Science Matters mobile museum to debut today at Science Museum Oklahoma
An innovative “museum on wheels” is set to make its debut today at Science Museum Oklahoma, according to a news release. Science Matters, a new discovery-based mobile museum funded by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, encourages students to explore science as they engage in numerous activities found within its walls. The museum will travel primarily to schools in rural Oklahoma, providing learning opportunities in areas of the state far from traditional museums.
“It is our feeling that every child benefits from dynamic hands-on learning experiences especially in the sciences,” Steven Anderson, president of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, said in the release. “And, it is our hope that when this amazing mobile laboratory rolls into a small town, the experience will help spark a child’s desire to learn for a lifetime.”
The mobile museum includes 10 different hands-on exhibits and activities that combine to provide students with experiences to which they may not have access otherwise. The participatory nature of the exhibits also challenges students, creating a fun, playful environment. Students can match wits in a challenge of speed and ingenuity, orchestrate a symphony of sound with bubbling flasks, and dodge lasers while attempting to decipher a secret computer code.
”Science Matters creates a highly immersive environment, transporting Oklahoma students into a state-of-the-art, multi-sensory learning atmosphere that encourages participation and inquiry,” Sherry Marshall, director of the Oklahoma Museum Network, said in the release. “Filled with hands-on experiments, Science Matters engages students as they measure, investigate, create and deduce, allowing them to experience true discovery learning.”
Science Matters is designed to travel throughout rural Oklahoma but will be on display today and Saturday-Sunday at Science Museum Oklahoma. It will then travel to the remaining Oklahoma Museum Network partners for brief engagements before it hits the road to serve students in rural areas.
As an extra bonus: teachers who visit the Science Matters Mobile Museum and present their school identification card during today’s preview at Science Museum Oklahoma will receive free curriculum featuring information and activities that correlate with the exhibits.
Thanks to a grant from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, Science Matters joins the many other activities of the Oklahoma Museum Network that include rotating exhibit groups featured at each of the museum partners and numerous teacher professional development opportunities. For more information, go to www.oklahomamuseumnetwork.org.
-BAM
BAM Column: Lance Bass and “Dancing with the Stars” tour coming to Tulsa
Lance Bass and Lacey Schwimmer on “Dancing with the Stars.”
From Tuesday’s Life section of The Oklahoman.
Singer Lance Bass putting his best foot forward
The last time Lance Bass went on tour he was singing the pop hits “Bye Bye Bye,” “It’s Gonna Be Me” and “This I Promise You” with super-star boy band ‘N Sync.
Sure, Bass and his bandmates also were known for their dance moves back in 2002. But the group’s synchronized hip-hop routines bear little resemblance to the ballroom style recently Bass learned on the popular reality TV show “Dancing with the Stars.”
When “Dancing with the Stars: The Tour” mambos, cha chas and waltzes Friday into Tulsa’s BOK Center, Bass, 29, and his professional dance partner Lacey Schwimmer will be among the performers cutting a rug.
“I love entertaining. … I definitely don’t consider myself a dancer, but I think it’s entertaining for people to see me try,” he said with a chortle. “You can get a good laugh.”
He and Schwimmer finished third behind football player Warren Sapp and Kym Johnson and the champions, model Brooke Burke and Derek Hough, when the show’s seventh season ended Nov. 25.
“I was crossing my fingers that they’d ask me to do it (the tour), because I love being on the road, I love performing in front of … people. It’s definitely my passion,” he said in a recent phone interview from San Diego, Calif.
The tour also includes stars Toni Braxton, Maurice Greene and Marlee Matlin and several of the show’s dance pros.
Bass and Schwimmer will perform a few solo routines from the show, and he will dance in four group numbers. One of his favorites is a fun, sexy number in which he dances with “Lance’s Angels,” four of the female pros.
Although the singer/actor/producer didn’t know dancing would be part of the gig when he joined ‘N Sync, he learned to love it. His experience with the pop group gave him the confidence to join the reality dance competition, which he viewed as a challenge. He was thrilled not only to finish third but also to perform every style of dance the show offered.
While he plans to continue ballroom dancing for fun, he doesn’t expect his newfound skills to figure into his long-term career plans.
“I think I’ll be hanging up my ballroom shoes for sure after this tour,” he said with a laugh. “It’s a lot of fun … but as far as taking it seriously and changing my career into dancing, I don’t think that’s going to happen.”
Going on
What: “Dancing with the Stars: The Tour.”
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday.
Where: BOK Center, 200 S Denver, Tulsa.
Information: (866) 726-5287 or www.bokcenter.com.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on Dec. 30
Doug Groenestege of the Oklahoma City Blazers catches the puck during a CHL hockey game against Wichita earlier this month at the Ford Center. (Photo by Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman)
Today’s featured event:
See the Oklahoma City Blazers face off against the Colorado Eagles at 7:10 tonight at the Ford Center, 100 W Reno.
For more information, go to www.okcblazers.com.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
Box office report
Apparently, all those ads with the cuddly puppy really paid off for 20th Century Fox over the long Christma weekend.
The dog tale “Marley & Me,” which also starred Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston, debuted at No. 1 at the box office with a weekend take of $37 million, according to the Associated Press. (It opened on Christmas Day and actually made $51.7 million when you take into the account the four-day holiday weekend.)
The holiday timing was ideal for “Marley & Me,” featuring an adorable but trouble-making puppy, 20th Century Fox distribution executive Bert Livingston told the AP. The movie is based on John Grogan’s best-selling book.
“It’s an all-audience picture, ages 8 to 80. That’s who’s coming,” Livingston told the AP. “This is a movie about life, love and family. It’s what people want to see now.”
Adam Sandler’s family-friendly Disney comedy “Bedtime Stories” came in second for the weekend with $28.1 million and $38.6 million since it debuted on Christmas.
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” an expected awards contender starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, was close behind in the third spot, taking in $27 million for the weekend and $39 million since Christmas Day.
MGM’s World War II drama ”Valkyrie,” starring Tom Cruise as a German officer involved in a plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler, came in fourth with $21.5 million and $30 million since its Christmas opening.
The other new release for Christmas was Lionsgate’s comic-book flick “The Spirit,” which came in at No. 9 with $6.5 million over the weekend and $10.4 million since Christmas.
After film revenues dropped the previous two weekends, Hollywood ended the year on a high, with the top 12 movies taking in $182.5 million, up 8 percent from the same weekend in 2007.
“It’s a very strong finish to the year,” Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers, told the AP. “Audiences are really enjoying the movies in the marketplace right now.”
That includes several of the award contenders in addition to “Benjamin Button.” Films such as “Doubt,” “Revolutionary Road,” “Gran Torino,” “Slumdog Millionaire,” “The Wrestler” and”Frost/Nixon” doing well in limited releases.
For the year, it looks like Hollywood will miss setting a revenue record for the second straight year. According to the AP, revenues are running just behind the pace of 2007, when the box office hit a record $9.7 billion.
Here is the weekend top 10, from the AP:
1. “Marley & Me,” $37 million.
2. “Bedtime Stories,” $28.1 million.
3. “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” $27 million.
4. “Valkyrie,” $21.5 million.
5. “Yes Man,” $16.5 million.
6. “Seven Pounds,” $13.4 million.
7. “The Tale of Despereaux,” $9.4 million.
8. “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” $7.9 million.
9. “The Spirit,” $6.5 million.
10. “Doubt,” $5.7 million.
-BAM
Will we get to watch the “Watchmen”?
An attorney for 20th Century Fox says the studio still plans to seek an order delaying the release of the movie version of the graphic novel “Watchmen,” according to the Associated Press.
The AP reports that U.S. District Court Judge Gary Feess last week ruled that Warner Bros. had infringed Fox’s copyright by developing and shooting the film, which is set to be released March 6 and is one of the most anticipated films of the year.
Feess said Monday he plans to hold a trial Jan. 20 to decide remaining issues, according to the AP.
“Watchmen” has been in development for years. Fox filed suit in February, claiming it never full let go of the story rights it obtained in the late 1980s. Warner Bros. contends Fox isn’t entitled to distribution.
According to the AP, Warner Bros.’ attorney said Monday he didn’t know if an appeal was coming, but thinks a trial is necessary and a settlement unlikely.
I still say it’s ridiculous for Fox to start from scratch with its own film version when fervent fans have thrown their support behind the Warner Bros. version. I’m holding out hope that the right dollar figure can be reached to avoid any delays to the release.
“Watchmen” is directed by “300″ helmer Zack Snyder and stars Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino and Jackie Earle Haley.
-BAM
Disney backs out of third Narnia movie
Can the Narnia franchise stay afloat?
I missed this news over the holiday, but it seems that fans of “The Chronicles of Narnia” got a lump of coal from Disney just in time for Christmas.
The House of Mouse announced last week that it would not exercise its option to co-produce and co-finance the third Narnia movie with Walden Media.
“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” was scheduled to start shooting in early 2009 with Michael Apted (”Amazing Grace,” “The World Is Not Enough”) directing. But Disney’s decision has put the future of “Dawn Treader” in jeopardy.
According to Variety, Disney cited “budgetary considerations and other logistics” as the reason for the decision. The choice comes after the second Narnia movie, “Prince Caspian,” made far less than its predecessor despite mostly strong reviews.
“Prince Caspian” grossed a disappointing $419 million worldwide, compared to $745 million for the first film, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.”
I’m not sure what Disney execs expected when they decided to release “Prince Caspian” in the middle of an extremely busy May blockbuster season, right in between “Iron Man” and “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” In contrast, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” was released in early December 2005 and faced much less competition.
What’s so annoying about this is that Disney screwed up and unless Walden Media can find another studio to partner with in this bad economy, fans of this franchise are going to miss out.
And you thought the White Witch was bad.
-BAM
Wayne Coyne talks about the Flaming Lips’ Oklahoma City New Year’s Eve show
The Flaming Lips perform their first New Year’s Eve Freakout at Oklahoma City’s Cox Convention Center almost a year ago. (The Oklahoman Archives photo)
The Oklahoman’s Entertainment Editor sat down with Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne to talk about Wednesday night’s The Flaming Lips New Year’s Eve Freak-Out No. 2.
The show will be at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday right in downtown at the Cox Convention Center, 1 Myriad Gardens.
The opener will be Norman-based experimental rockers Stardeath and White Dwarfs Norman-based experimental rock band Stardeath and White Dwarfs. Coyne admits he has taken a “nepotism gone wild” interest in the band since his nephew, Dennis Coyne, is the group’s singer.
Coyne also talked about OKC’s cultural landscape, Flaming Lips Alley, the developing Academy of Contemporary Music at Edmond’s University of Central Oklahoma, and perhaps most exciting for Lips fans, his plans to make the New Year’s Eve show an annual occurrence.
He promised that Wednesday’s show will be the band’s usual visual and sonic spectacle, with costumed dancers, huge balloons, his giant hamster ball, and of course, that gloriously psychedelic music.
To read Gene’s story, click here.
Coyne also sat down with Gene in the NewsOK video studio for a 20-minute talk about the Freakout and a variety of random topics. Check it out:
-BAM
Documentary covers Ron Howard’s 50 years in film
Ron Howard (Associated Press photo)
Duncan native Ron Howard will be the subject of a new television documentary premiering at 7 tonight on Turner Classic Movies.
“Ron Howard: 50 Years in Film” follows Howard’s Hollywood career from his movie debut in 1959’s “The Journey” to his time as Opie on “The Andy Griffith Show” to his work as an Oscar-winning director of films such as “A Beautiful Mind,” “Cinderella Man” and this year’s “Frost/Nixon.”
To read more about the documentary, click here.
And speaking of great, Oscar-caliber films and filmmakers, be sure to check out the blog Friday when I’ll reveal my top 10 films of 2008.
-BAM
Monday Catchy Quote
A catchy quote from a movie, TV show or other source to brighten the beginning of your week. Can you guess the source? Feel free to post your guess in the comments below.
Harry: I love that you get cold when it’s 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you’re looking at me like I’m nuts. I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes. And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night. And it’s not because I’m lonely, and it’s not because it’s New Year’s Eve. I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.
- Click here to learn the source.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on Oct. 29
Today’s featured event:
TULSA – Hear Trans-Siberian Orchestra at 7:30 tonight at the BOK Center, 200 S Denver.
For more information, go to www.bokcenter.com.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
