2008 Woodie Awards
Western Students Recommend:
Issue date: 4/4/08 Section: Culture
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Culture Reporter
Abbott and Costello. Laurel and Hardy. Lucy and Ricky. All classic comedy duos. But a more recent, British, and yes funnier, comedy pairing is Fry and Laurie. Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie are not well known in the U.S., which is a tragedy. These English gents are bloody hilarious.
Hugh Laurie is probably best known as Dr. House in FOX's "House, M.D." program. Stephen Fry has done little television work in the United States, but may be familiar to some for his occasional appearance on "Bones" as Dr. Gordon Wyatt; he was also Deitrich in "V for Vendetta." They worked as a comedy pair primarily in two BBC television programs.
The first time I saw them perform together was on the show "Jeeves and Wooster," based on the frothy books written by P.G. Wodehouse. The show's four seasons were aired between 1990 and 1993. In the series, Laurie plays the foppish, air-headed Bertie Wooster. Fry, as Jeeves, is the proper "gentleman's gentleman" who possesses an apparently inexhaustible supply of knowledge and a vocabulary that Webster would be proud of.
Their first television program together was the sketch comedy show "A Bit of Fry and Laurie," created by the duo. It began in 1989 and finished its run in 1995. Fry and Laurie rarely included other actors in the sketches, and could be found cross-dressing, aging themselves and adopting numerous accents as a result. The show's structure is similar to "Monty Python's Flying Circus."
In both television series, language is a two-pronged tool it connects the characters and gives the audience a laugh, much like the Stooges' eye poke. In a sketch from "A Bit of Fry and Laurie," a linguist (Fry) explains that "language is a complimentary moist lemon-scented cleansing square." Fry and Laurie's wordplay is indeed delightful (although not always clean).
Another similarity in the two series is musical performances. In "Jeeves and Wooster" the two can be found sitting at a piano singing jazzy ballads such as "Minnie the Moocher." And the pair write their own songs for "A Bit of Fry and Laurie"; my favorite is "There Ain't But One Way," in which they adopt southern accents and sing a country song about "kickin' ass."•
By Jameson Ketchum
Staff Writer
HBO has been hitting numerous homeruns in my book lately. Not only did they choose to renew "Flight of the Conchords," a show that should be watched by anyone who considers themselves to have a sense of humor, but they continue to house other great shows as well. One such show is "Entourage." I'll admit, when someone told me several years ago what the show was about, I thought it was the lamest thing I had ever heard. Earlier this year however, I finally sat down and started the first season and was hooked right away. The show is loosely based on experiences that producer Mark Wahlberg first encountered when he arrived in Hollywood.
The movie star in the show is Vincent Chase who decides that the only way he can enjoy his new found fame and fortune is to have his best friends at his side at all times. [Vince, Turtle, Eric and Johnny Drama comprise the primary cast of the show. Powerhouse performances by Jeremy Piven who plays Vince's agent Ari Gold and quite frequently steal the show from the boys.] When Vince, Ari and Eric aren't working on movie deals for the actor, the boys simply bum around town, hang out in their mansion and spend their money on all of the toys that every man wants. The show is hilarious as well, at times upbeat and intense. You find yourself pulling for Vince even when he is being a spoiled brat. The show makes you want the boys to succeed and at times you wish you could just be one of them. Vince's movies sound so appealing that you often leave the show wishing you could go see the fictional movie Vince just made.
Even more so, the show does such a great job at showing what Hollywood is really like. Numerous actors cameo on the show as themselves which is a big key to "Entourage's" success. The show is about to enter its fifth season and things are getting more and more interesting. "Entourage" is by far one of the best shows on television right now. It is witty, intelligent and hilarious. It makes you care for its characters as if they were your best friends. I very highly recommend you watch "Entourage" the next time you see that "The Hills" is a rerun. •
By Sam Stanley
Photo Editor
Bored on a Friday night? Want to have a little fun but don't know what to do? I recommend you throw yourself a good ol' fashioned dance party. Invite over some friends and start up the tunes (perhaps even get a strobe light for the real "dance feeling?). Here are my top 10 favorite dance party songs that my friends and I use at our frequent dance parties. They are all different and great in their own right, and are in no particular order. I suggest you take a listen and add them to your Friday night line-up...
10. Bonafied Lovin by Chromeo
9. Deceptacon (DFA Remix) by Le Tigre
8. Do You Love Me by The Contours
(You can never go wrong with some Motown!)
7. Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger by Daft Punk
(I will allow a substitution of this song for the Kanye West version)
6. Can I Get Low 6 by Junior Senior
(This is the Lil' Jon song combined with Junior Senior music, and yes, it is better than the original)
5. Heartbeats by The Knife
4. Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough by Michael Jackson
(We all secretly want to be like Mike...)
3. Bratcore by VCR
2. D.A.N.C.E. by Justice
(Stick to the B.E.A.T.)
1. I Want You Back by The Jackson 5
By Jameson Ketchum
Staff Writer
"This existence needs some redecoration," Billy observes as he walks the streets of New York on his way to acquire drugs, a further attempt to remove himself from the reality he dodges endlessly throughout Richard Hell's novel "Go Now."
I first read this book when I was 18 and I swear it changed my outlook on life. Here I am four years later reading it again to see what kind of impact, if any, it will have on me this time. The novel follows Billy, a down and out aging rock star who has fallen into a monotonous routine that is slowly killing him. We are allowed inside the mind of Billy and at times we wish to escape. We trudge along with him as he attempts to buy drugs and not too deeply disappoint his ex-girlfriend, Chrissa, with whom things are still complicated.
Chrissa is Billy's only anchor to the real world and without her he would spin out of control and become lost in his addictions. Anxious for a new project while his band is in limbo, Billy takes on a proposition made by a friend of his to travel across the country to pick up a car he bought. The only catch is that Chrissa will be joining him to photograph the country and Billy has to write about what they see. This is an odd proposition but interesting nonetheless.
Hell, who is best known as the front man for the 70's punk group The Voidoids, writes with such a flowing stream of consciousness that aligns itself perfectly with intensity and off the cuff conversations. His similes can make the reader sick at times but also perfectly describe the situation. The sometimes morbid jokes he plays on the reader are seamlessly intertwined with tender moments as he musters an outlook on life that most of us would never consider a rational way to live.
However, this unique concept constructed by Billy, is the driving force of the novel. He has accepted the fact that his soul is lost, he has an addiction he can't kick, the only woman he ever truly cared for resents him for his mistakes and his professional life is circling the drain. Billy believes that every decision made needs to be solely based on what will provide him with the best memory. For Billy, memories are just as important as air. This was my second time reading the book and I am interested to see if it effects me the same way it did the first time.•
By Steven Franssen
Culture Reporter
Running and laughing through downtown Seattle we made it to the in-store gig a couple songs late, but it didn't matter because its PETE-freaking-YORN! Casey and I drove four hours just see our hero, got lost for an hour and almost wrecked her car but the pay off was well worth it.
Pete doesn't stand behind a microphone and sing selfishly; he transforms the room into a euphoric vibe, one that grabs hold and makes his songs unforgettable. The quick set list had new songs, including "The Man" and "The Good Advice", which sent a nice buzz from my ears to my feet. A line formed and we couldn't believe it, "Pete Yorn was signing autographs and meeting his fans!" His aptly titled "You & Me Acoustic Tour 2006" meant a hand shake with our idol, pictures of the three of us and one of the most fulfilling conversations of my life. Most of it is a happy blur, but I remember telling him firmly that "When You See The Light" was my favorite song and that we listened to him everyday. I made the chords in my hand for the chorus and began strumming and he started right in with me! Wow! We laughed at our musician moment and Pete said he'd play the song for us later that night at his Crocodile Café show.
Words cannot express how magical Pete helped make that summer, but one gets the feeling that he and his band decided to change lives by going on this small venue tour, playing two gigs a day for four months straight. Halfway through the Crocodile show, a jangly "When You See The Light" fired up and the whole venue swung and swayed to the sky-high rock. The smile on our faces must have been as wide as the big tour bus sitting outside! After the song, Pete called out to me, made sure I raised my arm so everyone could see us and thanked us for loving one of his personal favorites.
The greatest bands in the world are the ones that can make the audience feel personally involved while journeying through a gripping set. Pete shared some of his spotlight with us that night and has helped to shape the very core of my songwriting and listening. I know he can change your perspective so I urge you to please go out and buy his first album, Musicforthemorningafter. Pete Yorn's music will always be my favorite and "The Man" himself will forever be my greatest hero. •
By Kyle Martinak
Culture Reporter
I love comic books. There's nothing like a colorful, glossy story to make me feel young, reckless and free of responsibility. Over the years, I've been asked by friends, "Which comics do you go for? Are you a Marvel man, a DC boy or an independent book buyer?" I'm actually a little of everything, and one can truly tell that by my favorite comic series.
"The Freshmen," a series written and illustrated by Seth Green (yeah, that Seth Green) and Hugh Sterbakov, is the most exciting tale ever for a college comic book fiend like me. It's a twisted take on those teams of superheroes who always get along and use their powers for good.
The story begins in college dorms where freshman receive powers from an explosion in the science building. They balance their lives as superheros and college students, which is harder than it sounds.
The dialogue and exposition in "The Freshmen" is fluid, realistic, witty and inventive. Norrin, the leader of the group who has no powers, is an incredible geek. He is never cartoonish with his nerdy shtick. Every character gets to narrate an issue of the comic and every one of them has a well-rounded opinion and three-dimensional attributes. Jokes are blended into the situation perfectly.
The characters are wonderful to talk about, and one can empathize with them all. Real issues that affect people in today's world are explored within the characters.
As far as the story goes, there are very good plot twists and the characters, unlike many superhero stories, are in real peril and can be hurt and killed. College life is realistically portrayed, and every action committed by a character has large consequences.
The visuals from "The Freshmen" are nothing short of dazzling. The super powered fight scenes are hectic, colorful and epic to take in. The Freshmen can evoke all sorts of emotions: fear for the lovable characters, excitement from the monumental events taking place, and all sorts of laughter and sadness from the constant comedy and drama. My favorite comic book, this series is a testament to how I live my life as a comic book nerd, in college, with superpowers (just kidding). •
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