State expected to rest Wednesday in Anthony trial

The prosecution plans to rest its mostly circumstantial murder case Wednesday against a Florida woman accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter. Next up is the defense who has claimed the toddler was not slain but instead drown in her grandparents' pool. Casey Anthony's attorneys are expected to call their first witness Thursday, assuming a standard motion it plans to file asking for the judge to throw out the case is denied.

Over several weeks of testimony, prosecutors have laid out their case that Caylee Anthony was suffocated with duct tape, though a medical examiner testified the actual cause of death was undetermined. Only the "manner of death" was ruled to be homicide. If convicted, she faces the death penalty.

Prosecutors have built their case on 25-year-old Casey Anthony's conduct and the lies she told about her daughter's whereabouts during the month Caylee was missing.

They also have relied on forensics experts. They've talked about smells of human decomposition in Anthony's car, searches on her computer, including for chloroform several times, and duct tape found on the girl's skull. Caylee disappeared in summer 2008 and her mother did not report her being gone for a month. The child's skeletal remains were found about six months later near her grandparents' home.

Tuesday's testimony included discussion of more of the physical evidence investigators found.

A forensic expert said that heart-shaped stickers were found in Anthony's bedroom but didn't testify whether the items were linked to a similar outline observed on duct tape on Caylee's remains.

Even so, the stickers shown to jurors over the objection of defense lawyers were powerful images just before the prosecution wraps up its case. The state's final witness of the day offered another lasting snapshot.

A tattoo artist testified that Anthony had the words "Bella Vita," or "beautiful life" in Italian, etched on her back on July 2, 2008. She returned on July 15 and scheduled another appointment for a few days later. Her daughter was last seen in mid-June and reported missing on July 15, 2008, though according to the tattoo artist, Casey Anthony told him she planned to bring her daughter in with her during her next appointment.

"She didn't seem upset or anything. She was happy for the most part," Bobby Williams told jurors.

Crime scene investigator Alina Burroughs told jurors the heart-shaped stickers were found in a box and a scrapbook, along with a letter addressed to Caylee Anthony.

Another investigator previously testified she noticed the outline of a heart on one of three pieces of duct tape while examining it under ultra-violet lighting. There were no pictures taken of what she saw, though.

Neither investigator conclusively linked the stickers to the outline. Also, the description of the outline appeared to be a different size than the stickers found in the defendant's bedroom.

Prosecutors also introduced a sticker found at the crime scene attached to a piece of cardboard near Caylee's remains.

Jurors asked to get a better look at the sticker and Judge Belvin Perry also gave them the option to hold it. They said they wanted to, and many took notes on it as it was passed around.

FBI quality control manager Catherine Theisen testified that a hair strand found in the trunk of Casey Anthony's car showing signs of human decomposition and was a DNA match to hairs found with Caylee Anthony's decomposed skull. The trunk hair and skull hair also were DNA matches to skin cell samples taken from Casey Anthony.

But the matches were of mitochondrial and not nuclear DNA, meaning that not all of Casey and Caylee's maternal relatives or even a small percentage of the general population can be excluded as being possible matches to the material.

Also Tuesday, the defendant's mother, Cindy Anthony, took the stand for the third time.

She started crying as the prosecutor asked her about a photo of Caylee Anthony in which the child was wearing the shirt found with her remains in December 2008. Cindy Anthony said the first time she ever saw that shirt was when she gave her deposition after the child went missing.

Jose A. Aviles

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Michele Bachmann enters presidential race

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, an outspoken Republican with close ties to the tea party, announced Monday that she is running for president, a candidacy that could further shake up a volatile fight for the GOP nomination.

The first female contender to enter the 2012 race, Bachmann announced her bid during a Republican presidential debate in New Hampshire. The third-term Minnesota congresswoman has been leaning heavily toward a run over the past few months, visiting early primary states, raising money and railing against President Barack Obama.

"We cannot risk giving President Obama four more years to dismantle our nation. We must act now," Bachmann said in a fundraising letter sent within an hour of her entrance. "That's why I've made the decision to get in this race."

She brings high energy, charisma and proven fundraising ability to the race to nominate a Republican challenger to Obama. She also is known for unyielding stances, biting commentary and high-profile gaffes.

Bachmann is attempting the rare leap from the U.S. House to the presidency.

Despite having low seniority and few policy accomplishments, she has risen to prominence in Washington in part by her frequent television appearances and willingness to attack Obama in sharp terms.

Her popularity with tea party activists and her credentials as a social conservative make her a credible threat to other candidates courting conservatives who make up the core of the Republican Party. Her impact may be felt most in Iowa, the first stop in the nomination battle and where Christian evangelicals dominate.

While she hasn't built the broad campaign infrastructure of some GOP rivals, she has gradually patched together a blend of tested and fresh-but-determined advisers. She's also shown an ability to raise money from a network of small-dollar donors, including $13.5 million she put toward the nation's most expensive House race of 2010.

Bachmann spent the bulk of her political career in Minnesota and Washington as a minority party member, reveling in her role as a fierce voice of the opposition. She didn't let up when Republicans gained control of the U.S. House last fall, enhancing her standing through public breaks with party leaders after she was denied a place in caucus leadership.

The camera-friendly congresswoman has irked some party leaders by grabbing at the spotlight, such as the alternate televised response she delivered to Obama's State of the Union speech this winter.

Her willingness to speak her mind — she once accused Obama of running a "gangster government" — has brought her both loyal fans and plenty of critics. In 2009, she called it an "interesting coincidence" that the last swine flu outbreak in the U.S. occurred under a Democratic president, though it actually happened when Republican Gerald Ford was in office.

Since first hinting at a presidential campaign ahead of an Iowa speech in January, she has made sustained trips there and to New Hampshire and South Carolina, all places with an outsized voice in the nominating process. She previously told reporters she would announce her intentions this month in her birthplace of Waterloo, Iowa.

Veteran Republican campaign consultant Ed Rollins confirmed to The Associated Press that he would be Bachmann's campaign manager. He said a formal rollout hasn't been set.

"We are now a campaign committee and we will come out to Iowa sometime in the next couple of weeks," Rollins said.

Other full-fledged candidates include former Govs. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts and Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Texas Rep. Ron Paul, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and businessman Herman Cain.

Still a possibility is Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee. Palin assisted Bachmann in her 2010 race. And while the two deny any inherent rivalry, the possibility they may both run in 2012 has already stirred up such talk.

Bachmann, 55, enters as a definite factor in Iowa's caucuses, not just because it is her native state and now neighbor. Despite her status as an elected official, she is attractive to GOP activists looking for a candidate with outsider appeal. She particularly resonates with the conservative coalition that led former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to a 2008 caucus win.

She has vigorously courted evangelical pastors during her early trips to Iowa. Bachmann has also landed the support of up-and-coming GOP players, including state Sen. Kent Sorenson, an ardent social conservative.

Sorenson is lined up to run Bachmann's Iowa campaign. Bachmann has also signed a former top deputy to Huckabee's 2008 Iowa campaign. However, it's not clear whether those hires and Bachmann's popularity with this segment of the caucus electorate would necessarily translate into organizational strength.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's decision to bypass the Iowa GOP's presidential straw poll in Ames gives Bachmann a stronger chance for a breakthrough moment a couple of months out of the gate.

Before politics, Bachmann was an attorney who at one point chased tax cheats for the federal government. A mother of five and foster parent over the years to more than 20 girls, Bachmann dove into public life during a fight over Minnesota school standards. She spent six years in the Minnesota Senate before winning an open seat Congress, where she's been since 2007.

Bachmann's husband, Marcus, runs a Christian-based counseling clinic.

Jose A. Aviles

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The Best-Paid Celebrities Under 30

Fame favors the young. If you doubt that, just take a look at the singers, movie stars, and athletes on our annual list of the best-paid celebrities under 30.

These guys haven't gotten rich through decades of careful, prudent investing, like some of the top members of our Forbes 400. But they have sweated and spent a lot of sleepless nights honing and promoting their talents. That hard work helped these 20 young stars bring in a total of $690 million between May 2010 and May 2011.

The youngest star on our list is Justin Bieber. In his meteoric rise to fame, the 17-year-old crooner skipped the dues-paying drudgery of touring clubs and small venues that many artists go through to work their way up. Instead, at a time when most teens are worrying about who to invite to prom, he's been touring the world and starring in a hit concert documentary. Bieber ranks second on our list with $53 million in earnings over the past 12 months. That money, plus his incredible fame, helped him debut in third place on our annual Celebrity 100 list, which measures wealth and fame.

Bieber is one of seven musicians who make our list. A world tour of arenas can be incredibly lucrative and almost all of our music stars had big tours this year. Lady Gaga, who ranks first on our list, grossed $170 million from 137 shows in 22 countries. Gaga is, of course, no slouch when it comes to music sales. Between May 2010 and May 2011 (before her latest album, Born This Way, dropped) she sold an estimated 15 million albums worldwide. We estimate that over that time Gaga earned $90 million. She ranked first on our Celebrity 100 list this year because of her earnings power and her ability to always attract attention, whether shes wearing a meat dress or arriving on stage in an egg.

Rihanna makes our list of the top earners under 30 in 10th place, although she just failed to make the cut for the Celebrity 100. The singer earned an estimated $29 million between May 2010 and May 2011 thanks to a tour, great album sales, and endorsements with brands like Fuze Drinks and Venus Razors. Shes also becoming increasingly apt at attracting attention. Rihanna is the latest musician to kiss Brittney Spears at an awards show. The two locked lips at the recent Billboard Awards.

Nine of the top-earning young celebrities are athletes. In third place is LeBron James, who brought in $48 million over the 12-month period. James' reputation may have taken a hit when he moved from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Miami Heat, but it didn't hurt his earning power. His jersey was the NBA's top seller and he has the No. 1 basketball shoe on the market.

Tennis player Roger Federer ranks fourth with $47 million in earnings. He may no longer be No. 1 on the court, with Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic passing him in the ATP rankings, but he still commands the most impressive endorsement portfolio in all of sports, with 10 major deals with the likes of Nike, Rolex, and Wilson.

Representing Hollywood are "Twilight" stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, who tie for 15th place with $20 million each. Their earning power should stay strong at least for the next year as the "Twilight" franchise winds down with two "Breaking Dawn" movies.

Jose A. Aviles

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Apple's iCloud aims to 'demote the PC'

The service will let Apple users access their files, email and media from anywhere, on multiple devices. 'We are going to move the … center of your digital life into the cloud,' Steve Jobs says.

Reporting from San Francisco and Los Angeles— Steve Jobs, still gaunt from his battle with a rare form of cancer, interrupted his medical leave to unveil Apple Inc.'s new venture in the cloud.

In what the Apple chief executive described as a major shift in how millions of people would store and organize their music, documents, photos and emails across multiple devices, he showed off an online service that will let Apple users access their digital media from anywhere.

Jobs, who introduced this iCloud service at the opening day of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco on Monday, said people could no longer rely on the personal computer as their digital hub.

"Keeping these devices in sync is driving us crazy," he said. "We have a great solution for this problem. We are going to demote the PC to just be a device. We are going to move the digital hub, the center of your digital life, into the cloud."

Apple, the world's largest distributor of music, is giving consumers access to all the music saved on their hard drives — no matter whether they copied it illegally — for $25 a year, with the music industry's consent. Jobs said that was a first.

Apple is also pushing consumers to store their information in the cloud to capture even more of people's digital lives. It's a bid to keep its dominant position in the smartphone and tablet markets as it faces rising competition from devices powered by Google Inc.'s Android software, analysts say.

And just as it did with the iPhone — a latecomer that went on to revolutionize the smartphone — Apple may ultimately be the company to popularize cloud computing and, in so doing, gain an edge over competitors Google and Amazon.com Inc.

"Apple will set the tone for the way consumers will view what a cloud service should be like in the future," Creative Strategies analyst Tim Bajarin said.

But Apple is jumping into cloud computing at a time when the concept is under rising scrutiny. Last week's hijacking of hundreds of Google's Gmail accounts, including those of senior U.S. government officials, underscored the vulnerability of information stored on the Web.

In Google's case, a user can access to dozens of online services through a single account. Should hackers trick someone into handing over his or her password, they gain access to the person's files, calendar, contacts and any personal information stored or sent through email.

Although Apple's services have a pretty good track record for security, experts say iCloud could further protect sensitive information by offering an additional authentication step such as a security token that pings the user with a new passcode to log in. Google and Facebook offer such a feature.

"If somebody steals your password, they still need to get that code," said Tin Zaw, a security expert based in Los Angeles, "and that code can only be used once."

The latest attacks on cloud computing will not deter consumers and large organizations from using the technology because of the advantages it offers, analysts said.

The iCloud service, which replaces a previous $99-a-year service that let people synchronize their emails, contacts and calendars, also gives users access to documents, apps and photos through a new service, Photo Stream.

Apple is also making it easier for 200 million iTunes users to download and listen to their music collections on any device rather without having to manually upload every song in their libraries. It can do that because it reached deals with the four major record labels and music publishers to license their recordings.

Apple's new technology, iTunes Match, scans a user's hard drive looking for songs and authorizes the user to listen to iTunes' copy of any song it identifies — regardless of whether the user bought the song from iTunes. The only songs the user must spend time uploading are the ones that are not in iTunes' library.

In a dig at Amazon and Google — which have not reached deals with the music industry and require users to upload every song in their libraries to the Web before they can listen to them on multiple devices — Jobs said Apple's service works in minutes, not hours or days.

Apple will split the $24.99 annual fee for the iTunes Match service with record companies and publishers.

Jobs' decision to make what was only his second major public appearance since taking an indefinite medical leave in January signaled the importance he is placing on Apple's move into the cloud. He called the idea, which first emerged at Apple a decade ago, its "next big insight."

James Brown's "I Got You (I Feel Good)" played right before Jobs walked onstage. Jobs, looking thin in his signature black mock turtleneck and blue jeans, was met with a standing ovation as thousands of software developers snapped photos of him with their iPhones and iPads. One yelled "We love you," to which he replied that it "helps."

Jobs did not discuss his health, which he has said is a personal matter. He shared the spotlight with other Apple executives but was animated as he introduced iCloud, walking back and forth onstage, although he descended the stairs from the stage slowly.

"We think this is going to be pretty big," he said.

Jose A. Aviles

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Lenny Dykstra hit with drug, grand theft auto charges

New Yorker magazine once touted former New York Mets star Lenny Dykstra as "baseball's most improbable post-career success story." He transformed himself into a financial guru and ace stock picker, drove a Maybach and bought Wayne Gretzky's palatial estate near the Sherwood Country Club.

But on Monday, Dykstra's well-documented financial collapse took another sharp turn when authorities charged him with nearly two dozen felony counts related to a scheme to obtain luxury cars and possession of cocaine, human growth hormone and Ecstasy.

The charges come a month after Dykstra was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of bankruptcy fraud and obstruction of justice.

Los Angeles County prosecutors said Dykstra, 48, along with his accountant Robert Hymers, 27, and friend Christopher Gavanis, 30, tried to claim credit through a phony business and stolen identity. Beginning in January, the trio tried to lease high-end cars from several area dealerships.

"He has scammed everybody he knows," Deputy Dist. Atty. Alex Karkanen said. "They faked pay stubs. They faked income information for the company. They made it all up on a laser printer at home. And when the dealers asked for a co-signer, they said their financial officer would sign."

The so-called financial officer was actually an unsuspecting customer of the accountant, Karkanen said, adding, "He knew nothing about them using his identity.

At two dealerships, Dykstra and Hymers provided information for the "co-signer," but the leases were not approved. At one of the dealerships, Dykstra, Hymers and Gavanis provided fraudulent information and drove off with 2011 models of a Ford Mustang, Ford Flex and Lincoln MKS, Karkanen said.

Maria Ramirez, head deputy district attorney in charge of the auto fraud unit, said Dykstra's company, Home Free Systems, "doesn't even exist.… He's hardly a financial guru."

They "presented the company like it was making millions of dollars when it was not," Ramirez said.

When police arrested Dykstra April 14 at his Encino home in connection with the car scheme, they served a search warrant and seized cocaine and Ecstasy along with somatropin, a synthetic human growth hormone.

The new felony charges include five counts of attempted grand theft auto, eight counts of filing false financial statements, four counts of identity theft, three counts of grand theft auto and three counts of possession of a controlled substance. In addition, he is charged with one misdemeanor count each of possession of a controlled substance without a prescription and unauthorized possession of a syringe.

Dykstra appeared in a San Fernando courtroom Monday afternoon and was remanded to custody, with bail set at $500,000. A bail reduction hearing is scheduled for Friday.

If convicted, Dykstra faces up to 12 years in state prison.

Dykstra is also facing federal charges, including bankruptcy fraud and obstruction of justice, for allegedly sneaking away with more than $400,000 in property that should have gone to his creditors, then lying about it under oath.

The former Mets and Phillies outfielder known to his fans as "Nails" is accused of stealing, hiding and destroying items such as chandeliers, artwork, sconces and personal sports memorabilia from his $18-million Ventura County mansion, according to the federal indictment.

His attorney in the federal case, Mark Werksman, has called the charges payback by the bankruptcy administrator for balking at their plans to sell off assets. Dykstra had filed for bankruptcy in 2009 — a fall from grace for the man CNBC "Mad Money" host Jim Cramer once hired to write a stock-picking column.

Jose A. Aviles

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Rep. Anthony Weiner admits tweeting lewd photo, and more

Reporting from Los Angeles and New York— Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner was a nearly ubiquitous media presence last week, making the rounds of TV news shows to protest his innocence: No, the New York congressman said repeatedly, he did not tweet a sexually suggestive photo of himself from the waist down to a college student. Perhaps his Twitter account had been hacked.

But Monday, in a teary news conference in New York City, Weiner, 46, 'fessed up. He said he had lied repeatedly out of embarrassment and shame. He had indeed sent the photo to the woman in Washington state, and he also had inappropriate online contact with several others over the last three years.

"I did a regrettable thing, and for that I apologize," Weiner said. "I believe what I did demonstrates a deep personal failing."

Weiner, who has long been expected to run for mayor of New York in 2013, said he would not resign, but would let his constituents decide his fate. It was not immediately clear whether congressional Democrats would react as harshly as Republicans did in February when faced with a similar scandal. They pressed New York Rep. Chris Lee to step down after the married congressman sent a cellphone photograph of himself shirtless to a woman he met on Craigslist.

So far, no Democrats have publicly urged Weiner to resign. But House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco and other party officials called for an Ethics Committee investigation to determine whether any official resources were used or any other violation of House rules occurred. Weiner, who told reporters that Pelosi had urged him in a phone call to tell the truth and expressed her disappointment in him, said later he welcomed the investigation.

Before Weiner appeared, Andrew Breitbart, whose conservative news websites had broken the story about Weiner's sexually charged tweets, crashed the news conference. Angry that Weiner's supporters had accused him of hacking the congressman's account, Breitbart took over the hotel microphone for about six minutes.

"Quite frankly, I'd like an apology for him being complicit in a blame-the-messenger strategy," Breitbart said. "So I'm here for some vindication."

The surreal theatrics combined familiar elements of contemporary sex scandals with some newfangled twists — a partisan Internet entrepreneur with the goods on a wayward politician who tarnished himself using new technology, a teary confession from the hangdog pol, shouted questions from the gathered journalists. And all of it unfurling in real time — streamed live on the Internet, tweeted by observers or beamed into living rooms on TV.

"This isn't even Shakespearean," said Baruch College professor Doug Muzzio. "It's theater of the absurd. The rule in politics when you do something wrong or stupid is get it out, get it out early because at least you get some credit for getting it out. He kept the story alive, and then after he bleeds for a week, then he decides to come clean. Really bad."

Breitbart, whose site on Monday had posted a photo of Weiner bare-chested obtained from a second woman, said he had another potentially damaging photograph of Weiner but would not release it "to save his family."

ABC News reported that it had an interview with a second woman claiming a "sexually charged electronic relationship" with Weiner. She was identified as a 26-year-old single mother in Texas, apparently the same person from whom Breitbart obtained the photo of Weiner bare-chested. ABC said the woman had provided photos, emails and Facebook messages, and that her interactions with Weiner had begun April 20.

Weiner's voice broke nearly every time he mentioned his wife, Huma Abedin, an assistant to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Former President Clinton officiated at the couple's lavish Long Island wedding July 10.

"My wife is a remarkable woman," said a contrite Weiner, who is often described as brash bordering on arrogant. "She is not responsible for any of this … and I apologize to her, very deeply."

Breitbart, who lives in Los Angeles, was in New York for a media appearance. He learned of Weiner's news conference from his business partner moments after checking into a New York hotel four blocks away, and hurried over.

Minutes after Breitbart strode off, Weiner followed him to the lectern and took blame for sending sexually suggestive photographs and comments to at least six of his female Twitter and Facebook fans. He said he had never had sex with them, nor had he met them in person.

He apologized to Breitbart.

The effect the scandal will have on Weiner's career is hard to predict. The seven-term congressman has repeatedly won reelection in his Brooklyn and Queens district by a wide margin.

Hank Sheinkof, a longtime New York Democratic strategist, said Weiner had ruined his chances to succeed New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. "It's too embarrassing," Sheinkof said. "The requirements for the second-toughest job in America do not include sexting."

Lee Miringoff, director of Marist College's Institute for Public Opinion, agreed that the scandal has probably derailed Weiner's mayoral aspirations — but maybe only temporarily.

"Any time you're in the same paragraph as Arnold Schwarzenegger, John Edwards, Eliot Spitzer … it's not a good gang to be a part of," Miringoff said. But if voters like you, he said, citing President Clinton's travails, they can forgive.

"Voters can draw the line between doing a good job and a character flaw," Miringoff said. "So I think it's very important for him to stress the going-back-to-work notion."

Queens borough President Helen Marshall said she would continue to support Weiner. "I sat beside him for 10 years and I believe that everyone is entitled to one mistake," she said. "I believe that the one woman he has to answer to is his wife."

Jose A. Aviles

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USC Stripped of 2004 National Championship

The USC Trojans are no longer your 2004 college football national champions. The Bowl Championship Series just announced the organization has stripped the University of Southern California of the title after an investigation proved Reggie Bush and his family received improper benefits while he was playing for the Trojans.

The NCAA had already stripped USC of its wins in which Bush participated -- including the 2005 Orange Bowl -- but the BCS was waiting to make a decision on the national championship title because USC had appealed the NCAA ruling.

But the NCAA rejected the appeal -- and today the BCS went ahead with their plans to strip USC of the title ... which means USC's 55-19 victory over Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl was all for naught.

Bush won the Heisman Trophy for his 2005 season -- but forfeited the award last year amidst rumors that the NCAA was going to take that away from him too.

And there was much joy in Westwood.

Jose A. Aviles

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Summer of the comic book hero

This is the summer of the comic book hero.

This is the summer that fanboys and movie going fans alike get to be thrilled by the exploits of Thor, X-Men, The Green Lantern, Conan the Barbarian and, yes, Captain America. For filmmakers, this is a true blockbuster summer.

“What you see happening is a grander concept,” says Shirrel Rhoades, Cooke Communications film critic and former Marvel Comics publisher and V.P. of Marvel Entertainment. “They are not making individual movies. They are making movies the same way we make comic books — a series of movies like a series of books.”

Rhoades, who splits his time between Florida and his native North Carolina, recalls the days growing up in Wilkesboro when, as a kid, he would head to the corner store to pick up the latest copy of, say, Spiderman or perhaps Captain America. Those days are long gone, however, supplanted by a bigger comic book publishing industry that caters to specialty shops and, of course, Hollywood.

Comic books cost bucks to print and shops like Elizabeth City’s own Earth 383 must order a prearranged number of books, pay for them and hope they sell them. And sell them they do, only these days the classic comic books go to a group dubbed “fanboys.”

Fanboys, according to Earth 383 owner Duf Franco — he’s very much a fanboy — first came on the scene with Star Trek and Star Wars fandom. These guys — and gals — would make their own costumes and attend conferences. Their loyalty to the stories they love eventually extended into the comic book world and what Rhoades lovingly calls “comic book geeks” were born.

Back in the 1990s comic book shops were popping up everywhere, and did well for a time. Rhoades points out that these businesses have not done so well in recent years, although some are thriving.

Franco’s operation is in its ninth year and while thriving is not exactly how he might coin it, Earth 383 is on stable ground. Franco, who is also an Emergency Medical Technician, says his comic book and gaming shop has been a labor of love, and he never takes a salary and everything he makes on the shop goes back into it.

“As long as it supports itself,” says Franco of the life of Earth 383.

This is a family place, he says, where kids and entire families are welcome to come in, play a variety of games including the popular Magic, a large selection of board games (in-shop play is free) or perhaps peruse a number of comic books and graphic novels — for sale, of course.

This approach to doing business has served him so well that he recently moved from his modest space on Martin Luther King Jr., to the former Fowlers on Water Street, across from City Wine Sellar. It’s a wide-open space that is inviting and provides Franco and his friends with plenty of room to game, read and relax.

And while shops like Earth 383 might not be doing gang busters like they once did, between Franco’s welcoming vibe and the recent onslaught of Marvel Comics films, no one is worried about a lack of interest.

“I think it all happen to fall on the same timeline,” Franco says of this summer’s onslaught of comic book hero movies.

Well, maybe, but not entirely. Rhoades points out that the very thing pushing this surge is money. Marvel Comics, or even D.C. Comics, doesn’t view the business as strictly comic book publishing with a few offshoots like film rights. Rather, this is an intellectual property business, explains Rhoades, and with that comes a lot of opportunities to make money.

So when fanboys get geared up for the release of Captain America on July 22, Marvel doesn’t have a hard time of licensing the release of action figures, games, comic books and even costumes, including that iconic shield. In fact, it won’t have a hard time raking in billions of dollars based on the iconic shield and name.

Inside Earth 383 there’s plenty of proof of what a business comic book heroes have become. There are figurines, T-shirts, of course the books, and other items celebrating the heroic exploits of these sometime-masked crusaders.

Folks like Franco are anxiously awaiting the release of their favorite comic book hero movie and have many of the touchstones of the characters around, such as a red, white and blue shield on the wall of his shop.

“I’m jacked for Captain America,” Franco says.

Yeah, well so are a lot of folks, fanboy or otherwise. Part of the reason for this excitement goes back to Rhoades’ observation that comic book films are being treated just like the original sequential books. Each book is an episodic tale in the lives of these heroes and for Captain America, Marvel wisely turned to the origins of the story, back in World War II when soldier Steve Rogers was the first, and ultimately the only, subject of the U.S. government’s super soldier program. He fought the Nazis.

But regardless of whether or not it is Captain America, or even the least excitable X-Men film (see Rhoades review of this film on this page), one thing all of these releases have in common is CGI, or computer generated imagery.

It is this technology that is making the exploits of these heroes possible, says Rhoades and Franco.

“It’s pure exhilaration,” says Franco of watching his favorite characters in live action.

All those years reading about your favorite character, imagining the description of his or her super abilities are now brought to a sort of virtual reality thanks to CGI and modern filmmaking. You can watch Spidey crawl up a building or swing on a web across Manhattan, or experience mach speed flight with Iron Man.

While not all of this summer’s releases are Marvel Comic characters, there is a bigger game afoot for the likes of Thor and Captain America. Franco and Rhoades have pointed out that fans who stick around for the end of film credits will know that hints have been dropped about the upcoming 2012 release of The Avengers.

The Avengers front man Nick Fury played by Samuel L. Jackson, was introduced in Iron Man 2 when he began recruiting Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) for his team of superheroes. Next summer Fury, Iron Man, Captain America, the Incredible Hulk and more will ban together to fight evil and wow fanboys and moviegoers alike. Until then, there seems to be plenty of activity in the Marvel universe and beyond to keep folks well entertained.

By the way, Rhoades says Marvel has 5,000 characters in its stable, so it goes without saying that Hollywood has plenty of fodder for future fanboys, and plenty more summers in its future.

Jose A. Aviles

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Stephen Harper turns to Facebook for help naming new prime-ministerial cat

It’s the capper to a near purrfect spring after winning his long-sought majority: Prime Minister Stephen Harper has a new pet cat.


The Harpers announced the arrival of the newest, furry member of their family Saturday on the prime minister’s Facebook page — and offered the public the chance to name the grey tabby.


“Happy to have a new Harper at 24,” a statement on the site said. “He’s a grey tabby and needs a name, vote for your favourite.”


Early suggestions from commenters included Majority (or Major), as well as Stanley, in honour of the Vancouver Canucks’ run toward the NHL’s grand prize.


Pictures were posted on Facebook, including one of the kitty mischievously holding a string in its two front paws.


Harper is known as a cat lover. He and wife Laureen have participated in the Ottawa Humane Society’s Foster Program, which provides temporary homes for pets in the community who are not yet ready for adoption.


The naming poll will close Monday.

Jose A. Aviles

http://avicast.blogspot.com
http://jose-aviles.blogspot.com

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Sunday's Calendar

SUNDAY

C.B. Shiepe

C.B. Shiepe, author of the novel "Cliff Falls," will have a book signing from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Martha's Bookstore, 308 1/2 Marine Ave., Balboa Island. For more information, visit http://www.clifffalls.com.

TILL SUNDAY

The Home Entertainment Show

Audio and video equipment demonstrations will be at the Hilton Irvine/Orange County Hotel, 18800 MacArthur Blvd., Irvine. Start times vary each day. One-day passes are $15; three-day passes are $35. For more information, call (702) 242-4545 or visit http://www.theshownewport.com.

'Mansfield Park'

South Coast Repertory's Teen Players present Jane Austen's "Mansfield Park" at the Repertory's Nicholas Studio, with dramatization by Willis Hall. For showtimes and more information, visit http://www.scr.org.

'Emperor's New Clothes'

South Coast Repertory, as part of its Theatre for Young Audiences series, presents a musical version of "The Emperor's New Clothes." Tickets start at $18. For showtimes and more information, visit http://www.scr.org or call (714) 708-5555.

Pacific Symphony

Guest piano soloist Conrad Tao plays with the Pacific Symphony at 8 p.m. through Saturday night and at 3 p.m. Sunday for a "Classical Connections" concert. The program at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall includes "Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini" and Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5. Tickets start at $25. Call (714) 755-5799 for more information or visit http://www.pacificsymphony.org.

TILL WEDNESDAY

'Mass Appeal'

Students will display their work in the Frank M. Doyle Arts Pavilion at Orange Coast College, 2701 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa. Admission is free. For more information, visit ocartspavilion.blogspot.com.

TILL JUNE 12

'Three Days of Rain'

South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa presents Richard Greenberg's play "Three Days of Rain." For showtimes and more information, visit http://www.scr.org.

'Burn the Floor'

The Broadway dance extravaganza "Burn the Floor" comes to the Segerstrom Center for the Arts' Segerstrom Hall. Tickets start at $20 for the critically acclaimed show. For showtimes and more information, visit http://www.scfta.org.

Jose A. Aviles

http://avicast.blogspot.com
http://jose-aviles.blogspot.com

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