City of Cleveland Reaches $375,000 Settlement With Family of Man Who Died in Police Custody After Telling Officers “I Can’t Breathe”
Update: “I can’t breathe.” “So, who gives a fuck?” The disturbing details in the death of Rodney Brown, who died after being taken into Cleveland police custody back in 2010, include that snippet of conversation between a Cleveland police officer and Brown, who’d been tased at least twice after a traffic stop and died a…
Cleveland Ranked the Unhappiest City to Work in Right Now— We Disagree
A new and highly scientific poll published by Forbes magazine pegs Cleveland as the unhappiest city in the U.S. to work in right now. Via Forbes: To determine the happiest and unhappiest places to work, fulfillment-focused career site CareerBliss took a look at eight key factors that can influence an employee’s contentment, including work-life balance,…
Cavs Gore the Bulls, Showcase Growing Unity
Bad habits don’t disappear overnight, but having the best player in the NBA healthy and engaged can go a long way in righting a listing ship. LeBron James demonstrated this en route to 26 points last night during a 108-94 pasting of the Chicago Bulls, in which the Cavs jumped out to an early lead…
Cleveland Man Missing Since September Dies After Crashing Car on Detroit Avenue in Lakewood
John Vitanza, a Cleveland man who was reported missing and last seen on Sept. 28, died after crashing his car on Detroit Avenue in Lakewood last night. Initial news reports have police saying he was traveling at close to 80 mph. The initial call log entry notes “54 mph” as the car crosses Brockley Avenue, some…
Mahall’s to Host ‘90s Dance Party in February
In order to pay homage to the ’90s, locally based Cattitude Vintage is hosting “Groove Is In the Heart: A ’90s Dance Party” on Friday, Feb. 13, at Mahall’s 20 Lanes in Lakewood. Dubbed “Groove Is in the Heart: A Valentine’s Dance Party”The event is a follow-up to last year’s event and is Admission is…
Video: Police Make Arrest on Detroit-Superior Bridge During Monday’s MLK Unity March
Cleveland Police arrested three people on the Detroit-Superior Bridge during the first of two “unity marches” Monday. Protesters had gathered at the Cudell Rec Center and walked nearly four miles to downtown to protest police violence and advocate for community involvement in ongoing discussions about police reform. The arrests occurred near the tail end…
‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Bringing Mandatory World Tour to Cleveland in May
Slated to hit 100 cities throughout North America, Europe and Australia, “Weird Al” Yankovic’s tour in support of his latest album, last year’s Mandatory Fun, is set to come to Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica on May 30. Famous for parodies such as “Eat It,” “Like a Surgeon,” “Yoda,” “Smells Like Nirvana,” “Amish Paradise” and “White…
Motley Crue to Play Quicken Loans Arena on Farewell Tour
We thought last year’s farewell tour was truly the last time hard rockers Mötley Crüe would come to town, but the guys aren’t going gentle into the good night. The band announced today on Fox and Friends that it will play the final show ever on New Year’s Eve, Dec. 31, at Staples Center in…
West 25th Street Picks Up Fiber Network Funding from OneCommunity Grant
One Community, the locally owned ultra-high speed broadband provider bringing super-duper-fast Internet to the Euclid Corridor, announced yesterday that the West 25th Street Corridor will pick up some fine grant funding benefits. From OneCommunity: Based on its award-winning proposal, the West 25th Corridor will create a fiber network through Ohio City, Tremont, Clark-Fulton, Brooklyn Center…
Belle & Sebastian and Sleater-Kinney: New Music Tuesday
By 2015, you’re either on the Belle & Sebastian bus or you’re not. Still, if you fall into the latter category, there’s probably no time like the present to hop aboard. The Scottish indie pop’s latest album, Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance, is a wistful wonder, replete with plenty of hooks and melodious exploration.…
Ohio Inmates Challenge New, Secretive Execution Protocol
Four death-row inmates in Ohio are suing the state and hoping to block new rules that will shield the names of companies provided lethal injection drugs. Plaintiffs Ronald Phillips, Grady Brinkley, Raymond Tibbetts and Robert Van Hook asked the state on Monday to expedite their case and intervene prior to the new rules becoming effective on…
East Cleveland Fed Up with Mayor Norton’s Traffic Light Bullshit
Taking a page out of Cleveland activists’ playbook, a small group of protesters in East Cleveland blocked traffic at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Forest Hills Boulevard Monday morning, to demonstrate against the permanently flashing red traffic lights there. Residents say Mayor Norton has delayed fixing the lights as a tactic to generate income…
Here’s How We’d Fix Cleveland Sports Talk Radio
If you have two quarterbacks, you don’t have one. The same age-old sentiment applies in some ways to the terrestrial sports talk radio environment in Cleveland. We don’t want to spend too much time on this one — it’s sports talk radio, after all — but a brief rundown of our qualms is in order.…
Public Hearing on FirstEnergy Proposal Set for Tomorrow
We mentioned last month the growing debate over whether FirstEnergy and other regional energy giants should be granted their requests for locked-in fixed-rate contracts for customers. The measure, termed a “bailout” by critics, would guarantee rates for the company’s customer base and thereby maintain operations at aging coal plants. The debate, in a sense, comes…
Cleveland Ranked Among Best Startup Cities in America
We’ve said it a time or two that Cleveland is a hotbed for entrepreneurial doers and makers, and last week the Forest City was recognized by Popular Mechanics for being one of the best startup cities in the nation. The folks at PM got with a handful of Cleveland innovators including Jason Radcliffe of 44Steel, Jackie and Phillip Wachter…
Scene Podcast: Two Girls with Glasses and The Modern Bohemian in Lakewood
This episode, Nikki and Brandi talk to Erika Laine Hansen who owns The Modern Bohemian in Lakewood. Their conversation revolved around her craft show world and what it’s like as a new business owner. Theme music by Pleasure Leftists. Like Two Girls With Glasses on Facebook here.
Collection of Rare Bootleg Ghoulardi Video Clips Released Online
Hollywood-based ‘multimediatician’ Josh Roush dropped some pleasing video news last week: He’s posted his first edition of AntiCurrent.com Video Archives, revolving around old Ghoulardi clips (see embed below). The video clips come from Roush’s own collection of bootleg VHS, DVD and digital recordings. Much of his stash is super-rare stuff. Here’s Roush with some background…
Looking at Cavs’ Midseason Report Card Following Friday Night Win Over Clippers
Last night the Cavaliers won their second straight game in the Staples Center beating the Los Angeles Clippers 126-121 in one of the more exciting games of the season, behind 37 from Kyrie Irving and LeBron James’ third consecutive 30+ game sine his return. It was a game primed for a Cavaliers let down. It…
The Tragically Hip Delivers Mesmerizing Show at House of Blues
Since forming in Canada some 30 years, the Tragically Hip have regularly included Cleveland as a tour stop. The band played here before it got big in Canada and continued to play here even after it got big, turning the intimate club shows it played in town into real treats for Canadian fans who would…
The Strange Familiar to Perform at Akron Civic with String Section
The Akron pop band the Strange Familiar is set to play a special show at the Akron Civic Theatre pairing it with a string quartet made up of area symphony members. The band will perform songs from its latest album, The Day the Light Went Out. In the past, it’s had its songs appear on…
You Can See Interstellar at the Omnimax Theater
Thursday evening, the sci-fi action film Interstellar, directed by Christopher Nolan, opened at the Omnimax Theater at the Great Lakes Science Center. The Omnimax hardly ever screens major commercial release — they did show the third, fourth and fifth installments of the Harry Potter series, as well as Superman Returns — but Interstellar, with its…
NBC to Air Special Murder Mystery Tonight Based on the Lisa Knoefel Stabbing
Last summer, Scene told the twisted tale of 18-year-old Sabrina Zunich who brutally killed her foster mother Lisa Knoefel by stabbing her 178 times in front of her two young daughters. Zunich was sentenced to life in prison, as was Knoefel’s huband after it was revealed that he’d had a sexual affair with the teen…
Cleveland Just Renamed E. 112th St. “Steve Harvey Way”
Cleveland just renamed E. 112th St. “Steve Harvey Way” to honor talk show host Steve Harvey. Harvey’s a Cleveland native and grew up on E. 112. It’s also his birthday tomorrow. Harvey will turn 58, so Mayor Frank Jackson, Councilman Kevin Conwell and members of the Steve Harvey show hosted a surprise re-dedication ceremony which…
Scene Podcast: Returning from Hiatus to Talk Downtown Development, Cleveland Police, and Weed
Craig Lyndall returns to talk with writers Eric Sandy and Sam Allard about all sorts of goofball news opening up 2015 in Cleveland. This week, the podcast touches on nuCLEus, weed legalization efforts, Terrance West’s Instagram, Cleveland police conduct, East Cleveland’s financial woes, Brandon Wright swinging and missing on the Cardale Jones news and just…
8 Concerts to Catch This Weekend
FRIDAY, JAN. 16 Mickey Avalon These lines, from his 2006 song “Dipped in Vaseline,” pretty much sum up what Mickey Avalon is all about: “In the Hollywood Hills, swallowing pills, tipsy off Scotch whiskey, sniffin’ blow through hundred-dollar bills.” The 36-year-old Hollywood MC mostly raps about things you’d read about in Nikki Sixx’s autobiography. And…
The Cavs Finally, Mercifully, End Losing Streak and Show Small Signs of Growth
The Cavs won last night beating the Los Angeles Lakers 109-102, ending a six-game losing streak in LeBron’s second game back. The win showcased better shot distribution and offensively efficiency, better ball-handling and for a half at least, good defense. Sadly, the most important take away will NOT be a team that looks a lot…
Cleveland is Still a Really Shitty Place to Live if You’re Black
African Americans in Cleveland are worse off than almost anywhere else in the country, a report published today on New Geography (originally appearing in Forbes), showed. As in other struggling Rust Belt Cities, blacks in Cleveland rarely own their own homes (37 percent), make nowhere near enough money (Median Home Income: $26,646), and aren’t as entrepreneurial…
Terrance West Is Still Thirsty, Apparently
The record, as it is, shows that Terrance West was thirsty in the beginning of his rookie year. Let the record, as this now deleted Instagram post from West’s now-private Instagram, show that he is apparently still thirsty as he rounds into the offseason before his sophomore campaign. We pity the poor Browns media relations…
31 Vintage Photos of Kids Growing Up in Cleveland
Whether you grew up in Cleveland or only passed a small amount of time here, it’s likely your childhood memories are, well, a bit different from folks who never spent summers at Euclid Beach Park or visiting the Cuyahoga County Fair. With the help of our pals at the Cleveland Memory Project and Cleveland Press,…
Branson Wright Tweeted Cardale Jones Would Enter NFL Draft, Got 239 Retweets (and Counting)
Branson Wright, a member of the PD’s crackerjack Browns’ beat, had a rough afternoon on Twitter. He was covering the Cardale Jones pres conference out at the Tedd Ginn Academy. There, Jones announced that he’d be foregoing the NFL draft and returning to OSU. Though Wright saw fit to correct his announcement that the presser would…
Ohioans Love Soup, Apparently
Soup is good. There’s no disagreement from this side of your computer screen. But two things: 1) We would argue the Buckeye State could use a surge in buffets. Just saying. 2) OK, soup looks very lame in comparison to the other offerings (except the land of gluten free). Map via Twitter via HuffPo via…
Blackhat Sucks
The pre-screening chatter among the local press corps revolved around why Blackhat, a film directed by Michael Mann — he who’d announced himself with Thief in 1981 and kicked ass through the 90s with The Last of the Mohicans (’92), Heat (’95) and The Insider (’99) — would be dumped by Universal in mid-January, garbage time…
Euclid to Net Big Gains in Dining Scene Thanks to Ambitious New Project
For a city the size of Euclid, with close to 50,000 residents, the community is woefully underserved by great independent restaurants. Other than a handful of small, popular spots like Beach Club Bistro and Paragon Wine Bar, the sprawling municipality just east of Cleveland is a culinary wasteland. Going a long way toward righting that…
ResponsibleOhio Announces Marijuana Legalization Plan
ResponsibleOhio’s website had featured a countdown clock all week, teasing visitors with something expected to happen at noon today. The clock struck 12 o’clock, and nothing happened. Later in the afternoon, a boilerplate press release seared across the website of the latest organization to seek the legalization of marijuana in Ohio. The news didn’t surprise…
RIP Spring Break Dennis
Some sad news to pass along that’s been making its way around the Kent State family this week: Dennis Bindel, better known as Spring Break Dennis, passed away. Spring Break Dennis was a Kent State mainstay, cultural hero, oddity, superfan and spring break enthusiast (celebrating some two dozen plus in a row, like a champion).…
Lakewood Hospital to ‘Transition’ Into ‘Wellness Campus’
Confirming rumors that have swirled around Lakewood for years, Mayor Michael Summers announced this morning that Lakewood Hospital would be “redesigned to fit community needs,” i.e. “transitioned into a wellness campus,” i.e., to be frank, Lakewood’s 52,000 residents will lose a hospital and gain an outpatient facility. Here’s Summers, though: “Rather than losing something, we are…
10 Things Going on this Weekend in Cleveland (January 16 – 18)
Beer bashes and boat shows are rolling in to Cleveland this weekend and occupying Cleveland’s convention centers. The weekend-long Mid-America Boat Show kicks off today (Thursday) at the I-X Center, followed by the two-day Cleveland Winter Beerfest on Friday at the Cleveland Convention Center. Between booze ‘n boats, squeeze in a couple of concerts– The Hesitations…
Jukebox the Ghost at Beachland Ballroom
Armed with a big new(ish) album and a fan-favorite arsenal of archived tracks, Jukebox the Ghost showed up to the good ol’ Beachland Ballroom last night and sparked a fevered frenzy of dancing. Highlights included, notably, much of the band’s newer material off their self-titled album. Opener “Postcard,” “When the Night Gets Long” and “Sound…
Video: Ohio Man’s Cat is Desperate for a Burrito
This video popped up on our news feed today, and it’s just so ridiculous we had to share. Full disclosure, this guy’s from my hometown of Wooster, OH. (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = “//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1”; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’)); Post…
Dates Set for 2016 Republican National Convention: July 18 – 21
The Republican National Convention chairman Reince Priebus announced today that the 2016 convention will be held July 18 – 21 in Cleveland. “The convention will be held significantly earlier than previous election cycles, allowing access to crucial general election funds earlier than ever before to give our nominee a strong advantage heading into Election Day,” Priebus…
Matt Zone Nearly Loses His Cool at City Council Safety Meeting
Nine local activists attended a Cleveland City Council public safety committee meeting Wednesday morning. They hoped to speak during public comment about the city’s response to the DOJ report and issues of transparency and accountability in the wake of the Tamir RIce shooting. When it became clear that there wouldn’t be scheduled time for them…
For Two Weeks, Chef Boccuzzi Trades his Kitchen for Sushi Bar at Ginko
For the next two weeks, Dante Boccuzzi will find himself in strange but not altogether unfamiliar territory: behind the sushi bar. Each year, Ginko’s head sushi chef Taishi Noma returns home to Kyoto, Japan, for two weeks to visit with family. Typically, the restaurant is compelled to close the doors during that time. But not…
No One in Ohio Likes Virginia Tech’s New Troll T-Shirts
Lo, the pride of Virginia… With the college football season receding slowly behind us, that lone loss to VT stands out as a blemish on the past year of OSU ball. Save for the Rise of Cardale, that game nearly cost OSU something special. It will now be memorialized on fabric down south. Anyway. We…
The Year’s Top Ten Albums, According to Us
The 42nd edition of the Village Voice Pazz + Jop poll, a compilation of Top 10 records and singles of the year that’s gathered by polling critics across the country, has just come out. D’Angelo and the Vanguard’s Black Messiah, the soul/R&B singer’s long-awaited follow-up to 2000’s Voodoo, took top honors. You can check out…
The Cavs Lose Again, Part 20 in a Very Depressing Series
The Cavaliers lost again last night to the Phoenix Suns, even with the return of LeBron James after two weeks of rehab for injuries to his back and knee. He looked refreshed, scoring 33 on an efficient 18 shots, dishing 5 assists and delivering a highlight film jam. (James only has 31 dunks through 30…
Here’s Scene’s Original Review of Bruce Springsteen’s Legendary 1978 Concert in Cleveland
We’ve long been fans of the famed 1978 Springsteen show, the audio for which has been floating around the internet for awhile. Recently, the Boss released the show as an official bootleg — Rolling Stone just called it the greatest official bootleg in his catalog — and by sheer coincidence, the August 17, 1978 issue…
Here’s the Cover of Gina DeJesus and Amanda Berry’s Upcoming Book
Back in Oct. 2013, Cleveland kidnapping survivors Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus signed a book deal to tell their story after being held captive for nearly a decade in Ariel Castro’s House of Horrors. This week, the cover for “Hope: A Memoir of Survival in Cleveland,” which was written with the help of Pulitzer Prize-winning writers…
Ohio Bartender Had Plot to Poison John Boehner, “the Devil”
A bartender who worked at John Boehner’s country club in West Chester, Ohio, was indicted last week on charges of threatening to kill the congressman last fall. Michael R. Hoyt, 44, hatched a plot which included poisoning Boehner’s drink at the Wetherington Country Club and then shooting him before making an escape. When police visited…
Motion City Soundtrack to Play Its Most Popular Album in Its Entirety
Motion City Soundtrack started in Minneapolis, a city that has a long, strong music history. But for singer-guitarist Justin Pierre, that legacy didn’t exactly help launch the band. It played the city’s smaller, underground clubs and partnered with acts such as Cadillac Blindside and Amp 176. “I have never been one that was aware of…
End of Life Follies: A Failing Judge is at the Center of a Wonderful Production in Trying at the Clague Playhouse
American audiences have a proven fondness for being entertained by grumpy old men. This is evidenced in the Jack Lemon and Walter Matthau movies of that name, and in the galaxy of other shows that lean on our fascination with old farts, from Ebenezer Scrooge to Grampa Simpson. Perhaps it’s the unvarnished candor of these…
Band of the Week: Miss Alexandra Huntingdon and the Gentlemen’s Intermission
Meet the Band: Miss Alexandra Huntingdon (vocals), Theron Brown (piano), Dan Pappalardo (bass), Neil Chastain (drums) Vocal Lessons: She began performing in opera and musical theater before settling on the nom de plume Miss Alexandra Huntingdon and hitting the Cleveland clubs. “Men, eating, drinking, shoes, fame, fortune, and metaphysics,” make her list of interests. “Since…
Rusted Root Singer Looks Back at Band’s 25-year History and Forward to Another 25 Years
When jam rockers Rusted Root first formed in Pittsburgh some 25 years ago, the city’s music scene was characterized by its eclectic nature. “There were a lot of different types of bands,” says singer-guitarist Michael Glabicki via phone from a tour stop in Wisconsin where he was “writing music right now in the basement of…
Cooper is Great, ‘American Sniper’ Isn’t
The Oscar nominations arrived earlier this week and Bradley Cooper received a well-deserved nod for his portrayal of sharp-shooting sniper Chris Kyle in the new Clint Eastwood film American Sniper, which opens today at area theaters. The film also received a nomination for Best Picture. Cooper’s nomination was deserved; the film’s wasn’t. While the movie…
The Art of Noises: Experimental Composer and Musicologist Luciano Chessa Talks Mechanical Synthesizers and Noise Intoners
Though the mechanical Intonoarumori — “wooden sound boxes, each with a cone-shaped metal speaker on its front” — might seem rather primitive, there’s plenty you can do with the instrument. World-renowned musicologist Luciano Chessa knows. He revealed his Intonarumori Ensemble in October 2009 at San Francisco’s YBCA’s Novellus Theater and that same year presented a…
Simply Undeniable: The Devil Makes Three Aims to Make an Acoustic Set as Much Fun as a Punk Show
The Devil Makes Three, a ragtag bluegrass punk band outta Vermont, made quite an impression when it last played in town. At a sold-out show at House of Blues Cambridge Room in 2013, the band had a capacity crowd hooting and hollering during its vigorous 90-minute set. Looking at the three members of the band,…
Song of the Week
“Some people say that we need to depend on the government,” sneers country singer-songwriter Zach Paxson on this working class anthem that sounds like a cross between Bruce Springsteen, John Cougar Mellencamp and Johnny Paycheck. A mid-song guitar solo has real grit to it and Paxson’s husky voice suits the track perfectly. “You ask me…
Lasting Impressions: CSU Celebrates Two Longtime Professors with Retrospectives Celebrating their Lives and Art
Last fall, Cleveland State University began a yearlong celebration of its 50th anniversary. The festivities have been frequent and diverse, and as students return from winter break, CSU’s Art Department is getting in on the game, celebrating its past with two new exhibitions at the Galleries at Cleveland State. Mind Creatures: The Amazing World of…
Law & Order: C.L.E.
CITY HALL: CLEVELAND CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS, JAN. 5, 2015, 1:30 p.m. Police Chief Calvin Williams’ atten-HUT lacks a drill sergeant’s gravel and militance. He doesn’t lean into it. His register and demeanor don’t change. He’s been standing at the lectern here in the sardine-packed chambers of Cleveland City Hall for four ultra-sober minutes and he…
Finger Lickin’ Good: A Quest for the Best Fried Chicken in Cleveland
White or dark, batter or breading, mild or spicy: Southern fried chicken is one of our favorite comfort foods. It’s a staple, uncomplicated and ridiculously satisfying when done right. There’s the crunch, of course, followed by the fatty richness of the skin. Inside, the meat — protected by the crackling shell — is all kinds…
Film Review of the Week: Appropriate Behavior
In a paper thin story about a Persian bisexual twentysomething living in Brooklyn, the walkways and warehouses of which are redolent with hipster sex and kombucha, Appropriate Behavior doesn’t achieve much more (visually or thematically) than your standard episode of Girls. Though it probes some unique questions about cultural and sexual identity, and benefits from…
Film Spotlight: Listen Up, Philiip
As far as curmudgeons go, Listen Up, Philip’s Philip Lewis Friedman (Jason Schwartzman) ranks with the best of them. An up-and-coming author who’s awaiting the publication of his second novel, he regularly belittles the people who are closest to him. He’s a first-class asshole who has lunch with an ex-girlfriend just to tell she should…
The Collage Try: Eccentric Singer-Songwriter Slim Twig Has a Singular Sound and Vision
One writer has said that Canada has failed “to recognize the genius in its own backyard” by virtually ignoring the talents of eccentric singer-songwriter Slim Twig (Max Turnbull). So does the guy feel underappreciated in his hometown? “I think the Canadian industry on a mainstream indie sense is more conservative than my music,” he admits…
Blu Notes: New Jazz Club in Akron Aspires to Introduce the Music to a New Audience
A decade ago, when Tony Troppe picked out the space that would become Blu Jazz+, Akron’s premiere jazz club, it was just a shoebox warehouse with dirt floors sitting beneath the Hermes building, in the historic Akron market district. Today, the space has been transformed into a little portal into the big-city jazz club experience…
