Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge Day 22

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge


Day 22 - A photo of you and any member of Bon Jovi, if you have one


I have a picture of Obie, that's as close to a band member as I got.

 This is Sherri giving Obie the quilt she made, and Stacey handing him the Superman Boxers.

Shortly after this Obie wished me a Happy Birthday.  

Good Times.

Bon Jovi: Jon ALMOST sang the National Anthem at the Super Bowl?

I don't know how true it is, maybe it will be good for some Bon Jovi trivia.

Super Bowl Prop Bets: The National Anthem 

On a more practical level, a completely disastrous performance is unlikely because since 1993 the NFL has required the National Anthem singer to provide a pre-recorded ‘backing track’ of their performance. Some singers have ‘lip synced’ their live version (Jennifer Hudson in 2009, for example) but most just use it for accompaniment. The reason the NFL now requires the recorded clip is kind of funny–in 1993, Garth Brooks was scheduled to sign the Anthem for the Super Bowl but walked out of the stadium 45 minutes before kickoff due to a dispute with NBC. Apparently the network was supposed to air the video for Garth’s latest song during the pregame but refused to do so due to some content they deemed ‘objectionable’. Eventually, the two sides patched things up and Garth did his job but the NFL had taken the precaution of dragging Jon Bon Jovi out of the stands to ad-lib the anthem just in case.

I wonder if he got his seats for free that year?

Bon Jovi; Jon Bon Jovi takes a trip down Jernee Mill Road

Another Article on Thursday nights SNOW... I mean SHOW.  Lots of pictures at the bottom.  Randomly the song is not called HELP!  That's a completely different Beatles song, it's called A Little Help from My Friends, just like its not Sugar Pie Honey Bunch it's I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch).  Like when people call You Give Love a Bad Name Shot Through the Heart, Shot Through the Heart is off Bon Jovi, You Give Love a Bad Name is off Slippery When Wet.  Get your song titles right or go home.

Jon Bon Jovi takes a trip down Jernee Mill Road

Written by

CHIRS JORDAN

SAYREVILLE — Jon Bon Jovi has been to 570 Jernee Mill Road in Sayreville before.

"We used to come down here to rehearse,'' said Bon Jovi to the sold-out crowd at 570 Jernee Mill, which is now the Starland Ballroom, on Thursday night. The venue hosted the Jon Bon Jovi and Friends benefit concert. "My wife Dorothea was the coat check girl here.''

Past incarnations of 570 Jernee Mill include the Hunka Bunka Ballroom and the Jernee Mill Inn. Former Bon Jovi bassist Alec John Such used to work at the Jernee Mill Inn, and an early Bon Jovi band, Jon Bon Jovi and the Wild Ones, played the room.

"We shot the video for "Only Lonely' here in 1985,'' said Bon Jovi Thursday night before breaking into his hit "Who Says You Can't Go Home.''

Thursday's show, which raised about $500,000 for the Parker Family Health Center in Red Bank, recalled Bon Jovi's bar band days with a loose, fun atmosphere. You couldn't help but smile when Bon Jovi looked bemused at Southside Johnny, on harmonica, and Bobby Bandiera, on guitar, riffing like the two old bandmates they are on "Treat Her Right.'' Yet, the evening did have an underpinning of seriousness, befitting the cause.

Bon Jovi's friends? Including Southside and Bandiera, Richie Rosenberg, Ray Andersen, Bob Burger, Graham Maby, Layonne Holmes, Jim Celestino, Maureen McCrink, Lisa Bouchelle, Ricky Collins, Rich Scannella, Tommy LaBella, Doug DeHays, John Berry, Joe Bellia, Mike Mancini, Arne Wendt and Tommy Meares and maybe one or two that we missed joined Bon Jovi onstage for rock 'n' roll chestnuts and R&B classics.

Here's the setlist:

"Help,'' 

"So You Wanna Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star,'' 

"C.C. Rider,'' 

"Glad All Over,'' 

"I Can't Help Myself,'' 

"Pretty Woman,'' 

"Blue Bayou,'' 

"Lonely,'' 

"Nothin' But a Party,'' 

"Hold On I'm Coming,'' 

"Start Me Up,'' 

"She's Not There,'' 

"Ooh Child,'' 

"Somebody to Love," 

"Build Me Up Buttercup,'' 

"Midnight Confessions,'' 

"Wanted Dead or Alive,''

"We Weren't Born to Follow,'' 

"You Give Love a Bad Name,'' 

"Who Says You Can't Go Home.''

Encore: 

"Livin' on a Prayer',' 

"Treat Her Right,'' 

"634-5789.''

Bon Jovi: 'The Circle' stage created in AutoCAD

This is exciting for me.  My Bachelor's degree is in Interior design, not that I use it working in a Health care Related industry.  But the geek in me remembers working in AutoCAD in MS Dos.   Command prompts sucked (C: DOS C: DOS/RUN C:RUN/DOS/RUN).  Of course I learned in AutoCAD 11 which was a GUI based system.  Going backwards was awful, and then the company I was working for HAD to update their systems and got AutoCAD 11 and I was the only who knew how to use the bells and whistles.  My Senior Thesis Project was a restaurant that was called 'Old Sparky's' and involved dining room chairs that were electric chairs.  There was barbed wire and fencing everywhere to represent a maximum security prison.  I created everything in 3-D (at the time the rendering capabilities were limited so everything I did was in black and white and then colored in with my Prismacolor markers by hand, today if the 3-D renderings are done correctly with the correct lighting angles you can't tell the difference between a 3-D rendering in AutoCAD/3-D Studio and the real thing) and the super  so I had a million and one perspectives of every room in the restaurant so I could sell my "client" (which were actual Designers in the field, and they were just blown away by everything I had done.)

So feel free a little to geek out with me.

See how Tait Towers designed and built the stage set for Bon Jovi’s The Circle Tour using AutoCAD and 3ds Max Design. (Video: 4:57 min.)

Tait Towers: Custom Stage Design

Designers use AutoCAD and Autodesk 3ds Max Design to model, engineer, and present concert stage sets that rock—in less than half the time.

Project Summary

Founded by lighting designer Michael Tait in 1978, Tait Towers designs and constructs entire concert stage sets, making the visions of the music industry’s top artists and concert production designers a reality. Tait Tower’s innovative approach to stage design, engineering, and construction enables increasingly dazzling shows. From telescoping towers to huge video displays to intricately choreographed lighting, Tait Towers’s design professionals model each element in AutoCAD® software. They use Autodesk® 3ds Max® Design software to review near photo-realistic visualizations of stages with their clients before manufacturing. As a final step, Tait Towers’s manufacturing team employs AutoCAD designs to help guide the construction of the sets. Recently, for rock band Bon Jovi’s The Circle Tour, Tait Towers used a combination of AutoCAD and Autodesk 3ds Max Design software to help:

Create an elaborate set that ships in six trucks and requires five hours and only one tool to assemble

Enhance the design review process with near accurate renderings

Manufacture more quickly using 3D designs on the shop floor

Accelerate the project by allowing designers to coordinate efforts more easily

The Challenge

As fans cheer and sing along to their favorite songs, few consider the planning and hard work that go into each amazing concert effect. Bon Jovi’s The Circle Tour set incorporates complex, circular stage shapes, five robots, more than 500 magnetic video tiles, and 500 miles of cable. Holding all this together are more than 7,000 bolts and 6,000 high-strength magnets. Constructing a show on this massive scale can seem as complex as constructing a building—except that even the most intricate set design must require less than a day for assembly.

Jaime Filson, chief information officer for Tait Towers, explains some of the challenges Tait Towers faces, "We design each stage to be a spectacular embodiment of the tour’s themes—and easy to assemble and move. This requires precise planning and engineering down to the smallest bolt. At the same time, we need to ensure our work matches the musical artist’s and production designer’s original ideas."

The Solution

The concert production designer for The Circle Tour contacted Tait Towers with his initial ideas just a few months before the concert tour began. He sketched a large circular stage with a horseshoe-shaped extension and a video wall behind the stage. But five robots—each with arms topped with a 54-square-foot video screen—proved to be among the most distinctive elements of the design.

"To compete, we must be able to look at what artists and production designers want, and say, ‘yes, we can do that,’" says Filson. "As sets have gotten more elaborate, production schedules are ever tighter. That’s the reason we rely on AutoCAD software. It helps accelerate conceptual design, reviews, and manufacturing."

A Faster Workflow

With pressing deadlines, the Tait Towers team dove into the project. They began by conceptualizing their initial vision for the stage, video wall supports, and lighting towers using the 3D modeling tools within AutoCAD software.

"With the 3D capabilities of AutoCAD software, it’s fast and intuitive for us to turn ideas into conceptual designs we’re confident we can build," says Tyler Kicera, a lead designer with Tait Towers. "From the earliest stages, we see how elements come together as we design, and that makes it easier to avoid clashes between elements as we go."

As the initial concepts took shape, Tait Towers moved the 3D AutoCAD designs into Autodesk 3ds Max Design software. Within 3ds Max Design, the team used the initial designs as the basis for renderings that closely modeled how the stage would look when built. Tait Towers reviewed these renderings with the production designer and the artist, Jon Bon Jovi.

"The artists we work with like to see renderings that give them a sense of how the lights, stage elements, and colors will appear when complete," says Filson. "They can use their valuable time to give feedback instead of asking questions about how everything will look. The integration between AutoCAD and 3ds Max Design allows us to create higher-quality renderings almost seamlessly. Being able to share near realistic renderings has cut our review cycles in half."

End-to-end 3D

With the initial design approved, Tait Towers began drafting the more detailed 3D designs required for manufacturing. A team of 12 collaborated to finalize designs for every element, including 12 venetian screen-style video displays that allow for choreographed screen movement. For the robots, the team proposed adapting robots from ABB Robotics typically used in industrial manufacturing.

The xref feature in AutoCAD allowed the large project team to more easily coordinate individual contributions to the overall design. When the designs were complete, Tait Towers’s manufacturing team began building the set by working directly from the 3D AutoCAD files.

"Our production schedules are much more aggressive than you might find in a typical manufacturing environment," explains Kicera. "We do not produce 2D shop drawings, which saves significant time. Our production team manufactures using 3D AutoCAD designs annotated with a few dimensions. Referring to the detailed 3D design, they can visualize nearly exactly what they need to build."

The Result

With The Circle Tour on the road and wowing audiences, Filson reports that the Tait Towers team is proud of the set’s artistic and practical success. He says, "We designed and shipped the stage for The Circle Tour in under two months, but a set like that would have taken more than twice as long—or been impossible—just a few years ago. Working in 3D with AutoCAD and 3ds Max Design software allows us to get more done faster. It helps us turn visionary ideas into concert sets that amaze audiences and can be assembled, disassembled, and moved in hours."

Bon Jovi: Critical (truthful) article on Bon Jovi in NOLA

I don't think this guy is saying anything different than many of us have said the last few years.  I was thinking about road tripping it to Jazz Fest, but if the rumors are true about the Israel date I'm going to pass on a probably lack luster jet lagged set (IMO).

New Orleans Jazz Fest looks to the future, even with Bon Jovi

Published: Saturday, January 29, 2011, 5:00 AM

By Keith Spera, The Times-Picayune 

To remain vital, festivals require fresh blood. For 2011, the New Orleans Jazz Fest has administered itself a full-on transfusion.

Matthew Hinton / The Times-Picayune

They're back: Bon Jovi, seen here on the Acura Stage at the 2009 Jazz Fest, return to the festival this spring.

It looks to be a fresh, dynamic fest, and judging by the chatter at nola.com and elsewhere, lots of other people think so, too. Ever since AEG Live, the folks who own the Staples Center in Los Angeles and the O2 arena in London and who promote countless concerts annually, signed on as a co-producer before the '05 Jazz Fest, new and famous faces have popped up at the Fair Grounds.

For this year, more than ever before, this makes it feel like two festivals in one: The traditional New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell, with its Gospel Tent, Fais Do-Do Stage and cochon de lait po-boys, merged with a smart, contemporary music festival. The former is the specialty of longtime Jazz Fest producer Quint Davis and his Festival Productions Inc.-New Orleans. The latter is what AEG does.

Exhibit A: Arcade Fire. The Canadian ensemble has graduated to arena-headlining status the old-fashioned way: By making compelling music that is very much its own, yet not so unusual that it can't attract a mass audience. Arcade Fire has not graced a New Orleans stage since stepping up to the big leagues. Jazz Fest got 'em.

Similarly, the roster includes Wilco, the Decemberists, the Strokes, Mumford & Sons and the Avett Brothers. On the R&B side, there's Lauryn Hill -- or "Ms. Lauryn Hill," as she insists on being billed -- and John Legend's collaboration with the Roots.

All hail from the post-Santana, post-Van Morrison, post-Bonnie Raitt generation -- not that there's anything wrong with having a couple of old-school Jazz Fest veterans as well. This year, that translates to Jimmy Buffett -- here's wishing the devoted Saints fan and friend of the Crescent City a speedy recovery after his nasty tumble in Australia this week -- and Frankie Beverly and Maze.

The hard-traveled Gregg Allman is back, but with a twist: He's touring in support of his T Bone Burnett-produced solo blues album. Robert Plant certainly qualifies as "grizzled," but in recent years he's reinvented himself as a singer of spooky Americana rock. He turned down a bazillion dollars to front a reunited Led Zeppelin in order to follow this new path, which speaks to his level of commitment.

And in 2010, Cyndi Lauper released "Memphis Blues." Billboard recently named it the best-selling blues album of the year; it is up for a Grammy Award as best traditional blues album. Allen Toussaint guests on this collection of blues standards from the catalogs of Robert Johnson, Albert King, Louis Jordan and Muddy Waters. Presumably, she'll be doing her blues set at Jazz Fest.

Some observers found Kenny G, the king of elevator jazz, to be a curious Jazz Fest choice. But when he played the Essence Music Festival in the late '90s -- one of only three or so white acts to ever appear on the main stage -- he tore it up. He started out at the top of the plaza level seats opposite the stage. Equipped with a wireless microphone, he blew his sax down the stairs and across the entire floor of the Superdome. People fell out.

Of all the big visiting acts on this year, the only one I question is the return of Bon Jovi.

Jon Bon Jovi seems like a decent guy. He's largely avoided the tabloid exploits on which his lead guitarist has occasionally embarked. His charitable efforts are admirable; after Katrina, he and his cohorts financed 28 new homes in Houma. He recently got himself appointed to a presidential commission.

Bon Jovi's music is straight-up, by-the-books arena rock designed to reach the widest audience possible. I'll cop to cranking "Livin' on a Prayer" in the car. Bon Jovi is suited for car stereos in a way that, say, the Decemberists aren't.

Booking Bon Jovi at Jazz Fest in 2009 was a novelty. Fine. They got to play New Orleans for the first time in more than a decade, bringing a bunch of folks to Jazz Fest who ordinarily wouldn't go. There were some ugly moments when impatient fans booed Dr. John, the preceding act -- even though Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan was himself watching the good doctor from the side of the Acura Stage -- but everyone survived. Let's move on.

And yet here is Bon Jovi again.

Their enduring popularity is beyond question. According to Rolling Stone, BJ notched the highest-grossing tour of 2010, raking in $108 million on 51 shows -- an average of $2 million per show.

Makes you wonder what Jazz Fest is paying them.

Certain bands, like Bon Jovi, are so big that they tend to dominate the discussion. And when that band is something of a stretch for Jazz Fest to book in the first place, it seems like a break between appearances is warranted. I wouldn't expect to see Pearl Jam again for a few years, even though their '10 set was an absolute thriller.

Jeff Beck is another name of note who boomeranged back to the festival this year. I've heard nothing but raves for his set last year. Much to my regret, I was elsewhere on the Fair Grounds while he reportedly offered a master's class on electric guitar soloing. Given that, I can understand why he was invited back so soon.

Bon Jovi's set was, by contrast, OK. Bon Jovi, the singer, was gracious, saying some nice things about New Orleans. Bon Jovi, the band, reproduced (most of) its hits, but quit 10 minutes early.

Maybe the band got its "standard" set out of the way in 2009 and is planning something special for the return.

To come back to the Fair Grounds and recite essentially the same set again would be an exceedingly lame moment in a festival that promises to be anything but.

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge Day 21

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge


Day 21 - The song that made you fall for Bon Jovi


That's easy.


I'm going to go into Sophia Petrillo mode for this:



Picture it, New Jersey, 1986.  A lonely 6th grader in a cabin full of semi hormonal pre-teens at Stokes State Forest, in Sussex County.

A school trip so there is no radio, but someone has smuggled one in.  We move it around the room, searching, hoping and fnally finding the place where Z-100 comes in. 

We listen and the DJ says, 'Here is the new one from Bon Jovi.'

The room erupts into the high pitched screams that most people associate with a good hard kick to a man's groin or a Justin Beiber concert.

"Shot through the Heart and you're too blame
Darlin' you give love a bad name...."

And that lonely 6th grader was me.

Bon Jovi: Atlanta?

The Phillips Arena in Atlanta was named the #4 concert venue in the US.  The interesting thing is the blurb in their offical press release:

Source:

Upcoming events for Philips Arena in 2011 that have been announced include Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall and Larry the Cable Guy (Jan. 29), Nuclear Cowboyz (Feb. 5), Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (Feb. 17-21), Rod Stewart and Stevie Nicks (March 24), and Taylor Swift (July 9-10). And announced for the first time here, Bon Jovi will make an appearance at Philips Arena in the spring of 2011.

Get ready for February first!  It's only a few days away until Jon steals all your money and maxes out your credit cards. 

Bon Jovi: Neither Snow, nor Snow, nor Snow will stop Jon Bon Jovi

Someone asked me if I want to go to this, I replied back with my rule. Do not return to New Jersey in the winter unless its for a wedding or a funeral and for the funeral how are they going to bury the corpse if the ground is frozen solid and there's three feet of snow on the ground.  And if my friends and family can plan weddings around Bon Jovi concerts even better!

I am glad many of you made it there safely and had a good show, hope everyone makes it home safely as well.

Bon Jovi plays benefit show in hometown Sayreville

BY CHRIS JORDAN • STAFF WRITER • JANUARY 27, 2011

SAYREVILLE — Neither rain, nor sleet, nor a heck of a lot of snow can keep Jon Bon Jovi from his appointed rounds.

The Sayreville native began his Jon Bon Joviand Friends benefit concert Thursday night at Starland Ballroom on Jernee Hill Road with a gospel-tinged version of the Beatles classic "Help.''

"Welcome to Sayreville,'' Bon Jovi said. "The hometown of me.''

The show raised funds for the Parker Family Health Center of Red Bank. The concert was his first open-to-the-public show in his hometown since he became a star with his band Bon Jovi in the '80s. Bon Jovi, who grew up in a home at 16 Robin Hood Lane, played a fan club members only show at Starland in February 2009.

"It's great that somebody that big looks out for those less fortunate," said fan Nicole Gonnella, 38 of Spotswood. Gonnella attended the show with her sister Angela. Despite the snow storm, canceling the show wasn't considered, said Dr. Eugene Cheslock, president of the Parker Family Health Center board of trustees.

The Sayreville area received 16 inches of snow by Thursday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

"(Canceling) never came into the equation,'' Cheslock said.

The Parker Family Health Center offers free health care to Monmouth County residents who lack medical insurance or the means to pay for care.

"Our population is young people and they're working but they're the working poor,'' Cheslock said. "With the cost of insurance premiums skyrocketing, they'd rather go naked in favor of food, fuel, a roof over their heads and schooling, and so they have their priorities. Young people think they're invincible and they won't have health problems, but that's not the case. You can't blame them.''

The concert raised an estimated $500,000 for the health center. Tickets were $250.

Visit www.parkerfamilyhealthcenter.org for more information on services provided by the center.

Cheslock is a fan of both Jon Bon Jovi and Bon Jovi's wife Dorothea, who helped arrange Thursday's show.

"The two of them are very generous and connected to their roots,'' Cheslock said. "I find them to be absolutely wonderful benefactors in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. They do good things.''

Bon Jovi's friends on Thursday included Southside Johnny, Bobby Bandiera, Richie Rosenberg, Ray Andersen, Bob Burger and Graham Maby. In other Bon Jovi news, the rocker will star in the upcoming movie "New Year's Eve.'' The ensemble piece also features Robert DeNiro, Halle Berry, Zac Efron, Seth Meyers and Jessica Biel, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge Day 20

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge

20 - Your favorite music video

I love this video it's different from anything that had/have done. Great song too! I Believe off Keep The Faith

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge Day 19

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge


Day 19 - Your favorite quote from Richie Sambora

"I'm talking about giving the people what they want. It's just like, you know, I don't wake up with perfect hair. It takes a certain creativity to get it right. Sometimes that's me; sometimes that's Miguel, my stupendous stylist."

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge Day 18

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge

Day 18 - Your favorite tour/era

I would have to say The Jersey Syndicate Tour. I think they learned how to be and not be a band. The lessons that they learned on that tour shaped and continue to shape the band. They learned they can do 18-month long tours but they need time to relax. They learned they need to be away from each other and they need separate downtime.

Bon Jovi: Bon Jovi rocks in $1 million for CeDAR

 If the writer had done her research she would have found out the last time Bon Jovi played GAO it was quite an event....  quite...

Bon Jovi rocks in $1 million for CeDAR

By Joanne Davidson

The Denver Post

POSTED: 01/25/2011 01:00:00 AM MST

Bon Jovi performed Friday for the fifth anniversary of the Center for Dependency, Addiction and Rehabilitation. ( Evan Semon, Special to The Denver Post )

The last time a Bon Jovi concert opened with a cover of the Dave Clark Five's "Glad All Over" may also have been the first.

It was a perfect choice, though, because the happy lyrics pretty much summed up the vibe at the Colorado Convention Center Friday night when 1,100 people turned out for a once-in-a-lifetime dinner and show that raised $1 million for CeDAR (Center for Dependency, Addiction and Rehabilitation), a 50-bed, nonprofit residential treatment facility next to the University of Colorado Hospital on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora.

It's not every day that a band of Bon Jovi's arena-filling stature does a gig like this, a fact that wasn't lost on the A-list crowd that included Gov. John Hickenlooper,

Phil Anschutz, football legend John Elway, University of Colorado president Bruce Benson and University Hospital chief Bruce Schroffel.

They — and others like Pete Coors, Anschutz Investment Co. president Steve Cohen, chef Troy Guard and Children's Hospital gastroenterologist Ron Sokol — seemed to be grinning from ear to ear all night long.

In the end, it was hard to tell who was having the most fun: the planners or the guests who paid anywhere from $2,500 to $50,000 per table of 10.

"We have worked so hard to make CeDAR a world-class facility, and to have an event like this as our first fundraiser is marvelous ... exciting beyond words," enthused CeDAR's executive director, Frank Lisnow.

Improv comedian Amy Angelilli, whose alter ego, Nurse Nancy, has gained local notoriety for a series of public service announcements promoting spay and neuter for cats, is such a devoted fan of Bon Jovi that she sold two rings to be able to afford a ticket to what she described as "an amazingly special special charity event."

And, of course, whenever there's a visiting celebrity, there's always a local connection.

Michael Bugdanowitz, son of Rose Community Foundation president Sheila Bugdanowitz and her husband, Rick, owner of La Nouvelle Fine Cleaners, is a friend of band frontman Jon Bon Jovi. "They live near each other in New Jersey and their kids go to the same preschool," Rick Bugdanowitz explained. "Michael rode in on the plane with them today, and we're not sure if he's going to come home with us tonight or be with the band."

The benefit would not have been possible without a big assist from Phil Anschutz's AEG Live Rocky Mountains and its president, Chuck Morris,who not only got Bon Jovi to appear but talked a lot of his friends into donating items for the silent auction — good stuff like guitars signed by Tom

Petty and Melissa Etheridge and VIP tickets to Celine Dion, George Strait and Reba McEntire shows.

Two hundred CeDAR graduates were there, too, including Don Boodel, one of the McDonald's franchisees who established the Ronald McDonald Houses in Denver and Aurora. "I am proud to say I'm a CeDAR graduate," Boodel said. "It's a marvelous facility, and was my bedrock for rebuilding my soul and my sobriety."

Others enjoying this fun event were Sharon Magness Blake and Ernie Blake; Dan Ritchie; Deanna and Greg Austin; Nan and Spike Eklund; Ann Butler and Don Greco; Dianne Eddolls and Glenn Jones; Four Seasons Hotel GM Thierry Kennel and his wife,

Bon Jovi: Jon Going back to acting???

EXCLUSIVE: Jon Bon Jovi, Seth Meyers Join 'New Year's Eve

6:11 PM 1/24/2011 by Borys Kit

Halle Berry, Jessica Biel and Robert De Niro are among the actors in director Garry Marshall's all-star group; German actor Til Schweiger also boards.

Jon Bon Jovi and Seth Meyers are putting on their party hats for New Line’s all-star ensemble New Year’s Eve, being directed by Garry Marshall.

German actor Til Schweiger has also closed a deal to board the production.

Bon Jovi and Meyers join a cast that counts Halle Berry, Jessica Biel, Abigail Breslin, Robert De Niro, Zac Efron, Ashton Kutcher, Lea Michele, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michelle Pfeiffer, Hilary Swank and Sofia Vergara among its cast.

The movie tells intertwining stories of a group of New Yorkers as they navigate their way through bittersweet drama and romance over the course of New Year's Eve.

Bon Jovi is playing -- here’s a stretch -- a successful rock star who once dumped Berry’s character of a caterer but now finds himself face to face with again at a party.

Meyers will play a broke dad who wants his wife (Biel) to deliver the first baby of the year in order to win a $25,000 reward and finds himself in a heated competition.

Bon Jovi last movie appearance was National Lampoon’s Pucked in 2006. Meyers, head writer of Saturday Night Live, last appeared in Spring Breakdown with Amy Poehler and Parker Posey.

Bon Jovi and Meyers are repped by CAA. Meyers is additionally repped by Brillstein Entertainment Partners. 

Schweiger, repped by Anonymous Content, appeared in Inglourious Basterds.

Bon Jovi: Animoto Video contest for this leg of the tour announced

Per the article below, Richie is excited to see all the fan videos.  (I think he said that last time too)

I want to say it now, all you amateur pornographers, making videos about your spouses making your Jon Bon Jovi dreams come true.  Good Luck.

Here is the presser:

Bon Jovi Invites Fans to Share the Stage on 2011 Tour Through Animoto's Video Creation Technology

Winning Fan Videos to be Featured on Jumbo Screens During Band's Performance of 'Livin' On A Prayer'

NEW YORK, Jan. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- After earning the honor of being the #1 worldwide tour of 2010, Bon Jovi prepares to hit the road this February and will once again utilize the latest in web-based video technology to engage with their fans and bring them along for the ride. Continuing their successful partnership with Animoto, the award-winning online video creation service, the iconic band is offering audiences in each upcoming North American tour market a spot in the limelight.

Using the fun and easy suite of tools available from Animoto, fans can quickly transform their photos and/or videos to create a personal video slideshow about their hometown set to Bon Jovi's smash 1986 hit "Livin' On A Prayer." Throughout the two month tour, hundreds of user-generated Animoto videos will be featured on the tour's giant screens to accompany the band's live performance "Livin' On A Prayer."

"We have the greatest fans in the world and we're excited to make them a part of our show through the wonders of technology," said Richie Sambora. "We can't wait to see all of the videos they're creating."

Starting today, fans are encouraged to create and upload their own personalized Bon Jovi music video slideshow for this unique opportunity to win a pair of tickets to the show, and see themselves jam on the big screen alongside Bon Jovi. Additionally, the official winners in each city will receive a deluxe prize VIP package including access to the VIP pre show party, an exclusive VIP messenger bag, and several commemorative VIP items. To learn more and to submit your video, visit the official "Livin' On a Prayer" Website at http://prayer.bonjovi.com.

"We're thrilled about the longstanding Bon Jovi & Animoto partnership," commented Brad Jefferson, CEO and Co-founder of Animoto. "This social media promotion gives fans an opportunity to share their most creative Animoto videos set to one of the most popular songs of our generation, "Livin' On A Prayer."

Bon Jovi's 2011 dates come hot on the heels of the band earning the top-grossing worldwide tour of 2010, according to both Billboard and Pollstar, an honor achieved for the second time in just three years. The band will perform concerts in the U.S., Canada and throughout Europe, presented by AEG Live. Tickets are on sale now and additional concerts in New York, Chicago, Toronto, Montreal, Pittsburgh, and Dublin have already been added, due to popular demand.

Globally, the Grammy® Award-winning band has sold more than 125 million albums, and performed more than 2,700 concerts in over 50 countries for more than 35 million fans. Bon Jovi Greatest Hits (Island Def Jam Music Group) debuted at #1 around the world in November, with the band's three-decade-spanning retrospective charting higher and selling more copies in its first week than their 1994 Cross Road release, which has sold more than 21 million copies to date. Previously, the band's "Lost Highway Tour" was named the #1 tour of 2008. Nearing three decades of an incredible career, Bon Jovi shows no sign of slowing down.

For more information on all things Bon Jovi, visit www.BonJovi.com.

Bon Jovi 2011 North American Tour Itinerary

February 9

State College, PA

Bryce Jordan Center

February 11

Pittsburgh, PA

Consol Energy Center

February 12

Pittsburgh, PA

Consol Energy Center

February 14

Toronto, ON

Air Canada Centre

February 15

Toronto, ON

Air Canada Centre

February 18

Montreal, QB

Bell Centre

February 19

Montreal, QB

Bell Centre

February 21

Raleigh, NC

RBC Center

February 24

New York City, NY

Madison Square Garden

February 25

New York City, NY

Madison Square Garden

February 27

Washington, DC

Verizon Center

March 1

Boston, MA

TD Garden

March 2

Philadelphia, PA

Wells Fargo Center

March 4

Uncasville, CT

Mohegan Sun Arena

March 5

New York City, NY

Madison Square Garden

March 8

Chicago, IL

United Center

March 9

Chicago, IL

United Center

March 17

San Antonio, TX

AT&T Center

March 19

Las Vegas, NV

MGM Grand Garden Arena

March 22

Salt Lake City, UT

EnergySolutions Arena

March 25

Vancouver, BC

Rogers Arena

March 26

Vancouver, BC

Rogers Arena

About Animoto:

Animoto (www.animoto.com) is a video slideshow creation service that enables consumers to easily make professional quality, personalized videos that will amaze friends, family and others. The Animoto team, which includes entertainment and technology industry veterans, has leveraged their expertise to develop a web-based service that makes it easy for people to quickly create and share their stories through video – using photos and or videos. The heart of Animoto is its Cinematic Artificial Intelligence™ technology that thinks like an actual director and editor, using the same sophisticated post-production skills and techniques that are used in television and film. A fast-growing company, Animoto Productions is based in New York City with an office in San Francisco.

About AEG Live

AEG Live, the live-entertainment division of Los Angeles-based AEG, is dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performance. AEG Live is comprised of touring, festival, exhibition, broadcast, merchandise and special event divisions, fifteen regional offices and owns, operates or exclusively books thirty-five state-of-the-art venues. The current and recent concert tour roster includes artists such as Taylor Swift, The Black Eyed Peas, Bon Jovi, Usher, Carrie Underwood, Daughtry, Justin Bieber, Leonard Cohen, Wisin & Yandel, Kenny Chesney, P!nk and Paul McCartney. The company is also currently producing productions including Cher at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Supernatural Santana: A Trip Through the Hits at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Our exhibition portfolio boasts the most successful exhibition of all time, Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharoaohs, which has attracted more than 7 million visitors since 2005. AEG Live is also the largest producer of music festivals in North America from the critically acclaimed Coachella Music & Arts Festival to Stagecoach and New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge Day 17

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge

Day 17 - Your favorite album art


This is a toughie.  In the grand scheme of rock, honestly Bon Jovi has some crappy covers.

Here are the 2 I have narrowed it down to:

Look Ma, no Alec.

I love the Bounce, it is probably the one cover that you could hang up as an art piece.  These were taken at the Very Large Array in New Mexico. 

Bon Jovi: Jon Bon Jovi is just fine with a cold Super Bowl

I'm still bitter this morning, you'll have to pardon me if it takes me awhile to put on my happy face.

Jon Bon Jovi is just fine with a cold Super Bowl

BY CHRIS JORDAN • STAFF WRITER • JANUARY 24, 2011

A Super Bowl in the snow?

No problem, said Jon Bon Jovi in reference to the big game coming to the New Meadowlands Stadium in 2014.

"Football's meant to be played in the elements,'' said Bon Jovi, a Sayreville native. "The greatest football game ever was played at Yankee Stadium,'' referring to December 1958, when the Baltimore Colts defeated the New York Giants for the NFL championship in the pre-Super Bowl days.

"I'd perform at halftime in the cold weather,'' said Bon Jovi, a noted football fan and friend of NFL stars such as Patriots coach Bill Belichick. "It reminds me of the playoff game when the Giants went to Green Bay (in 2007 for the NFC championship) in those arctic temperatures. My wife and kids were in the place.''

"We have played exotic temperatures to both extremes, hot and cold. I've played on a ski slope … the idea of playing out in the cold and the rain doesn't scare us. I can do it … not a problem.''

The NFL announced in the spring that the New Meadowlands Stadium, home to the Jets and Giants, will host the Super Bowl in February 2014.

This year, the Jets are still in the playoffs and will travel to Pittsburgh to face the

Steelers for the AFC championship, which airs at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday on CBS.

"I think it's great for the economy, I think it's great for the stadium, I think it's great because New York can show off its best,'' said Bon Jovi of a Meadowlands Super Bowl. "There isn't any city that has as much to offer. I've been to a number of Super Bowls, and there have been some boring ones. It would also be great for the economy of New Jersey.''

The upcoming Jon Bon Jovi and Friends benefit show on Thursday at the Starland Ballroom in Sayreville should be good for the economy of the Parker Family Health Center in Red Bank.

Bon Jovi, who has a home in Middletown, is a longtime supporter of the clinic, which offers free health care to Monmouth County residents who lack medical insurance and/or the means to pay for care.

A few tickets, $250, have just been released.

Remember Bon Jovi played out in the cold to close the Olympics in Salt Lake City in 2002.

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge Day 16

Bon Jovi: 30 Day Bon Jovi Challenge


Day 16 - Your favorite quote from Jon Bon Jovi


"The only thing I like more than my wife is my money, and I'm not about to lose that to her and her lawyers, that's for damn sure"

Bon Jovi: Helter Skelter/Something for the Pain

I think this was posted by Stacy Gardell yesterday, from Amit's Youtube account.  What a great performance.  It's a shame they haven't played Helter Skelter recently.  It's so much better than Pretty Woman or any other jukebox crap "Bobby" allegedly pulls out of Jon's ass (C'mon lets be realistic Jon writes the set list he picks the jukebox song, I feel Pretty Woman shouldn't let the door hit her ass on the way out and she could take Who Says You Can't Go Home with her).  Also if they play Helter Skelter Richie might show a little enthusiasm during the jukebox selection since it's a Beatles tune,(another reason I don't like it Richie on rhythm guitar vs. lead, SUCKS, watch Richie though if you don't believe me).

I don't think Jon's vocal range could handle it, or they would have to change the octave to accommodate him.

With all that being said, ENJOY!  Happy League Championship Sunday everyone.  The ceremonial Foot washing begins at 6 PM sharp!

Bon Jovi: Israel Part 2 & South Africa

According to the Israel Ministry of Tourism :

BON JOVI TO PERFORM IN TEL AVIV, APRIL 27

Grammy Award-winning rock and roll band Bon Jovi has announced its first-ever performance in Israel at Bloomfield Stadium in Tel Aviv-Jaffa, April 27. The concert follows performances by Ozzy Osbourne and Elton John in Tel Aviv last year.

I'm still going to wait for official confirmation by the band, but WOW, they play Jazz Fest 3 days later. Hello Jet Lag! 

Great News for all the fans in Israel your first Bon Jovi concert in your home country!!

Also there's this on South Africa:

From Futurcapetown:
Bon Jovi. Cape Town Stadium. 21 April 2011.

Awesome news for all the Fans in South Africa. This means Bon Jovi will be playing 6 of the 7 Continents on this tour. If Fall Out Boy could play Antarctica I think we can Bon Jovi to the real Frozen Tundra.

I also hear Bon Jovi was invited by Sir Richard Branson to play on the Moon on April 29th.  But that is only conjecture and speculation.  Wait for it to be confirmed before you start preparing your rocket ship or Booking flights on Virgin Space.