Shia slumming it with Ashton

During a drunken moment Shia LaBeouf must have agreed to be seen in public with Ashton Kutcher. The duo was spotted at an LA Lakers game, last weekend.

Ajumma's Black and Blue List is back!

Neither the fur on her coat or the hair on her head really belongs to comic Monique. And that's just sad. When Monique looks in the mirror, you know she pretends she's Niecy Nash.

Eva Longoria is a D-lister with a capital "D." She offends all my senses. Hopefully the next scalp stripped for a coat will be her own.

Guillermo Del Toro's "El Orfanato"

Some things are inescapably creepy: asylums, clowns, wheelchairs, and child ghosts. More than one of these things appear in Guillermo Del Toro's new movie, El Orfanato (The Orphanage). El Orfanato revolves around a woman who grew up in a children's orphanage and buys the property as an adult, to live in with her family. BAD MOVE, LADY! See El Orfanato's spooky trailer, here. Or, if you're impatient like me, read the movie spoiler.

"K to the J to the I..."

Invited to a costume party, but out of ideas? Black wig, drab grey suit (with Nehru collar), and some oversized plastic-rimmed glasses and POOF, you're Kim Jong-Il. Recently North Korea began filming video footage depicting their nation's scientific prowess, but it never quite got off the ground. See their video outtakes, here.

Clones Vol. 8: Rumer and Adam...again

Seriously. Does Rumer Willis not have friends? Is there no one to tell her she is the spitting image of Adam Brody whenever she wears a beanie or shades?

Jansport Goes West

Eat your heart out, Fergie! Jansport is launching a series of backpacks, messenger bags and 22" expandable uprights featuring limited-edition designs by artist Julie West in April 2008. West's work is currently on display at Subtext in San Diego, and will also be included at Cartoon Madness 3 in Georgia, in March.

In 2006, Julie designed these nifty skateboard decks to promote X Games 12, which was sponsored by Taco Bell. To see more of her fanciful artwork, visit her website.

Johnny on Evan...the b*tch is back!

Reeeow! The claws certainly come out when Johnny Weir gets talking about his rival, Evan Lysacek, in anticipation of this week's U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Minnesota. Notice how they both end up flashing devil horns at the cameras? I guess Johnny and Evan are not that different afterall! As for the final results, the championship went to Lysacek who had more points after the free skate.

Clones Vol. 7: Shaun White & Carrot Top

I feel a little mean comparing Shaun White to the comic mess that is Carrot Top. But one cannot deny the two share similar red hair, alabaster skin and have a penchant for being photographed with their yappers open. Shaun White is 22 years young, an Olympic snowboarding gold medalist, and a friend of Tony Hawk. Carrot Top is a 43 year-old schreechy Vegas comic who made a surprisingly funny cameo on Reno 911!

Yeeeee! Bossy Bear hits Korea!

Ajumma says what better place for a short-tempered, blue bossy bear than South Korea. David Horvath's first international version of Bossy Bear is due to hit Korean stores in 2008. Horvath writes in his blog that artwork in the Korean version will differ slightly from the American one, and of course in the Korean version Bossy Bear will speak Korean. Na?

Natalie Portman cares about animals

Natalie Portman, a vegetarian for the past 17 years, has a new leather-free shoe line out through Te' Casan. Recently turned vegan, Natalie says using fur and leather is "unnecessary, and cruelty against animals makes any fashion ugly."

I heard this girl was vegetarian years ago, but she never said a peep about animal-rights in public. Her recent trip to Rwanda to document the plight of mountain gorillas barely registered a blip in the press. (But Natalie wearing purple in Paris, a few months ago, caused a major stir. What gives?) I'm glad to see Natalie Portman is stepping up and taking a stand against animal cruelty in the fashion world. And I'm loving her Mary-Janes.

To see Natalie's cute, leather-free line visit tecasan.com

To learn more about her trip to Rwanda visit Animal Planet's Gorillas on the Brink

Happy Year of the Rat

Chúc Mừng Năm Mới! Lunar new year means orchid and Chinese mum sales. Juicy clementines. Dragon dances. Vietnamese sandwiches. Red envelopes filled with dollar bills. Neighborhood festivals. A trip to the temple to pray to Buddha and Guanyin for prosperous new year. Happiest wishes to you for a healthy and happy 2008.

Polar Bears extinct in 50 years?

U.S. Congress filed a petition with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, last week, to list the polar bear as "threatened." This is the first step towards an endangered status for the bears. A scientist from the U.S. Geological Survey presented research that in the next 50 years the polar bear population could decline by two thirds due to its melting habitat from global warming. Another critical issue facing the bears' habitat is that the United States Interior department is currently considering leasing 30 million acres in the Chuckchi Sea for oil and gas drilling. Drilling will not only devastate the bears' habitit, but may lead to large-scale oil spills. One way or another it seems humans are determined to mess things up for Alaska's animal residents.

When asked for their reaction to Congress' recent petition, Alaska's seal population, which is the polar bears' main food source said, "Darn."

How to color your eyebrows

Plucking ones eyebrows is all the rage among young men in Japan, these days. But if you're more of a brow lightening kind of guy, here are some "how to" coloring directions for you...in Japanese. Ganbatte yo!

Coming soon: Arts of Japan

February 24-May 25, 2008

Minneapolis Institute of Arts will present 95 works of art from the collection of John C. Weber, spanning major aesthetic trends in Japanese art from the 12th to 20th centuries. The exhibition, on display in MIA's Target Gallery, will include hanging scrolls, standing screens, ceramics, lacquerware, and textiles. While individual objects have been exhibited at the Japan Society in New York and at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the collection as a whole has not been presented publicly before. MIA is located at 2400 3rd Ave S. Minneapolis, MN 55404, (612) 870-3000. Admission charged.

"I Hate Rap Fashion" by Sergio Ornelas

Designer streetwear is a crock of shit created for bitchmade jackoffs too scared to decide what's cool for themselves. I don't give a fuck if you like shoes or fancy shirts; what's stupid is that this whole style jacked from poor kids in the 'hood trying to rock fly shit is now some bullshit bourgeois style pandering to rich white mediocre skaters who daydream about doing graffiti somewhere besides their shitty notebooks.

Go camp out at fucking Niketown again, you fucking nerds. Yeah, you're so fucking hip-hop you stood in line at a fucking boutique so some douchebag could sell you bullshit shoes just so you can drive your parents' luxury cars in style. I hope you stand proud in your limited-edition Kmart hoodie. You cockshits pay fuckheads like Pharrell and the Billionaire Boys Club fuckin' $300 for a goddamn Fruit of the Loom sweatshirt with a shitty drawing of a fucking ice cream cone on it. Motherfuckers can't even sew, and they're getting idiot kids to shell out a grip of dollars for a shitty silkscreen? What the fuck is wrong with people? Fucking shit-ass so-called designers trying to jack that whole hip-hop/street aesthetic to sell a couple shirts with lame-as-fuck graphics.

I don't give a fuck about people paying way too much money for bullshit designer crap per se; what annoys me is how this shit wants to put up some front of being down with the "streets." It's not even on a 'hood level -- it's just straight-up "Hey, rich kids! Let's earn Cool Kid Points with overpriced limited-edition footwear made by small hands in Third World countries!" If these jackasses really wanted to make "streetwear," that shit would actually be affordable so kids who don't drive to the city just to buy this bullshit could wear it. But no; these motherfuckers want to slap some ridiculous price tag on their bullshit clothing, probably some turquoise shirt with a hot-pink font jacked from a fucking shitty Hobie T-shirt I wore in second grade. Real cool, cocksmoke. Streetwear is fucking talltees and stunnas, not the latest pair of pink-and-green dunks designed by some bitchmade little fuck from Santa Monica who loves classic Freshjive design and thought wearing JNCO ten years ago was cool.

This is some of the dumbest bullshit I've ever heard. It's a bunch of privileged fuckheads trying to front like they on some next-level shit -- those motherfuckers you see all up on the Internet trying to front like they hard, throwing up some stupid-ass fashion posse signs while surrounded by a bunch of other frail-ass bitches with matching shoes and hats. Straight-up fuck that shit.

Originally published by East Bay Express

Dennis Oh (so boring)

First there was Daniel Henney straight out of America--white dad, adopted Korean mom. He burst onto the scene on a popular Korean TV comedy and charmed the nation. Then came Dennis O'Neill. Dennis Oh, as his fans call him, has the looks, but not the charm...and certainly not the acting skills of Daniel Henney. But he has a nice head of hair, and often times that does it for me. Here is Mr. Oh's new magazine spread just in time for Valentine's Day. To see his fashion shoot in progress, watch here. Dennis says "happy new year" at the end of the video and his Korean ain't half bad!

Clark and Michael: The Series

Will Ferrell's revenge

Last week I whined about Will Ferrell's new movie and how he's been playing the same character over and over. Well, last night I dreamt I was in a large room with about 100 people taking aerobic lessons from none other than Will Ferrell himself. He was at the front of the room wearing his Semi-Pro sweatband in his mass of curls. "Kick! Two, three, four. Cross legs over. KICK! Two three four," he shouted as we all tried to move in unison. Alas, I couldn't keep up. I'm sure there's a lesson here somewhere.

Ricky Martin honored in Puerto Rico

Ricky Martin showed the world how it's done at Puerto Rico's Las Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastian, this past weekend. Puerto Rico honored its native son for his charitable and civic work, including that of the foundation that bears his name, which operates in defense of abused children. San Sebastian National Prizes are awarded to individuals and institutions that have made significant contributions to education, the arts and culture of Puerto Rico. On being honored at the lively 4-day street festival, Martin said:

Las Fiestas de la Calle San Sebastián, es un evento histórico que promueve nuestra cultura y nos refuerza el orgullo de ser puertorriqueño. Agradezco a mi pueblo querido por siempre tenerme presente.

I couldn't have said it any better. Photo courtesy of OhlalaMag.

Bad hair day got you down?

In East Asia, hair and horror movies go together like cops and donuts. If you've got a killer female ghost on your hands, she'll most likely be rocking a head of 4-foot long tangled black hair. My favorite in the genre is Korea's Wig (2005), which follows the transformation of a cancer patient after her sister gives her a possessed wig. So I was none too surprised to hear about Exte, the new Japanese flick about killer hair extensions. Exte stars Battle Royale/Kill Bill actress, Chiaki Kuriyama. Horroryearbook.com says, "If you are grossed out by hair in drains or other places, this film will unnerve you." I say if you are NOT grossed out by hair in drains and other places, there is something wrong with you.

See the Exte movie trailer here.

Silent Alarm by Bloc Party

Bloc Party's album Silent Alarm debuted in 2005 and holds its own today, but makes me feel really nostalgic for 1994. Two beauties from this album include This Modern Love (featured in Daewon Song's Skate More video) and So Here We Are (which rivals any ditty by Ride or the Stone Roses).

Jet Li tops star income list in 2007

BEIJING -- Chinese kung fu actor Jet Li made the most money in 2007 among China's entertainment elite, totaling some 465 million yuan, or around US$62 million, as listed by Shanghai-based Oriental Morning Post on Wednesday. It was the third year that the newspaper made a through calculation of stars' annual income based on their media coverage.

The 44-year-old actor starred in three films in 2007, "The Warlords", "The Forbidden Kingdom" and "The Mummy 3." His salary from "The Warlords" alone was 100 million yuan. A sharp rise as he got only one yuan for his debut film "The Shaolin Temple" 27 years ago! Following him was another action star, Jackie Chan with the total pool of about 428 million yuan.
Hong Kong pop king Jackie Cheung ranked first among the singers, thanks to his 2007 world tour show, which presented altogether 75 concerts. Malaysia-born Chinese ethnic actress Michelle Yeoh was the richest female star of the past year, raking in an annual income of 80 million yuan. She was at seventh spot.

Originally published by ChinaDaily.com.cn

Stick a fork in him, because Will Ferrell is done.

Will Ferrell's character Ron Burgandy was a San Diego anchorman. Then he was a Nascar driver, a professional male figure skater and now he is a semi-professional basketball player. Will Ferrell is falling into the Ben Stiller trap of playing the same character over and over again in movies. This is particularly depressing because unlike Ben Stiller, Will Ferrell is actually funny.

If Will wants to beat a character to death he should bring back the hilarious Mugatu, Buddy the Elf, or Jacob Silj. Cocky and clueless gets old fast. Frankly, the only good part about Semi-Pro seems to be the appearance of Woody Harrelson.

Clones Vol. 6: Zachary Quinto & Rivers Cuomo

Star Trek's new Spock and Weezer's frontman look alike. Somehow that's just so fitting.

“The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering.”

Bruce Lee fans are flocking to Alhambra, California, this month, where Nucleus Art Gallery is hosting "Nature of Water (an Art Exhibit Inspired by the Philosophies of Bruce Lee)." The exhibit, which runs from January 5-25, "strives to reflect with images what Bruce taught with words and writing." Admission is free to this all-ages exhibit. For more images from "Nature of Water" visit Nucleus Art Gallery's website.

I Wanna Be Like Bruce by Tanya Phillpot

Word. Everybody Loves an Asian boy by Clement Hanami

Bruce Monkey by Cuteyspoo Toys

The Dragon by Greg Storey

Indiana Jones and the blah, blah, blah

With Indiana Jones' public relations machine working overtime, I'm starting to feel that I don't even need to see his new movie. I'll just read the plot on Movie Spoiler and call it a day.

The most recent proclamation from Crystal Skull producers is that Shia LaBeouf will not play Indiana's son, but rather his lover--I mean, his sidekick. We all know after Short Round there can be no other sidekick, thank you very much.

Dots unite! It's our time to vote.

Comcast has launched a year-long non-partisan voter campaign aimed at U.S. minority communities. The Asian American voter campaign, co-partnered by The Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote, includes entertainers Lou Diamond Phillips, Tamlyn Tomita (who is the hotness), Will Yun Lee, and the CHOs...John and Margaret. See their video here.

Meet the mascots: Beijing 2008

Say nihao to Summer Olympics 2008 mascots Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying, and Nini. These five little sprites represent the 5 colors of the Olympic rings and a whole lot of other stuff that totally goes over my head. Beijing's Summer Olympics will be held August 8-24, 2008. To read more about the real Olympic mascots, visit their official website here.

Clones Vol. 5: Gaspard Ulliel and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers

24-year old French actor Gaspard Ulliel, who recently played young Hannibal Lector, seems to be channeling 30-year old English star, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers.

Ryan Phillippe in "Man About Town" magazine

I'm totally weirded out by men's fashion magazines. But I'm intrigued by high-end art magazines with heavy cardstock covers, so I had to flip through Man About Town at the bookstore, today. Man About Town (really barfy title) is high-end to the point where it makes GQ look like Ladies Home Journal. How beautiful is cover boy Ryan Phillippe?

Guy Mariano is "Fully Flared"

A dreamy little sequence from Lakai's long awaited skate video, "Fully Flared."

Pandas on the breaking point

I'm not going to lie. When I first saw Aaron "Angry Woebot" Martin's signature panda on a pair of DC shoes, I thought it was an angry kitty. Now more familiar with his artwork I can wholeheartedly say it creates emotions of satisfaction and bliss, much like unwinding with a freezy pop on a sizzling summer day.

Woebot's portfolio of paintings, sketches, shirts, and toys may be described as urban, graphic, humourous and slightly angry. Waxing philosophic about art and life, the native Hawaiian says, "I live with no regrets, because I feel that everyone has to walk the gauntlet to feel pain, love and loss. It's what you go through that makes everything fall into place."

Angry Woebot is currently part of the KICKS exhibit at Subtext in San Diego and the Stan Lee retrospective at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in New York City.