A John McCain Attack Ad I Can Get Behind

The John McCain ad starts out with images of America in 1968, the so-called Summer of Love, and moves halfway across the globe to tell us that he was gettin’ busy with some hot-and-steamy love of country back then. Of course, he ended up in a Hanoi Hilton and was…

Handicapping Big Brother 10

CBS’ reality series Big Brother starts its 10th season this Sunday, July 13, with a whole new cast of housemates. And this year, they’re claiming that the show is returning to its roots: no stunt casting, no Z-list celebrities, no ex-lovers, no estranged siblings. Nothing other than a brand-spanking-new group…

End Is Near for Three-Ring Circus at Plus

Ivar Zeile, owner of Plus Gallery, has described his aesthetic vision as being “eclectic.” But looking at the three exhibits there now, all of which will end their runs on Saturday, July 12, that’s something of an understatement. Not only do the artists each work in a different medium, but…

World Naked Bike Ride Takes Off in Denver

It’s time to take off your clothes and get on your bike. Yeah, that’s right, Denver’s second ever World Naked Bike Day ride through downtown, takes place this Saturday. Perhaps you didn’t hear about last year’s ride? Well, you can check out our “coverage” of it here. And we plan…

Oh, Henry! A Rewarding Night of Theater Awards

The big news at the Henrys on Monday, July 7, was that John Ashton, known for rambling jokes about each winner and routine insults to the critic-voters, wasn’t hosting. Instead, the Buntporters — Erin Rollman, Erik Edborg and Brian Colonna — were there to, as they explained, “hip things up,”…

The Uninspiring AM Radio Dial

The July 9 move of KCFR, Colorado Public Radio’s news-and-information outlet, from 1340 AM to 90.1 FM opened up a pre-set on the dial in my sweet 1994 Geo Prizm — and I’ll be damned if I know what to do with it. I have twelve FM pre-sets, and giving…

Be A Loser

I have a confession to make: I’m secretly obsessed with NBC’s The Biggest Loser. I really don’t understand it … as a general rule, I’m not a big fan of reality television, but there’s something about that show that keeps bringing me back again. And again. And again. I held…

Artist’s Revelation of Hoax Kills Press Conference Coverage

Representatives of Re-create 68, Denver CopWatch and other activist groups can’t be too happy with the artist who punked them with a flyer and e-mail message pretending to threaten violent retribution against protest groups at the Democratic National Convention — the subject of this July 10 More Messages blog. There…

The Crush get Crushed, but Kristy Lee Cook Wins Big

John Elway may be an owner of the Colorado Crush, but the Arena League football team still doesn’t get much respect. The Crush, led by veteran quarterback John Dutton, were crushed 64-51 in a July 5 playoff game by the San Jose SaberCats Although it’s unlikely anyone in Denver noticed…

Artist’s Prank Punks Re-create 68, Other Activists

The attached flyer is far from subtle. The screaming slogan “WE BEAT YOU THEN! WE’LL BEAT YOU AGAIN!” appears over two images — one of a police officer outfitted in riot gear (he looks like an extra from Rollerball), the other featuring footage of helmeted cops facing off with a…

The Westword.com Blog Shortcut, July 10 Edition

Allow us to help you navigate Westword’s sector of the blogosphere. Backbeat Online is led by another tragic story for local music fans — the death in Las Vegas of former Angellic Rage frontman Paul Stitt, who was killed during a botched robbery in Las Vegas, where he was living…

NPR Resurrects the Colorado Bridge Troll

Remember Boulder’s Robert Hibbs (pictured), who earned an odd brand of renown as a bridge troll? National Public Radio didn’t, to the service’s profound embarrassment. Hibbs’ story is pretty irresistible. According to a Channel 7 report, he was in a park “after demanding money and attacking [a] deputy. Police said…

Nut-Cutting Jesse Jackson Comes to Denver

Fresh from being caught by a live Fox News microphone saying that Barack Obama has been talking down to black people — an assertion supplemented by the grabby proclamation, “I’m gonna cut his nuts off” — the Reverend Jesse Jackson is heading to a studio near us. According to an…

Shortcut to the JonBenét Ramsey Archive

Boulder district attorney Mary Lacy’s letter to John Ramsey clearing him and his kin in the 1996 killing of JonBenét Ramsey is only the latest bizarre development in a case positively overflowing with them — and Westword has followed every twist and turn over the years. Moreover, we’ve collected over…

Democratic National Convention Advice: Run Away!

The first hit for the word “Denver” on Google News early July 10? An offer to get the hell out of town. “Denver Residents Can Flee the City During the DNC” is actually a press release from TheSociety.com, the Internet home of the Society of Leisure Enthusiasts, a Colorado-based firm…

Carmelo Anthony Challenges Septuagenarian to Game of One on One

Teams’ official radio stations tend to give players from affiliated squads the powder-puff treatment in interviews. But FM 104.3/The Fan afternoon hosts Irv Brown and Joe Williams proved intermittently, and unexpectedly, tough during a July 9 phoner with Denver Nuggets star Carmelo Anthony. The highlight? When Brown, a longtime basketball…

Rocky Mountain Thunder

When the Democratic National Convention Committee announced Monday that Barack Obama would be delivering his acceptance speech from the roofless confines of Invesco Field at Mile High, local and national news outlets, each with their own reasons, were quick to jump on Mother Nature. Local dailies, knowing too well the…

Shmuck: Judge Throws the Book at Thomas Pilaar

The very first historic evidence of libraries comes from Mesopotamia around 3000 B.C. After that, Greeks, Persians and Europeans continued to build and develop more sophisticated versions. All of this information is likely contained in books at your own local public library – unless, of course, they were stolen by…

The Journalism Fates of the Boulder Brauchlis

The Denver Post recently noted that Marcus Brauchli, the just-named executive editor of the Washington Post — easily one of the highest-profile journalism jobs in the country — is a Boulder boy. He freelanced for the Boulder Daily Camera while attending Boulder High School and briefly worked for the Post…

Peter Boyles: “Folks, You’ve Been Had.”

Members of the local and national media alike have gone predictably ga-ga over Boulder district attorney Mary Lacy’s July 9 announcement that DNA evidence has cleared all Ramsey family members of suspicion regarding the 1996 murder of six-year-old JonBenét Ramsey. But KHOW’s Peter Boyles, the most indefatigable pundit on the…

Letters to the Editor

“Teen Angle,” Jessica Centers, July 3 Separation of Church and Straight The word “evangelical” has some pretty nasty connotations in many corners: greedy, judgmental and, most of all, arrogant. In my experience, this is oftentimes well-deserved. But having lived with Greg Stier for a year in college, and having attended…

Glory Be!

Ten years ago this month, when Denver hosted the All-Star Game at Coors Field, Westword mocked the Beanie Baby craze by burning, dismembering, torturing and otherwise going all Dick Cheney on one of the 51,000 Glory Bear Beanie Babies given out to ticket holders at the game — and sharing…