Bruce Bratton hosts University Grapevine, linking local and campus issues, every Tuesday 7:30-8:30 p.m. on KZSC 88.1 fm.
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SAM FARR TELLS IT LIKE IT IS. Sam spoke to a loyal bunch of Democrats at the monthly meeting of The People's Democratic Club last Thursday 2/23. He had a lot to say. He said it's worse than it seems in Washington. It's an un-intellectual administration in the White House and they never talk to Congress. He says Bush has absolutely no creative ideas, and that the White House has decreed that there will only be 60 days of work this year for Congress...that's a total of sixty working days!!! Bills will not be heard, it's a Red versus Blue war in Washington. There's no Democrat power in Washington because Republicans control everything. News media won't cover Democrat meetings, because Republicans control the effectiveness of those meetings. The elected Democrats don't seem to be saying anything against the administration and their actions, again because the press won't cover Demos due to the lack of effectiveness Demos have about getting anything done. It was pretty depressing. But then Sam got historical and talked locally about how Santa Cruz City and County turned from red Republican to blue Democrat territory when Julian Camacho in 1974 almost got Don Grunsky out of Washington, then Leon Panetta actually did it later. We also got rid of Assemblyman Frank Murphy (R) (who was responsible for the Fish hook curve) and at least we still have mostly Democrats representing us.
STUDENTS AGAINST WAR FUND DRIVE. This (S.A.W.) is a UCSC student organization and has over 150 members. They want to raise funds so they can attend a massive anti-war protest in San Francisco Saturday, March 18. It's a good cause and you need to know all the details, read David Espinosa's message here.
SOCIALISM AND SANTA CRUZANS IN CARACAS. Ruth Hunter and ten other Santa Cruzans went to Caracas to attend the Social Forum of The Americas last month. Read Ruth's full story.
OUR TROUBLED TIMES. I haven't read "They thought they were free" by Milton Meyer yet, but you can read excerpts on Buzzflash's site. Subtitled The Germans 1933-1945, it tells how Germans thought they were free in 1933 and goes on in scary detail how similar those times were to what we are now experiencing. Click here http://www.buzzflash.com/hartmann/05/11/har05011.html and just browse a bit, see what you think.
PROOF THAT DOGS CAN READ...
Courtesy of Barney Bricmont, we now offer picture proof that dogs can read.
GARY PATTONS WEEKLY KUSP PLOTS...in his words.....
Will the voters get their right to vote on the Monterey County General Plan Initiative? We will find out tomorrow! Tuesday's Land Use Report discusses a possible lawsuit against UCSC, based on violations of the Federal Clean Water Act.
The state's proposed infrastructure bond measures don't follow the state's own planning guidelines. Find out more on the Land Use Report. Learn about the PCL Environmental and Legislative Symposium, to be held in Sacramento on April 29th.
Find out how you can get out into the most spectacular environment on the Central Coast by volunteering with the Big Sur Land Trust.
MUSIC FOR THE MEDICI COURT features the UCSC Chamber Singers, Friday & Saturday, March 3 & 4. UCSC's advanced choir is joined by members of the UCSC Early Music Consort in a special program of theatrical and polychoral music from the Medici court of 16th-century Florence. Nina Treadwell directs and performs on Baroque & Renaissance guitars, Renaissance lute, and theorbo with guest artists. Presented by the UCSC Music Department. 7:30 pm (doors open at 7:00 pm) Music Center Recital Hall, UC Santa Cruz $10 general, $8 senior, $6 student UCSC Ticket Office: 459-2159
Purchase online: http://events.ucsc.edu/calendar
DOUBLE TROUBLE HITS SURF CITY. Musics by Stravinsky, Crossman, Scelsi, Scoville, and Christian Wolff will be performed by The New Music Works Saturday March 4 at 8 p.m. at the First Congregational Church 900 High Street at 8 p.m. Kurt Rohde and Ellen Ruth Rose will be guest violists, and the New Music Works Ensemble will be conducted by Phil Collins. Tickets at Streetlight Records or at the door go to http://www.newmusicworks.org for the full story.
ROBERT PAGE LIVE. Anybody who knows Robert Page knows he manages to make great stories out of anyplace or anything he does. He's bringing his slide show to the Del Mar at 11am on Sunday, March 5. You'll hear about Asia, and it's for free. He's told me a lot already and you don't want to miss this.
AN EVENING OF INTERNATIONAL MUSIC & DANCE. Big evening of rock and roll, folk, opera all happening Wednesday March 8th. It's for free and in UCSC's Cowell Dining Hall, click here for Miriam Ellis' full details.
SUZANNE WESTENHOEFER COMEDIENNE is coming to town, Friday, March 17, 8:00pm at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. Tickets are on sale at the SC Civic Box office, 831 420-5262. Tickets are $25 in advance (subject to service charge) and $30 at the door. Tracye Lea Lawson sent an email telling all about this absolutely great lesbian comic. I heard her last year because I didn't know what lesbians thought was funny, and I'm not telling you, you have to see and hear for yourselves. Go see Suzanne, she's hilarious. Read about her here!
HALIDA DINOVA CONCERT. If you like Scriabin's piano works don't miss Dinova's concert at Cabrilho Saturday night 8p.m. March 11. John Orlando's Distinguished Artists Series is the Presenter. Halida will be playing some Bach, Saint Saens, Debussy, Chopin and half the concert will be the much under appreciated Scriabin. Go here for full details on Halida and tickets.
SOPRANOS WEBSITE. I'm more than aware that the new, and next to last, Sopranos series returns a week from Sunday night (3/12). The reason I said next to last, is that I went to the Sopranos official HBO website and there's a statement by director David Chase or James Gandolfini that there's a possibility of doing a short 6-8 episodes mini series sometime in the future, after this new season. Here's the website: http://www.hbo.com/sopranos/?ntrack_para1=feat_main_text.
HBO ON DEMAND. You can get past Soprano episodes if you subscribe to HBO. I'm just learning how to navigate to HBO On Demand FREE MOVIES, it's more difficult than most computer gymnastics. I did figure out how to see The Purple Butterfly for free and.... when I wanted to see it!! Butterfly stars Ziyi Zhang, China's most beautiful star (Crouching Tiger, Hero etc.), and she plays it with none of that whiteface makeup. She is an amazing actress (old term). The Purple Butterfly directed by Lou Ye (2003) is about Japan's invasion of China in the 1930's. It has almost no dialogue and is worth watching when you have 2 hours and 7 minutes. Yes, you can pause it, but it's not easy to learn how. Let me know how and if any of you have mastered the technique.
THE THREE BURIALS OF MELQUIADES ESTRADA. This is nearly a painful film to watch. Painful because you can see and sense what Tommy Lee Jones wanted to create when he both directed and starred in it too. He attempts a near mythic story and it's a near miss instead. It could have been a contender, and truth be told it is a contender in this year's Independent Spirit Awards (see below) for best feature, best cinematography, (Barry Pepper) best supporting male, and for best screenplay.
FREEDOMLAND. Samuel L. Jackson and Julienne Moore both manage some serious and good acting in their part of this film which is about child kidnapping. But there's a second plot about a race riot which is stuck onto this thriller which is ridiculous. They could have attached a Martian attack, or spelling contest, and it would have made just about as much sense..avoid at all costs (especially admission & popcorn costs).
RUNNING SCARED. Every year I urge film enthusiasts to see which films their favorite critics say should win the Oscar. Then check and see if you liked those films as much as they did. Running Scared should never win anything, and I liked it very much. But this is one film you can really use to check out your critics attitude and taste. Mick LaSalle of the SF. Chronicle loved it, Chocano of the LA Times hated it, San Jose Mercury liked it, it only got a 38% on RottenTomatoes.com and some out of town reviewer gave it an F in the Sentinel. The debate on Running Scared will go on forever, about it being a serious Tarantino-Hong Kong attempt or, is it a mess not worthy of deciphering? I think it's a Sin City graphic novel, with wild and crazy Korean Japanese action a great driven-but-nuts plot. Go, for fun only.
4 CRITICS LIVE. One last mention... that we four film critics, Sentinel's Wallace Baine, Good Times' Lisa Jensen, TVs Cinema Scene's Morton Marcus and I will hold forth in tag team critiques on 1) which OSCAR nominees we think should win, and 2) which ones we bet will win. It's free at NOON at the Nickelodeon, Saturday March 4. Voice your opinions too, and we'll all have a good time. You know of course, that the OSCARS are on Sunday.
SARAH SILVERMAN LIVE. Attention Film Fans...please watch the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards this Saturday March 4 at 2p.m. on the IFC channel. It's live from a huge white tent on the Santa Monica Beach. John Waters emceed it for years and this year Sarah Silverman will emcee. Add to that a vodka company usually sponsors the show so every table has a bottle, or two or three. The acceptance speeches are historic and memorable and every star who's in Hollywood for the Oscars on Sunday will be at the INDIES. Learn about those other films that make a mockery out of the OSCAR candidates, learn what kind of films are made NOT for money. If you miss the IFC 2p.m. broadcast, tune in at 9pm on IFC or again at 10 p.m on AMC if you don't get IFC channel. Go to http://www.ifc.com/ifctvflash/SpiritAwards2006/legacy.html , go to "Legacy" then to "20th Anniversary Special" to watch a wild crazy, drunken, hilarious Ally Sheedy say everything you always wanted stars to say at award shows. You either know and love Sarah Silverman, or it's just simply that you haven't heard her yet. It's possible that her humor could offend you if you have any ethnic background or sexual identity at all but other than that, she's marvelous.
DOWNTOWN FARMERS MARKET... HEADS UP. The great news about this week's crop at the Downtown Farmers Market will be lots of local tulips. Even more news than that is that Swanton Strawberries are here and so is the Hog Farm asparagus which should be excellent. North Coast artichokes, avocados, and lettuces are also appearing. But watch out about avocados because if that cold snap continues the avos will cease - get 'em now. I asked manager Nesh Dhillon why there aren't any organic Brussels sprouts...he said it's very hard to keep pests away, but maybe in the future we can have some. I was telling him about how old timers from Davenport back in the '70's would tell me about the superior Evergreen, Jade and other varieties of sprouts they grew there before those damned machines took over.
QUOTES. "If you don't go to other people's funerals, they won't go to yours." -Clarence S. Day. "Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months." -Oscar Wilde. "Never in the history of fashion has so little material been raised so high to reveal so much that needs to be covered so badly." -Cecil Beaton. "I'd hate to drown. You look so awful afterward." -Alan Ayckbourn.
Deep Cover
Bruce critiques films every Friday on KZSC-FM (88.1) on The Bushwhacker Breakfast Club at 8am.
It's free! Click here.
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LAST WEEK'S DELAY. Thanks to you folks who volunteered to help correct the delay in getting last week's Bratton Online...online. The way it works, or should work, is that I assemble, write, edit, peruse and sweat out everything on my handy-dandy little Dell Computer. Using Windows XP and Pentium (R)4cpu with 768 MB ram by sometime every Monday. I email it all to GodmomasForge.Com, she (Gunilla) then goes through all kinds of maneuvers to get all the materials I send her (photos, letters, cartoons etc) up and running. That's the complex part. Gunilla tells me that last week's problem happened when someone was checking whether her printer was properly plugged in, and her monitor suddenly went black and there was a fizzle and the unmistakeable smell of fried computer component... It was quickly determined that it wasn't the monitor, but some other part deep inside the bowels of her computer which took longer than desired to get fixed.
Gunilla adds that it's nice to see that so many of you are paying attention. I'll just be glad when Bill Gates gets this whole thing figured out.
HOME DEPOT. Advance troops from Home Depot are grilling, goading, and pushing our Santa Cruz City Council to determine where they stand on opening a third new Home Depot in our county on the Westside where Lipton's used to be. Check out Home Depot's shady development history on various websites. They have been known to open many stores in an area, keep them all open long enough and keep the prices low long enough to wipe out all local competition. Then they close down their own stores that don't bring in the biggest bucks leaving just one or two Home Depots to do all the remaining business for miles around. It's cold, cruel and disastrous to any local economy. Home Depot has had an incomplete application on file for over a year to open this third store. It too could be a huge issue during the next City Council race.
TIM EAGAN. And the Consequences of Truth. As per usual, scroll down and check out our area's most dangerous cartoonist.
SAM FARR TO VISIT LONDON NELSON COMMUNITY CENTER. The People's Democratic Club has invited Congressman Sam Farr to their monthly meeting which will be this Thursday, February 23 at 7:30 p.m. There will be a Q&A. Hopefully we can find out why we aren't hearing any gutsy statements from our Democrats. It'll be at The London Nelson Community Center.
STATE SENATOR DEBRA BOWEN versus BRUCE McPherson. This Saturday (February 25) we have two opportunities to meet State Senator Debra Bowen. She's running against Bruce McPherson and is endorsed by John Vasconcellos, John Laird, Yvonne Braithwaite Burke, Mike Honda, Joe Simitian, Don Perata, Sheila Kuehl, Mark Leno and many others we all respect. She'll be at The Live Oak Grange from 10 am to noon (1900 17th avenue) with the Democratic Women's Club. Then she'll be at The Veteran's Hall (846 Front Street) for Santa Cruz County for Democracy from 1 to 3 p.m. Let's get this Democrat elected, and stop the toady Schwarzenegger Republican kissy poo politics we have. Check out Debra Bowen, read her long list of endorsers, see what she stands for besides getting McPherson to tell the truth about the voting machines and all their flaws that he recently endorsed. Voting machines that can decide our elections for us. http://www.debrabowen.com
GARY PATTON'S CHECK LIST. Read all about the following from Gary's KUSP daily reports. There was an important hearing Feb.21 in Pacific Grove, on offshore oil drilling. Will there be new fees for developers, to deal with regional traffic impacts? Find out about how we can meet our water needs through environmentally positive water conservation strategies. Senator Debra Bowen will talk about "reforming" the initiative process Saturday Feb. 25 from 10:00 to noon at the Live Oak Grange.
GENE RUSCO ...FOUND!!! Gene Rusco is a longtime friend who worked at many radio stations around the Monterey Bay. He and I co-hosted a Town Clock New Years Eve Celebration back around 1976 (with no permits). Gene went on to greater things and became staff announcer at KGO radio (my old stomping ground) he was there for years. He quit and became a Recreation Vehicle traveler for many more years. I lost track of him and only today located him (via internet) selling mortgages in Rosemount, Minnesota, he's remarried and happy and says hello to all his old friends.
JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL. It happens Feb. 26, March 5 and March 7. Mostly the Festival will be in Room 450 on the Cabrilho College campus. Ten or more films and you can get all the details here http://www.tbeaptos.org/events/Film_Fest.shtml .
A PERFECT MOVIE (DVD). I finally found and saw a perfect movie. It's completely interesting, beautifully edited, no extraneous material, flawless acting, critics call it a polished gem, exquisite, superb, artful and elegant, and it's all of that. It'll probably never even be distributed on big screens in the U.S. No sex, no violence, no blood, not creepy in any way, no nudity either, and only 75 minutes long. It's about a lonely guy who falls in love...that's all you need to know, trust me. It's from a short story once in the New Yorker by famed Japanese writer Haruki Murakami and the film is called TONY TAKITANI. It does have subtitles (yellow and quite readable) it's directed by Jun Ichikawa, music by Academy Award winner Ryuichi Sakamoto. It was made last year (2005). Nope, I'd never heard of it either. Cedar Street Video, East Cliff Video, and Video 9 in Boulder Creek all have it, Netflix may have it, I wouldn't know, and Westside Video does not have it. But please watch it, and let me know what you think...I want to see if we're on the same page, because I've never called a film perfect before. Late breaking news....Tony Takitani has been nominated for Best Foreign Film by the Independent Spirit this year!!!!
AN EXCELLENT FILM (DVD). Controversial film director Catherine Breillat made such films as Fat Girl, and Romance made Brief Crossing in 2001. Brief Crossing is an absolutely excellent film. It may have some minor faults but check it out anyway. It's about a young boy and an older woman on an overnight ferry ride. Once again, Cedar Street Video (next to the Bagelry) has it...as soon as I return it.
FINAL DESTINATION III. This re-hacked mess of a scary teen age movie is actually funny in spots. The roller coaster car coming off the tracks will have Boardwalk customers thinking twice, but our Boardwalk's Giant Dipper is made of wood unlike the metal monster in the film. The mysterious deaths in the film are almost Rube Goldberg in the way they happen. Don't go unless you're a teenager who likes stupid movies.
NIGHT WATCH. A waste of time, and your money. This is Russia's' top grossing film and they already have part two out and it's playing on the big screens over there. It proves that Russia wants to produce big money making films just like every other country. This is a bucket of blood, Goths, cheap CGI effects, video gamery, and anything else they could think of to draw young audiences with money to burn. It's a saga of Dark Forces versus Light forces; my advice is avoid the dark...stay outside the theatre where it's light.
HEART OF GOLD. It's a guide on how to film a concert performance by Jonathan Demme. It's also a heart felt tribute to Neil Young, who had a serious operation. If you like Neil Young, and most people do, by all means go see it.
ILLUSION. The same goes for Kirk Douglas fans, if you like Kirk Douglas, then go see Illusion. It's sort of a fairy tale and it is weird and Kirk Douglas does show many remains of his stroke, so go warned.
THE WORLD'S FASTEST INDIAN. Considering Anthony Hopkins' amazing range of roles, this is one of his best. He plays a New Zealand geezer who, against all odds, and wait until you see the odds, takes his 1920 Indian Twin Scout motorcycle to the Bonneville Salt Flats to set new records. A feel good triumph, do rent it.
OSCAR PICKS. Film fans need to remember that Saturday March 4 is also the Independent Spirit Awards ceremony direct from the tent on the beach in Santa Monica.
Go to their website to see the real contestants in film talent at 2 p.m. http://filmindependent.org/spiritawards.html . The other event that Saturday will be the four film critics annual gathering at the Nickelodeon at 11am to tell you what we think should win of those films that the Academy nominated. Morton Marcus (Cinema Scene) Lisa Jensen (Good Times) Wallace Baine (Santa Cruz Sentinel) and yours truly will spar, and maybe spare, each others opinions and listen to yours too. It's free and good fun...if you like movies or wonder why others do.
LA BOHEME IN SAN JOSE. There are just two more performances (Feb. 24 and 26) of Puccini's La Boheme at the San Jose Opera. I saw and heard last Sunday's (02/18) performance, and it was right up there with the best of them. Soprano Deborah Berioli as Mimi was amazingly strong and pure, she's sung here with The Santa Cruz Symphony. Bass Carlos Aguilar's Colline had some middle tones that sounded wobbly, and Rodolfo as sung by Christopher Bengochea lacked some power and those comments detract nothing from a fine time at the opera in the San Jose Opera's new and beautiful Opera house. Get full information at http://www.operasj.org
QUOTES. Scott MacClelland sent these musical gems. "The English may not like music, but they absolutely love the noise it makes." -Sir Thomas Beecham. "It is sobering to think that when Mozart was my age he had been dead a year." -Tom Lehrer (written a long time ago). "Clarinet, n. An instrument of torture operated by a person with cotton in his ears. There are two instruments worse than a clarinet - two clarinets." -Ambrose Bierce.
Deep Cover
Bruce critiques films every Friday on KZSC-FM (88.1) on The Bushwhacker Breakfast Club at 8am.
It's free! Click here.
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EMPTY BEDS AT UCSC. Many folks have jumped up, and of course down, saying that UCSC should build more student apartments. Stop jumping. The truth is that as of last Wednesday (02/08) the UCSC Housing Office reported that there are now 546 student vacancies. We've been hearing that there are 400 vacancies, it's really 546. In a recent UCSC student discussion about these vacancies I was involved in, the students were in complete agreement that it's simply they can't afford to live on campus. So let's lay off the "build more units" for now, and get that much accursed administration to reduce the costs that are passed to the students. 546 students moving out of houses in Santa Cruz would do a lot for available rentals.
LIVING WAGE ISSUE. Joe Marini president of LOBA (Locally Owned Business Association) sent an email about LOBA's $20,000 study of what the effects of passing a minimum wage law would be in Santa Cruz. It also lists the 47 locally owned businesses and the Goodwill Industries of Santa Cruz who joined in to buy this survey. Read it here.
POLICE SPY REPORT. Rico Thunder says this about the Santa Cruz Police Department clearing themselves of wrong doing when they spied and lied on the planning of the "last night" celebration... "This really is serious - civil liberties and the exercise of constitutional rights are on the line right here at home, in Santa Cruz, right now". He urged everybody to attend last Tuesday's City Council meeting and in another email stated... "We have presented a strongly worded policy from the San Francisco PD as a model and asked that action at least as strong be taken here in Santa Cruz!!" Rico wrote in the Indy Press "The police department will try to ram through the council a hastily-assembled one-page policy that provides no protection for people's rights. The proposed policy gives the police the right to monitor any group in which the group or any member of the group plans any illegal activity. This gives the SCPD the green light to monitor any type of civil disobedience, as well as peaceful groups like Guerilla Drive-In, SC Peace Coalition, the 418 Project, Bike Church, or the Last Night Parade if they felt that any member of the group planned to break any laws. This new policy is in the internal investigation report and has the thumbs up of Chief Howard Skerry and City Manager Dick Wilson. Say No, to Big Brother. Keep cops out of our homes."
WHAT...NO COWARDLY LION? 
Long time friend, sound archivist and Brooklyn resident Doug Pomeroy sent in the contribution to your right.
TRANSAMERICA. Please see Transamerica, it's a wonderful film about family values. The Academy should also cancel this year's Best Actress Award immediately and just give it to Felicity Huffman tomorrow. You never take your eyes off her and never stop reading more and more meaning into each scene she's in. An amazing performance and an equally amazing film. What a fine film year 2005 was. I agree with you that there sure are a bunch of junk films out there so far this year.
FIREWALL. I wouldn't know a computer firewall from a fireplace but some geek types said laughingly after leaving this hacked up film, where was the firewall?? None in this film, they said. There wasn't much of anything in this Harrison Ford virus of a movie. Even Virginia Madsen's smiling blonde presence didn't help. I must admit that I had also watched Takashi Miike's IZO (2004) film the same day. It should be illegal to compare any film to IZO. It's on DVD and Cedar Street Video has it. IZO is a little Wagner, Ingmar Bergman, Frankenstein, Kurosawa, all mixed together.
THE PINK PANTHER. It's worse than the reviews, and yes, it was the number one box-office film last weekend. To watch Steve Martin, Jean Reno, and Kevin Kline's talents be so thoroughly wasted in this film is sad. What's worse is that you keep remembering Peter Sellers and Herbert Lom and how perfect they were in the earlier films. Don't even rent it.
EPITAFIOS. Bulletin...Warning...have you seen HBO's Epitafios yet? DO IT. DON'T miss any more episodes. It's on Wednesday nights at 9 pm. Epitafios is a 13 week series, filmed in Buenos Aires, Argentina by HBO, originally for their Latin America network. It was so successful HBO moved it to HBO Latino, it was even more successful, and then they moved it to HBO Signature. It's been described as a film noir serial killer murder mystery that grabs you like a book. I think you can get all the 10 back episodes with HBO On Demand too. Just watch one chapter; you'll get hooked on it.
LA MAFIA EN LA HABANA. A documentary film from Cuba about the pre-revolutionary reign of the Mafia in Havana. This incredible period is revealed through interviews with people who worked with mythical figures such as Meyer Lansky and Lucky Luciano. Rich and famous Americans flocked to the lavish resorts and casinos. Historical film clips show how life was good for those at the top of the social order. The film tells how all this ended with the revolution, and the repercussions from the Mafia for losing their empire. Thursday Feb 16, 7:00 pm, at the Santa Cruz Live Oak Grange, 1900 17th Ave. from the email by the event sponsors, Cuba Study Group of Santa Cruz County. Call 465-8272 for info.
DOWNTOWN FARMERS MARKET. I buy lots of broccoli at the Downtown Farmers Market, and it has never been as sweet and tasty as it was last week. I ate most of it raw, it's fabulous. Then again not only were we fooled by the weather, but so were tulips and they looked splendid. Check them out this Wednesday, along with the flowers and all the hot house goodies. Lettuce is great and crunchy, and if market manager Nesh Dhillon's predictions go correctly, asparagus will be here in a week or two.
MOUNT RUSHMORE AND THE KU KLUX KLAN. I never knew until I read Bernard–Henri Levy's new book Vertigo: Traveling America in the Footsteps of de Tocqueville, that John Gutzon Borglum, the architect of Mt. Rushmore was a member of the Ku Klux Klan. He later broke with the Klan, but never completely renounced his anti-semitism or his ideas of the superiority of the white race. Mount Rushmore was not named after some big hero but was named after a lawyer who bought land in the area for an American mining company. Mt. Rushmore is located in the heart of the sacred American nation. That's almost verbatim from page 64 of Vertigo.
PATTON'S KUSP LAND USE REPORT. Read it here. Gary now writes his own descriptions of each report, and he says, "Find out the latest about how the Monterey County Board of Supervisors is trying to turn rural agricultural lands into luxury home sites. Read about the upcoming highway construction at the "Fishhook" in Santa Cruz. The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency has a new manager. He, and we, face enormous challenges. An initiative to increase environmental protections in the Santa Clara County General Plan is now being circulated. Find out more! Find out how to get a job in the environmental movement at a San Luis Obispo Environmental Careers Symposium."
EARL JACKSON'S FREE UCSC FILM NIGHTS. Wednesday night (15th) you should see Save the Green Planet. One of the funniest and sharpest films I've seen in years. Directed by Jang Jun Hwan, it's a South Korean masterpiece of satire and outrageous silliness. It's at Merrill College Academic 102.
Tuesday night (22nd) you can see Masumura Yasuzo's 1966 Red Angel. It's the end of Earl's "National Insecurities" series and is at Baskin 101. These films are free and open to the public, with lively discussion to follow.
QUOTES. "When St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland, they swam to New York and joined the police force." -Eugene O'Neill. "Canada is useful only to provide me with furs." -Madame de Pompadour. "Nebraska is proof that hell is full and the dead walk the earth." -Liz Winston.
Deep Cover
Bruce critiques films every Friday on KZSC-FM (88.1) on The Bushwhacker Breakfast Club at 8am.
It's free! Click here.
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MINIMUM WAGE-LIVING WAGE. We haven't heard 1/1000th of what's coming to us on this issue. Watch and see which sides the new City Council candidates take on this. Watch and see if Councilperson Ed Porter keeps waffling on it. It's hard not to do a knee jerk progressive humanitarian reaction. It's easy too to say it's all based on the high cost of housing in Santa Cruz, and let's work on subsidizing that housing. Is it a case of workers values versus CEO's values? Or is it entrepreneurs (small business owners) 60 hour work weeks, and what they live on compared to the number of their employees? What to do about wait persons at restaurants and their tips? Will it mean an influx of workers coming here because of high wages, if it passes? Owners outsourcing work away from Santa Cruz to other County locations because it's cheaper to produce? Be sure to read Jon Gertner's article "What Is A Living Wage?" from The New York Times Jan. 15, 2006; you can access it here http://www.santafelivingwage.org/media.html . Read what has happened to Santa Fe since voting for Minimum Wage, read the legal battles, read what has happened in other cities. I signed the petition to get it on the ballot, it needs discussing, and it needs clarity, before we decide. Let us hope the slinging is kept at a minimum.
THE SANTA CRUZ POLICE SPYING SCANDAL. Click here to read an email from Rico Thunder. Rico tells the long term problems we have with our police acting on their own, and the status of the so called investigation that is being carried on headed by the police themselves.
THAT FUNNY SENTINEL. Widening Highway 1 was and is one of the most serious and sadly, one of the most divisive issues in our county. We have voted not to widen it, and have urged officials many times in the last decades to seek other ways to improve Highway 1 traffic conditions. The Santa Cruz Sentinel in a rare moment decided to do what they call a survey on widening Highway 1. They don't say it's funny, and I'm guessing here but, I'll bet they don't use the results in a funny way. Go to http://www.santacruzlivebattle.com/phpQ/fillsurvey.php?sid=16 and see what choices the Sentinel gives us readers to vote on the much beleaguered problem. They'll probably miss on this year's Pulitzers...again.
[Editors note: looks like they've canceled that poll. Hmmm... some cybersleuthing revealed the results, here: http://www.santacruzlivebattle.com/phpQ/stats.php?sid=16&st=a&vw=a ]
GARY PATTON'S WEEKLY REPORTS. Read Patton's Reports on Desalination plant planning in Monterey, about mixed use projects, child care homes on Ag land, Home Depot in Capitola, URBAN INFILL, and about his job at PCL in Sacto.
TIM EAGAN DRAWS AGAIN. See Eagan's take on the Hamas in Palestine, take a scroll down below.
THE REAL LA BOHEME..LIVE!! The San Jose Opera is presenting Puccini's La Boheme from Feb 11-26, in their new home, the very beautiful California Theatre in downtown San Jose. This is the real La Boheme complete with costumes and all that Paris in 1840 stuff. There are few operas with as beautiful, hummable music as La Boheme. The California Theatre is half the size of the San Francisco Opera house so the experience is more intense. If you haven't seen many or any operas, or even if you've seen La Boheme 20 times, this will still be a new thrill. Go to http://www.operasj.org for dates and tickets.
SPEAKING OF OPERA TICKET PRICES. Folks ask about the price of opera tickets a lot. Operas are not cheap to produce. Costumes, sets, artists' fees, and especially the wages for the musicians in full opera orchestras are expensive. Rarely do I near about prices for rock star tours being too expensive...but they are. The average Rolling Stones tour ticket in 2005 was $133.98. U2 2005 tour average ticket was $96.92. Paul McCartney's 2005 average tour ticket was $135.46. Remember too that Celene Dion and Barry Manilow were top draws in Las Vegas in 2005. She grossed $81 in 2005 and was the third highest, Manilow grossed $22.7 million. Those figures are from an Associated Press story in the Chronicle last December.
SOME INTERNET NEWS SOURCES. Long time friend Marv Kaplan asked for some internet links for news other than the networks or CNN. I use www.buzzflash.com , www.commondreams.org , www.alternet.org , www.tompaine.com , www.democracynow.org and many more nearly religiously. I've included dozens more alternative news sites in these online columns, and welcome more of your favorites. I'll include them and archive them on a separate page. So send them and don't assume others will beat you to it...thanks.
WHITE COUNTESS. This is the last of the costume period piece films from the Merchant Ivory team. Merchant died in 2005, and while they made some epics, and even some important additions to the cinema hall of fame, this isn't one of them. Even with three Redgraves; Vanessa, Lynn and Natasha Richardson in the cast along with Ralph Fiennes, it still doesn't work. Howard's End, Remains of the Day, Room with a View - all Merchant Ivory productions - were excellent films. Countess has such a poorly linked script with so many undeveloped subplots that are not carried out that you leave the theatre sort of numbed. Fiennes uses a shaky American accent, Natasha's Russian accent also slows up things. Still, film fans have to see this film, but don't expect Merchant Ivory excellence.
SOMETHING NEW. Ah yes, another daring coupling movie!! This one is a light comedy about a black woman who's a big time executive achiever falling in love with her white landscaper. It certainly isn't funny like Dorothy Parker, nowhere near Neil Simon's cleverness or Guess Who's ...etc,etc. but it does have something. You could rent it and save some money.
WHEN A STRANGER CALLS. This film does manage to be scary, but old time jumping cats, trees-banging-on-the-house-type scary. The guy doing the scaring is some nut killer of teen age girls. You never see him until the end so the plot is pointless, and yes I've tried to ruin this film, so you won't go. You'll thank me later.
SHAKESPEARE CLASSES...FREE!! Don Young and Jeff Towle will be leading their Shakespeare play study group starting at 10 am February 18 at the Aptos library. It's free and meets 4 Saturdays (Feb 18,25, Mar. 4, 11). We discuss the entire play Troilus and Cressida (Pelikan paperback edition) it's good fun, everybody welcome, and bring your friends. Call 662-0302 for info.
GRAND ILLUSIONS. (I repeat this because you shouldn't miss it). It's a MAGIC SHOW. Jacob's Heart Children's Cancer Association has been doing great afternoons of magic for 3 years now. This year Mickey Magic and LA Legend The Amazing Jimbo will team up to perform two shows, one at 1pm and another at 3:30pm. On Sunday, February 12. They'll be at the Aptos Academy Theatre, 1940 Bonita Drive in Aptos. Jimbo and Mickey both perform illusions, and will even do a floating woman (Levitation), which you just don't see magicians do much anymore. Call 831-477-0690 for tickets or probably at the door. It's for a good cause and it's the best magic we have in the area.
EARL JACKSON'S TUESDAY UCSC MOVIE. On Tuesday Feb.14 at 7pm Earl's showing Madame Freedom (1956) dir. Han Hyeon-mo. This is a Korean melodrama/women's film and one of the most important ones in Korean Cinema. It's about a professor's wife who takes a job selling western fashion and wanders into adultery and autonomous choices. New Tuesday screening location, it'll be in Baskin Lecture hall 101. Free, open to the public with discussion to follow
EARL JACKSON'S WEDNESDAY UCSC MOVIE. Part of Merrill College's Pacific Edge film series, it'll be Wed. Feb 8, at 7p.m. in Merrill Academic 102. The film is Dead or Alive. I'm guessing that it's Takashi Miike's 1999 freak out perverse thriller that Elvis Mitchell of the NY Times disliked so much. There are other Dead or Alive films too.
SANTA CRUZ CHAMBER PLAYERS. Stephanie Gelman flautist and director of the Santa Cruz Chamber Players presents Flute Gems of the 20th Century this Saturday, Feb11, 8p.m. & Sunday Feb12, 3pm. Stephanie along with Mike Bautista guitar, Polly Malin viola, and Susan Bruckner on piano will play musics by Prokofiev, Piazzolla, Durufle, and Faure. Their concerts are all at the Christ Lutheran Church, 10707 Soquel Drive, Aptos. Tickets at the door go to www.scchamberplayers.org for more info and for news on the rest of their season.
GARRISON KEILLOR VS. BERNARD-HENRI LEVY. Is Garrison Keillor a Francophobe? Bernard-Henri Levy said he is at the Capitola Book Café last Sunday night. On a book tour, the French author, philosopher, and activist had the audience in his hands as he detailed his thoughts on the America that he wrote about in his new book American Vertigo. Then the question was asked what about Garrison Keillor's wildly vicious attack in the New York Times? Go here http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/29/books/review/29keillor.html?ex=1296190800&en=f45b6b60925ee6f7&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss and read it. If you have the time, go read several reactions to Keillor's piece, online. I can tell you that the Capitola Bookcafe audience (me included) applauded and appreciated Levy's love for America and would have voted him President that same night if we had a chance.
QUOTES. "Always remember the poor, it costs nothing." -Josh Billings. "I'm very brave generally," he went on in a low voice: "only today I happen to have a headache" -Lewis Carroll. "No problem is insoluble, given a big enough plastic bag." -Tom Stoppard. "The lion and the calf shall lie down together, but the calf won't get much sleep." -Woody Allen.
Deep Cover
Bruce critiques films every Friday on KZSC-FM (88.1) on The Bushwhacker Breakfast Club at 8am.
It's free! Click here.
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BIG TIME LOCAL SUCCESS STORY. Film director VALERIE FARIS, who is the daughter of Paula and Jim Faris (residents of our fair city), received not just a standing ovation for her new film at The Sundance Film Festival last week, she and her long time partner Jonathan Dayton also sold the distribution rights to their film for the highest price ever paid at Sundance, the munificent sum of $10.5 million dollars!! That was after an all night bidding session between big studios with the winner being Fox Searchlight Films. The film is Little Miss Sunshine, and stars Steve Carell, Greg Kinnear, Alan Arkin, Toni Collette, and Abagail Breslin as the 8 year old beauty contest hopeful. Valerie and Jonathan have worked around Hollywood for years. They directed commercials, did music videos for Red Hot Chili Peppers, REM, and Smashing Pumpkins in the old days. After producer Marc Turtletaub put up the money for Miss Sunshine and after completely finishing the film, even after some very tricky re-editing, the film sat on Focus Features shelves for years (which I'll bet Focus is sorry for). As you may guess by the cast, Little Miss Sunshine is a comedy, and it's about a dysfunctional family taking a road trip with Miss Sunshine to enter another pageant.
THAT DARNED INTERNET. Just Google or go to the politically correct search engine of your choice (I still like Vivisimo), with a headline of your choice. I was seeking late breaking, or old breaking, news on The World Social Forum. Don't bother searching various sites or newspapers you know about for news that probably isn't there. I found African news sites, Canadian sites, new UK sites just trying to get daily reports on that series of three World Social Forums. Cindy Sheehan received some press when she joined the Forum in Venezuela, but you'd think that with over 100,000 people gathering in three international locations and meeting with Hugo Chavez, that there would be more press but no. See next paragraph re we "entertained Americans". Chris Boland found some exciting news about that World Social Forum <-- click there
ABOUT CANADIAN POLITICS. Try reading this left wing Canadian take on the latest votes in Canada, and the meaning of liberal up there. http://www.rabble.ca/politics.shtml?sh_itm=a990a0637b4ae967f26b29f3055dcee8&rXn=1& It is amazing how little is in our printed press about this election. Someone just said "Americans are the best entertained and the most uninformed people on the face of the earth".
KRXA 540 AM, A genuine relief. If you're tired of Michael Zwerling, and the way he and his Mom run KSCO you need to know about KRXA. Peter B. Collins spoke at last week's Peoples Democratic Club. He had a lot to say about KRXA AM. He and Hal Ginsberg are the two local owners of the new (six months), progressive radio station that has studios in Sand City. To get the entire picture go to www.krxa540.com . You'll get their complete broadcasting schedule. Santa Cruzan Paul Sanford has a political program there every Saturday at noon. To have progressive radio on AM is rare, tune in and stay up to date. Peter B. Collins is informed, opinionated and even funny; don't miss him weekdays 3pm-6pm. That's 540 way on the left of your AM dial.
GARY PATTON'S REPORTS. Read Gary's reports this week about Rancho San Juan and Monterey's general plan, read about Pismo Beach working on Granny Units, read about the San Lorenzo River and what Lompico Creek does to it...get a better understanding of what Inclusionary housing projects are about.
FAREWELL ART DANNER. I can't imagine anybody who obeys the law who won't miss Art Danner. I first met him when we were next door neighbors on Calvin Drive up in the Nobel Court area by UCSC back in the early 70's. We swapped lawn tools and home carpentry hints over the backyard fence. He worked hard every year at the Grey Bear's Christmas Dinner and we always had laughs over the good old days. A just and fair guy, we won't see his like again.
MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS. Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins have never played comedy as well as they do in this film. And, you'll rarely see more topless displayed than in this film and it's all for fun. It's a more or less true story behind (and plenty of behinds in this film too) London's nude musical vaudeville theatre The Windmill. You need a laugh, we all need a laugh, and there is no reason to think while you watch this fine, non classic, comedy...don't miss it.
NANNY MC PHEE. Emma Thompson has rarely (well, never) looked as ugly as she does in this strange Mary Poppins type film. It lacks the cleverness of Narnia, or some other recent children's films, but you'll stay awake, if you try...or if you believe.
IMAGINE ME AND YOU. A really cute, cute British film about same sex love. Can a woman who is very straight ever fall in love with the woman who owns a flower shop? Yes is the answer. Another Hugh Grant type comedy, with absolutely no point whatsoever, but there are a few laughs.
ANNAPOLIS. We need a national, no, international quota system to prevent more films like Annapolis being allowed in public. This is the kind of film Bush probably screens in our White House for his special friends. It's all about some poor guy who works as a shipbuilder trying to make it at Annapolis Naval Academy. It has some of the worst most computerized boxing scenes in years. Do NOT see this film, unless you like George W. Bush.
JAPANESE DEVILS. You will never be able to se this shocking and necessary documentary. The closest you can get to experiencing it is to go to http://www.midnighteye.com/reviews/japdevil.shtml . It's a documentary involving 14 former Japanese soldiers (now in their 80's) telling how they tortured, raped, experimented on, looted and nearly everything you can imagine every soldier doing during war since they invented war. These men served during the 30's and 40's when Japan attacked Manchuria and China. To hear and watch these courageous men tell their stories forces you realize what the realities of war really are. Earl Jackson jr. screened it last Saturday at UCSC. He told of the death threats to the film makers from contemporary Japanese who don't want to hear about what went on. Those atrocities happened in Mai Lai and are happening in Iraq, they'll always happen when you send innocent troops out to fight wars. You can't see this film (that I know of) because no one will release it, or distribute it in the USA... and it's only been shown once in Japan. Just read the review.
EAGAN RIDES AGAIN. Watch how Tim Eagan takes on outsourcing, the religious right, and the Monoplay man all in one strip...scroll down, just in the rare case you don't scroll down here every week.
MAGIC SHOW WITH ILLUSIONS. Jacob's Heart Children's Cancer Association has been doing great afternoons of magic for 3 years now. This year Mickey Magic and LA Legend The Amazing Jimbo will team up to perform two shows, one at 1pm and another at 3:30pm, on Sunday, February 12. They'll be at the Aptos Academy Theatre, 1940 Bonita Drive in Aptos. Jimbo and Mickey both perform illusions, and will even do a floating woman (Levitation), which you just don't see magicians do much anymore. Call 831-477-0690 for tickets or probably at the door. It's for a good cause and it's the best magic we have in the area.
TATTOO OF THE YEAR. Dixie Rutherford sent in the one on your right and claims it wasn't meant personally.
AN ALMOST BUMPER STICKER. It was almost too small to be seen but I saw on little sticker on a black VW from Marin that said, "I poke badgers with spoons". I'm sure it has special meaning if you live in Marin. I looked up badger in Wikipedia, and if you do that too you'll see why you should "never call a badger a Bishop". You could also learn what's behind the expression, "badgering the witness".
CHARLES IVES QUOTED. Scott MacClelland saw this quote in the KUSP studios "Intimidation has not turned back one transcendent thought or one valuable idea from going where it was destined to go, and doing what it was destined to do. It may be temporarily delayed, or its species may revert only to propagate in a related form, but brute force (the world's greatest idiot) has never kept the germ from its divine order. A black eye never reformed a drunkard, a czar never stopped a free thought." -Charles Ives
EARL JACKSON'S TUESDAY FILM. This is director Eric Khoo's dark comedy "Mee Pok Man" and love and action takes place in a noodle shop. Free, normal people invited and it's at 7p.m. in Thimann Lecture Hall 1 (not 3), UCSC.
EARL JACKSON'S WEDNESDAY FILM. You can see, for free, a film called, "Farewell China". Maggie Cheung is in it and some folks from mainland China come to New York City. It presents a new way of looking at NYC and their attempts to merge. That'll be in Merrill Academic 102 which is right behind the Merrill office and a little to the left, second floor. 7p.m., public invited...free, free and discussion afterwards.
QUOTES "Good morrow, Benedick. Why, what's the matter, That you have such a February face, So full of frost, of storm and cloudiness?" -Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. "I bought some batteries, but they weren't included." -Steven Wright. "Smoking is one of the leading causes of statistics." -Fletcher Knebel. "Outer space is no place for a person of breeding." -Violet Bonham Carter.
Deep Cover
Bruce critiques films every Friday on KZSC-FM (88.1) on The Bushwhacker Breakfast Club at 8am.
It's free! Click here.
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