All the newspaper media in town are singing with one voice now.

The Journal Star is reporting that GateHouse Media Inc., which recently acquired the Journal Star, is also buying up TimesNewspapers, publishers of the Peoria Times-Observer and the other local weeklies.

The Peoria Chronicle and other local blogs are still independently-owned and operated, though.

Last Friday was my oldest daughter’s birthday, and on Saturday I took her to see the Nancy Drew movie. First, we went to Nova Cinemas (formerly Landmark Theaters) just before noon to catch the 12:05 showing. Nova has a deal where it’s only $4 per person to get in, and they have a “popcorn and pop” special for only $2. That makes things more affordable than any other theater in town. Plus, they’re close to home.

However, when I got up to the counter and asked for two tickets to see “Nancy Drew,” the teenaged worker informed me that they had cancelled all their “Nancy Drew” showings because the projector was broken. I’ve gone to a lot of movies in my lifetime, and I have to say that I’ve never, ever been turned away from a movie — especially in a multi-screen cineplex — because “the projector broke.” After staring at her a few seconds in disbelief, my daughter and I left and went to Rave Motion Picture Theaters out by the Shoppes at Grand Prairie. Of course, we were too late for the noon movie by that point, so we got tickets to the 2:25 showing.

When we finally got to see the movie, we both enjoyed it. The critics complain that it’s contrived and predictable, but those critics aren’t seven-year-old girls. My daughter had no idea what was going to happen next. Those critics also apparently never read a Nancy Drew book; they weren’t exactly groundbreaking works of realism. It was a clean, funny, and thoroughly family-friendly movie. It was refreshingly free of cynicism, with the character of Nancy Drew maintaining her integrity and sincerity. The sight gags and physical humor were well-executed, and the pacing was perfect.

If you decide to see it (or any other movie) at Nova, be sure to call first to find out if their projectors are working.