The James Logan Courier

By Tish Wells
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)

Deep down in the summer reading pile is a biography, "Red Carpet Ready," from Melissa Rivers, celebrity interviewer and daughter of comedian Joan Rivers, writing with Tim Vandehey.

While Rivers has seen the rise and fall of many a Hollywood celebrity, "Red Carpet Ready" is basically a self-help book aimed at those who may never walk the Oscar red carpet but do have to have the confidence to march across a platform to get a graduation certificate.

"All of us have Red Carpet Moments throughout our lives. They're weddings, bat mitzvahs, and interviews for dream jobs. They're also breakups and painful apologies. A Red Carpet Moment is any time when the spotlight is on you, for better or worse."

By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune (MCT)

It takes a special kind of thread to maneuver a needle as well-established (and, because it's a professional golfing simulation, creatively handcuffed) as "Tiger Woods PGA Tour," and it's doubly difficult to please everybody in doing so. But in making changes that separately benefit those who want a more accessible golf experience and those who want a game that makes that first group cry, that's precisely what "Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11" does.

By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune (MCT)


Some would argue that "Rock Band's" migration from honoring The Beatles last fall to honoring Green Day now is akin to Ken Burns following up his Civil War documentary with a 15-hour look at Wrestlemania. But that, like nearly everything else with regard to music, is entirely subjective.

Still, in case it somehow needs to be said, "Green Day: Rock Band" isn't for anyone who doesn't appreciate the musical stylings of Green Day enough to play the band's songs ad nauseam. Just as "Beatles: Rock Band" featured nothing but The Beatles, this package contains nothing but Green Day songs, and while players can migrate the catalog into "Rock Band 2" (and eventually "Rock Band 3") this time, this game itself allows nary a note from any other band. So if you don't like Green Day, you know what not to do here.

What is a little cloudy is what to do if you do like the band.

By Hailey Galbreath, Courier Staff Writer

Let’s start off by saying that I am a lover of all foods. Mexican food, Thai food, Portuguese food, Honduran food- you name it. So it was to my great pleasure to find Havana, a small Cuban restaurant in Alameda.

The atmosphere is colorful, and lively. With oversized photographs lining the walls of the restaurant, it breaks away from the stereotypical Cuban/Miami scene. The blue and green walls and the big windows help to give the atmosphere a calm, beach like ambience.

By Hailey Galbreath, Courier Staff Writer

If you're looking for a movie filled with tons of laughs, but isn't shy of romance Couples Retreat is a great DVD to look into renting. With an all star cast consisting of Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, Faizon Love, Malin Akerman, Kristen Bell, and Kristin Davis, the movie definitely holds many laughs for people of all ages.

In the film, four couples travel to a tropical island resort. Three of the four couples
tag along only in the attempt to help the remaining couple work on their failing marriage. Under the impression that they will be partaking in various activities on the island, the three couples embark on the journey with their lifelong friends. But much to their suprprise (and dismay) they soon come to realize that their tropical enjoyment is cut short when they are told that they too must complete couple counseling as well. Their own marriages and relationships are put to the ultimate test as they undergo a series of challenges and courses that test one anothers boundaries. More than one marriage's stability is taken into consideration as the cast exemplifies the problems and situations real life couples face.

By Zola Boyd, Courier Staff Writer

Looking for a rad way to start off your summer this year? Then get your toosh to the Electric Daisy Carnival in Los Angeles.

Located at the L.A. Coliseum, the two day festival takes place on June 25th and 26th and features five stages of live music, carnival rides, and circus performers. Tickets are 75 dollars a day or 130 dollars for a two day ticket, and carnival rides are included in the price, which is pretty cheap for a festival that features over 30 performers a day!

By Beatrice Esteban, Courier Editor-in-Chief

The dominance of pop music has always been highly disputed by music critics worldwide. The flashy and sexually-energized outfits, constant use of Auto-Tune, and lack of true lyrical depth inspired the rise of indie music, a genre made of many sub-genres with one common identifying factor: clear contempt of mainstream music. Emerging into the indie music scene in 2001 with their debut album Feel Good Lost, Canada’s Broken Social Scene began as a duo recording ambient instrumentals but has expanded into a musical collective group with a varying lineup and evolved style. This becomes clear to the listener in 2010’s Forgiveness Rock Record, a seamless integration of different music elements in one enjoyable baroque-indie record.

By Hailey Galbreath, Courier Staff Writer

With an all star cast consisting of Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence, Luke Wilson, Tracy Morgan, Danny Glover, Regina Hall, Kevin Hart, James Marsden, and Zoe Saldana, I was under the impression that the remake of Death at a Funeral would be beautifully done. I expected a mixture of comedy, drama, and raw talent to come forth in the movie, but sadly Death at a Funeral fell short of my expectations.

I was a little confused throughout the movie, as it is poorly arranged. Alternating scenes between the different groups of people at the funeral of Aaron (Chris Rock) and Ryan's (Martin Lawrence) late father, causes much confusion throughout the movie. We do come to understand (through much explanation, that is) that Aaron is an aspiring writer, looking to
have his first novel published, who envies his younger brother Ryan.

By Susan Yackee, VOA News

Muslim-Americans fear there may be a public backlash following the recent attempted car bombing in New York's Times Square by Pakistani-American suspect Faisal Shahzad. They faced one following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. A timely new book examines the "identity crisis" in America's greater Muslim community.

"My findings are of urgent relevance to America, today," says author Akbar Ahmed of his book, Journey into Islam. “Communication is needed between the two segments [Muslim and non-Muslim] of society.”

By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune (MCT)

Five "Prince of Persia" games in seven years after three in the preceding 14 has taken the franchise from nowhereville to sequel city in a hurry, and "The Forgotten Sands" does itself no favor by abandoning the dramatic visual and narrative makeover that made the 2008 reboot such a pleasantly fresh surprise.

"Sands" instead is a direct sequel to 2003's "The Sands of Time," which provides the basis of the "Persia" film currently in theaters (and, consequently, should answer whatever questions you had about Ubisoft ditching that reboot and rushing "Sands" out 17 months later).

Early on, "Sands" feels less like a sequel to "Time" than a capable but uninspired imitation of it. It plays like a typical "Persia" game, mixing some ambitious environmental platforming with sword combat that's more fun than special. Per series tradition, the massive traversable environments — ledges, trapeze swings, poles, cliff sides — feel like gigantic environmental riddles more than simple action game playgrounds, and the game uses an assisted character movement scheme that doesn't hold players' hands but also doesn't require angle-perfect precision jumping. As with "Time," and per story dictation, players eventually receive a limited-use ability to rewind time and correct mistimed jumps without reverting back to a checkpoint.

By Thao (Michelle) Hoang, Courier Staff Writer

SS501 was supposed to have their comeback on May 1st. But due to the delays, they weren’t able to. Now finally, not too long ago, SS501’s new mini-album Destination was released along with a few teasers for the music videos. SS501 worked on this album for 3 months after finishing their Asia Tour. Now the full-length music video for the group’s comeback title track ‘Love Ya’ has been released.

By Zola Boyd, Courier Staff Writer

This year, my friends and I chose to ditch prom and go to "POP 2010: The Dream" instead, a huge concert/rave/sweaty pile of humans held at the Cow Palace in Daly City. We arrived in style, decked out in lace and glitter and ready to dance, only to find a line of hundreds of people. The wait seemed forever, however half naked people of all shapes and sizes and bizarre costumes were entertainment enough.

By Tish Wells
McClatchy Newspapers (MCT)


Leo Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" has had a futuristic steampunk makeover in "Android Karenina."

The latest literary mash-up takes Tolstoy's classic novel of love and adultery in Russian high society and stuffs it full of robots, wormholes, spaceships and time travel.
Ben H. Winters, known for "Sense and Sensibility and Sea-Monsters" — a collaboration with Jane Austen — takes on the massive task of converting a thousand pages of a Russian literary masterpiece into a svelte science fiction action novel only half that long.

Winters says, "The main concern was to preserve the two love stories that between Anna and (her lover) Vronsky, and that between Levin and Kitty — we had to abridge the book and in abridging it, I had to make sure we kept everything relating to the love stories."

By Tawab Fakhri, Courier Correspondent

The Legend of Zelda series is a large franchise of Nintendo that has captured the hearts and minds of millions of gamers for years. The last Zelda game on the DS, Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, was the first handheld game for the Nintendo DS and was considered a critical success with its new style of touch-style play. Nintendo decided to further its luck by creating a sequel to this game- Zelda: Spirit Tracks. They hit the gold with this game; with new items, a fascinating plot line and a cleaner game interface, The Spirit Tracks will keep you playing from the beginning to the end.

Red Dead Redemption

By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune (MCT)


The problem with most video game westerns is that you don't need to appreciate the Old West to appreciate them. They're typically designed in the mold of other games, subbing in Old West iconography but otherwise bearing little distinction from so many other shooters covering completely different periods.

"Red Dead Redemption" doesn't have this problem, because while many of its underpinnings are unmistakably lifted from Rockstar's "Grand Theft Auto" games, the degree to which Rockstar caters those parts to the setting — instead of the usual other way around — gives it more Wild West conviction than the sum of almost every virtual western that preceded it.

By Chris Lee
Los Angeles Times (MCT)

VANCOUVER, Canada — Talk about a Bad Attitude.

As early December, darkness fell on the Vancouver set of Fox's $100-million movie reboot of "The A-Team," one of its stars, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, found himself fending off an all-too-familiar impulse. The urge to, well, rampage.

Pride of the Ultimate Fighting Championship and a former light-heavyweight champ (he last fought May 29 against Rashad Evans in Las Vegas, a bout Jackson lost in a unanimous decision) — a guy whose day job consists of beating the toughest men in the world into either submission or unconsciousness — Jackson stood in the middle of his trailer spewing invective with a glint of real menace in his eye.

By Alexys Cran, Courier Staff Writer

I have been a fan of The Honorary Title since middle school after watching their video for their hit single "Bridge and Tunnel" in 2004. Struck by lead singer Jarrod Gorbel's charming voice, lyrics, and looks, I have been hooked on most of their first album, "Anything Else But the Truth" and listen to it for nostalgia and reminiscing about being an awkward, whiny preteen. While those words may describe a large percentage of their current fans, that album includes some of my favorite songs, including "Everything I Once Had", and "Anything Else But the Truth". "Anything Else But the Truth" stands out in that album because of its seemingly cheery melody and guitar, yet the lyrics describe a helplessness that I had related to, reluctantly going through puberty.

By Thao (Michelle) Hoang, Courier Staff Writer

Music fans may remember the trio of brothers — Ashley, Austin and Adam Clark — from the reality show The Next Great American Band. At the time, they were called The Clark Brothers. They swept America off their feet, beating 10,000 other contestants for the title and scored a recording contract with 19 Recordings/Interscope Records in the process.

Now, three years later, the trio brothers changed their names to the Sons of Sylvia, to honor their mom, and are ready to make a fresh start into the music industry. Not too long ago, did they just release their debut album titled Revelation. Although it is categorized as Country music, it’s not quite what you would expect. It’s more of the Alternative Country Rock. On their new album, you will find 10 tracks that each displays a different genre. It consists of country, pop, rock, bluegrass, all combined with their good vocals.

By Brandie Moore, Courier Books Editor

It was funny. At a time like this, wasn't I supposed to be thinking serious thoughts of eternity, and the afterlife, and all that? As I glanced around me at all the small groups of people huddled around the room, it seemed that's what they were all thinking about. Each somber face reflected their pious thoughts, but all I could think about was the hair-drying incident. It was funny. I guess I should have been thinking about all the things I wanted to say. All the things I couldn't say. And all the things I'd never get a chance to say. But I didn't. It wasn't like any of this was really happening anyway. She's only been missing since June 9. Sixty-eight days. That's not long enough for her to be "dead."

Here is a new series for you all to get into. This one is a trilogy by Jessica Verday. Unfortunately The Hollow is the only book out in the series as of right now. It's also only out in hardcover as well. The paperback version of this novel comes out in August along with the second book.

By Billy O'Keefe
McClatchy-Tribune (MCT)


Nintendo has made zero bones about "Super Mario Galaxy 2" being more of the same stuff that made "Super Mario Galaxy" what it was, and because "Galaxy" was one of 2007's best games, no one really seemed bothered by the idea of "SMG2" being, at worst, the same fundamental game with new levels.

And at worst, that's exactly what this is. But that's also what the first "Galaxy" was — a prototypical 3D Mario game that had the same old story and was more notable for the unbelievable variety of new level designs it unleashed than any revolutionary change to the way players controlled Mario.