DENVER, Colo. (Sept. 25, 2013) – Wonder bread will be the primary sponsor of Kurt Busch’s No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet during the Oct. 18-20 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series weekend at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway.
Inspired by the motion picture Talladega Nights, the colorful paint scheme on Busch’s Chevrolet will have a look similar to the No. 26 Wonder Bread race car in the 2006 movie.The motorsports sponsorship is part of the reintroduction of the Wonder brand, which had been off the market since the bankruptcy of its former owner late last year. Flowers Foods, a leading producer and marketer of packaged bakery foods in the U.S. acquired the Wonder brand in July 2013.
“There is nothing more American than Wonder bread and NASCAR,” said Keith Aldredge, Flowers Foods’ vice president of marketing. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Kurt Busch and the Furniture Row Racing team to debut theWonder car at the Talladega Superspeedway. Having such an incredible driver wear the bright colors of Wonder will make for a truly memorable all-American race experience.”
Busch, the 2004 NASCAR champion, is currently one of the Chase playoff drivers vying for the 2013 Sprint Cup championship. The Talladega race will be the sixth of the 10-race Chase schedule.
“This motorsports partnership definitely carries a special feeling with two American icons coming together – Wonder bread and NASCAR – at one of America’s legendary racetracks,” said Busch. “And the sponsorship also has a nostalgic feel for me since Wonder bread was a household staple while growing up in Las Vegas.”
Busch added, “Talladega is a track that we can win at and a celebration with the Wonder car in Victory Lane will make this partnership even more special.”
Plot: A small town sheriff must prepare his town to fend off the efforts of a cartel kingpin who wants to use it as his escape route to Mexico. He must rely on a team of inexperienced deputies, misfits, and the town outcast to mount the defense.
My Initial Thoughts: This is the type of movie you would expect to see from Arnie at this stage in his acting career. At his age, he is no longer even close to believable as the unbeatable action star that he was in The Terminator series. What we get now is him playing a cranky old sheriff that has to rely on the town nut-job for help when trouble arises.
What I liked: Johnny Knoxville makes you laugh, or at least chuckle, in his role as the town lunatic / gun nut. Any time Knoxville was on screen was a highlight because he made you think you were watching an old episode of the A-Team. He would have been a good “Murdoch” now that I think about it.
What Looked Cool: The car! The centerpiece of the first half of the movie is the Corvette C6 ZR-1 that the villain is using to make his way across the border.
Funny scene about the car: As the bad guy burns up the asphalt on his midnight run to Mexico, without headlights mind you, he blows past a deputy sitting on the side of the road. The deputy clocks the car going well over 250mph but was unable to actually see the car because of it’s speed.
Deputy: Dispatch…
Dispatcher: Go ahead…
Deputy: Contact the FAA and tell them some smart ass is flying a plane around out here without any lights.
What I didn’t like: The movie left a lot to be desired; the dialogue was terrible, the story was very predictable, and the characters were not even close to believable.
What looked Dumb: Seeing Arnie try to make a fight scene look believable. Now don’t get me wrong, I do believe in “old man strong,” but this movie really pushes that to the limit. The final fight scene between old-man Sheriff Arnie and the semi-professional kick-boxer drug kingpin is a complete joke.
AND…The car chase scene pitting a bone-stock Camaro against that monster of a Vette…Really?
Final Thoughts: While I do have to admit that I found several parts of the movie to be fun and/or entertaining, The Last Stand was clearly just a paycheck for Arnie now that he is done playing governor. If you are determined to see this movie anyway, my advice would be to wait for it to show up on USA or TNT before you watch try and watch it. At least the commercials will break it up into pieces.
Plot: in 1949, Los Angeles was in the firm grip of gangster Mickey Cohen. He ruled the city’s criminal underworld with an iron fist. To combat the expansion of Cohen’s empire, the Chief of the LAPD formed a secret special task force of law enforcement misfits to take on the gangster using unconventional tactics that weren’t always legal.
My Initial Thoughts: Gangster Squad was a bit of a pleasant surprise when I got the opportunity to check it out. I went into it expecting it to be a re-hash of every other gangster movie that has ever been made. What I saw was a decent story, pretty good characters, and some great action scenes. Now don’t get me wrong, I am NOT saying this movie is great or anything. I was just happy to see that it wasn’t a total waste of 2 hours of my life.
What I liked: With each character, there was a two-sided approach to their stories. Each was shown in all their badass glory during the cops-and-robbers scenes as you would expect. What was different was the softer side they were all given too. I was expecting that Brolin’s character, Sgt. John O’Mara, would get that treatment since he was the centerpiece, but was happy when it made its way through the rest of the cast.
What Looked Cool:
The action scenes were all well done, especially the “final battle” between O’Mara and Cohen.
You had all of the normal stuff you see in shoot em’ up scenes, but there was also an effort to add some legitimacy too. Anyone shooting a Thompson .45 machine gun from the hip couldn’t hit an elephant in a hallway, as would really be the case. Even the expert marksman played by Robert Patrick was shown having to (*gasp*) try to hit something from time to time.
What I didn’t like: The old gangster movie formula was in full display. You had the tough chief, the veteran, the rookie, the dame, the main henchmen, and the over-the-top mob boss making up the cast of characters. Once the characters were in place, the story was interesting and never became slow but it did get somewhat predictable. The climax and ending were easy to figure out with about 20 minutes left to go.
What looked Dumb:
Sean Penn’s make-up. He looked like he should be in a Dick Tracy comic strip.
Final Thoughts:
If you want to see a movie to remind you of all the things that made gangster movies cool, the Gangster Squad is a good choice. If you are looking for anything with real depth or an original story, you will be disappointed.
His television specials and series have been the highest rated programming in Comedy Central history, his DVD sales have reached seven million units, his videos have received a half a billion views on You Tube, and his live concerts have become mega-events played in front of sold-out arenas worldwide.
No wonder Time Magazine wrote that he is “the most popular comedian in the United States” and Forbes named him to its Celebrity 100 list of most powerful entertainers three years running.
Today, Jeff Dunham is a phenomenally successful global entertainment brand.
Dunham has, of course, plenty of help on-stage: his entourage of signature characters who are there to challenge and chastise his every sentence. There’s Walter, the grumpy retiree; the beer-swilling, NASCAR-loving and resolutely redneck Bubba J; the furry and manic Peanut; José Jalapeño, the spicy pepper from South of the border; the bumbling skeletal Achmed the Dead Terrorist; the almost as dead long-lost son of Achmed, AJ; and Peanut’s own ventriloquist dummy: Little Jeff. They may have all been conceived and hand crafted by Dunham, but his characters, who are anything but dummies, have now taken on a life of their own, each with their own legion of fans.
Nationally known film and stand-up comedian Mike Epps is bringing his unique style of comedy to the Crown Coliseum for one night only! Tickets are on sale now.
You can check out Mike in: The Hangover
The Hangover III
Faster
Next Friday
Friday After Next
October 25, 2013
7:00pm
Crown Coliseum
Fayetteville, NC
ecsguestwriter
MichaelSmithNC
Melissa Anne Cain
Eastern Carolina Style 