Remember this little movie in the early 80s starring a couple of young actors named Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy? It had something to do with a game called Global Thermonuclear War. Yep, I’m talking about WarGames!

Just as you were planning to relive your youth by checking out Pat Benatar at the OC Fair on August 1, now you can also catch WarGames in theaters! On July 24, 2008, the movie will be played in several theaters around Orange County in celebration of the upcoming release of a special 25th anniversary edition DVD.

The catch is that each theater will have just one showing, so if you want to go, best make those plans now and buy your tickets in advance. Participating theaters include: Irvine Spectrum, The Block, Tustin Legacy 14, Huntington Beach 20, Orange Stadium Promenade 25, Brea 22 East and the Garden Grove 16. Shows are at 7:30 P.M. and tickets are $10 each. Tickets can be purchased in advance through Fandango (except for The Block and Tustin Legacy 14).

[Image courtesy of Fandango.]

I’m not quite as fond of this year’s theme as I was of last year’s “Cowabunga!” but it will have to do.

Yes my friends, it’s that time of year again when we can drink large vats of lemonade and gorge on fried Twinkies! The OC Fair!

The fun begins on July 11 (and keeping with tradition, the first hour admission from noon to 1pm is freeeee!) until August 3rd. There are lots of other admission promotions, like free Kids Days on Tuesdays and July 23 from noon-6pm where you can donate five cans of food in exchange for admission. Go here to get the lowdown on all of them.

There are also some great concerts this year, including Paramore and Jack’s Mannequin, Seal, Emmylou Harris, MercyMe, Yaz and the Psych Furs, Dropkick Murphys, Fergie, B.B. King, Pat Benetar, the Scorpions and many more. Go here for the full concert schedule.

All in all, barring some sort of freakishly hot weather, which can never be discounted as a possibilty, it should be a good time.

I am just crossing my fingers that this year they repeat the excellent concept of placing all the children’s activities in a nice, cool tent. That was pure genius.

I know the news is a day old, but the NHL suspended Ducks owner Henry Samueli after he pleaded guilty to backdating of options.While the team states that this “will not change the day-to-day operations of the team and the Samueli’s can still attend games as fans,” Henry cannot have a say in the operations of the team while under the leagues suspension. So readers, I ask you, should Henery Samueli remain as the owner of the Anaheim Ducks: 

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If you were in the area of Anaheim looking toward the heavens Tuesday afternoon, you may have seen this! I was going to embed the video right into the page - but alas it seems our shiny new web site disagrees with YouTube’s embeding code. *sigh*

That’s right, those are Green Army Men parachuting into the toilet bowl blue waters at Paradise Pier inside Disney’s California Adventure. All of this was in celebration of the grand opening of Toy Story Midway Mania at the resort. The Mouse really put his best foot forward with this presentation, there was even a special video message sent from Buzz Lightyear and his fellow human astronauts from the International Space Station. That’s right, they are even promoting the opening of this new attraction in friggin’ outer space! So take that Pony Express/X2/Simpsons!

All right, so this time it isn’t exactly a free coffee or chicken sandwich of unknown quality.

This time, it’s all about getting free legal advice.

It’s called Law Day 2008, and it’s being held at Whittier College in Costa Mesa this Saturday, the 31st. Go here to get the full details. It is being sponsored by Legalzoom.com (co-founded by none other than Robert Shapiro. Yes, that Robert Shapiro.)

From divorce cases to trusts to your neighbor’s rooster crowing at all hours of the morning, it’s your opportunity to get some advice from a laywer without a retainer being involved.

Which, methinks, is a bit of a better deal than an ice cream cone.

Although some people may disagree with me on that one.

It isn’t bad enough that the ticket brokers go ahead and take the best concert tickets, leaving it so that even if you are “first” to get tickets, the best are already gone.

No, the Orange County Fair directors have to step in and take their unfair share as well.

The LA Times reported that Fair directors get up to twenty-six premimum orchestra tickets apiece. That compares to the four they get in LA county, and those are in the bleacher sections. And the biggest winner? Deborah Carona, wife of our esteemed former Sheriff, with 1,100 tickets over the past two years.

And this is when in three of the past five years, the concert series has lost money. Gee, I wonder why.

State regulators are urging the directors to change the policy, but the President of the board states, “It isn’t an easy thing to work out.”

Oh, how so?

Stop giving yourself so many freebies.

Sounds pretty easy to me.

Today from 7am til 10-:30 pm, if you buy a medium or large drink, McDonald’s will give you one of their new chicken breakfast biscuits.

Then, from 10:30am to 7pm, they will do the same with their new Southern style chicken sandwich.

I can’t vouch for the taste or quality, but it’s free.  Sorta.

Yes my friends, it is that time again. I was dreading this one a bit because Huntington Beach has so much, but here goes…

Much of the mineral rights in Huntington Beach are owned by the Huntington Beach Company, which is also still a major landowner.

Did you know that Old World Village has Dachsund races?

Surf City Nights are held on Tuesdays from 5-9pm. They close down part of Main St. and feature a farmers market, music, crafts, and stuff for the kiddos.

The Huntington Beach Public Library was designed by Richard and Dion Neutra.

Cattle ran free and barley was grown on the land that is now HB.

The world’s second oldest disc golf (or frisbee golf for the old-skool crowd) is in Huntington’s Central Park.

Punkers The Offspring and The Vandals are from HB, and the lead singer of the Aquabats lives there too. Oh, and a dude from KORN owns a steakhouse on Main St. and lives in the city as well.

Jason Lee from “My Name is Earl” grew up went to Ocen View HS in HB.

HB has the largest stretch of uninterrupted beachfront coastline on the West Coast, at eight miles. Something to be proud of, for sure.

Apparently, from the FAQ section on the HB City website, the Huntington Beach Libaray tends to get mixed up with that other Huntington Library.

According to the HB website “Surf, sand, sun and subtle sophistication encapsulate what the City of Huntington Beach is all about.” But one of the next sentences says, “…the unofficial dress code has become a mix of wetsuits, bikinis and sandals accessorized by volleyballs, surf boards and beach towels.” Oh yes, sophistication personified!

Despite recent downsizing, Boeing is still one of the major employers in HB.

Smoking is prohibited on the beach and pier.

The HB pier is 1,853 feet long.

The first US Surfing Championships were held in HB in 1959.

Huntington Beach is now officially Surf City, beating Santa Cruz in a lawsuit for the title. It’s also the city motto. It wins points for exclusivity, but it doesn’t inspire me.

On April 29, Ben and Jerry’s will be having their “Free Cone” day! If you visit between the hours of noon and eight pm, you’ll get a free cone of your choice! And if it is as hot as it has been these past few days, talk about good timing!

Word has it the unofficial opening of the new Monorail Mark VII will be this Friday, 04/25/2008.  Disneyland Park Guests will have the first opportunity to hop aboard OC’s most advanced transit system and travel the 2.8 mile route in style. Of course some of us may have already ridden it a couple of times [insert coy look and sly grin here].

The new train features indoor recessed mood lighting (think Virgin America) and expensive sporty red color-change paint that transitions depending on how the light reflects off of it.  There’s also been a seating change – no more sitting across, on these new trains you’ll be facing outward with a fantastic view of the Parks.

Not only is the Monorail the fastest attraction in Disneyland it also serves the purpose of transporting guests from Point A in Tomorrowland to Point B in Downtown Disney.  Don’t you wish it went other places in Orange County?  You’re not alone. Mayor of Anaheim (and ass-hat extraordinaire) Curt Pringle wants to see the monorail connect to the proposed transit hub near Angel stadium. Check out the details here.

Here are a few tips if you’re feeling adventurous and want to take a tour on the Highway in the Sky this Friday:

• Be patient.  There will be lines. Don’t underestimate the attraction’s popularity.

• Be courteous. A long line can be an unpleasant place when you’re feuding with the folks in front of you. Cutting and holding spots in line really annoys people around you.

• Follow instructions.  When a Cast member asks you to slide all the way down you should, you know, do that.  This is not private seating, get used to the idea that your hips will be touching a stranger’s hips. You’re gonna get real friendly with 108 strangers fairly quickly. 

• Don’t ask to sit in front (at least for now).  Under normal circumstances Cast Members will be accommodating if you request to ride in front, but during a busy time such as this you may just want to content yourself with standard seating and save the request for a later date. 

• Be flexible. One way trips may be in effect (meaning you’ll have to get off at Downtown Disney and re-board).  Go with the flow and for the love of Sheba, if you’re asked to disembark please do so. 

• Be understanding.  This is a new train in its soft opening.  It may not be running.  It may stop running and return to the Roundhouse suddenly.  If you don’t get on, try and buck up and take it like a trooper.  If you’re feeling blue, just remember that feelings are like treasures – so bury them. 

• Pay attention.  Then come back to the Metroblog and give us a trip report in the comments!

If you miss Monorail Red, don’t fret, the new Monorail Blue is already in the roundhouse getting ready to make a summertime debut. See you in the Park!