The Best of Binky's Johnny Weir Blog

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Oh BTW Just One More Thing ...

Ahhhhhhhhh ...

I am still basking in the glory that is Johnny's 2010 USFSA Readers' Choice Figure Skater of the Year Award (Michelle Kwan Trophy)!

(I like giving the entire award name. It rolls off the tongue so beautifully, and lands so smoothly and perfectly, like Johnny's Fallen Angel jump combo, in the warm happy smugness that is mine today.)

Mmmmmmm ... The bliss of poetic justice, too rare a visitor in this world, but always so welcome ...

But I forgot to mention one really, really important point yesterday, and I've been kicking myself ever since. Although on the other hand, my oversight has fortunately provided me with today's topic, because otherwise we'd just have to settle for some picspam of last year's Sun Valley show which involves a number of photos of Johnny in tanktops and form-fitting black meggings ...

... I'm sorry what was I saying ...?

Oh yes. And you know, the one happy thing about this is that I can blame the USFSA again, and there's almost nothing I enjoy doing more than that, other than watching Johnny win endless awards. Or, just stand there and breathe (in a tank top and meggings). Whatever. I'm not picky.

Pardon me?

Oh. Right. Yesterday's oversight.

So after I had read the USFSA's announcement of the award, and also read and proofed the blog a billion times, and spent inordinate amounts of time squeeing on Facebook and Twitter and then re-reading the announcement and the blog again plus all the fab comments, this brief sentence from the USFSA press release suddenly leaped out at me in between perusing Sun Valley 2009 shots of Johnny like this:

Wha?

Oh yes, the all-important sentence:

"Weir also won the award in 2008."

And indeed, I did mention that loudly on the blog yesterday.

But you know, my historical knowledge of the USFSA and the Readers' Choice Award and pretty much any skating news that does not contain the phrase "Johnny Weir" is woefully inadequate. (Yes, I am dimly aware of previous elite skaters, such as Dorothy Hamill, Kristi Yamaguchi, Alexei Yagudin, and of course Michelle Kwan, but beyond that my grasp of figure-skating history is rather sketchy.)

And so the thought came to me: Hey. He just won this for the second time. Has anybody else done that? (Or done this:

... la la la la la ... )

Ahem. As it turns out, there's a part the USFSA left out because they were a little too busy giving details of his 2009-2010 competitive season with just the faintest air of aggrieved condescension ("Weir's 2009-10 season included a fourth-place finish at the Rostelecom Cup, a silver medal at the NHK Trophy and a bronze medal at the 2009 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. His bronze-medal win at the 2010 AT&T U.S. Figure Skating Championships helped qualify him for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, where he finished sixth.")

And that part is this:

Johnny now joins Michelle Kwan as one of the only two skaters to ever win the trophy more than once in the 21-year history of the Readers' Choice Award.

That little factoid seems like it might have warranted a mention in, oh, say, the first paragraph of the USFSA press release. Because not only did he win, he's the only other skater besides Michelle to ever win multiple times.

Of course, he's got a ways to go to equal Michelle's achievement. She won seven times--the last in 2003, when they just gave up and named the award for her.

But being the only other skater to win twice is surely a newsworthy point. And so I wish I had done my homework a little earlier and a little more thoroughly so I could have grasped sooner the even greater significance of this win for Johnny--and the fact that, as usual, the USFSA never misses an opportunity to slight him, just, you know, slightly.

So my apologies for not highlighting yesterday the full glory of Johnny's achievement or this photo ...

... what, dear ... ?

Oh, excuse me. Yes. But on the other hand--yay! Now we can just continue the squee-fest! Because he made figure-skating history twice over yesterday!--much to the deep chagrin, I am sure, of the USFSA, who has already pushed the article about his win further down their page, now positioning it as a lesser story underneath the truly gripping news that the Summer Team USA Camp is in Detroit this weekend.

While that certainly leaves me breathless with excitement, my heart will be in Sun Valley this weekend, where I am hoping that my fellow JWe fans lucky enough to be there in person will be twitpic'ing like crazy for the rest of us more stuff like this:

... because there really just isn't enough Sun Valley picspam to be had in this world, along with our side of poetic justice ...

Coming up:
A treasure trove of Sun Valley 2009 photos
courtesy of the amazing
Melissa Gregory and Denis Petukhov!

Please check out Johnny's new entry
on the Sundance Channel's SUNFiltered blog!
At last the world knows why they're called "Dingles"!

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt to wear
in Sun Valley or Lake Placid

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!

Very special thanks to Johnny's US Angels
Sue Olson and Casey Dickinson,
and Archangel Kristina Ziegler,
for these amazing photos of Sun Valley 2009
from the Johnny's Angels public forum!

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Congratulations, Johnny: USFSA's Figure Skater of the Year!

Johnny Weir,

USFSA Readers' Choice Figure Skater of the Year,

at the end of his Fallen Angel
free skate program

in the 2010 Olympics.

I love irony.

I love that the God of my heart loves irony too.

I love that despite the USFSA's desperately determined efforts to ignore, bury, and distance themselves from Johnny Weir--their own three-time National Champion and two-time Olympian; despite the fact that his picture does not even appear with those of other skaters at the top of the USFSA website (yes, I realize that those are all 2010 medalists but he's more popular than all of them combined and his photo there would draw more visitors to explore the site--it's called "marketing savvy," USFSA); despite the fact that they pushed his name down to the third spot on the pulldown menu for "Figure Skater of the Year" (yes, I also realize the names were in order of the skaters' places at Nationals, but it makes me happy to be continuously annoyed with the USFSA so please don't interrupt me with additional facts when my rant is gathering steam); despite the fact that they completely left him out of the voting for "Greatest Skater Ever" even though he has singlehandedly drawn thousands of new fans to figure skating at a time when the sport's popularity has been declining; especially despite the cruelly myopic and truly indefensible judging of his soaring Olympic performances and the complete absence of USFSA support at his post-Olympic press conference; despite it all--

He won USFSA Readers' Choice Figure Skater of the Year! (again!)

YES!!!!!

[insert standing ovation here accompanied by creative hand gestures enthusiastically directed at the USFSA. Although even if they squint, their eyesight is obviously too poor to be able to discern what we're doing. Plus their stone faces make squinting difficult.]

I guess this is one competition even the USFSA couldn't ~~f*ck up~~ find a way to skew in someone else's favor.

Because this one wasn't up to them.

This one was decided by the people, who don't need a "Code of Points" or "GOE" or other incomprehensible numbers to be able to instinctively identify unequalled beauty, artistry, athleticism, and grace on the ice; who know bias, backroom deals, and appalling unfairness when they see it; who found themselves completely transported by Johnny's Olympic performances; who fell in love with him while following his struggles and triumphs as he allowed BGJW cameras to unsparingly chronicle his journey leading up to and including the 2010 Olympics; and who seized this chance to show the USFSA what everyone else in the world--or at least anyone who has eyes and a heart--can see:

Johnny Weir is a true champion.

And he's also the son of a very wise woman, who, when asked by the incomparable Viacheslav Romanov, "What destiny for Johnny?" answered, "To be a figure skater for the people ... more so than a figure skater for judges."

Absolutely. Patti Weir FTW.

So big, big congratulations, Johnny! We fans are so thrilled and so proud! And though Figure Skater of the Year doesn't even begin to cover it, it's a wonderful honor, and you have earned every inch of that trophy.

As well as a place in the hearts of people everywhere, who love you not only for what you do so brilliantly on the ice, but also for who you are.

In honor of Johnny's win, we're pleased to announce two new additions to our JWe-TV programming lineup! Join us each week for exciting episodes of:

Program Justice!: Watch all Johnny’s competition programs following 2006 … only this time they’re scored by an impartial panel of robot judges. Although these automatons lack the ability to feel any human emotion whatsoever, EVEN THEIR SOULLESS MICROPROCESSORS are keen enough to sense that he has been grossly underscored. All scores are corrected, and then we hop in a time machine to hurry back and rewrite history correctly! (Note: No robots were harmed in the making of this program, though one model EL6.485 was mysteriously found ripped limb-from-hard-drive behind a Chuck-E-Cheese's in Jersey City [motto: "Stay classy!"]. No suspects have been identified, but no one evan knows what those are anyway … )

The Johnny Awards: Just endless--and endlessly satisfying--replays of Johnny receiving medals, awards, honors, additional medals, crowns of roses, trophies, and yet more medals, all accompanied by cheering crowds and standing ovations. Future episodes include footage of him accepting his Emmy, Oscar, Grammy, Video Music Award, Pulitzer, the Nobel Peace Prize, and of course the gold medal at Sochi in 2014 ... :)

[la la la I haz a happy la la la la la]

Please check out Johnny's new entry
on the Sundance Channel's SUNFiltered blog!
At last the world knows why they're called "Dingles"!

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt to wear
in Sun Valley or Lake Placid

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!

Very special thanks to Facebook fans
Nicole Davis and Jessica Lane
for Program Justice!

Monday, July 19, 2010

Coming Soon to an Ice Arena Near You! (If You Happen to Be In or Around Upstate NY...)

(click, and then click again, for larger view)

Yes! He's back on the ice! Johnny is performing in Sun Valley, Idaho, this coming Saturday, July 24, much to the excitement of happy West Coast fans!

Then he heads to Lake Placid, New York, to appear in the Summer Ice Show Series there next Saturday, July 31. And that's a show that holds a special place in the heart of beloved Agentress Extraordinaire Tara Modlin.

"Lake Placid is my hood! My hometown! My fav place on earth!" she says. "And I want to pack the house!"

And to that end, Tara is announcing some big news exclusively here first: Yes, there will be a short meet-n-greet with Johnny in Lake Placid!

AND IT'S FREE!!!

(Wha? No, really. Wha? Can't. Comprehend. These. Words. Can they really be used in a sentence together like that?)

Yes, she assures fans, just for coming to the show, you also can attend the meet-n-greet for no extra charge. And with tickets priced at only $10 for ages 13 to 64; $8 for ages 7 to 12 amd 65+; and FREE for children ages 6 and under, this is an opportunity not to be missed!

The show starts at 7:30 p.m. and will be held in the Olympic Center at Lake Placid, which houses two ice arenas. Johnny will be skating in the smaller Jack Shea Arena, built for the 1932 Olympics and offering a seating capacity of about 2,500.

Tickets can only be purchased at the door, which has left some fans worried that there might not be any available when they arrive. Not to worry, says Tara.

"I personally promise that all fans will get in," she assures us. "If I have to give up my backstage-pass seat in Johnny's locker room, I will do it!"

[cue stampede to the locker room in 3 ... 2 ... 1 ... ]

But wait: There's more! Planning to join Johnny and Tara in Lake Placid will be the wonderful Patti Weir, who hopefully may also take part in the meet-n-greet!

Wow. As far as JWe fan heaven goes, it doesn't get much better than this!

More specifics about the meet-n-greet are coming soon, along with some fun photos of last year in Lake Placid (yes, you are correct: Lake Placid is the site of the infamous mini golf scene in BGJW! And we have some pics!).

In the meantime: Please mark your calendars, buy your T-shirts, and cancel that eBay auction of your husband's family's heirlooms. Let's show Johnny the love with a sellout crowd! At $10 or less per ticket, this is one Johnny show you really can afford--and one you can't afford to miss!

See you there!

There also may be a meet-n-greet in Sun Valley--
details coming soon!

Please vote for Johnny in the TUBEY AWARDS!
The Finals, Round 1, are now up, and Be Good Johnny Weir
is nominated for Best Candid Reality Show!
Hurry--new Final Categories will be added later today;
winners will be announced Aug 25.

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt to wear
in Sun Valley or Lake Placid

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Because They Had to Be Macroed ...

Please vote for Johnny in the TUBEY AWARDS!
The Finals, Round 1, are now up, and Be Good Johnny Weir
is nominated for Best Candid Reality Show!
You can vote for him THIS WEEK ONLY!
New Final Categories will be added each Monday;
winners will be announced Aug 25.

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!

Friday, July 16, 2010

Call Your Local Cable or Satellite Provider Today!

Ah, at last: Johnny's home! And BTW I would really have appreciated some live television coverage of his return, like when Air Force One lands somewhere and there's red carpet and colorfully dressed local dignitaries and awkward presentations of bizarre gifts (note to self: e-mail Tara re: U.S. fan meeting. Oh, and send more e-mails to Anderson Cooper re: Johnny coverage--and to RuPaul too, just to cover all the bases). Because, as I noted irritatedly last week, I am spending a lot of time flopping on my couch and flipping disconsolately through all my channels and not finding nearly enough Johnny on TV.

And since Johnny's schedule fortunately will not be cluttered with ~~poorly judged thanks to stodgy officials who remain hopelessly out-of-touch and biased~~ competitive events in the coming months, that opens up all kinds of delicious possibilities for him to do other things that should be filmed and distributed internationally, or at least photographed and e-mailed to me immediately for forwarding to absolutely everyone I've ever met. Of course we have season 2 of BGJW to look forward to (sweet Weirsus, WHEN does that start? I'm DYING here), and we are still happily campaigning to get him on DWTS, so with any luck at all, we could be watching him at least twice a week on TV come September, when DWTS premieres!

Which, according to my need-more-Johnny calendar, is the 12th of Never from today.

So after careful consideration, it has become clear to me that this is the perfect opportunity to give fans what we really want--I mean besides an endless livestream of twitpics of him in a white Speedo taken in various positions and places around the world ("Look! He's riding a yak in Mongolia! In a white Speedo!" "Oh! He's meeting the Dalai Lama and Queen Elizabeth! In a white Speedo!" "Now he's walking down the street in Brighton Beach! In a white Speedo! With similarly clad large Russian men!" "Oooo, he's singing 'Dirty Love' in his new video! In a white Speedo!" "At last! President Obama is signing into law the ban on Speedo-wearing by heavyset Russian men who in no way resemble Johnny Weir! And lounging there in the Oval Office next to him is Johnny! In a white Speedo!" ... ).

La la la la la we're in our happy place la la la ...

All righty then. Hang on to your top hats and get ready to go to an even happier place ...

We're pleased to announce a new network making its debut in our channel lineup!

Yes, it's JWe-TV! All Johnny, all the time! Because when it comes to Johnny, forget "less is more." Less is just--less. And so unsatisfying. Whereas--like our logo says--too much is never enough.

Now let's take a whirlwind tour through the amazeballs programming--to quote Sports Director Michael Mazzella--that we offer on JWe-TV:

NEWS AND OPINION
JGW News: Everything Johnny, all day, all night, 24/7, 365, no matter how far from Weirlandia he roams, what time zone he’s in, or what planet he’s on. Fan favorites: Forecasts from Deborah the Weather Diva, and daily views of Planet Weir from the Hubble telescope.

Viva Viacheslav!: Broadcast directly from the United States of Amerifunk, Viva Viacheslav! features interviews with glitterati, international royalty, family Weir, and the occasional piece of shrubbery. Anything that will hold still long enough to be interviewed, really. Also featuring Viacheslav’s weekly roundtable discussion with lucky Johnny fans!

SPORTS
Naughty Pilates: Get your daily dose of being stretched into all sorts of … versatile … positions while keeping your body as buff and beautiful as possible. Later in the hour, learn first-aid techniques to untangle yourself because you were too busy watching to see Johnny’s hips pop and now your ankle is somewhere behind your ear ...

Boz on Sports: A very quiet time to sit, stir your cornflakes, and wordlessly contemplate sports other than skating. Unlike most obnoxious sports commentators, our darling Boz understands that sometimes silence truly is golden.

The Outdoor Channel / Weir Edition: Mongoose Hunt! -- The Rabid Beast of the Orange-Shored (*cough SLORED hack*) African Coast! Ride along as big-game hunter Johnny tracks this elusive beast of the Serengeti across burning deserts (SPF 150%), dense jungles (scoping out a new python handbag--fangs included—along the way), arid plains (WTF, Paris, why did you forget to bring water? You travel like you don’t know anything), and stark cliffside beaches (Look! Johnny in a white Speedo!) to create a one-of-a-kind sparkly onesie inspired by the chameleon-like mongoose!

SOAP OPERAS
One Life to Live: Our story so far: When his best is better than the rest, but woefully underscored, Johnny considers seeking a new life in a new town… but then his brother returns from another dimension via Twitter, Paris overcomes his crippling amnesia (how do you forget to take your shoes off, Paris? And OMG. Seriously, how many times do I have to explain to you how to cut cheese?), the Dingles drive themselves off a cliff thinking they are playing Mario Kart, and Tara, in a fit of I-really-need-to-go-to-the-ladies’-room despair, sells Johnny’s furs to support the mysterious and beautiful baby Anastasia, who may or may not be from Planet Weir and who may or may not have been brought here by Coach Galina-Is-Neo … In today’s episode, Johnny learns that you can, in fact, go home again, where Aunt Diane awaits him in her front-porch rocker to share the startling news that she really, really does not want him to plant his naked butt on her right now …

As His World Turns: Tokyo to Moscow, New York to Los Angeles, Delaware to Rio de Janeiro … follow Johnny on a jet-lagged romp through the time zones, complete with tiny travel robes, shopping jaunts, throngs—I said throngs, not thongs--of glittery fans, and a daily shower scene.

FASHION, BEAUTY, AND ENTERTAINMENT
Haus of Weir: Co-hosted by Fresh New Designer (F’nD) and Ninja Girl! Feathers, sparkles, and needles fly as these two diva bitches accompany Johnny on fashion journeys that take him where no man has gone before--and save a few lives along the
way … [cue dramatic music] Petunia never thought she would walk again. Her runway career was tragically curtailed by an errant stiletto vs. escalator incident involving three deaths, from which Petunia barely escaped with her Jimmy Choos intact. She was mangled from the toe down, her pedicure in shambles and her ankle totes swollen beyond the ability to wear a slingback. She had given up hope ... That is, until the Haus came to her rescue! Armed with ballet flats and a can-do attitude (bitch, you WILL wear these Loubs or as Weirsus is my witness, you will never get into another Heatherette show!), these two fly fashionistas and their benevolent Fashionistatress elevate "Retail Therapy" to whole new heights!

Haute or Not: Feeling less than fresh? Need a little pick-me-up? Have a crippling sense of inferiority? Then, girl, you better run the other way, cuz this is not the runway for you! In this spin-off of the wildly successful Haus of Weir, watch as our esteemed panel of Judgetresses takes to task some of the worst fashion disastahs you’ve ever seen. As an accomplished critic of all things beauty from his successful stint as pageant Judgetress on Miss USA, Johnny offers firm but gentle advice on what not to wear ever ever ever. Especially if your pants mark you like this, because that means they're a little ... snug. Guest Judgetresses include Christina Aguilera, Jonathan Groff, Karl Lagerfeld, and John Waters. So, you feeling haute?

Fresh Prince of Big Hair: Airing 24/7, this 90-minute non-stop infomercial for Eric Alt Salons and Alt Hair Care features tips and tricks for coloring your mullet, and an ongoing discussion of bangs or no bangs. He’s more than a Beauty Bear—he’s pure genius! Find out more in three easy payments!

Dancing with the Star: Just Johnny shuffling around his apartment in slippers jamming to Gaga, Pledging, and singing to himself. You’ll feel like a dirty peeping tom at first, but you get over it. You get over it.

POLITICS
Galina vs. Gaga: Two fierce (but fiercely loving) bitches go toe-to-toe on today's most controversial issues, and discuss the true path to becoming big strong man / big strong monster. Fan favorite: Special duet of "Poker Face," to which Johnny skates (of course. Don’t you know that? Are you stupid?)

Hello, Comrades!: Live from planet 12413 Johnnyweir, watch as cosmonauts Rudolf and Mikhail clean, decorate, and generally make fabulous this outer Shangri-la, all in anticipation of Johnny’s arrival.

DRAMA
Weir’s Anatomy: Does anything really need to be said here? No? Didn’t think so.

KIDS
Family F*$%ing Friendly: What’s more fun than a barrel of mongeese, a top hat full of Johnny, and a bowlful of low-calorie whipped cream? That’s right, kids! Family F*$%ing Friendly! The crew of FFF takes you on a magical ride though the deep, twisted, and oh-so-wacky world of competitive ice skating! Watch as our heroes Johnny, Paris, and Tara battle the naughty Mr. USFSA (UndeservingSonofabitchF*$%ingSloreAbominations) and teach him how to count, read, count some more, be a decent human being, grasp the ways of karma, get eye exams, try to master the alphabet, count, and count again. Poor Mr. USFSA (UniversallySuckyFlatulentSphincterAsshats) has such a problem with his numbers! They just never add up! And that means a major deduction on his GOE (GrossOfficialErrors) score!

The Adventures of Vanya and Bon Bon: (Animated) The daily escapades of two adorable, overweight, and fashion-conscious lap dogs. Voiced by Nathan Lane and Chris Colfer. Fan favorite: Bonus live-action footage of Patti Weir wondering why her son owns two dogs that live at her house where she gets to take care of them …

HOME AND GARDEN
Wanna Strawberry, Bitch?: In the garden and in the kitchen with Johnny! Yes, he loves his peonies. Absolutely loves them. Watch Johnny water his plants and carefully wipe the water spots off with Windex, then prepare food for Paris—really, would Paris just starve to death if it weren’t for Johnny?—including a scrumptious array of tempting chocolate-coated fruits arranged in the shape of a swan. Fan favorite: Johnny demonstrates endless variations on the theme, "How to Eat Cupcakes With Friends Without Using Your Hands."

RELIGIOUS

Holy Zamboni: A daily hour of repeated footage of Johnny’s signature layback slide on the ice, a move we’ve lovingly coined the Holy Zamboni. In … well … slow ... motion … so it ... can be ... savored … oh daddy …

The Way of Weirsus: Broadcast live from St. Sparkle’s Church of the Dazzlerene! Our simple message: Love love. Closing prayer: Please protect us from peer pressure, and help us to deal with all things fashionably. FanTAStic! Which is how we say, "Amen."

PLEASE KEEP VOTING HERE for Johnny to win

the 2010 Readers' Choice Skater of the Year Award!
(um, voting was supposed to end yesterday,
but the page is still there so whatev... )

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!

Very special thanks to Facebook fans
Nicole Davis and Jessica Lane for their invaluable help
in writing about 150% of this post ...

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Preach It, BB!

And here we have one of the many compelling reasons

to vote for Johnny as the USFSA Readers' Choice

Figure Skater of the Year ...

Hey! Wake up! Johnny comes home today! And we have tons of stuff to do! So let's get on with it! And take some cues from the Japanese fans, who loved him so well this last week! Let's show him that he is equally loved and supported here at home:

(1) Today is the last day to vote for Johnny as USFSA's Readers' Choice Figure Skater of the Year! (see above for motivation. Or just watch his brilliant performance-of-a-lifetime Olympic programs while averting your eyes from the scores. Or his Oly press conference with the notable absence of any federation support. Whatever makes you want to #cuttaUSFSAbitch the most ...). One vote per e-mail address. It's called gmail. You know what to do.

(2) BGJW is one of the ten finalists for "Best Candid Reality Show" in the Tubey Awards! Johnny is on the very first page of nominees. We only have until Monday on this one, so please go there now and vote! Helpful tip: If you delete your cookies--which is technically not the same as deleting an entire bag of cookies while watching additional Pop Star on Ice footage courtesy of a special Twitter friend and some international fans, all of whom are up for Binky Awards as best video uploaders EVER--you can vote again! And again! And again! I found myself in a soothing mindless rhythm last night: Vote. Delete Internet cookies. Eat Oreo. Vote. Delete. Eat. Vote. Delete. Eat. Vote ... (need help with deleting cookies? PM me and I'll send instructions!)

(3) We're still tweeting to generate support for #Team Weirnoff on the next season of #DWTS! So please feel free to add that to your own happy mindless rhythm: Vote. Delete. Eat. Tweet. Vote. Delete. Eat. Tweet. Vote ... #internetcookieshaveno caloriesbutarealittleshortonflavor

(4) Johnny tweeted last night that he'd like us all to follow @JWArtProject on Twitter! This is the official Twitter account for the artbook Johnny Weir: I Feel Pretty, for which he did the photography session in Japan this past week. They also are working on producing a website for the project. So please go there now and follow them if you haven't already! And here's to the power of Weirsus: Within one hour of his tweet, @JWArtProject had gone from 7 followers to 1,029. As of this writing, they're now at 1,762. :)

(5) And while you're on Twitter, please show some Twitter love to Agentress Extraordinaire Tara Modlin and follow her! We helped Beauty Bear Eric Alt get to 200 followers in one night--let's see if we can get Tara to 2,500!

And finally: Just in case you need any more reasons to vote endlessly for BGJW in the Tubey Awards, may I offer one of the classic all-time fan-favorite moments from the show (with special thanks to whoever made this macro):

But first, everybody gonna vote!

PLEASE KEEP VOTING HERE for Johnny to win

the 2010 Readers' Choice Skater of the Year Award
(voting ends THIS THURSDAY, July 15)!

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Wish I Was There ...

From Agentress Extraordinaire Tara Modlin:

"Our artbook team ... and our location bus!

Team JW includes our art director, stylist, photographer,

makeup and hair, assistants ...

And Chie, our lovely producer, is taking the pic!"

(Thank you, Tara!)

So I wasn't actually going to blog today because I was up against several sudden-death deadlines, but then I received the lovely postcard above, and I dunno what a location bus is exactly but I clearly need to be on one, specifically this one, in what appears to be the possibly empty seat to Johnny's right (and BB, I am happy to hold your juicebox for you, or adjust your pillow, or hold Ping or your Balenciaga on my lap and help you decide what sunglasses to wear, or, you know, whatever you need. Just sayin').

And then I met my deadlines so I finally took some time to check out the StyleCaster video that everybody was raving about yesterday, and that was definitely four minutes and twenty seconds well spent. And because I'm really, really tired, I'm going to let Johnny write the rest of today's blog via me filling it with quotes from his StyleCaster interview. He said lots of cool stuff, so consequently I don't have to. (I'm really kind of superfluous at this point, actually, which is good because I can just quietly tiptoe away and get on the bus while he takes over ... )

He filmed this interview on his birthday, the day after the big Hudson Terrace bash, and he looks so happy and he's laughing and having so much fun with the questions, and it's pure Johnny gold. So please enjoy these snippets while I take a little nap on the bus, my head resting against the shoulder of the American prince next to me ...

I think my style is very sedate; it's very conservative and not excessive in any way. [laughs]

When I was little, I had streamers on my bike and I wore Jellies and I enjoyed myself. But I didn't really start to establish this gutsiness with fashion until I was really performing.

I didn't say instinctively, "Oh, I need to be different." I just felt no need to conform.

I think I don't take myself that seriously, so I don't take my fashion very seriously.

I don't think there's much out there, you know, aside from what my innards look like, that people don't know and that people can't feel from me.

I've never found any reason to taper myself, or censor myself, for any reason, for anyone.

People are very afraid of what the world thinks of them, and I'm not. That's all part of me, and that comes from a really strong base and growing up in a very loving family that supported everything that I wanted to do, and it's given me power to be who I am and not be afraid of people judging me. [and I love the brief glimpse of emotion we see as he speaks of his family. So beautiful.]

And finally, one of my favorite quotes from the interview, which echoes something his wonderful mom Patti observed several years ago:

Yes. It's what makes your performances so much more than just skating. It is a gift. Thank you for sharing it with the world.

Now shhhhh. Please keep your fabulousness down to a whisper for a little while. I'm trying to sleep here ...

PLEASE KEEP VOTING HERE for Johnny to win

the 2010 Readers' Choice Skater of the Year Award
(voting ends THIS THURSDAY, July 15)!

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Very special thanks to
Agentress Extraordinaire Tara Modlin

for this exclusive and exquisite photo from Japan!

This was taken during the photo shoot

for Johnny Weir: I Feel Pretty,

a coffee-table-style art book being published in Japan

that will be coming out this October.

Following are different versions of this single photo,

each with subtle lighting effects applied,

each offering something a little different.

The most beautiful people we have known

are those who have known defeat,

known suffering, known struggle, known loss,

and have found their way out of the depths.

These persons have an appreciation,

a sensitivity and an understanding of life

that fills them with compassion,

gentleness, and a deep loving concern.

Beautiful people do not just happen.

--Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

PLEASE KEEP VOTING HERE for Johnny to win

the 2010 Readers' Choice Skater of the Year Award
(voting ends THIS THURSDAY, July 15)!

Hey! You can purchase a T-shirt

in honor of our Ride for Life project!

We exceeded our $7,500 donation goal,

so now we're aiming for $10,000!

We're less than $2,000 away,

and we have until July 31 to get there!

Shirts are $20 each including shipping,

and $10 of that goes directly toward AIDS/LifeCycle!

Everything you need to know about ordering is here!