Call it what you will: a pep rally, an old-fashioned Arkansas revival, a Peoples Temple brimming with Kool-Aid and those creepy Wal-Mart smiley faces. We still can't wait to see what kind of hoopla the WMT annual meeting generates this year, with the company's investors and employees expected to pack an 18,000-seat arena near its Bentonville headquarters. Sure, company executives will talk about revamping stores and boosting sales at a time when Wal-Mart's low- and middle-income customers are enduring rising gas prices and plunging consumer confidence. But the real draw of this five-hour-plus affair, which contrasts with Target's 30-minute in-and-out express meeting, is the special entertainment, never announced until just before the show. Think J. Lo (last year's surprise guest), Beyoncé (the year before), and a 90-minute "Wal-Mart: The Musical." No, really. -- KR
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