Cover Story
You may soon be able to actually visit the worlds of Matilda, Willy Wonka, and James and the Giant Peach thanks to Netflix
As the streaming wars get ever more competitive, on-demand streaming pioneer Netflix is looking to expand its in-house library while also adding new ways for consumers to enjoy its intellectual properties. In recent years, the direct-to-consumer streaming and DVD service has announced a move into gaming and has experimented with highly immersive real-world pop-up experiences.…
New moon-shaped casino announced for Vegas, but for space-themed fun Disney is a better bet
As billionaires try to beat each other by shooting themselves into space, there’s plenty of movement in space tourism for us plebes that don’t have our own rocket companies to promote. From Disney to Vegas, space seems to be the hottest new theme in tourism. We’re still years, possibly decades, away from affordable and accessible…
Margaritaville continues its quest for world domination with a move into RV parks
With multiple beach resorts, a massive mixed-use development in Kissimmee, and one of the fastest-growing retirement communities in the nation, Margaritaville is seemingly taking over Florida. But they’ve now found a segment yet untouched by the relaxation-focused lifestyle brand. Florida’s first Margaritaville RV resort will open in Polk County next year. This will be the…
Walt Disney World is revamping much of the resort for its 50th anniversary, but Animal Kingdom will have to wait to get some attention
Since opening in 1998, Animal Kingdom has struggled with its attraction lineup. While the live animals within the park are a draw, many guests at Disney World remain focused on rides. Early on, the park faced criticism from ride-focused guests as being a ‘half-day’ theme park. Even as two major thrill rides opened in the…
Legal Public Notices 09/29 issue
Orlando Legals Legal Public Notices ALL ABOARD STORAGE NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALE Personal property of the following tenants will be sold at public sale to the highest bidder to satisfy a rental lien in accordance with Florida Statutes, Sections: A83.801 – 83.809. All units are assumed to contain general household goods unless otherwise indicated. Viewing of…
Florida hospitals’ COVID-19 inpatient numbers continue to drop
Florida hospitals reported 6,423 inpatients with COVID-19 on Tuesday, as the toll on hospitals continued to steadily decrease, according to numbers posted online by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The 6,423 patients were in 234 Florida hospitals, down from 6,731 patients in 260 hospitals in a Monday report. The number of hospitalized…
Orlando felon rights activist Desmond Meade wins 2021 MacArthur ‘Genius’ Grant
One of the leading lights in Florida’s felon rights movement is among the recipients of the annual John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation grants for exceptional Americans. Desmond Meade of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition was rewarded for his work pushing to restore all rights of citizenship to Florida’s felons. Commonly known as “genius grants,”…
Mitch McConnell is playing chicken with the global economy because he expects Democrats to blink
Not without cause, there have been more than a few “Dems in disarray” headlines lately. On Friday, President Biden admitted that intra-party negotiations over his domestic agenda have reached a “stalemate,” with a handful of moderates threatening to sink the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill if progressives don’t water it down and progressives pledging to sink…
Universal Studios is ‘back’ following pandemic lull, says CEO
During a talk with investors this week, the head of Universal Studios’ parent company said he sees the theme park returning to it’s pre-pandemic popularity. Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said the return of international visitors as well as a boom of frustrated travelers with pent-up wanderlust will put Universal theme parks quickly back on track.…
Florida’s minimum wage to jump to $10 per hour this week
The first of Florida’s scheduled minimum wage raises under Amendment 2 will take effect this week. That state’s minimum wage will jump by $1.35 per hour on Thursday, from the current rate of $8.35 to the new floor of $10. After this week’s leap, the minimum wage will increase by $1 per hour every year…
Orange County now offering COVID-19 vaccine booster shots at Camping World Stadium site
Orange County’s COVID-19 vaccine site at Camping World Stadium will now offer booster shots to those who want them. Mayor Jerry Demings announced the new program during a press conference on Monday. The booster shot is recommended for people who are at least 6 months out from the second shot of their two-dose vaccine. The…
Rally for abortion access planned for Orlando this Saturday
Texas was the blueprint and Florida legislators are following it to a t. Shortly after an extremely restrictive Texas law limiting abortions after six weeks, Florida lawmakers floated a similar proposal. Orlando activists are marching this Saturday to tell the state they won’t have it. The Abortion Access Rally will meet at Orlando’s City Hall…
Drone video shows surfer passing over shark at Ponce Inlet
A Florida drone operator captured a healthy reminder that when you’re in the ocean, you’re probably pretty close to a shark. In a video shared to Facebook by Drew Duncan, a surfer passes right next to a shark while carving at Ponce Inlet. While it seems unlikely that the surfer saw they shark, they happened…
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis calls for investigation into alleged election interference by Facebook
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday directed Secretary of State Laurel Lee to conduct an investigation into alleged election interference by Facebook after a Wall Street Journal report about the social-media company. The Journal reported Sept. 13 that Facebook created special content-moderation rules for high-profile people —- a practice known as “whitelisting.” In a letter Monday…
Satellite manufacturing facility planned for Space Coast
Boca Raton-based Terran Orbital intends to build a 660,000-square-foot satellite manufacturing facility at Kennedy Space Center, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Monday. With financing run through the state aerospace agency Space Florida, Terran Orbital plans to spend more than $300 million on construction and equipment, with a goal of adding 2,100 jobs by the end of…
Social media companies found not liable for radicalizing Pulse nightclub shooter
A federal appeals court Monday rejected a lawsuit alleging that Twitter, Google and Facebook should be held liable in the 2016 massacre at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub after Islamic State social-media posts radicalized shooter Omar Mateen. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district judge’s decision to dismiss the lawsuit,…
Renaissance Theatre Company launches under former CFCArts director in newly purchased Ivanhoe Village space
A new theater company is coming to the area near Loch Haven Park, under the tutelage of a longtime CFCArts director. Renaissance Theatre Company will launch in their recently purchased warehouse-turned-theater space at 415 E. Princeton Street with Donald Rupe at the helm. The building was purchased for $4.8 million by RTC boardmember Chris Kampmeier,…
Orange County threatened with fines by Ron DeSantis’ admin over employee vaccine requirements
Ron DeSantis’ administration officially threatened Orange County with fines over their mandate requiring all county government employees be vaccinated. Mayor Jerry Demings shared at the beginning of his most recent coronavirus press briefing that he received a letter from Department of Health officials on Friday. If Orange County were fined the $5,000 penalty for all…
Florida man livestreams attack on Orlando police officers over Facebook
An Orlando man set up a livestream on Facebook before attacking two police officers over the weekend. Video shared by the Orlando Police Department shows 27-year-old William McClish setting his phone on the ground before walking up behind a group of police officers on Saturday evening. He hits one of them with a brick before…
Florida rep. Matt Gaetz defends racist ‘replacement theory’ after Tucker Carlson shares it with viewers
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz is openly defending a white supremacist idea after Fox News host Tucker Carlson came under fire for sharing it. Carlson floated the so-called “Great Replacement theory,” which argues that white Americans are being replaced by non-European ethnicities in service of a grand political project by the Democratic party. It’s a deeply…
Tool announce 2022 world tour and live return to Orlando
Unpredictable prog-metal band Tool on Monday announced a huge 2022 return to the road, and somehow there’s an Orlando show nestled right in there. “It is with great pleasure I get to announce our return to the road. These past 18 months have been trying to say the least but from great trials come great…
Central Florida senator seeks to replace Florida’s state bird
Sen. Jeff Brandes wants a new state bird. The St. Petersburg Republican filed a proposal (SCR 324) for the 2022 legislative session that would rescind the designation of the mockingbird as the state bird, a perch it has held since 1927. In tweets Thursday and Friday defending his proposal, Brandes said the state should have…
Florida’s COVID-19 death toll tops 53,000
The COVID-19 death toll in Florida has jumped to 53,580 people, after a state Department of Health report Friday added 2,340 deaths. The 53,580 deaths, as of Thursday, were up from 51,240 deaths reported a week earlier. More broadly, the new numbers reflected the continuing effects of a surge in cases in recent months that…
Florida Dept. of Education blames bank after teachers’ bonus checks bounce
About 50 educators were unable to cash $1,000 bonus checks they received from the state, Florida Department of Education officials acknowledged Friday. The state is working to correct the mistake, agency spokesman Brett Tubbs told the News Service of Florida in an email. “A banking error by JPMorgan Chase impacted approximately 50 individuals of the…
Industrial metallers Ministry postpones autumn Orlando show — and tour — until 2022
For Orlando music fans with an ear inclined toward the heavy, today has been a downer. First the Rebel Rock Festival at the Fairgrounds was canceled mere hours before the gates were due to swing open on Friday afternoon, and now comes the news that industrial-metal godfathers Ministry have postponed their October Orlando show — and indeed…
Orlando’s Rebel Rock Festival has been canceled
This weekend’s Rebel Rock Festival at Orlando’s Central Florida Fairgrounds has been canceled mere hours before the multi-day event was set to fully kick off on Friday afternoon. Rebel Rock organizers released a statement early Friday afternoon that put the cancellation down to the week’s “severe weather” making the concert grounds “unfit for artists, crews,…
Dan Savage’s new book draws from lessons learned from 30 years of writing alt-weekly sex advice column
Things have changed considerably since Dan Savage started writing his sex advice column “Savage Love” in Seattle’s alt-weekly The Stranger 30 years ago. The column is now syndicated in more than 50 papers across North America (including Orlando Weekly), led to a long-running Savage Lovecast podcast, and has even spawned its own veritable dictionary of terms, many…
Years after lawmakers ordered Florida officials to grant a medical marijuana license to a Black farmer, it hasn’t happened
Black farmers have waited more than four years to vie for a license to participate in Florida’s lucrative medical-marijuana industry. But it’s still unknown exactly how much longer they’ll have to continue to bide their time, according to testimony from state Office of Medical Marijuana Use Director Chris Ferguson. Senate Agriculture Chairman Darryl Rouson, D-St.…
Federal government makes good on paying penalties for Florida school districts during mask mandate fight
The U.S. Department of Education announced Thursday that it has provided nearly $150,000 to the Alachua County School Board to cover a state penalty targeting board members’ salaries. State Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran announced Aug. 30 that the Florida Department of Education had started to withhold funds from the Alachua and Broward County school districts…
Hear ye! Lady of the Lakes Renaissance Faire is happening in Central Florida in November
Hail and well met! The Lady of the Lakes Renaissance Faire will be bringing a hefty dose of pride and pageantry to Central Florida over two weekends in November. Hie thee to the kingdom of Leesburg where one King James “is ready to welcome guests to his 17th-century shire in the woods as the Lady of…
Orange County teachers union accuses Florida of playing ‘Russian roulette’ with student health following change in COVID-19 quarantine rules
Following the passage of a new rule by the Florida Department of Health that allows parents to decide whether to quarantine their COVID-19-exposed children, the Orange County Classroom Teachers Association is speaking out. In a statement shared with Orlando Weekly, the teachers union accused the state government of playing “Russian roulette” with the health of…
Carole Baskin redux: Netflix to bring spotlight back to Central Florida rescue with ‘Tiger King 2’
Netflix just announced a sequel to their wildly popular early pandemic hit Tiger King. As part of a larger reveal of a slate of true crime series coming to the streamer, Netflix revealed that Carole Baskin, Joe Exotic et. al will be coming back to our screens in Tiger King 2 this fall. Related The…
Rebel Rock Orlando continues to shuffle headliners as Incubus drops out over COVID-19 concerns
Rebel Rock Festival is kicking off today in Orlando with a lineup that looks entirely foreign to folks who purchased tickets based on the original roster. Back-up headliner Incubus, subbing in for original headliners Limp Bizkit, announced that they were dropping out of the festival on Tuesday due to COVID-19 concerns. Limp Bizkit dropped out…
Almost no one is taking advantage of Florida’s ‘COVID-19 bullying’ private school grants
More than a month into the school year, fewer than 100 students have received school vouchers that Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration backed as a way for children to escape what the state labeled “COVID-19 harassment.” As of Monday, 90 students had been awarded “COVID-related” Hope Scholarship vouchers, according to Step Up for Students, a nonprofit…
Florida craft store challenges vaccine passport ban in new lawsuit
A Sarasota hobby and craft store has filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a state law that prevents businesses from requiring customers to show proof of vaccination against COVID-19. Bead Abode, Inc. filed the lawsuit this month in Leon County circuit court and cited an August federal-court ruling that backed Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings…
Florida State Rep. files Texas-style anti-abortion bill
State Rep. Webster Barnaby, R-Deltona, filed a proposal Wednesday that aims to follow Texas’ lead in blocking physicians from performing abortions if there is a “detectable fetal heartbeat.” The 40-page proposal (HB 167), dubbed the “Florida Heartbeat Act,” would require doctors to test for fetal heartbeats, which can occur six weeks into pregnancy. If heartbeats…
Florida’s new surgeon general signs off on rule allowing students exposed to COVID-19 to keep attending school
Florida’s newly appointed Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo wasted no time getting onboard with Governor Ron DeSantis’ continued fight against any and all pandemic precautions. In his first full day on the job, Ladapo signed off on a new rule that would allow students exposed to COVID-19 to continue attending school so long as they remain…
Orange County Public Schools consider revising public comment rules following heated mask mandate hearings
After dealing with heated hearings around their decision to impose mask mandates and stem the rapid spread of COVID-19 among their students, the Orange County Public Schools board is rethinking their public comment rules. During a work session on Tuesday, the board floated changes to their policy that would streamline debate over likely controversial topics.…
Stasio’s Italian Deli owners opening pizza fritta restaurant in Milk District
The team behind Stasio’s Italian Deli are branching out into pizza fritta, a handheld fried dough treat, in their newest venture. According to the Orlando Business Journal, the Palo family, who own the popular deli, are opening Alfo’s Pizza Frita down the street from their first venture. The new business is at 2300 E. Robinson…
Florida preparing to boycott Ben & Jerry’s, Unilever over decision not to sell in occupied Palestine
Florida continues to move closer to ending financial ties with ice-cream giant Ben & Jerry’s and its parent company, Unilever PLC. Ash Williams, executive director and chief investment officer of the State Board of Administration, said Tuesday he anticipates Unilever will be added to what is known as Florida’s list of “Scrutinized Companies that Boycott…
Florida objects to plan to fast-track school masks lawsuit to state Supreme Court
Attorneys for Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration say a lawsuit filed by a group of parents about school mask requirements should not be fast-tracked to the Florida Supreme Court. The parents filed the lawsuit in August challenging a July 30 DeSantis executive order aimed at preventing school districts from imposing mask mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic.…
UCF spring breakers witness and document asylum seekers’ plight in ‘A Break for Impact’
College spring break can be a mind-altering experience, no matter what you spend the week doing. For a group of UCF students, their 2020 trip was a true eye-opener. While Texas’ South Padre Island hosted its usual party influx, this group was 45 minutes away in Brownsville, at one of the more than 300 U.S.…
99-year-old Black park ranger Betty Reid Soskin sees American history as an ‘ascending spiral’ in ‘No Time to Waste’
Most of the National Park Service’s more famous offerings operate on a time scale that is beyond the comprehension of human minds. History is on display at Arches and Yellowstone, but it’s a matter of geologic time. Betty Reid Soskin’s role in the National Park Service has the exact opposite effect of staring at million-year-old…
Orlando concert picks this week: JMSN, The Winnie Blues, D. Smith, Danny Feedback
Yep, we’re all still in this mess, so protect yourself and mask up if go out. Danny Feedback: There’s nothing normal about anything that Orlando’s Danny Feedback does, and this show’s no exception. Like it did for many artists, the pandemic shutdown handed the iconic freak rocker a big chunk of free time to complete…
Savage Love: ‘I prove to myself how straight I am by teasing gay guys on Grindr’
Dear Dan: I’m a 26-year-old masculine straight guy who loves exploiting the fantasies so many gay men have about straight men. When a gay guy is into me because I look like his straight-masculine-jock dream, it’s a power trip like no other. It’s always a specific type of bottom gay dude I seek out when…
New releases from Orlando’s Galia Social, Delirious Kicks and Hesitant Waitress
If you haven’t been following prog rockers Galia Social, then you’ve got some catching up to do. At least to India, where the Orlando band have interestingly caught some fire, enough even to have been featured in Rolling Stone India in 2020. Galia Social’s debut concept album, Rise, has been out since last year. But…
Things to do in Orlando, Sept. 22-28: J. Cole, Front Bottoms, Martin Lawrence, ‘Book of Merman’
Orlando Weekly’s selections of the best stuff to do this week! Wednesday, Sept. 22The Front BottomsRescheduled after what seems like eons, New Jersey punk duo the Front Bottoms’ coast-to-coast U.S. tour is finally, finally happening with Oso Oso. The band will be busting out new material like “Lover Boy” and “Voodoo Magic” — which features…
A brand-new dim sum stop in Windermere, Hungry Crab comes to UCF, Rare Tea opens in Thornton Park
OPENINGS: Dim Dim Sum, a dim sum (duh) restaurant by former Chan’s Chinese Cuisine head chef Tony Yeung, has opened in the Grove shopping plaza in Windermere on South Apopka Vineland Road … Taste of Chengdu has reopened its Baldwin Park location for takeout orders only. No word yet on when the original location on…
Fast-rising pop-punk trio Meet Me @ the Altar got their start right here in Orlando
The floors are almost as sticky as the humid Florida air. It’s the summer of 2017, and a five-band bill is about to kick off at Orlando’s Uncle Lou’s Entertainment Hall. Guitarist Téa Campbell of Meet Me @ the Altar is preparing for the band’s live performance — while simultaneously working the door. It’s a…
Leo Bianchi’s sinuous, squiggly characters are the faces of this year’s Global Peace Film Fest
A 1974 pop single that could be the unofficial theme song of the Global Peace Film Festival asked plaintively, “What’s so funny ’bout peace, love and understanding?” At the 2021 iteration of GPFF, artist Leo Bianchi brings a dozen pop songs to visual life in service of the fest. Not that one, but still, it’s…
Orlando freak maestro Danny Feedback celebrates a triumvirate of new albums
Here’s a little secret for you, courtesy of Orlando Weekly: Local music iconoclast and showman Danny Feedback, renowned for raucous sets that involve over-the-top theatrics, costume changes aplenty, harrowing musical twists and turns, and confounding lack of concern for life or limb, prefers the studio to the stage. “I can’t do the stuff I used…
Streaming debuts this week: ‘The Starling,’ ‘Ganglands,’ ‘Star Wars: Visions’ and more
Premieres Wednesday, Sept. 22: Dear White People Vol 4. — In their final season, the kids put on a musical to depict what it’s like to be Black in America. It’s like the universe is producing a natural counterbalance to Legally Blonde. (Netflix) Intrusion — Freida Pinto plays a woman who suffers serious trauma after…
Orlando drive-thru haunt Scream n’ Stream is a witty, self-aware interactive dark ride
I first became aware of Halloween Horror Nights as a fledgling Universal Orlando employee in 1996, when I was assigned to hang lights for a haunted maze and instantly fell in love with the event. Since then I’ve been present for every milestone from Jack the Clown’s birth to Bill & Ted’s death, and attended…
Fire at Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando reveals that this is a cat-loving town
A massive fire broke out at the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando’s Conroy Road location last Wednesday at around 10:30 p.m., when the shelter was full due to the recent rescue of several animals from Hurricane Ida. Bodycam footage released by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office showed people carrying dogs and cats out of the…
Letters to the editor: $15 per hour is a joke in Orlando; September is Library Card Month
¶ $15 is a joke After reading an article in the Orlando Sentinel praising a local restaurant for raising wages — to $15 an hour for non-tipped work and $8 an hour for tipped work — our Alex Galbraith responded by asking, “When are we all going to stop falling for this?” He pointed out…
An oddball Texas musician runs a longshot campaign for city council in ‘Kid Candidate’
In 1979, Dead Kennedys singer and agit-punk legend Jello Biafra ran for mayor of San Francisco as an independent. Biafra’s campaign was built around his caustic, nihilistic humor and over-the-top pronouncements — all cars banned citywide, all businessmen required to wear clown suits within city limits. He finished third in a field of 10. Amarillo’s…
