[Via DownByTheHipster] It seems Starwood Capital CEO and hospitality visionary Barry Sternlicht’s buying spree may not end with B.R. Guest. A little birdy let us know that Philly’s most famous (and pompous) restaurateur may be the next target for Sternlicht’s firm, saying “Starwood Capital may be looking to buy the Starr Restaurant Organization and then make a play to take back control of Starwood Hotels.” Hmm, Starr just made a successful move into Atlantic City (Continental, Buddakan) and NYC (Buddakan and Morimoto), and with Continental NYC coming soon, why sell now? DEVELOPING….
POPPED! PICKS: THE NOTEKILLERS & THE LOW BUDGETS & NORTHERN LIBERTIES (The Band)
NOTE: All this week we will be running our Popped! Fest Band Libs. Northern Liberties 1. We are called Northern Liberties because we are a noospheric oratory rite, transmitting holographic emblems, resonating neural linguistic imprinting, brazenly eulogizing radiant terrestrial imagined entities, stridently. 2. No, that is not a stupid name for a band and it is unenlightened of you to say that. 3. We are a band because we received the command, and it is a way for us to partially reveal our plan. 4. If we were not a band, we would be a pigeon, a beehive, or a […]
We Know It’s Only Rock N’ Roll But We Like It
SWORDFISH & TROMBONES: Grandchildren, Popped! Fest, Last Night [FLICKR] EVA SAYS: Holy shit! I am so hyped up on Monster Energy Drink right now it’s not even funny. It’s 3:23 in the morning, I’ve smoked my third cigarette in a row, and I’ve just read this last sentence over five times. Whoever thought of giving out free mega doses of glucose and sucrose in sugar-water beverages to kids at an avant-garde, prog-rock, DIY West Philly show is either an asshole or a genius — I haven’t decided yet. Luckily, the task ahead of me deserves all the energy I […]
Plot Thickens For Man Questioned In Atlantic City Sex Worker Serial Killings
BY SAM WOOD INQUIRER STAFF WRITER Salem County authorities have seized another box of items from the home of a man who was questioned last week in the slayings of four Atlantic City women.The man, Terry Oleson, 34, has been jailed since Friday, when he was charged with invasion of privacy – an accusation unrelated to the corpses of four prostitutes who were found in a watery ditch in Egg Harbor Township in November. The charge stems from the discovery of a videotape showing a naked teenage girl, found by investigators during a search of Oleson’s Alloway Township home, his […]
HEY LADIES: Dirk Diggler Is Comin’ To Town
Mark Wahlberg has decided that Philadelphia is The Happening place to be. The actor, who earned an Academy Award nomination for his performance in Martin Scorsese‘s The Departed, has signed on to star in writer/director M. Night Shyamalan‘s apocalyptic thriller — set to begin filming in the City of Brotherly Love this fall. Wahlberg will reportedly play a family man determined to do whatever it takes to save his loved ones from a cataclysmic crisis. [via BoxOffice.com]
THIS JUST IN: Rick D. Memorial Services Announced
RICHARD C. DOBROWOLSKI, April 7. 2007 of Phila., beloved son of Eileen and the late James, brother of Linda Lyng (John) and Susan Lester (Doug); also survived by 2 nieces, Audrey and Lily. Relatives and friends invited to his Memorial Service, Thurs., 11 A.M., JOHN R. FREED FUNERAL HOME, 124 N. Easton Rd., Glenside. Int. Chelten Hills Cem. The family will greet friends after 10 A.M. No flowers. Instead please send donations to Philabundance, PO Box 37555, Phila., PA 19148-7555. [Via Philly.com] UPDATE: An informal wake for Rick D. is reportedly going down tonight at Ray’s Happy Birthday Bar.
TODAY I SAW…
BY JEFF DEENEY “Today I saw…” is a series of nonfiction shorts based on my experiences as a caseworker serving formerly homeless families now living in North and West Philadelphia. I decided not long after starting the job that I was seeing so many fascinating and disturbing things in the city’s poorest neighborhoods that I needed to start cataloging them. I hope this bi-weekly column serves as a record of a side of the city that many Philadelphians don’t come in contact with on a daily basis. I want to capture moments not frequently covered by the local media, which […]
POPPED! FESTIVAL PICKS: BARKING SPIDERS, NORMAL LOVE, BEAR IS DRIVING
NOTE: All week we will be sharing responses to our Popped! band-libs. Barking Spiders 1. We are called Barking Spiders [pictured, above] because it’s what grandpa called farts. 2. No, that is not a stupid name for a band and it is correct of you to say that. 3. We are a band because we are good friends. 4. If we were not a band, we would be another band. 5. People say we sound like lawn mower. 6. But really we sound like jet skis. 7. A year ago we were online dating and now we’re married. 8. If […]
MOJO RISING: Jimbo Named ‘XPN Drive Time Jock
CITIZEN MOM REPORTS: WXPN is finally bringing Roger Jim McGuinn into the fold, moving him from King of Y-Rockism to the “regular” station lineup. McGuinn, the paterfamilias of Gen X radio in Philly, will remain as Y-Rock’s program director, but he’ll move from the Y-Rock on XPN broadcast to David Dye’s 4-7 p.m. on-air shifts, every day but Friday. The Funk remains. Here’s Mr. Dye’s open letter to listeners: Dear Amy, I have an announcement that may seem sudden, but has actually been a few years in the making. About two years ago, I crawled into XPN GM Roger LaMay’s […]
HIZZONER ’07: Brady Bunch Smells Like Nepotism
Bob Brady has promised that, if he is elected Philadelphia’s mayor, he’ll fight no-bid contracts and nepotism. He was the first candidate to sign a pledge promising to wipe them out. But for four Brady family members, it might not make a difference. They already have government jobs or benefit from a no-bid contract, an Inquirer review shows. Brady’s wife is paid $100,000 a year by a politically connected firm that delivers official notices of lawsuits. In eight years, the city has not bid out the contract. His son works for the Pennsylvania Turnpike, his daughter for the state lottery. […]
KILLADELPHIA: Task Forces Sweeps Up 17 Straw Purchasers
The father of Twanita Johnson’s baby needed a gun, but he can’t buy one because he’s a convict. So Johnson, 21, who had no criminal record, went to a Bucks County gun shop and bought him a Smith & Wesson .40-caliber pistol, according to law enforcement officials.This morning, the recently formed Gun Violence Task Force announced that arrest warrants had been obtained for Johnson and 16 others accused of making illegal “straw” purchases. The task force, a joint effort of city District Attorney Lynne Abraham and state Attorney General Tom Corbett, has opened more than 70 investigations since being launched […]
Easter Bunny: DiCicco’s Eggs Are Rotten
This just came in over the transom.