Entertainment

I was given a fright last week when I discovered that Clara Darko's beautifully edited tribute to Sydney Bristow—action heroine nonpareil—was no longer available on YouTube. Fortunately, it wasn't difficult to find on Vimeo. Better yet, the video quality seems to me even better. A good excuse to again honor Jennifer Garner, the athletic woman who made the epithet female action star manifest:

Back in May I told you about HP's "Moms for Simplicity" campaign starring Dara Torres. Well, the saga continues:

"On the Road with HP Moms" is a new blog from HP covering the exciting travels of three digital moms and their interaction with Dara. The moms were chosen by Dara to attend this week’s swimming event [the National Championships] as part of the HP Moms for Simplicity contest.

You can follow our three mom’s video diaries, photos and exclusive interviews with Dara at the brand new http://momsforsimplicity.com/. Also, make sure to follow @hpmoms on Twitter for up-to-the minute updates.

I hope that you will check out the site and enjoy seeing one of the toughest female athletes of our time as she attempts to re-write the record books once again! [Next up: the World Championships in Rome.]

Speaking of tough female athletes. The forthcoming Carano-Cyborg fight is, to my mind, this summer's main event. Last month we watched Carano choke a poor fellow out. It seems only fair that we give Cyborg her turn as well:

If you frequent this blog you know that I'm not enthralled with politics, my view of it instead being rather cynical. And for its full-time practitioners, I have little regard. (I set the bar low, and they seldom disappoint me.)

Now, however, there is someone we can vote for with a clean conscience: Wonder Woman. (If only this were the real thing.)

Be sure to vote for Wonder Woman this Friday. In the meantime, you can show your support on Facebook and Twitter.

Although we don't see them often enough, there isn't a shortage of athletic actresses; indeed, Hollywood's casting directors don't have to look far to find a convincing action heroine—if only they'd open their eyes. Occasionally this might even be a former world-champion athlete; e.g., Zara Phythian. After winning 13 world titles in martial arts, Phythian decided in 2006 to give acting a try. (Not long after that she was inducted into the International Kickboxing and Karate Hall of Fame, where she joined other martial arts legends like Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris.)

A sampling of her work thus far whets the appetite for more: