The Pantagraph from Bloomington, Illinois • Page 29

www.pantagraph.com The Pantagraph Thursday, June 21, 2012 D3 Abe stars in movie, at museum Movie producers check out lore mtMUINT (V DV. HI vr tV MI.IIT At a glance What "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" When: Midnight showings tonight, selected theaters; opens everywhere Friday Where: Galaxy 14 and Palace Cinemas, Bloomington; Stadium 14, Normal; Lincoln Theaters, Lincoln Information: www.foxmovies.com 1865. In the movie, Abe dispatches the undead via trusty ax, with the onscreen prop we see him using based on the design of that very same imple -ment on display in Springfield. Check it (and much more) out during the museum's regular hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

daily. Admission ranges from $6 to $12, with kids under 5 free. For more information, call 800-610-2094 orgotowww.alplm.org. By Dan Craft dcraftpantagraph.com SPRINGFIELD Visitors to Springfield's Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, located downtown at 212 N. Sixth won't find any memorabilia on display from "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter." However, notes communications coordinator David Blanchette, there is one true-life object that may be of particular interest to those taken in by the movie's pure fantasy.

Prior to filming, the producers visited the museum to bone up on their Lincoln lore, including the crucial matter of axes. One of the museum's prize possessions is the last ax that Lincoln wielded in life before his assassination in April mI I I i tmm 1 ABRAHAM LINCOLN VAMPIRE HUNTEKr- Like us on By Dan Craft dcraftepantagraph.com SPRINGFIELD -The blood-splattered, 3-D spectacle of Illinois' most famous son taking his trusty ax to the undead instead of log rails doesn't spook the museum bearing his name. Instead, "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter," the film version of Seth Gra-hame-Smith's 2010 novel opening this weekend, is being embraced by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum as an interest-stimulant. Or: If you pique it, they will come. Springfield's esteemed tourist destination already has the proof, courtesy a book signing by Grahame -Smith two years ago, shortly after the novel's release.

"It was the most people we've ever had for that kind of event," notes David Blanchette, the museum's communications coordinator. "There were 400 people, and the vast majority of them had never been to the museum before." The key consequence: "Since then, we've seen a lot of these same people come back to the museum. So it worked: using fantasy to pique the interest of a non-traditional audience, then hooking them with reality." Grahame -Smith, like Bram Stoker's seminal vampire opus "Dracula," presents his tale through a collection of writings, us -ing entries from the 16th president's "secret diaries." As it turns out, the Lincoln clan's ties to the undead are direct: A vampire 4 mm am imMmt j6i.aw's!aMg facebook.compantagraph The poster art for "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter," opening this weekend, incorporates Lincoln iconography to sell its premise of the 16th president as a credible horror movie hero. cause we think the movie is historically accurate," says Blanchette. "It is only accurate in the sense that there was once a man named Abraham Lincoln who was president during a thing called the Civil War." Still: "We think there are going to be many people go -ing to the movie and leave it wondering what the real Abe Lincoln was like, and we want to be in a position to answer that question," says Blanchette.

"We view this as a teaching opportunity." Moreover, he suggests, "Does it bother us because Lincoln is being portrayed as a superhero If you take a look at his life, it's not too far removed from that here was a guy who, among other things, was a famous wrestler, an inventor, a literary and political genius, a man capable of great compassion, and one of the driving forces that kept the country together when it was splitting apart at the seams." In short, says Blanchette: If Lincoln wasn a super -hero in real life he was pretty darned close." Ti Amu slew Abe's grandfather, and mother Nancy Hanks Lincoln's historically recorded 1818 death from "milk sickness" was, in fact, due to an injection of tainted blood. As for fiancee Anne Rut-ledge's eventual demise let's just say it follows a trend. Thus, in between pursuing business and political careers, the man in the stovepipe hat becomes a proactive crusader against America's infiltration by the undead, using his trusty ax to whack every vampire within range to pieces. Though the movie, produced (but not directed) by recent "Dark Shadows" purveyor Tim Burton, was filmed largely in New Orleans, the book's action doesn't ignore Lincoln's Illinois heritage. His New Salem moorings are part of the action.

And the Lincoln -Douglas debates are incorporated, but with a twist: Douglas is an ally of the vampires' Southern sect. Last February, the Springfield museum hosted a screening of the film's then-new trailer "not be- UwmrM Wynonna Judd marries drummer Cactus Moser NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Moser in a private family couple had been dating since III. US Weekly first reported the news. The Grammy-winning singer first gained fame as part of the duo The Judds with her mother Naomi.

Country singer Wynonna Judd has tied the knot. Her publicist, Todd Brod-ginski, confirms that she married drummer Cactus 2009. Judd divorced her sec -ond husband, D.R. Roach in 2007 after four years together. She has two children with her first husband, Arch Kelly ceremony on Sunday.

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JB050-12. VMO 5612 i07iow NATIONAL FORECAST -103 -08 Os 10s 20 30s 408 50s 60s 70s 80s 90s lOOsJ 110s 5-day forecast for BIoomington-Normal Monday Sunday Friday Today Saturday SeatliV- If "S3 1 Boston 7' )t i New York TBenveir I ST "A Mostly Sunny Winds NE 5-15 Hi 83 L0 59 Slight Chance of AM Storms Winds SWNW 5-15 Hi 85 L0 62 Mostly Sunny Winds NNW 5-10 Hi 84 L0 60 Partly Cloudy Winds NS 4-8 Hi 85 L0 65 Slight Chance of Storms Winds 5-12 Hi 87 L0 65 SK Wuls 1 IJ. LOS AflBPltK If Pribsnlk REGIONAL FORECAST UV INDEX 123456789 10 Rockford i. 8560 I 1 I It Houston A': an jk Jet Stream --immLS lChlcago X7 Miami I Min 1 Low I Mod I High NM 13V8564 National Extremes (Lower 48) High: 115 Death Valley, California The higher the UV index number, the greater the need for skin protection. 0 i Low: 23 Stanley, Idaho Quad-Cities 8360 i.y i- i.

oantiir -'NJwBloorfilnRton LOCAL ALMANAC Temperatures Yesterday's High 91 Yesterday's Low 73 Average High 84 Average Low 62 Record High 101 (1953) Record Low 44 (2003) Precipitation Last 24 hrs as of 4 pm 0.00" Month to Date 1.04" Month (Normal) 2.61" Year to Date 10.01" Year (Normal) 17.56" SKY WATCH (MKDO First Full Last New Jun26 Jul 3 JullO Jul 19 Today Rises Sets Sun 5:26 AM 8:30 PM Moon 7:25 AM 9:53 PM Looking to the northwest around 9 CJ 856, 8564 f-. rm SprlYigfleJd mmi. 8664 LJ F-t 7L NATIONAL CITIES WORLD CITIES City Hi Lo weather City HI Lo Weather City Hi Lo Weather Albany 96 70 SUNNY Little Rock 94 71 PTCLDY Acapulco 90 78 TCTRMS Albuquerque 90 67 WINDY Los Angeles 75 61 PTCLDY Athens 95 70 SUNNY Anchorage 72 52 MOCLDY Madison 82 58 PTCLDY Baghdad 112 80 SUNNY Atlanta 89 69 SUNNY Memphis 94 73 SUNNY Beijing 90 72 PTCLDY Baltimore 99 76 SUNNY Miami 88 77 SHWRS Berlin 70 59 SHWRS Billings 84 55 SUNNY Milwaukee 82 60 PTCLDY Bermuda 76 71 SHWRS Birmingham 91 67 SUNNY Minneapolis 77 61 SUNNY Buenos Aires 62 41 PTCLDY Bismarck 75 52 SUNNY Mobile 91 69 PTCLDY Cairo 95 73 SUNNY Boise 96 63 SUNNY New Orleans 91 74 PTCLDY Cancun 86 75 TSTRMS Boston 95 74 SUNNY New York 98 78 SUNNY Dublin 65 46 PTCLDY Buffalo 87 65 SUNNY Oklahoma City 87 68 MOCLDY Geneva 75 60 SHWRS Charlotte 93 71 SUNNY Omaha 83 59 SUNNY Havana 86 73 TSTRMS Cheyenne 79 54 SUNNY Orlando 88 75 SHWRS Hongkong 88 82 TSTRMS Chicago 85 64 TSTRMS Philadelphia 98 77 SUNNY Jerusalem 90 65 SUNNY Cincinnati 90 68 PTCLDY Phoenix 113 83 VRYHOT London 70 55 SHWRS Cleveland 90 65 TSTRMS Pittsburgh 89 67 MOCLDY Madrid 88 63 MOSUNY Columbia, SC 91 68 SUNNY Portland, OR 80 57 PTCLDY MexicoCity 74 57 TSTRMS Dallas 95 74 MOCLDY Raleigh 95 70 SUNNY Montreal 92 70 PTCLDY Daytona Beach 85 76 TSTRMS Rapid City 82 54 SUNNY Moscow 75 54 MOSUNY Denver 83 58 SUNNY Reno 91 56 WINDY New Delhi 109 86 SUNNY Des Moines 83 62 SUNNY Sacramento 79 54 SUNNY Oslo 68 50 MOSUNY Detroit 88 63 TSTRMS St. Louis 90 70 TSTRMS Paris 77 54 TSTRMS Duluth 72 52 PTCLDY Salt Lake City 94 67 SUNNY Rio De Janeiro 88 73 PTCLDY Fairbanks 78 50 SUNNY San Antonio 92 73 MOCLDY Rome 88 68 SUNNY Fargo 76 54 PTCLDY San Diego 68 62 MOCLDY Seoul 88 68 PTCLDY Honolulu 85 73 SUNNY San Francisco 64 53 PTCLDY Singapore 90 79 TSTRMS Houston 92 72 PTCLDY Seattle 76 56 PTCLDY Sydney 66 46 MOSUNY Indianapolis 92 66 PTCLDY Spokane 87 59 SUNNY Tokyo 83 70 MOCLDY Jackson, MS 93 67 SUNNY Tampa 88 76 TSTRMS Toronto 90 65 PTCLDY Juneau 64 47 MOCLDY Topeka 86 61 PTCLDY Vancouver 70 56 MOCLDY Kansas City 85 62 PTCLDY Tucson 108 75 VRYHOT Vienna 87 69 PTCLDY Las Vegas 108 85 SUNNY Washington 98 78 PTCLDY Warsaw 82 59 TSTRMS ri.r- i-' i i a 1 is p.m. tonight you will see a thin crescent moon.

Just above the moon is Mercury. Mercury goes through phases like the moon. POLLEN FORECAST Tree if SOURCE: McDonnell Planetarium, SI. Louis Forecast and Graphics provided by: WEATHER HISTORY 1972: Scattered thunderstorms produced heavy rain in parts of the Desert Southwest. Phoenix, Arizona picked up 1.64 inches of rain, which set a monthly rainfall record for June.

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