Johnny performs Ave Maria
at Union Square in San Francisco Friday evening
as part of the Macy's Great Tree Lighting ceremony.
Photo courtesy of the amazing Diana Dumbadse,
who posted it to Johnny's fan page last night
and whose photos are breathtaking works of art
(and I speak from experience--I have one in my living room).
Diana wrote: "What a turnout for the tree lighting
in Union Square tonight! What was I thinking
that I would get a good spot to take pictures?!?!?
I have NEVER seen this many people
in Union Square tonight! What was I thinking
that I would get a good spot to take pictures?!?!?
I have NEVER seen this many people
at the tree lighting EVER!
Johnny sparkled and dazzled :)"
Johnny sparkled and dazzled :)"
I think you did just fine, Diana!
More on the size of the crowd below...
Kayso here I was thinking that there'd be hardly any coverage to be had of his Macy's tree-lighting event--though of course I desperately wanted all kinds of coverage, including thousands of twitpics and full video crews from all the major networks (really? Is that too much to ask? He's only the biggest skating star in the world...)--and so I was disconsolately wandering around the Internet comforting myself by ferreting out leftover pics from the parade when lo and behold: Photos! Lots of photos! Mostly courtesy of fabulous Super Managtress Tara, who is able to do amazing multitask-y things whilst functioning on the last good sleep she had which I believe was some time in late 2008. Plus yes, twitpics from various sources! And even a video!
So here we go with today's story, of yet more dazzling dazzly-ness even in the face of huge crowds, multiple media interviews, Occupy protesters, and everything else that goes into just another random Friday for Johnny and Tara...
Union Square, San Francisco.
2:43 p.m.
After doing some shopping earlier in the day,
during which Johnny suffered an unfortunate encounter
with a fur rack in Saks, prompting Tara to warn,
"Watch out for non-moving objects"
(but the real question is the one posed by Jenn Kittler:
"Did he say, 'Excuse me ma'am'?"),
they headed to the rink so Johnny could get in
some rehearsal time...
...and he's already drawing a crowd
around the rink...
...plus random people actually on the ice...
5:11 p.m.
Less than an hour before show time.
Johnny is interviewed by Klassy Goldberg of Refinery29...
...while Tara takes a pic of the program
for the evening's events.
5:27 p.m.
Another interview,
this time with the San Francisco Examiner.
6:02 p.m.
And now a glimpse of the utter glamour and sophistication
that is always the backstage area at an ice show
(at least in my brief experience thus far)...
replete with folding chairs and some kind of ... metal? thing ...
upon which to balance one's water bottle.
While Johnny gets ready....
...Tara peeks out at the
"super fun, dance-y Christmas choir"
which has begun the evening's festivities.
6:04 p.m.
A surprise visit from the Grinch:
"He keeps telling me he stole Christmas!"
She adamantly refuses to believe him.
6:06 p.m.
A peek in another direction. Tara explains:
"Not sure if you can see here, but there are 30,000 people
[YES THIRTY THOUSAND. Diana wasn't kidding
when she said she'd NEVER seen this many people
at the tree lighting before!] on the streets.
They don't even have a view of the stage or the ice
from there... they're just here for the atmosphere."
Another view of the massive crowd,
tweeted by @xdamman.
6:11 p.m.
Backstage photo op with San Francisco's
Mayor Ed Lee and his wife, Anita.
An excited Mayor Lee tweeted his own photo of the moment,
joined here by San Francisco police chief Greg Suhr
and Santa Claus.
Meanwhile, Tara tweeted this photo:
"@JohnnyGWeir about to sk8 .... Its gorgeous here!!"
6:32 p.m.
Mayor Lee addresses the crowd
just prior to Johnny taking the ice....
...and here he is.
Photo tweeted by Refinery29's Klassy Goldberg:
"Super-stunning @JohnnyGWeir on ice."
Photo tweeted by @tawnifaceee,
who got to meet Johnny after the performance
and get his autograph on multiple items.
She later tweeted: "Happiness is a @JohnnyGWeir hug."
Awwww. Yes, it is. ♥
Photo courtesy of Diana Dumbadse.
Photo courtesy of Diana Dumbadse.
Photo courtesy of Diana Dumbadse.
Full-size here.
And: The beautiful tree is lit.
Aerial view tweeted by San Francisco's ABC7
offers another look at the enormous crowd.
I think maybe that's Johnny with Santa on the ice...?
7:58 p.m.
Photo tweeted by Tara at the end of the evening:
"We wish u a merry holiday and a happy new year!!!"
Yes! We have fancam video!
Many thanks to @SvetVin1 for spotting this!
My favorite tweet of the night ♥
(click for larger view).
Bonus video via The Advocate, from their post titled:
"Possibly the Most Beautiful Ad for Marriage Equality We've Seen."
The video was produced by an equality group in Australia,
where nearly two-thirds of voters favor legalizing
gay marriage, according to The Advocate,
but prime minister Julia Gillard remains firmly opposed.
I agree with The Advocate:
This is one of the most eloquent illustrations I've seen
of this simple concept: Love is love.
HEY!!! We did it!!
Johnny is a finalist for
"Must-Follow Athlete on Social Media"
in the 5th Annual Mashable Awards!!
IT'S KIND OF A BIG DEAL. Mashable gets more than 50 million page views per month, and has been named by Time Magazine as one of the top 25 blogs on the Internet.
He's up against some stiff competition from Yuna Kim and John Cena, among others, but hey--we're really good at voting! We can do this!
He's also in some amazing company: As Megan Gusinski pointed out, finalists in other categories include The Trevor Project, NOH8, GLAAD, and Ellen Degeneres, so you might want to do some additional voting while you're on Mashable's site.
Voting ends on Friday, December 16, and the winners will be announced on Monday, December 19. Just click the graphic above or at the top righthand side of the blog to be taken directly to the voting page for Johnny.
You can vote once per day per Twitter and Facebook account. Please VOTE VOTE VOTE!!!
Very special thanks to Super Managtress Tara
for all the exclusive photos!!
Blog entry, "Portraits," now updated
with true full-size images!!
If you haven't had a chance to see
these gorgeous photos yet, please check them out.
Here's just one sample...
(click photo again after it loads for full size).
with true full-size images!!
If you haven't had a chance to see
these gorgeous photos yet, please check them out.
Here's just one sample...
(click photo again after it loads for full size).
Please vote for Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov!!
Their "Fever On Ice" program is up
for a $50K grant from Pepsi Refresh!
They're now in second place
in their category and tier--
but only first place wins. We can do this!
They're now in second place
in their category and tier--
but only first place wins. We can do this!
NEW!! The Sheraton Philadelphia University City
is now the official Holiday Dreams On Ice hotel!!
Book your rooms before December 9
and receive a special HDOI-only discount!
The Sheraton also will be hosting the VIP after-show party.
More info on the Holiday Dreams On Ice website!
is now the official Holiday Dreams On Ice hotel!!
Book your rooms before December 9
and receive a special HDOI-only discount!
The Sheraton also will be hosting the VIP after-show party.
More info on the Holiday Dreams On Ice website!
"Like" HDOI on Facebook,
and use promo code "philadelphia"
for 50% off your general admission ticket!!
New Q and A! Go read it now!
(Note: Now updated every Monday and Thursday...
more time to savor each one!)
At last: Pop Star On Ice is now available on DVD!
Order yours today from the Pop Star On Ice website!
"Buy my single,'Dirty Love' via iTunes.
Tell all your friends to as well. The more copies sold
takes me one step closer to making a video! №1!"
THE WORLD NEEDS THIS VIDEO
IN THE SAME WAY THAT IT NEEDS AIR.
IN THE SAME WAY THAT IT NEEDS AIR.
You know what to do.
or just click the "Buy" button on the player
at the top of the blog!
at the top of the blog!
Hey, Welcome to My World also is available
as an eBook! More info on Johnny's website!
6 comments:
Belated Happy Thanksgiving, Binx:-)
Thanks for the beautiful Johnny pics & vid. Johnny, as usual, is wonderful & gorgeous. That particular version of "Ave Maria", though… Meh:-(
So sad I couldn't work my schedule to allow me to fly down to S.F. to see Johnny, live. Would have loved to take my granddaughter down with me. She love, loves Johnny & Tara.
Thank you for another great update. (Am running on blogging vapors...after Xmas letter writing.)
I'm so happy, ecstatic, whatever superlative you can think of to tack onto that feeling, that Johnny is in demand and celebrated wherever he goes. We've all known forever how he's deserved it, but now that the rest of the world has started to catch up, his escalating success fills me with pride and happiness! Seeing the sheer number on people on hand in Union Square to watch him skate, well there are no words!
Lucky San Francisco and smart Macy's, they know there is only one person on the planet that shines brightly enough to augment a Christmas tree...the Winter Monarch himself!
Keep reaching for the stars, Johnny; somehow I can't help but think that now, even they are opening their arms and stretching down to reach you!
eeks! too much fab in one post!!! i don't know what to say!!
Tara + The Grinch!
Johnny skating in San Fran, in a square i've actually walked in!! WOO!
seems to me like he got plenty of applause, although i noticed some people were too busy filming his every move to clap . . . YEAH! get your Johnny fix!
♥
Great blog, MM! Beautiful photos, great videos (I knew someone would grace us with videos! Aren't we lucky??!!), and your usual wondeful sense of humor! don't know how you pull all of this stuff together so quickly but still do such a great job with it! You rock!
'dazzling dazzly-ness' LOL!
THANK YOU EVERYONE, for sharing the Johnny joy, beauty, and love.
Long live our Winter Monarch!!
Post a Comment