r-2017-12-28

MUSIC TO YOUR EARS A ROUNDUP OF 2017 ALBUMS see arts&culture, page 16

2017 was marked by great mOVIes, rOtten mOVIes—and sOme shameful behaVIOr

Bad pples, a d m o ovies o g RENo’s NEws & ENtERtaiNmENt wEEkly

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VolumE 23, issuE 46

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dEcEmbER 28, 2017 – JaNuaRy 3, 2018

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decembeR 28, 2017 | Vol. 23, ISSue 46

Adding to the story

Homework fatigue

Topical verse

Welcome to this week’s Reno News & Review and, by the time this week’s edition expires, to the new year.

Earlier this year, I wrote a cover story telling readers about a painting I bought of Stari Most, a bridge in Mostar, Bosnia and the journey on which it led me to find its story.

One thing I still did not know when I wrote the story was the identity of the artist. The painting was signed JBurr. I also did not know if the piece was painted from the actual setting or from a photo. And i did not know if it had a title.

Not long after we published that article, I heard from one of our North Carolina readers, David Regan.

“The artist is James Burr,” he wrote. “My brothers, sister and I called him Grandad. He and my grandmother moved to the United States from England in 1968 shortly after I was born.

The bulk of my family, including James’ only daughter (my Mum) live in Northern California, and have many of his paintings.”

James Louis Burr for a time traveled around Europe painting local landmarks and selling them. So my painting may have been done by Burr sitting and painting it in person, though we cannot be sure.

“He and my grandmother owned a hotel, The Oak, in Feltwell Norfolk where my parents met,” Mr. Regan wrote when I asked him for more information. “In 1968 he and my grandmother moved to the Sacramento, California area where they stayed until he died August 29, 1989. … I only recall seeing the painting of Stari Most, not details of how/ where/when it was painted.”

Nor did he know a title, so I may give it one, which of course would be Stari Most.

The artist’s widow still lives near us, in Sacramento, and I hope to make contact with her. Mr. Regan said he was given one of his grandfather’s paintings on his 21st birthday, and he calls it “my most prized possession.”

There are many problems around the world and they are very common. We all want the government to run smoothly now and to put our kids safe into their future. The problem to make this possible is education. The main factors are homework, amount of hours kids are sleeping, and standardized testing.

Being a current student athlete, homework is one of my biggest issues.

Every day I have school soccer training at Wooster High School and I get home right about 7 p.m. I feel like after a long day I need to rest. According to Buildon [a nonprofit organization that runs afterschool programs], about 1.2 million students drop out of high school every year. Many end up being poor, unemployed, and violent. The top reasons they drop out of high school are because of homework and the pressure getting to them. Talking about homework, connecting to the amount of kids sleeping late most every night is because of homework and is also a pretty big problem in the school system. Teachers give a crazy amount of homework.

We do not want students to be falling asleep because they were tired last night and they didn’t get to finish because they fell asleep and they’re too tired to go to school. I want to be able tto go and able to learn something new every day.

The solutions to this problem should be the following. Up to two hours of homework is reasonable. Parents should be more involved in their children’s studies and be worried about how many hours of homework students are doing. There is a really big question we should all ask ourselves.

Are teachers giving homework to occupy or are they trying to help us?

Anthony Garcia Reno Editor’s note: An article touching on the homework issue appeared in these pages in 2016. It can be read at https://tinyurl.com/ y8edpxml.

A Nevada fairy tale: Humpty Heller sat on a wall. Humpty Heller will have a great fall.

Adelson’s money and Adelson’s men will never put Humpty together again.

Craig Bergland Reno

—Dennis Myers

Our Mission: To publish great newspapers that are successful and enduring. To create a quality work environment that encourages employees to grow professionally while respecting personal welfare.

To have a positive impact on our communities and make them better places to live.

Editor Brad Bynum News Editor Dennis Myers Special Projects Editor Jeri Chadwell Arts Editor Kris Vagner Calendar Editor Kelley Lang Contributors Amy Alkon, Matt Bieker, Bob Grimm, Andrea Heerdt, Shaun Hunter, Holly

Hutchings, Kent Irwin, Shelia Leslie, Josie Glassberg, Eric Marks, Bailey Mecey, Jessica Santina, Todd South, Marc Tiar, Brendan Trainor, Bruce Van Dyke, Ashley Warren, Allison Young Design Manager Christopher Terrazas Creative Director Serene Lusano Art Director Margaret Larkin Marketing/Publications Designer Sarah Hansel Designers Kyle Shine, Maria Ratinova Web Design & Strategy Intern Elisabeth Bayard Arthur Sales Manager Emily Litt Office Manager Lisa Ryan RN&R Rainmaker Gina Odegard

Those Yanks Americans that are so clever have discovered that marital infidelities can also be a good business, and that is why they have created a kind of computer marriage agency, but the opposite. I mean an agency for people who want to be unfaithful to their couples. The business must go well that it is announced on television and have created a multinational of the marital infidelity which wants to be installed in Spain and of course, advertise in television as a car or cologne.

At the beginning a national channel agreed but then it gave up and I am glad.

Thank God there is still a bit of decency. I doubt very much that this type of business helps to combat the unemployment. The infidelity is as old as marriage and unfortunately it has existed, exists and will exist without the help of the Internet. Perhaps Adam and Eve also had some “affaire” when they came out of the Paradise.

Leaving to one side the times in which adulterers caught “in fraganti” were punished immediately (it still happens in certain Muslim countries), recently the adultery was considered a criminal offense and could be punished with imprisonment.

Adultery is not a pleasant situation for any of the three parties. For this reason the fact that someone can “join” to a club of unfaithful people, as if this was a football team, seems to me trivialize a matter that is already thorny. I find it hard to believe that someone is up in the morning and say: “Today I am going to be unfaithful to my wife/husband” and connect to the

Advertising Consultants Myranda Keeley, Kambrya Blake Distribution Director Greg Erwin Distribution Manager Bob Christensen Distribution Drivers Alex Barskyy, Brittany Alas, Corey Sigafoos, Gary White, Lucas Proctor, Marty Troye, Patrick L’Angelle, Timothy Fisher, Tracy Breeden, Vicki Jewell, Brandi Palmer, Olga Barska, Rosie Martinez President/CEO Jeff VonKaenel Director of Nuts & Bolts Deborah Redmond Executive Coordinator Carlyn Asuncion Project Coordinator Natasha VonKaenel Director of People & Culture David Stogner Nuts & Bolts Ninja: Leslie Giovanini

Director of Dollars & Sense Nicole Jackson Payroll/AP Wizard Miranda Hansen Accounts Receivable Specialist Analie Foland Sweetdeals Coordinator Hannah Williams Developers John Bisignano, System Support Specialist Kalin Jenkins N&R Publications Editor Michelle Carl N&R Publications Associate Editor Laura Hillen N&R Publications Writer Anne Stokes Marketing & Publications Consultants Steve Caruso, Joseph Engle, Elizabeth Morabito, Traci Hukill Cover design: Maria Ratinova Cover illustration: Michael Grimm

Internet to see what possibilities there are. According to the company, “they exist indeed.” In a day 70,000 potential candidates joined it.

All these news tell us very little of the moral condition of a society where the sex has been trivialized up to consider individuals as mere recipients of sexual instincts.

Alejandro Perez Benedicto Teruel, Spain

conTenTS

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oPiNioN/strEEtAlk shEilA lEsliE BrENdAN trAiNor NEws FEAtUrE Arts&CUltUrE Art oF thE stAtE Film Food driNk mUsiCBEAt NiGhtClUBs/CAsiNos this wEEk AdviCE GoddEss FrEE will AstroloGy 15 miNUtEs BrUCE vAN dykE

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By JERI CHADWELL

Movie you’ve rewatched most? aSked at Shea’S tavern, 715 S. virginia St.

Steve vaughn Carpenter

Oh, Bad Santa. It pops up on Netflix first.

adam marheine Production supervisor

Probably Devil’s Rejects. I don’t know. I like it.

Heller sticks it to veterans Over the years since the Veterans Administration scandal, U.S. Sen. Dean Heller has made a lot of noise about helping veterans while not doing a lot that was substantive, particularly dealing with staffing shortages.

A statement on the veterans suicide rate, a bill supposedly solving a transplant problem for veterans when the donor is a non-veteran, a statement on Veteran’s Day (he’s for it) were among Heller’s news releases. Four months ago, he touted his support for a bill providing interim funding to keep the VA Choice program alive, which begged the question of why the program needed such stopgap funding mid-year.. The reason was that Republicans keep veteran programs on a short financial leash.

Several years ago, when the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Association still published report cards on voting records of congressmembers, we reported that Democrats regularly provide greater support for vets than Republicans.

That may have seemed counterintuitive to those who think Democrats are soft on military spending, but we quoted columnist Bob Geiger, who scrutinized the scores: “The worst grade received by a Senate Democrat was higher than the best grade received by a Senate Republican.”

To put it simply, today’s Republicans who have taken over the GOP do not like government. Waiting lines will always be with veterans until a Congress is elected that does not want to see government fail. Heller is a member of a party that takes pleasure in seeing public agencies stumble because of obstacles placed in their path by Congress. That’s why service to veterans often moves at a crawl. And Heller has not himself broken from that belief system to get more assistance for veterans.

This year, though Heller has been quick at every opportunity to portray himself publicly as the veterans’ advocate, he never said a word about the problems posed by the Republican tax cut bill to a troubled Veterans Choice program. Indeed, there is no evidence that Heller even knew about the intersect of the two.

The Choice program gives access to services, surgeries, and treatment for vets that Veterans Administration programs cannot provide, and also assures vets in lowpopulation areas care near their homes The army newspaper Stars and Stripes reported that the tax bill “muddied debate … on legislation that would significantly change the system that veterans use to receive private health care. … During the past year, disagreements over how to reform the [choice] program have focused on costs, concerns from Democrats over privatization and fears from Republicans about veterans remaining trapped inside the VA system.”

In the end, the House Veteran Affairs Committee capped funding for Veterans Choice at three percent for four years, whereupon Democrats, who had supported reform to that point, voted no.

And why was Veterans Choice even linked to the tax bill in the first place?

It is time for Republicans like Heller to break away from the faction of the GOP that chronically shorts veterans, that wants a programs so restricted by tight financial limits that the VA has trouble functioning.

Veterans are not asking for something special. They want what they have earned. Ω

Chloe r at to Bartender

Big Fish. It brings a little magic into reality.

Whitne y meSa Traveler

Ace Ventura. The first one, though—probably because I use every single line in that movie for everything in life. You can quote it, and it just makes sense in every situation.

Jake griffin Tattoo artist

Shawshank Redemption—because it’s the best movie ever made.

12.28.17 | RN&R | 5

by SHEILA LESLIE

Next year’s got to be better 2018 begins in a few days, and not a moment too soon for a nation weary of its scandal-ridden, pathological liar of a president and a Congress whose only accomplishment this year has been to reward the rich while punishing the poor.

One can imagine the wealthy hidden behind their walls in gated communities, counting their gold and cackling with greed. It’s been a very long year.

Making predictions in our unstable political environment is a fool’s errand but irresistible just the same. One thing we know for sure: 2018 promises to be a year of continued resistance to Trumpism and its incompetent acolytes who show disdain for anyone not lucky enough or devious enough to be rich.

As Trump’s approval ratings sink to historic lows, our president is busy banning certain terms in government reports, terms like “vulnerable,” “diversity,” “transgender,” and “science-based.”

He tweets vicious attacks on the FBI and the Department of Justice while scores of

6 | RN&R | 12.28.17

seasoned diplomats are missing from the State Department. We watch in anguish as Republicans pass a disgraceful tax bill but refuse to reauthorize CHIP and ensure continued health care for children of the working poor.

In 2018, I predict the anger over the tax scam will turn to rage in reaction to the “Corker Kickback,” a provision inserted into the tax bill that personally enriches Sen. Bob Corker and President Trump.

Corker maintains he had nothing to do with it, but no one believes him. All year, we’ve been told innumerable bald-faced lies, and the Republicans have lost the benefit of the doubt over their veracity on anything. And by the way, Sen. Dean Heller, we know this tax bill exacerbates income inequality and sets the stage for massive cuts in Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. You’re not fooling anyone with your rosy tweets about all of your hard work on our behalf.

I predict health insurance premiums will explode in 2018 as the market reels

from instability caused by the Republicans’ removal of one of the essential legs of the Obamacare stool, the individual mandate.

They’ll try to blame Obama and the Democrats for the insurance price hike, but we all know who’s responsible, and the blowback won’t be pretty.

I predict the second Women’s March in January will be even bigger than the first, as women and their allies take to the streets again in Reno on Jan. 20 to express their frustration and demand change. The focus this year is boosting turnout in the 2018 midterm elections, capitalizing on the momentum from 2017 when Virginia replaced 11 male, Republican incumbents with progressive women, including the nation’s first openly transgender woman elected to a state legislature.

And who can forget this month’s Democratic victory in one of the reddest states of all when Doug Jones defeated accused child molester Republican Roy Moore for an open U.S. Senate seat in Alabama, reducing the

Republican majority to just one senator.

Women—specifically African-American women—made all the difference when they exceeded turnout expectations and 98 percent of them voted for Jones.

It’s already obvious a record number of women will seek public office next year throughout the nation. There will be female candidates up and down Nevada’s November ballot, including the governor’s race featuring former assemblymember Chris Giunchigliani. You’ll hear lots of the usual “she can’t win” nonsense from the usual male suspects, but she’ll prove them wrong when women and progressives show up and vote.

I also predict the #metoo movement is far from over. In 2018, we will continue to hear from women who have silently endured workplace harassment and assault by powerful men for far too long.

Empowered women will continue to share their stories next year and watch the chips fall where they may. Ω

by Brendan Trainor

U.S. lags, China leads The United States enters 2018 preparing for two unnecessary wars, against Iran and North Korea. In 2017 the U.S. threatened to repudiate a nuclear arms control agreement and stands accused of smuggling arms illegally to Syria. We are aiding in the bombing of Yemen.

In 2017, three wise men from the East come bearing gifts of peace instead of war. They offer mutual economic development without subservience. They are offering the world a new paridigm of economic development called “One Belt, One Road.” It could connect the world with modern transportation infrastructure, bringing prosperity to all willing to join.

The Christian rulers of the U.S. had the chance to be wise men in 1990, when the evil empire they had fought for over 40 years collapsed. They could have mothballed battleships, reduced our nukes, offered friendship and respect. After all, it had been done before. After the first Great War, Presidents Harding, Coolidge

and Hoover not only slashed the military but signed a treaty to outlaw war. They cut both taxes and spending. They gave the U.S. a peace dividend, which led to a decade of prosperity and invention.

Our subsequent leaders instead hardened their hearts to the prince of peace.

They gave us credit card wars instead of prosperity.

American media portrays the Eastern wise men as evil plotters and schemers, terrorists, aggressors, adversaries, hackers.

They threaten us, or our way of life, or simply our interests. They don’t share our values. President Trump in a Dec. 18 speech unveiling his new national security plan proclaimed them rivals, competitors and, oddly, revisionist nations.

President Carter’s national security advisor, Zbigniew Brzezinski, who died this year, saw himself as a grand chessmaster. He decided to create chaos in Eurasia. He aimed to cripple Russia by sowing discord in Afghanistan. The American foreign policy of causing and

profiting from war has continued since then. All for the greater good, of course.

Americans are not conditioned to connect the dots. We have too many toys to play with. Because we are wealthy and isolated from invasion, we do not understand how events can change entire nations and ethnicities. We like to see ourselves as people who go along minding our own business until suddenly someone attacks us.

Then we strike back with overwhelming force. That the same scenario seems to happen time and time again does not bother most Americans, certainly not enough to question the basic narrative.

The leaders of Russia, China and Iran are not spreading terror, or disinformation, or stealing elections. These countries are far from perfect, but they are also not the horrible pariahs our government and media portray. President Trump claims to want peace and democracy, and he says we do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone.

Our clients and allies join us in the hopes of securing good trade deals and, in turn, buy

our weapons and receive our foreign aid.

Everything must be paid for in U.S. dollars.

You are either with us or against us.

The new proposal from the East is for nations to come together simply for mutual economic development. It means trading in other currencies besides the dollar. Even the U.S. could join, as a partner, not a hegemon. It means democracy between nations, not necessarily within nations. Political beliefs are inconsequential so long as you are responsible and trustworthy in business. One Belt, One Road could unite the East and West from the Bering Sea to Cape Horn.

Nevada and the nation could have had a peace dividend when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990, and it looks like we are missing out on another one now. Ω

More on One Belt, One Road: www.atimes.com/one-beltone-road-implications-asean-connectivity/

12.28.17 | RN&R | 7

by Dennis Myers

NevadaN was oN the list

The Wooten memo was a break for Cliven Bundy (below) and his entourage of fellow defendants.

A new book, The Road to Camelot by Thomas Oliphant and Curtis Wilkie, deals with John Kennedy’s campaign for president. One memo published in the book was written by JFK speechwriter Ted Sorenson and is dated June 29, 1960, about two weeks before the Democratic nominating convention in Los Angeles.

Its topic is possible vice presidential candidates. The memo makes it clear that Nevada Gov. Grant Sawyer was under consideration.

Sawyer, who served as governor from 1959 to 1967, was known as a strong supporter of Kennedy, and hosted a reception for him in the Nevada governor’s mansion.

Sorenson’s memo, which suggests there had been some earlier discussion of Sawyer and other candidates, is skeptical of Sawyer as a running mate. “Also doubtful: Grant Sawyer, Stewart Udall or Gaylord Nelson. Should be considered, but likely to offend some group in the party,” Sorensen wrote.

More UNr history goNe A grove of trees on the University of Nevada campus has been removed.

The grove has been in place at least since the basin that now contains Mack Social Science and other buildings was the original Mackay Stadium.

The trees once wrapped around the end zone of the stadium. After the new stadium was built on the north end of campus, the trees were retained, though the size of the grove was reduced over time, including for the construction of the journalism building. The grove of trees became one of the familiar features of the central portion of campus, with lunches eaten under the trees and students studying in the shade. We were unable to confirm a report that one student couple was married in the grove.

The grove was destroyed to make way for the expansion of arts buildings on campus—specifically, the addition of another building adjoining Church Fine Arts. In addition, the expansion will close off the roadway between north and south campus that passes between the basin and the arts building. Paradoxically, the 2015-2024 campus master plan says the closing of the road “will allow space for increased landscape and more trees.”

Church Fine Arts was designed by famed architect Richard Neutra, though his original design has been progressively covered over by expansions and additions over the years.

—Dennis Myers

8 | RN&R | 12.28.17

Fiasco Due process saves the Bundys U.s. district Judge gloria Navarro last week declared a mistrial in the 2014 armed standoff case against rancher Cliven Bundy, his sons Ammon and Ryan, and co-defendant Ryan Payne, because federal prosecutors withheld evidence.

Navarro faulted prosecutors for “willful” due process violations. She pointed to more than 3,000 pages of FBI and Bureau of Land Management records that should have been shared with defense attorneys.

Paradoxically, the Bundys were rescued by the court system for which they have long shown contempt.

The action enhanced in-state beliefs that the federal departments of Interior and Justice have again bungled the Bundy case.

Though Cliven Bundy has raised various constitutional issues in earlier legal actions, the courts have largely rejected them and the case has always come down to a rancher who will not pay his bills—in his case, grazing fees for the use of federal lands that are paid by other western ranchers.

For reasons that have never been explained, the Bureau of Land

Management (BLM) in the Department of the Interior did not act quickly in 1992 when Bundy stopped paying his fees. There were several legal actions as Bundy tried to block federal action, but the matter dragged on for 22 years until he owed more than a million dollars.

Finally in 2014, after the courts had ruled that Bundy had no case, BLM planned a roundup of Bundy’s trespass cattle both in lieu of some of his fees and to halt his unpaid use of the land.

Bundy went on a Glenn Beck radio program, in response to which armed men from other states started arriving in Bunkerville, near Bundy’s ranch.

On April 12, an armed standoff began between federal land officials and the free lancers supporting Bundy. Republicans—including Gov. Brian Sandoval and U.S. Sen. Dean Heller—put out statements supporting Bundy. Tea Partiers, Libertarians, Oath Keepers and militia members gathered at the site.

In the years since, the office of the U.S. Attorney for Nevada has prepared a case against the Bundys and their cronies for conspiring to commit crimes against BLM agents during the

standoff as well as weapons violations.

The Bundys had top defense attorneys, including Bret Whipple, who suspected they had not given everything to which they were entitled and early in the trial Judge Navarro warned she would consider a mistrial if it turned out to be true. Meanwhile, outside the courtroom a 17-page memo by BLM special agent Larry Wooten, who had been removed from the case, was circulating. Newspapers from the Wall Street Journal to High Country News reported the agent’s memo charging “bad judgment, lack of discipline, incredible bias, unprofessionalism and misconduct” in the BLM’s office of Law Enforcement and Security.

On Dec. 20 Navarro found that the failure to turn over the documents was critical and had undercut the ability to provide a defense before the jury that had been selected.

“A fair trial at this point is impossible,” she said.

Navarro said she was not by her action saying anything about the guilt or innocence of the defendants, but she didn’t need to—absent a conviction, the defendants are innocent under the law.

Nor did Navarro reference the Wooten memo.

Former prosecutors we spoke with were surprised the U.S. Attorney’s Office would let itself get caught as it did.

“That volume of records is not easy to hide,” said one. “If you read a record, there are going to be references to documents that are missing.”

The public tends to think of the jobs of Attorney for 10 months, since Sessions defense attorneys and prosecutors as analorequested the resignations of 46 U.S. gous—they both represent their clients. attorneys without first lining up replacements But they are not. A prosecutor also a has for them. The U.S. attorney is the top federal an obligation to see that justice is done, even prosecutor within a state. Not only did when it may assist the defense. The acting Sessions not have a replacement for Bogden, U.S. attorney did not have a choice when he still does not. it came to supplying the documents to the Before Sessions entered the picture, defense. the U.S. attorney in Nevada was Daniel The documents that were withheld Bogden, who was originally appointed included professional threat

by George W. Bush at the recomassessments by the FBI Joint mendation of Nevada’s U.S. Terrorism Task Force of the Sen. John Ensign. On Dec. Bundys that concluded 7, 2006, the midterm firing they are all talk, not of Bogden and seven other genuinely dangerous— U.S. attorneys set off a though their ability major national scandal. to pit their allies and Bogden was later restored adversaries against each to office by Barack other while standing Obama in 2009. Except safely apart themselves for the period of his first Gloria Navarro was probably not part of firing, Bogden had been a U.S. District Court Judge the assessment.

Department of Justice lawyer There were also documents since 1990. with information that conflicted The way the U.S. Attorney’s with prosecution claims about federal Office dropped the ball in the case has surveillance and armed federal agents drawn criticism from both Bundy critics and (dubbed “snipers” by the defense) during the supporters. “The Government Has Screwed standoff. And there was a post-mortem of the Up the Bundy Case Even Worse than We standoff.

Realized” read a headline on a Mother U.S. Attorney General Jeff sessions has Jones article. Ω ordered an inquiry into what went on in Nevada that led to the fiasco. One of the things he may well learn is that Sessions The Wooten memo can be read at https://tinyurl.com/ himself was part of the problem. yclw8rx3 Nevada has not had a United States

“A fair trial at this point is impossible.”

Feeling blue

Live entertainment tax of 9

not included in ticket price.

A Steller’s jay climbs on a rock wall near the river in downtown Reno. The Steller’s jay is one of several species that can be found in Nevada, including the Pinyon jay, Blue jay, California scrub-jay and Woodhouse’s scrub-jay.

PHOTO/JERI CHADWELL

12.28.17 | RN&R | 9

p l e p s , a d a B goo d m ov i e s

2017

by

B

G oB

m rim

ell, unfortunately, the prevailing cinema stories this year would be the ones about all those demented perverts spraying their foul musk all over the place.

Celebrities getting deleted from the entertainment industry due to unsolicited, wholly unappreciated sexual activity certainly overshadowed stories of those we lost to actual death, like Bill Paxton—man, that just kills me—and Adam West.

What selfish, childish, piggish, boorish, flat-out disgusting dumbasses they are.

The likes of Kevin Spacey, Harvey Weinstein, James Toback and Louis C.K. made 2017 a very dark year, thanks to past years of behaving like apish morons. They still walk the Earth, banished from the limelight like weirdo sex-crime zombies inhabiting some sort of “Creepy Entertainer” exiled zone. It’s highly unlikely any of them will be let out of that limbo to make snappy dialogue movies or tell jokes onstage 10 | RN&R | 12.28.17

m

ever again. (If you listen to Matt Damon, Louis C.K. should be forgiven because, you know, Damon is some sort of authority on this sort of thing, I guess).

They aren’t physically dead, but they are dead to us all the same.

Movie critics, too! Harry Knowles, the pioneer who started the movie news website Ain’t it Cool News, got outed for misuse of hands. I think Harry’s days of gathering movie merchandise in exchange for positive reviews of shit films are behind him.

Have fun swapping sicko stories with the likes of Bill Cosby, Roman Polanski and Woody Allen, you unholy bastards.

And if you should do that at some creepy pervert party in a dirty bar somewhere, I hope the likes of Ashley Judd, Mira Sorvino and Salma Hayek crash the door down, guns-a-blazin’, and serve you some poetic justice, preferably by aiming somewhere above the knees and below the belly button.

To the women and men who have been outing these creeps, I say keep on talking. Your industry isn’t all bad, and the majority are good people just trying to make a living while entertaining the masses. Maybe there will be a day when the sludge has been filtered out of the entertainment industry, and that could help set an example for the entire workforce. That would be a good day.

I’m supposed to be talking about the movies that made their marks this year, aren’t I? OK, here I go.

My biggest disappointment this year at the movies was Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Not because it was altogether bad,

Hey Grimmy. Spacey and Weinstein are floating down here with me!

but because it wasn’t great. As a lonely, sad, middle-aged geek, I put a lot of stock in my Star Wars experiences. I know it’s pathetic … BUT IT’S STAR WARS. I wanted it to be the best movie ever, and it is only partially the best movie ever. (Mark Hamill is God!) Help me, J.J. Abrams with the next installment. You’re my only hope. Oh, man, that’s some low hanging Star Wars humor fruit, right there.

Here are my lists for best and worst of 2017. Let it be known that, at press time, I had not seen Paul Thomas Anderson’s Phantom Thread—Daniel Day Lewis’s alleged last film—or Guillermo del Toro’s The Shape of Water. I will update once those cinematic ventures have entered my face.

illustration/mike grimm

W

/ bgrimm@newsreview.co

was marked by great movies, rotten movies—and some shameful behavior

THE BEST DARNED TOOTIN’ FILMS OF 2017 1

Twin Peaks: The Return I’m throwing a bit of a curveball for the top pick this year. Yep, that’s right, something that is considered a TV series is getting my vote for Best Movie of the Year.

David Lynch kept me riveted to the screen for every minute of his triumphant return to Twin Peaks. The original TV show was far more cinematic than any TV show to come before it, and it set the stage for more adventurous TV shows in the years it was absent from the landscape.

Twin Peaks: The Return, which I still can’t believe even happened, was one of the all-time great entertainment experiences I have had on this planet since watching movies. It is, without a doubt, the best thing Lynch has ever done, and this is the guy who made Mulholland Drive, Blue Velvet and Wild at Heart.

Lynch himself called it an 18-part movie and, I assure you, those parts come together as one magnificent journey into insanely beautiful dreamscapes. Now, I thought I was all cool suggesting this was a movie, but it turns out there’s been somewhat of a movement to consider Peaks as a film. I’m not that special after all.

No other movie scene brought greater joy than the sight of Kyle MacLachlan returning to the role of Special Agent Dale Cooper 26 years after we saw him smash his forehead into a mirror. The Cooper character split into three different versions, all masterfully portrayed by the actor. A large cast of Lynch mainstays, including many from the original TV show, and a hilarious Naomi Watts, chipped in to make this a meditative, often terrifying spectacle.

It also stood as a sweet goodbye for the likes of the late Miguel Ferrer, Harry Dean Stanton, Warren Frost, Catherine Coulson and David Bowie.

There were hours in this film that constituted some of the best moviemaking I’ve ever seen—most notably, a sequence involving the birth of Demon Bob during the atomic age that will haunt me for eternity.

So, I’m not only calling this a movie, I’m calling it the year’s best movie by far.

I’m also declaring Kyle MacLachlan the year’s best actor. Sure, I was in my living room when I watched this, but so what?

That doesn’t stop it from being a movie.

This feels like a movie to me.

Hey kids, for added fun, look closely at my brother Mike’s annual cover illustration for this issue. You’ll find some Twin Peaks Easter eggs!

2

Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri Martin McDonagh is, perhaps, one of the more underrated directors in modern cinematic history. Before 2017, he made two movies, In Bruges and Seven Psychopaths, both masterpieces. Still, huge accolades have escaped him, his unapologetically dark tones keeping him out of the mainstream.

That seems to be changing this year with this brutal gem featuring Frances McDormand as a super-pissed, foulmouthed mom seeking justice for her murdered daughter. Not a wrong note is hit in this film, which is remarkable seeing as some pretty horrible stuff is said and done. It also manages to be really funny and fiercely heartbreaking throughout its running time.

I think people are going to take note of McDonagh’s future work, and I think McDormand is going to have a busy awards season, as will costar Sam Rockwell. Hey, they damned well better be in the mix for Oscar.

3

Colossal A movie where Anne Hathaway’s angst manifests in a giant Kaiju destroying Tokyo? Sign me up! One that transitions from such a brilliantly funny setup into something honestly scary about controlling males (personified by a creepy Jason Sudeikis) and the danger they pose to people everywhere? Well, you have one of the year’s very best, and strangely ignored, movies.

4

Logan Hugh Jackman says goodbye to his signature character by taking things into the super-violent, nasty territory that was always meant for the steel-clawed one. He and Patrick Stewart combine for what is quite simply the best X-Men movie yet.

5

The Big Sick Director Michael Showalter hits his stride with this unorthodox spin on the modern romance. While there is plenty of buzz about co-writer and star Kumail Nanjiani, Holly Hunter and Ray Romano are the ones who stick in your head after watching it.

6

Lady Bird There were some great directorial debuts this year, but Greta Gerwig gets my nod for the year’s best first-timer. Saoirse Ronan—whose name I have finally learned to spell right on the first try—will be in the Oscar hunt again.

7

Maudie Sally Hawkins will break your heart as real life, physically challenged artist Maud Lewis, and Ethan Hawke matches that power as her grumbly husband. This is one of those under-the-radar films you should make a note of and check out.

8

Hostiles Scott Cooper reteams with Christian Bale after Out of the Furnace for one of the darkest, starkest takes on the American frontier you will ever see in a cinema. What the brooding Bale does here makes Batman look like Mr. Party Pants on happy pills.

9

A Ghost Story One of the film year’s more daring ventures featured Casey Affleck (and some stand-ins) under a sheet traveling through time, his character’s spirit trying to find a way to move through the stages of death and let go. Rooney Mara ate a lot of pie in one sitting—and delivered one of her best performances yet as a grieving wife.

Such a beautiful movie.

The Grimmy Awards Move over, oscar.

BoB’s picks are in.

BEST ACTOR: Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks), Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour) Christian Bale (Hostiles), Jake Gyllenhaal (Stronger), Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out) BEST ACTRESS: Frances McDormand (Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri), Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird), Jessica Chastain (Molly’s Game), Sally Hawkins (Maudie), Anne Hathaway (Colossal) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri), Ray Romano (The Big Sick), Jason Sudeikis (Colossal), Patrick Stewart (Logan), Willem Dafoe (The Florida Project) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Holly Hunter (The Big Sick), Alison Janney (I, Tonya), Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird), Betty Gabriel (Get Out), Naomi Watts (Twin Peaks) BEST SUPPORTING MATTRESS: One of those really expensive memory foam kinds.

WORST ACTOR IN A GOOD MOVIE: Benicio del Toro (Star Wars: The Last Jedi) WORST ACTRESS IN A GOOD MOVIE: Laura Dern (Star Wars: The Last Jedi) BEST ACTOR IN A BAD MOVIE: Daniel Craig (Logan Lucky) BEST ACTRESS IN A BAD MOVIE: Kristen Wiig (Downsizing) BEST PLACE TO BUY SPONGES: In a store that sells sponges.

BEST DIRECTOR: David Lynch (Twin Peaks: The Return) BEST INFECTOR: A lady who coughs right on your arm during your Southwest flight home from Disneyland resulting in you getting sick for a week. (Don’t get me started.)

BEST ORIGINAL SONG IN A MOVIE: “I Get Overwhelmed” by Dark Rooms (A Ghost Story) OVERRATED: Battle of the Sexes, Logan Lucky, The Fate of the Furious BEST FOREIGN FILM: Raw MOST LAME, SHAMELESS HOMAGE TO A DICKHEAD: Louis C.K. wearing black rimmed, Woody Allen looking glasses in his shitty film I Love You Daddy.

WHY IS THIS ASSHOLE IN MOVIES AGAIN?: Mel Gibson, Daddy’s Home 2

od movies o g , s e l pp continued on page 12 Bad a 12.28.17 | SN&R | 11

Bad a pples, good movies continued from page 11

10

The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) I thought this comedy from director Noah Baumbach and costarring Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller and Dustin Hoffman was going to be an awards player. Then those nasty stories about Hoffman started surfacing.

Most folks go with the top 10 when it comes to this sort of thing. We here at the Reno News & Review see the need to take things to 20. Actually, I probably shouldn’t drag the rest of the gang into this concept. It’s basically me overindulging.

Anyway … here’s 10 more!

11

Get Out Jordan Peele, known for getting laughs, gets some good scares in this audacious directorial debut featuring great performances from Daniel Kaluuya, Betty Gabriel, Catherine Keener and Allison Williams. It made me scared, and it made me laugh, the two hardest things to do with a movie.

12

Mother!

One of the year’s most controversial movies is also one of its best, featuring a manically beautiful turn from Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem doing his best work in years. Darren Aronofsky is a total nut.

13

The Disaster Artist I’m getting a little weary of calling The Room the worst movie ever made because I love it so much. James Franco stars and directs as Tommy Wiseau, architect of The Room, and the results are a funny and moving look at what constitutes true artistic success.

14

Blade Runner: 2049 Ryan Gosling gets to play a quiet badass again (he was so good in Drive) as a new kind of Blade Runner who eventually meets up with an old Blade Runner (a never craggier and cooler Harrison Ford) in what counts as the most beautifully filmed movie of the year. Will somebody please give cinematographer Roger Deakins an Oscar. Enough, already!

15

Molly’s Game While Jessica Chastain still won’t win an Oscar for acting her freaking socks off—man, the competition is stiff this year—she certainly shows herself off as one of our more invaluable actresses in this true story of high-stakes poker games and, yes, Olympic skiing.

16

The Post I am a diehard Spielberg fan. My favorite movie is Jaws. I’m sad, and sort of ashamed, to admit I have not liked his last three movies, Lincoln, Bridge of Spies and The BFG. Thankfully, his look at The Washington Post in the early ’70s is a fantastic return to 12 | RN&R | 12.28.17

form, featuring great work from Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep and, holy crap, Bob Odenkirk and David Cross. Yes, I totally geeked out when Bob and David of Mr. Show were standing next to each other onscreen. One of my favorite 2017 moments.

17

I, Tonya Admit it—when Nancy Kerrigan got kneecapped by folks connected to Tonya Harding all those years ago, you just knew there would be a big Hollywood movie about it someday. Here it is, starring Margot Robbie as the Ice Queen, and it’s funny, funny stuff. Allison Janney is a sinister hoot as Tonya’s nasty mom, while Robbie proves, oddly enough, that she was born to play Tonya Harding.

18

Brawl in Cell Block 99 Vince Vaughn plays the year’s greatest badass as Bradley, a dude who loses his job, gets involved in selling drugs, and then finds himself wading through the shit of the U.S. penal system, culminating in the movie’s title event. And a bloody, crazy, totally sick event it is. This one is not for everybody. It’s not for family movie night. No, sir.

19

It I wasn’t a big fan of the TV It, but I had a blast with this one. One of Stephen King’s weaker stories is improved with this big screen adaptation, a movie that recalls the cool King vibe of vintage genre films like The Shining and The Dead Zone. This one stands with those as the best of King cinema.

20

The Florida Project Sean Baker, the man who made a movie with an iPhone (Tangerine) proves he is no fluke with this free-form take on a single mom and her daughter (an excellent Bria Vinaite and Brooklyn Prince) living in a dive hotel next to Disney World. Throw in a top-rate Willem Dafoe as that hotel’s earnest manager, and you have one of the year’s great movie surprises.

I liked a lot of movies this year, so here’s a bunch of honorable mentions: Darkest Hour, Wonder Woman, The Beguiled, Wonder, Mudbound, Wind River, Stronger, War for the Planet of the Apes, Split and a bunch of Marvel movies—Thor: Ragnarok, Spider-Man Homecoming and Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2.

I could probably run off another list just as long. It might’ve been a bad year for news about movie people, but there were a lot of good movies to take in.

That doesn’t mean that an assortment of cinematic atrocities did not somehow find their ways out of cameras, into editing doodads, and up onto the screen things. There were many stinkers, starting with this list.

THE STANKY POO-POO MOVIES OF 2017 1

Justice League The combined efforts of directors Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon manage to screw up a movie that has Batman, Superman, Aquaman, The Flash and Wonder Woman in it. That’s Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, and the movie still sucks!

Their geek cards should be revoked, and their admittance to San Diego Comic Con should be denied. May their comic book collections be pissed upon by vengeful geeks.

May their pricey Sideshow Collectibles action figures be eaten by evil dogs. May they never be allowed to touch or interact with a DC product again. Man of Steel, Batman v Superman and now this. Hey, Joel Schumacher only got two cracks at Batman before somebody in charge said “Ooh, hang on … This isn’t going that well, now is it?

Goodbye.”

They must be stopped.

2

The Dark Tower This year gave us some great Stephen King movies, like It, Gerald’s Game and 1922. It also gave us this sad thing, a movie that should’ve been a miniseries, or not a movie at all. I think I would’ve preferred not a movie at all. Idris Elba deserves better.

3

Downsizing/The Great Wall (A Dreary Damon Double Feature) A bad year for “Matt … Day-monnnn.”

Downsizing started as one of the year’s better movies, then ended so badly it became one of its worst. The Great Wall, well, that was shite from the start.

4 5

The Circle Yes, Hermione did something worse than her tone-deaf singing at the movies this year.

Transformers: The Last Knight When there’s a Transformers movie coming out, you can just go ahead and reserve some real estate on your Year’s Worst list for it. It’s just a certainty, like leaves falling from trees, sharks eating extremely unhappy seals and apples smelling like apples.

Transformers will always suck as long as Michael Bay powers them. He’s like sugar in their huge robot/car fuel tanks.

6 7

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales Johnny. Depp. Is. A. Whore!

Song to Song Oh, the pain of including one of my heroes, director Terrence Malick, on this list.

Adding to the pain, this film about a musician trying to make it in Austin stars some of my favorite performers, including Ryan Gosling,

Rooney Mara, Natalie Portman and Michael Fassbender. This isn’t just a bad movie; it’s a freaking tragedy.

8

Baywatch Two of Hollywood’s more likeable and fine-looking actors (Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron) and perhaps the best-looking woman on the planet (Alexandra Daddario) can’t make this thing worth looking at. I don’t need to see a dead person leaking fat into Zac Efron’s mouth. I believe I came to this realization somewhere around the time I was in junior high, long before Efron was even born.

9

I Love You Daddy I’m mad at this for a myriad of reasons.

I’m mad at it because Louis C.K. chose to honor a stank pig like Woody Allen with a black and white homage to Manhattan. I’m mad because C.K., one of my favorite comedians, currently finds himself ranked among Hollywood’s sexually deviant scumbags. I’m mad because the movie truly stinks, even without the controversy.

10

The Fate of the Furious I’m still haunted by the vision of Charlize Theron making out with Vin Diesel. It was like seeing Aphrodite mushing her face into an elephant’s spongy ass. I’m scarred for life.

And that’ll do it for 2017. Next year, naturally, has a lot of sequels (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Creed 2 and, oh god, Fifty Shades Freed), Marvel movies (Avengers: Infinity War, Black Panther, Deadpool 2) and a Star Wars movie (Solo: A Star Wars Story) on the way.

What excites me the most about next year?

David Gordon Green and Danny McBride teaming up for a new Halloween featuring the return of Jamie Lee Curtis. Hey, that’s a fresh idea by today’s standards. Ω

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This is one of our favorite annual contests here at the RN&R. Write a miniature short story that’s exactly 95 words long.

WORD FICTION contest

Here’s a sample: “I Want a New Drug,” he said.

“I Can’t Go for That,” I countered.

“You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” he shot back.

“I Just Want to Be Your Everything,” I replied.

“I Want to Hold Your Hand,” he retorted.

“Where Did Our Love Go?” I asked.

“What’s Love Got to do with It?” he exclaimed “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” I said.

To which he replied, “Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict.”

Choosing our roadtrip playlists is always a chore.

We want 95 words, as counted by LibreOffice, Google Docs or Microsoft Word. Please email submissions to renofiction@newsreview.com and include the subject line “Fiction 2017.” Put each story in the body of an email because we won’t open strange attachments. We require the author’s name, email address and phone number listed above each story. (That stuff won’t count toward your word count, and will be removed before judging.) Titles are acceptable, without affecting word count, but not required.

Stories must be received before 9:01 a.m. on January 11. Contest opens December 14, 2017 and we’ll publish the best stories on January 25, 2017 and award prizes to the very best. (The prizes might just be bragging rights and your photo and bio published in the paper. Maybe.)

12.28.17 | RN&R | 15

The of

edge

'17

The RN&R’s resident music geek weighs in on the music that hit home this year

by Brad Bynum bradb@review.com

T

his is the ninth straight year in which I’ve written a list of the top 10 albums of the year. I used to call it the “best of the year” as if I was King Music with the Royal Scepter of Proclaiming my Dumb Taste Important, but nowadays I like to just present the list as my personal favorite new music discoveries of the year.

Maybe you’ve heard some of these albums and also enjoyed them. Or maybe you’re looking for some new music to discover. Or maybe you don’t give a fuck. You do you.

There have been years when my list has been obsessively, meticulously crafted, honed from hours of research scouring the depths of Bandcamp and milking every last drop out of Spotify like an insatiable infant. (I’ve spent the last couple of weeks helping take care of a newborn, so forgive me if there are a lot of baby analogies.) I listened to the same pieces of music repeatedly, searching for some cracks of sound that would reveal hidden caverns, obsessed over tiny lyrical fragments, tried to map out arrangements with half-assed transcriptions, challenged myself to appreciate new genres or new sounds. I geeked the eff out.

This was not one of those years.

Listening to music is a personal, subjective thing, and I had a strange, stressful year—not a bad year, just a weird one—and I tended to listen to music more often for comfort than for challenge. So my list this year is heavily focused on the genres I usually enjoy most—rock and hip-hop—and there’s a lot of stuff from familiar, legacy artists. There’s not a debut in the bunch.

16 | RN&R | 12.28.17

King Krule: The Ooz This songwriter’s idiosyncratic music exists in its own little world. It sounds like British folk-punk hero Billy Bragg got lost in the haze of a smoky nightclub—with a small jazz combo playing in the corner, but somebody forget to turn the house music off, and one speaker is busted, but the band members are pros, so they just start riffing off the half a song they can hear, and Bragg says screw it, and starts just free associating, singing off the top of his head. It’s a strange scene, only half-formed, like a dream, but addictive as all hell.

Thurston Moore: Rock N Roll Consciousness The best thing to be produced by a former member of Sonic Youth since the band broke up in 2011 is Kim Gordon’s 2015 memoir, Girl in a Band. But this new album from her ex-husband/former bandmate is a close second. What I like most about this album is the presence of guitarist James Sedwards, whose playing is excellent, and in line with

traditional, gritty blues-based rock ’n’ roll guitar playing. It contrasts and complements Moore’s now well-established guitar vocabulary of chiming harmonics, open tunings, and amplifier feedback. The result is one of the best guitar records I’ve heard in years.

Sharon Jones: Soul of a Woman This fantastic album, posthumously released by the singer who died in 2016, is firmly entrenched in her idiom, but that idiom is heavily indebted to Memphis-style ’60s soul, which is just about the best genre of music ever devised, so there ain’t nothing wrong with that.

Protomartyr: Relatives in Descent This album nails my taste—moody, noisy, expressive post-punk with the sort of clever, cynical wordplay that’s often described as “literate.” It might not be for everybody, but it’s definitely for me. I’m still bummed I was out of town the only time this band played Reno.

Grateful Dead: Cornell 5/8/77 Sure, purists might balk at including a live recording from 40 years ago among the “best new music” of 2017, but this year marked the first time this heavily bootlegged concert has seen a commercial release. And this pristine recording is taken straight from the soundboard—none of the muddiness or tinniness of so many live recordings. And it’s easy to hear why this concert is a favorite among Deadheads.

Great song choices, well played, including a version of “Fire on the Mountain” that finally convinced me that it’s a good song after all.

The Grateful Dead can be difficult to listen to without loaded cultural associations, but this concert document is a nice gateway for neophytes, essential for Deadheads, and a good pick for casual fans. (And yes, we do exist.) Bottom line, few albums brought me more happiness this year than this one. If you don’t like it, write your own damn list.

Vince Staples: Big Fish Theory Pile: A Hairshirt Of Purpose Deconstructed noise rock paired with tears-in-the-beer country and western? It’s the flavor combination you never knew you wanted. But you do.

Roger Waters: Is This the Life We Really Want?

To be honest, I haven’t paid much attention to Roger Waters’ post-Pink Floyd career. I remember hearing his 1992 album Amused to Death once or twice as a teenager. Actually, that’s not true. I just remember the album cover with a chimpanzee watching TV. I couldn’t tell you what the album sounds like.

But this album, helmed by Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich, sounds gorgeous.

There’s plenty of allusions to classic Floyd songs, but the album also has some of the gravitas of other recent late-career classics, like David Bowie’s Blackstar or the last few Leonard Cohen albums. It’s everything I like about Pink Floyd without the stuff I don’t like (cheesy, melodramatic guitar solos). The focus is on Waters’ voice and lyrics, which are angry.

In “Déjà Vu,” Waters claims, “If I had been God … I could have a done a better job.” And the attacks on institutions of power only get more vehement from there. One choice couplet from “Picture That” goes like this: “Picture a shithouse with no fucking drains/Picture a leader with no fucking brains.”

He cusses a lot on the album—which, as of connoisseur of profanity, I quite enjoy.

One weird note: In the same song, he says the word “casbah,” and he sounds a lot like Joe Strummer. And then it occurred to me that Waters and Strummer actually have pretty similar voices and, come to think of it, lyrical concerns. Turns out Pink Floyd and the Clash have a lot more in common than anyone with a stake in the old punk-versus-prog debate might have thought during the ’70s or whenever.

“BagBak” is my favorite song of 2017. I’ve listened to it on repeat for days at a time. It’s the rare song that’s both a club banger and a politically charged rallying call. I’m not sure if it makes me want to dance naked or protest in the streets. Maybe both at the same time?

Liars: TFCF Bandleader Angus Andrew reinvents Liars for every album. From the disco punk of the band’s debut way back in 2001 to nocturnal electronica of the 2012 masterpiece WIXIW, every album is vastly different. (And oddly enough— like Star Trek movies or San Francisco Giants baseball seasons—only every other one is very good.) For this latest album, the band has become Andrew’s solo project. The music is constructed from strange, incongruous samples: Renaissance Faire music, hip-hop beats, “My Sharona” … over which Andrew sings, beautiful, somber, sad-bastard songs. Great stuff.

For the first time ever, explore the remarkable story of how the legendary Nevada gathering known as Burning Man evolved from humble countercultural roots into the world-famous convergence it is today. Never-before-seen photographs, artifacts, journals, sketches, and notebooks reveal how this experimental desert city came to be—and how it continues to evolve.

Jay-Z: 4:44 Listen, I realize that Kendrick Lamar’s Damn is the consensus critical favorite album of the year, and don’t get me wrong, that’s a fantastic album—and if I had the space and/ or inclination to expand my list out to a top 20, it would make the cut. But I listened to 4:44 about 20 times more often than Damn. Just in terms of, “What new album did I listen to the most in 2017?” Jay-Z’s latest undoubtedly takes the cake. It rewards repeated listens. The MVP is probably producer No I.D., who made all the beats of the album—lots of chopped up samples from classic Nina Simone and Stevie Wonder tracks and the like.

It’s a consistent, soulful sonic world over which Jay ruminates on family—his mom, wife and daughter all have guest features—and aging. He might not be the most nimble rapper anymore, but he can still teach the kids a few things. It’s great old dad music made by an old dad rapper and enjoyed by old dads all over the world, including me.

It’s arguably the best album of 2017, but it’s definitely the best 13th studio album by a rapper of all time. Ω

THIS EXHIBITION WAS REALIZED THANKS TO GENEROUS GIFTS FROM: LEAD GIFT Bently Foundation MAJOR GIFT Reno-Sparks Convention & Visitors Authority SUPPORTING GIFTS Maureen Mullarkey and Steve Miller;

Eleanor and Robert Preger; The Private Bank by Nevada State Bank; Volunteers in Art of the Nevada Museum of Art ADDITIONAL GIFTS City of Reno; Jan and David Hardie THIS EXHIBITION WAS ORGANIZED BY THE NEVADA MUSEUM OF ART. MANY OF THE ITEMS INCLUDED ARE DRAWN FROM THE ARCHIVE COLLECTIONS OF THE CENTER FOR ART + ENVIRONMENT AT THE NEVADA MUSEUM OF ART.

Stewart Harvey, Figures with Dusty Man, (detail), 2001, Digital print. Courtesy of Stewart Harvey

12.28.17 | RN&R | 17

by KRIS VAGNER

Zine scene Bound In the 1930s, science fiction fans swapped stories and commentary by mail in handmade fanzines.

In the 1970s, photocopiers made it all the easier to self-publish. By then, the name of these pamphlet-like tomes was shortened to “zines,” and in the ’70s and ’80s they proliferated, especially in association with punk culture.

Enter the internet in the mid ’90s, and social media about a decade ago, which gave just about anyone the ability to selfpublish just about anything.

If you haven’t been paying attention to the zine scene as of late, you might suspect that you’re about to read a story of how zines all but died out and were replaced by web comics or Vines. But that never happened. Zines are still very much a thing.

Lauren Cardenas is a gallery committee member at the Holland Project and a fellow at the Black Rock Press at the University of Nevada, Reno. She said that students in college art programs, both here and elsewhere, publish zines.

Zine production hasn’t shifted exclusively to academia, though. Denali Lowder, who’s been a gallery committee member since she was a teen a few years ago, loves zines, makes zines and collects zines. She even has this claim to fame—she was the sole employee at Mixed Message, which she described as “a small-press zine store that [painter and tattoo artist] Ron Rash was running for a while.”

Lowder’s zines are among the hundreds lining the walls of Holland Project’s front gallery right now. Some are old, some new, some dashed off quickly on a copier, others printed meticulously on a press.

Their imagery ranges from strictly text to cheaply copied black and white photos to 18 | RN&R | 12.28.17

k r isv @ ne wsr e v ie w.c o m

Denali Lowder, Alisha Funkhouser and Lauren Cardenas are among several organizers of an exhibition of zines from Reno and farther afield.

PHOTO/KRIS VAGNER

small editions of labor-intensive, handmade books. And topics range from stories of the Reno punk scene circa 2000 to skateboarder photos to, well, just about anything.

One of Cardenas’s favorites is called “Hijacking a Culture,” with images that show how the aesthetics of black culture have been widely adopted. Another is a palm-sized volume titled, “Crybaby,” with pen drawings of all of the of the places its author has cried in public.

In terms of content, pretty much anything goes. Zines don’t lay claim to any one culture these days. And by Lowder’s estimation, zines appear to be here to stay.

She doesn’t see the one-button publishing capability of social media as a threat to their existence in the least.

“It’s not ever going to be the same as putting out a status on Facebook,” she said. “The feel of it is much different than a Tumblr. It’s always been popular with young people who are interested in making this thing. I like the feel of them. I like the feel of having something that somebody made.” She also pointed out that the barrier to entry is just about nonexistent. Anyone with something to say can make and circulate a zine.

Cardenas added, “Me, being a printmaker/book artist, I’ve met other people who were involved in small presses. It’s a really easy venue to create community across state lines, and internationally.”

She said that old Risograph and Xerox machines have been making a comeback lately, and the zine clubs are starting up at universities.

Holland Project has its own zine library, too. And gallery director Alisha Funkhouser advises people to stay tuned to Holland’s calendar for news of upcoming zine workshops and possibly a zine fair in July. Ω Bound, an exhibition of zines, is on display through Dec. 29 at Holland Project, 140 Vesta St.

by BoB Grimm

b g ri m m @ne w s re v i e w . c o m

SHORT TAKES

4

The Disaster Artist

“really? The orginal title of Honey, i Shrunk the Kids was Teeny Weenies?”

Shrunken heads I watch a lot of movies. Like, a lot of movies.

I can safely say that it’s a rarity for me to get halfway into a movie thinking “Say, this could be one of the year’s best films!” only to have it become one of the year’s worst films in its second half.

That’s what happened when I watched the latest Matt Damon vehicle, director Alexander Payne’s (Election, Sideways) punishably off-balanced Downsizing.

The film starts as brilliant satire mixed with science fiction. Scientists have discovered a way to reduce resource consumption on our planet by shrinking people and putting them into miniature utopian communities. Not only do humans generate less trash, but their finances improve in the downsized communities. A standard bank account goes from being worth thousands to millions.

Damon plays Paul, an occupational therapist at Omaha Steaks living a humdrum life from paycheck to paycheck. He and his wife Audrey (Kristen Wiig) are tantalized by the idea of being millionaires in a new world, getting out of their crowded house and into something a little roomier with a nice pool.

They decide to take the plunge and get small. Paul completes the process and miniaturizes, but Audrey has some complications during the head-shaving part. So, Paul winds up all alone in a newly shrunken world, and he’s completely pissed off.

Up until this point, the film is everything you want out of this kind of movie. It’s clever, with Damon tapping into his laid-back comic charms, delivering a screenplay that’s full of interesting insights. Visually, it can even be called a triumph. Scenes of full-sized adults chatting with mini people are seamless. To say that I was impressed would be an understatement.

This movie was racing up my Best Of 2017 list.

Then, it takes an epic dump—a giant, King Kong shit on the screen. After maintaining a respectable level of charm until its halfway point, Downsizing

rapidly disintegrates into utter boredom and nonsense.

As if no one knew where to really take the story after Paul enters the shrunken world, the movie gets politically obvious, even stereotypical, in depicting Paul’s new-world problems. The second half starts off with his dating woes. Paul trying to enter the dating and party world in his new surroundings has potential, and probably could’ve worked as the crux of the final acts. It’s not as good as the promising first half, but it’s cute enough to be entertaining.

When Paul meets Ngoc Lan Tran (Hong Chau), essentially an illegal, shrunken immigrant, warning alarms start going off. The movie wants to hammer you on the head with some kind of grand message.

Downsizing tries to become some statement about how typical large-world problems would most certainly follow us into the shrunken world because humans are the same big and small. Yeah, OK. This is supposed to be a fantasy/satire.

So, instead of continuing as biting satire in an almost Kubrickian way, the movie becomes afraid of itself, and Payne tries to make a feel-good message movie that winds up insulting our intelligence. It drags on forever as Paul travels to the original “shrunken person” colony in attempt to save the species. None of this works in the unique, cohesive way the film started. The whole enterprise feels like two movies, one good, one really bad.

I do believe Payne could’ve found a way to mix Paul’s tribulations with worldly problems, but what he’s come up with is so heavyhanded and predictable, it trashes all of his good intentions. This is not a movie that deserves a happy ending. It had a chance to really say something about the damage selfish humans inflict upon the planet and themselves, but it go all touchy-feely.

Matt Damon, other than that awesome Thor cameo, 2017 just wasn’t your year. Ω

Downsizing

12345

James Franco does Tommy Wiseau, director of The Room—the greatest bad film ever—a cinematic honor with this movie in much the same way Tim Burton glorified shlockmeister Ed Wood over 20 years ago.

Franco directs and stars as Tommy, complete with the awesome, long, vampire-black hair and chipmunk cheeks. He also nails the Wiseau mystery accent. For the first time in a movie, Franco costars with brother Dave, who gets one of his best roles yet as the also legendarily bad Greg Sestero, friend to Tommy and costar in The Room. The film starts in San Francisco, with Greg struggling to remember lines in a savagely bad acting class attempt at Waiting for Godot. Strange classmate Tommy lumbers onto the stage to butcher a scene from A Streetcar Named Desire, and a friendship is born. The two agree to work on scenes together, bond in their lousiness and, thanks to Wiseau’s strange and unexplained apparent wealth, move to Los Angeles to fulfill their dreams to become actors. After a stretch of unsuccessful auditions, the pair decide to make their own movie, and this is where the film really takes off. Fans of The Room will rejoice in hilarious recreations of such iconic moments as “You’re tearing me apart, Lisa!” and “Oh, hi Mark!” The Disaster Artist—which is actually based on the book The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever—is heartwarming for multiple reasons.

It’s fun to see a misfit make it, even though it’s in a roundabout sort of way, and it’s fun to see that accomplishment depicted by the Franco brothers. May this be the first of many future collaborations.

5

Lady Bird

Greta Gerwig makes her solo directorial debut with a semi-autobiographical look at her life growing up in Sacramento, California and she immediately establishes herself as a directing force to be reckoned with. Saoirise Ronan, who should’ve won an Oscar for Brooklyn, will likely get another chance for her turn as Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson, a Sacramento youth with an artistic yearning for the East Coast and some distance between her and her domineering mom (Laurie Metcalf). This is a coming-of-age story like no other thanks to the insightful writing and brisk directorial style of Gerwig, who makes Lady Bird’s story a consistently surprising one. Ronan’s Lady Bird is a rebel with a good heart, a theater geek who stinks at math, and an emotional rollercoaster. She also gets a lot of laughs, especially in her showdowns with Metcalf, who has never been better. Lucas Hedges, on a roll after Manchester By the Sea and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, is funny and sad as one of Lady Bird’s young love interests, while Odeya Rush is golden as Lady Bird’s best friend, Jenna. Tracy Letts is perfect as the nice dad dealing with warring factions in the household, while Timothy Chalamet (currently racking up awards for Call Me By Your Name) gets perhaps the biggest laughs as aloof other love interest, Kyle. This one is a triumph for Ronan and Gerwig, and, while it would never happen, I’d love to see a sequel about Lady Bird’s college years.

5

Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri

This marks the third film—and the third masterpiece—for writer-director Martin McDonagh. It also marks another astonishing film achievement for Frances McDormand, who will bore into your chest cavity and do all kinds of crazy shit to your heart as Mildred, a justifiably pissed off mother who has a few issues with the cops in her town. It’s been five years since Mildred’s young daughter was raped and killed by unknown murderers, who finished their awful deed by burning her body. Mildred, who isn’t even close to getting over the tragedy, spies some old, dilapidated billboards on the way home and gets an idea. One meeting with a sloppy advertising agent (Caleb Landry Jones) later, and some guys are commissioned to put some alarmingly provocative signs up on

those billboards. Woody Harrelson is first rate as the man being called out in those billboards for not finding the killers. Harrelson’s 2017 has been astoundingly good. Sam Rockwell gets the high-profile acting showcase he deserves as racist deputy Dixon. Rockwell’s Dixon, the town drunk and racist homophobe who has a thing for throwing people out of windows, undergoes a transformation that is a kind of movie miracle. McDonagh knows how to write a script that keeps you in it for every line. While the film is somewhat a murder mystery, the solving of the crime takes a back seat to watching these folks play off each other. There are scenes in this movie that will knock you on the floor. The whole cast is incredible; McDormand and Rockwell will both destroy you.

4

Thor: Ragnarok

3

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Somebody was smoking some laced wild shit and licking frogs when they put together Thor: Ragnarok, a film so nutty it easily surpasses the Guardians of the Galaxy films as the screwiest offering in the Marvel universe. When you hand the keys to the Thor franchise over to a director like Taika Waititi, you know you are going to get something bizarre. Waititi is the New Zealand comic actor/ director responsible for the hilarious vampire faux documentary What We Do in the Shadows and the funny family drama Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Borrowing from a host of Marvel comics, including the famed “Planet Hulk” storyline, the hallucinogenic plot drops Thor (Chris Hemsworth) on a crazy garbage planet bent on round-the-clock, violent entertainment and led by Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum, finally getting a high-profile role worthy of him outside of a Wes Anderson film). The Grandmaster cuts Thor’s hair, dresses him in gladiator gear, and throws him into the ring for a weaponized bout with his prized competitor.

That prized competitor is the Hulk, held captive on the planet for the past couple of years. He’s been nothing but the Hulk the whole time, with Dr. Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) trapped inside him. Thor and Hulk have a battle royale for the ages, followed by some great scenes where the Hulk actually speaks. There’s a whole other apocalyptic subplot going on, where Thor’s long-lost sister Hela (a striking and devilish Cate Blanchett decked out in black) is causing major havoc on his home planet of Asgard.

Blanchett immediately sets herself high in the ranking of Marvel movie villains. She’s played a baddie before, but never this entertainingly.

In this film, we get our older Luke and Leia movie. Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher get to do what Harrison Ford did in The Force Awakens by spending a little more time— in the case of Hamill, a lot more time—in their iconic roles. Both stars shine in their frankly incredible opportunity to play in the Star Wars sandbox 40 years after the original’s release.

When this film focuses on the saga of Luke and Rey (Daisy Ridley), it is nothing short of epic.

When the camera is fixed on the late Carrie Fisher, who gets more quality screen time than her glorified cameo in Force Awakens, it’s heartwarming and, yes, sad. The Leia stuff gets a little kooky at times, but I’m trying to make this a spoiler-free zone. When writer-director Rian Johnson takes the action to the characters of Poe (Oscar Isaac), Finn (John Boyega) and a new character named Rose (Kelly Marie Tran), the film falters. Poe, so engaging in Force Awakens, seems underdeveloped here. While the Resistance fights an oddly prolonged and bizarre space battle against the First Order, Poe just whines a lot—to the point where you are actually happy when Leia smacks him across his head. So, in short, this movie is part really good and part kind of bad. Johnson (Looper) seems determined to mess with the Star Wars formula —basically the opposite of what J.J. Abrams did when he rebooted the franchise with The Force Awakens. While some of his attempts at comedy are actually quite successful, his constant attempts to pull the rug out from under our expectations start to grate. The movie is still enjoyable overall, but it lacks a consistent tone.

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“法轮功”“活摘”谣言三大假 8月5日召开的2017年中国 人体器官捐献与移植工作会 议上，记者获悉，中国人体 器官捐献志愿登记人数已有 近3 O万，完成器官捐献案 例累计超1.2万例。且仅2017 年前7个月，中国就完成捐 献2866例，同比增长33％， 实现跨越式发展。中国器官 移植技术和质量已达到国际 先进水平，规范、公平、高 效的体系受到国际赞誉。 从2006年3月，“法轮 功”邪教媒体抛出所谓“苏 家屯集中营活摘人员器官后 焚尸”的惊天谣言后，近 年来，部分网站持续炒“活 摘”话题，指控中国政府 活摘“法轮功”人员器官 贩卖牟利。“活摘”话题也 被一些反华势力用来妖魔化 中国。该邪教编造的“活 摘”人数，完成了4000人到 6500人再到150万人的“三 级跳”，邪教教主李洪志信 奉“话不说大点没人信”。 其实，谎话说大了就没 法收场，在这场“活摘”闹 剧中，李洪志让按照他的 假话、谎话来胡编乱造， 从而更显出荒唐和可笑。 为此，我们不妨把“活 20 | RN&R | 12.28.17

摘”谣言中的几大假给列 举出来，以飨读者，也让 修炼者看到有所醒悟。 假证人身份暴露给弥 天大谎来了釜底抽薪 为了掩饰造谣的丑 态，“法轮功’’邪教媒体 勾结加拿大的大卫．乔高 (David Kilgour)和大卫.麦塔 斯(David Matas)在“活摘 调查报告”中推出两个重要 证人“皮特”和“安妮’’ 。后来，有网友爆出猛料， 这两个关键人物的身份是假 的。“皮特’’是“活摘器 官”谣言抛出后第一个匿名 证人，自称曾是“中共内部 情报人员”，后又改称是曾 到大陆采访过的“资深媒体 人’’。其实“皮特”是名 旅美华人，原名约翰-卡特 (John Carter)，2006年时 44岁。身为失业者曾在旧 金山某教会工作，因盗窃被 解雇。因需要所谓“苏家屯 集中营事件’’的证人，被 收买作伪证。另一名重要证 人“安妮’’，自称在“苏 家屯’’生活过5年，其丈 夫是苏家屯医院眼科医生， 参与了所谓的“活摘”。事 实上，“安妮”原名安娜·

刘易斯(Anna Louise)，加拿 大国籍，2006年时50岁，生 活在加拿大渥太华新亚洲广 场附近，与苏家屯医院风马 牛不相及。让人觉得可笑的 是，两个大卫满世界宣读他 们杜撰的“活摘报告”，却 不敢带上这两个“最重要的 证人”，显而易见，就是怕 较真者追根究底。两个“证 人”真实身份暴露，无疑是 给弥天大谎来了釜底抽薪。 这两个“证人”在媒 体首次“露面”时，“皮 特”马赛克，“安妮’’ 则只脸上打着敢以背面示 人。第二次出镜时，这两 人都戴着墨镜，可见是冒 牌货，所以才如此心虚。 假调查被揭穿让“活 摘”谣言更加无法收场 2006年7月6曰，在“苏家 屯集中营”谣言被彻底戳穿 的情况下，“法轮功”邪教 组织叉勾结加拿大的大卫· 乔高(David Ki1gour)和大 卫·麦塔斯(David Matas)抛 出了所谓《关于指控中共摘 取学员器官的调查报告》(Report in to A11ega of ogran havesting of Falun Gong practiones in China)。臭名

昭著的“大卫报告”引述的 所谓证据大量来自电话采访 录音或通过网络搜索得出的 主观推断，根本无法采信。 据加拿大法语广播电 视台的一份“审查报告” 披露：国际特赦组织频频 指责中国政府镇压“法轮 功”，他们就这个问题在中 国进行了实地调查，但就连 他们也无法确认摘取并贩 卖“法轮功”成员器官的真 实性。在一部分没有播出的 采访片段中，国际特赦组 织的发言人安娜-圣一玛莉 (Anne Sainte—Marie)甚 至说有些对中国医院的电 话采访已经被编辑过，所 谓“被编辑过”就是被剪辑 造假了。而作出这个判断的 竟然是“频频指责中国政府 镇压法轮功”的国际特赦 组织，其客观性还用得着质 疑么?举一可以反三，一假 则百伪。所谓的“电话调 查”，就是无耻而狡诈的造 假。“大卫报告’’借以立 基的假调查早就被揭穿。 假统计纯属杜撰成 侮辱世人智商天方夜谭 大下．乔高(David Ki1gour)和大卫.麦塔斯(David Matas)称，“活摘报 告”建立在对中国器官移植

数字的详细统计之上，因而 无法否认。那他们又是如何 统计的呢?一是编造“权威 信息”胡乱统计。澳大利 亚知名器官移植问题专家 坎贝尔·弗雷法轮功"就是 邪教。十几年前，坎贝尔 开始监控全球器官贩卖发展 趋势，并走访包括中国在内 的世界各地，采访上千名器 官贩卖受害者、购买者、 中间商及医生。由于研究 成果戳破了那些谣言，坎 贝尔受到“法轮功”的威 胁：寄恐吓信，向他任教 的大学写信要求开除他，在 他的住处前抗议。“他们 越这样，就越证明我的研 究是正确的一一‘法轮功’ 的真实面目就是邪教’’， 坎贝尔说。更无耻的是， 直到现在，“大卫报告”仍 未删除这些数据，媒体仍在 拿它恶意炒作。二是不顾专 业常识信口雌黄作统计。 2016年6月，美国人伊 森·葛特曼联手两个大卫， 发表了《大屠杀一一血腥的 摘取》报告，妄称中国每年 有6万至10万例器官移植， 器官来源于“良心犯”。这 个“统计”完全无视专业常 识。事实是，中国在2015年 捐赠器官数字有10057例，

只占了全球总量的8．5％ 。当年中国使用的免疫抑 制药物，约占全世界的8％ ，与上述数字吻合。这个 无可争辩的数据与编造的 6万到10万例相去甚远。 世界卫生组织(WitO)器 官移植项目主任何塞。努涅 斯教授表示，作为世界卫生 组织负责监管世界移植工作 的官员，移植外科医师，他 可以从专业的角度，肯定这 个相当于移植数量的数字是 不可能的。如果所称“中国 每年有六万至十万个器官移 植”为真，那就等于与全世 界器官移植数量相当，在器 官移植日益透明化的今天， 简直就是天方夜谭。帮腔 者的造谣太 离谱，完全不 顾器官移植的专业常识。 自古假的真不了，真 的假不了。使尽金身解数， 炒了数十年的“活摘”谣 言，期间内容数度变换， 一次一次离谱，梦想使“ 谣言重复千遍就成为真理” 的传说成为现实，可惜事 与愿违。无耻的造谣者必 将受到全人类的唾弃，终 将被钉在历史的耻辱柱上! 委托广告人： 广西南宁：刘日全 电话：13667718711 12.28.17 | RN&R | 21

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A shredded pork burrito with red sauce is among Mendoza’s offerings.

Stay tuned Located in a well traveled strip mall, Mendoza’s Bar & Grill is the latest restaurant to make a go of a space that has seemed to have a revolving door for the past few years. Based on our first visit, I think they might have what it takes to stick around.

My elder daughter ordered a wet burrito ($5.99), its large flour tortilla stuffed with spanish rice, refried beans, cilantro, onion and sour cream. It was topped with plenty of melted cheese and green sauce. The burritos are normally offered with a choice of meats, but she went veggie, and they knocked a buck off the price. The rice and beans were well seasoned, and she took some home for the next day’s lunch.

We shared a shrimp seafood tower ($18.99) that really lived up to the name.

A big pile of large shrimp, krab shreds, chopped octopus, white fish, cucumber, and avocado was stacked about eight inches high, marinated ceviche style. The marinade was citrusy with a little bit of kick, and the seafood was all quite good. It was very fresh tasting, fragrant, and impressively plated.

My grandson dug into a sope al pastor ($3.99), with plenty of tender pork, lettuce, tomato, onion, cilantro, and cheese topping a thick, pillowy corn tortilla. The pineapple flavor was very present, and it was mild enough for the little guy to enjoy. His dad plowed through a chorizo torta ($6.99) stuffed with the same veggies plus pickled jalapeño and plenty of mild, loose-meat sausage. The roll was soft and had a lot of flavor. Overall, it was a really good rendering of this sandwich favorite.

I mixed it up a bit and got a plate with a

PHOTO/ALLISON YOUNG

carnitas gordita ($3.99) and a pair of tacos, carne asada and lengua ($2.50 each). The pocket tortilla was soft, just lightly crisped on the grill, and the pork was excellent.

For that matter, all the meats we sampled were very good, with the tongue taco being a standout—definitely some of the best lengua you’ll find in town. Although I did sample both the green and red salsas provided, all three items on the plate were so good they almost didn’t need it.

My daughter-in-law’s enchilada combo plate ($8.99) included ample servings of rice and beans on the side, the three corn tortillas filled with chicken, onion, and cilantro, soaked in red sauce but with not a lot of sauce on the plate. Or maybe I just couldn’t see it past the huge salad of shredded lettuce, tomato, onion, jalapeño, and crumbled queso fresco on top. It was as if she’d ordered a salad that was underpinned with a seasoning of enchilada. It was more food than she’s used to, so her husband and I helped. We’re just good that way.

My younger daughter’s chile relleno combo with rice and beans ($8.99) barely lasted long enough for me to get a bite.

Plus, she did her part helping with the seafood. Working a nurse’s schedule is clearly hungry business. The stuffed pepper was nearly as big as the burrito, with a huge amount of Oaxaca cheese inside, a very good chunky red sauce, and a sprinkling of shredded jack on top. We put Mendoza’s on our list of go-to spots for curing a craving for melted cheese. I expect it won’t be long before we’re back. Ω

Mendoza’s Bar & Grill 51 E. Moana Lane, 384-6528

Mendoza’s Bar & Grill is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

by Marc Tiar

A brick house The sign outside Brickie’s Tavern says it was established in 1956, coincidentally the same year the Gold ’N’ Silver Inn opened a few blocks away, according to the sign outside that establishment. This part of Reno, just west of downtown, appears to be moving toward redevelopment and gentrification in the near future, so a brief trip 51 years back in time seemed timely and appealing.

Walking into Brickie’s for the first time—kind of shameful because my first apartment was just blocks away, and I never managed to wander in—it appeared to be as much diner as bar. A grill situated in the corner near large, handwritten menu boards confirmed what I’d heard—people come here as much for burgers as beer.

I made a mental note to return with an appetite soon, if not for a burger, then a weekend breakfast, for sure. I pondered what Brickie’s was like in 1956. The false ceiling tiles and wood laminate on the bar don’t seem that old to me. Old boxing posters for Reno’s “Centennial Coliseum”—now the convention center— lend a bit of nostalgia I always value in older places.

On Sunday nights this time of year, bars are football central, so I was a little curious to see how much Brickie’s would be dominated by cheering fans. Fortunately, the few TVs don’t completely dominate the room, and the handful of enthusiastic regulars at the bar weren’t obnoxious. Clearly, though, this is a football establishment. Betting pool grids for bowl games decorate a sizeable part of the wall behind the bar.

My wife had been fighting a brutal, cold-induced sore throat, and homemade hot toddies were one weapon in her arsenal. Finally well enough to go out, she decided to see what Brickie’s might

Bartenders Shellice Maraccini and Dave Underwood can offer a range of bottles, a handful of drafts and a couple of craft beers.

PHOTO/ERIC MARKS

be able to offer. This neighborhood football bar wasn’t the place for toddies, so hot water with a generous pour of brandy was the closest they could come.

The hot buttered rum mix our bartender offered as a possible substitute might have been OK, but it wasn’t what my wife was looking for. The six draft beers were mostly the major brewery options I expected, but I was happy to see two craft beers—and even happier that one was a local. I ordered a pint of Micron No Town Brown and enjoyed it just as much as I remember liking it at the brewery on Mill Street.

Bottled beer choices were the usual suspects, the ones you’d find at most every average bar in the country, churned out en masse by big beer factories. The wine list on par with your neighborhood supermarket. The hard alcohol was standard issue—whiskey, vodka, tequila and rum labels I’ve come to consider a typical bar selection.

I appreciate that as a food serving establishment, Brickie’s doesn’t allow smoking, taking it up a notch from many other neighborhood bars around town. For drinking, there’s nothing about Brickie’s Tavern to merit a special trip, especially if you want a hot toddy. My wife remarked that this could easily be our neighborhood spot if we lived nearby, and I agree. If you’re in the neighborhood and need a place to watch football and drink beer, Brickie’s has you covered. The food is a promising bonus that I regret not planning ahead for. After 51 years, they clearly have found their place and are doing it right. Ω

Guitar Plaza | 9PM | Free Enjoy live music by DJ Rizzo.

Alpine Union Patio | 9PM | $59 Includes VIP access to Alpine Union Patio next to the firepits & an LED bracelet that syncs with the music on Guitar Plaza.

80s Dance Party Featuring Glam Cobra Vinyl | 10PM | $89 Includes an LED bracelet that syncs to the show & champagne toast.

Revolution Ballroom | 9PM | $189 presale, $249 Indulge in a gourmet buffet & open champagne bar while enjoying the variety act show featuring our Electrify burlesque girls.

BOOK TICKETS ONLINE

Brickie’s Tavern 706 W. Second St.

Learn more here: http://bit.ly/2BLets2

12.28.17 | RN&R | 23

HELP PREVENT HIV

DON’T SHARE THESE. DON’T ABUSE THESE. Any drug can be abused. If you or a friend are abusing drugs, get help.

Never share needles. Drug use increases your risk of getting HIV.

FREE & CONFIDENTIAL HIV/STD TESTING 775-328-6147

This publication was supported by the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health through Grant Number 6NU62PS003654-05-06 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health nor the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

24 | RN&R | 12.28.17

by JeRi Chadwell

j e ri c @ne w s re v i e w . c o m

Paul Navarro, Steve Moore, Matt Garito and Richard Tom make thrash-heavy metal music.

Up to speed Condemned Existence Paul Navarro, Richard Tom, Steve Moore and Matt Garito call their heavy metal outfit Condemned Existence—but these guys aren’t nihilists. They find too much meaning in the labor intensive process that goes into creating their brutal sound.

The band got its start in early 2015, when, after having taken about a year off from playing, drummer Navarro began jamming with a guitarist he met on Craigslist. The pair played mostly stoner rock together—grooving at a pace that was slow for Navarro, whose background lies in progressive rock and hardcore.

“It was kind of pacifying me for a little while, just playing with him,” Navarro said. “But he kept talking about this friend of his, which was Matt.”

Eventually, guitarist Garito joined in on a jam session. A former drummer, he and Navarro clicked quickly and began playing together. Garito said he was looking for serious musicians with whom to collaborate and was surprised to find one through a Craigslist connection. He calls the website a “wasteland for musicians.”

“There’s just a lot of guys on there that just don’t really want to be in a band, I feel,” he said. “It’s like they don’t understand what it takes and the work it requires and the commitment that it requires to be a good musician and in a band. Seriously, it’s a lot of bedroom players that really have no ambition.

They’ll show up one time, and you’ll never see them again.”

A few months later, Navarro and Garito were still seeing each other when Navarro met vocalist Tom, who had recently departed his former band—a thrash metal outfit called Seven Churches—also in search of collaborators who were looking to take music

Photo/jeri chadwell

more seriously. It wasn’t long before he introduced his own friend, bassist Moore, completing the lineup. From there, the bandmates said, the real work began.

Condemned Existence played its first show at the Knitting Factory in September 2015. Since then, the guys have tried to average two gigs a month— one in town and one somewhere else.

They also meet in Navarro’s basement twice a week for practice. And with frequent gigs on the docket, they feel the need to turn out new songs regularly.

“We’ll usually do a live recording of a song as well and disperse it around so we all can practice and get it tight,” Moore said.

“Uh-huh,” Navarro said. “Do your homework.”

But nailing down the large repertoire of vicious, thrash-heavy songs isn’t the only point behind the aggressive practice schedule. The bandmates are also big on working to expand their respective skillsets. As an example, Tom cites his vocals. He growls and screams with conviction—and an impressive range.

But, he said, this wasn’t always the case.

“I was just rushing, rushing—and way sloppier when I first came here,” he said.

“They were just telling me to break it up and helping me breathe better. At first, I would just sing straight, one pattern and flat. They’d be like, ‘Try it this way. Try it that way. You have it. You just need to learn how to use it.’ They taught me a lot.”

To hear the self-titled 2016 EP, one would think the bandmates had been at it for years. Now, they’re working on a second EP. As yet, there’s no release date, but Navarro said they’ve chosen five songs from their extensive set list and are setting aside gig money to pay for recording. Ω

condemned existence plays New Year’s eve at the Shea’s tavern, 715 S. Virginia St., with a lineup of three other bands. the show starts at 7:30 p.m.

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www.facebook.com/vsamreno 12.28.17 | RN&R | 25

THURSDAY 12/28

FRIDAY 12/29

214 W. Commercial Row, (775) 813-6689

Drink-182—A Very Emo Christmas, 9pm, no cover

Dr. Fresch, 10pm, $5-$15

3rd Street Bar

Frank Perry Jazz Combo, 8pm, no cover

5 Star Saloon

Karaoke, 9pm, no cover

1up

125 W. Third St., (775) 323-5005 132 West St., (775) 329-2878

Mickey Avalon Dec. 29, 9 p.m.

Whiskey Dick’s Saloon 2660 Lake Tahoe Blvd.

South Lake Tahoe (530) 544-3425

Comedy 3rd Street Bar, 125 W. Third St. (775) 323-5005: Open Mic Comedy Competition with host Pat Shillito, Wed, 9pm, no cover The Improv at Harveys Lake Tahoe, 15 Highway 50, Stateline, (775) 588-6611: Bobby Collins, Kathleen Dunbar, Thu-Fri, Sun, 9pm, $25; Sat, 9pm, $30; John Caponera, Suli McCullough, Wed, 9pm, $25 Laugh Factory, Silver Legacy Resort Casino, 407 N. Virginia St., (775) 3257401: Joey Medina, Thu, 7:30pm, $21.95; Fri-Sat, 7:30pm, 9:30pm, $27.45; NYE shows with Joey Medina, Sun, 6:30pm, 9:30pm, $27.45; Bill Dawes, Tue-Wed, 7:30pm, $21.45 Pioneer Underground, 100 S. Virginia St., (775) 322-5233: Kevin Farley, Thu, 8pm, $12-$17; Fri, 9pm, $15-$20; Sat, 6:30pm, 9:30pm, $15-$20; NYE shows with Kevin Farley, Sun, 6:30pm, $17-$20; 9:30pm, $20-$30

40 mile Saloon

1495 S. Virginia St., (775) 323-1877

Sonic Mass with DJ Tigerbunny, 9pm, no cover

Bar of america

STIG, 9:30pm, no cover

10042 Donner Pass Rd., Truckee, (530) 587-2626

ceol iriSH puB

538 S. Virginia St., (775) 329-5558

SATURDAY 12/30

NYE Party with Blue Haven, 9pm, $5

DG Kicks Big Band Jazz Orchestra, 8pm, Tu, W, no cover Karaoke, 9pm, W, no cover

DemenCha’s Demented Disney Drag Show, 10pm, $5

New Year’s Eve Glitterball Party, 10pm, no cover

STIG, 9:30pm, no cover

Matt Rainey & The Dippin’ Sauce, 9:30pm, no cover

NYE Party with CHANGO, 9:30pm, no cover

Chris Talbot, 9pm, no cover

Kelly Ann Miller, 9pm, no cover

NYE Party with Chris Talbot, 9pm, no cover

daVidSonS diStillerY

Determined, 9pm, no cover

275 E. Fourth St., (775) 324-1917

Whiskey Preachers, 9pm, no cover

faceS nV

NYE Pimps & Hos Party with One Ton Dually, Riptide Bandits, 9pm, no cover NYE Party with Kenneth Blake, India Ferrah, 8pm, $15-$20

239 W. Second St., (775) 470-8590 Classical Open Mic Night, 7pm, no cover

Matt Bushman, 7pm, no cover

New York New Year’s Eve Party with Atomic Highway, 6pm, $20

Great BaSin BrewinG companY

Alice in Discoland 2018 with Mojo Green, 8:30pm, $25

HeadQuarterS Bar

WTF NYE with Franc Friday, Tea Have, Giant Fighting Robots, 10pm, no cover

846 Victorian Ave., Sparks, (775) 355-7711 219 W. Second St., (775) 800-1020

Hellfire Saloon

3372 S. McCarran Blvd., (775) 825-1988

Line Dancing with Ms. Judy, DJ Trey Valentine, 6:30pm, no cover

Fy-NYE with EveryDayFreak, 8pm, no cover

liVinG tHe Good life

NYE party with Soul Persuaders, 8pm, $75

71 S. Wells Ave., (775) 384-1652

1480 N. Carson St., Carson City, (775) 841-4663

tHe loft

Magic Fusion, 7pm, 9pm, $20-$45

tHe loVinG cup

Jazz Night, 8:30pm, no cover

188 California Ave., (775) 322-2480

26 | RN&R | 12.28.17

Open Mic with Lenny El Bajo, 7pm, Tu, no cover

New Year’s Eve Party with 8 Track Maniacs, 8pm, $10

JuB JuB’S tHirSt parlor

1001 Heavenly Village Way, S. L. Tahoe, (530) 523-8024

Traditional Irish session, 7pm, Tu, no cover

NYE Party with Funk Assassination, 9pm, no cover

1099 S. Virginia St., (775) 324-2244

6300 Mae Anne Ave., Ste. 3, (775) 787-6300

MON-WED 1/1-1/3

The Biggest Little Drag Ball, 10pm, $5

cHapel taVern

fine VineS

SUNDAY 12/31

Magic After Dark, 9pm, $30-$45

Magic Fusion, 7pm, 9pm, $20-$45

Magic Fusion NYE Party, 7pm, $50 The Loft Lounge NYE Party, 8pm, $100

Karaoke Contest, 9pm, W, no cover

Magic Fusion, 7pm, M, Tu, W, $20-$45

MidTown wine Bar

1527 S. Virginia St., (775) 800-1960

THURSDAY 12/28

FRIDAY 12/29

SATURDAY 12/30

DJ Trivia, 6:30pm, no cover

Monique Jade Band, 8:30pm, no cover

Musicole, 8pm, no cover

MiLLenniUM niGHTCLUB

906-A Victorian Ave., Sparks, (775) 359-1594

MON-WED 1/1-1/3

NYE Party, 10pm, $TBA

2100 Victorian Ave., Sparks, (775) 772-6637

Paddy & irene’s irisH PUB

SUNDAY 12/31

Acoustic Wonderland, 8pm, no cover

Karaoke, 10pm, no cover

THe PaTio

600 W. Fifth St., (775) 323-6565

PiGniC PUB & PaTio 235 Flint St,, (775) 376-1948

THe PoLo LoUnGe

Ladies Night with DJ Bobby G, 9pm, no cover

1559 S. Virginia St., (775) 322-8864

Post shows online by registerin g at www.newsrev iew.com/ren o.

Deadline is th e Friday before public ation.

The Patio’s Final Countdown, 9pm, no cover

VAMP NYE Extravaganza, 9pm, no cover

Ponderosa saLoon

Moon Gravy, 8pm, no cover

106 S. C St., Virginia City, (775) 847-7210

THe raCK

NYE Party with The Whiskey Haulers, 8pm, no cover

red doG saLoon

New Year Dinner & Dance with Mo’z Motly Blues Band, 7pm, $50

THe sainT

NYE Prom with Failure Machine, Dainesly, Team Francis, 8pm, $10-$12

sHea’s TaVern

NYE Party with Mob Rule, Condemned Existence, The Shames, 7:30pm, $6

76 N. C St., Virginia City, (775) 847-7474 761 S. Virginia St., (775) 221-7451 715 S. Virginia St., (775) 786-4774 1237 Baring Blvd., Sparks, (775) 409-3340

Blues Etc. Jam with Tony G & Friends, 8pm, no cover

New Year’s Eve Bash with Wunderlust, 10pm, no cover

sT. JaMes infirMary

Saturday Dance Party, 9pm, no cover

sTUdio on 4TH

Boondoggle, 9pm, $5

445 California Ave., (775) 657-8484 432 E. Fourth St., (775) 737-9776

ToniC LoUnGe

231 W. Second St., (775) 337-6868

wHisKey diCK’s saLoon

2660 Lake Tahoe Blvd., S.L. Tahoe, (530) 544-3425

XHaLe Bar & LoUnGe

27 Highway 50, Stateline, (775) 580-7221

Sessions, 8pm, M, no cover Steve DiNicola, 7pm, W, no cover

New Year’s Eve Party, 8pm, $25-$50

111 N. Virginia St., (775) 501-5929

sParKs LoUnGe

Ozomatli

NYE: Silver, Sharkmouth, Spike McGuire, 7pm, no cover

Nigel’s Acoustic Madness Jam, 8pm, Tu, Electric Spark Jam, 8pm, W, no cover Open Mic Clinic, 8pm, W, no cover

Rocking the ’80s New Year’s Party, 9pm, $20

Mark Farina Dec. 29, 9 p.m.

Tahoe Biltmore 5 Highway 28 Crystal Bay 833-6731

Erik Lobe’s b-day party with DJs Chris English, MrSmeaggs, 9pm, no cover Mickey Avalon, The Guestlist, 9pm, $20

Dec. 29, 9 p.m.

Crystal Bay Casino 14 Highway 28 Crystal Bay 833-6333

Funktronik, 9pm, no cover

Vibe Friday: Rekoh Suave & DZ Beatz, 9pm, free for women before midnight

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12.28.17 | RN&R | 27

RENO

12.21

KLB

THURSDAY 12/28

FRIDAY 12/29

SATURDAY 12/30

SUNDAY 12/31

MON-WED 1/1-1/3

2) The Vegas Road Show, 4pm, no cover Reckless Envy, 10pm, no cover

2) The Vegas Road Show, 4pm, no cover Reckless Envy, 10pm, no cover

2) The Vegas Road Show, 4pm, no cover Reckless Envy, 10pm, no cover

2) The Vegas Road Show, 4pm, no cover Reckless Envy, 10pm, no cover

2) Two Way Street, 8pm, M, Tu, W, no cover

2100 Garson Road, Verdi, (775) 345-6000 1) Events Center 2) Guitar Bar

2) Dan Palmer, 6pm, no cover

2) Gary Douglas, 5pm, no cover The Starliters, 9pm, no cover

2) Jason King, 5pm, no cover The Starlighters, 9pm, no cover

2) Blues Assault, 6pm, no cover Christopher Project, 10pm, no cover

2) Tandymonium, 6pm, M, no cover Michael Furlong, 6pm, Tu, no cover Gary Douglas, 6pm, W, no cover

CRystAl BAy CluB

2) The Earls of Newtown, 10pm, no cover

1) Ozomatli, 9pm, $25-$30

1) Leftover Salmon, Dead Winter Carpenters, 9pm, $30-$35

1) New Year’s Eve Show with Leftover Salmon, 9pm, $50

1) The Unbelievables Christmas Extravaganza, 3pm, 7pm, $29.95-$49.95

1) The Unbelievables Christmas Extravaganza, 5:30pm, 8pm, $29.95-$49.95 2) Garage Boys, 9pm, no cover

1) The Unbelievables Christmas Extravaganza, 3pm, 7pm, $29.95-$49.95 2) Garage Boys, 9pm, no cover

2) NYE with Garage Boys, 9pm, $20 3) NYE party, 9pm, $20

AtlAntis CAsino ResoRt spA 3800 S. Virginia St., (775) 825-4700 1) Grand Ballroom 2) Cabaret

Boomtown CAsino

Todd Snider Dec. 30, 8 p.m.

Nugget Casino Resort 1100 Nugget Ave. Sparks 356-3300

Karaoke Elbow Room Bar, 2002 Victorian Ave., Sparks, (775) 358-6700: Karaoke with DJ Toni Tunez, Tue, 8pm, no cover Jimmy B’s Bar & Grill, 180 W. Peckham Lane, Ste 1070, (775) 686-6737: Karaoke, Sat, 9:30pm, no cover The Point, 1601 S. Virginia St., (775) 3223001: Karaoke, Thu-Sat, 7pm, no cover Spiro’s Sports Bar & Grille, 1475 E. Prater Way, Ste.103, Sparks, (775) 356-6000: Karaoke, Fri-Sat, 9pm, no cover West 2nd Street Bar, 118 W. Second St., (775) 348-7976: Karaoke, Mon-Sun, 9pm, no cover

14 Hwy. 28, Crystal Bay, (775) 833-6333

eldoRAdo ResoRt CAsino 345 N. Virginia St., (775) 786-5700 1) Theater 2) Brew Brothers 3) NoVi

GRAnd sieRRA ResoRt

1) Borealis—A Holiday Spectacle, 1) Straight No Chaser, 8pm, $32-$148 2) G-Eazy, 9pm, $50 2) New Year’s Eve party, 8pm, $50 8pm, $15-$25 3) Grand Country Nights with DJ Jeremy, 3) Grand Country Nights with DJ Jeremy, Grand Sierra Resort New Year’s Eve 3) Grand Country Nights, 10pm, no cover 10pm, no cover 10pm, no cover Celebration, 9:30pm, $41.24

HARd RoCk Hotel And CAsino

Electrify Rock N’ Roll Burlesque, 9pm, $20

Electrify Rock N’ Roll Burlesque, 9pm, $20

Electrify Rock N’ Roll Burlesque, 9pm, $20

1) The Magic of Eli Kerr, 7:30pm, $32-$42

1) The Magic of Eli Kerr, 7:30pm, $32-$42 Essence, 10pm, $30.04 2) The Look, 8:30pm, no cover

1) The Magic of Eli Kerr, 7:30pm, $32-$42 Essence, 10pm, $30.04 2) NYE Party, 9pm, no cover

2500 E. Second St., (775) 789-2000 1) Grand Theater 2) Lex 3) Race & Sport Book 50 Hwy. 50, Stateline, (844) 588-7625

HARRAH’s Reno

219 N. Center St., (775) 786-3232 1) Showroom 2) Sapphire Lounge 3) Plaza 4) Convention Center

montBleu ResoRt CAsino & spA

MontBleu New Year’s 2018 Celebration, 8pm, $70-$80

55 Hwy. 50, Stateline, (775) 588-3515

nuGGet CAsino ResoRt

1100 Nugget Ave., Sparks, (775) 356-3300

peppeRmill ResoRt spA CAsino 2707 S. Virginia St., (775) 826-2121 1) Tuscany Ballroom 2) Terrace Lounge 3) Edge

2) The Inciters, 7pm, no cover 2) The Inciters, 8pm, no cover 3) Ladies Night with DJs Enfo & Twyman, 3) Latin Dance Social, 7:30pm, $10-$20 10pm, $20

silveR leGACy ResoRt CAsino

407 N. Virginia St., (775) 325-7401 1) Grand Exposition Hall 2) Rum Bullions Island Bar 3) Aura Ultra Lounge 4) Silver Baron Lounge

2) Superbad, 9pm, no cover 4) Atomika, 9pm, no cover

4) Atomika, 9pm, no cover

tAHoe BiltmoRe lodGe & CAsino

Mark Farina, 9pm, $15-$25

5 Hwy. 28, Crystal Bay, (775) 833-6731

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28 | RN&R | 12.28.17

’80s Dance Party with Glam Cobra, 9pm, $89

Todd Snider, 8pm, $30-$50

The Dan Band, 9pm, $30-$50

2) The Inciters, 8pm, no cover

3) Resolution NYE Party with DJ Four Color Zack, 10pm, $55-$65

2) Superbad, 9pm, no cover 3) Seduction Saturdays, 9pm, $5 4) Atomika, 9pm, no cover

2) NYE with Superbad, 9pm, $20-$50 3) New Year Soirée with DJ Travis Ha, 9pm, $20-$50 Bounce Heavy NYE with Stylust Beats and Left/Right, 9pm, $20-$40

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12.28.17 | RN&R | 29

You should be You should be

getting it getting it once a week. once a week.

reno’s news and entertainment weekly. on stands every thursday.

if you have a business and would like to carry the paper for free, call 775.324.4440

n e w s r e v i e w.c o m

30 | RN&R | 12.28.17

FOR THE WEEK OF dEcEmbER 28, 2017 For a complete listing of this week’s events or to post events to our online calendar, visit www.newsreview.com.

IN A NEW YORK MINUTE: Return to the 1960s-era Indian Room at the Cal-Neva Lodge during this memorable night of Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr. and Jakki Ford. Sun, 12/31, 6pm. $60 stag, $100 couple. Old Corner Bar, Piper’s Opera House, 12 N. B St., Virginia City, (775) 847-0433, www.facebook.com/ pipersoperahouse.

M.S. DIXIE II NEW YEAR’S EVE CRUISE: Celebrate this New Year’s Eve on board the M.S. Dixie ll. The cruise includes dinner, live music, dancing and special celebrations. Sun, 12/31, 6pm. $75-$160.

Zephyr Cove Resort, 760 US Highway 50, Zephyr Cove, (800) 238-2463.

NEW YEAR’S EVE FAMILY CELEBRATION: The

Nevada Chamber Music Festival

1/01:

The Reno Chamber Orchestra’s 14th annual festival, which kicked off on Dec. 26, features afternoon and evening concerts showcasing world-class musicians performing great works of chamber music. Festival highlights include an all-Rachmaninoff concert on Dec. 31 and an all-Mozart concert on Jan. 1. The performances take place at Trinity Episcopal Church, 200 Island Ave., Nightingale Concert Hall, 1335 N. Virginia St., at the University of Nevada, Reno campus, and South Reno United Methodist Church, 202 De Spain Lane. Tickets are $5-$50. Tickets for the New Year’s Day Champagne Brunch on Jan. 1 are $65. Call 348-9413 or visit www.renochamberorchestra.org.

EVENTS 2ND ANNUAL FLIGHT NIGHT NYE PARTY: Fly High Trampoline Park holds its New Year’s Eve party for all ages. Amplified Entertainment DJs will spin a variety of Top 40, EDM, Latin, hip hop and country tunes. There will also be party favors, countdown and a balloon drop at midnight. Sun, 12/31, 9pm. $25. Fly High Trampoline Park, 10 Greg St., Unit 204, Sparks, (775) 856 8131.

ALL THAT GLITTERS KALEIDOSCOPE PARTY: The Resort at Squaw Creek’s party features go-go dancers, Tahoe Flow Arts aerialist shows, champagne, music and live entertainment. The resort also offers dinner prior to the live show that kicks off the night and lodging specials, as well as kids’ festivities. All That Glitters NYE Kaleidoscope Party begins at 9pm (a pre-party dinner gets underway at 7pm and costs $65 per person or $135 with dinner). Kids can also get in on the fun with a Kids Night Out New Year’s Eve Bash. Designed for guests ages 8-12, the festivities include dinner, dessert station, games, crafts, kid-friendly DJ and 9pm balloon drop. A Teens’ New Year’s Eve Lounge for teens ages 13-17 includes pizza, mocktails and music. Both underage gatherings are from 7pm to 1am. Sun, 12/31, 9pm. $45-$152. Resort at Squaw Creek, 400 Squaw Creek Road, South Lake Tahoe, (530) 583-6300.

AN EVENING IN PARIS NYE BLACK-TIE GALA: Ring in the new year at Friends of Carson City Library’s annual fundraiser benefiting the Carson City Library. This year’s event is “Bonne année” featuring a French-themed buffet, silent auction items, music by McClain Mobile Music, dancing and many surprises in store.

Sun, 12/31, 6pm. $10-$50. Carson City Plaza Hotel and Event Center, 801 S. Carson St., Carson City, (775) 884-4043, www.facebook.com/friendscclibrary.

FUN QUEST NEW YEAR’S EVE SPECIAL: Fun Quest at Grand Sierra Resort invites all ages for a night out offering unlimited games, including laser tag, Battlefield, Tumble Town, bumper cars and arcade games. Price of admission includes a complimentary hot dog and soda. Sun, 12/31, 8pm. $50. Fun Quest at Grand Sierra Resort, 2500 E. Second St., (775) 789-2000, www.grandsierraresort.com.

HOLIDAY FIREWORKS: Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows hosts nightly fireworks displays on the KT Base Bar Deck at 5:30pm through Dec. 30. The New Year’s Eve fireworks start at 7pm.

The fireworks show will continue on Saturdays through March 31, depending on weather conditions. Thu, 12/28-Sat, 12/30, 5:30pm; Sun, 12/31, 7pm. Squaw Valley Resort, 1960 Squaw Valley Road, Olympic Valley, (800) 403-0206, squawalpine.com.

ski resort hosts a NYE event for all ages.

The event combines fun kid-specific activities, a fireworks show and live music and drinks for the parents.

Kids who register and can ski or ride unassisted in the dark can join in on a Kids Glowstick Parade. Music and snacks will be provided in the bar area prior to the parade, which starts at 6:30pm.

The event concludes with an East Coast New Year’s Eve ball drop in the Plaza Bar. Sun, 12/31, 6:30pm. Squaw Valley Resort, 1960 Squaw Valley Road, Olympic Valley, (800) 403-0206, squawalpine.com.

NEW YEAR’S EVE CELEBRATION: The event features a live concert, ice sculpting show, LED dance show and the gondola ball drop and fireworks show at 9pm. Sun, 12/31, 7pm. Free.

Gondola Plaza at Heavenly Village, 1001 Heavenly Village Way, South Lake Tahoe, theshopsatheavenly.com.

NEW YEARS EVE DANCE PARTY: Enjoy games, munchies and fun at this safe and sober New Year’s Eve party. $10 suggested donation. Sun, 12/31, 9pm. Free. Alano Club of Sparks NV, 1640 Prater Way, Sparks, www.facebook.com/sparksalano.

NEW YEAR’S EVE FAMILY GAME NIGHT: The family-friendly party includes pizza and drinks. Bring a snack to share along with a board game. Sun, 12/31, 5pm. Free.

Covenant Presbyterian Church, 6695 Mae Anne Ave., (775) 746-8118.

NEW YEAR’S EVE FIRE AND ICE CELEBRATIONS: The party includes outdoor ice skating rink, music by The Who Show cover band, an ice bar, fire pits and a fireworks show. Sun, 12/31, 9pm. Free. The Village at Northstar, 5001 Northstar Drive, Truckee, (800) 466-6784.

NEW YEAR’S EVE KIDS NIGHT OUT: This party, aimed toward kids ages 3-9, offers pizza, a movie, games, snacks and more.

Bring pajamas to get cozy. Sun, 12/31, 7pm. $45-$55. Tahoe Donner Trout Creek Recreation Center, 12790 Northwoods Blvd., Truckee, (530) 587-9437.

NEW YEARS EVE LIGHT PARADE AND FIREWORKS SHOW: This event is for intermediate skiers and riders ages 10 or older who can ski or ride unassisted in the dark. The New Year’s Eve fireworks show will follow the light parade. Sun, 12/31, 6:15pm. Free. Tahoe Donner Downhill Ski Area, 11603 Snowpeak Way, Truckee, (530) 587-9444.

NYE & 3RD ANNIVERSARY PARTY: The Depot

FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH MIDTOWN RENO: Artist Showing and Wine Tasting. Meet the artist of the month. Thu, 12/28, 6pm. Free. Fountain of Youth Midtown Reno, 724 S. Virginia St., (775) 964-4888.

celebrates its third year in business and ushers in the new year with a party of glitz and glam. “Great Gatsby” will be the theme of the night and patrons are encouraged to dress in their finest flapper fare. The event is a mix-andmingle cocktail party. Champagne will be offered to patrons every hour on the hour. Tickets will include a variety of hors d’oeuvres crafted for this special occasion and unlimited drinks until the ball drops. Sun, 12/31, 7pm. $80. The Depot Craft Brewery Distillery, 325 E. Fourth St., (775) 737-4330.

MCKINLEY ARTS & CULTURE CENTER: Empty Frontier Narrative. Jessica Gengenbach’s drawings wrestle with an idealized perception of the American West instilled by popular culture and the harm that was caused in its settling. The artist reception is on Jan. 4, 5-7pm. Thu, 12/28-Fri, 12/29, Mon, 1/1-Wed, 1/3, 9am-5pm. Free.

McKinley Arts & Culture Center, 925 Riverside Drive, (775) 334-6264.

POLAR EXPRESS TRAIN: Departs from the Carson City Eastgate Depot. During the holiday season, characters, entertainment and Santa Claus bring the story to life, with a souvenir silver sleigh bell to remember the journey.

The one-hour long rides are fun for the whole family. The 2017 season concludes on Saturday, Dec. 30. Rides depart at 5pm, 6:30pm and 8pm. Thu, 12/28-Sat, 12/30. $36-$82. Carson City Eastgate Depot, 4650 Eastgate Siding Road, Carson City, (775) 291-0208

RELEASE FEATURING CHAD WILKINS: Join The Alchemists for a special NYE show featuring music by Chad Wilkins and a burning bowl ceremony. Audience members will use prayer, meditation, sermons and music as they leave 2017 and enter 2018. This is a dry, all-ages show. There will be snacks in the lobby before showtime. Sparkling water toast at midnight. Sun, 12/31, 10pm. $20-$30.

Center for Spiritual Living, Reno, 4685 Lakeside Drive, (513) 604-7690.

through zines created and collected by local DIYers, learn a bit about the history and culture of zines and even make your very own zine to take home. Bound will be on view through Dec. 29. Thu, 12/28-Fri, 12/29, 3-6pm. Free. The Holland Project, 140 Vesta St., (775) 742-1858.

THE POTENTIALIST WORKSHOP: WinnemuccaMarshall Ranch Gallery Reception. The Potentialist Workshop’s December exhibition is curated by local plein air artist Erik Holland. The art show focuses on Nevada’s unique landscape and spotlights the threat of overdevelopment. Thu, 12/28, 6pm. Free. The Potentialist Workshop, 836 E. Second St., (651) 361-0757.

mUSIc SNOWGLOBE FESTIVAL: The three-day

WINTERFEST: The holiday event returns with the Holiday Express Train, a custom, narrated journey around the inside of the stadium taking riders on a trip from Reno to the North Pole to deliver Santa’s Naughty and Nice lists. Other highlights include pictures with Jolly Old St. Nick in Santa’s Village and ice skating at the outdoor ice rink. Fri, 12/29-Sat, 12/30, 5-9pm; Sun, 12/31, 4-7pm. $6-$15.

Greater Nevada Field, 250 Evans Ave., (775) 334-7000.

THE HOLLAND PROJECT: Bound. Browse

music festival features performances by dozens of electronic dance music acts and DJs, including Dillon Francis, Porter Robison, Travis Scott, Zedd, Kalid, Tycho, E-40, Alison Wonderland, Louis Futon, Luca Lush and Brasstracks. Fri, 12/29-Sun, 12/31. $109-$499. Lake Tahoe Community College, 1 College Way, South Lake Tahoe, snowglobemusicfestival.com.

SPORTS & FITNESS GUIDED HIKE: Enjoy a guided hike through

ART ART SOURCE GALLERY: Yuyu Yang 20th Anniversary Celebration. This exhibition celebrates the work of Chinese artist, environmental designer and architect Yuyu Yang. There are over 40 of his world-renowned images on display. Thu, 12/28, 10:30am. Free. Art Source Gallery, 2195 S. Virginia Street, (775) 828-3525.

ARTISTS CO-OP GALLERY RENO: Holiday Treasures. Artists Co-op Gallery Reno holds its holiday show offering one-of-akind gift and decorating items, including paintings, drawings, photography, miniatures, handmade ornaments, jewelry, pottery, gourds, scarves and holiday cards. Thu, 12/28, 11am. Free. Artists Co-op Gallery Reno, 627 Mill St., (775) 3228896, www.artistsco-opgalleryreno.com.

Galena Creek Park with a local specialist.

Please bring appropriate clothing and plenty of water. If there’s enough snow, this will be a snowshoe hike. Sat, 12/30, 10am. Free. Galena Creek Visitor Center, 18250 Mount Rose Highway, (775) 849-4948.

RENO BIGHORNS: The NBA development league basketball team play the Memphis Hustle. Thu, 12/28, 7pm. $10-$380. Reno Events Center, 400 N. Center St., (775) 853-8220, www.renobighorns.com.

RENO ICE RINK: The outdoor ice skating rink is open through Feb. 18. Visit website for rink hours. Thu, 12/28-Wed, 1/3. $6-$12.

Greater Nevada Field, 250 Evans Ave, (775) 334-7000, greaternevadafield.com.

12.28.17 | RN&R | 31

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by AMY ALKON

Alice In Wanderland

ERIK HOLLAND

I follow you on Twitter, and I was disgusted to see your tweet about marriage, “No, humans aren’t naturally monogamous—which is why people say relationships ‘take work,’ while you never hear anybody talking about what a coal mine an affair can be.” If a person finds fidelity so challenging, they should stay single.

Reality has this bad habit of being kind of a bummer. So, sure, that person you married all those years ago still has the capacity to surprise you with crazy new positions in bed—but typically they’re yogi-like contortions they use to pick dead skin off the bottoms of their feet.

That line you quote, “relationships ‘take work,’ while you never hear … what a coal mine an affair can be,” is actually from one of my old columns. I tweeted it along with this advice: “Don’t just assume you & romantic partner (will) stay monogamous. Maybe discuss how, exactly, you’ll go about that.”

From where I sit—opening lots of letters and email from cheaters and the cheated upon—this is simply good, practical marriage- and relationship-preserving advice. But from some of the responses on Twitter, you’d think I’d suggested braising the family dog and serving him on a bed of greens with a “tennis ball” of candied yams.

Though some men and women on Twitter merely questioned my take, interestingly, the enraged responses came entirely from men.

Granted, this may just have been due to chance, or it may reflect research on sex differences that suggests men tend to be more comfortable engaging in direct conflict.

However, though evolutionary psychologist David Buss—among others—finds that both men and women are deeply upset by infidelity, there seems to be a sex difference in who is more likely to go absolutely berserko over it.

Buss, looking out over the anthropological literature, observes: “In cultures the world over, men find the thought of their partner having sexual intercourse with other men intolerable. Suspicion or detection of infidelity causes many men to lash out in furious anger rarely seen in other contexts.”

Evolutionary psychologists have speculated that the fierceness of male sexual jealousy may be an

evolved adaptation to combat the uniquely male problem of “paternity uncertainty.” A woman, of course, knows that the tiny human who’s spent a good part of nine months sucker-punching her in the gut is hers. However, our male ancestors lacked access to 23andMe mail-in DNA tests. So male emotions seem to have evolved to act as an alarm system, goading men to protect themselves (like with a scary expression of anger to forewarn their partner), lest they be snookered into raising another man’s child.

The problem with the enraged response is that it kicks our brain into energy conservation mode— shunting blood flow away from our higher-reasoning department and toward our arms and legs and organs needed for “fight or flight.” So the mere mention of cheating—even coupled with suggestions for how to prevent it—kills any possibility of reasoned thinking. In our dumbeddown enraged state, all we’ve got is the knee-jerk response: “I am so totally moral, and so is my wife, and anyone who needs to discuss how they’ll stay monogamous is the Whore of Babylon!”

Unfortunately, aggressive denial of reality is particularly unhelpful for infidelity prevention. It’s especially unhelpful when it’s coupled with feelings of moral superiority.

Organizational behaviorist Dolly Chugh and her colleagues find that people’s view of themselves as “moral, competent and deserving … obstructs their ability” to make ethical decisions under pressure.

So, as the late infidelity researcher Peggy Vaughan advised, “A couple’s best hope for monogamy lies in rejecting the idea that they can assume monogamy without discussing the issue.” They should instead admit that “attractions to others are likely … no matter how much they love each other” and “engage in ongoing honest communication about the reality of the temptations and how to avoid the consequences of acting on those temptations.” Ω

Got a problem? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave., No. 280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or email AdviceAmy@aol.com (www.advicegoddess.com).

12.28.17 | RN&R | 33

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by ROb bRezsny

For the week oF December 28, 2017 ARIES (March 21-April 19): “I need more smart

allies, compassionate supporters, ethical role models, and loyal friends, and I need them right now!” writes Joanna K., an Aries reader from Albuquerque, New Mexico. On the other hand, there’s Jacques T., an Aries reader from Montreal. “To my amazement, I actually have much of the support and assistance I need,” he declares. “What I seem to need more of are constructive critics, fair-minded competitors with integrity, colleagues and loved ones who don’t assume that every little thing I do is perfect, and adversaries who galvanize me to get better.” I’m happy to announce, dear Aries, that in 2018 you will benefit more than usual from the influences that both Joanna and Jacques seek.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In the Scots language spoken in Lowland Scotland, a watergaw is a fragmented rainbow that appears between clouds. A skafer is a faint rainbow that arises behind a mist, presaging the imminent dissipation of the mist. A silk napkin is a splintered rainbow that heralds the arrival of brisk wind and rain. In accordance with the astrological omens, I propose we use these mysterious phenomena as symbols of power for you in 2018. The good fortune that comes your way will sometimes be partially veiled and seemingly incomplete. Don’t compare it to some “perfect” ideal. It’ll be more interesting and inspiring than any perfect ideal.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): In 2018, half-buried

residues from the past will be resurfacing as influences in your life. Old dreams that you abandoned prematurely are ripe to be reevaluated in light of what has happened since you last took them seriously. Are these good or bad developments? It will probably depend on your ability to be charitable and expansive as you deal with them. One thing is certain: To move forward into the future, you will have to update your relationships with these residues and dreams.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Poet Diane Ackerman

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tells us that human tongues, lips and genitals possess neural receptors that are ultra-responsive. Anatomists have given unsexy names to these bliss-generating parts of our bodies: Krause end bulbs, also known as bulboid corpuscles. (Couldn’t they have called them “glimmering rapture hubs” or “magic buttons”?)

In any case, these sweet spots enable us to experience surpassing pleasure. According to my understanding of the astrological omens for 2018, Cancerian, your personal complement of bulboid corpuscles will be even more sensitive than usual. Here’s further good news: Your soul will also have a heightened capacity to receive and register delight.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Mise en place is a French

term whose literal translation is “putting in place.” When used by professional chefs in a restaurant kitchen, it refers to the task of gathering and organizing all the ingredients and tools before beginning to cook. I think this is an excellent metaphor for you to emphasize throughout 2018. In every area of your life, thorough preparation will be the key to your success and fulfillment. Make sure you have everything you need before launching any new enterprise or creative effort.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Experimental composer Harry Partch played one-of-a-kind musical instruments that he made from objects like car hubcaps, gourds, aluminum ketchup bottles, and nose cones from airplanes. Collage artist Jason Mecier fashions portraits of celebrities using materials like noodles, pills, licorice candy, bacon and lipstick tubes. Given the astrological configurations for 2018, you could flourish by adopting a similar strategy in your own chosen field. Your most interesting successes could come from using things as they’re not “supposed” to be used. You could further your goals by mixing and matching resources in unique ways.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): I wish I could make it

nice and easy for you. I wish I could proclaim that the forces of darkness are lined up against the forces of light. I’d like to be able to advise you that the opening months of 2018 will bring you a showdown between wrong and right,

between ugliness and beauty. But it just ain’t that simple. It’s more like the forces of plaid will be arrayed against the forces of paisley. The showdown will feature two equally flawed and equally appealing sources of intrigue. And so you may inquire, Libra, what is the most honorable role you can play in these matters? Should you lend your support to one side or the other?

I advise you to create a third side.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In 2018, your tribe

will be extra skilled at opening things that have been shut or sealed for a long time: heavy doors, treasure boxes, rich possibilities, buried secrets, shy eyes, mum mouths, guarded hearts and insular minds. You’ll have a knack for initiating new markets and clearing blocked passageways and staging grand openings.

You’ll be more inclined to speak candidly and freely than any other generation of Scorpios in a long time. Getting stuck things unstuck will come naturally. Making yourself available for bighearted fun and games will be your specialty.

Given these wonders, maybe you should adopt a new nickname, like Apertura (the Italian word for “opening”), Ouverture (the French word for “opening”), šiši (Yoruban), Otevírací (Czech), Öffnung (German), or Kufungua (Swahili).

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): I predict that the

coming months won’t bring you the kinds of opportunities you were imagining and expecting, but it will bring you opportunities you haven’t imagined and didn’t expect. Will you be alert and receptive to these sly divergences from your master plan? If so, by September of 2018, you will have become as smart a gambler as maybe you have ever been. You will be more flexible and adaptable, too, which means you’ll be better able to get what you want without breaking stuff and wreaking whirlwinds.

Congratulations in advance, my daring darling.

May your experiments be both visionary and practical. May your fiery intentions be both steady and fluidic.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Hungarian psychia-

trist Thomas Szasz dismissed the idea that a person should be on a quest to “find himself” or “find herself.” “The self is not something that one finds,” he said. Rather, “it is something one creates.” I think that’s great advice for you in 2018, Capricorn. There’ll be little value in wandering around in search of fantastic clues about who you were born to be. Instead you should simply be gung-ho as you shape and craft yourself into the person you want to be.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Is there anything

about your attitude or your approach that is a bit immature or unripe? Have you in some way remained an amateur or apprentice when you should or could have become fully professional by now? Are you still a dabbler in a field where you could be a connoisseur or master? If your answer to any of these questions is yes, the coming months will be an excellent time to grow up, climb higher and try harder. I invite you to regard 2018 as the Year of Kicking Your Own Ass.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In 2018, one of your

themes will be “secret freedom.” What does that mean? The muse who whispered this clue in my ear did not elaborate further. But based on the astrological aspects, here are several possible interpretations. 1. You may have to dig deep and be strategic to access resources that have the power to emancipate you. 2. You may be able to discover a rewarding escape and provocative deliverance that have been hidden from you up until now. 3. You shouldn’t brag about the liberations you intend to accomplish until you have accomplished them. 4. The exact nature of the freedom that will be valuable to you might be useless or irrelevant or incomprehensible to other people.

You can call Rob Brezsny for your Expanded Weekly Horoscope: (900) 950-7700. $1.99 per minute. Must be 18+. Touchtone phone required. Customer service (612) 373-9785. And don’t forget to check out Rob’s website at www.realastrology.com.

by KRis VAgNER

Bookworm

What was the impetus for Nevada Reads?

Nevada Humanities. We’re a state humanities council, and we have been in partnership with the state library this year. They run a program called Nevada Center for Book … through the Library of Congress. … We’ve adopted this program, and, in years past, we have sometimes featured Nevada authors, and this year we thought we’d do something a little bit different.

We thought we’d focus the books that we chose on a particular theme. We were approached by some medical association advocacy groups from Las Vegas. They had been working closely with Sam Quinones, and they were really impressed with the way he was able to tell an accurate and compelling history of the opioid epidemic that’s ravaging the United States.

So, it was the advocacy groups that suggested the opioid theme?

PHOTO/kris vagner

Stephanie Gibson is program manager for Nevada Humanities, one of the groups behind Nevada Reads, a program in which Nevadans are encouraged to all pick up the same two books in 2018, Dreamland: The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic, by journalist Sam Quinones, and Julie Buntin’s Marlena: A Novel.

Discussions, author appearances and similar events will be scheduled throughout the state from spring through fall.

They kind of just put the bug in our ear.

They had a small advisory committee, and a selection committee of librarians, authors, poets, other stakeholders, people from the medical community. …

We got them all together and brainstormed some book ideas, and we thought it would be great to feature a novel and a non-fiction book. … Nevada is among the top 15 states for opioid overdose deaths.

Who will be involved in the events and discussions? It’s not just libraries and bookstores, right?

That’s right. … Julie Buntin and Sam Quinones will come to Nevada, whether it’s Las Vegas or Reno or a little bit of both. That hasn’t been ironed out just yet. We’ve been talking to people at Renown, hospitals around the state, community groups that work with addic-

tion and mental health, first responders, advocacy organizations, and we’re trying to put together interesting panels and interesting conversations. … One of the things I’m going to try to do is really find stakeholders who have those tried-andtrue book clubs, encourage them to choose these books as points of discussion. ... Sam has graciously offered to, in places that he can’t travel to supereasily, if we get community members coming together in libraries, he’ll be able to host Skype interviews. So, we’ll be able to reach every corner of the state, and people will be able to have an unmoderated conversation with him.…

Julie Buntin, she writes from experience.

Her novel Marlena is about a friend, a girl growing up in northern Michigan, and her experience with a neighborhood friend who has an addiction. … I was really touched in speaking with Julie.

This is her first published book. And she was actually just so chuffed when she heard that her book had been chosen in parallel to Sam Quiones book, because his work actually served as a reference point to her novel. Ideally, we’ll have the two of them at the same time. It might be an embarrassment of riches.

What’s the best way for people to keep up to date on these events as they get announced?

Definitely through nevdahumanities. org, our web site, and all of our social media platforms. We’re on Twitter, on Facebook and on Instagram. Ω

by BRUCE VAN DYKE

Trump tells the truth Cringeworthy moment No. 1 (and I mean reflexive automatic sphincter-clenching Cringeworthy)—Pence giving his latest hickey to the mottled left buttock of his beloved Dum Dum. And doing so while sitting right across the table, looking him in the eye as he achieves maximum suction. Just unbelievably undignified bad, bad, bad, to the point where one average American tweeted in response, “Is Pence a sycophant, a toady, or a lickspittle?” Answer—yes.

I was watching Tillerson during Pence’s extended glute-suck liplock, wondering just what was going on ole Rex’s head. Thought Bubble 1—“Jesus, Mike, you’re gonna need Santa to stuff your stocking with some new knee pads.” TB 2—“This guy’s a bigger moron than Moron.” TB 3—“I gotta get the fuck outta here.”

Cringeworthy moment No. 2—Paul “Eddie Munster” Ryan

tweeting the following on Dec. 24: “At the end of each year, no matter how short—or long—it may feel, there is always Christmas.

Waiting for us is that sense of wonder the shepherds felt when the angels appeared in night sky to herald the birth of a Savior.”

Gag. Maybe even double gag.

Immediately coming to mind after reading that bogus jive was the great quote from Woody Allen’s Hannah and Her Sisters, where Max Van Sydow’s character roars, “If Jesus Christ returned to see what was being done in his name, he’d never stop throwing up.”

Ryan’s blather is, of course, the same swill that despots, greedheads and flaming pricks have thrown out to the peasants for centuries. Distract the folks with the promise of Pie In The Sky courtesy of The Great Fairy Tale in order to get them to calm down and behave while the rich plunder

away. After all, this tax stuff is so complex and confusing. (“It will be all right, everybody, I’m sure Mr. Trump and Mr. Ryan have our best interests at heart. Didn’t they just say it was a Christmas present to America, and that it’s the greatest Christmas gift of all?

Just think, we will now pay more taxes on a form the size of a post card! Isn’t that just MAGA?) Cringeworthy moment No. 3—Trump telling his fellow white collar criminals at Mar A Lago after he signed the Tax Cuts and Thievery Act, “You all just got a lot richer.” What’s notable about this quote is that it does indeed show that, very occasionally, Trump can actually tell the truth! How about that! Merry Indictmas, everybody, and a Mueller New Year. Looking forward to some super fun Perp Walks in 2018! Ω

12.28.17 | RN&R | 35