Cover Story
This Land is Your Land
Reese Woodling is worried about Arizona’s state parks. Woodling, who is completing his second stint as a member of the State Parks Board, knows Arizona’s parks better than almost anyone in the state. Over his five decades in Arizona, he’s been to all but one of them, and he helped bring many of them into…
Sure, Joe Pesci Rapping. Why Not?
I appreciate novelty records more than nearly anyone, but Joe Pesci’s 1998 album Vincent Laguardia Gambini Sings Just for You was probably a bad idea, even considering the two tracks dedicated to his role in My Cousin Vinny. Nice sample of “Rapture”, though. [Egotrip]
TucsonWeeklyTV.com – Talking Pearl Jam
As part of my weekly appearance on KFMA, Fook and I discussed the Cameron Crowe directed documentary marking the 20th anniversary of Pearl Jam. The film comes to the Loft for one showing on September 20th. The trailer:
Local Recipe Contest: Share Memories, Meals With Older Relatives
Tucson’s Home Instead Senior Care office is holding a recipe contest to encourage families to invite their senior relatives over for dinner, especially if those relatives live alone. More from Home Instead Senior Care: What does an older adult who lives alone want most for dinner? The answer may surprise you. According to new research,…
‘ I’ve Been Spammed by Tyler Vogt!’: More on Vogt’s Spam Bam
Down on the Range, we’re all for the Freedom of Information Act, because making requests for information often leads to those details public officials would rather you didn’t know. But this mess Republican Tyler Vogt created for himself after getting e-mail correspondence from Tucson City Council members Paul Cunningham, Shirley Scott, Steve Kozachik and others,…
TucsonWeeklyTV.com – Talking Adam West With Heroes & Villains
You might not think you’d be interested in a comic book about the life of Adam West, but what about a comic book about Adam West in which he takes a surreal, metaphysical journey into the mind?
Start Watching “Mad Men” Already, Seriously
My vote for the best show (not involving former cast members of the Real World, at least) on television won’t be back on the air until 2012 unfortunately, but you can watch Mad Men’s first four seasons on Netflix Instant starting today, which is of some comfort. Now you can watch the story of Don…
Karamargin Candidate for Vice Chancellor for Government Relations and Public Information Position
Last week, while Pima Community College’s Chancellor Roy Flores was trying to sell his plan to change the college’s admission policy, which would require incoming students to have a high school diploma or GED, and would shrink the college’s adult education department, the college was also interviewing four candidates for a new position that comes…
Grijalva Speaks Out Against Grand Canyon Uranium Mining
Yesterday, Reps. Raul Grijalva and Ed Pastor spoke out against a measure that would allow uranium mining near the Grand Canyon. Rep. Jeff Flake and other House Republicans attached the measure to a federal spending bill after the Obama administration imposed a moratorium on such mining in 2009.
Impress Hot Pot’s Sauce-Making Contest
If you have yet to eat at a hot-pot restaurant, it’s awesome. You order one of several broths spiced to your specifications, and then order a bunch of meat and veggies to toss into the heated pot on your table. Tucson’s kind-of-new hot-pot restaurant, Impress Hot Pot, at 2610 N. First Ave., also has a…
Let’s Celebrate the Return of the NFL With Music
[UPDATE: Now with the actual video that makes this amusing. Sorry.] Sure, all real Americans celebrated when the NFL lockout ended on Monday, but we didn’t really get to experience our joy fully until today when we get to really consider the place pro football holds in our lives with “Football’s Back” by ATG and…
Outsourcing the Star: Wednesday Edition
To be fair, today was a solid day for local content. Nearly all of the pieces in the sports section were by Star authors, mostly covering Pac-12 Media Day, and the front of the news section was heavy on local news (including a continuation of the extensive giraffe-in-peril coverage). Tomorrow may be another day, but…
Ladies, Prepare Yourselves for Dancing
It’s a dance for a lady. What sort of dance and what sort of lady, I’m not sure, but he says it’s a dance for a lady, so I’ll have to take him at his word.
38 Days Until Wildcat Football Kicks Off for 2011
While the new structure of the Pac-12 might make it slightly easier for the University of Arizona to make it to its first Rose Bowl, with the Wildcats only needing to be better than the other five teams (actually…USC is still ineligible for postseason play, so they could still finish behind the Trojans even) of…
McDonald’s Manager Punches Customer in Face, Couple Has Sex in Busy Public Pool and More: Rynski Radio at Party934
Update with playlist and download at bottom of post Photo Ryn Gargulinski Hopefully the pool the couple chose was a bit bigger than this one. McDonald’s is known for serving up billions of burgers, but a manager at a Georgia location reportedly instead decided to serve up a punch in the face. The manager, Tiffany…
Secret Passcodes and Cheap Baseball!
Hard to beat the deal at the Padres game Wednesday night: Tell the nice person at the ticket counter the magic word “Kino” and get any ticket in the house for $2, regular beers for the same price, and hot dogs for a single buck. I’ll be taking my family there, and if it’s enough…
Butterburgers and Concrete Mixers: Culver’s Is Open
Woo-hoo! The Culver’s restaurant at 40 S. Broadway Place, near Broadway Boulevard and Prudence Road is open. I know this restaurant chain well from my youth in Wisconsin, and you’re in for a treat Tucson. Totally decadent. Totally greasy. Totally delicious. The other location on Thornydale isn’t done yet, but looks to be about there.
Mini-Dorm Goodman and City Mediate
From Joan Hall, president of the Jefferson Park Neighborhood Association on the neighborhood, the city and mini-dorm developer Michael Goodman’s ongoing dispute on the city’s definition of single family zoning and group dwellings: Dear Neighbors and Friends, JPNA, the City of Tucson, and mini-dorm developer Michael Goodman have tentatively agreed to mediate, over the next…
The Devil Lives in a New York City CVS
I don’t know exactly what’s happening in this video shared on Reddit, but I assume someone told this woman that she can’t use her ExtraCare bucks on liquor. When I first heard that, I think I called for God’s wrath on the cashier as well. Either that or someone was stealing their weight in razors…
A Gila Monster Walks Into a Bar …
Have you seen me, baby? Researchers from the University of Arizona, Saguaro National Park and Friends of Saguaro National Park are studying the ecology and natural history of Gila Monsters in the park and they need your help. If you see a Gila Monster in the park, take a photo, write down the date and…
Good Charlotte Video Captures Tucson
There’s a bit of the Rialto Theatre and other scenes of Tucson in the video for Good Charlotte’s “1979.” The band played at the Rialto on June 12:
Ain’t Nothing Cuter Than An Animal Slideshow
Take a break out of your hectic Tuesday, and relax like this squirrel. Then, check out this slideshow and make a big, cheesy smile as you eat from your bag of Cheetos (or is that just me)?
Buying “Surgery for Dummies” Was a Bad Idea
The understatement of the day: “It is absolutely impossible for someone to fix their own hernia,” said Sam Carvajal, a surgeon at Glendale Adventist Medical Center. Also, even if it were possible, using a butter knife for the task probably isn’t ideal.
Critter of the Week [Dog Edition]: Lucy
Lucy, a 3-year-old pit bull mix, just needs somebody to love. Sweet little Lucy wants to share one of her world famous hugs with you! This happy girl gushes with affection and can’t help but wiggle her whole body the moment your eyes meet. She knows that you’re the one for her and wants to…
Outsourcing the Star – Tuesday Edition
Today’s score (not including briefs, notes, editorials or the other non-bylined pieces): Section A – 8 Arizona Daily Star bylines; 17 non-Star bylines.Sports – Star, 3; Not the Star, 6.
British Young People Find Our Megastores Amusing
Strangely, this video makes me like Wal-Mart more and English people less, which is a strange turn of events for sure.
Coming Soon: Genghis Grill
Genghis Grill is opening a location near the Tucson Mall. The restaurant is a build-your-own stir-fry joint that says it models its cooking techniques on the legend that Genghis Khan’s Mongolian warriors cooked their meals on overturned shields while in battle. Not bad, Genghis Grill. That marketing detail is almost as badass as Khan himself.…
Your Day Could Be Worse, I Promise
Listen, if your wallet falls down a storm drain, it’s time to loudly scream profanities for a bit, then move on with your life. It would not be time to try to retrieve it, getting stuck in the process, and having your legs appear on TV. [The Awl]
It’s Time for the Soul Train Line
Related to absolutely nothing (other than awesomeness), let’s watch some classic dancing from Soul Train. Feel free to join in.
ASU Offers Students Official Way to Get Drunk
They’re doing great things up north at Girls Gone Wild University and Casino: In some respects, Will Corbin’s laboratory is the same as many others at Arizona State University. Lots of glass bottles on the shelves. A stainless-steel sink. Carefully calibrated lighting. The similarities stop there, however. In Corbin’s lab, a long bar stretches across…
Debut Book from Up-and-Coming Author, Caitlin Horrocks
I can’t wait to get my hands on This Is Not Your City, a collection of short stories from author Caitlin Horrocks. Here’s a snippet of what the New York Times had to say about her new book: Horrocks’s motley crew of characters have this in common: They don’t find easy anodynes. Lyssa, the wife…
The Landslide Will Bring It Down (On Mars)
Well, I’ve been afraid of changes, cause I built my life around you… This week’s picture of Mars, courtesy of the UA Lunar and Planetary Lab’s HiRISE camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, highlights the Landslides in Valles Marineris. Valles Marineris is the largest canyon in the Solar System: if superposed on a map of…
Finally, Someone Praying for the Real People of America
I believe this prayer to Lord Tiny Baby Christmas Jesus might have been sponsored by Powerade, but I guess Pastor Joe Nelms forgot that part. Still, hell of a grace, man. [Daily What]
How Many Arizona Daily Star Bylines Are There Today?
Part of a new series, in which we look at the day’s Arizona Daily Star and see how many articles are written by Arizona Daily Star staffers following the massive layoffs last week: Section A: 5, not counting editorials, briefs, notes, an unsigned retrospective piece and a chart, but including a “For the Arizona Daily…
Seriously, Similac. You Remind Me of a Crack Dealer.
These boxes of free Similac keep arriving at my house. The company thinks we had a baby and wants to make sure we know that our lives would be better if we fed that baby their product instead of breast milk. Shoving this product down the throats of families and their babies is shady. The…
Q&A with Laura Milkins, Power Walker
Performance artist Laura Milkins is walking from her home in Tucson, Arizona to her Mom’s home in Grand Rapids, Michigan. And she’s half-through her journey! What’s more, she has a 24-hour live streaming of her walk that you can watch, too. She graciously chatted with me on her Bluetooth headset while she was mid-stride in…
It’s Monday Morning
I was in New Orleans for four days. It’s too early. This cup knows how I feel. [Laughing Squid]
RIP, Amy Winehouse
Amy Winehouse, troubled British singer, was found dead in London at her home today. When someone who struggles prominently with substance abuse dies, the discussion that follows the announcement of their demise is always going to be a mixed bag of reactions and looking at my Facebook feed, today is no different. However, for this…
Tyler Vogt, You Are Terrible at the Internet
When Congress passed the CAN-SPAM Act in 2003, they left a rather gaping hole for political emails, exempting them for most of the restrictions that the Tucson Weekly or commercial enterprises are held to. However, there’s just a basic idea that when you send out an email representing yourself, you don’t want to be an…
So, Bob Dylan’s Grandson is a Rapper?
I sort of feel bad for this kid…after all, he has the right to do whatever he wants with his life, he’s likely to have had a rather artistic childhood, especially since his father is a music video director, and probably these days every kid thinks he’s a rapper. However, this particular song is not…
Shameless Self-Promotion: ‘Tucson Weekly’ Wins Three Altweekly Awards, Including First-Place Honor
Finally, just a tiny bit of good journalism news for Tucson. The Tucson Weekly won three awards in the 2011 Altweekly Awards. The winners of the awards, sponsored by the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies (AAN), were announced this afternoon at the 2011 AAN Annual Convention in New Orleans. The Weekly won top honors in the…
Flor de Muertos at the Rialto
Flor De Muertos Trailer (2011) from Brink Media on Vimeo. Flor de Muertos, the documentary shot largely at the 2009 All Souls Procession and the Calexico and friends concert that followed at the Rialto Theatre, will be screened all weekend at the Rialto. Stephen Seigel wrote about it in this week’s Soundbites: If you missed…
Arizona Inn Named As One Of “World’s Best Hotels”
Travel and Leisure Magazine just named the Arizona Inn as one of the top 10 small hotels in cities across the U.S. and Canada. More on the inn’s 2011 World’s Best Hotels honor: Founder Isabella Greenway’s great-grandson Will Conroy, the current President of the Inn, says the hotel is grateful for this remarkable honor and…
Celebrating the Genius of Menu Anomalies
I love the little typos and anomalies on menus, and this one on the beautiful menu at my favorite restaurant, Sher-e-Punjab, smacks of genius. “Hard liquid” is a beautiful oxymoron and a wonderful way to describe strong spirits. That is all.
Is the Arizona Daily Star Following the Path of the Tucson Citizen?
The Arizona Daily Star confirmed that 52 people were laid off from the publication Thursday. If its figure of roughly 400 employees cutting paychecks in some capacity at the Compound at Park and Irvington is accurate, yesterday’s gutting would account for about 12 percent of the work force. Gone: an estimated 15 newsroom employees and…
A Grave Problem
Two sisters made the unfortunate discovery that the grave they spent roughly two decades visiting belonged, not to their mother, but some strange man. Now, the sisters are seeking $25 million in damages from the Rosehill Cemetery in Linden, New Jersey, for emotional distress caused when they learned that their mother, Beatrice Williams, had been…
In Case You Missed It: KFMA, Hot Dogs, and Crime
Be sure to tune into KFMA Wednesday mornings at 8:10 for Fook and me discussing the news you can really use, plus a brief clip of a song by the greatest band ever, Europe.
Wow, Poptail Hour Sure Was a Blast
One of each, please. Kudos to David Aguirre and the rest of the crew down at Dinnerware Artspace for last night’s Poptail Hour event, which turned out to be one of the best times I’ve had all summer. There was live music by Vox Urbana, alcoholic and non-alcoholic popsicles in ingenious flavors by the Monsoon…
This Week in Tucson Bicycling
Michael McKisson/TucsonVelo.com New bike facilities were added to the Starr Pass Boulevard and Mission Road intersection. A local bike shop was broken into this week. Check out the description of the thief and what he got away with. One of Tucson’s most complicated intersections gets a facelift with innovative bike infrastructure. Check out the photos…
I’m Posting This Just for Jimmy Boegle
Get More: Beavis and Butt-Head, MTV Shows The moment Tucson Weekly editor Jimmy Boegle has been waiting months for: a preview of the triumphant return of 90’s icons Beavis and Butthead.
The Unisource Building Gets “Brodeskyed”
I missed this yesterday while on the road and hearing off the layoffs at his paper, the Star, just a quick note for Josh Brodesky. If you find yourself writing this sentence: Is downtown’s newest building really its ugliest, or is that just columnist hyperbole? …you’re doing the “columnist” thing wrong. Maybe the Unisource building…
Save Ethnic Studies Forum: Be There
If you missed last month’s Save Ethnic Studies forum at Southside Presbyterian Church, the Range would like to remind and urge you to go to the next forum tonight at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Tucson, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at 4831 E 22nd St. The forum materials and presentation is particularly helpful if…
Things We Can Learn from a Bed Bath & Beyond Catalog
Photo Ryn Gargulinski Dirty feet are clean in a flash with the Easy Feet foot washer. Bed Bath & Beyond did it again — and the results are not always pretty. Anyone who has shopped there at least once, which is most likely everybody, and happens to get their address on file also happens to…
Update: Star Layoffs
At 12 a.m. today, the Arizona Daily Star finally confirmed that the newspaper cut 52 people in all departments — posting a story on its website in its business section. Ironically, the Star’s story regarding their own layoffs is on the same digital page as a Howard Fischer story on Arizona’s jobless rate increasing .2…
Fabulous Fridays, Mr. K’s Barbeque, Janos Wilder’s Pumpkin Patch and More!
Tapas Tuesdays at Ghini’s French Caffé have always been a hit, but patrons asked owner Coralie Satta to move the event to a day when they could let loose a bit more. The result is Fabulous Fridays, which will start at 3 p.m., Friday, July 29, and feature French-inspired small plates and $3 wine, beer,…
Layoffs at the Arizona Daily Star
The long-standing financial woes of Lee Enterprises trickled down to the Arizona Daily Star, and in a big way. The Star laid off about 20 people Thursday morning, in the process gutting its marketing department and taking a major swath to the news department. The Weekly has learned the list of layoffs includes Shelley Shelton,…
I Am Powerless in the Presence of Your Adorableness, Kangaroo
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy Don’t let any of those other kangaroos tell you you’re different, albino kangaroo. You’re beautiful and the world loves you. [The Awl]
At The Ballpark Tonight: Help A Family In Need
Tonight at Kino Stadium, $1 from every ticket sold will help the family of this 5-year-old boy make ends meet. More from the Padres’ Facebook page: This Thursday, the Tucson Padres will be helping raise money to benefit the family of Julian Aguirre; a 5 year old child that fought leukemia and died in June.…
An Update On Franklin, The Poodle You Saved
Effie Craven A few weeks ago, we told you about an abused poodle named Franklin who needed surgery after a large gash on his face became infected, leaving his sinus cavity exposed. According to Franklin’s owner, Effie Craven, Tucson Weekly readers alone donated about $800, allowing the poodle to get his surgery. “Franklin’s surgery went…
Tucson Bars, Don’t Sign Up for Barspace
The above picture is a still from Barspace.tv – specifically, an image of what was happening at the Queen City Grill in Seattle when I happened to visit the site a few minutes ago. Barspace is a new website that features live feeds from bars in a few states, although not Arizona at the moment.…
Let’s Listen to Some Jay-Z and Kanye West
The sound quality is kind of terrible, but the leak of “Otis”, the first single from the Jay-Z/Kanye West collaboration album Watch The Throne is bound to be an event of some musical importance. Plus, Otis Redding samples are always welcome.
New Proposal: Name Capitol Meeting Room For Gabe Zimmerman
Courtesy: Office of Gabrielle Giffords A new resolution proposes naming a meeting room in the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center for Gabe Zimmerman, the 30-year-old Giffords aide who was killed in the Jan. 8 shooting. More from U.S. Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz and David Schweikert, who introduced the resolution: “Gabe Zimmerman was a loyal, determined, public…
Chosen Rejects
Billed as “the most extreme tour of the year,” the annual Summer Slaughter tour is a U.S. death-metal extravaganza. The traveling package of sonic pain includes the genre’s top bands and has spread, like some virulent disease, to Europe and Australia. This year, the acts are louder and more lethal than ever—with The Black Dahlia…
Take Me to Your Leader
The University of Arizona president of Dennis DeConcini’s dreams would be someone who could raise money for the school and avoid raising tuition rates—despite the state Legislature’s hacks at education funding. “It’s not a good time for education in this state and across the country. Not only do we have to live with what the…
A Barbaric Business
The person is lying down completely naked. We cover the body with a sheet, sprinkle gasoline or alcohol on the sheet, and when it is soaked, light it with a match. As the fuel burns, it removes up to three layers of skin from their bodies. Their backs would be left completely raw. … The…
Soundbites
Music live from The Red Room; Latino rock at Solar Culture; Flor de Muertos returns; and much more!
A Surprise Sale
A tattered Safeway bag skips across the parched lot before clinging to a chunk of jagged concrete. Nearby, traffic bumps across the railroad tracks on Sixth Street before idling at a stoplight near the Stone Avenue underpass. As downtown properties go, this dusty parcel easily goes unnoticed. So did its recent sale to a Tucson…
Top Ten in Music
1. Incubus If Not Now, When? (Epic/Immortal) 2. Rango (DVD) Paramount 3. Sublime With Rome Yours Truly (Fueled by Ramen) 4. Washed Out Within and Without (Sub Pop) 5. Foster the People Torches (Columbia) 6. Bon Iver Bon Iver (Jagjaguwar) 7. Cults Cults (ITNO/Columbia) 8. Alkaline Trio Damnesia (Epitaph) 9. Fair to Midland Arrows and…
Cello Pop
In an increasingly chaotic and homogenized music world, Ben Sollee comes as close as you can to being a unique talent: He’s an insightful folk-pop singer-songwriter who plays cello while singing. “No, I really can’t think of anyone who does what I do, that’s for sure,” he said during a recent phone interview, and you…
Transparency, Please
A Hollywood director searching for a location to film the post-apocalypse should come to the Huachuca Mountains outside of Sierra Vista. The Monument Fire began at the border on June 12 and scorched across this once-beautiful landscape, bringing terror and destruction to places like Ash Canyon. Residents are beginning to rebuild, just as monsoon rains…
Top Ten in Books
1. Thirteen Reasons Why Jay Asher, Razorbill ($10.99) 2. Eat Mesquite! Desert Harvesters ($19.95) 3. State of Wonder Ann Patchett, Harper ($26.99) 4. In the Woods Tana French, Penguin ($15) 5. Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand Helen Simonson, Random House ($15) 6. The Death of Josseline: Immigration Stories From the Arizona Borderlands Margaret Regan, Beacon ($15)…
Nine Questions
A native Tucsonan, Christabelle Merrill has played violin for 19 years. She’s performed with numerous orchestras and chamber groups, including Chris Black’s ChamberLab project. She is also a classically trained pianist and has been known to play the drums here and there. Merrill’s been an integral member of Leila Lopez’s band for about two years.…
Crossing Zone
The spot where the Monument Fire started is well-known as a major smugglers’ entry point into the United States. Cochise County Sheriff’s Deputy Danny Romero, who has worked that area with the county’s narcotics and border-interdiction teams, says the biggest trail in the area runs up the ridge about 300 yards from the spot of…
No Bother At All
When I saw that Disney would be releasing a new Winnie the Pooh movie on the weekend when the Harry Potter finale was also hitting theaters, I thought the company’s executives must be nuts. If you are going to go up against the P-Man, don’t do it with a kids’ movie. That would mean certain…
Live
The Cordials—Laura Kepner-Adney on guitar, Cristina Williams on bass, and Courtney Robbins on drums—are the female trio for which Tucson has been subconsciously pining. Each of the members keep busy when it comes to making music here in Tucson. Kepner-Adney, aka Hank, makes up one-third of the Silver Thread Trio. Williams is a member of…
Arctic Monkeys: Suck It and See (Domino)
This British group, which achieved international success before its members were 21, has already crested beyond the growing pains of a typical musical gestation—just in time to legally rent cars. The debut was frenetic and prankish. The sophomore album was muscular and cautious. The third album was heavy and experimental. Suck It and See is…
Top Ten in Movies
1. The Lincoln Lawyer Lionsgate 2. Insidious Sony 3. Rango Paramount 4. Arthur Warner 5. Season of the Witch 20th Century Fox 6. Sucker Punch Warner 7. Unknown Warner 8. The Adjustment Bureau Universal 9. Red Riding Hood Warner 10. Hobo With a Shotgun Magnolia
Editor’s Note
This story has no importance whatsoever, but it’s so damn weird that I feel the need to share it. On Monday morning (July 18), I pulled into Weekly World Central’s parking lot, like I do every workday, and headed for my normal parking spot—where I saw what at first glance appeared to be an injured…
Media Watch
Power 1490 gets its much delayed chance to say goodbye; April Madison back at the weather desk; and more!
Danehy
The good, the bad and the ugly in Tucson these days: • The good: A while back, I had to go downtown on a Saturday night to deliver an important message to my son, who didn’t have his phone with him. It so happened that it was the second Saturday of June, and downtown Tucson…
Ask a Mexican!
Dear Ask a Wetback: You and your fellow law-breaking wetbacks don’t like Arizona’s SB 1070? Too damn bad. Trot back to Make Sick O and protest there; see where it gets you. If you’d work half as hard at cleaning up your dump nation as you do at sneaking in here, your nation would be…
Downing
This is one of those times when it’s hard to focus. Every day, I’m newly enchanted—in a breathless, serial-novel-reader sort of way—by the unfolding News of the World/News Corp. scandal in Britain. Every entertainment aspect of it is profoundly gratifying: The stunning change of fortunes of a nasty, bullying tabloid empire; the vindication of the…
Mailbag
Tourism > the military
Guest Commentary
Industry-funded zealots are angling to prevent nonprofits from protecting veterans, children, workers and the environment. With the absurd argument that nonprofits are getting rich by making the government follow its own laws, they want to ensure that only the truly rich are able to take the government to court. Even those who should know better…
Beat the Clock
John Tsosie is a real, flesh-and-blood person who recently could be found searching for a job at a southside office of the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES). A recent headline in The New York Times declared, “Somehow, the Unemployed Became Invisible.” That may be politically true, but beyond politics, that is not the case…
The Skinny
The battle over the debt ceiling rages on in Washington…Who wants to be the Republican candidate for mayor?
The Power of Power 1490
Think back to music of the early ’90s, and the work of Coolio, Da Brat, Warren G and TLC. If you were a Tucson teen during that time, you were probably listening to these artists on Power 1490 AM. More than 16 years after the disappearance of Power 1490, a new film about the groundbreaking…
Involving Mystery
It doesn’t take much for a movie to be considered film noir anymore. Obviously, black-and-white films don’t come around every day, and although that’s not technically necessary for the definition, films we consider noir are commonly drenched in shadows, the kind that are most effective in the contrast of black-and-white—in movies like Double Indemnity, Touch…
Police Dispatch
The lengths people will go to for air conditioning; The perils of bath salts
City Week
Movies for kids (and adults) at The Loft; Jessica Finchot; The beach comes to Tucson; and more!
Now Showing at Home
Insidious (Blu-ray); Robot Chicken: Star Wars III (Blu-ray); Rango (Blu-ray)
Eleanor Friedberger: Last Summer (Merge)
Eleanor Friedberger’s debut solo album, Last Summer, matches her work in the Fiery Furnaces in that it’s a swirl of Beat poetry, prog hierophancy and Muppet Show antics. On album opener “My Mistakes,” she’s in playful Muppet mode, with the song’s insistent thrum girded by calypso squelches. The song’s spiritual cousin is Liz Phair’s “Whip-Smart,”…
TQ&A
Regina Deil-Amen, an associate professor at the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the UA, is studying how social media can help different student populations in college succeed, and how colleges can use social media for specific purposes. Deil-Amen and a colleague, assistant professor Cecilia Rios-Aguilar, recently received a $735,442 Bill and Melinda…
Art That’s Delicious
When I think of great food towns, I don’t think of Sierra Vista. (This may have something to do with the fact that the last meal I ate there was at a Golden Corral.) This is why I walked into the Hana Tokyo in Tucson with not-so-high expectations: Hana Tokyo’s original location is in Sierra…
Bricktop: Broken Bottles and Suicide Throttles (Bulldog)
You don’t expect in this day and age for an aggressive, real punk-rock record to leave you humming along after it stops, but this outfit’s sophomore release does just that—which is a testament to Bricktop’s insistent musicality and the catchiness of their shout-along vocals. Add furious air-raid guitars and nonstop energy, and the Tucson band…
Timeless Laughs
By day, Bruce Bieszki is an accountant and co-owner of a used-car dealership. But as day fades into dusk, Bieszki becomes a theatrical entrepreneur. Having knocked around community theaters for about 17 years, Bieszki decided he would create one of his own. So almost two years ago, the Comedy Playhouse was born. In a little…
Noshing Around
Union Public House; Shaved-Ice in Tucson; A new spice place; and more!
Weekly Wide Web
Virtual Tucson wizardry; The week on The Range; Comment of the week; and more!
Cheap Shots
Act now to see the biggest camera in town. At 6 feet tall and 9 feet wide, the giant replica Holga camera is probably the largest camera you’ll ever see. It works, too. “At first, it was a fun thing,” says Mary Findysz, proprietor of the film lab Photographer Works and director of ArtsEye Gallery,…
Just Trying to Export Some of that Arizona Gun Goodness
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized 4,000 rounds of ammunition from going into Mexico today from the Mariposa Port. From the press release: CBP officers conducting outbound operations at the Mariposa Port referred a 34-year-old U.S. citizen female, accompanied by her two minor children, for a secondary inspection. When officers inspected the vehicle, they…
Scott Goes for Matching Funds
Shirley Scott’s campaign announced the city councilwoman filed paperwork yesterday for the city’s matching funds program: The Committee for Shirley Scott filed paperwork today with the Tucson City Clerk, showing 229 City of Tucson donors to date and making Councilwoman Scott eligible for the City’s matching funds program. So far, the campaign has raised more…
TUSD’s Michael Hicks: ‘Misinformed and Misled’
A press release went out tonight from Lisa Ruth, identified as a spokesperson for TUSD governing board member Michael Hicks. No quote from Hicks, but Ruth explains how Hicks supposedly feels that he and other school board members were “misinformed and misled by district officials”: TUSD Governing Board member Michael Hicks regrets and rescinds his…
Best of Luck, Andrew Ling
Today marks art-guy/maker-of-advertisements-and-such Andrew Ling’s last day here in the office, and while it’s not like he’s dropping off the face of the earth — he’s leaving for another job in town — he will be missed here, if only because he’s a good enough sport to be the subject of my jokes here on…
TucsonWeeklyTV.com – Talking Comics, Volume 3
This week, Arnie and Eric tearfully consider the death of Ultimate Spider-Man in Ultimate Fallout.
McCain Supports Plan To Surrender GOP Control Over Debt Ceiling and Give President Obama More Power
Sen. Lindsey Graham notes today’s New York Times that GOP purists are going to make a deal over the debt ceiling very difficult, especially because of the way the GOP itself has stirred the pot: “Our problem is, we made a big deal about this for three months,” said Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South…
