Voter ID trial set
A state judge ruled today that a trial to determine the constitutionality of Pennsylvania’s voter identification law will be held this summer. In a scheduling order handed down today, Commonwealth judge Robert Simpson set the following timetable for the case: the trial will start at 10 a.m., July 15, at the Pennsylvania Judicial Center in…
Heads Up: Morning headlines for Jan. 22
Our top story, of course, is President Obama’s inauguration — which gave conservatives a sad, and in which Obama delivered the kind of unapologetic progressive speech we lefties have been hoping to hear for years. A forthright stand on gay rights! Actual (brief) mention of climate change! I don’t know where to begin. If you’re…
Lynn Cullen Live 01/22/13
Video Archive Phone guest: Susan; Inauguration recap; what Michelle wore; Obama’s speech; still can’t stand Eric Cantor; Obama chewed Nicorette gum before his speech; Obamas: a normal family?; John Roberts & Obama; why the 2nd inauguration was as historical as the first; Obit: Stan Musial, former baseball player; the Tea Party finished off the Republican…
Derek Dumont – “Home Sweet Home”
Derek Dumont releases a new music video paying homage to some of his favorite Pittsburgh locations.
Journalist, Filmmaker to Discuss Iraq and Afghanistan Wars
Special guest is USA Today’s Carmen Gentile
Heads Up: Morning headlines for Jan. 21
District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. holds a press conference on the death of Ka’Sandra Wade that leaves many questions unanswered. Police who responded to a 9-1-1 call Wade before her death did not follow proper procedure, Zappala says — but it’s unclear whether she was still alive at the time. Nor did they necessarily have…
Lynn Cullen Live 01/21/13
Video Archive Guest: Bill O’ Driscoll, CP writer; MLK Day, Inauguration Day; how Americans spend holidays; hoping that Obama will show off his oratory skills today; corporations sending US water supplies to China?; injuries on Gun Appreciation Day; assessed value of a house vs. the asking price; Preppers vs. the Transition Town Movement; reading of…
Ride the bus? Port Authority looking for volunteers for pilot programs
Port Authority seeking riders to test new technology
Inaugural Moth Pittsburgh GrandSLAM Championship
Pittsburgh’s incarnation of the popular storytelling series held its first “GrandSLAM” last night. See how things went at the New Hazlett Theater in Program Notes.
Inaugural Moth Pittsburgh GrandSLAM Championship
Pittsburgh was among the first cities to get its own officially sanctioned version of the popular New York-based storytelling series, and last night’s event at the New Hazlett Theater showed why. An enthusiastic full house saw 10 tellers take the stage. Although all the tellers were locally based, demand for tickets was comparable to that…
Heads Up: Morning headlines for Jan. 18
The Tribune-Review, which first reported yesterday that police chief Nate Harper is the target of a federal grand jury investigation, says Harper’s job is safe — at least for now. Meanwhile, Trib columnist Eric Heyl thinks Ravenstahl should talk more about such things, though it’s a bit unclear what Heyl thinks a mayor should say…
Lynn Cullen Live 01/18/13
Video Archive Guest: Chris Potter; Lynn’s birthday!; gun control; changing of hearts & minds of people in America; was Manti T’eo duped?; public weed smoking; everyone speaks English; Lance Armstrong; lots of Lance’s are gay; panel discussion on minorities & women….on a former plantation; occupation of the day: farrier; upcoming mayoral race; Callers: Michael, Polish…
In mayor’s race, money talks — but what does it say?
As I’ve said here earlier, we’re still at that very early stage of the 2013 mayoral race, where the question isn’t “Which of these guys is best equipped to run the city?” but “which of these guys is best equipped to run a campaign?” We have two challengers, City Councilor Bill Peduto and City Controller…
Vintage Horror on 16 mm
Horror Realm presents two vintage horror flicks
Allegheny County Council asked to move forward on natural-gas drilling at Pittsburgh International Airport
Fitzgerald asking Allegheny County Council to move forward on natural-gas drilling at the airport
Activists call on mayor, county executive to “hold UPMC accountable”
Protesters say UPMC needs to act less like a corporation and more like a charity
Raise a Glass: Court Rules in Favor of Musician Ali Spagnola in Drinking Game Dispute
Way back in 2010, we wrote about local musician, artist, and party facilitator Ali Spagnola, who had become embroiled in a legal battle over Power Hour, a drinking game in which participants drink a shot of beer every minute for an hour. It wasn’t the game itself in question, but rather Spagnola’s right to use…
Readings from Vintage Scandal Sheets this Weekend
WHO was doing WHAT with WHOM and WHEN? Readings from mid-century Hollywood gossip rags are on the program in two performances Downtown, Friday and Saturday nights. Read more in Program Notes.
Readings from Vintage Scandal Sheets this Weekend
Back in the day they titillated, and now they’ll amuse: this Friday and Saturday nights, Downtown, the “vintage pulp non-fiction” of classic gossip rags will provide the campy, slangy fare for a host of local performers. The material comes from old-school tabloids including Whistler, Hush-Hush and Confidential — publications from the golden age of gossip…
Heads Up: Morning headlines for Jan. 17
Read His Lips? Gov. Tom Corbett apparently plans to release a long-awaited transportation-funding plan next week, and it will rely on lifting the cap on the state’s gasoline tax. Sounds eminently reasonable, but it arguably violates Corbett’s “no new taxes” pledge — which as dumb as it was is probably the only thing his party’s…
Lynn Cullen Live 01/17/13
Video Archive Guest: Tom Sokolowski; today is Gun Appreciation Day; can’t plead ignorance to not knowing the news these days; Obama on gun control; a liberal gun owner’s input; where are the Catholic bishops on gun violence?; easy to build a semi-automatic gun; is the country screwed?; Yiddish lesson; Manti Te’o’s fake girlfriend; Ohio teacher…
In district 8 council race, Jeanne Clark kicks it up a notch
Interesting development in the race to replace District 8 city councilor Bill Peduto. Jeanne Clark, who is challenging Peduto staffer Dan Gilman, is now boasting of hiring a former Peduto staffer, Jessica McCurdy, to manage her campaign. Also hiring on with the effort: campaign veteran Marty Marks. And as this space predicted in November, Clark…
A few early thoughts on Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s challengers
I’ll have a full blog post up by day’s end about City Controller Michael Lamb’s mayoral campaign announcement this morning at Brookline’s Cannon Coffee. As my fistfuls of Twitter followers know, Lamb had tough words for both incumbent Mayor Luke Ravenstahl (“an absentee mayor”) and fellow challenger Bill Peduto (“a councilor who talks a lot…
Artists Sought for Gun-Control Community Arts Action
Writers, actors needed for Jan. 26 event
Case study: Misra Records v. Paste
Misra says Paste’s reviewer downloaded a new album “incorrectly”; I say Misra tagged the album “incorrectly.”
Pet can recycling program will benefit Animal Rescue League
Animal Rescue League will be beneficiary of pet food can recycling drive
Heads Up: Morning headlines for Jan. 16
Story of the day: The pieces are being set up in the city’s mayoral race. As I noted on Twitter yesterday, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl announced his campaign had $781,510.76 on-hand by the end of 2012. That’s about $439,500 more than he had a year ago; by contrast, Bill Peduto’s campaign raised $342,000 last year. Peduto’s…
A quick guide to David Throckmorton’s bands
Note: This is a companion piece to our longer feature; see link below. David Throckmorton plays drums somewhere almost every night of the week, often as part of the rhythm section for a vocalist at venues like Andys at the Fairmont, or as part of jams like Space Exchange at Thunderbird Café, or at the…
Atlas charts a path to success
ATLAS CD RELEASE with THE YELLERS, THE COLOR FLEET. 9:30 p.m. Fri., Jan. 18. Brillobox 4104 Penn Ave. Bloomfield. $8. 412-621-4900 or brillobox.net They were dark days for Atlas, those months after former drummer Nick McCall left to move out west. The remaining members practiced to a drum machine; they tried out drummers from Craigslist,…
New Releases
Cait Cuneo Violet (Self-released) This EP is the former Black Coffee frontwoman’s solo debut. Cuneo croons neo-soul for fans of Norah Jones and the like; the songwriting here is above average and the performance is top-notch. My biggest qualm is that these tracks largely hit the same groove; a debut EP is a good place…
Critics’ Picks: January 16 – 22
[JAZZ] + THU., JAN. 17 If you’ve heard Stephane Wrembel before, it may have been in a context where you didn’t recognize him: The French guitarist composed the theme to Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris. Before that, though, he was already accomplished in jazz-guitar circles, known for combining classical training with the Gypsy techniques he…
Making a Bid: Lawrenceville businesses weighing pros and cons of tax district
In 1992, when his family began renovating the iconic former Pennsylvania National Bank building at the corner of Penn Avenue and Butler Street in Lawrenceville, Chip Desmone remembers picking up trash in the parking lot every day. “Very unsavory trash — booze bottles, needles, condoms. It was ugly stuff,” he says. By the early 1990s,…
It’s Back: State voter ID is alive and well for May primaries, at least for now
Opponents of Pennsylvania’s voter-identification law won a battle when a state judge temporarily suspended it on Oct. 2. But with the block extending only to last year’s general election, the war is far from over. As of now, the law — which requires voters to present photo identification at the polls — is active and…
Prep … or Transition?: Two different takes on surviving an uncertain future
It’s easy enough to mock preppers. These are the apparently numerous folks who, as depicted on National Geographic Channel’s series Doomsday Preppers, stockpile food and weapons and craft elaborate plans to “bug out” — head for the hills — in case of emergencies like natural disaster, power-grid failure or even complete societal collapse. Preppers can…
Serving Sentences
It’s 8:30 on a Friday morning, in a 12-by-12-foot cinder-block room in the basement of the Allegheny County Jail. And Theo is here to testify. Sarah Shotland has just asked him and the other 14 men here if they have anything they want to share. Theo (not his real name) certainly does. He’s a drug…
Savage Love
My name is Nancy, and I’m 19. My boyfriend’s name is Carl, we have been together for almost a year — our anniversary is Feb. 14! I want to do something sexy for us on our anniversary. I plan on being with Carl for years to come, and I don’t want the sex to become…
Winter Guide 2013
Despite recent alarming reports that 2012 was the warmest year in our nation’s history, it’s still winter out there, folks! Below we’ve compiled a selection of local happenings through March that should provide entertainment, edification and exercise. OUTDOOR Make 2013 the year you hit the annual Ligonier Ice Festival and watch artisans turn giant…
Short List: January 16 – 22
Main Event: Celebration At free events marking Martin Luther King Jr. Day, live King’s legacy by doing everything from questioning war to building community and celebrating the arts. During Sat., Jan. 19’s Martin Luther King Jr. Public Forum, discuss “The Cost of the War and the African-American Community” with a distinguished panel led by talk-show…
An architecture exhibition aims to reveal the contradictions and complexities inherent in our health-obsessed society.
IMPERFECT HEALTH: THE MEDICALIZATION OF ARCHITECTURE continues through Feb. 24. Miller Gallery Carnegie Mellon University campus Oakland. 412-268-3618 or cmu.edu/millergallery Public-interest design is a nascent but growing field. It is based on the idea that everybody — rich, poor, healthy or sick — deserves thoughtful and high-quality architecture and design. In a recent opinion piece…
Noodlehead
Noodlehead 242 S. Highland Ave. Shadyside. No phone. noodleheadpgh.com Hours: Daily noon-10 P.M. Prices: $6-9 (cash only) Liquor: BYOB Nearly a decade ago, the opening of Typhoon on Shadyside’s South Highland restaurant row seemed to signal a sea change in local Asian dining. It elevated Thai food from “ethnic” category to stylish cuisine, served with…
Printworks 2012 shows the genre’s newfound diversity.
PRINTWORK 2012 continues through Jan. 31. Artists Image Resource 518 Foreland St. North Side. 412-321-8664 or artistsimageresource.org “Rembrandt’s Skyscraper,” by Michael Loderstedt, occupies one corner of Printwork 2012 at Artists Image Resource. While it is the only sculptural piece in the exhibition, it is not alone in its innovative use of the print medium. As…
Grabbing a Byte: Pittsburgh
Ware Sykes, the new CEO of NoWait, a startup company helping to change the way restaurants handle wait lists, spent a night last week at the Waterwork’s Burgatory, greeting customers from the hosting station. Sykes, 36, was hired Jan. 2 to help run the Pittsburgh-born technology business, which offers restaurants a tool for texting diners…
Aliquippa native publishes father’s unique illustrated memoir
Jim Messina was 50 when a back injury he sustained as a Marine at Guadalcanal forced his retirement from J&L Steel’s Aliquippa Works. But his next avocation is what sets him apart from most who grew up during the Great Depression, fought in World War II and worked in area mills: Messina took up drawing…
Pittsburgh bars offer expanding bourbon choices
There’s no mistaking America’s most popular native spirit: Bourbon is caramel, vanilla and spice. And, thanks to a few Pittsburgh bartenders, finding the bourbon that suits your taste has never been easier. According to an Act of Congress — really — “straight bourbon” must be produced in the United States, start with a base of…
Gangster Squad
Gangster Squad Directed by: Ruben Fleischer Starring: Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling, Sean Penn Ruben Fleischer’s Gangster Squad got an unwanted burst of publicity after last summer’s Colorado megaplex shooting, when its trailer depicted some of the film’s characters shooting up a movie-theater audience. So the release date was pushed back, the scene cut and the…
Popular Downtown hot-dog shop Franktuary opens a Lawrenceville outpost
Sight-seers in Lawrenceville may have noticed that a new — well, sort of — Butler Street hot-dog spot quietly opened during the first week of January. But although the location is new, the name and reputation aren’t. Franktuary has been a Downtown lunch fixture for the better part of a decade. But the little hot-dog…
A Late Quartet
A Late Quartet Starts Fri., Jan. 18. Harris Early on, Yaron Zilberman’s low-key drama A Late Quartet sets up an extended metaphor about Beethoven’s Opus 131. Cellist Peter (Christopher Walken) explains to his class that the unusual length of the quartet — seven movements played without pause — means that instruments will go out of…
Lynn Cullen Live 01/16/13
Video Archive Guest: Helen Gerhardt; Obama will speak on gun control today; what those opposed to gun control are saying; Zero Dark Thirty review; Americans think it’s more important to control guns than protect gun rights; Joe Mansion & McCain looking into our “culture of violence;”power of the ballot / power of the bullet; terrorist…
David Throckmorton holds down the beat as one of Pittsburgh’s great drummers
DAVID THROCKMORTON 40TH BIRTHDAY SHOW featuring BILL DEASY, GOOD BROTHER EARL, THOTH TRIO, DAVID THROCKMORTON TRIO 10 p.m. Sat., Jan. 26. Club Café, 56 S. 12th St., South Side. $10. 412-431-4950 or www.clubcafelive.com There’s a quiet fame in being a skilled drummer. David Throckmorton’s name wouldn’t be the first that comes to a civilian’s mind…
