, . IT.'if ■ V;
Jeff Randall !
“Stupiddogs”
take humor
to new level
Let’s face it, Hanna Barbera’s car
toons never have been very good.
Sure, they had Scooby Doo; and
Huckleberry Hound, in his prime, was
one of the greats. But in the face of
their competition, those cartoons never
stood up.
Tom and Jerry blew them out of the
water. Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and
even Sylvester the Cat were playing on
another level altogether.
In the ongoing wars of the cartoon
world, Hanna Barbera proved to be the
equivalent of the French in the two
World Wars—in other words, itnever
had a chance.
Hut tnat era may nave ended. Hanna
Barbera now has “Two Stupid Dogs.”
At first, the dogs may seem a bit too
mundane — too stupid — to be real
contenders. But these dogs are much
more than that.
Part of the newly developed and
highly plentiful school of “Ren and
Stimpy”-inspired toons, “Two Stupid
Dogs” (which shows on the Cartoon
Network, Saturdays at 10 p.m.) is a
rarity in that it is actually as funny as
the show that inspired it. And in many
ways, it is better.
Whereas “Ren and Stimpy” was
often little more than a hyperkinetic
sleaze fest, relying on gross-me-out
jokes and extraordinarily disgusting
sound effects to generate laughs, “Two
Stupid Dogs” takes the tasteful high
road more often than not.
The show revolves around two un
named dogs—one big dog, one small
dog — that spend almost every epi
sode in search of something to eat.
This premise may be as old as anima
tion itself, but every episode breaks
new ground in cartoon humor.
Much like “The Rocky and
Bullwinkle Show” and “Ren and
Stimpy,” the real key to the hilarity in
“Two Stupid Dogs” is jokes that ap
peal to both young and old.
“Vegas Buffet,” one of the newer
episodes, centers on the dogs’ trip to
Las Vegas for the Super Duper Eco
nomical All-You-Can-Eat One Pound
Hot Dog Buffet (or some variation
thereof). But the buffet is closed upon
the dogs’ arrival, and they spend the
whole time gambling, at the casino
owner’s forceful request.
For some reason, it’s hard to imag
ine Pixie and Dixie in a casino. But for
these dogs, nearly any place can be
home. And, although life lessons often
are found in older cartoons, not many
characters have shown audiences how
to “beat the house.”
And the humor appeals to older
audiences not only because of its sub
ject matter. Sometimes the humor is so
blatantly stupid that its mere existence
warrants laughter.
wne cpisuuc rcvuives entirely
around the dogs’ argument over who
gets a toilet seat they found in the
garbage. After about nine minutes of
pointless debate (consisting mostly of
back-and-forth refrains of “I want the
toilet seat”), the senselessness of the
entire show becomes the basis for its
humor. You’re watchingthis,and that’s
the joke.
This show may be juvenile, point
less and really stupid, but so is every
thing else on television. At least “Two
Stupid Dogs” admits it.
Randall Is a sophomore news-editorial
major and the Daily Nebraskan arts and
entertainment editor.
■
House of styles
Matt Miller/DN
. * '• . .
Owner Jen Johnson poses with two mannequins at her store, Ruby Begonias. Johnson specializes in selling vintage
clothing.
Store offers ever-popular vintage clothing
By Lane Hickenbottom_
Staff Reporter
As clothing trends change, down
town Lincoln’snewest vintage cloth
ing store fills the gap most malls
leave out.
The gap is vintage clothing,
clothes that celebrate the styles that
were popular yesteryear that con
tinue to break the surface of popu
larity today.
Ruby Begonia’s, located at 1321
P St., offers a wide variety of vin
tage and street wear.
Jenifer Johnson, the owner of
Ruby Begonia’s, has been collect
ing vintage clothing since she was
10. She said her sister, Heidi, got her
started by taking Johnson out to thri ft
stores.
“It was an older sister that in
spired me,” Johnson said. “My sis
ter would take me to thrift stores. I
would pull things off the racks and
laugh at them. She would then say,
‘Give me that.’”
Johnson said her love for vintage
clothing had taught her a great deal
of history. She said a lot could be
learned by studying fashions.
“During wartime in the 1940s,
they were rationingmaterials so you
couldn’t buy a dress that takes 15
yards of fabric,” Johnson said.
All ages and types of people wear
vintage clothing, Johnson said.
“I don’t really have a typical cus
tomer,” she said, “I get high school,
junior high, all the way up to older
men and women. I really have a
broad range of clientele.”
Along with the different types of
customers Johnson deals with, there
are equally as many various reasons
to wear vintage clothing.
“I think college students like to
dress that way,” Johnson said, “It is
cheaper than buying new. Vintage
clothing also retains its value if cared
for.
“I think this is a really good time
for me to have a vintage and street
wear clothing store. People are re
ally wearing what they want these
days.”
Ruby Begonia’s might not look
like much to a window shopper. But
the window shopper should be in
formed that the store, decorated with
old movie posters, includes a base
ment. This is where Johnson fea
tures the majority of Ruby Begonia’s
merchandise.
“I try to add articles of clothing
every day,” Johnson said.
Ruby Begonia’s is a great place
to shop for costume or disco parties.
Johnson said she was starting to rent
outfits to people who only want to
wear them once.
Ruby Begonia’s is open Monday
through Wednesday from 11:00 a.m.
to 6:00 p.m., Thursday through Sat
urday from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
and Sundays from noon to 5:00 p.m.
Instalments complement voices in opera
By Emily Wray
Staff Reporter
Victorian romantic comedy will
take center stage at Kimball Recital
Hall when “A Room with a View”
makes its Midwest debut Thursday
and Saturday nights.
The 8 p.m. performances of the
opera are directed by professor Wil
liam Shomos. Professor Tyler White
will conduct the University Opera
Orchestra. The score, written by
UNL music alum Robert Nelson with
libretto by Buck Ross, is based on
E.M. Forster’s novel of the same
name.
The opera was attractive to
Shomos for a variety of reasons.
“The librettist was a director of
mine, and Nelson is a UNL alum.
We like topromote new opera works,
too,” Shomos said.
“The music is colorful, and the
motives for different characters fit
together to help tell the story. The
way the instruments are used with
the voices are attractive writing.”
He said the opera revolved around
Lucy Honeychurch, played by Karen
Kness, and George Emerson, played
by Kenneth Floyd.
The first act is an exposition of
how their relationship develops in
Italy. But Lucy is in denial because
George’s social standing is below
hers.
The second act takes place a few
months later in England. It finds
Lucy betrothed to another, still de
nying her feelings for George. For
tunately, after many trials and tribu
lations, the two lovers reunite.
Other principal players include
Charlotte Bartlett, played by
Rebecca Kouma Shane, and Mr.
Emerson, played by Brett Hyberger.
“The message is that we need to
be able to see through conventions
and societal standards in life that
prevent us from reaching certain
truths within us,” Shomos said.
“It’s about accepting your own
true feelings and nature as opposed
to letting outside voices do it. Lucy
loses sight of what she is and wants.”
Shomos said this opera had a
more contemporary musical style
than others staged in his twoyears at
UNL.
“Musically, there are parallels to
‘The Tender Land.’ The music is
essentially tonal but there is fre
quent dissonance,” he said.
Having the writer and librettist at
UNL this week is an advantage for
the cast, Shomos said.
“It’s a wonderful thing for all of
us to have them here. If we have
questions, they are here for us,” he
said.
A lot of preparation went into the
performances, he said.
There was an extensive process
employed in selecting each
semester’s opera, Shomos said.
“The way I choose opera is to
look at the people available at the
open audition and look for an opera
that suits their voices,” he said. “I
usually have certain people in mind,
and I use students that are here in
stead of hiring out.”
Learning scores and staging took
about six weeks to put together, he
said.
Pre-performance talks for “A
Room with a View” by Ross and
Nelson will be given at 7:15 p.m. in
room 119 at Westbrook Music
Building.
Tickets are $10 and $5 for stu
dents. They can be obtained at die
Lied Center Box Office, 12th and R
streets, or by calling 472-4747.
