At night, from atop Tempe Butte, the high canopy of lush foliage over the historic Maple-Ash neighborhood near downtown Tempe blocks out the street lamps, creating a dark square in the grid of lights that appears to extend forever in all directions. On the sidewalks beneath that canopy, underground irrigation…
Kevin Bacon is talking about his penis. It’s not his fault — not exactly, anyway. Bacon didn’t bring it up, so to speak. He never does, at least not in public. He’s just trying to promote his latest film, the small, supernatural thriller Stir of Echoes. But here he is…
In the theater of money and power in Scottsdale, Arizona, Fred Unger’s enemies have cast him in the role of Evil Developer. Unger’s vehicle certainly fits the part — a new Chevy Suburban, black on black. “Let me be completely honest with you,” Unger says, deftly piloting his gun ship…
When the final grain of sand ran out of the official timer, the forum in the Kenilworth Elementary School gymnasium was called to attention. Candidates climbed on stage, took their spots on blue plastic chairs and waited to address the audience. Randy Pullen, a late entrant in the mayoral race,…
We Know Amparano The latest chapter from the Julie Amparano saga, brought to you from the World of High Flashin’. Amparano was fired by the Arizona Republic on August 20 after editors, reporters and private eyes claimed they were unable to trace some sources that appeared in Amparano’s column, “Conversations.”…
It’s football season already, and those houseguests from cold climes will start showing up on your doorstep before you know it. If you’re unsure where to take your out-of-town guests, may I suggest a tour of historic downtown Chandler? Designed around 1912 by veterinarian/developer/irrigation nut/town father A.J. “Doc” Chandler, downtown…
Phoenix is poised to elect its mayor and half its city council next week. Did you even know? I’ve heard of sleeper races, but this campaign has been downright catatonic. Sure, a vociferous and bitter few are furious over the mayor and council’s most egregious breach of trust to date,…
Superchunk drummer, Jon Wurster, has an incredible memory. For a man who’s been on the road with indie-rock’s torch bearers for close to a decade, he has an amazing ability to recall the smallest details. He begins our conversation with his recollections of some of long-gone Phoenix venues like the…
More than 700 of the belly buttons in San Manuel are the handiwork of Dr. Robert Brower. The 71-year-old staff physician has worked at the San Pedro River valley town’s small hospital since 1961. It was called the Magma Copper Company Hospital until 1987, when TMC HealthCare bought it and…
At 1 p.m. on Friday, August 20, Dennis Burke was an inmate at the Madison Street Jail. Four hours later, he was speaking to the Phoenix Planning Commission, explaining why he opposed the construction of a new 10-story jail facility a couple of blocks from where he’d spent his morning…
L’Affair Amparano The Arizona Republic’s firing of columnist Julie Amparano has sent the media into another frenzy of introspection and self-flagellation. The liberaleastcoastmediaelite is onto the story. The New York Times and the Boston Globe and Brill’s Content are ringing New Times, seeking comment on Amparano, who allegedly fabricated people…
YOUR DEATH IS WHAT THE LAW CALLS SECOND-DEGREE MURDER AND IT IS AN INJUSTICE. CHILDREN INITIATED INTO GANGS ARE PRE-MEDITATING MURDER, BY CARRYING GUNS WITH INTENT TO FIRE THEM AT GROUPS OF PEOPLE. HOW CAN WE CONTINUE TO CONDONE THIS PROBLEM OF OUR TIMES? THE GANGS, THEY ARE A MALADY…
A.T. Holder is a punk. On this Saturday night at the Fire Escape, he’s only one of at least 100 kids finding high-decibel nirvana. But A.T. Holder can’t help but stand out in this crowd. He says he’s 12 years old, but he doesn’t look a day over 10. His…
Attention, online shoppers! Welcome to eBay, your one-stop shopping headquarters for everything you never knew you needed. An international flea market to some, a global Dumpster to others, this behavioral-research head-scratcher has produced some of the wackiest human-interest stories of the year. In recent months, Internet shopaholics have vicariously thrilled…
Asked to sum up eBay in one sentence, a longtime dealer pal of mine deadpans, “Barnum was right.” To test his theory — that the eBay community is made up of a bunch of suckers who’ll bid on anything — I recently decided to auction off a slew of gag…
Glen Gaddie wants you to know this: He is not his brother’s keeper. As the head of the Burke Basic School, a charter school that opened in Mesa on Monday, he wants you to know this, too: His new school has nothing to do with the one his brother, Reed…
A New Times special report examining the lives of the people employed by maquiladora factories along the border in Mexico has won two prestigious national awards. “Bordering on Exploitation,” by John Dougherty and David Holthouse, was published in July 1998. The report won first place in the Special Section or…
So I was standing outside an adult bookstore Monday morning during rush hour, when I noticed a peculiar similarity among the men exiting the establishment: Their tucked chins, sidelong glances and skittish hustling mimicked that of a puppy that had just been caught soiling the carpet. Like a voice in…
United States Senator John McCain spent last weekend in Arizona, vacationing with his family. The news shocked me because I can’t recall the last time the guy actually showed his face in his home state. The rest of the country was interested because McCain skipped the Iowa straw poll. An…
It’s the Media Violence, Stupid That tap dancing you hear coming from the west is the frenzied footwork of United States Senator John McCain, who started a big presidential campaign swing through California on Monday — and found himself staring down the barrel of a subject he’d rather not discuss:…
No one ever demands to know how many Rolling Stones were present for a session to qualify it as a Stones recording. As long as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards are present, the litmus test is passed. Yet many of the songs that are considered quintessential Stones tracks are missing…
The Phoenix Zoo spared no expense when it came to trying to save the life of Ruby the elephant — or so it appeared. Last fall, zoo officials determined that Ruby’s unborn calf had died, and that her own life was in danger. She needed emergency surgery. Ruby, an Asian…
