City Weekly November 23, 2023

CITY WEEKLY C I T Y W E E K LY. N E T N O V E M B E R 2 3 , 2 0 2 3 — V O L . 4 0

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UTAH' S INDEPENDENT NE WSPAPER

Ski jumping legend

Alf Engen

helped put Utah’s powder on the map.

Athlete of the Century

BY BIANCA DUMAS

14

A&E

23

DINE

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CINEMA

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MUSIC

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CONTENTS

Cover Story

ATHLETE OF THE CENTURY Ski jumping legend Alf Engen helped put Utah’s powder on the map.

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By Bianca Dumas

17

Cover portrait by Mark Summers

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SLC FORECAST Thursday 23 42°/28° Rain/snow Precipitation: 74%

Friday 24 37°/19° Partly cloudy Precipitation: 24%

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STAFF Publisher PETE SALTAS News Editor BENJAMIN WOOD Arts & Entertainment Editor SCOTT RENSHAW Contributing Editor JERRE WROBLE Music Editor EMILEE ATKINSON Listings Desk WES LONG Executive Editor and Founder JOHN SALTAS

Editorial Contributors KATHARINE BIELE, ROB BREZSNY, MARK DAGO, BIANCA DUMAS, CAT PALMER, MIKE RIEDEL, ARICA ROBERTS, ALEX SPRINGER, LEE ZIMMERMAN Art Director DEREK CARLISLE Graphic Artists SOFIA CIFUENTES, CHELSEA NEIDER Circulation Manager ERIC GRANATO

Associate Business Manager PAULA SALTAS Technical Director BRYAN MANNOS Developer BRYAN BALE Senior Account Executive DOUG KRUITHOF Account Executives KELLY BOYCE, KAYLA DREHER Display Advertising 801-716-1777 National Advertising VMG Advertising | 888-278-9866

Salt Lake City Weekly is published every Thursday by Copperfield Publishing Inc. We are an independent publication dedicated to alternative news and news sources, that also serves as a comprehensive entertainment guide. 15,000 copies of Salt Lake City Weekly are available free of charge at more than 1,800 locations along the Wasatch Front. Limit one copy per reader. Additional copies of the paper can be purchased for $1 (Best of Utah and other special issues, $5) payable to Salt Lake City Weekly in advance. No person, without expressed permission of Copperfield Publishing Inc., may take more than one copy of any Salt Lake City Weekly issue. No portion of this publication may be reproduced in whole or part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems, without the written permission of the publisher. Third-class postage paid at Midvale, UT. Delivery might take up to one full week. All rights reserved.

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S AP BOX @SLCWEEK LY

@CITY WEEKLY

“Church and State,” Nov. 9 Soap Box

@SLCWEEK LY

While I understand where Mr. Ottinger is coming from, his premise that “there have been religious wars as long as there have been religions” is only a partially true, smokescreenish approach to the larger problem.

I would say that there have been conflicts and pride as long as there have been people. And as often as we find poor examples and zealots of any stripe, we also find compassionate and remarkable models of humanity

from every camp across history and through the present.

Religious or not, the vices of violence and pride are the evils that plague us and easily slip into whatever form or genre that comes most naturally to the practitioner and the time. Whether by religious crusade, political calculation, scientific theory or simple, unalloyed greed, these ills confront us in any guise.

It is rather fruitless, then, for the religious and the atheists to point fingers at one another as to which is most prone to harm.

One can wound this world and all its inhabitants by any manner of means and justifications. Might I suggest that we refrain from taking easy pot-shots at one another and, instead, seek to pursue the difficult—yet attainable—qualities of which humanity is just as capable as they are of violence and pride; namely, of love and forgiveness?

WES LONG

Murray

“Best of Utah” (Nov. 16) Additions and corrections

Editor’s note: Regrettably, two of the more than 550 Best of Utah winners slipped through the cracks and should have been included. Please wish them well for their vote-getting prowess.

Best Ribs: Salt City Barbecue

If barbecue were a meteor, Salt City’s would be the story to describe it. Salt City Barbecue has taken the local BBQ scene by storm in barely a few years.

Best, it’s accomplished this feat as a food truck, not as a brick-and-mortar location with all the giant gizmos. They’ve quickly acquired a loyal customer base to go along with their stacks of awards for not just ribs, but also brisket, steak, chicken, pork, appetizers and dessert. Surely, nachos are next. Find them and dig in, folks. 801-899-5541, visit website for food-truck locations: saltcitybbq.co 2. Pat’s Barbecue 3. SugarHouse Barbeque Co.

Best Mexican Bakery: Panadería Flores

Founded in 2003 by the Flores family—who hail from Tehucán Puebla, México—this panaderia at 900 South and 900 West has since expanded to a second location in Rose Park. Celebrating 20 years of family heritage serving up pan dulce (Mexican sweet bread) and pasteles tres leches (cakes), you’ll also want to try their colorful cookies, delectable flan and Mexican hoagie rolls. Also ask about their wedding cakes, Day of the Dead bread and Wisemen Day bread. 904 S. 900 West, SLC, 801-533-0211; 1625 W. 700 North, SLC, 801-533-0209, panaderiaflores.com 2. Cakes by Edith 3. Canela Bakery Also, for Best Public Art, of which “Out of the Blue” (aka “the Whale”) was the winner, we noted that Stephen Kesler was the sculptor but omitted the fact that Mike Murdock was the muralist. Also, under Best Cannabis Edibles, the business relationship between winner Riverside Farm’s Hygge Chews and WholesomeCo. was mischaracterized.

The two organizations are separate and distinct entities.

The above changes are reflected in our online edition.

Care to sound off on a feature in our pages or about a local concern? Write to comments@cityweekly.net or post your thoughts on our social media. We want to hear from you!

THE WATER

COOLER What is your favorite Thanksgiving memory?

Katharine Biele

I brought a turkey home on the back of a motorcycle to cook for ex-pats in Taiwan.

Alas, I didn’t realize I needed to take the gizzard out first. Oh, the smell!

Bill Frost

Years ago, MSNBC ran a Thanksgiving Day-long marathon of To Catch a Predator, and I watched it all. It was the weirdest damned holiday programming choice; I still think I may have hallucinated it.

Annie Quan

My grandma. She did not understand Thanksgiving when she immigrated to the U.S.; turkey was totally foreign to her.

But she ended up loving Thanksgiving dishes. So, all year long, we would take Grandma to Chuck-A-Rama or Marie Callender’s for a turkey dinner.

Kayla Dreher

The year I was at my aunt’s lake house for Thanksgiving. My cousins cut a big hole in the ice. We took turns plunging into the frozen lake and then running back up the hill to warm up in the sauna.

That’s what you do for fun in northern Minnesota.

Kelly Boyce

Sleeping in and not wasting money to go back to Ohio and sleep on an uncomfortable couch while my cousin’s little humans yell and cry.

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PRIVATE

BY JOHN SALTAS

Turkey Boy Chaffetz

M

y earliest Thanksgiving memories took place around nine dog years ago. For years, our family gathered up whatever our mother cooked for the day, and we hauled it all the way to my grandparents’ house about 100 feet away.

It was sort of tight quarters in Bingham Canyon, so we didn’t have to travel far to get everyone together. My mom’s sister and brothers would all be there, they, too, not having far to travel to be with us.

I’d guess about 20 or 25 kids and old folks gathered for the traditional pilgrim meal of turkey, potatoes and gravy, corn and stuffing. That was followed by only one kind of pie: pumpkin.

The adults all had some kind of wine or other elixir in front of them, while the kids drank soda. Those drinks were the fortification for what always followed, the backroom poker game.

All around the table were stacks of pennies, nickels and dimes. There were a few quarters and the occasional 50cent piece. I don’t remember any silver dollars.

Every now and then, somebody would win a hand and toss their kid a dime and tell them to scram. And, of course, we did, only to return to become a pest and make off with another loose piece of change.

It wasn’t a big game, but the stakes were likely high for the time. For instance, if there were six people playing cards, and if each player had between $3 and $5 in coins in front of them, there would have been enough money on that table alone—between $18 and $30—to have paid for the entire Thanksgiving meal that was just consumed.

A 20-pound turkey—the most expensive single item on the table—would have cost around $4. After that, each of the casseroles, side dishes, salads and pies combined

@johnsaltas

EYE

would have cost less than $15. Our entire family could have eaten for under $25, which is why there were lots of nickels and dimes left over for poker.

It’s no secret that the price of Thanksgiving dinner has risen tremendously over the years. It’s also no surprise that people often scream bloody murder when they feel like they’re being gouged at the checkout counter, often blaming Joe Biden these days for not keeping consumer commodity prices down.

It’s also said that—not the wily, wild ones—but the turkeys living the good life on domestic farms are not the smartest of animals, sometimes drowning by looking upward in a rainstorm. That isn’t true; it’s an urban myth.

Not that any given turkey is a genius, but they look upward because their vision is monocular, not binocular. So, they tilt their heads a lot. They sometimes even stare upward for long stretches of time, rain or shine. In neither case is such behavior an exhibition of being stupid, which begs the question: If a turkey isn’t as dumb as they were thought to be, what—or who—could possibly be dumber?

Enter Jason Chaffetz.

A couple of days ago, Chaffetz took to Fox News and said: “We went to go buy a turkey today. It was $90! It’s all a choice by Joe Biden.” His complaint was then eXcreeted on X, the increasingly sentimentalist fascist social media site formerly known as Twitter, where Chaffetz was gleefully torched by many.

Blaming the U.S. president for damned near anything is the daily course of things, and always has been. But to blame the president for what was a patently dumb choice

by Chaffetz himself surely places Utah’s former, groveling congressman for the 3rd District among those turkeys staring up at raindrops—the difference being Chaffetz really could drown doing so, because, yes, he is that dumb.

He is also a shameless conniver, which makes him not

only dumb, but dangerous, too. He will lie for the sake of lying and care not a whit for being what was formerly a core value of people in Congress and the media—honesty.

But, let him be the idiot. He’s the guy who famously slept on a cot to save money as a congressman, right? At normal grocery store prices, Chaffetz could have bought about 70 pounds of turkey. That $90 is around four times the cost of a full dinner when I was a kid, a time when the average U.S. worker earned under $6,000 annually.

Chaffetz is likely worth millions (he left his $175,000 annual congressman salary for a gig at Fox News and unfettered speaking fees). I’m betting those $90 are less than he pays his terrible barber, for which he gets a crappy hairdo but doesn’t blame Joe Biden for some reason.

And he’s a commoner? Hooey.

Caught in his lie, Chaffetz later posted a picture on X— with the words “Happy Thanksgiving!!”—of a turkey that was priced at $4.99 a pound, was 22.85 pounds and bore a price tag of $114.02. The turkey in question is from Diestal Turkey Ranch, a family farm in Sonoma, California, dedicated to nearly everything Jason Chaffetz regularly mocks.

It is a regenerative, sustainable farm and ranch. It doesn’t use preservatives or antibiotics; it recycles and is dedicated to protecting the local environment. In other words, Diestal appears to be a woke enterprise. It doesn’t matter if Diestal swings red or blue, they do the right thing. Chaffetz cannot.

I have $90 in my pocket. My 5-year-old, poker-watcher self wants to make a bet: I bet Chaffetz is lying. I’ll send that $90 to the charitable cause of Chaffetz’s choice if he simply produces the receipt for his turkey—not a daylate, dollar-short picture of a bird in a store freezer. CW Send comments to john@cityweekly.net

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HITS & MISSES

BY KATHARINE BIELE |

@kathybiele

MISS: Lumps of Coal

Utah is no California, and the coal industry is emblematic of why. Just take the Intermountain Power Project for a view of the future. The Legislature created the Intermountain Power Agency decades ago to manage a coal plant, but things have not gone as planned. IPA’s largest customer—the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power—is taking less and less power because of California’s move to renewables. And that means Utah tax revenue suffers, a Salt Lake Tribune report says. Tremonton Republican Rep. Scott Sandall wants Utah to take over the authority from the 23 cities that run it now. There is no clear path forward, despite a plan to run a next-generation plant that would be carbon-free by 2045. Sandall’s saveour-coal initiative needs to look at how to put Utah out of its misery and find ways to support clean energy. Otherwise, the state will have nothing to replace the impotent coal industry.

MISS: Moving Downstream

In case you missed it, a lot of water isn’t making it to the Great Salt Lake because of the state’s agriculture industry. But since 2019, there has been a federally subsidized program to help farmers upgrade their irrigation practices. A state audit of the Agricultural Water Optimization Program has shown that no one really knows how all these federal funds are being spent.

“This audit proves that taxpayers are being fleeced if they think this water is going to the Great Salt Lake,” said Zachary Frankel, executive director of the nonprofit Utah Rivers Council, in a news release to The Salt Lake Tribune.

The program funded 332 projects, but those projects are kind of on their own.

And yet, the state plans to give out $220 million more in grants this year. The audit also called for better monitoring of groundwater because aquifers have been overpumped. While the audit hits reporting, it’s really about saving the lake—urgently.

HIT: Dell Loy’s Dollars

Every so often you just need a feel-good read. The Deseret News’ Katie McKellar gave us one with “Dell Loy Hansen’s next act: Why this Utah real estate tycoon has committed $70 million—and counting—for housing Ukrainians displaced by war.” It wasn’t like Hansen offered up an interview. He has been famously difficult to get into the public eye. McKellar spent time with him and his wife, learning about his history, first building his real estate empire and later owning and selling off Utah’s professional soccer team Real Salt Lake. Now at 70, Hansen has committed his sizable fortune and energies to housing homeless Ukrainians. Congress is hiding from the grim realities of the Ukraine war and balking at funding the existential threat to world democracy, while Hansen is actually showing how humanity works. CW

BY CAT PALMER

Reframe Your Holidays

H

oliday magic is largely made possible through the invisible labor of women, single dads and non-binary folks—and we are tired.

But what I am about to say applies to all genders and all holidays: You do not need to uphold traditions that stress you out.

You are an adult, and no one is standing over your shoulder ready to scold you. You can create new traditions that you love without the stress.

It’s simple: If it does not bring you joy, toss it out. And if you love it, go ahead and keep it.

Last year at about this time, I noticed my normally chill spouse was stressed out because of the upcoming holidays. After we took an inventory of all the things that were raising our blood pressure, I announced that we were tossing the whole list out, along with all the traditions. My spouse was shocked, but I could see relief sweep over their faces instantly.

Now, on Thanksgiving, the only traditional holiday food prepared in our house is pie (because, in the ohso-wise words of Homer Simpson, “Mmmm, pie.”). Instead, we make food we want to eat and things we know our kids will love. Let’s be honest, does anyone actually enjoy dry, bland turkey, anyway?

We have canceled Christmas—in a way. We have adult children who split their time between three houses. My teens split their time between my home and their dad’s.

We want less chaos. Kids shouldn’t have to worry about stopping what they are doing midday to rush to our house. We celebrate the day after Christmas. We start with brunch but have all day, because no one has to rush off. We choose quality-time over calendar-time.

We have also left toxic family behind. We do not feel the obligation to spend time with people who do not make our lives better. Life is short; I want to spend it with those who bring joy and peace into our world.

When it comes to redefining your own traditions, ask yourself: Does it need to be perfect? What do you remember from being a kid? What were your favorite parts?

One thing that does bring me joy: supporting local businesses during the holidays. Salt Lake City has no shortage of great places to shop and support this holiday season.

If you have a tip or trick that brings less stress into your holidays, I would love to hear it! Shoot me a message at comments@cityweekly.net. Happy holidays, ya filthy animals. CW Small Lake City is home to local writers and their opinions.

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Comedian Ryan Hamilton talks about his career, including playing arena shows.

RH: When something like that happens to you, all the things you thought were problems suddenly aren’t problems anymore. Just a year before that, my father had passed away …, and I remember feeling that then. One year later, I’m lying in the hospital, I remember thinking this same thing before. How did I forget so quickly? And I don’t want to forget anymore.

BY SCOTT RENSHAW scottr@cityweekly.net @scottrenshaw

CW:

So, you’re headlining the same venue where Adam Sandler is playing a week later.

RH: It is surreal. I’ve performed there before, but opening for other people. I did a corporate event once on the floor, but I thought, “Well, this will be the only time I perform in the Delta Center.”

CW: How long was it between the accident itself, and the first moment in your head where you started to think of a joke about it that you could work into your act?

RH: I’m kind of ashamed of this, but it happened instantaneously. … The first thing I thought was, “I can’t believe this happened;” then I thought, “I’m going to have to postpone these shows in Salt Lake again [that had already been postponed multiple times due to COVID]. This is like a punch line.” … One of my comedian friends, Tommy Johnagin, was able to come to visit me in the hospital. We started bouncing ideas immediately, because that’s what we do. He brought me a notebook, and I started writing. For a couple of days I could, but then I just couldn’t for two or three months. I still had the momentum of a comedian right when it happened—this is just how we process life—but then was it like, “No, you have to heal, physically and emotionally.”

CW: Do you approach performing differently based on the size of the audience?

RH: [In an arena] I feel the need to be a little bigger, a little more physical. I’m also not acknowledging every little distraction, because even if you notice, only 10 percent of the people are aware it’s happening. You have to have your eye on the horizon.

CW: As your career progressed, do you recall having a moment of, “I think I’ve figured this out, and I know what I’m doing now?”

RH: It’s happened several times that I think I’ve figured it out, but then I realize, “Oh, I don’t know anything.”

Because you get to a different level. First, you just want to be like, a guy who can host a local show. Then you can be a featured [comedian], then let’s try to headline. You’re never ready for any of those sets; there’s no way to do it but to do it. Then you get to year 10, 11, 12, you think, “I can do everything that’s required of me to be a professional standup comedian.” So yeah, maybe 10 years.

CW: You once had a joke describing yourself as looking like “the illegitimate son of Jerry and Elaine.”

What was it like to develop a professional friendship and actually end up opening for Jerry Seinfeld?

RH: I don’t know if he’s ever heard or seen that joke, and I’d prefer to keep it that way. … I met [Seinfeld] at Carnegie Hall [when I was opening for a mutual friend]. …

Backstage, Jerry’s wife said, “You remind me of Jerry.” I

A&E

CW: Opening an arena seems to be kind of the top of a comedian’s career, but are there still other items on your professional bucket list?

BRANDON FLINT

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Headline News

CW: In January 2022, you were in an accident where you were hit by a bus. Aside from how it affected you physically, did you have any “change the way you think about your life and your goals” moments?

felt my whole body, my face go red, just kind of embarrassed; I don’t want him to think I’m trying to “do” him.

Then Jerry said, “Really? I just don’t see it.”

Three days later, just by sheer happenstance, I was walking out of Gotham Comedy Club and he was walking in. He pulled me aside and told me some very nice things.

Then a few months later I got a call to see if I wanted to open for him. … I’ve learned so much from him, not just about comedy, but about … balancing this crazy career with a healthy life.

RH: It’s good to have goals and objectives, but this is an interesting enough kind of career that there are a lot of different paths. I never wanted to be an “arena comedian” … but they came to me and said, “Do you want to do the arena?” and I said, “Sure.” That’s happened several times, where somebody puts something in front of you and you say, “Do I want to take a different trajectory?” You kind of snake around and just try to keep moving forward. … No two comedians ever get successful in exactly the same way. CW

RYAN HAMILTON Delta Center Nov. 24 8 p.m. $39 - $205 deltacenter.com

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theESSENTIALS NOVEMBER 23-29, 2023

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Utah Symphony: Messiah Sing-in

MEGS VINCENT

If you haven’t already officially started your holiday season—and it does seem to begin earlier every year— Thanksgiving weekend certainly feels like the launch date. That’s one reason it has been the traditional setting for one of Utah’s most beloved Christmas season traditions, as the Utah Symphony & Chorus invites guests to sing along with the powerful music of Handel’s Messiah.

Conductor Matthew Straw leads the symphony, while the Symphony Chorus and soloists Jasmine Rodriguez (soprano), Sarah Scofield (mezzo-soprano), Jeremiah Tyson (tenor) and Tshilidzi Ndou (baritone) in the 1741 oratorio inspired by the Biblical story of Jesus, including the Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament and Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. The structure was inspired by Handel’s devotion to the three-act structure of Italian opera, and perhaps surprisingly to those unfamiliar with the entire work, its most famous individual section—the “Hallelujah” chorus—comes not at the end of work, but at the end of the second act, marking the triumph over death. Audience members, as is part of the performance’s long-standing tradition, are invited to sing along in celebration.

You can join the Utah Symphony & Chorus for the performance of Messiah on one of two performance dates—Saturday, Nov. 25 or Sunday, Nov. 26—at 7 p.m. at Abravanel Hall (123 W. South Temple). Tickets range from a family-friendly $7.75 (less than the cost of a movie ticket) to $41. Performance scores, courtesy of Riverton Music, will also be available in the lobby for purchase. Visit utahsymphony.org for tickets and additional event information. (SR)

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World of Illumination: Candy Rush

TK

When Star of Wonder creator James Conlee spoke to City Weekly about the show in 2022, he emphasized its evolution over time. Much of that evolution has involved the storytelling in the show, which takes the story of the legendary World War I “Christmas truce” of 1914 and applies a “jukebox musical” format incorporating many familiar and beloved Christmas Carols. “The heart of the show was always intended to be our soldier, but we started to weave him into it more and more,” Conlee said. “The feeling I had was, ‘That soldier’s story was great; I wish we had more of it.’”

Yet that evolution has also involved a kind of “slow roll-out,” as the creative team thoughtfully considered how many seats to make available. In part, those decisions were connected to the reduced-capacity COVID year production in 2020, which Conlee considered a blessing in disguise; “I’m kind of glad we got to refine ourselves under the curtain of COVID,” he said. “It allowed us a smaller audience, and a more sympathetic audience, to do that; there wasn’t as much on the line.” Now, the production has nearly doubled capacity from last year for a new venue at Thanksgiving Point, allowing even more local folks to enjoy the inspirational, music-filled show.

The 2023 production of Star of Wonder plays at Thanksgiving Point (3003 Thanksgiving Way, Lehi) for four performances—Saturday, Nov. 25, and Monday – Wednesday, Nov. 27 – 29—at 7:30 p.m. nightly. Tickets are $20 general admission, $10 for children and students. Visit starofwonder.com to purchase tickets and for additional event information. (SR)

Lights: We love ’em around the holidays, don’t we folks? There’s something about the darkest days of the year, combined with a festive holiday spirit, that makes us seek out illumination in all its forms. Locally, there are beloved institutions like the lights at Temple Square and Hogle Zoo’s annual ZooLights, many cities and towns offering decorations and community trees, plus neighborhood walks to see how are neighbors are glowing up for the season. But when it comes to lights on a grand scale, you’re looking at a whole other level of twinkling wonder when it comes to the specialty drive-through experiences by World of Illumination.

For 2023, World of Illumination brings its Candy Rush experience to Salt Lake City, inviting guests to drive through a display of more than a million lights. The animated show features dancing sugarplum fairies, a gigantic gingerbread village and more, all focused on the theme of the sweet treats. It’s all “choreographed” to a soundtrack of seasonal favorites, ranging from classic Christmas carols to contemporary hits— and you can enjoy it all on your car radio, while staying toasty in your vehicle as you make your way through the venue.

World of Illumination’s Candy Rush visits the Utah State Fairpark (155 N. 1000 West) through Dec. 31, operating 6 p.m. – 10 p.m. Tuesday – Sunday, with additional days on Monday, Dec. 18 and Monday, Dec. 25. Timed-entry tickets are available for specific dated slots, at a per-vehicle cost of $39.99 or $49.99 depending on date.

Visit worldofillumination.com to purchase tickets and for additional event information. (SR)

TK

Star of Wonder

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Athlete of the Century

BY BIANCA DUMAS comments@cityweekly.net

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The Meister

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Alf Engen’s success as a ski jumper is almost too enormous to describe. He won the National Ski Jumping Champion title eight times between 1931 and 1946—snagging the win on borrowed skis during that final year. He once jumped off a takeoff he knew had been built at a dangerously steep angle to demonstrate that it wasn’t safe for other jumpers. He broke a ski during his landing, but landed all the same.

In Utah, Alf and Sverre Engen were best known for the ski jumping contests at Ecker Hill, near Parleys Summit. There, on New Year’s Day in 1931, Alf broke the world record twice in one day. Later that year, he broke the world record four times in one day. But these records didn’t count, because the first tournaments weren’t sanctioned by the West-

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lf Engen was a ski jumper so remarkable, he broke the world record several times in a single day of competition—more than once. He was the first man to scout out Alta for a ski resort; the ski school, restaurant and Alta’s most fabled, expert run still bear his name.

He was a stunt double for movie stars, a ski racing promoter and an Olympic coach. He was an inductee into four halls of fame, was named Skier of the Century, and is the subject of an entire museum housing his 500 trophies and awards.

But it all seems to have come together by chance. Born in Norway, Engen arrived in the United States in 1929 and took up work as a drill press operator in a Chicago factory.

“He came to America with the idea that he’d try to make some money and go back to Norway again,” said Alf Engen’s son, Alan, an accomplished skier and ski historian who lives with his wife, Barbara, in Salt Lake City. “Dad got involved with skiing again just by accident.”

Alf and his brother, Sverre, had been skiers in Norway, but here in America, they were working as laborers so they could send financial support to their widowed mother. All that would change on a fateful day when Alf was invited to observe a ski jumping event in Milwaukee.

Alf wasn’t meant for the sidelines and, in short order, he coaxed an older man into letting him borrow a set of jumping skis. Going against what he must have thought was his better judgment, the older man handed over the skis, and Alf trudged up the hill in his town clothes past a crowd of murmuring spectators.

When he got to the top, Alf used leather thongs to tie his street shoes to the jumping skis, got into position and went down the hill. His form perfect, he landed at the very bottom. The spectators were silenced.

Soon after, a representative of the Norge Ski Club of Chicago asked if the Engen brothers would like to join the newly established pro ski jumping circuit. They decided for strategic reasons that Alf would go pro while Sverre would compete as an amateur. They won their first meets, and they never stopped winning.

The brothers jumped in tournaments and exhibitions all across America. Together with their youngest brother, Corey, who arrived from Norway four years later, they would ultimately amass 1,000 combined trophies—half of those being Alf’s alone—while helping to kick-start the then-nascent Utah ski industry.

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Ski jumping legend ALF ENGEN helped put Utah’s powder on the map.

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Alf Engen takes flight at Ecker Hill during the early 1930s.

ern America Winter Sports Association. So in February of 1932, Alf made a jump in a sanctioned tournament at Big Pines, California, which formally gave him the world’s distance title.

Having been raised in the ski culture of Norway, Alf was a natural in the Nordic disciplines—he won the National Classic Champion title for combined cross country and jumping in 1939 and 1941. But he didn’t learn to ski alpine courses until the age of 30.

In his book, Skiing: A Way of Life, Sverre Engen tells the story of the first time his brother Alf entered a slalom race, coaxed into the competition by friends. He didn’t know how to make the turns to go through the gates, so he’d throw himself down, slide past the gate on his rump, then get up and ski to the next point. But he learned quickly, and not long after earned the title of Ski Meister—someone who can ski at a championship level in each of the four disciplines of skiing: jumping, downhill, slalom and cross country. Alf won this title at the National 4-Way Championship in 1940 and 1941.

“You usually look upon skiing as you were either a Nordic specialist or Alpine,” Alan Engen said. “There were very few that were really great in all four disciplines. Dad was probably, as far as I know, the only individual in winter sport that has ever won a gold medal in every single event. And he didn’t do it just once, he did it twice.”

This record makes Alf the only known double-crowned Ski Meister. Equipment and training have become so specialized that this competition is no longer held on the national level.

The Olympian

Although he carried a title indicating that he was the greatest skier of his time, technicalities and runs of bad luck kept Alf Engen out of the Olympics. So, he entered a competition that brought the Olympics to him.

Newspaper coverage of Engen in the 1940s

In 1937, Alf skied in the U.S. National Ski Jumping Championships on Ecker Hill, where the competition may have been of higher caliber than the Olympics. One newspaper reporter wrote: “Not even the field at the 1932 Olympic Games at Lake Placid rivals the collection of 25 Class A riders, headed by Sigmund Ruud, famous Norwegian whose presence lends international flavor to the competition.”

By tournament’s end, Alf Engen had beaten Ruud and was credited with a new American amateur distance record.

During the awards presentation, Ruud commented, “Alf Engen is the most powerful jumper I have ever seen. He is a greater competitor even than they say.”

Finally, in 1948, at nearly 40 years old, Alf Engen qualified as a member of the Olympic team but was asked to be head coach instead. Under Coach Alf, the U.S. earned its first-ever gold medal for skiing, when Gretchen Fraser won the women’s slalom.

On the way home from the Olympics, Alf put the icing on his ski jumping cake. He and his wife, Evelyn, stopped in Norway, where a number of ski tournaments were being held. Alf was invited to a meet at a jumping hill near his hometown of Mjøndalen. A sign there said, “The record on this hill was set in 1928 by Alf Engen and still stands.”

Alf was invited to jump again, and he did. He landed in the same spot where he’d set the hill record 20 years before.

The Teacher

After the Olympics, Alf and Evelyn Engen came back to Salt Lake City and made Alta their home. There, Alf would teach at a ski school that would eventually bear his name.

He’d been involved in the development of Alta from the start. In Alf’s younger years, the Forest Service had hired him to scout Alta as a location for a possible ski hill. Alf assessed Alta in true Norseman’s style, skiing alone from the town of Brighton over Catherine Pass and dropping into the Albion basin.

He reported back that Alta would make a fine ski area, if they could only stop the avalanches. He was then named foreman on a Civilian Conservation Corps project to replant the timber that had been lost due to mining operations.

To support the state’s new ski hobby, the Deseret News partnered with Alta to offer a free ski school to the public. The Deseret News’ Ski School began in 1948 with Alf and Sverre Engen as lead instructors.

They trained 2,000 new skiers on the first day. The program was the largest and longest running of its type, lasting until 2001.

Nick Nichol was 6 years old when he started attending the Deseret News’ Ski School, where his dad and four uncles assisted the Engen brothers as instructors. The Nichol name would become synonymous with ski instruction at Alta, and members of the family are still found on the slopes, teaching snowplow turns to beginners and deep powder turns to the more advanced.

It was instruction in powder skiing that gave Alf Engen his next accolade, and which got him inducted into the Professional Ski Instructors of America Intermountain Division Hall of Fame in 1989.

“They used to use a dipsy-doodle,” Nichol said, describing a powder skiing method of transferring weight from one ski to the other as you made your way downhill. “Alf was the one who started figuring out how to put pressure on both skis at the same time.”

Under Alf’s instruction, Nichol became an exemplary skier and a full supervisor at the Alf Engen Ski School. He’s also known for his ability to recall Alf Engen’s words and retell them in Engen’s signature accent.

“He told me, ‘By gosh, you know, Nick, you’re not gonna be the fastest skier on the mountain, but, by gosh, I’m gonna make you the prettiest,’” Nichol recalled. “Fortunately, I try not to brag, but that’s exactly what he did. I had the privilege of doing all the powder skiing in five or so Alta promotional films.”

Alf Engen and son, Alan, practice ski jumping in the late 1940s.

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Alf Engen, second from left, and his early ski jumping competitors

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A Deseret News illustration of Alf Engen

Alf Engen and son, Alan, in 1989

Alf Engen near the sign of the Alta ski school bearing his name

The Archivist

When Greg Thompson was working as associate dean for Special Collections at the University of Utah Marriott Library, he started looking into the library archives for the history of skiing in the Intermountain West. He couldn’t find anything.

“I thought that was really odd,” Thompson said, “given that I knew some about the history of skiing in this area, about Alf and Alta and all that stuff.”

Thompson and Sue Raemer, a library employee and Alta ski instructor, thought this was a problem that needed fixing. The two knew that Alf Engen had six scrapbooks full of articles and reports about his skiing career.

of the military CISM ski team. He became a U.S. Ski Association-Intermountain Masters champion in his later years and has twice been a torchbearer for the Olympics. Like his father and uncles before him, he was inducted into the U.S. Ski and Snowboarding Hall of Fame.

Alan Engen remembers tandem ski jumping with his dad in demonstration events. He once got a crazy idea he thought would wow the crowd. “Because I was a gymnast, I thought I might be able to perform a jumping feat on my hands,” he said. “Dad—I guess he had enough confidence in me—he said, ‘Let’s give it a try.’”

Alan got into a handstand position, holding onto the ski bindings with his hands and went down the hill. He landed the jump, but crashed when he failed to clear the knoll at the bottom.

Barbara Engen remarked on a family photo of this moment. “He’s standing there at the top of the jumping hill on his hands, in perfect form, and his dad’s looking over at the side, like this is a great idea. Nowadays, it’s like, ‘What were you thinking?’”

Alan and Barbara Engen have many such stories of their time with Alf Engen and his brothers. “I miss it,” Barbara said of the time the family spent together. “They were fun to be with.”

Alan Engen was named director of the Alf Engen Ski School in 1992 and was able to enjoy a few more years at Alta with his dad, who passed away in 1997.

Alf Engen was posthumously named Utah’s Athlete of the Century in 1999. His legacy continues at Alta, where the new Sunnyside lift has increased access to the Albion Basin—home base for families, beginners and the Alf Engen Ski School.

“I don’t think anybody really follows in my dad’s footsteps,” Alan Engen said. “He set some really deep tracks for me to follow. I really, truly felt that of all the athletes I had the privilege of knowing in my lifetime, I thought probably my father was the one I’d like to most closely emulate.” CW

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“Of course we wanted to have that material in the archives,” Thompson said.

When asked, Engen was willing to turn his books over to the Marriott Library as the cornerstone of a new collection of materials, and so the Utah Ski Archives was begun at the University of Utah.

Alan Engen was part of the original board of the archives, Thompson said. Almost from the very beginning of the project, he was interested in developing a ski museum.

Organizers determined that the archives and museum could be two distinct programs running on parallel tracks.

In 1989, the Alf Engen Ski Museum opened in Park City— partly to honor the Engen legacy and partly to give all of Alf’s trophies a permanent home. It is the most visited ski museum in the United States, with 475,000 visitors a year.

Nick Nichol voices Alf, with his jolly Norwegian accent, in the audio displays.

Connie Nelson, the museum’s director, says people frequently approach her with memories of Engen, remarking about his warm heart and how much he loved kids.

“That’s really amazing when you come here and look at all these hundreds of trophies and consider the humble nature of Alf,” she said. “He really is a legend of skiing.”

Alan Engen was the museum’s first chairman and president, and he’s remained an active board member. Today, at age 83, he continues to be one of the Intermountain West’s leading ski historians.

He’s produced two books and several ski history films and articles over the years, which benefit from the rare vantage point he has.

“I feel like my role in the ski world has been as a bridge, as a bridge from the old to the new,” he said, referring to his position between the founders of American skiing, whom he knew personally, and his own participation in the modern incarnation of the sport.

Alan Engen was an All-American on the University of Utah ski team and competed internationally as a member

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Nichol also absorbed Engen’s teaching style, which flowed naturally from his friendly personality. “He had a great sense of humor, but in his humor, there was a lot of wisdom,” Nichol said.

He remembers Engen saying that, “by gosh,” any turn made standing up is a good turn. Students would ask Engen what they were doing wrong, Nichol recalled, and Engen would start with what they were doing right and then go from there.

“You felt like you were being encouraged,” Nichol said.

“To me, that was the real key to teaching anyone.”

Although he was a world champion and recipient of roughly 500 awards and titles, Alf Engen is now best known by many for his patience and his love of teaching children and beginners.

“He was so intent on the next generation of kids getting training,” Barbara Engen said. “He’d say—in a Norwegian accent, you know—‘Get ’em yumping, in the air. You get them in the air, and they can do any kind of sport.’”

During an NBC television interview, Alf Engen remarked: “Medals—I have a whole room full of medals. But to give a good ski lesson—that’s what is important to me.”

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Alf Engen teaching young skiers in the late 1980s

Sculptures outside the Alf Engen Ski Museum

BIANCA DUMAS

BIANCA DUMAS

Trophies and awards fill a display case at the Alf Engen Ski Museum.

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BIANCA DUMAS

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Alan and Barbara Engen at their home in Salt Lake City

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Rewind Volume 14: 1997 to 1998 years of

salt lake

CITY WEEKLY

BY WES LONG wlong@cityweekly.net

I

t was a time of basketball glory, with a Jazz victory in the Western Conference.

But it was also a time of greed and humbug, with the expense of the Olympics becoming clearer to critics while justifications multiplied among boosters. Local trout were plagued with whirling disease, while Utah’s foster-care system was plagued with abuse.

And families bore a heavy tax burden as corporate taxes were steadily shrinking.

Yes, there were controversies aplenty for the newspaper formerly known as Private Eye to cover. Only now, it was doing so under a new name: Salt Lake City Weekly.

“Our former name was a dumb one,” explained a June 5, 1997, editorial. “We’ve lost track of the number of phone calls we’ve gotten from distraught spouses wondering if we could track down their mate. No ma’am, we’re not a private detective agency.

And we’re not a private-club paper. Nor a tabloid, nor an underground rag.”

This was a bona fide newsweekly—winner of more awards from the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), with increased drop sites in the city and a website boasting online exclusives. Its probing coverage continued in force, despite a tightening corporate stranglehold upon much of the Fourth Estate across the Wasatch Front. “Comfort and laziness fuel weak reporting in what is really a company town, controlled by a few powerful interests,” John Harrington wrote on Oct. 2. “That’s why City Weekly has become a success. People don’t want to be spoon-fed the company line anymore.”

Remembering Vol. 14: In the trash

When then-county District Attorney Neal Gunnarson concluded his probe of SLC Mayor Deedee Corradini’s “Gift-gate” scandal, he sealed his findings and declared that Utah’s law was not clear enough to prosecute.

These actions, coupled with a very different conclusion from outside expert Martin Healey—working for the Salt Lake City Council—left serious questions around Corradini’s behavior and whether Gunnarson’s investigation was compromised before it even began.

“Not only did Corradini know much of what Gunnarson was doing while his allegedly independent, secret probe was underway,” Harrington wrote in August 1997, “the mayor actually helped Gunnarson conduct his investigation of her.”

Harrington reported that Gunnarson had failed to disclose his office’s jurisdictional problems in taking the probe. The bulk of the investigation was not conducted in isolation from City Hall, nor covered by subpoenas.

And the “cooperation” between Corradini’s office and Gunnarson was shielded from the public by court order. “If the City Council didn’t hire Healey in the face of brutal pressure from Corradini, Gunnarson and editorial writers for Salt Lake City’s two daily newspapers,” Harrington concluded, “the mayor would have walked scot-free with no public disclosure, forever able to make the claim that she did nothing wrong, that ‘District Attorney Gunnarson cleared me.’”

Harrington’s blistering story—and its caricatured image of a firefighting Gunnarson “saving” Corradini from a burning City-County Building—gave way to yet another strange turn of events. Deemed Gunnarson’s “Paper Caper,” the DA was seen approaching a City Weekly rack, tossing a great number of issues into a dumpster and taking the rest away in his vehicle.

“You are entitled to take one copy of the paper for each person who reads it,” wrote Harrington on Sept. 11. “But, if you took a whole stack, threw them out and kept one copy for yourself, you have, in fact, stolen this column, destroyed property and violated the free speech provisions of the U.S. and Utah constitutions.”

Admitting to the theft under the excuse of being “frustrated” and “angry,” Gunnarson gave varying rationales, from wanting to take copies to friends, to pique over supposed misquoting and claims that his spouse found the cover art offensive. City prosecutors Mike Junk, Paul Olds and Dick Romney dismissed the case, reasoning that the papers were, after all, “free.”

“No one, no one, has any business stealing or destroying this or any other ‘free’ newspaper,” retorted City Weekly on Oct. 2.

“A Salt Lake City employee has been witnessed three times now tossing our newspaper from our racks and into the trash. His case is being investigated by the Salt Lake City prosecutor. We’re not staying up late.

After all, Junk, Olds and Romney have given a green light to commit little crimes.”

Gunnarson’s behavior elicited condemnation from other local newspapers and the local SPJ board. What’s more, he had the “honor” of being featured on the cover of the 1998 Best of Utah issue and winning Best Dumb Move by a Politician. “If you’re not laughing, you’re crying,” the issue began. “That’s the kind of year it’s been.”

In the city

Interstate 15 reconstruction was a source of stress for everyone. Lacking independent quality control and coordination, operating with an out-of-control bonus system and facing a 2001 deadline, the project made all travel miserable. To make matters worse, it was handled under a “Design/Build” process, designed as it was built, rather than working from set plans.

“Never before have so many Utahns come to such a collective consensus,” wrote Andrea Moore Emmett on Nov. 13. “At least those who live on or commute to the Wasatch Front agree: Life has been absolute hell trying to navigate from point A to point B anywhere in or around the Salt Lake Valley.”

Speaking of blights to our surroundings, it was this year that Salt Lake County commissioners Randy Horiuchi and Brent Overson approved an ordinance more than doubling the locations where billboards were permitted. The request, political pressure and assumed reward for this decision came from Reagan Outdoor Advertising. “For Horiuchi, who once represented Reagan, the vote is particularly depressing,” noted Hits & Misses on Dec. 4. “Already carrying a reputation for protecting special interests, Randy may now have cemented his political fate.”

One billboard, for the Utah AIDS Foundation, was a target for vandalism—a reflection of the troubled state over gay rights. The suicide of East High activist Jacob Orosco (19801997) was a great tragedy in this regard.

“Let’s hope, when some of the pain subsides, those close to Jacob and others who came to respect him will rededicate themselves to girding up organizations like the East High Gay-Straight Alliance,” eulogized a City Weekly editorial on Sept. 25.

“In doing so, they will show those puritans who would legislate morality, as well as those who follow that sinister lead, that all lives within a community have value and should be nurtured. When one is crushed out, we have all suffered a loss.”

Fear-based intolerance and misguided political decisions were punctuated further when then-City Councilmember Bryce Jolley marshaled support to repeal an ordinance protecting gays and lesbians in the city’s employment policy. Councilmember Deeda Seed gave an impassioned defense of the ordinance, bringing 125 spectators to their feet in applause. The episode illustrated, as Katharine Biele wrote in December of 1997, “how far apart the two sides of the issue are. One side thinks the law should recognize a reality; the other fears it would condone an aberration.”

In the ads

“Here’s your chance to meet that person your eyes and heart touched,” announced City Weekly in the June 19 issue. Titled “I Saw You,” this space provided an opportunity for local romantics to find one another after an all-too-brief encounter. The following are entries from Sept. 18.

Mike: “You came last summer looking for a roommate, I foolishly let you go. You work as a meat cutter. Is it too late to reconnect? You’re still on my mind. I believe in commitment and relationships, too.

Let’s have coffee and talk.”

Aug. 21st at the Gallivan Center: “Toward the end of the concert, I talked to you briefly by City Weekly’s table, you said ‘Hi, my name is Coop, and your hair is righteous.’ I forgot how to talk! Please give me a second chance! My name is Gabrielle.”

Where—Bricks: “You said your name was Ron, I told you my name was Jason. I cannot stop thinking about you, and wonder if our paths will ever cross again.” CW

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Saola Restaurant and Lounge should be on your radar for post-ski deliciousness.

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SAOLA RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE 7307 Canyon Centre Parkway, Ste. 1 801-944-2949 saolaeats.com

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hough I was born and raised in Utah, I can’t say I’ve developed much interest in our local winter pastime of hitting the ski slopes. There was probably an opportunity to get really into skiing back when I was a bit younger, but seeing as how I wake up sore if I sneeze while bending down to pick up a stray LEGO, I think that ship has probably sailed.

If I did hit the slopes, however, I’d need my après-ski victuals to be something special—something that nursed my wounded pride, healed my aching joints and convinced me that my time was not wasted on a sport where I could get frostbitten and sunburned at the same time.

After dining at Saola Restaurant and Lounge, I think I’ve found a spot where I can get all of those things, and then some.

Located near the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon, Saola features creative interpretations of classic Vietnamese cuisine that have turned it into a neighborhood favorite. Like the reclusive arboreal creatures from which Saola gets its name, this restaurant is a rare find. Here you have a menu that borrows liberally from Vietnamese, Cantonese and Malaysian cuisine, only to reimagine familiar

people reading this who would shrug this off because they once had some rubbery duck from who-knows-where, but this definitely ain’t that. It’s crispy and golden on the outside while remaining juicy and tender on the inside. Definitely spring for the steamed buns or steamed crepe to go along with this, so you can build the crispy duck wrap of your dreams.

For something low-key but no less luxurious, Saola’s Pho Hanoi ($28) is an excellent option. If you’re a fan of pho, you know it’s not uncommon for pho to come served with sliced brisket or some other tasty protein. At Saola, your pho is prepared with filet mignon, which should be raising your eyebrow right about now. Pho is tough to mess up, but I am here to tell you that some tender filet mignon swimming in a beef bone broth that has been simmering for a full day before it gets into your bowl is a revelatory experience.

Pho is and has always been a celebration of rich, unctuous flavors pulled from thoughtfully-spiced broth, so when you pair that celebration with filet mignon, you’re getting an unmatched tribute to what pho can accomplish. As you would expect, the meat melts in your mouth, and works in tandem with that lovely bone broth for a dish that is ideal for warming up after a day on the slopes. My future as a skier may be uncertain, but my future with this pho will be long and fruitful.

Now that ski season is drawing evercloser, you’ll want to keep Saola on your radar if you’re heading up Big Cottonwood at all. Its swanky take on Asian classics are sure to become your new post-slope obsession. CW

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BY ALEX SPRINGER comments@cityweekly.net @captainspringer

dishes like egg rolls, wonton soup, pho and Peking duck in fantastic new ways.

As a fan of the wide variety of Chinese takeout and Vietnamese pho options we have along the Wasatch Front, I was excited to see how Saola put its unique spin on these classics. Again, if I was a skier, I can pretty much guarantee you that a big bowl of pho and some dumplings would be a major part of my wind down routine.

Whether this is a post-skiing rendezvous or just a jaunt near the canyon to satisfy a craving, Saola will have something you’ll like. It’s always a good idea to start with some of their small plates and build your experience from there.

Their pork skewer ($14) or bulgogi skewer ($18) are stalwart selections, each of them presenting a rich and flavorful preparation of their chosen protein; the bulgogi is made with filet mignon, so it’s tough to go wrong there.

The appetizer that spoke volumes to me was the Sichuan Dumpling ($14), as it both looks and tastes gorgeous. The dumplings in question are made with shrimp, and arrive in a bowl of Sichuan chili oil with a bit of soy sauce and chopped scallion. It’s as elegant as I’ve ever seen a dumpling look, and the flavors are absolute dynamite. The Sichuan influence uses heat as a numbing agent that, through some alchemical process that is unknown to me, makes your tongue resonate with the soft textures of the shrimp itself. I’ve been a dumpling fan for as long as I can remember, but it has been a long time since I’ve been this awestruck by a dumpling’s preparation.

As you work your way up to the larger plates, you should decide whether you want to dabble in Saola’s signature noodle dishes or just splurge on the Peking duck ($54). There’s really no wrong answer, but if you do go with the duck, be prepared for fireworks. I know there are probably

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Filet Mignon Pho: This is Not A Drill

Burgers so good they’ll blow your mind!

Level Crossing Brewing Co., POST 550 So. 300 West #100, SLC LevelCrossingBrewing.com On Tap: Kolsch

A list of what local craft breweries and cider houses have on tap this week 2 Row Brewing 6856 S. 300 West, Midvale 2RowBrewing.com Avenues Proper 376 8th Ave, SLC avenuesproper.com On Tap: Midnight Especial- Dark Mexican Lager Bewilder Brewing 445 S. 400 West, SLC BewilderBrewing.com On Tap: Festbier Bohemian Brewery 94 E. Fort Union Blvd, Midvale BohemianBrewery.com Bonneville Brewery 1641 N. Main, Tooele BonnevilleBrewery.com On Tap: Peaches and Cream Ale Chappell Brewing 2285 S Main Street Salt Lake City, UT 84115 chappell.beer On Tap: Jelly Roll Cranberry Sauce Goss Craft by Proper 1053 E. 2100 So., SLC craftbyproper.com On Tap: Purple Rain - Marionberry Helles

Desert Edge Brewery 273 Trolley Square, SLC DesertEdgeBrewery.com On Tap: La Playa-Mexican Style lager Epic Brewing Co. 825 S. State, SLC EpicBrewing.com On Tap: 2023 Big Bad Baptist BarrelAged Imperial Stout Variants Fisher Brewing Co. 320 W. 800 South, SLC FisherBeer.com On Tap: A rotation of up to 17 Fresh Beers!

Grid City Beer Works 333 W. 2100 South, SLC GridCityBeerWorks.com On Tap: Cask Nitro CO2 Helper Beer 159 N Main Street, Helper, UT helperbeer.com Hopkins Brewing Co. 1048 E. 2100 South, SLC HopkinsBrewingCompany.com On Tap: Strawberry Sorghum Kiitos Brewing 608 W. 700 South, SLC KiitosBrewing.com

24 | NOVEMBER 23, 2023

Moab Brewing 686 S. Main, Moab TheMoabBrewery.com On Tap: Golden Sprocket Wit Mountain West Cider 425 N. 400 West, SLC MountainWestCider.com On Tap: Wet Hopped - Infused with Cascade and Citra Hops Offset Bier Co 1755 Bonanza Dr Unit C, Park City offsetbier.com/ On Tap: DOPO IPA Ogden Beer Company 358 Park Blvd, Ogden OgdenRiverBrewing.com On Tap: Injector Hazy IPA Policy Kings Brewery 223 N. 100 West, Cedar City PolicyKingsBrewery.com Prodigy Brewing 25 W Center St. Logan Prodigy-brewing.com On Tap: Cached Out Hefeweisen -- Now available to go!

Proper Brewing 857 S. Main, SLC ProperBrewingCo.com On Tap: Whispers from Krakatoa - Helles Lager with Habanero and Mango Proper Burger: Sour Ranger Blackberry and Lemon Sour

Proper Brewing Moab 1393 US-191 Moab, Utah 84532 On Tap: Angus McCloud- Scottish Ale Red Rock Brewing 254 So. 200 West RedRockBrewing.com On Tap: Gypsy Scratch Red Rock Fashion Place 6227 So. State Redrockbrewing.com On Tap: Munich Dunkel Red Rock Kimball Junction 1640 Redstone Center Redrockbrewing.com On Tap: Bamberg Rauch Bier RoHa Brewing Project 30 Kensington Ave, SLC RoHaBrewing.com On Tap: TwelveTwentyOne Coffee Stout a collaboration with Midway Coffee Roosters Brewing Multiple Locations RoostersBrewingCo.com On Tap: Identity Crisis Session West Coast Hazy Cold IPA – the name says it all!

SaltFire Brewing 2199 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake SaltFireBrewing.com On Tap: Deep Dive Series - Rice Lager Draft Salt Flats Brewing 2020 Industrial Circle, SLC SaltFlatsBeer.com On Tap: Oktoberfest Vienna Lager Scion Cider Bar 916 Jefferson St W, SLC Scionciderbar.com On Tap: Scion Cider El Zorro 7% ABV

Second Summit Cider 4010 So. Main, Millcreek https://secondsummitcider.com On Tap: Pear Pink Peppercorn & Tarragon Cider

Stratford Proper 1588 Stratford Ave., SLC stratfordproper.com On Tap: Yacht Rock Juice Box Juicy IPA

Shades Brewing 154 W. Utopia Ave, South Salt Lake ShadesBrewing.beer On Tap: Slim Shady Gluten Friendly Light Ale | Live Music: Thursdays

TF Brewing 936 S. 300 West, SLC TFBrewing.com On Tap: Lil Babs Single Hope Pale Ale

Shades On State 366 S. State Street SLC Shadesonstate.com On Tap: Hellion Blond Ale, an ode to Ellie, manager at Shades on State Karaoke: Wednesdays

Talisman Brewing Co. 1258 Gibson Ave, Ogden TalismanBrewingCo.com On Tap: Witches Brew

Silver Reef 4391 S. Enterprise Drive, St. George StGeorgeBev.com Squatters Pub Brewery / Salt Lake Brewing Co. 147 W. Broadway, SLC saltlakebrewingco.com/squatters On Tap: Salt Lake Brewing Co’s Batch European Vacation Pilsner Squatters and Wasatch Brewery 1763 So 300 West Utahbeers.com On Tap: Tree Beard IPA w Fresh Spruce Tips and Simcone, Citra & Ekeanot Hops Strap Tank Brewery, Lehi 3661 Outlet Pkwy, Lehi, UT StrapTankBrewery.com On Tap: Three on the Tree’ Hoppy Lager Collaboration with Proximity Malt and Roy Farms Hops.

Strap Tank Brewery, Springville 596 S 1750 W, Springville, UT StrapTankBrewery.com On Tap: Three on the Tree’ Hoppy Lager Collaboration with Proximity Malt and Roy Farms Hops.

Top of Main Brewing 250 Main, Park City, Utah saltlakebrewingco.com/wasatch On Tap: Utah Beer - An American Lager Uinta Brewing 1722 S. Fremont Drive, SLC UintaBrewing.com On Tap: Was Angeles Craft Beer UTOG 2331 Grant Ave, Ogden UTOGBrewing.com On Tap: Golden Grant 5% ABV. Vernal Brewing 55 S. 500 East, Vernal VernalBrewing.com Wasatch Brew Pub 2110 S. Highland Drive, SLC saltlakebrewingco.com/wasatch On Tap: Wasatch Salt Lime Cerveza Zion Brewery 95 Zion Park Blvd, Springdale ZionBrewery.com Zolupez 205 W. 29th Street #2, Ogden Zolupez.com

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Level Crossing Brewing Co. 2496 S. West Temple, S. Salt Lake LevelCrossingBrewing.com On Tap: Bat Country Blonde on Nitro

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ffset - Drawn To The Dark (Coffee Milk Stout): It pours an opaque black-brown color, including some ruby-red tinges around the edge when held to a light. The head is appropriate, even though I made no attempt to be gentle when pouring—about two-and-a-half fingers thick and beige in color, with little capacity for retention. A collar of bubbly froth survives, along with some scant lace; I like the look of the bronze lacing. Hints of toffee and milk sugar come through on the nose, with prominent notes of roasted malt, cappuccino, cocoa, vanilla, woodsmoke and coffee grounds. As a coffee-lover, I’m really looking forward to getting into this.

It’s well-balanced, featuring a moderately rich flavor with very slight notes of treacle and lactose sweetness, soon giving way to the roasted malt and coffee. There’s kind of a mocha vibe to it— black, dark-roasted coffee beans and some subtle cocoa bean flavors, with the roastiness increasing as you approach the finish. Light chocolate and roasted coffee bean bitterness appears on the back end, hanging on for a bittersweet aftertaste that persists. This milk stout’s strongest attribute is probably the great use of coffee from Idle Hands Roasting Company— medium-bodied, with a silky-smooth, luxurious feel on the palate. Carbonation levels are fairly low, emphasizing its softness and giving it excellent drinkability.

Verdict: Offset’s Coffee Milk Stout is pretty good, and the balance between its milk sugar sweetness, roasted malts and coffee flavors is actually quite admirable. I’d chalk up my enthusiasm for this beer to personal taste, though. If

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BY MIKE RIEDEL comments@cityweekly.net @utahbeer

ki

Contrasting beer styles bring harmony to your Thanksgiving feast.

you like milk stouts or coffee beers, this one should be up your alley. I found the 6.0 percent ABV to be spot-on, tying it all together nicely.

Beer Zombies - Hazeoleum: This new Hazy IPA has an outstanding appearance for the style. The beer poured a hazy, glowing straw-yellow color, not quite as turbid as your typical Beer Zombies IPA. The body was topped by a fluffy, frothy, two-finger tall, bright white crown that slowly fell to a thin collar. A blanket of craggy lacing coated the glass and lasted until the drink’s end.

The aroma was fantastic. Tropical fruits dominated, including loads of ripe guava and mango, plus a big peach candy presence—super-punchy and bold. As the beer sat, dry yeasty notes took over. Later, however, the fruitiness reappeared, with andied orange and tangerine quite noticeable. Some dank, Mosaic hop-like notes appeared toward the drink’s end.

The flavor profile was also terrific.

Citrus notes dominated, with a huge pithy orange and tangerine presence, medium-sweet but also somewhat pithy and bitter. Pineapple was noticeable in the center, while ruby red grapefruit and yellow grapefruit peel came through on the back end and the finish. The result is a nice balance of fruity sweetness and oily, resiny bitterness.

You also get an amazingly smooth, fluffy mouthfeel, medium-to-lightbodied for the style. The liquid contained a soft, moderate effervescence that blanketed my tongue after every sip, typical for a Zombie brew.

Verdict: Potently hoppy yet incredibly well-balanced, with a lighter body and an impossibly soft and creamy mouthfeel, bright with citrus—it’s everything I love most about hoppy ales. I could drink this for days.

In Salt Lake City, you can only snag this hazy at Beer Zombies bar in the Gateway’s Hall Pass court. Since it’s a bar, you can only enjoy this 7.0 percent beer on-site; you’ll have to make a slightly longer trip to Vegas, if you want some for your home fridge. You can find Drawn To The Dark (Coffee Milk Stout) at the source in Park City. I enjoyed a 16-ounce can of it at the Beerhive in SLC. As always, cheers! CW

Hop

MIKE RIEDEL

Opposites Attract

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26 | NOVEMBER 23, 2023

the

BACK BURNER

BY ALEX SPRINGER |

@captainspringer

Deadpan Sandwich Reopens

Last week, I wrote about the closure of Deadpan Sandwich inside Woodbine Food Hall (545 W. 700 South), but this week saw a change in fortune for this local sandwich shop. The Deadpan Sandwich team announced plans to reopen on Nov. 21 after receiving massive community support. It’s rare to see a restaurant announce a closure only to turn things around so quickly, and it sounds like a big part of that pivot was thanks to all the Deadpan Sandwich fans out there who rallied to support the team. I’m glad to see that there are moments when diners can step in and help out a local business that means so much to the local community—and I hope this happens more often.

Hash Kitchen Opens

Breakfast and brunch spots have had a bit of a moment recently, which might explain the arrival of Hash Kitchen (264 E. 12300 South, hashkitchen.com) in Draper. A brand owned and operated by Chef Joseph Maggiore and his wife Cristina, Hash Kitchen touts itself as the birthplace of the build-your-own Bloody Mary bar, where you can add everything from skewered pickles to bacon slices on top of your boozy brunch beverage. Entree-wise, Hash Kitchen is known for its signature hashes that include a holiday ham hash and a fried pork chop hash among other tasty items. Based on early peeks at the menu, this one’s gonna be a popular addition to our local brunch scene.

Holiday Events at Flanker

Flanker Kitchen and Sporting Club (6 N. Rio Grande Street, flankerslc.com) recently announced a loaded sleigh’s worth of new holiday experiences that locals can enjoy this season. Riding on the success of their past tiki bar iterations, the Christmas Tiki Parlor will be in full swing and stocked with plenty of signature cocktails. The North Pole Club is also open for business; it’s a lounge where visitors can watch Christmas movies from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., until it transforms into a holiday-themed nightspot. Flanker is also accepting donations of warm clothing for the Rescue Mission of Salt Lake, so visitors have a chance to help out while enjoying Flanker’s new experiences.

Quote of the Week: “Wear gratitude like a cloak and it will feed every corner of your life.” –Rumi

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28 | NOVEMBER 23, 2023

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CINEMA

FILM

REVIEW The Least Emperor

Joaquin Phoenix in Napoleon

Napoleon offers a profile of a power-hungry leader who deserves to be an object of ridicule.

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to tapping impatiently, except when they serve as an opportunity to watch Napoleon again fumbling while attempting to appear sophisticated, like sharing a joke with Russia’s Tsar Nicholas that the tsar quickly informs him isn’t exactly original.

Ridley Scott hasn’t exactly been known as a director of comedies, so it’s a bit strange to think of Napoleon that way. That is, however, the level on which it works best, even as Phoenix understands never to tip the portrayal into complete farce.

It’s a character study of an emperor who strides into a conquered land, sits on his enemy’s throne, and immediately has the birds fluttering through the room take a shit on the gilded seat. Sometimes, the best way to respond to a fool, even a powerful fool, is to laugh at them. CW

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spots her at a party and gawks at her none-too-subtly. Kirby plays Josephine as a pragmatic widow realizing she’s hitched herself to a rising star, and gets a few moments to perfectly play her lack of respect for Napoleon. But mostly her character lingers in the shadows, a bit less fully developed. Occasionally, Napoleon appears to be on the verge of treating their relationship sincerely as one of those “romances that changed the course of history” like Antony and Cleopatra, only to pivot back to showing how Napoleon’s swooning letters were less about love than about possession, about a man who wanted to control things realizing this relationship wasn’t fully under his control.

Napoleon certainly doesn’t ignore the political and military side of these pivotal years, though that might also be where it’s least interesting. Scott certainly has the ability to convey a real, tactile battlefield sequence in a way that shows where Napoleon’s plans are succeeding, and where they are not, yet some of those sequences do drag on in a way that feels distracting.

The various machinations and attempts at brokering alliances similarly get the toes

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in 1789 as the country’s fledgling democracy faces both external threats from the British and internal challenges from inept new leaders and rebel monarchists. Napoleon seems to understand that both kinds of problems can be solved by cannon fire, and is more than happy to employ it.

The most satisfying thing about the way Phoenix plays Napoleon, however, is that he’s often a comic figure rather than a tough guy. One of the earliest battle scenes—as Napoleon leads the French to a rout of the English soldiers occupying the port of Toulon in 1793—finds the general practically hyperventilating with anxiety as he launches his plan, then immediately being unhorsed by a cannonball as he charges into combat. And when he opens a sarcophagus to contemplate the honored long-ago ruler to whom he might compare himself, he awkwardly bumps the mummified corpse. Over and over again, at the moments when Napoleon might have placed Napoleon on a pedestal, Phoenix’s terrific performance has him do a pratfall off of it.

Much of that irreverent material involves his relationship with Josephine (Vanessa Kirby), from the moment he

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ctors and filmmakers can say whatever they want about what drew them to a project, but that doesn’t stop me from having my own head-canon. Maybe director Ridley Scott and star Joaquin Phoenix came to Napoleon just wanting to work together again more than 20 years after Gladiator; maybe the lure of exploring one of the most famous people in history was too much to resist. Or maybe, just maybe after a certain regime in American history, they loved the idea of painting the most powerful man in the world as a power-hungry idiot who nods off during crucial briefings because he’s too bored to pay attention, and with a wife who barely seems to tolerate him except as access to that power.

Look, I won’t stretch the analogy too far. After all, Napoleon does acknowledge that its subject was a savant in at least one area—military tactics—which is one more than the Former Guy. But it seems possible that David Scarpa’s script was inspired by wondering what happens when people who are the best at pursuing power are also the least capable of putting it to good use. Plus, it might make the whole thing more enjoyable to watch if the petty dictator in question is made to look consistently ridiculous.

It’s got a wide span to cover, opening in the aftermath of the French Revolution

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30 | NOVEMBER 23, 2023

Music Roundup November 2023 New music from Bennyjeans, 26fix, Acacia Ridge and Late Night Savior, Merry Andrew, Homestyle Dinner Rolls

BY EMILEE ATKINSON eatkinson@cityweekly.net @emileelovesvinyl

B

ennyjeans, “No Wonder,” “Why”: As the temperature drops, we need more music to cozy up with and keep us company as the sun sets earlier and earlier. Bennyjeans is no stranger to writing music that makes you a little sad, but is also relatable.

Being in your feelings while listening is okay, because you’re in it together. A lot of Bennyjeans’ music is bedroom pop-y, and leans on the computer effects to create an upbeat, fun experience. These new singles are a little more stripped back and have a focus on Bennyjeans’ soft, gentle voice and acoustic instruments. There are added effects, but someone who is not as big on the bedroom pop sound may be more drawn to these tracks. “No Wonder” is a beautifullycrafted song, filled with love and care not only lyrically, but musically as well. While listening, it doesn’t feel like there are any elements missing; it feels complete, whole and is a beautiful listening experience. This iteration of “Why” is an acoustic version of Bennyjeans’ 2021 release, and again it feels like a full listening experience. Bennyjeans was able to take a song with a lot of effects and translate that to an acoustic guitar with a catchy hook that you’ll want to have on repeat. “No Wonder” and “Why” are streaming everywhere now.

26fix, new music video for “Just Go With It”: There’s one thing you can count on for certain when you click on a 26fix video: You’re going to have an enjoyable time and see some weird shit, but you’re going to love it anyway.

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This is 26fix’s second official music video (besides lyric videos) since “A Pickle” video dropped in October 2022. That one is also a great viewing experience, so you should head there after you watch “Just Go With It.” The song starts out with some iconic, funky bass that you can find throughout 26fix’s music, and it pairs perfectly with the visuals of her riding through town on a cute motorcycle. Before you know it, she’s pulled up to a gas station with two scantily-clad male police officers, who don’t take too kindly to the singer’s shoplifting antics in 7-Eleven. A chase ensues, and the video takes perfectlycut moments to make you smile and shake your head at the silliness. There’s slow-mo, props, beautiful Utah backdrops … it’s just a fun way to spend four minutes. Watch “Just Go With It” on 26fix’s YouTube channel.

Acacia Ridge and Late Night Savior, “Background Noise”: Fans of SLC rock are probably familiar with these two staples in the local scene. What you may not know is that they teamed up to create a rock powerhouse that the entire state can be proud of. “‘Background Noise’ is unlike anything we’ve done before,” said Acacia Ridge vocalist Christian Mayfield. “Our sound mixed with Late Night Savior’s created a lot of heart and emotion.

It seemed only fitting that we hit the road to promote it. We’ve really made something special and can’t wait for everyone to hear it.” The song is a heartfelt anthem about being left behind and being someone’s second choice (ouch). It’s a strong track that builds and doesn’t hold back; both bands brought their A-game for this one, and you don’t want to miss it. “It’s been such a pleasure working with our boys in Acacia Ridge on this track!” said Late Night Savior frontman Brandon Johnson. “We wanted to create something with a ton of heart, and I think we did just that. We definitely have looked forward to creating something together for a while now, and throwing the tour into the mix is just icing on the cake! We can’t wait to get on the road and start tearing it up!” “Background Noise” is streaming everywhere now, along with a music video.

Late Night Savior

Merry Andrew, “Young Again”: It’s always exciting to see fresh tracks from the most recent projects that bloom all over the Utah music scene. Merry Andrew is the brainchild of Andrew Hall (vocals, violin, guitar) with Ben Frank (drums) and Rachel Rollins (violin, keyboards, vocals). “Young Again” is their debut song, and it’s one you’ll want to get the tissues out for, especially if you have a complicated relationship with a sibling. It takes you on a journey of growing up together until eventually drifting apart. It’ll especially hit ’90s kids the most, with nostalgic references to iconic toys of the decade and how much simpler things were back then. Hall’s longing voice paired with the delicate instrumentation make for a real tearjerker, but it’s a beautiful track that deserves a good listen or two—perhaps on your way to your next therapy session. “Young Again” is streaming everywhere now.

Homestyle Dinner Rolls, “Take”: It’s safe to say that many of us are unhappy with the current state of the world— there’s a lot to not be happy about. On the bright side, it does make for some great art, especially music. Homestyle Dinner Rolls’ newest single takes all of that frustration and channels it into an unforgettable anthem for you to scream into the ether when you’re fed up. “Take’ is an upbeat alt rock anthem about how consumerism and greed are eating our planet alive and driving us to extinction,” HDR said of the track. The frustration with the world is evident in the song through powerful instrumentation, screaming vocals and apathetic lyrics.

“Take” is not only a great anthem for those feeling disenfranchised, but it’s a damn good rock song. The chugging bass, heavy guitar and churning tempo will fit perfectly in any rock aficionado’s music library. “Take” is streaming everywhere now. cw

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Ska is just a fun genre. It’s peppy to listen to, the people playing it seem like they’re having a blast, and it’s great to dance to. SLC ska/alternative/indie group The Anchorage know all about the genre and performing for an excited crowd. Since 2010, the group has been pumping out tunes that are addicting and leave you wanting more. Their most recent releases are some of their most intriguing and enjoyable to date. Last summer, The Anchorage gave us their first full album released since 2015, marking a beautiful return to long-form for the band. Wild Stories takes you on a journey where you’re being told a new and exciting story with each track. You get pumping, crunching guitar in your ears before the horns come over, transforming the track into something uniquely The Anchorage. If you’ve heard of ska and never thought it would be a genre you’d enjoy, there’s a good chance this band could change your mind—especially if you’re a fan of hard-rock elements that make you headbang without even thinking about it. Their most recent release, “Dead Man’s Party,” is a perfect addition for your Halloween playlists—a spooky romp featuring creepy lyrics that will have you missing Halloween all year long. Catch The Anchorage at Kilby Court on Thursday, Nov. 23 at 7 p.m. Tickets for the all-ages show are $10 and can be found at 24tix.com. (Emilee Atkinson)

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34 | NOVEMBER 23, 2023

MUSIC PICKS

Quicksand

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By Emilee Atkinson

When I look back fondly at all of the great bands of the early ’90s, Quicksand always rises to the top in my mind. They were one of those bands doing the post-hardcore, breakdownsplus-noise thing who seemed to know how to write a good song, too. Their iconic debut LP Slip turned 30 earlier this year, and to celebrate the anniversary, the band is currently touring in support of this influential record. Slip is flawless—one of those records I wish were longer when they are over, or which I immediately replay after listening. “We are 100 percent not trying to simply recreate the past,” frontman Walter Schreifels told Punknews in October. “At the same time, with it including the same people, it is hard to not sound like it at times. We were very innovative in the beginning, and we are always trying to continue to be innovators.” They’re a band of great musicians, but not posers. Tom was always a mystery (Stephen Brodsky in the line-up currently adds a punchier sound), Sergio a real bass machine and Alan a meticulous metronome with a real groove. Vocalist Walter Schreifels tops it all off. His songwriter-y output/activity is quite undermentioned in all things music. Witnessing them playing this bonafide classic in its entirety live is not to be missed. Hotline TNT & Worlds Worst open. Catch these acts at Metro Music Hall on Saturday, Nov. 25. Doors open at 7 p.m., tickets for the 21+ show are $29.50 and can be found at 24tix.com (Mark Dago)

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Transmit Festival 2023 @ The Great Saltair 11/25 The 1975 @ Delta Center 11/26 For fans of smoothly flowing, melodic house music: Transmit Festival 2023 is an event you don’t want to miss. Daniel Goldstein, better known as Lane 8, is the headliner for this festival with music released under his own label, called “This Never Happened.” That label title also feels thematically appropriate for this phones-free event; attendees are prohibited from recording the shows with cell phones or cameras, encouraging them to be fully present in the experience. Goldstein has an impressive discography of four studio albums: Rise (2015), Little by Little (2018), Brightest Lights (2020), and Reviver (2022) that showcase his range from techno to flowing progressive house. While Lane 8 has an established and highly-dedicated fan base, other DJs will also showcase the softer side of progressive house music, such as the mysterious Kasablanca music project (best known for their 2020 single “Human Learning”), Sultan + Shepard, Luttrell, Jerome Isma-ae and Eric Hill. Taking place over Thanksgiving weekend, this is the perfect event for those who wish to connect to an energy of unity and love. The Great Saltair will come alive with soul-stirring melodies and plenty of space to dance and connect to a music community through rhythm and trance. Transmit Festival 2023 takes place at The Great Saltair on Saturday, Nov.. 25. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., and the festival ends at 1 a.m. Tickets start at $50. Go to v2presents.com (Arica Roberts)

FRANKIEBOUQUÉT

CREDIT

By Emilee Atkinson

The English have always had an affinity for injecting excitement and invention into rock and roll. The Beatles, the Stones, the Who and others that served on the front line of the so-called “British Invasion” of the 1960s proved that adage long ago—and the indie band The 1975 continues that tradition. The group originally met in secondary school while still in their teens, and began performing professionally in 2012. Their unusual name was supposedly inspired by some scribblings found in a used copy of Jack Kerouac’s classic novel “On the Road” dated “1 June, The 1975.” No matter; The 1975 quickly became the opening act for several major bands, even though it soon became clear they were worthy of headliner status themselves. A series of EPs paved the way for their charttopping, self-titled debut album, which yielded the successful singles “Sex,” “Chocolate” and “Robbers.” Their fortunes have continued unabated ever since, with each album hitting Number One in the U.K. charts and attaining high marks in Billboard’s Top 200 as well. They’ve also earned several critical kudos, including various Grammy nominations, two prestigious Ivor Novello Awards, a Mercury Prize nomination, a win for British Album of the Year from the Brit Awards, and pronouncement as “Band of the Decade” at the 2020 NME Awards. Likewise, raves from Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly and Pitchfork followed as well. Clearly then, The 1975 can be considered a timeless phenomenon. The 1975 perform at Delta Center at 7:30 pm on Sunday, Nov. 26. Tickets cost $29 - $119 at seatgeek.com. (Lee Zimmerman)

Bruce Lee and the Streetfighters, Wasting Tuesday, Hot LaCroix @ Urban Lounge 11/29

Rock is an undeniably flexible and fluid genre. With so many different sounds and subgenres, it’s something you can truly make yours. If you head out to this show, you’ll be treated to a trio of fantastic locals who have found their sound in the rock world. At the top of the bill is Bruce Lee and the Streetfighters. Anyone who hears Bruce Lee’s name is probably expecting bad-assery, and you definitely get that with this group. The alt-rock/post-punk band has chugging riffs, dark lyrics and ripping solos abounding.

Their most recent single, “What I Thought was Real,” is a lamenting song that curses the way things are in the world, especially when things turn out differently than you thought.

Joining the bill is new-to-the-scene Wasting Tuesday, who take a funkier, bluesy-er approach to their version of rock.

They’re a high-energy band that’s perfect to go see on a night out with friends. Rounding out the evening is Hot LaCroix, another group that is fresh on the scene, officially playing their first show at the DLC in October. So far, the eclectic rockers are delivering fresh, lively performances, so it’s exciting to see what they do next. Catch this epic trio of rock on Wednesday, Nov. 29 at 7 p.m. Tickets for the 21+ show are free.99, but still need to be “purchased” on 24tix. com to reserve entry. (EA)

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36 | NOVEMBER 23, 2023

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free will ASTROLOGY

BY ROB BREZSNY

ARIES (March 21-April 19)

When we experience authentic awe, our humility deepens. This in turn tends to make us kinder, smarter and more positive. So how can we stimulate awe? Among the many possible ways are gazing at magnificent art, hiking in a natural wonderland or being in the presence of a beautiful human soul. In accordance with astrological omens, I recommend that you go in quest of awe and related feelings like reverence, amazement, adoration, and veneration. Your mental, physical and spiritual health will flourish in response.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

It’s the Season for Cherishing and Smoking Out Secrets.

So let’s talk about the subject: 1. Some secrets are sad, haunting, even risky—and worth keeping secret. 2. Other secrets can be beautiful, healing and potentially lifechanging if they are revealed gracefully. 3. Some secrets are buried so deeply that only very persistent seekers dig them up. 4. Some secrets are “hidden” in plain view, and only visible to people who are clear and brave enough to identify them. I suspect you Tauruses will have a special knack for managing all types of secrets in the coming weeks, including those I mentioned.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)

CANCER (June 21-July 22)

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):

Have you located any of your soul twins? Is that an interesting prospect for you? Please note that soul twins are not necessarily the same as dream lovers. They may simply be people with whom you share deep values and perspectives. They might aspire to influence the world in ways similar to you. With a soul twin, you feel at home in the world and extra happy to be yourself. I bring this to your attention, Scorpio, because the coming months will be an especially likely time for you to encounter and engage with soul twins. Be on the alert!

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

Composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827) was charismatic and forceful, but also hot-tempered and prone to rude behavior. The writer Goethe said “his talent amazed me,” and described him as an “utterly untamed personality.” Beethoven seldom lived in one home for long and loved to sing at the top of his lungs as he bathed.

Although he played piano with skill, he was quite clumsy as he moved through the world. Can you guess what sign he was? Sagittarius! I’m not saying you are like this wild, unruly genius, but you do have tendencies in that direction. And in the coming weeks, I expect you’ll be inclined to be more Beethoven-esque than usual.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

I hope you have developed good boundaries. I hope you are so skilled at taking care of yourself that you steadfastly refuse to let people manipulate or hurt you.

To make sure your discernment is working, though, I will offer a tip. In the English language, we have the idiom “to rub salt in a wound,” which refers to how daubing salt in an open gash in the skin makes the pain even worse. But did you know that smearing sugar in a wound is equally distressing? The metaphorical lesson is that you should be vigilant for seemingly nice, sweet people who might also violate your boundaries to hurt or manipulate you.

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AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

I estimate this horoscope is worth $22,225. It was made possible by my years of disciplined meditations, extensive reading of texts, and a devotion to astrology and my readers. Here’s the fun part: You can read it for free! No cost at all! I will, however, ask you to do something for me in return. First, give your gifts joyously and generously in the coming weeks, holding nothing back.

Second, don’t be in the least concerned about whether you will receive benefits in return for your gifts. Find the sweet spot where you love bestowing blessings for no other reason except this one: You are expressing your gratitude for the miraculous life you have been given.

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“It is better to entertain an idea than to take it home PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) to live with you for the rest of your life,” wrote author Do you possess gambits, tactics and knacks that we Randall Jarrell. That’s decent advice, though I will add a might refer to as your “bag of tricks”? I hope so, because caveat. If you entertain an idea for a while, and it turns such an asset will be extra valuable during the coming out that you love it, and you also love the beneficent weeks. You will be wise to employ every cagey move effect it has on you, you may be smart to take it home you can imagine and call on every favor that’s owed to to live with you. I’m guessing you Virgos are at a pivotal you and cash in on every advantage you have accrued. point in this regard. Not yet, but soon, you will know I don’t want you to engage in outright cheating, but I whether it will be wise to get cozier with certain influencourage you to use ploys and stratagems that have ences you have been flirting with—or else decide they full integrity. Be on the lookout for secret shortcuts, are not ones you want to keep. magic cookies and wild cards.

Go to realastrology.com for Rob Brezsny’s expanded weekly audio horoscopes and daily text-message horoscopes.

Audio horoscopes also available by phone at 877-873-4888 or 900-950-7700.

Paula Metos Saltas Realtor® 801-573-6811

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Researchers have determined that there are two basic dispositions among tigers. One is what they call “majesty.” Creatures with this orientation tend to be dignified, imposing and agile. The other type of tiger personality revolves around “steadiness.” This is the opposite of neuroticism, and includes the qualities of being affable, easy to get along with and well-adjusted. I know many astrologers associate lions with you Leos, but I prefer to link you with tigers. If you agree with me, here’s my prediction: You are beginning a phase when you will be more majestic than steady—but with plenty of steadiness also available if you want it.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

KLY

WEE @SLC

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Playwright Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) is regarded as one of history’s great writers. That does not mean everything he said was wise, useful or worthy of our attention. For example, he was once asked to give his opinion about ballet. “During the intermissions, the ballerinas stink like horses,” he replied. I hesitate to bring up such a vulgar reference, but I wanted to make a vivid point. In the coming weeks, I hope you will ignore the advice of people who don’t know what they are talking about, no matter how smart or charismatic they may be.

I hope you will not attribute expertise to those who have no such expertise. I hope that as much as possible, you will rely on first-hand information, rigorous research and reliable influences.

If I could award Most Curious Genius in the World, it would be Libran author and naturalist Diane Ackerman.

She would also get my prize for Most Voracious Learner and Best Questioner and Most Exuberant Seeker and Searcher. “To hear the melody,” she writes, “we must hear all the notes.” In response to the question, “What is life?” she offers this answer: “corsages and dust mites and alligator skin and tree-frog serenades and foreskins and blue hydrangeas and banana slugs and war dances and cedar chips and bombardier beetles.” In accordance with current astrological omens, I encourage you to be like Diane Ackerman in the coming weeks.

University of Utah Health and the Moran Eye Center will be destroying medical records created prior to 01/01/2002 for all patients.

UUH and Moran will also be destroying medical records created prior to 01/01/2014 for deceased patients who passed away prior to 01/01/2014 and who were over the age of 18 at the time of death. If you would like to request a copy of your records prior to destruction, or if you have a legal right to access a deceased relatives medical information and would like a copy of their records, you must contact the facility at 801581-2704 before 01/01/2024. After that date, records will no longer be available.

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I hope you won’t fill yourself up with appetizers and hors d’oeuvres in the coming weeks, Gemini. My soul will be at peace if I see you save your hunger for the main courses. Your motto should be “Feasts, not snacks!” or “The Real Deal, not the pretenders!” or “The jubilee, not the distractions!” If you ever find yourself feeling halfhearted or inattentive, you’re probably not in the right situation. Here’s an affirmation to go with your mottoes: “I am liberating my divine appetite!”

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

S ON U W FOLLO RAM G A T INS

© 2023

DESTINATION WEDDING

BY DAVID LEVINSON WILK

DOWN

1. Bread units 2. F equivalent 3. “NYPD Blue” actor whose first name has been an answer in 100+ daily New York Times crossword puzzles 4. White blood ____

Broker, Urban Utah Homes & Estates, urbanutah.com

Cop Shop

5. It may have an alarm rating 6. Full of chutzpah 7. Underway, to Sherlock Holmes 8. Original airer of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” 9. China setting 10. Brownstone steps 11. Surfboard application 12. Part of some sports drink names 13. “Hoo boy” 21. Blockhead 22. “____ Kapital” 26. Delivery time 27. Tennis’ “King of Clay,” familiarly 28. Festoons on Halloween, informally 30. Show and ____ 32. 24-hr. retail channel 35. Items in a 1990s “tower” 36. Take ____ (sample some) 37. Holders of recyclables 38. Investigative journalist ____ B. Wells 39. Casual Friday casualties 40. Omits 41. Drag show accessory 45. Apt name for a worrier 46. “The magic word”

47. Japanese tech giant 48. Investigate, as a cold case 49. Oscar-nominated frontwoman of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs 51. = 53. Just peachy 56. “Insecure” star Rae 57. “I smell ____!”

58. Yoga pad 59. Time in history 60. Zilch

Last week’s answers

Complete the grid so that each row, column, diagonal and 3x3 square contain all of the numbers 1 to 9. No math is involved. The grid has numbers, but nothing has to add up to anything else. Solve the puzzle with reasoning and logic. Solving time is typically 10 to 30 minutes, depending on your skill and experience.

1. Bloodsucker 6. ____ ghanouj 10. Did laps in a pool 14. Bone: Prefix 15. Homes for mil. planes 16. “Et voilà!”

17. Grind to ____ 18. Sets of points, in geometry 19. Farm team?

20. Are you and your partner into skiing?

Have your destination wedding here!

23. “Uhh ...”

24. “____ luego” 25. Separated 29. Big name in music streaming 31. MLB sluggers who don’t play the field 33. Grammys genre 34. “Get Out” actor Lil ____ Howery 35. Prefix with gender 36. Hound sounds 37. Can you and your partner picture yourselves in the South Pacific? Have your destination wedding here!

41. Send an invoice 42. ____ Moines 43. VII + VII 44. Half and half 45. Cul-de-____ 46. Pirates’ home 50. Strength 52. Superman’s birth name 54. Salonga of Broadway 55. Do you and your partner love the Andes? Have your destination wedding here!

58. List in a food delivery app 61. Japanese deer 62. Hang (over) 63. Diva’s delivery 64. They’re blue on maps 65. No longer on the plate 66. Starbucks size 67. “... so long ____ both shall live?”

68. Courtroom recorder

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38 | NOVEMBER 23, 2023

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

I’m volunteering on a committee that’s reviewing proposals to update and transform what many remember as the old “Cop Shop” (or the SLC Public Safety Building) at 200 South and 300 East.

Various city employees, local folks with preservation knowledge, architects and two of us from the Historic Landmark Commission recently toured the boarded-up relic (aka the Northwest Pipeline Building), erected in 1958. Now, Salt Lake City is seeking proposals to save this old structure.

Why not just tear it down? Well, it’s one of the few architectural remnants of the International Style from 80 years ago. As a city, Salt Lake could either bulldoze old buildings and lose parts of its past or save and restore old buildings for future generations.

You might recall the old First Security Bank Building, which represents a similar era, located on Main Street and 400 South. It was beautifully restored and is now used as offices for a car dealership and other businesses. Most people driving by that property might not know it’s been restored, but they still might notice that it’s not a typical-looking high-rise.

Both the old Cop Shop and the First Security Bank Building have many features of the 1950s era, such as the exterior, triple-pane windows, which aren’t the norm in new construction.

Touring the Cop Shop, we saw the original built-in interior clock (roughly 6 feet tall) still on the lobby wall. Terrazzo flooring can be seen on various levels throughout the building, including in the lobby, and a groovy aluminum banister is still intact in the first two-floor stairwells.

Salt Lake City is seeking a developer that will keep such elements in their plans to build apartments, a hotel, offices, condos or a mix of uses. Our committee is currently reviewing 11 proposals, and a new private or public developer will be chosen in the new year.

A block west of the Cop Shop is the former data center for what we used to call “Ma Bell,” now AT&T. It’s also boarded-up, but a developer out of Texas has purchased the boxy-looking building for just under $20 million and will most likely put in new apartments there. The cool piece of art that was on the south face of the building has been removed and, now—like the Cop Shop—the place is surrounded by a chain-link fence.

Preserving historic buildings is vital for communities to maintain cultural identity and understand our shared history. These structures serve as tangible links to the past, offering insights into architectural styles, societal norms and technological advancements. They provide a sense of continuity connecting us to our roots here, whether we’re native Utahns or not.

I can’t tell you how much saving historic buildings adds to the character of neighborhoods and promotes sustainable development, as I think it’s a given. But this is why I volunteer—because I don’t want Utah’s capital city to turn into blocks and blocks of ugliness.

Content is prepared expressly for Community and is not endorsed by City Weekly staff.

Graphic Designer (Draper, UT) Responsible for (1) creating visually appealing marketing materials for the franchise, including print ads, flyers, menus, banners, & digital ads; (2) designing various restaurant collateral, such as menu boards, signage, uniforms, & packaging; (3) creating engaging and visually appealing content for the franchise’s social media channels, such as Instagram, Facebook, & Twitter. 40hrs/wk, Offered wage: $33,530/year, Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design / Visual Design or related required. Resume to CUPBOP CO Attn: Yeiri Kim, 12184 S Business Park Dr #C, Draper, UT 84020

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NEWS of the WEIRD

We sell homes to all saints, sinners, sisterwives and...

BY THE EDITORS AT ANDREWS MCMEEL

Police Report

Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman accompanied the mayor on Nov. 6 at a news conference where they presented a resolution to help curb reckless driving in the city, The Washington Post reported, saying the city needs to “change the daily behavior” of dangerous drivers. But after the event, as soon as Norman hit the road in his SUV, a dump truck rear-ended him, injuring both Norman and another officer. “We did not need this type of reminder that all drivers need to slow down and increase caution on our roadways,” Mayor Cavalier Johnson said.

Surprise, Surprise!

When antique dealer Beth Meyer bought the contents of a storage unit in September 2022, she was disappointed that there were no rocks inside; rocks are her specialty.

However, The Washington Post reported, she did find a human skull among the items. This October, she put a $4,000 price tag on the skull and used it in a Halloween display in the store she helps run in North Fort Myers, Florida—until an anthropologist walked through and saw it. While Meyer already knew the skull was real, the scientist thought it was very old and possibly from a Native American person, making it subject to certain federal laws. So they contacted the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies deposited the skull with the medical examiner’s office, and while Florida law prohibits selling human remains, they don’t believe Meyer did anything wrong. She said she was “unaware of the skull being a Native American. I put such a high price on it that I figured no one would buy it.”

In the Chinese province of Hunan, the Shiniuzhai Scenic Area offers stunning landscapes of sheer cliffs—perfect for climbers. And who doesn’t get a little thirsty on the way up a grueling vertical mountain face? CNN reported that perched at 394 feet above the ground, a 2-squaremeter “convenience store” offers free water bottles and other sustenance to hungry and parched climbers. The general manager of Shiniuzhai, Song Huizhou, said staff members are tasked with hauling goods up to the store every day in their backpacks. And you thought your commute was brutal.

The Tech Revolution

Meanwhile, at the Mall ...

called a plumber on Nov. 4 to fix a broken pipe in his home, Oddity Central reported. After assessing the project, the plumber gave the homeowner an estimate, which sent the homeowner into a rage. He produced a firearm and threatened to kill the plumber; neighbors heard the disturbance and called police, but when they arrived, the homeowner would not release his hostage. Police got a glimpse of him and the plumber/hostage through a window and began negotiations; they asked the man to slightly open the front door so they could see that the plumber was all right.

That’s when special forces stormed in and rescued the hostage. The homeowner is in police custody.

Broker/Owner 801-201-8824 babs@urbanutah.com www.urbanutah.com

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Selling homes for 10 years

Selling homes for 39 years in the Land of Zion

SEE VIRTUAL TOURS AT URBANUTAH.COM

Great Art

Washington native Ben Miller is a painter of landscapes, focusing on river scenes to raise awareness about conservation. Oddity Central reported that it’s his painting method that makes him stand alone: He applies paint to fishing flies that he makes himself, then flings them at a piece of plexiglass positioned several feet away. Having learned fly fishing from his dad, Miller hits the precise mark he’s aiming for every time. He said he sometimes gets approached by police because people assume he’s fishing out of season, but they’ve always been understanding.

It Doesn’t Work That Way

On Nov. 1, at Canberra Airport in Australia, a woman who seemingly missed her flight ran past security and onto the airport tarmac, trying to attract the attention of the plane’s pilot, 9News reported. The QantasLink flight was headed to Adelaide. Witness Dennis Bilic said it was “weird” that no one stopped her: “People were a bit flat-footed ... that was the weird part.” Another witness said the pilot was “warned or spotted her and killed the engine.” Flights were delayed for about 10 minutes after the incident.

Wait, What?

Fashion icon Dior has launched a new scent made for babies, the Mirror reported. Bonne Etoile, priced at 230 British pounds (about $281), will provide a “gentle reminder of sweet memories of early childhood,” the brand gushed, with its “light notes of fruit, pillowy cotton and velvety petals.” (Do we detect a hint of spit-up?) It contains 98% natural-original ingredients.

Parents can also indulge in hydrating body milks and bath cleansing foams. But everybody knows that babies smell amazing without the pricey perfumes!

HOME LOANS MADE BRIZZÉE

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A man who had been living in a Shanghai shopping center stairwell for about six months was finally evicted on Oct. 30, the Daily Star reported. One security guard discovered his cozy setup, which included a tent, an ergonomic chair, a desk and a computer, but allowed him to stay while he studied for exams—until a second guard found the makeshift home. The unnamed man used the mall’s electrical outlets to charge his devices.

nWell, this escalated quickly. A man in Malaga, Spain,

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The BBC reported on Nov. 8 that a man in South Korea lost his life after a robot he was working on in a factory grabbed him and crushed his face and chest onto a conveyor belt. The employee of the robotics company, in his 40s, was working late on the robotic arm when it mistook him for a box of vegetables, which it was supposed to lift and transfer onto a pallet. The man was taken to the hospital but later died of his injuries.

On Nov. 7, David Lassiter, 74, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, left his wallet behind when he voted, PennLive.com reported. Lassiter returned to the polling place and found his wallet, but $100 was missing. Police said he “made a scene inside ... (and) made threats to come back with a firearm.” At home, he called police to report the alleged theft, but then said he would get a gun and handle it on his own. Officers arrived at the polling station before Lassiter arrived; in his car, they found seven firearms with ammunition. “Mr. Lassiter became aggressive and hostile toward the officers on scene,” police said. “He was detained for his safety as well as that of everyone on the scene.”

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The Entrepreneurial Spirit

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801-972-2525

3211 S Highland Drive 3676 S Redwood Road 3421 Airport Road MILLCREEK UT WVC UT OGDEN UT

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Events Calendar KENNEDYSCABARET & KENNEDYSCABARET.COM

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4 years running!

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41 2 W 6 0 0 N | S LC 2 1 + | Fu l l L i q u o r | Tu e s - S at | $5 Cove r *

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