PATRICK HALL 
The Wilson Post

“The Hunger Games” raked in tons of cash at the box office this past weekend, and while complaints about the teen violence seem to be racking up, too, the film presents a strong female heroine, robust characters hints at some major social commentary.

The film, which is based on the first in a trilogy of young-adult novels by Suzanne Collins and directed by Gary Ross, tells the story of a dystopian futuristic North America, now known as Panem. Collins, Ross and Billy Ray wrote the script for the movie. The nation is divided into a wealthy, decadent “Capitol” city and 12 dirt-poor districts that toil for resources that the people living in the Capitol need.

What payment do the district inhabitants receive for giving the Capitol all the necessities they need? They have to offer one male and one female, age 12 to 18, each year to the “Hunger Games,” so that they can fight to the death in the mass-media public spectacle to “honor” their district.

By KEN BECK
The Wilson Post

WATERTOWN – As alumni of Watertown High School prepare for their alma mater’s centennial celebration on May 26, Elmer Marler, the oldest known surviving graduate, hasn't yet made his reservation.

“That’s just too far away for me to plan,” said Marler (class of 1933), who turns 97 in early May. But, if he doesn't make the fete in person, he will be there in spirit.

Born in 1915 on a farm on Statesville Road between that community and Watertown, Marler learn the “3 Rs” from first through third grade in the one-room Mt. Vernon schoolhouse. But in 1924, he recalls, “The school buses started running,” thus he entered the fourth grade in Watertown and nine years later graduated in the 33-member class of 1933.