#flash gordon tour

[freddiemercurylegendabovelegends]

February 1981, in these days - Queen flew to Japan to play 5 shows at Budokan, Tokyo, during a short Japanese 'Flash Gordon Tour' ('The Game' Tour)

📸 Photographer Koh Hasebe

#1981 #photosession1981 #freddie mercury #queen band #london #zanzibar #legend #queen #brian may #john deacon #freddiebulsara #roger taylor #japan #the game tour #the game album #koh hasebe #flash gordon tour #tokyo #budokan

[debdarkpetal]

Flash Gordon Tour, Tokyo, Japan, February 1981.

#queen #freddie mercury #roger taylor #brian may #john deacon #queen band #live #on stage #flash gordon tour #tokyo #japan #1981 #80s #ms

[louisupdates]

The Habit He Can’t Break, 2/4

IQ 123 | Gordon Masson | 9.11.2023

“In Santiago, for instance, we’d sold out two full arenas of 13,000 cap, but then the government declared that for mass gatherings the number needed to be limited to 10,000 people.”

Rather than let fans down, Move added a third day, which again ended up selling out. “I remember being on a night plane from Miami, while Matt Vines was flying in from Dallas, and we were both using the aircraft wi-fi to negotiate via text for that third show. It was an interesting way to confirm putting the third date on sale, just three days before the actual show!”

He adds, “We’re taking a big bet on this tour when it comes to the number of cities and the capacities of the venues, but we’re hoping for the best, and we’ve gone out strong. We feel that the artist is in a good moment and that the latest album has just created more interest, so we’re looking forward to when he arrives in May.”

Further north, Ocesa will promote three dates in Mexico, including a stadium show at the F1 circuit, Autódromo Hermanos, Rodríguez, deepening Tomlinson’s footprint in that crucial North American market.

Meanwhile, in Tomlinson’s homeland, Jack Dowling at SJM is promoting seven UK dates in November at arenas in Sheffield, Manchester, Glasgow, Brighton, Cardiff, London, and Birmingham, which will round out the European leg of the tour.

“SJM has done every show Louis has been involved with, including all the One Direction arena and stadium shows” notes Dowling, adding that on the first tour, the London show was originally penciled in as a Roundhouse, then two Roundhouse shows, before finally being upgraded to Wembley Arena. 

“This time, The O2 arena show in London will be sold out, while all the others have passed the expectations of where we wanted to be on this tour. In fact, when the UK dates were announced, it ranked as the fourth most engaged tour on social media in SJM’s history – his fans are just nuts.”

But Dowling also reports that the fanbase for Tomlinson is expanding. “The demographics are pulling not just from pop, but also from indie rock now.”

Dowling adds, “Louis really looks after his fans. On the last tour, they did a deal with Greggs to give free food to the people waiting in line, as some of them camped out for days in advance.”

Out of My System

Ensuring his fans are looked after properly is the number one priority in Tomlinson’s live career.

Noting that Tomlinson’s audience comprises mainly young women and girls, Rowland reveals that, at the artist’s insistence, a safety team has been added to the tour to ensure everyone that attends his shows is looked after. “They manage all the safety within the shows for the fans,” she explains. “They came in for the Wembley show last year and have been with us ever since - they’ve been beneficial to the running of the tour. 

“When he played in South America, some of his fans were camping outside for a month. So we have a responsibility to look after them. Coming to a show should be a safe place, it’s where they find joy, and we have a responsibility to protect that.”

Manager Vines comments, “One issue that we came up against almost all last year was crushing and fans passing out. We adopted a system where we could communicate with fans, who could hold up a mobile phone with a flashing red-and-white sign if they were in trouble but then we’d see them all popping up.

“I don’t know whether some of that was a hangover of the pandemic where fans just weren’t used to being in venues. But we experienced a number of situations where hydration and temperatures in venues became an issue. I know Billie Eilish went through similar issues.”

With Tomlinson determined to meet a duty of care toward his fans, Vines says that the team now sends a “considerable advance package” to promoters ahead of their tour dates. “Our safety team goes into venues in the morning, and basically ensures that a number of different things are in place – making sure that water is given to the fans, where the water comes from, and at what points in the show it happens.”

And on the crushing phenomena, he reports, “We’ve worked out how many fans it’s safe to have without a secondary barrier. So we instruct promoters to have certain barriers in place to relieve the pressure and avoid crushing.”

He adds, “I get detailed incident reports after each show, which lets myself and my management team know exactly what happened, and so far on this tour, we haven’t had any issues with crushing or hydration, which is fantastic.”

Production manager Craig Sherwood is impressed by the way the tour has pivoted to protect the ‘Louies.’ “The welfare officers are vital for the young girls were aged from, I guess, 14 upwards. They can get dehydrated and malnourished pretty quickly if they are camping out for days, so it’s important that we look out for their well-being,” says Sherwood. 

Citing the extremes that the Louies will put themselves through in an effort to secure themselves prime positions at the front of the stage, Sherwood recalls, “The first show on our US tour was in February, and it was freezing, but we found out that girls had been camping out on the pavement for five days. It’s crazy, as we know these young girls are coming from all over the world to see Louis.”

However, Tomlinson’s connection with those fans is evident in the level of merchandise sales at each show. “It’s a huge part of our business, says Vines. ��In America, we averaged about $36 a head, and it’s not much shy of that in Europe – we set a few national records in terms of spend per head. But we spend a lot of time on merch plans, and we do venue-specific drops and give it a lot of care and attention, as it’s a really important element of Louis’ business.”

1/4, 3/4, 4/4

#louis tomlinson #iq magazine #louis press #9.11.2023

[glennk56]

William Hootkins in the 1980s (1 of 5)

William Hootkins appeared in an episode of Tales of the Unexpected, originating in the United Kingdom. This show featured short dramas with a twist ending most written by Raold Dahl. Hootkins had his beard at this time but would have to shave it off for a later role.

The above photos are from Tales of the Unexpected, episode entitled Taste in 1980 about a wine expert.

He also had a small role in Hussy with Helen Mirren. And yes there was a sex scene but so tastefully done that photos were pointless.

In December, 1980 Flash Gordon was released. Hootkins played Munson, Dr. Zarkov's loyal assistant, but he did have his limits.

In March of 1981, Hootkins played Winston Churchill in the UK mini-series The Life and Times of David Lloyd George, about the controversial liberal Prime Minister. This is the role that required Hoot to shave off his facial hair.

He also appeared as a Tour Guide in the movie Sphinx in 1981.

He also appeared in another Tales of the Unexpected in the episode entitled The Boy Who Talked with Animals.

In the summer of 1981 is when Raiders of the Lost Ark was released. Hootkins played in 2 scenes, probably the least memorable, although I do recall that they had "Top Men" working on what to do with the Arc.

In January of 1982, Hootkins guest starred as Teddy Roosevelt in American TV series, Bret Maverick. I hear Teddy traveled with his own portable bathtub.

In December of 1982, Hootkins played a cab driver in Trail of the Pink Panther with David Niven and Herbert Lom. He probably never met them, but he did share his scene with Joanna Lumley.

In the first half of 1983, Hootkins appeared on 3 American TV shows. One was Cagney & Lacey in February, where he played a not very cooperative and frustrating theater manager.

Another was Taxi. He played a sneaky Liquor Authority Agent who attempted to fail Jim, the bar owner and make him lose his license.

The next will have to wait til the next Hootkins post, probably tomorrow.

#William Hootkins #fat actor #actor born in US and living in UK #1980s #sexy fat actor

[lady-jane-asher]

April 5th 2024, happy beloved 78th birthday to the one and only Jane! She’s been my inspiration for around 12 years since I first discovered about her. It’s been a wonderful journey getting to share new pictures I find, my scans, colourisations and accurate information in regards of the pictures I found. May I be able to meet her one day. 🤍

This post will be divided in two, as the picture shown was used for two different newspapers that I scanned therefore the subtle mark on the photos. And you might have seen the photos with my old username so I am sharing them with the new one!

Jane Asher and Gawn Grainger as Juliet Capulet and Romeo in “Romeo and Juliet” presentation while being on tour in the USA, 1967.

First picture is my edition and enhancement from historical picture auction scan, second one is my scan from the newspaper, and third one is the scan of the newspaper.

Jane Asher-More Than a Beatle's Bird

In cities all across the U.S. this spring Beatle fans are swarming to a touring production of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet staged by the Bristol Old Vic Company. When Juliet appears on stage for the first time the reaction is almost always the same. Applause thunders through the theater. Flash bulbs pop—electrifying the scene like summer lightning. At the end of the play young girls scream the name of the actress who plays Juliet: "Jane Asher! Jane Asher!" This is the girl they have come to see. To a Beatle fan Jane Asher's romance is even more exciting than the story of Romeo and Juliet. Jane Asher, in case you haven't heard, is the girl friend of Paul McCartney-the last unmarried Beatle.

An Interview With Jane

To find out what kind of girl dates a Beatle and also has enough talent to

perform in one of England's most respected theatre groups, CURRENT EVENTS Editor Nancy Malone talked to Jane Asher in New York City. The 20-year-old actress seemed puzzled when asked why teen-age girls scream for her. "I don't really know," she said “and I don’t think they’re quite sure themselves. Once they’re with me, they seem a little lost and aren’t sure what to do or say”.

Miss Asher, in contrast to her fans, is not at all confused. She is looking the forward to a successful career in the theatre—on her own merit, not because of her friendship with a Beatle. The actress with the golden-red hair is well on her way to stardom. Her portrayal of Juliet with England’s Bristol Old Vic company has been highly praised. The company is nearing the end of 16-city american tour, which began in Boston last January. After appearances next month in Bloomington, Ind., Detroit, and Cleveland, the company will perform at expo 67 in Montreal. Then the actors and actresses will retur to England.

Does Jane Asher hope to do more Shakespeare? "Oh, yes." she said, “I'd like to do all the Shakespearean heroines-especially Lady Macbeth. But I'd also like to do modern comedy. I wouldn't like ever to stick to just one thing. For example, I don't want to do all movies or all stage. Though if I had to choose, I'd choose stage. I like having a live audience.

Movie Fame Unimportant

"I know you can become more famous by being in movies,", Jane said. "but I've had a taste of that kind of glamor, and I know I don't want it. I want to be a good actress." Jane, who has been acting since she was five years old, comes from a show business family. Her brother, Peter Asher, has toured the U.S. several times. He makes up one-half of the popular singing duo Peter and Gordon.

But Jane hesitates to encourage outer young people to become entertainers. "It's really not the glamorous life people imagine. It's hard work with rehearsals all day and shows every night. And when you come right down to it, acting is really only pretending you're something else on stage." Although Jane made several films during her childhood, she attended regular m schools—not acting schools for m professionals. "I'm glad I got a normal education," she said. "I think it gave me a more balanced view of life. In addition to several Shakespearean roles, Jane has played Alice in Alice in Wonderland, Wendy in Peter Pan, and Eliza Doolittle in Pygmalion. Juliet, however, is the highlight of her career.

Jane and the Bard

She is particularly delighted that she is helping to acquaint American teenagers with Shakespeare. She commented on her own attitude as a 13-year-old: "I suppose I felt as all English schoolchildren do-that Shakespeare was pretty dull stuff with lots of language I didn't understand. I know I wasn't mad about it." Now, at 20, she believes that Shakespeare wrote "the greatest roles in the world." She added: "On this tour, I've gotten a lot of mail and it has meant a great deal to me. Some of the letters from kids say “We came to see you. We were so surprised. We really liked the play.” “That’s great. That’s a real accomplishment to me —as an actress”.

#jane asher #the beatles #60s #beatles girls #actress #lady jane asher #something about jane asher #model #beatles women #1967 #romeo and juliet #redhead #red hair #vintage #1960s

[ekat-fandom-blog]

No Dick Grayson AU

Alfred convinces Tatsu Yamashiro(Katana) and Dinah Lance(Black Canary) to join Batman's crusade when it starts getting difficult for him to handle crime on his own. Katana brings Barbara Gordon into the fold as Oracle because Barbara is determined to help the vigilantes.

A few years later, Bruce joins the Justice League(Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Cyborg, and Green Lantern). Dinah moves to Star City, and Katana disappears. Barbara starts to join Batman on patrols.

About a year later, Batman brings Jason Todd home. Jason tries to join Batman as a vigilante, but Bruce, Alfred, and Barbara convince him to wait until he's an adult. Bruce agrees to train him until then.

Jason starts helping Barbara with coms, Alfred with making sure they have the medbay fully stocked, and Bruce and Lucius with Wayne Enterprise Charities. Jason, as the top student, graduates a year early(age 16/17 since his b-day's in march) and goes on a world tour for extra training. He gets sucked into training with the League of Assassins, but leaves rather quickly via Talia tossing him to the All-Caste since Bruce knows where he is. He returns to Gotham as the vigilante Flamebat as a nod to his All-Blades and the dark red and black costume he created. As the All-Blades don't harm any non-magical being, he normally uses them when he wants to be dramatic or particularly threatening.

Barbara does get shot by Joker before Jason goes on tour and loses the ability to walk.

Steph also appears (at 15) on the vigilante scene briefly, but is talked out of it by Barbara and disappears for a while. When she gets back she decides to go out as Spoiler. When the others are unable to convince her to wait until she's at least 17 to start being a vigilante, Cass (as she's about 1 year older) is declared to be her patrol partner. (this happens just before Jason leaves)

Cass shows up a bit after Steph does. She's found by Barbara and is convinced to wait until she's at least 17 to start vigilantism. Bruce adopts her pretty quickly and gives her the tools to figure out who she is without the violence of being an assassin or a vigilante.

About a year after Jason returns, Damian (age 10) appears in the Bat's lives. He continuously sneaks out of the manor to prove that he's worthy and ready to become a vigilante and follow in his father's footsteps.

When Bruce disappears, Jason takes on the responsibilities of being Batman and CEO of Wayne Enterprise. Cass and Alfred take on the role of being Damian's primary caretakers. Tim figures out that Bruce is still alive after getting "lost" in Wayne Manor during a gala, and leaves an anonymous tip about it for the Bats to find. (Tim doesn't know that they're the Bats, just that somehow Bruce ended up in the past.)

After Bruce comes back, things mostly go back to how they were before. Except, they catch wind of a group of child vigilantes. Beast Boy (age 13), Blue Beetle (14), Impulse (16), and Raven (13). When interrogated, the adult heroes find out that: Beast Boy had joined a group called the Doom Patrol and been with them since he was 11 but left because of conflicting morals, then run into Raven and Impulse; Blue Beetle had been doing superhero stuff for a few months before he ran into the other three; Raven had been picked up by Beast Boy while running from a cult that wanted to use her to summon a demon; and Impulse is the one who pulled the group together to help prevent a future event from happening. Not knowing exactly what to do with the group of child heroes, they put Kon (aka Superboy; 17) and Spoiler (18) in charge of the group that's now called Young Justice.

Around half a year later, Damian(11 almost 12) joins the group along with Jon (Superboy; 12).

They also find out somewhere along the way that Billy Batson was 10 years old when he started superhero-ing.

#batman #dc captain marvel #shazam #billy batson #damian wayne #jason todd #dc katana #tatsu yamashiro #dinah lance #black canary #bruce wayne #dc oracle #barbara gordon #do you know how much i want this to become a fic #i would pay $15 for someone to turn this into a well written multi chapter fic #that isn't legal tho #so i can say i'd draw the outfit i imagine jason creating if someone writes this #i would also be 100% willing to post about it on here if that's something that will help convince someone to write this #please

[kroashent]

What is the most ridiculously uselessly ornamented weapon/armor you have seen?

I'm actually going to give a bit of an out-of-universe answer for this one, because some historical armors are too crazy not to share! A few of my favourites:

In European ts important to distinguish "combat armor", which tended to be simple and to the point with "parade armor", which is not. Tournament armor, specialized for Hastilude events like jousting, was somewhere in the middle, with special reinforced areas. Here's a good example of how ridiculous it gets, with the 16th C. armor of King Henri II of France:

Spree killer King Erik XIV of Sweden shows that its not just Henri

Personally, I am fond of the masterwork "Greenwich Armor". In addition to its insane level of detail, its also blue. In a process called "Bluing" the steel is precisely oxidized to "dye" the armor a certain colour! So next time someone calls out your OC for heaving bright blue or red armor, these actually have some striking historical precedent!

I think the all-time winners though, are Iranian chain mail shirts. They often had intricate religious lettering on the rings, seen here using different metals...

While this one EVERY LINK is inscribed with a name of Allah or a short prayer!

And of course, no tour of insanely elaborate armor would be complete without checking in on our good friend and historical maniac Henry VIII of England, with his deranged "knight"mare fueled "Horned Helmet".

The historical armors of the world are pretty crazy, and the above are just a small selection of European and Near-Eastern varieties, not even touching on some of the equally insane armors from elsewhere, from the Japanese Kabuto (Ridiculously detailed and odd samurai helmets) to Chinese Paper Armor (Looks like a cosplay made out of post-it notes and office supplies) and the gorram amazing Kiribati Puffer Fish Armor, which looks like something out of a Flash Gordon comic. It is amazing and I wish more people would use it in their designs!

So, a little bit of a cop-out for not providing an Alvez specific answer, but unusual armor is a fascinating topic that far outshines anything I could come up with.

#arms and armor #Armor #Historical Armor #Unusual Armor

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Lily of the Valley

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam

Summary: Jason Todd dies and comes back to life. As the League takes him in, he navigates his morality and family values over the years.

Chapters: 9/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Talia al Ghul, Ra’s al Ghul, Damian Wayne, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne, Sheila Haywood

Relationships: Jason Todd/Original Character(s)

Additional Tags: Immortal Jason Todd, League of Assassins Jason Todd, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Protective Talia al Ghul, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Jason Todd Needs a Hug, Good Sibling Jason Todd, Hurt/Comfort, Adopted Children, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Emotional Manipulation, Claustrophobia, Child Death, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Resurrected Jason Todd

Chapter Nine: Bloodrot

Jason didn't sleep for days after what happened. He wanted to go home and get away from the noise of Gotham. It was unbearable, but Jason couldn't turn his back on his mission. Ra's expected success and Jason was so close to providing Ra's with what he wanted. Jason signed up for a tour of the embassy, and he'd be purposefully late.

He filled his backpack with notebooks and a camera. Jason wanted to seem like a student who'd come in late from school. It was so long since he'd felt like a child, though. He was cynical and cold, more so lately than at home. The world rotted before his eyes. There was no such thing as justice. Jason knew that now, and he knew Gloria would never get justice.

Sunlight hurt his eyes as he stepped out of the hotel and rushed toward the embassy. He tried to look disheveled as he tried to dump his accent. It seemed better to look like a tourist than a local. He recalled his training in espionage and how cruelly his failures were received. Failure was not an option. He removed his belt and backpack and placed them in the bin as he stepped through the metal detectors. He tapped his foot anxiously to seem like he had more important places to be. Once the security guard let him through, he raced to put on his belt, purposefully fumbling with the loops, and grabbed a map. He wandered until he ran into the restroom adjacent to the diplomat's office. He waited until the stalls were empty and used the air vents to reach the diplomat's office. Jason watched from the air ducts as the diplomat stacked files on his desk and prepared to leave for a meeting.

Jason waited nearly twenty minutes before the office was clear, and he jumped down from the vents, making a beeline for the computer. If it was anything like his training, it would take less than five minutes to get the information on the flash drive, but thankfully the diplomat was an idiot. The computer was left unlocked, and the files were ready to be transferred. He heard footsteps and retrieved the flash drive before hiding in the air vents once more, and he listened to a conversation between the diplomat's son and a man that used to deal in his old neighborhood.

"There's this blonde—."

"I'm good right now. There's some bubbleheaded-bitch protector in town, and I don't plan on seeing him again," the diplomat's son interrupted. Jason grinned, but he wouldn't be happy until he could put both those men in the ground. Jason wriggled through the vents until he returned to the restroom. He washed his hands and slipped out into the hall just in time to blend in with the group.

He couldn't conceal his emotions. After a month and a half of surveillance, he'd go home. Jason was almost at the exit when he felt a knife at his throat. He feigned fright despite taking offense to how he'd been handled so roughly. "Give me Garzonas, or the runt dies!" the man yelled. Jason shook with rage. He wanted to kill Garzonas with his bare hands. The knife dug into his throat as he trembled, but he couldn't feel it. All Jason could think about was the feeling of that man's neck in his grip. The hostage situation didn't last long. A single shot took the man out, and blood splattered all over Jason's face and clothes. It didn't feel how it did when it was his own blood. His stomach lurched, and he staggered past the officers. His ears rang, and the whole world rocked back and forth. Jason leaned with his shoulder against the wall and vomited into a trashcan.

Someone attempted to put a shock blanket over Jason, but he pushed them away. He just wanted to get out. He wanted to go home. "I didn't see anything... I want to go home," Jason muttered. It wasn't the first time he'd had someone's brains on his clothes, but it never felt normal. It wasn't something he could ever get used to. "Don't touch me."

He staggered outside to a payphone and called the pickup number. The man on the phone gave him coordinates and a date. Ten days. Jason had to wait ten days for pickup. His heart sunk into the bottom of his stomach.

He wanted to go home as soon as possible, even if it meant flying the jet himself. Jason quickly slipped out of the area and snuck into his hotel room. He started packing his locked suitcases, stacking them by the bed. He tried to stave off the overwhelming dread that washed over him in waves. Jason despised Gotham. For three years, he lived in paradise. Of course, there were things Jason had to go through in the League, but they were his family. He no longer had a family in Gotham. There was nothing but pain and suffering for him there. Bad memories.

He bathed and changed clothes before meditating. Jason wouldn't eat or drink for the next twenty-four hours. Instead, he fasted and meditated. The League taught him to conceal his emotions, but Talia taught him how to process them as best she could. Jason had completed his mission and thought he'd go home immediately, but ten more days seemed excruciating after what he'd seen. Processing his feelings about recent events didn't make things easier. Instead, it only made him angry.

After twenty-four hours of meditation, Jason knew what he wanted to do but wasn't sure it was allowed. He wished to kill the diplomat's son. He thought it would help him feel better, but deep down, he knew it wouldn't fix anything. There would always be someone like him in Gotham.

His mind drifted to Catherine and late nights at the library. Bruises and cuts on his mother's face. It all came flooding back despite his attempts to suppress his anguish. Images he'd never spoken of washed over him, drowning him in old miseries. He wanted to die. For the first time, he desired to feel death's cold fingertips wrapped tightly around his throat. And he wanted it to hurt. Jason couldn't silence his mind if he tried. And he did try. He killed himself for the first time that night. He taped a plastic bag over his head and let the darkness take him. He came to three days later, tearing the bag away from his face in shame, guiltily praying for forgiveness. Prayer was lost to his lips, but his heart begged for consolation. If he couldn't join Catherine, he'd need the strength to return to his new home and permission to forget his old one. Jason feared God would not hear his pleas after his self-desecration, but he prayed anyway. He prayed late into the evening, and finally, he set out to clean the apartment.

Jason fed his ravenous appetite at a hotdog stand across the street from his apartment, and he sat on the curb, gorging himself on hotdog after hotdog. He always felt that way after coming back. His hands shook, and his head spun until the food settled. Once it did, Jason washed it down with a soda. Jason liked the hunger. It was the only time he could forget everything else. Satisfying Jason's post-death cravings made him feel healed. But Jason knew better. With every death, he shattered even more. Soon, he'd be so broken he'd be unrecognizable.

#fic #batfam #lily of the valley fic #Jason Todd #Talia al Ghul #Ra’s al Ghul #Damian Wayne #Barbara Gordon #Dick Grayson #Bruce Wayne #Sheila Haywood #Immortal Jason Todd #League of Assassins Jason Todd #Protective Talia al Ghul #Good Parent Talia al Ghul #Jason Todd Needs a Hug #Good Sibling Jason Todd #Hurt/Comfort #Adopted Children #Emotional Manipulation #Claustrophobia #Child Death #Resurrected Jason Todd

[jcs-study]

Thanks to people gifting me a ton of photos, click the link above to access a pictorial spread of the original Los Angeles cast of Jesus Christ Superstar in the summer of 1972, at the (sadly late) Universal Amphitheater on the Universal Studios backlot in California. To be clear: this is a little album of every picture we've ever been able to scrounge up from the two weeks that Ted Neeley and Carl Anderson were in the L.A. cast before they ran off to Israel to make a certain film.

If nothing else, it just goes to show that when you let Tom O'Horgan cook, to use current terminology, he comes up with something less gonzo and more down-to-earth than an avant-garde treatise on futuristic insects play-acting a version of an earlier primitive civilization's myth. (Yeah, that's what the OBC's wild designs were about. I'll explain more someday.)

For more background and context to the pics, hit the jump!

Background on the Location

Let's start with the venue: we find ourselves at a 3,800-ish-seat open-air Amphitheater on the Universal Studios backlot, built as a daytime arena where Studio Tour patrons could watch a western-themed stunt show and shootout. As the story goes, someone, likely a young person who'd been to concerts in unusual places, wondered aloud whether they could use it as an event space at night. As a test, they ran some old movies (Marx Brothers and so forth), passed out free popcorn and peanuts, and discovered that even without the tour, people would come, park their carcasses, and watch a show. Prime opportunity to make money -- now they just needed an event that would pull crowds.

Picking JCS was sort of an in-house deal. The parent company of Universal was MCA, which then owned a stake in the show along with the Robert Stigwood Organisation. A fully staged version had yet to play the Coast, though successful concert tours had cleaned up at the Hollywood Bowl and across the country. So they booked a month-long run and hoped for the best. Thanks to casting hi-jinks in the Broadway production (again, fodder for another post), Ted Neeley was set to play the leading role of Jesus, and Carl Anderson would co-star as Judas.

Background on the Staging and Design

My guess: O'Horgan knew by now that ALW and TR had toed the party line, but were generally not interested in what he did back in the Big Apple, so a square-one rethink was the order of the day. Moreover, the glitterati of Hollywood was likely to fill these seats at some point. He couldn't do some avant-garde-a-clue (as George Harrison would put it) theater crap in Studio City. So he went with something simpler, more... basic -- the Bible writ large for a comic book generation and an arena audience. (Perhaps this was why Tom felt the focus had to be more on Jesus, moving intermission to follow "Gethsemane" instead of "Blood Money," a choice that, to his credit, was frequently echoed thereafter in UK productions.)

The scenery was arena-level simple: the set consisted of three stone outcroppings backed by an 80-foot-tall (!) cross draped in cloth. On closer examination, the two small stone groups near the sides of the stage were gigantic hands, palm up, with fingers reaching for the sky, and the large stone structure in the middle was Jesus' face. (Per audience reports, when Judas died, he stood in stone-Jesus' mouth, which flamed bright red, and descended into hell screaming, "You have murdered me!")

Herod was wheeled onto the stage in a contraption made out of nude alabaster mannequins, whose arms raised on cue to allow the white-suited Herod his entrance (perhaps the most '70s thing ever). Pilate, almost a Goth King straight out of Conan the Barbarian or Flash Gordon, reigned from a throne of human skulls that was frantically whipped around the stage while he laughed maniacally. For the crucifixion, Jesus and his disciples climbed the uncloaked cross, and as Jesus got into position, the disciples made a halo out of their open hands surrounding his head that glowed in the spotlights. As they played "John 19:41," the cross slowly moved back from the stage until it disappeared into the darkness by the end of the song.

There was still a lot of "go big or go home" about it, in true Tom fashion. As the artist's rendering of the crucifixion on the Playbill's title page or in the mail-order ticket ad (seriously, see link) attests, when Norman Jewison quoted classic art, it was a simple Da Vinci. Tom O'Horgan, on the other hand, went for a straight-up, balls-to-the-wall, extravagant take on Gustave Doré. (Compare that rendering to "Souls of Warriors of the Faith Form a Cross.")

All things considered, it was sort of a forerunner of "pandering JCS" like the A.D. and Farewell Tours, but it had balls compared to what ALW considers an arena tour-worthy production.

Reception

Maybe because it was set up to be a crowd-pleaser instead of playing with weirdness for a supposedly sophisticated audience on someone else's dime, the L.A. production was a massive hit with both critics and audiences compared to Broadway. During the day, it was the Wild West show; at night, it was JCS, frequently filling the venue to 98% capacity. It kept extending and ultimately ran twelve weeks rather than four (of which Ted and Carl, as previously mentioned, played two before shipping off to the Holy Land) until cold weather forced its closure that September.

(Recalled Ted in an interview circa 1993, when the A.D. Tour returned to the now-enclosed Amphitheater, "We used to freeze our buns off with those Santa Anas whipping around. Especially me when I was in that loincloth, hanging up on that huge cross." Not that the image didn't have a huge effect. To quote Amphitheater treasurer Maggie Magennis, who "saw it at least four or five times a week" when it opened, "The most exciting part was at the end. Teddy was up on the cross. We were open air then, and you could see the lights of the Valley. There was something really awesome about the fact that he represented something so spiritual, and yet the temporal aspect of the lights twinkling down below was there.")

My Two Cents

If I had an unlimited budget, I'd give it some twists of the '92 Oz tour and bring this exact thing back. That's what tours arenas and sells tickets, not "Occupy Jerusalem." Who knows? Maybe someday someone will be crazy enough to give me that kind of free rein...

#jesus christ super star #jesus christ superstar #jcs #jcss #jesus christ super-star #history #andrew lloyd webber #tim rice #ted neeley #carl anderson #tom o'horgan #universal studios

[freddiemercurylegendabovelegends]

February 17th, 1981 - Queen Story!

Queen perform at the Budokan Hall, Tokyo, Japan, during 'Short Japanese 'Flash Gordon' tour' - ('The Game' tour)

📸 Source photo “Queen - Live Tour in Japan 1975-1985″ book

➡️ This photo could be from any of the five nights in Tokyo in February 1981

#flash gordon tour #freddie mercury #queen band #london #zanzibar #queen #legend #brian may #freddiebulsara #john deacon #roger taylor #1981 #japan #the game tour #the game album #tokyo #nippon budokan

[debdarkpetal]

#Repost @/_letusclingtogether_ on Instagram:

——

'Did you know?'

1 - Freddie calls everyone 'dear'

2- A can of 2000 flushes only lasts John 3 days.

3-the band retains a year-around crew whether they're touring or not, including the guy who hands John a triangle for one note.

4-The chief influence on their 'Flash Gordon' movie music was Zither and Zaza 's monumental soundtrack from Prome Night.

5- Groucho Marx was given a complimentary Queen II Jacket shortly before his death.

6-Freddie is a ping-pong champion and hockey expert.

7-After the Us and Japan, their biggest market is Australia

8-Brian was an astronomer for 4 years.

9-The prize they really received for their Japanese Album Year Award was a wooden comb. Well, at least it wasn't a Teriyaki Burger.

10-Roger takes 40 vitamins a day.

11-Masquerading as Larry Lurex, Queen had a British chartbuster with a remake of the golden oldie 'I can hear music'

12-John Deacon is dead.

13-The front of a 1952 Buick looks just like Lon Chaney

14-Japanese fans write the boys letters about the 'world' situation. 'Situation?' BM (BRIAN MAY), 'world?' JD (JOHN DEACON).

#queen #freddie mercury #roger taylor #john deacon #brian may #queen band #queen facts #ms

[freddiemercurydaily]

February 1981 - Queen have touched down in Japan.  The band will perform 5 shows in Tokyo @ Nippon Budokan   A Short ‘Flash Gordon’ Japanese tour Freddie Mercury at the airport with Peter Morgan (aka Morgan Winner)Pictures of Roger Taylor with Dominique Beyrand  and Brian and John too The Pictures were taken by Koh Hasebe

More here

#freddie mercury #freddiemercury #candids

[ultra-francesca-mercury]

On 12 February 1981, Queen began a short run of shows in Japan, with five consecutive shows at the Budokan in Tokyo. The events coincide with the release of the film 'Flash Gordon' and its soundtrack in the country. The concerts also served as preparation for the next tour in South America, which would be the band's last on that continent.

#queen #queen band #live at budokan #almanaccomercury #freddie mercury #roger taylor #john deacon #brian may

[pxmun]

Back at the Duke and Duchess’s summer home, Holly and Spencer were having a grand time. Holly was testing out her new whistle, her and spencer had conjured up a little playhouse and the two of them along with the other children watched on in awe as a rainbow flew out of Spencer’s funnel. The silver engine watched as the kids used the light of the rainbow to create shadow puppets. “Since you have a whistle now, the Duke and Duchess will have to make some accommodations to the summer home.” Spencer commented. “Accommodations? How come”? Holly asked confused. “Well, you have a whistle now, which from what I’ve seen means you’ll be staying on Sodor.” Spencer said. “But I can’t stay on Sodor, what about my parents”? Holly asked. “I guess they can come stay on Sodor as well.” Spencer said. “Spencer, we already have a home in Shining Time City”! Holly said. Spencer was about to speak again, but Holly spoke out first. “I’ve had an unforgettable time on Sodor and I’m so glad we became friends, but now I need to get back to my parents. I was in the hospital for a very long time, and they’ve been waiting for me to get better so we can go home together and be a family again.” Holly explained. Spencer let out a sad wheesh. Spencer had so much fun with Holly and wished she could stay, but he knew it would be wrong to keep Holly away from her parents. “Will you be able to come back and visit”? Spencer asked. “I don’t think I’ll be able to, my home is quite aways from Shining Time Station and I don’t think my parents will believe me if I tell them I made friends with a steam engine, let alone allow me out of their sights to play in an abandoned train station.” Holly said sadly. The two sat together sad. The Duke and Duchess of Boxford saw this and approached. “How about a little memento, so you two can always remember this time you had together”? Duchess suggested. “That would be wonderful, thank you Mrs. Boxford”! Holly said. The Duke of Boxford went back into the summer home to grab his camera, once he returned the Duchess helped Holly up onto Spencer’s front buffer. The Duke returned with the camera and set it up. “Alright you two, say Sodor”! The Duke said. “Sodor”! Holly and Spencer smiled. The camera gave a big flash before it quickly disappeared. “That was perfect! The picture will take some time to develop, but it should be ready by the time you have to return home Holly. In the meantime, why don’t you give Holly a proper send off by taking her on a quick tour around the island Spencer.” The Duke said. “That sounds excellent sir! Come along Holly, there’s no time to waste”! Spencer said. Holly was once again helped into Spencer’s cab, and they were soon travelling through the countryside. Holly was admiring Rolf’s castle when the whistle of an approaching engine rang out. It was Gordon, Romeo and him were trying to catch up to the silver engine. Spencer found Gordon’s presence annoying. “Oh, bother its Gordon! He’s probably looking for a race, but we don’t have the time for that. I’ll have to find some way to get him off my trail.” Spencer said. Holly looked at her whistle, she recalled what the Duke and Duchess had told her about the whistle and its magical abilities. “I wish a mountain of plushies would block Gordon’s path”! Holly said as she blew into her whistle. With a huff and a puff, steam shot straight out of Spencer’s funnel and up into the sky. The weather quickly changed, instead of snowflakes, plushies of various types and shapes rained from the sky and right onto the track Gordon was on. It quickly accumulated and before the teen and big tender engine knew it a massive pile of plushies were in their way. Gordon’s driver quickly applied the brakes, but it was too late, Gordon dove face first into the pile, his momentum being more than enough to cause and an avalanche. Thankfully, no one was hurt, but now Gordon, Romeo, and the crew were buried under the mountain of cute stuffed animals. “Great job Holly! With Gordon out of the way we can now continue our tour in peace”! Spencer said. Meanwhile, Romeo and Gordon’s crew were busy bigging out the big engine as fast as they could. “I don’t believe this, how can Spencer use magic now”? Gordon asked confused and crossed. “It sounds crazy, but I think Spencer might’ve actually made friends with Holly.” Romeo said in disbelief. “She has a whistle, already?! And from Spencer no less”? Gordon asked baffled. “That’s the only answer that makes sense. Which means it’s now going to be much harder to intercept Spencer.” Romeo said. “If we can even catch back up to them, I’m still trapped by these silly little stuffed animals.” Gordon huffed. Romeo tried to think of a plan. He remembered that there was a set of points further down the line. If they could make it to the points before Spencer, they would be able to cut him off. However, there was still the problem with Gordon being stuck. They had to come up with something and it had to be quick. “Genius time”! Romeo said as an idea came to mind. The teen instructed Gordon’s crew to build up as much steam as they could. Once steam was up to Romeo’s satisfaction, he held onto one of Gordon’s front windows and instructed Gordon’s crew to hold onto the brake. The two did, but they were confused and curious as to what the teen was planning. “Attack of the 50- foot Gordon”! Romeo shouted as he blew into his whistle. With a huff and a puff, steam flew out of Gordon’s funnel and engulfed the big engine. “Romeo what are you up to... Woah, woah, woah”! Gordon gasped as he suddenly grew to almost the size of a five- story building. 

Romeo and Gordon’s crew remained their original sizes and as such were clinging onto the brake and window. Gordon was no longer buried under the stuffed animals, but now he was taking up two of the four tracks. Seeing that they were now free, Romeo had Gordon’s crew release the brake. Gordon began to move; his larger size made it easy to push the plushy mountain out of his way. Up ahead, Spencer was stopped at a signal, waiting for the points to change. Once they were switched, Spencer was about to move forward, when once more he was interrupted by a loud shrill of a whistle. “How could Gordon catch up to us already? He should still be trapped”! Spencer asked shocked. Then the ground beneath him began to shake. “Sizzling Sodor! What’s going on”? Spencer asked. “Is it an earthquake”? Holly wondered. An engine was quickly approaching, Spencer and Holly could only watch in shock and awe as the giant Gordon steamed closer. “Woah! Cool”! Holly said. “Spencer, stop right there”! Gordon boomed. By this point the silver engine had no choice but to stop, if he didn’t Gordon would flatten him into a silver dollar pancake. Romeo made his way down from Gordon’s window, with Gordon at this size Romeo felt like he was going through an obstacle course. Eventually, the teen did manage to make it off of Gordon and approached Spencer and Holly. “A flock of little birdies told us that you took off with the girl from the normal realm. You need to bring her back to Lady so she can go home Spencer.” Romeo said crossly. “I understand Romeo, I was just giving Holly a grand tour around the island before she returns to Shining Time City.” Spencer explained. Holly poked her head out from Spencer’s cab, her whistle hidden behind a scarf the Jukebox band gave her. The band quickly rushed over to the girl. “Holly there you are, you had us worried sick”! Grace said. “Yeah, we thought something bad had happened.” Didi said. “I’m sorry. I was so excited to be on Sodor that I didn’t let you guys know where I was going.” Holly apologized. “We’re just glad your safe, thankfully Sodor is a safe place with good people, but Holly next time please keep everyone informed about your whereabouts”! Titto said. “And that goes double.” Tex said but was interrupted by Rex. “No, triple.” Rex added. “Right, triple for when your back home.” Tex continued. “Okay, I will, promise”! Holly said. “Now we just need to head back to Knapford and pick up JJ, then we’ll be ready to go.” Grace said. Romeo looked up at the still giant Gordon, he knew it would be a little while longer before the gold dust wore off and Gordon could return to normal. The teen would have to stay behind to keep an eye on his friend and help the signal man divert the engines away from the tracks Gordon was on. Romeo quickly pulled out a pen and paper and quickly wrote something down. “Hey Holly, do you think when you get back to the normal realm you can give this letter to my family friend Stacy Jones? My brother and I made the same mistake and didn’t let her know we moved.” Romeo admitted regretfully. “Sure”! Holly said. “Thanks, that means a lot, now you better get going. Don’t want your parents freaking out if they find you missing.” Romeo said. With that Holly and the Jukebox band left for Knapford station. There, the band manager JJ Silvers was waiting under the bench, out of sight from the public. Once Spencer had pulled in, he joined Holly and the rest of the band inside the cab. They quietly made their way to Lady’s tunnel; the magic engine was waiting patiently by the entrance. “Hello Holly, did you enjoy your time on Sodor”? Lady asked. “I certainly did! I loved getting to meet and play with everyone.” Holly replied. “That’s good to hear. I see you also made a new friend, who might you be silver engine”? Lady asked. “I’m Spencer, your grace.” Spencer stammered.  Before the Trainyard Trio had arrived on Sodor, Spencer hadn’t believed in Lady’s existence. He had thought she was nothing more than a fairytale engines told each other, but now seeing her in the steel and steam Spencer no longer thought of Lady as a fable. “It’s nice to meet you Spencer, I see you’ve done a good job watching over Holly. Are you here to drop her off”? Lady asked. “Yes ma’am.” Spencer responded sadly. Lady saw this. “Why don’t you two take a moment to say your goodbyes.” Lady offered. Lady used her magic to help Holly out of Spencer’s cab. The girl wheeled up to the front of Spencer, doing her best to try and give the engine a hug. Tears filled her eyes. “Be good for the Duke and Duchess, okay”? Holly said. “I will, and you listen to your parents, alright”? Spencer said. “I promise.” Holly answered. By now Spencer was on the verge of crying, he almost chocked on his words as he spoke. “You’re a very brave girl Holly, I’ve received many honors in my time, but the biggest one I’ve gotten was the honor of becoming your friend.” Spencer admitted. Holly was unable to say anything as she fought her sadness. Nearby, Lady gave the two another minute to compose themselves. The Jukebox band were in tears. “I’m sorry to intervene, but it’s time to go Holly.” Lady said sadly. Spencer and Holly gave a final goodbye as Holly was helped into Lady’s coach. Holly waved from inside as Lady began to move toward the tunnel. As she did so, Spencer gave Holly a salute of whistles as they entered the tunnel. Spencer would wait there until Lady returned, just to make sure Holly had gotten to the normal realm safely.

#ttte #thomas the tank engine #thomas and friends #sodor #ttte lady #lady the magic engine #lady the golden engine #ttte spencer #spencer the silver engine #spencer the private engine #ttte gordon #gordon the big engine #jukebox band

[andrewkhurst]

YOU’RE THE ONE FOR ME. OR HER. OR MAYBE HER. OR POSSIBLY THAT ONE. BOY(TO MAN)BAND INTERNET SAFETY.

Martha and I were nearing the end of one of our regular early morning pre-school time YouTube boy band marathons. I guess that a 5 year-old girl being into boy bands is a normal thing. But this is Martha’s World. She currently loves both New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys. Only not the multibillion selling early stuff. That would be too predictable. Martha likes the recent output from both groups, definitely in the 'men' side of the Boyz II Men divide.

She loves watching the video of NKOTB dressed as (even) old (er) men doing a music history lesson in a high school for the track ‘Boys in the Band’. In the middle of the song, Donnie Wahlberg raps a list of boybands. Martha always joins in for this bit, opening one of her brain boxes and reciting it in unison with Donnie.

80s teen pop sensation Debbie Gibson makes an appearance as a milfy teacher in the hallway flanked by a gaggle of cheerleaders and lip syncs “we like the boys, the boys in the band” to a singer with a really broad New York accent. Martha loves the crazy lady. She’s as yet unaware of Debbie’s pre-milfy days, and I am staggered that YouTube hasn’t thrown ‘Shake Your Love’ or similar onto our screen with its all encompassing algorithm.

Her favourite Backstreet Boys videos go from the sublime to the ridiculous. The most played video is a live set from 2017 in a TV studio to mark their Las Vegas residency, and close second in the running is a 1993 news segment from a Florida news channel, where the boys made their debut with an incredible effort. The then barely teenaged Nick Carter attempted to thrust his prepubescent pecker at the audience of screaming daughters of TV weathermen and sportscasters, while Kevin (who was already the grand old age of 22) looked very awkward and acutely aware of the Savile scale of the dance routine. The song never appeared on any Backstreet Boys album. Go and take a look. You’ll see why.

Sometimes a song called ‘Get Down’ (You’re the One for Me) appears on YouTube. It is a 1996 classic, with little Nick carter in full on bleached blonde curtain hair mode. The boys are precariously balanced on a floating, rotating circular platform similar to the one that Flash Gordon had his scrap with Timothy Dalton on. The floating platform is surrounded by thousands of screens with girls dancing while they watch the boys. Martha seemed concerned watching ‘Get Down’. Stupidly, I asked her what the matter was.

“Dad, do the Backstreet Boys have sore penises?”

I hadn't given much (okay, ANY) thought to the penile health of the Backstreet Boys, but Martha may well have actually been on to something. I imagine that young virile men in Globally famous pop groups at their peak of popularity, with girls in every city in the World flinging themselves at their feet, may well have had sore penises, through overuse if nothing else. “Ummmm I don’t know Martha, I’ve never really discussed it with them, even though they are obviously my close personal friends. Why do you ask?”

“Well, they keep touching them, like when I have a sore lip and you tell me off because I keep picking it like you did when you were a boy and it made it bleed.”

“Ummm, I don’t know the answer. I’ll ask them next time I see them...”

Martha chuckled. “Silly dad!” Shit. Was my ruse blown? Had my daughter realised that I actually bought the tickets to take her to see the Backstreet Boys on their last tour in Manchester, and that Nick Carter didn’t really send them to us as a gift for his close personal friend and occasional stunt double? “Just message them and ask.” Phew. I pinky promised to message the Backstreet Boys in our Whatsapp group chat ‘the boyz’ and ask if they collectively or individually had sore penises.

Martha’s bigger concern than the health of the members of her favourite band members was who they were singing the song to. “Is it to the girls on the screens dad, or to me? Because they are looking at me.”

“I think they are singing to everyone, Martha.”

She rolled her eyes. Martha has never used the actual internet, but had recently undergone an online safety session at school. “But they have to be careful dad, because they don’t know who they are talking to on the screen.” So far, so good. “And if they are singing it to more than one girl, it could be very bad because they would need to get an extra chair if they went out on a date. And if they had kids, the kids might call the wrong person ‘mummy’, which is not good. Annnnnnd They would be tired going from one house to the other ones all the time, so they really should just choose one person to sing it to.”

“I think that the Backstreet Boys have also had their internet safety lesson at pop star school. I think that they are probably just singing it to you then Martha.”

“Silly dad. This isn’t real. This is old Backstreet Boys when they were younger. Look, there’s classic AJ. And that’s baby Nick Carter. It isn’t now.”

I sighed and wished for Peppa Pig. Coming swiftly to my senses, I came up with a far better distraction. I made a semi-realistic 'PING' noise and instantly looked at my phone. "Oh Martha, Howie D has replied in the group chat! He says that his penis is fine, thanks for asking. Let's get your coat on and get to school please."

(Martha’s version of a Backstreet Boys group WhatsApp chat has Brian saying ‘Rock’ as he signed his name ‘B Roc’ on her poster, Classic AJ is leaving a voice message, and Nick Carter is professing his love for Martha and mummy).

#girldad #marthadiaries #marthajunehurst #daddiaries #itshandyurst #andrewkhurst #backstreetboys #nkotb #debbiegibson #newkidsontheblock #bsbarmy #bsb #nickcarter

[gone2soon-rip]

CHAIM TOPOL (1935-Died March 8th 2023,at 87).Israeli actor, singer, and illustrator. He is best known for his portrayal of Tevye, the lead role in the stage musical Fiddler on the Roof and the 1971 film adaptation, performing this role more than 3,500 times from 1967 through 2009.Topol began his acting career during his Israeli army service in the Nahal entertainment troupe and later toured Israel with kibbutz theatre and satirical theatre companies. He was a co-founder of the Haifa Theatre. His breakthrough film role came in 1964 as the title character in Sallah Shabati, by Israeli writer Ephraim Kishon, for which he won a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer—Male. Topol went on to appear in more than 30 films in Israel and the United States, including Galileo (1975), Flash Gordon (1980), and For Your Eyes Only (1981). He was described as Israel's only internationally recognized entertainer from the 1960s through the 1980s. He won a Golden Globe for Best Actor and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his 1971 film portrayal of Tevye, and was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor for a 1991 Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaim_Topol

#Chaim Topol #Israeli Actors #Israeli Singers #Actors #Musicians #Singers #Fiddler on the Roof #Flash Gordon #Notable Deaths in March 2023 #Notable Deaths in 2023