WATCH
Watch a video of the screen being unloaded on the Tennessee Aquarium's YouTube channel above.
BARRY COURTER: Lisa, do you remember when you replaced that old RCA TV, which you thought was the best it could ever get picture-wise, with a newer flatscreen? It was like opening a dirty window and looking outside onto a crisp spring day and suddenly seeing all the colors and details.
Well, the Tennessee Aquarium's Imax 3D Theater has upped its game once again, and they are holding a film festival to show off their new state-of-the-art digital big screen. And, let me just say, I want one, but I'd have to build a new house for it.
LISA DENTON: Don't you already have six stories over there on the Ridge? That'd hold it.
Our friend Thom Benson, who does marketing for the aquarium, sent out a funny video of the new screen being moved in. It took 20 men to tote it. They had it hoisted over their heads, so it looked like a caterpillar conga line. If they tried to move that into my house, it would stick out the front door and back door at the same time.
BARRY: I saw that and couldn't help but wonder how they handled the stairs. There are always stairs involved whenever I move something oddly shaped like that. That or the doorframe is exactly one-quarter inch too narrow. I have a desk that is now permanently in my basement for that very reason.
LISA: But everything's up and ready for the film festival. They'll be showing eight audience favorites, all in 3-D, including "Born To Be Wild," "Space Station" and "Under the Sea."
Hey, as long as we're buying big screens, why not a boat, too? We can get ideas this weekend at the Chattanooga Boat Show at the Convention Center.
BARRY: How about a boat with a big screen? It can double as a sail. Genius. As long as we're going to expos, the Gun and Knife Show returns to Alhambra Shrine Temple on Saturday and Sunday while the Chickamauga Civil War Show is the same days at the Northwest Georgia Trade Center in Dalton.
LISA: Speaking of Dalton, the Creative Arts Guild is doing a "Birth of the Cool" concert on Friday that recreates Miles Davis' landmark album of the same name. Musicians from Dalton State College will be performing.
BARRY: Miles was cool, for sure.
LISA: And as long as we're traveling, the Cleveland Storytelling Guild will present its annual Ocoee Story Fest at Cleveland First Presbyterian Church on Friday. This year's festival features Tim Lowry, who is said to be "a proud ambassador for the Sweet Tea Trail in Summerville, S.C." A fellow traveler on the Sweet Tea Trail? I like him already.
Closer to home, Grammy-winning guitarist Jonny Lang is at the Tivoli Theatre on Saturday. Did you know he made his first blues album at age 15? His worldwide debut, "Lie to Me," was released when he was 16; it went platinum and hit No. 1 on Billboard's New Artist chart. His second, "Wander This World," which he released at age 17, earned a Grammy nomination.
BARRY: If you're looking for a giggle, Tim Meadows, the "Saturday Night Live" veteran who brought his own brand of cool to "The Ladies Man," is the featured comic at The Comedy Catch this weekend.
Get event details every Thursday in Chattanooga Now or online anytime at www.ChattanoogaNow.com.
Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfree press.com or 423-757-6354. Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6281.