"Gal" Friday! Mónica Cruz

Spanish actress and dancer Mónica Cruz is the youngest sister of actress Penélope Cruz, and their close physical resemblance paid some nice dividends when her sister Penélope was pregnant while filming the upcoming, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Towards the latter half of shooting, Penelope’s pregnancy was very apparent, so the filmmakers actually shot her for some close up scenes, while using Mónica as stand-in for certain long distance shots, since she appeared identical to her sister. Nice!

Mónica was part of the Joaquín Cortés’ flamenco dance company for seven years until she left dancing behind to pursue a career as an actress in 2002. After a string of Spanish television shows, Mónica has since appeared in the films Last Hour (2006), The Final Inquiry (2007) and Iron Cross.

The Cruz sisters have also collaborated on their high-end Mango clothing line and posed together for several modeling campaigns.

If the fabled El Dorado actually exists, rather than mere gold, I prefer to believe that it is populated by the likes of Mónica & Penélope Cruz, plus Ana de la Reguera, Salma Hayek, Eva Longoria, Jennifer Lopez, Eva Mendes, Galilea Montijo, Michelle Rodriguez, Roselyn Sanchez, Leonor Varela, Paz Vega, Sofia Vergara and Mayrin Villanueva. All set aside for me and me alone.

That’s my dream, and if I ever manage to locate the mythical hidden city, none of you bozos are getting in. Keep out! A few names on that list have already been featured as “Gal” Friday selections. The rest will be added soon, but this week’s spot is solely set aside for Mónica Cruz. Be still my heart!

Garo, Prince of the Jungle and “The Curse of the God Rama” (Charlton;1955)

“The Curse of the God Rama” is a story taken from Ramar of the Jungle #2 (Sept.1955); originally published by Charlton Comics, but continued from an earlier Toby Comics series. This decent jungle adventure stars Garo, Prince of the Jungle, who is also making his debut on the blog today. No credits for the writer or artist are available.

The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publishers and/or the creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.

Enjoy!

The AC Comics Jungle Girl Pin-Up Gallery!

Courtesy of Bill Black, Mark Heike, Doug Hazlewood, Bob Mcleod, Joe Rubinstein, Dick Ayers, Brad Gorby etc.; here is a wildly diverse collection of "jungle gals" from the AC Comics universe.

The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for these images. Note: The copyright for all artwork and contents belong to the original publisher and/or the creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.

Enjoy!

Sheena, Queen of the Jungle in "Vengeance of the Talu Chief" (Fiction House;1942)

It's been too long since Sheena, Queen of the Jungle graced the Catacombs, but the premiere jungle "gal" returns today in a golden age classic tale from her self-titled series. "Vengeance of the Talu Chief" is written & illustrated by Robert Webb (credited as W. Morgan Thomas) from Sheena, Queen of the Jungle #1 (Spring 1942); originally published by Fiction House.

Sheena possessed the ability to communicate with wild animals after having grown up with them since being orphaned in the jungle. She was fiercely proficient in fighting with knives, spears, and bows, and often improvised with makeshift weapons. Sheena was the first female comic-book character with her own title, starting in 1938 in the United States, after her British debut the year prior; beating Wonder Woman #1 (December 1941). Although she inspired a wealth of similar comic book jungle queens, even Sheena was predated in prose literature by "Rima, the Jungle Girl", originally introduced in the 1904 William Henry Hudson novel, Green Mansions.

The Catacombs is grateful to Don "Zu-Gogo" Falkos for providing the scans for this story. Note: The copyright for this issue, its contents and artwork belong to the original publishers and/or the creators and is reproduced here solely for entertainment purposes.

Enjoy!

At the Movies: Your Highness

I bought a movie ticket this weekend for the sole purpose of seeing Natalie Portman's ass. Thank the maker that was the only reason, since "Your Highness" isn't much of a movie.

Rated R for strong crude and sexual content, pervasive language, nudity, violence and some drug use, "Your Highness" stars Danny McBride, James Franco and Natalie Portman in a medieval comedy that may have been better served by a more seasoned director. There were moments in the movie that I couldn't believe made the final cut, and what did work - the raunchy humor - seemed to become less and less apparent as the film continued. If they could have sustained the incongruity of sleazy modern terminology, at the same level from start to finish, it might have helped overcome some of the films weaknesses.

When Prince Fabious's (James Franco) bride is kidnapped, he goes on a quest to rescue her... accompanied by his lazy useless brother Thadeous (Danny McBride). Although the film was written by screenwriter Ben Best and actor McBride, the dialogue was heavily improvised. Director David Gordon Green said there was never a script used on-set. Only the plot outline and written notes were used, and unfortunately this actually shows on screen. There simply isn't enough story or character content to flesh out the brief 102 minute run time. The film badly drags near the end and they should probably have cut another ten minutes to minimize the overall effect. The casting agent & film editor should also share a portion of the blame for this mess. Actor Justin Theroux is pathetic as the evil wizard Leezar. Heck, the three women who portrayed the witches were more threatening than he was. And funnier too!

In fact there were three actors in this movie in supporting roles who would have been far superior as the main villain. Charles Dance, Damian Lewis and Toby Jones are wasted in ways that work against the film. Zooey Deschanel basically cameos as Belladonna, the kidnapped princess and I have to agree with critics who felt like Portman phoned in her role. She's good in an okay sort of way, but if not for the trailers that showed her riverside stripping scene (above), I doubt that I would have seen this movie. Her ultra-fine ass was worth the price of admission.

Your Highness had all of the elements to become a classic comedy film, but the creative talent was seriously lacking. Danny McBride is just not a lead performer. In a strange way, I felt like he would have been better used in James Franco's role, with another comedian playing the central role of Thadeous. Maybe Russell Brand, who is terrific in the remake of "Arthur", which I really hope took in more dollars that this turkey. Ye gods!