Today you can call me your entertainment guide, your endless source of A&E knowledge or simply your doorway into a new world — the world of arts and entertainment.

To some, learning the basics of the entertainment world may seem like a waste of time. Just remember, others think learning chemistry formulas and proper English grammar is too.

The difference is this: Everyday conversations may include the words TomKat or what happened on last night’s Lost episode. However, it’s almost a certainty that those nasty chemistry formulas or compound conjunctions won’t come up as frequently — or ever, for that matter.

So here are some things you need to know in order to carry your weight in a pop culture conversation. Stay with me and you’ll be on the road to entertainment enlightenment.

There are three main annual awards shows: The Academy Awards (also known as The Oscars), which honors achievements in cinema. Then there’s the Emmy Awards, or the television awards. And lastly, there’s the Grammy, or the music awards. Oscars = movies. Emmys = TV. Grammy = music. It’s really not that hard.

If you want a great deal on your favorite new release DVD, buy it on the Tuesday it is released. You’re guaranteed a great deal if you can get to the store fast enough to beat the other Harry Potter maniacs for one of only 20 copies of the special widescreen edition.

Hollywood has way too much fun combining the names of celebrity couples. Tom Cruise plus Katie Holmes = TomKat. And then there’s the classic Bennifer, which started it all. You can cross Ben Affleck with Jennifer Lopez or Jennifer Garner, depending on the day.

A “blockbuster” is more than just a video store. The term is now connected with a financial threshold that a film must exceed. Today, the standard is set at $200 million in ticket sales. The first blockbuster film, the 1975 Steven Spielberg thriller Jaws, set the standard for films to follow and also began the summer movie “blockbuster” season.

Keeping up on the entertainment world is not a waste of time. Like any other profession, it’s important to stay in tune with current events. The world of entertainment, perhaps more than any other today, is constantly changing.

Now that you’re well on your way to becoming entertainment savvy, I wish you the best in your search for A&E proficiency.