August 14, 2008

Politician Finds Actual Rocky Statue

Yes, the Bulletin is still fighting the Barnes Foundation move; today the paper writes about Pennsylvania attorney general candidate John Morganelli promises to fight the move if elected. The Bulletin wants the Barnes to stay so much they put a Democrat on the front (!).

Anyway, apparently it is possible to get a real-looking statue of Rocky for your campaign event. Hear that, Michael Untermeyer?

Editor's Note: Of course, by "actual," I mean "cardboard."

Keeping The Fight Going [The Bulletin]

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April 21, 2008

A New Type Of 'Rocky'-Style Celebration

Here's an ad I spotted this morning, apparently designed to appeal to those who are having their houses foreclosed on any minute now. But the real prize is the intro, where a man runs to the top of the Art Museum steps and (to celebrate his accomplishment, or his foreclosed home, or something) he does the "Apache" dance and then pantomimes sex. Honestly, at first I thought this was going to be an ad for Hillary Cinton.

Posted by D-Mac at 11:42 AM | Comments (1)

March 19, 2008

Why Is There No Barkley Statue?

I actually spotted this ad for the first time last night; it's the new Dwayne Wade/Charles Barkley T-Mobile ad. While the series has produced some of the more entertaining on TV recently -- they're no Spy Hunter Pontiac ad, however -- this one is so far the best.

And we totally need to build a statue of Sir Charles riding a horse, eating a cheesesteak. We can put it right in front of Pat's. Or, hell, maybe Chink's!

Posted by D-Mac at 09:42 AM | Comments (1)

February 05, 2008

Nothing Stops The Baby Boomers!

Yo, somebody stop him before he kills himself! Sylvester Stallone is considering more Rocky and Rambo sequels. He's signed a two-picture deal for action movies, and they just might be based around the same character he plays in every movie. Oh, wait, they are definitely going to have that. One just might have John Rambo and the other might have Rocky Balboa.

Rocky, the more intellectual of Stallone's two flagship franchises, got a largely positive reaction when it returned to the screen after returning to the screen in 2006. Stallone was so shocked he went out and made a new Rambo movie, which managed to lose to Meet the Spartans at the box office.

But, hey, whatever. How could he even make a seventh Rocky movie? I assume John Rambo could just indiscriminately kill tons of bad guys, but who is Rocky gonna fight?

In possibly related news, Stallone is also working on a remake of Death Wish.

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December 10, 2007

Serbian Village To Be Subject Of Rocky Doc

Earlier this year, the Serbian village of Zitiste decided to erect a statue of Rocky to help the citizens get through hard times, and by "hard times" I mean "floods."

Now, there is a documentary coming out about the movie: "There was this little village in Serbia and they wanted to get a statue of Rocky Balboa because they were having a lot of misfortunes in their village and they thought that having a Rocky statue would bring them hope. I thought that was such a sweet story, it would make a good documentary."

Oh, so it's going to be positive? That's not as fun, then.

See also: Rocky statue unveiling video

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November 12, 2007

Yo, Adriatic!

Earlier this year, the town of Zitiste, Serbia, erected a statue of Rocky Balboa and flanked it with giant chickens in order to show the town's hard-working spirit.

Well, move over, Sly, because more fictional characters are coming to Eastern Europe! The New York Times reports today towns in Serbia have erected or are planning on erecting statues of Tarzan, Bruce Lee and topless model Samantha Fox. (One would only imagine the reporter was simply fooled -- "Ha! We made that guy from the Times think we're building a statue to Samantha Fox!" they'd say, in Serbian or whatever -- on that last one, but he writes: "Officials boasted that the statue would be larger than Rocky, but so far the only sign of Ms. Fox’s likeness is an empty pedestal in a local art gallery, with the word 'rumors' written on it.")

The statues are uplifting to some, but Serbian visual artist Milica Tomic called the statues "a dangerous joke in which history is being erased and replaced by Mickey Mouse." (Note to Tomic: You're supposed to use Donald Duck for these analogies.)

"This turning to Rocky or Tarzan is unhealthy and dangerous,” she said. "We need to find a way of representing our grief, our responsibility and our despair. Until we do that, Serbia cannot come to terms with the present and the future."

Samantha Fox, though, now that's inspiration.

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August 20, 2007

And Now, Video Of The Historic Moment

Thanks to YouTube and a Serbian with a camcorder, there is now video of the unveiling of the Rocky Balboa statue in Žitište, Serbia. If you're wondering, this unveiling took place at an event called "Chicken Fest," and you can see funny band names in a promo here. (Ha ha! Rambo Amadeus!)

Be sure to watch the unveiling video at least halfway through, where you can hear an incredibly spot-on impression of Rocky Balboa.

Serbia Zitiste Dzingl Chicken fest [YouTube]
Rocky Balboa Monument in Serbia [YouTube]

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Cocks Dig Rocky

Earlier this year, a small town in Serbia announced it was going to put up a Rocky statue in order to distract the citizens from the giant floods and landslides it had suffered. Putting up a likeness of Rocky Balboa would inspire the citizens of Zitiste, about 35 miles north of Belgrade.

They have now unveiled the statue, along with a few giant chickens. (Perhaps Rocky will fight a giant chicken in Rocky VII.) "Our idea has really stirred the public," said the mayor, Zoran Kasalovic. "Now, no one in Serbia can say they don’t know about Zitiste." Or its giant chickens.

Serbian village unveils Rocky Balboa statue [AP/MSNBC.com]
[Photo via AP/Yahoo]

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January 17, 2007

Just Wait Until This Is Turned Into 'Rocky VII'

This is pretty impressive. I mean, I almost always hit my trainer when I'm doing that stupid training mode, and this dude doesn't at all! Oh, yeah, and the near shot-by-shot parody of Rocky is pretty neat, too.

Wii Sports Experiment, Results [WiiNintendo.net]

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December 06, 2006

Leftovers: Mannequin From, Uh, 'Mannequin' To Head To Be Donated Later This Week

• Sly Stallone donated some Rocky memorabilia to the Smithsonian yesterday. D.C. hipsters seething on their blogs as we speak. [AP/Metro]

• Lincoln University's athletic director has apologized for his school's 201-78 win over Ohio State-Marion, and apparently lectured the coaches, too, though as of last night no coaches had been lectured. [Inquirer]

• It's not just Cherry Hill that's fighting the War on Smut! Two Burlington strip clubs are suing the township over new laws that bar them from doing pretty much everything. Cue the "But we're saving the children!" reference. [Bucks County Courier Times]

• The City Controller's office says that police buildings are substandard. KYW 1060's Steve Tawa reports the controller had photos showing "showing walls in imminent danger of collapse, basement fire exits blocked by grates, pipes and wire mesh, and prison holding cells beyond filthy." Oh, goodie. [KYW 1060]

• Oh, and the mayor of Lake Como, N.J., is going to ask Kuwait if the Arab nation will build a $4 million police station for the town. Guh-wah? [AP/NBC 10]

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September 19, 2006

Rocky Statue To Provide Jobs For Vandals

The big debate about the Rocky statue's placement is over, but the letters to the editor are still rolling in. And, well, things may be more complicated with the statue right next to the Art Museum:

Now that the Rocky statue is permanently in its place, the thought occurs to me that it should have some kind of protection around it, like they do for the Liberty Bell, just in case someone in the middle of the night tries to knock a piece of Rocky off, just for the fun of it.

There it is now, out in the open, for anyone to take a potshot at it. Don't laugh. It could happen, God forbid. I had a dream like this.

Pity the man whose dreams consist of vandals destroying the Rocky statue. Implementing this protection idea could be part of the "jobs [and] economic development" John Street promised the statue would bring.

Protecting Rocky [DN, 4th letter]
Sept. 11: Rocky Statue To End Homicides In Philadelphia

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September 12, 2006

The Bugs Statue Can Go At The Spectrum

While the Inquirer appears to finally be done with the Rocky statue -- today was the second day no article about it appeared in the paper -- the debate rages on in the letters pages of the two dailies at 400 N. Broad. (If you're wondering: No, Philadelphia Will Do is not really all that close to being done with this just yet.)

In today's Daily News, a letter writer from Oreland comes up with some new statue ideas for the city and beyond:

WHAT A SURPRISE, the Rocky statue is going back to the Art Museum.

I have a few other suggestions for commemorative statues. Why not include Bugs Bunny and friends, they've sure made Philadelphians laugh over the years. Why not put Clark Kent in front of the Daily News building or King Kong in front of the Empire State Building?

I'm no expert, but artistically speaking, the Rocky statue is a piece of junk. The next time an aircraft carrier comes to Philly, we should strap the statue to a catapult and launch it into the river.

Silly letter writer. Everyone knows the next statue the city's putting up is one of Donald Duck.

Rocky paves the way... Bugs & King Kong [Daily News]
May 11: People Quackers Over 'Rocky' Statue

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September 11, 2006

Rocky Statue To End Homicides In Philadelphia

Friday night, Sylvester Stallone -- and Frank! -- showed up to dedicate the Rocky statue in its new place next to the Art Museum. (Saturday night around 10:30, there were about 25 people taking photos outside of it. It's the new Liberty Bell!)

The unveiling didn't attract the "hundreds of thousands" of admirers predicted, but it did draw about 3,000 people, as well as the Inquirer's Michael Vitez, who wrote his 48th story in a week about the statue's move.

Our fine mayor John Street was there, too. And he was eloquent as usual:

"I'm telling you, when we unveil this statue, and when it's sitting here for just a few months, there's going to be some people who find out just where the Philadelphia Art Museum is located," Street said.

But that's not all! Street said the statue wasn't just a little movie prop on tucked into a formerly vacant spot at the end of the Parkway.

"This will be a huge attraction for the city of Philadelphia. One that will bring jobs, economic development, and will be a huge impact on the city."

Indeed! Here's a short list of just what jobs the Rocky statue will bring to the city:

• Statue polisher
• Statue cleaner
• Statue guarder
• Assistant statue polisher
• Supervisor to the statue guarder
• Director of statue management
• Superintendent of statue management
• Intern
• Special assistant to the superintendent of statue management
• Consultant

All with city benefits, of course.

'Rocky and I thank you' [Inquirer]
Archives: Rocky

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September 08, 2006

Leftovers: Frank Stallone To Make Appearance For Adoring Fans

• Sylvester Stallone has the power to overrule art lovers, defeat evil communists and, indeed, altering traffic patterns and PennDot work schedules for the dedication. And he was able to convince his brother Frank to put aside the other events in his busy schedule and come to the statue dedication! [Inky]

• Headline in the Courier-Post: "Racial slur reflects problem of bigotry." Oh, really? [Courier-Post]

• Frank DiCiccio and Jim Kenney have set up a website to protest the city not being able to have any say in the zoning of slots parlors. Of course, you can't edit the letter that they want you to send, because, you see, this is about Frank DiCiccio and Jim Kenney, not you worthless serfs. [KYW 1060]

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Mike Vitez Continues All-Important 'Rocky' Statue Beat

Michael Vitez, Sunday, Sept. 3, Inquirer, "Its home is where the art is":

Yes, move the Rocky statue to the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art - to the bottom of the steps - but not because it is or isn't art.

Move the statue because the closer it is to the "Rocky Steps," the more it will resonate with the thousands who come to run them. The statue is symbolic for so many, but the steps themselves are the source of inspiration, the place where people bring to life the message of the movie.

Inquirer photographer Tom Gralish and I spent a year at the steps for our new book, Rocky Stories: Tales of Love, Hope and Happiness at America's Most Famous Steps. We interviewed and photographed people who came from all over the world, every day, to run them. The original Rocky movie is 30 years old now, yet the people still come. The movie, the character of Rocky, and actor Sylvester Stallone may draw people to the steps, but when they run, the people are celebrating their own lives, dreams, accomplishments and friendships. As one Rocky runner, a welder from British Columbia, told me, running the steps "gives you the feeling that anything is possible."

This may sound corny, but it's true.

Michael Vitez, Wed., Sept. 6, press release, "Author Endorses Rocky Statue at Foot of Philadelphia Art Museum Steps":

PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 6 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The Pulitzer Prize winning author of "Rocky Stories", the upcoming collection of inspirational stories about individuals running the famous Rocky steps, has officially endorsed the Philadelphia Art Commission's decision today to place the 12-foot-high Rocky statue at the foot of the Philadelphia Art Museum steps.

Michael Vitez, said, "I hope that the statue does what it is intended to do: complement the experience of people who come to run and celebrate their own achievements and dreams, inspired by the original movie. I think the location the city has chosen should allow it to serve that function perfectly. Time will tell."

Continue reading "Mike Vitez Continues All-Important 'Rocky' Statue Beat"

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September 07, 2006

PWD Report: The Best Lunch Break Ever

In the tradition of blowing things up to ridiculous proportions for no apparent reason, today a Rocky and Adrian lookalike contest was held at LOVE Park.

Right: Awesome. While the hundreds of thousands slated to attend Friday's statue unveiling weren't there, there was a decent-sized crowd, several dignitaries from the local media (natch) and one dude from Florida.

While I wasn't able to attend, official Philadelphia Will Do on-site reporter and D-Mac's Quizzo partner Shannon McLaughlin was able to. (And now I owe her two beers.) Armed with only her wits and a Razr cell phone, she braved the sunny, 75-degree weather to find out: Just who is the best Rocky impersonator "officially" in the contest who showed up to LOVE Park today. (We would have had crappy quality video, but Verizon is the worst cell phone company in the world.)

She files her (hilarious, and better than anything I would have come up with) report after the jump.

Continue reading "PWD Report: The Best Lunch Break Ever"

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There's Only One Logical Solution To All Of This: Replace William Penn With A Larger Version Of The 'Rocky' Statue

A poll from CBS 3's website:

Guess which way I voted.

CBS 3

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September 06, 2006

We (And The 'Inquirer') Are Not Done With These Art Museum Steps Just Yet

Oh, ho, turns out that Sly Stallone isn't the only one profiting from having the Rocky statue moved to the Art Museum. (For the record, he's footing the bill for the whole thing, so he's paying money for some nice publicity.)

But, in addition to the December release of Rocky Balboa, the sixth and (hopefully) final installment of Sly Stallone's neverending story, there's another two people benefitting from it: Michael Vitez and Tom Gralish. (Yes, the same Michael Vitez who penned the story about the statue this afternoon and the "preview" this morning.)

In November, the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and photographer will release Rocky Stories, a tale of people who come to the Art Museum to run up the steps. The book also has a foreward by Sylvester Stallone. (Ohh, boy, and do we all ever want to read that one.) A little excerpt from Philly publisher Paul Dry books:

The movie premiered in 1976, thirty years ago, yet they still come--a high-school track team from Belfast, three busloads of professional wrestling fans from Australia, a college rower from Maine, a librarian and her fiancé from Lake Tahoe, a race car driver (he ran the steps for good luck)... The story of Rocky inspired them, stirred them.

So, you see, the front page news story today also ties into a book. The book will in turn tie into some sort of parchment scroll, which will tie into an oral tradition somehow.

Update: The testimonials on the book's website are from Ed Rendell, Dawn Staley and the Inky/ex-Inky trifecta of Mark Bowden, Buzz Bissinger and John Grogan. What, no Jennifer Weiner?

Rocky Stories [Paul Dry Books]
Archives: Rocky

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Shocker: 'Rocky' Statue Returns To Art Museum

Oh, did I write shocker? I meant, uh, the opposite.

Yes, the Art Commission (whatever that is) voted 6-2 to allow Rocky to return to the Art Museum, although only along the side of the steps. The newspapers have their "split decision" and "Rocky wins!" headlines all ready, of course.

The yeas and nays, courtesy KYW:

Local artist Moe Brooker was among the two 'no' votes: “I don’t think it's art. I think it’s a statue. And I think that it served its purpose when it was at the Spectrum.”

The other 'no' vote was from commissioner Miguel-Angel Corzo: “The statue belongs in the city. But it doesn’t belong in that place.”

Of course, John Street was in favor of the move to the Art Museum, so perhaps it should be somewhere else.

That means we're all set for "hundreds of thousands" of fans to line the Parkway on Friday, hoping to catch a glimpse of Stallone and debating whether it's art or statue. Oh, boy.

Rocky Wins in a Split Decision [KYW 1060]

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'Rocky' Statue To Attract Billions Of Fans

Today, the city Art Commission will decide the fate of the Rocky Statue -- the real one, not the Michael Untermeyer fake one.

Although it rejected the move to the side of the Art Museum early last month, the full commission is expected to approve the move today, so much so that a concrete base has already been installed and Friday's unveiling has already been planned.

Also, did you know it's "Philly Loves Rocky" week? Yes, in preparation as a promotion for the upcoming release of Rocky Balboa, the entire week is apparently dedicated to the fictional boxer, culminating in Friday's 6 p.m. statue dedication, which Jimmy Binns says "hundreds of thousands" will attend.

Hundreds of thousands! Just like the thousands of dollars it's going to cost to repair the damage done to Love Park by bubbles.

Will Rocky win the decision? [Inquirer]
Archives: Rocky

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August 28, 2006

Candidate For Sheriff IS A HUGE FREAKING LIAR

Last Thursday, a press release came into the inbox from Michael Untermeyer, announcing a press conference about his candidacy for sheriff and telling the public the Rocky Statue would be there.

Today, Untermeyer sent out another press release, recapping his commitment to "professionalism, accountability and integrity" and attaching a photo from the campaign announcement:

Whoa. Wait a second. That's just a guy painted bronze. (And they forgot a part of the pants.) And it's a guy who doesn't look much like Rocky at all. Is he even white? And he's wearing red boxing gloves! And... he's not in the Rocky Statue pose! And... wait a second, this candidate for sheriff is a huge freaking liar! This guy looks more like a statue of Clarence Weatherspoon than Rocky. Hell, it looks more like Apollo Creed than Rocky.

Looking back at his original press release, it says the "Rocky Statue" will be there. Putting it in quotes probably means he was technically not lying, but for a candidate whose campaign slogan is "a pledge of professionalism, accountability and integrity" it seems pretty weird to not explain that it wasn't going to be the real Rocky Statue at your campaign event! And if you're going to do that, at least use a podium that's not from Cosi, please?

There aren't many official political opinions here at Philadelphia Will Do. But since Untermeyer has shown that he can't even put out a simple press release without lying -- and got a horrible Rocky Statue stand-in at that -- it is the official opinion of this blog that no one should vote for Michael Untermeyer come 2007. This blog does not care if the only other option is John Mark Karr, the robot from Small Wonder or Terrell Owens. You don't lie about the Rocky statue. You're gonna eat lightnin' and you're gonna crap thunder!

Full release after the jump.

Continue reading "Candidate For Sheriff IS A HUGE FREAKING LIAR"

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August 24, 2006

Sheriff Candidate Names Statue As Running Mate

Just got a press release over the e-transom from the office of Michael Untermeyer, who plans to announce his run for sheriff on Friday at Headhouse Square.

Untermeyer's press release is headlined "A Pledge of Professionalism, Accountability & Integrity" and the first sentence begins "With professionalism, accountability and integrity as the keystone of his vision for the city of Philadelphia." But the real lead is buried in the second paragraph, where he says he's going to have the Rocky statue at his campaign announcement.

He says the city's favorite fictional underdog (in statue form, at least) represents the "indomitable spirit" of the Untermeyer campaign, although he leaves out the part where Rocky was quite domitable at the end of the first movie.

Still, the statue will probably draw a crowd. (Not as much as as a Donald Duck statue would, but a crowd nonetheless.)

His professionalism, accountability, integrity and indomitability (or possibly domitability) aren't the only things his press release teaches us about Untermeyer. We also learn that, like me, he's a fan of exclamation points:

"This is an enormous resource of police manpower that must be pressed into service at this crisis point!"

"The public demands public service that actually serves the public!"

"The citizens demand it and they deserve it!”

Full release after the jump.

Continue reading "Sheriff Candidate Names Statue As Running Mate"

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August 03, 2006

An Oop De Doo For 'Rocky'

Way back in May, the Fairmount Park Commission announced it was going to move the Rocky statue to the side of the Art Museum. It seemed like a move that would please everyone: The Art Museum doesn't have to put a giant ad for the new Rocky movie on the top of the steps, tourists going to the Art Museum steps can get their photos taken with the statue in an out-of-the-way place and birds have a new place to shit.

Of course, then we remembered: This is Philadelphia. Yesterday, the city Art Commission put the kibosh on the idea, at least for now. Commissioner Moe Brooker's reasoning:

"It's not art," said artist Moe Brooker, a commissioner. "It was a prop."

Aw, c'mon, Moe. Can't you see the similarities between your work, Oop De Doo (pictured, available for $500 from Brandywine Workshop), and the Rocky statue?

Tell you what: We'll put it at the top of the Art Museum steps, call it a meta-commentary on the comercialization of American art and charge $25 to get your photo taken with it. Hell, we'll cover the Art Museum steps with a giant print of Oop De Doo, too, and sell prints of that. It'll be so artistic our heads'll explode.

Art Commission doesn't like site near museum for 'Rocky' [Inquirer]
May 21: People Quackers Over 'Rocky' Statue

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May 11, 2006

People Quackers Over 'Rocky' Statue

The big news today is that the Rocky statue may be moving to the side of the Art Museum steps -- honestly, I can't believe this is big news, but it is -- returning the Rocky III prop to Eakins Oval from South Philly. (It had been out front of the Spectrum and Wachovia Center after spending some time at the top of the museum steps.)

The Inquirer has a map (at left, obvs) that shows just where the statue will be. It seems like an odd location, like they're just throwing it in the woods next to the PMA, but I understand the want to keep it off the top of the steps, it being simply an ad for Rocky Balboa and all. (The statue -- surprise! -- will be in place right around the time the new Rocky movie comes out. Stallone is paying for the move and upkeep himself.)

This being Philadelphia, there's naturally some detractors, including Park Commish E. Harris Baum:

"If a film about Donald Duck in Philadelphia comes out," he wondered, "do we put a Donald Duck statue in our park system? Rocky is fine. But other films have relevance, too. Where do we stop?"

Wait! City Councilman Frank Rizzo has weighed in, too:

“If we do a Donald Duck movie in the city of Philadelphia, are we going to have a Donald Duck statue?”

Woah, woah, woah. First off, wow, did they really use the same fictional example to protest the Rocky statue moving to the Art Museum? (It's a little tacky, but the statue, for better or worse, would be a nice tourist draw for the area. People love running up the steps.)

Second off, how exactly would one make a Donald Duck movie in Philadelphia? I guess there could be some Who Framed Roger Rabbit-type film here, but that seems pretty unlikely.

Thirdly, if they do make a Donald Duck movie here, there better damn well be a statue put up! That'd be awesome.

Comeback for Rocky statue [Inky]
Rocky Statue Could be Headed Back to Art Museum [KYW 1060]

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Your Irresistible Ella Update

Okay, okay, that's enough. (Yes, even I have a limit for how much I can run things into the ground.) But, c'mon, this doesn't really get old, does it?

Archives: Irresistible Ella

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