Two State Lawmakers Want to Drug Test State Officials
Could the sometimes crazy behavior of our Ohio officials and lawmakers in Columbus possibly be drug-fueled or alcohol related? Two Democratic legislators are proposing we find out. State senator Nina Turner of Cleveland and state representative Bob Hagan of Youngstown have put together two separate bills that would call for drug testing legislators. Hagan’s proposed…
The Quality of Cleveland Life Report
Your guide to thriving in fabulous Cleveland. Can’t Drink Paintings: The Cleveland Museum of Art plans a permanent exhibition in Ohio City and Mitchell’s Ice Cream takes over Moda. Residents’ excitement tempered by realization that this means two less buildings to turn into a bar. Responsible Raging: Trying to be more green, Cleveland City Council…
JP Morgan May Have Rigged Cleveland Municipal Bond Bids
As the Securities and Exchange Commission continues to make a half-pass at holding Wall Street players accountable for pre-Great Recession chicanery, the city of Cleveland might see some of JP Morgan Chase & Co’s indulgence money come its way. The state of Ohio was recently named in a $92 million settlement between the bank and…
Lawyers Commission Historical Study on Photocopiers in Cuyahoga County’s Great Photocopier Court Case
Earlier this year we shared the case of Data Trace, a company that profits from bundling and reselling boring government records. For years, the Cuyahoga County Recorder’s Office furnished Data Trace with CDs full of files for the recession-busting price of $50 a day. That was before a slight change in house policy upped the…
Concert Review: Foo Fighters at the Q
Arena-rock bombast, thy name is Foo. Seminal alt-rock drummer turned consummate frontman Dave Grohl rocked Quicken Loans Arena last night, and he did so with all the histrionics of a valedictorian straight outta rock & roll high school. If it wasn’t in stage presence, it was in the blinding crush of prescient power chord riffage…
Afternoon Brew: Tryout For the Cavs, Extreme Hoarding, Peeing in Public, Bad Bridges, and IHOPs Raided
Good afternoon, Cleveland. Here’s some stuff to read while you make sure there aren’t any cops around before you drop your pants. — The Cavs invite you to try out for their D-League affiliate, because you actually might be better than the 12th man on their bench. (Ohio.com) — Not groundbreaking in any way, and…
Go Fill a Cleveland Time Capsule That’s Supposed to Look Like a Spaceship or Something
“They Have Landed,” a sculpture/time capsule by Loren Naji, will be installed in front of the W. 25th Ohio City rapid station, resting there waiting to be opened in the year 2050. This Friday night, he’s asking Cleveland to bring whatever they’d like to have stuffed into the 3,000-pound, 8-foot wide structure. Have a framed…
‘How I Met Your Mother’ Has a Cleveland Wedding
“How I Met Your Mother” has plenty of Cleveland connections, most notably that co-writer and creator Carter Bays is from here and, in the show, Ted Mosby is a native Clevelander as well. Last night’s season premiere took the New York gang back to the shores of Lake Erie for a wedding which, as you…
New Rush DVD Recorded in Cleveland Coming Out in November
Our favorite old-school Canadian rockers Rush will release a DVD on November 8. It’s called Time Machine 2011: Live in Cleveland, and as you can probably guess from that title, it’s live. And it was recorded in Cleveland. So if you were one of the 20,000 or so people who were at the sold-out show…
Woman Flicks Off Newspaper Photographer at Scene of Minor Accident Because She Doesn’t Want Photo in Paper, Newspaper Posts Pic Online Anyway
Throwing up the middle finger is a good way to ensure a photograph doesn’t make your local newspaper in theory, but when the newsworthy moment isn’t that newsworthy at all — for instance, a minor car accident — your reaction and the one-finger salute might just turn the ordeal into something a paper can’t help…
Kenny Lofton Was at Charlie Sheen’s House to Watch the Roast, ‘Two and a Half Men’
Charlie Sheen had some folks over his house last night to watch the double feature of his roast on Comedy Central and the Sheen-less premiere of the new Ashton Kutcher-led “Two and a Half Men.” Among the guests, apparently, was Kenny Lofton. Of course. No. 7 tweeted out: “At @charliesheen house watching TWO and a…
Afternoon Brew: Sound Walls Are Crap, Ohio Businesses Default on 9/11, Cell Phone at Scene Leads to Suspect, and a New Wendy’s Burger
Good afternoon, Cleveland. Here’s some stuff to read while you dream hamburger dreams for dinner. — In breaking shocking earth-scorching news: At one million dollars per mile, ODOT is replacing sound walls around Northeast Ohio that have worn down and become putrid, crumbling messes long before they were supposed to. Apparently the material didn’t hold…
Cuyahoga County Recorder’s Office Employee Confused About What a Photocopier Is (Update)
Update: The photocopier hardee-har was a laugh on the surface, but as we told you in a cover story earlier this year, there are important precedents to be set based on how this court case — which centers on whether the county recorder’s office has to provide reasonably priced electronic and physical copies of records…
RIP Tom Wilson, Ziggy Creator
Tom Wilson, the creator of Ziggy, passed away last Friday from pneumonia in Cincinnati in a nursing home where he had lived the last 8 years. He was 80. The longtime American Greetings creative honcho launched Ziggy officially in 1971 as a syndicated strip, with the pants-less hard-luck pet-lover eventually landing in over 500 papers…
Connie Schultz Resigns From the Plain Dealer
Plain Dealer columnist Connie Schultz resigned from the Plain Dealer today, citing continued issues with potential conflicts of interest regarding her journalistic duties as her husband, Senator Sherrod Brown, runs for re-election. Schultz, a Pulitzer prize winning scribe who had been with the paper for 18 years, was recently under fire for covering a Tea…
Come Drink Vodka With Us
Anyone who was at Scene’s Ale Fest this summer or the Best of Cleveland Party last spring can attest to this rag’s ability to throw a damn fine party. Seriously, ask someone that went, if they’re still not too hungover to speak. If you missed out on either of those shindigs, fret not, Very Vodka…
Pic of the Day: When the IX Center Was for Making Tanks
We knew the IX Center used to be called the Tank Plant but had never seen a picture of the inside until coming across this photo from LIFE on Reddit today. So, here, maybe you’d like it too.
John Kasich, Dan Gilbert Finalize Casino Deal; Racetrack Slots Coming to Ohio (Updated)
Update: Racetrack slots may have fallen slightly into the background this summer as Actual Casino news piles up along with casino job applications, but some news this morning on the 7-7-7 front: Governor Kasich wants to have a system to monitor and run the slots up and and ready in the next four months, according…
Afternoon Brew: Cleveland Museum of Art on the West Side, the Worst Website Wins an Award for Best Website, and a Nintendo Hunt
Good afternoon, Cleveland. Here’s some stuff to read while you check your basement for any gold-painted Nintendo games. — The Cleveland Museum of Art crosses the Cuyahoga to Ohio City with a permanent place to exhibit modern art outside of the CMA itself. Here’s to hoping the first pieces shown at the Transformer Station include…
Recap and Slideshow: Beer and Cheese Dinner at Pura Vida
Think wine and cheese is the ultimate pairing? You might have felt differently after Tuesday’s Beer & Cheese Dinner at Pura Vida, Brandt Evan’s inviting new restaurant on Public Square. Besides fans, foodies, and a myriad of media types, special guests included Sid Cook of Wisconsin’s Carr Valley Cheese and members of the Wisconsin Milk…
Great Lakes Oktoberfest on the Today Show
When Kathie Lee and Hoda Kotb go over plans for each Today Show, we think the conversation starts and ends with: What kind of alcohol would you like to drink this morning? Are we in a white wine mood? Or how about a nice saison? Saison? OK, let’s do a segment on Belgium. And tomorrow…
Chief of Cuyahoga County Clerk of Courts Criminal Division Fired for Allegedly Stealing Money
Here is something Northeast Ohio might not be familiar with: our Cuyahoga County government rooting out an instance of fraud by themselves and announcing it. Usually, in the era of tiki huts and ice machines for all and yeah I’ll have another steak just call up this guy and he’ll pay for it, the PD…
Dan Gilbert Doesn’t Like ‘Bloggissists’
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert is no stranger to firing off pointed tweets at those he feels have denigrated or insulted him. He once called out no one in particular for having “cyber courage” after the whole world noticed that Gilbert seemed to be taking shots at LeBron on Twitter in a not-so-veiled-at-all fashion. ESPN’s Bill…
One Dead, Three Injured in Nightclub Shooting Near Westside Market
Club Envy sits just a block from the historic Westside Market, down on W. 25th and Monroe. Early this morning around 2:15, shots were fired at the club after an altercation inside spilled outside. Sgt. Sammy Morris told the media that three off-duty cops were working security at the club Thursday night and Friday morning.…
Concert Review: Active Child at Beachland Tavern
He doesn’t look so active to us Active Child made their Cleveland debut at the Beachland Tavern last night, playing lofty music for an introverted crowd. Frontman Pat Grossi, a sober-looking redhead, sat center stage with a harp between his legs and plucked set opener “High Priestess” backed by two bandmates on synthesizer and electronic…
Warning: This Dog Bites
It’s a good thing Sam Peckinpah isn’t alive to see Rod Lurie’s wholly unnecessary remake of 1971’s Straw Dogs, which strips away Peckinpah’s literary themes and wallows in redneck stereotypes. Peckinpah’s artfully choreographed violence, controversial in 1971, is transformed for post-Saw audiences into standard horror-movie shock. Protagonist David (James Marsden) is a screenwriter here, married…
Sex and the Witty
Doug McGrath’s amiable time-killer I Don’t Know How She Does It – a retro-feeling romantic comedy that could have been made back in the mid-‘60s with Natalie Wood — leans a bit too heavily on star Sarah Jessica Parker’s Sex and the City persona, but likable performances and a breezy 90-minute run time make this…
Afternoon Brew: ‘Golden Voice’ Guy Back Yet Again, Cleveland’s Ranked Second Least Educated City, Arrests in Last Night’s Shootings, and a Jon Stewart Profile
Good afternoon, Cleveland. Here’s something to read while you ponder if society is ready to give you a 317th chance. — The Man With the Golden Voice and a Taste for Grain Alcohol is back in the news again. Apparently he’s on the straight and narrow this time. No really. Come on, stop laughing. (Columbus…
Pete Joyce Out as Chef of Bistro at Lincoln Park
Just one week after unveiling the newer, more contemporary Bistro on Lincoln Park (2391 W. 11th St., 216-862-2969), chef Pete Joyce is out of a job at the restaurant he helped launch two and a half years ago. “I had a difference of opinion with my partner, Andrew Harding,” explains Joyce. “We decided to part…
Sam Qasem Indicted in Cuyahoga County Corruption Case
Sam Qasem The Cuyahoga County corruption scandal, while for the most part in residing in the rearview mirror along with Drew Carey’s 48-inch-waist trousers, is far from over. Dimora will be heading to trial next year. Frank Russo will be testifying against anyone and everyone to shorten his sentence. And hopefully somewhere someone will wear…
MSNBC’s Ed Schultz Brings Show to Ohio, Challenges Kasich
Liberal talk show host Ed Schultz is in Ohio this week, broadcasting his MSNBC program. The Ed Show. He was in Toledo last night with a program that featured Toledo congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (who could be representing a large chunk of Cuyahoga County after next year’s elections, thanks to the new crazy-quilt congressional district map)…
‘I Wish You Sadness’ and ‘Cleveland Ballin’ — Two Videos for Lunch
Mike Polk and the Alan Cox Show crew both make comedic videos of varying quality and humor. Here are their two most recent ones, which you can watch in that post-lunch haze and dream about going home. Apparently we are relatively ballin’, so there’s that.
Zack Reed Is Still Talking About Flash Mobs
Zack Reed and Jeff Johnson’s flash mob ordinance made news earlier this year — both with city council actually passing a law that was impossible to enforce and largely unnecessary, and with Mayor Jackson vetoing the ordinance after outcries from the ACLU, among others, who pointed out that it was both illegal and stupid. Well,…
Burglar Gets Stuck in Air Vent at Burger Haven
Cleveland police arrived at Burger Haven last night after receiving calls that a man was on the roof of the restaurant. There had been break-ins in the area recently, and cops hightailed it out to Broadway and Fleet hoping to catch the suspect before he got away. That wasn’t much of a problem, especially considering…
Pic of the Day: 420, Stony Ridge… Ha
(Via Reddit)
Afternoon Brew: Mark Shapiro Intrigued by Cubs GM Job, Ohio is Poor, Fight in Akron, and East Cleveland Tearing Stuff Down
Good afternoon, Cleveland. Here’s some stuff to read while you leak it to a reporter that you’re intrigued by a job at another company. — Tribe president Mark Shapiro is allegedly “intrigued” by the vacant Cubs GM position. What a coincidence? We were just telling people at the bar that we’re intrigued with the soon-to-be-vacant…
Jimmy Dimora Asks Judge to Move Trial, Cites Harsh Local Media Coverage, Including Ours
Jimmy Dimora, like the rest of the Cuyahoga County Corruption All Stars, is scheduled to have his federal trial in Akron. Last week, Dimora’s lawyers asked the judge the consider a change of venue out of concern that intense media coverage of the corruption scandal and Jimmy’s alleged philandering, bribing, and tiki-hutting would prejudice jurors…
Dennis Kucinich, Betty Sutton Would Both Lose Seats in Proposed Redistricting (Updated)
Update II: It’s official, Dennis! will be running again. Email sent out this afternoon says, “We have a district.” *** Update: Dennis! Kucinich last night issued this statement, which basically says that he’ll probably run in a primary in 2012 against Marcy Kaptur for the sliver-along-the-lake district which will now include the west side of…
Tom Niehaus Doles Out Raises to Staffers
What’s a job-hunting college graduate to do in these unforgiving economic times? A knock on the door of state Senate President Tom Niehaus would make for a shrewd start. The downstate Republican got face time earlier this year for his key support of Senate Bill 5, which clips the bargaining rights of teachers, cops, and…
CD Review: St. Vincent
Screeching dirty guitar blasts mixed with angelic vocal melodies, layers of swirling synths, and a tendency to make heads bob — they’re all over St. Vincent’s new album. But there’s also jazz fusion madness, heavy metal fizz, and menacing couplets layered atop languid beats. It all makes for a complex web of a record, even…
CD Review: Wild Flag
This indie-rock supergroup — all-female, to boot — includes former members of Sleater-Kinney, Helium, and, yes, the Minders. And if you think the sum of these parts wouldn’t amount to much more than Sleater-Kinney without Corin Tucker, hold on tight for a thrilling ride and one of the best albums of the year. With singer…
He’s Got No Beef
It’s hard to imagine a more carnivorous chef than Jonathon Sawyer of Greenhouse Tavern. But for his first-ever Earth to Table dinner at the Culinary Vegetable Institute in rural Milan, Sawyer is going meat-free. Founded by Farmer Lee Jones in 2001, the Institute is dedicated to fostering relationships between farmers and chefs. Another of Jones’…
CD Review: Ernie Krivda
When Harvey Pekar passed away last year, we lost one of our most talented, most unorthodox contemporary storytellers. But we also lost one of the world’s most passionate jazz fans. Pekar once called Cleveland saxophonist Ernie Krivda “one of the greatest … in the world.” The musician repays that honor with this hour-long tribute, a…
CD Review: Blondie
Blondie Panic of Girls (Noble Id) The last time Blondie made an album, 2003’s The Curse of Blondie, the veteran New York City group channeled its scrappy new-wave roots. On their ninth record, Panic of Girls, they’re in more of an Autoamerican mode, coasting along on soggy island rhythms and forced world beats. The core…
Concert Calendar
Active Child Active Child is the creation of Pat Grossi, a New Jersey native now living in L.A. Much has been made of his classic choirboy training, which has come in handy over the years as he’s developed his mystical, ghostly sound. The band’s debut album, You Are All I See, came out last month…
In Theaters This Week
Drive (R) Ryan Gosling drives. He broods a little, maybe laughs a few times, but other than that, Gosling … just … drives. His nameless character spends his nights chauffeuring criminals from their heists and his days stunt-driving for movies in L.A. He doesn’t say much or do much when he’s not steering a car,…
Get Out!
Thursday | 15 TGIT History: Up Close & Personal The Western Reserve Historical Society’s newly formed Young Professionals group is serving up a great excuse to go drinking tonight after work: Their very first meet & greet is set for 6 to 9 p.m. at the Market Avenue Wine Bar in Ohio City. Spearheaded by…
Apple of Our Eye
You wouldn’t know it by driving down Pearl Road, home to every type of fast-food joint and strip mall known to mankind, but there’s a little slice of heaven in Brunswick. It’s called Mapleside Farms, and it has managed to remain unsullied by progress despite the advances of many a greedy developer. Resting atop one…
What the County Charter Got Wrong
It was the document penned to save Cuyahoga County — from corruption, from government waste, from its endless economic doldrums, and from a rotund county commissioner lounging in his backyard tiki hut in Bedford Heights, plotting his next trip to Vegas at some contractor’s expense. In July 2008, 200 FBI agents swarmed county offices, a…
At the Arthouse
Foolish Wives The Cinematheque is prepping for movie critic Jonathan Rosenbaum’s visit next month by screening some of his favorite movies. This one, a silent classic from 1922 directed by Erich von Stroheim, is about a Russian dude who poses as a count to woo women out of their fortunes. At the time, it was…
On View This Week
Out of Africa Message and media have never complemented each other so neatly as in photographer Elisabeth Sunday’s exhibition of works from 2005 to 2011, now on display at Tregoning & Company. Though based in San Diego, Sunday has deep roots in the Cleveland arts community as granddaughter of Paul Travis, the painter who —…
We Get Mail
Feeling Dopey I am grossly disappointed in the content and quality of writing in your medical marijuana piece [“Buzz Killers,” August 24, 2011]. You had a chance to provide clarity on the multitude of issues, while providing a glance at the folks deeply involved in the legislation. Instead, you chose the road of least interest…
Board Silly
Conservative representational artists may have strived to craft the illusionary appearances of the figures and scenes they painted, but they never expected their works to be mistaken for the subjects they were based upon. In the same way, classical sculptors aren’t likely to encounter patrons who try to shake hands with their statuary. So when…
Home Movies
Citizen Kane: 70th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition (Warner) Orson Welles’ 1941 debut has topped so many Best Movie Ever lists that you can just assume that, yeah, it’s pretty damn good. But spend some time poking around the corners, and you’ll find a remarkable piece of filmmaking even after all these years. Welles throws so…
Stay In!
TOP PICK – TV Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Cartoon) The fourth season of the hit CG-animated series kicks off where it left off, but with a new “Battle Lines” storyline dominating the narrative. That’s a good thing for fans who love the show’s kick-ass combat scenes. The hour-long premiere, which airs at 8 p.m.…
Destroy Build Destroy
New York City may be more than 450 miles from Cleveland, but Battle for Brooklyn comes with its share of local ties. For one thing, the bad guy in this documentary about a New York neighborhood being taken over to make room for a $9 billion development project is Cleveland’s own Forest City Enterprises. For…
Local Band in Focus
Meet the Artist: Cleveland DJ and producer Jason Burns Look Like You Give a Shit: Burns is known for his enthusiasm behind the turntables. “People expect to be engaged,” he says. “You can’t just stand there looking down at your gear. If you’re not into what you’re doing, why should the crowd be?” Hold the…
Grin & Bear It
Do liberals, those self-proclaimed avatars of justice and rationality, harbor their own secret political assassination fantasies? And if they do, can you blame them? After all, progressive leaders from JFK to MLK have been taken out by hostile shooters. But no high-profile conservatives have been felled in a similar way. Doesn’t seem fair somehow. Which…
Jail Bait
As another day’s newspaper hits the streets, another miscreant is shipped off to jail — snared in the Cuyahoga County corruption case that has sent more than 50 to the big house, with the likelihood of more to come. For them and their families, it is a humiliating and expensive experience. Along with being shamed…
Saddle Up
We’ll spare you the details about how the Australian duo An Horse got its name. It involves a grammar argument that singer and guitarist Kate Cooper had with her sister, and it’s really not that exciting. Cooper herself would rather talk about something else, like her band’s new album, Walls, or how she spends her…
Patriot Games
Steve Lambert is no stranger to questioning how America works. The tough part is getting people to talk about it. “There’s this capitalist belief that resources … that can be extracted and profited off of have value,” he says. “And anything that can’t compete in the marketplace is weak or unnecessary. “More personally, everyone in…
Take It to the Bridge
Ingenuity Fest launched six years ago as an arts-centric weekend-long event held downtown. In the years since, it’s also become one of the city’s biggest champions of forward-thinking music. Last year alone, it attracted more than 40,000 people. The 2011 festival, which takes place Friday through Sunday inside the Veterans Memorial Bridge, includes its largest…
