He has a radio program on WXOU out of Oakland University
Wild At Heart
Not much to talk about this week. I was happy to see Minnesota Twins go down three straight to the Yankees and I am awaiting to hear back on a job that will keep me employed for the next 4 months if it comes through. However, it still annoys me that major companies are unable to handle simple instructions such as "I have an appointment today so if you can't call me by 10:30AM, make sure you call me after 2PM" and then wonder why they leave me a message at 12:30PM when I told them I wouldn't be there. So I sit by a phone calling every 45 minutes (since they only have their answering machine on all day) without them calling me back. When my new/potential employer asks me to be at work at 8AM, what would they say if I showed up at 9:30AM. You know that doesn't fly yet they are incapable of doing such a simple task. I lost a job last week because the company didn't think they could give me enough hours but it would have been nice if they could've talked to me in person esp after showing up three times for interviews and not being given one because of their issues. If they actually called me when I said I would be home, I would probably have taken the job (I was working a temp assignment where I had to be at work at noon giving them a full 3 1/2 hours everyday to reach me, and this is a company that stresses accuracy in their calls but can't give it to employees).
There is a new horror film in theatres which harkens to the fun of "The Blair Witch Project" and "Cloverfield" with it's entire story being filmed as if by handheld camera (though unlike the previous, most is done on a tripod so for those who didn't like the jarring movement don't have as much of it this time. The movie, "Paranormal Activity" begins with the boyfriend Micah testing out and playing with his camera to document various weird things that have been happening in the house. A psychic is called in and learns from Katie that she has been haunted by a ghostly entity since her youth. which turns out not to be a a ghost but a demon. He tells the couple that no matter where they go the demon will follow since it is haunting Katie herself. The psychic explains that the demon feeds off negative energy, so the couple must do their best not to antagonize it or give it more power by fighting with each other. With the camera, the couple documents increasing activity which eventually wears them down to the climatic finish. I found the movie very slow and annoying, mainly because I found Micah (both actors use their first names for their characters in the film) to be not equal to Katie esp in one scene involving a Ouija board where he seems to be trying to hold in laughter while delivering a straight performance. With the exception of a cool scene where Katie is dragged from her bed by unseen forces and the last few seconds, I found the movie to be boring. However, I feel that if you truly believe in this type of stuff, you will more than likely enjoy the film. If you don't have that belief, you might end up inappropritely laughing and fighting boredom like me. I enjoy experiments in film like this but they could have improved some of the scripting and a better actor playing the male lead who could compliment Katie more would have helped since she has some nice moments. Just remember, this is low budget horror so don't expect too much and you should leave content. My grade is C-, mainly because it is good for a film with a budget of $15,000 (less than an average car), was filmed in a week and shot using a hand-held video camera. It has been doing mostly midnight showings in the area but will be going for a wide release on Oct 16th.
IMAX film lovers will be happy to know that 2 new IMAX screens will be opening on October 16th at Star Great Lakes Crossing 25 and AMC Livonia 20 with the first film being "Where The Wild Things Are". Along with showing live and pre-recorded events, there are a bunch of upcoming Hollywood movies to be released in IMAX’s format which include Michael Jackson’s "This Is It" (Oct 28), “Disney’s A Christmas Carol” (Nov. 6), “Avatar” (Dec. 18), “Alice in Wonderland” (March 5, 2010), “How to Train Your Dragon” (March 26, 2010) and “Shrek Goes Fourth” (May 21, 2010).
If you enjoy flying, American Airlines has announced a sweepstakes to celebrate the new Paramount Pictures film “Up in the Air” by director Jason Reitman and starring George Clooney. The film tells the story of a business traveler whose cherished life on the road is threatened just as he is on the cusp of reaching 10 million frequent-flyer miles and after he’s met the frequent-traveler woman of his dreams. The sweepstakes offers a chance to win 700,000 AAdvantage® miles along with two Economy Class round-trip AAnytime® award tickets to travel to Los Angeles as special guests of American Airlines to attend the “Up in the Air” movie premier and a $300 gift card to use for hotel or spending money while there
Between now through Oct. 31, 2009, you can enter by going to www.aa.com/upintheair and purchase a flight on AA.com during the promotional period. To enter without making a purchase visit www.aa.com/upintheairamoe. Good luck!!
Dog owners can get ready for the “Legally Blonde Howl-o-ween Costume Contest for Canines” on October 20 at the Fisher Theatre at 6PM. Cast members from the hit Broadway show "Legally Blonde The Musical" will judge the canine contestants and three winners will get gift cards to PetSmart and tickets for the show. Owners of contestants must register in advance by calling 248-651-4858. Legally Blonde will start on Oct 15th and run until Nov 1st.
Upcoming shows include Tuesday (10/13) is a great night for retro music with the Psychedlic Furs w/Happy Mondays and the Islands @ Clutch Cargos, local girl Justine Blazer @ Hard Rock Cafe or Polish Muslims @ Blocktoberfest in Hamtramck. Wednesday (10/14) has Mars Volta @ Clutch Cargos or White Tie Affair @ St Andrews. Thursday (10/15) sees Five Finger Death Punch w/Otep @ Crofoot, Indian musician Ravi Shankar (this is the guy who the Beatles hung out with) @ Hill Auditorium or the Gossip @ the Majestic. Friday (10/16) has Wilco @ Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, the Scarlet Oaks @ Majestic Cafe or local bands Wildcatting & Prussia @ Vernor's Lounge in Pontiac. Saturday (10/17) is for hard rockers with Gwar @ Harpos or the Used @ the Fillmore though you can chill with the Glenn Miller Orchestra @ Ford Community Performing Arts Center, Jeff Daniels @ Lexington Music & Theatre Company or Stewart Francke w/Floyd King & Bushwackers @ Mama's Coffeehouse in Bloomfield Hills for a benefit for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Sunday (10/18) has prog rock band Birds Of Avalon @ Majestic Cafe or Verve Pipe frontman Brian Vander Ark. Monday (10/19) has Japanese alt rock band Shonen Knife @ Magic Stick. On Thursday, Memphis Smoke will be throwing a Bob Segar book release party and while Bob himself will be absent, you can get a copy of "Travelin Man" before it hits the stores and check out the live performance by Lookin Back, The only Bob Seger tribute band. Authors Tom Weschler and Gary Graff will also be present.
Also, sadly for music fans, original NRBQ guitarist Steve Ferguson passed away on Oct 7th due to small-cell lung cancer and today, the bassist and lead singer for Blue Cheer, Dickie Peterson, passed on with liver cancer. That sums it up for this month. Have a good week and catch you next week!