NEWS
2 BATTALIOS
IN BRIEF
puter bug
Friday
ft SQL bug thi
i puter system!
lis weekend k
lay, Jan. 24 i!
p.m., accordiiij
ti, the assoc®
atworking in tlii
nd Informal
office.
there was V
traffic on thi
it time" that ws
/ increased actr r
; computers, flit
y became over
rors, he said,
e had our on-cai
t/orking on thi
ing to isolats
iputers," Mar.
6 or 7 a.m. wt
?re fighting a loi-
j we decided!:
/thing but ok
ti web system
administrators i
ncy notice was
:he University!
aturday morniiij
of the problem
then worked!:
:h on- and of
ng independeo:
iputers with thi
in those system:
i.
t SQL programs
ogram that net
compile informs
;e groups of pea
not yet "patdie:
" or purchase:
an updated ve
igram that woo:
?d the problem
he CIS Web sits
ity that the vine
iiscovered in in
lost of the car J
was shut dor
to 9:30 a.m. o?
ECTIONS
ive of the Jan.
the article enti-
i to speak at
Writing Center
e," the open
s place today
p.m.
>ne of the Jan,
he article titled
fights to pre-
's memory,'
leece is the
:he Peace for
ty-
services to stt
faculty and pm
it Zac Coventr
es’s plan,
ahead of us. ft
ce up for fundiri
nt/faculty ratio.
ION
the fall and spring semes-
Jays and exam periods)at
STMASTER: Send address
13-1111.
f in the Division of Student
Jnald Building. Newsroom
'.thebatt.com
3y The Battalion. For cam-
:all 845-0569. Advertise
igh Friday. Fax: 845-2678.
o pick up a single copyC * 1 '
chool year, $30 for the fa®
MasterCard, Discover, or
k SUB
Aggielife
The Battalion Page 3 • Tuesday, January 28, 2003
Clone High USA
MTV aires new show that features clones of historical figures
By Howard Cohen
KRT CAMPUS
MTV premiered “Clone High USA” at 10:30 p.m. Monday
and it’s so 2003. We’re talking a cartoon comedy starring con
temporary clones of historical figures in the midst of high school
and hormones. And it stars Honest Abe who is as much Linkin
Park as President Lincoln and counts among his classmates Joan
of Arc, John F. Kennedy, Cleopatra and Mahatma Gandhi.
No, the Radians had absolutely nothing to do with this
resurrection.
However, South Florida, home of many wacky things, did.
Co-creator Phil Lord, who concocted the show with creative
partner Christopher Miller, is a 27-year-old artist who grew up in
Coconut Grove, went to Ransom Everglades High School and
initially honed his craft —sometimes surreptitiously —at Coconut
Grove Elementary.
“At our school, our reading group ran out of books for us to
read. We’d gone through all the readers our teacher (had for) us.
So I was drawing comics. EVENTUALLY, it became a school
sanctioned activity,” Lord said, recalling the name of his first fic
tional comic book company. Violence Comics, and its flagship
character. Captain Sisymfyll.
That’s short for “Captain Sure I’ll Solve Your Mystery For
You Little Lady.” Not surprisingly, the Captain did not make the
transition to MTV.
But Lord, who now makes his home in Los Angeles, has, and
he said becoming a cartoonist for a living just made sense.
“It’s amazing how really young kids are about as creative as
adults are. I don’t know if I’m better now than I was then, I just
didn’t learn to do anything else,” he said. “Most people learn to
do other things well and develop other careers.”
John Miller, MTV’s executive vice president of series devel
opment and animation, is happy Lord didn’t go into business,
like dad William Lord, or psychology, like mom Carmen
Betancourt Lord. The guy suits MTV perfectly. Miller said.
“One, the show is brilliantly clever. And two, it’s created by
two of the youngest writers in Hollywood. They are so of the
demographic,” he said. “It would have been crazy not to be in
business with these guys.”
Carmen Betancourt Lord and fellow Dartmouth grad John
Miller, 26, (no relation to the MTV executive) spawned the idea for
“Clone High USA” not long after leaving college and landing a
development deal with Disney to create Saturday morning cartoons.
GRAPHIC COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS
But the pair’s sensibilities then, and on “Clone High,” were not
exactly suitable for early weekend viewing. “We’re not above a
boob joke,” Lord teases.
Lord and Miller were soon hired by Disney’s more PC-13
arm. Touchstone, to create prime-time programming. The pair
wrote for The WB’s “Zoe” and NBC’s “Go Fish.” While working
for Touchstone, the twosome hatched the idea for “Clone High
USA” and the MTV bit.
“I knew that (Disney) wasn't his type because he was so astute. I
don't think he could be as conformist as I see Disney,.” recalls
Ransom Everglades social studies teacher Alexandra Novitski.
Novitski worked briefly with Lord at Ransom's Summer Bridge
Miami arts program in the mid-'90s.
“He’s very witty and bright and always had a twinkle in his eye,"
she remembers. "He could inspire those young students.”
Lord said his experiences at Ransom color much of the show's
first 13 episodes.
"1 was so like Abe-clumsy. The big difference is that (the
show's) Abe had a tremendous growth spurt between his sophomore
and junior years and Chris and I were both shrimps. I could fit into
a locker in my high school years. There are locker room scenes
written into the show straight from the Ransom school,” he said.
His mother feels he "deflected a lot through his humor," and
describes him as always exhibiting a visual flair. "He had an unusu
al way of looking at things," she said.
The show's flirtations with puerile humor don't bother her. "I
think it’s perhaps a little racy at times, but it doesn't offend me," she
explains. "I'm a psychologist. I'm used to all sorts of things. “
MTV could score points with "Clone High USA," programmer
Miller feels, not because the Raelians have given clones a high pro
file these days, but because, "the show is relatable to our viewers.
It's about them, but them as historical figures. These characters have
to deal with the rigors of high school but also the pressure of living
up to the clone mothers and fathers."
The network's most popular program currently is the outra
geous reality series "The Osbournes," starring heavy metal star
Ozzy Osbourne and his amusingly foul-mouthed family. To lure
viewers to the new show and hit its targeted 18-24 demographic,
celebrity voice-over talent is being tapped heavily.
Regulars include "Saturday Night Live’s" Will Forte as Abe
and Nicole Sullivan of "Mad TV" as Joan of Arc. Lord and
Miller are the voices of Principal Cinnamon J. Scudworth and
JFK, respectively. Michael J. Fox will make his return to televi
sion - or his voice will, anyway —as Gandhi's talking kidney.
Marilyn Manson appears next week. Teen favorites Jack Black
and Tom Green as well as pop singer Mandy Moore all have
upcoming guest shots. Luke Perry, of "Beverly Hills 90210"
fame, will play Ponce de Leon in an upcoming episode.
"There's another Florida thing, I grew up reading about Ponce
de Leon," Lord says. "What's cool is that Luke is basically play
ing his ("90210") Dylan McKay character with the leather jacket
but also with purple conquistador pants."
Featurinq 15 Minute TAN AMERICA BEDS
We Accept
AGGIE
BUCKS
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
We honor our
competitors
coupons
T A
N 6
*19
95
Month - to - Month
No Annual Contract
iSifci#
WOODSTONE
CENTER
913 D Harvey Road
College Station
680-1492
ALBERTSON'S
CENTER
2205 Longmire
College Station
695-6565
(Open @ 8 am)
BRIARCREST
CENTER
1 885 Briarcrest Dr.
New Bryan Location
731-8200
Hill
THE
Librar
Meet • Drink • Lounge
Come and experience our exclusive
“See and Be Scene”
Tuesdays:
"Martini Mixer"
s 2— Martinis all nighth
Wednesdays
Girls Night Out
All ladies eat 1/2 price
at La Bodega (691-taco) 9-11 pm
All ladies drink 1/2 price
at The Library ALL NIGHT!!
Thursdays
**1
Retro Rewind
7CTs, SO’s and 90's music
along with today's hits
s 2— anything in the House till 11 p.m.
Fridays?
m “Friday Buzz’
*2—wells till 11 p.m.
Saturdays;
ill
,99
Excess'
$ 3 oa Long Islands till 11 p.m.
Available for
Private Parties
846-5814
Doors open: 9p.m.
Tuesday-Saturday
329 University Dr.
at Northgate