The debate debacle
To become president of the United States, you must participate in the nationally televised debates sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates. Everyone agrees on this. There’s just one problem: If you’re not a Democrat or Republican, the debates are about as accessible as those 18 minutes of missing tape from Richard Nixon’s office. The…
The pictures got big
First, the bad news: Attempts to infuse the second and last weekend of this year’s Florida Film Festival with celebrity star power were pretty much of a botch. Now for the good news: It didn’t make one whit of difference. Yes, disappointment ran deep that actor Robert Loggia pulled out of his engagement as Thursday’s…
Run, Ralph, run
Stoop-shouldered and wearing the same gray suit he’s worn for the last three days, consumer advocate and Green Party presidential hopeful Ralph Nader stands before a group of about 30 people gathered in Paul Newman’s Manhattan living room and speaks of why he wants to be president. His Lincolnesque stature and craggy face seem oddly…
An ill-thought assault on high education
Given the can-you-top-this attitude that has surrounded the U.S. government’s drug policy for the last two decades, it’s not surprising that conservative lawmakers are now having to go out on a limb to prove their anti-drug resolve. In the last few years, that’s translated into much-maligned components such as mandatory minimum prison sentences and a…
A deal that’s a real sweetheart
Three years ago, Phil Cowherd had his eye on three pieces of city-owned property in Orlando’s oldest and poorest neighborhood. Cowherd was familiar with the Parramore area — he’d collected rent on apartments there since he was a kid — and he knew he could resell the parcels of vacant residential land to Carolina-Florida Properties,…
Seating and symbolism
What with two new members, there was a festive atmosphere at the June 12 council meeting. Everyone was happy — except Commissioner Ernest Page. He took exception to a new seating arrangement that places the council members in order of their districts — one through six, from left to right — with Mayor Glenda Hood…
Official testimony
And you thought the Hood-Gordy race was nasty. Patty Sheehan and the incumbent she booted from the City Council, Bill Bagley, were scheduled to be in court June 15 to give depositions in a case that involves a Sheehan supporter who claims that his arrest was used by Bagley for political leverage during the recent…
Udder filth
According to an April San Francisco Chronicle feature, a painting by local artist Catherine Anderson was accepted for hanging, then rejected, by the fancy Lodge at Sonoma resort that’s set to open later this year. Anderson specializes in paintings of cows, but the Lodge declined her first piece because its field scene displayed too many…
Delivering Cuban like a Champ’s
Several Orlando lunch spots lay righteous claims to serving the best Cuban sandwich in town. Many are good, so we break ties by factoring in location. When wandering downtown, our contender of choice for top-notch Cubans is the shoebox-sized Champ’s. Located at 132 E. Central Blvd., just across from the Orlando Public Library, Champ’s isn’t…
Disney’s still-wonderful world
Movie: Fantasia/2000
Cartoonish, but not in a bad way
Movie: Titan A.E.
Disney’s still-wonderful world
Movie: Fantasia/2000
Cartoonish, but not in a bad way
Movie: Titan A.E.
Altered states
Tough-guy character actor Robert Loggia was supposed to have been the Florida Film Festival’s special guest Thursday night at Enzian Theater. But little more than a week before his appearance was to take place, word arrived that the gravelly-voiced thespian would not be coming; “unforeseen scheduling conflicts” were the proffered explanation. (Cue sarcastic take on…
The out-of-towners
Like snowbirds deplaning for an eagerly awaited Florida vacation, visiting filmmakers dominated the landscape of Wednesday’s installment of the Florida Film Festival. Newly arrived in Orlando from her home of New York City, Vietnamese-born director Kim-Chi Tyler walked into Colonial Promenade shortly before the 5 p.m. showing of her autobiographical documentary, “Chac.” Clutching a Universal…
Creation theories
In the wake of The Blair Witch Project, it sometimes seems as if every third Orlandoan and his dog have movie scripts of their own in various stages of development. So it was only a mild surprise that Tuesday’s screenwriting forum at Enzian Theater was as well-attended as many of the ongoing Florida Film Festival’s…
Gargamel! Unmasked
Gargamel! is a strange animal, a five-headed beast that prowls Central Florida stages like a hungry, metal-clad alley cat, pulsing with a hard-rock beat and an unquenchable thirst for the absurd. Nobody has ever accused Mandaddy (vocals), Webb (drums), Servobeonic Man (keyboards/samples), Crazy Hector (bass) and El Diablo Guapo (guitars) of being normal. They wouldn’t…
Fresh pasta-bilities
Let’s say you’re the Florida Film Festival. You’ve just treated your guests to a hugely successful, immensely fun weekend, and you want them to stay around through Monday. What do you do? You serve them Italian, that’s what. Though a tasty wine-and-cheese spread was provided by Olive Garden Italian Restaurants — the evening’s sponsor –…
