Luminato 2010: First Night (June 11 2010)

Jully Black, Melanie Fiona and Sass Jordan helped kick off the 2010 edition of Luminato in a night dedicated to Canadian divas.



See the Flickr photo album.

Keep Toronto Reading 2010: Book Exchange (April 8 2010)

Regular Toronto citizens mingled with local celebrities to swap books in an event moderated by Misha Glouberman.



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Jian Ghomeshi Interview At Ryerson University (Jan 27 2010)

Radio host Jian Ghomeshi showcased his intelligence and gregariousness in his interview at Ryerson University.



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QTK

Yesterday evening, I had the good fortune of listening to an interview with radio host and former Moxy Früvous member Jian Ghomeshi. His intelligence and gregariousness made for a memorable experience, along with the fact that he and his interviewer were perfect foils for each other. Much like my encounter with Jully Black, the good times didn’t stop when the actual event was over.

Thinking that I should snap a shot of the night’s interviewee, I got in line and waited for my turn. Before I got to the front, Mr. Ghomeshi looked at me and asked, “Are you the tweeter?” I was a bit surprised at this turn of events, but the truth is that I shouldn’t have been. Earlier in the day, I uploaded two pictures to TwitPic featuring my planned outfit for this event. My rationale was that if any of my Twitter followers recognized me, they could say hello and strike up a conversation. Obviously, I was hoping for success, but I never thought that my technique would have worked like this. Then again, tweeting my intentions using Jian’s Twitter name might have helped a little bit…

After a brief conversation, I asked if he’d mind if I took a shot of him. He suggested that I should be in the shot with him; I declined at first, but he (wisely) insisted. Here is the resulting shot, taken by a fellow interview attendee.



As you can see, I should have adjusted my Kangol hat and my disposition, but at least my shirt looked fresh. I wasn't the only one who thought so. ;-)

*EDIT on Jan 29, 2010 at 12:20 a.m.* The above photo was taken by Allan, who has also written his impressions of Jian's interview.

Nicky Meets...

I knew that I'd attend Hulk Hogan's autograph signing earlier today, but before leaving home, I was still undecided as to whether I'd be taking Nicky. Even though I initially decided to leave her at home, I ended up taking her with me (along with Speedy and Frosty).

Upon my arrival at Chapters, I thought I should have left my gear behind. Let's just say that I'm glad I didn't.

Exhibit A:



I had no idea that the Hulkster would be making his entrance from the same hallway where the washrooms are found. When I saw a media guy standing near the spot where I eventually stood, I put two and two together. As you can see, my focusing skills were a bit off.

Exhibit B:



I also didn't know that Jimmy "The Mouth Of The South" Hart would also be appearing at this autograph session; he wasn't even listed. As a matter of fact, when I first saw him, I thought it was an impersonator. As Queenie (a friendly young lady I briefly talked to) said, "That mullet doesn't lie!"

Exhibit C:



During the session, Jimmy briefly stepped away from the table for a few photos; I shot the above photos during this break. Before shooting those photos, I decided to stay until the end of the autograph session in order to get a better photo of Hulk Hogan.

Exhibit D:



I thought my focus was dead-on, but the Hulkster is still a but blurry here. Perhaps it's because he was walking and I couldn't manually compensate for that.

I thought the story was over at this point, but the ending is even better. After going downstairs and putting my camera gear back in my bag, I went back upstaits to the men's room before going home. While drying my hands, Hulk and Jimmy (along with their handler) unexpectedly walked in.

Let me say that again for those of you who didn't quite book that. Jimmy Hart and Hulk Hogan unexpectedly walked into the men's washroom while I was drying my hands.

I thought I recognized them in the corner of my eye, but I checked the mirror on my left just to be sure. I wasn't starstruck, but I was pretty dang close - so close that I dried my hands a bit longer than necessary while figuring out how to leave the washroom without looking like a moron. I decided to say goodbye to Mr. Hart and Mr. Hogan on my way out; the former thanked me for my help even though I did approximately nothing, while the latter didn't say a word in return. I'm not complaining, though - I didn't even mention Hulk's name for fear of pissing him off and possibly getting bodyslammed.

Since we're talking about celebrity encounters, let me post one more from Saturday night.



Obviously, that's me on the left; on the right is Torontonian songstress Jully Black. This photo was taken by one of her staff members after her Cavalcade Of Lights gig at Nathan Phillips Square. Meeting her wasn't part of my plans, nor was buying her latest album (The Black Book). I'm glad I got to do both on Saturday night.

Cavalcade Of Lights 2009: Opening Celebration (Nov 28 2009)

Toronto's 43rd annual Cavalcade Of Lights was kicked off with the help of Mayor David Miller, Michael Kuss, Maie Pauts and a few musical guests.



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Swarovski Crystal Wish Tree 2009 (Nov 19 2009)

Dina Pugliese hosted this year's unveiling of the Swarovski Crystal Wish Tree with assistance from The Canadian Tenors.



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Smirnoff Ice At Yonge-Dundas Square (Oct 1 2009)

Smirnoff Ice organized a celebration of the beginning of the Toronto Maple Leafs' 2009-2010 season with an event at Yonge-Dundas Square, including a broadcast of the season opener vs. the Montreal Canadiens.



Click this post's title to see all 81 photos at my Flickr page.

TIFF 2009: Wrap Party (Sept 19 2009)

This year's Toronto International Film Festival wrapped up with a concert courtesy of Chuck D, Clyde Stubblefield and Eclectic Method.



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TK Meets Chuck D

Yesterday evening's Wrap Party for the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) was memorable for a number of reasons. Between seeing the man behind the "Funky Drummer" break (Clyde Stubblefield), songs like The Chemical Brothers' "It Doesn't Matter" and the drum 'n bass music which was played near the end, having a good time was inevitable. However, having a celebrity encounter with Public Enemy's Chuck D made my night. I confess that I'm not really into Public Enemy's music, but I do know about and respect Chuck D's status as a pioneering hip-hop icon. To some people, perhaps he's more famous for his debate with Metallica's Lars Ulrich about Napster - but I remember the voice behind songs like "Louder Than A Bomb" and "Fight The Power."

Anyway, Chuck was rapping and genially signing a lot of autographs for his audience during his appearance. I was taking photos during one of his autograph sessions when he suddenly turned my way and greeted me. Being a gentleman, I responded back - but the D wasn't done with me yet.

After giving me a fist bump much like one that Barack & Michelle Obama shared, he looked into my camera and pushed his fist out. You know what happened next.



The fist is out of focus, but I honestly don't care about that. What really counts is that, in a week where I attended red carpet events to get close to celebrities, a non-red carpet event ended up giving me my favourite shot of this year's TIFF.

Thanks, Chuck D. Much respect.

TIFF 2009 Red Carpet: Roy Thomson Hall (Sept 17 2009)

The stars weren't as well-known as in earlier days, but that didn't matter to me.



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TIFF 2009 Red Carpet: Roy Thomson Hall (Sept 14 2009)

The stars of Mother And Child and The Damned United walked Roy Thomson Hall's red carpet for their gala presentations.







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