Jumat, 15 April 2011

'Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes' Teaser Trailer: Five Key Scenes

There's still another four months until the apes take over humanity, but the first real glimpse at "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" provides a chilling look at the suspenseful flick to come. This teaser of the prequel to the "Planet of the Apes" films certainly makes us feel like our days are numbered, thanks to James Franco and his team of scientists. Here's a look at the trailer's five key moments as we count down the days until August 5.

Caesar Is Chosen
Franco plays central character Will Rodman, who thinks he has found the cure to Alzheimer's and is looking to test it on one of his lab's many apes. He ends up settling on Caesar, an ape who shows the ability for functional thought more than the others he has at his disposal. But things don't go according to plan.

Watch Out, Tom Felton
Caesar's mental processes start developing quickly, and soon he escapes after he learns to build a tool to unlock his cage. With these advanced apes set loose on the world, no one is safe, especially not "Harry Potter" star Tom Felton! In our first and only glimpse of him in the trailer, Felton stands outside as an ape sneaks by on the roof behind him.

Freida Pinto and James Franco Need to Boost Security
An ape (maybe Caesar) stands over the bed doctor power couple Franco and Pinto Pinto are sleeping in. They should probably padlock their doors, because when simian creatures taking over the world, it's doubtful that they feel charitable toward the people who were experimenting on them.

The Apes Are Loose!
As we teased earlier, the main focus on the trailer for "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" is the sense of foreboding as the mutated apes take over Earth. Our favorite of these shots shows David Oyelowo standing in an office building with hundreds of apes looking down from the upper floors. They might not be humans, as the trailer warns, but they sure do look threatening.

Visual Effects On Display
The final shot in this first trailer is the same as the one in Wednesday's teaser, and for good reason. The apes look fantastic, thanks in large part to "Avatar" special-effects company Weta Digital. Caesar looks more realistic than any CGI simian we have seen in the past, and that's the clincher for making "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" rise above its series predecessors.

'Transformers: Dark Of The Moon' Features 'More Mature' Story, Michael Bay Says

While gearing up for the release of "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," director Michael Bay has not been shy about his desire to right the missteps in "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen": putting more focus on writing a better story, making the action more accessible, yet "epic" in scale. Based on the footage and trailer MTV News saw on the Paramount lot before a candid chat with Bay on Thursday, it looks like he's making good on his word.

We can't get into specifics, of course, but with regard to the trailer — the 2-D version of which will roll out in theaters on April 28, while a 3-D version will hit in front of "Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides" — it takes the intrigue of the teaser trailer, plus the intensity from the action-packed 30-second Super Bowl spot and adds enough mind-blowing, mesmerizing robotgasm goodness to leave even the most passive of fans slack-jawed. Or googly-eyed. One of the two.

We also saw snippets of returning and new supporting castmembers, a possible Pink Floyd tie-in and a tantalizing, yet not at all overwhelming, 3-D sizzle reel.

Speaking of his latest and likely last "Transformers" installment, Bay began by admitting that he is not trying to capture the magic of the first film.

"You're never going to match the innocence of the first movie and the wonderment," he said. "The genie is out of the bottle there. This one, I think, is a more mature story line. It's definitely darker."

He later explained that the new movie has more of the aliens' backstory. "You learn a lot more about the hierarchy, there's a lot more history of what they've had on Cybertron," he said.

Bay also went into his reasoning and reservations behind the decision to shoot in 3-D, and what (actually, who) convinced him to go ahead with the new technology.

"[James Cameron], at the last minute, goes, 'Mike, come on,' " Bay recalled, imitating the "Avatar" director's enthusiasm with a slightly deep and gravelly inflection in his voice. "This is like my idol. He goes, 'Mike come on, we've done everything.' I'm thinking, 'I haven't done everything.' "

Cameron pushed him to try out this "new toy," and that despite all the headaches that are added to the filmmaking process with shooting in 3-D, he's glad he did it.

"3-D, it's pretty great when you see these robots interact in the space," he said.

Other excitement added into the mix for "Dark of the Moon" are the souped-up action sequences, specifically a scene that involves base jumpers jumping off the Sears Tower and literally flying through downtown Chicago.

"There's a lot of action stuff I've never done before that's pretty cool," Bay said of what makes this installment stand out. "I want to make up for the second one, and I want to leave the franchise as best I can."

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Episode 1 Now Online!

Warner Bros. Digital Distribution and Machinima.com have debuted the first episode of director Kevin Tancharoen's "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" live action digital series online. You can watch the video, as well as a teaser trailer for the full series, using the players below!

Starring Jeri Ryan ("Star Trek: Voyager") as Sonya Blade, Michael Jai White (The Dark Knight) as Major Jackson 'Jax' Briggs and Darren Shahlavi (300) as Kano, this series will take gamers deep into the history of the warriors they know and love.

Written by Kevin Tancharoen , Aaron Helbing and Todd Helbing, "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" is an anthology of nine live action shorts, and brings to life the motivation behind each character's participation in the Mortal Kombat tournament. Each episode will provide never-before-revealed insights into characters featured in the upcoming videogame as well as the game's universe.

Read more: Mortal Kombat: Legacy Episode 1 Now Online! - ComingSoon.net http://www.comingsoon.net/news/gamenews.php?id=76352#ixzz1JeT6EyOa

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Reveals Baraka

The first clear photo of Baraka from the new "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" web series is now online, courtesy of The New York Times.

The series stars Jeri Ryan ("Star Trek: Voyager") as Sonya Blade, Michael Jai White (The Dark Knight) as Major Jackson 'Jax' Briggs and Darren Shahlavi (300) as Kano and is designed to take gamers deep into the history of the warriors they know and love.

Written by Kevin Tancharoen , Aaron Helbing and Todd Helbing, "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" is an anthology of nine live action shorts, and brings to life the motivation behind each character's participation in the Mortal Kombat tournament. Each episode will provide never-before-revealed insights into characters featured in the upcoming videogame as well as the game's universe.

Rabu, 13 April 2011

Scream 4


Like the films that preceded it, Scream 4 is pretty tricky to talk about without giving away most of the story. But if you're a Scream fan you already know the basics – super-squeaky-clean suburban gal Sidney Prescott is again menaced by Ghostface, a knife-wielding killer whose identity – and motivation – change from film to film, but who's always determined to make her life as miserable as possible. Sid's few fellow survivors – Deputy (now Sheriff) Dewey Riley and his girlfriend (now wife), news reporter (now struggling writer) Gale Weathers – join her in trying to stop a new string of murders that erupt, this time when our heroine returns to her home town of Woodsboro, a stop on a tour promoting her new self-help book inspired by the events of the first three Scream films. So what can I talk about? Well...
The above premise isn't exactly clever, but it's a good enough way to reintroduce Sidney (and actress Neve Campbell) to the Scream saga, and to a potentially new audience of filmgoers. Of course there are also a lot of fresh faces to draw in the kids. Hayden Panettiere, Lucy Hale, Anna Paquin, Kristin Bell, and my personal favorite, the endlessly watchable Alison Brie (as Sid's hilariously cutthroat publicist) all do their part to reinvigorate the franchise. (There are probably a half dozen other photogenic newcomers that teens will squee over, but, since I rarely watch CW or the Disney Channel, they remain nameless to me.) The standout performance, however, comes from Emma Roberts, Sidney's teenage niece, who seems destined to inherit her aunt's title as Least Lucky Girl in Woodsboro. Roberts isn't given much to do in Scream 4's early scenes. But as the film unfolds, her role expands, and by the end she's proven she's capable of a lot more than Nancy Drew.
Scream 4's strongest moments are in its opening scenes, which poke fun at the self-referential craze in horror that the first Scream launched (the film also takes knowing jabs at some of the fright-film trends that followed), and its glorious finale, which, again, is damn near impossible to describe without spoiling the surprises. So I'll just leave you with this bit of hyperbole – the last twenty minutes of Scream 4 are the most fun I've had watching a mainstream horror movie so far this year. Really. Oh, they may not be the scariest, or even the most suspenseful. But with that ending director Wes Craven proves he's still got what it takes to jolt us out of the vanilla everyday and into the kind of black-as-night batshit craziness that's been missing from the multiplex ever since Hollywood decided to stop producing R-rated horror. Scream 4's ending alone is worth the price of admission. And it's enough to make me pray that someone finds a way to coax both Craven and writer Kevin Williamson (who left the project early) back for at least two more Screams.

Tennessee Titans Wide Receiver -- The Mug Shot

TMZ has obtained the mug shot of Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt -- taken moments after he was arrested yesterday for allegedly trying to run from police.

0413_britt_mugshots_4
As we first reported, cops in Bayonne, NJ attempted to pull Britt over for speeding -- when the NFLer allegedly put the pedal to the metal in an effort to outrun them.

Cops say Kenny eventually stopped after a few miles -- and was arrested and booked on three charges: eluding, obstructing, and hindering apprehension. 

Kenny's passenger -- who allegedly took off on foot during questioning -- was arrested for pot possession, resisting arrest, and obstruction.

LeBron James' Mom to Valet: 'You F**king N**ger'

The attorney for the valet who is suing LeBron James' mom tells TMZ ... during the confrontation, Gloria James allegedly told the valet, "You don't know who I am, you f**king n**ger.  Tomorrow, you won't have a job"

0413_gloria_james_rockfeller_tmz_ex_4
Angela L. Cohn, the attorney for valet Rockfeller Sorel, tells us, Gloria James spewed the hateful remark just as the confrontation became physical.

Gloria was arrested after the incident, and TMZ just broke the story that the valet is suing her for assault and battery.

As for our earlier story showing video of the confrontation, Cohn says any intimation that the valet was the aggressor is untrue. 

Cohn says the video shows Gloria was clearly the aggressor by leaning into Sorel as she launched into her alleged racial attack.

Stallone Attacks Auction -- 'Rocky' Gloves Are FAKE

A pair of boxing gloves said to be worn by Sylvester Stallone in the original "Rocky" movie have just been pulled from a high profile Hollywood auction -- all because Sly himself is calling BS on the authenticity of the items.

0413_gloves_ex


The gloves were set to hit the auction block next month during an event organized by Profiles In History-- a pretty well-known memorabilia dealer.

But once Stallone got wind of the event -- his lawyer, legal pit bull Marty Singer, fired off a cease and desist letter to PIH stating, "Be advised that these items are not 'Sylvester Stallone's boxing gloves from the first Rocky' and they are not authentic."

Stallone threatened to sue if the items weren't 86'd from the auction ASAP.

PIH obliged -- and says it is "withdrawing the items pending further research." Though a rep tells us the company is VERY confident the gloves are legit.  

Barry Bonds -- Guilty of Obstructing Justice

Barry Bonds has been found guilty of obstructing justice ... stemming from the 2003 federal steroid investigation.

0413_barry_bonds_bn_getty_2

The jury deadlocked on the remaining charges -- which included lying to a grand jury when he denied knowingly taking steroids -- and the judge ultimately declared a mistrial.

Bonds faces a maximum 10 years in federal prison for the obstruction of justice conviction.

The prosecution has not announced whether it intends to re-file the deadlocked charges against Bonds. 

Kobe Apologizes to Gay Rights Group

Kobe Bryant just got off the phone with the president of a gay rights organization -- and apologized for using a gay slur last night ... TMZ has learned.
0413-hrc-kobe-ex-tmz.jpg


















Bryant spoke with Human Rights Campaign honcho Joe Solmonese -- who tells TMZ, "I applaud Kobe Bryant for his swift apology. We had a very sincere conversation in which he expressed his heartfelt regret for the hurt that his words caused."
Solmonese adds, "He told me that it’s never OK to degrade or tease, and that he understands how his words could unfortunately give the wrong impression that this is appropriate conduct."

"At the end of a difficult day, I applaud Kobe for coming forward and taking responsibility for his actions."

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The story begins in 1940 during World War II, when four children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie, are evacuated from London to escape the Blitz. They are sent to live with Professor Digory Kirke, who lives in a country house in the English countryside.
While the four children are exploring the house, Lucy looks into a wardrobe and discovers a portal to a mysterious world called Narnia, in which she meets a faun named Tumnus who takes her to tea in his home. He confesses he planned to report her to the tyrannical White Witch but has thought better of it. Upon returning to our world, Lucy's siblings do not believe her story about Narnia. Her spiteful older brother Edmund enters the wardrobe and meets the White Witch, who befriends him and offers him magical Turkish delight that enchants him. She encourages him to bring his siblings to her in Narnia, with the promise that he shall rule over them. Edmund meets Lucy in Narnia and returns to England with her, but after returning to our world he denies to Susan and Peter that there is anything behind the wardrobe.
Eventually all four of the children enter Narnia together while hiding in the wardrobe. They meet Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, who invite them to dinner. The beavers recount a prophecy that the witch's power will fail when two Sons of Adam and two Daughters of Eve fill the four thrones at Cair Paravel. The beavers tell of the true king of Narnia — a great lion called Aslan — who has been absent for many years but is now "on the move again".
Edmund sneaks away to the White Witch. Her castle is filled with stone statues; enemies whom she petrified. The beavers realize where Edmund has gone and abandon their home, leading the children to join Aslan. As they travel, they notice that the snow is melting, indicating that the White Witch's spell is breaking. A visit by Father Christmas confirms this.
The children and the Beavers meet with Aslan and his army. Peter engages in his first battle, killing a wolf who threatens Susan.
The Witch approaches to speak with Aslan, insisting that according to "deep magic from the dawn of time" she has the right to execute Edmund as a traitor. Aslan speaks with her privately and persuades her to renounce her claim on Edmund's life. That evening, Aslan secretly leaves the camp, but is followed by Lucy and Susan. Aslan has bargained to exchange his own life for Edmund's. The Witch ties Aslan to the Stone Table and then kills him with a knife. The following morning Aslan is restored to life; for unbeknownst to the witch, "deeper magic from before the dawn of time" allows someone who willingly dies in the place of another to be returned to life.
Aslan allows Lucy and Susan to ride on his back as he travels to the Witch's castle, where he breathes upon the statues and restores them to life. Peter and Edmund lead the Narnian army in a battle against the White Witch's army, and Aslan arrives with the former statues as reinforcements. The Narnians rout the evil army, and Aslan kills the Witch.
The Pevensie children are named kings and queens of Narnia. On a hunt several years later, they rediscover the lamp post, walk through the wardrobe, and end up right back in the mansion just moments after they had entered the wardrobe.

I am number four

I Am Number Four follows the story of John Smith, a 15-year old alien from the planet Lorien, and his guardian, Henri, as they run from the Mogadorians, another race of aliens that are hunting down John and the other eight teenage Loriens, who all make up the Garde, living on Earth. The Garde consists of all Loriens who have special Legacies and powers. The teenagers are protected by a charm, which only allows them to be killed in a set order. John is Number Four. Both the Loriens and Mogadorians have a human appearance.
The book opens with the death of Number Three. Number Four is introduced, going by the name of Daniel Jones, as he leaves Florida. Four has three circular scars wrapped around his right ankle, signifying the deaths of Numbers One, Two and Three. These scars are present on all the Lorien teenagers, and with each death, another scar appears. Henri, Four’s CĂŞpan (guardian), tells him they are going to Paradise, Ohio. Four chooses the name John Smith as his new alias.
Tired of running, John says that he wants to begin to make a life for himself. Henri reminds him why they run, and the conversation ends. John begins to attend the local high school, where he meets Sarah Hart, a blonde junior. He also meets her ex-boyfriend Mark James, who immediately begins to pick on John. John stands up to him, the first time he has ever stood up to anybody.
In his astronomy class, John’s hands begin to hurt and glow. When John is back at his house, he realizes that his first Legacy has arrived. A Legacy is a power that only certain Loriens possess, and each differs from one Lorien to the other, except for telekinesis, which all members of the Garde are capable of performing. Henri tells John that his first Legacy is Lumen, the ability to produce light from his hands and a resistance to heat and fire. When Henri begins to help, the resistance of fire and heat spread throughout John’s body, John has a vision of his last moments on Lorien when the Mogadorians attacked, while Henri narrates.
Henri and John have a special Lorien chest that can only be opened by John and Henri together. The only way that John can open the chest without Henri is if he dies. Henri shows John a model of the galaxies, where he can see how Lorien looked before the Morgadorians destroyed it and how it looks now, desolate and barren. The chest also has a healing stone that heals all wounds inflicted on the body, but in order to heal the wound, the injured person must endure pain twice as intense as the first time and the wound must have come from the intent to hurt or kill a Lorien. The healing stone must also be used soon after the wound is inflicted. A third item in the chest is small pebble-like rocks that John and Henri put under their tongue to reduce pain. But that immediately diminishes if a Lorien uses one of their legacies.
After his first Legacy arrives, John begins to train in combat. John can eventually turn his lights on and off by will. John also makes his first real friend, Sam Goode, who believes in aliens. He also grows closer to Sarah. At a town Halloween party, John, Sarah, Sam, and Sarah’s friend, Emily, are ambushed by Mark and his football teammates. John, who is enraged by Mark’s constant bullying and the fact that he has kidnapped Sarah, finds, confronts, and defeats him. Sam sees John’s lights and begins to avoid him. Sarah and John kiss.
John confronts Sam, and Sam turns a gun on him, asking who he really is, but John convinces him that he isn’t an alien. At a Thanksgiving dinner, John is worried when Henri doesn’t turn up at the Hart's place after going in search of the publishers of Sam’s alien conspiracy magazine. John calls Sam for help, and the two go to Athens, Ohio, where they find Henri. John’s telekinesis Legacy appears, and he uses it to save both Henri and Sam. Sam is told the truth about both John and Henri after seeing John use his telekinesis, and accepts them for who they are. John’s training begins to intensify, by being set on fire and using his telekinesis.
John and Sarah continue to grow even closer. John asks Henri is it possible for humans to love Loriens. Henri says that Loriens and humans have interbred before, creating exceptionally talented children, some of which included the Greek gods. Henri warns John not to get too attached to Sarah, as Lorien love is different from human love.
At a party at Mark’s house, a fire starts, trapping Sarah on the second floor. John rushes in and saves her, revealing who and what he really is to her in the process. She confesses her love for him however, and John says he loves her, too. He tells her everything about himself. At school the next day, John fears that he will have to leave, as people had seen him jump out of the window and reported it. However, the paper has no reference to John, but a fax sent to the school saying “Are you Number Four?” causes John to flee the school in panic through a window. When he arrives home, he sees Mark, who has realized what John is. He also has an argument with Henri about why he did what he did, saying he wanted a normal life. He returns to the school to find Sarah after realizing the Mogadorians are on their way to kill him.
John finds her, but is found by a Mogadorian scout, one of several who have closed in on the school. John kills it, and while trying to flee the school is found by Henri and Mark. The four are found by a girl around John’s age, and John’s dog, Bernie Kosar. The girl says that she is Number Six. John realizes that with Six with him, the charm protecting them from being killed out of order has now broken. Six replies that the war has begun, with Henri agreeing. As the five companions find a way out of the school, John tells Mark and Sarah to go back and hide, as it isn’t their fight. They leave, and John confronts his first soldier, whom he kills.
John is wounded severely and is rescued by Henri and Sam, who realized what was happening and came to help. John discovers his third Legacy, the ability to communicate with animals, and convinces one of the Mogadorians' beasts to turn on its masters. Henri is hit by an energy blast from a soldier and dies in John’s arms. Before he passes away, he says, "Coming here, to Paradise, it wasn't by chance."
After waking up in a hotel room, John tells Sarah he has to leave. Sarah accepts this and tells him she will wait for him. John replies in a similar fashion, saying his heart will always belong to her. Afterward, Henri’s body is cremated. Sam agrees to go with John and Six as they prepare to leave in search of the other four Loriens. The novel ends with John telling Sarah he will come back to her as he leaves.

Brisingr

Following the colossal battle against the Empire's warriors on the Burning Plains, Eragon and his dragon, Saphira, have narrowly escaped with their lives. Still there is more at hand for the Rider and his dragon, as Eragon finds himself bound by a tangle of promises he may not be able to keep.

First is Eragon's oath to his cousin Roran: to help rescue Roran's beloved, Katrina, to whom Roran is engaged, from the evil clutches of the Ra'zac. But Eragon owes his loyalty to others, too. The Varden are in desperate need of his talents and strength - as are the elves and dwarves. When unrest claims the rebels and danger strikes from every corner, Eragon must make choices - choices that take him across the Empire and beyond, choices that may lead to unimagined sacrifice.

Rich with a thoughtful examination of Eragon's maturing psyche, "Brisingr" explores how Eragon must come to terms with his role as a leader and the moral obligations that weigh heavily upon his young shoulders as a Dragon Rider.

Justin bieber get into acting

The 'Baby' singer ' who had a guest role on US crime show 'CSI: Crime Scene Investigation' earlier this year 'has caught the acting bug and "definitely" wants another role in front of the camera.

He said: "I definitely want to do more acting, and further my career in that area, that's something I would love to do."

However, despite having a talent for following a script, the 17-year-old heartthrob insists his recent documentary film 'Justin Bieber: Never Say Never' - which chronicled his ascent to pop stardom ' didn't involve any acting at all and says a scene where his grandmother tells him to tidy his room was genuine.

Speaking on 'The Kyle & Jackie O Show' on Sydney's 2Day FM: "It wasn't scripted... whenever I'm at my grandmother's she always tells me to clean up after myself, especially when I'm at home, but I'm not at home that often, I really don't have a room at this point, it's just kind of travelling all the time."

And although he wants to branch out in his career, Justin is still concentrating on his music and hopes to secure some new collaborations.

He said: "I would love to perform with Stevie Wonder or Beyonce."

Rihanna announces record-breaking 10th O2 show

Rihanna has sold over a staggering 300,000 tickets for her UK 'Loud' Tour to date and to celebrate this record breaking feat she is adding her 10th and final show at the O2 London on Tuesday 20th December 2011. Rihanna has broken the venue's record with ten shows, the longest ever for a solo female artist at The O2 arena since it opened in 2007.

Rihanna mania shows no sign of slowing down with this announcement, the Brit and Grammy award wining artist has now sold over 1.4 million copies of her album 'Loud' in 20 weeks, in that time it has never left the Top 10 and spent 17 weeks inside the Top 5. In this period 'Loud' has seen 3 singles from the album chart Top 3, with two Number 1's, selling over 2 million copies.

The Global Superstar's 'Loud' tour will now stop in 8 cities across the country, including this phenomenal 10 shows at London's 02. The tour will show case all the star's hits including her mega-hit singles 'Only Girl (In The World)', 'Umbrella', 'Disturbia' and 'What's My Name' to mention a few. Rihanna's 'Loud' Tour is set to be her biggest and best yet.

Tickets for this record breaking tenth and final London O2 show on December 20th will go on sale at 9am Friday 15th April, from www.livenation.co.uk

A limited amount of great production seats will be released for each night of the tour please go to www.livenation.co.uk for more information.

RIHANNA 'Loud' Tour 2011

October 2011
Wednesday 05 London O2 Arena
Thursday 06 London O2 Arena
Friday 07 Liverpool Echo Arena
Sunday 09 Manchester Evening News Arena
Monday 10 Glasgow SECC
Tuesday 11 Glasgow SECC
Thursday 13 London O2 Arena
Saturday 15 Birmingham LG Arena
Sunday 16 Newcastle Metro Radio Arena

November 2011
Sunday 13 London O2 Arena
Monday 14 London O2 Arena
Tuesday 15 London O2 Arena
Tuesday 18 Birmingham LG Arena
Wednesday 19 Motorpoint Arena Sheffield
Friday 21 Manchester MEN Arena
Tuesday 22 Nottingham Capital FM Arena
Wednesday 23 Glasgow SECC
Sunday 27 Newcastle Metro Radio Arena
Monday 28 Manchester Evening News Arena
Tuesday 29 Birmingham NIA

December 2011
Thursday 1 London O2 Arena
Friday 2 Manchester Evening News Arena
Tuesday 20 London O2 Arena ' Tenth and Final Show added
Wednesday 21 London O2 Arena
Thursday 22 London O2 Arena

Young Knives Interview Thomas 'House of Lords' Dartnall, Oliver Askew

Young Knives are a Leicestershire three-piece whose indie-rock has been delighting audiences for years.

Made-up of Henry Dartnall (vocals, guitar), brother Thomas ‘House of Lords’ Dartnall (vocals, bass guitar) and long time friend and musical collaborator Oliver Askew (drums, backing vocals) they strive to bring their fresh faced brand of angular pop punk to the masses whilst donning tweed suits and tank tops.

The plucky threesome won the ‘Road to V’ competition which secured them a slot at V Festival, were subsequently signed to Transgressive Records and their first album ‘Voices of Animals and Men’ was rightly Mercury nominated.

Having just released their third album ‘Ornaments from the Silver Arcade’ Music-News.com caught up with the House of Lords and Oliver in CAMP bar Shoreditch ahead of their headline performance at XOYO that evening to find out more.

Slash set to play his first show in his British hometown of Stoke-on-Trent

lash is set to play his first show in his British hometown, Stoke-on-Trent.

The former Guns N' Roses guitarist will play in the British midlands town for the first time during a tour of Europe later this summer, his first visit since he was five.

He wrote on his twitter page: "Last show of South American tour tonight in Cordoba! Then home to work on new record until Euro tour in July! Its gonna be epic! *wink* (sic)

"Actually its more of a UK tour w/some Euro dates thrown in. We're playing Stoke! Its my 1st visit since I was 5 yrs old. *wink* (sic)."

Slash was born in West Hampstead, London, to an English father and an African-American mother but the couple soon moved to Stoke-on-Trent, then to Los Angeles, where he would become involved in music.

The 'By the Sword' rocker has been touring in support of his debut, self-titled, solo album, and as part of his summer dates, has also been confirmed to appear at this year's High Voltage festival, which takes place in London's Victoria Park on July 23 and 24.

The show will be Slash's only festival appearance in the UK this year, and he will be joined on the festival's bill by Judas Priest, Dream Theatre, Thin Lizzy and Jethro Tull, among others.

Eragon

The Kingdom of Alagaesia is ruled by the evil King Galbatorix, a former dragon rider that betrayed his mates and his people in his quest for power. When the orphan farm boy Eragon finds a blue stone sent by Princess Arya, he sooner realizes that it is a dragon egg. When the dragon Saphira is born, Eragon meets his mentor Brom, and becomes the dragon rider foreseen in an ancient prophecy that would set his people free from the tyrant Galbatorix. Eragon meets the rebels Varden and together they fight against the evil sorcerer Durza and the army of Galbatorix in a journey for freedom.

Coldplay fans do it less than Nirvana...fans

Coldplay fans are least likely to bonk on a first date but Nirvana fans root like rabbits. That is the finding in a survey released this week.

Tastebuds.fm is a dating service based on your music tastes. It connects people who share the same passion for music artists.

The company surveyed 400 users and the findings were interesting indeed. Want sex on a first date? Then you are better off finding a friend who likes Nirvana, Metallica or Linkin Park.

Want to hold hands on a first date and nothing much else? Then the Coldplay, Adele, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga fans are best suited to your emotions.

Ironically, fans of The Strokes are unlikely to get stroked on a first date and if you want head, stay away from Radiohead fans.

Kanye West, Gorillaz, Daft Punk and Eminem fans are far more likely to get laid on a first date than Kings Of Leon, Muse and Rihanna fans.

Tastebuds.fm asked the question 'how far would you go on a first date'?

The responses were a. I'd only meet up for a cha. b. Perhaps a kiss c. All the way, if there was chemistry.

As for Blur vs Oasis fans, Blur fans are more likely to put out on day one that Oasis fans.

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows plays thoughtfully upon the standard Harry Potter formula that we've all gotten used to over the course of the last six books – we begin with a menacing taste of what's to come (this time with a glimpse of what Voldemort and his Death Eaters are up to), find ourselves at Privet Drive at the end of the summer, and then make our way to Hogwarts. However, this version of the trajectory is thwarted at every point, as Rowling throws in curveball after curveball, shaking up all of our expectations.

The central struggle of this book is established right away: Voldemort is gathering his forces to eliminate Harry once and for all (yikes). The Death Eaters are in the midst of infiltrating the Ministry of Magic, and it seems like they'll succeed soon (yikes). Meanwhile, their enemies, the Order of the Phoenix, are making plans to move Harry from Privet Drive, which will cease to be a safe place for him as soon as he turns seventeen. Snape betrays the Order's plans to Voldemort (dangit). Harry himself is making plans for his mission to destroy Voldemort, left to him by Dumbledore; speaking of whom, the former Headmaster's reputation has fallen into question, due to a new exposé biography by notorious journalist Rita Skeeter. Yes, this is going to be a turbulent one.

The night of the big move, Death Eaters ambush the Order. So, right from the get-go, casualties include Harry's owl Hedwig and George Weasley (who's alive, but seriously injured). Worst of all, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody is killed. Harry is now seriously full of rage – he can't wait to get going on his quest for Voldemort's Horcruxes, but must hold off until his birthday, and then wait for Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour's wedding to take place.

On Harry's birthday, Harry, Ron, and Hermione find that they've been left certain mysterious objects in Dumbledore's will – Ron receives the Deluminator (which eliminates light – we're guessing it gets more interesting than this as the book progresses), Hermione a copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, and Harry receives the first Golden Snitch he ever caught and the sword of Godric Gryffindor (which the Ministry refuses to surrender to him). Dumbledore's motives seem more mysterious than ever.

Bill and Fleur's wedding falls right on the heels of Harry's birthday and the event, a disguised Harry encounters two intriguing things: first, a strange symbol that Viktor Krum says is the symbol of the evil, Hitler-esque wizard Grindelwald (defeated many years ago by Dumbledore); and second, Elphias Doge, an old friend of Dumbledore's, whose defense of the dead man only eggs Harry on more to find out the truth about his old mentor.

The wedding gets derailed by the arrival of Death Eaters – the Ministry has officially fallen. Harry, Ron, and Hermione make a quick escape, but are immediately found by Death Eaters. They escape once more, and flee to the former Order of the Phoenix headquarters at Sirius's house, 12 Grimmauld Place. There, they discover the secret of who R.A.B. is (the mystery man who stole the locket Horcrux before Harry and Dumbledore in Book 6) – it was Sirius's brother Regulus Arcturus Black, who was a Death Eater, but turned against Voldemort. They learn all about Regulus from Kreacher, the Black family house-elf; Harry makes friends with Kreacher through this ordeal.

They discover that the real Horcrux locket is in the possession of Dolores Umbridge, now a high-up Ministry official – and to get it, they have to secretly infiltrate the Ministry. Things go fairly smoothly until they're discovered by a Death Eater called Yaxley, who manages to follow them to Grimmauld Place after they get the locket; their safe haven is no longer safe. After this point, our trio of heroes is on the run for real. They travel around, living in a tent and subsisting on horribly cooked, scavenged mushrooms, which doesn't do any favors for anyone's mood. Furthermore, since they don't have Gryffindor's sword, which is capable of destroying Horcruxes, they've got nothing to break the locket with – and it seems to spread Voldemort's pernicious influence to whoever's wearing it. (Not what they need right about now.)

The tensions rise so high that Ron storms off in a huff, leaving Harry and Hermione on their own. To make things even more depressing, it's Christmas; they're lonely, cold, and disgruntled. They decide to go to Godric's Hollow, which was the home of both the Potters and the Dumbledores, to see Bathilda Bagshot, an old friend of Dumbledore's. While there, they visit Harry's parents' grave, as well as the ruins of the Potters' old house – the house Lily and James died in.

Bathilda Bagshot seems to be a creepy old lady, but turns out to be a creepy giant snake – turns out that "she" was a trap crafted by Voldemort to lure Harry in. The poor woman died, and was used as a kind of human puppet for Nagini, Voldemort's terrible serpent. Harry and Hermione narrowly escape as Voldemort approaches, but Harry's beloved holly and phoenix feather wand is broken in their flight. Nothing can fix it, and he's in despair – what if he's not strong enough to face Voldemort without it? Furthermore, Harry and Hermione have been reading Skeeter's biography of Dumbledore, and have learned that he and the evil Grindelwald guy were friends in their youth – what does this say about their former idol?

Through mysterious means, Harry discovers the sword of Gryffindor waiting for him in an icy pond – but as he leaps in to fetch it, the Horcrux locket tries to strangle him. Luckily, Ron comes back just in time to save him, and they destroy the Horcrux with the sword. Now that the boys are reunited, the next thing to do is visit Luna Lovegood's father – it seems like an odd choice, but Hermione's noticed that the same weird symbol Mr. Lovegood was wearing at Bill and Fleur's wedding was written in a lot of Dumbledore's things. Turns out that the symbol, according to Mr. Lovegood, is the mark of the Deathly Hallows, a kind of wizarding Holy Grail. The Hallows are three objects – the Cloak of Invisibility, the Resurrection Stone (which brings the dead back), and the Elder Wand (a kind of all-powerful, undefeated wand). But Mr. Lovegood betrays them, and another very narrow escape follows.

Back at camp, Harry is all worked up – based on his glimpses into Voldemort's mind, he's sure that the Dark Lord is looking for the Elder Wand. In his excitement, he accidentally says Voldemort's name (there's been a taboo set on it by the Death Eaters, so anyone who says "Voldemort" can be tracked), and they're beset by captors. The Death Eaters take the trio to Malfoy Manor, where they're thrown in with a bunch of other captives – Luna, their old friend Dean Thomas, Mr. Ollivander the wandmaker, and a Gringotts goblin, Griphook. At the Manor, evil standby Bellatrix Lestrange is in charge – she's alarmed that they have Gryffindor's sword, which she thought was hidden in her Gringotts vault. However, Hermione and Griphook tell her it's a fake so, satisfied, she calls Voldemort. As he's on his way, though, Harry desperately calls for help through a shard of magic mirror, and lo and behold, Dobby the house-elf shows up. He helps them escape to Bill and Fleur's home, Shell Cottage, but gets killed in the process. Sigh.

Dobby's death reaffirms Harry's burning need to conquer Voldemort. He's sure that Bellatrix is hiding a Horcrux in her Gringotts vault, so he makes a deal with Griphook to get into the notoriously impenetrable bank – he'll give the goblin the (goblin-made) sword of Gryffindor if he helps them. The bank break is successful (if you count a narrow escape on dragonback successful), and they have another Horcrux, Hufflepuff's cup. However, Griphook made off with the sword right away, so there's nothing to destroy the Horcrux with. Meanwhile, Harry figures out that the last Horcrux they need to find (other than Nagini, Voldemort's constant companion) is hidden somewhere at Hogwarts. It's time to return to school.

They Apparate to Hogsmeade, and are saved from roving Death Eaters by Aberforth Dumbledore, Albus's brother – he's gruff and unwilling to admit that the Order has a chance this time around (he was an Order member last time), but he still helps them get into Hogwarts. There, they discover that Neville Longbottom has organized an army of rebels based on their old Defense group, and the squad is hiding out in the Room of Requirement, where the Death Eaters running Hogwarts, Alecto and Amycus Carrow, can't find them.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione initially won't let Neville's group help them, but they find that Dumbledore's Army is raring to go – they all assumed that when Harry showed up, they would stage a rebellion. Ron convinces Harry to let everyone help. More supporters show up; Neville's already spread the word that Harry's at Hogwarts, and old members of the DA, as well as members of the Order of the Phoenix, come to support him.

With the help of the Ravenclaw students, Harry figures out that the last Horcrux must be Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem – Luna, who's arrived with Dean from Shell Cottage, takes him to Ravenclaw Tower to get a look at the statue of the founder. While they're up there, they're discovered by evil Alecto Carrow; Luna stuns her, but it's too late, and her equally evil brother, Amycus, is already outside trying to get in. Professor McGonagall, irritated, lets him in to the tower, where Luna and Harry are hidden under the Cloak, and she and the conscious Carrow get into a fight. When Amycus spits on Professor McGonagall, Harry can't take it anymore; he throws off the Cloak and uses the Crucio Curse for the first time ever, rendering the Death Eater unconscious. Whoa, Harry!

Professor McGonagall is shocked by Harry's appearance, but quickly recovers her senses and agrees to rally the teachers of Hogwarts to buy Harry some time to find the Horcrux before Voldemort arrives. In the hallway, they run into Snape; he and McGonagall get into a showdown, but he's soon outnumbered when professors Flitwick, Sprout, and Slughorn show up in support. They immediately spring into action and start evacuating students and preparing the school for battle. The whole school gathers in the Great Hall, and younger students are evacuated through the passage into the Hog's Head, while students of age are allowed to stay and fight if they choose. Meanwhile, Voldemort announces that he's just there for Harry – he will only fight if they won't surrender him. Needless to say, they won't.

Harry dashes off to find the Horcrux, and runs into the missing Ron and Hermione, who have done something quite clever – using basilisk fangs from the Chamber of Secrets, they've destroyed Hufflepuff's cup. Nice! Next up is Ravenclaw's diadem, which, Harry remembers, he's seen before in the Room of Requirement, in one of its configurations where hidden things are stored. They make it in there, but as Harry's right about to get the diadem, Draco Malfoy and his two thugs, Crabbe and Goyle, ambush them – classic. Malfoy isn't exactly in charge of his gang anymore – Crabbe has gotten some ideas from their new Death Eater teachers, and he's eager to use them. He hurls curses everywhere, and unintentionally sets an unstoppable Fiendfyre (a kind of magical flame that destroys everything). He doesn't make it out of the room, but Harry, Ron, and Hermione manage to save Malfoy and Goyle and make it out alive. As one stroke of luck, the diadem is destroyed by the Fiendfyre – another Horcrux down!

The fight is really on at the castle now, and there are invaders trying to get in from all sides. Battles are being fought everywhere, and our first tragic casualty happens: Fred Weasley is killed instantly in an explosion. Before there's time to mourn, Harry figures out that Voldemort is in the Shrieking Shack, and he, Ron, and Hermione fight through the fray to get there.

In the Shrieking Shack, we indeed find Voldemort, who's awaiting Snape; he coldly informs Snape that he needs to do one thing to truly become master of the Elder Wand… kill its last master, who was not Dumbledore, according to him, but Snape himself. He mercilessly sets Nagini upon Snape, and leaves as the man lies dying. Harry goes over to the dying Snape, and Snape gives him a final gift – his memories. Harry's totally confused and dazed. Before he can process anything, though, Voldemort makes another magical loudspeaker announcement, saying that Harry has one hour to meet him in the Forbidden Forest, or everyone dies. No time for mourning, indeed.

Ron and Hermione don't want Harry to go, but he doesn't listen to them. He walks through the castle and sees terrible things on his way – Fred's body, next to those of Lupin and Tonks. He somehow nimbly makes his way up to Dumbledore's office and dumps Snape's memories in the Pensieve.

What he sees there is shocking. Snape, we learn, was close friends with Harry's mother, Lily, when they were kids, even though she was Muggle-born. He was in love with her from the moment he saw her, and even though their paths took them in opposite directions – him to Voldemort, her to the Order – he never stopped loving Lily. When he found out that Voldemort meant to kill her and her family because of Professor Trelawney's prophecy, Snape went to Dumbledore to beg him to save them, to no avail.

Since then, he's been working for Dumbledore all the way – Dumbledore is the one who engineered Snape's "betrayal" of the Order, and made sure that Snape would remain close to Voldemort all along, in order to save Harry for his destiny. The crafty Headmaster even planned his own so-called "murder" by Snape – it turns out that his injury from the ring Horcrux (the Resurrection Stone) was going to kill him eventually anyway. The last thing we learn is that Harry's ultimate destiny is to sacrifice himself in order to kill Voldemort, since a part of Voldemort lives on in him. Snape did all of what Dumbledore asked – all out of love for Lily.

Harry leaves Dumbledore's office, shell-shocked. So this is what he's been saved for all along? He knows that there's no choice – he must go. He heads slowly to the Forbidden Forest, clad in his Invisibility Cloak, observing his friends and loved ones on the way. Before he goes in, he stops and interrupts Neville to tell him that Voldemort's snake has to be killed, no matter what – just in case Ron and Hermione can't get to it themselves.

Walking to the Forest, Harry also figures out that it's time to open the Golden Snitch – this is the "close" Dumbledore wrote about. He holds it to his lips and, as he predicted, the Resurrection Stone falls out. He turns it, and the people he longs for the most are there beside him to go with him on this last walk – his mother, his father, Sirius, and Lupin. They give him love and support as he goes to his death. Deep in the Forest, Harry finds Voldemort and reveals himself – he doesn't even put up a struggle as Voldemort aims the Killing Curse at him.

However, this isn't the end (much to the betterment of our blood pressure): Harry awakens in a strange, bright place, accompanied by a strange, mewling, repellent infant, and none other than Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore explains gleefully to Harry that he hasn't actually died – rather, Voldemort has killed the small part of his own soul that lived on in Harry… that is, unwittingly Voldemort has undone his own Horcrux (which is what Harry was). (Man, that J.K. Rowling can sure write a story.)

Dumbledore also reveals more about himself and his quest for the Hallows; he admits that he was, in his time, too selfish and ambitious for his own good – or for anyone's good, maybe. Harry, however, has proven himself to be a worthy possessor of the Hallows. The time comes for Harry to go back, if he so desires – and, knowing that his job is unfinished, he does. Before he leaves, he asks Dumbledore if this is real, or just in his head… and Dumbledore, with characteristic playfulness, asks why it can't be both.

Harry finds himself facedown in the woods, surrounded by Death Eaters. Voldemort has also apparently passed out from whatever happened between them. Harry plays dead, but then Voldemort, conscious again, sends Narcissa Malfoy over to confirm his death. To our surprise (and wonder), she plays along because Harry oh-so-quietly tells her that Draco is still alive and in the castle.

Voldemort triumphantly parades Harry's body to the castle, where he shows it to all of his opponents, who are heartbroken. However, the Order and the students stand strong – and Neville stands up to Voldemort. Voldemort mockingly announces that there will no longer be Sorting at Hogwarts, and that all students from how on will be Slytherins. He jams the Sorting Hat on Neville's head and lights it ablaze. In this moment, though, chaos breaks out. Neville breaks free of the flaming hat, and draws an unexpected object from the hat: the sword of Gryffindor (dude, how'd that get there? These questions are not for us to ask). Neville does Harry proud and takes the sword to cut off the head of Nagini, the huge creepy snake Horcrux – snakerux? – and her head flies off dramatically. Assuming everyone's plenty distracted, Harry flings the Invisibility Cloak over himself and slinks off as a huge battle breaks out.

It seems like everyone's fighting everyone. All the good guys we know are engaged in dramatic duels with all of the bad guys. Well, all except for the Malfoy parents, who have given up on the whole good vs. evil thing, and are just looking out for family – they're searching frantically for Draco. All of our peeps keep putting down the bad guys and getting away with miraculous near-misses; when one of Bellatrix's curses narrowly misses Ginny, Molly Weasley rushes in with a mother's vengeance (here, we hear the first swear word in Harry Potter history – wow, Mrs. Weasley really means it!). Bellatrix and Molly duel viciously, and in the end, Bellatrix falls under one of Mrs. Weasley's curses. Voldemort, fighting next to Bellatrix, sees this and turns on Mrs. Weasley.

However, before the Dark Lord can do anything, Harry shoots a Shield Charm between them and reveals himself. It's down to him and Voldemort now, just as we always knew it would be. Harry tells Voldemort the truth about Snape and his love for Lily Evans; Voldemort is unfazed and doesn't care, as long as victory is still just a wandstroke away for him. However, there's one thing he wasn't counting on – the fact that Severus Snape wasn't actually the master of the Elder Wand, since he killed Dumbledore with the latter's consent, and therefore didn't defeat him in a duel. Huh. OK – so who is? Well, we have to go back to the events of Book 6, in which Draco Malfoy disarmed Dumbledore, but didn't kill him. Voldemort is still unfazed – he can take care of Draco later, no prob.

But Harry's not done yet. Draco wasn't the last master of the Elder Wand – because someone bested Draco and took his wand, which means that Voldemort better hope that the Elder Wand hasn't felt this change. The new master of the Elder Wand, and the possessor of the Deathly Hallows, and thus the Master of Death is… drumroll please… Harry Potter.

Voldemort and Harry both shoot spells at one another simultaneously, each sending their signature spell – Voldemort's Avada Kedavra and Harry's Expelliarmus (Disarming spell). The beams meet in the middle with golden flames, and the Elder Wand goes spinning through the air. Harry catches it as Voldemort flies back, hit by his own rebounding curse. Slam! He crumples to the ground, finally really absolutely 100% genuinely dead.

And the rest is history. Harry is cheered by everyone, and sneaks away with Ron and Hermione to calm down and talk things through (and maybe go find a therapist, while he's at it). They end up in Dumbledore's office, where the portraits of the Headmasters and Headmistresses applaud him, even pompous Phineas Nigellus. Dumbledore is proudest of all – Harry did just what he'd hoped he would. One last matter of business is the Hallows; Harry decides to let the Resurrection Stone stay where it fell, lost in the forest, and intends to put the Elder Wand back where it belongs, in Dumbledore's tomb. First, though, he uses it to repair his old holly and phoenix wand, which feels just about right when it's fixed. The Invisibility Cloak, he'll keep, since it's his birthright – at least, until he has a son to pass it on to.

Speaking of which, it's Harry's children that carry us into the brief epilogue, which closes this long book, this long saga, and this loooong summary: we find Harry and Ginny nineteen years later, married and sending two sons, James and Albus Severus, off to Hogwarts (their daughter, Lily, is too young to go just yet). It's Al's first year, and he's afraid he'll get Sorted into Slytherin, but Harry reassures him that one of the bravest men he ever knew – Snape – was a Slytherin, and no matter what house he's in, they'll be proud of him. All is well in the wizarding world.

About Trans Studio Theme Park Makassar `s very own Theme Park. From TV to Reality

STUDIO THEME PARK TRANS, Trans Studio Theme Park is the largest indoor amusement park in Indonesia. On an area of ​​2.7 hectares, TRANS STUDIO THEME PARK presents 21 rides games and various forms of entertainment contained in 4 areas with different themes and unik.Para visitors can feel how to be a star in front of the camera and into people - the people behind the screen of impressions - impressions favorite TV TRANS and TRANS 7, such as Other World, Pan, X-travaganza.


About Trans Studio Theme Park
Welcome to the world full of wonders specially created for you. Bringing your dreams into kenyataan.Bertemu directly with the characters - characters idol anda.Nikmati our vehicle offering 21 challenging and thrilling and entertainment in the style of the famous Broadway.

Trans Studio Theme Park makes the day - your day is full of fun and pampering you sekeluarga.Trans Studio Theme Park is ready to welcome you and make your visit into an unforgettable experience.


Central Studio
The Famous Hollywood! Hollywood area in front of your eyes. Walk along this area and see who the artist is on Walk of Fame? . You will be spoiled by Hollywood-style architectures 60s. You stepped in the center of the country as entertainment. Discover also Stars
your favorites like Marlyn Monroe.

Lost City
Prepare yourself for adventure! In this area you will be a great journey. Save Crew Trans TV in his expedition, a safari into the jungles in track.Semua exciting adventure will be part of the exploration anda.Explore the Lost City!

Cartoon City
It `s a Cartoon World! The colorful cartoon world - colorful and prepare your cameras capture the moment are in a world full of laughter. Cartoon that captivated the world and your imagination roam membuaikan met with the character - your favorite character

Magic Corner
Miracle begins from here. Touch of Magic who will dazzle your travels. You will be lost in the sensation that is here. Travel that will bewitch you make you so sure what is in front of the eye. The only place full of wonders, exciting and amazing adventure.

Disneyland

isneyland Park is a theme park located in Anaheim, California, owned and operated by the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts division of The Walt Disney Company. Known as Disneyland when it opened on July 18, 1955, and still colloquially known by that name, it is the only theme park to be designed and built under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. In 1998, the theme park was re-branded "Disneyland Park" to distinguish it from the larger Disneyland Resort complex.
Walt Disney came up with the concept of Disneyland after visiting various amusement parks with his daughters in the 1930s and 1940s. He initially envisioned building a tourist attraction adjacent to his studios in Burbank to entertain fans who wished to visit; however, he soon realized that the proposed site was too small. After hiring a consultant to help determine an appropriate site for his project, Walt bought a 160-acre (65 ha) site near Anaheim in 1953. Construction began in 1954 and the park was unveiled during a special televised press event on July 17, 1955.
Since its opening, Disneyland has undergone a number of expansions and renovations, including the addition of New Orleans Square in 1966, Bear Country (now Critter Country) in 1972, and Mickey's Toontown in 1993. Disney California Adventure Park was built on the site of Disneyland's original parking lot and opened in 2001.
Disneyland has a larger cumulative attendance than any other theme park in the world, with close to 600 million guests since it opened. In 2009, 15.9 million people visited the park, making it the second most visited park in the world that calendar year.
Main Street, U.S.A. is patterned after a typical Midwest town of the early 20th century. Walt Disney derived inspiration from his boyhood town of Marceline, Missouri and worked closely with designers and architects to develop the Main Street appeal. It is the first area guests see when they enter the park (if not entering by monorail), and is how guests reach Central Plaza. At the center of The Magic Kingdom and immediately North of Central Plaza stands Sleeping Beauty Castle, which provides entrance to Fantasyland by way of a drawbridge across a moat. Adventureland, Frontierland, and Tomorrowland are arrayed on both sides of the castle.
“ For those of us who remember the carefree time it recreates, Main Street will bring back happy memories. For younger visitors, it is an adventure in turning back the calendar to the days of grandfather's youth. ”

— Walt E. Disney
Main Street, U.S.A. is reminiscent of the Victorian period of America with the train station, town square, movie theater, city hall, firehouse complete with a steam-powered pump engine, emporium, shops, arcades, double-decker bus, horse-drawn streetcar, jitneys and other bits of memorabilia. Main Street is also home to the Disney Art Gallery and the Opera House which showcases Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln a show featuring an Audio-Animatronic version of the president. There are many specialty stores on Main Street including: a candy store, jewelry and watch shop, a silhouette station, a store that sells Disney collectable items created by various artists, and a hat shop where you have the option of creating your own ear hat along with a personalized embrodiery. At the far end of Main Street, U.S.A. is Sleeping Beauty Castle, and the Central Plaza (also known as the Hub), which is a portal to most of the themed lands. Several lands are not directly connected to the Central Plaza—namely, New Orleans Square, Critter Country and Mickey's Toontown.
The design of Main Street, U.S.A. uses the technique of forced perspective to create an illusion of height. Buildings along Main Street are built at 3/4 scale on the first level, then 5/8 on the second story, and 1/2 scale on the third—reducing the scale by 1/8 each level up.
Adventureland is designed to recreate the feel of an exotic tropical place in a far-off region of the world. "To create a land that would make this dream reality", said Walt Disney, "we pictured ourselves far from civilization, in the remote jungles of Asia and Africa." Attractions include opening day's Jungle Cruise, the "Temple of the Forbidden Eye" in Indiana Jones Adventure, and Tarzan's Treehouse, which is a conversion of the earlier Swiss Family Robinson Tree House from the Walt Disney film, Swiss Family Robinson. Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room which is located at the entrance to Adventureland is the first feature attraction to employ Audio-Animatronics, a computer synchronization of sound and robotics.
New Orleans Square is a themed land based on 19th-century New Orleans. It was opened to the public on July 24, 1966. Despite its age, it is still very popular with Disneyland guests, being home to some of the park's most popular attractions: Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion, including nighttime entertainment in Fantasmic!. Also included are the Mark Twain Riverboat, the Sailing Ship Columbia, and Pirate's Lair on Tom Sawyer Island. The above-mentioned attractions are sometimes mistakenly placed as Frontierland attractions.
rontierland recreates the setting of pioneer days along the American frontier. According to Walt Disney, "All of us have cause to be proud of our country's history, shaped by the pioneering spirit of our forefathers. Our adventures are designed to give you the feeling of having lived, even for a short while, during our country's pioneer days." Frontierland is home to the Pinewood Indians band of animatronic Native Americans, who live on the banks of the Rivers of America. Entertainment and attractions include Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Frontierland Shootin' Exposition. Frontierland is also home to the Golden Horseshoe Saloon, an Old West-style show palace. Currently the comedic troupe "Billy Hill and the Hillbillies" entertains guests at the Golden Horseshoe.
Critter Country opened in 1972 as "Bear Country", and was renamed in 1988. Formerly the area was home to Indian Village, where indigenous tribespeople demonstrated their dances and other customs. Today, the main draw of the area is Splash Mountain, a log-flume journey inspired by the Uncle Remus stories of Joel Chandler Harris and the animated segments of Disney's Academy Award-winning 1946 film, Song of the South. In 2003, a dark ride called The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh replaced the Country Bear Jamboree, which closed in 2001. The Country Bear Jamboree presented shows featuring singing bear characters that were visualized through Disney's electronically controlled and mechanically animated puppets, known as Audio-Animatronics.
antasyland is the area of Disneyland of which Walt Disney said, "What youngster has not dreamed of flying with Peter Pan over moonlit London, or tumbling into Alice's nonsensical Wonderland? In Fantasyland, these classic stories of everyone's youth have become realities for youngsters – of all ages – to participate in." Fantasyland was originally styled in a medieval European fairground fashion, but its 1983 refurbishment turned it into a Bavarian village. Attractions include several dark rides, the King Arthur Carrousel, and various family attractions. Sleeping Beauty's Castle once again features a walk-through story telling of Briar Rose's adventure as Sleeping Beauty. Opened in 1959, changed in 1972, then closed in 1992 for reasons of security and the new installation of pneumatic ram firework shell mortars for "Believe, There's Magic in the Stars". The walkthrough reopened 2008 and it features new renditions and methods of storytelling and the restored work of Eyvind Earle (not Mary Blair).
Many Fantasyland attractions close approximately one hour before fireworks are scheduled to begin.
Fantasyland has the most fiber optics in the park; more than half of them are in Peter Pan's Flight.
Mickey's Toontown opened in 1993 and was partly inspired by the fictional Los Angeles suburb of Toontown in The Walt Disney Studios' 1988 release Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Mickey's Toontown is based on a 1930s cartoon aesthetic and is home to Disney's most popular cartoon characters. Toontown features two main attractions: Gadget's Go Coaster and Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin. The "city" is also home to cartoon character's houses such as the house of Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and Goofy, as well as Donald Duck's boat.
Tomorrow Land
During the 1955 inauguration Walt Disney dedicated Tomorrowland with these words: "Tomorrow can be a wonderful age. Our scientists today are opening the doors of the Space Age to achievements that will benefit our children and generations to come. The Tomorrowland attractions have been designed to give you an opportunity to participate in adventures that are a living blueprint of our future." Disneyland producer Ward Kimball had rocket scientists Wernher von Braun, Willy Ley, and Heinz Haber serve as technical consultants during the original design of Tomorrowland.[14] Initial attractions included Rocket to the Moon, Astro-Jets and Autopia; later, the first incarnation of the Submarine Voyage was added. The area underwent a major transformation in 1967 to become New Tomorrowland, and then again in 1998 when its focus was changed to present a "retro-future" theme reminiscent of the illustrations of Jules Verne.
Current attractions include Space Mountain, Innoventions, Captain EO Tribute, Autopia, the Disneyland Monorail Tomorrowland Station, the Astro Orbitor and Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters. Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage opened on June 11, 2007, resurrecting the original Submarine Voyage which closed in 1998. Star Tours was closed in July 2010, to be replaced with a brand new attraction called "Star Tours: The Adventures Continue" in 2011.

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon National Park, a World Heritage Site, encompasses 1,218,375 acres and lies on the Colorado Plateau in northwestern Arizona. The land is semi-arid and consists of raised plateaus and structural basins typical of the southwestern United States. Drainage systems have cut deeply through the rock, forming numerous steep-walled canyons. Forests are found at higher elevations while the lower elevations are comprised of a series of desert basins.

Well known for its geologic significance, the Grand Canyon is one of the most studied geologic landscapes in the world. It offers an excellent record of three of the four eras of geological time, a rich and diverse fossil record, a vast array of geologic features and rock types, and numerous caves containing extensive and significant geological, paleontological, archeological and biological resources. It is considered one of the finest examples of arid-land erosion in the world. The Canyon, incised by the Colorado River, is immense, averaging 4,000 feet deep for its entire 277 miles. It is 6,000 feet deep at its deepest point and 15 miles at its widest. However, the significance of Grand Canyon is not limited to its geology.

The Park contains several major ecosystems. Its great biological diversity can be attributed to the presence of five of the seven life zones and three of the four desert types in North America. The five life zones represented are the Lower Sonoran, Upper Sonoran, Transition, Canadian, and Hudsonian. This is equivalent to traveling from Mexico to Canada. The Park also serves as an ecological refuge, with relatively undisturbed remnants of dwindling ecosystems (such as boreal forest and desert riparian communities). It is home to numerous rare, endemic (found only at Grand Canyon), and specially protected (threatened/endangered) plant and animal species. Over 1,500 plant, 355 bird, 89 mammalian, 47 reptile, 9 amphibian, and 17 fish species are found in the park.

Universal Studio Singapore

Universal Studios Singapore is a theme park located within Resorts World Sentosa on Sentosa Island, Singapore. It was a key component of Genting's bid for the right to build Singapore's second integrated resort. On 8 December 2006, the Singapore government announced that the consortium had won the bid. Construction of the theme park and the rest of the resort started on 19 April 2007. It is the second Universal Studios theme park to open in Asia (Japan being the first), and the first in Southeast Asia. The official plans for the park were unveiled to the public when Universal Studios Singapore released a park map to the public on 20 October 2009. Universal Studios Singapore has since attracted more than 2 million visitors in the 9 months from its opening.
Universal Parks & Resorts markets the park as a "one-of-its-kind theme park in Asia" and promises that the park will be the only one of its kind in Southeast Asia for the next 30 years.
Park history
Construction of Resorts World Sentosa, and Universal Studios Singapore began on 19 April 2008. After almost three years of construction, the park opened on 18 March 2010.
Universal Studios Singapore was opened for sneak peek week in view of the Chinese New Year Celebrations, from 5 pm to 9 pm every night between 14 to 21 February 2010.[4] Though visitors had to pay SGD$10 to enter the park despite rides not operating, tickets for the week were sold out in 2 days. On 5 March 2010, it was announced that the park will open its doors on 8:28 am (UTC+8) 18 March 2010, for a soft-opening phase. From 13 March 2010, the team members of Resorts World Sentosa and their families had a chance to visit the park before the public has a chance to do so. The park had its soft opening period from 18 March 2010 to 26 October 2010.
Park Layout
Universal Studios Singapore is 20 hectares (49 acres) in size, occupying the easternmost part of the 49-hectare (120-acre) Resorts World Sentosa. There are a total of 24 attractions, of which 18 are original or specially adapted for the park.[20] The park consists of seven uniquely themed zones which surround a lagoon. Each zone is based on a blockbuster movie or a television show, featuring their own unique attractions, character appearances, dining and shopping areas. The park features the world's tallest pair of dueling roller coasters that are based on the hit television series, Battlestar Galactica; a castle from the world of Shrek and Monster Rock, a live musical show featuring the infamous Universal Monsters. Universal Studios Singapore has over 30 restaurants and food carts, together with 20 unique retail stores and carts located around the park. Attractions premiering are marked "Premiere" and dining outlets that are certified Halal are marked with "Halal".

Niagara Falls

The New Niagara Falls, Canada-with eclectic restaurants, contemporary hotels, and electrifying attractions-is a true Canadian vacation destination for couples and families alike. Grown ups have upscale hotels, modern casinos, nightlife and concerts, fine dining, golf courses and spas, and wine country is just down the road. For children, Niagara Falls is a veritable theme park with ultra tall buildings (Skylon Tower), water parks inside hotels, Ferris wheels and kid-friendly restaurants (Clifton Hill), and we even sneak in some education at Niagara Falls attractions like the Butterfly Conservatory and Marineland. Let's not forget the Falls. From the Maid of the Mist to Journey Behind the Falls, there are plenty of ways to experience this great wonder of the world.

Situated just 20 minutes from Buffalo International Airport and an hour from the Toronto area, aNiagara Falls vacation is easy to get to and fun to plan. Use the Vacation Planning tools on our site to help you choose your Niagara Falls hotels and attractions and pull together the perfect itinerary.

Start your trip at Niagara Falls Tourism. We'll introduce you to this new Ontario vacation destination!

Rabu, 06 April 2011

References

http://www.inspirationalstories.com
http://www.itnews.com
sayaevan.wordpress.com/category/cerita-inspirasional/
suherman.lifeme.net/t371-cerita-motivasi-inspirasional-letter
news.cnet.com
www.computerweekly.com
www.itworld.com

Lessons learned

One day, the father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to the country with the express purpose of showing him how poor people live.
They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.
On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, “How was the trip?”
“It was great, Dad.”
“Did you see how poor people live?” the father asked.
“Oh yeah,” said the son.
“So, tell me, what did you learn from the trip?” asked the father.
The son answered: “I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.
“We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight.
“We have servants who serve us, but they serve others. We buy our food, but they grow theirs.
“We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.”
The boy’s father was speechless.
Then his son added, “Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are.”

Trees That Wood

Once there were three trees on a hill in the woods. They were discussing their hopes and dreams when the first tree said, "Someday I hope to be a treasure chest. I could be filled with gold, silver and precious gems. I could be decorated with intricate carving and everyone would see the beauty."
Then the second tree said, "Someday I will be a mighty ship. I will take kings and queens across the waters and sail to the corners of the world. Everyone will feel safe in me because of the strength of my hull."
Finally the third tree said, "I want to grow to be the tallest and straightest tree in the forest. People will see me on top of the hill and look up to my branches, and think of the heavens and God and how close to them I am reaching. I will be the greatest tree of all time and people will always remember me."
After a few years of praying that their dreams would come true, a group of woodsmen came upon the trees. When one came to the first tree he said, "This looks like a strong tree, I think I should be able to sell the wood to a carpenter" ... and he began cutting it down. The tree was happy, because he knew that the carpenter would make him into a treasure chest.
At the second tree a woodsman said, "This looks like a strong tree, I should be able to sell it to the shipyard." The second tree was happy because he knew he was on his way to becoming a mighty ship.
When the woodsmen came upon the third tree, the tree was frightened because he knew that if they cut him down his dreams would not come true. One of the woodsmen said, "I don't need anything special from my tree so I'll take this one", and he cut it down.
When the first tree arrived at the carpenters, he was made into a feed box for animals. He was then placed in a barn and filled with hay. This was not at all what he had prayed for. The second tree was cut and made into a small fishing boat. His dreams of being a mighty ship and carrying kings had come to an end. The third tree was cut into large pieces and left alone in the dark. The years went by, and the trees forgot about their dreams.
Then one day, a man and woman came to the barn. She gave birth and they placed the baby in the hay in the feed box that was made from the first tree. The man wished that he could have made a crib for the baby, but this manger would have to do. The tree could feel the importance of this event and knew that it had held the greatest treasure of all time. Years later, a group of men got in the fishing boat made from the second tree. One of them was tired and went to sleep. While they were out on the water, a great storm arose and the tree didn't think it was strong enough to keep the men safe. The men woke the sleeping man, and he stood and said "Peace" and the storm stopped. At this time, the tree knew that it had carried the King of Kings in its boat.
Finally, someone came and got the third tree. It was carried through the streets as the people mocked the man who was carrying it. When they came to a stop, the man was nailed to the tree and raised in the air to die at the top of a hill. When Sunday came, the tree came to realize that it was strong enough to stand at the top of the hill and be as close to God as was possible, because Jesus had been crucified on it.
The moral of this story is that when things don't seem to be going your way, always know that God has a plan for you. If you place your trust in Him, He will give you great gifts. Each of the trees got what they wanted, just not in the way they had imagined. We don't always know what God's plans are for us. We just know that His ways are not our ways, but His ways are always best.

A Luxurious Presence

When we planned a weekend away together, we were seeking to find a place where we could escape from the business of our day-to-day lives. We needed to go to a place that would allow us to put things back into proper perspective, focus on our lives as a couple and to examine our priorities.
After we checked in, our first interaction with another guest was our encounter with the man and his fancy car in the circular driveway in front of the Mansion. He was blocking the narrow driveway, car parked, door wide opened. We could have easily continued along, if only he would have closed the door to his car.
The concierge ran up to our car window with a sense of urgency and a hint of authority uttering that was something wrong with the hydraulics system of the car. We quietly sat in our car, observing the man with his broken down, door wide opened Jaguar.
My husband is a skilled auto technician with a good heart who has worked on the finest of cars. I knew that my husband was fully present in our quest to create space where we could focus on our lives together when he chose not to engage in the stranger's situation or try to rescue him.
Several minutes passed before the car owner approached us with an apology. He explained that the car was inoperable and that he could not close his door, as his hands had gotten dirty so he could not touch his car door to close it to allow us to get by.
The man with the broken down Jaguar's reality was clear to us, the cleanliness of his car door should take priority over our ability to exit the driveway at this time.
My husband's reaction was calm. He went to his toolbox in the back of our car, pulled out a clean rag, handed it to the man and suggested that it could be used to close the door so that we could be on our way. The man seemed a bit hesitant to accept such a simple solution to what seemed to be a very difficult situation for him, but he accepted the rag, closed his door and watched with a rather puzzled look on his face as we drove away.
We arrived at the building where we would stay for night and agreed to head out for a walk and some lunch after dropping off our bags. Our room was on the lower level of the building. It was well appointed with amenities, spacious and bit dark as it lacked the capacity to allow natural light to come in.
We noticed the note card on the bed almost immediately. It said that the resort as environmentally conscience and would only wash sheets every other day, unless otherwise requested, in an effort to conserve water.
We both agreed that we were happy to be in such and environmentally conscience place, as conservation was something we both are compassionate about.
We held hands as we walked and discussed the lessons of Eckhart Tolle that we had engaged in earlier as we set out to explore the place of luxury.
We checked out the spa, to see what it offered as a means of "getting away from it all." It was a busy place, filled with people dressed in fancy white bathrobes and black plastic slippers where fresh towels abound. "So this is what luxury looks like", I found myself thinking. I refilled my reusable water bottle while were there and we were on our way.
After observing the spa, we found an outside café that seemed like a great spot to stop for some lunch. While we waited for our salads, we talked about how we were both surprised that the same facility which washed sheets every other day rather than every day in an effort to be environmentally conscience, did not have a place to recycle all those plastic cups in the spa.
As we looked out over the golf course, we wondered if they kept the greens looking so lovely without the use of chemicals. Our shared effort to live with as little impact to our planet as possible was the topic of conversation during our lunch together.
We examined the options available in order to make the best choice possible with regards to the enormous amounts of left over salad on our plates when we were done eating. Our waitress explained that people complained if large quantities of food were not served. She also explained that almost no one finishes those large quantities.
We asked if they composted. We found out they do not. We discussed how using the restaurant's disposable container to take the leftovers with us would create additional waste beyond what we already were looking at. We resolved to not take the leftovers and to bring our own reusable container from now on when we go out to eat.
We made the most of the rest of our trip to the luxury spa. We used their facilities, dined at their restaurants and did our best to hold true to our own beliefs along the way. We learned that one man's luxury differs greatly from another's. The amenities at the spa that were placed there for our comfort in the first place, were the same things that made us uncomfortable. We do not like to support, create or contribute to avoidable waste. We did not give careful thought to what we were doing when we arranged to come to the luxury resort. We focused only on finding a place that we could rest comfortably and be together. When we came across the luxury spa's website, it seemed perfect at the time.
Would we go back to the luxury spa? Absolutely not, but not because they did not provide everything they promised. We will not go back because when we slowed down to think about it, if we were really present when we sought to find the perfect "getaway" spot, we would have recognized that the luxury spa was not a place we would want to support. This was a place that would put any environmentally conscience person outside of their comfort zone, us included.
We did however get exactly what were seeking in the first place. What we sought, we did not find by the golf course, in a fancy white robe or even inside the resort's swanky castle. What we got, was our return to presence, something we possessed all along and had lost sight of. We learned from our experience at the resort and left with a new appreciation for what comfort and luxury really mean to us.
Most importantly we will remember that the only place we will ever need to go to experience what we sought in the first place, is within.

Sign up for work

there was someone when applying for work, picking up trash on the floor of paper into the trash, and it showed by the lawyers interviewed, and he got the job.
It turned out to obtain the award is very easy, just maintain a good habit. There's a kid be a student at a bike shop. One time there was someone who brought a bicycle damaged to be repaired at the shop page. In addition to improving bicycle page, the child is also clean bike until shiny clean. The other students laughed at his actions. The next day after the owner of the bike to take his bike, the little brother pulled / drawn work in place.
It turned out to be a successful person is very easy, just have a little initiative A child said to her mother: "Mother was very beautiful day. She said: "Why? Children answer: "Because today's mother did not get angry. It turned out to have the beauty is easy, just have not got angry.
A farmer sent his son every day to work diligently in the fields. His friend said: "No need to send your son to work hard, Tanamanmu still will flourish.The farmer replied: "I'm not being fostered tanamanku, but I'm building my son. It turned out that fostering a child is very easy, just let her diligent work.
A soccer coach said to his disciples: "If a ball falls into the grass, how to look for it? There is an answer: "Find starting from the center." Some of them answered: "Look at the sunken into the grass." And there's the answer: "Find the highest in the grass.Coaches provide the best answer: "step by step search from here until the end of grass next to the grass over there. Apparently the road to success is very easy, just do everything step by step in order, do not be jumping up and down.
Frogs that live in rice fields said to the frog who lived at the curb: "Your place is too dangerous, stay with me." Frogs in the street said: "I'm used to, too lazy to move." A few days later the frog "fields" see frog "roadside" and found that the frog is dead by a car passing by. It turned out very easily hold our own destiny, just enough to avoid laziness.
There are a bunch of people walking in the desert, all walking with heavy, very miserable, only one person who walked with joy. Someone asks: "Why are you so relaxed?" He replied with a laugh: "Because I am a bit of luggage." Was very easy to get joy, just not greedy and have just enough