Well I paid 15 bucks to go and see the 125 million dollar Byzantine inspired, Golden Style portrait of Adele Bloch- Bauer painted by Gustav Klimt in 1907, now showing in the Neue Gallerie on 5th Avenue. Why is it worth 125 million dollars? Just to get publicity for the gallery, or for the story behind the painting to get publicity? Perhaps both. But was it worth 15 dollars to see? It certainly is exquisite and I think the story behind it deserves all the publicity it can get. -The entire estate of The Bloch-Bauers was seized by the Nazis in 1938, and this painting with 4 others have just been returned to their rightful heirs. What price can be put on the crimes the Nazis commited?
On a completely different note
And strange as it was that I had been in a gallery of German(and Austrian) art and that I should wander out into Central park afterwards and spark up a very pleasant conversation with a very handsome fellow from Germany........

Can the Swans pull off two premierships in a row? Will know at about 4 A.M. Saturday morning, New York time.No doubt by that time I will have drunk copious amounts of Aussie beer, and will suffer greatly for about a week after. But if the Swans win it will have all been worth it.
GO SYDNEY

A good coffee is near impossible to find here in New York. Though there are a few exceptions. The second floor cafe at the MOMA has to top the list but unless you have a membership the entry fee is 20 bucks and then the coffee is just shy of 5 dollars. But it is a well made product, served correctly. Joes at Union Square is another option, there they use that UHT milk that Americans seem to like and it gives the brew a funny taste. The coffee gets served in a cup sized mug, no saucer or spoon. Some things about America are not meant to be understood, just accepted. Then there is the Australian cafe Rubys, in Nolita, has a reputation for the good stuff, but I aint seen it.(I dont think there are any analogies about Australians there). Apart from trips to the MOMA I'd all but give up, I even became a Starbucks fiend, albeit briefly, where i got my filtered stuff in a cardboard cup and charged down the street with it at arms length. It was an act of desperation. Salvation of the highest order has arrived in a new joint that has opened up, very close to home(see picture above). The barrista is way cute, cant complain there, Macchiato on 44st b/n 3rd and Lex. Properly made, with proper ingredients served in a cup with a saucer and a spoon! Hows that! It's a rare thing in NYC.

Old Navy

Old Navy commercials following in the footsteps of The Matrix, Star Wars, Superman

There is a seemingly endless series of films from the Huston family currently screening at MOMA. the bulk of the works are from director John Huston, son of Walter and father of Danny and Anjelica. There have been some rippers like The Night of the Iguana, 1964, directed John Huston screenplay by Tennessee Williams, starring Ava Gardener, Deborah Kerr and Richard Burton. it is a racey number with lesbian desire, bondage, 3 way encounters and opiates. its got the lot.
Saw 2 films starring Marilyn Munro, the first being the Asphalt Jungle,directed John Huston 1950, where the automoblies are perhaps the biggest stars,Marilyn plays a small typical Marilyn role, the other film was the Misfits directed byJohn Huston 1961, screenplay by Arthur Miller, where she has a more serious role.
Reflections In A GoldenEye, 1967,directedby John Huston
starred Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor. Brando played an army captain whose repressed homosexual longings expressed themselves in an unexpressive, violent character. The film clearly shows that the character flaws are a result of him not expressing his homosexuality, which is different to most depictions of homosexuality from this era where it was most common to depict the homosexuality as cause of charater flaws.
Abraham Lincon(1930) starred old Walter Huston, I thought I might learn a bit of history but it was a total melodrama.
John Huston plays a small but brilliant part in Chinatown, which was great to see on the big screen,the theatre was packed.
there are Plenty more to come, might try to see The Dead and The recent Australian film The Proposition.

The roof of The Met has been in fine form this summer. The Met is open till 9:00 on Friday and saturday nights and the roof is a great place to have a drinkand watch the sun set.