Bob 'Bobaloo' Koenig (photo - articles - profile) simply rox... and so does his brand new website. Bobaloo is looking cuter than ever. He's a standup comedian who's been working real hard of late; after completing his tour with the 'Bears on the Run' (website - articles) gents, he started up his own podcast with Buck called the 'Buck and Bobaloo Show' (website - article). And some news - Bobaloo is going to be a contestant on 'I Survived A Japanese Game Show' (website).

I remember as a kid watching the Sonny & Cher show back in '71... I also remember seeing their daughter Chastity show up every now and then, with her big innocent eyes and everyone oo'ing and ahh'ing to all the cute things she would say. She was, after all, a real cute kid, and witty too.

Well Chastity is all grown up... she's 40, a gay activist, and actually, she is going through a sex change and will soon butterfly into Chaz Bono (CNN). After the hormonal therapy, Chaz might easily fit into the 'Bear' category, and trust me, after I saw 'Bear Run: the Movie' (website - articles), I then realized that a woman can become a man, and convincingly so.

A few months back, John David (photo) took the title of International Mr. Bear at IBR hosted by the Bears of San Francisco. This seriously handsome hunk sent in a few words of what he's been up to and what's up and coming for him. From John:

"Hey guys, just a note from the International Mr. Bear front. I have been very busy with several fund raising events in several different states. I have been working closely with the Imperial Court of Kentucky raising money for local charities and was named Leather Daddy of the Year by the court a few weeks ago. With the help of my Bear brothers we have built from the ground up 3 new Bear events one of which will be the first Mr. Virginia Bear/Cub contest in Virginia Beach at The In-Between on July 10th & 11th, and I am in the early stages of planning an appearance at Bear Pride, Cologne, Germany in November. With all of this the focus has to be raising awareness and funds for our charities. In a small city like Lexington, Kentucky that can be a challenge, however, all of the events I have gone to so far have displayed a great willingness to reach out to their communities and do their part and no effort can be too small, every little bit helps".

I think that we're going to learn something about the net, and that when we make a so-called discovery, it might take years before it gets to you... like stars take millions of years before you can see one shine... ok I drabble... meet TronGuy (website - photo) who back in 2004 wowed the world with his Tron outfit, so much so he got on talk shows. He's this cute little intelligent geek who came up with the idea to put batteries into his outfit, light it up and go to some convention. Well he is known as the TronGuy, and I only found out about him now... he is now with Madonna and Brad Pitt in my books - go TronGuy (I think there should be some kind of TronGuy revival - maybe update the outfit...? Get more batteries...? Do something... because aren't they making TR2N?). Last words - great outfit, cute idea.

I'm a little late with this news - Dom Deluise past away on May 4th at 75 years old. I just have to say - when I was young, I always thought Dom was super cute, especially when he was in a suit and tie or tuxedo. He often co-starred with Burt Reynolds and he was in a few Mel Brooks movie, then later did things like Candid Camera and cooking shows. RIP Mr. Deluise.

The extremely handsome Joe Mannetti aka Joe Falconi (articles - photo - profile) has been very busy of late. I asked Joe if he could let us in on what he's up to, and this is what he sent. From Joe:

"After winning the Mr. International Daddy Bear 2009 title at IBR in San Francisco, I have been keeping busy with outreach and fund-raising events. I do have a few issues that I consider top priority. One of my main concerns is the HIV/AIDS situation. As an HIV Testing Counselor, I got to witness that people testing HIV-Positive are getting younger and younger. We are losing an entire generation of teenagers and 20-something-year-olds to HIV/AIDS who are getting infected. Older people who are living longer with HIV/AIDS are also experiencing the combination of medical side effects from long-term HIV medication use, living with HIV/AIDS long-term, plus the health issues that many of us experiencing from simply growing older. None of this is good for anybody. I think that we need to start a dialogue with our LGBT youth. We need to listen to them, and we need to do a better job of mentoring them as adults. Ignoring or avoiding a frank discussion about sexuality with youth that are showing high rates of teenage pregnancy and HIV infection is ludicrous! Clearly, they are sexually active! Deal with it! So far, I have given three public speaking presentations in which I got to address youth about homophobia, the importance of diversity, sexuality and LGBT issues. One was at Bienestar La Casa LGBT Center in East Los Angeles at their 15 year anniversary reception on March 20th. The other two were at W University High School in Los Angeles and Pierce College in Woodland Hills, CA, where I met with their campus GSA (Gay/Straight Alliance).

I have a few fund-raising events planned for the future. My first event will be my very first step-down from one of my Bear titles. On May 2nd (Saturday), I will be co-emceeing the Mr. Bear/Cub Gay Pride Long Beach contest at Pistons Bar in Long Beach, California! This marks the first event co-hosted by The International Imperial Court of Long Beach and BearsLA ! It is also my step-down as we announce a new winner. On May 8th (Friday), I will be co-hosting an event called Saddle Up LA  with Mr. Long Beach Leather (Matthew McLean) and The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence at The Bullet Bar in North Hollywood, CA.  The money raised goes to support The Life Group which provides outstanding support services for people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. I am leaving for Connecticut in June to be there for their Gay Pride Weekend. At the end of July, I will be in Columbus, Ohio for their Bear Camp Christmas  in July event which should be a lot of fun. I am organizing a fund-raising event tentatively scheduled for August to promote and raise money for the Community Clinics Campaign . I feel very strongly about making this event a success since it is about supporting much needed improvements in clinical care provided to our Transgender friends in Los Angeles. Life is good! More to come!".

A recent photo of a bearded Charles Manson has been released (CNN article). Manson is 74 years old and has spent 40 years in prison for his dealings with the Sharon Tate murder back in '69. Manson had also been in prison 3 or so times prior to that. Now did you know that Manson was an aspiring singer? He even recorded some music with his 'Manson Family', even Guns N' Roses covered one of his tunes; A 1967 song called Look At Your Game Girl.

Joe Mannetti aka Joe Falconi (articles - profile) has been seriously busy within the Bear and Gay community of late, it's almost kinda hard just to keep up with him. And all the while he's running around gathering funds for charities, he's also been winning a lot of Bear titles.

The following is from Joe: "I cannot believe that I won the Mr. International Daddy Bear 2009 title! A big thank you to all the great men that were a part of 'Team Bear' (website - articles) that weekend! The Bears of San Francisco (BOSF) selected the best organizations as the beneficiaries this year. The Transgender Law Center, Positive Resource Center, and the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission represent the diversity in our LGBT communities beautifully. BOSF proved that their city is still 'the progressive city' by choosing them as the recipients for the funds that were raised at IBR.
 
I have never been more proud to work side by side with a more caring and attractive group of individuals in a more wonderful city. Thank you for letting me be a part of your family, and thank you for offering me the chance to give back to our communities. Please, let me know what I can do to help out in any way, and I will do my best to be there for you.

In other news - John Clifton has graciously offered to hold a champagne reception at Pistons in Long Beach on Saturday, February 28th to welcome me back to LA! You are all welcome, and I would love to celebrate with you there! I would also like to give a heads up that a documentary film-maker named Julian Dahl will be present and filming there that evening. Be ready to volunteer to be a part of a documentary titled 'HEAVY' that he is filming that evening if he chooses to shoot you, and you are willing to be a part of it! The documentary is about larger sized people in the community. But it is also about diversity, acceptance, and support for others who do not fit certain stereotypical standards of beauty".

Click here for some recent photos of Joe.

Boy George (with stubble) of the Culture Club fame has been sentenced to 15 months in prison (CNN article - Google images). Real name George O'Dowd, age 47, is going to jail for allegedly chaining a male escort to wall in his London flat and then beating him with a metal chain. From CNN: "O'Dowd, who maintained his innocence, came to court Friday sporting a multicolored tattoo on his bald head, none of his trademark makeup, and a black winter coat".

Ah the Blair Witch Project. I'm sure ya'll remember that movie from '99 (10 years ago... wow...?). I went to see it in the theatre and all I knew was that it was a documentary, and of course documentaries means real life stuff, right...? Anyhow it scared the snot out of me, up until 2/3rds into it then I realized it was a horror movie. Anyhow, they got me.

What I also remember from the movie is the cute sound guy, Michael C. Williams. I haven't seen him in anything else, which is a shame, but if you want to see him talk about the Blair Witch, then check out this great site - Woods Movie. It's all about the making of the Blair Witch.

It's once again time for another Bear history lesson. This rotund handsome Bearish man is Wilhelm Steinitz (1836-1900), an Austrian American who was the very first undisputed world chess champion, gaining this title in 1886. He brought to the game a new style of playing which they criticized as cowardly, however Wilhelm defended it vigorously (he was a prolific write on chess) to the point that others finally began to appreciate it.

He was married, had one child, so he was a Bear in looks only, and it seemed that he wasn't very good at managing money and lived in poverty all of his life. There's also not many photos of him, but here's a few (photo #1 - photo #2 - photo #3 ~ he's on the left)... and check out these moves he did against Curt von Bardeleben (sources - Wiki).

The always attractive Joe Mannetti (aka Joe Falconi - photo with Santa - profile) has been continuously busy working within the Bear community as to raise awareness as well as money for charities. He's a truly husky hunky man that has a selfless way about life. Here's what he's been up to since winning several Bear contests (articles). From Joe:

"This is shaping up to be a very busy month! It's all good! I volunteered with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence (website - articles) at a toy drive for Children with AIDS at Oil Can Harry's on Saturday (November 29th). We collected a sack full of toys for the children and raised nearly $400 by the end of the evening. Woo hoo!

On Monday (December 1st), I volunteered for Long Beach AIDS Foundation's World Aids Day event serving drinks and handing out snacks to all the attendees! What a great event! The young people there participated in an art display that was inspiring. I'll be helping out at two more toy drives for children, and I am honored to be able to be at all of them. Life is good! You always get back from giving, and I am meeting some of the best people in our community who are always willing to give to others".

Defining what is 'attractive' is... well... impossible, simply because no 2 people have the same taste in men. This being said, Jeff aka STPBear is attractive, plain and simple. Whether or not he turns you on, that's not the issue here... just that STPBear is one of the best looking Bearish models that I have come across.

He did a bit of modeling for BearFilms a few years back (you might remember seeing some photos of him in full leather, a business suit and in baseball gear). However, truth be told, I don't think I have come across any other photo sets since. I even met Jeff briefly when I was on a Bear Voyage cruise back in 2005. A really sweet guy and he's just as cute in person as he is in his photos.

I remember that I would have liked to seen more of STPBear - he's just so cute and cuddly... well lo and behold he has a Flickr page - tons of photos of him. He's also single from what I read, altho he's still very good friends with his ex-lover (another great guy as well).

Also check out his homepage (with some fetish gear photos) and LiveJournal. He's also the moderator to the Bears in Uniforms Yahoo!Group. I don't know if Jeff's Bear modeling days are over... I sure hope not... this man is hotter than Hades when he's fully geared up in leather, all the while he looks equally great in a pair of Speedos.

Joe (photo - articles - profile) is on fire. Some know him as Joe Mannetti, others as Joe Falconi... I think I'll just call him Joe since he's the only famous Joe Bear that I know of. After winning Mr Long Beach Pride Bear/Cub '08 and recently Mr. Los Angeles Bear '08, Joe took home this weekend the title of Mr. Southern California Bear '08. Triple wow...! As he says "IBR, here I come".

In other, sobering news, check out Joe's latest article entitled Can't we all get Along?. It's about Prop 8 (article) but not just about 'straight vs gay' but more 'what colour voted more for Prop 8', as in, the news keeps bringing up the issue that "Black support for 8 was larger than any other group, including Hispanics". Alas, Joe is super cute yet he does tackle some hard hitting issues as being a Bearish supporter, fund-raiser and an upcoming important voice in the GLBT community.

Mike Dreyden is one busy Cub (blog - MySpace - articles - profile). He began his tour on the weekend and he's booked up until the holiday seasons. Right now he's touring New York City however he's happy to say that he just might make his way over to Toronto and Montreal.

On November 22nd he will be appearing and performing with Eric Rhodes at the 'Cruising / Bootleg' party. Then on the 26th, you can find him at Daniel Nardicio's Horn-O-Plenty. There will be no jock straps, shorts, undies, nada, nothing.

Also, keep an eye out for his latest films - 'Fire Island Cruising 9' and 'Big Bang'. He promises you'll be shooting tons of loads with him while watching these flicks. To contact Mike, send him an email.

The movie Chapter 27 is this little indie movie about Mark David Chapman, the man who traveled all the way from Hawaii to New York to murder John Lennon. Why Mark did this, nobody really knows, and the movie doesn't really explain why Mark committed this heinous act.

Now this article isn't a movie review or anything - it's a slow paced movie but I actually enjoyed it - however this article is about Jared Leto, the actor who played Mark Chapman. His best movie to date is 'Requiem for a Dream'... anyhow, Jared gained 67 pounds (30 kilos) for this role (here's an after and before picture) - just take a look at he usually looks (Google images - and here's more pics of Jared with the extra weight).

Of course this is one of the few articles that will say that Jared actually looks with the extra weight. I thought he looked real cute, and there's even an underwear scene or 2 in the movie.

It's wild what actors will do for their part. Have you ever seen 'The Machinist' with Batman Christian Bale? He lost 60 pounds (27 kilos) for the role... he literally looks like a bag of bones, it's very scary.

His real name is Joe Mannetti however many of you know him as Joe Falconi (photo - courtesy of Lee Friend of Talk Magazine) . He has been the heartthrob to many a Bear lover as he's appeared in quite a few photo shoots, magazines and Bear movies. You might even remember seeing him for a few seconds on Conan O'Brien (altho much to the dislike of CyberBears).

Well Joe has been a very busy Bear of late, especially with the ton of work he puts into the GLBT community. You should check out this article on The Complete Bear (website - profile) to see all the things he has been up as well as all the things he'll be doing.

Oh - he also just won the Mr. Los Angeles Bear '08 title held by BearsLA at Oil Can Harry's last September 13th. A huge congratulations goes to him.

On a personal note, I have always found Joe super duper cute ever since I first saw his photos on BearBound (preview pics of Joe - articles - profile). There's something about him that just captures your eye... and keeps it focused on him. I'm sure we'll be hearing more from him in the upcoming future.

His name is Mike Dreyden (photo) and he's one hot muscle Bear Cub from Brooklyn, New York. Tight 'n hairy in all the right places. Mike has a super fun blog page which he has been updating regularly, and he has a MySpace page as well. He states that his own website will be going live by the holidays so make sure to keep an eye out for that.

He is a dancer, performer, a go-go BearBoy for the band Nekked who perform, and he is also becoming an international porn star with roles in movies like House of Leather (by Bear Omnimedia - cover - articles) and All Out Assault (by Knight Stick Films). I just read on his blog that his reign as King Stink of the pits is coming to an end soon and that he'll be passing his crown to the next winner... that's gotta be something to see... I know a lot of guys really dig pits so try and make it to Uncle Ming's in NYC if you can.

Ever since that redneck show 'Blue Collar TV' with 'Larry the Cable Guy', it seems that people have embraced their inner-redneck. Before, calling someone a redneck was somewhat impolitically incorrect, even an insult, but now people want to be known as a redneck.

Take Steve McGranahan, for example. Every time he introduces himself, he says "hi, I'm Steve McGranahan and I'm the world's strongest redneck". He probably is... especially when he likes to twist horseshoes into pretzels, bend iron rods without breaking a sweat, and he enjoys biting phone books and decks of cards (seems he also has the strongest teeth for a redneck).

Need to see more of this truly loveable character? Then check out his website for some pics and videos, then his MySpace page, which has even more photos of him.

Every now and then Wikipedia features a guy who definitely could be considered a Bear. Today they are featuring the General Winfield Hancock. From Wiki: "He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service in the Mexican-American War and as a Union general in the American Civil War. Known to his Army colleagues as 'Hancock the Superb', he was noted in particular for his personal leadership at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863".

I'm not one who cares anything for wars, but soldiers do look good in their uniforms, and you gotta love this picture of the general, a picture of him taken after his warring days. You can see that he'd put on the pounds a bit and he's kinda busting a little at the seems in his old uniform which he probably had to dust off for the pic.

And that beard 'n stache... very funky...