This big movie news this weekend is The Golden Compass, the adaptation of Philip Pullman's novel of the same name. The first book in the His Dark Materials trilogy, The Golden Compass tells the tale of the "orphan" Lyra as she and her polar bear Iorek (voiced by Gandalf--er, Ian McKellen) embark on a journey to rescue Lyra's friend Roger from his kidnappers. We hear the movie's anti-religious themes have been played down (maybe thanks......

--Boobs might be getting bigger in Brookline, thanks to stem-cell research. Uh, can't we worry about cancer first and then take care of the boobies? [WBZ] --Gwen Butler, she of the million-dollar-tip and alleged starter of news that a case of VD was going around local restaurant circles, is baaack! In New York, unfortunately. [MenuPages] --A five-alarm fire broke out yesterday at a lumberyard in Ayer. [Boston Herald] --Watertown city councilor Marilyn Devaney, best known......

Here's a wrap-up from the local papers about the strangest and funniest episodes of the night: Boston Herald: "A Teletubby dressed in Red Sox gear and a man naked but for a giant red, plastic beer cup costume were part of a procession that included a large number of kids in BU and Northeastern gear." Harvard Crimson: Streakers galore on DeWolfe Street. Universal Hub Commenter Molly Clare: Speaking of Harvard, "'OH. MY. GAWD. The Red......

The On the Road 50th-anniversary event will be on Thursday, September 6, at 6:00 pm at the Brattle Theatre. Tickets are $5 and are available at Harvard Book Store. You may have heard rumors of a bar at the event, but, alas, the idea was nixed. Lowell's own Jack Kerouac is getting the royal treatment from Massachusetts now that On the Road is turning 50. Lowell is showing the legendary Kerouac scroll, and authors Joyce......

Spring is when we get busy here in the Ist-A-Verse. Very busy. But, after staying bundled-up indoors all winter, it's nice for us to be out, about, and collecting things to write about for you. Here's a glimpse at what's been keeping your favorite citybloggers busily away from home and out of bed. For LAist, strong winds attacked LA on the same day the Feds raided the Crips. Not to fear, though: the Japanese version......

In a world where there's nothing to do but watch movies. In a city full of theaters, museums, and libraries. One moviegoer who can be in three places at once. This week, Al Franken becomes a politician, David Hasselhoff dresses up as a scifi hero, every girl becomes a star, and ancient religious art turns into modern heaps of rubble. Friday 9/29 Piccadilly The Hays Code, adopted by the American film industry in 1930, didn't......

Utterances about the weather aside, it hasn't been very eventful in the eavesdropping department. Unless you're part of the NSA – they've got a whole lot of eavesdropping action and numbers to process. We again open the call, especially on these wonderful spring like days when you're not huddled in your cube but outside rubbing elbows with real live people. Listen up and listen in, you're bound to hear something great. For the fashion......

We tired of celebrity sightings that involve Matt Damon and Ben Affleck – their celebrity news has been decidedly boring as of late. So we’ve turned our attention to another Boston native, the wonderfully colorful character known as “King of R&B Bobby Brown” (thank Tyra Banks for bringing his monarchy to our attention). Last summer we were a bit skeptical as Being Bobby Brown was set to come on the air, but it’s been a......

Eliza Dushku knows something we’ve known all along: The Best Girls Root for Boston. Bostonist missed it when we decided to catch some shut-eye instead of staying up to watch Conan on Tuesday, but the Internet didn’t miss a thing. Dushku is originally from Watertown (but claims Boston in her bio, we don't fault her), and showed Conan that she still has love for the hometown team. She ported two pieces of Homegirls apparel including......

Tobacco and breast-milk: two great tastes that go great together. Actually Bostonist just wanted a reason to put "butt" and "boob" in a headline; it’s Friday after all. Two recent stories have grabbed our attention. The first comes from the Globe yesterday, reporting on two smoking tenants in Southie whose eviction due to their collective two-pack-a-day habit was upheld by the Boston Housing Court. The State House will entertain breasts as a topic of......