American Idol
Time for a much needed update on American Idol, though it was only through my own procrastination that I missed out on all the male-stripper-who-worked-at-Dick’s jokes. Daniel Hernandez has taken his song-and-thong act back to obscurity. We’re still at a two-hour show, which with 11 contestants, means lots of padding. (For the record, I refuse…
I Can Make You Thin
Lose weight watching TV
Gays rule Pittsburgh, Oklahoma legislator charges
Diane Gramley, president of the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Family Association, praised Kern’s remarks. “It doesn’t concern her that homosexuals may be voted in,” says Gramley. “She’s concerned about them using their position as a bully pulpit for the normalization of homosexuality.”
Who will endorse Hillary tomorrow? Take a wild guess.
When Hillary Clinton visits Pittsburgh tomorrow, “We’re going to have a terrific rally at which we’re going to announce some very important endorsements — some local leaders’ endorsements,” Gov. Ed Rendell promises. Accompanied on a conference call earlier today by Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and Clinton campaign strategist Mark Penn, Rendell made much of the…
Art of the Deal
The Art Institute of Pittsburgh wasn’t the first choice for aspiring graphic designer Renee Sajewski. But the Michigan native first heard about the school from an art teacher, and a friend who had good experiences there. And besides, unlike many other art schools she was looking at, AIP didn’t require a portfolio. When she first…
Letters to the Editor: March 12 – 19
Feedback from our readers: Focus on surveillance cameras.
Bangkok Balcony
The menu offers a familiar array of Thai dishes, as well as the chef’s own sophisticated specialties.
Politics: District 21 state house race loses half its field
When state Rep. Lisa Bennington decided to step down after only one year, the field to replace her was huge. However, after the Democratic Party nomination went to former Pittsburgh City Councilor Len Bodack the field got a whole lot thinner.
Protest: Group trying to revive student involvement in antiwar movement
One Pitt student is trying to reinvigorate a student war-protest effort that has gotten off course.
Rally CAP
It may not be perfect but health advocates say the governor’s CAP insurance plan is a step in the right direction.
The Price of Sugar
In the Dominican Republic, a few miles from affluent vacationers lounging on beaches, live some of the 250,000 or more undocumented Haitian workers who cut the cane that supplies U.S. consumers most of their sugar. Recruited to emigrate, stripped of IDs, underfed and underpaid, they live under armed guard in labor camps called bateyes, essentially…
Note By Note: The Making of Steinway L1037
It takes one year to make a Steinway 9-foot grand piano, a remarkably slow journey in this age of rapid mass production. Ben Niles’s quietly rapturous documentary (a must-see for piano-lovers) follows one such instrument — No. L1037 — from Alaskan timber to its months-long, hand-crafted construction at Steinway’s Queens facility and, finally, its place…
4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
Over the course of one fraught day in 1987, college student Otilia (Anamaria Marinca) helps her roommate Gabi (Laura Vasiliu) procure an illegal abortion. The focus, however, is not on Gabi or the morality of the procedure, but rather on Otilia and how the day’s events test her relationships, resourcefulness and perhaps her future. Writer/director…
Caramel
A Beirut beauty shop is the focal point for Nadine Labaki’s romantic dramedy that ambles comfortably through the lives of five women like their sixth friend. The incidents are relatively small — an affair with a married man, an impending wedding, potential romance, aging — yet they acquire greater urgency and poignancy when reflected against…
The Bank Job
Like all bank robberies, it should have gone swimmingly. Posh London bank; inside tip; a quiet weekend; just tunnel in from next door, collect the goods and Bob’s your uncle. No surprise to learn that in Roger Donaldson’s crime story (loosely based on a real-life incident), things go pear-shaped for petty criminal Terry (Jason Statham)…
10,000 B.C.
In this prehistoric adventure “legend” (i.e., totally made-up crap), a young hunter ventures through distant lands to retrieve his sweetie from slave raiders. Director and co-writer Roland Emmerich is no stranger to entertaining junk films (Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow), but 10,000 B.C. is the simply the same old story — brave warrior leads…
Funny Games
A family on holiday is mentally and physically tormented by two seemingly nice young men, in Michael Haneke’s film about a home invasion. Funny Games assaults the complacency of the privileged rich at the same time it explores the metaphysics of cinema. Haneke is one of the few people left making serious cinema on a…
A Conversation with Shawn Kelly
Shawn Kelly is the 45-year-old founder of the Pittsburgh Paranormal Society, a ghost-hunting group he began in 2006. Much like the popular A&E television show Paranormal State, Kelly’s group of a dozen scientific and spiritual investigators visit haunted houses, hotels and graveyards in Southwestern Pennsylvania, “help[ing] spirits cross to the other side.” Kelly, who works…
Victor Varnado is not just another black-albino comic.
“I was something new, so they didn’t even know how to tease me.”
Emanuel Gat Dance makes “Rite of Spring” anew.
With movement styles from salsa to hints of hip hop, Gat’s choreography is mesmerizing, and builds on itself like Ravel’s “Bolero,” expanding phrases as it goes.
Plateau
Plateau feels like a throwback to theater from the ’60s and ’70s — specifically, all those urgent little dramas about the anesthetized ethos of suburbia, as well as stories about the dehumanization of “working for the man.”
Cooking at Merante Gifts
In many Italian homes, the heart and soul is in the basement. That’s Nona’s bunker, where she rattles and hums, rolls and stirs, preparing feasts for large family gatherings. Many Italian cooks have honed their pasta craftsmanship near washers, dryers and hot-water tanks. At Merante Gifts, located in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Little Italy (otherwise…
A local author’s “resurrection” of Allegheny City has its ups and downs.
The book’s biggest strength can also be a weakness: The sheer volume of the archives crowds out other compelling material
Pittsburgh n’@
From: http://pghwomenbloggers.blogspot.com/2008/03/persuade-and-inform-me.html Persuade and Inform Me Although I had planned to vote for Michelle Obama, I had been under the assumption that Pennsylvania would be an unimportant primary. Everyone kept saying, “Oh, by the time it gets here [PA], it will already be decided.” Or not. I’ve tried to inform myself about their…
At The Warhol, Ron Mueck’s sculptures pushes humans out of scale to pull humanity into focus.
What he’s stirred up we can carry with us, and it might make us ask why what’s outside of us can affect our inner size.
Synthpop is alive and well with Seabound and Iris
It’s hard to believe that the goth stigma can still scare away major labels at a time when a Hot Topic flourishes in every suburb.
Black 47 brings an edge to St. Patrick’s Day festivities
“A warped ideology caused this war and, even though we’re against it, the last thing the country needs right now is more didactic posturing.”
Who is local singer-songwriter Alex Pfundt — really?
You’re stuck wondering whether he’s an earnest nice guy trying to be gritty, or a likable jerk who’s trying to sing pretty.
Locals The Meridians channel ’90s guitar rock on Heavy Silver
There are times on the record that the band’s influences show through, especially Fleetwood Mac and the Gin Blossoms.
Among the planet’s top online sources for retro clothes is a company based in Friendship.
“We’ve turned the online disadvantages into advantages: We try to be the trusted-adviser voice to the customer.”
Signs of trouble ahead
“The question of the legality of the permit cannot be resolved by the legislative branch, and it cannot be resolved by the executive branch. It can only be resolved by the judicial branch,” Dowd said.
This Just In: March 12 – 19
Highlights from the local TV news: Bottling compassion … recession-proof your life
Savage Love
I’m in my final year of high school and I decided to come out as a lesbian — a very foolish move, as I live in a small town that’s not exactly brimming with tolerant people. But I know there are other closeted people at my school and I figured if none of us ever…
Local vinyl-phile Karim Khan launches new wax-only label
“I don’t even buy CDs anymore — I keep them in the car and sling them around, but other than that, I only listen to records.”
A little help . . .
Some rockin’ friends get together to help out Tony Janflone, Jr.
