Cleveland Mayoral Candidate Brandon Chrostowski Says He’s Called to Lead
EDWINS Leadership & Restaurant Institute founder Brandon Chrostowski announced his Cleveland mayoral candidacy on Feb. 2, 2017. It was not Mark Naymik, Leila Attassi or anyone on the Cleveland.com politics team who broke the story; nor was it a member of the vast and spritely local TV reporting corps; it wasn’t even me or Eric…
Norma Herr Women’s Shelter Will Likely Continue with Same Management
Cuyahoga County Council will debate the women’s homeless shelter operations contract soon, following a recommendation to renew the contract with Frontline Services, the current operator. The news was met with concern among the women who stay at the shelter. During a recent meeting of the Homeless Congress, Ruth Gillett, the county’s homeless services director, explained…
Cuyahoga County Jail Officer Arrested for Allegedly Smuggling Heroin Into Jail for Inmate Accused of Rape
Over the last few months, sources at the Cuyahoga County Jail have been telling Scene of an uptick in inmates caught with heroin and other drugs. It was curious to them, what with new body scanners installed last year and protocols to prevent illegal substances from entering the facility, that nearly a dozen inmates were…
Q Deal Progresses: County Council Grovels Before Cavs, Signals Ultimate Support
In what likely served as a preview of the official vote on the Quicken Loans Arena renovation deal, Cuyahoga County Council voted 8-2 Tuesday to move an amended version of their resolution to its next and final stage. The resolution authorizes the County to sell municipal bonds that will generate $140 million for the project.…
Comedian Kathy Griffin Brings Her Celebrity Smackdown to the State Theatre
Last year, comedian Kathy Griffin released her second book, Kathy Griffin’s Celebrity Run-Ins: My A-Z Index, offering a hilarious look at how the Hollywood half lives. The book provides an A-Z compendium of the celebrities she’s met and offers “outrageous, charming and sometimes-bizarre anecdotes.” Now on a 50-city standup tour in support of the book,…
NASA Glenn Announces Public Tours
NASA Glenn will host monthly public tours of its campus from April through October. Past tours and open house events have been wildly popular, so make a note on your calendar now. The dates are below, and more information can be found at NASA’s website. Each tour focuses on a particular research unit at Glenn.…
Third Fridays at 78th Street Studios Packs a World of Art Into One Night
Looking for something to do after the parade this St. Patrick’s Day? This year’s holiday falls on the third Friday of March, and of course, 78th Street Studios is the place to be on the third Friday of each month. March’s Third Friday open studios event at 78th Street Studios includes the debut of several…
Sandusky Couple Who Staged Fake Murder Scene Mostly Regret the Horrible Joke After Being Charged With Inducing Panic
On Monday, Inside Edition interviewed the Sandusky couple who jokingly set up a gruesome homicide scene using ketchup and their bodies and then sent the pictures to at least one family member as a joke. Yes, last week, Micah Risner sent a photo of girlfriend Nataleigh Schlette’s dead-looking body in a bathtub covered in ketchup/blood…
Even Beyoncé’s Dad Was Stranded at Cleveland Hopkins Airport Due to Snow
Thousands of travelers at Cleveland Hopkins Airport still aren’t going anywhere today thanks to weather delays here and around the country (even though the snow is pretty tame in Northeast Ohio for the time being). The TV stations were out and about yesterday getting all the snow angles covered and that of course meant checking…
Khloe Kardashian Gave Tristan Thompson a Very Special Gold Birthday Cake
When Tristan Thompson turned 26 Monday night his girlfriend Khloe Kardashian threw him a gold-themed birthday party, as one does. Documenting much of the Cleveland shindig setup on her social media accounts, Kardashian, 32, who has recently admitted how much she enjoys this city, seemed incredibly excited to celebrate her boo, including lavishing him with…
Lou Ferrigno Brings ‘Incredible Hulk’ Legacy to Wizard World This Weekend
Cleveland turns green this St. Patrick’s Day, and not just for the Irish. Former Mr. America, two-time Mr. Universe, and the original Incredible Hulk makes his way to Cleveland for Wizard World this weekend. The actor, motivational speaker and fitness trainer shares on his upcoming projects and ties to Northeast Ohio. SCENE: You’re coming to…
Banter Is Hosting Its Second Annual Steve’s Lunch Celebration and Pop-Up This Week
Two years ago Cleveland lost a legend and an institution when a grease fire took down Steve’s Lunch. It is missed every single day. Last year, the fine cased meat and poutine purveyors over at Banter celebrated Steve’s legacy with a pop-up tribute and it’s happening again Thursday night. Details below. Grab a slaw dog…
New York Times Visits Ohio Family Torn Apart by Heroin Overdoses with Fears of More to Come
In the wake of NBC Nightly News’ report on the Winemiller family in Wayne Township, Ohio, the New York Times has published an extensive feature on their tragedies. Roger Winemiller has lost two adult children to heroin overdoses, and he’s scared of losing another son, Roger T. Winemiller. In the background of the story rests the…
Veteran Producer and Record Executive Tommy LiPuma Dies at Age 80
When we interviewed producer and record executive Tommy LiPuma last year, he thrilled us with stories about the various music icons with whom he’s worked over the years. A terrific storyteller, he received 36 Grammy nominations that resulted in five wins and worked with Diana Krall, Barbra Streisand, Miles Davis, Natalie Cole, George Benson, Sir…
“How I Learned to Drive” Tackles Child Sexual Abuse in Subtle, Powerful Ways at the Cleveland Play House
How I Learned to Drive, Cleveland Play House Child sexual abuse is a terrifically difficult subject to deal with on stage, for all the obvious reasons and a couple not so obvious. But ever since Paula Vogel wrote How I Learned to Drive in 1997, she set the standard for a subtle, slowly evolving portrait…
County Council Will Meet to Discuss Q Renovation at 1 p.m.
Cuyahoga County Council will meet at 1 p.m. this afternoon to deliberate once again on the Quicken Loans Arena renovation plan. As currently constructed, the “deal” requires Cuyahoga County to sell bonds to generate $140 million that will be used to fund the project. The Cavs, via “increased rent,” and the taxpayers will pay back…
Stark County Coroner Needed to Bring In a ‘Mobile Morgue’ To Cope with Overflow of Heroin Overdose Victims
The Stark County (Canton) Coroner’s Office brought in a “temporary morgue” via the Ohio Department of Health last week to accommodate the vast influx of heroin overdose victims. This is standard procedure in public health emergencies, according to the state. County coroners may seek emergency assistance, and that’s what Stark County and other local governments…
Tickets for the Luke Bryan Concert at Progressive Field Go on Sale on Friday
A former peanut farmer who’s become one of country music’s biggest stars, singer-guitarist Luke Bryan brings his Huntin’, Fishin’ and Lovin’ Tour to Progressive Field on Saturday, July 15. Brett Eldridge and Lauren Alaina will open the show. While fans who bought the Country Megaticket already have tickets, tickets go on sale to the general…
The Nightlight in Akron to Host an Advance Screening of Werner Herzog’s New Film
As part of the New York Film Critics Film Series, a regular series of ongoing preview screenings that takes place in about 50 selected major markets, the Nightlight in Akron will present a special advance screening of Salt and Fire, a new thriller from director Werner Herzog that centers on an ecological disaster in South…
311 to Bring Summer Tour to Hard Rock Live in June
When rap-rockers/jam band 311 played at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica last summer, it started its set with “Beautiful Disaster,” “Sick Tight” and “Prisoner” as it delivered a set that included a song from almost every one of its albums. In Scene’s review of the show, Eric Sandy noted that “this was one of the best setlists…
Indie Rockers My Morning Jacket to Play Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica in June
When indie rockers My Morning Jacket came to town two years ago in support of The Waterfall, the band put on a thrilling show at the State Theatre. Led by big-voiced singer-guitarist Jim James, the band began that concert by performing behind a giant white screen as it launched into “Believe (Nobody Knows),” the proggy…
Officer-Involved Fatal Shooting in Euclid This Morning, BCI Investigating
Shortly before 7 a.m. today, a Euclid police officer shot a man who later died. The man has not yet been identified. According to the Euclid Police Department’s public information officer, “Euclid Police responded to a report of a suspicious vehicle parked on South Lakeshore, near E. 215th Street. That call for service eventually resulted…
Patti Smith and Her Band Tap Into Rock’s Revolutionary Spirit During Rousing Show at the State Theatre
In 2015, singer and poet Patti Smith began playing her debut album Horses in its entirety to mark the disc’s fortieth anniversary. For a variety of reasons, the tour never landed in Cleveland, one of the first cities outside of Smith’s New York home base to embrace the singer. Last night at the State Theatre,…
Angela Garcia’s 2001 Arson, Murder Conviction Still Raising Questions. The Intercept Came to Cleveland to Investigate
In a towering piece published last Sunday, The Intercept’s Liliana Segura reports on the circuitous tale of how Angela Garcia was convicted of — and later pleaded guilty to — burning down her Cleveland home and killing her two young daughters. The story reveals deep truths about the criminal justice system in America and about…
March Madness, October Sadness, and Where Do the Browns Go From Here? — The A to Z Podcast With Andre Knott and Zac Jackson
Andre is sunning himself in Arizona. Zac is freezing his ass off in Ohio. The guys discuss their situations, the NCAA tournament bracket, seeds vs. bodies of work and what the Browns did — and didn’t do — in the initial wave of free agency. Subscribe to A to Z on iTunes here.
Graffiti HeArt and CLE Urban Winery Team Up for ‘Paint a Mural’ Wine Events
One of the city’s most successful recent collaborations between artists, art organizations and local business owners, Graffiti HeArt and CLE Urban Winery have been working together since before CLE Urban Winery opened its doors on Lee Road in Cleveland Heights last summer. Through a combination of murals and fundraising events at the winery, Graffiti HeArt…
Singer-Songwriter Paul Simon to Perform at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica in June
With fellow singer-songwriter Art Gufunkel, Paul Simon had some of the ‘60s biggest folk-rock hits with tunes such as “The Sound of Silence,” “Mrs. Robinson,” “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and “Cecilia.” And that’s not to mention a slew of other terrific songs the duo churned out. After he and Garfunkel parted ways, Simon continued to…
Dinosaur Jr Heats Up Three Decades of Slacker Rock at Sold-Out Beachland Ballroom Gig
With another terrific album in the not-too-distant past, Dinosaur Jr continues an almost unprecedented roll into its third decade and — undoubtedly — its third “version” of the band. With Marshall stacks forming an imposing wall of heavy, heavy sound behind them, J Mascis, Lou Barlow and Murph hit the stage with slick and unassuming…
The Mandel Jewish Community Center in Beachwood Received Another Bomb Threat Today
According to the Cleveland Jewish News, the Mandel JCC in Beachwood was on the receiving end of an emailed bomb threat today along with 12 other Jewish community centers around the country. It’s the second bomb threat for the Mandel center specifically; both have been hoaxes. There have now been hundreds of bomb threats in various…
Beck Center’s Production of a Play About Gay Conversion Therapy Suffers From the Absence of the Main Subject
If you want to write a play about gay conversion therapy, focusing on one young man named Daniel who is sent to a cabin in the woods for counseling, it’s a bold choice to have that young man disappear for most of the play. In a metaphorical sense it’s an interesting decision because the whole…
Details for Dyngus Day 2017 in Ohio City and Tremont
For the past several years, Easter Monday in Cleveland has come to mean Dyngus Day, a Polish celebration also known as lany poniedziałek. Slated to take place this year on April 17, the event will include festivities at various bars and restaurants in Tremont and Ohio City. The Ukranian Museum-Archives will participate this year. It will have…
Craigslist Killer’s Bad Art For Sale on ‘Murderabilia’ Site
[image-1]Akron-native Richard Beasley, aka the “Craigslist killer,” is apparently a murderer who wants to be an artist. One of his (terrible) paintings is now for sale online at Serial Killers Ink, because it’s cool to some people to own things produced by terrible people like Beasley, who is on death row for brutally murdering three…
Three County Councilpeople Vow to Delay Q Deal Vote at GCC Rally
“Make no mistake about it GCC, we are in a fight.” That was the Rev. Jawanza Colvin, preaching from the pulpit at Slavic Village’s Elizabeth Baptist Church to a crowd of energized #NotAllInners Thursday evening. They’d just secured commitments from County Councilpeople Jack Schron, Dale Miller and Yvonne Conwell that they would work to delay…
AT&T Has Historically Excluded Cleveland’s Poorest Neighborhoods From Its Internet Access Improvements
With the long history of Ohio’s “cable competition” legislation as its backbone, the National Digital Inclusion Alliance today released a report that shows how AT&T willfully expanded its Internet services in Cleveland and left the city’s poorest neighborhoods to languish with sluggish technologies. The organization uses the term “digital redlining,” and a series of maps…
That Is Not How You Spell “Cavs”
[image-1] If this hasn’t been fixed yet, can somebody run over to that office and help them out? (Via @lexilindway).
Set to Appear at Wizard World and Perform at the Agora, KISS’ Gene Simmons Discusses His Love of Comic Books
KISS singer-bassist Gene Simmons still bristles when we bring up his infamous interview with NPR host Terry Gross. In their decidedly awkward exchange that aired more than ten years ago on the program Fresh Air, Simmons objected to her questions and dismissed her as someone who was “studious and reserved” while she maintained that he…
Sandusky Couple Charged After Staging Fake Murder Scene With Ketchup, Spreading Photos
When Micah Risner began sharing photos of what appeared to be his significant other, Nataleigh Schlette, dead in a bathtub Thursday night covered in blood along with messages that he killed her, he probably didn’t think Sandusky police would come knocking at his door. To be clear, he probably should have thought that law enforcement would…
The Swinging Door Rises Again: New Location Open Now
Six months ago, the wayward denizens of Center Ridge Road in Rocky River and Fairview Park wondered aloud: “Where do we all go now?” Those were strange and heady times. The Swinging Door, one of the great westside suburban dives of the Cleveland metro area, had just closed. The final hours in that place were…
Armond Budish Claims to Have Negotiated Cavs’ Lease Extension as Part of Q Transformation Deal; Turns Out It Was Part of Cavs’ Original Proposal All Along
After the public rollout of the Q Transformation Plan and the subsequent county council discussions on the deal, County Executive Armond Budish has fiercely latched onto one supposed benefit for the public in handing out some $160 million of taxpayer money to Dan Gilbert: It means the Cavs won’t leave Cleveland. Nevermind that, by all…
Before/After: Here’s What This Dog That Weighed 19 Pounds When It Was Rescued Looks Like Now
When Malachi was discovered wandering the streets of Cleveland a few months ago, he was so emaciated nearly every bone in his body was on display. Weighing just 19 pounds at the time, his road to recovery wasn’t going to be easy. But today, the resilient pit bull-terrier mix is back to a healthy weight…
Bro, Quicken Loans is a ‘Top 10’ Place to Work According to Fortune Magazine
Quicken Loans, the retail mortgage giant headquartered in Detroit with offices in downtown Cleveland, once again made Fortune Magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For,” coming in at No. 10. Fortune describes billionaire Cavs owner Dan Gilbert’s pride and joy as “vibrant” and notes that employees have a “great feeling” when coming to work. Just take a look…
5 Cool Concerts to Catch This Weekend
SATURDAY, MARCH 11 Boys From the County Hell When the Boys from the County Hell first got together in 2000 as a Pogues cover band, it was supposed to be just a one-night stand. But after selling out their first show at the Euclid Tavern, the group’s popularity escalated. The band’s been working on blending…
Saucisson Announces Opening Day for Slavic Village Butcher Shop
“We’re opening a butcher shop!” Melissa Khoury and Penny Barend shout in unison. “We just passed our last inspection today.” The long wait is almost over for Cleveland’s “Lady Butchers” as their long anticipated butcher shop, Saucisson, will open next Thursday, March 16th. Since 2013, the butchers’ artisanal cured meats, sausages and other products have…
Frank Jackson Says We’ve Got To “Get Uncomfortable” if Cleveland is to be Great
Mayor Frank Jackson outlined his policy priorities in a by-the-numbers State of the City address Thursday afternoon. The speech, Jackson’s 12th of its kind, gave voters a taste of what they can look forward to if they elect him to an unprecedented fourth term in office this fall. To a packed house of the city’s…
Indie Rock Band Strand of Oaks Always Looks For New Ways To Experiment
In 2014, Strand of Oaks released HEAL, a critically acclaimed breakthrough album which brought the band a wider audience. Timothy Showalter, the band’s leading writer and musician, used to write more folk-oriented songs, but on HEAL, he changed the band into a more rock-driven unit. The album uses Showalter’s life as a backdrop to supply…
Three Decades Into Its Career, Bon Jovi Remains an Arena Rock Staple
In the past 30 years, arena rock acts have come and gone. One staple throughout that period has been the New Jersey-based rock act Bon Jovi. Shortly after forming in 1983, the band found itself on major tours with the Scorpions and KISS. When its third studio release, 1986’s Slippery When Wet, topped the charts…
Cleveland Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove is ‘Concerned’ About New Health Care Bill
[image-1]Today, Cleveland Clinic CEO Toby Cosgrove outlined a sense of trepidation about the new Republican-scripted health care bill. He appeared on a thing called “Squawk Box” on CNBC and levied concerns about how patients may be paying more and getting less under this proposal. Watch the video below. As a quick primer, the New York…
JCC Leaders Urge Attorney General Jeff Sessions to Take Action in Response to Bomb Threats
After a flurry of bomb threats against Jewish Community Centers around the country, including the Mandel Jewish Community Center in Beachwood, the leaders of those organizations are urging Attorney General Jeff Sessions to do more in response. The leaders also requested a meeting with Sessions. The FBI and Department of Justice have initiated investigations. All…
Tune in: Mayor Frank Jackson’s State of the City Address is at 12:30 p.m.
Mayor Frank Jackson will deliver his 12th State of the City address this afternoon at the Cleveland Public Auditorium in an event co-sponsored by the City Club of Cleveland. Though ticket sales are now closed, you can listen to the Mayor’s remarks at 12:30 p.m. on 90.3 WCPN. Ideastream will also stream the speech live.…
A Box for Every Baby: A New Program Aims to Give Baby Boxes to Parents to Help Combat Ohio’s Abysmal Infant Mortality Rate
Ohio currently ranks 38th in the nation in infant mortality rates (and Cuyahoga County itself is among the worst in the nation). Last year, 1,005 Ohio babies died before their first birthday. Of those, 150 were sleep-related deaths. That’s three a week. Which brings us to a new program facilitated by an L.A.-based company (Baby…
Panic! at the Disco Thrills Capacity Crowd at Wolstein Center
We’ll always remember the time Panic! At the Disco played at House of Blues in 2014, and sick-and-ailing singer Brendon Urie soldiered his way through a high-energy 90-minute set with all the determination of a pro athlete. The guy even did a back flip during the show’s final minutes. While last night’s show before a…
Cleveland Native Earl St. Clair Reintroduces Himself With His ‘My Name Is Earl’ EP
It’s the release date of his debut EP, My Name Is Earl, and Cleveland native Earl St. Clair (né Earl Johnson II) is in Los Angeles, waiting backstage to perform on Corden’s Late Late Show. We remind him of an interview he did in 2012, wherein he predicts that five years from then – in 2017 –…
In a Small Ohio Town, Police Are Charging Overdose Victims with ‘Inducing Panic’
[image-1]In Washington Court House, Ohio, situated south of Columbus, police officers are instructed to charge opiate overdose victims with “inducing panic.” That is to say: If the overdose doesn’t kill you, then you may land a 180-day jail sentence and/or a $1,000 fine if police officers administer the overdose-reversing Narcan. It’s an unusual move from…
Video: Dave Chappelle Talked About Police Violence at His Local City Council Meeting in Yellow Springs, Ohio
Dave Chappelle lives in Yellow Springs, Ohio, just outside of Dayton. (The background on that and a whole lot more about the comedian can be found in this delightful and excellent feature from The Believer here.) The small town made national news after an incident on New Year’s Eve during which a black man was…
Local Indie Rockers Trios Premiere Long Form Music Video for ‘Late Last Night’
A local rock act that describes itself as “psych rockers,” Trios just issued For the Kids, a noisy, retro-leaning studio release that sounds like it came straight out of the ’60s underground garage scene, at the end of last year. Now, the band has just released the first music video from the album. Dan LaGuardia…
Sneaker Con Takes Over the Cleveland Convention Center This Saturday
Did you miss out on getting your hands on the latest Kyrie 3 sneakers? Looking to buy your first pair of Yeezys (or just window shop)? Whether you’re in the market for your 20th pair of Jordans or your first Ultra Boosts, Sneaker Con is where you should be heading this weekend. Saturday, March 11,…
Singer-Songwriter Ed Sheeran to Play the Q in September
Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran played plenty of small venues before up-scaling to bigger rooms in late 2012 and early 2013 and then playing arenas with country superstar Taylor Swift. Now, he’s a superstar who can fill arenas as a headliner. A satisfying pop release that shows off his singing and songwriting chops, his latest album, “÷,”…
Masthead Delivers Pizza and Beer, and There’s Just No Better Combination
If it’s true (please let it be true) that man can survive on a diet of just pizza and beer, then Masthead Brewing Co. has all the requirements necessary to sustain life. But more than that, this two-month-old brewery has injected a much-needed jolt of life into an area of downtown Cleveland that desperately needed…
Appearance on ABC’s ‘Shark Tank’ Yields National Attention for Akron-Made Peaceful Fruits
Peaceful Fruits (330-356-8515, peacefulfruits.com) founder Evan Delahanty conceptualized his healthy snack line in order to make a positive, sustainable impact by selling fruit leather created with acai berries indigenous to the Amazon rainforest throughout his hometown of Akron. Now, thanks to an appearance on ABC’s reality TV show Shark Tank, his product has a vast…
Band of the Week: Titans in Time
MEET THE BAND: Vince Gillman (vocals), Nate Milstein (guitar, vocals), Matt Devonshire (bass), Matt Bryson (drums) POST-GRADUATE WORK: The band started in 2013 when the members moved back to Cleveland from college and began writing songs together. “We started writing things really quickly and put out a CD quickly after forming,” says Milstein. “Matt Bryson…
Spotlight: ‘Kedi’
Stray cats have lived in Istanbul for thousands of years, nearly as long as the city has been standing. The new documentary Kedi, opening Friday at the Cedar Lee, offers a gallery-style view of the cats inhabiting Istanbul while citizens offer their thoughts and feelings about the animals in their respective communities. The film shows…
Latest ‘King Kong’ Iteration is Standard Heart-Pounding Fun
Jordan Vogt-Roberts is a Funny or Die alum who’d only directed one full-length feature film, the 2013 Cleveland-shot indie comedy Kings of Summer, before he was called upon to helm the big-budget action spectacle Kong: Skull Island, out on Friday. Vogt-Roberts joins a class of “up and coming” directors — Colin Trevorrow, Taika Waititi, Ryan…
Savage Love: Defining Decency Down
Dear Dan, My wife and I have a decent sex life. Pretty vanilla, but we’re busy with work, chores, and life in general with two small kids, so I can’t complain too much. About a year after having our second kid, I went down on my wife. As usual, we both enjoyed it greatly. Unfortunately,…
Lowly Movie Theater Employees Create Their Own Magic In ‘The Flick’
If you’ve ever wondered what goes on in the movie theater after you’ve left — and after you’ve spilled your popcorn, Goobers and Mountain Dew all over the floor — then you should attend to The Flick, now at Dobama Theatre. In this quietly wonderful piece by Annie Baker, we encounter three movie theater employees…
Artful Unveils New Artist Studios in Cleveland Heights
After two years of planning and six months of construction, the contracts have been signed, artists are moving in and Artful is finally ready to unveil its new artist studios in Cleveland Heights. In conjunction with the organization’s two-year anniversary, Artful invites the public to tour the new space during its free grand opening event…
