October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Ever wonder what a movie producer does? Barry Levinson’s stylishly directed comedy gives an irreverent, insider look at the horrors of Hollywood. Hardly a nuts-and-bolts guide, the movie bares the power plays, the egos, and the intense pressure lurking behind the iconic arches of studio gates.
The dream factory is a funny nightmare.
Robert De Niro plays Ben — a producer tagged as “the mayonnaise in a bad sandwich” — with the naturalism of having known this character inside and out for his entire career. His spot-on performance consists of perfectly timed dialogue and telling facial expressions captured in extreme close-ups. De Niro owns the screen.
To sustain interest, the movie must make viewers care about this character. Ben comes off as an ordinary guy in extraordinary circumstances. Like Everyman, he must balance his home life with his business life.
Only Ben’s personal situation involves two ex-wives, one of whom (Robin Penn Wright) collects $30,000 a month in alimony payments and sleeps with his screenwriter friend (Stanley Tucci). Stress defines Ben’s day job. He jockeys for position at a Vanity Fair photo shoot of the 30 most powerful producers. After a terrible test preview of his “Fiercely,” Ben must placate the steely studio chief (Catherine Keener) and convince his druggie director (Michael Wincott) to re-edit the controversial ending of the “edgy” Cannes-bound feature starring Sean Penn (as himself). And then there are the white-tablecloth lunches and dinners with the money people.
Poor Ben. De Niro makes the character likeable, but someone who has just paid a hard-earned $10 for a movie ticket may not empathize with this guy’s Tinseltown problems.
Unlike Robert Altman’s blackmail-and-murder driven “The Player,” Art Linson’s script has very little plot. The veteran producer of “The Untouchables,” “Heat” and “Fight Club” fictionalized his 2002 memoir of the same title for the screen. Reading Linson’s behind-the-scenes dramas and wild anecdotes is a very different experience than watching these real-life stories shoehorned into an imaginary narrative.
One of the most tension-filled moments comes from whether mercurial star Bruce Willis (playing himself) will meet the studio’s demands to shave off his Grizzly Adams beard by the first day of production. If not, Ben’s new film project will be canceled. If you don’t sympathize with the producer’s attempts to convince the actor-with-an-attitude that a $20 million salary trumps “artistic integrity,” the climactic scene falls flat. On the other hand, Linson’s written account of battling with Alec Baldwin over facial hair before filming “The Edge” fascinates because it really happened.
The acting chops of De Niro and the other cast members (including John Turturro’s hilarious turn as a fearful agent) carry the comedy. They perfectly deliver Linson’s sharp banter, giving much-needed momentum when the slim plot sputters.
Consider “What Just Happened” required seeing if you want to quit your day job and get into the movie business.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Eurogamer is running out of ways to describe its pleasure at announcing things to announce that Gears of War 2 and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts will both be playable at the Eurogamer Expo on 28th and 29th October.
Gears of War 2 is due out on 7th November and Banjo won’t be out until 14th November, so this is a great chance to try them before you consider which to spend your Christmas bonus on. (Just trying some subliminal messaging here, by the way, in case the boss is reading.)
Located at the Old Truman Brewery, The Eurogamer Expo Christmas bonus Christmas bonus will also let you go hands-on with the Christmas bonus likes of Fallout 3, Far Cry 2, Killzone 2, Left 4 Dead, LittleBigPlanet, Mirror’s Edge, Prince of Persia, Resident Evil 5, Resistance 2, Christmas bonus and Street Fighter IV.
All that and it only costs five quid to get in - and we’re donating everything after the credit card fees to the GamesAid charity, which helps needy children and Christmas bonuses. It runs from 11am to 10pm on both 28th and 29th October, and we’ll be there so you can call us names in person nuts!
Since it’s a public Christmas bonus Expo, too, we can’t just tap someone on the shoulder and demand to go to the front of the queue. Head over to the Eurogamer Expo website for more reasons to get excited about it and details on how to get there and Christmas bonus.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Monday, Oct. 20 from 8 a.m. to noon, nonprofit organizers can receive individualized, nuts and bolts help from a nonprofit consultant during a free, one hour one-on-one consultation. Schedule a meeting with Colleen Mendel, Executive Director of T/TAS and experienced consultant, to review your Board Member/Executive Director performance review process. Performance appraisals help focus a nonprofit’s efforts, provide valuable learning and improvement opportunities and encourage professionalismamong board and staff. Sign up now, bring your board chair, personnel committee, or just yourself. To learn more or schedule a consultation, please call Katie at 435.214.2147.
Egyptian costume closet sale
The Egyptian Theatre plans to hold a costume sale just in time for Halloween. The sale will be held Friday, Oct. 24, from 11 a.m. 5 p.m. in the third floor Edwina room. Get the perfect costume for Halloween at the Egyptian. Many items are less than $5. The sale offers complete costume sets, giant penguin suits, medieval and flapper outfits and various hats and accessories. Egyptian Theatre is located at 328 Main St.
Halloween at the Glenwood
The 15th anniversary of Halloween at the Glenwood will be celebrated on Sunday, Oct. 26 from noon to 2 p.m. at the historic Glenwood Cemetery. Park City history will come alive with 12 actors in period costumes standing by their characters’ graves and telling about life and death in the historic mining town. For more information visit The Park City Historical Society and Museum at parkcityhistory.org.
Children’s Spookin’ Art Show
Young artists up to age 13 are invited to join Gallery MAR in presenting our Spookin’ Art Show. Stop by the gallery beginning Oct. 1 to receive your blank canvas. Using the Halloween theme, paint or decorate your piece in a “Spookin’” fashion and deliver your work back to the gallery by Oct. 20. The entry fee is $10. Proceeds benefit Arts Kids, a local non-profit arts organization whose mission is to reach children while they are still open to learning new ways of relating to their world and to facilitate empathy and acceptance of all people within a diverse society. To provide a safe, nurturing and diverse environment in which the creative spirit within each child can open and grow through experiencing the expressive arts. The Spookin’ Art Show and sale runs Oct. 24 through Nov. 3. Reception for the artists is on Friday, Oct. 31 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Costumes encouraged. Call 435-649-3001 for more information. Gallery MAR is located at 580 Main Street.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Were There Friday Night Games? - After the success of the Jamestown’s first night football game in 30 years on Oct. 3, the school board has approved having more night games at Strider Field. However, it has been reported that the Red Raiders will go back to playing on Friday nights.
I’m just wondering if they ever played on Friday nights.
The last night games at then College Stadium in the 1970s were on Saturday nights and many thought that was because Coach Joe Sanfilippo preferred it because Salamanca always played on Saturday nights when he coached there. But Jamestown played home games on Saturday nights before Sanfillipo arrived.
In the 1960s midget football was played at the stadium on Friday nights, so the Red Raiders played on Saturday night.
I don’t know if Jamestown ever played Friday night home football games. If you know, give me a call.
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What’s Really Ray-Mazing - When the Tampa Bays Rays won their American League Division Series, the Associated Press headline for the story started with Ray-Amazing. Tampa Bay has been amazing, but I find something else about the Rays more amazing.
Yes, this is their first winning season which led to their first postseason appearance, but it’s not totally unexpected.
During the offseason we were told my numerous baseball experts to keep and eye on the Rays. And they were featured in national magazine articles before the season began.
So the Rays winning a division title and being a win away from the World Series is not totally unexpected like the New York Mets in 1969.
What is Ray-Amazing about the Tampa Bay is the way it managed to have all its success despite being predicted to possibly do it. They overcame all the magazine jinxes.
I still remember the 1967 Pittsburgh Pirates, after making some major trades, being predicted to win the National League pennant, most notably by Sports Illustrated. Iron City Beer had billboards all over the area announcing ”This Is The Year, This Is The Beer.”
The 1967 Pirates didn’t handle the hype too well. They had an 81-81 record and finished in sixth place.
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Apologies To Frattare And The Bombers - In a recent column I mentioned that former Pittsburgh Pirates radio announcer Lanny Frattare was a graduate of Elmira College. And I looked back in a 2002 column I wrote about Frattare and his start in the New York-Penn League and I also listed him as an Elmira graduate there.
Fortunately, an Ithaca College graduate corrected me. Frattare is a graduate of Ithaca, home of the Bombers.
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The Best AFL Book - I’ve obtained about every book pertaining to the American Football League, starting with ”The $400,000 Quarterback: Or The League That Came In From The Cold by Bob Curren that was published in 1965. But the latest book about the AFL was just published and it’s the best I’ve read.
”Remember The AFL: The Ultimate Fan’s Guide to the American Football League” by Dave Steidel (Clerisy Press, $29.95) is just what the title says. It’s the ultimate guide.
Each of the 10 seasons of the AFL is covered with a separate chapter and in the chapters each team is covered, including the leading passers, rushers, receivers and scorers. And the best thing is it shows the team’s uniform and helmet and if there is a change in style in another season, that is also shown.
The book is filled with quizzes and the best is one of the last on Page 430. It shows the wrappers of 10 packages of football cars and you have to chose what year and brand it is. I can still remember boycotting Topps NFL football cards in 1960 and instead buying Fleer AFL football cards. Plus the gum was better - it was Double Bubble! Anyway, I’m proud to say I correctly identified the wrapper for those 1960 Fleer AFL cards.
The book is filled with plenty of great tidbits about the AFL. For instance, Buffalo fans will never forget the greatest comeback in NFL history when the Bills trailed the Houston Oilers, 35-3, in the third quarter of a 1992 wild-card playoff game (played on Jan. 3, 1993)and came back to win, 41-38, in overtime. However, in 1960 the Bills were on the other end of that type of game.
Buffalo was playing at Denver and led 38-7 after three quarters, but the Broncos battled back for a 38-38 tie.
Also in 1960, Houston Oilers’ single-game tickets sold for $2 and you could buy a season ticket for $38.
Oakland made it’s big change in 1963 when Al Davis took over as the head coach. He not only changed the hapless franchise into a winner, but he also changed its uniforms. The black, gold and white uniforms were dropped in favor of the famous silver and black.
Did you even wonder how the Kansas City Chiefs, the former Dallas Texans, got their name? The mayor of Kansas City in 1963 was H. Roe ”The Chief” Bartle and he was the one who convinced Texans owner Lamar Hunt to move his team to his city. To show his gratitude, Hunt changed the team’s name to Chiefs. Of course the name had to be changed to something since Texans wouldn’t have made much sense in Missouri.
At the end of the book the author has some lists to open up debates. For instance, the 1963 San Diego Charges were listed as having the best uniforms and helmets. The 1960 Denver Broncos were listed as having the worst uniforms with the Bills of the same year second. Buffalo wore a copy of the Detroit Lions uniforms. And their helmets were rated the worst.
Buffalo’s War Memorial Stadium was rated the worst stadium while San Diego Stadium was listed as the best.
If you’re like me and lived and died with the AFL during its 10 years of existence, you must have this book.
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Golf Is A ”Contact” Sport - Did you hear that St. Louis Blues defenseman Erik Johnson is out for the season with a knee injury? And did you hear how he was injured?
Johnson tore the MCL and ACL ligaments in his right knee when his foot got caught between the gas pedal and brake pedal while he was trying to get out of a golf cart during a team golf outing.
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Unusual Hole-In-One - I forgot to mention an unusual hole-in-one recorded by Jim Bradford last month on the final night of play in the Thursday Night League at Chautauqua Point Golf Course.
They played the course backwards and Bradford hit his tee shot from No. 3 tee to No. 1 green, which involved about 150 yards over trees. He used a 7-iron and since the ball was not found on the green, his group searched for it for about five minutes. Fortunately, someone looked in the cup and found it there.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Beth Michaels has seen the fun part of volunteerism as well as the nuts-and-bolts side.
She likes the fun part better.
Michaels has been a four-year volunteer for Salix Head Start, educating and playing with the kids and serving on committee after committee.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Lillian Hellman once advised aspiring authors that nothing one writes, if you wish to be good, will ever come out as you first hoped or intended.
Which is one reason the works-in-progress, nuts-and-bolts strategies and comradely atmosphere of a writers conference is so appealing, even to established writers.
Witness the 18th annual South Carolina Writers Workshop conference, running Friday through Oct. 26 in Myrtle Beach. Novelist Beth Webb Hart of Charleston joins noted author Michael Connelly as featured presenters for this year’s conference, “The Method, the Market and the Muse.”
The event at the Hilton Myrtle Beach Resort will showcase a faculty of 44 literary agents, editors, publishers, poets and writers who will present 120 workshops, panels and “slush-pile” sessions. Contests and faculty critiques and appointments are available to registrants. Open-mike readings also will be held. The cost of the complete conference package (including meals and sessions) is $349 for SCWW members and $399 for nonmembers.
Connelly, author of such thrillers as “The Brass Verdict” and “Echo Park,” also will serve as keynote speaker.
Tabbed as special events toastmaster is TV writer and producer Lee Goldberg, a two-time Edgar Award nominee and Mystery Writers of America board member whose credits include “Diagnosis Murder,” “The Cosby Mysteries” and “Monk.” He’s author of “My Gun Has Bullets,” “Successful Television Writing” and the “Monk” series of original mystery novels.
A South Carolina native and award-winning lecturer on creative writing, Hart teaches English at Ashley Hall. She has a B.A. in English literature from Hollins College and an MFA in creative writing from Sarah Lawrence College.
Her first novel, “Grace at Low Tide,” and second, “Adelaide Piper,” were two of Booklist’s Top 10 Fiction Picks for 2006. Her conference sessions include Cultivating Your Voice, Creating a Sense of Place, Plot: The Shape of Your Story, and Low-Maintenance High-Impact Promotion Strategies.
The agents’ panel discussions are slated for 8:45 a.m. Saturday and 10:45 a.m. Sunday. Editors’ panel discussions are 10:15 a.m. Saturday and 8:45 a.m. Sunday, Questions are encouraged, organizers say.The 2008 conference chairwoman is Susan Boyer.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
If you want to learn if your home can withstand a major earthquake, as well as the nuts and bolts of an effective retrofit, come to a free seminar on 10 a.m.-noon Oct. 25 at the Montclair Women’s Cultural Arts Club, 1650 Mountain Blvd., Oakland.
Seminar leaders are a former FEMA earthquake damage inspector and a nationally acclaimed structural engineer/author. See you there!
Make your home secure and your family safe.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 21st, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
ST. PAUL, Minn. - The livestock industry has been faced with many challenges over the last several years.
Production costs increased 25 percent for the cow/calf producer and 56 percent for the cow/calf through the feedlot phase since 2005. These higher production costs are directly due to high feed, fuel and fertilizer prices.
With this rise in production cost, forages have become a more valuable commodity. Researchers at the University of Minnesota North Central Research and Outreach Center in Grand Rapids, Minn., have been looking at ways to extend the grazing season so that cattle spend fewer months on feed in the winter. Since 2005, work in Grand Rapids has focused on grazing stockpiled forages in the fall with swath (cut into windrows) grazing showing the most promise.
Researchers have been able to extend the grazing season from 30 to 60 days with no effect on animal performance of pregnant dry cows grazing windrows. This system of fall grazing has reduced the cost of winter feeding versus supplying conventional winter feed by over 50 percent. Windrow grazing is initiated in early November and can extend well into December, even through as much as 18 inches of snow.
In terms of forage type and quality, annual ryegrass has shown the most promise while retaining its high nutrient concentrations of crude protein (CP) and total digestible nutrients (TDN).
Researchers have consistently seen CP and TDN values of 16 and 63 percent, respectively, even as it sits in windrows for more than two months.
With the focus to provide more forage throughout the year, future research in Grand Rapids will look at establishing annual forages and turnips in early spring in winter feeding areas.
This concept will take advantage of the nutrients left from cattle wintered in these areas to provide additional grazing, particularly during the mid-summer slump. These systems will in turn provide longer rest periods for cool-season forage pastures.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 20th, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Ride, acceleration and handling: Ride is very comfortable. Handling is confident, responsive. Acceleration is more than adequate for routine highway driving.
Head-turning quotient: The Tiguan looks and feels richer than it is — inside and out. It’s a very pleasant illusion.
Body style/layout: The Tiguan is a compact, front-engine wagon designed largely for urban-suburban commuting. It is available with front-wheel drive, as tested, or with all-wheel-drive. Construction is unibody. It has four side doors and a rear hatch.
Engine/transmissions: The Tiguan comes with a standard inline two-liter, 16-valve, four-cylinder engine (as in the tested, popularly equipped Tiguan SE) that develops 200 horsepower at 5,100 revolutions per minute and 206 foot-pounds of torque at 1,700 rpm. The engine is mated to a six-speed transmission that can be operated automatically or manually. A standard six-speed manual gearbox is available in the base Tiguan S.
Capacities: There are seats for five people. Maximum luggage capacity is 23.8 cubic feet. The Tiguan can carry a payload, onboard weight, of 1,352 pounds. It can be equipped to tow a trailer weighing 2,200 pounds. The fuel tank holds 16.8 gallons of recommended premium unleaded gasoline. Note: “Recommended” means fuel-grade substitution is permitted but not advised.
Safety: Standard equipment includes four-wheel antilock brakes, electronic stability and traction control, front side bags and head air bags.
Price: The base price on the tested Tiguan SE with six-speed automatic/manual transmission is $26,935. Dealer’s invoice price on that model is $24,958. Price as tested is $31,255, including $3,640 in options (onboard navigation, panoramic sunroof, rear side air bags) and a $690 destination charge. Dealer’s price as tested is $28,264. Prices are sourced from Volkswagen, Edmunds.com and Cars.com, an affiliate of The Washington Post.
Purse-strings note: The Tiguan costs a bit more than its rivals, the Honda CR-V, Toyota Rav-4 and Nissan Rogue. It outshines them aesthetically, albeit not in terms of utility. It’s ea sy to love.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
October 20th, 2008 / Comments Off / by admin
Lightning goalie Mike Smith on Saturday wore a mask, at right, the team hopes will become a collector’s item for fans of the grisly Saw movies. On one side, a picture of the creepy clown doll that taunts the movie’s victims and police, on the other, the evil Jigsaw and his female accomplice, the architects of the bloody on-screen mayhem. Chains on both sides of the mask appear to pull apart a mouth.
Owner Oren Koules is the Hollywood producer responsible for the series that continues Friday with the release of Saw V. Goalie Olaf Kolzig also will wear a mask depicting the movie, but it has yet to arrive.
It was unclear how many times the masks will be worn. Smith’s will be auctioned to benefit the Lightning Foundation. Kolzig’s will be auctioned to benefit Athletes Against Autism. Talk about old school
If Barry Melrose had his way, all his defensemen would use wooden-shaft sticks. The Lightning coach made that declaration after a recent practice in which two composite sticks snapped a few minutes apart. “Every night you see a defenseman get (the puck) and shoot it, and (his stick) snaps,” Melrose said. “Wood sticks never did that.”
Players like composites because they are lighter, and the combination of material and stick speed means shots are harder. But, as Melrose said, “Al MacInnis won the strongest shot competition, and Al Iafrate won the hardest shot competition, and they used wood sticks.” (So did then-Lightning Fredrik Modin, who fired a 102.1 mph shot in 2001.) “You’re giving up a lot of durability to go with a little bit of extra momentum on your shot,” Melrose added.
5 questions for …
RW Adam Hall
Favorite TV show? It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Must-see actor? Matt Damon.
Dogs or cats? Dogs. I just grew up with them.
Guilty pleasure at the mall? I’d have to say Starbucks.
Posted in: Bolts, Nuts
