The Human Shrub strikes again... with his wife the Human Shrubette | Mail OnlineThe Human Shrub strikes again... with his wife the Human Shrubette
By Mail On Sunday Reporter
Last updated at 10:03 PM on 01st August 2009His costume of straggly weeds is a far cry from the sleek outfits sported by traditional superheroes, yet his mission to transform neglected public gardens is just as admirable.
But now it seems that, like most crusaders, the green-fingered campaigner known only as the Human Shrub does not work alone.
Yesterday the guerrilla gardener turned up at a shabby communal garden with a trusty sidekick – his wife, Mrs Shrub.
Leaf police: The human shrub with his wife
She arrived decked out in the trademark foliage suit, teamed with a bright pink apron and a tray of cherry bakewell tarts.
The pair had organised a party of volunteer gardeners to descend on the scruffy patch of land in Hubert Road in Colchester, Essex. The team – rounded up through social networking site Facebook – spent the morning sprucing up the patch, weeding and planting donated shrubs and flowers.
Digging in: The couple get down to work
Little is known about the Human Shrub aside from his age, 39, and his burning passion for all things green.
Rumoured to be a Conservative activist intent on making the local council reconsider budget cuts for public gardens, his first act of rebellion was to parade along the local high street during a council meeting
in protest against plans to cut back rose bushes completely to save the cost of maintaining them.
Crusader: The Human Shrub's mission is to transform neglected public gardens
He later shamed the Labour and Lib Dem-run council by replanting ugly weed-strewn plant pots in the town with bright flowers, leaving the message: ‘To Colchester, with love, the Human Shrub.’
Myra Kimsey, 80, who lives near the Hubert Road site, said: ‘I think what he’s doing is fantastic. If only more people followed suit.’
August 2, 2009
The Human Shrub strikes again... with his wife the Human Shrubette | Mail Online
Capes and cake: Tony and Sarah’s big superhero wedding
Sun Journal | Connecting you with your Community
Amber Waterman/Sun Journal
"We're really doing this!" says Sarah LaFore, dressed as Wonder Woman, to her groom-to-be Superman, a.k.a, Tony Lucchese, after donning her costume for the rehearsal at a rented warehouse in Portland. They are to be married today in their "three-act Super Wedding."
Amber Waterman/Sun Journal
The "Super Wedding's" groomsmen include Spider-Man, Aquaman, Flash, The Hulk and Batman.
Amber Waterman/Sun Journal
In lieu of flowers, all of the centerpieces are superhero-themed.
Amber Waterman/Sun Journal
Bride Sarah LaFore, right, instructs her Amazon warrior bridesmaids in their entrance before groom Tony Lucchese warned them of the hazards of their spears. "They're theatrically blunted, but they can still do some damage!" Lucchese said.
Amber Waterman/Sun Journal
Tony Lucchese and Sarah LaFore, dressed as Superman and Wonder Woman, will be married at a Fortress of Solitude altar — built by the groom and a few friends — in a rented warehouse space in Portland today.
Amber Waterman/Sun Journal
Tony Lucchese and Sarah LaFore make a few last-minute decisions before their "Super Wedding" today in Portland.
Amber Waterman/Sun Journal Bride Sarah LaFore, right, instructs her Amazon warrior bridesmaids in their entrance before groom Tony Lucchese warned them of the hazards of their spears. "They're theatrically blunted, but they can still do some damage!" said Lucchese.When he proposed, Tony Lucchese told Sarah LaFore that she was his kryptonite.
He gave her a green diamond ring. Then he got planning.
On their big day, Batman could rappel from the ceiling. Superman could say his vows to Wonder Woman. The whole wedding party — and guests — could dress up.
After an exploratory climb, the dive from the rafters was nixed — it's no grand entrance if the best man breaks a leg. Guests-to-be said they'd rather hear Tony marry Sarah than Superman marry Wonder Woman.
Then bridesmaids balked at fishnets and leotards.
They told LaFore: "We love you a lot, but we don't know if we love you enough to wear spandex."
Undaunted, Lucchese went back to work.
The script has been polished. The stage built. The costumes fitted.
Eighteen months in the making, today's the day for their superhero wedding.
"We're really hoping a lot of villains show up," LaFore said.
The couple met seven years ago in Tennessee on a production of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" at the Oak Ridge Playhouse. He was artistic director, she was in the show.
They moved to Portland in 2006. Both are full-time students at the University of Southern Maine. Lucchese, 31, is entering grad school to be a math teacher. LaFore, 34, is studying to be a marine biologist.
When the superhero idea first came up, they weren't even engaged. And neither is a huge comic-book fan. But Lucchese had a Superman T-shirt he wore a lot. He could work his hair into the perfect Supes' spit-curl.
And they both love a good production.
"It was a joke for a number of years," he said. "At some point we came to the painful realization it wasn't a joke anymore."
Lucchese decided early that great costumes would be key to pulling it off. He tracked down a New Jersey designer who's made costumes for theme parks and the Syfy Channel.
"Everyone involved is doing a few extra crunches and forgoing a few extra desserts during the week to pull off spandex," said best man Eric Kieschnick of Pennsylvania. "It's the opposite of a gut-hiding cummerbund."
Aquaman, Flash and Spider-Man round out the groomsmen. Ten bridesmaids will be Amazon warriors — in comic mythos, Wonder Woman is an Amazon princess — with spears, togas and sandals.
Two weeks ago, LaFore and Lucchese made an emergency trip to Jersey, down and back in one day, to tweak her costume.
"Paramount to having a successful wedding is having the bride feel pretty," he said.
He and volunteer carpenters built a Fortress of Solitude altar in a rented warehouse space in Portland. They'll be married by Kieschnick's father, dressed as Jor-El, Superman's dad. Part of the script borrows from Kryptonian wedding vows. The couple will break character to say, "I do."
"I watch him try to come up with ideas for certain things; I feel like I'm sitting on the sidelines like a groom," LaFore said. "I've loved every minute of it. I love that he's so excited about the planning."
They expect 85 guests and plan three cakes: One with Wonder Woman and Superman on top, one with Marvel figures and a third for DC characters. Instead of flowers, they'll decorate with superhero paraphernalia.
Lucchese said he turned to Casablanca Comics in Portland as a "sort of superhero library," with staff helping them find back issues like Action Comics' "Supergirl's Wedding Day." When he ordered posters from Canada to hang around the warehouse and they got stuck in U.S. Customs, the comic book store donated a bunch.
Lucchese spent the days leading up to Saturday on final touches, arranging enormous set pieces cut and painted to look like crystals, adjusting lights and cuing up sound.
For example, "When I put a little kryptonite shard (in a tube) to bring the fortress to life, I have some ringing crystal sounds," Lucchese said.
Kieschnick, who works in film and television, applauded his friends' "theatrical commitment."
"I certainly was wary of rappelling at first. Once I warmed to the idea, I mourned its loss," he said.
But wait just a minute, Batman.
"He's actually going to be sliding down a pole now, he doesn't really know it yet," Lucchese said. "Spidey is swinging in on a rope."
CHARLES MANSON'S SECRET PRISON BUSINESS- New York Post
CHARLES MANSON'S SECRET PRISON BUSINESS- New York Post
August 2, 2009 --
CHARLES Manson secretly runs an autograph business out of his cell, peddling his signature to sicko collectors of crime memorabilia, a new book claims.
In "Five to Die," out this month from Thor Publishing, veteran journalist Ivor Davis claims the homicidal cult leader has become one of the richest inmates in the California corrections system by selling signed photos and other mementos he quietly smuggles out of Corcoran State Prison.
"Only he doesn't even sign the pictures. He has fellow inmates doing an assembly line of signatures for him. It shows you he's still manipulating people. It really boggles the mind," Davis told Page Six.
"Manson has also tried to smuggle pieces of his clothing out. And he fashions these little cloth scorpions out of socks to sell. Most of them are confiscated by guards, but some make it out," said Davis, adding that money from the proceeds is then sent to Manson's prison trust-fund account.
He added that Manson devotee Sandra Good -- who was not involved in the Manson family murders but served 15 years for sending death threats to corporate executives she accused of "polluting the earth" -- occasionally helps him with cash.
But prison spokeswoman Terry Thornton told us that while Manson is allowed to mail items to outsiders who then could sell them, officials could find no evidence of an autograph business. She added that people can send inmates small amounts of money -- typically $5 to $40 -- and that Good had sent Manson money in the past.
Manson -- who masterminded the savage Tate/LaBianca killings 40 years ago this month -- is now 74 and serving life behind bars. "He's described as a little slower, and spends a lot of time in his cell . . . playing his guitar and singing songs," Thornton said. In recent years, he was cited for possession of a weapon and threatening a guard, she said.
Jamming On FAO Schwarz Piano
Professional pianists show The Saturday Early Show anchors Chris Wragge and Erica Hill how to play the infamous FAO Schwarz large floor piano from the classic Tom Hanks comedy Big.