Circus

Film: Housefull 4 Cast: Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Bobby Deol, Kriti Sanon, Kriti Kharbanda, Pooja Hegde, Boman Irani, Chunky Pandey Direction: Farhad Samji Rating: * * (two stars) Give them some points for consistency. Maintaining the same low IQ over four films – and crafting it into a moneymaking franchise – is no small deal. By now, the makers of these "Housefull" films have chucked all notions of sensible storytelling and intelligent humour. Why bother? What matters is setting off a big bang hype before release, and the box-office math solves itself. "Housefull 4" tries giving Bollywood's much-flogged ‘punarjanam' (reincarnation) formula a spoofy spin. The idea would seem quirky, to begin with. Unlike standard Bollywood reincarnation dramas, where the hero and heroine (and villain at most) get rebirth after an untimely death, "Housefull 4" merrily puts its entire cast on the Punarjanam bandwagon. Every single character is reborn. Daft as the premise … [Read more...] about Movie Review: ‘Housefull 4’ Is More Like A Haggard Circus (Rating * *)

Early view of Woodward's Garden shows the entrance to the amusement park which was on Mission and 13th Streets. The park, which opened in 1866 and closed in the 1890's, attracted thousands of people. This rare image comes from the San Francisco Chronicle's archives.  less Early view of Woodward's Garden shows the entrance to the amusement park which was on Mission and 13th Streets. The park, which opened in 1866 and closed in the 1890's, attracted thousands of people. This rare ... more Photo: Chronicle Archives Photo: Chronicle Archives Image 1 of / 53 Caption Close Image 1 of 53 Early view of Woodward's Garden shows the entrance to the amusement park which was on Mission and 13th Streets. The park, which opened in 1866 and closed in the 1890's, attracted thousands of people. This rare … [Read more...] about The Mission District once housed a circus-like amusement park. Take a look inside

ALEC MEAD has experienced it all from firefighting to working in the circus – but there will be no clowning around in Bahrain this week. The 30-year-old Welsh Middleweight battles South Africa’s Peace Nguphane at the IMMAF World Championships in the Round of 32 this afternoon. Mead, from Cwmgwrach, is a super-mad Jackie Chan fanatic and always believed he was destined to compete. But the Brazilian jiu jitsu expert’s journey to competing on the world MMA stage has certainly been a momentous and well-travelled one.Speaking to Sun Sport, he said: “I was travelling America as part of the circus. I was teaching people to perform in the Circus of the Kids. “I applied for my visa through Camp America, then I went for a separate job with them, because they only take on eight people internationally a year. “I got it and I was out there for six months, and it was amazing. I used to compete in gymnastics and that’s how I got into it. “I was doing … [Read more...] about Ex-circus performer Alex Mead quit as fireman to emulate hero Jackie Chan in MMA as IMMAF World Championships

Photo: © 2019 Calder Foundation, New York / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York Last Friday, American artist Alexander Calder’s beloved Circus reemerged at the Whitney Museum of American Art. Made between 1926 and 1931, it had been falling apart and had been in storage. But now it’s back in all of its wee glory. In a darkened gallery space, a cowboy made of scrappy pieces of leather and wood wrangles a wire horse; a prima donna in a cheap, pink silk dress raises one thin metal arm as if singing; a wire acrobat is poised to flip; and off to the left is the ringmaster with a big black top hat and a little cork face, his arms swung open to announce the show. Even now, the tiny figures of the circus will remain static, waiting for their commands: Calder used to perform the piece by moving the figures with strings, wires, and pulleys. But their creator and manipulator is gone, but they remain, too delicate for anybody else to dare animate. On a June afternoon three … [Read more...] about How Alexander Calder’s Wee Circus Was Brought Back to Life

Calder’s Circus. Photo: © 2019 Calder Foundation, New York / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York Treats keep popping out of the Whitney Museum of American Art like clowns from a Volkswagen. Behold its reinstallation, on view starting June 28th, of one of the most beloved, fun, and radical works of 20th-century American art: Alexander Calder’s completely refurbished, transcendentally joyous Circus. Made between 1926 and 1931, when Calder, the son and grandson of artists (his father sculpted the George Washington on the Washington Square Arch, his grandfather the colossal statue of William Penn atop Philadelphia’s City Hall), was in his late 20s and early 30s, living in Paris, and hanging around with the likes of Picasso, Miró, Mondrian, Léger, and all the other European modernist heavyweights. In Circus — probably the best of his many great works and a pioneering piece in a style I reckon might stand the test of time better than a batch of … [Read more...] about Calder’s Delightful Tiny