Cover Story: ‘Riot’ Boys
Pearl Jam Pearl Jam are known for sticking to their guns, whether they're fighting Ticketmaster, bootleggers, the press, the pressure of fame or each other. But everyone has their limits. For the veteran Seattle Rock band it was when their fans began to turn on them. Singer Eddie Vedder impaled a mask of George…
Cover Story: Cash and Perry
Perry Farrell After a long hiatus, the Lollapalooza festival is back on the road and back in the hands of its founder, Perry Farrell. After an even longer hiatus, Farrell is taking the golden opportunity of Lollapalooza's resurrection to pull his own phoenix-like act and bring back the long-deceased Jane's Addiction, going so far…
News: The Social Justice Crisis in Cincinnati
My name is Dan La Botz, and I am a resident of the Clifton neighborhood and a visiting assistant professor of history and Latin American Studies at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. I am also a writer on American, Mexican and Indonesian labor unions and workers rights issues, and I am affiliated with Labor Notes,…
Cover Story: Baby, You Can Drive These Cars
Matt Borgerding CityBeat film writer TT Clinkscales joins Italian Job stunt driver Sean Graham behind the wheel of the film's trademark Mini Cooper for a rollicking road test. Movies, especially summer blockbusters, develop, produce and then satisfy our escapist fantasies. The images they concoct can be overwhelming — too perfect bodies, exotic locations and…
Writer’s Block
NOELLE HOWEY's father knew how to dress — as a woman. This family skeleton wasn't imparted to the author until she turned 15. But there was something greater inside Howey's father than just a penchant for women's clothing. He had the heart and soul of a woman, but lacked the matching body. His transformation is…
1521 Vine St.
Doug Trapp 1521 Vine St. Address: 1521 Vine St., Over-the-Rhine Owner: Pettis-Brown Inc. Value: $48,300 Year Built: 1909 Comments: Where in the world is LaShawn Pettis-Brown? If you know, the Cincinnati Police and the U.S. Department of Justice would like to talk to you. A year ago Pettis-Brown looked like the savior of the…
Food books for those who aren’t chefs
Good Reading You don't have to be a total food geek to appreciate the many wonderful books written on the art of gastronomy. (Of course, some might argue that using the words "art" and "gastronomy" in a single sentence automatically qualifies you as a food geek). Beyond the ubiquitous, how-to-cook-everything cookbooks, there are beautiful and…
News: Another Kind of Council Race
Jymi Bolden Larry Frazier is pressing his discrimination complaint against Councilman John Cranley. Larry Frazier says Cincinnati City Councilman John Cranley treated him differently from other employees before firing him — all because he's black. Cranley says Frazier's work wasn't as good as that of other employees, almost all of whom have degrees. In…
Cover Story: American Eye-Dolls
American Idol judges Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell and Paula Abdul American Idol, the cynically driven, glorified karaoke contest that currently has the country mesmerized, is now down to its final pair of competitors in its second season, and the whole concept of the show could stand a little scrutiny. In point of fact, the…
Whirlygig: 78: Out on the Town
Chain Reaction About a year ago, Shauna M. came up with the dining concept she calls Food Chain Cincinnati (foodchaincincinnati@yahoo.com). Every month she puts together a group of four to six strangers to go to dinner at a local ethnic restaurant. I've had a blast at the four previous Food Chain dinners I've participated in.…
News: Dead Issue
Following an ordeal that began in early 2001, Dr. Jonathan Tobias is free to get on with his life, while Thomas Condon might be spending more of his in prison. The Ohio First District Court of Appeals has reversed Tobias' conviction. A former assistant coroner, he had been convicted of two counts of gross abuse…
Dirty Harries: There’s No Defense for Vigilantes
"I can't condone what (Harold McKinney) did, but I can't condemn it, either." — Todman Emmons of Northside Vigilantism is a bastardization of justice. It is arrogant. It doesn't wait for outcomes. Instead, a vigilante acts on the triumvirate impulse of fear, righteousness and adrenaline. He decides his way is best for everyone. Most of…
Cover Story: Babe in Arms
Italian actress Monica Bellucci joins the pack of new action heroines as Persephone, the gun-toting bad girl in The Matrix Reloaded. Monica Bellucci says she's had it with action films. The Italian actress spent most of the last two years working on The Matrix Reloaded, The Matrix Revolutions and Tears of the Sun. She…
Music: Concept Junkie
Kings of Bling: The Majesticons will accept nothing less than total Hip-Hop domination. "Ohhhhh, shit … I pulled an all-nighter," says poet/rapper Mike Ladd, mumbling by phone from his Bronx, N.Y., apartment, as he emerges from a deep sleep. "I've been working my ass off on this other project. We just finished yesterday. It's…
Locals Only: : Soul Walkers
Dale M. Johnson The Walker Project Chris Walker just returned from a long weekend at New Orleans' Jazzfest, the infamous two-week festival that has hundreds of local artists sharing stages with national acts. Along with enjoying some of his favorite bands during the festival, the bassist and co-founder of The Walker Project also caught…
Diner: Sensual Experience
Searching for a gem of an ethnic restaurant in an out-of-the-way locale can be a vicious competition among adventure-seeking diners who proudly call themselves foodies. Points are unofficially racked up by finding the most delicious, novel or authentic dish in the most unlikely place. So when CityBeat sent me to West Chester for Moroccan food…
News: The Other Patriots
Jymi Bolden Nonviolent direct action works, even in the Middle East, says Adam Shapiro. The Cincinnati peace movement gathered May 16 to celebrate its victories, honor its heroes and prepare for its next campaign. The U.S. conquest of Iraq is apparently complete, but the movement that rose to oppose the war shows no sign…
Summer of Loving (Art): Festival of the New
The splashy green Festival of the New brochure tumbled out of my copy of The New York Times on Sunday sometime between the second cup of coffee and the first plate of eggs. Yes, I still read The Times in spite of the make-believe columns by bogus reporter Jayson Blair. How else can I connect…
Cover Story: Top of the Stops
Woodrow J. Hinton If this spring's lineup and the announced touring itineraries so far are any indication, the local summer concert season has a slight edge over the past few years. The Riverbend season alone shows potential, short on the woeful, hastily reunited Classic Rock/Oldies acts and actually featuring some diversity. This year, we…
