Free Chinese Lesson - Parker says snake in promo photo is real

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ENTERTAINMENT / Television






Parker says snake in promo photo is real


(AP)
Updated: 2007-08-14 09:46




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This undated photo, supplied by Showtime, shows Mary Louise Parker posing
with a snake
in a photo being used to advertise the new season of Showtime's
'Weeds.'[AP]

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Posing naked for a publicity photo for her offbeat Showtime comedy series
"Weeds" was no big deal for Mary-Louise Parker. It was the snake that
bothered her.

"I didn't think I was going to do it actually," the 43-year-old actress
told AP Radio News in a recent interview. "But then, they were there and
the snake was there, and I didn't want the snake to win, so I put the
snake on.

"And actually, I grew to really love the snake 鈥� by the end of the day."

Parker is shown with the snake over her shoulder and down her back. In
one Showtime ad, David Duchovny, who stars in the new series
"Californication," is shown with the snake coming over his back, its head
on his bare shoulder. He's tossing an apple, with a big bite taken out of
it, into the air.

"I've been naked quite a bit, actually," Parker said of posing for the
photo. "You Google me, you'll see it all."

The third season of "Weeds," which also stars Kevin Nealon, Elizabeth
Perkins and newcomer Matthew Modine, was to premiere Monday night,
followed by the series premiere of "Californication."

Parker stars as a widowed suburban mother who starts selling marijuana to
support her family in "Weeds."

The actress won an Emmy Award for "Angels in America." She's won two
Golden Globe Awards, one for "Angels in America," the other for "Weeds,"
and had a recurring role on NBC's "The West Wing." Her screen credits
include "Fried Green Tomatoes," "Boys on the Side" and "The Client."

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Chinese School - British music mogul Tony Wilson dies

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ENTERTAINMENT / Music






British music mogul Tony Wilson dies


(AP)
Updated: 2007-08-11 17:31



LONDON - Tony Wilson, a music impresario credited with guiding a crop of
bands from industrial England to the international stage, died Friday. He
was 57.

Wilson promoted a host of influential musicians from his native city of
Manchester in northern England, including Joy Division, New Order and the
Happy Mondays.

He died from complications of kidney cancer, the city's Christie Hospital
said.

Wilson's influence on the city, and on British music, is documented in
the 2002 movie "24 Hour Party People," which charts the rise 鈥� and
eventual fall 鈥� of Wilson's empire, which included Factory Records and
the Hacienda nightclub.

Manchester-born and Cambridge-educated, Wilson's record label and
nightclub were credited with making the city Britain's most vibrant music
center through the 1980s and 1990s, spawning bands including the Smiths,
the Stone Roses and Oasis.

Though Factory Records and the Hacienda closed down in the 1990s, Wilson
remained a passionate advocate for his city, presenting a radio show for
the local British Broadcasting Corp. station.

"He was a true free spirit and a passionate advocate for Manchester 鈥�
the city, its people and, of course, its music," the BBC said in a
statement.























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Learn Mandarin online - Future tastes sweet for new generation

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ENTERTAINMENT / Hot Pot Column






Future tastes sweet for new generation


By Liu Jun
Updated: 2007-08-09 14:52





Ever since my son's birth two years ago, I have been engaged in a losing
battle against my mother over how to feed the boy. True enough, she is a
great help. But sometimes I just can't agree with her.

She keeps meticulous record of the amount of milk powder and water that
the boy takes at a fixed time of the day. If anything changes, she
agitates.

A few days ago, my mother pulled an "end-of-the-world" face again, when
the boy refused another spoonful of food at breakfast.

My mother gets up at 5:30 every morning, preparing porridge for the boy.
As she tried to navigate the spoon into his tight-shut teeth, the boy
dodged with toy firefighting engines.

I saw no reason for persistence: The boy had eaten a small bowl of light
sweet porridge made from lotus root powder, nearly all of the
meat-vegetable stuffing of a steamed bun, crumbs of my freshly baked
toast, plus chunks of mango. Could anyone have appetite for more?

After chasing after the boy all over the place, my mother eventually won
the "guerrilla war". The boy ate the congee as he lied on the floor,
playing with a plane.

When I was young, mum always used the phrase "yi ku si tian" - "recall
the bitter past and savor the sweet present", if she wanted us to eat
less tasty stuff like the cone-shaped wowotou made of maize flour.

When it comes to her grandson, however, mum wants to make sure he doesn't
taste the bitter past. If I attempt to cook maize flour porridge as
breakfast, which I believe is quite healthy, mum would nag me, suggesting
that we can't afford anything better for our son.

Alas, eating was never so painful or controversial in my childhood. My
sister and I always longed for the day each month when our family got our
portion of meat from the only grocery store in the village. One must be
careful to nurture good relations with the saleswomen, who decided if you
could get the much-coveted fatty chunk of meat.

In autumn, when the fruits were ripe, mother would instruct us to wrap
each apple and pear with pages of our used exercises books. The precious
lot was stored in a basin under the bed, so we'd entertain guests with
fruits during the Spring Festival in winter.

But often, the last fruit would be gone before New Year's Eve, because my
sister and I couldn't resist the temptation of a sweet bite every day
after school.

I suspect that my mother's strong desire to control food - what to eat,
how and when - is deeply rooted in her experience. When she was in high
school, the nation was struck by drought and famine. The only food in the
canteen was a huge pot of water boiled with a few grains of rice. The
students ran to the toilet constantly during the class, and the school
cancelled PE lessons.

When mother left home for a college thousands of kilometers away, grandpa
gave her three steamed buns. When she finally opened the precious package
two weeks later, moulds had appeared.

"I took off the bad parts and ate the rest," recalls mum in a calm tone,
ready to give my boy another cookie.

Well, I give up.

(China Daily 08/09/2007 page20)























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Learning Chinese - Tom Cruise bowled over by Posh's 'really English' talk

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ENTERTAINMENT / Gossip






Tom Cruise bowled over by Posh's 'really English' talk


(ANI)
Updated: 2007-08-08 14:33





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Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, Victoria and David Beckham, Jada Pinkett Smith
and Will Smith
attend the special celebration held at the Museum of Contemporary Art
hosted by
Tom Cruise who threw the bash to welcome the Beckhams to tinsel town.

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Tom Cruise so loves Victoria Beckham's British accent and turn of phrase,
that he鈥檚 now asking her to give him a few lessons.

A source revealed that the actor has started mimicking words that come
out of Posh鈥檚 mouth every time she says something 鈥榬eally English鈥�.

鈥淭om thinks her words and phrases are brilliant. Whenever he鈥檚 round
there and she says something really English he starts mimicking her,鈥�
the Daily Express quoted the source, as saying.

鈥淪he鈥檒l say things like 鈥榖loody hell鈥� and 鈥榖limey鈥�. And
she鈥檒l say 鈥榗ome on chaps鈥� to her sons. Tom loves hearing it all
and is building up a bit of an English vocabulary himself,鈥� the source
added.

The insider also revealed that though Posh was initially very amused by
the way Cruise was enthralled with the way she talks, she鈥檚 now getting
used to it since Will Smith is apparently as keen on her accent.

鈥淰ictoria is amused by his enthusiasm over her everyday chatter. But
she鈥檚 starting to get used to it 鈥� because another friend, Will
Smith, also likes taking off her accent and phrases,鈥� the insider said.








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HSK - Production notes

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CITYLIFE / Production notes






Production notes



Updated: 2007-08-07 10:56



"SLAM" was originally named "Nothing is Impossible."

The actors trained over 6 months over every weekend to execute over 200
basketball plays that would later be used in the film.

"SLAM" is the first basketball film in Asia.

To prepare themselves for their roles and the heavy basketball scenes,
Zhang Yi Shan and Lin Xiao Fan attended a winter basketball training camp
at Wang Fei Hoops.

To prepare themselves for their roles Wang Wei, Ding Shao Fan, Liang Yi &
Musitafa attended weekly acting classes.

From the moment of casting to actual film date Zhang Yi Shan grew over 6
inches.

During shooting, production stopped twice as crew refused to work unless
they were paid more.

The original script was written in English and translated page by page
over a period of one month. D

uring shooting Lin Xiao Fan was injured and was unable to continue
shooting his basketball scenes. He had to be sent to the hospital
immediately for treatment. After treatment he immediately continued
shooting.

In order to cast for the film, over 100 schools and thousands of students
were looked at.

Because of a chair and who was sitting there first, Wang Wei and Musitafa
got into a fist fight and both ended up with black eyes. Total production
time took 38 days























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Chinese Speaking - One year countdown to the 2008 Olympic Games?

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CITYLIFE / Photo Gallery






One year countdown to the 2008 Olympic Games?



Updated: 2007-08-06 10:25



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A bird flies over the National Olympic Stadium, also known as the Bird's
Nest, which is lit by coloured lights during activities to mark a one
year countdown to the 2008 Olympic Games at night in Beijing, August 5,
2007. The Chinese capital is gearing up to celebrate the one year
countdown to the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games on August 8.
[Photo: Reuters]





?? ?? 1?? 2?? 3?? 4?? ??

?? ?? 1?? 2?? 3?? 4?? ??
























Feature ?




Pilgrimage to Tibet If you want to get a detailed Travel Handbook to
Tibet and know more interesting tour routes leading to this divine place.
Please click here!

Yunnan New Film Project Ten female directors from China! Ten unique
sights from mysterious Yunnan Province!Yunnan New Film Project,Travel
with the film.Wanna know more? Please click here!




Editors' Picks ?




* Master storyteller has something to say
* Lookng after your skin naturally
* Evocative scents in a glass of wine
* Go on a shopping spree to discount stores
* Teatime!





Beijing Guide ?


Eating out: Mouth-watering magic
Bars&Cafes: Catch underground bands
Weekend&Holiday: An Oasis at Shichahai
Shopping: Ice up your world
What's on: Smoke society





Shanghai Guide ?


Eating out: An institution in the making
Bars&Cafes: The new money
Weekend&Holiday: Band of gypsies
Shopping: Chinese made delicacy
What's on: Teenage wasteland





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Fire destroys 12 homes near Yosemite National Park

An out-of-control wildfire burning Sunday near an entrance to Yosemite National Park has destroyed 12 homes and threatened thousands more as flames forced authorities to cut power to the park.

The blaze has charred more than 26,000 acres since Friday as wooded slopes ignited amid hot, dry conditions that have plagued California for months. Besides the homes destroyed, the fire has also engulfed 27 other buildings.

"There's no fire history in the past 100 hundred years. That's one of the reasons this fire's been able to burn so erratically," said Daniel Berlant, spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

In Southern California, about 4,000 visitors were evacuated Sunday from the Los Angeles zoo as a fast-moving brush fire burned nearby in Griffith Park.

Flames came within about 1,000 feet of a California condor enclosure in the zoo, forcing the relocation of the condors and two vultures, zoo spokesman Jason Jacobs said.

The fire had burned about 25 acres and was contained in under three hours, Los Angeles fire officials said. No injuries were reported.

Meanwhile, near Yosemite National Park, the wildfire led officials to order the evacuations of 195 homes under immediate threat. About 2,000 homes faced at least some danger from the fast-spreading flames, fire officials said. No injuries were reported.

State fire spokeswoman Karen Guillemin said the blaze was sparked by someone target shooting but would not elaborate.

Most of the evacuated homes are in the town of Midpines, about 12 miles from the park. The southern edge of the blaze was as little as two miles from Mariposa, a town of about 1,800 residents, Berlant said.

Mary Ann Porter, a nursing assistant who lives in Midpines, left her goats, chickens and dog when she evacuated Sunday morning. Porter, who lives with her daughter and grandchildren, said the family took pictures and some computer hard drives.

"One of the blessings of living up here is that you adapt and learn to accept things," she said, sitting a table reading a newspaper in the evacuation center in Mariposa.

Some homeowners defied evacuation orders to stay and defend their properties.

"My house is about 100 yards from some fire right now and that's freaking me out," said John Romero, who answered his phone during a break from digging trenches and clearing brush with a little tractor.

To protect firefighters battling flames beneath power lines, electricity was cut to a wide area, fire officials said. The transmission line that fed power to Yosemite was also destroyed in the fire, said James Guidi Jr., a spokesman for Pacific Gas & Electric.

Some park buildings were closed because of the power outage, but generators were still providing hotels, stores and other heavily used park facilities with electricity, park spokeswoman Julie Chavez said.

Mobile generators were being set up to restore power to the whole park and about 500 customers nearby by Monday evening. In all, about 1,000 customers had lost power, Guidi said.

Authorities reported the death of a second firefighter in as many days.

A firefighter believed to be a fire chief from Washington state died Saturday while scouting a blaze in Northern California, Siskiyou County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Susan Gravenkamp said Sunday.

The 250-acre fire had prevented crews from recovering the body to make a positive identification, but several other firefighters identified the victim as Daniel Packer, 49, of Lake Tapps, Wash., Gravenkamp said.

Packer was the immediate past president of the Washington Fire Chiefs Association, according to Brian Schaeffer, assistant fire chief in Spokane, Wash.

On Friday, Washington state firefighter Andrew Palmer, 18, died after he was hit by a falling tree while battling another Northern California wildfire.

In south-central Montana, the fire in the Custer National Forest had grown to more than 2,500 acres by Sunday evening and burned five summer homes and an outhouse in the historic Camp Senia area. Authorities said a mapping error earlier overestimated the number of acres burned at 3,580.

At the Red Lodge Mountain Ski Resort, employees stood by, ready to turn on snowmaking equipment to send cascades of water against the fast-moving fire, said Forest Service fire information officer Jeff Gildehaus.