Japanese Lucha Libre Politician
In Japan haben sie dem Politiker Skull Reaper A-ji den Zutritt zu Sitzungen verweigert, solange er seine Lucha Libre-Maske aufhat. Schade.
Skull Reaper A-ji won just 2,828 votes in the election, campaigning on a platform demanding educational reform and improved social welfare facilities, but that was sufficient for him to take a seat in the city council. But even before he could attend his first meeting, other councillors suggested that it was inappropriate for a member of the assembly to wear a mask to conceal their identity.
But 44-year-old Skull Reaper A-ji resisted their requests that he remove his trademark item of clothing, a red-and-black leather mask similar to the “lucha libre” masks affected by wrestlers in Mexico. “People find it easy to come up and talk to me because I have a mask on,” he told the Nishinippon Shimbun, adding that he has done a lot for the community for more than a decade, including visiting institutions for people with physical disabilities.
Japanese politician banned for wearing wrestling mask to meetings (Arbroath)
Billy Corgan sells Furniture with Wrestling
Youtube Direktbilly, via Gawker
Billy Corgan, how low can you go? Der ehemalige Frontmann der Smashing Pumpkins hat jetzt ‘ne Wrestling-Agentur und macht Werbung für ‘nen Möbeldesigner. The Infinite Sadness, indeed.
Billy Corgan, the erstwhile alt-era icon and Smashing Pumpkins frontman, has been at least as focused on wrestling as music for the past few years. So perhaps his awesomely absurdist TV ad for Chicago furniture supplier Walter E Smithe, which acts as a backdoor viral ad for his wrestling concern Resistance Pro, should be less surprising.
But that doesn’t make it any less hilarious, does it?
Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan Pins The Internet With Wrestling Furniture TV Ad
Wrestlers breathing heavily: The Supercut
Youtube Direktbreath, danke Yannick!
Passend zum etwas lästigen derzeitigen Gawkeredditkreuzanonymous-Unsinn (auf Facebook hatte ich nur „Stupid Internet being stupid“ geschrieben): Ein Supercut voller Wrestler beim Schwer Atmen.
Wrestling-themed Performance of Wagners “Der Ring des Nibelungen”
In New York zeigen sie grade Wagners “Der Ring des Nibelungen” mit Wrestlern. Mit Opern und solcherlei Schnickschnack kann man mich normalerweise jagen, aber das hier würde ich mir definitiv ansehen und mich dafür auch garantiert in die passende Abendgarderobe schmeißen, komplett mit Vokuhila und Spandex-Leopardenfellhosen.
The opera’s bellowing gods are now the lords of a different ring — outfitted with ‘80s fright wigs and loud costumes of glittering Spandex — who settle their age-old scores in elaborately choreographed fake fights. Improbable though the shift of setting may seem, writers Jeremy Beck and Dave Dalton (who also directs) remain tirelessly faithful to Wagner’s original, and their obvious reverence for the material, combined with an indefatigable cast, make the unconventional adaptation a chest-thumping success.
The production opens as the commander of the gods, a Hulk Hogan-esque Wotan (Jeff Clarke), avoids paying the tag-teaming giants Fasolt and Fafner (Michael Melkovic and Christopher Hirsh) their due for having built his new abode. Instead of his promised sister-in-law he offers them the all-powerful ring made of gold stolen from the sultry Rhine maidens. Fafner accepts the ring, offing his brother in a brutal deathmatch that demonstrates its dangerous power. Wotan spends the rest of the show trying to recover the ring by prodding successive generations of his illegitimate offspring — another common trait of ancient gods and TV wrestling patriarchs — to battle Fafner.
New Pro Wrestling-Themed Production Puts Wagner’s Epic Cycle in a Different Ring
Colin Delfosses Congolese Wrestlers
Tolle Fotoserie von Colin Delfosse: Congolese Wrestlers. Wer keine Lust hat, sich durch die Bilder zu klicken, kann sich bei Doktor Katze durch ein paar der Fotos scrollen.
Kinshasa, 2010. Eight million inhabitants, thousands of shegués (street children), hundreds of wrestlers and their brass bands. Edingwe, Dragon, City Train, Mbokotomo : the “legends” of Congolese wrestling invent themselves on a daily basis in the outskirts of Kinshasa. Body-building, and even black magic enthusiasts fight for glory in makeshift rings. They come from the streets and their charisma commands respect and admiration. But the heros of the ring are modest in victory : « Kobeta libanga papa mundele » [we manage, white man].
In the last hours of the day, when they have hung up their everyday “occupations”, they put on masks and wrestling kit ready to fight. The motorised parade of wrestlers attracts crowds from the dusty streets of Massina, Ngili and Matete, towns round the Congolese capital. In back yards, on the tables of the street cafés, or even in the street, the spell casters warm up over primus stoves and cannabis. The ring is hastily set up, the judge climbs onto the ropes. “Let the match begin!” The fight starts and is usually more or less fixed. Rounds follow one another until the final spell is cast, until the adversary is floored, until the next fight.
Webseries about People who did Things first
Sehr schöne Webserie von BankShot über Leute, die irgendwas zuerst gemacht haben. In ihrem Vimeo-Channel gibt’s bislang vier Clips, unter anderem mit nem Clip über den ersten Tagger Larry Lovebone.
1st To Do It chronicles some of the most innovative, daring and unknown maverick’s in the fields of art, music, sports and fashion. Through arduous research, spanning the stacks at toppled libraries to unearthed microfilm, these pioneers were the first people to do things that seem quite commonplace in today’s society. 1st To Do It is an ongoing series of short documentaries that sheds a much needed light on the people who made their mark first.
Oben das Video über El Santo, den ersten Lucha Libre-Wrestler, der eine Maske trug.
El Santo harnessed the power bestowed upon him by a celestial body which gave him an unbelievable grappling ability in the ring, while sacrificing his own face to the delight and horror of lucha libre enthusiasts around the world. After enjoying a career that spanned decades, the tale turned tragic as El Santo died days after removing the mask that had cemented him as a wrestling legend.
Und hier noch ein Clip über den Rapper GLC, der als erstes zusammengebundene Schuhe über Hochspannungsleitungen geschmissen hat. Die wirklich wichtigen Dinge des Lebens eben.
In cities across the world shoes swing haphazardly to the rhythms of culture happenings while on electrical lines. GLC takes the audience to church as he explains why he first threw a bevy of sneakers into the air. From Samba adidas to the Air Jordan IV, there’s a science behind the action of throwing shoes on a wire.
Lushs Jesus vs Satan-Backyard Wrestling
Streetartist Lush hat seine Ausstellung in der Backwoods Gallery in Melbourne mit einem Cagefight zwischen Jesus und Satan eröffnet. Oben der erste Teil mit ein bisschen Outdoor-Gerangel, die zweite Runde gabs zur Vernissage und die kann man sich hier ansehen. Ist aber tatsächlich relativ gewalttätig und auch blutig.
One year and an exhibition tour of the states later, we were glad to be present “Another Shithouse “Art” Show” by Lush. The opening night featured round two of the eternal struggle between good and evil, as expressed through the delicate art of backyard wrestling, original illustrations, a video premier, installations and a series of cartoon commentaries on graffiti culture which were also available as a limited edition signed risograph zine.
Bookmarks for July 15th: Astronaut-Training, Half-Life, Donkey Kong, British Wrestling Posters
HALF-LIFE – Singularity Collapse – YouTube
GHOSTRIDERS II on Vimeo
Welcome to Titusville on Vimeo: Welcome to Titusville shows the impact of the 30 year Space Shuttle program on the residents of Titusville, a city that lies only a few miles from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
2D Photography Rube Goldberg – YouTube
Leica Lenses (English) on Vimeo: Every Leica lens is hand-crafted and goes through meticulous manufacturing processes to uphold the quality and precision that Leica defines and customers have come to expect.
How It’s Made: The Impossible Project – YouTube: How It's Made takes us through how The Impossible Project manufactures its Instant Film for Polaroid cameras.
John Lasseter – A Day in a Life – Full Length Documentary – YouTube
Silverback Gorilla turns cameraman at Durrell – YouTube: Ya Kwanza the conservation Trusts 27 year old silverback gorilla became adept at snapping close ups of himself with a high definition camera which was encased in an indestructible box and covered with tasty honey and oats.
Let’s take back the Internet! – YouTube: In this powerful talk from TEDGlobal, Rebecca MacKinnon describes the expanding struggle for freedom and control in cyberspace, and asks: How do we design the next phase of the Internet with accountability and freedom at its core, rather than control? She believes the internet is headed for a "Magna Charta" moment when citizens around the world demand that their governments protect free speech and their right to connection.
Online Schools | State of the Internet 2011: Like any classic hero, the Internet grew from humble beginnings as a tiny speck to become the legend that it is today. The very first “instant message” wasn’t even a whole word before it broke the entire system, but it sparked a fantastic fire of possibilities. Now, we can IM friends from our phones while we browse Facebook and send a few tweets about our indigestion from last night’s cheesesteak, perhaps while taking care of that indigestion. We can email our friends in Paris and Tokyo from the MoMA and even send photos to Mom and Dad, too.<br />
Thirty-something years ago, this was stuff for sci-fi nerds.
NASA’s Glorious History of Training Astronauts | Wired Science | Wired.com
Space Shuttle Discovery – 360VR Images
Computer teaches itself English so that it can play Civilization
David Byrne’s 1987 Predictions for the Computers of 2007: I don't think computers will have any important effect on the arts in 2007. When it comes to the arts they're just big or small adding machines. And if they can't "think," that's all they'll ever be. They may help creative people with their bookkeeping, but they won't help in the creative process.<br />
The video revolution, however, will have some real impact on the arts in the next 20 years. It already has. Because people's attention spans are getting shorter, more fiction and drama will be done by television, a perfect medium for them. But I don't think anything will be wiped out; books will always be there; everything will find its place.
The Secret History of Donkey Kong: Donkey Kong is perhaps the greatest outsider game of all time. It broke all the rules because its creator, the now-legendary Shigeru Miyamoto, didn't know them to begin with. It not only launched the career of gaming's most celebrated creative mind, it gave birth to the jump-and-run platform genre as we know it, and established Nintendo as perhaps the industry's longest standing superpower.
british wrestling posters – a set on Flickr
PAS House – A House made for Skating: Imagine a city of the future where skateboards are used as the primary form of transportation and recreation – in and out of your home. A utopia city for skateboarders would mean that a skateable path, like a ribbon connecting everything together, links each building in an unending ability to keep in motion on your board. The PAS House takes this concept and brings it to life through an architectural project mixing a modern single family home with a skateboard ramp structure – all from an environmentally-driven perspective.
The Humor Code: Deconstructing the Science of Funny | Underwire | Wired.com
Tweet to Metal « PRINTERESTING: Last week, to mark the 125th anniversary of the linotype machine, Portland’s Stumptown Printers (with the help of some friends at the C.C. Stern Type Foundry) celebrated with a twitter-based letterpress project.
6 Ways to Bring Civility Online | The Art of Manliness: 1. Remember that there are real people on the other side of the computer. 2. Never say something to someone online that you wouldn’t say to the person’s face. 3. Use your real name. 4. Sit on it. 5. Or don’t respond at all. 6. Say something positive.
Lucha Libre/Last Supper-Decks
Tolle Sk8-Decks von Chris Parks mit mexikanischen Wrestlern beim letzten Abendmal: The Last Fiesta. Sein ganzes Portfolio ist sowieso unbedingt sehenswert. (via Dangerous Minds)
‘The Last Fiesta’ is my 12-skateboard deck shout-out to Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘The Last Supper’ with Jesus Christos and his 12 Luchador apostles getting down one last time. This piece was created for my solo exhibit Saints & Sinners, here at the Pale Horse Studio. Hand-made shadow box by Casey Paquet.
Christian Wrestling Federation
(Dailymotion DirektWrestling, via Dangerous Minds)
Brake some Bones in the Name of the Lord! (Ja, die sind echt.)
Vorher auf Nerdcore:
Christian Fight Clubs
Lucha Libre Chocolats from Paris
„Deadlicious – Handmade Rock’n'Roll Patisserie to die for“. Vorsicht: Autostart-Mucke. Kann man trotzdem laut machen, denn die Musik stammt von Lost Acapulco und die Schoki sieht umwerfend toll aus, kommt auch in einer Cavaleras Collection und es gibt noch dazu Lucha Libre-Kuchen und Smoothies. Toll! (via Core77)
Star Wars Wrestling-Poster
Schöne Star Wars-Wrestling-Poster von Deviant-Art User Old Red Jalopy. Oben Death Spar, hier noch ein weiteres namens Brouha on Mustafar. (via We like that)
Mini-Doku: Behind the Mask – Lucha Libre USA
(Vimeo Direktluchalibre, via Minds Delight)
Schöne Doku über zwei völlig durchschnittliche Männer, die in einer Bank arbeiten und am Wochenende die Masken aufsetzen und sich gegenseitig durch den Ring schmeißen: Lucha Libre Wrestler. Ich war ja neulich auf einem Wrestling-Abend, weil mir ein Freund Karten geschenkt hatte und was fast noch viel interessanter ist als dieser Sport selbst, sind die Die Hard-Fans, die völlig fanatisch aus irgendwelchen Gründen immer an den Ring stürmen und das alles so richtig richtig bitterernst nehmen. Faszinierend.
A short doc for HDNet about two everyday guys who, on the weekends, turn into masked lucha libre wrestlers. From the sport’s roots in Mexico, to the backyards of America, lucha libre wrestling is a Latin American tradition alive and evolving in the United States.
Voodoo-Wrestling im Kongo
Die Global Post hat eine superfaszinierende Galerie voller Fotos von Voodoo-Wrestlling im Kongo. Der Sport ist dort ziemlich populär, sie vermischen ihn aber mit traditionellen Voodoo-Riten. Zombie-Wrestler FTW!
The hypnotic beat of drums and the loud melodic trumpets announce the beginning of the wrestling match. The athletes are getting ready and tonight, in Brazzaville, they will fight opponents from Kinshasa. The audience is mesmerized by the “voodoo” that has been borrowed from ancestral practices that were used in animist rituals — a large part of the intrigue of this sport.
In Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo, wrestling is as popular as it is in the U.S. The main difference: The Congolese like to introduce a mystical, magical “voodoo” element to the pantomime. So in addition to huge men wearing spandex and diving off 10-foot-tall stages, there are also “magical traditions” involving powders, spells and zombie-like transformations of wrestlers.
Voodoo wrestling in Congo – Huge men in spandex, magic spells and zombie-like transformations (via Digg)
