(Street Life is a regular feature that focuses on what's playing in the stock market.)

* ACT I: The Home Run VFC Inc. (TSX:VFC) $19.30 Up 36 per cent (one-day pop on news)

TD Bank stepped up to the plate as the cleanup hitter by offering $19.50 per share for the vehicle financing company in a deal worth $326 million. That may be a drop in the bucket for a big bank such as TD (TSX:TD) but a major coup for VFC stockholders.

VFC has been one of the TSX's big gainers in the small-cap space, having scored a near double in the past year on its flourishing niche market of financing vehicle loans to consumers with poor credit ratings. Small-cap fund manager Martin Ferguson of Mawer Investment Management recently made VFC one of his top picks in the Edge's Pro's 3 Stars feature.

* ACT II: The Dot-Com Bomb Expedia (Nasdaq:EXPE) $19.82 US Down 18.3 per cent (one-day selloff on news)

Expedia put out its fourth-quarter financials and a commercial broke out in the midst of the press release. Stated CEO Dara Khosrowshahi in the earnings release: "While the fourth quarter wasn't as strong as we hoped it would be, the Expedia Promise, Best Price Guarantee and Expedia Trip Guides are fitting additions to what was a solid year ...”

Somehow, amid the gushing by the CEO, those smart-as-a-whip shareholders managed to unearth the bottom line - a 43-per-cent drop in earnings from the year-ago period that led to a brisk selloff. The online travel company earned seven cents a share, blaming it largely on escalating expenses.

* ACT III: The Big Deal Producers Oilfield Services (TSX:POS) $13.32 Up 32 per cent (one-day pop on news)

Investors had been speculating that Producers would convert into an income trust. In a sense, they were right, but the company took a shortcut to that goal in a merger with Mullen Group Income Fund (TSX:MTL.

UN). The combined entity of the two trucking companies will result in a billion-dollar revenue income trust. Mullen, a 57-year-old operation based in tiny Aldersyde, Alta., and 25-per-cent owned by the Mullen family, offered Producers shareholders 0.44 of a Mullen unit for each of their shares. Mullen co-CEO Murray Mullen will be chairman of the new trust.

* ACT IV: The Private Takeover Advanced Fiber Technologies Income Fund (TSX:AFT.un) $2.95 Up 126.92 per cent (one-day pop on news) Back in December, AFT was in the trust doghouse and its units were trading as low as 68 cents. But bargain hunters began to snap up the units early in the year and the price quickly doubled before a private Japanese company stunned unitholders with a $3-per-unit offer. That company is Aikawa Iron Works, a producer of paper mill stock-preparation and pulp-handling machinery that coveted AFT's pulp-screening business. AFT CEO Roch Leblanc wasn't complaining about the friendly takeover. He called the acquisition offer a "win-win scenario for all stakeholders.”

No kidding!

* ACT V: The Gambler - Part 1 CryptoLogic Inc. (TSX:CRY) $27.76 Up 38.8 per cent (past four months) CryptoLogic, a beneficiary of poker mania as a provider of online gaming software to the Internet gaming market, drew an ace with its fourth-quarter financials. Spurred by poker fees that were up 92 per cent, overall revenue increased 40 per cent and profits rose 54 per cent. The company reported revenue of $25.1 million US and earnings of $5.8 million or 43 cents a share compared to $3.8 million and 27 cents per share in the year-ago period. The company's 2005 revenue and earnings were all-time highs. While stock in CryptoLogic has been on a roll, the shares are still a far cry from the 52-week high of $45 set last May.

* ACT VI: The Gambler - Part 2 Great Canadian Gaming (TSX:GCD) $12.41 Down 31.1 per cent (past year) Guess what? It costs money to build casinos. Big money. At least that's the word from Great Canadian Gaming CEO Howard Hum, who says the casino and racetrack operator's upfront costs have been "substantial.”

Great Canadian shares hit a 52-week low as the Richmond, B.C.-based company warned of a possible loss in the fourth quarter, attributing that to high expenses. Sheila Broughton, an analyst with Pacific International Securities, responded by putting her buy recommendation and $20 target for Great Canadian Gaming under review.

* ACT VII: The Trust Bust Associated Brands Income Fund (TSX:ABF.un) $1.68 Down 76.3 per cent (past year)

It's the worst nightmare of the trust investor and it's become a common occurrence in the Canadian income trust market. You invest for the monthly cash distribution and the company, under financial duress, suspends the distribution. Just 26 days after declaring a February distribution, Associated Brands said it was suspending its February distribution because the company was unable to secure permission from the lender to make that payment. Associated also issued a profit warning, citing higher than expected operating costs. Associated Brands, which manufactures private-label dry-blend food products and household products, has seen its units tumble 42.9 per cent year to date.

* ACT VIII: The Penny Jackpot Pacific Asia China Energy (TSXV:PCE) $2.10 Up 82.6 per cent (past month) The name says it all. Any company in this market with both "China" and "Energy" in its handle can't help but command double-barrelled attention from giddy speculators. Pacific Asia China Energy bills itself as the first Canadian company to explore for and develop coalbed methane resources in China. In January, the Kelowna, B.C.-based company set the wheels in motion by completing a $6.6-million financing and a reverse takeover of China Canada Energy Corp. A poster on a chatboard did pose one question: 'Is anyone concerned about the risk involved with working in China?' Judging by the spike in the shares, it seems the answer is no.

(Note: Stock prices are based on results through Feb. 17.)

(Gyle Konotopetz can be reached at gyle@businessedge.ca)