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Archive: November, 2009
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| Wikipedia Commons |
Go to the Municipal Services Building Courtyard (1401 JFK Blvd.) at exactly noon today and you'll see a strange sight: More than 500 people will be reading books while freezing in place for two minutes. Hosted by the Center for Literacy, this demonstration is meant to raise awareness of illiteracy, surely a social issue that's easy to forget ' unless 500 frozen people are reminding you about it.
Skip lunch; go do something good and fun.
Pretty good turnout for the "Literacy 'Freeze' You" event. It was more regimented than other flash mobs I've been a part of, with organizers coordinating freezer positions, announcing the time to freeze by megaphone, and giving out free t-shirts. Although many freezers (myself included) brought books, organizers asked us to pose with a Center for Literacy pamphlet instead.
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| Amazon |
| On a normal day, I'd judge this cover. |
Don't know what to do tonight? Don't worry, we've got you covered.
' What makes Mad Men, a sometimes grating show, good? What do Germans think of our war in Afghanistan? How did Ted Kennedy manage to move past his family name's glamour and be one of the people? These are just a few of the topics George Packer has tackled lately on his Interesting Times blog, a place full of pithy essays on how weird and cool and awful it is to live today. Similarly, his book of the same name addresses the past 10 years and all their funkiness. He'll be reading from it tonight at the Free Library, Central Branch (1901 Vine St.215-686-5322) at 7:30 p.m. for free.
' I'm in an odd mood: I'm listening to Jacqui Naylor, a gal who wears cowboy boots and digs soft lighting on her album covers, sing the blues, the kinda cheesy blues, and likin' it. She's at the World Caf' Live (3025 Walnut St.215-222-1400) at 9 p.m. for $20.
' South Moon Under's Shopping Spree is like a mini-Black Friday for all you BF freaks. There's 20 percent off all merchandise, complimentary gift wrapping, and free drinks. Free drinks. Now that's what the Friday after Thanksgiving needs. It goes down from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at South Moon (1731 Chestnut St., 215-568-2170).
Not satisfied? Check out today's listings for more and more and more events.
Buy us this.
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| gizmodo.com |
Holy E. Honda, Batman! How much do you want this Street Fighter snuggie, confirmed by Capcom as an actual product? Because I want it a lot.
Or maybe I'm just nostalgic for JCVD Week. But, honestly, who isn't?
Also, if you want to buy us that Elvis snuggie on the right, we'll take that too.
h/t Rajiv
I would like one of the Elvis Snuggies. How can I get one and where.
I got a Designer Leopard Snuggie with my NAME embroidered on it for Christmas. Ever more embarrassing than that, I wear it. All the time.
please let me know how i can get a elvis snuggie i am interested in about 6 thanks danny dale
Wesley Willis, Chicago's answer to Daniel Johnston, was a schizophrenic rock 'n' roll troubadour and outsider artist. His songs are simple, often just a drum machine or keyboard, all under Willis' endearingly tone deaf voice. Incredibly prolific, Willis recorded over 50 albums. Filmed over the last four years of his life, the documentary Wesley Willis' Joy Rides premiered at the 2008 Slamdance Film Festival (where Philly-set The New Year Parade took home top honors) and went on to the win the Gold Hugo for Chicago Award at the Chicago International Film Fest. The title refers to how Willis famously saw rock 'n' roll ' as joy ride music.
In anticipation of Joy Rides' December 8 DVD release, National Mechanics will host a a free midnight screening of the doc on Monday, November 30. Trailer is above. What's your fave Wesley Willis song? Nothing beats my frist experience with Willis, which was "Rock 'n' Roll McDonalds." Enjoy.
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Wesley Willis Joyrides, Mon., Nov. 30, midnight, free, National Mechanics, 22 S. Third St., 215-701-4883.
Alright...I saw this at a screening in LA recently and it was fantastic! people should go and see this touching portrait of an afflicted man with some amazing talents. I never knew about his drawings until I saw this, they are fantastic!
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| Sulekha |
Every Thursday, we give you this week's LGBTQ to-do list.
' Get fired up for the weekend by attending a free discussion led by Iraq veteran Lt. Dan Choi tonight at 5 p.m. at UPenn's Houston Hall (3417 Spruce St.). Choi will be talking about his experience being ousted from an impressive tenure in the military after 'coming out' on the Rachel Maddow Show. He will also discuss awkward cultural differences he endures as a gay Korean-American and how the Army's decision, based on the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, catapulted him to become one of the country's most outspoken gay activists. I'm getting pumped just thinking about it.
' On Sat., Nov. 21 from 7:30 to 10 p.m., Giovanni's Room (345 S. 12th St., 215-923-2960) is holding the LGBT Read-a-Thon as a continued effort to fund its building project and the Lambda Literary Society. Packed in the two-story edifice will be 20 LGBT authors, including Thom Nickles, S. Renee Bess and Perry Brass, reading, signing and chatting about their current published works. I know, I know, who wants to spend Saturday night with her nose stuck in a book? I just figure it's a good idea keep it low-key before the hectic holiday weekend approaches, and who knows, you just may run into one of those cute, nerdy, book-huggin' types to share an intellectual chat/drink with afterward. The admission price of $50 is donation-based.
' Kick off your holiday drunkfest at the Pink Pub Crawl, which begins at Stir (1705 Chancellor St., 215-732-2700) on Wed. Nov. 25 at 9 p.m. After downing a few stiff ones, and maybe exchanging a number or two, the flaming caravan will then wind its way around the Gayborhood, stopping in Q Lounge (1234 Locust St., 215-732-1800) and Woody's (202 S. 13th St., 215-545-1893) before hitting up Voyeur (1221 St. James St., 215-735-5772) for a late-night dance party. The price of one ticket ($20-$30) will get you a free beer or wine in each location plus admission to the dance floors at Woody's and Voyeur. This will be a fun opportunity to meet new people, become acquainted with the 'hood and build up a tolerance so you can avoid getting inappropriately tanked at aunt Dorothy's Thanksgiving dinner. She just can't handle it like she used to.
Itching for more gay events? Check out our LGBTQ listings.
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| Oren Moverman | Ben Foster |
Directed and co-written by Oren Moverman, The Messenger stars Ben Foster as Sgt. Will Montgomery, a soldier wounded in the Iraq war re-assigned to the Casualty Notification Office. With Capt. Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson), Montgomery informs next of kin about their family members who have died in war. When he meets Olivia (Samantha Morton), Will develops a strong connection with her'one that prompts him to make some discoveries about himself. Cindy Fuchs reviews the film in this week's issue but I sat down with Moverman and Foster to discuss The Messenger and what they learned making this film.
CP: Oren, how did you create'and identify with'these characters?
OM: I've had my military experience. We're portraying two soldiers, so my identification with them is my general identification with every soldier ' a built-in empathy and identification with the experience of being in the service over in a combat zone. I understand coming back from that 'other planet,' that combat zone, and how that feels trying to connect back to 'normal life.' That was my primary identification point. I felt we had to honor them, and respect them and play against the stereotypes that people have about the men in the military.
CP: The job is about character, how these men cope with their work'
OM: Woody's character is overcompensating for so much hurt and pain and loss that he develops a strategy for everything'. But he keeps it all together and becomes somebody who has to figure everything out, and have the last line'and that's a type you meet in the military. He uses humor to diffuse everything, and challenge you and poke you and provoke you. He's very good at reading people. I remember doing that as a soldier. It's how you survive. Ben's character is very different. His instincts are just as sharp, if not sharper, but he's much more introspective, and much more about getting the ammunition to survive down the road.
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| Harrelson and Foster |
CP: Ben, did you lose anyone that informed your portrayal?
BF: [Foster whispers] Yeah, we've all lost people. [He slowly returns to normal voice] I've delivered news and I've received it. Working with Oren on the preparation for filming, the opportunity to confront these fears has been very cathartic. Hopefully, the film will inspire people to have these dialogues with the one we still have about the ones we have lost. We can't hide behind our traumas. You can take the military out of the movie and the movie still works. How do we hide from our own universal experience of grief and loved ones? You take these layers off, it becomes a very human experience, and one we can all connect to.
CP: Oren, the scenes of the men delivering their messages with a sense of immediacy. Why did you choose this stylized approach?
OM: The notification [scenes] were all shot hand-held, in one take. We shot the scene in its entirety. The two sides were separated'they never met'I worked with the cameraman so when they open the door for the first time, they are exposed to Ben and Woody and vice versa. There was no rehearsal. The [actors] were encouraged to go off-script. Everyone was thrown off set so we could shoot 360 degrees. It felt very alive, very immediate. We shot everything on zoom lenses, because we wanted the freedom to improvise with the camera as much as the actors are improvising with their lives and behavior, so it was a very raw, live kind of approach. I was willing to live or die with it, because I couldn't think of another approach. Luckily for us, not only the actors are terrific, but the DP was incredibly sensitive and really connected, almost physically, to these scenes. I trusted him to do what feels right, and when in doubt, go to Ben. That was the strategy.
CP: Ben, How did you develop your rapport with Woody and Samantha? What I noticed is how you listened to them. Your reactions'or in some cases, lack of one'spoke volumes when your character said nothing.
OM: [OREN interrupts] Very few people pick up on the point of the listening. It's really important. We created an eye problem' [to Ben] ' sorry, I didn't want to steal your answer ' and a leg problem, but one of the things guys and gals are coming back with are hearing problems, because things blow up very close to them, so it takes an extra effort to be able to listen, and I think that's one of the beautiful things Ben does in this movie, is give a performance that includes a lot of listening.
CP: So, Ben, how did you immerse yourself in the role?
BF: Oren set up a field trip for Woody and myself to go to Walter Reade Hospital before we started shooting, to spend time in the amputee ward. That was a life-changing experience. You can read things in the paper, and see things in the news, but to be in the amputee ward and touching a 19 year-old boy's stump, it roots you. It becomes, in itself, its own kind of humble service trying to get out of the way of yourself and serve these men and women and represent them warts and all, scars and all.
CP: In all the research you did, Ben, what surprised you about the Casualty Notification Team? And what did you discover about yourself?
BF: As Oren has said, it's the only job in the military that deals with feelings. To hear these soldiers say I'd rather be back in combat that have to deliver this news' In terms of my own life, it hasn't fixed anything, but it has certainly made me more present with addressing the inevitable. That grief is a part of this human experience, and it's OK. The sooner we're able to address our own traumas ' and that doesn't mean figure it out ' it just means process, start the processing, the sooner we can get back to connecting. And there is no greater feeling than connecting.
The Messenger opens tomorrow at the Ritz Five.
' 2009 Gary M. Kramer
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| wfnx.com |
| Nice stems, Amanda Palmer |
Don't know what to do tonight? Don't worry, we've got you covered.
-- Join Slow Food Philadelphia at Tiffin (710 W. Girard Ave., 215-922 -1297) for a $16 Indian food feast prepared by chef Hari Nayak. Tiffin typically specializes in take-out, offering a dinner and a movie special where you can rent a Bollywood film with your meal. So consider this event a chance to taste test before the next night you're craving Chicken Hara Masala and a movie starring Salman Khan.
-- Catch Amanda Palmer, one half of the Dresden Dolls, at 8 p.m. at the TLA (334 South St., 215-922-1011) tonight for $20. She's touring with backup band Nervous Cabaret, complete with drums, guitar, bass, and to top it off ' horns. Who doesn't like horns?
-- Chuckle your way over the weekday hump at Helium Comedy Club (2031 Sansom St., 215-496-9001). For $12, you can catch 10 up-and-coming comedy troupes at 8 p.m. as they fight to the funnybone for a chance to perform in December's Philly Sketchfest.
Not satisfied? Check out today's listings for more and more and more events.
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| Lauren Seibert |
| Darryl "DMC" Daniels and Lupe Fiasco |
Students poured into Penn's Irvine Auditorium last night to see hip-hop star Lupe Fiasco, who'along with rapper Darryl 'DMC' McDaniels of Run-DMC and producer Chris Moore (think American Pie and Good Will Hunting)'hosted a live performance and screening for upcoming doc The People Speak. Penn is the third stop on this college tour, which brings the film's producers and cast members to eight universities across the country.
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| Lauren Seibert |
| Chris Moore and Fiasco |
Directed by Tony Sacco and co-produced by Moore, Matt Damon, Anthony Arnove and historian Howard Zinn, The People Speak reveals an American history from the perspective of the people ' the words of dissent and civil disobedience, focusing on the themes of class, women, race and war. Celebs, such as Josh Brolin, Viggo Mortensen, Don Cheadle, Kerry Washington and David Strathairn, read documents and speeches written by activists including Susan B. Anthony and Muhammad Ali. Interspersed between the spoken parts are musical performances by the likes of Bob Dylan and John Legend, hence Fiasco and DMC's involvement.
Before the show I took part in a brief group interview with Fiasco and Moore, and the two talked a little about their reasons for getting involved. Fiasco said he had been invited to participate, and after reviewing the project and meeting Zinn, he was hooked. 'You get to a point where it's just like, oh, there was regular people in history,' said Fiasco. 'It's not all generals and politicians.'
The film is inspired by Howard Zinn's two books, A People's History of the United States and Voices of a People's History (co-edited with Anthony Arnove). Moore said that when he first read Zinn's book, he was amazed that it could be considered a textbook. In the film, Fiasco performs his original song 'American Terrorist' and reads from a 1965 petition by the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party against the Vietnam War. Fiasco said he was given a selection of pieces to choose from, and he chose the subject of war for its particular relevance. 'I think it was something that spoke to right now,' said Fiasco. 'The war is now and it's prevalent, and there's something not right about it.' He later added, 'War is the most dramatic side of questioning authority. And questioning authority is something that is so quintessentially American.'
The event itself included a live reading by Fiasco of 'Muhammad Ali on the Vietnam War,' DMC's rendition of Public Enemy's 'Fight the Power' (he had the audience shouting 'Fight the power!' right back), several clips from the film, and a Q & A, moderated by Penn Professor Tukufu Zuberi.
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| Lauren Seibert |
| 'As an MC, I listen to the world.' |
'We were trying to turn [the books] into something visual, because research says you guys don't read anymore,' Moore said with a grin. Fiasco elicited rousing cheers from the get-go, along with the
proffered number of a tiny but bold sophomore. He gladly accepted.
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| Lauren Seibert |
| Hey ladies! Who wouldn't want to give this kid their digits |
Fiasco told the audience, 'I see it as an extension of what I'm trying to do anyway, which is upset the system any way I can. I come from a family of dissenters.' DMC echoed Moore's sentiments about bringing history alive. For him, it made the emotions of the past seem real. 'I think that the most powerful, transforming words come from the people,' he said. 'As an MC, I listen to the world.'
In response to student questions, the three emphasized that no one should just sit back and watch history go by, and nothing will change unless we all take action. They dipped into politics briefly, with Fiasco noting that Obama still has to prove himself on the ground, and Moore adding that even Obama needs people to tell him what they care about. DMC threw in, 'I'm not of the Republican party, I'm not of the Democratic Party ' I'm of the hip-hop party, and there ain't nothin' better than that!' Cheers to that.
As is Fiasco, for the time being. He announced he's not quitting the music scene just yet, despite all the hype about the upcoming Lasers being his last CD. 'My record label won't let me quit,' he said with a sheepish grin.
The People Speak airs December 13 on the History Channel.
In this column's past, Critical Mass immersed itself in one neighborhood each week and found its most stylish inhabitants. We're switching things up. Now, this will be a space for us to find fashionable folk all across the city. But we're still keeping the hood theme ' kinda, sorta ' by asking our subjects where they're from and therefore trying to glean which trends are specific to which neighborhoods.
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| Photos | Nicole Saylor |
| I'm likin' those love eyes, playa. |
Both from South Philly, Nashia T. (33) and Dustin K. (27) mostly shop at the Old City boutique Lost+Found. She also recommends Etsy for good finds, though she doesn't always stick with handmade goods and vintage. "I do shop at Urban,' says Nashia. 'I am guilty of that.' He's honest, too. "She bought my this shirt," says Dustin.
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| Photos | Nicole Saylor |
Hadji J. (22) emulates '40s styles, reasoning that it was a time when everyone looked good ' or at least they always did in the movies. 'People used to dress up ' not just for a special occasion,' says Hadji.
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| Photos | Nicole Saylor |
Laura J. (18), a North Philly student, turns to Keira Knightley for fashion inspiration. 'Sometimes she'll dress really casual,' says Laura. 'And then I love her dresses.'
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| Photos | Nicole Saylor |
Sarah W. (20), a Lower Merion resident, looks to model Erin Wasson for street style tips. 'She collaborates inspirations from different cities,' says Sarah.
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| Photos | Nicole Saylor |
Amber Lynn T. (28) lives in Fishtown, but makes her living in Northern Liberties as the owner of art gallery/boutique Amberella. She sees fashion as a game. 'I like dressing up in different costumes,' she says.
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