Franklin County Animal Shelter is a non-profit no-kill animal shelter focused on providing temporary care and shelter to stray, homeless, and abandoned animals within our community. Several hundred cats, dogs, and small animals come through the shelter’s doors each year. The lobby, kitten, and available adult cat rooms are open to the public Monday to […]

“Gladiator II” has some awfully big sandals to fill, both commercially and creatively. Its predecessor, 2000’s “Gladiator,” made $187 million at the domestic box office. The new film has thus far made an estimated $132 million after three weekends of release. With a lot of money up for grabs in the upcoming holiday season, another […]

The 2016 “Moana” is probably my favorite animated Disney movie of the modern era. I have plenty of nice things to say about “Frozen,” “Zootopia,” “Encanto,” and several others, but “Moana,” with its timelessly relatable main character, sharp physical comedy, and multiple memorable songs, puts it just above the competition. When an evidently rushed sequel […]

It was in the spring of 2004 that I first saw Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth perform the showstopping “Defying Gravity” from the Broadway blockbuster “Wicked” at the Tony Awards. Since that moment was over 20 years ago, it means that I have waited literal decades for a big-screen version of “Wicked.” I’ve more than […]

“Red One” desperately wants to be an “edgy” Christmas movie. Edgy Christmas movies throughout history have included everything from raunchy comedies (“Bad Santa,” “The Ref”) to intense action (“Fatman,” “Violent Night”) to straight-up horror (“Black Christmas,” “Silent Night, Deadly Night”). When edgy movies turn Christmas on its head just right, they can become blockbusters and […]

The battle for second place at the domestic box office this past weekend (behind the fourth weekend of “Venom: The Last Dance”) was close, with two films hovering around the $11 million mark. Since neither film is a big hit, I’ve decided to toss them both a quick review. “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” Sadly, […]

STRONG — The last period of the day, especially on a Friday, is probably one of the most anticipated at any middle school. At MSAD58’s Day Mountain Regional Middle School, located in Strong, it is even more so. That is when students participate in the fourteen clubs organized and supervised by teachers, support staff, and […]

The last time audiences saw the superpowered alien symbiote Venom (Tom Hardy) and his human “host” Eddie Brock (also Hardy) on the big screen, it wasn’t in a “Venom” movie, it was in a mid-credits sequence in 2021’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” The scene saw the pair briefly hop universes into the Disney-controlled Marvel Cinematic […]

PHILLIPS — During the last week of October, the Annual Pumpkins on Parade event was held at the Phillips Area Community Center [PACC]. Though the turnout was minimal this year, noted Sheila Jalbert, lead organizer of the event, those who participated had as much fun as ever. In the pumpkin carving contest, Jaylene White’s entry […]

WELD — Halloween has passed and the Halloween party was a success and I had no trick or treaters this year. Way back, 65 years ago, in my day we walked door to door for the “treats” – not all over town just within walking distance of our homes – remember it is after dark […]