Cheap Tricksters on Colbert show Monday

Add comment June 26th, 2009

Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander of Rockford-based Cheap Trick will appear Monday night on “The Colbert Report” on Comedy Central (Comcast 45). The theme song for the Stephen Colbert program is “Baby Muggles,” a Cheap Trick piece. Nielsen has appeared before on the show.

(Stephen Colbert)

Children’s Gallery at Burpee temporarily closed during renovations

Add comment June 26th, 2009

Don’t worry about those little critters who were housed in the third-floor Children’s Gallery at Burpee Museum of Natural History in Rockford.

They, including Mr. T.,  a 70-year-old Gulf Coast box turtle, are being cared for by the education staff of the museum while the Burpee is undergoing a renovation expected to be completed next summer. The Children’s Gallery, where kids not only viewed little live animals but put on animal costumes and did other activities, is closed to the public and has been turned into an office for education staff.

After renovation, the gallery will be in a different space. Burpee hopes to have space for a living exhibit similar to that in the gallery, but it’s not sure yet if that’ll happen.

Emily Bear’s Australian TV debut impressive

Add comment June 26th, 2009

Emily Bear, 7, of Rockford told Australian TV viewers Sunday who were watching an evening news show about three international child prodigies including her that she is “just a girl who plays piano” and that she really digs composing music. “It’s something you can do and nobody can tell you what to do or when to do it,” she said.

Go to Emily’s Web site to connect to the “Sunday Night” video of Emily and her family shot earlier this month in Rockford.

(EDDY MONTVILLE | RRSTAR.COM
Emily Bear takes a break Tuesday, June 2, 2009, from playing with the Jodi Beach Trio at Franchesco’s Ristorante in the Sinatra Room in Rockford, where the “Sunday Night” crew was filming.)

Emily’s Mom, Andrea Bear, said the TV segment about her daughter was “a very beautiful,  very classy story.” She told me today, though, that while Emily practices four hours a day a few days before a major concert, her daughter’s daily practices can be as short as 15 minutes a day. Emily practices piano an average of two to two-and-a-half hours a day, Andrea said.