Stargazer
For All Signs Mercury, the planetary ruler of communications, day-to-day business, errands and schedules, will turn direct on October 5. Be prepared for a flurry of calendar changes and double-check messages for errors. Ideas or plans generated during the past four weeks are likely to undergo revision or be scrapped altogether. As Mercury changes direction,…
Secondhand Heaven
“Do you have directions?”my husband Alan asked as we headed for the car, en route to my Day Trip assignment. One week earlier, I had sent out a broadcast e-mail, asking my friends to recommend cool/freaky places for this story, informing them that the CL editors would make the final call. I got some terrific…
African-American Art Stars
By title alone, Narratives of African American Art and Identity: The David C. Driskell Collection, promises a show that will tell a few tales. If the title seems to say a lot, so does a compilation of works from the collection: pieces by Elizabeth Catlett, Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence, William H. Johnson and others. The…
Fuzzy Science
A story in the New York Times refueled the long-running debate over whether terrorists could in fact cause the meltdown of a nuclear reactor or the spent fuel pools at nuclear plants by crashing a plane into them. In its September 19 article, the Times reported that 19 prominent nuclear experts had concluded that a…
Sophomore Plunge
Zadie Smith scorched the literary world two years ago with her debut novel, White Teeth. In her mid-20s, of mixed race and hailing from northwest London, the young author won kudos here and in Britain. Invariably, Smith and her novel were described as dazzling, beguiling and inventive. She became a celebrity, said some mildly outrageous…
Along Came Jones
Several parents who filed complaints against Judge Bill Jones with the North Carolina Judicial Standards Commission two years ago say they were shocked to learn that Jones recently returned to the bench as an emergency judge. Jones, who retired from the bench last October, was appointed by Governor Mike Easley to serve as an emergency…
Freeze-Frame
At Louisville’s famed Humana Play Festival, groups of American playwrights are often invited to contribute short pieces on the pre-selected theme. For the 2001 festival, playwrights were turned loose on heaven and hell in the spirit of Dante’s Divine Comedy. This year, 16 playwrights riffed on the theme of Mt. Rushmore.Snapshot, Warehouse Theatre’s inaugural presentation…
Gut Check Time For Corporate America
So Jack Welch, the former head honcho of General Electric, has decided that the company’s shareholders should no longer have to foot the bill for most of the pricey perks bestowed on him as part of his ultra-cushy retirement package. Welch’s gravy train into the sunset includes an $80,000-a-month Central Park apartment, lifetime use of…
Arts Agenda
Classical Music Charlotte Symphony Performs Mahler’s Third Symphony Featuring contralto, Renee Morloc, women of the Oratio Singers of Charlotte and members of the Charlotte Children’s Choir. Oct. 11-12, 8 p.m. $12-60. Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, 130 N. Tryon St. 704-972-2000. Chestnut Brass Presented by Friends of Music. Sat., Oct. 5, 8:15 p.m. Dana Auditorium, Queens…
Bang A Chong
Last Friday night, a legend was in town. Tommy Chong, late of the best-selling comedy duo Cheech and Chong and currently on hiatus from a guest star role on That 70s Show, is to pot smokers what Babe Ruth is to fans of gluttonous sluggers. In fact, Chong might be the celebrity dope smoker, at…
Sake To You
Quick — name five white wines. Okay, you might list chardonnay and sauvignon blanc. Maybe you chose the exotic viognier or a pinot grigio. But what about a wine not made from grapes? Technically, wine is the alcoholic drink made by fermenting fruits or berries. So is a wine not made from fruit and berries…
As The Morning Turned
An overcast morning is a good thing for television people, especially if you’re shooting outdoors. The light is soft, you only need a few Kliegs here and there, and no worrying about squinting from the people you’re shooting who are going to be on TV. And so it went September 24 outside the J. Murrey…
Corn, The Wonder Plant
As a cook and culinary historian, I have often found the multifunctional uses of food interesting. Take corn, for example. Besides it obviously being a vegetable and grain (botanically speaking it’s actually a type of grass), it also produces cooking oil and a myriad of sweeteners, mainly corn syrup, and its natural starch is refined…
LettersTo The Editor
FREE ANALYSIS I have really enjoyed Elizabeth Chapel’s column as a diversion from the usual CL fare. I find it amusing and it provides an interesting commentary on a social scene I never encounter. Elizabeth, I may be wrong, but you seem to have a great deal of unresolved anger and resentment toward men. You…
The Wine List
ARTHUR’S WINE CLASSES 4400 Sharon Rd. This two-session course taught by Jimmy Bookout of Sante Distributing will explore Spanish wines. Light snacks and bread will be served. October 2 & 9 from 6:30-8pm. $39 per person. Call 704-366-8610. CAROLINA WINE CLUB Evening classes run from 6:30-8pm. All classes are held at the Mint Museum of…
Legislating In The Dark
Like everyone else in North Carolina, freshman state legislator Jeff Barnhart had heard that the state was in a budget crisis. He wanted to believe it, but one thing stood in his way. He’d never actually seen a detailed copy of the state budget he had voted to approve. Like so many state legislators before…
Good Eats
All Around TownAnntony’s Caribbean, 400 S. Tryon St., 704-339-0303; 2001 E. 7th, 704-342-0749. All locations have different owners. A hint of the tropics; rotisserie chicken with Jamaican jerk sauce, ribs, Paradise Island fish special, curries, and Caribbean styled greens. $$ Brixx Wood-Fired Pizza, 801 Scott Avenue, 704-376-1000; 225 E. 6th Street, 704-347-2749; 16915 Birkdale Commons…
Iraq ‘Em Up
It’s part of human nature to assign blame for situations gone wrong. Instinct seems to cause us to look around for the most convenient scapegoat for any given crime; it makes us feel better to have someone to hate. There aren’t many worse “situations gone wrong” than the terrorist attacks of September 11 last year.…
Elf Confidence
If you’ve heard of the Elephant Six collective, skip down a couple of paragraphs. If you haven’t, stay right here. The Elephant Six, known by fans as The Six or E6, is a sort-of record label imprint. It’s also a tape-trading community, a business plan, and a social construct of sorts. The E6 contains, in…
The Blotter
Now That’s an Entrance: Deciding against the conventional way of robbing a convenience store, one thief opted for a more creative approach. Instead of coming into the store through the door, this petty thief smashed one of the large side windows and climbed through the shards. After his award-winning entrance, the thief grabbed 100 packs…
They’re Here
Charlotte has recently become home to Entourage Music, a public relations, booking and event promotion company which is owned and operated by Erin Sellers and Melissa Morgan Crosby. Currently, the ladies have five acts on their roster: Mandorico, Part Time Heroes, Sugardaddy Superstar, A New Way Home and tentilfour. This week they’re in the midst…
News of the Weird
Magic stick: September reports in the New York Post and the Toronto Star, quoting parents’ website “reviews” of the Mattel $19.99 Nimbus 2000 plastic-replica broomstick from the latest Harry Potter movie, highlighted its battery-powered special effect: vibration. Wrote a Texas mother: “I was surprised at how long (my daughter and her friends) can just sit…
Music Menu
WEDNESDAY 10.2 Asteroid No. 4 — This cosmic oddity is a nice new find. They began their career with swaths of psychedelic musings quite apparent on the debut recording as well as contributions to compilations. Now the Philadelphia outfit has changed directions and is aiming toward American roots. The full sound twang is the keyword,…
Soundboard
Wednesday, Oct. 2 Cajun Queen 7th Street Gator Band Cajun Queen, Pineville 7th Street Gator Band II Charleston Chops, Cornelius Kent Steel * Double Door Inn Drunk Stuntmen * The Evening Muse Rachel Gaudry CD Release Party w/ Rachel Cross & Kim Buchanan * Fat City The Sights & Asteroid No. 4 Graduate, Lake Norman…
See & Do
OCTOBER 2-WEDNESDAYFor the eighth consecutive year, OutCharlotte will host its Annual Cultural Festival today through October 6. The festival is an excellent opportunity not only for the organization, but also for the gay community as a whole to shine a positive light on their contributions to culture via arts, entertainment and learning opportunities. Highlights of…
A Fine Vintage
Back in 1989, a film fan couldn’t turn around without getting smacked by an article trumpeting that it was the 50th anniversary of the greatest single year in motion picture history. After all, 1939 had produced such enduring classics as Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Stagecoach,…
Broken Up
When I first moved to Charlotte about seven years ago, I had two gay men as roommates. I think that’s the only reason my very conservative father tolerated such an arrangement. At that time in my life, I had my share of going through the gay club scene, private parties, tea parties, drag shows, AIDS…
Film Clips
NEW RELEASES THE TUXEDO The best special effect in a Jackie Chan movie is always Chan himself, which makes the affable performer’s latest American vehicle an especially ill- fitting and ill-conceived affair. Chan stars as Jimmy Tong, a bumbling, insecure chauffeur who works for a James Bond-like secret agent named Clark Devlin (Jason Isaacs). After…
Karma Cleanser
Dear Karma Cleanser: I married a man while pregnant hormones were raging through my bloodstream, obviously clouding my better judgment. Now I say, “What was I thinking?” The problem here is that not only is he a rotten husband and terrible father but a dirty, messy, louse! I work full time and take care of…
Family Values
* Names and other identifying information about this couple and the child they are raising have been changed. Rory and Frank* had a fairytale meeting in New York City, at a gay bar Rory’s mother had dragged him to because it was across the street from their hotel. When Frank left his F.A.O. Schwartz bag…
