Moore puts gun culture in cross hairs

Don’t expect a rousing media blitz for Bowling for Columbine, even though the film garnered a 13-minute standing ovation at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Read more...

MTV’s reality shows not so real

Several hundred young adults lined up in the early morning hours on Saturday, Oct. 12 for a chance at a coveted spot on MTV’s "The Real World" and "Road Rules" reality series. Each person came with application and picture in hand, dreaming of living in Paris or visiting the South Seas (where "The Real World" and "Road Rules" are being held next season respectively). And shamefully, I was one of them. Read more...

Chanel makes waves; Valentino hits the safari

The message from Chanel was clear: The summer is all about fun in the sun. Read more...

Memoirs come too late for Ambrose
American historian dies from lung cancer at 66

It’s disheartening to think Dr. Stephen Ambrose—author of more than 20 books —came so close to exoneration. When the best-selling author died Oct. 13 in New Orleans at age 66, Ambrose was just weeks away from the release of his memoirs, To America: Personal Reflections of an Historian. The book stands a chance of vindicating Ambrose—clearing any rumors of plagiarism that bruised his reputation. Read more...

Reel Big’ Fire Ska band escapes blaze

California-based ska band Reel Big Fish escaped injury when its bus caught fire at a Missouri truck stop Oct. 12. Read more...

Celebrity, sex and murder by tripod
‘Auto Focus’ director and Greg Kinnear talk about the new Bob Crane biopic

On June 29, 1978, Bob Crane, star of "Hogan’s Heroes," was found bludgeoned to death in his Arizona motel room. It was a tragic, yet all-too-familiar, end for the radio disc-jockey-turned-actor. Read more...

SR-71 return with edge

The sound of Baltimore/Washington, D.C. rockers SR-71 has matured since the release of the 2000 debut Now You See Inside. SR-71—set to release a new album, Tomorrow on Oct. 22, will play a low-dough Chicago show at the Park West on Oct. 28, hope to soar newheights with the album. Read more...

CINEMA CIRCUIT

FRIDA
Frida is grueling. With artistic flare, director Julie Taymor presents this biopic about the late Mexican surrealist Frida Kahlo. But Taymor makes a woeful error—she provides merely a recap of the artist’s life, surrendering the bulk of the film to Kahlo’s husband, muralist Diego Rivera (Alfred Molina). Salma Hayek shines as Kahlo, but her physical prowess and beauty cloud her performance. Read more...