Broadway To Vegas

Copyright: June 6, 2021
By: Laura Deni
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DO YOU KNOW HIM?

Sketch of boy known as John "LittleZion" Doe.

This darling child has been identified as 7-year-old Liam Husted.
The boy was reported missing from the San Jose, California area. The mother Samantha Moreno Rodriquez, 35, drove her son from San Jose, to Nevada where he was murdered and dumped.
A nation wide manhunt is on for that woman who is wanted for his murder. The boy's father is not involved.
Samantha Moreno Rodriguez was last seen May 31 alone at a Denver-area hotel, Las Vegas police Lt. Ray Spencer said.
She was driving a 2007 Dodge Caliber with CA 6WLH211.
The FBI has begun a nationwide social media search to identify the boy who was murdered and left in a desert outside Las Vegas.

His body was found by hikers May 28, 2021 behind a bush at a trail called Little Zion at Mountain Springs off state Route 160, the road that connects Las Vegas to Pahrump.

The FBI is offering a $10,000 reward.

Police speculate that his body was left there the night before it was found, sometime between 12 a.m. and 7 a.m.

John "Little Zion" Doe is described as Hispanic, 10-years-old, standing 4 feet 11 inches and weighing 123 pounds.

Police have not identified how he was murdered only to say he was a victim of a “horrible act.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Metro at 702-828-3521 or via email at homicide@lvmpd.com. The FBI’s tip lines can be accessed at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or tips@fbi.gov.

SKIN BY SIMON JAMES COLLIER CUTS DEEP TO SEND A MESSAGE

Written, directed and produced by Simon James Collier, Skin is a psycho thriller starring Samantha Boffin as marketing agency employee Vivian Shorewood who has crossed over from passionate activist to revenge anger.

There is no doubt that Vivian Shorewood and Hannibal Lecter would be soul mates.

Former respected forensic psychiatric Dr. Hannibal Lecter was a disgraced Lithuanian-American surgeon and psychiatrist who turned into a serial serial killer who eats his victims. He then commits other crimes to conceal his killings. Anthony Hopkins played him in the movie Silence of the Lambs.

In one of the most famous scenes Hopkins as Lecter explains: "I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti."

While Vivian doesn't intend to personally chow down on her victim, she also doesn't intend to waste any of him, either. But, that comes later.

Vivian has decided that she needs to skin someone. Then dry out the skin, sew it into a blouse to wear to the next office bash. "People will love it . . . So unusual, so original." They won't know that it's made of the skin of their marketing manager who has disappeared after bragging he was heading out on a blind date.

This isn't a spur of the moment trip off the deep end. Vivian has spent months planning her statement making cut up.

An overworked and underappreciated employee of a major marketing company, Vivian has been abused by the offensive and repugnant marketing manager as well as watching him abuse others. Then he went too far and, as far as Vivian was concerned, put a target on his back.

In order to trap him into her lair, she carefully created a romantic dating profile. The marketing manager fell for it and Vivian snagged a blind date with her future victim.

After drugging his Scotch, she got him into a sack and pulled him to her cellar.

The difficulty of that was made easy thanks to months of planning, including upper body building. It amused her that despite examples of illegal activities, such as drug dealing, taking place in the open, she was able to drug, sack and transport him into her cellar without anyone noticing. She rationalizes that people don't really want to see or know what is going on.

Just shy of six feet the ad executive is on the carving table, stripped of his clothing, injected with a drug which immobilizes him so that he is unable to move or speak, but is still alive and cognizant of what is being said and taking place.

Vivian had found the drug on the internet. The absurdities of import laws amuse her. For instance, not being able to take Vicks into Japan. She soon learns that if you look hard enough on the Web you can find and get anything. "With plain packaging and PayPal, things are possible."

She bought the immobilizing drug from Hong Kong.

She talks to her victim virtually non stop, explaining the how and whys of everything.

"i need to look into your eyes and see what you are feeling."

She admits that it took her awhile to get herself into the right headspace.

She criticized him for the way he "treated some people the way you did - such as Elaine - or 21-year- old Allison who complained about the amount of filing she had to do despite the fact that it was pointed to her that filing was a substantial part of the job. Vivian carps about the "sheer workload of finding replacements" all the time and paperwork it takes. She wishes job seekers would "just read the advert properly and decide if they were up to the task."

She thought some of her coworkers were totally delusional.

The thought of skinning a person complete with planning and research has given her a new lease on life - a reason for being.

As she sips her coffee she prepares his skin. Unaware of how hairy he might be, she brought along a collection of safety razors.

She washes him - "every nook and cranny", shaves off his hair, towels him down and then moisturizes his skin which she points out are expensive spa treatments which she is giving him for free

She concedes that an argument might be made that this was a form of s sexual harassment in some form but argues that "I need to emphasize in no way shape or form is this sexual. I have not molested you. This has a purpose."

She also is adamant that none of the products she is using have been tested on animals.

Her internet purchases included a stainless knife. She explains to her victim that a surgical knife has blades can be replaced and each blade is only used once. The "top quality" stainless steel knife she bought from China has a handle and blade which are one piece. On a budget, she plans to just toss it into the dish washer - spotlessly clean for her next victim. She also brought along some bowls to catch any blood from veins she might have accidentally nicked. After all, this was her first skinning and she might accidentally make a few nicks. She'll just throw the bowls into the dish washer to use them on her next victim.

Cleaning, softening the skin before removal is to prevent skin shrinkage She has also boned up on how and where to make incisions to strip off the skin in specific sections.

Scalp removal hints came from watching old cowboy and western movies which contained scalping scenes. Cable TV shows offered her an in depth look at how cosmetic surgeons work.

She tells him that she intends to "pop out you eyes - just because- they are such a lovely color and i want to keep them in my refrigerator as a memento of our evening."

Then she drops the real reason for the skinning.

That photo of Donald Trump's son Don, Jr. and Eric photographed by wild animals they had killed on safari.

Vivian had long been a strong a animal right's activist.

"Since 1970 we have killed off 60% of the wild animal life," is her exasperated lament. From dogs being eaten in China to fur clothing, Vivian is beyond contempt. Two thirds of all animal populations are being wiped out. 100,000 wild animals killed in the last 3 years.

The brutal killing of wildlife. The horrific thing that humans do to animals outraged her. How would we like it if animals ate humans? Forty-six days earlier she circulated a petition asking employees to sign a petition objecting to trophy hunting which featured a photo of Donald Trumo, Jr. and his brother Eric photographed by wild animals they killed on safari. The petition wanted to ban the export and import of spoils from trophy hunting. She received lots of encouraging. "Even Martin in accounts was on board."

All of the employees except the boss and his special cronies signed the petition. Then the boss returned the e-mail to the entire office but only after he Photoshoped his face in place of Eric, and put John's face in place of Donald, Jr. and then sent the e mail over the office internet with the caption "what real men do on a holiday."

That tipped Vivian over the edge into psycho. Her boss had put a target on his back and Vivian knew that she needed to do something to draw attention to the plight of innocent animals. She became inspired by the movie Soilent Green, which she saw on late night television.

Vivian decided that if this first skinning went well, she'd become a regular at it, "but i suppose I should use different locations - so that people don't become suspicious."

By skinning she knows: "in my heart of hearts that I have done my bit to help others."

What happens to the ad executive after he has been skinned? You'll just have to listen to the video, which is presented by Wireless Theatre Company.

Samantha Boffin as Vivian Shorewood is stupendous. In non stop dialogue she offers up just the right balance of maniacal with sensible intellect.

A well researched and written gory tale which holds your attention.

Music & Soundscape Design: Zachary Elliott-Hatton
Co Producer: Adam Dechanel
Recorded at The Umbrella Rooms Studio, London – January 2019
Engineer: Ben Robbins
Graphic Design: Clockwork Digital Studios.

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This is not your typical, totally boring textbook.

In the pages of How To Earn A Living As A Freelance Writer (the first to be lied to and the last to be paid) you'll find sex, celebrities, violence, threats, unethical editors, scummy managers and lawyers, treacherous press agents, sex discrimination; as well as a how-to for earning money by writing down words.

ART AND ABOUT

SUPERNATURAL AMERICA: THE PARANORMAL IN AMERICAN ART is the first museum exhibition to broadly examine the relationship between American artists and the supernatural. Featuring well-known artists together with many who have been overlooked, the exhibition is interdisciplinary, multicultural and multimedia.

It includes many generations of artists active in the United States from diverse faith traditions working with a wide range of topics and approaches. From the Salem Witch Trials and the Legend of Ichabod Crane; the 1848 spirit rappings famously reported by Kate and Maggie Fox and the spirit photographs of William Mumler; to the scientific pursuit of parapsychology and innumerable personal and official government reports of UFOs; American culture is filled with tales of the supernatural and accounts of paranormal experiences. This complex and multifaceted subject has beguiled American artists for centuries, and it remains compelling today.

A broad range of artists has engaged this subject matter, which often grew out of their personal experience, religious practices and scientific pursuits. Spanning a chronology of the early 19th century through the present, Supernatural America includes approximately 160 objects. It emphasizes painting at its core, but also includes drawings, sketchbooks and journals, prints, photographs, furniture, clothing and textiles, video, and other objects (scientific instruments and mediumistic/occult paraphernalia, including Ouija boards and planchettes).

Supernatural America: The Paranormal in American Art is organized by the Minneapolis Institute of Art. On display June 12-September 5, 2021 at the Toledo Museum of Art.

NEW YORK MET'S VIRTUAL MUSEUM MILE FESTIVAL takes place tuesday, June 8 from 9:00 A.M.–9:00 P.M EST.

Kick off your summer virtually with The Met! Go behind the scenes and check out gallery tours, interactive Storytime, art-making videos for all ages, and more.

All activities are free, and no registration is required. All videos are prerecorded.

YouTube videos also have captions in simplified Chinese and Spanish. To view the captions:
In the bottom right corner of the video, click Settings
Click Subtitles/CC
Select a language
The schedule is also available in simplified Chinese and Spanish.

CLAUDIA ANDUJAR: THE YANOMAMI STRUGGLE opens Wednesday June 16 at the Barbican in London.

Swiss-born Brazilian photographer and activist Claudia Andujar has spent over five decades living and documenting the Yanomami, Brazil’s largest Indigenous people. This summer, we bring you an exhibition devoted to her work and collaboration with them. From intimate portraits to experimental photographic techniques, the show brings together a body of work that seeks to gain a deeper understanding of their culture.

HARVARD ART MUSEUM presents Staged on Thursday, June 10, 2021.

In her tour, Maeve Miller ’22 will explore how performance and entertainment figure into three works of art. She will examine the woodcut Magician (1956), which Erich Heckel made in Germany more than 40 years after the heyday of his involvement with the Expressionist art movement; the painting Ventriloquist (1952), which Jacob Lawrence made in Harlem, New York, as part of his Performance Series; and a woodblock print depicting two actors, which was made in the late Edo Period (1794) by Toshusai Sharaku, a semi-legendary print designer about whom little is known. Miller will consider why the artists might have chosen these subjects and what the works reveal about both the artists and performers portrayed within them.

This interactive tour will take place online via Zoom. Free admission; no pre-registration required. 8:00pm-8:30pm EST.

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SWEET CHARITY

THE LATIN GRAMMY CULTURAL FOUNDATION TO BENEFIT from sales of the upcoming Carlos Vives 2021-2022 tour.

Vives has pledged to donate $1 from each ticket sold to support the Foundation in its mission to further music education for future music makers.

SPREADING THE WORD

ATTENTION PET PARENTS party with your pooch in Las Vegas. Guests staying at the Encore hotel may bring up to two canine family members so they may enjoy furry friend amenities.

It's part of the Strip resort's new dog friendly policy.

MAYIM BALIK gained respect from the television community by starring in the ’90s show Blossom, and more recently as Amy Farrah Fowler on the long running The Big Bang Theory. Her current sitcom Kat has been renewed for its 2nd season. She also garnered respect from academia by earning a Ph.D in neuroscience. Now Balik has finished her first week as guest host of Jeopardy. She is phenomenal! Hope she stays on as permanent host.

JAZZ, EQUITY AND BRAIN HEALTH join the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM), UC San Francisco Memory and Aging Center (UCSF MAC) and Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI), in collaboration with the Alzheimer’s Association, in an exchange on jazz, equity and brain health.

This event will explore othering and belonging through the lens of jazz music and neuroscience; building community through jazz and brain health equity; and the power of empathy, listening, and inclusion in jazz and dementia work. Presenters will consider the ideas of resilience, empathy, improvisation, equity, inclusion, belonging—as well as the social and genetic determinants of brain health—and how they relate to jazz, a musical genre that welcomes and celebrates individual diversity and freedom.

This is the fourth event in a series produced by SFCM, UCSF MAC and GBHI. It will take place during Addressing Health Disparities, a virtual conference hosted by the Alzheimer's Association.

Tuesday, June 15
1–2:15 PM PT / 3–4:15 PM CT / 9–10:15 PM GMT+1
Presenters: Amelie Anna, Percussionist, Vocalist, Composer; SFCM.

WORKS & PROCESS the performing arts series at the Guggenheim in New York City, announces two new board members, Virginia Johnson and Isaac Mizrahi.

“Virginia Johnson is a prolific member of the dance community, and Isaac Mizrahi is a live entertainment savant, and both will make superlative additions to our leadership,” stated Caroline Cronson, producer of Works & Process at the Guggenheim.

ADAM GOLDMAN IN CONVERSATION WITH ALAN CUMMING: HOT WHITE HEIST Join writer, director, and comedian Adam Goldman with Tony Award-winning actor Alan Cumming about their new Audible Original podcast Hot White Heist. Created by Goldman and directed by Cumming, "Hot White Heist follows a hilarious group of queer stars across the LGBTQ+ spectrum – including Bowen Yang, Cynthia Nixon, Tony Kushner, Bianca del Rio, Jane Lynch, and many more – for a heist tale like none other: stealing the sperm samples of American visionaries from the US government in hopes of starting a new queer utopia."

Hear Goldman and Cumming discuss the collaboration, stories from the recording of the series, and much more.

Presented by 92Y in New York City on Tuesday, June 17, 2021.






KENNEDY CENTER HONORS airs this evening, Sunday, June 6, 2021 on CBS inducting multi-disciplinary artist, choreographer and actress Debbie Allen; singer-songwriter and activist Joan Baez; country singer-songwriter Garth Brooks; violinist Midori; and actor Dick Van Dyke who will be recognized for their lifetime of artistic achievement.

TO BE A MACHINE (VERSON 1.0), the Dead Centre production with Dublin Theatre Festival has been awarded the Special Prize for Performance Practice by Irish Theatre Research.

To Be a Machine (Version 1.0) was presented as a live-audience-upload-experience from Project Arts Centre as part of our 2020 festival, exploring Transhumanism and challenging the boundaries of online theatre.

THE LATIN RECORDING ACADEMY has announced that eight-time Latin Grammy and nine-time Grammy-winner, singer-songwriter, producer, musician, actor and activist, Rubén Blades will be the 2021 Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year.

Blades will be honored for his continued commitment to fighting for social justice around the world by supporting initiatives that raise awareness towards political oppression, hunger, poverty, and more. Through his music, with songs such as "Prohibido Olvidar," "Buscando América" and "Desapariciones," he has been a champion for positive, meaningful change in Latin communities and beyond.

"Rubén Blades is a truly iconic artist who has inspired generations with his powerful and intelligent lyrics, and whose genius has stood for justice at all levels of society," said Gabriel Abaroa Jr., President/CEO of The Latin Recording Academy. "With activism and social justice movements at the forefront of our collective conversation this past year, we can't think of a more deserving and timely honoree of the Latin Academy Person of the Year distinction."

In addition, he is also an Emmy-nominated actor, having starred in over 50 films and television series in both English and Spanish, including his acclaimed role as Daniel Salazar in the award-winning series Fear The Walking Dead.

Beyond Blades' artistic success, he holds law degrees from the School of Law and Political Science at the Universidad de Panamá (1974) and the Harvard Graduate Law School LL.M (1985, Master in Law). He also served as Minister of Tourism of Panamá from 2004 to 2009.

Blades will be celebrated at a special star-studded gala featuring a heartfelt tribute concert, including renditions of his renowned repertoire performed by an impressive array of notable artists and friends.

The Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year recognizes musicians of Ibero-American heritage and honors their artistic achievements in the Latin music industry as well as their humanitarian efforts. Past honorees include Juanes (2019), Maná (2018), Alejandro Sanz (2017), Marc Anthony (2016), Roberto Carlos (2015), Joan Manuel Serrat (2014), Miguel Bosé (2013), Caetano Veloso (2012), Shakira (2011), Plácido Domingo (2010), Juan Gabriel (2009), Gloria Estefan (2008), Juan Luis Guerra (2007), Ricky Martin (2006), José José (2005), Carlos Santana (2004), Gilberto Gil (2003), Vicente Fernández (2002), Julio Iglesias (2001) and Emilio Estefan (2000). Net proceeds from the Latin Academy Person of the Year gala will go toward the charitable work of the Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation.

THE OLD GLOBE IN SAN DIEGO has announced that they have engaged the services of Patty Onagan Consulting to help support the theatre’s public relations activities on an interim basis.

OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY

CRYPTO CRAZE AUCTIONS Sotheby's is auctioning CryptoPunk 7523, also known as "Covid Alien," as part of its series called Natively Digital: A Curated NFT Sale.

The series, which features 27 digital artists, marks the first time a major auction house will bring a collection of the leading NFT artists to auction, according to a news release. The term NFT stands for non-fungible token, and in the simplest terms, NFTs transform art and other collectibles into one-of-a-kind verifiable assets that are easy to trade, according to CNN.

. CryptoPunks are 24 x 24 pixel, 8-bit-style generated characters stored on the Ethereum blockchain, according to Larva Labs, the studio that launched CryptoPunks in 2017. The studio says the Cryptopunks are the first NFTs on Ethereum. There are 10,000 of them and no two are exactly the same.

Cryptopunk 7523 is one of nine Alien CryptoPunks, which are the rarest "Punk type," and it's the only Alien Punk with a mask, Sotheby's said. Sotheby's is no stranger to these growing digital trends. Earlier this year, it became the first major auction house to introduce cryptocurrencies as a payment method for physical artworks, following its sales with digital NFT art. Within hours of advanced bidding beginning, the bid for CryptoPunk 7523 reached $320,000. The live online auction is on June 10. Sotheby's says it will donate a portion of proceeds from the Natively Digital sale to Sevens Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to evangelizing digital artists. It's current owner, who goes by Sillytuna, also plans to donate a portion of the proceeds from CryptoPunk 7523 to organizations involved with global Covid-19 relief efforts.

Also jumping on the crypto craze - Stealing Chaplin, a dark comedy from distributor High Octane Pictures. Inspired by real events, two Las Vegas based con men dig up and steal the corpse of comedian Charlie Chaplin in order to ransom it. With the theft gaining the world’s attention and the reward rising daily, soon every local lowlife, criminal and dirty cop wants a piece of the action.

Starring Simon Phillips, Doug Phillips, Al Sapienza, Peter Woodward, Ken Bressers, Anne-Carolyn Binette, Liliana Vargas, the cinematic debut of Bianca Katz, and features Mr. Las Vegas Wayne Newton.

A Stealing Chaplin NFT auction is the first comedy feature film to auction collectible NFT’s. 15 items are up for bid.

FASHION FORWARDThe Fashion Commission of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Culture in partnership with Vogue Arabia has announced the launch of a new initiative, Saudi 100 Brands, which aims to help local fashion designers and brands break into international markets. The program offers a one-year brand development initiative with training and mentoring, individual and group consultancy and advisory sessions to boost the competitive business advantage for Saudi brands in the global fashion industry.

Participants in the program will learn from an international team of experts from leading fashion houses including LVMH, Kering, Valentino Fashion Group, Chanel, Bulgari and Swarovski as well as educational experience from Central St Martins, Royal College of Art, Yale and Parsons.

The Saudi 100 Brands program covers branding, conceptualization, sales performance strategy, public relations and marketing, client identification, innovation and technology and key leadership skills. The program will also offer consumer-directed activities aimed at encouraging sales in the Saudi market, the first of which will be held in Riyadh in December 2021, with e-sales outlets and a wholesale campaign to stimulate international sales both set to launch in early 2022.

HH Princess Noura bint Faisal serves as development director of the Fashion Commission.

“Vogue Arabia has a long history of nurturing emerging regional brands and partnering with the Saudi 100 Brands program is a natural continuation of our support,” states editor-in-chief Manuel Arnaut.

E-Book

Soft back Book

E-Book

Soft back Book

This is not your typical, totally boring textbook.

In the pages of How To Earn A Living As A Freelance Writer (the first to be lied to and the last to be paid) you'll find sex, celebrities, violence, threats, unethical editors, scummy managers and lawyers, treacherous press agents, sex discrimination; as well as a how-to for earning money by writing down words.

FINAL OVATION

F. LEE BAILEY

Photo: B.B. King, F. Lee Bailey, Laura Deni. F. Lee Bailey presenting me with a journalism award. When my acceptance speech made him laugh he bent over and grabbed a chair.

prominent criminal defense attorney died June 3, 2021 in hospice care in Atlanta, Georgia. He was 87.

Bailey rose to prominence defending clients such as Patty Hearst an O. J. Simpson.

Bailey gained national attention in 1966, when he succeeded in reversing the murder conviction of Dr. Sam Sheppard, the Ohio osteopath whose case inspired the television series and movie The Fugitive. Dr. Sheppard had been convicted in 1954 of bludgeoning his wife but steadfastly claimed that he had been knocked out in a struggle with the killer after he returned home to discover the body.

The reversal by the United States Supreme Court, on grounds that jurors had been unfairly exposed to sensational publicity, led to a second trial in which Bailey cast new light on the evidence, discredited a key prosecution witness and delivered a masterful closing. Dr. Sheppard was acquitted, and Bailey was hailed in The New York Times as “easily the shiniest new star in the criminal law field.”

Discharged from the Marines in 1956, he enrolled at Boston University Law School, which, because of his experience, waived entrance requirements. He was class valedictorian at graduation in 1960. During law school, he founded a private detective agency, helping lawyers with cases. He sold it later but retained its services for his Boston firm.

He was censured by a Massachusetts judge in 1970 for “his philosophy of extreme egocentricity,” and was disbarred for a year in New Jersey in 1971 for talking publicly about a case.

Bailey, who often carried a snub-nosed revolver in a shoulder holster, was an avid yachtsman and pilot, flying his jet around the country to cases and meetings. He owned a helicopter-manufacturing business in Michigan, and in 1968 helped found the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization, the union President Ronald Reagan broke after a strike in 1981. He represented families of passengers killed when a Soviet warplane shot down Korean Airlines 007 in 1983 and in the bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988.

He wrote several best-selling books, appeared on the covers of Time and Newsweek and wrote a novel, Secrets, in 1978.

In 1960, he married Florence Gott. They had two sons, Bendrix and Brian. After a divorce, he married Froma Portney and had another son, Scott. After a 1972 divorce, he married Lynda Hart. They were divorced in 1980. In 1985, he married Patricia Shiers, who died in 1999.

In addition to his sons, he is survived by five grandchildren, his compansion Debbie Elliott, and a sister, Nancy Bailey.

Next Column: June 13, 2021
Copyright: June 6, 2021 All Rights Reserved. Reviews, Interviews, Commentary, Photographs or Graphics from any Broadway To Vegas (TM) columns may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, utilized as leads, or used in any manner without permission, compensation and/or credit.
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Laura Deni

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