Twenty Years AgoSo what’s the real story behind the statue of R.E. “Pappy Hazard” in the new Hazard Center in Mission Valley? The inscription on the statue, “Be just and fear not,” is the same …

Thirty Years AgoThe Fifth Annual Willa Cather Citation for the classiest title of the movie year goes to Hide in Plain Sight, not a very Catehrian title, certainly, but perfectly suitable for something on the …

Along Fifth Avenue Ladies and gentlemen, print is not dead. The following publications were available in print, for free, from drop boxes and coffee shops along Fifth Avenue over the two blocks between Washington and …

Drop The Handle Just a note on the Hargrove story on the Del Mar Racetrack (“I’ll Bet on That Nag to Come Last,” “City Lights,” December 9). In 2009, there were 43 racing days. Last …

Oooooh... Beautiful cover (“Our Desperate Neighbors,” December 2). Sharon MurphyEl Cajon Hard Times, Great Place I am glad that you, our neighbor, have published an article on the Imperial Valley (“Our Desperate Neighbors,” Cover Story, …

Thirty-Five Years AgoMirroring college campuses across the country, political activism at UCSD drew to a close with the winding down of the Vietnam War. But recent disclosures of CIA activities and the university’s agreement to …

To His people, God the Lord is simultaneously the God of retribution and the God of love. In the same breath, they call on Him as “our God” and as “King of the universe,” or …

Six Poems by Maram Al-Massri You must have forgotten your papers and returned to retrieve them. Or a friend must have called and begun to chatter as you were about to leave. Or you must …

It’s Got It All Thank you, Siobhan Braun, for your multilayered perspective on love, youth, aging, hope, attitudes (for better or for worse), and transcending borders (Cover Story, November 24). This feature is a treasure …

Thirty-Five Years AgoNo matter what obstacles are thrust in front of San Diego massage parlors — police raids, housewife marches, TV documentaries on sin-for-sale — they’re still here with us, flourishing as never before.... “There …

Straighten Those Facts It’s always good to get media attention for the plight of 50,000 seniors that live in poverty in San Diego County and the Angel’s Depot mission to feed them. However, Matt Potter …

Thirty Years AgoToday, the casual visitor to the north part of University City remarks two major features: the University Towne Centre and the vast open spaces surrounding it. Tomorrow — or so it will seem …

Lost In Netflix Land No-o-o-o-o-o!!! Say not so. Duncan, don’t leave! What am I gonna do? Who am I gonna use as a guide for my Netflix queue? Don’t do it! David Waltersvia email True …

Thirty-Five Years AgoWhenever there’s a lull at a party I lean forward and say, “You know I don’t drive.” Of course, if I announced that I had given up sex, not a head would turn, …

Kelptown What a cool surprise for me to see a photo of one of my kelp art installations on page 135 this week (“Pictures of a Town,” November 4)! With the onset (hopefully) of winter …

Thirty-Five Years Ago“Al would come to work every day on time. From the moment he arrived at the beach he never took his eyes off the water until it was time to leave.... When the …

Thirty-Five Years AgoOctober 29 was Alice Doesn’t Day, the National Organization of Women’s much-heralded attempt to organize a show of force by women. The conservative Copley Press was not without incident. Advertising secretaries, who are …

Hey, Lay Off! I think Matthew Alice ought to be ashamed of himself, unless you did this deliberately as part of your “Typo Patrol” test. I’m talking about the October 28 Reader, page 6, Matthew …

Wrong Guy You have a printed letter called “A Holy Ha-Ha-Ha” (October 14) signed by “Damon Cook, via email.” My name is Damon Cook, and I am a former employee of Scantibodies, and I did …

Thirty-Five Years AgoThere are two ways to play the blues: One is for a band to launch an uncommitted 12 bars to flesh out a sagging set, jam on one riff relentlessly with tons of …

Skip’s the Man Skip Frye is an icon in the surf world and a world-class boardmaker (“I Finally Got Skip Frye to Make Me a Surfboard,” Cover Story, October 14). He keeps his own schedule …

Thirty-Five Years AgoThese days, Tom Waits is sleazier than ever. He looked like he’d wandered in off Broadway that night, straight from the doorway he’d been sleeping in. It isn’t often that you see a …

Chargers On UHF Please let all NFL football fans know that they have more choices (“Sporting Box,” October 7). TV Azteca is a UHF station. They broadcast a game every Sunday at 10:00 a.m. Just …

Thirty-Five Years AgoTom Hayden...came to a fundraising garden party in his behalf.... Admission at $15 a head included Jane Fonda and Jon Voight, finger food, plus the Versailles-type garden of the hosts. Drinks extra, at …

A Gratifying Information Experience A banner hangs in the lobby of the San Diego Union-Tribune, displaying a letter from publisher Ed Moss to “our readers.” It reads, in part: “After months of polling thousands of …

Thirty-Five Years AgoFood cooperatives in San Diego County began in June 1970 when approximately 50 students from UCSD unified their enthusiasm with two grants from the university and an assessment of ten dollars a household. …

Where’d The Ladies Go? I picked up a copy of the Reader today… This week’s cover is about the classic naked ladies of Balboa Park (“Who’s Looking Out for These Ladies?” September 30), but, alas, …

Where Children Live Homes where children live exude a pleasant rumpledness, like a bed made by a child, or a yard littered with balloons. To be a child again one would need to shed details …

Thirty Years AgoFour o’clock on a Sunday afternoon is perhaps not the most convenient time for a concert; the wooden pews in USD’s Camino Hall are surely a minatory foretaste of Hell; and during Father …

How ’Bout Those Amish? With regard to the Reader of September 23, in the letters to the editor on page 63, there is a letter from a Name Withheld entitled “Illegal Islam.” I would just …

We’ve Met Often Back to back appeared the stories of David Burleson (“Wake Up From the Nightmare,” Cover Story, September 16) and Adam Jacobs (“Voyage With Mother on Piggyback,” Feature Story), two young men who …

Thirty-Five Years AgoSAN DIEGO’S “TOM HAYDEN for U.S. Senate” committee is holding an auction! Your generous donations are desperately needed. Art, plants, services, etc. CALCULATOR FREAKS to form club and build together mini-machines and exchange …

Bad Timing I picked up this week’s Reader on Thursday, September 9 (“They Should Not Display Their Beauty,” Cover Story, September 9). Two days before 9/11. I looked at the front cover. You guys couldn’t …

Thirty-Five Years AgoDoctors will take into consideration the reasons for the surgery and the patient’s financial condition. Example: a starving actress who needs cosmetic surgery may be in a better situation for reduced fee than …

Anna StumpArtist, drawingwithanna.com I have two French films to recommend. The first is Séraphine, based on the life of French painter Séraphine de Senlis. I recommend it especially for a transcendent scene in which the …

Wheeling-Dealing This is in response to “Skateworld Rolls Away” (Cover Story, September 2). I’ve been an active participant in the rallies, and I’ve been at some of the meetings of Bayside, and you have completely …

Thirty-Five Years AgoUnlikely as it seems, San Diego has an expanding core of rock bands doing original material, and taking their cue from the San Francisco bands of seven years ago, these outlaw units have …

An Easy Coon Solution I just want to comment on “Raccoon Wars” (Feature Story, August 26). I never saw anything sillier in all my life. I’ve been bothered by coons in the yard many times. …

Thirty-Five Years AgoIf film directors like Altman and Fellini ever run out of suitable sites for their confetti-like pageantries, they might do well by turning towards Tijuana. The rolling hills, crippled streets, lopsided architecture, high-pressure …

Undercover Racist? I picked up a copy of the August 19 Reader today. It’s well known within the African-American community that the Reader is very adverse to and against having black faces in your paper, …

Thirty-Five Years AgoDrink liquor without mixes. A more expensive liquor will prove more economical if taken with a splash of water or on the rocks than cheap whiskey that has to be disguised with mixes. …

Thirty-Five Years AgoWith each successive film, [Robert] Altman comes closer to the frank expression of something not so nice but conceivably profound. It’s turning out to be nothing more than the despicable compromise of just …

Why atheism today? — The “father” in God has been thoroughly refuted; ditto, “the judge,” “the rewarder.” Also his “free will”: he does not hear — and if he heard he still would not know …

Thirty-Five Years AgoSix days a week, with the exception of Tuesdays, the admissions gate is lifted after the seventh race at the Del Mar track, and the crowd that has gathered to play the last …

Thirty-Five Years Ago The Average White Band has two encores down and none to go. “Those few minutes before they whip on the lights make the night for me,” exclaims bassist Alan Gorrie. Hunched over …

Bob RoseCritic, asitecalledfred.com Freaked is a hand grenade of funny that most people have never had the pleasure of exploding to. I can know the future success and/or worth of a budding friendship based on …

Have Our Gangbangers So Judy from the Big Kitchen bemoans the loss of the gangbangers in South Park (“North Park vs. South Park,” Cover Story, July 22). Well, you can have ours here in North …

Thirty-Five Years Ago Greg voluntarily entered detox on Saturday at 7:20 p.m. He had worked all day and was taking advantage of his Memorial Day holiday to dry out. The first procedure was a brief, …

Stuff I Don’t Like Re the July 15 “What’s Your News IQ?” Answers on page 64, what? If you are looking for space in future issues, put them in the “Rhyme & Verse” column. Can …

Thirty-Five Years AgoTwo of the titles I included, at the beginning of the year, on a list of “Movies I Expected to Come to San Diego in 1974 and Didn’t” turned up recently, briefly — …