Soap opera fan meets cast, thanks to daughter

Soap opera fan meetscast, thanks to daughter
BOARDMAN -- Dani DeMarco recently gave her mother quite a birthday surprise -- a day on the set of her favorite television soap opera.
The Boardman High School senior set the whole thing in motion when she sent a letter to Dale Pulliam, producer of "General Hospital," explaining that the show is her mother's favorite. Dani and her mother, Debbie, watch the show together every day.
Dani said in her letter that she and her mom would consider it a "dream come true" if they could meet the cast of "GH." She noted that her birthday is in September and her mother's is in November.
Pulliam was so taken by the letter that he called Debbie DeMarco to invite her and Dani to a closed-set taping of the show.
The pair flew to Los Angeles Oct. 6 and spent the weekend there, said Debbie. On Oct. 7, Dani and her mother spent five hours on the set with the "GH" cast and crew.
Debbie called it "a trip she'll never forget."
Dani is no stranger to the stage. She is a member of the Boardman High Chorale, Jamie's Dance Force and is playing the role of Chip the Teacup in Boardman High theater department's current production, "Beauty and the Beast."
Christian rock bandsgiving area performances
ClearView, a Christian rock band that is currently on a national tour, will give three Mahoning Valley performances.
The band will be at Pleasant Valley Church, 2055 Pleasant Valley Road, Niles, on Sunday; Old North Church, 7105 Herbert Road, Canfield, on Wednesday; and Austintown Community Church, 242 S. Canfield-Niles Road, Austintown, on Oct. 20.
Also appearing as a special guest will be Kingsdown.
The ClearView performances are sponsored by TeenFusion. For more information, go to www.teenfusion.net or call Janyse Cain at (330) 518-5503.
Quote/Unquote
"My friend read that I had gotten a tattoo ... but it's a birthmark. ... I'm not cool enough to have a tattoo." -- Katie Holmes, in US Weekly.
"I layered my cousin's hair with tiny pedicure scissors, and it came out great. I'm a frustrated hairdresser -- it was always my backup career." -- Brittany Murphy, in People magazine.
"The director told me that I had to trim my chest hair. The studio said I've got way too much chest hair." -- Scott Caan, on getting into swimsuit shape for his movie, "Into the Blue," in People magazine.
All about college footballfor the true fanatic
College football is an American tradition. In some parts of the country, college teams are followed even more closely than their professional counterparts in the NFL. If you're a big college football fan, go online and check out some of these related Web sites:
X College Fight Songs Music (http://www.fightmusic.com/): Nothing says team spirit like a fight song. College Fight Songs Music features more than 640 songs from all the major athletic conferences including the ACC, Big Ten and SEC. The files on the site are saved as compressed MP3 files but you can order higher-quality CDs from the site.
X CollegeJersey.com is for the true fanatics out there. It sales used and game-worn collegiate football jerseys. You'll find many big-name NCAA Division 1-A schools represented, as well as a few Division 1-AA and Division II teams. The jerseys aren't cheap (most cost $149 and higher), however, and you probably won't recognize the names on the backs of some of them. But for fans who want a memento of their favorite team, game-worn jerseys are tough to beat.
Spooky soda
Jones Soda, famous for its infamous flavors -- like turkey and gravy (!) -- has come out with a limited-edition collection for Halloween. (Think: Liquefied Jelly Bellys.) The new line of sodas, available only at Target and in 8-ounce cans ($1.49 for a four-pack), comes in four flavors: Candy Corn, Caramel Apple, Strawberry Slime and Scary Berry Lemonade. The first two are brand-new flavors, made just for this release. The other two flavors are repackaged, but Scary Berry Lemonade gets a dose of fluorescent blue color to add to its "spook" factor. We imagine Candy Corn tasting like liquefied sugary goodness. Mmmm ... here's to Halloween!