Pope Francis edges out Edward Snowden to become TIME’s Person of the Year
Casa Rosada Pope Francis TIME magazine has named Pope Francis their Person of the Year for 2013. Editor Nancy Gibbs writes in this week's issue that the publication chose the new pope (the first pope selected as Person of The Year since Pope John Paul II in 1994) because , "In his nine months in…
Mitch Perry Report 12.11.13: It’s official: Pinellas residents to vote on light-rail measure next year
37 months after Hillsborough County voters overwhelmingly rejected a proposal to raise the sales tax by a penny to fund the construction of a light-rail system, the Pinellas County Commission late last night approved a measure that would give their residents that same opportunity in November of 2014. In approving the ballot language last night,…
Best of the Day: Celebrate the holidays at MOSI
The holiday season is officially upon us, and Tampa's Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) is ready with seasonal exhibits and great deals on tickets that will have your brood ho-ho-hoing all the way home. MOSI's big holiday draw is Santa’s Workshop, a reimagining of MOSI's Idea Zone into one of Santa’s "satellite toy workshops."…
The Well-Played List: Best of 2013 Edition, Part 1
The first round of year-ending Best of lists from the CL Team & beyond (audio)
In Pinellas Park, HHS official gets an earful on the problems trying to sign people up to HealthCare.Gov
Sol Ross (pictured in the middle) promised ACA supporters that they would be getting more help in the months to come Although most Republicans are conceding that the problems with HealthCare.gov are receding months after its abysmal launch, there still remain daunting challenges for those charged with getting as many Americans as possible signed onto…
Latino organizations release 2013 immigration reform report card for Congress
photo credit: blog.nclr.org While immigration reform didn't become the defining topic of 2013 as some expected following last year's presidential election, the upcoming mid-term elections will likely bring the issue back to the forefront in 2014. In anticipation, a collection of Latino organizations have released a report card for Congress, grading the efforts of its…
Derrick Pierce: the bad boy brand
The male adult star on mixing MMA and porn, and being perpetually cast as the villain.
Former TIA head Louis Miller to retire from Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Intl. Airport
Lou Miller Louis Miller, the former embattled head of Tampa International Airport who resigned in 2010 and took over at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport just months later, announced on Monday that he will resign at the end of this year after just three years on the job. From 1996 to the spring of 2010, Miller…
Mitch Perry Report: How can Edward Snowden NOT be Time’s Person of the Year?
Time magazine names its Person of the Year on Wednesday. Among the finalists are Syria's Bashar al-Assad, Iran's new president Hassan Rouhan, gay rights activist Edith Windsor, Pope Francis and Ted Cruz. But is there seriously any doubt that the Person of the Year in terms of making news and an impact on the world…
New Music Tuesday! (December 10): 7 Days of Funk, Childish Gambino, John Mellencamp & more
Releases out this week; audio & video included.
An interview with funny man Greg Behrendt
Courtesy Photo GREG BEHRENDT IS COOL. No matter what he says. In advance of his shows at the Tampa Improv (Thursday, December 12- Sunday December 15), I got comedian Greg Behrendt on the horn to talk about life, love, laughter and weighing theoretical airplanes without a scale. It's a task that may prove easier than…
Do This: Beak’s on Broadway
Courtesy of Becca McCoy MS. B: Becca McCoy performs tonight. Nothing like a spritz of show tunes to cure the Monday blahs. Tonight Beak's on Broadway entertains diners at Grand Central's Old Florida-style eatery. The weekly cabaret is from 8 to 10:30 p.m. every Monday and showcases local musical theater stars belting out popular tunes.…
Lawsuit against Hillsborough County PTC rolls on
Thomas Halsnik (left) is a plaintiff in the case – attorney Justin Pearson (right) from the Institute for Justice filed the lawsuit in August Last week supporters of the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission rejoiced after a bill that would have allowed voters to decide on whether or not the troubled agency should be abolished…
The Armstrong Lie adds depth to Lance Armstrong’s sordid saga
The big question I had before viewing Alex Gibney's The Armstrong Lie was whether I would really learn anything new about seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong's epic fall from grace. That's because the narrative of Armstrong's journey from cancer victim to bike race champion to disgraced doper is already familiar to most of…
Right-wing flame-thrower Virginia Foxx to attend fundraising lunch for Kathleen Peters
North Carolina Rep. Virginia Foxx CQ Rollcall reports this morning that five House Republican women (along with Orlando-area Congressman Daniel Webster) are scheduled to hold a fundraising luncheon for Pinellas state Representative Kathleen Peters this Wednesday to help in her bid to win the GOP nomination for Congress in the special election to replace Bill…
Best of the day: Lyle Lovett plays to Tampa, Jessica Hernandez serenades St. Petersburg
A few very appealing concerts are taking place tonight on either side of Tampa Bay, one by a music vet, the other by a rising star. Here's what longtime music critic Eric Snider has to say about both: Back in the late 1980s, country radio started to loosen the reins a bit and let Lyle…
Mitch Perry Report 12.9.13 – The Tampa Bay Bucs: The best 4-9 team in the NFL?
Now that the official regular season of college football is over, football fans just have the NFL to enjoy before the Bowl season kicks into gear in a few weeks. And for my mind, yesterday was by far the most entertaining day of professional football this season. Adding to the drama was the fact that…
This week’s top LGBT events
Monday, Dec. 9 The Stonewall Democrats of Pinellas County celebrates the holidays and recent election victories at Georgie’s Alibi, 3100 3rd Ave. N., St. Petersburg, 5 to 8 p.m. In 2013, the Stonewall Democrats endorsed seven candidates for public office and all seven won. Meet and greet some of the newly elected public officials, including…
Rick Scott’s team bashes Tampa Bay Times story that challenges his economic record
Sunday brought the first of a hyped three-part series in the Tampa Bay Times on Rick Scott's economic record, entitled "Big Promises, Small Gains." The key statistic? The Times reports that "96 percent of the jobs that Scott promised during his 2010 campaign for governor remain unfulfilled." But but late Sunday morning the Governor's communications…
Best of the day: Ella’s Folk Art Cafe Bloody “Ella” Mary with rib garnish
Arielle Stevenson SO MEATY: The Bloody Ella, a rib-garnished take on the Bloody Mary. There's no telling what led you to Sunday's decision to sip on a Bloody Mary. But here you are. And you don't just want some vodka and tomato juice slapped together with a celery stick. You want a Bloody Mary that…
Kriseman transition team meets with TBARTA, discuss transportation development
As the Rick Kriseman era approaches, his collection of transition teams have been meeting with local organizations and constituents to become better acquainted with the issues and ensure a smooth shift. This continued Friday afternoon, as Kriseman's Transportation Transition Team met with officials from the Tampa Bay Area Regional Transit Authority (TBARTA). Given that this…
Best of the Day: Affordable Christmas
A discount shopping event helps low-income families buy gifts for their kids.
The cover up
It’s often worse than the crime.
Bound books prevail: Haslam’s Book Store celebrates 80th anniversary
During the reign of eBooks, Kindles and Nooks, the livelihood of bound books is being threatened. However, devoted readers maintain an attachment to tangible forms of fiction/non-fiction. Haslam’s Book Store in St. Petersburg is a product of that devotion, and will celebrate their 80th anniversary on Dec. 8 at 2 p.m. Opened during the Great…
Fast food workers’ strike: Protesters march for $15 minimum wage
Kimberly DeFalco Protesters lead a Ronald McDonald effigy in protest of working conditions and low wages. Two-year-old Kaliyah Austin vomited. Before calling the doctor, LaShonna Delgardo, the toddler’s single mom, made a 7:45 a.m. call to her Dunkin’ Donuts supervisor on November 21. The response from her supervisor, Delgardo's fourth in a year, wasn't good.…
At Tiger Bay, Alex Sink says the Obama administration has “failed us” on rollout of ACA
Meet The Candidates: Alex Sink, Mark Bircher, David Jolly, Kathleen Peters & Lucas Overby hold their Tiger Bay mugs immediately after their candidates forum The five men and women who will be on the ballot next year in the race to succeed the late Bill Young in Florida's 13th Congressional District gathered en masse for…
Get the blues this weekend in Bradenton
The Bradenton Blues Festival spreads out along the town’s scenic Riverwalk.
CL Holiday Auction: Cigar City, CL cover and lots more
This is it, the fourth and final week of Creative Loafing's Holiday Auction for the benefit of The Children's Home. We've saved some very, very big items for this week, including: • A beer-lover's wildest dream from Cigar City Brewing (think one very large bottle) • A fantastic package for fans of Winter the Dolphin…
Prude: lessons on love, sex, and writing from memoirist Emily Southwood
A Q & A with the author on what she learned when her fiancé filmed porn.
Do This: Santa, parades and snow
Festivities offer family fun this weekend.
Mitch Perry Report 12.6.13 – R.I.P. Nelson Mandela
I was attending San Francisco State University in 1985 when shantytowns were created on the campus, a form of continuing anti-apartheid protests that rocked college campuses across the country opposing the U.S's support of the racist policies of the South African government. I'm not even sure why it took until that year for the resistance…
Hit the road for reGeneration 2 & Studio Malick
These great exhibits are a short car ride from Tampa Bay — but you better hurry.
Soup for dummies
Thaw your innards with this easy-to-make curried cauliflower-apple soup.
New York sideshow
Freaks and voyeurs, perfect together on the streets of the Big Apple.
Out of the Furnace burns out quickly
The gritty and ambitious would-be thriller is well-acted but will leave you cold.
Tampa City Council shelves proposal that would have forced bars to stop serving alcohol at midnight
Two draft ordinances that might have rolled back the hours that bars, nightclubs and restaurants in Tampa could serve alcohol — from the current 3 a.m. back to midnight — died at today's Tampa City Council meeting. The 5-2 vote against even convening a workshop on the matter came after the board received an overwhelmingly…
Rick Baker out front in first David Jolly ad in GOP CD13 race
David Jolley has become the first candidate in the race to succeed Bill Young in Congress to air a television ad, and he's prominently featuring his two biggest endorsement "gets" – former St. Pete Mayor Rick Baker and Young's surviving widow, Beverly. Also featured in the ad are a couple of military veterans. Jolly told…
The Laugh Tract — who’s bringing the funny
This week's offerings will interest fans of musical comedy, fans of clean comedy, fans of really dirty comedy and fans of free comedy. Nationally-touring performers fill the calendar alongside a few local favorites to give audiences a lot of variety. Here are the folks making the funny this week: Comedy Clubs Gary Owen at Tampa…
Mitch Perry Report 12.5.13: Elizabeth Warren says she will NOT run against Hillary Clinton in 2016
Despite the inevitable tag hoisted around Hillary Clinton, believe it or not, not every Democrat supports her candidacy in 2016. So just like the case around six years ago, there are those in the party looking for the "anti-Hillary," if you will. For many, Elizabeth Warren was the ideal candidate to take her on. But…
2020 Vision sees a bright economic future for South St. Petersburg
Can an ambitious plan make a difference in Pinellas County’s poorest district?
Bland ambition at St. Pete’s Rococo Steak
Rococo Steak’s setting is chic, its wine list a thrill, but the food lacks focus.
Review: Huey Lewis and the News at Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater
A look back at the Dec. 6 concert.
Meet The Real Clash
SPC’s Music Industry/Recording Arts (MIRA) program spawns a really good band.
A look back at Kanye West’s “Yeezus Tour” avant-hop extravaganza at Tampa Bay Times Forum
Some things I learned about Kanye West from his two-hour avant-hop extravaganza on Saturday night in Tampa, the tail end of his current "Yeezus Tour." First, that he’s a meticulous and detail-oriented man when it comes to his creative vision, so when his tightly run production falters and that vision isn't realized, he isn’t happy…
More Tampa and St. Pete breweries on tap
3 Daughters Brewing opens, St. Pete Brewing Co. gets its brew house and more.
Lightning raise ‘Mo Money for Movember
For the fifth year in a row, members of the Tampa Bay Lightning participated in Movember, a global movement which raises money and awareness for men’s health issues during the month of November. Movember was started in Melbourne, Australia, in 2003 and has grown to become a worldwide movement. Two guys wanted to bring back…
Hillsborough County officials say they can end homelessness in a “business-like way.”
Photo Credit: Ybor Stogie In October the Tampa Bay Times reported that since 2011, Hillsborough County's Homeless Recovery program has sent at least 130 ailing men and women to Bay Gardens, at a cost to taxpayers of more than $260,000. That ultimately led to County Administrator Mike Merill to say that his staff was unable…
Go wild: Cast a vote in CL’s 2013 Fiction Contest
We received a truly wild assortment of entries to Creative Loafing's 2013 Fiction Contest, which makes sense because that was the theme: "Wild" — interpreted any way the authors saw fit. Our contest judge — award-winning novelist and short story writer Karen Brown — has chosen the Top 10 stories in the competition, and readers…
In Tampa speech, CDC director says climate change will continue to bring more extreme weather
This Phoenix dust storm this summer is an another example of our new extreme heat in the age of climate change A wintry storm pushing through the western half of the U.S. is dropping temperatures by 20 to 40 degrees below normal levels this week. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay area bakes in nearly record setting…
Mitch Perry Report 12.4.13 – Crist campaign manager departs. Too soon for Dems to worry?
The news that Bill Hyers has left Charlie Crist's campaign has sent …well, not exactly shockwaves through Florida's political community, but at least some minor reverberations. Hyers was branded one of the hot Democratic consultants in the country after his success in ushering in Bill DeBlasio's overwhelming victory over Joe Lhota in New York City's…
Bill Nelson & Craig Latimer trash Ken Detzner’s directive on absentee ballots
A day after Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark said she will openly defy Secretary of State Ken Detzner directive on where voters can deliver absentee ballots, her counterpart across Tampa Bay, Hillsborough County's Craig Latimer, called Detzner's directive "a solution looking for a problem." "(Update:Ken Dentzer responds. See below). Latimer spoke at a…
The messenger delivers: Johnny Marr at the Beacham Theatre, Orlando
A look back at the Mon., Nov. 25 show.
