Cat scratch killing
Not only did Ted publicly say he’d be dead or in jail by this time next year if Obama were re-elected, he also said, “We are patriots. We are bravehearts. We need to ride into that battlefield and chop their heads off in November!” Any sane individual knows that this is hyperbole, but my concern…
Dumbing down
Johnson & Johnson’s dental floss now has instructions on the back of its package showing how to properly cut the floss. This illustrates just how dumbed down a major U.S. company thinks the American public has become. The preponderance of your pro- Obama letters in the May 2 Oklahoma Gazette also illustrates this point. —Martin…
Tim & Eric’s Billion Dollar Movie
Of Adult Swim (Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!) and Funny or Die Presents infamy, comedians Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim play themselves. Having just squandered a billion dollars of the Schlaaang Corporation’s money on a feature film that somehow runs all of three minutes and stars a guy who isn’t really Johnny Depp,…
Parker Millsap and Michael Rose — Palisade
Like velvet laid over gravel, Millsap’s voice plays gruff, jagged and unexpectedly smooth at the same time. He captures the essence of Tom Waits’ vocals better than a 19-year-old singer ever should; fans of Closing Time-era Waits will find lots to like here, albeit more countrified. The opening title track saunters with a saucy strut…
Chug along
From The Byrds to The Band, country-inspired folk rock played a huge part in the path Last Train Home has taken since forming in 1997. So did Slayer and Megadeth. For seven years, bandleader Eric Brace was a Washington Post music columnist before quitting to focus on his burgeoning roots-rock outfit. The time he spent…
Walking Tall: The Trilogy
And yet, it’s based on a true American hero. It was a huge box-office hit in 1973, spawning two sequels, a TV series and 2004’s big-screen remake starring Dwayne Johnson that itself spawned two made-for-cable sequels with Kevin Sorbo. So there had to be something to it, right? As Shout! Factory’s new Walking Tall: The…
Redundant or relevant?
The study, presented by ADG, the city’s lead consultant for MAPS 3, was to determine whether Core to Shore is still relevant now that the area has been significantly altered by other projects. Those developments include the Devon tower, renovations of Project 180, Interstate 40 realignment and MAPS 3 projects such as the new convention…
Delicious rivalry
The first thing I think of when people ’round these here parts start talking about “bedlam” is: “Oh, my dear, sweet Flying Spaghetti Monster! Won’t you all shut up about football/ basketball/golf/frolf/track and field/ that game where you try and get a ring over the top of the bottle to win a prize?” The second…
Earthy digs
Brad Gregg They’re pigs, after all, and just don’t know any better. Architecture students at the University of Oklahoma know that the sturdiest houses are made of earth. Five OU students and two professors recently won a $90,000 grant for merging architectural genius with environmental consciousness when they introduced compressed-earth block building technology. The grant…
The Perfect Family
The joke of The Perfect Family, of course, is that no such thing exists. Yet in the film, just as in real life, some people put on airs that suggest otherwise. The situation at the heart of this dramedy — running Friday through Mother’s Day at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art — is timely,…
Hud home
Hudson Moore is something of a young gun on the country circuit. At just 22, he’d seem more at place at college than opening for the likes of Alan Jackson. In truth, he’d be right in the thick of finals if not dropping out to pursue music full-time. “I had these songs that I had…
At the Helm
Bryan Helmer Mark Hancock The 19-year veteran and three-time Calder Cup champion holds American Hockey League records for most points in a career and most games played by a defenseman. Helmer came to the Barons from the Hershey (Penn.) Bears, where he helped that team win back-to-back AHL championships. He said he has been happy…
Rather chilling
Vacationer’s work isn’t so much songs as aural postcards from Mumbai or St. Croix. The relaxing electro is certainly a far cry from the frenetic pop-punk that made mastermind Kenny Vasoli famous with The Starting Line. “I always just want to make the music that makes me excited,” he said. “I’d been getting deeper and…
Keeping CASA
Shannon Cornman Nevertheless, the Court Appointed Special Advocates organization, which helps abused and neglected children, in March received $50,000 in supplemental dollars from the county budget board. Of the eight-member panel, Oklahoma County Commissioner Brian Maughan cast the sole vote against the funding. “I am a strong supporter of CASA,” said Maughan. He paused and…
Down ’bout the crown
Brad Gregg But in the case of Betty Thompson, the reigning Miss Oklahoma, someone literally stole the damn thing. Evidently the jeweled tiara was in the backseat of Thompson’s car while she was moving into a new home in Stillwater. That’s when a thief took off with the crown and two brooches. Thompson said she…
Locked, loaded and legal
Jerome Ersland, before his life sentence for a shooting death Mark Hancock There are nearly 125,000 active concealed-weapons licenses in the state, 24,018 of which were approved last year. Gun legislation is ever-present. The most prominent such bill from the current session would allow people with a concealed weapon license to carry their guns openly.…
Ted, white and blue
Propelled by double entendres and hot guitar licks, Detroit rock institution Ted Nugent’s still cruising on a three-decade schtick worth more than 30 million records sold and 6,000 shows performed. On paper, the Motor City Madman’s career is as mind-boggling as the high-fret theatrics his 63-year-old fingers continue performing. A run from 1975 to 1977…
It’s who you know
Scott Booker and Ben Folds Matt Carney “Brian Eno sent that over for Booker,” assured a tall, bearded man monitoring the space, in which five music industry professionals — whose experience ran the gamut from big-name booking agent to major-scale event production — were in conference with inquisitive students of ACM@UCO, aka the School of…
Prairie potter
With clay, John Frank captured the essence of Oklahoma, producing state-inspired dinnerware sets and trinkets that would gain nationwide recognition for his company, Frankoma Pottery. Now, in tribute to Frank and his work, the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art presents Oklahoma Clay: Frankoma Pottery. The exhibition began April 20 and runs through Sept. 16.…
Alfresco alcohol
If you’ve grown weary of those and the “little four” — Malbec, Pinot Grigio, Riesling and Shiraz — maybe it’s time to indulge your inner wine nerd. Restaurants are incorporating some delicious options by the glass. Best thing? You can enjoy them right on your favorite patio. Ever have a Grenache-Cabernet blend? What about a…
Big ‘Bang’
It’s the greatest show on Earth! Bang Bang Variety Show brings the excitement of Vegas to Oklahoma in an event that promises to be full of nailbiting entertainment meant for the stages of Sin City. Bang Bang began in September 2010 as a small monthly function that gave performers the opportunity to showcase their talents.…
Holy guacamole
Everyone has their go-to Mexican restaurant. As is the case with coffee shops, bars and TV shows, you’ll be hard-pressed to convert true regulars once they’ve settled into their comfortable routine. But against all odds, after hearing from friend after friend about Abel’s Mexican Restaurant, I discovered it was well worth the trip out of…
Rich man, richer man
Brad Gregg Actually, the event won’t be in OKC, but rather in a municipality known for its working-class ethos and demographic diversity. That’s right, he’s headed to Nichols Hills. The private fundraiser is scheduled to be at the home of Continental Resources CEO, Romney supporter and all-around billionaire Harold Hamm. “We invited everybody we knew,…
Reflections of Shadid
Oklahoma City National Memorial The family of two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning foreign correspondent Anthony Shadid will accept the 2012 Reflections of Hope Award at a Thursday luncheon, an honor bestowed annually by the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. Shadid, an Oklahoma City native who died of an asthma attack in February while on assignment in…
OKG7 places to munch with your matriarch
Deep fork Wood Grill & Seafood 5418 N. Western 848-7678 On Sunday, delight in a three-course prix fixe extravaganza ($35). First you’ll have the choice of salad or soup, ranging from greens in a cider-Dijon vinaigrette dressing to tomato-crab bisque. The burgeoning second course boasts options of steak Benedict (Who doesn’t love a hollandaise?), a…
Walk the walk
In fact, OKC fared near the bottom in a walkscore.com ranking poll. Brad Gregg So while there’s a whole lot of moving going on around here, the city’s accessibility for people who want to walk remains dismal. According to a recent article in Slate, those ratings directly correlate with political affiliation. Of the bottom four…
Under pressure
Aubrey McClendon Mark Hancock A steady drip — perhaps more of a constant flow — of negative news stories has rocked the Oklahoma City-based company, starting with revelations published by Reuters on April 18 that McClendon took out $1.1 billion in personal loans over three years. The loans, which were through McClendon-controlled companies, were used…
Drive a car, learn to read
They make our world bright and give us hope for the future. But who is responsible to assure their world is bright and safe? Thank you to the Oklahoma Legislature for funding a high-quality program for all 4-year-olds whose parents choose to give their children the opportunity to attend public school. As a result, Oklahoma…
What the flock?
Brad Gregg That’s the contention, at least, of an animal rights group that has notified Oklahoma County prosecutors of alleged illegal activity related to racing pigeons. Oklahoma City just might be the epicenter of the niche hobby, with the World of Wings Pigeon Center and the American Racing Pigeon Union both based here. PETA —…
Made in the shade
And still others wake up to see a sloth swinging from a vine outside the window. Admittedly, this last group is small in number, but as Erica and Matt Hogan prove, its members are large in ambition. The Hogans live in the Costa Rica rain forest, where it is entirely possible daytime activities will include…
Every Night the Trees Disappear: Werner Herzog and the Making of Heart of Glass
As the subtitle suggests, Greenberg offers a fly-on-the-wall account of celebrated director Werner Herzog shooting his 1976 feature, Heart of Glass. While hardly among the greatest entries on the German filmmaker’s résumé, it’s notable for being the one where he hypnotized most of the cast before shooting every scene. For Herzog, it was merely an…
Archie Meets KISS
But who should follow these beasts from another dimension? Why, Gene Simmons and his bandmates, who proclaim, “We’re gonna rock those monsters back where they came from!!” (Double exclamation points theirs.) Therefore, the excellent title of Archie Meets KISS is fulfilled — certainly the greatest team-up in comics history since 1994’s Archie Meets the Punisher.…
A Bullet for the General
New to Blu-ray from Blue Underground, the 1966 picture begins with a grand set piece in which revolutionaries halt a train via an army captain chained alive to the tracks. The bandits, led by Volonté’s El Chucho, say they only want the rifles and ammo aboard the locomotive, but take plenty of lives, too. It’s…
The Shock Labyrinth
This is surprising, given that the Japanese horror feature was directed by Takashi Shimizu, the guy who birthed The Grudge franchise. Not that he’s an infallible filmmaker by any stretch of the imagination, but Labyrinth finds him revisiting those reliable themes, with the added dimension — literally — of playing in 3-D. (Well Go USA’s…
Strip Strip Hooray!
If you’ve seen one of these black-and-white oddities, you’ve seen them all, whether or not they’re included here. I challenge even the most patient among you to sit through all half-dozen. Even with breaks, I’m not certain it can be done without cracking. Title notwithstanding, striptease is just a part of the proceedings, with pure-vanilla…
Junk it
• East Oak Landfill, 3201 Mosley; • Oklahoma City Landfill, 7001 S. Bryant; • Oklahoma Landfill, 7600 S.W. 15th; and• Northeast Landfill, 2601 N. Midwest Blvd., Spencer (construction and demolition materials only). Residents can drop off one load in a car or truck, up to a 1-ton and one trailer. No commercial waste haulers are…
Haywire
Similarly, he’s now built a movie around MMA fighter Gina Carano. The difference is that Haywire is no throwaway, for-the-fun-of-it flick, but a legitimate art film and literate espionage vehicle. Double-crossed in a Barcelona job, “company” agent Mallory Kane (Carano) finds herself set up — by her boss and lover, no less (Ewan McGregor, Beginners)…
The Avengers
During its two hours and 22 minutes, plenty of time existed for it to grab my attention. That moment never arrived. The major problems, as I see them: • It’s clearly overstuffed. Everyone complained when Batman and Spider-Man sequels stacked three villains against a single superhero. The Avengers gives us one main bad guy (albeit…
The Story of Rock ’n’ Roll Comics
The comics were “unauthorized and proud of it” biographies of famous bands, from KISS to New Kids on the Block, all printed by Todd Loren. They had their followers (Alice Cooper, Mojo Nixon, Cynthia Plaster Caster) and their detractors, resulting in plenty of legal issues (no pun intended). Was Loren, the film asks, a First…
World tour
Adapted from the Jules Verne tale originally published in 1873, Around the World in Eighty Days tells the story of mysterious London aristocrat Phileas Fogg who embarks on a journey with his manservant, Passepartout, to circumnavigate the globe by train and steamer in 80 days as part of a £20,000 wager with other members of…
Godzilla gone!
Well, at least be on the lookout for a 2-foot version of the aforementioned creature. A break-in at New World Comics & Games, 6219 N. Meridian, early this morning resulted in burglars spiriting away with a Godzilla figure that had been atop a display case. “It had a windsock hanging off of it, and I…
