100 – New Zealanders in Global Headlines 5 June 2008

Image: Victory Over Death 2, 1970. Courtesy of the Colin McCahon Research and Publication Trust.

"The Luminary" For our 100^th letter we publish the story of New Zealand's most revered artist who reconceived Aotearoa "as the land of the long black shadow". At every turn, Colin McCahon's uncompromisingly individual works were underpinned by a deeply felt sense of place and a search to find symbols that might represent this sense. His deep introspections about the New Zealand landscape, and its relationship to universal spiritual truths, leached into his abstract. Standing before the canvas, McCahon's needs were binary. "Most of my work has been aimed at relating to an acceptance of the very beautiful and terrible mysteries that we are part of. I only need black and white to say what I have to say. It's a matter of light and dark." Walking on the wild edge of New Zealand, Colin McCahon was our "signwriter for God". The story (4,500 words) is by Paul Ward, nzedge.com editor-at-large and author of several of our "Hero" stories including those of Edmund Hillary, Richard Pearse, Janet Frame, Jack Lovelock, and John Britten.

New Zealanders in Global Headlines

Photos: Scott Dixon, Lucy Lawless, Mark Simmons, Andrew Adamson.

New Zealand headlines in this week's sampling of global media appearing in U.S. News, New York, Telegraph, BBC World Service, Rocky Mountain News, Sunshine Coast Daily, London Time Out, Times Online, Empire, Guardian, National Post, The Sydney Morning Herald, Independent, Maxim, Los Angeles Times, Film Stew, PR Week, Deutsche Welle, Reuters and Travel Mail include:

• Scott Dixon makes history with first NZ victory at Indianapolis 500
• Lucy Lawless performs live at London's Carling Academy
• Mark Simmons, contestant in Top Chef, aims to serve NZ cuisine in NY
• Andrew Adamson's Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian opens wide
• James Flynn, moral philosopher, rethinks intelligence in 21st Century
• Bill Phillips' Economic modelling machine still at work in UK
• Youngest country, the new focus of Tourism NZ global branding
• New Zealand number four on 2008 Global Peace Index of 140 nations
• Anna Paquin, one of the world's most beautiful women, Maxim
• Emily Perkins, author, comes home to write London novel, About My Wife
• Lake Karapiro, Cambridge, home to "strongest rowing squad in the world"
• The Great Romance, 1881 sci-fi novella, dusted off in Dunedin
• Lance and James Morcan, Tauranga, to make Precious McKenzie film
• Robbie Penny, Auckland greensman, arranges on-set nurseries in Narnia
• NZ scientists discover "Brittlestar City" on Macquarie Range peak
• Christopher Chandler, tycoon, philanthropist, funds $50m business school
• The Conchords clone themselves and release "genre-bending" LP in UK
• Otago University asthma, obesity study results published in US journal
• From Takaka, journo Peter Foster celebrates autumn's long shadows
• Escape to NZ, BBC radio doco, interviews with eco-refugees in Wanaka
• Matt Reed, world's tallest triathelete, wins place on US Olympic team
• Mihirangi, singer, films No War clip on an iceberg in Antarctica
• Neil Berkett, Virgin Media CEO, 8 weeks into the job and pragmatic
• The Mongrel Mob argue their "warrior" culture in BBC gang documentary
• Jacob Oram, "stretch limo version of fast bowlers" ready for UK Tests
• NZ's favourite wizard Sir Ian McKellen to reprise Gandalf role in Hobbit
• Tame Iti, activist, heads to Europe to star in NZ production, Tempest II
• Hector's World, NZ software, teaches London children about cyber-safety
• Sir Richard Hadlee "dodged his father's shadow" to bowl own records
• NZ dairy farmers profit from worldwide demand in "best year in history"
• Napier's Art Deco and artisan produce "still a bit of a secret", SMH
• Nick Evans signs with Harlequins, NZRU think contract strategies
• Christchurch to cater for Israeli tourists with first kosher restaurant in NZ
• Ruby Suns, Brunettes, two of NZ's "top five" bands signing US, UK deals
• Queenstown is "Aspen on Acid", "dramatic" and "visually arresting"
• Anton Oliver moves to Oxford, UK for "academic rigour and thought"

For full stories see http://www.nzedge.com/media, a 6,000-story storehouse of international activities by New Zealanders 2000–08.

---

Best wishes on this 100th letter from New York and New Zealand:
Brian Sweeney, Kevin Roberts – Partners and Carla Hofler, Isobel Kerr-Newell, Paul Ward, Jane Nye – Contributors

99 – New Zealanders in Global Headlines 28 May 2008

New Zealand headlines in this week's sampling of global media appearing in The West Australian, Telegraph, Hindustan Times, Miami Herald, Los Angeles Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Vancouver Sun, Guardian, The Age, Star Bulletin, The Villager, Independent, The New York Times and Honolulu Magazine include:

• Colin Murdoch, "one of NZ's most significant inventors" dies, Timaru, 79
• Vaka Moana Auckland Museum's "most ambitious" travelling exhibit
• Maori self-determination and reliance a model for Canadian analysts
• John Botica's mosaic "Tree of Life" one of the world’s top 100
• John Clarke and alter-ego Fred Dagg honoured at Logies
• NZ invention, spreadable butter, "a gift from a divine providence"
• World of Wearable Arts a platform for winning Indian talent
• Raglan more than surf, popular too for "Bohemian" arts scene
• David Trubridge's "On Thin Ice" panels in San Francisco eco-exhibit
• Geoffrey Knight, tenor, sheds leathers for operetta in Australia
• New Zealand committed to eco-tourism in competitive market
• Annie Goldson's An Island Calling features in Canadian doco festival
• Rotorua attracts geocachers, "outdoor treasure-hunters" with GPS
• Peter Jackson and Pan's Labyrinth Guillermo Del Toro join forces
• CER 25th anniversary of "an almost single trans-Tasman market"
• Anthony Wilding, tennis champ, toppled as 90-year world record holder
• Te Papa defrosts and dissects rare colossal squid live on Web
• Thomas Butson "brought journalistic ambition" to NY's Villager
• Pokeno inspires alias for ex-Thompson Twin's armchair art
• Shane Bond's transfer to ICL's Dehli Giants a "no brainer"
• Darcy Lange's films screen in "textured" and "cool" NY exhibit
• Prohunt, NZ company, hired in Hawaii to eradicate wild pigs, goats

For full stories see http://www.nzedge.com/media, a 6,000-story storehouse of international activities by New Zealanders 2000-08.

Photos: Colin Murdoch; Auckland Museum's travelling exhibition Vaka Moana; Maori role models for Canada; Pebble Mosaic by John Botica.

NEW: Nga Kupu Aroha: Blog #23 By Denis O'Reilly, May 2008

A review of good work in South Auckland with previously warring groups; the system's dilemma of how to react to pro-social gang leaders; coping with the tough times when things go wrong (stick to the kaupapa and say your karakia); big inflow of P-related product threatening to wipe out progress of demand reduction strategies overnight; ANZAC has become a day of national unity; Maori and Pakeha seem to get on better when at war than when at peace; Napier Pilot City Trust works on this with Unity Week and builds the Robson Collection as a resource for building communities rather than prisons in a time when our numbers have doubled in 20 years; Governor General Anand Satyanand gives the Robson Lecture on the history of capital punishment and pays respects to community volunteers; a 93rd birthday for Helen Mason.

NEW ZEALAND EDGE INTERNATIONAL DATEBOOK

• 30 May 2008, 8pm, Winston Kingdom, Amsterdam
  Electronic 3-piece group Minuit live on stage. Ten pounds on the door.
• 19 June 2008, 6:30pm, NZ Society Summer Drinks, NZ House, London
  NZ wine and canapes on the 18th floor balcony of NZ House. Cash bar, members 10 pounds, non-members 14 pounds, reserve tickets at www.nzsociety.co.uk.
• 20-23 June 2008, TNT Eternal Summer, NewQuay, England
  The first weekender to cater for expats, in caravans and with live music. For further information and bookings go to www.tnteternalsummer.com.
• 28 June 2008, Glastonbury Festival, Somerset
  Crowded House play the Pyramid Stage. Online tickets available at www.seetickets.com.

If you have an upcoming event to add to the New Zealand Edge international datebook please send details to isobel@nzedge.com.

Best regards from London. Brian Sweeney, Producer, nzedge.com

98 – New Zealanders in Global Headlines 13 May 2008

Greetings. We are pleased to record our 10 millionth pageview since inception. Ka pai.



New Zealand headlines in this week's sampling of global media appearing in Guardian, Forbes Traveler, Telegraph, Time, Herald Sun, Business Week, PR Week, ABC News, Fiji Times, San Francisco Gate, Earth Times, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Vancouver Sun, Los Angeles Times, CBS News and The Daily Telegraph include:

• Sir Geoffrey Cox, journalist and News at Ten founder, dies, aged 91
• Ta moko a "solemn declaration of Maori identity and dignity"
• Rachel Hunter the face, and figure, of US weight-loss brand Sure Slim
• Phil Keoghan dons a kilt and golfs across Scotland in CBS challenge
• NZ world's first developed country to sign free trade deal with China
• Anna Fitzpatrick, model ambassador for Australian Alopecia Foundation
• Kiri te Kanawa performs on North American summer festival circuit
• Sir Edmund Hillary honoured by Queen at St George's Chapel
• NZ digger to accompany Australian statue on Anzac Bridge, Sydney
• Kate Watson, Wahine survivor, saddened at news of her hero's death
• NZ's sexiest beaches rated "sizzling" in Forbes Traveler article
• Anna Paquin smitten with a vampire in new HBO series, True Blood
• Steve Williams, caddy, "willing to do whatever it took to be the best"
• Gorilla Pictures, film company's zombie flick attracts LA interest
• Marlborough Sauvignon challenged by winemakers' Pinot excitement
• Aquaflow Bionomic Corp, harvesting wild algae, making biofuel
• Fraser Colman, politician, remembered for Mururoa frigate protest, dies
• Treetops Lodge, Waiheke and Dine "top-notch", Vancouver Sun
• Kate Sylvester one of 13 NZ designers at Australian Fashion Week

For full stories see http://www.nzedge.com/media, a 6,000-story storehouse of international activities by New Zealanders 2000-08.

Photos: Geoffrey Cox, Ta moko, Rachel Hunter, Phil Keoghan.

NEW ZEALAND EDGE INTERNATIONAL DATEBOOK

• 15 May 2008, Ruatepupuke II wharenui, Field Museum, Chicago
  NZ and Chicago artists initiate 2009 exhibition "Close Encounters" at a 3-day hui. For more information contact Bruce Phillips bruceephillips@gmail.com
• 16 May 2008, 8pm, The Great Escape Festival, Brighton
  Auckland indie band Cut off your Hands performs at Europe's newest music festival. Three-day tickets 45 pounds. Book at http://www.escapegreat.com/
• 18 May 2008, 6-9pm, Opening of Essenze showroom, Brooklyn, New York
  New Zealand-inspired design: “The edge of the world meets the edge of Manhattan”. rsvpbrooklyn@essenze.co.nz or see http://www.essenze.co.nz/
• 25 May 2008, 3pm, “Classic All Blacks” vs Leicester Tigers, Welford Road, Leicester
  Featuring Marshall, Mehrtens, Gear, Hayman, Howlett, Spencer, Reihana, Oliver, Holah, Tuitupou, Flavell and others more. Tickets from 13 pounds, Tel 08701 28 34 30.
• 1 June 2008, 2.30pm, Gala Recital, Elder Hall, Adelaide
  Bass-baritone Jonathan Lemalu performs with UK pianist Malcolm Martineau. Premium tickets $60 / Adults $30. Book at http://www.bass.net.au/
• 23 June 2008, NZ Cricket Team Luncheon, Oval Cricket Ground, London
  Dinner and champagne with the national team. Premier package 1490 pounds / Standard package 99 pounds. Email Mark Hudson mark@nationalsportingclub.co.uk

If you have an upcoming event to add to the New Zealand Edge international datebook please send details to isobel@nzedge.com.

Best regards from London. Brian Sweeney, Producer, nzedge.com

97 – New Zealanders in Global Headlines 16 April 2008

New Zealand headlines in this week's sampling of global media appearing in International Herald Tribune, Artforum, Telegraph, Daily Mail, The Age, Guardian, Anchorage Daily News, The New York Times, Macau Daily Times, Policy, Independent, The Boston Globe, The New York Observer, Sydney Morning Herald, San Francisco Gate, Marie Claire Maison, Los Angeles Times, CNN Money and The Aspen Times include:

For full stories see http://www.nzedge.com/media, a 6,000-story storehouse of international activities by New Zealanders 2000-08.

• NZ design has sinuous edge in 15-page Marie Claire Maison spread
• Black Grace performs "valid and important" NZ stories in Aspen
• Phil Rennie, policy analyst, discusses NZ/Australian income gap
• Motatapu Track across singer Shania Twain's land opens, Otago
• South Island a thrillseeker's training ground for South Pole race
• NZ Tunnelling Company's WW2 labyrinth opens as museum, Arras
• Cal Wilson performs in Axed! at Melbourne Comedy Festival
• Katherine Mansfield stories adapted by Toronto theatre company
• Rhys Darby, Conchord's "manager", tours Auckland with Guardian
• Jeremiah Trueman, Seawolves basketballer, chants haka in Alaska
• Out of the Blue, Duncan Sarkie's film, "astonishing" London
• Jeremy Nelson, choreographer, NY show Sail NZ inspired
• Te Vaka, 11-piece band, takes South Pacific sounds to Macau
• Misery, Illicit artist, in LA group exhibition Anything Could Happen
• NZ scientists discover unknown sea creatures on Ross Sea voyage
• Liam Finn's "unique and special" US tour mesmerises critics
• Margot Henderson, caterer, creates feasts for European chic
• Dean Wareham's rock n' roll memoir Black Postcards released, NYC
• Merv Wallace, batsman, with "extraordinary natural ability", dies, 91
• Royal NZ Ballet, takes contemporary triple-bill Red to Sydney
• Stephen Fleming retires from Black Caps with standing ovation
• Mt Cook National Park to host legendary 2008 World Heli challenge
• George Nuku has first UK solo exhibition at Captain Cook Museum
• Richard Taylor's children's show Jane and the Dragon airs on NBC
• Jessica Rose, ex-lonelygirl15, returns to Web-only-TV in Blood Cell
• Katchafire, Hamilton reggae group, spread "Aotearoa roots" in US
• Robin Maconie, composer, defends Karlheinz Stockhausen
• Hayden Godfrey, cyclist, wins men's 5-event omnium, Manchester
• Lockwood Homes taking on luxury housing market in India
• Mike Moore hired by Russian billionaire to chair Altimo Foundation
• Cape Kidnappers a Wall St mogul's "wonderful" golf course dream

Photos: Corian tiki by artist Rangi Kipa (Marie Claire); Black Grace Dance company; Policy Review.

NEW ZEALAND EDGE INTERNATIONAL DATEBOOK

• 17 April 2008, 7-10pm, The Liquid Room, Edinburgh
  Shapeshifter - live drum n' bass. Tickets 12.50 pounds on the door. (Spacific)
• 25 April-28 June 2008, The Forbes Galleries, 60 Fifth Avenue, New York
  National Jewelry Institute Designer Showcase 2008. Work by Auckland artist goldsmith Christine Hafermalz-Wheeler.
• 30 April 2008, 6pm-8pm, Moku Boutique, Sydney
  Celebrate NZ fashion at Moku Boutique. NZ ready-to-wear pieces with wine and bar snacks. Tickets $35 from kathryn@keanewzealand.com (KEA)

If you have an upcoming event to add to the New Zealand Edge international datebook please send details to isobel@nzedge.com.

Best regards from New York City. Brian Sweeney, Producer, nzedge.com

96 – New Zealanders in Global Headlines 10 April 2008

New Zealand headlines in this week's sampling of global media appearing in The New York Times, Guardian, Washington Post, Science Daily, Santa Fe Reporter, Evening Standard, Prospect, Dexigner, The Independent, Earth Times, LA City Beat, World Screen, What's On Stage and ArtSlant New York include:

• NZ software company Massive plan venture into robotics
• Hye Rim Lee, artist, Crystal City "challenges conventions" in NY
• Sir Keith Park deserves bronze recognition for Battle of Britain
• Die! Die! Die!, Dunedin indie band promote Promises in US
• Robert Wade, economist and professor, argues global finance
• Mark Brown, golfer, wins Johnny Walker Classic in India
• Teddy Tahu Rhodes' "notable" and "robust" debut at Met
• Rare Maud Island frogs discovered at Karori Wildlife Sanctuary
• Stephen Smith, designer, wins London career with "Arctic Skin"
• Adam Hall, paralympian skier, slaloms for gold in Colorado
• Lincoln University doctor lectures Irish on better sheep farming
• Farewell Spit's windy sand dunes explored in all-terrain buses
• Peter Snell reflects upon age, Auckland and Arthur Lydiard
• Nick Lowe, entrepreneur, aims for $1million on YouTube
• Roger Donaldson's latest film Bank Job is "solid entertainment"
• Wellington to host 2009 typography symposium, TypeShed11
• Neil Berkett takes on permanent role as CEO at Virgin Media
• Alan Dale leaves Ugly Betty for debut in West End's Spamalot
• Gibson Group's made-for-mobile My Story bought by French
• Christchurch turns off its lights for climate change in Earth Hour
• North Island Brown Kiwi hatched at DC's Smithsonian Zoo

For full stories see http://www.nzedge.com/media, a 6,000-story storehouse of international activities by New Zealanders 2000-08.

Photos: Prototype robot by Massive Software company, Hye Rim Lee's Crystal City and Battle of Britain war hero Sir Keith Park.

NEW ZEALAND EDGE INTERNATIONAL DATEBOOK

• 3 April 2008, 7pm, Royal Geographical Society, London
  The Himalayan Trust UK presents a charity evening tribute to Sir Ed. Illustrated talk from Peter Hillary Growing up with Ed and a showing of Michael Dillon's Beyond Everest. Tickets 15 pounds through Tony Astill 0238 029 3767, astill.tony@gmail.com or on the door from 6pm.
• 5 April 2008, 2pm – 6pm, University of London
  Fundraiser afternoon of music, readings and an auction hosted by Stella Duffy. Email ian@ianconrich.co.uk for tickets, 15 pounds. (KEA)
• 9 April 2008, 8pm, King Tut's Wah Wah Hut, Glasgow
  
The Brunettes live - Boy/girl melodrama pop. Tickets 8 pounds on the door. (Spacific)
• 16 April 2008, 7pm – 11pm, The Sugar Club, Dublin
  Wellington's favourite soul diva Hollie Smith continues her UK Tour. Tickets 15 Euros on the door. (Spacific)
• 25 April 2008 – 27 April 2008, New York
  Anzac Day dawn service in the Anzac Memorial Garden, Rockefeller Centre, 6.00am, 25 April. Commemorative Service at the Church of Transfiguration, 2.30pm, 27 April. RSVP to (212) 351-6550. (KEA)

If you have an upcoming event to add to the New Zealand Edge international datebook please send details to isobel@nzedge.com.

Best regards from New York City. Brian Sweeney, Producer, nzedge.com

95 – New Zealanders in Global Headlines 19 March 2008

New Zealand headlines in this week's sampling of global media appearing in BBC, Variety, Empire, Telegraph, Sydney Morning Herald, Playbill, Newsday, National Geographic, The Age, The West Australian, Economist, The Christian Science Monitor, Statesman Journal and Yachting Monthly include:

• Liam Finn tours US with Eddie Vedder, interviewed by Letterman
• Porirua's Pataka exhibits Native American Crow's Shadows
• Cooper, Walker, Icebreaker, changing world view of NZ fashion
• Et al's altruistic studies at international exhibition, Art Basel 39
• Paul Whelan, an impromptu Raimundo, "electric" in London
• Barry Barclay dies, 63, Rawene, artist laureate and Ngati director
• Keisha Castle-Hughes begins role as Celeste in Vintner's Luck
• New Zealand vineyards predict prosperity from global warming
• Teddy Tahu Rhodes vies for Bianca's affections at DC Opera
• NZs West Coast, "unspoiled" at the Rough and Tumble Lodge
• Paul Middleditch, ad-director, high-profile with Pepsi at Super Bowl
• Richard Evans, Sydney Opera House CEO, faces renovations
• Chatham Island bird fossils discovered, 65 million years old
• Bill Manhire in Adelaide charting the "unmapped space"
• NZ property entices British developers for a quick sale
• Martin Ball's Finn portrait wins Archibald Packing Room prize
• Godwits flock to NZ from Alaska in six days, passage studied
• Dame Ngaio Marsh, one of 50 crime writers to read, Guardian
• Abel Tasman sea-kayaking, "definitely not short on assets"
• NZ whaler, the Essex, sunk 1819, to feature in BBC doco

For full stories see http://www.nzedge.com/media/, a 6,000-story storehouse of international activities by New Zealanders 2000-08.

Photos: Liam Finn on tour with Eddie Vedder, Image from Crow's Shadows on show at Pataka Museum, "Plant It Hoodster" from Icebreaker clothing 2008 collection.

NEW: Nga Kupu Aroha: Blog #21 By Denis O'Reilly, March 2008

Denis notes the cycle of life as he gathers together the memories of those who have recently passed, Sir Ed Hillary, Hone Tuwhare, Shirley Smith, Del Adams, Ben Dalton Snr. Then its on to life in Aotearoa New Zealand with the Waitangi Day furore over gangs on marae, Shane Jones badmouthing Josh Masters of the Tribesmen and Killer Beez, and the Government's get tough on graffiti intentions means it must be election time. Musical notes around Warren Maxwell, Don McGlashan and the Ragamuffin festival; and grave concerns over body snatching "a new twist on the consequences of miscegany". Read on.

Photos: Sir Edmund Hillary, Shirley Smith, Hone Tuwhare and Del Adams.

94 – New Zealanders in Global Headlines February 28

New Zealand headlines in this week's sampling of global media appearing in The Independent, The Age, Earth Times, Variety, The Washington Times, The Telegraph, International Herald Tribune, Wanderlust, Financial Times, The Murfreesboro Post, Daily Mail, The Economic Times, Men's Vogue, Guardian, BBC and The New York Times include:

• Flight of the Conchords, Best Comedy Grammy for Distant Future
• Going as far as I can, provocative NZ anti-travel book "charming"
• No Fins, Freediver William Trubridge to attempt new world record
• Sir Ed honoured, Nepal's newly-named Tenzing-Hillary airport
• Anne Noble's Ruby's Room begins European tour, Quai Branly
• Pietra Brettkelly, Sundance Award for "enigmatic" Art Star
• Christchurch International Airport certified as carbon neutral
• Ian Conrich, academic, awarded "NZer of the Year in the UK"
• Maori moko images on show at Peabody Essex Museum
• Seachange hopes for NZ first at Royal Ascot horse races
• Top Country award for NZ in Wanderlust readers' poll
• Read Gainsford, pianist, performs for students in Tennessee
• Christchurch, "Happy mix" of past and future, Financial Times
• Graham Percy, "cerebral" children's book illustrator, dies, 69
• Valerie Reid's doco, Sand Dancer, appeals to Festival goers
• NZ Crop & Food Institute develop gene-silencing, "no tears" onion
• Culinary tour of NZ cuisine from Wellington to Arthur's Pass
• Christopher Liddell, Microsoft CFO's Yahoo challenge
• Mark Adams exhibits Tatau: Samoan Tattooing in Ontario
• NZ dialect 5-year linguistics study of origin concluded
• Alan Gibbs commissions NY video artist Tony Oursler
• NZ scenery favours romance, drawcard for Indian tourists
• Brad Knewstubb, designer, awarded red dot for "Hydra" turbine
• John Minto turns down South African government nomination
• Rob Thomson, Canterbury, 26, boards for Guinness Record
• Shigeyuki Kihara's photographic works acquired by NY's Met
• Black Jacks top medal table at World Bowls Champs, Burnside

For full stories see http://www.nzedge.com/media, a 6,000-story storehouse of international activities by New Zealanders 2000-08.

Photos: The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins by Pietra Brettkelly, Ruby's Room by Anne Noble and portrait of Piri Iti by Hans Neleman, exhibited at Massachusetts Peabody Essex Museum.