(ABOVE: Mill About Smartly.)

Block 15 — Mill About Smartly, 7 to 9 p.m. Poitin & Stout, 10 p.m. to midnight
Bombs Away Cafe — The Badfish Band (final show), 10 p.m., $6.

Calapooia Brewing Co. — Kyle Williams, 8 p.m.

Cloud 9 — Ordinance, Three Fingered Jack, 8 p.m., $5.

FireWorks — The Nettles, 6 p.m.

Flat Tail Brewery — Ordinance, 5:30 p.m.

Tom’s Peacock — Jonny Dark and the Wondertones, 9 p.m.

Cheers to green beers!

-Nancy

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Here on The Entertainer blog, I’d like to showcase the 2010 picks of photographer Scobel Wiggins. The reason? She actually takes the time to watch almost every single film on the Academy Awards ballot each year (excepting just a few of the most obscure films). A serious time commitment!

Enjoy reading her insights, below, and check back Monday to see which MidValley Newspapers staffer reigned supreme this year.

Nominees for the 82nd annual Academy Awards with Scobel Wiggins’ picks and commentary:

Best picture:

This year’s surprise theme was age and/or disability, and every film in the Best Picture category spun on that axis except “An Education,” which was about youth and stupidity. Three films feature newspapers. Yeehaw!

‘‘Avatar’’ (Dances with Blue Cats. Huge winner.)
‘‘The Blind Side’’ (Black boy gets out of ghetto. Three hankie.)
‘‘District 9’ (Red Lobster missed a product placement goldmine.)
‘‘An Education’’ (The EQ test.)
‘‘The Hurt Locker’’ (Sounds so fun~~)
‘‘Inglourious Basterds’’ (People can be basterds. Who knew?)
‘‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’’ (Black girl doesn’t get out of ghetto. Can’t even cry, it’s that big.)
‘‘A Serious Man’’ (Nooooooooooooo. . . .)
‘‘Up’’ (Rocks it.)
‘‘Up in the Air’’ (The point guard grows up.)

Best actor:
Jeff Bridges, ‘‘Crazy Heart’’ (It’s about a newspaper reporter, enough said.)
George Clooney, ‘‘Up in the Air’’ (He soars.)
Colin Firth, ‘‘A Single Man’’ (Winner. Double the awesomeness that is Colin Firth—see Crazy Heart.)
Morgan Freeman, ‘‘Invictus’’ (I didn’t know Nelson Mandela was really Morgan Freeman.)
Jeremy Renner, ‘‘The Hurt Locker’’ (Ouch)

Best actress:
Sandra Bullock, ‘‘The Blind Side’’ (Devoted to the human spirit, and makeup.)
Helen Mirren, ‘‘The Last Station’’
Carey Mulligan, ‘‘An Education’’ (She could run up the down escalator and makes it look effortless.)
Gabourey Sidibe, ‘‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’’ (Transcendent. Gorgeous. Not too big for her. Must see.)
Meryl Streep, ‘‘Julie & Julia’’ (Winner. I didn’t know Meryl Streep was really Julia Child.)

Best supporting actor:
Matt Damon, ‘‘Invictus’’ (46664, represent.)
Woody Harrelson, ‘‘The Messenger’’ (Winner. The role took guts, and Woody was brilliant.)
Christopher Plummer, ‘‘The Last Station’’
Stanley Tucci, ‘‘The Lovely Bones’’ (Cabbage Patch meets the cornfield. One dimensional.)
Christoph Waltz, ‘‘Inglourious Basterds’’ (Basterd.)

Best supporting actress:
Penelope Cruz, ‘‘Nine’’ (All that Jazz goes to Italy, in August. Hot hot hot.)
Vera Farmiga, ‘‘Up in the Air’’ (What eyes!)
Maggie Gyllenhaal, ‘‘Crazy Heart’’ (She’s the newspaper reporter. Can’t say enough.)
Anna Kendrick, ‘‘Up in the Air’’ (Fiercely young.)
Mo’Nique, ‘‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’’ (Winner. Charm School meets the Soul of Darkness Psycho~~ do not miss.)

Best director:
James Cameron, ‘‘Avatar’’ (Can’t vote for a megalo, sorry.)
Kathryn Bigelow, ‘‘The Hurt Locker’’ (When I need stress I go to work.)
Lee Daniels, ‘‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’’ (Winner. This is a story that needed to be told, and Lee Daniels broke through to tell it.)
Quentin Tarantino, ‘‘Inglourious Basterds’’ (Leave it to Tarantino to bring basterds to life.)
Jason Reitman, ‘‘Up in the Air’’ (Bet he gets upgrades on American.)

Best animated feature:
‘‘Coraline’’ (Spooky cool.)
‘‘Fantastic Mr Fox’’ (Oh Littermate Where Are Thou. Mr. Fox (George Clooney) is a newspaper reporter for the Gazette. If it wins it’s OK by me.)
‘‘The Princess and the Frog’’ (Disney achieves ethnicity. Yck.)
‘‘The Secret of Kells’’ (Are religious cartoons sacrilegious? Hated it.)
‘‘Up’’ (Winner. Ball!)

Best foreign language film:
‘‘Ajami’’ (Israel)
‘‘El Secreto de Sus Ojos’’ (Argentina) (Winner)
‘‘The Milk of Sorrow’’ (Peru)
‘‘The Prophet’’ (France)
‘‘The White Ribbon’’ (Germany) (Three hours of misery.)

Best screenplay (original):
‘‘The Hurt Locker,’’ written by Mark Boal (Nothing good happens.)
‘‘Inglourious Basterds,’’ written by Quentin Tarantino (Nobody good happens.)
‘‘The Messenger,’’ written by Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman (Winner. A tapestry of reality, characters, and story. It works on so many levels.)
‘‘A Serious Man,’’ written by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen (You can’t be serious.)
‘‘Up,’’ screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter; story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy (I love you temporarily.)

Best screenplay (adapted):
‘‘District 9,’’ written by Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell (Science fiction is very real to us weirdoes.)
‘‘An Education,’’ screenplay by Nick Hornby (If you figured it out by the first line, you have your own story.)
‘‘In the Loop,’’ screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche (Memorize the script and you’ll have enough epitaphs to last a lifetime. F’ity Bye.)
‘‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire,’’ screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher (Winner. Mariah Carey isn’t anyone’s fault.)
‘‘Up in theAir,’’ screenplay by Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner
(All that and packing tips too.)

Best music (original score):
‘‘Avatar,’’ James Horner (The only thing that could have made it better is if the flowers played Beatles tunes.)
‘‘Fantastic Mr. Fox,’’ Alexandre Desplat (Clever and sly.)
‘‘The Hurt Locker,’’ Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
‘‘Sherlock Holmes,’’ Hans Zimmer (Mysterious.)
‘‘Up,’’ Michael Giacchino (Winner. Loved it.)

Best music (original song):
‘‘Almost There,’’ from ‘‘The Princess and the Frog,’’ music and lyrics by Randy Newman (Randy—you sold out!)
‘‘Down in New Orleans,’’ from ‘‘The Princess and the Frog,’’ music and lyrics by Randy Newman (Sounds more like Disney than Randy. Le sigh.)
‘‘Loin de Paname,’’ from ‘‘Paris 36,’’ music by Reinhardt Wagner and lyrics by Frank Thomas
‘‘Take It All,’’ from ‘‘Nine,’’ music and lyrics by Maury Yeston (Winner. Hot hot hot.)
‘‘The Weary Kind (Theme From ‘‘Crazy Heart’’),’’ from ‘‘Crazy Heart,’’ music and lyrics by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett (Did they play this song? Are You Sure?)

Best art direction:
‘‘Avatar,’’ art direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; set decoration: Kim Sinclair (Winner due to sheer magnitude.)
‘‘The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,’’ art direction: Dave Warren and
Anastasia Masaro; set decoration: Caroline Smith (Heath Ledger and friends keep everything confusing.)
‘‘Nine,’’ art direction: John Myhre; set decoration: Gordon Sim (Better than 81/2, and way better than 10. They should have gone for 11.)
‘‘Sherlock Holmes,’’ art direction: Sarah Greenwood; set decoration: Katie Spencer (Cool transitions.)
‘‘The Young Victoria,’’ art direction: Patrice Vermette; set decoration: Maggie Gray

Best cinematography:
‘‘Avatar,’’ Mauro Fiore (Winner. Because it’s Avatar, and the king of the world has to sit in his seat.)
‘‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,’’ Bruno Delbonnel (Turn on the lights!)
‘‘The Hurt Locker,’’ Barry Ackroyd (Don’t hurt me~~)
‘‘Inglourious Basterds,’’ Robert Richardson (So much hate.)
‘‘The White Ribbon,’’ Christian Berger (Skip it.)

Best costume design:
‘‘Bright Star,’’ Janet Patterson
‘‘Coco Before Chanel,’’ Catherine Leterrier
‘‘The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,’’ Monique Prudhomme (The joker suit for Ledger was a nice touch.)
‘‘Nine,’’ Colleen Atwood (Winner. Two words: Judy Densch. Can’t miss.)
‘‘The Young Victoria,’’ Sandy Powell

Best documentary (feature):
‘‘Burma VJ,’’ Anders Xstergaard and Lise Lense-Mxller
‘‘The Cove,’’ Nominees to be determined
‘‘Food, Inc.,’’ Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein (Winner.)
‘‘The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers,’’ Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
‘‘Which Way Home,’’ Rebecca Cammisa

Best documentary (short subject):
‘‘China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province,’’ Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill (Winner.)
‘‘The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner,’’ Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher
‘‘The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant,’’ Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert
‘‘Music by Prudence,’’ Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett
‘‘Rabbit a la Berlin,’’ Bartek Konopka and Anna Wydra

Best film editing:
‘‘Avatar,’’ Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron (Wish the ending fight scenes played more like the Raider pep band ripping through the National Anthem.)
‘‘District 9,’’ Julian Clarke (I think the armored suit in the finale was tailored by the same person who did the tailoring for Avatar. District 9: Good guy in super suit made by aliens who eat cat food. Avatar: Bad guy in super suit made by guys fighting cats. Sigourney Weaver, as always, is an alien.)
‘‘The Hurt Locker,’’ Bob Murawski and Chris Innis (Taut and fraught.)
‘‘Inglourious Basterds,’’ Sally Menke (Ugly.)
‘‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire,’’ Joe Klotz (Winner. The out-of-body cuts defined the story.)

Best makeup:
‘‘Il Divo,’’ Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
‘‘Star Trek,’’ Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow
‘‘The Young Victoria,’’ Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore (Winner.)

Best short film (animated):
‘‘French Roast,’’ Fabrice O. Joubert (Quirky cute.)
‘‘Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty,’’ Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell (Winner! Too, too funny.)
‘‘The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte),’’ Javier Recio Gracia (Producer Antonio Banderas is the Quentin Tarantino of cartoons. Grossly hilarious.)
‘‘Logorama,’’ Nicolas Schmerkin (I forgot what happened— and where was Waldo?)
‘‘A Matter of Loaf and Death,’’ Nick Park (Wallace and Grommet are always a good decision.)

Best short film (live action):
‘‘The Door,’’ Juanita Wilson and James Flynn
‘‘Instead of Abracadabra,’’ Patrik Eklund and Mathias Fjellstrom
‘‘Kavi,’’ Gregg Helvey
‘‘Miracle Fish,’’ Luke Doolan and Drew Bailey
‘‘The New Tenants,’’ Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson (Winner, but I’m guessing.)

Best sound editing:
‘‘Avatar,’’ Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle (Winner. I think I understood Na’vi.)
‘‘The Hurt Locker,’’ Paul N.J. Ottosson
‘‘Inglourious Basterds,’’ Wylie Stateman
‘‘Star Trek,’’ Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin
‘‘Up,’’ Michael Silvers and Tom Myers

Best sound mixing:
‘‘Avatar,’’ Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson
‘‘The Hurt Locker,’’ Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett
‘‘Inglourious Basterds,’’ Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano
‘‘Star Trek,’’ Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin
‘‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,’’ Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson (Winner. Metal begets medal.)

Best visual effects:
‘‘Avatar,’’ Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones (Winner. C’mon.)
‘‘District 9,’’ Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken (Points for the cool spaceship.)
‘‘Star Trek,’’ Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton (More Star Trek? Really?)

(A scene from ‘Avatar,’ photographer Scobel Wiggins’ pick for Best Picture, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography and Best Sound Editing at the 2010 Academy Awards.)

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(Image: Columbia Pictures)

‘Superbad’
Yes, I know that this movie came out almost three years ago. I finally got around to watching it thanks to a certain co-worker, who repeatedly asked me not to think worse of him for lending me the film. The story follows two best friends (played by Jonah Hill and Michael Cera) on the eve of their separation for college, who attempt to impress the two girls that they have had crushes on all through high school by obtaining a huge quantity of booze for a year-end party. The film, which was written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, includes the rampant profanity and crude humor that you would expect, but gets away with it because of the comedic dedication of the actors who fully commit to the absurd situations that arise throughout the night. Even though the teens in the film have cell phones, the whole style of the movie seemed to harken back to the ’70s evoked in 1993’s “Dazed and Confused,” although I thought this coming of age story had a sweeter ending. (Two stars)

(Image: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer)

‘Fame’ = Lame
More of a montage than a movie. I got this out of the Red Box in a weak moment and suffered accordingly. There was at least 15 minutes of visually interesting dancing in the film, but the music and acting segments fell flat. Not to mention the disjointed scenes and repetition. As much as I like Bare Naked Ladies, it seems a bit odd that high school students today would pick three of the Canadian band’s songs in a row on karaoke night. And did we need two scenes of tuba players in row at the beginning, when the movie ends up having nothing to do with brass players? As a former band geek, I was annoyed to see that those students, although ever present in the background of the film, were pretty much non-entities, which is saying a lot relative to the almost total detachment the main characters (actors, dancers, singers) showed for each other throughout the film. If you want to see a dance movie with better dancing and better music, I highly suggest you see “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights” or either of the “Step Up” films. Seriously. (No stars)

(Image: 20th Century Fox)

‘Avatar’
It’s good. The special effects are superb. The 3D was neat. The new world that director James Cameron creates on Pandora is creative, colorful and carefully considered. (His background as a skin diver seems evident in jellyfish-like flora). For a film with a rather weighty message, I didn’t feel like it took its self too seriously. Still, I think I would have liked ‘Avatar’ better if it didn’t so precisely mirror ‘Dances With Wolves’ and end in such a predictable final epic battle. Because, as we know here on earth, war never solves anything and I wish Hollywood would stop pretending that it does. In terms of comparison, I think I liked the new ‘Star Trek’ just as much. (Three stars)

(Image: Sony Pictures Classics)

‘The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus’
Trippy stuff. Many of the scenes that wandered into the mind of Parnassus felt like falling into a psychadelic album cover. Still, all of the actors pulled their parts off brilliantly, and it seemed a fitting thing for Heath Ledger’s comrades Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell to step in and fill out the missing pieces after his untimely death. I expect to see newcomer Lily Cole, who plays Dr. Parnassus’ daughter, in other films soon. Saw this on opening night at the Darkside Cinema where the energy of an appreciative audience audience really added to the experience. (Three stars)

(Image: Disney)

‘Morning Light’
If you like sailing, grew up sailing with your parents or enjoy shows such as MTV’s ‘Made’ you’ll probably like this 2008 Disney documentary which chronicles the selection and training of a group of young college students for a race against professionals from California to Hawaii. (Two and half stars)

Recently re-watched:

(Image: Sony Pictures Classics)

‘It Might Get Loud’
I’ve always been a sucker for music documentaries. Although Jimmy Page and The Edge have achieved super stardom, the lesser known and younger Jack White steals the show with his old-school approach to guitar and off-beat humor. A great study in contrasts. (Four stars)

(Image: Warner Bros. Pictures)

‘The Hangover’
Just as funny the second and third time. I love the mix of stunning cinematography with low-brow music and humor. Some of the best character acting this year. Cringe humor, but not the painful kind. The lines will get stuck in your head for weeks. Obviously, not for kids. (Four stars)

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Jennifer Lyon, 37, a former Oregon State University student who was the fourth place contestant on CBS’s 2005 series “Survivor: Palau,” died at home Jan. 19, after a long five-year battle with breast cancer.

After earning a Bachelor of Science degree in nutrition and food management from OSU, Lyon earned a master’s degree in family consumer sciences at California State University and worked as a nanny and photographer in Los Angeles.

Lyon has been an advocate for breast cancer research since her 2005 diagnosis. More information on her efforts can be found on her Web site jennlyon.com. (Information from www.rightcelebrity.com and jennlyon.com)

Read a 2006 article on Lyon from the Gazette-Times, here.

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Cherie Stroud, the principal at CV, also was honored as the Outstanding Administrator of the Year at the Jan. 16 awards banquet in Eugene.

“It was really quite funny as I had come to the banquet to honor Cherie and she had come to honor me,” Creighton said. “We were both surprised.”

According to Steve Zielke, director of choral studies at Oregon State University and a former OMEA president, the McManus award is the highest honor the organization has to give. The OMEA represents about 1,100 choir, band and orchestra teachers across the state.

“Winners of this award are a ‘Who’s Who’ of hall of fame music educators in our state. It reflects a lifetime of passion and dedication to their art, as well as a commitment to advocacy and service,” Zielke explained as he presented the award Saturday night.

Creighton’s work with both middle and high school orchestra programs, as well as with the Corvallis Youth Symphony and Elementary Strings Program, is nationally known and respected, Zielke added, and more than 20 of his former students are working in major orchestras throughout the world.

“It’s always nice to be recognized in front of your peers, especially with so many other great teachers surrounding you,” said Creighton.

A teacher in the Corvallis School District since 1982, he recently announced his retirement at the end of this school year.

Creighton, along with fellow music teachers Emily Thielen and Kristine Janes, were among several to nominate Stroud for the Outstanding Administrator award. All three cited her consistent support of the choral, band and orchestra programs at Crescent Valley. Each of them mentioned how deeply she cares for each student and staff member and how she goes out of her way to attend as many concerts as she can, including music competitions outside of Corvallis.

“The Outstanding Administrator award was a complete surprise,” Stroud said. “I will treasure this recognition forever.”

Thielen, the director of choirs at CV, shared the many ways Stroud supported her during her first year of teaching four years ago. “She came to every concert, made time for my questions, and gave me a budget to purchase music and supplies. She has always encouraged me to build my program and grow as a music educator.”

Creighton wrote, “During my 37 years as a music educator – working for dozens of principals in many different elementary, middle and high schools — I have never had the support and enthusiasm that I have now from my administrator.”

Zielke said the awards committee was impressed by the success of the CV program over the last five years and the “unusual amount of support she (Stroud) was able to give music education during particularly difficult times” when many schools were forced to reduce their music budgets.

Last year, all three programs took first place in their division in the OMEA State Championships.

“Cherie excels in treating music as equally important as other activities, including both academic and extracurricular activities, especially athletics,” Zielke said.

(Information from Carol Reeves, Corvallis School District 509J)

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(Information from Oregon State University)

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Daugherty was recognized for his book, “Hiding Man: A Biography of Donald Barthelme.” The book (released through St. Martin’s Press) has received near-universal critical acclaim, and recently won a 2009 Oregon Book Award.

“Hiding Man” is Daugherty’s ninth book. He is also the author of three collections of short stories and a book of personal essays. Daugherty has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation.

The New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2009 list can be seen here: http://bit.ly/5wLVtq. It published in the Dec. 6 print edition.

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Battling against many fellow Pokémon players, Clint finished with a first place ranking and has earned an invitation to compete in the upcoming State Tournament.

The City Championship tournaments are the first event in the Pokémon Organized Play series that leads to the Pokémon TCG World Championships in August 2010 in Hawaii.

Competitors are divided into three divisions: Junior Division (born in 1999 or later), Senior Division (born in 1995–1998), and Masters Division (born in 1994 or earlier).

For more information on City Championships, see http://www.go-pokemon.com/op/premierevents/championshipseries/city/.

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Read the full article in the Nov. 27 Entertainer.

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NOTE: To read captions while you view the slide show, click on the expand symbol in the lower right hand corner of the viewer and then click “show info.”

A few items for sale at the Linn County Arts Guild Holiday Gift Store, photographed by Entertainer editor Nancy Raskauskas on Tuesday, Nov. 24. The shop will be open daily through Dec. 26, at 631 Main St., Lebanon. More than 20 of the guilds approximately 50 members are participating. For more information, check out The Entertainer’s Nov. 27 feature (www.gazettetimes.com/entertainment) or the guild’s Web site (www.linncountyartsguild.org).

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