Cover Story |
Talk With Each Otherby Caitlin CrowellOrhan Pamuk has been one of Turkey’s most acclaimed and best-selling novelists for decades. His reputation outside Turkey has been bolstered by a progression of prestigious international prizes for his work, which has been translated into more than 30 languages, starting with the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize for his novel The White Castle (Beyaz Kale). |
Free Will Astrology |
by Rob BrezsnySCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): A drunk dominatrix sidled up to me at a party and said, “Reverend, please absolve me of my sins.” I’m not officially a priest, but in the spirit of fun and games I replied, “Why, my dear? Have you seen the error of your ways?” She spread her arms wide as she bowed, hissing like a serpent through a toothy smile. “Not at all, Reverend,” she said. “I just want to clear the docket so I can go out and commit a slew of fresh, new sins with crazy abandon.” I sprinkled a few drops of her Heineken on her head and channeled William Blake: “You’ll never know what is enough unless you know what is more than enough. The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom. If the fool would persist in her folly she would become wise.” And now, Scorpio, I’m channeling the same blessing for you. |
News of the Weird |
by Chuck Shepherd■ Crime-fearing female pedestrians in Tokyo can soon protect themselves with fashion designer Aya Tsukioka’s skirt that opens into a realistic-looking (except made of fabric), full-size vending machine that she hopes thugs will pass right by. It’s one of several fanciful crime-avoiding creations of the genre that Japanese inventors are noted for, according to an October New York Times dispatch. Another, the “manhole bag,” resembles a sewer covering when laid on the ground but can hold a person’s valuables, again provided that the thug passes it up. Yet another is women’s wraparound sunglasses that are extra-dark so that even shy, eye-contact-avoiding females can stare, unobserved, at potential perverts in trains to guard against the ubiquitous groping. |
It Works There |
Where There's a Will...by Peter KochJust over four months ago, I wrote in these pages about the impending demolition of the Horton House. The Civil War-era brick Italianate, which stood at 399 Franklin Street, was coming down to make way for an old but growing business, Keller Bros. & Miller, Inc. Printing. Ralph Salerno’s print shop had been doing business out of the building next door for 85 years, and he was finally ready to expand his operations and breathe a little bit. Many observers considered the demolition an attack on Buffalo’s historic landscape. For Salerno, though, it was a simple, pragmatic business decision. He didn’t have enough money to preserve and adaptively reuse the Horton House. And so it came down in July, and in its place rises a brick building that will sport a faux-1880s historic façade that will, quite honestly, not compare with a fully restored Horton House. Ask Lisa Sheppard what could’ve been done differently to dave the building, and she’ll get straight to the point: “It usually works if you throw money at them.” |
News |
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What It Will Takeby Bruce Fisher |
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Armenian Genocide Denial: An American Problemby Dimitri Anastasopolous |
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Poetry |
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stopping byby Ryki Zuckerman |
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Intake Crib Lighthouse-1920by Paul A. White |
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resuscitateby Lauren Stern |
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Noteworthy |
Ishmael ReedIshmael Reed is one of the best known, and prodigious, African American authors of his generation. He is a highly controversial writer, and though his writing—which often exposes the excesses and absurdities of right-wing white America—has drawn frequent comparisons to Amiri Baraka, he just as consistently satirizes black tradition. Thus, Reed is an independent thinker and artist, one who uses humor and social satire to go after political and cultural oppression of every stripe in America. Interestingly, he grew up in Buffalo, where he attended public school and took classes at UB before moving on to the Big Apple. Reed is the author of nine novels, six plays, seven books of poetry, six books of essays, and has edited several anthologies and periodicals. His most recent book of poetry, New and Collected Poems, 1964-2006, was listed as one of the four best poetry books of last year by the New York Times and won the California Book Award’s Gold Metal in Poetry 2007. He recently retired from a teaching position at UC Berkeley. Reed has several appearances scheduled today and tomorrow, at ECC City Campus, the African American Cultural Center and Buffalo State College. |
Puck Stop |
The OHL in Niagaraby Andrew Kulyk & Peter FarrellDiehard hockey fans around Western New York are very much aware that major junior hockey is an exciting brand of the sport to watch. Just across the border, the 20-team Ontario Hockey League is one of three leagues in Canada where young players can develop their skills and showcase their talents for NHL teams that come scouting and come drafting. |
Listings |
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On the Boards |
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Now Playing |
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Movie Times |
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Theaterweek |
It's Good to Be the Kingby Anthony ChaseEven within the entertainment industry, most people don’t think of Lou Diamond Phillips as a stage actor. He’s a movie star. |
Theater |
Bat Manby Thomas DooneyThe last week of rehearsal for Bat Boy included three days in a row of 10-out-of-12s, meaning a 12-hour work day for actors, musicians and crews with only two hours of downtime fitted in between cueing and run-throughs. |
Music |
New Chamber Music Series Begins Wednesdayby Jan JezioroJust suppose that you were a newly arrived traveling musical impresario in town, and that you were looking for some classically trained musicians for a new series of chamber music concerts that you were interested in promoting. Where would you look first? The answer is obvious—your search would immediately lead to the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, the richest and deepest source of classical musical talent in Western New York. |
Design Matters |
The Four Rsby Albert ChaoKids are learning to read their building at PS 67, the Discovery School, in South Buffalo. In 2005, the school went through a complete restoration and redesign. The entrance leads into a breathtaking, three-story atrium with warm, gentle light diffused through a tension fabric roof. Intricate, exposed architectural elements, including a glass elevator, ductwork, sprinklers and structural steel beams, serve as reading materials. Former door openings along walls are alluded to by existing steel along the base. Each corner of the building is a different color, which helps with orientation. |
Chew On This |
by Peter KochThree cheers for Main Street! Or at least three new eateries, two of which promise to raise the profile of a stretch of downtown that is slowly experiencing rebirth, and one that breathes new life into an already successful suburban retailer. |
Film Clips |
by M. Faust |
Bee Movie |
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Martian Child |
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Left of the Dial |
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I'm Not There Soundtrackby Donny Kutzbach |
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James Blunt: All the Lost Soulsby Joe Sweeney |
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See You There |
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Off Beat Cinema: Now Dig This, Daddio!by Chris Wilde |
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Ron Hawkinsby Brad Deck |
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Step It Up Rallyby Peter Koch |
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Solid Blues featuring Mavis Staplesby Buck Quigley |
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Calendar Spotlight |
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The Rizdales |
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Ronnie Davis Combo |
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The Joanna Connor Band |
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George Caldwell |
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The Last Goodnight |
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GWAR |
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Ask Anyone |
Help! I think I’m falling in love with a guy who drives a Hummer with a Bush-Cheney bumper sticker on it. (My friends don’t even call him by his name; they just refer to him as “the Republican.”) Should I get out now, and risk losing someone great, or stick around and risk ending up with Archie Bunker? And if I don’t stay, does that mean i’m as intolerant and prejudiced as I thought he would be? —Lefty Leaving |