BY MIKE WOLVERTON SPORTS GUY I’m pretty bummed about the Tour de France. I watch every year and I love it — partly because of the complicated strategies that play out in what is really more a team event than an individual one, and partly because of the pure machismo on display during the crucial mountain climbs. And more than anything, I enjoy watching because no event takes place on such a glorious playing field . . . day after day, the views of sweeping vistas, majestic mountains and ancient castles are breathtaking. On some days, the scenery is even […]
WORD GIRL: Today’s Word Is ‘Cumbersome’
PBS’ first venture into cartoon edutainment for kids, but smart enough for grownups and stoned college students. Premieres this fall. Tell the children.
KILLADELPHIA: 1 More Dead Since U Went To Bed
Police had no initial suspects and no immediate motive in a Wednesday night shooting in North Philadelphia that left a 17-year-old dead, and a 49-year-old man wounded in stable condition. The incident happened around 9:45pm near 24th Street and Lehigh Avenue. The 17-year- old male was dead on arrival at Temple University Hospital. The 49-year-old man was admitted to the same hospital with a leg wound. [via KYW] RELATED: This just in from Jeff Deeney in the comments section. “We moved a client off this block (Judson Street) last year, she said they had to keep all their beds as […]
PAPERBOY: Special Kill, Kill, Kill Edition
BY AMY Z. QUINN Like time, news waits for no man. Keeping up with the funny papers has always been an all-day job, even in the pre-Internets era. These days, however, it’s a two-man job. That’s right — these days you need someone to do your reading for you, or risk falling hopelessly behind and, as a result, increasing your chances of dying lonely and somewhat bitter. Hey, we know how it is … so many words to read, so little time to surf for free porn. That’s why every week, PAPERBOY does your alt-weekly reading for you, freeing up […]
NPR 4 THE SIMPSONS: We Hear It Even When U D’oh!
FRESH AIR Al Jean knows Marge, Homer, Bart and the gang better than almost anyone. He’s executive producer and writer for The Simpsons, and he’s been with the show since it began. The new Simpsons movie, he’s been heard to say, is about “what happens when a man doesn’t listen to his wife.” Nancy Cartwright‘s work is widely heard and well loved, but not many people know it’s her. She’s the voice of Bart Simpson on TV’s The Simpsons — and in the long-awaited feature film that hits theaters this week. RADIO TIMES Why “The Simpsons” remain so popular. Tomorrow […]
GAYBO: Hairspray Is SO Gay; Tammy Faye, Less So
BY TOMMY ZANE GAYDAR EDITOR The Broadway musical Hairspray slammed theatres last weekend with an all-star cast including Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Queen Latifah and a fat-suited, dragged-up John Travolta in the Divine role of Edna Turnblad. I managed to catch the film with two girlfriends — both born and raised in Baltimore — last Tuesday night. Now, these babes are huge fans of the original John Waters 1988 cult fav, so I listened to their review with bated breath. I’m happy to report that we absolutely loved it! Newcomer Nikki Blonsky, as fat girl-turned-TV dance show star Tracy Turnblad, […]
All Of This Happened While You Were Sleeping
MORE FUN IN THE NEW WORLD: John Doe, World Cafe Live, About An Hour Ago BY JONATHAN VALANIA Meet John Doe, fiftysomething atypicial American male. Claim to fame: Leader of Los Angeles punk band X, which combined indelible noir-ish poetics with buzzsaw punk and twangy Americana. Actually, you have met John Doe before. Every post-X solo album is a re-introduction to the man with the prototypical American alias, and every time, America’s reaction is the same: commercial indifference underscored by the righteous indignation of critics that a talent like Doe should have to come begging for his due time and […]
ROSEY GRIER: It’s All Right To Cry
Penn State grad Rosie Grier was All-Pro linebacker for the New York Giants and later the Los Angeles Rams. He was Robert Kennedy’s body guard the night he was assassinated.
We Know It’s Only Rock N’ Roll But We Like It
WAGON TRAIN: Porter Wagoner, opening for the White Stripes, Madison Square Garden, Last Night BY AMY Z. QUINN For the life of me, I couldn’t remember the name of the dude with the Siegfried & Roy hair playing playing twang-tastic guitar behind Porter Wagoner. I got to my seat just after they came on, as he was singing Wagoner to the stage: “The Wagonmaster’s comin’, the Wagonmaster’s comin’ . . .” and, tragically bereft of an Internet-ready device with which to google, the solution finally came to me. Time to call Mom. She’s a country fan from way back when […]
NPR 4 THE DEF: Giving Public Radio Edge Since 2006
FRESH AIR German filmmaker Werner Herzog discusses his new film Rescue Dawn, a Hollywood adaptation of his 1997 documentary Little Dieter Needs to Fly. Both the movie and the documentary are based on the true story of Dieter Dengler, the only U.S. pilot to successfully escape from a North Vietnamese-controlled prison. RADIO TIMES Hour 1 Philadelphia’s rising murder rate. This week, CBS News did a three-part series on Philadelphia’s gun violence. Why is the murder rate so high, and what can be done about it? We’ll talk with MEL WELLS, president of One Day At A Time, one of the social services […]
All Of This Happened While You Were Sleeping
WHITE SNAKE MOAN: Nick Cave & Grinderman, Madison Square Garden, Last Night [Photo by JONATHAN VALANIA]