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The big-budget film shot by philanthropic UVA grad Tom Shadyac largely in Crozet has stumbled with critics and now audiences, as opening weekend box office reports indicate that even coming in at #1 is no guarantee of avoiding bomb-hood when the production budget tops $175 million.
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Inauguration at the Paramount
The Paramount Theater wants to invite you over to watch the Inauguration Tuesday, January 20 live in HD. But unlike you or most of your friends, they have a TV with a 43-foot screen! (Man, if only they’d ask us over to watch the NFL playoffs). Tickets for the event, which starts at 11am, are free and will be available beginning tomorrow at 10am at the Downtown box office, by phone (434-979-1333), and online. (0)
Sparky's Flaw changes name to 'Parachute,' plays ball drop
At first, we thought Coran Capshaw may want to assemble his legal team. Trolling MySpace this morning, the Hook found a band that looks and sounds just like the Charlottesville band turned major label Capshaw client Sparky’s Flaw, only they’re called “Parachute.” But after further investigation, it would appear that Sparky’s Flaw is no more, and that the quintet from Charlottesville are now known by this new moniker. They also had the chance to recruit about a million more fans on New Year’s Eve, playing on New Year’s Eve just after 6pm in New York’s Times Square on the “Nivea Countdown” stage along with platinum-selling rapper Ludacris, country-pop sensation Taylor Swift, and Disney teen idols the Jonas Brothers. How illustrious was the newly named band’s company? The acts for which Parachute opened have sold a combined 4.3 million albums in only the last four months. (3)
Work begins on Mall "revitalization" project
Workers have begun putting up blockades and tearing up bricks at central locations on the Downtown Mall–Central Place, in front of the Downtown Grill and Mudhouse, just past the Nook–and now there’s even a fancy blog to track the progress, complete with photos, images of the construction phasing, a mixed media display of the Mall’s history, and press links…though any links to the many Hook stories that were written about the project appear to be missing… Update 1/6/09 3:12 pm: there is now a link to a Hook story on the website. (14)
Smarter in Blacksburg?
Here’s something else to spur a Tech/UVA rivalry. Forbes Magazine just selected its 20 Most Educated Small Towns, and while Charlottesville is nowhere to be seen (hey, we thought this was egg-head central), Blacksburg, Virginia comes in at number 14. Citing the presence of Virginia Tech, which employs 1,371 full-time professors and 1,690 other faculty and research associates, Forbes calculates that 42.7 percent of its 41,492 population have advanced degrees and 31.6 percent have bachelor’s degrees. McLean, Virginia came in at number 4, Chapel Hill, North Carolina at number 12…and the smartest small town in America: Bethesda, Maryland. (15)
The surviving members of the Grateful Dead are reuniting for their first tour in nearly five years, and among the concerts is one Wednesday, April 15 right here in Charlottesville.
