Cover Story
The Summer Movie Preview
The Avengers came out of the gate and immediately set the standard of “Total Kick-Ass!” for this summer. Even if the rest of the summer blows, we already have a movie better than any of last year’s summer-blockbuster offerings. (OK, my favorite film of last year, The Tree of Life, came out in May ……
Padres Continue Home Stand Tonight: Hot Dogs Are Just a Buck!
The Tucson Padres managed a late-game comeback to win, 11-10, against the Las Vegas 51s yesterday. The homestand continues tonight with a 7 p.m. game and $1 hot dogs. Tomorrow is Thirsty Thursday, co-sponsored your friends at the Tucson Weekly. You can find details on tickets and promotions here. Here are details from last night’s…
Graduate in Four Years, or Your Fifth Year is Free
Reflecting back, I still remember the days leading up to my first day at the University of Arizona. I was excited for the fresh start post-high school and embarking on another four-year journey. But the typical four years at college isn’t so typical anymore. The average four-year graduation rate at public universities is 31 percent…
Rebecca Black Is in the Political Endorsement Business Now
You might sort of remember Rebecca Black from her smash YouTube hit “Friday” and her successive attempts to turn the mockery of the universe into lasting fame, but now she’s taking whatever notoriety she still retains and making an endorsement in the Mexican Presidential race. Seriously. This is actually what’s happening. It may come as…
This Isn’t What I Thought the New “Great Gatsby” Movie Would Look Like
I understand that Baz Luhrmann is the artsy type, but I think this might be just a bit too much of a re-imagination of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel. [Jezebel]
Thanks, Illinois, for Also Having Crazy Legislators
I can’t pretend to understand what’s going on in Illinois with regards to pension reform, so maybe Republican Illinois State Rep. Mike Bost has some reason to be spewing Biblical-level anger towards the (Democratic) Speaker of the House, but frankly, I’m just happy to watch an embarrassing clip from another state’s legislative body for once.
If You’re Not Drinking Mountain Dew for Breakfast, You’re Clearly Not Living Right
As discovered by Reddit user AllenJacoby, Taco Bell is floating the idea of mixing Mountain Dew with orange juice as a breakfast drink. As someone who nearly obsessively drinks Coke Zero nearly all day, I have little room to criticize, but this does seem like a step toward a Brawndo takeover.
Algae Buildup in Pot Saucers
Algae builds up on saucers when they are in the shade during afternoon hours or in a full shade location. The absence of water in saucers will also limit mosquito populations on your patio. Hose out the saucers as often as possible with a jet setting on the hose. When on irrigation, set the clock…
Go to a Spa, Promote Women’s Empowerment
If you’re into charity events and spa days, look no further than this Friday’s “Just SaySpaaah” event hosted by Arizona Spa Girls. Spa Girls is “a girlfriend-to-girlfriend guideto Arizona spas, salons, beauty and wellness,” according to their website. “Last year was the first time that we took the Series outside the Phoenix area with anevent…
Let’s Watch Eight and a Half Minutes of Muppets Outtakes
Where this came from, I don’t know, but I did thoroughly enjoy last year’s reboot of the Muppets franchise, so more of that same sort of thing is certainly welcome.
Today in Twitter Feeds That Are Funny/Not At All Funny
Some are worried we don’t know all the characters’ names yet. We made flashcards and will have all 6 main characters’ names/faces down soon. — Guarascio and Port (@guarascioport) May 25, 2012 What’s the name of the room they study in? — Guarascio and Port (@guarascioport) May 29, 2012 I’m aware that the @guarascioport Twitter…
Got a Hankering To Coach Hockey In The Desert?
The University of Arizona is looking to make the head coaching position for its club hockey team a permanent position, not just something that apparently anybody can do. The gig was posted today on the UA job board and requires, among other things, applicants to have a degree in recreation, sports management, administration, physical education…
Gabrielle Giffords Took in a Musical the Other Night
Not that this is particularly newsworthy on its own, but it’s nice to see Gabrielle Giffords out and about and smiling.
CD8 Air War: Barber Touts Endorsements
Democrat Ron Barber, who is facing Republican Jesse Kelly in the June 12 special election to complete Gabby Giffords’ congressional term, has a new TV ad that reminds voters that he’s been endorsed by the Tucson Weekly, Arizona Republic and Arizona Daily Star. Meanwhile, the Arizona Democratic Party sends out a mailer highlighting Giffords’ support…
There’s a New Album by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros has always seemed like a summertime kind of band to me, so I think that the release of their sophomore album, entitled Here, came at the perfect moment in the year. The Los Angeles-based band’s sound on Here is similar to their first album, but also has more spiritual…
The Shins Are Coming to the Rialto
It’s been awhile since The Shins (which are essentially James Mercer and some other people these days) have visited Tucson…I feel like they were here in 2007, but the last show I can find was at the Rialto in 2004. Feel free to heckle me in the comments if you know of one more recently.…
A Series of Unfortunate Alerts (From Illinois)
Hazardous materials released at Institute for Genomic Biology. Escape area if safe to do so. Otherwise seek shelter. — Illini-Alert(@IlliniAlert) May 29, 2012 The Institute for Genomic Biology has been safely evacuated. The area around the building is still safe.The fire department is on scene. — Illini-Alert(@IlliniAlert) May 29, 2012 This really does seem like…
Jesse Kelly’s Stimulus Jackpot Revisited
The Arizona Republic follows up on a story first broken by Tucson Weekly in 2010: How Don Kelly Construction, the family-owned pipeline company where Tea Party congressional candidate Jesse Kelly works, has received tens of millions of dollars in stimulus funds: Jesse Kelly, the Republican candidate running to replace Gabrielle Giffords in Congress, argues that…
Tough Break, LA Bachelorettes
View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com. I personally generally believe most social-action-based boycotts or bans or whatever seem to end up fizzling out without much real effect on society (OH HEY THERE), especially since they rarely hurt the people making the decision you’re opposed with anyway, but on the other hand, the owner of West Hollywood…
If You Heckle John McCain on Memorial Day, You Deserve to Be Called a Jerk
While I’m generally a fan of heckling and not really the most passionate supporter of John McCain, I think choosing to yell seemingly random nonsense at the senator while he was speaking at a Memorial Day event was probably a bad idea.
Hey, Hurry Up and Vote!
Time is running out to get your votes in for the TAMMIES and Best of Tucson 2012, with Wednesday at midnight as the deadline for both ballots. If you’ve already chimed in with our opinion, thanks! If not, make some time today before you get stuck at work tomorrow with less important tasks.
Photos From Phoenix Comicon: Over the Weekend
Local comic author and Tucson Weekly Talking Comics contributor Eric Esquivel is in Phoenix this weekend with artist Jason Pedersen for the Phoenix Comicon and he’s capturing some of the festival’s moments for The Range. Eric Esquivel
Political Roundtable: Kelly vs. Barber, Obama vs. Mitt, Flake vs. Cardon, Tucson vs. Rio Nuevo & More!
Watch May 25, 2012 on PBS. See more from Arizona Illustrated. Last night’s Political Roundtable was another lively discussion of the Congressional District 8 special election between Republican Jesse Kelly and Democrat Ron Barber, the latest news on the presidential race in Arizona and the U.S. Senate race for the retiring Jon Kyl’s seat, the…
You Might Enjoy the Music of Royal Headache
Royal Headache were supposed to come to Phoenix next month, but sadly, they had some trouble with the State Department, so the surprisingly-soulful Australian garage rock band were forced to postpone their entire US tour. Here’s hoping when they manage to get over here that we can get a Tucson date as well (or instead).
Antenori: Maybe Running for Congress, Maybe Running for the Legislature
You gotta hand it to Republican state Sen. Frank Antenori. The latest scheme cooked up by the hard-charging right-winger may allow him to keep his options open in two separate elections this November, without committing to either. Here’s how the trick works. This is dense, so stick with us. Antenori announced earlier in the year…
Hey, Tucsonans: Start Supporting the Padres, Dammit
Several years back, Tucsonans lost the Triple-A Sidewinders to the lovely city of Reno, Nev. However, due to several stadium kerfuffles in Portland, Ore., and Escondido, Calif., baseball-loving Tucsonans got a reprieve, in the form of the Triple-A Tucson Padres, who opened up shop last year at Kino Stadium. And how did Tucson and the…
Sean Mooney Joining KVOA
KVOA Channel 4 has come to terms with Sean Mooney for the position of weekend anchor/reporter. Mooney knows Tucson extremely well. He has worked in the market in a number of sports related roles, including as a reporter for Fox Sports Arizona. But Mooney also has a plethora of large market experience, including recent stints…
Political Roundtable Tonight: More on the CD8 Race, Latest AZ Poll Numbers in Prez Race & Tucson Vs. Rio Nuevo, Redux
Tonight on Arizona Illustrated’s Political Roundtable: We break down the CD8 race as Election Day approaches, talk about the latest poll numbers in the presidential race and the U.S. Senate race in Arizona, check in the latest fight between the city of Tucson and Rio Nuevo and—if there’s time—hit up a few more topics. Tune…
Straight to the Source for MMJ Info
The state of Arizona has some pretty cool shit on their website, where medical marijuana is concerned. They do a pretty good job of updating it, so it’s a pretty good place to go for MMJ info. To wit: Dispensary Operator Application Reports—If you go here, you get the latest numbers on where (and how…
CD8 Special Election: Early Ballots Still Pouring In
Pima County Recorder F. Ann Rodriguez sent out a bulletin letting us know that at the end of the day yesterday, more than 71,478 early ballots—or more than 38 percent of the 187,614 ballots that were mailed out—had been returned in the Congressional District 8 special election between Democrat Ron Barber and Republican Jesse Kelly.…
Photos From Phoenix Comicon: Day One
Local comic author and Tucson Weekly Talking Comics contributor Eric Esquivel is in Phoenix this weekend with artist Jason Pedersen for the Phoenix Comicon and he’s capturing some of the festival’s moments for The Range.
Compare and Contrast: Warren Buffett vs. Dailies in Alabama, Nola
Dan Gibson yesterday posted the news that New Orleans’ Times-Picayune and three Alabama dailies were, well, moving away from being dailies—in print, at least—by cutting down to three days of dead-tree per week. A lot of folks took this news—appropriately—as yet another nail in the coffin of the print media. But not so fast. There…
Morrissey, TCC Music Hall, May 23, 2012
In case you missed it last night (or didn’t bring your binoculars to the cheap seats), here are some photos of everyone’s favorite miserable modern rock star.
So, There’s an Underwear Party Coming to Club Congress
While I personally find my own near-nakedness too repulsive to expose to the general public, if you have a mild exhibitionist streak, you might enjoy the Lose Your Clothes underwear party coming to Club Congress on June 16th, brought to you by Kitty Katt McKinley and his Powhaus-sequel MEOWmeow Productions. Doors at 9 pm, $3…
Ron Barber, Jesse Kelly & Tough Questions
Republicans are making a big deal over Democrat Ron Barber’s dodging of Republican Jesse Kelly’s question about whether he’d support Barack Obama in the presidential race this year during last night’s CD8 debate. Barber, who is facing Kelly in the June 12 special election triggered by Gabrielle Giffords’ resignation, appeared unprepared for the question and…
The Food Truck Diaries, Volume 30: Foodie Fleet
There is a pressed sandwich in front of me and it is stuffed with goat cheese and crisp slices of Granny Smith apple. When bitten into, the sugary tanginess of the apples and the pungency of the cheese work culinary alchemy, creating a taste, smell and feel that is crispy, gooey, sweet and sour -…
Sure, a Website Gun Giveaway. What Could Go Wrong?
The Daily Caller ostensibly aims to be a right-wing version of the Huffington Post, so I suppose a weekly gun giveaway sort of makes sense ideologically, but what if one of these Bill of Rights-engraved pistols ends up being uses in some sinister way? Yes, I get the idea that people kill people, not guns,…
Yep, Newspapers Are Screwed
For anyone who still loves newspapers (and apparently that’s a smaller number of people everyday), it’s hard to hear that New Orleans Times-Picayune, along with three other papers owned by Newhouse/Advance in Alabama, will be going to a three day a week print schedule (Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays), firing a bunch of employees, and moving…
Greetings, New Species
What do a millipede, a sneezing monkey and a blue tarantula have in common? Well, not much really. Except for the fact that they’re in the latest top 10 list of new species. The list was published for the fifth year yesterday by the International Institute for Species Exploration at Arizona State University. The date…
Police Dispatch
Not the ideal Mother’s Day celebration; Thief, not a thief
Best Coast: The Only Place (Mexican Summer)
Crazy for You was an interesting case study: It was thrilling because it was a “new” reinvention of an old sound, and it was part of a minor wave of surf-adjacent indie pop (along with Wavves, the Drums, et al.). It made a nostalgic sound appear fresh. It was also such a constructed artifact—with Bethany…
A Lot of Fun
Over the past few years, several Swedish films have been exported to the United States, only to find themselves remade by American studios. Let the Right One In became Let Me In, which had a couple of minor changes that fit well, while The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo became a mostly uninspired, if polished,…
Editor’s Note
At the moment I am writing this sentence, it’s 103 degrees outside. Yep, summer is here. I don’t care what the calendar says: When it’s 103 out, it’s summer. That means it’s a good time to bring you our Summer Survival Guide, just like we do each year in advance of Memorial Day weekend. This…
Weekly Wide Web
I couldn’t possibly pretend to understand what goes on behind the scenes at the Arizona Daily Star—I don’t know that many people who work there, and I imagine the machinations at a paper that size are wildly different than the general simplicity of things around here—but someone should get a scolding over there for the…
Wishing Time
So. Once again, I’m ensconced in the Compound, behind numerous padlocks and chains and brick walls, down under the ghetto bird, wondering what to write about. Sometimes when I don’t know what to write, I just start writing. The free flow of association often leads the horse to water, and he drinks. It worked this…
James DiGiovanna’s List of Films That Will Not Be Opening This Summer
12 Angry X-Men A Beautiful Mind 2: An Intelligent Butt A Few Good Meh Alvin and the Chippendales Dancers American Beauty and the Beast Around the World in 80 Dogs Avengers 2: Avengerers Battleship vs. the Battleship Potemkin Big Momma and Madea’s Lesbian/Gay/Transgender Free-for-All Bonnie and Clyde and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Bridesmaids…
TQ&A
Tig Collins After losing a lease and getting evicted in 2010, ArtFare re-emerged last year along with its director, Tig Collins, at its previous home—the 1916 Arizona Hotel (not to be confused with Bert Lopez’s closed Hotel Arizona), on Sixth Avenue across the street from the Ronstadt Transit Center. After working out a deal to…
Now Showing at Home
Jeremiah Johnson (Blu-ray); Underworld: Awakening (Blu-ray); We Need to Talk About Kevin (Blu-ray)
Summer Arts!
Visual art is always cool, but it’s literally cool in the summer—when it’s exhibited in the frosty blast of a museum’s AC. And the way-coolest art that you’ll be seeing this summer in two local museums is not even made yet: The University of Arizona Museum of Art and MOCA Tucson will both have artists…
Shameless Self-Promotion
The Tucson Weekly took home five awards this year in the Arizona Press Club’s annual contest—including a first-place award for Margaret Regan in the Arts Criticism category. The results of the awards, for work done in 2011, were announced Saturday, May 19, at The Duce in Downtown Phoenix. In the contest, the Weekly competes in…
Assembly-Line Sushi
Imagine, if you will, a Subway sandwich shop—but instead of making sandwiches, the folks behind the counter make sushi rolls. Welcome to How Do You Roll?, a restaurant chain that arrived in Tucson a few months back. I find myself annoyed in many ways about How Do You Roll?, but I can’t deny the fact…
The Upsides of Summer
Summertime in Tucson brings one loud, sweat-soaked complaint: It’s too dang hot. But there’s a lot to love about the Baked Apple—even during those triple-digit days. For starters, the population drops once the snowbirds and students leave town. It’s a lot easier to get around town, because the number of cars on the road declines…
The Superstar
If you don’t find yourself in awe of Kristen Cray’s accomplishments by the time you’re done reading this, you don’t have a soul. Many a skeptic has crossed the Desert Christian High School senior’s path over the years, each initially unconvinced that one person could possibly accomplish so much during four of the most angst-…
Deadly Practice
The 911 call came at 9 a.m. on the morning of Feb. 13. A friend might be in danger, said the caller, because an explosive ex-beau had suddenly raged into her home. When the cops arrived, it was too late. Claudia Pascual, 31, didn’t stand a chance. And ultimately, it mattered little that she had…
Hot Links
It’s 140 degrees with 300 percent humidity on the worst day of the year in Tucson, that being Aug. 1, as in “Arrrgghh, it’s only Aug. 1!” By mid-afternoon, most of the people who haven’t moved to San Diego are indoors, moving around as little as possible while they think about moving to San Diego.…
Ask a Mexican!
Dear Mexican: I was wondering why Mexicans in Chicago are meaner than Mexicans in California. I love my Mexican brothers and sisters in California (I’m from Cali), but they are the biggest pendejos in Chicago! Does cold weather make Mexicans pissed off? And why do Mexican women like to ram white girls with their shopping…
Noshing Around
Wine and soda down in Sonoita; Cheaper eats this summer; Borderlands and the cost of success; New food at Playground
Out of This World
What do Buzz Aldrin, Alan Bean, Gene Cernan, Charlie Duke, Edgar Mitchell and Dave Scott have in common? If you said they’re all astronauts, you’re right. They’re also six of the nine living members of one of the most exclusive clubs ever: men who have walked on the moon. And they all will be in…
The Skinny
More Medicare lies in the CD 8 special election … A battle over the dead issue of cap-and-trade … Jesse Kelly’s wacky tax plans … and so much more!
Eliza Rickman: O, You Sinners (Self-Released)
As she proves on her first full-length album, Eliza Rickman can apply her rich, classically trained voice and her vaudeville-style piano to just about any musical form—from pretty lullabies and neo-Americana to confessional, quasi-goth exercises and Weill-Brecht cabaret tunes. Young, talented and beautiful, this singer-songwriter and pianist from the San Francisco Bay area could rival…
Know How to Rock, Baby
Music fans who attended last month’s third annual Festival en el Barrio started off the day with a bracing blast from the Phoenix-area band Dry River Yacht Club, a striking nine-piece rock ensemble notable for its high energy, creative songwriting and unconventional instrumentation—violin, viola, cello, bassoon, tuba, accordion and bass clarinet, as well as acoustic…
Media Watch
The Marana Weekly News becomes monthly (in print); Jake Knapp moves on; and more.
Soundbites
Jane’s Addiction comes back to town; Tracks from Dr. Dan’s era on Locals Only; This week in local CDs; and more!
Danehy
Mitch Dorson was my friend. Judging by the amazing turnout at his memorial service the other night, that doesn’t make me all that special, numerically speaking, but I sure felt special when I was around him. He was an incredible person and a Tucson treasure. Mr. Dorson died suddenly a couple of weeks ago, and…
Kids Acting Out
What now? The kids have been sprung from the hallowed halls of their institutions of learning, released into the wide-open spaces of summer vacation. Sure, it’s time to take advantage of some of those lazy summer days. But it’s also a time to explore some fun things that the jam-packed days of the school year…
Top Ten in Music
1. Violence Girl: East L.A. Rage to Hollywood Stage, a Chicana Punk Story (book) Alice Bag (Feral House) 2. The Bags All Bagged Up: The Collected Works 1977-1980 (Artifix) 3. Blood Spasm Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 (self-released) 4. Kill All Redneck Pricks: A Documentary Film About a Band Called KARP (DVD) Molasses Manifesto 5. Psychic…
City Week
Blackout Tucson; Talking about controversial books; Musical mayhem; Murder for fun
Strength and Perseverance
Western Avenue, Fred Arroyo’s new collection of short fiction, is a quick, quiet and affecting work that painfully and beautifully captures the immigrant work experience in America. It especially pays attention to the conflicts that arise between immigrant workers and those who depend on and exploit their labor, and among immigrants themselves. Far from heavy-handed,…
Nine Questions
Native Oregonian Adam Blanchard grew up in the small town of Carlton before moving to Portland. In six years there, he owned several businesses and worked in music venues while studying entrepreneurship and marketing at Linfield College. In October, Blanchard moved to Tucson, where he works as a manager at the Rialto Theatre while he…
Downing
When the U.S. News and World Report national high school rankings came out a couple of weeks ago, I got the word that University High had come in at No. 4—in the entire fricking country (!)—in an email from my son. I was a little startled to see something from him in my inbox, especially…
Top Ten in Books
1. Fifty Shades of Grey: Book One of the Fifty Shades Trilogy E.L. James, Vintage ($15.95) 2. Catching Fire Suzanne Collins, Scholastic ($17.99) 3. Deadlocked Charlaine Harris, Ace ($27.95) 4. Mockingjay Suzanne Collins, Scholastic ($17.99) 5. In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin Erik Larson, Broadway ($16) 6.…
Live
A few years back, after my best friend and I started somewhat obsessing over bands like Wolf Eyes, Fuck Buttons and Black Dice, we coined a new moniker for the experimental/noise genre: Dudes With Gear. These aren’t “bands” in the traditional sense; these are dudes armed with sequencers, samplers, delay pedals and a grab bag…
The Border Crossed Us
Jose Matus worries about the future of the Pascua Yaqui people—not just those in Arizona, but also the members of the tribe who live in Mexico. Matus, program director for Alianza Indigena Sin Fronteras, or the Indigenous Alliance Without Borders, said most of the young people in his tribe who live in the Tucson area…
Killer Performance
Jack Black hasn’t been in many good films lately. His last good movie was Tropic Thunder four years ago, and he’s been stinking up the joint with middling efforts like Gulliver’s Travels and The Big Year ever since. The best thing he has done since Tropic Thunder is his uncredited role in last year’s The…
Greg Laswell: Landline (Vanguard)
San Diego singer-songwriter Greg Laswell left for rural Maine to record his latest album, and he found some moody depths that make Landline an edgier work. Oddly, though, in the songs that come from the isolation of recording in an old church turned house, it’s Laswell’s collaborations with other singers that stand out. Ingrid Michaelson,…
Guest Commentary
The signs are all around town, in the same innocent baby-blue motif as they were two years ago. Jesse Kelly is again running for Congress to replace Gabrielle Giffords, whom he came close to unseating in 2010 in one of the nastiest races in recent local memory. Kelly went after Giffords with an odd sense…
Top Ten in Movies
1. The Grey Universal 2. Chronicle 20th Century Fox 3. Contraband Universal 4. Underworld: Awakening Screen Gems 5. Albert Nobbs Lionsgate 6. Rampart Millennium 7. The Vow Screen Gems 8. One for the Money Lionsgate 9. The Devil Inside Paramount 10. New Year’s Eve Warner Bros.
