The Michigan Daily - Weekend etc. - October 8,1992- Page 3 A Selleck strikeout by Alison Levy The month of October means the boys of summer finally hit the World Series in the All American game: baseball. I lot dogs, peanuts, Cracker Jack, scratching, chewing. players cheating on their wives, etc. are all characteristics of the tame. This subject captured on celluloid many times over is the scope of Australian director Fred Schepisi's film "Mr. Baseball". Tom Selleck plays .ack I lliot, a rebellious, aing Yankee who Mr. Baseball Directed by Fred Schepisi: written by Gary Ross, Kevin Wade, and Monte Merrick; with 'Tum[ Slleck. spends more time in the bedroom than on the dianond. When a star rookie joins the team, fun-loving Jack is traded to the Japan Drag- ons. A fish-out-of-water. he clashes clt urally' with his new team, mnanagi.er, and girlfriend. A horrendous and predict able script, along with even worse act- ing ruin this (lismal film. Put a lit- tle more Velveeta on your hot dog because the movie is major league cheesy. The film is perfect for Japan-bashing with its constant jokes about the height of the Japanese, the food, the language barriers, Japanese baths and the women. One of my most favorite running ags was about spitting tobacco. Like I haven't seen that a million times before. Selleck ' . ack starts off as a dick, but instead of' redeeming himself, he simply remains a dlick. He isn't even remotely likable. Not to macntion, Selleck thinks that he's still got the bod to do several nude scenes. I think not. le must be close to 50 by now, and it shows. If you want to see butt- nekked boys in the shower, go see "School 'l'ies." Also, his brashness and American ego aren't cute: they're. annoying and embarrass- ing. A va Takanashi plays his girl- friend, Iliroko. For someone so wild and crazy, Jack surely picked someone bland to fall in love with. Opposites must attract because this gir is more boring than Won- der Bread. Ken Takakura ("Black Rain") wins no trophy as Elliot's manager either. The only bright spot, thespian- wise, is Toshi Shioya as Yoji, EIl- Iiot's Charmint'1(d good-natured interpreter. The Japanese scenery is also interesting and beautiful. MR. SEIM ALL is playing (t More than food, the Jug is a tradition by David Groves percentage of regular customers in. I think it was because of the fam- { We all know the Brown Jug as a whom the waitstaff are able to es- ily atmosphere, the feeling that peo-C great place to hit after the bars have tablish friendly relationships in a ple there care."I closed, or to scarf some cholesterol- work environment. Throughout the Through the years, chain stores, loaded munchies. Testimony from years, these patrons have also re- corporate run restaurants and themeJ frequent patrons like this one from turned regularly on football bars have come and gone. Yet thef recent university graduate Sean Saturdays as alumni. They'll often Jug has endured with only minort Field are common: "The beer is reminisce about the long hours they adaptions. Expensive, flashy decor1 cheap and the waitresses are hot." spent there; studying, chatting or and extensive promotions are nott It's notoriety has even spread far partying. One long-time waitress part of these changes. Alterations tot outside the campus area. Mark believes this sense of loyalty has the menu concerning home-cooked Bergal recalled eating at the Brown trickled through the generations and themes are important, not to mentionI Jug while he was a student at the has done well to keep the Jug afloat. the pizza, which employee Fleetat University of Wisconsin. "I remem- Colette Cassady, who waitressed Siegel claims may be the best inI ber going to the Brown Jug when we at the Jug for two years, agreed that Ann Arbor. He hesitantly admits thatt were road tripping to Ann Arbor. there is sense of closeness there. "A a competitor's deep dish pizza may We went there to eat breakfast be- lot of homeless people would come just edge the Jug's. University stu- fore the football game, and we also had a lot to drink," he said. "You don't find a lot of places with that kind of combination." But there is another side to the Brown Jug, an aspect which lies in it's long history. The name was in- l z; spired by the classic football rivalry between Michigan and Minnesota. The Little Brown Jug has been the trophy awarded to the winner of thisx annual match-up since the turn of' the century. The Paron family of Ann Arbor purchased the restaurant in 1959 and kept the name to honorY that tradition. Today, ownership rep- resents three generations, headed by the well known matriarch whom ev- eryone working there refers to as "Mama Paron." According to Jim Paron, part owner and grandson of Mama Paron, this sense of family is a primary concern in the manage- ment of the business. The Brown Jug is home to a high The Brown Jug is just the place to combine good conversation with hardeningi Small towners meet the big city dent Marc Weber appreciates the quality, stating, "The food's kind of greasy, but I like it that way." Flexibility is another factor. The Jug opens early and closes late, of- fering a great deal of the full menu throughout the business day. Long hours of operation lend themselves to distinctly different atmospheres through the week. Days and weeknights are generally quiet and pleasant, usually catering to more of the regulars; professors, business people, city residents and busy stu- dents. Weekend nights are decidedly more active. "One night a bunch of police came in wearing riot uniforms sur- rounded the kitchen. Nobody in the restaurant seemed surprised," said Marc Mancuso, a Rackham graduate student who enjoys eating at the Jug. "I think I was the only one that noticed." Partying students and bar crowds, many of whom have delved a bit too deeply into their liquor cabinets, cre- ate a loud and rambunctious bar-likey atmosphere. Under such conditions, the work becomes a bit more annoying. The money isn't always enough to compensate. When Martha, a manager and server, heard that University students tip among the worst in the country, she responded, "I'm not surprised." The customers can also get down right nasty. Cassady said by the end of her stint as a Jug waitress, she was tired of dealing with obnoxious and disrespectful people. "A lot of the clientele at night were drunken frat guys who would come in and make passes at the waitress," she said. "I waited one guy who asked me if I slept with the manager to get my job." Despite this, many employees stay for a number of years, some throughout their college career. They're friends, they hang out to- gether, party together, both in and outside of work. For these reasons as well as the Paron's attention to the business family, there exists a cor-' dial and friendly environment which the employees can generally estab- lish with their customers. .4 r 4 tea 4; of the arteries. by Saloni Janvela You think they're the ones you see looking overwhelmed, shy, keeping to themselves, appearing bewildered as they cross the diag. But the truth of the matter is, stu- dents from small towns are explor- ing and enjoying the large univer- sity. These students said although the change from the small town to "big" Ann Arbor was drastic in some ways, they felt Ann Arbor had a lot more to offer than their hometowns. As Jane Rixe, a first-year School of Engineering student, put it, "It's in- teresting to meet all the different types of people. Where I come from, it was homogeneous. " "It's cool that Michigan has so many people from different back- grounds," said Carmen MacLean, a first-year LSA student. "I come from Granville, Ohio, with a graduating class of '96. My high school was mostly white, so it's great to see the diversity here at Michigan." MacLean also said that one of the things she liked best about Ann Ar- bor was the proximity of different things to do. "A lot of the stuff I do, you walk ten feet and it's right there. You can do anything any night of the week. In Granville, there's no movie theater, no recreation building ... there's one street with little stores on it." When asked about her first im- pression of the university, Jeanette Leonard, first year engineering stu- dent from Maybe, MI, related expe- riences about the diag. "It was kind of neat - seeing people that stand on the diag and put on shows or give speeches." Leonard added that she finds Ann Arbor a bit too crowded. "It was kind of a big change," she said. "I'm used to having my own space. I'm considering moving to North Cam- pus. There's more room, more trees, it's just more countryish. It's more of what I'm used to." For some small town students, older brothers and sisters may have eased the shock of coming here. "I come from a larger family, so I was introduced to the college scene a lit- tle early on," said Alan Striegle, first-year LSA student. "I really like it here - the diversity of people is incredible. Dorr was a town of a couple thousand, so we didn't see too many different kinds of people. Ann Arbor also has so much happening - there was very little activity in my town. You had to pretty much drive to Grand Rapids to do anything." Striegle said the only thing he misses is knowing everyone around him. "I sometimes miss the real per- sonal feeling of being in a small town and knowing the people you pass on the street. Here I sometimes walk between classes and don't rec- ognize a single person." Some students said that Ann Ar- bor is a town where they can be their own person. Such was the case with first-year LSA student Jeff Massoll. He said that his hometown, Pinck- ney, Mich., is so small that it's con- sidered a village. "The first differ- ence I noticed was how at home ev- eryone noticed my green hair and how I dressed. Here, no one cares, which is really cool," he said. "In my town, people were really set in their way of thinking and you couldn't get away with being your- self. It's a really nice change to come here and be whoever you want." Rixe also related a positive expe- rience. "My hometown of Walcott, Iowa only had a total of around 1,000 people. I was really scared when I saw the dorm - it was so huge and there were so many people here. But I really feel at home now, which I didn't think I would consid- ering this is such a big university." '" '> -4 { d d' .. Z.-Im ... $" < Y kk F 5 q. r P } 4Y d N ' Y a" a r , e m # Mr 'kr, i . w p y z, , '- w s a , r a a rN f t b R 4 Celebrate Local Cable Programming Week Stop by the AACAT booth in the center of the mall For more information call 769-7422 I I Selleck THE MICHIGAN DAILY I I 1 Stat of H80, "81 L " and "Head of thelIass" "A Rare talent for Devastatingly Humorous Observations of Everyday life" SYRACUSE ABOAD The Division of International Programs Abroad offers academic programs in Australia, Czechoslovakia, England, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Poland, and Spain for a semester, a year, or a summer of study abroad. for more information, please contact Syracuse University Division of International Programs Abroad 119 Euclid Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13244-4170- 1-800.235-3472 SEND TODAY FOR OUR CATALOG! t n k b i . 4 r# t p " A 1 M Y . " u w : 9w;d4*1! Octo4et 16 09*U4 -I I i 2 i AA .2 li -5 77rda~cSv., 'W ae,71G I I