Lights, Camera, Action! Macworld/iWorld 2013 Puts the Spotlight on ...

iPhone Film Festival, education sessions, products, and special events with Fred Armisen and the Independent Film Channel celebrate the next generation of film and television

FRAMINGHAM, Mass., Dec. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ ??IDG World Expo?today announced a full agenda of film education and special events that showcase the evolution in movie making made possible by Apple technologies at?Macworld/iWorld 2013?(Twitter:?@MacworldExpo; Event hashtag: #iFan13), the Ultimate iFan Event. The lineup includes: the?iPhone Film Festival, featuring movies made entirely on iPhones, including the premier of?Departure, a collaborative iPhone film shot in three countries; film-related?Tech Talks, including an overview of the best video apps, a special talk with?Fred Armisen, and a dynamic presentation and Q&A with the creative minds behind the Independent Film Channel?s (IFC)?OUT THERE; and anexhibit hall?where the newest apps, software tools and accessories to support mobile filmmaking will be on display. Macworld/iWorld takes place?January 31-February 2, 2013, at the?Moscone Center West?in?San Francisco.?Registration is now open and special pricing runs through January 1.

?Together, the iPhone Film Festival and Macworld/iWorld have provided a unique platform to celebrate the innovative filmmaking taking place on iPhones,? said?Ruben Kazantsev, co-creator of the iPhone Film Festival. ?While Apple gave us the platform, it?s the myriad of new apps, software and hardware tools that have given life to this evolving art form, and Macworld/iWorld is the place where it all comes together. Attendees should expect to be amazed by what the iPhone Film Festival winners have created and inspired to explore just what is possible using their own iPhone.?

Highlights of the film events at Macworld/iWorld 2013 include:

The iPhone Film Festival

For the second year, Macworld/iWorld has teamed with?Ruben Kazantsev?and?Renata Rinyu, co-founders of the successful iPhone Film Festival, to host filmmakers from around the world as they debut award-winning films and screen never-before-seen movies exclusively for Macworld/iWorld attendees. This year?s?line-up?includes:

• Announcement of the?iPhone Film Festival 4 Grand Prize Winner?and a chance to view footage from some of this year?s top films, all shot using iPhone technology.

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• Premier of?Departure,?a collaborative film that represents an unchartered concept in filmmaking. From the mind of media trailblazer Ruben Kazanstev,?Departure?was shot in three separate countries?the?United States,?France?and Belarus?by directors from those regions. Each filmmaker will contribute their assigned footage, shot exclusively on the iPhone, to form one complete, intertwining story that will debut at Macworld/iWorld. This is a first-of-its-kind venture in cost-effective, expeditious, epic filmmaking and a unique opportunity for Macworld/iWorld attendees to see, firsthand, the next generation of movie making.

The screening will be followed by a panel and Q&A during which attendees can hear from the directors?Christophe?Nizou from?France, Satie Gossett from the U.S. and Maria Kuracheva from Belarus?as well as writer?Jimmy Borto,about the creative process behind iPhone filmmaking.

• A screening of the music video for ?Killing Time??by the band All the Pretty Cars, which was filmed, animated and mixed using only an iPhone 4, lots of construction paper and patience. Named ?Best Music Video? at the 2012 iPhone Film Festival, the screening will be followed by a special live performance of the song by?Gea Gamboa?of The Cleopatra Complex.

All iPhone Film Festival events are included as part of the iFAN Pass Package.

Film Tech Talks

The Macworld/iWorld 2013 agenda boasts more than 60 new?educational sessions, interactive panel discussions, practical ?how-to? presentations and ?tips and tricks? learning opportunities with several focused on movie making, including:

• ?Q&A with?Fred Armisen.??Best known as a punk rock drummer, cast member on?Saturday Night Live,?co-creator and co-star of IFC?s?Portlandia,?Armisen is also a technophile. Listen in as he chats with?Macworld?Senior Editor?Chris Breenabout how he uses Apple technology to empower his creativity and identifies the products he can?t live without.

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• ?OUT THERE: Behind the Scenes of IFC?s newest animated comedy.??Hear from Emmy-winning Director and Producer Ryan Quincy and members of his creative team as they share the creative and technical secrets behind how their new animated series,?OUT THERE, evolved from a kernel of an idea into a full 10-episode season.?OUT THERE?follows the coming-of-age adventures of?Chad, his little brother Jay and best friend Chris. The show staff will share video outtakes and clips from the yet-to-air premier episode, as well as discuss their behind-the-scenes creative process followed by live audience Q&A.

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• ?The Studio in Your Pocket,??a workshop with?Michael Koerbel?and?Anna Elizabeth James, iPhone filmmakers at Majek Pictures, will explore the latest video, photography and audio apps for both iPhone and iPad.

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• ?Life, Camera, Action: Ideas, innovation and images on the go. How mobile image capture is altering how we interact with the world,??a special brown bag lunch sponsored by FiLMiC Pr with filmmakers?Neill Barham?and?Michael Koerbel?and?cinematographer?Jonathan Houser.

Fresh off?a tall ship cruise in the?Caribbean, Barham, Koerbel and Houser will take attendees on a mystical journey through the Windward Islands on a tour de force demonstration of mobile media apps in action. The sheer power of high-definition mobile capture is transforming not just the travel industry, but more importantly the very nature of travel itself and the way we engage, understand and share the world. In this spirited and evocative session, the FiLMiC mobile misfits will share stories of their adventures from the?Caribbean?and earlier mobile trips to the Mediterranean and the Baltic Sea. Detailing the progression in video capabilities from the early iPhone 4 days, on up to the 4S, the 5 and the new iPad, as well as what each hardware iteration has brought to the table, this session will be replete with delicious, real-world exotic travel video and documentary footage. Additionally, hear stories and anecdotes about all sorts of gear road tested under aggressive travel conditions, and get an insider?s view of the winners and the losers in the accessories market, and hear battled-tested advice on what to buy and what to avoid.

?Apple technology has played a central role in much of my creative life?whether it?s editing?Portlandia?episodes on my iPad or playing?Steve Jobs?on?SNL?so I?m especially excited to come to Macworld/iWorld to share my experiences with fellow iFans, delve into how I use these tools to bring my vision to life, and offer some tips on the products that help propel my work,? said?Fred Armisen. ?I promise you?ll learn something and maybe even leave with a few laughs.?

Expo Hall: A Showcase of Film Products

The Macworld/iWorld 2013?expo hall?will feature hundreds of exhibitors and developers?more than 40 percent of which are first-time exhibitors?showcasing the latest hardware, software, apps and accessories for the Mac, iPhone, iPod and iPad. Dozens of companies have products designed to enable, expand and empower mobile filmmaking, including:

• Reallusion?a leader in the development of 3D cinematic animation tools for consumers, students and professionals, the company provides consumers with easy-to-use avatar animation, facial morphing and voice lip-sync solutions for real-time 3D filmmaking and previsualization for professional post-production.
• Studio Neat?the developer behind Frameographer, a simple and powerful app for making time-lapse and stop motion movies in HD, right on your iPhone.
• Topaz Labs?a company that makes video and image enhancement software for photographers and videographers.
• Creative Edge?an online collection of videos and books, including a series of publications on film and video production.
• Kdan Mobile Software Ltd.?a mobile software development company whose Animation Desk app offers the tool needed to make anyone an animator.
• Primera Technology?the world?s leading developer and manufacturer of specialty printing equipment, the company offers the Bravo-Series of CD/DVD/BD duplicators, printers and publishers.

Many more events, performances, featured speakers, shopping opportunities and educational programming are still to be announced.

Register

Attendee registration, along with information about event passes and pricing, can be found at:?http://www.macworldiworld.com/register/.

For complete details on media qualification guidelines, please visit:?http://www.macworldiworld.com/media-qualification-guidelines/. Please note that all media are required to submit media credentials for Macworld/iWorld.

Connect

For current happenings, news, chatter and to be part of the conversation, join Macworld/iWorld on:

About Macworld/iWorld
Macworld/iWorld is the world?s Ultimate iFan Event for those who use, create and love Apple products. Attendees will encounter a unique celebration of Apple technology-infused art, music, and film, as well as learning opportunities, and a shopping mecca in our expo hall filled with products and services for Apple users of all skill levels and interests. Whether a home user, an artistic hobbyist, a professional or a true Technorati, Macworld/iWorld gives attendees the chance to experience all that the amazing world of Apple-related tools can offer. Macworld/iWorld will take place?January 31???February 2, 2013?at the Moscone Center West in?San Francisco. For more information, please visit?http://www.macworldiworld.com.

About IDG World Expo?
IDG World Expo (www.idgworldexpo.com) is a leading producer of tradeshows and events for professionals and consumers seeking world-class education, strategic business relationships, and access to industry-leading products and services. IDG World Expo?s portfolio of conferences and events includes Macworld / iWorld, the MacIT? Conference, the Electronic Entertainment Expo? (E3?), Anime Expo?, The Game Marketing Summit, Enterprise MobileNext (mNext), and Macworld Mobile. IDG World Expo is a business unit of IDG, the world?s leading technology media, research and event company.

Source: http://www.dimagemaker.com/2012/12/14/lights-camera-action-macworldiworld-2013-puts-the-spotlight-on-filmmaking/

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Video: Howie Mandel talks new game show ?Take It All?

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Source: http://video.today.msnbc.msn.com/today/50144623/

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UBS to slash 10,000 jobs in fixed income retreat

ZURICH (Reuters) - UBS unveiled plans on Tuesday to wind down its fixed income business and fire 10,000 bankers, as it adapts to tougher capital rules that make it more difficult for investment banks to turn a profit since the financial crisis.

Zurich-based UBS will focus on its private bank and a smaller investment bank, ditching much of the trading business that ran up $50 billion in losses in the financial crisis, as well as a $2.3 billion hit, which trader Kweku Adoboli, now on trial on charges of fraud and false accounting, is accused of running up.

Chief Executive Sergio Ermotti, a former Merrill Lynch and UniCredit banker who took over after the Adoboli affair last year, is leading the three-year overhaul, which is aimed at saving 3.4 billion Swiss francs ($3.6 billion), on top of existing spending cuts of 2 billion francs.

Former investment bank co-head Carsten Kengeter will lead the isolation and winding down of its fixed-income activities that are no longer profitable as a result of tougher capital rules on riskier business introduced after the crisis.

The remaining investment bank - equities, foreign exchange trading, corporate advice, and precious metals trading - will be run by Andrea Orcel, a recent Ermotti hire from Bank of America who had co-ran the unit with Kengeter until Tuesday.

"This decision has been hard but it is necessary to create a UBS that is fit for the future," Ermotti said. "The business model we are creating will be unique in the banking industry."

The measures translate to a 15 percent staff cut, taking UBS's overall staff to 54,000, from 63,745 now, already down from a 2007 peak of 83,500 as banks have shed tens of thousands of jobs globally since the financial crisis of 2008.

Of the job cuts, 2,000 will be front-office investment banking staff, the revenue generators. About 2,500 positions will go in Switzerland, slightly more than that in the United States, and the rest in Britain, Ermotti said.

UBS stopped dozens of fixed income traders from entering its London offices on Tuesday, a source at the bank said.

Some staff turned up to work to find their employee cards no longer worked at the turnstile and were then escorted to human resources, according to various sources with knowledge of the situation.

Once at human resources, they received their personal items in a bag with a letter saying they would have two weeks paid leave, after which they were to return to pick up their redundancy package, the sources said.

A smaller investment bank will leave UBS focused on its private bank, which looks after the affairs of the wealthy. With 1.6 trillion francs in assets, it is the second-largest operation of its kind in the world after Bank of America.

UBS shares, which soared 7.3 percent on Monday in anticipation of the announcement, were up another 5 percent at 13.79 francs by 1050 GMT in exceptionally heavy trading, their highest since July 2011, compared with a 0.7 percent rise for the European bank sector index.

UBS, which took a government bailout in 2008 after more than $50 billion in mortgage losses, is effectively admitting that an attempt to crack the fixed-income big league has failed.

Deutsche Bank said on Tuesday it hopes to benefit from the UBS cuts as its investment bank delivered record third-quarter sales and trading revenue.

But some analysts said other banks might be forced to follow suit even though the UBS strategy was risky.

"While other banks like CS are still sticking to their investment banks, which do not even earn their cost of equity, UBS takes the lead in responding adequately to investors' demands," said Sarasin analyst Rainer Skierka.

Credit Suisse said last week it was also cutting more costs to boost its profits and capital but did not announce the same kind of radical restructuring as UBS. [ID:nL5E8LP122]

INVESTMENT BANK LOSSES

After settling a damaging U.S. tax probe in 2009, UBS had just started to rebuild client confidence when the $2.3 billion trading scandal surfaced in September last year.

Adoboli, who worked on the bank's London-based exchange-traded equities funds desk, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of fraud and four of false accounting.

Ermotti's overhaul comes against a backdrop of far tougher regulation on riskier securities trading activities, and represents a return to advisory roots stemming from UBS's purchase of Warburg, a British merchant bank, in 1995.

The bank aims to pay out more than 50 percent of profits to shareholders from 2015, after paying its first post-crisis dividend last year, a modest 0.10 francs a share. It has put away funds in the third quarter for an unspecified dividend this year, financial chief Tom Naratil told journalists.

The costs related to the investment banking split will also lead to a fourth-quarter and full-year loss, when taken together with charges on the bank's own debt, UBS said.

The private bank also faces challenges, with profits falling as Swiss banking secrecy is weakened by repeated demands from foreign governments determined to recoup tax on undeclared funds held in offshore accounts.

However, the unit secured 7.7 billion francs in net new money from clients in the third quarter, which represents the highest result in a third quarter - typically a slow one for the business due to summer holidays - in five years.

UBS swung to a third-quarter net loss of 2.172 billion francs, hit by the restructuring charges and 863 million francs written off the value of its own debt. Analysts in a Reuters poll had forecast a net profit of 457 million francs.

UBS is aiming to reduce risk-weighted assets to below 200 billion francs by the end of 2017, from 301 billion currently. Of this the investment bank will account for roughly 70 billion francs, less than half of what it accounts for today.

($1 = 0.9366 Swiss francs)

(Additional reporting by Philipp Halstrick, Anjuli Davies, Helene Durand and Spencer Anderson; Editing by Emma Thomasson, Will Waterman and Giles Elgood)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ubs-slash-10-000-jobs-fixed-income-exit-054642079--sector.html

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Metro Computers Talks Shop About Excellent IT Biz

October 26, 2012 (Powerhomebiz.com) Started in 1992 with a small workshop near downtown Edmonton, Metro Computers which is a Canadian owned company is now able to respond to all computer service needs across Canada. The Edmonton-based company will use a mix of customer service and technology to establish a local presence across Canada.

For 20 years in the business, Metro Computers? history has just been solidified with full of expansion and growth. In 2005, the company was incorporated under a numbered company. At the turn of the year the company had opened an opportunity to add new services like ?satellite installs and ?web hosting and web design service. In 2009, another services were added, ?data recovery?, ?disaster planning? and ?IPTV? to provide ethnic channels. In 2010, home and business ?Voice-Over-IP Telephone systems? was optimized to have a banner start in 2011. From there on the company relocated to a newer shop located on Whyte avenue in the city of Edmonton. It was able to start well in a new location in order to expand its services across Canada. On the same year, another service was added which was ?cell phone unlocking service?. Metro Computers is currently expanding its wide range of computer services and pc repair in Canada, together with the addition of new serv ices like secure office backup and mobile service provider by ?Mobilicity?

Sami Alkhatib, Metro Computers CEO, is very certain that his company?s highest standards in home and office computer related service backed up with award winning customer service have been the reason for his company?s past and future growth. Metro Computers specializes in computer problems operation and IT support. The company offers computer repair in Canada, computer/PC repairs, laptop/notebook repairs, Networking services, Data Recovery services, Voice-Over-IP, and Arabic IPTV Canada, by supporting small businesses or home office computers and networks.

They can setup broadband internet and wireless networks, as well as those annoying problems where computers are set on the fritz. In short, if their clients have any problem with their home or business computer, Metro Computers can fix it, and in most cases much faster than you would expect.

Sami Alkhatib takes pride to provide conveniences to their clients by offering the best in-shop and onsite PC and laptop service in Edmonton and all areas in Canada. Clients may bring their computer to their shop as there are trusted professionals at Metro Computers who will come to their house or office to service their shut computers. Sami also guarantees that they won?t leave until their customers are satisfied that their computers are working exactly how they want them to.

?As an in-shop/onsite computer repair company, we enjoy the challenges and excitement that comes from the job, as well as the satisfaction that comes while exceeding our customers? expectations. So if you are experiencing computer problems, why not give us a call and allow one of our friendly staff to show you how quick and painless it is to have your computer or laptop repaired today?? said Sami Alkhatib.

Visit Metro Computers? official site at http://www.metro-computers.ca and see for yourself why they deserve to be the right choice for all your computer service needs.

More about Metro Computers: Metro Computers is a one-stop-shop for all your IT related services. The company is dedicated to providing the highest standards in home and office IT service in Canada. It also offers products from new computer systems and accessories to refurbished systems. It serves small and medium size businesses in Edmonton and surrounding area to guarantee clients with quality computer support services, troubleshooting, repair and general tech support.

SERVICES:
? Networking
? Emergency Service
? Data Recovery
? Off-Site Data Backup
? Onsite & Inshop Service
? Ongoing IT Service Plans
? Custom Software Development
? Website and Graphic Design

PRODUCTS:
? Peripherals and Accessories
? Refurbished Systems
? New Systems

METRO COMPUTERS
http://www.metro-computers.ca
Store Address: 10125 82 Ave (Whyte Ave) Edmonton, AB T6E-1Z5 Canada
Phone Edmonton: 1-780-448-9902
Canada & USA Toll Free: 1-866-448-9288

Source: http://www.powerhomebiz.com/BizNews/2012/10/metro-computers-talks-shop-about-excellent-it-biz.htm

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Love hopes to be 1st black GOP woman in Congress

This Oct. 2, 2012, photo, shows Utah Republican candidate Mia Love posing with two performers before a radio debate with incumbent Democratic Rep. Jim Matheson at the KSL broadcast center, in Salt Lake City. If elected in Utah?s redrawn 4th District, Love would be the first black, Republican woman elected to Congress. On the road to possibly becoming the first black Republican woman elected to Congress, Love made a brief star turn at the party?s convention, touching on a subject she usually downplays: race. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

This Oct. 2, 2012, photo, shows Utah Republican candidate Mia Love posing with two performers before a radio debate with incumbent Democratic Rep. Jim Matheson at the KSL broadcast center, in Salt Lake City. If elected in Utah?s redrawn 4th District, Love would be the first black, Republican woman elected to Congress. On the road to possibly becoming the first black Republican woman elected to Congress, Love made a brief star turn at the party?s convention, touching on a subject she usually downplays: race. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

This Oct. 4, 2012, photo shows Utah Republican candidate Mia Love during an interview in Salt Lake City. On the road to possibly becoming the first black Republican woman elected to Congress, Love made a brief star turn at the party?s convention, touching on a subject she usually downplays: race. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

This Oct. 9, 2012, photo shows Utah Republican candidate Mia Love standing at attention as the flag enters the room during the Granite PTA meet the candidates at Skyline High School in Salt Lake City. On the road to possibly becoming the first black Republican woman elected to Congress, Love made a brief star turn at the party?s convention, touching on a subject she usually downplays: race. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) ? In her bid to become the first black Republican woman elected to Congress, Mia Love is the GOP's emblem of diversity this campaign year. She's reluctant to embrace the role, saying she doesn't let race or gender define her politics.

The 36-year-old mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah, points to her policy stances as the reason for her success.

"I was elected mayor not because of my race or gender, not because I wear high heels, but because of the policies I put in place," Love said in a recent interview.

Polling shows Love with a slight lead over Democratic Rep. Jim Matheson, a six-term incumbent. The race is still too close to call.

In a party that has struggled for decades to attract black voters, the daughter of Haitian immigrants included subtle nods to civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks in her speech to the Republican National Convention in August.

"Our story has been told for over 200 years with small steps and giant leaps," she told the applauding delegates. "From a woman on a bus to a man with a dream, from the bravery of the greatest generation to the innovators and entrepreneurs of today, this is our story."

Love has made much of her family story, a hallmark of her stump speeches: Her parents legally immigrated to Brooklyn in the early 1970s, she says, with just $10 in their pockets. She says her father ? who has toiled as a painter, janitor and school bus driver ? taught her never to ask for a handout. Her parents became naturalized U.S. citizens in 1984.

A married mother of three, a Mormon and a tea party favorite, Love is the only woman among 11 black Republican House candidates in the Nov. 6 election. She and Vernon Parker, who is running in Arizona, are seen as the most likely winners among nine black GOP challengers.

Republicans, like Love herself, have focused more on her conservative values and agenda than her race.

"We need a party that is diverse based on our issues and not based on simply trying to find greater variety in the complexion," said Rep. Tim Scott of South Carolina, one of the two black Republicans now in the House.

While Love doesn't emphasize her race and gender, they are powerful factors in her bid to become a Republican member of Congress. Scott and Allen West of Florida were elected in 2010 as the first black Republicans in Congress since former Rep. J.C. Watts of Oklahoma left in 2003.

Black Republicans have long been scarce in Congress. Of 26 black Republican House members since 1870, the vast majority served during the post-Civil War Reconstruction days. Scott and West, both tea party favorites, were swept into office as part of the GOP wave in 2010. West faces a tough re-election fight.

Love is getting support in her bid to focus on policies.

It would be a disservice to Love for Republicans to tout her candidacy in racial terms, said Artur Davis, a black former Democratic congressman from Alabama who switched parties and also spoke to the GOP convention.

"As a congresswoman, she would have so much more to offer: successful former mayor, the product of a successful immigration story and a thoughtful, dynamic conservative," Davis said.

Amid the nation's shifting demographics, the GOP has focused more on reaching out to Hispanics than black voters, who have supported President Barack Obama in overwhelming numbers.

To enter the history books, Love must topple Matheson, the son of a popular former governor, in a state where more than nine in 10 people are white. For a decade, a series of white Republican men have been unable to knock off Matheson, a fiscally conservative "Blue Dog" Democrat who has beaten far more recognizable names in Utah politics.

Since the convention, Republican House Speaker John Boehner, Arizona Sen. John McCain and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice have helped Love raise money. Mitt Romney's son Josh is her campaign chairman.

___

Associated Press writer Shannon Dininny contributed to this report. Miga reported from Washington.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-10-26-Mia%20Love/id-1d41a66af3354fd69fdbce7a567a5246

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It may happen in October, but it won?t be a surprise (Powerlineblog)

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Romney's English roots surprise cousins left behind

BARROW-IN-FURNESS, England (Reuters) - Mitt Romney's fight to become America's next president has the backing of one enthusiastic group of supporters, although they don't actually have a vote: his relatives in England.

Few associate the Republican candidate with Britain but it was in England's industrial northwest that his ancestors lived for generations and converted to Mormonism before leaving for the United States in 1841 in search of the promised land.

It was a bold escape for a family of lowly carpenters. By sailing for the New World they took a step that eventually brought the Romney clan to the fore of American politics.

But some of them stayed and their descendants still live along Britain's rainy western coast - a world away from the intrigue and glamour of Washington.

One is a 69-year-old English widow who discovered just a few weeks ago that she is a distant cousin of the former governor of Massachusetts.

"It's all come out of the blue," Jennie Iveson told Reuters in her modest home in Barrow-in-Furness, a shipyard town once at the heart of Britain's industrial revolution. "It's a surprise really. Quite a surprise. Big surprise."

Iveson's link to Romney came to light when her inquisitive grandson-in-law began tracing back their family history by delving into archives in their home county of Lancashire.

Records show that Iveson is Mitt Romney's fourth cousin - they share a great-great-great grandfather, George Romney, who died in 1859. And now she can't help but notice that her distant American relative does bear a striking family resemblance.

"I saw him on the telly twice the other day, last week I think. He looks a bit like my brother," said Iveson, a retired factory worker, most of whose children have no jobs.

"(My brother) looks quite like him. He had dark hair like him. It's all grey now. He (Romney) looks like our Mike. Same sort of face and everything."

She offers a shrug and a smile when asked about Romney's wealth and privileged status in the United States, where he is sometimes accused by critics of being out of touch with poor people. "I wish him luck and everything else," she said.

ONE OF THE WEALTHIEST

Romney is one of the wealthiest Americans ever to run for the White House. He has estimated his fortune at between $190 million and $250 million.

But for Romney, his faith and English roots remain a sensitive issue, partly because his Mormon religion is still regarded with suspicion by some American voters.

When he came to Britain in July this year, Romney did not visit the area where his family have their roots - unusual since emphasizing a European heritage is often seen as an electoral plus in U.S. politics.

Barack Obama, who faces Romney in the November 6 presidential election, went down well last year when he toured an Irish village where one of his forebears once lived.

Romney's campaign spokeswoman made no comment when asked how the Republican challenger felt about his English origins.

In Lancashire, the county the candidate's ancestors left behind, Romney enthusiasts offered their own explanation.

"He is Mormon and this is Mormon central," said Christopher Nelson, a local vicar with an interest in Romney's heritage. "Perhaps he would perceive (coming here) as highlighting his Mormonism more than highlighting his roots."

His known relatives in England are genealogically so far removed that many of them were not even aware of the link until recently when the U.S. election campaign began to gather pace.

Amateur genealogist Simon Nash was astonished to discover while digging into regional records that his wife Maria was Mitt Romney's fourth cousin twice removed.

Poring over archival material and photos on his laptop in his home in the industrial city of Preston, Nash said it was a matter of tracing people back to a common ancestor - a fairly easy task since most records are available publicly in Britain.

The quest has certainly made Nash, whose day job involves dressing in a duck outfit and posing as a mascot for a local football team, more interested in U.S. politics.

"If he got in, America would be a completely different place in three years time to what it is now," he said. "I don't know if it will be for the better."

Nash's wife Maria, 32, was equally astounded by his researches.

"I was very much shocked ... It still feels like ... it's not quite happening to (me)," said Maria, who is Jennie Iveson's granddaughter. "It's quite an unreal feeling."

Would she like to meet Romney in the White House? "I think it would be very surreal," she said with a shy giggle. "I would like to go there for a brew (cup of tea) if he ever got in there."

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

The village of Dalton-in-Furness, a picturesque scattering of mediaeval cottages, is where the Romney clan began. Its men are still remembered there as hard-working carpenters.

One of them was William Romney, who gained notoriety for making his own coffin and putting it on display in his workshop before he died in 1915.

"I get the impression that quite a few Romneys were carpenters. It seems to be a family trait," Jim Walton, a Dalton historian, said outside a canary-yellow cottage where William Romney used to live and work.

"Should Mitt Romney succeed and become the next president of the United States, he would be able to look around in pride and say: 'My great great granddad came from Dalton-in-Furness'. Well, I hope he can say that in pride."

Dalton has plenty of Romney-related history. Its most famous son was George Romney, who went to London and became one of the most celebrated portrait painters of the 18th century.

Two streets and a park are named after the artist, who is said to have had a secret affair with the mistress of Lord Nelson, the naval hero who defeated the French at Trafalgar.

George was buried in the churchyard of St Mary's parish church - where Mitt Romney's great-great grandparents, Elizabeth and Miles, were baptized and married before converting to the Mormon faith in 1837 and moving to the United States.

Their daughter Sarah's baptism record from the year before is still in the archives in Preston, with her father's vocation - joiner - scribbled in an old parish book.

"It's a fascinating story that Dalton holds," said Rev. Alan Mitchell, gazing over the town's skyline from the top of a church tower - a view that has changed little since Romneys lived here. Pointing at a couple of old communion cups, he added: "The Romneys could have touched these."

At the time, Lancashire was a tough, polluted and chaotic place to live, and disease and drunkenness were rife. Mormon promises of a better and more orderly life fell on fertile ground.

"It was a grimy, mucky hell on earth," said Nelson, the vicar. "Why on earth you would want to stay here, if somebody tells you there is milk and honey elsewhere? It was a horrible place."

FREE TICKET

Early Mormon missionaries offered not only salvation but a free ticket to the United States.

They also gave Miles Romney a position of authority aboard a ship called the Sheffield, making the arrangement all the more attractive for a young and ambitious man with a large family.

But many other Romneys never converted and stayed behind in England, and the relatives who live here today know little about Mormonism.

In his autobiography, Mitt Romney said the family left England for New Orleans and travelled by steamer up the Mississippi to Nauvoo, Illinois, where they joined other Mormons. Later they followed Mormons in a trek across the plains to Utah. "Romneys are, by nature, an adventurous breed," he wrote.

The Mormon fascination with the souls of their ancestors means they have one of the world's biggest family history archives. The Mormon temple near Preston still contains records detailing the lives of British Romneys.

One document, describing the state of Miles Romney's family after emigration, listed his job as a joiner and said: "In 1850 Miles had a household of ten, and a real wealth of ?200."

The area is still very much the heartland of British Mormonism. The Ribble, a local river, is known as the River Jordan of European Mormonism. This is where England's early Mormons were baptized.

A memorial near its muddy bank commemorates those early conversions. Europe's biggest Mormon temple is nearby, its spire towering high above the misty, rain-washed hills. Neatly dressed missionaries in dark suits and ties are frequent visitors.

"The missionaries that we see coming from America will have roots that originated here in England," said Bishop Michael Turner, leader of a local Mormon congregation. "It's an exciting time ... to have a candidate who is a member of the church."

But for some, Romney is an unpopular figure, particularly after he suggested during his visit this year that Britain was not ready to host the Olympic Games.

"I think Mitt Romney is rather careless in his choice of words sometimes," said Walton, the Dalton historian. "But there you are. Can't have everything, can you?"

(Writing by Maria Golovnina; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Giles Elgood)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/romneys-english-roots-surprise-cousins-left-behind-090705135.html

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