I The Behrend Beacon
Xeric - adj. - characterized by, relating to, or requiring only a small amount of moisture.
The man that I found crawling in the desert was so thankful when I gave him some water, l guess in the life of a loser, one can always make friends with the xeric.
Entertainment News in Brief
3/28-4/4
Moviegoers place money on 21
The newly released blockbuster featuring John Cusack and Kevin
Spacey. 21. rolled its was to the top spot on the box office. It
received almost 524 million in its first weekend. Horton Hears a
Who slipped to second but still raised its total to over SI 17 mil
lion. making it the first triple-digit grossing movie of the year.
Superhero Movie debuted at No. d with a disappointing return of
just over S l > million.
Crazy Kight - Idol cuts another
American Idol cut singer Ramiele Malubay this week, narrowing
the competition to eight contestants. Malubay's performance
elicited various responses from the judges, drawing sharp criti
cism from the show's most negative fixture. Simon Cowell.
"Overall 1 thought it w as forgettable." Cow ell said, "and 1 think it
was v ery reminiscent of something you would see and hear on a
cruise ship."
McKellan hopes to repeat performance of Gandalf
While director Peter King works oil The Hohhit. his newest movie
plan. lan McKellan. who played the original Gandalf. is more than
willing to take his old role again. "Yes. I would (return 1."
i McKellan stated on his website, "if | King| and I have anything to
i do with it
Source: CNN. Yahoo
Beacon Entertainer of the Week
Upcoming releases:
Movies
Prom Night
-April 11-
Starring Brittany Snow
and Idris Elba, a senior
prom night goes wrong as
a young woman must
escape the violent rampage
of a killer.
Rating: PG-13
Street Kings
~April 11~
An LAPD police officer,
played by Keanu Reeves
(The Matrix) seeks
revenge after the death of
his partner.
Rating: R
y
Music
Mariah
Carey
~ April 15-
E=MC 2
JUnterts
Everclear
-April 15-
The Vegas Years
W
j ~. i :
~i'gm -W
11
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Comedian Robin Williams.
Robin Williams
performs improv
to save TEDs
Comedian saves tech
show with impromptu
stage performance
By Connor Sattely
entertainment editor
cissof>() (o'psu.edu
The attendees of the
Technology. Entertainment and
Design (TED) conference in
Monterey, Calif., certainly
weren't expecting a stand-up
routine from one of the nation’s
most successful comedians.
However, when the organiz
ers of the show encounted a
technical difficulty which
brought the entire event to a
screeching halt, that’s exactly
what they got.
“Well, they found the
wire, but it’s not
plugged in.”
-Robin Williams
A voice from the crowd,
described at first by some as
"probably just a heckler," began
to shout out an imaginary news
“I’m reporting live from the
TED," the man said. "But I
can't hear a thing.”
Audience members began to
turn and according to one
account, people began to realize
it was Williams.
"Well, they said they found
the wire, but it’s not plugged
in." he continued
After insistence by the show's
organizers, Williams made his
way to the stage and performed
an impromptu routine. A blog
on wired.com notes the major
points of the routine, including
rips on Steven Hawking, who
spoke at the TED conference
earlier that day, and several
lech-related issues.
Williams, well-known for his
improvisation talent, is also
widely regarded as a “techie.”
He frequents technology con
ferences across the nation every
year.
This time, fellow technology
buffs were treated to a short,
completely improvised routine
by one of the masters of stand
up.
Perhaps the best joke in the
improv routine, which is avail
able on You Tube, was when
Williams ripped on Google.
"You walk into Google and
all you see is a bunch of com
puters and an exercise ball,”
Williams said, “but that’s okay,
I think that's how they hatch
new employees.”
The You Tube video only
shows about two and a half
minutes of the routine, which
some guess lasted aound 15
minutes.
Williams was encouraged
several times by hosts to keep
presenting
"1 have one question for the
[British] royal family,”
Williams said, “all that money
and no dental plan?”
Dozens of audience members
captured the performance on
cell phone cameras, and pic
tures hastily shot from the waist
are circulating around the inter
net.
in in eni
Jay-Z drops Def Jam, signs new tour deal
CEO and rapper
signs with Live
Nation, plans new
nationwide tour
By Connor Sattely
entertainment editor
cisso6o<!>'psu.edu
A giant record deal usually sig
nals the pinnacle of a musician's
career. However. Jay-Z's new
$l5O million deal with Live
Nation could represent some
thing else entirely: the shift into a
new musical era.
In a time where CD sales are
constantly falling and the shift to
online media becomes more
apparent, record labels are
scrambling to find ways to keep
their heads above water. Live
Nation, known as a concert
organizer for some of the
nation’s most popular artists, has
also signed deals with artists
such as Madonna and U 2.
Jay-Z’s package deal with Live
Nation will include financing for
his own entertainment deals, as
well as recording and tours over
the next few years, the New York
Times reports.
Artists, as well, are feeling the
crunch of the failing CD market.
Jay-Z’s November album sold
400,000 albums, a decidedly
average response in a year domi
nated by online media.
This past year’s highest-selling
CD. Josh Groben’s Noel, sold 3.9
million albums, according to
Nielsen Soundscan. In 2000. the
highest selling album was almost
10 million, the Times reports.
Jay-Z's deal will include pro
Jay-Z has created a stir in the label industry by signing the deal
visions for tours and deals on
Jay-Z’s future album releases. It
will award the rapper $lO million
for each release over the next 10
years, with a minimum of three
albums.
Jay-Z claims that his choice to
switch labels is an effort to keep
up with the changing medium of
music sales.
Live Nation, he says, possess
es a drive to "reach the consumer
in so many different ways right
His current tour, which will be
given a forward of $25 million
by Live Nation, will feature Jay-
Z in a duo with fellow popular
artist Mary J. Blige. Jay-Z will
finish up his last album with Def
Jam later this year, but for now
will focus on the duo tour. Most
Friday, April 4, 2008
recent shows have been sold out.
The question still remains on
whether Live Nation will he able
to bring the music to Jav-Z's tans
in a digital age.
"Everyone's trying to figure it
out," Jay-Z says. "I want to be
on the front lines in that fight."
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Rapper Jay-Z.