Disco

One Halloween, when singer Robin Gibbens was 6 or 7, he couldn't decide whether he wanted to be disco icon Andy Gibb or KISS guitarist Ace Frehley. In a move that would later prove prophetic, Gibbens opted to be both. "I ended up making my dad buy me an Andy Gibb and an Ace Frehley costume," Gibbens said. "I went out that year with Ace Frehley's outfit and an Andy Gibb mask ... Ace Gibb." These days, Gibbens is still mixing hard rock and disco, albeit in a more kitschy way. Gibbens is the lead singer of Tragedy, the world's premier all-metal Bee Gees tribute band.

Fans of Annapolis native and longtime local leading man David Bosley-Reynolds can catch his Olympian performance as Zeus along with his dual role as solid businessman Danny Maguire in Toby's Baltimore Dinner Theatre's area premiere of "Xanadu. " Always charismatic — beginning with the Chesapeake Music Hall, the Annapolis dinner theater that closed in 2004 — Bosley-Reynolds' memorable performances included his nuanced characterization of Jud in "Oklahoma," his Cowardly Lion in "The Wizard of Oz," his Tevye in "Fiddler on the Roof" and his Fred Graham in "Kiss Me Kate" — the final Music Hall performance.

SEATTLE - It's flashback time in the land of Jimi Hendrix on the opening of what is believed to be the first serious exhibit of a musical and social phenomenon that, for better or worse, largely defined the '70s. Disco: A Decade of Saturday Nights runs through May 26 at Experience Music Project, a jury-rigged rock 'n' roll museum in the thin shadow of the Space Needle. The exhibit seeks to lend disco the dignity it failed to attain during its heyday. "Disco at its inception was an underground phenomenon, and it became more mainstream than any pop style before or since," said San Francisco music critic Barry Walter, an adviser to the exhibit.

Peter Falk had a fine career on the stage and in feature films. His crazed comic performance in "The In-Laws" alone would guarantee a major appreciation from film critics and scholars. But it is his network television work in the 1970s as a modest, sly, stub-of-a-cigar-smoking detective in a well-worn wreck of a trench coat for which he will be fondly remembered and celebrated for years to come. Falk, who died at his Beverly Hills home Thursday at age 83, gave life to a fictional detective named Lt. Columbo who was and is one of the only American crime solving characters who can rival the best in British detective fiction.

It's something I do from time to time when I'm either bored or stressed out: I go to my own disco. The ambience - pretty people, swirling lights, mirrored balls - is all imaginary. But the music is real. I just crank up the surround-sound speakers and dance and sweat around the living room. My best friend worries about me. She says I should get out and do this more often in real clubs among real people - you know, mix; be social. I get out to clubs when I'm the mood. But I often have more fun in my own boogie wonderland.

The Yak found this gem of an idea in "Reader's Digest Tricks & Treats: The Ultimate Halloween Book" by Deborah Harding. It looks like Cinderella's coach. It also reminds the Yak of a disco ball. Yeah, baby, it's a disco pumpkin!What you need:* A nicely rounded pumpkin* Gold and/or silver metallic floral spray paint (sold at craft stores)* 1 package of glitter* 1 package of fake jewels* Craft or school glueWhat to do:1. Wash your pumpkin and dry it carefully with a soft cloth or paper towel.

IT'S ANOTHER example of life coming full circle. Beginning Monday, John "Kinderman" Taylor, who swears that "disco is not dead," will teach ballroom and disco dancing lessons at Slayton House. Taylor, 64, stars in the children's television program "It's Kindertime," which airs Saturday mornings on WMAR-TV (Channel 2). Next year, he hopes to gain national attention through syndication of his show. "I want to get to a point where people know me, and I can teach techniques for movement and music and relaxing and leaving love with the children," Taylor said.

It's understandable that Studio 54 would inspire a spate of books and movies. The legendary New York nightclub came to define the excesses, self-indulgence, self-destruction and, yes, the fun of the late 1970s and early 1980s.Populated by movie stars, models and now-forgotten glitterati, all of whom throbbed in a drug-induced paroxysm of ecstasy to an infectious disco beat, the super-boite of the Me Decade is ideal fodder for a movie."54" is not that movie. "Boogie Nights" was more audaciously stylish; Whit Stillman's "The Last Days of Disco" had more heart.

THERE COMES A time when you have to get physical with your fluorescent lights, when you have to slap them around. I found this out when the fluorescent light in the laundry room went disco on me. This once calm and steady source of illumination suddenly turned hyper. It flickered, producing the kind of intermittent, strobe-effect lighting found in disco-dance joints and in secret-police interrogation rooms.After spending a few minutes under the annoying light, I was willing to confess to any offense (Yes, I voted for bond amendments without reading them!

LIMA, Peru - A fire-juggling act in a dangerously crowded nightclub went awry early yesterday and ignited a blaze that left at least 24 people dead and dozens more injured. Most of the people who perished were young adults who died of asphyxiation as they tried to flee the flames at Utopia, an unlicensed disco that had been built recently and that didn't have fire alarms, sprinklers or properly marked emergency exits, authorities said. The fire started about 3 a.m. and spread quickly through the four-story disco in the Surco district of Lima.

Have you heard the one about the woman with the ham in the grocery store? It goes like this: A portly woman wearing an overcoat is walking down a supermarket aisle when a full-size ham falls out of her coat and lands on the floor. Fearing she'd be caught shoplifting, the woman looks around and yells, "Who threw that ham at me?" The story, which has gone around for years, was the basis for the new single by B-52s frontman Fred Schneider. Schneider filmed the music video for the song "Who Threw That Ham At Me?"

One Halloween, when singer Robin Gibbens was 6 or 7, he couldn't decide whether he wanted to be disco icon Andy Gibb or KISS guitarist Ace Frehley. In a move that would later prove prophetic, Gibbens opted to be both. "I ended up making my dad buy me an Andy Gibb and an Ace Frehley costume," Gibbens said. "I went out that year with Ace Frehley's outfit and an Andy Gibb mask ... Ace Gibb." These days, Gibbens is still mixing hard rock and disco, albeit in a more kitschy way. Gibbens is the lead singer of Tragedy, the world's premier all-metal Bee Gees tribute band.

Donna Summer With her sassy lyrics and brassy sound, Donna Summer rose to the top during the disco era, winning Grammys and racking up hits. Her singles "Bad Girls" and "She Works Hard For the Money" became anthems for women in the '70s, and after the debut of Crayons in May, she hopes to get a whole new generation grooving to her music. The Queen of Disco takes the stage at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Pier Six Pavilion, 731 Eastern Ave. Tickets are $29-$75. Call 410-783-4189 or go to piersixpavilion.

You'll find them in the club. No, not single 20-somethings imbibing alcohol while grinding to 50 Cent past the stroke of midnight. Instead, you'll find children younger than 7 sipping on organic juice boxes, munching on carrot sticks and bouncing to the disco hit "Funkytown" in the middle of the afternoon. The parents? They'll enjoy a casual beer or a glass of wine before hitting the dance floor. This is what you'll find at Baby Loves Disco - a departure from routine playground visits and large crowds at child-oriented, arena stage shows.

Flash back to the '70s, with emphasis on the flash. That's one way of describing the "Limelight Gala" at The Hippo. Several hundred guests crammed the nightclub to see four "disco divas" strut their stuff and belt out their hits from that era - all to raise money for Light Health & Wellness, a nonprofit that helps Baltimore youth and families who are affected by HIV/AIDS. The cause is particularly near and dear to one of those "divas," Debbie Jacobs-Rock, the organization's executive director.

Disco Dojo sounds more like an exotic recipe than a fitness class blending "a medley of martial arts with dance for the ultimate cardio workout." This, according to a fitness convention brochure, is "where ninja meets funk, tae kwon do meets salsa, and kickboxing meets jazz." First there was cardio fusion. Then spinning fusion and yoga fusion. Now meet martial-arts fusion. Sparked by a growing infatuation with mixed martial arts (featuring different fighting styles) competitions and a desire for more athletically challenging classes, fitness instructors are blending traditional fighting moves with aerobic routines, dance steps -- even yoga.

DOWNTOWN LILLEHAMMER, Norway -- Disco lives on the Storgata, Lillehammer's Bourbon Street on ice.But the polyester suits have been replaced by ski pants and sweaters. Donna Summer is no longer big, but John Travolta will never be forgotten.Ah, ah, ah, ah, stayin' alive, stayin' alive. . . ."Disco is big, especially among the older men who are divorced or single," said Adelheid Wiegand, 20, of Lillehammer. "What are the best pickup lines? There have been no pickup lines since the Olympics started.

It has been a decade and a half since the Village People had its last hit record. The 1979 bonfire of thousands of disco records after a baseball game at Comiskey Park in Chicago is now ancient history.Yet disco songs have been turning up with striking regularity of ++ late in movie soundtracks and beer commercials. Gloria Estefan performs "Everlasting Love" and "Turn the Beat Around" on her current album of purported pop standards, and both songs have been big hits. Donna Summer and Barry White (yes, that Barry White)

Hometown -- Baltimore Current members --Todd Smith, vocals; Jasan Stepp, guitar; Brian White, bass; Jeff Siegel, keyboard; John Ensminger, drums Founded in --2002 Style --progressive metal rock Influenced by --System of a Down, Tool, Clutch, Frank Zappa Notable --The band released its most recent album, Adultery, in the spring of 2006, and recently decided to call it quits. Some of the members will continue to write together, and the band will perform one final show at Sonar on Saturday.