Thats right! January 11th 2008 will be the start of tommEE pickles Birthdaycon. We will be holding this extravaganza in Las Vegas, Nevada. Book your rooms early since it is a convention weekend, CES and AVN are in town. I am not sure if I am going to do either convention but I will be prepared either way.
Friday night we usually gather at the Mandalay Bay Casino at the Island Lounge. This area has been changed, I believe the name has changed to The Eyecandy Sound Lounge & Bar. The problem with this is it is non-smoking, so it might not be a good place for us to gather. I am going into Vegas this weekend or next and I will find a lounge.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE -------- FRIDAY NIGHT - 9PM - 4AM - MANDALAY BAY??? SATURDAY DAY - TOMMEE PICKLES SHOW FILMING SATURDAY NIGHT - BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION, DINNER, DRINKING AT DIVE BAR: <b>SPECIAL GUEST PHIL SHANE</b>, GAMBLING
"While people are tuning into their iPods and cell phones, they're tuning out the world around them... If you want to listen to your iPod, sit down and listen to it. You want to walk in the park, enjoy it. You want to jog around a jogging path, all the more power to you, but you should not be crossing streets and endangering yourself and the lives of others."
People are definitely distracted when they are plugged into their iPods or messaging on their cells, but what about the drivers who are just as distracted? Maybe they shouldn't be listening to the radio or music. How about we ban parents from pushing their kids in strollers? Couples walking together (they might get into fights)? Tourists who take pictures as they walk? Dog walkers? The law has infinite possibilities!
Kruger proposes a $100 fine, similar to jaywalking - and we know how much police focus on jaywalking! That said, we hope that people who use their pieces of electronica while walking also remain aware of their environment.
Artists face jail after cartoon stunt sparks US terror alert
Two artists from Boston found themselves in court yesterday facing the possibility of a prison sentence after signs they had placed around the city to advertise a late-night animated show triggered a traffic-snarling terror scare.
Boston police closed major commuter arteries, underground stations and even a section of the Charles River on Wednesday after receiving phone calls from concerned citizens who had spotted the devices and apparently mistaken them for bombs. The scare crippled parts of downtown Boston.
The Cartoon Network, owned by Turner Broadcasting, later acknowledged that it had contracted with a publicity company, Interference Inc, to distribute the foot-tall, magnetic signs around Boston and nine other cities, including New York and Chicago.
The two accused men, Peter Berdovsky, 27, and Sean Stevens, 28, were arrested on Wednesday evening and released on $2,500 (£1270) bail.
Appearing in court in Charlestown, Massachusetts, outside Boston, both pleaded not guilty to charges of planting hoax devices and disorderly conduct. There is nothing unusual about "guerrilla advertising", where companies eschew traditional practices and place promotional wares in unusual and eye-catching settings in the hope of attracting wider public attention.
In Boston, it worked spectacularly. No Bostonian can now be unaware of the show, an adult cartoon called Aqua Teen Hunger Force, which features a talking meatball and milkshake. They, and most of the rest of America, also now know that a film version is coming out soon.
But this was an advertising stunt gone wrong for two reasons: firstly, the signs which traced out figures from the cartoon, called Mooninites, in flashing lights looked like circuit boards, which can also be used in bomb-making, and had visible batteries and protruding wires; and secondly, the men put them in obviously sensitive places, like the supports of road flyovers and near hospitals and underground stations.
Also, no one at Interference Inc or the Cartoon Network seemed to have taken into consideration the paranoia that still exists after the terror attacks of 11 September 2001. The public is encouraged to report suspicious packages, and these flashing figures - one appears to be a angry-looking gnome making an obscene gesture - apparently qualified.
It was only after receiving word from Turner Broadcasting late on Wednesday night about the true nature of the signs that officials declared them harmless. Almost 40 of them had been put up.
"We apologise to the citizens of Boston that part of a marketing campaign was mistaken for a public danger," the chairman of Turner Broadcasting, Phil Kent, said. "We appreciate the gravity of this situation and, like any responsible company would, are putting all necessary resources toward understanding the facts surrounding it as quickly as possible."
But the city made it clear that it is the company as well as Interference Inc that should bear final responsibility for Wednesday's mess. Prosecutors may even explore the possibility that a deliberate attempt was made to create a terror hoax precisely to ensure maximum exposure for the television programme.
"It is outrageous, in a post-9/11 world, that a company would use this type of marketing scheme," the mayor of Boston, Thomas Menino, said. "I am prepared to take any and all legal action against Turner Broadcasting and its affiliates for any and all expenses incurred."
Officials said that the police deployment alone to respond to the devices had cost up to a million dollars.
Before appearing in court, Mr Berdovsky confessed to feeling "freaked out" by the furore and pointed out that the signs had been up for three weeks. "It's pretty commonsensical to look at them and say this is a piece of art and installation," he said.
Breathe easy, New York City - the NYPD has removed the LED pieces with Aqua Teen Hunger Force's mooninite Ignignokt from locations. It's unclear where they were, but WNBC reported that one was at 54th Street and 9th Avenue. And don't worry, folks, the Boston police have arrested Peter Berdovsky for planting the LED devices. Berdovsky's website, Zebbler.com, shows the locations of 20 devices (or, as the Massachusetts authorities are calling them, "hoax devices").
Looking at the photos, you wonder how this looked suspicious to Boston police, because it looks like a light installation. Maybe the daylight and the one-fingered salute seemed threatening. Wait, the middle finger F.U. was scary to the media! At this point, the guerrilla marketing company behind the stunt, Interference Inc., says its CEO is traveling, so no comment, and its website seems down.
As for what probably spooked authorities, we guess it's the fact that some of these gimmicks were placed under bridges. Check out this video to see an installation:
This is no laughing matter to Boston authorities, though. Mayor Thomas Menino said in a press conference, "It is outrageous, in a post-9/11 world, that a company would use this type of marketing scheme." And he wants the FCC to pull Cartoon Network owner Turner Broadcasting's license. DA Daniel Conley of Boston's Suffolk County said, “The community was disrupted, transit routes were paralyzed, residents were stranded, and relatives across the nation were in fear for loved ones here in the city of Boston. Everyone can play a part by holding Turner Broadcasting to account for today’s event. Viewers, advertisers and licenseholders can and should make clear to them that this sort of behavior is reckless and illegal.” Reckless and illegal? Kind of like Boston's Big Dig?
What do you think of this incident? Is this more reason for the city to crack down on guerrilla street advertising? And should we feel comforted or disturbed that the devices left in NYC went pretty much unnoticed?
This weekend is time for my birthday and birthdaycon. We are gathering together on Friday night. Those interested in coming to AVN and participating in the press time at AVN, we are having a production meeting Friday evening. No time has been definitivly setup as of yet for the meeting but I can be reached by cell or email.
I am looking for people who would like to do video or still camera work and audio stuff.
Saturday is an early production. Our passes are free and only available to people who register with us. Passes are non-transferable since they check IDs. If you don't make press time, the conference costs $75 if you aren't press.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ friday night - 9pm - 12am - Mandalay bay (island lounge), maybe Dive Bar too saturday morning 8am - press passes and filming at avn expo saturday night - birthday celebration, dinner, drinking at Dive Bar possible special guest Phil Shane, gambling
December 20, 2006 -- Animal-rights terrorists say they've contaminated 487 bottles of trendy Pom pomegranate juice sold in stores all along the East Coast, including in outlets of at least two grocery chains that do business in New York City.
People who drink the juices will suffer "diarrhea, vomiting and headaches," the Animal Rights Militia promised in a communique.
But health officials seemed unconcerned - city, state and federal agencies contacted yesterday said they hadn't heard of the threat, and the company that sells the juice suspects a hoax but is checking stores to see if its product has been tampered with.
A spokesman for The Food Emporium, one of the supermarket chains named in the communique, said workers in all the company's stores have been asked to check bottles of Pom.
Officials at the two other grocery chains named, D'Agostino's and Wild Oats, did not return calls. Wild Oats' nearest store to New York is in Connecticut.
Animal-rights groups say mice and rabbits are being killed in tests aimed at supporting Pom's advertising claims.
It's only one month til tommEE pickles birthdaycon.
Thursday January 11th. - I am arriving into town - drinks and gambling. Friday January 12th - Everyone gets together - Circle Bar in Mandalay - Dive Bar also? Saturday January 13th - Morning Press Time at AVN - Night Party at Dive Bar (Phil Shane) Sunday January 14th - Hangover - Brunch - People Leave Monday January 15th - I depart.
Some plans are subject to change.
Cheap hotels are Stratosphere, Sahara, Tropicana, Riviera, Excalibur. Rates are cheaper Thursday - Monday, CES days are expensive on Sunday the 8th - Wednesday the 10th.
The Dive Bar is a close taxi ride to all the strip hotels.
In time for the holiday season, the Ultimate Charmin Family Experience is here! And by "family experience," Charmin means going to the bathroom together in delightfully clean (at this point) bathrooms in Times Square! There are 20 clean and comfortable restrooms, open from 8AM to 11PM through December 31 (well, the potties are closed on Christmass and will close at 6PM on December 24 and 31), but there's also a waiting room with flat-screen TVs and a fireplace.
Workers will be cleaning the bathrooms after each use (and it's probably considerate of you to flush), so these might be the cleanest bathrooms in the city. And don't forget to take your picture with a Charmin bear!
With all the police procedurals filming in the city, have you ever wondered how to tell the real squad cars from the impostors? It turns out that the city has a special insignia for the imitation-vehicles-- but it's hard to spot. Look closely at the back of the car, however, and you'll see it: TV Unit!
Dozens of fanatical New York gamers are already camping out outside of electronic stores in the hopes of being among the first to score the new Playstation 3 gaming console, which doesn't go on sale until Friday morning.
The hype for the new system remains high despite word from Sony that the PS3 is not compatible with many games made for its predecessors, PlayStation and PlayStation 2.
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