A skull cap worn by Pope Francis which was put on eBay has already gathered more than $250,000 in less than 36 hours. An Italian TV host coaxed the Pope to put his ‘papalina’ to auction and donate the money to the kids of the DR Congo.

The Pope was cajoled into auctioning his white skull cap by a host of the satirical show ‘Le Iene’ (The Hyenas).

The compere made sure he was early to get front row seats for one of the pontiff’s addresses in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City. He managed to catch the Pope’s attention and tried to convince him to give him his ‘holy’ cap in exchange of a new one offered by the host.

The video released on the program’s website shows that the pontiff examined the cap. Then he took the host’s cap and gave him his own.

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The skull cap was posted on eBay on Wednesday evening It already gained over $100,000 in first 24 hours. On Friday morning the price rose to $250,000.

The auction closes at Wednesday, September 14.

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All the money raised due to the Francis’ skullcap will be given to an Italian charity organization which is donating money to fight child mortality in the Democratic Republic of Congo, said the producers of the program.

A papalina, or skull cap, is worn by clerics of Catholic Church and used by the higher clergy in Anglican and in Orthodox Church traditions. Usually made of silk or polyester fabric, it is worn throughout most of the Mass.

Pope Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Argentina, has become extremely popular for his open-minded speeches, as well as for his noted humility and concern for the poor. In addition to speaking on an end to violence in the Middle East and eastern Ukraine, the Pope has blasted the Italian Mafia and publicly apologized for the sexual abuse of children by Catholic clerics.

The Pope also recently shared 10 tips for living a happy, peaceful and fulfilled life.

… not Las Vegas, not New York or Miami. But Portland. The nearly 600,000 inhabitants of the largest city in the state of Oregon have a choice of more than 50 strip clubs – more than any other city in the United States. And the nightlife scene in Portland has a long tradition.

Normally the United States are well known for a rather prudish dealing with nudity. Not so the U.S. state of Oregon. For here prevail extremely liberal laws when it comes to nudity in public. It was in 1989, when a court allowed utter commercial nudity in the entire state of Oregon. Nude dancing as a form of expression fall under the freedom of speech clause, the judges based their decision. As a result of the law dozens of strip clubs were opened in Oregon’s largest city of Portland within a few years. Any attempts by the city to curb the trade failed.

Today, Portland has one of the liveliest nightlife scenes in the United States. How many strip clubs there are in fact, apparently no one knows exactly. In the network are circulating to different information. Time is talk of up to 80 nude bars that lined up on the streets of Portland’s East Side together. In any case, there are more than 50, writes the local newspaper “Willamette Week,” which has recently been an official Strip Club Guide 2014 issued for Portland and it lists the 40 best clubs from A to Z.
Art, steak and Games

A real institution among Portland’s nude bars is Mary’s Club, the oldest strip club in the city, in 1954 he opened his doors. Here already danced Courtney Love. Several movies have been filmed here. Tom Waits dedicated to the club even has its own song (“Pasties and a G-string”). And next table dancers come here regularly for musicians, comedians and other artists.

The performance of the girls who work in Mary’s is perceived as an art Nude -. Well by themselves, “If I’m up there, I’m an artist,” says about dancer Viva Las Vegas in a TV documentary about Mary’s Club. 15 year old strips the blonde at Mary’s, and she loves her job. “People always think it’s all about sex. But it is about much more than that. It’s about the performance, therefore, to delight visitors and communicate with them.”

Of course there are also in Portland a few dingy clubs where a rude tone prevailed with the strippers, writes the “Willamette Week”. Such establishments were in Portland but rather the exception. “Most of our strip clubs are relaxed, woman-friendly and attracts a broad mass of people,” says the Club Guide to the newspaper.

And indeed, one reads again and again, many of Portland’s strip clubs are much more than just nightclubs. As in ordinary pubs are meeting friends here to celebrate, eat and billiard games. The stage program is varied and often theme-based. A bit like on the Reeperbahn in Hamburg can be thought of Portland’s nightlife well – just not quite as disreputable.

Each club is different from the next, there’s rock and roll strip clubs as the “Devil’s Point”, those in which excellent steaks and more than 65 beers are available (“Acropolis”), and then turn huge stores like ” Jody’s Bar and Grill, “where you can not only eat grilled, but play in a separate area with his buddies video poker, billiards and much more.

Portland, the “Rose City” Even if it would fit perfectly – the nickname “Rose City” helps Portland not because of the many strip clubs, but because of the innumerable roses thrive here because of the ideal climate. In Washington Park, there is even a 18,000-square-foot test area especially for roses (International Rose Test Garden), where rose plants are examined from all over the world in terms of color, aroma and resistance to weather and pests out.

Portland is also in a very scenic environment, with the snow-capped in winter, Mount Hood is always in sight. In the National Forest, which extends around the 3425 meter high volcano mountain, are many lakes, streams and waterfalls that can be explored on beautiful trails. Stanley Kubrick fans can pay a visit to the southern flank of the mountain of Timberline Lodge: The hotel was in the horror movie “The Shining” with Jack Nicholson as a backdrop.

When the world is going through upheavals of all sorts: Global unrest, regional wars, economic instability, and who knows what else, the writers of the world begin writing in an attempt to help us understand what’s going on. Language in the hands of a skilled practitioner can be a powerful weapon or tool for social change, or at least, for clarity. But remember: be careful for what you ask… you just might get it.

The La Jolla Playhouse launched the world premiere of “Kingdome City” by playwright Sheri Wilner last Friday. Directed by Jackson Gay. “Kingdom City” is playwright Wilner’s take on the state of censorship in the United States in the 21st century. Like Arthur Miller before her she uses the metaphor of “The Crucible” to examine thorny problems and issues plaguing American society when it comes to religious issues versus political situations and protected First Amendment rights to free speech.

In short, the story revolves around and is set in motion by the decision of Miriam, a New York City stage director (Kate Blumberg) and her novelist husband Daniel (Todd Weeks) who find themselves in a small town in Missouri during the summer break at the local High School.

Miriam has been asked to direct a production of Arthur Miller’s play “The Crucible” using high school students. Once rehearsals begin her vision and style of directing sets off a firestorm of controversy with school officials, parents, and the ire of local Christian youth counsellor Luke (Ian Littleworth) to the point that the production is in danger of being cancelled. Cast members Katie (Christina Gerla), Matt (Austyn Meyers), and Crystal (Katie Sapper) are beginning to discover new feelings and insights in themselves through the characters they portray in this play within a play. Their hope is that Miriam will stay on and continue with the show.

In the meantime, Daniel with time on his hands and a case of writer’s block, has been exploring the town of Kingdom City, where he meets Luke. Over time Daniel is drawn to the slower paced, small-town outdoor lifestyle, in the small Christian community and strikes up a friendly relationship with Luke, the town’s Christian youth counsellor. When Miriam decides to leave the production and return to New York City, the couple begin to reevaluate their priorities and motives. They’re joined at the hip and both are willing to make life choices together. Stay in the Midwest or return to the Big Apple? Stay tuned.

The production under Gay’s direction is weakened somewhat by her decision not to stage the production in the traditionally configured Potiker Theatre. Instead, she chooses to use the convention of a long narrow rectangular area as the staging space; placing the audience facing one another like fans in a football stadium. This choice, at times, makes it somewhat difficult for dialogue to be heard at either end of the rectangle when action and blocking is called for at those points.

However, the cast has no trouble in being heard hurling numerous expletives and sexual innuendos along with more than 100 F-bombs at the audience (always in character of course). Actor Katie Sapper as Crystal, the teenager from Hell, and the character you love to hate is the worst offender. I’m sure there were some audience members who just wanted to smack her up the side of the head, and then have a chat with her parents; offering a large bar of soap to go along with their chat for later use. When feelings like that spill over, you know the actor is doing an outstanding job, which is exactly what Miss Sapper does in this production.

Each talented cast member performs solidly and when an ensemble scene is called for, the cast responds with conviction. Blumberg and Weeks are especially effective as the “outsiders”. Ian Littleworth’s youth counsellor is empathetic and his firmness in rationally stating in his opposition to Miriam’s play direction is well presented.

There has been a lot of talk and hand-wringing these days over the lack of young and talented playwrights emerging from the playwright pipeline. My fervent hope is that when they do pop out of that pipeline, they rush to the nearest bookstore and purchase the latest thesaurus. Our writers need to come up with more synonyms and vocabulary on how to express themselves when it comes to discourse and dialogue without using adjectives that employ “f…ing” in between every other word. And, I refuse to accept the excuse that it’s “real life” dialogue spoken in the vernacular of the day. Yes, of course it is, so are vomiting and diarrhea “real life” experiences, but I don’t care to see them on a stage performed by actors. What’s wrong with a little judicious editing in the number of times the country’s favorite shock and awe word is used? But I digress.

Director Gay leads her creative team with a spare, space-staging design by Robert Brill, neatly lighted by Paul Whitaker. The costumes designed by David Israel Reynoso and sound by Nicholas Drashner ably support the production. “Kingdom City”, runs at the Potiker Theatre through October 5, 2014.

The lure of show business is magnetic and all-consuming if you’re an alpha male or female.  Plays and Hollywood movies are usually about young and hungry actors with a burning fire in the belly to perform anything, anywhere.

Theresa Rebeck is a playwright and screenwriter with credits on and off Broadway, and on Television.  She’s also a bit of a darling with the younger set, thanks to the more modern on-the-nose-dialogue she gives her characters (translation: beaucoup F-bombs).  Stories and subject matter that attract and peak her interest are more in tune with the 25 to 40 year-old age demographic (she’s 56).  We are not watching the type of a comedy play your father and grandfather enjoyed. And, she is a fierce supporter and activist in the movement to employ more female writers in every aspect of the arts. She’s smart, clever, and popular.

“Seminar”, written by Rebeck, and directed by Desert Theatre Works co-founder and DTW’s artistic Director Lance Phillips-Martinez, is currently on the stage of the Arthur Newman Theatre in Palm Desert.  The play explores the passion of writers, novelists, and authors instead of actors who once were the favorite characters of choice by playwrights and screenwriters.

The story in short, is set in present day New York City, and follows four young aspiring writers: Kate (Mari Kerber); Martin (Gabriel Lawrence); Douglas (Tanner Lieser); and Izzy (Brittney De Leon Reyes) each of whom have paid a $5000  fee to be included in Professor Leonard’s (Luke Rainey) ten week long writing seminar.

The action takes place in Kate’s parent’s upper west side nine-bedroom apartment that affords plenty of space for the group’s raging hormones, heated literary discussions and critiques of each other’s work to take place.  Also, the apartment affords the group the time and place to dissect the jaded, cynical, and acerbic Leonard’s background and history in the New York literary world when he’s not around.  He was once a promising new talent but instead of growing as a writer he sputtered, crashed and burned after just two novels.  And his passion for writing never returned. Instead, he became a sought after writing coach and guru to aspiring young talent.  But, his students had better come to his seminars with skin and egos as thick as elephant hides.  He berates, he scolds, he goads the students to look inward and to “suffer a little” for their craft and their future profession. “Seminar” is a blistering satire on the aspiring writer genre.

The ensemble cast throw themselves into their portrayals with gusto, sometimes, a little too much gusto.  But that is not necessarily all their own doing.  This is one of Rebeck’s lightweight plays and evening’s in the theatre. There is very little new ground being broken here.  The one dimensional characters are shallow and uninteresting; failing to engage me enough that I found myself unable to root for any of them.  Having said that Luke Rainey as Leonard, has a very poignant and introspective five minute monologue in the second act that delves into the scary and frustrating lifestyle of professional writers. It’s an illuminating and instructive peek into the professional writing world.

By the same token Gabriel Lawrence as Martin, gives us the viewpoint of the tortured aspiring young writer in a lengthy first act monologue who is unsure of his ability to write meaningful stories and characters, and as a result, hesitates in participating in Leonard’s bruising exchanges when critiquing the writing of his students.  Leonard’s trial-by-fire method is too intimidating for the men of the class but not for the young women who seem to have a secret weapon that protects them from the Leonard’s of the world ( humm, I wonder what that three letter weapon could it be?).

“Seminar” is not a study in intellectual rigor by a long shot, but it can be an entertaining evening of theatre, if one goes not expecting to challenge the gray matter in one’s head.  The comedy runs through September 13, 2014