February 2000 February 2 February 9 February 16 February 23 back to Archives home Volume 26, issue 13, February 2, 2000 NEWS 500 Words Grease Monkeys: Last week's U.S. Supreme Court decision highlights the kookiness of Oregon's inability to control money in politics. Lead Story Green Acres: In 1989 Nicky Miller and Rob Norvich bought 3.3 acres in Forest Park for $15,000. In April 1996 a Metro appraiser deemed it worth $37,000. One year later, after the agency ordered a new appraisal, the couple sold it to Metro for $168,000. Urban Pulse HAi-2K: In the final week of WW's contest, readers break out their poetic licenses to critique Portland culture. Urban Pulse Osho? Oh No! The Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh's international popularity has soared since his death 10 years ago. But in Portland--a mecca for alternative spirituality--his memory still carries a lot of unwanted baggage. Politics Cuffs With Those Fries? It's hard to have much sympathy for felons on the lam, but a local federal sting has left a bad taste in some folks' mouths. Crime & Justice No Bark, No Bite: Some Portlanders say it's time for a real citizens' police-review board. Letters "Little by little, people are beginning to realize that, regardless of hearsay, birth parents have not been promised confidentiality. " NewsBuzz Bible College Receives Large Donation | X-PAC Gears Up for the Elections| Murmurs | Site of the Week | Corrections | Wu-Tang Names for Everyone | A Suicide at Lincoln High | Geoff Thompson Update Scoreboard This week's winner and losers Rogue of the Week If the the folks at Portland French School are really so concerned about kids' safety, they have an odd way of showing it. LIFE Feature The Pore Farm: Why expensive facials are worth scrimping for. Bias Cut Wash & Wear Q & A Greg Pressler Shop Blonde on Blonde CULTURE Feature Midwestern Gothic: American Movie is a funny, inspiring and masterful sneak peek into the real world of scrappy Milwaukee filmmaker Mark Borchardt. The Nightcrawler Unfashionable Northwest Dinner Palace of Love Suey Chow's personals column Music Allah's Math Black History from the Underground Daydream Nation Goliath Has Two Daddies! Screen Preview Witch Hunt: Our correspondent survives long days and nights in the wilderness of the Sundance Film Festival. Dish Review Voulez-vous Bouillabaisse avec Moi? Winterborne goes French and offers more than enough reason to revisit the old Portland standby. Drink Saké Talk Miss Dish This week's food and drink events Performance Performance The Head Clown: After the pileup of Trailer Park Paradise, Carol Triffle returns to top form in Oh Lost Weekend. Volume 26, issue 14, February 9, 2000 NEWS Lead Story Car King : Judging by appearances, life couldn't be sweeter for Scott Thomason. But Willamette Week has learned that on several fronts Thomason faces problems that pose both a serious legal threat and a public-relations nightmare. Politics Emergency Action: A critique of the city's 911 center finds a host of problems at the top, but the agency's boss is refusing to go gentle into that good night. Politics About Space: Mike Burton and other agency officials take issue with last week's cover story. Religion Thou Shalt Not....The initiative to repeal Oregon's death penalty has brought together a coalition of religious leaders who have often been at odds in recent years. But not all believers are in the fold. Letters "Does Mr. Dawdy actually believe that there are no racists in Portland? Does he forget that an African immigrant was beaten to death with a baseball bat in this city by other citizens of Portland for being black? " NewsBuzz Food Stamp Recipients with Felony Warrants Ensnared | Mallory Hotel Strike Update | Murmurs | Corrections | Clarifications | The City Council's 'Moral Hygiene' Campaign | The Liberation Collective and Craig Rosebraugh | Metro-Active Agreement | Gift Club Legislation Scoreboard This week's winner and losers Rogue of the Week If history is written by the victors, Bill Sizemore is already thinking like a winner. Problem is, in his Roguish rewrite he missed some important details--such as, what actually happened. LIFE Feature D.O.A. (Dead On Art): There's nothing eerie about the latest card-trading trend. In fact, toe tags make lovely Valentines. Bias Cut Gourmet Gowns Q & A Lisa Steinman and Jim Shugrue Shop Prisoner of Love CULTURE Feature Blood & Ink: The renegade printers of the Stumptown Chappel make a stand for age-old craft and punk-rock cred. The Nightcrawler San Valentino's Brigade- to the Barricades! Dinner Palace of Love Suey Chow's personals column Music Profile Dear Nora, Circle One: [Yes.] [Absolutely.] Off-beat harmonies and candyland charm propel Dear Nora out of the cozy romper room of Portland's retro-pop scene. Allah's Math Love Is Love Daydream Nation Hi-Fi Blitzkrieg--Back and Badder Than Ever! Recorded Music Reviews of three new releases Screen Preview Going Global: The Portland International Film Festival is back, reeling movies in from all over the planet. Dish Review Big and Tall: The plus-sized Raccoon Lodge tests your limits. If you survive, you will return for more. Drink Mixes for Your Mojo Miss Dish This week's food and drink events Visual Art Feature Busy Town: Raise high the roof beam, carpenters! Everything old is new again at the Standard Dairy Building on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Volume 26, issue 15, February 16, 2000 NEWS 500 Words Who's Your Daddy? Lead Story How to Make a Monkey: On Jan. 13, Gerald Schatten, a biologist at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, created a rhesus monkey after splitting an embryo into four parts. Politics In Land We Trust: Metro's nonprofit partner in its green space program is taking good care of itself while it takes care of the earth, funding operations not through contributions but profits from its sales. Politics Team Schnitzer: One of Portland's most prominent citizens is working behind the scenes to drum up opposition to the city's plans for Civic Stadium. Letters "I was mayor of Gresham when Jenne Butte was purchased and Metro didn't even come close to paying more than it should have paid. " NewsBuzz Fumin' | Money Business | Murmurs | When You Finally See It | Cryin' Out Loud | Corrections Scoreboard This week's winner and losers Rogue of the Week Utility companies are such easy targets for criticism that it takes a lot for one to end up in our Rogues Gallery. Last week PacifiCorp made the cut. LIFE Feature WWBD: What Would Bette Do? Forget robotic dot.coms that say they know the answers. Talk shows? Please. Feminist mantras? Shove it. She may be dead, but Bette Davis is a timeless mentor. Bias Cut Surfing for Sales Q & A Wade Davis Shop Thongs CULTURE Feature Palace Coup: Russian fever hits Portland as the hotsy-totsy Stroganoff exhibition strikes the city center; the cultural scene starts to itch. The Nightcrawler Scarlet Burnside Nights Dinner Palace of Love Suey Chow's personals column Music Profile Young Pioneer: Gladstone High School senior Jed Wilson is that rare thing--a mature musician at 18. Preview Hope Rains Eternal: Indie songwriter Simon Joyner finds redemption in his own primeval American Gothic. Allah's Math To Whom It May Concern... Daydream Nation A Quiet Word With... Mechakucha Recorded Music Reviews of three new releases Screen Preview Lord of the Blue Lagoon: Danny Boyle's The Beach is a muddle of trite pretension, boring narrative and annoying music. Dish Review Hush-Puppy Hoedown: They may be for the dogs, but these fried cornbread fritters can be the food of the gods. We sashayed around town to sample what Portland has to offer. Drink Na Zdarovya, Tovarish! Graze A rotating guide to restaurants we like. Miss Dish This week's food and drink events Performance Stage Preview Not Quite Like Clockwork: Off-Broadway performance group Elevator Repair Service follows its intuition to take you on a total fictional ride. Words Words The Magical Mystery Tour: April Henry spends her mornings as a flack for Kaiser Permanente and her afternoons crafting fiction. Her latest mystery novel, published by HarperCollins, is sending her toward the fast track one lane at a time. BiblioFile Reviews of three new books Visual Art Feature Busy Town: Raise high the roof beam, carpenters! Everything old is new again at the Standard Dairy Building on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Volume 26, issue 16, February 23, 2000 NEWS Lead e-mail from a staggering genius: When Dave Eggers was orphaned at age 21, he took custody of his 8-year-old brother, Toph, and lived to write about it. He wouldn't talk to us on the phone, but we didn't really care. Urban Pulse Fire in the Belly: In the midst of an economic boom, Oregon's the hungriest state in the nation. Cassandra Garrison is fed up with the folks who are supposed to be helping the poor. Technology Tangled Webs: Don't look now, AT&T, but the race to provide high-speed cable Internet access is quickly getting crowded with competitors. Culture The Buchanans and the Baroness: Portland's smart set dresses up for some Stroganoff and gin. Letters " Free-speech rights of citizens must be protected. However, corporations are not citizens. " NewsBuzz Friendly Fire | OOPS! and OUCH! at City Hall | A Darker Shade of Gray | 400 Rubber Batons? | Murmurs | Want Some Cheese with That Whine? Scoreboard This week's winner and losers Rogue of the Week When Judith Ramaley left her job as president of Portland State in 1997 to take the top job at the University of Vermont, a lot of people mourned PSU's loss.But based on a scathing report issued earlier this month by Vermont Attorney General William Sorrell, we may want to count our blessings. LIFE Feature Sadie Hawkins Saves the Day: Still waiting for that phone to ring? Sorry, Valentine's Day was last week...but on Feb. 29 it's your turn to go out and get him. Bias Cut Underwear and Rock 'n' Roll Q & A Moshe Cohen Shop Suck on This: Cough drops and lozenges. CULTURE Feature e-mail from a staggering genius: When Dave Eggers was orphaned at age 21, he took custody of his 8-year-old brother, Toph, and lived to write about it. He wouldn't talk to us on the phone, but we didn't really care. The Nightcrawler The Stars are Out in Beaverton Dinner Palace of Love Suey Chow's personals column Music Review Dial "M" for...: Experimental outlaws Jackie-O Motherfucker take over Portland in the name of the weird. Interview/Preview Coming Correct on the Common Sense Tip: Everyone knows the 'burbs suck, but few have said it better than writer William Upski Wimsatt did in his underground manifesto Bomb the Suburbs. Now he's back with a new book--and a whole lot more to say. Allah's Math All-Star Weekend: Makin' It Happen Daydream Nation A Quiet Word With... Wolf Colonel Recorded Music Reviews of two new releases Screen Interview/Review He'll Go Down in History: Promoting his newest film, Reindeer Games, legendary director John Frankenheimer talks about 50 years of directing film. Dish Review Now that's Italian: Some dishes make it to Portland the hard way. Luckily, Marc Accuardi at Gino's knows how to roll up his sleeves. Prepare to share the folklore of the arrabiatta. Drink Beer and Brine Graze A rotating guide to restaurants we like. Miss Dish This week's food and drink events Dance Preview ¡Baila! The dancers of Ballet Hispanico don't just dance to Latin music. They revel in it. Visual Art Review Opulence Lost: Despite an excellently curated and displayed exhibit, Portland Art Museum's first really big show manages only a beautiful whimper.