Frogsmoke

If you haven't visited Bouguereau Remastered yet, join the growing crowd: French 19th century painter William Bouguereau is in Halloween mode this week. With four new spooky acquisitions, the virtual museum of photoshopped Bouguereaus is rapidly approaching one thousand works of art! Welcome!

Links for 31 October 2008: Sentimental question: Number's up for French EU-friendly plan to scrap local number plates For San Franciscans: A Camembert worth buying "Otherwise I'll nationalise you" Sarkozy warns French banks not to turn off credit tap Another tradition down the drain: Free wine tastings to be outlawed in France Wine classification row: [...]

If your French is good enough you may like this clip of Nick Sarkozy as 'Le King of Bling Bling'. Otherwise, just enjoy the animation: More in The Telegraph

Hara Kiri was a French monthly satirical magazine, first published in 1960. The magazine, subtitled "Journal bête et méchant" (Stupid and evil magazine), was constantly aiming at established powers, be they political parties or institutions like the Church or the State. In 1961 and 1966 the magazine was temporarily banned by the French Government. In [...]

French photographer Pierre Boisgontier shot this Hitchcockian picture near Boulogne. It looks remarkably like Norman Bates' dwelling in Psycho. (Click pic for bigger)

Green Cine presents: The 8 Most Disturbing Films of The New Wave of French Horror Click to view full poster In a country known more for its frank portrayals of sex and meditations on philosophical ennui, an aesthetic of violence has emerged that, ironically, accomplishes what American auteurs have failed to do – recapture the [...]

Since it's Halloween (Alloween in France) I asked Google to fetch me a creepy French picture. The best they could find was this Creepy French Maid: "Fifi and the mummy". A mummy re-animated and a love potion spilled, by a not-so-bright maid. But you can't blame her either, she was hired by the eccentric collector [...]

While most photographers invest in modern megapixel machines, Gérard Laurenceau is a happy man shooting old-fashioned, square-sized, black-and-white Hasselblad photos. These ones are from his Normandy gallery: Visit all galleries

Links for 30 October 2008: Struggling with boundaries: France. Sex. Problem? Trimmer but better equipped: France Boosts Spending on Military Mergers ahead: Peugeot sees crisis forcing car alliances Meet the niece: How the diaries of the 'Anne Frank of France' came to be published Animal porn: Police remove 'zoophile' Russia photos at Paris art fair [...]

The French attack the bottle with vigour, but some are bigger boozers than others. Percentage of 15-75 year olds who have been drunk at least once in the past 12 months A new study looks at the drinking habits of French aged 12-75 across the country. Only one in twelve is a teetotaller; all others [...]

In New York Times Magazine: Oh-la-la! Not since the fabulous Josephine has a French First Lady been so entertaining. But Madame Sarkozy is only one of the adventurous, unconventional, multi-culti talents coming your way. The NYTM slide show features photos of many known and lesser-known French stars like Carla Bruni, Vincent Cassel, Clémence Poésy, Clémentine [...]

Bloody photoshoppers! Click pic for full image | Original poster

Les Frères Jacques was a famous French quartet. They made their first performance in 1946, recorded their first song in 1948, and stayed at the top of the French entertainment business for 36 years. I found this vintage cover sleeve on LP Cover Lover. Here's a 1961 video of the (fake) brothers, together with a [...]

This poster for Amnesty International has an unintended second meaning for those who follow French politics: Olivier Besancenot vs Nicolas Sarkozy (Click pic for bigger)

Links for 29 October: Interview with Rama Yade: 'Obama Adventure Makes America Magic' Allowing web ads: France weighs big changes in drinking laws France is 'appy and proud: France honours ex-Bond star Roger Moore 30,000-years old: Prehistoric bear bones found in Chauvet Cave British sales fallen by half: Crunch hits British lust for property in [...]