Memories are made through experiences. And Marcus Theatres has made a business of delivering magical moments through offering a seat for a show on the big screen.

There’s a natural wonderment when one spends a day at the movies, however, for some, a trip to the theater is simply out of reach. That’s where the Kids Dream Winter Film Series comes into play.

"A family can attend the movies at a substantially discounted price, with discounted concessions," said Carlo Petrick of Marcus Theatres. On selected Saturday and Sunday mornings, a family-friendly film is on the big screen and tickets are only $2. "It’s a low cost movie opportunity for those who can’t afford to or don’t wish to attend at full price."

Almost a decade ago, Marcus launched the Summer Series, allowing families a chance to escape the heat of the season and take the family to the movies. Marcus works with film studios to get movies that have been out a while and bring them back for another run.

"Because of the success of the Summer Series, we extended it to winter," Petrick said. "They tend to start slow, but once word gets out, more people tend to come."

"Madagascar 3" played last weekend, and this Saturday and Sunday, participating theaters will offer "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days." You can see the full schedule of films and participating theaters here.

Marcus Theatres offers a number of discounts and special promotions throughout the year, and the best way to keep track of them is to follow the Midwest theater chain’s social media pages. Each theater has its own Facebook page, and you can find all of them at the corporate page here.

CONNECTIONS: Time Warner Cable’s Connect a Million Minds project is an initiative to address America’s declining proficiency in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). In the three years it’s been active, the effort has 500,000 minds pledged and counting. Through broadcast and community programs, the aim is to get more pledges on its website at connectamillionminds.com.

To gain more awareness for the project, from now through the end of the month, Time Warner Cable is having a sweepstakes. A winner will receive a trip for four to visit one of the space shuttles – either the Space Shuttle Enterprise in New York City or Space Shuttle Endeavour in Los Angeles.

The winner will be announced in March. To take the pledge and enter, go here.

RATINGS: Although the main sweeps periods are in the spring and the fall, the Nielsen company keeps ratings year-round, and breaks down ratings periods for each month.

In the first full ratings period of 2013, WISN-TV Ch. 12 is claiming a victory in the early and late evening news.

"It is very gratifying to start the new year with such strong momentum," Jan Wade, WISN-TV president and general manager, said in a statement. "Growing our news audience at 6 p.m. and for the 10 p.m. hour is a testament to the hard work and dedication of a very committed and talented staff. We know the importance of keeping our viewers informed on the important information of the day, and we are honored that they count on us for that each and every day."

At 10 p.m., WISN had an 8.1 household rating, with WTMJ-TV Ch. 4 at 7.8, WITI-TV Fox 6 with a 5.3 and WDJT-TV CBS 58 had a 5.2.