Afternoon Brew: Ohio University Limits Netflix Streaming, Beer Delivery in Kent, Frank Russo Sings, and a Huge Cocaine Bust
Good afternoon, Cleveland. Here’s some stuff to read while you say goodbye to Frank Russo’s face. — To allow for more bandwidth for academic purposes during finals week, Ohio University tried to block access to Netflix streaming, which the school says makes up the highest percentage of bandwidth use on the network, surprisingly more than…
A Brooklyn Bridge, Cute State Senator, Involve Forest City in New York Corruption Case
This Brooklyn bridge, not the big one Wire-taps, bribes, scathing snippets of conversation published in the newspaper; ring a bell? The scenario must be annoyingly familiar to Cleveland’s best-loved real estate developer, Forest City Enterprises. Although the company avoided the Cuyahoga County corruption fallout, it’s not faring so well in New York where it is…
Akron Area Strip Club Raided, Real Crime Uncovered
Can you pick out the undercover cop? Ohio’s look-but-don’t-touch strip club policy is a head-scratcher, especially with every Recession-soaked city trying to redefine itself as a convention destination (Someone needs to tell the Med Mart people that Dr. Everyman isn’t going to come to Cleveland and test drive a handsaw if he can’t motorboat on…
Man Headbutts His Mom and the Cops
Seriously, who the hell headbutts their mom? Let’s Venn diagram this thing. In one big circle are all the people who would ever resort to the headbutting tactic in a fight. That’s a pretty small group, right? Then you have the second circle, filled with everyone who would ever assault their mother. That’s a pretty…
Controversy Erupts Over Republican Push to Ban Abortion
Lost in the hubbub following Governor Kasich’s State of the State speech last week was a controversy that erupted in the Ohio House over the Republican push to ban abortion. Dr. John Willke, the Cincinnati physician who founded the International Right to Life Federation, was invited to address the chamber from the Speaker’s dais in…
Congress May Help Out Small Brewers
Beer maids nationwide rejoin. While the bickering continues in Ohio, one populist movement appears to be gaining traction at the federal level: the push for affordable beer. Last week, Massachusetts Senator John Kerry and Idaho’s Mike Crapo introduced legislation that had kicked around Congress for a couple of years: the Brewer’s Employment and Excise Relief…
St. Patrick’s Day Parade Will Not Feature St. Patrick’s Drill Team
For the first time in 42 years, the St. Patrick Drill Team will not be marching in Cleveland’s big green parade. The 60-member crew was dismantled last year after the diocese closed the West Park Catholic parish. About 200 displaced parishioners will be marching this year — a fitting activity for members of a church…
Frank Russo Stickers Soon to Go
Everyone buys gas and checks out at a counter, so you’ve all probably locked eyes with a smilin’ Frank Russo. The former Auditor had his beaming mug tacked up on every single gas pump and cash register in the county, and since his exit into jailbird stripes, the stickers have hung around, a cheery reminder…
The Quality of Cleveland Life Report
Your guide to thriving in fabulous Cleveland. The Family Business: The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports there are 76,542 local government jobs in Cuyahoga County. In related news, genealogy.com finally pinpoints how many cousins Bill Mason has. Smaller Fish to Fry : Tight budget forces Cleveland’s new aquarium to scale down plans for fancy tropical…
Pic of the Day: Morning News Really Gets Into Buzzards’ Return to Hinckley
Um, nice hat, Pete Kenworthy. March 15 is Buzzard Day in Hinckley, Ohio. Onlookers celebrate the return of the ugly beasts by sitting outside with binoculars, waiting for the first official spotting in the park. Channel 5 celebrated by having one of their anchors wear this goofy hat. Thankfully, they took a picture for us.…
Video: Austin Carr’s 61-Point Game in the NCAA Tournament
Austin Carr scored a NCAA tournament record 61 points against Ohio University in 1970, a record that still stands. Watch all 61 points in the video below. Enjoy. (Via Stepien Rules)
Racing Amish Involved in Accident
Eat my dust. Here’s a real brain-buster for you: Let’s say you’re Amish and fixin’ to drag race some mouthy Elijah who brags he can outpace your rig — how do you call the race? First cart to the next stoplight wins . . . Err, no stoplight. To the McDonalds . . . .…
John Kasich Bans Cameras for State Budget Announcement
It’s a busy news day for Ohio’s governor, even if he wishes news didn’t exist. John Kasich will deliver the highly anticipated budget for the state tomorrow, but he doesn’t want anyone to watch it. Kasich’s camp announced no TV cameras will be allowed to film the speech. Reporters will be allowed only pen, paper,…
Map: Where Do Clevelanders Move to When They Leave?
Ever wonder where all those Northeast Ohioans go when they move? Well, now you can see for yourself. Forbes has a nifty interactive map which shows net population migration in 2008. The data comes from the IRS and shows only people that moved to a different county. Featured are nine big cities, but click on…
Group Lobbying for Charlie Sheen to Throw Out First Pitch at Indians Opener
Charlie Sheen is taking his fameball meltdown on the road with live shows across the country. The shows have sold out in minutes because, hey, who doesn’t want to go see if he’ll freebase crack and kill a hooker on stage, or film a live porno with a midget dressed as Jon Cryer. There’s no…
Man Assaults Pregnant Girlfriend and Her Puppy
John Norris is what highly trained experts like to call a Class A Scumbug. Scientific term. Look it up. Police say that Norris, a 29-year-old from Canton, put himself in running for Boyfriend of the Year this week. According to Fox 8, Norris went above and beyond the call of derelict duty, opting not only…
Man Shoots Neighbor’s Cat Because He Doesn’t Want It “Pissing All Over”
Hear a tale about a man unloading his gun on a poor, defenseless cat and you might assume the suspect is a sadistic S.O.B. who hates animals. You wouldn’t think that the dude would have cats of his own. But that’s exactly what the Sandusky Register says about Daniel Franklin. He may leave food out…
State Trooper Arrested at Browns Game (Updated)
We never would have guessed he worked in law enforcement. Never. Update III: Fantone was fired by the State Highway Patrol. (Cleveland.com)Update II: Jason Fantone was sentenced to enter a diversion program. If successfully completed, he won’t face vandalism charges. (Cleveland.com)*** Update: Two bits of information surfaced today regarding the trooper’s arrest. First: Cops originally…
Marlin Kaplan Latest Big-Name Chef to Hit W. 25th
Look for another huge name in Cleveland dining to crash the W. 25th Street party. Marlin Kaplan is teaming up with Garage Bar owners Jeff Allison and Adam Waldbaum to rebrand Dragonfly (1865 W. 25th St., 216-696-7774, www.dragonflycleveland.com) as a “nouvelle American/Asian-fusion restaurant.” Following a brief closer this month, the dewy new Dragonfly will emerge…
Concert Review: The Pretty Reckless at the Grog Shop
Taylor and the boys The Pretty Reckless are what I was searching for during my Jagged Little Pill phase: brooding, sometimes bratty, always catchy melodies over classic rock-grunge. I finally found what I was looking for at the Grog Shop on Saturday. Frontwoman Taylor Momsen (Gossip Girl star and tabloid perennial) has a honey-dripped, Marlboro-ravaged…
Ohio University is Serious About Fecal Matter
We suppose it’s better than not telling you, right? Go Bobcats! (Via Reddit)
Yes, You Can Get Pulled Over in a Funeral Procession
Being part of a funeral procession only exempts you from certain laws. Like blowing through red lights, and driving under 10 mph. However some rules still apply. Like needing a valid driver’s license, and making sure your passengers refrain from hanging half their bodies out the window. That’s the lesson from the Morning Journal, which…
Mahoning County Dumps Law Firm with Anti-Union Ties
If there’s a true blue-collar town left in the 50 states where organized labor still has muscle, it’s Youngstown. But enough flex to force the county government to dump its legal representation because of ties to anti-union forces? Yeah, that much flex. The Vindicator reports on the Mahoning County commissioners’ decision to walk from a…
Pic of the Day: Mystery Man Cleans Up the Metro Parks
Some people treat parks like their personal garbage cans. Not cool. The park service employees do what they can, but there’s often too much crap strewn about to keep up. One mystery man in Elyria, who obviously has a bucketload of free time on his hands, shows up every morning in the Metro Parks and…
And Another Criminal Caught Because of Footprints in the Snow
We’re not usually in the business of helping criminals get away with their crimes, but we do have one suggestion: take a break from illegal endeavors when it snows, because footprints in the snow make it really super easy for cops to track your path. Just a suggestion. Put off your next caper until you…
Did You Know Cleveland’s Home to World’s First Kosher Subway?
Subway has passed McDonald’s as the world’s largest restaurant chain. Fortune commemorated the noteworthy occasion by highlighting six unusual Subway’s, one of which is in Cleveland. Opened in 2006 at the Mandel Jewish Community Center, it was the world’s first kosher Subway. The franchisee, Ghazi Fadoul, had already opened 100 Subway sandwich shops in the…
Drunk and Bloody Woman Passes Out at McDonald’s, Curses Out Cops
Sometimes you make bad decisions when the ole BAC gets too high. A few too many pops and your stomach begins to rumble, urging you to seek out the nearest and quickest source of greasy food. That’s when it seems like a good idea to head to McDonald’s to scarf down some fast food burgers.…
Battle Fatigue
Why are hostile aliens from outer space so attracted to Los Angeles? They blew the fuck out of California in last year’s Skyline, and in Battle: Los Angeles we really don’t even get a reason for their invasion (it may have something to do with water). When the movie starts, the city is already in…
Lost in Space
In Mars Needs Moms, nine-year-old Milo (voiced by Seth Green) ends up with the adventure of a lifetime when he tries to rescue his mom (Joan Cusack) from a group of evil Martians in this CGI movie directed by H.G. Wells’ grandson. Milo hides on the spaceship that whisks away his mother and enlists the…
Hoodwinked
In 1984, Neil Jordan’s The Company of Wolves explored the Freudian psychosexual themes of the Red Riding Hood fairy tale. In 2011, Catherine Hardwicke’s Red Riding Hood explores that story’s capacity for cheesy CGI effects, fake exteriors, bad acting, and oafish dialogue. Hardwicke’s debut feature, Thirteen, showed promising talent, which she has since squandered on…
Pop. 396,815: A Comparative Study
So we now have the magic number. Yesterday the government released data from the 2010 census and — no shocker here — Cleveland’s population took a 17 percent hit, dropping some 80,000 individuals. The current figure is 396,815, a new 100-year low. Today the stat remains news. The number was plastered all large font across…
Ohio Bill Would Restrict “Pill Mills”
We may joke about it from time to time, but Ohio’s prescription pill abuse problem is real and serious. And you need to look no further than the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for advice on how to rectify the situation. Well, you may need more than a helpful hint from Michaelangelo, which is why the…
Cleveland Ranked No. 3 for Hospital Safety
“Shhh. Don’t tell anyone I left a sponge in you. Or that I’m wearing lipstick.” A report by HealthGrades claims Cleveland has the third-safest hospitals in the country. The Twin Cities took first; Wichita was second. What does this mean? One of the factors HealthGrades used in the study was the number of “foreign objects…
There’s a Mummy on the Loose in Westlake
Fun from the weekly roundup of police blotters over at Cleveland.com: WESTLAKE SUSPICIOUS PERSON, BAY LANDINGS DRIVE: Residents reported another sighting of a person dressed as a mummy, smoking in a vehicle parked on Bay Landings Drive about 2:42 a.m. on March 30. Police responded to a similar report last week, but were unable to…
SoHo Coming to Ohio City
Last week, chef Nolan Konkoski signed a lease to take over the former Lelolai Bakery space on W. 25th, which recently closed after exactly 10 years. By late summer, he and his partner Molly Smith will open SoHo Kitchen and Bar, the “SoHo” being short for Southern Hospitality. “Southern is a cuisine we always liked,…
Pic of the Day: A Skinny, Young Jimmy Dimora
We came across this undated photo yesterday and can’t stop staring at it. That’s Jimmy? Look at that mustache. Look at how skinny he is in the pre-patronage days. As one Twitterer (and former Scene staffer) quipped — “New obesity ad campaign: patronage makes you so fat you can’t see your own dick.”
Tweak of the Week: Family Night in Solon
Family nights are universally hard to spoon down, but one Akron guy took inner circle drama to a whole new level, according to Solon Patch. This is one of those epic shitfaces that end with multiple trips to jail, assaults on family members, and high jumps off the second story porch. Buckle up and remember…
Woman In See-Through Nightgown Goes Shopping at Dollar General
The woman probably didn’t look like Katy Perry, however. There are two possible explanations for a woman shopping in a see-through nightgown at a Sandusky area Dollar General on Tuesday. Either she is one of those folks who, late at night and already snuggled up in her jammies, doesn’t mind the disapproving looks from others…
Concert Review: The Get Up Kids at the Grog Shop
Get Up Kids … or grown men? “Erase all memory,” announced Get Up Kids frontman Matt Pryor at the start of their show at the Grog Shop last night. “It is currently 1997.” If only. The Grog Shop was full, teeming with fans in their late 20s and 30s recalling their teen-angsty days. The set’s…
Postal Worker Accused of Stealing Mail
An Akron postal worker is in trouble for rifling through and looting mail that didn’t belong to her. 34-year-old Chrisoula Pipilakis was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of theft of mail by a postal employee, according to the PD. Prosecutors say she worked for the U.S. Postal Service for three years in…
Census Shows Cleveland’s Population Continues to Dwindle
Census numbers for Cleveland are out this afternoon and boy are you in store for a shock. Not really. Cleveland lost some more residents — 81,588 in the last ten years, to be exact. That’s a 17.1% dip since 2000 and brings Cleveland’s population to the lowest number in more than 100 years. Thankfully, we’re…
Ed FitzGerald Fires Workers, Throws Down Gauntlet on Nepotism
Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald is having a busy week. He’s flexed his muscles like the big County Executive that he is, preening with biceps exposed, glittering with beady drops of sweat. Figuratively speaking, of course. Today the county announced FitzGerald whacked three more employees — Robert Chambers, Hanane Hmada, and Marcella King Piazza. Chambers…
Crepes Deluxe Location Quietly Shuts Down
“I quietly shut it down the first of the year,” says Bob Holcepl, about the second Crepes Deluxe location that he opened last year in the food court of the Old Arcade. Like the original and popular stand at the West Side Market, the shop sold sweet and savory crepes for breakfast and lunch. “We…
Pic of the Day: The City of Cleveland Spells Good
Via Cleveland Frowns, here’s a pic of the envelope, containing one fabulous traffic camera ticket, the City of Cleveland Parking Violations Bureau sent to his house. Privilage? Good job, fellas. We’re wondering how many of these envelopes with privilege misspelled the Parking Violations Bureau has sitting around its office. We’re also wondering if they noticed…
Video: Phil Davison, Stark County Treasurer Candidate Freak Out Specialist, Gets a Tosh.0 Web Redemption
You remember Phil Davison, don’t you? He’s the impassioned and possibly crazy Republican who ran for Stark County treasurer and whose unhinged campaign speech went viral. (Watch the original video at that link if you haven’t seen it, but you probably have, so we’ll just move right along.) Tosh.0 brought Davison out to L.A. for…
Cleveland the 7th Sickest City in America
What would a day on the blog be without a gleaming new set of rankings to pour over? Not a good day, we’ll tell you that. The Daily Beast cobbled together some health data, which may or may not have included sorting through your garbage counting the number of empty NyQuil bottles and snot-filled tissues,…
At the Arthouse
A Woman of Paris Charlie Chaplin’s first serious movie, from 1923, is about a young woman who heads to the big city as the mistress of a wealthy old guy. There, she reconnects with her old boyfriend. This second feature in the Cinematheque’s “Chaplin’s Silent Films” series is a deep, stylish work for its time.…
Club Vibes
Sunday nights are for relaxing — sitting on a big couch, watching TV, and bathing in a few nocturnal tunes with one final weekend drink in your fist. That’s the vibe you’ll catch at Anatomy’s Sunday Night Lounge. “It’s a way for people to wind down after a long weekend without having to stay in…
Survival of the Wittiest
The trouble with writing a long review about a short play is that a reader might be inclined to think this article tells everything you’d need to know. So there’s no need to see it. After all, time is precious, and it’s more efficient to read reviews than to actually spend time sitting through a…
Greene’s Day
Clevelanders know Danny Greene as the Irish mobster who was blown to bits when a car exploded in a Lyndhurst parking lot in 1977. But Jonathan Hensleigh, the director and co-writer of Kill the Irishman, a Greene biopic opening this week, sees a different man. “I don’t think he was a sociopath,” he says. “He…
Stay In!
TOP PICK – CD Elvis Presley — Elvis Is Back: Legacy Edition (RCA/Legacy) The first two albums Elvis recorded after he got out of the Army get the deluxe treatment in this two-disc reissue loaded with bonus tracks. Elvis Is Back, from 1960, features a smoldering Elvis on “Dirty, Dirty Feeling” and “Such a Night.”…
Poguetry in Motion
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, “it continued from there,” says guitarist Chris Allen. Now every St. Patrick’s Day, the Boys play marathon shows,…
Get Out!
Thursday | 10 Funny Stuff Dom Irrera Hits Hilarities If, like South Philly funny man Dom Irrera, you grew up in a home jam-packed with hardcore-Italian relatives, you’d likely have a career’s worth of funny stories to share too. The Italian-American comic got his start in 1988, working with Rodney Dangerfield on the HBO special…
CD Review: Middle Brother
This supergroup is made up of three new-school alt-country singer-songwriters: Dawes’ Taylor Goldsmith, Deer Tick’s John McCauley, and Delta Spirit’s Matthew Vasquez. And, just like with their full-time gigs, the guy with the most distinct voice is the one who stands out. McCauley’s twangy rasp is all over the album — on originals like “Daydreaming”…
Adventures in Health Care
With the numbers of uninsured in Cuyahoga County still increasing, Scene probed what it takes for the uninsured to get care — and what it ultimately costs. My rule on seeking medical attention is no more complicated than this: If it doesn’t require an ambulance, I will put it off until such time as I…
Time Bomb
Kill the Irishman, a long-gestating biopic about Cleveland mobster Danny Greene, starts with a bang: Greene is driving down the street when suddenly his car blows up. Get used to it. Dozens of other vehicles (plus their unfortunate occupants) explode in the movie, including the one that killed Greene in his dentist’s parking lot in…
CD Review: Wye Oak
Wye Oak look a lot like other boy-girl indie rock duos. She’s up front singing, he’s in the back pounding away on various instruments. But they don’t sound much like other boy-girl indie rock duos. For one thing, Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack don’t play twee indie pop. Instead, their music rolls onto a folk-influenced…
Huge in Germany (and Here)
The upstate New York metal band Manowar has led a strangely split existence for almost three decades. Though they perform before massive, adoring crowds in Europe, they’ve never been more than a cult act in their home country. The disconnect has gotten so extreme that bassist and bandleader Joey DeMaio said a couple of years…
Concert Calendar
The Get Up Kids The big surprise — after increasingly slow band records, then solo ones, and finally a breakup — is that this influential Kansas City emo quintet can still get it up. The Get Up Kids recently reunited for There Are Rules, an album that doesn’t try to fit in with the dozens…
CD Review: R.E.M.
After a decade struggling with their relevancy, R.E.M. regained a sense of purpose on 2008’s Accelerate, their most focused album in years. But on their 15th record, Collapse Into Now, they’re back to their late-’90s/early-’00s shuffling of moods, sounds, and consistency. There are straight-up rock numbers (“Discoverer”), soggy ballads (“Oh My Heart”), and midtempo pop…
Film Capsules
Just Opening: Battle: Los Angeles (PG-13) — Aliens attack Earth. Again. This time they’re in L.A. The Housemaid (NR) — Thriller about a guy who gets busy with the maid. Bad idea. Kaboom (NR) — Gregg Araki’s latest is a sci-fi parable about a bunch of horny college students. Kill the Irishman (R) – Cleveland…
We Get Mail
Bad Taste All lists are designed to piss people off, so here’s what bugs me about yours [“The 25 Restaurants Cleveland Can’t Live Without,” February 16, 2011]. Dante? Sorry. A johnny-come-lately, low on atmosphere, average food, and way expensive. Ouch! What did you miss? How bout Pier W? Far and away the most glamorous and…
Bites: Flour Finally Opening
Look for Flour, Paul Minnillo’s eagerly awaited Italian bistro, to open later this month in Moreland Hills. The vibe is shaping up as distinctly modern. Wood floors have been ditched for stained concrete. Tabletops are clad in burnished zinc rather than crisp linen. Sleek glass subway tile wraps the backbar and exposed kitchen walls. And…
Home Movies
The Walking Dead: The Complete First Season (Anchor Bay) One of TV’s best new shows centers on a group of people who travel a post-apocalyptic wasteland in search of a place to hide from the hordes of zombies who want to eat them. All six episodes from the first season are compiled on a two-disc…
Ace in the Hole
Taylor Momsen knows what you’re thinking. Why is a cute 17-year-old blonde star of a hit TV show playing loud and nasty rock music? Isn’t she supposed to be singing electro-generic pop songs written by a 40-year-old Swedish guy? No way, says Momsen, who plays Jenny Humphrey on Gossip Girl. Her four-piece band, the Pretty…
Soul of the Square
When Phil the Fire closed its doors some years back, Shaker Square lost not only its best and only source for killer chicken and waffles — it surrendered a slice of its African-American identity as well. Stepping in to more-than-capably fill those shoes is Zanzibar, an upscale soul-fusion spot located next-door to Shaker Cinemas. Taking…
Drink of the Week
Here’s an arachnid even Little Miss Muffet could love: the White Spider cocktail at the groovy Grovewood Tavern. Silken strands of Bombay Dry Gin, Cointreau, simple syrup, and freshly squeezed lemon juice — woven together in a long-legged martini glass — result in a drink that goes down like gossamer but packs an iron punch.…
Banana Split
The labels on the walls of the Reinberger Galleries still recall a time of clear-cut professional categories: “Sculpture,” “Painting,” “Printmaking.” But the objects — when there are any — on display at the Cleveland Institute of Art’s 65th Annual Student Independent Exhibition are apt to be less traditional. “Brown Banana,” by fourth-year painting major Brian…
