MOTOR CITY COMIC CON AND EMAGINE THEATRES HOST HELEN HUNT APPEARANCE

1996's TWISTER is one of those movies that no matter how many times I've seen it if it pops up on television while channel surfing I'll find myself watching it one more time. This action adventure about tornado chasers that has a personable cast and decent musical soundtrack my not be one of the best movies produced by Hollywood yet it has established itself as one of my favorites. So, I was geeked to discover that Motor City Comic Con and Imagine Theatres are hosting a special TWISTER experience featuring one of the stars of the movie, Helen Hunt, making a Detroit area experience.

Helen Hunt will be appearing at the pop-culture convention for one day only, Saturday May 18th from 10am-7pm at the Suburban Collection Showplace. As part of her appearance Hunt will also host a Q&A panel at 8 pm before a screening of Twister at Emagine Novi. Tickets to attend Motor City Comic Con and the special Q&A movie event can be purchased now at MotorCityComicCon.com. Admission to the convention as well as the purchase of a Twister experience package are required to participate in this Helen Hunt appearance.

HELEN HUNT TWISTER EXPERIENCE PACKAGES: 

Standard Package ($40): Includes Exclusive Movie Poster, Pre-Movie Q&A Panel and Admission to see a special showing of Twister at Emagine Novi. 

Silver Package ($115): Includes One (1) Autograph (redeemed during convention show hours on Saturday, May 18 at the Suburban Collection Showplace), Exclusive Movie Poster, Pre-Movie Q&A Panel and Admission to see a special showing of Twister at Emagine Novi. 

Gold Package ($220): Includes One (1) Autograph and One (1) Professional Photo Opportunity (redeemed during convention show hours on Saturday, May 18, at Suburban Collection Showplace), Exclusive Movie Poster, Pre-Movie Q&A Panel and Admission to see a special showing of Twister at Emagine Novi.

MOTOR CITY COMIC CON ADMISSION:

Adult admission tickets (ages 13 and up): Friday pass $30* - online purchase $40 – at the door (if available) Saturday pass $45* - online purchase $50 – at the door (if available) Sunday pass $40* - online purchase $45 – at the door (if available) Adult Weekend Pass $90* - online purchase $95 – at the door (if available)

Children admission tickets (ages 6-12) Kids 5 and under are FREE all weekend with a paid adult Friday and Saturday: Child pass (ages 6-12) $10* each day – online purchase $20 each day – at the door (if available) Child Weekend pass (ages 6-12) $20* - online purchase $30 – at the door (if available).  Sunday is Kid’s Day, all children under 12 are FREE with a paid adult.

HELEN HUNT AUTOGRAPHS & PHOTO OPS:

For those interested in a Helen Hunt autograph or picture with her but don't want to go to the Emagine Novi for the Twister Q&A and showing; here is a fee schedule for her one day only appearance at Motor City Comic Con on Saturday, May18:

Autographs:  $80

Professional Photo Op: $105

The 1990’s was a time of incredible success for Helen Hunt. From 1992-1999 she starred in the sitcom Mad About You, alongside co-star Paul Reiser, where she won four Emmy Awards for Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. She also starred in the film Twister alongside Bill Paxton, which released in 1996 and then she went on to win an Academy Award for Best Actress in the 1997 film, As Good As It Gets. She continues to act and expanded her accolades to include film director with her directorial debut of the movie, Then She Found Me.

In Twister, Bill (Bill Paxton) and Jo Harding (Helen Hunt) are advance storm chasers on the brink of divorce, and they must join together to create an advanced weather alert system by putting themselves in the crosshairs of extremely violent tornadoes. Twister was the second highest grossing movie in 1996.

Michigan’s largest pop-culture event since 1989, Motor City Comic Con gathers comic book and multimedia dealers from across the country, offering a vast variety of pop-culture merchandise, including comics, art, t-shirts, movie memorabilia, posters and more. Over 250 comic book creators, writers and artists are featured at Motor City Comic Con each year, as well as actors from the television and movie industry. Motor City Comic Con offers fun for kids young and old.

Motor City Comic Con will be taking place Friday, May 17 – Sunday, May 19, 2024 At the Suburban Collection Showplace located at 46100 Grand River Ave. in Novi, Michigan: 

Friday, May 17, 2024 – 12:00pm – 7:00pm 

Saturday, May 18, 2024 – 10:00am – 7:00pm 

Sunday, May 19, 2024 – 10:00am – 5:00pm

KEITH URBAN AND SNOOP DOGG COLLABORATE ON SONG FOR THE GARFIELD MOVIE SOUNDTRACK

That wise-cracking, lasagna loving, fat cat known as Garfield is making his show biz return in a new animated movie from Sony Pictures arriving at theaters May 24, 2024. Rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) for action/peril and mild thematic elements, this film's characters are voiced by some big names in Hollywood including Chris Pratt and Samuel L Jackson. Additionally, The Garfield Movie's soundtrack includes an impressive list of vocal talents including a song collaboration that is a Garfield and Odie style musical team up having Keith Urban and Snoop Dogg perform the movie's signature song "Let It Roll" together. 

This original single featuring Keith Urban and Snoop Dogg is produced by GRAMMY® nominated writer/producer and the film’s executive music producer Michael Hodges. It notably marks the first collaboration between the four-time GRAMMY® Award-winning country icon and West Coast hip-hop legend. With a sunny melody and upbeat bounce, the track evokes the easygoing spirit of the title character with Urban’s carefree chorus, “I let it roll, I let it slide right by,” and breezy bars courtesy of Snoop.

Keith Urban commented about the collaboration with Snoop Dogg to ageekdaddy.com saying “Out of the blue, I get this call from Garfield asking me if I’d sing and play on a song he wanted in his movie. He told me he had Snoop Dogg locked in and I thought that was the coolest thing. The only thing cooler would be to get Garfield in the studio with us, so I asked. Huge bummer. He said no. Apparently, Garfield hates Mondays.”

ASG Records and Republic Records: Kids & Family have announced The Garfield Movie (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) featuring "Let It Roll" and nine other songs will be available to purchase on May 17, 2024. CLICK HERE to order the album from Republic Records. The full soundtrack for The Garfield Movie is as follows:

1. "Good Life" - Jon Batiste 

2. "Let It Roll" - Keith Urban and Snoop Dogg 

3. “Then There Was You” - Calum Scott 

4. “Bring It” - Granville [feat. Will Champlin] 

5. “Let’s Get It On” - Marvin Gaye 

6. “Meet Garfield” - John Debney 

7. “I’m Back” - Hannah Waddingham 

8. “Flashback” - John Debney 

9. “That’s Amore”- Dean Martin 

10. “The Pinecone”- John Debney

In The Garfield Movie, Garfield (voiced by Chris Pratt), the world-famous, Monday-hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat, is about to have a wild outdoor adventure! After an unexpected reunion with his long-lost father – scruffy street cat Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) – Garfield and his canine friend Odie are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a hilarious, high-stakes heist. The film is directed by Mark Dindal with a screenplay by Paul A. Kaplan & Mark Torgove and David Reynolds based on the Garfield characters created by Jim Davis.

MARVEL ZOMBIES EASTER EGG HUNT

Normally in a game of Zombicide players work together to cooperatively overcome challenges as one united team. It is players versus zombies. Over the Easter weekend though, game maker CMON released a free add-on scenario for the Marvel Zombies edition of the game. In "Good Egg Hunting" players are divided into two teams of heroes competing against one another to gather the most Easter Eggs hidden within a zombie infested mansion that once housed Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. 

This new Easter Egg themed scenario utilizes the components and rules of the X-Men Resistance hero box for Marvel Zombies gameplay. Two to four players divide into two teams of X-Men to see who can come out on top in this Marvel Zombies challenge. Race around the mansion trying to pick up as many of the objective cards that Professor Xavier hid throughout it. Don't linger because whichever teams scores the most points in 8 rounds is the winner.

Watch out for the zombies, but also the players on the other team! This Marvel Zombies add-on scenario allows players on the other team to steal your Easter Eggs from you. Earn one point for each red egg collected, two points for the rare blue egg and three points for the green one. Plus earn bonus points for rescuing bystanders and eliminating zombies. Whichever team has the most cumulative points after 8 rounds wins the game and gets Zombicide bragging rights.

My daughter and I battled it out in this Marvel Zombies Easter Egg Hunt. I selected Colossus and Wolverine to be my heroes. She selected Rogue and Storm. 

There are four types of zombie enemies to battle in Marvel Zombies: X-Men Resistance. James Madrox, the Multiple Man, became infected by the zombie virus and now keeps replicating creating an ever growing herd of walkers. The Hellfire Club's cybernetically enhanced tank-like Reavers now are lumbering brutes of zombies.  And with the zombies in the Marvel universe retaining some semblance of intelligence, the Hellfire Club assassins are more dangerous then ever now they have turned into monsters that are running all over the place. 

If those three types of zombies weren't bad enough, also lurking around are heroes and villains that have turned into zombies overwhelmed with hunger. Players potentially have to face off against Cyclops, Dark Phoenix, Iceman, Juggernaut, Pyslocke and Sabretooth who are roaming the X-Men mansion grounds as zombies. All these zombies have their own special abilities and traits to strike fear in even the most powerful of the Avengers or X-Men. Don't let the fact they are zombies now have you let your guard down. These zombies are uncannily dangerous! 

So how did we fare in our "Good Egg Hunting" challenge? It was a close contest, but Colossus and Wolverine prevailed over Rogue and Storm ... by 2 points. My grabbing both the blue and green eggs plus stealing a red one from my daughter were what put me over the top in the points total. All in all though we both won because it was a fun family game night playing CMON Zombicide Marvel Zombies edition.

The Marvel Zombies corebox and X-Men Resistance gameplay box are available to purchase at Amazon.com. Download a pdf of the "Good Egg Hunting" for FREE from this post or by visiting zombicide.com. Happy hunting! 

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MICHAEL MYERS COMING TO DETROIT FOR HALLOWEEN THEMED CHARITY EVENT

Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney, known for their portrayal of the notorious "Michael Myers" in the Halloween movies series, are teaming up to appear in Detroit for two "Halfway 2 Halloween" events that support Gleaners Community Food Bank. A portions of the proceeds from both events will be donated to support Gleaners in providing breakfast for local children during the summer break, a crucial meal that underprivileged kids may receive only during the school year. The Emagine Theatres location in Novi will host a special movie night on Friday, May 3 and Screamers Costumes Store in Clinton Township will host a meet and greet on Saturday, May 4. Nick Castle, the original “Michael Myers” from 1978’s HALLOWEEN, and James Jude Courtney, who has recently embodied the character in the franchise’s latest installments – HALLOWEEN (2018), HALLOWEEN KILLS (2021), and HALLOWEEN ENDS (2022), will be present at both events. 

The “Halfway 2 Halloween” weekend includes: 

Friday, May 3rd – A unique double feature movie premiere with Q&A at Emagine Novi featuring HALLOWEEN (1978) and HALLOWEEN (2018), with a selection of two screenings one starting at 6:00 and the other at 7:00 p.m. A Q&A session with James Jude Courtney and Nick Castle, moderated by Anthony LaVerde, CEO of Emagine Entertainment will take place between the movies in the double feature. Tickets for this event are priced at $30 and can be purchased at www.emagine-entertainment.com.   Emagine Novi is located at 44425 W 12 Mile Rd., Novi, Michigan.

Saturday, May 4th – Meet and greet session at Screamers Costumes, with autographs and photo opportunities. James Jude Courtney and Nick Castle will be at the Screamers Costumes Store, located at 35431 Gratiot Ave., Clinton Township. Attendees can get autographs, selfie photos, and a special HALLOWEEN themed photo with both actors. Doors open at 10:00 a.m., with payments accepted onsite via cash or credit card. A portion of the proceeds from both events will support the 2024 Gleaner's Food Bank Cereal Drive, aiding in providing breakfast for local children during the summer months.

FRESH SPRING RECIPES FROM STEMILT

Whether you are cooking up an Easter Sunday feast or are just looking for some bright, new recipes to try out now that spring has sprung, the family-owned tree fruit experts at Stemilt have some nice recipe ideas to get your creative (apple) juice flowing!! You can find even more recipe inspo here and don’t forget that a Lil Snapper by itself makes for the perfect spring snack. Check their store locator to find some delicious apples near you!

Apple Quinoa Lentil Salad

Instructions: 

• Cook quinoa according to package directions, cutting cook time to between 8 and 10 minutes, to render a firmer grain. Drain, as necessary, fluff with fork and set aside. 
• Cook French green lentils according to package directions, cutting cook time to between 10 to 15 minutes, to render a firmer lentil. 
• Drain, as necessary, and set aside. Note: test quinoa and lentils before pulling off heat and adjust cook time, as preferred, to achieve a firmer bite. 
•  Meanwhile, toast chopped walnuts in a skillet set over medium high heat, stirring intermittently. 
• After about 2 minutes, drizzle nuts with maple syrup; stir consistently for approximately 1 more minute to coat nuts thoroughly. Remove from heat to cool. 
• Whisk ingredients for vinaigrette in a large bowl. 
• Add sliced apple to vinaigrette and mix well to coat (this helps keep apples bright). Add parsley and “cooled” maple-sweetened walnuts to bowl. Then add cooled quinoa and lentils. 
• Mix salad thoroughly and season with salt and pepper. 
• If desired, allow salad to sit in fridge for 15 to 20 minutes so flavors can mix and mingle. 
• Plate salad with a topping of fresh arugula and serve. Note: If you plan to store salad in fridge, keep arugula separate until ready to plate. Salad, without arugula mixed in, will keep nicely in fridge for 3 to 5 days.

Easter Ham with Apple Glaze

Instructions:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. 
• Place the ham in a large roasting pan, fat-side up. Optionally, you can score the fat. Press the cloves into the fat, spacing them evenly across the ham. Bake for two hours. 
• Meanwhile, prepare the glaze. Place the apples, apple cider vinegar, and water in a large saucepan. 
• Bring the liquid to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. Cool briefly, then puree in a blender. 
• Press the mixture gently through a fine mesh strainer to remove thicker pieces of pulp, so that what remains looks smoother and less like applesauce. 
• Place the mixture in a medium saucepan along with the butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and ground cloves. 
• Bring to a simmer and cook over low heat, stirring periodically, for 15-20 minutes to bring the flavors together. 
• After the ham has cooked for 2 hours, pour the apple glaze over it and continue to cook for another hour to 1 1/2 hours, basting every 30 minutes. 
• For the last 30 minutes, slice the remaining 3 Fuji apples and spread them around the bottom of the roasting pan, coating them with the apple glaze. Let rest 10 minutes or more before carving.

FREE SHAKES AT LIVONIA'S CHICKEN GUY RESTAURANT

In celebration of the one-year anniversary of Guy Fieri's Chicken Guy! in Livonia Michigan, guests dining in the restaurant will receive a complimentary shake, with a purchase of a combo, on April 1, 2024.  At Chicken Guy! guests experience an array of Fieri's fan favorites, including signature sandwiches, chicken tenders and hot tender combos, salad bowls, and all the special sauces. The menu features fresh chicken tenders, hand-pounded to maximize crunch and paired with a wide selection of signature delicious sauces to complement any menu item. 

The restaurant is also known for its hand-spun shakes. Try one of their FLAVORTOWN SHAKES for FREE with the purchase of any combo when dining in at the Livonia location on April 1st:

• Triple Double Mint -- hand-spun mint chocolate soft serve, crushed OREO® cookies, chocolate mints, chocolate syrup, topped with fresh whipped cream; 
•  Apple Cinnamon Cereal -- hand-spun vanilla soft serve, Cinnamon Toast Crunch™ & Apple Jacks© cereal, topped with fresh whipped cream 
•  Vanilla -- hand-spun vanilla soft serve, topped with fresh whipped cream 
•  Chocolate -- hand-spun chocolate soft serve, topped with fresh whipped cream 
•  Strawberry -- hand-spun strawberry soft serve, topped with fresh whipped cream 
•  OREO® -- hand-spun vanilla soft serve, crushed OREO® cookies & topped with fresh whipped cream 
•  Oreo Strawberry Cheesecake Shake -- hand-spun vanilla soft serve, cheesecake, strawberries, crushed OREO®cookies , topped with fresh whipped cream, crushed OREO®cookies & strawberry syrup 

 

Chicken Guy! is located at 30130 Plymouth Road.

WOODY WOODPECKER GOES TO CAMP

A new Woody Woodpecker movie is being released straight to streaming on Netflix. Combining live action with CGI animation the slapstick comedy WOODY WOODPECKER GOES TO CAMP flies onto the streaming service April 12, 2024. In this  movie, after getting kicked out of the forest, Woody thinks he's found a forever home at Camp Woo Hoo — until an inspector threatens to shut down the camp.

Woody Woodpecker originally became popular from appearing in theatrical short films produced by the Walter Lantz Studio and distributed by Universal Pictures between 1940 and 1972. Lantz's theatrical shorts were licensed for broadcasting by ABC which aired them as the Woody Woodpecker Show in 1957 & 1958. The Woody Woodpecker Show then went into syndication being broadcast by local tv stations into the 1980s. Brand new cartoons were produced for a Fox Kids series that ran on Saturday mornings from 1999 - 2002. MeTV has acquired the television broadcasting rights for the original 1940-1972 Lantz cartoons and now airs them as The Woody Woodpecker Show.

Universal Pictures produced Woody Woodpecker: The Movie for a theatrical release in 2017 but instead opted to have it released exclusively on Netflix in 2018 and later offered on home video instead. Based upon the popularity of Woody Woodpecker: The Movie, Netflix authorized the production of a sequel, WOODY WOODPECKER GOES TO CAMP as a Netflix Original Movie exclusive to the streaming service. While technically, a sequel the new film's story and cast are not connected to the original film.

Ha ha ha HA ha, ha ha ha HA ha, ha ha ha HA ha, hehehehehehehe! Who is geeked about a new Woody Woodpecker movie?