CHANGING SKYLINE: When the Delaware River Waterfront Corp. selected Field Operations last fall to design a new park at the Race Street pier, it was hard to shake off a certain feeling of trepidation. The firm, led by Philadelphia-based James Corner, was still basking in rave reviews for its work on the High Line park, the magical suspended garden that rolls through New York’s Chelsea neighborhood on an elevated trestle. But for that five-acre project, Corner’s group enjoyed a kingly budget of $152 million. Perennially cash-strapped Philadelphia was setting aside just $5 million for its one-acre pier, and part of […]
There’s A Hole In Daddy’s Arm Where The Money Goes
Funny how the more wars change, the more they stay the same. In 1968, at the height of the Vietnam War, John Prine, quintessential Americana songwriter, then fresh out of the Army and well-acquainted with the Catch 22s of a soldier’s life, wrote “Sam Stone.” You may not recognize it from the title, but you have heard this song. Detailing the post-traumatic stress of a Vietnam vet all but abandoned by the country he nobly served, the lyric goes: “There’s a hole in Daddy’s arm where all the money goes/ Jesus Christ died for nothing, I suppose.” Intended as a […]
Synthetic Marijuana Shipment Seized At Airport
INQUIRER: Federal agents are cracking down on imports of a synthetic marijuana that has started appearing in the Philadelpha area. It is not illegal to possess the substance in any state, but officials say Food and Drug Adminstration regulations bar its import and sale because it is not a tested and approved drug. So far, 85 parcels, arriving from Amsterdam at a UPS facility at Philadelphia International Airport, have been detained then seized after tests proved positive for the drug, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The latest seizures were on Tuesday, after a CPB lab in Georgia confirmed […]
CINEMA: No Man Is An Island
SHUTTER ISLAND (2009, directed by Martin Scorsese, 138 minutes, U.S.) BY DAN BUSKIRK FILM CRITIC I’ve never heard anyone accuse Martin Scorsese of coasting, even his least successful films show stretches of inspiration that raise them above mere journeyman work. His latest, an adaptation of Dennis Lahane’s best-selling Shutter Island is a gorgeously-produced, well-acted film but is unlike nearly anything is Scorsese’s filmography: a predictable thriller’s whose biggest mystery is exactly what attracted Scorsese to it to begin with. Going deep into M.Night Shyamalan territory, Shutter Island is one of our most idiosyncratic director’s least personal films yet. Scorsese continues […]
SPORTO: Johnny Are You Weir, Boy?
BY MIKE WOLVERTON SPORTS GUY Male figure skaters? Studs. Incredible specimens of athleticism. Male figure skating? Well, if it’s not totally gay, you can see it from there. I can’t help but think they’d get more respect if only they would stop dressing like Liberace. I should have broken out this piece for the pairs skaters…it’s amazing what those girls talk their partners into wearing. Did you see the German guy? He looked like the Jack of Clubs. Here’s the review of last night’s top competitors in the Men’s Finals. I’ve ranked the manliness of each outfit on a scale […]
Lower Merion School District Sued For Spying On Students Via Webcams In School-Issued Laptops
BOING BOING: According to the filings in Blake J Robbins v Lower Merion School District (PA) et al, the laptops issued to high-school students in the well-heeled Philly suburb have webcams that can be covertly activated by the schools’ administrators, who have used this facility to spy on students and even their families. The issue came to light when the Robbins’s child was disciplined for “improper behavior in his home” and the Vice Principal used a photo taken by the webcam as evidence. The suit is a class action, brought on behalf of all students issued with these machines. MORE […]
SIDEWALKING: Sign O’ The Times
1500 Block of East Passyunk 10:53 AM by JEFF FUSCO
BREAKING: Feds Investigating Plane Crash Into Texas IRS Building As An Anti-Tax Kamikaze Attack
ABC NEWS: A single engine plane smashed into the side of an Austin office buildling today and authorities are investigating reports that the pilot may have burned down his house down and then steered the plane into the building in a suicidal attack on the IRS, sources told ABC News. The pilot was identified as Andrew Stack [pictured, below right]. The IRS has offices in the building complex that was struck. Eyewitnesses who saw the plane slam into the building said the pilot appeared to be in control of the plane in the moments before the crash. “It hit it […]
SCRAPPLE TV NEWS: Murtha, Murtha, Murtha!
AP Ticker delivers a stinging eulogy for recently departed PA congressman John Murtha, plus he reveals his Olympic man-crush on Bob Costas.
ARCHIVE: Thirteen Astonishing Things You Are NOT Supposed To Know About Spoon
[As told to JONATHAN VALANIA] 1. Britt Daniel has never killed anyone. “Technically, no,” he says when asked. 2. “Don’t Make Me A Target” was originally titled “Don’t Blame Me I Voted For Nader.” 3. Spoon is named after the Can song of the same name. Britt first learned about Kraut Rock in the 11th grade from his obsessive study of every word uttered by Julian Cope. 4. Britt Daniel may have voted for Ralph Nader instead of Al Gore in 2000. “I think maybe I did,” he says when asked. 5. Britt Daniel is 38 years old and has […]
DEATH IN DUBAI: All Fingers Point To Israel As The Origin Of The Hamas Boss Assassination Squad
HUFFINGTON POST: The Bustan Rotana Hotel, until a month ago, was known among Dubai residents as a destination for good sushi and old fashioned entertainment. It was the quiet yet classy option; an old gem mingling with a plethora of newer glitzy caravanserais. Then, Mahmoud al Mabhouh [pictured, right], the senior Hamas military commander complicit in the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers and instrumental in maintaining a flow of weapons to Hamas in the Gaza Strip, decided to use it as a stop-over. So did a team of assassins [pictured, above]who collaboratively pulled off perhaps the most clinical murder Dubai has […]
THIS JUST IN: Larry Magid Leaves Live Nation
THE INSIDER: Legendary concert promoter Larry Magid left Live Nation Philadelphia yesterday, addressing the troops at the promoter’s Bala Cynwyd offices that he was out — but not discussing the circumstances.Live Nation declined to talk about the departure. A report on Billboard.com said Geoff Gordon remains the local president. A source told The Inquirer that Magid’s employment contract was coming up. He was Live Nation Philadelphia’s chairman. MORE BILLBOARD: A pioneer in the concert industry and a fixture on the Philly concert scene for more than 40 years, Magid opened the Electric Factory club in 1968 and later formed Electric […]
TONITE: Have A Kit-Kat
This is the dawning of the age of sugarius! Imagine Happy Hour at the candy shop and all the different sweet snacks wanna show off some Broadway! Blow Pop could have danced all night! Butterfinger is just a girl who can’t say no! Bit-O-Honey’s life is a cabaret! See Almond Joy and Mounds in a tap dance extravaganza! Join the Dumpstas as we ride a sugar high down the Hershey Highway! Enjoy selections from “Hair”, “Spring Awakening”, “Grease”, and “West Side Story“!