This week's Best Avatar is from Sezzlyepooh  (pictured at left) from Shawnee, OK.  Useless facts about Oklahoma: Oklahoma City houses the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Oklahoma is the only state with a state song written by Rodgers and Hammerstein.

Sezzlyepooh says, "Sezzlyepooh is my Gamesville name. There is a story behind it. When my grandpa asked me one time what my name was I said sezzlyepooh.  He called me that till the day he died. I miss him.  My avatar really depicts the now in my life. It is cold here and I wanted to be bundled up. I am a business owner and have to have my morning coffee. I have pets and grandchildren. Couldn't hold everything!

My life is fast paced sometimes, but I try to always have a smile on my face. My hair is long and brown like my eyes, and I do wear glasses when I am working. I am also involved in a local women's group that does a lot of community work."

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Ron Blecker is a US Army veteran who currently runs Def Con 5, a company that provides weapons trained performers and military and police consultants to the motion picture and television industry.  We recently had the chance to talk with Ron about how his fascinating career took him from the military to Hollywood.

 
Tell us about yourself and how you got started in the entertainment industry.

 
I spent 15 years in the US Army. Two weeks after I got out, I received a phone call from Chris Carter’s (“The X-Files”) office.  I thought it was a joke and I hung up on his assistant.  They asked me if I’d come up and interview to be a consultant on their show.  I interviewed, and got very upset and walked out on the interview because of a question someone asked me.  And Chris Carter hired me on the spot.  I was only supposed to be up here [Vancouver, where he still lives] for 3 months. 

 
When you were working on "The X-Files," did you work mainly with the actors or production team?

I was on set all the time, working with the cast, the writers, the background performers…everyone had questions, it was great.  I felt very useful.  I always seemed to be pretty busy.  David [Duchovny] and Gillian [Anderson] would always have questions about where they would be in scenes, how they would hold guns.

What are some of the challenges you’ve faced?

I came from one environment – 15 yrs in the military - which is very strict and disciplined, to the film industry which is not as strict or disciplined and inundated with a variety of characters.  That adjustment is probably the most difficult thing I ever had to do in my life.  In the film industry…you’re dealing with so many different types of people, a lot of people would use me as a political sounding board.  I just learned not to talk politics.

 
Have you faced struggles between the artistic vision of the filmmakers and accuracy from a technical standpoint?

Yes, definitely.  I did a show with James Cameron, “Dark Angel.”  He pulled me aside and said, “We’re not making a documentary about the military.  There will be artistic license.”  That advice has gone a long way.  There are battles you have to pick.  Sometimes you have to step back. 

 
Tell us about working “Hitman.”  Were you familiar with the video game? 

No.  I’d worked on a few video games in the past, and then I received a call from one the producers.  They told me about the game, and asked me what kind of console I used … I didn’t have an answer.  We talked about the script, the concept, what was going on.  I played it, and thought that it was very entertaining.

What’s the funniest thing that has happened throughout your career?

I was working on a show and I had the entire cast for a week of boot camp training.  We went through all the types of tactics.  Everything was going great, everyone was happy.  We’re filming inside this old house, Daniel Sackheim is directing.  One of the ADs came running up to me and said there was a big problem.  One of the castmembers and the director were not happy with each other.  Basically, the castmember told the director he wasn’t going to do something [the director’s] way because I had told him to do it another way during training.  I was sweating bullets!  I had producers looking at me, watching the dollars ticking by.

What are you up to now? 

I just finished “The X-Files” sequel, and “The Watchman.” I’ve also just written and sold my own feature script called “The Final Option.” It’s a drama thriller about the US government and homeland security.

Going into this snowy (at least here in the Northeast) weekend, we thought we'd leave you with some interesting tidbits to ponder.

Did you know...

...that the first lip balm was actually earwax?  (And I thought "Dr. Pepper" was a weird lip balm flavor!)

...there is an actual job called chick sexing?  (Get your mind out of the gutter - it's a person who separates male chicks from the female chicks at a hatchery.)

...that BINGO was originally called "Beano"?  (Some say that the name switched when a winner mistakenly called out "Bingo!" instead of "Beano!")

This week's Best Pet is Casper from McKenize, TN. 

Pet Name: Casper

Pet Owner: Gamesviller hardsangel

View hardsangel's Profile
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Distinguishing Personality Traits:

hardsangel says, "Casper is a mini poodle. He hates to be alone. If we leave him at home alone, he will tear up his toys or anything he can get ahold of.   He loves to play ... he will stand in the middle of the floor and keep looking at us till we play with him.  When he wants a treat, he will look up to where the treats are and look at us until he gets one. He will even walk on back legs to get a treat.  He is very lovable!"

And he sounds talented as well!

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This week's Best Avatar is from Cawblimey  (pictured at left) from Staffordshire in the U.K., who looks like he's been doing a little "runnin' with the devil."

Cawblimey says, "Everybody can be the angel they want to be, but deep down inside there is always a devilish side trying to escape. This also goes for myself.
That's why my avatar has been created this way." 

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Gamesviller "gabby2lilpunk" from St. Petersburg, Florida sends us this joke:

A duck walked into a store and asked the manager, "Do you have any quackas?"

The manager said, "No, we don't have any quackas," and the duck left.

The next day he came back and said to the manager, "Do you have any quackas?" and the manager said, "No, we don't have any quackas," and once again the duck left.

He came back for the thrid time and said, "Do you have any quackas?" and the manager said, "No we don't have any quackas and the next time you come here asking for quackas I'm going to staple your feet to my desk!" So the duck left.

A few days later the duck returned and asked the manager, "Do you have any staples?" and the manager said, "No, we don't have any staples," and then the duck said, "Well, then do you have any quackas?"

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Post your joke here--and please remember to include your Gamesville member name so we can credit the joke to you.

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Update: Feb 19, 3:00PM est

Site stability has been restored. Thanks very much for your patience as we dealt with this rolling "black out" over the last 48 hours. If you experience anything abnormal from this point forward, please let us know.

Feb 18, 8:17PM est 

Please be advised: Some game rooms are experiencing technical difficulties that are causing games to load very slowly for some players. Our network team is aware of the situation and is investigating. (Download games and Cash Competitions are not affected.) We very much appreciate your patience as we work with various internal and external parties to resolve this issue.