Lady Gaga is scheduled to exit the X with some custom-designed kicks that should bee pretty spectacular.
The performer and anti-bullying activist has a Feb. 6 concert scheduled at St. Paul's Xcel Center, where plans are already underway for what could be called her lovely parting gift.
"We do an artist's gift when they [performers] come to Xcel Energy Center," Jora Bart, the X's PR manager, said Monday. "We [including marketing director Kelly McGrath] to brainstorm what might be a unique idea so they remember us when they leave town; they remember how nice people in Minnesota are."
Recalling a MyTalk 107.1 interview Lori Barghini did with a Seattle-based footwear designer who's originally from Minnesota, Bart said they decided that Kira Bundlie of Hourglass Footwear should design some shoes.
"They [Bundlie's staff] had a meeting and came up with this awesome idea," said Bart. "Since [Gaga] is kind of the queen bee of her 'little monsters,' they went with a bee theme. Then they thought Minnesota is famous for its local honey. They googled Lady Gaga and bees, and it turns out they just [named] a new species of wasp [Aleiodes Gaga] after her."
An e-mail from Bundlie shared with me by Bart reads: "We started talking about how amazing it would be to paint her shoes (most likely very tall platforms) to look like actual honeycombs -- very geometrically intricate and detailed, with swarms of realistic bees covering the heels and migrating towards the toes and little painted beads or drops of honey here and there."
Monday when I telephoned the shoe designer, whose parents, Eric and Susan Bundlie, live in Eagan, Kira was thrilled that "the final sketches were just approved by Jora this morning, overwhelmingly. We're super-excited to get started."
These kicks sound as sweet as the over-the-top cupcakes from St. Paul's Sweets Bakeshop, inspired by Gaga's couture, which were among the gifts Gaga received last time she was at the X. She also was presented a one-of-a-kind garment created by Emma Berg and a flower arrangement created by Tom Johnson of A. Johnson & Sons Florist.
Enigma, out on the townThe Enigma, party of about 50, dropped by Market BBQ for a late meal and karaoke Sunday night.
The Seattle-born performance artist, whose body is smothered in tattoos while his head is implanted with horns, made what's becoming regular stop by Market BBQ while at the Hyatt for the annual Minneapolis Tattoo Arts Convention.
"They rolled down about 11:30 p.m. Our cook [whose shifts normally ends at midnight] was pretty surprised," said Anthony Polski, owner-in-waiting. "They all ate. I have a picture of Enigma eating that garden burger. I think it's hilarious. They come here for our veggie burgers."
Enigma and his significant other, Serana Rose, eschewed meat, as usual, while "all the other people ate normal -- ribs and chicken and the stuff that we're known for, although our veggie burgers are very good," Polski said.
Polski was impressed with how accommodating Engima is when "fans are just coming at him. He's very approachable; goes out of his way to be nice."
Engima did no crooning. He only watched others performing karaoke.
Jesse vs. JonFormer Gov. Jesse Ventura might not want to debate Comedy Central's "Daily Show" anchor Jon Stewart on the issue of gun control.
Citypages.com reported that during a show last week, Stewart replayed a clip of Ventura asking whether cars should be banned because they result in deaths.
Said Stewart: "No, but we do enact stricter blood-alcohol limits, raise the drinking age, ramp up enforcement penalties and charge bartenders who serve drunks, and launch huge public awareness campaigns to stigmatize the dangerous behavior in question. And we do all those things because it might just help bring drunk driving rates down, I don't know, by two-thirds in a few decades."
C.J. is at 612.332.TIPS or cj@startribune.com. E-mailers, please state a subject -- "Hello" doesn't count. Attachments are not opened, so don't even try. More of her attitude can be seen Thursday mornings on FOX 9.
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