Tony Zarella Has the Only Preview of the NFL Draft You Need
The NFL Draft, as seen in Kevin Costner’s entirely realistic Draft Day, can get pretty dramatic — especially when it comes to the Browns. And as the time has come again for Cleveland’s football team to pick another “winner,” and with all the speculation about who Sashi Brown and the braintrust have their sights set…
Singer-Songwriter and Humorist Kinky Friedman to Debut New Songs When He Performs at Nighttown
Veteran singer-songwriter Kinky Friedman has done it all. Over the course of a career that stretches back to the ’60s when he played with the surf spoof act King Arthur & the Charlottes — a group known for its one and only single, “Schwinn 24/Beach Party Boo Boo” — he’s toured with Dylan’s Rolling Thunder…
Gladiators to Play Season Opener Tonight at the Q
The Cleveland Gladiators, part of the struggling Arena Football League, kick off their season tonight at 7 at the Q. The league has diminished over the past couple of years and only a few teams remain, the Gladiators being one of them. As a result, only two games will take place on any given weekend.…
Capitol Theatre to Host Dan Savage’s Hump! Film Fest
More than 10 years ago, syndicated sex columnist Dan Savage launched HUMP!, a film festival designed to challenge his Pacific Northwest readers to “get their hands dirty” and create “good, old-fashioned homemade porn.” The results ran a wide gamut and represented straight, gay and transgendered shorts made by amateurs from the area. Until recently, HUMP!’s…
Celebrity Trainer to Lead a Morning Workout at the Wolstein Center
Celebrity trainer Erin Oprea, the personal trainer to country/pop singers such as Carrie Underwood, Kelsea Ballerini and Jana Kramer, brings her popular CityStrong workout to the Wolstein Center today. Oprea, along with The Bachelorette’s Shawn Booth and Kaitlyn Bristowe, will lead attendees through a “killer workout party.” DJ Kaitlyn Bristowe will oversee the wheels of…
Gray’s Armory to Transform Into a Disco Club Tonight
Gray’s Armory, the downtown building that looks like a castle, used to regularly host parties and special events. We still remember attending Scrooge’s Night Out parties at the venue. While the facility remains underused, tonight at 8, Disco Cleveland will transform the building into a disco. DJ Packy Malley will spin tunes while host Gabriella…
Two Local Teachers to Talk About How Cleveland Helped Invent Professional Baseball
Cleveland Stories Dinner Party is a weekly series that pairs fine food with storytelling at the Music Box Supper Club. The goal of the series is to bring to life some of the fun, interesting stories about Cleveland’s past — from sports, to rock ’n’ roll, to Millionaires’ Row. Each week features a guest speaker…
Ohio Man Who Epically Botched ‘Wheel of Fortune’ Answer Earns Second Chance On ‘Ellen’
[image-1]All he had to do was fill in the blank. So easy, right? Look at that picture. But when Wheel of Fortune contestant and Brunswick-native Kevin Haas saw “A Streetcar Na-ed Desire,” gleaming on that white and green game show board last month, he spun the wheel and guessed the letter “k.” Yes, “A Streetcar Naked Desire.”…
Despite Opposition and Confusion, City Council Moves Q Deal Along to Next Stage, Will Surely Pass
After a marathon six-hour City Council hearing, Anthony Brancatelli, chairman of council’s Development, Planning and Sustainability committee, approved the Quicken Loans Arena renovation deal legislation, moving it along to council’s finance committee. The move came as a slight surprise, given the number and magnitude of unanswered questions by meeting’s end and earlier assurances by Councilman…
Indie Rockers Foster the People to Play the Agora in June
Founded in 2009 by Cleveland native Mark Foster, the indie rock group Foster the People came out of the gates swinging with the 2011 release of its debut album, Torches. The disc, which features the hit single, “Pumped Up Kicks,” would sell nearly two million albums and over nine million singles worldwide. The band even…
Here’s How to Watch John Kasich’s State of the State Speech Tonight, If You’re So Inclined
[image-1]Ohio Governor John Kasich will deliver his seventh and penultimate state of the state speech tonight. Beginning in his second year, 2012, he made the marquee event a traveling affair, visiting Medina, Steubenville, Lima and other delightful Buckeye towns. Tonight’s address, which will be delivered from Sandusky, will likely tackle the state’s opioid crisis, poverty,…
CLE DOG, Local Magazine Devoted to Dogs, Launches This Month
We here at Scene love dogs. On a good day, in fact, we’ll have three or four staffers’ pups wandering Scene Worldwide HQ, looking for a quick game of fetch and incessantly pitching us stories on the 187 Best Spots to Sniff in the Metroparks. And so we’re excited to see that CLE DOG has launched. The magazine’s…
Date, Chefs Announced for Five Star Sensation
In 2015, longstanding Honorary Chair Wolfgang Puck ceded the reins of Five Star Sensation, a mega-fundraiser for UH Seidman Cancer Center, to Michael Symon. The co-host of ABC’s “The Chew” and owner of Lola in Cleveland, Roast in Detroit and several locations of B Spot Burgers throughout the Midwest alternates as host, on a biennial…
Chef Steve Schimoler Pens Heartfelt Confessional Regarding Abrupt Departure
In a post titled “Less is More,” chef Steve Schimoler shares the painful backstory to his rise — and recent fall — as one of Cleveland’s most illustrious and colorful chefs. Schimoler exploded onto the local scene in 2007 when he opened Crop Bistro at its original location in the Warehouse District. That restaurant later moved…
Here’s a Corrected Press Release Announcing Sabra Pierce Scott’s New Job With the City of Cleveland
[image-1] The City of Cleveland sent out a press release this morning announcing a new position for Sabra Pierce Scott, but it was missing some key information about Pierce Scott’s professional background. The good folks over at City Hall have a lot on their hands and we’re sure the omission was simply accidental. We’ve gone…
In Advance of Music Box Concert, Jayhawks Frontman Gary Louris Talks About the Band’s New Collaboration With Ray Davies
Life has quickly moved beyond the “quiet corners and empty spaces” that singer-guitarist Gary Louris mentions on the opening track of the same name from the current Jayhawks album, Paging Mr. Proust. They’ve spent a lot of time on the road over the past year playing shows in support of the new record. But they’ve…
Walk All Over Waterloo Highlights Many New Exhibitions Amid Changing North Collinwood Landscape
It may have seemed quiet, but recent months have seen major changes along Waterloo Road in North Collinwood. Earlier this year, longtime executive director Brian Friedman left Collinwood’s community development corporation, Northeast Shores. Just days later, the community voted in many new board members (and subsequently voted out several former board members). After being the…
Indie Rockers Spoon to Play House of Blues in May
Veteran indie rockers Spoon just released their ninth studio album and coincidentally enough, it came in at the ninth spot on the U.S. album charts after its first week of release. The album also achieved the highest chart positions of the band’s 20-plus year career in places like the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Belgium, the…
Family of Luke Stewart Still Pleading for Answers from Euclid Police Department Three Weeks After Officer Shot and Killed Him
The family of Luke Stewart still doesn’t know what happened on March 13, save for the fact that Officer Matthew Rhodes shot and killed him. The Euclid Police Department has neither reached out for a conversation nor responded to numerous public records requests, according to the family and attorneys. Rhodes, who has been with the…
Read What Jason Kipnis Wrote About This Tribe Season and Then Run Through a Damn Brick Wall
Jason Kipnis is freaking excited about this season and he wants you to be excited too. Part of that: supporting the team and showing up to games. Not just the home opener or the late-summer games, but all year long to root loudly and proudly for your Cleveland team, he said, writing for The Players’…
How LeBron Taught Us to Stop Worrying and Get Excited About Baseball Again
[image-1] Remember Rajai Davis’ epic game-tying home run in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series? Of course you do. It was one of the most thrilling sports moments in what was, for Cleveland, a year that was filled with thrilling sports moments — the final score of the game (and series) notwithstanding. Just after Rajai’s…
Cleveland Print Room Will Show Artistic Responses to Previous Exhibition
Earlier this year, from January to March, the Cleveland Print Room hosted Inside Outside: Dr. Jelliffe’s Slides, an exhibition of institutional slides used by the doctor in presentations on psychoanalysis. The show featured an early 20th-century “magic lantern” slide collection from the New York State Psychiatric Institute and Hospital, now known as the Neurological Institute…
Distill Table to Join Western Reserve Distillery Project
When Kevin and Ann Thomas announced their plans for Western Reserve Distillery, a “grain-to-glass” distillery on Madison Avenue in Lakewood, they stated that a new restaurant would be part and parcel of the operation. Just who would operate that restaurant and what the concept would be, however, was still TBD. Now we know. Chef Eddie…
Now Open: Bakersfield Tacos, Tequila, Whiskey in Ohio City
The nearly three-year wait is over. Bakersfield Tacos, Tequila, Whiskey, a small but growing Cincinnati-based restaurant group, is open in Ohio City. The festive eatery, situated at the corner of W. 25th and Keene Court, just a block south of Lorain, opens today at 4 p.m. The Bakersfield concept launched in Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood in…
Northeast Ohio Representatives Pushing Back Against Trump’s Proposed Great Lakes Funding Cuts
President Donald Trump has recommended that Congress slash the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative fund by 97 percent, decimating an array of watershed protection grants, agricultural runoff regulations and algal bloom studies, as just a few examples. While this is merely a budget proposal, we’ve seen plenty of instances already in which the GOP-led Congress positively…
Ku Klux Klan Leaflets Distributed in Small Northern Ohio Town
We’ve reported that loose, decentralized arms of the Ku Klux Klan have been eyeing Ohio for future membership recruitment. With an eight-percent pro-Trump margin in the 2016 presidential election, it’s hard not to see the state as fertile ground for fringe ideologues. And even with the reality of Trump policies setting in — the sort…
Ohio State Troopers Won’t Release Use of Force Records from Deployment to #NoDAPL Protests
The Ohio State Highway Patrol’s refusal to release use of force records from a deployment to North Dakota last fall raises “significant questions about what the patrol is hiding,” wrote the Columbus Dispatch, in an editorial last week. In late October 2016, as Scene and other outlets reported, the OHSP sent 37 troopers to aid…
Gamekeeper’s Taverne is Closing After 40 Years
Gamekeeper’s Taverne, which recently celebrated its 40th anniversary, is closing. In an email to family, friends and longtime customers, management regretted to inform that the Chagrin Falls institution would be closing following tomorrow night’s service. “It is truly humbling to hear how much Gamekeeper’s Taverne has meant to so many people over the years,” they write.…
Who Are These Cavs and What Have They Done With My World Champs?
The truth, it’s said, is something that trickles out a little at first and then comes flooding forth all at once. Fans’ acceptance of the Cavaliers’ flaws has followed a similar trajectory, through denial and anger at the product on the floor, and finally the past few weeks, bargaining: “They’ll turn it on when the…
Gripping Foreign Language Oscar Nom Land of Mine Comes to Cedar Lee
Though it’s difficult to recommend going to the regular old movies while CIFF is in town, allow us to nevertheless enthusiastically endorse Land of Mine, a stunning WWII drama from Denmark that was nominated for this year’s Best Foreign Language Oscar, and which opens today at the Cedar Lee. The gripping, richly acted film demonstrates…
Guitarist Charlie Hunter Ventures into the Blues With His Latest Endeavor
Over the course of two decades now, jazz guitarist Charlie Hunter, who originally played in the seminal San Francisco Bay Area hip-hop group the Disposable Heroes of Hiphopcrisy, has employed a number of different musicians in different contexts as he’s toured and recorded as a solo artist. And while the music he plays gets categorized…
Heavyweight Champ Stipe Miočić Stops at the Rock Hall to Film Footage for a New UFC Promotional Video
UFC heavyweight champ Stipe Miočić and the “Countdown to UFC 211” film crew spent the better part of the week in Northeast Ohio filming promotional content that will air on FS1 (Fox Sports 1) leading up to Miočić’s next fight, UFC 211, which takes place on Saturday, May 13, in Dallas (and can be seen live…
Rosavelt’s Chris Allen Revisits the Band’s Debut In Advance of a Special 20th Anniversary Show
In 1996, local singer-guitarist Chris Allen formed Rosavelt with friends from Cleveland and Cincinnati. The group drew comparisons to alt-country acts such as Son Volt, Whiskeytown and Wilco. But Allen and his bandmates didn’t benefit from the accolades. The band would eventually splinter, but it reunited a few years ago and continues to play Cleveland…
RTA’s Route 51 To Become “MetroHealth Line”
[image-1]The MetroHealth Line will be the newest branded bus route in Cleveland. After the inking this week of a $4.1-million, 25-year naming rights deal, RTA will apply MetroHealth logos and branding to new buses and improved stops along Route 51, which services West 25 Street and the southern suburbs. Not to be confused with the…
‘Essentially We Have a Vietnam War Taking Place in Our Country Every Year’: Cleveland Clinic CEO on Heroin Crisis
[image-1]Cleveland Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove, lately a fixture on network news shows, has been trying to explain how widespread the country’s heroin overdose crisis has become — and how the U.S. health care system is not necessarily built to tackle this type of problem. Cosgrove spoke on CBS This Morning about those issues and offered…
Stella’s Art Gallery in Mentor Hosts a Grand Opening Reception Tonight
A city better known for its mall than its culture, Mentor has a new art gallery. Owner Carol Pitts calls her new Stella’s Art Gallery “the only working art gallery in Lake County.” While it’s not the only gallery in Lake County, the term “working art gallery” refers to the artists who maintain studios in…
4 Concerts to Catch This Weekend
FRIDAY, MARCH 31 Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness/Atlas Genius/Night Riots Similar to singer-pianist Billy Joel, singer-pianist Andrew McMahon found himself in a New York state of mind when he started making plans to work on his latest album, Zombies on Broadway. McMahon, who logged time in the Orange County-based piano-driven rock band Something Corporate starting…
Why was RTA Fleet Director Rehired One Week After Resigning?
Ron Baron, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority’s director of fleet management, resigned earlier this month after working at RTA for more than 11 years. But in a curious turn of events, he was re-hired only one week later. As with past personnel inquiries — Control-F: “Lauren Bobich” — RTA’s official explanation of the situation…
An Ohio Poet is Suing Insane Clown Posse Over Copyright Infringement
[image-1]Ohio poet Stanley Gebhardt is suing Insane Clown Posse over claims that band member Violent J outright stole one of Gebhardt’s poems. The full civil suit is embedded below. Gebhardt says that he wrote and copyrighted “But You Didn’t” in 1993. It appeared in A 2nd Helping of Chicken Soup for the Soul. Years later, though,…
This Ohio Love Bird Didn’t Quite Think Through His Spray-Painted Marriage Proposal
In the end, her answer was “yes,” and in the larger scheme of things, that’s the most important. For Kyle Stump, a Sheffield Lake man who, in this grand romantic gesture, asked his now-fiancee to marry him by spray painting the side of a building he didn’t own, perhaps that answer makes his actions worthwhile. After…
Gov. John Kasich Caps Painkiller Prescriptions, While State Legislators Work on Even Tighter Regulations
Gov. John Kasich is setting in motion his administration’s plan to cut down on opiate prescriptions and, in doing so, chip away at the state’s far-reaching addiction and overdose crisis. Kasich’s plan, announced yesterday, caps prescription painkillers like morphine at seven-day supplies for adults and five-day supplies for children. The idea is to keep patients…
Space: ROCK Gallery to Open New Exhibit Featuring Local Photographer’s ‘Shots in the Dark’
Local photographer Kevin McCann, who studied photography at Cuyahoga Community College, originally began taking photos more than 10 years ago on the streets of Pittsburgh and Cleveland. A musician who’s played in local bands such as Pet Monster, Dimeras, Pig Sticker, the Wooly Bullies and Brainwave, he also works at Dodd Camera and runs his…
Ohio Professor Suspended After Accidentally Including Erotic Stories In Research Project for ODOT
It turns out you shouldn’t accidentally send along part of your erotic story collection to the state Department of Transportation — especially if those stories include sexually explicit language regarding adults, children and animals. Bowling Green professor Alan Atalah learned that hard lesson recently after a state watchdog group released a report determining he’d done just that.…
This is How Much Money Telecom Companies Paid Ohio Republicans to Sell Off Your Browser History
[image-1]You may have noticed this week that Congress voted to allow Internet service providers to sell of your browser history and app usage data to third parties (marketing firms, let’s say) without your explicit permission. The bill, SJ Res. 34, reverses an Obama administration rule that protected the ownership of personal Internet data. If you…
Here’s LeBron James as a Cry Baby in a New Intel Commercial
Here’s a new commercial from Intel starring LeBron James. To quote George W. Bush, “That was some weird shit.”
There Are Numbers of Reasons to See ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time’ at Playhouse Square
Used to be, many of us couldn’t imagine what it would be like to live on the autism spectrum, experiencing sensory overload and unable to correctly process random stimuli. Ha! That was before we were subjected to the ravings of the Trump administration. Now, we live in fear of the next new notifications on our…
Country Singer-Songwriters Brandy Clark and Charlie Worsham Talk About Their Co-Headlining Tour
Country singer-songwriter Brandy Clark originally got her start performing in school musicals. She has blossomed into a superb songwriter; last year’s Big Day in a Small Town features a terrific collection of articulate songs about this American life. Charlie Worsham, another consummate singer-songwriter, will release his new album, Beginning of Things, next month. He’s teamed…
PechaKucha Night Cleveland Celebrates Its 30th Fast-talking Event At Music Box
Taking place in dozens of cities around the world, every PechaKucha Night features 10 creative speakers using 20 slides, and each slide is limited to 20 seconds. The result is an evening of fast-paced, exciting presentations, limited to just 400 seconds. Rather than selecting a theme for each event, organizers encourage presenters to speak about…
Comedian Lewis Black Talks About His ‘Rant, White & Blue Tour’
When comedian Lewis Black came through town two years ago, he delivered a show that, as he put it, touched on “topics that include current events, social media, politics and anything else that exposes the hypocrisy and madness in the world.” Given the recent election of Donald Trump as president, Black’s analysis of the “hypocrisy…
Fairlawn-Based Sterling Jewelers’ Parent Company Blasted with Class Action Suit
Good old Signet Jewelers, parent company of the Fairlawn-based Sterling Jewelers, has been hit with a lawsuit. This one’s a securities fraud class action lawsuit. As reported by Reuters, it accuses the company of failing to disclose “facts regarding sexual harassment allegations against executives at its Sterling Jewelers unit.” The Sterling Jewelers unit, which includes…
Lakewood Taken to Court for Refusing to Release Hundreds of Public Records
The Lakewood Hospital debacle has evolved into two fronts: the first being the city’s efforts to set up a “family wellness center” on the site and develop a few acres of now-vacant land, and the second being a civil appeals case that confronts local and state public records laws. As for the latter, a court…
The Ohio State University Ranks High on List of .edu Email Hacks, Sales
The Digital Citizens Alliance today released a report that details how personal identities — and .edu email addresses in particular — have become a hot commodity on the “Dark Web market.” The Dark Web is sort of a specialized plane of the Internet that requires a set specific configurations to access these small peer-to-peer networks.…
Cuyahoga is one of the Least Healthy Counties in Ohio
The eighth annual report from County Health Rankings & Roadmaps paints a distressing picture of the region. Despite the fifth-best clinical care among counties in Ohio, Cuyahoga remains one of the least healthy counties overall, ranking 75 out of 88 for Quality of Life factors, 76 out of 88 for Social and Economic Factors, and a…
Rock Hall to Open New Inductee Exhibit on Friday
Each year when the Rock Hall inducts a new class, it also opens a new exhibit featuring artifacts from the incoming class. The new exhibit offering items from Joan Baez, ELO, Journey, Pearl Jam, Tupac Shakur, Yes and Nile Rodgers will open on Friday. Items in the exhibit include the following: Joan Baez’s contract for…
Don’t Press That Cavs Panic Button — The A to Z Podcast With Andre Knott and Zac Jackson
Andre and Zac are back, and they discuss the home stretch of spring training, why a Browns owner would ever vote for relocation, college basketball coaching changes and if you should press the panic button regarding the Cavs. Subscribe to A to Z on iTunes here.
Get Out This Week In Cleveland (March 29-April 4)
WED 03/29 Spoken Word:Cleveland Stories Dinner Parties Cleveland Stories Dinner Party, a weekly series at Music Box Supper Club that pairs fine food with storytelling, aims to help raise awareness of the mission of the Western Reserve Historical Society’s new Cleveland History Center. The club’s owners consider the Cleveland History Center to be “one of…
Nationwide Fiber Works Show at the Morgan
Since 2008, the Morgan Art of Papermaking Conservatory and Educational Foundation has established itself as an international destination, serving as a working studio, formal exhibition space, educational hub and purveyor of some of the finest handmade paper in the world. Fittingly titled American Fiber, this year’s annual juried show of works on paper includes painting,…
Band of the Week: JoJo
MEET THE BAND: JoJo AN EARLY START: Now 25, pop singer Joanna Levesque, who records and tours as JoJo, got an early start on her career. She had a No. 1 hit with her debut single, “Leave (Get Out),” when she was only 13, making her the youngest solo artist to have a No. 1…
Georgia Couple’s African-American Art Collection Arrives in Cleveland
As students and faculty return to their daily routines following spring break, the Cleveland Institute of Art prepares to debut the latest exhibition in its Reinberger Gallery. African American Works on Paper brings together the work of legendary African American artists, several of whom studied at the Cleveland Institute of Art. Artists featured in the…
Bistro 185’s Methodical Transition Has Worked Splendidly
It was somewhere between happy hour and dinnertime, and every stool at the century-old wooden bar at Bistro 185 was occupied. As tipsy locals drained their cocktails, settled up and departed, they were immediately replaced by thirsty, hungry newcomers. Meanwhile, young couples, some with strollers in tow, waited in the now-crowded vestibule for a table…
Poison Berry Bakery Opens in April
Spring is on its way; this particular morning the air holds a dewy mist as Jen and Jon Regan put the final touches on their new vegan bakery, set to open April 1. Poison Berry Bakery (12210 Larchmere Blvd., 440-477-2078, poisonberrybakery.com) has been a passion project for the couple since 2010, providing a “better for…
Run, Don’t Walk, to CIFF41
The 41st Cleveland International Film Festival opens March 29 at Tower City, with a splashy opening gala and a screening of the documentary California Typewriter. For the next two weeks, until the closing festivities on Sunday, April 9, Cleveland will be awash in indie, foreign, avant-garde and short films. As usual, Tower City will be…
The Cozy Relationship Between Cleveland.com Editor Chris Quinn and Mayor Frank Jackson, And What It Means For Coverage of City Hall
There is a certain regularity to Mayor Frank Jackson’s schedule. On Monday mornings he has a legislative review with Valarie McCall, the city’s chief of government and international affairs, and then, usually, a school district briefing in the afternoon. He meets with his cabinet and the board of control on Wednesdays. On Thursdays he receives…
Rural Irish Folks Look For Happiness in the Sweet, Captivating ‘Outside Mullingar’
Have you ever wondered if you could fall in love with your next door neighbor? Okay, not that one, but the other one. No, not that one either, the one a couple doors down. Ever wonder? Well, that happens to two characters in Outside Mullingar, a sweet and evocative script by John Patrick Shanley which…
Spotlight: ‘T2 Trainspotting’
In 2002, author Irvine Welsh published Porno, a sequel to his 1993 novel Trainspotting. In turn, director Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire, Steve Jobs) contemplated a sequel to Trainspotting, his 1996 film based on Welsh’s book. His initial attempt at coming up with a script fell flat. “We had a go at it, and it was…
Savage Love: Positive Thinking
Dear Dan, Gay guy here. Met a guy online. He came over. We had incredible sex and then a great conversation lasting several hours. But — and you knew there was one coming—he told me that he lied about his HIV status. He is undetectable, but he told me initially he was “HIV/STD negative.” I…
