Thursday, October 9, 2014

"Sweet Memories"

A delighted Johnny at Sheremetyevo airport 
in Moscow Thursday morning, where he was greeted 
by beloved Russian fans bearing gifts and flowers.
Exclusive photo © Elena Vasileva.


UPDATE: Now 50+ pics below, 
with NEW exclusives! 

Plus new video!


Just Announced!! 
Johnny will be appearing on HuffPost LIVE 
Wednesday, October 22, to talk about To Russia With Love,
and you can start posting questions for him NOW 
at this link! You also can tweet the segment producer, 
Gabe Piscione, to see if you can ask a question live 
on camera during Johnny’s appearance. 
Get those questions in, and be sure 
to watch Johnny on October 22!


Premiering October 29!! 
Johnny stars in To Russia With Love, 
a new documentary about LGBT athletes, 
portions of which were filmed in secret during his time 
in Sochi as an NBC figure skating commentator. 
He also is an executive producer for the film, 
a project of Robert Redford’s Sundance Productions.
More info here and on the EPIX website.


The official trailer!
Video link.



Get ready: Johnny’s episode of 
DREAM SCHOOL: NYC airs Wednesday,
October 22, 10 pm EDT / 9 pm CDT! 
Johnny stars with other celebrity teachers
in partnership with NYC’s Beekman School to help 
turn around the lives of 15 teens who dropped out 
of conventional high school.


New sneak peek at Johnny’s episode!
Video link.


Read more about his episode here!


NEW Snow King Teaser! 
ticket sales have commenced, and now we have
another glimpse of Evgeni Plushenko’s amazing 
“enchanting fairy tale on ice for the whole family.” 
The show is based on an adaptation of 
Hans Christian Andersen’s story, The Snow Queen, 
with Johnny playing the role of Kai. 
Video link.
Behind-the-scenes sneak peek here.



Dear Johnny, 
we believe in you, 
we support you, and 
we love you always. ♥


Note: Candles last only 48 hours, so please visit often 
to keep the love and light shining...

 Exclusive photo © David Ingogly.


So I have propped myself up on my fainting couch, where I’ve been convalescing for days, stricken by some kind of viral scourge that has left me coughing like an escapee from an Edwardian TB sanatorium, just long enough to wanly fling some picspam out here before collapsing again under another paroxysm of hacking, because these are just too wonderful to wait until I am more fully recovered.

Plus I am really terrible at being sick—pretty much as bad as I am at sleeping—and I get bored with the whole thing after about the first 24 hours, so thank Weirsus here are these amazing photos that will probably do more to cure me than any amount of rest anyway.

 BRB shoving the fainting couch back in the attic...

 But first: ICYMI, which IDK how that could even be possible since I keep embedding it everywhere and have probably personally emailed it to everyone I’ve ever met as well, but yay here you are, and even if you didn’t miss it, it’s worth rewatching a time or two or twelve: the official trailer for To Russia With Love was released on Tuesday! And it is beautifully done:


Please share everywhere. 
This film is so important and not to be missed.
Video link.


And yes, of course we have a transcript and a few screencaps:

 Announcer: Russia’s new law banning propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations to minors has created an international backlash.

 Title overlay: To ignorance...with compassion

 Mark Tewksbury: It’s taken a long time, but I do feel like Sochi is a bit of a tipping point.

 Title overlay: To brutality...with strength

 Johnny: It matters to you that your Olympics is going to be in a country that thinks of you not as a real part of society.

 Belle Breckhoff: You can take it quite personally.

 We should have kissed. I think that would have been a very big, history-making sort of thing.

 Title overlay: To fear...with courage

 Vladislav Slaviskiy: They attack me every evening...

 Title overlay: Some athletes stand for more than gold.

 (Female voice): This could have been the raised fist in protest.

 Johnny: An Olympic flame isn’t going to change the world. You have to change the world yourself.

 To Russia With Love.


Johnny and Vlad.


Speaking with Belle Breckhoff.


“An Olympic flame isn’t going to change the world...


...You have to change the world...


...yourself.”


While I love everything about the trailer, to me the moment with the most visual impact is the single second right before the screencap above.

 It happens here, from  00:42 to 00:43...


...as Johnny, seen only in shadow, performs on the ice under the impassive gaze of a Russian officer.

 And just to be clear: pretty much the entire time that Johnny was being criticized mercilessly for his decision to go to Sochi, he was secretly working on this project. So that months after the Games were over, the vodka-poured-in-the-streets protests long abandoned, and his critics off on other tangents, his efforts could help ensure that the spotlight would once again be focused on this human-rights issue enveloping a country he loves with all his heart.

 Because the world might forget. But he would not.


Johnny Returns to Russia!
10-09-2014.
At Sheremetyevo, where fans who have not seen him 
for two years await his arrival...

OK, first you have to watch the video, even if you already watched it earlier today, because this:



So here you go:

Video link.


And now, the picspam! The photos in this first series are all exclusives from my dear friend Elena Vasileva, who not only took a zillion pics for Johnny’s fans around the world to enjoy, but also brought him a basket of her own beautiful homemade pirozhki.

 She explains: “In Russia, we have an old tradition—we meet the most dear guest with bread-and-salt. But there is something even better: pirozhki!”

 Accompanied, of course, with flowers. And Starbucks. ♥


A beautiful bouquet ready and waiting for Johnny...






...and he loves it!






Chatting with fans...




(Elena says here he is describing 
what a hard worker Evgeni Plushenko is on the ice.)




...and also being a good listener, as always.


(Yay Starbucks!)
















With gorgeous sunflowers 
from Tatiana Edrenkina!












Getting things packed up to go, 
as his driver has been waiting patiently...


With all his gifts, including the basket of pirozhki...


....and a really big smile.


On his way!


This series is from Anastasiya Bochkareva’s fabulous gallery and her Facebook album, which she titled, “Sweet memories.”


Beautiful, smiling, and presumably coherent 
(in Russian) after spending all night on an airplane.








I love this.


And this.


Apparently a moment of serious business.




Group pics! Via Anastasiya’s Facebook. 
Left to right: Liza Simakina, Elena Vasileva, Vera Chayko, 
Irina Volkova, Johnny, Tatiana Edrenkina, and Nadia Vasilyeva.


And this time Elena takes the pic so 
Anastasiya can be in it (far left)! Via Facebook.


And now he’s really on his way.


UPDATE!! 
New exclusive photos series 
from Tatiana Edrenkina!

Gifts of love await Johnny, among them 
beautiful sunflowers from Tatiana...


...and delicious pirozhki from Elena!


He’s here!!
Please do click for larger view 
so you can see the look on his face. ♥














A special gift from Liza Simakina. Tatiana explains: 
“She gave him her collection of figure skating stamps 
from all over the world, including the countries 
of which existence we didn’t even know. 
That was a wow! moment.”


Johnny takes his time to savor this amazing gift.


And then one more photo 
before he’s off to his waiting car.


Bonus pics!! Via a very appreciative Johnny: 
“Moscow Baby! Thank you to my beautiful ladies 
who greeted me at Sheremetyevo!”


Via Johnny: “Flowers and coffee, 
the way to my heart!”


Bonus video!! An Evening With Champions has released the entire Saturday night show on YouTube, which is wonderful. Part 1 is here, and Part 2 here, featuring Johnny’s “Human” performance beginning at about 58:47.

Or even better: you can just watch Johnny’s “Human” here, 
thanks once again to video ninja Elena Vasileva!
Video link.


To Russia With Love
Bonus photo art.
(Please click for full-size images.)






And one more: absolutely stunning fan art 
by @MethaPhiZika on Twitter. 
Please click for full-size image!


Very special thanks to Elena Vasileva
 for the exclusive photos!


ICYMI: “Dragon.”
The first series of exclusive photos from 
An Evening With Champions, featuring 
Johnny’s debut of the spectacular dragon costume 
given to him by his Chinese fans.


“Bold Beauty: Bollywood Revisited.”
A stunning new look at Johnny’s 
Nagada Sang Dhol program 
in a series of 35+ exclusive photos, 
plus exclusive video.


“To Stand in a Ray of Sunlight.”
Gorgeous sun-drenched photos 
of Johnny at rehearsal in Sun Valley, 
plus exclusive video of his practice.


“Human.”
The US debut of Johnny’s stunning 
and hauntingly beautiful new program.
Selected exclusive photos, 
plus exclusive HD video.


“Be Gorgeous Without Your Pants.”
50+ Artistry on Ice pics plus all-new videos, 
including Beijing and Guangzhou
press conferences!


“Magic Becomes Art...”
60+ spectacular pics from Shanghai,
including the most beautiful 
“Concubine” series yet.

Stunning fan art by 
@glace_icywaterdri on Weibo. 


“Concubine.”
Beautiful mega-picspam from 
the Guangzhou livestream.

Photo art detail from an exclusive photo © Joveta Leo.


Johnny and Tara’s brilliant commentary 
segment from Late Night With Seth Meyers!
Video link.
Watch their interview with Seth here.


Johnny and Dora!!
Watch his spot over and over again 
here, here, or here!


On Johnny’s website, 
linked to his retirement statement. 
Thank YOU, Johnny!


ICYMI: Johnny plans to discuss his personal difficulties just once, 
in an exclusive interview with Access Hollywood’s Billy Bush. 
The three-part interview is available at these links:




UPDATE: In response to a rash of erroneous reports in the media, 
Johnny spoke briefly with Access Hollywood again
to set the record straight.



Also on the blog:
“Rise Like a Phoenix”
An exquisite black-and-white series 
of Johnny at rehearsal. 
Exclusive photo © David Ingogly.
Please click twice for larger image.


Johnny’s latest column for the 
Falls Church News-Press.
His columns are published on Thursdays 
in the “National Commentary“ 
section—don’t miss a single one! 


A number of Johnny’s auction items 
have been relisted, which means if you missed out 
the first time around, you’re in luck: 
It’s not too late to own a piece of Weir Gear! 
Go check it out and see what treasures 
you could take home!


Please alert absolutely everyone you’ve ever met 
to “like” and follow the new 
on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. 
Because he should be on all the things. 
With or without ice. 
But definitely with Viacheslav.


Please click to vote for Johnny 
once a day as “Best Sportsman”! 
Because he retweeted Luisa Lotka  to tell us he wants us to! 



Watch bonus clips online anytime on Logo!
Please be sure to check in with GetGlue
anytime you’re watching the show... 
or thinking about watching the show.... 
or wishing you were watching the show....


At last: Pop Star On Ice is now available on DVD!
Order yours today from the Pop Star On Ice website!


Johnny tweeted:
“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!”
IN THE SAME WAY THAT IT NEEDS AIR.
You know what to do.
Please buy the song from Johnny’s website,
or just click the “Buy” button on the player at the top of the blog!


Hey, Welcome to My World also is available
as an eBook! More info on Johnny’s website!

copyright 2014 / Binky and the Misfit Mimes / Lynn V. Ingogly / all rights reserved


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