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Summer Movies 2009
To boldy go where no movies have gone before
By Hippo Staff letters@hippopress.com

It does not get better than summer at the movies.

Sure, summer has a big shiny crazy reputation when it comes to movies (a blockbuster a week, lots of stuff blowing up), but that doesn’t mean you can’t find some quality flicks. Last year’s summer movies were better than last year’s Oscar movies — I will put Iron Man, The Dark Knight and WALL-E, not to mention a few of the French mysteries that floated into theaters last summer, up against the likes of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button any day. This summer has some promising event movies as well as some comedies and even a decent-looking horror movie.

THEATER: Review: Actorsingers produces The Producers
Community company pulls off Mel Brooks’ musical
By Heidi Masek hmasek@hippopress.com

A top reason to go see the Actorsingers’ presentation of Mel Brooks’ The Producers is that they have a cast full of strong singers.

LONGSHOTS: Celtics bull their way into round two — finally!
by Dave Long

Now that the Celtics-Bulls series has settled the non-sense over which is more entertaining at its peak — college basketball or the NBA — I can get on to some other matters from the truly great series.

FOOD: Give the gift of nobody doing dishes
The many places to treat mom to a meal
By Linda A. Thompson-Odum food@hippopress.com

Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 10 — so you still have a bit of time to make those brunch or dinner reservations to help Mom celebrate.

TECH: Go organic
LEDs made without pesticides —  probably
By John “jaQ” Andrews  jandrews@hippopress.com

As I type, it’s a bright, sunny April day. In New Hampshire, that means it’s about 55 degrees outside, but in comparison to the last six months, it’s positively balmy, so I’m outside.

POP CULTURE: Dork vs. Dork: Star Trek
Boldly nerding back into space  — with guest dork John “jaQ” Andrews and his ‘Mirror, Mirror’ alter ego
By Glenn Given production@hippopress.com & Dan Szczesny dszczesny@hippopress.com

By the silicon ears of Leonard Nimoy if ever there were a franchise in desperate need of a hard reboot it’s the doddering Trek universe. Seriously now, I’ve memorized my share of starship floor plans and anesthesized my brain enough to allow a “demodulated deflector array” to perform feats of techno wizardry that would make Stephen Hawking jump up and shout Hallelujah!

WINE: A lifted prohibition
Absinthe is not for the weak (or the cheap)
By Tim Protzman food@hippopress.com

At the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, there are two great works by American Modernist Edward Hopper.