Rita Dove is one of the premier contemporary poets of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Her book of poetry "American Smooth" won national acclaim. In this poem she takes us back to an evening in 1940, when Hattie McDaniel of "Gone with the Wind" fame became the first African-American to receive an Academy Award.

Here's your second Big Show diary entry, written by senior Andrea Park. Big Show, the annual showcase of student-written and -directed comedy skits, is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the North Attic Playhouse. Look for the two remaining entries by Anna Cangellaris and Anna Gooler this weekend.

Epic action adventure movies are fairly common nowadays, so to be worth watching, a new one has to be exceptional in some way. In the case of "Beowulf," director Robert Zemeckis has used motion-capture technology to give the legendary hero a 21st-century look. Jack Snyder watched the recently released DVD and came away impressed, though with a few reservations.

The Langston Hughes poem "Let America Be America Again" has become one of the most famous products of the Harlem Renaissance. Though written 70 years ago, can anything be more relevant than these lines? "Out of the rack and ruin of our gangster death/ The rape and rot of graft, and stealth, and lies,/ We, the people, must redeem/ The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers./ The mountains and the endless plain —/ All, all the stretch of these great green states —/ And make America again!"

Starting today the Gargoyle will present a series of diary entries by four members of this year's Big Show. The annual showcase of student-written and -directed comedy skits is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the North Attic Playhouse. Senior Carl Zielinski starts off the diary today; look for other entries later this week by Andrea Park, Anna Cangellaris, and Anna Gooler.

"The Forbidden Kingdom" unites kung fu superstars Jackie Chan and Jet Li in their first movie together. It also provides a new twist on the Chinese legend of the Monkey King. Do Chan and Li live up to the hype, or is there something left to be desired? The discriminating Danny Ge gives his verdict.

Thirty-five comedy sketches: That's what you'll have to feast on if you go to Big Show '08 this weekend, and we know you will! Rachel Skoza gets the lowdown from directors Anna Cangellaris and Eunice How. Check inside for all the details, including a list of skits to be performed. All the money raised from ticket sales will go toward this year's X-Week charity, UC Books to Prisoners. Bring paperback dictionaries (any language, please!!), and you'll get a $2 discount!

"Hard Problems" is a documentary that focuses on six American high school students, including Uni's Alex Zhai, who make it to the highest level of math competition: the International Mathematical Olympiad. Check inside for Gordon Ruan's review to see what the documentary has to offer, even for those who don't consider themselves math aficionados.

After Black Ice, it's time to switch back to something more classical with Maya Angelou. In this beautiful poem, a heart-wrenching Angelou compares a free bird to the plight of a caged bird. She says that a free bird takes its freedom for granted while a caged bird struggles to discover life and freedom.

Need something exciting to make your day brighter? Look inside because we're featuring artist Black Ice today. He's sure to put a little pep in your step with his ill beats while simultaneously giving you some thoughts to chew on. He's another in a great line of African-American rappers, artists, and poets who are accessible but also provocative. Come back tomorrow for more great African-American poetry.

In the summer of 2002, something referred to as the "plague" destroys every sperm, fetus, and mammal with a Y chromosome, with the apparent exception of struggling magician Yorick and his male capuchin monkey, Ampersand. So begins "Y: The Last Man," a series of graphic novels that Katherine Allen calls riveting and provocative.

It's very clear that a large part of the literary canon is made up of work from African-American writers. In keeping with that, this week we will feature poetry written by African-American poets. From the Harlem Renaissance to modern spoken word and rap, blacks in America have had a huge impact on the poetry world. Check out this poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar, one of the early black poets in America.

Last week "Iron Man" opened the summer blockbuster movie season, making more than $100 million and getting decent reviews. This week "Speed Racer" and "What Happens in Vegas" will try to dethrone the comic book superhero. Carl, Kumars, Laura, and Gordon have the rest of the week in entertainment.

Today's poem is especially cute and funny because it's about the beauty in toads. "Ungainly Things" by Robert Wallace is a celebration of all that is awkward, odd, uncommon, and generally considered ugly, and the power that art has to change all of that. So look inside to read about an artist and the power he has to transform ungainly things into things of beauty.

Senior Aliisa Rantanen and junior Lor Sligar have won first and second prize, respectively, in the annual art contest sponsored by the Central Illinois Chapter of the National Society of Arts and Letters. Check inside to see their winning entries.