Women's Golf

Beach Boys return for IU homecoming after 25 years

By Zack Teibloom · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 8:45 p.m.

Charles Manson. John Stamos. The IU Auditorium. By the end of the Oct. 28 homecoming, all will have shared a stage with The Beach Boys -- a band that rock music professor Andy Hollinden argues is the greatest American rock band of all time. While the band is most famous for surfer pop hits such as "Surfin' U.S.A." and "California Girls," Hollinden said that in the '60s the California quintet had an enormous impact on rock music, in addition to having a fascinating story. The Beach Boys befriended Manson and recorded music with him before eventually testifying at his trial, spent time in India with the Maharishi and even jammed with Stamos, who starred as Uncle Jesse, on "Full House."

The star in you

By Alyson Brodsy and Stefania Marghitu · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 8:40 p.m.

Whether you idolize or ignore celebrities, it's hard to deny their impact on society. They determine everything from fashion trends to charity donations. Celebrities are held on a huge pedestal, and they are constantly being emulated. Females go through countless hours and dollars trying to look like the next "it" girl, but it's hard to have lips like Angelina Jolie's and hips like Shakira's. This leads me to believe that modern women have serious self-esteem issues. So instead of running on that treadmill or blogging your blues away, I would like to propose visiting www.myheritage.com. Just submit your snapshot and find out which celebrity you most resemble. Ladies, I strongly urge you to submit a good one because there's nothing more discouraging than a possible match-up with Courtney Love's mug shot.

Freedom of listen

By Alyson Brodsy and Jacob Stewart · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 8:34 p.m.

Thus far in my position as assistant Opinion editor of the Indiana Daily Student, I've had the opportunity to view the news cycle in an interesting manner. News is covered by reporters and published in our newspaper. The voices on the Opinion page then comment on that news. Soon, readers respond in our form of public sphere: the Jordan River Forum. I take it as a great honor that I'm the first one to see what you, the reader, have to say. Wonderful arguments are many times expounded, and inadequacies in our reporting or commentary revealed, for which we are very grateful. However, it's far too often that I'm privy to certain responses (which you, as the reader, sometimes are and sometimes are not allowed in on) that are far less helpful to theconversation.

Miserable miles

By Alyson Brodsy and Natalie A. Avon · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 8:29 p.m.

After searching many years for the most ridiculous thing a person could possibly do, my hunt abruptly halted in Columbus, Ohio, where I ran a marathon. That's right, a full marathon, 26.2 miles of pure pain and chafing galore. I'm sure we have all heard the cliché lines about life: Life is like a box of chocolates, life is like a roller coaster, life is like a big game of nude paintball, etc. I would like to add to this list: Life is like a marathon.

Big Brother's watching who?

By IDS staff and Alyson Brodsy · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 8:28 p.m.

The American Civil Liberties Union released documents Oct. 12, obtained via a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, showing that the Department of Defense has been monitoring antiwar activities on U.S. college campuses. These documents were collected from a Pentagon database known as the Threat and Local Observance Notice, or TALON, intended for collecting information on potential terrorist threats. Included are reports on various collegiate antiwar protests, such as an April 2005 incident in which 300 students and activists disrupted a University of California at Santa Cruz career fair attended by military recruiters and vandalized the recruiters' vehicles, and activities by a group called Students for Peace and Justice, which blocked the entrance to a recruitment office with two coffins draped with an American flag and an Iraqi flag, respectively.

Online Only: Pitiful in Paris

By Alyson Brodsy and Ayesha Awan · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 4:14 p.m.

There's a disturbing new psychological disorder out there; one that's affecting the lives of everyday people like you and me.

Lessons from the turf

By Alyson Brodsy and Jonathan P. Rossing · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 4:13 p.m.

After an ugly, college football brawl on Oct. 14 between players from the University of Miami and Florida International University, the public outcry and hasty judgments from several sports reporters was almost as disconcerting as the fight itself. The bench-clearing brawl included a player swinging a helmet at an opposing player, another swinging his crutches and plenty of cleat-stomping and fist-swinging in the tangle of bodies. The scene was certainly disturbing -- an embarrassing absence of sportsmanship. Undoubtedly, those who participated should be held accountable for their actions.

Poke me, woo me

By Alyson Brodsy and Colin Dugdale · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 4:12 p.m.

Once upon a power-hour, a thirsty group of students pregamed before attending the lavish ball -- otherwise known as sorority formal. Thanks to a magical fairy godmother named Natty Light, the evil stepmother of sobriety was defeated, all with a couple swigs of bippity boppity booze. Oh, yes, beer makes everyone feel like a princess.

Lost in the stacks

By Alyson Brodsy and Megan Robb · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 4:11 p.m.

OXFORD, England -- The Herman B Wells Library stacks might seem like large prison cells. The buzzing of its fluorescent lights might make students twitch. The 11th floor might be haunted. But IU Bloomington's main library offers more than what any library at Oxford University can: access -- and plenty of it.

One week till Borat -- I like!

By C. Warner Sills and Michael Mellini · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:31 p.m.

One Week! In one week's time, I shall finally bask in the comedic glory that will be "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan." As a college student, you're probably familiar with Borat, the character from comedian Sacha Baron Cohen's HBO show "Da Ali G Show." For those of you who somehow managed to live in the dorms and never had a 2 a.m. viewing, Borat is a fake professional journalist from Kazakhstan sent to America to learn about our culture. Oh, and he's extremely anti-Semitic, chauvinistic and will violate any social norm we have in our society. Telling people how he keeps his wife in a cage, searching for a place to buy slaves in the south and butchering the National Anthem are among some of the stunts he's pulled.

5 'Rocky Horror Survival tips from a 'Sweet Transvestite'

By C. Warner Sills and Kasey Hawrysz · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:29 p.m.

It's not every day a grown man can wear leather underwear and flash his genitalia in public. Even on Halloween, that stunt might not fly. But at the Buskirk Chumley's showing of the cult classic "Rocky Horror Picture Show," people just laugh. Of course, that is probably because the rest of the audience is dressed just as outrageously. Once a play in London -- called the "Rocky Horror Show" -- the show was turned into a movie in 1975, says Randy White, artistic director for the Bloomington performance group Cardinal Stage Company. The movie's story follows a couple stranded in an unfamiliar place and forced to take refuge in a freak house run by transvestites. But as a mainstream film, the movie was a flop.

Mr. Paranormal

By C. Warner Sills and Chris Freiberg · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:25 p.m.

One of the strangest phone calls George Noory has ever received on his radio program was from a doctor who claimed he once delivered a fully formed 10-pound clown. But right up there is the woman who says she makes love to reptiles. And the guy who every now and then gets picked up by aliens and taken for a quick joyride to Saturn. Noory, 56, is the week night host of the nationally syndicated late-night radio show "Coast to Coast AM," a program that regularly deals with tales of the paranormal, conspiracy theories and the occasional story of clown pregnancy.

Crikey!

By C. Warner Sills and Zack Teibloom · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:23 p.m.

When Elaine Raines grew up in the 1950s, Halloween costumes consisted of ghost costumes cobbled together from sheets and pillowcases and scarecrows formed from flannel, hay and straw hats. Popular costumes for guys were Mickey Mouse, Popeye and Frankenstein. She says she never had a store bought costume and had to rely on whatever was around the house. "It was whatever you could make up at home," she says. "You really just had to make your own. You had to use your imagination."

Rockstar hits the schoolyard

By C. Warner Sills and John Barnett · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:20 p.m.

Before those who presume themselves moral authority figures engage in a holy crusade against a video game, they ought to be required to understand the game's true content. Decried by fraudulent watchdog groups like Focus on the Family as a "Columbine simulator" before it even had a playable demo, Rockstar's "Bully" is actually an endearingly funny, thoughtful -- and yes, at times, mean-spirited -- take on life at a New England private school through the eyes of Jimmy Hopkins, a precocious 15-year-old trying to survive his freshman year.

Inside the mind of madness

By Olivia Morales · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:18 p.m.

The three films of Lodge Kerrigan invariably deal with two major themes: mental instability and yearning for the love of a child. On the surface, these two themes don't seem to intersect at all. Masterfully, however, Kerrigan has found ways to make them intertwine in his oft-disturbing, surreal and constantly brilliant films.

Califone sticks to its 'Roots'

By C. Warner Sills and Dan Hoppman · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:17 p.m.

For a band that has remained under the radar for the better part of a decade, Califone has accepted its indie status and successfully embraced its acoustic-driven, post-rock spirit. After many members played together in blues-influenced Red Red Meat throughout most of the 1990s, they morphed into a roots-based set-up in 1998, hailing from Chicago.

Badly drawn, also badly written

By C. Warner Sills and Brian J. McFillen · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:15 p.m.

How do you like your mush? If you said, "slathered in cheese," have I got a treat for you! After carefully listening to Born in the U.K., I've developed the following postulate: the discography of Damon Gough, a.k.a. Badly Drawn Boy, serves as an indie pop cautionary tale. The formula is simple: Take one "lo-fi baroque indie pop singer-songwriter," mix critical acclaim (2000's The Hour of Bewilderbeast), brush with mainstream success (2002's well-received soundtrack to "About a Boy"), then have him stew for several years turning out disappointing follow-ups. Once he's good and hungry for some success again, have him come out with another album. Now, what do you think it'll sound like?

Diddy diddy diddy diddy

By Sam Nissen · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:13 p.m.

Somebody kill me. Or, instead, kill the man who made me cop Diddy's newest, digest it and then vomit this your way. The new 80s music resurgence, marked by extravagant layers and hair band samples, isn't enough to buoy an overrated emcee.

Where have all the heroes gone?

By Olivia Morales · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:11 p.m.

It is a long-standing idea that the participants of World War II, and the people who lived in that era, are "The Greatest Generation." Their heroism is legendary, their lives were noble and their cause was just. At least, that is the way history has been written. At the heart of Clint Eastwood's adaptation of the novel "Flags of Our Fathers" is a questioning of that assertion, and a recreation of the merits of war exploring who we hold up as heroes.

'Antoinette' in translation

By Chris Wisner and compiled by Chris Wisner · Thursday, Oct. 26,2006 3:07 p.m.

Everyone knows who Marie Antoinette was, at least in terms of popular culture. Most people know she was beheaded and coined the phrase, "Let them eat cake." She was a terrible, irresponsible ruler, yes, but what most people forget is the fact that she was sent off to Versailles at the age of 15 without a clue as to how one rules a foreign land.