The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is state-fair royalty thanks to its 1972 album, Will the Circle Be Unbroken, which paired the longhaired California hippies with veterans of the country music establishment. Multi-instrumentalist John McEuen rode the Nitty Gritty train for two decades before branching out into a solo career and later reuniting with the group in 2001. These days, he…
Squirrelly as ever, Ryan Adams isn’t in favor of bills that list his name “and the Cardinals.” So we’ll oblige. In fact, if he changed his name to a Greek letter and reduced his backup band to a lunchbox full of snails, we’d still listen — as long as those snails could nail the awe-inspiring multi-part harmonies that the Cardinals…
Based on Amanda Foreman’s biography of Georgiana Spencer, the Duchess of Devonshire, Saul Dibb’s costume drama tells how Princess Diana’s 18th-century ancestor (played here by Keira Knightley) — a naïve ingénue married off in her teens to a fornicating, icy stiff (get the parallel?) — grew into a politically sophisticated woman. Cruising lightly over Georgiana’s activism, Dibb firmly turns the…
A new kind of war movie for a new kind of war, Body of Lies is about the war on terror being waged on the ground, in the air but, most of all, in cyberspace. Directed with terrific verve by Ridley Scott (coming after the listless American Gangster) from a smart screenplay by William Monahan (writer of The Departed), the…
Mountain Dew has been working hard to diversify in 2008, and with questionable results. Along with testing out a few short-lived flavors and lending its citrusy zest to Doritos, the caffeine machine has begun fancying itself as a platform for up-and-coming artists. The Green Label Sound has posted exclusive singles from Matt and Kim and the Cool Kids. Download them…
The Abracadabras have had some severely swollen nuts lately. Problem is, they keep getting punched in the groin. Every time the pain subsides from one blow, another is seemingly waiting in the wings. The departing manager, the smoke-and-mirrors record deal, the stolen trailer — punch, punch, punch … So when Collin Rausch awoke at 6:30 a.m. one morning to find…
When the J.E. Dunn Construction Company pulled out of advertising mogul Bob Bernstein’s much-hyped West Edge project last week, it didn’t just leave the long-delayed office, hotel and retail complex in limbo but also added more stress to the life of restaurateur James Frantze. Frantze owns JJ’s Restaurant, at 910 West 48th Street, directly across from the unfinished Moshe Safdie-designed…
Whenever North Korea is in the headlines, the news is usually disturbing. Last week, there was the announcement that it was restarting its plutonium reprocessing plant and barring U.N. inspectors. And there’s the ongoing drama surrounding the ailing health of the mysterious Kim Jong-il — the vain dictator fond of wearing sunglasses, platform heels and a bouffant hairdo. I confess…
Transfigure, at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, promises to “chart the manifold meanderings of the physical form.” All of the works suggest human or animal forms, and many of them are, in fact, visual essays on this loose central theme. Each work tells its own story, and the women of the collection are particularly potent — especially German artist…
It’s no surprise that Quality Hill Playhouse’s Rhapsody in Gershwin is an elegant, sophisticated, gently swinging affair. An evening of the choicest songs by the choicest of songwriters, it’s the kind of grown-up entertainment that hardly exists anymore. Quality Hill cabarets honor not only the tradition of Broadway and Tin Pan Alley, where the popular and the serious join into…
The cold face of the St. Elizabeth rectory gives no indication of comfort within. Inside, its walls are painted in bright crimsons and calming blues, adorned with pictures of the Savior. Some priests ended their lifework here, meeting their Maker in the bedroom where windows overlook the courtyard behind the church. Built in 1948, the rectory was designed to house…
The Christian right in Kansas resembles the Royals in the middle of summer — desperate for a win. In 2006, voters put moderates back in power on the State Board of Education and drummed Phill Kline out of the Attorney General’s Office. Republican Party zealots installed Kline as the Johnson County district attorney, only to watch him lose that job…
Dear Readers: I don’t like to rerun columns ’cause it makes me look like a lazy Mexican, but I realize that, as my column invades foreign terrain (Chattanooga, Tennessee! Columbia, South Carolina! Steamboat Springs, Colorado!), new readers might not understand some of my commandments. Following, then, are the two most frequently asked questions about the Mexican’s methodology. Dear Mexican: A…
In another example of the contrast between the Obama and McCain presidential campaigns — the former history-minded and well-oiled, the latter locked in combat with the media and prone to sliding off the rails — Michelle Obama led a rally for her husband at 18th Street and Vine on the same day that Sen. John McCain made a short, sober…
Janovy: “The Surreal Life,” September 18 We the Media I have to finally say something somewhere, so The Pitch gets to catch my verbal fodder. I am not a Democrat, nor a Republican. What I believe isn’t important, which hopefully will validate my point. In the media, whether it’s newspapers, radio or TV, everybody has their own views and opinions…
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By OWEN MORRIS As the weather cools and people start adding more layers, either through clothing or eating, certain foods start reappearing in diets. Pumpkin is probably most associated with fall, which makes sense. It matures in the fall and is useful as a decoration as well as a menu item. Though it doesn’t have a bloom date, chili also…
By DAVID MARTIN Mark Funkhouser’s experience can be a burden. His 18 years as a tough-minded city auditor make it difficult for him, as mayor, to get away with nonsense. A recent newsletter appearing on Funkhouser’s blog makes the latest point. Embattled first lady Gloria Squitiro closes the newsletter with a “personal note,” informing readers that the mayor’s office received…
By PETER RUGG In April we told you about James Vivian, a gregarious, 300-pound minister who performs exorcisms in his living room when there’s a need. Vivian learned his trade from Bob Larson and the Spiritual Freedom Church, which now directs almost all of its Missouri possession cases, and those in surrounding states, to Vivian. Categories: News Tags: Baby Sacrifice,…
By CHARLES FERRUZZA Fat City commenter Heatherkay was a busy bee all right. She posted the same comment — and the right answer — three times! What a honey! And yes Heatherkay, the correct answer was the old Busy Bee Cafe location on 18th Street, just east of Grinders and the Pi Gallery. There hasn’t been a restaurant in this…
All of us who were greatly looking forward to seeing Uncle Neil on Election Night will have to wait. This press release just flew in: Due to routing logistics, the Neil Young Kansas City performance previously scheduled for Tuesday, November 4th at the Sprint Center has been postponed until Spring 2009 (exact date to be determined). All tickets purchased for…
