Tyler Perry and Buster Bluth in Macon? Yes, really

Before I get into any of that, today, Natalie Portman, Jane Austen and zombies? Yeah, I'll be there.

When you set out to write a book called "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies," you're really setting yourself up for a fall, because, well, who can deliver on a premise that good? Well, having read the book, I can tell you that Seth Grahame-Smith - with, of course, a big assist from Jane Austen - certainly did, because the book is a hoot.

And now it seems that Natalie Portman has signed to both produce and star as our zombie-fighting heroine Elizabeth Bennet in a movie version. That makes me giddy just writing it. Now, if they just could make zombies the new vampires, the world would certainly be a much better place.

And only something that good could knock this (admittedly somewhat old, but if you live here, still intriguing) news from the lead: Tyler Perry is coming to Macon (if anything deserves an exclamation point, that's it, but I just really don't like them.)

Yes, Madea herself will be taking to the stage at the Macon Centreplex on Feb. 9 as Perry unveils a new stage play, "Madea's Big Happy Family." As is the course with his ventures, I'm sure that if the audience eats this up it will become one of his movies someday soon.

Unfortunately, the tickets are rather insanely expensive, starting at $47.50 and ranging up to $77.50 - a little too rich for my blood, especially with the tickets on sale right before Christmas. I encourage anyone who can afford to, however, to check out this opportunity. Tickets (if there are indeed any left) are available at www.maconcentreplex or by calling (478) 751-9232.

In another Macon event that's much more within my budget and just as dear to my heart, the name just sums it up perfectly: "The Best of Buster Bluth with Tony Hale."

"Arrested Development" fans (and if you're not one, why not?) will certainly know what that means. It seems that Tony's parents live in Macon, and he's agreed to host this event at the Cox Capitol Theatre to benefit the Macon Film & Video Festival. At 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 18, he'll be screening his three favorite "Arrested Development" episodes, and then take questions from the audience (and one of them, perhaps from me, will surely be about the alluring possibility of an "AD" movie.)

And best of all, it's only $10, which doesn't count the couple of beers I'll consume during all this goodness.

And in a final bit of Macon news, the Macon Film Guild is showing a movie this Sunday that I've been waiting for most of the year to see, "Cold Souls" (which of course means I'll have to work that day, and not be able to go ... shark farts.) Paul Giamatti stars as an actor who, tired of his daily existence, jumps at the opportunity to have his soul removed. It's when he later decides he wants it back that the apparently very clever fun from writer/director Sophie Barthes really gets going.

For those who will actually be able to go, and I encourage anyone who loves good movies to do so, the showings are at 2, 5 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Douglass Theatre in downtown Macon.

Finally, since I know a great number of the few people who bother to read this don't live anywhere near Macon, I'll leave you today with a couple of video clips that caught my eye this morning.

The first, also related directly to "Arrested Development," is, as best as I can tell, the opening for a pilot called "The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret" that's being pitched for the UK's Channel 4. The premise it sets up - David Cross navigating the high-speed world of modern London - is great, and as you can see from the clip, it's also got Will Arnett at his blustery best. Enjoy, and if you're watching this at work, for God's sake do it with headphones on, because the language is more than a bit salty.



And what could be better than that? Six minutes of "Chuck," of course. The first half finale of "Glee" was indeed, as my friend and boss of sorts Stephanie Hartley says, "gleetastic," but now that most shows have gone dark for December, there's nothing I'm looking forward to more on TV than the return of our favorite bumbling now-apparently-super spy.

NBC has upped the season three order from 13 to 19 episodes, and the show is set to return with a two-hour episode Sunday, Jan. 10, before settling into its regular Monday night slot with another hour the next night. Great news all of that, and just to what your appetite a little further, here's a six-minute preview of season three from NBC, which shows some of Chuck's new skills and that, thankfully, all our Buy More buds (including Tony Hale) will be making a return too. Enjoy the clip, and have a perfectly enjoyable Thursday. Peace out.