Odd Pittsburgh Sports Facts
Just when you think you know all there is to know about Pittsburgh sports, the Internet proves you wrong.
Gone Fishin’: St. Mary’s Russian Orthodox Church
Writer Celine Roberts reviews a local fish fry for every Friday of the Lenten season.
Pittsburgh teens prepare for Steel Chef Cook Off
Pittsburgh teens face-off in a cooking competition.
Stumping for congressional candidate Conor Lamb, former Vice President Joe Biden discusses future for young people
Biden lauded Lamb for his “character” and his support for maintaining Social Security and his focus on student debt.
Share a Memory. Make a Memory.
Enter your favorite baseball memories with #CPBuccosMemories for a chance to win 2 airline tickets!
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette appointment of new editorial-page editor will make things worse
In response to several recent controversial and occasionally nonsensical editorials and columns — remember the editorial “Reason as racism: An immigration debate gets derailed” or “Caitlyn Jenner is still a mister”? — at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, there’s a new sheriff in town overseeing the paper’s editorial pages. Unfortunately, for the P-G’s readers and staffers, it’s…
Proposed medical-marijuana regulations would give special privileges to dispensaries and growers partnered with Pa.’s university-connected research hospitals
Proposed medical-marijuana research permits could cause problems for phase-one permit holders
Democratic Socialists look to highlight Pittsburgh anti-abortion health-care centers as ‘fake clinics’
The DSA is critical of pregnancy health-care centers that don’t offer abortions
Lynn Cullen Live – 3/6/18
Video Archive Audio Only Archive Stream or download the last 5 shows on the MP3 downloads page.
What Pizza Topping are You?
Match your personality to your pizza, then go eat it during Pittsburgh Pizza Week!
Pittsburgh-based Peepshow is the sex podcast for life in 2018
“The core of what people want remains the same. It’s still ultimately about human interaction and human intimacy and sexuality.”
Beware of a fake poll circulating about the special election for Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District
A fake pollster, Blumenthal Research Daily, released a fabricated poll on March 2 saying that congressional candidate Conor Lamb was leading by a point.
MP3 Monday: Rabid Pigs
This week’s free track is an aggressive number that brings the slow, beat-down punishment, before briefly giving way to a punk sprint. Go to there.
Gone Fishin’: Swissvale Fire Dept.
Writer Celine Roberts reviews a local fish fry for every Friday of the Lenten season.
University of Pittsburgh grad students want a public-health building on campus renamed
Parran Hall, on the Pitt campus, is named after former U.S. Surgeon General Thomas Parran, who oversaw the controversial Tuskegee and Guatemala syphilis experiments.
Pittsburgh Music Ecosystem Project Town Hall Meeting raises more questions than answers
CP writer Mike Shanley reports on Tuesday’s meeting and what it means for Pittsburgh musicians and show-goers.
Seed-Swap Stories
For some gardeners, every tiny seed they plant has a story. At the Sixth Annual Seed Swap, held Feb. 24, at the Carnegie Library, in Oakland, participants were invited to share their stories and memories about gardening. These “seed stories” were relayed with the help of volunteers, some collaging and a photo booth. “Agriculture has…
Children’s advocates say family courts unfairly favor fathers, even when they’re the abusers
At a custody hearing in Allegheny County on May 20, 2016, the 9-year-old boy at the center of the case took the stand and was asked a series of questions. His favorite school subject? Math. His best friend? Drew. His musical instrument of choice? The alto recorder. But according to court transcripts, the questioning soon…
New Local Release: carnival room’s drama queen
carnival room drama queen Self-released carnival-room.bandcamp.com The EP drama queen begins with “zero flux,” a dreamy and swirling track. The softly uttered vocals ask, “How can you even stand to be around yourself?” while a whispering response repeats the phrases, “I don’t feel like it, I don’t want to try.” This despondency is amplified on…
Clean Juice shop opens in East Liberty with organic juice and bowls
Clean Juice 5829 Penn Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 412-404-7007 website Bathed in the early evening light, the space of the recently opened Clean Juice hums with the sound of juicers and blenders, as fresh smoothies, protein shakes and juices come to life. The minimalist, high-ceilinged storefront, on Penn Avenue in East Liberty, features coolers stocked with…
Red Sparrow
The questions I had during Francis Lawrence’s American vs. Russians spy thriller were not who the villain was (guessed immediately) or what would happen (standard twists apply), but were much broader. What era is this story happening in? Presumably now, since there’s a dig at social media, but the Americans vs. Russian stuff had a…
This Week in Pittsburgh Sports History
March 1, 1909 Construction begins on Forbes Field in Oakland. The ballpark, the first built out of steel and concrete, would be finished and open for business three months later. March 2, 1993 The national media picks up a story on former Olympic figure skater Christopher “The Showman” Bowman, who was found beaten in a…
Calling out the most underrated characters in the history of gaming
This week’s City Paper cover, illustrated by the great Pat Lewis, brought back a lot of memories for me as I’m sure it did for a lot of readers. Sure, there were more modern games represented like World of Warcraft, Minecraft and Animal Crossing. But the one that made me smile the most was Col.…
Mal Blum and the Blums perform at Club Cafe Thu., March 1.
Mal Blum has an amazing laugh, the kind of warm laugh that makes you start to chuckle along as well. And with Blum’s delightful sense of humor, there’s no shortage of laughter while City Paper chats with Blum on the phone from their home in New York City. “Spooky things happen when I’m around. I…
Critics’ Pick: DJ Jazzy Jeff at Scenario Nightclub
[HIP HOP] + THU., MARCH 1 Born and raised in West Philadelphia (insert swarthy wink here) DJ Jazzy Jeff was, and arguably still is, a hip-hop household name. The actor, producer, turntablist and two-time Grammy winner is headlining Scenario Nightclub, a two-tiered, private-balcony-adorned club situated right here in the South Side. Having helped nurture and…
Game Night
Game Night Directed by Mark Perez Starring Jason Bateman, Rachel McAdams, Kyle Chandler, Jesse Plemons The Box: Game Night, a dark, but giddy, ensemble R-rated comedy, offering plenty of pop-culture jokes and bloody comic violence, directed by Mark Perez, clocking in at a perfect hour-and-a-half. The Pieces: Max (Jason Bateman) and Annie (Rachel McAdams) are…
Jason Moran & The Bandwagon perform at the Kelly-Strayhorn Sat., March 3
Jason Moran said recently that half of his life consists of talking about and playing music, while the other half is spent looking at other representations of jazz that have shaped the way he works as a musician. The latter half came up during a conversation about his work at the John F. Kennedy Center…
Critics’ Pick: Exodus at Spirit
[METAL] + MON., MARCH 5 Exodus has been through a lot. The OG California thrashers, who formed in 1979, have reorganized their band configuration a half-a-dozen times, broken up more than once and experienced the deaths of not one, but two, of their former band mates. When you’re in the scene and making records for…
Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Vieilles Vignes 2015
“This appellation in Northern Burgundy has a very unique expression of chardonnay. The cool climate lends to higher acidity; and the limestone-driven soil adds complex minerality. I recommend Jean-Marc Brocard. This family estate focuses on older vineyards peppered across the appellation.” Recommended by Alyssa McGrath, Verity Wine Partners Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Vieilles Vignes 2015 is…
Cupcakke brings sex-positive hip hop to Spirit Hall Sun., March 4
Cupcakke is an outrageously forthright hip-hop artist with a penchant for the naughty. Think Gangsta Boo’s raunchy bars on Run the Jewel’s “Love Again,” but on steroids. The production on her songs are carefully designed to make a room full of people jump around and shake their booties, while shouting along passionately to each catchy…
Critics’ Pick: Kississippi at Roboto
[INDIE POP] + TUE., MARCH 6 If there’s a time to indulge in some saucy post-Waxahatchee-core, it’s now. With a full-length from Kississippi rumored to be making its way to the grateful masses very soon (but not soon enough), we at least have a moody and catchy dance-in-your-underwear single to hold onto. “Cut Yr Teeth”…
Annihilation
Annihilation opens in an isolation room. In it, a weary woman is answering questions from moon-suited men. Clearly, she has survived something harrowing — it is noted that others are dead. Through a series of flashbacks (and flashbacks within those), the story comes into focus. Well, the “what” and “where” of it does; the “how”…
Free Will Astrology
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): As you make appointments in the coming months, you could re-use calendars from 2007 and 2001. During those years, all the dates fell on the same days of the week as they do in 2018. On the other hand, Pisces, please don’t try to learn the same lessons you learned in…
Pittsburgh City Paper Booze Battles: Poulet Bleu vs. Bar Marco
Each week, we order the same cocktail at two different bars for a friendly head-to-head battle. Go to the bars, taste both drinks and tell us what you like about each by tagging @pghcitypaper on Twitter or Instagram and using #CPBoozeBattles. Poulet Bleu American Bistro 3519 Butler St., Pittsburgh, PA 412-325-3435 website Drink: Brandy Alexander…
Vanessa German’s sometimes.we.cannot.be.with.our.bodies at Mattress Factory
sometimes.we.cannot.be.with.our.bodies, a recent installation at the Mattress Factory by Pittsburgh artist, poet and activist Vanessa German, opens to the viewer like a flower or a gift. It reveals itself layer by layer, step by step, room by room, building incrementally to a glory that’s almost too much to take. The journey through it is visceral,…
Marie Curie: The Courage of Knowledge
Marie Noelle’s recent bio-drama looks at some of the remarkable life of Marie Skłodowska Curie, the Polish-born, Paris-based scientist who made significant discoveries in radioactive materials and its uses. Noelle’s film dabbles in the scientific, but its chief focus is in depicting the complete being of Curie, portrayed here by the steady but somewhat ethereal…
Point Park University Conservatory Theatre Co. stages The House of Bernarda Alba
Women are at the center, and most of the edges, of the Point Park University Conservatory Theatre Co.’s production of The House of Bernarda Alba, a classic portrayal of the psychological laceration of women by women. Of course, it was written by a man: Federico García Lorca, in 1936 (shortly before his death in the…
Nostalgia
Mark Pellington’s ensemble drama presents a couple of loosely connected stories, all tied to the theme of how objects in our lives stand in for memories, particularly those of our deceased loved ones. The tales run on a track from prosaic — John Ortiz is an insurance investigator who is trained to see numbers, not…
Savage Love
I recently stumbled on an Instagram account of a young woman who’s a “knife play” enthusiast. I consider myself sex-positive, but I must say I was disturbed by the images. I was also shocked that I didn’t know this was a thing! But of course it’s a thing cuz everything is a thing, right? I…
The Party
Sally Potter assembles a dream cast for a dark parlor comedy, in which seven archetypes take turns verbally bashing each other. It’s ostensibly a celebratory dinner party for Janet (Kristin Scott Thomas) who has been ascended to health minister. Gathered are her morose professor husband (Timothy Spall); her acid-tongued, cynical friend (Patricia Clarkson); a new-age…
How well do you know Pittsburgh sports?
ACROSS 1. QB Clock (2 words) 3. Dapper Sports Award 7. Color of the Gunner’s Weenie 8. He’s Batman (2 words) 11. Pitt Student Section Oakland … 13. Pistol and Press 14. Fish Heels 15. The other Super Bowl III QB 18. Studio Wrestling Ring Leader 19. Greensburg Duffer 21. Honus’ big bro 26. Winter/Summer…
Beyond Bloody Marys: more brunch classic cocktails
I like a good Bloody Mary bar or bottomless mimosa as much as anyone. But in the spirit of expanding our morning-tippling horizons, here are a few classic drinks to add to your brunch arsenal. The best brunch cocktails follow a few guidelines. First, they should be fairly low in alcohol — after all, you…
Pittsburgh gamers say we’re living in a golden age of board games
Dustin Felix can’t put a number on how many board games are in his collection, but he estimates he has somewhere between 200 and 300, not including expansion sets. His collection ranges from introductory games like Burgle Bros. — a Looney-Tunes-meets-Ocean’s-Eleven bank heist — to the strategy-heavy War of the Ring — which recreates Tolkien’s…
The Pittsburgh Knights look to bring large-scale eSports competitions to the Steel City
The definition of an athlete is evolving, whether purists are willing to embrace it or not. In the past, a person who spent his free time sitting at a keyboard or a gaming console was considered a couch potato. But these days, that person can be revered by audiences as highly as a Super Bowl-winning…
Mega Cat Studios brings retro gaming into the 21st century
Like many of the team members at Mega Cat Studios, a Pittsburgh-based independent video-game company, James Deighan didn’t study video-game development in school. Instead, much of the institutional knowledge at Mega Cat comes from firsthand experience. “Most of us have varied education and work backgrounds unrelated to game development,” says Deighan, owner of Mega Cat.…
Raise the Jolly Roger: Pittsburgh Pirates finally on the right side of a horrible, lopsided offseason trade
This Pirates offseason was one of the worst in recent memory. The franchise’s single best player in a quarter-century was off to San Francisco, and all we got was a lousy Kyle Crick jersey. Andrew McCutchen’s departure was taken personally, as thousands of Bucco fans directed their ire toward the ownership and front office responsible…
Pittsburgh’s Rivers Casino uses technology to make table games a social, accessible experience
Anyone who has played table games at a casino, especially newcomers, knows that it can be a bit intimidating. As you sit among other players and the cards fly or the dice rolls, you often wonder if you’re doing it right, or if you’ll make a mistake and mess the game up for other players.…
Shana Simmons Dance’s The Missing Peace explores the response to physical- and mental-health challenges
A trio of familiar ills affecting hearts, minds and bodies takes center stage in Shana Simmons Dance’s The Missing Peace. The latest work from the Pittsburgh-based company will be performed in the round, March 2-10, at Bricolage’s intimate 50-seat theater. Begun, in 2016, as three separate projects by dancer/choreographers Shana Simmons, Brady Sanders and Jamie…
Do you know who’s buried in Grant’s tomb? Then you might want to hit up a trivia night in Pittsburgh.
Sure, drinking is fun on its own. But if quirky questions and prizes are involved, the boozy night is taken to the next level. Bar trivia is all over the Pittsburgh region, with nights that are laser focused on Harry Potter or other crazy themes you’ve probably never heard of. Many bars offer drink specials…
City Paper Gaming Issue
The world’s a mess, so why not play games! In our inaugural gaming issue, we celebrate game play in all of its forms — from board games and video games to games of chance and games of make believe.
Analyzing Southwestern Pennsylvania’s potential U.S. Congressional districts
Some big changes could be coming in terms of who represents who in Southwestern Pennsylvania. On Feb. 19, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court issued its new drawings of U.S. Congressional District maps for the state of Pennsylvania. The previous maps, drawn in 2011, were deemed a partisan gerrymander by the court. State Republicans have challenged the…
In Pittsburgh and beyond, LARPing is much more than a side hobby
If you’ve never taken a closer look, you might think LARP (Live Action Role Playing) isn’t much more than a hobby, an excuse to carry a sword and rock a surcoat. But these days, that world of immersive, in-person gameplay is a big business, with more than a dozen national organizations in the U.S. and…
New Local Release: Philippa Zang’s slowing! down!
Philippa Zang slowing! down! Self-released philippazang.bandcamp.com Philippa Zang’s slowing! down! is an intimate collection of demo-ed tracks that sink their teeth into your tender heart and cling on for hours at a time. In six songs, Zang plays with genres, from alternative rock and gentle indie pop, to morose minimalist tracks. The artist’s penchant for…
