AltWeeklies Wire
John Bruce Johnson: 1931-2008new
Johnson founded the Baltimore Playwrights Festival and rescued the Vagabond Players in the 60s.
Baltimore City Paper |
John Barry |
08-12-2008 |
Theater
Comparing the Chinatown Bus to Its Upstart Rivalsnew

Ah, the Chinatown bus, this mode of transportation is the epitome of "shady." About two years ago, however, new competitors to the original Chinatown buses materialized, claiming to provide a more pleasant trip for as little as $1 one-way from Philadelphia to New York City.
Philadelphia City Paper |
Sulina Gabale |
08-12-2008 |
Travel
Why Can't Philly's Thriving Theater Scene Use the City's Grand Old Stages?new

Ironically, Philadelphia is worse off because we have so many great old theaters -- we might sustain one or two, but what do we do with a dozen?
Philadelphia City Paper |
David Anthony Fox |
08-12-2008 |
Theater
The Human Life Extension Movement Sees a Glorious Future for Us Allnew

People involved with the loosely connected movements of life extension, transhumanism and singularitarianism think we're soon going to be able to extend our lives almost infinitely. And they're working feverishly to survive into that golden age. They're willing to pop pills and radically reduce how much they eat just to live a bit longer.
New Haven Advocate |
Adam Bulger |
08-12-2008 |
Culture
Pro Poker Hurts: It's Not All Glitz and Glory at the Tablenew
Harold Persaud is one of dozens of men -- and a few women -- who go to the legal poker rooms across South Florida every day, hoping to grind out the money to pay the bills. They go to places such as Pompano Park, Mardi Gras, and Miccosukee Resort & Gaming, to card rooms full of businessmen who cut out of the office early, young men wearing hooded sweatshirts and listening to iPods, foul-smelling degenerate addicts, and more retirees than a Sunday buffet.
Miami New Times |
Michael J. Mooney |
08-11-2008 |
Recreation
The Chumby Diaries: A Partial-Attention Love-Hate Storynew

Is the ambient widget device a friend who will share corn-bread recipes and glimpses at its panda cam, or a foe who will steal your passwords?
L.A. Weekly |
Gendy Alimurung |
08-11-2008 |
Tech
Fab's Brings America's Best Hot Dogs to LAnew
Fab's, a labor of love curated by hot-dog scholars Joe Fabrocini and wife Susie Speck Mayor, could serve as a three-table museum of American wiener culture.
L.A. Weekly |
Jonathan Gold |
08-11-2008 |
Food+Drink
For Colorado Rapids Fans, It's Hard to be Hooligansnew
Soccer supporters groups are nearly as old as the game itself, with allegiances to squads passed down from generation to generation in the same way most Americans learn to embrace their favorite baseball or football team. For Rapids fans, it's not about the quality of play on the pitch. If it were, they would have left a long time ago.
Olympic Gear Raises the Barnew
This month, the world's eyes are on Beijing for the 29th Summer Olympiad. Governments and corporations have spent millions to make sure the athletes perform at the peak of their abilities. These days, much of this cash gets spent on research into high-tech materials and equipment rather than on training programs.
NOW Magazine |
Joseph Wilson |
08-11-2008 |
Sports
Alt.health: Have an Art Attacknew
Boost your creative juices with guided imagery, and leave time for the unexpected.
NOW Magazine |
Elizabeth Bromstein |
08-08-2008 |
Advice
Tags: advice columns
Ecoholic: The Hunt for 100-mile Beernew
You've recommended organic beer, but the ingredients come from all over the world. Does anyone use strictly local ingredients?
NOW Magazine |
Adria Vasil |
08-08-2008 |
Advice
Who's Who of Toronto's Microbreweriesnew
With an ever-increasing number of microbreweries cropping up on the smoggy horizon, Hogtown is well on its way to becoming Hoptown, and it’s not just the pigs who think this is good news.
NOW Magazine |
Graham Duncan |
08-08-2008 |
Food+Drink
Halifax's Ocean Entertainment Tastes Success with Popular "Food-porn" TV Programsnew
It all started in 1997, when Michael Smith was running the kitchen at the Inn at Bay Fortune on PEI. In the garden overlooking the sea, gathering herbs for an evening's service, the chef suddenly thought to himself, "this is so goddam perfect, we should make a television show."
The Coast, Halifax's Weekly |
Jessica Linzey |
08-08-2008 |
Food+Drink
The International Competition in Vermontnew

It's Vietnamese spiking volleyballs at Roosevelt Park, Bosnians rolling bocce balls at Oakledge Park, and Somalis, Sudanese and Congolese heading soccer balls at Starr Farm Park, Leddy Beach and practice fields at the University of Vermont.
Seven Days |
Kevin J. Kelley, Matt Scanlon and Mike DiBiasio |
08-08-2008 |
Sports
Ghost River Brewing Tries to Bring Local Brews to Memphisnew
Memphis, a city of more than half a million people, has only two breweries — the small-batch operation inside Boscos' Overton Square restaurant and Boscos' main brewery on South Main.
The Memphis Flyer |
Simone Wilson |
08-08-2008 |
Food+Drink