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This morning an X Prize competitor is going to try to make it to space (and back safely). It's an interesting prospect. A $10 million prize awarded to the first team who a) privately finances, builds & launches a spaceship, able to carry three people to 100 kilometers (62.5 miles) b) returns safely to Earth and c) repeats the launch with the same ship within 2 weeks.
Today's launch only has one passenger but they're hoping to increase that to the required three people (or the weight of three people) by sometime in September. I keep hearing comparisons to the Wright brothers and Lindbergh but I'm not sure this compares. Those were firsts which this isn't. I'd also like to see them build something that can orbit. But, that said, I'm all for projects that promote space exploration and increase public awareness/interest.
From this week's EW:
"If early rumors are true, Brokeback Mountain- based on an Annie Proulx short story and adapted by Larry McMurty- could bust one of Hollywood's long-standing barriers. A-list hunks Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal appear as a Wyoming ranch hand and a Texas cowboy whose friendship develops into an explicit, decades-long love affair. 'Everyone is really excited and nervous,' reports Ledger from the film's Calgary set. 'We're all hoping that it'll break some taboos. But I don't want people getting overexcited about how new the story line is. To me, we're telling a beautiful love story before anything else.'
Ledger worried that the film's subject matter could lead to a second rate cheesefest. '[Director] Ang Lee came to me with the story, and the first time I heard about it, I thought it sounded really retarded,' he laughs. 'I mean...a gay cowboy movie? Once I read the script, the story revealed itself to be anything but. It's mature and strong.' The story- which first appeared in The New Yorker in 1997- languished in development hell for years despite interest from the likes of Gus Van Sant, Josh Hartnett, and Colin Farrell. Lee finally agreed to take it on, quickly attracting a supporting cast that includes Randy Quaid, Michelle Williams, and Anne Hathaway. 'Naomi [Watts, his ex-girlfriend] definitely helped me muster up the strength and courage to say that this was the right thing to do,' says Ledger. Brokeback opens in 2005."
I'm craving Jamba Juice for lunch. Is it only 9am?
EDIT: Spoilers about Brokeback Mountain in the comments.
Today's launch only has one passenger but they're hoping to increase that to the required three people (or the weight of three people) by sometime in September. I keep hearing comparisons to the Wright brothers and Lindbergh but I'm not sure this compares. Those were firsts which this isn't. I'd also like to see them build something that can orbit. But, that said, I'm all for projects that promote space exploration and increase public awareness/interest.
From this week's EW:
"If early rumors are true, Brokeback Mountain- based on an Annie Proulx short story and adapted by Larry McMurty- could bust one of Hollywood's long-standing barriers. A-list hunks Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal appear as a Wyoming ranch hand and a Texas cowboy whose friendship develops into an explicit, decades-long love affair. 'Everyone is really excited and nervous,' reports Ledger from the film's Calgary set. 'We're all hoping that it'll break some taboos. But I don't want people getting overexcited about how new the story line is. To me, we're telling a beautiful love story before anything else.'
Ledger worried that the film's subject matter could lead to a second rate cheesefest. '[Director] Ang Lee came to me with the story, and the first time I heard about it, I thought it sounded really retarded,' he laughs. 'I mean...a gay cowboy movie? Once I read the script, the story revealed itself to be anything but. It's mature and strong.' The story- which first appeared in The New Yorker in 1997- languished in development hell for years despite interest from the likes of Gus Van Sant, Josh Hartnett, and Colin Farrell. Lee finally agreed to take it on, quickly attracting a supporting cast that includes Randy Quaid, Michelle Williams, and Anne Hathaway. 'Naomi [Watts, his ex-girlfriend] definitely helped me muster up the strength and courage to say that this was the right thing to do,' says Ledger. Brokeback opens in 2005."
I'm craving Jamba Juice for lunch. Is it only 9am?
EDIT: Spoilers about Brokeback Mountain in the comments.
