Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
Unlike most radio stations’ holiday extravaganzas, WTMX-FM (101.9) takes a less-is-more approach. Instead of glomming eight or 10 bands to play a marathon show in an enormodome, the station known as the Mix selects a couple mainstream acts to headline each year. The result rarely is cutting edge, but almost always a pleasant experience.
“Blast!” represents every band geek’s revenge. Though the show evolved from the routines of the Star of Indiana drums corps, make no mistake about it. This is no school production and there are no nerds in “Blast!,” which just opened at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Oriental Theatre.
It is nearing lunchtime on the set of “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”–which opens Wednesday–but there still are a few more shots to complete before they will be dismissed. A beam of light radiates above the actors, making them appear even more angelic than they will be on screen. With their flaxen, waist-length hair, these elves are the gorgeous supermodels of the movie. Even the horses know it.
Winter break is upon us and the kids already are complaining, “I’m bored.” After you’ve run the gamut of reading together, baking cookies and playing board games, how about treating them to a kid-friendly DVD or video? Need suggestions? Read on for some of our holiday-favorite picks.
Gina Oswald is a fictional character, but you’ll recognize her immediately when you see her cheesy schtick in the Noble Fool Theater’s revival of the holiday revue “Roasting Chestnuts: Oy! It’s Christmas.” She is the performer whose insincerity rings through with every verse. She is the entertainer who doesn’t realize her moment has long since passed. And to her whipped co-stars, she is the lipsticked tyrant who rules her brood with an iron fist.
Are you ready for some football? TV isn’t the only place you’ll find some good games, especially if you’re into interactive sports where there’s little chance you’ll get hurt (outside of a little carpal tunnel, perhaps). Here we try out the slew of new video games on the market, telling you which score touchdowns and which fumble near the goal line.
Tori Amos has one of those ethereal voices that can make even the mundane sound compelling. Whether she’s performing her breakthrough hit, “Silent All These Years,” or tackling Eminem’s misogynist ” ’97 Bonnie & Clyde” from the woman’s point of view, Amos conveys emotions that reach the listener’s soul.
There are plenty of unintentionally funny moments in “Extreme Ops.” When a terrorist mistakenly assumes the women are CIA operatives, he intimidates them with threats of death. Oh, and yes, he’d like to see the two women kiss each other. Accused of being a sick freak, he gleefully responds, “Sick freak … with a rifle.” Well, he’s got ya there.
The Goo Goo Dolls did the best they could Friday night at the Chicago Theatre. But they were playing to an audience that probably didn’t attend a lot of rock concerts. How else could you explain a bunch of grown men [and women-but let’s face it, most of them were guys] who would hurl fluorescent glow sticks at the stage and think the band would enjoy it.
Viggo Mortensen has 30 minutes left before he has to return to the set to reshoot a scene for “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers,” which will be in theaters next month. Dressed in character as Aragorn, he is muddied, tired and looking forward to digging into the food he’s carrying on a tray. But first, he searches the make-shift cafeteria for his son Henry. As he walks past the cast and crew, bystanders aren’t sure whether to look away or bow to the oddly regal actor.
You are Tommy Vercetti. Never mind that you look like the love child of Don Johnson and Steven Seagal and sound like Ray Liotta (who voices the character). Life seems like it’s going to improve 10-fold. You’ve just been released from the joint after having served a 15-year stint.
So, all you have to look forward to this Halloween week is handing out crummy candy to the neighborhood rugrats. Where’s your treat? Fear not, we’ve ferreted out some of the best (and worst) video games to give you great big goosebumps.
There are some folks who have their Halloween costumes planned out months in advance. For the rest of us, it’s all we can do to stock up on candy and not eat it all before doling it out to the kids. But regardless of your approach to the holiday, there’s nothing like a good creepy film to ensure a frightfully fun evening. Here are some of our favorite Halloween picks, including a couple that’ll keep your kids entertained.
Savion Glover’s lean, nimble legs whip across the stage in a way that defies speed. But it’s when he slows down that the viewer is able to fully relish each syncopated, seemingly effortless step. With his trademark locks flying and amplified tap shoes pounding away, he creates music as much as dance. With “Bring in ‘Da Noise, Bring in ‘Da Funk,” the Broadway production that won the performer a Tony Award for choreography six years ago, Glover attempts to educate as he entertains. He tells the story of the African-American experience through a series of vignettes ranging from lynchings, to race riots, to everyday racism in the form of cabbies refusing to pick up black passengers.
To watch No Doubt on stage, you’d never guess the musicians have ever had anything but happiness in their careers. Some bands are good at faking a good show, but few exude the kind of carefree, childlike joy that makes a show so much fun. Friday night at the Allstate Arena, the California band, fronted by Gwen Stefani, performed just shy of two hours, kicking off the show with “Hella Good.”
“If someone gave me the option of staying this age forever, I’d say no,” says Jonathan Jackson, who stars in the love story “Tuck Everlasting”–which opens Friday in local theaters. “Just thinking about staying the same age forever and seeing everyone else grow old and die would be depressing. I’d rather die and go to heaven.”
Arriving at 7:30 Friday night at the Chicago Theatre, a dapper Pierce Brosnan surveyed the fans screaming out his name. “Being an Irishman, I’m very happy and proud to be here in Chicago,” Brosnan said. “Chicago is a good Irish city in many respects, and I’m here to premier our film ‘Evelyn,’ which is an Irish story. Everything just feels right.”
Dressed in a black suit and accompanied by his wife, Keely Shaye Smith, Brosnan was honored at the 38th Chicago International Film Festival with the Career Achievement Award.
William Gazecki’s latest documentary, “Crop Circles: Quest for Truth,” is an ambitious project that attempts to tackle the mystery behind crop circles. But the dimly filmed picture would work better as a weeklong series of documentaries on the Discovery Channel rather than meandering along for two hours on the big screen.
Obviously not running from his past, Paul McCartney embraced the band that made his career and treated fans to a concert that was top-heavy on Beatles hits. His set list Tuesday night at the United Center didn’t veer much from the former Beatle’s two sold-out concerts here last April. Neither did his onstage patter, a fact he joked often about. “Those of you who were here last time already heard this story,” said the world’s most famous bassist. “But I’m going to tell it again.” With that, he regaled the audience with tales about John, George, Linda and Heather. He reminisced about a massage therapist in Tokyo who croaked out a Beatles tune as she tended to his sore muscles. Sorry, Ringo fans–the drummer wasn’t mentioned.
Though Jackie Chan is hesitant to show off his dexterous martial arts moves when he’s not on set filming, he’s game for just about anything else. Last week, the popular actor helped Fox news anchor Tamron Hall celebrate her birthday by presenting her with a cake. Later that day when a reporter asked him to sing, he broke into a pitch perfect rendition of “Always on My Mind” that was more Willie Nelson than Elvis Presley.