Well hell. My last audblog didn't post. It will probably show up later, five times or something....

Anyway, Catz so rocks. \m/

After dinner we were in the gift shop and they had the CUTEST SOFTEST stuffed bears. I swear, these things are made with the pubic hair of angels. So we both stood there fondling them for a few minutes, and Catz is so cool that she bought one for us both (I'm using the pic for the audblog image).

So we're like beanie bear buddies now. Hee!

We had a great dinner and I'm so annoyed that I'm sick and we didn't get to spend the whole evening having fun. I dropped her and her boy off at the Bellagio and I had to come home and put some Vicks on my throat and crawl into bed (sexy, no?).

But we're already planning a road trip or something as soon as an opportunity comes up.

Anyway, I'm off to bed.

*cough*

audio post powered by audblog

audio post powered by audblog

Wee Neo has had a bit of wanderlust ever since we returned from Seattle, so rather than listen to him bitch all the time about how I never take him anywhere ("dude, I've got a job. And like....cats and stuff, I can't be jetting around the globe on your whim.") I packed his bags, gave him some pocket money and sent him out into the world. Naturally, the first place he wanted to go was to visit Julie!. I'm so jealous.

Being a man of swift action, the first thing Neo realised upon arriving in Holland was that he needed to have some form of transportation. So, he quickly charmed Julie!’s cat Foodsnatcher into give him piggyback rides wherever he needed to go.

Then, he also decided that he needed some pictures to send home, so he could have a record of his trip to share with everyone at keanuvision. For this, he enlisted the services of Personal Assistants: Julie! and the beautiful Annabelle, who agreed to take some promotional pictures for him. Being a professional, he also demanded that they carried his bags...

First stop? The Zaanse Schans, an old Dutch village just below Amsterdam.

Neo was pleased to find out that in honor of his visit, the inhibitants had decorated their houses with some festive balloons.

Then, Neo was forced to visit the Wooden Shoes Museum, in order to witness how clogs are made.

Frankly, it bored him silly. Using one of his trademark jumps, he quickly got away. Soon after however, Neo realised that there are some advantages to wearing really sturdy shoes. For instance, you can kick butt a lot harder.

And he had to admit to himself that he just looked damned fine in them.

Neo really enjoyed seeing the Dutch windmills up close, and especially liked the way the wind from the mills made his coat flap about.

After this, he announced that he was ready to see the city of Amsterdam.

First, Neo graciously posed in front of the National Monument on Dam-square, placed opposite of the royal family’s palace. One of the great mysteries that puzzles the Dutch people is if our Queen has ever noticed that whenever she’s looking out of the window, she’s actually staring at a giant penis-shape.

Formal gatherings and state-visits are being held in front of this thing, too.

And after seeing Neo's tolorant reaction towards SOME Dutch oddities, Julie! and Annabelle decided that it was time to show Neo the REAL Amsterdam, and entered the Red Light district....

So, this is what it looks like! This picture was moved on purpose, to prevent recognition of the girls and to keep innocent visitors of this blog from freaking out.

To give a general idea: Prostitution is legal in Holland, and in this district, the girls are sitting behind windows, rather then having to walk on the street to pick up customers. This is a much safer way for them to work.

There are about 400 girls working in this particular spot, but there’s ‘districts’ all over the country.

As far as the picture goes: The red stripes are the ‘red lights’, placed above and beneath the windows. If you look at the lowest red light in the right left-bottom corner, you can see an outline of a girl wearing white lingerie.

Neo complained bitterly about this…

Apperently he seems to prefer black rubber.

After looking at all these near-naked ladies, Neo needed to cool off a bit, so he took a dive into the Casa Rosso fountain.

After this, he happily posed in front of a growing crowd of Japanese tourists. Special thanks go to the bouncers of this sex-club, for allowing Julie! and Annabelle to take pictures. You’re much nicer then the bouncers of the ‘banana-bar’ across the street!!!! Greedy bastards!

Then, it was time for Neo to visit one of the girls himself. Mumbling something about ‘research’ and ‘curiosity’, he finally found a girl who agreed to pose with him, on the condition that she could wear a wig to be a bit less ‘recognisable’ (Thanx Mandy!!!) However, she refused to go any further, no matter how much he paid.

(for a non-pixelated, X-rated version of this photo, click here)

When he asked her why, she vaguely nodded in the direction of her toys, designed to make the customers pay even more if they wish to see her performing certain actions with them. She snickered a little, too.

Mortally insulted, Neo complained bitterly that ‘size’ shouldn’t matter, and fumed that he’d rather spend his 10 dollars somewhere else.

After this rather embarrassing rejection, Neo decided to calm down by trying another Dutch speciality.

He headed straight for the Bulldog-coffeeshop, one of Holland’s most famous legal hash-selling points.

First, Neo inspected the product. Whoa!

Then, he thanked the cute guy who’s name shall be witheld, for allowing him & 2 giggling girlies to go backstage and photograph his ‘stash’.

After making his purchase, he checked the price-list one more time, to make sure he wasn’t ripped off.

About 10 minutes later, Neo realised that the Amsterdam-weed might have been a TAD stronger then the expected.

About 20 minutes later, he was so high that he basically didn’t realise ANYTHING anymore.

About 30 minutes later, Neo had a TERRIBLE craving for candy.

He also found himself surrounded by strange creatures. He had no idea who or what the hell they were, but found them hysterically funny nevertheless, and laughed so hard he actually fell down from it.

The next day, Neo planned on taking one of Amsterdam’s famous canal cruises.

However, he decided against it because the whole situation reminded him too much of the script for Speed 2.

This picture is a little shakey, because… Well… The night before was a little rough *cough*....

Next stop: The Heineken Brewery!

Neo personally thanked the Heineken staff for being an intregal part of the massive marketing blitz that surrounded The Matrix sequels.

Johan & Henk were thrilled to pose with Neo himself, and had all sorts of good advise on how to deal with banging headaches. After inspecting the rest of the brewery, Neo dragged himself back to Julie!'s flat for some much needed rest.

And snuggling.

Looks like Neo had an amazing Amsterdam adventure!
Sigh, I need to get out more.

BIG LOVE and thanks and kisses to Julie! for showing Neo such a good time and for telling the tale of his adventures!!!

And now, Neo's off to his next stop on the tour!

Do you live in an exotic or interesting locale? Do you have a digital camera?
Do you want Neo to visit you? Email me to see if we can fit you in his itinerary!

I stopped at my local comic shop this morning and picked up the latest issue of Wizard magazine (along with the most recent Hellblazer and the first two issues of Mike Carey's My Faith in Frankie). There's an interview with Keanu on the set of Constantine in it. Anyway, since there are no new images I'm not going to bother to scan it, and thanks to Keanuweb here is the text of the interview. It's slightly spoilery.

In his first post-'Matrix' action role, Keanu Reeves goes to hell and back to find the soul of John Constantine.

Dressed in a tar-black overcoat as the sardonic anti-hero John Constantine, Keanu Reeves stabs a cigarette into an overflowing ashtray and stalks towards the narrow passage leading out of the red glow and smoky air of Papa Midnite's barroom office.

After a pack and a half, a dozen or so feigned coughing fits and eight or nine takes from various angles, the veteran actor of over 30 films knows when it's time to take a break - a smoke break.

"We've got a few minutes," says the 39-year-old Reeves, as he breaks out of his Constantine character for the first time in a long morning of shooting this warm December day in Los Angeles. "Let's go."

Stepping out of the dreary, muted lights on set and into the sun-drenched Warner Brothers Studio lot, Reeves snaps out of the brooding Constantine and begins to chat excitedly about his love for Alan Moore's V For Vendetta as he makes his way to his trailer tucked between two immense sound stages.

Reeves trades in Neo's trademark pair of designer sunglasses for a plain shirt and tie - although he can't seem to shed the long coat - as he makes the transition from the ultimate superhero in "The Matrix" trilogy to the sarcastic, brusque anti-hero "Constantine", based on DC/Verigo's long-running Hellblazer series.

With the worldwide success of "The Matrix" trilogy, Reeves could have slipped into any action roll he wanted, so why go from clear-cut hero to gray, cancer-ridden loner?

As a cup of coffee warms in the microwave, Reeves plops down into a chair in his trailer and carefully draws a Camel Light from the pack lying on the table. After taking a slow, measured drag on the cigarette, he's ready to explain.

WIZARD: What makes John Constantine such a cool guy to play? REEVES: I liked his anger. As an actor, it's fun to play someone who is wounded but fighting. I like his never-give-up attitude and I like his humor, kind of gallows humor.

In the comic, Constantine is a bit of a trickster/con man as well as a magician - is he a little more of one or the other in the film?
He has practical magic. He can cast out demons; he has certain powers that he can use. It has a hard-boiled side to it, there's a mystery afoot. He's definitely less of a trickster and more of a magician. And a con man? [Exhaling a large cloud of smoke] Yeah, he's trying to buy his way into heaven. Is he doing what he's doing because he's altruistic or is he doing what he's doing so he can hustle? You don't know. There's a bit of a con man in there.

So he's a hustler? He's a hustler. He has an insight into the workings of the world and he just hates it. He hates the hypocrisy. He's also not the nicest guy in the world.

When it comes to hard-boiled, Reeves resembles anything but. Stepping off stage between takes to joke with director Francis Lawrence and various members of the film crew, Reeves' pleasant demeanor serves as a stark contrast to the abrasive recluse he plays in the film. Constantine loses friends by being self-centered and solitary, whereas Reeves' generosity makes him a favorite among those on set. During filming, Reeves picked up the bill to treat the entire cast and crew of "Constantine" to see a special screening of "The Matrix: Revolutions," complete with popcorn and soda. Needless to say, getting into the skin of what was essentially his evil twin took quite a bit of wiggling.

One of the things that you're known for is intense method preparation. What did you do to prepare for the role of John Constantine?
I didn't meet with any exorcists. [Laughs] The world that we've created is kind of a "secular religiousity" is what I call it. We have a kind of Catholic platform that we're using - heaven and hell, sin, possession, demons, half-breeds, God, Satan - but I feel like he's a hard-boiled detective. I was just trying to find the John Constantine within. He's trapped, trying to be free and deal with the consequences of what's happened to him and who he is. I was just trying to find mine and his coming together. I didn't do anything external except look at the architecture of the comic and how Constantine expresses himself, he looks out of the side of his eyes a lot, or has his head cocked sideways with a kind og "what are you doing?" look on his face. And the way he looks at the world, he can see things that other people can't and this guy is very alone. The "friends" he does have are dying every time he gets in contact with them. So it's hard for him to be intmate with anybody. I think he is a lone wold character.

So how many cigarettes do you have to smoke in a given day? You lit up about 25 during shooting today.
There've been some days where there have been a lot of cigarettes. Definitely in the 30s and 40s.

You've got DC comics next to you - are you a comic fan?
I was in the past. In the late '80s I was really into X-Men. Wolverine was one of my favorite characters and I liked some of the New Mutants. I liked Daredevil as well. Dark Knight came out when I was reading and that was a revelation. Ronin was also a revelation to me. That really gave me a sense of, "Wow, that was a great comic book."

Did you read the Hellblazer storyline "Dangerous Habits," on which the filming script is loosely based?
[Thumbing through the book] I've read sections, but I looked more towards the script that I had. Most of what I've gotten has come from having a feeling of who Constantine is inside. If you look at some of the panels you can see how he's expressing himself and how he moves. [Cocks his head to the side as he lights up a cigarette, in unconsciously Contantinian fasion] I used the story in the script to work from there.

Aside from Constantine, what's your favorite comic movie?
[Takes a long, thoughtful pull off his cigarette] I don't think I have one. I remember as a kid liking the first "Superman," and then the Tim Burton Batman movies, there was something to them, but I didn't find them satisfying in terms of who I thought Batman was. I thought Val Kilmer was a decent Batman, very dark and twisted.

For such an amiable, good-natured person, Reeves definitely entertains a penchant for the dark and twisted when it comes to his taste in roles. From his parts in Sam Raimi's horror film "The Gift" and the unnerving thriller "The Devil's Advocate" to his role as a serial killer in "The Watcher," Reeves demonstrates his willingness to bring his darkness to light. Sitting amidst the bright white de'cor of his trailer and sipping a Coke, he hardly seems capable of any semblance of evil, but shrouded in a cloud of cigarette smoke on the dreary set of "Constantine," he's absolutely the last guy you'd want to ask for a light.

Constantine frequently walks the line between good and evil. Do you see him as more of a hero or anti-hero?
He's a heroic anti-hero. [Laughs] I think of him as a hero because he's fighting against all odds. I like that he just doesn't quit, he's just like "f--k you all!" One of the lines in the film is: "God has a plan for all of us. I had to die, twice, just to figure that out. Some people like it, some people don't." That, to me, is how I think of Constantine. He's a man who is trying to find his place in the world and come to terms with his life and the circumstances of it. "Some people like it and some people don't" - he's kind of ambivalent.

Will we sympathize with Constantine - or love to hate him?
Hopefully both. There are consequences where he's not the nicest guy. He makes a sacrifice in the end, so hopefully there is something redeeming about him. But he's a hard man to love.

How do you feel about playing a guy like that?
I really love playing him. Again, his humor, his energy, his anger, his ambivalence and the fact that he's trapped. He's hustling for his life, he's dying in the movie - dying of cancer - so he has a clock. He's at a point where he's thinking, "I've got to get into heaven, what do I have to do because I'm not going back to hell." In the story he commmitted suicide when he was a kid, so he's damned and he's trying to get his way out but he doesn't know how.

Is that when he starts to give a s--t? When he realizes he's slowly dying?
Yeah, he's giving more of a s--t. He has a line where he's talking to Gabriel and Gabriel says "you don't believe," and Constantine asks, "What does God want from me?" Gabriel responds, "Faith and belief," and Constantine says "I believe, for Christ's sake!" and Gabriel says, "No, you know." So he's trapped and he's just trying to do what he can do. I just cast a demon out of a little girl, who am I doing that for? He's saying, "Come on, I'm helping you out, can't you help me out?" He's not getting the help.

Reeves, on the other hand, doesn't need any devine intervention to get through the epic battle scenes in "Constantine." After having learned over 200 martial arts moves with hours of hand-to-hand combat for his role in "The Matrix" trilogy, his fighting skills more than qualify him to kick the demons back to hell with hardly a smudge of brimstone on his coat.

Have you beat the holy hell out of any demons?
A character called Balthazar [kills a friend of Constantine's]. Constantine wants revenge, so he puts together this "holy shotgun" made from arcane religious icons that fit together and fire bullets with crosses on them. Earlier, Constantine has been given hold brass knuckles. He confronts Balthazar and Balthazar is beating him up and John slips on the knuckles and starts punching him and punching him and punching him and grabbing him by his tie and he says, [Reeves gets on his feet to re-enact the scene] "Those [punch] were [punch] my [yanking his imaginary oppopent up by the tie] "friends!" And then he punches him bare-knuckled. That was a lot of fun. I just keep grabbing him by the tie and punching him with those holy brass knuckles. It was very "Constantine."

You'll probably never run into Balthazar on Hollywood Boulevard, but do you believe in the supernatural?
Even if I don't, I make sure I don't f--k with it. [Laughs] Better safe than sorry.

--Staff writer Todd Casey smoked two packs a day in preperation for his role as Keanu Reeves' interviewer. He calls it method smoking.

VFX Expert to Speak at Art Institute in San Francisco Bay Area students, visual effects fans and members of the public are invited to learn some of the visual effect secrets used in "The Matrix: Revolutions" during a special presentation at The Art Institute of California - San Francisco.

The event will feature Mike Morasky, a visual effects expert who worked on all three of The Matrix films. Using clips from the film, he will show how visual effects were used to bring the film's sentinel machines to life, and also explain the visual effects pipeline in a motion picture production.

The event takes place 7 to 9:30 pm; Wednesday, March 3, 2004 at The Art Institute of California. Click here for more information on attending.

Sounds interesting, if I was in the area I'd go. It's only five bucks and there's snacks, even.

Speaking of VFX and the Matrix, anyone else blowing off the Oscars this year?

These scans are from Interview Magazine - 1991. You can see the full pages and read the article at Reeves Drive.

Thanks Toriane :)
Speaking of Viper Room becky shows, becky will be playing this Friday.
From Paulie at the beckyboard:

"hi everyone!
becky is back at the viper room friday night feb. 27th at 10pm!
c'mon down and check it out!
it's sure to be a great time!
get there early!
paulie : ) "

Oh snap, that's like three days from now.

I'm going to have to miss it, I can't get off work early enough to make it in time.

Plus, Catz is coming to town this weekend and...well, I've seen becky.

Last June, when becky played the Viper Room, one of the other bands on the marquee was New Zealand's Steriogram. You may remember me screaming in the club, trying to leave a voicemonkey message about how much they rocked.

Well, Tyson (who said "hi" on the voicemonkey that night), Brad (great kisser)and the rest of the band (swell fellas as well) are getting ready to hit it big time with a new Michel Gondry directed video for their song Walkie Talkie Man and their debut CD, Schmack! (great title) due to release on April 20. You can watch the video and check out the song at the Capitol Records' site and of course you'll want to go to Steriogram.com (flash required) for even more rockin' kiwi-boy goodness, including their gig guide for upcoming american tour dates (Vegas, baby! March 19) so you can catch them live.

\m/

Wonderful fan and friend Petra, came across some great Dogstar clips from the EAT'M (Emerging Artists and Technology in Music) Festival in 1999.

Since these are large files, once again they are in a password protected directory, and will only be available for a short time. Here's what you need to access them:

There are three live performance music clips, one being an unreleased song called Too Late (2.85MB)
Also, there's Halo (4.08MB), from the Happy Ending CD.
Plus there's an early version of Cornerstore (3.73MB), which is sort of cool to compare to the one that we're familiar with.

There's also an interview clip (5.29MB) with the whole band, Keanu's adorable ("My fellows" *swoon*), Bret's charming and Rob's quite funny as usual...and if you haven't heard where the name of the band came from, Rob answers that question.

Please right click the links and save the real media files, rather than streaming.
Also do not link directly to these files from another site.

Now I know why Reeves uses a pick.
The entire tip of my right index finger is a blister.

Bass playing is cool.

You Make Me Hot

Standin' over there, waggin' your hair,
There's something that you do.
Long and lean, rock 'n' roll machine,
I just wanna get with you.

Come on, come on. I just wanna tell you.
Come on, come on. I just wanna touch you.
Come on, come on. I'm talkin' to you.
You make me hot!

Yeah, I wanna touch you.
Yeah, I wanna grab you.
Yeah, I wanna hold you tight.
You can run but you can't hide.
I just wanna get you tonight.

Come on, come on. I just wanna tell you.
Come on, come on. I just wanna touch you.
Come on, come on. I'm talkin' to you.
You make me hot!

Yeah, I wanna touch you.
Yeah, I wanna grab you.
Yeah, I wanna hold you tight.
You can run but you can't hide.
I just wanna get you tonight.

Come on, come on. I just wanna tell you.
Come on, come on. I just wanna touch you.
Come on, come on. I just wanna grab you.
Come on, come on. I'm talkin' to you.
You make me hot!

You make me hot!

You make me hot!

You make me hot!

-The Donnas, from the CD American Teenage Rock and Roll Machine (thanks Rhonda)

Thank you to Rhonda for the quote and inspiration...

CHUD (cinematic happenings in development) dot com has a lengthy Constantone article.

"The holy shotgun? Yeah, there's a half-breed that kills a couple of the characters who are my friends so I'm seeking revenge. So, I put together this 'holy shotgun,' which again I think is kind of fun - 'killing with God.'" - Keanu Reeves on his brass, cross-shaped and Latin-inscribed weapon in Constantine

Those same set pictures are in the article and there's also a mouthwatering first look at Keanu as Constantine (shown) and the characters Midnite (Djimon Hounsou)and Chaz (Shia LeBouef) in a great picture that looks straight out of a comic.

There are some plot points discussed so spoiler warnings apply...

Read it all at CHUD.com.

(thanks to AleXXei at the forums)

Also, SuperheroHype talks to Constantine Director Francis Lawrence:

"I think it's the whole idea of an anti-hero - this guy that sort of understands the world to place that normal people don't know exists. I think that he's sort of a supernatural, hard-boiled detective. He reminds me of the Sam Spade's and characters from the classic film noirs."

....and SciFi Wire has an article, 'Reeves Defends Constantine':

""We spoke about [the changes made to the character], but it seemed in terms of the platform that we were using, which became Los Angeles—the world in terms of heaven, hell and Los Angeles—seemed to be attractive and make sense. And we're kind of doing a hard-boiled kind of take on the piece. So we kind of went this way instead of a more gothic aspect."

"Hard-boiled" is apparently the new "raising the bar"....

Djimon Hounsou also talks to SciFi Wire and has this to say about Keanu...

Housou said that acting with Reeves has been exciting. "He's done so much, and this time on this picture, working with him firsthand, it's quite a nice surprise," he said. "I realize how actually he's a very talented man, and ... he's so anal about the work. The guy has received some criticism, good and bad, but working with him, you have a great affinity for the kind of generosity that he has with the work and with people that [are a] part of this picture. He definitely is a very simple man and somewhat maybe misunderstood, because he's just very reclusive, very private."

Lastly, here's a bit about the music that we can expect to hear in the trailer (thanks Netz).

One more update: Let's just declare today Constantine Day, Shall we?

I think that Garth, at Dark Horizons has got the whole thing covered. Hopefully that's the full and complete interview, from beginning to end. (via keanuweb)

SuperHeroHype.com has a couple of pictures from the set of Constantine.

I'm liking it.

Catz has posted her Viper report from last night's becky concert, go check it out....

I'm hearing more from people that are coming to the site only to find a bunch of little red x's where the images should be. I've done a little digging and hopefully this will help.

(First off, let me say that this information is taken straight from this site and I just changed the names to apply here. So thank you to them. Yay, Sailor Moon fans.)

Anyway, if this broken image thing is happening to you, the problem is likely that your connection is blocking the HTML_Refferal command. You may be behind a firewall (and not even know it), and so your machine is not sending the proper information to the keanuvision.com server.

The HTTP_REFERER information tells the server where it is making the request from. In a normal case, the HTTP_REFERER may read "http://www.keanuvision.com", telling the server that the request for an image is indeed coming from a valid URL, and keanuvision will then send the image. If the URL is NOT a keanuvision URL, or, if the information is blank, keanuvision's servers will NOT send an image.

There are some programs that will blank out the HTTP_REFERER field. One that is particularly causing problems seems to be Norton Internet Firewall.

To fix this, open your Internet Security. Click "Options", select "Internet Security", then "Advanced Options." "Add Site", and enter "keanuvision.com" Select the site and click on the "Privacy" tab, and Set All options to Permit. Click "Apply" and you're ready.

If that's too simple and you want something technical and confusing, here's Norton's page about it.

I hope this works.

SuperheroHype has an interview with Keanu on the set of Constantine. This article was originally posted by SHH in December, then pulled for some reason. Maybe because it's chock full o'spoilers. Anyway, it's back up now. Read at your own risk.

Excerpt:

You've mentioned that the character has an ambiguous morality that you found attractive.

Yeah. Well, I mean he's not the nicest guy all the time. I don't know if he's immoral, but it's something that he's negotiating with.

Were you just looking for this kind of movie?

I was looking for a good script and this kind of came my way and I really liked the writing and the character itself and what happened in the piece and ultimately there's a line in it where Constantine says, "God has a plan for all of us. I had to die twice just to figure that out. Some people like it, some people don't."

He's always been a user in the comic. Is he nicer in the film?

No. Not really.

Go to SHH to read the whole article, but remember there are spoilers.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I'm grateful for my years of psychotherapy. They've been crucial in helping me shed bad mental habits and master the art of being happy. How about you, Virgo? Have you ever met regularly with an empath whose primary purpose is to listen to you and enhance your life? It's a perfect time to start giving yourself this necessary luxury. Or, if you're one of the lucky few who already has a skilled wise person working in service to them, it's a favorable time to dive deeper into the work. The astrological omens suggest that you now have the power to get more help than you've received before -- but you have to ask for it.

-freewillastrology.com

I know he enhances my life.

Check out Club-Keanu for the first reports of last night's becky at the Viper Room show.

And keep an eye on the Official becky message board as well.

Sounds like it rocked!

I can't wait to hear from Catz.

Update: The set list has been posted at the beckyboard :) thanks Rob!

I love his crinkle.

Don't forget that tomorrow night you can see becky (featuring our favorite bass player) at The Viper Room, a club so intimate that if you stand in the right spot there's a good chance of getting sweat flung into your ten dollar Vanilla Stoli n'Coke.

The show starts at 10 pm. Get there early, trust me.

I've done the math and there's no way I'm making this one......dammit.

Oh well, I have a lesson tomorrow night anyway and I didn't learn Paperback Writer this week for nothing.

But if you go, tell him I said "Hi"......

Permanent Record on DVD is released today and you know what else comes out?

H.R. freaking PUFNSTUF!!, the whole series.

Dude! You know, if David would have had a magical talking flute, he might not have taken that swan dive.

It's all about the bass, now.
I've got to get my Reeves on today. I've got the Australian wine and the coffee cup. I just need the groove.
Vibemechants are scheduled to record today and I still suck, in fact I seem to be getting WORSE if that's possible. It's because they took away my pick, I just know it. If you'll notice the new pics on the sidebar, you'll see Reeves playing with his fingers. They're there for a reason. Inspire me, thumper.

I think this spring is going to be all about the bass for Keanu as well. As far as I know, he's not due to start filming anything new for a bit so hopefully there will be some more becky dates in the next couple months, *cough*cometoVegas*cough*. And I plan on making a few of them, just to watch him play and check out his gear. I never bothered to really look closely before. In the past, I watched his hands move but I just followed their motion without really registering where they were landing. Of course, his face. It's really hard NOT to focus on the expressions he makes.

But next time, I'm not so much going to watch HIM play bass as I'm going to watch him PLAY BASS.

This picture is from one of Dogstar's summer shows in 2001, probably Summerfest. Below is a live track from that show.

I miss the way you smell
I miss the time we had
I pushed it to the end
I threw myself down again

I miss the light I miss the day
I'm on the ground I'm blown away
In a world that's gone I need another day
Blown away

I miss the way you stayed
I will return there someday
I pushed it to the end
I threw myself down again

I miss the light I miss the day
I'm on the ground I'm blown away
In a world that's gone I need another day
Blown away

Dogstar- Blown Away, live at Summerfest 2001

Now, I've got to get MY bass in gear and go rock out.

Have a great day!
\m/

How to say I Love You in 101 Languages

Afrikaans - Ek het jou lief
Albanian - Te dua
Arabic - Ana behibak (to male)
Arabic - Ana behibek (to female)
Armenian - Yes kez sirumen
Bambara - M'bi fe
Bangla - Aamee tuma ke bhalo aashi
Belarusian - Ya tabe kahayu
Bisaya - Nahigugma ako kanimo
Bulgarian - Obicham te
Cambodian - Soro lahn nhee ah
Cantonese Chinese - Ngo oiy ney a
Catalan - T'estimo
Cheyenne - Ne mohotatse
Chichewa - Ndimakukonda
Corsican - Ti tengu caru (to male)
Creol - Mi aime jou
Croatian - Volim te
Czech - Miluji te
Danish - Jeg Elsker Dig
Dutch - Ik hou van jou
English - I love you
Esperanto - Mi amas vin
Estonian - Ma armastan sind
Ethiopian - Afgreki'
Faroese - Eg elski teg
Farsi - Doset daram
Filipino - Mahal kita
Finnish - Mina rakastan sinua
French - Je t'aime, Je t'adore
Gaelic - Ta gra agam ort
Georgian - Mikvarhar
German - Ich liebe dich
Greek - S'agapo
Gujarati - Hoo thunay prem karoo choo
Hiligaynon - Palangga ko ikaw
Hawaiian - Aloha wau ia oi
Hebrew - Ani ohev otah (to female)
Hebrew - Ani ohev et otha (to male)
Hiligaynon - Guina higugma ko ikaw
Hindi - Hum Tumhe Pyar Karte hae
Hmong - Kuv hlub koj
Hopi - Nu' umi unangwa'ta
Hungarian - Szeretlek
Icelandic - Eg elska tig
Ilonggo - Palangga ko ikaw
Indonesian - Saya cinta padamu
Inuit - Negligevapse
Irish - Taim i' ngra leat
Italian - Ti amo
Japanese - Aishiteru
Kannada - Naanu ninna preetisuttene
Kapampangan - Kaluguran daka
Kiswahili - Nakupenda
Konkani - Tu magel moga cho
Korean - Sarang Heyo
Krixian - Mmmmm, Keanu
Latin - Te amo
Latvian - Es tevi miilu
Lebanese - Bahibak
Lithuanian - Tave myliu
Malay - Saya cintakan mu / Aku cinta padamu
Malayalam - Njan Ninne Premikunnu
Mandarin Chinese - Wo ai ni
Marathi - Me tula prem karto
Mohawk - Kanbhik
Moroccan - Ana moajaba bik
Nahuatl - Ni mits neki
Navaho - Ayor anosh'ni
Norwegian - Jeg Elsker Deg
Pandacan - Syota na kita!!
Pangasinan - Inaru Taka
Papiamento - Mi ta stimabo
Persian - Doo-set daaram
Pig Latin - Iay ovlay ouyay
Polish - Kocham Ciebie
Portuguese - Eu te amo
Romanian - Te ubesk
Russian - Ya tebya liubliu
Scot Gaelic - Tha gra\dh agam ort
Serbian - Volim te
Setswana - Ke a go rata
Sign Language - ,\,,/ (represents position of fingers when signing 'I Love You', see also :'rawk!' \m/ )
Sindhi - Maa tokhe pyar kendo ahyan
Sioux - Techihhila
Slovak - Lu`bim ta
Slovenian - Ljubim te
Spanish - Te quiero / Te amo
Swahili - Ninapenda wewe
Swedish - Jag alskar dig
Swiss-German - Ich lieb Di
Tagalog - Mahal kita
Taiwanese - Wa ga ei li
Tahitian - Ua Here Vau Ia Oe
Tamil - Nan unnai kathalikaraen
Telugu - Nenu ninnu premistunnanu
Thai - Chan rak khun (to male)
Thai - Phom rak khun (to female)
Turkish - Seni Seviyorum
Ukrainian - Ya tebe kahayu
Urdu - mai aap say pyaar karta hoo
Vietnamese - Anh ye^u em (to female)
Vietnamese - Em ye^u anh (to male)
Welsh - 'Rwy'n dy garu
Yiddish - Ikh hob dikh
Yoruba - Mo ni fe

"I hate the term sex symbol" Reeves says quietly.
"I don't think I'm a sex symbol. I don't think I look like a sex symbol either."

- Platinum - May/June, 1995

Issue #149 of the comic magazine, Wizard has a short article by Todd Casey, Hell on Film about Constantine (via keanuweb):

"Constantine" director casts an evil light on the noir thriller's L.A. set and sinister storyline.

Think downtown Los Angeles looks like a nightmare at rush hour? You should see it in Hell.

"Constantine," starring Keanu Reeves as the trenchant, embittered occultist John Constantine from DC Comics' Hellblazer series, follows the story of John as he teams up with policewoman Angela Dodson to help investigate the mysterious death of her sister Isabel, which leads him into a hellish version of his hometown.

"John goes into Hell to find Angela's sister to see if she has committed suicide," describes "Constantine" director Francis Lawrence of the elaborate set hewn from wrecked cars and barrels of brown muck. "What we've done is actually made Hell have geography so that you have the idea that wherever you are, there is a Hell version of it and a Heaven version of it. John goes to Hell and it's literally the 101 Freeway heading toward downtown L.A."

Deep in "Hell L.A." (and even on the sunny streets of the city itself), Constantine comes up against legions of half-breed demons who inject evil into mankind's world. When he's not kicking their asses with an array of holy relics, Constantine kicks back in his apartment (located over a bowling alley), safely insulated from Hell's spawn with a few dozen five gallon drums of holy water.

And in the next issue (due out Feb 25), look for more Constantine content.
From the Wizard website:

He can fly. He can fight. And he's certainly heroic. Keanu Reeves has already played the ultimate superhero as Neo in "The Matrix" trilogy. Now get ready for him as the ultimate anti-hero.

As part of its massive 50-page movie event in Wizard #150, Wizard sits down with Reeves, who trades in Neo's flowing coat and sunglasses for a plain old shirt and tie as the sarcastic anti-hero John Constantine, who attempts to prevent demons from turning L.A. into a hell on earth in the September-released film "Constantine," based on the DC/Vertigo comic Hellblazer.

The normally publicity-shy Reeves shares with Wizard his love for Alan Moore's V for Vendetta comic, his favorite comic movies and the complete scoop on why the character of Constantine appealed to him. ''I really love playing him,'' admitted Reeves between pulls on a cigarette while taking a break in his trailer. ''I liked his anger. As an actor, it's really fun to play someone who is wounded but fighting. I like his never-give-up attitude and his gallows humor.''

For the complete interview with Reeves - and exclusive photos from the ''Constantine'' set - pick up Wizard #150 on sale in comic shops Feb. 25.

I'm going to have to call my comic guy and make sure he holds one of these for me.

What would be a perfect date?

One where we mutually had an exceptional time that had the wonderful thing that can happen on a first date where you are intoxicated with each other's company and everything becomes good in the world and there's hope and you're just excited to see them. And you have great ease with them. Just a good experience.

Are you single?

I am currently single.

And looking?

Begging, pleading.

Do you ever want to get married?

I think so.

Would a girl need to commit to riding around on a motorcycle to date you?

No. It would be fine if she didn't.

Do you like women to approach you, or do you prefer to approach women?

Yes. All of it. Any which way.

What are you still trying to figure out about women?

The figuring out is the fun part. It's always wonderful to get to know women with the mystery and the joy and the depth.

Is there anything you know to be true about women?

That if you can make a woman laugh, you're seeing the most beautiful thing on God's earth.

What's a turn-on?

I'm pretty easily amused.

Anything in particular? Eyes, legs, hair, cleavage...?

Oh, those all sound so good.

Do you have a least-favorite body part and a favorite body part?

I'm not telling you that. Are you crazy?

Where is the most outrageous place you've ever had sex?

I don't know...what is outrageous anymore? What I thought of as outrageous when I was 17, and now being 39, you know, that doesn't count.

Right, because at 17, having sex in your parents' bed is outrageous.

Yeah, and now you just shouldn't be doing that - it's creepy. You probably shouldn't have been doing it before, but you were 17. So let me think. I've made out in a cab, but I've never gone all the way in a cab. Or have I? No, you'd remember that right? Or maybe you wouldn't and that would be the only way that you did it. You know what? Okay, yeah, I did, but I don't remember. You can't be sober and have sex in the back of a cab.

Exactly. What's the craziest thing you've ever done to get a woman's attention?

I haven't done the letter-writing airplane in the sky or the ''Come over for dinner and now we're going to Paris'' thing. I can't wait to do those things, but I haven't done them yet. If I ever meet someone, we're going to have a good time, because I'm making a list.

-If ever there was an interview likely to cause spontaneous panty combustion, it's this one from Cosmo Men, November 2003...

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Happy Valentine Daze, Virgo! After careful meditation about what advice might purify and supercharge your love life, I'm making this suggestion: For one week, concentrate all your passion and ingenuity on learning to love yourself better. Write at least one love letter and one love poem to yourself. Treat yourself to pleasures that relax your intelligence and open your wild heart. Gaze in the mirror and whisper a flood of sweet nothings. Give yourself thoughtful, surprising gifts. And finally, propose marriage to yourself and perform a wedding ceremony in which you promise to cherish and honor yourself until the end of time.

from freewillastrology.com

If I had Keanu's email, this is the sort of thing that I would definitely forward to him.

In the duel with Laertes in the final scene of Hamlet, when Horatio says “You will lose, my lord”, Hamlet replies: “I shall win at the odds”.

But what are the odds?

The Odds Against Hamlet is an interesting article at the Times Literary Supplement where that complex question is asked and while it may not be conclusively answered, it sure explains why we don't have a Shakespearean-themed resort here in Vegas.....yet.

-via metafilter

"Romance is giving joy to someone you love, and giving them something that you know as well. A moment's gesture, giving your love, giving your feeling. The romance is the specialness of the moment and the event and the gesture"

The answer to the oft-asked question "what does Keanu smell like?" just might be Helmut Lang Cuiron Pour Homme, according to this article.

I think I may hit the sample counter on the way home tonight....

If Keanu Reeves were a shot I think he might be a "Chocolate Cake".

I'd like to think I'd feel a little bit better after doing him several times in one night, though.

audio post powered by audblog

View The Shoes.

Skits, Fran, Suzie and Tim, Chey, Joelle and Mikey are coming to Vegas this weekend.

I'm hoping that someone gets married...
(not me of course....)

note from krix-"Julie! has taken over the blog this morning in order to do something extra special for Zen on her birthday. Y'all are welcome to follow along but please don't spoil the suprise!"

Hi sweet Zenny!!!!!

Because this is a special day for you, we have decided to throw you a global
birthday-party!
And to make it *extra* festive, I've written a fairy-tale especially for
you! :-)
You are the main character in it, and bits of it have been posted on every
site that has a "Keanu-blog-posse" *blinkie*.

After you've finished reading the text here, all you need to do is click on
the link at the end to go to the next part! However, because of the different
time-zones, and because not everyone will have the opportunity to make an
entry out of it, you should not *panic* if you enter their blog, and see
nothing referring to this. You will find the next bit of the story in the
most recent comment-section. Should the link, for whatever reason, not work,
then just look at the address & type it in yourself - you lazy bum ;-)

As an extra note for people who might also read this, and aren't called Zen:
Please be aware that this fairytale is being monitored by the Canadian
tourist-board, so it may contains references and subliminal messages in
order to get you to book a holiday there & spend all your money on furry
little hats and grizzly bear t-shirts. It may also contain references to
Keanu Reeves. --but I'm sure you all don't mind ;-)

Ok, are you ready sweety? Then we proudly present:

Starring:
Krix as Frixo; The bearer of the ‘thing’
Catz as Catzdalf; the old dude with the powerful *blinkie* spells
CuteTexasblonde as Arablonde; The lost king of middle-skirt
Keana as Intheboxomir; the heroic dude who redeems himself.
BakedNudel as Legonudles; the Elf-prince with disturbingly cute pointy ears
Sta-cie as Sam-ie; the trusty side-kick Blobbit
Keanu-Soul as; Merry-soul, the cheerful young Blobbit
Keanuette as Pippinette; the nosy, yet adorable Blobbit
And lastly Julie! as Gimlie!; the horribly ugly little dwarf, who can be
found deep beneath the surface of the earth, aka in the comments-sections
;-)

Special appearances will be made by:.
Joel Silver as ‘Jollum-Smeailver’; the one who keeps on saying ‘My precious’
when looking at his bank-account.
The academy awards-jury as Oscauron; the little statue who thinks he rules
the world
And certain movie-critics as Shutupman; the pathetic magician with
penis-envy.

*croaky voice*

Once upon a time... A terrible blizzard hit Canada. As the wolves howled in the background, and people huddled together in their romantic wooden cabins, admiring the glorious view of frozen lakes and salmon-filled rivers through a curtain of dwindling snowflakes, they could not help but notice how blessed they were to live in a country so magnificent as theirs. Not only did they have fresh air, a friendly population, lots of yummie sea-food and were easily reachable by areo-plane (check your local tourist-office for bookings) they were also the ONLY country in the world that could officially claim that one of their citizens was in fact, Keanu Reeves.

This caused much joy in the daily lives of the common people.

However, they did not know 'yet', that their country was about to be graced by an even more unique presence. And that the ice-cold snowstorm itself was a sign from above that great things were about to happen.

Because one of the snowflakes in this magical blizzard contained...

-Do you want to read more? Then go to Keana-in-the-Box

Keanu's eyes shine. "I had this girlfriend," he begins. "This girl was just the most rockin' girl in the world you could have on the back of a bike because she was fuckin' fearless. One night, it was like 12:30, at the time I was practicing doing wheelies, and she said, 'let's go!' So we went on the freeway and it was just magic. She would grab me - she had these really great breasts and really long hair - and we had no helmets and no goggles and we were going like a hundred and thirty miles an hour on five lanes of freeway, with not a soul in sight. And this incredible cloudless moon just hangin' there." He sighs happily. "I've had some of the best times of my life on a motorcycle."

-Details Magazine, February 1989

Thanks to The Daily Thud for this fun picture from Premiere Magazine.

Get used to things being slow here on Wednesdays since this is the night I have bass lessons and I inevitably need to cram a bunch of practice in after slacking off most off the week for one reason or another...

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): I rarely employ my mediumistic skills, but a host of spirits was just clamoring to address you this week. So I agreed to channel five of them, on the condition that they'd be brief and to the point. Here, then, are your advisors from the other side of the veil. First, Wernher von Braun: "Research is what you do when you don't know what you're doing." Second, A.A. Milne: "One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries." Next, Ralph Waldo Emerson: "Sometimes a scream is better than a thesis." Casey Stengel: "You're lost but you're making good time." Harry S. Truman: "If you can't convince 'em, confuse 'em."

-from freewillastrology.com

Ok, every single one of the great new photos that Sweet Keanu has posted is begging to be made into wallpaper....

But I'm only doing one (for now).

Also, a couple more wonderful pics at this blog, KR-Online.

(I feel like an ass because I can't speak the language, is that Portuguese? Where's Bea when I need her!? I seem to remember her learning Portuguese before she went to Rio....)

Kaz sent me a video file over the weekend and I've decided to go ahead and post it for a limited time. It's of Keanu and Jada doing a interview for an Australian TV show, Rove Live.

It's a cute interview (done for Revolutions promo).
The interviewer is sort of a dork.

Again, big love to kaz.

sta-cie rawks her mad photoshawp skillz....

Catz, too!

Brazilian Blogger "Sweet Keanu" shares some GORGEOUS new photos of Keanu including some taken by Amanda DeCadenet (looks like the same shoot as the Arena Magazine ones).

Go.

Go NOW!

Thanks, Keanuette :)

So, I'm sure most of you have heard that Keanu will be taping Bravo's "Inside the Actor's Studio" in New York on May 10.

In order to attend the taping you must subscribe to the whole series of seven, which I'm not sure you are still able to do because the series kicked off on January 26 with Kate Winslet. However, if you are in New York and have the means, you might check out the information found here, at the New School University's website.

From what I hear, taping can last for several hours which is then cut down to the hour long program. Host and dean of the Actors Studio Drama School, James Lipton "has sat down with some of the world's most accomplished actors and directors for penetrating, fascinating interviews. Lipton's studious research and enlightened curiosity has inspired his guests to open up and confess their deepest thoughts about the art of acting."

A traditional part of the Actor's Studio interview involves a "personality profile" comprised of the famous ten questions by Bernard Pivot.

I've listed them below and given my own answers...I wonder what Keanu's will be?

1. What is your favorite word?

-mocha
2. What is your least favorite word?

-goodbye
3. What turns you on?

-laughter
4. What turns you off?

-dishonesty
5. What sound or noise do you love?

-a great bassline
6. What sound or noise do you hate?

-a creature in pain
7. What is your favorite curse word?

-fuuuuuuuuuuuuuckkkkkkkkkkk
8. What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

- rockstar
9. What profession other than yours would absolutely not like to attempt?

-anything that would necessitate carrying a firearm
10. If heaven exists, what would you like to hear god say when you arrive at the gates?

-"Hey, you did good. Would you like to go back and do it again?"

What are your answers?

--thanks to Wil Wheaton

I can push pixels around, but I can't draw at all and I always have such great admiration for those who can.

Diane sent me this great drawing that she did and I'm happy to be able to share it with you.

Along with being one of the most photographed actors around, I'd bet that he's the subject of countless works of art as well, from notebooks to sketchbooks to oil paintings.

I've been lucky enough to receive and share several drawings by Maribel.

On the web there are drawings by the talented Lailinka and also, KeanuWeb has a large collection of drawings by some very talented artists and fans as well..

Drawings, songs, stories and poetry....Keanu certainly is a wonderful muse and it's always great to see what he inspires in others.

Meh.

I don't see it.

(thanks kaz!)

Apparently, today's all about the football.

ADDED 8:42 pm--
Thanks Niobe! Aieeeeee!