FRIDAY, MARCH 30, 2001
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a major attraction for music fans
by Erin McCarty
and Libbie Johnson
assistant news editor
and staff writer
No matter what kind of music
you enjoy, you are sure to find
something to tickle your eardrums
at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
and Museum in Cleveland, OH.
Currently, the main attraction is
Lennon: His Life and Work, a
temporary exhibit, which will only
be available through this summer.
Its opening marked the 20th anni
versary of the former Beatle’s death
and the 60th anniversary of his
birth. This display is comprised
mostly of items donated by
Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono and in
cludes keepsakes such as clothing,
songs handwritten on notebook pa
per. old report cards, musical in
struments, and their bed, which was
made of church pews.
The highlight of the retrospective
is an hour-long documentary fea
turing interviews of the Lennons
and commentaries from various
people associated with them. This
enlightening film showing
Lennon's quirks, difficult person
ality, and genius, concludes on a
poignant note by recounting the
events surrounding his untimely
death. Another interesting feature
is a display which, at first glance,
seems like a simple telephone set
LAST CHANCE TO
CRUISE FOR CASH
Have you gone on a road trip lately?
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Contest Rules
Any Behrend student can submit a 300-500 word story about a road
trip they have taken since the end of the spring 2000 semester. The trip
must be more than 150 miles from the original location. A photo must
accompany entry with sufficient proof that the trip was made. Insufficient
proof will lessen chances to win contest. If more than one student took
part in the road trip, only the student submitting the story is eligible,
unless all members send name in with entry. If more than one student
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Beacon. Only entries appearing in the Beacon will be voted on. Beacon
members are ineligible and will vote on the winner.
on a table. In actuality, this
phone presents an opportu
nity for visitors to interact
personally with Yoko Ono.
When it rings, they can
pick it up and chat with
her.
Another artist given con
siderable attention is Jimi
Hendrix. His exhibit in
cludes a variety of memo
rabilia from his life, fam
ily photos, lyrics, guitars,
costumes. A 15-minute
program featuring footage
from his Isle of Wight con
cert is also among the arti
facts featured.
Visitors can access infor
mation about particular
songs, artists, and DJs, and
other subjects through nu- pictured
merous interactive kiosks. r R o || Hall
These computer databases
include representatives
from many musical genres and pe
riods in recorded music. Five Hun
dred Songs that Shaped Rock and
Roll allows visitors to search for in
fluential recordings by year, artist,
and song title. Come See About
Me - Performer Database fea
tures in-depth information on more
than 500 groups and individual per
formers. Profiles contain photo
graphs, written histories, video
commentaries and discographies.
The Beat Goes On -Performer
the Respect the Sound of Soul exhibition at Tl
above is
of Fame
Influence Database features infor
mation about different artists/
groups and two artists/groups who
influenced them. By clicking on an
influence, visitors will see written
information about how this artist/
group was influential to the other.
They will also hear sound clips,
first of the inspiration, and then of
the inspired. The computers are not
the only displays that mention the
musicians of the early twentieth
century.
Autumn Tate will broaden your horizons
by Mark Benko
staff writer
The film Autumn Tale will be
shown in the Reed Union
Building on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.
It is part of the Women’s Film
Series being sponsored by the
Office of Student Activities,
which last week featured the very
controversial All About My
Mother.
These films are internationally
recognized as important
rhetorical pieces of our time.
Autumn Tale , originally released
in 1989, won the Venice Film
Festival screenplay award. Critic
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun
Times called it the most
enchanting film that he had seen
that year.
Written and directed by Eric
Rohmer, the film is in French
with English subtitles. It focuses
on middle-aged widower, Megali,
who has taken over her deceased
parent’s vineyard in the south of
France. She engrosses herself in
Rave On: Rock and Roll’s
Early Years pays tribute to the ear
liest rock and rollers. Among its
featured artists are Buddy Holly,
the Everly Brothers, Little Richard
and Chuck Berry.
The Roots of Rock and Roll
dates even further back, noting the
influence of various musical genres
on rock and roll. Blues, bluegrass,
gospel, soul, R&B, country, and
folk are all represented here.
The ground floor is rounded out
her work to escape the loneliness
she feels after her children have
grown up and left home.
Friends of Megali try to ease
her depression and lack ol male
companionship by playing
matchmaker in some very
innovative ways. One of them
tries to hook her up with an ex
lover who teaches philosophy and
has a penchant for female
students hall his age. Another
secretly places an ad in the
personal section of a local
newspaper and impersonates
Megali to screen possible suitors
for her.
Each of her two friends arrange
for Megali to meet a couple of
gentlemen at a wedding without
knowing what the other is up to.
Megali is unaw are of any of these
schemes. This situation makes for
some awkward and humorous
moments
But this is not laugh-out-loud
Neil Simon comedy. It is much
more understated and
sophisticated. The first rate
by smaller exhibits:
Don’t Knock the Rock,
U Got the Look, Rock of
Ages: The Early Influ
ences, the Gallery, At
lantic Records, Sun
Records, The Rolling
Stones, and One Hit
Wonders. Visitors should
keep an eye out for the
impressive sight of a
large spiral design made
up of dozens of signed
drumsticks from one
man’s personal collec
tion.
Two 12-minute
films. Mystery Train and
Kick Out Jams, con
secutively shown in two
theaters, give a brief his
tory of rock and roll. The
first, focuses on its roots
and earliest manifesta
tions, while the latter
turns its attention to the music of
the sixties and beyond. The latter
film contains some footage and lan
guage, which are not appropriate
for young children. Both films,
shown on three screens, contain a
barrage of music, images, and com
mentary from rock and roll experts
and artists.
The first thing to see on the sec
ond floor is Respect: The Sound
of Soul, a wall-long display featur
ing memorabilia from artists such
performances of the actors and
the screenplay itself make it seem
as though you are looking at a real
slice of life from behind hidden
mirrors
The interplay between these
situations and characters
examines the norms and taboos of
our contemporary world. The
frankness of the dialogue that
goes into this examination is
refreshingly honest and
intelligent.
Did you ever buy a gift for
someone and almost end up
wishing you had bought it for
yourself? When I was in grade
school I was sometimes guilty of
buying Christmas presents in the
form of records that I was
actually more inclined to listen to
than the siblings for whom they
were intended. Similar
inclinations exist in this film,
further complicating the plot, and
facilitating a self-diagnosis that
bounces around between the
characters.
The pace of the film is slow, but
as James Brown, A 1 Green. Otis -
Redding and Steve Cropper.
The Memphis Recording Ser
vice allows visitors to view equip
ment from the Sun Records record
ing studio, where Elvis Presley and
other influential artists made their
initial recordings.
The Big Beat: Alan Freed in
cludes a video and information
about the man who is credited with
coining the phrase “rock and roll."
The Hall of Fame, which is the
museum’s focal point, is located on
the third floor. Not yet featuring the
2001 inductees, the theater shows
a 38-minute multimedia presenta
tion on three screens showing clips
of artists who have been inducted
since 1986. Information on the lat
est inductees can be found on the
ground floor. Just outside the the
ater, a television plays a 12-minute
series of clips from past induction
ceremonies. Michael Jackson,
Steely Dan, Paul Simon and Richie
Valens arc some of this year’s in
ductees.
This is an ideal day trip for a rea
sonable cost. The museum is open ' I
every day from 10:00-5:30, and un
til 9:00 on Wednesday. Daily passes
cost $15.00 for adults and $11.50
for children aged 9 to 11 and se
niors. There is no admission charge ': 4
for younger children. Discounts are '
available for AAA members and
groups of 20 or more. For more in
formation, visit www.rockluill.com.
it beautifully matches the
tranquility of the rural French
setting and the constant scrutiny
that the motives of the main
characters undergo.
You will not see these types of
films at Tinseltown or the Mall.
These internationally recognized
and acclaimed films give one the
chance to broaden one’s horizons
by providing a perspective from
outside our own borders. Living
on campus and not taking the time
to see at least some of them is like
going to Paris and eating at,
McDonalds.
The last film in the Women’s
series will be The Inheritors. It_
is an in-depth look tit social order*
in Austria where a farm master
unusually leaves his estate to the
employees creating friction
between members ot the
community and law enforcement
officials as well. The film will
also be shown tit the Reed Union
Building Lecture Hall, on
Tuesday, April 10, tit 7:00 p.m.