Least Competent Criminals
Failure to Keep a Low Profile: Angel DeLeon, 30, admitted to police in May that he was the one who had just robbed the National Penn Bank in Reading, Pa. Police originally started after DeLeon’s car when he raced by them with his radio blaring. Ricky Dale Ford was jailed in September in Conway, Ark.,…
Undignified Deaths
Ironies: A 77-year-old woman in Heaton Mersey, England, who was described by friends as an enthusiastic shopper whose home was crammed to the ceiling with purchases, died in January of natural causes, but rescuers made five passes through the clutter before locating her body under stacks of goods that had fallen on her. A 45-year-old…
Recurring Themes
Britain’s local councils are notoriously fearful of lawsuits arising from the garden “allotments” they rent to residents. For example, in September, the Southampton Council barred residents of recently vandalized property from installing barbed wire, lest a trespasser get hurt and sue. Meanwhile, in Michigan, Scott Zeilinski, who is serving eight years in prison for armed…
Recurring Themes
Britain’s local councils are notoriously fearful of lawsuits arising from the garden “allotments” they rent to residents. For example, in September, the Southampton Council barred residents of recently vandalized property from installing barbed wire, lest a trespasser get hurt and sue. Meanwhile, in Michigan, Scott Zeilinski, who is serving eight years in prison for armed…
The Objective
2009 In the opening scenes of “The Objective,” which follows a unit of American soldiers in Afghanistan, I was reminded of Kathryn Bigelow’s war movie “The Hurt Locker.” But whereas “Locker” is one of the most magnificent films of the year, “Objective” is one of the most “meh.” Following the events of Sept. 11, 2001,…
Undignified Deaths
Ironies: A 77-year-old woman in Heaton Mersey, England, who was described by friends as an enthusiastic shopper whose home was crammed to the ceiling with purchases, died in January of natural causes, but rescuers made five passes through the clutter before locating her body under stacks of goods that had fallen on her. A 45-year-old…
Least Competent Criminals
Failure to Keep a Low Profile: Angel DeLeon, 30, admitted to police in May that he was the one who had just robbed the National Penn Bank in Reading, Pa. Police originally started after DeLeon’s car when he raced by them with his radio blaring. Ricky Dale Ford was jailed in September in Conway, Ark.,…
Bright Ideas
Canadian medical appliance manufacturer X4 Labs, which sells a penis-elongating traction device for around $400, disclosed in August that it is making a solid gold version on contract for a Saudi businessman. The buyer claimed he required gold only because of allergies, but then also ordered it ornamented with diamonds and rubies, according to an…
Fetishes on Parade
In September, police in Bonney Lake, Wash., were seeking “Dale,” who had been reported hanging around the high school, trying to befriend male athletes. In the most recent incident, he lured a boy to the library, offering help on a term paper project, but when the boy declined and walked away, “Dale” jumped on his…
Fetishes on Parade
In September, police in Bonney Lake, Wash., were seeking “Dale,” who had been reported hanging around the high school, trying to befriend male athletes. In the most recent incident, he lured a boy to the library, offering help on a term paper project, but when the boy declined and walked away, “Dale” jumped on his…
Fine Points of the Law
Marine Sgt. Michael Ferschke was killed in Iraq in 2008, but his wife and their son, both Japanese citizens, cannot enter the United States. The couple exchanged vows under Japanese law by long-distance proxy, as Michael was about to deploy, but immigration law does not recognize such unions, unless subsequently “consummated.” (The Ferschkes had conceived…
Fine Points of the Law
Marine Sgt. Michael Ferschke was killed in Iraq in 2008, but his wife and their son, both Japanese citizens, cannot enter the United States. The couple exchanged vows under Japanese law by long-distance proxy, as Michael was about to deploy, but immigration law does not recognize such unions, unless subsequently “consummated.” (The Ferschkes had conceived…
Bright Ideas
Canadian medical appliance manufacturer X4 Labs, which sells a penis-elongating traction device for around $400, disclosed in August that it is making a solid gold version on contract for a Saudi businessman. The buyer claimed he required gold only because of allergies, but then also ordered it ornamented with diamonds and rubies, according to an…
Oklahoma Gazette’s 30 stories that generated most feedback
“The truth about gerbils” By Mike EasterlingNov. 22, 1989 Oklahoma City attorney Eric Groves approached Oklahoma Gazette to debunk a certain unfounded rumor about a TV anchor. Through painstaking research, Groves showed how other public figures had been victimized by the same urban legend as his client. Editor Mike Easterling still received calls from readers…
For Oklahoma fans traveling to Dallas, venue hosts battle of bands
A weekend of football, beer, trash-talking and corn dogs is upon us, as Sooner fans gear up for the OU vs. Texas weekend. But before the celebrated college football game kicks off on Saturday, root for the right side of the Red River at a rock ‘n’ roll rivalry in Dallas. Oklahoma-to-Los Angeles transplants Shiny…
Hoots & Hellmouth continues old-fashioned hootenanny with existential new album
One of Americana’s most endearing attributes is its lack of pretense. At its best, the style evokes a homey, unhurried heartfelt straightforwardness that stands out against an overcomplicated, ever-fluctuating world. IMPETUS ABORTIVE EARLY SESSIONS This sense of ageless honesty percolates through Hoots & Hellmouth, a Philadelphia combo that blends folk, gospel and blues for vibrant,…
The Non tap professor Carl Rath to conduct a 12-piece orchestra
Old growth is scattered across Oklahoma City in the form of empty buildings whose original tenants have moved on, moved out or just ceased to be. COMBINE CULTURES NONSTANDARD As economic interests spread outward from downtown and the entertainment district, creative tactics to further spur urban renewal have emerged, such as the Resound Downtown Music…
Hoots & Hellmouth continues old-fashioned hootenanny with existential new album
One of Americana’s most endearing attributes is its lack of pretense. At its best, the style evokes a homey, unhurried heartfelt straightforwardness that stands out against an overcomplicated, ever-fluctuating world. IMPETUS ABORTIVE EARLY SESSIONS This sense of ageless honesty percolates through Hoots & Hellmouth, a Philadelphia combo that blends folk, gospel and blues for vibrant,…
Tracing the CFN origins
It inevitably comes up when an Oklahoma Gazette staffer is out and about ” interviewing folks, researching sorority houses or off the clock at social functions, family get-togethers or attending Sally Kern’s Bible study group ” someone finds out the newspaper we work for and exclaims, “I love that Chicken Fried News.” The section that…
Star Wars: In Concert’ brings score with traveling museum of movie props, paraphernalia
It’s arguably the most enduring story of the 20th century and the biggest global phenomena since Christianity. The “Star Wars” film franchise has grossed $4.2 billion worldwide, and the merchandising has more than quadrupled that figure to $17.5 billion. The series has been the biggest boys; toy brand for years, and thanks to last year’s…
Star Wars: In Concert’ brings score with traveling museum of movie props, paraphernalia
It’s arguably the most enduring story of the 20th century and the biggest global phenomena since Christianity. The “Star Wars” film franchise has grossed $4.2 billion worldwide, and the merchandising has more than quadrupled that figure to $17.5 billion. The series has been the biggest boys; toy brand for years, and thanks to last year’s…
Gazette at 30
When Oklahoma Gazette’s first issue came off the press in October 1979, Oklahoma City was a much different place than it is now. Much of the ’70s was rough on Oklahoma City. Instead of working on a rational plan of school desegregation, a recalcitrant board of education said “hell no” and got court-ordered busing. Integration…
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Writing in The New Yorker, Adam Gopnik named two characters from literature that well-educated people tend to identify with. “Men choose Hamlet because every man sees himself as a disinherited monarch,” he said, while “women choose Alice [in Wonderland] because every woman sees herself as the only reasonable creature among crazy people who think that…
Like Gazette, trio of other metro businesses opened their doors 30 years ago
It was 1979, a seemingly idyllic year. Movie enthusiasts flocked to theaters to see “Superman” and “Rocky II.” Pop singer Michael Jackson was reaching stardom. “The Love Boat” was becoming a prime-time television favorite. IMMUNO-MYCOLOGICS INC.PERRY PUBLISHING & BROADCASTING CO.FRANK’S TOMATO & BANANA HOUSE And in Oklahoma, a microbiology professor, a media visionary and two…
JRB Art at The Elms highlights four different artists
Halloween favorite at the gallery. He weaves leather with feathers and jewels to create his mysterious masks. For this series, he created his masks to honor the style of other artists. His work has been showcased at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and the Fairtree Gallery of Contemporary Craft in New York…
An Off Year – Claire Zulkey
To start, congrats to another A.V. Club writer getting a book published. First, there was Nathan Rabin, the arts and entertainment Web site’s head writer, and now contributing writer Claire Zulkey. “An Off Year,” Zulkey’s first novel, spends a year with Cecily Powell, the type of kid who’s done everything by the rules. She’s worked…
Couples Retreat
As bad goes, “Couples Retreat” is not aggressively bad. It doesn’t strap on explosives, evade taxes or ply underage girls with champagne and Quaaludes. As far as I know, it doesn’t even litter. It is bad, however, and not just in that comedy-without-laughs way. The transgression extends deeper. It is a waste “? of potentially…
Exhibit highlights struggles of two artists who endured painful childhoods
A pair of creative artists proves there is no age limit or requirement for expensive materials to become a real artist. Barbara Robinette Moss and Kate Rivers are two inspirational women who have focused on painful personal childhood experiences for the sake of art. The Eleanor Kirkpatrick Gallery in the City Arts Center at State Fair…
Questionable Judgments
The cheap-drink Tuesday night special at the Attic bar in Newcastle, England, in early September was a money-back guarantee at the end of the night to anyone who could still legally drive (measured by the bar’s breathalyzer), with the evening’s most-alcohol-saturated customer drinking free the following week. The Newcastle City Council soon convinced the bar…
Thieves crash Oklahoma City poker party
There’s high-stakes poker, then there’s “high-stakes poker.” We’re betting the 22 people robbed at a private poker game a few weeks ago are wishing they’d folded earlier in the night. According to an article on NewsOK.com, an armed robber plus another guy forced their way into a locked room in a Northwest OKC strip mall…
Reduxion Theatre conjures magic with sharply staged production of ‘Antigone’
Reduxion Theatre’s inaugural season saw the company taking on classic plays with strong performances and bold artistic choices, all focused on bringing out the essence of the original texts. With its second-season opening of “Antigone,” Reduxion proves the first season was no fluke. The Greek tragedy by Sophocles tells the story of a young woman…
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
The corny but sometimes useful adages of folk wisdom are still being created afresh in the 21st century. Their breeding ground is no longer the tavern or marketplace, as in centuries past, but rather the Internet. I’ve plucked one of these funky gems out of the ethers for you to contemplate: “Noah’s Ark was built…
Focus on Excellence program delivers money to some care centers, federal deficiencies to others
Everyone agrees the program is worth the money. But not everyone is happy with what is being done with the money. Some state legislators are disgruntled enough they have called for a suspension of the program. EXCEEDING AVERAGES FAVORABLE BILL OF HEALTH OVERALL STATE ALLOCATION Last year, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority began doling out…
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
“There are two rules for ultimate success in life,” wrote L. M. Boyd. “First, never tell everything you know.” While that may be the conventional wisdom about how to build up one’s personal power, I prefer to live by a different principle. Personally, I find that as I divulge everything I know, I keep knowing…
For Oklahoma fans traveling to Dallas, venue hosts battle of bands
A weekend of football, beer, trash-talking and corn dogs is upon us, as Sooner fans gear up for the OU vs. Texas weekend. But before the celebrated college football game kicks off on Saturday, root for the right side of the Red River at a rock ‘n’ roll rivalry in Dallas. Oklahoma-to-Los Angeles transplants Shiny…
Oklahoma man’s candy bar contains surprise ingredient
There’s nothing like a chocolate pick-me-up after a long day of work. That was Reginald Ganther’s line of thinking, at least, according to a report from KOCO-TV. Ganther, working late producing some Christian tunes, took a break with a bite from a Hershey’s almond candy bar. But this particular candy bar had an extra surprise…
OMRF’s lupus registry hopes to unlock a piece of deadly disease’s puzzle
On Sept. 22, 2009, the world bid farewell to Lucy O’Donnell Vodden, the fabled “Lucy” of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” fame. NEVER IDENTICAL GENETIC FACTORS STIMULUS PACKAGE John Lennon’s son Julian drew a picture of her in 1966 that inspired the legendary track from The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album.…
Early Beat – I Need This Beat Right Now
When bands are in sync, productivity flows, and Early Beat has been very productive in its short year and a half of existence. The middle child in a trilogy of albums, “I Need This Beat Right Now” will be officially unveiled Friday at Opolis, 113 N. Crawford in Norman. Fans who picked up the group’s…
Vegas’ flood tunnels
Beneath the luxury hotels on the Las Vegas Strip is a series of flood tunnels that are home to dozens of people who work odd jobs such as hustling leftover change in casino slot machines. A correspondent for London’s The Sun gained the trust of a few and even photographed their “apartments” for a September…
I was a delivery driver for Oklahoma Gazette in the mid-’80s
From 1986 to 1988, northwest Oklahoma City had me to thank for finding an Oklahoma Gazette on area racks “¦ not that it ever did. Yes, before I was managing editor of this very publication, I was one of its delivery drivers! LOW-TECH DAYS QUICK WITH THE SCISSORS It was my first paycheck job, and…
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
Were you ever a tiger in one of your past lives? If so, this would be an excellent time to tap into that power. If you have never lived the life of a tiger, would you be willing to imagine that you did? During the coming week’s challenges, you will really benefit from being able…
Instead of Whole Foods, could OKC put together a public market?
Having a Whole Foods Market in downtown Oklahoma City would be nice. But some say a long-anticipated arrival of the trendy food outlet doesn’t completely answer downtown’s need for retail geared both toward supporting new downtown residents and visitors to our city. PUTTING A DEAL TOGETHER ANOTHER POTENTIAL IDEA APPLAUSE Consider the Milwaukee Public Market,…
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
You say you not only want to be loved, but that you also want to love? Then learn the fantasies and symbols and beliefs that hold people’s lives together. Be interested in feeling the crushing weight and deep comfort of their web of memories. Every now and then, dive in and swim along in their…
Focus on Excellence program delivers money to some care centers, federal deficiencies to others
Everyone agrees the program is worth the money. But not everyone is happy with what is being done with the money. Some state legislators are disgruntled enough they have called for a suspension of the program. EXCEEDING AVERAGES FAVORABLE BILL OF HEALTH OVERALL STATE ALLOCATION Last year, the Oklahoma Health Care Authority began doling out…
Oklahoma man’s candy bar contains surprise ingredient
There’s nothing like a chocolate pick-me-up after a long day of work. That was Reginald Ganther’s line of thinking, at least, according to a report from KOCO-TV. Ganther, working late producing some Christian tunes, took a break with a bite from a Hershey’s almond candy bar. But this particular candy bar had an extra surprise…
As technology evolves, Oklahoma Gazette will continue to orient itself to readers
Oklahoma Gazette today barely resembles the community newsletter it was founded as 30 years ago. After decades of evolution, countless redesigns and appearance tweaks, and an editorial mission widened beyond its mission of historic preservation to examine and celebrate Oklahoma City arts, entertainment, news and culture, Gazette is dramatically different than it was just years…
Rambling singer/songwriter’s wild, hard-living youth finally finds home in newer songs
Outlaws never die ” they just get wise … or incarcerated. So it is for musical tumbleweed Phil Lee, who’s blown from one coast to another for nearly 40 years in pursuit of music. EARLY DYLAN ON THE ROAD Or maybe it’s pursued him. Lee had a band in New York with actress Beverly D’Angelo…
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
“Jazz music is an intensified feeling of nonchalance,” said playwright Francoise Sagan. Keep that in mind during the coming week, Sagittarius. Whether or not you actually play or listen to jazz, do whatever’s necessary to cultivate intensified feelings of nonchalance. It’s extremely urgent for you to be blithe and casual. You desperately need to practice…
Appeals court reverses conviction after finding presiding judge’s words possibly coercive
It’s not unusual for a convicted felon to have both his conviction and long-term prison sentence thrown out due in large part to the judge who oversaw the trial. But in most overturned cases, it was the judge’s actions that led to the reversal, such as allowing evidence to be entered when it should not…
Traveling poet revisits organization he co-founded for reading
etnam War; book smuggling into East Berlin with fellow poets; squatting in abandoned buildings as part of an Italian protest movement; and representing the Southern Cheyenne Nation at the European Free Alliance in the Netherlands, and at the United Nations Indigenous Peoples Conference in Geneva. “Poetry is a discipline I am still trying to acquire,”…
Evangelion: 1.0′ reboots ’90s Japanese TV series with symbolic imagery
Collectively, the Japanese imagination is pretty effing wild. Moving from the “Godzilla” movies to Hayao Miyazaki’s crazy mind-scapes to the landmark “Ghost in the Shell” and cultural mashups like “Cowboy Bebop,” Japanese movies and TV shows exist in their own warped-mirror, pop-culture alternate universe. “Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone” is a reboot of a…
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Writing in The New Yorker, Adam Gopnik named two characters from literature that well-educated people tend to identify with. “Men choose Hamlet because every man sees himself as a disinherited monarch,” he said, while “women choose Alice [in Wonderland] because every woman sees herself as the only reasonable creature among crazy people who think that…
Rambling singer/songwriter’s wild, hard-living youth finally finds home in newer songs
Outlaws never die ” they just get wise … or incarcerated. So it is for musical tumbleweed Phil Lee, who’s blown from one coast to another for nearly 40 years in pursuit of music. EARLY DYLAN ON THE ROAD Or maybe it’s pursued him. Lee had a band in New York with actress Beverly D’Angelo…
Filipino wife cracks Oklahoma burglary case via Web cam
CFN’s Bucky was the victim of a crime last week when some packages delivered by USPS were swiped from his front porch. Now he’s wondering if he can outsource monitoring of said porch to the Philippines. That’s where Maribel Chouinard lives. According to an ABC News report, she cracked a robbery case in Midwest City…
Gazette at 30
When Oklahoma Gazette’s first issue came off the press in October 1979, Oklahoma City was a much different place than it is now. Much of the ’70s was rough on Oklahoma City. Instead of working on a rational plan of school desegregation, a recalcitrant board of education said “hell no” and got court-ordered busing. Integration…
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
You say you not only want to be loved, but that you also want to love? Then learn the fantasies and symbols and beliefs that hold people’s lives together. Be interested in feeling the crushing weight and deep comfort of their web of memories. Every now and then, dive in and swim along in their…
Former Oklahoma Gazette editors, writers and contributors share 30 years of memories
wrote. “One week, I would be immersed in the state Legislature or the Oklahoma City federal building bombing probe. The next week, I’d be interviewing a dominatrix. I don’t think you can get that versatility at many papers. That’s part of the genius of alt-weeklies. ‘I’LL BE READING’ After Easterling’s departure, Susan Grossman returned to…
Evangelion: 1.0′ reboots ’90s Japanese TV series with symbolic imagery
Collectively, the Japanese imagination is pretty effing wild. Moving from the “Godzilla” movies to Hayao Miyazaki’s crazy mind-scapes to the landmark “Ghost in the Shell” and cultural mashups like “Cowboy Bebop,” Japanese movies and TV shows exist in their own warped-mirror, pop-culture alternate universe. “Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone” is a reboot of a…
Appeals court reverses conviction after finding presiding judge’s words possibly coercive
It’s not unusual for a convicted felon to have both his conviction and long-term prison sentence thrown out due in large part to the judge who oversaw the trial. But in most overturned cases, it was the judge’s actions that led to the reversal, such as allowing evidence to be entered when it should not…
Tracing the CFN origins
It inevitably comes up when an Oklahoma Gazette staffer is out and about ” interviewing folks, researching sorority houses or off the clock at social functions, family get-togethers or attending Sally Kern’s Bible study group ” someone finds out the newspaper we work for and exclaims, “I love that Chicken Fried News.” The section that…
Filipino wife cracks Oklahoma burglary case via Web cam
CFN’s Bucky was the victim of a crime last week when some packages delivered by USPS were swiped from his front porch. Now he’s wondering if he can outsource monitoring of said porch to the Philippines. That’s where Maribel Chouinard lives. According to an ABC News report, she cracked a robbery case in Midwest City…
Former Oklahoma Gazette editors, writers and contributors share 30 years of memories
wrote. “One week, I would be immersed in the state Legislature or the Oklahoma City federal building bombing probe. The next week, I’d be interviewing a dominatrix. I don’t think you can get that versatility at many papers. That’s part of the genius of alt-weeklies. ‘I’LL BE READING’ After Easterling’s departure, Susan Grossman returned to…
At Western Hills Guest Ranch & Sequoyah State Park, enjoying nature is escape plan
Sometimes, getting away from it all is better when you know the Wii is just a few doors down. Sequoyah State Park is home to one of the finest fishing and boating lakes in Oklahoma, nestled on the shore of the breathtaking Fort Gibson Lake in Eastern Oklahoma. If you’re not a water bug, there’s…
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
“Jazz music is an intensified feeling of nonchalance,” said playwright Francoise Sagan. Keep that in mind during the coming week, Sagittarius. Whether or not you actually play or listen to jazz, do whatever’s necessary to cultivate intensified feelings of nonchalance. It’s extremely urgent for you to be blithe and casual. You desperately need to practice…
At Western Hills Guest Ranch & Sequoyah State Park, enjoying nature is escape plan
Sometimes, getting away from it all is better when you know the Wii is just a few doors down. Sequoyah State Park is home to one of the finest fishing and boating lakes in Oklahoma, nestled on the shore of the breathtaking Fort Gibson Lake in Eastern Oklahoma. If you’re not a water bug, there’s…
Thieves crash Oklahoma City poker party
There’s high-stakes poker, then there’s “high-stakes poker.” We’re betting the 22 people robbed at a private poker game a few weeks ago are wishing they’d folded earlier in the night. According to an article on NewsOK.com, an armed robber plus another guy forced their way into a locked room in a Northwest OKC strip mall…
As technology evolves, Oklahoma Gazette will continue to orient itself to readers
Oklahoma Gazette today barely resembles the community newsletter it was founded as 30 years ago. After decades of evolution, countless redesigns and appearance tweaks, and an editorial mission widened beyond its mission of historic preservation to examine and celebrate Oklahoma City arts, entertainment, news and culture, Gazette is dramatically different than it was just years…
Questionable Judgments
The cheap-drink Tuesday night special at the Attic bar in Newcastle, England, in early September was a money-back guarantee at the end of the night to anyone who could still legally drive (measured by the bar’s breathalyzer), with the evening’s most-alcohol-saturated customer drinking free the following week. The Newcastle City Council soon convinced the bar…
Like Gazette, trio of other metro businesses opened their doors 30 years ago
It was 1979, a seemingly idyllic year. Movie enthusiasts flocked to theaters to see “Superman” and “Rocky II.” Pop singer Michael Jackson was reaching stardom. “The Love Boat” was becoming a prime-time television favorite. IMMUNO-MYCOLOGICS INC.PERRY PUBLISHING & BROADCASTING CO.FRANK’S TOMATO & BANANA HOUSE And in Oklahoma, a microbiology professor, a media visionary and two…
The Non tap professor Carl Rath to conduct a 12-piece orchestra
Old growth is scattered across Oklahoma City in the form of empty buildings whose original tenants have moved on, moved out or just ceased to be. COMBINE CULTURES NONSTANDARD As economic interests spread outward from downtown and the entertainment district, creative tactics to further spur urban renewal have emerged, such as the Resound Downtown Music…
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
“There are two rules for ultimate success in life,” wrote L. M. Boyd. “First, never tell everything you know.” While that may be the conventional wisdom about how to build up one’s personal power, I prefer to live by a different principle. Personally, I find that as I divulge everything I know, I keep knowing…
Everything you always wanted to know but never asked, until we asked you
On the occasion of our 30th anniversary, we thought it appropriate to reveal the wizard behind the curtain, so to speak, and answer your Twitter-received questions about Oklahoma Gazette behind the scenes. Now you know. What’s the deciding factor on what goes on the cover? “Our team of editors, designers and marketing people, along with…
New exhibit highlights century of Oklahoma artists enamored with New Mexico
After trekking through Western Oklahoma’s prairies creaking with windmills across the border, New Mexico’s sun-dried adobe buildings stand against the snow-streaked Rocky Mountains and shock through color and form. It’s not surprising that so many artists are drawn to the Southwestern state, reproducing the light that pours over the landscape and the diverse heritage that…
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ is hilarious, well-performed musical
Oklahoma City Repertory Theatre has always presented a variety of plays and musicals, but in these hard times, the company is staging a season of all comedies. Call it “City Rep’s Stimulus Plan for the City, or Brother, Can You Spare another 10 Million?” The Reppers aim to stimulate the funny bone, anyway; the rest…
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
Were you ever a tiger in one of your past lives? If so, this would be an excellent time to tap into that power. If you have never lived the life of a tiger, would you be willing to imagine that you did? During the coming week’s challenges, you will really benefit from being able…
Vegas’ flood tunnels
Beneath the luxury hotels on the Las Vegas Strip is a series of flood tunnels that are home to dozens of people who work odd jobs such as hustling leftover change in casino slot machines. A correspondent for London’s The Sun gained the trust of a few and even photographed their “apartments” for a September…
Tales of the Madman Underground – John Barnes
Viking Backing up a few years “? from college to high school “? John Barnes’ “Tales of the Madman Underground” follows Karl Shoemaker just trying to make it through his senior year. Things are pretty bleak for Karl, but you get the sense early on that things have always been pretty bleak. His dad died…
I was a delivery driver for Oklahoma Gazette in the mid-’80s
From 1986 to 1988, northwest Oklahoma City had me to thank for finding an Oklahoma Gazette on area racks “¦ not that it ever did. Yes, before I was managing editor of this very publication, I was one of its delivery drivers! LOW-TECH DAYS QUICK WITH THE SCISSORS It was my first paycheck job, and…
Reaching a critical mass with veteran film critic
Doug Bentin has been an Oklahoma Gazette contributor for more than 20 years, nearly a decade of that as a weekly film critic. He watches seven to 10 movies a week. Often curiously contrary, his reviews are endlessly entertaining and almost always unpredictable. Almost. “I’ve been accused of adoring ‘spectacle movies,’ but that isn’t entirely…
Everything you always wanted to know but never asked, until we asked you
On the occasion of our 30th anniversary, we thought it appropriate to reveal the wizard behind the curtain, so to speak, and answer your Twitter-received questions about Oklahoma Gazette behind the scenes. Now you know. What’s the deciding factor on what goes on the cover? “Our team of editors, designers and marketing people, along with…
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
The corny but sometimes useful adages of folk wisdom are still being created afresh in the 21st century. Their breeding ground is no longer the tavern or marketplace, as in centuries past, but rather the Internet. I’ve plucked one of these funky gems out of the ethers for you to contemplate: “Noah’s Ark was built…
Where have some former Oklahoma Gazette writers, editors gone?
Phil Bacharach, former staff writer and associate editor and current contributor: “I left the Gazette in 1999 to become deputy press secretary for Gov. Frank Keating,” wrote Bacharach, who also penned a Timothy McVeigh piece for Esquire magazine. “As his second term came to a close, I returned to KWTV-Channel 9 (where I had worked…
OMRF’s lupus registry hopes to unlock a piece of deadly disease’s puzzle
On Sept. 22, 2009, the world bid farewell to Lucy O’Donnell Vodden, the fabled “Lucy” of “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” fame. NEVER IDENTICAL GENETIC FACTORS STIMULUS PACKAGE John Lennon’s son Julian drew a picture of her in 1966 that inspired the legendary track from The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” album.…
Hit the road for driving tour of Oklahoma’s fall colors
Now that summer has officially ended, Oklahomans might be tempted to put away their mix tapes and spend the cooler months hunkered down with their maps and offbeat tourism books, planning to take next May by the throat and once more see as much of the Sooner State as possible. QUEEN WILHELMINA STATE PARK ARCHAEOLOGICAL…
Novel idea didn’t catch on, but it was fun while it lasted
Sports promoters are forever searching for the next big idea or gimmick to help generate fan interest and ultimately sell more tickets. In today’s sports marketing world, plans range from cash giveaways to bobblehead night to traditional fan appreciation events, and just about everything in between. STARETTES ICE SKATING CHEERLEADERS Back in the fall of…
Latest Religious Messages
David Cerullo came to prominence after purchasing the television studios abandoned by Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and established what is perhaps the boldest of all Christian “prosperity gospel” ministries (that pays him an annual base salary of $1.52 million). With his father, semi-retired Pentecostal preacher Morris Cerullo, they assure followers that the more they…
Latest Religious Messages
David Cerullo came to prominence after purchasing the television studios abandoned by Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and established what is perhaps the boldest of all Christian “prosperity gospel” ministries (that pays him an annual base salary of $1.52 million). With his father, semi-retired Pentecostal preacher Morris Cerullo, they assure followers that the more they…
Exhibit highlights struggles of two artists who endured painful childhoods
A pair of creative artists proves there is no age limit or requirement for expensive materials to become a real artist. Barbara Robinette Moss and Kate Rivers are two inspirational women who have focused on painful personal childhood experiences for the sake of art. The Eleanor Kirkpatrick Gallery in the City Arts Center at State Fair…
The Stepfather
1987 I have fond memories of seeing “The Stepfather” on the day of its quiet release in 1987, at the Northpark Mall Cinema 4. The movie was terrific “? an unexpected, out-of-nowhere sleeper thriller. There was only one problem: My friend and I were the only people in the theater. Time has been kind to…
Jackass: The Lost Tapes
2009 If you’ve never been a fan of “Jackass” before, “Jackass: The Lost Tapes” is not going to convert you. It’s simply more of the same. Of course, that’s good news to the “Jackass” faithful who made the MTV show into a pop-culture (or should that be poop-culture) smash and turned two feature films into…
The Hunger: The Complete Second Season
The other 21 episodes of Showtime’s “The Hunger” anthology series adapt short stories written by celebrated authors in the dark-fantasy genre, including Gemma Files, Christa Faust, David J. Schow, Charles De Lint, Ramsey Campbell, Karl Edward Wagner, Kim Newman, Tanith Lee and Poppy Z. Brite. Even Cornell Woolrich, he of “Rear Window” fame, is mined…
The Proposal
2009 The rom-com template is simple: two mismatched people, brought together through a series of coincidental and increasingly unlikely events, discover that despite their many differences they love each other. The arc “? including the bit toward the end when it seems impossible that the couple can really get together “? is a foregone conclusion.…
