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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 30, 1996)
WASHINGTON (AP) — More than a dozen dinosaurs, a pair of swans and an*ox will appear on U.S. postage stamps next year. The 1997 program will also feature this country’s first tri angular stamps, classic dolls, airplanes, composers, coaches and the African American holiday Kwanzaa. “The 1997 program celebrates America,” Postmaster General Marvin Runyon said. “These beautiful images, each of which is truly a work of art, commemorate our heroes, history and humanity.” Though some details need to be completed, the bulk of the 1997 stamp program was announced Tuesday tty the Postal Service. Scheduled for release in May are the first triangle-shaped stamps in U.S. history, a shape popular in other coun tries. A U.S. mail stagecoach is on the red triangle stamp, while a blue ver sion displays a clipper ship. A pair of large panoramic sheets will be issued in Mayor June display ing the world of dinosaurs. The two sheets totaling 15 stamps depict a scaie in Colorado 150 million years ago and one set in Montana 75 million years ago. Dolls could also prove a big seller with a set of 15 colorful stamps depict ing such popular dolls as Raggedy Ann, Baby Coos, Maggie Mix-up, Scootles and Alabama Baby. They are sched uled to go on sale in My. The lunar new year is the first stamp off the blocks, proclaiming die Year of the Ox in early January. The newly popular African-American holiday Kwanzaa will mai-k die end of the year beginning in October, and the usual Christmas stamps will include a Ma donna and child, holiday wreaths and American holly. The popular love stamps will be back in 1997, this time using a pair of swans, their necks curled to form a heart. A pair of botanical prints by the German artist Maria Sibylla Merian will appear on stamps and Bugs Bunny will grace another stamp. Another set of stamps will feature classic Ameri can airplanes. I sefof four legendary football coaches will be issued — featuring George Halasand Paul “Bear” Bryant, with the other two yet to be announced. Other famous people on stamps will include Raoul Wallenberg, the Swed ish diplomat who saved thousands of Jews from Nazi terror; Benjamin O. Davis Jr., the first black to reach the rank of brigadier general in the U.S. Army; and novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder. Musical stamps will honor classi cal composers and conductors, opera *; singers, and the centennial of the first performance of John Philip Sousa’s “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” Social issues will also make an ap pearance with a stamp focusing on helping children learn. Postal cards will feature two views of the Golden Gate bridge and a pair of 1847 stamps will be reproduced on souvenir sheets. Various artists “The Wizard of Oz In Concert: Dreams Come True” Rhino Records Grade: B When the Children’s Defense Fund decided to put on a benefit perfor mance of “The Wizard Of Oz,” they put together one heck of a cast. The cast includes pop singer Jewel as Dorothy, Roger Daltrey (from The Who) as the Tin Man, soul singer Jack son Browne as The Scarecrow and Nathan Lane (who you may remember from either “The Birdcage” or “The Lion King” where he was the voice of Timon) as the Cowardly Lion. Debra Winger (from such films as “Terms of Endearment”) plays the Wicked Witch of the West and Joel Grey (who’s big in the theater community) as The Wiz ard. So, with talent cramming out of the eyesockets, the show has to be great, right? Well—not exactly. Despite all the big names involved in the project, or maybe even because of it, the show doesn’t mesh into a co herent whole. At many points in die show, (me voice overwhelms another and leaves the rest stuck in the background. Usu ally it’s Lane who’s the most dominant. There are some points, like when Jewel is singing “Somewhere Over The Rainbow,” that it doesn’t click. Noth I ing you can put your finger on; just somehow it’s not how it should be. It isn’t a bad production, however. A few of the numbers are really good, such as Lane doing “If I Only Had The Nerve.” A lot of the numbers, especially “We’re Off To See The Wizard” and “The Lollipop Guild” are almost sick eningly sweet. Cute’s one thing, but this is far beyond that. It’s almost disgust ing — there’s only so much one can take. If you find a copy in a used CD store, then you’ll probably pay what it’s worth. It’s not worth picking up new though, because it just can’t pull to gether. —Cliff Hicks Black-47 “Green Suede Shoes" Mercury Records Grade: A Black-47 has one of the worst streaks of luck in America. The band keeps putting out good records, and no one’s listening. Black-47 has now put out three al bums, as well as been on Letterman, Leno and O’Brien and still no one’s really caught on to it yet. The first album, “Fire of Freedom,” was a fantastic blend of New York punk and traditional Celtic music. The band’s name even derives from the Potato Famine of 1847 in Ireland. On its third album, “Green Suede Shoes,” the band has added more depth to the sound, throwing an element of, dare I say, ska into the music. The title track, which appears in both acoustic and electric forms on the album, tells the story of the band’s mis fortune over the past few years, from the disaster in Hoboken to the van crashing off the Turnpike near Provi dence. Both versions of the song provide something different—the electric ver sion is something to dance to, while the acoustic version is something to laugh with. Each of them is great. The album is full of instruments that aren’t common in the rock scene to day: saxophones, trombone, uilleann; pipes, tin whistles, a bodhran, a djembe and a low whistle. What this mix of instruments leaves you with is a sound that is part New York ska, part Irish traditional, part rock, part jazz and a whole lot of fun. “Green Suede Shoes” wanders in and out of the traditional stuff as well, including a song in Gaelic, “Mo Bhron” or “My Grief.” The song “My Love Is In New York” tells the story of a man who goes to fight in the Vietnam war and is forced to leave his love among the Big Apple. Stories are the best aspect of Black 47. Tliey weaves tales better than al most any other band working today. From the comedy of “Czechoslova kia,” which talks about marriage, com munists and credit cards, to the seri ous political commentary in “Change Come Slowly.” A little snippet of David Lettcrman at the beginning of the album says “Black-47, ladies and gentlemen. You guys are gonna be huge, aren’t ya?” > May they be so lucky — they de serve it. —Cliff Hicks Londoner’s novel wins 1996 Booker Prize LONDON (AP) - Graham Swift won the 1996 Booker Prize on Tuesday for his comic novel “Last Orders.” Swift, a 47-year-old Londoner, collected a $32,000 check at an awards ceremony in London’s Guildhall. The prize, established in 1968, honors the best novel written in English in Britain or one of its Commonwealth nations. “Last Orders” tells the story of four people who meet to carry out the {tying wish of their friend, who asked that his ashes be scattered into -j, - ■ v •, -g -, y 2.' i •; the sea in the county of Kent. Carmen Callil, chairman of the Booker judges, said: “Choosing the winner was torture, but we finally settled on 'Last Orders,’ a wonder ful bode that will give great plea sure to thousands of people.” Other nominees were “Reading In The Dark,” by Seamus Deane of Northern Ireland; “A Fine Bal ance,” by Rohinton Mistry, a native of India who lives in Canada; “Alias Grace,” by Canadian Margaret Atwood; “Every Man For Himself,” by Beryl Bainbridge; and “The Or -/ chard On Fire” by Shena Mackay. Bainbridge and MacKay are Brit ish. Before he was announced the winner, Swift said, “Whatever the result, it’s an honor for the book and I’m very glad.... There is a check from Booker, of course, but more significantly it does clearly have an effect on the sales of the book.” The Booker Prize can more than double hardback sales of the win ning book. “I just about get by,” Swift said, “but it has to be said that writingis not the securest of professions.” American Heart (1 Association ©1992, American Heart Association i ELDER I CARE LOCATOR . A wpT.ru Cmmm.; 4 I mSSSii I ^ COSTUME 1—~7 CONTEST ^ Yto^Tplac^ HUEY'S 13TH & Q • LOWER LEVEL GUNNY'S • 477-9888 Stevie “ Starr - Great Plains Room ...Jmpn East union regurg[|Qm^ 11 $1,00 Students $3.00 General Public '-/'$? Rjyl r"" Ever thought about a career in publishing? Develop skills and career opportimities in book and magazine S publishing from insiders at lime, The New Yorker» ' HarperCoIlins, Random House, Little, Brown and others. 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