Planet Jackson Hole 11.1.17 by Planet Jackson Hole

JACKSON HOLEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ALTERNATIVE VOICE | PLANETJH.COM | NOVEMBER 1-7, 2017

Crime and Toking in Wyoming

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2 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

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JACKSON HOLE'S ALTERNATIVE VOICE

VOLUME 15 | ISSUE 42 | NOVEMBER 1-7, 2017

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11 COVER STORY CRIME AND TOKING IN WYOMING How our state’s arcane cannabis laws could spell the end for a notorious 81-year-old mobster.

Cover illustration by Greg Houston

16 CULTURE KLASH

ANY NUMBER

18 MUSIC BOX

DEMO IN CRISIS

23 TRUE TV 24 WATERIN’ HOLE

9 THE BUZZ

THE PLANET TEAM

ART DIRECTOR

COPY EDITOR

Vaughn Robison / art@planetjh.com

Lori Clark-Erickson

PUBLISHER

SALES DIRECTOR

CONTRIBUTORS

Copperfield Publishing, John Saltas

Jen Tillotson / jen@planetjh.com

EDITOR

STAFF REPORTERS

Angelica Leicht / editor@planetjh.com

Shannon Sollitt / shannon@planetjh.com

Rob Brezsny, Kelsey Dayton, Helen Goelet, Carol Mann, Scott Renshaw, Ted Scheffler, Cary Smith, Tom Tomorrow, Todd Wilkinson,

Jim Woodmencey, Baynard Woods

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BY METEOROLOGIST JIM WOODMENCEY

There is no indication of it on the calendar, but November in Jackson really is a winter month. It is the month when you can expect our weather to change more drastically. Sure, October can be snowy, as parts of this October were, but we usually recover and bounce back to nicer weather, like we did this year. In November when the weather changes, there is usually no going back. Average snowfall in November is 9 inches. The record snowfall in town was 40 inches in 1985.

SPONSORED BY GRAND TETON FLOOR & WINDOW COVERINGS

WHAT’S COOL The average high temperature this week is down another five degrees from last week’s average high, and is right around 47-degrees this week. The record high temperature this week is 66-degrees, which was set back on November 7th, 1999. Odds now are that reaching a high temperature above 60-degrees would be quite rare. It is amazing how quickly our average temperatures drop as soon as we enter the month of November.

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NORMAL HIGH NORMAL LOW RECORD HIGH IN 1999 RECORD LOW IN 1935

47 20 66 14

THIS MONTH AVERAGE PRECIPITATION: 1.30 inches RECORD PRECIPITATION: 4.2 inches (1988) AVERAGE SNOWFALL: 9 inches RECORD SNOWFALL: 40 inches

Jim has been forecasting the weather here for more than 20 years. You can find more Jackson Hole Weather information at www.mountainweather.com

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 3

WHAT’S COOL

The average low temperature in town this week is 20-degrees, down one degree from last week’s average low. The record low temperature this week however, is quite a bit cooler than last week. Last week it was a relatively chilly 3-degrees, above zero and this week the record low temp in town is 14-degrees below zero. That unusually cold morning happened on November 4th, 1935. More recently on November 7th, 1990 it got down to 12-degrees below zero.

THIS WEEK

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JH ALMANAC

NOVEMBER 1-7, 2017

4 LETTERS

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4 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

FROM OUR READERS Bear-ly Responsible

Elizabeth Kingwill,

This is an open letter to Mayor Muldoon and the Town Council. Please require East Jackson have bear-proof garbage containers (or better yet, the entire town). Why not do it right and also include bird feeder guidelines? Sadly, as someone whose feeder was recently demolished for food, I’m partly responsible for our recent bear euthanization. In the meantime, fellow citizens should know both trash services rent bear-proof containers for a small fee, and local hardware stores sell them. Googling “bear-proof bird feeder” will give a variety of solutions. We owe it to the bears! Chris Englund Jackson, Wyoming

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Dear Planet Jackson Hole Staff, I was surprised while reading the list of Halloween ‘costumes’ that you so strongly disagree with. While I get that there is some sarcasm and humor in the tone of this list, what comes screaming off the page is a very judgmental way of asking people to think twice about how they present themselves when dressing up. When did the staff of PJH assume the authority to tell people what to do and when? I am donning a Dia de Los Muertos theme this year and while your article gives no impression that you want to ask thoughtful questions regarding certain people’s costume choices I will go ahead and explain why. I was in a country that celebrates the day of the dead (and days preceding November 2nd) last year and was struck by how much effort, love and attention is given to ancestors around this time of year. People were throwing parties, cooking all of their dead relatives favorite foods, even getting married because their ancestors were present. It was beautiful, fun and made death seem not so scary and taboo. I am celebrating my ancestors this year by embracing the Dia de Los Muertos spirit. I agree with your general idea that there are some inappropriate and downright offensive costumes that can hurt other people. But wouldn’t it be better in the long run to encourage communication and conversation about why people feel the need to embrace another identity for a night? Telling people what they can and can not do and then threatening internet shaming if they do not comply sounds a little too much like what is going on in the world outside our Teton bubble. Shouldn’t we be different?

Anywho, I love the paper and am hoping to see you all out there having whatever kind of Halloween you want, hopefully full of positivity and good, ghoulish times. Emily Campbell

Lonely Jackson

Dear Readers, I am a 32 year old guy, and I live in Jackson. I work as a cook, have 2 degrees in my field of work, speak 4 languages, and have always held a steady legal job. I’ve been a restaurant manager, opened a brand new spot with a Michelin starred chef in the heart of New York City, and enjoyed and learned from all of it. I felt stuck, and left to travel in 2011. I travelled for over 5 years, trying to find a place where I felt comfortable living. I believe Jackson Hole and it’s surrounding areas is such a place. It’s a beautiful area, made for everyone and to be enjoyed by all, humans and animals. I very much enjoy being here. Unfortunately, it is difficult to keep living when you’re consistently alone. I’ve been trying to be around people in my age category, which should be simple in this town, and with similar interests, which should be even easier. Clearly, this has not been the case for me. I absolutely am writing this because I am looking for a woman who may be interested in doing outdoor things, and isn’t scared of hiking or skiing with a guy that won’t automatically want to take her back to his place to frolic. Someone who would rather enjoy having a relationship based around values and principles. Someone that enjoys being around the same person on a regular basis and who can accept and deal with confrontation. Someone who gives confrontation at useful times. I am shy at times, and very open at others. Everyone has something to offer. If you are reading this and would like to meet for coffee, or a hike, or maybe ski at some point, answer me by responding to mikegreen5367@gmail.com. Sincerely, An occasional Planet Jackson Hole reader, and somewhat of an outdoor enthusiast.

Submit your comments to editor@ planetjh.com with “Letter to the Editor” in the subject line. All letters are subject to editing for length, content and clarity.

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4. Bake a pie. Remember you’re on a diet.

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6 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

WILLIAM HENRY JACKSON

THE NEW WEST

Real Wyoming Natives For 10,000 years, Sheepeaters knew how to live with nature BY TODD WILKINSON @bigartnature

arlier this year, tantalizing new research based on mastodon bones was reported, which suggested that humans might have been in North America far longer than we’ve been long lead to believe — 130,000 years rather than the much shorter post-Pleistocene estimate of 13,000. Whether for 130 millennia or 13, it’s a long, long time of human presence on the continent. Epic, in fact, compared to the superficial way we flag-waving “Americans” are taught to think about history, even in our own backyards of the northern Rockies. If you’re in southwest Montana, non-pre-history “started” with the arrival of Lewis & Clark passing through in 1804. Or, if in Jackson Hole, it started with the brief wanderings of Davey Jackson,

Jim Bridger, or with the first permanent white settlers to take root five, maybe just six generations ago. We treat true native inhabitation as exotic, as if it’s an “other,” as if we still can’t seem to wrap our minds around the fact that long before the Egyptian pyramids were getting built, the Roman and Greek empires rose and fell, and “civilization” blossomed in Mesopotamia, people were here. They were within view of where you are reading this, making a living. Tory Taylor is a man of the mountains. For 30 years, he and his wife Meredith operated a backcountry outfitting and guide service based in Dubois, and they’ve ventured into many of the wildest corners of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. While Taylor understands and venerates the proud tradition of outfitters and guides, some of whom have been doing it for generations, he struggles mightily with the notion of “pre-history,” as if the tenure of what happened before we got here doesn’t matter. Back in 1994, Taylor was on a horseback ride through the high ramparts of the Wind River Range when his boot kicked up something buried in a mat of pine-needle duff. What emerged was not a mastodon bone but a soapstone bowl. Hand-carved, its date of creation still isn’t exactly known, but it likely belonged to a member of the Mountain Shoshone, also known as “the Sheepeaters.”

Additional evidence continues to be unearthed showing how the Sheepeaters roamed our region, toting a sophisticated understanding of how the natural parts of Greater Yellowstone worked because their survival, generation after generation after generation, depended upon it. Taylor’s book, “On the Trail Of The Mountain Shoshone Sheepeaters: A High Altitude Archaeological Odyssey,” is not a scientific treatise. It is a breezy, 140-page volume of discovery as the author reveals where the artifacts he found led him. The trail includes his interaction with archaeologist and paleontologists who pull back layers of human connection to the land that are invisible to most of us. Apart from William Henry Jackson’s probably misleading and widely circulated black and white photograph of the Sheepeaters — which shows a family in a wikiup — little is known about this subset of Shoshonean people, relatively speaking. Where Taylor’s book succeeds is in applying his own perspective as a mountain wanderer, one who possesses a keen appreciation for the challenges, nuances and topography of the high country. A modern hunter and gatherer himself, Taylor contemplates nutrition via “the Paleo diet,” travel with and without the aid of horses, and clothing and portable shelter prior to the advent of North Face.

He ponders vistas that were about staying alive instead of merely satisfying our modern, self-focused indulgence of recreating simply to have fun. How is the ken of place different between Greater Yellowstone’s self-proclaimed 21st century “explorers” and “adventurers” and the Sheepeaters’ depth of knowledge in their era without Google maps on the cell phone and realtime weather reports warning one that it is time to take cover? This is not a total knock on our sense of reality, in which a 10,000 square foot trophy home, hot tub and dram of Scotch awaits after a “hard mountain bike ride” or afternoon of making turns off-piste. Rather, it is declaration that Tory Taylor’s book forces us to think — to imagine the long, long, long span of time when the skills learned by living as a community in sync with nature and not in defiance of it was the norm, not the exception. “On The Trail Of The Mountain Sheep Eaters” prompts more questions than it answers. Taylor takes us to places we think we know like the back of our hand but what we discover is something far more breathtaking.

Todd Wilkinson, editor of mountainjournal.org, is author of Grizzlies of Pilgrim Creek (mangelsen.com/grizzly) about famous Jackson Hole Grizzly 399 featuring 150 pictures by renowned local wildlife photographer Tom

DEMOCRACY IN CRISIS Snoozing through Fascism BAYNARD WOODS

A slow-motion academic protest of fascism emerges after conference BY BAYNARD WOODS @demoincrisis

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 7

rage, that has been suppressed by liberalism and multiculturalism.” But to hear Jongen tell it during his speech at Bard, he is oppressed and his free speech is limited in Europe where people show up to protest his talks. “Since I joined the AfD ... I made the experience that conferences where I should appear were disturbed, there was a huge protest going on when I should give a talk in Switzerland,” he said, adding, as do his American counterparts, that his opponents were really protesting free speech. He blamed it on the “specter of Hitler” haunting Germany. The controversy over his appearance at a university may cast Jongen under the specter of Richard Spencer or former Breitbart News Senior Editor Milo Yiannopoulos in the American mind—but instead of states of emergency and Antifa and alt-right battling in the streets, we now have the polite and archaic battle of academics that is almost reminiscent of the old Partisan Review. There were no chants or signs or attempts to shut him down. And while the questions from the audience expressed a deep sense of disturbance, it was all so quiet that you could sleep through it. Roger Berkowitz, the founder and director of the Arendt Center, has since argued in a post that it was essential to “include at least one person who represents the idea of an illiberal democracy,” since “[m]ajorities of people in Hungary, Russia, Turkey, and Austria and that large pluralities of people in France, Germany, and the United States (amongst other countries) are embracing ideas of democratic nationalism and democratic authoritarianism.” PJH

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an influence on former White House Chief Strategist and Breitbart News Chair Steve Bannon and white supremacist Richard Spencer, who is married to Dugin’s primary English translator. Gessen shows, that in 1984, Dugin was in love with Evgenia Dobryanskaya, who later became an activist for LGBT rights. Gessen then follows them, tragically, to the present. I was so wrapped up in the tales of these distant Russian lives that I didn’t pay that much attention to exactly who else was speaking at the conference and so, I was taking a quick nap when Marc Jongen, the Dugin of Alternative für Deutschland, the far-right German party, was speaking. AfD got more than 12 percent of the vote in the 2017 election and gave Jongen a seat in parliament. At the time, as I see on the video now, things were so quiet and respectful, it seems like I was not the only one snoozing through fascism. But last week, a group of 50 professors and academics wrote a letter to The Chronicle of Higher Education condemning the Hannah Arendt Center for lending its legitimacy — and the legacy of Arendt — to the extreme and violent positions of Jongen and the AfD. “The AfD subscribes to a nationalist far-right agenda and is closely allied with the violent street movement ‘Pegida’ (“Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West” ) that attacks refugees, immigrants, and Muslims,” the letter reads. “Jongen is devoted to providing intellectual legitimacy to the AfD’s extreme rhetoric and actions. His philosophical jargon seeks to justify the incitement and violence carried out by Pegida, including the physical blockade of refugee buses, as the expression of a laudable ‘thymos,’ or

he great Russian-American writer Masha Gessen was standing on the stage at Bard College in New York in front of a sign that read “Crises of Democracy.” It was the name of an Oct. 12-14 conference sponsored by the Hannah Arendt Center there. “I think it’s safe to say that all of us are living in a state of low-level dread always suspecting that we are missing something of enormous impact while chasing something else of enormous impact,” she said from the podium. With short dark hair, thick glasses and a stylish sports jacket, Gessen resembled the famous portrait of a young Arendt, a legendary political theorist and Holocaust survivor who examined the nature of power and totalitarianism. Gessen compared her experience in President Donald Trump’s America over the last year to that of living under Russian President Vladimir Putin when “the only skill I had really honed for more than 10 years was the skill of protecting the views I already held.” The team behind Democracy in Crisis was invited to provide a breakout session at the conference and I was hoping to use the event to interview Gessen, who just released “The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia.” The book follows seven different characters from the 1980s through the present, weaving narratives of their lives together into a vast tapestry that, among other things, presents the brief rise and swift destruction of gay rights in Russia — a development which caused Gessen, who immigrated to the U.S. as a teenager and returned to Russia as a reporter, to go into exile once again. Among the book’s main characters is Aleksandr Dugin, the far-right ideologue behind Putin’s nationalism — and

8 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

Can coal remain the bedrock of Wyoming’s economy?

As companies experiment with “clean coal,” cheaper and cleaner fuels are taking over.

BY JOSHUA ZAFFOS OF HIGH COUNTRY NEWS @ J ZAFFOS

Train cars to be filled with coal move through a loading area at Peabody Energy’s Rawhide Mine, outside Gillette, Wyoming. The Dry Fork power plant, where researchers will soon begin experimenting with turning the plant’s emissions into useful products, operates in the background.

Not everyone is convinced, however. “Some of these technologies are way out in the future and expensive, and others are small and not going to employ thousands of people,” says Jill Morrison, director of the Powder Basin Resource Council, an environmentally minded landowners’ group in the heart of Wyoming’s coal country. She says carbon capture research is a poor use of taxpayer dollars; the money would be better spent developing renewable energy and more efficient electricity grids. “They are trying to spin gold out of coal.” Wyoming is as rich in wind as it is in coal, with some of the country’s stiffest, most reliable winds. But harnessing that wind into energy is politically fraught. One July morning, a couple dozen people filled a classroom at Gillette College to learn about careers in wind energy. The session was organized by Goldwind Americas, a subsidiary of a Chinese company that is helping to build a large wind farm near Medicine Bow. University of Wyoming economist Robert Godby says the state could quintuple its wind generation, adding a load of technician jobs. Goldwind was offering free training and job-placement for prospective turbine techs — and targeting miners. I sat next to a coal miner, who smiled and asked if I am part of the “biased media.” A former Army aviator, he was one of the lucky workers to survive the layoffs, and he asked that I not use his name. He worried that his comments — and even his attendance here — might get him fired. He was interested in Goldwind’s offer: Coal mining is tough, dangerous work with brutal hours and a precarious future. But wind has downsides, too. The starting salary for a tech is $40,000, half his current salary, and he’d have to move. Others

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 9

Coal mining, specifically, has recently contributed more than $1 billion annually to state and local budgets. When production crashes, so does the state’s budget. The decline of coal was a major factor in lawmakers’ 2016 decision to drastically cut funding for public schools, suicide-prevention programs, health-care services, and fish and wildlife management. And this time, few are banking on coal’s full comeback. So last November, Gov. Matt Mead, R, launched ENDOW, an economic diversity initiative designed to attract new manufacturing and technology businesses and create work for young Wyomingites. Business and community leaders began meeting this May to develop a 20-year economic vision, discussing the possibilities of tourism, the state’s super-fast internet connectivity, outdoor recreation and tax breaks for targeted industries. But so far, even forward-looking projects like the Integrated Test Center still rely on fossil fuels. In some ways, that makes sense. With so much coal here, why not use it? “If we can develop advanced coal industries, they could be using amounts equal to power plants in 20 or more years,” says Phil Christopherson, CEO of the Gillette nonprofit Energy Capital Economic Development. Christopherson envisions a future bustling manufacturing sector, anchored by a Boeing or Ford plant that uses coal-derived carbon-fiber in its planes or cars. “Three years ago, the coal companies wouldn’t talk about advanced coal,” Christopherson says. But in the wake of bankruptcies and with market conditions still looking gloomy, they’ve warmed to the idea. “Now we’re working closely with some because they see small markets can become big markets.”

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Near where Thorfinnson and I stand, a construction crew is setting beams for the Wyoming Integrated Test Center, where researchers hope to capture carbon dioxide emissions and eventually turn those emissions into plastic, carbon-fiber materials, concrete or fuels. Wyoming has put $15 million into its construction. A private utility company will test new carbon-capture technologies and pursue uses for the carbon, while five smaller research teams compete for $20 million in industry prize money, offered to commercialize “advanced coal” products. During a 30-year career, Thorfinnson has seen technological advances reduce power plants’ output of mercury, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide, virtually eliminating problems like acid rain. Capturing and using carbon emissions is the natural next step, he says. Capable, confident and affable, Thorfinnson has me believing, too. So far, though, most “clean coal” initiatives have failed. Carbon-based rubbers, asphalts and chemicals have never achieved large-scale commercial success, partly because it’s easier and cheaper to just use petroleum. Highly touted efforts to capture and store emissions from coal plants have also fizzled because costs spiraled out of control. Even in Wyoming, it’s hard not to wonder: Is it smart to keep betting on coal? On the last day of March 2016, Gillette miners traded anxious phone calls, trying to figure out who still had a job. Following months of declining coal prices, mining companies laid off more than 500 Wyoming workers. By the end of the year, another 500 had lost their jobs. The bust hurt more than Gillette and other mining towns; it hammered the whole state. Taxes on the minerals dug from the earth, along with property taxes paid by the energy industry, account for 50 to 65 percent of Wyoming’s total tax revenue, bankrolling schools, roads, hospitals, police and emergency services.

earing a blue construction helmet, Dennis Thorfinnson stands in the shadow of a 500-foot-high chimney, and stares up at a sharp blue sky filled with puffy summer clouds. “What do you see?” he asks me. It seems like a trick question; I see nothing. Thorfinnson grins proudly. Not a single visible trace of pollution floats from the stack of Gillette, Wyoming’s Dry Fork power plant, even as it burns coal. This is one of the country’s newest — and cleanest — coal plants. The engineers who built it in 2011 tailored its pollution controls to the particular chemical composition of coal from the neighboring Dry Fork Mine. That means it releases less sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and even carbon dioxide than older coal plants do. But it still releases invisible carbon dioxide, which contributes to climate change. And Wyoming’s leaders know that’s a problem. Forty-two percent of the domestic coal supply is mined in the state, much of it from large mines around Gillette. In recent years, the coal industry has employed one in every 10 workers in Gillette and surrounding Campbell County. But coal is declining as a power source. It can’t compete with cheaper, cleaner natural gas, and eventually, climate change regulations are expected to worsen its prospects. Yet with roughly 6.6 billion tons of recoverable coal still in the ground, and an economy hooked on mining and burning it, Wyoming can’t seem to quit it. Instead, state leaders are trying to clean it up and find new uses for it.

KRISTINA BARKER

THE BUZZ

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10 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

COURTESY LARAMIE COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Instructors set up a wind turbine hub trainer in the Wind Lab at Laramie County Community College. As wind energy production crops up around Wyoming, more workers are being trained for jobs in wind turbine maintenance.

echoed his reservations: Few miners want to uproot their families, and many have doubts about the prospects of a real wind-energy boom. That’s partly because Wyoming lawmakers have long resisted renewables as unwelcome competition for fossil fuels. Last winter, legislators tried — unsuccessfully — to prohibit utilities from providing electricity generated by wind and solar. Wyoming is also the only state that taxes wind production, at a rate of $1 per megawatt-hour. Some lawmakers have suggested increasing the tax three- or fivefold, partly to offset declining fossil fuel revenues. The tax hasn’t deterred the industry from pursuing projects here, but hiking it, says Godby, could certainly discourage future development, including among tech companies looking for clean-energy sources when considering new locations. There are other ways the state could fill its budget gaps — fairly simple ones, even. Wyoming has no individual or corporate income tax, and its sales tax, property tax and beer tax are all among the lowest in the country. The average Wyomingite pays about $3,000 in taxes each year, but gets back $15,000 or more in public services. “Being a conservative state, the battle cry should be ‘we’re going to pay our own way’,” Christopherson says. Yet few lawmakers want anything to do with tax increases. Most economists agree that taxes on energy production should be directed into special funds rather than used as a state’s primary revenue stream. States need to provide public services during booms and busts, but when production slows, lawmakers tend to focus more on helping industry than on shoring up public services. Unfortunately, good policy doesn’t always make for good politics. Michael VanaFlatern, a Republican state senator

from Gillette who is on the ENDOW panel, is one of the few legislators who openly advocates raising some taxes rather than continuing to cut services. “ ‘Income tax’,” he says, “is about the dirtiest word you can say in this state.” Despite the layoffs and uncertainty, I encountered a lot of optimism in Gillette and found it contagious. “Obviously, in the future, we will not use coal for energy, but we’re not at the point where we can shut it off,” Lora Dilley told me over happy-hour beers at Applebee’s. Dilley, the safety coordinator at the Dry Fork Mine, held onto her coal job last year. Her husband lost his, so he got his commercial driver’s license. “He saw the opportunity to get out of mining,” and he took it, Dilley explained pragmatically. Their family, you might say, has diversified. Still, Dilley believes advanced coal will buoy Wyoming in the future, and after a few days in town, I, too, began thinking, “Wouldn’t it be great if some mix of innovation, investment and gumption saved Wyoming — and the climate?” That kind of optimism is necessary for innovation, but it can also be a trap. It’s what kept Pacific Northwest logging towns from diversifying before the bottom fell out of the timber industry, says Mark Haggerty with the Headwaters Institute, a Montana-based economic think tank. Those towns are still struggling to regain their footing. For Wyoming, which is so uniquely reliant on fossil fuels, the task could be even tougher. “The Integrated Test Center is our future in many aspects, but we need to find other products,” says Van Flatern. “We’ll see how things shape up.” Then he sighs. So far, on low-hanging fruit, like taxes, “they’re not listening to me.” PJH This story was originally published at High Country News (hcn.org) on September 18, 2017

By Angelica Leicht

@ Writer_Anna

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HOW OUR STATEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ARCANE CANNABIS LAWS COULD SPELL THE END FOR A NOTORIOUS 81-YEAR-OLD MOBSTER.

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 11

Crime and Toking in Wyoming

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he traffic stop that took place around noon on September 24 should have been routine. The car with Georgia license plates was only traveling about 10 miles over -- 85 in a 75, and then down to 65 in a 45 mph zone -- on I-80, just outside of Cheyenne in Laramie County. The driver, 81-year-old Henry Robert Sentner, probably seemed harmless enough when he exited the vehicle. How much trouble could the old man be, anyway? Turns out, quite a bit. A quick background check revealed that Sentner wasn’t your typical octogenarian. The elderly man standing on the side of I-80 in southern Wyoming was a well-known mobster with a lengthy criminal record -- one that included the shooting death of Emanuel “Manny” Gambino, the nephew of New York City Godfather Carlo Gambino. Sentner’s mob ties weren’t the only thing that piqued Wyoming Highway Patrol officer Joshua Gebauer’s interest that day, though. The black duffel bag on the backseat, the only item in the car other than a bottle of motor oil, a roll of paper towels and a fly swatter, also seemed suspect. When questioned, Senter told the officer he was on his way back home to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina after a cross-country trip from California, where he’d been visiting family. That story didn’t seem quite right, though. Officer Gebauer thought it odd that the 81-year-old man would be making such a long trip alone -- it seemed “implausible,” according to Gebauer’s affidavit. The drive across the nation didn’t seem like a time or cost effective way to visit family, either. Something seemed off with Sentner’s answers, too. Gebauer said. He noticed Sentner had deceptive behavioral responses to simple questions, prompting Gebauer to ask if there was any marijuana in the car. Sentner told the officer that he had “a small amount” in the black duffel bag, and more in the trunk, but how much more, he wasn’t quite sure. He didn’t load the car, he said, but he does this run for a third party quite often in exchange for his personal stash -- the cut that was stowed away in the backseat. Upon further investigation, patrol officers found an additional 35 pounds of weed in the trunk of the car, according to the charging instrument filed by the State of Wyoming. Sentner was charged with three counts stemming from the September 24 traffic stop: Count I: Possession with intent to deliver marijuana; Count II is felony possession of over 3 ounces of marijuana; and Count III is for the speeding ticket. Those charges carry a hefty penalty in the state of Wyoming. Sentner faces up to 10 years in prison and a total of $10,000 in fines for the delivery charge alone. The felony possession charge carries up to 5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine, and the speeding ticket has a maximum penalty of 20 days in jail and a $200 fine. Should he receive the maximum penalties for the three charges, Sentner is looking at more time than he spent in prison for offing Manny Gambino, just for transporting some weed.

It looks like even a Jersey-bred mobster is no match for Wyoming’s antiquated cannabis laws.

A Questionable Route Wyoming has some of the strictest cannabis laws in the nation, making it pretty darn unlucky that Sentner was pulled over in this state. Had Sentner dipped down into the Centennial State rather than opting for I-80, he likely would have been home free. There are laws in place in Colorado to curb driving under the influence or with open containers, but even with the amount that Sentner was carrying, a jaunt through nearby Fort Collins would have been much less risky. Sentner didn’t take that route, though, and is now in a heap of trouble in Wyoming instead. When mapped out, the route Sentner said took from California to Cheyenne makes even less sense. Sentner said he was heading home to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina via I-80 after visiting family in San

Francisco and nearby Petaluma, California. He told the officer he’d also stopped in Reno, Nevada and Evanston, Wyoming -- a predominantly Mormon town of about 12,000 people that sits right on the Utah-Wyoming border -- before the traffic stop in Cheyenne. The corridor of I-80 where Sentner was busted has long been the target of contraband busts by the Wyoming Highway Patrol, and has been identified as one of the eight main drug transportation corridors by the National Drug Intelligence Center. Drug busts along the stretch of I-80 between Laramie and Cheyenne are common. In fact, a few weeks after Sentner was busted on I-80, 65-year-old Larry Gibson was caught by troopers along the same stretch of I-80 with 197 pounds of marijuana inside a horse trailer. According to the affidavit in Gibson’s case, he was being paid to transport the marijuana from Redding, California to Alabama. A drug bust on the same stretch of highway on October 30 yielded the seizure of approximately 63 pounds of marijuana worth about $126,000, another massive bust for Wyoming troopers.

According to the Wyoming Highway Patrol, the marijuana was being transported 41-year-old Vickey Hamilton, 21-year-old Lorenzo Hamilton, and 18-year-old Champainge Rucker, who told officers they were en route to the Tennessee area from California. Three significant busts, all on the same stretch of I-80 in Wyoming, and all were headed from California. Given the intense focus on that stretch of highway as a drug corridor, it seems a risky proposition for Sentner to have taken that route instead of dipping down through legal Colorado after the stop in Evanston. Perhaps Wyoming was the scenic route.

The Gambinos, the Godfather and Sentner

Why Sentner chose to take the route he did remains unclear. His mob ties, on the other hand, are indisputable. They start and end with the Gambino family, one of the most notorious mob factions to have ruled New York City. While Sentner’s name may not be readily associated with the mob, perhaps the name Carlo Gambino rings a bell. From the 1950s to the 1970s, Carlo -known as Don Carlo -- was the head of the Gambino family, one of the “Five Families” in New York City. He was also the inspiration for Francis Ford Coppola’s 1972 film The Godfather, a movie widely regarded as one of the greatest of all time. At the height of the Gambino reign, Carlo’s family had a hand in just about every facet of business and life in New York City, from illegal gambling rings and loansharking to labor racketeering. A low key crime boss, Carlo was adamant about keeping his dealings out of the public eye, and the one thing he refused to touch was narcotics trafficking, deeming it too risky for his crime circuit. “Heroin and Cocaine are highly lucrative, but were dangerous, and would attract attention. The punishment for dealing drugs is death,” Carlo has been credited with saying. Carlo’s ability to keep business “cleaner” than the other families, coupled with his secretive nature, helped him become one of the most powerful mob bosses of all time. Sentner had been working as a “numbers runner” for Carlo’s 27-year-old nephew Emanuel “Manny” Gambino for about six months before Manny disappeared on May 18, 1972, the victim of an apparent kidnapping for ransom plot. While the kidnapping was likely concerning for the Gambinos, it wasn’t exactly unusual for Manny’s line of work. In fact, a member of another NYC mob family -- Frankie “The Wop” Manzo -- had been kidnapped by a group of Irish mobsters just before Manny’s disappearance. The group of mobsters -- James McBratney, Eddie Maloney, Tommy Genovese and Richie Chaisson -- held Frankie on $150,000 in ransom. Frankie was released, unhurt, after the money was paid. And Manny’s case seemed to be following closely to Frankie’s, at least initially. His wife, Diane, received a ransom note demanding $350,000 for Manny’s safe return shortly after he disappeared.

“If you want him back alive, this is your last chance. If he dies, the killer will be you for not paying. The sum of $350,000 placed in a triple‐strength garbage bag. One more call will be placed at 9 o’clock on Wed. Yes or no is to be the answer. If yes, be ready to move and have a full tank of gas. No tricks. No cops. If no, good luck, widow,” the ransom note read. It would soon become clear, though, that Manny’s kidnapping was anything but ordinary. The initial ransom amount was out of the question. The Gambino family either couldn’t or wouldn’t pay $350,000, and negotiated down the price of Manny’s return to $40,000, a mere portion of the demand. The money was dumped over the railing of an overpass on the Palisades Parkway, and right into the hands of one Henry Robert Sentner.

Manny Remains Missing

A Story Evolved Well, that’s one version, anyway. The story about what happened to Manny changed, and changed, and changed again, with different versions given by not only Sentner, but also informants close to the mob. The story eventually became so murky that no one

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seemed to know what happened to cause Manny’s death. Questions even surfaced about whether Manny had helped plot his own demise -- questions that remain to this day. When Sentner first confessed to shooting Gambino, he told the FBI officer he’d been driving Manny Gambino’s car when Manny threatened him -- and his baby sister -- over the nearly $80,000 in gambling debts. Sentner responded to the threat by taking out a .22 caliber gun, which he had in his pocket, sticking it behind Gambino’s left ear, and when Gambino lunged at Sentner, he accidentally pulled the trigger, killing him. The second version surfaced shortly thereafter, and was quite a bit different from Sentner’s story. Informants told the FBI that while it was true that Sentner owed Manny the money, Sentner wasn’t after the ransom. Sentner had used the gambling debt to lure Manny to a deserted Navy base in Monmouth County, NJ, where he claimed to have the money he owed hidden. Instead of handing over the nearly $80,000, Sentner shot Manny in the head and killed him, erasing his debt. A third version of the story surfaced soon after, this time

in court, courtesy of Sentner and Kilcullen’s attorneys. Both Sentner and Kilcullen’s attorneys provided the same defense to the court about Manny’s killing: While their clients had been involved in the “kidnapping” of Manny Gambino, the kidnapping had been a “hoax” conjured up by Manny himself. There was never a real kidnapping, the attorneys said, because Manny had grown tired of juggling two households -- one with his wife, the other with a blonde girlfriend -- and had arranged his own kidnapping. He was planning to disappear because of the “trouble with his girlfriend,” they said, and their clients were just trying to help that happen. A report published in 1972 in the Asbury Park Press outlined the bizarre story of Manny’s supposed kidnapping, referring to it as a hoax meant to give Manny a new life with his blonde girlfriend: “Henry Robert Sentner, held as the mastermind in the reported kidnapping in the spring of a Mafia boss’s kin, lived in a small white frame house here 50 yards from the beach not far from the National Guard training camp,” the Asbury Park Press reported. “Sentner, indicted in a bizarre abduction that may or may not have been a hoax, apparently lived quietly here with his wife in the third house from the beach at 4 Seaside PI. An alleged flimflam artist and gambler. Sentner, who is in his late 20s or early 30s, reportedly was involved in the kidnapping May 18 of Emanuel Gambino, who is the nephew of Carlo Gambino, sometimes called the boss of bosses in the nation. The area of modest homes in the borough’s south end was quiet and seemed pearly deserted in yesterday’s drizzle wafting in from the ocean. A reporter who talked to a tradesman and the only nearby neighbor who was home learned that Sentner’s wife now used the surname “Gordon” and lives in the house with her mother, also “Mrs. Gordon.” The unlisted telephone at the address is in the name of “B. Gordon.” The reporter rang the doorbell, knocked on the door, arid called out but got no answer. Sentner, who reportedly studied at both Georgetown and Fordham universities, is being held in New York in lieu of $100,000 bail. Federal authorities say he concocted the Gambino kidnapping to extort money from the mob to help pay off gambling debts over $700,000. Sentner, however, told officials the abduction was a hoax devised to give Emanuel Gambino, the alleged victim, a chance to go away with a blonde girlfriend. But authorities, who found Gambino’s bloodstained car at Newark Airport June 2, believed Emanuel Gambino may have been slain despite payment of $31,500 in ransom. Gambino, in any event, has not turned up. Sentner’s accused accomplice is John Kilcullen, Brooklyn, described as a onetime bar bouncer in New York. Others reportedly involved were William J. Solin, described as a former CIA agent, who dropped out of Harvard Law School and works as a New York bartender.”

After the ransom payment was made, the Gambino family waited for Manny’s return. It quickly became clear that Carlo’s nephew was in serious trouble, though. Unlike Frankie “The Wop,” Manny wasn’t quickly released by his kidnappers, and on June 2, 1972, his blood‐ stained Cadillac was found abandoned at Newark Airport. A ticket on its windshield indicated it had been parked on May 30, according to an article printed in The New York Times on December 5, 1972. Given the condition of Manny’s vehicle, it became clear that Manny wasn’t coming home. It would be another month or so before his body was recovered. “A partly decomposed body believed to be that of Emanuel Gambino, nephew of Carlo Gambino, the reputed Mafia boss, was found wrapped in a blanket in a four‐foot‐deep grave in Colts Neck, N. J., yesterday afternoon by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” The New York Times reported in January 1973. A mat from his Cadillac, a pair of yellow rubber gloves, and a pair of eyeglasses were found in the grave with him, FBI sources told the Times. Rigor mortis had presumably set in before Manny’s body was disposed of, and he was found buried in a sitting position. It wasn’t long before the FBI made the connection between Sentner and Manny’s kidnapping. A van rented by Sentner was identified near the ransom drop spot, and an informant leaked to an FBI agent that the runner for Manny’s loansharking business also owed his boss a hefty sum of change. With the help of the informants and the Gambino family, the FBI managed to pinpoint Sentner and his associates, John Edmund Kilcullen, William J. Solin and John P. Harrington, as Manny’s kidnappers -- and surprisingly, Sentner didn’t dispute his involvement. He was arrested along with Kilcullen on December 4, 1972, several months after Manny’s body was found. Both men were charged with kidnapping. According to the F.B.I. kidnapping complaint, Sentner

had been accompanied by Kilcullen when he rented a van‐type of truck in Fort Lee, N.J. Solin and Harrington were also named in the complaint as accomplices, but neither were taken into custody. Sentner admitted to the feds that he’d killed Manny, stating that he’d been driving Manny’s car when the young mobster had threatened his younger sister’s life over that looming $78,000 gambling debt. He’d pulled a gun out of fear, he said, and Manny lunged for it. It went off, and the bullet hit Manny in the head. Manny was dead -- accidentally, Sentner said -- and he’d buried the body in a remote part of New Jersey.

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Third Story’s a Charm? While it seems unlikely that a mob heir would stage his own hoax kidnapping, there is some evidence to support that version of the story. Anthony Villano, an FBI agent who worked with the Gambino family to solve Manny’s disappearance, wrote a book, “Brick Agent,” a couple of years after the case. In the book, Villano refers to Manny helping set up the kidnapping to solve his girlfriend issues. According to Villano, he became involved in the case when he received a tip that Manny Gambino had been kidnapped shortly after he disappeared. The FBI agent offered to help the Gambinos but was turned away. Things changed, though, after a first attempt by the Gambino family deliver the ransom failed. Villano received a call from the Gambino family attorney a few days later asking the FBI for help. The agency agreed. Once the family received new ransom orders, Villano and a business partner of Tommy Gambino went out to make the drop. Villano hid on the floor of the partner’s Cadillac, with fellow FBI agents tailing the car from a distance. According to Villano, the duo first stopped at a telephone booth at 82nd and Madison Avenue before crossing the George Washington Bridge into New Jersey, where they waited at a gas station on the Palisades Parkway for a call from the kidnappers. Shortly after, they received a call on the gas station pay phone instructing them to drop the money over a metal railing about a mile down the road, where -- unknown to agents and the Gambinos -- Manny’s former employee Sentner was on hand to grab it. The plan was for the FBI agents tailing Villano to stake out the drop area, but the drop went down before the FBI agents were able to get into position. As luck would have it, though, an agent was able to capture the license number of a van in the area, which was traced back to a “Robert Sentner.” The name didn’t initially ring a bell to Villano or the other agents working the case, but over the next several weeks and months, Manny remained missing, and Villano continued investigating. He learned during that time that Manny did have a girlfriend, and he was having his fair share of trouble with her. “Manny had fallen in love with a show-biz blonde,” Villano said. “He wanted to leave his family because the girl refused to have anything more to do with him unless he gave up his wife and went full-time with her. Manny was advised by his betters in the clan to grow up and forget the blonde. In his circles, it was okay to have a mistress, but it was bad form to leave your wife, particularly if you were a nephew of Carlo Gambino.” There wasn’t an easy out for Manny, who apparently wanted to take up a new life with his girlfriend. Gambino family members were family men -- especially his uncle Carlo, who reportedly stayed faithful to his wife throughout his career in the mob -- and leaving Diane would have been a big black mark on Manny’s record. That, according to Villano, is what led Manny to plot a fake kidnapping with the help of Sentner and his men. The plan was apparently for Sentner to “kidnap” him, demand

a ransom and then never return him to his family. In turn, he’d be free to live a new life with the blonde. The investigator also found out that Manny had some financial problems, presumably from supporting two households while loansharking large sums of money on the street. Villano’s sources identified Sentner as one of the people who owed Manny money, and Villano put two and two together, realizing that the “Robert Senter” on the van’s rental receipts may be worth looking at. “It took five interviews with him (Sentner) over a period of months before we finally reconstructed the entire venture. The snatch began as a hoax. Manny Gambino worked out the scenario with his debtor Sentner, a friend of Sentner’s, and two others,” Villano said. “Midway through the plot, Gambino’s accomplices began to have their doubts. They could see that if things went sour Manny Gambino would give them up, either on a contract to LCN friends or to the law. There was an argument in Gambino’s Cadillac, and Sentner settled the dispute with a bullet in the back of Manny’s head.”

Villano’s version does veer slightly from Sentner’s, though. According to Villano, it was the hoax kidnappers’ fear of being turned on -- not threats over the gambling debt -- that acted as the catalyst for Manny’s killing.

The FBI Files A transcript of a 2005 interview with Former Special Agent of the FBI Paul J. Brana doesn’t clear up the controversy surrounding Manny’s supposed kidnapping, but it does outline how Sentner was caught and pinned for Manny’s death. Brana worked for the FBI from 1954 to 1978, a time when the bureau didn’t even have an organized crime division. There was a squad or two squads that were handling organized crime work, and Brana ended up working with them, becoming crucial in the case against Senter. “Maurice Roussell and I get involved in the murder of Manny Gambino. And this was a straight out investigation,” Brana said. “And we had an individual who was suspect as the killer of Manny Gambino but we had no evidence. Because we couldn’t… We had no evidence. We could not find the Gambino’s automobile until about four or five months after. His automobile was found parked at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey. No body. He’s disappeared. Oh, and what had occurred was that there was an attempt to… There was an alleged kidnapping of Manny Gambino and they attempted to extort money from the Gambino family. We know that he’s dead, you know, because he has disappeared.” “We came up with this Robert Henry Sentner as an individual suspect. The way that we came up with him…

On the night of the payoff, which was made at Fort Lee, New Jersey. I think there was, maybe, $130,000 was paid off. A ransom was actually paid at Fort Lee, New Jersey,” Brana said. “The police at night would go around and check the license, would take the license numbers of all the vehicles that were parked in the area. And they come up with a license plate that’s a rental license plate to a van rented to this Robert Henry Sentner. And somehow or another, Sentner is known to Maurice Roussell. And Maurice Roussell and I contact Sentner. And we bring him into the City, and we start talking to him. And we would talk to him, sometimes… once a week we’d bring him in. Sentner was a young guy. Georgetown University graduate. And we would interview him very, very frequently. We had a hotel. We would get a six-pack of beer and we would go up and kind of try to relax him. The vehicle… Gambino’s vehicle had not been found. It was subsequently found at Teterboro Airport. All the glass is taken off the vehicle and sent to Washington for fingerprints. After about five months from the initial alleged kidnapping and payoff, the window on the driver’s side is found to have Sentner’s thumb print inside the window quite a distance from the edge. So I tell Sentner, “You were driving the vehicle because your thumb print is in the vehicle.” And I kept breaking his chops. He finally admits to killing the guy. We had no evidence whatsoever that there had been a killing.” According to the interview transcript, Sentner confessed to pulling the trigger and killing Manny. “(Robert Sentner) tells us that he was driving the vehicle and that (Manny) Gambino had threatened him, because he owed Gambino like $80,000 from gambling debts. And that Gambino said to him, “Hey, you don’t come up with the money, your sister’s baby is going to have problems.” Or words to that effect. At this time, Sentner takes out a .22 caliber gun, which he had in his pocket, sticks it behind Gambino’s left ear and kills him....” At that point, though, Brana had Sentner’s confession, but they didn’t have a body. Luckily, Sentner agreed to lead FBI agents right to it. “Now of course we have no body. ‘Come on I’ll take you to the body.’ He takes us down to Redbank, New Jersey. And, of course all the senior Resident Agents… Nobody wanted to get involved in digging up the body, so I had to call up New York and bring one of my agents over. Wayne Orrell, an Indian. And Sentner takes us over and he says, ‘This is where the body is.’ And I got Wayne, and he digs up the body. Which makes the first page of the Daily News, because I called up Norma Abrams, who was a reporter for the Daily News. And they sent a photographer out, took a picture…”

The Outcome

Hoax or not, the outcome was the same. Manny was dead, and Sentner admittedly pulled the trigger. He eventually pleaded guilty to seven counts of extortion and one count of manslaughter for crimes related to his death. A New York Times story published in February 1973 outlined the terms of Sentner’s plea.

Revenge: A Dish Best Served in Cocoa

The Quiet Life, Post-Prison

Sentner’s Fate in Limbo It will be interesting to see how Sentner’s fate plays out. Wyoming is a cruel mistress when it comes to cannabis laws, but this is Henry Robert Sentner we’re talking about, so perhaps he can make lightning strike twice. He did successfully live through a strychnine poisoning and go on to dodge decades of mob vengeance, after all. Will the man with all the luck manage to dodge Laramie County’s bullet, headed right for his pot-loving little heart? Or will it be Wyoming’s antiquated pot laws -- not the feds, the Gambinos, or strychnine -- that will take the old mobster down? At this point, it’s just a roll of the dice. PJH

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 15

Sentner is nothing if not lucky. The Gambino affiliate not only survived the strychnine hit but also his subsequent years in prison -- an impressive feat for a man who shot the Godfather’s nephew. He was released from the detention center in Alabama in 1988 and somehow managed to stay above water for decades. While Sentner’s criminal record has blips here and there -- he was accused of crimes in California and was issued a few traffic tickets in his hometown of Myrtle Beach -- he really doesn’t appear to have been in any major trouble following the first prison stint.

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“His stomach was pumped, the spokesman said, and he was released after further treatment. Detention Center Warden Lewis Gengler said center officials were aiding the FBI in its investigation. Sentner, he said, has been moved to an unknown location.” The poisoning was never formally pinned on any member of the Gambino family, although it was widely believed to have been in retribution for killing Manny. Sentner’s transfer to Alabama was granted shortly after the poisoning.

In fact, it wasn’t until the 81-year-old was popped for cannabis in Wyoming that he started making headlines again. Perhaps people aren’t used to 81-year-old ex-mobsters getting caught with dozens of pounds of marijuana, especially in rural Wyoming. Mob expert and journalist Ed Scarpo has been following Sentner’s case closely since his arrest in Wyoming. Scarpo is editor of Cosa Nostra News, an online mob site that documents both historical and current news about the mob. Scarpo said he wasn’t exactly surprised that Sentner was popped for transporting cannabis. He was surprised to see that Sentner made it this far after copping to shooting Manny, though. “I was surprised that he’d plead guilty to killing Manny Gambino, nephew to one of the most powerful mob bosses in the USA, Carlo Gambino,” Scarpo said. After all, it’s not every day someone shoots a bullet into the head of the Godfather’s nephew and lives to tell about it. But that’s precisely what Sentner did. He whacked the original Godfather’s nephew – and survived. “He’s lucky he’s alive — the mob already supposedly tried to kill him once — apparently knew what he was doing when moved far from New York City,” Scarpo said. Laramie County District Attorney Jeremiah Sandburg also weighed in on Sentner, calling the octogenarian’s history “colorful.” Sandburg said that while Sentner’s criminal history may be extensive, there’s no indication that the 81-yearold from Myrtle Beach still has any ties to the mob. At the time this story went to print, Sentner was free on $3,000 bail. He waived his preliminary hearing in mid-October, which sent his case to District Court, where he will be asked to enter a plea in the case.

Perhaps the court would have been wise to acquiesce to the plea for detention in Alabama, though. Just two years into his sentence in the Federal House of Detention, Sentner had to be rushed to St. Vincent’s Hospital after he ingested strychnine in his prison cocoa. “On November 22, 1974, while Sentner was housed in the old Federal House of Detention on West Street, he drank strychnine-laced cocoa that someone had kindly offered him,” the Times reported shortly after the incident. “He fell violently ill and was rushed to the now-defunct St. Vincent’s Hospital. There, doctors pumped his stomach, and nursed him back to health....” “A hospital spokesman said Sentner was brought to the emergency room that night suffering from poisoning by strychnine, which federal officials’ said apparently had been given at the prison,” the Asbury Park Press reported in December 1974.

A man who Federal authorities say confessed to killing the 29‐year‐old nephew of Carlo Gambino, the reputed Mafia chieftain, pleaded guilty yesterday in Federal District Court in Brooklyn to seven counts of extortion. Henry Robert Sentner, 37, of Sea Girt, N. J., said he was a “runner” in the gambling operations of Emanuel Gambino, Carlo Gambino’s nephew. He stated matter‐of‐ factly as he stood, well‐dressed and casual, before Judge George Rosling, that he understood the nature of his plea. In urging that the plea be accepted, Denis E. Dillon, director of the Brooklyn Strike Force Against Organized Crime, stressed Sentner’s cooperation. He added that he would recommend a minimum 25‐year prison sentence. Judge Rosling did not set date for sentencing, and Sentner was returned to his cell in lieu of $100,000 bail. The indictment was voted Dec. 4 by a Federal grand jury in Brooklyn six months after young Gambino’s bloodstained Cadillac was found at Newark International Airport. Sentner and Kilcullen termed the alleged kidnapping a “hoax.” Gambino’s body was found Jan. 26 in a shallow grave near Colts Neck Township, N. J. The kidnapping complaint also named William J. Solin and John P. Harrington as accomplices. Neither was taken into custody. They were understood to be “cooperating.” Mr. Dillon explained, outside the courtroom, that the kidnapping charges were no longer valid because, he said, Gambino had “voluntarily” accompanied Sentner to New Jersey on the promise that Sentner would pay Gambino a $76,000 gambling debt. Mr. Dillon said Sentner had driven Gambino to a deserted section of the Earle Naval Ammunition Depot in Monmouth County, N.J., ostensibly to spot where he had, hidden money to pay Gambino. There, according to Mr. Dillon’s account, Senter, while transferring a gun from one pocket of his jacket to another, fired a fatal shot that lodged in Gambino’s skull when Gambino, apparently seeing the gun, attempted to flee the car.. The extortion charges resulted from ransom demands totaling $350,000. On May 25, seven days after Gambino was shot to death, his wife, Diane, received a letter at her home at 144‐55 27th Avenue, Flushing, Queens, demanding that sum for the return of her husband.. The only reference in court to Gambino’s demise came when Judge Rosling asked where the man was on May 19. “He was buried in New Jersey,” Mr. Dillon responded. Sentner was sentenced by the court to 15 years in federal prison -- but not before the former numbers runner managed to get in a word or two about Manny. In a letter read by his lawyer, Richard Wynn, Sentner contended that Manny was, amongst other things, an evil man: “I shot an evil man by accident, a man who was hated by many people, a man who caused extensive suffering through illegal traffic in drugs, bookmaking, loan-sharking and muscling into legitimate business.” Sentner’s attorney petitioned the court to allow Sentner to serve out his sentence in an Alabama prison, claiming the Gambino family had placed a “$100,000 contract” on his life. The judge sent him to serve his term in the Federal House of Detention in New York City instead.

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CULTURE KLASH

OLLOW Twisted Take US Good Night Desdemona rewrites tragic Shakespearean history

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BY KELSEY DAYTON @KelseyDayton

hat if Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” hadn’t ended in tragedy? What if instead of killing themselves, the young lovers found a way to build a life together? Would it have been a romance, or as with so many relationships, would it have been more a comedy of errors? Riot Act Inc. takes on those questions and more in the comedy “Good Night Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet),” which offers a “twisted take” on “Romeo and Juliet” and “Othello,” said Kelsey Johnson, who plays Juliet in the production. The show, which is not suitable for children, opens Thursday and runs through Saturday, with a second showing Nov. 9-11 at Walk Festival Hall in Teton Village. The show takes away the tragic endings of the old Romeo and Juliet tale and imagines where the stories could have traveled, had the ending not been, well…so typically Shakespeare. Juliet, for example, is a needy young teenager who wakes after her first night with Romeo, which was supposed to be filled with passion, and feels dissatisfied and resigned, at best, to married life, Johnson said. “If you think about that, they are just two teenagers getting married,” Johnson said. “If they hadn’t died in the original script, they aren’t really set up for a long-lasting relationship. They don’t know what love is. They don’t have anything solid to form the relationship.” Juliet doesn’t want one great love, but instead feels she should fall in love more than once before she dies. She wants the excitement of forbidden love and she’s lost interest in Romeo. While the show deviates from the original classics, it builds a deeper connection with the stories, Johnson said. People often remember struggling to read “Romeo and Juliet” and “Othello” in high school. Shakespeare can feel challenging and out of reach for average readers, Johnson said. It’s different to see the words performed, as they were meant to be.

The additional comedic twists in Riot Act’s show make you think about the original stories and makes them more accessible, she said. The show is the perfect kick-off to Riot Act’s fifteenth season, said Macey Mott, show director and one of the founders of the company. Riot Act was originally started by five women, after all, and the show is primarily about women. “It’s a fun show with strong female characters,” Mott said. “It’s a fun take on the normal damsel in distress Shakespearean heroines and gives these women a little more meat.” The show is funny, physical and also sexual—another reminder it’s not appropriate for young children, Mott said. “It’s a really silly show, but it’s also really intellectual,” she said. “I think that is something at Riot Act – we have a tendency to do shows that are not your normal run-of-the-mill production.” Fifteen years ago there wasn’t a local theater scene, Mott said. Mott wanted to live in Jackson, but also wanted a creative outlet. From the start, Riot Act productions were often modern and edgy. Mott presents shows that inspire and intrigue her to the organization’s board of directors, which allows her to pursue passion projects. A major tenet of Riot Act’s mission has been to use local artists. Rarely does the company bring in outsiders to help with the production, but instead works to present professional theater using local resources.

In the last 15 years, Riot Act has produced numerous show from intimate small casts, to full on productions like “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” one of Mott’s personal favorite shows she’s directed. It also added an annual series of short plays, written, directed and acted by community members. As Riot Act celebrates the 15-year milestone, Mott wants to find the theater company a permanent home, instead of having to find performance space for each production. A permanent home for the company would allow it to produce larger productions with bigger sets and offer community theater workshops. It would help Riot Act continue to fulfill its mission, laid out in 2002 in a manifesto still on its website. “We hope to be a theatre of community consciousness and artistic accountability,” it says. “We are a fluid collective of artists who have much to share and much to learn. We want to tell stories: classical and contemporary, traditional and avant-garde. We want to support new work and the work of new artists. We seek to provide a place for artists to explore collaboratively, to make their own artistic decisions, take risks and start a riot.” It all, Mott said, still holds true today. PJH

Riot Act Inc., “Good Night Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet),” 7 p.m. doors, 7:30 p.m. show, Thursday through Saturday and Nov. 9-11, Walk Festival Hall, Teton Village, $15 students and seniors, $20 adults at the door or at riotactinc.org.

NOVEMBER 1-11

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 1

n The 2017 SHIFT Festival 8 a.m. Center for the Arts, $10.00 - $250.00, 206-303-7315 n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Fables, Feathers & Fur 10:30 a.m. National Museum of Wildlife Art, Free, 307--733-5771 n Tech Time 1 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-787-2201 n Read to Rover 3 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-787-2201 n Intro to Ballet with Rachel Holmes 6:15 p.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $25.00 - $75.00, 307-733-6398 n KHOL Presents: Vinyl Night 8 p.m. The Rose, Free, 307-7331500

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 4

n The 2017 SHIFT Festival 8 a.m. Center for the Arts, $10.00 - $250.00, 206-303-7315 n REFIT® 9 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $20.00, 307-733-6398 n Casino Night 6:30 p.m. The Wort Hotel, $150.00, 307-732-3939 n Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann-Marie MacDonald 7:30 p.m. Walk Festival Hall, $15.00 - $20.00,

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 6

n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Maker 3 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n Hootenanny 6 p.m. Dornan’s, Free, 307-7332415

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 7

n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n REFIT® 8:30 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $20.00, 307-733-6398 n Toddler Time 10:05 a.m. Teton County Library, Free, 307-733-2164 n Tech Time 4 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n REFIT® 5:15 p.m. First Baptist Church, Free, 307-690-6539 n Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance Speaker Series with Aly Courtemanch 6 p.m. Teton County Library, Free, 3077339417 n Story Slam Workshop Tuesday 7 p.m. Pink Garter Theatre, Free, n Bluegrass Tuesdays with One Ton Pig 7:30 p.m. Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-732-3939

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 17

SEE CALENDAR PAGE 21

n The 2017 SHIFT Festival 8 a.m. Center for the Arts, $10.00 - $250.00, 206-303-7315 n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Get Your Business Instagram-Ready for the Holidays! 9 a.m. The Center for the Arts, $40.00, (307) 733-7425 n Read to Rover 3:30 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n FREE Friday Tasting 4 p.m. Jackson Whole Grocer & Cafe, Free, 307-733-0450 n Friday Tastings 4 p.m. The Liquor Store, Free, 307-733-4466 n Game Night 4 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann-Marie MacDonald 7:30 p.m. Walk Festival Hall, $15.00 - $20.00, n Bootleg Flyer 7:30 p.m. Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-732-3939

n Harvest on the Hill 11 a.m. National Museum of Wildlife Art, Free, n Revitalize & Restore with Kriyas 3 p.m. Teton Yoga Shala, $30.00 - $35.00, 307-690-3054 n Stagecoach Band 6 p.m. Stagecoach, Free, 307733-4407 n Songwriter’s Alley 7 p.m. Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-732-3939

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

n The 2017 SHIFT Festival 8 a.m. Center for the Arts, $10.00 - $250.00, 206-303-7315 n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307-733-6398 n Toddler Time 10:05 a.m. Teton County Library, Free, 307-733-2164 n Teton Toastmasters 12 p.m. Teton County Commissioners Chambers, Free, n Writer’s Club 3:30 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n Friends Library Board Meeting 5 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n REFIT® 5:15 p.m. First Baptist Church, Free, 307-690-6539 n Open Build 5:30 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n Teton Literacy Center Volunteer Training 5:30 p.m. Teton Literacy Center, Free, 307-733-9242 n Mix’d Media: Jackson Collects 6 p.m. National Museum of Wildlife Art, Free, n Jackson Hole Community Band 2017 Rehearsals 7 p.m. Center for the Arts, Free, 307-200-9463

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 5

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2

n Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann-Marie MacDonald 7:30 p.m. Walk Festival Hall, $15.00 - $20.00, n Jackson 6 7:30 p.m. Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-732-3939 n Salsa Night 9 p.m. The Rose, Free, 307-7331500

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

18 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

MUSIC BOX

Jackson Gems Local music is king this week in the Hole BY ANGELICA LEICHT @Writer_Anna

all it the week of the local acts. While there may not be any national musicians coming through Jackson this week, it’s pretty clear we don’t need them. From the sweet jazz sounds of Jackson 6 to the folksy tunes of Bootleg Flyer, this week’s calendar is chock full o’ Jackson gems. Get out there and catch ‘em in action.

KHOL Vinyl Night So, KHOL’s Vinyl Night at The Rose is unlike your typical vinyl night, which is precisely why it’s on this list. Most vinyl nights go a little something like this: DJ spins his choice of vinyls, and sometimes they’re great. Other times, not so much. In this case, though, you have the opportunity to make sure every vinyl that graces the record player is a very good one, as it’s customary to bring your own vinyl—or BYOV, as we like to call it—to The Rose on these nights. What better way to spend a Wednesday night? Perhaps with some sweet cocktail deals?

Yep—what we forOne Ton Pig got to mention above is that in conjunction with those tunes, The Rose also hands out some sweet, sweet $8 vintage cocktails during KHOL’s Vinyl Night, making a night of old waxy tunes that much better. Records, cocktails and more records. Do you really need any more reasons to go? KHOL’s Vinyl Night is Wednesday, Nov. 1 at The Rose in Jackson. The vinyl spinnin’ is free and starts at 8:00 p.m.

Jackson 6

The jazz, blues and swing band known as Jackson 6 — or J6 for short — certainly aren’t new to the Hole’s music scene. They’ve been at it since 2007, and have spent the last decade creating a sound that transports those swinging, stomping, and syncopated N’awlins beats right into the middle of Jackson Hole. They’re a sound to behold, these guys — they’ve managed to pay homage to the ol’ jazz greats like Louis Armstrong with their genuine, solid technique, and a killer horn or two to match. We’ll just put it like this: Laissez les bon temps roulez! Let the good times roll, and which they’re sure to do if you’re at a Jackson 6 show. Jackson 6 will be beltin’ out the blues on Thursday, Nov. 2 at Silver Dollar Showroom. The music starts at 7:30 p.m., and the show is free.

Bootleg Flyer

A little bit of folk, and a little bit of rock ’n’ roll…and country? Well, the musical amalgam may sound odd, but it sure works for Bootleg Flyer.

Stagecoach Band

THURSDAY Jackson 6 (Silver Dollar) FRIDAY Bootleg Flyer (Silver Dollar) SATURDAY Coldwater Band (Million Dollar Cowboy) SUNDAY Stagecoach Band two-left-feet or otherwise. Stagecoach Band takes the stage at Stagecoach, 5800 West Highway 22, Wilson on Sunday, Nov. 5. The show is free and starts at 6 p.m.

One Ton Pig

TUESDAY One Ton Pig (Silver Dollar)

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 19

If you’re looking to drown your sorrows, or perhaps just revel in gin and some old sad-man music, we’ve got a show for you. One Ton Pig—a Jackson sextet known for puling from the hard luck greats like WIllie Nelson and Johnny Cash—will be busting out their version of progressive bluegrass at Silver Dollar Showroom at the Wort Hotel. These Jackson boys are hardly just covering the hits, though. They’re singer-songwriters in their own right, having released four albums that defy genres. Rather, they meld folk, jazz, country, bluegrass, gospel and rock’n’roll to create their own One Ton sound, one that begs to be heard out at Silver Dollar. They’ve shared the stage with some pretty big names over the years, including McCourys, Wood Brothers, Chris Robinson—an artist who will be in Jackson later this year—Railroad Earth and Old Crow Medicine Show, to name a few. This time, though, they’ll be gracing the stage as the solo act, making it easy to pour all your attention into the sound of One Ton Pig. It’s worth your Tuesday. One Ton Pig play at Silver Dollar Showroom on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Music starts at 7:30 p.m., and the show is free. PJH

MONDAY Hootenanny (Dornan’s)

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

Don’t side-eye us at the mention of Wilson; it’s by no means too far of a trek to catch the world-famous Stagecoach Band, and you don’t even have to cross the pass to do it. If you’re unfamiliar with Stagecoach Band, it’s time to familiarize yourselves, stat. These folks have been a staple at Stagecoach for decades, busting out a blend of rowdy country music every Sunday night—better known as Sunday Church to those in the know— that’s just perfect for dustin’ off your dancin’ shoes — err, boots. The five-member band has graced the stage more than 2,500 nights during the past 44 years, which means they have spent plenty of time perfecting the art of luring you onto the dancefloor,

WEDNESDAY KHOL Vinyl Night (Rose)

Known for finely tuned harmonies and a folk-rock feel, Bootleg Flyer has proven over the years that they can conquer just about any tune, whether it’s an up tempo dancin’ number or an old soul ballad. They’ve become a Jackson staple, thanks to the five solid musicians who make up Bootleg Flyer — those two Miller girls along with bassist Dave McCann, who’s a Colorado Country Music Hall of Fame Member, Chris Smith on drums, and Justin smith on guitar. Bootleg Flyer has earned some serious street cred outside of Jackson, too — they’ve shared the stage with Buddy Guy, Blues Traveler, and the Wreckers, just to name a few. Bootleg Flyer plays Friday, Nov. 3 at Silver Dollar Showroom in Jackson. Music starts at 7:30. The show is free.

PLANET PICKS

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

20 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

CREATIVE PEAKS

Blazin’ Blazon Artist Courtney Blazon’s exhibit shows viewers what it’s like to spend a year without summer BY KELSEY DAYTON @KelseyDayton

n 1815, a volcano erupted in Indonesia the third largest eruption recorded in history. It unleashed an aerosol cloud that blanketed the planet for a year, which became known as the “year without a summer.” The eruption changed the weather, and the changing climate birthed cultural ideas and movements that changed history: the spread of diseases like cholera and typhoid, the advent of Mormonism and the creation of important works of literature and art. Courtney Blazon learned about the global changing while listening to a podcast on Mary Shelley, who created “Frankenstein” during that summer when she and friends couldn’t go outside because of the weather and instead told ghost stories. “When I heard about it, I just knew I had to make work about it,” the Montanabased artist said.

Blazon spent six months studying the eruption and its immediate and longterm repercussions. She made 40 pieces inspired by the historical eruption, some depicting events directly tied to the event, others more tangentially linked. Those pieces hang in the Center Theater Gallery through Nov. 12. The series, created in pen and marker, features two eight feet pieces and three fourfeet works, as well as a 20 portraits. “Details sur la fin du monde,” one of the largest pieces, is strictly about the summer of 1816. The geographical portrait travels from the East in Indonesia, then to China, Switzerland and the rest of Europe. It reads left to right across the page. In it, Blazon documents cholera’s arrival in India as well as Lord Byron sitting on the steps of a villa composing “Darkness” in Switzerland. “Poetry of the seven sorrows,” another large piece, features dancing skeletons and dying dancers at a masquerade ball. The piece was inspired by a story from a German journalist who in 1832 attended a masquerade ball just as cholera hit Europe. At the time, people believed it was a disease of the poor, Blazon said. All day people dance and drank water. Soon people began to collapse. By the end of the night there was a funeral pyre for the stacks of dead bodies, Blazon said the journalist recounted.

“That image struck me so intensely of that party turned devastation,” Blazon said. Many scientists believe cholera wouldn’t have hit Europe if it weren’t for the eruption, Blazon said. A freezing period followed for several years and the resulting melt and flooding helped cholera fester. Some links are even less direct. One piece depicts the Donner Party, the famous group of settlers that resorted to cannibalism when they got stuck moving west in the winter in the mid-1800s. There are links between the volcano and westward expansion due to the changes in weather, Blazon said. Blazon also draws a line between the eruption and Joseph Smith founding Mormonism. A child in 1815, his family moved when their crops suffered after the volcano. “If this event hadn’t taken place, he might not have gone into the forest and seen the spirit he claims he saw,” Blazon said. Some of the links might be more tenuous, but the work is meant to explore the idea of how a single event can change the course of history and how linked the world is—especially when it comes to climate changes, Blazon said. There were so many links to the eruption that Blazon couldn’t contain all the stories in the narrative drawings. That’s why she also created a portrait series featuring renderings of writers, scientists and explorers from the era.

Poetry of the Seven Sorrows

Blazon works with pen and marker to create her art. It’s a medium that is archival but fast and easy, while also creating a painterly look. They dry immediately, which forced Blazon to hone her skills. Blazon started drawing as a child in New Hampshire, but by a young teen all she wanted to do was draw. She attended college in Boston and then studied illustration at Parsons School of Design. Her work is distinctive, partially defined by how she renders people with rosy cheeks, but even more so by her composition, she said. “My compositions are chaotic, but also organized well enough that people are able to read them,” she said. From a distance a work might look crazy, but on closer examination there is order, she said. There is also, like her series “Year Without a Summer,” almost always a storytelling component in her work. “I can’t get my spirit behind it unless there is something else to it that makes me intrigued,” she said. “It can’t just be a scene or an object. That isn’t quite enough.” PJH

Courtney Blazon’s exhibit, “Year Wi thout a Summer,” hangs through Nov. 12, Center Theater Gallery, free

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 8

n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307733-6398 n Fables, Feathers & Fur 10:30 a.m. National Museum of Wildlife Art, Free, 307--733-5771 n Tech Time 1 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-7872201 n Read to Rover 3 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, Free, 208-7872201 n Intro to Ballet with Rachel Holmes 6:15 p.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $25.00 - $75.00, 307-733-6398 n Wyoming Whiskey Bartender Shootout 7 p.m. The Mangy Moose Saloon, Free, n Library Story Slam Workshop - Wednesday 7 p.m. Pink Garter Theatre, Free, n KHOL Presents: Vinyl Night 8 p.m. The Rose, Free, 307-733-1500

SEE CALENDAR PAGE 23

Come check out your favorite NFL/College team on our 10 HD tvs! •••••••••••

HAPPY HOUR

1/2 Off Drinks Daily 5-7pm

••••••••••• Monday-Saturday 11am, Sunday 10:30am 832 W. Broadway (inside Plaza Liquors)•733-7901

Details Sur De La Fin Du Monde (above) Zaman Hujan Au (Time of the Ash Rain) (below)

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 21

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

22 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

MARVEL STUDIOS

CINEMA

Shades of Pretty Good Thor: Ragnarok is a Marvel movie—and you probably know what that means. BY SCOTT RENSHAW @scottrenshaw

erhaps it’s time to make peace with this reality of the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe: They will be reliably pretty good, and they will be reliably not-great. No matter what protagonist(s) headline the stories, and no matter what filmmakers are recruited to oversee those stories, they have become a brand bigger than any individual installment, and maintaining the identity of that brand is paramount. If there’s a sameness to the structure or many of the elements, it’s a feature, not a bug; you might just as well fume over a James Bond movie featuring exotic locations and women in slinky dresses. When film journalists trot out their “Marvel movies ranked” lists each time a new one appears, it’s mostly a chance to discover all of the infinite shades between “eggshell” and “ivory.”

TRY THESE

Thor: Ragnarok does what Marvel movies do, albeit with a slightly different approach to the tone. The in medias res opening plays like a self-aware version of the “needle scratch/freeze frame/I bet you wonder how I got into this situation” meme, as Thor (Chris Hemsworth) needs to escape from the underworld of Surtur (Clancy Brown) and prevent the prophesied end-of-allthings known as Ragnarok. But upon returning to Asgard—and discovering that Loki (Tom Hiddleston) has been sitting on the throne while disguised as Odin (Anthony Hopkins)—he finds that it might not be so easy to fend off disaster, as the goddess of death Hela (Cate Blanchett) prepares to exact her vengeance for her long exile, yadda yadda yadda. Hela’s got style, but is mostly a waste of Blanchett’s talents for grand theatricality. She also suffers by comparison to Hiddleston’s Loki, who remains the most interesting antagonist any of the MCU features have managed to introduce. Every time the action shifts back to Asgard—including an underground movement in defiance of Hela led by Heimdall (Idris Elba), and the moral qualms of her henchman, Skurge (Karl Urban)—it’s mostly a toe-tapping reminder that all the mythological complexity can get a bit wearying. When the narrative remains focused on Thor himself, on the other hand,

Gladiator (2000) Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix R

Chris Hemsworth and Hulk in Thor: Ragnarok

Ragnarok is often hilarious. Hemsworth has plenty of comedic chops—as anyone who saw him in the Ghostbusters remake already knows—and director Taika Waititi (What We Do in the Shadows) plays to those abilities as often as possible. Virtually all of the highlights come during the extended second act, as Thor falls through a dimensional portal and winds up a forced combatant in the gladiatorial games held by The Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum, allowed to run to his nuttiest, Jeff Goldblumiest extremes). The callbacks to earlier Marvel movies are deftly handled to give the punch lines maximum punch, and the mix of broad physical humor and deadpan line readings—including Waititi himself voicing a nonchalant warrior named Korg—makes for an action movie that often plays less as superhero fantasy than action buddy comedy. The problem becomes the predictable over-stuffing of the plot, which doesn’t allow time for any one “buddy comedy” relationship dynamic to develop fully. Is the primary sparring between Thor and Loki? Between Thor and Hulk/Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), whom Thor discovers as one of his arena opponents after a buildup that feels pretty anti-climactic given the prominence

Thor (2011) Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman PG-13

of the big green guy in all the marketing? Between Thor and Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), once a warrior of Asgard now drunk, disgraced and serving as one of The Grandmaster’s “recruiters”? Every one of those interactions has its great moments—more than a few, in some cases—but the chance to build one truly engaging bickering couple is sacrificed to the gods of Putting More Faces on the Poster. It sometimes feels churlish to pick on a movie so committed to fun, especially one like this with weird asides like naming a key plot element “the Devil’s Anus.” It’s equally hard not to wonder what might be possible if it were permitted to be more surprising, or streamline all the blockbuster trappings. Thor: Ragnarok delivers big laughs, all the way up to the inevitable grandiose battle with hundreds of characters fighting on seemingly hundreds of different fronts. As Marvel movies go, this one is … a Marvel movie. Call this particular shade “cream.” PJH

THOR: RAGNAROK

Thor: The Dark World (2013) Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston PG-13

BBB Chris Hemsworth Tom Hiddleston Cate Blanchett PG-13

What We Do in the Shadows (2014) Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi R

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9

n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307733-6398 n Toddler Time 10:05 a.m. Teton County Library, Free, 307-7332164 n Writer’s Club 3:30 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n REFIT® 5:15 p.m. First Baptist Church, Free, 307-690-6539 n Open Build 5:30 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n JHW Kidlit/YA Critique Group 6 p.m. Center for the Arts, Free, n Jackson Hole Community Band 2017 Rehearsals 7 p.m. Center for the Arts, Free, 307-200-9463 n Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann-Marie MacDonald 7:30 p.m. Walk Festival Hall, $15.00 - $20.00, n Derrik and the Dynamos 7:30 p.m. Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-7323939 n Salsa Night 9 p.m. The Rose, Free, 307-733-1500

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11

FOR COMPLETE EVENT DETAILS VISIT PJHCALENDAR.COM

Rebootie Call S.W.A.T. is more of the same ol’ CBS; Shameless and SMILF spice Sundays.

eed more proof that broadcast television is out of ideas? S.W.A.T. (series debut Thursday, Nov. 2, CBS) is a TV show based on a 2003 movie based on a 1975 TV show— neither of which fared particularly well (there was no 2 S.W.A.T. 2 Spurious film sequel; the series barely lasted 37 episodes). Still, CBS is banking on ex-Criminal Minds star Shemar Moore to carry this re-reboot, because he’s the only face anyone’s going to recognize. Here, he’s former Marine “Hondo” Harrelson, a streetwise Los Angelino charged with leading the local Special Weapons and Tactics unit (militarized police, because ‘Merica). Everyone else? Mixand-match CBS cop-procedural pretty people. This will run for years. By the time a series hits eight seasons, there ain’t much story left to tell—remember cautionary Showtime series Dexter and Weeds? At least Californication had the good sense to bail at seven. Shameless (Season 8 premiere Sunday, Nov. 5, Showtime), on the other hand, has the legs to go eight more, as there’s no more endlessly evolving and entertaining TV family than the Gallaghers. Who would

have expected Fiona (Emmy Rossum) to become a businesswoman, or Lip (Jeremy Allen White) to get sober? Or perpetual deadbeat Frank (William H. Macy) to become an upstanding citizen? (Best wait to see how long that lasts.) Been tellin’ ya since 2010: this is America’s Family. Get thee to Netflix. The “S” in SMILF (series debut Sunday, Nov. 5, Showtime) stands for “Single”; you know the rest. Twentysomething Boston mom Bridgette (Frankie Shaw, who created, wrote and directed this series based on her same-named Sundance short film) juggles parenting, an acting career and relationships in Los Angeles, a reality-slapped twist on the usual autobiographical actor/ comic project. Even after Better Things and Fleabag, a female lead in this raw— and funny, it should be noted—a series is still somehow surprising and novel, and SMILF upstages Showtime partner White Famous through sheer willingness to go there (Jay Pharoah is great, but WF still feels timid). Shaw is a star— watch her. Last year’s debut season of The Girlfriend Experience (Season 2 premiere Sunday, Nov. 5, Starz) arrived with much hype thanks to the connections to Steven Soderbergh’s 2009 film and The King (star Riley Keough was Elvis Presley’s granddaughter). Season 2 of Tales of High-End Prostitution introduces all-new characters and two storylines: one involving a Republican super PAC director (Anna Friel) and an escort (Louisa Krause) entwined in a steamy blackmail scheme; the other about an ex-prostitute (Carmen Ejogo) in the Witness Protection Program

who dangerously falls back into her old ways. The Girlfriend Experience maybe not be as ‘70s kitschy as The Deuce, but it does have a grit all its own. All that’s missing from the USA Network’s bid to become a serious prestige-cable network is a period drama … oh, here’s one now! “An epic saga about the secret history of the 1930s American heartland, Damnation (series debut Tuesday, Nov. 7, USA) centers on the mythic conflict and bloody struggle between big money and the downtrodden, God and greed, charlatans and prophets.” Whoa, hyperbole much? Damnation has plenty going for it, including writers and directors from Hell or High Water and Longmire, and co-star Logan Marshall-Green (late of Cinemax’s fantastic-but-canceled Quarry), but mostly just adds up to dust and bluster. Proving once again, nothing good has ever come out of Iowa. When it aired what I thought was its series finale back in March, I was sure I’d never see Teachers (Season 2 fall premiere Tuesday, Nov. 7, TV Land) again. Surprise! That was just the “spring finale” of the second season before an eight-month “hiatus” … what? Anyway: Female comedy troupe the Katydids (Caitlin Barlow, Katy Colloton, Cate Freedman, Kate Lambert, Katie O’Brien and Kathryn Renée Thomas, hence the name—get it?) are back for at least 10 more episodes of hot-mess elementary-school hilarity, inexplicable Walking Dead-sized breaks aside. This pleasant, unexpected gift at least makes up for the disappointment that was IFC’s Baroness Von Sketch Show. PJH

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 23

n REFIT® 9 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $20.00, 307733-6398 n The 77th Annual Fireman’s Ball featuring Big Head Todd and the Monsters 6 p.m. Heritage Arena, $40.00, n Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann-Marie MacDonald 7:30 p.m. Walk Festival Hall, $15.00 - $20.00, n Chanman Roots Band 7:30 p.m. Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-7323939 n Free Entrance Day GTNP & Yellowstone, Free, 307-739-3300

@bill_frost

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

n Dance & Fitness Classes 8 a.m. Dancers’ Workshop, $10.00 - $16.00, 307733-6398 n FREE Friday Tasting 4 p.m. Jackson Whole Grocer & Cafe, Free, 307733-0450 n Friday Tastings 4 p.m. The Liquor Store, Free, 307-733-4466 n Game Night 4 p.m. Valley of the Tetons Library, n Jackson’s Got Talent 2017 5:30 p.m. Pink Garter Theatre, $100.00, n Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann-Marie MacDonald 7:30 p.m. Walk Festival Hall, $15.00 - $20.00, n Chanman Roots Band 7:30 p.m. Silver Dollar Showroom, Free, 307-7323939 n Friday Night DJ with DJ Londo 10 p.m. Pink Garter Theatre, Free,

BY BILL FROST

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 10

TRUE TV

G OOD

F, MAD

ESH D

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

24 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

WATERIN’ HOLE Y, E V E R Y

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HELEN GOELET

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Mangy Moose Restaurant, with locally sourced, seasonally FRESH FOOD at reasonable prices, is a always a FUN PLACE to go with family or friends for a unique dining experience. The personable staff will make you feel RIGHT AT HOME and the funky western decor will keep you entertained throughout your entire visit. Reservations at (307) 733-4913 3295 Village Drive • Teton Village, WY

www.mangymoose.com

Ashes, Casks and Cash Helping California means bringing a sense of normalcy back to their economy BY HELEN GOELET

“I FAMILY FRIENDLY ENVIRONMENT PIZZAS, PASTAS & MORE HOUSEMADE BREAD & DESSERTS FRESH, LOCALLY SOURCED OFFERINGS TAKE OUT AVAILABLE Dining room and bar open nightly at 5:00pm (307) 733-2460 • 2560 Moose Wilson Road • Wilson, WY

A Jackson Hole favorite since 1965

t came through faster than people could get out. Within six hours, entire neighborhoods in Santa Rosa were burnt to the ground,” Mo, our wine tasting guide explained as he showed us to the fire line behind Clos du Val winery. “We were incredibly lucky.” While the scorch marks ended before hitting the grape vines, 27 wineries are in the area are now ashes. What that means is that thousands of livelihoods are gone. Vines take years to mature properly, and the decades of labor and love that were put into developing the wineries

have also been lost. The tree-covered hills of Napa draw the eye away from the charred black hills that were devastated by the fire. We entered Napa Valley just In 2015, the water those crops were one week after devastating fires had torn through, engulfing desperate for came and did not stop. The vineyards, homes and entire blocks of result was an abundance of growth in one of California’s most treasured desti- vegetation, as the starving plants feastnations. Upon arrival, we were greeted by ed in fear of their next opportunity. The “Thank You First Responder” signs and result? A valley of kindling. And up it went just two years later, industry workers eager to have business when severe windstorms picked up go back to normal. To our left, the tree-covered hills of around midnight on October 8th. Residents of Santa Rosa and Sanoma Napa looked healthy, as though nothing were just heading to bed when furious had been amiss. To our right, though, the entire hillside winds tore down power lines, causing was black, with white lines of rock indi- sparks that lit up the dry grass and the cating where the houses had once stood, night sky with ominous flames. Within hours people’s livelihoods were overlooking the valley. Passing by rows of yellowing vines, up in smoke. This is usually our busy season,” our dry cracked dirt, and brown fields, the drought in the region still seems, even Uber driver said. (Pro tip: When in Napa, after the recent fires, something ripe to do as the Napanians do and find yourself a DD.) become a wildfire paradise. “But since the fire, people have been The issues started way back in 2012, when two years of severe drought — from canceling their reservations. It’s devastat2012 to 2014 — caused the crops in Napa ing our workforce,” he said. Our first stop on our recent post-fire Valley to become parched and desperate Napa tour was the now-ironically named for water.

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| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

rebounding in vineyards and restaurants alike. Like Jackson Hole, the service industry is their main source of economy, and those lucky enough to still have their jobs are eager to move forward. Many of the vineyards that survived the ordeal are also donating earnings from the next month to organizations geared towards the regrowth and reparations of their fellow Napa citizens. This includes efforts to save animals displaced by the fires. The worst fire to hit the idyllic valley has certainly left a mark in not only the wine industry in Napa, but also the hearts of its citizens, and has forced many to find new homes and new lives. “People are putting out ads advertising a willingness to pay a full years rent and an extra thousand dollars,” a local friend told me. “They’re told to get in line.” In the wake of the devastation, the hope we took from Napa is to move forwards, encouraging tourists to come back as soon as possible, and bring some normalcy to their charred, but still resurrectable, world. PJH

Ashes and Diamonds. The winery is a relative newcomer on the Napa winery scene, having only opened its doors in June of this year. The construction is still ongoing at Ashes and Diamonds, a gem (sorry) designed by modern architect Barbara Bester. The hideway is amazing — we felt like we were approaching a new-world James Bond hide-out in the desert, or perhaps an ultra-hip disco pod. Our wine maestro, Zach, described their wines as light, fresh, easy drinking. With alcohol percentages sitting between twelve and thirteen, he was right on the mark. “We need people to start coming back,” he told us as he poured four glasses of their Rose, my personal favorite. “I understand people feel we are reeling from this, and we are, don’t get me wrong, but we need business to start coming back.” This sentiment was echoed throughout our two day visit to the valley. While the mood was overwhelmingly morose — how could it not be, given the devastation to the valley — there is a hopeful energy

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NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 25

2FOR1

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

26 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

Featuring dining destinations from buffets and rooms with a view to mom and pop joints, chic cuisine and some of our dining critic’s faves!

ASIAN & CHINESE TETON THAI

Serving the world’s most exciting cuisine. Teton Thai offers a splendid array of flavors: sweet, hot, sour, salt and bitter. All balanced and blended perfectly, satisfying the most discriminating palate. Open daily. 7432 Granite Loop Road in Teton Village, (307) 733-0022 and in Driggs, (208) 787-8424, tetonthai.com.

THAI ME UP 1155 S HIGHWAY 89 JACKSON, WY 83OO1 | OPEN DAILY: 7AM - 1OPM | 3O7-733-O45O | JACKSONWHOLEGROCER.COM

Home of Melvin Brewing Co. Freshly remodeled offering modern Thai cuisine in a relaxed setting. New tap system with 20 craft beers. New $8 wine list and extensive bottled beer menu. Open daily for dinner at 5pm. Downtown at 75 East Pearl Street. View our tap list at thaijh.com/brews. 307-733-0005.

ALPENHOF

Serving authentic Swiss cuisine, the Alpenhof features European style breakfast entrées and alpine lunch fare. Dine in the Bistro for a casual meal or join us in the Alpenrose dining room

THE LOCALS

FAVORITE PIZZA 2012-2016

SALES@PLANETJH.COM OR CALL 307.732.0299

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TV Sports Packages and 7 Screens

Under the Pink Garter Theatre (307) 734-PINK • www.pinkygs.com

Local is a modern American steakhouse and bar located on Jackson’s historic town square. Serving locally raised beef and, regional game, fresh seafood and seasonally inspired food, Local offers the perfect setting for lunch, drinks or dinner.

Lunch 11:30am Monday-Saturday Dinner 5:30pm Nightly

HAPPY HOUR Daily 4-6:00pm

307.201.1717 | LOCALJH.COM ON THE TOWN SQUARE

THE BLUE LION

A Jackson Hole favorite for 39 years. Join us in the charming atmosphere of a historic home. Serving fresh fish, elk, poultry, steaks, and vegetarian entrées. Ask a local about our rack of lamb. Live acoustic guitar music most nights. Open nightly at 5:30 p.m. Closed Tuesdays until ski season. Off Season Special: 2-for1 Entrees. Must mention ad, dine-in only. Reservations recommended, walk-ins welcome. 160 N. Millward, (307) 733-3912, bluelionrestaurant.com

PICNIC

Our mission is simple: offer good food, made fresh, all day, every day. We know everyone’s busy, so we cater to on-the-go lifestyles with quick, tasty options for breakfast and lunch, including pastries and treats from our sister restaurant Persephone. Also offering coffee and espresso drinks plus wine and cocktails. Open Mon-Fri 7am-5pm, Wknds 7am-3pm 1110 Maple Way in West Jackson 307-2642956www.picnicjh.com

ELEANOR’S

CONTINENTAL

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for a relaxed dinner experience. Breakfast 7:30am-10am. Coffee & pastry 10am-11:30am. Lunch 11:30am-3pm. Aprés 3pm-5:30pm. Dinner 6pm-9pm. For reservations at the Bistro or Alpenrose, call 307-733-3242.

Enjoy all the perks of fine dining, minus the dress code at Eleanor’s, serving rich, saucy dishes in a warm and friendly setting. Its bar alone is an attraction, thanks to reasonably priced drinks and a loyal crowd. Come get a belly-full of our two-time gold medal wings. Open at 11 a.m. daily. 832 W. Broadway, (307) 733-7901.

LOCAL

Local, a modern American steakhouse and bar, is located on Jackson’s historic town square. Our menu features both classic and specialty cuts of locally-ranched meats and wild game alongside fresh seafood, shellfish, house-ground burgers, and seasonally-inspired food. We offer an extensive wine list and an abundance of locallysourced products. Offering a casual and vibrant bar atmosphere with 12 beers on tap as well as a relaxed dining room, Local is the perfect spot to grab a burger for lunch or to have drinks and dinner with friends. Lunch Mon-Sat 11:30am. Dinner Nightly 5:30pm. 55 North Cache, (307) 201-1717, localjh.com.

LOTUS ORGANIC RESTAURANT

Serving organic, freshly-made world cuisine while catering to all eating styles. Endless organic and natural meat, vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free choices. Offering super smoothies, fresh extracted juices, espresso and tea. Full bar and house-infused botanical spirits. Serving breakfast, lunch & dinner starting at 8am daily. Dine in for 2-for-1 dinner entrees staring at 5:30pm. 140 N. Cache, (307) 7340882, theorganiclotus.com.

MANGY MOOSE

MOE’S BBQ

Opened in Jackson Hole by Tom Fay and David Fogg, Moe’s Original Bar B Que features a Southern Soul Food Revival through its awardwinning Alabama-style pulled pork, ribs, wings, turkey and chicken smoked over hardwood served with two unique sauces in addition to Catfish and a Shrimp Moe-Boy sandwich. A daily rotation of traditional Southern sides and tasty desserts are served fresh daily. Moe’s BBQ stays open late and features a menu for any budget. While the setting is family-friendly,

MILLION DOLLAR COWBOY STEAKHOUSE

Jackson’s first Speakeasy Steakhouse. The Million Dollar Cowboy Steakhouse is a hidden gem located below the world famous Million Dollar Cowboy Bar. Our menu offers guests the best in American steakhouse cuisine. Top quality chops and steaks sourced from local farms, imported Japanese Wagyu beef, and house-cured meats and sausages. Accentuated with a variety of thoughtful side dishes, innovative appetizers, creative vegetarian items, and decadent desserts, a meal at this landmark location is sure to be a memorable one. Reservations are highly recommended.

SNAKE RIVER BREWERY & RESTAURANT

America’s most award-winning microbrewery is serving lunch and dinner. Take in the atmosphere while enjoying wood-fired pizzas, pastas, burgers, sandwiches, soups, salads and desserts. $9 lunch menu. Happy hour 4 to 6 p.m., including tasty hot wings. The freshest beer in the valley, right from the source! Free WiFi. Open 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. 265 S. Millward. (307) 739-2337, snakeriverbrewing. com.

ITALIAN CALICO

A Jackson Hole favorite since 1965, the Calico continues to be one of the most popular restaurants in the Valley. The Calico offers the right combination of really good food, (much of which is grown in our own gardens in the summer), friendly staff; a reasonably priced menu and a large selection of wine. Our bar scene is eclectic with a welcoming vibe. Open nightly at 5 p.m. 2560 Moose Wilson Rd., (307) 733-2460.

MEXICAN EL ABUELITO

Serving authentic Mexican cuisine and appetizers in a unique Mexican atmosphere. Home of the original Jumbo Margarita. Featuring a full bar with a large selection of authentic Mexican beers. Lunch served weekdays 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nightly dinner specials. Open seven days, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 385 W. Broadway, (307) 733-1207.

PIZZA DOMINO’S PIZZA

Hot and delicious delivered to your door. Handtossed, deep dish, crunchy thin, Brooklyn style and artisan pizzas; bread bowl pastas, and oven baked sandwiches; chicken wings, cheesy breads and desserts. Delivery. 520 S. Hwy. 89 in Kmart Plaza, (307) 733-0330.

PINKY G’S

The locals favorite! Voted Best Pizza in Jackson Hole 2012-2016. Seek out this hidden gem under the Pink Garter Theatre for NY pizza by the slice, salads, strombolis, calzones and many appetizers to choose from. Try the $7 ‘Triple S’ lunch special. Happy hours 10 p.m. - 12 a.m. Sun.- Thu. Text PINK to 71441 for discounts. Delivery and take-out. Open daily 11a.m. to 2 a.m. 50 W. Broadway, (307) 734-PINK.

PIZZERIA CALDERA

Jackson Hole’s only dedicated stone-hearth oven pizzeria, serving Napolitana-style pies

using the freshest ingredients in traditional and creative combinations. Five local micro-brews on tap, a great selection of red and white wines by the glass and bottle, and one of the best views of the Town Square from our upstairs deck. Daily lunch special includes slice, salad or soup, any two for $8. Happy hour: half off drinks by the glass from 4 - 6 daily. Dine in or carry out. Or order online at PizzeriaCaldera.com, or download our app for iOS or Android. Open from 11am - 9:30pm daily at 20 West Broadway. 307-201-1472.

DON’T JUST SHOW US YOUR BRUNCH. Write about it. The award-winning Planet Jackson Hole is looking for food writers to get the scoop on the valley’s must-grub drinks and dishes. email inquiries to editor@planetjh.com

Mangy Moose Restaurant, with locally sourced, seasonally fresh food at reasonable prices, is a always a fun place to go with family or friends for a unique dining experience. The personable staff will make you feel right at home and the funky western decor will keep you entertained throughout your entire visit. Teton Village, (307) 733-4913, mangymoose.com.

a full premium bar offers a lively scene with HDTVs for sports fans, music, shuffle board and other games upstairs. Large party takeout orders and full service catering with delivery is also available.

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 27

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

28 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

SUDOKU

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.

L.A.TIMES GRIDIRON GLOSSARY By MIKE PELUSO

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2017

ACROSS

1 Museum curators’ degs. 5 Considers 10 “Ain’t happening” 14 Hobbyist’s knife 19 1814-’15 exile site 20 China’s Zhou __ 21 Pats on the table 22 Tiger Woods has won a record 21 of them 23 Goose’s medical concern? 25 F? 27 Basketball Hall of Fame coach Jerry 28 Ain’t right? 30 Hastings head 31 Two-element tubes 33 Energetic mount 34 One of Jupiter’s Galilean moons 38 Woody’s son 39 Ones with will power? 41 Discontinued allergy brand 42 Sundae topping item 45 Ginger cookie factory statistic? 49 Brut alternative 50 What “L” may mean: Abbr. 51 Fared reasonably well 53 Melodious 55 Short albums, for short 56 Crystalline rocks 58 __ to go: eager 60 Troubling spots 62 Longtime Priceline pitchman 64 Cries over 66 Perp stopper 68 Beer ingredient 69 What results from failure to stop at a deer crossing? 72 “__ le roi!” 73 Equally irate 75 Male escorts 76 Kenny Rogers quartet 78 Socks

79 Subject for Archimedes 80 Convince using flattery 81 Window sill item 82 Yellow Teletubby 85 Kitchen gadget 86 Hasty departure 89 Enthused 91 So-so haul in the fishing industry? 94 Raising a ball, with “up” 96 “Il Trovatore” heroine 98 Stop before surgery 100 Pesky biter 101 Verdi title bandit 102 Invigorate Dry Spray maker 104 Soprano Fleming et al. 107 Private eye 108 Manila envelope feature 109 Infamous fictional motel 110 Home security system at no cost? 114 “Hamlet” in progress? 119 Martini partner 120 Logical beginning? 121 Long-legged fisher 122 Sein, across the Rhine 123 Lessen 124 Swiss capital 125 DEA activity 126 Connecticut senator Chris

DOWN

1 2-Down’s boss 2 1-Down’s sitcom employee 3 Crunch targets 4 Hairstyling legend 5 Friday creator 6 Hyphen relative 7 North Carolina university 8 Cavernous opening 9 Rat Pack leader 10 Like some bank services 11 Chan portrayer 12 Bombard 13 Daybreak deity

14 Crosses off 15 Oregon port 16 Auditing pro 17 Norse war god 18 Opposite of west, in Dortmund 24 Stale 26 Puts into office 29 Court defendant: Abbr. 31 Bore 32 Prohibited courtroom procedure? 33 Go down 35 Unpleasant singles bar comeon? 36 Tardy people, to some 37 Courtroom figs. 38 Leatherwork tool 40 Those, in Oaxaca 41 “Is that __?” 43 Hokkaido noodle 44 Helped through a tough time, with “over” 46 Tend to 47 Letter-shaped gaskets 48 Utah range 52 Loosening of govt. standards 54 Take in 57 James and Jones of jazz 58 Duracell competitor 59 Whac-__ 61 Nitpick 62 Wee, in Dundee 63 Discuss in detail 64 California-based shoe company 65 Feature of a no-holds-barred campaign 67 Legal thing 70 Actress Palmer 71 Joe Namath, notably 74 Costa __ Sol 77 Eroded 80 Pacific salmon

81 Ashen 83 Toto hit that mentions Kilimanjaro 84 Routing org. 85 Included in the email loop, briefly 87 Santa __: dry winds 88 Corp. big shots 90 Proof of paternity, perhaps 92 Loan figs. 93 The Beatles’ “Day __” 95 Spewed 97 Baby’s first garment 99 Implored 102 Not leave as is 103 Belted tire synthetic 105 La Floride et La Virginie 106 Japanese chip maker 108 Turn over 109 Adriatic port 110 Monastery title 111 Carl’s director son 112 Conductor __-Pekka Salonen 113 It’s not a bad lie 115 JFK alternative 116 Simpson trial judge 117 Command from a maj. 118 Actor Beatty

DENIAL IS NOT JUST A RIVER IN EGYPT “A change of heart changes everything” – Unknown

TOUGH QUESTIONS

ARE WE PAYING ATTENTION NOW?

WISDOM TRADITIONS AND THE UPSIDE

THE POWER OF OUR CONSCIOUSNESS Operating together as a united humanity, we have the

CHOOSE LOVE OVER FEAR The bottom line of all the information passed to us by ancient wisdom keepers and enlightened teachers are for every person to choose love over fear. It is about choosing to let go of being pissed, of blaming people, of harboring prejudice, of being victims, of judging everyone, of coping to greed and acting from the insatiable ego aspect within each of us. Important note: The ego was designed to keep us in the old fear-based paradigm. That was a perfect design then. This is a new evolutionary opportunity beyond ego.

OUR BUILT-IN COSMIC GPS The source of every person’s built-in higher guidance system is the human heart. The heart connects to the loving higher intelligence of the soul and the greater cosmos. The information about the key role of the heart is both scientific and metaphysical truth. The heart/soul connection bypasses the rational mind and the ego. It is the cosmic GPS system to efficiently get to a higher destination. The soul’s focus is informing what’s in our highest, greatest good as individuals, as humanity, as stewards of the Earth, and now also as galactic citizens. You are invited to make it a daily priority to connect to the wisdom and intelligence of your heart. Quiet the mind chatter, listen to the small quiet voice inside you and trust it. Freeing yourself from the control of the ego requires being mindful of your thoughts, words, beliefs and actions. When you notice they are coming from some version of fear, change the channel! You will love what’s ours to discover when ego no longer runs the show. Take heart (pun intended) there will also be revelations of scientific discoveries and spiritual support to further assist us. No matter what, the choice to upgrade is ours, and the time to act is now. PJH

Carol Mann is a longtime Jackson resident, radio personality, former Grand Targhee Resort owner, author, and clairvoyant. Got a Cosmic Question? Email carol@yourcosmiccafe.com

NOVEMBER 1, 2017 | 29

The wisdom teachings, spiritual traditions and converging prophecies for our times from around the world, along with those of current spiritual teachers, are all telling us that the upside is we are experiencing an unprecedented opportunity to participate in our own quantum evolution. We have the choice to be in denial and risk going the way of the dinosaurs. Or we can benefit from the abundance of scientific findings and apply the power of our own consciousness to create more flow and less trauma drama in the changes already in progress.

The new paradigm approach to social activism is to skip coming from anger, blame or the need to fight, to fix, or to be “right”. Instead, without reference to criticizing how things are, simply offer an entirely new way to approach and to solve challenging issues. The old well-intended but combative, judgmental platform for social activism inadvertently perpetuates the same old battle mentality spawning more cycles of hostility.

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

We have an abundance of information from cutting-edge sciences corroborating ancient predictions all pointing to big evolutionary changes right now. We have plenty of troubling data about the reality of climate change, about toxic air, fresh and salt water pollution, the toll of deadly chemicals in our food supplies, and the uptick in numbers of species daily going extinct. There are also indicators that big changes are bigger than just on Earth. These include heightened activity and changes in the magnetic field of our sun, and climate changes on most of the other planets in our solar system. Perhaps you are already aware that Earth has a documented history of cycles of mass extinctions. Arguing over to what degree we have or have not hastened another mass extinction is no longer relevant; the shifts are upon us.

NEW PARADIGM SOCIAL ACTION

Did the Neanderthals realize they were on the cusp of extinction as the next human prototype, the Cro-Magnon, was emerging in their midst? Are we perhaps we the next human experiment on the cusp of extinction and/or are we the ones we’ve been waiting for to partner with the cosmos, empower ourselves and facilitate an evolutionary leap for our species?

ability to turn some parts of this around and to make other aspects occur with more ease. One way to take action is by working with and supporting groups around the world in their efforts to reverse/mitigate ecological destruction and to ensure human dignity. If you are moved to participate by being a social/environmental activist, now’s the time to do this with a new paradigm twist.

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

30 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017

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HALF OFF BLAST OFF!

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY

BY ROB BREZSNY

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) In the early stages of Johnny Cash’s development as a musician, his mother hired a coach to give him singing lessons. But after a few meetings, the teacher counseled him to quit. Johnny’s style was so unique, the seasoned pro thought it better not to tamper with his natural sound. I hesitate to offer you comparable advice, Scorpio. I’m a big believer in the value of enhancing one’s innate talents with training and education. On the other hand, my assessment of your destiny between now and October 2018 impels me to offer a suggestion: It may be useful for you to give some credence to the perspective of Johnny Cash’s voice coach. Make sure you guard and revere your distinctiveness. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) I used to nurture a grudge against Tony Pastorini. He was the high school math teacher who kicked me out of the extracurricular Calculus Club because my proofs were too “intuitive and unorthodox.” The shock of his rejection drove me away from a subject I had been passionate about. Eventually, though, I came to realize what a good deed he had done. It would have been a mistake for me to keep specializing in math -- I was destined to study literature and psychology and mythology -- but it took Pastorini to correct my course. Now, Sagittarius, I invite you to make a similar shift of attitude. What debt of gratitude do you owe a person you have thought of as a source of frustration or obstruction?

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Here’s a parable you may find useful. An armchair explorer is unexpectedly given a chance to embark on an adventure she has only read and dreamed about. But she hesitates on the brink of seizing her opportunity. She asks herself, “Do I really want to risk having ragged reality corrupt the beautiful fantasy I’ve built up in my mind’s eye?” In the end she takes the gamble. She embarks on the adventure. And ragged reality does in fact partially corrupt her beautiful fantasy. But it also brings her unexpected lessons that partially enhance the beautiful fantasy.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) In accordance with the astrological omens, I recommend you indulge in any or all of the following exercises. 1. Dedicate an entire day to performing acts of love. 2. Buy yourself flowers, sing yourself a song, and tell yourself a story about why you’re so beautiful. 3. Explain your deeply-felt opinion with so much passion and logic that you change the mind of a person who had previously disagreed with you. 4. Make a pilgrimage to a sacred spot you want to be influenced by. 5. Buy a drink for everyone in a bar or cafe. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) “Dear Rob: I saw a photo of you recently, and I realized that you have a scar on your face. I hope you don’t mind me telling you it resembles an ancient Mayan hieroglyph that means ‘Builder of Bridges for Those Who Are Seeking Home.’ Did you know this? If so, do you think it’s an accurate title for what you do? - Renegade Leo Scholar.” Dear Scholar: Thanks for your observation. I don’t know if I fully deserve the title “Builder of Bridges for Those Who Are Seeking Home,” but it does describe the role I’m hoping to play for Leos. The coming weeks will be an excellent time for your tribe to clarify and cultivate your notion of home. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Author Clarissa Pinkola Estés encourages us to purge any tendencies we might have to think of ourselves as hounded animals, angry, wounded victims, leaky vessels aching to be filled, or broken creatures yearning for rescue. It so happens that now is a perfect time for you to perform this purgation. You have maximum power to revise your self-image so that it resounds with more poise, self-sufficiency, and sovereignty. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) I used to scoff at people who play the lottery. The chance of winning big is almost nil. Why not invest one’s hopes in more pragmatic schemes to generate money? But my opinion softened a bit when the planet Jupiter made a lucky transit to an aspect in my personal horoscope. It really did seem like my chances of winning the lottery were unusually high. I started dreaming about the educational amusements I’d pursue if I got a huge influx of cash. I opened my mind to expansive future possibilities that I had previously been closed to. So even though I didn’t actually get a windfall during this favorable financial phase, I was glad I’d entertained the fantasy. In alignment with current astrological omens, Libra, here’s the moral of the story for you: Meditate on what educational amusements you’d seek if you had more money.

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.

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ARIES (March 21-April 19) America’s Civil War ended in 1865. A veteran from that conflict later produced a daughter, Irene Triplett, who is still alive today and collecting his pension. In the coming months, I foresee you being able to take advantage of a comparable phenomenon, although it may be more metaphorical. Blessings from bygone times, perhaps even from the distant past, will be available to you. But you’ll have to be alert and know where to look. So now might be a good time to learn more about your ancestors,

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Where are Chinese gooseberries grown? In New Zealand. What is a camel’s hair brush made of? Squirrel fur. When England and France waged their Hundred Years’ War, how long did it last? 116 years. When do Russians celebrate their October Revolution? In November. Trick answers like these are likely to be a recurring theme for you in the coming weeks, Gemini. That’s why I advise you to NOT be a Master of the Obvious.

| PLANET JACKSON HOLE |

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) “A game of chess is usually a fairy tale of 1001 blunders,” said chess grandmaster Savielly Tartakower, a Pisces. “It is a struggle against one’s own errors,” he added. “The winner of the game is the player who makes the nextto-last mistake.” I think this is excellent counsel during the current phase of your astrological cycle, Pisces. It’s time to risk bold moves, because even if they’re partly or wholly mistaken, they will ultimately put you in a good position to succeed in the long run. Here’s a further point for your consideration. Remember the philosopher Rene Descartes’ famous dictum, “Cogito ergo sum”? It’s Latin for “I think, therefore I am.” Tartakower countered this with, “Erro ergo sum,” which is “I err, therefore I am.”

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) “I wasn’t in the market to buy a Day-Glo plastic fish from a street vendor,” testified a witty guy named Jef on Facebook, “but that’s exactly what I did. The seller said he found it in someone’s trash. He wanted fifty cents for it, but I talked him up to a dollar. The best part is the expression on the fish’s face. It’s from Edvard Munch’s The Scream.” I bring this testimony to your attention, Taurus, because I feel it’s good role-modeling for you. In the coming days, I bet you won’t know exactly what you’re looking for until you find it. This prize may not be highly valued by anyone else but you. And it will amuse you and be of use to you in just the right ways.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) In the lore of ancient Greek mythology, the god Prometheus stole fire from his fellow deities and sneakily gave it to us humans. Before our patron provided us with this natural treasure, we poor creatures had no access to it. As I gaze out at your possibilities in the coming months, Capricorn, I foresee you having Promethean inclinations. Your ability to bestow blessings and spread benevolence and do good deeds will be at a peak. Unlike Prometheus, however, I don’t expect you’ll get into trouble for your generosity. Just the opposite!

ruminate exuberantly about your own history, study the lives of your dead heroes, and maybe even tune in to your previous incarnations.

32 | NOVEMBER 1, 2017