Weekender 20150227

weekender FRIDAY 02.27.15 | VVDailyPress.com

CELEBRATE RANCHO/CALIFORNIO DAYS AT SAN BERNADINO COUNTY MUSEUM

2 | Friday, February 27, 2015 |

CONTENTS

ON THE COVER

Weekender

CELEBRATE

RANCHO/CALIFORNIO DAYS

3 | MOVIE REVIEW

AT SAN BERNADINO COUNTY MUSEUM

‘Hot Tub Time Machine 2’

4 | NEW ON DVD

By Jeff Cooper

RELEASES AVAILABLE in stores this week

5 | MUSIC REVIEWS OF albums; column

6 & 7 | BEST BETS SELECTED EVENTS of interest

8 | LOOKING AHEAD OTHER TOP PICKS of upcoming events

10 | BOOKS/MOVIE Q&A ‘ESSAYS AFTER EIGHTY’/ Will Smith

11 | DINING OUT REVIEWS AND LISTINGS of local restaurants

vvdailypressnews

COVER STORY

@vvdailypress

Weekender Editor | Gary Brodeur | 760-951-6245 | gbrodeur@vvdailypress.com SUBMISSIONS: Send items to weekender@vvdailypress.com and cc gbrodeur@vvdailypress.com. Deadline is two weeks prior to the event.

ON THE WEB: ............................................................ www.VVDailyPress.com TO ADVERTISE:.............................................................................. 760-241-7744 ON THE COVER: A folklorico troupe performs a traditional dance during festivities at the San Bernardino County Museum. COURTESY OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MUSEUM

MORE ONLINE Patricia Sanchez covers the music scene in Southern California in her blog 505 Reasons to Believe the Hype.

Follow her on our website at www.vvdailypress.com.

FOR WEEKENDER

The San Bernardino County Museum is taking visitors to the early days of California, before its inception as the 31st state in 1850, and detailing the lives of the early Mexican and American settlers.

Museum Media Specialist Jennifer Reynolds said that while the early Mexican settlers had a significant impact on California’s culture, the exhibit will focus on the “mountain men” or fur traders of the Rocky Mountains to the West Coast in search of new industry.

“It was a real culture shock to the (mountain men) because they first encountered Mexicans The celebration of ‘Rancho/Californio Days’ points up the exhibit and were not familiar ‘Mountain Men,’ which is expected to be displayed throughout with the Mexican way of 2015. COURTESY OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MUSEUM life,” Reynolds said. into California until it The new exhibit that live entertainers. There opened earlier this month was made a state. The will be a Father Junipero time frame was short. in the Hall of History is Serra impersonator, ranThere was the Mexican entitled “Turn Left at chero songs and a variety Treaty in 1848, gold rush of crafts that include the Rockies” and will highlight life in Southern in ‘49 and almost imme- making tissue paper diate statehood in ‘50.

California between 1826 flowers and decorating We went from the misand 1850. The exhibit and shaking maracas to sion era to the rancho era music. is included with paid and then suddenly we’re museum admission.

“We will teach visitors in the United States.”

“It’s such an interesthow to pack a mule and To commemorate the ing period in California show them the fashion period of the pre-birth of of the day, including history,” Reynolds said.

California, the Museum “When you think about lessons on gearing up on will have many activiit, it was only about 25 how to be a mountain ties such as live music years from the time the man, compared to now,” first mountain men came of the time, exhibits and Reynolds said. “Many

'Rancho/Californio Days' and 'Turn left at the Rockies' Where: San Bernardino County Museum, 2024 Orange Tree Lane, at the California Street exit from Interstate 10, in Redlands.

When: 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday event and exhibit available during museum hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays.

Cost: $10 for adult general admission, $8 for military members or seniors, $7 for students and $5 for children 5 to 12. Children 4 and younger and museum association members are admitted free. Parking is free.

Information: Call 909798-8608 or visit www. sbcountymuseum.org.

of them geared up and transported goods and horses through the Cajon Pass.”

Beaver top hats, examples of what mountain man carried and artifacts from Rancho days, including a real buffalo robe, will be featured.

The exhibit will also feature the story of mountain man Jedediah Smith, who made off from the Rockies in search of beaver streams SEE MUSEUM, A9

The Patriot Ledger

A time machine is the only means to get back the 93 minutes wasted on “Hot Tub Time Machine 2.” The sequel to director Steve Pink’s (“Accepted”) 2010 laugh-a-minute, timetravel raunch fest finds itself stuck in a warp of recycled gags centered around boobs and bodily fluids.

While far from perfect, the original nicely captured the fatuousness of the ’80s. The characters and jokes were hilarious.

I liked it better than “The Hangover.” The sequel can’t hold its jock.

John Cusack wisely sits this one out. But the rest of the time-traveling gang — Weymouth’s Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson and Clark Duke — spend this second installment jumping 10 years into the future (where dogs ride hover boards) to prevent the murder of Corddry’s Lou Dorchen,

Rated: R for crude sexual content and language throughout, graphic nudity, drug use and some violence.

Cast: Rob Corddry, Clark Duke, Craig Robinson, Adam Scott, Chevy Chase and Gillian Jacobs.

Grade: C-.

Craig Robinson, Rob Corddry and Clark Duke appear in a scene from ‘Hot Tub Time Machine 2.’

COURTESY PHOTO

the hyperactive, foulmouthed, boozebag.

Lou — now CEO of “Lougle” — is so unapologetically uncouth that you’d hate him even more if he weren’t played by someone as endearing as Corddry, who flatout stole the first movie.

Here, it seems, a little

Corddry would go a long way.

But he’s not the problem. Not even close.

Corddry (“Children’s Hospital”) and the other actors, including newbie Adam Scott (“Parks & Recreation”), are as game as ever, but Josh Heald’s seriously unfunny script

incessantly intrudes.

The “You look like” running gag is the movie’s funniest bit,

as the boys riff on each other’s appearances.

As in, “You look like an orchestra conductor for stray cats.” And I suspect much of those lines were SEE HOT TUB, A9

Friday, February 27, 2015 | 3

‘Hot Tub Time Machine 2’

By Dana Barbuto

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Second dip in ‘Hot Tub’ fails to live up to original

Weekender

MOVIE REVIEW

4 | Friday, February 27, 2015 |

MOVIES DVD & BLU RAY

‘Hero’ leads the way among new releases this week ‘Horrible Bosses 2’

By Rick Bentley

Weekender

THE FRESNO BEE

Grade D-

balance of story and visuals. The characters — from the spunky Honey Lemon (Genesis Rodriguez ) to the enthusiastic Fred (T.J. Miller ) — mix well together and come across as separate parts of one

persona.

From the blending of the architecture of Tokyo and San Francisco (to create San Fransokyo) to the collision of traditional animation with anime, the film is “manga-nificent.”

The three guys hatch a new illegal plan after their new business is threatened.

Jason Bateman is reduced to being the straight man as he tries to give this cockamamie plot some meaning. Even an actor as good as Bateman can’t help a story that only works in the most absurd of conditions.

Even Jennifer Aniston’s sex-obsessed character is more pathetic than funny.

It’s lucky she has all that

set in 1960s Singapore.

'Watchers of the Sky': Examines the cycle of violence and the world's response.

'New Year's Evil': The 1980 horror film is now on Blu-ray.

'Horse Camp': Kathy longs to be back in the saddle despite her concerns by her parents.

'Julius Jr.: Pirates and Superheroes': Play, learn and imagine with the popular monkey.

'Midsomer Murders: Set 25': Contains the 100th episode of the mystery series starring Neil Dudgeon.

'The Shift': Takes place during one 12-hour night shift in an emergency room.

'The Game': The Brits prepare

for a deadly Soviet plot.

'American Masters: August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand': Includes interviews and dramatic readings.

'Eat Drink Man Woman': The 1994 film makes its Blu-ray debut.

'Green Street Hooligans: Underground': Danny can't escape the lifestyle he wants to leave behind.

'Zombieworld': Collection

of short films focusing on survivors of the zombie apocalypse.

'Mountain Men: Season 3': History Channel series about the struggle for survival in the mountains.

'The Master': Follows the founder of the Choy Li Fut style.

'VANish': Road trip thriller starring Danny Trejo.

'Devil May Call': Blind suicide

This week’s new DVD releases include top-notch animated offerings for young an old.

‘Big Hero 6’ Grade A-

Young genius uses a robot to solve a mystery in this animated tale. Never has East met West in such a visually stunning way as in this animated film.

Directors Don Hall and Chris Williams have managed to find a perfect

Hiro Hamada, voiced by Ryan Potter, right, and Baymax, voiced

by Scott Adsit, in a scene from ‘Big Hero 6.’ AP PHOTO/DISNEY

“Friends” money as this may bring her career to a stop.

This kind of asinine offering is just the result of an uninspired effort to milk a few dollars out of the good feelings generated by the original movie.

‘Sofia the First: The Curse of Princess Ivy’ Grade B

Amber discovers Sofia’s amulet is magical and takes it without permission, inadvertently summoning an

evil princess, Ivy, who’s determined to take over Enchancia .

This is a fun tale that includes some strong tunes.

The adventure features a special appearance

by Rapunzel, voiced

by Mandy Moore, who reprises her role from Disney’s “Tangled.” John Michael Higgins voices the self-appointed leader of an all-dragon a cappella group, and Oliver Platt speaks for Enchancia’s oldest-living dragon, Everburn.

ALSO NEW ON DVD 'Whiplash': Young jazz drummer must endure a ferocious instructor (J.K. Simmons).

'Beyond the Lights': Superstar is on edge because of constantly being in the spotlight.

'Sons of Anarchy: Season 7': Final season of the Fx cable series.

'The Whale": Look at the real story that inspired "Moby Dick."

'Lilies': Depicts bleak realities of life in 1920s Britain.

'Outside Bet': Group of out of work friends pool their savings to buy a racehorse.

'Code Black': Examination of health care as seen through the eyes of young doctors.

'Serangoon Road': Crime drama

hotline worker fights for survival.

'Wild Orchid': Mickey Rourke stars in the 1989 drama.

'Zoey to the Max': Foster child loses her new family's show dog.

'My Little Pony — Friendship Is Magic: Adventures of the Cutie Mark Crusaders': The crusaders can help you find your cutie mark.

—The Fresno Bee

Plenty of options for concerts on a budget ‘Paradise’ a breakthrough from Big Sean ROCKDISCS

By Patricia Sanchez WEEKENDER

We’re well into 2015, and Coachella, one of the biggest music festivals in Southern California, is rapidly approaching. While that festival is completely sold out, many of the bands playing there have also lined up concerts of their own, and they look very promising.

So you don’t miss out on the concerts happening around the area, here are some inexpensive concerts — $35 or less — sure to guarantee a good time.

Kongos: This South African band of brothers is one well-oiled machine.

Danny, Dylan, Jesse and Johnny Kongos will have two shows in Southern California: Thursday, March 12 at the Riverside Municipal Auditorium, and Friday, March 13 at the Wiltern in Los Angeles.

Both shows are reasonably priced, but for those who are diehard fans, Kongos are selling several different VIP packages that include meet-and-greets, commemorative merchandise and early access to the show. The most expensive package even includes a tour of the stage and a limited edition guitar.

Bleachers: How much better can it get than seeing Bleachers on March 14 at the Santa Ana

SEE CONCERTS, A9

The wait for big things from Big Sean is over.

The Detroit rapper and Kanye West protege has been on deck for two albums now surrounded by enough stars to keep him afloat in mixed reviews, but on “Dark Sky Paradise” (Def Jam), he gets his home run.

Once again, Big Sean has an enviable supporting cast, from girlfriend Ariana Grande to Lil Wayne and Drake, but this time he is more in control. Only West outshines him this time out. During a fine bit of articulated rage in “All Your Fault,” while a clever sample from Ambrosia’s yacht-rock classic “How Much I Feel” plays, ‘Ye declares, “Cops choking out in the media, we’re gonna have to protest to tear the city up.”

Sean even holds his own with West during the emotional “One Man Can Change the World,” as he winds through the wishes his grandmother had for him.

He shines brightest, though, when the spotlight is solely on him. During “Paradise,” where producer Mike Will Made It keeps the backdrop simple to allow Sean’s rhymes and his increasingly unhinged delivery to unspool as he references everything from the Baltimore Ravens, to ramen and “Everybody Loves Raymond” in one impressive roll before deciding, “Life’s a paradox, a paradise. If they’re not rolling with you, then they’re parasites.”

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NEWSDAY/TNS

Weekender

Many bands playing Coachella have booked other dates in SoCal

By Glenn Gamboa

Observatory? Well, seeing them for $25 makes it even sweeter. The band’s upbeat music combines the best of Alternative-Rock and pop music. Known for their single, “I Wanna Get Better,” the band is gaining popularity, and The Observatory is a great venue to see them at.

Tame Impala: This psychedelic Australian rock band will be playing Coachella 2015 in April, but just in case you don’t have a couple hundred dollars to spend on that festival, the band will play a separate show April 8 at the Pomona Fox Theater. This group is extraordinarily unique and talented, and if you haven’t heard of them yet, $30 is a small price to pay to get acquainted with their work.

Glass Animals: This band is fairly new — their debut album dropped just last summer — but their infectious sound and indie influences have garnered them attention worldwide.

The British band’s most notable song is “Gooey,” but their album, "Zaba," is worth looking into as well.

Glass Animals will be at the LA Fonda on April 14, and Pomona Glass House on April 15.

Somekindawonderful: Fun, new and ever so upbeat, Somekindawonderful are just as their name describes. After recently touring with the likes of New Politics and Bad Suns, Somekindawonderful have just announced a tour of their own starting in midMarch. The band will make one stop in L.A. on April

Friday, February 27, 2015 | 5

MUSIC

Kanye West arrives at the memorial service for Louise Wilson, a British professor of fashion design, held at St Paul’s Cathedral, in London on Friday. West recently released ‘Dark Sky Paradise.’ AP PHOTO/PA, JONATHAN BRODY

Kid Rock performs before the Daytona 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup series auto race at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida on Sunday. AP PHOTO/JOHN RAOUX

The song is the centerpiece of the album’s theme, finding bright spots in darkness and darkness

in what should be heavenly moments. In “Blessings,” he sounds furious even as he talks about “blessings

on blessings on blessings.”

As he appreciates what SEE ROCKDISCS, A9

6 | Friday, February 27, 2015 |

BEST BETS

Weekender

FEB. 27 TO MARCH 1

FEB. 28

FEB. 28 AND MARCH 1

Rocks and Minerals of Joshua Tree

‘90-Day Screenplay Workshop’

Pine Needle Basketry

Instructor Alan Watt offers a one-day workshop covering the fundamental tools necessary to take your writing to the next level.

Learn to integrate theme, character, structure and dialog into a story where the whole amounts to something greater than the sum of the parts. Presented by the California Writers Club, High Desert Branch.

Kathi Klopfenstein will teach one of many techniques to start a coiled pine needle basket, basic stitching, how to shape a basket and how to finish it. Learn about responsible collecting of pine needles, preparation and storage your materials. Basketry materials will be provided but students are asked to bring a small pair of scissors, small needle-nosed pliers, a notebook and pencil for taking notes.

Bring a sack lunch; beginner and experienced coilers are welcome.

Learn the geologic story of tectonic plates, magma and time that formed the building blocks of Joshua Tree National Park in a threeday lecture and field class. Robert Pellenbarg will explain the critical principles that shaped the rocks and minerals of the area into the blond granite and preCambrian gneiss that are iconic of the Mojave and Colorado deserts.

Participants will focus on identification of minerals in the classroom and the three basic rock types: igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary, by reviewing physical properties such as transparency, luster, hardness, cleavage, fracture, specific gravity and crystal form that define the rocks and minerals within these groups.

When: 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Sunday.

Where: Oasis Visitor Center, 74485 National Park Drive in Twentynine Palms.

Cost: $135 Joshua Tree National Park Association/PINE/OSHER members, $145 nonmembers; credit fees $210 JTNPA/PINE/ OSHER members, $220 non-members Information: Call 760367-5535 or go to www. joshuatree.org.

PHOTO BY JONATHAN BERG, FOR THE DAILY PRESS

When: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Where: Apple Valley Chamber of Commerce, 16010 Apple Valley Road in Apple Valley.

Cost: $75 a person.

Information: Call 760-221-6367 or go to www.hdcwc.com.

When: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Where: Black Rock Visitor Center, 9800 Black Rock Canyon in Yucca Valley.

Cost: $110 Joshua Tree National Park Association/PINE/OSHER members; $120 non-members.

Information: Call 760-367-5535 or go to www.joshuatree.org.

FEB. 28

Poker Tournament Team Stardom presents a Mardi Gras-themed Poker Tournament, including prizes, trophies, raffles and a silent auction. Doors open at 5 p.m.

COURTESY OF HANNETT-THORN PRODUCTIONS

FEB. 27 TO MARCH 14

‘The Garden’ Hannett-Thorn Productions presents “The Garden,” an allegorical oratorio and artistic attempt by a group of musicians to focus minds and hearts on what will be the central event in human history.

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and March 6, 7, 13 and 14; 2:30 p.m. Saturday and March 7 and 14; 7 p.m. Monday and March 9.

Where: High Desert Center for the Arts, 15615 Eighth St. in Victorville.

Cost: $7 general admission, $5 for seniors and students.

Information: Go to www.highdesertcenterforthearts.com or call 760-243-7493.

FEB. 27

Chicago Pechanga Resort & Casino will host Grammy award-winning band and rock ‘n’ roll legends Chicago during the band’s concert tour. Chicago has been named No. 13 in Billboard Magazine’s Top 100 Artists of All Time and the highest-charting American band.

When: 8 p.m. Friday.

Where: Pechanga Theater, 45000 Pechanga Parkway in Temecula.

Cost: $90, $100, $106 and $116; VIP super fan promotional packages available.

Information: Call 877-711-2946 or go to www.Pechanga.com.

When: 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

Where: Havana Beer & Wine Club, 13692 Apple Valley Road in Apple Valley.

Cost: $40 buy-in includes dinner and appetizer bar; $10 unlimited rebuys until the dinner break; optional $20 add-on for an additional 5,000 chips available.

Information: Call 760-577-8857.

MARCH 1

Sprint Series kick-off United Mini Racing Association begins its 2015 Sprint Series with Round 1. Open practice on Saturday. Registration and tech at 7 a.m., track live at 9 a.m. for practice. Course direction is counter-clockwise.

When: 9 a.m. Sunday.

Where: Grange Motor Circuit, 20455 Central Road in Apple Valley.

Cost: $30 to ride; spectators welcome.

Information: Call 760-963-1360.

FEB 27 AND 28

Chocolate Decadence and Wine Festival Chocolate and wine are celebrated over two days at Pechanga Resort & Casino for the seventh annual Chocolate Decadence and Pechanga Wine Festival. Hundreds of wine varieties, sweet and savory chocolate confections, food samples, live music, a silent auction are featured; proceeds from both events benefit Habitat for Humanity Inland Valley.

When: Chocolate Decadence runs from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday; Wine Festival goes from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday.

Where: Pechanga Resort & Casino Grand Ballroom, 45000 Pechanga Parkway in Temecula.

Cost: $50 for Chocolate Decadence; $65 for Wine Festival; combo tickets are $100.

Information: Call 877-711-2946 or go to Pechanga.com/ Entertainment.

DAILY PRESS FILE PHOTO

8 | Friday, February 27, 2015 |

LOOKING AHEAD MARCH 6 TO 15

‘South Pacific’

Weekender

Rodgers and Hammerstein’s classic American musical set on a south seas island during World War II. With direction

by Allen W. Gildard, musical direction by Dr. Thomas Miller and choreography by Nancy Helms.

When: 7:30 p.m. March 6, 7, 13 and 14, 2:30 p.m. March 8 and 15.

Where: Victor Valley College, 18422 Bear Valley Road in Victorville.

Cost: $14 adults, $12 seniors, $10 children 12 and younger, free for ASB cardholders.

Information: Call 760-2454271, ext. 849 or go to www. vvvc.edu/tix.

MARCH 6 TO 8

Cost: No cover; must be 21 or older.

Information: Call 760-868-3272 or go to www.mojavemoonband.rocks.

MARCH 7

Aviation Family Discovery Day

MARCH 12

A closing event in the “Black Wings: American Dreams of Flight” series at Museum of History and Art, Ontario.

Celebrate aviation through a photo booth with props and interactive learning stations focusing on science and NASA. When: Noon to 4 p.m.

Where: 225 S. Euclid Ave. in Ontario.

Cost: Free.

Information: Call 909-395-2510.

One in a monthly series of art history lectures at the Visual Arts Center/Robert and Frances Fullerton Art Museum on the campus of California State University, San Bernardino. Topic to be announced.

When: 6 to 7:15 p.m.

Where: 5500 University Parkway in San Bernardino.

Cost: Free; $5 parking.

Information: Go to raffma. csusb.edu or call 909-537-7373.

Chris D’Elia

MARCH 7 AND 8

From NBC’s “Undateable,” Chris D’Elia is quickly becoming one of the most sought after young comedians and actors in the comedy world, with Variety naming him one of their “Top 10 Comics to Watch.” Ages 21 and older, two items minimum, dress code.

When: 7:30 and 9:45 p.m.

March 6; 7 and 9:15 p.m.

March 7, and 7 p.m. March 8.

Where: Ontario Improv Comedy Club, 4555 Mills Circle, Ontario Mills, Ontario.

Cost: $30 a person.

Information: Call 909-484-5411.

Busker Festival

MARCH 7

Mojave Moon Band Victor Valley-based Mojave Moon Band plays classic and contemporary Country, rock and blues. Members are Jerry O'Connor, lead guitar/vocals; Darlene Packard-Mossman, bass/vocals, and Jessica Gonzalez, drums/percussion.

When: 8 p.m. to midnight.

Where: J&D’s T-Bird, 3636 Phelan Road in Phelan.

When: 4 to 5 p.m.

Where: Ovitt Family Community Library, 215 E. C St. in Ontario.

Cost: Free, for teens 13 to 18.

Information: Call 909-395-2510.

Fire-breathers, contortionists, stilt walkers and eccentric street performers from around the country will perform during the ninth annual Spring Busker Festival on the San Diego waterfront. Busking, or street performing, is a centuries-old tradition of performing for tips in public areas. Additional entertainment is scheduled.

When: Noon to 6 p.m.

Where: Seaport Village, 849 W. Harbor Drive in San Diego.

Cost: Free.

Information: Go to www. seaportvillage.com or call 619-235-4014.

MARCH 11

Take Flight in World War II The Planes of Fame Air Museum will present a program on the P-47 plane used in World War II. Become a cryptographer and learn how codes and ciphers were decoded.

Art history lecture

MARCH 12

Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood “Who’s Line Is It, Anyway?” stars Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood bring ad lib comedy to the Yuhaviatam Room of San Manuel Indian Bingo & Casino. Throughout the evening, the show becomes truly interactive as audience members are called to the stage to participate in the fun. Doors at 6:30 p.m.

When: 7:30 p.m.

Where: 777 San Manuel Blvd. in Highland.

Cost: $30 and $40; must be 21 and older.

Information: Go to www. sanmanuel.com or call 800-359-2464.

MARCH 12 TO 15

Steve Byrne Steve Byrne has risen through the ranks of the comedy world to become one of the industry’s most SEE EVENTS, A9

THE GRADE: B+ BOTTOM LINE: Rapper rises to the occasion

‘First Kiss’ Words fail Kid Rock

Even Kid Rock didn’t like his last album, 2012’s “Rebel Soul.”

“That was a bad album,” he told Rolling Stone. “I didn’t spend enough time on it. So this one is more pressure.”

So you’d think that he’d fix that problem in time for his new album, “First Kiss” (Warner Bros.), right? Of

CONCERTS From Page A5

15 at the Troubadour in West Hollywood.

Belle and Sebastian: Belle and Sebastian are a Scottish band that bring great dance

EVENTS From Page A8

innovative and sought-after performers. With his highenergy, physical style of comedy, Byrne has evolved

music to the Indie community. Their lively music and sound make for some great jams, and the band will make a stop at the Pomona Fox Theater on April 16.

Of course there are many more concerts coming up this year, and as time

goes by, more concerts will be scheduled. Hopefully this column can help High Desert and Inland Empire music fans discover new bands and be a guide to finding the best and affordable shows in Southern California.

throughout the years into an extremely versatile entertainer that delivers on a day-to-day basis. Dress code applies.

When: 8 p.m. March 12; 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. March 13; 7 and 9:15 p.m. March 14, and

7 p.m. March 15.

Where: Ontario Improv Comedy Club, 4555 Mills Circle, Ontario Mills, Ontario.

Cost: $20; must be 18 and older, two items minimum.

Information: Call 909-484-5411.

THE GRADE: CBOTTOM LINE: Cranky, cliched country-rock that shows the Kid is not aging well

MUSEUM From Page A2

in 1826, down through the Colorado River and across the Mojave Desert to Mission San Gabriel. He is noted as the “first American to enter California overland.”

Others followed, trapping and trading, before the cultural appetite progressed

from fur trade demand to the quest for gold.

The museum hopes to educate visitors in the precept that the mountain men were instrumental in the development of the state of California and the county of San Bernardino. “Turn Left at the Rockies” explores the lives, the legends of mountain men, their ways of life and relationships with

HOT TUB

to some of the biggest songs of the ’90s, like From Page A3 Lisa Loeb’s “Stay.”

(Loeb makes a cameo.) improvised. The conLou’s son, Jacob stant references to other (Duke), is living in his time-travel movies like father’s shadow. At “Looper,” “Terminator” a party at Lou’s New and “Back to the Future” Orleans mansion, he’s don’t help, either. It shot in the groin. That only reminds that this sends the trio ahead to gimmick has been done the future (shades of before. And better.

“Looper”) to track down “Hot Tub Time the gunman and prevent Machine 2” begins with the shooting. In 2025, a faux-documentary they meet Cusack’s on where the guys are character’s son, Adam now after altering their Yates Jr. (Scott), who once-sorry lives via lends a hand and gets time travel. Lou is the anally violated on rock star-turned-tech“Choozy Doozy,” a TV mogul. Robinson’s Nick show hosted by Chrisis a songwriter, who in tian Slater. the past stole the lyrics Aside from the

Expires 5/31/15

Native Americans and Mexicans.

“The consultation of historian Nick Cataldo was a great help in putting together this exhibit,” Reynolds said.

“We also thank the San Bernardino County Museum Association for funding, which helped make the exhibit possible.”

The museum is accessible to persons with disabilities. time-travel component, the plot is very much like “Hangover.” It’s four guys running around an exotic locale (here it’s a wasted French Quarter) partying, getting caught in ridiculous situations and trying to piece together events into a narrative. And like the “Hangover” sequels, this second dip in the hot tub doesn’t live up to the original. If I had a time machine, I’d travel back to advise Pink to quit while he was ahead.

—Dana Barbuto may be reached at dbarbuto@ ledger.com, or follow her on Twitter at @ dbarbuto_Ledger.

Friday, February 27, 2015 | 9

he has, he also doles out threats, rapping, “Check after check, checking off my checklist / Try and blow my cake, just know that’s a death wish.”

It’s a dark view of life, but when the road to success has taken as long as it has for Big Sean, it’s no wonder he doesn’t want to let it go.

of ‘69,” both in sound and theme. On “Good Times, Cheap Wine,” he takes shots at Coldplay and Coachella, while proudly proclaiming his disinterest in social media.

Though the music, mostly provided by Austin’s Band of Heathens, is generally good, it gets lost in Kid Rock’s ridiculous rhymes.

He’s at his worst in “Ain’t Enough Whiskey,” worrying about gun control, calling lawmakers “monkeys in suits,” and dissing President Barack Obama, saying, “Ain’t enough change to change my mind.” His solution to “them red-blooded white-boy blues”? More “whiskey, women and wine,” and moonshine and cocaine.

Judging from “First Kiss,” the blame may be a little closer to home.

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From Page A5

course not.

In fact, this one may be even lazier, showcasing what may very well be the laziest lyrics on a majorlabel release this year.

Sure, Kid Rock should get some credit for writing these songs, something that often takes a dozen or so people to accomplish on many pop hits. But, man, he really could use some help.

Let’s take “Johnny Cash,” for example, a song he dedicates to the marriage of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. “I like to watch you shoot your guns,” he sings. “And I like the way you love having fun.” Other things he likes in the course of the song: the way you turn me on, the way you shake it, the way you hold my hand, how you don’t give a damn.

There are other problems. The “First Kiss” title track takes more than a little inspiration from Bryan Adams’ “Summer

Weekender

ROCKDISCS

10 | Friday, February 27, 2015 |

BOOKS & MOVIES BOOK NOTES

Essays on aging, from an aging poet

By Rae Padilla Francoeur

Weekender

More Content Now

“Essays After Eighty” by Donald Hall. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston/New York, 2014. 144 pages. $22.

When a friend told me she decided not to buy poet and essayist Donald Hall’s “Essays After Eighty” for her 80-something-yearold father for Christmas, I asked why.

“Too close to the bone,” she said about the essays that come at aging from all angles, from all moods and all seasons in northern New England.

Perhaps she should have taken the risk. Hall, the U.S. poet laureate in 200607, lives, writes and grows older at his New Hampshire family homestead.

From his sitting chair at the window, he lays out the writer’s life with insight, an undiminished supply of smart sentences, no small slathering of wit, and respectable sobriety when the occasion warrants.

Though Hall, in his mid-’80s, has some years on me, I have once again been welcomed home by this writer. Can a book

be a home? Yes, when it gives you an education, cheers you at just the right moments and talks to you with respect and clarity. For some people, books provide the material needed for informed maturation throughout life.

And, yes, “Essays After Eighty” is close to the bone.

But many will thank Hall for telling us what, precisely, aging looks like and, even, what it can be if we reflect with wit and grace. And do not discount the importance of amusing ourselves.

When you read Hall, you cannot help but think that he is his own best audience.

Because of this book, we see the things that fall away

as we, more specifically Hall, ages — from access to upstairs rooms to the cane incrementally replaced by the wheelchair to the home-cooked meals to the certitude of the toilet’s precise location. Thank goodness for Stouffer’s. For neighbors and friends. For the fire department that twice had to extinguish a fire ignited by a cigarette in Hall’s blue reading chair.

As the world view grows more circumscribed, it can attain sharper focus. The cow barn that once sheltered milking cows is now “a barn for looking at” — something Hall does every single day from his chair.

“Out the Window” is an essay full of observation, physical and otherwise.

“When we turn 80, we understand that we are extraterrestrial,” he writes. And people can be condescending.

A museum guard once asked him how he liked his “din-din.” Personal essays, so good for rapt reading, are also good for commiseration. Who among friends admits these petty (sadly universal) degradations?

Every essay is worthy of your time. The title essay is a must-read for writers.

Hall’s essays undergo 30 to 80 revisions before he lets one go. He has abandoned writing poetry, his passion, because he’s lost what was propelled from his “braindepths” by testosterone’s thrust.

In this essay, he mentions the need for contrast.

In many cases in the personal essay form, that contrast is personal revelation of an unsavory sort.

A good essayist like Hall, though he may no longer have the physical balance to stand at the top of the stairs, can still balance character and conflict and come out unscathed.

We do learn a few unsavory things. Hall smokes, despite two major bouts with cancer early on. And he’s honest about the way cigarettes impair the quality of life for him and those around him. The rug at the foot of his gazing chair and surrounding books show signs of scorching. He has dropped many a burning cigarette. In one case, it led to a car accident; in another, to the chair fire

mentioned earlier.

Hall has an awareness of his physical self that follows him through these essays.

In “A Yeti in the Distance” he writes of “life’s widest smile” after receiving an award from President Barack Obama. He also writes of Ken Burn’s image of him looking widemouthed and stupefied.

In “Three Beards,” we learn that each of his bearded stages was instigated by a woman.

It’s worth noting that the cover of the book features a close-up of Hall that is brilliant in both composition and in what it captures in the man’s face and eyes. It becomes our companion as we read.

In “One Road,” which talks about a European road trip he takes with his young wife, Hall reminds us that we “divorce for the same reasons we marry.” What drew him to his first wife later fueled the animus.

Hall writes frequently of his second and beloved wife, Jan Kenyon, the poet.

While Hall was undergoing chemotherapy for liver cancer, she was diagnosed with leukemia and died 15

months later. They lived together happily on the family farm in Wilmot, New Hampshire. Kenyon’s poetry, ventures Hall, may survive when other poets’ work has not.

This collection considers life lived from Hall’s perspective in his reading chair.

Hall writes that he rather enjoys looking at the art in museums from a wheelchair. It’s different, but the perspective has value. His life view from his reading chair is also worthy, for it is a serene and contemplative place where Hall has joined fully with self.

It’s not just the past that interests Hall as he gazes outward and inward simultaneously. He’s seeing life lived in the more acute stages of old age, when decline hastens and gathers a certain undeniable momentum.

—Rae Padilla Francoeur’s memoir, “Free Fall: A Late-in-Life Love Affair,” is available online or in some bookstores. Write her at rae. francoeur@verizon.net.

Read her blog at freefallrae. blogspot.com or follow her on Twitter at @RaeAF.

Will Smith tries something new in ‘Focus’

By Ed Symkus More Content Now

Will Smith can play comedy (“Men in Black”) and he can play drama (“Seven Pounds”).

He’s done the bigger-thanlife hero (“Ali”) and the slick wiseguy (“The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”). In his newest film “Focus,” he delivers a

serio-comic role as a veteran – and very successful – con man who, after taking on an apprentice (Margot Robbie), finds that, to the surprise of teacher and student, they’re falling for each other. Smith fans may be surprised to discover that along with comedy and drama, Smith does quite well in sexy love scenes. He

spoke about the film, his career and this new side of it in Los Angeles.

Q: You’re not exactly a villain in this film, but your character does some bad things. Did you do anything bad when you were a kid?

A: The thing I got in trouble for when I was little was always making jokes. I was

always doing something like setting up a prank or being silly when I should be paying attention, but it was very different with “Focus.” I’m so glad I didn’t know some of these things when I was young. My general disposition on life is what’s funny about it. It’s a little bit different than when you can have the

powers of manipulation.

Q: You exude confidence in the film, and you seem like a really confident guy in real life. Have you always been like that?

A: I think it’s the opposite.

When I was doing “Ali,” I talked with [Ali] about him saying “I’m the greatest, I’m the greatest” all the time. And

in talking with him, I realized that it was because of how much like the greatest he DIDN’T feel. It was almost a mantra for himself. That’s sort of a thing that I’ve developed.

It’s actually sometimes nerveracking for me to walk into a new space. My experience is that if I just let myself go, it’s a whole lot easier.

LEGEND

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CC, DS

CARMEN’S PONDEROSA 9544 Kiowa Road, Apple Valley.

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CC, FB, $$$-$$$$

LIL’ BIT COUNTRY CAFE 14335 Hesperia Road, 101, Victorville.

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BR, BW, CC, DS, S, $$

MARIE CALLENDER’S BAKERY, RESTAURANT & LOUNGE 12180 Mariposa Road, Victorville.

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CC, DS, FB, S, SB, $$-$$$ RICHIE’S REAL AMERICAN DINER 14236 Valley Center Drive,

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IDLE SPURS STEAKHOUSE 690 Old Highway 58, Barstow.

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CM, DS, SM

FINE DINING

BR, BW, C, CM, CC, FB, R, $$$

CHATEAU CHANG 15425 Anacapa Road, Victorville.

760-241-3040

ITALIAN/PIZZA CROSS EYED COW PIZZA 19242 National Trails

BW, CC, FB, $$$

The Original

DON GARCIA’S

Mexican FULL BAR

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Hours: Mon-Thurs 10am - 9pm Fri-Sat 10am - 10pm Sun 8:30am - 9pm

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IDLE´SPURS steakhouse & lounge

BW, CC, DS

GRIDIRON PIZZA 15080 Seventh St., Unit 1B, Victorville.

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CC

JULIANO’S ITALIAN RESTAURANT 12052 Hesperia Road, Hesperia.

760-949-0595

FB, CC, O, $$

Weekender

BAKERIES

The Legend Lives On Since 1974 40 years of Featuring USDA Choice, Aged, Midwestern Beef Chicken and Seafood

LOUNGES MARIE CALLENDER’S BAKERY, RESTAURANT & LOUNGE 12180 Mariposa Road, Victorville.

760-241-6973 CC, DS, FB, S, SB, $$-$$$

New Local Artisan Beer: • Red Trolly (Karl Strauss) • Amarillo Pale Ale (Hanger 24) Old Favorites: • Bud Light • Bluemoon • Samuel Adams

MEXICAN DON GARCIA'S MEXICAN RESTAURANT 14343 Main St., Hesperia.

760-244-3973

BW, FB, G, CC, C

Friday, February 27, 2015 | 11

HIGH DESERT RESTAURANT GUIDE

|

DINING OUT

760-256-8888 690 Old Hwy 58 Barstow CA 92311 www.thespurs.us

12 | Friday, February 27, 2015 |

DINING OUT

Weekender

LOS TORITOS Two locations: ■ 4264 Phelan Road, Phelan.

760-868-5266 ■ 14962 Bear Valley Road, Victorville.

760-245-1811

MAC & CHEESE 18375 Highway 18, Unit 3, Apple Valley.

760-242-2200, 760-953-9784 www.reneeallensmacandcheese.com

BW, B DS, $$-$$$

WINE BAR

SANDWICH

D’VINE WINE 14845 Monarch Blvd., Ste. C, Victorville.

760-843-3888

THE BRASS PICKLE DELI 15617 Roy Rogers Drive, #103, Victorville.

760-241-4846

$$

TAKE-OUT ONLY RENEE ALLEN’S

A bowl of Albondigas Soup from Cancun Mexican Seafood Restaurant. STAFF PHOTO

BY KATHY YOUNG

—The preceding restaurants are Daily Press advertisers. To find out how to be included in the listing, call the Daily Press Advertising Department at 760-951-6288.

Renee Allen’s

Take Out & Delivery Available Up to 8 Miles

CATFISH OR TILAPIA DINNERS

MAC & CHEESE and MORE “Soul Food”

18375 Hwy. 18, Unit 3, Apple Valley Between Tom’s & KFC on the southside

W/2 Sides

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16838 D St., Victorville (In the Transportation Center)

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HOURS: Tues. - Sat. 10:00am-8:00pm Sun. 11:30am-5:30pm

Voted Best Breakfast In High Desert 9 Years In A Row!

Colorful cole slaw, a popular side at Renee Allen’s Mac and Cheese. STAFF PHOTO BY KATHY YOUNG

5.99

$

MAXWELL’S Chicago Char Broiled Burgers

Chicago Hot Dogs - The Original Italian Beef & Italian Sausage FREE DELIVERY

Open 7 Days a Week MON-SAT 7am-8pm • SUN 7am-4pm

2000 Min. Order

$

SERVING BREAKFAST • LUNCH • DINNER

3

$ 25

BREAKFAST SPECIAL 2 Eggs, 3 Bacon or Sausage, Pancakes or French Toast or Hashbrowns & Toast

+ Tax

MON-FRI 7am-11am • SAT-SUN 7am-1pm

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with French Fries & a 16 oz. Drink Our Famous GYRO Sandwich with French Fries or Onion Rings & a 16 oz. Drink

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6

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Award Winning Baklava WE CATER ~and~ WE DELIVER!

Behind Valero Gas Station

17770 Hwy. 18 • Apple Valley (Apple Valley Rd. & Hwy. 18)

(760) 242-5504