>> The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
>> Identity Thief
>> Gangster Squad
>> Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away
>> Lincoln
>> Zero Dark Thirty
>> Hitchcock
>> The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
>> Hyde Park on Hudson
>> Safety Not Guaranteed

Opening 5.10.13
>> The Great Gatsby (PG-13) [trailer]
>> Peeples (PG-13) [trailer]
>> Aftershock (Limited) (R) [trailer]
>> And Now a Word From Our Sponsor (Limited) (NR) [trailer]
>> Erased (Limited) (R) [trailer]
>> Sightseers (Limited) (NR) [trailer]
>> Venus and Serena (Limited) (PG-13) [trailer]

Coming To DVD/Blu-Ray 5.7.13
>> Safe Haven (2013) [buy]
>> Fringe: The Complete Fifth Season [buy]
>> Jack Reacher [buy]
>> Mama [buy]
>> Superman: Unbound [buy]

Las Vegas: Satan Vacations Here
by Victoria Alexander
June 25, 2012

Da Vinci – The Genius at The Venetian, The Feminization of John the Apostle in The Last Supper, How To Fight An Alien Abduction, 2nd Anniversary Party for Las Vegas Informer, Another Theory on Homosexuality, and more...

Da Vinci – The Genius. I've seen the "Mona Lisa" twice. Unfortunately, it is roped off and you cannot get close enough to it to admire its profound beauty. Also, no photos are allowed – unless you are the Pope or Kim Kardarshian.

However, Da Vinci – The Genius gives you a prospective that takes you inside the painting!

The breathtaking exhibition opened on June 15th and a special invitation only party was held on June 19th. Imagine Exhibitions, Inc. President/CEO Tom Zaller was on hand to greet and chat with guests. Zaller presents Da Vinci – The Genius, the most comprehensive exploration of Leonardo da Vinci's work ever created, for a limited engagement at The Venetian.

French scientific engineer and examiner of fine art, Pascal Cotte, of Lumière Technologies, France, whose research revealed the Secrets of Mona Lisa, was on hand for the VIP affair and shared his insight and expertise. Granted unprecedented access to "Mona Lisa," Cotte conducted a scientific analysis that revealed dozens of secrets about history's most elusive art piece, all verified and approved by the Louvre Museum.

Da Vinci – The Genius celebrates the full scope of Leonardo da Vinci's psyche as an inventor, artist, anatomist, sculptor, engineer, musician and architect. The interactive exhibition features 13 compelling themed areas of da Vinci's work, offering visitors an unmatched look inside the mind of the man who laid the groundwork for some of modern society's most impactful inventions, such as the helicopter, airplane, automobile, military tank and submarine.

Da Vinci – The Genius is awesome. The work done investigating the "Mona Lisa" is striking and I especially enjoyed the slide show on "The Last Supper" that ends the exhibition.

I spoke briefly with Tom Zaller, President and CEO of Imagine Exhibitions, Inc. Tom intends to bring other exhibitions to The Venetian. This impressive exhibition should be a must-see for all locals and visitors. Of course I had to mention the controversy over the dramatic "V" space between Jesus and the Beloved Apostle John; and of course, the feminization of John popularized by The Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown, who invited speculation that the figure on Jesus's left is really His wife, Mary Magdalene.

So, is John the Apostle hiding under the table? Is he out buying groceries?

Above: The Last Supper, ca. 1520, by Giampietrino, after Leonardo da Vinci, oil on canvas, currently in the collection of The Royal Academy of Arts, London; an accurate, full-scale copy of the original that was the main source for the twenty-year restoration of the original masterpiece (1978-1998).

Imagine Exhibitions Gallery is located off the main reception lobby of The Venetian. This limited engagement is open now through October 15, 2012. Visit DaVinciTheGenius.com for more information.

Tickets for Da Vinci – The Genius will be available for purchase at The Venetian box office and venetian.com; prices are as follows: adult ($25), senior/military ($23), Nevada residents ($20), children 12 and under ($18). Da Vinci – The Genius is open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The Feminization of John the Apostle in The Last Supper. Doing extensive research on the feminization of John the Apostle I came across many compelling blogs. The most interesting and highly informative is by "Professor Nemo" (David M. White) titled: The Missing Pieces Of Leonardo's Puzzle Point To Plain And Simple Hermeticism. He delves deeply into the coded messages in Da Vinci's works: In part, Professor Nemo writes:

"The intellectual influence of Renaissance Hermeticism on art, rather than a depiction of Mary Magdalene at the Last Supper, is the basis for A Different da Vinci Code.

This is an alternative explanation of Leonardo's symbolism, which proposed the typical use of transgender figures in various artworks of the period as a veiled reference to the alchemical androgyne (Sophia/Baphomet), representing the keenly anticipated rebirth of classical knowledge and culture. Similarly, Leonardo's use of the up-pointed finger of Mercury/Hermes, also referred to as the John Gesture, is proposed to denote the universal Hermetic motto, "As above; so below."

Finally, it is proposed that the manner in which this symbolism is used in the artist's works also supports by illustration the contention that Leonardo may have, at some point in his life, championed the Johannite cult of Gnosticism, frequently associated with the Knights Templar, rather than the Cathar cult of Mary Magdalene as alleged by others." http://divertimentodavinci.blogspot.com

How To Fight An Alien Abduction. You are being abducted by evil aliens every night. What should you do? No-budget short film captures the creepiness of an alien encounter on a shoestring.

For their impressive 14-minute movie 88:88, writers Sean Wilson and Joey Ciccoline tell the story of a young woman whose unearthly experiences have forced her to retreat from society. Using minimal dialogue and an everyday setting, this snazzy flick demonstrates that you don't need Michael Bay money to make a science fiction film jarring and atmospheric.

88:88 has been tapped for the YouTube Your Film Festival to win a grant from Ridley Scott's production company, so vote: http://io9.com. Vote for it!

The Las Vegas Informer. Joe Buda, Editor-in-Chief of The Las Vegas Informer, partnered with social networking maven Yvette Brown's Cosmopolitan Connections for their Two Year Anniversary Celebration. The celebration took place on Friday, June 22 at Breathe, the Hard Rock Pool. We were all asked to wear white and nearly 95% of the beautiful crowd obeyed.

With the success of The Las Vegas Informer, Joe has launched the San Diego Informer, the Los Angeles Informer and the San Francisco Informer. By the end of March 2012, Joe added San Antonio, Austin and Houston. LVInformer entertainment journalist Nikki Artale introduced me to Joe and I've joined the Informer Media Group. My film reviews are prominently featured. Noticing that there was no restaurant critic on the team, I suggested foodie Rob Goald to Joe.

Take a look at the Las Vegas Informer and if you have any suggestions for columnists, let Joe know. www.LVInformer.com

Another Theory on Homosexuality. I am fascinated by man's sexual evolution. So I came across this new theory in the UK press:

While female sexuality appears to be more fluid, research suggests that male gayness is an inborn, unalterable, strongly genetically influenced trait. But considering that the trait discourages the type of sex that leads to procreation — that is, sex with women — and would therefore seem to thwart its own chances of being genetically passed on to the next generation, why are there gay men at all?

Put differently, why haven't gay man genes driven themselves extinct?

This longstanding question is finally being answered by new and ongoing research. For several years, studies led by Andrea Camperio Ciani at the University of Padova in Italy and others have found that mothers and maternal aunts of gay men tend to have significantly more offspring than the maternal relatives of straight men. The results show strong support for the "balancing selection hypothesis," which is fast becoming the accepted theory of the genetic basis of male homosexuality.

The theory holds that the same genetic factors that induce gayness in males also promote fecundity (high reproductive success) in those males' female maternal relatives. Through this trade-off, the maternal relatives' "gay man genes," though they aren't expressed as such, tend to get passed to future generations in spite of their tendency to make their male inheritors gay.

Turns out, the moms and aunts of gay men have an advantage over the moms and aunts of straight men for several reasons: They are more fertile, displaying fewer gynecological disorders or complications during pregnancy; they are more extroverted, as well as funnier, happier and more relaxed; and they have fewer family problems and social anxieties. "In other words, compared to the others, [they are] perfect for a male," Camperio Ciani said. Attracting and choosing from the best males enables these women to produce more offspring, he noted.

If you would like to contact me about this column, or be included on my private distribution list for a weekly reminder, just email me at Masauu@aol.com.

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