World Scene

Now let's see if celebs work in Super Bowl ads

Would the Black Eyed Peas or Eric Clapton lure you to switch brands? Marketers think so: Celebrity endorsements soared 150 percent in TV adverts screened during the 2010 Grammy Awards, reversing a move away from the famous last year.

'Little Barry' welcome at bar in Indonesia

When US President Barack Obama tours his old neighborhood in Jakarta next month, he may want to stop at a new bar bearing his name.

Obama Bar, due to open on a popular Jakarta backpacker strip soon, will welcome fans of the man known to locals as "Little Barry", said manager Prabowo who, like many Indonesians, has only one name. The sports bar, with pictures of soccer players, will offer Indonesian, Western and African food.

Prabowo said he expected the US president's visit would bring a rush of visitors to the bar.

Another Jakarta bar owner, Bartele Santema, who tried but failed to transform Obama's old house into a cafe called "Sweet Home Obama", said he was also excited about the visit. "I hope he visits one of my bars. If he comes in, that would be great," said Santema.

US gay marriage trial re-enacted on YouTube

The US Supreme Court may have stopped broadcasts of California's same-sex marriage trial, but that has not prevented filmmakers from re-enacting it for the Internet.

Two Los Angeles-based filmmakers have used transcripts, bloggers in the courtroom and professional actors to help recreate the trial. The first of 12 episodes - each covering a day of the trial - appeared on YouTube on Monday.

Filmmaker John Ireland says the goal was to allow Americans to judge the constitutionality of Proposition 8, which restricted marriage to a man and a woman. Ireland and fellow filmmaker John Ainsworth oppose the ban.

The Supreme Court last month blocked a plan to have testimony in the trial uploaded to YouTube, saying it could subject supporters of Proposition 8 to harassment.

AP-Reuters

(China Daily 02/04/2010 page10)