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Studio: New Video Group Release Date: 02/24/2004 Run time: 65 minutes Rating: Nr

A wacky cross-country adventure starring the fifty states!

"Well, it was just your basic, ordinary day in the good old U. S. of A. States all over the country were waking up, having their first cups of coffee, reading the morning paper, and enjoying the beautiful sunrise.

All the states, that is, except for Kansas."

At the first annual "states party," Virginia and Idaho hatch a plan to swap spots so each can see another part of the country. Before the party is over, all the states decide to switch places. In the beginning, every state is happy in its new location. But soon things start to go wrong. Will the states ever unscramble themselves and return to their proper places?

Packed with madcap humor and whimsical illustrations, this quirky story-starring all fifty states-is chock-full of introductory facts and silly antics that will make learning geography as much fun as taking a vacation.

One day, Kansas wakes up grumpy. The other 49 states are stretching, yawning, and pouring maple syrup onto each other's pancakes, but irritable Kansas announces to his kindly neighbor Nebraska that life is dull and changes must be made: "All day long we just sit here in the middle of the country. We never GO anywhere. We never DO anything, and we NEVER meet any NEW states!" Nebraska, sick of hearing North Dakota and South Dakota bicker all the time, agrees to help organize a party for all the states. It's a hit! Late into the evening, Idaho and Virginia get up onto the stage and suggest that all the states change places. What a state of affairs. Minnesota, who switches places with Florida, gets a sunburn. Kansas, having traded places with Hawaii, gets lonely and sings some soggy blues so sad that a shark sheds a mournful tear offshore. Nevada and Mississippi fall in love. Despite the initial excitement, the new arrangement just doesn't feel right. The states manage to swim, fly, bike, and hitchhike their way home, and everyone goes to bed in the right place--even Kansas is happy to be home after such an adventure. This wacky, thoroughly engaging tale of mixed-up geography is a good bet for some awards. Perhaps best of all, the large format and riot of detail allow for plenty of amusing asides. Books that claim to "make geography fun" usually have to be taken with a dose of skepticism: so often, the teaching is there and the entertainment isn't. This delightfully quirky and original book shows how it should be done. (Ages 4 and older) --Richard Farr

The State was simply one of the sharpest, funniest, and most under-rated shows of the 1990’s. Originally created as MTV’s first foray into the sketch comedy genre, The State was a comedic gem that rocked Generation X with slapstick, smarts and witty sarcasm. The dynamic cast features 11 multi-talented actors that have continued to collaborate on such projects such as Reno 911!, Stella, Viva Variety and Wet Hot American Summer. MTV’s timeless sketch comedy show, The State, is finally here.

This book exhibits all of the diversity of the American states even as it ties the country into one awesome entity. The authors' inclusion of endangered species, biographical sketches on the famous Americans from each state, inventions, resources, records, and so much more make this a unique and multi-dimensional work. But it is the art and the treatment of the information that makes this book so special. With a light-handed, fresh approach, and tremendous respect for their subject, the author-artists succeed in painting a truly beautiful portrait of America.

Whoever said that learning about U.S. geography had to be boring must not have read The Scrambled States of America. We fell head-over-heels for Laurie Keller's hilarious story and knew that it had the making for a great game. As with her book, we hope our game provides a fun way to enrich basic knowledge of U.S. geography. Players learn the names, capitals, nicknames, shapes and positions of the states through a myriad of visual teasers, language riddles and geography challenges. After playing, you'll see that there's more to the 50 States than meets the eye!

Travel deep into the strange and mysterious with Paranormal Research Society (PRS) founder Ryan Buell and his team of investigators as they set out on cases all over the country, seeking the truth behind the supernatural s scariest phenomena.

In the SEASON THREE premiere, the PRS dives into a haunting presence in a New Jersey home, which may be caused by an Indian burial ground in the backyard. As the PRS begins digging for answers, they call on a tech expert and a psychic/medium to join their frightening investigation, gathering some compelling evidence on the way. Founded in 2001, the PRS is one of the most-recognized paranormal societies in the nation, working on cases this season that include satanic entities lingering in an abandoned Kansas church and a Kentucky woman s encounter with a half-human figure bearing ram s horns. Through the use of Electronic Voice Phenomenon (EVP) recordings and video documentation, and with the help of renowned psychics, demonologists, psychologists, and counselors, the PRS explores these bizarre cases in the hopes of helping frightened people who have nowhere else to turn.

Now experience all 21 bone-chilling episodes of PARANORMAL STATE: THE COMPLETE SEASON THREE on 3 DVDs.

Zhao was appointed premier in 1980 to replace Hua Guofeng, Mao's designated successor, who was being pushed out of power by Deng Xiaoping. He developed a course for transforming the socialist system that set the stage for much of the later Chinese economic reform. He also advocated an open foreign policy, fostering good relations with western nations that could aid China's economic development.Zhao was a solid believer in the party, but he defined socialism much differently than party conservatives. He believed economic progress was inextricably linked to democratization. As early as 1986, Zhao became the first high-ranking Chinese leader to call for offering a choice of election candidates from the village level all the way up to membership in the Central Committee.In January 1987, Zhao became PC General Secretary. According to western observers, the two years Zhao served as General Secretary were the most open in modern Chinese history: more freedom of speech and of the press, including allowing intellectuals to freely propose improvements for the country. Zhao also pushed for reducing state control of businesses and for increasing private ownership via stock. One of his most radical suggestions was to separate the role of the party from the role of the state. That did not go over well.In May 1988, Zhao proposed accelerating price reform. Because it caused inflation, this led to a huge debate about the proper way to proceed, and gave an opening to the hard-liners like Lie Peng and Yao Yilin who were becoming concerned about Zhao's views. Zhao found himself in multi-front turf battles with these party elders. By the beginning of 1989, Zhao was fighting for his own political survival. As it happened, the student protests triggered by the sudden death of former CCP General Secretary Hu Yaobang, widely seen as a reform-minded leader, provided Zhao with a golden opportunity to regain the political upper-hand and to advance his reform agenda. But that's not what happened.Instead, the more the student protests spread, the more the hardliners came to the view they had accepted too much change already. The tragic events of the Tiananmen Square protests of April 1989 sealed Zhao's fate: While he was paying an official visit to Pyongyang, the party hard-liners exploited the opportunity to declare the ongoing protests "counter-revolutionary." Upon returning from North Korea, Zhao made several attempts to steer the course toward what he called "a track based upon democracy and the rule of law". He opened up channels for direct dialogues between students and the government at multiple levels. He also ordered the news media to cover the student demonstrations with unprecedented openness. A number of legislative initiatives aimed at the reform of press, news media and education were also under way. However, Zhao's initiatives, along with his conciliatory attitude toward the students, were seen by the elders and other party hard-liners as hastened steps toward breaking free of the party's control, a recipe for disaster. Zhao completely lost the trust of Deng Xiaoping, his long-time political patron and mentor.Shortly before 5 A.M. on the morning of May 19, 1989 Zhao appeared in Tiananmen Square and wandered among the crowd of protesters. Using a bullhorn, he gave a famous speech to the students at the square.The protesters did not disperse. A day after Zhao's May 19th visit to Tiananmen Square, Premier Li Peng publicly declared martial law. In the power struggle that ensued, Zhao was stripped of all his positions. What motivated Zhao remains, even today, a topic of debate by many. Some say he went into the square hoping a conciliatory gesture would gain him leverage against hard-liners like Premier Li Peng. Others believe he supported the protesters and did not want to see them hurt when the military was called in.

Learning our 50 states and their capitals has never been more fun! Children travel through each state learning important facts and trivia while singing "I want to learn about my country and learn about each state. I want to learn all the facts that make our nation great." All states are sung in alphabetical order to the old favorite song "Turkey in the Straw." Once children are familiar with the tune, the song is repeated in double time, which adds to the excitement of memorizing our fifty states.