Events Update: EBMC and Bear Melt

Girth & Mirth Belgium recently posted information and registration forms for EMBC 2001 on their website. EBMC is billed as "the yearly European convergence for big men, chubbies, bears and ALL their admirers." This year it's being held in Budapest, Hungary from November 15 through the 19th. G&M Belgium is offering discounts for early registrations.

Turning our attention to more current events, Rick from Mainely Bears tells us that Bear Melt is coming up soon -- April 6-8 to be specific. Highlights will include a bear hottub/sauna get-together and a bash at the cozy Blackstone's bar in Portland. Contact the club or see their web page for more details.

Publication Party for Bear Book 2

This in from DrBearLove:

Calamus Bookstore will host a publication party for local Boston area writer and editor Les Wright [inset]. The event will take place Saturday, March 24th, from 3 to 5 PM. The public is invited to attend. Food and beverages will be served.

Wright's latest book, just published by Harrington Park Press, is The Bear Book II: Further Readings in The History and Evolution of a Gay Male Subculture. [...]

For further information, please call John Mitzel at Calamus Bookstore: 617-338-1931 or e-mail: mitzel@calamusbooks.com.

You can find out more from the events calendar on the bookstore's web page. The Bear Book can be purchased from Calamus and also from RfB partner Amazon.com. In related news, Les Wright will be visiting New York City, Provincetown, MA and Chicago on a book-signing tour to promote Bear Book II.

bear-pics.com back online

We got a quick note from Forrest letting us know that bear-pics.com would be temporarily unavailable from its usual URL address, presumably while it was moved over to a new network provider or server. After a brief outage, it looks like the site is back at its original address: http://www.bear-pics.com/. Surf on over for bear-related news and lots of woofy bearpics!

New stuff at The Midwest Ursine and Woof!

Plenty of new stuff at the The Midwest Ursine, including updates on IML 2001 and a new column on the bear party circuit by Randy Stern. Meanwhile, Roughcub has announced the release of a new issue of his online magazine Woof!:

This issue we added a couple new features...Erotic Art (featuring the incredible work of Jugga!!) and BearSight (GregBear's perspective from the bear community!)

Call for Illustrators/Artists

From Craig Byrnes:

Bear Manufacturing is looking for a graphic illustrator artist. The artist will agree to contract as a "work for hire" and salary is negotiable according to talents and compatability to the ideas that are needed. To apply, send an inquiry to Craig@bearmfg.com. The ideas are very specific. Your letter should express what areas of graphic art illustration are your strong points.

Hot Furry Bear... In 3-D!!

No, it's not a Brush Creek Media spoof of bad '50s sci-fi flicks. Lee has been hard at work with his 3D modeling software, but it's no Frankenstein's monster that he's been creating. It's a bear! To see Lee's impressive handiwork, go to <http://www.homintern.net/start.html>. And try not to drool on your keyboard. :)

New Products from Manhunter

For you erotica lovers, Tony from Manhunter Video Productions announced the availablity of some new items. First, a new video called Bear Naked imported from Europe, which has some great camera work according to Tony. Manhunter has also released two of their most popular titles, Studs of the Southwest and Workmen's Compensation on DVD. Finally, they're now offering a magazine called Alcazar with pics of furry, Middle Eastern men. This bilingual (German/English) magazine is imported from Germany and it's quite popular with Manhunter's customers. Surf over to www.manhuntervideo.com for all the details.

"Leather Man" from the Village People Dies

Finally, we note the passing of Glenn Hughes, who sang in the popular '70s musical group The Village People. Hughes was the first man to play the band's biker character. Although by most accounts he was not really involved with the Leather community, his black leather costume and big mustache, combined with the Village People's immense popularity, made him an icon. He will be missed. [See also: the article on Sonicnet, the Village People's official web site.]