Harry Potter and the Order of the Shorthorn It Ain't

h/t to Jed

From Sky News:

Seven schoolgirls have sparked a major search and rescue mission - after
being frightened by a herd of cows.

Bad enough, surely but the story continues:

The terrified pupils, aged 14 and 15, were on a geography field trip in Swanage,
Dorset, when they sent out an SOS.

They were dropped off three miles from their outdoor centre and told to find their way back using a map.

But the teenagers, from St Albans in Hertfordshire, got stuck on a hill when they came across a herd of cows in a field blocking their way.

A coastguard rescue team, police and an ambulance were scrambled to rescue them after one of the girls called for help on her mobile phone.

A Hertfordshire County Council spokeswoman said: "The children were concerned because they realised they were going to have to walk through a field with cows in it.
"They called their parents and then the centre.

What possible reason could there be for calling the Coast Guard for a bovine rescue?

Call This A Little Background

I come from a place that had ceased to exist before I was born there.

Ableman, WI was across the mighty Baraboo river from Rock Springs. At one time the area was lively with quarrying pink quartzite for the C&NW. You can still see evidence of the Pink Lady Quarry along railbeds throughout the Midwest if you know what color to look for.

Now there's not much left of Ableman. The photographer's shop is gone. Most of the houses are on the Rock Springs side of the river. Action at the quarry is on a low cycle again. The cemetery doesn't even see as much activity as it used to. The Hinckley Springs trucks leave twice a day hauling the water away from the artesian wellhead to Chicago to be sold 5 gallons at a time. I remember drinking straight from a small standpipe on that well, the water so cold and sweet it made your jaws ache.

So, that's it. Nowhere near normal or Normal, as you wish. Just a little town that's gone now, sucked into the hubbub of a larger city of 425.

No Rush

I'm beginning to think that Tony Snow does not, and may have never had, a sense of shame.

A little history of the situation.

On May 8, 11 nervous House Republicans had an "unvarnished" conversation with
the president about Iraq policy. One congressman said, "How can our
sons and daughters spill their blood while the Iraqi government goes on
vacation?" The president responded, "The vice president is over there to tell
them, 'Do not go on vacation.'"

Are You Saying All Golfers Are Sandwiches?

What would it look like if ______ and Eugene Kane got together for lunch?

Who Is Zooming Who?

Sometimes you have to pay attention to the ephemera, to the detritus that falls through the cracks and collects as crumbs underfoot. And, when you're thinking about meaning-free crumbs, who comes to mind but Paddy Mac?

Patrick McIlhearn, the overmatched conservative local Milwaukee columnist came out in favor of skywalks in a column last week. He sees them, somehow, as a bum-free alternative to streetcars.

OK, they're not cheap: $1 million a span, estimates Klingel. But $53 million for
a streetcar isn't cheap either. At least skywalks don't make you wait on a
corner where some of the jangle and jumble of real life got soused on Thunderbird and threw up.

Up in the gerbil trails, you smell espresso carts instead. And it's never too rainy or windy or arctic for you to stop and buy, never a red light to keep you from crossing. Against that, skywalks' unpopularity with urban planners seems like a lot of fortified whine.

Where in the world does a world-class thinker like Paddy get his ideas? Especially such bad ideas.

I was pointed to the Macster's bad idea by a Bruce Murphy piece titled, "How Skywalks Would Ruin Milwaukee." Murphy's sources have a lesser opinion of Habitrails For Humanity.

Earth to Patrick. Skywalks were passé in the 1990s. Cities have been moving away from them for years. “An increasing number of cities have started tearing down some of their walkways,” a January 2006 Associated Press story noted. “Planners and others in cities such as Cincinnati, Baltimore, Charlotte, N.C., Hartford, Conn. and Kansas City, Mo., now believe increasing street-level pedestrian traffic will lead to more downtown homes, shops and entertainment.”

Or consider this conclusion of an August 2005 New York Times story: “Many cities are gripped with builder’s remorse. They say the skyways and tunnels have choked off pedestrian traffic, hurt street-level retailers and limited development in the city core.”

“If I could take a cement mixer and pour cement in and clog up the tunnels, I would do it today,” then-Dallas Mayor Laura Miller told the Times.

Why do I care? What make me think the sudden appearance of a bad idea in a McIlhearn column was anything more or less than normal? An entry in the WisPolitics Budget Blog detailed some of the policy items that Assembly Republicans had salted into their version of the state budget. Along with making Wisconsin a "Shoot First" state and changing the regulation of elevators was this little gem.

Eliminate the ban on heated exterior pedestrian walkways not fully enclosed within a building, which has been in existence since 1980.

It's not exactly the kind of burning issue that has filled the front pages of newspapers in Douglas and Iron Counties, is it? In fact the one newspaper writer-type person interested is our intrepid Paddy Mac.

My questions are these. Who salted this idea in McIlhearn's fevered brow? Who needs skywalks in Milwaukee to cash in on that "negligible" $1 mi lion per span? Which of our Republican leaders put this line item in for which of his buddies? Have the roadbuilders been replaced as the darlings of Republican pork by those who build their highways in the sky?


Maybe it's just a coincidence. Maybe McIlhearn had an idea of his own. It's bound to happen someday.

Badgers? We Don't Need No Stinking Badgers

From the Beebs:

UK military spokesman Major Mike Shearer said: "We can categorically state that we have not released man-eating badgers into the area."

The area in question being Basra.

The director of Basra's veterinary hospital, Mushtaq Abdul-Mahdi, has inspected
several of the animals' corpses.

He told the AFP news agency: "These appeared before the fall of the regime in 1986. They are known locally as Al-Girta.

"Talk that this animal was brought by the British forces is incorrect and unscientific."

But we all know that you can't trust a scientific consensus. Right?

What's The Difference Between Smart and Stupid?

Pretty much everyone agrees that there's an upper limit to "smart."


Stupid just goes on forever.

It's An Honor To Be Nominated

Fred has turned MRQ into a competition and I've been nominated for the first weekly prize. If you have the time, please slide over there and vote for my "weedy" quote.

Thank you

Before The Order of the Phoenix

After seeing the Vince Gill commercial for FTL at the theater last night all I can figure is that he either lost a bet or his alimony payments are way higher than I imagined.

That check better have been big enough to cover the hole where his credibility used to be.

From Paul Mercurio

Presdient Bush's approval rating walks into a bar and the bartender says, "I'm sorry. We can't serve you here."

The approval rating asks, "Why not?"

And the bartender says, "Because you're under 21."

Bad News Budget

The Assembly Republicans (less Jeff Wood) passed their version of a budget on Tuesday. For a group that has decried policy-making in budget bills in the past they indulged themselves this time like a church choir on Saturday night.

Let's take a look at some of the items Brett Davis and his cohort voted for.

1) No more straight ticket voting. The R's are tired of being dragged down by candidates like Scott Walker and GWB.

2) The elimination of BadgerCarePlus for farmers. Wasn't this a cornerstone of Brett's campaign flyers last August?

3) A zero balance for the Statutory Required Balance. Apparently the R's have figured out a way to make rainy days illegal.

4) $96 million in cuts to the UW alongside cuts in student aid. The Republicans officially no longer believe that knowledge is power. In a land of stupid people Steve Nass is king.

5) A freeze in property taxes to match the millions in un- and underfunded mandates on local governments. They believe in letting your alder take the fall for the hard cuts that they are unwilling to take. When the price of a bag of garbage hits $3 you can thank the Republicans.

6) Shared revenue cuts of no less than 5% with 12% and more to some communities. Lets see, the price of a fire call now is $500. Will the Republicans be happy when it hits $1000?

7) Cuts $85 million from the JFC version of the budget for local school funding.

8) Blocks single citizens younger than 65 from the Homestead Tax Credit

9) Expanded the tax-sucking sinkhole of for-profit schooling to Racine.

The Republican budget is a document full of platitudes that is unpassable. It is just as unrealistic as the document the Dems brought out two weeks ago. It's time for both sides to stop posturing and make a budget for the people of the whole state, not just Dane and Ozaukee Counties.

Hello! Nurse

As Aaron teaches young Cole the names of the states he should remember that learning at home is a two-edged sword. The tools of education can be turned to the Devil's handiwork as easily.

There will always be someone like Uncle grumps to lead him astray.

This Would Make It harder To Get Folks To Serve In A Bush Administration

BEIJING, China (Reuters) -- China executed a former drug and food safety chief on Tuesday for corruption in an unusually swift sentence which will serve as a warning amid a series of health scandals that have stained the "made in China" brand.

The gallows would have to have an express lane to keep up with the incompetence of the CEO Administration.

Brewpub Afficianados Take Note

From Milwaukee World. The bill that giveth could also taketh away.

Milwaukee Brewing Company president Jim McCabe says if the bill, introduced
on July 3rd (a good day to introduce stealth legislation) is passed and signed
by the governor (who says he supports it) McCabe will be forced to
choose which of his facilities he must shut down. The same would apply to Gray’s
Brewing, Tyranena Brewing Company, Calumet Brewing Company, New Glarus Brewing Company, Green Bay Brewing Company and Milwaukee’s Stonefly Brewery, all of which manufacture beer and sell food.

How could a bill that allows Great Dane to own six brewpubs prohibit
six other companies from
owning more than two? “The proposed law would require that forty percent of sales at each location must be food,” McCabe says. “There is no way my new state-of-the-art brewery and packaging facility, located in an industrial building on the south side could function as a brewpub generating 41 percent of its revenues in food.”

(snip)

The Senate’s Transportation, Tourism and Insurance Committee will hold a public
hearing on the bill Wednesday, July 11th, 2007 at 1 p.m. in Room 411 south
of the State Capitol. Many representatives of Wisconsin’s brewpub industry will
be in attendance, despite having less than one week to prepare themselves after
the bill’s surreptitious introduction. The committee is expected to go into
executive session to vote on the proposal immediately afterward.

Dilemma

Should a blogger's 1000th post be weighty or funny?

Scooter's still free.






I guess it can be both.

Help A Blogger Out

Pete is making a list of the great movies left off the Army Times list of Top Ten Military Movies in response to the AFI Top 100's lack of good military movies.

5. The Caine Mutiny (1954) - Oh, man, who can forget those balls that Lt.
Cmdr. Queeg kept rattling around! This is right up there with Letters from Iwo
Jima as THE BEST….Again, I own this movie, and watch it frequently….

4. Glory (1989) - Watched it twice….thought it was ok, but really think
Letters and Caine are better movies….

I've added my two cents in the comments. Go over and add yours.

To 900 Or So Of My New Closest Friends

Thank you

Time Is Running Short

Just two more chances to see the show.

M*A*S*H Cast:
Supporting Characters

It’s your last chance to see MASH this weekend! Don’t miss it on July 6 or 7 at 7:30 p.m. The play is presented by the Evansville Community Theatre in the state-of-the-art Evansville Performing Arts Center at Evansville High School, 640 S. Fifth St. Tickets are all general admission and are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets are available in advance in Evansville at the Union Bank and Trust, Piggly Wiggly, Evansville Pharmacy, and Bank of Evansville. For information, contact producer Jennie Nehls at 608-882-4926 or by e-mail at nenni68@charter.net.

Last week a few of the supporting characters spoke with the play’s publicity coordinator to give you an inside look at what it’s like to be on stage in MASH.

Are you having a good time putting on this play?
Linda Draeving-Hammack/Congresswoman: I grew up military, so it’s pretty cool -- it takes me back. Most of it’s true to life. My dad was in the Air Force, so I was an Air Force brat. It was a good life, a hard life, but a very good life. We moved every two to three years. The first 18 years of my life I lived on seven different bases.
Chelsea Schmit/Fritzi: I like how everyone is really nice and really supportive.
Cody Marenas/Crazylegs: I just like everyone and the range of ages that are here.
PJ Spears/Nyng: I’m having a great time. I’ve never done this before. I was nervous. It’s just so neat to see other people act – they’re really good!

What do you like best about your character?
Jennie Nehls/Dean Lodge: Dean Mercy Lodge tries to sound "all business" but it's obvious that regardless of the mischief Hawkeye caused her at the school, deep down she has a soft spot for him.
Chelsea Schmit/Fritzi: I like that my character is not very intelligent and I like to play her because she’s so opposite – I don’t really consider myself that dumb! We all have dumb moments, but her life is a dumb moment so it’s kind of fun.
Linda Draeving-Hammack/Congresswoman: I’m a congresswoman. That’s cool. And she’s made fun of; that’s kind of funny. And I get to scream.
Chelsea Schmit/Fritzi: My character feeds off the other two girls she’s with. Together the three of them are just really very blank and dull-witted! It’s so funny because of the reaction of the officers in the camp.
PJ Spears/Nyng: I like getting to pretend to be someone else and see if I can convince other people to believe the character. She’s funny. I try to make it funny.

Aside from the outright comedy, what might the audience take away from the play?
Linda Draeving-Hammack/Congresswoman: I think the importance of relationships comes shining through in the play. Any time you take people out of their own comfort zone and put them in a foreign country, personal relationships become very important because they’re dependent on each other. That’s one of the things I learned growing up military – how important your nuclear family and relationships become to you when you’re far away from your extended family. You create extended families when you’re overseas or on a military base.
Chelsea Schmit/Fritzi: I’ve got nothing! Mitzi, Fritzi, and Agnes don’t have a lot of messages!
Cody Marenas/Crazylegs: I’m an old college buddy of Hawkeye – there are messages about keeping your friends and staying in touch with your old friends.

Why do you think people will enjoy this play?
PJ Spears/Nyng: It’s going to be so funny. You won’t believe how many people you see every day that can act so well! I didn’t know they could do this.
Jennie Nehls/Dean Lodge: I think it's a show that most people have watched and they can identify with the characters. Having watched the show for many years, I wondered if that might make it hard to get used to seeing someone else play those roles. On the contrary, each member of the cast has really embraced their character and they all have done an amazing job blending together beautifully.
Chelsea Schmit/Fritzi: When you know the people who are in the show you see bits and pieces of them coming out in their characters and it’s really humorous how they connect.
Cody Marenas/Crazylegs: If we hit the lines right, it’ll make the audience laugh.
Jennie Nehls/Dean Lodge: I think people will most enjoy watching everyone in the cast have such a good time with their characters and the story. It's a great show with a lot of funny, and some poignant, moments.
Linda Draeving-Hammack/Congresswoman: It’s a good show…the directing, the producing, it’s just a good show.
Chelsea Schmit/Fritzi: It’s a break from reality, putting yourself in a different place and a different time. If there are actors you know, it’s fun to see the actors step out into something they don’t always do.
Linda Draeving-Hammack/Congresswoman: Come see us and have a good time – and remember that every actress loves flowers!

####
sc-6-29-07

Two Pictures and a Riddle

The paper says that today is Kissing Day. Here's a treat.

Kissing Day Picture #1

The Riddle

Which one of today's funnies had a slam on the Supreme Court buried so small that most everyone missed it?

Kissing Day Picture #2

The Answer To The Riddle.

Get Fuzzy

The (Really) No-Spin Zone. Really. No Kidding. Not Like That Other Guy's Spinning-No-Spin Thingie Zone.

Aaron asks, "What's the spin?" I'll offer this.

Al Gore III is a grown man who has made some mistakes in the
past. It would appear that he has made some more. If found guilty he
should be held responsible for his actions.

See, now isn't that refreshing compared to all of the Scooter-blather we've been subjected to over the past few days? When will the Republican partisans learn that actions have consequences and stand up for personal responsibility?

Did I See You At The Parade? Did I Throw You A Tootsie Roll?

The weather was perfect, the crowd was friendly, the company could not have been better.
click on pictures to enlarge

If you didn't see the cast of M*A*S*H at the parade yesterday, I hope you can see us tonight when the production resumes. Details below.




M*A*S*H will be presented in the state-of-the-art Evansville Performing Arts Center at Evansville High School, 640 S. Fifth St. in Evansville. Performances are July 5, 6, and 7 at 7:30 p.m..

Tickets are all general admission and are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets are available in advance in Evansville at the Union Bank and Trust, Piggly Wiggly, Evansville Pharmacy, and Bank of Evansville.

A Long And Difficult Birth

From USHistory.org

Chronology of Events
1776

June 7
Congress, meeting in Philadelphia, receives Richard Henry Lee's resolution urging Congress to declare independence.

June 11
Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston appointed to a committee to draft a declaration of independence. American army retreats to Lake Champlain from Canada.

June 12-27
Jefferson, at the request of the committee, drafts a declaration, of which only a fragment exists. Jefferson's clean, or "fair" copy, the "original Rough draught," is reviewed by the committee. Both documents are in the manuscript collections of the Library of Congress.

June 28
A fair copy of the committee draft of the Declaration of Independence is read in Congress.

July 1-4
Congress debates and revises the Declaration of Independence.

July 2
Congress declares independence as the British fleet and army arrive at New York.

July 4
Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence in the morning of a bright, sunny, but cool Philadelphia day. John Dunlap prints the Declaration of Independence. These prints are now called "Dunlap Broadsides." Twenty-four copies are known to exist, two of which are in the Library of Congress. One of these was Washington's personal copy.

July 5
John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress, dispatches the first of Dunlap's broadsides of the Declaration of Independence to the legislatures of New Jersey and Delaware.

July 6
Pennsylvania Evening Post of July 6 prints the first newspaper rendition of the Declaration of Independence.

July 8
The first public reading of the Declaration is in Philadelphia.

July 9
Washington orders that the Declaration of Independence be read before the American army in New York

July 19
Congress orders the Declaration of Independence engrossed (officially inscribed) and signed by members.

August 2
Delegates begin to sign engrossed copy of the Declaration of Independence. A large British reinforcement arrives at New York after being repelled at Charleston, S.C.

1777
January 18
Congress, now sitting in Baltimore, Maryland, orders that signed copies of the Declaration of Independence printed by Mary Katherine Goddard of Baltimore be sent to the states.

I Agree With Owen This Time

This would be interesting.

The comments over at BS go into the RINOsity of some of the potential candidates for Steve Kagen's 8th District seat. I'd just like to see how nasty a primary campaign between Cheney's-Boy, Gard and Mr Personality Frank Lassee could get.

Mending Wall- by Robert Frost

For the Observer:

Something there is that doesn't love a wall,

That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it,

And spills the upper boulders in the sun,

And makes gaps even two can pass abreast.

The work of hunters is another thing:

I have come after them and made repair

Where they have left not one stone on a stone,

But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,

To please the yelping dogs.

The gaps I mean,

No one has seen them made or heard them made,

But at spring mending-time we find them there.

I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;

And on a day we meet to walk the line

And set the wall between us once again.

We keep the wall between us as we go.

To each the boulders that have fallen to each.

And some are loaves and some so nearly balls

We have to use a spell to make them balance: '

Stay where you are until our backs are turned!'

We wear our fingers rough with handling them.

Oh, just another kind of out-door game,

One on a side. It comes to little more:

There where it is we do not need the wall:

He is all pine and I am apple orchard.

My apple trees will never get across

And eat the cones under his pines,

I tell him.

He only says, 'Good fences make good neighbors'.

Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder

If I could put a notion in his head: '

Why do they make good neighbors?

Isn't it Where there are cows?

But here there are no cows.

Before I built a wall I'd ask to know

What I was walling in or walling out,

And to whom I was like to give offence.

Something there is that doesn't love a wall,

That wants it down.'

I could say 'Elves' to him,

But it's not elves exactly, and I'd rather

He said it for himself. I see him there

Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top

In each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.

He moves in darkness as it seems to me~

Not of woods only and the shade of trees.

He will not go behind his father's saying,

And he likes having thought of it so well

He says again, "Good fences make good neighbors."

Try Your Hand At Seeing The Future

The Mathias Family is keeping track of predictions for the next (and last) Harry Potter novel, due out in just a dew weeks and they're willing to let us play as well.

Slide over to Pundit Nation and record your predictions for posterity.

Here are my thoughts:

1) Dumbledore isn't coming back. He might show up as a patronas or help Harry out with a pensieve episode but he is really, truly, most actually dead. That whole Nicholas Flamel reference is jsut a red herring.

2) Snape's motives are pure. My guess is that he dies in defense of one of the Big Three, probably Hermione. If Snape does not receive redemption then the whole point of the series seems to make no difference. I don't see that happening.

3) Draco Malfoy lives to carry the Death Eaters to a new generation. Lucius is RDB (Rent. Don't buy.)

4) I boldly predict that I'll read Book 7 and have no better handle on what the deuce the whole horcrux thing is than I have now.

5) Hermione is offered a job at Hogwarts as is Neville. Harry is offered Dumbledore's office and turns it down. Ron winds up doing infomercials for his brothers' line of magic tchotchkes.

6) We get one more wet-eyed scene with Harry's Mum and Pa. She will give him the push to defeat He-Whose-Name-Can't-Be-Spelled.

7) JKR will not be able to walk away from the characters or world she's created. She will have another book set in the Hogwarts world within ten years.

The Enlisted Men and the Korean Characters' Turn

M*A*S*H Cast:

Privates and Korean Characters

Two performances are in the books but there are still plenty of chances to see the ECT production of MASH, including a matinee this afternoon at 2. A week ago a couple of privates and two of the Korean characters in MASH talked with the play’s publicity coordinator about the play.

Are you having a good time putting on this play?
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: One of the fun parts for me is watching the people get
into their characters as they say their lines, realizing what their lines mean and why they’re funny.
Andrew Lust/Pvt. Boone: My favorite part is all the dialogue between the general and
me. They’re funny parts -- lots of misunderstandings.
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: I like the nurses; they like to plot with each other.
Carl Soderberg/Ho-Jon: The play is written well. The television show has lived on
during generations and decades because it’s funny. This is a different show, so it’s not exactly like the television show, but they’re both very funny. They both have a lot of good one-liners. But they also develop really funny themes throughout. If done correctly our show has the potential to be hilarious and I hope it is.

What do you like about your own character?
Andrew Lust/Pvt. Boone: It’s kind of like I don’t have to act at all. It’s pretty much me…a nervous, clumsy, scaredy guy. Kind of stupid, but actually intelligent. It’s like I’m playing me. I really don’t have to act; I just have to say the lines that are in the book.
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: My character seems like the low man on the totem pole and
that relates to me with the play because unlike a lot of older people in the cast, I don’t know a lot about the Korean war. I’m the low man on the totem pole just in general here, so I can really relate to that character. He does the grunt work.
Chelsea Lezotte/Sohng: Sohng is just a fun character, a fun person to play. PJ [who plays the other Korean woman in the play] has been trying to help me learn to talk with a Korean accent.
Carl Soderberg/Ho-Jon: My character is a challenge. I haven’t been on stage for four years. Coming back to it is kind of interesting because to portray a 17-year-old Korean boy when I’m a 21-year-old Swedish boy, is an interesting transition, but it’s fun, too. I like a challenge and I have a lot of time this summer, so I’m really trying to devote a lot of it to developing something that’s going to be interesting and can tie the show together and make it feel like it’s really in Korea. I hope bringing that to the table will be fun for both myself and the audience. The way I need him to come across is much like a servant, serving Hawkeye and Duke and the others on stage. Having that demeanor is something I’m not used to, so I’m still developing that. That’s another reason it’s so challenging, because there are so many different aspects of who Ho-Jon is that I have to try to capture and effectively show on stage -- that there’s more to him.

How do your characters get along with each other?
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: At one point, everybody comes together to help one of the
characters. They’re not family, but they are in a sense.
Chelsea Lezotte/Sohng: It seems like they’ve all got their own groups and circles they
hang out with, but everybody will protect everybody else and you could go to any one of them.
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: My favorite group is Duke and Hawkeye. They’re kind of
mischievous and hang out with each other. They get away with a lot.

Aside from the outright comedy, what might the audience take away from play?
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: These are people who are great at their work and they may
want to go back to their families but they can’t because they’re so good at what they do. You don’t see the families back home that are missing them. It was probably really tough to be gone for that long.

Chelsea Lezotte/Sohng: It shows you just have to do what you have to do.
Carl Soderberg/Ho-Jon: It’s easier to go on stage and have a gag and have people laugh and clap. The more difficult thing is doing the themes that are underlying. One of the themes is the friendships that have developed among everyone there and the Koreans, the camaraderie that’s developed during this really serious time. They can take lightly that they’re medical surgeons in the middle of the war. They’re saving lives, but at the same time they’re able to maintain that sense of humor that’s really necessary. If you can’t laugh, it’s going to be tough going.

Why do you think people will enjoy this play?
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: To see someone you know up on stage is always fun to see
how they do. If you’ve grown up watching the TV show, or read the book, or seen the movie -- I always like to see how other people interpret it or would put the show on. Our main attraction is going to be the people who grew up watching the show, who know more about the Korean War, not just in a history book.
Chelsea Lezotte/Sohng: I think if anybody comes to see it, they’ll like it. You don’t have to know anything about it. I haven’t seen it on TV.
Carl Soderberg/Ho-Jon: I would tell everybody to come see it because it is going to be
funny, but also because you’re really going to feel connected to the show. By the time it’s over, you’re really going to feel like you’ve experienced a sense of what it’s like to be part of the Korean war.

How is this experience going for you?
Chelsea Lezotte/Sohng: This is the first time I’ve been on stage. It’s going good. I need
a lot of help, but it’s fun.
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: She’s really come out of her shell.
Chelsea Lezotte/Sohng: I’ve heard that a couple times!
Andrew Lust/Pvt. Boone: I’m a veteran here doing plays. I’ve been in musicals and plays for the past 6 years.
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: This is my fifth show that I’ve at least helped with. Last year with The Beverly Hillbillies I had a lot of fun with it. It’s different with an all high school cast which I’m used to. They talk about school most of the time. This is a good mix of adults and younger people, because you go to the adults for help about what the setting was or how someone would act in that time. Then they come to you because they don’t know where the green room is or to ask what we have in the prop shop. It’s a give and take on both sides and that’s something really special for the show.

Why do you think people will enjoy this play?
Andrew Lust/Pvt. Boone: It’s in the middle of the summer and there’s air conditioning in there. And my house doesn’t have it, so…
Tyler Franklin/Pvt. Lopez: Mine doesn’t either! It’s a fun family show.
Chelsea Lezotte/Sohng: They won’t walk away and think it’s a waste of time. They’ll
have fun if they come watch it.

###
sc-6/22/07

The Nurses Speak

M*A*S*H Cast:

The Nurses

The Evansville Community Theatre summer production of M*A*S*H opened last night to a receptive crowd. Those in attendance were treated to a night of comedy and drama at the PAC. Will you be there tonight?

The nurses in the play sat down before a recent rehearsal to talk with the play’s publicity coordinator and give their behind-the-scenes thoughts on pulling it all together. There was much talk about juggling jobs, kids, and rehearsals, but agreement that it’s all worth it.

Are you having a good time putting on this play?
Melissa Schnepper/Margaret Houlihan: I’m having fun because I didn’t know anyone
here, so I’m meeting a bunch of new people. I haven’t been in the theatre in over ten years so it’s good to get back to it. There are lots of lovely people here, very friendly. A very nice group to work with.
Michelle Allen/Louise Kimball: This is my first time doing anything like this. Lori
Soderberg’s the one who asked me. This is way out of my box. I’ve never done anything like this, not even in high school. I work at the pharmacy, I’m used to playing sports, volleyball, basketball, soccer, I’m a welder, I do auto body work, and this is totally different.
Denise Sobeski/Janice Fury: I’m having fun because I have done this before. I like
escaping from reality for a little while and turning into my character. It’s always fun to watch my character evolve.
Michelle Allen/Louise Kimball: And you keep me on my toes!
Denise Sobeski/Janice Fury: As long as I don’t goof up and we both miss our cue!
Lori Soderberg/Bridget McCarthy: I love it because – look at the new friends I make.
How can you not want to be a part of that?
Hazel Cybart-Fuson/Nancy Phillips: It’s fun because there are lots of fun people
involved and because a friend of mine, Chelsea Lezotte, is in the play. I encouraged her to try out and I’m glad she got her first part in a play. She plays the Korean woman Sohng.
Lori Soderberg/Bridget McCarthy: I’m just glad you guys are all here!
Michelle Allen/Louise Kimball: I’m just glad you twisted my arm and dragged me in here!

What do you like about your own character?
Denise Sobeski/Janice Fury: For me, I never really watched the show. When I accepted
the part, I had no idea who Janice Fury was.
Melissa Schnepper/Margaret Houlihan: My character is somewhat like myself in real
life, some days. You can ask my family about that. You can ask my co-workers about that. I’m somewhat regimented like I think she would be. In other ways I wish that I were. It’s a little bit extreme and I like to play that kind of character. It’s a lot of fun. Though some of it parallels my life in how I react to different things, in many ways it’s very much over the top, very serious. It’s fun to get out of your everyday life and get into something that’s over the top. It kind of lets a little steam off, too.
Michelle Allen/Louise Kimball: I like that mine is a small part just to get my feet wet a
little bit. I keep asking Lori questions about my lines like, “how should I say this?” I say it five different ways and they all sound good…so how do you know?
Lori Soderberg/Bridget McCarthy: Whatever feels right.
Denise Sobeski/Janice Fury: Or whatever the director tells you to do.

How do your characters get along with each other?
Lori Soderberg/Bridget McCarthy: To me, I feel like the tomboy of the nurses.
Denise Sobeski/Janice Fury: It’s a pretty tight knit group, even though there’s a school-
type separation of the boys and the girls. I feel everyone is very well inter-connected and we all really stand together when the going gets tough.
Hazel Cybart-Fuson/Nancy Phillips: We all work together in everything -- in the operating room and in the day-to-day life of the MASH unit making sneaky plans with each either to get our way or have some fun.
Denise Sobeski/Janice Fury: I get the feeling we’re in the military, but we’re not Major
Houlihan. When there’s incoming wounded we get a bit more serious, but across the board we’re a little more about making the best of the situation while we’re here. We’re a little intimidated by her, but not so much that it’s going to stop us from being ourselves.

Aside from the outright comedy, what might the audience take away from play?
Lori Soderberg/Bridget McCarthy: The compassion they have for the Koreans in the play.
Denise Sobeski/Janice Fury: The compassion comes through in a strange way. We have to convince one of the characters to realize that life is worth it. It’s a little twisted in the way it’s done, because it’s done with humor, but these people really care.
Hazel Cybart-Fuson/Nancy Phillips: I think high school kids will like it because it’s not super-serious. We learn about the wars in school so you understand the concept – I just got done learning about the Korean War in tenth grade history, so it kind of ties in.

Why do you think people will enjoy this play?
Lori Soderberg/Bridget McCarthy: Because it’s hometown talent and I think that’s
very important to Evansville people.
Hazel Cybart-Fuson/Nancy Phillips: There are a lot of lines that will just really make you laugh. It’s humor that deals with serious circumstances. They use humor to lighten up the mood because it takes their mind off what’s really going on.
Melissa Schnepper/Margaret Houlihan: There’s great talent here, really. I’ve worked with a lot of different levels of professionalism in theatre…I’ve worked with community theatre before that wasn’t nearly as talented or wrapped up in it or organized or serious about the craft as here, and that makes it so much more enjoyable. We’re all having a great time and that reads from the stage, so everybody’s just going to naturally want to be a part of that and enjoy it.

M*A*S*H will be presented in the state-of-the-art Evansville Performing Arts Center at Evansville High School, 640 S. Fifth St. in Evansville. Performances are June 30, and July 5, 6, and 7 at 7:30 p.m.; with a matinee on July 1 at 2 p.m. Tickets are all general admission and are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets are available in advance in Evansville at the Union Bank and Trust, Piggly Wiggly, Evansville Pharmacy, and Bank of Evansville.

For information, contact producer Jennie Nehls at 608-882-4926 or by
e-mail at nenni68@charter.net.

sc-6-14-07

Just Wondering II

I wonder what those proponents of "getting government out of our lives" and "small government is best," feel about the ways that Dick Cheney has expanded the role and reach of the Vice President's Office.

Overture, Curtain, Lights

Tonight is Opening Night!

Don’t Miss M*A*S*H !
Presented by the Evansville Community Theatre
June 29 & 30, and July 5, 6, & 7 at 7:30 p.m.
Matinee on July 1 at 2 p.m.

What could be so funny about an army hospital on the front lines during the Korean War? Anyone who’s ever seen the television show MASH knows the answer to that…and anyone who hasn’t, will find out when they come to see the Evansville Community Theatre’s summer production of the comedy MASH.

There’s family-friendly fun all-around with this play. You’ll find the wisecracking doctors, Hawkeye and Duke; the humor of the straight-laced Major Houlihan and Frank Burns; the young clairvoyant Radar; and the nurses ready to pull a few pranks for a little revenge. When it’s not a laugh a minute, it’s three laughs a minute!

The play is presented in the state-of-the-art Evansville Performing Arts Center at Evansville High School, 640 S. Fifth St. Performances are June 29 and 30, and July 5, 6, and 7 at 7:30 p.m.; with a matinee on July 1 at 2 p.m. Tickets are all general admission and are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets are available in advance in Evansville at the Union Bank and Trust, Piggly Wiggly, Evansville Pharmacy, and Bank of Evansville.

Almost thirty Evansville community members are cast in the play, with a couple dozen more working behind the scenes. The cast features an assortment of people you see every day in Evansville. You might talk to Michelle Allen behind the counter at the Evansville Pharmacy – she plays nurse Louise Kimble. Of course you’ve bought stamps from Dave Persons at the Evansville Post Office – he’s Father Mulcahy. Let’s hope you haven’t had to see Tom Beaver, the cook Sergeant Devine, in his official capacity as an Evansville EMT. Ever asked for a special tip on which cuts of meat are best at the Piggly Wiggly? Frank Burns is played by Lee Dammen, the meat department manager. Or you might have had a haircut from PJ Spears – she plays the Korean woman, Nyng -- or a facial treatment from skin care expert Denise Sobeski , Nurse Janice Fury – both at All About You hair salon. Come see how these familiar faces become the humorous characters of MASH!

The production will also feature a home grown, USO-type show at intermission, with local talent and actors from the play. Enjoy some time travel back to the musical times of the early 1950’s.

The play, adapted by Tim Kelly, is based on the original book by Richard Hooker written in 1968. The name Richard Hooker was a penname for the author, Richard Hornberger. Hornberger based the book MASH on his own experiences as a surgeon at the 8055 Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the Korean War. The character of Hawkeye is based on himself.
In addition to the play, the movie and the popular television series are also both based on the book. MASH, the movie, directed by Robert Altman, was released in 1970. It was nominated for five Academy Awards, and won an Oscar for its screenplay.

Of course, the television show MASH is most familiar to people. It ran from 1972 to 1983, with a total of 251 episodes, and won 14 Emmy Awards. The finale of the series was the most-watched show in television history. Even today, the series runs on television almost daily. The program is still so popular due to its quirky comedy mixed with drama, and the endearing combination of characters.

Action in the play takes place in a simpler time, during the Korean War. The hostilities of the Korean War occurred from 1950 to 1953, though Congress extended the official war period to 1955. During those five years, 6.8 million American men and women served in the military. The fact that women served alongside men in the MASH units brings a different element to the story. In real life, more than 120,000 women were on active duty in Korea as nurses and at support units nearby in Japan and other far eastern countries.

Don’t miss the chance to include a MASH performance in your 4th of July week celebrations. For more information about the play, contact producer Jennie Nehls at 608-882-4926 or by e-mail at nenni68@charter.net. Or check the Evansville Community Theatre website at www.ectstagelights.org.

####
sc-6-22-07

Get Your Tickets Now

M*A*S*H Cast:
The Doctors

The week before opening opening night, the MASH doctors sat down with the play’s publicity coordinator to give readers an inside look at their roles.

Are you having a good time putting on this play?
Darrell Hammond/Trapper John: It’s so much different than anything I’ve ever been
in, with the three different scenes on the stage the whole time. It takes a lot more coordination between the whole cast as opposed to closing the curtain to change scenes.
Lyman Fuson/Duke: Timing is everything on this one. Like one scene with Hawkeye,
Henry Blake, and Duke in the mess tent -- they have to fire off the lines really fast. As Tom [Tom McKittrick, the director] said at the beginning, “With last summer’s Beverly Hillbillies, hillbillies strike oil and go to Beverly Hills. That’s just inherently funny. With this play, the humor depends more on how it’s delivered.”

What do you like about your own character?
Paul Cargill/Walt: When he’s happy, he’s happy. He’s happy in the army, he’d be
happy back home. He’s interested in keeping the other people happy, he’s sort of the informal “recreation officer.” He’s trying to help lighten the load by supplying the bingo and the gambling.
Dave Sobeski/Hawkeye: Hawkeye’s very passionate about his job. He’s very serious
about doing the best job he can, but it’s on his terms. He can’t stand regulations for regulations’ sake. He despises the camp Army clowns of Burns and Houlihan. But he’s very close to not only the doctors, but also to the enlisted men, the nurses, everybody who saves lives. That’s what he’s all about.
Lyman Fuson/Duke: Duke’s pretty much the same way. They’re both schemers, but
they don’t scheme to do bad things. They want to help the camp. And they’re not afraid of Henry Blake.
Darrell Hammond/Trapper John: Trapper’s the old reliable. He’s there the whole
time. He’s the backbone of the unit.
Rick Larson/Ugly: The reason I like Ugly is that he doesn’t have a big part in the book,
the TV show, or the movie. He’s in there, but he’s just sort of a bystander. That gave open range to make the part whatever we want it to be, which makes it pretty cool.
Lyman Fuson/Duke: To some extent that’s what Duke has, too. He’s in the movie, but
he’s never in the television show.
Paul Cargill/Walt: Walt isn’t in the television show either. But we’re not doing the
television show. This is closer to the book than anything.

How do your characters get along with each other?
Paul Cargill/Walt: I think everybody likes Walt, the dentist. They’re concerned about
him.
Dave Sobeski/Hawkeye: Walt is the center of the social scene and we need you. You’re
essential.
Paul Cargill/Walt: Yes, it’s pretty much a show about an army dentist and all the other
people that come and go in his life!
Dave Sobeski/Hawkeye: Duke and Hawkeye are very close. There’s a bond there. You
presume they didn’t know each other before they hit Korea. They’re very similar spirits, so they connect and they stay connected. They’re kind of connected at the hip throughout the play.
Lyman Fuson/Duke: Hawkeye and Duke are the ones who always have a plot.
Rick Larson/Ugly: I really like Hawkeye and Duke. They’re the ringleaders. When
they come in, they just kind of organize everything. And even though they’re full of wise cracks, they do show their true colors at times. They’ve got heart.
Lyman Fuson/Duke: These are the guys that are all in the operating room trying to save
lives together and they all rely on each other.

Aside from the outright comedy, what might the audience take away from play?
Paul Cargill/Walt: I want people to remember this war. I really hadn’t thought about it
in a long time. I always liked to read about World War II and this was just sort of finishing up some of the things after World War II.
Dave Sobeski/Hawkeye: Isn’t that one of the labels, “the forgotten war?” They called it
a police action at one time.
Paul Cargill/Walt: Yes, you can look it up as the “Korean conflict.”
Darrell Hammond/Trapper: One thing people will get out of it is the idea that war is
long periods of incredible activity followed by periods of complete boredom. For the doctors, there’d be weeks and weeks where they might just set a broken leg or pull out a big sliver, then for three weeks they might not sleep except on a pile of garbage out back.

Why do you think people will enjoy this play?
Paul Cargill/Walt: It’s only 8 bucks!
Rick Larson/Ugly: If you buy early!
Lyman Fuson/Duke: What can you get for 8 bucks?
Paul Cargill/Walt: A lot of the people from The Beverly Hillbillies are in this. The
director and producer are the same, so it should be the same type of quality performance. We’re right here in the Performing Arts Center with a better sound system. We’re going to have helicopters and howitzers – right here in the PAC. You don’t want to miss it -- it’s only 8 bucks!
Darrell Hamond/Trapper: I think it will be really funny. When I first read the script, I thought there weren’t that many funny parts that Trapper was in. But when you see it on stage, and as we get a little better each night we do it, there’s really a lot of humor in there.
Dave Sobeski/Hawkeye: The play is a comedy, even though the movie was more of a
dark comedy.
Paul Cargill/Walt: A “dramedy” or a “com-a.”
Dave Sobeski/Hawkeye: This play doesn’t have any of the darkness of the movie. It’s
just more comedy.
Lyman Fuson/Duke: The more we work on it, we start to see lines that are really funny
when we deliver them just the right way.
Rick Larson/Ugly: That’s the key thing, too. Like Tom said, with the Beverly Hillbillies
last year, we could have sat up there and just read the script and had people laughing. With this one, we actually have to work at it. And that makes it more fun for us, too.
Lyman Fuson/Duke: Jethro [played by Rick Larson in the Beverly Hillbillies] isn’t
going to carry in a telephone pole for laughs this time!
Paul Cargill/Walt: He was stupid then and now he’s ugly.
Rick Larson/Ugly: Where does one go from here?!
Paul Cargill/Walt: Nowhere to go but up!

####

sc – 6/19/07

The Republicans' Turn (via McSweeney's)

McSweeney's is going through kind of a tough time right now trying to make back $130,000 lost when a distributor went bankrupt. They're having an auction and sale to make back some of that money. Follow the links above if you want to see what's up for sale and then enjoy their analysis of the:

PROS AND CONS OF THE TOP 20

REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES.
BY JOHN MOE

1. RUDY GIULIANI
Pro: Unifying force after 9/11; articulate speaker.
Con: The whole "pro-choice, pro-gun-control, New Yorker, used to live with gay dudes, adultery" thing might hurt him with conservatives. A bit.


2. JOHN MCCAIN
Pro: Comforting resemblance to character actor Gavin MacLeod.
Con: Murray from The Mary Tyler Moore Show lacked leadership qualities and Captain Stubing from Love Boat got a little goofy whenever Charo was a guest star, leaving executive branch vulnerable to Charo impersonators who are actually Al Qaeda operatives.


3. MITT ROMNEY
Pro: Named after Mittens, the family cat, later shortening name to "Mitt." People love cats.
Con: Religious beliefs could create problems, as many Americans may not be ready to accept worshiper of ancient Egyptian god Ra.


4. ZOMBIE RONALD REAGAN
Pro: Probably the most Reaganesque candidate available; if stoked with the brains of the living, should operate in an acceptable fashion.
Con: Long-dead eyes lack that magic twinkle; inhuman groans negatively impact "Great Communicator" status.


5. FRED "TOMMY" THOMPSON
Pro: Diverse résumé includes stints as governor of Wisconsin, senator from Tennessee, cabinet secretary, and several TV acting gigs.
Con: Contractually bound to appear in all 319 Law & Order programs currently in production.


6. MIKE HUCKABEE
Pro: Lost 110 pounds due to health concerns, potentially allowing him to serve as healthy example for overweight Americans.
Con: Those 110 pounds have reconstituted into a diminutive all-fat Democratic consultant who knows Huckabee's every move. I Heart Huckabees was pretty uneven.


7. SAM BROWNBACK
Pro: Serves as a positive role model for ethnic brownbacks all over the country.
Con: Such an ethnicity does not technically exist; lacks the pen-gripping power of Kansas Senate predecessor Bob Dole.


8. NEWT GINGRICH
Pro: Well known.
Con: See above.


9. EDDIE VAN HALEN
Pro: I tell you what, he would bring the nations of the world together through ROCK! He'd be all deedly-deedly-deedly-DEE-DEE-DEE! on his guitar and the bosses of the other countries would be all, "Whoa! Let's stop fighting and start rocking!"
Con: Drunken wretched mess.


10. DUNCAN HUNTER
Pro: Appears to be some sort of politician who wants to be president, I guess. That's all anyone in the entire nation knows about him, including himself and his family.
Con: Born with two last names, though this liability could be mitigated by teaming with Texas Representative Ron Paul, who is also running.


11. ROBOTIC SUPER BEES
Pro: Programmed mandate to destroy enemies with unrelenting deadly force could be an advantage in contentious general-election fight and when facing down hostile nations or other bees.
Con: Murderous instinct less advantageous in delicate diplomatic negotiations and the parsing of complex tariff issues.


12. BIGFOOT
Pro: Available; independent; tall.
Con: Elusive; smelly; once elected he could disappear into the woods around Camp David and we'd never see him again.


13. YOUR MAMA
Pro: Strong personality; nurturer; kind; strict when she has to be; always shows up at soccer games or school plays; skilled at managing a busy family.
Con: Upon her election, nation would be instantly vulnerable to any number of verbal attacks about president being so fat, so ugly, so stupid, etc.


14. OHIO STATE CENTER GREG ODEN
Pro: Size; soft hands; positive attitude; high basketball IQ; given America's recent losses abroad, nation is automatically eligible for first pick in upcoming draft, so he will be available.
Con: Once his rookie contract is up, Oden would be free to sign with any other nation on the planet for bigger money.


15. KENNY LOGGINS
Pro: Is all right; therefore, no one needs to worry about him.
Con: Gonna take you right into the danger zone.


16. CHUCK HAGEL
Pro: Could potentially deliver his home state of Nebraska to the Republicans.
Con: Risks losing votes of near-sighted supporters of Kierkegaard, Schopenhauer, Heidegger, and Nietzsche who think the ballot says "Hegel."


17. A HUGE BARREL OF OIL
Pro: Coveted; influential; beloved by business community; understood by allies and enemies alike.
Con: Unlikely to support biodiesel-fuel development in the Midwest, potentially hurting chances in Iowa primary; slick.


18. A WOMAN OF SOME SORT
Pro: Could win support of other women.
Con: Women are not allowed to join the Republican Party.


19. CHEERS
Pro: Pretty funny show to watch when there's nothing else on.
Con: Frustrated voters may want to be able to pick and choose which part of the show to vote for, preferring the Shelley Long years over the Kirstie Alley years or stocking up on mostly Lilith episodes, but it doesn't work like that. You have to vote for the whole show.


20. OHIO
Pro: Could deliver crucial votes in Ohio.
Con: President would spend way too much time agonizing over the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; sleeping arrangements in new White House, which would span hundreds of square miles, could get contentious.

Better Yet. Take 15 More Seconds To Proofread

Apparently they're not real big on checking your work.

Come And See The Show

It takes a whole village…well not quite, but it does take a lot of community members to put on a play like the Evansville Community Theatre’s summer production of M*A*S*H! Chances are, you’ll find many of your friends and neighbors in the production crew list, as well as in the updated cast list.

M*A*S*H cast:
General Hammond: Bill Reed
Private Boone: Andrew Lust
Lt. Colonel Henry Blake: Jim Brooks
Nurse Bridget McCarthy: Lori Soderberg
Nurse Janice Fury: Denise Sobeski
Sergeant Devine: Tom Beaver
Frank Burns: Lee Dammen
Father Mulcahy: Dave Persons
Captain Walt Waldowski: Paul Cargill
Trapper John: Darrell Hamilton
Captain John Black “Ugly:” Rick Larson
Radar O'Reilly: Erik Worthington
Hawkeye Pierce: Dave Sobeski
Duke Forrest: Lyman Fuson
Ho-Jon: Carl Soderberg
Private Lopez: Tyler Franklin
Nyng: PJ Spears
Sohng: Chelsea Lezotte
Nurse Nancy Phillips: Hazel Cybart-Fuson
Major Margaret Houlihan: Melissa Schnepper
Congresswoman Goldfarb: Linda Draeving-Hammack
Dean Mercy Lodge: Jennie Nehls
Miss Randazzle: Mary Whitney-Hartje
Mitzi: Carly Kimberly
Fritzi: Chelsea Schmit
Agnes: Gwen Manion
Connie Liebowitz: Mary Whitney-Hartje
Crazylegs: Cody Marenas
Major Ruth Haskell: Nancy Krohn

M*A*S*H production crew:

Master Carpenter/Set Design
Greg Marshall, Tom Beaver, Rick Larson, Lyman Fuson, Dave Persons, Darrell Hamilton, Bill Reed, Andrew Lust, Lee Dammen, Erik Worthington

Props
Tom McKittrick, Nancy Krohn, Linda Draeving-Hammack, Jim Brooks, Tom Beaver, Jennie Nehls

Costumes
Tom McKittrick, Melissa Schnepper, Mary Whitney-Hartje, Nancy Krohn,
Jennie Nehls, Lori Soderberg, Melissa Whitmore, Sandy Franklin

Hair & Makeup
Denise Sobeski, PJ Spears, Carly Kimberly, Gwen Manion, Chelsea Schmit

Lights
Cody Marenas, Carl Soderberg, Tim McKittrick, Kathryn Hamilton

Sound
Paul Cargill, Clark Cybart-Fuson, Hazel Cybart-Fuson, Chelsea Lezotte, Garrett Carlson

Publicity
Sharon Cybart, Mark Spatafore, Dave Sobeski, Jim Brooks, Jennie Nehls, Tyler Franklin

M*A*S*H will be presented in the state-of-the-art Evansville Performing Arts Center at Evansville High School, 640 S. Fifth St. in Evansville. Performances are June 29 and 30, and July 5, 6, and 7 at 7:30 p.m.; with a matinee on July 1 at 2 p.m. Tickets are all general admission and are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets will be available in advance in Evansville at the Union Bank and Trust, Piggly Wiggly, Evansville Pharmacy, and Bank of Evansville.

####
sc-6/1 /07

Note From The Parade

The Oregon Summerfest Parade was as good as usual this year. I humbly offer these few observations.

Brett Davis was the only State politician in attendance. It's been a long time since I was at a parade with more firetrucks than pols. Where were you Senator Erps?

Marching band participation is way down, continuing a sad trend. Sun Prairie and Oregon were smaller than I remembered but the band from Sandwich IL was decimated and the once-mighty Dakota IL band couldn't even muster a horn line. Thankfully, Lakeside and the Lutheran Vanguard were on hand to blow the dump down.

The Road to Hell may or may not be paved with good intentions and the Streets of El Dorado may or may not be paved with gold but the road past Kwik Trip is positively paved with Tootsie Rolls and Dum Dums. Seriously, it's time to rethink throwing candy to dwindling crowds.

Being the third group handing out freeze pops has to be as demoralizing as being the first is expensive.

Handing out crayons to the toddlers is a wonderful alternative to candy. Winging crayons out onto hot asphalt to be run over by antique John Deeres is a little less wonderful.

Images From Korea

Sharon Cybart has put together some images from Korea and real-life M*A*S*H units. Go take a look at the rest.

M*A*S*H will be presented in the state-of-the-art Evansville Performing Arts Center at Evansville High School, 640 S. Fifth St. in Evansville. Performances are June 29 and 30, and July 5, 6, and 7 at 7:30 p.m.; with a matinee on July 1 at 2 p.m. Tickets are all general admission and are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets are available in advance in Evansville at the Union Bank and Trust, Piggly Wiggly, Evansville Pharmacy, and Bank of Evansville.
For information, contact producer Jennie Nehls at 608-882-4926 or by
e-mail at nenni68@charter.net.

A Look At The Dems (via McSweeney's)

McSweeney's is going through kind of a tough time right now trying to make back $130,000 lost when a distributor went bankrupt. They're having an auction and sale to make back some of that money. Follow the links above if you want to see what's up for sale and then enjoy their analysis of the:

PROS AND CONS

OF THE TOP 20

DEMOCRATIC

PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES.

by JOHN MOE

1. HILLARY CLINTON
Pro: Known commodity; strong fundraiser.
Con: Polarizing; unlikely to woo those already opposed to her.

2. BARACK OBAMA
Pro: Articulate; resembles foxy actor Blair Underwood.
Con: L.A. Law was kind of overrated now that you think about it.

3. JOHN EDWARDS
Pro: Has strong appeal to working-class voters.
Con: As a resident of two Americas, he must raise twice as much money and spend twice as much time campaigning.

4. BILL RICHARDSON
Pro: Appeals to all Latino voters with the last name "Richardson."
Con: New Mexico is legally part of Mexico; therefore, he's constitutionally ineligible.

5. JOE BIDEN
Pro: Technically still running for president.
Con: Dude. Come on.

6. DICK CHENEY IN AN ELABORATE LATEX DISGUISE THAT TAKES FIVE HOURS TO APPLY
Pro: Trojan horse, my friend. Trojan f*&^ing horse.
Con: Ruse would be so exciting that he would surely drop dead of a massive stroke about a month before Iowa.

7. OPTIMUS PRIME
Pro: Size; power; ability to emit short-range optic blasts.
Con: Potential attack ad: "Sometimes Optimus Prime is a robot, other times a truck. Which is it, Mr. Prime? America deserves a leader that doesn't transform whenever it's convenient."

8. ROSS PEROT
Pro: Hilarity.
Con: None.

9. DENNIS KUCINICH
Pro: Solid anti-war stance; adorable; strong to the finich.
Con: Election laws limit magical pixies to only one term in office.

10. JIMMY CARTER
Pro: Nobel Prize winner; available; just as good at not knowing what the hell to do about Iran as anyone else.
Con: Judging by photos, approximately 415 years old.

11. ALLEN IVERSON
Pro: Instant offense.
Con: Selfish with the ball; may have lost a step.

12. IRA GLASS
Pro: Thoughtful; self-effacing; like many Americans, enjoys cable television.
Con: At present, no budget line item exists for moody introspective music to underscore every statement president makes in order to make it sound more poignant.

13. BONO
Pro: Knowledgeable about global health issues; everyone seems to like him; Joshua Tree album.
Con: Too busy hugging everyone to actually execute the duties of office; no one likes the sound of "Vice President the Edge" or "Secretary of Health and Human Services Larry Mullen Jr."; the whole "Zoo TV" thing.

14. AL GORE
Pro: Knows how to get to the White House, where to park, location of restrooms.
Con: Wants to accomplish something meaningful.

15. WALTER MONDALE
Pro: Has spent last 22 years going over tape, reviewing mistakes, plotting, scheming, waiting, watching, preparing to pounce like a 79-year-old Minnesotan panther.
Con: None.

16. JESUS CHRIST
Pro: Could draw some initial interest from the Christian right until they research his actual positions in a deeper way; likable; strong leadership qualities.
Con: Unkempt; pretty far left; messianic complex.

17. THAT ONE GUY WHO SEEMED REALLY COOL
Pro: Remember? He was a senator or congressman or something? It was a while ago. He seemed super-smart but also normal. I saw him this one time.
Con: Crap, what was his name? Or was it a lady? Do you know who I'm talking about? Crap.

18. ZOMBIE LYNDON JOHNSON
Pro: Could sway red-state voters as well as Fangoria crowd; '60s-era campus unrest has died down.
Con: Tendency to groan instead of talk could hurt chances in live debates; constant need to feed on fresh brains could limit campaigning.

19. OPRAH WINFREY
Pro: Popular; influential; could rally the silent masses already violently opposed to Jonathan Franzen.
Con: May only exacerbate nationwide Maya Angelou plague that has decimated much of the nation.

20. YOU
Pro: Gained valuable exposure as Time magazine's Person of the Year; seems to be Internet-savvy.
Con: Ever since the Time thing, you've been awfully smug.

M*A*S*H Interview- The Military Men

Ticket information is at the bottom of this post. Enjoy the interview.


M*A*S*H Cast:
The Military Men

The cast of the Evansville Community Theatre’s summer performance of M*A*S*H is rehearsing in the high school for hours almost every evening. Memorizing all those lines is the big task right now. After rehearsal last week, some of the military men of the show sat down with the play’s publicity coordinator to give you an inside look at putting on the play. There were lots of laughs along the way!

What do you like about your own character?
Tom Beaver/Sergeant Divine: He’s quite different, he’s a wheeler-dealer. He’ll
sell you anything that isn’t tied down…like the Bandaid Concession Stand at Yankee stadium.
Lee Dammen/Frank Burns: That’s what he tries to sell me!
Dave Persons/Father Mulcahy: But he knows he’s already sold it!
Jim Brooks/Colonel Blake: I like playing Henry because I get to pretend I’m in
charge. And even though it’s probably the captains and the enlisted men who are really running the place, I get to act like a commanding officer anyway.
Lee Dammen/Frank Burns: That’s one of the things I like about Burns. I can act like a jerk…completely out of character for me!
Erik Worthington/Radar: I really wanted to be Radar because he’s my favorite
character in Mash. He’s young, I’m young. But it kind of stinks having your ear right on the ground to listen for helicopters all the time!
Lee Dammen/Frank Burns: You’re probably the only one that could do it! The
rest of us couldn’t get back up again!

How do your characters get along with each other?
Lee Dammen/Frank Burns: Everybody hates me!
Tom Beaver/Sergeant Divine: And understandably so!
Jim Brooks/Colonel Blake: I think there’s respect for good doctors, more than
for good soldiers, and Frank is trying to be a good soldier without being a good doctor.
Dave Persons/Father Mulcahy: The Father was one of my favorite characters.
You thought he was naive, but you aren’t really sure that he’s naive. You’re never sure what he might do.

Aside from the outright comedy, what might the audience take away from play?
Jim Brooks/Colonel Blake: No matter how bad it looks, if you respect one
another and pull together as a group, you’re going to get through, when you wouldn’t necessarily as individuals.
Tom Beaver/Sergeant Divine: There’s a part regarding depression. The doctors basically said it the best…there’s always tomorrow.
Bill Reed/General Hammond: I’m one of the few in the cast that lived through
the conflict. I was not in Korea, but I lived through that era. Having a hospital on the front lines -- this was new. It was tried at the end of World War II, but they didn’t have the mobile hospital until Korea, such as what we’re portraying here. It’s a humane thing that has a lot of meaning.
Dave Persons/Father Mulcahy: It was the advent of the helicopter that made a
lot of that possible. A lot of innovations took place at that time with the mobile hospital, to be able to bring the soldiers to get treatment, not a hundred miles, but just a few miles away from where they got injured.

How is this experience going for you?
Jim Brooks/Colonel Blake: What’s so much fun for me being here is that this is
my first time being on stage in 30 years and I know there are at least two people who have never been on stage. Yet there are some who have been regulars in Evansville theatre and in the area. It’s just that blend of people who volunteer to come here and are working together to make a good evening -- and having a good time doing it. Like searching for costumes -- there is no olive drab in a thrift store within 45 miles of Evansville!
Lee Dammen/Frank Burns: I’m just thankful for all the people who have helped
me. I’m one who has never been in a play before. Everybody’s been pitching in and telling me how to practice and how to do this and that. Some of the people don’t know me from Adam and it seems like I’ve known them forever already. It’s going to be an honor to work with everyone.
Tom Beaver/Sergeant Divine: This is just one of many performances with the ECT.
Bill Reed/General Hammond: Last summer’s Beverly Hillbillies was my third
Play. There was a 30 to 40 year span since I was in Showboat and Oklahoma. A big span, and now two years in a row!
Dave Persons/Father Mulcahy: I’ve been in a lot of ECT plays. After I retired in 1992, my first play was the Odd Couple. Before that I’d been in high school musicals.
Erik Worthington/Radar: Mostly I’ve been in musicals before. This will be my
fourth play – the Evansville High School musicals, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying and Beauty and the Beast, and a Stoughton play.

Why do you think people will enjoy this play?
Dave Persons/Father Mulcahy: As with last summer’s play, The Beverly Hillbillies, M*A*S*H is something the greatest majority of people have seen on television. You can see a lot of your own life or people you know in it.
Bill Reed/General Hammond: I just discovered that M*A*S*H is still on!
Lee Dammen/Frank Burns: I know a gentleman who was in a M*A*S*H unit, I
believe in Vietnam. He claims he’s going to come and see this every night because he knows what it was like and he commented on my character. He says, “There was one of you in there. I can’t wait to see it – not that you’re that kind of a guy! It’s going to be fun to watch.” He’s excited to see it because he’s lived it.
Erik Worthington/Radar: I have high school friends that have seen M*A*S*H and they really like it. I’ve only seen a couple episodes of Mash and I really liked it.
Jim Brooks/Colonel Blake: With TV-Land and with cable, the high school kids have never lived in a time without the show. It’s been around continuously for 30 years.
Tom Beaver/Sergeant Divine: All I have to say is bring your family to the show and see our new family.
Jim Brooks/Colonel Blake: Get your tickets early, you don’t want to hear, “You should have been there last night.”

M*A*S*H will be presented in the state-of-the-art Evansville Performing Arts Center at Evansville High School, 640 S. Fifth St. in Evansville. Performances are June 29 and 30, and July 5, 6, and 7 at 7:30 p.m.; with a matinee on July 1 at 2 p.m. Tickets are all general admission and are $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets are available in advance in Evansville at the Union Bank and Trust, Piggly Wiggly, Evansville Pharmacy, and Bank of Evansville.
For information, contact producer Jennie Nehls at 608-882-4926 or by
e-mail at nenni68@charter.net.

sc-6-6-07

Because Guns Defuse Violence

Permit to carry? check

Training? presumably

Position of responsibility? certainly

10 shots fired on a busy street? Just another day outside Walter Reed.