The Tortoise
Name of Kama Sutra Position: The Tortoise Getting into the position: The woman and man sit face to face. The manÕs toes should be caressing his partnerÕs nipples (yes, you read this right). Her feet are firmly pressed against his heart as they make love holding onto each other’s hands. On a scale of 1…
Bugsy, Forbidden Planet among latest reviews
BUGSY (1991). Warren Beatty delivers one of his best performances in this slick saga about notorious gangster Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel. James Toback’s script often views Bugsy as an overgrown kid, dogged by one fatal flaw (his temper) but also blessed with some endearing social traits and a lively imagination, the latter leading to his creation…
Home for the Holidays
Scan the local concert calendar for the next couple of weeks, and you should notice a trend: ‘Tis the season to reunite. Three local bands defunct or on open-ended hiatus — the Goldenrods, Misguided Youth and Muscadine — are getting together to relive their glory days and see if they still remember how to play…
News of the Vine
Corkscrew
Michael Kitchen
Profile
Cutest Candy Cane Lane Crib
Kitchen Witch
Tikka Me Elmo
When Sangeeta Yadav started catering Indian weddings in Charlotte 10 years ago, she handled only two events. These days she provides dishes for 10 to 15 events each year and works in Charlotte’s more prestigious hotel venues. The no-expense barred, lavish spread of Indian wedding feasts are legendary, and being able to fulfill the culinary…
The Emperor’s Brand New Bag
The year 2006 has been all about user-generated content dominating the zeitgeist via MySpace and YouTube. However, if this technology has equalized the playing field between the majors and the masses, and physical recordings continue to disappear, it has not wholly eliminated the Romantic myth of the artist as hero. Or, antihero as the case…
Treacle or Claymation?
If you’re unfamiliar with the milquetoast vocal stylings of Clay Aiken, then I envy the sound-proofed cave you’ve been living in for the past three years. Even those über-hip underground music aficionados who successfully manage to immerse themselves in artists who are destined for a career in lawn care cannot have entirely avoided the crooning…
Dreaming of a Beige Chrismukkah
“It’s Christmas time, in Hollis, Queens — Mom’s cooking chicken and collard greens.” — Traditional Last week I was listening to the Klezmonauts’ “Oy to the World” and thinking about how much I was looking forward to the Chrismukkah episode of The O.C. Not only has the show rebounded from its dismal third season by…
Stocking Stuffers
Jennifer Hudson couldn’t even make it to the top on American Idol, so what could she possibly bring to the big screen? If Dreamgirls (*** out of four) is any indication, plenty. Delivering a knockout performance that all but dares the Academy to ignore her for a Best Supporting Actress nomination, Hudson is a revelation…
Karma Cleanser
Dear Karma Cleanser: My friend was incarcerated for two days recently after he got into a fight in a bar. I called him on the day I heard the news, but he didn’t get back to me until a couple of weeks later to tell me what happened. Meanwhile, the gossip had already gotten around…
Imagine All the Artists
Imagine a talented circle of actors, dancers, musicians, painters, sculptors and filmmakers, getting together to bridge the borderlines between their art forms — and creating new, vibrant, spontaneous work in the process. We’ll need to imagine it now that Moving Poets have staged their final Charlotte-based production and moved on. They gathered their talents –…
Letters to the Editor
Phone Fun We received a pair of, um, interesting voice messages regarding Matt Brunson’s positive review of the Dixie Chicks documentary, Shut Up & Sing (“Let Freedom Sing,” Dec. 6). Both were delivered in Southern accents so thick, they almost qualified as foreign languages. “Tell Matt Brunson that I would understand his review if (incoherent…
Not In My Family
We were fast friends, Terrence and I. A perfect fit: he was outgoing with enough feminine brashness for the both of us, while I was the sarcastic tomboy who didn’t quite know what I had to offer. Over the course of the next few years, he became one of my best friends. I don’t even…
Word of the week
Shanghai: v. To enroll or obtain a sailor for the crew of a ship by unscrupulous means, as by force or the use of liquor or drugs. Example? “By hook or by crook I will get that rascal Hamilton aboard the S.S. Greenlander,” grumbled the perfidious Captain, not a stranger to shanghaiing unsuspecting masons, should…
Talking ‘Ish’ With…
Talking Ish
A Kwanzaa Garden Party
This year, in addition to the joy brought to the world and our hearts as we celebrate the birth of Christ with gift-giving and feasting, take a little time to honor the a holiday born right here in the US of A. Kwanzaa, a week-long secular holiday honoring African-American heritage, was created by Ron Karenga…
Last Minute Mysteries
Book Review
Film Clips
Current Releases APOCALYPTO Mel Gibson may or may not be a sorry excuse for a person, but as has been the case since the first brutish caveman painted a beautiful mural on the cavern wall, it’s as important as ever to separate the individual from his artistry. And for the first half of Apocalypto, it…
See & Do List
Wednesday, December 20 A new exhibit at the Levine Museum for the New South is sure to spark conversation. “Families of Abraham” explores commonalities and distinctions between three major faiths — Christianity, Judaism and Islam ˆ that claim Abraham as a spiritual ancestor. This photographic narrative follows the daily life and religious practices of 11…
Happy Trashmas
Crash bonsai? Twisted. Funny money? Right on. Micropirate radio? Love it. Ancient history? Educational. Atheism? Hell, who needs imaginary friends anyway? Happy Trashmas! Crash Bonsai www.crashbonsai.com Deception Dollar www.deceptiondollar.com Broadcast Your Podcast www.broadcastyourpodcast.com The Museum of Jurassic Technology www.mjt.org Say No to God www.saynotogod.org
Eric Quincy Tate
Which one’s Eric? None of ’em, actually. As outlined in the expanded reissue of 1971’s Eric Quincy Tate (Rhino Handmade), this southern-rockin’, soul-shoutin’ Texas quartet — guitarist Tommy Carlisle, drummer Donnie McCormick, bassist David Cantonwine, keyboardsman Joe Rogers — drew its name from three disparate sources: Eric Burdon, a group fave; Quincy, Mass., a town…
Ask the Editor
Q: So how do you feel about sausages? A: I love sausages. Err … that is … I’m talking about the edible type. Uh … I mean … I’m referring to the ones made out of pork. Well, what I’m trying to say is … oh, get your mind out of the gutter! Anyway, all…
Rock ‘n’ Roll Nativity
Boomer With Attitude
Toubab Krewe:
What do you call an Asheville musician in Mali? “Toubab” works for most folks in that region. Loosely translated it means “Hey foreigner” — or in this case, “Hey American.” But for the foreigners from Asheville visiting Mali to study that country’s music, it didn’t feel like a derogatory term. “In some ways we are…
Why are Iraq’s Kurds upset with the Iraq Study Group report? Part II
Last week, I wrote about particular preeminent peeps profoundly peeved with the Iraq Study Group report. I also bought a new thesaurus. Chief among the peeved are Iraq’s Kurds. On Dec. 10, Iraq’s president, Jalal Talabani (a Kurd), told British newspaper the Guardian that the ISG report’s recommendations are “dead in the water.” The American…
Garin Hyde’s Top Five
Culture Surfing
The Blotter
Grand Theft Sex: The sex wasn’t good enough for a local woman. Her partner reported that after doing the nasty his lady friend left and stole his car. Canadian Deceit: It was a 37-year-old woman’s lucky day, or so she thought: She was notified by mail that she won a Canadian lottery jackpot of $45,000.…
Dead by February
Moodswing
Cheap Thrills
SALSA NIGHTS Be Shakira for a night and prove that your “Hips Don’t Lie” at the free Latin-style dance lessons offered at the Loft, 1526 Elizabeth Ave. Learn salsa, merengue, bachata and more. Touting “celebrity instructors,” this joint gets hips swiveling every Wednesday night at 8 p.m. Hit www.hispanos-usa.com or call 704-333-5898. TANGO & TAPAS…
The Last of the Titans
Citizen Servatius
Dec. 20 — Dec. 26, 2006
Capricorn The Goat: (Dec. 21 — Jan. 19) The season’s holidays are not usually about career, but this year may be different for the Goats. A favorable business deal, agreement or contract may be in the works in the background, even as you celebrate in the foreground. It is possible a Sagittarius or a Scorpio…
Prescription for Pain
Before you have surgery or select a doctor, you better take a look at court files and the North Carolina Medical Board’s Web site, www.ncmedboard.org. As you can see from these recent disciplinary actions, the board’s decisions make for some interesting reading: Dennis Eugene Bullard: While stating that the Raleigh doc “has a long record…
Celebrity sex crave in the age of AIDS
Reprinted with permission from Not in My Family: AIDS in the African-Amrican Community (Agate), © Copyright 2006 by Omar Tyree. In 1994, I read a fascinating article by the great writer Norman Mailer in Esquire. The piece was on the sex, fortune, and fame of the one-and-only superstar diva Madonna. Her career as a superstar…
