"Hung" -- After losing his wife and his house, a financially strapped high school coach in Detroit turns to the world's oldest profession to help make money. That may sound like a bleak premise, but the jokes are funny, the writing is tight, Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane) -- the well-endowed coach -- is likable and his unlikely pimp, Tanya (played by Jane Adams) seizes the opportunity to market the coach's asset. Even though Ray isn't playing by the rules, you find yourself rooting for him. --Drew Olson
"Tribute To" by Yim Yames -- I just told Milwaukee's Louie Lucchesi that it was refreshing to see his cover band Brother Louie play non-standard covers at Summerfest. The unexpected cover is always the best one, if you ask me. That's partially why I really like Yim Yames' six-song "Tribute To" disc, due out Aug. 4 on ATO Records. Yames is Jim James of My Morning Jacket and the acoustic EP is a salute to the late, great George Harrison. But you'd only guess at one of the songs Yames chose ("My Sweet Lord"). And it its precisely because you don't expect to hear him play "Long Long Long," "Love You To," "Behind That Locked Door," "All Things Must Pass" and "Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)" that it's so refreshing to hear him do it. That and because Yames' versions are sparse, letting the quality of the songwriting shine through. Yames is smart enough to know that he's unlikely to make "Here Comes the Sun" or "Something" his own, instead he brings his plaintive voice to lesser-known tunes and by doing so pays appropriate tribute to a talented Beatle that also always stood in the shadow of those more famous. --Bobby Tanzilo
"Too Fat to Fish" -- You don't have to be a Howard Stern fan to appreciate this autobiography from his sidekick, Artie Lange. It helps, of course. If you only know Lange from his bawdy, boorish appearance on "Joe Buck Live," you might be predisposed to dislike him and, by extension, this book. If you go into it with an open mind, though, you'll find it to be a raw, revealing portrait of a funny guy with dangerous addictions, an interesting backstory and a funny way of presenting his foibles. Reading this book makes you wish that John Belushi and Chris Farley had done something similar. It also makes you hope that Lange can avoid meeting a similar fate. --D.O.
Turner Classic Movies -- Exhausted after an extended weekend involving Summerfest, Fourth of July celebrations, house and yard maintenance and shopping, I was in the mood to plop down on the couch last night and watch a movie. It's rather rare that I get a chance to catch an entire movie these days, so it came as a bummer-ridden surprise that the three Netflix DVDs I had at home were about a month old and had long-since been watched but not returned (I'm probably Netflix's favorite customer.) Still determined to rest my body and brain in front of the boob tube, I flipped through the usual basic cable suspects - CNN, Comedy Central, MTV - and landed on Turner Classic Movies. They were having Meryl Streep marathon, during which I caught "Kramer vs. Kramer" and "Sophie's Choice," but fell asleep before "French Lieutenant's Woman." Later this month, I noticed they are playing a series called "39 From 1939: Hollywood's greatest Year," during which they'll play films from that time like "The Wizard of Oz," "Of Mice and Men," "Gone With the Wind" and many more. Summer isn't exactly movie season around my house, but for those late nights with nothing better to do, these classic movies are fun. --Julie Lawrence
"Electric Dirt" -- Levon Helm, formerly of The Band, has one of the more distinctive voices in rock, and he's still using it at age 69. Helm's latest CD is a loose (in a good way) collection of instant classics. Check out the remake of The Grateful Dead's "Tennessee Jed," and you'll get an idea of what the album is about. Allen Toussaint arranged the horns and there are some excellent moments on this disc. --D.O.
Crave Brothers Farmstead Classics fresh mozzarella medallions -- We go through a lot of fresh mozzarella in our house. We use it on pizzas and in summer we make a caprese salad at least once a week. Once the tomatoes come in, we eat it more often than that. Some great fresh mozz -- worlds away from the blocks of bland white cheese that's based on aged mozzarella -- comes from right here in Wisconsin, including these medallions (flat ovals) from Crave Brothers in Waterloo, made from milk from corn- and alfalfa-fed cows. I tried it in a caprese salad last weekend and it held its own amid the fresh basil, Roma tomatoes and olive oil. This sweet, milky mozzarella is so alluring that it's hard not to eat it all straight out of the container while cooking with it. So, you won't be surprised to know that more than a couple medallions never made it to the salad! Crave Brothers also make a marinated version with oil and spices that is a perfect appetizer on its own or served with crusty bread -- toasted or not. --B.T.
Rold Gold pretzel rods -- Sometimes, you need to munch a salty snack while watching TV. Popcorn is too much work. Crackers are boring. The pretzel rod has that cigar quality and is great when dipped in peanut butter. --D.O.
