happy year

SYDNEY has been given a sneak peak at Saturday’s New Year’s Eve lightshow extravaganza, while a fire ban has put Victoria’s celebrations in doubt.
An “Endless Rainbow” illuminated the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Tuesday night during a test of the “Time to Dream” themed performance, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Anyone with their eyes on the bridge just after midnight couldn’t have missed the violet, blue, green and yellow rainbow, which continues its beams around to form a perfect circle.
The `Endless Rainbow’ shifted back and forth during an intermittent test that lit the night sky for close to an hour.
Frank, 30, and Amanda, 19, from Leichhardt noticed the lights on the bridge while passing Mrs Macquarie’s Chair.
“We were driving when we saw the lights and we thought we’d have a look,” Frank said.
“I’m excited to see a New Years Eve preview,” Amanda said. “The colours are just like a rainbow.”
The ‘Time to Dream’ theme was developed by Creative Director Marc Newson with “Welcome to Sydney” planned to be displayed in 16 languages.
But while Sydney copped a preview of their celebration, Melbourne is still hoping they will be allowed to set off any fireworks on Saturday night.
The Herald Sun reports the $2.6 million fireworks extravaganza is in doubt as soaring temperatures are expected to trigger a total fire ban.
The City of Melbourne can apply for a special exemption, but the threshold is so high it was unlikely it would be granted.
New Year’s Eve in Melbourne is forecast to reach 32C and 36C on the following two days.
The biggest New Year’s fireworks display has been planned for the city, lasting 10 minutes and to be launched from 17 sites including the Arts Centre spire and Victoria Harbour.
It had been intended to transform the city into a sea of gold with about 500,000 people expected.
Several other major fireworks shows, including Geelong’s waterfront display, are also in doubt, while those in the state’s north almost certainly will be off with temperatures there forecast to top 40C.
Country Fire Authority state duty officer Chris Cowley told the Herald Sun there was “a fair chance” a total fire ban day would be declared for Saturday but it would not be known until late on Friday.
Asked the chances a fireworks permit would be granted in Melbourne for New Year’s Eve, he said: “I’d say more no than yes.
“Each request for a permit is decided on its merits.
“Public safety is our No.1 priority, regardless of the event or how much money is being spent.
“Should a total fire ban day be declared, people need to be reminded fireworks are a form of fire and as such not permitted on total fire bans days.”
A City of Melbourne spokeswoman said the council would apply for a special permit if a total fire ban were declared.
Mr Cowley said authorities were concerned about illegal fireworks being set off in back yards and public places.
“A little spot fire can quickly spread and easily become a very large fire,” he said.
The MFB, Department of Sustainability and CFA discuss when a total fire ban should be declared.
They were imposed only when “absolutely necessarily”, Mr Cowley said.
The three organisations consider temperature, wind, dryness of the air, how long it had been since it had rained, and humidity.
Particular attention needed to be paid to averting grass fires this summer and he urged people to report suspicious activity.
“When outdoors, don’t act foolishly. Look at the weather and your surroundings and act accordingly.”

It was hard to believe the pale, delicate woman in a chic winter ensemble sitting across from me at Manhattan’s Crosby Street Hotel last week could play a pierced hacker punk.

But when Rooney Mara was cast as Lisbeth Salander in the Hollywood version of Stieg Larsson’s international bestseller “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo,” pundits proclaimed she’d won the equivalent of the lottery.

“Certainly that wasn’t true fiscally,” she said with a hint of a smile over a cup of lemon and hot water.

“To be honest, I would’ve done it for free. It was that sort of important to me. The thing was I knew how coveted it was before I read the books and I went in on it, and I thought that it was really interesting, but felt like, ‘If I don’t get this it’s not the worst thing.’

“Then after I read the books I couldn’t imagine my life without doing it.”

Salander is a dark, demanding role. Director David Fincher had worked with her for a small role in last year’s “The Social Network” and put her through 10 weeks of auditions.

“David had told the casting director to let me know before I went down the long road of auditioning that if I were to get the part that I would have to, you know, become a smoker and have to go off and sort of be by myself for a year and have to be butt-naked. I’d have to do these horrible rape scenes. I’d have to ride a motorcycle,” said Mara, 26.

Because it’s suggested that Salander has Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism, “I went to a school called the Help Group that teaches children who are autistic and have Asperger’s.

“It was something we had to think about and play with it; we didn’t want to make it too much,” she said.

Mara’s sister Kate, 28, is also an actress.

“We’re very, very close now and we definitely weren’t as close growing up. Maybe that’s why I didn’t want to go into acting until later – because I was being a contrarian.”