Kia Display at the 2013 Denver Auto Show
Mar 25th
We get a look at some of the new Kia models on the Denver Auto Show floor, the Kia Soul, Kia Optima and the Kia Sorento.
Kia Sorento – the reengineered 2014 Sorento is a mid sized crossover vehicle that has an answer for everything, with a voice activate jukebox, seven passenger seating, ventilated seats and a power inverter are just some of the fresh details Kia has added to this crossover vehicle.
Kia Optima – Ranked most appealing midsized car the new optima is not your average midsized sedan, it defines what that should be with a striking design, cutting edge technology, European flair, inside and out the optima has a luxury car feel with plenty of standard features for the top pick of midsized sedans.
Soul – The 5 door compact hatchback is a new way to roll, The all-new Kia Soul features a fresh and updated look, more power, and the same funky “outside of the box” demeanor consumers have come to love from the segment-leading compact crossover, with a significant number of technology and powertrain enhancements, the Kia Soul now delivers class-leading horsepower1 and significantly improved fuel efficiency economy of up to 35 miles per gallon on the highway.2. Like all Kia models, the Kia Soul comes with an industry-leading 10-year/100,000-mile warranty program.
Dodge Display at the 2013 Denver Auto Show
Mar 25th
We visit the Dodge display at the Denver International Auto Show and look at 4 cars the Dodge Dart, Dodge Viper, Dodge Challenger and the Dodge Ram.
Dodge Dart – The signature of a new Dodge and a hot new face in the compact sedan field, the all new Dodge Dart puts its own high-styled spin on 4-door practicality. In distinctive Rallye trim with the optional 160-horsepower MultiAir turbocharged engine and a 6-speed manual transmission, it rocks out of the box.
Dodge Viper – It’s not a car, it’s a lifestyle. The Dodge Viper is a consuming passion. You’ll find yourself standing in the garage just staring at it. Follow the curves and character lines right into the driver’s seat again. Simply Stunning. The Viper combines classic beauty and modern flair. Bodywork on the Viper more closely hugs what lies beneath to look more compact and purposeful, while evolving the classic Viper form. The side “gill” shape inspired by the original Viper remains a focal point. The new roofline is longer, tapers more toward the rear, and the fenders have broader shoulders and a much more aggressive racecar look. Classic colors and stripes lead back to quick-firing LED tail lamps masked by dark-tinted snakeskin lenses.
Dodge Challenger SRT – Iconic muscle car design, classic Style, modern performance. The Dodge Challenger set the standard for classic muscle once and now its doing it again. With chrome tip dual exhaust, beautifully sculpted hoods with scoops, and available 20-inch wheels, the muscle car is back. And it has more to flex than ever.
Dodge Ram 1500 – Why buy any other truck, The 2013 Dodge Ram was Voted Rocky Mountain Truck of the Year by the Rocky Mountain Automotive Press. Performance that sets the stage, not just for speed or torque, but to define the norm.
“The Force That Changed America”
Mar 25th
Here’s what gets me.
Star Wars was changed, as you know, and in 1997 could also have been changed to “Twenty years ago in a Hollywood universe far, far away a young man named Lucas fulfilled his vision and managed to make a sappy space opera filled with mythological overtones, innovative special effects and filmmaking techniques that were a throwback to Saturday matinee serials, and young Lucas was also farsighted enough to keep all the merchandising rights for his creation, which became so successful that it changed how we look at movies, how Hollywood makes movies and society itself, which became seduced by the Dark Side of merchandising and greed.”
![5[1]](http://c1n.tv/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/51.jpg)
On May 25, 1977, Star Wars opened in a little over 30 theaters and went on to do blockbuster business, earn obscene amounts of money, spawn many equally successful sequels, make George Lucas a wealthy man and an unequaled force in the entertainment industry and perhaps “single-moviedly” create movie fan clubs and people obsessed with collecting every collectible associated with the movies they could get their hands on.
However, Star Wars is more than just a sappy space opera filled with mythological overtones, innovative special effects and filmmaking techniques that are throwbacks to Saturday matinee serials. It is also a transference of power and importance from one generation to the next, and it might not just be coincidence that the “special edition” came 20 years later, the time of one generation.
If you were one of the millions who stood in line at one of the 1800 theaters in which Star Wars (Special Edition) opened January 31, 1997, you might have noticed how it was not as interesting if you already knew everything that happens and what everything means. Wait! We already knew that from the many, many times we had already seen it, whether in theaters the first time around long, long ago or on TV from either broadcast showings, movie rentals or our own private collections.
We already know that Mark Hamill was a wooden actor, that the story is sappy at the beginning when Luke Skywalker is with his aunt and uncle and that scenes go on way, way too, too long to show us the razzle-dazzle of special effects rather than advancing the story. And we already knew that the superficial banter between Han Solo and Princess Leia is just a cover-up for their mutual attraction.
Yes, we knew how the movie begins, how it middles and how it ends. So, why were we so fascinated to want to see it again when it was already etched in our brains like a historical myth?
Well, that depends on who “we” is. Some of us were (ahem) old, old enough to have seen it the first time around, which means we were probably Baby Boomers and didn’t want to grow any older and were reliving that experience again, which helped us to think we were still that age of 20 years earlier.
Some of us were just old enough to have children, and we probably wanted to see it again with our kids, sort of like passing a sacred totem on to the next generation.
And some of us were (ahem) young, young enough to have never seen it on a large screen, where Lucas maintained it was meant to be seen.
Lucas said he was only 50% to 60% happy with the film 20 years earlier and later he was 80% happy with it. He said, “The only thing I joke about now is it would be fun–and we can’t do this for another 10 years or so–to go back and digitize the entire movie and clean it up.”
May the Force help us!
Was this how we wanted Hollywood to treat our icons? Was this how we wanted movies made and remade as new technology allowed filmmakers to ignore the limitations of their raw material?
Think of Independence Day. Think of Plan 9 from Outer Space. Heck, think of Mars Needs Women.
Star Wars created Hollywood’s obsession with the blockbuster, it created the phenomenon in which merchandising earns more than the box office and it probably has a direct influence on why magazines and newspapers contain more advertising than text over time, companies now sponsor sporting events and even uniforms, and athletes make more money from endorsements than they do from playing their sports.
Star Wars is the Force that changed Hollywood, and as Hollywood goes, so goes America.
I rest my case.
