360 august 15 2013 full by Skagit Publishing

Celebrating Concrete’s logging heritage PAGE 3 Skagit Valley Herald Thursday August 15, 2013

This Weekend

Reviews

At the Movies

Head out to Anacortes for music for all ages all day Saturday

Music: Luke Bryan, Sam Phillips Video Games: “Pikmin 3”

“The Butler” an important film and great mainstream entertainment

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Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

E2 - Thursday, August 15, 2013

NEW ON DVD THIS WEEK “The Company You Keep”: Robert Redford and Shia LaBeouf star. The screenplay by Lem Dobbs, based on the novel by Neil Gordon, brushes against some of the politics and policies that made young people a half-century ago feel the only way they could help was to be as loud as possible in their protests. Redford handles the pressure of being both director and star with the same energy and passion that’s been a trademark of his career. He knows how to get the most out of a scene — even if it’s just two people talking — while keeping his performance focused. His pacing is a little slow, except for an ending that feels rushed. “Emperor”: There are uncertainties during the first few days after the Japanese surrender at the end of World War II. Matthew Fox plays Gen. Bonner Fellers, an expert in Japanese life who is assigned to find the proof that would tie the emperor directly to the war. Fellers has deep concerns because if the emperor is found guilty, the Japanese people will revolt. It’s nice to see Fox returning to the tortured leading man role he played with great skill during his days on “Party of Five.” Since then, he’s tended to take roles overshadowed by special effects (“Speed Racer”), play characters who are off kilter (“Alex Cross”) or get caught in a story so complicated even Sir Laurence Olivier would have been an afterthought to the plot (“Lost”). “Olympus Has Fallen”: This highpowered tale of terrorists who take over the White House is “Air Force One” meets “Die Hard.” Gerard Butler plays Mike Banning, a former top Secret Service agent for President Benjamin Asher (Aaron Eckhart) who ends up with a desk job after a tragic event. He returns to the White House when it’s attacked and taken over, and becomes the only person who can save the president, the first son (Finley Jacobsen) and the United States. These kind of big-action movies work if the plot seems even remotely plausible, the central hero is tough enough to handle the job and the action rarely stops. Check, check and check. “The Big Wedding”: Family tries to survive a weekend wedding celebration. “Bill Moyers: Faith & Reason Collection”: Bill Moyers explores questions about religion. “Hatchet III”: Team hunting in a swamp is attacked. Danielle Harris stars. “The Hot Flashes”: Middle-aged

YOUR ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT AND RECREATION GUIDE TO WHAT’S GOING ON IN SKAGIT COUNTY AND THE SURROUNDING AREAS

Upcoming movie releases Following is a partial schedule of coming movies on DVD. Release dates are subject to change: AUG. 20 Scary Movie V - Anchor Bay

The Weekend / Page 5

AUG. 27 The Great Gatsby - Warner Pain & Gain - Paramount SEPT. 3 Evocateur: The Morton Downey Jr. Movie - Magnolia Now You See Me - Lionsgate/Summit Stories We Tell - Lionsgate SEPT. 10 Love Is All You Need - Sony Star Trek Into Darkness - Paramount SEPT. 17 The Bling Ring - Lionsgate SEPT. 24 Redemption - Lionsgate n McClatchy-Tribune News Service

women challenge high school girls’ basketball champs to charity game. “The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec”: Comics heroine Adèle Blanc-Sec leaps to the screen. “Cat. 8”: A global security system causes big problems. “Trial & Retribution: Complete Collection”: Shows psychological scars of violence. “Time Team: The Team’s Favorite Digs”: Archaeologists, historians, surveyors and geophysicists unearth mysteries. “Standing Up”: Young teens run away from camp after being the target of a prank. “Doctor Who: Spearhead from Space”: Jon Pertwee plays the worldsaving Time Lord. “Reality”: An Italian fishmonger longs to be on “Big Brother.” “Ocean Men: Extreme Dive”: A look at the world of freedivers. “Trevor Noah: African American”: Trevor Noah searches for his identity in a world obsessed with labels. “Enlightened: The Complete Second Season”: Laura Dern plays a selfdestructive corporate executive. “Damned”: Director Rene Clement’s 1947 post-war thriller. “Girls: The Complete Second Season”: HBO comedy starring Lena Dunham. n Rick Bentley, The Fresno Bee

Check out Catapultfest, an all-day music festival for all ages, on Saturday in Anacortes

Inside

SUBMISSIONS Email features@skagitpublishing.com vrichardson@skagitpublishing. com (recreation items) Deadline: 5 p.m. Friday for the following Thursday edition Phone 360-416-2135 Hand-deliver 1215 Anderson Road Mount Vernon, WA 98274

Music, Game Reviews..................6-7 Travel............................................8-9 On Stage........................................ 10 Tuning Up..................................... 11 Get Involved.................................. 12 Little Words................................... 13 Hot Tickets.................................... 14 Movie Review “The Butler”.......... 16 Movie Reviews, Listings............... 17 At the Lincoln................................ 17 Out & About.............................18-19

Mailing address P.O. Box 578 Mount Vernon, WA 98273 Online events calendar To list your event on our website, visit goskagit.com and look for the Events Calendar on the home page HAVE A STORY IDEA? w For arts and entertainment, contact Features Editor Craig Parrish at 360-416-2135 or features@skagitpublishing.com w For recreation, contact staff writer Vince Richardson at 360-416-2181 or vrichardson@ skagitpublishing.com TO ADVERTISE 360-424-3251

Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

Thursday, August 15, 2013 - E3

COMMUNITY

Whoopin’ it up at Concrete’s Cascade Days By KIMBERLY CAUVEL @Kimberly_SVH

Visit Concrete this weekend to join the fun of Cascade Days, an annual summer festival complete with chain saw carving to celebrate the town’s logging heritage. The two-day event will be packed with entertainment, contests and food for the whole family. Floats will roll out on Main Street at 11 a.m. Saturday to kick off the event. Races, competitions and children’s activities will follow for the rest of the day along Main Street and at Town Park. Wood chips and sawdust will pile up at Highway 20 and Douglas Vose Way while traditional chain saw carving buzzes in action both days. Saturday’s highlights include a classic car show, the traditional firemen’s muster challenge, scaffold and duck races. The kids can go fishing, cool off in the dunk tank, ride a pony and more. Car show registration is $10 and cars can be entered at the event Saturday. Food and furry ones will take center stage at the park Sunday with a chili cookoff, jam contest, pie and watermelon eating contests, and a pet show. Visitors are encouraged to come hungry and participate in chili sampling around lunch time, then vote on their favorite. Scavenger hunts will be set up for kids 7 to 13.

Skagit Valley Herald file photos

Schedule SATURDAY 11 a.m.: Parade 12:30 p.m.: Car show 12:30 p.m.: Chain saw carving, firemen’s muster 1-4 p.m.: Kids games, pony rides 2 p.m.: Scaffold race 2:30 p.m.: Log show 4:30 p.m.: Duck race SUNDAY 10 a.m.: Chain saw carving 11 a.m.: Pet show 12:30 p.m.: Jam contest 1:30 p.m.: Pie eating contest 2 p.m.: Chili cookoff tasting 2:30 p.m.: Watermelon eating contest n On the Web: cascade days.com

Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

E4 - Thursday, August 15, 2013

MOVIES

AN FRANCISCO — In the spring of 2011, actor Ashton Kutcher had a chance to meet Apple’s Steve Jobs. But the meeting never took place because Kutcher was working, and on Oct. 5, Jobs died at the age of 56, setting off memorials around the world. “I think things work out the way they do for a reason,” says Kutcher, who plays the high-tech icon in the new film “Jobs.” “He may well have been one of the great innovators of my lifetime. But I don’t know what I could have gotten from that meeting.” For one thing, Kutcher says he might have gotten an impression of Jobs that was only temporarily valid, something that would have affected his portrayal of him in the wrong way. “There might have been one thing that he only did on that day, but I would have just married myself to it,” he adds. “So maybe — just maybe — it was lucky that I didn’t meet him.” Kutcher is talking “Jobs” before a screening of the film (which opens Friday) for an invited audience of high-tech executives and journalists in San Francisco. Sitting in a conference room at the Ritz Carlton with the movie’s director, Joshua Michael Stern, the 35-yearold actor seems far removed from the TV comedies for which he is best known: Walden Schmidt in CBS’s “Two and a Half Men” and Michael Kelso on Fox’s “That ’70s Show.” Perhaps because of the goofy persona he has projected on television, the very notion of the actor morphing into Jobs on screen was initially met with a significant amount of skepticism. But the fact remains that Kutcher has long been a player in the tech world with a passion for social media and a role as venture capital investor in startups. While the film itself has drawn considerable advance heat — including criticisms from Apple co-founder and longtime Jobs friend Steve Wozniak — Kutcher has earned grudging praise for his ability to channel the man who reshaped the computer industry and American culture. “I have had the good fortune of being consistently underesti-

Josh Gad (from left, as Steve Wozniak), Ashton Kutcher (Steve Jobs) and Ron Eldard (Rod Holt) are shown in a scene from “Jobs.” Open Road Films via AP

Ashton Kutcher, Steve Jobs and the making of ‘Jobs’ By CHARLIE McCOLLUM / San Jose Mercury News

mated,” says Kutcher with a sigh. “I think there is value in that.” Work on the film actually began well before Jobs’ death. First-time script writer Matt Whiteley began the screenplay around the time Jobs took medical leave from Apple to battle a rare form of pancreatic cancer. The process accelerated after Jobs died, and one of director Stern’s first calls was to Kutcher, who had already expressed interest in the movie. He gives Kutcher a lot of credit for making that experience “a master class in what an actor ought to do in a meeting” about a new film. “You have to have done your homework; you have to have a sense of the character,” Stern explains. “So when you meet the director, he takes away from the meeting that this guy can do the role, he’s engaged, and he’s deeply interested.” From the very beginning, he says, it was clear that Kutcher

“really fell in love with the character and understood him.” Kutcher says that for him, it was an unusual opportunity, a perfect nexus of personal interest and profession craft aligning. “Your craft should be your interest, but when the subject matter of interests can be your craft, it’s really exciting.” “Jobs” began filming in June 2012 with three days of work in and around the actual Los Altos, Calif., home Jobs grew up in. The family’s garage was famously the first “headquarters” of Apple. While most of the movie was shot in Los Angeles, Stern thought it important to do the location work to get the right feel for Apple’s early days. Kutcher says that part of the shoot was not easy because he was still struggling with the part. “To this day, I don’t know if I fully understand Steve Jobs. I don’t know if anyone ever fully did,” he says. “You can only really seek an

approximation of who he was. I was working really hard to become that guy.” Finally, someone with whom he was working came to his aid by telling him: “It’s your interpretation and don’t take that away from yourself.” After that “I had to forgive myself for the mistakes I was going to make. Once I was able to do that, it was like: Well, OK, give it your best effort.” What he came to understand was that Jobs was most misunderstood by people who didn’t know him and didn’t get how passionate he was about what he was creating. “He cared more than anyone else. He cared so much that sometimes he ignored the feelings of the people who were right around him. … Every moment was a moment for Steve to further the agenda, to create (an) amazing product for his company that people loved, cared about and was useful to them.

“To me, that was the backbone.” There is a key scene in “Jobs,” set at a time when a barefoot and hygienically challenged Jobs was working at Nolan Bushnell’s Atari. At one point, a manager turns to Jobs and says, “You’re good, damn good, but you’re an a—hole.” “There are people who don’t give a damn so they’re an a—hole. … And then there are (others) who just can’t help being an a— hole because they’re really gifted,” Kutcher says. “And that is what Steve was. He was that way when he could get away with it.” Or, as Stern puts it: Kutcher “connected with that focus that Steve had, that what he was doing was great, and if other people didn’t understand it, it wasn’t his inability to articulate it but their inability to understand.” As the interview is winding down and Kutcher and Stern are getting ready to go to the screening, the actor suddenly reveals a flash of the passion that he sometimes brings to the screen as Jobs. “Look,” he says, “my motivation for making the movie was pretty simple. As a world, we’re at an economic apex where the old guard, the old titans of industrial America, is moving out. … The one thing that is happening is our growth in building technology.” Kutcher notes that the people who are at the forefront are young entrepreneurs, the kind who work with startups, who are starting out where Jobs began and will face the same brick walls. “If people get anything from the movie that’s valuable, it’s that Steve Jobs wasn’t always Steve Jobs. He was a guy making a phone call to companies where nobody knew his name. But if you have perseverance … you can win, build something useful and help create the world around you. … “At the end of the day, that’s what Steve Jobs stood for.”

Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

Thursday, August 15, 2013 - E5

THIS WEEKENDin the area “PROP & PONIES” The Heritage Flight Museum will kick off

Catapulfest

its Props and Ponies weekend with the “Props, Ponies & Popping Corks” tasting event at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 16, at the museum’s hangars at Skagit Regional Airport, 15053 Crosswind Drive, Burlington. Enjoy wine, beer and food tasting, live music and more. Ages 21 and older. $25. propsandponies.eventbrite.com The Props & Ponies Mustang-Mustang airplane and car show will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, on the ramp outside the museum hangars. Check out 100 classic to modern Ford Mustangs, flying P-51 Mustangs and other flying and static warbirds, kids’ activities, raffles and more. Vehicle/plane registration: $30. Admission: $5 suggested donation, $3 ages 5 to 18. 360-733-4422 or heritageflight.org

STARLIGHT CINEMA “Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted” is next in Mount Vernon Parks & Recreation’s presentation of free movies this summer on Friday nights at Edgewater Park, 600 Behrens Millett Road, Mount Vernon. The movie will begin at dusk Aug. 16. Bring your lawn chair or blanket for seating. Concessions will be available. Free admission. 360-336-6215

HEY MARSEILLES Enjoy music for all ages, starting at 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at Seafarers’ Memorial Park in Anacortes. The lineup includes Hey Marseilles, SHEBEAR, The Fame Riot, SEACATS, Special Explosion, Specters, Sleepy Lagoon, Maiah Manser, Terrible Buttons, Tangerine and New Lungs. Bring a blanket or lawn chair for seating. Free admission. Food will be available for purchase. catapultfest.com

SPACE KIDS PICNIC The Charlie Martz Foundation’s eighth annual For the Kids Charity fundraiser will begin at 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at Buster’s place, 13392 Avon Allen Road, Mount Vernon. Enjoy a potluck picnic with music provided by six local bands, along with an auction and raffles. Main dish and beverages will provided. Admission: $15 plus one side dish; free for children. 360-421-1495 or 360-708-8037

WATER FEST The fourth annual CamOcean Water Festival will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at Cama Beach State Park, 1880 SW Camano Drive, Camano Island. Learn about the critters that call Puget Sound home, with hands-on activities and educational booths. Free. Discover Pass required, but some reserved parking is available on request for those without a pass. camabeach foundation.org

Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

E6 - Thursday, August 15, 2013

REVIEWS MUSIC CDS

VIDEO GAMES

Compiled from news services

Chris Campbell Scripps Howard News Service

Steve Arrington and the Dam-Funk “Higher”

Los Angeles funk producer and songwriter Damon “Dam-Funk” Riddick has become one of R&B’s most idiosyncratic groove delivery systems, a master of unironic synth joy supremely devoted to ’70s and ’80s tones. For “Higher,” the king of the keyboard has teamed with vocalist/percussionist Steve Arrington, whose work with ’70s funk pioneers Slave and as a solo artist inspired some of Dam’s jams. The pair have collaborated in the past, but “Higher” marks their first album-length project. The record connects fellow travelers on a journey to the center of a sound, one in which fake hand claps bang alongside synthetic bass tones, layers of falsetto wails roll out lines about making dreams come true (“Blow Your Mind”), soaring through space (“Galactic Funtionals”) and freaking out (“I Be Trippin’”). Retro? Yes. This stuff sounds straight outta the funk vaults, so your tolerance for “Higher” will depend on whether you think the era that created early Prince, Zapp and the Gap Band is worthy of revisiting. Which is to say, “Higher” as an album is decent enough, but it’s hardly essential. n Randall Roberts, Los Angeles Times

Luke Bryan

“Crash My Party” Within the first minute of “That’s My Kind Of Night,” the opening track on Luke Bryan’s new album “Crash My Party,” he cites tailgating, beer drinking and a nameless “pretty girl” in suntan oil and cowboy boots — all standard modern-day signifiers for a country song. Set to an electronically altered bass-and-drum rhythm, the song also refers to a country hip-hop mix tape, a reflection of the tune’s arrangement, which mixes banjo, hard-rock guitar riffs and hip-hop production touches. What Bryan’s fourth album doesn’t offer is many surprises. The current Academy of Country Music entertainer of the year, Bryan sticks with souped-up country rockers and romantic ballads about how guys who like to fish and guzzle beer and drive pickup trucks do better with women and generally have more fun than

their counterparts. That theme rings out in the title song and many others, including “Beer In The Headlights,” “We Run This Town,” “Play It Again,” “Out Like That” and on and on. Bryan and producer Jeff Stevens do push the edge of how many electronic effects they can use in a country song. But in every other way, Bryan sticks a bit too predictably with a successful formula on “Crash My Party.” n Michael McCall, Associated Press

Buddy Guy

“Rhythm & Blues” On “I Go By Feel,” Buddy Guy uses the title phrase to explain, among other things, his approach to playing the blues. But even the greats, like Guy, can use help along the way in melding inspiration with craft and enhancing the artist’s gifts. And Guy gets that from producer-drummer-writer Tom Hambridge. The result is a focused, hard-hitting two-CD set of 21 tracks that clocks in at just over 80 minutes total. The 77-year-old Guy gets plenty of chances to flash his prodigious guitar chops, but he does so in the context of taut, well-structured songs that don’t stint on feel as they range from driving straight blues to swaggering roadhouse R&B and ballads brooding and soul-tinged. Guests are on hand, including Kid Rock, Keith Urban and Steven Tyler, but they just complement the main attraction, whom Hambridge supplies with songs that at times resonate with references to the singer’s own life. And with “Meet Me in Chicago,” there is also a welcome alternative to the well-worn Windy City anthem “Sweet Home Chicago.” n Nick Cristiano, The Philadelphia Inquirer

Sam Phillips

“Push Any Button”

of the 44 Long Play songs, but the self-released “Push Any Button” is her first publicly available new album in five years. Clocking in at 29 minutes, it’s a compact set of 10 fun, barbed, clattering songs that integrate upbeat rockabilly guitars and sweet countrypolitan strings into the artful torch-song style she has mined since 2001’s “Fan Dance.” “When I’m Alone” and “You Won’t Know” rock more than anything she’s done since her baroque-pop period in the ’90s, and ballads such as “No Time Like Now” and “Going” rank with her best. n Steve Klinge, The Philadelphia Inquirer

Washed Out “Paracosm”

As the namesake for Washed Out’s latest LP, “Paracosm” is at once perfectly appropriate and bafflingly unbefitting. In the former sense, the album adheres to the word’s dictionary definition, being an audible depiction of a childlike fantasy world, rich with carefree sentiments, chirping birds and cooing woodland creatures and the resulting feeling of lying in a sun-soaked valley. Yet lacing that perception is the idea that the world stretched across the record’s nine tracks is not tethered to a child’s imagination. Instead, it has the feel of a world-weary adult peeking in on the dream world he concocted as a youth and subsequently grew to abandon so long ago. n Cole Waterman, popmatters.com

Bloc Party

“The Nextwave Sessions” Bloc Party has always seemed to take a liking to short releases. “The Nextwave Sessions” marks the sixth EP in the group’s discography, and they’ve never released an album containing more than 13 tracks. The succinct releases cut down on the filler and fixate the attention to the records that matter. “The Nextwave Sessions” presents five new Bloc Party tracks that the band wanted you to hear. Some of these tracks are songs that the band has been performing live for months now, but this EP is the first opportunity to hear the studio recordings in all their crispy clean glory.

Although she had been putting out albums since the early ’80s, Sam Phillips retreated from the corporate music business after 2008’s “Don’t Do Anything,” choosing instead to make songs available via a private subscription program she called the Long Play and to serve as music director for Amy Sherman-Palladino’s TV series “Bunheads,” as she had for “Gilmore Girls.” In 2011, Phillips released a sampler of a dozen n Logan Smithson, popmatters.com

‘Pikmin 3’

Platform: Wii U Genre: Strategy Publisher: Nintendo ESRB Rating: E, for Everyone Grade: 4 stars (out of 5) If you had but one day to live, would you check off everything on your bucket list that you could, or would you fight to give yourself another day? The latter makes up the paper-thin story of “Pikmin 3,” but gamers should hardly care. That’s because this lovable franchise has at last returned to give us the joy of sacrificing these little creatures by the hundreds in order to survive. For the uninitiated, pikmin are creatures with special abilities. Those that are red in color are heavy lifters, those that are blue tackle water well, the yellow handle electricity and so on. Charlie and his shipmates only have a short time to live if they don’t collect adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables. And wouldn’t you know it? These pikmin love nothing more than scarfing this stuff down. Armed with a trusty whistle, you move Charlie and Co. across several sprawling landscapes, encountering beasts and food. You can only usher up to 100 pikmin at a time, so a vast amount of your focus is on strategizing how many of which kind of pikmin to collect and have follow you around. You will encounter more throughout each level so you can replenish your forces. But be aware, for example, that running out of blue pikmin not long before you reach an uncrossable creek is, shall we say, a problem.

Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

REVIEWS Maintaining an ice-cold relationship with your pikmin remains crucial as well, because, as stated previously, you run through these cute little characters at an alarming rate. Some beasts that are encountered require one to experiment with the right combination of pikmin to defeat them, and depending on how many enemies ambush you, it could be a loss of great proportions. And while I call these bugs and robots “enemies,” they hardly seem that. Rather, they are just minding their own business trying to survive — just as you are — and when you cross their path you have no choice but to do battle. Equally dispiriting will be

ways to control Charlie and his buddies. The GamePad provides a great map to help keep you moving in the right direction, while the Wii Remote has more accuracy in making on-the-fly direction changes and instructions for pikmin. Neither one is 100 percent, however, and you wish there were a better balance or a way to use both. “Pikmin 3” offers beautifully rendered environments, engaging audio and the reluctance of pikmin to expands upon what made properly follow you around the first two editions so popular. It is one of the best the map, which means that Wii U releases of the last a few stragglers will perish and you’ll occasionally curse few months. the camera for making the n Follow Chris Campbell on viewing angle difficult to Twitter @campbler or email make forward progress. him at game_on_games@ The game gives you two mac.com.

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E8 - Thursday, August 15, 2013

TRAVEL

Improvements in store for the Road to Graceland “I wasn’t that impressed,” Green said of Presley Boulevard. “I MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The expected something more road to Graceland is not grand. I think it could use a a pretty sight. At least not little sprucing up.” yet. To make the road more Elvis Presley Boulevard welcoming for tourists and leads hundreds of thoumore pleasant for resisands of visitors each year dents of the working- and to Graceland, the late rock middle-class community ‘n’ roll icon’s Memphis of Whitehaven just past mansion, and to the exhib- Graceland, the city has its across the street. Tourbegun making a series of ists exit off Interstate 55 infrastructure improveand cruise through a mile’s ments. Workers already worth of empty businesses, have widened and repaved vacant lots, crooked utility one main intersection and poles, crumbling sidewalks, plan to do the same to sevpoor lighting and drab eral others. landscaping. Officials say they believe Fast-food joints and the planned improvements gas stations are the main to utilities, sidewalks, curbs, options for eating nearest gutters, signs and lightto Graceland. Businesses ing — plus new artwork at such as used-car dealerintersections and along the ships and auto-parts stores road — will impress touralso are part of the mix. ists, lure new businesses, Lodging options are not improve pedestrian and plentiful: The highesttraffic safety, and better quality chain hotels in the the quality of life in Whiteimmediate area are an haven. EconoLodge and a Days The $43 million project Inn. began early this year and Susan Green and her is expected to be comhusband David came from pleted in 2016 or 2017, said Jasper, Ga., to visit Grace- Memphis City Councilman land last week, just days Harold Collins, the drivbefore the start of Elvis ing force behind the plan. Week, an annual event dur- Funding has been split ing which throngs descend between the state’s $27 milon Memphis to celebrate lion and $16 million from Presley’s life and career, the city. capped by a candlelight “When the finished vigil at Graceland to product is done, tourists will see a new boulevard remember his death on that’s fitting for their visit Aug. 16, 1977. By ADRIAN SAINZ Associated Press

Photos by Adrian Sainz / AP

A newly built sign marking Elvis Presley Blvd. sits at the intersection of the boulevard and Brooks Road in Memphis, Tenn. The boulevard, which runs right in front of Graceland, Presley’s longtime Memphis home, is undergoing a $43 million infrastructure improvement project that officials hope will please tourists and improve the quality of life of the residents of the Whitehaven community. to Graceland but also fitting for the community that surrounds Graceland,” Collins said. Cab driver Frank Williams, who takes people to and from Graceland every day, said he would like to see some bumps in the road fixed and a lower speed limit between three stoplights that bracket the boulevard right in front of Graceland. “This is a busy area. It will make commuting much easier,” Williams said. “Whitehaven is like a city within a city.” One key aspect of the project is removing the

unsightly power poles that line the boulevard. Memphis Light, Gas and Water plans to install a network of underground power lines to replace cracked wooden poles. Another important part of the project involves business owners, who are being told they need to make changes at their own expense to their properties to conform to the new look. Collins and others hope vacant lots and abandoned storefronts will be replaced by new businesses that can A construction crew works on improvements to Elvis Presley Blvd. serve the community and boost the tax base.

Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

Thursday, August 15, 2013 - E9

TRAVEL Local travel YOGA ADVENTURE SERIES: Join Dawn Jex for day trips and yoga. Each adventure includes fun activities at an area attraction combined with a yoga class. For information or to register: 360-631-0587 or yoga-gypsies.com. SHORT TRIPS: Mount Vernon Parks and Recreation offers travel opportunities for participants ages 12 and older, adult supervision required for ages 18 and younger. For information or to register, call 360-336-6215.

“(Business owners) are excited about it, but they also are cautious because they know they’re going to have to invest some dollars for their business,” Collins said. Collins said luring higher-quality restaurants and hotels is a long-term goal of the project. Most visitors to Graceland stay in downtown Memphis or near the airport, deciding to drive to the tourist attraction or take shuttles. Most of the hotels within walking distance of Graceland are locally owned, with a smattering of low-budget chain hotels. At least one major company, IHG, plans to build a Holiday Inn Express hotel in the area. In an emailed statement, Sandip Patel, the owner of the planned Holiday Inn Express, said the city’s “efforts and commitment to revitalize Elvis Presley Boulevard” was a factor in the decision to build near Graceland. Jack Soden — CEO of Elvis Presley Enterprises,

ESCORTED TOURS: The Whatcom County Tour Program offers a variety of day trips and longer tours, with most trips departing from and returning to the Bellingham Senior Activity Center, 315 Halleck St., Bellingham. For information or to register: 360-733-4030, press #, ext. 47015, or wccoa.org/index.php/ Tours. Next up: “Sister Act”: Broadway musical performance at the Paramount Theatre, Seattle, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 25, departing from and returning to the Bellingham Senior Center. $125$135. Includes round-trip transportation, escort, tickets, lunch. Seattle Mariners versus Texas Rangers: 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 28. $73-$83. Includes round-trip transportation, covered parking, group seating in Section 323 and escort. Seattle Mariners versus Oakland Athletics: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 29. $73-$83. Includes round-trip transportation, covered parking, group seating in Section 323 and escort. Fall Foliage Mississippi River Steamboat Cruise: Oct. 4-12. Enjoy the quintessential American journey down the Mississippi River aboard the America Queen Steamboat. $3,199-$3,999. Includes Bellingham-to-Seatac transfer, airfare, first-night hotel stay, seven-day cruise, all meals on cruise, shore activity at all ports, daily lecture by onboard

TOP: A dilapidated sign in front of a former used car dealership sits along Elvis Presley Blvd. BOTTOM: A “sidewalk closed” sign marks the spot where workers are making improvements to Elvis Presley Blvd. which is in charge of operating the Graceland tourist attraction and managing the licensing of Presleyrelated products and materials — said improvements to the boulevard are important for Graceland and the some 500,000 tourists who

visit yearly. “Visitors to Graceland, who are 99.9 percent from out of town, are forming an impression about where they are and forming an impression about Memphis from Elvis Presley Boulevard,” Soden said.

naturalist, nightly entertainment, taxes, gratuities and escort. New York City and Upstate New York Fall Colors Tour: Oct. 4-13. Check out the “Big Apple” including a day cruise to the Statue of Liberty, then venture upstate to Niagara Falls, Cooperstown, Hyde Park mansions, a river cruise and more. $2,999-$3,799, includes round-trip airfare, deluxe motorcoach transportation, hotel accommodations, 14 meals, New York City guided tour, optional Broadway show, attractions, two day-cruises and escort. $300 deposit due at sign-up. Final payment due in August. EXTENDED TRIPS: The Oak Harbor Senior Center is organizing two smallgroup trips for 2014: Mississippi River Cruise: America’s Heartland, Nashville to New Orleans, March 19–30; and Scotland, June 2014. Trips will depart from Oak Harbor/Mount Vernon. Contact Pat Gardner at pgardner@oak harbor.org. STANWOOD SENIOR CENTER TRIPS: The Stanwood Senior Center offers occasional trips around the Puget Sound area and beyond, departing from and returning to the center, 7430 276th St. NW, Stanwood. For information or reservations, contact Sandy Kitchens at 360-629-7403. PASSPORT APPLICATIONS: The Anacortes Public Library accepts passport applications from noon to 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and 1 to 4 p.m. Saturdays at 1220 10th St., Anacortes. Passport forms and information on fees and how to apply are available at travel.state.gov or pick up an application and passport guide at the library. The Oak Harbor Senior Center accepts passport applications, by appointment, from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at 51 SE Jerome St., Oak Harbor. 360-279-4580.

Cascade Days 2013 August 17 & 18 Concrete, WA cascadedays.com

Family Fun for Everyone!

E10 Thursday, August 15, 2013

ON STAGE in the Skagit Valley and surrounding area August 15-22

TUNING UP Playing at area venues August 15-22

Thursday.15

FRIDAY.16

THEATER

MATT AUDETTE AND THE CIRCLE OF FRIENDS BAND 7 p.m., Stillaguamish Grange, 6521 Pioneer Highway, Stanwood. $15. 360-3363321, 360-336-8066 or thehaynieopry.com.

“The Merry Wives of Windsor”: Shakespeare Northwest, 7 p.m., RexvilleBlackrock Amphitheatre, 19299 Rexville Grange Road, Mount Vernon. $12, $10 with student ID. 206-317-3023 or shakesnw.org. “The Importance of Being Earnest”: 7:30 p.m., Anacortes Community Theatre, 918 M Ave., Anacortes. $18. 360-293-6829 or acttheatre.com. “The Last 5 Years”: 7:30 p.m., Whidbey Playhouse, 730 SE Midway Blvd., Oak Harbor. $14. 360-679-2237 or whidbeyplayhouse.com.

Friday.16 MUSIC

Haynie Opry (country, bluegrass): Matt Audette and The Circle of Friends Band, 7 p.m., Stillaguamish Grange, 6521 Pioneer Highway, Stanwood. $15. 360336-3321, 360-336-8066 or thehaynieopry. com. Cap Sante Summer Concert Series: Catapult Festival, Seafarers’ Memorial Park, Anacortes. Free. Bring a blanket or lawn chair for seating. 425-303-1848 or snohomishartistguild.org.

THEATER

“Hamlet”: Shakespeare Northwest, 7 p.m., Rexville-Blackrock Amphitheatre, 19299 Rexville Grange Road, Mount Vernon. $12, $10 with student ID. 206317-3023 or shakesnw.org. “The Importance of Being Earnest”: 8 p.m., Anacortes Community Theatre, 918 M Ave., Anacortes. $18. 360-293-6829 or acttheatre.com. “The Last 5 Years”: 7:30 p.m., Whidbey Playhouse, 730 SE Midway Blvd., Oak Harbor. $14. 360-679-2237 or whidbeyplayhouse.com.

Thursday, August 15, 2013 E11

Skagit Valley Herald / goskagit.com

FRIDAY.16 JENNY & THE TOMCATS 7 p.m., Mount Vernon Elks, 2120 Market St., Mount Vernon.

FRIDAY.16 Saturday.17

SATURDAY.17

MUSIC

THE 1ST STREET FOLLIES PRESENTS “THE BACK ALLEY CATS” 8 to 10 p.m., 1st Street Cabaret & Speakeasy, 612 S. First St., Mount Vernon. $5 cover. 360-336-3012 or riverbelledinnertheatre.com.

Haynie Opry Southern Gospel Matinee: Matt Audette and The Circle of Friends Band, 3 p.m., Stillaguamish Grange, 6521 Pioneer Highway, Stanwood. $10 at the door. 360-336-3321, 360-336-8066 or thehaynieopry.com. “The Day The Music Died”: Haynie Opry presents a tribute to the music of Richie Valens, The Big Bopper and Buddy Holly; 7 p.m., Stillaguamish Grange, 6521 Pioneer Highway, Stanwood. $20 at the door. 360-336-3321, 360-336-8066 or thehaynieopry.com. Cap Sante Summer Concert Series: Catapult Festival, Seafarers’ Memorial Park, Anacortes. Free. Bring a blanket or lawn chair for seating. 425-303-1848 or snohomishartistguild.org.

“The Importance of Being Earnest”: 8 p.m., Anacortes Community Theatre, 918 M Ave., Anacortes. $18. 360-293-6829 or acttheatre.com. “The Last 5 Years”: 7:30 p.m., Whidbey Playhouse, 730 SE Midway Blvd., Oak Harbor. $14. 360-679-2237 or whidbeyplayhouse.com.

VARIETY

The 1st Street Follies presents “The Back Alley Cats”: 8 to 10 p.m., 1st Street Cabaret & Speakeasy, 612 S. First St., Mount Vernon. $5 cover. 360-336-3012 or riverbelledinnertheatre.com.

BOBBY HOLLAND AND BREADLINE BLUES BAND 6 to 8 p.m., The Heart of Anacortes, 1014 Fourth St., Anacortes. $7.

THURSDAY.15 Hillary Scott: 7:30 p.m., Conway Muse, 18444 Spruce/ Main, Conway. $8. 360-4453000.

FRIDAY.16 Knut Bell and the Blue Collars: 7:30 to 10 p.m., The Corner Pub, 14565 Allen West Road, Bow. No cover. 360-757-6113.

Paul Klein (of the Atlantics): 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Jansen Art Center Firehall Cafe, 321 Front St., Lynden. No cover. 360-3543600.

Amara Grace and Philip Nakano: 8 p.m., 1st Street Cabaret & Speakeasy, 612 S. First St., Mount Vernon. $5 cover. 360-336-3012.

Jammin’ Jeff: 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., Big Lake Bar & Grill, 18247 Highway 9, Mount Vernon. 360-4226411.

El Colonel and Doubleshot: 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., Varsity Inn, 112 N. Cherry St., Burlington. No cover. 360-7550165.

Wayne Hayton: 8 p.m., Conway Muse, 18444 Spruce/ Main, Conway. 360-445-3000.

Br’er Rabbit (folk, Americana): 7:30 p.m., Washington Sips, 608 S. First St., La Conner. No cover. 360-3991037.

Skip Hamilton: 6 to 9 p.m., Frida’s Gourmet Mexican Restaurant, 416 Commercial Ave., Anacortes. No cover. 360-2992120.

Jenny & The Tomcats: 7 p.m., Mount Vernon Elks, 2120 Market St., Mount Vernon. 360848-8882. Open to the public.

Don’t, P.R.O.B.L.E.M.S., Black Beast Revival: 10 p.m., The Shakedown, 1212 N. State St., Bellingham. $5. 360778-1067.

Jammin’ Jeff: 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., Big Lake Bar & Grill, 18247 Highway 9, Mount Vernon. 360-4226411.

Ruvara Marimba: 7:30 p.m., Conway Muse, 18444 Spruce/ Main, Conway. $7, free for ages 12 and younger. 360445-3000.

Nick Fair & Sarah Smith: 8 p.m., Washington Sips, 608 S. First St., La Conner. No cover. 360-3991037.

Dirty Rice: 7:30 p.m., H2O, 314 Commercial Ave., Anacortes. 360755-3956.

Bobby Holland and Breadline Blues Band: 6 to 8 p.m., The Heart of Anacortes, 1014 Fourth St., Anacortes. $7. 360-2933515.

Country Lips: 8:30 p.m., Edison Inn, 5829 Cains Court, Edison. 360766-6266.

Br’er Rabbit: 9 p.m., Sedro-Woolley Eagles Club, 1000 Metcalf St. $5. 360-8550530.

Slim Fat Lips (blues, rock): Noon to 3 p.m., Challenger Ridge Vineyard & Cellars, 43095 Challenger Road, Concrete. Free. 425-422-6988.

Galapagos, Pacific High, Full Clips: 9:30 p.m., The Shakedown, 1212 N. State St., Bellingham. $3. 360778-1067.

Michael Gonzalez (acoustic folk, indie): 6:30 p.m., Jansen Art Center Firehall Cafe, 321 Front St., Lynden. No cover. 360-3543600.

WEDNESDAY.21

THURSDAY.22 The Lost Highway Band: 7:30 to 10 p.m., The Corner Pub, 14565 Allen West Road, Bow. No cover. 360-757-6113.

Br’er Rabbit: 9 p.m., The Green Frog, 1015 N. State St., Bellingham. $5. 360961-1438.

Jerri Mercer (piano show tunes, folk classics): 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Jansen Art Center Firehall Cafe, 321 Front St., Lynden. No cover. 360-354-3600.

SATURDAY.17 Electric Soul Society (rock): 9 p.m., Draft Pics, 516 S. First St., Mount Vernon. No cover. 360-336-3626.

THEATER

“The Merry Wives of Windsor”: Shakespeare Northwest, 7 p.m., Rexville-Blackrock Amphitheatre, 19299 Rexville Grange Road, Mount Vernon. $12, $10 with student ID. 206-317-3023 or shakesnw.org.

SATURDAY.17

WAYNE HAYTON 8 p.m., Conway Muse, 18444 Spruce/Main, Conway.

Sunday.18

Thursday.22

THEATER

“The Importance of Being Earnest”: 2 p.m., Anacortes Community Theatre, 918 M Ave., Anacortes. $18. 360-293-6829 or acttheatre.com.

Tuesday.20 VARIETY

Ms. Betty Desire, Jason Daniel Wall: 8 p.m., 1st Street Cabaret & Speakeasy, 612 S. First St., Mount Vernon. $3 cover. 360336-3012 or riverbelledinnertheatre.com.

“The Importance of Being Earnest”: 7:30 p.m., Anacortes Community Theatre, 918 M Ave., Anacortes. $18. 360-293-6829 or acttheatre.com. “The Last 5 Years”: 7:30 p.m., Whidbey Playhouse, 730 SE Midway Blvd., Oak Harbor. $14. 360-679-2237 or whidbeyplayhouse.com.

SUNDAY.18 Knut Bell & The Blue Collars: 5 to 9 p.m., Conway Pub & Eatery, 18611 Main St., Conway. $3 cover. 360-4454733.

Gary B’s Church of the Blues (blues, classic rock): 6 to 10 p.m., Castle Tavern, 708 Metcalf St., SedroWoolley. 360855-2263.

C.C. Adams and friends Sunday Jam, featuring $cratch Daddy, Coyote Blues and more: 4 to 8 p.m., Station House, 315 E. Morris St., La Conner. 360466-4488.

Orville Johnson: 5:30 p.m., Edison Inn, 5829 Cains Court, Edison. 360766-6266.

Jaime Reynolds/ 1967: 5 to 8 p.m., The Corner Pub, 14565 Allen West Road, Bow. No cover. 360-7576113.

Truth & Salvage Co., Wes Sheffield: 10 p.m., The Shakedown, 1212 N. State St., Bellingham. $7. 360778-1067.

Spoonshine Duo: 6 to 9 p.m., Rockfish Grill, 320 Commercial Ave., Anacortes. 360588-1720.

Scott Pemberton Trio: 7:30 p.m., Conway Muse, 18444 Spruce/ Main, Conway. $10. 360-4453000.