Sin City: Megalopolitan Life >>

• BEST PLACE TO FEEL THE WIND UP YOUR SKIRT
  Casino Arizona at Salt River
  Okay, so you're no Marilyn Monroe. Neither are we. But that doesn't mean you don't deserve a little wind up your skirt once in a while, honey. Casino Arizona -- and we're not talking about that big tent off Indian Bend Road, we mean the nice building farther south on the 101 -- has six lounges,... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO GET SOME QUICK CASH
  ZLB Plasma Services
  Settle down, big spender. Just because the bank account is down for the count (and the casino has already cut up your Visa), don't go home just yet. You need cash in a flash -- but wanna avoid turning tricks in the parking lot -- so head for one of ZLB's two locations. Presuming you're drug- and... More >>
• BEST WAY TO SPEND YOUR WINNINGS
  Aji Spa at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort
  After you've rolled the dice or pulled the slot machine handle one too many times -- and you're ready to quit while you're ahead -- ease those aching limbs over to Aji, part of the resort adjacent to Gila River Casino at Wild Horse Pass. The 17,500-square-foot spa oozes serenity, from the sleek... More >>
• BEST NAME FOR A GAMBLING ADDICTION RECOVERY BUSINESS
  Arizona WinWay Center
  Hey, loser. Having bet your bottom dollar (plus whatever other cash you've "borrowed" lately from kith and kin) and busted yet again, maybe it's time for that intervention everyone keeps casually mentioning. Consider the shrinks at the Tempe-based WinWay Center, if for nothing else but its... More >>
• BEST CHURCH BINGO
  St. Daniel's Catholic Church
  Long before the Valley began blowing its collective wad out on the reservations, bingo was king. While some might call it a quaint throwback, a few local venues still offer up the old-school game of chance, with St. Daniel's being the best. This Scottsdale house of worship, which offers games... More >>
• BEST DUMPSTER DIVING
  The alleys of Willo Historic District
  Willo rules as a trash-picking destination because it has become a neighborhood of upper-middle-class strivers who repeatedly replace their old stuff with new, more upscale stuff. Their grail: turning enough of a profit from the eventual sale of their remodeled Willo house to move across Seventh... More >>
• BEST DOWNTOWN DESTINATION
  City Bakery and Poisoned Pen Central at Bentley Projects
  This is what Phoenix has been waiting for. When Bentley Projects opened its doors a while back, we knew something special was happening. If you haven't been yet, go immediately. Don't be swayed by the "un-Phoenix" location, so far off the beaten path it's actually south of Bank One Ballpark. The... More >>
• BEST DOWNTOWN BUILDING TO POKE YOUR HEAD IN
  First Studio
  Built in 1949, the "first television studio in Arizona" was once home to KPHO-TV and is headquarters for the most creative collective in town. The building currently houses 15 businesses, including Forsmo Design Works, True Story Films, Rhonda Graphics, and Randy Murray Productions. Lookee-loos... More >>
• BEST PENTHOUSE
  Security Building
  It was once the lair of Walter Bimson, the late Valley National Bank president and philanthropist whose love of money was equaled only by his love of art. And, beginning this fall, the penthouse at the top of the 77-year-old Security Building will be ground zero for Arizona State University's... More >>
• BEST NEW OUTDOOR MARKET
  Downtown Phoenix Public Market
  This new public market offers an eclectic and always-changing range of Arizona-grown products. Choose from foods such as organic fruits and veggies from Queen Creek's One Windmill Farms, cactus jellies over at Cotton Country Jams, and diabetic-friendly sweets from TJ's Good Cookie -- and that's... More >>
• BEST OUTDOOR MARKET
  Camelback Market at Vincent's
  This tiny parking lot market closes during the hot months (June through September), but when it's up and running, it's one of the best reminders of why we live here. Where else in the country can you relax outside on a sunny morning in, say, March, contemplating the state of the world over... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO HEAR LIGER REFERENCES
  Tempe FLASH Stops
  Thousands of people head to Tempe each year to learn. Arizona State University's campus is a hotbed of artistic and engineering ingenuity. Just think, you can even learn something new on the free ride around campus. The Tempe Free Local Area Shuttle (FLASH) is the perfect spot to get an... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO GET BUSTED
  Clarendon Hotel and Suites
  Downtown Phoenix's answer to Scottsdale's James Hotel snags the above category not because you might get busted by the po-po if you have one too many of Carson Quinn's martinis at the Camus bar/restaurant and then try to drive home. There's another reason. In the lobby of this newly renovated,... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO GET COFFEE WITH A POLITICO
  Starbucks
  Phoenix City Councilman Tom Simplot has long been seen as a civic booster, advocate of the local arts scene, and patron of mom-and-pop businesses. So why the heck does the friendly official, who represents Phoenix's District 4, regularly grab a mid-morning java jolt at the Starbucks outlet... More >>
• BEST GOP GOSSIP SHEET
  West Washington
  At $179 for a year's subscription, former state senator Stan Barnes' biweekly newsletter is no bargain. But the deftly titled West Washington is a good source for inside-the-statehouse gossip, particularly if you're looking for the skinny on Barnes' GOP pals and the political minutiae of who... More >>
• BEST POLITICIAN
  Governor Janet Napolitano
  Sure, we've picked on Governor Janet in the past, but only because we have such high expectations for our favorite daughter. The 47-year-old University of Virginia law school graduate is on track to become the next major national political figure to emerge from our fair state. She's already... More >>
• BEST SMALL-TOWN MAYOR
  Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon
  Is Phil Gordon really the mayor of the fifth-largest city in the nation? If so, why does his "vision" for downtown look strangely like Ahwatukee? Whether it's making sure Phoenix library computers are filtered, the endorsement of wing-nut County Attorney Andy Thomas, or the addition of "front... More >>
• BEST FLASHBACK TO THE '80S
  Spotting Charles Keating at El Portal
  Halfway through our huevos rancheros, he walked through the door, like a prune-faced version of Clint Eastwood in High Plains Drifter: a ghost of Christmas past embodying all the corruption, avarice and prudish anti-porn politics of the Reagan years. Could it be, out from whatever rock he'd been... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER
  Lisa Allen MacPherson
  If dodging and delaying are the hallmarks of a great director of communications, then Lisa Allen MacPherson is the grand master of flackdom. It's MacPherson who is responsible for turning Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio into a worldwide celebrity, with an endless stream of ridiculous... More >>
• BEST REPUBLICAN BABE OF THE WEEK
  Special Deputy Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Alexander
  We certainly don't begrudge this up-and-coming pal of County Attorney Andy Thomas for her striking good looks. Cool-looking blondes in business suits actually do something for some of us. Nor do we care much either way about her political persuasion, which runs along the lines of fellow onetime... More >>
• BEST TV REPORTER
  Lew Ruggiero
  He's looking a little bit grumpier these days, and we like it! Maybe ol' Lew misses his pal Kent Dana. Or maybe Channel 12's got him doing double duty with the "Storm Team." Nevertheless, having the Valley's top TV newsman getting a little bit ornery in the twilight of his career is a great... More >>
• BEST TV NEWSCASTER
  Kent Dana
  If local TV is a numbers game, Kent Dana wins hands down. Take, for instance, the five-year deal he signed with Channel 5 last October, rumored to be for an astonishing $650,000 a year. In May's Nielsen ratings, a month after Dana officially defected from NBC affiliate KPNX Channel 12 to take... More >>
• BEST MORNING RADIO
  The Morning Ritual
  Before Howard Stern and the emergence of shock jocks, morning DJs actually relied on shtick to keep listeners tuned in. The Morning Ritual crew at The Edge must be some old-schoolers, because from 6 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday, ringleader Chuck Powell and sidekicks Vince Marotta, Drew... More >>
• BEST NEWS RADIO
  KXXT-AM 1010
  We'll admit that KXXT, the local Air America affiliate, has a bit of a bias. Okay, it's a self-proclaimed liberal station. But the bleeding hearts still deliver the news in this town with more fervor, passion and personality than the stiffs at the other two big AM news stations or even the... More >>
• BEST (FORMER) RADIO TALK-SHOW HOST
  David Leibowitz
  We didn't tune in to David Leibowitz as much as we knew we should. The ads on KTAR are just too obnoxious. But recently, we forced ourselves to sit through demands that we refinance our home or eat at P.F. Chang's, just to hear Leibowitz bat it back and forth with callers who wanted to complain... More >>
• BEST CLASSICAL MUSIC STATION
  KBAQ-FM 89.5
  It's easy to remain the city's best classical station when you're the only game in town. But KBAQ takes an active role as the Valley's sole classical connection, operating one of the most active production studios and mobile recording units in NPR land, and offering live performance broadcasts... More >>
• BEST HIP-HOP RADIO STATION (4 Comments)
  KKFR-FM Power 92.3
  Power 92.3 dominates hip-hop in the Valley of the Sun, dropping the livest mix of what's popular now, from the Ying Yang Twins and David Banner to Mike Jones and Pretty Ricky, while staying true to the old-school, like Dr. Dre, Snoop, N.W.A and others. They keep it poppin' with radio... More >>
• BEST ALTERNATIVE ROCK RADIO STATION
  KEDJ-FM 103.9
  The Edge takes its "Independent Radio" tag line seriously, giving its DJs leeway to spin little-played alt-rock oddities and aggressively seeking input from listeners. The "Insider Lounge" feature on the station's Web site, promising listeners a say in what gets played on the station, too often... More >>
• BEST COUNTRY RADIO STATION (2 Comments)
  KNIX-FM 102.5
  Shortly before his passing in February of 2002, Arizona outlaw country legend Waylon Jennings memorably schooled KNIX morning personalities Tim and Willy on the air. In answer to the duo's mock "We're not worthy!", Jennings replied, "Then why don't you play my music?" Jennings still doesn't get... More >>
• BEST ROCK RADIO STATION
  KUPD-FM 97.9
  The station may have long ago lost its Morning Mayor, Dave Pratt, but John Holmberg has proven a worthy successor to this FM-dial throne. His "Morning Sickness" reality program has helped build a loyal listener base rivaling Pratt's in just under four years. The music is still pure Ozzfest fare,... More >>
• BEST BLUES/JAZZ RADIO STATION
  KJZZ-FM 91.5
  By day, Valley jazz fans must rely on their iPods, or make do with the inferior smooth jazz served up on KYOT, until KJZZ switches over from its National Public Radio talk feed at 7 p.m. From then until 3 a.m., though, it's all smooth sailing, with the station's "acoustic jazz" format giving... More >>
• BEST LOCAL PODCAST
  The Dragonpage's "Wingin' It!"
  Operated out of local sci-fi writer Michael Mennenga's crowded home office in northeast Phoenix, "Wingin' It!" is a freewheeling weekly gab fest hosted by Mennenga and his pal, Web designer and practicing herbalist Evo Terra. Ostensibly a show dedicated to science fiction and fantasy books,... More >>
• BEST PRISON BLOG
  Jon's Jail Journal
  Unlike other blogs where people yammer about what they had for breakfast or who they ran into at the mall, "Jon's Jail Journal" is worth reading, thanks to its dry British wit and clever word play. The author is convicted Arizona ecstasy ring leader "English" Shaun Attwood. Convicted in 2002,... More >>
• BEST ARGUMENT FOR MANDATORY GEOGRAPHY LESSONS (1 Comment)
  The Arizona Republic, May 11, 2005
  We're big fans of the Republic's "Today's News Briefing" section, with its super-short stories about global hot spots keyed to a world map. But the paper's effort on May 11 was off the map -- literally. One of that day's briefs informed us that "President Bush brings words of support for... More >>
• BEST POSTHUMOUS MEMORY OF HUNTER S. THOMPSON
  Way back in 1986, the late Mr. Thompson showed up at our fine offices on East Jefferson Street with a beer in one hand and a joint in the other. He had this comment: "I want to find out who killed Don Bolles, and I want to start at the dog track." (Or words to that effect; memory does fade.)... More >>
• BEST LOCAL CAMEO IN A NATIONAL MURDER TRIAL
  Genna "Jordie" McCallie and Kathy "Katie" Monkman
  These two court watchers from Tempe never meant to insert themselves into the middle of the Scott Peterson trial. Really. They were just in Redwood City, California, trying to get a coveted seat in the courtroom -- the next logical step for two Court TV obsessors, who'd made names for themselves... More >>
• BEST LOCAL CAMEO IN PEOPLE MAGAZINE
  Wendy Cracchiolo
  So there we were, holed up in the dentist's office on a hot afternoon in June, having waited for hours and having read the last six issues of The Atlantic cover to cover, when, out of desperation, clean out of anything smart to read, we picked up a copy of People. Oh, who are we fooling? We... More >>
• BEST AUTHOR WHO LEFT TOWN
  Laurie Notaro
  Laurie, we hardly knew ya. That's so totally a lie. After countless years as a columnist at every rag in town (but this one) from Planet to the Arizona Republic, and -- count 'em -- four books of essays, we know everything about Laurie Notaro. Everything, from the time she tried out to be a... More >>
• BEST AUTHOR WHO LEFT TOWN AND CAME BACK
  Tania Katan
  What's a nice Jewish girl like Tania Katan doing in a place like Phoenix? Very well, thank you. Katan was raised (at least partially) in the Valley, a proud graduate of McClintock High in Tempe, and she escaped to assorted environs including San Francisco and Long Beach, according to her book,... More >>
• BEST CHUTZPAH
  Martha Beck
  Even before its publication, Martha Beck's Leaving the Saints: How I Lost the Mormons and Found My Faith was causing cramps among Latter-day Saints around the globe. Which is one of several reasons we're proud of Beck's Phoenix connection (she now lives here), right up there with her "I'm not... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SNATCH A PURSE
  The Old Bags Luncheon
  We've gotta tell you, if we have to go to one more charity luncheon, we're going to puke up our chicken plate. We gave at the office, sweetie -- now can we go to the mall and shop? Here's exciting news from the society scene: Now there's a charity luncheon where you can actually pick up a... More >>
• BEST YENTA (2 Comments)
  Bonnie the Matchmaker
  Her Web site doesn't provide hook-ups for the lovelorn, because Madame Matchmaker says the best way to meet your one true love is by exploiting her peculiar talent for tying people's knots. And if Bonnie Wills should maybe disdain online dating services, who are we to judge? She is, after all,... More >>
• BEST LOCAL STAG MAG
  Playtime
  L.A. has Hustler. Chicago has Playboy. New York has Penthouse. So what does P-town have in response? Playtime, fool. If you haven't seen it, Playtime is glossier than 944, with content we're a hell of a lot more interested in perusing. Its purview is the PHX's extensive strip-club scene, one of... More >>
• BEST WAY FOR STRAIGHT WOMEN TO HOOK UP WITH LESBIANS
  Craigslist
  The "Women Seeking Women" and "Casual Encounters" personal ads on the Phoenix Craigslist Web site overflow with headlines like "Woman seeking woman for first lesbian encounter"; "Yet another bi-curious twenty year-old"; "dying to have my first experience with a woman"; "looking to learn"; "Bi... More >>
• BEST WAY TO HOOK UP IF YOU'RE HOMELY
  Livelinks
  Geeky guys of the Valley, take note. Ever seen those licentious late-night commercials for local interactive date lines? Usually they're squeezed between the oh-so-mockable Goldberg & Osborne advertisements, starring hot-to-trot hotties who probably wouldn't let your unphotogenic ass buy them an... More >>
• BEST FREE PEEP SHOW
  Prieto's Auto Sales infomercials on KGF Channel 53
  If you're a lad on the lookout for some no-cost titillation, break out your rabbit ears and tune to KGF Channel 53, the UHF Spanish station, which runs amazing infomercials for Prieto's Auto Sales that air at varying times Thursdays through Sundays. We're talkin' some real skin on a real... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC ACCESS SHOW
  SWWF Rampage
  There was nothing good on television the other night, so we started surfing through all 550 channels of dreck until the sight of some skinny teenagers smacking each other around with kendo sticks caught our eye. It looked like an episode of Viva La Bam, but it turns out we had just tuned to... More >>
• BEST REALITY SHOW FLOP WITH A PHOENIX CONNECTION
  The Will
  A few days before Penny Long made her reality TV show debut last January on CBS' The Will, the Arizona Republic ran a feature on the Cave Creek woman predicting that "You will read about her in Us Weekly, . . . spot her on Access Hollywood, and come into work on Monday morning and talk Penny,... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SEE AN INDIE FLICK
  Tempe Pollack Cinemas
  Owned by local real estate investor Michael A. Pollack, this funky modern theater boasts a lobby filled with video games, autographed photos, and life-size cardboard figures of celebrities, which patrons love to use for funny photo ops. But the truly edgy stuff happens on the big screens, where... More >>
• BEST STAR GAZING
  Moonlight Movies
  Turns out Phoenicians prefer Ferris Bueller to The Birds. This completely unscientific observation took place this summer, during Phoenix City Councilman Tom Simplot's Moonlight Movies series. The movies, shown in the amphitheater at Steele Indian School Park, drew revelers of all ages, who... More >>
• BEST CHAIN WE'RE GLAD IS A CHAIN
  Harkins Theatres
  We curse Dan Harkins every time some kid asks us to upsize our popcorn (didn't the movie magnate see Super Size Me?), but Dan, we're still glad your mother gave birth to you in the Valley Art Theatre, and that you held onto the space -- and the more than 200 theaters Harkins Theatres has... More >>
• BEST LOCAL BOY MAKES GOOD
  Sean Anders, Never Been Thawed
  The director, star and co-writer of Never Been Thawed, a tiny masterpiece of an indie film, deserves nods not only for creating a sweetly acerbic, nicely acted local film, but for helping to bust up the post-PC etiquette that's still dogging us into the new millennium. Anders' snarky send-up of... More >>
• BEST LOCAL GIRL MAKES GOOD
  Emily Stone as Laurie Partridge
  When VH1 asked the musical question "Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Laurie?", Phoenix ponied up with lovely young Emily Stone, who took off on a race to be the next Laurie Partridge. First, she appeared on the music network's In Search of The Partridge Family, a quasi-American Idol in which the... More >>
• BEST LOCAL BOY MAKES SHOES
  George Mang
  You'll only find a small picture of Scottsdale native George Mang on his own Web site, but you will see a bevy of the hottest stars in Hollywood -- and they're all wearing Mang. In the last year, the self-taught shoe designer has shod everyone from Halle Berry to Kate Bosworth, and he's got the... More >>
• BEST LOCAL GIRL MAKES SHOES
  Holly Dunlap
  Perky and blonde, Holly Dunlap could easily pass for a Scottsdale soccer mom with a taste for cute shoes. But while she's a Scottsdale native, and while the shoes are adorable (hey, don't take our word for it -- ask the editors at Vogue), Dunlap is actually one of the hottest young designers in... More >>
• BEST LOCAL GIRL WITH A GREEN THUMB
  Tera Vessels
  Everybody from Target to Home Depot sells plants, but only Tera Vessels can tell you the secrets to making them thrive here in the world's most populated oven. Vessels runs a nursery in an old downtown bungalow, selling plants, gardening accessories and art. But it's the garden surrounding the... More >>
• BEST LEGEND IN THE MAKING
  Legend Logsdon
  Although Roosevelt Street sometimes seems like a teenage wasteland during First Fridays -- especially since those darn kids do nothing but bum cigarettes outside Modified Arts -- adolescent phenom Legend Logsdon is proving that assumption incorrect. Though only 13, Logsdon has a keen eye for... More >>
• BEST POWER COUPLE
  Vivian and Derek Ware of www.urbanaz.com
  The Wares, Vivian and Derek, are the ultimate power couple when it comes to nightlife in the PHX. Not only do they regularly help bring major acts to the Valley, like the Ying Yang Twins, they also promote, do ad buys for, or in some manner represent a multitude of the flyest events out there,... More >>
• BEST ALT-CULTURE CAPITALISTS
  Chris and Jim McLennan
  Everyone needs friends like Chris and Jim McLennan. Not content to sit in the audience and enjoy their favorite filmmakers, professional wrestlers, comedians and performance artists, this Scottsdale couple has helped bankroll the efforts of Valley creative types using profits from their... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SEE AND BE SEEN ON A FIRST FRIDAY
  Grand Avenue, east of 15th Avenue
  Good old Bikini Lounge will always be one of our favorite downtown nightspots, and we'll still head west on Grand to 15th Avenue and beyond for our fill of arts and amusements. But lately we've been digging the great vibe just down the street, where a whole new generation of gallery spaces and... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SEE AND BE SEEN ON A FINAL FRIDAY
  Wet Paint
  While downtown Phoenix First Fridays have turned into a gallery-hopping parade of thousands, Tempe's Final Fridays are still relatively intimate. It has a lot to do with the lay of the land -- the area around Mill Avenue is more about bohemian hangouts (with cool art on the walls, of course)... More >>
• BEST NEW GALLERY
  The Chocolate Factory
  The easiest way to figure out the best galleries in town is to ask the artists. These days, plenty of people are name-dropping the Chocolate Factory, an impressive new offering from local artist Hector Ruiz, whose provocative exhibition of sculptures, carvings, and woodblock prints, "La... More >>
• BEST STOP ON ART DETOUR
  The studio of Carrie Marill and Matt Moore
  We ambled through dozens of studios during Art Detour, the downtown Phoenix art walk sponsored by ArtLink that's held one weekend each year, usually in March. Months later, we have to admit, our recall of this year's now institutionalized city art event is just all one big beige blur -- except... More >>
• BEST MOBILE GUERRILLA GALLERY
  2 Kaotik Gallery
  First Fridays was a mere zygote of a scene when local artisans Dayvid LeMmon and Jerry Portelli first rolled the 2 Kaotik Gallery through downtown in 2000. The pair rented a U-Haul, loaded up a generator for lighting, and made stop 'n' parks throughout the downtown district, usually planting... More >>
• BEST MUSEUM YOU'VE NEVER BEEN TO
  The Bead Museum
  We've always considered beading strictly a consumer endeavor -- as in, we don't want to look at them, we just want to buy them. And it is true that we were immediately sidetracked by the Bead Museum's large (perhaps larger than the exhibit space itself, although, to be fair, it's under... More >>
• BEST MINI CACTUS TOUR
  The Barry Goldwater Memorial
  We love the Desert Botanical Garden, but not everyone has enough passion for cactus to make it through a two-hour tour. Which is why Paradise Valley's Barry Goldwater Memorial is so damn cool. Not only does it feature a big bronze version of the father of American conservatism himself, but it's... More >>
• BEST DRAGON
  Sculptor John Peirce's house
  John Peirce's 1920s English Tudor revival home in the F.Q. Story historic district is the antidote to KB Homes bland. A five-foot winged dragon of copper weathered to a cool, reptilian green clings to copper vines covering most of the front porch. The beastie grins through razor teeth, and his... More >>
• BEST COLLECTION OF ARIZONA LICENSE PLATES
  The Old Station
  There's a lot of local history in this gas station turned sandwich shop. The deli sits right next to the Pioneer Memorial Park and Cemetery, where some of Arizona's first settlers and political figures are buried, and the building has been a presence on Jefferson Street since its birth as a... More >>
• BEST SIGNS OF THE TIMES
  "A Few Pieces of Advice to Help You on Your Way"
  We can't recall when we first noticed the signs stuck in the grass where Mill Avenue veers into Apache Boulevard, curving around Gammage Auditorium at Arizona State University in Tempe. But we figured they had to be a prank, since one of the poster-size boards -- designed to look like a green... More >>
• BEST SIGN OF PAST TIMES
  Mr. Lucky's
  Phoenix is notorious for bulldozing its own past faster than you can say "custom homes from the $550s." That's why you should cruise west on Grand Avenue/U.S. 60 right now and look at the gloriously tacky sign for the defunct honky-tonk Mr. Lucky's, before it ends up existing only on Web sites... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC ART
  "Tributary Wall" by Kevin Berry with Design Workshop
  How we love art that happens to be functional as well as visually arresting and entertaining. That's why we're particularly enamored of artist Kevin Berry's "Tributary Wall," which undulates its way along the west side of Goldwater Boulevard between Camelback and Indian School roads in... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC WORKS AS PUBLIC ART
  Standpipes in the Maple Ash Neighborhood, Tempe
  The folks in the Maple Ash Neighborhood Association have one heck of a pipe dream. Over the past two years, the inhabitants of the sylvan residential area located just west of Arizona State University have mixed a deluge of grant money from the City of Tempe with the torrential creativity of... More >>
• BEST UNEXPECTED PUBLIC ART
  Tempe Library Cards
  Public art in your wallet? It's enough to make you want to move to Tempe -- which is where you'll have to go to get one of the groovy new artist-designed library cards that the city's libraries made available this summer. The City of Tempe Public Art Program commissioned four Arizona artists to... More >>
• BEST UNEXPECTED PRIVATE ART
  Erastes Cinaedi
  Here's the straight poop: When hip screenwriter and novelist Jerry Stahl visited Perihelion Arts last year to sign copies of his latest tome I, Fatty, turns out the ex-heroin junkie also purchased one of mixed-media maven Erastes Cinaedi's artfully decorated toilet seats on display at the Grand... More >>
• BEST COMMUNITY MURAL
  The wall mural in front of Maie Bartlett Heard Elementary School
  It takes a lot to get our attention when we're driving, but the wildly colorful, Fauve-style mural painted on a wall in front of Maie Bartlett Heard Elementary School does just that. In fact, the first time we saw the block-long art project, we cruised by several times to determine what was... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SCAM ART SUPPLIES
  Evans-Churchill Neighborhood
  Those in the Phoenix art scene love to recycle, and it's not just because of their hippy-dippy lifestyle. No, these arty people are all about reusing refuse because it provides them with tons of debris to either use as canvases or as part of a found art sculpture or two -- especially the kind of... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO BUY ART SUPPLIES (2 Comments)
  Arizona Art Supply
  Often, when we ask friends and colleagues for a recommendation for a particular "Best of," we're overwhelmed with choices and a lot of hemming and hawing. After all, there are a lot of places in this town where you can get a good margarita. But when we asked about art supplies, the answer came... More >>
• BEST WAY TO GET ARTSY IN A DAY
  Alchemy Studio
  You think you're too busy to acquire a new art skill? Well, we're not impressed. Got a day? Get artsy with Alchemy Studio's one-day workshops conducted in, as they put it, a "small but rich time frame." An eclectic mix of classes ranging from figure drawing and playwriting to hand-sewn... More >>
• BEST AUDIO GEEK SCHOOL
  The Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences
  When a post-secondary school has a voluntary three-year waiting list, you know it must be a great institution. You also know it's full of some serious geeks. For more than two decades, the Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences (CRAS) has been teaching audio fanatics the ins and outs of the... More >>
• BEST EXPERIMENTAL MUSIC COLLECTIVE
  Phoenix Creative Music Movement
  For anybody who needs a fill of "out there" improvisations, unconventional time signatures and syncopated dissonance, the Phoenix Creative Music Movement (PCMM) is just what the ear doctor ordered. Influenced by Chicago's Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians and New York's Jazz... More >>
• BEST ROCK 'N' ROLL FICTION TOUR
  First Fiction
  Contrary to popular belief, some pretty happening things got their start in Phoenix -- like the chimichanga (reputedly), Steven Spielberg, and, dare we say it, the New Times chain. But the coolest thing to come out of this town in a long time is First Fiction, the authors' tour created by Cindy... More >>
• BEST INTENTIONAL HILARITY
  Modest Proposal Presents
  Modest Proposal Presents is the place to see a rotating cast of young, creative, totally off-the-wall talent doing sketch and standup comedy. And did we mention that it's only five bucks? Hey, that's no joke. We gotta say, we didn't think it was funny at all when Ron Babcock and Ryan McKee, the... More >>
• BEST UNINTENTIONAL HILARITY
  ASU-TV's Dance in the Movies
  The first time we stumbled upon Raymond Shaw and his weekly, televised distance-learning class, we thought we were watching a Mad TV sketch. Shaw's teaching techniques were so delightfully bumbling, so very way out there, that we couldn't believe that Arizona State University -- or the man... More >>
• BEST LITTLE THEATER THAT COULD
  Stray Cat Theatre
  We've been attending theater in this town for longer than we care to tell you, and if there's one thing we've learned, it's that smallish companies tend to either vanish after a couple of seasons or wind up doing crap to keep their doors open. Not so with Stray Cat Theatre, whose mission seems... More >>
• BEST LITTLE THEATER THAT COULDN'T, DARN IT
  TheatreScape
  They gave it a go, but, sadly, TheatreScape -- like so many little local troupes before them -- folded halfway through their second season. Too bad, because these folks pulled off a couple of smart, skillful programs while they were around. Although they're gone, we're still talking about their... More >>
• BEST ARGUMENT FOR THE BLACK BOX
  Nearly Naked Theatre at Phoenix Theatre's Little Theatre
  They're ambitious, giving us the naughty fun of The Rocky Horror Show and the deeply troubling misogyny of Hurly Burly in the same season. And they're showy as heck, offering up French drawing-room comedy with Les Liaisons Dangereuses and revisions on Christopher Marlowe with E2: A Heretical... More >>
• BEST ACTING CHOPS, MALE
  Joseph Kremer
  Whether playing a pompous, pomaded pirate or a foppish French schemer, actor Joseph Kremer was nearly perfect in numerous stage roles this past season. Whence this talented newcomer sprang is anyone's guess; his playbill bios don't mention acting academies or years spent in summer stock. But... More >>
• BEST ACTING CHOPS, FEMALE
  Cathy Dresbach
  Being the only saving grace in the horror that was last summer's Menopause: The Musical would have been enough to win her our deep gratitude and affection, but then Cathy Dresbach appeared in the lead in Actors Theatre's Nickel and Dimed, playwright Joan Holden's comic adaptation of Barbara... More >>
• BEST REDEMPTION OF A LOUSY PLAY BY A LOCAL ACTOR
  Teresa Ybarra in A Night in Vegas
  This past season, someone named Teresa Ybarra walked off with an entire play, and then -- as far as we can tell -- vanished into thin air. Despite her rather limited acting experience, Miss Ybarra saved the sinking ship that was Alternative Theatre's A Night in Vegas, an otherwise untidy muddle... More >>
• BEST CELEBRITY IMPERSONATION
  Sarah Wolter as Liza Minnelli in Phoenix Theatre's Cabaret
  We're counting our blessings that Sarah Wolter wound up impersonating '70s-era Cocaine-and-Leotards Liza Minnelli, rather than, say, '80s Post-Rehab Pet Shop Boys Liza, or New Millennium Married To A Scary-Looking Homosexual Liza. But still, the truth is that Wolter didn't so much play Sally... More >>
• BEST PIECE OF CHOCOLATE
  The Steve Almond
  Once upon a time, a guy named Steve Almond (really, that's his name) wrote a book about chocolate. He traveled to candy factories all over the country, cataloguing his funny experiences and funnier insights in Candy Freak, an odd but compelling memoir that became a smash hit. This is a man who... More >>
• BEST IRONIC HOT DOG STAND
  Lezbos-A-Gogo Hot Dog Stand at Holga's
  If nothing else, Angela Pulliam and lesbian burlesque troupe Lezbos-A-Gogo prove that even girls who just love girls can appreciate a good wiener from time to time -- as evidenced by the hot dog stand the lusty ladies run every First Friday from 7 to 11:30 p.m. outside Holga's, a popular art... More >>
• BEST RESTROOM TO IMPROVE SELF-ESTEEM
  Mucho Gusto Taqueria and Mexican Bistro
  Feeling guilty because you downed that Colorado pork stew with a little too mucho gusto? Head for the ladies' room. No, not to stick your finger down your throat. Look around, girlfriend. You're in good company. The stout figures adorning the walls are repros of the work of Fernando Botero, the... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO FLIP OFF THE BIRD
  The Le Peep Restaurant Chicken
  Most every day, at the intersection of Central and Indianola avenues from about 8 a.m. until 1 p.m., you'll find a rabid, dancing, human-chicken hybrid spazzing out in hopes of luring us into nearby Le Peep Restaurant. The masked bird, decked out in a mismatched yellow tee shirt, shorts and a... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO PRETEND YOU'RE NOT IN THE DESERT
  Encanto-Palmcroft neighborhood
  You'll have trouble spotting a single saguaro in Encanto-Palmcroft, a lushly landscaped district of upscale, period revival homes in central Phoenix. The neighborhood was developed between the 1920s and the 1940s, when the desert was a wasteland to be conquered, not an ecosystem to be... More >>
• BEST WAY TO HIGHTAIL IT TO VEGAS
  U.S. Highways 60 and 93
  Reservation casinos and poker nights at the pub are all well and good, but we need a taste of the real action that only Sin City can supply. We wanna Viva Las Vegas double quick, so we're looking for a sure-fire escape route that'll allow us to blow town and speed toward America's playgound like... More >>