Hagar

Despite limited cult success the first time around, the animated 1981 film "Heavy Metal" returned to theaters yesterday with remastered soundtrack and color.When first released, the film, a spinoff of the Heavy Metal comic book published by the National Lampoon organization, followeda mini-wave of post-'60s adult animation led by Ralph Bakshi's "Fritz the Cat." "Heavy Metal" consists of six short science-fiction stories, each drawn by a different group of animators, but all sharing an emphasis on sex, drugs and rock and roll.

On May 26, 2005, DANIEL "Dan"CHERVENAK, of Jacksonville, FL. He is remembered by his family and friends with love, compassion and joy that he's at peace and in the presence of our Almighty Father. Dan was a wonderful, caring and engaging person, regularly volunteering at Habitat for Humanity and charitable activities sponsored by Christ Church of Mandarin where he was a member. He could always be counted on to help a friend in need. Even through his death, his organs were donated to help others live healthier, happier, more productive lives.

Just announced The Metris 15th annual Benefit Concert for Cystic Fibrosis, starring Alan Jackson, will be held Sept. 13 at the Baltimore Arena. Also appearing are the Hard Travelers. Tickets go on sale at noon June 29. Call 410-481-SEAT. "Four Kings of Rhythm and Blues" tour, starring Jerry Butler, Gene Chandler, Ben E. King and Lloyd Price, makes a stop at Constitution Hall in Washington Aug. 17. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. today. Also, a second show for Maxwell's performance there has been added for Aug. 1. Call 410-481-SEAT.

Oysterback, Maryland.--Fresh dispatches from the Oysterback Bugeye:More than a hundred people attended the 17th Annual Oysterback Mosquito Festival this month, breaking all records for attendance. Special thanks to Joey Buttafuoco, this year's Celebrity Host, for being the finish line for all those hungry skeeters. . .In other show biz news, don't forget the big dance recital over to Patti's Christian School of Tap and Ballet Saturday at 2 over to Wallopsville. Crystal Tiffany Hackett, 16, will be doing her tap interpretations of ''Teen-age Girls in the Old Testament.

For Van Halen, the stars seemed aligned for a triumphant 2007. Next month, the group will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the plan was to follow that with a summer reunion tour that would feature David Lee Roth back at the mike for the first time since the Reagan years. But, once again, the backstage soap opera of Van Halen is the story of the day. The Van Halen tour has been "shut down," according to a top official at Live Nation, the huge concert promoter that finally surrendered in the face of the chaos surrounding guitar hero Eddie Van Halen.

It must be hard for David Lee Roth to accept what has become of his career.Once the leader of the greatest post-Led Zeppelin rock 'n' roll band in the world -- Van Halen -- Roth has now been relegated to the musical B-team and is even being upstaged in the minor leagues by upstarts like Cinderella and Extreme, who opened his show last night at Merriweather Post Pavilion.Last night's effort from "Diamond Dave" was nothing short of pathetic.Roth gave his solo music and the hallowed classics of Van Halen such poor readings that it was easy to believe he would stop halfway through the show and say it was all a bad joke.

Dying's easy. Comedy's hard.We were reminded of that aphorism of the stage with the news that Gary Larson, creator of the immensely popular cartoon strip, "The Far Side," was retiring at age 44. After 15 years of the daily grind, Mr. Larson said he feared that if he continued much longer his work would "ease into the Graveyard of Mediocre Cartoons."For those not familiar with Mr. Larson's body of work, they were like any of the best newspaper funnies in that they brightened the day a bit. What made his different was that the reader often found himself wondering, "Who thinks up this stuff?"

Despite serious concerns about their artistic integrity, members of the Seldon Plan agreed to crank up the volume on their latest album. The Baltimore-based band had a good reason: They want your attention. And so does everybody else. That's because studio engineers are pushing the envelope on technology that makes recordings sound louder than ever before - ensnaring listeners in an audio arms race dubbed "The Loudness Wars." "The level of compact discs went up about 20 decibels in 20 years," observed Bob Katz, chief mastering engineer of Digital Domain, a sound studio in Florida.

Oysterback, Maryland. -- It was hot for June, one of those blank, humid days that come during a long dry spell. The dust lay on the road and in the fields, coating the limp and thirsty soybeans with clay grit. It was so hot that the usual collection of retired watermen and farmers had moved themselves outside of Omar Hinton's store and on to the old wooden benches under the shade of the overhang, hoping to catch the memory of a breeze from the distant river.Omar himself had come out and taken a seat, next to Hardee Swann.

Last week, 17-year-old Lawrence Poirier told his best friend, Michael Patterson, that he was gay. Similar scenes take place regularly these days -- but not in Lawrence's neighborhood.Lawrence lives on more than 1,400 comics pages nationwide in Lynn Johnston's "For Better or For Worse." His immediate neighbors often include "Marmaduke," "Doonesbury" and mucho macho "Rex Morgan, M.D."In "For Better or For Worse," he lives near Elly and John Patterson and their three children, Michael, Lizzie and April.