Photo by Annie Leibovitz

Gilt and Grandeur
Hamish Bowles uncovers The Met's "Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the 18th Century." With lush photos by Annie Leibovitz.

J'adore Henry Thomas
Remember this movie?

Why Do We Call Futbol Soccer?
Why did David Beckham and Posh (or whatever Spice Girl he's married to) bring a cadre of zealous PR pros to L.A. last year? How come soccer just can't seem to catch hold here in the U.S.? One can only guess at the answers to these questions, but regardless the soccer star/playboy is making waves on both sides of the Atlantic with rumors of his infidelity and the current (in)famous "art" exhibit at the National Gallery in London. His PR firm should be high-fiving themselves right about now.

The Ancient Art of Letter Writing
Morning Edition interviews the author of Posterity: Letters of Great Americans to Their Children. Give it a listen if you have time--they read excerpts from letters by Alexander Graham Bell, Jack London, and more. It's pretty entertaining stuff.

BIG NEWS: It's getting Dark in here. Donnie Darko is beingre-released in theatres with 20 minutes of extra footage. The new version will premiere at the Seattle International Film Festival.

Twelve days in April: 83 U.S. soldiers dead.
"Also this month, more than 560 were wounded and two soldiers were declared missing. At least four American civilians were killed, one contractor was captured by gunmen and six others are missing and feared abducted...Iraqis also are dying – in their case, by the hundreds, particularly in Fallujah. About 880 Iraqis have been killed since April 5, according to an AP count based on statements by Iraqi hospital officials, the U.S. military and Iraqi police. "
(Salon.com)

Ricky Gervais (writer, director, star of BBC's The Office) on Fresh Air

Damn. The weekend is over.

Watched Northfork (Polish brothers) tonight and while I thought it was really beautiful, there was something missing. The ideas were there (the midwest in the 50s, hope, the promise of a better future, the divine in the ordinary...I could go on and on) and the performances were extraordinary (Nick Nolte plays the world-weary priest; Ben Foster didn't say a word but the look in his eyes exquisitely mirrored pain, pity, and joy). However, the answers to many of the questions remained Mulholland Drive-style elusive and some of the dialogue was jarring (that's an understatement, really). "What are you talking about, Willis?" for example. The problems aside, it's well worth seeing.

"Look kids, Big Ben....Parliament."

4/30-5/3 London
5/3 Harrogate
5/4-5/5 Edinburgh
5/5-5/7 Glasgow
5/8 London

Upcoming Midnight Shows at the Nuart:
Hitchcock's Vertigo (4/16)
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (4/23)
Sixteen Candles (5/21)

And of course Donnie Darko is playing at the Rialto's midnight show on 4/1 but I'll be in London that week.

'44 plane wreck of Saint-Exupéry (The Little Prince) discovered

HBO/BBC's "Rome" miniseries debuts in 2005

This made me cry.

Whether you love it or hate it, Dogville is brutal.

Caught the The Strokes this weekend--good times. At first I thought this place (Universal Ampitheatre) is too big and the band is too drunk. But within minutes I was more in love than ever. In between falling down (and into the audience), arguing, and dousing themselves with alcohol, they played a great show. What is it about self-destructive rock stars? Blueprint recorded verbatim some of Julian's ramblings here.

The latest OC Style Report is live for your intellectual pleasure. Enjoy!

Watched the first hour of A&E's The Last King. The story is intriguing but it's shot in documentary-style for no real reason and even Rufus Sewell looked scary in his glossy curls (v. hot w/out tho). The wigs come off (as in this pic) during sport but strangely enough stay on in bed (lots of bed-hopping in the wigs). Funny to see Tim from The Office with long hair and so serious. On a related note: Love fencing scenes, tho none can compare to Darcy fencing while trying to forget Eliza Bennet in P&P, natch.