Best of the Day: Centennial of the world’s first commercial flight in St. Pete
Happy New Year! Besides the holiday, you can celebrate 100 years of high times — the first ever commercial flight took place a century ago in St. Pete. Festivities begin at 9 a.m. next to the St. Petersburg Museum of History on the downtown waterfront. Using journals and clippings, the Early Birds of Aviation have…
Once again the courts reject Rick Scott’s plan to drug test welfare recipients
On the last day of 2013 a federal judge has issued a final judgement declaring Florida’s 2011 law mandating all applicants for the state’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program submit to suspicionless drug tests is an unconstitutional violation of the protection against unreasonable government searches. Shortly after the verdict came in, Governor Rick…
Bowled over: Why Tampa Bay is the ultimate place for a college football party
Tracy May East Carolina RB Vintavious Cooper broke the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl record for yards rushing with a career-best 198 yards and also scored two touchdowns. He also became the first East Carolina player to win a MVP award in a bowl game since Tennessee Titans star Chris Johnson ran for 223 yards against…
No reason to drive drunk — call AAA
Tonight might be amateur night for party animals, but it's no reason to clown around with your safety and the safety of others. if you're feeling "three sheets to the wind" … "drunk as a skunk", heck, even tipsy — and your DD has disappeared with a beer-google babe — call AAA's Tow-To-Go program at…
Coping with psychological impotence
Searching for answers to ‘performance anxiety’ and ‘stage fright.’
Latest poll in CD 13 GOP race shows David Jolly up by 11% over Kathleen Peters
David Jolly With just two weeks before the January 14 GOP primary in Pinellas County's Congressional District 13 race, David Jolly is gaining momentum against Kathleen Peters, according to a new poll. St. Pete Polls latest survey shows Jolly at 39.4 percent, Peters at 27.7 percent, and retired Marine brigadier general Mark Bircher at 17.7…
Best of the Day: Live music on New Year’s Eve
The best options for your revelry.
Mitch Perry Report 12.31.13 – Remembering Lou Reed, Roger Ebert, Michael Hastings and others…
There were a number of major personalities whose lives ended in 2013, the last being Nelson Mandela earlier this month. Margaret Thatcher and Hugo Chavez were also two world leaders who passed on this year. Mrs. Thatcher sadly spent the last decade of her life with dementia. The oh-so controversial Chavez, 58, who loved poking…
Dana Young doesn’t want to allow Tampa citizens the right to tax themselves for light-rail
Tampa state Rep. Dana Young Although light rail was rejected by Hillsborough County voters when the issue came before them in 2010, citizens in Tampa and Temple Terrace did support the referendum, which would have raised the sales tax in the county by a penny. Since then there has been virtually no talk at all…
Netflix dumps a slew of titles (with a few new ones on the way)
NO MORE CHICKEN LADY? Episodes of Kids in the Hall won't be available from Netflix starting Jan. 1 — unless they're renewed. Some diligent employees at Reddit have helped couch potatoes keep track of films and TV shows that are currently on Netflix Streaming but will no longer be available Jan. 1 and thereafter. So…
Do This: Top picks for NYE
Downtown St. Pete / I Love the 'Burg As usual, there’s an insane variety of events ringing in the New Year. Here are six fun events to help you start 2014 just right. In Tampa, an outer-limits cult sensation lands its UFO in Seminole Heights, Alabama sci-fi surf-rock band Man Or Astro-Man?, which headlines Ella’s…
Law enforcement in St. Pete would prefer if you didn’t shoot off fireworks or guns on New Year’s Eve
Outgoing St. Petersburg Police Chief Chuck Harmon and Fire Chief James Large really would prefer if you stopped thinking of New Year's Eve as the 4th of July redux, when shooting off your own fireworks are de rigueur. That's why they've cut a video warning about what dangers lurk if you continue to do that…
Mitch Perry Report 12.30.13 – Buc season mercifully concludes with another loss
The NFL's 2013 regular season concluded last night in Dallas, where a Kyle Orton interception ended the Cowboys bid to make the playoffs for the third straight season on Sunday Night Football. The Cowboys fell to the Philadelphia Eagles, who will now host the New Orleans Saints next Saturday night in one of the NFC…
Best of the Day: Greek Life and Epiphany photo exhibits open in Tarpon Springs
Providing a striking, candid glimpse into a Tampa Bay cultural enclave, The Horio: Greek Life in Tarpon Springs — a new exhibit of images by photographer Beeba Christopoulos-Lekkas — opens today at the Tarpon Springs Cultural Center. The show is a perfect complement to a visit to the Sponge Docks. Also, in anticipation of the…
Butchlesque fashion show defines what it means to be ‘butch’
The bois of Butchlesque are back with a New Year's Eve performance at the Gulfport Casino Ballroom. When Kimberly Herbel came out late in life, she learned from other lesbians that there was a stigma attached to the term “butch.” “I found that when I would remark on someone as being ‘one hot butch’ or…
Best of the Day: Capitol Theatre
The recently refurbished Capitol Theatre in downtown Clearwater is no longer a dilapidated old playhouse. Apart from being revamped with a lovely Mediterranean-revival facade, the interior offes a high-tech state-of-the-art performance hall with 200-plus more seats (and more comfortable ones, at that) and improved acoustics. Tonight comedian Gilbert Gottfried headlines. The screechy '80s icon and…
Ted Cruz says he has no regrets about pushing the GOP to shut down the government
Remember when Marco Rubio was the 41-year-old Cuban-American heartthrob to the Tea Party brigade who political pundits were speculating would be a potential candidate for the GOP presidential nomination? That's so 2011. 2013 was the year of Ted Cruz, The Texas-based Senator elected in 2012. Like Rubio, he's also Cuban and has strong conservative leanings.…
Ed Snowden’s backers say without a deal, he won’t be returning to the U.S. anytime soon
Most of the Sunday morning public affair shows on the broadcast and cable news networks looked back on Sunday on the two biggest stories of the year in American politics – the disastrous rollout of Obamacare and the reverberations from the disclosures made by NSA leaker Edward Snowden. Snowden has resurfaced publicly in the last…
The Clit’s the Thing!
A stimulating column for the holidays.
3 magical places in the Tampa Bay area
Prime vantage points for relaxing in the fresh winter air.
1 indispensable accessory
It’s free, it’s easy, and it goes with everything.
Do This: Holiday Two Wheel Mash Up 2013 (TTS Scavenger Hunt)
JoNita Pokey Hance Yo, Tampa. It's that time of year again. When hordes of hip kids and cool nerds meander in droves through the byways of Central Tampa, looking for stuff and snapping pics, meeting up for games of skill and dorkery. Tomorrow, Saturday, Dec. 28, folks on bikes, scooters and other two-wheeled modes of…
Mitch Perry Report 12.27.13 -“The Wolf of Wall Street”
Martin Scorcese's The Wolf of Wall Street and David O. Russell's American Hustle battled it out for box-office supremacy yesterday according to the Hollywood Reporter.. The two films opened the Tampa Bay area (and nationally) within the past week, and whileAmerican Hustle is definitely the better movie on many levels (including being 45 minutes shorter…
The Laugh Tract — who’s bringing the funny
The year ends with plenty of laughs on both sides of the bay. Touring headliners and local talent perform throughout the weekend, and most clubs have special New Year's Eve shows as well. Here are the best bets to close out 2013 with a laugh: Theaters Gilbert Gottfried at Ruth Eckerd Hall. You probably know…
National generic poll has GOP up — But will that matter in Pinellas’ CD13?
Wikipedia Alex Sink A new poll released Thursday morning shows the Republican Party continuing to make gains over the Democrats in the battle for Congress in 2014. The CNN/ORC International survey shows the GOP with a 49-44 percent edge among registered voters when asked whether they would vote for a Democrat or Republican in their…
6 really cool books by local writers
We got Connelly and Theroux, but which other locally based authors published this year?
Unlocking the mystery of Dead Mountain
Largo native, Donnie Eichar, has come full circle facing the mystery of The Dyatlov Pass Incident. The 54-year-old Russian mystery that captured Eichar’s interest and left him intoxicated in his search to find the answers. In early winter of 1959, nine experienced Russian hikers led by Igor Alekseievich Dyatlov went missing in Russia’s northern Ural…
Best of the Day: Kwanzaa at the Polk Museum of Art
Learn more about the principles the holiday was on and catch the lively Kuumba dancers.
Edward Snowden delivers his Alternative Christmas message to the Brits, and the world
In a message broadcast Christmas Day on British television, former American security contractor Edward Snowden urged an end to mass surveillance, where he invoked George Orwell's 1984. The short text of Snowden's message is available after the jump: Hi, and Merry Christmas. I’m honored to have the chance to speak with you and your family…
10 thoughts on Tampa Bay’s year in food and drink
Reflections from the restaurant beat in 2013.
6 reasons this was Tampa Bay’s tastiest year ever
How food awareness and local pride brought the community together.
Five reasons this was the Year of Beer in Tampa Bay
Why the local craft beer scene took off in 2013.
Great grapes
Anyone game for Gamay? Jazzed for Shiraz?
5 stories that shook up Florida
Looking back at a year of social change and shocking revelations.
10 lists for your listening pleasure
Counting down the year in music.
6 mesmerizing movie moments
These scenes will stick with me beyond 2013.
4 artists who had one helluva year
The achievements of Bask, Katherine Pill, Calan Ree and Carlton Ward Jr. reach beyond Tampa Bay.
9 great performances
Actors who made an indelible impression in 2013.
3 Christmas limericks
It’s not the gifts, it’s the clues that count.
Grudge Match can’t go the distance
Stallone-De Niro boxing dramedy lacks heart and cheek.
Best of the Day: Christmas Eve Edition
Finally, the weeks of consumerist madness and the building up of holiday cheer come to a head. It's Christmas Eve, the day before the big day — though for many people, the day before Christmas is as big a deal as the main event itself. Some crazy folks even exchange their gifts tonight, beating Santa…
Walter Mitty is no fun
Ben Stiller drags down this vanity project.
Mitch Perry Report 12.24-26 – Hamid Karzai calls U.S.’ bluff on troops withdrawal from Afghanistan
As friends and family members gather in Tampa Bay and across the country over the next few days to celebrate Christmas, how about a shout out to the approximately 48,000 men and women serving out country in Afghanistan? And how about considering what they're doing there today and when they'll be coming home? President Obama…
Dwight Dudley expresses skepticism on Jeff Brandes bill to address flood insurance problem
Dwight Dudley St. Pinellas County-based state House Democrat Dwight Dudley is calling for the formation of a select committee on flood insurance, as thousands of his constituents are getting socked by massive increases caused by the Biggers-Waters Act. The federal legislation that went into effect in October is disproportionately affecting tens of thousands of Pinellas…
Could Florida adopt the “Top Two” voting system?
Florida has a closed primary system. That means only registered Republicans can vote for Republican candidates and only registered Democrats can vote for Democrats. Independents, Greens, Peace & Freedom Party members and non-party-affiliated voters need not concern themselves with a primary election in the state (like, say, the January 2012 GOP presidential faceoff between Mitt…
