Category Archives: Personal

Review: The Voice of Việt Nam (Live Rounds – Đàm Vĩnh Hưng Edition)

As I have done in the past for the Thu Minh and Trần Lập Editions… this time around the vocalists for the teams of Đàm Vĩnh Hưng and Hồ Ngọc Hà.

First on the list: Đàm Vĩnh Hưng.

Now just like with the previous two teams, The Voice of Việt Nam have posted on their website the results of the public voting.

So just like the previous two teams, the top two contestants of the public vote get an automatic pass to the next round and they are:
Vũ Thanh Hằng who sang Thu Cuối (The End), she received 26.93% of the total vote for the team.

The second highest public vote went to Phan Ngọc Luân who sang You’ll Be Sorry with 17.92% of the total votes of the team:

Continue reading →

Entertainment: The Last Five Years as a Film

This isn’t entirely old news… but with a film version of Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years floating around there is speculation as to who could star in the adaptation of the stage version that originally starred Norbert Leo Butz and Sherie Rene Scott.

Other than being one less word in her professional name (kidding!) Anna Kendrick has apparently been tapped to play Cathy.

Now she has had some experience in musical theatre in her youth and has proven to be a rising star in Hollywood as well, but I think the one thing that she is known for is her time on David Letterman when she showed off her singing and hand-eye coordination skills that were featured in Pitch Perfect.

And here is the original video, by Lulu and the Lampshades, that Anna came across while bored at home one day:

Continue reading →

Entertainment: George Orwell’s Animal Farm Film Adaptation in the Works?

Almost a year ago, I had the pleasure of watching a unique stage production of George Orwell’s Animal Farm being done at the Madison Street Theatre at Oak Park.

Well, via my RSS feed, Andy Serkis (the man of a million digital faces) is on board to direct an adaptation of this very production in the future. According to the Hollywood Reporter this will be

his first film from his London-based performance-capture studio The Imaginarium.

Continue reading →

Fleeting: Gangnam Style by Psy… the Dance Craze!

So I was recently introduced to the Gangnam Style only last week during the Results Show of Dancing with the Stars when Shawn Johnson and Gilles Marini were asked to select songs for the Team Freestyle at random.

Gilles Marini picked the song: Gangnam Style and almost immediately I was thinking of the strange dance moves that a guy cosplaying as Venom did at the New York Comic Con a couple of weekends ago:

Yes, sad to say that I knew nothing of the Gangnam Style until AFTER the fact. So naturally I had to find out more about this and finally found the official video for Gangnam Style by Psy:

Finally… as with all things fleeting… I found myself researching more about the song / dance craze and finding more and more parodies being done all over the place.
Continue reading →

Fleeting: Other Movies that I Partially Watched While Flying Overseas

This was one of several movies I watched on my flights between Chicago and Vietnam that I either
1: did not watch entirely on my own (meaning someone else had it on and I just happened to be watching over his shoulder and consequently I felt that I needed to watch it in its entirety later on
2: was watching on my own, however fell asleep at some point during the movie that I missed crucial moments and as thus didn’t have a chance to watch in its entirety
3: was watching but fast forwarded parts because I got bored quickly but wanted to see what happened towards the end.

So which movies had this dubious pleasure? Based on the above criterion:
1: Battleship
2: The Lorax, Puss in Boots
3: Footloose

I am sure there are others and eventually I will watch the above movies in their entirety in the comfort of my home and review about them.

Granted there were probably a lot of other movies I glanced at, but at the moment they escape me… however should I remember of any others than the above I am sure I will post the movies here and link back as well.

However in the meantime…

The first in the above series? Battleship and The Lorax.

Bucket List: “America’s Best Pizzas”

So while browsing various Yahoo! articles… I came across one that dealt specifically about some of the best pizzerias all over the country. Originally what I would have done was click on the link and send it to my twitter feed with the hash tag “bucketlist” because I wanted to keep it in mind for when I travel to various places all over the Continental U.S. and I would make sure to make a stop in some capacity.

But after reworking my personal website and keeping up to date with the blog I decided putting ideas up as a post might be a better option… So here it is the first of the series of posts dedicated to places that I would love to travel to before I die…

So what to expect? Instead of essentially reposting what would already be in the article I would probably focus on particular places that are either in Chicago (since that is where I am from) and other areas that pique my interest where I may actually be able to go to. And if I have already gone to a certain restaurant / location I would provide a link to that particular post and provide my own thoughts of the food, service and restaurant in general.

AMERICA’S BEST PIZZAS

Chicago
Chicago is well known as being the inventor of the “deep dish pizza” but according to Yahoo! Its pizzarias only managed to make it to fourth at highest out of twenty… so which locations does Yahoo! recommend?

4. Pizano’s
With four locations and another one on the way, you know that Pizano’s has a loyal fan following among Chicago’s intense deep-dish market. But Pizano’s offers both deep-dish pizza and a thin-crust version that many would claim to even make most New Yorkers happy.



For the deep-dish crowd, the restaurant offers the Rudy’s Special, a pie that the restaurant requests guests’ patience for in advance. This monstrous concoction, topped with cheese, sausage, mushrooms, onions, and green peppers, takes up to 30 minutes to cook all the way through.

5. Vito & Nick’s
In a city dedicated to deep-dish pies, this family-owned restaurant has been serving up thin crust pizzas to Chicago residents for decades, and as the note on their website demonstrates (“If you don’t know about us, you will”), the owners are fairly confident in their popularity. The thin crust and generous cheese and sauce covering will likely leave you in agreement.

8. Gino’s East
Gino’s may be the ultimate in Chicago deep-dish, with a history dating back nearly 50 years. The story starts with two taxi drivers and their friend, who became frustrated with rush hour traffic and decided to open up their own pizza place. Just off the famed Michigan Avenue strip in the heart of downtown, the restaurant has been considered a city mainstay since its conception. The walls of the restaurant are covered with graffiti, as it’s a tradition of Gino’s to carve your name on the wall if you’re a dedicated patron.



Pies begin with a buttery crust that crumbles as soon as you take a bite, and it’s then stuffed with a layer of fillings (ranging from sweet Italian sausage to pineapple), then topped with a more-than-healthy serving of mozzarella cheese, and finished with crushed vine-ripened tomatoes. Their success has led them to open 11 locations, even expanding into neighboring Wisconsin for all those cheese lovers.

If Chicago only made it to fourth at best… who has Chicago beat? It is not a surprise when the top three places recommended by Yahoo are all from
New York City
Who knew that New York City would have so many pizzarias? Or strong ones for that matter? In any case, for someone like who goes to NYC frequently enough, the below is probably something to keep in mind, but not 100% necessary to stop by…
Continue reading →

Convention: Fables at the New York Comic Convention (NYCC)

Over the past weekend I was privileged to be able to watch the Vertigo – Fables 10th Anniversary panel at the New York Comic Con. From the New York Comic Con website:

Speakers:
Andrew Pepoy, Bill Willingham, John Cunningham, Matt Sturges, Phil Jimenez, Sean E. Williams, Shelly Bond

Description:
Come join in the party as Fables celebrates its 10th anniversary at New York Comic Con! Join Bill Willingham, creator of the multi-Eisner Award winning series Fables and Fairest, Group Editor Shelly Bond, Phil Jimenez (Fairest), Matt Sturges (Fairest) and others as they look back on 10 years of the amazing journey that is Fables, plus an in depth look into what the future holds! Don’t miss this panel that is truly legendary.

Needless to say… there was a lot of information coming our way… and true to the Bill Willingham style, there were a lot of teases, diversions, and possible red herrings being thrown for the audience to see.

So where to start?

LATEST FABLES AND FAIREST ISSUES ON STANDS NOW
Well first off the issues of Fairest and Fables that are out for the month of October. Fairest opens up to a Rapunzel story arc while Fables wraps up the Cubs in Toyland storyline. Click here for a review of Issue 121 of Fables (warning… spoilers!)

UPCOMING ISSUE OF FABLES
Coming up later in October we have a one-shot story called “The Destiny Game”. Since I didn’t take any notes about this particular issue other than Bill asking the audience if they felt that the Fables series did not do a good enough job when it comes to magic and destiny… below is the summary of the issue from the Vertigo Comics website:

How does fate work in the Fables fictional universe? Find out in this tale full of deadly chases, betrayals, sword fights and skulduggery, as superstar guest-artist Gene Ha guides us through “The Destiny Game.” Also: Bufkin and his “girlfriend” sidekick continue their Ozian adventures in the backup feature painted by Shawn McManus.

An interesting quote that was spoke to the audience later in the panel… straight from the upcoming issue of Fables:

Your sons and daughters will become gods and monsters that lay waste on the world…

Continue reading →

Fleeting: What is in a Name? (Part Two of Two)

So about a week ago I mentioned a bit about the history of how my name came to be… and how originally I was going to have a Vietnamese first name and a Westernized middle name. However my parents flipped it favoring the first name to be Westernized in order to help me become more acclimated within the United States.

However, the online community knows me more by the pseudonym: Marianya Klis. So what does Kabalarians say about that?

First Name

Your name Marianya has made you strong willed and self-sufficient. You do not depend on others for encouragement, but you respond to appreciation and enjoy being the centre of attention. You thrive on interacting with people when you can implement your original ideas. You could be inventive and ingenious along practical lines. You enjoy new ideas and new projects, but have difficulty in following through if once you find the novelty of an activity has worn off. New ideas hold your interest, but you become restless when boredom or monotony sets in. However, once you make up your mind that something is going to work, you persevere until it is accomplished.

As your independence and freedom are very important, you will seldom tolerate limitations. You tend to scatter your efforts and to avoid those activities that require concentration, system and order, and attention to detail. You like to act spontaneously, but impulsive decisions and poor judgment can occasionally lead you into unsettling circumstances which spoil the success of your undertakings. Seldom planning ahead, you undertake projects and work out the details as circumstances arise.

Surname

The surname of Klis gives those using it a genuine love for their fellow man and the desire to assume responsibility for others. They are warm-hearted and sincere in manner. They will often participate actively in community affairs. People tend to seek their advice, for their judgment is sound in both business and personal matters, and they usually exemplify stability in their own personal lives. They like the settled environment of a home and family. Natural parents, they respect parenthood as a serious responsibility. They are usually a very close-knit family, and can enjoy one another’s association, although there could be a tendency to be over-possessive. Self-sufficient and independent, they are happiest when in business for themselves, or when managing a business. They would make good teachers, doctors, lawyers, or real estate sales people. Although quite practical in nature, they can enjoy music and the arts and could become musical themselves. They are decisive and reliable, although they do take life too seriously and worry too much. Although this name has many fine qualities, the degree of harmony in the family will depend greatly upon the characteristics created by the first names of individual members in the family.

But how did I, personally, decide upon this name?
Continue reading →

Entertainment: Games / Toys turning into Movies

So, as this old news, what surprise is there in that Hasbro is looking into turning some of their other properties into potential movies? After Transformers, G.I.Joe, and Battleship what else could possibly be turned into a movie?

Plenty as it would appear…

According to the Los Angeles Times:

Hasbro, has signed a deal with independent production and finance company Emmett/Furla Films to make movies based on the board games Hungry Hungry Hippos and Monopoly and the toy Action Man.

Rhode Island-headquartered Hasbro, which has a film production office at the Universal Pictures lot, announced the three-picture deal Thursday and confirmed that the first movie will be “Monopoly,” which the two companies hope to start production on in 2013.

Hmm… oook. I have a morbid curiosity as to how this is going to work out… as I read through the article I noticed that there were other properties in the pipeline for movie-dom:

Along with sequels to “Transformers” and “G.I. Joe” at Paramount, Hasbro has other properties set up around Hollywood, including Candyland at Sony Pictures and Stretch Armstrong at Relativity Media.

Continue reading →

Review: The Voice of Việt Nam (Live Rounds – Trần Lập Edition)

As I did with the Thu Minh Edition… I will look into what happened with Trần Lập’s team and how they got whittled down from seven to five. If you do not remember how the breakdown happened go to the post of the Live Round Edition – Whittling Seven Down to Five.

Looking at Thu Minh’s team there is a massive run away winner in the public vote. In the case of Trần Lập’s team there were three member that got the lion’s share of the public vote with everyone one else trailing a bit behind them. The top two of the three got an automatic in via the public vote:

Nguyễn Thùy Linh (31.7%) who sang “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”

Trần Thi Kim Loan (31.63%) who sang “Và ta đã thấy mặt trời” (Finally I Saw the Sun)

Continue reading →

Review: The Voice of Việt Nam (Live Rounds – Thu Minh Edition)

With the second round of two teams of seven participating in the second Live Show from teams Hồ Ngọc Hà and Đàm Vĩnh Hưng, let’s look and see how the first two teams fared in the first set of Live Shows. In case you do not know how the teams are whittled from teams of seven to a team of five head to my post: Live Round – Whittling Seven Down to Five.

Taking a look at the online list of how the public vote was separated, Thu Minh’s team had a clear winner in the popular vote running away with more than half of the votes that were called in and everyone else just trailing behind.

The Public Vote winners of Thu Minh’s team were:
“Phạm Thị Hương Tràm” who sang “Anh” (You). According to statistics she apparently earned the lion’s share (57.23%) of the public vote from her team.

… in case you did not know, she sang a Whitney Houston classic during her blind audition.

As for her team mate Dương Trần Nghĩa he sang Bay which translates to Fly (mind you Bay is the Vietnamese word, not the English word). He got about 11.09% of the vote.

Continue reading →

Reflection: Zenobia the Original Musical Production Coming 2013

This was released for public viewing not that long ago:

According to YouTube:

A promotional video for the original musical, “Zenobia,” being premiered in Bolingbrook, IL in 2013 by Theatre-on-the-Hill, a not-for-profit community theatre. Book and lyrics by Lorrisa Julianus, music by Angela Salvaggione. Comments have been deactivated to discourage abuse, but if you are interested in participating in any capacity or attending, please contact us at www.tothbolingbrook.com.

Overview: Zenobia – who was sold into slavery upon birth – is a slave in the household of Danathus, King of Palmyra. While there she falls in love with the young prince: Alexander, who chooses the rebellion against the Roman oppressors which pushes her into the arms of his uncle, Danathus. Together, Danathus and Zenobia expand the empire until his untimely death where she continues the expansion at the chagrin of the Roman Emperor: Aurelian.

How to describe this musical? Epic… that is the best way to describe it.
Continue reading →

Review: The Voice of Việt Nam (Live Round – Whittling Seven Down to Five)

So I was catching up with The Voice of Việt Nam, Việt Nam’s version of the United States hit The Voice.

A lot of the premise is still the same, but there are some things that I found to be rather interesting.

First let’s go back to what I mentioned about reality television in Việt Nam in general

I didn’t realize this show existed until I was chatting with family in Việt Nam and noticed a news article on Yahoo.co.vn site about a contestant on Việt Nam’s version of The Voice… also known as “The Voice of Việt Nam”. Complete with a Facebook Page, “The Voice of Việt Nam” is similar to that of the first two seasons of America’s version of The Voice. The blind auditions, the battle rounds, then the live rounds.

Each judge/coach has to comprise teams of fourteen vocalists from the blind auditions, then during the battle rounds those fourteen are whittled down to seven. As of this past Monday (September 24) the Live Rounds have begun.

The judging / coaching panel includes:
– Thu Minh: Dance, Pop Ballad
– Trần Lập: Rock, hardrock
– Hồ Ngọc Hà: Pop, R&B, Ballad, Dance
– Đàm Vĩnh Hưng: Việt Nam Pop

Unlike the United States version of The Voice, the judging / coaching panel tend to stay more in the similar realms and don’t really stretch out that much.

So it has been two weeks and already there are changes between the Việt Nam version and what we know in the United States:
Continue reading →

Fleeting: What is in a Name? (Part One of Two)

So while I was in Việt Nam, I found out (and I don’t remember how) that when I came home from that hospital over thirty-odd years ago… originally my “given name” or rather “first name” was my Vietnamese Name (which is now my “middle name”).

Say what?

Without revealing my entire name… right now it looks like this:

FIRST MIDDLE LAST
Westernized Vietnamese Surname/Family

Whileas when I was borne it was originally this:

FIRST MIDDLE LAST
Vietnamese Westernized Surname/Family

Interesting. Mind you my mother was having this conversation about names in the car with various other relatives and the question of changing names came up and she mentioned that if you need to make a name change you just go to city hall. When asked more about it she told them that she did it for me when I was a baby. (I may not speak Vietnamese, but I definitely understand it… don’t I make a good spy? :D)

When I asked her about it, she mentioned that she did it within a year after I born to make it easier for me to live and survive in the United States. Makes sense… Now I am wondering how much would my life have changed if my name was different… and trust me, we may not place a lot of emphasis on names… but a direct change like that does change a person’s outlook on life.

Out of curiosity one day I decided to look into the meaning of my (names) and this was what I was able to discover:

WESTERNIZED VIETNAMESE SURNAME/FAMILY NAME
Who is Like God Noble – Intellectual Brightness (unknown believed to be “lake”)

So what is the meaning of my name? Well… let’s look at Kabalarians for the hell of it:
Continue reading →

Reflection: Việt Nam Death Rituals… a Look Back

According to Vietnamese anthropologist Phạm Công Sơn (1996):

Death is not the end but is the final stage of one life to be transformed into another.

Two years ago I went to Việt Nam for a spell, to visit family while my paternal grandfather (ông nội) was still alive and ended up connecting with my paternal grandmother (bà nội). As my family and I were getting ready to leave for the states my paternal grandfather’s health made a turn for the worse and suddenly my father asked if I would be willing to stay behind to watch over my grandfather and keep everyone up-to-date in the states.

For a few minutes I was tempted… more than tempted really. However in the end I decided against it and went home, only for my grandfather’s health to deteriorate to the point that my parents and all my dad’s siblings flew back to Việt Nam to bury their father. I stayed home… wondering if perhaps I should have stayed in Việt Nam… I never got a chance to see the burial process, I was unaware of the traditions involved…

Over Labor Day weekend my father’s side of the family suffered a devastating loss… only two years after the passing of my ông nội (essentially the patriarch in the family)… The loss of the matriarch. This time I had a front seat view of the traditions since the timing was as such that within hours of setting foot in Sài Gòn my family and I would be saying goodbye to my bà nội.

Since this is my first time going through all the Vietnamese death rituals and traditions it is still kind of hard to describe a lot of what I just went though – being a first-generation in America I only know so much – so I scoured the internet for some thing that would go into enough detail of what I experienced and I could just add in my thoughts along the way… eventually I did.

At Ethonomed.com there is a very thorough article to goes step by step of what happened within that family and the rituals they have undergone and most of it is very accurate to what I have gone through.

Originally I was going to add photos to this to give an idea of some of the sights through my eyes, but on second thought those are very private photos and photos that I personally would not feel comfortable showing to a public audience. So instead the photos here are those of a similar nature that is a reflection of what I went through, but not exact. This is to protect the privacy of my family and relations not only stateside but in Việt Nam as well.
Continue reading →