Pixel Vision Archives — Page 124 of 133 — San Francisco Bay Guardian Archive 1966

The unabridged Santino

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July 24, 2007

As promised in this week’s gargantuan Best of the Bay issue, here’s a longer Q&A with Santino Rice, who will be at the Castro Theatre this Friday. Illustrations to come tomorrow!

GUARDIAN: You once judged the Miss Universe pageant. What was that like?
SANTINO RICE: Parts of the experience – being that close to the stage, to the beautiful women and the gowns – were great. As a young boy I watched pageants, but I’m far from obsessed with them. I came in trying to be objective and pick the woman that evening that really exemplified beauty and personified what Miss Universe should be. But the year that I judged it, it seemed like more of the judges on the panel were voting for a country, not a woman. It was as if people were cheering for a soccer team. Miss Puerto Rico won, and I really felt like Miss Japan should have won.

San Francisco midnight movie memories (Extended mix)

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July 24, 2007

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We recently put together a cover package on midnight movies. The midnight movie scene is thriving right now, but it also has a long history — in fact some credit SF as a, if not the, birthplace of the phenom. Below you’ll find a mix of direct quotes from local cinema lovers and excerpts from books that outlines what has happened when the clock strikes twelve in the Bay Area. Go ahead and add your stories and sources to this account!

GARY MEYER The Pagoda Palace, known as the Milano in the 30s and early 40s showed Italian movies at midnight prior to World War II.
CHRISTIAN BRUNO In the mid-’60s the Presidio hosted Underground Cinema 12, a package of late-night movies that might incorporate a little [George] Kuchar, a little Busby Berkeley, and a lot of porn posing as art. It was a traveling package of films that was curated by Mike Getz out of LA, but the Presidio put its own SF (which usually meant gay) stamp on things.

GEORGE KUCHAR I remember one midnight show at a theater on upper Fillmore St. It started about 2 hours late because of projection problems. The audience didn’t seem to care and the 16mm feature didn’t care about cohesiveness of plot or theme, so it was a fun, flabby twilight zone of black & white sequences of an occult nature that suited the creatures of the night. The darkness inside and outside the theater was unable to still their noisy appreciation to the avalanche of imagery that descended from the screen like a caffeinated surge of STARBUCK sludge. The movie kept everyone awake so I guess you can consider it a HIT for that un-Godly hour and a half!

Farewell, precious angel

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July 23, 2007

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You were just too … something … to keep out of heaven…..

Harry Potter and the Just How Deathly Are We Talking?

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July 16, 2007

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By Gazelle Emami

While it’s the most highly anticipated event of the summer, the release of the seventh and final installment in the Harry Potter series on July 21 is hardly just another summer spectacle. Twelve years ago, J.K. Rowling was scribbling away in cafes, creating one of the most widely beloved characters of all time. Now, about a decade since Harry Potter and the Sorceror’s Stone’s release, we’ve finally hit the end of this larger-than-life reading marathon. And Harry deserves a little glory to usher in his final stand.

With the build-up reaching its final, condensed moments, the Bay Area is swarming with Harry Potter release parties the night before—because trying to sleep on the eve of a Harry Potter release is worse than Christmas Eve when you’re five. Fortunately, Harry Potter is better than Santa and can be in our hands at the stroke of midnight. What follows is a list of many midnight parties around the Bay Area. It is at these parties that readers will devotedly sport colors that pledge their allegiance to Gryffindor or Slytherin, boast their knowledge in trivia games, and raise their glasses of Butterbeer in support of our favorite hero, all just hours before the gratifying sound of ripping cardboard signals the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I wouldn’t be surprised if the world just implodes in anticipation. Do I sound a little like a crazed fan? Maybe because I am.

Bonds brings ’em out

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July 13, 2007

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Guardian staffer Ben Hopfer checked out Barry Bonds pre-MLB All Star bout soiree at Roe Restaurant and Lounge on July 9. Where was Jay-Z? Who knows where the Jigga goes – anyhoo here’s what Hopfer saw on the red carpet.

The man of the hour and soon-to-be-world-record-holder for most home runs: Barry Bonds. All photos by Ben Hopfer.

Bay Area rapper B-Legit

49ers quarterback Alex Smith

David “Big Papi” Ortiz.

Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown. Note the adult Barbie doll on his arm.

Former Giants manager Dusty Baker – come back, we miss you!

Bay Area rappers Dem Hoodstarz (Band-Aide and Scoot)

Dave Winfield and significant other.

San Francisco Giant Rich Aurilia

Local rapper Richie Rich

I hate Alvin and the Chipmunks. I hate them!

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July 10, 2007

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By Sean Manning

If the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy teaches us anything (other than that the ironic love of pirate kitsch runs deep), it’s that childhood nostalgia is ripe for the coming-soon-to-a-multiplex-near-you rampage. And when it gets there, it’s not just bigger and louder and more special-effects laden (ahem, Transformers), it’s got edge. Take, for instance, upcoming yuletide turd Alvin and the Chipmunks. Starring Jason Lee, from, like, you know, edgy independent movies, and three thugged-out updates of our favorite helium-voiced rodents, the movie is sure to be a knee-slapper. We may have already found this year’s answer to the Santa Clause 3 — a movie so mind-bogglingly, infuriatingly stupid that it will likely incite outbursts of rage every time a bus plastered with an advertisement rolls by.

Hey Jason Lee, did you shave off your dignity along with your My Name is Earl ‘stache?

Bear Grylls, you da Man

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July 10, 2007

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By Gazelle Emami

A man alone in the wilderness bends fearlessly over a precipice, planning his first move. “First,” he says, squinting into the sun, “I must find my bearings.” With a no river in sight, he bounds down the edge of the sheer drop and begins his search for nourishment.

Night falls and a storm rumbles overhead. The man is discouraged—he’s already drank some muddy water and eaten a sheep’s eyeballs, so he’s doing alright. But with no shelter and temperatures dropping rapidly, survival seems unlikely. That is, until, he comes across a rotting deer carcass. Energy renewed, the man guts the carcass, huddles inside of it for shelter, and survives the thunderous night.

Sound like fiction? It’s not. It’s all just another day in the life of Man vs. Wild star Bear Grylls. In fact, everything above is true, except for one detail—the part about our story’s hero being a mere man. Because British adventurer Bear Grylls is crazier than your average man. I’m not talking Gnarls Barkley crazy or R. Kelly bat-shit crazy. I’m talking I-will-squeeze-the-juice-from-elephant-dung-into-my-mouth crazy. I’m talking oh-look-here’s-some-quicksand-why-don’t-I-just-jump-into-it crazy.

Let me explain. On the Discovery Channel reality series, Grylls is dropped in remote locations around the world until he finds civilization, left to survive with little more than a knife. Fresh into its second season, the show’s purpose is to show you the skills you would need to survive if you were to ever find yourself lost in the wild. While I could never do most of the things Grylls does, I’ve picked up on a few skills. Among them, I’ve learned how to tell when the sun will go down, the best way to catch a fish, how to get out of quicksand, and that elephant dung is sterile.

The show’s real draw is not its educational value, but rather witnessing just how far Grylls will go. He survives by essentially being a ballsier version of MacGyver. Don’t get me wrong, MacGyver ranks high on the badass meter. But when it comes down to it, will he drink his own urine? I don’t think so.

Catch an episode of Man vs. Wild tonight at 11 p.m. on The Discover Channel. New episodes air every Friday at 9 p.m.

Walk the walk

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July 5, 2007

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By Gazelle Emami

TOMS shoes have been around for a little over a year, but for the bulk of this time, the company has been thriving in boutiques and online through word of mouth. It’s only recently that TOMS have started popping up in Nordstrom, Urban Outfitters, and on Keira Knightley’s feet. Their basic principle is pretty admirable—for every pair that is bought, a pair is given to a child in need. Last October, founder Blake Mycoskie held their first Shoe Drop, where 10,000 shoes were hand-delivered 10,000 to children in Argentina.

Some say Pride…

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July 3, 2007

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By Stephen Torres

Pink Saturday was not kind to me. I had to work “Mango” down at the river and it never really reached the usual crescendo, but kept truckin’ along all through the night. I woke up at about one the next afternoon with the parade having already passed by. I felt obligated to go, however, and met some friends down on the mall in Civic Center.

It was an already faulty set- up in that I was exhausted and sober amongst a sea of bronzed, vibrant, inebriated fairies. By the look on my friend Jesse’s face, I knew we were on the same page. So what are two tired queens to do when confronted with such glee and sunshine?

Rescue Dawn spawn

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July 2, 2007

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Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to Screen Rescue Dawn for American Troops in Iraq

LOS ANGELES, CA, June 28, 2007 — Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) will help America’s troops overseas celebrate Independence Day this year by screening the studio’s Vietnam War biopic Rescue Dawn in Iraq. On July 4, 2007, over 2,000 troops stationed at Camp Anaconda, a large U.S. base near Balad, will screen the film highlighting the amazing life of Dieter Dengler, the only American to ever break out of a POW camp in the impenetrable Laotian jungle during the Vietnam War. The film, which will also be released in Los Angeles and New York on July 4th, will be introduced with a taped message to the troops from the film’s lead actors Christian Bale, Steve Zahn and Jeremy Davies. Rescue Dawn will expand its release domestically in ten markets on July 13, 2007 and release wide on July 27, 2007.

MGM arranged the Rescue Dawn screening in Iraq through the motion picture team of The Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES), a division of the military which provides products and services to military families worldwide and generates earnings to supplement military morale, welfare and recreation programs.

“We are proud of our troops in Iraq and we wanted to do something special to honor their commitment,” said Rick Sands, MGM’s Chief Operating Officer. “Screening a film about Dieter’s heroic life on Independence Day could not be more appropriate to show our thanks to the brave men and women overseas.”

“Given the extraordinary heroic story that this film portrays, I can think of no better venue to show it to America’s warriors than Camp Anaconda in the heart of Iraq,” said AAFES’ Chief of Communications Lt. Col. Dean Thurmond. “We are gratified and thankful to the distributor, producers and cast of this film for remembering our troops and giving them the opportunity to see this film.”

Legendary director Werner Herzog (Grizzly Man, Fitzcarraldo) and starring acclaimed actor Christian Bale (Batman Begins, The Prestige), Rescue Dawn is the true story of a Dieter Dengler who, from the depths of total darkness, blazed his own willful path to freedom. Dengler, a German-American Navy pilot, received numerous honors for his heroism including the Navy Cross. An inspirational action-adventure and a stark epic of survival, Rescue Dawn reveals how Dengler relied on his courage, endurance and tenacity to find his way home.

About Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., through its operating subsidiaries is actively engaged in the worldwide production and distribution of motion pictures, television programming, home video, interactive media, music and licensed merchandise. The company owns the world’s largest library of modern films, comprising around 4,000 titles. Operating units include Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc., United Artists Films Inc., Ventanazul, MGM Television Entertainment Inc., MGM Networks Inc., MGM Distribution Co., MGM International Television Distribution Inc., Metro- Goldwyn-Mayer Home Entertainment LLC, MGM ON STAGE, MGM Music, MGM Worldwide Digital Media, MGM Consumer Products and MGM Interactive. In addition, MGM has ownership interests in international TV channels reaching nearly 110 countries. MGM ownership is as follows: Providence Equity Partners (29%), TPG (21%), Sony Corporation of America (20%), Comcast (20%), DLJ Merchant Banking Partners (7%) and Quadrangle Group (3%). For more information, visit http://www.mgm.com/. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc.

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June 25, 2007

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Emergency fund-raiser!

Hello,

I would first like to thank everyone in the community for the support we
have received over the past 6 years we have existed. We have always
maintained ourselves as a group run by artists and for artists.

The problem that we are facing now is a financial one.

1. S. Slater and Son are trying to collect $4,300 for our percentage of
building maintenance costs for October – December 2006

2. We are unable to make a payment plan with the landlord and must pay
this bill in one lump sum.

3. We are certain that the landlord will give us a similar bill, for the
first half of 2007, at the begining of next month or in September, so we
need to raise an additional $4000.

Art SF has provided a space for local emerging artists for years. We have
never charged artists any commission for any art sold through us. We are
an all volunteer run organization and have dedicated ourselves to our
local art scene. All money raised goes directly to keep our space open to
the public. We have been here for the community, and now we are asking
the community to be here for us. We are in a crisis situation and need
our community support more than ever.

To donate to help save Art SF or for more information, email:

joemama@spaz.org

Please help to spread the word.

Below is an announcement about our emergency gallery opening coming up
this Friday:

our last show???????

hey everyone, the community art space, ARTsf, that we run in the mission,
is in danger of going under!!!!!! we are throwing a party to raise money
to keep the space alive, right now there are 8 artists in residence and a
number of community events constantly taking place here. If we lose the
space, it would be horrible!!! please stop by this gallery opening and
show your
support, its going to be good, i promise….

Friday, July 27th
Doors @730 Music@800
110 Capp St @ 16th

sliding scale $7-$7 million

with over 40 artists including:

Alphonso Entrada
Allyson Dutra
Andrew Beals McPherson
Cami Willis
Casper
Chamille Estrada
Claire Hummel
Cuba
Donna Wood
Erin D’silva
Faith Allen
G.T. Singh
Ian Hill
Ian Mullen
Jai Carrillo
Joan Zamora
Joe Ertl
Joe Mama
Joe Twistie
Joseph Heren
Josh and Scott
Judy Berberian
Kara Marie
K2
Marisa Rocke
Nate Orman
Pete Doolittle
Philip Milic
Pierre Pressure
Ralph Granich
Ryan Coffey
Sadie Mellerio
Scott Williams
Sholeh Asagary
Steve Bird
Tanya
Vi Hoang

Music with:
Tiger Honey Pot
Ferocious Few
Fluff Gurl
Sugar Butt Tiger
People People (featuring members of Two Gallants and Trainwreck Riders)
Baby bear tiger bear (featuring members of All My Pretty Ones)

DJ Mochipet and friends (Daly City Records)
DJ Coma

help keep art in the mission!!!

peace
joe mama

Clairsonic – unfinished

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June 23, 2007

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Yay! New reasons to hate your body!

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June 22, 2007

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By Molly Freedenberg

Because all we need is another magazine telling us how thin, young, and Caucasian we’re not, a group of editors and doctors have decided to bring us a new mag, New Beauty. What’s new about New Beauty, you ask? Basically, this is a mag that does for lipo and Botox what InStyle does for lipstick and Lucky Jeans. Including the part where it reminds us we’re not rich enough to actually get what we need to be less flawed than we so clearly are.

Now, to be fair, I have to admit the magazine is well designed, and it’s refreshingly text heavy for a mag targeting women (though the font’s a bit small for my aging eyes). And New Beauty does have a panel of actual doctors, dermatologists, and scientists acting as some kind of official resource, so at least they’re not approaching such serious subjects as surgery and implants in an irresponsibly fluffy way. I also have to concede that this could be a great resource for people already interested in getting these procedures and wanting to know more about them.

But Jesus. Is this what it’s coming to? Facelifts for 20 somethings? Preventative Botox? And treating these kinds of procedures as normally as we’d treat self-tanners or slimming pantyhose? I know it’s just a reflection of our culture and all, so perhaps I should be complaining about that, not the fact that the magazine is (wisely, from a financial standpoint) capitalizing on it.

But I believe the role of the media is to shape culture as much as reflect it. And by its very existence, this magazine is pushing us even more in the direction of age-phobic, superficial self-loathing. Sigh. I guess it’s back to Bitch and Bust and Cunt for me.

Masculinity and me

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June 20, 2007

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By Stephen Torres

Having my education more in the school of life than actual school, I sometimes get tripped up by the people I’ve chosen to run with when they start talking about grown-up things. A lot of my friends and acquaintances have made it their life’s work to fight the good fight in the non-profit field, or to explore the nuance and complexity of such studies as sexuality. The beauty part about living in San Francisco, and about my friends here, is that if I’m curious enough to learn something new, there’s usually someone there willing to school me.

I recently saw the one night only performance of Noise: a (Micro)Biopolitics of Masculinity at Counter Pulse. The title alone made my head hurt. Jesse Hewit, who was putting up the piece as his master’s thesis, took some time to give some explanation in the program, but it was the performance that he and his cast gave that provided the most illumination.

Pro Prokofiev

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June 20, 2007

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By Molly Freedenberg

When I heard the San Francisco Symphony is hosting a Prokofiev festival – ten whole days devoted to one composer – I figured I should probably know who this guy is. If our city’s esteemed symphony thinks he’s so important, shouldn’t I know why? So I set out doing my research, sure that I knew nothing about the little bugger.

Turns out I’m more familiar with the Soviet musician than I thought – and so, probably, are most of us. He’s the composer responsible for Peter and the Wolf – that famous piece used in elementary schools across the country to teach the kiddies about classical music. He also wrote the most famous version of Romeo and Juliet, the one written for the original Kirov Theatre production. He mastered several genres of music, wrote for film and for children as well as for symphonies, and basically kicked musical ass all over the world. And far from being a hero just to the classical set, he had such far reach that seminal punk band The Damned actually put out a 7” single dedicated to him, appropriately named “Prokofiev.” Which is to say, dude’s pretty badass. Or, you know, he was (he died in 1953).

It seems he was also a bit of an oddball. The little child prodigy started playing piano and composing music before most of us stopped sucking our thumbs – and yet, his first piece in the key of F completely skipped using the B-flat key because he didn’t like touching the black keys. (Wtf?) Later, teenage Sergei was known in the St. Petersburg music scene for being an enfant terrible(i.e. a pain in the ass), and now is considered one of the most important, and quirkiest, composers of the 20th century.

All of which is why conductor Michael Tilson Thomas and four virtuosic soloists are dedicating a quarter of a month to the Russian firebrand. And though the festival started June 14, you haven’t missed your chance to hear Prokofiev’s music for yourself. On June 22 and 23, see “Films, Frenzies, Fairy Tales,” featuring Prokofiev’s scores for the film Lieutenant Kije and the ballet Cinderella. And on June 24, see “Primitive and Refined,” a program featuring Piano Concerto No. 4 for the left hand (written for Paul Wittgenstein, who lost an arm in World War I), and two pieces inspired by Slavic paganism. For more information and ticket prices, visit the Symphony website.

The Queer Issue: Flaming creators

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June 20, 2007

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By Johnny Ray Huston

They’ve got passion to burn, whether there’s 100 percent pride or a potent dose or two of critical shame in their game. They’re the dozen-plus-one LGBT artists who constitute this year’s lineup of flaming creators — individuals and groups adding radical perversity, butch dyke glitter, b-boy funk, punkified monkey love, dandified bear flair, and more to the Bay Area. It seems apt to pun off the title of Jack Smith’s still-revelatory 1963 film Flaming Creatures in uniting this wildly varied group: all of them ignore or defy the conformist strains of mainstream gay culture to blaze new trails of truth and fantasy. As part of our Queer Issue, we pay tribute to them.

NAME Keith Aguiar

WHAT I DO Currently, I am photographing a community of queer artists who continue to resist assimilation and express themselves freely without compromise to both hetero and homo normative values that have imprisoned so many of our generation. I want the viewer to enter my world of rich color, texture, and chaos to find the intricate beauty that comes from reconnecting with more primitive forms of expression. More recently my work has been progressing to include portraits, erotic photography, and even a few landscapes. I’m currently seeking funds for my next show and have started to do commissioned work on the side.

MOTTO Create your own reality. Live your own myth. Be your own God.

MORE KeithAguiarPhotography@gmail.com
www.flickr.com/photos/untamedvessels

NAME Dreamboat, Where Are You? (Carrie Baum and Jessica Fudim)

WHAT WE DO We’re a punk pop duo with choreographed vaudevillian antics and a penchant for monkeys, monsters, and Yiddish innuendos. We’ve been described as "the Buzzcocks meet the Muppets." We’ll be leading a Dancers’ Group Rock Theater workshop July 21, and we also have our own projects: Carrie’s Exit Sign: A Rock Opera and Jessica’s dance show Please Feed My Animal will both be previewing at CounterPULSE’s "Rock 4 Art" benefit Aug. 4. (Carrie also runs Big Star Printing; Jessica is a certified Pilates trainer.)

MOTTO Be sure to share your cookies.

MORE www.myspace.com/dreamboatwhereareyou

Thirds, please?

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June 19, 2007

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By Sean Manning

I started watching Bravo’s Top Chef because it was a cooking show that threw creative challenges at its contestants and occasionally gave useful advice for the wannabe chef. That was Season 1. I got hooked on Season 2 because it acted like a classy cooking show when it was really a culinary “Lord of the Flies” (complete with their own Piggy—the endlessly obnoxious man-child Marcel Vigneron). Those antics were fun while they lasted—about to the point when chef Cliff Crooks tried to hold Vigneron down and shave his waifish Syndrome hair off in the middle of the night. And then the guilt set in. Like many of the show’s fans I had to ask—at the very least, aren’t I supposed to be able to pretend this is a food show?

Maybe that’s why the first installment of the show’s third season (originally aired last Wednesday, and sure to be shown in reruns many, many, many, many more times in the future) seemed so determined to utterly kick the shit out of its 15 brand new cheftestants. Not only were they subjected to two tough challenges (Surprise! Make an amuse bouche out of the buffet platter you just ate on, and a surf and turf combo of nasty meats), but the merciless Chef Anthony Bourdain was brought on to mock the unworthy. As for the chefs themselves, my money is on CPA (“Certified Professional Asshole”) Hung Huyhn, who is making an early bid for this season’s pretentious fine dining villain. If the past two seasons have been any indication, we’re in for some quality television in the coming weeks.

‘Cosmo’ video games as silly as the mag

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June 19, 2007

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By Stephen Torres

As long as there have been admin and reception jobs, there has been un-relenting, mind-numbing boredom as well. Since the positions were held primarily by the female set for such a long time, publications such as Cosmopolitan, founded by the inimitable Helen Gurley Brown in the sixties, found a place jammed into the desk drawers or bags of all those working girls. Or so Miss Brown had hoped. I’m mean, what gal on the go would read anything else?

Nowadays, when you can’t take the monotony of data entry or similar thankless office tasks, one’s options are opened up to whatever you possibly could desire through the magic of the Internet. Never behind the times, Cosmo has added its own brand of pastimes that every girl will doubtlessly enjoy: video games. So I channeled Miss Moneypenny and decided to have myself a look.

The first game is entitled BoyToy and was recently highlighted on Gawker.com — and I really couldn’t agree more with their take on the matter. I’m not one for video games anyway, but it is an inane simulation of what its like to be your alter ego — the girl who gets what she wants from the boys simply by snapping her fingers. The overall impression I got was not that of feeling empowered by living through a blond and tan version of myself named Bunny, but more the miserable experience of being her put-upon slave Cord. It’s like having a split personality that requires more booze, more music, and more attention. Quite frankly, I thought I’d have more fun with Minerva, the slutty nemesis in hospital whites.

Playing hooky from Pride? Go to the garden.

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June 18, 2007

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By Molly Freedenberg

Looking to take a break from Pride madness next Sunday? How about a good old-fashioned Garden Party? The UC Botanical Garden is holding a fundraiser called inflorescence! [sic] from 2pm to 6pm, featuring food, wine tasting, a silent auction, and music by jazzy, eclectic VidyA and vintage, acoustic Dodge’s Sundodgers (think polkas and waltzes, Hawaiian music, traditional Mexican tunes, and plenty more music you can dance to). Oh yeah, and gorgeous June-blooming flowers (like the mutisia sublata, pictured right), of course. Tickets are $45 in advance, $50 at the door. Buy yours and get more information on the event’s website.

Location info: UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Drive, Berk. (510) 643-2755 x03, botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu

A Hot Pocket by any other name

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June 18, 2007

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By Gazelle Emami

It’s hard to define piroshki, though there’s no doubt they’re a Russian food. I say “food” because it’s a little ambiguous as to whether it’s a pastry, snack, or meal. Whichever group(s) it falls under, with its thick, deep-fried dough stuffed with an assortment of fillings ranging from meat to vegetarian-friendly options, You might call piroshki the Hot Pocket’s granddaddy.

Owner Galina Galant and her father pose with racks of the piroshki they make fresh every morning.

You won’t find piroshki too easily in these parts—Paramount Piroshki, open since 1956, is one of the only places around to dedicate itself wholly to the traditional Russian treat. Owner Galina Galant and her family came to San Francisco from Russia in 1983 and bought the business from its previous owner. The building used to be in the style of a coffee shop, but given Potrero Hill’s industrial landscape, the Galants converted it into a factory and are mainly in the business of selling to other businesses.

Transported SF is on a roll (but doesn’t fucking roll on Shabbos)

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June 15, 2007

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By Molly Freedenberg

It’s about time to talk about TransportedSF, not just because they have another kickass event coming up June 21, but because their sexy little crew dubbed “The Nomads” just graced a page in our equally sexy Scene Magazine (on newstands last week, and online for, well, ever.)

So. Here’s the deal with the Transported crew: they’re awesome. Need more information than that? Okay, fine. The idea is this: a biodiesel bus taking passengers on themed adventures throughout the city, from hosted dinners to impromptu outdoor DJ parties to movie nights. The bus picks you up at the Rite Spot, gives you a night to remember, and drops you back off at a reasonable hour. You drink, play, or simply don’t have to worry about driving. In exchange, you pay a nominal fee.

The view inside — part lounge, part partymobile. The very back of the bus acts as a dance floor or movie screen, depending on the night’s theme (and the time of night).

The guys at the helm (literally and metaphorically) are Jens-Peter Jungclaussen (yes, he’s German), who has traditionally used his bus (named Das Frachtgut, meaning “The Good Freight,” though Jungclaussen might change it to something English mouths can better pronounce) for educational and corporate events; and Alxndr Warnow, a DJ, promoter, and photographer who’s worked with Jungclaussen for more than two years. Most importantly, these guys are fun. Which pretty much guarantees their events are fun. Case in point? Our Big Lebowski tour a few weeks ago.

She’s a man, baby!

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June 14, 2007

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In a hilarious gaffe, local free monthly-ish paper for women The City Edition published a wild-eyed editorial this week accusing the Guardian of promoting prostitution, causing anorexia, keeping women from “tapping into orgasmic potential,” and basically steering any girl under the age of 18 into a hellacious vice-hole from which she’ll never return. (We caused Paris Hilton? Good for us.) City Edition didn’t identify us by name for some reason, but it ran a pic of our cover and called us a ” local alternative newspaper publishing out of a warehouse in Portrero Hill.”

Read the glorious editorial here (PDF)

So what have we done to deserve such epithets? While it’s no secret we’re an unalloyed den of iniquity, editorial writer Rosemary Regallo especially took issue with our depictions of half-naked covergirls, in particular our recent Summer Guide model, Marina Bitch:

Marina Bitch: “A sparsely clad, anorexic model who looks like she’s aching to get laid”
Photograph by House of Herrera

Thing is, Marina Bitch is a man.

In fact, almost all of our recent covergirls have been drag queens — naked club star Anna Conda graced our Sex Issue cover with a giant python wrapped around her (something SFist didn’t catch ) and Marina and Candi Gurl were peekaboo see-through on our first SCENE magazine. (In retrospect, I’m now limiting myself to one gender illusionist cover model a month. Too much of a good thing, maybe.)

Regallo writes:

“Sexualized and at times racist imagery of young women in so-called alternative newspapers is paving the way for a generation of damaged girls and a proliferating global sex trade. So why does the S.F. Public Library continue to distribute the city’s most popular porn, prostitute and adult entertainment guide at all its branches?” [italics mine]

Because of course young women can’t be counted on to make their own decisions, the poor little things. Then Regallo goes on to talk about ancient goddess cults and prescribe more images of women as firefighters. I smell Fall Arts Preview cover: Heklina with a hose!

I heart (Ba)carbs

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June 14, 2007

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By Molly Freedenberg

You’d think that if I was going to rave about Bacar, it’d be for its swank, open design. Or for the stellar wine selection. Or even for the existence of an on-site sommelier there to answer questions with words like “oaky” and “hint of grapefruit” (and with a straight face). Maybe you’d even expect me to talk about the food, which I didn’t try, but my neighbors during a recent visit swore was fab-u-lous.

But no. I’m going to talk about the bread. Fresh and warm and served with a ramekin of butter that was not only soft enough to spread but also arrived with a stripe of rock salt for flavor and flair. And this basket o’ goodness isn’t just one variety of bread either, oh no. It’s cornbread with a hint of spice and a blissfully subtle sweetness. Some kind of white bread that’s soft and dense on the inside, and crusty (but not hard) on the outside. And a brown bread highlighted – but not overpowered – by herbs.

You can get the bread as part of a meal, one you’re surely sharing with some well-paid love interest while wearing your best heels or your most recently pressed shirt. But I prefer to get it by itself, accompanied only by a bottle of half-price wine (a Monday special! Woohoo!) and the company of a good gossipy friend. There’s nothing like carbs and confidential information to end your workday right…

X-treme Mugler

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June 13, 2007

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Remember Angel? Remember flab, the folds, and the sticks and stones we called my bones? Thierry Mugler – the fashion designer who went all the way with shoulder pad fascism and added the scent of chocolate (with sublime results, if we might say so ourselves) to perfume – has evidently gone completely ape for adrenalin and weird bulgy veins in strange places, and has turned himself from a “renowned courturier to muscle-bound beast.” This according to the WOW Report.

Doesn’t Thierry Mugler’s head look Photoshopped onto some odd prefab Frank Frazetta-style Conan bod? Courtesy of the WOW Report

WOW continues: “We reported that the 59-year-old French designer and perfumer had been lifting weights to such an extent that he bulked himself into an unrecognizable creature that required a whole new identity. Thierry now wants to be called Manfred. ‘He’s been incommunicado since he closed his couture house,’ said a former friend. ‘What he’s done to his body is totally scary.’ We didn’t realize the extent of the damage until a friend e-mailed us a photo of the buffed and bare-naked Manfred.”

Zut alors! It’s like a big wake-up call to step away from the ‘roids, kids. If it’s real… Wake me up when it’s over.