Wednesday
October 29, 2003
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artseditor@michigandaity.com
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ARTS
9
THE HOTTEST PICKS IN ENTERTAINMENT
FROM A DAILY ARTS WRITER
S
The Adventures of Indiana Jones - If it isn't wonderful
enough to have three of the most fun and adventurous movies ever
made together in one boxed set, there are also loads of special fea-
tures, and Spielberg didn't get to screw it all up like he did for "E.T."
"I Love the '80s Strikes Back" - Because we all love the
decade so much and because the first round wasn't enough to satisfy
the masses, the ingenious people of VH 1 have provided an utterly and
completely glorious series of supplemental material with new B- and
C-List celebrities, better '80s memories and more Michael Ian Black.
"The Lord of the Rings" Marathon - I thought the re-
release of the extended edition "Fellowship" and "Two Towers"
films was great, but then the studio heads of New Line decided to
give you those and "The Return of the King" all in a row, showing
the final part of the trilogy at midnight, Dec. 17. Too bad tickets
sold out in mere minutes and can only be found on Ebay for
upwards of $1,000.
Gambling - With the World Series of Poker having become a regu-
lar installment for ESPN and gaining popularity, Casino and Gaming
Television is set to launch on cable in 2004. More gambling, that's all
the 18-34 target audience needs.
"Alien: The Director's Cut" - It's Hal-
loween weekend and what better way to spend
Friday night than watching one of the greatest
sci-fi/horror films ever created. Easily one of
the scariest movies of all time, "Alien"
returns to theaters longer and uncut, x
which is scary in and of itself. Courtesy of 20th Ceintury FOX
episode where Stan Lee was a guest
voice, but that part was written for
George Lucas, who begged to be on the
show, but pulled out at the last minute."
Although considered a failure based
on its disappointing ratings in its two-
year run, "The Critic," Reiss said, is a
"show that appealed to too few people
and I'll take the blame. It was created
by doing the opposite of what 'The
Simpsons' did." Reiss admits that the
show was initially a Krusty spin-off,
but Matt Groening nixed the idea. "The
Critic" was written for Jon Lovitz as a
live action show before he was even
signed. The biggest conflict over "The
Critic" occurred with the Jay Sherman
crossover on an episode of "The Simp-
sons," Reiss said. "The staff took such
a high moral ground and refused to
work on it, but were contractually obli-
gated to get paid for it." Only Groening
ended up removing his name from the
credits while others did nothing but
keep their names in the credits and cash
their checks anyway.
Even after 15 years on the air, Reiss
believes "The Simpsons" can go on for-
ever unless "the network makes a stupid
mistake and kills it. The key to 'The
Simpsons' is that everything is right
about it, I don't see any end in sight."
He revealed that the oft-discussed
movie is in development and that he is
working on the script.
Reiss offers an explanation on why
quality has slid in recent years: "The
only reason that 'The Simpsons' has
declined is that it's just not new."
Reiss has played an integral role in
the creation of one of television's few
remaining bright spots, so "Simp-
sons" fans should
be saying "D'oh"
if they miss his
appearance on
campus.
WRITER TELLS OF JEWISH CLOWNS, POSSIBLE FILM
By Adam Rottenberg
Daily Arts Writer
about 'The Simpsons,' but also talk
about my life and the Jewish themes
that keep popping up in my work"
He considers Krusty the Clown to be
With its place firmly entrenched in
American popular culture, "The Simp-
sons" continues its satirical reign
weekly on televisions across the
nations. Behind the yellow-skinned
clan's antics is writer/producer Mike
Reiss, a comedy veteran who is also
responsible for co-creating the vastly
underrated "The Critic."
Approachable and affable, Reiss
wants students to come to the Michigan
League Ballroom to hear him speak
about " 'The Simpsons' and gossip
"one of the most
pronounced Jewish
characters on tele-
vision." The
growth of that
character can be
attributed to the
Mike Reiss
Tonight at 8:00 p.m.
At the Michigan
League Ballroom
about Judaism and humor ... the most
scholarly discussion you will ever see
can be found in this random episode of
'The Simpsons,"' Reiss said.
Celebrity visits are commonplace
and Reiss fondly recalls the guests who
have come and gone. "A little white guy
was used to be Michael Jackson's
singing voice in 'Stark Raving Dad,' he
recorded it in front of Michael Jackson,
but for some odd reason Jackson only
wanted to do the speaking voice."
Even though many stars claim they
want to join in the hilarity, some have
backed out after episodes have been
written for them. "We had a recent
Reiss-penned show, also his favorite,
"Like Father, Like Clown" in which
Krusty reconciles with his disapproving
rabbi father a la "The Jazz Singer."
"The episode ends in a scholarly debate
'Kid Notorious' the latest animated episode in Evans saga
By Kevin Holiffield
For the Daily
TV REVI EW
Quick, name a '70s movie. Save "Star Wars,"
chances are Robert Evans was involved. As head
of Paramount, Evans was involved in films as
diverse as "Love Story," "Marathon Man" and
"The Godfather."
Last year, Evans narrated the filmed version of
his autobiography "The Kid Stays in the Picture."
Now animated in Comedy Central's "Kid Notori-
ous," he still exudes the persona of the boozing
ladies' man at age 73. This new sitcom based on
his life gives Evans a showcase for his cartoon-
ish, self-indulgent exploits.
While most of the events in the show are ficti-
tious, many of the characters are real people from
Evans' life. With impersonated voices, "Kid
Notorious" skewers Hollywood's A-list from
Francis Ford Coppola to
Ben Affleck. The home
front also stays true to reali-
ty, as Evans' dependable
butler, English, is voiced by
Alan Selka, Evans' real-life
butler. Also starring are
Niecy Nash ("Reno 911!")
Kid
Notorious
Wednesdays at
10:30 p.m.
Comedy Central
Roses portraying himself as the next-door neigh-
bor. Evans also has his loyal housecat, Puss Puss,
to serve as a source of jokes.
"Kid Notorious" follows the classic sitcom
model, only with more outrageous plots. Evans is
confronted with a problem, devises a wacky plan
then comes through within 30 minutes. The show
derives much of its comedy from satire of Evans'
movies, but his sidekicks keep things fresh by
being the butts of his jokes.
Even if it is basic N
cable, Comedy Central
has been the only network
to consistently deliver on
its programming. "Kid
Notorious" is no excep-
tion, ranking on the
Evans scale somewhere
between "Chinatown"
and "The Two Jakes."
as the sassy housekeeper and Slash of Guns 'N'
Aft