Ontario goths The Birthday Massacre perform at Mr. Small’s Theatre
One foot in the classroom and the other in the nightclub: What pensive, journal-scribbling goth kid can’t relate to that?
Neighborhoods: Most livable city for whom?
African American officials and activists say more has to be done to make Pittsburgh the ‘most livable city’ for all of its residents.
The Orphanage
This Spanish ghost story doesn’t quite deliver chills.
First Sunday
Director David E. Talbert must have put most of the production budget in the collection plate. Strapped for immediate cash, two buddies (a grim Ice Cube and a fidgety Tracy Morgan) discover that their local church is raising big funds. The next night they break in, and wind up holding half the congregation hostage; their…
A reunited A.P.P.L.E. brings ’80s punk to Belvedere’s
A.P.P.L.E.’s activist/pacifist message is as strong as ever, and it’s not just straight-up punk — the band mixes in influences from ska, reggae, blues and heavy metal.
Mad Money
Films such as Fun With Dick and Jane depicted the middle-class embracing crime as a stop-gap against an ever-demanding consumer culture. Bridget (Diane Keaton) is an over-educated empty-nester; suddenly facing huge bills, she takes a janitorial position at a Federal Reserve facility where they discard old money. Opportunity? You bet. She enlists two fellow grunts…
I grew up in Pittsburgh, and noticed something when I was home for Christmas: What is up with the toilets in everyone’s basements? I have never seen this in any other city!
The “Pittsburgh Shitter,” as I’ve heard it called — and not just when readers suggest alternate names for CP — is a treasured bit of local folklore. Basement toilets have long been celebrated as a connection to the city’s industrial legacy; they’ve even been featured in Rick Sebak’s recent documentary Underground Pittsburgh. “The story is…
27 Dresses
Check ’em off: earnest, likable heroine with mild self-esteem issues; Mr. Right, who seems so wrong; Mr. Wrong, who seems so right; acid-tongued best pal; bubble-headed sylph who plows through men; a sing-along to-the-oldies scene; and series of silly weddings capped off by one heartfelt ceremony. Yet despite its allegiance to the genre’s imperatives, Anne…
Pittsburgh n’@
Bus? Bike? Walk? It shouldn’t be this difficult
A Conversation with Daisy Balawejder
A graphic designer by day, Daisy Balawejder founded Hello Bully (www.hellobully.com), an advocacy and education organization dedicated to “rehabilitating, rehoming and repairing the reputation” of pit bull terriers. They offer free programs, such as “Pitbull 101,” to groups in the Pittsburgh area. Accompanying Daisy on her interview was Mogwai, a 6-month-old brindle-bottomed puppy. And yes,…
Savage Love
While visiting my family for the holidays, my 72-year-old father informed me that a 29-year-old Russian woman was coming to America to be with him. He could hardly contain his excitement. Dad didn’t want me to tell my brother and sister, because he knew they would be critical of him being with a 29-year-old Russian…
Comedian Jon Reep explores the ups and downs of fame.
“Yes, I am the comedian. I’m not a comedian, but the comedian.”
Anti-Flag’s A-F Records gives Incommunicado a boost
“People say we sound like a cross between Hot Water Music and Fugazi.”
Winter Guide 2008
The gleam is off those new gadgets acquired over the holidays; the Steelers have scattered to warm-weather golf courses; and the writers’ strike is turning our former best friend, TV, into the “reality”-based houseguest from hell. Everything slows down a bit in the cooler weather, but there’s still plenty to do ’round these parts. In…
This Just In: Jan 16 – 23
Highlights from the local TV news: TV journos save the day!
Winter Guide Cryptogram
Nobody uses more words to describe the obvious than TV weatherpeople. The following cryptogram is a series of actual quotes from local TV news broadcasts describing our winter weather, plus one bizarre comment about a fellow newscaster. In this puzzle, one letter stands for another throughout. Look for single-letter words and words using apostrophes for…
Letters to the Editor: Jan 16 – 23
Feedback from our readers: CP articles demonstrate need for universal health care.
Winter Guide Word Search
Find and circle these items one can see in the Carnegie Museum of Art and Museum of Natural History. Words run horizontally, vertically, diagonally and backward. Uncircled letters, when read across from the top left, will spell out another popular museum attraction. Ant John Kane oil Assassin bug Kitten’s paw Bee Kumquat Biodomes La…
The Associated Artists of Pittsburgh 97th Annual Exhibition has a lot to say — and a lot of fun saying it.
What does not translate in reproductions of this painting is the intensity of the eyes: Bolick depicts a rage so fervent and condensed, it has the glitter of gemstones.
Steel City Rib House
At just three dollars per item, and more than a dozen options, you’ll push away from the table feeling plenty satisfied.
Winter Guide Scramble
MISCELLANEOUS Jan. 21. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration. An evening of inspirational entertainment, plus a free community dinner. Union Project, Highland Park. 412-363-4550 x. 26 Jan. 25-27. Pirates Fest. David L. Lawrence Convention Center. 1-800-BUY-BUCS Jan. 25-27 and Feb. 1-3. Pittsburgh Boat Show. David L. Lawrence Convention Center. 412-798-8858 Feb. 22-24.…
The Savages
Director Tamara Jenkins examines dysfunctional adult children.
DJ Cutups digs the diverse descendents of drum ‘n’ bass
“It comes down to, ‘I want to hear some really crazy sounds on a very loud system.'”
Winter Guide Photo Search
Here are before-and-after shots of an adorable figurine who spent the day tailgating. Can you spot 10 differences between them? ART MUSEUMS AND GALLERIES Ongoing Canis Major: Andy Warhol’s Dogs and Cats. He loved them; he painted them. The Andy Warhol Museum. 412-237-8300 Jan. 18. Taste Matters. Exhibit of thrift-store art. Future Tenant,…
Scythian blends Eastern European and Celtic folk
“We see our band as being kind of a melting pot of different cultures that have come together from all over the world.”
Going Through the Motions: Jan. 15
As the newest incarnation of Pittsburgh City Council got down to business on Jan. 15, it also received one of its first pieces of legislation — a bill that will test exactly how reform-oriented the new council is. Councilor Bill Peduto, the newly appointed chair of council’s Finance Committee, officially introduced his campaign finance-reform legislation.…
Winter Guide Maze
Can you safely make your evening commute home, without running into kids celebrating school cancellations, Pittsburgh Penguins practicing for future outdoor hockey games, or badly confused bobsled teams? OUTDOORS The Rink at PPG Place. Ice skating Downtown. Through March 7. 412-394-3641 Schenley Park Ice Skating Rink. Jan. 21 is Martin Luther King Day…
Visa Declined
In 2005, when Tawfiq Ali accepted a full scholarship from the government of Saudi Arabia to study at the University of Pittsburgh, he gave up a good job working in the health-care field. But at least, he figured, he would be able to take his family with him while he got his master’s degree in…
The Ravioli Lady
“We figure she’s made over three million ravioli.”
Winter Guide Crossword
ACROSS DOWN 1. Cheerleader’s word 1. Aussie Crowe, to friends 4. Navig. device 2. Secy., perhaps 7. Grp. behind 2007’s “Attack Decay Sustain Release” 3. Playwright of “The Vertical Hour” (produced by Playhouse REP in February) 10. Nation south of Can. 4. Quit the band (2 wds.) 11. Olive, e.g. 5. August Wilson play…
The Vagina Monologues
I’m a bit worried — when you’re as twisted as I am and find yourself reviewing a show called The Vagina Monologues, you realize that the potential for truly tasteless jokes is staggering. Let’s proceed and find out just how raised my consciousness really is. Playwright Eve Ensler made her reputation with this piece. Traveling…
A Cup of Russian Tea
A poem by Annette Dietz
Winter Guide Mix & Match
The Oscar season is more-or-less wrapped up, as evidenced by the line-up of low-thought films set for release over the next few weeks. Match the upcoming movie with its silly premise. Things Aren’t Quite Normal Here … 1. A bitchy ghostly thing tries to break up a relationship. A. The Spiderwick Chronicles 2. A mean…
Menopause: The Musical
The cast milks every word, every gesture, every movement, all of which the opening-night Byham audience eagerly lapped up.
The new Billy Conn biography Sweet William tells the rousing story of the real “Pittsburgh Kid.”
Unapologetic, fearless and uncompromising: That’s the Billy Conn, and that’s the city of Pittsburgh, that O’Toole portrays in Sweet William.
Winter Guide MadLib
Instructions: One player solicits the blank words (verb, name of car, etc.) from the other players, and fills in the diary. The completed diary is then read back. MY WINTER CONCERT DIARY Instructions: One player solicits the blank words (verb, name of car, etc.) from the other players, and fills in the diary.…
Kings
Former pals have re-united to finally send one of the gang back to Ireland — in a casket. The wake, replete with recriminations, secrets and an insight or two, is well-acted, if familiar turf. In Kings’ more insightful moments, many of them throwaways, Collins depicts the collapse of Irish immigrant communities, which leaves these men…
Education: Pay Site
The amount of money teachers make is a public record, but the pay of city teachers has never been this public before.
