starts friday may 2

WIN A DIGITAL CAMCORDER!
invite you to
enter to win a
Run of Engagement
pass to see
One
lucky winner
will receive
a digital camcorder
and a
Son Of Rambow
Prize Pack
To enter this
sweepstakes, register at
campuscircle.net/
sweeps/SonOfRambow
No purchase necessary. While supplies last. All winners chosen at random. Limit one prize or pass per person. Not responsible for late, incomplete or
illegible entries. No phone calls please. Each run of engagement pass admits two to a showing of the film at a particular theatre chain after the film’s
opening day, valid Monday–Thursday only (excluding holidays). Pass does not guarantee admission to a particular showing of the film. Employees of
Paramount Vantage, Campus Circle and their affiliated agencies are not eligible. This film is rated PG-13.
IN THEATRES MAY 2
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
Campus Circle | 3
ANIMATION WRITERS WORKSHOP
April 30 - May 6, 2008 • Vol. 18 Issue 17
Learn how to write & pitch animated shows for
Disney, Nick, PBS & more. Workshop features Q&A
with development execs from the major studios.
Editor-in-Chief
Jessica Koslow
Amazing Networking Opportunity!
[email protected]
Two people from the last class now have
shows in Active Development!
6
Managing Editor
Yuri Shimoda
2-day workshop is $175 - reserve a seat now!
[email protected]
Workshop runs Sat. May 17th and 18th.
Film Editor
Jessica Koslow
Call 818.681.1311 for more info.
[email protected]
Or visit our web site.
Art Director
Alance Ward
Editorial Interns
Sasha Ali, Jeff Bachman,
Michael Lee, Lauren Rosenblum
http://animationwriters.tripod.com/
20 22
INSIDE
10
Contributing Writers
Elsy Benitez, Sarah Bennett, China Bialos,
Bourbon With Brendan, Michael Buzzelli,
Alexander L. Carpenter, Richard
Castaneda, Kantreal Daniels, Natasha
Desianto, Sheila Dichoso, Dita Dimoné,
James Dusenberry, James Famera, Sandra
Fernando, Josh Herman, Zach Hines, Joe
Horton, Damon Huss, Shane Igoe, Sophia
Kidd, Matthew Kitchen, Jonathan Knell,
Emmanuelle Lee, Lucia, Ebony March,
Angela Matano, Ryan McWhorter, Anthony
Miller, John Ochoa, Brien Overly, Sasha
Perl-Raver, Keyvon Pierre, Parimal Rohit,
Sam Roudman, Dov Rudnick, Rayhané
Sanders, Sean Schlemmer, Mike Sebastian,
4 WOODEN NICKELS
4 ON THE ROAD TO THE WHITE HOUSE
FILM
6 SON OF RAMBOW
Hilarious Portrait of Growing up in ’80s Britain
7 HATS OFF
Meet the effervescent 93-year old, Mimi Weddell.
6
7
7
8
9
PROJECTIONS
REVIEWS
SCHOOL ME
SCREEN SHOTS
DVD REVIEWS
Henry Senecal, Laura Shumate, Alissa
Simmons, Doug Simpson, David Tobin,
Mike Venezia, Kevin Wierzbicki
contents
Robert Axelrod, Leslie Barrie, Lori Bartlett,
MUSIC
10 FOREVER THE SICKEST KIDS
Honor an Underdog Alma Mater
Contributing Artists &
Photographers
Elsy Benitez, Emmanuelle Lee,
Connie Shao, Brendan Turrill
ADVERTISING
Sean Bello
[email protected]
Joy Calisoff
[email protected]
Ronit Guedalia
[email protected]
Assistants to the Publishers
Sandra Fernando, Frederick Mintchell
Campus Circle newspaper is published
47 times a year and is available free at
40 schools and over 800 retail locations
throughout Los Angeles. Circulation:
30,000. Readership: 90,000.
PUBLISHED BY
CAMPUS CIRCLE, INC.
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13 NE-YO
Shares His L.A. Faves
10 CD REVIEWS
10 DVD REVIEW
11 L.A. UNDERGROUND
11 FREQUENCY
12 LIVE SHOW REVIEWS
13 MUSIC REPORT
16 SPIN CYCLE
SPORTS
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LAKERS IN THE PLAYOFFS
RED BULL AIR RACE
NFL DRAFT RESULTS
AVP CROCS
LONG BEACH GRAND PRIX
INNER CIRCLE
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CAUGHT ON CAMPUS
FASHION101
MOTHER’S DAY GIFT GUIDE
THE ART OF LOVE
LIFESTYLE: PLANJAM
L.A. FACES
COLLEGE BEAT
CAMPUS NEWS
GRAPHIC NOVELS
PHOTO FEATURE
CURTAIN CALL
COMEDY
ESSENTIAL L.A.
EXHIBITIONS
10 SPOT
ON THE MENU
ON THE COVER: Kristen Eck and Garrett Nolan
Credit: Leslie Nolan, courtesy of PlanJam
ALL OF THE COLLEGE EDUCATION.
NONE OF THE COLLEGE TUITION.
Earn an associate’s degree from the Community College of the
Air Force. Registration is free, and the college offers more than
80 fields of study. The Air Force also offers up to 100% tuition
assistance at hundreds of colleges and universities. Visit our
Web site at AIRFORCE.COM or give us a call at 1-800-423-USAF.
CROSS INTO THE BLUE
4 | Campus Circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
Students
Free on
Sunday
wooden nickels | B Y
JOE HORTON
JURIST PRUDENCE
Voting for Superior Court Judges
Vintage
Fashion
Expo
May 10-11
SantaMonica
Civic
Auditorium
Main St. at Pico
$10
$2 off Reg Adm with ad
Sat 10-6, Sun 11-5
Early Buy Sat: 9-10:30 $20
707-793-0773
CC
A RELATIVELY NONDESCRIPT NOTICE
appeared in the L.A. Times last week: an
endorsement list for 17 judicial offices on the
Los Angeles Superior Court. On June 3, six
judges will be on the ballot due to a specious
write-in campaign to unseat them, one will run
against a challenger, and 10 other offices will
open due to retirements.
All of this will go on quite under the radar
for most citizens as they focus on the
presidential race, state legislative offices or
what’s for dinner. Yet the makeup of the judges
on the Superior Court, the nation’s largest trial
court, and the means by which they are
appointed are essential matters for all Angelinos to understand.
Most often, the governor appoints judges
to fill vacancies based on the required recommendations of the Commission on Judicial
Nominees Evaluation. Known commonly as
the JNE (“Jenny”) Commission, volunteer
examiners are given 90 days to investigate,
interview and ultimately render a private
recommendation to the governor falling
between “exceptionally well-qualified,” “wellqualified,” “qualified” and “not qualified.”
The examination process is intense –
prospective judges supply a lengthy application
with 50 to 75 references, lists of hundreds of
attorneys that practice in their respective
counties and, ultimately, submit to a personal
interview. The minimum standard for all trial
judges is 10 years with the State Bar association.
The governor may appoint judges as he
sees fit; however, the recommendations of any
judges appointed when deemed “not
qualified” may be made public. All
appointments must be made within a
yearly time frame of the seat becoming
available, and on the occasions when the
JNE does not have enough time to review a
candidate, the governor cannot appoint a
judge to that office.
In such instances, an open election fills
the seat. Superior Court judges are retained
for six-year terms and are automatically reelected if no one challenges them.
Not infrequently, however, sitting
judges will time their retirements to fall Joe Horton
inside of the mandatory 90-day requirement for the JNE Commission at the
Olson, a bagel shop owner in Manhattan
end of a yearly cycle, thereby removing the
Beach. Olson was admitted to the Bar in 1989,
power of appointment from a politically
but had not been a practicing attorney in years
unfriendly governor.
and refused to meet with the Los Angeles
What complicates matters is that without a
County Bar Association, who deemed her not
screening process by the governor, the
qualified.
governor’s staff and the significant JNE
Responding to widespread outrage, Gov.
Commission vetting process, voters are left to
Schwarzenegger immediately reappointed
fill the new offices, often armed with limited
Janavs to another opening on the Superior
advice and ignorant of recommendations from
Court, saying, “This unfortunate result should
local bar associations and newspapers. Here, in
not rob California of a fine jurist.” Many had
these open elections, the quality of applicants
speculated that Janavs’ loss was due to her
can vary widely, and potential judges run with
foreign name on the ballot.
disparate records and levels of experience
This is my plea: if you haven’t seen the
while pandering to voters who may see their
recommendations by the relevant bar asnames for the first time as they open a ballot.
sociations or read the endorsements in the
Take the curious case of Dzintra Janavs, a
paper, please leave the judicial section of your
20-year Superior Court veteran, rated as
ballot blank. There’s no shame or harm in that.
exceptionally well-qualified and endorsed by
Understand how important you are in the law
the local sheriff and district attorney, who was
and order of this state.
unseated in the 2006 election by Lynn Diane
ON THE ROAD TO THE WHITE HOUSE
ANTONIO’S
MOTHER’S DAY AND
“DIA DE LAS MADRES”
CELEBRATION!
There will be two Mother’s Day celebrations
here at Antonio’s!
There is the one on the 10th of May, which
is celebrated in Mexico. We celebrate that day
here with a special menu, cards and goodies, as
well as a musical trio performing.
Then there is the one on Sunday celebrated
here in the U.S. We will have the special menu,
cards, and goodies, as well as the trio to serenade the moms.
We at Antonio’s always treat the moms special, so make your reservations and whichever
day you decide, the 10th or the second Sunday
of May as celebrated here in the states, we will
make sure mom is given the extra special
treatment.
Call (323) 658-9060
for reservations and “Recuerde a Mama”!
7470 Melrose Ave.
Tues-Fri: 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Sat: noon-11 p.m.,
Sun: noon-10 p.m., closed Mondays
A Weekly Report on Campaign ’08
BY JOE HORTON
THE BUCK STOPS HERE
Consider the money thrown around in both
Democratic and Republican camps. Barack
Obama raised $41 million in March alone, most of
it from smaller, repeat donors under the $2,300
limit for personal contributions in the primary
season.
He outspent Hillary Clinton nearly 3-1 in
advertising and outreach in the Pennsylvania
primary, but Clinton held serve and after her
site pick
10-point victory, she raised $3 million
overnight. Such funds are desperately needed,
as she has suffered increasingly dramatic debts
on the campaign trail.
She famously loaned her campaign $5
million in January, but ultimately ended March
$800,000 in debt. Estimates suggest that her
campaign spends $1 million a day, and many of
her contributors have already given the maximum
amount.
She must keep winning to keep her candidacy
financially afloat.
John McCain, meanwhile, has crisscrossed
the nation holding fundraisers to fill his coffers
for his continuing “primary” campaign.
He finished March with a personal record
of $15.2 million raised, but lags badly behind
both Democratic candidates who have benefited from a highly energized electorate keen to
unseat Republicans in November.
Some have suggested he will accept public
financing for his presidential run, giving him
an $85 million limit to spend after the
September GOP convention.
www.collegeprowler.com
High school seniors are finally
getting their big envelopes! Now
comes the hard part: Where to go?
We all had to make the decision, but now prospective
students have a great new resource to use. College Prowler helps
students pick the college that perfectly suits them.
They aim to be the most accurate, complete and honest
resource on U.S. colleges. The Web site also offers free tips and tricks
to getting into the school of your choice. —Lauren Rosenblum
event pick
Gregory Crewdson
Lecture
May 1 @ Billy Wilder Theater
Gregory Crewdson, a Professor of Photography at the Yale
School of Art, will be lecturing on and presenting his most recent
work. In addition to Los Angeles, the works will also be shown in
New York and London. The event starts at 7 p.m. and is free to the
public.
—Michael Lee
invites you to enter to win a pair of run of engagement
passes to see SPEED RACER in Los Angeles.
WARNER BROS. PICTURES PRESENTS
IN ASSOCIATION WITH VILLAGE ROADSHOW PICTURES A SILVER PICTURES PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH ANARCHOS PRODUCTIONS “SPEED RACER”
EMILE HIRSCH CHRISTINA RICCI JOHN GOODMAN SUSAN SARANDON MATTHEW FOX BENNO FÜRMANN HIROYUKI SANADA RAIN
EDITED
PRODUCTION
COSTUMES
BY ZACH STAENBERG, A.C.E. ROGER BARTON DESIGNER OWEN PATERSON
BY KYM BARRETT
RICHARD ROUNDTREE MUSICBY MICHAEL GIACCHINO DESIGNED
DIRECTOR OF
EXECUTIVE
PHOTOGRAPHY DAVID TATTERSALL, B.S.C. PRODUCERS DAVID LANE SELTZER MICHAEL LAMBERT AND BRUCE BERMAN
PRODUCED
WRITTEN AND
BY JOEL SILVER GRANT HILL ANDYWACHOWSKI LARRY WACHOWSKI DIRECTED BY THE WACHOWSKI BROTHERS
Score Album on Varèse Sarabande
www.speedracerthemovie.com
To enter, visit campuscircle.com/sweeps/speedracer
I N
T H E A T R E S
M A Y
9
A P R I L 3 0 - M AY 6 , 2 0 0 8 • V O L . 1 8
ISSUE 17 • campuscircle.com
FILM IN LOS ANGELES
A UK Kid’s Funny Take on
First Blood
BY SASHA PERL-RAVER
IMAGINE YOU’VE GROWN UP IN
a world where television and movies are
verboten.
Now imagine someone sneaks you
a contraband video cassette, VCR and
TV. For the first time, images flicker
before your eyes. Not just any images,
either – someone has given you a copy
of the Stallone spectacular First Blood,
where Sly takes on an army of men with
just a knife and a stick … and he wins.
To call the experience mind-blowing
would be an understatement.
So begins Sundance sensation Son
GREAT
STORY
“A
everyone will love. ADELIGHT.
- Jeffrey Lyons,
NBC/REEL TALK
”
of Rambow, Garth Jennings and Nick
Goldsmith’s delightful follow up to
their 2005 hit The Hitchhiker’s Guide to
the Galaxy.
Set in England during the summer
of 1982, Rambow follows Will
Proudfoot, a quiet but imaginative 11year boy whose family are members of
the Plymouth Brethren, a puritanical
Christian group that forbids “worldly
influences” like films, television and
music. When Will meets Lee Carter, his
school’s notorious miscreant, an
unlikely bond is forged over First Blood
and they set off to shoot their “sequel,”
Son of Rambow.
Co-written by Jennings and
Goldsmith, Jennings describes their
division of labor as extremely
collaborative: “We’ve worked together
on everything we’ve done since we left
school. Even though Nick is the
producer and I’m the director, we do
everything together. We think the best
way to do this job is as a team.”
Rambow is “very much based on
our own stupid experiences” says
Jennings. “It was coming out of these
little movies I used to make as a kid.”
Jennings’ childhood forays
included work that he describes as less
than masterful. For example, when he
wanted to show a shed on fire, he
waved a piece of burning paper in
front of the lens. You can hear him in
the background proclaiming, “This is
Maggie Ferreira
SON OF RAMBOW
Bill Milner and Will Poulter prepare for a scene with director Garth Jennings on the set of Son of Rambow.
brilliant. Brilliant!”
The film celebrates what Goldsmith calls “that time in your life when
anything is possible. You didn’t
understand the fear of consequences.
You just do stuff, and if things go right,
they go right. If they go wrong, they go
wrong. But it didn’t matter, it was the
joy of doing it.”
A quality the filmmakers still hold
dear.
“I don’t feel that far off from 12,”
says Jennings.
Casting child actors to portray the
young filmmakers took five months.
Eventually they discovered 11-year-old
Bill Milner (Proudfoot) and 13-yearold Will Poulter (Carter).
“We found these two that had
never ever acted in anything before,
except one had been a munchkin in the
school play,” says Jennings. “They were
two of the nicest, most delightful people
I’d ever met, and they had no idea how
good they were. Absolutely no idea.”
“They were so themselves, but still
able to be other people,” gushes
Jennings. “Our job was just to keep
them from becoming self-conscious. So
there were no monitors on set, no
playback. The first time they ever saw
themselves on film was at a screening.”
Rambow feels very much like early,
British Spielberg. While he was an
inspiration, “we get influenced by very
odd films,” admits Jennings. “Certainly
Singin’ in the Rain. When we shot the
stunt sequence, it reminded us of Gene
Kelly donning goggles and motor
biking into a shed. Another film we
loved the arc of was Midnight Cowboy.
That doesn’t have any tonal similarities
to our film, but we loved the idea of this
naïve man and despicable rogue
striking up an unlikely friendship.”
And what did Rambo think of
Rambow?
“[Stallone] saw the film, and he
loved it,” Jennings beams, “He sent a
lovely message through the studio and
was so complimentary. We got his
blessing, and we couldn’t have asked for
more.”
Son of Rambow releases in select theaters
May 2.
projections | essential film events
CALARTS FILM/VIDEO
SHOWCASE
May 1-3 @ REDCAT
990
0 iiss tthe
0!
he nnew
e w 440!
STARTS FRIDAY
MAY 2
BY SARAH BENNETT
LAEMMLE’S
SUNSET 5
8000 SUNSET BLVD., W. HOLLYWOOD
(323) 848-3500
FAR FROM THE SUBURBAN
nothing of Valencia, California
Institute of the Arts, the selfproclaimed “premier college for the
study of the moving image,” is using
its Downtown Los Angeles theater to
present three nights of speciallychosen live-action works by students
in school’s Film and Video and Film
Directing programs.
The showcase kicks off on Friday
at the Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts
Theater with an evening of long-form
shorts and continues through the
weekend with shorts from the best
student directors and filmmakers in
the school. Now in its fifth season of
supporting emerging performance
and visual artists, REDCAT, nestled in
a street-level annex at the Walt Disney
Concert Hall, continues to encourage
and celebrate artistic risk.
CalArts’ film students are known
for form innovation and idea
challenging works, so don’t miss out
on this semester-ending event.
Admission is free for all three
nights, so go early and check out the
current gallery exhibition (Dave
McKenzie:
Screen
Doors
on
Submarines, through June 15) or stay
after in the lounge and discuss the
night’s show over a Cat-a-tonic, the
theater’s signature cocktail.
REDCAT is located at 631 W. 2nd
Street, Downtown. For more information, call (213) 237-2800 or visit
www.redcat.org.
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
school me
HATS OFF
What Your Favorite
Movies Reveal About You
life and lifestyle are hats. They
define her mood. One would
naturally wonder how many hats
she owns, but in keeping true to
her philosophy, her focus is on
quality, not quantity.
“I feel sorry to say that I
really don’t remember [how Mimi Weddell in one of her many hats
many hats I own]. It’s probably
around 150. I revolve around the
“Pygmalion.”
hats and the apartment does, too,” she
“I tried to emulate her on several
says. “You talk about being frustrated?
different occasions,” she says of the
If you can’t find the right hat, it’s total
great actress before continuing on to
hell. They are waiting for me downdescribe the hat with enthusiastic
stairs in the car to get off and do a
gestures. “It’s an 1890 hat, and the
shoot, and I’m looking for the little,
feathers come down like this, and [it
old hat I made a thousand years ago
has] that piquant, flirtatious look that
for something or other. Also, it keeps
those hats had.”
me awake at night. I am redesigning
Hats Off is a refreshing take on the
my hats in my mind. It’s awful.”
documentary format, in that, its
During the course of Hats Off we
examination of Weddell doesn’t beat
meet her children and grandchildren
the viewer over the head with a
and bear mute witness to a somewhat
predetermined message or moral. The
strained mother/child dynamic, each
film allows the viewer to observe the
side represented by very different
subtleties of her everyday life as it
personalities and points of view. Not
showcases her amazing spirit.
surprisingly, when asked what moJohnstone was wise enough to let
tivates her and what role she enjoys
the content of this movie impress you
most, she says, “I don’t think my
on its own. Doing so allows the film’s
favorite hat would be a mother hat.”
impeccable style and gentle demeanor
Instead she becomes a starry-eyed
to caress the viewer and showcase
dreamer as she mentions one of the
Weddell and her story. Hats off to
actual, physical hats in her collection.
them both.
It’s a vintage chapeau that was once
worn by Mrs. Patrick Campbell who
Hats Off releases in select theaters May 2.
originated the role of Eliza Doolittle in
Lacey Terrell
Carl Unger (Scott Speedman) and Stan Aubrey (Willem Dafoe) hunt a killer in Anamorph.
Anamorph
(IFC)
Willem Dafoe is the type of actor
who is highly believable as the “man
on the beat.” In Anamorph, the actor
portrays Detective Stan Aubray.
He’s a gumshoe that must solve
Hollywood’s favorite thrill-seeking
dilemma: a serial killer on the loose.
And what better place for a nutcase to
stalk than the streets of New York
City?
Even more troubling is that the
murderer – much like Italy’s Monster
of Florence – has been going around
staging elaborate crime scenes that
make him or her an extremely sticky
wicket when it comes to being
captured.
This stylized crime drama is
directed by H.S. Miller and pits the
venerable talents of Dafoe up against
some contemporary talents like Scott
Speedman (Underworld) and Clea
DuVall (“Heroes”).
Although the look of the project
is stark and interesting, ripe with all
the aesthetic pleasures (and sicko
violence) of a Cronenberg flick, the
story and acting are anything less
than spectacular.
Grade: C
—Ebony March
Anamorph releases in select theaters
May 2.
Baby Mama
(Universal)
Following the footsteps of the
successful Knocked Up and Juno, Baby
Mama also explores pregnancy
BY ALISSA SIMMONS
I’M A DEDICATED IDEALIST. IF YOU’RE NOT SURE WHAT THAT
means, you can read all about it and find out what you are in
Cinescopes, the new book that turns your favorite movies into a
personality profile.
Ezra Werb and Risa Williams watched and researched over 3,000
films in preparation for writing Cinescopes. It’s a new way of looking at
your favorite films and what they could reveal about your personality,
fears, dreams and goals. By simply making a list of your 10 favorite
movies and finding their codes in the
glossary at the back of the book, you’ll
soon discover if you’re a Passionate
Maverick, Magical Creator or one of 14
other personality types. You can then
read about that personality type and
gain a better understanding of why you
are attracted to certain films.
I had a personal analysis done by the
authors, and it turns out that I’m a
Dedicated Idealist. After reading the
description, I’d have to say that they’re
pretty right on, even though I began to
wonder how they determined this when
I found out that more than half my listed films were not in their
glossary.
Despite lacking some of the films that I listed, the psychoanalysis
seems well-researched and founded. It should be. After all, Williams has
a master’s degree in psychology and Werb works as a behaviorist.
After reading some of the other personality descriptions, I began to
diagnose my friends as well.
I asked the authors how they could possibly code over 3,000 movies
and deduce 16 distinct types. They freely admit that they’ve not seen
every movie in their glossary, but they research in detail the
characteristics of the protagonist of each film and then code them.
They also mentioned how certain groups of people tend to like
similar films and end up with similar profile outcomes, but oddly
there’s not one of the 16 different personality types that appears more
often than the others.
After reading the book and thoroughly perusing the glossary, the
book is insightful, but not unpredictable or terribly exciting once you
get the idea of what they’re looking at. I was also quite disappointed in
the amount of movies left out of the glossary.
With Cinescopes, Ezra Werb and Risa Williams have found a fun
and enlightening way use film to describe personality traits, much like
astrology uses the stars. It’s definitely something that every film geek
should own. It provides a new way to show up our friends with our
movie knowledge.
For more information, visit www.cinescopes.com.
through comedy. In the movie, Tina
Fey plays Kate, a successful single
businesswoman trying to get pregnant but who can’t. Enter Angie
(Amy Poehler), a surrogate who’s just
about the complete opposite of Kate
the clean-freak, and who ends up
moving in with her.
Cue the hilarity, right? For the
most part, yes. Poehler and Fey play
the odd couple very well, and there
are numerous funny moments
throughout the movie. Although the
story walks down a very formulaic
and predictable path, Poehler’s
random antics make up for it.
As long as you don’t go in
expecting Knocked Up or Juno (and
seriously, if you’ve seen the trailer or
the commercials, can you even expect
that?), you’ll find yourself being
entertained for a good hour and a
half.
Grade: B
—Michael Lee
Baby Mama is currently in theaters.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 8
«
BY HENRY SENECAL
film notes | reviews
film
CINESCOPES
To the Remarkable
93-Year-Old, Mimi Weddell
WITH THIS FEATURE-LENGTH
documentary, filmmaker Jyll Johnstone affords us a glimpse at the
history and day-to-day life of a
remarkable woman, Mimi Weddell.
Weddell is an acclaimed actress
and model. She’s a mother and a
grandmother. She’s a dancer and a
dreamer.
She was voted by New York
Magazine as one of the “50 Most
Beautiful People in New York,” and the
honor is well deserved! She collects
and wears many hats both figuratively
and literally. She’s also 93-years-old
and began her acting career at 65.
Powered by her motto “Rise
Above It,” Weddell typically spends
14-hours a day auditioning for new
roles, working out, doing gymnastics –
anything to stay a step ahead of what
might make her routine mundane.
She has an inherent charm and
demeanor that recalls an earlier time
in our history when manners and class
were de rigeur for people of a certain
station in life.
She exudes charisma and a dry,
elegant personality but is a vibrant
woman and is most definitely living in
the present. Her lifestyle, as showcased
in the film, shatters any preconceived
notions of what it might mean to be a
senior citizen. It serves as an example
to be followed by people of all ages.
One very important part of her
Campus Circle | 7
8 | Campus Circle
film
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
screen shots
film notes | reviews « CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7
BY ZACH HINES
Actor/director Robert Townsend (The Five Heartbeats, “The Parent
’Hood”) has been putting together a documentary titled Why We
Laugh: Black Comedians on Black Comedy. The doc will include
interviews with prominent black comedians like Bill Cosby, Chris Rock,
Paul Mooney, Kat Williams, Steve Harvey and George Wallace, just to
name more than a few.
I’m definitely going to see this because with all those guys involved,
it already sounds great; but I can’t help but wonder exactly who the
intended audience of this documentary is? Is this documentary for
black people or white people?
I’ll bet if you ask Robert Townsend he’d probably say that it’s for
everyone. OK, great. But I always thought that the point of a
documentary was to make people aware of something.
You make a documentary about starving children with the
intention of drawing awareness to it. Right?
I know that I’m more interested in seeing a documentary on things
I don’t know about. So either the purpose of this documentary is to
increase awareness of black comedy to black people or to white people.
Perhaps both?
I understand that a book written by Darryl J. Littleton titled Black
Comedians on Black Comedy: How African-Americans Taught Us to
Laugh was the inspiration for this project. The book gives a historical
rundown of black comedy and has comments from black comedians.
I get the impression that this doc is going to examine the social and
cultural impact of black comedy rather than trying to explain how
black humor works to people who don’t get it.
Frank Miller’s Spirit
This next piece isn’t
actually something that’s
definitely happening but it’s
something I desperately would
like to see happen, so I’m
covering it in the hopes that it
will. Comic book
writer/illustrator turned film
writer/director Frank Miller is
now finishing up his big screen
adaptation of Will Eisner’s The
Spirit, and he recently dropped
a hint at what his next project
might be.
Miller suggested that he
might try to adapt another of
his own creations: Hard Boiled
(not to be confused with the
John Woo/Chow-Yun Fat
action film of the same name).
It is a comic that Miller wrote
in the mid-’90s that was
illustrated by Geof Darrow,
who aside from being a
brilliant comic book artist
himself was the conceptual
designer of The Matrix films.
It tells the story of a
cyborg-assassin who believes
he’s an insurance investigator
leading a normal life. There’s
no question that this comic
would make an incredible film,
I will vouch for that. I was
reading Miller’s work years
before Sin City.
The setting is a film noir-ish future with sprawling retro-futuristic
cityscapes and advanced forms of weaponry and robotics. At one point,
Warner Bros. was going to make the film with David Fincher directing
and Nicolas Cage starring, but that never materialized.
As much as I love Fincher, I’m more curious about how Miller
would do it. Miller co-directed Sin City with Robert Rodriguez, whose
stamp was all over that film, so we’ll have to wait to see how Miller is as
a solo director when The Spirit comes out this summer. But until then,
I’ve got my fingers crossed.
Fugitive Pieces
(IDP/ Samuel Goldwyn)
The third film from the
Canadian born writer/director, Jeremy Podeswa, is no less a poignant
drama of love and loss as it is a
meditation on redemption.
Based on the best-selling novel
by Canadian poet Anne Michaels,
Fugitive Pieces follows the life of
Jakob Beer, a young Holocaust
survivor who fled Poland after
witnessing his parents’ execution and
sister Bella’s abduction.
Bella’s fate is forever unknown,
and Jakob is permanently haunted
by her lingering voice and apparition. Teaching and writing offer
a temporary relief, but the torment
of his past still burdens
him.
Jakob is incapable
of living in the moment, but the same
cannot be said of his
friends and lovers.
They are not characters in his book or
phantoms from his
past. They eat and
breathe and sleep and
drink tea. They already
know there is no past
or present. Jakob must
learn there is only now.
Grade: A
—James Famera
Fugitive Pieces releases
in select theaters May 2.
Redbelt
Standard Operating
Procedure
(Sony Pictures Classics)
These days there’s a flood of
documentaries examining the U.S.
military operations that followed
9/11 in the name of a so-called War
on Terror. If you see only one,
make it Standard Operating Procedure.
It was the scandal that rocked the
world and left the U.S. military
apologizing to the global community.
Photos released to the public depicting deplorable treatment inflicted
upon detainees at Abu Ghraib
shocked America and did much to
turn the tide of public opinion of our
role in Iraq.
was pointed for their appearance in
the photos as well as Janis Karpinski,
brigadier general at the head of our
prisons in Iraq who was relieved of
her command.
It would be easy to loath those
who carried out these acts, but by the
end of the film, one gets the sense
that most of the MPs, like many of
the prisoners, were simply in the
wrong place at the wrong time with
no feasible way out of the hell in
which they were deposited. Certainly, this wasn’t what they signed
up for as fresh-faced youths at the
recruiting office.
Danny Elfman provides a perfectly haunting soundtrack to
Errol Morris’ stunning visuals that
Lorey Sebastian
Robert Townsend’s Doc on Black Comedy
(Sony Pictures Classics)
I can’t bring myself
to love or hate this
movie. It’s a film by
David Mamet, one of Redbelt’s Chiwetel Ejiofor and Alice Braga as Mike and Sondra Terry.
the pre-eminent writers
of our time, so it has to
Standard Operating Procedure
be great, right? Not necessarily.
asks: what are the stories behind
Mike (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a good
those photographs, what happened
guy. He’s a Jiu-Jitsu teacher and lives
outside of the frame of a photo and
his life practicing the principles this
why would soldiers photograph such
Brazilian martial art preaches. For all
horrible acts when so many were
of his efforts, however, he and his
aware in their hearts that what was
wife (Alice Braga) are barely getting
going on was wrong? The film
by.
interviews many of the so called “bad
Though the world of profesapples,” the MPs at whom the finger
sional fighting surrounds him and its
prize money is tempting, he cannot
compete. He believes that “competition weakens the warrior,” but an
unusual series of events leads him to
test his morals against those temptations.
Mamet leads his characters in a
The Party
refreshingly unpredictable diMay 2 @ Nuart Theatre
rection, but it’s a far-fetched plot
Peter Sellers was a sexy bitch
that gets them to that end. A more
back in his day. It’s true! Although
believable storyline would have left
many people know him as the
you sure you loved the film,
kooky Inspector Clouseau from
instead of trying to decipher why
the Pink Panther movies, the guy
you didn’t.
was actually a highly gifted
Grade: C
comedian.
—Henry Senecal
Blake Edwards has also been
Redbelt releases in theaters May 2.
called a genius of cinematic
staff pick
drag the audience into the horrors
of the Iraq prisons and do much to
instill a greater understanding and
empathy than the photos at the
heart of the scandal could ever do
alone.
Grade: A+
—Natasha Desianto
Standard Operating Procedure
releases May 2.
comedy. Together, these two have
teamed up to create a mostly
improvised masterpiece of hilarity.
If you’ve ever loved Jim Carrey
or David Cross, then Sellers is
definitely one to watch. The Party
is part of Friday Midnight Movies
at the Nuart. —Ebony March
Nuart Theatre is located at 11272
Santa Monica Blvd., West Los
Angeles. For more information, visit
www.landmarktheatres.com.
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
dvd dish | reviews
Bridge on the River
Kwai and Lawrence of
Arabia (Collector’s Editions)
(Columbia Tri/Star)
Two of David Lean’s classic epics get
reissued in honor of the visionary
director’s 100th birthday.
These two-disc collections are pared down
versions of the limited
edition sets issued a couple
years back, leaving out
some of the more unnecessary elements while
still offering myriad extras
that include: several in
depth documentaries/featurettes, a news reel of
Lawrence’s New York premiere, photo
galleries, a bizarre USC short film
narrated by William Holden that
explains what goes into making a movie
and appreciations by John Milius and
Steven Spielberg.
To be truly appreciated, both of
these films (Lawrence in particular)
should be seen on the big screen. But on
the small screen, these anamorphic, remastered presentations are the way to
go.
Grade: A
—Mike Sebastian
Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence
of Arabia are currently available.
Charlie Wilson’s War
(Universal)
Yet another war film brought to you
with good intentions and all-too
transparent politics, Charlie Wilson’s
War fares better than some (Lions for
Lambs, Rendition).
Still, with the Iraq war spiraling
down endlessly and a big election year
looming, the last place most people
want to escape to is a dark movie theater
where someone else’s opinion gets
shoved down their throat.
Charlie Wilson’s War, a more
historical and humorous approach,
succeeds mostly when Philip Seymour
Hoffman comes into view. Terrific in
The Savages and Before the Devil Knows
You’re Dead, Hoffman’s original performance would be surprising in its
sheer bravado if it weren’t for the fact
that we’ve come to expect nothing less
from him.
If only the rest of the cast, and the
film itself, could have risen to Hoffman’s
level.
Grade: B- (Hoffman: A)
—Angela Matano
Charlie Wilson’s War is currently
available.
Cloverfield
(Paramount)
It’s Godzilla meets The Blair Witch
Project. And yet, it kinda works.
Filmed entirely as a home video
recording documenting a group of
friends having a going away party when
New York suddenly comes under attack
by some sort of creature, the video
technique lends a certain immediacy
that makes the hokey concept actually
genuinely suspenseful. And the
flashback device of taping over a
previous recording of the lead
character’s failed relationship is
ingenious.
However,
the
camcorder conceit is also
its own worst enemy. The
shots that are obviously
reminiscent of the footage
of people fleeing the
crumbling towers on 9/11
are borderline in bad taste.
The limited perspective
leaves any larger plot
questions unanswered,
leaving the viewer feeling
unsatisfied.
There are some really great,
suspenseful moments. You almost
regret when they actually show the CGI
monster.
Grade: B+
—Mike Sebastian
Cloverfield is currently available.
be a newspaper man, even if it’s for a
10th rate rag, the mere mention of
which embarrasses his gangster
friends. (“It’s on the way up,” he
assures them, but all the murderers
and blackmailers look down at their
shoes.)
Baseball fan Lloyd Bacon filmed
Picture Snatcher in 15 days, a few
days under the typical shooting
schedule for a Warner Brothers B
film, by yelling things at his actors
like “Run out your hit!” As Cagney
recounts in his autobiography, he
and Ralph Bellamy were quietly
rehearsing a scene together when
they heard Bacon cry out “Cut –
print it!”
“Hey you,” Cagney responded. “I
was rehearsing!”
“It looked fine from here!”
You can almost hear Cagney cluck
Campus Circle | 9
film
his tongue years later, in Cagney by
Cagney:
“That was the ultimate efficiency –
shooting a damned rehearsal!”
Grade: A
—Sean Schlemmer
Picture Snatcher is currently available.
FROM THE DIRECTOR OF THE
ACADEMY AWARD WINNER ‘THE FOG OF WAR’
AND ‘THE THIN BLUE LINE’
®
“THE NEW INVESTIGATIVE DOCUMENTARY BY ERROL MORRIS,
ONE OF OUR MOST ORIGINAL FILMMAKERS.”
–Frank Rich, THE NEW YORK TIMES
“A TRULY IMPORTANT FILM. THE FILM GETS AT THE ESSENCE OF
PHOTOGRAPHY AS A MEDIUM. THE GLORIOUS SCORE BY DANNY
ELFMAN ABSOLUTELY HAUNTS THE CORNERS OF THE FRAME.”
–Dennis Dermody, PAPER
The Orphanage
(New Line)
Sick of torture porn? Here’s a
genuinely suspenseful ghost story that
will have the hairs on your neck
standing up – a beautifully shot,
skillfully constructed and well-acted
story about a woman who returns to the
home where she grew up as an orphan.
Meanwhile, she struggles to
understand her HIV positive son as he
grows increasingly obsessed with his
invisible friends. When he suddenly
vanishes, she suspects that there may be
something to his stories after all.
This film by young Spanish
filmmaker Juan Antonio Bayona comes
with the stamp of approval from
producer Guillermo Del Toro (Pan’s
Labyrinth). If it doesn’t all totally add up
in the end, you don’t really mind. It’s one
of the best-made horror films since The
Sixth Sense.
Grade: A—Mike Sebastian
The Orphanage is currently available.
Picture Snatcher
(Warner)
Reformed racketeer James Cagney
pursues at last his lifelong ambition, to
Eleven Recent
PROPAGANDA
FILMS:
1) Rendition
2) Redacted
3) Lions for Lambs
4) In the Valley of Elah
5) Reservation Road
6) Stop-Loss
7) World Trade Center
8) Atonement
9) Rescue Dawn
10) No End in Sight
11)) United 93
—Angela Matano
WWW.TAKEPART.COM WWW.SONYCLASSICS.COM
READ THE
BOOK FROM
STARTS FRIDAY, APRIL 25 IN NEW YORK & FRIDAY, MAY 2 IN LOS ANGELES!
COMING SOON TO A THEATRE NEAR YOU!
VIEW THE TRAILER AT WWW.STANDARDOPERATINGPROCEDUREMOVIE.COM
10 | Campus Circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
music
cd reviews
MAKING THE GRADE: A EXCEPTIONAL
B WORTHWH I LE | C MEDIOCRE
D SAVE YOUR MONEY
F WILL BE ON HELL’S JUKEBOX
music 101 | artist feature
FOREVER THE
SICKEST KIDS
Infectious in a Good Way
B Y B R I E N O V E R LY
Secret Rooms
(Filter)
This L.A. foursome calls
their music “melodramatic
popular song,” and they have the
melodramatic part right, even if
they need to work on the
popular a bit. The band seems to
be infatuated with U2, the
Killers and the Cure, and they
channel those groups’ easily
identified sounds for much of
Secret Rooms.
Just when the mimicry
starts to wear thin, Gran Ronde
pulls a rabbit out of their hat
with “Gold.” The song departs
from the pop-shimmer formula
by slowing down the tempo to
the pace of a Neil Young dirge,
the languid beat taking on an
eerie aura, thanks to the liberal
use of Theremin (or perhaps a
very Theremin-sounding keyboard.) The song is well-written
and played, but it is unfortunately the only tune here
that really offers anything
unique.
Grade: B
—Kevin Wierzbicki
Secret Rooms is currently
available.
New Found Glory
Hits
(Geffen)
These guys have racked-up
nearly three million units in
sales, so don’t snicker that this
collection of favorites is called
Hits. Ten of the 12 inclusions can
be found on past albums, and
the songs are pretty much
stacked in chronological order;
so you can relive the band’s rise
to fame beginning with the
buoyant emo of “Hit or Miss
(Waited Too Long),” from their
self-titled major label debut in
2000, right through to “Hold My
Hand,” from 2006’s Coming
Home.
Two previously hard-to-find
cuts frame the oldies, and they
prove to be goodies worth
waiting for. The album starts
writing as a band, we felt we had to be
writing on our own, either acoustic or
on our computers,” says keyboardist
Kent Garrison. “The pressure was
good for us, it got our creative minds
thinking when we were practicing. Of
course we’d like more time to write
music, but it really brought the songs
out of us, and we can’t wait for kids to
hear it.”
With a self-assuredness in who
they are that belies both their ages
and the short amount of time they’ve
been together as a band, Garrison
and his band mates – bassist Austin
Bello, drummer Kyle Burns, vocalist
Jonathan Cook and guitarists Marc
Stewart and Caleb Turman – pride
themselves on their stylistic diversity.
“We have some songs that are
more techno’d out, we have an
acoustic track, we have some straight
up rock songs, we have a ballad and
some other stuff,” says Garrison. “We
really tried to get into every type of
song we could on this record and
show what we’re all about.”
Balancing that confidence is also
an awareness among the band
members that not everyone is going to
music dvd review
ANI DIFRANCO
Live at Babeville
(Righteous Babe)
More than just your average
concert, this performance takes place
in Buffalo, N.Y. at a 135-year-old
church that DiFranco not only saved
from demolition, but spent a decade
turning into an awe-inspiring music
venue and home base for her indie
record label, Righteous Babe.
As her band warms up the stage,
DiFranco says to a member in the
audience, “You named your son after
me? I’ll try not to fuck it up and
make you regret that in any way.”
with a highly polished melodic rocker
called “Situations” that, until now,
was only available for one month as a
streaming cut on the Warped Tour
Web site. The compilation closes out
with “Constant Static,” a speedy
dressing-down of a lover who
complains all the time, that was
previously released only as a bonus
Playing songs from her mutitude
of albums, she chats, charms and
entertains a sold-out house of
adoring, predominately female fans.
In the first half of the concert she
breaks a guitar string almost every
song, giving her acoustic playing a
bit of an awkward twang.
But when the strings warm to
her fingers she becomes electric,
mixing bluesy politics with deep
lyrical insight into the female psyche.
Her crowd-rousing song “Not a
Pretty Girl” sheds light on perhaps
the often annoying way in which
men seek to be the hero in a
relationship, relegating their female
counterparts to mere damsels in
track on a Japanese collection.
Grade: B
—Kevin Wierzbicki
Hits is currently available.
Moe Pope and
Headnodic
Moe Pope and Headnodic Are
Megaphone
be showering their band with praise.
“That was something our label
brought up to us, that since we are a
brand new band we are going to get
some hate, so they had us go on the
road and grind,” says Burns. “They
threw us in a van and made us tour for
the entire summer with hardly any
money. We thought major label bands
have tour buses and all this stuff, but
they’re making us go out there and
work for it.”
Echoing these sentiments, Garrison adds, “We had never been on
the road before as a band, then we
toured all summer by ourselves and
it really helped us grow. If we didn’t
do some of the things we did last
summer, we wouldn’t have written
some of the songs we wrote and
wouldn’t have the record we have
right now so it definitely worked out
for the best.”
Luckily, the band has a full
support team behind them to help
maintain balance and keep them
grounded amidst the ever-increasing
chaos being a member now entails.
“How I was brought up definitely
keeps me sane on the road,” says
Garrison. “We all come from great
homes, we have great support and
they’re always talking to us, saying
‘don’t forget who you are and who you
were brought up to be.’”
As such, Garrison and his band
aren’t taking anything for granted nor
are they about to get egos over their
quickly growing fan base.
“Any opportunity we get, we try to
stay out after the shows and talk to all
the kids. We want to be best friends
with everyone at a show and
hopefully, they see us like that, too,” he
says.
With that appreciation for both
where they’ve been and the people
who will get them to where they’re
going, along with the work ethic to
maintain their longevity, these guys
just may prove that even in this
modern scene of fleeting one-hit
artists, some things can last forever.
Underdog Alma Mater is currently
available. Forever the Sickest Kids will
perform at Warped Tour June 20 in
Pomona and Aug. 17 in Carson. For
more information, visit
www.foreverthesickestkids.com.
distress or helpless cats in trees.
“I am not a pretty girl,” DiFranco
tells us. “That is not what I do. I ain’t
no damsel in distress, and I don’t
need to be rescued.”
Like the best of DiFranco’s
music, the song then stretches
beyond male/female politics to
politics in general: “I am not an
angry girl, but it seems like I’ve got
everyone fooled. Every time I say
something they find hard to hear,
they chalk it up to my anger and
never to their own fear.”
Grade: B+
—Bourbon With Brendan
Ani DiFranco: Live at Babeville is
currently available.
(R.n.l.g.)
Megaphone restored my faith in
hip-hop. It’s not everyday mainstream radio stations play feel-good
hip-hop like this.
MCs Moe Pope (Project Movement) and Headnodic (Crown City
CONTINUED ON PAGE 13
«
Gran Ronde
THE HALLS OF ROCK PAST AND
present are lined with portraits of
bands that made it big by accident, the
vast majority of which we as a society
will look back on in five years (or less)
and cringe at our own bad taste. For
the powerpop rockers of Forever the
Sickest Kids, however, the online faux
pas that catalyzed their popularity
may be one that benefits the modern
rock scene and its constituent
listeners. And for once, it’s something
that doesn’t involve x-rated pictures
taken on a Sidekick.
The story goes that after an
accidental purchasing of featured ad
space on PureVolume, the Dallas
natives were under the gun to record a
song, because until then … they didn’t
have anything to feature. Three days
later, “Hey Brittany” was offered up to
the Web-surfing public, and the fan
support started pouring in, followed
quickly by label attention.
After signing to Universal, the
band continued its condensed work
schedule to write and record their
debut album, Underdog Alma Mater.
“It was really a time crunch.
Whenever we weren’t in the jam room
(l to r) Kyle Burns, Kent Garrison, Jonathan Cook, Caleb Turman, Marc Stewart and Austin Bello are Forever the Sickest Kids.
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
B Y D I TA D I M O N É
music
THE MEZZANINE OWLS
L.A. outfit is the answer to
the ’90s British invasion.
MEZZANINE OWLS WEREN’T
formed in the United Kingdom, but
they’ve accomplished making a sound
that rivals the best acts of the UK’s
shoe-gaze and post punk eras. Jack
Burnside, Dan Horne, Pauline Mu and
Jonathan Zeitlin make up the quartet
that makes you want to turn off the
lights and dance in the dark while
getting your heart ripped out, then
placed back in with a warm and fuzzy
coating. Yeah, it’s like that.
The Owls excel in crafting robust
and memorable melodies, with
soaring choruses and a bittersweet
sensibility about life and human
emotions. Burnside and Zeitlin are the
primary songwriters of the outfit that’s
permeating Los Angeles’ music scene
like a hot bullet shot out of a glock
with a silencer.
“We both have a common thread
of not having a deliberate handle on
what the songs are about; we do that so
people can explore them and draw
their own conclusions. [The songs]
start somewhere and evolve from
there. I don’t think any song is about
one specific emotion,” says Zeitlin.
“It starts with a piece or a phrase
or a word, a chord progression, a
punctuation, a question mark, a
clause,” continues Burnside until
Zeitlin joins in. “It starts with a colon
or a semicolon.”
Don’t let the moodiness of the CD
fool you; offstage, the pair can easily
headline the Comedy Store in
Hollywood.
“It’s really about beginning with
something and allowing the process to
work itself out and find its own
meaning,” says Zeitlin.
The, as of yet, unsigned L.A. band
recently released its self-titled
sophomore CD under Jaxart Records.
The four-track CD LP is a dreamy
concoction of shatteringly loud,
droning neo-psychedelia with a
moody, mysterious kind of ambience.
Burnside’s vocals are buoyant one
minute and cavernous the next. The
songs build and flow as if they were
actual living beings.
The only thing wrong with this CD
is that there aren’t more tracks! “Drift”is
a beautiful track that sounds like
Placebo crashed head on with
frequency | essential concerts | B Y
Pavement. On the other hand,
“Temporary Health” is a temperamental song that fluctuates from loud
and bleary guitars to jangly and almost
ballad-y arrangements. “Ghost Ship” is
reminiscent of Joy Division if they were
into ’50s doo-wop, while in “Snow
Globe,” Burnside manages to make
losing your mind sound romantic.
The new work follows their debut
EP, Slingshot Echoes (2006), that
sounds like running though an
enchanted forest where the darkest,
most exciting and heartfelt fairytales
are formed. For that work, the band
enlisted the help of friend and music
guru Andy Lemaster (Now It’s
Overhead, Bright Eyes, Azure Ray).
Made in Lemaster’s studio in Athens,
Ga., the CD exposed Burnside’s robust
yet melancholic crooning, as well as
the ethereal orchestration of fuzzed
out guitars layered with reverb effects.
Like their previous work,
Mezzanine Owls is a stunning piece of
work that leaves you to wonder: Why
doesn’t everyone know about them?
B R I E N O V E R LY
May 1 @ Canyon Club
It’s been a little while since Tim
Pagnotta and company have been
out and about, and for as much as
I’ve semi-playfully prodded at them
in past writings, I’m pretty sure that
deep down I really do love them as
an integral part of my youth. It feels
like just yesterday I was blasting the
tracks of Start Static at weekend
parties in high school, when pop
punk was pop punk – before it was a
fashion statement made via MySpace
pages.
Andrew Eccles
Sugarcult
Stagecoach Festival
May 2-4 @ Empire Polo Field
I’ll admit I’m not the most
knowledgeable column writer when
it comes to the area of country
music. It’s … not exactly an emo
boy’s forte, as one might expect.
Slightly more predictably,
however, I have an unabashed love
for one Carrie Underwood. I mean,
she’s practically Southern-fried girlemo … with less self-deprecation …
and bigger hair. What?
Well, anyway, if driving out to
Indio last weekend to hang with
elitist hipsters didn’t fill your quota
like Timbaland, Q-Tip and
Just Blaze. Members of Project
Movement, Gift of Gab of
Blackalicious and Woodstock from
Crown City Rockers make appearances as well.
Grade: A
—Kantreal Daniels
Megaphone is currently available.
Duran Duran
May 4 @ Nokia Theatre
These guys are icons of rock and
Pat Todd & the
Rankoutsiders
Holdin’ Onto Trouble’s Hand
(Rankoutsider)
Todd is a guitarist and vocalist
who dwells primarily in the rock ’n’
roll rave-up realm, and more than
half of the 20 cuts presented here fall
into that category. Probably half of
Mezzanine Owls is currently available in
the form of a 7” vinyl release, as well as a
digital download. Mezzanine Owls will
perform every Monday night in May at
Spaceland. For more information, visit
www.mezzanineowls.com.
pop, having been in the game for 30
years now and influencing some of
the top rock, pop and synth acts of
today. If there’s one thing the
foursome knows how to do, it’s to go
big (even despite the absence of
Warren Cuccurullo, cue rim shot),
and with a full catalogue of hit
singles and fan favorites to pick
from, the Birmingham natives would
have to actively try to be anything
less than awesome.
Alicia Keys
May 5 @ Staples Center
Country may not be my thing,
but I’ll surely be the first to say that
there are precious few artists, be they
rock bands or otherwise, who can
pry into the innermost depths of
your soul like my girl Alicia. Granted,
her first album is her best, but Keys
has certainly not lost her edge when
it comes to pouring her heart into
every note she lets loose.
those songs should have been left off
the album as they tend to all sound
alike after awhile; a similar fate has
befallen many (shorter) George
Thorogood albums.
Todd is at his most interesting
when he tones it down a bit, like
CONTINUED
«
Rockers) manage to make a hip-hop
CD without reiterating how many
kilos they’re pushin’ or hoes they
have. Instead, they step their game up
by delivering ingenious heart-felt
rhyming coupled with undeniably
innovative beats.
Moe Pope and Headnodic give
shout-outs to hip-hop predecessors
Carrie Underwood: Southern-fried girl-emo …
with less self-deprecation … and bigger hair.
of unshowered genre clichés,
spending this weekend with
California’s country-folk and whoever else would fly out for a Judds
reunion should do the trick.
The three-day festival’s lineup
also sees none other than rock icons
the Eagles headlining, along with the
unaging Mike Ness of Social Distortion, Shooter Jennings, popprincess-turned-artist-with-cred
Michelle Branch and barely legal
singer-songwriter phenom Taylor
Swift.
Contrary to earlier statements
saying otherwise, maybe I can give
up the whole dark and gloomy rock
thing for one weekend after all.
Why do they still have day jobs?
Rest assured there will be more to
come from the Owls; they’re in it for
the long haul.
“I think if you love something, you
should keep doing it. If you really
enjoy something, like we really enjoy
making music then you just keep
making it. There are periods where it
comes quickly and easily, and there are
periods where it’s like trying to get
blood from a stone,” explains the
singer. “The most difficult part is
trying to make music that you feel is
representative of your experiences
while matching it up with stuff that
you enjoy. It’s hard to make sure you
come up with something new as
opposed to just improving on other
things.”
when he channels a hillbilly Elvis
Costello for “King of Drugs.”
With the ability to sound a little
on the deranged side, Todd sings
some of these tunes, “Wrong
Turn” in particular, like an edgy
John Hiatt.
And of course when you’re
dealing with Chuck Berryinspired boogie you’re bound to
find something that sounds like
early Stones, and that’s here in
the form of “Long Love Letter”
and “The December 12th Blues.”
Grade: C
—Kevin Wierzbicki
Holdin’ Onto Trouble’s Hand is
currently available.
The Sword
Gods of the Earth
(Kemado)
In the mid-1980s, bands like
Saint Vitus and Trouble listened
to a lot of early Black Sabbath
and decided to put “heavy” back
into “heavy metal” by turning up
the overdrive, emphasizing lowend tonality and slowing the
songs down. Other bands
gravitated toward this sound,
and, in time, the subgenre of
“stoner doom metal” was born.
Austin, Texas’ the Sword
formed in 2003, inspired by
some of the “stoner” bands. Yet
as this band reveals on Gods of
the Earth, its new album, it
cannot be easily classified in any
ready-made metal category.
Calling this music “stoner
doom” underestimates the work
ethic that must have gone into
its creation, because this is highenergy rock.
Songs like “The FrostGiant’s Daughter” sound like
four or five of Iron Maiden’s best
riffs stitched seamlessly together
into one song. Lyrically, the
Sword focuses on melancholic
themes of mythic war and
Nordic-style demigods, which
can be quite daunting. Yet as
epic as the songs are, in three to
four minute blasts they never
overstay their welcome.
The highpoint of the album
is “To Take the Black,” which
stampedes through rolling
drum breaks and even acousticguitar flourishes. All the while,
singer-guitarist J.D. Cronise
CONTINUED ON PAGE 13
«
l.a. underground |
Campus Circle | 11
12 | Campus Circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
music
live show reviews
ROBYN HITCHCOCK/
NICK LOWE
All shows are FREE and ALL AGES!
For full calendar of events visit: AMOEBA.COM
IWjkhZWošCWo)š*fc
CHARITY AUCTION
Come in and bid on memorabilia, collectables, tickets & more
with your host Brently Heilbron! Proceeds benefit green charities
and New Orleans relief efforts.
Jk[iZWošCWo,š-fc
EVEREST
“Everest consists of members with ties to a handful of reputable
bands like Alaska!, Earlimart, the Watson Twins, Folk Implosion,
Great Northern, and Stanford Prison Experiment. Combine that
with the epic alt-rock, Tom Petty/Wilco-esque nature of their tunes
and it’s plain to see why they’ve earned such lofty labels.”
— LAist.com
Their debut album Ghost Notes comes out May 6th on Vapor
Records.
M[Zd[iZWošCWo-š-fc
URI CAINE
The LA Chamber Orchestra and Amoeba are proud to welcome
composer and jazz/classical pianist Uri Caine back to Amoeba!
His most recent is The Classical Variations (Winter and
Winter 2007). “An audacious flurry of activity by Uri Caine has
lifted the New York-based pianist to the upper echelons of his
trade ... testament to both his exemplary compositions and
virtuoso playing.” — BBC
JMEM;;ABO:@I;JI
M;:D;I:7OIš-#'&FC
C7D:7B7
Our weekly in-house DJ series featuring rotating
styles on the 1’s and 2’s!
<H?:7OIš.#/0)&FC
RESONANCE
9KH7J;:8O:@ @KD
DJ JUN (Bossa Nova founder, resident at
Soundlessons, The Standard, Cinespia, voted
“Best DJ” by LA Weekly in 2003 and buyer for
Amoeba’s electronic music section),
takes the reins as our Friday night resident!
Check out the new MUSIC WE LIKE
BOOKS (a handy collection of our
ijW¢Êi\Wleh_j[d[mcki_YWdZcel_[i
available now for FREE
Wj7ce[XWCki_Y
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AMOEBA.COM
FREE PARKING AT THE ARCLIGHT GARAGE!
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CRYSTAL CASTLES
April 12 @ Local Heroes Warehouse Party,
Premiere Events Center
Boy-girl duos are as common as your
generic douche bag rock stars,
but Crystal Castles tops them all.
Electro punk has been reinvented
thanks to this ultra-hip duo,
whose sound blasts through with
nostalgic Atari-era noise.
Los Angeles was definitely well
represented with an all-star lineup
of some of the city’s soon-to-be
superstars. IHEARTCOMIX darlings Acid Girls, dubbed one of
the best live acts in Los Angeles
today, set the stage for a latenight rager with a mix of
headbanging electro. Too bad
they had such an early set time,
though.
Skeet Skeet killed the
outdoor dance patio with his
signature mash-ups that always
carry a surprisingly guilty pleasure. Still, Crystal Castles drunkenly owned the night, as vocalist
Alice Glass hopped around the
main stage in a spastic tantrum
that was probably set off by the
bright, blinding strobe lights that
could give any healthy person a
seizure.
—John Ochoa
JAY-Z/MARY J. BLIGE
April 16 @ Hollywood Bowl
I cried at least five times tonight. The first
was when Mary sang, belted, screamed and
cried (yeah … she, too) out the lyrics to “No
More Drama.” Mary looked so beautiful as she
strutted around the stage, breaking into her
cute, trademark Mary-jigs.
As she ran through her hits we saw the
evolution of an artist and a woman. She spoke
directly to the ladies when she assured them
they were worth all the money their men
spend on them – a lesson that was hard for
Blige to learn herself.
As Blige’s set came to an exhilarating end,
a film clip went up on the big screen of Blige
and Jay-Z sitting side by side, explaining why
each is so awesome. Jay-Z extolled Blige’s
maturation as an artist and big upped her as a
round-the-way girl the guys could really talk
to in the hood, while Blige boasted about Jay-
Brendan Turril
UPCOMING IN-STORES at AMOEBA!
April 11 @ El Rey
Robyn Hitchcock and Nick Lowe: wry,
intelligent white-haired Englishmen, consummate showmen, spellbinding songwriters
about the mysteries of human behavior.
Hitchcock opened the all-acoustic evening
with odes to metamorphosis (“Balloon Man,”
“Trilobite,” “Olé! Tarantula”) and folktales
about phantasmagoric kingdoms (“Ghost
Ship,” “Idonia”).
Equally entertaining was his fantastical
banter about tar pits, ocelots and meerkats,
consciousness and consumerism, and an old
Los Angeles where Irving Thalberg was a
dentist, Louis B. Mayer an osteopath.
Lowe investigated tribulations of the heart
with songs ranging from his recently reissued
Jesus of Cool and Labour of Lust to The
Convincer and his new At My Age. “Cruel to Be
Kind” had a tangerine-haired girl swaying
gleefully beside me; “(What’s So Funny ‘Bout)
Peace, Love, and Understanding” had the
congregation reverently singing along.
Hitchcock joined Lowe to perform Johnny
Kidd & the Pirates’ “Hungry for Love,” the
Beatles’ “If I Fell” and Buddy Holly’s “Peggy
Sue.” This marvelous show offered abundant
lessons on love, time, mortality and humanity.
—Anthony Miller
They dove enthusiastically into the set,
banging their longhaired heads forward and
back under the blazing spotlights while
gripping their precious guitars for sweet
visceral escape. The boys put on a good show,
jumping up on the amps and speakers, then
leaping simultaneously into the air and getting
a classic scissor kick in before landing back on
stage.
In mid set, Bruno looked out at the crowd
and said, “Happy tax day, everyone,” then
upon brief reflection added honestly, “I don’t
even know what that means.”
—Bourbon With Brendan
DRIVE A
April 15 @ KeyClub
For the scant 15 years of life Youngster Bruno Mascolo of Drive A doesn’t even know what filing taxes means.
experience most of the members
of Drive A have under their
Z’s Brooklyn swagger, stating, “He’s the truth.”
metal-studded belts, these kids have a decent
And then, out came Jigga and his BK
grasp on what it means to play rock ’n’ roll.
swagger. Every Hov song is a classic. It’s as if he
“Are you guys fucking ready?” lead singer
took Brooklyn hip-hop and made it a
Bruno Mascolo asked the club as the band
household name. Over the next hour-plus, I
converged together on stage.
AMOEBA
BESTSELLERS
6400 SUNSET BLVD. (323) 245-6400
1) Mariah Carey — E=MC2
2) M83 — Saturdays=Youth
3) The Raconteurs — Consolers of the Lonely
4) Black Keys — Attack & Release
5) Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds — Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!
6) Radiohead — In Rainbows
7) Gnarls Barkley — Odd Couple
8) She & Him — Volume One
9) The Breeders — Mountain Battles
10) MGMT — Oracular Spectacular
11) R.E.M. — Accelerate
12) Cut Copy — In Ghost Colours
13) Nine Inch Nails — Ghosts I-IV
14) Vampire Weekend — Self-Titled
15) The Kooks — Konk (Limited Edition)
16) Crystal Castles — Self-Titled
17) Leona Lewis — Spirit
18) Sun Kill Moon — April
19) Dodos — Visiter
20) Air — Moon Safari 10th Anniversary
cried upon hearing “Big Pimpin,’” “Jigga
What” and so many more.
The only surprise guest was, of course,
Memphis Bleek and a picture of Barack
Obama on the big screen that followed an
image of Bush that the crowd flipped off. The
finalé was pure heaven as Blige and Jay-Z came
out together for two encores, including “Heart
of the City” (the name of their current tour)
complete with fireworks and one last tearshedding.
—Jessica Koslow
ARLO GUTHRIE
April 17 @ Royce Hall, UCLA
The name of Arlo Guthrie’s current tour,
Solo Reunion Tour – Together at
Last, encapsulated the wit and
biting humor of the legendary folk
singer-songwriter, as he appeared
for the first time since 1965
completely alone on stage with his
guitars and harmonica.
As one of the funniest
storytellers I’ve witnessed, his show
was more than just a typical
concert, complete with humorous
anecdotes and hysterical, yet
poignant, lyrics.
The audience shed tears from
laughter by the second song of
Guthrie’s set, “In the Shade of the
Old Apple Tree.” The evening of
talking blues continued with tales
of drug smuggling (“Coming into
Los Angeles”) and motorcycle
riding (“The Motorcycle Song”), as
well as instrumentals (a ragtime
piano piece and a guitar song
influenced by Guthrie’s time in
Hawaii filming the “Byrds of
Paradise” TV series).
Some of the most touching
moments were when he shared
memories of his late father,
musician and writer Woody
Guthrie.
And as he belted out “The City
of New Orleans,”“This Land is Your
Land” and the nearly 20-minutelong Vietnam War draft protest
song, “Alice’s Restaurant,” it was
plain to everyone in the auditorium that the
sentiments conveyed in many of Arlo
Guthrie’s words ring as true today as they did
in the late-’60s.
—Yuri Shimoda
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
music report |
BY KEVIN WIERZBICKI
Campus Circle | 13
AMOEBA TOP 10
music
Independent Local Artist Releases
6400 SUNSET BLVD. (323) 245-6400
Get a Lyfe!
Soul singer Lyfe Jennings already
owns a platinum record award that he
collected for his debut album, Lyfe 268192, and now he hopes to earn another
one with the release of Lyfe Change, his
third release overall. Jennings says that
Lyfe Change is a personal testimony,
and that the idea is to encourage people
to make a positive change in their lives
and the lives of others.
“I’m a musician; I’m not in a box,”
says Jennings.“That’s what I hate about
categories: people put you into one and
dare you to come out! I’m just trying to
do something meaningful and classic,
something that can be remade in 20
years.”
One of the new songs deals with a
subject where urgent change is needed:
“It’s Real” draws attention to the
HIV/AIDS epidemic. Guesting on Lyfe
Change are Snoop Dogg, T.I. and
Wyclef Jean. The album has just hit the
streets this week.
Happy Birthday,
Sub Pop
Feel like a road trip to Seattle? Sub
Pop Records is celebrating their 20th
anniversary this summer, and they’re
planning a few days of fun to celebrate.
Dubbed the SP20 Festival, the
celebration will include concerts in
Marymoor Park on July 12 and 13 and a
comedy show at the Moore Theatre on
July 11. A partial
line-up for the
concerts includes
Superfuzz Bigmuff May 22. The Sub
Pop Singles Club will also launch a
limited run commemorative series.
Tickets for the comedy show are on
sale at subpop.com, while one or twoday passes for the concerts have to be
purchased through Ticketmaster.
Phil Knott
Gesundheit! OK, really this is
nothing to sneeze at. The members of
Achozen have been casually jamming
together for a while, but now they’ve
gotten serious and laid out some plans.
Shavo Odadjian (System of a
Down), the RZA (Wu-Tang Clan),
Kinetic 9 (Killarmy) and newcomer the
Reverend William Burke have just
finished recording the Achozen selftitled debut that’ll be released this
summer on Odadjian’s digital label,
urSession.
Odadjian says the new music is not
rap-metal but “heavy hip-hop” that
focuses on lyrics that he calls “some of
the most innovative, poetic and
righteous words and vocals that I’ve
ever heard.”
Guesting on the album are George
Clinton (Parliament/Funkadelic), John
Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers),
Killah Priest and GZA (Wu-Tang
Clan), MC Sick Jacken and Angolan
rapper Leggezin Fin. While you’re
waiting for tour and album release
dates you can enjoy the track “Deuces”
that is now available at urSession.com.
Katy Perry – One of
the Boys
No one could ever mistake
Katy Perry for a man; the sassy
L.A.-based singer calls her debut
album One of the Boys because it
features lots of songs about
neurotic boyfriends.
“I think people can appreciate
a songwriter who shows different
sides and this album has many
different colors,” Perry says.
Lots of big-time producers like
Max Martin, Dave Stewart and Butch
Walker helped polish One of the Boys,
causing Perry to quip, “I feel like the
luckiest bitch in town right now.”
The album drops June 17, but in
the meantime you can hear a few tunes
at katyperry.com or at iTunes.
Michael Elins
Achozen
1) Jack Bond — Dali in New York
2) Patti Smith & Lenny Kaye — Feb. 10 1971
3) Devil Doll — Queen of Pain
4) The Younghearts — Hey Love
5) Eric Roberson — Left
6) Omar Rodriguez — Omar Rodriguez
7) Slackers — Boss Harmony Sessions
8) AM — Side by Side
9) Ray Ricky Rivera — Neighborhood Fame
10) Jay Green — Half Life
“The luckiest bitch in town,” Katy Perry
Mudhoney, Low, Kinski, No Age, Pissed
Jeans, Wolf Parade, Seaweed, Iron &
Wine, Flight of the Conchords and the
Helio Sequence. Patton Oswalt, Todd
Barry and Eugene Mirman will appear
at the comedy show.
Sub Pop is considered to be one of
the most important indie labels ever,
and they most famously brought
Nirvana into the spotlight with the
release of the Bleach album. Some of
the label’s significant titles will see rerelease in conjunction with the
anniversary, starting with Mudhoney’s
Tribe Called Quest, De
La Soul and Pharcyde
Rock the Bells
Titan hip-hop festival Rock the
Bells held an exclusive press conference
on April 22 to announce this year’s bill.
Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and all
the original members of the Pharcyde
were just a few of the headlining acts on
hand for the announcement.
Other acts include Mos Def, Nas,
Rakim, Method Man and Redman.
Rock the Bells ’08 will hit Los Angeles
Aug. 9.
—Ryan McWhorter
Ne-Yo will serenade Staples Center.
NE-YO
The Gentleman is
“Irreplaceable.”
NOT ONLY DOES HE CROON THE HITS –
“So Sick,” “Make Me Better” – from his No. 1 debut,
In My Own Words, and Platinum-selling sophomore
CD, Because of You, but he has penned some of
today’s most memorable R&B smashes: Beyoncé’s
“Irreplaceable,” Mario’s “Let Me Love You” and
Rihanna’s “Unfaithful,” to name just a few.
While the smooth operator may hang his hat in
ATL, he loves performing ’round the world,
especially as the opening act for Alicia Keys. Here’s
the 411 on the half Chinese-American soul man,
including some of his favorite L.A. spots.
Restaurant: P.F. Chang’s (121 N. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles)
cd reviews « CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11
Various Artists
Miles from India
(Four Quarters Ent.)
This album is a tribute to the late
jazz great Miles Davis, who first
experimented with Indian music by
using sitar and tabla drums on his
1972 release, On the Corner. Put
together by a passel of Indian
musicians and a group of Davis band
alumni that includes bassist Ron
Carter, pianist Chick Corea, drummer
Jimmy Cobb and guitarist Pete Cosey,
Miles from India vastly expands on
those explorations.
On some songs the results are
stunning. “Blue On Green” begins
with wordless vocals sung by Shankar
Mahadevan but they give way to a
guitar jam that leads into a trumpet
and violin frenzy and eventually all of
the sounds combine to finish the song.
“Great Expectations” moves along to a
spy vs. spy beat with trumpet and sitar
overlays but it also includes a brief,
Neighborhood: No favorite neighborhood. I’m a rolling stone. Any
place can be made to feel like home.
Music venue: Gimme a stage and a few willing listeners, and I’m good!
Hotel: The W (930 Hilgard Ave., Los Angeles)
Favorite thing about Los Angeles: The women and the weather!
What can fans expect from a Ne-Yo show? Expect a taste of every
emotion: happiness, sadness, sensuality … from laughter to tears, it’s
all here. Not to mention just GOOD MUSIC!
very quiet piano interlude.
Much of this project is done in a
fusion style that recalls the early work
CONTINUED ON PAGE 17
«
avoids the ubiquitous “cookie monster
voice” of so much latter-day metal,
opting for something more reminiscent of Rob Tyner of the MC5.
Grade: A
—Damon Huss
Gods of the Earth is currently
available.
Places to shop: Gucci (347 N. Rodeo Dr., Beverly Hills) and Beverly
Center (8500 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles)
Year of the Gentleman will be available June 24. Ne-Yo will perform May
5 at Staples Center with Alicia Keys. For more information, visit
www.neyoworld.com.
14 | Campus Circle
inner circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
caught on campus | P H O T O S
& TEXT BY ELSY BENITEZ
STOP DEPORTATION RALLY
While yelling chants of “Hey, hey, ho, ho, hell no we won’t go!” a diverse group marched from the
top of the famous Janss Steps on the UCLA campus, where notable figures such as Martin Luther King,
Jr. and John F. Kennedy have held rallies, to Meyerhoff Park.
These students were protesting an agreement between the United States and Vietnam, known as the
April 23 @ UCLA
Memorandum of Understanding, that allows for the repatriation of some Vietnamese citizens arriving
in the U.S. on or after July 12, 1995. This agreement affects about 1,500 Vietnamese individuals.
After the march, a group of students gathered to hear fellow students speak out
against this agreement.
You are invited to the
ROMANTIC COMEDY EVENT
of the summer
CAMP DARFUR
April 14-17 @ McCarthy Quad, USC
PHOTOS BY CONNIE SHAO
“‘Fight On for Darfur’ is a campus-wide student movement meant to unite
the students, staff, faculty and surrounding community of USC through
increasing awareness and promotion of activism against the inhumane
genocide occurring in Darfur.” —www.fightonfordarfur.com
STARTS FRIDAY, MAY 2
WEST LOS ANGELES The Landmark At Pico & Westwood Blvd. 310/281-8233
Free Parking
HOLLYWOOD ArcLight Hollywood At Sunset & Vine 323/464-4226
4 Hours Validated Parking - $2
L.A./BEVERLY HILLS Pacific’s The Grove Stadium 14 • 323/692-0829 #209
4 Hours On-Site Validated Parking Only $2.00
WESTWOOD Mann Bruin 310/248-MANN #051
SANTA MONICA Mann Criterion 6 • 310/248-MANN #019
SHERMAN OAKS Arclight Sherman Oaks At The Galleria
818/501-0753
$3.00 Parking After 6:00 PM in Privilege Parking Lots $1.00 Refund with Paid Admission
UNIVERSAL CITY CityWalk Stadium 19 with IMAX® 800/FANDANGO #707
Movie Parking Rebate $5 General Parking Rebate at Box Office with Movie Ticket Purchase (Excludes Preferred & Valet)
4 Hours Validated Parking–Free
WEST LOS ANGELES
The Bridge Cinema De Lux 310/568-3375
AND AT A THEATER NEAR YOU
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
fashion 101 | T E X T
& PHOTOS BY EMMANUELLE LEE
Campus Circle | 15
inner circle
SUMMER TAKES SHAPE
As summer draws near, it’s time to spread our wings and stretch our imaginations to new
lengths and heights with different shapes, colors, sizes and … sunglasses.
All sunglasses by A.J. Morgan (www.ajmorganeyewear.com). For more information, e-mail [email protected].
Sasha wears a dress by Empress.
Connect the dots: Corrie wears a dress by H&M.
There’s a world outside: Amanda wears a Punch & Judy top with
a LeCross skirt and Vintage Antiger bag.
Window to the soul: Jen wears a Unyx hooded top.
Fit to be square: Sasha wears a dress by Lush.
Stretch it to the limit: Nina wears a vintage Esprit skirt with
Cobalt jewelry and scarf.
Between the lines: Laci wears an H&M dress with a Sushi Co.
necklace.
Floral freedom: Nina wears a floral top by 7th Heaven and an
American Apparel headband.
16 | Campus Circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
CAMPUS CIRCLE READERS USE THIS COUPON TO GET:
Any LARGE
PIZZA at
the MEDIUM
price!
OFFER GOOD
• BURBANK – 4006 W. Riverside Dr. 818-843-8550
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8 LOCATIONS: • GLENDALE – 309 N. Brand Blvd. 818-247-1946
• HOLLYWOOD – 1618 N. Highland Ave. 323-467-5791
• KOREATOWN – 3432 Wilshire Blvd. 213-386-6884
• MAR VISTA – 3519 S. Centinela Ave. 310-398-0180
music
spin cycle | l.a. dj culture
FRIDAY, MAY 2
DJ Spinna @
Echoplex
1154 Glendale Blvd., Echo Park
21+/9 p.m./$11 adv./$15 day of show
Prince vs. Michael Jackson –
who can choose? Luckily,
tonight you don’t have to, as DJ
Spinna lays down a special fourhour set of nothing but Prince,
Michael Jackson and their
extended family – including
Janet, Jermaine, Sheila E.,
Vanity, the Time and maybe
even Apollonia. Opening set
from DJ Jeremy Sole.
• WILSHIRE/HIGHLAND – 5044 Wilshire Blvd. 323-939-7661
• USC – 2510 S. Figueroa St. 213-745-5566
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30
The Grasshopper @ Little Temple
4519 Santa Monica Blvd., Silverlake; myspace.com/grasshopperwednesdays
21+/9 p.m./$5
This monthly party, hosted by Aceyalone, presents its “I Love L.A.” edition.
Special guest DJs Val the Vandle and Trek Life join DJ Tommy Blak beatmakers
Dibiase, N/A and Aspect One for hip-hop, dancehall, R&B, soul and funk. Sport
your L.A./Los Angeles-themed apparel and get in for free before 11 p.m.
Must present coupon when ordering. Only one coupon per order, per customer.
SATURDAY, MAY 3
Funky Sole @ Jimmy’s Lounge
6202 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood; myspace.com/funkysole
21+/9 p.m./FREE
For the finest in funk and soul, look no further than this Hollywood staple,
where it’s all about the dancing. Resident DJs Music Man Miles, Egon, DJ Clifton
and an impressive array of special guests keep the funk alive every week.
SUNDAY, MAY 4
Banana Split Sundaes @ LAX
1715 N. Las Palmas, Hollywood
21+/10 p.m./free, RSVP: bpmmagazine.net/bananasplit
If you feel like hitting the Hollywood scene hard and destroying your week by
going out tonight, this is definitely the place. Resident DJs Steve Aoki, DJ AM (when
he’s around), Mike B and special guests hold down the dance floor with indie rock,
electro and anything else that’ll make you move. Early arrival strongly recommended – unless you derive pleasure from standing in a really long line.
—Sandra Fernando
staff pick
Stiff Little Fingers
May 2 @ House of Blues Sunset Strip
Since their inception more than 30 years
ago, Stiff Little Fingers have expectedly
undergone a number of lineup changes,
most recently bringing back in Ali
McMordie, their second bass player, to
replace Bruce Foxton, who’d replaced
McMordie until returning to the Jam
(rather, a slight variation thereof).
A less puzzling evolution on SLF terms is
their sound – one of the most relevant bands
in both Irish and punk rock history, the
group’s Inflammable Material holds up as one
of the roughest, most politically forward
records ever made. Today, they’re a bit
saggier, and their last studio effort in 2003
wasn’t quite as gripping.
Frontman Jake Burns now sings with less
of a burning growl – perhaps why he focused
on an easy solo release of Irish drinking songs
last year. But for all they’ve lost over the years,
SLF still make smarter punk than anyone
around.
—China Bialos
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
gift guide | B Y
LAUREN ROSENBLUM
HELPFUL HINTS FOR
MOTHER’S DAY GIFTS
From flowers to photos, Flips to
trips, show mom she’s No. 1.
Still haven’t found the right gift for your mom? Don’t worry, this Mother’s
Day gift guide will help you out. By the way, Mother’s Day is May 11!
FAMILY PHOTO/VIDEO
view of the mountains and spa services? The
Horizon Hotel (1050 East Palm Canyon Drive,
Let mom take pride in her finest
Palm Springs; www.thehorizonhotel.com) is
accomplishment – her family – with a special
offering a “Mother’s Day” package deal: two-night
keepsake that will help celebrate her maternity.
stay (May 9-11), 60-minute in-room massage and
Get your siblings to pitch in and help you hire a
flowers and Gloria Ferrer Champagne upon her
professional photographer like True Blue
arrival. Luxuriate by the pool,
Photography to take a true family
jacuzzi and poolside bar of this
portrait this year.
gorgeous mid-century modern
Be sure to coordinate your
hotel, then rinse off in the glassclothing so no one will become
encased shower in your room as
the focus of the photo and scout a
you gaze at the stars.
location in advance, taking into
account the possible weather
conditions. True Blue PhotoSTATIONERY
graphy is based in Southern
For the busy mom who’s always
California, available anywhere.
making lists and trying to keep
For more information, call (562)
things organized, give her a
299-2506 or visit www.truebluepersonal gift that she can use
Flip Video Ultra camcorder
photography.com.
everyday. Personalized notepads
Or present mom with a Pure
or stationary make perfect gifts. Visit
Digital Flip camcorder (www.theflip.com). This
www.stationarystudio.com to check out all of the
video recorder is so compact it fits easily into a
thoughtful Mother’s Day gifts they have to offer.
pocket or purse, and the oh-so valuable footage
If you don’t have enough time to order
can be instantly downloaded to the computer and
online, you can always pick up something special
e-mailed around or uploaded to YouTube. There
at Soolip Paperie & Press. Soolip Paperie & Press
are four colors to choose from – black, white,
is located at 8646 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood.
orange and pink – for well under $200.
For more information, call (310) 360-0545 or
visit www.soolip.com/intro.aspx.
FLOWERS
Are you looking for a truly original gift idea
for mom this year? Take a classic gift of flowers
and kick it up a notch.
Cigar Box Blooms combines vintage cigar
boxes with beautiful, fresh flowers to create a truly
unique flower creation. All of the flowers are cut
fresh and can last up to three weeks, but once the
flowers die, mom can reuse
the one-of-a-kind cigar box
or keep the flowers in them
and display a beautiful dried
bouquet.
Contact Cigar Box
Blooms with any questions
or orders at (310) 314-3576.
Also, check out their
Facebook group online to
look at photos of the various
arrangements.
SWEETS
Was mom always telling you eat your fruits
and veggies? If so, now you can give her a taste of
her own medicine!
Edible Arrangements specializes in creating
delicious fruit designs filled with fresh strawberries, pineapple, grapes, oranges, cantaloupe,
honeydew, bananas and
pears. Arrangements are
guaranteed fresh and are
available in a variety of
styles and sizes.
I recommend the
Sweetheart Bouquet: chocolate covered strawberries that are sure to
show mom how sweet she
is. Edible Arrangements
has locations all over L.A.
Poolside Bar at Horizon Hotel
For more information, call
(877) 363-7848 or visit
SPA/ESCAPES
www.ediblearrangements.com.
Mother’s Day often means breakfast in bed –
Or maybe you want to send her into sugar
complete with undercooked pancakes, sloshing
shock – just for this one day, at least. Send her a
syrup and rock-hard toast. Despite the
box of chocolates from Valerie Confections
undeniable appeal of annual indigestion, every
(www.valerieconfections.com).
mom secretly yearns for something a tad more
Not only are they decadent and delicious but
self-indulgent.
the presentation is delicate and divine. And who
Spoil mom with a handheld massager this
could resist Salt and Pepper Truffles or Almond
year. Sharper Image sells a variety of massage
Fleur de Sel Toffee?
products that will help her relax with a
therapeutic massage every day. For more
information, call (626) 254-0821.
With additional reporting by Jessica Koslow.
Or why not whisk her away to a room with a
Campus Circle | 17
cd reviews « CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13
of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, no surprise
since Mahavishnu guitarist John McLaughlin
is on board including as composer of the title
song.
Grade: A
—Kevin Wierzbicki
Miles from India is currently available.
music
actual covers, as the compilation is, for the
most part, a bunch of punk kids butchering
rap classics.
Grade: C—John Ochoa
Punk Goes Crunk is currently available.
The Wood Brothers
Various Artists
Punk Goes Crunk
(Fearless)
Unlike the title promises, the seventh
installment of Fearless’ Punk
Goes series falls short of
anything punk and virtually
contains no crunk at all, aside
from Set Your Goals’ cover of
Lil’ Jon’s “Put Yo Hood Up,”
partly sung in a bad
impression of Star Wars’ Yoda.
Aside from some comical
renditions, especially Say
Anything’s blasé cover of Ol’
Dirty Bastard’s “Got Your
Money,” the compilation hits a few standout
tracks, including Skee-Lo’s “I Wish” reworked
by the Secret Handshake, Scary Kids Scaring
Kids’ somber take on “Notorious Thugs” by
the Notorious B.I.G. and Bone Thugs-NHarmony and All Time Low’s surprisingly
memorable version of Rihanna’s “Umbrella.”
Still, the track listing is much more
impressive – with songs from rap legends
Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and others – than the
Loaded
(Blue Note)
Roots-oriented the Wood Brothers share a
bond with the Bee Gees, the Kinks and Van
Halen: they all feature
siblings.
Oliver
(who
performs in blues-based
King Johnson) and Chris
Wood (Medeski, Martin and
Wood) went in musically
and geographically separate
direcions, but, despite differences, have joined to create
an affable, if derivative, mix
of rock, blues and folk that
will please Ben Harper,
Jakob Dylan or John Mayer fans.
Loaded is the duo’s sophomore release
and has an informal rapport only kin can
create. Jimi Hendrix’s “Angel” (arranged in a
faux-reggae style) and Bob Dylan’s “Buckets of
Rain” (done as a back porch jam) add a sense
of familiarity.
Grade: C
—Doug Simpson
Loaded is currently available.
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FpsWAUN2/08
18 | Campus Circle
inner circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
sports
2008 NFL DRAFT RESULTS
Winners and Losers
B Y M AT T H E W K I T C H E N
THE LIVES OF 252 YOUNG MEN
were changed this weekend, as 32 NFL
teams selected players in this year’s
draft and many dreams became reality.
Jake Long started things off, going to
the Miami Dolphins with the first
overall pick, and Chris Long followed
closely behind to the St. Louis Rams at
No. 2.
Like most drafts, there were good
picks and bad. There were teams
grasping at straws, and teams making
late round steals; Most teams just fell
somewhere in the middle.
THREE WINNERS OF THE
WEEKEND:
Kansas City Chiefs: The Chiefs
chose early and often, getting what
many assumed was the best player in
the draft in LSU’s defensive tackle
Glenn Dorsey.
They also added cornerbacks
Brandon Flowers and Brandon Carr to
shore up their holes in the secondary
and were lucky enough to have Texas
running back Jamaal Charles fall to
them in the third round.
Dallas Cowboys: Not that they
LAKERS VS.
NUGGETS
Onward and Upward!
B Y M AT T H E W K I T C H E N
Michael Goulding/Orange County Register/MCT
IT AIN’T OVER … BUT IT’S OVER.
After the career defining games of Pau
Gasol and Kobe Bryant to start the
series, game three showed what the
Lakers can do with a total team effort.
With nearly seven players in double
figures and the ball moving well, the
Lakers looked almost unbeatable
against the hapless team from Denver.
Nuggets coach George Karl states that,
“Kobe, when he’s making his jumpshot, is somewhat indefensible.”
The effort of the Lakers and their
strong team play has lead to questions
Carmelo Anthony of the Nuggets looks
for a basket as Lakers Kobe Bryant and
about the Nuggets and their equal
Pau Gasol defend on April 26, 2008,
desire to win.
in Denver.
“Yeah. We quit. Everybody. From
the coaches to the players, we quit. And I said it,” star Nuggets forward
Carmelo Anthony fumes.
The Lakers are likely to match up against the New Orleans Hornets –
whose star, MVP Candidate Chris Paul, has torched the Dallas Mavericks
in their first round series – in the Western Conference Finals. The
Hornets might want to avoid getting too chippy with Kobe and the
Lakers, as both the stars of the team and the “Bench Mob” – including
Jordan Farmar, Luke Walton and Ronny Turiaf – admit to feeding off the
energy provided by the anger and emotion of the other team.
“I take it as a challenge when there’s a lot of talking going on. It’s fun.
I certainly enjoy it, and my teammates enjoy it. It’s something we all feed
off of,” says Bryant.
For the Nuggets, and stars Anthony and Allen Iverson, it may be time
to go back to the drawing board. Even after ending the season with 50
wins, it seems as if Denver is a second tier team that will find it hard to
get over the hump and compete well with the top teams in the West.
For the Lakers, their first series win of the decade without Shaq
might be just what they need to prove they finally belong amongst the
top teams in the league.
needed much help with a record
number of Pro-Bowlers returning
from last season, but the Cowboys
strengthened their running game
and will look to provide a one-two
punch with Arkansas running back
Felix Jones joining Marion Barber in
the backfield. They also addressed
their biggest hole at cornerback with
Mike Jenkins out of South Florida.
Atlanta Falcons: Boston College
Quarterback Matt Ryan should do as
much off the field to help the image of
the troubled Falcons as he’ll do on the
field to help solidify the changing role
at QB, which saw three different
starters for the Falcons last year. Like
Kansas City, the Falcons used a great
deal of picks to help the numerous
holes on both sides of the ball. A good
start to a big rebuild for the Falcons.
THREE LOSERS OF THE
WEEKEND:
Jacksonville Jaguars: The Jags
traded too much for too little when
they moved up to get Derrick Harvey
out of Florida, who would have likely
been available at their original position
20 spots later. They gave up three late
rounders for the eighth overall pick
and didn’t address nearly enough
needs because of their lack of choices,
which is especially unfortunate since
they play in the AFC South, considered
by many to be the toughest division in
football.
Cleveland Browns: While the
choices they made were good ones,
such as UNLV linebacker Beau Bell,
the fact that they didn’t have a pick in
the first three rounds meant that the
talent pool was a bit shallow by the
time they had a turn.
An excellent off-season in free
agency should help turn them into a
playoff team this season, but you can’t
NOTES FROM THE
2008 DRAFT 21 by the Falcons, OG Chilo Rachal
BY SHANE IGOE
The first day of the draft, which
included the first two rounds, was
completed in a mere three hours
and 31 minutes, the fastest first day
since 1990, and in almost half the
time of last year’s six-hour and
eight-minute marathon.
Return of the Magnificent Seven
Seven USC Trojans were
selected during first day, with four
going in the first 32 picks – the most
Trojans selected in the first round
since 1968. Most picks will be seeing
some familiar faces when they
report to their respective teams’
training camps.
DT Sedrick Ellis was drafted
seventh by the New Orleans Saints
where he will be not only be
reunited with Reggie Bush but with
Ed Orgeron, former Trojan D-line
coach. LB Keith Rivers’, selected
ninth by the Cincinnati Bengals,
first congratulatory call came from
none other than former Trojan QB
Carson Palmer who warmly
welcomed Rivers to the struggling
squad.
The Seattle Seahawks selected
DE Lawrence Jackson with the 28th
pick, and “LoJack” will be reunited
with defender “Lofa” Tatupu, while
CB Terrell Thomas will suit up with
former SC standout Steve Smith
and the Super Bowl champion
Giants.
Other Trojans selected the first
day include: OT Sam Baker at No.
build from the ground up without
early round draft picks.
Tennessee Titans: While Tennessee might have made one of the
best defenses in football that much
better by drafting defensive end
Jason Jones, a team that can’t catch
at No. 39 by the 49ers and TE Fred
Davis at No. 48 by the Redskins.
Booty Call
QB John David Booty finally
got a call from a team late in the
second day as he was picked up by
Vikings in the fifth round with their
137th pick overall. Booty might be
questioning his decision three years
ago to leave high school early as his
draft value could have vaulted with
an additional year of college play.
And RB Chauncey Washington,
who at one point started ahead of
Reggie Bush, has to wonder what
could have been (he was eventually
selected in the last round by
Jacksonville with the 213th pick)
had he avoided off the field troubles
during his time as a Trojan.
Bad News Bears
The Bruins held their spring
scrimmage the same day as the
draft. Three Bruins were taken in
the later stages of draft over the
weekend, but, unfortunately for
Bruin fans, both of their senior QBs
were injured in back-to-back plays
during the intrasquad scrimmage.
Patrick Cowan will miss all of
the upcoming 2008 season due to an
injured ACL, while Ben Olsen will
undergo surgery to have a screw put
into his right foot in the coming
weeks.
In the meantime, OLB Bruce
Davis was selected by the Steelers,
and FS Matt Slater was picked by the
Patriots.
won’t be making much noise come
next season. The Titans didn’t
address their huge hole at wide
receiver until the fourth round, and
then, could only get Cal’s Lavelle
Hawkins, who is too small and slow
to contribute in any major way.
PILOTS FLY LOW IN SAN DIEGO
Red Bull Air Race blasts into fifth season.
San Diego is one of
two American cities and
10 cities worldwide that
will host the Red Bull Air Race. This
year will feature a new race format
that includes the following flying
sessions: Training, Qualifying, Point
One, Super Eights, Semifinals, Third
Place Fly-off and the Final.
Also included is a format
introduced in the 2007 race – the
knock out format, which takes place in
the final three rounds. However, the
format is slightly adapted in 2008,
which allows for all 12 pilots to
demonstrate their skills on race day,
regardless of ranking. This new format
allows pilots to fly up to four times
B Y PA R I M A L M . R O H I T
DO NOT BE ALARMED BY THOSE
loud sounds in the San Diego Bay – the
world’s best pilots have come out to
play. For the second straight year, the
Red Bull Air Race World Series returns
to San Diego, featuring pilots who will
compete in the harbor just outside
downtown on May 3 and 4.
The weekend race, which tests
speed, precision and skill, highlights
fast, agile and lightweight racing planes
that will navigate on a low-level aerial
track made up of air-filled pylons at
speeds up to 240 miles per hour, while
withstanding forces up to 10 Gs.
throughout the course of the day.
“This improved race format
fulfills the new safety requirements
that were discovered throughout the
2007 season. Pilots will now fly a
maximum of three flights per day to
counteract the fatigue,” says Heinz
Möller, Head of Aviation. “But the
most exciting thing about this format
is that the crowds will now get the
chance to see all pilots perform on
race day.”
The Red Bull Air Race will take over the
bay between the Embarcadero Marina
parks and Coronado in San Diego
May 3-4. For more information, visit
www.redbullairrace.com.
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
Dear Lucia,
I am involved with a woman who
blows up and nitpicks at me about
everything. She does not want me to
touch her – no sex, kissing, hugging or
let alone sleeping in the same bed.
She tells me that she loves me, but
I don’t know what to do when she is
like this. She beats down my
confidence. It feels like I am walking
on eggshells.
—Joe
Dear Joe,
Love is a verb. It doesn’t matter how
often someone says they love you if they
don’t show it in their actions.
She is withholding sex, being
verbally and emotionally abusive and
you have to tiptoe around her. Gee,
sounds like a match made in heaven!
Why is she behaving this way? Part
of the reason is because she knows she
can, and she’s right, because you’re still
there putting up with it. If she was
dating someone who she knew would
never put up with that behavior, unless
she has mental health issues, she
probably would not behave that way.
You need to be a man and tell her
you will no longer put up with her
abusive behavior. Inform her that you
will not see her anymore until she either
adjusts her attitude or gets counseling.
In the meantime, start dating
women who treat you well and
appreciate you.
Dear Lucia,
I was cheated on for the first time.
I went against my own morals and got
back with him afterwards.
Now, everyday, I sit and wonder
months. I get jealous over her keeping
slight phone contact with a couple of
past boyfriends.
How should I deal with this?
—Wade
Dear Wade,
You either accept it or stop seeing
her. Really.
People generally have an ex or three
that they keep in touch with, especially
if it was a long-term relationship. Slight
phone contact is minor.
Unless she’s given you a reason to
believe there may be something going
on, this is more a question of your own
insecurity. All you can do is be the best
date/boyfriend you can be, and if that
isn’t enough for her, there’s nothing you
can do!
why and I am
depressed. In
a way I want
to leave, but
in a way I don’t.
I don’t trust him, but I love him, I
guess? I really just want to move on,
and I want you to tell me how so I can
get over this and him.
—Erin
Dear Erin,
We’ve all walked in your shoes.
Some chose to keep them, some chose
to get new shoes.
I wish I had more details, so I will
have to give you a general answer.
What was the reason he cheated? Is
it because he wasn’t happy with your
sex life or was he just being selfish? Has
he said he’s sorry and that he won’t do it
again?
Trust can only be rebuilt slowly –
you can’t expect to trust him 100
percent right away. If this means you
have to question him about things
sometimes, he has to understand this is
the price he has to pay for continuing to
be in your life. If he doesn’t accept that,
then there’s no need to stick around.
However, if you are certain that you
want to move on, then the only way to
do it is to make other people and things
a priority in your life. Do the things you
were doing before you met him that
you may have let go of because you were
spending time with him. Re-connect
with people you haven’t talked to or
seen in a while.
Finally, instead of focusing on
being a victim, focus on reaching out
and helping other people. You’d be
surprised how good it can feel to think
about other people at a time like this.
Hi Lucia,
I’m a pretty even keeled guy, but
when I read your reply to Cammie, I
thought, “Wow!” I don’t like to drive,
and have been hit twice while stopped.
I tend to get upset when people
make dangerous moves around me. I
never realized the link between that
and abuse, and how that might affect
somebody I date. Thanks for pointing
that out.
—MJ
Remember: Love inspires,
empowers, uplifts and enlightens.
Write to Lucia at:
www.theartoflove.net.
Read an excerpt from Lucia’s
Lessons of Love at
www.lessonsoflove.net.
Listen to Lucia live every Sunday
at 3 p.m. PST on
www.bbstalkradio.com.
Hi Lucia,
I have been dating a woman for six
B Y PA R I M A L M . R O H I T
2008 TOYOTA GRAND
PRIX LONG BEACH
Champ Car leaves Long Beach
with a bang.
THE INDYCAR SERIES HAS A
lot to look forward to when it takes
over the Long Beach Grand Prix next
year. Its darling driver, Danica Patrick,
became the first woman to win a
major open-wheel race in history (in
Motegi, Japan) on the eve of the final
Champ Car World Series running its
final laps at the popular Southern
California event.
Champ Car concluded its final
hurrah in Long Beach, but not
without a last ditch effort to reclaim
past glory. A race that at one time had
a larger fan base than NASCAR stock
car racing, last weekend’s Long Beach
Grand Prix served as an opportunity
for Champ Car to re-establish itself as
one of the sport’s elite.
Thanks to Will Power and Mario
Dominguez, the Champ Car World
Series may find itself back on the path
to finding its glory days even though
they closed shop at the Long Beach
Grand Prix on April 20. This year’s
race was the final one for Champ Car,
which merged with Indy Racing
League in February.
In his third career victory at the
Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach,
Power, who raced for Kalkhoven and
Co., won the final race in the Champ
Car World Series. The Australian led
in 76 of the 105 laps after taking his
Doug Gifford
sports |
BY LUCIA
Pit action at the Champ Car World Series
first lead on the first corner of the
1.968-mile circuit through the streets
of downtown Long Beach.
In second place was France’s
Franck Montagny, who finished 5.094
seconds behind Power. Mexico’s
Dominguez finished third, which was
a symbolic finish. It was the first time
he or his team finished on the
podium. His Pacific Coast Motorsports operation was one of the
smallest to compete in the race.
This year’s Grand Prix was the last
to use Champ Car-specific Panoz car
and Cosworth engine, developed for
the series in 2007.
Nine drivers have now moved to
the IRL full-time, which began April
27 at Kansas Speedway. Points from
the Long Beach and Motegi, Japan
races both count toward the
championship.
sports
inner circle
David Martin Warr
the art of love |
Campus Circle | 19
Phil Dalhausser rose to victory in Miami.
2008 AVP
CROCS TOUR
Brings Sand to the Beach
in 15 Cities
B Y PA R I M A L M . R O H I T
ONE YEAR REMOVED FROM THE RETIREMENT OF A
volleyball icon, the AVP Crocs Tour returns in 2008 building upon last
year’s momentum as a new generation of sand athletes continue to
attack the net and build a fan base.
The 2008 Tour already had a strong start in Miami and Dallas,
where Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers picked up from where they left
off last year – winning early and maintaining their position as favorites.
The duo has won 20 of 33 AVP events they have competed in and
improved to 10-0 in match play this season.
Things are no different on the female side, where Misty MayTreanor and Kerri Walsh, also winners in several cities on the 2007
tour, won in both Miami and Dallas this season. May-Treanor and
Walsh have won 22 of their past 25 AVP events and are now 53-7 in
AVP championship matches.
In addition to showcasing their talent on the AVP Tour, both teams
are also preparing for the Summer Olympics in Beijing. Both teams
have virtually locked up spots on this summer’s U.S. Olympic Team
and hope to be playing their best volleyball leading up to the Beijing
Games.
With Miami and Dallas already out of the way, the next stop for
the AVP Tour is Huntington Beach on May 2 through 4. The Tour will
then move on to Charleston, S.C., Louisville, Ky. and Atlanta, Ga.,
before returning to Hermosa Beach on June 6 through 8. On July 25,
beach volleyball fans can catch the tour in Long Beach or in San Diego
the following week (Aug. 1 through 3).
The Tour will make a stop in California’s Central Coast on Sept. 6
through 7, and return to Southern California for the final time on Sept.
19 through 21, where the Tour’s flagship event will take place in
Manhattan Beach. Five days later, the Tour concludes in Glendale,
Ariz.
For more information, visit www.avp.com.
20 | Campus Circle
inner circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
lifestyle | B Y
SHEILA DICHOSO
PLANJAM
Creating Out-of-the-Ordinary
Dates for the College Set
THE LEGENDARY RIVALRY
between USC and UCLA is as intense
as the one between the Capulets and
Montagues, so that a Trojan and a
Bruin dating are like a pair of starcrossed lovers.
But you just can’t help whom you
fall for, even if it is the “enemy.” Such
is the case for USC sophomore
Garrett Nolan, 20, and UCLA junior
Kristen Eck, 21, an inter-rival couple
that have been together for about a
Bruins.
“This year, with the basketball
game when we beat them, I called her
up and said, ‘I don’t know if you
know, but we won today! Bye!’ Click!”
“I was so mad!” Eck says. “But
neither of us take it that seriously.”
Besides going to rival schools,
their problems are the same as any
other couples: finding time to hang
out and trying to find something to
do together besides the same old
year.
Eck, an Anthropology major, and
Nolan, a USC Football Player, are
subject to odd encounters all the time
whenever they sport their respective
garb out in public.
“When we walked out of [this]
restaurant, this car drove past us with
a woman and a man inside. They
looked over, stopped the car, backed
up, rolled down the window and said,
‘How does that work?’”
She wondered the same thing.
“The first time I met him all he
talked about was SC football, and I
remember thinking, ‘This isn’t going
to work out,’” she says, laughing.
Eck grew up a Bruin; her dad played
football for UCLA, and she frequently
attended Rose Bowl games as a kid.
“I’ve been very conditioned to
think, ‘we’re the good guys. They are
the bad guys,’” she says.
Likewise, Nolan grew up in a
Trojan household, with his grandfather, uncle, sister and cousin as
alumni. His childhood dream was to
play football for USC.
It’s not easy being an inter-rival
couple, especially when Eck lives in
Westwood and her Trojan boyfriend
loves to visit and parade around
wearing his USC shirt and taunt the
thing every night.
The biggest dilemma? Movies.
Although they share a love for
Disney films (Nolan’s other lifelong
dream is to play Gaston in Beauty and
the Beast), going to the video store is
not a picnic.
“We always go to Blockbuster and
we always end up getting upset because
I want to see a certain movie, but she’s
already seen it or she doesn’t want to
see it. And we end up leaving all
disgruntled,” he explains.
Instead of another doomed
Blockbuster night, Eck and Nolan
decided to create a date on a new site
called PlanJam that allowed them to
combine their common interests and
partake in a new adventure.
Combining their love for the beach,
they began their date (donning their
respective school garb, of course) at
the Santa Monica Pier where they
had an oil painting done, checked
out the aquarium and rode the
carousel, which made for an amusing
moment.
Eck explains, “There were collegeaged kids working the booth and they
looked at us and went ‘uh,’ and the guy
in back of him goes, ‘Go Stanford!’
And we were like, ‘what?’ And he
explained, ‘it’s because usually when
Leslie Nolan
“This year, with the basketball
game when we beat them, I
called her up and said, ‘I don’t
know if you know, but we
won today! Bye!’ Click!”
“I was so mad!” Eck says.
“But neither of us take it
that seriously.”
someone with an SC shirt
walks up we go, ‘Go Bruins!’
and when someone with a
UCLA shirt walks up we go,
‘Go Trojans!’ And then you
guys walked up, and we didn’t
know what to do!’”
Next up was a psychic
reading, which both Nolan and
Eck call “interesting.”
“One of the first things she
tells me is, ‘Is that your
boyfriend?’ And I said “Yeah,”
and she said, ‘You’re not soul
mates.’” Eck continues, “But
you were soul mates in a past
life, and that’s why you guys
feel so close, but it’s not meant
Garrett Nolan and Kristen Eck take a spin on the carousel at Santa Monica Pier.
to be.”
“The next day I was just
Ron Zvagelsky masterminded
impressive, ranging from hot air
laughing and writing on her Facebook
PlanJam while sitting in his enballoon rides to the unconventional,
wall, “non-soul mate!!”” Nolan jokes.
trepreneurial studies class at USC,
such as a category for “Haunted
Despite surprising psychic revelsimultaneously thinking about a date
Spots.”
ations, “it was fun because we actually
he had with a girl that lived in Sylmar,
Here’s how the site works: just
went out and did something,” he says.
about 25 miles away from where he
input your zip code, and select your
“It’s just nice because they give us
lived in West Los Angeles.
“I thought, OK, so I have to drive
there [from West L.A. to Sylmar] and
pick her up, then drive back to L.A.
where I know what to do, then drop
her back off, then drive back home.
It’s a long trip! But wouldn’t it be
great if I could find ideas or things to
do in that area without having to
search for them?”
Hence, PlanJam was born.
Since creating PlanJam, friends
ask Zvagelsky all the time for date
recommendations.
“For some reason, everyone has
to date in the evening, right? I think
dating should be during the day
because there’s just so much more to
do,” he says. He suggests going hiking,
horseback riding or making pottery.
“Somewhere fun, where we can
chat, and that’s not too expensive
because college students are on a
budget,” he suggests.
Nolan and Eck are sure they’ll use
the site again for future dates.
“It gave us ideas,” she adds. “They
were really different than what we
would normally do.”
While it doesn’t solve college
rivalries, PlanJam will solve date‘scene,’ from ‘girls night out’ to
places to go…”
planning frustrations (and will
‘romantic.’ Next, a selection of
“…that are cheap instead of
definitely spare those disgruntled
activities will be displayed according to
movies or food,” she finishes.
nights at Blockbuster Video.)
your scene. Once you choose your
PlanJam is a useful site that helps
activities, PlanJam will automatically
you plan a perfect date or to find new
For more information, visit
calculate the cost and time of your
things to do, and also has articles and
www.planjam.com.
date.
city guides. Its listing of activities is
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
SOPHIA KIDD
ADONNA
KHARE
The Re-emergence
of Wonder
AN ART MAJOR, ADONNA KHARE
really wanted to study biology when
she entered CSU Long Beach. It
wasn’t until after her right brain
balked at the mere math of it that she
succumbed to her parents’ gentle wish
– that she pursue art.
After taking her B.A. in 2003 and
M.F.A. in 2007 at CSULB, Khare got
picked up immediately by the Lora
Schlesinger Gallery in Santa Monica.
Since then her charcoal studies of
plants, animals and human bodies
have coalesced into an organic riot of
form and transformation.
Except for an appearance in the
Surrealism Today exhibition at New
York’s Nassau County Museum,
Khare’s work has appeared exclusively
in the greater L.A. area. Her work’s
been favorably reviewed in the L.A.
Times, Art Ltd. and on KCRW.
To bring things up do date, her
current solo show (running though
May 10) at the Lora Schlesinger
Gallery, By a Thread, has nearly sold
out in a mere three weeks. But none
of this matters – she just really loves to
draw with charcoal, paint with
watercolor and oil and, lately, enjoys a
Lioness, by Adonna Khare
little wood whittling.
When she was a little kid, Khare
would wake up on summer mornings
and, first thing, unroll one of the large
scrolls of printer paper that her
parents got for her and start to draw.
She drew so much she covered the
walls of her childhood home and
filled up boxes with drawings.
Her parents cherished all of it,
THE OPEN
SPACE’S HASSAN
CHRISTOPHER
Who is Combustible?
BY DOV RUDNICK
AT 34-YEARS-OLD, DANCER/choreographer Hassan Christopher is
in mid-flight.
“This is a leap of faith,” he says
with a chuckle when asked about his
success in Los Angeles.
Since arriving in 1999, Christopher has been the recipient of
numerous awards for original choreography.
“The thing I love about L.A. is that
you cannot take it at face value. What
you see is not what you get,” muses
Christopher while reclining on a
couch in the corner of his downtown
dance studio simply called, the Open
Space.
It is both a rehearsal space and
performance venue, which Christo-
pher hopes will be a
meeting ground for
dancers of all types
to inspire one
another and promote positive social
change through movement. The Open
Space sponsors the monthly performance event “Anatomy Riot,”
which features original choreography
from young dance artists.
This weekend, the space will host
its very first addition, “Spontaneous
Combustion,” a brainchild of
Christopher’s whereby three different
choreographers are “locked in” the
space for a 24-hour period and given
the challenge to create an original
piece to be performed at the end of
said time period.
“I just want to see what happens,”
Christopher says with a mischievous
and held onto the work until the thin
paper started to erode into itself. She
laughs about the decomposition of
her early work, which indicates how
much she embraces nature’s way.
Khare’s work takes its inspiration
from life, from explorations in nature
and from magical stories. She says
that many of her family members are
avid storytellers, her aunt especially.
It was her aunt who took her on
walks through forests and fields and
would ask young Adonna, “Who do
you think is in that tree? What’s
behind that stone?” Together they
would explore the options: fairies,
goblins, gnomes or little creatures
caught between kingdoms.
This woman who opened Khare’s
heart, mind and stylus to the wonders
of creation and imagination is now in
her 90s. She traveled far to attend the
opening of Khare’s current show.
Once there, Khare’s aunt hovered
alone in a chair by the Lioness (68inch x 42-1/4-inch charcoal on
paper), for over an hour. Asked what
she’d been doing all that time, she
explained she was listening to what
words people uttered in the drawing’s
presence.
I asked Khare about her
intentions as an artist. She talked
about the disappearances of magic, of
open space and of wonder,
particularly in Los Angeles. She wants
her art to re-create that feeling of
magic and whimsy, both in the world
and in people’s hearts
She adds, “If you look behind
things, there’s always more.”
More indeed, but who’s afraid of
the big bad wolf?
To view more of her work, visit
www.adonnak.com or
www.loraschlesinger.com.
smile.
It’s antics like these
that have earned Christopher the mad scientist
reputation. As one enters
the studio, with its
beautiful wooded floors
and yes, open space, one
feels a definite vibration.
“Potential energy,” as
Christopher calls it, with
that same grin on his face.
Multiple creative projects have this young artist
on the move. Besides the day-to-day
running of the studio and producing
events, he also teaches and performs
regularly.
“My goal is simply to get to a place
where I can be creative everyday. It is a
dream in process,” he explains.
The words echo in the empty
studio space, dreamlike themselves,
and one feels a creeping sensation of
inspiration.
Spontaneous Combustion takes place
May 3 at the Open Space located at
209 S. Garey St., Los Angeles.
For more information, e-mail
[email protected].
college beat
inner circle
© Disney Channel
l.a. faces | B Y
Campus Circle | 21
Dan Povenmire creations: Perry the Platypus, Phineas and Ferb
‘PHINEAS AND FERB’
USC alum Dan Povenmire
has a hit on his hands.
BY MICHAEL LEE
REMEMBER THE GOOD OL’ DAYS, WHEN YOU WOULD
willingly wake up early on Saturday only to spend the next four hours
watching cartoons? You may feel like you’ve outgrown cartoons, but
Disney Channel’s new series, “Phineas and Ferb,” seriously stirs up some
Saturday morning nostalgia.
Dan Povenmire, a USC Film School alum, is one of the creators of this
new show. Having worked on shows such as “The Simpsons,”“Family
Guy,”“Looney Tunes,”“Hey Arnold!” and “SpongeBob SquarePants,”
Povenmire has plenty of experience when it comes to animated shows, and
he brings this experience to the very entertaining “Phineas and Ferb.” Even
the conception of the show began with childlike imagination.
“I was in a restaurant with butcher paper and crayons on the table,”
Povenmire recalls. “I just started doodling and came up with this triangleshaped kid that I liked.”
After tearing off the butcher paper to take home with him, he came up
with the rectangle-shaped kid alongside the triangle-shaped one to create
Ferb and Phineas, respectively.
As for inspiration, Povenmire is a big fan of Bugs Bunny and “Tom
and Jerry,” whose influences can be seen in “Phineas and Ferb.”
“[Those shows] have a great blend of visual gags and clever writing,”
Povenmire asserts. “You can turn off the sound and still find it funny.”
The premise of the show falls into that genre of absurd and episodic
comedy that has come back in recent years in full force with “SpongeBob”
and “Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends.” Even though many shows can
be filed under this genre, and even though the show oozes a nostalgic
charm, the show can still stand on its own.
Episodes often feature several plotlines at once involving the cool and
unbelievably smart Phineas and Ferb, the hysterical Candace and the
downright awesome Perry the Platypus and Dr. Doofenshmirtz (the latter
voiced by Povenmire), and by the end of the episode the separate plotlines
all converge.
Povenmire goes one further and, along with his partner, tries to come
up with a song for every 11-minute episode. They’ve already generated
quite a bit of content, with songs ranging from heartfelt ballads to classic
rock ’n’ roll, and from folksy tunes to catchy jingles about make-believe
holidays.
The most important factor that goes into making the cartoon a great
one, though, is simply having fun.
“I get to go to work and draw silly pictures and draw silly gags,” laughs
Povenmire. “This is what I’d be doing if I was unemployed – except now I
get paid to do it.”
So, even though your younger sibling may have taken the reins when it
comes to watching cartoons, give this one a shot – you’ll definitely
remember those days of eating too much cereal and getting sore from
sitting still too long.
“It’s nothing but fun,” states Povenmire.
“Phineas and Ferb” airs Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. on Disney Channel.
22 | Campus Circle
inner circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
campus news
BY JEFF BACHMAN
UCLA’s long battle with music has come
to an end.
Well, it’s over. The contest to find a new fight song began in 1984 when
the UCLA Alumni Association called for a song to replace the fight song
“Sons of Westwood,” which simply appropriated the music from the UC
Berkeley fight song “Sons of California” and replaced the lyrics with ones
more suitable for the Los Angeles campus.
The song chosen in 1984, entitled “The Mighty Bruins,” which was cowritten by composer Bill Conti, famous for having written the score to
Rocky, ultimately did not last as the school’s fight song. However, out of
that song’s ashes has risen the new, unofficial winner of that very same
contest.
Jim Mann, the writer of the new UCLA fight song, had been trying for 24
years to get his fight song into the hearts and minds of Bruins fans, and it may
have finally come to fruition. The “New UCLA Fight Song” by Professor
Mann can be downloaded at www.myxertones.com for 99 cents.
graphic novels | reviews
Albert and the Others
(Drawn and Quarterly)
The silent panels unfolding like
a flipbook, Guy Delisle’s book
captures the heartache and
absurdity of relationships, loneliness and the hang-ups that get in
the way of happiness.
Originally published in France,
Albert’s appeal is universal, which is
underscored by the visually inventive ways in which Deslisle communicates his ideas. At times
obscene, at times heart wrenching,
Albert skewers our superficiality
and inability to conquer our own
petty preoccupations in relating to
others.
It’s a slim work, which can be
read in one sitting, but it’s the kind
of insightful, poignant book that
you can pick up again and again.
Grade: A
—Mike Sebastian
Albert and the Others is currently
available.
Green Arrow: Year One
Rob Kim/Landov/MCT
(DC)
Green Arrow is one of my
favorite superhero comics in recent
memory. This definitive origin
story of how Oliver Queen became
Green Arrow is expertly plotted and
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Time’s “Hero for the Planet”
$25 Million Donation to USC
Alumnus Verna B. Dauterive, 85, decided to give the University of
Southern California a donation of $25 million in honor of her late
husband, Peter W. Dauterive, also an alumnus. The couple had met on
USC’s campus in 1947 before Peter became a successful banker and
Verna had begun her career as a Los Angeles school administrator.
The gift is the largest single donation from an African-American
individual to a university in the United States and one of the largest ever
in USC’s history. The greatest donation ever received by the school was a
$175 million donation from George Lucas’ Lucasfilm foundation for the
School of Cinematic Arts. The largest donation from an AfricanAmerican source, prior to this one, was Bill and Camille Cosby’s $20
million gift to Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia in 1987.
The $25 million given by Verna Dauterive will be delivered over the
next couple years and is stipulated in her living will.
(Drawn and Quarterly)
French superstar Philippe Dupuy’s autobiographical graphic novel
is sublime, profane, hallucinatory
and a wholly original work of art.
Dupuy depicts himself as a jogger
who envisions a series of introspective encounters in the form of
lucid dreams, which involve a selfamputating dog, Lucha Libre
wrestlers, the anthropomorphic
“Forest Friends” and his mother.
At first glance the roughly
sketched illustrations, which bring to
mind the doodle quality of John
Lennon’s portraits, belie their
understated expressive power. But
they soon suck you into the dream
world. This is a transcendent work.
Grade: A
—Mike Sebastian
Haunted is currently available.
The Highwaymen
RFK Jr. speaks at USC.
On April 23, the day after Earth Day, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke about
his passion for environmentalism at a 7 p.m. seminar on USC’s campus.
The son of the former Attorney General and nephew of President John F.
Kennedy has turned his life around after a 1983 arrest for heroin
possession. Kennedy now works to protect the natural world, particularly
water-covered areas of the Earth such as New York’s Hudson River, and has
been named a “Hero for the Planet” by Time magazine.
Kennedy has also followed in his famous father’s footsteps as a lawyer,
becoming the senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council.
The NRDC is a non-profit environmental lobby group, founded in 1970, to
promote conversation and environmentalism in Congressional legislation.
Haunted
excitingly executed by writer Andy
Diggle and artist Jock, the team
behind The Losers.
Unfolding like a good action
flick, it’s equal parts Rambo and
Robinson Crusoe – a gripping
revenge story with a great plot
engine and a compelling new
villain, China White. It strikes the
perfect balance of character and
action that good superhero comics
strive for.
The artwork is kinetic and flows
beautifully, with kickass cover art
between chapters. Also included are
script excerpts, sketches and an
introduction by Brian K. Vaughan.
Grade: A
—Mike Sebastian
Green Arrow: Year One is currently
available.
(Wildstorm)
The near future: Two retired
government operatives, once known
as the Highwaymen, get a message
from former President Bill Clinton
informing them about a potentially
disastrous government weapon that
has been set loose on the world.
They’re the only ones who can stop it.
Now the government’s secret force of
genetically enhanced agents want
them dead.
An homage to Hollywood action
blockbusters, there are car cashes and
gun fights galore, punctuated by the
witty back and forth of the two old
heroes. And of course, there’s always a
girl.
The near future conceit works
really well and the action never lets
up.
Grade: A—Mike Sebastian
The Highwaymen is currently
available.
The Un-Men: Get Your
Freak On – Volume 1
(Vertigo)
A spin-off featuring the H.G.
Wells-inspired side characters who
originated in Swamp Thing, the Un-
Men, Dr. Arcane’s genetically altered
mutants, take center stage in this
book, having created their own
government reservation-style city/
theme park where Normals can come
and gawk at them.
When one of the citizens/attractions winds up dead, the
government sends agent Kilcrop to
investigate. His search leads him to
the corporate headquarters, its
ominous two-headed CEO and the
demigod Dr. Von Schadel who
control the city.
Like an episode of “The X-Files”
without any of the mystery, writer
John Whalen can’t really find a
narrative to fit the premise, and the
story never really leaves the ground,
despite containing some very
interesting elements, such as a
satirical subplot about an upcoming
reality show, “American Freaks.”
Introduction by creator Len
Wein.
Grade: C
—Mike Sebastian
The Un-Men: Get Your Freak On is
currently available.
Wormwood Volume 2: It
Only Hurts When I Pee
(IDW)
Volume two of Ben Templesmith’s series finds the Gentleman
Corpse infected by a leprechaun bite.
Now with his cyborg sidekick (with
newly installed genitalia) and his
Guardian, he must travel to
Leprechaunia to find the Queen
leprechaun.
As usual, Templesmith’s art is
great to look at, but this corpse
doesn’t smell quite as fresh as it did
the first time around. Many of the
same tropes are rehashed here, with
fewer jokes.
We already met the grotesque
leprechauns in volume one, so a
whole planet of slobbering carbon
copies doesn’t really pay off as it
should. However, we are introduced
to the Brothers Calamari, interdimensional planet harvesters, who
promise to play a bigger role as
Wormwood’s nemesis in the next
installment.
Grade: B
—Mike Sebastian
Wormwood Volume 2: It Only Hurts
When I Pee is currently available.
Richard Roeper
“A LOT OF FUN...ROBERT DOWNEY JR. GIVES A
BLAZING PERFORMANCE!
”
THE BEST POPCORN FLICK
SINCE ‘SPIDER-MAN.’”
“
ORLANDO SENTINEL Roger Moore
STARTS FRIDAY, MAY 2 AT THEATRES EVERYWHERE.
CHECK LOCAL LISTINGS FOR THEATRES AND SHOWTIMES.
For information on group sales call 1-877-PAR-GRP5
Text Iron to 33287 for showtimes and mobile content. Standard messaging rates apply.
SPECIAL ENGAGEMENT - NO PASSES OR DISCOUNT TICKETS ACCEPTED
24 | Campus Circle
inner circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
pages | book reviews
American Dream suffocated by
greed, and a country left directionless. Zebulon, last of the
mountain men, is cursed, doomed to
live between life and death.
He falls in love with another
cursed soul, an exotic, beautiful halfbreed. As the whole world descends
on California, the pair must evade the
posse that hunts them and find their
souls.
Yonder has the mark of a classic,
feeling as if it has been there all along,
somewhere between McCabe & Mrs.
Miller and High Plains Drifter, and
yet feeling altogether fresh and
original at the same time.
Grade: A
—Mike Sebastian
The Drop Edge of Yonder is currently
available.
The Drop Edge of
Yonder
Maps and Legends
(Two Dollar Radio)
Rudolph Wurlitzer, screenwriter
of Two-Lane Blacktop and Pat Garrett
& Billy the Kid, as well as the cult ’60s
novel Nog, has crafted a western that
has the bleak winteriness of Jeremiah
Johnson, the explosive violence of The
Wild Bunch and the earthy poetry of
Blood Meridian.
Set during the Gold Rush, as the
days of wild frontier mountain men
gave way to civilization, it’s an
allegory for the modern day, for an
(McSweeney’s)
On Jan. 15, Lewis Hyde made an
appearance at the Billy Wilder
Theater near UCLA and challenged a
way of thought that the likes of Ralph
Waldo Emerson and Harold Bloom,
in their respective centuries, have
sworn by: the self-reliant individual,
the artist who suffers from the
anxiety of influence. One of Hyde’s
aesthetic children, Michael Chabon,
is rarin’ to catch the football and run
with it.
“Influence is bliss,” he writes in
Maps and Legends, a collection of
essays published by McSweeney’s. We
receive the spiritual fire when we take
a work of art into us – and then we go
for it, making paintings and music
and novels of our own.
When asked how to be a writer,
Saul Bellow remarked that he only
knew one should take the greatest
works of literature in, like the
Eucharist. And then they will change
us, gradually, over time.
In Maps and Legends we are
privileged to encounter Chabon’s
Eucharistic influences: Will Eisner,
Jack Kirby, Cormac McCarthy, F.
Scott Fitzgerald, Sir Arthur Conan
Doyle … the list (of course) goes on.
criterion collection | reviews
Blast of Silence
It opens with an
explosive second person
voice-over, cursing the day
you’re brought into this
world, as a roaring train
emerges from a womblike
tunnel. Then we’re in New
York, the real New York, with
Frankie Bono, a hitman.
Blast is an original, latter
day noir from 1961, coming
after the postwar genre had
already been filtered through
France and back again, just
before Godard would completely deconstruct
them.
The voice-over continues as Frankie
follows his target around the streets of New
York. It’s one of the first films
to be shot with a low budget,
on location immediacy,
lending the film a certain
existential realism. When
Frankie comes into contact
with some old friends it
becomes more a mediation
on loneliness than a thriller.
This is a flawed, but
nevertheless arresting noir,
which is also a time capsule of
New York and cinema in the
early ’60s.
Grade: A-
The tone ranges from serious
appraisal (the essay on Doyle
reminded me strongly of John
Irving’s essay on Dickens in Trying to
Save Piggy Sneed), to that of an e-mail
from a very bright, very dear friend.
Maps and Legends is an affirming,
generous book.
Grade: A
—Sean Schlemmer
Maps and Legends will be available
May 1.
Sex, Sushi & Salvation:
Thoughts on Intimacy,
Community, and
Eternity
(Moody Publishers)
Christian spirituality is a difficult
subject for many people. Many have
reduced Christians to annoying
Bible-thumping citizens of the Deep
South. Others associate Christianity
with
prejudice
against
the
homosexual community.
Amidst a vast amount of
diverging opinions, though, author
Christian George is able to articulate
the Christian faith, both from an
academic and a personal perspective.
Sex, Sushi & Salvation is a collection
of profound anecdotes on the
experiences of a Christian man.
From
heartbreaking
conversations with a Russian
prostitute to chronicles of European
travels, the book comes from a place
of sincerity. George is utterly
convinced that his beliefs are
sufficient to change not only a single
person’s life but the whole world.
Believing in the Christian
religion or not is not the primary
question of this book. Rather, in the
richness and seriousness that
permeate this collection of thoughts,
there’s a perceived desire for
dialogue.
Religions of this world have been
clashing for centuries on an
ideological level, yet in his latest
book, George writes of his own
intimate experiences. This is a deeply
personal (if at times a little repetitive)
book that’s useful for anyone seeking
truth.
Grade: A—Alexander L. Carpenter
Sex, Sushi & Salvation is currently
available.
early a.m | dvds for the kid in you
—Mike Sebastian
Blast of Silence is currently
available.
Death of a Cyclist
Winner of the critics’
award at the Cannes Film
Festival in 1955, this film by
Spanish director Juan Antonio Bardem (uncle of actor
Javier) tells the story of a
couple having an affair that
accidentally hit a bicyclist
and, fearing their relationship
being exposed, flee the scene.
Soon their relationship and careers begin
to suffer as they deal with increasing pressure
and an art critic who may have witnessed the
incident and may now be trying to blackmail
them. It leads to a desperate
and inevitable ending that
still shocks.
It’s a film about guilt,
consequence and selfishness,
a scathing attack on the
upper class in Franco’s Spain.
It’s beautifully shot in black
and white, with a newly
restored high def transfer.
Grade: A—Mike Sebastian
Death of a Cyclist is currently
available.
Hiya, Kids!!: A ’50s Saturday
Morning
(Shout! Factory)
Complete with such time
honored classics as “Howdy
Doody” and “Flash Gordon,”
Hiya Kids!!: A ’50s Saturday
Morning offers no shortage of
nostalgia. In a forgotten era
when only three networks
competed for viewers on the
still untested medium, production budgets were miniscule. The shows, however, were
no less imaginative.
Each Saturday morning
those archaic bubble screens
transmitted black and white
images of sock puppets and
marionettes, cowboys named
Buffalo Bob and clowns
named Clarabelle, Midwestern
backdrops painted with a
brush and easel and alternate
universes strung together by
wire.
And who can forget the
characters? The Annie Oakleys,
the Roy Rogers, the Lassies.
Lassie alone became the face of
countless movies and spin-off shows.
Granted, the humor is tame by today’s
standards but never without its familiarity. It
was the “Golden Age” of television, after all.
Programs were held to a certain code of
ethics. The rebellious decade that followed
would change all that.
Grade: A
—James Famera
Hiya, Kids!!: A ’50s Saturday
Morning will be available May 6.
Justice League – The
New Frontier
(Warner)
Any film that renews a sense
of wonder in superheroes, that
makes you go “Oh…wow,” as if
you’re seeing Batman for the first
time, or tickles you as the Flash
whizzes, a red blur, through 1950s
Las Vegas, has done its job.
The graphic novel by
Darwyn Cooke is quite something else, a classic. DC’s
animated adaptation is a little
too compressed, a little too
simplified to be spoken of in
the same breath.
But it’s damned entertaining. The voices – especially
Jeremy Sisto’s as Batman – are
rich and on point. All in all, a
success.
Grade: A
—Sean Schlemmer
Justice League – The New Frontier is
currently available.
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
photo feature | P H O T O G R A P H S
BY GILLIAN LAUB
Campus Circle | 25
inner circle
TESTIMONY
ALL IMAGES © Gillian Laub From Testimony (Aperture, 2007)
E S S AY S B Y A R I E L L A A Z O U L AY
AND RAEF ZREIK
(Aperture)
Bitanya
Hila with Hava and Manar
On April 22, 2001, I was on my way to work, waiting at the bus stop in Kfar Saba. A man blew himself up, killing two, and
injuring ninety-seven people. My ribs, jaw, and teeth were all shattered. Today, two years after the bombing, I am undergoing a long
series of treatments and in about five months I will undergo the last surgery on my jaw. I haven’t been able to work in two years and
am in a very bad emotional and financial state. My husband left me while I was pregnant and now I’m raising my eight-month-old
daughter on my own. We have to deal with all the suffering and difficulties alone. I hope and pray to God that we will not know any
more sorrow and pain. I hope and pray for only good things. I must be strong for Hava; we must no be broken. I wish everyone
happiness and love, and, most importantly, good health.
Haifa, July 2003
I am twenty years old, and emigrated from Ethiopia to Israel at the age of nine. I feel completely Israeli and
Jewish in every way, even though I made aliyah [Jewish immigration to Israel] at a relatively late age. Right now I am
living in Tel Aviv and studying dance. My dream is to be a professional dancer — the type of dancer that as soon as
people see her, they feel the same kind of inexplicable magical energy that I feel when I dance.
Recently I’ve been thinking a lot and have reached the conclusion that my family and I have been through some
pretty difficult times. We came to Israel for a better life. Starting life in a new culture with a new language, especially
when you look very different from everyone else, is so hard. I don’t think it’s normal to be totally cut off from an
identity you thought you’d have for the rest of your life. But really, I wouldn’t change it for anything. All this has made
me stronger and into the person that I am today.
I recently made a trip to Poland. While I was standing in the former gas chamber in Auschwitz, there was a group
of girls praying in Yiddish. Even thought I couldn’t understand the words, this prayer had so much power. It was then
that I no longer felt divided, but finally connected. I believe you don’t have to be born Jewish to have a Jewish soul.
Tel Aviv, September 2005
Yussie in the old city
My whole family is back in America. I was just
there, and everyone — my friends and family — was
trying to convince me to stay. They were afraid for me to
go back to Israel because of the situation. I understand
why they worry, but I tried to explain to them that my
heart and soul are in Israel. I can’t live in America
without this part of me. That’s why I am back in Israel.
As I see it, a person has two ways of living: either with
their mind, or their heart and soul. I am happy with my
decision. I have to and will always follow my heart.
Jerusalem, May 2002
Ben and Gil on a break
Peter with Olga, his sister
PETER: I was sixteen when my family came to Israel. I immediately liked it here. Two years later I began my army
service. I was trained as a marksman, and the day of my injury, I was on patrol duty in Jerusalem. The day before, a bus filled
with children had been hit by Palestinians. So I was put on duty to protect the Settlers driving on this road. Then I got hit by
a sniper. I am OK, but my parents don’t stop crying. They constantly look at the same pictures of me from graduation day.
OLGA: Peter is my older brother. I was the only person home when an officer came to the door to tell my family the
news. I am still in shock. Peter and I were becoming really close these past couple of years, but now he is so quiet. He just
kind of closed himself off since the injury. He doesn’t complain, but he also doesn’t say very much. I can’t sleep at night
thinking about the future. I just found out I am allowed to postpone my army service six months so I can help take care of
Peter. At least we have him home again.
Bat Yam, October 2002
GIL: We’re just resting in our room, after hours of
being on duty. We’re combat soldiers stationed at the
border of Lebanon. Even though it can be hard here —
days can go by without us even taking our shoes off to
sleep — we have made friendships that are as thick as
blood. We would die for each other. Unfortunately our
girlfriends just broke up with both of us. It’s probably
because of the army. We never get to see them. Hopefully,
when we’re done with our service, we will travel together
in Australia and New Zealand.
BEN: There are only three things that scare me: G-d,
civilian life after the army, and my mother.
Rosh Hanikra, August 2004
26 | Campus Circle
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
curtain call
essential l.a. | cool hot spots
‘MILK AND COOKIES’
BLANKSPACES
inner circle
Now-May 24 @ Sidewalk
Studio Theatre
BY MIKE BUZZELLI
WHEN A BANK TELLER IS POISONED BY A KILLER COOKIE,
Margaret Nancy Reagan Ballmouth (Beth Patrik) flees the scene of the
crime, abandoning her two small children, the unwitting perpetrators of
the heinous act. On the run, Marge meets Bruce (Marc Aden Gray), and
crazy conspiracy theories collide.
Some authors can tackle
absurdist comedy. Eugene
Ionesco’s “Rhinoceros” or Samuel
Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” are
shining examples. “Milk and
Cookies” is absurd without
meaning or substance.
Worst of all, the play’s not
funny. The actors make a valiant
attempt, but with bad dialogue,
idiotic situations and
unredeemable characters, none
of them make it work. Heidi
Fielek gives her best shot,
milking the only laughs in the show.
Sidewalk Studio Theatre is located at 4150 Riverside Drive, Toluca Lake.
For more information, visit www.sidewalkstudiotheatre.com.
comedy | laugh out loud
‘ALL ABOUT WALKEN’
Now-May 15 @ Theatre 86
BY JEFF BACHMAN
THIS POST-MODERN SERIES OF
interlinked comedic sketches puts the
audience in the shoes of Christopher
Walken, or at least how actor-writerdirector Patrick O’Sullivan might
picture him, through the talented
acting of nine Walken impersonators.
Sometimes the sketches called for
audience participation such as the
improvisational “Choose Your Own
Walken” segment, where the audience
was asked to choose several movies to
have the Walkens act out. But, the
show consisted mostly of pop culture
riffs (like an MTV-inspired episode of
“The Real Walkens”) on the cult sensation that he is and the fun that
his stilted style of speech allows.
These parts were among the most entertaining because it allowed
the cast to really show their range for impersonation and the
characters they had created. Cast member Amy Kelly, in particular,
stuck out with her aggressive style of physical comedy at times and
exaggerated De Niro impression.
Overall, the experience was hit or miss, sometimes vulgar, but
definitely a very fun night out.
Theatre 86 is located at 5419 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles. For more
information, visit www.myspace.com/allaboutwalken.
A New Alternative for
Freelance Workers
Potential customers learn about the rates in a private
office at Blankspaces.
BY LAUREN ROSENBLUM
THE LIFE OF A FREELANCER
isn’t easy. I tried it myself last weekend.
Here’s a little taste of what went on in
my head:
Oh, there’s a table, I hope no one
snags it. I have to sit near an outlet.
Should I get reduced fat coffee cake or
splurge with a cookie? Or neither? Let’s
do the cookie. “Grande skinny vanilla
latte please and a chocolate chip
cookie.” $6.30! Rip off! Do you really
think I need a receipt? How long does it
take to make one of these latte things?
Ahh! Some jerk just snagged my table
before he even got in line! He just
dumped his stuff on it! Calm down.
You’re just mad because you know you
should have done that first.
Now what? There are no tables.
What, do I just stand here and wait
with my oversize laptop? Do I start
drinking my drink? It is hot, but I feel
like I should wait until I get a table.
That guy looks like he’s getting ready to
get up. Is there an outlet by that table?
Yes! I guess I should go over there and
stand close by so no one else snags it
first. But I can’t stand too close because
then I’m hovering and awkward. Look
at all these laptop people.
OK the guy is getting up. Here we
go. Thanks. OK! Plug charger in. Turn
on laptop. Crack knuckles. Sip drink.
Laptop turning on and ... ahh! The
volume is turned up, and it played the
Windows start-up music really loud!
I’m embarrassed. Why should I be
embarrassed? Who cares? People did
look up though. I’m a rookie.
A new breed of worker, fueled by
caffeine and modern day technology, is
taking over the coffeehouses of Los
Angeles. Just walk into any Starbucks
and you’re bound to find people sitting
in front of their laptops, chatting on
their cell phones, surfing the Web and
doing the sort of work that would once
have required a fully-equipped office.
And they do it all for no more than the
price of a cup of coffee and a muffin.
It’s a whole new way of working
that’s becoming increasingly popular.
That’s why architect Jerome Chang
decided to start Blankspaces. Blank-
spaces is a modern, communal
workspace environment where freelancers can come in and work when
they want to escape from the house and
get a more social atmosphere.
Blankspaces combines the social
elements of a coffee shop with the
productive, functional elements of an
office. Unlike Starbucks – where you
have to fight for a table near an outlet –
BlankSpaces provides individual
cubicles, private offices and conference
rooms. The facility is also equipped
with mailboxes, color laser printers,
copiers, fax machines, high-definition
projectors, WI-Fi and most important,
parking.
Some people drop in for a few
hours, while others seeking a more
permanent space can rent a private
desk for a monthly fee. Either way,
Blankspaces gives freelancers and
entrepreneurs the ability to network
and share ideas in a creative
environment.
But if you start to miss your Venti
Chai Latte, there’s surely a Starbucks
one block away.
For more information, visit
www.blankspaces.com.
exhibitions | museums • art galleries
THE WORLD IS BOUND
WITH SECRET KNOTS
Ongoing @ Museum of
Jurassic Technology
BY JOSH HERMAN
IF THERE WERE EVER A MUSEUM
of museums, then the Museum of
Jurassic Technology would most
certainly be featured as an astounding
specimen of an exhibit. Whenever one
overhears visitors in a cultural
institution pontificating, “This one’s
real. I think,” you know this is no
quotidian place-where-coughs-echoloudly-off-the-walls.
Even the Jurassic’s mission –
“dedicated to the advancement of
knowledge and the public appreciation of the Lower Jurassic” – is
as darkly vague as the picayune
museum itself, which defines the
Lower Jurassic as the Nile Delta.
Unless tyrannosauruses figured out
how to create X-ray bats, trailer parks
(“Garden of Eden on Wheels”) and
cures for incontinence involving dead
mice, then the name is as ludicrous as
attempting to write about this …
place.
While the MJT doesn’t have
changing exhibits, a section is
devoted to Athanasius Kircher.
Kircher was an inventor, composer,
geographer, geologist, Egyptologist,
historian, adventurer, philosopher,
physicist, naturalist, archeologist,
architect, author of over 40 published works and propagator of one
of the first public museums, et al.
After a brief didactic on Kircher,
there’s a working model of his
Magnetic Oracle and an amusing – if
quiet – film on the dictionary of this
everythingologist. Following are dioramas, sculptures and re-creations of
some of his work.
Kircher’s lifelong fascination
with magnetism – which he believed
every interaction was based on (love
and hate, god and mortal, Campus
Circle and City Beat) – led him to
exclaim the exhibit’s title: “The world
is bound with secret knots.”
As the list of his accomplishments is too convoluted to
reproduce here, so would a worthy
explanation of Kircher or this
exhibit. Like the remainder of the
museum, you just have to explore it
to understand it.
Or not. Find the diorama of a fox
head in the dessert by following the
barks through the stygian museum.
Look through the eccentric glasses
affixed to the side of this seemingly
innocuous exhibit, and you’ll see the
inside of the fox’s head, wherefrom
the howls emanate: it’s not a view of
the fox’s linguistic cortex, it’s a fat
man sitting on a chair barking.
The Museum of Jurassic Technology is
located at 9341 Venice Blvd., Culver
City. For more information, visit
www.mjt.org.
[APRIL 30 - MAY 6 ’08]
BY FREDERICK MINTCHELL
FRIDAY, MAY 2
“Sexercise Live!”
Mbar, 1253 Vine St., Hollywood;
www.discotechs.net
This tribute to the pottymouthed, yet profound, Millie
Jackson manages to hilariously
mix comedy, disco and sex. 8 p.m.
$20, plus $10 food minimum.
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30
Los Angeles Job Fair
Holiday Inn Los Angeles – Intl. Airport, 9901 La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles (310) 649-5151;
resources.monster.com/job-fairs
Graduating soon or just need a better job? There will be scores of companies representing over 16
industries on hand at this fair to help with your career search. 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
THURSDAY, MAY 1
Los Angeles Spring Comedy Festival
www.lacomedyfest.com
In its third year, the Los Angeles Comedy Festival offers loads of laughs all around town. Highlights
include the Sultans of Satire, the Man’s Man Show and the Alt. Comedy Show. Through May 18.
FRIDAY, MAY 2
Cinco de Mayo
El Pueblo Historical Monument, 125 Paseo de la Plaza, Los Angeles (213) 485-8372;
www.cityofla.org/ELP
A celebration of Mexico’s victory over the French forces in Puebla, Mexico in 1862! Enjoy popular
and traditional music, cultural presentations, dance and food. 10 a.m.-10 p.m. FREE.
SATURDAY, MAY 3
Derby Doll SoCal Showdown
The Doll Factory, 1910 Temple St., Downtown; www.derbydolls.com/la
Come out and witness girl-on-girl action at the highly anticipated grudge match between the Los
Angeles and San Diego Derby Dolls. 6 p.m. $20 online; $25 at the door.
The Santa Fe Art Colony Open Studio
Santa Fe Art Colony, 2401 S. Santa Fe Ave., Downtown (323) 587-5513;
www.santafeartcolony.com
Over 50 painters, photographers and sculptors open their private studios to the public. You can
look and also, if it strikes your fancy, buy! Also Sunday. Noon-6 p.m. FREE.
Venice Garden and Home Tour
Las Doradas Children’s Center, 804 Broadway, Venice (310) 821-1857; www.venicegardentour.org
Tour the awe-inspiring gardens and homes of Venice, with proceeds benefiting the non-profit
Neighborhood Youth Association. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $60 in advance, $70 at the door.
on the menu | a taste of l.a.
8543 Santa Monica Blvd.,
West Hollywood
BY FREDERICK MINTCHELL
HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU WALKED BY A PLACE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND
paid it no attention? We get so wrapped up in where we’re going or what we’re doing that we
miss many things right under our noses. The Courtyard is one of those places for me.
I’ve literally walked or driven past it hundreds, if not thousands, of times and never gave
it a second look. My loss.
The restaurant is set up like a
Mediterranean courtyard, natch, complete
with a fountain in the center. If it wasn’t
for the sound of police sirens, I could
almost imagine being in a quaint Spanish
village; the atmosphere doesn’t feel like the
middle of Los Angeles. In fact, CitySearch
has listed the Courtyard as one of the top
10 outdoor dining establishments for two
years running.
They feature tapas, but big plates are
also offered if you go in with a healthy
appetite. And what better way to wash
down your tapas than with Sangria?
Traditional Sangria is on the menu, and
they also offer blueberry, apple and peach.
If you’re on a budget, never fear.
Happy hour is 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. every
day. There are discounted tapas along with $3 beers, $5 martinis and Sangria at half off.
Mondays feature $5 martinis all night. Buy one tapa and get one half off on Tapa
Tuesdays. If hump day has you down, you can’t miss Wine Lovers Wednesdays when wine is
half off with dinner. With 17 labels to choose from, there’s wine for every taste.
Their menu features dishes with beef, chicken, lamb, pork, seafood and vegetarian
entrees, so you should be able to find what your taste buds are craving. Obviously, I couldn’t
try everything on the menu, but my favorites were the dates & bacon, plantains and the flan.
Sometimes flan can be sort
of bland, but theirs pleasantly
surprised my friend and me.
Speaking of favorites, I think
my friend is now addicted to
the blueberry Sangria, but since
blueberries are chock full of
antioxidants, I guess there are
worse addictions.
Opens daily at 4:30 p.m. For
more information, call (310)
358-0301 or visit
www.thecourtyardla.com.
Xin Lu Video Bus Tour
Bus leaves from Director’s Guild, 7920 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood;
pzacad.pitzer.edu/~mma/work/work.html
Step up and get onboard and watch this conceptual road movie while taking a tour of the film’s
locations. How meta! 12:30-3:30 p.m. Also Sunday. $25 includes lunch and beverages.
MONDAY, MAY 5
... Tequila!
El Carmen, 8138 W. 3rd St., West Hollywood; (323) 852-1552
You can’t celebrate Cinco de Mayo without tequila, and El Carmen has over 450 different kinds to
choose from. They do have other drinks, as well as your standard Mexican bar food. Open ’til 2 a.m.
TUESDAY, MAY 6
Room 367 Launch Party
A + D Museum, 5900 Wilshire Blvd., Miracle Mile; room367.eventbrite.com
A business and social networking event for green-minded individuals. Enjoy the open bar, organic
hors d’oeuvres and live DJ entertainment. 6 p.m.-10 p.m. $20 advance; $25 at the door.
inner circle
THE COURTYARD
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