TUESDAYSHold on to those collagen-coated dreams, because that little Botox blast you’ve been praying for might just be within your grasp. Palazzo, the downtown hot spot at 710 North Central — and advocate of sexy, hedonistic fun — is paying homage to both the addictive television show and the cosmetic…

Fashion designer Angela Johnson hasn’t made any Day-Glo straitjackets yet. Nevertheless, she’s dubbed her Fall ’05/’06 runway show “Sideshow Freak in the Padded Room.” The co-founder of the LabelHorde fashion network likens her latest threads to creepy carnivals and mental disorders. “The Padded Room theme is because many of the…

5/14-6/8You may have heard the adage “opinions are like assholes — everybody’s got one.” When it comes to the issue of gun control, there are definitely a lot of people who don’t like the smell of other people’s assholes. And while not everybody views the issue in black and white…

5/13-5/28As much as guys try to get two girls to make out in front of them, there are still men in the world who’ll throw punches instead of dollars at the sight of a same-sex snog. A man wandering through a New York park serves as a prime example in…

THU 5/12″Clothing, just like your being, has a constant energy flowing around you,” says fashion designer Kenyata Baraka, a.k.a. “Queen Be.” Her imaginative designs fall into the urban clothing style, and each handcrafted piece strives to harness a “continuous energy of peace, power and love that will leave you totally…

THU 5 Nothing beats a good shag. In the ’30s and ’40s, all the hip cats were doing it, and they were using bad lines like, “Hi, sugar, are you rationed?” They still got girls to shag with them all night. And swing with them. Of course, they probably did…

SAT 5/7 There’s a myth that nothing free is worth having. Tell that to the thousands of comic book fans who will stand in line for hours to get their paws on complimentary comics on “Free Comic Book Day,” happening Saturday, May 7. More than 3,000 comic shops worldwide will…

FRI 4/29 Loud-ass guitars dealing out sadistic riffs, flailing hair, sweaty bodies and hands raised and locked in the two-finger devil horn salute can only mean one thing. No, not a night with Beavis and Butt-head, fool. It’s the “AZ Blackend Deth HardKore Fest II” on Friday, April 29, at…

FRI 4/29 Ten years ago, any place on Grand Avenue was rotting somewhere between a crack house and a whorehouse. The downtown pocket’s metamorphosis from seedy street to ultra-hip arts district has been slow but sweet, thanks largely to First Fridays and the community of artists who have moved into…

FRI 4/29 Analyzing Georgie “El Torito” Garcia Jr.’s boxing style can be as perplexing as a politician’s talking points on tax reform — though with more sudden and painful consequences. The heavyweight Garcia, who brings a 5-0 professional record (with four KOs, including three in the first round) to “Fight…

FRI 4/29 Erotic torture, submissive slaves, leather, latex, hot wax to the flesh, and other forms of fetish will arise on “Black Friday,” April 29, at The Sets, 93 East Southern in Tempe. Evoking images fantasized by boys and girls yearning to be bound and gagged, the event, presented by…

SAT 4/23 The last thing you’d expect from Bisbee indie-folk darlings Nowhere Man and a Whiskey Girl is a cover album. “It seems kind of cheesy,” admits vocalist Amy Ross, “but we’re covering songs by our friends’ bands. It’s not like we’re doing ‘Hotel California.’ These are songs people keep…

SAT 4/23 When it comes to the Tostitos Southwest Salsa Challenge, these chips crunch some high numbers. “We have 63 contestants, and some of them enter more than one salsa,” says Mary Masters, the event organizer. “For each recipe, they have to make 13 gallons of salsa.” That’s more than…

SUN 4/24 We’ve gotta admit that when it comes to our participation in Valley Metro’s annual Bike to BOB event, the season’s the reason. That is, if it’s shaping up to be a banner year for the hometown Diamondbacks, we don’t mind pedaling down Central Avenue for a win at…

4/22-4/23 Some things are worth the wait — like, for instance, the Mesa Arts Center. After nearly five decades of false starts, failed bond elections, tax hikes and tumult, the suburb’s sleepy downtown finally gets a one-megaton wake-up call as Arizona’s largest cultural complex, located at 1 East Main Street,…

Professional volleyball players will do just about anything for their fans. They’ll sign whatever they’re handed, they’ll hang out and party after tournaments, and — if they’re three-time Olympic gold medalist Karch Kiraly — they’ll even propose for you. “There was a couple from Phoenix who came up to me…

4/14-4/17 It’s been a year since you were laughing your ass off at the quick-witted humor being bandied about at the last Phoenix Improv Fest. And here it is, time for what co-organizer Jose Gonzales calls “the biggest one ever.” And that, comedy hounds, is no jive. The 2005 Fest,…

SAT 4/16 The spirit of Pat Tillman marches on — and runs and walks — on Saturday, April 16, when the inaugural “Pat’s Run” makes its way through the streets of Tempe, starting at 8 a.m. Already, nearly 3,000 participants from almost three dozen states across the country have registered…

4/15-4/17 Pompous palates get pleased every year at the Scottsdale Culinary Festival, as foodies from all over gather to indulge in some of the best dishes in the Southwest. But the beauteous buffet isn’t just for epicures, as the Scottsdale Civic Center, 7375 East Second Street, plays host to a…

There’s not much room for innovation in music anymore. Rock’s been relegated to pop; punk is so not punk that it’s almost punk all over again; and “alternative” has become a generic catch-all for Top 40 genre hybrids. The real music alternative is noise. For the past 20 years, an…

4/8-4/29 It’s not easy being a queen; just ask Doug Loynd. “There’s pain involved in being in drag,” says the 41-year-old actor. “Makeup takes two hours, breasts are heavy, earrings pinch, and heels hurt.” The transvestite toil is worth it, however, as Loynd has a shot at fame as one…

4/9-5/11 When 17-year-old Mountain Pointe High School student Erika Vogt-Nilsen entered a graphically designed image of an evil-looking puppeteer dangling a crucified Christ in her school’s winter art show in January, she learned an important lesson on the provocative nature of art. A small group of viewers, including a particular…