Recurring Themes
News of the Weird first mentioned “Breatharians” in a 1999 report, referring to people who claim to subsist on only water, air and sunlight, even though there is scant proof of their self-denial and utterly no scientific evidence that humans can live beyond a few weeks on such a diet. In June, London’s Daily Mail…
Least Competent People
Twelve hundred troops from Poland were deployed to Afghanistan in June as part of a NATO buildup to patrol the Pakistan border, searching for Taliban forces, but Polish commanders admitted that they would not be combat-ready for several weeks because the keys to all their Humvees had been stolen. One commander said spare keys had…
Now, Which One Is the Brake? (all-new)
Elderly drivers’ recent lapses of concentration, stepping on the gas instead of the brake: An East Meadow, N.Y., man, 91, crashed into his wife (March). A prominent biochemist from the 1940s, age 88, crashed through a wall of the Civic Center in San Rafael, Calif. (June). An 84-year-old woman, playing golf with another woman, accidentally…
Action Comics #851
DC Comics Occasionally, on TV and in movies, 3-D is trotted out as a desperate gimmick to boost ratings or box office. For whatever reason, the effect is always disappointing; the last truly good 3-D seems to have been in Vincent Price’s 1953 classic “House of Wax.” But the comics are another story,…
Ironies
The local government in Dalkeith, Scotland, has decided that, notwithstanding global warming and carbon “footprints,” the lights will stay on all night, every night, in the building that formerly was Dalkeith High School (but which has been vacant since 2004) because councilors fear that trespassers would hurt themselves in the darkness and sue them. A…
The March of Progress
In April, Los Angeles gynecologist David Matlock licensed his 2-year-old G-spot-enhancing technology to 35 other doctors around the country to help spread the benefits of collagen injections that swell the so-called Grafenburg Spot (a supposedly pleasure-registering zone which is, at best, tiny and hidden, but according to some doctors, nonexistent). With the patient’s help, the…
People Different From Us
Chief Deputy Terry Thompson was driving around Rayville, La., in June when he saw several cars stopped for an 8-foot snake in the road, with some motorists threatening to run over it or shoot it so that traffic could pass. Thompson stepped in to save it and then realized that he recognized the snake. It…
Court upholds death sentence
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals upheld the death sentence given to Jimmy Dean Harris for the 1999 murder of Merle Taylor. Harris killed Taylor on the morning of Sept. 1, 1999, when he went to confront his estranged wife, Pam Harris, who worked at Taylor’s AAMCO transmission shop in Oklahoma City. Pam Harris…
Oklahoma River to gain three transportation boats
Former Oklahoma City Mayor Ron Norick announced today three boats will begin cruising the OklahomaRiver later this year. Acting as the chair of the River Trust, Norick’s riverside announcement included Devon Energy’s $2 million commitment to bring three 65-foot-long, 14-foot-wide boats “? which will be called Devon Discoveries — to the OklahomaRiver. Norick…
Man to bite dogs
Oklahoma state Rep. Paul Wesselhöft, R-Moore, said he’ll be introducing legislation again pitting him against his most-disliked dog breed: the pit bull. The legislator’s dogged pursuit has him announcing proposed legislation that would make it r-r-rough on the owners of vicious dogs which bite hard enough to cause injury, according to a release from…
High School Musical: The Concert
2007 First, a test: If you can complete the song lyric which begins “It’s the start”¦,” then odds are someone under the age of 16 lives under your roof, likely addicted to the 2006 Disney Channel movie-cum-zeitgeist phenomenon known as “High School Musical.” Somehow, that little made-for-TV flick has become the tween generation’s “Grease.”…
Enid pastor calls for database of Southern Baptist ministers accused of sex abuse
Southern Baptists meeting in San Antonio, Texas, recently for their annual convention approved a motion made by an Enid pastor that is the first step in creating a database of ministers who are child predators. The June 12 vote in favor was nearly unanimous among the 8,600 messengers present. Burleson’s motion calls on the SBC’s…
NCAA decision means dream season for Oklahoma football team
The New York Daily News called it “a black eye.” The Los Angles Times proclaimed it “one of the most punishing losses.” And USA Today remarked it “added to Oklahoma’s pain.” Those widely read publications were not talking about the Dust Bowl or even Oklahoma County Commissioner Brent Rinehart’s latest online photos. The subject…
The Litigious Society
St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock was killed in an April car crash after he collided with a stopped tow truck on Interstate 64 in the middle of the night, and according to a police report, Hancock was intoxicated, speeding, un-seat-belted, and talking on his cell phone at the time. Nonetheless, in May, Hancock’s father…
Beautification efforts continue along Capitol gateway
At a height of 10 feet, 7 inches, the column on the southwest corner of N.E. 23rd Street and N. Santa Fe Avenue acts as a marker for the Clara Luper Corridor. The monument is part of the N.E. 23rd Street Enhancement Project, under the Oklahoma Transportation Enhancement Program, according to Richard Andrews, assistant division…
OKC Ismaili Muslims celebrate their spiritual leader’s 50th year as imam
On July 11, a small group of Oklahoma City Ismaili Muslims traveled to Dallas and Houston for the 50th anniversary celebration of the Aga Khan. The Aga Khan, Prince Karim al-Hussaini, is imam ” or spiritual leader ” for the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims of the world, and the event was to honor him on…
GRASCAR competitors turn lawn mowers into racing machines
Like Dr. Frankensteins of the garage, several people in El Reno have mutated the lawn mower into a racing machine and put it on a dirt track to see who is top turf. Paul Shepard, president of the El Reno GRASCAR Lawnmower Racing Association, said these races began back in 1998. “Probably just a bunch…
La Vie en Rose
Reviewer’s grade: B Director Olivier Dahan’s biopic of iconic French singer
Carpenter Square to honor local theater vet
Longtime area acting icon Charlie Dickerson has a bundle of entertaining stories, spanning more than 50 years and countries all over the globe. And anyone who ventures out to Carpenter Square Theatre’s annual 10-minute play festival Saturday probably will get to hear a few of them. The event, a fund-raiser for CST, features:” staged readings…
Compelling Explanations
Lame: Jonathan Powell, 17, was convicted in April of sexually assaulting a college student in Iowa City, Iowa, after his DNA was found in several places on her body. Powell explained the DNA by claiming that he had merely bumped into the woman accidentally while jogging and had become so “entangled” with her that he…
Gothic Classics: Graphic Classics Volume Fourteen
Edited by Tom PomplunEureka Productions CliffsNotes, meet your match: A drawing is worth a thousand words “? or at least a couple hundred “? as five classics go graphic in this slim anthology. Inside, readers find a crash course in Gothic Lit 101 “? isolated settings, macabre and mysterious happenings, tremulous heroines “? via J.…
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Reviewer’s grade: B+ The fifth installment of the “Harry Potter” franchise finds Harry and company at a bad moment in their lives: under the threat of a war with evil Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) all while facing pubescent misery and the wizarding equivalent of the SATs. Long gone are the days of blithely flying…
Oklahoma County jail bursting at seams, needs $120 million
The Oklahoma County Jail is where illegal immigrants will be put after November when the new anti-illegal immigration bill, signed this year into law by Gov. Brad Henry, will take effect, if it is enforced. It’s where the mentally ill often end up, now that we have no more long-term mental health institutions. But it’s…
Lawton battles prairie dog population problem
Do not, repeat, do not feed the prairie dogs. The little dickens have long been a part of the landscape of Lawton’s Elmer Thomas Park near downtown, doing what prairie dogs do ” standing watch, scurrying around, eating handouts and making more prairie dogs. According to a recent Oklahoman article, the Lawton City Council…
Alcohol Was Involved
Andres Vasquez, 20, of Verona, Ky., initially told the 911 operator in May that someone had “thrown” his truck on top of him, but he finally admitted he was drunk, had had a one-vehicle accident, was trapped upside-down and was in dire pain, fading in and out for over two hours to the dispatcher. The…
Interpol – Our Love to Admire
Capitol I’m not sure how much cocaine it takes to truly appreciate an Interpol record, but something tells me it takes even more to make one. The latest from the New York City foursome is a definite departure from both “Turn on the Bright Lights” and “Antics.” Having scored a much bigger record…
John Vanderslice – Emerald City
Barsuk John Vanderslice has made another gorgeous, richly textured album that is quirky without being morose or depressing. “EmeraldCity” has scores of instruments moving in and out of the nine-song album. The recording is done so well that you can hear the precious flaws in the piano parts and practically pick out snare…
Broken English
s “Sex and the City” without the frilly cocktails. At its center is a complex and moving performance by Parker Posey, a darling of indie cinema perhaps best known for her work in Christopher Guest’s mockumentaries. Here, she is Nora Wilder, a 30something New Yorker desperate to be loved, yet unable to find a…
Eskimo Joe’s holding week-long birthday party
Eskimo Joe’s is celebrating its 32nd birthday this week with six days of:” live music, ” theme parties, ” giveaways, and ” food and drink specials. Stillwater’s “jumpin’ little juke joint” also will unveil the commemorative edition of its most popular item: the Eskimo Joe’s T-shirt. “Our theme this year is ‘Sweet Home Oklahoma,’ tying…
Smashing Pumpkins – Zeitgeist
Reprise Decide right now, if you haven’t already: Are you a Billy Corgan fan or a Smashing Pumpkins fan? If you are the former, then the latest from the Pumpkins might be right up your alley. It surely sounds better than just about everything else out right now, especially if layer upon layer…
Artists tour OKC for beautification project
For a proposed public art project on N. Lincoln Boulevard next to the Dean A. McGee Eye Institute, the Oklahoma Health Center invited five nationally known artists to tour the area to help spur ideas. Of the 50 artists from the U.S. and Canada who submitted proposals of interest, selected finalists were:” Ray King, “…
Camp teaches rowing to teens
Chesapeake Boathouse’s 2007 Summer Rowing Camp is giving teens 12 to 19 the chance to see if they have a knack for rowing. Coaches put beginners on the Oklahoma River and teach them basic rowing techniques and commands. The one-week camp, Monday through July 27, takes off from the boathouse at 725 S. Lincoln. “Most…
The U.S. vs. John Lennon
2006 More than 35 years have gone by since John Lennon released his classic single “Imagine,” and so it’s easy to forget just how subversive its unabashed idealism really is. In the documentary “The U.S. vs. John Lennon,” filmmakers David Leaf and John Scheinfeld revisit this music icon’s political activism, radical stances that eventually…
United we stand
GREEN MOUNTAIN FALLS, Colo. ” I write from a small cabin perched on the shoulder of Pikes Peak where my family goes in July to pull the plug on the “wired life.” We have no television set (and don’t miss it), no Internet access (and only occasionally miss it), and no urgent business other than…
Captivity
t much worse than this one unless they’re made as the bottom third of a triple feature for drive-ins in the Philippines. Elisha Cuthbert stars as a supermodel who is kidnapped, held captive and tortured before she’s done in by the villain. But let me sum up this way: stinky, crappy, lame, wretched, putrid…
Land of opportunity
I spent some time with a group of college students in a business internship discussing leadership and success. During the question-and-answer session, I got the “can we find a decent career in Oklahoma, or should we move to a bigger city or state?” question. My answer was simple: There are plenty of opportunities here and…
Welcome to the Grindhouse: The Teacher / Pick-up
1974/1975/2007 For those of us too young or too landlocked to have enjoyed the grindhouse experience “? or just too unadventurous to have gone out to see the recent Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez collaboration (and you squares know who you are) “? a new series of DVDs aims to replicate the simple pleasures of a B-movie…
Photo exhibit turns ordinary into extraordinary
Photography has the ability to take the overlooked details of life and make them beautiful in their own uniqueness. Narciso Arg
Literacy council teaches adults how to read
Approximately 137,000 native-English speakers in Oklahoma County are at a basic or below-basic reading level, also known as “nonreaders.” They comprise about 20 percent of Oklahoma County’s population, and many have managed to graduate high school only reading at a second-grade level. “It’s shocking,” said Marion Jowaisas, who has tutored with the Oklahoma City Literacy…
Harry Potter fans go the distance for their fandom
The night before a gal’s wedding might consist of a rowdy bachelorette party. But on the eve of Lindsey Deskin’s wedding, she instead will wait in line with scads of fellow Harry Potter fanatics for the midnight release of the final book, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” The fifth Harry Potter movie, “Harry Potter…
Award-winning Tulsa newspaper cartoonist dies in automobile accident
Oklahoma and the world of cartooning have lost a talented and witty colleague. The Tulsa World’s Doug Marlette, author of the comic strip “Kudzu” and a Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist, died July 10 from an automobile crash in Mississippi. Marlette joined the Tulsa World last year and quickly enamored himself with the world of Oklahoma…
Flaming Lips’ live Zoo show set for DVD
Brad Beesley’s documentary “UFO’s at the Zoo: The Flaming Lips Live in Oklahoma City,” which captured the legendary September 2006 show at the Zoo Amphitheatre, will go on sale Aug. 7. The Zoo show was one of the best Lips performances, said Beesley, who also directed the band’s 2005 documentary “The Fearless Freaks,” and has…
How to Survive a Horror Movie
Seth Grahame-SmithQuirk Books Need “all the skills to dodge the kills”? Look no further than this humorous how-to, purposely severed-tongue-in-cheek, presented as if its reader actually were a stereotype trapped in a horror film “? from the “Slutty Goth Chick” to the “Black Guy Who Buys It 20 Minutes In.” Harassing a hobo or screwing…
Everything OK, says Rocketplane
Despite funding problems and layoffs, Rocketplane Inc. officials continue their reassurance that everything is fine and state officials continue to have confidence in the Oklahoma City-based company. Rocketplane officials failed to meet a funding deadline mandated by a NASA contract to build a reusable rocket, “K-1,” to transport cargo to and from the International Space…
Norman program teaches studio recording to young musicians
In today’s technology-driven world, it’s feasible for young, inexperienced musicians to find ways to get their music to the masses. Kids are so computer savvy that most of them can easily navigate amateur computer recording programs, convert their creations into MP3s, throw them up on the Internet, and voila! But the art of studio recording…
Hush Hush, Commotion turns radio contest victory into album
New bands are born every second, so every little step to set one apart helps. Recently, high-energy modern rockers Hush Hush, Commotion got a big nudge in the right direction. The Oklahoma City five-piece won first place in this year’s KHBZ-FM 94.7 “The Buzz’s” March Bandness Battle of the Bands. The band took the prize…
