REUTERS: The Vatican said the pope issued a decree lifting the excommunication of four traditionalist bishops who were thrown out of the Roman Catholic Church in 1988 for being ordained without Vatican permission. The four bishops lead the ultra-conservative Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), which has about 600,000 members and rejected modernisations of Roman Catholic worship and doctrine. One of the four bishops, the British-born Richard Williamson, has made a number of statements denying the full extent of the Nazi Holocaust of European Jews, as accepted by mainstream historians. In comments to Swedish television broadcast Wednesday, he said “I […]
CONCERT REVIEW: Five Things You Should Know About Devotchka At World Cafe Live Friday Night
1. Devotchka’s cover of The Velvet Underground classic “Venus in Furs” may actually be better than the original. Their rendition had a vocal languor that countered the darkness of the original as the band turned a psych-rock-proto-shoe-gaze classic into gypsy-folk-trance-rock-hoedown and back again. Believe it or not, I could have probably used more hyphens to try to accurately describe this rendition. 2. Devotchka can bring an orchestra’s worth of sound with just four people. There are so many multi-cultural influences, spanning at least 12 different instruments and at least 12 different nations, it’s hard to believe they so honestly replicate […]
THEATER: Five Reasons To See Tennessee Williams’ Streetcar Named Desire At The Walnut St. Theater
1. Blanche DuBois is the first lady of the American stage. Whereas the motion picture of Tennessee William’s A Street Car Named Desire draws attention to Brando’s gritty portrayal of Stanely Kolwalski, it seems as though Williams intended Blanche Dubois, played with gravitational pull by Susan Riley Stevens, to hold center stage for playhouse productions. The production was all of three hours long, which can be demanding even for the most ardent theater-lovers, but Stevens entertained, intrigued and beguiled effortlessly for the entire production, and could have done so longer. And this was no small feat. Stevens delivered more than […]
TONITE: To Beard Or Not To Beard?
This note is about WOLFDOGBIRDMAN. We do LOTS of different shows at Connie’s Ric Rac and this ONE in particular I have been most excited for to be quite frank. I found this band on myspace and they are coming to Philly this saturday night to play a seriously awesome rock show! They are called WOLFDOGBIRDMAN and I don’t know why I’m so into this band that I have never seen. I think it’s the energy, the mystery and the beards. Go check out their Myspace. WOLFDOGBIRDMAN. One word. Tell me what you think? I know, I don’t have a […]
AMEN: Sunlight Is The Best Disinfectant
LOS ANGELES TIMES: In October 2001, the Bush administration took an administrative action that would prove sadly symptomatic of its rule. John Ashcroft, then the attorney general, issued a memorandum warning against casual release of information to the public under the Freedom of Information Act. Such releases, Ashcroft said, should be made “only after full and deliberate consideration of the institutional, commercial and personal privacy interests that could be implicated.” In case anyone missed the point, Ashcroft added that any bureaucrat who said no to such a request could “be assured that the Department of Justice will defend your decisions […]
WEEKEND UPDATE: The Good News Flower Hour
The Good News Flower Hour #6 All the news that fits — in a five minute week-in-review read by a cartoon flower that sounds…wait for it…JUST LIKE ME. Enjoy.
CINEMA: Girl, Interrupted
WENDY AND LUCY (2008, directed by Kelly Reichardt, 88 minutes, U.S.) THE LITERARY WORLD OF FRANK & ELEANOR PERRY (This weekend at The International House) BY DAN BUSKIRK FILM CRITIC A film so internalized as to barely exist at all, Heath Ledger’s widow Michelle Williams mourns soulfully for her lost dog in the latest film from Kelly Reichardt, Wendy & Lucy. The plot is so slender it is almost high-concept, in its own modest way. Michelle Williams is Wendy, a twenty-something woman driving solo to work in Alaska’s fisheries when her dog disappears in a sleepy Oregon town. She feels […]
LAUGH OR DIE: High-Five Inauguration
Time was, inaugurations were all about the Benjamins. Those days are over. The golden goose has shit the bed. These days, it’s all about the cameos, baby. It’s all we got left.
Q&A: This American Life Host Ira Glass
BY JONATHAN VALANIA For nearly half a century television has had to bear the “barren wasteland” rap. But even a cursory, static-smeared twist of the radio dial reveals a largely fallow garden. Corporate consolidation and play-it-safe programmers have conspired to increase the emphasis on the obvious, the ordinary and the lowest common denominator. It doesn’t have to be like this. “When correctly harnessed, radio can be as emotional, as funny and as satisfying as the best motion pictures and television shows,” says Ira Glass, host of public radio’s This American Life. “But sadly, few radio programmers even shoot for that.” […]
GAME OVER: Obama Signs Gitmo Out Of Existence
NEW YORK TIMES: Saying that “our ideals give us the strength and moral high ground” to combat terrorism, President Obama signed executive orders Thursday effectively ending the Central Intelligence Agency’s secret interrogation program, directing the closing of the Guantánamo Bay detention camp within a year and setting up a sweeping, high-level review of the best way to hold and question terrorist suspects in the future. “We intend to win this fight,” Mr. Obama said, “We are going to win it on our own terms.” As he signed three orders, 16 retired generals and admirals who have fought for months for […]
PAPERBOY: ‘All Science Is Local’ Edition
BY DAVE ALLEN Like time, news waits for no man. Keeping up with the funny papers has always been an all-day job, even in the pre-Internets era. These days, however, it’s a two-man job. That’s right, these days you need someone to do your reading for you, or risk falling hopelessly behind and, as a result, increasing your chances of dying lonely and somewhat bitter. That’s why every week, PAPERBOY does your alt-weekly reading for you. We pore over those time-consuming cover stories and give you the takeaway, suss out the cover art, warn you off the ink-wasters and steer […]
CAROLINE, NO: Kennedy Withdraws Senate Bid
NEW YORK POST: ALBANY — The search to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate was thrown into chaos Wednesday night after sources said Caroline Kennedy had withdrawn her name from consideration. The startling news came just as Gov. Paterson was set to choose Clinton’s successor — with Kennedy considered to be the front-runner. Even as some sources said Kennedy had told Paterson she was pulling out, there was confusion among her closest confidantes. A family source said cousin Kerry Kennedy spoke with both Paterson and Caroline Kennedy’s political consultant, Josh Isay, and neither was aware she was bowing out. […]