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The Portlandian, the Internet's premier source of Tonya News

November 12, 2024 Edition - ANNUAL TONYA BIRTHDAY EDITION
(C) 2024 Portland Ice Skating Society
https://www.pdxiss.org
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Welcome to the annual birthday edition of "The Portlandian" for
another year, as Tonya celebrates her 54th birthday.

In another packed issue, we have details of an unusual way to see
"I, Tonya", a story of a woman who was briefly named after her, a
Tonya-themed song from Norway, and we continue our international
roundup of "I, Tonya" posters with a visit to Asia and the Middle
East. Plus there's the usual suspects of Tonyaween and fan art.

As is our custom for Tonya's birthday, we have celebrated the
occasion with a cake, which you can see along with previous
year's cakes at the link below:

   https://pdxiss.org/cake.htm

The doll is an ice skater Barbie, highly appropriate given that
Margot Robbie has now played both. The color of the lettering is
a tribute to the burgundy dress that Tonya wore during her
Jurassic Park program at the 1994 Olympics, thirty years ago.
This was the last time that Tonya would perform competitively in
competition until her comeback as a professional in October 1999
at an ESPN competition in Huntington WV.

As for Tonya herself, she's now selling products for a health and
beauty company, which you can find more about on her Instagram
page:

   https://www.instagram.com/therealtonyaharding/
 

And yes, she's still doing Cameos. If you want an idea of what
you get for your money, check out the one she did for local
Portland icon DJ Wicked at the Instagram link below:

   https://www.cameo.com/therealtonyaharding

   https://www.instagram.com/p/Cm920PSJb-v/

With the big guy in the red suit due to turn up at the local mall
in another couple of weeks, you'll be thinking about Christmas
presents. This is a perfect opportunity to get a unique gift for
someone special and also avoid all the hassle of fighting your
way through crowds at Black Friday sales.
 

BINGO, IT'S TONYA!

If you're in the Portland area around Christmas and want to get
into the Christmas spirit, or just need an excuse to watch "I,
Tonya" again (not that you need much of an excuse), here's your
chance to do both. The Tomorrow Theater is holding an "I, Tonya"
bingo night on December 20th, hosted by drag performer Violet
Hex:

https://tomorrowtheater.org/movies/i-tonya-bingo-w-violet-hex/

Tickets are 15 bucks. The doors open at 6:30 pm, with the event
itself starting at 7:00 pm. Venue details are:

   Tomorrow Theater
   3530 SE Division St,
   Portland, OR. 97202
   (503) 221-1156
 

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

An interesting story about a woman who was named after Tonya -
but only for a few days:

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2D2qk7d52U

How did it happen? Musician Tanya Negin, who goes under the stage
name of Fae, was originally named Tonya Negin when she was born
on Jan 11, 1994. As she explains in this interview with Zach
Holmes on Maximum Zach, her parents were into ice skating, and
named her after Tonya, who had just won the 1994 Nationals a few
days earlier. However, when a possible connection with you-know-
what emerged a couple of days later, her parents changed her name
from Tonya to Tanya, just to be on the safe side.

For more information about Fae, and to listen to her music, you
can visit these links:

   https://www.instagram.com/acidfairy_/

   https://www.youtube.com/@acidfairy

   https://www.listentofae.com/
 

SONG OF NORWAY?

The Tonya connection to Norway has always been strong, so it's no
surprise that a band from that country, Disco Loveless, has
released a song about her:

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paPX56-qQh0

   https://discoloveless.bandcamp.com/track/tonya-harding
 

Hailing from Oslo, Disco Loveless consists of:

   Ann-helen Schjølberg (vocal and songwriting)
   Sander Eriksen Nordahl (guitar and arrangements)
   Steinar Mossige (drums)
   Julie Falkevik Tungevåg (keys and arrangements)
   Aleksander Sjølie (producer, bass, synth)

You can listen to the track at the above links, or download in
24-bit/48Khz resolution for 7 NOK (about 63 US cents) or more if
you care to donate a bit extra.
 

TONYAWEEN 2024 AND IN REWIND

As "I, Tonya" recedes into the distance, the number of people
dressing up as Tonya for Halloween is drying up, but she still
remains popular with some people, particularly the LGBT
community, so we've gathered some of the best (mostly) club-free
attempts here. In addition, we've also dug up some blasts from
the past from previous years that we missed at the time.

First up this year, we have the folks at Auburn Family Dental in
Wichita, Kansas, who chose the Olympics as this year's Halloween
theme. Tonya is in photos 1, 5, 12 and 13 - plus the obligatory
appearance by Aussie breakdancer Raygun.

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DBzAKNkJKO1/
 

Eleanor Rose Dawson-Moore (therealelliedm) - "Tonya Harding but
everyone thinks I'm Eras tour Taylor. Get my girl back on the
ice!! please!!!"

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DB44PeWMvBb/
 

Felicia & Mary (veganwives) and Ethereal Blonde Art
(etherealblondeart) - arts & crafts store NW Arkansas: "14 years
of loving each other and growing together, so much growing."

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DBzNZ1HvEWE/

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DB9dblAps4u/
 

Allison Leigh Kymmell (allison.kymmell_official), from Everett,
WA. is a Disney on Ice skater - but she definitely doesn't see
that as being "dumb" or "corny". From Halloween last year:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/CzJ9Sv5P7K_/
 

Brett Gursky (brettgursky) Los Angeles CA. Tonya, LaVona and
Inspector Gadget from 2018:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BpoNmN1BROi/
 

john_waters_divine_trash_page has what appears to be a Traci
Lords/Tonya crossover tribute:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BomljonB620/
 

Paige Turner (paigeturnernyc) Bravo Clubhouse drag queen. "I,
TURNER..loved putting this Tonya Harding look together for
@bravowwhl Thank You @vickyboofont for making my dress!! &
@bobbiepinzdotcom for the fabulous hair!

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BgJkktXhjz4/
 

Finally, as mentioned, we generally try to avoid anything these
days that makes overt reference to knee-bashing, but we just had
to make an exception in the case of these cute dogs, Zsa Zsa &
Tootie (zsazsatootie):

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DBzt4P6R6hH/

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DBzdRyDxJ5N/

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DB2LThaRaD2/

   https://www.instagram.com/p/DB6ZEbRRWfC/

"Tonya Harding vs. Nancy Kerrigan. Can you believe it has been 30
years since the infamous knee bashing of Nancy? Some new footage
is revealed in this stunning video! Happy Halloween!"
 

TONYA FAN ART ROUNDUP

Yes, it's fan art time! First up, we have John Turck
(turckcollage)and his work "Thin Ice Tonya", which mixes Tonya
and a jaguar:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/9HljJ6QclI/
 

lauracbreezy comes from Tenerife, in the Canary Islands - she's
done this smoking Tonya drawing:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/Bck5hJxlaeI/
 

Ipek Komurcu (ipekkomurcu) of Istanbul, Turkey, has done this
drawing of LaVona from "I, Tonya", which has been reposted and
praised by Allison Janney herself.

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BcIk99mB1UH/

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BcFv5CtFj51/

She's also done this cool pic of Margot as Tonya as well:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BfzIEZHFGPF/

  "Kudos to Margot Robbie for being one of the producers of this
  cool movie and for her great acting in it. Other than every
  actor being on their A-game, there were lots to like about this
  movie. I really liked the editing. Directly talking to the
  audience was a different choice. The direction had a movement
  like moving on the ice. The story itself made me feel sorry for
  Tonya."

Artist Amy Crehore (amycrehore) did this picture of Tonya for an
article in the February 2005 edition of "Portland Monthly"
magazine. Unfortunately it is not online (unlike many later
issues of the magazine). This is a double shame as we are also
mentioned in it quite a bit:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BeTPXj6DBuQ/
 

Beth Wollman (bwollman) - another smoking Tonya:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BeBvCUunpV6/

  "Saw 'I, Tonya' recently and it was amazing. Whoever did the
  production design deserves 100 awards."
 

Anna Lomakina (Lomakina.space) Lviv, Ukraine.

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BfyL8OLDYbo/

   "I drew a subscriber with a friend, whom I chose randomly)
   (scroll through the series, there is the original??).
   And on this twist, Tonya Harding - an American figure skater,
   about whom a funny movie was made with Margot Robbie in the
   leading role. I would recommend ????. By the way, in a new
   vlog titled "business sausage style" I show a little the
   process of creating these illustrations.
   We survived the winter, now you can boldly add bright colors
   to your palette!
 

daryl_rainbow of East London

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BgmFgTVjDLW/

   "Saw that film I, Tonya. Quite a good film about a woman who’s
   career gets f*cked over because of dumb red necks and corrupt
   officials."
 

Tina Crawford (sewtobyboo) - Tonya gets all sewn up here:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/Bgeaf_Sj6sV/
 

tonimuca - "Skating on ice cream...( - Slightly inspired by the
movie "I,Tonya". Margot Robbie as  Tonya Harding)."

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BgaytfJlIbj/
 

The triple axel still proves popular with artists:

desi_miao_artist - a pencil skaetch of the IT 3-axel

   https://www.instagram.com/p/Bgeey7RnOet/

Ariz (arizdigitalart) another triple axel:

   https://x.com/arizdigitalart/status/990427811046395907

Rosalia Radosti (ra.ro81) - "Fly High Tonya"

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BhcBpqTlsfd/

Giusy Lambiasi (giozee) - Triple Axel

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BhdaZVVnyWj/
 

Steve Krell (artofstevekrell) of Texas:

   https://x.com/artofstevekrell/status/969413431525826561

   "American Star (Tonya Harding Commission)"
 

Minji Kwan (kath_illust) - slouchy Tonya

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BiBh8i6lOZ7/
 

Hanna Marchanka m(hannamarchanka) - IT drawing of smoking Tonya:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/BhwH2MMhgDJ/

   "Today I finally finished the drawing which was started a half
   month ago. Feel like a superhero!"
 

Dasha Fursova (shilda.dashneva) - a montage of "I, Tonya"
characters:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/Bmi1dYGF32F/
 

And finally, a couple from Alberta, Canada:

Jonathan Busch (lourdesthemerryvirgin) Edmonton:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/Bkv_mz7jHMG/

Geneva (pasture_land) skating rink, has this piece showing Tonya
in court:

   https://www.instagram.com/p/Bq3UztpBtOW/
 

"I, TONYA" AROUND THE WORLD - ASIA & MIDDLE EAST

Move over, Phileas Fogg - our world tour of IT posters continues,
this time stopping off in Asia and the Middle East. As can be
seen, the marketing campaign continues the theme of focusing on
awards and favorable reactions from critics, emphasizing that
this is a quality piece of cinema:

   https://pdxiss.org/it-posters.htm#asia

Of particular note here is the one from Taiwan, which uses the
"pouty Tonya" version, but with Margot holding a cigarette. A
close examination reveals that this is clearly a photoshopped
version of the same picture though, rather than a different take.
One poster from mainland China, however, uses the same doctored
shot, but with the cigarette removed - giving the bizarre picture
of Tonya holding nothing!

One version of the Japanese poster has details of a contest,
where the prizes included a poster autographed by Margot, a t-
shirt and a press sheet. The Japanese translations were the work
of this agency:

   https://grafighter.com/i-tonya

Thailand features a unique design of Tonya & Jeff kissing, not
used anywhere else as far as we can tell. Possibly this was an
attempt to pitch the film as a romance? The text reads "Don't
miss Tonya's climax", with the last two words crossed out and
replaced by "I, Tonya".

Unlike Asia, Europe, and the former Soviet bloc countries, the
Middle East isn't exactly known for being a powerhouse in figure
skating, so it's not surprising that the film didn't get a wide
release there. Many just released it in English, using the
English-language posters, probably figuring that it would be
mainly foreign residents that would be interested in seeing it.
But there are a couple of exceptions we've come across:

   https://pdxiss.org/it-posters.htm#middle-east

The first is Israel. A poster on a bus shelter in North Tel Aviv
was one of several advertising posters in that area to be the
victim of vandalism, apparently part of a clumsy attempt at
censorship by religious extremists bent on covering up bare
female skin:

   https://www.ynet.co.il/article/5095925

Nearby residents were not impressed, blaming ultra-orthodox Jews.
"We live here in peace with everyone, but we have not yet had
cases where ultra-Orthodox elements interfered with our daily
routine," said Yasmin, a resident of the neighborhood who was
quoted in local media.

Another country was Turkey - most of these are just variants on
the main "pouty" and "slouchy" posters, but there were also a
version of the "cigarette and skate" design that was also used in
France, Latvia and Russia. It's not the only connection Tonya has
with Turkey - there is actually a town called Tonya in the
Trabzon region of that country. Perhaps Tonya should send a
signed version of one of these posters to the local Mayor or
equivalent?

In addition to the above, we have also finally located a poster
for Norway, which is in English, and made an upgrade to a
Lithuanian poster. We have also corrected an error which saw a
Bosnian poster incorrectly labeled as from Poland.
 

That's it for for another year. Just like Phileas Fogg, we in New
Zealand get to benefit from the date line and thus celebrate
Tonya's birthday early. But it's not over for Tonya, or her fans
elsewhere, who are just starting their celebrations. Let's hope
that this is a great day for her and her family.

And while on the subject of birthdays, we'd like to finish off by
congratulating Margot Robbie who delivered her first child, a
bouncing baby boy, earlier this month. May we suggest that
"Tony" would be a good name for a boy if she's looking for ideas
:-)

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