Bourbon recipes for a smashing playoff party
Celebrate the NFL’s final showdowns with whiskey-rich wings and cocktails.
Photo review: The Supervillains at Jannus Live, St. Petersburg
On a chilly Friday night, The Supervillains heated up a full house at Jannus Live with an assortment of reggae, rock and punk. Kevin Tighe Drummer and singer Dominic "Dom" Maresco Kevin Tighe Guitarist & singer Scott "Skart" Suldo
Television Review: Justified Season 3 Premiere
For two seasons now, I've half-seriously wondered if my opinion that Justified is the best show on television might be the result of manipulation, of fabricated context, of forced contrast. Because Justified's theme song is so bad, even According to Jim might seem like small-screen Nirvana afterward. But with a third-season premiere that's as good…
Regatta-inspired rum cocktails
From the top of Mount Gay to the tip of Key West.
This week in food and drink
Wine dinners and tastings galore, donut giveaway, $1 soup!
Mitch Perry Report 1.18.12
Morning everyone. In the news today … well, whether you're ready for it or not, there will be another presidential debate in Tampa next Monday night, and a whole bunch of activist groups are psyched for the opportunity to bash the GOP-agenda on the USF campus. Speaking of being psyched, we're as pumped up as…
Go nuts for Haywire
Gina Carano is action fanboys’ new crush.
Dry January Week 2: not such a big deal (sort of)
Continuation of a blog about abstaining from alcohol for one solid month. Kaliber lacked the caliber to replace a proper Guinness. As week two of my sojourn in sobriety is drawing to a close the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Of course that was to be expected. I don't think in the history of the…
Coalition of groups to protest outside GOP Debate at USF Monday night
There have been 14 full-fledged GOP presidential debates aired on broadcast and cable television in the past year, and they keep on coming. You thought Monday night's donnybrook in Myrtle Beach would be the last forum in South Carolina before Saturday's primary election? Are you kidding? The Republicans will gather again Thursday night in Charleston…
Jon Stewart returns for two shows at Ruth Eckerd Hall
The Daily Show pundit will perform at 7 and 9:30 p.m. on April 21
Democrats to cut their convention in Charlotte to 3 days
Barack Obama giving his acceptance speech in Denver in '08 Just like four years ago, the two national political party conventions are going to be held within days of each other in late summer, though this time it's the Republicans who will go first. They'll be here in Tampa in late August, while the Dems…
Tea Party nation not happy with Mitt Romney’s response on Defense Authorization Act
In our divisive political culture, there are seemingly very few issues that bring the right and left wings of the country together, but President Obama's recent signing of the National Defense Authorization Act appears to be one of those issues. The anger that both progressives and some Tea Party members have with the legislation is…
Live music reviews: Akron/Family, Dead Kenny G’s, Holy Ghost Tent Revival, Ybor City
Reviews of three shows that took place over the past week in Ybor.
¡Yo Quiero Carlos Alazraqui!
Tonight! The Reno 911! star and voice behind a famous chihuahua.
Television Review: J.J. Abrams’ Alcatraz Pilot Episode
Mystery! Intrigue! Numbers! What might be time travel! A slightly subdued Hurley! Yup … it's a J.J. Abrams show. This time around, producer Abrams teamed up with a number of previous teammates (including Lost writer Elizabeth Sarnoff and director Jack Bender) and like-minded collaborators to apply his familiar blend of contemporary melodrama and the paranormal…
The Raw Story: In Foley We Trust
Welcome to the second Raw Story here on Daily Loaf. A few miscellaneous thoughts before getting started: • Who exactly am I and what am I doing here? Both valid questions, which can be answered by reading my introduction post from yesterday. • My format for these columns is relatively simple: I'm using "Thumbs Up"…
“Liberty & Justice for All” rally scheduled for this Saturday in St. Pete
Dr. Rich Swier This coming Saturday, January 21, a rally for local citizens with Tea Party roots is scheduled from 2-5 p.m. in St. Petersburg's North Straub Park. Called "Liberty & Justice for All: A Rally for America's Future," it's being organized by St. Pete neurosurgeon David McKalip, a prominent conservative who plans to run…
Mitch Perry Report 1.17.12
I sincerely hope officials sponsoring next Monday night's NBC News/Tampa Bay Times/National Journal presidential debate at USF allow the crowd to hoot and holler like they did in Myrtle Beach last night at the latest GOP forum – it will make it a lot spicier. Lots to dissect from last night's show. One topic brought…
Romney stays resolute on not negotating with Taliban
How do wars end? Sometimes when one side overwhelms the other, as was the case in 1991 when the U.S. was successful in having Iraq pull out of Kuwait. But more often they end, as former Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said, with a political solution. That's why Gates and David Petraeus, our current CIA…
New Music Tuesday! (January 17)
Guided by Voices, Steve Aoki, The Duke Spirit & more (w/audio & video)
Cover whirl: The Bricks’ Photo Album
SPoT curators Kick Start My Art pay homage to vinyl and cover art.
Daily Beast ranks Tampa 20th most tolerant city in U.S.
Take that, Men’s Hell! We may be depressed but at least we tolerate each other.
Introducing The Raw Story: Your weekly dose of the WWE
[Editor’s Note: Daniel Feingold has been contributing to CL for over six months, but for the Spring 2012 semester he decided to take the plunge and become a CL intern. You’ll find him reviewing movies and DVDs over at the CL Movies page, and indulging his passion for wrestling here on Daily Loaf. Take it…
Let the early voting begin! (At least in Hillsborough County)
Early voting in the January 31 GOP presidential primary has begun — in Hillsborough County, at least. Polls opened on MLK Jr. Day at 15 locations across Hillsborough County, one of five counties in the state not abiding by the controversial new state elections law that reduces the days of early voting from 14 days…
#MusicMonday, Vol. 54
What the CL Music Team is jamming this Monday, from Spies on Bikes to Icebird to Dawes and more.
TIGLFF appoints new Executive Director and two board members
New TIGLFF Executive Director Larry Biddle When the 2012 Tampa International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival hits the screen (presumably in October), it will be under the guidance of a new executive director. In the post will be Larry Biddle, who has until recently been the director of development for the festival. Those around Creative…
Irony of ironies — Law enforcement gives suspected ethics violator Jim Norman an award
George Niemann is a Daily Loaf contributor and a UCAN, RLAND, FSP activist. The views expressed are his own and not necessarily the same as the organizations to which he belongs. This could turn out to be the ultimate political paradox of 2012. On Thursday, January 12, 2012, the West Central Florida Police Benevolent Association…
The Artist and Voxare show us talkies are overrated
The Artist star and Golden Globe-winner Jean Dujardin with scene stealer Jack the terrier. Memo to 2012: Silence, once again, is golden. Two recent takes on the silent film genre struck me as an interesting juxtaposition: Golden Globe winner The Artist borrows from this old movie method, and a string quartet resurrects a 1929 documentary.…
I SEE LONDON, I SEE FRANCE……..
If you were anywhere near Treasure Island Beach this weekend you most likely saw various objects undulating in the sky above the Bilmar Hotel – if your curiosity was piqued and you actually walked out onto the beach you were rewarded with the sight of dancing colored shapes and all manner of vibrantly colored critters…
Mitch Perry Report for MLK Day 1.16.12
Happy MLK Jr. Day to all of you, including those who actually are observing the holiday and reading this from some non-working place. Some companies observe MLK Day but not Presidents Day, the federal holiday in February. Some do the opposite. Some observe both days, and then… there are the rest of us, right? It's…
Out of money and hope, Jon Huntman calls it quits
Running out of money and hope, Jon Huntsman bowed out of the race for the GOP nomination for president on Monday (he was scheduled to officially make the announcement at 11 a.m.). The reasons why Huntsman never broke on through (the only candidate who never had his "moment") have been documented in the past —…
Golden Globes live blog: Glitz, glamor, insults and putdowns!
Your blow by blow account of this year’s Golden Globes awards ceremony
Colbert lightens up Sunday morning political talk
The Definitely Not Coordinated With Stephen Colbert Super PAC got more Sunday airtime than Rick Perry.
Can Santorum exploit evangelical support in SC and Florida?
On Saturday a group of evangelical leaders and conservative activists agreed to endorse Rick Santorum for the Republican nomination for president, a meeting convened by Tony Perkins, president of the influential Family Research Council. The endorsement is being viewed as a last-minute attempt by social conservatives to unify around a single candidate as an alternative…
Remembering Deanne Roberts
"I've learned the hard way that it's never too early to think about your legacy." That quote from Deanne Roberts, reprinted on the website of ChappellRoberts, resounds with particular poignancy today, one day after her death. She died much too young — at the age of 59, after a four-year battle with cervical cancer —…
Contraband should be confiscated
Mark Wahlberg smuggles up to Kate Beckinsale for an underwhelming heist flick.
USF-St. Pete students choose GOP campaigns to work on
The latest polls leading into Florida's January 31 presidential primary show Mitt Romney on top, with Newt Gingrich his closest competitor. That's not exactly the way it played out this past Thursday in USF-St. Pete political scientist Judithanne Scourfield McLaughlan's "Road To The White House" class, where students listened to pitches from surrogates for all…
NFL blackouts to go bye-bye?
A growing frustration with seeing his local NFL team's games being blacked out led New Port Richey State Senator Mike Fasano to propose a bill last year that would fine local teams in Florida $125,000 for each game not televised. For decades by law, NFL games not sold out 72 hours prior to kick-off are…
Sex never sounded so… tragic
SWF is back, not as great as SWV being back… but still Hey kids! After a two-year hiatus, I am back… and with a few bajillion dating tips/stories/horrific accidents in tow. I won’t try to pass any of these stories (whether my own or that of an unknowing friend) off as great advice or condone…
Mitch Perry Report 1.13.12
Happy Friday the 13th, the end of the first five-day workweek of 2012 for most of us (and props to those businesses that will actually observe the federal holiday that is Martin Luther King Jr. day on Monday). While we wait for South Carolina, the Republican National Committee is penalizing Florida further for moving up…
I’m on a diet
Even calorie counters can enjoy a little wine with dinner.
Illinois Senator Dick Durbin & Bill Nelson to host hearing in Tampa on FL voting law
Illinois U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, the chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights, announced Thursday he will host a hearing on the impact of Florida's controversial new election law in Tampa on Friday, January 27 at the Hillsborough County Courthouse. Florida U.S. Senator Bill Nelson announced last month…
Despite establishment resistance, Aviation Authority makes Joe Lopano richer
TIA head Joe Lopano Despite protestations from the establishment in Tampa, the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority said screw all that and gave Tampa International Airport CEO Joe Lopano a $50,000 raise and one-year contract extension Thursday morning, less than two weeks after his first anniversary on the job. The vote was a close one at…
Joyful Noise is off-key
Dolly and the Queen class up a subpar effort.
Florida Republicans get away with it again on early primary
Hillsborough County Republican Chair Art Wood As you may have heard, the Republican National Commitee earlier this week approved sanctions aimed at inconveniencing Florida delegates to the national convention later this year. That's to penalize the state for moving up its presidential primary to Jan. 31 instead of waiting till after March 1, thus violating…
Spice up your morning
White coffee is a lighter-hued alternative to a regular cup of Joe.
The “hysterical, blasphemous and boisterous” final novel of Jose Saramago
The late Nobel prize winner went out with a bang by raising Cain.
Green Community Calendar weekend events
Cleansing of toxins, weekend workshops, festivals, farmers markets and more.
Mitch Perry Report 1.12.12
The Tampa Bay Rays, as is their wont in the Stu Sternberg era, are on an austerity kick, which is why they're jettisoning Johnny Damon for Luke Scott, the former Baltimore Oriole best known for making some asinine comments about President Obama (link coming). The Republican National Committee announced a new Hispanic director outreach. But…
Med masterpiece
Café DePaz is Dunedin dining done right.
Rays dump Damon for a “birther”
Luke Scott to replace Johnny Damon as DH. One less reason to root for the Rays?
Blind Boys of Alabama deliver uplifting melodies at Skipper’s Smokehouse + more of the week’s best upcoming concerts
THURSDAY, JANUARY 12Marsha Ambrosius The sweetly singing half of UK duo Floetry, R&B and slow jam hip-hop songstress Marsha Ambrosius, released her solo debut last year. Late Nights & Early Mornings features co-writing credits by Alicia Keys and Lauryn Hill, a grooving cover of Portishead’s “Sour Times,” and an overall vibe Ambrosius has described as…
Keep the Dream Alive: MLK Day events
Okay, if you’re not going to observe Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s day to honor the late civil rights leader’s legacy, then just have fun in his name during one of the many fun, enlightening and badass events presented in conjunction with Keeping the Dream Alive: Something for Everyone 10-day celebration that began Jan 12…
Local Spotlight/Record Review: Palantine, Bruise Your Illusion
For Palantine’s fifth full-length, frontman Vinnie Cosentino decided a creative overhaul was in order. In the past, he’d written, performed and recorded all the material on his own and brought the finished album to bandmates Brian David Johnson (bass) and Jeff Fox (drums) to learn for live shows. Bruise Your Illusion is the threesome's premiere…
The sins and virtues of Seven Deadly Plays
Confessions of mixed feelings about the latest of Stephen Riordan’s play series.
Terror plot in Pinellas Park
Plus: Tebow, Mitt and more Shit Happened for Jan. 5-11, 2012
They are the St. Pete preservation society
An event series looks at the the past and future of historic preservation.
The musical subversion of Dead Kenny G’s
Dead Kenny G’s lead a wave of highbrow-humored, avant-heady, jazz-fused rock; the trio plays Crowbar Sat., Jan. 14.
The news on the street
Tampa Epoch, like the homeless population it benefits, has had to fight to win respect.
Talking Santorum
Rick’s Google problem is his own damn fault.
Bill’s Sports Binge: Bucs coaching shuffle (board, that is) and Tebow fever suffers relapse
The carousel of cranky curmudgeon coaching candidates continues to run through One Buc Place like a Metamucil martini (don't wince, you haven't lived until you've experienced the ultimate in drunken regularity). A veritable who's who of head coaching mediocrity from Wade Phillips to Morris Buttermaker has seized the golden opportunity of the old "It can't…
Ringling Skyspace open for sunset light shows
James Turrell, Dividing the Light (Pomona College Skyspace), 2007. (c) James Turrell, photo by Florian Holzherr Turrell’s Skyspace at Pomona College in California, Dividing the Light, bathed in violet light at night. Through Mar. 25, the Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota is offering visitors a chance at enlightenment: an early-evening computer-programmed light display called…
GOP announces outreach effort to gain Latino voters — again.
Bettina Inclan With a new poll in Florida showing Barack Obama's support among Latino voters has fallen by 11 percent, the Republican National Committee on Wednesday announced an expanded national Latino outreach program nationwide, including naming a new Hispanic outreach director, Bettina Inclan. As the RNC's Political Director Rick Wiley writes in a memo, "You…
Is the next week and a half the most important in the history of the Tea Party?
As the GOP brings its traveling circus to the Deep South this week, some prominent Tea Party members think the movement is at a crossroads, and only a victory by somebody not named Mitt Romney can stop it from being derailed as a national force in 2012. Radio talk show host Gina Loudon, considered one…
Love Meryl, miss Margaret
Streep shines in The Iron Lady. Plus: Polanski makes a mess of Carnage.
Photo review: Galactic at State Theatre, St. Petersburg
A look back in photos of funk-hop-jazz rock outfit Galactic from their concert at State Theatre last Saturday night with singer Corey Glover (Living Colour) and trombone player Corey Henry (Rebirth Brass Band); support by Orgone. Tracy May Galactic's Ben Ellman and Corey Henry Tracy May Corey Henry and Corey Glover More photos after the…
New poll shows Bill Nelson will be in a dogfight to get a third term in the Senate
Connie Mack Connie Mack is now the Man in the GOP race for Senate For most of 2011, the Florida Republican race for U.S. Senate was a very ho-hum affair, with the four major candidates dueling to see how much they could appease the Tea Party, which has dominated the RPOF over the past two…
Chocoholics rejoice! MOSI’s Festival of Chocolate returns this weekend
Loosen your belt for Florida’s largest all-chocolate-themed event.
Viral videos poke fun at homophobes and LGBT stereotypes (video)
The hilarious and viral "Sh*t Girls Say" YouTube video has inspired a bevy of often equally-as-funny copycats. Now, there's "Sh*t Homophobic People Say," featuring prominent, conservative political and other public figures, including Rick Santorum, Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, and Ann Coulter. The best part? This video isn't a spoof! All of the clips used are…
Jazz night at the Independent — photos by Chip Weiner
When I conjure up images of a jazz club at night, I think of dark and tony places with spotty lighting and at least four walls. First Saturday jazz at The Independent isn't like that. I don’t think I've ever attended a jazz show where the band was playing under the canopy of a renovated…
Marriage equality and Rick Santorum
I am getting more and more upset by the constant flood of crap frothing out of Rick Santorum’s mouth. The worst comes when he speaks of “gay marriage.” People tell me I should not get upset and that he has no chance of winning the nomination. I say BULL! He is giving voice to millions…
