At least, in fairness, the "other side" should be allowed its free say.

Peggy Breidenbach
Phoenix

Becoming Famous

I just wanted to compliment you on your article ("Get a Grip!", Gilbert Garcia, April 13). It really hit home with me, as I'm an independent filmmaker here in the Valley. Ross Corsair actually worked with me on my first feature, a comedy about the celebrity fringe called How to Become Famous.

We're still in postproduction, and although we do have the movie on video, we hope to have a theatrical screening as soon as it's feasible.

Ed Sweet
via Internet

Calling Ralph Brekan "breathtakingly pretentious" in the April 13 article "Get a Grip!" is a gross understatement. I've met him on two occasions and have yet to come across a person less deserving of an illustrious career in art. The article came off as an opportunity for him to tell the world about all the famous people he's met while working on various movie sets. I find your assessment of him as the "self-conscious, apprentice bohemian" to be very true. He tries desperately to be something he's not capable of being and feeds the public with nonsense in the process. He would serve the art community better working behind the scenes as a representative or spokesperson than as an artist. He could learn a lesson from his own career as a stagehand. There's a reason he isn't getting any of those starring roles.

Sarah Stevens
Phoenix

Nader's Grader

I was glad to see your Flashes note (April 6) on Ralph Nader's presidential candidacy and local speech. Interestingly enough, you counted 200 in the audience and the Arizona Republic reported 100. Someone can't count. There would have been one more if I'd known about it.

In any event, Nader is one of my heroes. I'll never forget his call to action more than 25 years ago: "Let it not be said by future generations we were a people so without hope we didn't even try."

Nader's accomplishments include increased access to the files of our government under the Freedom of Information Act, the push for campaign-finance reform and continued work for environmental protection and public safety.

I suggest if you feel depressed and frustrated, don't blame Nader, blame your inaction, and do what I did -- join Nader's Public Citizen and visit its Web site at www.citizen.org. You'll feel better because then you, and Nader, are really making the world a better place.

Carl Retter
Scottsdale

Psycho Babble

We are responding to the April 13 letter about local band Victims in Ecstacy. We feel that the letter from John Candlin was very mean-spirited and without purpose. Had he simply critiqued the band, that would have been commendable, but we sense his letter is coming from something a little more personal. Perhaps a dissed girlfriend? Or maybe your band had to open up for them because you have no draw. It is more than obvious that John is a "musician" with a band that is going nowhere and he can't stand that something you deem as being uncool is actually making a scene. In his letter, he stated that VIE should not use the fact that its bass player was on MTV's Fanatic because the show had nothing to do with the "band." Regardless of why he was on the show, it gave the press an angle, thus keeping the band's name in print.

Our band, Psycho Gypsy, pulled a similar stunt a few years ago, and next thing you know, we were on our way to New York as guests on The Charles Perez Show.

While the show had nothing to do with our "band," either, local press picked up on it and within a matter of weeks, we, too, had a feature article in New Times and other local and national press. Maybe if John were a little more creative with his band, he could experience the same.

The members of Psycho Gypsy
Tempe

Abomination State

This letter is in response to T.J Gibson's comments (Letters, April 13) about the Chute, homosexuality and the Bible. He said if we didn't like what you had to say to "argue with God, not you." All of the verses he spewed are not actual "spoken words" of God but rather visions, or in some cases (depending on which verse you're referring to) beliefs/opinions of so-called "holy men." Why should we wholeheartedly believe in some self-proclaimed "holy man" from more than 1,000 years ago just because his message is nicely packaged in a book?