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VOL 17 + ISSUE 34
AUGUST 26, 2015 - SEPTEMBER 2, 2015 EDITORIAL EDITOR Dan McCarthy NEWS, FEATURES + MEDIA FARM EDITOR Chris Faraone ASSOCIATE MUSIC EDITOR Nina Corcoran ASSOCIATE FILM EDITOR Jake Mulligan CONTRIBUTORS Nate Boroyan, Mitchell Dewar Christopher Ehlers, Renan Fontes, Bill Hayduke, Emily Hopkins, Micaela Kimball, Dave Wedge INTERNS Oliver Bok, Emily Tiberio
DESIGN CREATIVE DIRECTOR Tak Toyoshima DESIGNER Brittany Grabowski INTERNS Amy Bouchard, Stephanie Buonopane, Kelsey Cole COMICS Tim Chamberlain Pat Falco Patt Kelley Tak Toyoshima
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BUSINESS PUBLISHER Jeff Lawrence ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Marc Shepard
DEAR READER If you’re a regular reader of this column, presented here each week for those that seek out the handsome print edition we set loose on streets all over the Hub, you may recall I mentioned our annual Student Guide would be hitting the streets this week. As you’ve probably noticed, we decided to let that issue simmer a bit longer and time it to land next week (read: move-in week). Don’t worry though, as there’s a lot of Big Fun to come, and it will be worth the wait for students both incoming and returning, as well as our die-hard fans that look to us each week for the best in local arts, music, news, politics, and food- and drink-related journalism with a humorous sting and a biting wit. Having said that, it by no means should draw attention away from what’s in store for you this week. Besides a dynamite excerpt on Page 10 from a new book about art con jobs (with said excerpt focusing on the first great American art fraud) and a rousing Blunt Truth column this week on Page 8 touching on the MassCann/NORML endorsement of Bay State Repeal legalization initiative, you probably have noticed that our cover model this week is Mass-born comedian Jen Kirkman, who is as quickwitted as she is hilarious in our interview with her on Page 28 (don’t miss the full extended interview online, too). Then there’s Associate Music Editor Nina Corcoran’s work covering the obsessions of Seattle surf-rockers La Luz and a theatre-centric think piece by Chris Ehlers on the growing trend of Boston serving as a performance incubator for the next wave of Broadway smashes on Page 26. All this, and there’s still a killer Student Guide to come next week. For real this time. DAN MCCARTHY - EDITOR, DIGBOSTON
OPERATIONS MANAGER John Loftus
DigBoston, 242 East Berkeley St. 5th Floor Boston, MA 02118 Fax 617.849.5990 Phone 617.426.8942 digboston.com
ON THE COVER Jen Kirkman hangs out with us this week to discussDrunk History, Chelsea Handler, and #freethenipple.
©2015 DIGBOSTON IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY DIG PUBLISHING LLC. NO PART OF THIS PUBLICATION CAN BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT WRITTEN CONSENT. DIG PUBLISHING LLC CANNOT BE HELD LIABLE FOR ANY TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS. ONE COPY OF DIGBOSTON IS AVAILABLE FREE TO MASSACHUSETTS RESIDENTS AND VISITORS EACH WEEK. ANYONE REMOVING PAPERS IN BULK WILL BE PROSECUTED ON THEFT CHARGES TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW.
DIGTIONARY
POKEMONSTER noun
ˈpōkē mänstər Any demented tool who plans to exact revenge on unknown numbers of innocent Pokemon fans for unknown and most likely super-nerdy reasons by bringing an arsenal to a Pokemon World Championships in town and planning the worst.
OH, CRUEL WORLD Dear Testicles, Until this week, I had barely shaved a hair off of your head. I was respectful, even loving. But when I saw you hanging there, all gross and stank and sweaty, as I slashed my mutton chops with the new trimmers that my buddy gifted me, I thought you might appreciate a whacking for a change. You weren’t ready though; as it turns out, my Brillo pad was just the cushion that you needed, for your skin is far too sensitive to grind against my leg all day. I promise that I’ll never second-guess you again, and if all goes well, we’ll have you covered up by winter time.
ILLUSTRATION BY AMY BOUCHARD
ADVISOR Joseph B. Darby III
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NEWS US
LABOR REVOLT IN THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIK NEWS TO US
Cambridge City Councilor Nadeem Mazen on the push for a $15 minimum wage BY CHRIS FARAONE @FARA1 Last June, Seattle City Council members told their constituents that the government there respects workers. By voting to boost the minimum wage in that municipality to $11 an hour this April, then up to $15 over the next five or seven years, depending on the size of the enterprise, officials took a chance on employees as opposed to just employers for a change. The ordinance is already yielding results for families that may now have a better chance of lifting themselves out of poverty, while the historic move was also a symbolic win, in which the honchos who wield power there declared that in the future, Seattle hopes to welcome all classes of people. As corporate media outlets have even begun to report, highlighting positive anecdotal accounts of wage increase 4
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implementation thus far, the move in Washington state is already looking hopeful. Meanwhile, in Greater Boston, Cambridge City Councilor Nadeem Mazen hopes to follow that West Coast example, as well as comparable experiments in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Mazen, who was a vocal participant in Occupy Boston protests, is a co-owner of the 3D art and laser-cutting business Danger!Awesome in Central Square, and is now up for reelection to the Cambridge seat he won in 2013, is just getting the livable wage ball rolling, mostly working with his chief of staff and a small group of volunteers. We asked him about the long slog ahead, the major legal hurdles he will likely face, and upcoming action steps in his wage crusade.
What, if any role have you played in the statewide or nationwide minimum wage fight? And is there a bedrock mission statement you will be following? I watched, and I think everyone knows it should be $15 an hour, but I also think that everyone [in the Boston area] secretly feels in their gut that this just isn’t going to happen, like the state’s not going to manifest this on some known timeline. I think there is a basic mission statement. What we’re doing definitely comes on the tail of what is happening in Seattle and San Francisco, and it is definitely coming in concert with minimum wage discussions all over the country. LABOR REVOLT continued on pg. 6
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LABOR REVOLT continued from pg. 4 As it is, politicians on Beacon Hill are bragging that they’re going to have the highest statewide minimum wage as a result of legislation passed last year … Sure, it will be the highest for any state, but it’s still not what people actually need. If you took the 1960s federal minimum wage, and just increased it for inflation, you would have a minimum wage today that is way above $15 an hour nationwide. You need that minimum wage to affect a strong working class and a strong middle class and to have a mobility between those classes. Everything else is going to be more stagnant [without] that buying power.
it, housing is a human right, but we also have 45 percent of our public school kids on free and reduced lunch, which means that their parents are living around the poverty line. We just have a significant number of people in the community who are working three jobs. We’re trying to make it so that people who are struggling to buy a house, who are struggling to raise a family, who are struggling to put down roots here can make it with what they’ve already got and have the buying power to get by.
So you’re saying there’s a fight ahead … I don’t think anyone will be able to sustain the rallying force of any city doing this. If any amount of people get behind this, if any municipality gets behind this, it’s going to have a domino effect.
Does anybody have your back yet? We’re actually meeting with a few local employers who are already paying $15 an hour—The Just Crust and Simon’s Coffee Shop are known $15 an hour wage-makers.
Is it natural for Cambridge, or Massachusetts to be at the forefront of this? We’re behind. We should have been number one. We’re number one for gay marriage and a whole host of other things, and it’s like, “Why aren’t we way ahead of the curve here?” We have 105,000 people in this city [Cambridge], but we have an unbelievable amount of extremely high value construction that buoys our economy and empowers our local government to do incredible things for education. But how could we not take care of a very basic wage right? We have commercial development, we have academic powerhouses, we have everything we need to empower the upper middle class and above.
What is the impact of that? They get all the hippie customers? The least turnover in employees? What are you hearing? That’s what we’ve heard about a similar place out of Chicago, where the employees have less turnover and more zeal for the job. There are a lot of microeconomic consequences of taking a $9 an hour job; you’re excited when you get it, but anyone who has ever had one of those jobs knows that they are always on the lookout for something better, always trying to get that $10 or $11 an hour job somewhere else, and frankly, always having to have other jobs, which takes away from their ability to focus. Irrespective of how basic it is for social justice, the fact is that if you financially benefit the wealthy, they will save it, but if you put dollars in the pockets of people who are working or middle class, they will spend it at local businesses. It happens right away.
Is there any pushback yet? The conversation has kind of been, “We don’t know what traction this is going to see, but if it starts to see traction, we sure hope you’re not going to jam this through without input from the business community.” I’m saying it’s not going to be fly by night.
“... if you put dollars in the pockets of people who are working or middle class, they will spend it at local businesses. It happens right away.”
What has your research showed you so far that makes it clear something needs to be done in this area? You have a couple of things that are interesting and disturbing in terms of context here. Something like 15 percent of people are in affordable housing in Cambridge, with a capital A, which is among the highest in the state. We want to house as many people as possible who need
What is the actual process through which this has to happen? Last year I put in a Cambridge City Council policy order with the city manager instructing him and the solicitor to research the legality of a citywide minimum wage, even though we know that Massachusetts doesn’t have the same allowances for cities that some other states do. Certain arrangements in Massachusetts cannot be overseen by municipalities. We argue that in this one, we ought to have the power without [approval from the state legislature] or state oversight. The city basically found that there are some ways to do this.
BLUNT TRUTH
MARIJUNDERDOGS
MassCann/NORML endorses Bay State Repeal legalization initiative BY MIKE CANN @MIKECANNBOSTON Make no mistake about the battle of the dueling marijuana legalization ballot initiatives in Massachusetts. On one side, there is the underdog, Bay State Repeal (BSR), which wants to put in place the “least restrictive laws possible.” On the other side, there is the well-funded Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol (CRMLA). In spite of the latter’s fundraising prowess, however, at the most recent MassCann/NORML members meeting, at which more than token social capital was on the line, BSR walked away with an early victory in what will likely be a long and brutal game of chicken. At stake for the two campaigns: the institutional endorsement and enormous weight of a coveted thumbsup from MassCann, the longest-running marijuana reform organization in Mass. Representing BSR, an animated Steve Epstein explained that his group aims to treat cannabis as a right for adults, while CRMLA treats grass as a privilege that is only allowed under certain conditions. In response, CRMLA’s Will Luzier referred to the Department of Justice’s Cole Memorandum, which calls for stricter regulations in state cannabis commissions in order to keep federal authorities at bay. Smartly, Luzier also stated that his 6
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organization’s plans would in many ways improve upon the Colorado law, with less taxes and the option for cities and towns to allow clubs in which adults can congregate with cannabis in private spaces. In the end, it wasn’t even close. MassCann/NORML members endorsed BSR’s campaign in a landslide, and supported several follow up motions to pledge institutional backing for the BSR signature drive at the upcoming Boston Freedom Rally. Furthermore, MassCann will provide social media assistance, as well as an expected $25,000 donation to the campaign should BSR need funding in September.
How much of the relatively stable economic climate is your reason for doing this right now? You have to do it regardless. This is a human rights thing.
What’s the next step? On the 25th we’re having a worker rally at Danger!Awesome at 6pm. And then there’s a committee meeting for the office of Neighborhood and Long Term Planning on Tuesday, September 8 at 6pm at City Hall. You see what the response is at that hearing, you see what people say, and then you try and push it through … We’re also going to do a challenge where councilors and others try to live on the current minimum wage. At the end of the day, the lesson will be that none of us really can live on $10 a day. What do you pay your employees at Danger!Awesome? We’re actually in the transition now from paying about $12 an hour to having a conversation about how we can get to $15 before this is even passed. The question now is, “How can we be a just employer?” We can’t afford to pay that, and we want to pay it anyway.
As the minimum wage effort gains momentum in Cambridge, we also plan to interview the workers on the ground, as well as members of their family, labor attorneys, union representatives, and employers. If you or anyone you know is interested in speaking with us, please email: fara1@digpublishing.com.
“Thanks to all in attendance, whether you voted yes on the 9 motions, abstained, or voted no,” Epstein wrote to his group’s email list announcing the endorsement, encouraging people to join their cause on Facebook and Twitter. Speaking to Luzier of CRMLA after the meeting, he said, “We were happy to be invited to speak. I wasn’t surprised by the results but disappointed. BSR’s Steve Epstein is a founder of MassCann, so it’s not that surprising that they would find BSR’s philosophy more appealing.” “We would still like to get their endorsement,” Luzier continued, indicating that the regulate-like-alcohol campaign will pursue the MassCann endorsement again if BSR fails to appear on the ballot. “We are about the same thing—ending prohibition—and would welcome their support.” As for their own chances in the wake of MassCann’s decision, Luzier says, “We will be on the ballot, no question on that.” Still, he gives respect where it’s due. “That BSR sought support for social media and financial indicates that it was very important for them.” Indeed it was. With MassCann/NORML’s endorsement and financial support, the BSR campaign can survive and potentially even thrive for the next couple of months, and maybe a little longer, with a far better chance of appearing on the ballot than it had just a few days ago.
New England’s Largest MMJ & Cannabis Industry Expo Series Returns to Boston Sept. 12th & 13 at The Castle @ Park Plaza
SATURDAY SEPT.NOON-6PM 12TH SUNDAY SEPT: 11AM-5PM 13TH At the Castle @ Park Plaza, Downtown Boston Tickets now on sale at: www.necann.com $25 per day, or save $10 with a $40 2-day pass!
The New England Cannabis Convention will bring together over 60 vendors from every aspect
of the MMJ & Cannabis industries; Doctors, caregivers, counselors, soil, lighting, and growing specialists, consultants, investors, entrepreneurs, and advocates. And of course, a wide assortment of the latest and greatest smoking, vaping, and storage accessories will be available for purchase. Admission includes access to a full line-up of educational speakers, panels, and workshops!
Programming highlights include:
Hardship Cultivation Options | Growsite Construction Analysis & Testing Legislation & Legalization | MMJ Patient Services Cooking with Cannabis | Extract & Concentrates | Glassblowing Investing/Valuation | Packaging/Storage | Security
Presented by:
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MEDIA FARM
FLICK THE POLICE
Help us inventory the surveillance cameras in Greater Boston BY CHRIS FARAONE @FARA1
Celebrating 50+ Years! Escape the Summer heat with a cruise! Daily 7:00pm-8:30pm Daily 12:00pm-6:00pm Fri & Sat 9:00pm-10:30pm
Sensational Sunset Cruises Historical Harbor Tours Starlit Evening Cruises
Thursdays: HIGH SEAS HUMOR
We cruise the harbor with the All-Star comedians from Improv Asylum they will have you laughing all night long! (21+)
Mondays: WINDUSTRY NIGHT
For the weekend worker!
Wednesdays:
HARBURLESQUE burlesque show! (21+)
Fridays:
FLOATING BEER HAUL New selections weekly
Not long ago, at one of the innumerable media conferences I’ve attended in the past few years, the topic turned to mass surveillance, a subject over which I happen to obsess. Among dozens of other blog posts and features I have written about troubling technologies like Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs), last year I led a team at DigBoston in impugning facial recognition software that the city used in secret. “Boston Trolling,” the aforementioned series co-written by Kenneth Lipp and Jonathan Riley about local uses of biometrics and other newfangled incarnations of Big Brother, wound up running in four parts and being aggregated by dozens of outlets. The New York Times recently noted our discovery, though they failed to cite us, and furthermore, they allowed the Boston Police Department to rhetorically erase their ugly record and evade criticism. This is how history gets whitewashed: The authorities in Boston tested facial recognition technology but decided in 2013 not to adopt it, saying it crossed an ethical line. The software had been linked to surveillance cameras to secretly scan the faces of thousands of people at outdoor concerts in the city center. The images had then been fed into software capable of analyzing them. “I don’t want people to think we’re always spying on them,” said William B. Evans, Boston’s police commissioner. Though Times reporters have no clue what’s happening around here, in staying on the case for so long, the Dig has effectively unearthed several thousand damning documents about the metastasized police state in the Commonwealth. We write about these issues nearly every week, to the point of nausea, and will continue to do so until more people listen and pitch in to reverse the curse. What we haven’t been able to find yet, however, is a definitive list of surveillance devices used by all participating government agencies. That’s where you come in. But back to that journalism conference for a second … I was complaining about the difficulty I have had obtaining a compendium of cameras, reference codes and all, when one of the other attendees said, “You’ll just have to go and count them yourself.” She was joking, and certainly no single reporter could inventory the presumably tens of thousands of prying eyes
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belonging to the MBTA, the Commonwealth, and the City of Boston. At the same time, she was on to something, and I think it’s this … As my research and that of others has shown, the police apparatus tasked with operating so-called smart surveillance has routinely failed to store data safely, to stay organized, and to share everything they should with the public. That bureaucratic mess considered, my teammates at DigBoston and the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism are convinced that there is only one way to efficiently map the police state — we have to do it ourselves, together! You. Me. Everyone. We’re on Instagram all day anyway, so we might as well combine that muscle to protect the common good. We’ll comb through the countless tweets and posts and parse all of the data, which we will use to inform critical stories. All you have to do is snap the pics and use the hashtag #BINJbrother. Thank you in advance for your assistance.
Earlier this month, the White House announced that the Office of National Drug Control Policy will spend $2.5 million on hiring public health and safety experts to attack the heroin epidemic that is steadily ravaging America. This is excellent news. New England is one of the five key areas—along with Appalachia, New York/New Jersey, Philly/Camden and DC/Baltimore—that will receive aid from those hired in this change, and anyone paying attention knows that Massachusetts has been rocked particularly hard by heroin’s new vogue. In April, state police reported 217 deaths from overdose for the first 90 days of the year. That’s more than two lives lost to the needle a day. Next to those statistics, throwing $2.5 million at this issue seems like spitting on a forest fire. According to the Washington Post, the first to report on this new White House initiative, said budget will cover a full year of pairing “drug intelligence officers” with public health coordinators to track where drugs are coming from, where they’re being cut (with an often lethal additive, fentanyl, a prescription painkiller), and where the junk is coming from. The overall goal is to collect data about trafficking in these hot zones, and to unite health and law enforcement in a new way that treats the epidemic as a matter of public health, rather than as a niche problem. Which could really work. In the next 5 years. Detractors of the plan, like small-town cops and doctors, say what’s really needed, perhaps more than anything else, is increased funding to get addicts into rehab, and to educate local law enforcement and emergency room personnel on how to handle overdoses. The White House says this new project will lay the groundwork necessary to dive deep inside the hornet’s nest and spur second chances, but places like Taunton and Lowell need a lot more than more experts working in offices. We’re beyond the point for preventative tactics. Right now we’ve got a stage four smack problem and a $2.5 million research plan. We need surgery, not a $2.5 million physical.
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CAPTAIN SWORD AND THE FIRST GREAT AMERICAN ART FRAUD EXCERPT
BY ANTHONY M. AMORE
The following is excerpted from The Art of the Con: The Most Notorious Fakes, Frauds, and Forgeries in the Art World (St. Martin’s Press, 2015).
GILBERT STUART’S ICONIC PORTRAIT
of George Washington is one of the most often viewed images in the world. Referred to as the Athenaeum portrait, it is this unfinished rendering of the newly constituted republic’s first president that has been featured on the American one-dollar bill for more than 100 years. The painting is shared by Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts with the National Portrait Gallery, with each institution it at three-year intervals. The portrait certainly caught the attention and imagination of merchant seaman Captain John E. Sword. In 1801, Capt. Sword approached Stuart to buy a copy of the beloved Washington, who had died little more than a year before. Though he struggled with debt for much of his life, Stuart was willing to sell provided the captain would agree to a non-negotiable condition: the painting must not be copied. It was an understandable demand: selling his highlyregarded portraits of esteemed Americans was how Stuart supported himself and his family. So Capt. Sword easily agreed to the demand, promising Stuart that he had no intention of doing so. Instead, he wished to buy the portrait in order to present it to a gentleman in Virginia. Taking the good captain at his word, Stuart sold him the work. Soon thereafter, Capt. Sword boarded the Connecticut, with his George Washington in tow. However, his destination was not Virginia—it was the Far East. And he had no intention of keeping his word to Stuart. Instead, upon arrival in China, Capt. Sword turned to the wellpracticed copyists of that nation and placed his order: one hundred copies of the portrait, painted in reverse on glass. Upon his return to America, Capt. Sword was able to easily find customers eager to buy a painting of the late president, who the citizenry saw as their own Cincinnatus. Provenance was no more an issue to the buyers than it was to the seller: they simply couldn’t resist the opportunity to own a work by the man who was arguably the new nation’s greatest artist. Eventually, word that the captain was selling the portraits made its way to Stuart who was, understandably, outraged. And so the artist resorted to that most American of actions in response: he took Capt. Sword to court. Stuart asked the court “that the said John E. Swords may, by the decree of this honorable court, be enjoined and restrained from vending or any way disposing of any of the said copies and may be ordered to deliver up all that remain unsold or otherwise” so that the court might dispose of them
“Provenance was no more an issue to the buyers than it was to the seller: they simply couldn’t resist the opportunity to own a work by the man who was arguably the new nation’s greatest artist.”
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as it saw fit. Before the day was out, the court acted on Stuart’s complaint, ordering Capt. Swords and any associates to “desist from selling or otherwise disposing of the same copies of the Portraits.” Capt. Sword’s betrayal of Gilbert Stuart by selling unauthorized reproductions of his famous painting is the first major art scam in American history. While fraudulent schemes involving art of all sorts is quite a common occurrence in the United States, it is a not a uniquely American problem. And the dodgy captain was not the first to the game of producing rip-offs of other’s art, as the practice of misrepresenting the authenticity of an artwork is a centuries-old practice. In fact, no less than the great Michelangelo himself is said to have sculpted a sleeping cupid figure and used his artistic genius to manipulate it into appearing ancient so that he could sell it to Cardinal Riario of San Girgio. The innocent Cardinal Riario wanted so badly to believe that he had come upon a truly special piece, something that perhaps no one else had found, that he was easy prey for Michaelangelo’s fake. His desire to own a true object of beauty was so great as to make him want to believe in the same way one of Adolph Hitler’s most trusted accomplices, Hermann Georing, did. The founder of the Gestapo, the art-loving Goering was not a man to cross. Though he was suspicious of attempts by his enemies to deceive him, his eyes opened wide when he saw Johannes Vermeer’s Christ and the Adulteress. With only 35 or 36 known paintings attributed to the great Dutch master (scholars will probably argue over the actual number forever), a “new” Vermeer would be a crowning addition to his growing, awe-inspiring, and completely ill-gotten art collection. Even Hitler hadn’t scored such a coup as a heretofore unknown Vermeer. It didn’t matter that Christ and the Adulteress didn’t look at all like the artist’s work. And also didn’t matter that Goering had doubts about its provenance,
believing it might have come from “a Jew, who would try to blackmail him later.” The Reichsmarschall wanted to believe he had come upon the find of a lifetime, and paid 1.65 million guilders for this so-called “missing Vermeer,” which was, in truth, created by an unsuccessful artist named Han van Meegeren. Because the painting was inauthentic, there was no genuine documentation the forger could provide. So, Goering accepted a simple letter describing the painting’s history. Later, with the war over and facing execution for plundering Dutch national treasures (which were, in fact, his own counterfeit paintings), van Meegeren admitted that he had forged the alleged Vermeer and proved so by painting another in the presence of court-appointed witnesses. So great was his delusion that when Goering was informed that his beloved Vermeer was actually a forgery, the stubborn Nazi steadfastly refused to believe it. In examining the works of van Meegeren today, it is somewhat difficult to understand how anyone could see Vermeer in them. But it wasn’t just the twisted, morphine-addicted Nazi who was fooled by the faux Vermeer. Even some experts of the day who examined the forgeries were convinced that they were by the great master painter. The opportunity to be part of the important new find seems to have clouded their judgment, a pattern that has been repeated several times throughout history.
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“The museum is a remarkably inspiring place, and I truly believe that Isabella Stewart Gardner ranks among the most important women in American history.” Does all of the press help the overall Gardner search effort, does it confuse matters, or is it a little bit of both? Press coverage certainly helps to keep our missing art in the people’s consciousness, where it certainly should be. The theft represents a huge loss to Boston and to the world. Our most recent release of the video from 24 hours before the heist has elicited a great response from the public, so we are heartened that people still care. How did you come into your job at the Gardner? Having spent 15 years with federal government agencies in security and investigations, I was intrigued by the Gardner’s need for someone with my exact skill set. One visit to the museum was all it took to completely sell me on the honor of working for the institution. Do you consider yourself a writer and author first? I consider myself an investigator first, and I like to think I am an old-fashioned sleuth because my mentors have been retired agents and detectives who put emphasis on doing the hard work and expending shoe-leather to find answers. It’s not unlike your own philosophy of getting out of the office and out amongst the people.
WHEN FAKE ART HITS YOUR EYE LIKE A BIG PIZZA PIE, FAX AMORE INTERVIEW
FAKES, FRAUDS, AND FORGERIES Q&A with ‘Art of the Con’ author Anthony M. Amore BY DIG STAFF @DIGBOSTON We are huge fans of Anthony M. Amore at DigBoston, and not only because it is awesome that, as director of security at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, he’s tasked with returning the treasures that were notoriously stolen from that institution 25 years ago. He’s always fun to speak with about recent developments in that case, and we certainly went there in our interview below, but in addition to his role at the Gardner and position as a local guy who happens to be one of the world’s top stolen art investigator-authors, we heart Amore for his pointing us in the right direction on our own caper. As readers may recall, there is a solid marble bust of early Bay State education reformer Charles Brooks in storage at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art that we believe was stolen from the Massachusetts State House, and Amore has been very helpful on that front. No news yet on whether we will get it back, but there is some hope after all, and it’s largely thanks to him. This is all related, you see, since said search for the Brooks sculpture was inspired by Amore’s last book, Stealing Rembrandts. This time around, we asked Amore about all of the above, but also about his latest, The Art of the Con: The Most Notorious Fakes, Frauds, and Forgeries in the Art World, from which we ran an excerpt this week. If you’re 12
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addicted to tales of highbrow thievery, then the book should prove to have the same effect as crack-cocaine or catnip. Be sure to read with extreme caution, as you are now officially in danger of tumbling down the art theft rabbit hole.
When do you actually write? I would imagine the museum could be quite inspirational considering your topic of choice. My writing is the result of the research I do for my job and I spend an inordinate amount of my free time on it. The museum is a remarkably inspiring place, and I truly believe that Isabella Stewart Gardner ranks among the most important women in American history. How much is your new book a continuation of your former work and research, and what compels you to continue writing about this? Does it feel like a hopeless endeavor sometimes? My first book, Stealing Rembrandts, was an examination into who really steals masterpieces, why they do it, and what becomes of the art. I found that reality is more interesting and vastly different from what is depicted in movies. I thought looking into fraud would be an interesting progression from that book, and my findings were similar: fact is more interesting than fiction. I guess I must admit that I am compelled by my obsession related to the Gardner theft as well as life-long fascination with true crime. What was the big ‘Oh shit’ moment in the writing process of your latest? That would definitely be the realization that there is really no shortage of people willing to shell over more money than I could dream of for art based on the thinnest provenance one can imagine. What can you tell us about the Gardner Heist that nobody knows and that will make this interview a super duper exclusive? I don’t know if it is exclusive-worthy, but I can tell you that the museum is incredibly eager to pay the reward we are offering. The reward is $5 million for information that leads directly to the return of our art. That means you don’t have to bring it to me, just give me the information that gets me there, and you will receive the biggest private reward the world has ever seen.
NEWS TO US
FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
13
DEPT. COMMERCE EATS
PROVISION QUEST
A new Allston vegetarian cafe rises BY DAN MCCARTHY @ACUTALPROOF
GENERALLY SPEAKING
Boston General Store is planting a flag in Coolidge Corner BY DAN MCCARTHY @ACUTALPROOF When April Gabriel launched her online shop, Boston General Store, in the fall of 2013, she set out with a small goal in mind. Namely, to own a project that celebrated well-made goods as well as creativity, and to be able to share it with likeminded friends. And after starting off with about 10 products in her stable, she grew a fan base by fine-tuning the site and the products she featured on nights and weekends around her full-time job at a local architecture firm. No pop-ups. No marketing. No advertising. All word of mouth. Once friends started picking up items through the website and telling other friends about it, Gabriel grew the project into a full-time obsession, having just left her previous job in architecture about four months ago (where she worked on a huge renovation project for the New England Aquarium) to be able to further curate the products on the site, as well as do more pop-up storefronts, including her weekly stand at the SOWA market in the South End. And now that she’s gearing up to open her first brick-and-mortar location in Coolidge Corner in early October, Gabriel says it still all comes down to one thing: finding well-made products that get her excited. “It’s hard to find things that are well designed and useful, so when I found an item like that, I’d get excited and wanted people to see it,” says Gabriel. “But once it was all done online, I missed seeing people’s reactions, the way I [react] when I see stuff like this, so that’s when I started doing pop-ups to see how people receive the items. It was a whole different level. That’s why I started [doing] pop-ups regularly.” And now that her stock hovers around 500 or so different products and manufacturers, Gabriel says she’s in the right position to leverage the grassroots popularity of her project and get people checking out the physical store, which will feature items from the web portal but also feature in-store only products. “The idea of a ‘general store’ is to have a little of everything, so I needed to have a whole spectrum of items,” she says. So that means having a wide selection of items and inventory, and Gabriel says her list is about 20 percent Mass made and 60 percent made in the USA, with other items from around the world thrown in depending on what she’s found. “I traveled a lot in college and know a lot of great makers out in the world, so as long as it’s made well and by a company I can get behind, I think that’s just as great,” she says. “One of our best sellers is a leather journal hand-made in Paris, France. They call themselves the least productive journal makers in the world, since they make so few at a time.” Now that she’s locked down a space in Brookline (home to Brothers Artisan Oil, a beard oil and skincare company carried in the Boston General Store online portal and at the SOWA stand), you can look forward to the new space being mixed-use, with in-store cocktail tastings, local vendors doing in-store pop-ups to highlight their goods, and even a monthly dinner series. Until then, be on the lookout for the Boston General Store table at SOWA, and catch them at the forthcoming American Field Pop Up Market in September. >> BOSTON GENERAL STORE. BRICK-AND-MORTAR OPENING 10.1 IN COOLIDGE CORNER. BOSTONGENERALSTORE.COM 14
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>> WHOLE HEART PROVISIONS. OPENING MID/LATE SEPTEMBER. 487 CAMBRIDGE ST., ALLSTON. FACEBOOK.COM/WHOLEHEARTPROVISIONS
BOSTON GENERAL STORE PHOTOS BY APRIL GABRIEL | PHOTOS BY DAN MCCARTHY
SHOP
Allston has been on the receiving end of good news in the openings-of-places department as of late. And now that the 19-seat vegetarian noodle haven Whole Heart Provisions is sliding into the spot Root formerly offered their vegan wares from, that trend is being kept alive. Slated for a mid to late September opening, neighboring beloved local slinger of all variations of grilled cheese James DiSabatino of Roxy’s Grilled Cheese has partnered with chef Becca Arnold to help bring her love for showcasing the potential flavor vegetablebased foodstuffs have in the right hands. And your hands will be doing some of the work with its build-a-bowl fast-casual setup where you can expect five styles of pre-established flavor profiles (yes, all will have a crunchy element) Arnold and her team have devised (Mediterranean, Asian, Mexican, etc). Arnold says they’re also trying to get kombucha on tap, and beer and wine down the road. DiSabatino says that he and Arnold had been talking about partnering for a project, and when the space opened and they found the right opportunity to pair up, in a space literally next door to Roxy’s brick-and-mortar space. “I’ve always been a fan of Becca’s cooking,” he says. “I knew if she ever opened her own thing I definitely wanted to be a part of it.” DiSabatino says that while he’s supporting the project from a macro consigliere-type role, the heart and soul of the project is all Arnold’s. And as a longtime fan of her cooking (she’s helmed the lines at spots like Sarma and Alden & Harlow), DiSabatino makes clear his preferred style of compensation with a laugh. “I’ll hopefully be getting some free food out of it.”
Certified Beer Sniffers 9 2 H A M P S HIR E S T, CA M B R ID G E, M A | 6 1 7-2 5 0 - 8 4 5 4 | L O R D H O B O.C O M
The ONCE Lounge is here!
Open 5-11pm every Thurs, Fri & Sat Night
with a New Bar & Drink Menu 9/31 Maine Sail Taco Monday with Rum Roundtable Discussion on Local Culinary Economics 8/28 9pm Big Big Buildings & Gina Alibrio
9/4 Parlour Bells + The Rationales
9/12 Goon's & Toons
A Rock & Rangoon Celebration
UPCOMING:
8/27 End of Summer BBQ Bash!
9/25 Brian Carpenter & the Confessions
10/25 Here We Go Magic
Locavore Tacos Done Right, Every Monday Night 5-10pm in the Lounge
NEWS TO US
FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
15
HONEST PINT
HILL STREET BOOZE
A new Somerville brewpub cometh, and in doing so stopped a Starbucks in its tracks BY DAN MCCARTHY @ACUTALPROOF
JEFF ROWE (L) AND BERT HOLDREDGE (R) STANDING WHERE BEER AND COFFEE WILL BE CONSUMED As any morning bus rider, cyclist, or commuter will tell you, it’s hard to get a solid cup of coffee in the morning along the the hilly stretch of Broadway that cuts through Winter Hill near Foss Park. There’s a lone Dunkin Donuts, but that’s about it. And for a while it appeared that the residential area was about to be infected with yet another Starbucks franchise, which was eyeballing the vacant space at 328 Broadway, formerly a cell phone shop among a host of other come-and-go operations. That is, until the landlords decided to go another route and give first-time brewpub owners Bert Holdredge and Jeff Rowe a shot at their dream of bringing a local small-scale brewery to life. And as luck would have it, they just so happen to be bringing some great coffee with them. Once the 60-seat, brewpub gets up and running this fall (they’re aiming for November), they’re going to be using the space as a morning grab-and-go cafe, exclusively featuring Somerville’s Counter Culture Coffee out of Union Square. And if you’re thinking combining killer coffee with local craft beer production seems like a logical move, you’re not alone. “Once we’re on our feet, we can know our full potential in-house and what we can toy around with [for beers],” says co-founder Jeff Rowe, a professional brewer and punk rocker with a decade of brewing under his belt, most of which was spent at Harpoon in Boston. Rowe says their flagship brew will be an IPA (“It’s kind of a no brainer,” he says) along with drinkable cream ales, and even an American strong ale brewed with molasses. “Because we’re a brewpub, we can be a bit more encompassing. We’ll have two to three stable in-house beers all the time, and two or three always rotating. Our goal is to keep it small; you’re not going to walk in and see 20 taps. Want it to have that old-school, small, attainable vibe to a brewpub where it’s not about dominance or how many taps you can put in one room, but more about five really high-quality beers.” One that also serves as a go-to coffee shop in the morning. “We want to get people on their way to work and then on the way back,” jokes co-founder and general manager Bert Holdredge, an award-winning homebrewer and seasoned bartender (see: Publick House in Brookline). And that will be fairly easy for both Somervillians and those journeying from other parts around the Hub. Rowe and Holdredge will be installing bike racks out front near the 40-seat outdoor patio, and they’re working with their friends at Somervelo to possibly help establish the brewery as the final stop for their regular group rides. Besides that, there will be the rarity of parking, and an MBTA bus stop is right outside their front door. And so far, the locals are already looking forward to the new addition. “I live around the corner; the demo is awesome,” says Rowe. “Our neighbors have been super friendly, [and] it helps validate your vision when you have locals coming up saying, ‘Please open.’” Rowe says Winter Hill Brewery will be a five-barrel house, all of which will be brewed on premises, but they won’t even be kegging beer or doing distribution for the most part. “Down the road we may do light distribution, but our goal is to not be in liquor stores,” he says. “We’re limiting our footprint, and keeping [Somerville] as a home base. More than anything else, we’d rather just have you come to us.” >> WINTER HILL BREWING. OPENING IN NOVEMBER. 328 BROADWAY, SOMERVILLE. WINTERHILLBREWING.COM 16
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NEWS TO US
FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
17
ARTS ENTERTAINMENT
18
THU 8.27
FRI 8.28
SAT 8.29
SAT 8.29
SUN 8.29
SUN 8.29
Life On The V: The Story Of V66
Strandbeests Stroll Through City Hall
Golden Girls 1,001st Drag Performance at Club Cafe
Backyard BYOB Stand-Up Comedy Blowout
Burlesque for Beginners
Last Day for Films at the Gate
Know that in 1985 there was a Boston TV channel on UHF-TV, channel V66, and for 18 glorious months it survived as a live and Hub-centric MTV. Then, it died. And yet, some 30 years later, there remains a subculture and fandom about the channel and its programming that somehow has lived on to this day. So if you’ve never even heard of all this, hit the Somerville Theatre on Thursday for a blast of ’80s nostalgia.
If you have even a fleeting relationship with Facebook or the arts scene in Greater Boston, or have the ability to Google things, you’re probably aware of Strandbeests. They, the wind-walking skeletal machines developed by inventor Theo Jansen, touched down in America for the first time in Salem earlier this month. And on Friday you can see what all the fuss is about in City Hall Plaza, where they’ll be walking around and doing whatever wind-walking skeletal machines do.
Bad news: The 1,000th performance by the original all-male cast from NYC of the now-beloved Golden Girls drag show that goes down at Club Cafe on Friday is sold out. But you can just catch the 1,001st performance on Saturday with the cast, now in its 13th year, and relish in all the gags and gray-haired fun. Call it a celebration of anyone willing to dress up as Bea Arthur for more than a decade.
So, for some time now local stand-up comedian Mike Mulloy has been throwing the occasional semi-secret BYOB free comedy show with a rotating cast of local comedians at his place in Southie, using his back porch as the stage (see above image). Well, he’s throwing one last one with local stand-ups like Dan Boulger, Twanda Gona, Sam Jay and more. Don’t worry if the place gets trashed … he’s moving to LA the very next day.
Burlesque is like cooking: Sure, in theory anyone can do it, but without some core essentials to guide you, things can turn into a disaster right quick. So if the thought of dancing seductively and with a playful twinkle while slowly removing your clothes and driving whoever you’re doing it for mad is on your bucket list, let the ladies of Boston’s Rogue Burlesque show you how it’s done. Or not done, given your last attempt.
For 10 years running, Boston’s only spot for a series of free outdoor kung fu films at Chinatown Park has been providing a series of film screenings that are free and open to the public. And Sunday is the last day for this season, with an Iron Monkey screening (a new classic of the genre whose US release was backed by Quentin Tarantino) and live kung fu performances. Kung fu Sundays > no kung fu Sundays.
Somerville Theatre. 55 Davis Sq., Somerville. 7:30pm/all ages/$10. somervilletheatreonline. com
City Hall Plaza. 11am-1pm/ all ages/FREE.
Club Cafe. 209 Columbus Ave., Boston. 3pm/21+/$40. clubcafe.com/golden-girlslive
Mike Mulloy’s Apartment. 206 H St., Boston. 1-4pm/all ages/FREE.
Arts at the Armory. 191 Highland Ave., Somerville. 6-8pm/21+/$35. introtoburlesque2015.bpt.me
Chinatown Park. Surface Rd., Boston. 7-10pm/all ages/FREE. asiancdc.org/ content/films-gate
08.26.15 - 09.2.15
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PHOTO BY DAN MCCARTHY
HEY, THANKS EVERYONE FOR COMING ... DOWNSTAIRS
NEWS TO US
FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
19
MUSIC
TRUST FALL
Gracie goes solo in wake of Fat Creeps BY NINA CORCORAN @NINA_CORCORAN
EXPRESSIVE OBSESSIVE The brave motives of La Luz BY NINA CORCORAN @NINA_CORCORAN Memories are obsessions your brain can’t stop replaying. Seattle surf rock band La Luz know that all too well. The four-piece romp through hazy, melodic ’60s harmonies and shaking riffs. On their newest album, Weirdo Shrine, they turn the focus onto themes far darker than their sound suggests: obsession, death, and personal meaning. The album’s toughest listen, despite its cheery guitar line, is “Don’t Wanna Be Anywhere,” a three-minute dance about guitarist Shana Cleveland’s close high school friend passing away in Michigan. “In writing the song, I had to divorce my own personal experience from it to a certain degree,” Cleveland explains. “There’s a song called ‘Me and the Day’ where I think about this awful car accident we were in … The image of that boulder slowly gaining speed going down the hill is unshakable. Before that, it was about a personal relationship. Once you put these songs out into the world, they’re open to anyone’s interpretation, including your own.” Mentally working through issues brings about a change in perspective, particularly in tinting the ways in which you live your life. “I use art and music as a way of coming to a better understanding of this,” Cleveland says. For the band, Weirdo Shrine is a way to nod to the objects, physical or emotional, we accumulate over time, shaping an obsession that grows sturdier over time. Obsession, no matter what it’s tied to, helps us in the long run. “It feels like a way to be more alive,” says Cleveland. “You can go through your day and fall into a routine, but people pick up on various obsessions—whether they’re related to religion, love, or fear. Feeling intensely about something can be inspiring in a lot of ways. You start seeing the world around you differently than everyone else.” Musically, Weirdo Shrine introduced them to their newest fixation: fuzz. Ty Segall, the modern day king of fuzz and garage rock, immediately began introducing Cleveland and co to various fuzz pedals while producing the album. “I try to keep my pedals simple, because I don’t want to think about extra barriers between myself and the audience, but he was really persistent about my trying them,” laughs Cleveland. “Slowly, he started suggesting I use fuzz on all of the tracks, and it got better. Actually, he gave me one at the end of our recording session and I use it every day now!” The weight of some obsessions are far lighter than others, but their music, at the end of the day, always finds a balance. >> LA LUZ, SCULLY, LITTLEFOOT, AND WAKES. MIDDLE EAST UPSTAIRS, 480 MASS AVE., CAMBRIDGE. 8PM/18+/$12. MIDEASTOFFERS.COM
MUSIC EVENTS WED 8.26
THU 8.27
[Middle East Upstairs, 480 Mass Ave., Cambridge. 8pm/18+/$10. mideastoffers.com]
[Middle East Upstairs, 480 Mass Ave., Cambridge. 8pm/18+/$12. mideastoffers.com]
ADORABLE INDIE ROCK CUDDLE MAGIC + JACOB AUGUSTINE + TWAIN
20
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SURF’S UP LA LUZ + SCULLY + LITTLEFOOT + WAKES
DIGBOSTON.COM
>> GUERILLA TOSS, THE LENTILS, GRAPE ROOM, AND GRACIE. FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, 633 CENTRE ST., JAMAICA PLAIN. 8PM/ALL AGES/$10. FIRSTBAPTISTJP.ORG
FRI 8.28
FRI 8.28
SAT 8.29
[Zumix, 260 Sumner St., Boston. 6pm/all ages/free. zumix.org]
[First Baptist Church, 633 Centre St., Jamaica Plain. 8pm/all ages/$10. firstbaptistjp.org.]
[Great Scott, 1222 Comm Ave., Allston. 9pm/21+/ $10. greatscottboston.com]
UNSUNG HEROS HORSE JUMPER OF LOVE + GARNOLA + EGOTISTIC HIGH + QUIETLY LOUD + MIYAGI & THE KIDS
NOISE ROCK WHISPERS GUERILLA TOSS + THE LENTILS + GRAPE ROOM + GRACIE
GARAGE ROCK FAREWELL BLACKBUTTON + RYE PINES + THE KNOCK UPS + SKINNY PIGEONS
SUN 8.30
THE BRITISH ARE COMING THE VACCINES + DIRTY BANGS
[The Sinclair, 52 Church St., Cambridge. 8pm/18+/$20. sinclaircambridge.com]
LA LUZ PHOTO BY ANDREW IMANAKA
MUSIC
We may not want to accept the nearing proximity of fall, but Gracie is already greeting the shadowed season of change. After Fat Creeps called it quits last year, Gracie, the moniker for Massachusetts native Gracie Jackson, is finally pursuing solo work. Their lo-fi grunge is out the window. Now, she’s focused on brooding, lethargic, smoky alt-rock somewhere between the hopeful sighs of Karen O and the troubled thoughts of Elliott Smith, most recognizable through her odd guitar tunings. “It was never intentional; I just like to play with weird tunings,” she laughs. “I used to bring two or three guitars onstage, but that was such a hassle. I’m trying to simplify things while still using various de-tunings.” Though she’s recorded with multiple bands, Gracie’s never let her solo work stand in the spotlight. “I wasn’t confident enough to do my own thing, so I would always sit in the back as support for someone else,” she says. “I never wanted to be the main musician. When Fat Creeps broke up, I figured I had all these songs and had to keep going.” Even though the songs harp on dissonance and gloom, Gracie’s music still ends with a smile. Like those artists she listens to on repeat—Angel Olsen, Patsy Cline, Sibylle Baier—her music is for submerging. “I’ve always been drawn to minor keys, and I’ve always written songs that aren’t the most happy-sounding,” Gracie explains. “Even if I do write a song I think is upbeat, people always tell me it’s so sad. I don’t consciously realize it, but I guess that’s the work I churn out. Maybe I’m motivated by darker things.” As fall starts to show its face, don’t be afraid of parting with summer. Gracie’s music makes that an easy transition. “The lyrics aren’t always depressing. In fact, they’re rather hopeful,” she says, noting her disassociation from careful structural planning. “The more you think, the more you stink. I’m just letting feeling guide me more than logic.”
oktoberfest
Wednesday’s 5-11PM SEPT. 2nd - Oct. 28TH
MENU OBATZDA
THU 8/27
VIRAL SOUND
G-NOME PROJECT THE HORNITZ, AND TWEED FRI 8/28
DAN & THE WILDFIRE HADLEY AND THE JACKAL TUE 9/1 - LEEDZ PRESENTS:
LIL DURK
WED 9/2 - LEEDZ PRESENTS:
!MAYDAY! (STRANGE MUSIC) WED 8/26
CUDDLE MAGIC JACOB AUGUSTINE THU 8/27
ILLEGALLY BLIND ANNIVERSARY
LA LUZ
SCULLY, LITTLEFOOT, WAKES FRI 8/28
MONIKER
WILLOW, GODDARD SAT 8/29
WONDER CITY
House Made Bavarian Cheese Spread / Country Bread
KARTOFFELPUFFER
Potato Pancakes / Rustic Applesauce / Sour Cream / Chives
REUBEN KNOCKWURST
Knockwurst / Ale braised sauerkraut/Thousand Island dressing
PAPRIKA SCHNITZEL
Pork cutlets / Paprika gravy / Pretzel spaetzle / Cider glazed cabbage
HAUS WURST PLATE
Bratwurst / Knockwurst / Weisswurst/ Ale braised sauerkraut
SCHWIENBRATEN
Roast Pork loin / Spaetzle / Brussels Sprouts / Rosemary Cider Jus
SCHWARZWALDER KIRSCHTORTE Chocolate Layered Cake / kirsch liqueur / Cherries / Whipped Cream
MAGOUNSSALOON OLDEMAGOUNSSALOON
SUN 8/30
FLORIO DAEM
MON 8/31 - CROSSROADS PRESENTS:
DEAD HEAVENS (FEAT. WALTER SHREIFELS)
518 Medford St. Somerville magounssaloon.com 617-776-2600 NEWS TO US
FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
21
FILM
FARCE TO THE FUTURE
Three generations of comedy filmmakers release their latest this week BY JAKE MULLIGAN @_JAKEMULLIGAN
DIGGING FOR FIRE Digging for Fire has more familiar faces than the dive bar across the street. The leads are Jake Johnson and Rosemarie DeWitt, playing a married couple who argue about the “usual things”—she wants him to do the taxes, he wants her to turn down the handouts offered by her parents—until he digs up a gun and a bone in the backyard of their temporary home, at which point they have something unusual to argue about. It’s not a cue toward a literal mystery: It’s an abstraction, a symbol, a dramatic trick. Its humble purpose is to set these parties out for nights within their respective social circles. Johnson parties with Sam Rockwell (playing the drunk one), Mike Birbiglia (the responsible one), Brie Larson (the sexy one), and Anna Kendrick (who exhibits no discernable character traits), while DeWitt meets with friends (Melanie Lynskey), family (Sam Elliott), and a sexy temptation of her own (Orlando Bloom and his intimidating forehead). Flirtations ensue. Anxieties are revealed. Cheating is contemplated. The marital skeletons get excavated, just like the metaphor promised. The filmmaker is Joe Swanberg (Drinking Buddies), a director of semiimprovised comedies who used to make barely released films with his friends (one of them was Greta Gerwig). Now he works with professionals—but if Fire is any indication, he’s still not writing past the first draft. The camera is stabler than it once was: It watches at a detached distance, not daring to move, but at least keeps multiple people within individual compositions at angles that occasionally give your eye more than one thing to look at. So the upside is that his sense of framing has evolved to a level that can be described as “competent.” But then, you could say the same thing about beer commercials. Kendrick shows up for a second time, now in DeWitt’s timeline. If this were a farce, that scene would see Johnson and Larson come crashing in, and all the movie’s threads would intersect. But the beats here aren’t written, they’re riffed. And like all the film’s unexplained detours, Kendrick’s recurrence is just a lark. Swanberg’s got all these actors, and no characters to put them in. There’s a line in She’s Funny That Way: “Coincidence is a way of reminding us that there’s someone up there with a massive plan.” The absence of intrusions in that second Kendrick scene is enough to suggest that Swanberg’s cinema is sorely lacking in coincidences. But Funny, directed and co-written by screwball-comedy advocate Peter Bogdanovich—well, coincidence is all that it’s got. It’s an eightFARCE TO THE FUTURE continued on pg. 24
FILM EVENTS WED 8.26
INDIE CRED
THE MASSACHUSETTS INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL
[At the Somerville Theatre on 8.26 and 8.27. At the Brattle Theatre on 8.28 and 8.29. Programs run throughout each day. Check MassIFF.org for schedules, tickets, and other information.] THU 8.27
THE STORY OF THE V66 UHF CHANNEL LIFE ON THE V
[Somerville Theatre. 55 Davis Sq., Somerville. 7:30pm/NR/$10. somervilletheatreonline. com/somerville-theatre] 22
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THE REWIND! SCREENING SERIES PRESENTS JURASSIC PARK
[Coolidge Corner. 290 Harvard St., Brookline. 7pm/PG/$11.25. coolidge.org] FRI 8.28
COOLIDGE AFTER MIDNIGHT PRESENTS
MAD MAX 2: THE ROAD WARRIOR
[Coolidge Corner. 290 Harvard St., Brookline. Also plays Sat 8.29. Midnight/R/$11.25. 35mm. coolidge.org]
ALSO AFTER MIDNIGHT
TWILLERAMA ANIMATION FESTIVAL: VOLS. 1 AND 2
[Coolidge Corner. 290 Harvard St., Brookline. Also plays Sat 8.29. Midnight/NR/$11.25. coolidge.org] MON 8.31
TWO SCREWBALLS BY GEORGE CUKOR THE PHILADELPHIA STORY and HOLIDAY
[Brattle Theatre. 40 Brattle St., Harvard Sq., Cambridge. Also screen 9.1. Philadelphia at 2:45 and 7, Holiday at 5 and 9:15pm/NR/$9-11. 35mm. brattlefilm.org]
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FEATURE
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ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
23
FARCE TO THE FUTURE continued from pg. 22
FILM SHORTS BY JAKE MULLIGAN @_JAKEMULLIGAN
person partner-swapping farce: two courts of mixed doubles, with balls bouncing in every direction. Arnold is a theater director (Owen Wilson), Delta is his wife and lead actress (Kathryn Hahn), Joshua is the playwright (Will Forte), Seth is the silver-fox actor (Rhys Ifans), and Jane is the furious therapist (Jennifer Aniston) who treats half the cast. As we go further down the lineup, the script grows wackier: Arnold has a fetish for charity and gets off on sending call girls home with five-figure tips. One of them is Izzy (Imogen Poots), who becomes an actress, and—much to the director’s chagrin—everyone can see that she’s perfect for the last open part in the play: the call girl. A judge and a detective get involved as the seventh and eighth wheels, because this is that type of movie—the type of comedy they might’ve made in the ’30s, when detectives and judges were always walking into farcical scenes at the wrong time. So people get knocked down. They get punched out. They get carried off their feet by wisecracking police officers. SHE’S FUNNY THAT WAY They hide in racks of shirts inside department stores. They wear fake mustaches. They do everything short of invoking the spirit of Cary Grant. And if you look far enough into the background, you just might see Bogdanovich doing that, too. He’s dealing with many of the same ideas Swanberg is: Both movies consider the rejuvenating force of the temptations bred by the life you lead away from your partner. But Bogdanovich has attached those ideas to a genre that’s actually capable of entertaining us. His jokes may sometimes be as old as he is—like when he has Wilson juggling his ladies’ calls across multiple phones—but the upside there is that Bogdanovich tells them with a master’s rhythm. He’s stuck in his own little screwball world, but he speaks the language well. Almost every article written about Mistress America, the latest Noah Baumbach comedy, uses the word “screwball” somewhere. That’s understandable: Brooke (the aforementioned Gerwig, who co-writes, as she did on Frances Ha) is the type of character you’d expect to find in a Peter Bogdanovich movie. She’s a 30-year-old who describes herself as being “in her twenties.” She lives in Times Square. When she meets Tracy (Lola Kirke), her soon-to-bestepsister, she drops a line that Katherine Hepburn would have trouble selling: “You got a honey?” But that affectation isn’t the product of the movie, as it is with Bogdanovich. Here, it’s actually the character: Brooke thinks she’s living in a bubbly comedy. What Mistress is concerned with is the process by which she learns that she’s not. Anyway, Tracy doesn’t have a honey—the boy she likes at her university has started dating an irritable shrew —so she takes to Brooke instead. The movie is told in two acts: first night, then day. The first half has Brooke playing big sis to Tracy by taking her out and deigning to let her crash on the couch. Tracy, a bit less directionless than Brooke realizes, wants into her school’s lit society, and starts crafting Brooke’s Fitzgeraldian bombast into material for her next story. Then daytime arrives. Baumbach conspires, via plot machinations so convoluted that they almost warp the screen, to get Brooke, Tracy, Tracy’s crush, his girlfriend, Brooke’s ex, and his new girlfriend—who herself stole an idea for a successful company from Brooke—into the same home for the film’s second half. The walls are pure white, the sun comes in overblown through glass doors … and all the night’s secrets come out in the MISTRESS AMERICA light, with Baumbach’s deceptively intricate framing—characters are always shifting to align with or against other characters physically—slowly revealing the teams that are forming. So whenever the odds are stacked high against one individual, the compositions themselves become a punchline. What results is the kind of criss-crossing farce that Funny That Way aspires to be— only here you can’t see the cobwebs hanging off of the corners. Baumbach and Gerwig’s script excavates the skeletons, and it screws the balls, and it does it all without sacrificing characterization, or regional specificity, or flights of verbal fancy, or any of the other things that the other two movies are so desperately missing. Swanberg’s picture is rather shoddily constructed. Bogdanovich’s is solid as oak, but creaks with every move. And Baumbach’s? Just right.
AMERICAN ULTRA Sometimes you know how a movie was pitched. Here, it’s “Bourne Identity meets Pineapple Express”: A pothead (Jesse Eisenberg) is “activated,” regaining the super-spy skills the government once trained into him. References to drones, threestrike conviction policies, and even space monkeys abound—there’s a critique of government overreach percolating. But that’s only so that we don’t feel queasy when Eisenberg dishes out faux-cool kills: bullets ricocheting off surfaces and bodies sliding perfectly into place like Looney Tunes. A movie wears a progressive badge while also trafficking in the exploding-heads-for-pleasure black market—how to react to that? If you’re an executive, you finance it. We just call bullshit.
>> DIGGING FOR FIRE. RATED R. OPENING AT THE KENDALL SQUARE CINEMA ON FRI 8.28. ALSO AVAILABLE ON VOD PLATFORMS. SHE’S FUNNY THAT WAY. RATED R. PLAYING AT HOLLYWOOD HITS THEATRE. 7 HUTCHINSON DR., DANVERS. ALSO AVAILABLE ON VOD PLATFORMS. MISTRESS AMERICA. RATED R. NOW PLAYING AT COOLIDGE CORNER THEATRE, KENDALL SQUARE CINEMA, AND AMC BOSTON COMMONS. 24
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THE DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL Sexually frank films about teenage female subjects tend to draw a specific response: “Nobody would bat an eye if this were about a boy.” That’s certainly not true of Diary, wherein Minnie starts sleeping with her mother’s boyfriend (Kristen Wiig and Alexander Skarsgård, respectively) before branching out into one-night stands and pseudosex work—there’s no male equivalent for this. Wiig’s character alternates between feminist politics and fatshaming (we’re in San Francisco circa ’76) while Minnie tries to find her own place on those sexual and political spectrums. The incidental framing may scream “Sundance darling,” but the moves this movie makes between the sheets? They’re not in any playbook. INSIDE OUT It’s a head trip: The new Pixar movie takes place inside a teenage girl’s psyche, where characters like Joy (Amy Poehler) and Anger (Lewis Black) dictate her actions. The stakes are low—her family moves, and some non-humans get lost, just like Toy Story—and the resulting drama is inevitably inert. But who cares? The beauty is in the details, like in the way the emotions’ bodies are rounded off into amorphous blobs of energy rather than structured by hard lines. Dramatizing chemical imbalances is admirable, but doing it with such aesthetic vigor? That’s beautiful.
IRRATIONAL MAN A sexually frustrated passiveaggressive pseudo-intellectual college professor (Joaquin Phoenix) mopes around while trying to sleep with the sprightliest of his students (Emma Stone) in what appears to be a curiously antiseptic romcom. Then, with almost no dramatic justification, the professor attempts to commit the perfect murder. And that transgression produces a creative spark that sex never provided, though the film— unlike the character—has no idea what to do with it. (Slapstick intrudes, but only intermittently.) We end with a reminder that we live in a Godless universe with no order. Irrational Man is a film by Woody Allen. MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE—ROGUE NATION Nothing in Rogue Nation works except for Tom Cruise—but oh, how he works. There’s an opera house shootout where he’s rappelling through everything (across moving light fixtures, into back rooms and onto the sets of the stage), and what sells it is his sheer exasperation: He’s one of the only action stars whose facial expressions are calculated to reveal that he can sweat, too. Cruise isn’t the sort of actor we believe can actually save the world. But in scenes like that, he provides a more moderate salvation: His charisma can still save otherwise forgettable action movies. RICKI AND THE FLASH Meryl Streep’s eponymous would-be arena rocker—she never made it, and now covers Tom Petty for regulars at a San Fernando dive—gets called home to provide emotional support for the millennial daughter she left behind decades earlier. So the script is mining laughs from the faux pas traded between 20-somethings who care about going green and a child of the ’60s who’d rather be smoking it. It’s director Jonathan Demme, so adept with building character, who makes this into more than a grounded Freaky Friday: He hangs on to each scene for moments longer than necessary, and finds explanations for even the most unreasonable plot machinations. He cares, and it plays. STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON The first half of this N.W.A biopic is full of drug-fueled performances and orgies as sweaty as Eazy-E after a rough weekend—it revels in amorality. Then all the characters walk through arcs that absolve them of every sin we saw them commit, leaving them to be responsible family men who make nice headphones or star in inoffensive Hollywood comedies, and who’re now fine upstanding corporate employees who never do anything wrong, thank you very much. Putting it bluntly, that’s boring: We already knew these men went from “fuck tha police” to “buy some Beats.”
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FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
25
THEATER
MANHATTAN TRANSFER
Productions born in Boston are becoming a regular part of New York’s theatrical landscape BY CHRISTOPHER EHLERS @_CHRISEHLERS
WED AUGUST 26tth
8PM SIGN UP | 8:30PM MUSIC
OPEN
MIC NIGHT HOST: Zach Cohen NO COVER | 18+
THURS AUGUST 27th 9:00PM
ALL GOOD DJs: Thaddeus Jeffries, Estman Garcia, Yvng Pavl Genres: Breaks, Hip Hop, R&B, Reggae, Soca, Caribbean, Classic House, Indie Dance NO COVER | 21+ FRI AUGUST 28th 9:30PM
Sat 9/5 7:30PM
ERIN HARPE
& THE DELTA SWINGERS + LIZ FRAME + LOVEWHIP (Blues)
Wed 9/16 7:30PM
YOUNG
DUBLINERS
RARE ACOUSTIC PERFORMANCE
+ THE GOBSHITES (Celtic Rock)
SOCIAL STUDIES BOOTIE BOSTON
17 Holland St., Davis Sq. Somerville (617) 776-2004 Directly on T Red Line at Davis
Tuesday AUGUST 29th 9:30PM
Jeff jam dance party
DJs: DJ Pierre (Chicago), Brenden Wesley, Alfredo & Ali Berger | Jabulani, McFly, Spencer4Hire Genres: Downstairs: Disco, House, Techno | Upstairs: Mashups | $10 | | 21+
FRESH PRODUCE DJs: DJ Kool Herc (hip-hop’s founder), The Bladerunners & Knife Genres: Hip Hop, Reggae, Trap, Dirty South, Party Jams | $10 | 21+ Tuesday SEPTEMBER 1st 6:00 PM
GAME
NIGHT NO COVER | Downstairs 18+ until 10 PM
8/26 8/27
Uncle Johnny’s Band (Tribute to the Grateful Dead) FREE SHOW! 8/28
John Sebastian (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductee of Lovin’ Spoonful) PLUS Paul Rishell & Annie Raines 8/28
Pressure Cooker (Reggae) + The Boston Jazz Reggae Trio 8/29
Saturday night soul Saturday Night Soul with Miss Fairchild + Johnny Blazes & The Pretty Boys + Gold Blood & Associates + The Liza Colby Sound 9/3
Grammy Award Winner Jim Lauderdale + The Darlings (Americana/ Bluegrass/ Country) 9/4
The Racky Thomas Band and Friends 9/5
Erin Harpe and the Delta Swingers / Lovewhip / Looker
17 Holland St., Davis Sq. Somerville (617) 776-2004 Directly on T Red Line at Davis 26
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AS LONG AS THIS DOESN’T START A CURSE OF THE THEAER BAMBINO I’M GOOD On the heels of the American Repertory Theater’s announcement that their world premiere of the Sara Bareilles-scored musical Waitress will be opening on Broadway in the spring, it feels like a great time to celebrate Boston theater in all of its delicious fertility. Fertility, in this case, that is qualified by the mighty New York transfer. Earlier this year, Off-Broadway’s Second Stage Theatre announced that two Boston-born plays would make their New York debuts as part of its upcoming 2015-16 season: Invisible Thread, which had its world premiere at the American Repertory Theater last February under the title Witness Uganda, and Smart People, which premiered at the Huntington Theatre Company last spring. For all those in Boston that create and consume theater, this announcement served as a thrilling reminder that the work being done here isn’t only good, but relevant and sought-after. Inspired by a true story, Invisible Thread is a thrilling new musical by Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews about a young man from New York whose life is forever changed after he volunteers as an aid worker in Uganda. As it was in Cambridge, the Second Stage production will be directed by—you guessed it— red-hot director and ART artistic director Diane Paulus. Paulus has been attached to the project for several years, and it appears that the show is being retooled a bit for its New York production. Of course, no examination of this topic would be complete without noting the American Repertory Theater’s recent track record: In just 3 years, 5 ART productions have opened on Broadway: The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess (10 Tony nominations; 2 wins), Pippin (10 Tony nominations; 4 wins), The Glass Menagerie (7 Tony nominations; 1 win), All The Way (2 Tony nominations; 2 wins), and—most recently—Finding Neverland, which was panned nearly unanimously by critics but has raked in over $1 million per week since opening this past spring. It is worth noting that Paulus has directed 3 of these productions. About this time last year—on or around opening night in Cambridge—it was announced that Neverland would indeed make the flight to Broadway. Just last week, the same announcement was made about Waitress. A Broadway transfer, of course, was always part of the plan. Opening at Second Stage Theatre in New York early next year is Smart People, Lydia R Diamond’s hilarious and fascinating story of four Harvard intellectuals as they take on racial prejudice in their own social and academic circles. This won’t be the first time a Diamond play has gone from the Huntington to New York: Stick Fly was a big hit in Boston and opened the following year on Broadway with a new director (Tony-winner Kenny Leon) and a star producer (Alicia Keys). With negative reviews, the show failed to find an audience and closed after only 93 performances. Like Stick Fly, Smart People was received well when it played the Huntington last year, with Boston Globe critic Don Aucoin writing that he felt like it could be Diamond’s “potential ticket back” to Broadway; off-Broadway, as it turns out, but he wasn’t entirely wrong. After Waitress, it looks like we won’t have to wait too long before the next New York-bound show premieres in Boston: Look to the Huntington’s long-awaited world premiere of A Confederacy of Dunces, starring Nick Offerman from TV’s Parks and Recreation. According to Michael Riedel of the New York Post, Offerman’s contract has an option for Broadway; following a November opening at the Huntington, if all goes well, expect Dunces to open on Broadway this spring.
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NEWS TO US
FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
27
New England’s Largest MMJ & Cannabis Industry Expo Series Returns to Boston Sept. 12th & 13 at The Castle @ Park Plaza
ARTS
JEN KIRKMAN
On Drunk History, Chelsea Handler, and not having a TV show set in Boston BY DAN MCCARTHY @ACUTALPROOF Jen Kirkman has something of a home court advantage when performing around the Hub. For starters, she’s an Emerson alum, started doing stand-up in Cambridge, and was born and raised in Needham. But as an ever more familiar face, the standup comedian, author, and screenwriter-actress was also a former regular on the roundtable panels on Chelsea Lately (where she was also a writer), co-founded an early-aughts comedy website aimed at women, and was famously sloshed as part of Funny or Die’s Drunk History, as well as the Comedy Central version. In spite of telling the history while wine-drunk on the floor (literally), there was some online trolling and questioning about how drunk she actually was (because the Internet). She clears that up below, while also discussing Chelsea Handler’s penchant for going topless and using the early-2000’s internet to land interviews with Gloria Steinem. You’re in LA now. Biggest observation from doing shows there vs Boston? You have to be smarter with Boston crowds. [They’re] like, “We’re as funny as you, and you’re doing your day job.” It keeps you on your toes.
SATURDAY SEPT.NOON-6PM 12TH
SUNDAY SEPT: 11AM-5PM 13TH At the Castle @ Park Plaza, Downtown Boston
Tickets now on sale at: www.necann.com $25 per day, or save $10 with a $40 2-day pass!
Programming highlights include:
Hardship Cultivation Options | Growsite Construction | Analysis & Testing Legislation & Legalization | MMJ Patient Services Cooking with Cannabis | Extract & Concentrates | Glassblowing | Investing/Valuation | Packaging/Storage | Security
Presented by:
WWW.NECANN.COM 28
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You had a pilot, The Jen Show, being talked about at one point, which was set in Boston. Is that happening? I sold a show and wrote a pilot. It seems like a bigger deal but it’s not … [and] it didn’t work out. I would’ve liked it, but [the press about it] was a little exaggerated. It made it seem like there’s a show on the air [on] the way. Then I got 100 emails from people I knew saying, “I NEED A JOB,” but I was like, “There’s no show, guys.” Drunk History. Let’s hear it. Are you really drunk in those? There’s been criticism about how legitimately drunk you are. Yes! It’s very true, [I] drank two bottles of wine. The hardest acting job to get would be to pretend you’re drunk, [and] I’m not that good of an actress. I usually am blackout drunk when doing them, and very hungover for days. They need to pay me more, to be honest. [laughs] What are your memories of Girlcomic.net? Back then if you just said, “I have a website,” people would just get on the phone. I spoke with people like Margaret Cho and [Amy Poehler] and Gloria Steinem … it was a super fun project, just getting to interview cool people and then giving myself the assignment of a short story a week. How was working with/for Chelsea Handler? Her show was my first break and first permanent thing I did where I was no longer broke. I wrote from 2008 until last year, and appeared on the show. It was amazing. It had an anarchy appeal to it. She was a big voice in the #FreeTheNipple social media movement. She was always taking out her tits, all the time. I think she was so used to doing that that she put it on Instagram without thinking, and was probably so surprised when they censored it, because seriously, her pics were silly, skiing with her top off … but go on Instagram and there are dirty pics of teen girls posing like porn stars. And that’s way more offensive than a comedian with their boobs out. It’s strange to me that we censor breasts. Don’t we see nudity all the time? I personally don’t feel like taking my top off, and I congratulate her for doing it. When you see the comments left, it’s awful, they’re so dirty, I don’t want to put [up] a picture of me in a short-sleeve shirt, let alone no shirt. It’s silliness. [And] wouldn’t you rather see Chelsea Handler with her top off than Seth Rogen one more time? >> JEN KIRKMAN. PLAYS WED 9.2 AT THE SINCLAIR. 52 CHURCH ST., CAMBRIDGE. JENKIRKMAN.COM OR SINCLAIRCAMBRIDGE.COM FOR TICKETS. VISIT DIGBOSTON.COM FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW
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FEATURE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
29
NOTHING MATTRESS BY BRIAN CONNOLLY @NOTHINGMATTRESS
THE STRANGERER BY PAT FALCO ILLFALCO.COM
WHAT'S FOR BREAKFAST BY PATT KELLEY WHATS4BREAKFAST.COM
OUR VALUED CUSTOMERS BY TIM CHAMBERLAIN OURVC.NET
SAVAGE LOVE
ASHLEY’S ASHES BY DAN SAVAGE @FAKEDANSAVAGE I’m one of those morons who had an Ashley Madison account. But for me, and probably for many others, AM has been a strong antidote to the urge to cheat. Spending some time on AM taught me the following: (1) I’m nothing special—there are millions of other men looking for the same thing, and most of them are younger and better-looking. (2) The women on AM are nothing special—the few who even bother chatting with you are often looking for money, and your wife starts looking damn good by comparison. (3) The whole thing is basically a scam to separate horny middle-aged guys from our wallets. And it doesn’t even have the relatively honest sleaze of a strip club. Ashley Madison Mark There’s no way to tell the difference between an Ashley Madison member who came to his (or her) senses before cheating, like AMM here, and a member who fucked a dozen other people— or, for that matter, a member who had a good reason for being on the site…
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I am a data-security attorney. One important point that seems to be missed by those celebrating the Ashley Madison hack is that while cheating is not illegal, unauthorized hacking is. While some may find cheating morally reprehensible, it is not so morally reprehensible in this country that there are laws prohibiting it (anymore)—it’s not even a misdemeanor. On the other hand, hacking into someone’s system and accessing data without authorization is considered so morally reprehensible that we have state and federal laws against it. Also, there are state and federal laws that apply to sites like Ashley Madison around properly securing their data and not making promises about security or handling of data (such as whether data is deleted). It will be interesting to see what actions, if any, may be taken against the site. I predict this is just the start of attacks against sex-oriented sites. Who Is Next? Almost everyone has posted stuff online anonymously, has privately shared pictures and fantasies, and has a browser history that could screw up their lives if that info were dumped into a searchable database that named names. The people celebrating the Ashley Madison hack might have more sympathy for the victims—the fantasizers and the cheaters—if they contemplated their own vulnerability. We are all one malicious hack, one lost cell phone, or one vindictive ex away from the kind of exposure and humiliation and, in some cases, the kind of ruin that the AM members are facing today.
OKTOBERFEST BOSTON
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