THE BLOGS ARE COMING, THE BLOGS ARE COMING, RUN! Media Criticism Doesn’t HAVE To Be This Clueless

Or compromised. Unless your name is Ted Beitchman, and you are still — STILL, after four years — trying to punch a hole in the Philly mediascape with that glossy money-pit/inept score-settler/high-priced coupon flyer known as REALPHILLY — and getting about as far as a renegade spermatazoan trying to break on thru a Trojan Extra Thick. Hat tip to reader Philly Guy for the heads up. He reads it so we don’t have to. But check this sad swing at wannabe 215 Murdoch-ism. We just happen to speak Beitchman, so let us translate: Pay no mind to that moonbat slander […]

215 , Culture , Gossip , Media , News , PoliticsPosted on:

NPR FOR THE DEAF: We Hear It Even When You Can’t

Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane Wednesday, November 22nd Hour 1 Aside from Thomas Eakins’ painting “The Gross Clinic” at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, what other important works are in hospitals, schools, and non-museum institutions in Philadelphia? We talk with MICHAEL LEJA, Professor of American Art at the University of Pennsylvania and PENNY BALKIN BACH, Executive Director of the Fairmount Park Art Association. Hour 2 Being on your best behavior during the holidays. We talk manners with Johns Hopkins professor PM FORNI, author of “Choosing Civility: The 25 Rules of Considerate Conduct.” Then, New York Times ethicist RANDY COHEN helps us […]

215 , Art , Books , MediaPosted on:

LAST CALL: Crowd Pleaser Nate Wiley Dead At 82, End Of ‘Longest Job Goin’

Nate Wiley and the Crowd Pleasers Bob and Barbara’s, 1509 South St. Last call. This is the house that Pabst Blue Ribbon built. The walls are covered floor to ceiling with Pabst memorabilia spanning several decades–from the corny caucasoid ’50s when Danny Kaye shilled for the brew, to the blaxsploitation ’70s when he was replaced with a Foxy Brown lookalike. The one constant in all those ads over the years is this catchphrase: “Now at Popular Prices.” That’s the asking price for Nate Wiley and the Crowd Pleasers, which has been cranking out no-cover-charge soul-powered organ jazz at Bob and […]

215 , Music , NewsPosted on:

ESPERANTO: Yo La Tengo For Joey Vento

In a bold and arguably pointless move, we just hired a new indie-rock critic right off the boat from Sicily. Please give a warm 215 HELLO to Simone Secci. Honestly, it never occurred to us to ask if he could write in, like, English. Oh well, this one goes out to all our goombahs in Sout’ Phiwwy. Abbondanza! YO LA TENGO INTERVISTA di SIMONE SECCI Incontrare gli Yo La Tengo ? un’esperienza che si rivela ancor pi? piacevole del previsto. Se difatti la semplicit? e la spontaneit? comunicata dalla loro musica e dalla loro immagine pubblica, lasciano pensare a tre […]

215 , MusicPosted on:

IN MEMORIAM: Andre Waters 1962-2006

Waters, 44, died early yesterday from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He took with him the answer to the only question — Why, Andre, why? — worth asking. He may have given at least part of an answer in that nearly three-hour phone conversation in April. He wasn’t just frustrated and bitter about his inability to find a job with an NFL team. He was personally hurt by a system he believed used players up and spit them back out. But then, everything was personal with Waters. That seems surprising, since he was the most violent and reckless […]

215 , News , SportsPosted on:

IF THE FOO SHITS: Susanna Gets Probation For Curbside PPA Smackdown, And Somehow They Care In Pensacola

Philadelphia restaurateur avoids trial November 20, 2006 13:45 EST PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A celebrity chef has agreed to give free cooking lessons to the poor, as part of a deal to avoid trial on assault charges. Susanna Foo was accused of hitting a Philadelphia Parking Authority officer who ticketed a delivery truck outside her restaurant. As part of a program for non-violent first offenders, she’ll do 50 hours of community service and be on probation for six months. Prosecutors say they’ll withdraw charges of aggravated assault and recklessly endangering another person, but will keep open a simple-assault charge during Foo’s […]

215 , NewsPosted on:

BELIEVE IT OR NOT: Handcuffed Suspect Shoots Himself In The Head In The Back Of Cop Car

This reminds us of that old Monty Python sketch, The Twit of the Year Contest, wherein one of said ‘twits’ runs himself over with his own car. But that was comedy and this is tragedy, with more than a tinge of fishy odor: Police: Handcuffed Suspect Shoots Self A suspect shot himself in the head while in the back of a police car with his hands cuffed behind his back, police said Monday.Oliver Neal III, 26, was in critical condition, police told the Philadelphia Inquirer. It was not immediately clear whether Neal was trying to kill himself or if he […]

215 , NewsPosted on:

HOLLA: Yo A.D. Let’s Just Backdafucup Un Momento, And J To The Hova BRUTHAS AND SISTAS!

THE WOOK REPORTS: Hold, up Amorosi. Gimme that Webster’s-ready recap of Jay-Z‘s “Hangar Tour” again, will ya? “Titled the Hangar Tour, the event had Jay-Z fly cross-country in his G5 jet to play 30-minute sets in airports and intimate venues beginning in Atlanta at 6:30 a.m., then Philadelphia, Washington, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.” [From Sunday’s Inky] No offense, holmes, but last I checked, the Electric Factory was about as intimate as Mark Foley at a sorority mixer. Sure, Saturday’s show was in the early a.m., but just because you share morning breath with a thousand other […]

215 , Media , Music , NewsPosted on:

GAYBO: Surefire Boy Magnet; ‘Phantom’ Must Be Stopped; And Our Queen On ‘The Queen’

TOMMY ZANE REPORTS: Ever get that feeling that you just can’t score? Do you go weeks, months, or (Goddess forbid) years without sex? I know it may seem hard to believe, but us gay folks can have a dry spell too, even the pretty ones. I have an answer for all you queer love losers out there — bring on the straight girls! That’s right — there’s nothing like some sexy, trendy and confident straight women to make your bod all the more attractive. Just this weekend, I was up in Chelsea on business and my dear friend Maria was […]

215 , NewsPosted on:

We Know It’s Only Rock N’ Roll But We Like It

QUEEN JANE APPROXIMATELY: Bob Dylan, The Spectrum, November 18th, 2006 1964 EVA SAYS: When you defend and idolize an iconic figure so fervently it becomes personal, it’s almost easier to believe they’re make-believe, or even better, dead.This way, they can’t disappoint you when they fail to meet your out-of-proportion expectations. Which is what made my first ever Bob Dylan experience pretty tough to take. I wanted to hold on to my idealized vision of Bobby for ever and ever and ever. But let me tell you, it wasn’t easy. Hater friends of mine bitterly spat on about his disgraceful Victoria […]

215 , Music , NewsPosted on:

HOT DOCUMENT: New Inky/DN Owners Have Buyer’s Remorse, And Now They Wanna Make YOU Sorry Too, Says Sgt. Byko

For Immediate Release Contact: Guild Spokesman Stu Bykofsky, 267-REDACTED A MATTER OF SURVIVAL November 18, 2006 The new owners of the Inquirer, Daily News are having an acute case of buyer’s remorse. Philadelphia Media Holdings — a group of local investors with no prior media ownership experience — now realize it paid too much for the papers and Philly.com, outbidding its rivals. Sadly, the new owners now are targeting their own union employees — and particularly the workers — previously negotiated pensions, job security and sick pay, as the solution to their mistake. There is absolutely no justification for the […]

215 , Media , NewsPosted on: