Toby Cosgrove Continues His War on Smoking
Cleveland Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove is not a fan of flavor country. In Cos’ perfect world, not only would everyone eat organic tofu and drink pomegranate smoothies and live to 146; nobody would have heard of smoking either. So Cosgrove ramped up the tobacco crusade in 2005 by banishing cigs from the Clinic campus. He…
Fracking Companies to Build $900 Million Plant in Ohio
“You are so dumb, you are really dumb, for realz.” Big Frack continues to make a hard push into Ohio, with news coming this week that three energy companies are pooling in on a major natural gas processing plant in Columbiana County. The $900 million project — that’s a hell of a lot of clams…
The Quality of Cleveland Life Report
Your guide to living in fabulous Cleveland. Nothing to See Here: 12 Amish men charged in beard-cutting attacks challenge federal hate-crimes law, arguing their actions were an internal matter among their own kind; lawyers for Jimmy Dimora kicking themselves for not thinking of that one. The Tightest Spiral: Browns QB Colt McCoy tells The Christian…
Cloud Nothings Score NPR’s Song of the Day
NPR listeners will get a taste of one of Cleveland’s best bands today. Cloud Nothings’ “Stay Useless” is the public-radio gods’ Song of the Day. Of course we’ve been telling you how awesome the band — led by Westlaker Dylan Baldi — and their new album, Attack on Memory, are for a while now. So…
What? Weed and a Harmonica Aren’t On Your Survival Kit List?
Westlake cops arrested a man for running a grow operation in an apartment this week. In addition to ten plants and two guns, police found this “Survival Kit (Homemade)” list on a dry-erase board. Yes, weed and a harmonica make the list. Because it’s hard to stay alive if you can’t jam on the harmonica…
Love, loss, and Cleveland sports
Try explaining C-town sports to a non-Clevelander Former Clevelanders Robert Attenweiler and Scott Henkle wrote a play last summer for Brooklyn, New York’s Comic Book Theater Festival. Part traditional stagecraft and part animated comics, Our Greatest Year mines the melancholy landscape of Cleveland professional sports — as seen through the eyes of a young married…
Cleveland Police Officer Indicted in Daniel Ficker Shooting; Another Officer Cleared
A Cuyahoga County grand jury has decided to charge Cleveland Police Officer David Mindek with dereliction of duty for his part in the July 4th shooting of Dan Ficker in Parma. The other Cleveland Officer on the scene, Matthew Craska, has been cleared in the shooting. According to a release from the prosecutor’s office, Mindek…
Cleveland School of the Arts Demolition Begins
Two and a half years ago — at the beginning of the 2009-2010 school year — students at one of the Cleveland Metropolitan School district’s highest performing schools, the School of the Arts, were moved into temporary quarters in an old junior high at 107th and Superior. This was to prepare for the demolition of…
Guessing at Tom Heckert’s Master Plan
Dude, that’s what you think I’m thinking? One of the nice things about writing for Scene Magazine is that nobody knows who I am. With a few minor tweaks, I feel like Harry Doyle’s commentary on the Indians’ attendance in Major League could easily cross apply to the hits I generate. “In case you haven’t…
When John Kasich Met Richard Nixon
Who do Ohioans have to thank for John Kasich’s ambitions to make a career out of politics? Richard Nixon, of course. Via CNN: Kasich’s December 1970 meeting in the Oval Office took place the same week as Nixon’s famous photo op with Elvis Presley. Kasich got more than a handshake: Told he’d have five minutes,…
It’s Time to Talk About Vasectomies and March Madness
Time to ice my crotch and watch two teams I’ve never heard of play basketball. Click on over to the local TV news stations’ sites today and you’ll likely find a piece that quotes Dr. Stephen Jones, a urologist at the Cleveland Clinic. Why? That’s right, it’s March Madness time, which means it’s time to…
Mullets Arrested in Amish Hair Crimes (Updated)
Update II: The winding court case of the Amish beard attackers took yet another turn today. According to the AP: Twelve defendants charged in beard-cutting attacks on fellow Amish in Ohio are challenging the constitutionality of the federal hate crimes law. [snip] The challenges say the alleged attacks aren’t religion-based hate crimes but internal church…
Pat Boone Is Back!
Once a heartthrob, now a pain in the butt Remember last fall when Ohio was besieged with robocalls from ’50s teen idol Pat Boone, aimed at protecting union-busting SB 5 from repeal? The importuning of the squeaky clean pop singer, famous for swiping and sanitizing songs first recorded by rhythm & blues stars, didn’t have…
New York Times Readers Hipped to Cleveland’s Divine Icons
St. Hedwig, Lakewood Maybe the upside of the recent spate of Catholic Church closings in the Cleveland diocese will be increased tourism to Lakewood, Ohio. That’s where makeup entrepreneur Lou McClung opened up his Museum of Divine Statues last April in the decommissioned St. Hedwig Church at 12905 Madison Avenue. This weekend his endeavor netted…
Chump of the Week: Terrance Nagare, Poo Flinger
No Ohioan can go back to Millcreak, PA again. Sympathy goes out to the men in blue from this tale. Nobody deserves this. Nope, we don’t wish this on anyone, in the line of duty or on the streets. Terrance Nagare isn’t giving the state Ohio a good rep over the border. The 30-year-old Sandusky…
Chardon Parents Complain to Police About Media Approaching Their Kids Online
This gentleman is working on a think piece about school violence, and he’d like to look at your daughter’s Facebook albums from Florida. This one came out last week, but unfortunately we got our Daylights Savings mixed up with St. Patrick’s Day, so we had to down that special order keg of green LeBatts LaBatts…
The Final Congressional Resume of Dennis Kucinich
Dennis Kucinich lost his battle against Marcy Kaptur earlier this week, and with that the end of his time in Congress is drawing near. A liberal sweetheart, boisterous and outspoken, a champion of Cleveland, a vocal opponent of war, owner of a pocket-sized Constitution — there seemed so much that he stood for. But as…
Jimmy Dimora Found Guilty in Corruption Trial
Update: The judge has ordered Dimora and co-defendant Michael Gabor detained in jail until sentencing. No date yet on that front. Next week, however, the jury we reconvene in Akron to decide what Dimora will have to forfeit in restitution. We’re pretty sure the damage will be more than an ice maker. *** The jury…
Colossal Cupcakes to Invade Downtown Cleveland!
Is downtown Cleveland hungry for a gourmet cupcake café? We’ll find out starting Friday, March 16, when Colossal Cupcakes (530 Euclid Ave.) opens in the old Octane space by the Colonial Marketplace. Kelly Kandah Ross, former Miss Cleveland 2003, says that while living in New York City she had grown accustomed to cupcake shops that…
Paul Shaffer Says Guns N’ Roses Won’t Perform at Rock Hall Induction… Sort Of
Update: A reader points us toward an update on this story from last night. The tweet’s been deleted and a statement has been released. Summary: Shaffer didn’t send that tweet, a staffer did. And no one knows what’s actually going to happen. A tweet that was posted on the “official” Twitter account of Paul Shaffer,…
No Superheroes in Newest Movie Shooting in Cleveland, Just Half-Naked Girls
They’re shooting another movie in Cleveland, but this time there’s no Captain America or that guy from Lost in sight. The movie is called Retro and it appears to be a look at the golden days of burlesque. Details about the movie are kinda sketchy: It’s apparently subtitled “The Katerina Jones Story,” but we have…
What to Do Tonight: Jimmy Webb
Jimmy Webb has written some of the most ambitious, and kinda weird, pop songs of the late ’60s: “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” “MacArthur Park,” and, best of all, “Wichita Lineman.” The Oklahoma native released one of his best solo albums, Just Across the River, last year. He comes to the Tangier on…
Life on Mars?
With characters and a story based on a 95-year-old Edgar Rice Burroughs novel and inspiration borrowed from Star Wars, Gladiator, and Avatar, among others, John Carter is a big, loud, and overlong sci-fi epic that aims for genre mythos but settles instead for super-caffeinated 3D spectacle. The title character (played by Friday Night Lights’ Taylor…
Jason Kipnis Was Singing Adele During Yesterday’s Tribe Game
Yesterday’s Indians spring training tilt against the Arizona Diamondbacks was mic’ed-up for a “live audio” broadcast, meaning you listened to players and umps and coaches talking as the game went on. Fabulous stuff, especially because it also caught little gems like this: Wahoo second baseman Jason Kipnis singing Adele’s “Someone Like You,” to himself during…
Joe the Plumber Questioned About Statements That Gay People Aren’t Allowed Around His Children, Still Thinking “Queer” is a Fine Word
Joe the Plumber won the right to face Marcy Kaptur in the race for the seat in Ohio’s 9th district. Which means it’s time to remind everyone that Joe the Plumber isn’t down with the gays. He made some remarks years ago that made clear his feelings — “I would never let queers near my…
Snap Review: El Guero Mexican Grill
For the bountiful supply of restaurants in the Warehouse District, the area has long sorely lacked a decent selection of lunch options. In both variety and price, it’s a sad state of affairs. Lovely for nighttime dining, disappointing for those of us that work here during the day. Which is why when El Guero Mexican…
Tony Grossi Joining WKNR After Resigning From Plain Dealer
Tony Grossi has been on the sidelines since the Plain Dealer pulled him from the Browns beat after Grossi’s inadvertent tweet insulting Browns owner Randy Lerner. He was “reassigned” in the sports department. But he never had another byline in the paper, though he was still active on Twitter, before his resignation yesterday from the…
Joseph Stafford’s Law License Suspended for Twelve Months by Ohio Supreme Court
Joseph Stafford is one half of the dynamic duo known as the Stafford Brothers. He and his brother Vincent were the subject of a Scene cover story back in the day: Monsters of Misery Court. Yeah, they’re assholes, largely reviled as the biggest dicks in divorce court. Mere douchebaggery wasn’t enough for these fellas, however.…
Update: Pope Posterizes Bishop Lennon; 13 Dead Churches Rejoice
Round 2 goes to the plucky parishioners. As closed parishes around the diocese held celebrations on Thursday, diocesan officials continued to await formal paperwork laying forth the terms of the Vatican’s decree that 13 churches be reopened. Opinion among parishioners is mixed whether the mandate means the parishes may instantly resume business, though considerable questions…
Red Cross Strike Going Nationwide
“We need to fill these guys up, but where is everyone?” On Valentine’s Day, the local union repping blood collectors and other employees at the local American Red Cross sent a big wet kiss off to the bosses when they went on strike. Now a couple weeks into the work stoppage, union members are not…
Robert Triozzi Was Punched in the Face Last Night
Former Common Pleas Judge Timothy McGinty will be the new Prosecutor for Cuyahoga County. The race had been trending that way, McGinty had a truckload of cash to spend, and that’s how things shook out. Stephanie Hall made a surprising and impressive finish in second place. Former Cleveland law director Robert Triozzi was further down…
Already Cool With Chickens, Cleveland May Allow Livestock
Moooo. See you in Cleveland. Back in early 2009, Cleveland City Council passed what’s popularly known as its “chicken and bees” ordinance, which had the effect of: 1) allowing countless clandestine beekeepers and poultry owners to finally emerge from their shadow of shame, and … 2) making us look way more serious about urban farming…
The Wisdom of Macedonia Mayor Don Kuchta
Macedonia Mayor Don Kuchta retained his crown last fall by earning 47 more votes than the next guy and a couple dozen more than two others who almost beat him. He is a man of the people, as long as you’re not referring to the 75 percent of people who don’t actually like him. But…
One of President Obama’s Art Guys is a Clevelander
Carli Dottore Just a few months ago, Cleveland graphic designer Lee Zelenak was part of the team at Twist Creative on West 28th Street, working on branding and design projects for clients like Ohio City Inc. and the West Side Market. But in January, he got called up to the big leagues: He’s now working…
Repair Shop Wars
Carlos Bezares is standing on the apron of his auto-repair garage on Scranton Road near Clark Avenue on a typically chilly Saturday afternoon. Solidly built, with a beard giving way to gray, he’s dressed for business in a black wool hat, work pants, and warm jacket with a patch bearing the name of his shop:…
There Will Be Blood
After 10 years and three albums, the four members of Lovedrug packed their bags, said goodbye to family and friends in Canton, and moved to Nashville eight months ago. They recorded their new album, Wild Blood, there, and now they’re hoping the city that’s chewed up and spit out artists by the pickup-load over the…
On Stage This Week
Poor Little Lulu: It’s Sexy Time! Oh, Cleveland Public Theatre: You had us at “vintage circus of comic debauchery.” That’s the tantalizing hook being tossed around in regard to Poor Little Lulu, a “cautionary tale” of greed, lust, and assorted sexual hijinx making its world premiere this week at the James Levin Theatre. Lulu is…
On View This Week
p>Akron Art Museum: Stranger in Paradise. The late Rev. Howard Finster is one of America’s most recognizable outsider artists, even creating album covers for R.E.M. and Talking Heads. Like a William Blake of the pop-art era, his oeuvre juxtaposes religiously laden illustrations arising from his vivid visionary experiences with more worldly subjects. The result is…
CD Review: Bears
Bears’ live shows have been few and far between since Charlie McArthur moved to Chicago and away from longtime collaborator Craig Ramsey. New songs by the sugar-spun pop group are even rarer these days. But their lovely new album was worth the wait. The duo’s fondness for shimmery indie pop still shines through: Strummy guitar…
Film Capsules
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax Dr. Seuss traditionalists might have a few problems with this new adaptation of The Lorax. For starters, the movie adds an entire romantic subplot between Ted (Zac Efron) and Audrey (Taylor Swift) that might muddle the original message found in Seuss’ fable of consumerism and ecological destruction. Still, there’s plenty to…
Home Movies
Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season (HBO) How excellent is the debut season of Game of Thrones? Let’s see: There’s lots of blood, big-ass broadswords, dragon eggs, and characters with names like Daenerys Targaryen. Plus, the main character is killed off midway through the 10-episode arc. The best fantasy show on TV looks even…
Blinders On
Social criticism and open-ended psychological riffing each take their turns at Window to Sculpture, the annual emerging-artists series that launches this week at the Sculpture Center. In In-Between, Cozette Phillips — a resident artist at Midwestern State University in Texas — defines our engagement with the world via a single object: window treatments. Her material…
The Music of His Soul
If ever there was a show to see specifically for the performances onstage — and not the actual material being delivered — Memphis is it. Now at the Palace Theatre at Playhouse Square, this Tony Award-winning musical by Joe DiPietro (book and lyrics) and David Bryan (music and lyrics) is studded with actors who sing,…
We Get Mail
Discomfort, Our Specialty I look forward to grabbing a copy of the Scene every time a new one drops. However, a recent item in the Lust Survey article left me uneasy [“Bring on the Nasty,” February 8]. At the risk of sounding overly sensitive, I’d direct your attention to this particular line: “8/11/69: DaNang. Got…
Local Band in Focus
Meet the Band: Shanna Delaney (vocals), Eric Ling (acoustic guitar, vocals), Jesse Sloan (electric guitar, banjo, keys), Dan Corby (bass), Justin Rife (drums), and Christopher Black (violin, viola). By the Slice: A chance meeting between Delaney and Ling at a Kent State pizza place was apparently destiny: They later tied the knot. Even though it…
At the Arthouse
Corman’s World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel Anybody who’s worth a fuck that made a movie during the last third of the 20th century got his start with Roger Corman. Jack Nicholson, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert De Niro, and Martin Scorsese all launched their careers working on one of the producer-director’s low-budget films. A bunch…
Get Out!
Thursday | 08 Fur a-Flyin’ Elmo on the Square It’s not easy being a singin’, dancin’ Muppet — especially if you’re wearing Ernie’s size-15 shoes. Take it from Jerry Du Mars, the Orlando-based director and dance captain for Elmo’s Super Heroes, the current offering from Sesame Street Live opening tonight at Playhouse Square. How, exactly,…
Savage Love
Dear Dan: I’m a gay man in my late 20s who has been trying to deal with an attraction to young boys since I hit puberty. I know that what I feel is wrong and wish to Christ that I could have a normally wired brain. I have never abused a child; I do not…
Eastern Adventures
Can there be any better illustration of pho’s heightened popularity than the recent opening of Bowl of Pho? Located just a few doors down from Corky & Lenny’s — that long-time shrine to matzo ball soup — is a restaurant devoted to Vietnamese noodle soup. It just goes to prove that what began a handful…
Village People
Village Martini & Wine Bar opened quietly in Chagrin Falls last Friday, March 2, with a well-stocked bar and a dinner menu of large salads, small plates, and entrées like seared ahi tuna and pretzel-crusted chicken. The talents behind the new endeavor belong to owner and GM Jeff Rumplik and executive chef Brad Cubbal. The…
CD Review: Andrew Bird
Don’t let all that whistling deceive you. On his 12th album, Chicago singer-songwriter Andrew Bird — whose instruments of choice are the violin and his own puckered lips — gets cynical and a bit dispirited, singing “No one can break your heart, so you break it yourself,” on his best song, “Eyeoneye.” It’s a date…
Kiddin’ Around
Jason and Julie seem to have beaten the whole can-men-and-women-really-be-friends? thing. Platonic BFFs, the pair at the center of Friends With Kids live in the same Manhattan apartment building, share the same active but ephemeral dating lives, and go out as a de facto couple with their coupled-up friends. But when those actual couples start…
Bottoms Up
Hello, thirsty folks of Cleveland. I am Vince the Polack, your new resident booze columnist. This is where I will write about drinking. If you’re wondering how it came to pass that the bosses handed me the keys to this particular literary kingdom, I can assure you the selection process was most thorough, and did…
Concert Calendar
Elliott Brood The Toronto trio Elliott Brood play a street-corner hoedown jam at the intersection of Uncle Tupelo and Crazy Horse, with equal measures of down-home front-porch, big-city bar stage, and suburban garage. Since forming in 2004, multi-instrumentalists Mark Sasso and Casey Laforet, along with sampler and percussionist Stephen Pitkin (who used to bang on…
CD Review: The Magnetic Fields
The Magnetic Fields’ Stephin Merritt loves a good theme, right down to his album titles: the self-explanatory 69 Love Songs, the selfish i, the noisy Distortion. After a trio of synth-free records, Merritt restores perfectly discordant synthesizers and a familiar sense of whimsy to the band’s 10th album. The opener, “God Wants Us to Wait,”…
CD Review: Todd Snider
Singer-songwriter Todd Snider has been making records for almost 20 years, but it didn’t really come together for him until 2004’s East Nashville Skyline, a smart and funny LP of love songs and social commentary. Its 2006 follow-up, The Devil You Know, remains his definitive work: a perfect balance of the social, political, and personal…
Hard Wood
In most ways, Chris Grant spent the NBA lockout exactly like the rest of his front-office brethren across the league. As players and owners locked heads, the Cavaliers’ general manager enjoyed more time with his wife and three young sons than he normally could have. He took an extended trip to see family and friends,…
