Agenda Lead…Touching Base

By Annamarya Scaccia

Ever watch old clips of Bob Hope TV specials, where he and his flock of stunning Hollywood starlets would visit the troops and entertain them endlessly? Ever notice the look of bliss on the soldiers’ faces?

Frank Monahan has. It’s part of why the president of Rocket Science Productions — a Virginia-based production and talent management company — has organized the first-ever National Burlesque Festival for the Troops.

A series of burlesque performances taking place through July 10 by groups across the country, the festival will help raise money to ship For the Boys: Pinups for the Troops and For the Girls: Men Standing Strong to soldiers in need of a morale boost.

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Produced by the 54-year-old Monahan and his art director, Meredith Hancock, For the Boys is a glossy, full-color tome of saucy female pinups submitted by more than 16 photographers. The live-model shots are re-creations of illustrations by famed American pinup artist Gil Elvgren, each of which was chosen by Monahan. And female troops — who make up almost 15 percent of today’s armed forces — will get to enjoy a bounty of deliciously ripped (and mostly shirtless) men in For the Girls. (Don’t ask, don’t tell: Pick up whatever turns you on at forthetroopsonline.com or during the festival.) So far, more than 3,000 copies have been sent to veterans hospitals and bases around the world, including the U.S., Germany, Japan, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Acts holding shows within the nine-day fest include the Pontani Sisters of New York, the Boston Babydolls, L.A.’s Lola LaBelle and Theatre d’Amour, the D.C. Gurly Show and Philly’s own Peek-A-Boo Revue, who will perform July 5 at Johnny Brenda’s.

But why exactly bring pinup art back? “There are plenty of people and organizations putting all kinds of care packages together for the troops,” says Monahan. “We recognized the need for a smile, for something unique and fun to look at.”

“I think it is a nice way to say, ‘We’re thinking of you,’” says Peek-A-Boo Revue director Lulu Lollipop (pictured). “We can’t be there in person, but we can send a little piece of ourselves in memory and respect of the days gone by where the troops had the full support of the American public.”

The festival also hopes to raise awareness of the continuing and evolving burlesque resurgence across the U.S. “I’m constantly amazed at the sense of empowerment that burlesque performers have and their passion to keep this art form alive is contagious,” says Monahan.

Adds Lollipop, “Burlesque is back, absolutely. Now it is time to educate people not only about the art form, but reintroduce them to sex and sexuality in a fun way.”

As for the future, Monahan hopes to make the National Burlesque Festival for the Troops an annual event because, as he puts it, men and women will always be stationed away from home whether or not a war is raging. “They will always need to get the feeling that folks at home support them,” he says, “and to take a short break from their tough existence to smile and appreciate beauty.”

Peek-A-Boo Revue and Rocket Science Productions Present: For the Troops | Sat., July 5, 10 p.m., $15 ($10 if wearing USO or pinup costume), Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 Frankford Ave., 215-739-9684, burlesquetroupes-fortroops.com

Review: The Futureheads…”This is Not the World”

After spending a year wading outside the music spotlight and parting ways with label 679, the Futureheads treaded back to the scene with their latest effort, This is Not the World, released on their own label, Nul Records. The question is, did the changes help them? The answer: kind of. Yes, This is Not the World is much more polished than their previous self-titled release but the UK outfit traded their jagged, calculated marches for even sharper but a lot poppier, yet darker refrains (“Sale of the Century,” “The Beginning of the Twist,” “Sleet”). They’re still great - their rhythms are still strong and danceable but their music is not as unique as it once was (just check out “Everything’s Changing Today” and Radio Heart”). With This is Not the World, the Futureheads has now become every English band we’ve heard before. So yea, kind of.

–Annamarya Scaccia [June 25, 2008]

Book Quartely: Review…The Encyclopedia Shatnerica: Millennium Edition By Robert Schnakenberg

Quirk, 288 pp., $16.95

If you want to know every dirty little detail about William Shatner’s brazen life, Shatnerica is all you need. The witty and well-researched trivia book, originally published in 1998, is a revised and expanded cornucopia of everything the 77-year-old actor extraordinaire has to offer — from TV appearances, series work, film roles and Web-accessible video clips to book and album releases (a toupee rating system is used to prioritize your Shat Man consumption). Schnakenberg even includes all those people, places, things and words that the Great One has touched, stepped foot in, experienced or uttered in his more-than-50-year career. There’s Eva Marie Friedrick, Shatner’s former personal assistant who filed a $2 million palimony suit against him back in ‘89, and Jeff Truskolaski, America’s premier Shatner impersonator. Bolded keywords serve as a cross-reference to other entries in the book and random sidebars find their way through the pages — like “Star Trek Sings: Collect All Seven,” about less-than-worthy releases by other Star Trek crew members. (Leonard Nimoy, please destroy your microphone.)

—Annamarya Scaccia