Perhaps inspired Stephen Harper rocking a Conservative Christmas party last week, (Cult)ure fav Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin crooned a rendition of "Blueberry Hill" at a star-studded fundraiser gala in St. Petersburg on Friday night. Is there anything that man won't do? Watch the video after the jump:

It's hard to know exactly where to start in our Badass chronicles. As it only natural, Putin came along to remind us exactly what a badass looks like. In Foreign Policy's slide show about how Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin spent their summer vacations, Putin does plenty of badass things: ride a motorcycle, fly a helicopter, visit a new mother in the hospital (badassedly, of course). But this image takes the cake:

You need no further explanation than the one FP's already got on tap: Putin stares down a bear. He's staring down a damn bear because, hey, bears should be afraid of Putin people. I submit to you Vladimir Putin, Badass for Life.

It's pretty well established at this point that Putin is one scary motherfucker. Not only that, but he seems to have some sort of deep seated inferiority complex that results in his "anything you can do, I can do better" shenanbons. This week Foreign Policy posted a neat little guide to five world leaders' phobias (apparently Dubya is afraid of horses). Putin, natch, is not among them. Instead, the Putin tidbit appears on Angela Merkel's slide. Merkel was bitten by a dog as a small child and naturally developed a phobia as a result of the trauma. And how sensitive is Putin? This sensitive:

Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, a master of psychological diplomacy, has repeatedly attempted to take advantage of Merkel's fear. In 2006, the then-president perplexed German diplomats by presenting the chancellor with a small dog as a gift and made a habit of having his black Labrador, Koni, sit in on their meetings.

Is he really that threatened by Merkel or is he just that big a dick? You decide.

St. Petersburg's Mariinsky Orchestra (formerly known as the Kirov) will be performing at the National Arts Centre on March 15, with superstar conductor Valery Gergiev. Gergiev is a fascinating personality, as this article attests: maestro, businessman, jet-setter, Russian nationalist and friend of Vladimir Putin; and, according to a review of a documentary about him, the possessor of "an elemental ferocity just barely held in check." 

Hey, remember Vladimir Putin's vigorous torso? You know, the one that made an appearance a while back while fishing? Well, everyone's favourite Russian Prime Minister is at it again! Head over to the Times (UK-style) to watch a video that includes shirtless horseback riding and the butterfly stroke. What's life without knowing what Putin was up to on his vacation?

Because Vladimir Putin could never settle for being a painter in his own right, he's also now an art critic. Upon visiting Ilya Glazunov, one of Russia's most famous artists, Putin remarked that a sword of a medieval knight in a painting was 'too short' and, hilariously, 'only good enough for cutting sausage.' Glazunov promised to fix it.  If you follow that link, there's a bonus clip of Putin bullying a billionaire businessman into reopening an aluminum plant.

Just when you thought Putin couldn't get any more ridicuawesome, he does it again. He's added magazine columnist to his résumé. His first piece? "Why is it hard to fire a person?" Is dioxin is on his list of suggestions? Sometimes I get the impression that Putin's got this George Plimpton-style joie de vivre that makes a person need to try everything he or she possibly could. Any day now we'll hear an announcement about Vladimir Putin: Master Chef or Vladimir Putin:  Skateboard Enthusiast or Vladimir Putin: X-Ray Vision. Anything's possible with him. 

 

I think we can all agree that there are certain things in this world that are far, far better than everything else. One of those things? "Vladimir Putin releases judo instruction DVD." Admit it: you can't think of anything better than a world leader who makes a judo DVD for his 56th birthday and then announces that he's going to go train with Nicolas Sarkozy. Every time you think you get a bead on this guy . . .