Stooges

The Stooges The Authorized and Illustrated Story Robert Matheu Abrams: 192 pp., $35

AUSTIN, Texas --Three days gone, three remaining at the South by Southwest music festival. Already, millions of notes and beats have been played using dozens of tunings and effects. Untold lyrical cliches involving love, nature, haters, enchanted forests and getting paid have been lobbed into unsuspecting (and unforgiving) ears. Within this volume, profound moments of glory have arrived from unexpected places -- little sonic miracles and brief instances of grace that are the primary reason we are here.

Punk pioneer and MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer rounds out a trio of grizzled rock vets as they reinterpret the music of the Stooges for this one-night-only Hellride concert. He plays with former Minutemen bassist and L.A. hardcore gadabout Mike Watt and Jane's Addiction drummer Stephen Perkins. Central Social Aid & Pleasure Club, 1348 14th St., Santa Monica. 8 p.m. Sat. $12. http://www.centralsapc.com/.

Last week, we brought you news that Iggy and the Stooges had completed their first new studio album in 40 years . Now the legendary proto-punk band has provided the first taste from "Ready to Die," due April 30. Posted Tuesday on SoundCloud, "Burn" won't surprise longtime fans of Iggy and the Stooges, whose last album under that name, "Raw Power," came out in 1973. ("The Weirdness," from 2007, didn't feature guitarist James Williamson and was credited simply to the Stooges.) The new song is a typically rowdy riff-rock number with rumbling drums, a swaggering bass line and words from singer Iggy Pop about how "the man of the future is a bully and bruiser.

Here's forehead-smacking news for any Los Angeles visitor (or local) who can't get enough of Moe, Curly and Larry: “The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations” ( Santa Monica Press , $39.95) by Jim Pauley. It's an actual grown-up book, chock full of careful research and hundreds of black-and-white photos documenting almost every cinematic move the Stooges made from 1934 to 1958 - suitable for your coffee table, so long as you're willing to put your low-brow taste right out there for the world to see. Most of those Stooges shorts, of course, were shot in and around Hollywood, and the maps in back of this volume show exactly where.

RICHARD CROMELIN, in the opening sentence of his review of the Stooges' new album, "The Weirdness" (Record Rack, March 4), states that the Stooges are "one of rock's undisputedly essential bands." Planet Earth to Cromelin: The Stooges are of no importance whatsoever. They made little impact initially, certainly none musically (no hits, no recordings remaining on playlists, few song covers by other bands/singers), gaining notice only via the self-mutilating antics of Iggy Pop. Cromelin goes on to write that the "Stooges turned their severe limitations of technique into an artistic signature, a crude, primordial simplicity that spelled identity and release for a small audience of disaffected.

Last week, we brought you news that Iggy and the Stooges had completed their first new studio album in 40 years . Now the legendary proto-punk band has provided the first taste from "Ready to Die," due April 30. Posted Tuesday on SoundCloud, "Burn" won't surprise longtime fans of Iggy and the Stooges, whose last album under that name, "Raw Power," came out in 1973. ("The Weirdness," from 2007, didn't feature guitarist James Williamson and was credited simply to the Stooges.) The new song is a typically rowdy riff-rock number with rumbling drums, a swaggering bass line and words from singer Iggy Pop about how "the man of the future is a bully and bruiser.

Forty years on from their landmark proto-punk album "Raw Power," Iggy and the Stooges announced Monday that they've completed a new studio album, "Ready to Die," set for release April 30 through Fat Possum Records. It's the first time Iggy Pop has made a full record with guitarist James Williamson and drummer Scott Asheton since 1973's "Raw Power," which followed a pair of albums without Williamson credited simply to the Stooges. (Asheton's brother Ron was the Michigan band's founding guitarist.)

ALEX VAN DYNE's snobbish indictment of the Stooges [Letters, March 11] is even less acceptable than Robert Hilburn's snobbish idea that the likes of the Rascals and Blondie should not have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ["De-ductive Reasoning," March 11]. It is not justifiable to degrade as insignificant any artist or song simply because of basic, crude, limited musical skills (or production). Otherwise, we might as well write off "Rumble," "Louie Louie," "You Really Got Me," "Wild Thing," "Wooly Bully," and all early punk rock altogether.

"The Hunger Games"claimed the No. 1 spot at the box office for the fourth consecutive weekend, becoming the first film since 2009's"Avatar"to remain in the top position for that long. The fantasy epic starring Jennifer Lawrence collected an additional $21.5 million this past weekend, according to an estimate from Lionsgate. In the United States and Canada, the movie has raked in $337.1 million; overseas, it has sold $194-million worth of tickets in 60 foreign countries. Heading into the weekend, a new spin on "The Three Stooges"had the only viable shot at taking down the wildly popular Suzanne Collins adaptation.

Forty years on from their landmark proto-punk album "Raw Power," Iggy and the Stooges announced Monday that they've completed a new studio album, "Ready to Die," set for release April 30 through Fat Possum Records. It's the first time Iggy Pop has made a full record with guitarist James Williamson and drummer Scott Asheton since 1973's "Raw Power," which followed a pair of albums without Williamson credited simply to the Stooges. (Asheton's brother Ron was the Michigan band's founding guitarist.)

Sharon Osbourne kicked off her Thursday with a bit of excitement: a house fire, started by a candle left burning when the lady of the house and hubby Ozzy went to bed. "The Talk" panelist on Thursday's program described a chaotic scene that started around 5 a.m. when she heard a sound "like metal had fallen" and thought it was her housekeeper dropping her keys on the floor. But the stinging in her eyes, the weird smell and the barking dogs that followed told a different story.

Here's forehead-smacking news for any Los Angeles visitor (or local) who can't get enough of Moe, Curly and Larry: “The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations” ( Santa Monica Press , $39.95) by Jim Pauley. It's an actual grown-up book, chock full of careful research and hundreds of black-and-white photos documenting almost every cinematic move the Stooges made from 1934 to 1958 - suitable for your coffee table, so long as you're willing to put your low-brow taste right out there for the world to see. Most of those Stooges shorts, of course, were shot in and around Hollywood, and the maps in back of this volume show exactly where.

Three Stooges Big Screen Event Where: Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale When: 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday Tickets: $10-$15 Information: http://www.alextheatre.org

The Three Stooges put the slap in slapstick. For over 30 years in shorts and films, the Stooges poked, pummeled, slipped and slid into moviegoers' hearts. The Farrelly brothers even tried to re-create their magic of mayhem this year in the comedy "The Three Stooges" with uneven success. Arguments persist over whether the Stooge comedies starring Moe Howard, Larry Fine and the beloved Jerome "Curly" Howard were the funniest or if the later comedies with Moe and Curly's oldest brother Shemp - he took over in 1946 after Curly suffered a stroke - had the most guffaws.

A Hollywood casting director charged with failing to comply with sex offender registry laws testified Tuesday that his use of a professional alias was not an attempt to hide his criminal past. "I've spent so long trying to become a productive member of society there's nothing I want to do to go back to jail," Jason James Murphy told a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge during a hearing in Beverly Hills to determine whether prosecutors have enough evidence to proceed to trial.

Chrysler Corp. Chairman Lee Iacocca, in a new book, harshly criticizes President Reagan's management style, saying he "delegated to a bunch of stooges and then went off and rode horses." Reagan is "a warm and wonderful human being," but is "totally incapable of focusing on any issue," Iacocca writes in his book, "Talking Straight," due out next month and excerpted in the current issue of People magazine.

"The Hunger Games"claimed the No. 1 spot at the box office for the fourth consecutive weekend, becoming the first film since 2009's"Avatar"to remain in the top position for that long. The fantasy epic starring Jennifer Lawrence collected an additional $21.5 million this past weekend, according to an estimate from Lionsgate. In the United States and Canada, the movie has raked in $337.1 million; overseas, it has sold $194-million worth of tickets in 60 foreign countries. Heading into the weekend, a new spin on "The Three Stooges"had the only viable shot at taking down the wildly popular Suzanne Collins adaptation.

There's only one rival that may be able to trip up the seemingly unstoppable "The Hunger Games" at the box office this weekend: a trio of out-of-shape goofballs. Although the fantasy epic starring Jennifer Lawrence looks primed to claim the No. 1 spot for the fourth consecutive weekend, it may face some competition from a new spin on "The Three Stooges. " After 21 days in release, the adaptation of Suzanne Collins' bestselling novel has already grossed more than $300 million domestically and could take in $18 million to $20 million more this weekend, according to those who have seen pre-release audience surveys.