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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!!!" Sunday, 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 103 times, and hasn't seen it (predicting an early spring) only 18 times. Phil's track record is hotly disputed. In general, Groundhogs Do Not Make Good Meteorologists. 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 (while BuzzFeed compiles trivia). 
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. More examples can be found at the NYT and 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 conclude: 
...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 Faithfull (who just passed away, see below). THE LEMON TWIGS play KEXP. J MASCIS covers The Cure's "Breathe." SPARKS returns with “Do Things My Own Way.” MANIC STREET PREACHERS: Reflections On A Splintered World. MARINNE FAITHFULL, singer and actress, and Mick Jagger's ex-girlfriend and inspiration for "Wild Horses" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want," has died at the age of 78. Her classic album Broken English was in moderate rotation at the record store that was my second home in college. Jagger, Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood, and many non-Stones paid tribute. KARLA SOFIA GASCON, the star of Emilia Perez, is under fire for a series of social media posts to her account on X, formerly known as Twitter, in which the actor appears to express controversial views on Muslims, George Floyd and diversity at the Oscars. ANTHONY MACKIE wishes everyone would just chill and enjoy a Captain America movie. WILL SMITH & BIG SEAN teamed up on the single ‘Beautiful Scars’ and shared its The Matrix-themed video. MADONNA performed a surprise stand-up set at a New York comedy club. JEFF GOLDBLUM teases special guests on his upcoming album. THE BBC apologized to staff members who felt they were unable to raise complaints or concerns about Russell Brand‘s behavior while he worked at the broadcaster. KAIA GERBER & LEWIS PULLMAN are getting cozy? MATTHEW LILLARS is returning for Scream 7. STAR WARS: The Galactic Starcruiser hotel is being converted into offices for Walt Disney Imagineering. A DOGGO tries to change the subject. BOOP to light the lamp. A GOLDEN brings an emotional support duck for his hydrotherapy session.
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