Thursday, August 31
Photographer captures routine of street life
Resident taps into people-watching skills
By Jan Biles For 20 years, Lawrence photographer Gary Mark Smith, Lawrence, has traveled the Earth searching for "Washington Squares," places where he could observe people as they go about the routines of their daily lives.
Art notes
KC Symphony to perform at zoo Silver Dollar City plans fall festival
EAT kicks off season with 'Labor Day Special'
English Alternative Theatre will open its season at 8 p.m. Monday with its "Labor Day Special," eight 10-minute staged readings of plays from the Actors Theatre of Louisville.
Perry set to perform
Comedian bringing solo show to Lawrence
Janice Perry, an internationally acclaimed performance artist, will bring her solo show, "Holy Sh*t! Stories from Heaven and Hell," to Kansas University as part of the department of theater and film's Third Annual Labor Day Festival.
Renaissance Festival begins this weekend
Henry VIII and his royal crown is returning this year to the Renaissance Festival, which kicks off Saturday at the festival grounds north of Bonner Springs.
'Road House' is top cheese
Author Michael Nelson pokes fun at movie starring Swayze
When it comes to the cheesiest movie of all time, "Road House" the 1989 beat-'em-up bouncer's tale starring Patrick Swayze tops Michael J. Nelson's list.
Actor's odd roles reach new heights
D'Onofrio enjoys diversity of characters
The guy on the other end of Vincent D'Onofrio's cell phone has no idea how much trouble he's in.
Arts notes
Events in Logan celebrate Labor Day Train rides slated to Lawrence, DeSoto
Survival depends on interaction
Video game's creature tends to be insulting, yet entertaining
And now for something completely different . . .
Boy wonders hit the Web
Backstreet Boys become 'The Cyber Crusaders'
They sell records faster than a speeding bullet! They're able to leap over other boy bands in a single bound!
Ozzy talks 'Ozzfest'
Heavy metal singer deals with 'his bat act'
Heavy metal vocalist Ozzy Osbourne is dressed in a blue pinstriped suit with his eyes ghoulishly covered in black mascara. It's a look that crosses business with shock rock.
Lawrence folk musician finding niche
Singer Lance Fahy discusses latest effort, local music scene
By Geoff Harkness Lance Fahy is not your run-of-the mill Lawrence folk musician. With an increasing reputation as a live performer, a recently released CD, and a bluesy, grassroots sound, the 28-year-old singer/songwriter/guitarist is carving out a serious niche in the regional music scene.
Pearl Jam rocks on
Grunge band pays tribute to the King
By Geoff Harkness Memphis was a city in ancient Egypt, so it seems fitting that its Tennessee namesake boasts its very own pyramid in this case The Pyramid, a 12,000-seat arena.
Lawrence learns life lessons
Country singer Tracy Lawrence making comeback with new CD
By Mitchell J. Near Tracy Lawrence is a country singer riding the comeback trail, and he isn't afraid to admit it. The last several years often found Lawrence fighting his private battles including a divorce in the public's view, so he took the last two years off from recording, and then he re-emerged earlier this year with a new album, "Lessons Learned."
Wednesday, August 30
White chili is perfect food for football
Kitchen & Garden
Kitchen & Garden Gwyn Mellinger In a game of free associations, autumn and the start of a new school year mean football, and football suggests tailgating and Sunday afternoons in front of the television. It's also the season for eating chili.
Tuesday, August 29
'Mr. Big' chosen to be 'Best Man'
'Sex and the City' star Chris Noth to bring unique appeal to Gore Vidal play
Next month, Chris Noth will take the stage of the Victory Theater as a character who's clad in arrogance and ambition, never mind a well-tailored suit. At one point, he'll put this character's mindset into words, saying, "I know how to maneuver, I know how to win."
Ricky Skaggs' salute to Bill Monroe not just for bluegrass fans
Ricky Skaggs knows bluegrass. He has played it since he was a child. Skaggs also knew Bill Monroe, the father of blue grass (as Monroe spelled it) music, who died in 1996. Skaggs was a child when he first met Monroe and played for him in his hometown of Martha, Ky.; he later shared the stage with him many times, at bluegrass festivals, concerts, the Grand Ole Opry and elsewhere.
Sunday, August 27
Audio Book Review
Here's a review of a recent audio-book release: 'Water, Carry Me: A Love Story' by Thomas Moran, read by Derdriu Ring.
Early light fixtures, lamps blended style with function
The earliest electric lamps were designed to look like the candlesticks and kerosene lamps they replaced. The early-1900s home had table lamps with colored-glass shades that could use only small-watt bulbs because a heat buildup would damage the glass.
Bird sanctuaries are perfect for beginners
Project of the week
With a few basic hand tools and a couple of afternoons, do-it-yourselfers can give all the birds in the neighborhood a place to rest, eat, socialize and watch out for cats.
Psychic dogs gaze into crystal bowls
'Psychic' miniature pinschers pinpoint the past, future
The psychic dogs knew you were going to read this article. That's because they have super canine mental powers that enable them to peer into the future and predict everything from presidential elections to the construction of prisons on Mars by 2010.
Spontaneous abstraction
Newcomer to Lawrence finding market for paintings
By Jan Biles Mari Pilar's paintings are a metaphor of life: a constant shifting between the known and the unknown, creation and destruction, one perspective to another. "My painting is my spiritual practice," she said. "It is a mirror for where I am, and I'm always looking in the mirror."
Books Publishers Weekly Best Seller list 8/27
Here are the nation's best-selling books as compiled by Publishers Weekly.
Puppets tell Japanese ghost tales
'Kwaidan' to open Lied Center's new season
"Kwaidan: Three Japanese Ghost Stories," by conceptual artist Ping Chong, designer Mitsuru Ishii and puppeteer John Ludwig, will be presented at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Lied Center.
Arts Trends
Michael to the Max. The family pet. Pets of the stars.
From 'X-Men' to romance
Janssen longs for longevity in the film business
Famke Janssen has been a lusty Bond villainess who crushes a man to death with her thighs. She's played a wallflowerish teacher transformed into a sultry vamp by an alien parasite. Most recently, she was a mutant who could hurl objects with her mind.
Arts notes
State fair seeking art exhibit entries. Grassroots festival slated in Lucas. Photos of Lawrence on display at library.
E Street Band? Or E Street Banned?
Bruce Springsteen ponders what direction he should take next
It was the last night of Bruce Springsteen's triumphant world tour -- 16 sold-out months on the road with the reunited E Street Band. The Boss and his sidekicks, teary-eyed, held hands as the Madison Square Garden crowd screamed wildly.
Mammoth Poetry
Poet-park ranger draws inspiration from cave
The land slopes sharply downward, warm summer air gives way to a frigid blast, and out of the dense woodland a rugged rock staircase appears, winding down into the blackness. The staircase is framed by smooth beige stone that is the cave's gaping mouth. On the clearest of mornings, dense fog still hovers about its entrance.
Photo exhibit celebrates women
Leibovitz prints touring the U.S.
The images cover everything from the real and mundane to the glamorous and bizarre. There's a weathered farmer in a field, an infant suckling a famed mother's breast and a performance artist buried so that only her head and shoulders protrude from the ground.
Collins finds calling
The Scheherazade of Hollywood nights
"Elaine Conti awoke in her luxurious bed in her luxurious Beverly Hills mansion, pressed a button to open the electrically controlled drapes, and was confronted by the sight of a young man clad in a white T-shirt and dirty jeans (urinating) a perfect arc into her mosaic-tiled swimming pool."
At Home with the Writer
Where else would Jackie Collins live but dead-center in Beverly Hills, where so many of her fictional characters have caroused and cavorted?
Defining the New Woman
Jackie Collins says she was probably first to depict the New Woman in popular fiction, and that's because she lived that life herself. "Actually, I lived my life like a man," she says.
Postal Service goes fishin'
Deep-sea fish will be coming to the surface on a new set of five 33-cent stamps issued by the U.S. Postal Service.
Saturday, August 26
Friday, August 25
'Witchblade' lacks comic book charm
For a comic book story to transcend its roots and succeed as a movie or TV show, it has to create an intriguing and often conflicted hero, present a strong story and feature an interesting, and preferably original, production design.
'Survivor' helped TV reinvent summer
Wildly popular reality show spawned huge rating, scores of imitators
"Survivor," which dominated ratings and pop-culture discourse, has changed the face of summer programming and breathed new life into network broadcasting.
Thursday, August 24
Jennifer Lopez stars in thriller
Singer-actress takes on varios roles; she portrays therapist in 'The Cell'
You know those thoughts people have lurking in the corners of their minds? The really, really, REALLY private musings that no one would ever dream of sharing?
UFOs: We all want to know
Web site sparks more queries; National Security Agency's plan backfires
Two years ago, the National Security Agency began posting previously classified documents on its Web site to deflect the growing number of requests each year for information about flying saucers and space aliens.
The King is not dead in Memphis
Elvis Week brings diehard fans together
By Geoff Harkness Elvis Week: T-shirts, dress shirts, kid's shirts, work shirts, hand-stitched rugs, ceramic mugs, Japanese Fan Club, souvenir lunchbox, genuine hair locks, hound dog mouse pad, commemorative towel rack, sunglasses, sideburns, yo-yos, sunburns, vigils at midnight, faux-diamond necklaces bling-blinging in sunlight, custom vans, "Welcome Elvis fans," karate poses, red clown noses, gold records, Sun Records, Elvis Monopoly, chess and checkers, The Lisa Marie, "Elvis Visa shopping spree," TCB, "all you can eat."
Allman tells it straight
Keyboardist talks about personal struggles
To say that Gregg Allman is a candid man would be an understatement. During a recent phone interview, the Allman Brothers keyboardist and leader ducked no questions and gave generous answers
Weird news
Going meatless Demons and vampires
Right on the beat
Funk band headlines outdoor concert at Lied Center
By Mitchell J. Near Jesse Jackson will appear at Kansas University's Lied Center Friday evening, and he's bringing a few of his friends along for the show.
'Army Men' hits target
3DO's latest effort gets a B for graphics and for sound quality
Finally, 3DO got it right.
Dentist sinks teeth into writing
Winter's new novel is suspense thriller
So you're sitting in the dentist's chair mentally cursing the sadist drilling, gouging and scraping inside your mouth, occasionally allowing you to spit.
Coping with loss
Old college buddies reunite for art show
By Jim Baker Thirty years has passed since the artworks of Jon Keith Swindell and Chris M. Gregory have mingled. But the two college friends have reunited for an exhibit at Art Affair, 622 High.
Hoop dreams
Earrings come in all sizes
They say some people have a keen eye for fashion. Others can sniff out the latest trend. But this season, the nose doesn't know, and the eyes don't have it.
Wednesday, August 23
Lentil salad eases labor on Labor Day
Kitchen & Garden
By Gwen Mellinger Kitchen & Garden Although school has already started, the upcoming Labor Day holiday will be the symbolic end of summer vacation and the last official occasion for picnics and barbecues before autumn begins in earnest.
Tuesday, August 22
Breakup leads to breakdown
Actress Anne Heche hospitalized following announcement of her split with Ellen DeGeneres
Actress Anne Heche was hospitalized after wandering up to a rural home appearing shaken and confused, hours after her breakup with Ellen DeGeneres became public, a deputy confirmed Monday.
Studio wizards find actor to play Harry Potter
The big screen has found its Harry Potter: 11-year-old British actor Daniel Radcliffe.
Monday, August 21
Sunday, August 20
Grandma shows cars aren't just for boys
Barbara McPherson, a Great Bend resident since 1957, said these are the words that go through her mind when she's participating in her hobby. Barbara, known as "the racing grandma" by her eight grandchildren, is one of very few grandmothers whose hobby is race car driving.
T.V. clips offer timeline for memories
Pickett Line
By Calder Pickett Pickett Line I've been going through all my old radio programs, putting them onto other cassettes, and I've been struck by a series I did on television memories. And I propose a kind of kaleidoscope of things I've been hearing:
New stamp celebrates California
The beauty and grandeur of California's coastline is displayed on a new 33-cent stamp celebrating the 150th anniversary of that Pacific state joining the Union on Sept. 9.
Publishers Weekly best selling list
Here are the nation's best-selling books as compiled by Publishers Weekly.
Innocents from abroad
Overseas adoptions becoming more common
By Jim Baker Larry and Brenda Compton have their own mini United Nations going. The Lawrence couple have adopted six children from abroad -- three from Vietnam, one from South Korea, one from India and one from Romania. Oh, and they have a seventh adoption under way -- of a little girl in China.
Help! Is anybody out there?
Jest for grins
By Marsha Henry Goff I think, therefore I am wrong! Take the other day when I was in a hurry and decided to self-scan my groceries rather than wait in the long lines at the measly two check-out lanes that were open. Self-scanning four items should be a piece of cake, I thought, for a woman who had just made airline reservations online.
Patent models are miniature works of art
Antiques and collecting
By Ralph and Terry Kovel To get a patent on a new invention, it was necessary, from 1836 to 1880, to make an actual model to present to the U.S. Patent Office. Several hundred thousand models were eventually stored with the government.
Little barn has big potential
Project of the week
Old McDonald himself would be proud of this do-it-yourself backyard barn project. It's a great way to add valuable storage space, or use it as a workshop, a shelter for bikes and equipment, a gardener's potting shed or even a playhouse for the young children. It's sturdy, good looking and it never rusts. And unlike the real thing, this barn can be raised by one or two people in a couple of weekends.
Judge places Harry Potter case in N.Y.
A dispute between the creators of the popular Harry Potter children's book series and a Pennsylvania woman who says she owns the rights to the "Muggles" trademarks will be decided in New York, a judge has ruled.
'Nora, Nora' is sweet, nostalgic look at South
Despite their names, permanents don't last forever. But try telling that to thin, awkward 12-year-old Peyton McKenzie, the main character in Anne Rivers Siddons' appealing new novel, "Nora, Nora," set in the small-town South in 1961.
Audio books
Reviews of new audio-book releases:
'Being Dead' comes alive
Stark descriptions only exemplify author's skill
By Mark Luce On a Tuesday afternoon, married zoologists Joseph and Celice decide to take an outing to the beach and dunes where they first met nearly 30 years ago. By the middle of the first page of Jim Crace's incredible, haunting new novel, "Being Dead," the couple, in the midst of trying to recreate their first intimacies, are murdered by a sociopath wielding a large chunk of granite.
Jean Smart's back on Broadway
Actress will also appear in 'Frazier'
As Jean Smart darts about her dressing room and its mirror-lined walls, making herbal tea for a visitor and answering the constantly ringing telephone, she appears to have you surrounded.
Get ready to crumble
'Classic' Godzilla stomps into theaters
Guy in a lizard suit stomps on a building. Ahh, the memories. Godzilla's back, the original, blue-blood Godzilla of almost two dozen cheesy Japanese movies, not the pumped-up, digitized dinosaur created for the monster-budget Hollywood version of 1998.
Marine Band marks 200th anniversary
Musicians play marches and jazz
On an August afternoon 200 summers ago, Marine bandsmen in blue-trimmed red coats mustered on a hill overlooking the Potomac River, lifted their instruments and began an enduring musical tradition.
Arts notes
Public art sought for aquatic center. Concert features Stephen Foster music. Thunderbirds coming to Nebraska.
Saturday, August 19
'Godzilla 2000' is 'lametastic' entertainment
Think about "Godzilla 2000" like you'd think about those naive, folk-art paintings in which the perspective and dimensions are deliberately wrong, in an effort to convey simplicity and purity. Sure, the artists could have put the noses in the right place or made the houses the right size, but they didn't want to.
Thursday, August 17
Reeves takes break from 'Matrix'
The eyelids are heavy, the beard is a patchy six-day growth, and the hair stands on end, even though Keanu Reeves keeps periodically pushing it back with his hand.
Pantera faithfully touring world
Heavy metal band's drummer describes life on the road. Pantera meets its music head-on. "We're not a radio band, and we've never been an MTV band," said drummer Vinnie Paul. "The way we deliver our music to our fans is to play."
Site offers look at what didn't work
Failure focuses on the people who have taken risks
'Fur Fighters' will keep players amused
Picture the cuddly teddy bear of your childhood. Now picture it packing.
Pistols pack a wallop in documentary
Film profiles legendary punk rock group. Ah, the Sex Pistols. For one brief moment, it was the best band in the world. Unfortunately, things fell apart, as the group spiraled into fame, destruction and death. Much of this is captured in Julien Temple's recent documentary, "The Filth and The Fury."
Iron Maiden enters a 'Brave New World'
New CD is Iron Maiden's best work since 'Piece of Mind.' Although Iron Maiden wants to reclaim the title of "heavy metal gods," don't expect the swashbuckling Brits to fit into the rock industry's "flavor of the month" mentality.
Concert to pay tribute to Dick Wright
The late Dick Wright will be remembered in October with a four-hour jazz concert that will showcase some of the nation's top players and singers.
Being genuine
Donal Logue stars in 'The Tao of Steve.' Single men, listen up.
Bodice-rippers with a twist
By Jan Biles Monica King says her books should be read while nibbling on a Snickers and sipping hot chocolate. Her romance novels are comfort reads.
Arts notes
Art contest centered on wheat Mennonite items on display
Wednesday, August 16
Special occasions call for a special cake
Kitchen & Garden
By Gwyn Mellinger Journalism teacher at Baker University If you're looking for a birthday cake that is different enough to become a party memory but traditional enough to keep the honoree from feeling like a guinea pig, this Mocha Brownie Cake will fit the bill.
Tuesday, August 15
TNT delivers a lot with 'Bull'
Wall Street drama packs many twists that may be hard to repeat
'Twitch City' strikes nerve with TV viewers
Canadian series loaded with couch-potato appeal
Television shows have always been more interested in people who make TV than people who watch it.
Santana shares some of his far-out wisdom
Talk to Carlos Santana and most of the time you'll get thoughtful commentary about rock history, his enduring career and the diverse musical tastes that inform his sound.
Sunday, August 13
Hoffman's 'River King' has spirit to spare
The small Massachusetts town of Haddan looks like a picture postcard of a New England village. But while a river runs through it, a ghost haunts it.
Pump gets handle on the past
Project of the week
Like a butter churn or a wood-burning stove, an old-fashioned water pump is one of those everyday objects that's become an icon of a simpler past. Everyone recognizes them, and many people remember actually using one. This universal appeal has transformed these once-common fixtures into valuable antiques.
'Shark Week' takes bite out of Dog Day doldrums
Discovery Channel to air documentary series for seven nights, beginning today
Give the folks at the Discovery Channel credit for coming up with a surefire way to put the bite on a jaded TV audience every summer. It's called "Shark Week."
Noodling earns filmmaker's fascination
Film cost about $40,000
Brad Beesley spends his spare time in rural Oklahoma prowling out-of-the-way bars and bait shops for fishermen bragging of their exploits.
Ozarks pair refine crafts
Handmade pottery and baskets fill couple's Mongolian yurt
The earth-brown clay spins under Tom Hess' practiced hands, quickly becoming a perfect cylinder. Hess applies firm pressure to the center, pressing it down nearly to the spinning surface of his potter's wheel.
States' plates say it all
Culture
License plates were once so simple: sheets of numbers that distinguished one vehicle from others, a bureaucratic tool that helped police pursue wrongdoers.
Advocate for elderly honored
Claude Pepper, a champion of rights for the elderly, will be honored on a new 33-cent stamp on Sept. 7, the eve of the 100th anniversary of his birth.
Weighing romance's options
There's nothing small about this novel approach
"She cringed inside as she saw the way they looked at her. She could see surprise, disgust, and even pity on some of the faces. Kathy almost ran, but she made herself smile and continue around the table of food."
Bookstore: bestsellers
Here are the nation's best-selling books as compiled by Publishers Weekly.
Sports rage
Parents often are the rowdiest
By Mindie Miller They lurk at baseball diamonds, basketball courts and soccer fields: the red-faced dad in the bleachers who thinks he'd make a better umpire than the one behind home plate and the grumbling mom who insists her child hasn't played nearly enough.
Trends
Washington portrait tells a lie. TV withdrawal: Can you do it? Firefighters ax pole.
Furniture of old had secrets to keep
Antiques & collecting
Desks from past centuries were designed to solve problems of the past. Where to place the inkwell? Could there be a locked drawer or a hidden compartment for valuable papers? Could papers be filed in some meaningful way? Would there be a way to hide work and still have an attractive piece of furniture?
Bookmobiles: the Amish way
Bus makes 52 stops over three days in Ohio countryside
Children clamber in the library's single aisle for books "Hank the Cow Dog," "The Babysitters Club," "The Black Stallion." Some have walked a mile, barefoot, returning last week's reading materials in grocery bags or even a wheelbarrow. And they're smiling.
There are many reasons to love the aluminum can
Through the years, most of us have pressed our lips to it more often than we've kissed the face of any loved one in our lives.
Moral of the story is ants can learn to have fun
This Wayward Life
By Joel J. Gold I grew up in a family of grasshoppers, my wife in a family of ants. For festive occasions birthdays, gift-giving holidays I'd find gaily wrapped toys and books and model cars, a baseball glove, a football helmet. She must have been unwrapping blouses and shoes and sweaters, a comb, a desk lamp.
Audio books
Great American Suspense: 5 Unabridged Classics, read by Geraint Wyn Davies.
Saturday, August 12
Thursday, August 10
Arts notes
Laser show coming to TPAC Blues Angels to fly over KC
A novel is not enough for 007 fans
A new James Bond book by Raymond Benson was recently published by Putnam.
Businesses devote space to local artists
Gallery space increasing
By Mitchell J. Near Journal-World Writer Several new art galleries are opening in area businesses.
Touring Civil War exhibit stops at Watkins Museum
By Jan Biles Journal-World Features-Arts Editor The exhibit will include Douglas County artifacts.
Recalling the Civil War
Annual event offers activities for young and old
By Jan Biles Journal-World Features-Arts Editor This year's "Civil War on the Western Front" begins today. Vicksburg. Appomatox. Atlanta. Antietam. Gettysburg. North fighting South, neighbor battling neighbor.
Arts note
Murphy to talk about textiles
E.M.U. opens 'futurist' production
By Mitchell J. Near Journal-World Writer An independent acting troupe adds variety to show.
'Vagrant Story' will keep RPG fans busy
The game features a turn-based system, in which you take a whack at the enemy and then he takes a whack at you.
'Hollow Man': Bacon's latest career turn
The actor doesn't consider money when he is making a decision about whether to take a role.
Box Office, Video Store
Here are the nation's top-grossing movies and most popular videos.
Rimes weathers bumps on wild ride
The singer is recovering from throat problems and hopes to tour in September.
Jukebox
Here are the weekly charts for the nation's best-selling recorded music as they appear in this week's issue of Billboard magazine.
Avail throws 'Wrench' into works
Lead singer describes life on Warped Tour
By Geoff Harkness Journal-World Writer The Virginia band isn't ready to sign with a major label. Being Warped ain't easy. Playing alongside bands like Green Day, The Long Beach Dub All Stars and Less Than Jake every day can be a double-edged sword for an up-and-comer like Avail.
SR-71 packages itself carefully
Mitch Allan: 'We never expected this reaction this soon'
The band's debut on RCA Records, "Now You See Inside," recently hit store shelves. It's 100 degrees on Sunset Boulevard and Mitch Allan is in the back of a truck, changing his clothes and spending his rushed lunch break talking to a reporter on the telephone.
Wednesday, August 9
Grocers pepper Lawrence
By Gwyn Mellinger Journalism teacher at Baker University Am I the only person who's noticed that we consumers of food are being fought over, tooth and nail, by the supermarkets on the west side of Lawrence?
Monday, August 7
Sunday, August 6
Show dog handlers are breed apart
The call of the ring keeps dog handlers on center stage. It's a blisteringly hot Sunday at the Fairplex in Pomona, Calif. Under the awning of Corky and Susan Vroom's rig, a fan plays upon an English springer spaniel named Dylan as he gets a blow-dry. In minutes, he will strut his stuff in the ring for the judges.
New Mysteries
Here's a look at recent hardcover novels of mystery and suspense.
Publishers Weekly bestsellers
Here are the nation's best selling books as compiled by Publishers Weekly.
Stories draw intimate portraits
Domestic strife, memory and the lives of ordinary people are recurring themes in the 31 stories in "The Angel on the Roof" (HarperCollins, $27.50) by Russell Banks.
Eszterhas in the White House
Presidential scandal is prime fodder for noted screenwriter
Suppose you are Joe Eszterhas and you think of yourself as a writer and you sell yourself to Hollywood and you wind up writing screenplays that become sleazy-cheesy-greasy movies such as "Showgirls" and "Jade."
Johnson builds a unique children's book
Kansas University alumnus taps into imagination
By Jim Hummels Journal-World assistant features and arts editor A Lawrence native has been hard at work so children can build upon their knowledge.
Eastwood commands 'Space Cowboys'
If John Glenn can journey into space at age 77, why not Clint Eastwood, 70, Tommy Lee Jones, 53, Donald Sutherland, 66, and James Garner, 72? Why not, indeed? While the quartet may seem creaky, they do heroic work in "Space Cowboys," directed and produced by Eastwood.
Ostertag lends name to charity golf tourney
By Jan Biles Journal-World Features-Arts Editor Greg Ostertag, Utah Jazz center and former Kansas University basketball player, has never let his asthma interfere with his goals. "I'm one of the lucky ones," he said in a news release. "My asthma is under control."
West's wild beauty timeless in appeal
Skip the progressively uglier urban areas
By Calder Pickett Professor Emeritus of journalism at Kansas University We went West again this year. We had two objectives, St. George in southern Utah to visit Cal, my wife's brother, and Mary Jane, and our Utah State pals, Swede and Phyl Larson, and the Pickett family reunion at Lava Hot Springs in southern Idaho.
Friends and Neighbors, LHS business education staff
They're all business. These former and current Lawrence High School business education staff members recently honored Lois Groh on her retirement from LHS.
Saturday, August 5
Friday, August 4
'Hollow Man' plot is easy to overlook
The screenplay is almost as transparent as star Kevin Bacon, but let's not kid ourselves. You're not going to see "Hollow Man" to hear this invisible guy speak.
Lords of Acid bring tour to Lawrence
Fans can chat with band members online at 4 p.m. Friday
Fans of the Lords of Acid will be able to chat online with the band Friday afternoon.
Thursday, August 3
Gene Autry saddles up for film series
By Mitchell J. Near Journal-World Writer The original singing cowboy will be featured in a movie series at the Lawrence Public Library.
Lawrence writer takes a look at outcasts
Daldorph releases new poetry collection
By Mitchell J. Near Journal-World Writer A Kansas University professor takes on social isolation in "Outcasts."
Jackson gets a little 'Nutty'
The actress-singer says she was counting the days until the filming would be over -- because she hated to see the experience end.
Punk is alive and well in Murder City
Seattle septet earns success on the road
By Geoff Harkness Journal-World Writer The band's writing process usually doesn't start until studio time has been booked. Though the Northwest music scene gets pigeonholed as one big soundgarden of grunge bands, the Murder City Devils are doing everything it can to change that image.
Hunt releases 'live performance' CD
By Mitchell J. Near Journal-World Writer A Lawrence musician isn't afraid to take a few chances with her recordings. Kelley Hunt doesn't mind breaking music industry rules. She acknowledges that being a woman from Kansas who writes and records her own blues material is an anomaly.
Art notes
China painters to hold show Crown Center sends in the clowns
Book dishes dirt about Sinatra
'Rat Pack Confidential': Dig?
By Geoff Harkness Journal-World Writer Frank Sinatra is the subject of several biographies, but this one focuses in on his Rat Pack days. There's nothing better to do on a hot summer day than finding a shady spot and some good trashy reading to go with it.
Arts notes
Howe to tell stories at arts center Kmart to offer racing event
Simon Says: Take two giant steps forward
On the edge of stardom, one band puts its all into making it
Editor's note: Every year, more than 1,000 bands and singing groups are signed to recording deals. Only a handful ever make it big. Here's a look at one California band playing the odds. The band will tour the United States this fall.
Annie Potts carries the message of 'Any Day Now'
Lifetime drama examines racism
Last year the show was Lifetime's highest-rated drama in households and with women in key demographics.
'Kirby 64' game targets young, young at heart
Cuddly character makes return on N64
If you like "Doom," you just might like this game, too.
Jukebox
Here are the weekly charts for the nation's best-selling recorded music as they appear in this week's issue of Billboard magazine.
Arts notes
Lyric Opera looking for Trouble Magazine picks KJHK for honor
Under-chic
The basic T-shirt makes a comeback
The white T-shirt has emerged once again as the outer layer.
Wednesday, August 2
Mango markdown worth exploring
By Gwyn Mellinger Baker University Journailsm Teacher Late every summer the local grocers mark their mangoes down to 50 cents a piece. For all I know these are the same mangoes that were in the produce bins a couple of months ago, when they were rock hard and green, and it's simply time to move them out. In any case, the ones that have been on sale here lately are ripe and ready to eat.
