So as we reported earlier, as of August 5th smoking has been legally out of bounds in metro underpasses here in Budapest. What we didn't say at the time is that our underground overlords decided to give everyone a one-month "grace period" to get used to breathing in only stale, poopy air down there. Which means you have only two more days to do like the BKV employee caught in the act last week by contributor E.E. Rest assured, however, that you are still free to ride without buying a ticket and then mess your pants and curl up in a ball in the corner of your favorite metro station. Enjoy!

Our sister site has discovered that there are professional topless shots of currently reigning Miss Hungary Anett Maximovits (NSFW) available on the internet, or that if it's not actually her, it's her evil and obviously awesome twin.

It looks like our decision to have a bit of an August slowdown was smart not only because we got to goof off - it also helped us avoid getting snookered by what surely must be the biggest dumbass non-story international story about Hungary of the summer, namely the saga of an 18-year-old young lady known only as "Miss Spring." As you may have heard, Hungary filled the "oddly enough" quota of numerous international media outlets early last month with reports that the aforementioned young woman was auctioning off her virginity on Ebay. It's not exactly clear where the story got its start - it looks like local tabloid Bors was on the case early - but within a few days top UK tab the Sun was titillating its readers with a version of the tale that had the action being won by an unnamed Brit with a bit of £200,000, which is roughly Ft 70 million, or approximately 15,000 excellent lays in your average Budapest whorehouse, give or take a few hundred vigorous baby-oil handjobs in the bathroom of the Nyugati tér metro underpass.

Over on Caboodle.hu we see that the US Embassy in Budapest - as well as several other buildings adjacent to it on District V's Szabadság tér - was evacuated yesterday due to the unearthing of a World War II-era bomb during some construction work. While we can't say for sure, the construction work that led to the explosive discovery seems to have involved putting in some spectacularly ugly anti-bomb pylons around the bunker-like embassy "compound." Also, what are the odds that the bomb itself had been dropped by an US plane, or at least one belonging to the Brits or another "allied" power? Either way, hahahahahahaha dumbass Americans! UPDATE: As pointed out in the comments below, a) the bomb was Soviet, and b) the work was being done on "gas pipes." As for a), recall that the Soviets were and "allied" power of the US, and b) the work on the gas pipes may still have something to do with the giant gas pipe/bomb-like poles Joe American is surrounding his bunker with. UPDATE (II): This just landed in our mailbag: "Who ever called Americans dumbass would give his right arm to live in a free country. Anvie is oozing from the negative reteric. And yes Brits are allied with USA without the young man and woman arriving 65 years ago you would be kissing naci assas." No comment!

[Editor's Note: Regular readers will remember this wonderful tribute to the Hungarian-American film impresario Adolph Zukor we published back in January, courtesy of another regular reader, who goes by the name Farkas László. Well, László has done it again, this time with a video-annotated profile of Alexander Korda, the Hungarian-born director who, like Zukor, is considered one of the cinematic legends of the 20th century. Read, watch and marvel, and thanks as always for the memories, László.] It is an extraordinary, almost probability defying coincidence that in the small nation of Hungary, within a few kilometers of each other, were born three men who would go on to world fame as founders of international film studios and as celebrity film moguls. Adolph Zukor of Paramount, Vilmos Fried (later William Fox) of 20th Century Fox and Alexander Korda of London Film Studios. This is a legacy that I will never tire of reminding my fellow Hungarians of, as I feel our film pioneers were positive examples to us of initiative and creativity. I am very proud of the long list of achievements that Hungarian born people have contributed to world cinema. In order to celebrate that heritage, it gives me great pleasure to present to you the life and work of Alexander Korda and his two younger brother associates, Vincent and Zoltán. The Jungle Book (1942) Produced by Alexander Korda and directed by Zoltán Korda. Music by Miklós Rózsa. Another great children's fantasy and adventure film, based on the story by Rudyard Kipling. The use and saturation of that early Technicolor process by Korda was intense and livid, somewhat like an altered state. Received 4 Academy Award nominations, including for set design and color. On September 16, 1893, Alexander Korda was born Sándor László Kellner in Túrkeve in Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok county, east of Budapest on the great Hungarian plain. Located on the super flat puszta, Sándor was affected from childhood by the monotony of a very small town, seemingly located in the middle of nowhere on a landscape that offered no relief or contrast. Looking in all directions and seeing nothing but the plain, aroused in him a burning fascination from childhood on to know and experience more about the world beyond his horizon. From the earliest age, he craved more intellectual and cultural stimulation than the rural environment he was born into could provide. The Third Man (1949) Produced by Alexander Korda. Based on a story by Graham Greene with set design by Vincent Korda. This gritty Orson Welles classic, filmed on location in postwar Vienna, has been a huge success with both critics and audiences alike since it was released. One sees a very beautiful city in ruins along children dying from black marketing in aid and medicine. The stark black and white photography is unforgettable and the folly that was WW2 becomes very evident. Also of interest to history buffs is seeing the division and control of Vienna by the four Allied powers in a manner similar to Berlin, an arrangement that ended in the 1950's. The musical score was performed entirely by Anton Karas on the zither, who after this film became a star in his own right, as the theme song became a well recognized hit. Nominated for three Oscars in 1951, it won the award for best black and white cinematography. Won Grand Prize at the Canes Film Festival in 1949. Sándor's father was a sergeant in the hussars who turned estate manager for the Salgó family. The father died when Sándor was 13, leaving the family penniless. In 1908 he moved to Budapest with his mother and two younger brothers, Vincent and Zoltán. At that young age, he feels the responsibility of being the paterfamilias, especially towards his younger brothers. Thus started a relationship that lasted all their lives, where they worked together, stayed together and accepted the older brother as a leader and family head. It was to be a fruitful collaboration, as each brother had strong talents. VÉN BAKANCSOS ÉS FIA A HUSZÁR (The Old Infantryman and His Son the Hussar) circa 1914 With Hungarian title cards. Little of Hungary's silent film legacy is available on YouTube unfortunately, but that is changing, as more films show up or are restored. Made at the Corvin Studios in Kolozsvár (Now Cluj in Romania) around the time Alexander Korda went there to work in 1915, it gives us a rare glimpse into the film world he entered. The film looks primitive today, but was on par with the state of film production worldwide at that time. In two parts on YouTube, running over six minutes. (I'm not sure we have the complete film, as the title card says it's in four parts.) Movies were a very big hit with Hungarians from the get-go. Perhaps there is something in the national temperament that accounts for this. Film takes a drama, gives it immediacy and blows it up to larger than real life size, something that matches well with the emotional makeup of many Hungarians! Just five years after Edison invents his film projector apparatus in 1891, the first films were shown in Budapest in 1896. Sándor saw his first film at the Café Velence, as coffee shops were a common venue for showing films then. He attended gymnasium (high school) and made extra money for the family by writing articles and reviews for a liberal daily newspaper called Független Magyarország ("Independent Hungary"). Students were not supposed to be employed, and so Sándor looked about for a pseudonym to write under. In a Budapest theater he saw written on the wall the Latin phrase Sursum Corda ("Lift up your hearts"). This appealed to him, partly because he had by then become fascinated with the Catholic mass, where this term was also used. He decided to call himself "Korda," changing the "c" to a "k" thinking that would make it look more Hungarian. That his two other brothers went along with this later on tells something of the influence the older sibling had. THE PRIVATE LIFE OF HENRY THE VIII (1933) Directed by Alexander Korda. Writer Lajos Biró. (6:10 minute portion) A comedy about the famous king and his marriages. In it Charles Laughton plays a henpecked husband who nonetheless can opt to behead his wives. Featuring Merle Oberon (the second Mrs. Alexander Korda) playing Anne Boleyn. The film launched a lot of things: Korda's reputation, the career rise of both Laughton and Oberon, and it cemented Britain's place in the international film industry. Laughton won the 1933 Best Actor Oscar for his role, and the picture was the first British film to be nominated for Best Picture by the Academy Awards. Unfortunately I can only offer a clip of the film. The studio publicity people came up with the ad slogan: "He gave his wives a pain in the neck - and he did his necking with an ax. Henry, the eighth wonder of the world!"

It looks like we picked the wrong week to go on semi-hiatus, because - are you ready - BRANGELINA WERE IN BUDAPEST THIS PAST WEEKEND LOOKING AT FLATS!!! And yes, by "Brangelina" we mean Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie - as well as a bunch of their kids - and by "Budapest" we mean Budapest! According to various reports, the two were in town looking for a place to stay while Jolie is directing a film set in Bosnia during the Balkan warns, meaning that BRAD AND ANGELINA COULD BE STAYING IN BUDAPEST FOR MONTHS!!!. No idea if they found a suitable place, but whatever they do settle on will doubtless be swankier than where Brad stayed on his first trip to Budapest. So again to recap today's report, BRANGELINA WERE IN BUDAPEST THIS PAST WEEKEND LOOKING AT FLATS!!! and quite possibly BRAD AND ANGELINA COULD BE STAYING IN BUDAPEST FOR MONTHS!!! Stay tuned for more details. [deluxe.hu/blikk.hu] UPDATE: Seems they are considering a 700-sqm castle in Buda built in Classicism style which costs Ft 6 million (€21,000) per month. [borsonline.hu]

Proving yet again that Hungarians can be successful once they leave our little country, 41-year old Erzsébet Gergely won the Miss Plastic Italy contest over the weekend, meaning that as far as we know, both Miss Plastics are of Hungarian origin. And who says Hungarians aren't the best at anything these days? Go here to see more pix. [velvet.hu]

The Hungarian media had a field day with Miss Universe Hungary Timea Babinyecz's Q&A session. While it's clear that Timea has never missed a session at the gym, we can't say the same about her English classes. [velvet.hu]

No doubt feeling that this year's August 20th fireworks display was a bit underwhelming, the Újpest August 21st fireworks display sought to be far more interactive, resulting in seven minor injuries. Skip to 1:37 to see just how close these fireworks were to the audience. [index.hu]

Repairs to fix the gaping hole in the M1 motorway which resulted from water damage are expected to total Ft 120 million (€427,000), once again highlighting that we should be working for a company with access to public funds. [index.hu]

While in America marriage-related protests involve gay rights, in Hungary, it's the much more mundane right to marry in a public park, urbanista.blog.hu reports. In order to wedding-skirt the law which forbids the practice, the couple announced their wedding as a protest to the police, and were thus able to hold their nuptials in nature, throwing in a demonstration at the end in favor of public park marriage rights. If you can't beat 'em, go around them instead.

While we broke the good news of the upcoming beer festival this September over at chew.hu, an article at origo.hu had one of the more depressing job profiles we read about a beer taster who works at the Dreher brewery. Far from it being the dream job most beer-lovers would assume it to be, it requires lots of actual work, and only involves 1-3 tastings per week, of 0.5 deciliters total per tasting, or not enough to even show up in your bloodstream. Thanks, but we'll stick to recreational self-paid beer tasting instead.