New Images, Video from Mars Show Towering Mountain, Precipitous Descent on to Surface: VIDEO

New images and video have been presented by NASA from today's historic landing on the Martian surface by the car-sized rover Curiosity.

One new image shows the rover's wheels and shadow with Mt. Sharp in the background. The mountain is Curiosity's main scientific destination and is three miles high and four miles away. The rover will eventually be analyzing its geology.

The other fascinating piece of media released today is a low-res video consisting of 297 images shot by the probe as it landed which show the heat shield falling away and then a cloud of dust kicked up as jets fired to cushion its blow on the planet.

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Gay Man Allegedly Beaten in Homophobic Attack in Missoula, Montana

UPDATE: Law enforcement now says the incident was fabricated.

A man identified as "Joseph" was targeted in an anti-gay beating outside a bar in Missoula, Montana in the early hours of Sunday, according to the Wipeout Homophobia page on Facebook, which posted the above set of photos today.

The Missoulian confirms that the man had gone to the Missoula Club to celebrate his 22nd birthday, and it was outside of that establishment that the attack took place:

The man told police he’d asked people about the location of a gay bar, when someone asked him to step outside for a cigarette, Brodie said.

But the man said that when he left the bar, someone hit him, and then two more people joined in, Brodie said. The incident happened at 1:30 a.m. Sunday and the man reported it to police at 4:30 a.m., after he got home, Brodie said.

Missoula Police Lt. Scott Brodie told the paper that the man “indicated he was assaulted because of his sexual preference."

According to KPAX, "Police say they're considering the assault a misdemeanor."

New Washington 'Why Marriage Matters' Ad Features Minister, His Wife, and Their Gay Son: VIDEO

Last week I posted an ad featuring Republican lawmaker Cheryl Pflug for Washington state's Why Marriage Matters campaign. Here's the second ad in a series airing during the Olympics.

Pride Foundation, which produced the ad, writes:

The ad released August 6 features United Church of Christ minister Reverend Gib Rossing and his wife, Beth Rossing, talking about their son Jonathan and their hopes for him to be able to marry his long-term partner Ryan. It emphasizes that all loving and committed couples, whether gay or straight, hope to marry for similar reasons: to make a lifetime promise to another person and to share the joys and challenges that life brings.

"Here in Washington, we treat all families with respect and fairness, because we believe in the Golden Rule of treating others as we want to be treated," said Kris Hermanns, Executive Director of Pride Foundation. "This advertisement reflects our fundamental values, and will supplement the conversations we've had across the state about the important of marriage for all loving and committed couples. No one should be denied the freedom to marry the person that they love."

Watch, AFTER THE JUMP...

Elton John Reportedly Thought the Ugly Remarks He Made About Madonna Were 'Off the Record'

Elton John thought that remarks he made about Madonna in an Australian TV interview — he called her a "c*nt" and a "f**king fairground stripper", were off the record, according to an entertainment reporter on Radio 3AW’s Breakfast Show:

3AW's entertainment reporter Peter Ford told Ross and John he had been contacted by Elton John's publicity team, first saying the claims made by Molly Meldrum were rubbish. Pete Ford said after telling Elton John's representative that the claims had aired on television, he was told that the conversation was allegedly 'off-the-record'.

"Elton's been around long enough to know that if there's a camera there and someone's standing behind it with a red light on... It's still being recorded," Peter Ford told 3AW Breakfast.

Speaking with 3AW Breakfast, Molly Meldrum said he was taken aback by Elton John's comments attacking Madonna.

"I love Elton, but when he launched into Madonna I slightly went into shock because Madonna also is a friend of mine," Molly Meldrum told Ross and John. "But I have to say that she has been very naughty of late."

Peter Ford said Molly Meldrum had a good enough relationship with Elton John to not do the wrong thing by him.

Towleroad Guide to the Tube #1181

AND NOW: Sh*t Chick-fil-A supporters say.

ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS: "Cut the World" featuring Willem Dafoe, Marina Abramović, and Carice van Houten (warning: graphic violence).

DOG SWIMS WITH DOLPHINS: O happy day.

PET SHOP BOYS: "A Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi". One of the B-sides to the new PSB single "Winner". Two more here.

For recent Guides to the Tube, click HERE.

News: Tyson Gay, Vietnam, Chavela Vargas, Atlanta, Mitt Romney

Gay couple attacked in Atlanta's Atlantic Station neighborhood.

Filmmaker JD Disalvatore diagnosed with breast cancer. Fund set up.

Tools: Mitt Romney purchases "hardware stuff" at hardware store in New Hampshire.

VIDEO: Soho douchebag gets his due.

Transgender beauty queen Jenna Talackova leads Vancouver Gay Pride parade.

Signorile: Were the Chick-fil-A kiss-ins a big fail? "After Mike Huckabee and evangelical groups shifted the discussion away from the millions Chick-fil-A gives to hate groups to a story about free speech and about opinions on same-sex marriage (which half the country still doesn't support), there was no forceful, unified response from national LGBT groups."

Nick Jonas says yes, he is being considered for a judge position on American Idol: "it would be a dream come true if it happens."

Politico: GOP steering clear of gay marriage. “Most Republican Party leaders seem to have lost the stomach for this fight,” said Dan Schnur of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at the University of Southern California. “Some of that results (from) the number of large-scale donors who support same-sex marriage, some of it’s a result in an increasing number of party leaders who support same-sex marriage, and a lot of it is public opinion polling which shows a shift in the way voters feel about same-sex marriage,” he added.

Prince Harry can even rock an Angry Birds hat.

Liza Minnelli plays the Ice Palace in Cherry Grove.

Mexican ranchera singer Chavela Vargas dies at 93: "By the 1950s she had become a fixture on Mexico City's thriving bohemian club scene, where she became a standout for her androgynous style and overt references to her homosexuality — which she would not make public until 2000 — but also for her undeniable talent for finding the soulful pith in the rancheras, boleros and corridos of the day."

Masterpiece Cake Shop owner will continue to reject cakes for same-sex weddings, despite protest: "When I do a cake for a first birthday party, I imagine the family gathered around taking pictures and laughing. When I do a graduation cake, I think of all the hard work it took to get them there. I feel like I'm part of the celebration, and I can't take part in that kind of celebration (a same-sex wedding)."

Ryan Gosling: Strictly V-neck?

Equality California spokeswoman Rebekah Orr departing: "The departure of a communications staffer would typically be a minor development, but Orr has essentially been the only public face of EQCA since October 2011, when former Executive Director Roland Palencia abruptly resigned. Palencia had joined EQCA just three months beforehand."

Sad, but predictable: 'I feel sorry for Tyson Gay'.

Scientists find largest and oldest reservoir of water ever discovered: "The water is in a cloud around a huge black hole that is in the process of sucking in matter and spraying out energy (such an active black hole is called a quasar), and the waves of energy the black hole releases make water by literally knocking hydrogen and oxygen atoms together."

NYT on Vietnam's gay pride and the country's coming out: "It wasn’t much of a parade, as these things go. More like a noisy bike ride with some balloons. But the gathering of about 100 gay Vietnamese in Hanoi on Sunday was still a proud declaration of sorts, a kind of political coming-out in the socially conservative country."

Male model fix: Andrei Andrei.

NYT photographer assaulted by NYPD in the Bronx: "Mr. Stolarik was taking photographs of the arrest of a teenage girl about 10:30 p.m., when a police officer instructed him to stop doing so. Mr. Stolarik said he identified himself as a journalist for The Times and continued taking pictures. A second officer appeared, grabbed his camera and "slammed" it into his face, he said."