Cooper cracks US
Trelise Cooper is the latest NZ designer to come to mainstream US attention, after her work graced the cover of venerable style barometer Women’s Wear Daily. Entitled ‘Southern Charm,’ the accompanying story charts Cooper’s growing popularity in the States, where fans include Julia Roberts, Michelle Pfeiffer, Reese Witherspoon and Angela Bassett. According to the NZ Herald, Cooper is only the third Australasian designer to make WWD’s cover in the magazine’s 90-year history (Collette Dinnigan and Sass & Bide have also appeared).
(11 August 2004)

    

One to watch
Kiwi boardsailor David Robertson (18) won gold at the Mistral Youth World Championships in Nessebar, Bulgaria. Team-mate Anna Eason finished fifth in the women’s event. Robertson placed first at last year’s National Youth Champs, sixth in the ISAF World Youth Championships in Madeira, and narrowly missed out on Olympic selection this year.
(9 August 2004)
   

Kong’s first fan-club
The three principal stars of Peter Jackson’s King Kong are raving about the film and its Wellington location before shooting has even begun. Adrien Brody: “The facilities here [in Mirimar] are incredible … I didn't know what I expected, but [Jackson has] created a studio and post-production house that rivals anything elsewhere.” Naomi Watts: “It's like nothing I've experienced before, that's for sure. There's a lot of genius at work.” Jack Black: “I think it's going to be gorgeous … It could be the greatest film of all time.”
(1 September 2004)
    

Warner devours Cannibal Dog
Marina Warner recommends Anne Salmond’s The Trial of the Cannibal Dog: Captain Cook in the South Seas as essential holiday reading in the Guardian’s annual summer poll of leading authors, journalists, and critics. “The historian Anne Salmond writes with passion and a sense of human drama rare in the politically sensitive field of empire [Cannibal Dog] is her latest: a magnum opus, it combines stirring adventures on the high seas with eye-opening, original historiography.”
(19 June 2004)

    

Ooh ah Umaga!
A Rugby Heaven feature charts Tana Umaga’s meteoric rise from early flirtations with rugby league to becoming the All Black’s first Pacific Island captain. “Bob Marley would have seen another rebel in Tana Umaga, a fellow Rastaman, dreadlocks swinging, face leathered, hawk eyes glinting […] Umaga does not have to carry a guitar or thunder political campaigns for freedom from oppression through reggae concerts as did the Jamaican. He conducts more muscular campaigns, through mesmerising feats of hand and foot, through deed and sweat rather than song and ganja haze.”
(7 August 2004)
  

Best bubbles
Observer wine critic Tim Atkin champions New World sparkling whites, particularly those from NZ, stating “[they’re] every bit as good as most non-vintage champagne and usually considerably cheaper.” According to Atkins, Lindauer Special Brut “consistently delivers the goods for under £10, making it New Zealand's best value fizz. It's a creamy, pink-tinged number with lots of concentration and no little finesse.” His Best Buy, however, is Cloudy Bay Pelorus. “This deserves to be just as well known as Cloudy Bay's Sauvignon Blanc because it's one of the most complex New World sparkling wines. It's a big, bold, toasty style with a lot of power and a lovely dry finish.”
(8 August 2004)

    

A race of extremes
John O’Loghlen (NZ investment banker at Goldman Sachs, NY) and Rosa Volz (Wellington IT worker) were the first non-Mongolian man and woman respectively to finish the 42km Mongolia Sunrise to Sunset Marathon, “one of the toughest and most unusual [races] in the world.” Fellow Kiwis John Peterson and Paul O'Connor also took part, with Peterson the first non-Mongolian veteran to cross the finish line. The race’s difficulty lies in its altitudinal extremities: runners climb to 1650m above sea level, to 2300m, back to 1700, up again to 2100 and back down to about 1650. Read O’Loghlen’s account of his experience in the Listener.
(14 June 2004)
   

National anthem or call to arms?
Research by Auckland military historian Colin Andrews has cast a new light on NZ’s national anthem, penned by Thomas Bracken in 1876. Andrews believes that the line “Guard Pacific’s triple star” refers to the three stars displayed on Maori battle flags during the Land Wars, not, as was previously thought, to NZ’s three principal land masses. He thus interprets God Defend New Zealand as plea for God to protect Maori in their armed struggle against European settlers. A Liberal MP, Bracken was known for his anti-colonialist views and veneration of Maori culture.
(9 August 2004)
   

Mapping the southern skies
A Guardian feature uncovers the Wairarapa’s latest tourist attraction: Stonehenge Aotearoa. Built by NZ’s Phoenix Astronomical Society, the henge is a map and calendar for the southern hemisphere’s skies. “The whole objective here is that people can come out and relearn, rediscover the knowledge of their ancestors,” says Society president, Richard Hall.
(29 July 2004)
   

Edge dimension
Textile artist Clare Plug contributed two works to the Fiberart International 2004 biennial, which recently moved to New York’s Museum of Arts & Design from the Pittsburgh Centre of the Arts. A review in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette describes her pieces, Resonance and Promenade, as “exceptional … tactile and dimensionally illusional.”
(31 July 2004)
   

Super-mini
Age profiles Paul Hakes of Wellington’s Hakes Marine: the man behind super-maxi yacht, Zana. Hakes’ latest project is a 12m racing boat, which he hopes to successfully export to Australia. “It is a modern design, a fast boat and it is a cost effective boat and uses the best of what NZ has to offer,” says Hakes.
(26 July 2004)
   

Hadlee on Hanmer
Guardian Travel discovers Sir Richard Hadlee’s preferred holiday destination, Hanmer Springs. Hadlee explains his choice in the accompanying interview: “I've been going since I was nine, when the whole family would decamp there for holidays. It's quiet and low-key yet it offers so much. There's a golf course, the forest, horse-riding, mountain walks and great bike rides. The weather is also perfect - hot in summer, snowy and cold in winter.”
(31 July 2004)
   

Rick Rudd, noteworthy ceramicist
Taipei Times praises NZ potter Rick Rudd’s “heavenly wares” in a review of his exhibition at Page One's Taipei 101 store. “Rudd does not label his wares, preferring instead for the viewer to provide a meaning for the work. He is keener on discovering the possibilities of form rather than finding inspiration from nature. Rudd has used the line himself and it is apt: True to form rather than nature. It is this focus that makes him not just a studio potter, but a ceramicist of note.”
(1 August 2004)
   

Pure gold
NZ’s Olympic team kept viewers at home on tenterhooks, waiting until the second week of the Games to begin the medal haul. Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell took gold in the double sculls rowing, Sarah Ulmer beat her own world record (twice) to take gold in the 3000m individual cycling pursuit, 2003 World Champion Ben Fouhy won silver in the K1 1,000m canoeing, and Hamish Carter and Bevan Docherty won gold and silver respectively in the men’s triathlon. The triathlon victory was NZ’s first one-two finish at the Olympics since 1996. “I didn't come away with gold but who better to lose to than my teammate Hamish,” said Docherty, the reigning Triathlon World Champion. “We were fantastic, both of us. Hamish had a fantastic day and he deserved the gold.”
(August 2004)

    

Making history with music
NZ composer John Psathas provided much of the music for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Athens Games, including the climactic moment when the Olympic flame was lit. Born in NZ to Greek parents, Psathas was not chosen for his heritage but for his ability, which Games organisers discovered on hearing the fanfare he wrote for the opening of Te Papa in 1997. “I don't think I have any idea just how I'm going to feel on the night,” Psathas told the NZ Herald shortly before leaving for Athens. “It's going to be incredible.” It was.
(14 August 2004)
    

Edge awardees
NZ performers Teddy Tahu Rhodes and Ross McCormack were commended at the annual Helpmann Awards in Sydney, August 10. Rhodes was named Best Male Performer in an Opera for his lead role in the South Australian State Opera's production of Dead Man Walking, and McCormack won Best Male Dancer in a Ballet or Dance Work for his part in the Australian Dance Theatre production, Held. The Helpmann Awards were established by the Australian Entertainment Industry Association (AEIA) in 2001 to “recognise distinguished artistic achievement and excellence.”
(11 August 2004)
  

Down but not out
Greg Henderson won the 6.25 mile New York City Cycling Championship in miserable conditions, despite suffering a crash half way through the race. “Anything can happen in a crash. It all depends on how you land,” said Henderson. “The first thing we saw today was the rain, and you're two weeks out from the Olympics so you don't want to crash. And what happens? 30 km into the race I crash.” Five other Olympians, including fellow Kiwi Hayden Godfrey, competed in the prestigious event.
(1 August 2004)
    

Might of the Conchords
“New Zealand's fourth most popular folk parody act,” Flight of the Conchords (a.k.a Bret McKenzie and Jermaine Clement), made a triumphant return to this year’s Edinburgh Festival, with a new show entitled ‘Lonely Knights.’ Guardian: “Last year, [the Conchords] were still late-night Fringe underdogs. This year, they are greeted like rock gods. With their superior wordplay, virtuoso musicality and superbly gormless banter, they've taken comedy song to a whole new level … This is dazzling conceptual comedy delivered in the voice of a man reading the gas meter. But their relationship is so strong, and their talent so prodigious, they could probably make that irresistible too.”
(10 August 2004)
    

Finn-tastic
The Finn brothers’ headlining performance at Summerstage Central Park thrilled fans and critics alike. NY Times: “Rock bands of brothers aren't known for amity […] The Finn Brothers … set out to be the exception, as Neil and Tim Finn revelled in a fraternal bond both in and out of their songs.” Neil earned particularly high praise: “He is an unabashed heir of the mid-1960's Beatles, writing unhurried melodies that usually carry kindly sentiments about perseverance in the face of small and large disappointments.”
(3 August 2004)
  

Aotearoa uncovered
Female First delves deeper than the usual travel story, focusing primarily on the geographical and cultural make-up of NZ. “NZ comes with a reputation as a unique land packed with magnificent, raw scenery: craggy coastlines, sweeping beaches, primeval forests, snow-capped alpine mountains, bubbling volcanic pools, fast-flowing rivers and glacier-fed lakes … All of this provides a canvas for boundless diversions […] Only in the last couple of decades has NZ come of age and developed a true national self-confidence, something partly forced on it by Britain severing the colonial apron strings in the early 1970s, and partly by the resurgence of Maori identity … More recently, integration has been replaced with a policy of promoting two cultures alongside each other, but with maximum interaction. In this way NZ is set to forge through the new century with considerable dignity and a good deal of uncertainty.”
(26 July 2004)
  

The world hears our stories
Fracture, an adaptation of Maurice Gee’s novel Crime Story by Larry Parry, is to make its North American debut at the 28th Montreal World Film Festival (26 August – 6 September). Starring Kate Elliott, Jared Turner, John Noble, and Cliff Curtis, the film has already shown at Sicily’s Taormina Festival and will feature in Germany’s Hof Festival in October. Four other NZ films were selected for Montreal; Fleeting Beauty (Virginia Pitts), My Father’s Shoes (Samantha Scott), Tiga e le Iloa (Popo Lilo), and Boy (Welby Ings).
(30 July 2004)
    

Southern splendour
NY Post writer tours the South Island’s premiere ski sites; Mt Hutt, Cardrona, and Coronet Peak. As well as admiring the area’s “movie star good looks” and local culinary fare, he takes the plunge at Australasia’s highest bungee site - 5,250 feet above sea level at AJ Hackett Mt Hutt.
(3 August 2004)
   

Money makes the Cup go around
Alinghi syndicate head Ernesto Bertarelli has provided Team NZ a multimillion dollar “no-strings” loan to ensure their presence at the 2007 America’s Cup. “In [Bertarelli’s] view, the regatta would lose some of its appeal without us,” said Team NZ general manager, Grant Dalton. “It would be like holding the [soccer] World Cup without Brazil.” In other Cup news, Russell Coutts is embroiled in a legal battle with Alinghi over his controversial dismissal from the team. According to Swiss weekly L’Illustre, Coutts is now planning to launch a new and improved sailing competition, offering a more level playing-field. “I think especially that a system to control costs should be set up to allow the syndicates that are less well-off to be really competitive,” he stated in the interview.
(1 August 2004)
   

Tycoon Teece
Berkeley Planet profiles David Teece, the man dubbed an “economics rock star” by the NZ government and one of the world’s top 50 business intellectuals by global management giant Accenture. As well as advising PM Tony Blair on economic policy, founding Russia’s first major league business school, owning Canterbury International apparel, founding the large global firm the Law and Economic Consulting Group, and establishing and funding the Kiwi Expat Association for professional experts, the Nelson native holds the Mitsubishi Bank Chair in International Business and Finance at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and directs its Institute of Management, Innovation and Organization.
(6 August 2004)
   

The runaway returns
Boston Herald profiles 20-year-old singer/ songwriter Finn Andrews, son of XTC and Shriekback keyboardist Barry Andrews. Andrews left NZ at 16, formed his band The Veils in London, and spent 5 years recording an album – The Runaway Found - with Suede’s Bernard Butler. In a review of his solo show in Boston, the Herald describes his “soaring” voice as a cross between Jeff Buckley and Morrissey. Andrews recently returned home to put together a new Veils line-up.
(23 July 2004)
   

Stopping traffic
Cliff Curtis earns praise across the Tasman for his gritty performance in Traffic: The Miniseries. Australian: “By far the best performance is from Maori actor Cliff Curtis. His dark complexion means he is slated for the ethnic roles in Hollywood – so far he has been Hispanic in Training Day, Colombian in Blow and Arab in Three Kings. Here he's an unhappy, illegal Chechen cab driver, Adam Kadyrov, whose dogged search for his missing wife and child induces a high level of sympathy and anxiety.”
(3 August 2004)
    

Living legend
Guardian film writer Diana Dobson visits Whangara, home of the Ngati Konohi people and inspiration behind Witi Ihimaera’s Whale Rider. Rather than touring the location made famous by Niki Caro’s film adaptation, Dobson focuses on the local surfers and their families – “the modern-day wave riders who keep these Maori myths alive.” “The [Whale Rider story] has been part of our history for years and years,” says former NZ surfing representative James Fowell. “Growing up, we always knew the rocks, just out here to be the remains of Paikea and that [… island] to be his whale. I never feel threatened by the sea here. Whatever I am doing, I'm safe. We are such seafaring people and our drive and pull towards the ocean is something we can't control.” Ihimaera believes the myth could potentially become an international classic: “Like a Maori Heidi or National Velvet. It is a story for all ages, all peoples.”
(26 July 2004)
   

Pushing the boundaries
Dunedin born dancer/choreographer Carol Brown has won two major European awards; the NESTA (National Endowment for Science, Technology & the Arts) Dream Time Award in the UK, and the Ludwig Forum International Art Prize for Innovation in Germany. Brown is renowned for her ground-breaking approach to her medium, which is typified by collaborations with artists of other media and a blurring of traditional dance boundaries. “I see theatre space as both a physical stage for the meeting of bodies and a site for the intersection of bodies of thought,” she says.
(June 2004)
   

Big award for bigger undertaking
Hamilton-based design and printing company Admark won a World Silver Medal at 2004 New York Festivals Design & Print Advertising Awards, in the Fleet Graphics: Entertainment Promotion category. The award-winning entry was the immense Lord of the Rings graphic applied to the fuselage of an Air NZ Boeing 747 to mark the premiere of the third film in the trilogy. The image – the largest ever produced for an aircraft – comprised 360 individual pieces, had 800 m2 graphic curves around the fuselage and engines of the Boeing, stretched more than 48m along each side of the aircraft and was up to 8 meter deep.
(22 August 2004)

    

King of the jungle
20-year-old Turanga Merito has assumed the lead role of Simba in the Sydney production of The Lion King, after fellow Kiwi Vincent Harder bowed out for family reasons. The Disney blockbuster draws a minimum of 16,000 viewers a week. “I'm so humbled by all of it but it gets a little scary sometimes,” said Merito to the NZ Herald. “Sometimes I wonder how did this Maori boy from Okere Falls in Rotorua get here?” NZ performers play five of the nine principal roles in the show, as well as two ensemble parts.
(14 August 2004)
    

Writer in residence
Wellington-based British author Neil Cross, has made the 2004 Man Booker Prize long-list with his fourth novel, "Always the Sun". The story tells of a father’s attempts to prevent his son from being bullied. In an interview with Pulp.Net, Cross identifies Wellington’s Unity Books as his favourite bookshop in the world, calling it “small and supernaturally well-stocked.”
(26 August 2004)

    

Sterling edge
Leading contemporary jewellers from both sides of the Tasman took part in a Melbourne exhibition entitled Cross Pollination. Curated by Vicki Mason (NZ) and Anna Davern (AUS), the brief was to design a modern interpretation of the fern brooch presented to Queen Elizabeth at the 1956 Sydney Olympics. NZ participants included Warwick Freeman, Kirsten Haydon, Niki Hastings-McFall, Lynn Kelly, and Tania Patterson.
(27 July 2004)
     

Staying power
Aotearoa has a starring role in wine writer Thom Elkjer’s overview of sauvignon blanc – past and present – for the SF Chronicle. NZ has been a major player in the grape’s popularity since “[coming] out of nowhere and [growing] like wildfire” in the 1980s. “Gushing praise from wine critics was certainly one factor in their success, and it also didn't hurt that NZ winemakers are hardworking, talented people with smart money behind them.” Today, more than 3 million cases of NZ sauvignon blanc are exported annually to the UK, US, and Australia. Elkjer’s picks: 2003 Mills Reef Reserve (Hawkes Bay) and 2003 Nobilo Drylands Vineyard Icon (Marlborough).
(19 August 2004)
   

Garland Coma
New Zealand-born political cartoonist for the Daily Telegraph since 1966, Nicholas Garland has provided 40 woodcut illustrations for the new Novela by son Alex "The Beach" Garland. The book describes the dream-like interior life of a man left permanently semi-conscious after being beaten up on a train. Garland senior, now knighted, drew the original satirical comic strip The Wonderful World of Barry McKenzie for Private Eye in the 1960s.
(27 June 2004)

A long innings remembered
Obituaries for Auckland-born British Conservative MP, Sir Trevor Skeet, appeared in both the Independent and Guardian. Independent: “Academia in Britain has been vastly enriched by the infusion of talent from NZ, of whom Ernest Rutherford is only one among the most eminent. In politics, NZers have fared less well … I believe, the reason why Trevor Skeet never achieved the ministerial office to which his competence and assiduity surely entitled him, was that his colleagues reacted with, ‘Why should we give precedence and a plum job to a bloke from Auckland?’” Skeet remained in office well into his 70s, and was known for his relentless pursuit of facts and “knack for being right.”
(18 August 2004)
   

Back from the brink and here to stay
The Herald profiles NZ’s master business tactician, Burns Philip head Graeme Hart. “Were it not for Mr Hart's charm and reputation for ego-free business dealings, it would be easy to mistake that supreme confidence for arrogance. He is unshakeable in the belief that he … will find another winner […] Mr Hart's definitely the guy who looked like he was on his knees and then came back and stuck his fingers up in the air at everyone.”
(9 August 2004)
  

Chisholm to Packer
New Zealand-born media supremo Sam Chisholm has resigned as a Director of Telstra to join Kerry Packer’s media group PBL. Chisholm, 64, retains his chairmanship of Foxtel. He was head of Nine in Australia for 15 years before becoming Chief Executive of British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB) for several years. He was Executive Director of News Corp until 1999. Chisholm is the consummate worker of phones and backrooms in some of the biggest Australian-led media initiatives.
(4 September 2004)

Neill on board
Sam Neill is to star in a BBC Two adaptation of William Golding’s acclaimed sea trilogy, To the Ends of the Earth. Directed by David Attwood, the three 90-minute programs will be filmed in South Africa. Executive Producer Justin Bodle: “[This] is event television in its purest sense, an ambitious production that brings together a highly respected team that have the talent and tools to realise William Golding's vision magnificently on screen.”
(16 July 2004)
   

A smelly solution
Skunk Shot, an odorous gel developed by Victoria University scientists, has become police issue in several US cities, including LA and Richland County, Colombia. Originally designed as a cat and dog repellent, Skunk Shot is being used by US police to combat drug use and prostitution in abandoned buildings.
(24 July 2004)
  

He’s a keeper
Former NZ cricket captain, John Wright, has signed on for another year as coach of the Indian side. Much of the team’s recent success – including their historic Test series win over Pakistan in April – has been attributed to Wright’s leadership, and his contract renewal was “widely expected.” (16 August 2004)
   

Power in numbers
Buddhists at Avondale’s Dorje Chang Institute have begun building the world’s largest and most powerful prayer wheel. The 2.5m tall and 1.4 m wide wheel will be wrapped in layers of microfilm containing 2,500 billion mantras. The frame was donated by Lama Zopa Rinpoche; the Institute’s California based spiritual director.
(18 August 2004)
   

First and best
Christchurch businesswoman Elizabeth Deuchrass has won the International Partnership Network’s 7th biannual Global Best Award for the Pacific Ocean region - the first NZer ever to do so. Her company - Elizabeth Deuchrass & Associates Ltd – has spent the last 20 years promoting exchange between schools and businesses. She will collect the award in London at the ‘Global Challenges, Local Actions’ conference this November.
(11 August 2004)
    

Gamble pays off
Business Review Weekly dubs Matthew Slatter “Australia’s most admired new chief executive,” thanks to his remarkable transformation of Tabcorp from “a Victorian-centric pokies and wagering minnow to what will soon be the world's fourth-largest gambling company.” The NZer took over the reins at Tabcorp in October 2002. Since then he has consolidated Australia’s gaming industry by coordinating nearly $4 billion worth of takeovers and mergers.
(19 August 2004)
    

Travellers flock to the Edge
NZ’s booming tourism industry shows no signs of slowing down, with a 20% increase in overseas visitors arriving in July than for the same period last year. According to the Tourism Research Council, tourism will grow by an average of 5.8% a year to reach 3.1 million international visitor arrivals in 2010, up from 2.3 million at 31 July 2004. The majority of these arrivals are, and are likely to continue to be, Australians. Melbourne’s Herald Sun: “The reality is Australians are flocking to NZ in record numbers, lured by cheap airfares and greater airline capacity across the Tasman. And somewhere along the way, NZ has begun to shed its image as Australia's backward neighbour.”
(20 August 2004)
    

Pop with Edge
BritKiwi singer Natasha Bedingfield (sister to Brit Award winner Daniel) is a welcome addition to an increasingly bland, Idol-dominated British pop scene, according to a lengthy Guardian feature. “[She] possesses that elusive balance of image and talent … Her looks tick the right boxes - wholesome enough for Saturday morning TV, sexy enough for men's magazines - and her voice, unusually for a white, English pop singer, brims with R&B grit.” A Guardian review of her recent London show confirms the hype: “Natasha unshackles a gritty, blast-furnace style that, along with the dry ice that periodically billows across the stage, gives a foretaste of the arena act she seems set to become […] Bedingfield has no obvious British team-mates. The nearest equivalent is alpha female Pink, with a frosting of south London cockiness.” Bedingfield's second single, These Words, repeated the success of her first - going straight to No.1 on the UK charts.
(5 August 2004)
   

Lord Gazza
Gisborne builder Gary Lewis became the first Maori member of the British Royal Family with his marriage to Lady Davina Windsor at Kensington Palace. Lewis is the son of a former champion sheep-shearer and nephew to writer Witi Ihimaera. He met Lady Davina - who is 20th in line to the throne - while on holiday in Bali four years ago.
(2 August 2004)
   

Interislander
Guardian writer Giles Smith test drives the Gibbs Aquada and pronounces it “the most fun thing that has ever happened to cars.” A shining example of Kiwi ingenuity, the Aquada is the world’s first high-speed amphibian (HSA) vehicle. The invention recently made headlines around the world (again) after Richard Branson piloted a modified version across the Channel.
(10 August 2004)
   

Lucire gets respect
SF Examiner lists Lucire alongside Women’s Wear Daily and Lucky as one of the “respected fashion rags” sending representatives to cover this year’s inaugural San Francisco Fashion Week. Based in NZ, the online magazine has a predominantly North American readership, and is to feature in the next fashion textbook by US publishing house, McGraw Hill.
(19 August 2004)
    

Exploring our edge
A couple from St Louis give a colourful account of their whirlwind 14-day tour of NZ. “Throughout ‘Kiwiland’ we bumped into geographical quirks, idiosyncratic traditions and a countryside full of surprises: miniature blue penguins; peanut butter on roast beef; bungee jumping from restaurants […] And no matter where you travel, north or south, the geography keeps you jumping.” A special mention is made of “the Auckland All-Blacks; the favorite soccer team, hands and feet down, of most New Zealanders.”
(21 August 2004)
   

Paradise found
Pittsburgh Live reviews psychoanalyst Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson’s ode to his beloved adopted homeland, NZ. “Slipping Into Paradise is [Masson’s] valentine to the Kiwis. The pages are full of rhapsodies about the lush and calming landscape, the greenery, the blue of the oceans.” USA Today: "Masson's enthusiasm for his new beach home in NZ jumps off the pages in this colorful but meandering memoir ... [He] encourages upper-income Americans to move to NZ but recommends they do it quickly..."
(10 August 2004)
  

World class
Dr John Bedbrook, President and CEO of American GM crop developer Verdia, has returned to his native NZ as part of the government's World Class New Zealanders business advisory program. Bedbrook recently spoke at the Bio2004 convention in San Francisco.
(June 2004)
    

Polar custodians
NZ’s Antarctic Heritage Trust has unveiled plans to restore and protect huts built by early explorers of the South Pole, including Scott’s Discovery Hut and that of Norwegian-born Carsten Borchgrevink. Norway and the UK have been asked to contribute towards the multimillion dollar scheme. “It has to be remembered that while here in NZ the [Antarctic Heritage] Trust and the government has taken a great interest in the subject, this is also the common history of mankind,” said PM Helen Clark at the project launch. “It is an international collaborative effort.”
(29 July 2004)
   

Hollywood’s latest bad boy
Karl Urban (LotR, Chronicles of Riddick) has won over US critics with his portrayal of “malignant hit-man Kirill” in the critically acclaimed action sequel, The Bourne Supremacy. According to the Chicago Tribune, “Urban, playing Kirill like an Olympic athlete of death, has blood-freezing moments,” making him a key figure in “a crack supporting cast.” Also starring Martin Csokas as another evil doer.
(August 2004)
   

Suntan Man
Al Baldwin, 74, has sprayed his last beachgoer. Over the past 30 years, New Zealand-born Baldwin had become a fixture in Surfers’ Paradise beach, spraying an estimated three million beachgoers with suntan lotion. His business was a patch of sand where he sprayed suntan lotion on up to 600 beachgoers a day, and hired out chairs, umbrellas and boogie boards. He grew up in a New Zealand orphanage, moved to Sydney in the early 1950s and to the Gold Coast in 1968.
(2 September 2004)

In their own league
The “Kiwi Super League invasion” continues, with NZ Test centre David Vaealiki signing to Wigan, and Warriors prop Jerry Seu Seu to join the competition next year. Ali Lauitiiti (Leeds), Motu Tony (Castleford), Richard Swain (Hull), David Solomona (Wakefield) and Logan Swann (Bradford) are already in the UK.
(27 July 2004)
   

Blood brothers
Cabinet minister John Tamihere has spoken out in the defense of heterosexual “red-blooded blokes” and been heard around the world. Excerpts of his speech at Epsom’s St Peter’s College appeared in the Washington Times, as well as several other international papers.
(29 July 2004)