Part 2: My Opponent is a … Lesbian (gasp)
Following the previous post, I heard from Brad Swanson, who is running against Rose Ferlita for the Republican nomination. Here is what he had to say: "Facts are facts. Every opportunity that the gay agenda has come up before my opponent, Rose, she has supported it. It has been long rumored that she is gay.…
Debate Location Set
Our debate for the Democratic nomination for Congressional District 11 in Tampa and St. Pete will be held at the Palladium Theater in downtown St. Petersburg, 253 5th Ave N. It will start at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 23. The debate is a special edition of the Weekly Planet's Political Party, a live-audience talk…
My Opponent is Supported by … Lesbians! (gasp)
Conservative Republican and former child actor Brad Swanson has an uphill climb ahead of him in his quest to win a seat on the Hillsborough County Commission. He’s one of three men running against one woman; he’s raised quite a bit less money than the frontrunner; and the leading opponent, Rose Ferlita, is a two-term…
Political Party Debate Location Set
Our debate for the Democratic nomination for Congressional District 11 in Tampa and St. Pete will be held at the Palladium Theater in downtown St. Petersburg, 253 5th Ave N. It will start at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 23. The debate is a special edition of the Weekly Planet's Political Party, a live-audience talk…
Armory Decision Postponed
The city of Tampa has postponed the meeting of its Armory redevelopment selection committee set for Wednesday. In an e-mail to the six bidders on the project, the city's Annie Hart said a committee member was unable to attend due to a family emergency. The committee had been expected to choose a winner, or at…
One Cookbook to Rule Them All
Last Christmas, my dad and stepmom got me some high quality stainless steel cookware and The Fannie Farmer Cookbook by Marion Cunningham. I wasn't annoyed at these not-so-subtle hints about my kitchen experience; I'm pretty good at winging it and can usually figure out how to make most things with a little trial and error.…
Veep Veep
The conventional wisdom that there's a predictable political divide between the two dailies – Trib = Republican, Times = Democrat – isn't always borne out by the evidence. But you had to be struck by the placement of stories today about the visit to Tampa of Vice President Cheney, in town to buck up Republican…
Media General Gags On It
There is a quite a journalistic mess brewing around the Tampa Tribune's sister newspaper in Virginia, the Richmond Times-Dispatch owned by Media General. Thanks to the efforts of an alternative weekly there, that newspaper's written media policy, which amounts to a gag rule on its own reporters, has come to light. See stories about it…
Tampa Bay Media Haps
Just getting caught up on more than a few weeks worth of media maneuverings in Tampa Bay. The Tampa Tribune’s former Pinellas bureau chief and political columnist Rick Barry has retired. The Trib closed that section down earlier this year, and Barry took a transfer to be transportation writer, a gig he didn’t want. The…
It’s a Road, Not the Second Coming
But don't tell that to the wacky editors at the St. Pete Times, who had seven (count 'em, 7) reporters covering the opening of the elevated Crosstown Expressway, which serves suburbanites in Brandon and the greater Valrico area. The following crack journalists gave us every angle of the big day in this morning's fishwrap: Saundra…
Rainbow Connection
NEWS IS DEPRESSING CBS anchor Katie Couric hopes her newscasts will be "more solution-oriented." Preparing a two-minute comprehensive piece on "The Answer to the Middle East Crisis." ISRAEL VS. LEBANON Wow, we did not see that one coming. DIRECT TO VIDEO Justin Timberlake's new film doesn't get a U.S. theater distributor. Now who do we…
Elvis has left the building
What could possibly replace him? We ask neighborly questions of the six groups that want to redevelop Tampa’s historic Armory.
Shadow Dancing
Puzzles and deceptions at GCMA
Nights of the Pseudo-Living Dead
LEISURE
Timing is everything
Wine connoisseurs know that vintage matters
The Hall Is Alive
THEATER
All Thai’d up
Location is only the first problem for Channelside’s Thai eatery
Going Postal
NO LONGER HIDDEN I wanted to take a moment to praise the comprehensive research and approachable presentation of the examination of human trafficking — and efforts to combat it — in the Tampa Bay region (Cover Story, "Slaves Among Us," by Roxanne Escobales, July 12-18). Her article pulls the veil of secrecy from the various…
Water Logged
M. Night Shyamalan loses his touch with surreality; Kevin Smith stays afloat
Music Menu
THURSDAY, JULY 20 YELLOWCARD/MATCHBOOK ROMANCE/ROCK KILLS KID/HEDLEY Say what you will about 2004's highest-profile pop-punk band with a violin (like, for instance, that it's not a very good band), Yellowcard knows how to put together a hip bill. Matchbook Romance is one of the most successful bands to sure-footedly walk the line between punk and…
Hollywood Product
Monster House
Upcoming releases
Tuesday, July 25
The Wine List
Events around the city
The Blotter
THE PAIN OF PURSUIT: While on patrol in Robles Park, a Tampa police officer observed a man driving a 1995 Cadillac with a busted tag light. The officer threw on his lights and siren, but the man in the Caddy refused to stop. A "high-speed check" of the tag to see if the car was…
Hot fun in the summer time
Lyssa Morgan Gallery has been making waves in the South Tampa art community since it opened last February. This month, the gallery hosts artists hailing from the Southern Hemisphere for its latest exhibit, Hot Summer Nights. Ten creative minds native to and currently living in Brazil are showcased and each offers something a little different.…
Bots and Brains
MUSIC
Grading the proposals
We evaluated the six Armory proposals on five criteria: 1. Does it benefit West Tampa's neighborhoods, economically and socially? We looked for proposals that created living-wage jobs or job training activities. We also looked for projects that would provide a neighborhood destination, either shops or offices that would serve a neighborhood purpose. 2. Does it…
The Doctor is In
It's official: Tampa has adopted the four Gainesville siblings that make up Dear & Glorious Physician. Westfall spawn have created an exciting and primal but still smart and catchy garage/indie-rock sound, and several kick-ass New World shows have quickly made them favorites with local original-music devotees. The Bay's own New Granada Records (home to such…
Backspin
Joni Mitchell’s Night Ride Home
Disclosure Time
The Weekly Planet has more than a passing interest in the fate of the Armory. First, we are neighbors. Our offices are on Lemon Street, across the road from the northern boundary of the Armory property. We love our West Tampa home, having moved here two years ago from Ybor City. We don't want to…
Timeless thrill
Thrill Me! offers yet another interpretation of a 1924 murder.
Poetry in (perpetual) motion
Nearly 10 years in, Rainer Maria is an indie-rock work in progress
Recent releases
The Break-Up, Cars, The Devil Wears Prada
Fascinating Rhythm
Dancing to the beat of several different drummers.
With friends like these…
The movement for a strong mayor in Hillsborough is getting an assist from the dailies.
Outside the Box
Imagining some uses for the Armory that would be really fun.
Spins
The Eraser THOM YORKE XL It's probably redundant to remark that this album — the first released under Radiohead lead singer Thom Yorke's own name — lacks the dynamism of his band at its peak. It is a solo album after all, the product of one imagination, not five. Still, it's intriguing — after listening…
Say You Saw Him When
THEATER/WORKSHOP
