Reality and fantasy collide all the time in TV, but there's something about when a hit show takes place in a town you're familiar with that sets it apart. That's the case with NBC's Parks and Recreation, which takes place in fictional Pawnee, Indiana, which is beside the also fictional Eagleton. But they reference real towns in the Hoosier state, and Pawnee is sort-of based on a real city in East Central Indiana: Muncie. Thankfully Aubrey Plaza, who plays April Ludgate on the show was in Sarasota on Saturday to satisfy my curiosity. Long ago during the first season, viewers astutely noticed …

Sarasota has a good collection of Harlem Shake videos, and I want to know who has the best. What's needed for a good Harlem Shake video, is of course, the Baauer song itself, a wide angle, plenty of props and costumes and people. Just go easy on the pelvic thrusts, will ya? North Sarasota Library What we have here is a ketchup and mustard bottle, Madea, Wonder Woman, Superman, and a Mexican wrestler using a pink umbrella in an inappropriate place. Circus Sarasota Circus Sarasota clowns Karen Bell and Robin Eurich start it all out with the simple framing of a fellow clown bobbing to and fro …

If anyone does a Harlem Shake video, we'll pretty much link to it. Especially if it's a good cause like the 36-hour Giving Challenge. One of the latest is the esteemed Circus Sarasota, bringing out their best clowns to shake what the circus ring gave them along with tons of teens from its Sailor Circus program for teens and children. As for presentation, this is one of the best Harlem Shake videos considering the perspective inside the Sailor Circus dome on Bahia Vista Street. The Arts and Cultural Alliance and the HuB teamed up for several Harlem Shake videos for organizations in Sarasota, …

Hey Sarasota, can we go thrift shopping?  A No. 1 hit about thrift store shopping and wowing the ladies at the club "grandpa style" is both a curse and a blessing for thrift shops. If you haven't heard the song that also features Ryan Lewis and Wanz , it's a hip-hop song about shopping at thrift stores, name checks Goodwill, and is about how it's not necessarily the clothes that make a man. It's funny, sarcastic and has obscene language that prevents some thrift shops from totally embracing it. The rapper will perform the song this week on Saturday Night Live. He even filmed part of the music…

It appears that a well-to-do "deranged millionaire" is familiar enough with Sarasota to make a quick jab on national TV. In Thursday's episode, Daily Show contributor John Hodgman, who you probably recognize playing the P.C. patron in those "I'm a Mac" commercials years ago, plays a deranged millionaire making veiled threats to workers of many things deranged millionaires have already done to American workers: Ship jobs overseas No raises Make more staff part-time to avoid healthcare costs Then all of a sudden at near the four minute mark, Sarasota condominium associations become the butt of …

Heeeeyyyyyy, sexy Medieval lady! The theme of the 2012 Sarasota Medieval Fair is "Irish Year" but a little Korean can't hurt.  The minds behind the annual fair are taking the viral video approach by having their performers dance to Psy's explosively viral "Gangnam Style." It's a shame that only 112 folks have viewed the YouTube video as of this publishing because anything remotely ridiculous in Renaissance garb is hilarious and worth watching hours on end. I think Monty Python proved that well. At 33 seconds, the cast gives a tease of their Gangnam ability what with the horse-inspired rodeo …

The HuB knows how to mix viral marketing with the arts, and none was more evident than Monday night when HuB's founder Rich Swier Jr. sang "You Raise Me Up" to Joey Panek. Panek, a success story of the HuB with his contributions of Sarasota Elf, Saratopia, The Art Whisperer among other initiatives, served as the master of ceremonies during the 14th annual Awards Celebration for the Arts and Cultural Alliance at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall. It was time for Swier to receive the award for the media category in Arts Leadership for his business incubator, and Swier wasn't sure how to express …

Sarasota probably has one of the most unfortunate names for its transit system right behind a Seattle cable car line. The Sarasota County Area Transit system, is often shortened for a general term for dung, poo, excrement—whatever you want to call it, and it's perhaps only a marginable upgrade over the South Lake Union Trolley. Seattle though, embraced the nickname, and there's even a website promoting the service and T-shirts to "Ride The S.L.U.T." Now, I highly doubt that Sarasota would ever fully embrace SCAT and committ a multi-million marketing campaign to come up with a catchy slogan …

Was what Rep. Ray Pilon said Thursday afternoon at the Gov. Mitt Romney rally an unfortunate segue or not a big deal? Your call. The heat and humidity plus body heat caused the rally at the Ringling Museum to be uncomfortable for some, as several people were treated for heat-related illnesses or falls throughout the day. During Pilon's speech, he alertly heard the crowd call for a medic, and used his mic to call over the attention of medical personnel to the front row as a woman was having heat-related issues. Pilon attempted to segue from making sure a woman is receiving medical attention to…

Tampa appears to be the butt of all jokes during the opening segment of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.  Topics include: • Muggy weather • Meth labs • Abundant Strip clubs • Giant insects • Samantha Bee dissing St. Petersburg while flying on giant insect saying "It's taking me to St. Pete! No!" The Daily Show is taping through Friday from David A. Straz Jr. Center. Sorry about your luck, but tickets were gone the same day the shows were announced back in May. Watch the clip above and tell us your thoughts.

Politicians and journalists share a few things in common including low popularity coupled with high standards of ethics and trying to make nice with people for a few votes or more readers. Taking your clothes off in front of people is also on that list. Except one is trying to lead the polls while the other is dancing around one. Neither the reporter or politician have taken the advice of the late Jermaine Stewart, "We don't have to take our clothes off to have a good time." Well, let's start with the politician first. Don't worry. It's not Anthony Weiner. In Palm Harbor, Republican State Rep…

Sometimes you just need to see where you live through a traveler's eyes. For something entirely different, check out this video above of a team of French students and an aspiring documentarian where they speed up their 10-day trip around the state, calling it The Sunshine State Project. The filmmaker calls himself Niko, which is a very artsy and European thing to do. His friends Alexis and Bruno came with. It's been a few years (eight) since I completed French language courses, so with the magic of Google Translate, this is what we know about the journey, which you can find on their site http…

From all the press releases and notices that come to a reporter's inbox, you would think all humans lose self control on Independence Day.  Just about every day for the last few weeks one press release after another gives the impression we unnecessarily place ourselves in danger or lack common sense during the Fourth of July. This is the time of year when news agencies can't wait to share video of firework safety videos shows what happens when a dummy sits still while fireworks buzz around their face. We forget how to drive, how to cook, how to supervise our kids and why buying illegal …

Your Turn: Tell us where you'd like to place Unconditional Surrender on our map above by plotting a point at this link on Google Maps . Sorry, but "Where the Sun doesn't shine" isn't a mapable location. Statues and memorials are the universal way we pay homage to a snapshot in time, and this Memorial Day weekend Sarasota doesn't feel like Sarasota without Unconditional Surrender. When you look back at it, it's ironic that a statue capturing a moment in time that was suppose to unify a nation, split the art community here and then literally split into pieces. The styrofoam and aluminum cast …

Wouldn't it be nice if Sarasota had a revolving restaurant where by revolving, it didn't mean that the ownership would change hands so quickly? Or as with many places in Florida, odd combinations of food in one place (see: China Latina in Temple Terrace). In the latest Saratopia, Hub Studios has a few laughs at dining experiences with "Joey's Birthday Dinner."  Has this happened to you? Tell us in the comments. And also tell us what you think is in a Bradentucky Burger.

If you ever felt like Sarasota was the perfect setting for a video game, maybe a little Zelda or Mario action, today's your day of wonderment and imagination. Google activated an "upgrade" to its Google Maps site by displaying maps in an 8-bit version called Quest. It's a techie's and video game lover's delight for April Fools' Day. That's 8-bit Nintendo technology from the 1980s. You know, the original Nintendo Entertainment System. (Kids, you can play these on your Wii, too, but it's just not the same.) You can even see a StreetView 8-bit version of Sarasota. Check out what the …

Lakewood Ranch's Dick Vitale is everywhere, and we're surprised on most days he knows where he's at while doing college hoops coverage for ESPN. But a technical glitch can get to the best of us, as Yahoo! Sports found: "Unfortunately for Vitale, a recent interview with Chicago station WGN did just that after Vitale's earpiece accidentally had him listening to a Charlotte TV station one minute and Chicago's WGN the next." You can see and hear all the confusion in the video above found on YouTube, and it's no fault of Vitale, though through all of this we're not sure who looks more awkward: …

Much of the time, we don't learn what musicians and celebrities really think of the cities they perform in or how our fine city is portrayed. Singer-songwriter Jill Sobule had a chance to joke with a crowd in Pittsburgh, Pa., about performing the Yentl songs she wrote for the Asolo Repertory Theatre production. Sobule performed at Asolo in Sarasota on Feb. 13. So how was the concert? This is what Sobule had to say before singing "Last Candle": "It was very funny because the — in Sarasota. The crowd — it was about 350 filled nothing but old senior citi ... old Jews. And really young lesbians…

Local hero Rita Lawlor and WWSB Channel 7's longtime reporter Linda Carson are now a part of "The Daily Show" trivia. A clip of Carson's story, "Life-saving awards handed out at Sarasota fire station," was featured on the Comedy Central show's "Moment of Zen" segment Thursday night, where a funny newsclip is shown.  Cue 7-year-old Rita, who shared how she saved her mom's life: "I called 9-1-1, but first I slapped her with a piece of pizza." Whether it was Papa John's, Little Caesar's, Pizza Hut, Domino's or a local shop's dough, we're not sure, but it wasn't strong enough, according to the …

It wouldn't be Florida without a Lost storyline thrown into the story behind the Lego Man on Siesta Key. Because it seemed to be Lego Man was just that, winding up on a tropical beach trying to figure out how the journey came to be while toiling away in purgatory, which turned out to be a lockup at the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office. It seems that the phrase NO REAL THAN YOU ARE on the front of Lego Man is appropriate. But it's up to you to figure out the true story behind the madness. What the public knew following the bizarre day (or as Floridians say, today, becasue every day brings …