Results tagged “wild”

For awhile there, it was looking like this column could be retitled "Educators Gone Wild," as one of our winners and a number of our runners-up work(ed) in the Philadelphia area's schools. There was the ecstacy-dealing high school basketball coach, the "abstinence education is the only appropriate sex education" administrators at Archbishop Ryan, the elementary school teacher who wrote threatening messages throughout her school and the pedophile special ed teacher. But it's not just educators who are endangering kids' welfare (and, we should note, by extension, the future of mankind). We'd be remiss if we didn't point out that there are some pretty dreadful parents out there. We're not just talking about the parents who humiliate their children (and themselves) in public. Oh, no. They're just the tip of the iceberg. When we look deeper, we find that there are much, much more disturbing parenting practices out there. Like the Trenton couple who sent their seven-year-old son to school with seventy grams of crack. Our favorite part of the story is that, when the police were searching the parents' house following the discovery of the crack on the kid, two guys showed up to purchase drugs. Oops! The parents had twenty-two grams of crack in the house, which made us wonder – why would they send more crack with their kid than they would keep for themselves? Is the seven-year-old really a better pusher than his parents? But we digress. The kid probably doesn't stand a chance in life, and it makes us sad. So unto his parents (whose names we don't know because authorities are not disclosing the names, so as to protect the boy and his sister), we bestow the title of Parents of the Year Assholes of the Week.

What's new and/or interesting on TV this week.

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What's new and/or interesting in Philly theaters this weekend.

We like to compare bands to other bands when we talk about them. We find it helps to give a good idea of what they sound like.

Normally we could start this post with some quip about chasing off the winter doldrums with some laughter. But seeing as how the mercury is riding high today, and should be for a while, we got nothing. That’s why we’re not comedians. Luckily, there are some very talented folks who are, and they are presenting a 5-day smorgasbord of improv and sketch comedy goodness for your gluttonous consumption.

Every Tuesday and Thursday, we'll be posting events that are going on sale during the current week. This Thursday post only collects the latest announcements, so definitely check the Tuesday post for any you may have missed.

Librarians like to stir up a ruckus when they can: The Newbury and Caldecott Medals were awarded this morning at the American Library Association’s Mid-Winter meeting down at the Convention Center, and the choices are, to put it mildly, “bold.” Most of us remember elementary school reading lists filled with past Newbury winners (The Westing Game was our favorite), and the Caldecott denotes excellence in what are called picture books, which are basically what you read before elementary school—think Where the Wild Things Are. The Newbury this year went to Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices From a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz, which is odd only in that it is a collection of monologues with historical info thrown in between for good measure. But the bigger surprise, at least to those not in the know, was the Caldecott, which went to The Invention of Hugo Cabret, a story of an orphan living in a train station, written and illustrated by Brian Selznick. The book is known to librarians, though, and their raucous applause at the announcement came because, as one noted, “the librarians knew the works well - and approved of them highly.” Why the surprise? Well, Invention, which Selznick wrote over 10 years, is a 500-page book. Yes, you read that right. No Knuffle Bunny here. The format is also odd in that it is “short and fat” as opposed to the oversized, thin picture books most of us are used to seeing. One librarian noted that shelving it is going to be a nightmare. Ah, we love a good scandal! (P.S. There were a bunch of other awards presented too—but maybe none as “bold.”)

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Every weekday of December (except for December 25, that is), Phillyist will be counting down to 2008 with our highlights from the past year and our predictions for the next. If you have a list you'd like to submit, let us know!

(This movie has already been out for over a week, obviously. However, when I saw it last Friday I felt compelled to write about it—it's been a long time since I saw a movie that stayed with me for this long. If you haven't had a chance to see it yet, by all means do so ASAP.) It must be something in the water. Filmmakers have rediscovered the mythology of the American frontier, and that...

Wednesday As part of the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society series, Christian Tetzlaff, violin and Alexander Lonquich, piano will give a concert of Beethoven Sonatas. Perelman Theater (Kimmel Center); 8 PM; $22.50 Thursday Acclaimed tenor Matthew Polenzani, accompanied by the accomplished pianist Julius Drake, will give a solo recital of songs by Schubert, Beethoven, Liszt, Britten, and Hahn. Perelman Theater (Kimmel Center); 8 PM; $22.50 The Curtis Opera Theater pairs Haydn's Arianna a Naxos with Poulenc's...

This week's quote is from Bertolt Brecht, the author of Mouther Courage and Her Children. It goes in full: "Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are." Now, on with the listings! 50 West 50 - You love her, but she loves him, and he loves somebody else... November 16-December 2. Tickets online. Baby with the Bathwater - Don't throw it out. November 16-December 1. Reservations online. Hate...

What's new and/or interesting in Philly theaters this weekend.

Rachael Yamagata, singer/songwriter, is headed to the Johnny Brenda's tonight. If you can't make it tonight, you can see her on Tuesday, July 24th or Tuesday, July 31st. Yep, that's right - she is playing three times in Philly, a short residency of sorts. Yamagata is known for her dark, raspy alto voice and being highlighted on numerous TV shows and movies. Recently, she contributed a song to Mandy Moore's new CD, Wild Hope. On...

For you jazz heads out there, don't forget about the free shows this week, just 40 minutes away in Wilmington, Del. The 19th Annual Clifford Brown Jazz Festival kicked off last night with an homage to Duke Ellington. We're looking forward to tonight's line-up, featuring the Mahavishnu Project, Skerik's Maelstrom Trio, and The Blue Method.

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Films: The Cats of Mirikitani, Cigarettes and Whiskey and Wild Wild Women, Sweet Mud

What's new and/or interesting on TV this week.

We here in the Ist-A-Verse know that we're sensational, but it's very rare that we get a chance to be sensationalistic. This week, we've decided to have ourselves a little fun and try our hand at tacky tabloid headlines, using nothing more than our favorite posts from this week.

began to perform on Broadway, said: “It's almost disgusting. We all love each other and the material so much. I can't believe we actually get paid, but they do pay us, which is nice.” Now, on with the listings!

I'll admit it: part of the reason I was so disappointed by this movie is because I'd just recently read the comic books it was based on (reading the source material almost always ruins the movie), and because I had such high expectations for it. But the rest of the reason is because it's just not a very good movie.

What's new and/or interesting in Philly theaters this weekend.

Ah, Valentine's Day: refuge of the uninspired lover and bane of the singleton's year. Fear not! We present our annual offbeat V-day guide, guaranteed to add some flair to the red-heart holiday (whose idea was it to put a celebration of love and relationships smack in the middle of the great gray beast February anyway, we ask you?).

I have a crush… on a song. This is actually a common occurrence in my life. I love music. I have music playing at all times. I cannot be in my apartment without it on. I can’t drive without music (or be driven somewhere without it). Even when I hate the CD we have to listen to at work, I want it on. This need, coupled with my innate neuroses, means that I often find songs I just can’t stop listening to.

Less than twenty-four hours after Tony Romo committed one of the most embarrassing, costly blunders in football history, not much else will be talked about after the Eagles defended Lincoln Financial Field in a 23-20 Wild Card Weekend triumph. The final 137 yards of Tiki Barber’s career—now overshadowed. Brian Westbrook’s leadership, not to mention his forty-nine-yard touchdown dash despite stomach cramps—no longer headline making. Jeff Garcia continuing to lead the Eagles to an improbable six-game winning streak—already an old story.

, which is not a Christmas-themed show, but which is the origin of one of our favorite holiday songs, “We Need a Little Christmas.” It does not appear to be onstage for the holidays this season, but it's not keeping us from quoting it, or putting up the image. Now, on with the listings!

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