| Under the Hood With Knight Rider 2.0: Trans Am vs. Ford Mustang ...
Last week, NBC unveiled an all-new, controversial KITT, which is set to star in the made-for-TV Knight Rider movie in February. Based on the still-to-be-released Ford Mustang Shelby GT500KR (click here for engine-revving video), this virtual Stang comes tricked out with a supercomputer that can hack almost any system; a very capable weapons system; and a body—thanks to nanotechnology—that's able to shape-shift and change color at will. Like its predecessor, the 21st century KITT gets AI from digital effects wizards that makes it an ideal crime-fighting partner: logical, precise and infinitely smart. Designer Harald Belker, who has created the Batmobile for Batman and Robin and a next-gen space shuttle for Armageddon, came onboard to give the new KITT. a unique look. "The goal was to make it look more aggressive without being hokey or garish," Belker says.
Adriatico gives College Park a taste of exactly what it needs
College Park and Adriatico are a perfect match. This Orlando neighborhood certainly has some good, or good enough, restaurants. But it has been missing a quaint trattoria, the sort of Italian place with a mom-andpop feel, one that's comfortable, homey and immediately familiar. A welcoming spot where the food is good but beside the point.
That's Adriatico.
The "mom and pop" owners are Marco and Rosetta Cudazzo. She runs the dining room, greeting guests with a matronly welcome, and he does the cooking, demonstrating the skills he most recently plied at the estimable Terramia, a multiple Foodie winner, and at Antonio's La Fiamma in Maitland before that.
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Jill Sobule column companion piece
This came back in the days before MTV was a fixture in every home, and I remember seeing the clips be-tween movies on HBO or Showtime. The “Mister Sandman" clip was a mime of a performance, with the singer and others dressed in 1940s-style garb, which was cute. I half-paid attention, knowing the song and not being impressed with miming. Harris, as an Andrews Sisters-style singer, was romancing a soldier in the clip. But as “Mister Sandman" ended, its closing note cross-faded to a minor-key chord, taking me a little by surprise. Snapshots of a wedding between Harris and the soldier character came up on the screen, followed by more family scenes, each showing a little more disenchantment. Then came a performance video of Harris' “I Don't Have To Crawl," which opens with the lines: When you look at me like you don't know me And you talk to me like you've never met me Later, Harris sings, “If I wanted to I could be long gone, and I don't have to crawl." It was chilling and breathtaking and all of the things unexpectedly great art is supposed to be.
The Torture Tape Fingering Bush As a War Criminal
Almost all of the time, the Washington I know and live in is utterly unrelated to the Washington you see in the movies. The government is far more incompetent and amateur than the masterminds of Hollywood darkness. There are no rogue CIA agents engaging in illegal black ops and destroying evidence to protect their political bosses. The kinds of scenario cooked up in Matt Damon's riveting Bourne series are fantasy compared with the mundane, bureaucratic torpor of the Brussels on the Potomac. And then you read about the case of Abu Zubaydah. He is a seriously bad guy - someone we should all be glad is in custody. A man deeply involved in Al-Qaeda, he was captured in a raid in Pakistan in March 2002 and whisked off to a secret interrogation, allegedly in Thailand.
Seasonal roundup from galactic shoot 'em ups to rascally rabbits
Think holiday movie schedules are crowded? Try video games in November. Every year publishers seem to delay or rush games in an effort to score a bigger share of the prime-shopping-season dollar. Even with this year's delays of high-profile games like Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Metal Gear Solid 4, there have been more than enough big-name titles in the past few weeks to keep anyone busy. Here's a roundup of a few recent games that for whatever reason haven't garnered a huge amount of hype: Blacksite: Area 51 (First-person shooter. Midway for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. $49.99-59.99 ESRB Rating: Mature): This might have found a bigger audience had it come out last year, or even a few months earlier. As it is, it's an adequate game that can't compete with bigger and better competitors Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4.
Update: Girl in intensive care after train track fall
A schoolgirl who fell on tracks at Worcester Park station as she ran to catch a train is being treated in intensive care. The 15-year-old, a student at Raynes Park High School, suffered massive blood loss in the accident and has had her spleen removed. She also has an injured left foot, is thought to have a fractured pelvis and will undergo more surgery today. The girl was taken away on a stretcher and rushed to St George's Hospital in Tooting as police cordoned off the accident site yesterday. She is believed to be in a stable but serious condition and the next 48 hours are critical. The incident caused chaos for commuters who were told to get off the 7.52am train from Epsom to London Waterloo at Worcester Park yesterday.
Broker who prayed with clients is said to have bilked them
Some clients have put their homes up for sale; others are seeking help from bankruptcy lawyers. ''I was suicidal when I found out,'' said Sheila Kramer, 72, of Deerfield Beach, who lost $1 million. The investigation is a case study of a state regulatory system unable to stop a troubled broker who left a trail of red flags. Years before the latest wave of complaints, the Florida Division of Securities was warned about Gross -- with numerous investors stepping forward -- but no disciplinary action was taken, The Miami Herald found. To this day, Gross has one of the longest records of complaints in the nation. A Miami Herald analysis of nearly 600,000 stockbrokers found that he had more complaints against him than 99.9 percent of all brokers.
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