When in 2 Cities, Ask for the King of Theatre

Live Theater
"To be, or not to be...that is the question." My wife and I are officially area reps for the Utah Shakespearean Festival located in Cedar City, Utah. When you are asking yourself to be in a live theater or not to be in a live theater, the answer should be to be. Live theater (i.e. musicals and plays) has an impact that movies and books just do not have. There is something about sitting in a theater and the actors just pull you right in..."its like your there" (see the great commercial below! Two of my favorite things in one video...you can see the others too...check them out)...you're involved with the show and it makes it that much more powerful and enjoyable.

Superman & Seinfeld American Express Commercial A Uniform Us - The funniest videos are a click away

The Once and Future King

T.H. White brings to us a classic. The Once and Future King  compiles four different books into one telling of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. The first book is basically the Disney movie The Sword in the Stone. It shows us King Arthur's childhood (or I should say Wart's childhood), and his education with the wizard Merlyn. "Education is experience, and the essence of experience is self-reliance."

The other books are "The Queen of Air and Darkness," "The Ill-Made Knight," and "The Candle in the Wind." These books have a very melancholy feel to them even with White's clever humor. It goes into depth about Sir Lancelot and one of the most famous third wheels of all time. It is a good classic read, but was a bit slow at times.

When in Rome
A movie that I watched recently for a good laugh. It was actually a pretty entertaining movie and it made me laugh. It just didn't have the nice quality that other flicks of the same genre have such as Hitch, The Proposal, and Dan in Real Life. I don't know if it was a problem with the actors/actresses (Napoleon Dynamite and Pedro were perfect), but it just didn't get passed two up for me.

The Tale of Two Cities (The Musical)
The Hale Center Theatre is currently showing "The Tale of Two Cities," a musical version. It is an amazing show. I have not read the book myself (not yet anyway), but what a powerful performance. The talent was amazing, and the show was dead on. There was some really good musical numbers (although the music over all was not as powerful as the story of the show, excluding one song which was just amazing), and if you have the chance, you should see the show. "It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known."

Oh...Yes! Wyoming! And that is How Lou Sees It!

Superman Grounded

Superman and I go way back, and believe it or not I owe it all to Holiday Inn. Not only did kids stay free back then, but one night back in 1994 they were also giving the kids a free comic book if they wanted one. Being the charming child I was...I got 4 (Animaniacs, Batman, Supergirl, and Superman). Little did they know that that simple act would change a lot about my life.

That simple introduction to comic books was a very dangerous one and for one obvious reason...I'm a collector. I have a coin collection, stamp collection, rock collection, marble collection, dice collection, pin collection, and a game collection, just to name a few. Oh, yeah, and I also have a comic book collection. What started out as 4 free comic books is now a collection just over 300 valued over $1,000.

I really enjoy the collecting of comic books, but I also really enjoy reading them (an important thing in my opinion when one collects something). Comic books to me are art and story. To help you appreciate the art form and writing style that is comic books, let me recommend a few things: take a look at my favorite comic book artist's work (Alex Ross), read "Maus", and take a look in a comic book shop and pick out one that stands out to you and read it (or ask to borrow one of mine, I have favorites).

As we are on the subject of comic books already, let me discuss movies/tv based on comic books. Comic book stories and characters have always been portrayed in other media besides the actual comic book. If you are going on a long road trip, let me recommend  getting a few old radio shows for the drive (Superman in radio form is pretty entertaining or my favorite may be The Shadow). As the world moved from radio to the screen, so did follow our super friends.

In 2002 Spider-Man changed how comic book movies were viewed and how superheroes were viewed in general. With Spider-Man's huge success on screen, Spider-Man was everywhere! Comic book movies could be highly profitable, and thus the movies followed....X-Men, Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Superman Returns, and Batman etc. Some more popular than others. Not only did other superheroes  join Spider-Man on the screen, but they returned in sequels! We are only brushing off the surface now. With many more movies scheduled for release...Batman: The Dark Knight Rises, Thor, The Avengers (Introducing Captain America), another Spider-Man, Green Lantern, and many more. For a current list of all the movies based off of comic books, click here.

I have really enjoyed most of the superhero movies myself. The movie industry and the world population is eating it up. Why? Because a lot of people enjoy the story telling and characters that come from the comic book universe. Each of these superheroes have a legendary origin and stories upon stories have been written about them already (some for over 70 years). The characters have a lot of depth to them and have refined themselves over the years.

Comic books transport us into another universe; people with amazing powers or abilities standing up for what is right. I really enjoy Alex Ross and the comic books he has been involved in, because he makes them more real (click here to see some of my favorites in one book). They also include my two favorite pieces of artwork (Superman and Batman), where Superman and Batman are shown like never before. After the battles and it gives a look more inside their lives.

Let me update you on what Superman is up to currently. Superman has been away on New Krypton, and when he comes back to earth (similar to Superman Returns the movie) and people have mixed views of his return. Some people are angry with Superman for leaving them for a different planet. They feel that more and more Superman has lost touch with the American people. Superman gets to thinking about that, and decides to slow things down. He is going to walk across America, no flying and no super speed. He is going to walk through towns and get to know the American people and their every day problems (the series is entitled "Grounded"). He started this back last year and will continue for the next few months (there was a contest before the storyline started and people could enter and say where Superman should go close by near cities...one being Salt Lake City).

Currently Superman is in Boulder, Colorado and is on his way to Salt Lake City next month (along with Bruce Wayne)! I'll keep you updated each month on where the Man of Steel is on his journey.

And that is How Lou Sees It!