Once upon a time I was backpacking across Europe. When I landed in Paris I was hot, tired and thirsty.

Pat Welch had one of the most memorable roles in Hollywood.

They are poling.

No way am I going to call them “stars.”

Lance Brenner had a great idea.

You can’t have grown up in Staunton and not know about the Statler Brothers.

In the spring of 2003, three young aspiring filmmakers went off to Africa in search of a story.

Phenomenal.
Outrageous.
Raucous.
Marvelous.
No matter how you remember your prom, chances are it didn’t hold a sequined candle to the all-night affair planned in Charlottesville on Saturday night.
So what if it’s tomorrow night? There is plenty of time to primp.

The University Theater was still showing movies on the Corner in 1989.
None, however, was more exciting, for me, than the 1962 classic that flickered across the screen at 4 in the afternoon on Nov. 3.

There is another local filmmaker in the news.  Just got word that Brian Wimer is in the running for honors at the Virginia Film Competition.
Just got word that there is a Virginia Film Competition.
“It’s a new competition,” said Kathryn Stephens, industry relations manager for the Virginia Film Office. “We have held the Virginia Screenwriters Competition for 20 years now, and we have noticed that there has been a surge in independent filmmaking, not only in Virginia, but across the U.S.”

Producer Mark Johnson has won four Academy Awards, including an Oscar for one of my favorite films, “Rain Man.”
Paul Wagner owns another for his documentary film work. You might have seen his latest last month at the Paramount, “Absolutely Irish.”

Let’s put the rumors to rest.
  Ash Lawn Opera will be at Ash Lawn
... at least this year.

There’s a rising star in our midst.
  It just took a little out-of-town recognition for us to take notice.
Oh, Laura Wortman and her fiance, Kagey Parrish, don’t have a CD — yet. (They are planning on heading into a studio in the next couple of weeks to lay down a few tracks.) But they do own a national title.

Don’t throw this newspaper section away.  (If you are reading this on the Internet, I’m talking about Friday’s Extra section.)  Put it in a safe place and bring it with you Wednesday night, because it is the key to getting some cool free stuff.

When I was, oh, so young I watched “Toby Tyler” and dreamed of running off to join the circus so I could wear blue tights, ride horses and have a chimpanzee as my best friend.

I would love to go see Van Halen or Cirque du Soleil or a host of other events scattered throughout this week’s playbill.  But there is that dollar issue.

The plan was to clear out some of the books in my library. Four shelves were overloaded and the stacks on the floor were beyond the teetering point. I got a box and set out to cull my collection.  There was a stack by Phyllis A. Whitney.  Did I really need that many?