To-Do List
Happy Independence Day, blog readers! And to Emil Franzi: Happy Birthday, you Yankee Doodle Dandy, you! A few events to consider checking out today: • The Loft Cinema is presenting the Team America: World Police Sing-a-Long tonight at 6 p.m. Plus, cold beer and hot dogs on the patio before the show! A mere $5.…
Bad Bet
Slate has been tracking the presidential candidates’ fortunes in various online trading markets. Since the end of May, shares in Arizona Sen. John McCain have slid from around $17 to $4. If you really believe in McCain, it’s a great time to buy; each $4 share will be worth $100 if he wins the GOP…
Happy Birthday, Roswell Incident
The tiny town of Roswell, New Mexico, is celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Roswell Incident, in which a crashed flying saucer was allegedly recovered by the military back in 1947. The original story had some legs because Lt. Walter Haut, the public relations officer for the Roswell AAF Base, sent out the following press…
Not Surprisingly
The confluence of an online dating site and a blog rating tool is not entirely transparent, but Mingle2 has a little widget that will rate a website based on the words being used. Not surprisingly, this blog gets an R rating, based on recent use of the words “gay” and “sex.” If the widget looked…
July 4 Wine Tasting
If you’re feeling sorry for yourself because you couldn’t escape the unbearable heat this week, and no one invited you to celebrate the Fourth of July, consider going to 58 Degrees and Holding Co. (which has got to be nicely air-conditioned) for some red wine (and perhaps some white and blue wine). Anyway, it’s a cool…
Thank You, Come Again!
Simpsons fans, rejoice! Nearly a dozen 7-Eleven stores across the continent are transforming into Kwik-E-Marts for the much-anticipated July 27 opening of The Simpsons Movie. Not only are they changing their storefronts to match the one in the cartoon, but they are seriously hawking Krusty-Os, Squishees and Buzz Cola. There’s still time to make a road trip…
Peace Sign
Some folks have noticed lately that a sign on a building undergoing construction at the corner of Alameda Street and Stone Avenue has re-emerged. The sign was just a big, gray blotch on the side of the building and is visible from second floor of the Alameda parking garage. It’s a leftover from the Vietnam protests…
Our Commitment to Cool Stops at the Earring
If you’re not familiar with “The Cool Church,” (aka Tucson Community Church) you’re missing out on the freshest approach to spirituality in town, a “this-ain’t-your-father’s-ministry”-type experience unparalleled in this elevated valley of ours. Pastor Dave McAllister (that is one cool dude!) is all about rocking for God, using movie clips and props to drive home…
Hire Authority
We finally get the Big Reveal from Gov. Janet Napolitano: She signed the employer sanctions bill creating new penalties for companies that hire knowingly hire illegal immigrants. State Rep. Russell Pearce is thrilled. In a bulletin to the press, Pearce said: “Arizona businesses now must play by the same rules or face the consequences. Arizona…
A Tip for People Who Want Their Books Reviewed
We just got an e-mail from someone who claims to be a Tucsonan that starts out like this: Does Tuscon Weekly do book reviews? My book just came out … Two things: 1. If you claim to be from be from Tucson, yet can’t spell Tucson, I don’t think we need to subject one of…
Mickey Mouse Stuff
Remember Farfur, the militant mouse who promised Palestinian schoolchildren that Israel and the rest of the world would fall beneath the boot of Islamic revolution? He’s been martyred, though there’s no word on whether he gets the 72 virgins. The BBC reports: A Palestinian TV station has killed off a controversial Mickey Mouse lookalike that…
What I Did on My Summer Vacation, Part 2
Apologies, blog fans! Been so preoccupied with taking care of outstanding details here at home that we haven’t had time to recount our recent adventures on the Left Coast. Now where were we? Oh, yes: The Road Trip down the Pacific Coast Highway. My buddy Archibald had suggested we take the drive because, as he…
It’s a Wrap
As we recap in our cover story, the ’07 legislative session is all Sine Die’d. Sure, examining the budget is the sort of thing that can help us all get ready for an afternoon siesta. But here’s the important thing to remember when talking about the budget: It’s the document that reflects the values of…
TW For World Domination! Or, at Least, Superior Writing
So I’m sipping on coffee and munching on strawberries this morning up here in Snobsdale when I come across an interesting article on the front page of The Arizona Republic. I couldn’t help but smile as I read the article on how horrifying wait times are in AZ emergency rooms. I’m sure you all remember…
So Much for Comprehensive Immigration Reform
The immigration package fell apart this morning in Washington. That’s the last stab at reform that we’re likely to see for the next two years. Meanwhile, we’ll keep pretending to push enforcement by building a fence, hiring more Border Patrol agents and occasionally popping an employer with illegal immigrants on the payroll.
Some Late-Breaking Events
Here are a few events that were received too late for inclusion in our print issue. Saturday, June 30 at 7 p.m. Bentley’s House of Coffee and Tea 1730 E. Speedway Blvd. Ocotillo Poetry Slam. Newcomers and local favorites battle it out for the “Crown of Golden Laurel Leaves.” Poet Jonson Kuhn performs at 7…
¡Ask a Mexican!
Why do wabs have to use so many syllables?
Indie Watch
What’s happening in the world of independent film in Tucson.
Noshing Around
New: Cupcake Heaven Dian Scott, owner of Occasional Catering, has expanded her business to offer cupcakes that can be delivered to special events and parties in the Tucson metro area. Please visit cupcakeheaven.biz for flavors or call 245-0254; online ordering is coming soon. New: Dinner My Way Dinner My Way, a meal-assembly store, recently opened…
Kyl Stopping Info Reforms
A note from the editor.
Top Ten in Movies
Casa Video’s top rentals for the week
Mailbag
Howls of outrage and squeals of delight from our astonished fans.
Death and Rebirth
Burning Brides persevere through relationship and record-label challenges
The Skinny
THE WRITE-IN STUFF Turns out that reports of a campaign death are greatly exaggerated. Last week, we mentioned that Bruce Gerowitz, who sells hot dogs outside TD’s Showclub on Speedway Boulevard five or six nights a week, had decided against running as an independent against Mayor Bob Walkup in this fall’s city election. But Gerowitz…
Whatever Feels Right
Talkdemonic’s drums and viola defy instrumental norms
Media Watch
‘Star’ and ‘Citizen’ Trim Expenses
Soundbites
DRY AS A BONE The snowbirds are gone; most of the students are, too. Heck, even some locals have run for the hills–in some cases, literally. Yep, it must be summer, which also marks the slowest period of live music all year. Some local performers have split town, while others, like many of us, hole…
Police Dispatch
The Telltale Nosebleed? River Road and Campbell Avenue, June 1, 2:28 p.m. It appeared from a Pima County Sheriff’s Department report that a young man chose the wrong time to take a trip to Walgreens. According to the report, maintenance men had been called to fix a broken mirror in an apartment, which they said…
Nine Questions
Sean Bottai
Adjournment!
The legislative session is over–now we answer the questions you didn’t even know you had
Rhythm & Views
Director Robert Rodriguez (Spy Kids, Grindhouse) has finally released a studio album’s worth of Chingon, the mariachi-rock band he first formed in order to score his own 2003 action flick Once Upon a Time in Mexico. Following that project, Quentin Tarantino asked Rodriguez to contribute “Malaguena Salerosa” to the end credits and soundtrack CD to…
Database Debacle
A system that compiles information on the homeless gets caught in red tape and conflict
Live
Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers, Rialto Theatre, Saturday, June 23
T Q&A
Tucson Q&A with Katherine Sullivan
Rhythm & Views
If Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and A Ghost Is Born were Jeff Tweedy flexing his Lennon/McCartney muscles, then Sky Blue Sky switches the weight to his Dylan side. Sky Blue Sky is reminiscent of earlier Wilco records like A.M. or Being There. The deluxe version of the album includes a DVD with a short documentary, and…
Migrating Truth
Immigration rhetoric plays fast with the facts
Top Ten in Music
Zia Records top sales for the week
No Extensions!
Ballot-initiative signature gatherers scramble as the final deadline approaches
Rhythm & Views
There’s a lot to like on this follow-up to Yeah Yeah Yeah, but nothing spells success more than having your very own FBI file, which must surely be the case for Pakulis. Although only two songs are overtly opinionated, they pack a political wallop. “Minuteman” is a one-sided conversation telling our self-appointed guardians of the…
Pick of the Week
Redefining ‘Rasquacho’
Agent Antics
Gaslight Theatre’s new show proves the company’s as zany as ever
City Week
Our top picks of what to do and where to do it for the week.
Little Art
The Sizey Awards are flyin’ at the 15th annual ‘Small Works Invitational’
Danehy
The wild and wacky world of modern-day governance
Who Needs Plot?
‘Day Watch’ offers fantastic special effects and subtitles, but seems like it was written by a hyperactive 12-year-old
Native Tensions
Harold Burton Meyers again uses tensions between Anglo and Indian, church and state, to craft a winner
O’Sullivan
Are current big-name stars killing off rock ‘n’ roll?
Things Go Boom
After a 12-year hiatus, the ‘Die Hard’ series is back with a bang
Top Ten in Books
Antigone Books best-sellers for the week
Guest Commentary
Why not enforce the law against government handouts to big business?
Now Showing at Home
“The Hustler: Two-Disc Collector’s Edition,” “This Is Tom Jones,” and “The Die Hard Collection”
Nurturing Appetite
Trattoria Della Famiglia’s cuisine and charm are close to perfect–but the food is not cheap
