Former Tampa courthouse to become Le Méridien hotel and restaurant
Buckhorn celebrates the beginning of the conversion of the old federal courthouse into a luxury hotel The process of converting Tampa's former downtown courthouse into a luxury hotel and restaurant has been "arduous," to quote Mayor Bob Buckhorn. And it's still more than a year away. Construction is about to begin to turn the historic…
Climate change in the mix when Tampa Bay area meteorologists meet this Friday?
Bay News 9's Mike Clay Four local Tampa Bay area television weathermen — Mike Clay of Bay News 9, Paul Dellegatto of WTVT-TV, Bobby Deskins of WTSP-TV, and Brooks Garner of WFLA-TV — will convene for a panel discussion on Friday, Feb. 22, at 11 a.m. at the C.W. Bill Young Hall on the USF…
Mitch Perry Report: Domestic partner registry stalls in Tallahassee committee
In what appeared to be only a slightly different re-enactment of what went down in Hillsborough County last month, a proposal to create a statewide domestic partnership law by Hollywood Democratic state Senator Eleanor Sobel was pulled yesterday, after she learned that it did not have the votes to get through the Children Families and…
Climate change activists gather at USF to call for action
Mary Mulhern speaks at the climate change press conference at USF Forty-eight hours ago the largest climate change rally in U.S. history took place in Washington D.C., where protesters called for the White House to prevent the construction of the XL Keystone Pipeline. Today, approximately three dozen student activists continued the momentum at a press…
New Music Tuesday! (February 19): Major Lazer, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, STRFKR & more
Albums out this week, with lots of audio & video included.
Review: Space cowboy Steve Miller descends upon Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater
A look back at the Wed., Feb. 13 show (with setlist).
Legalizing weed debate brings hundreds to the University of Tampa
Mainstream acceptance of smoking marijuana has never been higher, and that was before Colorado and Washington voters approved measures last November that legalized personal consumption of weed in their respective states. More than a third of the country allows for the use of medical marijuana, but the odds of that happening in the Sunshine State…
New poll shows Kriseman within striking range of Bill Foster
Rick Baker A new poll shows incumbent Bill Foster holding a four-point lead (38-34 percent) over his only major declared challenger at this point in his bid for re-election, former City Councilman and State Rep. Rick Kriseman. That result has to be encouraging for Kriseman, who told me last week that he has an uphill…
Mitch Perry Report 2.19.13: Is Florida’s pension system unsustainable?
Last week we reported House Speaker Will Weatherford's push to reform the public pension system for the state's teachers, firefighters and police. A bill that would end the current defined benefit pension plan for all new employees is making its way through the Legislature, despite the fact that no one knows how much the transition…
Watoto Children’s Choir touches audience after GIFF screening at Tampa Theatre
Not many citizens have experienced as much suffering as the people of Uganda. Corrupt dictators and politicians have waged wars against their own people, trying to stop — or aid — the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army), a ruthless guerrilla, guilty of recruiting children as soldiers. Daniel Veintimilla
Dudley blasts Florida Polytech’s request for additional funding
Dwight Dudley It was about a year ago you might recall all the sturm and drang in Tallahassee revolving around Polk County's state Senator J.D. Alexander's push to have USF Polytech sever its relationship with USF and become its own state university in Lakeland. Among the criticism was how much extra it would cost the…
Two Tampa City Council members come out in support of April Griffin in her upcoming race against Mary Mulhern
Mary Mulhern One of the most interesting of next year's local races will be the Democratic primary for the Hillsborough County Commission's District 7 seat. Tampa City Councilwoman Mary Mulhern and Hillsborough County School district chair April Griffin are both in the race, and they'll be battling for every vote between now and the August…
Adult art vanguardian, Dian Hanson, defines ‘The New Erotic Photography’ (NSFW)
In 1976, Dian Hanson found herself working behind the scenes in New York City's burgeoning porn industry. As a print editor, Hanson searched for, catalogued, experimented with, and in some ways defined what men around the world found arousing. In an age before VCRs, let alone the Internet, Hanson's influence was ubiquitous. She worked on…
Beware when quoting stories from the Daily Currant — or anywhere else on the Internet
Rush eats tacos? Never! A few weeks ago I made my first visit to SideBerns, where I was talking politics with a University of Tampa professor. The topic turned to immigration and about how Rush Limbaugh had recently made derogatory statements about Latinos on his syndicated radio show. The UT professor then asked me if…
#MusicMonday 85: Gin Wigmore, Fall Out Boy, The New Amsterdams & more
What the CL Team is jamming this week (media included)
A conversation with Jeff Dunham about his disembodied voices
The comedian performs this Friday at the Times Forum.
Bob Woodward tells Karl Rove “Some people never go away”
Karl Rove is now getting it from Republicans As the media continues to focus on the GOP and their real and perceived limitations following last November's election (Robert Draper's story "Can the Republicans Be Saved From Obsolescence?" in today's New York Times magazine is the latest example), there's been a fun little internecine battle going…
Paul Ryan doesn’t want to talk about 2016 yet, but Rand Paul is more than happy to
ABC's Jonathan Karl One of the most annoying things about political reporting is how much is focused on elections, and not the public policy that our lawmakers are actually responsible for crafting that can affect our lives and is the whole point of being elected in the first place. That's why I've strived not to…
Feedback: Gasparilla, Everglade Snakes, airport dogs and more …
You wrote it, we printed it.
Father figures
How do I talk to my son about my suspicion that he’s gay?
The girl with the Jeep
A first encounter, a summer dress, a lifetime.
Spread the gay agenda with queer children’s books
As a full-time nanny who also babysits for a ton of families on a regular basis, I spend a lot of time reading children's books. As a full-time queer, I spend a lot of time pushing my gay agenda on children. (I will always offer boys a pink sippy cup first. Always.) If you also…
The sporting things to do this weekend
WHEEL DEAL: Nuclear Cowboyz return! While the season's coldest weather moves into the area this weekend, there are still plenty of things to do involving sports, either as a participant, fan, or both. Here are a few of the best sports-related events.
Have an EXTREME Morning
Mountain Dew produces an alternative breakfast drink you didn’t know you needed.
Photo review: Less Than Jake at the Florida State Fair, Tampa
The Gainesville act took fans on a special Valentine’s Day date at the fair
Mitch Perry Report 2.15.13 – The Hagel chronicles continue
Plus: League of Women Voters, Rick Scott, Move To Amend and more …
Come on, get happy at 220 East
The friendly atmosphere makes this Davis Islands hotspot worth a visit.
More Safe than sorry
Though a mixed bag, Safe Haven is better than expected.
Bill raising campaign finance limits rankles voting rights activists
Today, voting rights groups are opposing a proposal to dramatically increase the amount of money that individuals can contribute to political campaigns in Florida. Current Florida law prevents citizens from contributing more than $500 to any campaign, a figure that House Speaker Will Weatherford has blasted as "archaic." The new law (HB 569) that's moving…
Milk does the body and Internet good
Amazon.com This simple gallon of milk elicited thousands of responses online. Who knew that a gallon of Tuscan whole milk could inspire such prose? Amazon review sections have become something of a phenomena, with intricate and creative reviews like the ones written about a banana slicer. "What can I say about the 571B Banana Slicer…
Beak’s bartender wins Firefly Vodka award
Firefly Vodka Firefly Vodka named Beak's bartender Lindsay Cohen their national bartender of the month for February 2013.
Cigar City Brewing ranks best beer and brewer worldwide
cigarcitybrewing.com When it comes to street-cred in the beer world, beer forums set the tone. While beer critics and connoisseurs will determine their favorites, most "beer" people are connoisseurs in their own right. In beer, ratings matter. The most reviews, the better. RateBeer, a high-traffic site for beer reviews and news, released their 2013 brewer…
Die Hard 5: Yippee Ki Yuck
Bruce Willis needs to cowboy up.
Beautiful Creatures, so-so results
The YA novel transitions to the big screen looking to bottle some of Twilight’s box-office mojo.
Move to Amend’s David Cobb battles Citizen’s United with two Bay area speeches this President’s Day weekend
David Cobb David Cobb is the national spokesman for Move to Amend, a grass roots organization fighting for a Constitutional amendment that would exclude corporations from enjoying the rights of flesh and blood human beings, and changing the current Supreme Court-dictated interpretation of the Constitution that political spending is free speech protected by the First…
Critics bash proposal to take new public employees out of defined pension plan
Florida Speaker of the House Will Weatherford wants to end the current pension system for state employees There's a bill floating around the Florida House that would close the current defined benefit pension plan on Jan. 1, 2014, and force all new public employees hired by government agencies into 401(k)-style plans. If passed, the proposal…
Mitch Perry Report 2.14.13 – Craig Latimer fumbles
During last year's campaign for Hillsborough County supervisor of elections, Plant City Republican Rich Glorioso struggled at times to describe why he would be a better choice than Craig Latimer, the chief-of-staff to outgoing SOE Earl Lennard, to succeed Lennard in office. Specifically Glorioso's support of HB 1355 (the measure that reduced the amount of…
Power Lunch 2013: Steve Kornell and Peter Schorsch
A winning CL auction bid yields a lively conversation about governors, guns and St. Pete.
Feast your eyes on To See As Artists See
TMA’s latest is the museum’s most impressive show since its 2010 reopening.
Amour: This is the end
Michael Haneke’s wrenching French import offers a sobering view of life’s final days.
O Mother, where art thou?
MOMologues 2: Off to School is a fun sendup of the travails of motherhood.
Album review: Matt Costa, Matt Costa
Matt Costa has done pretty well for a SoCal skater who started writing tunes while being laid up with an injured leg. Over the last decade, the now 30-year-old Huntington Beach-based singer-songwriter has unleashed a trio of independent releases (two EPs and an LP), and shared stages with the likes of Modest Mouse, Ryan Adams,…
Fourth annual India International Film Festival hits Ybor this weekend
Listen Amaya kicks off the fourth annual Tampa Bay India International Film Festival, which will be held this weekend, Feb. 15-17. The Tampa Bay Area's fourth annual India International Film Festival, just days away, promises to introduce filmgoers to different facets of Indian culture. From documentaries to touching family dramas, the festival, which runs Feb.…
Talking to an icon: a Q&A with Alan Parsons
Alan Parsons Live Project hits Clearwater with symphony and lasers this Friday.
Hillsborough County’s Jose Godinez-Samperio meets the president
Jose Godinez-Samperio with President Obama on Tuesday night Last night at the State of the Union, Jose Godinez-Samperio, a Florida State College of Law graduate whose quest to become an attorney has been stifled by his immigration status, met President Obama. That was the goal of Tampa area Democratic Congresswoman Kathy Castor when she announced…
Review: The xx bring too-subdued electronics to a sold-out Ritz Ybor
Photos included.
Album review: Day Joy, Go To Sleep, Mess
Audio included.
The alternative dinner date
A guide for people who hate the traditional romantic excursion.
Seitan-ic
A vegan’s take on jerky.
Bonds, Corporate Bonds
Many folks out there think of stocks when they think of investing. Well, my wise friends, that is only one piece of the puzzle. One of the most overlooked investments is the individual corporate bond.
Photo Review: Hot Water Music, La Dispute & Menzingers at Orpheum
Shots from the Wed., Jan. 13 show
