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Archive: February, 2012
Human sexuality education expert, and our Sexy Time columnist, Meg Augustin answers your deepest, darkest questions about getting it on.
Q: What's the rule with pubic hair these days? I'm never sure if getting rid of it all is expected, or if it comes off like a wannabe amateur porn star, or worse, desperate. I feel like having any carries this negative connotation, like pubic hair means you’re a butch feminist or something. I need a concrete answer!
A: Look at any ’70s porno mag and it’s obvious the “hair down there” isn’t what it used to be. Movies, TV and definitely porn make it seem like all women are going bare now. And many women seem to think men expect this new nude look.
Two years ago, several scholars from Indiana University, home of the Kinsey Institute in Sex, Gender and Reproduction, asked women (almost 2500 of them to be exact)* what styles they were going for and why. Their conclusion was that while women’s styles were quite diverse, more women were sporting some amount of hair. Those who decided to go completely bare were (1) generally younger in age, (2) in some sort of relationship, (3) were generally more sex-positive and (4) had cunnilingus in the past month. In other words, most women had some amount of hair on their mons pubis, the majority falling under “partial-removal.” If you are young, accommodating your partner’s pleasurable tongue and more interested in the function or genital vanity, you may consider going completely nude.
View galleryMovie critic (and the guy who compiles our weekly repertory film listings) Michael Gold reviews his favorite Netflix Instant flick of the week.
Cinephiles hate to love the Academy Awards, mostly because the night celebrates supposedly progressive movies that are anything but. This year offers the consummate example. Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis are all but poised to be the sixth and seventh black actresses to take home golden statuettes. True, Spencer steals every one of her scenes in The Help, and Davis has a screen presence that deserved an Oscar years ago. But the two women will be grabbing awards for playing maids who help a white woman mature and learn something in the process. That might sound familiar, since seven decades ago, Hattie McDaniel earned her Oscar for doing exactly the same thing. Pat yourself on the back, Academy, for being so forward-thinking.
For the record, movies about black maids don’t have to be so pristine. Take Ousmane Sembène’s Black Girl (1966, Senegal/France, 65 min.). The movie follows Senegalese maid Diouanna, who moves from Dakar to the French Riviera hoping for a glamorous European life. Instead, she suffers the abuses of her rich French employers and becomes essentially trapped in their apartment. Sembene, often labeled the father of African cinema, uses black-and-white film to highlight Europe’s stark racial divide and to portray the oppressed Diouanna’s growing alienation. Voiced inner monologues call attention to Diouanna’s dismay at being exploited by her cruel employers. By tackling racism and colonialism head on, Black Girl treads where The Help dares not go. It’s probably why Sembene never nabbed an Oscar.
(michael.gold@citypaper.net) (@migold)
Last October, my father and I hung out at the Philly Style sponsored Kimmel Center screening event for the world premiere of The Mighty Macs, local director/writer/producer Tim Chambers’ film based on hard charging coach Cathy Rush and the true story of the 1971-72 Immaculata College girls’ basketball team. We sat in the theater with a bunch of nuns from Immaculata and, I have to say, never was such drunken revelry more apparent — Flyers and Mummers drunk, I’m talking. OK, I kid, sisters. More like Philadelphia-soul boozy.
Still I couldn’t help but wait patiently for the DVD release party for The Mighty Macs and that happened at The Independence Seaport Museum at Penn’s Landing on Tuesday night. Chambers met with guests ranging from Philly film-and-cheesesteak king Tony Luke Jr. and his Concrete Blonde pal, Top Chef Jen Carroll, and film org maven Sharon Pinkenson and a klatch of local television news-ters. That doesn’t sound half as drunked-up as the first Mighty Macs party, but, then again, I’m guessing a lot of liquor-loving nuns might have sat this one out.
(a_amorosi@citypaper.net) (@ADAmorosi)
Photos by Scott Weiner
Every Wednesday, Chris Brown digs into our listings bin and pulls out a little something-something to do every day of the week. This week: Introduce yourself to Jean-Luc Godard, revel in some Pulp Love and eat a hot dog for Pete's sake.
While most of your favorite directors are hip to him, Jean-Luc Godard is likely a name you’ve never heard. Contempt was arguably his first big-time picture, so quit dilly-dallying and go check it out.
Wed., Feb. 22, 7 p.m., free, International House, 3701 Chestnut St., 215-387-5125, ihousephilly.org.
Sexy Time and The Great Indoors columnist Meg Augustin put her iPod on shuffle. This is where it let her ...
1. “Same In Any Language” — My Morning Jacket
This My Morning Jacket song was recorded for the Elizabethtown soundtrack under the fictional band “Ruckus,” which is featured in the film. As such, this is a MMJ masterpiece that is little-known to those who didn’t suffer through the movie. “Same in Any Language” brings the band back to their Southern-rock roots with a mix of Lynyrd Skynyrd-esque ballads, bluegrass folk and MMJ’s signature guitar solos. Simply beautiful.
Each week, Michael Gold breezes past those big-name theater companies to turn a spotlight on Philly's indie stages. This week: celebrate the last few days of Black History Month with Martin and Malcolm, let the Dumpsta Players poison your mind, and celebrate male butts and genitalia with John Jasperse.
Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., are two men whose legacies loom large over Black History Month. Despite often being at odds — Malcolm X once described King as a “chump,” while King decried “the hatred and despair” he saw at the heart of Malcolm X’s ideology — the duo’s politics converged to make lasting impressions on African-American identity. The Walnut Street Theatre’s touring company will examine the contributions of both men in a performance of Martin and Malcolm at the Blackwell Library in West Philly. In the youth-oriented play, four actors discuss the beliefs of the two African-American leaders and explore how their concerns still resonate in the 21st century. For those worried this might be the watered-down fare that generally graces kiddie stages, breathe easy. Walnut Street Theatre holds a nationwide search to find talented actors for its touring company, so these are talented thespians tackling hot-button issues.
Wed., Feb. 22, 4 p.m., free, Lucien E. Blackwell West Philadelphia Regional Library, 125 S. 52nd St., 215-685-7424, freelibrary.org.
Reporter Meg Augustin takes you inside some of Philly's most fab dwellings to showcase our city's unique grasp on design and architecture.
Denise Sabia (featured in a recent Great indoors) is no rookie when it comes to flea-market finds. The designer and author of The Painted Home has had a constant rotation of dumpster-find redos and DIY country-chic projects for clients and fans. Her own home is no different. “We call it the house that trash built,” says Sabia. Every room sports a bevy of make-it-yourself projects, major trash finds, flea market scores and ingenious repurposing. Over the year and a half the Sabias have owned their Ambler home, Denise has worked on a limited budget to turn a shabby house into a chic home. We’ll walk you through Sabia’s designs and DIY projects in every room of her six-bedroom abode.
Front Hall
Walking into this small space, one easily feels at home. Beadboard wainscoting is set off by chocolate burlap that Sabia used as wallpaper, and the super cheap wall covering was made from free coffee sacks. The smaller space also presents the opportunity to undertake a more dynamic paint job. Sabia did a turquoise-and-blue stripe job on the ceiling, making the entryway the home’s “great first impression.”
It’s hard to believe this year marks a decade since the first installation of the Northern Liberties Winter Music Fest. The festival has been a mecca for budding musicians, offering Philadelphian’s a weeklong cure-your-cold-weather-doldrums-and-rock-out event. This year, Girard Ave.’s longtime indie establishment, The Fire, welcomed over forty acts to the stage, including big names like River City Extension and The Front Bottoms.
I made my way there on Thursday, when opening acts Former Belle, Spirit and Dust, Ron Gallo and The Great Unknown started the night with a kickass blend of folk and bluegrass infused with punches of hardcore rock ’n’ roll. I was particularly impressed with local bands The Great Unknown and Spirit and Dust. The raw twang of the latter’s frontman had me swooning more than a little (hear the audio below).
By 11:45, the audience was getting antsy to see headliners River City Extension, who were, without a doubt, the hit of the night. Since forming in 2008, the Jersey natives have played all over the country, developing a cult following along the way. As he took the stage beneath hazy lights and amid encouraging screams, lead singer Joe Michelini thanked the crowd for making the evening their first sold-out show outside their home state. I’ve seen River City before, and they always give a stellar performance. Their energy instantly infiltrates any room. Thursday’s show was no different.
(courtney.sexton@citypaper.net) (@NoRelation2Anne)
Spirit+Dust by CSexton
Every Monday, James Friel rounds up the week's sure-bet live shows.
Monday: The Toronto-based, afro-soul band Souljazz Orchestra has recently recorded an album with rugged-voiced Jamaican-Canadian soul singer Slim Moore and the Mar-Kays, and are currently on their first tour of the states. 8 p.m., $13, World Café Live, 3025 Walnut St., 215-222-1400.
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