IUPD

Behrman trial postponed

By Sarah Core · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:59 p.m.

The upcoming trial of Ellettsville resident John R. Myers II, charged with the murder of 19-year-old IU student Jill Behrman who was killed six years ago, has been postponed by a month. Tuesday Morgan Superior Court Judge Christopher Burnham set the new trial date for Oct. 10, at the request of the defense's attorney Patrick Baker of Indianapolis. Baker initially asked for a continuance at a scheduled pre-trial hearing Monday afternoon, requesting more discovery time be allowed for research regarding the witnesses who will be presented at the trial.

Dozens more evacuated as wildfire tears through communities in California desert

By Alyson Brodsy · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:51 p.m.

YUCCA VALLEY, Calif. -- Firefighters evacuated dozens more people from their homes early Wednesday as a wildfire raced across the desert and destroyed several homes in an area where dozens of Hollywood Westerns were filmed. Wind exceeding 40 mph fanned the flames, and officials said they didn't expect the weather to change anytime soon. The fire had covered more than 17,000 acres. Dozens were evacuated from communities in Little Morongo Canyon and Burns Canyon. Up to 1,000 fled the flames Tuesday, authorities said.

Musical seeks to bring Rembrandt's troubled personal life to the stage

By Alyson Brodsy and Arthur Max · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:37 p.m.

HOORN, Netherlands - Like most Dutchmen, Henk Poort knew little about Rembrandt, beyond his two or three most famous paintings. Then Poort was asked to play the Dutch master on stage. "Rembrandt The Musical" sounds like classic kitsch, part of the commercial hoopla surrounding the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt's birth July 15. But the $12.5 million show is a lavish production that seeks to illuminate Rembrandt's exuberant and sometimes tragic life. As an artist, he is portrayed as rebellious and disdainful of popular opinion. As a person, he is a somewhat rakish figure bedeviled by three women.

'Mermaid': nuanced romance, little else

By Alyson Brodsy and Lindsey Landis · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:28 p.m.

Jessie Sullivan was sick of her life. Her husband was boring and restrictive. Her daughter had "flown the nest" and gone off to college. Her mother had started a rapid descent into madness. Jessie felt trapped and deprived of the right to have what she wanted out of life. So, she did the only logical thing a "desperate housewife" could do. She had a torrid love affair. In Sue Monk Kidd's latest novel, "The Mermaid Chair," which is currently in production for a TV movie of the same name starring Kim Basinger, Jessie flees her role as a mother and a wife to take care of her own mother, who has, for no apparent reason, begun to methodically chop off her own fingers.

Site allows viewers to zoom in anywhere in Indiana

By Julie Mahomed · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:26 p.m.

A recently completed interactive Web-based map built from digital aerial photographs will enable users to zoom in on any area of land within Indiana, said Rick Hill assistant director for technical services with the Indiana Geological Survey. The Indiana Geographic Information Council contracted IU's University Information Technology Services and the Indiana Geological Survey to create the IndianaMap. The project was funded with federal money as part of the 2004 Indiana State and Local Homeland Security Grant was set aside to fund this project -- the 2005 Indiana Orthophotography Program.

Students groove globally

By Allyson O’Connor · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:24 p.m.

The evening finished with a conga line weaving its way through the tables to a cacophony of maracas, tambourines, assorted rattling instruments and of course, a conga drum. Thirty-one middle school and high school teachers representing 11 countries danced off a dinner of Indian food catered by Shanti Monday night in the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center. The evening was part of a series of educational seminars and cultural events hosted by the International Studies Summer Institute. The two-week program emphasizing global education fosters the opportunity for teachers from around the world to interact with each other in the professional educational setting and on a very personal level.

1,000 register for marathon

By Ryne Shadday · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:23 p.m.

As the countdown ticker on the IU Mini Marathon's Web site clocks down the final two months until the race starts, organizers are growing more upbeat with every day. Reaching 1,000 registrants Friday, the inaugural event raising money for the Bill Z. Littlefield Scholarship for Survivors, a fund that will help a cancer survivor attend any of IU's eight campuses. The group said it's well underway of reaching its goal of 5,000 participants.

Break the cycle of hostility

By Alyson Brodsy and David A. Nosko · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:19 p.m.

As humanity strives for 21st century diplomacy within a world governed by 20th century tools of destruction, let all our global neighbors make no mistake: Threats of aggression backed by nuclear, chemical and biological weapons have no place or use in any civilized -- yet alone democratic -- world whatsoever. Weapons of mass destruction do not deter but instigate. When will our international leaders awake to the real challenges of peacemaking, arise from the nightmare of saber rattling, and realize humanity's dream of global well-being -- thus saving our children and grandchildren from the innate human fallibilities that lead to war?

Smoking mad

By Alyson Brodsy and Michelle Manchir · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:18 p.m.

I had a great time at the Counting Crows concert last Saturday in Indianapolis. Everything was pleasant: mild, sunny weather; enjoyable music, fun company, air full of disease and cancerous chemicals. What? Bloomington has spoiled me because, as it turns out, not every venue, restaurant or city is smoke-free. I'd nearly forgotten this until the concert experience was spoiled for me due to lack of sufficient breathable air. I understand that complaining about secondhand smoke is a stale (but still valid and winning) argument: Why should others have to suffer so a smoker can feed his/her addiction? I won't go there, because we all know of the ample evidence that secondhand smoke contains the same cancer-causing agents as that inhaled by a smoker, and can cause the same diseases.

Spirit of Mumbai

By Alyson Brodsy and Jordan DeLong · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:17 p.m.

Living in Washington, I take the Metro all the time. It's a fantastic way to commute, shuffling thousands of people around every day -- but also opening them to the risk of terrorist attacks. When I heard about yesterday's bombings in Mumbai (formally Bombay), India, my heart skipped a beat. Watching bloodied, wounded people being pulled from trains brought to mind all the times I've been on the subway here, and how vulnerable you really can be. I can imagine it. Trains crammed full of average, hardworking people trying to get home to their families - a split second later, there are people dying and injured.

Contracts, marriage and God

By IDS staff and Alyson Brodsy · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:16 p.m.

The movement for same-sex marriage has delivered a series of judicial body-blows this past week. The New York Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state's constitution did not provide gay couples a right to the institution. Shortly afterward, the Supreme Court of Georgia reinstated an anti-same-sex-marriage constitutional amendment. Then, on Tuesday, Massachusetts' Supreme Judicial Court -- the court whose ruling led to the legalization of same-sex marriage in the Bay State -- ruled that the legislature could ban it through a constitutional amendment. Ouch.

"Bubble-ologists" have fun with science

By Bethany Bannister-Andrews and Bethany BannisterAndrews · Wednesday, July 12,2006 7:14 p.m.

"Bubble-ologists" will take over Bloomington Frank Southern Ice Arena Friday. Bloomington's hands-on science museum, WonderLab, and Bloomington Parks and Recreation have teamed up for the 11th consecutive year to create the day-long BubbleFest, which is dedicated to the science and fun of bubbles. This annual, Bloomington-exclusive event invites people of all ages to become Bubble-ologists through the experiments and activities WonderLab will present. More than 20 different bubble-related activities will be set up in the arena for discovery and hands-on learning. More than 180 WonderLab volunteers have signed up to assist visitors and the WonderLab staff.

The man comes around one more time

By Alyson Brodsy and Chris Freiberg · Wednesday, July 12,2006 12:17 p.m.

Like most Americans with a full head of teeth and no extra chromosomes, I despise country music with a passion. Johnny Cash, however, is a different matter altogether. Yes, he was a country artist, but he was also a rebel, a rocker and a great storyteller. All in all, he was one of the greatest singer-songwriters to ever live. American V: A Hundred Highways, the first of two posthumous releases from Cash under Rick Rubin's American Recordings Label emphasizes these qualities on nearly every track. The album opens with "Help Me," a moving call for aid from the Lord delivered with Cash's trademark sharp clear vocal style. As this is the first of many songs with Christian overtones in it, the track sets up the album as almost more of a gospel effort than country.

A Dog's Life

By Alyson Brodsy and Meghan Lucas · Wednesday, July 12,2006 12:09 p.m.

Masters of slobber. Companions without question. Fetchers of all things imaginable. Dogs have been hailed as man's best friend and if the true test of a friend is who loves you when you're broke, tired, and testy, then our furry companions take the cake (and sometimes our favorite shoes). As a special treat for their canine companions, some dog enthusiasts have found a special space for their pooch to run free and socialize with other dogs at the Griffey Lake dog run. "Where I am from in Washington D.C, the dog park is the hub of social activity," Allison, the mom of two playful pugs, said. "People stand around and talk about their dogs. It's pretty great."

Counting down to the 'Metalocalypse'

By Alyson Brodsy and Rob O'Connor · Wednesday, July 12,2006 12:06 p.m.

This summer could certainly be considered a transitional period for Brendon Small. The fourth and final season of his first series, "Home Movies," came to DVD in June. And on August 6, his newest series, "Metalocalypse," will premiere on the Cartoon Network programing block [adult swim]. Brendon agreed to an interview with the Weekend to discuss the end of Brendon, Jason and Melissa, and the beginning of Dethklok.

Wild at Heart

By Alyson Brodsy and Carrie Ritchie · Wednesday, July 12,2006 11:58 a.m.

One of the state's best-kept secrets borders a tiny gravel road off of Highway 46 in Center Point, Ind., about an hour west of Bloomington. The entrance, almost hidden, leads to a stretch of land with some unexpected inhabitants -- almost 200 exotic cats. Exotic Feline Rescue Center owner Joe Taft walked slowly up a grass path between an enclosure with two servals and another with three lions. Even with his baseball cap on he squinted into the sun as he approached the chain link fence, the only thing that separates the cats from the humans at the center.

Protest!

By Alyson Brodsy and John Barnett · Wednesday, July 12,2006 11:56 a.m.

Pearl Jam's "VH1 Storytellers" installment that aired the week before last was typically poignant for said series, but there was one moment that overshadowed all the rest. Near the end of the program, Eddie Vedder introduced a cover of Phil Ochs' "Here's to the State of Mississippi" that tore the Bush Administration a new asshole and brought a tear to my eye. Independence Day wasn't far off, and understanding that nothing was more inherently American than dissent, I was inspired to piece together my list of the top 12 protest songs ever sung.

Cheaper than crack and just as addictive

By Alyson Brodsy and Fryburg84 · Wednesday, July 12,2006 11:55 a.m.

"UNO" on Xbox Live Arcade is exactly like the card game. That's the best compliment I can give it and also the biggest complaint that I have. For those of us who never played the game when we were kids, the object of "UNO" is to empty your hand of cards by filling your opponents' hands by using special cards, skipping their turns and just by all around screwing them over. Since all the shuffling and dealing is handled by the computer and the interface is extremely clean and easy to use, the gameplay is fast and furious, almost too fast to plan out any kind of strategy, but this also keeps the game from getting boring.

Criterion goes cult with 'Equinox'

By Alyson Brodsy and Chris Wisner · Wednesday, July 12,2006 11:51 a.m.

Every once in awhile the Criterion Collection likes to throw a curveball at its supporters in the form of a cult release; whether it be "The Blob," " Fiend Without a Face" or one of my personal favorites, "Carnival of Souls," nobody ever expects these releases. So how does a seemingly C-grade movie about a group of teenagers who find a book on the occult and release monsters from the very depths of Hell make it in the first place? One name: Dennis Muren.

Launch delayed

By Alyson Brodsy and Michael Mellini · Wednesday, July 12,2006 11:47 a.m.

Yeah…so when your movie sucks it's probably not such a great idea to put "failure" in the title. Matthew McConaughey plays eligible bachelor, Tripp, who at 35 years old, still lives with his parents. Frustrated by their situation, and jealous of their friend's sex lives (which brings back bad memories of Kathy Bates' "About Schmidt" hot tub scene), Tripp's parents (Bates and Terry Bradshaw) hire Paula (Sarah Jessica Parker) to date their son and get him to move out for good. Just like with McConaughey's "How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days," (in which both leads have hidden agendas for why they want the relationship to falter) a premise that could make for a decent romantic comedy is wrongly executed, resulting in crap. It'd make more sense if Paula had found the man of her dreams, only to learn he still lives at home. And then maybe with some help from the parents, works to get him to leave; not because she is being paid to do so. Paula calls herself a "professional interventionist," which sounds more like a fancy term for hooker.