AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — A U.N. agency aiding Palestinian refugees said Wednesday that Saudi Arabia is contributing $70 million for new housing units in the Gaza Strip.
Israel has authorized construction of the 1,200 new homes and 18 badly needed schools in Gaza, in what would be one of the largest housing projects in the seaside territory in years.
Israel, which controls the cargo crossings into Gaza, has largely banned the entry of construction materials into the coastal strip since …
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Es ist ein Wetter, bei dem man vieles verlieren kann. Beispielsweise den Reisekoffer mitsamt Pass, der auf dem Flughafen-Trolley stehen bleibt beim Versuch, schnell ins wartende Taxi zu kommen. Oder das Ged�chtnis, wenn man sp�ter im Taxi zur�ck zum Flughafen rast und dabei durch einen Unfall im Koma landet Man kann bei diesen Schneewehen sogar seine ganze Identit�t verlieren! Und das in einer Stadt, die im letzten Jahrhundert nach ihrer Identit�t und Zugeh�rigkeit suchte und in der Mitte entzwei gerissen wurde. "Willkommen in Berlin", sagt Dr. Martin Harris zu seiner sch�nen Frau Liz, als ihnen die dicken Schneeflocken auf die K�pfe fallen. Vier Tage sp�ter wird sie ihn verleugnen. Mit Liz kam der US-Amerikaner Harris nach Berlin, um bei einem Biotechnologie-Gipfel den deutschen Wissenschaftler Dr. Bressler und dessen von einem Scheich finanziertes WelthungerProjekt kennen zu lernen. Was ihm nach dem Taxiunfall und vier Tagen Koma widerf�hrt, ist jedoch alles andere als bereichernd. Liz streitet ab, Harris je gekannt zu haben, zudem befindet sich ein Mann an ihrer Seite, der sich nicht nur als Martin Harris ausweisen kann, sondern auch intime Details aus seinem Leben und Fotos mit seiner gro�en Liebe besitzt Harris ger�t in Erkl�rungsnot, und der Zuschauer in Zweifel, ob die Bilder, die ihm die Kamera zuspielt - seine langsam zur�ckkehrende Erinnerungen -, die eines um seine Identit�t Betrogenen oder eines sich selbst betr�genden Wahnsinnigen sind.
"Unknown Identity" ist l�ngst nicht so �berraschend, wie sich der Thriller gerne verkaufen m�chte. Unl�ngst geriet die Kamera auch im Actionfilm um die Doppelagentin "Salt" (fd 40 024) in den Verdacht, ein unzuverl�ssiger Erz�hler zu sein. "Die Bourne Identit�t" (fd 35 603) deklinierte das trickreiche Spiel um Vergessen und Erinnern in drei Teilen durch. Bei Jaume ColletSerra ger�t die Erz�hllogik dieses Spiels nun etwas ins Schlittern. Denn nat�rlich steckt hinter Harris' Identit�tsverwirrung kein Schlag auf den Hinterkopf oder der ungew�hnliche Scheidungsversuch einer �berdr�ssigen Ehefrau. Fast scheint es so, als ob das Genre des Agententhrillers mit all seinen Figuren im Doppelidentit�ten-Wahn mittlerweile direkt auf die Unsicherheiten der virtuellen Welt reagiert Wer ist man noch, wenn der Gro�teil der Kommunikation im Internet �ber einen narzisstisch aufgemotzten Avatar verl�uft? Wem kann man auf der anderen Seite des wortw�rtlichen Fensters �berhaupt noch trauen, wenn man das eigene Vergn�gen an der Maskerade seinem Gegen�ber andichtet? Klassische Gut-B�seSchemata der Kalte-Krieg-�ra, in der Agenten wie James Bond auf der "richtigen" Seite k�mpften, scheinen l�ngst aufgel�st
So tummeln sich bei Horrorfilmregisseur Collet-Serra schon bald undurchschaubare, mordlustige Agenten in Berlin. Harris Krankenschwester Gretchen dreht man den Hals um, die Tram f�hrt den durch die Berliner Stra�en heizenden Autos w�hrend einer wilden Verfolgungsjagd wortw�rtlich gegen den Karren, das Luxushotel Adlon bekommt explosiv sein Fett ab. Die mit 4,2 Mio. Euro vom Deutschen Filmf�rderfonds mitfinanzierte, Action geladene Ann�herung eines "hollywoodesken" Thrillers an deutsche Befindlichkeiten (inklusive heimischer Darsteller) funktioniert zwar durchaus erfrischend als Genrefilm der Doppelidentit�ten und der Stars - dennoch bleiben der Makel der Vorhersehbarkeit sowie die L�cher in der Handlung so gro� wie Berlin und die arge schlichte Botschaft: "Du bist, was du tust, nicht das, was du warst" Haarige Wendungen inklusive arabischer Terrorakte auf Youtube, das Elend illegaler Einwanderer und ein Ex- StasiMann in "menschlicher Mission" machen den Plot zum �berfrachteten Sammelsurium aktueller Brennpunkte. Die "Diva" Berlin als Handlungsort, angef�llt mit einem Star-Aufgebot von beiden Seiten des Atlantiks, passt freilich doch wiederum sehr gut zu einem Film, der die eigene Geschichte nicht so ernst nimmt wie das In-Szene-Setzen seiner Schauwerte. Kathrin Hager
KINOSTART 3.3.2011
Unknown Identity
Unknown Identity
Scope. USA/Gro�britannien/Frankreich 2011
Produktion Dark Castle Ent./Studio Canal/Studio Babelsberg/TF1 Films Prod.
Produzenten Leonard Goldberg, Andrew Rona, Joel Silver, Christoph Fisser, Charlie Woebcken
Regie Jaume Collet-Serra
Buch Oliver Butcher, Stephen Cornwell, nach dem Roman "Hors de moi" / "Unknown Identity" von Didier Van Cauwelaert
Kamera Flavio Labiano
Musik John Ottman, Alexander Rudd
Schnitt TimAlverson
Darsteller Liam Neeson (Dr. Martin Harris), Diane Kruger (Gina), January Jones (Elizabeth Harris), Aidan Quinn (Martin B.), Bruno Ganz (Ernst J�rgen), Frank Langella (Rodney Cole), Olivier Schneider (Smith), Stipe Erceg (Jones), Rainer Bock (Herr Strauss), Karl Markovics (Dr. Farge), Eva L�bau (Gretchen)
L�nge 113 Min.
Verleih Kinowelt
Ein US-amerikanischer Professor, der an einem brisanten Kongress in Berlin teilnehmen will, f�llt nach einem Taxi-Unfall ins Koma. Als er erwacht, gibt seine Ehefrau vor, ihn nicht zu kennen. Der Akademiker, der an seinem Verstand zweifelt, versucht herauszufinden, ob er unter einem Identit�tsverlust leidet oder Opfer einer Intrige ist. Dabei bekommt er es mit Gegnern zu tun, die sich als �u�erst t�dlich erweisen. In den Actionszenen und Schauwerten mitrei�end inszenierter Genrefilm, dessen Finten allerdings recht vorhersehI bar sind; zudem ist logisch wenig stringente Handlung zu sehr mit Problemfeldern �berladen. -Ab 14.
DALLAS (AP) — J.R. Ewing has returned to Dallas.
With Larry Hagman reprising his role as the conniving Texas oilman, filming is underway at locations all over the city for TNT's new television series "Dallas," which will also see the return of Patrick Duffy as J.R.'s brother Bobby and Linda Gray as J.R.'s ex-wife Sue Ellen, along with a new generation of Ewings.
And, of course, the spotlight also returns to the city itself, with its distinctive skyline rising from the prairie.
"We're trying to give the show a real sense of place and Dallas has a real personality," said location manager John Patterson, adding, "It's a city that does things in a big way. That's part of J.R. and part of what we try to give the show — a sense of the city, which is big, very well done, shiny, new and looking toward the future."
TNT has ordered 10 episodes of the series, set to air in summer 2012. Filming for the series, entirely shot in Dallas, began in mid-October and is expected to wrap in late January.
"There was just no way we were going to film anywhere else," said executive producer Cynthia Cidre, who also wrote the pilot for the new series, a "mix of the old world and the new world."
The original series, which aired from 1978 to 1991, enjoyed popularity around the world as viewers tuned in to watch the scheming Ewing family. As the plot twisted and turned season after season, the series contributed to some of TV's most memorable moments. After Bobby died in a season cliffhanger in 1985 after being hit by a car, the entire next season was revealed to have been a prolonged dream sequence when his former wife, with whom he had reconciled, wakes up to find him alive, taking a shower. The 1986-87 season then marked Duffy's return to the cast after a yearlong absence.
And, of course, there was the cliffhanger in 1980 that left the whole world in suspense. The catchphrase "Who shot J.R.?" became part of the common vernacular as viewers waited to find out who had fired on J.R. When viewers tuned in for the answer on Nov. 21, 1980, the shooter was revealed to be J.R.'s vengeful mistress, who was also his sister-in-law. That episode was seen by more people than any TV program in history until that time.
"That phrase. I don't think there's a country in this world that you could find someone who doesn't know what that is. And it all goes back to 'Dallas,'" said Josh Henderson, who plays J.R. and Sue Ellen's son, John Ross.
Henderson, who was born in Dallas and spent part of his childhood here, said that working with Hagman has been a little surreal.
"I find myself sometimes just looking at him sometimes going, 'Wow, this is really happening. This is really 'Dallas' again and I'm really kind of family and kin to the J.R.," Henderson said.
Hagman, who said returning to Dallas to film the legendary show again has been like "coming home," says that this time out, the plots are even more complicated.
"Everybody's double-dealing here. I mean everybody," Hagman said.
Hagman, who turned 80 in September, announced in October that he has been diagnosed with "a very common and treatable form" of cancer and planned to continue working on the reboot of "Dallas." Hagman underwent a liver transplant in the mid-1990s.
"As J.R. I could get away with anything — bribery, blackmail and adultery. But I got caught by cancer," he said in a statement issued at the time. "As we all know, you can't keep J.R. down!"
Filming a scene this fall, it's apparent that J.R. has lost none of his swagger. After striding into a sleekly designed Dallas home in his Western blazer and cowboy boots, he sits down and begins deal-making.
"The best way to understand a man is to talk to his friends and his enemies," J.R. says. "My friends are in the statehouse. My enemies are going to be harder to find."
The actors rounding out the new generation are: Jesse Metcalfe as Bobby's adopted son, Christopher Ewing; Julie Gonzalo as Christopher's fiancee, Rebecca Sutter; and Jordana Brewster as Elena Ramos, daughter of the cook at the Ewing family's Southfork Ranch who grew up to become a geologist and is John Ross' girlfriend and the former love of Christopher.
"Her alliance is constantly shifting," Brewster said. "She's a very fun character to play."
The youngest Ewings aren't the only new thing about the Dallas reboot: The city itself has changed in the last 20 years with new construction. Recent additions where scenes have already been filmed include football team owner Jerry Jones' gleaming Cowboys Stadium and a downtown arts district with a new opera house and theater.
They are also filming at plenty of classic Dallas locations including downtown's Neiman Marcus, the luxury chain's flagship store, and the State Fair of Texas. And, of course, they're shooting at the famed Southfork Ranch, an events center that houses the Ewing Mansion.
"I think the lovely part this time is that we're really incorporating a lot of Dallas itself. I think we're utilizing much more of it so far," Gray said.
For most seasons of the original series, two of the 10½ months of shooting were done in Dallas with the rest in Los Angeles.
"To see the beauty that has really transpired and transformed the city ... it's a joy to see it," Gray said.
Patterson noted that not only are there "acres and acres" of new development, but there are also "still plenty of cranes working."
"There's been so much new growth in the city at a time when there's not necessarily been new growth throughout the country," he said.
Dallas Film Commissioner Janis Burklund said that the series' value to the city has been immeasurable — making it known to people around the world.
"Now I feel like we've gotten sort of got hit by lightning twice to have another shot at this iconic show coming back," Burklund said.
Patterson said that the tie to the past show has helped them find locations for shooting. He said that they got a great response after the city asked residents to offer up their homes or businesses as possible shooting locations.
"People have fond memories of the show, a large part of my job made easier because the show has a history," said Patterson, who moved to Dallas with his family when he was 11 in the "Who shot J.R.?" summer of 1980 and has memories of seeing Duffy filming at a local water park.
"People know what it is and what it's about and that it's part of the city. A lot of people still want to be a part of it, which has been great."
___
Online:
http://www.tnt.tv/series/dallas/
WASHINGTON, June 7 -- The U.
S. Department of Justice's U.
S. Attorney's office for District of Minnesota issued the following press release:
A 46-year-old Buffalo, Minnesota, man has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography. Earlier today in Minneapolis, United States District Court Judge Joan N. Ericksen ordered Jason Dale Gordon to serve 144 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of child pornography. Gordon was indicted on August, 20, 2009.
In his plea agreement, Gordon admitted that on August 9, 2008, he sent, by way of computer, pictures of a minor in sexually explicit poses to an individual he thought was a 14- year-old New Hampshire boy. The recipient of those pictures, however, was an undercover law enforcement officer.
This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, an affiliate agency of the Minnesota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and the Buffalo Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.
S. Attorney Richard Newberry.
The case is also part of Project Safe Childhood ("PSC"), a national initiative to combat the growing epidemic of sexually exploiting children, particularly via the Internet. PSC was launched by the U.
S. Department of Justice in May of 2006. Led by the Department's Criminal Division, Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, along with U.
S. Attorney's nationwide, PSC encourages federal, state, and local law enforcement partnerships and provides resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who abuse children while identifying and rescuing victims of that crime. In 2008, PSC was credited with 2,289 child-pornography indictments being filed in federal court nationwide, a 33-percent increase over 2006. For more information about PSC, visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
For more information please contact: Sarabjit Jagirdar, Email:- htsyndication@hindustantimes.com.
Jeanne F. Cooney, 612/664-5611, jeanne.cooney@usdoj.gov.
You might want to skip this if you are having breakfast.
The Slice had asked about certain wet-weather visitors.
And the subject line on Allyson Busko's email was "When SlugsAttack."
"At night, you must wear some kind of shoe when walking in ourlawn," wrote the student at Lewis and Clark High School. "Yet thereal horror about our slug population is when my sister's cat,Genevieve, comes inside after a night of prowling for the succulentlittle critters."
(OK, this is your last chance to look away.)
Busko continued, "Her mouth will be so plastered with the slug'sslime that she can't even meow. Even worse, bits of grass and dirtget stuck in the slime. It makes me wonder how tasty the slugs are.A delicacy in France, perhaps?"
Probably not. But they certainly are on the South Hill, at leastfor one feline with a French-sounding name.
Almond joy: The first item in Thursday's Slice caught JoyceMomb's eye.
"Just had to comment on the 9-year-old grandson that talks tobirds," she wrote. "Have one better. My 79-year-old hubby of 56years talks to squirrels. And guess what, they answer. I swear theyunderstand each other."
Who is to say they don't?
"Could be they are spoiled as we feed them three times a day withpremium almonds."
Could be.
Maybe pretty soon they'll be asking for macadamia nuts flown infrom Hawaii.
Just wondering: Do driving instructors here have any specialtailored-for-the-Inland Northwest tips for students?
Generation gap: Don't suppose Internet-savvy boys today couldrelate to the idea of having had a special relationship with oneparticular issue of Playboy borrowed from an older brother's secretstash.
You know, for the articles.
Consistently inconsistent: "Some people say they live here forthe four seasons," wrote Jeff Brown. "Then they complain about allof them."
Today's Slice question: Do kids' social cliques become a littlemore elastic during the final days of the school year?
Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509)459-5470; email pault@spokesman.com. Check out The Slice blog atwww.spokesman.com. You have the right to remain silent.
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Kelsey Kopra tells the story of her worst date ever during theAnecdotal Readings at the Atrium Lounge in downtown Vancouver inlate October.
Photos by VIVIAN JOHNSON for The Columbian
The crowd at an Anecdotal Evidence event in late 2010.
Stephanie Hadley and Elizabeth Holmes started hosting AnecdotalEvidence at the Atrium Lounge in downtown Vancouver after attendingsimilar events in Portland.
VIVIAN JOHNSON for The Columbian
Jodee Nickel and Kathryn Hunt laugh at stories told of worstdates ever during the Anecdotal Readings at the Atrium Lounge inOctober.
Nothing sounded better to Stephanie Hadley and Elizabeth Holmesthan a night out with laughs, food, drinks and stories after astressful week.
So they headed into Portland for Back Fence PDX, Mortified andTrue Stories, three forums for people to tell true stories forentertainment. After a few positive experiences, they decided thatVancouver needed its own story-telling series. Anecdotal Evidencewas born.
Six months after their first Vancouver story-telling event,Anecdotal Evidence will return to Vancouvers Atrium Lounge at 6 p.m.Thursday.
Scott Poole, Doug Askelson, Lynn Edwards, Beth Harrington andStone Alexander will share stories, and Tara Dublin will host.
There are three simple rules: each story has to be true, it mustbe less than eight minutes and it cannot be read.
And probably in fine print: Speakers should be aware that theaudience will laugh at their expense.
We like to have a lot of alcohol on hand for our performers,Hadley and Holmes both said, interrupting one another as they spokeabout the 21-and-over event.
Askelson, a local construction worker, told two brief stories ata 2010 Anecdotal Evidence gathering themed Worst Day(t) Ever. Thefirst was about a bad experience at his first Homecoming dance wherehe looked like he was half-way through a colonoscopy with his datethat was like an arranged marriage.
Askelsons second story was less humorous.
He witnessed a worker fall off the roof. The mans immediate deathwas an eye-opener for Askelson.
I realized then that you dont get to walk away from everythingyou do, and thats why it was the worst day of my life, he said inconclusion to his story.
Past themes include Summer Vacations, Be True to Your School andInternet Hijinx, where there were discussions about online datingand tweets that resulted in a lunch date with a handful ofcelebrities.
Its so fun to watch the community grow, to see the business andart people connect, Hadley said.
Holmes agreed that community building was a benefit and thattheir unanticipated success was a welcomed surprise.
Some performers have even formed writing groups, Holmes said. Itssomething we like to see.
Some performers have appeared on the schedule regularly. One ofthose is returning-artist Poole, the author of two books of poetryand the resident poet on Oregon Public Broadcastings monthly varietyshow Live Wire!
At a recent Anecdotal Evidence, Pooles first poem, A Little Poemin Celebration of Nothing, depicted a bored individual imagining twopeople displaying bedroom activities outside. Bad Days was about theattack of the couches.
He closed the night with Worst Day Ever, which detailed bodilyfluids, breakups and chicken pox, to name the tamer topics.
Januarys theme is It seemed like a good idea at the time.
We have big plans to grow the show, Hadley said.
Hadley and Holmes strive to incorporate multimedia features suchas live music during intermission, photographs to accompany storiesand videos. They also may consider moving into the Kiggins Theater,now being renovated.
Were very happy, Hadley said. Its grown so much faster than weanticipated.
The story-telling series continues on the fourth Thursday of eachmonth at the Atrium Lounge.
It is limited to people 21 years old and older. There is a $5entrance fee.
If you go
* What: Anecdotal Evidence, true stories told with dramaticflair, limited to people 21 and up.
* When: Doors open at 6 p.m. Thursday, show is at 7 p.m.
* Where: Atrium Lounge, 606 Broadway St., Vancouver
* Cost: $5 at the door.
I TAKE my party hat off to 21-year-old Alex Tew, a businessmanagement student at Nottingham University. Mr Tew was dismayed bythe prospect of accumulating three years' debt as he completed hisstudies, and saw no easy way of making the GBP 50,000-plus needed topay his fees and living expenses. Then he hit on the idea of sellinginternet advertising space.
Very tiny advertising space, that is. Mr Tew's website comprisesjust one page divided into 10,000 boxes, each 100 pixels in size .
Businesses are invited to put their logo on one or more boxes at acost of GBP 54 per box. When the logo is clicked on, web users arethen transferred to the buyer's own site. Mr Tew has made GBP 578,000out of the idea in just four months. Enough to finance a lifelonglearning project.
Now why - I hear you all mutter - did we not think of that? Half amillion pounds is a useful amount to set against those irksomeseasonal expenses. Best of all, Mr Tew was selling something hedidn't really own. Always the swiftest way to make a fortune, as I'msure Roman Abramovich and his GBP 7.5 billion would agree.
So inspiring is Mr Tew's enterprise that I have launched my ownlittle venture. No pixels required, just a firm belief in commercesans frontieres.
LOT Number One, ladies and gentlemen, offered as seen, a faded andmuch reworked adjective on display at the back of the hall: the word"fine". Can we say GBP 1 million for this homely little item? ... GBP800,000, then, surely?
Consider the provenance."Fine" is an early English concept,property of the entire British population and, as no originalsremain, it is now available in reproduction veneer only. A veryserviceable lot, capable of conveying the precise opposite of itsoriginal meaning, owing to a secret drawer.
That is how my very first sale of distressed vocabulary began. Itwas held yesterday at a discreet hotel, and the proceeds were veryencouraging .
But, you may ask, why auction vocabulary? And how will ownershipbe enforced?
Well, a reply to the first query is easy: for the money. Thesecond is rather more complex. You see, it has become essential toensure a fresh and dependable supply of words for our exceedinglydemanding modern lives. But, as you must have noticed, a significantproportion of the words we use have been worn so smooth in theirconstant passage from hand to mouth, that it is impossible to readthe original imprint clearly. This causes unacceptable confusion.Hence the auctions.
As soon as any word ceases to create a precise impression, off tothe saleroom it must go. That way we can afford to invest in brandnew words. Or we could, if I had not just sold the phrase "brand new"to Bill Gates's window leaner. Don't worry, you won't miss it. It wasa truly threadbare expression, like "fine".
"Honestly" is another. Isn't every lie prefixed with "honestly"?That's why I made it Lot Two for the first auction, and, golly (aword sold to the Enid Blyton estate, but I'll pay for it on thisoccasion), the bidding was fierce.
THE sale of words will, of course, eventually force them out ofcommon usage and into a delicious antique twilight, where, after afew decades, they may regain their lost lustre. Philanthropists ofthe future may then leave their word collections to the nation, to befreely circulated once more .
This system will also stimulate a new and urgent linguisticinventiveness. I've been teasing out quite a few new "free" wordsover the last weeks. I rather like "thrumpily", "mudwump" and"persifilting", though I haven't absolutely delineated their meaningyet .
Even so, I can assure you that they will be a lot more effectivethan some of next week's lots. For next week is a deluxe sale,focused not on slender little solo words, but on thumping greatphrase s.
"New lease of life" is one of the early entries, with "lock, stockand barrel" and "by hook or by crook" all appearing before theluncheon recess. A late entry, offered by the International Women'sLeague, was the very tattered and flimsy phrase "I love you forever",which has generated little interest.
Just no call for it," the auctioneer explained. "But in Februarywe're hoping to acquire 'Up yours!' Now, that should fetch a hogglerap."
