Buzz Bin

by Inlander Staff


Langbehn Leaving -- The local theater scene will be diminished next week by the departure of Spokane Civic Theater's Marilyn Langbehn. Langbehn, who acted in her first show at the Civic in 1972, has been the theater's full-time marketing director since May 1997. She's taking a position as public relations and audience development director for the California Shakespeare Festival in Berkeley - and while it's a step up for Marilyn, it's a loss for the rest of us. Sadly, Langbehn's move also means that Spokane audiences will miss the acting and musical talents of her partner, Scarlett Hepworth. Why they would want to leave Spokane and move to a professional theater with a $3.3 million budget and a 550-seat amphitheater in a metro area of 7 million is beyond us. Cal Shakes hasn't even produced Cats. Not once.





Unreal -- Maybe it's time to admit that reality TV has finally run its course. To wit, UPN's recently announced plans to launch a reality show based on Amish teens experiencing the rite of rumspringa, which is Pennsylvania Dutch for "running around." You just know the producers are hoping for all sorts of "Amish Girls Go Wild" sexual hijinks, but wouldn't it be cool if the five Amish kids just played video games, talked on the phone, ate some pizza and at the end of it all, returned to being Amish?





Marionberry, Please -- Here in the Bin, we've just been notified that Friday, Jan. 23, is National Pie Day. While we appreciate the fact that Cyrus O'Leary's took time out of their busy schedules to drop off a press release announcing this fact, we couldn't help but notice that something was... um... missing? Call us shameless, but we know no better way to get our attention than a great big, flaky-crusted, fruit-filled delicious PIE!





Denied, Again -- What gives? Everyone makes a big deal about "Spokane Nice," and how people here are excruciatingly, unfailingly, quite sincerely nice. And yet, for the ninth year in a row, Charleston, S.C., goes and gets voted Best Mannered City in the United States. We don't want to go around pointing fingers, but we're kind of wondering if the problem is Spokane drivers, who are some of the rudest people in North America. You know who you are, Miss-White-SUV-With-the-Cougar-Plates-Who-Tried-To-Kill-Us-In-A-Crosswalk!





Charade Indeed -- Sometimes it's easier just to go rent the movie! Some of our readers alerted us to the fact that a recent showing of Charade at the Met was preceded by more than an hour of self-promoting and book-hawking. While we appreciate anyone willing to sponsor films at the Met, it's not nice to use said films as audience bait for unannounced causes!





Publication date: 1/22/04