AROUND TOWN

sat., jan. 15

For my 12th birthday, my parents took my friends and me to see The Fugitive, and after, we went to get pizza. It was pretty rad. At the pizza place, one of my friends gave me a gift-wrapped copy of Tag Team's Whoomp! (There It Is) CD, and I was like, awesome, this'll be great for the basketball games that go on in my room. When I got home and put the CD in, the title track opened with way more distortion than I remembered, and suddenly exploded into gravelly grunge. Though pressed in Tag Team hot pink and neon green, my mis-manufactured disc was actually 10 tracks of stripped-down hard rock. My mind was completely blown. You want some of that action, you go to the New York City Record and CD show. They probably have gold CDs too.

Holiday Inn, 440 W. 57th St. (betw. 9th & 10th Aves.), 973-209-6067, 10-4, $6.

—Dan Migdal

About Baghdad

Thurs.-Tues., Jan. 13 - 18

Adam Shapiro's About Baghdad screens tonight at the East Village's Two Boots Pioneer Theater, and while it ain't the "Monty Python Beer & Movie Night" at ABC No Rio, it may benefit you more to brush up on the Iraqi conflict than to practice your annoying Knights of Nee impersonation. (And you can always sneak in a six-pack.) The documentary follows exile Sinan Antoon as he returns home to speak with Iraqis of varying ideologies about past horrors, America and the future.

Two Boots Pioneer Theater, 155 E. 3rd St. (betw. Aves. A & B), 212-591-0434; 9, $9.

—Tanya Richardson

Honoring Martin Luther King Jr. | Mon, Jan. 17In honor of the nonviolent civil rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, the Museum of Jewish Heritage will host the film King: A Filmed Record...Montgomery to Memphis at noon followed by a 3:30 p.m. conversation with Rabbi Marc Schneier and Russell Simmons.

Originally released in 1970, King: A Filmed Record...Montgomery to Memphis follows Martin Luther King Jr.'s growing role in the civil rights movement beginning with 1955's Montgomery bus boycott. In protest of Rosa Parks' arrest for refusing to give up her seat to a white man, more than 40,000 African Americans refused to use that bus line for nearly a year. The boycott eventually led to the U.S. Supreme Court's 1956 ruling declaring Alabama's segregation laws unconstitutional; it also pushed King into the forefront of the civil rights movement. The documentary includes news and archival footage as well as commentary from Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward and James Earl Jones.

Rabbi Marc Schneier is the president and founder of the Manhattan-based Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, a nonprofit organization working to strengthen relations between the Jewish and African-American communities. He is also the author of Shared Dreams: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Jewish Community. The ubiquitous Simmons, cofounder of Def Jam Recordings, is a chairman at the foundation. Both men have been working with the foundation to educate and unite various communities in an effort to work toward greater social justice. Jonathan Reider, a professor at Barnard College, will moderate; the event is co-sponsored by Jewish Fund for Justice.

Museum of Jewish Heritage, 36 Battery Pl. (betw. 1st Pl. & B'way), 646-437-4200; 12, 3:30 panel,$10, $5 st., $7 s.c.

—Ellen Keohane

The Ultimate Film Fanatic Challenge | Sat., Jan. 15Quick: What was Johnny Depp's first film? Okay, so you remember that he was slashed by Freddy Kruger. Something harder then: What band did Rushmore star Jason Schwartzman quit? Who's his uncle? His girlfriend? Get away from that mouse—Google is not allowed.

For those of you who dreamed of one day kicking Marc Edward Heuck's ass on Beat the Geeks, your chance to flaunt your movie-trivia knowledge in a competitive venue with a bunch of strangers has finally arrived. The Ultimate Film Fanatic Challenge traveling trivia game will be in New York City for just one night. The game is based on the Independent Film Channel show hosted by Chris Gore, editor and founder of Film ThReat.

In order to play, show up at Bogart's, sign up and sit around with your fingers crossed. Those lucky enough to get picked will play one 10-minute round of the Ultimate Film Fanatic Challenge, featuring a live version of the Independent Film Channel television game show. Is this just a ruse to get you to tune in to IFC? Of course it is. And so what?

To sweeten the deal, following the game you can enter to win a trip for two to next year's Cannes Film Festival. The winner won't be announced until Nov. 7—and even if you do win the trip, you'll have to fly coach and cough up the money for meals, tips, taxes and various "incidentals." But there's also a drawing for a tv and a home theater system.

As with the other fun, legal things in life, you must be at least 21 to play.

Bogart's, 99 Park Ave. (40th St.), 212-922-9244; 8-11, free.

—Ellen Keohane