| TV Guy: King recalls half century of pop
Five decades of movie stars, pop sensations, presidents and scandalous flash-in-the-pans share time with America's most recognizable pair of glasses and suspenders on "Larry King — 50 Years of Pop Culture" (9 p.m., CNN). For better or worse, nobody better represents the confluence of news and celebrity culture. As if to highlight this fact, King is joined by CNN's Anderson Cooper and "American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest for this commemorative glance back. "Pop Culture" wastes no time getting down to numbers. King has conducted more than 40,000 interviews in his 50 years on radio and television. How has he endured? King has mastered the art of the softball interview. This has made King's show a good place to go on your way up, or to steer clear of complete disaster on your way down.
CyberFembot ARC
Because we're not talking about an Arcee toy, we're talking about 'CyberFembot A.R.C." Who is not, in fact, Arcee, despite there being a remarkable resemblance between the two. If it were Arcee, or close enough to infringe on Hasbro's (the owners of the Transformers license) intellectual property, the company would be visiting screaming legal death onto Rabid Squirrel Productions, owner of the A.R.C. toy. As it is, Rabid Squirrel can proudly wave a legal document from Hasbro saying that this isn't the case. It helps that the Arcee character hasn't made too many appearances in the various Transformers toylines. Some quick research shows that there was one version of the character in the defunct Energon line, one non-transformable PVC figurine in the Legends of Cybertron line, and one convention exclusive as part of the Beast Wars line.
The Beatles and Philosophy
The Beatles and Philosophy, a collection of essays by philosophy experts (many of them university professors, all of them Beatles fanatics), is a new and sometimes tedious example of the latter. An entry in the "Popular Culture and Philosophy" series of books, which is now 25 volumes deep, The Beatles and Philosophy exploits the Fab Four's weakness for populist consciousness-raising by aligning their work to that of Kant, Heidegger, Aristotle, and a host of other great minds that don't necessarily have much to do with the band's music. A major problem with the collection is that it addresses the Beatles' lyrics only—understandably, seeing as there's no way to discuss Nietzsche and overdubbing with a straight face—an approach that inevitably treats the band as a one-dimensional unit.
Dr Pepper and Epic Recording Artist Cartel to Make Rock History ...
PLANO, TX. and NEW YORK, NY. (Top40 Charts/ Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages) - Dr Pepper, MTV, and Epic recording artist Cartel are giving music fans more of what they want this summer ... a first-time, real-time look into the making of the band's newest album during Dr Pepper Band in a Bubble. In what is sure to be the most talked-about music event of the year, Cartel will be sealed inside a huge transparent bubble on Hudson River Park's Pier 54 in New York City from May 24 through June 12, and every move they make will be live for the world to see as they eat, breathe, sleep and record the follow-up to their breakthrough debut album, CHROMA. Dr Pepper Band in a Bubble, produced by Mediaedge:cia and True Entertainment, an Endemol company, is an interactive multimedia event that will bring new meaning to "up close and personal." Cartel will enter the bubble during a live MTV broadcast on May 24 and stay there with no escape until the bubble "bursts" on June 12.
Asian stocks slip in early trading
In Japan, Nissan Motor Co. planned to announce an early retirement program later Tuesday, said a company spokeswoman, as the Japanese auto maker moves to revive its earnings growth, Dow Jones newswires reported. A company spokeswoman declined to comment on details, Dow Jones said. Japan's Nikkei newspaper reported Tuesday that Nissan has decided to introduce a companywide early retirement program targeting some 12,000 non-management employees aged 45 and older, the company's first domestic job cuts in eight years, according to the report.
South Korea's Kia Motors Corp. will officially open its new plant in Zilina, Slovakia, on Tuesday, Dow Jones newswires reported, citing a story in the Financial Times' online edition. The Zilina plant began producing three-door cars under Kia's Cee'd brand in December and later this year will begin building larger versions of the car, as well as the Sportage mid-size sport utility vehicle, according to the report.
Movies opening Friday:
But he wakes up 20 years later as a man-child, played by Jamie Kennedy. When his parents' yogurt store faces closure, the dancer attempts to revive his career by entering a top-dollar competition with the help of his old dance crew, who have all long left breakin' behind them. (PG-13) "Next": Nicolas Cage stars as a man who can see into the future, an ability that makes him a target of the FBI -- which wants him to help stop America's enemies before they strike. But what's more important to him: saving his country or saving the love of his life (Jessica Biel)? (PG-13)
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From Spider-Man vs. the Vulture to Pop Culture to High Culture
Fans of four-color sequential art (and related fields of comic book endeavor), rejoice! Star Clipper Comics, our lovely next-door neighbor whom we view with the same sort of lust and longing as you do that hot neighbor who wears the bikini top to walk her dogs has decided to bite the bullet and open an art gallery. Star Clipper has hosted a couple of art shows in the past few years, most notably the first-ever St. Louis Munny Show. The layout of the store dictated that the little vinyl dudes had to be displayed on a shelf running across the back third of the shop for that one. The new gallery will be a definite improvement, as you can mill about, examining the art, without having to be “'scuse me'd" by the clientele as they shop. Construction on the gallery is not yet complete, but work is scheduled to be done by May 5 or so, and the shop is open for business as usual while work goes on.
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