Posts Tagged ‘ca’

Actual Trauma on the Set of NBC’s Trauma – Star Aimee Garcia Busts Her Finger

Wednesday, March 17th, 2010

Lovely “Helicopter Hero” Aimee Garcia had a mishap a few days back in San Francisco while filming a scene for new (and improved?) Trauma.

As she recently related to NBC’s Natalie Morales:

“I was doing a scene where my ex-military boyfriend gets in a fight, and it was scripted that I just stand there … I just got involved. I pulled one actor off of another and they loved it. They said, ‘Keep doing it.’ We did it 12 times and I didn’t realize on the first take I broke my finger.”

Here’s the video from the Today Show.

A finger mishap always makes for good TV of course, especially when you don’t lie about it.  

Let’s hope Aimee can get her left hand back on that giant twirlypopper’s collective control sooner rather than later.

Courage.

Conan O’Brien Plays San Francisco April 22-23: $74 a Ticket, Meet Conan for Just $695

Thursday, March 11th, 2010

Oh, it’s on. It’s going to be Coco a Gogo when Conan O’Brien’s “half-assed“ 32-city Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour 2010 comes to the Nob Hill Masonic Auditorium April 22-23. It’ll be just like 2007 all over again.

“Full Price Tickets” from TicketMonster are going right now for $74, all up. And for just $695 you can get in on the Meet and Greet Package- wouldn’t you like a photo of you and Coco to put on the FaceBook for all your “friends” to see? Sure you would.

I don’t know, maybe you can score some cheaper ticks by using your AmEx card or going to the box office or something.

See you there!

All the tour locations, after the jump

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NBC’s Trauma is Back on TV But With the Worst Ratings Ever

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

Take a look for yourself to see dude just drive off the Bay Bridge due to a moment’s inattention in last night’s episode of NBC’s Trauma serial. (Do you think you’d survive after falling so far inside a Jeep Cherokee Classic? I don’t think it’d be possible, but maybe the breast implants inside the car softened the jolt or something.)

Yesterday’s relaunch, debuting the first new ep since November 2009, earned ratings of 1.4/3, which are 22% lower than last year’s average for the show.

Shooting in North Beach as it looked last year near the top of Kearny Street, the most-filmed block on any street in Northern California:

Anyway the bad ratings add up to trouble, according to The Wrap:

“The problem started at 9 p.m., with the previously sorta-canceled “Trauma” (1.4/3) returning from the grave as a Nielsen zombie. It hit its lowest rating yet, falling 22 percent from its fall average and 13 percent from its last original. It wouldn’t be shocking if NBC decided to quickly replace “Trauma” in the timeslot. That’s because “Trauma” tainted “L&O,” which managed a third-place 1.5/4 at 10 p.m. — down 25 percent from last week, when NBC aired a double dose of the drama from 9-11 p.m. Worse, “L&O” was actually off 6 percent from what “The Jay Leno Show” had been averaging at 10 p.m. Mondays.

“NBC — which actually did quite well last week, given the fact that it had to fill 5 hours of primetime post-Jay– does not want to see any negative Leno-to-scripted comparisons at 10 p.m. Period.”

Not saying I would or could do a better job, but maybe the whole concept of shooting this kind of old-school TV show on location on the Streets of San Francisco was a bad idea? Is that possible?

On It Goes. How much longer will this Great San Francisco Nielsen Zombie last?

Jerry Brown is Looking Good at his Campaign Kickoff Today

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

But As Always, You Make The Call.

Do you think this guy is like Grandpa Simpson, rambling on about irrelevancies?

Or do you think this guy is ready to be California’s Once and Future Governor?

All the deets, after the jump

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Jerry Brown Throws Down: Owners of Recalled Toyotas and Lexuses Get Loaner Cars

Friday, February 26th, 2010

California Attorney General Jerry Brown can’t abide you fretting over your recalled Toyota or Lexus - so he just struck a deal with Toyota USA so that you’ll be taken care of when getting service.

It’s all going to be on a case-by-case basis, so if you’re totally freaked out and you just don’t want to drive your car no mo, then maybe your dealership can send somebody to come around your place to pick up your car, fix it and return it as good as new. Or you can get a loaner if your repairs go into extra innings.

Read the news, below.

Jerry Brown, automático para la gente:

Brown Forges Deal with Toyota to Help Consumers While Recalled Vehicles are Repaired

Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced that his office has reached an agreement with Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc. to provide California Toyota owners with at-home pickup and vehicle return and cost-free alternative transportation while their recalled vehicles are being repaired.

“This agreement goes a long way towards easing the burden caused by Toyota’s massive recall,” Brown said. “It will now be much easier for Toyota owners to get to work and take their kids to school while critical safety repairs are made on their cars.”

Under the terms of today’s agreement, Toyota will provide owners of recalled vehicles the following services:

- Pick-up and return of vehicles by the dealership;
- Transportation to the dealership and/or to the owner’s place of work;
- Alternative transportation, such as a rental car, loaner vehicle or taxi reimbursement for a reasonable period that the customer is unable or unwilling to use his or her car; and
- Expedited scheduling for repair services.

These services will be provided by Toyota through the dealers at no cost to either the owners or the dealer.

The following Toyota vehicle recalls are covered by today’s agreement:
- September 29, 2009 for floormat entrapment;
- January 21, 2010 for sticking accelerator pedals;
- February 8, 2010 for anti-lock brake system issues; and
- February 12, 2010 for drive-shaft failure.

The following vehicles are involved in the recent Toyota and Lexus vehicle recalls: 2005-2010 Avalon, 2007-2010 Camry, 2009-2010 Corolla, 2007-2010 ES 350, 2008-2010 Highlander, 2006-2010 IS 250 and IS350, 2009-2010 Matrix, 2004-2009 Prius, 2010 Prius, 2009-2010 RAV4, 2008-2010 Sequoia, 2005-2010 Tacoma, 2007-2010 Tundra, 2009-2010 VENZA, and 2010 HS 250h.

More information on the specific vehicles affected by the recalls can be found at www.nhtsa.dot.gov and www.toyota.com/recall.

Californians are encouraged to contact their local Toyota and Lexus dealers if they believe they are eligible for these accommodations. Consumers can also contact Toyota’s customer service center at 1-800-331-4331 or Lexus at 1-800-255-3987.

This agreement will remain in place until all Toyota vehicles subject to the recall have been repaired. If additional safety recalls arise, an extension of this agreement or other appropriate provisions will be pursued.

Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc. is based in Torrance, CA.

Stanford Frosh Crystal Lee Crowned Miss Chinatown USA for 2010

Sunday, February 21st, 2010

This was the scene last night at the Palace of Fine Arts, where Stanfurd freshman and bay area local Crystal Lee was crowned Miss Chinatown USA 2010. It’s international news.

All the pageantry was caught by David Yu of davidyuweb. He always has great photos of whatever’s going on the bay area. 

The crowning the School of the Arts alum:

Here are all the contestants: Christine Lim 李汶娸, Kristina Owyoung 歐陽坤怡, Samantha Chin 陳冠曄, Leilani Soon 孫愛蘭, Anna Chiem 詹佩盈, Christina Zhang 張子倩, Crystal Lee 李萬晴, Gloria Mui 梅主恩, Angela Wang 王兆蓬, Chang Liu 劉暢, Li Li 李欣燃, and Tong Qiao 喬彤:

How many peacocks had to die for this outfit? None, I s’pose:

Congratulations:

Crystal Lee

San Francisco, CA
Miss Chinatown U.S.A.

Kristina Owyoung
Lafayette, CA
Miss Chinese Chamber of Commerce/First Princess

Christina Zhang
Pleasanton, CA
Miss San Francisco Chinatown

Li Li
Flushing, NY
2nd Princess

Anna Chiem
Chicago, IL
3rd Princess

Angela Wang
Sugar Land, TX
4th Princess

Anna Chiem
Chicago, IL
Miss TVB Choice Award

And of course our Chinese New Year’s Parade is coming up (rain expected – it’s free to watch of course, or you can pay $30 for reserved seating) on Saturday, February 27th, 2010, right after the Coronation Ball:

Miss Chinatown U.S.A. Coronation Ball
Friday, February 26, 2010
San Francisco Hilton & Towers
333 O’Farrell Street, San Francisco
(415) 982-3000
6:00 pm No Host Cocktails
7:00 pm Dinner and Dancing until midnight
Tickets: $120
The newly selected Miss Chinatown USA and her court will be crowned at the annual Harrah’s Coronation Ball. The black tie dinner/dance, attended by many community leaders, promises to be a highlight of the Lunar New Year festivities.

An Apology From the Star of NBC’s Trauma, Plus New Filming at Oakland Islamic Center

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010

Why, it’s almost as if the people behind NBC’s Trauma serial have figured out a thing or two. Comes now Cliff Curtis, the New Zealand star who plays “cocky” helicopter pilot Rabbit, to say:

“The characters weren’t developed properly at first.

We took a lot of creative license, but learned from it.

We listened to the audience and to critics, and were able to satisfy a lot of complaints about the characters.

We improved the humor and the action on the front line.”

It’s almost like they’re shooting a whole new show! Good on you, Rabbit. Remember how excited people were when gorgeous Jennifer Siebel Newsom was in the pilot episode? Maybe we can get some of that back.

NBC/Universal

Now, while we’re remembering last autumn, wasn’t that the time when co-star Aimee Garcia was spinning this tale

 
O.K., hold on to that one. Now, try this on for size, per a recent interview with Cliff Curtis:
 
“NBC’s freshman “Trauma” series was considered such a sure-shot for early extinction that members of the crew gave up their apartments on San Francisco location.”
 
At The Length Truth Will Out. Moving on…
 
Shooting for, what shall we call it, Trauma II: This Time We Mean It moves to the East Bay tomorrow. Actually, they were looking for extras with Pakistani heritage just the other day. But keep in mind that when you’re an extra working on Treasure Island you get paid $1.79 more per hour than when you’re an extra working in Oakland. Why? It all has to do with the minimum wage. Anyway, you might be too late for this, but there could be other gigs coming up:
 
Mosque scenes will be filmed Wed. 2/17 at a temple in Oakland. Extras will appear to be praying when an older Pakistani woman has a seizure causing the cast member medics to respond.”
  
Take heart, extras - I can recall a time when the minimum wage was a lot less than $64/8-hour day. Oh well.
 
And of course the TV addicts are, once again, talking about how, once again, Trauma is a “goner”.
 
No matter, re-re-newed filming should continue ’til March or April, and then we’ll just have to wait and see, huh?

Straight Out of Emeryville – AMTRAK’s So-Called Train From Hell and Its Whiny Passengers

Monday, January 11th, 2010

How much would you expect from Amtrak if you paid $145 to board the California Zephyr in Emeryville, CA on January 3rd, 2010 with the expectation of getting to Chicago in a day-and-a-half? Well, what if your fellow passengers called this ride the “Train From Hell” or something?

How did it get that name? Well, the train arrived in Illinois almost a day late a few days back due to it hitting a truck abandoned on the tracks(!) and encountering snowdrifts  higher than an elephant’s eye  in Nebraska and other typical travel issues.

The number of deaths and injuries continues to be reported as zero. So how does that earn this particular Zephyr the sobriquet “Train From Hell” or whatever?

Amtrak’s CZ on a happier day: 

via Patrick Rasenberg

Perhaps Amtrak’s riders took a lesson from the whiny passengers of Flight 1549, famously piloted by CoCo County’s Captain “Sully” Sullenberger? Those particular airline passengers are getting at least $15k-$20k, plus free traumatic stress counseling sessions, plus a refund of their ticket cost, plus upgrades to first class on other flights  for the past year, etc., and yet some of them are still whining.

Sometimes when you travel, Things Happen.* Please make a note of this.  

Lower your expectations and you’ll never be disappointed… 

*People used to die on jetliners – not Beechcrafts nor Cessnas oh no, we’re talking about your Boeings, Airbuses, Lockheeds, McDonnell Douglasseses – people would board and then die, it happened all the time. But how many passengers have died due to jetliner crashes in America since 2001 (which was a bad year, of course)? That’s a Big Fat Zero.

So count your blessings the next time a flock of birds or a pickup or a snowstorm or an Act of God or an Act of Gaia wettens your iPod and/or delays your Journey Through Life.

The Red Foxes are Back in the West End of Golden Gate Park, Off of JFK Drive

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

After a period of time of no sightings of foxes in Golden Gate Park, it seems that they might be coming back, especially in the western end. They probably are able to travel back and forth to the Presidio and Land’s End fairly easily.

Here’s a report from Joyce W., who saw a Fantastic Mr. (or Mrs. Fox) yesterday:

“It was about 4:00 pm and the fox was within 15 feet of JFK BLVD at the far West end.
It was intently watching a gopher hole on a wide open patch of mowed lawn.
Two cars stopped and watched in silence which didn’t seem to bother the fox.
 It wasn’t until a jogger came by that the creature dashed into the woods.
I am 90% sure it was a Red Fox and not our local Grey Fox.  Very striking colour combination with the red, black and white.
How did these creatures end up in the park? Amazing.
 
I regret that my cell phone was tucked away.  I was mesmerized by the vision before my eyes and didn’t want to divert my gaze for a second.
I watched it be absolutely still for at least three minutes.”

So there you have it. Coyotes are a similar size, but they run with their tails down and they’re not red the way cute cute red foxes are. So let’s call this a reliable report of a red fox in the west end of GGP at the tail end of 2009. Elusive, aren’t they? (Not at all like San Francisco’s raccoons and parrots.) 

Here are photos of some east end foxes, from back in the day:

Foxes certainly don’t mind living in and around cities. Near Lincoln Boulevard in the Inner Sunset. Until we get some new photos, these old ones will have to do. Click to expand:

The last fox I photographed in Golden Gate Park. A wispy blur:

From 175 feet away in Strybing Arboretum. She’ll see you before you see her:

A kit (or pup or cub) with its mom:

Keep a look out, they’re out there somewhere.

Send in your reports or post them to Twitter, as Thrusty did.