My Big Fat Mouth

Now that I've unofficially counted my column readership to be about 25 or more people, I figure it's a good time to make them savor my flavor even more and leave the Naperville Sun after almost four years of noble service.

Highlights include:

There are numerous groups up in arms over the comedy, "Tropic Thunder," because of its gaudy jokes about racism, sexism and metal disability.

The movie certainly walks a fine line.

But I'm not budging, on my opinion. You have to take the medium in perspective. And when you combine Jack Black and Stiller, you're going to get offensive material.

It's like going to a stand-up performance by the late George Carlin and complaining he has no understanding of religion.

Of course Ebert's battle with cancer has had us concerned for the longest time of one of the finest movie critics ever, but just last week it was discovered he and his Sun-Times colleague won't be returning to "At The Movies," a show that has brought him national fame.

But that's not the end of it, 26-year-old Ben Lyons is taking over.
And the question is: How sick are you as a fan?

It is the most anticipated film of the year--maybe "Indiana Jones"--and it's already living up to some of the hype. Given the tragic death of Heath Ledger and the massive success of the previous installation, we cannot hold back our excitement for what will probably the best superhero movie to ever grace the big screen.

Believe it.

It's sort of like when basketball phenom Lebron James came out of high school to enter the NBA. Never was there hype about an athlete that not only lived up to its billing, but exceed them.

More than ever, "Dark Knight" should do the same.

By the way, this is the first feature film to ever be partially shot with IMAX cameras. I've got to experience it first hand in Woodridge this weekend.

You can keep fighting it, but Ribfest--like Naperville--keeps getting bigger.

And there's nothing wrong with that. I'm looking for suggestions for new locations.

Got any?

If you grill it, they will come.

"The Field of Dreams" slogan doesn't quite apply to people preparing pork in mass, but it's a no-brainer that Ribfest brings in tons of people to the area.

But that does mean it's a good thing?

Steve Carrell might be one of the most talented comedians in Hollywood, but he needs to know is his place in film.

Now that the City of Naperville won't be able to provide free Internet service to the downtown area, it will have to look for a high-speed provider (WiMax) at a small fee to the user.

Obviously the city benefited from having a free service in the area to its residents and visitors, but will users opt for a service that has a small fee with it?

Don't know.

There are of course, a few other areas in the downtown space that provide free Internet.

But you can only spend so long in Starbucks; then again, maybe I'm wrong. I've seen people go through gallons of coffee in a matter of hours.

It was a nice perk in downtown Naperville, but not essential. We'll see how this shapes out.

According to the news report below, the Black Crowes are not coming to Naperville. But the good news is the Doobie Brothers (anyone see "40-year-old Virgin"?) and Dennis DeYoung will be on stage.

I'm confident organizers will come up with a great act for Sunday's performance--but who? Any ideas?

By Mike Mitchell
mmitchell@scn1.com

Last Fling organizers were supposed to round up their main-stage lineup this week after recently booking the Doobie Brothers and Dennis DeYoung for the main stage at the annual Labor Day weekend bash. But organizers also found out they lost one of their biggest attractions in The Black Crowes, who were set to play Aug. 31, but had to cancel due to scheduling conflicts.

"They chose to not honor the agreement. I don't know how else to word it," said John Wrona, co-executive director for the festival. "We've been told they are having logistical and travel difficulties with the timing of the show. These things happen. Fortunately, it's only early June and we plan to have a great act for Sunday. I'm extremely confident in that.

"We're already off to a great start with the Doobies and Dennis DeYoung," Wrona said. "So, it's going to be a great weekend and I'm really confident we'll have an incredible performer for Sunday."

Meanwhile, DeYoung will perform 8 p.m. Aug. 29, at 8 p.m.

DeYoung, a Chicago native and a founding member of the famous rock group, wrote eight of their nine top ten singles and continues to be a favorite of locals.

"Dennis has a huge catalog of hits and is among Chicagoland's most relevant artists, both in the past and currently," said John Wrona.

Young is best known for hits "Lady", "Come Sail Away", "Best of Times", "Mr. Roboto", "Show Me the Way", "Desert Moon", "Don't Let It End", and the 1979 Peoples Choice Award winner, "Babe".

Styx sold 35 million albums worldwide and was the only band to ever record four consecutive triple platinum albums.

The Doobie Brothers will follow Young on Aug. 30. They are best known for their hits "China Grove" and "Long Train Running," to "Black Water."

The band has sold more than 50 million records, which includes multiple Grammy award-winning songs, 27 chart singles, 16 top-40 hits and 11 multi-platinum albums.

Counting back to 2001, there has been dozens of movies about superheroes in box offices each summer--Batman, Spider-man, Cat-woman, Iron Man, Hulk, Fantastic Four, Superman, Ghost Rider and so on.

While it's never too late to yell uncle, is there really room for more movies about these comic characters?

One EW critic says that's enough.

But is he right? Are we really being force-fed some stories about these characters.

Just remember, Aquaman and The Flash might be next.