Gossip Should Have No Friends

[December 13th, 2006] BUNNY HOP If Scoop were the betting type, our money would be on the fact that more hipper-than-thou upstairs Doug Fir regulars are going to find out from Playboy magazine that the bar's basement is a damn fine "rock club" than by actually having set foot in the music venue itself. Indeed—for better or worse—"upscale rock haven" Doug Fir was deemed one of the 10 best rock clubs in the country by Hef's sacred men's mag this week...though we've seen nary a "liberated" boob in the joint. We're still waiting on Penthouse's top 10, but our money's on a good showing for Food Hole .

SOUTHEAST SWANK Is inner Powell slated to be P-town's new nightlife hub? As reported on WWire, restaurateur Rafael Rodriguez hopes to lure out-on-the-towners to his new upscale, "New York-style" restaurant, Blue Dragonfly (1195 SE Powell Blvd., 234-2585), opening within the next two weeks. With valet parking, Northwest fine dining and a bi-level contemporary space that involves two waterfalls (!) and a downstairs VIP lounge, Rodriguez aims to make biz types feel "welcome and important." Whether the restaurant, in an odd corner between Clinton and Sellwood, will draw crowds away from the Pearl seems dubious, but at least Southeast residents will have somewhere to go where the furniture all matches.

CARMEN COMIN' It hasn't been publicly announced, but Scoop's heard that mezzo Jossie Perez , one of opera's up-and-coming bad girls, has been tapped to play the ultimate girl gone wild, Carmen , in a major production for Portland Opera's 2007-08 season . Perez performed a few supporting roles at the Met but was abruptly given the boot from the company during a production of Gounod's Roméo et Juliette in 2005 (word has it that she didn't bother to learn her music before the first rehearsal). Perez, an avid partier with an operatic bosom, will be joined by recent Faust star Maureen O'Flynn, playing the virginal Micaela.

18 AND STRIFE Although we hear Axl & Co. were "killer" during Guns N' Roses ' sparsely attended Monday-night Rose Garden appearance, the highlight of the night belonged to opener Sebastian Bach . The former Skid Row frontman may have fleshed out his rail-thin frame—he looks to be pushing 130 pounds now—but you can't accuse him of growing any more brain cells to accompany his legendary hair farm. His best moment was easy to pick out: screeching to the stunned Rose Garden crowd, "What's up Portland, Ore-gone! What?! Are you GAY? Show me some Tits! Tits, tits, tits, tits, TITS!!! Fuck YEAH! "

^WEB-ONLY SCOOP

FIELD TRIP Will we be seeing you? WW is hosting its first-ever open house today, 10 am to 4 pm Wednesday, Dec. 13. Come down to 2220 NW Quimby St. and gawk at Pulitzer Prize winner Nigel Jaquiss in his natural paper-strewn habitat. Do it now.

PAGE TURNERS Portland novelist, publisher and erstwhile ripe events honcho Matthew Stadler is $50,000 richer after being honored by United States Artists, a recently formed nonprofit headquartered in Los Angeles. A co-founder of Clear Cut Press, Stadler is the author of novels Allan Stein and The Sex Offender (as well as a co-organizer of the 2003 mega-art-show Core Sample). Stadler is joined by Portland-based multimedia artist Dmae Roberts, who also joins the $50k club. Best known for her explorations of biracial identity and her contributing reports on National Public Radio, Roberts is also known for her collaborations with visual and conceptual artist Damali Ayo. Stadler and Roberts are among 50 artists nationwide to receive the grants, which were awarded during a gala celebration Dec. 4 at New York's Lincoln Center.

WHAT YOU MISSED ON WW'S LOCALCUT.COM THIS WEEK Follow the rumor mill's confirmed ruminations that Dead Moon is breaking up...Casey Jarman isn't the only one writing about Portland hip-hop: check out "The Run-Off Groove," a blog by John Book, who praises the local scene in a recent entry...The proud nerds of The Gnome Sorcery Federation explain how a love of D&D led to their fabulous band name, plus more use of the word "ensorcelled"..."Friendly, Friendly World" pays a visit to Junkface bassist Ryan Bjornstad's mom's house to see his Pez-dispenser collection...Tour diaries from former BNoftheW-ers Shredosaurus Rex...And MP3s from Norfolk & Western, Point Juncture, WA, and more!