This site officially went public on March 21, 1999 using an AOL account that allowed for free site hosting. The URL was relatively long and the bandwidth for the free hosting service on AOL was not sufficient for an up and coming actress of this magnitude. It quickly became apparent that a shorter domain name with dedicated site hosting was needed.
The domain NATALIE-PORTMAN.NET was acquired on May 10, 1999 by Network Solutions who were one of the only reputable registrars at the time. It was actually my first ever domain name purchase. In the midst of the Internet bubble that blew-up and took many other related sites with it, 100% Natalie Portman went into expired status in May 2001 but during the last days of the grace period, the site was re-registered on June 16, 2001 for 2 more years. Two years later on May 10, 2003 I took advantage of a nine year extension for only $15 per year (a good deal at the time) locking down the URL until May 10, 2012.
We had a nice community on the message board in the early century and shared a number of historical events together such as 911 and the war in Afghanistan and Iraq. The site slowly started to decline in Google rankings from the #1 spot after falling victim of neglect as I started to purse other hobbies. Around May 2006, the lights went out after hosting fees went unpaid. It was a dark time in our history. I went searching for cans and old newspapers to recycle, sold blood, did odd jobs and (ahem) unthinkable things to earn money.
On June 9, 2008 -- after 2 years and one month of being off line -- 100% Natalie Portman returned to the mix on the night of Natalie Portman's birthday! Hosting fees were secured for one year and should renew on her birthday each year (provided I donate enough blood).
- Byron Salamida
