[Not So] Serious Ting - SICARIA

Bombshell - The Hedy Lamarr Story

I've been meaning to watch this for some time and it's a belter. Hedy comes from that wealthy Jewish-Austrian milieu that includes Wittgenstein and Popper (and Hitler if we excuse the wealth). She's a stunner and by the age of 19 had filmed the most erotic movie ever and married a wealthy Austrian industrialist. 

Bored with parochial Tyrolean mise-en-scene, she legs it to the USA with a reputation as a kind of teenage pornstar, and a stifling movie contract with Louis B Mayer that required a life of amphetamines and benzos to stay awake or get some sleep during 6-day-weeks of production.

Hedy is clearly no slouch when it comes to innovation and free thinking, but after some consideration of the documentary, and a fairly fierce conversation with my father who has some expertise on the topic, I have to concede that although she had a large hand in developing spectrum-hopping for guided missiles, torpedos and drones, it's likely her Italian collaborator George Antheil had a lot of input. It's also possible with her Austrian Jewish origins that she may have been a conduit for leaked secrets from Germany? 

Just a thought.

That said, Hedy also dated Howard Hughes who gave her free rein with all his designers and engineers for anything she wanted. So she must have been a brilliant mind.

Hedy was also an early adopter of plastic surgery and even provided suggestions for her surgeon on how to do it better. Sadly that story continued too long and by the end of your life her face was a mess (sic).

For me though the early Hedy isn't that attractive (though I wouldn't say no), but in 1969 she appeared on one of those vapid chat shows with creepy hosts. 

Despite the toe-curling dialogue she's a stunner even if there's a nip or a tuck here and there.

LG

Way back here in my ChungKing Express post, when talking about the duplication culture of China and Asia excluding Japan, I tried to imply that while not seeing evidence of real innovation there was definitely an emergence of what I now see more clearly as a technology remix culture as evidenced by the solar panel and telescopic lens that came with my mobile phone now languishing in Bangkok storage until my next move is more clear.

Today I see that LG have taken this great idea of solar panel charged batteries and run with it for the launch of the LG GD510 phone which you can read more about over at the Pattaya Rag Blogspot. I knew what I was trying to convey at the time of my own post which was both critical of duplication culture (or copying if you will) but seeing the LG post has crystallized my thinking and I believe that Asia is emerging as a centre of technological remix culture which in this instance is both a smart idea and one that scores well on sustainable living metrics. Although since my own phone was stolen recently (yes, again) I've suffered from inaccessibility for work related communications but also lapped up the peacefulness and lack of interruptions which tucks nicely into my previous post.

I'm also trying to see the cops tomorrow for the identity parade for my stolen life, but the last time I spoke to the investigating team about it they hung up on me. Which is why I'm writing it here. So now we're clear.

Web Features

Window cleaners at the Sheraton in Shanghai. Now if they were particularly obtuse Sony Pictures would be all over them with writs. Or if they were clever they would P.R the hell out of this. I understand the idea came from a brainstorm with the workers. Thus dismissing that solipsists debate to the refuse area where it belongs.

Via the excellent Shanghaiist.