THUR 10/16: Prez Doc, Space Talk, BBW Theatre, Time Rock

Okay, everyone... The Red Sox have their backs against the wall again. I think we need to get Ortiz out of his slump with The Papi Pound. Wherever you're watching the game tonight, get everyone to do clap along with Big Papi. Go Sox!

If you can't bear to watch (or aren't interested), here's some other stuff going on tonight...

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THUR 10/16

7pm
Political Film Series: "Jimmy Carter, Man From Plains"
at CAS 313, College of Arts & Sciences Bldg, 725 Comm Ave, Boston (BU campus)
FREE

A couple years ago, Jimmy Carter (our best ex-president), wrote a book called "Palestine Peace Not Apartheid". Believe it or not, he was castigated as an anti-Semite for even suggesting that Israel may need to treat Palestinains more fairly to achieve peace. This is footage taken from the book tour, and it should give a reasonable glimpse of his perspective. Feel free to agree or disagree...

Directed by Jonathan Demme ("Stop Making Sense", "The Silence of the Lambs", "Philadelphia", etc), you know this will be a well-crafted, honest, and -- yes -- sympathetic representation.

THUR 10/16

7:30 pm
Mark Reid, "Measuring the Universe": Lecture & Observatory Night
at Phillips Auditorium, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden St, Cambridge (between Porter Sq and Fresh Pond)
FREE

How do we know the distance to celestial objects? If you didn't take astronomy or fell asleep that day, here's another chance for a layman's explanation. Unlike my astronomy classes, there will be stargazing afterwards, if the weather allows -- but it looks like it could be cloudy tonight.

THUR 10/16

8pm
Big Moves, "Hot Buffet (a dystopian musical satire)"
at Cambridge YMCA Theater, 820 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
$10 suggested minimum (Pay-What-You-Can Night)

This sounds like a weird, Orwellian story about food with lots of song and dance sprung from the minds of Boston's plus-sized burlesque troupe. This is definitely not what you'd call family fun for ages 8 to 80 -- the description I read included a note stating: "for mature audiences only, owing to adult themes and partial nudity." Weird, but intriguing to some of you. No?

The show runs this weekend and next weekend for $15 and up. You can check it out tonight for however much you can afford, but they ask for minimum donation of $10.

THUR 10/16

9:30pm
The Campaign For Real Time, Schaffer The Darklord, Televandals, DJ Ken Cmar
at Great Scott, 1222 Comm Ave, Allston
$9 / 18+

Campaign For Real Time are the Rock 'n Roll Rumble champions of 2006; but this is a band of time-travelers, so they might still be winners in their minds. C4RT wouldn't be wrong, because they still/will/did rock with synthy flavor. It's the music of the very near future! Televandals also mix rock with the darkly romantic new wave influence that makes me think of Bauhaus. I mean that in a good way.

I don't know what the deal is with mixing hip-hop and comedy, but Schaffer the Darklord is pretty friggin' funny. It's nerdcore rap with a horror edge; it's best to see and hear him.

Ken Cmar from Wonderdrug Records provides the between-set tuneage.