Arts and Entertainment – Page 12

Bypass Surgery for the Heart of the City

One of the country’s oldest farmers’ market is getting a tune-up.

Lancaster Central Market, located in the heart of the city, has been more than just an occasional meeting place. Residents of the city and surrounding areas have been congregating in and around the red brick building on a weekly basis since 1889.

For the past 121 years, the Market building hasn’t changed much and outwardly, it still won’t. However, the market will experience several changes in the small things.

“Any changes will be in the details,” Market Manager (formerly known as Market Master) Michael Ervin said about the construction.

Central Market Lancaster — Central Market construction begins. Photo By Juan Montes.

Improvements will include modifications to the windows, electrical system, mechanical system, plumbing system and the masonry.

The market will be attempting to go “green” by installing 40 state-of-the-art, energy efficient light bulbs as compared to the 480 inefficient lights currently in use.

“It’s good they can focus on the environment without losing their historical aura,” said Penn Manor junior and Central Market attendee Haley Blazer.

The restrooms will also be improved, which comes as a relief to many market-goers.

“The toilets are kind of disgusting, so cleaner toilets are necessary,” said sophomore Brendan Kincade.

In total, the project will cost around $7 million and be finished sometime in March 2011.

The Market is running on its normal schedule, with three stands taking a break for every two-week period. Ervin said Central Market has not lost any business.

By Juan Montes and Sarah Schaeffer

Indie Artist Comes to Penn Manor

Bess Rogers is going to “Travel Back” to Lancaster on April 15.

Recruited by Kim McMullen, Penn Manor art teacher, through a Penn Manor Education Foundation grant, the semi-famous indie artist will perform and speak with students and faculty.

McMullen describes Rogers’ music as: “she’s anywhere from indie pop, to 80’s and country…it’s just such a vast spectrum.”

She and Rogers met in true indie fashion. After a concert, McMullen invited Rogers to ‘crash on her couch.’

Rogers has appeared on Ellen, The CBS Early Show, and is awaiting an appearance on The Rachel Ray Show, and her music has been featured on TNT’s “Raising the Bar” while apparently maintaining a happy obscurity.

She often swaps between her solo work, and performances with Ingrid Michaelson, The Flux Capacitors (dedicated to bluegrass covers of 80s songs), and The Age of Rockets, an orchestral/electronica group, who have been compared to “The Postal Service meets a grand orchestra.”

The event will also be host to the “Be a Fan, Bring a Can” drive, a sort of “optional admission fee.” Food gathered will be donated to the Solanco Food Bank, which supports 14 families within the Penn Manor School District.

By Kennedy Phillips

PMTV: Unrated Edition

The average American is captured on a closed-circuit television camera 200 times a day, according to a major documentary on the subject of hidden security.

For students, around 25 percent of that may occur during school.

The cameras set up in and around Penn Manor High School can record a student almost 50 times a day, and the cameras also cover the sports fields and streets surrounding the grounds, according to school resource officer, Jason Hottenstein.

Most of Penn Manor’s cameras were received through a donation, and while there are currently no plans to add more, upgraded models are being eyed, according to Hottenstein.

Camera 2 — A camera at the entrance of Penn Manor High School. Photo by Kennedy Phillips

The number of cameras in Lancaster city currently outweighs those in larger cities, like Boston and San Francisco, and recently, Lancaster’s cameras made national news, and was named “The most watched city in the U.S.”

The problem is, a record of the event is excellent evidence, but the threat of a record is a poor deterrent.

These camera systems are not always effective at preventing theft and violence. The CCTV system of Baltimore city is being dismantled because, according to the state attorney’s office, “We have not used any footage to resolve a violent-crime case.”

In other words, Big Brother isn’t doing his job.

And even though students might feel “watched,” they should count themselves lucky; cameras in dressing rooms and public restrooms are legal in 37 states, Pennsylvania included.

In fact, security cameras are now so common, 2009 saw the release of a docu-fiction titled Look, billed as “the ultimate look at our big brother world.” It is shot entirely through CCTV footage.

by Kennedy Phillips

The Last Song: A Flat Note

Some critics say that after seeing, ‘The Last Song”, the title is exactly what they hope from Miley Cyrus.

Nicholas Spark’s, ‘The Last Song’ is a story about a rebellious teenage girl, Ronnie, (Miley Cyrus) who returns to her Dad’s house in the summer, the man whom she hasn’t talked to since her parent’s divorce. While there, Ronnie experiences romance, betrayal and tragedy.

Read on for a male and female perspective of the movie.

Lindsey Ostrum (LO): The plot of the movie was good for a ‘chick-flick’ kind of movie, but the actors they chose didn’t fit the characters.

Mike Nitroy (MN): It wasn’t so much the actors, but the screenplay. The movie seemed to spend too much time on Ronnie and her boyfriend then what the movie should really be about, reconnecting with her and her father.

LastSongposterMarch31 — The Last Song doesn't carry a tune with either gender. Photo from wikipedia.com

LO: The fact that Cyrus was playing a rebellious character didn’t fit either. She’s too known as a preteen comedy actress to take on a role that different. Her acting ability isn’t so good that she knows how to portray different roles.

MN: Just having Cyrus in the movie probably drove as many people away as it brought in. She’s more believable in the second half of the movie when she takes the role of the caring daughter.

LO: The chemistry between Cyrus and her on screen boyfriend, Will (Liam Hemsworth), was believable because they are dating in real life. It just wasn’t the chemistry that the two characters in the story should have. The parts they were trying to play seemed too different than their actual personalities.

MN: The chemistry was fine for a clichéd Nicholas Sparks movie that when it comes down to it, only had one unexpected event.

LO: It was really sad though. It brought out emotion and it wasn’t a bland ‘all about love’, romance movie.

MN: The fact that about two-thirds of the theater audience was sniffing through the movie confirms the sadness. There weren’t any tears from these eyes though. The best part of the movie was the soundtrack that ranged through multiple genres.

LO: The idea of the story was overall well done.

MN: It was medium-rare.

LO: They just picked two wrong actors for two good parts.

MN: Waiting to rent it on DVD is probably better than sitting in a cold theater around 30 people without tissues.

By Lindsey Ostrum and Mike Nitroy

Click Click Boom!

You’ve heard of them, you see commercials about them, and if you’re a button mashing monster you know exactly what I’m talking about: video games.

Many students at Penn Manor play video games, as do students all over the globe; but what are the most played and most fun-tastic games according to the students at Penn Manor?

In a recent survey given out to 122 students during A, B and C lunch the number one game is “Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2,” with 48.4% of the votes! Following Modern Warfare 2 is Halo 3, which had 27.9% of the votes, and Madden 10 with 10.6% of the student body votes.

However, these are only the top three games others that were mentioned during the survey. Other games such as Grand Theft Auto 4, Call of Duty 4, Gears of war 2, Fallout 3, World of Warcraft, Left for Dead 2, Oblivion and Bioshock 2 were also included in the student survey.

“Graphics and realism is (sic) what makes Modern Warfare 2 so great,” said junior Zach Ackerman.

videogames — Mw2 and Madden 10 are in the top 3 most favorable games in Penn Manor. Photo by Gabby Myers

Modern Warfare 2 (Mw2) is a first-person shooter game, meaning that it’s played as if the player is actually in the game. Mw2 is the sequel to Call of Duty 4 (COD4). The plot is set in the year 2012, 5 years after the ending of COD4, which “took place” in 2007.

Some students disagreed with Ackerman and preferred Halo 3 over Modern Warfare 2.

“I think it’s (Halo 3) better because the game is more balanced,” said Sophomore Logan White. “I only play Modern Warfare 2 because my friends play it, and yeah that’s mostly it.”

Halo 3 is also a first person shooter game. It’s the sequel to Halo 2. The events in Halo 3 take place 2 weeks after the events in Halo 2, on the date of November 17, 2552.The premise of the game is humans vs. the Covenant, an alien force terrorizing the human population.

“The things that were wrong in Modern Warfare 2 are better in Halo 3,” said Matt Nauman.

Madden 10 is a football game that originally came from Austalia but was released into the US on August 14, 2009.

” There’s so much detail put into the players and it really captures that art of the game, overall it’s pretty realistic,” said Senior Ralph Feltman.

By Gabby Myers

Mac vs PC – The Great Debate

Hello, I’m a Mac, and I’m a PC.

In a recent Penn Manor study, students were asked what their favorite computer is, Mac or PC?

We found that of the 20 students polled, a majority (11) chose PCs over Macs.

But on both sides of the discussion, opinions are strong.

“Macs are more convenient,” said Justin Herr, “PCs have a lot of ins-an-outs and what-have-yas.”

When buying a Mac, some people say you’re just paying for the name.

The lowest priced MacBook is $999 and the lowest priced iMac is $1,199.

For only $479.99 you can buy an HP laptop with nearly the same specs as the $999 MacBook.

You can buy an HP desktop for $549.99 with almost the exact specs of the $1,199 iMac.

Penn Manor science

teacher, Paul Chismar said, “The only reason I like Macs is because I have gotten use to using them at school.”

“PC’s you can right click, Macs you have to control, apple, F,Q and crap,” said Penn Manor junior Cody Welch.

“I love macs because of their user friendly format and the lack of viruses,” said Penn Manor English teacher Greg McGough, pointing out one of the major upsides of a mac and one of the major flaws of a PC.

As far as an exact number of viruses for macs, it is hard to tell because it all depends on what you consider a virus and what operating system you are using.

When looking at the number of viruses for a windows operating system like Windows Vista, their is not an exact number, but according to Networkworld.com, “The total number of viruses will reach 1 million by year-end, according to security experts.”

One argument is that PCs are better than Macs when it comes to gaming, which

HP desktop — An HP Desktop. Photo courtesy of elerush.com

attracts a lot of young users.

On the other hand, Penn Manor sophomore Matt Ulmer said, “I like Macs because they’re better for gaming.”

Welch disagrees, “I’m a gamer you know,” when asked why he is a PC user.

So it comes down to a matter of opinion when you are talking Mac versus PC, but at Penn Manor, PC is victorious, slightly.

Stay tuned next week, when the debate continues over video games.

By Zane Sensenig and Paul Slaugh

Animation Domination

If Eric Cartmen, Stewie and Bart Simpson took part in an epic animated battle, who would win?

In a recent Penn Manor study, three of the leading animated comedies were polled to find out what show students preferred.

The shows that were polled include: “Family Guy”, “South Park” and “The Simpsons.”

“Family Guy” was first aired on January 31^st, 1999 on the Fox network. There are currently 138 episodes and in its eighth season.

“South Park” was first aired on August 13^th, 1997 on Comedy Central. There are currently 195 episodes and in its fourteenth season.

The oldest of the three shows is “The Simpsons;” it first aired on December 17^th, 1989 on the Fox network. There are currently 454 episodes and has twenty-one seasons.

“Every episode is funny,” said Conor Snow, about his favorite show, “Family Guy.”

Penn Manor junior Patrick Miller disagreed, “South Park always takes me on an epic journey.”

On the other hand, junior, Kevin Szurok said, “Simpsons is too family oriented.”

Out of 64 students surveyed, 36 of them chose “Family Guy,” 25 chose South Park and 3 said they liked “The Simpsons.”

This shows that “The Simpsons” is becoming an outdated form of comedy. The reason for this could be, because “The Simpsons” are not as vulgar as “South Park” and not as teen oriented as “Family Guy.”

While “Family Guy” takes the cake, their could be something to debate here. When we went around interviewing people, most of the results came in clumps, meaning, one table would all choose “Family Guy” and another table would all choose “South Park.” This shows that friends who have similar interests in comedy tend to converse and hangout together more.

As Bart Simpson and “The Simpsons” are left in the dust, it is up to “Family Guy” to keep the animated comedy genre alive.

By: Zane Sensenig and Paul Slaugh

No Shut-eye after watching “Shutter Island”

Paramount Pictures delayed the releasing of “Shutter Island” in October last year to this February, and it appears as if the gamble paid off. It topped this week’s Box Office, grossing 40.2 million.

The movie, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, bombards the viewer with flashbacks of the main character’s past, creating confusion and interest. The film is filled with suspense and a handful of startling action sequences. The movie lasts two hours and eighteen minutes, and is worth all time spent. Overall, the movie gets an eight out of ten.

The film is based of the 2003 novel by Dennis Lehane and is about two U.S. Marshals, Teddy Daniels, (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo). They arrive at Shutter Island, a hospital for the criminally insane, and investigate the disappearance of a patient. Teddy also has his own reason for going to the island-to find an inmate named Laeddis, who set a fire that had killed his wife a few years earlier.

As Teddy and his partner roam the island in search for clues, you learn about his past in World War 2, and the death of his wife. He also becomes overwhelmed with hallucinations of various things, including his dead wife. Early on, they decide to leave the island, but are unable to due to a hurricane.

The whole island and its patients have a strange feel to them, like they’re hiding something, and the director of the mental hospital is rather unhelpful and has never heard of the patient Leaddis. The Marshals also get strict orders that they are not to enter ward C and that the lighthouse surrounded by guards with weapons is ‘nothing’, just a sewage treatment plant or something of the sort. Because of this, Teddy develops a conspiracy that the people of Shutter Island must be hiding something, and decides to stay on the island and uncover the mystery.

The beginning of the film is a little dry and predictable, but I believe they did that to lull you into a sense that you knew what was coming, so that the epic plot twists would be more dramatic. Shutter Island is worth going to see once and maybe even twice. The ending is very impressive and leaves you with your mouth hanging wide open.

By Jake Shiner

Here Comes Trouble – The Story of Carousel Kings

Getting home at 3 am and going to school four hours later is not your typical teenage life. For two Penn Manor students, life has been anything but typical since the formation of Carousel Kings.

3908052275_e8847eec98 — CK Guitarist Luke Harvey

The band formed sometime around November 2008 and has never looked back. Members of the band include Penn Manor students Luke Harvey as the lead guitarist and Andrew Zell on bass. Also inlcuded in CK are Solanco graduates Dave Garman on vocals and Kyle Cater playing guitar, as well as Ephrata High School alumni Max Fasnacht behind the kit.

Appealing to audiences between the ages of 13 to 21, Carousel Kings has managed to tour twice in their band’s short lifetime.

Their first tour spanned two weeks during the summer, with the band playing in eleven different states. Then, in December, they toured in New York, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts for three days over the weekend, arriving home from their last show at 3am Monday morning. It costs a good amount of money (and sleep) to be in the band- they need to pay for gas, food, shirts, and equipment, just to name a few things.

Zell also explained that the band is going to be recording a full length album in late February, and hoping to release it sometime around May.

“We’re looking to go in to the studio for a week or two to put together a ten track album, which is going to be called ‘Don’t Be Immature About This,'” Zell explained. “I’m really stoked to be recording again and doing more weekend tours, it’s just a blast to go out and play and meet new people.”

Anyone who is interested in hearing the band can listen to them on several internet websites including: MySpace, Facebook, Purevolume, and, according to Zell, they are coming soon to iTunes.

If you like what you hear and want to attend a show, Carousel Kings will be playing at the Chameleon Club on January 29. The show is from 6-10 pm and tickets are $9 in advance. Appearing with them will be Digital Elvis, Bells, Signals the End, Like Wild, and Radioflyer.

By: Tyler Beckley

“It’s Complicated” Movie Review

Its not often that you see a movie about women over the age of 40, let alone one that is a big a hit.

By the first week of January, the movie had made $76 million worldwide.

The movie’s cast, including Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin are funny and have great chemistry.

“Its Complicated”, released on December 25 is about a woman struggling with her relationship and feelings towards her ex-husband while also trying to run her own coffee shop, remodel her home and deal with her newly empty nest.

Not to mention the other man she has been seeing.

It all started when she went to New York with her family for her son’s college graduation. While there, she runs into her ex at a bar and the two end up spending the whole night together.

They continue their affair throughout the rest of the movie, even after she begins to date the architect she has hired to add an addition to her home.

Meryl’s character is caught between the daring adventure of having an affair with her married ex-husband and the smart, sweet architect.
The irony of a man cheating on his wife, the woman he was once cheating with and the adult humor riddled through the movie make for a hilarious film no matter what the age of the leading actors.

Although it is obviously not a “family-friendly” movie, it is definitely a must see for mature teens.

By Stephanie Carroll