Just when we were trying to make impudent fun at the governor's expense, The Associated Press filed this report.

5:55am -- Gov. Bill Incommunicado: New Mexico's gregarious governor inside North Korea's cone of silence.

It must be tough. No communiques. No live on-camera interviews. Gov. Bill Richardson is in the Hermit Kingdom unable to communicate with the outside world. Richardson and his entourage are expected to meet with North Korea's foreign ministry and defense officials, pleading as a "private citizen" for North Koreans to come up with concrete steps toward ultimately abandoning a nuclear program they may or may not have.
Richardson and the group he's traveling with were expected to be in North Korea until Thursday, then travel to Japan and South Korea to brief officials, according to a report earlier this week from The Associated Press. They are scheduled to be back in New Mexico on Saturday.

Now the governor is not expected to meet with reclusive North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il. But the Web site WorldTribune.com has an interesting article that may shed some light on the mysterious New Mexico mission to Pyongyang. It appears that Kim Jong-Il is a huge film buff, with a collection of more than 10,000 videos. Why, according to South Korean intelligence sources, Kim Jong-Il even ordered the abduction of a leading South Korean film director and the director's ex-wife actress in 1978, and the two were forced to make propaganda films for the North until they escaped in 1986, WorldTribune.com reported.

The article said Kim Jong-Il is trying to reach out to foreign film producers for joint ventures with North Korea's once-thriving film industry.

Hmmmmm! Gov. Bill Richardson. Hollywood on the Rio Grande. Could there be another "Red Dawn" in our future, only this time with real Reds? Could we be gearing up for another "Team America: World Police" -- only this time showing the softer side of Kim Jong-Il? Stranger things have happened.

One historical footnote, showing this may not be the best time for a Western delegation to visit Pyongyang. It was on this day in 1950 that United Nations troops entered North Korea's capital city in a war that was never declared a war, but somehow continues to this day.

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