FRESH AIR Comedian Mike Birbiglia was on tour in Washington state when he had a dream that a guided missile was heading toward his hotel room. In his dream — and in real life — Birbiglia decided to jump out the window of his hotel room. He was staying on the second floor. Birbiglia survived, receiving 33 stitches for gashes in his legs. When he returned home to New York, he was sent to a sleep physician for overnight observation. “They put the electrodes all over my body and observed my sleep and I was diagnosed with REM behavior disorder, […]
REISSUE: T. Rex’s The Slider
Oxford, MS label Fat Possum has announced a series of reissues of classic T. Rex albums, beginning with The Slider, which will be available on CD and digital formats on Oct. 26 and newly remastered vinyl on Nov. 23. The Slider, along with most T. Rex titles, has been out of print on all formats in the US since 2003. The Slider is the definitive soundtrack to Bolanmania that swept most corners of the globe during 1972. It was boom-time for manufacturers of lipstick-sized phials of glitter. The music press had a field day, too, seizing the opportunity to debate […]
OP-ED: The NRA Took My First Amendment Away
BY REP. TIM BRIGGS Harrisburg is not for the weak of heart. During my first term in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, I have seen things that have made me think twice about running for re-election. If you are a wide-eyed idealist like me who believes in unicorns and reforming the Pennsylvania legislature, you need to be able to turn frustration and disbelief into passion for action. For the better part of the last two years I have been able to take many things in stride: bitter partisanship, entrenched colleagues, a legislative process that moves slower than a catcher […]
FATHER & SON SPACE PROGRAM: iPhone + Balloon = High Earth Orbit Awesomeness
Homemade Spacecraft from Luke Geissbuhler on Vimeo. NEW YORK MAGAZINE: In a burst of science-is-fun educational invention, a Brooklyn dad built a carrier for an iPhone (the current model) and an HD video camera, out of a takeout box, tied it to a weather balloon, and let it go with the camera running. It reached a height of nineteen miles, or about 100,000 feet, which is high enough to show the earth’s curvature and a black sky above the atmosphere. MORE
FORMER U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: Legalize It
CNN: Former U.S. Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders told CNN Sunday she supports legalizing marijuana. The trend-setting state of California is voting next month on a ballot initiative to legalize pot, also known as Proposition 19. The measure would legalize recreational use in the state, though federal officials have said they would continue to enforce drug laws in California if the initiative is approved. “What I think is horrible about all of this, is that we criminalize young people. And we use so many of our excellent resources … for things that aren’t really causing any problems,” said Elders. “It’s not […]
SPORTO: From The Great Pumpkin Patch
BY MIKE WOLVERTON SPORTS GUY Despite two kids, I’ve been able to maintain a pretty aggressive sports watching schedule. But some things are just unavoidable. That’s why I found myself at a 3-year-old’s birthday party as the Eagles game kicked off Sunday. It was a solid gig – pizza, pretzels, pumpkin painting and hayrides. The farm we were at was packed. I was blown away by all the Eagles jerseys I saw (two Nick Cole’s?). If you are such a big fan that you have bought a jersey AND you are wearing it out on gameday, then what the hell […]
THIS JUST IN: Candy Store Robbed
Authorities have released this photo of the suspects. They are considered unarmed and harmless. [via TWITTER] RELATED: My heart belongs to Pee-wee Herman. For years, people would look aslant at me, when I would make that statement. Didn’t I know about “The Incident?” Of course I did. I didn’t care. I loved Paul Reubens, the man behind the bowtie, and I knew he would find redemption. It may have been 20 years in the making, but he has worked his way back into the public’s heart. First with roles in “Blow” and “30 Rock,” and finally by embracing the role […]
SIDEWALKING: Logan’s Run
One Logan Circle, 17th Floor, 1:05:59 PM by JEFF FUSCO
WORTH REPEATING: Gov’t Of The Corporations, By The Corporations And For The Corporations
SLATE: Once upon a time, you had to be a person to assert a right to personal privacy. But more and more it seems that the demand for personal privacy flows to large blurry advocacy groups and even larger, blurrier corporations. This trend would be alarming under any circumstances. As it happens, individual privacy rights for real humans seem to be shrinking at the same time corporate privacy rights are expanding. […] The Supreme Court has now agreed to hear a case in which AT&T prevailed in its efforts to evade a Freedom of Information Act request because Exemption 7(C) […]
BACK IN BLACK: Still Amy After All These Years
NEW YORK MAGAZINE: The usually upbeat Harper’s Bazaar got WiHo for their November issue, which also includes interviews with Michelle Obama and Christina Hendricks, and their profile of her reads like one of the most honest to have run in the magazine in some time. Maybe they couldn’t resist sharing the less flattering moments of their time with her because being on set with her was, well, like this: Just before Winehouse goes to change for the next shot, I see her gulping down a big glass of wine. “Not,” she says aloud, “that I’m a rock-star alkie.” I have […]
SCUM DOG BILLIONAIRE: Web Site Welches On $1 Million Reward For The Obama Streaker
INQUIRER: The billionaire has thrown the streaker a bone. The Beverly Hills mogul, who promised $1 million to the first person to bare all in front of President Obama, will give the unemployed painter a payout. It’ll just be much smaller than expected. Alki David, the heir to a shipping fortune, is calling it a “generous consolation prize.” Others might call it “shrinkage.” David will give Juan Rodriguez enough cash to cover six-months rent on the naked runner’s Staten Island apartment, said an attorney to Rodriguez. David will also pay for some of the cost of medical treatment for Rodriguez’s […]
EARLY WORD: Philadelphia Uber Alles
BY ARTHUR SHKOLNIK In 1978, three budding musicians (and one complete lunatic) began playing casual punk shows throughout San Francisco’s North Beach area. That band was The Dead Kennedys and little did they know the music they produced would propel them down a long and arduous path to worldwide notoriety. The DKs officially broke up a year before I was born in 1986, when creative disputes between vocalist Jello Biafra and guitarist East Bay Ray led to a split between the musicians and Biafra, who served not only as the primary lyricist and voice of the band, but also as […]
PAPERBOY: Slow-Jamming The Alt-Weeklies
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 […]