UA homecoming this weekend is all about Wilbur the Wildcat - the beloved and furry mascot turns 50 on Saturday.
The UA used real animals as mascots off and on between the early 1900s and the late 1950s (with at least one tragic mishap), until two UA students (Richard Heller and John Paquette) pitched the idea of using a costume-wearing human.
Wilbur made his first appearance at the UA vs. Texas Tech football game on Nov. 7, 1959, and was an immediate hit, according to a UA Web site.
Wilbur's look has evolved over the years. It was during one of those costume makeovers that Wilma the Wildcat was created.
She made her first public appearance on March 1, 1986, during a "blind date" with Wilbur. The pair later "married" before an Arizona-Arizona State football game.
For a chance to win a a set of three audio books, tell us the date of their wedding.
Phil Villarreal has worked for the Daily Star since birth, but he's been the movie critic since February 2001. You could say he's a fan of the cinema. Each day he wakes up to a plate of steaming scrambled movies, which he washes down with a glass of movie juice, all while watching a movie. In his free time he plays video games and watches movies. Phil's new book, the humorous, money saving guide "Secrets of a Stingy Scoundrel" is due out Sept. 1 and available for preorder.
A date with Zack, Miri, Kevin Smith and their 'Porno'
03/27/2008 09:49 AM Phil Villarreal
I just got word from the Weinstein Company that the Kevin Smith-Seth Rogen team-up “Zack and Miri Make a Porno” will be released Oct. 31. I was sour on the past couple Smith movies – “Jersey Girl” (along with most everyone else) and “Clerks II” (most people like it, but it didn’t connect with me. I may have been expecting too much) – but I have a feeling this one will match the excellence and rewatchable hiliarity of his first four: “Clerks,” “Mallrats,” “Chasing Amy” and “Dogma.” (“Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” was no slouch either). Rogen is the strongest comic force going these days, with an incredible 2007 with “Knocked Up” and “Superbad” and 2008 could be just as strong, with “Horton Hears a Who” and “Pineapple Express” in the can.
In “Zack and Miri,” Rogen and Elizabeth Banks play longtime pals who make a porn movie together to score some cash. In doing so, they discover they may be in love. I like that the concept is fresh and out-there (nearly as intriguing as, ahem, Stormin’ Mormon, and the combination of Rogen’s delivery – guy could make a reading of a Hillary Clinton speech seem entertaining – combined with Smith’s acerbic writing is almost an unfairly powerful combo. The fact that the comedy is being released so late in the year – can’t remember any of Smith’s movies nailing a similar release date – makes me think the Weinsteins are tabbing the film as something of a “Juno”-like Oscar contender.
