Cover Story
Coupe D’état
It was a dimly lit red room. Through the saloon doors in the back of The Grill, you’d find some nights the record player atop the photo booth would play The Raincoats as barflies sipped esoteric wines and spirits priced well below the norm.
Quick Bites: 12 Places for Mexican Eats and What to Get When You’re There
In honor of the All Souls Procession celebration, I wanted to take the opportunity to laud some of my favorite spots for Mexican cuisine around Tucson. For weekend visitors, you’ll find a myriad of outstanding Mexican joints to suit any price range, so knowing where to go can be tricky. For Tucsonans, you’re likely already…
Cinema Clips: Bone Tomahawk
In this Western infused with horror, Kurt Russell essentially transplants his character from John Carpenter’s “The Thing” into the Old West as Sheriff Franklin Hunt, a lawman looking for some kidnap victims. As things turn out, the victims are in the hands of a cannibalistic tribe ready to give Hunt and his cohorts a sick…
UA, Central Arizona Project Really Want You to Attend a Water Sustainability Forum Happening Friday
Water is the most crucial natural resources—it impacts the economy, the environment and without it, we’d probably be dead. So, why not learn about how to protect it? The Central Arizona Project, the University of Arizona, and a handful of other organizations—including KXCI and the Southern Arizona Water Users Association—are hosting a forum on water…
Crush pARTy Announces Over 35 Participating Restaurants and Bars for Nov. 15 Festival
The Crush pARTy is taking over the Tucson Museum of Art yet again to offer a full day of food, drinks and, of course, art. The event, which is presented by the Southern Arizona Arts and Cultural Alliance as a fundraiser for both the organization and the museum, will showcase a wide variety of wine,…
In the Wake of Voter Rejection of Bond Package, Tucson Mayor Rothschild Says City May Need To Go It Alone
Yesterday’s election brought expected outcomes (Republicans with few campaign resources were unable to dislodge any of the Democrats on the Tucson City Council) to the unpredictable (the incumbents in Oro Valley appear to be holding off their recall challengers). But the big stunner of the night had to be the big defeat of the $815…
County Bond Update: “We’ve Never Had a Bond Package That’s Lost”
Last night at Mercado San Augustin, the faces of those with Yes On Pima County Bonds and others from the county were obviously forlorn, but realistic. Looking at the large screening with the election results displayed, it was obvious the seven propositions before the voters yesterday that made up the bond package were failing and…
Cinema Clips: Burnt
There’s no doubt that Bradley Cooper goes all-in performance wise for Burnt in which he plays a chef psychotically determined to get his third star. Too bad it’s in service of a character that is hard to root for when we the audience are supposed to be doing so. In actuality, his character is a…
UPDATED: Tucson City Council Democrats Win Re-Election
Three Democratic Tucson City Council members have been re-elected. After early ballot numbers started coming through at around 8 p.m. on Election Day, Councilwomen Regina Romero and Shirley Scott, and Councilman Paul Cunninghman, already had a decent lead over Republican challengers Bill Hunt, Margaret Burkholder and Kelly Lawton. As of 2 a.m., all ballots—early and…
County Bond Measures Failing Vote So Far
Early into this evening’s election, the $815 million Pima County bond measure is showing an unfavorable result with the region’s voters. The bond, which is broken up into seven categories, would fund things such as road repair, tourism attraction, park improvements, and flood control. Supporters of the bond say it’s the only way the county…
Election Night 2015: Early Ballot Numbers Are In
The following numbers are based on mail in ballots, which represent about a third of all votes cast: Mayor Jonathan Rothschild, who is running unopposed, has received 94.74 percent of the votes with 5.26 percent of the ballots going to write-in candidates. In the City of Tucson City Council race, Regina Romero has an 18…
Pima County GOP Chair: Voter Turnout This Year Shows Tucson’s Discontent with Current Leadership
Pima County Republican Party Chairman Bill Beard says the voter turnout this year speaks volumes—this is how discontent constituents are of the city of Tucson’s current leadership. The three Democratic incumbents running for re-election—Ward 1’s Councilwoman Regina Romero, Ward 2’s Councilman Paul Cunningham, and Ward 4’s Councilwoman Shirley Scott—let the potholes, high poverty rate and…
Damning the School Funding Plan With Faint Praise, Part Two: In 600 Years, We’ll Laugh About All That Money We’re Taking From the Land Trust Fund.
Current Arizona State Treasurer Jeff DeWit thinks it’s unwise to draw down the principle of the Arizona State Land Trust to increase education funding. Former State Treasurer Dean Martin, who spoke against the plan during the last week’s legislative special session, agrees. So, according to DeWit, does former treasurer Carol Springer. To be fair, former State…
Check Out the First Ever Tucson Comedy Arts Festival Wednesday through Saturday
Prepare yourself for four days filled with improv and comedy as the inaugural Tucson Comedy Arts Festival kicks off this week. Hosted by Michael Dean and event founder Justin Lukasewicz, the event will feature local and national stand-up comedians, improv troupes and some workshops to help you brush up those joke skills. The festival’s main…
Thanks, Best of Tucson: Watermelon eegee’s in November
Whhhhhhat? Exciting news for the Best of Tucson voters who picked “watermelon” as their favorite eegee’s flavor: Tucson Weekly named Watermelon the best eegee’s flavor in the 2015 Best of Tucson competition. To celebrate we are bringing your favorite flavor to a few select store locations for a limited time starting TOMORROW. Want to know…
It’s Election Day! Go Vote!
If you still have an early ballot laying around the house, now’s the time to fill it out and get it to the polling place. You have until the polls close at 7 p.m. to either drop off your ballot or vote in person. Pima County voters will decide the fate of seven bond questions.…
Ryan: No Action on Immigration Reform As Long As Obama Is President
If you had any hope that Congress would act on comprehensive immigration reform while Obama was in the White House (and you’d have to be pretty darn hopeful to think that was going to happen), new House Speaker Paul Ryan make it clear that nothing’s happening until 2017 at the soonest. Talking Points Memo reports:…
Chamber of Sounds Opening Pop-Up Vintage Music Store on Fourth Avenue
Vintage guitars, amplifiers, synthesizers and rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia have a new home on Fourth Avenue. Chamber of Sounds Vintage Music Emporium will be open from Wednesday through Christmas Eve at the site of the old Tucson Herb Store, 408 N. Fourth Ave. The pop-up music shop is an extension of the Chamber of Sounds…
Make This Tucson Burlesque Book a Reality, Get Rhinestone Pasties
Burlesque is a big deal locally. Now, Tucson Burlesque is (hopefully!) coming to you in book form. Steve McMackin (you might know him as the art director behind Edible Baja) is a photographer intimately familiar with the Old Pueblo’s burlesque scene: In October 2010, Black Cherry Burlesque asked me to photograph their 2010 Halloween show. It was a…
Fathoming Water Episode 2: UA Prof Robert Glennon Talks About the Future of Our Water Supply
KXCI’s Melissa Mauzy talks with UA professor Robert Glennon in the second episode of her ongoing series about the future of the water supply locally, nationally and across the world. Listen to the show here. Here’s Mauzy’s summary of the program: In this episode Dr. Glennon and I talk about how water markets work in the…
Kitrus Needs a Home
Hi, I’m Kitrus! I’ve lived at HSSA for more than eight months and I’m really looking forward to meeting my forever family. I have FeLV but a lot of my friends with the same virus have been adopted! If you want me to be part of your home HSSA will test and vaccinate all your current…
Damning the School Funding Plan With Faint Praise, Part One: Paying Child Support Out of Our Children’s Trust Fund
A new school funding plan was passed by the legislature and signed by Doug Ducey. Emphasis on the word “plan.” There’s no guarantee schools will get any more money than they’re getting now. The plan is to let voters decide whether or not to increase school budgets. Still, Ducey and his legislative buddies are risking injury by…
The South Carolina Student Arrest and “Black Girls Matter”
I’ve written over the past few days (here and here) about the incident at a South Carolina high school where a school resource officer slammed a sophomore girl to the ground because of her failure to obey an order to stop texting, then to leave the room. My focus has been on the problem of criminalizing…
Ducey Scores Big Political Win With School Funding Package
With a quickie special session coming to a close, the education-funding package that settles a major education-funding lawsuit is passing out of the Senate today, giving Gov. Doug Ducey a big victory in delivering $3.5 billion in additional dollars to schools over the next decade. The deal—which will have to be approved by voters next…
There’s No Good Reason to Not Go to Cyclovia
Last year I attended Cyclovia’s April event. Having no idea what to expect when I went there, I assumed it was just another bike race. What I found was a community event unlike any other. There were people doing zumba in the streets normally infested with cars, children riding skeletal horse bikes, full drum kits…
Sun Bones Release Seasonally Appropriate Día de los Muertos Themed Music Video
Tucson’s Sun Bones just came out with a new video for their song arms and it’s just the kind of thing to get you in the spirit of the season. While All Souls will celebrate loved ones lost, incorporating bright colors and ornate alters, Halloween is coming up too and that’s all about being spooky…
Oro Valley is the Place to be During a Zombie Apocalypse, Apparently
Did you, like me, naively think that we had exhausted the zombie apocalypse genre for a while? Apparently not. Just in time for Halloween, a real estate company (seems like the obvious choice?) has released a list of the communities from each state best suited to survive an attack of these flesh-munching monsters. Oro Valley ranks…
South Carolina Sheriff: “When they call us, we’re going to take a law enforcement action.”
From the moment the resource officer was involved, it was an arrest. When a sophomore girl in a South Carolina high school refused to stop using her cell phone, then refused to leave the room as her teacher ordered, the school resource officer arrested her. As part of the arrest, he slammed her to the…
The Skinny
Gov. Ducey has a tentative agreement with education leaders on school funding, Obama vetoes defense spending bill before finding common ground with Congress on a major budget agreement, please do try to vote if it wouldn’t be too much trouble, Here’s another chance to see documentary on the Rosemont Mine’s new owners
The Tucson Weekly 2015 Endorsements Redux
One more time.
Danehy
There is an old riddle that has befuddled people for decades. Three men check into a hotel. They’re going to share a room so each guy gives the hotel clerk $10 for a total of $30. (That alone will tell you just how old this riddle is.)
Letter to the Editor
The Pima County Bond issues are not what we need. We should be asking for bonds to retrofit existing buildings with solar power, implement solar-water heating (pays for itself within 4 years), harvest rainwater and build a solar-powered electric streetcar on Broadway and Speedway. TEP’s electricity is generated about 98 percent by burning coal. We…
Letter to the Editor
The yellow light is not long enough to stop safely, especially not in a big truck and with your front wheels not across the (sometimes unmarked) first line of the pedestrian walkway. This constitutes a speed trap that blindsides the poor and the rich don’t care. They can buy blockers or buy themselves off. The…
Time Bandits: FUZZ
The first FUZZ record was a challenge. The second is about freedom, exploration and instinct.
Letter to the Editor
The Tucson Photo Enforcement program by any objective standard has been shown to be unfair to drivers. The shortened Intersection Definition in Arizona is in conflict with the Federal Standard that includes the area from the normal stopping point, including the crosswalk, to the much smaller prolongation of the curb lines definition that is used…
B-Sides
Halloween. Cue the John Carpenter jams because the next two weeks are crammed with events with Halloween and the All Souls Procession on the horizon. Look to our main feature next week for all of the music-related fun in store with Night of the Living Fest, but, for now, here’s a round-up of some of…
Guest Opinion
When I first announced I was moving to Tucson, my co-workers in Boulder couldn’t believe that someone like me—a sexuality educator—would move to a state that regularly tried to pass outrageous, sexually-restrictive measures. “Keepin’ the AZ in CRAZY,” we said, rolling our eyes as the 2012 Arizona House passed a bill allowing employers to refuse…
Pleasure Activist
Halloween is upon us and for many, that means donning costumes and disguises. People look forward to this day, as it is “permission” to play dress-up. We engage in “make-believe” as small children, and judging from the popularity of games like World of Warcraft, role-playing never loses its significance. Combining role-playing with our erotic life…
Ready to Ride
Yes, it’s time again to bring out the bikes and the family for this year’s biannual Cyclovia.
Ask a Mexican!
Dear Mexican: What’s up with the bull stickers on the truck doors? Is this a secret business, something earned at some unmentionable contest south of the border, or a brotherhood of sorts? —Native Californian Whitey Dear Gabacho: The bull sticker is no cloak-and-dagger marker. Toros on trucks are just cultural archetypes, a manifestation of Jung’s…
Chiles and … Chocolate?
Sweetness and fire come together in this uniquely borderlands celebration: Chiles.
Modern Native Struggles
The ever popular TEDxTucson series returns to the UA with “Intersections”— “exploring the intersections between First Nation traditions, culture and values, and modern life” this Friday, Oct. 30 in the Gallagher Theater. Hear from three different experts on the subject including Aaron White, a Grammy nominated musician who combines Native American sounds with modern day…
Editor’s Note
You know how it goes.
Mosey for Mutts
Join the Humane Society of Southern Arizona as they help raise money to benefit local homeless pets in a fun fashion with their event, Sweat for Pets this Sunday, Nov. 1 on the UA Mall. This free non-competitive 3k pet walk is to raise awareness about the many critters that are up for adoption throughout…
A Graveyard Smash
Shut down the block this Saturday, Oct. 31 with Tucson’s first ever downtown Halloween block party. Congress St, Halloween Block Party will feature three stages on three different downtown blocks so you can dance the night away under the light of the moon. Headliners include superstar DJ’s such as 3lau, Morgan Page and LA Ley…
Tucson Salvage
Alcoholic ghosts with suffering faces—ruddy with busted capillaries—circulate the dirty corners and bus stops at the intersection of Alvernon Way and Grant Road, and I step around them on long nighttime walks of the city.
The Welcoming Dead
The All Souls Procession is still over a week away—it rolls out on Sunday, Nov. 8—but a skeleton band is already on the march at the Tucson Museum of Art.
Media Watch
McClusky brings talk of the town style format to KVOI News/talk station KVOI AM 1030 welcomes another daily local show to the fold starting Monday. Shaun McClusky will occupy the 9 to 10 a.m. weekday time slot. That opening became available thanks to the time change, which pushes syndicated talk host Dennis Prager’s start time…
Redefine and Resurrect
Disgraced in name alone. Perhaps, when all is said and done, the defining moment of the 21st Century will have happened just months into its birth. September 11, 2001 changed everything. Or maybe it just woke many of us up to things that had been changing all along, as well as making us take a…
Police Dispatch
A man came up with some pretty lame excuses when he was apprehended for (quite obviously) shoplifting a long list of items from a local Wal-Mart.
A Better Job
Being that we didn’t know the guy, we can’t really say if Michael Fassbender’s portrayal of Steve Jobs in Danny Boyle’s new firecracker of a movie is accurate. We can say that it is, dramatically, one of the best things you will see in cinemas this year.
Three for the Money
Three of the questions that we’ll decide next week as part of the seven-measure, $815 million bond package revolve generally around economic development, tourism, healthcare, libraries, law enforcement and similar quality-of-life questions.
