4A
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/ ENTERTAINMENT / TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2010 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
Conceptis SudoKu
5 2 6 9 7
3 1 4 6 8
4 3 7 4
8 9
7 8 5 9 6
6 4 2 1 5
2/16
Difficulty Level ★★★
Answer to previous puzzle
6 1 5 7 4 3 2 9 8
2 4 8 9 6 5 7 3 1
3 9 7 8 2 1 5 6 4
5 7 9 4 3 6 1 8 2
1 8 6 2 7 9 4 5 3
4 2 3 1 5 8 9 7 6
8 6 1 5 9 4 3 2 7
9 3 2 6 1 7 8 4 5
7 5 4 3 8 2 6 1 9
Answer to previous puzzle
FISH BOWL
Joe Ratterman
COOL THING
ANTI MATTER
Sam El-hamoudeh
TELEVISION
Creator of 'The Office' and 'Extras' started as a stand-up comic at 22
Comedian reflects on roots
MCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE
PASADENA, Calif. — You can't miss him. British comic Stephen Merchant, who co-wrote the original "The Office" and "Extras" with Ricky Gervais, is 6-foot-7 inches tall. He reached those stratospheric proportions in his early teens, and has felt an outcast ever since.
"If you feel a little bit of an outsider then maybe you use humor and you feel more in control," he says sitting in the courtyard of a hotel here, his long legs at an angle as they don't fit under the glass-topped table.
"I felt very self-conscious. I remember doing some school plays where I got to joke around and got a good reaction from other kids and parents saying, 'You were very good in that play.' And I was always a big fan of comedy. I watched it religiously and when they published the scripts I would read them," he says.
Merchant translated his insecurity into standup and hilarious bits with Gervais, which included his role as Ricky's horribly inept manager in "Extras." A lifetime fan of Pythoner John Cleese, Merchant says, "He was born in a place very near to Bristol where I grew up ... Because he was very tall, he was one of my
heroes. Because he'd come from my local area I sort of felt maybe, 'Well, he's done it, maybe I could.' It was very arrogant of me to think I could be another John Cleese, but I was inspired more than thinking I could be anything like bear.'
But hewaslike him. The first time Merchant tried standup at 22 (his parents had to drop him off as he didn't have a car), he triumphed. The second time, he bombed.
since then has been that same roller-coaster. Sometimes it kills, sometimes it doesn't. But it was very formative in that regard because it gave me confidence that I could do it, that I wasn't wasting my time. But at the same time it rattled me because it wasn't as easy as I thought it was. I couldn't do it every time. I had to work at it."
He and Gervais met at a radio station. "We had a radio show and would also do other stuff at the radio station, and I left and joined the BBC" says Merchant, who's
sporting a reddish beard and horn-
rimmed glasses.
"My experienc of comedy
"And while I was at the BBC I was able to film this kind of character that Ricky had created who, in essence, became David Brent.
"It was very arrogant of me to think I could be another John Cleese, but I was inspired more than thinking I could be anything like him."
STEPHEN MERCHANT Comedian
the character in 'The Office' that he did. It was through that good fortune that that whole thing got rolling."
They complemented each other: Gervais' outrage at the craziness around him fit snugly with
When they edited the film, "We just realized we had something special. Even at the time I remember thinking there's like an alchemy, there's something happened here, being really excited. It was like panning for gold and you see a little glisten and you thought maybe there's more gold in these hills. And that was a big moment, just seeing the quality of his performance and realizing that if we managed it right, we were on to something."
Merchant's impervious lunacy.
HOROSCOPES
10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging.
ARIES (March 21-April 19)
Today is a 6
You get to work creatively with a partner or team member. You surprise yourself with the flood of ideas and emotions flowing into
TAURUS (April 20-May 20)
Today is an 8
Surprise yourself with a
new twist on an old theme.
Get out of a rut you've
worn, and bring a good
friend along for the ride.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20)
GEMINI (May 21-June 21)
Today is a 7
Show your face early as you develop a concept that has been rolling around in your subconscious. Feedback keeps you on target and in motion.
CANCER (June 22-July 22)
Today is a 6
Change is certain now. The only question is how you'll handle it. Think early and long before you make decisions that cannot be reversed.
LEO (July 23-Aug.22)
Today is a 7
Take all the time you need to evaluate creative ideas that surface as you go through the day. Make notes for future reference. Get your ducks in a row.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)
Today is an 8
Reveal your creative genius by utilizing an image from a dream to enhance a presentation. Surprise others with your use of classic oldies.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)
Today is an 8
The key to progress is imagination and creativity. Don't worry about the finished product. You can always make changes later.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)
Today is a ?
You get a bit of breathing room where family issues are concerned. Remain in close contact to strengthen a relationship. This will pay off.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)
Today is a 7
Household discussions focus on immediate needs. Spend money now to save it later. Choose durable products or parts. Teamwork gets it done quicker.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)
Today is an 8
Sometime today you change your thinking, big time. This will interrupt the flow, but it gets you into the mainstream, where you want to be.
Money arrives from a peculiar source. Verify the amount before spending. Encourage your partner to make an important change, but keep it private.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 8)
Today is an 8
'Valentine's Day'tops weekend box office
FILM
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20)
Today is a 7
Your partner would just love to take the reins of authority and keep them. Let that happen today, but reserve the right to take over when necessary.
There turned out to be a simple formula for sorting the three new movies at the box office this weekend. The more they cost, the less they made.
McClatchy-Tribune
Romantic comedy "Valentine's Day" dominated the weekend
with a record-setting studio-estimate taked up of $66.9 million in the United States and Canada, easily besting "Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief," which took in $38.8 million and the "The Wolfman," which grossed $36.5 million.
ACROSS
1 Office part-timer
5 Bedouin
9 Sheep's call
12 Operatic solo
13 Pop
14 "Well, — bel!"
15 Overpublicizes
17 Prune
18 Tested the polygraph
19 Department store stats
21 Libreville's country
24 Easter flower
25 Addict
26 Goalpost part
30 Have a bug
31 Jack
32 Mentalist Geller
33 Wild ducks
35 Tend texts
36 Tug
37 Punch-
bowl
access-
sory
38 Rise
40 Parapher-
nalia
42 Common
Mkt.
43 India's
movie
industry
48 Cheer-
leader's
cry
49 War god
50 Busy
with
and
enjoying
51 Milwau-
kee
product
52 Kelly or
Hackman
53 Obtains
DOWN
1 Bill
2 Historic time
3 Wire measure
4 Wan quality
5 Arthur of tennis
6 Crucifix
7 Big bother
8 String musician
9 Melville hero
10 Lotion additive
11 Swiss range
16 Yang counterpart
20 Capp and Capone
Solution time: 21 mins
21 Trans-
Pacifi
stopping
point
22 Largest
of the
seven
23 Complain
24 Privation
26 Bottle
stopper
27 Disen-
cumber
28 Seed
coat
29 Cere-
mony
31 Purse
34 PC linkup
system
35 Nocturnal
insect
37 Minstrel's
song
38 Antitoxins
39 Blue
shade
40 Secluded
valley
41 Other-
wise
44 Raw
rock
45 Indivisible
46 Mel of
baseball
lore
47 Two, in
Tijuana
Yesterday's answer 2-16
2-16
NMLQSBM DM QPDQEB WMTO KSA MHH-PQEUYH LVULWMYB UY Q ODK-FKKA LQA, DMAM
CRYPTOQUIP
OVME NMUYH LKSTMF ST?
Yesterday's Cryptoquip: IF A GRASPING IMPLEMENT FALLS FROM MY HAND AT THE SALAD BAR, MAYBE THAT'S A SLIP OF THE TONGS.
Today's Cryptoquip Clue: D equals W
TELEVISION
Walters announces final Oscar special
MCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE
LOS ANGELES _ What will Oscar night be without Barbara
Walters' tree questions and lap dances with guests? We're not sure, but we will soon find out.
Walters
Walters announced this morning on "The View" that her 29 th special, which will feature interviews with nominees Sandra Bullock and MoNique, will be her last.
"I think I'm sick of them," Walters explained. "I feel I've been there, done that. Twenty-nine years is enough."
Asked by co-host Joy Behar why she didn't wait another year and make it an even 30? "That would be cliche," Walters replied.
Walters, who left "20/20" after 25 years, said she will still co-host "The View," go on special assignment for ABC News and continue with "The 10 Most Fascinating People."
W he n grilled by her co-hosts about why she was
little bit and I love the fact that we have these stars and they're both nominated." Walters said. "I felt it was enough."
"I think I'm sick of them. I feel I've been there, done that. Twenty-nine years is enough."
SOMEBODY SOMEONE this is a job
"You can switch the format a
pulling the annual telecast which performs well with viewers and is well-respected in the industry, she said she felt she had been doing the same thing for 29 years.
"What is the Oscars without the Oscar special?" piped in co-hostElisabeth Hasselbeck.
Added co-host Whooip Goldberg, who appeared on one of the specials: "It is one of those things that
you did look forward to and you hoped to get that phone call if you were a nominee ... The industry will be slightly less because you're not doing it. I will just say that. I'm glad I got in when the getting was good."