Prez changes mind, will speak at graduation through campaign ad

The White House announced yesterday that President Bush has changed his mind and will speak at the UA's commencement ceremony on May 15.

However, to bypass security concerns, Bush will not physically visit the UA and will speak via the Jumbotron at the north end of Arizona Stadium.

While Bush said he probably wouldn't record a message specifically for the UA, he is already brainstorming ideas about what he could show on "the big movie screen." [Read article]

UA alumnus Craig T. Nelson, who starred in the hit TV show "Coach," said yesterday that he is disappointed President Peter Likins hasn't called him lately.

"I don't know why Pete hasn't picked up the phone," Nelson said. "I know he needs a commencement speaker. I'm your guy."

While Likins has tapped former UA basketball star Steve Kerr to speak at commencement in George W. Bush's place, Nelson is still optimistic he will receive some recognition at his former alma mater. [Read article]

Despite an extensive history of running her damn mouth off, 53-year-old undergraduate Dana Hornsbrook finally shut the hell up yesterday.

Hornsbrook, a psychology major returning to school after a 35-year break, was silent throughout yesterday's Structure of Mind and Behavior discussion section.

"I don't know what happened," said Dan Levine, a 21-year-old history junior. "Normally, nobody can get a word in edgewise once Dana starts flapping her lips. But yesterday, she didn't say anything." [Read article]

Marked by a small "Whites Only" sign on the front entrance, Johnny B. Goode's Diner on East Speedway Boulevard has just enacted a radical new segregationist policy.

"A lot of people think the 1950s were just about milkshakes and hoop skirts, but it was actually a horrible time in our country's civil rights history," said Milton Vorhees, owner of the Tucson branch of the nationwide chain. "We just want to be accurate to the times." [Read article]

'Chug beers' drinking game takes over campus

Campus Health is treating an unusual number of alcohol poisonings, as the new Chug Beers Until You Pass Out Or Throw Up drinking game grows in popularity among students.

"Binge drinking isn't healthy, even if it seems like a fun game," said Campus Health Service spokeswoman Clarissa McCelroy.

Students, however, said it's all in good fun.

"The best part is that the game gets you good and hammered really fast," said pre-business freshman Richard Kipper. "It's also easy to play, no matter how drunk you are. You don't have to think hard, like in King's Cup." [Read article]

If you know Australia's The Vines, it is probably because of the ubiquitous 2002 hit single "Get Free," which roared everywhere from "Charlie's Angels" trailers to MTV award ceremonies.

What you may not know is that the Arizona-bound band almost imploded around the end of that year, resulting in fisticuffs during a live show in Boston between singer/guitarist Craig Nicholls and bassist Patrick Matthews. Rolling off the stage and into the crowd during the battle, bassist Matthews reportedly chased Nicholls outside the venue, attempting to knock him out. [Read article]

Fred Jenkins' politically savvy rhymes will not be televised. Or played on Hot 98.3.

They will be presented in an excerpted Q-and-A format in which Jenkins, aka local veteran rapper Influence, freestyled his answers. No breaks. No preparation. No joke.

His freethinking rhymes can also be heard Sunday night as he opens for Brooklyn's J-Live at Club Congress. Earlier this week, he sat across from the Wildcat at the home of his producer, local hip-hop activist and UA graduate student Solomon Freed. A piano-driven rhythm was played in the background as Jenkins went off. [Read article]

Break out your lighters and rotten vegetables and show your love - or hate - for the battle of local bands performing at the Future Rock Stars of America benefit concert tomorrow.

The event will promote awareness for the Opening Minds Through the Arts Project and will hit campus from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. And not only is there free music, but there's also a raffle fund-raiser.

"People can win lots of great prizes from the raffle," said Rachel Keller, a liberal arts senior and the national director of the University Activities Board. [Read article]

Nearly 30 years after becoming the founding director of the Center for Creative Photography at the UA, Harold Jones - a man with an 11-page resumŽ and unforgettable eyebrows - is the curator of an exhibition about his own life.

Retiring from his position as professor of photography at the UA in May of 2005, Jones has been looking back on his life and selecting work for the show for more than a year. [Read article]

Tom Hanks irritates me. I'm not really sure why or when it started. It may have something to do with the fact that his voice sounds like a bubble got caught in it, or like he ate a potato too fast. Regardless of this, I always stand in line to see his movies - like every good, noble, patriotic American does.

The title of his latest work, "The Ladykillers," implies a delightfully violent flick. No such luck. Maybe I should have just rented a Tarantino movie and called it a night. But I didn't. [Read article]

If there were a list of music journalism's most inarticulate clichŽs, the term "sophomore slump" would appear somewhere between "Beatles-esque pop" and "soulful vocals." Thusly, any band that finds itself lucky enough to release a second record can look forward to a slew of cut-and-paste reviews touting the brilliance of the debut and the mediocrity of the follow-up.

Unless you're the Liars.

If you're the Liars, everybody loved your first record - 2002's They Threw Us All in a Trench and Stuck a Monument on Top - when it came out because, besides being a great album, it documented the sounds coming out of the ultra-hip Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, N.Y. You found yourself slapped with another clichŽd superlative: "critics' darlings." [Read article]

"The Believer is a monthly magazine where length is no object. There are book reviews that are not necessarily timely, and that are very often very long. There are interviews that are also vercy long. The Believer contains no ads and is printed in four colors on heavy stock paper."

I stole the above description of The Believer from the publisher's Web site because I was curious as to just how this particular piece of print described itself. (Also, because I was on the Web site anyway and like copying/pasting something.) [Read article]

This weekend, I killed two birds with one stone: reviewed Pancho Villa's Grill and overcame my deep-seated fear of puppets.

Entering the restaurant, I was struck by the groups of marionettes gracing the walls. But it was when I regained consciousness that I noticed the positive aspects of the restaurant's decor: its vibrantly colored walls, the bar of exposed brick that snakes along the room and the beautiful Saltillo-tiled floor. [Read article]

Today

Flavor Flav - Club Congress, 311 E. Congress St. With Tony Danza and Buddy. First come, first served. 9 p.m. 622-8848

Xiu Xiu - Solar Culture, 31 E. Toole Ave. With Tucker B's and This Song Is A Mess But So Am I. 9 p.m. $7. 884-0874

Battle of the Bands and Women In Music Showcase - Main Gate Square and Park Student Union. Concert to benefit Opening Minds Through the Arts. Stages at Main Gate Square and Park Student Union. 4 p.m. - 10 p.m. $2 raffle tickets. 622-8613 [Read article]

Bob Dylan

Sounds Like: Sitting in a coffehouse in the '60s.

See Also: Woody Guthrie, Allen Ginsberg, Joan Baez.

Live 1964: Concert at Philharmonic Hall: The Bootleg Series Vol. 6

On the surface, Bob Dylan was just a 23-year-old with a harmonica and a guitar when he performed this concert on Halloween in 1964. Certainly, it was much more than that. With the confidence of his youth and brilliance of his songs, he was able to bridge the gap between rock 'n' roll and folk music in one historic concert. [Read article]