ENTERTAINMENT

5 things to do this Wilmington weekend: art, theater, comedy and a St. Patrick's Day parade?

John Staton
Wilmington StarNews

It's the last official weekend of summer before fall drops Sept. 22. Between trips to the beach, check out some of these events.

Sunday: 'Maximum Overdrive'

The Isabel Holmes Bridge was featured in the 1986 movie "Maximum Overdrive," which filmed in Wilmington.

Wilmington has seen the making of some very good movies and some very bad movies. "Maximum Overdrive" is kind of both, the story of a radiation storm that washes over Earth, causing mechanical objects — trucks, lawnmowers, blenders, soda machines, drawbridges — to rise up against their human overlords for some reason.

On Sunday, Wilmington film industry veteran Jock Brandis, who moved to Wilmington from Canada to work on "Maximum Overdrive," will host a free screening of the film at the Pointe movie theater. A Q&A will follow.

Directed by the writer Stephen King from a script based on his short story "Trucks," the 1986 film starts off promisingly enough with all kinds of fun attacks, but later grows tedious and nearly unwatchable as the murderous trucks circle, and circle, and circle the humans trapped in the Dixie Boy truck stop.

"Maximum Overdrive" stars a post-"Breakfast Club" Emilio Estevez, a pre-"Simpsons" Yeardley Smith and the great character actor Pat Hingle, who moved to Wilmington after the movie and lived here until his death in 2009.

Details: 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19 at The Pointe, 2223 Blockbuster Road, Wilmington. Free.

Saturday & Sunday: 'Give 'Em Hell, Harry!'

Clifton Truman Daniel plays his grandfather, Harry Truman, in the one-man play "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" at Thalian Hall.

Harry Truman’s grandson, Clifton Truman Daniel, returns to Wilmington to perform at Thalian Hall this one-man play by Samuel Gallu about Truman's life and presidency. Daniel, a former StarNews reporter who lived in Wilmington during the 1990s, last did the show here in 2017, earning a Best Actor in a Play nomination at the StarNews Wilmington Theater Awards. From my review four years ago: "Daniel ... is taller and less stocky than his grandfather, and not as naturally folksy. But with his thick glasses and short, plastered-down hair Daniel resembles Truman well enough and does a fine job of relating his relative’s essence through a combination of country wit, fiery speeches and hard-earned wisdom."

The young Clifton Daniel and his grandfather, Harry Truman.

More:Give ’em Hell, Harry! a compelling portrait of a U.S. president

Details: 7 p.m. Sept. 18 and 2:30 p.m. Sept. 19 at Thalian Hall, 310 Chestnut St., Wilmington. 910-632-2285 or ThalianHall.org.

Saturday: 'Start with the Eyes' reception

Elizabeth Darrow will be one of the artists featured in the Art-oberfest art crawl Oct. 23 in the Carolina Place neighborhood.

If you've not gotten out to Mayfaire to see the special pop-up exhibit featuring the work of Wilmington artist Elizabeth Darrow, Saturday evening is a good time to do it.

That's when a special artists' reception will be held for one of the Port City's most prolific painters. Darrow, who's been a part of Wilmington's arts community since 1977, creates paintings and collage work that can be at once whimsical and mysterious, a kind of swirl of light and dark.

In addition to Darrow's work, "Start with the Eyes," which is on display through Sept. 28, the show features work by painters Debra Bucci, Bradley Carter and Joan McLoughlin, and ceramics by Brian Evans, Dianne Evans and Traudi Thornton.

Details: 5-8 p.m. Sept. 18, 820 Town Center Drive, Unit 120, Mayfaire (next to movie theater and Breadsmith). AIBgallery.com

All weekend: Basile-flavored comedy

Basile Katsikis was doing comedy in Wilmington before doing comedy was cool. OK, doing comedy has always been kind of cool, but Basile has been in the game as long as anyone in town, taking his act about growing up in a Greek family to audiences all over the world and doing plenty of TV, radio and voice-over appearances along the way. He'll be at Dead Crow Comedy Room for shows on Friday and Saturday night, with a special show for Greek audiences on Sunday evening.

Details: 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Sept. 17-18, 6 p.m. "Greek show" Sept. 19 at the Dead Crow Comedy Room, 516 N. Third St., Wilmington. $16-$28.

Saturday: Halfway to St. Pat's Parade

The 20th Annual Friends of Hibernians St. Patrick's Day Parade took place in downtown Wilmington March 16, 2019.

After Wilmington's annual St. Patrick's Day Parade was canceled in March due to the pandemic, the organizers didn't throw in the (green) towel. Instead, they came up with the Halfway to St. Patrick's Day Parade & Festival, which goes down this weekend.

After the parade in the morning on Front Street, bands will play until 6 p.m. Acts include Striking Copper, the Malones and the Blarney Brogues, with a special appearance by the Walsh Kelley School of Irish Dance. Kids' activities and food and drink available.

Details: 11 a.m. parade on Front Street, followed by festival at Second and Market streets. Free. WilmingtonStPatricksDayFestival.com

Contact John Staton at 910-343-2343 or John.Staton@StarNewsOnline.com.