Ashley Judd ... Yikes!

There has been a steady increase in visitors to Yikes recently ... so, thank you! A quick look at "keywords" indicates what most people are searching for is Ashley Judd. I know what some of you must be thinking ... who wouldn't!

Yikes!

So, for all the Ashley Judd fans out there, here is a special post for you. The information below is provided by AskMen.com ... which seemed like a reasonable place to find out more about a woman who seems to draw such attention.

why we like her?
In addition to being strikingly beautiful, Ashley Judd is an immensely talented actress. Whether she's playing a shrewd doctor, a hot police officer or the elegant wife of a famous composer, Ashley commands attention on the big screen.

why is she famous?
Ashley has appeared in a slew of highly acclaimed movies, including Heat (1995) with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, Kiss the Girls (1997) opposite Morgan Freeman, Double Jeopardy alongside Tommy Lee Jones, and De-Lovely (2004) with Kevin Kline.

personal style
She looks great when she's elegantly dressed, but she's also not afraid to throw on an old pair of jeans and a T-shirt. Any woman who can look elegant and attractive in a comfy pair of jeans has fashion sense.

bio
Ashley Tyler Ciminella was born on April 19, 1968, in Granada Hills, California. Although both her mother, Naomi Judd, and her half-sister, Wynonna Judd, would go on to become famous country singers, things weren't always easy for Ashley as a child. After her parents divorced in 1972, she moved to Kentucky with her mother and lived in poverty, frequently lacking bare necessities such as running water, electricity and a telephone.

Ashley attended 12 schools in 13 years before enrolling at the University of Kentucky to study French, anthropology, theater, art history, and women's studies. In 1990, when she was only a few credits shy of graduating, she decided to drop everything and drive across the country to Hollywood to pursue an acting career.

Let me know what you think about Ashley Judd!

Final thoughts on Dario Franchitti, Ashley Judd, and Indy 500

Growing up in Indiana my family marked the beginning of 'summer' with the sounds of race cars circling the Indy 500 track. It was a tradition, the first cookout of the season, listening to the race (it wasn't televised back then), and spending the day with family and friends.

The tradition continued for me when I moved from the small town where I had grown up, to the big city of Indianapolis to work for the NBC affiliate. The station was the official Indy 500 television station in the state, and that provided additional access for all who worked there. I've been inside Gasoline Alley, in the pit area, and listened in on numerous interviews with drivers and team owners.

For that reason, every Memorial Day weekend readers of this blog will find posts related to the race.

An increased number of people visited Yikes over the weekend, and it was interesting to see some of the keywords people used to find this blog.

Ashley Judd's name came up most, Ashley in the rain, Ashley's husband wins, husband ignores Ashley. The last one caught my eye. It had seemed that Dario didn't pay the kind of attention to his wife that one might expect from a guy married to one of the most beautiful women in the world. When the car pulled into victory lane, and she leaned in to give him a kiss, it appeared as if he didn't even see her.

Well, I'd like to give him the benefit of the doubt and say that he probably didn't see her. He had just accomplished something he had only dreamed about for years. It happened in a most unusual way -- due to the rain, and a yellow caution light -- and I think he was simply stunned.

He sort of had that deer-in-the-headlights look when he first took his helmet off. I think his brain was simply trying to catch up with the overwhelming emotions that must have overtaken him. The Orlando Sentinel describes it this way:

He's so dazed with disbelief that he's actually won this thing that he's a little glassy-eyed. Almost like he barely recognizes her.

I could believe that.

By racing standards Dario is getting a bit old, he's had some challenges over the past decade that included at one point losing his ride. And he was probably was also thinking about the last time a Scot won the race, which was back in 1965 when the legendary Jim Clark won. (Dario added a Jim Clark room to the house he has been restoring in Scotland.)

From all accounts Dario Franchitti is a good guy. His wife commented to reporters that day that he had conducted himself on the race track like a true "gentleman."

I agree with Ed Hinton of the Orlando Sentinel who wrote:

"Who would have thought it? Can you believe it?" said [Dario] in his Scottish lilt and burr. "I'm in shock . . . I'm definitely in shock."

From a guy who'd barely noticed Ashley Judd kissing him, you could believe that. His wife attended the winner's press conference but did not make it to the podium. This moment, for once, belonged solely to Dario Franchitti.

'It was a big one, all right. All I can say is, I'm so happy for Dario Franchitti.'

Dario Fanchitti "Mr Ashley Judd" wins rain-shortened Indy 500

Okay, the headline might make some people crazy, but if one of the three women in the race couldn't win, at least the winner is married to a woman who made wearing a "This is what a feminist looks like!" t-shirt fashionable.

The 34-year-old Franchitti won a rain shortened Indy 500, and gave his team -- which includes Danica Patrick -- its second Indy victory in three years. He inherited the lead when the leaders pitted one last time for fuel, even as the skies darkened, and then drove slowly to the checkered flag in a downpour when the race was stopped after 166 laps, or 415 of the scheduled 500 miles.

Once Franchitti got out of his car, he was mobbed, hugged and kissed by teammates Tony Kanaan, Danica Patrick and Michael Andretti -- and his wife, Ashley.

Franchitti is expected to collect at least $1.5 million from a total purse of more than $10.5 million when the checks are handed out at the victory dinner Monday night. Scott Dixon came in second and Helio Castroneves finished third.

Danica Patrick was the only one of the three women in the field to have an impact. Danica, in second place at the restart of the race, finished 8th. Sarah Fisher finished 18th, and rookie Milka Duno ran no higher than 22nd before crashing after 65 laps and ended up 31st.