The first two parts of the documentary will be shown this Friday and will be about 2 hours long. The final two parts of Century of Self will be presented next month. The showing will start promptly at 7:00 PM Friday. The UUFC meeting hall is located on Madison Street, 1.9 miles past the bypass headed toward Nashville, on the left side of the street.  The address is 3053 Highway 41A South (Madison becomes 41A South)  Call 920-5390 with questions.  Bring snacks and drinks to share if you wish.  Free and open to the public.

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Guys, Here’s a suggestion that’s sure to be a hit with your significant other! Get a copy of the DVD of the 1996 movie, “The Truth About Cats and Dogs.”

The movie is a romantic comedy loosely based on the classic French novel, “Cyrano De Bergerac.” Most of us are likely more familiar with the Steven Martin adaptation “Roxanne,” only here the gender of the love-smitten” and “the pursued” roles are reversed.

Janeane Garofalo and Uma Thurman gives this “Chic Flick” real entertainment value. Their portrayals are tight and really engaging.

Ben Chaplin plays the role of “Brian,” the duped love object of Garofalo’s “Abby.” He is captivating in his pursuit of his dream girl. The real question is, “Which Abby is the one he really loves?” Fortunately for him, “Hank, the rollerskating dog” helps him figure it out!

So, here’s to light-hearted romantic comedy that’s easy to watch, engrossing and a fun time! May it provide you with some fertile ideas of your own, the ‘bath scenario’ is true inspiration! Happy Valentine’s Day to All!

When the original Die Hard was released back in 1988, I was seventeen, and thanks to Tennessee’s antiquated obscenity law, I had to sneak into the theatre to see it. I was already weary of these action heroes who were invulnerable and one-liners which were peppered amidst the frequent explosions that were common in Reagan-era films of that genre.

Willis’ John McClane was a refreshing twist of the action hero who was as vulnerable as he was heroic. The one-liners weren’t bad puns, and “the” classic line from that film (Yippe-ki-yay, motherf***er), became an instant addition to the vocabulary of teenagers and adults everywhere.

Now, 19 years and three movies later, Willis again dons the NYPD badge that made him a hero. Of course, during that time, Die Hard became the epitome of action films. It would be used in pitch after pitch for movies ever since. “Die Hard on a boat” became Stephen Segal’s Under Siege. “Die Hard on a plane” became Air Force One for Harrison Ford.

Live Free or Die Hard brings Bruce Willis back into the genre which made him a movie star. Now, McClane is a dad to a daughter who hates him (the wife who hates him divorced him long ago, apparently, so Bonnie Bedelia wasn’t in this film). Thankfully, his daughter Lucy is played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead instead of Jessica Simpson (who was reportedly in talks for the role).

The story is simple enough: McClane is asked by an FBI friend of his to bring in hacker Matt Farrell (Mac guy Justin Long) in for questioning after the defense department mainframe is hacked. Unlike the first film, the action begins almost immediately when the bad guys try to assassinate Farrell, and McClane gets there just in the nick of time.

What follows is a string of action scenes that suspend all plausibility and sometimes even reality itself for the sake of a big budget. Here’s the amazing thing: It works. Director Len Weisman’s fantasy-driven visual style was last seen in the Underworld movies. Since they were his only films before this one make him an interesting choice for both Fox and Willis to trust with their cash cow.

Weisman effectively mixes the humor with the serious, and the well-placed cast only bolsters the film. Probably the only weak link in Live Free is Timothy Olyphant as Thomas Gabriel, the film’s big-bad guy. Of course, there aren’t too many people who can compare to the deliciously charismatic Alan Rickman in the first film, so I have to give Olyphant some credit here. He’s been seen in a few guest-starring roles on shows like Deadwood and was the lead in the 2000 film Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy.

Gabriel’s motive is solid, and his plan to systematically shut down the country’s resources wreaks the kind of havoc we can all imagine. After all, what would it be like if the entire infrastructure were to shut down? Since “pretty much everything” is run by computers, the premise of the film has a fun hook.

With supporting roles from Maggie Q as the high-kicking sidekick to Gabriel, and a strangely Vulcan-esque role from Star Trek Voyager’s Tim Russ, Live Free or Die Hard carries along the story along its explosive path to a satisfying conclusion. An especially bright point in the film is a cameo from filmmaker Kevin Smith as uber-hacker “Warlock.” Smith’s character has the delight of delivering the film’s most insightful lines.

Live Free or Die Hard is a film that’s high on decibels and explosions, light on physics and plausibility, yet comes together in a film that is a fun romp through Washington, D.C. as the world comes to an end. Willis and Long have the usual “buddy movie” banter, with lines like, “Listening to this (music) is like having a corncob shoved up my ass.”

Amazingly, the film is rated PG-13, so anyone can see it. Sure, die hard fans (pun intended) cringe at not having f-bombs every other word. In fact, even last word of “the” line is drowned out by the sound of a bullet. Thankfully, the one thing that isn’t drowned out is the fact that it’s actually good. (8/10)

Originally published in www.skippingtothepiccolo.com

I walked into the theatre and was immediately transported through time to the late 1950’s by this incredible Amber Wallace set. I have never been disappointed with any Roxy set, but my favorites are all Amber Wallace’s creations. Her best work in my opinion, was the sets that she did for last years Miss Saigon and Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.

This show covers Buddy Holly’s life from his rise to success in 1957 to his death in the 1959 plane crash which also took the lives of Rock and Roll legends Ritchie Valens and J. P. Richardson who was also know as the Big Bopper. This plane crash was immortalized in the Don Mclean song American Pie.

“The Day the Music Died” (February 3, 1959), was the day of the plane crash that killed three popular American rock and roll musicians. Early that morning, at approximately 1:05 AM Central Standard Time, an airplane carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson crashed in a farmer’s field en route to a concert near Fargo, North Dakota, killing all three performers as well as the pilot, Roger Peterson. Don McLean’s 1971 song, “American Pie,” contains many references to this day, including the phrase itself. – Wikipedia

The actors were all exquisitely cast for their roles.

Jody Evans, formerly of Nashville Stars played Buddy Holly. Jody’s appearance, voice, and style of playing was Buddy Holly. He successfully brings off Buddy Holly’s esoteric combination of nerdy appearance and rock star coolness.

Meeting Jody after the show I can truthfully say, he is gracious and a gentleman in the true sense of the word. Someone who always tries to ensure that the people around him are as comfortable as possible.

As a child growing up in Arkansas, Jody Evans was rocked to sleep to the music of Elvis Presley. When other kids wanted to be football heroes or whatever, he wanted to be Elvis. He wore suits and ties to school to emulate another hero, Clark Kent. He was branded a nerd because he wore glasses.

At ten years old his mother took him to see the movie ‘La Bamba’ and even though he was taken with the story of Ritchie Valens the real thrill came towards the end when Buddy Holly (played by Marshall Crenshaw) came on the scene. He was impressed at the man who wore a suit and tie and glasses, how he sung and played so good.

By the age of twelve he knew music was all he ever wanted to do. So, he got a job and saved money to buy his first guitar, a 1966 Fender Mustang. A friend showed him A, D, and E chords enabling him to learn and play nearly every Buddy Holly song in the world.

At fifteen he started his first band and began playing talent shows or wherever there was a stage he could get on. One of these talent shows took him to Memphis where the owner of Sun Studios saw Jody and asked him if he would like to make a record. The only problem was Jody had no original material. He asked to be given a week and in the next five days wrote his first six songs. Soon after he found himself recording where his first hero had started.

It was these recordings that captured the attention of Dale Hawkins (Suzy Q 1957), who proclaimed Jody the best songwriter he ever heard and Pete Anderson (producer & guitarist Dwight Yoakam), who after hearing Jody’s recordings and seeing a tape of his live performance exclaimed, “If Jody Evans played Berlin tonight they would be rioting in the streets”.

Untarnished and undiscovered, Jody Evans is living proof that Rock ‘n Roll music still exists the way its inventors meant it to be. – From the Jody Evans web site.

I want to say that after hearing Jody Evans perform in this show, he has earned a permanent place on my iPod’s playlists. If you are interested in sampling his excellent music, he makes several songs available for download in MP3 format on his web site and there are also a couple of songs on his Myspace page.

Accompanying Buddy Holly as the Crickets were Jimmy Bishop (Bass, Joe B. Maudlin), Joshua Smith (Drums, Jerry Allison), and John Winters (Guitar, Niki Sullivan).

Jimmy Bishop has been a favorite of mine ever since his first appearance in a Roxy Production in “A Year with Frog and Toad”. He shined in the recently completed run of the Graduate where he played Mr Robinson. In Buddy, The Buddy Holly Story his performance realistically conveys to you the vibe of a rock and roll star.

Joshua Smith is an APSU student and a heck of a musician. This was his theatrical debut, that being said handled his drum sticks with a professionals flair.

John Winters was an excellent backup for Jody Evans. That being said, I am sure that I have seen him somewhere else in the past. Since he is a professional musician and has opened for many big name groups, that is very likely.

There were other characters in this show besides Buddy Holly and the Crickets,

Philip Ocampo plays an engineer (for the second time at the Roxy) and the role of Ritchie Valens which is the role most people will likely take home with them. One thing I can say for Philip is that he brings a sense of fun into all of his roles. His portrayal of Ritchie Valens is no exception. I will not spoil the show for you by describing his character here, you will just have to go see it for your self. I will say that I missed Philip when he left us after Miss Saigon. I am glad he has returned.

Jayson Elliott is a bit younger than J. P. Richardson was at the time of his death, but that did not detract from his performance. His costumes could have come right out of the Big Bopper’s wardrobe. This was his Roxy debut and I hope to see him in future shows to get a better feel for his talents.

Ted Kitterman, Humberto Figueroa, and Mariah Wolitski, are young actors and frequent performers at the Roxy and in this show they handle roles of several disc jockeys and old time radio ad singers. Mariah also handles the role of Peggy Sue.

Hannah Carmona plays Maria Elena Santiago, the Puerto Rican receptionist of Buddy’s record publisher, after a courtship lasting roughly five hour he proposed to her. Hannah is a talented young actress and a budding beauty with a smile that I bet can break a young man’s heart.

Greg Williamson returns to the Roxy stage as Norman Petty, a record producer from Clovis New Mexico. He won this years Monte award. In Bye Bye Birdie he played the mayor of the town and was backed up by the lovely Julie Ross who returns in this show as Vi, Norman Petty’s wife. My all time favorite role of Greg’s would be his performance of Cogsworth in the Roxy production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast

Rick Hurst returns for his second Roxy run, his first was as the bartender Maude in Bye Bye Birdie, In this show he plays Hipockets Duncan, an exuberant radio DJ from Buddy’s home town of Lubbock Texas. Rick pulls off his role with the “air of authority” and “keen sense of humour” that the creators of this show intended it to have.

Last but certainly not the least is the very talented Koral Rose Curkeet. she played a performer at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York. She appeared in Bye Bye Birdie, but this is the first time we have had the chance to hear her sing. Her voice is rich and powerful, anyone who hears her sing can not help but to fall in love with it.

SYNOPSIS OF SCENES:

The above listed scenes are from the information
listed on http://www.buddythemusical.com/,
and may not accurately reflect the scenes in
the Roxy’s rendition of this show.

Music: