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Now you can get comics on your iPhone. Check it out:

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This event sounds really geeky … and you know we love geeky stuff ’round here. Check it out:

HOLLYWOOD MONSTER MEN COMING TO NORTH CAROLINA OCTOBER 4-5!

Start celebrating Halloween on October 4th and 5th by meeting and getting autographs from actors that have portrayed two of Hollywood’s most famous horror movie icons, Friday The 13th’s Jason Voorhees and Halloween’s Michael Myers.  Actors, Ken Kirzinger and Brad Loree will be special guests at this year’s Comics & Toys MonsterCon in Concord, NC.   (www.comicmonstore.com)

The Comics & Toys MonsterCon is a 2-day, multi-fandom convention for fans of superheroes, science-fiction, horror, fantasy, games, anime, and performing arts.   The event will take place at the Cabarrus Arena and Events Center (www.cabarrusarena.com).

On Saturday & Sunday, you will find a wide variety of merchandise from dealers coming from all over the East Coast & beyond.  In addition, you’ll be able to meet celebrities, comic book creators, novelists, movie makers and several other special guests.  There will also be plenty of entertainment including gaming, discussion panels, stand-up comedy, trivia contests, costume contests, and much more.  On Saturday night, you’ll find plenty of music and merriment at the convention after party and concert.  The Graveyard Boulevard, The Tremors, Psycho Charger and a few other bands will thrill convention goers with their skele-tunes.  Single Cell Productions will also be providing their own style of madness and mayhem.

Costumes are encouraged at the most anticipated “Supernatural, Sci-Fi, Superhero Show” on the East Coast.

Tickets can be purchased in advance through the official Comics & Toys MonsterCon website, www.comicmonstore.com/convention, or at the door.  Daily tickets or two day passes are available.

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For all you pretty people out there who keep up with the ever-changing trends of the fashion world, check out this event tonight.

Fashion Friday at Salara

You are invited  to Fashion Friday @ Salara hosted by Jordanos Mens & Womens Boutique and presented by JSW Media Group and Salara Bistro and Dessert Lounge. Expect an evening of great music, spectacular models showcasing fabulous fall fashions and incredible giveaways. You don’t want to miss this stylish event.

Five Generous Door Prizes will be Given to Select Attendees.
Each Giveaway includes:
-2 Passes to Charlotte NC Fashion Week
-$225 Gift Certificate from Couture Portraits by Heather
-$50.00 Gift Certificate from Urbana Cityspa & Teabar
-Free Treatment from Planet Beach
-$25.00 Gift Certificate from Armis Salon & Day Spa
- Free Eyebrow and Hydration Treatment from Potion
-Free T-Shirt from Lifestyle Brand Rise Sport
-Free CD “Future Sounds 32 Mix from Tankfarm Clothing”

Models provided by Carolina Talent Modeling Agency
Hair and Makeup courtesy of Armis Salon & Day Spa

Where & When
Date: August  22, 2008
Time: 8:30 p.m.-1:00 a.m.
Salara Bistro & Dessert Lounge
Ballantyne Village
14825 John J. Delaney Dr. Ste. 160
Charlotte, NC 28277

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• SCI FI Cancels A Stargate, Launches Another

• Favreau is at work on ‘Iron Man’ sequel and a political cause

• WILL ANYONE WATCH THE WATCHMEN?

• Vin Diesel Beats Up Everyone In Science Fiction

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The pop culture Web site Newsarama just posted this interesting tidbit about the creation of Superman. Newsarama’s Jeff Trexler writes:

It’s relatively common knowledge that in 1934 Jerry Siegel approached other artists besides Joe Shuster to be his collaborator on Superman. One of these artists was Russell Keaton, who had been ghosting the Buck Rogers Sunday pages. Siegel and Keaton maintained a brief correspondence over the character, with Keaton eventually deciding “not to gamble on such a young and inexperienced writer.”

For the full story visit Newsarama.

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Having just extolled the virtues of Slut in print – after diligently documenting the parental potholes to be found along Avenue Q – I claim a special credibility as I turn with alarm toward the wretched efforts of local arts organizations to publicize events that offer clean wholesome entertainment to parents who still care. You can easily rely on Children’s Theatre of Charlotte to provide a consistently clean slate of family-friendly fare – their web site helps you to steer clear of programming that’s too juvenile for full family enjoyment. Parents can also navigate past programming targeted toward high schoolers where issues and subjects may be too advanced.
Otherwise, only Charlotte Symphony offers a convenient gateway – if you’re already hip to their fine LolliPops series. Try hooking up with NC Dance Theatre’s Matinee Magic series and your surfing isn’t nearly as easy. You basically need to sift through the complete 2008-2009 Season to find the kid-friendly fare because none of these are on the Matinee Magic page, which confines itself strictly to subscriber benefits. Want to know when the matinees begin? Scroll to another page, please.
Jungle is densest at the NC Blumenthal PAC site. You need to scroll through all upcoming events and make your own parental judgments, a daunting task when you consider how much is happening at their seven venues in coming months.
True, PAC webmasters have thought about simplifying navigation. You can easily find an EVENTS tab on the home page. Yes, when you point your mouse there, a menu opens and behold, FAMILY FRIENDLY appears among the choices. Trouble is, you get a “No Results Found” message when you click on it. Although you will find kid-friendly NCDT events among the 14 on the DANCE page, none have migrated to the PG page. Parents who can’t discriminate between Chicago and Mamma Mia are treading through a minefield on the BROADWAY page.
Two words to all of our sleepwalking big presenters: Fix it!

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Live Review: Lend Me a Tenor

July 31, 2008. Duke Family Performance Hall, Davidson College.

The Deal: Davidson Community Players tackle the speedy slamming of doors comedy Lend Me a Tenor, written by Ken Ludwig. Directed by Jim Yost, the productions cast features DCP favorites Matt Merrell (seen in other DCP productions Rounding Third, Don’t Dress for Dinner, and Rumors) as Max, along with Kevin Roberge as tenor, Tito Morelli. Roberge recently appeared in DCP’s Little Women: The MusicalHello, Dolly. and

The Good: This was a theatrical escapade not worth missing. Doors slammed and beds bumped as two Tito Morelli’s (the imposter and the real one) roamed the housed set. This was a dashing comedy that actually made the audience fill with laughter.

The Bad: Not a thing. Oh course, the storyline was a little far-fetched, but what do expect out of a play? Also, due to some adult content, the show wasn’t suited for all ages.

The Verdict: All in all, Lend Me a Tenor, proved to be exciting and funny. The set was well-produced, costume and design satisfactory, but the real treat came from the cast. They turned what could have been a flop of a comedy into a grape spitting, action-packed room of likable (and not so likable characters) who hit all the right notes.

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Check out a piece I recently wrote for the Charlotte-based African-American search engine RushmoreDrive.com: Lookin’ for Black Superman.

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Evolution is slow on the Charlotte arts scene, and developments at the Arts & Science Council are encouraging. At an ASC briefing last Friday, President & CEO Lee Keesler observed that Charlotte does a good job from the top down of funding and fueling arts groups that have reached maturity but that we’re weak in developing and nurturing new or struggling groups from the bottom up. Good Charlotte diagnosis: Robust corporations but scraggly grassroots. (more…)

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Novelist AlTonya Washington didn’t let a rejection from her publisher kill her wildly popular series.

In January, Washington, an award-winning and multi-published author, self-published her first book, A Lover’s Regret. The response, she says, was great, and this month she released her fifth book in the Ramsey series, A Lover’s Worth. She recently talked to Creative Loafing about her publishing experiences:

CL: You’ve self published another book; what’s it about?

AlTonya Washington: A Lover’s Worth focuses on Moses Ramsey whose real fear of being like his father Marcus Ramsey pushes him to betray Johari Frazier in the name of protecting her. Now years later, Moses strives to prove his worth and win back the woman he loves. Problem? Johari hates him and carries a secret that could devastate Moses more than he knows.

How did readers respond to you taking publishing into your own hands, and have you seen a good return on your investment?

The readers have really responded favorably and they were very supportive of my going forth with the series and not letting it fizzle because the publishers chose not to continue. I couldn’t imagine letting down my readers who had already become so involved with the Ramseys and yes, the return on my investment has been just as favorable.

Are you still working with a traditional publisher — and if you are, what books do you have coming from them?

Yes, I have two titles coming out in August 2008. Rival’s Desire (Harlequin/Kimani) and Passion’s Furies (Genesis Press).

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