Results tagged “starc”

Shortly after the sudden death of our close friend and fellow staff member here at Phillyist, Star C. Foster, reader Lisa sent us an email offering her condolences. She also told us how pulmonary embolism, which caused Star's death, was also the cause of tragedy for a friend of hers. She then provided us with some information about the condition, and urged us to get the word out about it and how it could be prevented. We had planned to put up a post right away, but perhaps due to the fact that we were still raw, we told ourselves we needed to collect more information, and set the post aside for later.

As many of you know, we lost our dear friend and colleague Star Foster this past December to a pulmonary embolism. It has been a difficult six months for us all, but there have been things to celebrate as well. A scholarship fund was established at Central High in Star's name; the prize will be awarded each year to a graduating senior who has shown talent and passion for creative writing. The first award will be given at Central's graduation this year on June 15. Friends and family organized a silent auction to benefit the fund and held a pirate-themed party to fulfill Star's wish that there be less crying, more dancing at her memorial service. Talks are in the works of making that celebration annual as well. And yesterday (her birthday), Star, known in the online world as Sarcasmo, completed a piece of her world-domination plan when a memorial plaque was dedicated in Rittenhouse Square, placed across from "the frog," Star's beloved statue. Little shrines have been popping up around it; stop on by the next time you're in the neighborhood. And, as Sarcasmom points out, be sure to kiss that frog. Now that Star's looking over it, there's no telling what wonders could happen.

Go out to the nearest Center City street corner, grab yourself a copy of today's Citypaper, turn to page 4, and check out Duane Swierczynski's Editor's Letter column. He gives Phillyist a little plug, which is very nice, but more importantly, he highlights the charity scholarship fund that has been created in honor of our dear friend Star Foster. In case you didn't see the information about that the first time we posted it, you can send your checks to:

Phillyist paid tribute to her this week with a heartfelt letter to her and an obituary.

So, somebody had the cool idea of collecting as many photos as possible of Star Foster in one place. To that end, an invitation-only Flickr Group called Sarcasmo's Corner (AKA The Star C. Foster Gallery of Embarrassing Pictures) has been set up. If you have any photos - any photos at all! - of Star lying around, please click through and click the "Join this group?" link. Once you've been accepted, adding photos to the group is easy. Oh, and if you've got some pictures but you're not on Flickr yet, well...it's a cool site, and getting an account is free, so why not sign up?

UPDATE: Fixed a typo; it's Associated Alumni, not Associate Alumni. Thanks, Debbie.

Dear Readers:

Torontoist immediately wins our heart by using the word "Jackass" in a headline. In fact, we love their use of it so much that we're going to use it as much as possible throughout this post. For example, it looks like there are Toronto-area jackasses besides those who misuse the sidewalk: look at the crap on sale on Toronto's craigslist. But it looks like Toronto doesn't contain the kind of jackasses who pee in public pools, as the issue never came up when they interviewed the creators of art installations in their public wading pools.

by Mike Van Helder and Star C. Foster

Each week on Phillyist, we'll bring you our takes on the best and worst of local and national films. And since we're compassionate writers here at Phillyist, we also won't torture you with titles like "Phillyist's Phriday Philm Phun!" Of course, we did consider it. You have to consider it. Dark Water

by Star C. Foster
If you go to Dark Water expecting a suspenseful, horror film a la The Ring, you'll be disappointed. What you'll get instead is a surprisingly moving story about a newly-single mother's struggle to create a home for herself and her young daughter despite her own troubled past and uncertain future. The film flirts with atmospheric tension, but overall the supernatural takes a backseat to the terrors of real life: loss, betrayal, abandonment and failure. Sadly, even Jennifer Connely's stellar performance as the disturbed Dahlia (and indeed, strong performances from the entire supporting cast - even Tim Roth in his small role as lawyer-cum-deus ex machina) cannot save Dark Water from its terrible pacing; the story doesn't build so much as it meanders towards an ending - and even once there it dawdles a bit. It simply doesn't pack the psychological punch it promises. If you're looking for a good scare, Phillyist recommends you give Walter Salles' Dark Water a pass, and instead track down the original Japanese version (which left us frightened of elevators and sinks for weeks); the only thing that made our skin crawl in this remake was listening to them discuss the rental rates on Roosevelt Island. $900 for a small one-bedroom with a continually leaking ceiling? The horror! Fantastic Four

by Jessica Haralson
It's a convenient enough popcorn movie, rife with action, a hottie, and product placement that Wayne and Garth would be proud of. But is it convincing? This is the question moviegoers will ask themselves after watching Fantastic Four, a movie that matches the grandeur of its comic-book predecessors but fails to impress in the wake of other summer offerings like Batman Begins. Starring newcomer Ioan Gruffud as the lead, with Jessica Alba and Chris Evans lending performances as the brother-sister duo and the always respectable Michael Chiklis as the Four's rocky counterpart, the actors exude charisma and perfectly toned biceps but never work their way through some of the film's glaring potholes (for instance, why can Ben Grimm, once his powers are reversed, change back to his hulking alter ego?) The verdict? Enjoyable, but not memorable. Fantastic Four, in the end, is indistinguishable from the rest of its recent brethren, but will make for a fun afternoon at the movie theater.

Co-authored by Rebecca Rindler


Wednesday Nights at 8: Fortress Communications presents "Make it A Film Night" at historic Headhouse Square (2nd & Pine Streets in Old City).
We've all dreamed of having our own robots. What's that? We haven't? Oh. Well, for those who have, or those who just think robots are cool, this week's outdoor screening is of , Brad Bird. This family-friendly movie about a young boy trying to protect his robot friend from the government has fantastic animation and is sure to be a hit with the young, the young at heart, and those who really, really like robots. Not so robot-inclined? The "Make it a Film Night" series continues with movies every Wednesday from 8-10 pm. Thursday nights at 9: The Secret Cinema (a perennial Phillyist favorite) hosts its "Moonlit Movie Series" at the University of Pennsylvania. Movies are shown at the 40th Street Field, (just east of 40th Street between Walnut and Locust). This week's movie is . Both venues are outdoors, so consider bringing an umbrella or a blanket. Maybe it's because Phillyist is (just barely) old enough to remember the days of drive-in theaters; but there's something wonderfully communal and relaxing about watching movies outdoors that makes the lack of concession stand and odd insect bite well worth it.