Happenings the week of Nov. 12, 2013
A Fresh Take: William S. and Ann Atherton Art of the American West Gallery, showcasing the Museum’s permanent art collection in 10 newly reinstalled exhibition spaces. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, 1700 N.E. 63rd, 478-2250, nationalcowboymuseum.org. Allan Houser and His Students, in celebration of his 100th birthday, this exhibit features works of Allan Houser…
Questionably Fabulous
Oklahoma House Rep. Dan Fisher (R-Yukon) wants to block the comedy from being presented Dec. 5-22 at CitySpace Theatre, a spot that seats less than 100 in the basement of Civic Center Music Hall. Described as an alternative to Oklahoma City’s usual holiday-themed productions, Fabulous’ first half spoofs some of the Old Testament’s major stories,…
Desk set
Born at a picnic table, the biannual magazine will showcase regional artists on an international stage, said Louisa McCune-Elmore, editor and Kirkpatrick Foundation executive director. “The magazine, at its core, is devoted to the contemporary arts and bringing those arts and the attitude that’s inherent to that world to new and developed audiences in Oklahoma,…
Fired up
Fire is a deadly mistress. The same flames that give warmth and comfort often can cause destruction and death. As a former firefighter, Rory McCallister went through the inferno and back for more than 30 years, but he has now found a more artistic way to tame the flames: the art of glassblowing. While he…
LIFE
Oklahoma City University’s production of Street Scene — a Tony award-winning opera written by Kurt Weill — features a cast of 40 singers and a score performed by OCU’s Oklahoma Opera Orchestra. The American classic follows the lives of a Manhattan family in the 1940s. The production runs at 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 3 p.m.…
Holiday EVENTS
Downtown in December, presented by Devon, is a series of holiday events and attractions in the heart of Oklahoma City starting Nov. 15. It’s a one-ofa-kind winter experience that features thrilling outdoor ice skating, snow tube rides down a 150-foot slope, afternoon visits with Santa Claus, a festive 5K run, free water taxi excursions, and…
Designer genes
James Bidlack Photo: Shannon Cornman Two Edmond men recently created The Genome Registry, and people now can do just that. It launched in September with the work of a University of Central Oklahoma (UCO) professor and a local entrepreneur. Oklahoma City businessman Hal Stevens came up with the naming concept way back in 2001, but…
Fabric of society
It allows Americans who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender to access critical legal and financial information from professionals. Its website, livewoven.com, has educational content. Visitors can watch a video or read an article to learn how they can live their true lives amid the quagmire of complex and competing state and federal laws.…
Steampunk is fun again
Everyone has that one friend or relative who is a little nerdy and difficult to shop for. You know, that cousin who is obsessed with comic books and wants to spend hours arguing over whether or not Marvel is still relevant after the horrible, strange decisions they’ve made lately … but I digress. Take a…
OKG7 vegetarian eats
Iguana Mexican Grill 9 NW Ninth St. iguanamexicangrill.com 606-7172 Iguana has plenty of vegetarian options nestled within its menu, and they can make any dish vegetarian. Try the vegetarian nachos with red rice, white beans, vegetables, cheese, guacamole and pico de gallo. Vegetable tacos and fajitas are always a hit, or go with the popular…
FOOD
Heart to Art, enjoy food and drink at your favorite restaurants while creating your very own piece of art, 6 -9 p.m., Nov. 13. Caffe’ Pranzo, 9622 N. May, 755-3577, hearttoartok.com. WED Paint N’ Cheers, creative social art classes, 6:30 p.m., Nov. 13–17, 20. Paint N Cheers, 1614 N. Gatewood. 524- 4155, paintncheers.com. WED–SUN, WED…
LIFE FOOD & DRINK
LIFE FOOD & DRINK The Edmond Historical Society & Museum celebrates its 30th anniversary with Wine through Time, a fundraiser featuring silent and live auctions, 16 wines to sample and gourmet tastings from area restaurants. Proceeds benefit the museum’s educational programs. The program is 6-8:30 p.m. at the Edmond Historical Society & Museum, 431 S.…
Food, service
Above, from left: Kurt Fleischfresser, David Egan and Wayne Hirst present the Leadership Industry Award to Egan. Hirst has cancer, said his daughter, Kari Starkey, at an interview before the Nov. 4 awards ceremony at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. “He looks so healthy on the outside,” she said with tears in her…
Truckin’
Mark Hancock It could have ended there — but Lorne was pretty good at making pizza, and when friends and family came over, they’d all ask when he was going to open his own restaurant. “No thanks,” the Halls said. But in 2012, Lorne was in Baton Rouge when he saw a wood-fired pizza oven…
Lucky VII
Shannon Cornman Let’s just get the big question out of the way first. It’s pronounced “Seven.” It’s VII Asian Bistro. And its fare is tempting and unique. I wish I could claim to be an expert in all things Vietnamese. For one thing, I could probably get a pretty sweet job teaching the language and…
Love ya, too, Eddie Vedder
He knows Chesapeake Energy Arena is a Ticketmaster venue, right? Nevermind that, we guess. The … show … sold out. Didn’t it? However, we did get tickets for sale on Ticketmaster for $64-ish. Plus fees. So, $80-plus. But we digress. What’s disturbing is that on the band’s tour, even as a joke, Vedder, eh, kids…
NEWS OF THE WEIRD
Cultural diversity — “For Japanese boys, the train driver sits alongside footballer, doctor and policeman as a dream job,” according to a September Agence France-Presse dispatch, and consequently, the system for the Tokyo metro area (covering 35 million people) runs with the “precision of a finely crafted Swiss watch,” where delays, even for as long…
Hmm … more corporate tax breaks?
The Sooner state is at No. 36, which means only 14 other states impose overall tax structures that are more burdensome. The ranking was unchanged from the 2013 report. However, there was good news. Property tax collections averaged $642 per person, the fourth lowest nationally. Meanwhile, the state’s income tax system consists of seven brackets…
We’re no. 10!
Yes, you guessed it. Oklahoma is the 10th most dangerous place to live in the nation. Is it time to party or what? FBI stats show 469.3 violent crimes were committed in 2012 for every 100,000 Oklahoma residents. That doesn’t include the 3,401 property crimes per 100,000 residents. But there’s more: Aggravated assaults statewide jumped…
Criminals now stealing from children, too
A nationwide scheme propagated by prison inmates resulted in at least 438 federal tax return checks issued, with possibly fraudulent refund proceeds totaling $1,828,084 in Oklahoma alone, according to The Oklahoman. State officials estimate that overall statewide fraud totals may top $4 million. So far, how the prisoners are filing the fraudulent returns is unknown.…
Taxing debate
House Bill 1875 likely will be heard in the early part of the 2014 legislative session, which begins Feb. 2. The bill is one of four legislative priorities the Oklahoma City Council will push forward next year. The council’s state and federal legislative agendas were approved at the Nov. 5 council meeting. The priorities were…
Sex offenders are now less offender-y?
In 2007, the Oklahoma Legislature passed a new measure that created a three-tiered risk assessment level. That law requires sex offenders to be placed on the registry for 15 years, 25 years or life, depending on their assessment levels. The problem focuses on offenders who had been convicted, sentenced and placed on the registry prior…
Out, ye devils!
Anderson claimed he met a homosexual demon who wanted to buy drugs from him and got a little frisky with him before his outburst. During his tantrum, Anderson allegedly kicked down his front door, threw furniture outside while yelling at police officers, broke windows and challenged officers to a fistfight. He also poured soap and…
Dotted line
Fallin hasn’t directly opposed the initiative petition drive, but she doesn’t plan to endorse it either, according to her spokesman, Alex Weintz. Instead, the governor has commented that money used for storm shelters will reduce funding for other educational needs. “She’s just trying to inject some form of realism here,” Weintz said. However, storm shelter…
LETTERS
A few years ago, there were two bands in the parade (one from Langston University), and it just created excitement. Perhaps you could get high school bands and not charge them to enter the parade. If you can’t do a whole band, maybe a drum line? — Julie Woof Oklahoma City Party foul Now that…
Women need help, not prison
Many factors contribute to the high female incarceration rate. However, the root cause is one that makes for uncomfortable conversation: the fact that women and girls in our state are not treated well. Oklahoma has an inordinate number of girls who suffer abuse and other forms of trauma in childhood and then carry the symptoms…
Get free
Steve McQueen’s emotionally jarring biopic, 12 Years a Slave, depicts slavery in a way that few, if any, have ever dared. BY ZACH HALE Slavery was a dark and shameful time in American history — unequivocally the darkest. Yet while the era has been portrayed on the silver screen in countless films, director Steve McQueen…
LIFE DVD REVIEWS
Neil Jordan dabbled in vampires before, in 1994’s blockbuster Interview with the Vampire. I didn’t think much of it, but Byzantium, virtually unseen on these shores, is lovely. Oh, it’s gory, too, but lovely in that visually sumptuous style for which Jordan is known, making IFC Films’ Blu-ray a feast for the eyes. The film…
Toby Keith — Drinks After Work
I make absolutely no excuses for finding total pleasure in Toby Keith’s take-no-prisoners, buck-the-system, good-time-Charlie tunes. He’s a grown man who sings grown-man songs, and if any proof is needed, I suggest turning up the volume of his new album, Drinks After Work, right from the first track, the sublimely later-era ZZ Top-esque dirt-rocker “Shut…
Fair to Midlake
Sometimes, all it takes for a band to become the next big thing is one little break that will propel them from cult curiosities to mainstream teen-screams. After a decade and a half in the indie scene, Denton, Texas, act Midlake is poised to become the next chart-topping rock crossover with both a new record,…
Green with envy
It has been a long, winding road for country singer Pat Green, which might explain his recent departure off the beaten path. Green got his start playing in the honky-tonks across the Lone Star State while a student at Texas Tech University, eventually receiving the attention of Willie Nelson and, soon after, the figureheads of…
Music Made Me: Chase Kerby
Photo: Doug Schwarz Jeff Buckley, Grace (1994) As cliché as it has become to say that you’re a Buckley fan, I’ll never stop admitting it. This was one of those records I got at the perfect time in my life. His lyrics are poetry, and his melodies are undeniably brilliant. He’s also the one who…
Nu sounds
Photo: Sebastien Paquet Twenty years and 11 albums in, Korn is as loud as ever. Backstage, though, things are much quieter, and the toned-down partying has the metal outfit refocused and rejoined by founding guitarist — and born-again Christian — Brian “Head” Welch after an 8-year absence. “I came back and it’s like old times,…
12 Years a Slave
The film’s discomforting imagery is depicted with shrewd precision and unflinching directness, both pivotal to the potency of the film. But McQueen also proves himself to be a uniquely accomplished storyteller, and the story here is extraordinary. Based on Solomon Northup’s 1853 autobiography of the same name, 12 Years follows a free black man’s sudden…
Girl Most Likely
One of them, Bridesmaids star/scribe Kristen Wiig plays Imogene, a magazine writer in New York City so down over being dumped by her longtime boyfriend that she concocts a faked suicide attempt in order to win him back. Unfortunately, her sitcom premise backfires, forcing her to move in with her estranged mother, Zelda (Annette Bening,…
Black Devil Doll from Hell / Tales from the Quadead Zone
Who’s Chester Novell Turner? He’s a correspondence-course filmmaker who shot two homemade horror opuses at the height of the home-video revolution: 1984’s Black Devil Doll from Hell and 1987’s Tales from the Quadead Zone. Until recently, these ultra-rare, ultra-obscure titles fetched hundreds of dollars on eBay. I might feel sorry for the poor bastards who…
Passion
A remake of the 2010 French film Love Crime, Passion burns in an advertising agency in Germany headed by Christine (Rachel McAdams, To the Wonder), a bratty, manipulative bitch who uses one of her creatives, Isabelle (Noomi Rapace, Prometheus), as a puppet. When Christine takes credit for Isabelle’s idea for a smartphone campaign spot, it…
Lovelace
This approach speaks to the controversy that dogged Lovelace’s later life, in which she denounced porn of all forms, saying that she was coerced by gunpoint and other means into performing oral sex for the cameras of Deep Throat, not to mention dalliances into prostitution. So, no, Lovelace is not the feel-good hit of the…
Bounty Killer
In its post-apocalyptic setting of 2042, what remains of our country is a barren wasteland where death warrants are issued for white-collar criminals (somehow, there are still plenty) and bounty hunters compete madly for them, racking up quite a body count. Speaking of rack, “the greatest killer the world had ever known” happens to be…
No raises?
Oklahoma City Council voted 7-0 last Tuesday to defer potential pay hikes for the trio until Dec. 17, but no reason was given for the delay. City councilmen discussed the issue in executive session, which is not open to the public. Couch, Municipal Counselor Kenneth Jordan and City Auditor Jim Williamson were scheduled to receive…
