARS

TLR Featured Event - posted by Don Rose

On Saturday, February 21st, 2009, Tag the World will welcome the Oscar crowd to raise money for their latest cause from 9pm until Midnight. Tag the World Charities will be having its official Los Angeles launch at Hollywood’s hottest new nightlife destination, MyHouse (6621 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles). In conjunction with the launch, Tag the World has partnered with the American Humane Film & Television Unit, known by its famous movie end-credit, “No Animals Were Harmed”. American Humane protects the welfare of animals on more than 1,000 productions each year and was on the set of many of this years Oscar-nominated movies including The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Milk, The Dark Knight, Revolutionary Road, Tropic Thunder, Iron Man and The Changeling.

Tag the World is a non-profit organization with new innovative charitable concepts. Its mission: to raise awareness and funds for world causes while creating a fashionable way to support charities. Tag the World’s purpose is to help many established charities under several main causes: Cancer, Africa, Global, Green, Children and Animals. Tag the World founder Robert Parks-Valletta has partnered with the exclusive designer Michael Barin to create a set of beautiful sterling silver tag necklaces that help spread the word about their unique cause. The necklace tags are antiqued in finish emphasizing the original handcrafted design. This unique style of jewelry is fashionable, personal, and will catch the eyes of many.

Every time a tag is purchased, the individual gets to choose which charity their proceeds will benefit. By providing this opportunity, that individual is able to help improve the world and feel as of their donation is going towards a charity that may hit close to home.

Proceeds from the event on February 21st go to Tag the World and The American Humane Society. Tag the World is partnering with the American Humane Society’s Film and Television Unit to provide a unique Oscar weekend event that attracts Hollywood’s most exclusive A-list clientele. One of the biggest nights in Hollywood, it will be an evening to celebrate and be fashionable yet also enjoy the ability to help others as role models through their own stories.

Robert Parks-Valletta of Tag the World and the American Humane Film & Television Unit are proud to have this event launch on such an honored weekend -- with event hosts Amber Valletta and Mark Walberg, two big supporters of the charity -- at Hollywood’s most sought after new nightlife venue, MyHouse.

For more information on Tag the World, please go to www.tagtheworld.com.

February 16, 2009

FEB 20-21: GBK (GBK PRODUCTIONS) TO HOST "CIRCUS OF THE SENSES" OSCARS GIFT SUITE IN HONOR OF 2009 ACADEMY AWARDS NOMINEES AND PRESENTERS

GBK Gift Suite to Give 20% of Proceeds to Its Benefiting Charitable Organizations: Director Antoine Fuqua’s FUQUA FILMS PROGRAM; HOMELESS NOT TOOTHLESS; HOLLYWOOD DREAMZ and WORLDTEAM FOUNDATION

INTRODUCING A NEW WAY TO GIVE: Attending Celebrities Will Also Have Amazing Opportunity to Gift Back Their GBK Gift Bag to The Charity of THEIR Choice


TLR Featured Event - Posted by Don Rose

GBK (http://www.gbkproductions.com/), the luxury lifestyle gift suites and special events company, will honor the 2009 Academy Award Nominees and Presenters with its 4th Annual GBK Academy Award Gift Suite - “Circus of The Senses” - on February 20 & 21, 2009 in Beverly Hills. GBK, the recipient of BizBash’s 2006 Award for Emmy’s “Best Gift Bag,” will offer its exclusive list of invited celebrities, VIPs, and Media an opportunity to experience ‘A Circus of The Senses’ as they touch, feel, see, smell and taste their way through this Academy Awards Themed Gift Suite.

With help from Freshwata (a boutique design company), each gift room will represent a 2009 Academy Awards Nominated Best Film: “Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Frost/Nixon,” “Milk,” “Slumdog Millionaire,” “The Reader,” and the décor, drink and surprise elements in each space will be specifically tailored towards each film. Also provided: hors d’oeuvres and sweets from famed chef José Andrés, including homemade Bon-Bon’s topped with “Oscar” Gold Dust. In addition, all the goods and services gifted in this year’s suite will also bring in the 5 Senses in one form or another. With a trendsetting array of products, services and health & beauty treatments, Nominees and Presenters will to walk away with more than $35,000 in gifted luxury.

2009 Academy Award Nominees & Presenters will receive goods & services including:

§ SIX SENSES DESTINATION SPA IN THAILAND: A five night stay + meals + spa services in choice of 2 five star spas in Thailand (Over $10,000 value);

§ MILUS: Gifting elegant watches from their exclusive line ($10,000 value);

§ DR. CHIU’S BEVERLY HILLS PLASTIC SURGERY, INC.: A One Year gift certificate of cosmetic treatments such as facials, chemical or organic peels and microdermabrasion ($3,000 Value);

§ WATERFOD CRYSTAL: Set of 8 Classic Waterford Crystal Glasses;

§ INDULGENT ESCAPES: The finest in luxury travel, select celebrities will receive 5-night vacations at exclusive resorts provided by IndulgentEscapes.com. Some of the vacations options include Raffles Canouan Island, The Crane Resort, Barbados, Beach and Water Club in Puerto Rico, Morritts Grand Cayman as well as other properties in the Caribbean and Mexico.

§ THE SPORTS CLUB/LA: A One Year membership to any of their fitness clubs ($2,000 value);

§ “GOLDEN” TREATMENT: Complimentary gift to the 2009 Oscar Nominees and Presenters: A one-night stay at the Philippe Stark-designed SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills, dinner for two at The Bazaar by José Andrés, and any spa treatment of choice at the newly launched Ciel Spa at SLS. ($1,000 Value);

§ TRISPECS: Stylish sunglasses with built in ear buds, capable of switching between voice communication and stereo music with the push of a button ($200 value);

§ LIFE CELL SKIN CARE: Skin care hailed as one of the most potent needle-free skin care treatment available to science, making lines and wrinkles vanish before your eyes ($500 value);

§ REVITALASH: Gifting eyelash conditioner that lengthens and thickens eye lashes, as well as their new hair product called Hair by RevitaLash, a conditioner that gives you thicker and fuller hair ($150 value each).

Other great products include: BARBARA CONNER JEWELRY, Tahitan, South Seas and fresh water jewelry; K-SWISS, their latest model shoes; METROPOLIS high end curling and flat irons, NORDIC NATURALS, the purest in Omega-3 Fish Oils; NOUROT GLASS STUDIO, art glass pieces in the Italian tradition; VERVE! ENERGY DRINKS, a one-years supply of their healthy energy drink.

On the beauty front, invited guests will also be pampered with on-site beauty treatments and beauty products from BODY BEAUTIFUL, slimming body wraps and rejuvenating facials; MISTURA BEAUTY, applying mineral-based multi-functional makeup; 9022 SALON, hair cuts and styling by private boutique salon owners, Patrick Theohar and Merlin Osbourne.

And, lastly, to honor its continued commitment to charitable giving, GBK will donate 20% of its proceeds from this year’s Oscar suite in the name of all celebrities in attendance to these specially chosen charities: FUQUA FILMS PROGRAM, Noted Film Director Antoine Fuqua (The Shooter, “Training Day and this year’s big hit at Sundance “Brooklyn’s Finest)non-profit, HOMELESS NOT TOOTHLESS, an organization dedicated to providing dental care to the homeless; HOLLYWOOD DREAMZ, a charity dedicated to improving children’s lives by providing crucial support for children’s education, arts, and character development programs in the greater Los Angeles area, and WORLDTEAM FOUNDATION committed to the education and prevention of human trafficking.

Additionally, each benefiting charity will be given a GBK Celebrity Gift Bag from this year’s Oscar Suite filled with over $35,000 in goods & services so they’ll be able to auction it off to raise additional funds.

Finally, GBK will give attending celebrities an opportunity to gift back all or part of their GBK Gifted Products & Services TO THE CHARITY OF THEIR CHOICE. GBK will also coordinate the delivery.

GBK, formerly GBK Productions, is a luxury lifestyle gifting and special events company, specializing in entertainment marketing integration. Formed in 2000 by Gavin B. Keilly, the company’s Founder and CEO, GBK consists of five divisions: GBK Celebrity Gifting Lounges; GBK Events; GBK Weddings; GBK Charitable Consulting; and GBK Marketing/PR. Widely known in the entertainment industry for bringing that little extra something into the Gifting Suite environment, GBK offers its clients a full range of marketing services. For more information on Gavin B. Keilly or GBK, please go to gbkproductions.com.

For More Information on FUQUA FILMS PROGRAM, go to fuquafilmsprogram.org.
For More Information on HOLLYWOOD DREAMZ, go to hollywoodreams.org.
For More Information on HOMELESS NOT TOOTHLESS, go to homelessnottoothless.org.
For More Information on WORLD TEAM FOUNDATION, go to world-team-foundation.org.

BUSH, CHENEY PHOTO AT OBAMA INAUGURATION: IS BUSH WATCHING TV DURING OBAMA SPEECH?

by Don Rose

Love this image from the Obama Inauguration. The last picture of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney together in power, or should I say having just lost it. The Dastardly Duo are seen here sitting behind Obama as the new President delivers his Inauguration Speech. I must say, Cheney in the wheelchair and black hat looks part Snidely Whiplash, part Mr. Potter from It's a Wonderful Life, with a dash of Dr. Strangelove. Meanwhile, Bush is in typical W mode, looking impatient with pursed lips and... what the... is he watching television? In the middle of Obama's historic speech? Sure looks like he's holding a smartphone here. Maybe it's streaming CNN, so he can see what he can't see live, since he's seated BEHIND the new Prez. Okay, that makes sense. Or is he texting? "I cnt b leev hw long ths is takng. I think Dik's asleep. Wish i was". Or maybe W's just holding Obama's Blackberry for him (or should I say Barackberry)...


FYI, this closeup was captured after zooming in on a longshot GIGAPAN image that is created by integrating many photos of a scene into a zoomable panorama. Start long and wide, then zoom in again and again; each time the image refocuses into sharpness. Quite fun to fiddle with. There are other similar technologies that also let you combine many images into one megaphoto or metaphoto or gigaphoto (pick your prefix) that you can pan and zoom. Microsoft's Photosynth is one such technology. Photosynth transforms a set of 2D shots into a kind of 3D navigable image. Their "Obama moment" megaphoto of the Oath garnered lots of attention (I'm sure Chief Justice Roberts has played with it many times, to relive that magic moment he made so memorable).

Final note: after zooming in for an even closer look, it seems the W-smartphone-holding theory may have been a bit premature. He might just be clapping and the "phone" may be a trick of the light and angle and that water bottle behind W's gloves. Guess we'll never know.

February 15, 2009

FEB 15: JIMMY DEMERS SINGS AT VIBRATO IN POST-VALENTINE'S DAY SHOW HOSTED BY PAULA ABDUL

Singer and American Idol judge Paula Abdul is hosting an evening to hear Jimmy Demers perform this Sunday. Just one day after Valentine's Day you can come to Vibrato to hear a love song or two as Jimmy sings excellent songs from his new CD, "Dream a Little" on Concord Records.

According to Jimmy, "Paula has advised making a reservation for dinner to guarantee a seat, otherwise you can just wing it and ... watch me sing from the bar."

Sunday Evening, February 15, 2009. Jimmy Demers concert at Vibrato on Beverly Glen, just south of Mulholland. 2930 Beverly Glen Circle, Bel Air CA 90077, Phone 310.474.9400. Contact info for Jimmy: 310.281.6146 (LA), 212.714.7111 (New York), www.jimmydemers.com. Event info: http://www.vibratogrilljazz.com/calendar/index.php?event=Jimmy_Demers&calview=event&event_id=1634&prevview=month&year=2009&month=02&day=15&type_id=&clickdate=2009-02-15

FEB 16: FREE LACMA MUSEUM ADMISSION FOR PRESIDENTS DAY

LACMA, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, is FREE this Monday. Yep. If you have the day off on the national Presidents Day holiday, there will be no need to spend your Abes and Georges to get in. Bring your friends and family to LACMA's Target Free Holiday Monday on February 16 for totally free admission, artists talks, and more.

February 14, 2009

FEB 15: FREE "FUEL" SCREENING IN TWO THEATRES, GO!

Here is an email we received at The LA Report - we highly recommend you see this great film, which we reviewed a few days ago - and you even get to go FREE if you read below:

"FUEL, the 2008 Sundance Audience Award winner for Best Documentary, is showing for a very limited time here in LA. Certainly an inspiring environmental film, but more importantly FUEL offers up some new perspectives and possibilities on creating tomorrow's generation of energy sources. Well-produced and the soundtrack is pretty bangin' too. Details at www.thefuelfilm.com.

"In order for this film to get more time in the theaters and national distribution, it needs to get seen by 2000+ while here this week. To help with that, we've arranged two free showings for you and your friends this Sunday night at 7pm (one in Santa Monica, one in West Hollywood). If interested, send an email to Rebecca Harrell (rebecca@thefuelfilm.com) with the word "ABUNDANCE" in the subject line and include your name and choice of theater (see below) for either 7pm show this Sunday 2/15. The filmmakers would love to see a ton of people out in the theater so feel free to pass this offer on to your friends."

7PM: AMC Loews Broadway 4
1441 3rd Street Promenade
Santa Monica, CA, 90401
or
7PM: Laemmle Sunset 5
8000 Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA, 90046.

TOP TWELVE THINGS THAT MAKE TWIISTUP TERRIFIC

by Don Rose

Today's Valentine's Day. It's also Tw+Two -- that is, two days since the terrific Twiistup (Episode 5) took place at Santa Monica's Hangar 8 space with roughly 1000 excited guests, the techtelligentsia of LA, the cyber cream of the crop enjoying top notch exhibit booths, food, drinks, games, networking and much more. So, I thought, why not combine the two themes? Here goes: a dozen reasons (think of them as a dozen virtual roses) why I love Twiistup:

1. Showoffs Shine - Twiistup, at its heart, is all about showing off the best new tech startups, many of which are based in the Los Angeles area. Wake up, Silicon Valley -- LA Alley has arrived big time. The LA tech scene is healthy and growing and may just overtake you. Some of the showoff startups that won praise at Twiistup 5 included: Scour (social search, where you get points for surfing that you can redeem for Visa giftcards, sweet!), Cogi (record phone conversations or use it for dictation, sounds like it could be a journo's dream), Chi.mp (free websites to organize your online social life), Socialsimple.com (also aims to org your soc life, see your social networks on one page, etc), Heavybagmedia.com (they held a cool SMS scavenger hunt where clues were texted to players' cellphones, which holds great promise for promoting businesses who have specials, can you imagine flashmobs suddenly swamping, say, Subway after getting texts for special deals?), Cybercoders.com (tech talent recruiters who place professionals in all sorts of tech jobs, they had a kind of cyberdome to hang out in at the show, and friendly founder Heidi is a joy to talk to), Fixya (largest online tech forum community, said their booth), Userplane (a showoff that has been there with a Twiistup booth since the early days, very friendly and helpful staff explaining their services - you may know them for their enhanced IM app) and many more. Even Jake Steinfeld was there (of "Body by Jake" fame, the guy who trained Spielberg) promoting his new book about business. For the full Showoffs list, go to http://www.twiistup.com/.

2. The amazing venue for Tw5 -- the huge hangar meant more room to roam; since these events are so awesomely cool they always attract a packed crowd, but this time everyone could luxuriate with space galore. Plenty of nearby parking too.

3. Twiistup founders Mike and Stephanie Macadaan -- two of the nicest people you will ever meet, who are always making sure their guests have a great time, always pick the coolest venues, and always select the most unique and exciting Showoffs at each event. They deserve huge kudos for taking Twiistup to greater and greater heights with each edition (Twiistup 1 was at Zanzibar in Santa Monica with a few hundred people, while Twiistup 5 had an astounding thousand).

4. Shira -- a wonderful MC, the hot host with the most: sharp, fun, generates buzz and excitement for whoever she is interviewing during the event. Shira: she rocks.

5. Twiistup.com -- an excellent website, with tons of info, and myriad ways to connect with folks and win valuable prizes before the actual event occurs; check it out and get social with the coolest tech minds around.

6. The networking -- you leave with pockets full of valuable business cards when you attend Twiistup. Even waiting in the (fast moving) line to get in you'll meet a dozen people you resonate with. The top talent of the LA tech scene always comes out for Twiistup in mass quantities.

7. Value -- Think about all they provide: Twiistup 5 had over a dozen showoffs to meet, 1000 top creative cybertechgeeks to socialize with, open bars (including ), cigars (see item 11 below), giveaways and raffles, food from Kogi BBQ, 5 full hours of fun, all for $75; quite the deal. Do the math: food and a few cocktails at any eatery worth its salt and pepper would set you back 75 smackers -- and get you lots less biz cards. (I also loved how the Tw5 bars had plenty of Honest Tea, one of The LA Report's favorite non-alcoholic drinks, in pomegranate and punch. No, I was not paid for that plug. Hansens' new line of natural energy drinks also pleased partygoers.) The best testament to Twiistup's bang for the buck can be found in the sales stats: 1000 people bought Tw5 tickets, with 300 more on a waiting list wishing they were in.

8. Fun -- yes, the fun factor was in full force, with Tw5's 80s theme, cool outfits, retro chairs to lounge in (remember those eggish roundish cushioned chairs from the 70s/80s?), chic geek heaven all around. And an essential element of Twiistup fun is the fact that you always get...

9. Surprises! -- like The Dating Game at Tw5. Who else but Twiistup would concoct the idea to have a fun version of this popular TV show where tech PR babe Heather Meeker had to select among three eligible techgeek bachelors. Again, the fun factor. I was humming the original TV theme by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass in my head. (Bet you never thought you'd get a Herb Alpert reference here. See? Surprises! And by the way, his music during one period sold more than the Beatles; wikipedia him. Bet you never saw wikipedia as a verb before. See? Surprises!) And you never know who will show up --- for example, a dead-ringer Bono double held court at a previous Twiistup and you'd absolutely swear the Irish U2 frontman was right there mingling amongst us mere mortals. See http://www.bonodouble.com/. His name's Pavel, but his body's Bono. Where else but Twiistup could you see a sight like that? (Fun fact: I actually worked with Pavel a few years ago, when a firm hired a dozen lookalikes for a party; his Bono rocked, as usual, while I got to channel Garth from Wayne's World; yep, blonde wig, black glasses, drumsticks and all. I might even send you a pic if you e-me...)

10. Giveaways -- Twiistup is superswagolicious, since showoffs like to shower guests with goodies -- some promotional, sure, but always creative. Scour even went so far as to staple dollar bills to the flyers they were handing out (a tad enticing in tough times, and a brilliant marketing ploy to lure Twiistuppers into grabbing a flyer -- hey, a buck ain't chopped liver, and it gets the point across that you do make dough using their social search service). The raffles by Showoffs were also stellar, including an XBOX by Socialsimple and a cool electric Trikke by Cogi. And there was a brand-new giveaway during this latest Twiistup... cigars! Yep, you could even get handrolled cigars outside by the heat lamps and enjoy some Puffy action for a while. (No, not P.Diddy. Come on. And no, no sight of President Clinton.)

11. Games - even before Twiistup took place, you could get some fun gaming action via Ringorang (www.ringorang.bom), which ran a trivia game that incorporated Twiistup people into the gameplay. At the actual event, you could partake in classic arcade games via Multicade (remember that 80's theme!) as well as more modern mayhem via a 3D shoot-em-up and, of course, the greatest gaming hit in recent memory, Guitar Hero.

12. The joy of anticipation -- for Twiistup 6. (They may have to hold it in the Superdome...)

February 12, 2009

TLR BEST BET: "FUEL"; DOCUMENTARY, OPENING FEB 13, IS A MUST-SEE OSCAR-WORTHY JOY THAT INSPIRES, EDUCATES AND MAY JUST "FUEL" A REVOLUTION

Event/Film Review by Don Rose

Go see "Fuel"! In theatres! This weekend if possible! Spread the word!
Why am I so excited? Read on...

The new documentary "Fuel" was screened at a special VIP event February 11th to a lively crowd of folks who, after braving the cold temps to watch the film, gave it rousing cheers. A panel discussion followed, moderated by the host of Air America's "Hollywood Clout" talk show, Richard Greene, featuring the film's director, Josh Tickell, as well as actor Peter Fonda. The event was held in the perfect spot (Brentwood's Conserv Fuel station, which sells both old-school gasoline and its better-for-environment cousin featured in "Fuel", Bio Diesel). During the evening, libations were served (including drinks from one of The LA Report's favorite companies, Steaz - love their Peach Ice Tea!), as well as samplings of hot tea, healthy savory snacks and sweet treats. Other celebs and notables in attendance, in addition to Greene and Fonda, included actor James Cromwell, and Lisa Garr, host of KPFK's excellent program, The Aware Show (http://www.theawareshow.com/).

The LA Report highly recommends that everyone go see this film, and tell ten others to do the same. This weekend is the best time to go, for at least 3 reasons: (1) the director will be appearing here in LA, and it is inspiring to hear Josh speak; (2) a strong opening weekend box office will help keep the film in theatres, and (3) big tix sales will show Hollywood that audiences are hungering for this kind of movie experience: enlightening while entertaining, informative while inspirational.

To convey a sense of this film's importance and quality, I consider "Fuel" to be a cinematic soul-brother to "An Inconvenient Truth" and every bit its equal (one of that film's producers, Laurie David, even appears in "Fuel"). Tickell's film also deserves to follow the same path as "...Truth" to win the Oscar for Best Documentary. To go a bit further with this analogy, "Fuel" could be considered the intellectual heir of "An Inconvenient Truth" and "Fahrenheit 911", integrating and inheriting some of the techniques, controversies and narrative power of both films into a new whole. I think we will look back at these three films as this decade's daringest documentaries, and its most politically potent. The top trio of the "Oh-Oh" years.

While all three of these docs are highly entertaining while conveying important information, "Fuel" strikes me as a bit more concrete and hopeful. It not only packs Bio-Diesel-truckloads of information for us to learn, but masterfully illustrates concrete steps that we the people, as well as cutting edge companies, can take and are already taking to solve the immense problems we face in the arena of power generation and consumption. BioDiesel, BioMass, Solar, Plugin Hybrids, Wind, even a kind of "Algae Energy" -- all these technologies are presented and shown to be viable options NOW, TODAY, not in some nebulous future. Even the end credits are packed with specific steps we can take to make a better world. By film's end, I felt for the first time that, my God, these persistent questions of can-we-get-off-polluting-fuels and what-ways-work actually have a positive answer: a combination of existing technologies that bright minds are already putting to work. It's not pie-in-the-sky Polly-Anna pipe dreams, it's real working solutions that come together to show how we can get off polluting power for good and get on with the green memes -- solutions already proven to be an economically plausible path to a sustainable world.

In short, "Fuel" shows us what our best and brightest future can be. We just have to claim it. Other countries are doing it (Sweden, for one, plans to be totally off fossil fuels by 2020 -- talk about 20/20 vision), and we can join the conscious caravan too. "Fuel" shows us the roadmap, and inspires us by showing we can get to the desired destination, powered by a combination of private investment plus more intelligent use of government resources (like, say, no more $300 million per day for an Iraq war that only gives us access to foolish fuels that kill us, for instance).

So, big kudos to director Josh Tickell for a stellar achievement, one which may just "Fuel" a revolution in our thinking about how we can solve our energy woes while also saving the planet -- and ourselves. Everyone should see this film. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

In fact, Peter Fonda proposed a great idea during the post-screening panel. He plans to buy lots of tickets and give them to friends so they can see this great movie. Smart idea. By pre-buying packs of passes, he can boost ticket sales opening weekend while making it easier for his friends to see the film. Just the kind of win-win idea this film is filled with. And with Valentine's Day arriving the day after "Fuel" opens, I can't think of a better gift for one's loved ones.

Special thanks to Dawna Shuman and Nicole Landers, who put on a great event, as they always do; they have earned a well-deserved reputation as the preeminent PR team for green-oriented eco-conscious events in Los Angeles.

Feb. 13, 2009: opening day for documentary "Fuel". Check local listings for times and locations. Website: www.theFUELfilm.com. Film features director Josh Tickell as well as Woody Harrelson, Sheryl Crow, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, Julia Roberts, Richard Branson, Larry Hagman and more in an intellectual and emotional powerhouse that is a cinematic cousin to "An Inconvenient Truth," "Fahrenheit 911" and "Who Killed the Electric Car." A TLR BEST BET.

February 8, 2009

FEB 8: AMANDA FOUNDATION MARTINI MADNESS BENEFIT AT LOLA'S ON FAIRFAX

Posted by Don Rose

The Amanda Foundation invites you to celebrate the one love that will never let you down: the one you share with your furry pal! The event is called MARTINI MADNESS! Sunday, February 8, 2009 from 5:30 to 8:30 pm at LOLA’S RESTAURANT, 945 North Fairfax Avenue, Hollywood, 90046. Valet parking is available.

Find the perfect gift at the silent auction, lounge by the pool (table that is), or get a Tarot card reading about romance! Take a chance on the “Ruff Raffle” AND enjoy “HEARTBREAKER MARTINIS” included with your admission! Wine and soft drinks are also offered, complemented by scrumptious tasties from Lola’s fabulous kitchen! All this for just $35. And to think you can help save a dog or cat’s life and have fun at the same time —— ya gotta love that! RSVP: 310-550-0101 from 9 am to 6 pm; after 6pm call 310-278-2935.

The LA Report thinks this event is a great deal, and for a great cause. A perfect pet-oriented pre-Grammy party! The silent auction is expected to include items such as Pet products, Hotel Packages, Restaurant and Spa Giftcards, Celebrity Items, Jewelry, Gift baskets and more; sounds like plenty of possible Valentine's Day gifts to choose from.

February 4, 2009

MCCARTNEY VS. COLBERT: FUNNIEST INTERVIEW THIS YEAR (FROM THE COLBERT REPORT, COMEDY CENTRAL, STREAMED ON HULU.COM)

Here is the best interview of the year so far: Stephen Colbert giving the "Colbert bump" (and Colbert treatment) to Paul McCartney. Funny, well produced, and you even get a duet between Sir Paul and Stephen (Ebony and Ivory, no less). Paul plugs his latest album, "The Fireman: Electric Arguments"... Colbert claims to not know any of Paul's work... and Paul accuses the Dalai Lama of resorting to cannabilism in an emergency...

http://www.hulu.com/watch/55318/the-colbert-report-better-know-a-beatle---paul-mccartney