• We ended up with one spare copy of the book “Degrassi: Generations” leftover from our last contest, so we thought, hey, let’s give that last copy to a loyal reader! So, welcome to the world’s easiest, fastest contest! Send an e-mail to scoops@newsaskew.com with the subject “DEGRASSI SECOND CHANCE” along with your return email address, and we’ll pick a random winner. You have JUST A DAY to do so, the box closes at 11:59:59 EST on Wednesday night (tomorrow). The book will make an OUSTANDING companion piece to the just-released “Jay & Silent Bob Do Degrassi” DVD, now shipping from the Stash (and being signed in Red Bank on November 20th by Kevin and Jay!). One entry per person, please, or risk disqualification. Good luck!

• We’d like to thank everyone who took the time to enter our Degrassi Generations book giveaway. In this contest, we asked you to send in the actual date that Kevin’s first episode of Degrassi aired on CTV in Canada. The correct answer, as many of you guessed, is January 31, 2005. However, quite a few entries came in claiming February 1st was the date. So, we looked back for ourselves, and noticed that there was some confusing wording in our archives. The kind of stuff that happens when you post stuff after midnight but to you it’s really the same day type of stuff. Like, even though it’s officially Friday, it still feels like a Thursday, if you’re reading this at 1 AM. Get it? That being said, we decided to be fair, we’re giving credit to anyone who sent in EITHER of those dates as an answer.

That being said, here are our five lucky winners. You’ll be receiving a brand new copy of “The Official 411: Degrassi Generations”, direct from our pals at Simon & Schuster.

Jonathan Searcy Anthony Schaefer Jenea Paterno Angie Martinez Blake Matthews

If you didn’t win a book, it’s available via Amazon and pretty much everywhere else they sell books. Kevin’s got a new, exclusive introduction in there, and the book itself is packed to the brim with tons of photos and info from the world of Degrassi. A worthy purchase. Thanks again to all who entered, and to Simon & Schuster for providing the swag! Enjoy your books.

• You’ve got until 11:59:59 EST TONIGHT (Tuesday) to get your entries in to win a copy of “Degrassi Generations”, the beautiful new Degrassi book from Simon & Schuster. After that, we’ll be selecting 5 entries who will get a brand new copy shipped to their door. The book features a new introduction by Kevin Smith and all the Degrassi information you need, for fans both old and new.

To enter, follow the directions on the contest page. Or click the banner at the top of our screen. All you need is the answer to one simple Degrassi query! Simple as that.

Good luck!

• It’s not too late! You’ve still got time to win an absolutely FREE copy of “Degrasssi Generations: The Official 411″, and all you gotta to to get in on the drawing is to send us the Canadian premiere date of Kevin’s first Degrassi episode. Easy, right? We thought so. We’re giving away 5 copies of the newly released book, which features a brand new introduction from Kevin himself.

Our review copies came in this week, and read as the coolest Degrassi FAQ ever, with pages and pages of information and full color photos. A beautifully put together book and a great prize, courtesty News Askew and Simon & Schuster.

Click here or the banner at the top of the front page for full details. Good luck!

• Hot off the capture card, we’re proud to give you some fresh Hi-Def Veronica Mars clippage! Now you can replace those other captues we ran with these super-sized HD versions:

HD Clip 1 (Divx – 5 meg)

HD Clip 2 (Divx – 15 meg)

And remember, check out the VLC Media Player if you are having any problems viewing these clips on any system.

• We know that you LA west coasters were disappointed by the lack of Veronica Mars last night, as the Angels game prevented the show from airing. It WILL air on the west coast at 8 PM on Saturday if you wanna catch it then. In the meantime, why not take a look at our clippage right here?

Hot off the presses, we’re proud to present the full footage of Kevin’s guest shot on “Veronica Mars”! While not an HD capture, we think you’ll be ok with the quality, enough until we can get something digitally sourced, anyway. Again, we remind you, we’re using the DIVX format to keep the size down — You can download a free player for any operating system at the Official Divx Site. Think of it as the MP3 of video. Clean, compressed, quality for your PC.

Kevin surprised us by appearing in not just one, but TWO scenes of episode 2 of Veronica’s second season. The first season is available on DVD this Tuesday, by the way. Fans and critics hail it as one of the best on the tube right now.

In the first clip, you’ll see Kev’s initial appearance on the program — On television. The second scene, where Kevin and Kristen Bell (Veronica) share the screen, is where Kevin hits his stride. Watch him joke about weight, Goth kids, serve a slushie, and even do a little flirting. It’s another great turn for him, and runs a full 2 and a half minutes.

Clip 1 (Divx – 5 meg)

Clip 2 (Divx – 10 meg)

Oh, and by the way, folks, if you want a nice clean alternative to Divx that works on ANY system, and plays a TON of formats, check out the VLC Media Player. You’ll dig it. It’s free, too.

• News Askew celebrates the release of the new book, “Degrassi Generations: The Official 411″ by offering up the chance for five of our beloved readers to get their own FREE copy, courtesy Simon & Schuster. Kevin writes a wonderful introduction to the book, which takes you behind the scenes of Degrassi: The Next Generation, Degrassi High, Degrassi Junior High, and The Kids of Degrassi Street. Find out from the past and present actors and crew what it’s like to be a part of one of TV’s most successful teen series.

Winning is simple, really. Well maybe not AS simple as we could have made it, but hey, you gotta work for your supper a LITTLE bit, right? So, here’s what you gotta do. Using our ARCHIVE SEARCH box, answer this ONE SIMPLE QUESTION from the world of Degrassi. The answer is the DATE (Month, Day, and Year) when the following event took place:

Kevin’s FIRST episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation aired on CTV In Canada FOR THE FIRST TIME. Note: Not the US airdate!

Send your answer, in an email, with the subject line “DEGRASSI CONTEST”, to scoops@newsaskew.com. Include your name, first and last, and a valid e-mail address where we can get in touch with you. CONTEST ENDS 11:59:59 PM, OCTOBER 11TH, 2005, EST. You have from now until the end of Tuesday to get your entries to us.

Remember, the answer can be found in the News Askew archives — But you might have to dig a little to find it. We’ll be selecting 5 entries, at random, from entrants who get the answer correct. ONLY ONE ENTRY PER PERSON IS ALLOWED. DUPLICATE AND RISK DISQUALIFICATION. OPEN TO US RESIDENTS ONLY. Multiple entries will get you thrown out of the contest. No, if you have 2 different e-mail addresses, you can’t enter from each one. Let’s keep it fair.

So good luck, and thanks again to Simon & Schuster for supplying us with the goods! Good luck, brave readers! And for those of you who don’t win, you can own your very own copy of “Degrassi Generations: The Official 411″, now on bookstands everywhere, or available direct from Simon & Schuster.

• It’s official! “My Name Is Earl”, as we must remind you, starring TWO Mallrats alumni (Lee and Suplee) has become the first Fall comedy series to get a full order of 22 episodes! This is fantastic news, as the show’s not losing steam, and continues to amuse, bringing back regular characters and keeping some minor plot development happening while sticking to a formula that works. We’re stoked that we’ve got many fun filled half hours on the way. Hollywood Reporter says:

• Kevin’s guest starring role gets a second go-round early in the new Fall season tonight, when he appears as, what else but a CLERK on the acclaimed “Veronica Mars” tonight on UPN. 9 PM. We’ve yet to catch up to the show but with the impending Season 1 DVD release, plan to do so shortly, as word has it that it’s one of the best on televsion right now. Be sure and tune in for what’s sure to be another fun appearance from our own Kevin Smith! And as always, check with News Askew for a clip and screenshots later this week.

• In case you missed Kevin’s fun cameo scene in the Season 2 pilot of “Joey” last Thursday, we’ve gone ahead and captured the clip and tossed it up online here for your enjoyment. A good portion of the episode centered around Kevin, and Joey’s quest to get a part in his upcoming film. Kevin plays himself, and, as he’s stated, did some rewrites of the script for the scene which you’re about to watch. The clip is in the new DivX format to get us the highest quality in the least amount of bandwidth — Grab a free player HERE if you don’t already have it. Enjoy.