by Ashlan Williams | Apr 20, 2010 | News Slider, Sports
A crowd gathered on the roof of the new Allen Arena west parking garage Saturday, April 17, for the dedication of the Huston-Marsh-Griffith Tennis Center. The beautiful 2,200-square-foot facility, which promises to be one of the nicest in the Atlantic Sun Conference, offers six state of the art tennis courts, a pro shop, common area, restrooms, and soon to be completed locker rooms for the men’s and women’s tennis teams. The facility also provides two stadium courts located at ground level on the south end. The Huston-Marsh-Griffith Tennis Center is the new home of the men’s and women’s tennis teams. In addition to hosting many collegiate tennis matches, the facility also houses the Lipscomb Racquet Club. The Racquet Club offers annual memberships for unlimited use of the courts, a pay-as-you-play option for walk-ins, and junior and adult instructional programs. The Lipscomb Racquet Club has also established a partnership with the Green Hills YMCA, offering special membership discounts for YMCA members. This long-awaited tennis center was generously funded by lead donors, Bill and Myra Huston. Bill Huston, CFO of Southern Care Inc., was a member of the men’s tennis team during his time at Lipscomb. Huston’s hope for the facility is that it would expand Lipscomb’s NCAA tennis program, bringing more competition to the school and adding a new sense of pride in the program. As the dedication ceremony began, Joe Ivey, Senior Vice President of Advancement, gave a welcome to the guests. Everyone was then lead in prayer by Bennie Harris, Vice President of Development. Scott McDowell, Vice President of Student Development, and Phillip Hutcheson, Director of Athletics, offered...
by Wade Funderburg | Apr 20, 2010 | News Slider
“The Secret of Kells” is an Irish movie that was nominated for best animated picture in the Academy Awards, is an entrancing animated film that showed at the Belcourt Theater in Nashville. The fanciful storybook animation is reminiscent of Samurai Jack and Kim Possible, though the animators don’t hide from the two-dimensional look for the majority of the film. I’ll be looking forward to seeing how good it looks on Blu-ray. The plot revolves around a young Irish lad, Brendan, living in Kells, a community surrounded by walls. The walls are to protect the people from the Norse invaders whilst they complete a book that will “bring light to the darkness.” The plot is fairly simple and easy to follow overall, but a lot is going on in most of the scenes of the film and it can be hard to take it all in at first. It was, however, enough to grab and hold the attention of me, a college student. Though the “Abbot,” “brothers” and Celtic crosses would hint at Catholicism, the filmmakers seemed to avoid any kind of religious agenda. If you do your research, you will see that the Book of Kells is actually a heavily illustrated and ornamental book containing the four Christian gospels in Latin. I wouldn’t recommend the movie to people with small children, as I imagine a few scenes (such as when the Vikings attack, or when Brendan encounters the cave of Crom Cruach) might be too frightening for them. The soundtrack to the film was also incredible. Mostly featuring classic instrumental Irish folk music, it’ll definitely be one to pick...
by McCall Graves | Apr 19, 2010 | News Slider
Growing up in a fashion-forward region of California, Megan Avery, a senior Fashion Merchandising major at Lipscomb University, is beginning her career with an organization that helps change the lives of many children. Having an eye for fashion, Avery has been involved with many things in the fashion-merchandising field. From photo shoots to fashion shows. “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.” 1 Peter 4:10, the Bible. Avery has now decided to take this special gift to another level. She has come up with an idea that will brighten the faces of the children at St. Jude. She will be designing unique hospital gowns, from detachable ballerina skirts to screen-printed cowboy holsters. “I want to start locally and, as it grows, go into countries all around the world,” said Avery. “I want to be able to donate these hospital gowns to less fortunate children.” “If one child smiles, it will be worth it. Just to take their minds off of the situation for even a split second, it will totally be worth it in my eyes.” The future company will be called “Ave.” The gowns will be sold through Ave. for profit, but there will be a non-profit organization attached to it as well. Donations will be accepted or gowns may be purchased in the honor of a child. To present the special gowns to the children, a fashion show will take place at the selected hospital. The honored child will model their new gown and receive a complete makeover to make the experience as magical...
by Dale Lipscomb | Apr 19, 2010 | News Slider
Two comedic geniuses unite for the first time on the big screen in the movie Date Night. Tina Fey and Steve Carell make Date Night a hilarious movie going experience. The PG-13 comedy goes beyond sexual humor to adding a message about love to the semi-romantic action-comedy film. The movie begins by showing how difficult marriage for Phil Foster (Carell) and Claire Foster (Fey) can be when kids and work take up all the time. One of the key moments in the movie is when the Fosters find out their friends Haley Sullivan (Kristin Wiig) and Brad Sullivan (Mark Ruffalo) are separating. Phil and Claire start to wonder if their marriage is in the same danger as their friends. Phil decides he and his wife are going to spice up their date night instead of doing the same routine. The Fosters claim to be another couple at a restaurant (played by James Franco and Mila Kunis) that did not show for their reservation. After enjoying several glasses of wine, two men mistake the Fosters for the couple whose reservation they took, and escort them out back for some questions. The real action begins when they are accused of stealing delicate information from a modern day mob boss. At this point, Carell and Fey begin their movie-long flee from the bad guys. Later, they steal a car, sparking an intense car chase scene, but not quite as classic as the Blues Brothers (1980) final car chase. The movie is filled with great jokes, some cleaner than others. Each comedic scene had the audience cracking up. One of the defining characteristics...
by Jesse Baker | Apr 18, 2010 | News Slider
Just in time for sunny skies Darwin Deez has dropped a self-titled album that displays a refreshingly unique style that will move your feet and put a smile on your face. If you happen to search Deez on YouTube, you will find he is the prototypical “hipster” that may look like he’s just having a bit of fun with music, but if you dig a little deeper into the album you’ll find a delightful collection that is far more impressive than his goofy videos might lead you to expect. The upbeat songs, mostly set to electronic beats are a throwback to popular 80s sounds used by Duran Duran, but you might also compare Deez’s sound to that of Cake or maybe even Jon Foreman with a drum machine. Although Deez may not be up to win any songwriting awards, the ways in which he is able to tell familiar tales of love with a completely unique spin stands out in a big way. How many other artists write love songs from the perspective of a nuclear fallout shelter? In “The Bomb Song” Deez pleads, “The sky is green / It’s been that way since they dropped the bomb […] Say you love me now / Maybe you will say you love me now.” Or in “Bad Day,” Deez sings his mischievous wishes for a romantic rival, hoping for everything from the last page of his 800-page novel going missing to rain falling in the open window of his car, because “every day ought to be a bad day for [him].” As playful and silly as Deez may be, the...
