Posted by Jeanne Devon on September 22, 2011 · 20 Comments
This summer Anchorage was abuzz with a flurry of activity we don’t often see in these parts. In town were the cast and crew for a full-length feature film starring Drew Barrymore and Ted Danson called at the time “Everybody Loves Whales,” which has been retitled “Big Miracle.” Thanks to Senator Johnny Ellis (D), and other supportive legislators, incentives have been put in place to entice film production companies to shoot films in Alaska. What a concept! Alaskans know their turf, and it’s always frustrating to see stories that are supposed to be taking place in Alaska being filmed in…
Posted by Jeanne Devon on February 12, 2011 · 51 Comments
Greetings from CPAC! Former Vice President Dick Cheney got a heck of a greeting at CPAC, the yearly Conservative Political Action Conference where conservatives of all stripes come together to wallow in varying degrees of narrow-mindedness, religious zeal, military might, fiscal conservatism, and social backwardness. There are usually some internal squabbles about things like LGBT rights, and how they do or don’t fit into the conservative platform. But back to Cheney’s greeting. It was spirited and passionate, but not what the former Veep expected. When Rumsfeld’s name was announced, and he took the stage to accept the conferences “Defenders of…
Category Alaska, Alaska Legislature, Arts, Don Young, Environment, Ethics, Rallies and Events, Republicans, Roll your eyes into it, Sarah Palin · Tags Alaska film incentive, Alaska political corruption, CPAC, Dick Cheney heckled, Don Young, Donald Rumsfeld, Everybody Loves Whales, fake Sarah Palin, Fraser Verrusio, No Dirty Gold, Pebble Mine, Sarah Palin
Posted by Jeanne Devon on December 9, 2010 · 16 Comments
By Mudflatter D All those props used in the “Everybody Loves Whales” film are on sale this week! While some were returned to LA, there is plenty left at the warehouse behind Spenard Builders Supply to entice practical-minded scavengers, like me. Remember, this movie loosely portrays an event in 1988, so don’t expect to find iPhones. There are a few items of movie memorabilia to be had, if you look carefully. My favorite is the stationery from the big oil company executive, played by Ted Danson. Why? Because the address is on “J Street.” For you cheechakos who just fell…
Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 21, 2010 · 48 Comments
There certainly is a lot of happy excitement around town during the shooting of the feature film Everybody Loves Whales starring Drew Barrymore and Ted Danson. Lots of Alaskans have landed parts in the movie, and there are “Whale Sightings” reported on a regular basis. I had jury duty last week while the film was shooting down at the port of Anchorage, and if they had looked up during our breaks, they would have seen a whole bunch of eager faces pressed against the window trying to get a look at what was going on. I even had my own brush with…
Category Alaska, Alaska Legislature, Arts · Tags Alaska documentaries, Alaska feature films, Alaska film office, Alaska films, Alaska short films, Drew Barrymore, Everybody Loves Whales, filmmaking, Films shot in Alaska, Matt Shields, Ted Danson
Posted by Jeanne Devon on November 14, 2010 · 135 Comments
~Thick and fast they came at last, and more, and more, and more! Fear not! Even though it is Oyster Sunday, I will not ask that you wear an Oyster bonnet. It just seemed like a lazy, post-election sort of day, and a good time to do an oyster roundup. So, grab your cocktail sauce, and start slurping. Sarah Palin’s Alassska Yes, tonight is the night. Some of you are boycotting. Some of you are anxiously awaiting the spectacle. Some of you are saying you’re boycotting, but are in reality anxiously awaiting the spectacle. But, tonight is the night that…
Category Alaska, Alaska Senate Race, Election 2010, Environment, Fish & Wildlife, Joe Miller, Lisa Murkowski, Sarah Palin, Sean Parnell, Todd Palin · Tags Alaska Senate Race, Cook Inlet belugas, Drew Barrymore, Endangered beluga whales, Everybody Loves Whales, Joe Miller, Lisa Murkowski, Sarah Palin, Sean Parnell, Ted Danson
Posted by Jeanne Devon on June 15, 2010 · Leave a Comment
After I moved to Alaska in 1991, I was quite surprised when I realized that Alaska is not full of granola-crunchin’, bunny snugglin’, tree-huggin’, biodegradable cleaning supply usin’ environmental activists whose main focus is maintaining their pristine wilderness. Who knew? It’s been a twenty year learning process to understand Alaskans and their relationship with wildness. It’s a complicated one, and there are Alaskans from one end of the spectrum to the other. It’s the ones on the extreme end of “other” that tend to irritate me. The particular mindset to which I refer can be summed up by a bumpersticker…
