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Cleveland Society Page, Humor, News & Social Calendar

'Australia' sure to please with Hugh Jackman in a shower scene

by Joanna Connors/Plain Dealer reporter

Thursday November 20, 2008, 4:12 PM

This coming week's Pop Ten is chock full of movies, music and Tom Jones. Becase it just seems right to have TJ in Pop Ten.

1. "Australia"
Wondering if your interest in DownUnder or Nicole Kidman can outlast a movie that runs almost three hours? Consider this line from the review by the Times of London: "If all else fails there is always (Hugh) Jackman, stripped to the waist, under the shower." Nudge, nudge, wink, wink. Say no more. It opens Wednesday.

Continue reading "'Australia' sure to please with Hugh Jackman in a shower scene" »

Humor Us - November 17

by Sara Campola

Monday November 17, 2008, 7:11 PM

Readers: Send your captions for this cartoon by Plain Dealer artist Ted Crow to PDQ@plaind.com or PDQ, The Plain Dealer, 1801 Superior Ave., Cleveland, OH 44114. Winners will be published in next week's section.

LAST WEEK'S WINNERS:

"Buffy just realized finding a date on Monster.com was probably a mistake."
-- Rob Heckman, University Heights

"Vlad was pleased to discover that Bloodweiser now came in long necks."
-- Ray Berardinelli, Mentor

"Ahhhh. A buffet."
-- Beverly J. Todaro, Mentor

Jack Bauer, 'Twilight' and Sasha Fierce lead today's Pop 10

by Joanna Connors/Plain Dealer Reporter

Sunday November 16, 2008, 4:53 PM

Jack's back No one's saying how many Fox executives Jack Bauer had to torture or kill to get his own movie. Classified information. In any case, we all know that in Jack's universe, the ends justify the means, and "24: Redemption," airing at 8 p.m. Sunday on WJW Channel 8, justifies anything. The movie sets up the show's seventh season, which begins Sunday, Jan. 11. Jack, straight up If you can't wait for Sunday, get your Jack fix at www.bauercount.com. Someone with a lot of time on his hands went through all six seasons of "24" to document Jack Bauer's kill count. With video. Check out the first episode of season six, the one labeled "Vampire Bite." Yikes. Continue reading "Jack Bauer, 'Twilight' and Sasha Fierce lead today's Pop 10" »

10 Minutes with the Browns' timeout coordinator Bob Sevel

by John Campanelli/Plain Dealer Reporter

Sunday November 16, 2008, 4:05 PM

Bob Sevel, 47, of Cleveland's Old Brooklyn neighborhood, is an account manager for the U.S. Postal Service. That's his day job. His Sunday gig is the envy of every football fan in Northeast Ohio. Since 1999, Sevel has been the "red hat" or, more accurately, the "TV commercial timeout coordinator" for Browns home games. Working for the TV networks and wearing elbow-length orange gloves, he hangs out at the 20-yard line, steps on the field during natural breaks in the action (extra points, field goals, turnovers) and signals to the officials when to start and stop the game for television timeouts. Last week, Sevel
answered a few questions from PDQ's John Campanelli.

Why are you called the "red hat" when you wear orange gloves?
In the old days, the guy would have a red hat and he would take it off and walk on the field. When he put it on and exited the field, the game could start.

How many TV timeouts are there during an NFL game?
There are 23 stoppages. Five from when the game starts to the end of the first quarter. Then there's a break. Then five more in the second quarter, including the two-minute warning. Then a halftime break. And so on.

How long is a TV timeout?
A minute 50.

Continue reading "10 Minutes with the Browns' timeout coordinator Bob Sevel" »

Hired for the holidays: Services make season easier

by John Campanelli/Plain Dealer Reporter

Sunday November 16, 2008, 4:00 PM

Rest ye, merry gentlemen.

That's not a lyric; it's an order. Gentlemen and ladies.

The holidays are coming up, and that usually means lots of work. Planning, shopping, chopping, cooking, wrapping, untangling, trimming, assembling, entertaining, corresponding -- whew! If only there was a way to hire out some of this stuff. There is, of course, and lots of times, it can fit into a modest budget. Here are just a few ideas for finding people to assist you in making your holiday season so much easier. So here's another lyric: There's nothing like hired for the holidays.

O holy lights

Perhaps the most dreaded -- and potentially dangerous -- holiday job is hanging the outdoor lights. There's even a carol written about it: "I'll Be Hospitalized for Christmas."

Hazards include falls, frozen fingers, electric shock, scrapes, poked eyes and angry spouses complaining that the trees look uneven. Is it any wonder more and more companies are offering light-hanging services?

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Humor Us: Nov. 10

by Sara Campola

Monday November 10, 2008, 2:20 PM

Readers: Send your captions for this cartoon by Plain Dealer artist Ted Crow to PDQ@plaind.com or PDQ, The Plain Dealer, 1801 Superior Ave., Cleveland, OH 44114. Winners will be published in next week's section.

LAST WEEK'S WINNERS:

"I knew I should have taken that job in Oz."
-- Bud Larsen, Fairview Park

"Initial attempts at medieval recycling."
-- James Tanner, North Olmsted

"Looks like chivalry IS dead!"
-- Linda Evers, Garfield Heights

Veterinarian Jo Byron is helping fix a reproducing problem

by Fran Henry/Plain Dealer Reporter

Monday November 10, 2008, 12:59 PM

Sad but true, veterinarian Jo Byron cheated herself out of the joy of changing her college major every semester and then having to break the news to her parents. That was the price she paid for "always" knowing what she wanted to be. She started working as a vet technician at 16 and earned her veterinary degree at 28.

We caught her midday while she spayed cats on the PetFix surgery van, parked for the day at the Akron Humane Society. The van travels around Northeast Ohio in pursuit of its mission -- ending pet overpopulation by making spay-neuter surgeries accessible and affordable to the low-income population.

According to the American Humane Association, if a female cat and her offspring were allowed to reproduce unabated for seven years, 434,000 kittens would be born.

Byron, 34, is engaged and lives in Pepper Pike. She plans to open a holistic veterinary practice in Bainbridge Township in January or February and will cut back her PetFix work to one day a week.

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A haiku contest in the morning newspaper that lines the birdcage

by Plain Dealer

Monday November 10, 2008, 12:46 PM

Last month, as local poets prepared for the third annual Haiku Death Match in Cleveland Heights, we asked readers to submit their versions of the treasured Japanese art form. You responded with hundreds of entries.

As you remember from junior high English (and have probably tried to forget), Haiku is a simple, elegant form of prose, with the first line containing five syllables, the middle line seven, and the third line five.

We would have printed the winners earlier, but our judges wore out three sets of knuckles counting syllables.

The winners, in no particular order:

Continue reading "A haiku contest in the morning newspaper that lines the birdcage" »