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Archive: June, 2012
Tired of the same-ol' mural walking tours? Take a gander at some of the work your neighbors and friends post daily all around the city. It's not sponsored, it usually doesn't have a signature and sometimes it's gone within days. Here's some I spotted this week in Kensington, Fishtown and NoLibs.
For the third year (and third location this year), Awesome Fest will present a series of free outdoor screenings, every Saturday till the end of August at Race Street Pier. As usual, the programmers will screen Philadephia premieres of flicks from indie festivals like Sundance and SXSW.
For your convenience, we've rounded up the complete schedule below, complete with dates and silly little descriptions:
PILGRIM SONG An ex-music teacher sets out to find himself along Kentucy's Sheltowee Trace Trail, joining forces with a father-and-son duo along the way. Sat., June 30.
It's an unusually busy weekend for laughs in Philadelphia. There are a number of options, but staying home isn't one of them!
FRIDAY:
The N Crowd (pictured) — These Philly regulars killed it at Philly Comedy Month, and they're doing their mix of short-form improv games tonight — and every Friday — at 8 p.m. at The Actors Center (257 N. Third St., $12-$15, phillyncrowd.com.
Comedysportz — The Adrienne Theater (2030 Sansom St.) stalwarts will be doing "The Blue Show" in addition to their regular improv-charged competition at 7:30 p.m. "The Blue Show" — at 10 p.m. — is exactly what it sounds like: Not family friendly. Vulgar. X-rated. Don't bring the kids. $12, comedysportzphilly.com.
PHIT — Stand-up Comedy: Children's Story @ 8 p.m: Top local comics tell stories from their youth, featuring Doogie Horner, Juliet Hope Wayne, James Hesky, Mary Radzinski, Carl Boccuti, Johnny Goodtimes and Chip Chantry. The Theme Show Presents: "Independence Day" at 10 p.m.: Philly comedians perform fresh material based on the theme. Hosted by Steve Swan (Bare Hug, Mayor Karen) and Pat Foy (Camp Woods). $10-$12, Shubin Theater, 407 Bainbridge St., phillyimprovtheater.com.
I love my photographer Scott Weiner and during our time as friends and co-workers he and I have covered some, well, honestly happily tasteless stuff. Howard Stern events. Wrestling matches. Discount evangelists. This week though, we struck the mother lode: Damon Feldman meets Octomom with Michael Lohan and the Margeras on board, and the next-to-last week of filming the current cast of MTV’s Jersey Shore.
Now that local E-list celebrity boxing promoter Damon Feldman is famous for getting somebody with cash to supposedly put up money for a beef-settling bout between Drake and Chris Brown, the only place he can go is down. Which is good, I guess, for Feldman. Down is where he and his minion live and thrive. Feldman, local radio personality Shila (from the Chio Show), Nadya “Octomom” Suleman and her implants hung out for a weigh-in at Fox And Hound in King of Prussia and a pillow fight at Marple Sports Arena in Broomall, Pa. with refs Michael Lohan and Bam Margera’s parents April and Phil. I feel bad for the Margeras. I’ve met them and they're nice people. Their son should make more money and get them away from this mess.
Then there’s the last 15 minutes of fame for the current cast of Jersey Shore which will end its shooting within the next ten days. A pregnant Snooki, a Botoxed J WoWWW, a slimmed down Deena and a roided-up Ronnie are doing their best to make the most of Seaside Heights, N.J., and God bless Scott Weiner for having the tenacity and intestinal fortitude to sit through this dreck so you don’t have to.
(a_amorosi@citypaper.net) (@ADAmorosi)
(Photos by Scott Weiner)
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There's a lot going on at Philadelphia Museum of Art — soon the restored Rodin Museum will accompany the Main Building, the Anne d'Harnoncourt Sculpture Garden and the Perelman Building. And starting July 1, general admission will increase from $16 to $20 and will cover two days of entry to all facilities.
In addition, there will be a free shuttle service offered between the three buildings to ease the art viewer's travel time. Don't fret, the tried-and-true pay-what-you-wish admission policy will remain on the first Sunday of each month, and is now available on Wednesday evenings, along with extended visiting hours.
Although the admission prices are higher, so too is the "commitment to ensuring the Museum remains accessible to a wide public," says director Timothy Rub. Well, that and increased revenue.
Devoted poet/avid concert-goer/nerd-grrrl extraordinaire Jane Cassady’s weekly horoscopes run in this space every Friday morning.
Cancer (June 22-July 23): Dear birthday friend — this year, please believe all the nice things your friends say about you, on your wall, in back-of-the-book blurbs, in vivid dreams. And while you’re at it, let accidental slights and mishaps float away like bubbles.
Leo (July 24-Aug. 23): I just googled “collective nouns for hummingbirds.” Not only would that make a good name for something, but it also yielded the following results: charm, chattering, drum, troubling. (Who comes up with “a troubling of hummingbirds”? Clearly someone very disturbed.) Anyway, hummingbirds are like your quick, sweet luck and you’ll see a lot of them this summer.
Virgo (Aug. 24-Sept. 23): “Send me an angel, right now.” (Real Life) Your angels are your friends. Invest everything in them. Everything shared at diner tables, sewing circles and workshops will add up to everything you’ve ever looked for.
Remember The Silver Linings Playbook? David O. Russell, Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, Chris Tucker and Jennifer Lawrence were in Philly filming it last year. It was based on a novel by Matthew Quick — full disclosure he was my college housemate way back when, and he has this weird affinity for Swedish lawnsports — which was excerpted by City Paper back in 2008. Anyway, the trailer is out there now:
Before we commence, let’s say a sad and sorry farewell (at least for now) to the just-burned Lorenzo’s Pizza on South Street . While I never had a sloppy slice there (no way, brah) I did, waybackintheday, use its always disgusting bathrooms to snort coke in when Dobbs’ powder rooms were full.
When the big beautiful Pennsylvania Burlesque Festival hits TLA Saturday (June 30) keep your eye on its judges, tassle-swinging icon Jacqueline Hyde, Daily News columnist Dan Gross and guitarist/developer David Grasso. Feel free to ask that Grasso how involved he is with the other Grasso (brother Joe) on the proposed live club at ye old Egypt. We haven’t heard much about David G’s NoLibs’ live venue/parking lot with Live Nation in awhile.
“Frankly I’m pissed off,” said Gordon Dinerman during the soft-opening of his new Old City restaurant Barra (the Third and Chestnut hot spot is now open for dinner, lunch and happy hour). Why would the former nightclub manager (Revival) and Starr employee (Barclay Prime) be angry after building-out a tony downtown version of his East Passyunk pizza/Italian beer joint, Birra? “The new coal oven makes a better pizza at Barra. It’s just superior. I got to work on that at Birra to even things up.” Along with hosting new menu additions not available at Birra — bruschetta, polenta, white mussels calamari, fish and chips, branzino, filet, all pastas, Italian Market pizza, fresh pappardelle with Maine lobster, filet mignon with heirloom tomato caprese — Barra plays into Dinerman’s skills as club guy with a tony update on his old pal/new partner Rob LaScala’s locations Rocchino and Azione. Barra is loungier, livelier with haute cocktails rather than beer as the focus, mood-swing lighting and DJs, Thursday to Saturday. Having known Dinerman since we both ran Revival, I can say that I’m sincerely proud of him. His dad and step-mom must be proud as well as they made the trek to Barra.
Before Making Time makes merry for its 12th anniversary in July at Morgan’s Pier, David Pianka brings in the chipper, chilly Tanlines to the Bamboo Club July 3.
Dead Milkman, Burn Witch Burn-er and CP columnist Rodney Anonymous joins Y-Not Radio for a new show Tells You How to Live. Rod’ll Play whatever he feels like every first Friday at 9 p.m.
At this week’s Ginger Coyle/Thom McCarthy/Kate Foust show at the Balcony, we found out that TMc will start recording his second ever album this weekend at Turtle Studios and that Foust, just late of Lady, will be heading into an electronic direction with new tracks to come shortly.
WHOWHATWHERE: Q-Fest got ready for its 18th annual LGBT film affair this July with a Havana Room/North Shore Beach Club Smirnoff Whipped n’ Fluffed bash that included Fox morning guy/host Mike Jerrick, yours truly and his blogging missus Glamorosi as judges and 12-count-em-12 bartenders from AC (Pro Bar at Prohibition) and Philly (Uncles) making two-oy-two drinks each. After 24 shots anyone could’ve been the winner of Madonna tix, but indeed Jazz from iCandy and Patrick Curtis from Tashan snagged the big prizes. Congrats. The pop sloppy Jon McLaughlin hit up Radio 104.5 FM in Bala before spending a night on the town at World Café Live. Actor Clifton Powell did the same when he stopped by WDAS down the hall in Bala to talk shop. New York-via-New Jersey Mob Wife Drita D’Avanzo stopped by The Coastline in Cherry Hill not to cause trouble but to have a few cocktails and chill. We love Drita, no doubtabout it, but where’s Big Ang? Lastly, crews from Channel 4 in the UK and its Real Stories series at The Box will be in Philly this weekend to shoot everything-and-anything (including a chat with me, A.D.) that was and is the story of Pink, Philly’s pop-hop superstar who not only got her start at Club Fever but did her first-ever interview with me.
They said it would never happen… and they were almost right. There were skeptics who felt sure that 
despite Dawson’s eager offer to have Jack McTamney back on a regular basis — following the success of the journeyman singer-songwriter’s the concert length set of original songs back in February — was a fluke.
Happily the ToneBenders have fallen in behind the McTamney originals once more. They’ve even had rehearsals! Yes, plural! Within the last week. even. McTamney reveals that one of the fellas was pulling out songs he’d forgotten himself. So, no fear that this concert will be a rerun of that first Dawson’s extravaganza. There are songs so new that McT explains, “I have to learn ’em myself. I was working from a lyric sheet at rehearsal.” Yes, some of the best writers around will appear with written music on stage, but McT won’t go there. Just not how he rolls with his old buddies Roger Cox (drums), Mike Vogelmann (bass) and Jim Fogarty (lead guitar) — his leaps might knock the stand over.
When I grow up I want to be Jim Fogarty. Not only does he get to be best friends with the likes of Jack McTamney for over a quarter century, but he gets to make music full time, playing everything that has strings. About a year ago he decided he wanted to seriously study the bass. Friday night he’ll play lead electric with the ToneBenders and sing harmony with Jack then switch axes and amps for Grooveyard’s Dawson debut. With Grooveyard the mood shifts from one man’s lyrical output to what Fogarty terms “the more obscure corners and side streets of classic rock, tunes you maybe heard once on the radio back in the day. B-sides, album cuts.” Ever hear of “Fresh Garage”? Me neither, looking forward to making its acquaintance on Friday night.
Fri., June 29, 10 p.m., Dawson Street Pub, 100 Dawson St., Manayunk, 215-482-5677. More info here.
Fiona Apple played the Tower last night to a crowd of extremely devoted fans. My boyfriend went along with me and observed in the intermission after an opening set by guitarist Blake Mills that it seemed like a lot of the men there were in his shoes—no particular opinion about Apple other than "Hey, 'Criminal' was a pretty good song," just there to accompany a female partner.
But when the lights went down and Apple came out, though the screams of the general crowd were definitely female-heavy, the occasional superfan yells of "WE LOVE YOU, FIONA" and "MARRY ME, FIONA" were from male voices as often as female ones. (One particular guy on the left cracked up the crowd with an enthusiastic "THAT WAS THE SHIT!" after "Daredevil," off her new album The Idler Wheel, and then cracked Apple herself up by howling a sincere "THANK YOU FOR PLAYING MY FAVORITE SONG!" into the quiet ending of (I believe) "Paper Bag."
One thing you can definitely say about Apple is that if she's sick of playing old hits like "Sleep to Dream," "Shadowboxer" and "Criminal" off her 1996 debut, Tidal, she does an admirable job of disguising it. (It probably helped that the crowd wasn't any less enthusiastic about songs off Extraordinary Machine and Idler Wheel than it was about her big radio hits.) She's an amazing stage presence that made me wish for a better camera lens—her wavy, sinewy body movements onstage don't vary that much, but the amazing faces she makes while singing and playing gave me serious camera envy of the dudes next to me with telephoto lenses who could actually capture them. One day.
The night ended in Apple's equivalent of an encore—Apple never plays the "OK, everyone keep applauding for five minutes and I'll come out again" games that have become standard—with a great slow-triple-groove cover of Conway Twitty's "It's Only Make Believe" with celesta and a sweet-ass slide guitar solo from Mills—a song which someone was kind enough to upload to youtube already:
Then she thanked the crowd for cheering her up and bounced. Here's some of those photos I shot, some of which went up on City Paper's Instagram last night. Did I mention our Instagram account? It's @phillycitypaper, and I'm having way too much fun with it. Be our friend.
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