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MAY 26, 2016

COMMENT

From the web: In response to Ernest Dumas’ May 19 column, “Even Trump for restroom rights”: This whole thing, from left to right, is farce. The idea that, somehow, being allowed to go into a bathroom of choosing is a right is an insult to all those who fought and died for such important rights as the right to vote, the right to work, the right to marry, the right to bear arms, the right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure. Compared to these rights, the fight to be allowed to go into bathrooms, one way or the other, is silly, goofy and just a waste of time and oxygen. Like so many “rights” that have been created in the last few decades, this is more about getting people to accept the ludicrous as rational than it is about actually helping people. In point of fact, this hurts the people it is intended to hurt. Then again, this is part of the intent. Those that are active — the government wonks that exploit these silly debates — they want to divide people away from the rational, and to embrace the myriad silly, that anything is acceptable, and nothing is beyond question or up for debate. That is why folks like Dumas couch bathroom rights with discrimination. True, the right has done a terrible job at debating this, trying to tie it to sexual predators, but the simply fact is that transgender people have been using whatever bathroom is comfortable with no issue. For decades. Few actual rights exist in the world. If you are a guy in a dress, you do not have a right to be accepted as a woman. You have a right to be free from being denied services, or work, or the vote or the ability to defend yourself. You have a right to seek a redress of grievance for crimes against you, but you do not have a right to be liked, or to have your disorder nurtured. Schools, especially, should not damage kids by letting them believe that they can be what they are not. They should be encouraged to think, to seek facts, not defy facts. Steven E

for highways.”: Some or most of the Connecting Arkansas Program projects around the state forego the 80/20 federal match completely. Has anyone ever received an adequate explanation as to why? For example, 30 Crossing’s $631 million price tag includes $450 million in state funds, an amount that would normally leverage close to $2 billion in federal dollars. It seems like there’re plenty of nickels and dimes in AHTD’s

budget already to maximize federal spending if they wanted to, without raiding the General Fund. Also, where were all the nominally small-government conservatives this week who usually take it upon themselves to oppose any state action that will increase federal spending? I’m picturing the rabid opposition to Obamacare in general and Medicaid expansion in particular. And speaking of opposition to the ACA, the level of socialized, centrally planned, big

Free tools to quit smoking your own way.

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

In response to the May 20 Arkansas Blog item, “A belated happy anniversary to marriage equality”: Oh yes, I would LOVE to see a list of all the evangelicals (and other haters) whose marriages have been “ruined” by the existence of marriage equality! Kate Reporting in from Conway, my marriage is still sound. Who would’ve guessed? Conwegian In response to the May 19 Arkansas Bog item, “Justice reform? Don’t tell it to Tough Talking Tom Cotton”: You know, a man that mean and nasty often has a way of ending up on the other side of those bars. He should stop and think about that. spunkrat Under-incarcerated??? There’s a novel concept. Why don’t we jack up the mandatory minimums, double down on the War on Drugs, and make the states pay to house the additional prisoners in privatized prisons! What’s not to like about that? Black Panthers for Open Carry

1-800-QUIT-NOW

This just proves that all of that “budgeting” is just a shell game with department heads and the legislature playing a game. Go to $0 base budgeting and defend your way up or use what they spend this year as their MAX for next year, not their base. couldn’t be better So how many more years does Asa think there’s gonna be a surplus to play Three-Card Monte with? Vanessa

STAMP OUT SMOKING

In response to the May 21 Arkansas Blog item, “Stop talking about ‘surpluses.’ Asa has raided general revenue

government market manipulation involved in a highway expansion far exceeds that found in any component of Obamacare. Where’s the logical consistency in your convictions, people?! Timbo

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“The United States is under-incarcerated,” says Tommy Boy. As of 2015, the United States has 5 percent of the world’s population yet 25 percent of the total number of people incarcerated worldwide are located in the United States.

Who wouldn’t be locked up if Tommy Boy were in charge? I think we know. You, me and the rest of those on the left side of the American political scene. Arkanzin In response to the May 19 Arkansas Bog item, “Toilet terrorism bill not filed”: You wonder what the Republican politicians’ parents did to them to make them so terribly sexually insecure. Silverback66

WEE

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RG E

Some of these people act as if the transgender population is a new development with which government must deal. It hasn’t been an issue since day one, but the transgender people have always been with us, and I’m fairly certain they’ve been using public restroom facilities all along. So this is an issue now because ... ? Holy Guano

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MAY 26, 2016

EYE ON ARKANSAS

WEEK THAT WAS

Quote of the Week — U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, speaking to the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank. Cotton was explaining his opposition to the bipartisan criminal justice reform bill now being considered by Congress that would reduce federal sentencing guidelines for nonviolent offenders and pave the way for some prisoners serving drug-related sentences to seek shorter sentences. Cotton has positioned himself as a leading voice against the proposed reform, which he called “a criminal leniency bill.” About that under-incarceration problem: The U.S. has the largest prison population rate in the world, with over 1.56 million Americans behind bars.

His way or the highway Another special legislative session came to an end this week with Gov. Hutchinson’s $50 million bill for highway money cruising to passage over the objections of some legislators from both parties. The governor’s plan dips into the state budget surplus to pay for new road building; of course, that means less money to spend on other necessities of government — such as education — especially when coupled with the regressive tax cuts beloved of Hutchinson’s administration. Sen. Jimmy Hickey (R-Texarkana) and others proposed a more honest alternative that would have paid for Arkansas’s highway needs with a proposed fuel tax increase, but it foundered. To spend $50 million on roads, you either have to raise taxes or take the money from elsewhere; Hutchinson refused to consider the former option.

Safety standards a la carte Also approved this session: a bill providing exceptions from the state’s earthquake-resistant building design 6

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

BRIAN CHILSON

“If anything, we have an underincarceration problem.”

XTRA HAPPY: No. 35 Erin Miller celebrates Arkansas Xtra’s 34-6 defeat of the Arkansas Steelers in Round 1 of the Central Football League’s playoffs. The Xtra will face the Oklahoma Desperados Saturday, June 4, in Tulsa, in Round 2 of the CFL Playoffs.

standards. It originated with two Northeast Arkansas legislators, Sen. David Burnett (D-Osceola) and Rep. Monte Hodges (D-Blytheville), who intend to reduce the cost of a Nucor Corp. steel mill being constructed in Mississippi County. Unfortunately, Mississippi County sits astride the New Madrid fault, a major seismic zone that is likely still active, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. In a statement, the president of the Structural Engineers Association of Arkansas, Paul Timko, warned that allowing such waivers could result in “a substantially underdesigned structure” and urged legislators against the bill. It passed both chambers by large margins.

Restroom madness, deferred At least we were spared this session from legislation that would have attacked transgender people by penalizing the use of the “wrong” public bathroom. Who determines what constitutes “wrong”? That’d be Sen. Missy Irvin (R-Mountain Home), who prepared a draft of such a bill and intended to file it, according to mul-

tiple sources at the Capitol contacted by the Arkansas Times last week. One rumor had it that Irvin’s proposal would have made it a sex crime for a person to use a bathroom intended for a gender other than the one that appears on his or her birth certificate. The governor opposed introduction of the bill in the special session, though, and so it never saw the light of day. Expect something similar to appear in the 2017 regular session.

Brakes applied to NWA charter The state Education Department’s charter authorizing panel made the right call last week when it denied major growth requests by Haas Hall Academy, a charter school with two campuses in Northwest Arkansas. Haas wanted to expand to a new 500-student campus in Springdale and enlarge its Fayetteville campus from 400 to 500 seats. Critics contend the high test scores at Haas are partly the result of the school misusing its lottery admission process and discouraging lower-achieving students from attending (Haas administrators said they’ve addressed issues

with the lottery). The review panel’s members were especially concerned about diversity: Currently, less than 2 percent of Haas’ 647-member student body is black and about 8 percent is Hispanic. The state Board of Education could still overturn the panel’s decision.

Hanging out too hard A TV station in Mobile, Ala., reported that Gov. Hutchinson’s son, Asa Hutchinson III, was arrested for drug possession over the weekend in Gulf Shores at the annual Hangout Music Festival. The younger Hutchinson, who is a lawyer and an Arkansas resident, was found in possession of MDMA, according to the local sheriff’s office. He was released on a $5,000 bond after spending the night in jail.

OPINION

Free lunch Asa

ov. Hutchinson has just proved there is a free lunch. Thanks to the recent special legislative session, he can have his money, dodge accountability and claim it’s good government. He raised $50 million to bring a $200 million federal match for highway construction in the next fiscal year. He did it by raiding general revenue. He calls it a highway program without a tax increase. That’s more or less true. But it was 1) imprudent and 2) wouldn’t have been possible without $150 million or so pumped into Arkansas by Obamacare. He got most of the money, $40 million, by shorting the rest of state government through penurious budgeting. No state employee pay raises. Another percentage drop in the state’s inadequate support of higher education. Insufficient money for prisons, State Police and a variety of human programs. The rest he got by transferring to highways the interest on state investments) and also some small portions of fuel tax revenue that had gone to support central government agencies.

sion and transfer of its duties to the Heritage Department, run by political favorite Stacy Hurst. (What does she have on the governor, anyway? She gets If employment plum appointments plus a minimum of stays high and $34,000 in Tipton and Hurst florist busiincome taxes conness from the governor’s inaugural festinue to rise, all tivities, not to mention untold amounts from decorating the Governor’s Mansion may be more or less OK — at least — which she nominally oversaw as an ex MAX status quo. But officio Commission member.) BRANTLEY maxbrantley@arktimes.com the state’s 5 perThe reason for the History Commiscent share of the sion takeover remains cloudy, unless it Medicaid expansion is around the cor- was simple overkill — a way to get rid ner. All areas of government have ris- of Commissioner Mary Dillard and also ing costs. If revenues don’t grow (and discipline her husband, historian Tom Asa’s past tax cuts won’t help) difficulties Dillard. Their sin: supporting Clarke will arise. Hutchinson just wants to get Tucker, who defeated Stacy Hurst for past November 2018 without giving the a House seat. lean-and-hungry-looking Lt. Gov. Tim Then there was the governor’s bruGriffin ammunition to challenge him tal takeover of the Governor’s Mansion for re-election. Commission. He stripped it of its historic It is no coincidence that virtually oversight of maintenance and operaevery college in Arkansas is raising tion of the public’s mansion. Already, tuition and room and board fees next the governor and his wife, Susan, had year because of the continuing slide in been on a spending spree at the Manstate support. Nor is it coincidence that sion, using up operating money, tapping Asa keeps saying “later” on reaching all Mansion Association money and relying on who knows what other sources. He kids who need pre-K education. Hutchinson’s power hunger was glommed $1.1 million from a division also on display. One example was his of Stacy Hurst’s agency for Mansion takeover of the state History Commis- improvements, some of it for private

Truth, not Trump

he rationalists in both parties and the nonpartisan public have little time left to sort out Donald Trump and his magic with the lusty crowds that show up for his rallies, hang on his tweets, follow his Fox News gabfests and give him outsized votes in the primaries. After the Republican convention, it will be too late, for the die will be cast, as Caesar first said on an even more fateful occasion, his crossing the Rubicon in the quest for empire. Even if he’s president, Trump is not going to be an emperor, though that is the most popular theme in the hysteria that followed Trump’s first primary victories. The great celebrity is supposed to model his campaign after the authoritarian demagogues of the 1930s — Hitler, Mussolini and Franco, and he is often compared to the would-be despots of the left and right who rose in Europe after the war. Let’s at least defend the old showman from that charge, as the Italian journalist Gianni Riotta did this winter in The Atlantic (“I know Fascists; Donald Trump is No Fascist”). OK, so he is insanely popular with the goofy neo-Nazis in the United States, but that doesn’t make him one.

Yes, he tweeted a famous Mussolini line, but it turned out that he was just retweeting the quote someone ERNEST else supplied. Not DUMAS knowing what the hell he was doing is the finer truth to be learned from the incident. Yes, his first wife, Ivana, said that he kept a book of Hitler speeches in a cabinet by his bedside and often leafed through it. The book, “My New Order,” is a collection of Hitler speeches before the invasion of Poland in 1939 in which he told boisterous crowds that he would make Germany great again after its spineless leaders had allowed other nations to trample upon them. Asked about the Hitler book, Trump explained that “my friend Marty Davis from Paramount” gave him a copy of Hitler’s “Mein Kampf,” saying, “and he’s a Jew.” Davis said, no, the book was “My New Order,” not “Mein Kampf,” and he merely thought Trump would find Hitler’s orations interesting, not as a guide for political

propagandizing. “I am his friend,” Davis said, “but I’m not Jewish.” That is Trump in a capsule. He is either lying or clueless or both, but he is not Hitler or Mussolini reborn. Could Trump, a less temperate man than George W. Bush or Barack Obama, make a mess of the unprecedented powers to invade civil liberties handed to the president after 9/11? Sure, but that is another story. Who would have guessed that the great civil libertarian Barack Obama would order drone strikes to kill unknown suspects in countries against which we have not declared war or a rebel leader with whom we were once allied, as he did in Pakistan last week? Trump is an opportunist, but he is no more sinister than that. All those disaffected Republicans who are appalled that Trump has opposed everything the modern GOP stands for have figured Trump out and are working through the necessary accommodations. Trump knows he cannot openly surrender on the wall, the immigrant diaspora or the trade wars and still hold his passionate following, but he has sent enough signals that this is all just posturing. After all, Mitt Romney changed his position on every policy question of his time. Good Republicans will take their chances that President Trump won’t repudiate the nation’s debt

family quarters. It’s not just the spending that’s at issue. Nonprofits that once used the Mansion for fundraisers are complaining that First Lady Susan Hutchinson is not nearly so welcoming (though she is hosting a gospel sing there soon to raise money for spending by the Association she now controls.) Her wish list has included a $156,000 reflecting pool and installation for a piece of shiny metal sculpture donated to the Mansion. Hutchinson administration officials defended the Mansion move as a move for accountability and Freedom of Information Act compliance. Right. They’ve been stonewalling our requests for specifics on the redecoration of the governor’s office. KATV has done some fine reporting lately on the $60,000 or so Treasurer Dennis Milligan has spent in public money on furniture and snacks since he took office. The governor has spent 20 times as much in public money and untold sums from private interests for his office, but draws scant attention. Plus, he just got a highway bill financed by punishing every other beneficiary of state government. It’s a free lunch, sure enough. But the table is set only for the Hutchinsons.

or just print more money once his giant tax cuts for the rich send the debt soaring. For Democrats, the task is clear but harder. How do you persuade ordinary frustrated voters, if not the true believers, that you must not trust a habitual liar, however much you may like his rhetoric? His dissembling extends to everything. Trump boasted that he opposed Bush’s Iraq invasion, but he actually supported it until the U.S. got bogged down. He was a blistering critic of the National Rifle Association and an advocate of strong gun controls, although he said this month that he was always an NRA fan and a foe of any gun restraints. Now he goes beyond the fiercest abortion opponent by saying his government will punish every woman who has one, but not long ago he was an ardent defender of women’s right to have an abortion — a position he sometimes still telegraphs by defending Planned Parenthood. How do you know if he will slash rich people’s taxes or raise them, wage war in the Middle East or be an isolationist, love Putin or isolate him, wage trade wars or support free trade or, for that matter, praise both Clintons or demonize them, because in every instance he’s done both? Make truth the issue. If facts no longer matter, we’re lost anyway. www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

Trump show

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ARKANSAS TIMES

he first thing to understand is that before it’s a presidential election, it’s a TV program. To the suits at CNN, NBC and Fox News, that means it’s about ratings and money. So of course they’re going to play it as a cliffhanger. Do they ever say, “Tune in Saturday to watch the Alabama Crimson Tide humiliate hopelessly overmatched Kent State!” Never. So it’s going to be with Trump vs. Clinton. Almost regardless of what political scientists and number-crunchers say, the race will be depicted as a nail-biter. The fact that Charles Manson could win Texas’ electoral votes with an “R” after his name, while Democrats could take Massachusetts with a Kardashian sister, will prolong the manufactured suspense. It’s going to be a very long five months. Even so, it’s hard to imagine a manifest fraud like Donald J. Trump becoming president of the United States. Surely voters have too much self-respect. All politicians fudge the truth, exaggerating their successes and minimizing their failures. Trump, however, takes it to a different level. He’s a contemporary version of Baron Munchausen, an 18th century literary character whose wildly exaggerated military exploits — riding on a cannonball, voyaging to the moon — made him a comic-heroic favorite for generations. Trump tells falsehoods so brazen as to redefine political lying. To see what I mean, let’s compare a couple of Clinton classics that emailers harangue me about all the time. “I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky.” The beauty of this Clintonian masterpiece lies in the fact that people often misquote it — changing “sexual relations” to “sex.” Because according to the evidence assiduously gathered by independent counsel Kenneth Starr, it’s literally true and therefore perjury-proof. Cunning and deliberately deceptive, yes. But sexual relations means “intercourse,” and that supposedly didn’t happen. Cute, huh? That’s Bill Clinton. Readers who have never lied about sex are encouraged to vent. Then there’s Hillary’s infamous Bosnian adventure: “I remember landing under sniper fire,” she told a 2008 audience. “There was supposed to be some kind of a greeting ceremony at the airport, but instead we just ran with our heads down to get into the vehicles.”

Confronted with CBS News footage that showed her walking calmly across the tarmac of Tuzla GENE airport from an Air LYONS Force C-17 in 1996, Hillary Clinton basically blamed an overactive memory. She’d actually written about the incident in her 2003 book “Living History” without mentioning the imaginary snipers. Her press secretary later explained the possible origin of Hillary’s false memory: “We were issued flak jackets for the final leg because of possible sniper fire near Tuzla. As an additional precaution, the first lady and Chelsea were moved to the armored cockpit for the descent into Tuzla.” She won’t say so, but I’m guessing Hillary got scared, and her mind played a trick on her. Confronted with the discrepancy, however, she owned it. Suffice it to say that is not the Trump method. With a background in professional wrestling, he understands that there’s a vast audience out there only slightly more discerning than a potted geranium and willing to believe (or pretend to believe) damn near anything. Trump doesn’t trim or embroider as much as invent huge, thunderous fictions aimed at boosting himself or hurting his enemies — evidence be damned. In Trump World, facts don’t exist. He cannot be shamed. Trump went on “Morning Joe” recently to attack Hillary’s terrible judgment about Libya. See, if people had listened to Donald, the U.S. would never have helped NATO overthrow Gaddafi. “I would have stayed out of Libya,” he affirmed. Except that Trump shot a video back in 2011 urging an immediate invasion: “Gaddafi in Libya is killing thousands of people,” he said then. “Nobody knows how bad it is, and we’re sitting around, we have soldiers all [around] the Middle East, and we’re not bringing them in to stop this horrible carnage … . Now we should go in, we should stop this guy, which would be very easy and very quick.” The candidate does this stuff every day, on every imaginable topic. It’s brutal, demagogic make-believe, demanding his followers blind themselves to reality and enlist in his cult of personality. So who are you going to believe, Trump or your lying eyes?

Wretched rez

had some New Year’s Rez(olutions) for 2016 but that ship sailed so I’m renaming them my Spring Rez or my All-Occasion Whatevers and sending them along. Herewith I resolve —

1. To do things that are more this: simple, nutritious, bodacious, thoughtful, heuristic, practical, profitable, informed, kind, honest, sensible, ethical, honorable, fun, sophrosyneindicative, couth, vorpal, slapstick, geeky, laconic, nuanced, invigorating, sanitary, supportive, modest, courteous, neighborly, stylish, substantial, encouraging, generous, daunting, unscripted, hopeful, appetizing, original, appreciative, charitable, civilized, useful, surprising, idiosyncratic, productive, literate, focused, tax-deductible, worthwhile, sinister, structured, contrary, improvisational, quixotic, timely, timeless, apt, amicable, picturesque, effectual, wry, subtle, savvy, disreputable, chimerical, inconclu… To do things that are less this: 2. simplistic, mumbly, own-horn tooty, technical, smarmy, schmoozy, tiresome, name-droppy, sameold-sameold, monkeysee-monkeydo, hooey, blathery, blustery, just jerking off, fiddle-farting around, cruel, cryptic, lyrical, nudgenudgey, pencil-necked, nugatory, cyber, selfish, trite, habitual, purple, mainstream, goobery, button-pushy, bombastic, contagious, flag-poley, frothy, practical-jokey, around-the-bush beating, meddlesome, worry-warty, backbitey, tight-assed, half-assed, wise-ass, geezerly, gross, fattening, itchy, tacky, shirky, vain, pathological, sesquipedalian, preachy, trashy, nosy, pretentious, querulous, sanctimonious, pompous, mannered, ill-mannered, rude, petty, smug, sucky, hyperbolic, repetitive, fancy-pantsy, sentimental, boorish, nostalgic, cowardly, murky, garish, judgmental, malicious, foolhardy, neurotic, supercilious, addlepated, whiny, abject, phlegmatic, fiendish, kooky, gullible, arachnophobic, brutish, thin-skinned, slovenly, credulous, icky, horse’s-assy, artsy, plodding, perishable, prolix, platitudinous, obvious, priggish, bumptious, woebegone, puerile, shoddy, half-baked, doctrinaire, forced, lame, swinish, rhapsodic, paranoid, provincial, wasteful, patronizing, specious, fatuous, hortatory, asinine, jingoistic, disingenuous, paternalistic, propagandistic, pusillanimous, dogmatic, slovenly, hokey, Greenbergian, gnarly, snotty, mawkish,

unctuous, pedantic, obsequious, braggy, hide bound, sleazy, douchey, bilious, posturing, PeckBOB sniffian, abstract, LANCASTER short- sighted, hateful, cynical, listy (like this), yodda yodda (this too), redunda… 3. To avoid or eschew such contemporary wretched excesses as these: scenarios, back stories, gravitases, hubrises, narratives, sidebars, dank spliffs, feng shui, chatter, talking points, truthiness, rasta, gangsta, dark money, clickbait, cognitive dissonance, dropping curtseys, Two Corinthians, affluenza, asshats, dude smoothies, plumber’s-butt britches closeups, dogwhistle campaigning, collateral damage, pharaoh granaries, shortselling, altarboying, Ponzi scheming, shoutouts, pushbacks, baby bumps, interventioning, fist-bumping, Breitbarting, troutlipping, Beer Pong, selfies, conversating, funeralizing, sieg-heiling, hostile takeovers, send-ups, cthulhus, coup plotting, jibber jabbers, bucket-listing, spam, Grand Theft Auto, swag, goth, scobies, cooties, Fitbit, swift-boating, hoverboarding, waterboarding, memes, hashtags, singularities, whatevers, basicallys, duggary, joshduggary, trolling, rehoming, superstring theory, entanglement, conflation, quantum mechanics, emojis, scripting, stonewalling, drones, open carry, goon squads, geek squads, the God Squad, cra-cra, rad, OIC constipation, c-diff, Westboro ghoulery, fracking, grifting, ugga bugga, shock & awe, debate undercards, podium orange, dongles, the Baidu code, strategery, authenticity, gobsmacking, outsourcing, twerking, rasslemania, babymamas, mashups, disambiguation, thug lite, reverse mortgages, ratfucking, paleodieting, bitcoinage, wilding, fly, slowclapping, texting, sexting, gittin-rdone, sabremetrics, jasonraping, slutshaming, phenomenological thermodynamics, love offerings, cosplay, vaping, virtuality, ruin porn, glam rock, dental implants, doubledown mendacity, fantasy football, fails, epic fails, teledildonics, hot messes, ubering, moral flexibility, and barroom dwarf-tossing and a-kicking and a-gouging in the mud and the blood and the beer. Bob Lancaster is a former Arkansas Times editor. www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

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MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

THE OBSERVER NOTES ON THE PASSING SCENE

Vertigo

he Observer has been a movie buff for dang near four decades now, which means we know the secret and guilty heartbreak that all lovers of film know: We wish that we could somehow erase the experience of having seen our favorite movies off the blackboard of our noggin in order to feel the pure joy of seeing them again for the first time. If you’re a cinema nerd like The Observer, you likely know exactly what Your Old Pal is talking about. We’d give just about anything to be able to see “The Big Lebowski” or “Pulp Fiction,” “Rear Window” or “Memento,” “Citizen Kane” or “Raiders of the Lost Ark” for the first time again, delighting anew at the twists and turns, not knowing where the road is taking us until we find our self, once again, in the sunlit glade at the end, awestruck at the power of light and shadow. It’s a thrilling minute when you find one of your favorite things for the first time — one of those things that becomes, in its own little way, part of your soul. The process for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Moviegoer Mind is not forthcoming that The Observer knows of, and so — short of us getting an amnesiainducing head injury — we’ll just have to soldier on, sifting 16 tons of “Transformers” and “Superman vs. Batman” horse puckey for every movie house diamond. Since becoming a father to Junior going on 17 years ago, however, we have found a good alternative: watching our favorite movies with the kid for the first time; knowing our excitement and joy again through his excitement and joy. It’s a lovely thing. Junior is finally getting mature and thoughtful enough that we can start showing him some of the darker gems hung with reverence and care in the gallery of our heart: “Taxi Driver,” “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” “Silence of the Lambs,” “The Shining,” “Oldboy” … the list goes on. Last week, it was Hitchcock’s darkest and most disturbing film: “Vertigo.” Yes, we said darkest and most disturbing, and we’re not forgetting about all the folks getting their peepers pecked out in “The Birds” or the screeching violins and

mommy issues of “Psycho.” For sheer, horrifying glimpses into the soul and the horrible lengths we’ll go to recapture the past, even at the expense of those we claim to love, it doesn’t get any better than Jimmy Stewart going mano y phantasma with the restless ghost of Carlotta Valdez and, later, his own teetering devils. Even though we’ve seen it 30 times or more now, that flick never fails to leave Yours Truly feeling unsettled in ways that can’t quite be expressed in words, our noodle thoroughly baked by all the making, unmaking and remaking, all the disguise and mystery, all the ways poor, dependable and infinitely more interesting Midge gets screwed over in favor of Miss Bright ’n’ Shiny, all the ways poor Scottie’s trust in everything, even reality, has been twisted into a gatdamn Gordian pretzel by the time the final bell literally tolls. Some folks say it’s the best film ever made by a human being. We’re sticking with “Citizen Kane” until they pitch us down the gravehole, but we see the point. Thinking about it, even now, just gave us a little shiver of goosebumps, along with a flyby from the flittering mental butterfly of a question that Hitchcock must have asked himself first: When it comes down to it, what do any of us know for sure? The answer, “Vertigo” says, is not a damn thing. We watched “Vertigo” with Junior down at the Riverdale 10 at the Arkansas Times’ monthly movie series. Such joy to glance at him in the half-light there, seeing his face as the story came together, the truth coming in slow as the tide, to be debated later with The Old Man over milkshakes at the Sonic across the way. Ye gods, can there be any greater feeling? And behind it, as always, even now: the bittersweet happiness of knowing what we always know in those Big Fatherly Moments — that it will likely be Junior sitting someday where his Old Man sat, stealing glances as another boy or girl comes to understanding there in the flickering light, puzzlement spinning into wonder at ol’ Alfred’s most confounding jewel. www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

Arkansas Reporter

THE

KRATOM: Advocates say the Southeast Asian plant can break the cycle of addiction.

An unlawful herb Arkansas’s ban of the natural painkiller Kratom has left sufferers and former opiate addicts in the lurch. BY DAVID KOON

alking to a reporter about the decision by the state to criminalize Kratom, an herb she started taking over a year ago to help her manage her chronic pain, and the thought of going back to prescription painkillers, Arkansas resident Lisa (not her real name) broke down in tears. More than a decade of debilitating fibromyalgia and other conditions left Lisa on the rollercoaster of opiate addiction. She felt like a zombie wandering in a fog of medication and was teetering on the verge of unemployment when she discovered Kratom. The herb’s a godsend that has given her her life back, and she said she will continue taking Kratom even if it means breaking the law. Made from the leaves of the plant Mitragyna speciosa, which grows wild in Southeast Asia, Kratom usually comes in powdered or liquid form and has been used in Asian traditional medicine for thousands of years. Last September, the state Department of Health added Kratom to the list of Schedule 1 narcotics, making it a crime to possess or sell. The ban went into effect Feb. 1. Several other states, including Alabama, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Vermont and Indiana, have banned Kratom as well, and other states are considering restrictions. In February, after the Arkansas ban went into effect, police in Fayetteville raided three local businesses there and seized almost 100 pounds of powdered and liquid Kratom, but made no arrests. “When I heard they’d banned it and the way they banned it, I literally broke down in tears,” Lisa said. “I don’t want to go back to pain medication, and I won’t go back to pain medication. But now that 12

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

it’s illegal, it’s hard to get. Nobody will send it here because they don’t want to get in trouble, which I totally understand. The way they went about doing it was so underhanded.” The way Kratom works in the human brain hasn’t been well studied, but it’s thought to plug into opioid receptors to dull pain. Unlike the drowsy euphoria that can come from prescription painkillers like oxycontin or hydrocodone, however, Kratom has a stimulant effect. Though Kratom is listed as a “drug of concern” by the DEA, advocates say Kratom has great promise in the fight against addiction, particularly addiction to hardto-kick prescription pain pills and heroin. The American Society of Addiction Medicine estimates that over 1.9 million Americans are addicted to prescription pain medications, with another 586,000 addicted to heroin. Currently, drug overdose is the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S. Kratom, supporters say, offers chronic pain sufferers relief without the foggy feeling and danger of addiction and overdose, and gives heroin and prescription pill addicts a way to kick their habit without painful withdrawal. An animal study published in 2013 by researchers at the University of Mississippi found that Kratom somehow blocked withdrawal symptoms in opiate-addicted mice. In the same study, cocaine-addicted mice stopped seeking out and “self administering” cocaine after being given Kratom. Lisa takes two teaspoons of Kratom twice daily, washing down the powder with water. The effect of Kratom, she said, is nothing like the effect of prescription pain meds. “When I take opiates

for my pain, it doesn’t even really help with the pain,” Lisa said. “It just makes me not care about the pain. But when it comes back, it comes back 10 times worse. Therefore you have to take more and more opiates to make it go away. With Kratom, it literally makes the pain go away. When you take Kratom, you don’t get the high feeling. You’re just normal.” Susan Ash is the founder and director of the Virginia-based American Kratom Association, which launched in February 2015. The way Ash found Kratom is typical of many who rely on the herb. After suffering from sometimes excruciating pain from undiagnosed Lyme Disease for six years, she became so dependent on prescribed opiate painkillers that she wound up in drug rehab in 2011. She had taken Kratom before, but made her way back to it as an alternative to pain pills after getting out of treatment. “When I got out of rehab, I was faced with a pretty tough decision: I’m a chronic pain patient, and my doctors felt that going on Suboxone was my only option to deal with the pain,” she said. “I did that for about eight months. It is an opiate. It’s easy to abuse. It does make you feel like you’ve taken an opiate. I didn’t like it. I didn’t feel like I was truly sober after going through a recovery program. That’s when I remembered Kratom. That’s when I started taking it again.” Since then, she said, she has been able to function again, with none of the drugged feeling she got from opiates. The Times contacted several addiction clinics for their take on Kratom and the potential for abuse, including the Springdale Treatment Center, a substance abuse clinic. A doctor who works at the clinic is listed by the Health Department as having submitted concerns about Kratom that were later cited in paperwork used to add Kratom to the list of controlled substances. Those calls were not returned at press time. Meg Mirivel, public information officer with the Arkansas Department of Health, said the way a substance usually ends up on the list is the Health Department’s Pharmacy Services Department will make a recommendation to the Board of Health. After consulting with other agencies, including the governor’s office, the Board of Health will then vote. Any rules changes must be approved by the Arkansas Legislative Council. Mirivel said that

mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, the active compounds in Kratom, were added as Schedule 1 controlled substances at the Oct. 22, 2015 State Board of Health meeting, after a 30-day public comment period. Health Department deputy general counsel Elizabeth Harris said notice that the substances would be added to the list of narcotics was made by way of a posting in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette between July 30 and Aug. 1, 2015. Mirivel said no public comments were received by the Health Department concerning the change. Ash said much of the concern over Kratom stems from the way it was initially marketed as a “legal high,” sold in tobacco stores and head shops. That put the substance on law enforcement and legislative radar as a potential danger to the public health. Though Kratom does work in the brain in a similar way to opiates, she said, the effect in the body is not comparable and the potential for abuse is low. “Yes, it does activate opiate receptors. That’s the reason why it’s so effective on pain,” she said. “It does boost your mood slightly, and that’s why a lot of people use it for an antidepressant. But there’s no comparison to the type of euphoria that you experience when you take an actual opiate — the foggy feeling, the feeling of escape. You have to deal with real life when you take Kratom. You can’t escape your problems like you can when you’re on a regular opiate. It doesn’t have as strong a bond to the opiate receptors in your brain. It’s something more like coffee.” Ash said she has stopped using Kratom abruptly for a full week to learn what withdrawal from it is like. Quitting an addiction to prescription opiates cold turkey can lead to painful withdrawal, including cramps and even seizures, but Ash said she suffered no ill effects other than her chronic pain returning after she stopped using Kratom. Though overdose on prescription pain medications is epidemic in the U.S., Ash claims it’s not possible to overdose on Kratom, because taking too much leads immediately to nausea. “If you take too much Kratom, you literally throw up,” she said. “It has its own safety mechanism. You can’t keep taking it and feel something stronger and stronger. The more you take, the sicker you’re going to feel. The only fatalities that have been linked to this plant are fatalities linked to

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1) A small strip mall shopping center in the 300 block of Rock Street that fell to the wrecking ball recently has a surprising place in Little Rock history. What happened there that’s of historical note? A) Hillary Clinton’s first condescending scowl. B) The first Arkansas screening of the film “Deep Throat” in 1973, after which all the theater’s employees were arrested. C) Arkansas Times Senior Editor Max Brantley’s first, ultimately disastrous, attempt at shaking his groove thing. D) The first successful melding of melted Velveeta and Rotel tomatoes, thus ushering in the golden age of Arkansas cuisine. 2) With the Sears store at 600 S. University Ave. in Little Rock set to close soon, the rumor mill says an interesting new tenant might be taking over the giant space. Who, according to local scuttlebutt, is the prospective tenant? A) Useless Bullshit Warehouse. B) Costco. C) House of Baz Teeth Whitening and Tan-o-Rama (David Bazzel, proprietor). D) The Arkansas Department of Ignorance. 3) Sen. Jason Rapert (R-Conway) recently took to social media to ask supporters for contributions to fund a certain endeavor. What is he shilling for? A) Jason Rapert’s Neverending Butthurt, a new barbecue sauce that’s supposedly excellent on pork butts. B) Man-sized hamster ball, to keep him safe from all the sickening progress and empathy here in the 21st century. C) New edition of the Bible that features all the stuff he agrees with in 20-point type. D) A 501(c)(3) nonprofit run by Rapert, with Rapert saying contributions are a way for supporters to help him “continue to stand strong personally and keep speaking out.” 4) Recently, the watchdog group Center for Public Integrity dug up a Federal Election Commission filing that says former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has settled a lawsuit. What was the reason for the lawsuit? A) Reneged on an agreement to do a paid celebrity endorsement for Bill’s Fat Again Slacks (“the slacks with a drawstring!”). B) General dickery. C) He’d been sued for copyright infringement for playing the Survivor song “Eye of the Tiger” during a rally for Kentucky clerk Kim Davis, who had refused to issue marriage licenses to LGBT couples. D) Backed out of a deal to host the new NBC reality show “Celebrity Failure.” 5) Former professional morality scold Josh Duggar, who disappeared from public view for several months after it was revealed that he inappropriately touched his sisters as a teenager and later turned up in the data from the hack of the affair-promoting website Ashley Madison, has reportedly resurfaced and is back to work. What, according to People Magazine, is he doing these days? A) Feverishly saving puppies and kittens from burning buildings in an attempt to avoid being reincarnated as one of those beetles that only exist to push around a big ball of elephant shit. B) Porno theater mopper. C) Sandwich artist. D) Used car salesman. ANSWERS: B, B, D, C, D

other substances.” That’s a statement that seems to be borne out by recent deaths in the state that made headlines as having been related to Kratom. In 2015, testing by the Arkansas State Crime Lab found Kratom in the systems of three people who died from apparent drug overdose in the Fayetteville area. Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Charles Kokes said that of those three cases, all the subjects “had other substances on board that could have contributed to death.” In two of the cases, Kokes said, the cause of death was “combined or mixed drug intoxication.” The third was ruled undetermined because, in addition to Kratom, there was another drug that was possibly present, but not at a high enough level for laboratory testing to confirm. “I would say that if you took the Kratom out of the picture in all three cases, at least two of them you could make a reasonable argument that the death was caused by the other substances in those individuals’ systems,” he said. “But because Kratom was found with these other substances, and we don’t know what the interaction is, we certainly consider the possibility that it could have contributed to death. In the third one, if you took the Kratom out of the picture and you have this other drug that may or may not have been there, and there may have been some natural disease processes that were in place at the time, then you’re still left at undetermined.” As for Lisa, she said that she can’t go back to prescription pain pills. She has a stockpile of Kratom purchased before the ban went into effect, but said when she runs out, she will find a way to purchase more. The idea that it might be banned nationwide has caused near panic in the online communities she visits, where people talk about using Kratom for chronic pain, anxiety or to help stave off addiction. “I’ve seen stories in [online] groups that break my heart,” she said, “because people are talking about having to go back to the streets — going back to heroin, going back to the things that they came off of … . Honestly, I will find a way. I will continue to use Kratom. I don’t know how, but I will. I can’t go back to pain medication that has almost cost me good jobs. There’s something natural that helps me, and they took it away overnight. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do without it.“

www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

BRIAN CHILSON

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

More than abortion IUDs, LGBT care, STI treatment — there’s a whole alphabet of services at Planned Parenthood. BY LESLIE NEWELL PEACOCK

f Planned Parenthood clinics in Little Rock and Fayetteville did nothing but provide medical abortions to women, theirs would be a valuable service. Abortion is legal; so far, the government does not force American women into motherhood, just as men are not forced into fatherhood. Yet options for this legal procedure are few: Among Arkansas cities, only Little Rock and Fayetteville have abortion providers. Meanwhile, politicians who believe they are sanctioned to declare what is moral and what is not are making exercising the right to an abortion harder. Planned Parenthood in particular is being punished financially by conservative politicians across the country. But Planned Parenthood doesn’t simply end unwanted pregnancies. Gov. Hutchinson’s directive to the state Department of Human Services to terminate Medicaid reimbursement to Planned Parenthood suggests at best ignorance and at worst indifference toward what’s at stake for the health

of the women and men who use Planned Parenthood. By federal law, the Medicaid money sent to Planned Parenthood doesn’t pay for abortions but for other forms of health care. Fortunately, a federal district court in Arkansas has halted enforcement so far of recent onerous actions by the state. A suit filed by Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, with which Arkansas clinics are affiliated, stopped the state from refusing Medicaid reimbursement on behalf of several plaintiffs last year; the case is now being reheard as a class action. U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker has also enjoined the state from enforcing a law passed in 2015 to make it more difficult to obtain a medical abortion. (A medical abortion, or medication abortion, entails the use of abortifacient drugs to terminate an early pregnancy, rather than a surgical procedure. A twodrug protocol is administered: mifepristone, which blocks the hormone progesterone, and misoprostol, which

empties the uterus.) Part of the Arkansas law has been mooted by a change in U.S. Food and Drug Administration rules to acknowledge that a lower dose of mifepristone is effective and that it can be used up to 10 weeks; the legislature used the former protocol in its law to force doctors to administer the drug at a higher dose that caused more side effects. Planned Parenthood’s suit also challenges the Arkansas law’s requirement that doctors that provide abortions have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital. Opponents of abortion frame the admitting privileges requirement as an issue of women’s health: It’s necessary, they say, in case a procedure should go awry. This argument rings hollow when one considers how safe an abortion really is when performed by a medical professional. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 2008 and 2011 an average of 0.82 deaths occurred for every 100,000 legal abortions in the U.S. (There are about 17.8 deaths for every

BRIAN CHILSON

DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR OVERGAARD: Planned Parenthood welcomes all, without judgment, who come to the clinic.

www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

NEVER TOO SOON: Sarah Blanche Finzer, 9, attends ageappropriate sex ed classes with mom Erin Finzer.

100,000 childbirths, CDC data shows.) And in the rare case of complications resulting from an abortion, any hospital emergency room would, of course, treat a patient regardless of whether her physician had admitting privileges. The real reason for mandating admitting privileges is to shut down abortion providers, since bureaucratic requirements from hospitals (and the controversial nature of the issue) make it difficult for doctors to obtain such privileges. Meanwhile, in a sign of just how safe medical abortions have become, the new FDA protocol now allows nurse practitioners to administer the drugs. *** On a recent evening in downtown Little Rock, protestors carrying signs gathered, as they always do, on the perimeter of Planned Parenthood’s annual garden party. This year, a new sign appeared, with the slogan “Black Lives Matter.” The protester holding it approached an African-American woman at the party. “How could you support Planned Parenthood? What kind of mother are you?” the protester demanded to know. “I am the kind of mother who has raised her children, both of whom are straight-A students … and I know what I am doing,” Nikki Strong responded. As it happened, Strong was a speaker at the picnic. She talked about her experience with Planned Parenthood. In January 2008, Strong found out she was pregnant and called an obstetrician/gynecologist for an appointment. She was told it would be four to six

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

weeks before she could be seen. Strong didn’t want to wait that long, so she went to Planned Parenthood instead. “I called and said, ‘Hey, can I come by?’ and they said, ‘Sure.’ I filled out paperwork. It was pretty seamless.” About 10 minutes after she was taken back, she got the news: “They said it was a small positive, but it was a positive. I was excited.” And then she was asked, she told the Planned Parenthood gathering, “ ‘How do you feel?’ Not come back in six weeks, but ‘How do you feel?’ ” “That was the part that stuck with me,” Strong told a reporter. “They asked how I felt, and listened, and they were excited for me. ‘Do you have any questions? Do you need services?’ They went above and beyond and were very informative.” The staff told Strong she needed prenatal vitamins right away. There was no four-week wait for folic acid, which treats anemia and helps prevent neural tube defects. Strong introduced her daughter, Amanda, now 8 years old, to the Planned Parenthood gathering, and she looked above the crowd and directly at the protester with the “Black Lives Matter” sign. “Yes, black lives matters,” she said. “Mine and hers.” Her life and her daughter’s mattered to Planned Parenthood, too. Here’s a question for the protesters: What kind of mother teaches her son to point his finger like he’s firing a gun at women going into a clinic where abortions are performed? You can see that behavior among some protesters at the

Little Rock Family Planning Clinic, fingers pointed at women making tough decisions for their own good. *** In fiscal year 2015, Planned Parenthood’s Arkansas clinics in Little Rock and Fayetteville performed: • • • •

370 cervical cancer screenings. 236 breast exams. 5,242 tests for sexually transmitted infections. services for 262 men (mostly STI testing).

Planned Parenthood provides a variety of birth control products, including by mail; Gardasil, a vaccine against the human papilloma virus; and medications for urinary tract infections. It refers patients to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences for mammograms and more complicated diagnoses. It also provides sex education to schools and other groups. Planned Parenthood’s patients include men and women who want to keep their reproductive organs healthy so they can have a family. Women who had unprotected sex and need emergency contraception (the “morning after pill,” like Plan B). The homeless, like the woman the Little Rock clinic recently saw who had no money to buy sanitary supplies and was bleeding in the clinic. (The clinic gave her supplies, cleaning agents and a 12-year intrauterine device, or IUD, to prevent pregnancy … as well as food, because she

was hungry.) Women who because of a lack of insurance or for other reasons have put off mammograms, but find a lump in a breast — like a recent patient who learned she had Stage 3 breast cancer and was referred to an oncologist. Women who see their regular gynecologists for pap smears, but don’t want them to know they are suffering symptoms of an STD. Little Rock is a small town; despite HIPAA protections, privacy isn’t always guaranteed. At Planned Parenthood, development director Suzanne Overgaard said, you’ll never see a sign that says “STDs this way,” as she’s been told some health clinics have. No one going into Planned Parenthood is going to have to suffer the embarrassment of proclaiming his or her health status to the public, she said. For pregnant women who do not want to terminate their pregnancies but also do not want to keep their babies, Little Rock’s Planned Parenthood clinic provides information on area adoption agencies. Overgaard told the story of a pregnant 13-year-old in Des Moines, Iowa, who recently visited one of the organization’s clinics. Her mother wanted her to have an abortion. But after counseling, the teen decided to carry the fetus to term. “We respect our patients and their privacy about their decisions,” Overgaard said; clinics do not urge abortion on anyone. (In Arkansas, girls 13 and up can receive family planning services without parental involvement. Girls under 18, however, need a parent’s consent to have an abortion.)

BRIAN CHILSON

www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

BRIAN CHILSON

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

BLACK LIVES MATTER: That’s what Nikki Strong told a protester about her experience at Planned Parenthood when she was pregnant with daughter Amanda, 8.

Planned Parenthood also gives transgender people “a soft place to land,” Overgaard said. Transgender men who have not transitioned, and so still have female sex organs, may not be comfortable undressing at the doctor’s office, but they still can get cervical or breast cancer. They need pap smears and breast exams and even contraceptives, and they need to be provided them without judgment. To build trust with the transgender community, Planned Parenthood partners with the Arkansas Transgender Equality Coalition, and Overgaard has worked with ARTEC to research barriers to health care in Arkansas. She hopes Planned Parenthood will one day be able to offer hormone therapy for female patients who are transitioning to male. All are welcome to Planned Parenthood, she said. ***

sional delegation. Baker is thrilled with Planned Parenthood’s desire to eventually offer Truvada for PrEP, a daily pre-exposure prophylaxis for healthy people who are at risk for contracting HIV from a sexual partner. “Most Little Rock doctors won’t provide it,” he said, for fear that it could encourage unprotected sex. (Truvada is meant to be taken in combination with a condom. Using both methods lowers

the risk for HIV infection to 92 percent, according to the CDC.) Baker has seen women who are elated by the results of their pregnancy tests and women who are distraught. For the latter, “It’s moments like that when you realize how important” Planned Parenthood is. “You just need to be there and listen to them,” Baker said. They know Planned Parenthood will support whatever decision they make.

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BRIAN CHILSON

Zack Baker, 25, who joined the Planned Parenthood staff last November after

volunteering for the clinic, says his job is to make sure patients have “a good experience.” Baker, who is also director of Central Arkansas Pride, said gay men who come to Planned Parenthood won’t be met with the same presumptions a friend experienced at his doctor’s office. The friend had symptoms of an STI. His doctor said, well, you’re gay, so it’s probably HIV, the human immunodeficiency virus that can develop into AIDS. It was not. Baker — who said the only reaction he’s gotten from women who are checking in has been, “You’re a guy!” — said discrimination against gay people is a societal ill that overlaps with discrimination against women who want an abortion; hence, his support for Planned Parenthood. “We all need basic rights,” he said. He also learned how to engage in politics, thanks to Planned Parenthood, when as a college student he was asked to volunteer on lobby day at the state legislature and traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with the state’s congres-

www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

BRIAN CHILSON

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

MEN SERVED, SERVE TOO: Zack Baker was first a volunteer for Planned Parenthood; now he’s on staff.

*** Veronica Tess Myers has used Planned Parenthood for more than two decades. Her first trip to a Planned Parenthood clinic was when she was 19 and was suffering from severe pain. “I was married at the time and my husband was not faithful,” she said; she learned her pain was the result of an STI. Planned Parenthood treated her with antibiotics, and she eventually had surgery. Doctors told her there was a “high possibility” she would not have children. “Hence, my son,” Myers said, laughing. The disease was caught early enough, and “through the grace of God and Planned Parenthood,” she said, Myers was able to conceive. Myers’ son, Alexander, is autistic; he was diagnosed at age 2, and doctors told her he’d have to be institutionalized. She decided she did not want to risk having a second child with autism, and went to Planned Parenthood for contraceptives. Myers chose not to institutionalize Alexander, now 22, but to raise him at home. She has been his advocate, even attending school with him. Now, she wants to be prepared for the day he becomes interested in sex. Though he is developmentally delayed, he’s already showing interest in women. And though his brain is continuing to develop, he will not understand things like STIs. The staff at Planned Parenthood knows Alexander, and they “embrace him without hesitation,” Myers said. When the time comes, they’ll be there to advise her. “I do feel like as an individual, we do have the right to make decisions about our own bodies,” Myers said. Legislators who want to defund Planned Parenthood ought to realize that what the health care provider does “is bigger than abortion,” she said. “This is about evidence-based sexual health education

that should be provided to our teens in schools before they even reach adulthood … . [It works in] a broader realm than just abortion.” She added that legislators should remember “they’re being paid with tax dollars, too.” Planned Parenthood’s Little Rock clinic is open four days a week. Medical abortions are available on only one of those days. *** Planned Parenthood’s educational outreach is tailored to the needs of the group requesting it, Overgaard said. The organization provides sex education to public schools, usually in health classes, and the curriculum includes a discussion of abstinence as a method of birth control. (Overgaard did not name which schools Planned Parenthood works with.) Its outreach also may address issues of diversity, including sensitivity towards trans people. Sometimes sex education — minus the birds and bees — can even be tailored to meet the needs of 9-year-olds. Erin Finzer, 38, who describes herself as a lifelong feminist, is the mother of two young girls. She is also a professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, and concerned about issues of sexual assault on campus and elsewhere. Finzer saw a need for age-appropriate sex education for her older daughter, Sarah Blanche, who is 9. Finzer got the mothers of the girls in her daughter’s Brownie Scout troop on board and sought advice from Crystal Johnson, the health educator for Planned Parenthood. Johnson modified the Family Life and Sexual Health Curriculum (FLASH) for sixth-graders for use with third-graders and has been meeting with the girls in their homes since last year. In their FLASH meetings, the girls discuss sex stereotypes, physical boundaries, and what to do when someone

makes them uncomfortable. They’ve watched the animated Indian video “Komal,” about an uncle who uses sweets and gifts and secrets to get too close to a 7-year-old and what she does about it. They’ve learned to “explode on” someone — to raise a ruckus to get people’s attention when they feel threatened. Finzer calls what the girls are learning “survival skills.” Erin Finzer said Sarah Blanche has already learned to recognize inappropriate behavior. She told her mother on an outing that a person with them wanted “to help a whole lot and that’s suspicious.” Finzer had picked up on the suspicious behavior as well. Finzer said one of the funniest — and also empowering — classes involved asking the girls to answer: What are boys like? What are girls like? “Most people think girls should like pink” and be quiet, Sarah Blanche told

a reporter, “and, really, girls can pretty much like or do anything that boys like or do.” Sarah Blanche also said she’s learned that bad things can happen anywhere: at home, or at a friend’s house, or even at church. Planned Parenthood has decided to pay for a new, broader curriculum next year for the girls. Planned Parenthood “is my favorite organization,” Finzer said, because of its motto: “Care. No matter what.” You would think that educating little girls to be aware that there are sexual predators in this world would be something all can agree is a good thing. But such is the animus toward the health care provider that Finzer, who has volunteered with Planned Parenthood since she was a graduate student, felt the need to ask that when the Times took pictures of her at her house, no street address would be shown.

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Arts Entertainment AND

PRO SOCCER SCORES IN LR LR Rangers draw sizable crowds at War Memorial.

BRIAN CHILSON

BY TOM COULTER

the National Premier Soccer League, a fourth-tier league with 85 teams nationwide. After expressing interest to the league, he was invited by league commissioner Joe Barone to watch the NPSL championship game in Chattanooga. With over 18,000 people packing the stands, the electric environment and passionate support surpassed Wardlaw’s expectations. “Chattanooga is smaller than Little Rock, so I knew that if they can do this, I can do this,” he said. “That was a Saturday night, and that following

LITTLE ROCK RANGERS: Ferdinand Matebu (center) steals the ball from a Memphis City FC player at the semipro team’s game in April.

uring his son’s soccer practices at Riverdale two years ago, Jonathan Wardlaw tossed around half-serious ideas with other parents to answer a nagging question: How can we improve soccer in Little Rock? His son had just begun playing competitively for Arkansas United, one of the youth clubs in Central Arkansas, and his team couldn’t keep up with the talent of regional tournaments in places like Memphis and Tulsa. As the parents considered potential answers to their problem, they 22

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

realized that everything was in place for a semiprofessional team: a rarely used stadium with a central location, a growing Latino population, and established local clubs that could collaborate with the team. Although semiprofessional hockey, basketball and indoor and outdoor football teams had failed in Little Rock, the parents were confident that a semipro soccer team would stick. With only a vague plan, Wardlaw researched U.S. semiprofessional soccer leagues and eventually learned of

Monday I started filling out paperwork and sending it in.” After gathering contributions for the $20,000 franchise fee, Wardlaw submitted the team’s application, and on Oct. 18, 2015, the Little Rock Rangers were officially accepted into the NPSL. Nathan Hunt, then-club president at the youth club Arkansas Rush, helped Wardlaw assemble a coaching staff. They recruited local coaches Will Montgomery and Jennifer Pfeiffer as well as Michael Surtees, the director of Arkansas Rush who first

suggested the NPSL. The team held tryouts at War Memorial Stadium in January, drawing roughly 150 players. The staff, which works voluntarily, makes all roster decisions, while Wardlaw, acting as club president and general manager, focuses on the business end of operations. (“I don’t want to be a Jerry Jones-type on the sideline,” he joked.) The coaching staff added an unexpected member during January tryouts. KLRT, FOX16 anchor Kevin Kelly, who played college soccer, decided to try out despite being 30 years older than most players. After being cut, Kelly was offered an assistant coaching position by the team. He helps out when he can, mainly coaching the goalkeepers, but his anchoring schedule makes it difficult. “I sometimes will rush [to War Memorial] between our 5:30 and 9 o’clock show just to catch half the game,” Kelly said. While the coaching staff is entirely local, the Rangers’ roster has players from 16 different countries, from Brazil to Australia to Malawi. Most play college soccer; to protect their NCAA status as amateurs, nobody on the team gets paid. For those in college, playing for the team provides a way to stay in shape throughout the summer. Most of the older guys simply play out of a love for the game. While there is an opportunity to be seen by major league scouts in the league’s selective combine, Wardlaw admits the chances are slim. Many of the players have positions within youth soccer clubs like Arkansas United and Arkansas Rush, which the team thinks will improve the overall quality of soccer in Central Arkansas. Team captain Nick Doyle, a South Africa native, provides a model Wardlaw hopes many Rangers will follow: Play for a local college, fall in love with the area, and coach for one of the youth clubs. “As long as I’m coaching in the area, I’ll always be playing here,” Doyle said. “Some guys are going to use it as a springboard to try and go into higher leagues, and I know they can. There are some really good players on the team, and I want to help them CONTINUED ON PAGE 40

ROCK CANDY

Check out the Times’ A&E blog arktimes.com

A&E NEWS GARRARD CONLEY, AUTHOR OF “Boy Erased” (and whose conversation with contributor Bryan Borland was featured in last week’s Arkansas Times), is joining forces with author Garth Greenwell on a tour of independent bookstores across North Carolina in opposition to the state’s House Bill 2, the sweeping anti-LGBTQ law that overrides any local anti-discrimination ordinances and bans individuals from using the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity if that differs from the gender listed on their birth certificate. Having scheduled a reading at Asheville bookstore Malaprop’s before HB 2 was signed into law by Gov. Pat McCrory, Conley and Greenwell decided that instead of canceling the event, they’d extend their time in the state in support of bookstores like Malaprop’s. About the bookstores, they stated on LitHub, “We think of them as little gay churches, letting queer people — and, since both of us have worked intensively with young people, we are especially concerned for queer youth — escape the toxic lessons about their lives laws like HB 2 teach, offering an antidote to their venom in writers like Edmund White and Audre Lorde, Alexander Chee and Jeanette Winterson.”

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THANKS TO A $250,000 award from the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Studies, Northwest Arkansas’s TheaterSquared will begin development of “R&J: Damascus,” a version of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” set in modern-day Syria. In collaboration with director Kholoud Sawaf, the three-year grant will catapult the first phase of the project, staged readings of the play as part of the 2016 Arkansas New Play Festival. Sawaf, who was born in Damascus and holds a master’s degree in theater direction from the University of Arkansas, said of the project, “Our job at the first workshop is to dig deep into Shakespeare’s words and examine them through the lens of modern Syria. How do two young people fall in love in the divided world of Damascus and bridge the chasm between their families? In Shakespeare’s world and in ours, the peaceful flag of a love story asks us to pause and reconsider each other.” TEAMS ARE FALLING INTO formation for June’s 48-Hour Film Project. Participants get 48 hours to create a 4- to 7-minute film from scratch, the best of which will be screened at the Ron Robinson Theater later this summer. Aspiring filmmakers, head to The Studio Theatre for a meetand-greet at 6:30 p.m. May 26 or head to 48hourfilm.com for more information. www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

THE TO-DO

LIST

BY STEPHANIE SMITTLE

THURSDAY 5/26

THE HICKOIDS

9 p.m. White Water Tavern. $7.

DOM FLEMONS: The self-described “American songster” brings his 1924 banjo, “the quintessential instrument of the American African diaspora,” to South on Main on Thursday evening.

THURSDAY 5/26

DOM FLEMONS

8 p.m. South on Main. $14-$22.

Dom Flemons’ solo album “Prospect Hill” was recorded the day Pete Seeger died. Seeger’s starring role in the 1947 Alan Lomax film “To Hear Your Banjo Play” inspired Flemons to pick up the banjo in the first place; he made Flemons newly aware of the instrument’s roots in the black com-

munity, “the quintessential instrument of the American African diaspora,” as Flemons called it in an interview with Music Maker. Though he plays a handful of instruments (fife, jug, harmonica, bones, guitar), it’s Flemons’ custom 1924 banjo that characterizes the sound of “Prospect Hill,” modified, as he told NPR, with “lights that you could clip onto the truss rod so that you can heat the head of the banjo, in case it hap-

pens to be a hot day and the skin gets moist and soggy.” Flemons brings the entirety of his old-time and jug band influences — and, of course, his vintage banjo — to South on Main on Thursday as part of his post-Carolina Chocolate Drops sojourn, playing amid oversized cover photographs of the Oxford American magazine, for which he penned an intimate tribute to gospel innovator Thomas A. Dorsey last December.

By all means, count The Hickoids among the things that fueled the slogan “Keep Austin Weird,” and for a litmus test of whether you do or do not dig their cowpunk aesthetic, view their “amateur corn” video for “Jumping Bean Bolero” from 1989’s “Waltz A-Cross-Dress Texas,” comprised entirely of shots of a voluptuous, apron-clad woman shucking, then buttering a corn cob. Born in 1983 from the brains of vocalist Jeff Smith and founding guitarist Jukebox, the group roared off on a tour of what Blurt’s Greg Beets called “squalling, beerlogged collision of punk rock and degenerate country,” opening for Black Flag and the Meat Puppets. They swilled liquor, donned what they called “Cajun realtor” outfits, exposed their naughtier bits during dystopic interpretations of The Eagles’ “Take It Easy,” and somewhere around 1991, the whole thing sputtered to a stop. According to bass player Davy Jones, things are a little different this time around, as he states on the band’s new bio, saying that despite the band’s revolving lineup of musicians, (this is) “the best batch of Hickoids that we’ve ever had. We even practice every week. It’s a whole new era for us being responsible.” A full 30 years after they first played the S.O.B. club in Little Rock, the notoriously ramshackle group returns with a most befitting opener, Hendrix professor Danny Grace’s psycho-Western band, Frontier Circus.

THURSDAY 5/26

POOR OL’ UNCLE FATTY AND THE FREELOADERS

8 p.m. The Joint Theater and Coffeehouse. $10.

Be assured, the music scene in Russellville is alive and well. There’s a DIY punk band called Fiscal Spliff, the sparse and seasoned poetry of songster William Blackart, the dreamy voice 24

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

of Jamie Lou (and the Hullabaloo), decibel-bending space rock group Sad Magick, the Offbeat Times and Russellville Art Zine that tie it all together, and a professed desire to prosper by way of collective support, inclusion and a network of couches available to touring musicians. And then, there’s Poor Ol’ Uncle Fatty. It’s Matthew Ritchie, a plaid-clad man whose sour

lyrics are sung in an undeniable drawl, supported by shuffling, understated drums and a twangy pedal steel from his band The Freeloaders. “Fatty” is something of a Pope County pioneer; he and his friends began playing music in Russellville before there were any music venues in which to play. Ritchie hosted “Sunday Night with Fatty and Friends” at Bugsy’s Wings and Things,

a tradition that carved out a space for original music in a town otherwise characterized by sleepy storefronts and a persistent burger controversy: C.J.’s Butcher Boy vs. Whatta-Burger. The show is part of the “Shoog Radio Presents” series, and will be recorded as a live album in the acoustically favorable theater at The Joint.

IN BRIEF

THURSDAY 5/26

FRIDAY 5/27

BIG PIPH AND TOMORROW MAYBE

9:30 p.m. White Water Tavern. $10.

“I am not them.” The mantra is plastered across the story of Epiphany Morrow (a.k.a. Big Piph), a Stanford University grad who’s opened for Snoop Dogg and Ne-Yo and who took his band of all-star musicians (Bijoux Pighee, Lucas Murray, Dee Dee Jones, Cory Harris, Paul Campbell, Dre Franklin) on a tour of schools and communities in Morocco, Algeria, BURLESQUE LIVES: In Hot Springs, thanks to the Foul Play Cabaret. and Equatorial Guinea last year as part of a grant from American Music Abroad. In the prelude to Piph’s “Dear White People” on his FRIDAY 5/27 Soundcloud page (a treatise on culprecision in its application, torch songs tural appropriation that Big Piph and — perhaps most importantly — an playfully ripped out live in the stu9 p.m. Maxine’s, Hot Springs. $10-$12. inspiring, much-needed degree of body dio on an episode of Shoog Radio Nostalgically following in the highpositivity. The women of Foul Play Cab- last year), “them” refers to those heeled footsteps of Lili St. Cyr and Mae aret formed the group in 2011, after a with unchecked racial privilege West, women like Hot Springs’ Sarah “Spa City Sweethearts Revue” benefiting and a willingness to remain ignoCurtis (a.k.a. Ruby Lead) and Brittany Low Key Arts left them wanting more, rant of the ways in which black Thompson (a.k.a. Violet D’Vine) are and they’ll join rockabilly roots band cultures have shaped American proving that the art of the striptease is Nathan Kalish and the Last Callers at history: “In Dear White People, just that — an art. They are part of a fullMaxine’s for a show that (thanks to the and of course by white people I fledged neo-Burlesque movement, and burlesque troupe’s craft) undoubtedly don’t mean ALL white people, but unlike the brand of dollar-centric dance will require much more time to prepare THEM white people, I’m giving that takes place at the local “gentleman’s than it will to perform. Joining Ruby you a lilac-hued butterfly with club,” burlesque can employ daredevil and Violet at Maxine’s are Doris Night, wingtips kissed by unicorn sprinstunt work, comedy, drama, dance, elabRosa Lee Bloom, Jezebel Jax, master of kles fluttering in a Maui spring orate and often painstakingly handmade ceremonies Vinny Vadge and a “stage breeze over a volcano.” The track costumes, makeup requiring complete kitten,” Kat Tastrophe. begins with the announcement, “The chorus of this song contains 100 percent authentic white folks,” SATURDAY 5/28-MONDAY 5/30 followed by a snippet of standup from a Louis C.K. routine over the summer exhibit since the museum’s intro groove, “I’ve got a lot going for me. I’m healthy, I’m relatively grand reopening last year. There are six 10 a.m., Mid-America Science Museum. $8-$10. full skeletal replicas, animatronic dinos, young, I’m white, which, thank Nearly 20 years ago, “Jurassic Park” “vignettes” that replicate a prehistoric God for that shit,” and opens up sparked (rekindled?) an American love world and even a “dig box” for those who into an intentionally catchy groove affair with dinosaurs that has sprawled have developed a preoccupation with pre- that accompanies his open letter, quicker than West Little Rock, inspiring history at an early age. The museum was “Now freedom through art is fine, a Lego-themed video game, a river ride one of 10 recipients of the 2016 National let’s be clear, but y’all conveniently adventure at Universal Studios and perMedal from the Institute of Museum and amnes’ [he’s using a shortened haps even “Sad T-Rex,” a running webLibrary Services, and is Arkansas’s only form of amnesia as a verb] when it comic meme poking fun at the towering Smithsonian affiliate. Established in 1979 comes to pioneers.” To this listener, predator for being unable to do things and reopened with a generous grant from “I am not them” is not an attempt to like perform CPR, spin vinyl, make the the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, fracture or divide people into catebed, take a selfie, and so on. In honor the museum has an unlikely but lovely gories of “us” and “them,” but more of all things lizardlike and terrible, Hot home just a few hairpin curves down of a standing, radical challenge to Springs’ Mid-America Science Museum from Whittington Park and across from self-define, and to acknowledge National Park College. opens “Dinosaurs Revealed,” the first others who do the same.

FOUL PLAY CABARET

DINOSAURS REVEALED

Revis Edmonds discusses the history of political cartoons in Arkansas as part of the Old State House Museum’s Brown Bag Lecture series, “The Political Cartoonist as Entrepreneur: Arkansas Cartoonists Working Both Sides of Campaigns,” noon, Old State House Museum, free. Cosmocean brings its retro dance grooves to Next Bistro and Bar, 9 p.m., $5-$7. Adam Faucett and Austin Lucas play a free show at Maxine’s, Hot Springs, 8 p.m. Comedian Jason Russell holds court at the Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m., $8 (also 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. Fri.-Sat., $12, through May 28). Country duo LOCASH (formerly known as LoCash Cowboys), who cowrote Tim McGraw’s “Truck Yeah” and Keith Urban’s “You Gonna Fly,” are at the Clear Channel Metroplex, 8 p.m. $15-$18.

FRIDAY 5/27 Motown’s “Empress of Soul,” Gladys Knight, performs at Oaklawn, 7 p.m., $50-$65. Lacey Sturm, formerly of Flyleaf, a band that charted on the Christian metal genre (but wasn’t by any means confined to it), wails at Vino’s, 8 p.m., $15-$30. Selfdescribed “red dirt” group Turnpike Troubadours plays the Metroplex with Cody Canada and the Departed, 8 p.m., $20-$25. Soulful siren Charlotte Taylor and her band Gypsy Rain take the stage at South on Main, 9 p.m., $7. If your Memorial Day plans take you up to the northwest corner, catch trippy psych-rockers The Rios with Couch Jackets and Drenched, 9 p.m., Smoke and Barrel Tavern, Fayetteville, free. Highly polished comedy trio The Main Thing continues its “Rednecks in Spandex” revue at The Joint, 8 p.m., $22. Chris DeClerk (Weakness for Blondes) plays acoustic blues-rock for the happyhour set at Cajun’s, 5:30 p.m., and if you want to make a blues night of it, head over afterward to Stickyz for Hot Springs’ The Federalis, with five-piece, keyboard-driven Fayetteville group Vintage Pistol, 9 p.m., $6. Benton Parks and Recreation screens “Inside Out” at its Movies in the Park series, 6 p.m., Ralph Bunche Park, free. Queen Anne’s Revenge does a tribute to Alice in Chains, Markham Street Grill and Pub, 9 p.m., free.

SATURDAY 5/28 Rev Room hosts a Memorial Day Weekend Party with Afrodesia, 8:30 p.m., $10-$15. Rowdy roots group The Hooten Hallers plays Maxine’s with Shreveport psychedelic rockers The Bristol Hills, 9 p.m., $7. McAllen, Texas, hard rockers Sons of Texas are at Stickyz, 8:30 p.m., $8-$10.

www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

AFTER DARK All events are in the Greater Little Rock area unless otherwise noted. To place an event in the Arkansas Times calendar, please email the listing and all pertinent information, including date, time, location, price and contact information, to calendar@arktimes.com.

littlerock.com.

DANCE

Ballroom dancing. Free lessons begin at 7 p.m. Bess Chisum Stephens Community Center, 8-11 p.m., $7-$13. 12th and Cleveland streets. 501221-7568. www.blsdance.org. Contra Dance. Park Hill Presbyterian Church, 7:30 p.m., $5. 3520 JFK Blvd., NLR. arkansascountrydance.org.

All events are in the Greater Little Rock area unless otherwise noted. To place an event in the Arkansas Times calendar, please email the listing and all pertinent information, including date, time, location, price and contact information, to calendar@arktimes.com.

EVENTS

LGBTQ/SGL weekly meeting. Diverse Youth for Social Change is a group for LGBTQ/SGL and straight ally youth and young adults age 14 to 23. For more information, call 501-2449690 or search “DYSC” on Facebook. LGBTQ/ SGL Youth and Young Adult Group, 6:30 p.m. 800 Scott St.

THURSDAY, MAY 26

MUSIC

Adam Faucett, Austin Lucas. Maxine’s, 9 p.m., free. 700 Central Ave., Hot Springs. 501-3210909. maxineslive.com. Cosmocean. Next Bistro and Bar, 9 p.m., $5-$7. 2611 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-6398. www.facebook.com/LRnextbar/timeline. Dom Flemons. South on Main, 8 p.m., $14-$22. 1304 Main St. 800-293-5949. southonmain.com. The Hickoids. With Frontier Circus. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m., $7. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-3758400. whitewatertavern.com. “Inferno.” DJs play pop, electro, house and more, plus drink specials and $1 cover before 11 p.m. Sway, 9 p.m. 412 Louisiana. Jim Dickerson. Sonny Williams’ Steak Room, 7 p.m. 500 President Clinton Ave. 501-324-2999. www.sonnywilliamssteakroom.com. Karaoke. Zack’s Place, 8 p.m., free. 1400 S. University Ave. 501-664-6444. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Locash. Clear Channel Metroplex, 8 p.m., $15. 10800 Col. Glenn Road. 501-217-5113. metroplexlive.com. Open Jam. Thirst n’ Howl, 8 p.m. 14710 Cantrell Road. 501-379-8189. www.thirst-n-howl.com. Open jam with The Port Arthur Band. Parrot Beach Cafe, 9 p.m. 9611 MacArthur Drive, NLR. 771-2994. RockUsaurus. Casa Mexicana, 7:30 p.m. 7111 JFK Blvd., NLR. 501-835-7876. Stuart Baer. The Big Chill. 910 Higdon Ferry Road, Hot Springs. 501-624-5185. thebigchillhotsprings.com. Ted Ludwig Trio. Capital Bar and Grill, 8 p.m., free. 111 W. Markham St. 501-370-7013. www. capitalbarandgrill.com/. Tragikly White. Cajun’s Wharf, 9 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. cajunswharf.com.

COMEDY

Jason Russell. The Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m., $8. 10301 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501-228-5555. www. loonybincomedy.com.

EVENTS

#ArkiePubTrivia. Stone’s Throw Brewing, 6:30 p.m. 402 E. 9th St. 501-244-9154.

KIDS

Garden Club. A project of the Faulkner County urban Farm Project. Ages 7+ or with supervision. Faulkner County Library, through Aug. 31: 3:30 p.m., free. 1900 Tyler St., Conway. 501-3277482. www.fcl.org.

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

LIFE SCREAMS: Lacey Sturm, formerly of Flyleaf, flies solo at Vino’ s Friday night.

FRIDAY, MAY 27

MUSIC

All In Fridays. Envy. 7200 Colonel Glenn Road. 501-562-3317. Big Piph and Tomorrow Maybe. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-375-8400. whitewatertavern.com. Charlotte Taylor and Gypsy Rain. South on Main, 9 p.m. 1304 Main St. 501-244-9660. southonmain.com. Chris DeClerk. Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. cajunswharf.com. Dom Flemons. Matinee ticket includes admission to the Craft Village, and evening show will be broadcast on Ozark Highlands Radio. Ozark Folk Center State Park, 2 and 7 p.m., $12-$20. 1032 Park Ave., Mountain View. 870-269-3851. ozarkfolkcenter.com. The Downtown Livewires. The Big Chill. 910 Higdon Ferry Road, Hot Springs. 501-624-5185. thebigchillhotsprings.com. The Federalis. With Vintage Pistol. Stickyz Rock ‘n’ Roll Chicken Shack, 9 p.m., $6. 107 River Market Ave. 501-372-7707. stickyz.com. Foul Play Cabaret. With Nathan Kalish and The Last Callers. Maxine’s, 9 p.m., $10-$12. 700 Central Ave., Hot Springs. maxineslive.com. Gladys Knight. Finish Line Theater, 7 p.m., $50$65. Oaklawn Park, 2705 Central Ave, Hot Springs. 501-623-4411. oaklawn.com. Jesse Frye Band. With Paper Anthem. George’s Majestic Lounge, 9:30 p.m., $7. 519 W. Dickson St., Fayetteville. 479-442-4226. Lacey Sturn (Flyleaf). $15 adv., $20 day of, VIP $30. Vino’s, 8 p.m., $15-$30. 923 W. 7th St. 501375-8466. vinosbrewpub.com.

Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Nerd Eye Blind. Cajun’s Wharf, 9 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. cajunswharf.com. Queen Anne’s Revenge. Tribute to Alice in Chains. Markham Street Grill And Pub. 11321 W. Markham St. 501-224-2010. markhamstreetpub.com. The Rios, The Couch Jackets. Smoke and Barrel Tavern. 324 W. Dickson St., Fayetteville. 479-5216880. smokeandbarrel.com. Route 66. Agora Conference and Special Event Center, 6:30 p.m., $5. 705 E. Siebenmorgan, Conway. Salsa Dancing. Clear Channel Metroplex, 9 p.m., $5-$10. 10800 Col. Glenn Road. 501-217-5113. www.littlerocksalsa.com. Ted Ludwig Trio. Capital Bar and Grill, 8 p.m., free. 111 W. Markham St. 501-370-7013. www. capitalbarandgrill.com/. Turnpike Troubadours. Clear Channel Metroplex, 8 p.m., $20-$25. 10800 Col. Glenn Road. 501217-5113. metroplexlive.com. Upscale Friday. IV Corners, 7 p.m. 824 W. Capitol Ave. A Year and a Day. West End Smokehouse and Tavern, 10 p.m., $7. 215 N. Shackleford. 501-2247665. westendsmokehouse.net.

COMEDY

Jason Russell. The Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m., $12. 10301 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501228-5555. www.loonybincomedy.com. “Rednecks in Spandex.” An original production by The Main Thing. The Joint, 8 p.m., $22. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501-372-0205. thejointin-

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POETRY

Jo McDougall, Bryan Borland, and Seth Pennington. Guillermo’s Gourmet Grounds, 7 p.m., free. 10700 Rodney Parham Road. 501228-4448.

KIDS

School’s Out Celebration. Splash Zone, 6 p.m., $5. 201 W. Martin St., Jacksonville. 501-982-4171. cityofjacksonville.net.

SATURDAY, MAY 28

MUSIC

Afrodesia. Revolution, 8:30 p.m., $10-$15. 300 President Clinton Ave. 501-548-5811. revroom. com. Almost Infamous. Cajun’s Wharf, 9 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. cajunswharf.com. Big Dam Horns. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8 p.m., $8. 519 W. Dickson St., Fayetteville. 479442-4226. Brian Ramsey. Kings Live Music, 8:30 p.m., $5. 1020 Front St #102, Conway. 501-205-8512. kingslivemusic.com. Dirty Lindsey. West End Smokehouse and Tavern, 10 p.m., $7. 215 N. Shackleford. 501-224-7665. westendsmokehouse.net. The Hooten Hallers. With The Bristol Hills. Maxine’s, 9 p.m., $7. 700 Central Ave., Hot Springs. maxineslive.com. Karaoke at Khalil’s. Khalil’s Pub, 7 p.m. 110 S. Shackleford Road. 501-224-0224. www.khalilspub.com. Karaoke. Zack’s Place, 8 p.m., free. 1400 S. University Ave. 501-664-6444. Casa Mexicana, 7 p.m. 7111 JFK Blvd., NLR. 501-835-7876. Karaoke with Kevin & Cara. All ages, on the restaurant side. Revolution, 9 p.m.-12:45 a.m., free. 300 President Clinton Ave. 501-823-0090. www.rumbarevolution.com/new. K.I.S.S. Saturdays. Featuring DJ Silky Slim. Dress code enforced. Sway, 10 p.m. 412 Louisiana. 501-492-9802. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Pickin’ Porch. Bring your instrument. All ages welcome. Faulkner County Library, 9:30 a.m. 1900 Tyler St., Conway. 501-327-7482. www.fcl.org. RFRSH. Smoke and Barrel Tavern. 324 W. Dickson St., Fayetteville. 479-521-6880. smokeandbarrel.com. Sons of Texas. Stickyz Rock ‘n’ Roll Chicken Shack, 8:30 p.m., $8-$10. 107 River Market Ave. 501-

372-7707. stickyz.com. Ted Ludwig Trio. Capital Bar and Grill, 8 p.m., free. 111 W. Markham St. 501-370-7013. www. capitalbarandgrill.com/.

COMEDY

Jason Russell. The Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m., $8-$12. 10301 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501-228-5555. www.loonybincomedy.com. “Rednecks in Spandex.” An original production by The Main Thing. The Joint, 8 p.m., $22. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501-372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com.

EVENTS

Falun Gong meditation. Allsopp Park, 9 a.m., free. Cantrell and Cedar Hill Roads. Hillcrest Farmers Market. Pulaski Heights Baptist Church, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. 2200 Kavanaugh Blvd. Historic Neighborhoods Tour. Bike tour of historic neighborhoods includes bike, guide, helmets and maps. Bobby’s Bike Hike, 9 a.m., $8-$28. 400 President Clinton Ave. 501-613-7001. Little Rock Farmers’ Market. River Market pavilions, 7 a.m. 400 President Clinton Ave. 375-2552. www.rivermarket.info. Pork & Bourbon Tour. Bike tour includes bicycle, guide, helmets and maps. Bobby’s Bike Hike, 11:30 a.m., $35-$45. 400 President Clinton Ave. 501-613-7001.

SUNDAY, MAY 29

MUSIC

Indie Music Night. Hosted by Big Swoll and Mz. Glam. Revolution, 8 p.m. 300 President Clinton Ave. 501-823-0090. www.rumbarevolution.com/new. Irish Traditional Music Session. Hibernia Irish Tavern, 2:30 p.m. 9700 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501-246-4340. www.hiberniairishtavern.com. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com.

EVENTS

Artists for Recovery. A secular recovery group for people with addictions, open to the public, located in the church’s Parlor. Quapaw Quarter United Methodist Church, 10 a.m. 1601 S. Louisiana. Bernice Garden Farmer’s Market. Bernice Garden, 10 a.m. 1401 S. Main St. www.thebernicegarden.org.

MONDAY, MAY 30

MUSIC

Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Monday Night Jazz. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 8 p.m., $5. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar.com. Open Mic. The Lobby Bar. Studio Theatre, 8 p.m. 320 W. 7th St. Richie Johnson. Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. www.cajunswharf. com.

TUESDAY, MAY 31

MUSIC

The Hacking. With Recognizer and Black Horse. 9:30 p.m., donations accepted. 501-375-8400.

whitewatertavern.com. Jeff Ling. Khalil’s Pub, 6 p.m. 110 S. Shackleford Road. 501-224-0224. www.khalilspub.com. Jim Dickerson. Sonny Williams’ Steak Room, 7 p.m. 500 President Clinton Ave. 501-324-2999. www.sonnywilliamssteakroom.com. Journey, The Doobie Brothers. Walmart AMP, 7 p.m., $130. 5079 W. Northgate Road, Rogers. 501-443-5600. arkansasmusicpavilion.com. Karaoke Tuesday. Prost, 8 p.m., free. 322 President Clinton Blvd. 501-244-9550. willydspianobar.com/prost-2. Karaoke Tuesdays. On the patio. Stickyz Rock ‘n’ Roll Chicken Shack, 7:30 p.m., free. 107 River Market Ave. 501-372-7707. www.stickyz.com. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Music Jam. Hosted by Elliott Griffen and Joseph Fuller. The Joint, 8-11 p.m., free. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501-372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com. Punch Line. Stand-up comedy. The Joint, 8 p.m., $5. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501-372-0210. thejointargenta.com. Tuesday Jam Session with Carl Mouton. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 8 p.m., free. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar.com.

COMEDY

Stand-Up Tuesday. Hosted by Adam Hogg. The Joint, 8 p.m., $5. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com.

EVENTS

Little Rock Farmers’ Market. River Market pavilions, 7 a.m. 400 President Clinton Ave. 375-2552. www.rivermarket.info. Trivia Bowl. Flying Saucer, 8:30 p.m. 323 President Clinton Ave. 501-372-8032. www.beerknurd.com/ stores/littlerock.

SPORTS

p.m., free. 14710 Cantrell Road. 501-379-8189. www.thirst-n-howl.com. Pop Evil. Clear Channel Metroplex, 7 p.m., $7. 10800 Col. Glenn Road. 501-681-7552. metroplexlive.com. RockUsaurus. Senor Tequila, 7 p.m. 10300 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501-224-5505. Smokey. Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. cajunswharf.com.

COMEDY

The Joint Venture. Improv comedy group. The Joint, 8 p.m., $7. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com.

DANCE

Little Rock Bop Club. Beginning dance lessons for ages 10 and older. Singles welcome. Bess Chisum Stephens Community Center, 7 p.m., $4 for members, $7 for guests. 12th and Cleveland streets. 501-350-4712. www.littlerockbopclub.

POETRY

Wednesday Night Poetry. 21-and-older show. Kollective Coffee & Tea, 7 p.m., free. 110 Central Ave., Hot Springs. 501-321-0909. maxineslive. com/shows.html.

ARTS

THEATER

The Last Potluck Supper. 6 p.m. Tue.-Sat.; 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Sun. Murry’s Dinner Playhouse, through June 18: Tue.-Sun.., $23-$36. 6323 Col. Glenn Road. 501-562-3131. murrysdinnerplayhouse.com. TheatreSquared: “Murder For Two.” Walton Arts Center’s Nadine Baum Studios, through May 29: Wed.-Sat., 7:30 p.m.; Sat., Sun., 2 p.m., $10-$45. 505 W. Spring St., Fayetteville. 479-4435600. theatre2.org.

Arkansas Travelers vs. Corpus Christi. DickeyStephens Park, 7:05 p.m., $7-$13. 400 W. Broadway, NLR. 501-664-1555. milb.com.

NEW IN THE GALLERIES

CLASSES

L&L BECK ART GALLERY, 5705 Kavanaugh Blvd.: “Go West, Young Man,” paintings by Louis Beck, month of June, free giclee drawing 7 p.m. June 16. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tue.-Sat. 660-4006. MATT MCLEOD FINE ART GALLERY, 108 W. 6th St.: Sculpture by new artist Hunter Brown, reception 5-8 p.m. June 2. 725-8508. THEA FOUNDATION, 401 Main St., NLR: “Delta des Refuses,” artworks rejected from the Arkansas Arts Center’s “Delta Exhibition,” June 1-22, opening reception 5-8 p.m. June 17.

Garden Sketch Hour. Faulkner County Library, Continues through Aug. 31, free. 1900 Tyler St., Conway. 501-327-7482. fcurbanfarmproject.org.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1

MUSIC

Acoustic Open Mic. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 8 p.m., free. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar.com. Brian and Nick. Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. www.cajunswharf. com. Drageoke with Chi Chi Valdez. Sway. 412 Louisiana. Jim Dickerson. Sonny Williams’ Steak Room, 7 p.m. 500 President Clinton Ave. 501-324-2999. www.sonnywilliamssteakroom.com. Karaoke at Khalil’s. Khalil’s Pub, 7 p.m. 110 S. Shackleford Road. 501-224-0224. www.khalilspub.com. Karaoke. MUSE Ultra Lounge, 8:30 p.m., free. 2611 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-6398. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Open Mic Nite with Deuce. Thirst n’ Howl, 7:30

BENTONVILLE CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART, One Museum Way: “The Open Road Film Series: ‘45 RPM’ and Conversation with Filmmaker Juli Jackson,” 8:30-10:30 p.m. May 26; “The Open Road: Photography and the American Road Trip,” 100 images by 19 photographers of America from 1950 to today, through May; American masterworks spanning four centuries in the permanent collection. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon., Thu.; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Wed., Fri.; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat.-Sun., closed Tue. 479-418-5700. EL DORADO SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER, 110 E. 5th St.: “Familiar Spark,” works by Heather Griffin and Abigail Syltie, May 30-June 25, Price

North Little Rock 501-945-8010 Russellville 479-890-2550 Little Rock 501-455-8500 Conway 501-329-5010

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www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

AFTER DARK, CONT. PULASKI TECHNICAL COLLEGE, 3000 W. Scenic Drive: “Merging Form and Surface,” sculpture by Robyn Horn and Sandra Sell, Windgate Gallery, Center for the Humanities and Arts. 812-2324. MUGS CAFE, 515 Main St., NLR: “Renee Williams, New Works.” 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat. 379-9101. THEA FOUNDATION, 401 Main St., NLR: “Succinct,” collages by Michael Church. 379-9512. RED DOOR GALLERY, 3715 JFK, NLR: Work by new artist Jeff McKay; also work by C.J. Ellis, TWIN, Amy Hill-Imler, Ellen Hobgood; new glass by James Hayes and ceramics by Kelly Edwards. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat. 753-5227. STEPHANO AND GAINES FINE ART, 1916 N. Fillmore St. Work by Arkansas artists. 563-4218.

and Merkle galleries, reception 2 p.m. May 30. 870-862-5474.

CALL FOR ENTRIES The Arkansas Arts Council is taking applications from teaching performing, literary or visual artists who would like to join the Arts in Education Roster. Deadline to apply is July 8. Applications are available at arkansasarts.org. For more information, call the Arts Council at 501-324-9769 or email cynthia@arkansasheritage.org.

ONGOING GALLERY EXHIBITS ARGENTA GALLERY, 413 Main St., NLR: Paintings by Cindy J. Holmes. 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Tue.Sat. 258-8991. ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER, MacArthur Park: Renoir’s “Madame Henriot,” loan from the Columbus Museum of Art, through Sept. 11; “55th Young Artists Exhibition,” work by Arkansas students K-12, through July 24; “Miranda Young: A Printed Menagerie,” museum school gallery, through May 29. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Fri., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. 372-4000. ARKANSAS CAPITAL CORP., 200 River Market Ave., Suite 400: “Naturals,” work by Virmarie DePoyster, Heidi Hogden, Logan Hunter and Anna Sheals. www.arcapital.com. BOSWELL MOUROT FINE ART, 5815 Kavanaugh Blvd.: New paintings by Hans Feyerabend and Elena Petroukhina, clay sculpture by Diana Ashley, through May 28. 664-0030. BUTLER CENTER GALLERIES, Arkansas Studies Institute, 401 President Clinton Ave.: “Culture Shock: Shine Your Rubies, Hide Your Diamonds,” work by women’s artist collective, including Melissa Cowper-Smith, Melissa Gill, Tammy Harrington, Dawn Holder, Jessie Hornbrook, Holly Laws, Sandra Luckett, Morgan Page and Rachel Trusty, through Aug. 27, Concordia Hall; “Twists and Strands: Exploring the Edges,” ceramics by Barbara Satterfield and jewelry by Michele Fox, through May 28; “Jeanfo: We Belong to Nature,” sculpture, through June 25. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat. 320-5790. CANTRELL GALLERY, 8206 Cantrell Road: “Black Box,” paintings by Kae Barron, through July 2. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat. 224-1335. CHRIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 509 Scott St.: “Interconnections,” paintings and drawings by Maria and Jorge Villegas, through June 30. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Thu., 9 a.m.-noon Fri. and Sun. 375-2342. CHROMA GALLERY, 5707 Kavanaugh Blvd.: Work by Robert Reep and other Arkansas artists. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sat. 664-0880. CORE BREWING, 411 Main St., NLR: “Salud! A Group Exhibition,” through July 10. corebeer.com. DRAWL SOUTHERN CONTEMPORARY ART GALLERY, 5208 Kavanaugh Blvd.: “The Gun Show.” 680-1871. GALLERY 26, 2601 Kavanaugh Blvd.: Paintings by Michael Lierly, ceramics by Donna Uptigrove.10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tue.-Sat. 664-8996. GINO HOLLANDER GALLERY, 2nd and Center: Paintings and works on paper by Gino Hollander. 801-0211. GREG THOMPSON FINE ART, 429 Main St., NLR: “Magical Realism.” 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.Fri., 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat. 664-2787. HEARNE FINE ART, 1001 Wright Ave.: “Off the Page: Illustrations from Nikki Grimes’ ‘Danita Brown’ Series and Other Titles,” watercolors by E.B. Lewis and mixed media by Floyd Cooper, through June 3. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 28

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

BENTON DIANNE ROBERTS ART STUDIO AND GALLERY, 110 N. Market St.: Work by Dianne Roberts, classes. 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Wed.-Fri., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat. 860-7467. FORT SMITH REGIONAL ART MUSEUM, 1601 Rogers Ave.: “The Life and Art of Mary Petty,” works by New Yorker cartoonist, through June 30; “Beverly Conley: Photographic Journeys,” through June 26, closing reception 5-7 p.m. June 10. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tue.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 479-784-2787. UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS AT FORT SMITH, 510 Grand Ave.: “Sammy Peters: Then & Now,” Windgate Art & Design Gallery, through May. 479-788-7530. HOT SPRINGS JUSTUS FINE ART, 827 A Central Ave.: “Natural Design,” paintings by Thomas Green and Tony Saladino, steel sculpture by Robert Fogel, through May. 501-321-2335. JASPER NELMS GALLERY, 107 Church St.: Work by Don Kitz, Don Nelms, Pamla Klenczar, Scott Baldassari and others. 870-446-5477.

AT GALLERY 26: The Hillcrest gallery, at 2601 Kavanaugh Blvd., is exhibiting paintings by Michael Lierly and ceramics by Donna Uptigrove through July 9. a.m.-6 p.m. Sat. 372-6822. HISTORIC ARKANSAS MUSEUM GALLERIES, 200 E. 3rd St.: “Fucoid Arrangements” by Robert Lemming and abstract drawings by Louis Watts, through Aug. 7; “Hugo and Gayne Preller’s House of Light,” historic photographs, through October. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 324-9351. LAMAN LIBRARY, 2801 Orange St., NLR: “Inked Arkansas,” exhibition of work by Arkan-

sas printmakers Melissa Gill, Catherine Kim, DebiLynn Fendley, Kristin DeGeorge, Warren Criswell, Daniel Adams, David Warren, Nancy Dunaway, Neal Harrington and Tammy Harrington, through July 1, reception 6-8 p.m. May 27. 771-1995. LAMAN LIBRARY ARGENTA BRANCH, 420 Main St., NLR: “Family Portrait,” paintings by Kesha Stovall, through June 10. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Sat. 687-1061.

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MORRILTON RIALTO GALLERY, 213 E. Broadway St.: “Art for the Birds 2016,” through June 19, reception 3-6 p.m. June 11 with music by violinist Bill Thurman. 501-288-9259. PERRYVILLE SUDS GALLERY, Courthouse Square: Paintings by Dottie Morrissey, Alma Gipson, Al Garrett Jr., Phyllis Loftin, Alene Otts, Mauretta Frantz, Raylene Finkbeiner, Kathy Williams and Evelyn Garrett. Noon-6 p.m. Wed.-Fri, noon-4 p.m. Sat. 501-766-7584.

HISTORY, SCIENCE MUSEUM EXHIBITS ARKANSAS INLAND MARITIME MUSEUM, North Little Rock: The USS Razorback submarine tours. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 371-8320. ARKANSAS NATIONAL GUARD MUSEUM, Camp Robinson: Artifacts on military history, Camp Robinson and its predecessor, Camp Pike, also a gift shop. 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Mon.-Fri., audio tour available at no cost. 212-5215. ARKANSAS SPORTS HALL OF FAME MUSEUM, Verizon Arena, NLR: 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Mon.-Sat. 663-4328. CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL MUSEUM VISITOR

AFTER DARK, CONT. CENTER, Bates and Park: Exhibits on the 1957 desegregation of Central and the civil rights movement. 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. daily. 374-1957. CLINTON PRESIDENTIAL CENTER: “American Champions: The Quest for Olympic Glory,” photographs, film and memorabilia from athletes, through Sept. 11; permanent exhibits on the Clinton administration. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. $10 adults; $8 college students, seniors, retired military; $3 ages 6-17. 370-8000. ESSE PURSE MUSEUM & STORE, 1510 S. Main St.: “Changing Tides: 100 Years of Iconic Swimwear,” 20th century swimwear from the collection of the Fashion History Museum in Cambridge, Ontario, through Aug. 7; “What’s Inside: A Century of Women and Handbags,” permanent exhibit. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tue.-Sat., 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sun. $10, $8 for students, seniors and military. 916-9022. HISTORIC ARKANSAS MUSEUM, 200 E. 3rd St.: Refurbished 19th century structures from original city and galleries, guided tours Monday and Tuesday on the hour, self-guided Wednesday through Sunday, $2.50 adults, $1 under 18, free to 65 and over. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 324-9351. MacARTHUR MUSEUM OF ARKANSAS MILITARY HISTORY, 503 E. 9th St. (MacArthur Park): “Waging Modern Warfare”; “Gen. Wesley Clark”; “Vietnam, America’s Conflict”; “Undaunted Courage, Proven Loyalty: Japanese American Soldiers in World War II. 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-4 p.m. Sun. 376-4602. MacARTHUR MUSEUM OF ARKANSAS MILITARY HISTORY, 503 E. 9th St. (MacArthur Park): “War Comes Home: The Legacy,” correspondence from major U.S. conflicts reveals effect on lives, families and communities, through June 1; “Waging Modern Warfare”; “Gen. Wesley Clark”; “Vietnam, America’s Conflict”; “Undaunted Courage, Proven Loyalty: Japanese American Soldiers in World War II. 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-4 p.m. Sun. 376-4602. MOSAIC TEMPLARS CULTURAL CENTER, 9th and Broadway: “African American Treasures from the Kinsey Collection,” through July 2; permanent exhibits on African-American entrepreneurship in Arkansas. 683-3610. MUSEUM OF DISCOVERY, 500 President Clinton Ave.: “Wiggle Worms,” science program for pre-K children 10 -10:30 a.m. every Tue. Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun., $10 ages 13 and older, $8 ages 1-12, free to members and children under 1. 396-7050. OLD STATE HOUSE MUSEUM, 300 W. Markham: “Cabinet of Curiosities: Treasures from the University of Arkansas Museum Collection,” through May 20, 2017; “Lost + Found: Saving Downtowns in Arkansas,” photographs of eight projects completed or renovated by Cromwell Architects Engineers. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 324-9685. WITT STEPHENS JR. CENTRAL ARKANSAS NATURE CENTER, Riverfront Park: Exhibits on fishing and hunting and the state Game and Fish Commission. 907-0636.

JACKSONVILLE JACKSONVILLE MUSEUM OF MILITARY HISTORY, 100 Veterans Circle: Exhibits on D-Day; F-105, Vietnam era plane (“The Thud”); the Civil War Battle of Reed’s Bridge, Arkansas Ordnance Plant (AOP) and other military history. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. $3 adults; $2 seniors, military; $1 students. 501-241-1943. MORRILTON MUSEUM OF AUTOMOBILES, Petit Jean Mountain: Permanent exhibit of more than 50 cars from 1904-1967 depicting the evolution of the automobile. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. 7 days. 501-727-5427.

ARTS AND SCIENCE CENTER FOR SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS, 701 S. Main St.: “Exploring the Frontier: Arkansas 1540-1840,” Arkansas Discovery Network hands-on exhibition; “Heritage Detectives: Discovering Arkansas’ Hidden Heritage.” 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Fri., 1-4 p.m. Sat. 870-536-3375. POTTSVILLE POTTS INN, 25 E. Ash St.: Preserved 1850s stagecoach station on the Butterfield Overland Mail Route, with period furnishings, log structures, hat museum, doll museum, doctor’s office, antique farm equipment. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Wed.-Sat. $5 adults, $2 students, 5 and under free. 479-968-9369.

PINE BLUFF

ROGERS ROGERS HISTORICAL MUSEUM, 322 S. 2nd St.: “Historic Millscapes, Paintings of the Past: Selected Works by Artist Don Draper”; “Crazy Quilts,” through July 10. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 479-6210-1154. SCOTT PLANTATION AGRICULTURE MUSEUM, U.S. Hwy. 165 and state Hwy. 161: Permanent exhibits on historic agriculture. 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. $4 adults, $3 children. 961-1409. SCOTT PLANTATION SETTLEMENT: 1840s log cabin, one-room school house, tenant houses, smokehouse and artifacts on plantation life. 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Thu.-Sat. 351-0300. www.scottconnections.org.

Associate Professor and Primary Care Doctor, Tobias “Toby” Vancil, M.D. (second from left) in clinic with student and patient

CALICO ROCK CALICO ROCK MUSEUM, Main Street: Displays on Native American cultures, steamboats, the railroad and local history. www.calicorockmuseum.com.

educating the future of health care As the state’s only academic health sciences center, we are educating the best and brightest health professionals who will shape the future of health care. At UAMS, the next generation of compassionate medical professionals receive the specialized education they need to care for you and your family. We are UAMS, and we’re here for a better state of health. UAMShealth.com

ENGLAND TOLTEC MOUNDS STATE PARK, U.S. Hwy. 165: Major prehistoric Indian site with visitors’ center and museum. 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., noon-5 p.m. Sun., closed Mon. $3 for adults, $2 for ages 6-12. 961-9442. U768-040249-03_Academic_ArkTimesIsland.indd 1

U768-040249-03_Academic_ArkTimesIsland

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MAY 26, 2016

1/14/16 1:32 PM

Hey, do this!

JUNE

OXFORD AMERICAN AND SOUTH ON MAIN present these excellent shows in May and June:

MAY 26

The Oxford American is excited to welcome folk singer DOM FLEMONS to the South on Main stage on Thursday night. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets are $22. Visit www. southonmain.com for tickets and a complete lineup of events.

JUNE 25

We are thrilled to welcome NOLA-artist PJ MORTON to the #SouthOnMain stage on June 25, 2016. Doors open at 4 PM, wristbands may be purchased day of the show for $20, show starts at 9 PM. Call (501) 244-9660 to make a reservation for a table.

JUNE 2

Spring means baseball is in full swing. THE ARKANSAS TRAVELERS host the Corpus Christi Hooks, and it’s 80s theme night. Come root for the home team at Dickey-Stephens Park. n MAYDAY BY MIDNIGHT plays at Cajun’s Wharf on the First Thursday of every month. Enjoy beautiful river views and cold Playde-Dohs on the Big Swingin’ Deck. For more info, visit www.cajunswharf.com.

JUNE 10

We’re excited to welcome AMELIA WHITE to play her first show on the #SouthOnMain stage. Joining her will be Arkansas’ own MARK CURREY. Show starts at 9 PM, doors open at 4 PM. $10 cover

JUNE 4

Free and open to the public is the HEALTH AND WELLNESS EXPO at St. Mark Baptist Church at 5722 W. 12th Street with health screenings, fitness demos, physicals, CPR training and more from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. For more info, call 501-207-0711. n TOUR DE ROCK, one of the premiere cycling events of the year, rolls through Central Arkansas with 25-, 50-, 62- and 100-mile routes to choose from. Registration is $50 with proceeds benefitting CARTI. Sign up at www.carti.com/events/tour-de-rock.

All ages are invited to the annual SUMMER READING KICK-OFF PARTY at the Saline County Library on Monday from 3-6 p.m. and the Mabel Boswell Memorial Library on Tuesday from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. There will be games, stories, snacks and appearances by the Arkansas Travelers mascots. There is also a used book sale from June 9-11 with 50-cent paperbacks and $1 hardbacks, perfect timing for road trips and beach reads.

JUNE 8, 15

JUNE 10-26

JUNE 11, 12, 29

JUNE 12

Colonial Wine & Spirits celebrates NATIONAL CHEESE DAY on Wednesday, June 8, with a cheese and wine-pairing event from 4-6 p.m. On Wednesday, June 15, sip champagne and sparkling wines and nibble on fresh strawberries in various preparations, including chocolate fondue, from 4-7 p.m.

Vino’s Brew Pub has several local shows coming up – FIEND WITHOUT A FACE, DEATH BEFORE BREAKFAST, STU HAMM, MOS GENERATOR and more – plus some of the best pizza and craft beer in town. Check the calendar for a full lineup at www.vinosbrewpub.com.

JUNE 21-JULY 16

Murry’s Dinner Playhouse presents TOO MANY COOKS. Enjoy dinner and a night of fun during this play set in 1932 in Niagra Falls and centering on a father-daughter duo opening a gourmet restaurant. For tickets and show times, visit www. murrysdp.com.

JUNE 6-7, JUNE 9-11

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

The Arkansas Rep rounds out their 40th season with a world premiere production of “WINDFALL,” directed by Jason Alexander of the famed Seinfeld. Play by Scooter Pietsch. Produced by John Yonover.

DRUMMING THROUGH THE FABLES auditions take places at the Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas. For more information, call 870-536-3375.

JUNE 6-12

BURGER WEEK ROCK(S) Over twenty participating restaurants in LR/NLR offer delicious burger offerings for $5 or $8. Beer recommendations included! Presented by Edward’s Food Giant and Budweiser. Check the June 2 issue of the Arkansas Times for a full list and more details.

JUNE 3-4

JUNE 30-JULY 4

JUNE 3, 10, 12

LITTLE ROCK RANGERS SOCCER CLUB has three home games in June at War Memorial Stadium. Tailgating starts at 5 p.m. and kick off is at 7 p.m. “Like” them on Facebook to keep up with team news.

JUNE 7

JUNE 7-JULY 12

Enjoy a night at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre in honor of the Wolfe Street Foundation with silent auction at 6 p.m. and curtain at 7 p.m. for WINDFALL, JASON ALEXANDER’S directing debut in Arkansas. For tickets and more info, visit www. therep.org.

Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre celebrates its 10th season. This year’s plays include A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, ROMEO & JULIET, WEST SIDE STORY and TWELFTH NIGHT with performances on the UCA campus. In addition to the Conway shows, the production of Twelfth Night will travel to the Joint in North Little Rock (June 22), Argenta Community Theatre (June 24), Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain (June 25), South Arkansas Arts Center in El Dorado (June 29) and Crystal Bridges in Bentonville (July 7). For show times and tickets, visit www.arkshakes.com.

Verizon Arena presents STEELY DAN WITH STEVE WINWOOD at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $78.50 and $102.50 and available through Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com.

FUN!

RIVERFEST, Arkansas’s premier music experience, is going to be big this year with performances by The Flaming Lips, Chris Stapleton, Juicy J, Goo Goo Dolls, Grace Potter, St. Paul & the Broken Bones, George Clinton and more. Tickets are available at www. riverfestarkansas.com.

JUNE 10-9

All are welcome to the “STARS AND STRIPES CELEBRATION FOR FLAG DAY,” a free concert by the Little Rock Wind Symphony at MacArthur Military Museum at 7 p.m. n BRIT FLOYD, the world’s greatest Pink Floyd show, returns to Verizon Arena for a spectacular lights and musical experience. Tickets are $42.50, $47.50 and $68 and available through Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com. n Starting June 12th, Wildwood Academy of Music and the Arts (WAMA) is summer music festival and arts camp designed for students ages 6–18 who are interested in studying music. The academy’s mission is to provide the highest standards in music and arts education to Arkansas students of all ages and backgrounds.

JUNE 25

JUNE 2-4

Food, Music, Entertainment and everything else that’s

JUNE 14

JUNE 10-11

You missed your chance to see JAMEY JOHNSON, CenterStage at Choctaw Casino in Pocola. This event is sold out. But the Sara Lyons Band and Bo Phillips Band will perform at Gilley’s on Friday and Saturday nights at 10 p.m. For a complete schedule of events, visit www. choctawcasinos.com.

Riverdale 10 presents BEVERLY HILLS COP at 7 p.m. as part of its classic movie series. Sit back, and enjoy the show in the comfiest movie theater seats in town at the only theater that serves wine and beer. For a complete list of showings, visit www. riverdale10.com.

HIGHBERRY MUSIC FESTIVAL returns to Mulberry Mountain for four days of music and camping in one of the most scenic spots in the state. This year’s headliners include Keller Williams and Yonder Mountain String Band. Passes are still available, but they’re selling out. Snag one now at www.highberryfestival.com.

JUNE 15

MacArthur Military Museum presents MASH at 6:30 p.m. as part of free Movies at MacArthur series. Popcorn and drinks will be provided.

Big news! One of the most famous books in the history is coming to town this month. The world’s largest Shakespeare collection at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington DC is sending a FIRST FOLIO here as part of the national tour marking the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death. Published in 1623, the First Folio is the first collected edition of his plays. It will be on display at UCA’s Baum Gallery. For more info on this and the Arkansas Shakespeare Theater, visit www.arkshakes.com.

JUNE 11

Grammy Award winning artist ERYKAH BADU performs live at Verizon Arena. Tickets are $69.50 and $99.50 and available at www. ticketmaster.com.

JUNE 16-19

EUREKA SPRINGS BLUES WEEKEND features the best in local, regional and national blues acts from all over the world. This year, the headliners will perform at Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge with on-site camping and lodging available. For a full schedule and to order VIP passes or general weekend passes, visit www.eurekaspringsblues.com.

JUNE 21

Arkansas native and Lucero front man BEN NICHOLS comes home to headline Arkansas Sounds. Singersongwriter Jeff Coleman will open the show at 7 p.m. at the Ron Robinson Theater. Tickets are $20. For more info, visit www.arkansassounds.org.

MAY 31ST IS THE LAST DAY TO ASSESS WITH NO FEES! CALL THE PULASKI COUNTY ASSESSOR’S OFFICE TODAY.

MOVIE REVIEW

We’ll be open for dinner 5-8pm Pop by and see us!

1500 S. Main St./15th & Main Downtown 501.414.0423 · therootcafe.com

‘THE NICE GUYS’: Ryan Gosling (left) and Russell Crowe star.

Hardboiled romp ‘Nice Guys’ is all over the place, but that’s OK. BY SAM EIFLING

t’s about 20 years since Russell Crowe’s breakout role as a hardswinging cop named Bud in “L.A. Confidential,” and five since Ryan Gosling tore up Los Angeles as an anonymous wheelman in “Drive.” Both flicks were modern classics of L.A. noir, a subgenre they revisit with “The Nice Guys,” a dark retro detective farce that can never quite decide whether it’s going for laughs, hardboiled plotting or family action-comedy. In the end maybe it gets all three, though it’s tough to tell — rarely do you see an R-rated crime movie so keen on plumbing the 1970s L.A. porn industry while it also employs a 13-year-old girl as a daughter-sidekick to criminal investigations. If it’s all over the place, “The Nice Guys,” with charms that start with its leading men, is hard to stay mad at. Crowe here is Jackson Healy, again a broody bruiser, but a strictly musclefor-hire sort, who cares for his fish, learns a word a day from a desk calendar, and shows up at dirtbags’ doorsteps with brass knuckles when someone has a problem with them. One such doorstep belongs to Gosling’s Holland March, a single-dad louche of a P.I. who

hustles old ladies for the few dollars he needs to stay pickled-drunk and to keep a roof over him and the aforementioned kiddo, a precocious and unfazed Angourie Rice. The job that brings them together: A headstrong brunette named Amelia (Margaret Qualley, of “The Leftovers) is on the run, and while March has been hired to tail her, Healy’s job is to throw the tail. Hence, this mismatched buddy comedy begins with Healy roughing up March and snapping his arm with an almost collegial bit of workmanship. Soon, thugs show up to rough up Healy, demanding he lead them to Amelia. Healy, with some genuine concern that the damsel could be in distress, returns to hire the one detective he knows has leads: March. Co-writer and director Shane Black (“Kiss Kiss Bang Bang,” “Iron Man 3”) manages to build out a halfdecent crime comedy from here, as if he dumbed down a Raymond Chandler plot and ran it through outtakes from “The Big Lebowski” or, in a further nod, “Who Framed Roger Rabbit.” Stitched into the SoCal of 1977 are multiple references to auto regulations

and smoggy air; naturally the spider’s web of corruption that our heroes halfsleuth, half-bumble into connects these themes, something crucial to development in California and something that corrodes life in California. And, like “L.A. Confidential,” Kim Basinger’s presence, in this case as a Justice Department official, will duly complicate matters. But ultimately (and really, quite weirdly) the vein of parental doting that runs through “The Nice Guys” makes it a singular sort of romp. Crowe’s Healy genuinely has a chivalrous streak that he can never put into use. Even as he marvels at the drunken duncery of his makeshift partner, he’s fascinated at the capacity a real detective might have to help people who are in trouble. And Gosling’s March, as ill-suited as he is for the job, actually takes the time to father the daughter in the midst of, oh, tracking down Amelia at a pornographer’s house party in the hills. When the stowaway kid exclaims something about how many whores there are and stuff, he corrects her that there’s no need to add the “and stuff”: You can just say, “Dad, there are a lot of whores here.” That theme, of kids growing up too fast, will feel familiar in 2016. And so will the earnest lack of ironic detachment: They may be hard-bitten S.O.B.s caught in a nasty line of work, but this is actually a movie, as the title assures, about a couple of guys who actually seem pretty decent.

STAY UP LATE! PLAYIN 4TH FRIDAYS

FRIDAY MAY 27

www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

Dining

Information in our restaurant capsules reflects the opinions of the newspaper staff and its reviewers. The newspaper accepts no advertising or other considerations in exchange for reviews, which are conducted anonymously. We invite the opinions of readers who think we are in error.

B Breakfast L Lunch D Dinner $ Inexpensive (under $8/person) $$ Moderate ($8-$20/person) $$$ Expensive (over $20/person) CC Accepts credit cards

WHAT’S COOKIN’

FINALLY, IT SEEMS, David’s Burgers’ plan to open in the River Market is going from raw to rare as owner David Alan Bubbus puts the finishing touches on its lease. Diana Long, director of operations of the River Market’s Ottenheimer Hall, said the restaurant has plans for a “tremendous build-out,” enclosing the patio, and is “nearing completion on the lease.” Long said construction should take around 90 days, and she hoped David’s Burgers would be open by the end of summer. TWO NEW RESTAURANTS have signed leases to go into the River Market: The Indian Feast, which will go into the space formerly occupied by the Veg, and Old Mill Bread and Flour Co. will go in next to Mason’s Deli & Grill. Indian Feast is being opened by businessman Yogi Asudani, who recently treated Long’s staff to lunch to familiarize them with the food. Old Mill manager John Graham said the River Market space will not take the place of the West Little Rock store, but will complement it. Old Mill has sold its breads at the Farmers’ Market in the pavilions for many years. RISTORANTE CAPEO’S BRIAN Isaac sends along word that his restaurant will end its lunch service on Friday, May 27. It began offering lunch a little more than a year ago when it started offering Neapolitan pizza. Isaac stresses that dinner service, where pizza will continue to be available, will not change. The North Little Rock restaurant is located at 425 Main St. 32

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

FAVORED DISH: Not all of La Madeleine’s dishes worked, but the Quiche Lorraine did, and is a bargain.

Comme ci, comme ça French fast-casual chain La Madeleine doesn’t stand out.

e found the food at La Madeleine extraordinarily ordinary. On a 1-10 scale we didn’t have to suffer through any 1s or 2s, but we also found no 9s or 10s. But that’s really not surprising at a chain restaurant. Most Americans settle for mediocre food daily, and few are willing to take culinary risks. Thus the dominance of mediocre chains atop local restaurant revenue rankings. But compromises in quality and creativity are usually offset by reasonable prices. We loaded up our tray at La Madeleine and spent $48 (the lack of alcoholic beverages kept the tab down; more on that in the Quick Bite section). There was no tip option on our credit card receipt. La Madeleine tries hard to look

French with atmosphere and decor that evokes a French country kitchen with bread boards and rolling pins on display. And painful phrases like “Le Children’s Menu.” Photos of French scenes hang on the walls. The south-facing patio is covered with adjustable screens and shades to accommodate changing weather. But achieving a French countryside feel is damn near impossible with cars whizzing along Markham a couple dozen yards away. This is a “fast casual” restaurant, with orders taken and paid for at the counter. Drinks, silverware, napkins and complimentary bread are available at a central kiosk. Guests then seat themselves, taking a GPS-enabled numbered disc to the table. Servers fairly promptly deliver the order.

The free bread won’t wow you. We found it much like regular sandwich bread and nothing you’d confuse with a Boulevard Bread creation. But, hey, it’s free. We did enjoy the three items we chose as starters: The mushroom soup was rich but not over the top and was chock-full of diced ’shrooms. The “country potato” soup is more what we’d call “baked potato soup” as it includes bacon and cheddar. It was thick but pretty unexceptional overall. On the 1-10 scale we’d give the mushroom soup a 7 and the potato a 5. (All soups are $4.29 a cup, $5.29 a bowl and $6.29 for “large.”) The potato galette is a large hash brown potato cake studded with green onions and a little Parmesan. It’s crisped up nicely and is a bargain at $2.99. Score: 7. Another bargain and our favorite dish of the meal was the Quiche Lorraine (a huge slab for $5.99). The custard/egg combination makes it light and creamy – but still substantial. There’s just enough ham, bacon and cheese to flavor it but still allow the base ingredients to shine through. The crust is buttery and light. Score: 8. There is no sandwich more quintessentially French than the Croque Mon-

BELLY UP

Join us for our 20th annual Night at The Rep!

Check out the Times’ food blog, Eat Arkansas arktimes.com

Night at the Rep for Wolfe Street Foundation

June 7, 2016

WINDFALL: A NEW COMEDY DIRECTED BY JASON ALEXANDER Silent Auction: 6 p.m. • Curtain: 7 p.m. THE REP 601 South Main Visit www.wolfestreet.org or EventBrite to buy tickets online or come by the Wolfe Street Bookstore. 1015 S Louisiana St. • Little Rock 501-372-5662

Arkansas’s largest resource dedicated to recovery from alcoholism and addiction.

A heartfelt thanks to UAMS Foundation, Bradford Health, Scruggs Ridge CPAs & Co., Dubose Heating & Air, Inuvo, Mr. & Mrs. Biff, Vinson and Ms. Liz Waldron for their generous sponsorship of this event!

CLASSIC FRENCH: In name only, as this Beef Bourguignon didn’t measure up to what the French would serve.

sieur ($8.59), a grilled ham and cheese gooed up with a bit of cream sauce. This sandwich suffered in three ways: 1) in the home state of Petit Jean ham, likely the best generally available ham in the world, it’s a shame an inferior “deli ham” product is used; 2) the sandwich didn’t hold together; the top bread piece was just perched on top; 3) the choice of thick, dense Wheatberry bread deviates from the French original and is too substantial for this application. Score: 4

La Madeleine Country French Café 12210 W. Markham St. Little Rock 501-221-7777 www.lamadeleine.com

QUICK BITE Restaurants open all the time with their liquor license already procured. A month after its opening, La Madeleine didn’t have its, which certainly makes no sense considering it’s a national chain and is locally owned by the Chi family, who know a thing or two about how to open a restaurant. HOURS 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Sunday. OTHER INFO Credit cards accepted, no alcohol for now.

Beef Bourguignon ($12.99) is also classic French. But not exactly like this. The biggest drawback here is that the beef is bland. The menu touts a red wine demi-glace, but it shone through more in the tender mushrooms and didn’t penetrate the hunks of none-too-tender beef. Carrots, peas and pearl onions are included, and the whole mess sits on a thick bed of mashed potatoes, also not consistent with how the dish is served in its mother country: Score: 4. We don’t know the connection between France and coconut cake, but La Madeleine serves up a very creamy, decadent version that we scarfed. The sacher chocolate torte includes a hint of raspberry; it’s moist and good. Both are $4.29. La Madeleine is open 108.5 hours a week and therefore has a large menu that we only barely dented despite our best efforts. We’ve heard good things about breakfast, which is served all day, particularly the crepes and omelets, and one friend goes there just to buy baked goods to take home. We don’t doubt La Madeleine will be popular and profitable — like many well-known chain restaurants with Little Rock outlets.

shop LOCAL Shop ARKANSAS TIMES www.arktimes.com

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS

Join us as we salute Arkansas’s veteran Arkansa trailblaz zers. After bravely protecting our c country overseas, many veterans return home to Arkanssas and continue to show bravery as trailblazers in theirr next endeavors. Thanks to their innovator spirit an nd fearless leadership, communities can break n new ground and fulﬁll opportunities throug ughout our state.

MAY 26, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

★★★

CELEBRATING VETERAN ENTREPRENEURS ENTREPRENEURSHIP PLAYS SPECIAL ROLE IN MANY VETERANS’ PASTS, FUTURES BY DWAIN HEBDA

he American entrepreneur is the bedrock from which our nation draws its physical and economic sustenance. More jobs and economic strength have been generated on Main Street by small- and medium-sized businesses than through any other segment of the American economy. Given the nature of the business world, it would seem one for which veterans are uniquely suited. Setting goals, identifying objectives, hard work and mobilizing others to collective success are as fundamental on the battlefield as the board room. However, as with many aspects of returning to civilian life, the transition is often not as smooth as it would appear to be. As Shaun So, veteran and consultant, writes for Forbes magazine: “I’ve been interacting with veterans from all over the country that are at various stages in the entrepreneurial ventures. Many ask advice on how to get their own startup off the ground and what things they can do to enter this wildly unstructured world of entrepreneurship. I stress ‘unstructured’ because I’ve found that the only fixed rules of entrepreneurship are state and federal laws; other than that, anything goes. “Operating in an unstructured environment is different for us military folk. We may enjoy our freedoms; however, we’re so ingrained with process and procedure that we’re often unaware of how regimented we are. Just ask any military person for directions. Do they point with their index finger? No, they’ll hold their hand with their fingers together, their thumb tucked to the side and throw their arm in a direction with the hand acting as a spear point. That’s what we do.” Add into this mix the physical, emotional and mental wounds many veterans bring home with them and the equation becomes decidedly more complex. Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan are more likely to be unemployed than the civilian population, and often suffer higher rates of divorce, depression and suicide than previous generations (although, to be fair, many veterans of earlier conflicts operated in a time before post-traumatic stress disorder was widely in the public consciousness).

Fortunately, there are many outlets and opportunities today for service men and women to re-enter society as entrepreneurs in the field of their choosing. In the field of agriculture, organizations such as Farmer Veteran Coalition introduce veterans to agricultural work, Congress granted new avenues to startup capital through the 2014 Farm Bill, and many states have adopted the marketing campaign “Homegrown by Heroes” to help vets market their goods. The U.S. Veterans Administration devotes an entire portal to entrepreneurship and, in partnership with BusinessUSA, connects vets to best practices, information, resources and guidance for starting their own business. The Small Business Administration likewise directs dedicated resources specifically to helping returning veterans tackle this next chapter in their lives. The list of similarly focused state- and universityaffiliated programs is long. It should be noted that little, if any, of this was in place when many of our trailblazer veterans came home. Yet come home they did to farms and small towns, main streets and public office. The yield of their service was a stronger Arkansas — and nation — in more ways than one. It’s not an easy road, of course, but as Al Hodge, executive vice president of lending for Arkansas Capital Corporation Group noted, military service provides key elements that most veterans can apply to great effect in establishing and growing their own business. “Veterans have a loyalty to a mission and a strong work ethic that isn’t found in typical civilian culture,” he said. “They quickly discover that others do not share this disciplined attitude in the workplace and, as a result, a farm or a business that is owned and managed by a veteran has a higher success rate than others.” It is to our collective shame that not all were hailed as they should have been when returning at points during our history, but the steps that have been made since those days demonstrates how far we have come as a people and a republic. Arkansas Times is today singularly privileged to profile a few of these heroes in the pages that follow.

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CAMP COUNSELOR ROLE AT 14 SPURRED WESLEY CLARK ON TO U.S. ARMY HEROICS BY KIMBERLY DISHONGH L

ong before he was a war hero and a four-star general in the U.S. Army, Wesley Clark was a leader. After attending the Joseph Pfeifer Kiwanis Camp near Little Rock, Clark couldn’t wait to become a counselor. Camp rules stipulated that counselors had to be at least 14 years of age, so as Clark was completing the ninth grade, he enrolled in camp director Floyd Clark’s school for counselors. The World War II veteran coached Clark on the Little Rock Boys Club swim team and taught his camp counselors Armystyle leadership. “He taught us such things as CPR, life-saving techniques and the things you need to survive,” Clark says. Fresh out of the ninth grade, Clark tutored 12 campers during three two-week encampments that summer. It was an experience Clark enjoyed and was reminded of again in 1999 as he was serving as the NATO commander in Bosnia. Clark says: “I got a letter from a guy who remembered me, and he said, ‘I was a camper in your cabin. I was 9 years old and came from a broken home and had no selfesteem. You taught me how to be successful. You had me memorize the camper’s creed, and I sang it and won a blue ribbon for it. It set me on the path for success in life.’ He was a missionary in Argentina. No other letter made me feel better than that.” Clark used that leadership ability and competitive fire to set his sights higher as he excelled at the U.S. Military Academy and at Oxford in England. He eventually became a war hero, a career military officer, a presidential candidate and a successful businessman. “I always like a challenge,” he says. “I used to play chess when I was a kid. I remember the first gold medal I won in a swimming meet. Certain kids have a penchant for wanting to compete and wanting to do well. They are just brought up that way, and it works for them.” Clark grew up in a middle-class home with his mother and stepfather. After realizing his small frame wasn’t suited for basketball, he pursued swimming. Floyd Clark helped him excel in the pool, and it became an obsession. As a senior at Little Rock Hall High School, Wesley Clark helped the Warriors win the state championship in a relay by swimming two legs of the race when one of his teammates was sick. “I was the guy who organized the team,” Clark says. “I was the better swimmer. There was no choice. If we were going to win, I’d have to do it.” The young Clark was just as competitive in the classroom

and had set his sights on West Point after reading about Pete Dawkins, who won the Heisman Trophy in 1958 at Army as the nation’s top college football player. Clark began the process by trying to get an appointment to the academy. A letter written to U.S. Sen. J. William Fulbright was answered by a missed rejection postcard. Clark did get a meeting with U.S. Sen. John L. McClellan, but a nervous Clark botched the interview when he was asked by McClellan if he had earned straight A’s. Technically, the answer was yes, but Clark tried to explain he had scored a B in an advanced placement course but it counted as an A because it was an accelerated course.

McClellan was also skeptical of Clark being just 16 and only weighing 137.5 pounds. “He sat behind that big desk and told me, ’You aren’t old enough, smart enough or big enough to go to West Point,’” Clark says. “’Come back next year.’” Clark didn’t give. He turned to his stepfather, who had a friend who knew U.S. Rep. Dale Alford. Clark knew Alford’s son, who was a grade ahead of him. Even with the connection, the best Clark could get was a crack at earning the highest Civil Service test score among a group of other hopefuls, who had also petitioned Alford. Clark took the first step toward a legendary military career by earning one of the highest scores in the country. “It would have changed the course of my life [if he had not received an appointment to West Point],” Clark says. “Kids don’t realize that the simple things they do — their persistence, their

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pursuit of a science fair project or a recruiting trip for a college — will have consequences their entire life. Those are good things. But if they misbehave, get in trouble with the law, abuse substances or run away from home, there also are consequences they will live with their entire life. It’s hard for young people to see that. You don’t know why things happen the way they do. You’re just grateful they did because it could have gone the other way for any of us.” After overcoming obstacles to get to West Point, Clark shined by graduating at the top of his class. He was picked for a Rhodes Scholarship and attended graduate school at Oxford for two years. After graduation, Clark enrolled in ranger school. He later took command of a company at Fort Riley in Kansas. Eleven months after leaving Oxford July 1969, Clark headed to Vietnam. Clark was a staff officer with the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam. He was given command of A Company, 1st Battalion, 16th Infantry and awarded the Bronze Star when he was shot four times in combat one month into his command. Clark was sent to Valley Forge Military Hospital in Pennsylvania to recover. The experience cemented his decision to make the military a career. “All I knew was that I was full of energy and joy,” he says. “I got to see my wife and my 5-monthold son for the first time, and I had a new car. I had given my blood for my country and was wounded. It was a great honor.” Clark served in the Army for 25 years after Vietnam. He led coalition troops in Bosnia as allied commander and helped implement a sophisticated method for tracking war criminals. Clark retired from the military in 2000. He embarked on a career as an investment banker at Stephens Inc. in Little Rock. In 2004, he began his own consulting firm, Wesley K. Clark & Associates, which focuses on business development, crisis support and strategic communications in the fields of energy, alternative energy, national security, defense and other areas. Clark ran for president in 2004 and won Oklahoma in the Democratic primary. He returned to his business ventures after briefly contemplating another run in 2008. Clark refused to back down from a challenge, as he still travels the world doing business at age 71. That drive and leadership were evident back in the ninth grade. “It’s the way people get started in life, and what they want for themselves and their expectations,” he says. “I always wanted to make a difference and be relevant.”

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