Phantom: Love Never Dies
LONDON (AP) — Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber says the long awaited sequel to “Phantom of the Opera” should be ready at the end of 2009, with a possible simultaneous opening on three continents.
Lloyd Webber told The Times of London that he hopes the new musical, to be called “Phantom: Love Never Dies,” will open in New York, London and possibly Shanghai or another Asian city.
He said the locale of the celebrated musical will be switched from the Paris Opera to New York’s Coney Island. The sequel will be set about 10 years after the original, which has been seen by approximately 80 million theatergoers in 124 cities worldwide.
Merry Christmakwanzaahanukkah!!
Merry Christmas, Hanukah, Bodhi Day, Kwanzaa, Eid al Adha or just plain happy December!
I wanted to wish you a wonderful holiday season while being as politically correct and socially sensitive as possible. But why reinvent the wheel when entrepreneur and marketer Vinny Lingham says it so well in his blog, www.vinnylingham.com. So, I would like to echo his sentiments to you, our beloved readers.
“Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all…
…and a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2009, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great, (not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country or is the only “America” in the western hemisphere), and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, choice of computer platform, or sexual preference of the wishee.
By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms. This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, is void where prohibited by law and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.”
10 Reasons I Love Winter
Snowmen, hot chocolate, warm slippers, a raging fire in the fireplace — these are just a few of the many wonders of winter. Oklahoma’s winters are perfect — we get just enough snow to call off school for a couple of days but not so much to trap us inside our homes for weeks on end. Winter is the season for family holidays, new beginnings and making lifelong memories. My most vivid memories from childhood are of snowball fights, crispy cold weather and scary drives on slippery snow. Winter is my favorite season; here are just a few reasons why.
1. Holiday entertainment. Winter is a great season for holiday entertainment options. From wild acrobatics to glamorous high kicks, rock operas to rock museums, there are more live entertainment options for Oklahomans this year than ever before. Here are a few:
The Radio City Christmas Spectacular” is at the BOK Center on Dec. 22-24 and at Ford Center on Dec. 26-28.
“Canterbury Christmas” features portions of Handel’s Messiah and a carol sing-along Dec. 7 at Civic Center Music Hall.
“The Nutcracker,” presented by Tulsa Ballet, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Dec. 6 and 2 p.m. Dec. 7, Rose State Performing Arts Theatre.
2. Decorating for the holidays. Some Oklahomans such as Marvin and Betty Johnson, 14574 Billy Drive in Edmond, really know how to spread the holiday cheer by adorning their homes and yards with colorful lights, lifelike Santas, snowmen, reindeer and all the other symbols of holiday cheer. The Johnsons’ display is something to go out of your way to see. But controlling your holiday lights can be tricky, especially when it’s cold, rainy or snowy outside. Remote-controlled indoor/outdoor power outlets with timers can help. They allow you to turn your outdoor lights on and off without stepping outside. The included remote control transmits a signal up to 40 feet so it can be used anywhere in your home. For more information, go online to cableorganizer.com/bestlink/remote-controlled-outlet.htm.
3. Sledding. When the snow comes, out come the sledders, sliding down hills on plastic saucers, wooden sleds and even on cardboard boxes and in recycling containers. There is no better or less-expensive way to spend a snow day. But if you don’t have a sled already, buy one now; don’t wait until that first snow day. While sledding usually is safe and fun, the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons warns that an ounce of precaution is worth a pound of cure. Here are some rules to sled by:
Do not sled on public streets.
Sit in a forward-facing position.
Do not sled on plastic sheets.
No one should sled head-first.
Young children should wear a fitted helmet while sledding.
Sleds should have runners and be steerable, which is safer than toboggans or snow disks.
Sledders should wear layers of clothing for protection from injuries and cold.
4. Hot chocolate. There is nothing more delicious and warming on a cold winter’s day than a big mug of hot chocolate. But did you know there’s a difference between hot chocolate and hot cocoa? According to Mahalo.com, hot cocoa is a beverage derived from cocoa powder, while hot chocolate is made from chocolate bars melted into cream. Either way, the result is nothing less than heavenly. While hot chocolate is a traditional wintertime favorite, hot latte, apple cider and chai tea also will warm your insides on a cold day. And for an unusually decadent hot drink, see below for a recipe for Frothy Turkish Delight.
Start to finish: 10 minutes.
Servings: 2.
2 cups milk
2 ounces Turkish Delight candy, cut into small cubes, plus extra for garnish
½ cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons rose water
½ teaspoon honey
Pinch ground cardamom
1 tablespoon unsalted pistachio nuts, finely chopped
In small saucepan over medium heat, combine milk and Turkish Delight. Heat, stirring constantly, until mixture just reaches boiling point. Remove from heat and set aside.
In medium bowl, use electric mixer or whisk to beat cream, rose water, honey and cardamom until just stiff.
Divide milk mixture between 2 serving cups, then top with the whipped cream. Garnish with additional cubes of Turkish Delight and chopped pistachio nuts.
5. Warm, cozy pajamas. What could be better on a freezing cold night than curling up by the fireplace in your comfy pajamas with someone you love, sipping on a Frothy Turkish Delight? Whether you’re a footed flannel pajamas person or you prefer the satin Hugh Hefner-style look, you’ll find great jammies at Target, Old Navy and Walmart. Onlypajamas.com is another great source with styles starting around $11.
6. Snow days! Every winter, schoolchildren pray for snow days to close schools. Snow days are made for snowball fights, snow angels, sledding and building snowmen. According to “The Old Farmers Almanac 2009,” this winter could be one to two degrees cooler on average than last winter, with the coldest periods in the first half of December, early and late January, and mid-February. The almanac predicts that the best chances for snow days will be in mid-December, early to mid-January, and mid- and late February.
7. Ice skating at Devon Ice Rink and snow tubing at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark. The grand lawn of the Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N Walker, will transform from noon to 10 p.m. daily from Friday through Jan. 4 into an outdoor ice-skating rink. Cost to skate is $8, which includes skate rental and a two-hour session. Skating is $5 for those who supply their own skates
And if you can’t make it to the mountains for snow tubing, head to Bricktown for the Chesapeake Snow Tubing at the Brick. Each year, children and adults alike take a thrill-ride down the nation’s largest manmade snow-tubing slopes. The slopes open Friday. Admission is $ 10 for each 90-minute session. Visit downtowninde cember.com for special holiday hours of operation.
8. Festivals of lights. All across Oklahoma, holiday lights glow throughout December. You can drive through just about any neighborhood to see holiday lights, but if you want to see millions of twinkling lights, you should visit one of the spectacular displays. Here is a list of a few of the best and brightest Oklahoma has to offer.
OG&E Garden Lights, nightly until Jan 1. Receive free Crystal Bridge admission from 6 to 9 p.m. Sundays. Also visit Passport to Christmas at the Myriad Botanical Gardens to see decorations from around the world.
Midwest City Holiday Lights Spectacular at Joe B. Barnes Regional Park, 6 to 10 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 6 to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays until Dec. 30. A 5-kilometer Holiday Lights Spectacular Night Light Run will be Dec. 14. Information: 739-1288.
Fantasyland of Lights Festival after dark until Dec 30 at Johnstone Park in Bartlesville. Information: (918) 327-1795.
Christmas in the Park, 6 to 11 nightly until Dec. 31 at City Park, 2200 S Holly, Yukon.
Chickasha Festival of Light, 6 to 11 nightly through Dec. 31 in Shannon Springs Park, 2500 S Ninth. Information: 224-9627 or www.ChickashaFestivalofLight.com.
9. Winter gardening. Suzy Bales loves winter gardening so much she wrote a book about it. In “The Garden in Winter,” Bales recommends winter blooms – snowdrops, hellebores, witch hazel – and evergreens for a colorful tapestry amid a snowy backdrop. She mixes plants, shrubs, vines, holly and hedges with garden structures such as trellises, obelisks and copper arches.
For your vegetable garden, winter is the time for growing hearty kale, collards, brussels sprouts, spinach, leeks, lettuce, parsnips and even garlic.
10. New Year’s Eve. It’s a holiday celebrated around the world. Oklahoma City sends out the old and rings in the new with “Opening Night,” the biggest party of the year. This year’s event will feature entertainment from more than 25 performers including Oklahoma’s best and brightest stars such as Edgar Cruz (guitar), Son del Barrio (salsa), Boru’s Ghost (Celtic), Everybody and Their Dog (improv) and Lemma (rock). The Children’s Area returns to the Cox Convention Center and will offer face painting, an inflatable obstacle course, family-friendly performances and hands-on craft activities. As the magical hour approaches, the traditional Opening Night Ball will rise to a backdrop of music and fireworks. Wristbands are $8 in advance or $ 10 at the event, with children younger than 5 admitted free. For more information, go online to Artscouncilokc.com.
I got Elfed!
Oprah weighs in
Here is a story from Associated Press… I find it interesting not because I think Oprah needs to be caught up in her weight but because I think she is beautiful just as she is–all 200 pounds of her. And I hope that women will learn to worry less about weight and more about health. I know all about the health risks that come from being overweight. But I also know about the health risks that come with feeling the pressure from society to be skinny. Depression and social anxiety are a couple. And, by the way, starving yourself for months on end on liquid protein diets, lemon juice diets, etc. are no better for you than being a little overweight. I hope that Oprah and all women in show business and behind the limelight will learn to be happy in the skin they are in and strive for good health not just good thighs.
CHICAGO (AP) — Oprah Winfrey is used to dealing with weighty issues. In the January issue of “O” magazine, she deals with another one — her own.
In the magazine, out Tuesday, the talk-show queen says she now weighs 200 pounds and has fallen off the wagon when it comes to healthy living.
“I’m mad at myself,” Winfrey writes in an article provided early to The Associated Press by Harpo Productions.
“I’m embarrassed,” she writes. “I can’t believe that after all these years, all the things I know how to do, I’m still talking about my weight. I look at my thinner self and think, `How did I let this happen again?“’
In the piece, Winfrey, 54, details her recent struggles with an out-of-balance thyroid and how the condition made her develop “a fear of working out.” She says she’s added 40 pounds to her frame since she weighed 160 pounds in 2006.
“Yes, you’re adding correctly; that means the dreaded 2-0-0,” Winfrey writes. “I was so frustrated I started eating whatever I wanted — and that’s never good.”
Winfrey also writes that her goal is no longer to be thin; instead, she wants to be strong, healthy and fit. She hopes to get started with her upcoming “Best Life Week,” starting Jan. 5 with an episode of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” during which she is expected to talk candidly about her weight.
Winfrey, who is chairman of Harpo Inc., famously wheeled a wagon loaded with fat onto the set of her talk show in 1988 to represent a 67-pound weight loss while wearing a pair of size 10 Calvin Klein jeans. She had lost the pounds with a liquid protein diet.
“I had literally starved myself for four months — not a morsel of food,” Winfrey recalled in 2005. “Two hours after that show, I started eating to celebrate — of course, within two days those jeans no longer fit!”
Winfrey’s weight has yo-yoed to the delight of the tabloid press ever since. She weighed as many as 237 pounds and by late 1990 acknowledged she had regained most of the 67 pounds, saying “I’ll never diet again.”
In 1994, she finished the Marine Corps Marathon and by 1996 hired personal trainer Bob Greene, saying her roller-coaster weight saga was over.
But now, 20 years since the Calvin Klein jeans episode, Winfrey finds herself tipping the scales again, telling AP Television last week that she has yet to choose a gown for President-elect Barack Obama’s inaugural ball next month.
“I had a dress on the vision board, but I’m not sure that’s gonna fit,” Winfrey said. “So I have to work on something else.”
In the latest “O” magazine article, Winfrey writes that she hit rock bottom when she wanted to skip out on an April 26 taping with Cher and Tina Turner in Las Vegas.
“I felt like a fat cow,” Winfrey writes. “I wanted to disappear.”
Winfrey’s weight and height put her body mass index at 31.8, which is obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC says people who are obese are “at higher risk for chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol.”
It seems Winfrey is aware of the health risks, inviting both Greene and Dr. Mehmet Oz to her show during the first week of January, along with spirituality experts, sex therapists and financial expert Suze Orman.
Winfrey also is expected to discuss her weight on her XM satellite radio station’s “The Gayle King Show” on Jan. 5 and will host interactive live Web casts at Oprah.com the week of Jan. 12 to 16 every night at 9 p.m. EST.
Winfrey, an admitted food addict, sounds almost apologetic in her article.
“I definitely wasn’t setting an example,” she writes. “I was talking the talk, but I wasn’t walking the walk. And that was very disappointing to me.”
Give the gift of Poo
Several years ago, a guy I was dating gave me what I thought was the worst Christmas gift ever. He had saved the corks from bottles of wine served at the restaurant where he worked and glued them together to make a corkboard. He then sprinkled glitter over it and called it wrapped. That was long before the mantra “reuse, reduce and recycle” was tattooed on the collective eco-consciousness, and little did I know then that he was on to something. Well, I guess it was a better gift than a bottle of worm poop. What? Yeah, worm poop. An uber-Earth-friendly company called TerraCycle Inc. is bottling worm poop and making headlines for it. It also is making corkboards like that unappreciated gift I received years ago.
It all started in 2001 with a couple of Princeton students who were using worm poop to fertilize some … er … plants they were secretly growing in their basement. When those plants started looking like Audrey 2, they realized their creative plant food was to thank. Over drinks, they brainstormed a company that would sell a product that was garbage packaged in garbage. Liquid worm poop packaged in recycled plastic soda bottles.
Fast-forward a few years: These guys have a thriving company that produces all-natural cleaners, tote bags and backpacks made of old Capri Sun pouches, eco-friendly fire-starters, the aforementioned cork boards and a bevy of other goods, all made from recycled or all-natural ingredients.
But there’s more. You can make money by sending TerraCycle your trash. The company pays 2 cents each for Oreo, Chips Ahoy, Capri Sun, Honest Kids, Kool-Aid and Ritz Chips wrappers, to name a few.
So, this holiday season, why not buy someone a nice bottle of liquid worm poop or a backpack made of trash? Or, you could just save up some of those wine corks and make something.
Prop 8–The Musical
AP--Since Proposition 8 passed in California, much of Hollywood has been up in arms. Now, they are singing and dancing, too, in a new Web video called “Prop 8: The Musical.”
The video was posted Wednesday on FunnyOrDie.com, the video site co-founded by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay. The site has found a niche in getting professional talent to quickly create topical comedy videos.
“Prop 8: The Musical” may be a 3-minute Internet video, but it has a blockbuster cast — including Jack Black (who plays Jesus), Neil Patrick Harris, John C. Reilly, Andy Richter, Maya Rudolph, Margaret Cho, Rashida Jones and others.
Though Jesus doesn't bring the two sides together, Harris has better luck. He argues gay marriage could save the economy: “Every time a gay or lesbian finds love at the parade, there's money to be made.”
The video was conceived and written by Marc Shaiman, the Tony-winning composer of “Hairspray” and “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.” McKay, who had previously collaborated with Shaiman on the song-and-dance routine Ferrell, Black and Reilly did at the Oscars earlier this year, sent him an e-mail floating the idea of a video.
As of Thursday, the clip had clearly ascended to viral status, with more than 1.1 million views on FunnyOrDie.com. Given the sensitivity of the issue, comments also have been flying, with well over a thousand posted.
Shaiman had been involved in a more serious debate over Proposition 8.
After voters approved Proposition 8, which changed the state's constitution to ban same-sex marriage, it was revealed that Scott Eckern, artistic director of the California Musical Theater in Sacramento (the state's largest nonprofit musical theater company) had donated $1,000 to the “Yes on 8” campaign.
Shaiman's “Hairspray” had played at the theater and he said he would never allow anything he wrote to play there because of Eckern's donation. Others protested and Eckern resigned in November.
In an interview Wednesday, Shaiman regretted that it came to Eckern losing his job and said: “It's a tragedy for everyone involved. You'll certainly see that no one called for him to resign.”
The video for Funny or Die was a lighter-hearted protest.
Shaiman wrote the piece in a day, recorded it the next and shot it in a single day last week.
“It was like, `Eureka! That's right, that's what I do!” said Shaiman of the mini-musical. “If I'm going to stand on the soap box, at least let me sing and dance.”
Grease no more
NEW YORK (AP) — January is turning into going-out-of-business month for more and more Broadway shows.
The revival of “Grease” is the latest production to join the club. The 1950s high-school musical will shut down Jan. 4 after 554 performances. A national tour, starring “American Idol” alum Taylor Hicks, began earlier this week in Providence, R.I.
Other long-run musicals folding next month include “Hairspray,” “Monty Python’s Spamalot” and “Spring Awakening.” Also shutting down will be “Boeing-Boeing” and “13.”
January will also see the curtain fall on such limited-engagement productions as “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas,” “All My Sons” and “Dividing the Estate.”
Attention Wizards!
AP–The latest magical tome by J.K. Rowling has started to fly off bookstore shelves.
Rowling launched “The Tales of Beedle the Bard” on Thursday with a tea party for 200 school children at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh, where she lives.
The author is donating royalties from the book to a charity, which hopes it will raise millions to help vulnerable children.
Recession-hit booksellers hope the book — a collection of five fables mentioned in Rowling’s saga about boy wizard Harry Potter — will give them a festive boost
“We expect it to come straight in at No. 1 and is very likely to be our No. 1 book this Christmas,” said Jon Howells of Britain’s Waterstone’s book store chain. “It’s in with a fighting chance of being the best-selling book of the year, even though there are only a few weeks to go.
“This is J.K. Rowling. None of the usual rules apply,” he said.
“Beedle the Bard” is being published Thursday in more than 20 countries, with a global print run of almost 8 million. But is generating only a fraction of the fanfare that greeted the Potter novels.
Rowling is donating her royalties to the Children’s High Level Group, a charity she co-founded to support institutionalized children in Eastern Europe. The book is published on behalf of the charity by Harry Potter’s traditional publishers — Scholastic in North America and Bloomsbury elsewhere.
Rowling, whose Harry Potter books have sold more than 400 million copies and been translated into 67 languages, wrote the Beedle tales after finishing “Deathly Hallows” last year.
One of the stories, “The Tale Of The Three Brothers,” is recounted in “Deathly Hallows,” in which the storybook helps Harry and his friends defeat evil Lord Voldemort.
Rowling has described “The Tales of Beedle the Bard” as a distillation of the themes found in the Harry Potter books, calling it her goodbye to a world she lived in for 17 years.
The book was initially produced last year in an edition of seven handwritten copies. Six were given away by Rowling as gifts, and one was bought by Internet retailer Amazon at an auction for almost 2 million pounds ($3 million).
Rowling told the schoolchildren at the launch that she published the book after complaints from readers over the sale.
“There was quite a lot of high feeling from Harry Potter fans that only someone who had 2 million pounds could afford to read the book,” she said. “I thought: ‘fair point,’ so I thought I’ll publish it and then the charity can have that money too.”
Rowling read a passage from the tales to her young audience, which was given free copies of book.
Amazon is printing 100,000 copies of a leather-bound collectors’ edition priced at 50 pounds, or $100 in the United States.
Domestic Diva to Wed
The good news is I’m engaged! The bad news is I’m broke! Planning a wedding and especially a reception on a shoestring budget is a challenge, but since I have been knee-deep in wedding plans for the past month, I have found tricks that I will be sharing with you in some of my columns during the next few weeks.
First, some background. When I’m not writing, I sing in a band (The Wavetones), and we play at wedding receptions almost every weekend. These receptions are luxurious affairs with amazing flowers, beautiful table settings, five-course meals and, of course, an incredible party band providing music (wink wink). Some wedding planners hire companies that bring in massive rigs from which they hang colorful can lights that can transform any room into an enchanted setting. They beam pretty designs on the walls and ceiling, and the couple’s calligraphic initials on the dance floor. Professional lighting adds an elegant and festive touch to receptions.
Now, just because I sing in a wedding band doesn’t make me a wedding expert. The effect it has on me is to make me yearn for one of those fancy affairs. Unfortunately, that’s out of my budget. I am determined to create my own fanciful wedding and reception and keep it within a reasonable budget.
So, let’s get started. First, let’s coin a new term. I don’t want to call my wedding a “budget wedding” because that sounds like a motel/wedding package deal in Las Vegas or something (nothing against Vegas weddings; that was how I got married the first time.)
Instead, let’s call it an “eco-elegant” wedding because it will be economical, eco-friendly and elegant.
If you’re planning an eco-elegant wedding and reception, you’ll probably be skipping the expense of a wedding coordinator. So, you’ll need to ask a few of your trusted friends or family members to help in the planning and execution. For me, those people will be my daughter, Amber, 14, and my best friend, Lezley.
More about my wedding plans and tips for throwing an amazing wedding on a shoestring budget in later column posts.
