People & Places

Investigative reporting requires both a lot of money and time, which is why so many stations are cutting back on it these days. But Channel 7 spared no expense with 33 Minutes to 3-4 Right, a half-hour special built around Denver Health's shockingly slow response to the December 2008 crash of Continental Flight 1404; the first ambulance took more than half an hour to arrive. Correspondent Tony Kovaleski and producers Arthur Kane and Tom Burke were given a big canvas, and they filled it ably, proving that local TV can still make a difference even in fiscally challenging times.

Jill Hadley Hooper and Hugh Graham are two of this town's least-toxic assets, artists and entrepreneurs who've helped change the aesthetic landscape of the city. And in honor of Denver's 150th birthday, Graham and Hadley Hooper (who was included on Denver's list of 150 unsung heroes released last November) presented this town with a real gift: buckfifty.org, a website that celebrates the city's past and present. According to the buckfifty manifesto, "Denver has pulled its ass out of the fire any number of times. Whether it was the flood of 1864 (or 1965), the silver crash of 1893, the great depression, the oil bust of the eighties, or countless other struggles, Denver and the people who live here have reinvented themselves through community, art, and story." Anyone is welcome to submit a contribution to buckfifty, but better hurry — when it gets to 150 posts, the site will become a permanent time capsule.

Most of the new construction in LoDo apes the look of the original buildings there, but a few refer to the neighborhood's character more subtly. A triumph of this second, more sophisticated approach is the SugarCube, developed by Urban Villages and designed by the Toronto-based firm of KPMB (Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects). The site, right on the 16th Street Mall, is a sensitive one; the venerable 1906 Sugar Building by Gove and Walsh is right next door. While the details of the SugarCube are chicly neo-modern, KPMB created a buff-colored brick volume to visually associate the new building with the old one next door, and the SugarCube brick matches the Sugar Building brick. But that's just the beginning: The SugarCube also has the same sight lines at the roof, and its windows follow the older building's fenestration pattern. The SugarCube is not just the best addition to LoDo this past year; it's the best new building in many years.

When you enter the birthdates of Bill Owens and Ward Churchill into the free "Compatibility Report" at www.cafeastrology.com, it's clear that these two will never get along — unless they cross a significant barrier. For starters, the former governor's Saturn squares the former professor's Uranus to create distinct times when they will inevitably argue about restrictions of freedom (in Denver District Court, for example). Ward's Mercury doesn't feel free to express his ideas and is intellectually stifled by Bill's Pluto. Still, they share a trine in Mars that indicates an odd attraction to one another. So instead of footing the bill for a court case, fiscally responsible Colorado taxpayers should be seeking the services of a couples therapist for these two lusty Libras. If properly trained, Bill and Ward might experience the joy of mutually stifling one another — thereby releasing the rest of us.

John "Whip" Wilbur isn't just a DJ at Indie 101.5. In addition to hosting the morning show, the veteran jock serves as the station's music director and its most energetic booster, even fighting with the outlet's new ownership group to buy enough time for word of mouth to build. His love of the music and the daring mix he's assembled come through loud and clear with each syllable he mutters. At a time of struggle for terrestrial radio in general, he remains a true believer, and his passion is infectious.

The road to the 2008 Democratic National Convention was paved with freebies. Free meals, free parties, free stuff, free bags to hold said free stuff. Of course, 99 percent of it was useless (the windmill lapel pins given out wouldn't even look good on Al Gore), but there was one display of killer, if temporary, swag: a thousand free bicycles, courtesy of the Freewheelin bike-share program organized by the convention host committee, Humana Inc. and Boulder-based Bikes Belong. Thanks to the crowds and the beautiful weather, the slick new green bikes were the coolest way to get around. In fact, the city was so taken with the idea that it plans to unveil a similar bike-rental program this summer. That's change we can believe in.

"Elegance" isn't a description usually associated with a TV anchor's coiffure. "Bet you could bounce a quarter off it" is far more common. But every time she appears, 7News anchor/reporter Theresa Marchetta classes up the set. Although her tresses appear to have been tastefully tinted (only her hairdresser knows for sure — but she has twins, and has earned any gray), they flow naturally, with none of the plasticized sheen favored by so many of her professional peers. Talk about delivering the news with style.

Kyle Clark's cut is multi-dimensional. When he's on assignment, the hard-charging correspondent's mop looks mildly mussy yet still under control. Think of it as Action Hair that perfectly complements those Jake Gyllenhaal eyes. In the studio, however, his 'do — enhanced with a little product — exhibits unexpected complexity, with its waves and ripples suggesting a particularly fashionable topographic map. Destination: cool.

And our guess is it smelled bad...

After the oil crash of the 1980s, it took two decades for new high-rise projects to begin appearing again in downtown Denver — and now that mini building boom is going bust. Given the current economic climes, the few buildings nearing completion could be the last of their type for quite a while. The most promising of the group is 1800 Larimer, a project of Westfield Development. As planned by the Denver architectural firm of RNL Design, the building will rise 22 stories and be topped by a penthouse with a striking butterfly roof. The exterior walls will be distinctive, too, covered in a Mondrian-esque pattern with deep-blue glass panels. But this building isn't just about looking good; it's also been designed to be as "green" as possible, with the plans already LEED-certified. This high-rise should be a stunning addition to the downtown landscape, and since over 70 percent of it has been pre-leased, it's likely to actually get finished.

We weren't the only ones blown away by Killing for Coal: America's Deadliest Labor War, the very first book by Thomas Andrews, an assistant history professor at the University of Colorado Denver. His account of the events surrounding the 1914 Ludlow Massacre — in which the Colorado National Guard stormed a mining colony, resulting in the death of twenty people, including eleven children — was a stunning debut, full of insight into the role of labor and class not just in southern Colorado, but across the country. Andrews's efforts were recently recognized with the Bancroft Prize from Columbia University, the top American history award.

Back in 1908, the Democrats trucked in piles of snow to amuse delegates to the Democratic National Convention. A century later, the best entertainment inspired by the 2008 Democratic National Convention may leave a more permanent legacy. Celebrate 1908 was a two-day, multimedia festival of political and historical flashbacks that brought the issues and arguments of 1908 back to the Tivoli Turnhalle on the Auraria campus in late July. Technically a benefit for Auraria Casa Mayan Heritage, an organization that commemorates the Latino community that centered on the Casa Mayan restaurant, Celebrate 1908 was a true celebration of the people whove contributed to the melting pot of Denver over the past century.

It looks like this fireplace escaped from the family room of some 1970s sitcom in search of a better life, then stopped to grab a smoke (because that's what fireplaces do) at the southeast entrance to Addenbrooke Park. That's not the real story, of course. This park was once home to a pioneering family for more than a century. Patriarch (and geologist) Tom Everitt built the original house, complete with a fireplace incorporating rocks from every state and some foreign countries, as well as Native American artifacts that he found on the property. The City of Lakewood acquired the site in 1987 and tore the house down in 1997, but kept the fireplace as a park centerpiece. After all, home is where the hearth is.

When Channel 2 merged with Channel 31, Ernie Bjorkman got the heave-ho. But he had something that other jettisoned anchors, such as 9News's Bob Kendrick and Channel 31's Steve Kelley, didn't: a great story. Seems Bjorkman had been preparing for life after television by studying to be a veterinary technician — a career transition that landed him in a story in the New York Times and a segment on 20/20. In fact, he received far more national publicity for leaving TV than if he'd stuck around.

Employees at the Rocky Mountain News did not learn that their February 27 issue would be the tabloid's last until around noon on February 26. This didn't give them much time to prepare their swan song, even though months earlier selected staffers had started preparing the 150th-anniversary tribute edition, which they'd hoped to publish on April 23. Somehow, though, the final issue of the almost-150-year-old Rocky managed to capture the paper at its best, from compelling history to excerpts from long-gone columnists to a back page listing the current employees. It's a testament to these journalists' professionalism and dedication that the Rocky went out at the top of its game.

In February, Ms. Malkin returned to Denver to take part in a rally at the State Capitol against President Barack Obama's economic-stimulus bill. To emphasize the amount of pork in the measure, she assembled sloppy pig's-flesh sandwiches for hungry supporters with her bare hands — how hygienic! — in between posing for photos with Swastika Guy, a protester sporting a sign with the Nazi symbol inside the first letter of Obama's last name. She subsequently suggested that Swastika Guy was planted by progressives to embarrass her — but she didn't really need any help.

Fox News contributor Michelle Malkin, a conservative from the really old school (think Genghis Khan), currently calls Colorado Springs home. But she ventured north for the DNC, little knowing that her visit to a Re-create 68 protest outside the Denver Mint would lead to a bizarre confrontation with Alex Jones, self-proclaimed leader of the 9/11 truth movement. "Shame on you, you little monster! You little fascist piece of trash!" he shouted, to the disinterest of assembled police and the discomfort of Malkin, who eventually ran away, Jones in hot pursuit. What a perfect couple.

There were many great moments for Denver during the 2008 Democratic National Convention. But we have to admit that none were as deeply memorable and satisfying as the second we were actually able to plop our collective asses into the plastic seats of Invesco Field at Mile High to hear Barack Obama's historic acceptance of the nomination, exactly 45 years to the day after Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. And it wasn't just because we'd survived an insane, two-mile-long line in the August heat to get into the stadium. It was the realization that, after almost two years of planning, Denver had made it through the gauntlet of security checkpoints, the clogged roadways and the throngs of protesters, and emerged as something new. As Obama stepped onto the stage, the world finally saw the Mile High City we've known all along.

Marilyn Megenity's Mercury Cafe is a Colorado institution, beloved both inside and outside of this state. It's also a no-brainer for a left-leaning catalogue of American collectives, co-ops, eco-conscious and alternative businesses, think tanks, coffee houses, favorite leftist anthems and restaurants for locavores, but we were still happy to see that The Nation Guide to the Nation mentions Denver's long-lived, free-thinking hippie outpost not once, but twice. Lauded for its rooftop windmills, organic fare and alternative politics, this Mercury is still rising.

It's not law — not yet — but Colorado ASCENT, the bipartisan legislation sponsored by state senator Suzanne Williams and representatives Mike Merrifield and Tom Massey, and heartily endorsed by Governor Bill Ritter, is well on its way to becoming the most welcome new law this legislative session. It would establish a statewide concurrent-enrollment plan that gives students an opportunity to earn a college associate's degree while finishing high school. It will also replace several different, and often debated, plans in school districts around the state with a single, uniform program. Let's just hope the kids don't get too much education; they might start questioning how such a bipartisan group ever came up with such a wacky name. For the record, ASCENT stands for Accelerating Students through Concurrent ENrollmenT.

We may not like his position on House Bill 1299, which would pledge all of Colorado's electoral-college votes to the presidential candidate who wins the state — but otherwise, we're with Democrat Joe Miklosi all the way. For years, he worked behind the scene, as state director for Progressive Majority, as director of the Democratic State House Caucus for then-Speaker of the House Andrew Romanoff; as chief of staff for then-House Minority Leader Jennifer Veiga; and as a health-care legislative aide for U.S. Senator Howard Metzenbaum. Last year, he decided to run for office himself, and the candidate who bills himself as "not your average Joe" handily won in his south Denver district. In the Statehouse, he's proved himself above average, pushing for such measures as online voting registration and in-state tuition for illegal immigrants — even going on Peter Boyles's show to debate the issue. Now, that takes cojones.

Every Friday for years, 9News morning anchor Gary Shapiro has shared an upbeat message with viewers: "Congratulations, you made it through the week." But given the state of today's economy, this slogan is more timely than ever. Thanks, Gary. We needed that.

Not so long ago, the conservative Face the State site regularly battled such well-funded liberal blogs as Colorado Media Matters and the Colorado Independent. But whereas CMM recently shut down and the Independent has been hampered by a significant downsizing, Face the State is scrappier than ever." Brad Jones's creation churns out fresh, original content at a rapid clip, with some items displaying an actual sense of humor — a rarity in political blogging. No wonder lefties have found it difficult to put many marks on this Face.

Like most reality shows, CNN's Freshman Year features a contrived premise that should stir up tension and drama. Here, it's two totally different members of the House of Representatives going about their daily lives: Representative Jared Polis, the openly gay, extremely wealthy Boulder Democrat, and Jason Chaffetz, a conservative Utah father of three who sleeps on a cot in his congressional office to save money. The show is filmed by the congressmen themselves, using shaky handheld cameras, and highlighted by bad sound, weird music and unbelievably boring plot lines. And yet, as with other reality shows, once you start watching, it's difficult to stop staring. In episode 5, Polis zooms in on the blisters on his feet, a moment that beats his munching of soggy tacos from Episode 4 for pure TV magic, while Chaffetz leg wrestles Stephen Colbert and lists to the songs on his iPod. We can't wait to see what happens — or doesn't — next.

While far too many radio formats have been described as "unique" over the years, the sonic blend offered up by Indie 101.5 truly deserves the descriptor. Music director Whip — our choice for Best DJ in Denver — juxtaposes many of the most interesting current modern-rock acts (the kind that scare off most stations) with alterna-cuts that haven't had all the life sucked out of them through overplaying. The combination is as fresh as it is intelligent. Full disclosure: Indie 101.5 was smart enough to tap Westword's music editor for a regular Wednesday-night show.

By its very nature, Radio 1190, the University of Colorado at Boulder's station, has a very fluid staff, with DJs coming and going at various times of the year. But despite these frequent changes, 1190 has some important constants. The vast majority of hosts are more interested in exploring the variety of independent sounds being created today, as opposed to focusing on the most predictable or heavily hyped stuff — and instead of phonying up their presentations, their straightforward talks comes from the heart. That's giving it the old college try.

The 5,000-square-foot house on the corner of Champa and 26th streets was once the pride of the Curtis Park neighborhood, a circa 1880 Queen Anne-style home that was one of the largest Victorian-era houses in the city. James Mathews, an ore and bullion broker, was the first owner; Isaac Gotthelf, a merchant and legislator, bought the place in 1890. Over the years, though, the home deteriorated into a warren of tiny apartments inside and a horror show outside, its mansard roof crumbling. Colorado Preservation Inc. bought the property last year and started a massive renovation project in January — a project that's already brought twelve jobs to the historic neighborhood, and will be a real landmark.

Although Tom Tancredo is among the most recognizable Republicans in the state, that's not why we're encouraging his candidacy. No, he's the right-wing man for the job because he'll say just about anything, any time. Unlike most politicians, he doesn't have a mechanism for preventing ideas sure to generate controversy from popping out of his mouth at any moment. For that reason, Tancredo's candidacy would make for one of the most twisted yet entertaining campaigns imaginable. Could he win? Dunno — but it'd sure be fun watching him try.

The most important asset for a successful politician — especially these days, when there's not much money to buy popularity — is an appealing vision that inspires constituents. Failing that, a good pol should have a funny name and a prop-comic's ability to perform in television commercials. John Hickenlooper rode into office on the success of his scooter campaign, then won Denverites' hearts and votes by acting opposite a parking meter in a second hit commercial. Although many local critics panned his follow-up performance in the "Oversized Foam Alphabet Bond Issue Election," Denver's mayor pressed on, snow shovel in hand, to star in a public-service announcement that took his commercial career out of the deep freeze. Unlike Hickenlooper's other starring roles as a celebrity dork, in "Senior Scooper" he played an average dork who saved a senior citizen's day with one push of a shovel and a snow-eating grin. If only it were always that easy!

The last depression wasn't all bad news. Thanks to the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Denver area reaped the benefits of several federal projects, including Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Hundreds of New Deal laborers worked to create a stage and seating in this stunning setting; the amphitheatre, finished in 1941 and improved periodically since, is legendary with artists around the world. Less well known is the role of the CCC workers at Red Rocks — but their contribution is remembered with a statue at the entrance to the Visitor Center.

Primary 9News sports anchor Drew Soicher did Rod Mackey a big favor a few years back. He decided that he didn't want to work on the weekends, leaving Mackey the chance to take charge on Sundays, the biggest sporting day of the week. Still, credit Mackey with making the most of the opportunity. He's developed into a strong, solid on-air presence, with a good sense of balance that keeps the focus on sports instead of shtick.

Sports yakkers tend to be ghettoized, as if their chosen subject automatically makes them less worthy than peers who gab about hard-news happenings. But Sandy Clough transcends the genre. He's a rigorously analytical thinker who's not interested in dumbing down his commentary to make it more understandable for average Joes and Janes. Rather, he works under the theory that sports fans are smarter than their reputation and deserve a smarter brand of conversation. If only more sports specialists played the game his way.

The Center for Native Ecosystems is located in the heart of LoDo, at 1536 Wynkoop Street, but from there it keeps an eye on all of the Southern Rockies, working to save endangered plants and wildlife. The organization just turned ten, and as a celebration of its first decade, it launched "From Where I'm Standing: Perspectives on Conservation in the American West" on its website. Every day for thirty days, the site will post a new essay by one of thirty residents of the West, residents who just happen to be some of the best authors and leading environmentalists in the region. So far, we've heard from everyone from photographer John Fielder to Golden mayor (and former CNE head) Jacob Smith, with still more to come. Judging from this site, clear thinking is far from endangered.

Those Vitamin Cottage Natural Food Market commercials have made the children of company founders Margaret and Phillip Isely into local celebrities. But TV viewers may not be as familiar with the family-owned food store's historic home in Lakewood. While not officially recognized by the Lakewood Historical Society, a large sign announces the significance of this clapboard cottage: It's where Margaret realized that selling vitamin supplements could make for a successful enterprise, and renamed her existing bulk-food business Vitamin Cottage. Today there are 33 stores keeping Colorado healthy.

To put it mildly, Adam Schrager, who spends most of his on-air time reporting about politics for Channel 9, doesn't look like a typical TV host: He's got a hangdog face and often doesn't seem to have a total mastery of combs. But on Your Show, his public-affairs program on 9News's sister station, Channel 20, his plain-spoken, anti-slickster presentation only enhances his credibility. He's an accessible everyman, not to mention the perfect antidote for too much happy talk.

Natalie Tysdal is more than just a warm and welcoming personality as adept at banter as she is at delivering the headlines. Along with partner Tom Green, she's also largely responsible for saving her station's news programming. The weak ratings generated by Channel 2's late newscast probably would have led to plug-pulling after the outlet merged with Channel 31. But the popularity of Tysdal and her morning crew helped convince management to keep the department around. And that's good news for everyone.

Sure, morning newscasts feature headlines and breaking news — but the best of them also provide information in a way that will prevent grumpy viewers from jumping off the nearest bridge. Channel 4's morning crew — anchors Brooke Wagner and Tom Mustin, supplemented by forecaster Stacey Donaldson, traffic expert Lynn Carey and valuable new addition Gloria Neal — accomplish this goal better than most. They exude warmth and humor without allowing it to curdle into cutesiness.

Because Channel 20 draws from the same well as Channel 9, its 9 p.m. newscast features many of the same stories as its sister station — an hour earlier. That's not the only advantage, though. The headline-fest generally teams weathercaster Kathy Sabine with fresher faces, like Bazi Kanani and Shawn Patrick. And because sports isn't on the regular agenda, there's more time for news, which is delivered briskly and in five fewer minutes. Sometimes, every second really does count.

We all know that weather forecasts are merely educated guesses. But the most effective prognosticators are able to make viewers feel otherwise — and Chris Dunn, in particular, offers shelter from the norm. His smooth, affable delivery cuts through the jargon, allowing him to impart key information in the most user-friendly way possible, and he exudes a quiet confidence that lends weight to his predictions. There are no guarantees in the weather biz, but Dunn makes it seems as if there are.

In 1859, thousands of fortune-seekers braved the perils of the plains and joined the Rush to the Rockies, hoping to find a brighter future in the gold camps that had sprung up overnight in the western stretches of the Kansas Territory. Many of these prospectors turned back before they even saw the mountains; still others discovered just how tough it was to pull a living wage from the streams and gold mines, and instead settled in the little towns cropping up along the Front Range, including Denver. Exactly 150 years later, Denver's seeing tough times again. What better way to commemorate our hardscrabble past than to dress the panhandlers who beg at busy intersections in frontier duds, replacing their cardboard signs with pans that they can shake for gold, silver and other non-toxic Colorado assets.