By Michelle Lee, Hollywood.com

Mobsters play a lot of games. You know, catch the machine gun fire, duck-duck-rat, follow the consigliere. But now, there’s a real board game made just for them. Or, at least fans of mobster movies.

To help celebrate the 40th anniversary of The Godfather, Hasbro is launching Monopoly: The Godfather Collector’s Edition.

And the transition into boardgame-dom is surprisingly smooth for the Francis Ford Coppola classic. In fact, the gamemakers could’ve easily repurposed some of the original tokens: the wheelbarrow (for burying bodies), the shoe (to fill with concrete) and the thimble (which makes a passable bullet).

But they revamped them all: so now, you can play with a gun, a dead fish, a cannoli, a Genco olive oil tin, Brando’s limo, and a horse’s head.

Meanwhile, the classic locations like Boardwalk and Park Place are replaced by the Corleone’s Long Island and Lake Tahoe estates.

Here is a video about the game.

Lakeview Avenue in South Lake Tahoe will be partially closed June 20 for the dedication of Lakeview Commons.

A one-block section of Lakeview Avenue will be closed to vehicular traffic beginning at 11am. This closure of Lakeview Avenue will include the distance between Lake Tahoe Boulevard and Riverside Avenue.

The reopening is anticipated to be about 5pm.

El Dorado County Office of Education’s Head Start, state preschool, and early Head Start programs are accepting applications for the 2012-13 school year.

For more info, call (530) 543.8200.

While improvements are made to Bijou Community School, the Head Start/State Preschool classroom will be relocated to the Al Tahoe campus (Room C5) for the 2012-13 year.

The Douglas County Public Library in Zephyr Cove is sponsoring a special summer reading program on June 29 at 1:30pm.

Children ages 5 to 12 will take part in an imaginary camp out by singing campfire songs with recording artist Nancy Raven around an imaginary campfire. Miss Carol will tell ghost stories or children may share a story.

Sign up by June 28 to participate — (775) 588.6411.

By Carlos Alcalá, Sacramento Bee

Development planning in El Dorado County is dysfunctional, according to an academic paper published this month by two scholars from UC Davis.

Past practices and politics mean that the county may not, on its own, be able to create plans for growth that will be sustainable in the long run, according to the paper, titled, “Gold Country: the politics of landscape in exurban El Dorado County, California.”

“El Dorado County represents a very dysfunctional politics. It is kind of the cutting edge of dysfunction,” said Stephen M. Wheeler, a professor of landscape architecture.

Wheeler was the faculty adviser to co-author Craig Beebe, who wrote a 200-page master’s thesis from which the paper was excerpted for publication in the University of Arizona’s Journal of Political Ecology.

Although Beebe was less biting in his comments, he said his research into county documents and news accounts – supported by interviews – confirmed the basic conclusion.

“What we’re most critical about is that the planning there has been so difficult and so unproductive, basically,” Beebe said in a phone interview from Oregon, where he now works for a land-use planning nonprofit.

One example is the 14-year struggle to develop a general plan for the county, approved in 2004 and facing some revisions right now.

Read the whole story

An Air Force C-130 that landed at Lake Tahoe Airport on Saturday is expected to depart the afternoon of June 19.

The crew is on the South Shore practicing high altitude para rescue jumping.

The military is in South Lake Tahoe. Photo/LTN

“Para rescue jumpers are medics that jump out of an airplane to attend to wounded that can’t be reached via vehicle,” airport Manager Sherry Miller told Lake Tahoe News.

It’s possible the crew and plane will be back Aug. 25 for the Lake in the Sky Air Show.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

Members of the Boys & Girls Club Marching Beat Brigade will be on hand June 20 to help kick off the 2012 Paddlefest and other ceremonies commemorating the opening of Lakeview Commons.

The drummers will perform at 5pm with Liz Broscoe, South Lake Tahoe professional drummer.

Immediately following the performance, Broscoe will lead a drumming circle. The public is invited to attend and bring their drums.

Paddlefest is celebrating its fifth year with a special project: The World Tribal Canoe Project. The project is being developed by the Cultural Conservancy, a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco. The vision is an intercultural, multitribal collaborative venture to support the renewal of indigenous watercraft traditions of the Pacific, starting in California.

Paddlefest will be celebrated June 23-24 at El Dorado Beach with a variety of activities and booths celebrating paddling in South Lake Tahoe. For more information about Paddlefest, contact John Dayberry at nativeelementsoftahoe@gmail.com.

Douglas County Search and Rescue will soon have a training academy, and the team is looking for energetic men and women to join the organization.

DCSAR is a volunteer unit within the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. DCSAR responds to assistance calls for lost or injured persons in the mountains, desert, backcountry, and waterways of Douglas and surrounding counties. DCSAR also provides emergency assistance during natural disasters and large public safety emergencies.

Last year, DCSAR responded to more than 50 missions in Douglas and surrounding counties. The team responds to calls 24-hours a day, 365 days a year, but no single member is expected to respond to every event. Members are, however, expected to attend regular training sessions in order to develop and maintain effective skills.

Anyone who wants to help his/her community in times of emergency should consider applying to the DCSAR team. Outdoor and basic medical experience is helpful, but not required. Anyone over 18 years old that is physically fit and has a positive attitude will be considered for inclusion on the team.

Academy and in-service training is provided to ensure all members are knowledgeable and proficient in performing their duties.

Applications may be obtained online and must be submitted by July 1.

For more information, contact John Soderman at (775) 720.6260.

Ironman is returning to Lake Tahoe next year. It used to be a mainstay on the South Shore.

This time is will be the North Shore hosting the event on Sept. 22, 2013.

California has not had the triathlon since 2001.

“We estimate the total economic impact to the region to be approximately $8 million to $15 million over the course of the event,” Andy Chapman with the North Lake Tahoe Chamber/CVB/Resort Association, said in a press release.

More than 2,500 athletes are expected.

Ironman Lake Tahoe will start with a two-loop, 2.4-mile swim at Kings Beach.

Then its a two-loop, 112-mile bike course from the lake into Tahoe City, before following the Truckee River past Squaw Valley and into Truckee.

From there, the course turns south back toward Lake Tahoe, has a short loop in Martis Camp, continues past Northstar and climbs to Brockway Summit. After a decent back down to Kings Beach, athletes will complete a second loop, and then a final flat 17 miles to finish the bike course at Squaw Valley.

Runners will proceed along the Truckee River bike path into Tahoe City, and continue south along the shores of Lake Tahoe to a turnaround in Homewood.

Register online.

The Squaw Valley Institute presents Western States Ultra Runners and the movie premiere of “Unbreakable” on June 21, 6:30pm, at Olympic Village Lodge in Olympic Valley.

Tickets are $15/person.

The Western States Endurance Run is a 100-mile run starting at Squaw Valley and finishing in Auburn. The event is June 23-24.