Randy's Guide CXV (115)

Today is actor Brad Pitt's 45th; Friday is Kenyan paleontologist Richard Leakey's 64th; Saturday is American Idol winner David Cook's 26th; Sunday is Winter Solstice and the start of Hanukkah; Monday is U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald's 48th; and Tuesday is HumanLight and Festivus.


Local News
Tenants in rent-controlled San Francisco buildings are protected should the home go into foreclosure. Assessor Phil Ting has been leading an effort to contact renters living in homes in default that they do not have to move out or lose their utilities. www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/12/18/BA6T14PVAE.DTL


Change for Change
Share the wealth. Donate to one (or more) of the groups spotlighted over the past 114 issues. It will surely help to make someone's season just a bit brighter.

-Aldea Inc: mental health care for Napa and Solano county; www.aldeainc.com
-Bay Area Community Services: mental health and senior services in Alameda County; www.bayareacs.org
-blueEnergy Group: wind and solar energy solutions for marginal communities, based in San Francisco; www.blueenergygroup.org
-City CarShare: socially responsible car sharing program in the Bay Area; www.citycarshare.org
-College Track: after-school college-preparatory program for under-privileged youths in Oakland, San Francisco, East Palo Alto, and New Orleans; www.collegetrack.org
-Common Ground Relief: rehabilitation of New Orleans; www.commongroundrelief.org
-Farm Sanctuary: animal advocacy, with educational farms in California and New York; www.farmsanctuary.org
-Foundation for the People of Burma: humanitarian aid for Burmese individuals, based in San Francisco; www.foundationburma.org
-Friends of the Urban Forest: the planting and caring for trees in San Francisco; www.fuf.net
-Glide Memorial: assistance to homeless, poor, unemployed, and HIV+ communities in San Francisco; www.glide.org
-Little Angel Fund: support and education for parents with premature or seriously ill infants; www.littleangelfund.org
-Loaves and Fishes: daily lunches for the hungry in six Contra Costa cities; www.loavesandfishesofcontracosta.org
-LYRIC: support for LGBTQQ youth, based in San Francisco; www.lyric.org
-Maitri: South Asian women facing domestic abuse or violence; www.maitri.org
-My New Red Shoes: new clothing for homeless and low-income youths, based in Menlo Park; www.mynewredshoes.org
-Natural Resources Defense Council: environmental activism group with lawyers, lobbyists, and scientists to promote action; www.nrdc.org
-San Francisco Health Services Coalition: public awareness and funds distribution for homelessness, based in San Francisco; www.sfhsc.org
-Vital Life Services: services for individuals with HIV+/AIDS and other critical illnesses, based in Oakland; www.vitalcalifornia.org

Donate through the nonprofit's Web site or your corporate donation program.


Bay Area Weekend Weather
Continued below-normal temperatures with occasional bursts of showers and snow for higher elevations. Overnight frost warnings for North Bay and inland East Bay locations.

Highs: Near 50
Lows: Upper-20s (inland) to low-40s (coast)


Environmental News
Various restaurants (from Cheesecake Factory to Tartine Bakery to Foreign Cinema), wineries, wine retailers, and Whole Foods stores will be collecting used corks for the next several months. They will be recycled by the world's #1 producer of natural cork, a Portuguese company called Amorim & Irmaos.

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Both Microsoft and Sony have provided energy-saving modes for their latest video-game systems XBOX360 and PlayStation 3, respectively. Use them (or turn off your system when not in use)! The average video-game player has about $100 in extra electricity costs per year if the system is kept in idle mode when not in use.


Music Videos
"Stay Out" by Hit the Lights (Lima, Ohio)

The band takes its name from a Metallica song. The pop punk quintet filmed this music video in the Bay Area earlier this year. Look for them as part of the 2009 AP Tour.

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"Carry On" by Dizzy Balloon (Piedmont, Calif.)

Formerly known as Panda (before realizing that a Mexican band had already claimed that name), the youthful quintet claimed victory as the local band to be represented in tonight's Not So Silent Night concert at the Oracle Arena, alongside The Killers and Death Cab for Cutie. You can catch them at smaller venues in Pleasanton, Modesto, Larkspur, Los Gatos, Oakland, and Lodi over the next month.


Movies (domestic revenues through December 14)
#1 The Day the Earth Stood Still (PG-13): $30.5MM opening; 3560 screens; $8,562 per screen
#2 Four Christmases (PG-13): $13.1MM; $87.8MM overall; 3540 screens; $3,693 per screen
#3 Twilight (PG-13): $8.0MM; $150.0MM overall; 3649 screens; $2,179 per screen
#17 Frost/Nixon (R): $0.6MM; $0.9MM overall; 39 screens; $16,061 per screen; Ron Howard's take of the Richard Nixon interview by David Frost received a warm reception, bolstered by 5 Golden Globe nominations and 2 Screen Actors Guild nominations

Delgo (PG): Animation; about a divided land, and the young teenage boy with the forbidden friendship; co-voiced by Jennifer Love Hewitt, Michael Clarke Duncan, and Kelly Ripa

My Name Is Bruce (R): Comedy; about Bruce Campbell being mistaken for his character from the "Evil Dead" trilogy, and forced to fight a real monster in Oregon

Seven Pounds (PG-13): Drama; about an IRS agent who seeks redemption by changing the lives of seven strangers; co-starring Will Smith and Woody Harrelson

The Tale of Despereaux (G): Animation; about a big-eared mouse and his many adventures; co-voiced by Matthew Broderick and Tracey Ullman

Timecrimes (R): Thriller; about a man who spots a nude woman and encounters a sinister attacker

Yes Man (PG-13): Comedy; about a self-help program that drives a man to say "yes" to everything; co-starring Jim Carrey

DVD Pick - Evening (PG-13): Drama. No, it's not the prequel to the hit teen vampire flick "Twilight." It's a thoughtful view of end-of-life memories, and features performances from Claire Danes, Toni Collette, Patrick Wilson, Glenn Close, and Meryl Streep. Domestic box-office gross: $12.4 million.


Activities
Charlie Hunter Trio [Th-Sat 8pm/10pm, Sun 2pm/7pm]: At Yoshi's (SF), $5-28. www.yoshis.com

Holiday Lights Show [Fri 6pm]: Featuring more than 100 lighted boats. From Pier 39 westward (SF), FREE. www.visitfishermanswharf.com

Pomegranates & Figs: A Feast of Jewish Music [Sat 8pm]: Featuring klezmer and Yiddish folk songs, Sephardic music, and special guest instrumentalists. At Zellerbach Hall (Berkeley), $15-32. www.calperformances.org

Bill Graham Menorah Lighting Ceremony [Sun 3pm]: Featuring live Jewish rock & blues, local speakers, and nightly ceremonies all week. At Union Square Park (SF), FREE.

Home for the Holidays with the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra [Sun 7pm]: Featuring Irvin Mayfield on the trumpet. At Davies Symphony Hall (SF), $29-57. www.sfsymphony.org

The Coverlettes Cover Christmas [through Dec 23]: Featuring Star Search winner Carol Littleton, Jefferson Starship's Darby Gould, and Katie Guthorn in a celebration of Christmas and pop songs. At the Aurora Theatre (Berkeley), $25. www.auroratheatre.org

Nutcracker Ballet [through Dec 24]: At Paramount Theatre (Oakland), $15-50. www.oaklandballet.org

A Christmas Carol [through Dec 27]: At American Conservatory Theater (SF), $17-80. www.act-sf.org

The Christmas Ballet [through Dec 28]: At Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (SF), $9-55. www.smuinballet.org

Black Nativity [through Dec 28]: 10th annual. A gospel celebration of Christmas. At Lorraine Hansberry Theatre (SF), $18-36. www.lhtsf.org

Previous: Event - Great Dickens Christmas Fair [through Sunday in Daly City]; Theatre - Celebration of the Winter Solstice [through Sunday in Oakland]; Theatre - Every Christmas Story Ever Told [through Sunday in San Jose]; Theatre - A Christmas Carol [through Sunday in Walnut Creek]; Theatre - Insignificant Others [extended through Dec 27 in SF]; Ballet - Nutcracker [through Dec 28 in SF]; Art - Leonardo da Vinci: Drawings [through Jan 4 in SF]; Musical - Phantom of the Opera [through Jan 4 in SF]; Art - Afghanistan: Hidden Treasures from the National Museum, Kabul [through Jan 5 in SF]; Art - Maya Lin: Systematic Landscapes [through Jan 18 in SF]


Upcoming January Activities
Pharaoh Sanders [Jan 2-4 in Oakland]; Peking Acrobats [Jan 16 in San Rafael]; Devotchka [Jan 30-31 in SF]