Auctioneer William Adcock works for every dollar to benefit the Maria Parham Healthcare Foundation on Friday night. Friday the 13th was a lucky night if you happened to have tickets for the Maria Parham Healthcare Foundation’s gala celebration of the medical center’s 80th anniversary.
Category: That’s life
Alive After Five rolls right on
Alive After Five’s first band of the year, Right On, led by vocalist Arline Burton, performs Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” with the help of Henderson children and one man from the audience Thursday night. After all of the debate about beer sales, after an overcast sky threatened but never delivered a downpour, and after the band arrived 20 minutes late, Alive After Five came off without a problem Thursday at the Henderson Operations & Service Center.
Opinion: Now that’s a chicken sandwich
Sometimes it seems like our No. 1 commodity in Henderson is fast food.
Opinion: It’s the thought that counts the loss
For all you would-be Ken Jenningses out there, consider the plight of the Quiz Bowlers on Saturday afternoon at the Vance County Administration Building on Young Street.
Happy birthday to reading’s cool cat
Erin Ellerman dangled the perfect bait to hook 35 preschoolers thirsting for knowledge, fun and a few catchy rhymes.
Opinion: The area’s Oscar-worthy performance
The Oscars are tonight, and for most people in America, the big nominees are a mystery.
Black history provides perspective on kids’ future
By Joshua Jacobs Special correspondent All of the pupils of E.M. Rollins Elementary School gathered at 10 a.m. Friday for the school’s big assembly to celebrate Black History Month.
Opinion: Let’s go all in
Gov. Mike Easley renewed his flirtation with an “education lottery” during his State of the State address Monday, but the feeling here is that he’s chasing the wrong form of gambling.
‘The Whole Equation’
“The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood” by David Thomson: This is the sad, true tale of a movie critic falling out of love and blaming the object of his fading ardor, Hollywood. He shares those feelings in the introduction to his “The New Biographical Dictionary of Film” and expounds on the theme in this 400-page essay. He movingly mourns the loss of quality in favor of ever-advancing digital wizardry. Thomson’s title comes from a passage in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s …
‘The Longest Winter’
“The Longest Winter” by Alex Kershaw: The 99th Infantry Division’s 394th Regiment’s Intelligence and Reconnaissance Platoon had 18 men dug in above Lanzerath on Dec. 16, 1944, when a German thrust through the Ardennes slammed into the Belgian town at the start of the Battle of the Bulge. Kershaw follows the platoon’s desperate fight and the soldier’s exploits until the end of the war in Europe five months later. The Americans, at the front only a month and in Lanzerath …
“It’s Only a Movie: Alfred Hitchcock — A Personal Biography” by Charlotte Chandler: Alfred Hitchcock focused on entertainment rather than art, yet he won more acclaim from the public and his peers than did a genius like Orson Welles. Hitchcock often reminded people that “it’s only a movie,” supplying the ideal title for this affectionate biography. Chandler describes each film but doesn’t critique Hitchcock’s work or thinking. Instead, she creates an extended newspaper profile, with lengthy quotes from the man, …
‘The Great Movies II’
“The Great Movies II” by Roger Ebert: This is an essential reference for movie lovers. It’s not a list of the best leftovers from 2002’s “The Great Movies,” but a selection of works worthy of admiration and, except for “The Birth of a Nation,” repeated viewing. Ebert’s infectious passion fills the 100 essays, ranging from the silent classic “The Last Laugh” to the musical mockumentary “This Is Spinal Tap.” It’s a joy to relive “A Christmas Story” and an education …
‘The Fellowship of the Ring’
“The Fellowship of the Ring” by J.R.R. Tolkien: The first part of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy was a good book. I definitely think every home should have a copy or three of this book. It is about a hobbit named Frodo who inherits a dark ring from his uncle. With help from his friends, Frodo realizes that he must destroy the ring. A fellowship of nine — Frodo and three other hobbits, two men, a wizard, a dwarf …
‘Despite the System’
“Despite the System: Orson Welles Versus the Hollywood Studios” by Clinton Heylin: Orson Welles earned a place in Hollywood history as the flawed genius who created the most critically acclaimed movie of all time, “Citizen Kane,” then couldn’t live up to his own legend for the rest of his career. Heylin aims to counter critics such as Pauline Kael and Simon Callow, who blame Welles for his unfulfilled potential. Heylin sees Welles as an innovative artist for whom “Citizen Kane” …
‘The Children’s Blizzard’
“The Children’s Blizzard” by David Laskin: It’s all weather, all the time, in the story of how the Great Plains’ greatest winter storm surprised and overwhelmed forecasters and farm families, resulting in hundreds of deaths. The blizzard of Jan. 12, 1888, was not a “feathery sifting of gossamer powder,” but a “frozen sandstorm” propelled by 40-mph winds blasting arctic air down from Canada. Men and livestock couldn’t stand up to its blinding fury, let alone the hundreds of children in …
‘The Big Picture’
“The Big Picture: The New Logic of Money and Power in Hollywood” by Edward Jay Epstein: A six-headed monster — Fox, Sony, NBC Universal, Time Warner, Viacom and Disney — is conspiring to control entertainment, Epstein warns us with all the calm of Kevin McCarthy running through the city, shouting about the alien pod people, in “Invasion of the Body Snatchers.” Epstein illuminates Hollywood’s shift from making movies to delivering intellectual property. He reveals how a blockbuster can be a …
‘The Worlds of Herman Kahn’
“The Worlds of Herman Kahn: The Intuitive Science of Thermonuclear War” by Sharon Ghamari-Tabrizi: If you ever wanted to read a book about a technocrat, a geek, a free-thinking resident of the ivory-tower world of think tanks — well, this still probably isn’t the book for you. And if you don’t want to read about a career think-tanker who liked to dream of a world after global thermonuclear war, this definitely isn’t the book for you. I know it wasn’t …
‘The Bomb: A Life’
“The Bomb: A Life” by Gerard DeGroot: This year marks the 60th anniversary of those two terrifying days in August 1945 when we learned to love and hate the atomic bomb. To mark the birthday of the bomb, there’s no better present than this wry biography of the weapon that made us all think about the end of the world. DeGroot, who teaches history at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, tells you everything you ever wanted to know …