Though we’re certainly not optimists, we have some good news: the American Dream is not completely dead. That’s because standup comedian ANT, who’s worked his way to (or, at least, near) the top against incredibly long odds, is living proof. The 42-year-old comedian spent the better part of his twenties…
In most corners, there’s something missing from the current and seemingly endless debate over illegal immigration: Brown faces. Stories of struggle. Real insight into the lives of the people involved in this crisis. But not in Terry Greene Sterling’s new book, which author Paul Perry has referred to as “the…
Opportunities to perform, direct, or see decent theater slow to a trickle during Phoenix summers. Therefore, Phoenix Theatre’s Hormel New Works Festival has been an oasis for culture vultures since 1998. Scott McCarrey’s play Robot Songs gets its staged readings (directed by the venerable Robert Kolby Harper) this weekend. The…
If only we all had such varied interests – and not only had ’em, but publicly excelled at ’em. There’s Josh Blue the artist, whose bold, evocative paintings and sculptures are featured on his Web site and have been displayed at the likes of Denver’s Access Gallery. There’s Josh Blue…
Count on Mesa Arts Center to bring the quirky. Not every venue is savvy enough to bring us a live taping of an acclaimed program from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. That’s right — it’s Jonathan Goldstein with “Wire Tap Live!” The Wire Tap radio show features Goldstein engaging in conversations…
It’s always wonderful when something thrives in a hostile environment — that’s why you’re especially fond of that one cousin who turned out normal even though your aunt and uncle are both fat and weird. This is also why we’re watching the Arizona Rattlers’ regular-season finale against the Iowa Barnstormers…
The Arizona Diamondbacks are hosting the Washington Nationals (oh, is Stephen Strasburg pitching?) for a four-game series starting Monday, August 2, (Strasburg on the hill?) and though both teams have struggled mightily this season (Strasburg!?!?!), these games should be family friendly (shut your stupid piehole and tell us if Strasburg…
The date of August 9, 1995 will forever be burned into the brains of Deadheads everywhere as the day the “Great Bearded One” let slip the mortal coil and headed for that great jam session in the sky. Naturally, the granola-munching members of local Grateful Dead tribute act Xtra Ticket…
Napa Valley sounds pretty dreamy these days, eh? Temperate climate, chilled wine, and lax (by comparison) DUI laws? Just tell us who we have to kill to get there and it’s done. Or, in the interest of the greater good, perhaps we should go for an alternative that doesn’t involve…
I have an aunt and uncle back home who spend every summer “down cellar,” which in Ohio means that in June, when the temperatures soar into the 80s, they pretty much abandon their three-story house and retreat into their basement until late August, when their “hot” weather ceases. I envy them…
Alain Resnais’ Wild Grass has plenty of fans — it copped an award at Cannes in 2009 — but I don’t see what they see. The 87-year-old filmmaker’s latest is an insufferable exercise in cutie-pie modernism, painfully unfunny and precious to a fault. Adapted from a novel by Christian Gailly,…
Art is art, no matter where you find it. Vietnamese-American artist/photographer Dinh Q. Lê has found it in the streets of Ho Chi Minh City (the city formerly known as Saigon), where he’s lived and worked for the past 12 years. Lucky for us, ASU Art Museum has brought his…
In Steve Carell’s first few episodes of the American version of The Office, his character, Michael Scott, hewed closely to the template created by the series’ British mastermind, Ricky Gervais. Scott, like David Brent before him, was cruel and obtuse, a nightmare of a boss who thinks he’s a leader…
Paul Rudd talks about playing himself, Party Down, and Dinner for Schmucks When last I saw Paul Rudd, in person, it was March 2009 in the lobby of the Four Seasons in Austin. It was 3 in the morning, hours after I Love You, Man had its première at the…
Instead of merely being a thuggish, dunderheaded megalomaniac, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has also been a harbinger of the future: At press time, SB 1070 was days from being enacted and has prompted other states to take similar measures. It’s a really dumb vision of the future that these…
Even though a federal judge blocked key parts of Arizona Senate Bill 1070 this morning, you can still keep your friends, family and distant acquaintances in the immigration-debate loop, postcard style.These postcards are designed by Irma Sanchez, a local artist who describes her postcards as a personal “bail-out” project. Just…
Phoenix Design Week is upon us … in two months.This means the prep work and planning for the five day event filled with seminars, national guest speakers, design exhibitions, and ridiculous amounts of networking is well under way.And that means there are some pretty sweet opportunities for local designers to…
Evidence of Van Buren’s glory days has just about vanished. Earlier this month, the Log Cabin Motel, located at 2515 East Van Buren Street, was torn to bits. Of the 200 or so lodging centers that used to reside along Phoenix’s most storied thoroughfare, the Log Cabin was arguably the…
Sorry Oprah, we’re just not digging the book. Actually, it’s not even the book that’s making us queasy (though disliking anything written by Elizabeth Gilbert has long been a tried-and-true friendship test for some of us here at Jackalope Ranch), it’s the tchotchke-filled campaigns, quintessential girls’ nights and the creepy…
The Hall of Flame Fire Museum in Phoenix is the largest firefighting museum in the world, but it’s easy to pass while driving east on Van Buren Street toward Mill Avenue. But take a right around 61st Street, and you’ll find a fascinating collection of fire engines, firefighting equipment, and…
Hector Acuna gave us a few hints yesterday with How To: Dress Like an Illegal Immigrant. As a follow-up, the local designer, art direction consultant, and illustrator gives us his guide to blending…
Terry Greene Sterling’s Illegal: Life and Death in Arizona’s Immigration War Zone begins in the Mexican towns near the Arizona border: Nogales, Cananea, Altar, Arivaca, Agua Prieta. These are the places from which migrants press their luck to undertake dangerous crossings through the desert landscape. Describing one such border-crosser, Sterling…
