Author Archives: Valerie Leung

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About Valerie Leung

I ♥ Sydney Swans. Square-eyed from too much television. I don't read enough. You can find me blogging at LibraGirlRules.com, writing about TV, films and books at ArmchairParadise.wordpress.com and occasionally traveloguing at ThursdayHasAView.wordpress.com. I have been known to write fanfic at fanfiction.net (http://www.fanfiction.net/u/2660477/) and you can follow me on Twitter and Instagram @valshopaholic.

White Collar Season 4 Interview With Willie Garson

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Willie Garson White Collar S4 promo

There are very few people I would get up at 4.30 on a cold wintry morning for (in case you’re new to my articles, I live in Sydney, Australia).  Willie Garson is one such person.  I had the opportunity to join in a press call with Willie on Monday who is one of the stars of the USA Network hit WHITE COLLAR.  And yes, I am taking the liberty to call him “Willie” rather than “Mr. Garson” because, as of right now, I feel like we are old pals, and I say this because when I introduced myself on the call, his response was “aaaaahhhh, is this ‘valshopaholic’?” (for the uninitiated, that is my Twitter handle).

The challenge with participating in a conference call is that, if you are farther down the line for your turn to ask a question, someone else may have already asked the question you had prepared.  And so, in my usual nutty fashion, I tried to think of the most “out there” questions – without scaring him, of course!

So here goes…

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Review: WIGS – “Jan” (Part 1)

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Jan (Caitlin Gerard) is a photographer who has just scored her first job working for renowned photographer-to-the-stars, Mel Karpova (Virginia Madsen).  She may attend to her camera equipment with the skill and touch of a brain surgeon, but she is clumsy and nervous when it comes to anything that does not involve a camera.

But you can’t really blame Jan for being nervous when her first photoshoot is called “Afterglow” which involves actors Gerald Noth (Stephen Moyer) making love to his girlfriend, Andie (Jaime Murray), then photographing Andie in the immediate moments afterwards.  Mel is unimpressed by Jan’s clumsiness while Gerald is every bit the gentleman and charmer, insisting that he is the one at fault and not Jan – in a way, totally true.  How is a girl supposed to concentrate when Stephen Moyer is standing there in front of you in nothing but a towel around his waist? Continue reading →

Why Matt Bomer Made Glee Worth Watching

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When I first started watching GLEE nearly three years ago, it was totally out of curiosity.  I have always liked Jane Lynch in every role she’s played, whether it be comedy or drama, and her portrayal of Sue Sylvester was hilarious.  I liked the music and was excited that it introduced a whole new generation of viewers to old classics that I had grown up with.  Mind you, I know I don’t exactly fit into their target demographics but I was interested in it enough to keep tuning in every week.

These days, I still watch GLEE, usually while cooking or eating dinner, and mostly to see what they do with their roster of talented guest stars, and yes, they do rely heavily on bringing in the big guns to push up the ratings – and perhaps to attract audiences like me who would otherwise have no interest in most of the regular cast.

Before the seven-week hiatus, we saw David Karofsky (Max Adler) – former football hero/chief school bully/closeted homosexual in love with Kurt (Chris Colfer) – attempting to commit suicide after becoming a victim of bullying himself. I would have liked to have seen this storyline develop more but all we got was a brief discussion amongst the teachers about how they could have prevented this and the school principal effectively saying it’s not their fault or responsibility.  The kids had a little group discussion amongst themselves, too, but where was the school counselling?

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12 Months On: For Mary

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Dear Mary,

I can’t believe 12 months have passed now since your wedding day.  I remember it like it was yesterday.  It was a glorious, sunny day in Sydney.  It was also the last time I saw you, Mary, before you were taken away from us a month later.

For days before your much-anticipated big day, it had rained in Sydney, threatening to turn your garden wedding into a muddy affair, but even if the weather had stayed bad, I’m sure you would have started a mud-fight, because that’s the kind of mischief you could have got us started.  But of course, God was looking out for you (and for the sake of us girls wearing heels on the grass), the sun shone brightly on your wedding day.

It was a long drive to the park but we made it without getting lost (as I am prone to do – no, I still have no SatNav!).  A small crowd had already arrived and gathered around.  Rodney was looking very dashing in his suit, and yes, very relaxed too.  It didn’t take long before your car arrived.  You were waving at the crowds like the Queen, and yes, you were definitely our Queen that day.

Your girls, Mia and Kylan, looked absolutely adorable in their pretty fairy princess dresses.  And then you walked across the grass, escorted by your Dad.  Even from afar, I could tell you looked frail, but there was no doubt you were happy.  You were downright glowing and basking in the sunshine, your golden wig reflecting the sunshine as you squinted a little in the sunlight.  You looked around, surprised by the number of people who had turned up to see you get hitched and finally make an honest man of Rodney 🙂

Remember the music video montage I made from the photos I took at your wedding?  I’m proud to say I introduced Rodney and the girls to Bruno Mars, and every time I listen to that album, I think of you.

Today, 12 months on, your wedding anniversary has fallen on Easter Monday.  The weather is not unlike that of your wedding day here in Sydney – sunshine on a beautiful autumn day – and it reminds me so much of your wedding day.  Rodney and I had a long chat on the phone a few weeks ago and we talked about your wedding.  Your girls are getting bigger and they’re taking care of Daddy, just as he is taking good care of them.  You’d be proud of your family.

You are missed always but will never be forgotten.

With love,

Valerie

Author’s note: Mary was a school friend of mine who lost her battle with cancer in May, 2011.  I had previously blogged about her wedding day and later reflected on her life and our friendship.  

Five Scenes You Didn’t See in The Hunger Games Movie

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OK. By now, you’ve heard about this movie called THE HUNGER GAMES. You may have even read the book (I hope). Like any adaptation, there is bound to be some scenes, characters, or storyline that will be cut out or merged due to time constraints. It is understandable that sacrifices must be made in order to progress a story and in this case, the adaptation is perhaps made slightly more difficult by the fact that the books were written in first person – from the point of view of our heroine, Katniss Everdeen.

But I am not here to critique the movie – there are already plenty of movie critics and film reviewers who have done this.  I thought I would just highlight a few scenes that made the book all-the-more appealing to me that did not make it into the final cut of the film, or were changed.  To those of you who have read the trilogy, you will probably notice some of these scenes/characters will become more significant in the subsequent books in the series, and so, I hope, they will be brought back into the film adaptation of those books.

Please note that I am writing this post on the assumption that you have either read the book or seen the movie or both, therefore, no detailed explanation is being given as to the overall plot or cast of characters.

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