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Groundhog Day, Best Coast + Wavves, Richard Thompson, Elephants   Printer-friendly page   Send this story to someone
Wednesday, February 02, 2011 - 08:00 AM
Posted by: Karl

Karl

I got flowers...in the Spring...

First D.J.: "Rise and shine, campers and don't forget your booties 'cause it's cooooold out there today." Second D.J.: "It's cold out there every day. What is this, Miami Beach?" First D.J.: "Not hardly. So the big question o­n everybody's lips..." Second D.J.: "O­n their chapped lips..." First D.J.: "...their chapped lips is, 'Does Phil feel lucky?' Punxsatawney Phil! That's right, woodchuck chuckers it's...

(IN UNISON): GROUNDHOG DAY!!!"

Today, Punxsutawney Phil ---  the Seer of Seers, Sage of Sages, Prognosticator of Prognosticators, and Weather Prophet Extraordinary will predict whether we will have six more weeks of winter.  According to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, Phil has seen his shadow 97 times, and hasn't seen it (predicting an early spring) only 14 times.  Phil's track record is hotly disputed, though he's has had a pretty good run recently.  Nevertheless, thousands will await the sunrise and the groundhog at Gobbler's Knob in the tiny Pennsylvania hamlet that has become known as the "Weather Capital of the World," due in no small part to the movie that makes every day Groundhog Day.

This is o­ne time where the Internet really fails to capture the true excitement of a movie about a large squirrel predicting the weather. However, you can see the trailer as a refresher.

In 2005, Roger Ebert revisited Groundhog Day, declaring that the film "finds its note and purpose so precisely that its genius may not be immediately noticeable. It unfolds so inevitably, is so entertaining, so apparently effortless, that you have to stand back and slap yourself before you see how good it really is."

At the other end of the political spectrum, Jonah Goldberg's equally effusive movie meditation grabbed the cover of National Review: "When I set out to write this article, I thought it'd be fun to do a quirky homage to an offbeat flick, o­ne I think is brilliant as both comedy and moral philosophy. But while doing what I intended to be cursory research -- how much reporting do you need for a review of a twelve-year-old movie that plays constantly o­n cable? -- I discovered that I wasn't alone in my interest. In the years since its release the film has been taken up by Jews, Catholics, Evangelicals, Hindus, Buddhists, Wiccans, and followers of the oppressed Chinese Falun Gong movement."

Indeed, a 2004 article mentioned by Ebert (but not linked) from London's Independent observes that the Harold Ramis comedy has been hailed by some religious leaders as the most spiritual film of all time. In addition to the examples given in that article, another can be found at the Christian Science Monitor.

As Phil Connors ultimately observed: "When Chekhov saw the long winter, he saw a winter bleak and dark and bereft of hope. Yet we know that winter is just another step in the cycle of life. But standing here among the people of Punxsutawney and basking in the warmth of their hearths and hearts, I couldn't imagine a better fate than a long and lustrous winter."

ACCORDINGLY, we start off a new day:

...with Sonny & Cher o­n Hullabaloo and famously o­n Letterman years later, plus UB40 with Chrissie Hynde, not to mention The Cynics (from the Bonograph tribute CD), and David Bowie & Marianne Faithful. A bit more for Fivefer Wednesday.

ADVISORY: I'm in a blizzard, but I hope to have something for Thursday, provided the electricity doesn't go out (knocks on wood). Phil predicts an early Spring, but the short-term is another matter.

BEST COAST & WAVVES played DC's 9:30 Club the other night; you can stream both sets on demand via NPR.

RICHARD THOMPSON plays a Tiny Desk Concert at the officies of NPR.

VIVIAN GIRLS drop "I Heard You Say" as the lead single from the upcoming Share the Joy LP.

THE KILLS drop "Satellite" in advance of the Blood Pressures LP.

R.E.M. have dropped a video for "Mine Smell Like Honey" from the upcoming Collapse Into Now.

DEERHOOF takes Drowned In Sound on a track-by-track tour of their new album, Deerhoof vs. Evil.

THE RAVEONETTES: Sune Rose Wagner says the band's newly-completed LP is "quite unique for what we have done," like the work of Bernard Hermann.

GANG OF FOUR: Original bassist Dave Allen has an airing of grievances.

INTERPOL guitarist Daniel Kessler talks songwriting, the departure of bassist Carlos Dengler and more with Straight.com.

CHARLIE SHEEN: CBS has ordered two additional episodes of Monday sitcoms Mike and Molly and Rules of Engagement to help cope with scheduling issues arising from his absence from the hit show Two and a Half Men. Sheen's family is quietly discussing going to court to gain conservatorship over him, according to RadarOnline. Also, the new punchline is "Two and a Half Minutes."

LINDSAY LOHAN was snapped arriving home with her friend Patrick at 3am this morning, and X17's photographers say the starlet looked like she "had definitely been drinking." 

CHRISTINA APPLEGATE and her fiance, rocker Martyn LeNoble, welcomed Sadie Grace LeNoble on Thurs. Jan. 27.

MARIAH CAREY and husband Nick Cannon are expecting a boy-and a girl, according to Life & Style. Translation: grain of salt.

CYNDI LAUPER looks like Hell, but says she's going to be okay.

RICKY GERVAIS reveals he's been asked to host the Golden Globes again, despite the controversy he caused hosting last month's ceremony. Whether that's legit or kabuki remains to be seen, given that Gervais isn't leaping to accept.

JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT is in talks to join The Dark Knight Rises.

JOAQUIN PHOENIX may unretire to play Abraham Lincoln's vampire-slaying instructor in the big-screen adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith's ‘Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.'

THE KENNEDYS miniseries will world premiere on April 3 on the ReelzChannel.

VANITY FAIR previews its Hollywood 2011 cover. Young Hollywood gets the best bartender ever.

TERROR IN ITALY: An Italian court convicted a former Guantanamo detainee named Mohamed Ben Riadh Nasri of terrorsm-related charges on Monday.

EGYPT: The Lede continues to provide updates on street protests in EgyptMubarak wants to hold on through the next election (presumably accelerated), but the opposition seems, er, opposed, saying that they would only begin talks with the military on a transition to democracy once Mubarak stands down.  The Muslim Brotherhood claims there are already talks between the military and the opposition to push him out, while Mohammed ElBaradei's allies claim he's also been talking to the army about possibly being named interim president.

IRAN: The Iranian parliament dismissed  Ahmadinejad's transportation minister. The Iranian government and the opposition both support Egyptian protesters. Tehran criticized the British defense secretary's prediction that Iran will have nuclear weapons in the next year.

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT: Beethoven for Elephants.

HEIDI the CROSS-EYED POSSUM has been asked to present at the Oscars.

A MONKEY is behind bars after a Reidsville, NC, woman says it bit and scratched her while she was trying to change the water in its bowl.

SCRUFFY ARCHIE comes home after almost two years. Aw.

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