Jane Louise Boursaw

Features Jane Louise Boursaw There’s a good crop of new shows this fall, everything from high school kids to screwed up families. Here’s a sneak peek at four shows to watch:

Features Jane Louise Boursaw JURASSIC PARK (PG-13, 1993) – Tues, 8/1

The
Gist: An eccentric billionaire (Richard Attenborough) with way too much money on his hands decides to play God and clone dinosaurs using prehistoric DNA. Not only that, he creates a high-tech theme park on an exotic island, inviting his grandkids, lawyer, and a few scientists in for a look. As is usually the case, there’s a greedy person in the mix. This time, it’s nerdy computer expert (Wayne Knight, aka “Newman”), who decides to disable the security system so he can escape with some stolen embryos. Well, it’s just one big party when the raptors figure out the juice is off on the electric fences.

Why We Love It: The folks over at Industrial Light and Magic really earned their paychecks on this one. We have no problem believing these dinos and this place really exists. When scientists Sam Neill and Laura Dern come over that hill and catch a first glimpse of the herd, they’re awestruck and so are we.

Art Jane Louise Boursaw In the good old days, summer TV was a wasteland of reruns and more reruns. We were better off playing outside than watching rehashed eps of “Leave it to Beaver.”
But TV has grown up and so have we. Now we can plant our butts firmly on the couch all summer, smug in the fact that we’re watching NEW shows. Here’s a peek at seven shows that’ll save you from the trauma of all those camping and kayaking trips.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw Big explosions, high-tech weapons, creepy terrorists...no, it‘s not the latest report from CNN. It‘s M:I3, the action-packed thriller that put Tom Cruise back in the good graces of his fans again. Studios are breaking out the big guns to get us into theaters, and with M:I3 pulling in $160 million so far, the summer movie season is off to a great start. Here‘s a sneak peek:

Features Jane Louise Boursaw Brutal killings, grisly beheadings, sadistic rapes... no, it’s not the 6 o’clock news, it’s what’s playing at the local cineplex. Or are they one and the same?
Gruesome horror movies are making a comeback, and teenagers are flocking to the theaters to see them, in spite of – or maybe because of – their R ratings. What’s the appeal? Could these movies be a reflection of the
cruel reality we see on CNN and Fox News every day?
Think about it. Over the past few years, the 24/7 news channels have brought us 9/11, the BTK Killer, Natalee Holloway, child kidnappings, brutal terrorists, suicide bombers, and gruesome beheadings in Iraq. And that’s just the tip of the terrifying iceberg. Perhaps filmmakers feel compelled to make movies that reflect what’s happening in the real world. But why do we feel compelled to see these ugly events again on the big screen?

Features Jane Louise Boursaw You‘ve turned over the calendar, tossed all the junk food out (right?), and made friends with your treadmill. The only thing left to do is veg out on the couch with your favorite TV shows. Here’s a sample of what’s on the tube in the next few months.
NEW SHOWS:

IN JUSTICE (ABC–Fri/9pm): Dead men walking get a new lease on life in this politically charged series starring Kyle MacLachlan as a hotshot corporate lawyer who founds the National Justice Project. Jason O’Mara is the ex-cop who runs the operation, while Constance Zimmer and Daniel Cosgrove play the obligatory bickering investigators.

THE BOOK OF DANIEL (NBC–Fri/10 pm): This 7th Heaven-Everwood crossover stars Aidan Quinn as Daniel Webster, a husband, dad, Episcopalian minister, and...Vicodin addict who sees Jesus on a regular basis. But that’s just the tip of this dysfunctional iceberg, which also features a gay son and the embezzlement of church funds. Lord have mercy.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw The Fall TV season is upon us, and it can be summed up in three categories: 1) I see dead people; 2) the aliens are among us; and 3) I’m a has-been celebrity in a new reality show. Nevertheless, if you’ve been dying to learn what’s inside “the hatch” on the Lost island, who the father of Gabrielle’s baby is, or how soccer moms can make big bucks selling pot, the time has come. Here’s a sample of what’s happening on the small screen this fall:

Features Jane Louise Boursaw “Hey, I haven’t seen your byline in the local papers lately. What’s up?” I hear a lot of that these days, ever since I decided to try my luck with national newspapers and magazines a few years ago.
Things are going well, but being a freelance writer isn’t the free-and-easy life that most people think. So if you’re thinking about getting into the biz – and I know lots of you are, because people ask me about it all the time – I’m here to debunk a few of the more popular myths about the writing life:

Features Jane Louise Boursaw Last fall, I wrote a story for Northern Express about our experience with Hepatitis C and my husband’s resulting liver transplant. Many people continue to ask after Tim’s health, so I’m writing to let you know what’s happened since then and where we’re headed.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw My heart raced as I picked up the phone. “Hi, Jane. It‘s time,“ the voice said calmly, following with a series of instructions I hastily scribbled down. I mentally noted the time: 8:25 p.m., August 11, 2003.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw Pop-Tarts may be hitting the big 4-0 this year, but they‘re younger,
hipper, and even trendier today than they were in 1963. Everyone from
your kids to celebs Ashanti, Missy Elliot, and Randy Jackson love the
flat toaster pastries.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw Leah Dziewit gently fingers the silk in her basement studio in the rolling country west of Maple City. Soft swaths of the fabric are strewn about in various stages of production: rich persimmons, mangoes, limes, and a host of other colors. It‘s all part of Dziewit‘s custom clothing business, Leah Artware.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw It‘s 7:10 a.m. and Ron Jolly is discussing the latest nor‘easter with meteorologist Greg McMaster. As the morning progresses, Jolly will run through the birthday list, hash over the news with Joel Franck, and discuss current events with callers from all parts of Northern Michigan.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw What‘s new on the technology front? Everything from watches with GPS tracking to MP3 players that can store over 4,000 songs. Experts predict that personal computers will get faster, wireless devices will become more common, and handheld devices will start doing our dishes... well, maybe not, but they‘ll continue to boast even more features. Here‘s a look at what‘s in store for us this year.

Features Jane Louise Boursaw Kristanna Loken is lean, muscular, and cat-like. But the leggy blond who plays the Terminatrix in the upcoming movie “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines“ didn‘t get that way overnight. She trained an average of three hours a day for five months to buff out for the role of Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s nemesis.