Entertainment

I believe it. Way to go girls!


(Video by Strongman Athletics)

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone!

Dancing with the Stars has wisely given us a good reason to watch this fall.

Who better to channel Esther Williams than Natalie Coughlin? The connection is so obvious: two fantastically gifted athletes in the same sport, and camera friendly as she is, we should expect that someday Natalie will have a movie career to match Esther's as well.

So, recently Natalie took on the role of Esther Williams with the help of award-winning make-up artist Melanie Mills. The results, needless to say, are stunning. What is more, the photo shoot was itself eventful, as seen in this cleverly edited footage:

Theater, arm wrestling, philanthropy—three things that don't often come to mind together. But in toto they do describe CLAW (Charlottesville Lady Arm Wrestlers, or more generally, Collective of Lady Arm Wrestlers), as seen in the group's About page:

About

CLAW is a loose (and we do mean loose) affiliation of superbad women arm wrestling each other to raise money for women-initiated causes. We used to hold tournaments once a month at Blue Moon Diner until we got too big. Now we’re aiming for every 2-3 months. We are committed to supporting our community in and around Charlottesville, Virginia.

We have a facebook page, where you can become a fan and get all the latest CLAW news and updates.

Our Official Mission

CLAW exists to empower all women and strengthen communities through theater, arm wrestling, and philanthropy.

I learned about CLAW from Brian Wimer, who is making a documentary about it ("the revolution currently happening in women's arm wrestling"). The project's Kickstarter video gives a sense of the fun and madness that takes place at a CLAW event:

I think it a shame that Angela Bassett hasn't been given more action roles. Truly she is everything you could want in an action star: a great actor with commanding physical presence.

In 1995 Bassett was given one opportunity to flex her muscles, in Strange Days (a sci-fi film that deserves more than the scant attention it has received). Here she tosses co-star Ralph Fiennes into a wall, and the action looks seamless, because you sense that in real life she could:

A phrase I'm quite tired of repeating—we'll have to wait to see a live-action Wonder Woman.

Except this time, though I'm pained to say it, it's probably for the best. From casting right through to the writing it was becoming evident that this was going to be a weak, light-headed (the typical Hollywood treatment given to heroines) presentation of the classic superhero.

It is better that Wonder Woman retain some of her majesty and live to fight another day.

Version 1.0 of the new Wonder Woman outfit didn't go over so well. That being the case, Wonder Woman producers and NBC have made a few tweaks.

Just to refresh your memory, here is the before image:



And now the latest, as seen during filming in LA last week:



I'll let the fashion police judge the design's merits as just that, fashion, since Wonder Woman's fashion sense doesn't rate a high concern with me. But there has been analysis combining both aesthetic and functional issues, like Sequential Tart's, that is worthwhile. And I do think it odd that they put Wonder Woman in pants but didn't bother to put straps on her top. Pants rarely ease movement, and sturdy legs can be a sign of power. Having the additional concern that your top might fall off while fighting the bad guys, however, seems more a problem.

Nor do I think much about whether Adrianne Palicki is "beautiful" enough or whether she compares favorably with Lynda Carter. My only concern regarding imagery is that she be convincing as a formidable heroine and potent as a symbol of physical strength to girls and women, nay, to all of us.

It's not as though in popular culture girls and women have symbols of strength to spare. Perhaps if they did what David E. Kelley and NBC are doing to Wonder Woman wouldn't be quite as hurtful. The new Wonder Woman costume, as it will be worn by the actress playing Wonder Woman, was revealed Friday (in truth, probably floated as a trial balloon). Does this give you the impression of a super-strong heroine?



I suspect it doesn't. Indeed, it seems not to have for hundreds of commenters at EW.com, Facebook, and elsewhere:

Leo: "I agree! I do hate the costume, but I think she should be more toned. She looks frail and way to thin. This looks way too pin up and less Female Empowerment. This costume makes Linda Carter’s look like a pair of military fatigues."

Shaa-chan: "I agree 100%! I don’t ask much, she doesn’t have to look like a bodybuilder or anything, I would just like her to look like she has strength at all!"

Wilhemina: "Holy crap. Cheap Halloween costume-meets XXX parody costuming meets the tranny Kardashian. And those boobs are obviously, distractingly fake. Looks cheap all around. To think that this is comics’ premiere female hero. While Supes and Bats get big-budget films, reboots, and Oscar-winning franchises, the alleged third part of DC’s comic Trinity gets a crappy Ally McBeal Meets Smallville TV Pilot that already looks like a disaster."

Lisa: "I completely agree. I am so disappointed,because Wonder Woman was my favorite growing up. I watched the series religiously and even had a Wonder Woman Barbie. I was excited to be able to introduce my young daughter to an empowering female superhero….guess I’ll have to look elsewhere."

Still, we need to make absolutely certain this great heroine isn't ruined by Hollywood hacks. So, if you think it important that media represent women as athletes and physically capable beings, and I assume readers of this blog do, make your voice heard as well. Join the fight!

I couldn't resist sharing this wonderfully done tribute to Angela Mao. A star in many 1970s martial arts films, Mao is sometimes regarded as the first world-famous female action star. It may only be the movies, but prodigious martial arts skills are on display here:

The rest of us I'm not so sure about. Late yesterday it was announced that Adrianne Palicki will star in NBC's Wonder Woman pilot.



I was right about one thing, Kelley and NBC didn't waste any time. Indeed, now it seems they were in too much of a hurry, "... she was the only actress invited to test for it."

The putative casting sheet gave some hope they would choose someone with heft, that is, not the usual scrawny, not-so-athletic super- or action-heroine that has been Hollywood's staple. It might be too early to say, but that seems not to have happened.

We wish Adrianne luck—she certainly has her work cut out for her.

I have commented before on the apparently easy transition afforded ballerinas when they decide to take up action roles in film or television. The foremost example of this would of course be Jennifer Garner, but there are others too (e.g., Summer Glau). It might be that their specialized, extensive training gives them complete sovereignty over their physical self, and that the camera captures and somehow amplifies this. In any case, whatever the exact cause, one perceives something special when watching the ballerina-turned-action heroine perform—her movement is potent yet seamless and majestic, it has an almost mystical quality to it.

Amelia Cooke spent the better part of her youth as an aspiring ballerina: studying at the National Ballet of Canada for ten years, and touring with the company as well. What's more, in 1997, Amelia was given the "Outstanding Athlete of the Year" award in Toronto. Later she turned to modeling, then to acting. That has led, perhaps inevitably, to action roles. The following scenes from Alien Agent supply further testimony to the unique physicality of a trained ballerina:




Amelia is sometimes mentioned as a possible Wonder Woman, and she is one of the many excellent candidates listed in our poll. It seems to me that they could do much worse, and that Amelia might just be special enough for this special, all-important role.

Things are moving fast on the Wonder Woman pilot. Not only has a director been settled on but the search for the new Wonder Woman is already under way. According to the casting sheet circulating the Internet, Wonder Woman producers are looking for:

WONDER WOMAN / DIANA THEMYSCIRA / DIANA PRINCE] Female, late 20s to 30s. A kick-ass Superhero / Powerful C.E.O. / A vulnerable woman. Long flowing black hair, blue eyes. Amazon-like, muscular, an Olympian. The charismatic stage presence of a rock star. A crime fighter. Also, a real woman who yearns to live a normal life. She is accessible and appealing to all people, men and women alike…SERIES LEAD. ASP.

This is quite encouraging in my view (sans the "vulnerable woman" nonsense). Someone in Hollywood seems to have figured out that a superheroine, just like any superhero, must have a redoubtable presence if she is to be taken seriously. In other words, if the above is to be believed, the producers realize that they are looking for Wonder Woman not Wimpy Woman.

We also have good reason to think that at least two auditions have already taken place—Jill Wagner and Tanit Phoenix. Expect the casting process to continue at a fast pace, considering that the target date to start filming is March 15.

The poll here has been heating up as well. Over the last few days I have received several excellent nominations. I will be mildly shocked if the new Wonder Woman isn't to be found there. Without question a few of the women listed in our poll fit the description to a T!

Yesterday was the 25th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day. To mark the occasion—better late than never!—I am sharing a nice little salute to women in sports put together by Pretty Tough:

This blog's favorite athlete, action heroine, and humanitarian made the CBS Evening News last night for her work with orphaned children. CBS's Cynthia Bowers profiles Rebecca Neuenswander Welsh and her HALO foundation:

I should have kept true to my Pollyanna self. Two weeks ago I reported that Wonder Woman would not be returning to television anytime soon. But thanks to NBC's new president of entertainment, Bob Greenblatt, she is. Greenblatt gave the go-ahead for David E. Kelley's Wonder Woman pilot last week, in one of his first moves after taking over the reins at NBC.

We'll have to wait and see if Kelley's version of the superheroine is worthy, but now we at least get to judge that for ourselves.



P.S. — Look for the "Who should be Wonder Woman?" poll to return shortly.