Hello, gang! Sadness has overtaken my week, but there are still some things worth noting. Shall we begin?

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MOM C
I don't even know where to begin when discussing my feelings about Barbara Castellano. In looking back at my history of the HATS, it seems I always mentioned mom in the same sentence as her famous fried chicken and potato salad! And yes, I called her mom. Just like I call Matt's mother mom, like Matt calls my mother mom, like I used to call Jan Gilbert and Mary Gregory mom. If Nolan thinks he has a book in his family experiences, believe me, my friend, I've got a volume longer then "The Stand." Like Matt's family, Leo and Barbara Castellano made sure that I grew up right. If I was hungry, there was a place at the table. If I couldn't, or didn't want to, go home, there was a place to lay my head. I can vividly remember laying on the couch and mom coming out and talking to me about things I never would have thought to bring up to my dad. I hadn't seen her in many years. Sadly, the last time I tried to visit, she wasn't home. But I left her a note......."I was here, you weren't!" I wish she had been there. I would have liked to have told her in person how much she meant to me. Good-bye, mom. I love you!

THIS WEEK'S ISSUE
Ah, Will, your news on Cypress Gardens is quite heartbreaking. When I was down there a few months ago, I drove by and thought they were remodeling the place. Sadly, I see now that they were closing it down. When I moved to Florida in 1975, my grandfather lived just a few blocks from Cypress Gardens, so I spent many an afternoon there. Ah, memories!

Note to Andy Lalino - I'm glad you agreed with my review of "Phone Booth." FYI - the reason I referred to Kiefer Sutherland as "never seen," is because I felt that mentioning his brief appearance at the end of the film would be a "spoiler" for those who hadn't seen it yet. And I'm sorry if I seem to just review "mainstream" films. Unfortunately, that is the majority of what play where I live. Every now and then a gem like "Bowling for Columbine" will come along, but not enough to just wait for more genre-oriented films. And, like Nolan pointed out, when more "geek friendly" films come out, there will be plenty of reviews. I can promise you now that Matt, Nolan, Terence, Drew, myself and maybe even the little-heard-from-but-always-appreciated Count Poffula will be submitting reviews on "X2: X-Men United."

Note to Nolan: If we're going to be compared to Buckaroo Banzai, then I want to be New Jersey!

WHAT'S IN A NAME?
As noted above, 20th Century Fox has changed the title for the upcoming X-Men film. It is now titled "X2: X-Men United." Also, what Fox has hyped for some time as LXG, or "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" will now be titled, simply, "The League."

PASSING ON
Jerry Bittle, the creator of the comic strip, "Geech," passed away last week while on vacation in Central America at the age of 53. Cause of death is believed to have been a heart attack. Appearing in 175 newspapers worldwide, the last daily strip will run on May 3.

CONGRATULATIONS
Boy, it seems like everyone from my past is doing well! When I was in Baltimore, my theatre RULED all others in weekend softball games. And don't even get me started on the tackle football games we would play (the girls who played for me often hit harder then the men). This past week, while glancing through Sports Illustrated, I saw a familiar face smiling out at me from the "Faces in the Crowd" section. Seems that one of my former cashiers, Katie Mullinix, has pitched back-to-back no-hitters for her Salisbury (Md) University softball team. Not only were they the first no-hitters in Katie's career (she's a senior), but they were the first two consecutive no-hitters in school history! Way to go, Katie!

Well, that's it for now. Have a great week. See ya!