The World needs real heroes like Julio Gonzalez, Pedro Nevarez and Wesley Autrey.

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Two New York men are being hailed as heroes after catching a toddler as he fell four storeys from a fire escape.

Julio Gonzalez and Pedro Nevarez saw three-year-old Timothy Addo dangling from a railing and rushed to position themselves underneath him.

As the boy lost his grip, he hit a tree branch, bounced off the chest of one of the men and landed in the other's arms.

'Hero of Harlem'

Police said Timothy crawled out of a fifth-floor window in the Bronx while his babysitter was briefly distracted. He then fell through a gap to the fire escape below, 40ft (12.2m) above the street.


I'm not a hero - I just did what any other father would do
Pedro Nevarez, 40

"He was hanging on for dear life. We ran over and stood underneath so we could catch him," Julio Gonzalez, 43, told the New York Post.

The toddler hit Mr Nevarez in the chest so hard he knocked him over. But after the incident, the 40-year-old insisted the pair had just done the obvious thing.

"I'm not a hero. I just did what any other father would do. When you're a father, you would do this whether it's your child or not," Mr Nevarez said.

Police said they had spoken to the babysitter and that an investigation was under way.

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NY toasts Subway Superman after death-defying rescue

WESLEY Autrey is a hero. For once the word cheapened by overuse is the only one that is appropriate.

Mr Autrey was standing on the platform of a New York subway station with his two daughters when he noticed a young man having a fit. He put a pen in the man's mouth to keep him from swallowing his tongue.

The 19-year-old film student, Cameron Hollopeter, recovered enough to get to his feet but then staggered and fell backwards off the platform on to the tracks.

Not only was a train approaching, but the subway system has a third rail that carries 600 volts of electricity.

"I had a split-second decision to make," Mr Autrey recalled.

"Do I let the train run him over and hear my daughters screaming and see the blood? Or do I jump in?"

He jumped, holding Mr Hollopeter down between the tracks as the screeching train ran over the top of them. Several carriages rolled over the men before the driver could bring the train to a stop.

"Am I dead?" Mr Hollopeter asked. Mr Autrey replied: "No, we're under the train."

When the 50-year-old construction worker yelled to the people on the platform that they were OK, he heard applause.

The two men had to remain on the tracks for 20 minutes until the power was turned off.

When he spoke to the media later, Mr Autrey still had dirt on his beanie.

And like a true hero he continued on his way. He went to work, converting classrooms into a library at public school 380 — otherwise known as John Wayne Elementary School.

Not surprisingly, he is the toast of New York. The New York Post called him the Subway Superman.

Michael Daly, a columnist for the Daily News, suggested they should rename the John Wayne school "after a real hero".

Mr Autrey is being feted by talk shows and showered with praise.

His rewards include a trip to Disney World and a year's free subway travel.

He has been honoured by Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

The New York Film Academy, where Mr Hollopeter is a student, has given him $US5000 ($A6340) plus $US5000 scholarships for his daughters, Shuqui, 6, and Syshe, 4. Donald Trump has given Mr Autrey a cheque for $US10,000.

Mr Bloomberg presented him with the city's highest award for civic achievement, calling him "a great man — a man who makes us all proud to be New Yorkers".

Past recipients of the Bronze Medallion have included World War II general Douglas MacArthur, Martin Luther King and Muhammad Ali.

Before Mr Autrey, the last person honoured was Felix Vasquez, who caught a baby thrown from a burning building in 2005.

Need inspiration for the New Year, all you lovely thesps out there? Well, here she is. I'm sure you know her. It's Marlee Matlin. She won an Oscar at the age of 21. Her IMDB credits are pretty bloody impressive, she's worked so many different and diverse projects... and she's deaf. Seriously, if this incredible lady can succeed without ever complaining about her condition, you can too. Kudos, Ms Matlin.

This HAS to be some of the funniest stuff in the history of UK TV (actually, any TV anywhere), a compilation from the Chris Morris comedy show, 'The Day Today', which not only made me regularly wet my pants laughing, it also launched Steve Cooghan on his road to stardom (I think this early stuff was his best, though!) and features the very gifted Patrick Marber (you know, the writer of 'Closer' and a bunch of other stuff) as the dimwitted reporter Peter O'HanraHanrahan. Enjoy.

More reading.
Writing down my goals and lists for the New Year... Such a lot to achieve and I have to make it happen. If you're going to make it out here, you have to be strong. Keep getting up and keep chasing. If you stop, you will fail. You will fall and people will say, "he just didn't have it".
Started watching 'Match Point' and within 15 minutes I was so appalled by JRM's acting, I had to eject the DVD. My god, it was terrible. I cannot believe for one second that it was JRM's fault - the amount of detachment for his characters and the reality of his dialogue, i.e. what he was saying and to who, has to reflect very badly on Woody Allen. Talk about 'phoning it in! In which reality did the director think that his actors were in the least bit convincing. And when SJ entered the fray in the scene with the table tennis table, I was cringing with embarrassment at how badly she was miscast in the role. Good God, what a mess. Maybe the film got better as it went on but I couldn't bear to watch any more. Did you see the reviews over at rottentomatoes.com? 92 %!!! Ninety-two per cent!! For that pile of pooh?
Respect for the actors but shame on the director.
So, luckily, we had another disc from bb online... a very light comedy called 'Just Friends'. Thank goodness we watched that instead. Yes, light and fluffy (certainly not cerebral, that's for sure), but a funny little story, superbly acted, good structure, funny lines and a bunch of comedy. Nice job.
No, I'm not a meat-head preferring 'Just Friends' over 'Match Point', it was just a better all 'round film.

Reading Al Pacino's new book.

Tuesday 2nd. More house hunting. Not brilliant. Looks like we're gonna have to see a lot of crap before we find the diamond in the rough.
Where the hell has Coke C2 gone? Has it been withdrawn. The missus loves it and I can't find it ANYWHERE?? Anyone know anything about its disappearance?
The monkey is becoming IMPOSSIBLE. 3 and a half and it seems that his sole purpose is to push the wife and I over the edge of sanity and into bedlam!! He's very tough. Back to school tomorrow though! It's interesting that the recent conversations I've had with parents of 3 and a half year olds at the park all want to strangle their kids!! It's a tricky age, it seems. Ho hum.

Mon 1st Jan 2007.
Went off to the park with the munchkin. Met up with a sitcom star's hubby who we see a lot of (her and her hubby). The kids really play well together and they're so nice too.
So.. New Year's resolutions... Stop drinking alcohol - er, I don't so I don't have to give it up.
Stop smoking - I don't smoke either.
Lose weight - Nope, don't have to do that.
Hum... What to do?
Predictions for 2007...
We will be in a new house in the next few months to escape the ice bitches from Hell who live next door. We are seriously looking for a place right now.
I will have an incredibly superb contract and earn a ton of money, possibly even a stage contract on Broadway or in Vegas.
New agents (commercial and theatrical).
Stick with my current manager.
Will only blog when there's anything pertaining to 'the business' so this doesn't become another seriously cruddy, boring and inane blog to go with the other 50 million pages of personal crap out there.
Watched Cars on DVD for the 10th time. It's a great movie, innit!
Oh, Happy New Year, by the way.

Sat 30: Park and house hunting
Sun 31: Munchkin had a little friend come over with her parents. Some more friends came over to ring in the New Year with us later on. Had a marvelous curry!