Small-time bands have plenty of reasons to hit the road. Some groups are inspired by ambition, while others are simply thrillseekers. For a few, a midlife crisis spurs the search for out-of-state shows. Kosher’s odyssey came about out of necessity. “We’ve been banned from just about every club in town,” says the band’s bassist/vocalist, who goes only by Remy. The…
It’s just a couple of days until Helicopter Helicopter hits the road, which means the quartet has limited time to get back in good health. “We’ve all been sick,” explains guitarist/vocalist Chris Zerby. An ordinary citizen would call the office to let the boss know he or she won’t be coming in, cuddle up on the couch under a thick…
In Domestic Disturbance, John Travolta provides a rare recent performance worthy of his fame, and it arrives bereft of the laughable facial hair, flaccid special effects and overwrought speechifying that too often render him paunchy parody. As Frank Morrison, a builder of expensive wooden ships at a time when they’ve been replaced by cheaper plastic models, Travolta seems lost within…
As the year winds down, the most breathlessly and apprehensively awaited releases left on the schedule offer whimsy and reverie. We’ve had enough of the real world for now, so we look forward to leaving it behind and joining the company of Harry Potter and Frodo Baggins. Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter will no doubt join Shrek…
School Bust Class clowns: I am appalled by the antics of the so-called school board (Kansas City Strip, October 25). The election of Robert Stringfield is a perfect example of their complete ineptitude. If I didn’t have a child, I might think the clowns on the board were great entertainment. The bleak truth, however, is that they are only hurting…
Thug life: We were smiling like virgins on a BOTAR runway Friday afternoon, after John Ashcroft’s antiterrorism bill became law. Did this mean he’d crack down on the GOP intimidators who halted the Miami-Dade election board’s vote count last year? We asked local ACLU director Dick Kurtenbach whether that’s the type of “coercion” defined as terrorism under the USA PATRIOT…
In August 1999, Dawn and Bob Lindsey fell in love with a historic home, a massive, three-story Queen Anne that apparently first belonged to a Kansas City dentist who around 1900 loaded it with amenities as extravagant as a billiards room, servants’ stairwell and bathroom dumbwaiter. The house, located off 37th and Wyandotte, had sat vacant and abused for nearly…
The summer sky darkened slowly outside Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital in Columbia, Missouri, as Elzie Havrum’s wife, son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter sat at his bedside. The frail 66-year-old World War II veteran had checked in that day because his emphysema was acting up, and he complained of a “sour stomach” and swollen legs. His doctor had monitored him carefully and…
