Cecil B. DeMille It Wasn’t
Let's look at the numbers:11 protesters.45,000 festival attendees.So who gets the attention of the St. Petersburg Times in its reports on this past weekend's St. Pete Pride parade?Yup, the protesters. They caused a "spectacle," according to today's story by Abhi Raghunathan, and it was just a blessing that the police were there to prevent "violence."What…
Landmark Albums Pt. 3
Our series continues with Cooper Levey-Baker, our Sarasota music critic, remiscining about (and analyzing) a watershed album in his life: Beck, Odelay — It was this album, more than any other, which turned me into an unrelenting pop music geek. I picked it up the day after it was released in June 1996, at one…
Downtowns on the Verge Podcast
The condo boom is in full effect in downtown Tampa and St. Petersburg, sparking different fears in each setting. In Tampa, where the downtown is rolled up and put away at 5 each night, folks wonder if the new condos under way (including a Trump project) will really create a true urban residential neighborhood. In…
It’s The End Of The World And They Know It
Apocalyptic party time at the new Para Gallery.
Secret’s in the Sauce
Don’t judge a barbecue joint by its exterior.
How to Take a Stand
FILM
And Proud Of It!
SPECIAL EVENTS
A BELL RINGS
NANNY 911 IN TAMPA Kids out of control? You could get counseling — or make fools of the entire family on reality TV. THE REFS VS. THE MAVS Stern really doesn't want Cuban to pick up that trophy. DEVIL RAYS MINOR LEAGUE ARRESTS Is this a farm system or a penal colony? PHRASE WE NEVER…
Beep Marks The Spot
Sharing secrets with Tampa Bay’s sand sleuths.
Who To See
WMNF's tribute shows have gotten such a good rep, that each time music director Flee conjures one up, he has to add a wrinkle to raise the stakes a bit. Saturday's Who tribute has to compete with the reigning benchmark: When Barely Pink closed a marathon Beatles homage a few years ago, they played the…
Upcoming Releases
The following releases will be in stores Tues., June 27: India.Arie, Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship (Umvd Labels) Am Interstate, A.M. Interstate (Turquoise Mountain) Authority Zero, Rhythm and Booze (Suburban Noize) The Ballroom Rockets, Atomic (Rhythm Bomb) Bettie Ford, League of Fools (Locomotive Music) The Bittersweets, Life You Always Wanted (Virt) Carpathian Forest, F***…
Dog vs. Dog
SPECIAL EVENTS
BODY SLAMMED
How Tampa police — with the unwitting help of pro wrestling’s most famous face — got the wrong man.
Back From Exile
LECTURE
Wine List
Got an upcoming or ongoing wine event? Send information to: The Wine List, 810 N. Howard Ave., Tampa, FL 33606, fax 813-739-4801 or e-mail winestuff@weeklyplanet.com. *WINE ON A BUDGET Need to entertain with little cash? This tasting showcases the best. $10; includes souvenir glass and hors d'oeuvres. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Fri., June 23. Uncorked, 2706 Fourth…
Who Was That Masked Man?
There are 15, maybe 20 minutes of certifiable solid gold scattered throughout Nacho Libre, a comedy about a masked Mexican wrestler, and the second outing by Napoleon Dynamite director Jared Hess. The rest of the movie is a pretty big disappointment, though, and you can't quite chalk it up to your typical sophomore slump syndrome…
The Blotter
OPEN CONTAINER ROUND-UP REDUX: Regular readers of this column are familiar with the Open Container Round-Up, a general accounting of recent run-ins between police and those brave souls who take their love of alcohol to the streets. This week, I decided it was time to take a statistical approach, prompted by a continuing mystery: namely,…
Try our wine, eh?
Our neighbor to the north produces some quality wines.
Outtakes
NEW RELEASES CLICK (PG-13) Another cosmic comedy from the creators of Bruce Almighty, that movie where Jim Carrey acquired divine power. Some similar magic is worked here with Adam Sandler, who gets his hands on a remote control that can manipulate the fabric of reality itself. Why wade through those arguments with your significant other,…
Windy City Melodies
The lights dim. The curtain rises. A tall, long-legged woman stands bathed in light. Her beaded black dress and short tomboyish hair embody the classic flapper girl of 1920s Chicago. Her body is taut, her eyes piercing. Somehow, you can tell that you're about to see something criminal, something devious, something completely wonderful. Then, she…
Music Menu
THURSDAY, JUNE 22 CROSS CANADIAN RAGWEED Oklahoma quartet Cross Canadian Ragweed is constantly being lauded by relatively mainstream publications as an alt-country crossover, but most y'allternative music snobs don't hear it that way, and dismiss the band as closer to contemporary pop-country than true roots. Whatever the case, CCR is definitely more twang-rockin' than most…
Spittin’ the Difference
The AB’s carve out their own hip-hop niche.
Backspin
Inarticulate Speech of the Heart VAN MORRISON Warner Bros. This one's not a prized item in the Van canon, but its gentle, melodic flavor and emphasis on gauzy Celtic sounds — more pastel than his later collaborations with The Chieftains — make it a real charmer. Inarticulate Speech of the Heart is largely preoccupied with…
Staying Late at the Office
Downtown Tampa has a new sports bar.
TRUTH IN ADVERTISING
Some TV campaign ads we’d like to see this fall.
Six-Sided Art
ART
Shock Treatment
The films of Michael Haneke on DVD.
Life After Dead
Phil Lesh keeps jamming with an evolving cast of Friends.
Going Postal
THE DOWNTOWN DEBATE EDITOR'S NOTE: Our cover story and June 12 Political Party on the state of downtown Tampa and St. Pete generated comment on our blog, blurbex.com, and letters to the editor. During the panel, the heads of the two downtown partnerships, Don Shea (St. Pete) and Christine Burdick (Tampa), emphasized that they're not…
Hello, Goodbye
Tampa Bay loses a great actor and a theater company.
Race Track
Questions about racism on a Saturday night.
Spins
The River in Reverse ELVIS COSTELLO & ALLEN TOUSSAINT Verve Forecast There are musicians who make bigger hits and play to bigger houses and make bigger money, but I can't think of one who has an artistic deal as sweet as Elvis Costello's. Under the Universal Music umbrella, he's free to hop around from label…
