When I first saw photos from shows this week at fashion week in Paris, I thought there was hope that some designers were looking out for regular women. See, models wore dresses like this:
Then I saw these designs ...
I've written that most new music doesn't excite me. So when I find two new releases in one year that get my juices flowing, that's stellar. My first much-welcomed discovery this year was Coldplay's "Viva La Vida."
And now I have Robin Thicke's silky sweet "Something Else," just released today. The Bee's Life section today ran a story on the young singer from J. Freedom du Lac of The Washington Post. Just last year, Thicke played the Save Mart Center (as the opening act for Beyonce), and my Hive colleague Mike Oz posted this blog that included an audio interview with Thicke.
On "Something Else," the Thicke swoon factor is firmly in place, but there's plenty of funk to brighten the pace.Thicke alternates between his lovely falsetto and his blue-eyed soul vocals through 12 songs. Though the music has a retro flavor that harkens to sounds the late 1960s and 1970s, the contemporary side of Thicke is never lost.
Yes, you, person who hangs out at Belana and sips Red Bull-laced mixed drinks trying to figure out who you can take home. And you, muscle-shirt and flip-flop wearing bro who thinks you're God's gift. And you, "my-life-is-like-totally'-The-Hills" girl who has no problem getting drunk and fighting (or kissing) another girl.
All of you, the biggest day of your life is here.
MTV's "The Real World" is having an open casting call in Fresno this Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Roe.
Perhaps one of you will have the honor of repeating how proud our last "Real World" participant -- one Trisha Cummings of the Sydney season -- made the great city of Fresno. Trisha, you might remember, set the bar high with her propensity for intolerance and violence.
Oh, and to make things even funner on Sunday, Trisha will be there waiting tables lending advice to would-be Real Wolders.
Here's the stuff you need to know if you wanna try out, via a press release that will soon be deleted from my inbox:
It's a busy week for Fresno indie band Rademacher. Today marks the release of the band's new EP, "Era" -- a digital release on JAXART Records. Plus, the band is playing shows up and down Highway 99.
The rad boys and girl of Rademacher are playing tonight at The Partisan in Merced with Earlimart, tomorrow afternoon at The Pit at Fresno State, tomorrow night at Howie & Son's in Visalia with We Are Wolves, Thursday at Tokyo Garden's post ArtHop show and Saturday at the 210 Cafe in Visalia as part of the VAM Festival.
That new four-song EP of theirs is available worldwide on over 500 carriers including iTunes, eMusic, and Rhapsody. For Beehive readers, though, Rademacher is giving out one song, a precise one-fourth of the EP, as a free download. Enjoy.
DOWNLOAD: Rademacher - If U Know (mp3)
Salon has an amusing story up about "older" people (in this case, "over 30") flocking to Facebook as a networking tool and, in the words of author Michael Martin, making a mess of things. The leading anecdote is about a professional woman in the film biz who tried to delete a "disgusting" video that someone had posted on her Wall but instead sent it to everyone on her contact list:
Facebook automatically selected all her contacts, e-mailing the video to "clients, agents, studios, everyone," says the woman. "A famous producer I'd 'friended' but never contacted -- my face showed up on his Facebook page next to a Jacuzzi diarrhea video."
Another subject in the story, a 40-something magazine writer named Laura Bell, really messed up her work life:
Social tragedies involving CC:, BCC: and Reply All are as old as the Internet itself, but Facebook's applications -- the seemingly cute survey and quiz tools that allow you to rank, rate and refer friends -- have added a new level of peril to online interaction. Recently, Bell was killing time with the Compare Friends app, which selects five random members of your Friends list and asks you to rate them according to ephemeral criteria. In this case, the question was, "Who smells better?" One of the five contestants was Bell's boss, whom Facebook notified of her low rank. She then e-mailed Bell to express her dismay.
All you veteran "youngster" Facebook users out there: Any advice (or horror stories) to share with all the new "old" users?
[Photo: Salon]
Because if you're like us, you're wishing it was Friday already ...
1. Fair notice. The Big Fresno Fair starts on Wednesday, meaning random deep-fried things, carnies, a chance to see Graciela Moreno in person and, of course, concerts -- you can see Chicago on Wednesday and Pepper on Thursday. Head's up: You can still win fair concert tickets at Fresno Famous and Central Valley Moms.
Heather was kind enough to point me to stories about these wacky boots worn by Victoria Beckham over the weekend:
These thigh-high heelless boots are creating a stir, with all kinds of websites discussing whether they will disfigure the feet or are unsafe. Apparently designer Antonio Berardi has already sold a bunch.
So, you tell us. Are these boots fashion foolish or fashion forward?
Do people in this town just love to complain or what? It didn't take long for the news of Sammy Hagar's two free October concerts at Cabo Wabo to turn into complaining. Take, for instance, this comment from my story last week.
How generous of Sammy to offer free shows!! Apparently he doesn't realize how crazy that is for the fans in Fresno. It's one thing to offer shows in Cabo San Lucas where most won't or can't make the trip but here in Fresno, it's going to be off the hook insane. I would rather pay the $150 to make sure I get in and not have to be camping out for a week before the show. Come on Sammy! Maybe you should rethink the "free" show idea. SERIOUSLY!!
Note to Sammy: People in Fresno aren't going to be happy until you take a month off, hang out in Fresno and go door-to-door playing music and handing out free Waboritas.
Mayor Alan Autry's new talk radio show launched today. For those of you who missed it, the radio chat program will air 10 a.m. - noon weekdays on KYNO (AM 1300). As you would have expected, the first show featured some heavyweight on-air guests including Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Fresno State football coach Pat Hill.
Makes sense. Autry's made a lot of friends during his almost eight years in office. He can pick up the telephone and have a good shot at getting big-name guests.
But, if Autry wants the radio show to standout among the vast sea of radio in Fresno, he is going to have to make sure he doesn't forget one extremely crucial thing.
Megan Fox is sex on a stick, we all know that. But the face, the lips, the body -- might not be real, y'all. Take a moment to deal with this.
I know, I know. Those of you with XY sex chromosomes couldn't care less. But for the rest of us, it's nice to know that stunning good looks are always available... for a price.
Megan Fox now:
Megan Fox in 2003:
When Heath Ledger unexpectedly passed away from a prescription drug overdose in January, he left behind an outdated will that did not account for the two-year old daughter he fathered with Michelle Williams.
The will he had in place left everything to his parents and siblings -- at the time it was drawn up (2003), that amount was around 145,000 Australian dollars.
This weekend, Ledger's father announced that the money in Heath's estate -- now estimated at $20 million -- will all go to Mathilda Ledger.
So shines a good deed in a weary world.
If you liked Tina Fey as Sarah Palin the first time around, then you'll get a kick out of Fey's return to SNL over the weekend to play Palin again, this time at a sit down with Katie Couric.
Tina Fey is about the only thing that makes SNL worth watching at this point. Too bad she's not actually a cast member.
Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Reynolds
were married this weekend in Vancouver, B.C.
The pair have been engaged since May.
Here's the good news: Now that all of the really beautiful people on the planet have finally paired up (first Brad and Angelina, now these two), it's fair game for the rest of us.
Do you hear this, John Krasinski? All the gorgeous women are officially off the market, so you're going to have to settle for a funny one.
It's me or Kathy Griffin, take your pick.
Heather Locklear, who was released from rehab in July, was arrested yesterday in Santa Barbara on suspicion of driving while under the influence, according to TMZ, who is really, really good at knowing things like this.
Apparently, alcohol has already been ruled out, so I'm guessing it was Twinkies. You know this woman's body hasn't been anywhere near sugar since 1972.
At right is what Heather's mug shot looks like, because I know you were wondering. Notice the 100-yard Twinkie stare: someone just spotted the precinct vending machine.
My brother once told me, "When Paul Newman dies, it's going to be a big deal. He's one of those people that matter." He was right.
Before I go put my well-worn copy of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" into the DVD player, I've put together a collection of some of my favorite pictures and clips from the life and film career of the always charming Paul Newman.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Paul Newman, 83, died yesterday of cancer at his home in Westport, Connecticut. He is survived by his wife, Joanne Woodward, and five children.
There aren't enough great things to say about a man who shined in so many roles: as an actor, a husband, a father and a humanitarian. He appeared to have everything, but more importantly, he seemed to know he did, and he appreciated the hell out of it.
CNN has a biography of Newman's life here, detailing everything from his getting kicked out of Ohio University for unruly behavior, to his stint in the Navy, to his amazing film career, his interest in racing cars, and of course, his philanthropic efforts.
Paul Newman was one of the last of the old time movie stars, and his passing is a great loss for Hollywood. He was one of my favorite actors, and it makes me terribly sad to know he is no longer in the world.
More on Paul Newman:
Paul Newman: 30 Unforgettable Roles
Filmography
About Newman's Own
Warning: This is yet another blog entry about my Tampa Bay Rays.
I never paid attention to the game. It was hard with Vinny Testaverde always throwing the ball to the other team. So my dad gave me money to buy nacho chips at the concession stand.
When I asked why our team never tried to win in the fourth quarter, my dad said the Bucs were contractually obligated to lose. Which is why we always left early to beat the traffic out of Tampa Stadium.
I never cared that my brother played more innings on our little league team. I got to be the first-base coach, and root him on. I saw it as an opportunity to be like my dad, who was our team's head coach.
When I was asked who would win the 1987 World Series, I said the Twins. My dad wanted to know in how many games. I said seven. I didn't know what I was talking about. But I liked talking to my dad.
I was right, by the way. The Twins won that year -- in seven games.
My dad was right, too. He taught me to always root for the home team.
So when we finally got one in 1998, he took me to the inaugural game of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
If you read my column last Friday, then you saw me get all soft and sappy about dogs. It's my soft, sappy side that feels like this event deserves a little bit of Beehive love as well ...
You can read more about ARF's anniversary in this story by The Bee's Marc Benjamin.
UPDATE: Urban Dare is on, folks.
Mejorado tells me late this afternoon that the event organizers have given the bureau the green light. She doesn't know if any teams signed up today but believes more will do so next week. She says the organizers recognized the bureau reps' efforts: "We've worked really hard, and it's a good asset to Fresno."
---------------------------------------------
If you plan to compete in the first-ever Urban Dare adventure race in Fresno on Oct. 4, you need to sign up quickly. The race may be called off if enough teams don't register.
Terri Mejorado, tourism manager for the Fresno City and County Convention and Visitors Bureau, tells me today that seven teams have signed up so far, but the contests' organizers need at least three more before the day is out to ensure the event happens. (And, of course, the organizers and bureau folks would like more teams than 10 by the time the race kicks off next Saturday.)
Mejorado says a typical Urban Dare -- held in major cities such as San Francisco, Atlanta and New York -- averages 75 teams. What Fresno is trying to do is establish the event here, build up word of mouth and see it grow as an attraction for Fresno. My colleague Bill McEwen wrote about the idea last month.
"Everybody thinks it's a great idea and that it sounds like fun, and they want to do it," Mejorado says. "But they just need to go and register."
What is Urban Dare?
If Donald's list didn't fill you up ...
1. See the Atlantic. Picture Atlantic, who you might remember as the San Jose band that opened for Coldplay and has a Fresno member, is playing at Kuppajoe tonight. Going to that would give you, what, four degrees of separation from Gwyneth Paltrow?
The folks on Twitter have hipped me to a little drinking game for tonight's debate that, if played right, will have you looking like this guy in no time.
Every time McCain says "my friends" you're supposed to take a shot. Likewise, every time Obama utters his favorite six-letter word, "change," it's bottom's up.
That's gonna require a lot of booze, huh?
Here's hoping you can suspend yourself from puking.
Here's what caught my eyes and ears in recent days:
Welcome to another week of Post No Bills -- a weekly look at what's going on in Fresno brought to you exclusively by FresnoBeehive.com.
Post No Bills is the largest collection of Fresno concert, club and event fliers anywhere on the Web. It's also proof that anybody who says there's nothing to do in Fresno is either crazy or lazy. So sit back, give your browser a minute to load and take a look at various happenings.
As always, we welcome contributions bands, artists, venues, promoters and regular joes. Send flier links to mosegueda@fresnobee.com.
Haven't checked in with Amy Winehouse in a little while. I wonder how she's doing.
Oh.
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We've been waiting a while for Sammy Hagar to show up at Fresno Wabo. This morning Hagar announced Fresno's patience has been rewarded, to the key of two free shows in late October.
He writes on his blog:
Redheads, October 28th and 29th the Wabos and I will be performing 2 FREE shows at the Fresno Cabo Wabo! We want you to be there and ready to Roll!Doors open at 5:30pm and entrance into both shows will be a first come first serve basis!! Get ready to party and hear some NEW stuff from our NEW album!!
Peace,
Sammy
In other Wabo news:
There's no doubt about it: the doldrums of summer are long past, and the cultural season is in full swing. Lots of stuff to make Fresno proud this weekend:
Letterman vs. McCain: Day Two.
Upgraded from tropical depression to full-blown hurricane.
Last night's one-hour premiere of "The Office," titled "Weight Loss," was awesome. There were too many amazing things happening for me to recount them all, so here are just a few of my favorite parts:
Kevin: "Wait, back up. Do you think I'm retarded?"
Dwight: "One more bite of eclair each. Hold it in your mouth if you can't swallow."
Jim (to Michael): "Really? Nothing?"
Creed: "That wasn't a tapeworm."
Michael: "I once went 28 years without having sex. And then again for seven years."
Andy: "I really want to have washboard abs the first time Angela sees me naked."
Pam: "What up, 2-1-2?"
Holly pining for Michael, Angela and Dwight hooking up in the warehouse, Pam finally having her college experience, Kelly Kapoor passing out and then playing it cool (or not) with Ryan, Stanley taking the stairs and fighting the power, and that thing that happened at the end with Jim and Pam -- all good, good stuff.
Here's the second in the Fresno Grizzlies' "I Hate the Offseason" webisode series. In it, we learn about Parker's fantasy football draft. As you might expect, he's partial to familiar things, like people named Parker and Bears. And you gotta love his team name: Boots With the Fur.
Dang, I wish Parker could have played in the Fresno Bloggers Bowl. I'd have totally kicked his butt.
RELATED:
- Grizzlies debut offseason video series on the Internets
Fresnan Kerry Yo Nakagawa's film project, "American Pastime" just keeps chugging along.
ESPN Classic will air the movie Friday (Sept. 26) at 6 p.m. The 2007 film takes place during World War II when Japanese Americans were interned in relocation camps. The movie, for which Nakagawa served as associate producer, interlaces the role of baseball in these families' lives during those traumatic years. (Nakagawa also is the founder of the Nisei Baseball Research Project.)
The broadcast on the sports cable channel is the latest attention for the film. In July, I blogged about how an international news radio network did a piece about Nisei baseball that included mention of the movie. Who knows where the film is headed next?
Is Granite Park the new hot spot in Fresno?
Saturday, after spending an hour and a half surrounded by a bunch of kids at Walking With Dinosaurs, I decided to go check out Cabo Wabo (it's been almost a month since Mike Oz blogged on its opening).
Cabo Wabo, Me-n-Ed's Victory Grill and The Public House seemed packed. The parking lot was full of cars -- with just a few spots open on the last row. I didn't stick around (hunger won out) but it certainly caught my attention.
People questioned whether anyone would go hang out in that part of town (aka south of Shaw). It looks like these businesses are having no problem generating customers.
Has anyone hung out there? Give us the details. What's it like? Is it worth checking out, crowds and all?
Dear personal friends/relatives/telemarketers:
Starting at 8:58 p.m. this evening, and for all subsequent Thursdays until further notice, my phone will be out of service. Do not try to call me. Do not email me with subject lines reading "R U there??", and do not, under any circumstances, do The Drop-by.
Yes, I'm fine. No, I'm not mad at you.
Finally, the long, long winter summer of my discontent has come to a close.
[Source: OfficeTally]
It's been a while since we checked on Heidi Watney -- the current BoSox bleacher babe for NESN and former KMPH sports anchor.
Anyone familiar with her Fresno history wouldn't be surprised to hear that Heidi has gotten herself into some hot water over in The Bean already. While the Red Sox are on their way to playoffs, rumors are all over the Boston Internets that Heidi is boinking one of the BoSox's big names -- catcher and team captain Jason Varitek.
Sure, it could all be Internet innuendo. But if you go to Google and type in "Heidi Watney", the Google geniuses even predict you might be looking for "Heidi Watney Jason Varitek." Try it, it's fun. It also works if you type in "Varitek." Google thinks you might be looking for "Varitek Watney" or "Varitek Affair."
Oh yes, the other piece of news related to this is that Varitek filed for divorce last month.
It's totally late-night talk show day here on The Beehive, so I had to add this clip from the great Stephen Colbert announcing the suspension of his show. FYI: The Bee's Opinion Blog has also announced that it's suspending blogging, but has now started again.
In other news, Colbert is also The King of Pooptown:
By now, you've heard the saga of Ed McMahon, the 85-year-old Johnny Carson wingman and television personality who faced foreclosure on his Beverly Hills home.
Still having a sense of humor, McMahon will star in two online rap videos -- yes, rap videos -- on a financial Web site owned by a credit bureau company. I wish I could show the videos to you, but they won't appear until October.
As you can see, McMahon really got into his role, even dressing the part. Here's some sample lyrics:
"Got a bump from the media chumps, but that was temporary/ Wife with bad credit was scary, so I got wise/ I may have fallen, but I got back up/ Now I'm back on the attack, like a ninja swinging nunchucks/ I told the haters, 'Go on, take a hike'/ It's my show now, and I can do what I like."
To borrow a line from another credit company: Priceless.
Well, we knew this was coming: The sausage-slugging robbery makes Jay Leno's wacky headlines segment.
[Props to Sharyn on the find]
Hey, John McCain: If you say you're going to appear on Dave Letterman's show, and you cancel at the very last minute to gallantly rush off to save the economy, and you don't send your spokesmodel running mate to fill in, and Letterman catches you live on air with Katie Couric instead, chances are your ass is going to be put on blast in front of a national audience.
By the way, is paying $5500 for a makeup artist your way of saving the economy? It's a good start, Senator!
UPDATE: Blaine successfully finished this stunt. But some reports say he cheated during the 60-hour exploit by taking breaks. Still impressed, everyone?
----------------------------------------------------
I just don't understand David Blaine. Some people call him a magician or illusionist. I think he's more of an attention-needy masochist. He regularly puts his body through torture, under the guise of entertainment, and ABC broadcasts these stunts as TV specials.
As of Monday, he's been hanging for 60 hours. He's supposed to fall 44 feet to the ground at 11 p.m. EST today. According to experts, he could go blind or risk a stroke because all the gravity and pressure is pounding into his head.
This stunt is called the "Dive of Death." What would you call it?
Guys, I've been miffed at the seven-months-later resurgence of M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes." It was No. 4 on the Billboard singles chart last week. I must have heard it on the radio about 10 times over the weekend, and yeah, one station was calling it new music.
My 13-year-old sister set it as the song on her MySpace this week -- and she loves David Archuleta. See, folks, that's a sure sign of some crazy second-life for this song. If the "American Idol" kids are liking that girl from Sri Lanka ...
And it's not that I dislike "Paper Planes." It's a good song -- I just think it's interesting that the song gets huge all these months later. What's the cause? Well, it was in the trailer for "Pineapple Express." I know Seth Rogan has a lot of power, but that much? This is like if "Be Kind Rewind" -- they both came out in mid-February -- all of a sudden was the most popular movie in the country.
And February is just generous about the time I write on the tardy slip. That's when the single came out. The album where you can find the song, "Kala," came out in August 2007.
Good for M.I.A., though, I guess. And good for people listening to something other than T-Pain. Hey, have you guys heard Santogold yet? You might like her next year ...
I've heard discussion about this event for going on a year now, so I'm happy to finally announce the Fresno Urban Sound Experience, or FUSE Festival, which is going down Oct. 18.
It's a one-day, all-local, genre-spanning, venue-hopping music festival happening on the Fulton Mall.
The festival has been put together by Creative Fresno, Famous Whitewater, Matt Schwartz of The Local Noise and musician Blake Jones, who never met a festival he didn't want to help.
Here's the full deets and a flier, via my inbox:
21 bands...
in three venues...
for one night of authentic Fresno fun!
Detroit and Motown.
Chicago's got the blues,
and Seattle rocked the grunge thing.
What about Fresno?
I need to start with a confession. While I have always had a passion for movies, it wasn't until I watched Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel slug it out on the PBS series "Sneak Previews" back in the late '70s and early '80s that it became clear how much I wanted to be a film critic.
Those guys were the ultimate verbal athletes. Each pounded away on the other with different opinions on the same movie. Their right hooks of cinema history background combined with a left jab of sarcasm was a joy to behold.
That's why the latest incarnation of their movie review show, "At the Movies," is such an insult to the movie criticism giants. If you have not seen it, and consider yourself lucky if you haven't, Ebert and his most recent co-host Richard Roeper have been replaced by two guys who should not even be allowed to write reviews for a prison newsletter. Yes, Ebert had to leave because of ill health. But instead of turning a good show into television's answer to an infected scab, the franchise should have ended.
But it goes on as a reminder that you can make a sow's ear out of a silk purse.
I'm posting this because I'm a musical geek. [Thanks, Stephen.]
So, to be fair, if McCain's people have done anything half as geeky and/or related to "Les Miserables," lemme know and I will be ecstatic to post that, too.
... And to think, I see this the same week as "West Wing" creator Aaron Sorkin gives NYTimes columnist Maureen Dowd a scene between Barack Obama and "former President" Jed Bartlet. (It's as though all my favorite Broadway and television shows are trying to tell me something.)
Michael's little sister is back on tour. This is one of her costumes. Honest. I'm not sure if she's channeling one of the skaters in "Starlight Express" or showing her audition outfit for the next "Star Trek" flick. And what's with the hair?
[Photo: Jeff Vinnick/Getty Images]
Tomorrow afternoon I have a phone interview scheduled with Joshua Allen, otherwise known as the winner of the latest season of "So You Think You Can Dance." The show's tour stops in Fresno Oct. 5. Allen was the mostly untrained, beefy-build hip-hop dancer who ended up dazzling the judges with his ability to dance everything from modern to classical ballet.
Here's your chance to ask him a question. Let me know what you'd like to know, and I'll try to get in as many reader questions as I can. You can leave a comment or send me an email.
Do you know who your wife's prom date was? How many times has your pree-teen daughter or son been kissed? What kind of detergent does your family use? That's what the new game show "Opportunity Knocks" wants to know. It debuts at 8 tonight on ABC.
The idea behind the ABC series is rather than have families travel to a sterile Hollywood sound stage or end up on some tropical island, the action will take place on the street outside their home.
Potential contestants have been prescreened. While they know they have a chance to be on the show, they aren't told in advance if they have been selected.
ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" kicked off Monday night. I'll be upfront: I watched parts of it. I missed others to check the laundry, read the newspaper, chase the cat and ask my husband to explain again to me where exactly the U.S. government is getting $700 billion to bail out CEOs who thought Wall Street was the Las Vegas strip.
So I missed Kim Kardashian and her trunk and the apparent disaster of comedian Jeffrey Ross. I saw part of 82-year-old Cloris Leachman (as feisty and disruptive as ever) and caught Lance Bass' funky routine (that I don't think had anything to do with the assigned dance step). If you want a complete recap, read this LA Times story, or this People take. The show continues tonight and one celeb (or, in some cases, quasi-celeb) will be eliminated.
But I'm so glad that I caught the end. Who would have thought Warren Sapp, a former NFL defensive tackle, would be so fun and spirited as a dancer? Don't believe me? See for yourself.
Yeah, you didn't see this coming, did you? How could you? He hid it so well.
All good things must come to an end, and with "[title of show,]" the spunky little Broadway musical that could, the end is coming a little sooner than some might have hoped. Playill reports that the show will play its final performance Oct. 12. The musical will have played 13 previews and 102 performances.
The show features Fresno's own Heidi Blickenstaff (pictured center), who got her start in Good Company Players and has since gone on to a strong Broadway career, which is why I've followed it so closely. "[title of show"] is the first time she's originated a major role on Broadway.
Don't look for the cast to give up without a fight, however, According to the show's blog, a full-fledged campaign is under way to try to sell out remaining performances so the show's run can continue. This is a show that made it to Broadway through Internet activism, after all. The current plan: to make a "save the show" video using photos of fans holding up the lyrics to the song "Nine People's Favorite Thing."
The band America had a hit song called "A Horse with No Name" and, dag nab it, folks: We've got that situation right now in Fresno. The Big Fresno Fair on Monday announced their donation that helped the Fresno Police Department acquire another horse for its four-footed fleet. (You can see video of the event here from Bee photographer Craig Kohlruss.)
The male horse was formally introduced, all spruced up and resplendent in his saddle and other gear. He's six years old, a lovely shade of brown and still in training. For now, he's called "Judge," but he needs a new name. You know, one that speaks to his crime-fighting profession or maybe just the way his looks speak to you. Or maybe something that reflects his last home, Los Angeles.
A naming contest will be held at the fair, which runs Oct. 1-13.
Won't you please help? The best I can come up with is stuff like "Fresno Fred" or "Fleet Street." I'm not exactly flowing with originality.
Anybody got some ideas?
As you protest ABC's National Stay At Home Week ...
1. Feel the Pain: Planet Asia and DJ Muggs are in town today to promote their collabo album, "Pain Language." DJ Muggs is the beatmaker for Cypress Hill and Asia, of course, is Fresno's most famous rapper.
He spends most of his time in L.A. these days, but today Asia and Muggs are here for an in-store at 5 p.m. at Sugarhill, then performing at 9 p.m. at Starline.
Here's a Q & A with Planet Asia from last Friday's paper that talks about the new project and his partnership with Muggs. To get a feel for what they're doing together, you can get a free download of "Pain Language: The Mixtape" at soulassassins.com.
Hannah Montana Hand Sanitizer: For when your Hannah Montana gummy guitars leave your hands all sticky.
Geez, they'll put this girl's name on anything and sell it, huh? How about a Hannah Montana voice-changer? It could make a 15-year-old girl sound like a 36-year-old man. What I'm saying is that Miley Cyrus sounds like a man.
Two years ago, "Heroes" exploded onto the television landscape. The mix of interesting super powered heroes with philosophical questions about the nature of good and evil made it one of the best shows of the year.
There wasn't a single disappointing episode that first season. Strangers, linked only by abilities far beyond those of mortal man, worked together to take on an ultimate evil. The series looked at friendship, loyalty, family and a host of other topics that often serve as the base for comic book-style adventures.
But "Heroes" lost its way last year. It did not fall out of the top 10 in quality. But the producers of the show got so sidetracked with the process of expanding the "Heroes" universe, they forgot to move the story along at the same compelling pace as year one. Part of it was not their fault. A writers strike cut the season short. But that ended up being merciful as season two was headed down the wrong path. Characters were too scattered. There did not seem to be a well-defined direction for their special skills or stories.
All is well for tonight's two-hour season opener at 9 p.m. on NBC.
For the most part, Hollywood stars and starlets struck the right fashion note for the Emmy Awards Sunday night. (My colleague Rick Bentley astutely graded the broadcast in today's Bee.)
Bare shoulders and one-shoulder creations dominated the red carpet. Colors were in abundance. Holly Hunter wore a chic, streamlined gown in lovely lavendar by Jenny Packham. Christina Applegate, who battled breast cancer this year, looked splendid in a one-shoulder blue and silver gown accented but not overwhelmed by a train. Kyra Sedgwick was the picture of sophistication in a white, diamonds-accented cocktail dress. Mariska Hargitay bested those who dared to wear yellow with a classic, one-shouldered dress (with a demure slit up the left leg)from Carolina Herrera. (Sorry Teri Hatcher, but your bright melon gown by Monique Lhuillier screamed: "Look at me! Look how sexy I am! LOOK AT ME!")
By the way, a huge shout out to the "mature" ladies of Hollywood, like Sedgwick and Hunter, for showing the younger crowd how it's done.
But not everyone looked stunning Sunday, starting with actor Alan Cumming (pictured here). Tell us who you thought tripped up fashionwise. Here are some other miscues we spotted:
Awesome! Cue Barney Stinson. (Sorry about the ad, y'all).
RELATED:
- The wait for new shows ends
- Proof that NPH makes everything better
- The 'How I Met Your Mother' debate -- checkmate, NPH
In case you missed it (and no one will blame you if you did), here is the only (intentionally) funny bit from last night's Emmys show:
Not laughing whilst the hilarious Ricky Gervais literally tickles him makes Steve Carell a comedy genius who deserves an Emmy next year for this performance alone.
I'm not smart or motivated. If I happen to have a good idea, it's usually after three or four drinks, and it disappears faster than my ability to make good decisions and handle heavy machinery. Therefore, I can't really fault others for their brilliant money-making ideas, as they clearly want it so much more than I do.
This one stings a little, though. In the same vein as LOL Cats and Fail blog, a new site called ROFLazzi has been created. Its hook? Putting funny captions on pictures of celebrities. You know -- what many of us have been doing already for years but never thought to sell advertising space for.
This one should have been mine, y'all. Should. Have. Been. Mine.
I'm laughing through the tears, though. Humorously misspelled captions on silly pictures gets me every damn time! I know I've said it before, but if I could marry the Internet, I would.
Get ready for another round of the cage-fighting-in-the-park debate, because promoter Rick Mirigian has announced a sequel to the controversial Rumble in the Park event.
This Rumble in the Park will include appearances by Tito Ortiz and Josh Koscheck. It's on the books for Nov. 1, a Saturday night. It's also a few days before the election, which is interesting since both mayoral candidates said they wouldn't allow future MMA events in the park.
GET WELL: The big celeb story of the weekend was the plane crash that killed four and left DJ A.M. and ex-Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker in critical condition. Both suffered severe burns, but are expected to make full recoveries. Last month the duo released the now-unfortunately named mixtape, "Fix Your Face."
SUCKS: TMZ is reporting that pictures of Jamie Lynn Spears breast-feeding her daughter were stolen from a Louisiana Wal-Mart, where they were taken to get printed. Yes, the Spears clan goes to Wal-Mart to get its pictures printed. Which when you think about it, should surprise no one.
BOX OFFICE BLUES: Apparently the best the box office could muster this weekend is Samuel L. Jackson yelling, "You didn't ask my permission to plant these trees!" at his neighbors. Yep, "Lakeview Terrace" was No. 1 at the box office. Good news for Dane Cook haters, "My Best Friend's Girl" -- predicted by some to open No. 1 -- came in at No. 3 and pulled in only 8 million bucks.
HACKED: A note to Bill O'Reilly, hackers don't follow the typical talking-head protocol of debating you on TV when you insult them. They just hack your stuff, too. Watch your mouth, yo.
I just started watching the first season of "Mad Men" on DVD this weekend, so I know I'm late to the party when I say:
Yowza. Where did Jon Hamm come from and how have I never noticed him before?
A quick glance at his IMDb page proves he hasn't been in anything I would have seen (lots of lame TV shows -- not good/lame, boring/lame), so I can see how he'd fly under my and many people's radars. However, the time to remedy this is now.
The man is Clooney-er than Clooney, and that needs to be recognized. Granted, I've not seen or heard Jon Hamm say things in real life, so he could be Captain Douche-inski of the Douche Army, but I'm willing to give him a pass for his voice alone.
Behold:
I only caught about four minutes of the Emmys (thank Yoda it was the four minutes featuring the amazing Ricky Gervais), so I can't really comment on what went down this evening. All I can offer is this:
What. The. S***. Is. Happening. Here?
Singing the "Fresh Prince of Bel Air" theme song is what you do when you're drunk and hanging out with your friends. Shame on whoever tapped this Josh Groban guy to do it in front of the world.
Seriously. Did you see the part where he sang the "South Park" theme? Did you?
RELATED: Emmys Liveblogging
Best Week Ever
Dlisted (nsfw)
Entertainment Weekly (preshow)
Hot off the presses: Here's the video, shot by the most excellent Will Albritton, from last night's final dress rehearsal. What was it like out there under the lights, caked with makeup and blue eye glitter, squeezed into black tights, singing in falsetto, jumping with a walker? Everything you'd expect: Scary, fun, a blur. An adrenaline rush. Somehow, the theater miracle happened once again: bringing 25 cast members, hundreds of costume changes, 23 songs and 16 walkers into a coordinated whole that is somehow much more than the sum of its parts.
Here's the exciting news (or the not so exciting, if you have absolutely no interest in me dressed as a Little Old Lady): I'll be performing one "bonus" performance at the Sunday matinee on Sept. 28. I'd better not forget my dance steps.
I'm dead tired this afternoon. Will finish my final blog entry on my actual performance -- with more photos -- after a good, long nap. Until then, check out Will's video.
UPDATE 9/20: For those who found your way here from my story in Sunday's Spotlight section -- complete with abbreviated timeline so that those who don't want a heavy reading load can get the condensed version -- welcome to this blog series. On the jump, I finish up the series with more on my Good Company Players debut and some final thoughts about this whole wacky experience.
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Previously on the Beehive:
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 1)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 2)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 3)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 4)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 5)
---------------------------------------------------
About this blog series: The tables are turned on The Bee's theater critic as he joins the ensemble for one number in "The Producers." He'll go through the rehearsal process and will make his Good Company Players debut at the final dress rehearsal.
One of the joys of a film festival such as Reel Pride is the chance to watch short films. The whole short-film genre seems to be undergoing a renaissance these days, and one of the reasons is the Internet: You can easily catch a "performance" online. Getting to see short films on a big screen is still relatively rare, however, and that's where a festival can be so advantageous.
On this last day of the festival, there are two major opportunities to indulge in short films: the "Afternoon Delights" (Boys' Shorts) program (2 p.m., Tower Theatre) and the "Directors' Cut Shorts" (4:30 p.m., Starline) followed by the filmmakers' forum.
The Boys' Shorts program offers films that generally trend more toward the accessible (and some downright risque). "The Postcard," about a young man writing love notes to his mail carrier, is one of my favorites because of its crisp, sweet ambiance. "El Primo" (The Cousin)" has a tender, unresolved vulnerability that lingers. And for those looking for explicit nudity, the voyeuristic "The Window" will likely be a favorite.
The Directors' Cut Shorts trend more toward the cutting-edge, from the experimental French film "Selene Narcis" (weird and nearly inpenetrable) to the strange "The Red Dress" (light and bizarre). One of the great things about short films is that if you don't care for a particular title, you can soon move on to the next offering. That's the way I felt about the overly arch "3 Stories About Evil," which uses an interesting technique (stringing still images together) but tries a little too hard to be shockingly wry.
TWO HIGHLIGHTS: Don't forget the festival's centerpiece documentary feature, "A Jihad for Love" (noon, Tower Theatre), which I've already seen and recommend, and "XXY" (7:30 p.m., Tower Theatre, note that the printed catalog says 8:30 p.m. but I think that's a typo), about a teen-ager with ambiguous genitalia, which I haven't yet seen but look forward to, topped off by the closing-night gala open to all ticket and pass holders.
AND FINALLY: A hearty Fresno welcome to Yvonne Johnson from Ohio, who came all the way to our fair city just for Reel Pride -- and who seems to be having a blast.
-----------------------------------------------
Previously on the Beehive:
Reel Pride, Day 1
Reel Pride, Day 2
Reel Pride, Day 3
Reel Pride, Day 4
Reel Pride programmer Stephen Mintz reports that excitement has been high at some of the festival's centerpiece offerings, including Thursday's world premiere of "To Each Her Own":
The film was so well received (an actual lesbian film with genuine situations and an actual happy ending!), the stars from Toronto were swarmed all night long by autograph seekers (another fairly new first for Reel Pride). It's been overwhelming for the two stars and director, but they should get used to it, as they're signed to many more festivals to come.
One person told me that he saw the film's director, Heather Tobin, at the Landmark after the screening, and she seemed on top of the world.
Today's festival schedule is a strong lineup, including a couple of top picks: "Clapham Junction" (1 p.m., Tower) and "Laughing Matters: The Next Generation" (5:30 p.m., Starline). You can click here for mini-reviews from me and Rick Bentley.
On the jump: My thoughts on tonight's centerpiece film, "The World Unseen."
-----------------------------------------------
Previously on the Beehive:
Reel Pride, Day 1
Reel Pride, Day 2
Reel Pride, Day 3
Loved the "Dinosaurs." Hated the box office.
Only if Clovis Fest isn't already taking up your entire weekend ...
1. Catch some local awesomeness. Three Bags Full, The Bungalow Downs and The Notones -- should rock the spot at Club Fred tonight with jazz, funk and reggae. Fresh music and some fresh flier artwork too.
Now that the weekend is here, the heavy schedule of films in the Reel Pride gay and lesbian film festival begins in earnest. Rick Bentley and I have a recap of some of this weekend's films in Friday's 7 section, including our two top remaining picks of the festival: "Clapham Junction" and "Laughing Matters: The Next Generation."
Last night featured the first world premiere film in the fesitval's history: "To Each Her Own." How'd it go? Any reader reviews? (Anyone? Anyone? Come on, gay and lesbian film lovers: What'd YOU think? I can't see every film in the festival, especially when I'm off doing dinosaur duty.)
Here's the schedule for Friday:
Obviously, Friday is party night.
-----------------------------------------------
Previously on the Beehive:
Reel Pride, Day 1
Reel Pride, Day 2
Yoda knows I love a good Top 10 List. So when my friend sent me Film Junk's list of the Top 10 Biggest Movie Douchebags, I was all over it.
After sifting through some pretty lame lists, I think I've finally found one that really knows, and adheres to, the category:
10. Caledon Hockley from "Titanic"
9. Steve Stifler from "American Pie"
8. Carter Burke from "Aliens"
7. Frank T.J. Mackey from "Magnolia"
6. Chet Donnelly from "Weird Science"
5. Ernie McCracken from "Kingpin"
4. Simon from "True Lies"
3. Walter Peck from "Ghostbusters"
2. Shannon Hamilton from "Mallrats"
1. Biff Tannen from "Back to the Future"
I would probably switch out Simon from "True Lies" for O'Bannion from "Dazed and Confused," but other than that, not a bad list. I fully agree with the top three, and Biff Tannen as number one (especially after seeing "Back to the Future" again last night.)
What do you guys think? How well do you know your movie douchebags?
Yeah, so AC/DC's "Black Ice" world tour -- the band's first since 2001 -- doesn't have a Fresno date on its itinerary, but since AC/DC is a band that people might put some miles on the odometer to check out, here are the California dates:
Dec. 2: Oracle Arena (Oakland)
Dec. 6: The Forum (Inglewood)
Tickets for the SoCal show go on sale Saturday and the Oakland show goes on sale Sunday. Word is the cities that went on sale this morning were selling out in 15 and 30 minutes.
I'm sure AC/DC will announce more dates eventually, so maybe Fresno will make that list.
In other AC/DC news: The "Black Ice" album will be out on Oct. 20 and sold exclusively at Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and acdc.com.
Here's the video for AC/DC's "Rock N' Roll Train," which debuted today:
Here's what caught my eyes and ears in recent days:
You don't normally think of a gargantuan place like the Save Mart Center as a theater -- but then again, when your actors are the height of a three-story building, you need a lot of room for them to roam around. With the big, brute beasts wowing near-sold-out crowds in "Walking With Dinosaurs" through Sunday at the Save Mart, it's clear that Fresno is in the grip of Dinosaur Fever. I caught the Thursday evening show, and while I'm not precisely the target demographic for this all-out-spectacular, I do have to echo what lots of other folks are saying about the performance: It's mighty impressive.
When you walk into the arena, you notice that the seats closest to the floor have been purposefully kept vacant. Once the show starts, it's easy to see why. The dinosaurs' massive tails have a habit of sweeping out over the boundaries of the arena floor. (Imagine the fright to a 4-year-old of actually getting whacked with a massive tail.) The amazing thing is that the tails delicately skirt the bevy of lights ringing the performance space as the "creatures" clomp around. Who knew that dinosaurs could be so dainty?
-------------------------------------------------------
Previously on the Beehive:
The hottest ticket in town?
I didn't think anything could beat the Pac-Man helmets seen the other day at London Fashion Week.
But this footwear from British-based designers Aminaka Wilmont is even more ridiculous:
If that's not bad enough, look at these creations. They might give you ideas for Halloween:
Welcome to another week of Post No Bills -- a weekly look at what's going on in Fresno brought to you exclusively by FresnoBeehive.com.
Post No Bills is the largest collection of Fresno concert, club and event fliers anywhere on the Web. It's also proof that anybody who says there's nothing to do in Fresno is either crazy or lazy. So sit back, give your browser a minute to load and take a look at various happenings.
As always, we welcome contributions bands, artists, venues, promoters and regular joes. Send flier links to mosegueda@fresnobee.com.
Remember a few weeks ago when Sean "Diddy" Combs complained that gas prices are so high he can't fuel up his private jet anymore? Then, when the truth came out that he doesn't actually own a private jet, he posted a video online proudly claiming that he does, indeed, own the wing of jet (and it's his wing!).
This is what happens when you try to make yourself appear to be a bigger douchebag than you are, thereby revealing that you are, indeed, an even bigger bigger douchebag than you originally intended to be. Or something. Check it out:
The Set Up
"The Producers," the Mel Brooks movie that became a play that became a movie, opened Thursday night at Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater. Its the story of two guys who convince a large group of backers to invest in their Broadway show. After you see the local performance, it will be easy to understand why anyone would be willing to invest cash in a theater production. You'll be moved to hand over a few more bucks to see it again before it ends its run Nov. 9.
As it was in the movie, play, movie, the local stage production of "The Producers" is an over-the-top funfest. There aren't many shows that actually encourage the players to be as big and broad as possible. Brooks' script takes every character - whether they be Swedish or German - and amps them up to be like a cartoon character.
But that is the kind of energy needed for dinner theater. And the small cast of this local production showed enough energy to power perpetual laughter from opening number to closing tune.
Talk Like a Pirate Day, which falls on Sept. 19, has a special meaning for me. One, because I'm a Bucs fan; and two, because it's the date I chose to propose to my wife (no, I didn't say, "Arghh ya gonna marry me? -- but it would admittedly have been a much cooler story if I had).
Anyway, here are some tips on how to talk like a pirate today:
And, to get you in the mood, a "Yo Ho" sing-along:
One of my favorite comedies comes back on the air tonight: "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia." The appeal of the show can be summed up in three words: It's totally demented.
It's been said that "It's Always Sunny ..." is like "Seinfeld" on crack -- following the twisted antics of a quartet of young bar workers/sometimes friends and a crazed Danny DeVito.
Since the show is on FX, it's almost no-holds-barred when it comes to language and content. It's not HBO, but it goes about as far as cable can go.
You can read more about the show in this story by The Beehive's TV go-to guy Rick Bentley. You can also check out this promo video for tonight's return that I found on MySpace:
In a week when financial disasters hovered over Wall Street and the nation's creaking economy, Brit artist Damien Hirst was pulling in a freakin' boat load of money at an auction of his work. In two days, 220 pieces sold for $200.8 million, exceeding expectations.
So, how did the opening night of the Reel Pride gay and lesbian film festival go? I walked by Samba Tower at about 11 pm last night, and it looked like the place was hopping.
On the schedule tonight: the world premiere of "To Each Her Own" (8:30 p.m., Tower Theatre), which I wrote about in my Sunday roundup piece on the festival. Another highlight is "Boystown" (6:15 p.m., Tower Theatre), described as "outrageous new comedy from Spain" about a guy named Victor who is acting a bit too eager to gentrify Madrid's Chueca district by "eliminating those tenants that he doesn't feel fit in with his vision of a perfectly gay and trendy neighborhood."
My colleague Rick Bentley previewed the documentary "black./womyn.: conversations with lesbians of African descent" (6 p.m., Starline). He writes:
There is no question the 49 black lesbians, ages 18-60, interviewed by director Tiona M. have something important things to say. In fact, they say it again and again. A lack of imagination on the director's part that leaves this documentary nothing more than a series of talking heads blunts what should have been the most powerful and real offering of the festival. Grade: B-
If you need a little That's What She Said action and you can't wait until next Thursday's premiere of "The Office," might I suggest you try "Hole in the Wall." See? There's one already.
I'm not vouching for "Hole in the Wall" being a good show or anything like that, rather I speak for its That's What She Said inspirability.
Each competition on this show -- which airs at 8 p.m. Thursdays and has people trying to jump through holes in oncoming walls -- starts with an announcer saying "Are you ready to face the hole in the wall?"
In just watching the show for a half hour last Thursday, I chuckled at the following:
From the creative geniuses behind a recent highlight reel of Parker's antics throughout the season, Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus 'Ride Your Kid's Coattails' Night, Totally Rad '80s Night featuring that Cobra Kai dude, K-Fed Night, Thirsty Thursdays, the Ball Girl-Gatorade video, letting me throw out the first pitch and, of course, letting me take my shirt off, comes the funniest thing I've seen all day -- watching a goofy mascot prank the behind-the-scenes employees who work for the Fresno Grizzlies:
They're apparently doing this on a weekly basis during the offseason, so check out future installments at fresnogrizzlies.com.
No set up necessary, other than:
This is the highlight of my week.
Chick Fil-A is the new Krispy Kreme. And I mean that in two ways: 1. Chick Fil-A, which opens today, is occupying the old Krispy Kreme space at Blackstone and Nees. 2. It's already inspired some crazy fandom, akin to when Krispy Kreme opened its doors.
Biz reporter Bethany Clough tells us about people camping out since yesterday for today's opening. The catch is that the first 100 people in line get free Chick-Fil-A meals for a year. Here's a video from the scene by The Bee's Mark Crosse.
So now that the doors are open -- who's going? Tell us if Chick-Fil-A lives up to the hype.
RELATED:
- Is camping out for chicken crazy? [News Blog]
I was at Fresno State yesterday and was surprised that when I drove past the Save Mart Center at 11 a.m. there was a decent sized line at the box office. In fact, there have been similar lines a lot lately. The motivation? The "Walking With Dinosaurs" show.
"Dinosaurs" debuted last night to a sell-out audience. With seven more shows through Sunday, ticket sales are expected to keep going strong, as Fresno has caught a bit of Dinosaur fever.
The behind-the-scenes folks are already talking about the possibility of getting close to 50,000 people there for the show's run. That would be impressive, considering the economy and all.
So what do you think about "Walking with Dinosaurs?" Is it the water-cooler discussion where you're at? Are you excited about the show's run? Anybody see the "Dinosaurs" yet? If so, what did you think? Leave your reviews here.
RELATED LINKS
- Walking With Dinosaurs @ Ticketmaster
The entertainment world is full of stories where a member of the chorus has been spotted by a wily producer. With a shout of "Kid, I'm goin' make you a star," that face in the crowd goes from supporting player to star.
Donald Munro won't be one of those stories.
As you have read in his blog, Munro agreed to step out of the role of Fresno Bee critic to take to the stage in a pair of granny shoes. He has spent weeks rehearsing to be one of the little old ladies who get scammed by Max Bialystock in the play "The Producers." The show begins its run at the Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater tonight.
The show will run through Nov. 9. But it closed last night for Munro. His theater experiment would not actually involve any performance where patrons had to pay money.
Felicia showed you some of the strange runway looks from London. Here's a taste of what's on display at Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week in Spain:
The weird:
You gotta love London Fashion Week.
The serious attempts at haute couture in that Brit city are always overshadowed by zany, clunky, trippy, and outright insane creations. I don't know if the designers have a secret contest to see who can outdo the others in pulling our legs, or if they think this shows off their bloody brilliance, or if, actually, they think we would wear any of this. (To be fair, Spain's Fashion Week is floating some bizarre, strange clothing ideas.)
The spotlight is supposed to be on fashion for Spring 2009. But, so far, my eyes have been pulled toward butterfly on netting motifs hugging faces, incredibly uncomfortable looking shoes and headgear like the one pictured here. It's either a huge motorcycle helmet, or mobile silence chamber to isolate the wearer from the outside world.
Or maybe it's a Halloween costume ... of what, I have no idea.
Here's just a sample of what's on the swinging London runways:
Slipknot fans -- you're on notice. Mick Thomson, the masked metal band's guitar player, will be in Fresno on Thursday to sign autographs at Spitzer Sound Stage.
The event starts at 7 p.m. and is free to the public. It's one of two autograph signings Thomson (aka No. 7) is doing in California this week through Ibanez guitars. He's in Sacramento on Friday.
Sound Stage is expecting a crowd of "anywhere between 100 and 500 people." The music store has already fielded calls from people as far away as Arizona who say they're flying in for the autograph signing.
Slipknot fans are a dedicated bunch.
Tuesday, Sept. 16
Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater
It's 11:30 p.m. I'm tired. My eyes hurt. And once again -- after most of the rest of the cast members have gotten to go home at the end of this second night of tech rehearsal -- I'm paired up with my damn walker. It's reached the point where I'm dreaming about walkers: the sturdy rubber soles clacking against the floor on the beat; the plastic grips solid in my hands as I execute a top-to-bottom spin; the strong metal frame supporting my hunched-over form as I shuffle across the stage.
I both love and hate my walker: I embrace its stark silver aesthetic. I admire its utilitarianism. Yet I loathe the increased space it forces me to displace as I move through the world. (Ever try to run through a dark hallway with a walker?) Even years from now, when I walk through a park or squeeze into an elevator or maneuver through a 2nd Space Theatre Sunday matinee, I will never pass a walker again without thinking of Max Bialystock having carnal relations with a whole pack of little old ladies, some of whom need to shave.
Why so late with the walker tonight? Because there's a minor emergency to repair in the "Along Came Bialy" number, the one in which I make a brief appearance in "The Producers," and because there won't be an opportunity to makes the fixes before tomorrow night's final dress rehearsal. Yes, we're talking about that dress rehearsal, the one where I will perform in front of a real live audience.
Director Fred Bologna decided that it's taking too long for the Little Old Ladies to get out on stage for the walker part of the number. It was one thing to practice the moves in the rehearsal hall, where we could cheat a little and ignore the lines on the floor designating the entrance to the stage. But when you have to cram people into a dark, narrow hallway, the walker procession is looking more like rush hour on the 405. Bologna's solution: to have the third row, of which I'm a member, to come in from stage left instead of right.
Since I'm at the end of the line, that means that instead of merely tagging along after everyone -- relying on those in front of me to figure out the exact musical cue -- I'm going to be leading off the whole procession. And the first time I do it will be in front of a live audience. Oy.
--------------------------------------------------
Previously on the Beehive:
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 1)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 2)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 3)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 4)
---------------------------------------------------
About this blog series: The tables are turned on The Bee's theater critic as he joins the ensemble for one number in "The Producers." He'll go through the rehearsal process and will make his Good Company Players debut at the final dress rehearsal.
How ironic. When MTV launched in 1981, the first video it played was The Buggles' "Video Killed the Radio Star."
Now, MTV is basically killing off videos. The cable network announced this week that it's pulling the plug on "TRL" (or "Total Request Live.") The show, which debuted in 1998 and helped ignite the careers of Britney Spears and different boy bands, airs its last episode in November.
So how can MTV still call itself Music Television? Videos will be practically non-existent on the reality-TV driven network. How can it possibly host its annual Music Video Awards so that Spears can keep making comebacks? Does this mean Lauren Conrad and her crew at "The Hills" will get even more face time? Will they try to talk Tila Tequila into more fake dating shows?
And where will Mariah Carey have her next meltdown? That was a class TRL moment. As The Washington Post's Monica Hesse wonderfully put it this week: "Flashback, summer of 2001: A glassy-eyed Carey unexpectedly wanders onto the set and begins to wriggle out of her T-shirt. 'All I know is, I want one day off when I can go swimming and look at rainbows and, like, eat ice cream,' she says dreamily, as host Carson Daly's chuckles grow increasingly panicked. 'And maybe, like, learn to ride a bicycle.'"
As Hesse wrote: "Insta-classic."
"Smallville" has been one of the least appreciated shows on network television since it launched in the 2001 television season. Many probably skipped it because they were not fans of comic books. But those early years were more about a family dealing with a special needs child than about battling super villains.
The formula of teen angst, young love and growing up made this a first-rate series for several seasons. "Smallville" lost its way last year with distracting storylines about secret organizations, the complexity of Kryptonian parenting and a more sinister Lex Luther (Michael Rosenbaum).
The producers did delay for several years having the character fly. They have held to the promise he will not wear brightly colored tights. They have faltered in the promise to keep this a quality show.
A new chapter in the "Smallville" saga begins Thursday. And the show appears to be back on the right path toward truth, justice and the American way of making good television drama.
HIDE YOUR TOWELS: Tark is back! He's teaming with ex-Fresno State guard Dominick Young to be a "cameo coach" for Fresno's ABA franchise, which is changing its name to the Fresno Rebels. [The Bee]
FABRICATED? Bill McEwen suspects that our beloved sausage-beating story might, in fact, be processed garbage. But, Bill, it's so delicious. [The Bee]
NOT TO BE: No matter who is the next mayor of Fresno, it doesn't look like there will be another cage-fighting event in the Woodward Park Amphitheatre. And the winner, by knock-out ... Shakespeare! [Opinion Talk]
FOREVER FAIL: Fashion retailer Forever 21 released a statement saying nearly 98,930 credit and debit card numbers were stolen from its system since 2004 and that 20,500 of those came from a Fresno store. Just a hunch, but that's not good, right? [OC Retail]
AND NOW GOOD NEWS FROM THE MALL: Fresno make-up artist Stephanie Niswander is a finalist in Sephora's Pro Beauty Team aka it's search for "the best Sephora makeup artists ever?" [Beauty and The Blog]
1.21 GIGAWATTS: Thursday night there's a showing of "Back to the Future" at Flashback Flicks and the dudes from "The Dumb ..." are having a gathering to get drunk first celebrate George McFly. [The Dumb]
BLOGGERADERIE: Fresno Magazine has a new editor, but the same ol' crappy blog. Let's hope the intern who got promoted can fix that. [Cision Media Updates]
WORD! Fresno rapper Fashawn keeps getting love from the hip-hop press. This time he's part of the G4 Network's Freestyle 101 series, which got him so love on the No. 1 hip-hop blog Nah Right. [Blog Me Down]
It was a wonderful and wild ride while it lasted.
Robert Downey Jr. showed up to the London premiere of "Tropic Thunder" Monday looking like this:
Maybe I'm projecting, but sans 'stache, it appears the light has left RDJ's eyes. Let's look back at the pornstache in gladder times, and remember how that glorious strip of upper lip hair made us all feel just a little happier to be alive:
Let the festival begin.
From its humble beginnings in a classroom at Fresno State, the Reel Pride gay and lesbian film festival has come a long way. Now in its 19th year, it offers 68 films (the most ever in the festival's history) in two venues over five days.
The festivities get under way 7 p.m. today at the Tower Theatre with the opening night film, "Ruby Blue," pictured above, starring Bob Hoskins as a widower living in a working-class English seaside town who develops an unlikely relationship with a French neighbor. You can see the trailer here. I actually didn't care for this film all that much (and, in fact, consider it one of the weaker films of the festival), but don't let me put a damper on your opening-night spirit too much. Everyone knows that the film itself is just part of the experience.
Tickets to "Ruby Blue" are $20 and include the opening night gala at Samba Tower (in the old Daily Planet space.) Plenty of food, drink and dancing will be on hand.
As far as the Beehive goes, consider this your space for the latest news, reviews and festival highlights. I'll be posting some late reviews as the festival goes on, and I'd love to get a sampling of audience comments on individual titles. You can start things off by telling me if you agree with my take on "Ruby Blue."
Dear Internet,
I love you.
Your biggest fan,
Heather McLane
**SPOILER ALERT** (Unless you're over 15)
So, I admit that I have been watching the new "90210" since it debuted three weeks ago. It's not a good show - I knew it wouldn't be - but I was hanging on in the interest of gleaning whatever little scrap of information I could about my beloved Kelly, Brandon, Dylan, David, Steve, Donna and yes, even Brenda. For you see, the original "Beverly Hills, 90210" is not dead to me; the twice daily episodes shown on Soapnet continue to nourish my 90s style soap opera loving soul, and these characters have become like old friends to me. (No, I'm not kidding. Yes, you may mock me.)
Last night, however, the one major piece of information that had yet to be revealed about the former characters finally came to light, which means I no longer have to suffer through Annie ("new Brenda") gesticulating wildly and over articulating each word, or Naomi ("new Kelly") flaring her nostrils and furrowing her brow whenever she is required to look sad.
So about that last piece of information: it's the identity of Kelly Taylor's baby daddy. We knew he had history with her in high school, and that, according to Kelly, he is a "do-gooder" who spends his time traveling the world in charitable pursuits (which do not include being in his son's life, apparently).
Finally, after weeks (weeks!) of speculation, we know for sure that Kelly Taylor had a baby with this guy:
I know that we steer away from hot-and-heavy presidential politics on the Beehive, but this one definitely veers toward "Saturday Night Live" territory. It seems that Ralph Nader (remember him?) is so discouraged about lack of coverage for his campaign that he has filmed a commercial of himself unloading his woes on a parrot named Cardozo. And you thought that the campaign couldn't get any weirder ...
[Via andrewsullivan.com]
Of Sarah Palin's many talents -- gun-shooting, tanning, looking like Tina Fey, to name just a few -- one of the most admirable is her knack for nifty names. She brought into the world children named Track, Trig, Bristol, Willow and Piper.
So it should come as no surprise that the Internets have brought into the world a Sarah Palin Baby Name Generator. Just plug in a name and it Palin-izes you. Fun, right? We certainly thought so.
Here's the Fresno edition:
Henry T. Perea = Commando Coalfire Palin
Ashley Swearengin = Hen Waffle Palin
Pat Hill = Barrel McRaven Palin
Kopi Sotiropulos = Clamp Noodle Palin
Graciela Moreno = Dust Chinstrap Palin
Alan Autry = Lock Pepper Palin
A new study of 6,500 traveling executives says 35 percent of them would choose their PDA over their spouse. According to CBS TV:
Of those polled, 87 percent said they bring their devices into the bedroom.
Another 84 percent check their e-mails just before they go to sleep. Another 80 percent check them in the morning as soon as they get up. "It can actually ruin relationships," said Dr. Susan Bartell, a psychologist and relationship expert. Bartell said couples should be interfacing more, but with each other. Of those polled, 62 percent said they love their blackberry or PDA, and most of them said it makes their life more productive.
What say you, Beehivers? Should the bedroom be a Blackberry-free zone?
Is this the worst public butchering of the national anthem? No. It's just the most recent.
[Source: Dlisted]
It's never funny when manorexia strikes, but in this case, it's not only ridiculously unfunny, it's so loud, obnoxious and punchline-free, I want to poke it in the eye and tell it to shut up, shut up, shut uuuuuup.
Previously on the Beehive:
Hey, what happened to Ben Affleck's face?
Hey, what happened to Adrien Brody's face?
Hey, what happened to Madonna's face?
[Source: Popsugar]
Each morning when I wake up, I move straight to the computer before even brushing the sleep from my eyes, eager to see what's going on in the world (and by "world," I of course mean the gossip sites).
Today, I went right to Best Week Ever, only to find this photo of the world's smallest man, He Pingping, taking shelter between the legs of Svetlana Pankratova, the woman with the world's longest gams.
I can't decide if this photo (which looks to me like Brigitte Nielsen just dropped a fully dressed child from her womb) is the greatest thing I've ever seen, or the harbinger of a very, very slow gossip news day, so I'm going back to bed where decisions like these do not have to be made.
Good day to you.
Yesterday was Amy Winehouse's 25th birthday. Rather than attend a party in her honor, young Amy decided to stay at home, complaining that she is "too ugly" to go out, and leaving guests Mark Ronson, Adele and her own mom without a guest of honor on this most momentous of occasions.
Contrary to history and general inclination, I am not going to condemn Amy for this; instead I offer her these words of condolence:
Dear Amy,
I feel you, sweetie. Maybe it's because the timing of our respective births is separated by mere hours (and some years), but I believe I understand what you were going through last night. There has been many a time when I felt too ugly to go out, too.
You probably worried about the teeth that have fallen out from all the crack; I have worried that my shade of lip gloss was unbecoming. The skin infection you got from all that crack probably weighed on your mind; I have often wondered if I could be a shade more tan. And finally, the weight loss from consuming all that crack instead of food, I'm sure, messed with your head a little; I too have wished for a slightly rounder ass.
In short, we're one and the same, sister girlfriend, and I wish you nothing but happiness and good health as you turn a quarter of a century old. To remind you that you are beautiful, no matter how many illegal narcotics you stuff into your ever-frailer shell of a corpse what they say, I present a photo collection of you, Amy Winehouse, at your loveliest. Happy Birthday, doll.
I've been looking forward to this week of concerts for a while -- Al Green and Aesop Rock back-to-back is enough to make me happy. The rest of the week filled out nicely too, with a few cool rock bands on the way, as well some other treats.
Instead of doing a Five Things You Should Do ... post, I'll just rundown the cool stuff.
Today: Lions Fay Wrays, Beastmaker, Tokyo Death March
UPDATE: Looks like Lions canceled the show tonight at Club Fred -- but Fay Wrays, Beastmaker and Tokyo Death March are still playing tonight. Sorry, Lions fans.
Fresno's Roy Christopher picked up his 10th Emmy statue during ceremonies Saturday night. That was when the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences presented the 2007-2008 Creative Arts Primetime Emmys.
The latest Emmy win for Christopher was in the outstanding art direction for variety, music or nonfiction programming category. And if you saw the show you know why he won.
Christopher picked up the nomination for his work on the "80th Annual Academy Awards." It was the 18th time the Fresno State graduate had been the designer of the annual tribute to the film world's best. If Christopher should decide to retire, the Oscar people who have him cloned.
This is the eighth time Christopher has won an Emmy for his work on the Oscars telecast. The other two Emmys were earned for his set design work for the television series "Frasier" and "The Richard Pryor Show."
Even with this win, Christopher is not near the record for most Emmy victories by an individual. That's a record shared by director James L. Brooks and sound editor Edward J. Greene. Both have 19 Emmys.
The rest of this year's winners will be announced when the "60th Primetime Emmy Awards" air at 8 p.m. Sunday on KFSN, Channel 30.
This is another great honor for one of the nicest gentlemen you would ever want to meet.
Please don't call me about the picture with this blog. I know it is not this year's design.
Sunday, Sept. 14
Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater
Even though the phrase might sound vaguely AFL-CIOish, "striking the set" is not a labor action demanding more money for actors. The term refers to taking down the set from the old show and building the new one. Because the last performance of Good Company's "Chicago" was the Sunday matinee, which got over about 3:30 pm, that doesn't give much time to set up for "The Producers," which needs to be completely ready by Monday night for the first tech rehearsal.
How to make the transition? A highly efficient operation has evolved that relies on the casts of both the outgoing and ingoing shows. Six times a year, like clockwork, Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater is a frenzy of activity for a couple of hours as the changeover is made. This isn't just a volunteer gig: If you're in either of the shows, you're expected to pitch in and help -- regardless if you've got the biggest starring role or the tiniest ensemble part. People are assigned to one of several strike crews, including lights, props, costumes, set construction and the always popular task of cleaning dressing rooms that haven't had a thorough airing out for a couple of months.
I grabbed my camera and decided to make this installment of my "Producers" adventure a photo blog. On the jump: lots more pics.
--------------------------------------------------
Previously on the Beehive:
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 1)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 2)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 3)
---------------------------------------------------
About this blog series: The tables are turned on The Bee's theater critic as he joins the ensemble for one number in "The Producers." He'll go through the rehearsal process and will make his Good Company Players debut at the final dress rehearsal.
I don't know how many commercials Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld have coming, but here's their latest plug for Gates' company, Microsoft. I didn't think their first one -- shopping for cheap shoes in a mall -- was all that funny. This one shows a little more promise: The two humongously rich men are trying to reconnect with regular people by living with a real family.
This is the long version, at 4 1/2 minutes, and it's already gotten more than 1 million hits on YouTube. The deadpan production has some cute bits, like the dinner table scene when Gates asks, "Didn't we have this yesterday?" Seinfeld underneath his breath replies: "Put some cheese on it." Of course, there are other parts that fall flat, like the daughter catching Seinfeld clipping his toenails. I could have done without that visual.
We've handed out the first in what we hope is a regular series of ticket giveaways to our loyal readers and commenters.
Dave got hooked up with three tickets to Wednesday's debut of the "Walking With Dinosaurs" show at Save Mart Center. You might have noticed Dave commenting lately about his distaste for Cabo Wabo. We hope he likes "Dinosaurs" a little bit more.
Here's how the ticket giveaways will work: It's pretty discreet -- when we have something to give away, we'll randomly pick someone who has commented on The Beehive in the previous week. We have some super crazy technology that can do this and make it totally random. If you win, we'll shoot you an e-mail then shout you out on the site.
So keep the comments coming and you never know when you might be rewarded with ticket awesomeness.
Here it is, folks: Tina Fey playing the part she was born to play (sorry, Gina Gershon).
Enjoy.
[source: NBC]
Good lord, what attached itself to Ben Affleck's melon? That wig/beard combo is so atrocious, even his daughter, Violet, doesn't want to be seen anywhere near it lest it ruin her rep at Tiny Tots.
All right, H-Mac groupies it's time for you to jump to attention and pledge your undying adoration to The Beehive's snarktress Heather McLane, on the anniversary of her birth. I'm cheating a little bit. Her birthday is not until tomorrow -- but today is Friday, the best day for this kind of thing.
In honor of her birthday, I present H-Mac with the following five gifts:
1. A poorly Photoshopped picture of her and her love Jim Halpert.
You know, if you're looking for something other than that football game ...
1. Meet Sparklepopshop™. You like what I did there, huh? Took the names of three beloved Fresno bands -- The Trike Shop, Sparklejet and Poplord, who are all playing tonight at Club Fred -- and turned them into one Voltron-like being.
CAST CHANGE: In the Good Company Players production of "Doubt," Teresa K. Gipson in a scheduled cast change on Thursday took over the role of Mrs. Muller -- the mother of the boy who may be part of a child-abuse scandal -- through the remainder of the run. She replaces Christina Huerta. From what I hear, Gipson (pictured with Tessa Cavalletto, who gives a powerhouse performance as Sister Aloysius) takes a noticeably different approach to the role. Because this play by John Patrick Shanley is so open to audience interpretation, it will be interesting for audiences to see a different dynamic on stage. You can read my review of the original cast here.
VENTOUX UPDATE: In his Beehive interview for "Hamlet" posted today, Adam Meredith makes reference to the fact that Theatre Ventoux is "on hold" for now. I checked with artistic director Greg Taber, who confirmed the information:
We are on a temporary hiatus. Our fall production of 'Glass Menagerie' is off. We are planning to be be back in the spring with a play titled "The Anastasia Trials in the Court of Women," and we may have something in the Rogue Festival. There is also a good possibility that we will be handling Woodward Shakespeare Festival's staged reading of "Romeo and Juliet" in October.
I'm glad to hear that Ventoux is planning to be back and that we haven't lost yet another theater company in Fresno for good. (I'm still mourning Epic Theatre.) It'll be nice to welcome the hard-working folks from Ventoux back in the spring.
The new television season hasn't officially started but it looks like the Fox Network is on the same course as the Titanic. The lackluster return of an old show coupled with an even more lackluster reaction to new programs could send this season into the drink before it gets started.
And the biggest problem for the network has nothing to do with current programming. The one series that looked like it was going to be the Fox safety net is in huge trouble.
Get out the lifeboats, the ship is sinking.
Thank you Rick Rubin.
After listening to Metallica's "Death Magnetic" this morning, I can see that you got Metallica back on track after the awful "St. Anger".The rockin', guitar shreadin' madness is back.
I'm not sure any CD will ever top the magic "Ride the Lightning" and "Master of Puppets" created for me as a teenager. But, this CD makes me feel like I'm listening to that same awesome band. I'd put this album ahead of "Load" and "Reload" but behind "Black" and "And Justice for All". It's the closest thing to old Metallica fans have had in years.
How would you rank "Death Magnetic"?
Welcome back to Post No Bills. Sorry about the week off, but we're back at full force this week, with a new batch of local event fliers and posters.
Just hit the jump and check 'em all out. It's The Beehive's way of proving every week that anybody who says there's nothing to do in Fresno is either crazy or lazy.
As always, we welcome contributions bands, artists, venues, promoters and regular joes. Send flier links to mosegueda@fresnobee.com.
This commercial is so that's what she said that after three viewings, I still can't quite tell you what's being sold here.
I do know this, though: whoever put that old woman in front of the hanging sausages needs to be taken outside and beaten with an 8-inch kielbasa.
Hurricane Ike sounds pretty serious, no?
Tens of thousands evacuated, stranded or needing to be rescued. Certain death predicted as Texans are told to "flee or die." This is a big, big deal -- forecasters are invoking Hurricane Katrina's name to describe potential damage.
So maybe in the face of such an impending disaster, we keep the cutesy headlines to a minimum. Right, CNN?
UPDATE: I'm bringing this up to the top of the page because I talked about it in my column today and because the conversation is still going strong.
FROM TUESDAY: I'm going to be on 1430 ESPN this afternoon at around 5:25 p.m. to talk about where this weekend's Fresno State/Wisconsin football game ranks among the biggest events to happen in Fresno.
Personally, I'm not yet convinced that it beats the sausage-beating robbery of last weekend, but I'll admit that it's a big deal around town -- even bigger if Fresno State can avoid a beating from those sausage-loving Wisconsiners this weekend.
Sausage talk aside, it is a good question. How big is this? Bigger than the USC game, obviously, because it's at home. But I think you can make the argument that the College World Series -- even though it didn't happen here -- was right up there, with the way it dominated conversation and had people glued to the TV.
Among non-sports events, I'd say the Rolling Stones concert at Save Mart Center was pretty huge. I didn't live here then, but I'd say Garth Brooks doing five consecutive sell-out nights at Selland Arena was big -- just from the talk I've heard of it. What about when the "Fresno" mini-series was filmed here? I'm asking, because I don't know how that energized the town.
What else? Or does this football game trump all?
Procrastinators take note: There are only two performances left of "Hamlet" at the Woodward Shakespeare Festival (it plays 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday), so if you've been telling yourself all summer that you were going to catch the show, time is running out. To mark this last weekend of the season, I caught up with Adam Meredith, who takes on the massive challenge of the title character. My interview with him starts in Friday's 7 section. Here's a continuation:
Question: This production has sparked a lot of public comment online on the Beehive. Your thoughts?
Answer: I have cruised by a few times to see what is being said about the production. I think it's always great that people are talking about it and that there is such a vibrant variety of opinions -- some complimentary and others not so much. That is fine, though, because in the end you can't be all things to all people and if this production was,we would be doing something wrong. The enthusiastic people who come to the park looking for entertainment and a nice night that is a change of pace from the 'same old thing' say enough generously granting us with their time and applause. That is reward enough for me. Lets keep the discussion and exchange of ideas going. My concern is when it becomes damning when all we are using the forum for is to rail on someone or something. As long as the discussion moves the work forward and can help inspire people to either come see a show or produce a show I am all for it.
Below: Here's a Woodward Shakespeare video promo for "Hamlet":
UPDATE: I'm bringing this up to the top of the page because I talked about it in my column today and because the conversation is still going strong.
FROM WEDNESDAY: It looks like we're back where we started on the issue of Sammy Hagar coming to Fresno. It's going to be a surprise.
Fresno Wabo head honcho called me today, saying he was just arriving back in Fresno after spending some time up in Mill Valley with Hagar and his Chickenfoot band in their studio. You might remember that on Monday, Hagar announced he wouldn't be coming to Fresno next week because they were on a roll in the studio.
So what's the status of Sammy's Fresno show? "He's wanting to be quiet about when it's going to happen. But I know it's going to happen fairly quickly," Barbis said. "He's going to call me one day at 3 p.m. and say 'I'll be there today.' "
Reservations were being taken for the now-canceled Monday appearance, but Barbis says when Sammy does show, it's going to be a first-come, first-serve, non-ticketed, free event. Plans for the Monday appearance had included a five-course dinner, with reservations for the show/dinner costing $150-$250.
Because this just isn't okay.
Previously on the Beehive:
Hey, what happened to Madonna's face?
[Source: Go Fug Yourself]
Here's what caught my eyes and ears in the last few days:
See Tiger Army. If you're not familiar, they're a pretty awesome psychobilly band who's played at The Exit before and has been here on the Vans Warped Tour too. Don't let "psychobilly" scare you, either -- anybody who enjoys a good rock 'n' roll show with a stand-up bass should be able to dig Tiger Army.
It's an all-ages get-down. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., but don't count on seeing Tiger Army that early. Tickets cost $18.
Kanye West and one of his bodyguards were arrested earlier today at Los Angeles International Airport. West allegedly got mad enough at paparazzi to break the camera of a photographer. The incident happened just after West and his bodyguard passed a security checkpoint in the American Airlines terminal.
There's his defense. The way the airline industry has deteriorated, it is amazing more passengers don't go airmail postal. A flight has become a series of challenges designed to humiliate, frustrate and exasperate.
This is based on recent experiences. What should have been a fun vacation to Washington, D.C. turned into a painful memory largely in part to the airline industry.
What the hell kind of madness is going on in Fresno this week, people? As if the sausage-beating, Pappy's-rubbing robbery story wasn't odd enough, now we get this headline:
Police arrest teacher walking nude in neighborhood
Here's what went down:
A teacher at Mayfair Elementary School in Fresno was arrested Wednesday night after he allegedly was found walking nude in his neighborhood in central Fresno, police reported today.Police Chief Jerry Dyer said, Mark Clark Greene Jr., 57, was cited on a misdemeanor count of indecent exposure and released ...
Green, reportedly taking medication for depression, told officers he started playing his guitar and that he undressed, as he usually does when he is playing his guitar at home.
Special shout out to The Bee's Louis Galvan who brought us this story and all that sausage greatness.
H-Mac and myself both think we've found the make-your-day video on YouTube. Neither of us will admit defeat. There's one option: YouTube battle! You watch our finds and tell us which amuses you more.
Mike Oz: I was checking out the L.A. Times blog Funny Pages 2.0 and came across this video titled "Cat vs. Printer." Both of these things get on my nerves, so I got much joy out of seeing them do battle. I think it certainly has the cute factor for you cat lovers, but it also is pretty funny with the sound effects and everything. Vote for my ticket! Cat/Printer '08!
Tina Fey seems to be the favorite when it comes to America's choice for celebrity who most looks like vice president hopeful Sarah Palin. (Andrea Zuckerman from the original "Beverly Hills, 90210" is my personal pick, but of course majority rules in a democracy.)
She may not be the favorite, but here's Gina Gershon (who did not have relations with Bill Clinton, thank you very much) giving her Palin impersonation a pretty good shot in a video from Funny or Die (language NSFW):
So the Fresno State Bulldogs football team will be led on the field by its mascot, TimeOut, on Saturday, and fans will learn whether the new or old version won in the offseason poll conducted by the university.
Well, maybe the new one wouldn't have gotten so much flak if he took some cues from the Fresno Grizzlies baseball team's mascot, Parker. I came across this 2008 highlight package released on YouTube earlier this week, and it brought a smile to my face.
And, as you all know, me and Parker go way back.
Today we ask which hip-hop diva is the bigger chump:
1. Kanye West
The Louis Vuitton Don was reportedly arrested this morning on vandalism at LAX after a spat with a paparazzo in which Mr. West broke a camera. TMZ has more from the scene, including a video.
I'm usually a fan of 'Ye's, but geez, since when did an attention-monger not like getting his picture taken? You gotta love that Kanye put out a song called "Love Lockdown" yesterday and today actually got locked down.
Maybe he's just on edge because "Love Lockdown" is dripping with wacksauce?
Is this coupon from Burger King, printed just one year after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the worst memorial ever of that tragic event? It would appear not, but it's still pretty bad.
[Source: Wonkette]
Monday, Sept. 8
Good Company Players costume shop
I look at myself in the mirror. Nice dress. I'm wearing a blue calico frock with a lace collar. It looks like something that my grandmother might have worn if she'd crossed the prairies on a covered wagon and spent her spare time baking pies for the lunch-box social. On my head is a gray curly wig topped by the cutest gosh-darn blue pillbox hat you've ever seen. A yellow daisy completes the look. Ginger Kay Lewis-Reed, GCP's resident costume designer and the person with the Herculean job of providing 300 costumes for "The Producers," takes a measurement for an alteration. "I hope there aren't any pins in there," she says wryly.
I only have one costume in the show, of course, as part of my stunt role in the dress rehearsal. But the ensemble members, most of whom play multiple roles, are going to be spending lots of time jumping in and out of costumes when the show officially opens next Thursday night. Steve Pepper, the dancer I'm shadowing in the "Little Old Lady Land" number, has eight costumes, for example. He plays everything from a blind violinist and a swishy choreographer to Stalin.
How important are costumes to a theater this size? They have to be first-rate. Audiences are forgiving when it comes to Good Company's small stage and the absence of the fancy moving sets and cutting-edge technical wizardry that you find on Broadway. But the costumes have to be on par with any professional production. If they don't look good, an entire production can look schlocky. And in such a visual show as "The Producers," in which many of the jokes are sight gags (including a dancing pretzel and singing storm troopers), the costumes actually have to carry some of the humor.
Just then the phone rings. Lewis-Reed picks it up and says hello, then motions that she has to take the call. "It's my Nazi armband supplier," she says.
All those little details add up.
--------------------------------------------------
Previously on the Beehive:
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 1)
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 2)
---------------------------------------------------
About this blog series: The tables are turned on The Bee's theater critic as he joins the ensemble for one number in "The Producers." He'll go through the rehearsal process and will make his Good Company Players debut at the final dress rehearsal.
I don't think I could do any better than the above headline and this update on the sausage-robbery story from The Bee's news side. So I'm just going to give it to you straight ...
A Sanger man accused of throwing Pappy's seasoning in one man's face and attacking another with an eight-inch sausage during an alleged home break-in has been released from custody pending further investigation."After reviewing the report, we decided we just didn't have a case at this time," Assistant District Attorney John Savrnoch said.
More evidence? As in the sausage? We all remember what happened to that, right? A dog ate it. Call the crime scene unit -- I see this story only getting better. But for now, people of Fresno, hide your sausage and lock your fridge. You could be in sausage-slugging danger.
Remember the rumors swirling about a movie based on "Arrested Development," aka one of the Top 25 Greatest Television Comedies since 1987 (suck on that, Entertainment Weekly)? False, so sayeth Michael Cera.
In an interview with the National Post, Cera says he hasn't heard about plans for a movie adaptation:
"I don't think I would want to see a movie of the series if I was a fan, anyway... And I don't really see a need for it if you can get the three seasons on DVD."
Hear that? It's the sound of my heart breaking. Only one thing can cheer me up now.
**UPDATE** Now with working comments section. Huzzah!
Jessica Simpson: failed actress, musician, wife. Can she do anything right?
Why, yes. She is crackerjack at the art of making ridiculously unflattering faces whenever cameras are nearby. I present to you exhibits A through T, helpfully broken down into categories that best illustrate Jessica's mastery of four two whole emotions.
I love this story -- tell you why in a sec.
Kirstie Arnold of Lancaster, Kentucky, busted on charges related to drugs, harassment and running over a tombstone in a graveyard ("Bitch deserves to be dead!"?), was sent to jail by an unsympathetic judge after she appeared in court wearing skimpy, meth whore-like clothing. Here's Kirstie explaining why not wearing a bra to court should not be grounds for jail time:
Now here's why I love this story: Kirstie Arnold is Bizarro Britney Spears. Think about it. If Britney had stayed poor in Louisiana, there is at least an 87% chance she would be Kirstie Arnold, trying to explain to a judge why an adorable baby doll tank top screams innocence in the courtroom.
How do I know this? Take a look at what Britney wore the day she showed up to (and then promptly fled) a court hearing for custody of her sons:
I no sooner posted my blog about the huge particle collider than a pal of mine told me about this atom-smasher musical video that's on YouTube. I'm not sure who put this together. (One of the scientists? A science writer? Just someone crazy about colliders?) Anyway, it's gotten more than 2 million views.
It's called the "Large Hadron Rap." That's right. It's a rap song explaining this collider project and it's safety. All I know is this thing just cracked me up (um, given the severity of what could happen if these Geneva scientists mess up big time). Take a look:
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Those giddy scientists in Geneva finally launched that massive particle collider today, and we're all still here.
Why should you care? Well, this experiment is all about smashing atoms, to sort out their structure and solve the mysteries of how the universe was formed. The Geneva crew assures us it's safe. But some scientists -- who've made sure they're nowhere near Geneva -- say that if something goes horribly wrong, our world is doomed. Black holes will eventually swallow us up, something like that. (At least some people are having fun with it: Google's home page logo today has a collider motif.)
So people everywhere breathed a sigh of relief today when they fired that sucker up and, hey, we're all OK.
But don't be too relieved. This thing is months away from full power.
Have a nice day.
The trash talk has already started. So has the blogging.
And now that Week One of the NFL is in the books, our introductory Fresno bloggers fantasy football league is shaping up to be quite a bit of fun. You've already seen talk of it here on The Beehive, on Sports Buzz and on Central Valley Moms -- so I figured a proper introduction is necessary.
THE IDEA
Continuing with the bloggeraderie created at Blogger Olympics, I created a fantasy football league and invited 11 other Fresno bloggers to join. We're calling it the Fresno Bloggers Bowl. There's no prize on the line, only supreme bragging rights for one Fresno blogger.
Apple's unveiling today of the revamped iPod nano was more like a fashion tweak than any major surprise.
And that's just fine with me. (Yesterday, I blogged about how my original nano battery is on its last legs, which was why today's Apple event snagged my interest.) Other folks can detail and debate the technical finer points of these and other iPod/Apple gadgets. This is what I'm focused on: It's impossibly thinner. I now can get the 8-gigabyte model for $149. And I've got a spectrum of yummy colors to choose from. (And they're not just colors in Apple-speak, they're "nano-chromatic" colors.)
Yes, I hate to admit it. For me, it's all about the look and convenience to listen to music. I don't care about putting pics on there, or watching movies or playing games. Don't really care about that new feature that let's you shuffle a new song into play by shaking the nano. In fact, I'd rather that they hadn't introduced that feature. It might turn out to be annoying.
No, it's all about the tunes. I just have to decide which color to get this in ...
Last night Michael Phelps helped Jay Leno score his highest ratings in three months. Not a big surprise, I suppose, in light of Phelps' current status as Greatest American Hero.
Since the Olympics, though, interesting information about the 23-year old has been revealed, including his love of gangsta rap and possible douchebag tendencies. And of course there's the picture that came out last week of the porpoise-like champion doing a little ass-grabbing at the Playboy club in Las Vegas:
I thought there might be some Phelpsian backlash after the picture came out, but it never happened. Do the American people just not know about it yet, or do they not care? Can one be a hero and role model and still enjoy fondling half-dressed dancers in Vegas? How does one get a job dancing for ripple-torsoed Olympians in Las Vegas (information needed for research purposes only)?
[Photo: Radar via Gawker]
Stan Carrizosa did it. He won the ABC TV reality show "High School Musical: Get In the Picture" Monday night on KFSN, Channel 30.
The 17-year-old Visalia resident, who attended El Diamante High School, will star in a music video shown in the end credits of the upcoming feature film, Disney's "High School Musical 3: Senior Year." He will also get a recording contract for two singles with Walt Disney Records.
D. James Smith's "It Was September When We Ran Away the First Time" arrives in stores today. Set in a fictional stand-in for Fresno called Orange Grove City, the children's book takes place in 1951.
As my recent story about Smith's struggles to find a widespread audience noted, historical fiction is not the most popular genre right now. But the Fresno author and high school teacher (in the Selma Unified School District) has his reasons for setting his stories a half-century ago.
Question: What would surprise people who live here now about Fresno in 1951?
Answer: You could go out at night, after dark, and roam around just about anywhere, and your parents wouldn't give you a hard time about it. They knew you were out playing. It was safe. Who were you going to run into? The neighbor, who might give you a book. It was really still that way when I was a kid.
You weren't going to be out scoring drugs. You were going to be spying on the neighbors and creating a whole new adventure in your head, that's all. They knew it, and nobody cared. We'd thrill ourselves by running through their back yard or garage. And they're watching us. They don't care. They'd have cookies for you. It was a different time.
It had to happen. Republican VP nominee Sarah Palin is in the midst of massive, unprecedented attention from the media and voters. No one knows if this wave will keep rolling or what will happen on Election Day (Nov. 4), but a dollmaker company in Connecticut is trying to cash in by making miniature replicas of the Alaska governor.
I'm not so sure she'll be flattered.
HeroBuilders.com apparently does this on a regular basis and isn't afraid to poke fun at anybody (whether it's in good taste or not is in the view of the beholder). If you take a look at their Web site, for example, there's a John Edwards doll wearing a black t-shirt that says "Rogue." (Come to think of it, they could have used a lot harsher word than rogue.)
Anyway, the company has three renditions of Palin, including the one pictured here. This one is supposed to be her as a super hero action figure.
Do you think the Democratic VP nominee Joe Biden will want equal time?
I've suspected for a while that we are getting dumber. All of us. Dumber.
The gadgets are getting better, but our brains are becoming dull and useless. Thanks to television and the Internet, we no longer have much time to spend thinking. Until this very day, I was actually okay with that.
And then I saw this headline:
Tori Spelling's Book Tops NY Times List
I cannot sit back and complacently continue to plod along in a world where Tori Spelling has achieved literary success. Something needs to be done immediately. What do we do? How do we make this better? Put down our iPhones and shut off "Hole in the Wall" so we can spend some time reading and thinking and even writing? Boycott MTV and TMZ and every other three lettered pop culture destroyer until they're forced out of existence? Is PBS still around? How about libraries? Do we still have libraries?
This cannot stand!
UPDATE: As expected, this story is all over the place now, including The Smoking Gun, CNN, Digg, Dlisted (NSFW) and Dave Barry's blog. Here's to Antonio Vasquez, the sausage king of Fresno.
ORIGINAL: From the wacky crime files comes this, from The Bee's Louis Galvan:
"A burglar who broke into a home just east of Fresno rubbed spices over the body of one of two men as they slept in their rooms and then used an 8-inch sausage to whack the other man on the face and head before running out of the house ... "
The story appeared in Sunday's Bee, but you can read the whole thing by clicking this hot link.
SAN FRANCISCO -- Had a great time over the weekend, as this video shows:
I have two hopes in life: That the cult following of "The Big Lebowski" grows to be half as big as "Rocky Horror," and that Fresno one day gets awarded the West Coast fest site.
Click below for lots of photos (featuring some great costumes):
I was driving down Clovis Avenue last week and spotted what appeared to be a TV crew outside of Wolfe Manor, the house that's the site of paranormal investigations and its own paranormal Web reality show.
With paranormal TV being so popular these days, it was certainly within the realm of possibility that Wolfe Manor would be getting a once-over from some of TV's paranormal prowlers.
My wife, ever the fan of the TAPS crew and their Sci-Fi show "Ghost Hunters," noticed the group's trademark black van behind the Wolfe Manor fences, so we stopped to check it out. I snapped this cell-phone pic, which shows nothing more than a camera and the black van.
Our hunch that it was the "Ghost Hunters" crew was confirmed with a couple of phone calls and now this blog from the Haunted Wolfe Manor MySpace page. Yep, "Ghost Hunters" was here. And yep, Wolfe Manor should be on TV soon. Keep your eyes peeled.
On Tuesday, the wizards at Apple will reveal updates to the iPod line at the annual September event, including changes to the stalwart nano.
I'm especially interested because the nano I bought more than two years ago -- the original slender version with a tiny screen -- is on its last legs. The charge on my lithium battery is churning shorter and shorter, so I'm due for a new one. But I'm not enamored with the squatty version (as seen here) that came out last year. Maybe it's my age and nearsightedness, but I still don't plan to watch any videos, TV shows, etc. on a screen that's not much larger than three postage stamps. I'm also unwilling to go the iPhone route -- loading music, making phone calls and maneuvering all kinds of other tasks on a single contraption. I fear I'd lose it, and then what? Would I cease to exist?
Sorry, I digress. The point is I want my music in a cute, convenient, easy-to-understand small device. Tech fans have been trying get a jump on what it may, at least, look like. For a possible sneak preview, read this story from cnnmoney.com.
We all find out Tuesday if this is another brilliant move, or disappointing hype.
Even before Cabo Wabo opened it doors in Fresno, one of the big questions surrounding the cantina has been, "When is Sammy Hagar coming?"
If you've been following the comments here on The Hive, you might have thought there was finally an answer -- but now it looks like that's not the case.
In a recent interview (go to 3:55), Sammy himself said he'd be in Fresno on Sept. 15. Fresno Wabo started selling tickets for the event over the weekend -- priced $150-$250 -- but today it looks like his appearance has been canceled.
Sammy posted an item today on his blog at redrocker.com, saying he's been recording, is on a roll and is "sorry to say that I won't be making it to the New Fresno Cabo Wabo as previously planned. However, I will be there sometime this year for sure!"
I haven't been able to reach Fresno Wabo developer Milt Barbis for any further details. I did call Cabo Wabo and talk to a manager, who confirmed that the show is canceled and that he had "a lot of refunding" to do.
I'll keep you updated on any developments.
In my Sunday column, I wrote about my adventures at the "Mamma Mia" sing-along movie now in theaters. A reader writes:
Next time, Take a Chance On Me. I invited my office staff to go last Thursday. Only one person and her six year old daughter could come. I had to drag my Abba-neutral husband along to do the Pierce Brosnan parts. I did carefully choose my all white outfit complete with a fringed three-quarter-length poncho which would flutter nicely in the dance numbers. Aside from the couple who laughed at my husband's movie trailer joke, the audience of twelve, including a back row group of 8-9, was silent. No singing, no encouragement and when I finally did get up to dance, not a peep. The six-year old did try to sing, and her mother told me the next day she was quite miffed that Mom had not purchased a CD so she could have known the words.
My response: I can see that it'd much tougher to do an Abba sing-along at a sparsely attended matinee. That's why I wanted to whip everyone into shape right after the sing-along version opened so we could get some real crowd energy. I'm guessing that your Abba-neutral husband did a better job than Pierce, eh?
Here's my weekend, told via Twitter. It included me DJing on Saturday night, roaming the Tower on Friday and more. Here are my Tweets.
Friday:
- At Stones. Quesadilla, yum. Next on to Black Light Poetry at Palomino's. (09:35 PM)
- At Palomino's for Black Light Poetry. Packed patio. Nice atmosphere. Currently Chicago The Lyricist is killing it. (10:36 PM)
- I ponder: Should I really smile? Am I really "on camera" in the Livingstones men's bathroom? (10:50 PM)
- Spotted at Landmark: http://twitpic.com/aeye WTF??? (12:18 AM)
I now know why Microsoft magnate Bill Gates gave up his day gig commandeering his empire. Yes, he wants to devote more time to his philanthropic programs, which is an esteemable effort. But, that obviously wasn't the only reason.
Have you seen his new commercial for Microsoft? The one co-starring Jerry Seinfeld? Tell me Gates isn't bent on a new career in acting. And, it's too bad because the commercial is not that funny, he's stiff, and Seinfield delivers most of the lines. But when was the last time you saw a big-time billionaire adjust his shorts?
Maybe Gates thinks he and Seinfeld could be the new Laurel and Hardy, or Cheech and Chong ... or, as others have observed, Microsoft's answer to Apple's hip "Mac and PC" commercials.
OK, take a look at this thing. Do you think Bill has a future in Hollywood?
All right, all right -- let's get this out of the way. The story you're not going to be able to avoid all day long is, of course, the comeback of America's sweetheart, Ms. Britney Jean Spears, at last night's MTV Music Awards.
Rumors were flying last week that Brit would open the show with a performance, which she did, kinda. Following is the very awkward and unfunny opening performance featuring Britney and Jonah Hill, who should have known better.
Well, the original Dude, on whom the Coen brothers based Jeff Bridges' role. His name is Jeff Dowd. And Jeff Dowd mauled me during the screening of the film. (And I loved every second of it.)
Hot it was on Thursday night -- hot off the presses, that is. The Fresno art scene doesn't usually boast a gallery opening that includes a printed catalog, but that's what greeted visitors to Gallery 25's "Alchemy" show. (OK, so it was bloody hot, too, but what else is new?) Beehiver Felicia Matlosz was anxious to see "Alchemy," and she says it was worth the wait. Here's her take:
The buzz about the new "Alchemy" exhibit at Gallery 25 turned out to be true. It is a plush, strong, marvelous display of some of the area's most creative talent. With a showcase of 29 artists, there is plenty to visually devour. Make sure you carve out ample time to breathe in the scope of this show.
First, why the title "Alchemy"? The catalog introduction, written by one of the featured artists, Trude McDermott, states: "The contemporary use of the term alchemy is frequently a reference to a mysterious synthesis or fusion of different elements into a new form." From that premise, these artists forged visions from that concept.
The moment you walk through the gallery's front door, you will briefly ponder which way to go. But I think you'll be pulled to the right. On the wall hangs one of Robert Weibel's large-scale gunpowder works of bison. This one is a multiple image, in a lighter, golden-brown tone, that gives the work an ethereal feel, as if aiming for transcendency. To the left is a huge, vertical, three-panel painting by Nanete Maki-Dearsan, called "The Abilities of Butterflies." It's a dramatically dark, textured work, with whiffs of white seemingly struggling from submergence for a separate plane of existence.
New York Fashion Week kicked off Thursday night with a celebration for the 70th anniversary of "The Wizard of Oz" that featured a tribute to Dorothy's ruby slippers by top shoe designers.
Here's an Arabian pair of ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in test shots 70 years ago:
And, here's what some of today's top designers think Dorothy should skip down the Yellow Brick Road on:
Here's what caught my eyes and ears in recent days:
Does politics talk belong on an entertainment blog? If the person doing the talking is Jesse "The Body" Ventura, then the answer is yes. And if Jesse Ventura is talking about why he wishes there were more gays in the military, then the answer is "hells yes."
Enjoy the crazy:
[Source: Mollygood]
Oh yeah, baby. Getting outta work early today to hit up the opening-night party and screening of the film. Tomorrow night is the bowling get-together and costume contest.
This is my first fan fest of any kind, and I gotta say -- now I know why people go to these things. It's all about the excitement. If you can find something that you're passionate about, how cool is it when you find out there are other geeks like you?
So they do this every year in Kentucky, and then the past couple of years they've had a West Coast fest. The movie's been out for 10 years now, and the cult following is bigger than ever.
The best part: the 10th anniversary DVD comes out Tuesday, and they're giving away copies as prizes (fingers crossed -- not that I need another copy).
Second best part: Jeff Dowd, the real-life inspiration for The Dude, will be there. (Jeff Bridges attended the first Los Angeles one and even performed songs from the film.)
Here's what I'll be wearing, btw:
Beehiver Mike Oz is on vacation this week, but his Post No Bills from last week carries through to this weekend, and shows that there is lot going on, as does FresnoBee.com's calendar listings.
This is where I'll be tonight -- I heard a rumor Mike Oz will be there, too -- and I hope to see you out there, as well:
So, what do you have going on this weekend?
Quick! Before NBC pulls it, check out the blooper reel from the fourth season of "The Office," which made its way to DVD Tuesday. The reel seems to indicate that the season was funnier than I remember it being, so I can't wait to watch the whole thing again. Also, the sound of Jim Halpert giggling during a blown take is like a salve made of puppies and rainbows on my cold, cold heart.
Two more videos after the jump:
Variety is reporting that a third "Ghostbusters" movie featuring the four original proton pack wearing heroes may be in the works.
It's not a sure thing yet, but per Variety:
"The studio has set "The Office" co-exec producers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky to write a script for a film designed to bring back together the original cast of Harold Ramis, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson."
I love the "Ghostbusters" movies, and of course I love "The Office," but I'm reserving judgment on this one. If I learned anything from the fourth Indiana Jones movie, it's to hope for the best, but expect the worst. By best, I of course mean Bobby Brown. And by worst, I also mean Bobby Brown:
Let's check in with Robert Downey Jr.'s porntastic mustache, shall we?
Oh yeah. Still awesome.
The 'stache is so fab it makes whatever is happening in the following picture perfectly reasonable, no explanation necessary:
I'm obsessed with "Twilight" (and vamp-hero Edward Cullen). I read the blogs. Check out websites. Count the days to the movie release. Re-read the books. You get the idea.
So, no worse news could come than to learn that author Stephenie Meyer has put the release of "Midnight Sun" on hold.
That sucks!
Now I have to decide: Do I read the "flawed" draft that's out or wait to see if she polishes the book?
The whole thing makes me wonder why there's a culture of spoilers on the Web? Why can't people just wait and let fans anticipate?
When I drove past the historic Tower Theatre last Saturday night, bright lights were flooding the front of the grand art deco building, just like a Hollywood movie premiere. On a closer look, my friends and I could see that workers were doing some kind of renovation.
Now I know why. The Abbate Family, owners of the theater at Olive and Wishon avenues, are giving the building a makeover. The edifice is one of Fresno's most distinctive landmarks and was last painted in the late 1980s. This time around, the family used modern technology to hone their selection of colors.
The family anticipates that the makeover will be completed around Monday, just in time for the Fresno mayoral debate scheduled there on Sept. 23. I can't wait to see the new look.
It seems like I write a lot in this blog about famous people who die. Well, it's out of respect and the "oh that's so sad" moment that hits when someone you admire, who's creative talent impresses you, exits the planet.
And that's the case again with Bill Melendez., who died Tuesday. He was 91.
Every Christmas, I look forward to "A Charlie Brown Christmas." It's such a classic, and I love the Vince Guaraldi jazz soundtrack. First shown on CBS in 1965, it brought Charlie Brown and Lucy and Linus and all the other "Peanuts" gang to life in a charming and funny way. To this day, Charlie Brown's search for the meaning of Christmas is hip, timeless and touching.
And Melendez had a lot to do with it. "Peanuts" creator Charles M. Schulz had to trust someone to transform his popular comic strip characters to television, and Melendez and his animation team delivered. It was a marvelous partnership that led to other "Peanuts" productions.
But none as wondrous as that first special ... I think I'll listen to some of that soundtrack today on my iPod.
My wife, Kim, and my 9-year-old son, Trey, listened to Sarah Palin's speech Wednesday night at the Republican National Convention and watched as her party's presidential candidate joined her on stage at the end.
Kim: "Look at that. She's my age, and Sen. McCain is Papa's age. They're like father and daughter."
Trey: "So McCain could run the country? Isn't he too old?"
Kim: "No, he's not too old. He's Papa's age. Your grandfather could run the country."
Trey: "He could?"
Kim: "Sure."
Trey: "Oh, awesome. Junk food and video games all day, and no school! And beer for the grown-ups."
It's Year Two of Will blogging about his fantasy football draft (in fact, it was a year ago today), so here goes ...
With the sixth overall pick in Mike Oz's blogger league, the Willys select:
ROUND 1: Randy Moss (WR, Patriots)
-- OK, I'm over the Patriots cheating their way to a perfect regular season, and I'm tired of losing at fantasy football. My plan with the first pick was to either take one of the very top RBs (LT, AP -- both gone), one of the very top WRs (Moss, T.O.) or Tom Brady/Peyton Manning. It was between Moss and Brady, and I figured I could get my QB later.
Wednesday, Aug. 27
Good Company Players rehearsal hall
Things are a little tense tonight. Not major-league tense. Director Fred Bologna doesn't display the I'm-going-to-bite-your-head-off-and-feed-it-to-the-booster-club swagger that a ticked-off football coach, say, might launch into when a complicated play has just gone awry. But as I watch Bologna rehearse the dancers for the tap dance scene in "Springtime for Hitler," I start to feel the pressure of the approaching opening night. Suddenly it seems to be looming a lot closer than it was just a few weeks ago.
"Don't bend from the waist," Bologna tells the tap-dancers. "It's all about military precision. That's why it looks awful. Even though it's a tap dance, 50% of the audience will be looking from the waist up. It has to be PERFECT. Those of you who know me know that we're going to do this until it looks good for stage."
He says more, but I'm stuck on just one word: audience. Yes, there will be an audience. In just a matter of weeks. Hanging out in a rehearsal hall as I have these last couple of weeks, playing to a bunch of empty blue plastic chairs, it's easy to make all this an academic exercise. It's easy to forget that real, live, people are soon going to be sitting in front of me. One of my favorites lyrics in the musical "Billy Elliott" is when the hardened but still kindly dance teacher tells her hapless students, "We only have seven and a half months to rehearse this, so for Christ's sake, concentrate!"
We don't have seven and a half months.
For the very first time in this entire endeavor, I feel the tiniest wingbeat of a butterfly in my stomach.
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Previously on the Beehive:
I Wanna Be a Producer: The Blog (part 1)
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About this blog series: The tables are turned on The Bee's theater critic as he joins the ensemble for one number in "The Producers." He'll go through the rehearsal process and will make his Good Company Players debut at the final dress rehearsal.
The LA Times ran a story Tuesday about the emergence of up-scale movie theaters. If you're willing to pay more for admission -- one company plans to charge $35 for a ticket when it opens theaters next year in Southern California -- you could get perks like reserved seating, valet parking, higher quality food and, in some cases, alcohol. Some venues are even looking at table-side seats and menu items that include lobster spring rolls and creme brulee.
It's all based on the belief that moviegoers, no matter how tough the economic times (here in Fresno we're paying an average $10 per ticket), will keep coming. So why not provide some luxury atmosphere and kick up the price?
Well, here are my questions: Will paying higher prices guarantee that the people behind me won't rudely talk through a whole movie as if they're sitting in their own living room? Will this get rid of cell-phone addicts, who conveniently forget to turn off their annoying devices so that the contraptions go off at crucial moments in the movie? Will the popcorn still taste like warm chunks of styrofoam? Will the bathrooms be kept sparkling clean? Will the films be better?
Heck, the way inflation is going, I'll be paying $20 for a ticket soon enough anyway. Where's the perk in that?
Darn right. Forget Obama and McCain. We apparently have the best answer for America right here in Fresno. Who knew?
Came across this news story, and I had to share.
Jessica Robinson, a wild mom from Sandy, Utah, made history this week when she won the $1 million prize on "Deal or No Deal." It took almost 250 games before someone finally pocketed the big bucks.
That really doesn't seem right. "Deal or No Deal" requires no special skills. You don't have to be able to sing, dance, juggle, answer questions, eat a bug, take a punch, fake a romance, lose weight, travel the world or even be able to read. This game show is so simple Steven Hawkin could play it.
And yet it took three years to have a $1 million winner. That made me start thinking about which game show would be the most difficult to win $1 million. This doesn't count all of the Game Show Network programs were the grand prize can be $1,000 and a bus ticket to Modesto. Only shows that offer a $1 million prize have been considered.
Here are the five shows that would seem to be the toughest to pocket the big prize.
Our favorite reader complaint of the morning comes from a woman who called to say that the following Associated Press photo in Wednesday's Life section is pornographic:
The reason for the offense? That big, upright baguette, which evidently for this reader carries with it such strong phallic connotations that even those innocent cherry tomatoes look vaguely complicit.
It's an Associated Press photo, by the way, that ran with a story by Bee food writer Joan Obra about the Slow Food movement.
Next week maybe we'll feature cucumbers.
I'm no Heather, but as the interim deputy assistant to the secretary of gossip here at the Beehive, I thought I'd pass along this charming tidbit (courtesy of In Touch Weekly's publicists, who relentlessly fill my in box each morning) of one more example of Madonna's uppity ways:
Madonna is still the reigning queen of pop, so it's not surprising that she's picky about her thrones -- especially when it comes to public toilets. Before her concert at the Palais Nakaia concert hall in Nice, France, on August 26, the singer had all of the commodes, showers and sinks removed, scrubbed down and then reinstalled. "Everyone thinks she did this because she hates the thought of dirty and germy things," an insider tells In Touch. The self-disciplined star has even admitted to her controlling ways. "Guy [Ritchie, her husband] tells me to loosen up," she has said. "My friends do, too, but I can't. I've always been this way." And it's not the first time the Material Girl has been occupied with lavatory troubles, the insider notes: "During her tour last year, a man stole some of the toilets from the Madonna tour and sold them on eBay for nearly $8,000!'' Madge kicked off her Sticky & Sweet tour on August 23 in Wales, where the latrines were presumably spotless.
Just think if Madonna had lived back in the 17th Century. She would have demanded a NEW chamber pot at each tour stop.
Pictured: a toilet from the world-famous Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo. Get it? Madonna toilet? Hey, that's what I get for using Google Image.
I asked Chris Campbell of the Woodward Shakespeare Festival for an update about the ongoing noise issue with the amphitheater. The July 23 cage fighting match prompted a public debate that continues, and I was wondering how Saturday night's production of "Hamlet" fared against the Timmy T concert. Campbell responds:
Thank you for asking. Unfortunately, all of the concurrent events at the amphitheater have been distracting to some degree for those acting in and watching Hamlet. Interestingly, we have gotten the most outpouring of audience comment about the cage fighting but we cannot really say that it was louder or more distracting than the amplified music and the often enthusiastically screaming crowds that attracts. So the more vocal Hamlet audience objection to the fighting may have other motivations. Obviously, it also depends on the sensitivity of the particular audience member. On the night of the blues concert I talked to several friends, all of whom can be quite particular about their theater experience. None mentioned any displeasure about the sound although the songs were often loud enough to sing along. I was out of town this weekend so I cannot really compare the experiences.
Campbell says that Woodward Shakespeare is working collaboratively with the parks department to develop a solution for next year. He describes some possible solutions on the jump.
I admit I didn't watch "Beverly Hills, 90210." It was must-see TV for a lot of viewers in the '90s. But, the one time I happened to tune in, Tori Spelling was spitting food out of her mouth. That pretty much ended my curiosity about the show.
But now the CW has resurrected the concept with "90210." A new series couldn't ask for more hype. Just look at all the press and magazine covers that Shannen Doherty (a moody, wild actress who couldn't handle prosperity when the original show was a hit) has racked up for her re-emergence as Brenda, like this Los Angeles Times article.
The new series premiered Tuesday night. Naturally, there's a young, photogenic cast, but Doherty is back, along with another original cast mate, Jennie Garth.
So were you a fan of the original show? Did did you watch this new incarnation? What's your take?
It is so hard to watch painfully awful television shows like "Supernanny," "The Biggest Loser" and "The Moment of Truth" keep on going with no end in sight. There should be a mercy rule to kill any series that earns a single dollar off the REAL suffering of others.
It is especially painful when there are landmark programs like "The Shield" headed for an end. The first of the final 13 episodes of the FX Network series airs at 10 p.m. tonight on the cable channel. Having seen eight of the final 13, it is very clear this is a series that needs to be mentioned in the same breath with the likes of "The Sopranos," "Seinfeld" and "M*A*S*H."
If you have not seen the first six seasons, go rent the first season of "The Shield" DVD set. Those of you have been fans from the start are in for a TV delicacy through these final episodes.
How many digital pictures is enough? I've been known to take 300 in ONE DAY. With no worries about paying to process film, it's easy to adopt an attitude of "take so many shots that your subject wants to kill you."
In many ways, taking lots of pics is a good strategy. It's certainly improved my photos. I've able to learn a lot through practice. And the more shots you take, the better your odds are of coming up with a real winner. But I've been trying to cut down on my tendency to want to document EVERYTHING, no matter how mundane. As Ivor Tossell asks in an astute piece in the Toronto Globe and Mail, has digital-photo taking become compulsive? He writes:
It is as if people fear that moments won't exist unless they've been reduced to bits. No transgression goes undocumented, no inebriation goes unpublicized and no child goes un-camcorded ... It all gets posted to YouTube and stuck on Flickr, filling up giant, remote server farms like the one Google built on a river in Oregon. It's not just family snaps any more, it's every square inch of populated turf, every spare moment of carousing, the combined detritus of Facebook friendship, artistic impulse and wish-you-were-here idleness. The world is so redundantly well-documented, it's as if you could reconstruct a virtual reality out of it.
Let's see. I've got something like 18,000 photos on my hard drive. (In a completely gratuitous attempt to show him off, here's one below of my 5-year-old nephew Connor getting autographs from cast members Tami Cowger and Max Debbas at the performance of "Annie Get Your Gun" I took him to at Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater.) Do I need to join a support group or something?
What a weird Labor Day weekend. I'd like to say that I spent the entire three-day holiday splashing in the sun, or communing with nature, or drinking myself to oblivion. (From the aftermath of the afternoon scene at Starline Grill, where I ate dinner Monday night, it seemed as if a fair number of folks took the drinking route.) But I actually frittered a lot of the long weekend away glued to my computer screen following national news developments: the aftermath of the Dems convention, the McCain VP pick, the path of Hurricane Gustav, the bizarre Sarah Palin fake-pregnancy rumors and the announcement that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant.
Such issues have been thoroughly covered elsewhere online, of course, and it isn't my intention to get into a partisan back-and-forth about Palin, for example, here on this thread. (You have plenty of opportunities elsewhere: for the conservative side, try Redstate.com and nationalreview.com; for the liberal side, some of the big players have been Dailykos.com and andrewsullivan.com. And there's always the Bee's Opinion Blog.) However, there are several bigger-picture things that struck me about the whole scenario:
1) We are in a different age in terms of how quickly rumors/news/developments travel. I've realized that for a while, but it really hit home this weekend. I didn't even turn on the TV to track Hurricane Gustav. Updates were much faster online. As far as the Palin story goes, the major developments actually seemed to move of their own accord online. One site would pick up a rumor, then another, and all the while hundreds of commenters issued forth a steady stream of opinions, conspiracy theories, personal memories and outright vitriol. Occasionally someone would contribute an actual tidbit of news. The bloggers themselves just fought to keep up. And the more mainstream outlets were playing continual chase-up, with even the august New York Times relying more on its Caucus blog comment string to advance the story than anything its reporters could provide.
This will have to hold you over for the rest of the week and the weekend, because I'm on vacation.
1. Ride the Lightnin'. By this we mean twisted psychobilly band Lightnin' Woodcock, hitting Club Fred on Wednesday as part of a West Coast run that ends with a date opening for Bad Religion. And check out the Fresno connection: band members Cody James and Clayton Kimble are from the area.
You probably didn't know his name, but you knew that voice: Deep and dramatic, Don LaFontaine's voice was sometimes better than the movies he was providing the narrations for on film trailers.
LaFontaine died Monday in Los Angeles. He was 68.
For years, he held an unusual but dominant niche in Hollywood. He provided the voice for lots of TV commercials, but it was his reputation as the go-to guy for film trailers that made him a unique personality in Hollywood. Studios recognized that his resonant voice of authority and gravelly gravitas would help attract moviegoers to an upcoming film. He did tons of them, including "Fatal Attraction," "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."
He also could poke fun at himself, whether it was a Geico ad in which he narrates a woman's tale of an auto accident, or appearing in this 2005 piece on ABC's "Good Morning America Weekend Edition" with anchor Bill Weir.
He filled a small role in Hollywood lore, but a memorable one.
Visalia gets a lot of great indie rock shows, but this might be the biggest yet:
All right, Labor Day weekend is over and odds are a lot of people used the three days to check out Fresno Wabo, which opened its doors on Friday.
So what do you think of Sammy Hagar's cantina-meets-club-meets-concert hall at Granite Park?
Were you thrilled? Surprised? Disappointed?
What's great about it? What could be better? Would you go back?
If you still haven't gone, check out this look inside from The Beehive.
D. James Smith, the Fresno creator of "The Boys of San Joaquin" series for children, talked about his struggle to find a widespread audience for the books in my story today.
But during a wide-ranging, hour-long interview anticipating the release of the third book in the series, "It Was September When We Ran Away the First Time" (due in stores Sept. 9), the high school teacher also talked about how writing sequels can take a delicate touch.
Question: What's the toughest thing about writing a good sequel for your audience?
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