Those who know me know it takes a lot to get me to venture into the uncharted here-be-dragons-ness that is the “-land” part of Chicagoland. But this coming Monday night, June 11, Nina Corwin and Al DeGenova have done me the immense honor of booking me as the featured poet for their highly regarded poetry […]
Entries Tagged as 'Chicago'
I’m the Featured Poet at Molly Malone’s Next Week and Oh My God It’s in the Suburbs …
June 7th, 2007 · Comments Off on I’m the Featured Poet at Molly Malone’s Next Week and Oh My God It’s in the Suburbs … · Books, Chicago, Culture, Journal, Lit, News, Poetry
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Music: “Free Money” for Rent Day from Patti Smith
June 5th, 2007 · 1 Comment · Chicago, Culture, Music, New Wave, Video
Today’s rent day,* here in Chicago anyway, so here’s some Patti Smith to soften the blow. This is Patti doing my favorite song from Horses, “Free Money,” at the final CBGB’s show on October 15, 2006. (Dodgy sound and video quality — looks like a phone video — but the historic nature of the occasion […]
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Moscow Is Burning: Russian Homophobes Attack Gay Pride Demonstrators
May 28th, 2007 · Comments Off on Moscow Is Burning: Russian Homophobes Attack Gay Pride Demonstrators · Activism, Chicago, Culture, Hate Crimes, Human Rights, LGBT, News, Politics
Yesterday Russian homophobes made good on their threat to physically attack gay pride demonstrators in Moscow this year, as they did last year. The haters, who included contingents of nationalists and Russian Orthodox extremists, punched and kicked gay participants, and some wore surgeon’s masks, which they claimed was an attempt to protect them from the […]
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Stephen Colbert: Behind the Maniac
May 23rd, 2007 · 1 Comment · Chicago, Comedy, Culture, Fringe, Journal, Media, Neo-Futurists, Politics, Theater, TV, Video
For those who haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Stephen Colbert in person, this backstage video of him prepping John Kerry before Kerry’s recent Colbert Report appearance is a fun little peek behind the curtain of the character he plays on his show. I think knowing what a charming, mild-mannered, and self-effacing person Stephen is […]
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Forty-Onederful: Alt Q Review
May 14th, 2007 · 5 Comments · Chicago, Culture, Fringe, LGBT, Media, Music, Performance
Speaking of Jorjet, as I was a couple of posts ago, I spent the evening of my forty-first birthday sharing a table with her at this year’s Alt Q festival at the Old Town School of Folk Music (after having a nice coconut and basil dinner with Lisa Buscani at Thai Classic). Alt Q was […]
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Converting the Local Sealife to Slurry
May 10th, 2007 · 3 Comments · Chicago, Energy, Nature, Science
Aaron administers a much-deserved rhetorical thrashing to Mr. Burns’ real-life analog at a certain local power company, who thinks lethally scalding the local fish (and other aquatic life) by expelling 100-degree water into the Chicago and Lower Des Plaines rivers is the most efficient way to cool the companies’ coal-fired power plants. This process, called […]
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In Chicago: Alt Q, Diane di Prima at the Poetry Center, and Fruity Neo-Futurist Fun
May 8th, 2007 · Comments Off on In Chicago: Alt Q, Diane di Prima at the Poetry Center, and Fruity Neo-Futurist Fun · Chicago, Culture, Fringe, LGBT, Lit, Music, Neo-Futurists, News, Performance, Poetry, Theater
It’s springtime, so naturally Chicago’s fancy is turning toward divorce and debauchery. Oops, I meant to say, fabulous fringe performance, music, and poetry readings! This week the Poetry Center of Chicago is presenting a reading by legendary beat poet Diane di Prima, author of 35 books of poetry and prose, including Pieces of a Song, […]
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“Very Bad HIV Legislation in Illinois”
May 6th, 2007 · Comments Off on “Very Bad HIV Legislation in Illinois” · Activism, Chicago, Health, HIV/AIDS, LGBT, Music, Politics
I got an email this week from my friend Justin Hayford, who works at the AIDS Legal Council of Chicago when he’s not moonlighting as a cabaret crooner. Justin had a lot to say about a couple of pending bills in the Illinois House of Representatives. I could spend a bunch of time trying to […]
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Partly Dave Show Tonight!
May 2nd, 2007 · 7 Comments · Chicago, Comedy, Culture, Fringe, Journal, LGBT, Music, Neo-Futurists, News, Performance, The Partly Dave Show, Theater
This is it — tonight’s the night The Partly Dave Show makes its long-prophesied return, at 7:30pm at The Neo-Futurarium. I’ll dish out one more exciting little fact about tonight’s show: Even in Blackouts will be unveiling* the brand-new Partly Dave Show theme song, hot out of the oven** and never before heard by human […]
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In Chicago: Homolatte, Another Lousy Day, The Joans and More!
May 1st, 2007 · 1 Comment · Chicago, Comedy, Culture, Fringe, LGBT, News, Performance, The Partly Dave Show, Theater
First up, don’t forget that the Party Mix Edition of The Partly Dave Show is less than 48 hours away! Wednesday night, May 2nd, at The Neo-Futurarium. All the details are here. Tonight, Tuesday May 1st, Scott Free’s fantabulous Homolatte Cabaret presents Samuel Park and Aaron Mayer Frankel, at 7:30pm at Tweet (next door to […]
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In Chicago: Calvino, Poker, Handbags and More
April 20th, 2007 · 3 Comments · Chicago, Culture, Fringe, Music, Neo-Futurists, Performance, The Partly Dave Show, Theater
The trees are budding in Chicago this week, and the darling buds of the fringe performance scene are in full crazy spring bloom as well. There’s so much going on that if I’m not careful, I might use up all my item bullets, and then I wouldn’t have any for next week! Well, anyway, here […]
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News Roundup: Back Alley Edition
April 19th, 2007 · 1 Comment · Business, Chicago, Culture, Guns, Health, Internet, Labor, LGBT, Music, Nature, News, Pet Food, Politics, Science, Supreme Court
Yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling on abortion makes no exception for women whose health is in danger. This DKos diary, “5 out of 9 SCOTUS justices say my mom should be dead,” describes in vivid personal terms how a late-term abortion saved the life of the writer’s mother, and how this new ruling means that a […]
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Help Save Women & Children First Bookstore
April 19th, 2007 · 1 Comment · Activism, Books, Business, Chicago, Culture, Feminism, LGBT, Media, News
Women & Children First bookstore here in Andersonville is in danger of closing, possibly before the end of the summer, according to recent stories in the Chicago Tribune and the Windy City Times. One factor hurting sales at W&CF is competition, of course. Borders Books & Music, for instance, has four locations—all within four miles […]
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