LETTERS
The 2004 vote on this issue confirmed Oklahomans’ view that a marriage should be between a man and a woman, but as much as we struggle with the idea of a gay couple being married, we must come to the realization that gay marriage will be legal in all states, maybe quicker than we think.…
Don’t fornicate, gossip or wrestle a bear. Ever
A review of state criminal statutes by Oklahoma Gazette revealed a plethora of laws that were passed in the early 20th century but aren’t as legally relevant as they were more than 100 years ago, said longtime Oklahoma City defense attorney Irven Box. “The majority of laws we have today were written by early legislators…
Technical difficulties
However, the part of the federal system that sends that information has not been completed for all states. Oklahoma, Florida, Texas, Illinois, South Carolina and Arizona are among those still waiting, according to NewsOk.com. “As a result, tens of thousands of applicants have been left in limbo — without coverage that was supposed to begin…
Getting better all the time
Earlier this month, supporters of the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum gathered to kick off the beginning of a five-phase, $7 million renovation project that will provide exhibits and a physical layout to engage new audiences. Yes, nearly 20 years have passed since Timothy McVeigh bombed the OKC federal building and killed 168…
Grumpy old men
During the past several months, Ryan has shown instances of rude behavior during council meetings by interrupting colleagues. His attention has been focused on Ward 2 Councilman Ed Shadid and, in some cases, Ward 4 Councilman Pete White. Shadid, a mayoral candidate, will face incumbent Mick Cornett in the March 4 election. Ryan is part…
Pit Stop
Thursday night at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art represents your second chance to take in Yen Tan’s Pit Stop, in case you missed the microbudgeted drama at last summer’s deadCENTER Film Festival. Yen Tan’s tale is one of two Texans in transition. Gabe (Bill Heck) is a building contractor who still lives with his…
Landmark decision
In an interview with Oklahoma Gazette, the two Tulsa women said they were confident justice would prevail in their case against the state and its voter-approved ban. “We always thought we would win and should win, but this is Oklahoma, and you don’t always win when you should,” Baldwin said. “In our case, the state…
Realizing the dream
King’s speech proposed a vision of equality for all states throughout our country, a vision that we must continue to work toward in Oklahoma. A little more than 50 years have passed since the day King shared his dream with the nation. Each year, we are reminded of that dream with a federally recognized holiday.…
Greasy spoon greatness
Yes, sometimes looks can be deceiving. And sometimes looks are there for a very important reason, as a warning. The key to discerning between the two is in reading the signs. Are the booths and chairs worn down but still clean? Do the waitresses seem harried, as if there is plenty of work to do?…
If we build it …
Convention center exhibit hall space increased 36 percent nationally from 2000 to 2011 while attendance at convention center events fell 1.7 percent during the same time period, according to Heywood Sanders, a professor of public administration at the University of Texas at San Antonio and the nation’s leading expert on convention centers and city planning.…
Playing chicken
Recently, the Oklahoma City Council rejected a proposal that would have allowed any resident to raise six backyard chickens without any special conditions and regardless of lot size. The measure failed 7-2 during the Dec. 31 meeting, with Salyer joining five other councilmen and Mayor Mick Cornett in their opposition. City ordinances currently allow chickens…
Eat, sample, love
The xocolatl (Spanish, from Nahuatl Aztec xocolatl, meaning “bitter water”) was first reserved for priests, nobility and warriors before the popularity spread to the Spaniards and beyond. The world’s infatuation with chocolate continues in Norman at the annual Firehouse Art Center’s Chocolate Festival 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Feb. 1 at the National Center for Employee Development,…
Might pay cuts be in their future?
Among the 250 measures filed for consideration so far are six proposed constitutional amendments that will require a public vote. How does limiting the governor to one term, cutting legislators’ pay in half and the Legislature meeting ever other year instead of every year sound? Would paying legislators less and making them work less get…
Still not a Belieber, er, believer
Our good senator is perhaps a bit of a conspiracy nut when it comes to this issue. It’s no secret he believes climate change is fictional, contrived by mad scientists at the United Nations. So, winter is a prime time for Inhofe to spout off about clandestine operations and the alleged Evil Empire. His proof?…
Faithful friends
It’s heartbreaking to look at their favorite sleeping spot and see it empty or to come home to a house where they’re no longer waiting to pounce as soon as the door opens. It’s a pain that Keri Kernke, manager of Smith & Kernke’s Ever Faithful Pet Funeral Home and Crematory, is all too familiar…
Reject-ed
Nevertheless, Ritter will play a young Mr. Allman in the upcoming biopic Midnight Rider: The Gregg Allman Story. Others cast in the film, which is still in pre-production, include William Hurt as the elder Gregg Allman and Wyatt Russell as a young Duane, Gregg’s older brother. But back to the issue at hand: Oklahoma native…
COVER
Newspaper editors were not exempt from early 20th-century lawmaking efforts. Another 1910 criminal statute tried to prevent the newspapers from publishing rumors and gossip. The misdemeanor kept an editor or owner from publishing “any statement which he has not good reason to believe is true” in order to increase newspaper sales. Strange but true In…
Well done, Jack
Master cutter Jake Phelps saw a unique opportunity to provide something different, so he approached artist and creative director Jerrod Smith of The Society, a community art space founded in 2011, to see how they could combine talents. Smith had spent two years developing the brand for The Society but was intrigued by the idea…
LIFE
Tim Tharp, award-winning author and Oklahoma native, will introduce the University of Central Oklahoma’s screening of the film The Spectacular Now, based on Tharp’s 2008 novel. The screening is part of the university’s Literature in Performance series. The film stars Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley and premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival. The screening…
Sundance kids
Now, Twenter and Robison have the imminent Sundance Film Festival premiere of Rudderless on their minds. “I just got off a juice cleanse to get svelte for the festival,” Twenter said. From their primary script to the to the inciting email from actor/ director William H. Macy, Twenter and Robison’s journey to get the project…
Vangough — Between the Madness
At 12 songs, most clocking in at six minutes or longer, moments of Oklahoma City trio Vangough’s third full-length album are overlong, overwrought and occasionally disjointed from start to end. That said, the pair of cojones Vangough shows through tackling this big, theatrical album worthy of Spinal Tap is praiseworthy in its own right, and…
Awash in sound
Photo: Parker Fitzgerald If Moon Tides, the full-length debut of indie duo Pure Bathing Culture, reads as a breath of fresh air, then Sarah Versprille and Daniel Hindman accomplished what they set out to find for themselves just over two years ago. In 2011, the pair left its cramped digs in the frenzied, urban sprawl…
Twaintastic
Tony and Emmy Award-winning actor Hal Holbrook brings his critically acclaimed one-man show, Mark Twain Tonight!, back to Oklahoma this Friday as part of The University of Central Oklahoma’s Broadway Tonight series. Mark Twain Tonight! grew out of a college project in which Holbrook and his first wife, Ruby, interviewed each other playing notable literary characters, including…
The ‘Hurt’ rapper
Flash back to one year ago, and Jabee — arguably Oklahoma City’s biggest hip-hop artist — was on the verge of calling it a wrap. The perpetually positive emcee found himself forcing smiles. Discouraged by a dip in local support and a Kickstarter campaign that had fallen considerably short of its goal, that fandom was…
Dance, class
The certification comes from American Ballet Theater, the national ballet company based in New York City. The Dance Center will achieve the first level of certification in spring, said Jane Vorburger, the school’s director. “There are three separate levels of certification,” Vorburger said. “Levels primary through three will be complete in March, four and five…
PERFORMING ARTS
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, to obtain his freedom all Pseudolus has to do is win the hand of a beautiful but slow witted courtesan, 8 p.m., Jan. 23-25; 2:30 p.m., Jan. 26. Jewel Box Theatre, 3700 N. Walker, 521-1786, jewelboxtheatre. org. THU–SUN MLK Gospel Fest, various community and college…
Shining through
Painter David Holland never truly appreciated the beauty of a thunderstorm until he was driving in the middle of one back in the mid-’90s. Holland, an Oklahoma City-based artist, was heading south on I-35 from a Ponca City arts festival. As the Technicolor hues of the sky grew darker and more ominous at highway speeds,…
The space between
Kyle Golding The new show at Mainsite Contemporary Art in Norman, Balance, strives to illustrate the line that separates what falls into a category of either fine art or design but finds that line to be arbitrary at best. The show was created by Narciso Argüelles, a California native artist who has been in Oklahoma…
Wine and fine
Twenty-five years later, LaVeryl Lower, The Metro’s owner, finally owns the building. The sale of the 22,000-square-foot facility was completed in time for a New Year’s celebration. Lower partnered with Ken Howell, co-owner of the Howell Gallery in the same facility, to purchase the building. The Metro has always been located at 6418 N. Western…
OKG7 Eat: Fish dishes
Gary Dale’s 9201 SE 29th St., Midwest City 733-1616 When it comes to barbecue in Midwest City, usually the first name on the sauce-stained lips of locals is Gary Dale’s. But man cannot live on ribs and brisket alone. Gary Dale’s gets this and, as a respite, sets Tuesdays from 5-9 p.m. aside for its…
FOOD
Heart to Art, classes for the masses, no talent required, 6 p.m., Jan. 22. The Paramount OKC, 701 W. Sheridan,517-0787, theparamountokc.com. WED Pinot’s Palette, sip on your favorite beverage while painting your very own masterpiece, 7-9 p.m., Jan. 22-23; 7-10 p.m., Jan. 25; 2-4 p.m., Jan. 26. Pinot’s Palette, 115 E. California, 602-3850, pinotspalette.com. WED–THU,…
LIFE FOOD & DRINK
LIFE FOOD & DRINK The 12th Annual Snowflake Gala will celebrate the United Way of Central Oklahoma’s 2013 fundraising efforts. The event will honor the most outstanding volunteers in the community and will provide dinner, award presentations and entertainment. The gala takes place 6:30-9 p.m. Friday at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, 1700…
Carrie / Dario Argento’s Dracula 3D
His split-screen treatment of the senior-prom carnage becomes her condensed Final Destination sequel; his shock ending becomes her anti-bullying message. Pay no mind that the entire story is already that, with outcast Carrie White (Chloë Grace Moretz, Kick-Ass 2) becoming even more of a social punching bag after she mistakes her first menstruation as bleeding…
The Black Water Vampire
You aren’t likely to read a review of The Black Water Vampire that doesn’t reference The Blair Witch Project, and there’s good reason: That 1999 smash’s fingerprints are all over this found-footage effort, to the point that I could show you select stills from both and you wouldn’t be able to tell which belongs to…
Lankford says he wants Coburn’s Senate seat
“After a great deal of thought, prayer and discussion with my family, I feel led to continue my Oklahoma common sense and principled approach to attack the deep problems in the United States Senate,” he said during a press conference Thursday at the Oklahoma History Center. Coburn (R-Oklahoma) has held the Senate seat since 2004,…
test author removal
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DDRC approves Stage Center demolition
It was built in 1970 by renowned architect John Johansen, and opened as the Mummers Theatre. It served as a hub for arts and cultural events over the next decades, but a flood in 2010 forced its closure. With millions of dollars in estimated deferred maintenance and no party with the resources to save it,…
Rewind This!
Josh Johnson’s documentary chronicles the VHS format from birth to death, and those for whom the words on its “Be Kind Rewind” sticker remain a way of life. In 94 minutes, he covers a ton of ground: the Beta vs. VHS showdown, the porn explosion (pun intended), the dawn of sell-through tapes, the lost art…
Die, Monster, Die!
That would be a sinister, humming force that can turn people — Witley’s wife included — into hideous mutant freaks. The special effects are not so special until you get a glimpse of the giant octopus or, better yet, when Witley turns into some sort of glowing metal man. (Again, don’t ask why — this…
