4
Entertainment
fhe Guilfordian January 14, 1983
Fluffy 'Toy'
by Joy Opaleski
Editor in Chief
The Holiday Season is tradi
tionally the time when the major
movie studios release films with
a large box-office draw. Thus, we
have Richard Pryor's Christmas
movie, The Toy. This flick, also
starring Jackie Gleason, is a fine
entertainment offering. Pry or is
a comic genius, and this film has
some good scenes for the black
comedian to do what he does best
-make people laugh. The movie
as a whole could be faulted by
some, for not allowing Pryor and
Gleason to continually
demonstrate their full talents for
buffoonery. The Toy, however,
encouraged the actors to fully
develop their characters, rather
than allow the stars to rely entire
ly on slapstick. For this reason,
the movie is not laugh-a-minute,
but instead portrays a humorous
story with a message.
Jack Brown (Pryor) is a writer,
procrastinating authoring The
Novel which will begin his
career. In the meantime, his
wife, worried about the bills, pro
mpts Jack to actively seek work.
After a few good scenes where
the comedian stumbles through
ill-fated jobs, Jack is chosen by
Gleason's son to become a
Christmas toy. This poor-little
rich-boy is, of course, terribly
spoiled by his father and receives
only expensive presents as proof
of parental love. Predictably,
Pryor and the kid become actual
friends.
Trite as this may seem, I en
joyed the flick, and the perfor
mances of the cast allowed me to
become involved in the film. The
Toy, as a whole, is worth viewing,
for it is an enjoyable piece of
fluff.
Musical
Accomplished soprano Teresa
Radonski is scheduled to deliver
the next performance in
Guilford's continuing series of
"Sunday Afternoon Musicales."
The Jan. 23 event will encom
pass a wide variety of musical
styles ranging from the classical
to the contemporary, showcasing
Radonski's established versatili
ty. On the music faculty at Wake
Forest University, Radonski is
well know in Greensboro as a
result of appearances with the
municipal opera company and
symphony. She also has served as
guest artist at the Eastern Music
Festival, hosted each summer by
our college.
The Jan. 23 musicale is set to
begin at 4 pm in the Boren
Lounge, located in Founders Hall
on campus. The musicales are a
series of informal presentations
sponsored throughout the year by
Guilford.
The 6:00 Fix
By Dan Pleasant
Killer Correspondent
I have been a self-confessed
"TV-news junkie" for years. One
of my earliest memories is of Un
cle Walter reading casualty
figures from that day's festivities
in Vietnam - a memory very
apropo to our generation's
emergence in an apocolyptic age,
it seems. Not all memories are so
grim; I also remember my
adolescent crush on Jessica
Savitch (incidentally, she (still
looks good) and the wonder I ex
perienced during the Apollo
years.
As I became more aware, I
began to look at these newscasts
with a critical eye, and it soon
became apparent that said pro
gramming was seriously lacking.
Entertainment often replaces
o
o
o
journalistic concerns as news
editors bow to the God of Nielson,
and time limitations often limit
the depth with which serious
issues are dealt.
I remember talking with a local
broadcaster (and news
"anchorman") several years
ago. He was of the opinion that
television news should serve as
merely a "headline service." Un
fortunately, many Americans do
not understand this concept;
polls show TV to be the most
trusted medium 2nd, some 70% of
Americans rely totally on
"Action News Z" for their infor
mation.
This is not good, and the
reasons are intrinsic to the
medium itself. Television is a
temporally parsimonious com-
Quaker Notes
Book Return
Students who change courses
can return books to the college
bookstore for exchange or refund
during the first two weeks of the
semester. Returned books will
not be accepted after two weeks.
Culture Shock?
The office of the International
Student Advisor is offering a Re-
Entry Workshop open to any stu
dent coming back from an
overseas experience. Many times
the adjustment to "coming
home" is more difficult than
leaving.
Interested students should con
tact Paula Swonguer, Ext. 128,
for further information.
Gov't Internship
Sophomores, juniors and
seniors currently enrolled in a
North Carolina college or North
Carolina residents attending an
out-of-state college have until
February 11 to apply for the In
stitute of Government Summer
Internship Program in state
government.
Twenty-three students will be
selected by an advisory commit
tee to participate in a living
learning internship in North
Carolina state government
directed by the Institute of
Government. The Institute of
Government Interns will work
from May 31 through August 5.
Students will work 40 hours
each week in a responsible posi
tion in a state department, par
ticipate in evening educational
seminars and be paid approx
imately $l5O per week.
Students interested in the pro
gram should secure a brochure
announcing the program and a
State of North Carolina applica
tion form from their college or
university placement office or
municator; commercial interests
demand maximum information
in minimum time. Thus, often we
find news going for the im
mediate emotional response
rather than attempting to take
the time necessary to discuss ra
tional issues. For example,
rather than discuss unemploy
ment figures - what they mean,
how they are derived, the causes
for unemployment from differing
viewpoints, potential solutions to
the problems, etc. - we get a bi
weekly dose of "the human side
of unemployment," usually com
plete with a statement by an im
poverished high school drop-out
denouncing Reagan and his ad
ministration.
Secondly, the medium is a
visual one. This creates a pro
blem in the relative importance
local Job Service office. A brief
description of possible intern
ships are available in college
placement offices.
Students interested in the In
stitute of Government program
should mail an application to the
Institute of Government, Knapp
Building 059 A, The University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill,
Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27514
by February 11, 1983.
Applicants will be accepted
without respect to race, sex, col
or, national origin, religion, or
handicap.
Author-itis
"Getting Into Print", a new
course in creative writing for
adults will be offered this winter
at the Greensboro Center for
Creative Arts. Classes will begin
Wednesday, January 19 and will
run from 7:30-9:00 PM. Classes
meet once a week for six weeks.
The class will introduce
students to techniques in fiction
and non-fiction used by today's
successful writers. Students will
discover the basic elements of the
craft such as getting ideas, plann
ing, plotting, characterization,
dialogue, beginnings and en
dings, and point of view. Impor
tant steps in preparation and
marketing will be discussed.
The course is geared for the
more practical writer who is in
terested in launching himself on a
part-time career in freelancing.
In this class, students will work
at their own pace; and receive in
dividual criticism for their work.
For further information on the
classes students should call
379-8778 after 5:00 PM or 373-2081.
Crisis Control
Are problems getting to be too
much? Do you need someone to
listen? Call the Crisis Control
Center for help 24 hours a day at
their new number: 852-4444. The
voice of a helpful friend is as
close as your telephone.
given to stories. Thus, we will
often find ourselves watching five
minutes of fire at Joe's
Warehouse, while getting only
half a minute devoted to an im
portant political or economic
event.
Thus, I find TV journalism
lacking - on its own. It does help
us to get a look at the "real"
world rather than being inun
dated by statistics and reports. I
don't feel this medium should
change, per se; it does perform a
useful function. Instead, we, as
viewers, must look at things with
a critical eye, recognize their
faults, and try to correct our view
by balancing it with different in
formation.
In other words, continue to
read the Guilfordian.
Alumni Honors
The Guilford College Alumni
Association will honor two
students for their academic ex
cellence during the Alumni
Weekend Awards Convocation on
March 26, 1983. The Clyde A.
Milner Award goes to that stu
dent who has the highest grade
point average at the end of the
fall semester of junior year. The
Purdom Award is presented to
the member of a varsity athletic
team who has the highest grade
point average at the end of the
fall semester of junior year.
Selection of these recipients
will be made on January 15, 1983.
If you feel that you may qualify
for one of these awards be sure
that your final semester grades
are recorded by January 15.
Should you have any questions,
call Jace Ralls in the Alumni Of
fice.
SWAT's New?
At the beginning of each year a
group of dedicated and en
thusiastic students known as the
(SWAT) Student Welcoming and
Advisory Team can be seen runn
ing around in their "tree" shirts
helping to make the new students
feel welcome and "at home" at
Guilford College. These students
help to plan and carry out the
orientation activities and seem to
be everywhere anything is hap
pening during those first few
days.
The SWAT experience is one of
fun and hard work. If you are in
terested in applying for the
1983-84 SWAT team, applications
are now available in the Center
for Personal Growth, Bryan Hall.
Application deadline is February
4, 1983.