Pheaturing Bree Rose

Hello, kids, welcome to the Phile on a Saturday. How are you?  So, this week Mitt Romney will campaign in Las Vegas with Donald Trump and Newt Gingrich. Did somebody say The Hangover, Part III?  First lady Michelle Obama said that if she could trade places with anyone in the world, it would be Beyoncé. Of course it got awkward when Barack was like, “I’m game!”  Did you guys see this? Last week at the Twins-White Sox game in Chicago, Snoop Dogg threw out the first pitch. And as predicted, the pitch was pretty high.  This week a solar-powered plane attempted to fly more than 1,500 miles. It was going great until the plane encountered one technical problem... night.  It was announced that they're auctioning off the Elvis tomb. The auction house in Memphis actually is selling the place where Elvis left the building. He's not in there, of course, because he's working in a gas station in Henderson, Nevada. Selling celebrity memorabilia is nothing new. It started in prehistoric times. Cavemen used to bid on animal skins worn by Larry King.   Well, as most of you know I am from Great Britain and it's a proud day for us Brits, today is the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, marking 60 years she has been Queen. I haven't been to England in a few years but it seems times are tough. Look at this picture of the Queen as she left Buckingham Palace today.

Speaking of Queen's, this weekend at Disney World, the greatest company to work for ever, it is Gay Days. Although neither Walt Disney World nor any of the parks or tourism organizations in greater Orlando actually produce this event, they do sanction and support this week-long series of social gatherings at the area's various theme parks and hotels as well as both circuit-style parties and concerts along with more laid-back revelry at countless venues throughout the region. That's the official word anyway. Anyway, like I said, even though Disney doesn't produce the event they do cash in. Check out these pins they are selling this weekend.

I want the Princess one. Disney says they don't have any gay characters, but I beg to differ. May I present you Exhibit A.

If you don't know if you're gay or not there's a way to tell. Check this out.

Hmmmm... lemme check. And now from the home office in Port Jefferson, New York, here is this week's...

Top Ten Signs You're Eating At A Bad Fast Food Restaurant
10. Free EKG with every meal.
9. Cashier and fry cook do high fives when they make a sale.
8. Everyone is watching you take your first bite.
7. The roaches all look like they're starving.
6. Manager insists on taste-testing each item before it goes in the bag.
5. Employees wash hands BEFORE using the restroom.
4. You get the feeling they stole the big yellow "W" from some other restaurant.
3. Warning label reads, "Chicken Fingers may contain actual chicken fingers".
2. You hear Chris Christie say, "I'll just have coffee."
And the number one sign you're eating at a bad fast food restaurant...
1. Melancholy Meals.


Alright, well, Star Wars Month on the Phile is over but there's still two more films Jeff and I have to chat about. Today is my favorite amongst all the Star Wars films. Please welcome back to the Phile, my good friend Jeff Trelewicz.

Me: Hello, Jeff, welcome back to the Phile. I am so excited to be talking about The Empire Strikes Back as this is my favorite of all six films. You said it's your favorite as well, right? It's the film that introduced us to Boba Fett and Yoda, and Lando, three of my favorite characters.

Jeff: I am excited to talk to you about Episode 5, The Empire Strikes Back. Yeah, I said it's my favorite too. It has a little bit of everything for everyone. There is a little comedy. A whole lot of action. A little romance. Plus no stinking Ewoks! And like you said, it introduces three iconic characters in Boba Fett, Yoda and Lando.

Me: Jeff, what's your favorite part of the movie?

Jeff: I think my favorite part has got to be the scene in Cloud City where Boba Fett has Han and they are getting ready to put him in the carbonite. The "I know" scene is such a pivotal scene but it never gets enough credit. But Boba Fett is clearly my all time favorite Star Wars character.

Me: Okay, I have a few questions about the film that I would love to get your take on, Jeff. So after the Falcon floats off with the garbage they look for a place to go and find Cloud City like you said. They take off and Boba Fett follows. Later Lando says that the Empire arrived before them. How did they get there before the Falcon if Boba Fett was following the Falcon and it appears he told the Empire where they went?

Jeff: I think it's safe to say that the reason the Empire gets to Cloud City before the Falcon does is the Empire has faster ships. Yes, the Falcon is one of the faster ships around but the Empire probably has some fast ships too. We don't know how long the Empire got there. It could have simply been a matter of minutes. And you certainly won't say no to Darth Vader.

Me: Here's some Star Wars trivia you might not be aware of, Jeff. Did you know that George Lucas will not let any Star Wars books/media reveal Yoda's species, last name, etc.?

Jeff: I didn't know that about Yoda. It makes sense. I could see why Lucas would be more protective of Yoda over any of his other characters. He is a very unique character that can't be found anywhere else. So yeah, I support that. Not that he needs my support.

Me: Yeah, he does. LOL. Alright, during the Battle of Hoth, why is the AT-AT walker suddenly easy to blow up after it has crashed? I thought their "armor was too strong for blasters."

Jeff: I think the AT-AT defense system was down once they are down, so it makes it so much easier to blow them up. That would be my guess anyway.

Me: Darth Vader didn't know he has a daughter... until the end of Return of the Jedi. How did he know that he had a son? One may think that when Obi-Wan hid Luke with his uncle, they'd have changed his last name from "Skywalker" to something else so that Anakin couldn't find him. Or did Vader just realize it when he was chasing him in Episode 4 when he says "the force is strong with this one...". This has always confused me.

Jeff: You should know not to question Vader! He is the strongest person in the Force in the Galaxy so he could feel his own son. Think about it. During the fight with Luke when he says "Search your feelings, you know it to be true". Vader searched his feelings and realized that it was his son he was fighting, that's also how Luke figured it out too.

Me: I say there's two plausible reasons. The first is that Obi-Wan wanted Luke to feel some sense of pride in the Skywalker name, which could strengthen his resolve to restore it by fighting the Empire when he reached adulthood. The second is that Obi-Wan knew that Vader would eventually encounter his son and left the name in place to ensure that Vader knew who he was up against... maybe hoping that some residual goodness within the Sith Lord would make him less effective in fighting his own son. Anyway, Jeff, thanks for coming back onto the Phile. Come back next week and we'll finish this up and talk about Return of the Jedi.

Jeff: I look forward to talking Jedi with you. Till then!

Okay, art lovers, the 18th artist to be pheatured in the P.P.A.G. is a comic book artist named Robert Pope. This is one of his pieces...

Robert will be a guest on the Phile in a few weeks.

Today's guest is a teenager singer who sings with her band The New Royalty and also her own solo project. Her latest EP is simply called "Breakthrough" which is available on iTunes. Please welcome to the Phile... Bree Rose.

Me: Hello, Bree, welcome to then Phile. How are you?

Bree: I'm great, thanks!

Me: You are only 17, right? So, are you in high school still?

Bree: Yes, I'm still in school and I will be graduating this month.

Me: Are you going off to college somewhere?

Bree: Yeah, I am. I'm going to stay local and attend Middlesex County College and I plan on transferring later.

Me: Bree, in the past five years I have interviewed quite a few teenage singers who kinda vanished for different reasons. Perhaps they got older and burnt out, or the music business wasn't what they thought, or maybe I am wrong. Maybe they are still living onto that dream. Anyway, have you always wanted to be a singer?

Bree: Since I was 8 years old, yes! I loved music and singing but I started taking it more seriously at about 13 years old.

Me: You write your own music, right? How old were you when you started seriously writing?

Bree: Yes, I do, I started writing at 15 years old.

Me: Bree, you've been compared to Avril Lavigne and I could hear why. Is she a big influence of yours?

Bree: Yeah, she is a big influence of mine. She was one of the first punk female artist's I heard and I wanted to be just like her!

Me: Who else do you listen to?

Bree: I listen to everything from Mac Miller to Woe, Is Me to Katy Perry. Everything.

Me: Alright, before you went solo you were the lead singer in the punk band The New Royalty. Is that band still together, Bree?

Bree: Yes, We are still together! We're all best friends, play shows and practice constantly!

Me: What made you decide to do your own thing and release an EP?

Bree: I decided to do something just for me. I really want nothing more than to be successful and accomplish my dream. This is just another way to help make that happen!

Me: Did the other kids in The New Royalty understand?

Bree: Yes, they all support me through everything.

Me: So, who plays on the EP "Breakthrough" with you?

Bree: My twin, Nick plays guitar and writes along with me.

Me: Bree, a lot of singers about your age try to audition for "American Idol" and similar shows. Did you ever think about doing the same thing?

Bree: I auditioned for "The Voice" a few months ago. It was a great experience but I can honestly say that way of achieving fame is not for me.

Me: Well,  I have to say congrats on being the top female vocalist by the Asbury Park Music Awards. Did you win anything cool?

Bree: Thank you! I did not win anything but it was an honor to be a part of the music awards!

Me: Are you from New Jersey?

Bree: Yes, I am. Central Jersey.

Me: So, ever played at the Stone Pony?

Bree: I've performed there with my band several times, I love that place!

Me: You have to be fans of Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi if you are from Jersey, am I right?

Bree: Of course! Who isn't? I just saw Bon Jovi at Bamboozle 2012.

Me: Man, my wife would be jealous. Bree, you have taken part in a few charity events. Do you choose which ones you wanna be part of?

Bree: I like to take part in everything I can! Choosing is not hard, if I find a charity that I really feel Icould benefit and help, I'd love nothing more than to help out!

Me: Tell the readers about one of the charities you work with...  Ampleharvest.org. Ample Harvest is an amazing charity that help give families across the U.S. proper nutrition with food pantries that supply healthy food and freshly harvested crops.

Me: Bree, now you have your new EP, are you gonna be working on your first solo album?

Bree: I am, of course. I am always writing and I'm working on new songs currently.

Me: Thanks for being on the Phile and good luck with your graduation and college. Go ahead and plug your website, Facebook and Twitter, and please come back again.

Bree: Check out all my music, videos and events facebook.com/breerosemusic or go to my twitter @ Killerbreee! Also make sure to look at youtube.com/breerosemusic.

There you go, kids, another entry of the Phile done. Thanks to my guests Jeff Trelewicz and Bree Rose. Alright, there's no Phile tomorrow as I did it today instead. Tomorrow we are going back to Star Wars Weekends at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The Phile will be back Monday with Alumni Marc Savoie from Infinity-Lane Highway. Then next Sunday it's the 500th entry with rock legend Dion. Then on Monday it's Alumni Mike Finnigan from Phantom Blues Band. Spread the word, not the turd. Don't let snakes and alligators bite you. Bye, love you, bye.