Battalion
GGIELIFE
Page 5 » Friday, April 16, 1999
PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
eeson describes
Fe with Star Wars
NEW YORK
pe that had
(AP) — Despite
fans lined up to
catch a two-
minute trailer
for the latest
Star Wars in
stallment, Liam
Neeson says
the movie is not
changing his
life.
The 46-year-
old Irishman
hillips’sot:
udingrock.
i A&M Rec
'ids with-Movieline magazine he can
everalyea rnember braving a dangerous
Canadav ction of Belfast years ago to
ethe original Star Wars. Then a
ung theater actor, Neeson said
found the film “breathtaking.”
"Itp a simple story, yet with all
e complexities of myth. The
^^""bhnology was so understated,”
Mint, if v eson said. “I thought he
eorge Lucas) was an amazing
if brain /ector who had created this to-
4 lly believable world.”
it' Thfet memory was part of what
ade Neeson jump when offered
e chance to meet Lucas in Lon-
m two decades after Star Wars.
Now he is playing the part of
“ ii-Gon Jin, a Jedi master in the
““icoming Star Wars: Episode I The
\antom Menace, set for release
’s-ange But asked whether being part
another potential blockbuster
*s changed him, Neeson said
mply. “I’m 46 years of age. I’m
nd wondt arrled with two kids. I love to fly-
syesofar thfThat will never change. At the
keeping. )d of the day, you know some-
ing? It’s just a movie.”
and anyone j
ase three cteM
ncy..
If."
ns said
Abrahams speaks
at film festival
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Jim
Abrahams, who co-directed Naked
Gun and Airplane, is ready to re
veal his secrets to making people
laugh.
Rule No. 1? “Be funny.”
Another rule is: “There are no
rules.”
“What makes one person
laugh doesn’t make another per
son laugh," Abrahams said. “Even
with the rules, all you’re doing is
taking your best guess."
Abrahams, a Milwaukee native
and University of Wisconsin-Madi-
son graduate, will speak Sunday
at the Great Wisconsin Film Fes
tival.
Abrahams said he is working
on a couple of new scripts — his
favorite part of the movie-making
process.
“If you have a bad day writing, no
body cares. You push a button and
it all goes away,” he said. “That’s re
ally when the ideas first happen,
and the rest of the time is the bat
tle to get them up on the screen.”
Rembrandt works
found at market
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands
(AP) — A secondhand book
bought at a flea market turned
out to be more than a worthwhile
purchase when the owner found
two sketches by Rembrandt be
tween its pages.
Local media reported Thurs
day that after returning from the
market, the buyer — whose
name was not given — paged
through her new $1 book and
found three drawings valued at
more than $50,000 total.
Two of the sketches, which
were not described, were original
Rembrandts and a third was
drawn by one of his students. An
art expert authenticated them.
Voters let Wright
library stay open
SAN RAFAEL, Calif. (AP) — The
last major work designed by
Frank Lloyd Wright, Marin Coun
ty’s main library, will stay open for
now despite pressure to close it
down to save money.
The Marin County Library Com
mission voted Wednesday night
against recommending closure,
opting instead to support a sales
tax increase.
The final decision is up to the
county board of supervisors.
The library, with its domed
blue roof and tall spire, is the
centerpiece of the civic center
completed after Wright’s death in
1962. The architect regarded it
as the heart of the project, for
ever linking the “center of knowl
edge” to the “center of govern
ment.”
“We’re heartened by the com
missioner’s actions not to shut
down this stunning facility,” said
architect Marielle Rutherford.
“But we’ll need to work hard to
gain support for a sales tax in
crease. It was Frank Lloyd Wright’s
vision to have a library here, and
it’s ours too.”
The closing was proposed to
help offset a $1.4 million deficit
in the library system.
1 tokemons discouraged in New York schools
t
j(< PELHAM, N.Y. (AP) —
kachu, Jigglypuff and the other
utating monsters on the Poke-
j|pn juggernaut are running into
adblocks at grade schools
aund the country.
The hot-selling trading cards
at capitalize on the Japanese
rtoon phenomenon have been
nned, restricted or discouraged
some principals in New York,
;w Jersey, Washington and else-
here because they are distract-
gthe early-reading set.
In Pelham, just north of New
)rk City, all four grade schools
ive come down in some fashion
i the cards, which have sold in
e millions since they came out
January.
“They seem to be the latest
aze and the children are begin-
ng to become obsessed by
em,’’ said Gerard Finelli, the
'incipal at Colonial school.
Finelli has banned trading be-
iteen pupils “because some of
irlyounger kids were getting
ickered out of their more valu-
)le cards.’’
The cards are banned entirely
Prospect Hill school, where
incipal Richard Limato said.
We were having instances in
hich the children were losing
em and then getting very up-
t.”
1
Kevin Wolski, a second-grader
Colonial, has about 60 of the
rds, a poster illustrating all 150
the sometimes cuddly, some-
tnes scary monsters, a Pokemon
Dmic book, a T-shirt and a pin.
The 7-year-old does not bring
his cards to school anymore be
cause “the teachers don’t like it
and the principal said he’d better
not catch us trading.”
Besides, he said, wide-eyed,
“Somebody was stealing them!”
Like millions of other kids,
Kevin jumps out of bed to watch
the Pokemon cartoon each morn
ing and can converse rapidly and
“The children are
beginning to be
come obsessed by
them/'
— Gerard Finelli
prinicpal,
Colonial School
astutely about the details of the
trading-card game.
He tells about the goldfish
Magikarp, who can evolve into
the powerful sea serpent Gyara-
dos; about Psyduck, whose pow
ers increase “if he has a really bad
headache”; and about Kadabra,
“who can hypnotize lightning
bolts when his eyes light up.”
Kevin’s mother, Linda, has no
objections to her son’.s new ob
session, noting that the cards en
courage kids to read, the game re
quires some arithmetic skills, and
the cartoon takes pains to teach
lessons, “like making fun of the
vanity of the villain.”
Kevin’s father, Mike, likes that
among the big-eyed human char
acters, “boys and girls are equal
ly powerful.”
The Pokemon phenomenon
originated in Japan three years
ago as a Nintendo Game Boy
game.
Until recently, it was best-
known for the cartoon episode
that sent 700 Japanese viewers to
hospitals when they reacted.
Some with epilepsy-like
spasms, to a scene that flashed
bright colors in rapid succession.
Undaunted, Pokemon quickly
expanded into cartoons, comic
books and the trading cards,
which are made by Seattle-based
Wizards of the Coast under a li
cense from Nintendo.
Wizards spokesperson Carol
Rogalski said the targeted age for
the cards was eight to preteen, but
kids five and six have been col
lecting the cards as well.
“It’s just turned into this
hottest thing,” she said, and the
cards are headed for a fifth print
ing.
The rarest cards sell to collec
tors for more than $50, but a
starter set with 61 cards has a sug
gested retail price of $7.99. Other
packs have list prices of $2.79 to
$9.99, but there have been
markups to $20 or so, Rogalski
said.
Wizards also makes “Magic:
The Gathering” cards, which
sparked a federal lawsuit against
the Bedford Central schools when
some parents thought they were
satanic and should not be allowed
on school grounds.
irf I
WMl l
r^0S j
0*
TEXAS A&M
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by SEIKO
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will be made this way.
A Seiko quartz timepiece officially licensed by the
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the 14kt gold-finished dial. Electronic quartz
movement quaranteed accurate to within fifteen
seconds per month. Full three year Seiko warranty.
FRIDAY & SATURDAY ONLY
All Gold $285.00
2-Tone $265.00
Leather Strap $200.00
DOUGLAS JEWELRY
1667-B TEXAS AVE.
COLLEGE STATION, I X 77840
Class of ‘75
Mail Orders Welcome
1-409-693-0677
Parent’s Weekend
Sidewalk Sale!!
April 16-18
10a.m.-6p.m.
907 Harvey Rd
♦T-shirts starting at $2
♦Sweats starting at $5
♦ Emb. Caps starting at $5
♦ Unbelieveable Bargains on Aggie Apparel
ROTHER’S BOOKSTORE-Woodstone
The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi
Outstanding Junior Awards
College of Agriculture and Life Science
College of Architecture
College of Business
College of Education
College of Engineering
College of Geosciences
College of Liberal Arts
College of Science
College of Veterinary Medicine
Miss Dana Boehm
Mr. Jason Me Hard
Miss Laura Zenick
.... Miss Courtney Anderson
Miss Amber Ffrench
Miss Rachel Alsup
Miss Mallika Anand
Mr. Thomas Miller
Miss Anapuma Thadareddy
National Phi Kappa Phi Fellowship Award of Excellence
Miss Victoria Elizabeth Guerra
Phi Kappa Phi National Artist Award Nominee
Dr. Peter Lieuwen
Phi Kappa Phi National Scholar Award
Dr. H. W. Brands
Ceremony April 16, 1999
3:45 p.m.
Archery Room
Student Recreation Center
College of Agriculture and Life
Sciences
Lisa Layla Aflatooni
John C. Alexander
James Thomas Allen
Cortney M.. Ballard
Gail M. Beach
John Bechert
Cheryl Ann Beck
Emily J. Bell
Cheryl L. Brady
Todd C. Crowell
Sandra Ann Darilek
Jennifer L. Dylla
Jason Allen Engle
Brian E. Fontenot
Dora Ann Gostecnik
Claudia E. Granda
Thomas J. Harris
Richard Michael Houseman
Colter Shane Huffman
Lynne Koinski
Steven Brandt Kolos
Kendall B. Jordan
Ashley L. Lammert
Kristie Lea Liska
Jose Mariano Murga
Cameran Nguyen
Stacey M. Pieters
Kristi Lyn Polasek
Michaelann Ragley
Ashley E. Rail
Brendan Wesley Reagan
Daphne LaDean Richards
Vanessa Marie Roberts
William Dustan Robinson
Joey Scoggin
Anne Marie Sisto Burt
Saul Rene Trevino
Sarah Jane Utley
Shelley M. Underbrink
Gregory S. Viken
Robert J. Werner Jr.
Dean W Whitaker
Holli D Woltmann
College of Architecture
Stuart Beldon Allison
Emmit K. Coots
Kyle Brandon Downs
Eric P. Garcia
Ke-Tsung Han
Sarah E. Loudermilk
Travis Michael Martinek
D. Ross Roberts
College of Business
Travis Andrews
Robert Bartholomai
Randi Susan Bauer
Rebecca Lynn Camp
Kelley Renee Clifton
Kimberly M. Davis
Rebecca S. Duff
Ryan Blake Eby
Jennifer J. Fitzgerald
Regan Green
Jason D. Hans
Stephanie M. Harper
Sharmilla M. Hindocha
Kevin O'Neal Holdeman
Shannon S. Jahn
Zandt M. Johnson
Jennifer Marie Jordan
April D. Justice
Douglas Lyles
Nina Marie Maenza
Jonathan Eugene Marek
Jennifer E. Marshall
C. Mark McDavid
Chad Edward McGuffin
Patrick Michael Melacon
Craig Andrew Morgan
Sara Ellen Peeples
Kelly M. Powers
Kelli M. Renfrew
Stephanie Renee Rigg
Audrey Rebecca Roy
Jennifer Lynn Schimlek
Abhijat A. Shah
Rebecca C. Shelton
Karen S. Sink
Casey Lyn Smith
Theo Sagita Song
Christina C. Stans
Alex Syed
Sean David Thomas
Cheryl Lynn Thompson
Kelli J. Thompson
Robert Maury Thornton
Glenda Joy Treude
Angelle Vlllar
Laura Beth Zenick
College of Education
Courtney L. Anderson
Sara Katherine Bennett
Kelli Jo Brown
Laura Jean Buchholtz
Dana Lea Connell-Wood
Jamie Lyn DeLaPlaine
Celeste M. Garza
Alma A. Gonzalez
James Brandon Jolley
Jennifer Anne LaGrange
Andrea Lynn McMurray
Christi Elaine Moore
Alicia Alonzo-Reyes
Jennifer L. Smith
College of Engineering
Kera Beth Alexander
Thomas Nathan Anderson
Reinaldo Jose Angulo-Yznaga
Susan Dwayne Bankston
Christopher C. Bathurst
Jeff A. Bergeron
Pegnyemb II Telesphore Bertrand
Joel P. Brandt
Jeremy J. Carter
Jeffrey C. Chaumont
Shaival Chokshi
Christina Lynn Coronacion
Cristina M. Cuellar
Manish A. Desai
Joy Denise Douglas
Amber Danielle Fairchild
Peter John Fay
James R Fisher
Grant Thomas Gavranovic
Li Han
Jason Jung
Dustin Charles Kirkland
Eve Marian Klopf
Brian Patrick Kruppa
Kung Tong Lee
Shaun Michael Little
Christopher W. May
Maria Diane McAninch
Ron McCormack
Christopher I. Mentzer
Nathan Ross Mickler
Carl J. Modesette
Hongmai Nguyen
Garrett Travis Olsen
Abiel A. Orrego
John Dayton Pape
Stephen C Paschall II
Ying Pei
Huu-Lol Phan
Juan Pablo Pontaza
Elizabeth Potter
James Prescott
Shawn J. Robson
Maria Beatriz Rodriguez
David N. Rundell
Ryan P. Russell
Catherine Schroder
Katherine E. Smith
Matthew J. Sokol
Theresa H. Spaeth
Sarah A. Steinhorst
Benjamin Pal Swan
Anthony Vaughan
Nairong Wang
Christopher Wood
Paola Zepeda
College of Geosciences
Rachel Noel Alsup
Megan Lee Anderson
Karen E. Yancey
College of Liberal Arts
Christa L. Ballard
Guy Ballard
Nathan M. Bigbee
Carrie Lynn Bland
Erin Elizabeth Candler
Claire Carly
Denika Yvette Douglas
Jonathan Faucher
Amy Louise Faulkner
Sarah Diane Forbey
Dana Marie Gerland
Mrs Joanna Graham
Katie Gruebel
Uyen Bao Hoang
Ali Houshmand
Colleen Elizabeth Kavanaugh
Lee D. Koehler
Amber Lazenby
Kathryn Lineberger
Nicole R. Marcoux
William Caleb McDaniel
Jennifer Renee Moellenberndt
Marcia W. Murchison
Karen Michelle O'Brien
Michelle K. O'Neal
Heather D. Ostom
Marcus Overton
Mattie Katherine Pennebaker
Amy Elizabeth Pinkham
Charles D. Ridgley III
Tonia Rene Rigsby
Katrina A. Ripperda
Trish Rohde
Katy Rene'e Ross
Monica D'Anne Sanders
Everita Silina
Elizabeth St. Clair
Andrew Steed
Piper Summers
Aaron Benjamin Tilley
Stephanie Dawn Tucker
Kristin Geonelle Turnak
College of Science
Patricia Allamon
Aurelie L. Buckelew
Deana Carlisle
Jeffrey W. Co wen
Amy Fowler
Long Ngoc Hoang
Arwyn E. Hood
Richard A Jones
James Norman Liston III
Andrew Keith McDowell
Mary Beth Myrick
Cheryl Lynn Newman
Zsila Sadighi
Kristi Janelle Salter
Courtney Lawrence Sherman
Julia D. Smith
Brent Spencer
David James Miller
Bryan Ng
Paul Singh
Endah S. Sulistijo
Jake Talley
Dawn N. Wenzel
College of Veterinary Medicine
Sarah Berg
Lacie S. Callaway
Ashley M. Cox
Edie Denise Crouch
Carol Diane Donnelly
Brad Duhon
Heather L. Dunn Cantrell
Anthony Charles Edwards Jr
Abby Lee Ann Penn
Weslei Alexandra Firestone
Robert K. Fullick
Jennifer Gilliland
Vladislav Gorbatiy
Ryan Quint Green
Renee Beth Hollas
Anita Kay Isbell
Danielle K. Lemuth
Marcelle Mallery
John W Munz
Joseph M. Newman
Nicole Hope Noska
Jill Marie Olson
Jessica Leigh Page •
Alisa Ross
Rachel Saldana
James Scheifley
Blair Edward Telg
Anupama Thadareddy
Robin Lynn Thomas
Megan D. Turner
Ellen Maria Walker
Karena Lynn Walt
Kelly J. Woytek