Behind the Scenes of 'Epic Ink'- 'Friday the 13th'

Photo Courtesy A&E

BY NOWAL MASSARI

A few months ago, Deanna Uutela, creator of Living Dead Magazine, friend and boss, approached me to be a part of a new tattoo reality tv show. "Epic Ink," centers around Area 51 Tattoo, where shop owner/Captain, Chris 51, has made an inked nerd oasis in the small town of Springfield, Oregon. Naturally, she said, that I was the first person that sprang to mind when they requested a paranormal themed piece, as I am the "paranormal expert" for Living Dead Magazine. When Harold Ramis passed away, I wanted to get a memorial tattoo of him as Dr. Egon Spengler, which was perfect.

I went to the Area 51 website to check out their artists, because getting a portrait tattoo requires a seriously talented artist. While browsing through each artists portfolio, my eyes nearly exploded out of their sockets. These guys (and gal, Heather Maranda!) are like the X-Men of tattoo artists: EFFING BAD ASS. They are also part of an elite group of artists worldwide, that are licensed by LucasFilm. However, there was no question in my mind as to who would be tattooing me. None. Chris Jones was my dude. He eeked out the others because he actually had a "Ghostbusters" piece in his portfolio, so I knew what his Egon looked like and I needed it. Unfortunately, we don't always get what we want and my original idea wasn't going to be able to air on the network. Serious case of the sads. After tossing around a few ideas, since I thought it had to be paranormal in theme, I was asked if I had any other ideas for a piece...something I had been wanting for awhile. Why, yes I did!

Area 51 does exist, says government

Warning sign near Area 51, courtesy Wikipedia

Yup, it exists, admits the government. After denying it for more than six decades, the CIA has officially the existence of Area 51, the test site outside of Rachel, Nev., and 90 miles north of Las Vegas.

Through a public records request from George Washington University's National Security Archive, the location and purpose of Area 51 -- as a Cold War testing facility for the U-2 spy plane program -- was acknolwedged. National Security Archive senior fellow Jeffrey Richelson has previously requested info on the U-2 program, but mentions of Area 51 had been redacted. In the new 400-page report he has received, those mentions are restored.

However, the report does not speak to the existence of crashed UFOs or alien bodies, other than to discuss the relationship between U-2s and UFO sightings.

"There is a section on the relationship between the U-2 program being responsible for UFO sightings," Jeffrey Richelson told the Los Angeles Times on Friday. "But if people are looking for sections on dead aliens and inter-species contact, they’ll be disappointed. It’s just not there."

Still, Richelson tells the Times that the report proves the the CIA is becoming less secretive about Area 51's existence, which "bodes well for future information requests about the Cold War weapons."

OK, cue the conspiracy theorists. What do you think about the admission of Area 51's existence? Most UFO fanatics who have roadtripped out there already knew some sort of government facility existed in the Nevada desert (as did Will Smith's character in ID4). Do you think this new report proves there's no big deal to the test site out there or that that's exactly what "they" want us to think?

-Aaron Sagers

'Paranormal Activity' director lands deal for alien flick, 'Area 51'

From "beyond the grave" to "beam me up," Variety is reporting Paranormal Activity helmer Oren Peli has landed a deal with Paramount Pictures to distribute his alien flick, Area 51.

The partnership re-teams Peli and Paramount after Activity, shot for around $11,000, made $106 million since September - making it one of the most profitable films ever. Despite bids for U.S. distribution rights from other studios, Paramount nabbed the deal because of how it "effectively executed the rollout as the film built word of mouth and became a breakout hit."

This time Peli had about $5 million to work with to tell the story of teens who stumble onto the Nevada military base around which much extraterrestrial conspiracies revolve. As with the demon-themed Paranormal Activity, Area 51 will utilize the found footage narrative structure. A release date is expected sometime in 2010.