Hangover

SATURDAY, 8 a.m. My head throbbed. "What did you do last night? What did you do last night? What did you do last night?," chanted the hamsters running on the wheel in my brain. You guessed it. A hangover. But this wasn't your average too-many-Chardonnays-at-the-Joneses hangover. This was an ego hangover. Ego hangover? You know, that yucky feeling that comes after you get blind drunk on the sound of your own voice. Well, maybe you don't know. So let me tell you how I came to be in this pickle.

6:05 tonight CINEMAX If you missed this hit 2009 comedy in theaters, don't miss it here. A wild bachelor party goes horribly wrong in Las Vegas. Jenkintown's Bradley Cooper (right) stars with Justin Bartha, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis.

Sometimes the old methods may work best. Researchers at Thomas Jefferson University say that they've identified a key agent in the brain chemistry responsible for hangover headaches and that a good remedy is one tried by every tormented soul who's ever groped for a morning-after cup of coffee: Caffeine. The stimulant has long been an ingredient in over-the-counter headache medications. But the Jefferson study is the first to link caffeine's effectiveness to its ability to block the activity of a chemical called adenosine.

Delaware County girls' basketball is suffering from a hangover of sorts - a 1987 playoff hangover, to be precise. Despite a robust campaign last year that featured several of the region's top players, Delaware County teams fell hard in the postseason scrap. Eight teams from the Central and Del-Val Leagues went to the District 1 playoffs, but none survived to represent the county even in the quarterfinal round of the regional tournament. The only three teams to win first-round games - Ridley, Sun Valley and Chester - were dispatched in the second round.

WHEN YOU load up the cooler this week for your New Year's Eve soaking, take a moment to think about what you're going to drink on the morning after. Ah, yes, the hair of the dog that bit you. Hard-earned experience has taught us that the best hangover cure is prevention: Go easy on the bubbles and drink plenty of water. An aspirin before bedtime works wonders, too. But preparing for the worst is my motto, so here goes. The phrase "hair of the dog" is traced to the ancient Hippocratic philosophy of similia similibus curantur ("like cures like")

YOU CAN look at "Due Date" as a foulmouthed "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," or as "The Hangover 1.5," something to tide you over until 2.0 arrives. "Due Date" offers the director (Todd Phillips), a slew of bit players from "The Hangover" and a healthier (if that's the right word) dose of Zach Galifianakis, the breakout star of "The Hangover," who is effecting a swift and somewhat hostile takeover of movie comedy. In a pop-culture instant, the hairy, stammering misfit has gone from obscure stand-up to box-office dynamite.

HONG KONG - Oscar-winning director Ang Lee played an important role in "The Hangover Part II" - at least offscreen. He is the father of one of the actors. The filmmaker's younger son, Mason Lee, plays Teddy, the teenager the lead characters try to rescue as they struggle to piece together what happened during a crazy night in Bangkok. Ang Lee was clearly a proud dad speaking to reporters after catching a showing with his younger brother and mother earlier this week in Taiwan, his home country.

Barring the end of the world (it didn't happen yesterday, did it?), or the even less likely scenario in which no one bothers to go out next weekend to see three guys wake up completely blotto, there will be a Hangover: Part III . "Obviously, it will depend on the success of the second one," says Bradley Cooper , whose participation in the inaugural Hangover had more than a little to do with his rocket launch to stardom. "You never know," Cooper adds, trying to sound cautious about the box-office prospects of the much-anticipated follow-up.

It's like that asteroid hurtling right at us. Can't get out of the way. Of Hangover 2 , we mean. The film touched down Thursday and blew the roof off the world, according to distributor estimates. Opening night, it made $31.6 million (a record for a comedy), $30 mil on Friday and $29.7 mil on Saturday, beating the three-day comedy record of Bruce Almighty on Memorial Day weekend in 2003. At $118 mil as of Sunday, it could top $140 mil by Monday COB. The R-rater record is Matrix: Reloaded , which in 2003 made $144 mil its first five days.

Your mouth is dry. Your head pounds. Your stomach aches. You feel shaky, fatigued and queasy; every little sound makes you jump, and the dimmest light is way too bright. Concentrate? Forget it. It's the morning after the night before - and you, despite your best intentions, have a hangover. Yes, despite the fact that drinking levels in America have been declining for at least a decade, the hangover is with us still - especially this time of year. Most hangover-sufferers would hardly be surprised to hear that their misery is the result of drinking too much - "acute alcohol withdrawal," in medical terms.

CHILLS, BOUTS of depression, loss of appetite: These are all symptoms of "The Hunger Games" hangover. After devouring Suzanne Collins' kid-killing trilogy and checking out the long-anticipated film adaptation, we understand if you are left wanting - nay! - needing more. Here's how to get your "Hunger" fix while you wait for the film's second installment, "Catching Fire," which is expected November 2013. Literature "The Giver": While many would point to William Golding's Lord of the Flies as the obvious antecedent to The Hunger Games, we see more in common with Lois Lowry's classic about a society that is so devoid of free will that people can't even see colors.

LAST WEEK, critics worried that "Act of Valor" might be a Navy recruitment video, luring young people into a life of (gasp!) military service. Not to worry. After that one-week blip, Hollywood is back to business as usual, pandering to a young male demo with a movie that celebrates self-indulgence, status-seeking, substance abuse, vulgarity and the headlong quest for "fine bitches," preferably drunk ones. It's called "Project X" and has all the earmarks of a commercial success.

WHEN YOU load up the cooler this week for your New Year's Eve soaking, take a moment to think about what you're going to drink on the morning after. Ah, yes, the hair of the dog that bit you. Hard-earned experience has taught us that the best hangover cure is prevention: Go easy on the bubbles and drink plenty of water. An aspirin before bedtime works wonders, too. But preparing for the worst is my motto, so here goes. The phrase "hair of the dog" is traced to the ancient Hippocratic philosophy of similia similibus curantur ("like cures like")

BRADLEY COOPER stopped to pet a dachshund being walked by an attractive blonde on Kelly Drive Saturday afternoon. The Rydal-native "Hangover" star, in town shooting "The Silver Linings Playbook," was jogging when he stopped, introduced himself as "Brad" and played with the dog for a few minutes before being picked up by a driver. The young woman tells friends she wishes that Cooper had pet her instead! On Sunday, we hear, Cooper was photographed for People 's Sexiest Man Alive issue at the Fort Washington estate of Advanta chief executive Dennis Alter . Alter, whose home is for sale for $30 million, is said to be a friend of Cooper's; he didn't return a request for comment yesterday.

SHE HAD a God-given talent. That's trite, and it's overused, but it fits. Amy Winehouse had a glorious voice. Now it will be heard only in replay, captured in musical amber. Because, as everyone now knows, drug addict Winehouse is dead. We'll never be sure if it was intentional since she didn't leave a note. But with her history, you can probably chalk it up to recklessness, at the very least. Winehouse must have known that continuing to dine on heroin, pills and whatever other controlled substances she could get her hands on would end up badly.

GIMME FIVE Thanks to "Hangover 2," Ed Helms now has five feature movie roles. In order of box office receipts: 1. "The Hangover," $277 million. 2. "Hangover 2," $235 million. 3. "The Goods: Live Hard Sell Hard," $15 million. 4. "Meet Dave," $11 million. 5. "Cedar Rapids," $6 million.

HONG KONG - Oscar-winning director Ang Lee played an important role in "The Hangover Part II" - at least offscreen. He is the father of one of the actors. The filmmaker's younger son, Mason Lee, plays Teddy, the teenager the lead characters try to rescue as they struggle to piece together what happened during a crazy night in Bangkok. Ang Lee was clearly a proud dad speaking to reporters after catching a showing with his younger brother and mother earlier this week in Taiwan, his home country.

"The Bridesmaids" has been called "The Hangover" for women, and they're both among the most commercially successful R-rated comedies of all time. Now, with the opening of "The Hangover 2," we compare the two blockbusters, "Hangover" and "Bridesmaids. " Box office opening weekend $44 million / $26 million Who's getting married? Justin Bartha / Maya Rudolph Who has the creepy boyfriend/girlfriend they need to ditch? Ed Helms / Kristen Wiig Who is the kooky, stocky misfit?

It's like that asteroid hurtling right at us. Can't get out of the way. Of Hangover 2 , we mean. The film touched down Thursday and blew the roof off the world, according to distributor estimates. Opening night, it made $31.6 million (a record for a comedy), $30 mil on Friday and $29.7 mil on Saturday, beating the three-day comedy record of Bruce Almighty on Memorial Day weekend in 2003. At $118 mil as of Sunday, it could top $140 mil by Monday COB. The R-rater record is Matrix: Reloaded , which in 2003 made $144 mil its first five days.

Barring the end of the world (it didn't happen yesterday, did it?), or the even less likely scenario in which no one bothers to go out next weekend to see three guys wake up completely blotto, there will be a Hangover: Part III . "Obviously, it will depend on the success of the second one," says Bradley Cooper , whose participation in the inaugural Hangover had more than a little to do with his rocket launch to stardom. "You never know," Cooper adds, trying to sound cautious about the box-office prospects of the much-anticipated follow-up.