Bobby looks like a black Labrador, except that his ears stand upright, forming two stiff peaks. They're quivering now, as Bobby crouches, ready to lunge at me. He's not making a sound, but his body …
November 17, 2005
News & Stories
Top dogs: San Diego's K9 unit
The Lost Painting: The Quest For a Caravaggio Masterpiece
The Lost Painting: The Quest for a Caravaggio Masterpiece by Jonathan Harr. Random House, 2005; $24.95; 250 pages. FROM THE DUST JACKET: An Italian village on a hilltop near the Adriatic coast, a decaying palazzo …
The Reader's Eye on Television
"Do you ever watch Arrested Development?" John asks. "No," I answer. This is where most conversations with me go. When the "How have you been doing?" greetings are over and we've stared at our mimosa …
November 17, 2005
Confident Clan
Fearless minds climb soonest into crowns. -- William Shakespeare 'What if they laugh at me? Or even worse -- what if they don't laugh at all? I swear to God, if I say something I …
November 17, 2005
Poltz's Gamble
Of local recording artists, not Switchfoot, Jason Mraz, or Louis XIV get the most radio airplay. For two years, Steve Poltz has gotten more radio exposure than anyone. His commercial jingle ("Minutes away, miles apart...take …
November 17, 2005
Heavy Metal Liability
"To this day, people come up and say, 'I heard you wrecked the Rock [105.3] van,'" says James Welch. That's a rumor, but Welch lost his job at the station almost five years ago subsequent …
November 17, 2005
A Pro for the People
John (not his real name) worked for Staff Pro from the mid to late '90s. "My favorite place to work was at Hospitality Point," he says. "During the Summer Pops, there was gnarly amounts of …
November 17, 2005
Phantom Dad
"It turns out [my father has] been living in San Diego, and he even knows about the band," says Slipknot vocalist Corey Taylor. He says his mother never told him who his father was. "My …
November 17, 2005
Yesterday Is Here
Thirty-two years ago today (11/17/73), Tom Waits played at Folk Arts Rare Records, then located in Hillcrest at 3743 Fifth Avenue. "He did our open-mike nights back when he was still at Hilltop High," says …
November 17, 2005
Belly Up To the Arizona
'Let's call Mel. Let's see if she'll come down," people said. "I don't want to wake her up," they said. "It's awfully early. And, Sunday. She probably wants to sleep in, but it'd be cool …
November 17, 2005
Antiochian Orthodox gives ancestors a vote
"Most people have no idea what the Orthodox Church is. When I joined the church, my [Protestant] family was perplexed. They thought I had joined the Catholic Church, and Protestants are Rome-a-phobic," said David Hunt. …
November 17, 2005
A Star is Born
I order the gumbo. And just to be sure I fill ye olde gut, a side of sweet potato fries.
November 17, 2005
SEC Nails Shell Game Master
In August of last year, San Diego stock swindler Ronald D. Brouillette Jr. -- trying to get sprung from jail -- told a judge that he had a bundle of bucks stashed offshore. It wasn't …
November 17, 2005
Breaking Stories
Business as usual In the campaign's closing days, some interesting names appeared on the donor list of San Diego's Lincoln Club, a local GOP group that backs pro-business Republicans, including mayor-elect Jerry Sanders and city …
November 17, 2005
Turkey With No Toil
If you want to have a toil-free T-Day turkey (or ham, filet mignon, whatever), numerous restaurants will cook your Thanksgiving dinner for you -- to eat in, or, increasingly, take home. This year's list is …
November 17, 2005
Climb to the top of Corte Madera Mountain, and survey a world of ocean, islands, and inland mountain ranges.
On a clear late autumn or winter day atop Corte Madera Mountain, you can see forever -- or at least as far as Santa Catalina and San Clemente islands to the west, and the mile-high …
November 17, 2005
Prelim Match-Up Of The Century
Fresno, California, is a Class B drive-through town. Class A drive-through towns are located on an interstate highway. Think Gallup, New Mexico. Gallup, and all other cities in the Class A category, offer the innocent …
November 17, 2005
Fab Photos Of Fave Raves
'While you're in front of my camera I love you, you're the most important person in the universe; it's a bit like being an uptown hooker," says photographer Mick Rock. "I can overcome any difficulties. …
November 17, 2005
A Wine That Refused to Die
“Stalin loved one of the Georgian varietals. He had to have it with dinner.”
November 17, 2005
Matches and Mismatches
Movies reviewed this week: Bee Season, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Pride and Prejudice, and Walk the Line
November 17, 2005
Back When
Thirty Years Ago WANTED: Women who worked in or led liberation movement, to help me in a liberation movement for myself, as I can't alone. I am hypnosis-controlled, trying to hold reversed. -- CLASSIFIEDS, November …
November 17, 2005
Freeway thrashers
Dear Matthew Alice: What's up with the musicians I occasionally see under the bridge over Friars Road at the end of Mission Center Road? I don't get it, are the acoustics that great there or …
November 17, 2005
Surf Memorial
This past summer I went to a party at San Elijo State Beach campground in Cardiff. I was told you have to reserve sites six months in advance there. The parking lot was full, so …
November 17, 2005
Small-Town Hypocrisy
The Voice of San Diego is the cleanest play I have ever participated in. Pure news reporting. No sponsor, no advertising, no boardmembers who want to dictate anything to anybody. — Neil Morgan, senior editor, …
November 17, 2005
Michael Manske in Slovenia
Slovenes Are Americans I've always found it amazing that Slovenia, a tiny alpine country with a population the size of greater Milwaukee, could support so many television and radio stations. According to a recent count, …
November 17, 2005
A review of light beer
"I put on too many pounds this October," moaned longtime pal Bernice. "Most of the calories were from beer, I'm afraid," she added. "The Oktoberfests killed me." Bernice and her husband Frank are avid Oktoberfest …
November 17, 2005