Star Tribune from Minneapolis, Minnesota • Page 46

Variety PAGE E2 STAR TRIBUNE TUESDAY, MARCH 14 2000 "T1 'Disenfranchised' voters caucus on other issues Tf thp nrpQirlpntinl rnnrlislritp ic nlvpfirtv 6 chosen, what's left? Herets a suggestion that fewer than half of Americans have even setded on a favorite candidate yet. Now all we can do is to rub our sore noses, caught trying to peer too closely through the door when it banged shut Yet we left our caucus with some optimism, thanks to a last-minute resolution by someone who'd clearly given the predicament some thought. His resolution called on the DFL Party to talk with other political parties here and in Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota and South Dakota to establish a common caucus date. A regional caucus would mean more than a state's votes, allowing more people to feel that their vote is part of a voice. Maybe regional caucuses would catch on, with great blocs of delegates available throughout the summer, any of them able to check or boost a candidate's momentum.

Yes, New Hampshire would still hold its primary two weeks before anybody, anywhere, anyhow, but the shift could pump some life back into a process that's sucking air. Kim Ode's columns run Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Write to her at kimodestartribune.com, or 425 Portland Av. Minneapolis MN 55488. For past columns, go to And when a resolution about a unicameral legislature was raised, I was surprised that within our spare gathering, opinions ranged from "couldn't be more nuts" to "couldn't be more supportive." After so many years on the outside looking in, I'd assumed a rubber-stamp homogeneity to these chummy little cabals.

The energy was startling. Still, when almost all was said and done, we were left with the undeniable sense that the biggest vote was a bust. We felt, on some level, disenfranchised. While hardly denied the right to vote, there was a meaninglessness to our ballots. The precinct chairwoman mused aloud, wondering if there was any way to send a message about how out of whack the primary process has become, or if there's a way to keep it on life support long enough for most states to actually weigh in.

The issue is bigger than party politics; both Democrats and Republicans find themselves, a week before St. Patrick's Day, with their go-to guys in place. The Reform Party appears little different. More than half of the states have yet to hold nominating contests; more than half of the delegates in both major parties have yet to be chosen. Worse, a Harvard survey indicates When we talk about the disenfranchised among us, we're never talking about people who live an upper-middle-class existence in a stable suburb with good schools and big yards.

So it felt strange, not to mention presumptuous, to land on that word to describe the sense of redundancy at our parry caucus on Saturday. As the recycled shopping bag passed among the school desks, we marked ballots that carried all the weight of the paper they were printed on. When Bill Bradley pulled out of the race barely 48 hours before the Minnesota caucuses convened, Al Gore's bid for the presidential nomination became a The DFL party apparendy got wind of this and moved their caucuses to Saturday mornings. Faced with chores or playing an incremental yet profoundly personal role in a process barely a stone's throw from the principles on which our system of representative democracy is based, I grabbed the car keys. Now I'm hooked.

Caucuses are about candidates, sure, but also about resolutions on curbing consumer abuse by software companies, or supporting informational labeling of genetically modified foods. Both issues spawned stretches of discussion among people who were really smart and people who were smart enough to admit their ignorance. greased skid all the way to Nov. 7. The caucus totals show that Gore is the favored candidate by an overwhelming margin, but the reality was that the candidates' give-and-take was dead-and-gone, beating even our snow.

All of which did not prevent our particular precinct from voting Gore 7, Bradley 5, uncommitted 1 .) Yet the presidency was hardly the most meaningful ballot to be cast that morning. This was news to me. In my almost 15 years in the Twin Cities, I've remained caucus-impaired, mostly out of laziness. Once I get home from work, it takes something far more enticing than politics to pry me out again. Abbott and Costello yuk it up on VHS set i Hi, 7 fry- C2 1 'PsV til By Randy A.

Salas Star Tribune Staff Writer Video notebook mmm6 ey, Abbott!" "Hi A generation grew up heanng that familiar Vidbits Tom Jerry's Greatest Chases (Warner $14.93 VHS; $24.98 DVD) collects some of the animated duo's best bits. The VHS includes 12 complete episodes for almost 90 minutes of viewing. The 110-minute DVD adds a few more episodes, plus an excerpt from "Anchors Aweigh" "The Worry Song," featuring a live-action Gene Kelly dancing with an animated Jerry. The recent DVD release of Blondie: Live in New York (BMG, $24.98) includes the band's entire set from its first concert on its 1999 reunion tour, almost twice as much footage than what was used on a VH-1 special. It also includes a bonus music video for "Nothing Is Real But the Girl." Look for reviews of this week's new rental videos in Friday's Variety and previews of next week's releases in Sunday's Arts Entertainment section.

after a well-publicized, nasty split. They had a memorable reunion on "This Is Your Life" in 1959, just before Costello died in March. Abbott died in 1974. For those who want to reac-quaint themselves or are unfamiliar with the duo, Universal has put together a sharp-looking Web site that offers information about the duo and their movies, photos and audio and video clips: http: www.budandlou.com. Future releases in the Comedy Legends series will focus on W.C.

Fields, the Marx Brothers, Mae West, Bob Hope, Burns and Allen, and Jack Benny. Cheaper widescreen Fans of widescreen movies on VHS usually have to pay more for their passion: The widescreen edition invariably costs more than the full-frame, pan-and-scan version. Columbia Tristar has made it easier on collectors' wallets by repricing many tides in its wide-screen VHS series. Tides that originally retailed for $19.95 to $24.95 will be available starting today for $9.95 to $14.95, most at the lower price. Tides include Air Force One, Anaconda, The Big Chill, Blue t- The Abbott and Costello set Includes a tribute by Jerry Seinfeld.

Thunder, Boyz the Hood, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Cliffhanger, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Craft, Desperado, Donnie Brasco, Easy Rider, A Few Good Men, The Fifth Element, First Knight, Ghost-busters, Glory, Godzilla, In the Line of Fire, Jerry Maguire, Johnny Mnemonic, Last Action Hero, A League of Their Own, Legends of the Fall, Mary Shel-les Frankenstein, The Mask of Zorro, Men in Black, Multiplicity, The Professional, Sense and Sensibility, Seven Years in Tibet, Silverado, Sleepless in Seattle, Starship Troopers, Taxi Driver, Wild Things and Wolf. Expect to see more widescreen VHS tides go out of print and get discounted as more people convert to DVD and demand for widescreen VHS lessens. Photos provided by Universal Studios Abbott and Costello's "Who's on First?" routine is among the classics Included In the Universal Studios Comedy Legends set phrase sometimes in casual banter, often in a panicky wail for help as Lou Costello continually hailed his partner, Bud Abbott, in film after hilarious film in the '40s and '50s. A few more generations fell in love with Abbott and Costello as their films became a staple of Saturday morning on independent TV stations through the '70s. Now, it's easier and more fun than ever to explore the legacy of one of Hollywood's greatest comedy teams thanks to a boffo VHS boxed set, Abbott and Costello (Universal, the first release in Universal Studios' Comedy Legends series.

The set includes eight of the duo's early films One Night in the Tropics, Pardon My Sarong, Hold That Ghost, Here Come the Co-Eds, The Time of Their Lives, Who Done Hit the Ice and The Naughty Nineties plus a bonus video, Abbott and Costello Meet Jerry Seinfeld, a 46-minute tribute by the popular comedian. The movies also are available individually for $14.95. An innovation of the tapes is that Universal presents them like a night at the movies of yesteryear. So, for example, before "Hold That Ghost" (1941) starts, there are two trailers from the same time (for "The Black Cat" and "The Invisible a Woody the Woodpecker cartoon and a travelogue short Abbott, the straight man, and Costello, the portly gadabout, had an uncanny knack for timing and excelled at slapstick. They turned bickering into an art form.

As Universal puts it: "Separately, they were talented. Together, they were genius." They started together in the '30s on vaudeville and burlesque stages, then hit the big time when they made their first film, "One Night in the Tropics," in 1940. They continued with hit after hit, including 1945's "The Naughty Nineties," which introduced their now-classic routine "Who's on First?" Like many other famous comedy teams, Abbott and Costello went their own ways (in 1957) Top national sellers 1 I -v- BOM 1 Color of Money," "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe," "Gothic," "II Postino," "Like Water for Chocolate," "Miami Rhapsody," "Modem Times," "Mr. Jealousy" and "Outrageous Fortune." Next week's major catalog releases: "70 Years of Popeye," "The Abyss," "Autopsy," "Bastard Out of Carolina," "El Dorado," "Flash Gordon Conquers the Universe," "Hook," "If These Walls Could Talk," "In the Realm of Passion," "In the Realm of the Senses," "Indochine," "Miami Rhapsody," "Sacco and Vanzetti," "Star Trek" Vol. 9 Leave" and "The Squire of and Vol.

10 and "The Alternative "That Uncertain Feeling," "True Grit" and "Two If by Sea." The week's top sales nationally, courtesy of Billboard: 1. "Tarzan" 2. "The Matrix" 3. "Buena Vista Social Club" 4. "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me" 5.

"CNN Millennium 2000" 6. "Shakespeare in Love" 7. "Mary Kate Ashley: Passport to Paris" 8. "Playboy's wildwebgirls.com" 9. "Playboy Video Centerfold: Playmate 2000" 10.

"Death Row Uncut" Look for top video rentals in Friday's Variety. Today's major catalog DVD releases: "4D Man," "The Beach Boys: Endless Harmony," "The W- Back to the beginning with Scooby-Doo DVD review DONATING YOUR PAPER CAN BE ATRSP. Donate your newspapers Jan. 24 -April 15 for a chance to win a 4-night, 5-day trip for two to St PetereburgClearwater Florida's Beach. Prize includes airfare and accommodations at the beautiful Radisson Suite Resort on Sand Key Clearwater's only all-suite resort.

Does donating to NJE pay off? You bet! Through the Star Tribune Newspaper in Education (NIE) Program, newspapers are delivered to schools all over Minnesota, along with helpful curriculum for teachers. So donate your newspapers while you're on vacation. It could be your lucky day. TO DONATE YOUR PAPER, CALL STAR TRiEHJNE AT 612-673-4343 OR 800-775-4344. cludes several extras that, while mosdy promotional, are a fun addition: Jukebox: Sample four songs from the "Snack Tracks" Scooby album.

Music video: It mixes live action and animation using the well-known Scooby theme song and a tune from the recent feature "Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost." Kids love this, but it's too bad that it's presented more like a short commercial, complete with promotional tides, than a true music video. Trivia: Answer multiple-choice questions using your remote fun while it lasts, but there should have been more questions. Recipes: Learn how to make Scooby Snacks and other treats. One thing that this collection makes clear: Scooby-Doo has aged remarkably well. You'll want to watch this with the kids again and again out of four stars for Scooby, V4 for the DVD presentation).

Randy A. Salas Give yourself a Scooby Snack if you remember where "Jinkies!" and "Zoinks!" come from and then pick up Scooby-Doo's Original Mysteries (Warner new to DVD today, because you're obviously a fan. The DVD features the always-hungry Great Dane and his mystery-loving pals Shaggy, Vel-ma, Fred and Daphne in the first five episodes of the TV show "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?" Besides the 1969 pilot episode, "What a Night for a Knight," the disc includes "Hassle in the Castle," "A Clue for Scooby-Doo," "Mine Your Own Business" and "Decoy for a Dog Napper." Seeing the original episodes in pristine, unedited versions is a kick for young and old. Fans who grew up with the series (like me) will realize just how campy the series was, but kids (like my 4-year-old daughter) will enjoy the same things that drew kids decades ago a few scares and a lot of fun. Scooby is as popular as ever, too, with regular airings on the St.Petersburg learwater Radisson Florida's Beich SiIK.tv StarTribune lis where you live.

Scooby-Doo's appeal is no mystery. Cartoon Network and new VHS releases, such as today's "Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers." (Look for a review in Friday's Variety.) In addition to nearly 2Vz hours' worth of episodes, the DVD in.