Philadelphia City Paper, April 10th, 2014 by Philadelphia City Paper

2 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

contents 6

NAKED CITY | Daniel Denvir rides along with a

SEPTA trolley driver whose poetic flair has earned him a following.

THE LONG SHOT

COVER STORY | An awesome â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80s spy flick

makes its belated premiere at Cinedelphia.

FIRST LOOK

MOVIES | Sam Adams suggests which premieres

to see (or skip) at the Film Societyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new Spring Showcase. (Hint: Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t miss the one with Michael Fassbender wearing a giant papier-mĂ˘chĂŠ head.)

GRUDGE MATCH

19102 REVIEW | Bryan Bierman reviews Jewball,

the story of a South Philly basketball team that went up against the Nazis. Can you believe they had Hitler take the tip-off?

HIGH BARS

FOOD | Diners have to wait another week for seats at the chefsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; counter, but Jose Garcesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Bar VolvĂŠr at the Kimmel is now open and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nothing if not super swank. Caviar service on silver platters? Sparkling wines pouring by the flute? (Not that kind of flute.) Sure itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fancy, but you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t need a reservation. In other booze news, Adam Erace tells us about a clear, but creamy, pre-Prohibition punch. NEAL SANTOS

â&#x20AC;&#x153;CLARK PARK â&#x20AC;&#x201D; DARK!â&#x20AC;?

DIZZY DIGS PHILLY

THEATER | Shaun Brady dives into the story

behind a jazzy (hee!) production about bebop trumpeter Dizzy Gillespieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s forgotten Philly days.

NAKED CITY 7 Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the deal with summary offense citations?; 7 Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re rooting for jerkless bike lanes; 10 Freedom (Seder) rising; 12 PSPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Gleason on â&#x20AC;&#x153;loserâ&#x20AC;? schools // A&E 23 Album reviews: Inventions, Millie and Andrea, PUP and OFF! (exclamation point theirs); 23 Flick Pick: Finding Vivian Maier // CITYPAPER.NET Concert reviews of Julie Ruin, The Sounds, Juana Molina // COVER Illustration by Evan M. Lopez; design by Allie Rossignol

STAFF Publisher Nancy Stuski Editor in Chief Lillian Swanson Senior Editor Patrick Rapa Arts & Culture Editor Mikala Jamison Digital Media Editor/Movies Editor Paulina Reso Food Editor Caroline Russock Senior Staff Writers Daniel Denvir, Emily Guendelsberger Staff Writer Ryan Briggs Copy Chief Carolyn Wyman Associate Web Producer Carly Szkaradnik Contributors Sam Adams, Dotun Akintoye, A.D. Amorosi, Rodney Anonymous, Mary Armstrong, Meg Augustin, Bryan Bierman, Shaun Brady, Peter Burwasser, Mark Cofta, Alison Dell, Adam Erace, David Anthony Fox, Caitlin Goodman, K. Ross Hoffman, Deni Kasrel, Alli Katz, Gary M. Kramer, Drew Lazor, Gair â&#x20AC;&#x153;Dev 79â&#x20AC;? Marking, Robert McCormick, Andrew Milner, Annette Monnier, John Morrison, Michael Pelusi, Sameer Rao, Elliott Sharp, Marc Snitzer, Tom Tomorrow, John Vettese, Nikki Volpicelli, Brian Wilensky Editorial Interns Larry Miller, Maggie Grabmeier, Edward Newton, Robert Skvarla, Thomas Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Malley Production Director Michael Polimeno Editorial Art Director Allie Rossignol Advertising Art Director Evan M. Lopez Editorial Designers Brenna Adams, Jenni Betz Staff Photographer Neal Santos Contributing Photographers Jessica Kourkounis, Mark Stehle Contributing Illustrators Ryan Casey, Don Haring Jr., Joel Kimmel, 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

Cameron K. Lewis, Thomas Pitilli, Matthew Smith Human Resources Ron Scully (ext. 210) Circulation Director Mark Burkert (ext. 239) Sales & Marketing Manager Katherine Siravo (ext. 251) Account Managers Colette Alexandre (ext. 250), Nick Cavanaugh (ext. 260), Amanda Gambier (ext. 228), Thomas Geonnotti (ext. 258), Sharon MacWilliams (ext. 262) Office Coordinator/Adult Advertising Sales Alexis Pierce (ext. 234) Founder & Editor Emeritus Bruce Schimmel citypaper.net

30 South 15th Street, Fourteenth Floor, Phila., PA 19102. 215-735-8444, Tip Line 215-735-8444 ext. 241, Listings Fax 215-875-1800, Advertising Fax 215-735-8535, Subscriptions 215-735-8444 ext. 235 The printing of City Paper was provided by Calkins Media (215-949-4224). Philadelphia City Paper is published and distributed every Thursday in Philadelphia, Montgomery, Chester, Bucks & Delaware Counties, in South Jersey and in Northern Delaware. Philadelphia City Paper is available free of charge, limited to one copy per reader. Additional copies may be purchased from our main office at $1 per copy. No person may, without prior written permission from Philadelphia City Paper, take more than one copy of each issue. Pennsylvania law prohibits any person from inserting printed material of any kind into any newspaper without the consent of the owner or publisher. Contents copyright ÂŠ 2014, Philadelphia City Paper. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. Philadelphia City Paper assumes no obligation (other than cancellation of charges for actual space occupied) for accidental errors in advertising, but will be glad to furnish a signed letter to the buying public.

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

naked

the thebellcurve

city

CP’s Quality-o-Life-o-Meter

[ -1 ]

According to a Gallup poll, Pennsylvanians are among the most distrustful of their state government. Maybe it’s time we sat down with our representatives and hashed things out over a nice cold pitcher of flaming tap water.

[ -2 ]

A manager at Center City bar Fado claims that Penn women lacrosse players behaved rudely and left only a 4 percent tip on a $1,300 bar tab.“Uh, we’re on athletic scholarships,” says the team captain. “We don’t have to know how to do percents.”

[ -2 ]

According to the same Fado manager, Penn students have a history of disruptive behavior there, including using cocaine, having sex and urinating on the bar. When asked how Drexel and Temple students typically behave at Fado, the manager proudly asserts that they are “not welcome at this establishment.”

[ -2 ]

[ +1 ]

A fight between neighbors in Grays Ferry escalates when one assaults the other and dumps live rats into her home. Listen, Grays Ferry. If you want people to stop talking about the rat thing, somebody’s gotta take one for the team and have romantic relations with some cheese. According to a new report, Philadelphia is second only to New York City in its percentage of commuters not using cars. And even though this is a fairly meaningless factoid that has little bearing on our daily lives, it makes us suddenly, wildly angry. Because fuck New York.

[ -4 ]

A 52-year-old man in Mayfair says he was beaten and tattooed against his will by his roommates, ages 19 to 27.“I expected better from my housemates,” the man sobbed, “who, by the way, are all varsity members of Penn’s women’s lacrosse team.”

[ -1 ]

The Philadelphia Police Department paid out $315 million in overtime from 2009 to 2013, with one detective earning $498,730 during that time. “How’s that even possible?” says the detective. “Sounds like we’ve got a real mystery on our hands. I’m gonna have to work all weekend on this one.”

This week’s total: -11 | Last week’s total: -6 6 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

WELL-VERSED: Driver Mike Fuller is becoming known for his whimsical announcements aboard West Philly trolleys. NEAL SANTOS

[ public transit ]

POETRY IN MOTION Riding along on the trolley with SEPTA’s resident poet. By Daniel Denvir

“

ere, like a bat, we dive,” SEPTA driver Mike Fuller informs passengers as a Route 13 trolley noses into the dark tunnel at 40th Street, heading toward Center City. On another trip, at the same spot, he might announce: “Now, from this 40th Street portal, like a reverse trampoline, we drop down to 37th and Spruce — next stop.” Fuller, 49, speaks in the slow-paced and even voice common to most trolley drivers, yet says things that are fantastically poetic, funny and sometimes deeply strange. His narration has gained a dedicated following among crossSchuylkill commuters, and he has been championed in a Twitter account (@SeptaPoet) that is described simply as “a love letter to (and from) the trolley driver.” It bears witness to his greatest hits. Fuller’s greatest fascination is with the underground, where the trolley crawls through the winding tunnels. “I remember my own experience in the tunnel, at first, was mystifying,” he says while sitting in the break room at SEPTA’s Elmwood Depot. “It’s kind of like a magical space.” The tunnel is both complex and beautiful, says Fuller, and he is mindful of the trolley’s moving position within the strata of urban

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

infrastructure. One train crosses above another; all pass beneath streets crowded with people and cars. “It’s just narrating what is there, but what is there is often unsaid,” he explains. “I realized that there was much more than meets the darkened eye.” On board the trolley, Fuller elucidates what is invisible to the average passenger, including the “dark, scary balcony that overlooks the Market-Frankford line” as the trolley passes between 33rd and 30th streets. That, he says, is “pretty cool.” Or, if you prefer, like passing “over a space that is deep.” Pause. “Like a philosophy.” It is “a space as dark as a stack of black cats,” he says. Fuller is a trim guy with a closely cropped beard and blackrimmed glasses. But he remains an enigma to riders, who see him only briefly (if at all) as they board — or somewhat longer if they don’t have a token and struggle to assemble a cash payment. On the small fiberglass seats, sometimes in close contact with a neighbor, riders mainly experience Fuller as a voice over the intercom. When the trolley curves east, Fuller says, just before 33rd and Market, the vehicle emits a noise that sounds “like a whale song.” Then, just after 30th Street, the trolley descends to pass under the river and, “like a pair of jeans, we ride a little lower.”

“A space as dark as a stack of black cats.”

>>> continued on page 8

[ wants a sip of that cold beer ] [ law and order ]

CITATION NEEDED? After the loosening of a city police regulation, cops are handing out thousands more fines every year for minor offenses. Is that a good thing? By Ryan Briggs

or years, getting caught cracking open a beer on the streets of Philadelphia was an arrestable offense. In fact, it was the only place in Pennsylvania where police officers were required by law to detain those who had committed very low-level crimes — sometimes for hours — just to issue a citation and a small fine. However, a recent court order changed how the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) handles citations for similar “quality of life” crimes (known as “summary offenses”), like public urination, open-container violations and public nudity. What once involved a trip to a local district station is now handled on the street in a matter of minutes, like a parking ticket. But new police data provides evidence that these well-intentioned reforms might be working a little too well. The changes came in 2009, after the state Supreme Court reviewed Philadelphia’s “non-traffic summary citation procedures,” at the urging of Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey. After the court’s Criminal Procedural Rules Committee concurred that the city’s rules were largely a waste of time, an order was issued that brought Philadelphia’s police codes in line with the rest of the state. “These are the crimes we’re looking to address immediately out on the street,” said police Lt. Kevin Long. “We’re allowing the officer to deal with the problem and then be back in service within 15 minutes, as opposed to taking the individual into headquarters and then taking the officer out of service for two hours.” Indeed, the number of citations has skyrocketed since the rule change. In 2009, the last year before the new rules took effect, patrolmen issued just 13,300 citations, according to police data. But by 2013, that number had jumped to 23,400 citations — an extraordinary 75-percent increase. Long attributed the jump to police clamping down on crimes that previously may not have been worth the hassle of an arrest. “If you have an open container, an officer may not have addressed that because of the time it takes you out of service,” said Long,

referring to the old codes. “Now an officer is more compelled to write a citation on the street and continue on their patrol duties.” However, if that were the case, one might expect to see an increase in citations across all police districts, but that’s not what’s happening. In fact, most districts saw their citation stats decline or stay the same over the last three years. Prior to the rules change, the districts with the most quality-of-life crimes were those in and around Center City — an area with lots of people and bars. But since the change, there has been a surge in the number of citations issued by just four outlying police districts, in Overbrook, Kensington, Mantua and Lawndale in the Northeast. Together, those four districts accounted for nearly half of all citations issued across all 21 police districts last year. Additionally, the SEPTA police, who patrol the public transit system and flagged just a single summary offense in 2011, issued over 8,700 citations last year alone. The increase among transit cops was deliberate, said SEPTA Police Chief Thomas Nestel, describing his vision of clamping down on fare jumpers as part of a “brokenwindows” approach to increasing the perception of safety on mass transit lines. “We’re very focused right now on fare evasion. We’ve actually deputized our cashiers, and as soon as they see a fare evasion they notify us,” said Nestel, who said most summary citations last year were issued aboard SEPTA trains. “It’s our opinion that people who are not paying to get on the system are getting on the system to do other things that are not positive.” Conversely, Commissioner Ramsey said his office had not directed commanders in the four “high-performing” districts to step up citations, and suggested that district commanders may have taken it upon themselves to react to “community concerns.” “If you receive complaints, you have to deal with them,” said Ramsey. “If it’s something of a minor nature that can be handled with a summary citation, then obviously that’s what we would opt to do.” However, some PPD officers, who asked to remain anonymous, disputed this notion, saying district captains sometimes lean on street cops to “juice” enforcement stats by handing out more of the easily issued citations. By pumping up numbers with the low-hanging fruit, captains attempt to create the illusion of activity and progress in tough neighborhoods. In general, the pattern of citations did not seem to parallel high-crime areas, population density or even neighborhoods with lots of alcohol permits. The busy 15th District (which has the highest number of calls for police service) and the booze-filled 5th District (which covers Manayunk) ranked in the middle and bottom of >>> continued on page 14

wheeltalk By Nicholas Mirra

NO-JERK BIKING ➤ DEAR WHEELTALK: Bicyclists can’t win in this town. No matter how I ride, somebody thinks I’m being a jerk. How do I ride without bothering or being bothered? —Stopped and Bothered

Dear SAB: Philly streets can be tough. To paraphase Matt Damon in Rounders: If you can’t spot the jerk in the first half hour in Philly, then you are the jerk. So thank you for your desire to be decent. The majority of jerk bicycle behavior stems from four illegal moves: sidewalk riding, wrong-way riding (in streets or bike lanes), running red lights and not yielding to pedestrians at corners and crosswalks. Cut out those behaviors, and you’re in good shape. But courteous riding is not the same as strictly legal riding. Know the laws, which lands you in the ballpark, and then ride with consideration for others. The Bicycle Coalition posts Philly’s bike laws in clear, easy-to-understand language. There are also many gray areas. Here’s how I see them: Riding in the middle of the lane? Legal, non-jerk. Buzzing everyone on the Schuylkill River Trail in your quest to hit your optimum heart rate? Legal, jerk. Treating stop signs like yield signs? Illegal, non-jerk. Rolling through stop signs or red lights and forcing pedestrians to dive for cover? Illegal, jerk. You might hear jerk bicycling dressed up as “savvy bicycling.” But “savvy” is often a cover for traveling like everyone else is an idiot in your way, not entitled to their space or their pace. This applies to walking, biking and driving (probably sailing and hot-air ballooning, too). If you encounter such jerks, stand up for your rights, but don’t escalate; you will lose the escalation battle. But no, you say, you’re a big Aaron Burr fan and offended honor demands satisfaction, Mr. Hamilton! Fine, here’s what you do: Ride the South Street Bridge some Friday at 5 p.m. and check out the bumper-to-bumper traffic on I-76. There’s your satisfaction. (wheeltalk@citypaper.net) ✚ Nicholas Mirra works for the Bicycle Coalition of

Greater Philadelphia, and knows many things about getting around on two wheels. Send him your bike questions.

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

✚ Poetry in Motion

[ the naked city ]

<<< continued from page 6

Arriving in Center City, you approach “the oldest, smallest and, some people say, cutest stop in the tunnel at 19th Street — coming right up.” Heading back west on the route 13, the trolley “crawl[s] through a space under the route 10 trolley track, to 36th and Sansom.” Fuller says that he speaks in different “genres” depending on the vehicle’s location. In the tunnel, he is more “narrative,” while above ground he is more sparse and it is “more of a dialogue. It’s more interpretive.” Conducting the trolley down Woodland, Chester or Baltimore avenues, he reacts to conditions on the street and even the time of day. At night on the 34 or 13, he often says “here on 34th Street, we have Clark Park — dark.” One night, in an experiment, he said, “Clark Park” and left it at that. A passenger yelled out “Dark!” That made him happy. Fuller has been driving trolleys for two-and-a-half years, and his path to SEPTA was something like the tunnels that intrigue him: complex and a lot more interesting than you might expect. He grew up in upstate New York and lived in Havana for many years, working as a journalist for the Cuban news agency Prensa Latina. He then studied media and communications at Temple University, but left school for the job at SEPTA. He already had the Class 2 license required to drive a trolley from his days as a bus driver for a student-owned and operated transportation collective at SUNY Binghamton. SEPTA was most of all “looking for a fit, for a kind of personality,” he says, because so much of the job is dealing with people. On three recent trolley rides across the city, a City Paper reporter watched as some passengers zoned out, one woman got angry (yelling “shut up and drive the train”) and many riders were very amused. One smiling, middle-aged woman told this reporter she thought Fuller was amazing, and then told him so on her way off the trolley. The trolley brings people together and — amid packed rush-hour cars and the looming possibility of a strike — Fuller tries to make that a pleasant thing. “Whether you are from as far away as Eastwick, Darby, Yeadon or Angora, you meet in the tunnel,” he sometimes says. “It’s like the United Nations.” The author of the @SeptaPoet Twitter says that Fuller gives riders a shared experience amid the anonymity of the big city; something like the rush of collective effervescence she gets from passengers shouting that a trolley neophyte should “step down!” to trigger the back door’s opening. “I think the SEPTA poet has reminded me of what I love about the trolleys,” writes the author, who asked to remain anonymous. “They are distinctive and bizarre and old-fashioned and, specifically, a West Philly animal.” Trolleys are also notably cramped and slow, and 8 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

can be like a roller coaster without any of the fun parts. “You’re in close quarters in a way that’s different than the bus … or the quick, multi-car subway,” she says. “Also, you are very alonefeeling in the tunnel. It’s one very slow-moving car in a very dark underground space. I think the poet makes the endless, turn-filled schlep between 33rd and 36th feel way more fun and less creepy and annoying. I start thinking unprecedented thoughts.” Fuller’s announcements also promote efficiency and rider well-being. “If my stop is getting closer,” he’ll say to his passengers, “I’m thinking, am I near a door?” If the trolley is packed, and he needs to encourage people to move toward the back, he prefaces his request with this: “It’s nice to have the trolley so

“Like a pair of jeans, we ride a little lower.” complete, like a flower that’s just been watered.” Or if people are sleepy at night, he makes sure they don’t miss their stops. “A trolley nap is a nice thing, but we hope no one misses their stop on this ride, like a sleeping shrimp washed away by a tide.” Or, “We ignore the cheerleaders of sleep on the sidelines of our mind and focus on 65th Street — next stop.” Behind the whimsical verse is the mundane goal of communicating important information to passengers, says Fuller. SEPTA has four corporate principles: courtesy, convenience, cleanliness and communication. Fuller studied the latter at Temple, so he “figured that would be the most important corporate principle” for him to practice. “I try to be as accurate as I can when I call out the stops,” he says. (daniel.denvir@citypaper.net)

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

[ religion ]

[ the naked city ]

RABBI WASKOW: “THE STRUGGLE IS UNENDING” Celebrating freedom at the National Museum of American Jewish History. By Lillian Swanson abbi Arthur Waskow, a longtime activist in many fights for freedom, did not have to think very long when I asked him who were the oppressors — the pharaohs — of today. “The Supreme Court!” he thundered. “Look at what they just did.” The rabbi was referring to the court’s 5-4 decision to open the spigot even wider on campaign financing, a decision that will surely mean rich people will donate money to more federal candidates and the political process will be perverted even more. I met up with Waskow, 80, on April 2 at the second annual Freedom Seder, held at the National Museum of American Jewish History. About 250 people — blacks, whites, Christians, Jews, seniors and teens — broke matzo together and talked about what enslaved them and what could set them free. Passover begins at sundown this coming Monday. What brings you here tonight? I asked the rabbi, who organized the Freedom Seder of 1969 in Washington that became a milestone in the civil rights movement and was the inspiration for the event at the Philly museum. “The sense that we are not finished with oppression by the pharaohs and not finished with making our own freedom,” he said, his eyes blazing behind large glasses. Waskow, who lives in Mount Airy and considers himself part of the Jewish Renewal movement, went on to declaim the threats he sees, beyond the advancing flood of campaign money. He spoke of the unheard-of drought in California. The drought in Central Africa. The floods. The typhoons. “All have been made worse by global scorching,” he said. “Not global warming. Global scorching.” And who was responsible? “Big oil. Big coal. Natural gas,” he rattled them off without batting an eye. The Supreme Court decision, he said, will make it harder to affect change through the political process. But every generation, he says, has to fight for freedom. “The struggle is unending,” he said. Through music, dance and storytelling, the Seder at the museum connected the narrative of the Israelites’ exodus from bondage under the pharaoh 3,000 years ago to the ongoing struggle for civil rights and equality today. The right to marry whomever you choose. The right to be free of fear from gunfire on the streets. The right to be paid equally, regardless of gender. The uprising in Tahir Square. From a stage in the museum’s events space, the performance artists quoted ringing calls for liberty expressed by Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Pope Francis and others. “When I tread on the dignity of others,” the pope was quoted as saying to a crowd of Brazilians, “I tread on my own.” At the round tables, the conversations picked up on the theme: “How are you enslaved and how are you free?” Afterward, I asked Waskow to tell the story of that first Freedom Seder, and when he began to talk, it was as if it had occurred only yesterday, not 45 years before. The story began, he said, on March 31, 1968. He was living in Washington and was very active in the anti-Vietnam War movement and the fight for civil rights. At the time, his religious observance was limited to celebrating Passover. But then, on April 4, 1968, King was murdered in Memphis, and

10 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

FREEDOM IS A JOURNEY: Rabbi Arthur Waskow (center), originator of the Freedom Seder of 1969 in Washington, is surrounded by artists who performed at the museum’s second annual Freedom Seder. COURTESY OF MATTHEW CHRISTOPHER PHOTOGRAPHY

Washington was among America’s cities that burned. LBJ ordered the Army into the streets to end the rioting. A week later, on the first night of Passover, Waskow was walking home and saw an Army jeep with a mounted machine gun parked in his neighborhood. In his kishkes — his guts — he had a strong reaction. “This is pharaoh’s army” he said he remembered thinking. “It was like a volcano exploded, the streets and the Seder all came together” in his mind. That fall, he took a traditional Haggadah, the text that details the order the Seder, in one hand and the passionate teachings of King, John Brown and those living under Nazi rule in the Warsaw ghetto in the other. He wove them together into a radical version of a Haggadah. What was that like? I asked him. “I felt like the Haggadah was writing me,” he said. The radical Haggadah became known across the country after it was published in Ramparts magazine. He soon began talking with others about holding a communal Seder that would link the ancient fight against the pharaoh to that day’s struggle by blacks for civil rights. A young black minister, Channing E. Phillips, opened his Washington church, Lincoln Temple United Church of Christ, to the event. The first Freedom Seder drew 800 people — half of them Jews, and the rest blacks and Christians. “It was an incredible moment,” Waskow tells me. At my table during dinner, I told the man sitting next to me, Marty Millison, that I was hoping to interview Waskow after the formal program was over. Millison, a Center City resident and retired professor of social work at Temple University, told me he had attended the Freedom Seder in 1969. And better yet, he still has a copy of that Haggadah. What did he remember from that historic night, when Jews and blacks came together in a communal celebration of the struggle for freedom? “I remember being very moved by it,” he told me. (lswanson@citypaper.net)

DWaWb ca Ob ]\S ]T ]c` \Se >VWZORSZ^VWO Ab]`S Z]QObW]\a( Â&#x2019; '!' 1OZZ]eVWZZ Ab`SSb . bVS 5`O\O`g >VWZORSZ^VWO >/ ' ! # #$! " "' Â&#x2019; 0SbVZSVS[ >WYS 0 $ <]`bV EOZSa >/ '"#" # $#" # $

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

[ a million stories ]

✚ GLEASON’S “LOSER” REMARK RAISES IRE Philadelphia School Partnership (PSP) executive director Mark Gleason set off a storm of criticism from public-school advocates after he called on the School District to close “loser” schools. “You keep dumping the losers and over time you create a higher bar for what we expect of our schools,” Gleason said April 4 while speaking on a panel at the American Educational Research Association conference in Philly. Last year, Philadelphia closed 24 schools in the wake of massive state budget cuts and amid the rapid expansion of charter schools. Parents United for Public Education leader Helen Gym said that Gleason held “extremist” views on public education. “Mark Gleason is not an educator, and I think that’s one thing that should be pretty clear. He has been a relentless promoter of questionable reform models that have really wreaked havoc in other places. And he has unprecedented access to the Mayor’s Office of Education, to the School District, to push his agenda,” she told City Paper. PSP, which issues large grants to schools that it wants to see expanded, has been a lightning rod for criticism by public-education advocates since its 2010 founding. The group backs the expansion of charter schools and frequently opposes the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. It quickly became a major force in city education politics, thanks to millions of dollars in funding from the William Penn Foundation. Controversially, PSP’s board includes conservative figures Janine Yass, the wife of voucher-advocate and investment-fund manager Jeffrey Yass, and Republican powerbroker Chris Bravacos. PSP and allied groups have also been criticized for failing to speak out against Gov. Tom Corbett’s funding cuts to public education, and

12 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

for prioritizing charter-school expansion and eliminating teacher seniority instead of attacking the lack of funding for poor school districts. David Hardy, the CEO of Boys’ Latin charter school, tweeted a defense of Gleason. “‘Dumping the losers’ means improving the schools, not eliminating students. That’s what we do now.” Gleason acknowledged that it was a poor choice of words, but says he stands by his position. “I do regret repeating a phrase that one of the other panelists, [Philadelphia Public School Notebook editor] Paul Socolar, had used just before me, about ‘dumping the losers,’” Gleason wrote by email. “But I stand by my support for that crucial element of a portfolio strategy, namely closing or transforming the lowest-performing schools and thereby gradually raising the bar for acceptable school performance.” Socolar, however, was not endorsing the model, but describing its origins. “The term is borrowed from Wall Street,” Socolar said in his panel remarks. “You hang on to the successful companies in your stock portfolio and you dump the losers. Proponents here talk about it in terms of replacing low-performing seats with high-performing seats.” Gleason also called New Orleans, where charters took over most of the school district after Hurricane Katrina, “the great example of [a] portfolio” model, using a district central office that manages schools run by an array of typically private providers. Superintendent William Hite, who also was a panel speaker, criticized Gleason in surprisingly strong terms — especially given that reformers consider New Orleans the portfolio par excellence and that the District itself has embraced the model.

Gym: “Mark Gleason is not an educator.”

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

[ the naked city ]

Hite told his “buddy Mark” that he “could not disagree more with some of the comments,” and that New Orleans has seen mixed results for students. Philadelphia Student Union executive director Hiram Rivera, a co-panelist, also harshly criticized Gleason. “His comments showed an inexcusable level of insensitivity for the community of New Orleans [which is] still trying to piece itself back together after Hurricane Katrina, and a lack of understanding and empathy for poor communities of color in which nearly all of these ‘losers’ reside,” Rivera wrote in an email to City Paper. “Mark Gleason and his PSP should be shut down and kicked out of Philadelphia.” Socolar says that Philadelphia stands apart from other cities in the way private organizations and public officials support a private role for managing public schools. Currently, more than a third of publicschool students attend charters, which has created a major financial burden for the cash-strapped District. —Daniel Denvir

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

✚ Citation Needed?

[ the naked city ]

<<< continued from page 7

For people of resources, it’s easy to get out of these cases. the list, respectively, in terms of summary citations. Even the notoriously violent 22nd District did not rank among the top five for these kinds of crimes. Legal advocates were also skeptical about the efficacy of an increasing number of summary citations, as such charges often disproportionately affect the poor. “We definitely do see a big impact on our clients from these summary convictions,” said Jamie Gullen, a staff attorney at Community Legal Services, an agency that provides counseling and representation for indigent Philadelphians. “A lot of the time we hear from people that didn’t even realize it was a criminal charge because they were just given a citation on the street. Some people think it’s a traffic ticket.” But Gullen added that because the citations show up on background checks and criminal records, some people are denied job opportunities because of these minor and sometimes debatable “offenses.” “We see a lot of clients with disorderly conduct citations, which is one of these super-vague offenses,” she said. “Under the criminal code,

14 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

there’s a provision for disorderly conduct for making a loud noise in a public place. You could probably walk around Philadelphia giving out thousands of [those] citations every day.” Gullen said that average person charged with a summary offense can opt to pay $200 up front and attend a special “summary-diversion program” — basically paying their way out of trouble and expunging their criminal record in the process. She recommended creating a payment-plan system to give low-income residents the same opportunity. “For people of resources, it’s really easy to get out of these cases and not have it impact your record. But for our clients who don’t have $200 to front for these cases, they end up pleading guilty,” said Gullen. “It really is an income issue.” (ryan.briggs@citypaper.net)

FLAMING GRILL & FUSION BUFFET BVS CZbW[ObS AbSOY ASOT]]R 0cTTSb AcaVW

"# " 1Wbg /dS @b >VWZO /Q`]aa T`][ 0OZO 1g\egR AV]^^W\U 1S\bS` # &% %&&&

=D3@ 7bS[a 2OWZg 4SObc`W\U( /ZZ G]c 1O\ 3Ob

A\]e QÒP ZSUa QZO[a ]gabSà aSOT]]R aQO[^W aOZb ^S^^S` aV`W[^ [caaSZa PZOQYS\SR aOZ[]\ bc\O abcTTSR Ã&#x20AC;]c\RS` aQOZZW]\ UW\US` QÒP PcbbS`SR aV`W[^ aV`W[^ Q]QYbOWZ QÒP QOYS T`]U ZSUa Q`Wa^g RcQY <G aW`Z]W\ abSOY T`WSR Ã&#x20AC;]c\RS` acaVW O\R [O\g ]bVS` 1VW\SaS /[S`WQO\ 7bOZWO\ O\R 8OÔ\SaS aSZSQbW]\a RSaS`ba aOZORa a]câ O\R [cQV []`SÂ¬ A3<7=@ 27A1=C<B Â&#x2019; 167:2 27A1=C<B Â&#x2019; 0/<?C3B @==; /D/7:/0:3

Grand Opening

$ .99

Lunch

with purchase of soda and coupon Per Adult.Up to 8 person per coupon Coupon Expires April 16, 2014

$ .99

Dinner

with purchase of soda and coupon Per Adult. Up to 8 person per coupon Coupon Expires April 16, 2014

SATURDAY,

APRIL 26

Enter to Win Tickets at Citypaper.net/win

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

16 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

a&e

artsmusicmoviesmayhem

icepack By A.D. Amorosi

➤ THE SPUR. Get to know it. You’re going to hear that term a lot now that the Reading Viaduct elevated park — Philly’s answer to Manhattan’s High Line — will be sitting pretty above the Eraserhood sooner than expected. Center City District, Friends of the Rail Park and the decade-old Reading Viaduct Project have long campaigned to turn the empty SEPTA railroad spur (starting just off Noble Street at North 11th) into a manicured green space that would attract enterprise (businesses, condos, restaurants) to an emerging neighborhood. Now, the state has pledged over $3 million to start movement on the spur (the gateway to the entire elevated space) with the city pledging nearly $2 million more. Philly has been so interested in dull, quickly erected condos, that I nearly forgot what a beautifully designed noncondo project felt like. Bravo. ➤ Century 21. That’s another name you’ll hear, but it’s got nothing to do with the realty company. I’ve been griping about the Gallery Mall for some time, how it was never tony enough to get a Nordstrom’s or any other high-end retail anchor. Still, the rumors are flying. Next on the rumor docket for the PREIT-owned Gallery: Century 21, the N.J./N.Y. clothier/retail chain. While C21’s NYC shop is cool (near the World Trade Center and nearly destroyed during 9/11), the rest of the chain is more Macy’s than Neiman’s. Eh. ➤ Then there’s the fate of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. A year ago I wrote about how the show had just moved to the FXX Network as rumors flew that writer/actor Glenn Howerton was considering leaving (he gave an interview that hinted at such). Well, nix that. FXX, Howerton, Rob McElhenney and Charlie Day (the series’ writers/producers/stars) just signed a new deal that keeps Philly sunny for at least two more seasons — that would make the series 12 years old, the longest-running live-action comedy in cable history — as well as giving the trio green lights for their upcoming Tracy Morgan series, additional pilot opportunities and script deals. Guess Howerton ain’t leaving. ➤ We’re hearing that George Atterbury, the fairly recently installed director of operations and service for Garces Group, left his post amicably (too much running between Volvér and Bookbinders?). Scott Steenrod will be Garces’ new VP of operations after leaving his food-and-beverage VP post with the beleaguered Celebrity Cruise line. Another longtime Garces alum, Yun Fuentes (who opened Rosa Blanca recently), will be the executive chef at the newly reopening Artful Dodger at Second and Pine — now called Society Hill Society — this weekend. ➤ More ice? See citypaper.net/nakedcity. (a_amorosi@citypaper.net) 22 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

THE KIDS AREN’T ALL RIGHT: God Help the Girl, the directorial debut of Belle and Sebastian’s Stuart Murdoch, is just one of the films premiering at PFS’s Spring Showcase.

[ movies ]

GOING ONCE, GONE A guide to the Philadelphia Film Society’s Spring Showcase, the one chance to see certain movies in a local theater. By Sam Adams iving Philadelphians a jump on the months to come, and a shot at a few movies that may not open here at all (don’t hold your breath waiting for Kim Ki-Duk’s Moebius to return), the Philadelphia Film Society’s Spring Showcase crams 17 one-off showings into a long weekend, followed by a more leisurely fourday tribute to Alfonso Cuaron. There’s plenty to choose from, but if you have to narrow it to one movie, the answer is simple: Frank. One of the best movies at Sundance and already a shoo-in for my year-end list, the story of an aspiring musician who lucks into an art-rock band headed by a singer with a giant papier-mâché head is not an easy one to summarize without sounding ridiculous — which makes the fact that it works all the more delightful. The singer is played by Michael Fassbender, whose comely face is judiciously hidden from view, and this decision only deepens the sense of gleeful strangeness, while also serving as an extratextual comment on the absurdity of financing “difficult” films. While Frank’s early going earns it a place in the cult canon, it doesn’t prepare you for the emotional wallop of its final act, which among other things centers on an

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

insightful depiction of the pros and cons of social-media fame. When Richard Ayoade told me he was following up his modest but intensely pleasing debut, Submarine, with an adaptation of Dostoyevsky’s The Double, I wondered what his second feature would actually end up being. But with Jesse Eisenberg as his protagonist(s), he pulled it off, though Ayoade’s The Double is more impressive than it is satisfying. Dropping the novel’s Russian setting for a Stygian warren of crumbling apartment buildings and cramped offices, the movie is as much Kafka, via Terry Gilliam, as it is Dostoyevsky, but Ayoade and co-writer Avi Korine don’t share their fear of (or pride in) persecution. The identical man who appears at Eisenberg’s workplace and proceeds to outdo him at his own life isn’t part of some shadowy conspiracy; in fact, his ascent is deliberately unexplained. That gives the movie the requisite sense of existential paranoia, but it feels pasted-on rather than bone deep, a pastiche of influences that never quite becomes its own distinct thing. Written and directed by Belle and Sebastian’s Stuart Murdoch, God Help the Girl is a winsome musical about eating disorders and a crisis of faith — yes, another one of those — and if neither the sometimes clunky visual nor even the songs are Murdoch at his best, it feels in some ways like a Rosetta stone for his body of work, the most naked exploration of themes that he typically buries. (Let’s just say the

A Stygian warren of crumbling apartments.

>>> continued on page 25

[ with a magnificent slice of the sea ] [ album reviews ]

➤ pup | B+ The Canadian brats in PUP have been playing together for just a couple of years, but on PUP (Side One Dummy), they’d have us all fooled into thinking they’ve been around for at least a decade — that’s how tight and confident this debut is. And just like a not-yet-fully-grown canine, PUP is all frantic energy, yips, yowls and wild unpredictability. Stefan Babcock’s snotty posturing comes off like a Dookie-era Billie Joe Armstrong, but, thankfully, it’s one with far more emo—Marc Snitzer tional intelligence.

➤ off! | ADear Keith Morris: Thank you for keeping hardcore fascinating. Wasted Years (Vice) is exactly what we expect from an OFF! record at this point — a 16-track Listerine burn. In 23 or so minutes, it’s also a blistering reminder that between this band and FLAG, you’re doing so many more interesting (not to mention dignified) things than your former Black Flag buddy Greg Ginn. Sincerely, —Marc Snitzer

flickpick

19102review

➤ millie and andrea | B+

The review of Philadelphia books

Miles Whittaker (of Demdike Stare) and Andy Stott are two principals among the abstract techno troublemakers at Manchester’s Modern Love label. Drop the Vowels finds the twosome running amok through a brittle, blown-out, post-industrial soundscape. It’s bookended by clanking ambience, but is otherwise seething with frenzied, sawn-off break beats. It’s all about as vibrant and gleeful as you can imagine of an album that’s also well represented by track titles like “Corrosive” and “Stay Ugly.” —K. Ross Hoffman

➤ inventions | BCall it a safe bet and a risky proposition: Matthew Cooper (a.k.a. Eluvium) and Explosions in the Sky’s Mark T. Smith are each masters of atmospheric, deeply emotive instrumental music, but how exactly would their distinct modes of ambient/ post-rock/what-have-you align? The duo’s self-titled debut on Temporary Residence favors an Eluvium-like gentleness and ease, though with an almost dizzying array of sounds — murmur-y subvocalizations, primeval drum beats, thick shoals of white noise — that help stir up considerable drama without resorting to full-on Explosions-style bombast. —K. Ross Hoffman

[ movie review ]

FINDING VIVIAN MAIER [ B ] LIKENED TO “Robert Frank with a square format,” Vivian Maier might have been

one of the 20th century’s most celebrated photographers, had anyone known she was taking pictures. Working mostly as a nanny, Maier’s interest in her Rolleiflex wasn’t exactly a secret, but to those who knew her, it seemed more like a peculiarity than a vocation. It wasn’t until amateur archivist John Maloof stumbled upon a box of her negatives in an auction shortly before her 2009 death that her images came to light. That’s part of the story of Finding Vivian Maier, the documentary co-directed by Maloof and Charlie Siskel — the inspiring part, and also the easy part. Maier’s images, at least the tiny fraction of the 100,000-plus we see, are indeed powerfully beautiful shots of street life. But times being what they are, the story can’t stop there, even if it should. Pushed onward by an obsession that the movie depicts but never interrogates, Maloof starts digging into Maier’s deeply private life, showing that she took on assumed names and a contrived accent, hid her body inside loose-fitting clothing and stole photographs with a camera that let her get right next to people without them knowing they were being observed. The movie also presents evidence that Maier was abused as a child, and reciprocated the abuse as an adult, at which point it becomes necessary to ask whether the movie is presenting this information because it’s relevant or simply because it can. Unsurprisingly, it’s not a question Maloof or his co-director are inclined to ask themselves, which gives the movie the sour aftertaste of an advertisement disguised as art. As the owner of Maier’s images, Maloof stands to profit from their increased reputation, as well as the image of himself as a lone crusader circumventing the art-world establishment. The latter may be a fair characterization, but it would take a more inquisitive movie to put it to the test. —Sam Adams

GRUDGE MATCH ➤ IN THE 1920S and ’30s, the South Philadelphia

Hebrew Association (better known as the SPHA) was one of the best basketball teams in the world, playing to packed arenas around the country in a time when hatred of Jews ran rampant. In Jewball, writer Neal Pollack gives their story a unique fictitious spin: What if the SPHAs not only fought the rise of Nazism symbolically, but on the court as well? Jewball follows hard-headed point guard Inky Lautman, who occasionally works as a bruiser for the German American Bund, a large pro-Nazi organization. After Eddie Gottlieb, the coach of the SPHAs, racks up a serious gambling debt with the Bund, the team is offered two options: take a dive in a game against a Nazi team or be killed. After racial threats are made in his South Philly neighborhood and his trip to a Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden (which, horrifyingly, did happen — search “Nazi rally at Madison Square Garden, NYC, 1938”), Lautman’s apathy turns to intense hatred for the Bund. The team decides there’s no way they can throw the game, even if the punishment is death. Almost all of the characters in the book, the SPHAs and the fascists, were actual people. The real-life Lautman still holds the record for being the youngest pro basketball player in the U.S., at 15. Gottlieb was a Naismith Hall of Famer and an NBA Rookie of the Year, whose cigar-chomping hard-ass character in Jewball has some of its best lines. Save for an anemic love story between Lautman and a teammate’s sister, and its predictable outcome, Jewball is a quick, fun read. And although the SPHAs didn’t really battle Nazis, as is often the case in alternate histories, their actual story is more interesting.

A deeply private life.

CAMERA SHY: The subject of a new documentary, Vivian Maier shot over 100,000 photographs, but her work only came to light shortly before her death.

—Bryan Bierman

✚

Jewball

Neal Pollack (THOMAS & MERCER, 2011, 212 PP.)

✚ If you know of any really good books to review please email me at mikala@citypaper.net.

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

Bonjour !

A L’ECOLE FRANCAISE You Will Love Your French Classes & Amaze Yourself! Registration any time and also Saturday, 5/3 from 9am to 12 noon. alecolefrancaise.com 610.660.9645

SUNDAY,

MAY 4 Enter to Win Tickets at Citypaper.net/win

INVITES YOU TO AN IMAX ADVANCE SCREENING OF

MONDAY, APRIL 14TH, 7:30PM LOG ON TO WWW.CITYPAPER.NET/WIN FOR ENTRY DETAILS THIS FILM IS RATED PG-13 FOR sci-fi violence and action, some bloody images, brief strong language and sensuality. Please note: Passes are limited and will be distributed on a first come, first served basis while supplies last. No phone calls, please. Limit one pass per person. Each pass admits two. Seating is not guaranteed. Arrive early. Theater is not responsible for overbooking. This screening will be monitored for unauthorized recording. By attending, you agree not to bring any audio or video recording device into the theater (audio recording devices for credentialed press excepted) and consent to a physical search of your belongings and person. Any attempted use of recording devices will result in immediate removal from the theater, forfeiture, and may subject you to criminal and civil liability. Please allow additional time for heightened security. You can assist us by leaving all nonessential bags at home or in your vehicle.

IN THEATERS APRIL 18 #TRANSCENDENCE | TRANSCENDENCEMOVIE.COM | FACEBOOK.COM/TRANSCENDENCEMOVIE

24 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

[ arts & entertainment ]

✚ Going Once, Gone <<< continued from page 22

The threat of looming maturity is staved off. “God” in the title is not merely idiomatic.) In bowler hats and berets, Emily Browning looks like a twee-pop Jeanne Moreau, but the movie’s nearly stolen out from under her by best friend Hannah Murray, whose amiable gangliness is so genuine I was surprised to find out she was an experienced actress. Belle and Sebastian fans, of course, need no urging to see it, but it’s also recommended for anyone who’s ever wished screen musicals had followed in Jacques Demy’s footsteps rather than Bob Fosse’s. By the time Sundance was over, Kat Candler’s Hellion ran a distant second for movies about families dealing with the loss of a parent (sadly, no sign of The Babadook in the PFS Showcase). But it’s a fine, if not enormously inventive drama, held down by Aaron Paul’s soulful turn as a grieving father and especially by newcomer Josh Wiggins as his teenage son, whose hurt and anger steer him to increasingly dangerous places. Movies about sullen, traumatized teens aren’t rare, but Candler is exceptionally good at keeping track of the child inside the not-quite-man, including a deliriously on-point scene where Wiggins gorges himself on whipped cream, cranks up the Metallica and bounces on the furniture, the threat of looming maturity staved off for a few restorative minutes. In addition to the new movies — Obvious Child, The One I Love and Wetlands are among those coming to town with above-average buzz — PFS has slated a complete retrospective of Alfonso Cuaron’s films, with most being shown on 35 mm, including the 2-D version of Gravity. For those who are only familiar with his blockbuster work, early movies like Y Tu Mama Tambien and the misunderstood Great Expectations are essential. At this point, it’s safer to assume that every 35 mm screening is the last time around, so it’s worth making these showings a priority and waiting for the newer films’ return engagements. (s_adams@citypaper.net) ✚ Fri.-Thu., April 11-17, $13 per screening, PFS

Theater at the Roxy, 2023 Sansom St., 267-6399508, filmadelphia.org/springshowcase. C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

[ theater ]

[ arts & entertainment ]

DIZZY DIGS PHILLY Last Call at the Downbeat shines a spotlight on a jazz legend’s forgotten connection to this city. By Shaun Brady he hypothetical time machine proposed by last year’s Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA) presumably had the juice to travel in space as well as time. But when Suzanne Cloud took the wheel she steered it just a few blocks, to the corner of 11th and Ludlow. Here, in 1942, stood Nat Segal’s Downbeat, the first integrated nightclub in Philadelphia. The headliner for a short stint that November was 25-year-old trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. Not yet a legend, the bebop pioneer was a recent transplant from South Carolina. He’d just been fired from his gig with bandleader Lucky Millinder at the Earle Theatre a few blocks away. “He hasn’t formed any kind of partnership with Charlie Parker yet,” Cloud says of this particular moment in Gillespie’s career. “He knows him from jamming at Minton’s [Playhouse in Harlem] a little bit, but this is three months prior to them working together nightly in Earl Hines’ band. So I thought it would make a really interesting play with music by a real jazz band.” The result is Last Call at the Downbeat, which returned to the Society Hill Playhouse this month in a revised version from its opening at PIFA. Cloud drew on Gillespie’s memoir To Be, or Not … to Bop as well as a wealth of other sources to capture the trumpeter’s story and personality. Ostensibly a one-man show, the play actually divides Gillespie’s voice between two performers: Actor Gavin Whitt portrays him as a gregarious showman recounting his personal history as it leads up to this pivotal moment on the musical timeline, while trumpeter Duane Eubanks takes over when it’s time for Gillespie to speak through his horn. “I knew I’d never find an actor who could play well and act,” Cloud says. “So I asked Duane if he wanted to get a band together and be the spirit of Dizzy Gillespie.” Duane is the youngest of Philly’s musical Eubanks brothers, following renowned trombonist Robin and former Tonight Show with Jay Leno bandleader and guitarist Kevin. Leading a quartet that gets significant stage time over the course of the show, Duane Eubanks never apes Gillespie’s flamboyant sound, instead he employs his own less fiery voice on period-appropriate tunes mostly pared down from Gillespie’s early big-band arrangements. Cloud is best known as a jazz singer and co-founder of Jazz Bridge, a nonprofit providing support for local jazz and blues musicians in times of crisis, including legal, medical, financial and personal

26 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

assistance. She has a background in regional theater, however, as a soprano in shows like The Fantasticks, South Pacific and Carousel. That was before she “blew my throat out with disco.” Her only previous attempt at playwriting came decades ago, with a musical adaptation of Ben Jonson’s 17th-century comedy Bartholomew Fayre that played for a single evening at the Painted Bride. “We did a read-through at the Bride and it was three hours long,” Cloud recalls with a laugh. “I wanted to make a political statement, but people had to pack lunches. It died after that.” The same desire animates Cloud’s work on Last Call at the Downbeat, which she hopes will bring new audiences to jazz, and educate them about its rich history. “I think that theater is able to translate and communicate

Witt and Eubanks share the starring role. complex ideas, which I try to do in this show. Jazz needs more of that because its audience is aging and dying. Organizing concerts for Jazz Bridge, I constantly wrack my brain about how to reach ordinary people in a different way.” Like her work with Jazz Bridge, Last Call is intended to help people not only enjoy, but also to empathize with jazz musicians. “I wanted to show that the decision that Dizzy made to play music, like all musicians who play jazz, is a vow of poverty,” Cloud says. “These are real people making real decisions, and audiences need to know that the people who they’re hearing and who they love go home and can’t pay their light bill.” (s_brady@citypaper.net) ✚ Fri.-Sat, April 11-12, 8 p.m.; Sun.,

April 13, 2 p.m.; $25, Society Hill Playhouse, 507 S. Eighth St., 215-5178337, jazzbridge.org.

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

GIRLS, YOU TOO CAN BE A MODEL IF YOU THINK THAT YOU LOOK CUTE IN TIGER STRIPE (CAMOUFLAGE) BDUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Sâ&#x20AC;¦ I WANT YOU! 1O\RWRObSa aV]cZR PS ^`Sbbg ObVZSbWQ O\R Â¿b A] WT g]c VOdS bVS Z]]Ya Â¿Uc`S O\R g]cbV I WANT YOU! 4]` O Âµ>S`W]RÂ¶ QOZS\RO` aV]]b

267-970-3202 3[OWZ b] @S(QOZS\RO` b]

ioriophotography215@yahoo.com acP[Wb Âµ`Sac[SÂ¶ O\R >V]b]U`O^V 7\QZcRS Q]\bOQb ^V]\S \c[PS`

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

FIRSTPLACE Investigative Reporting // Ryan Briggs

BEST in PA

News Series // Daniel Denvir Feature Beat Reporting // Emily Guendelsberger

LARGE WEEKLY

Photo Story // Neal Santos Sports Photo // Neal Santos Front Page Design // Reseca Peskin Page Design // Reseca Peskin General News // Daniel Denvir Ongoing News Coverage // Daniel Denvir // Samantha Melamed Feature Story // Ryan Briggs News Feature Story // Daniel Denvir Graphic/Photo Illustration // Evan M. Lopez // Emily Guendelsberger // Jess Bergman News Beat Reporting // Samantha Melamed

SECONDPLACE

Sweepstakes Award winner in the 2014 Keystone Press Contest

Feature Beat Reporting // Adam Erace Business or Consumer Story // Samantha Melamed

HONORABLE MENTION Column // Daniel Denvir Special Project // Patrick Rapa

citypaper.net 30 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

fresh content from our award-winning staff

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

movie

shorts

FILMS ARE GRADED BY CITY PAPER CRITICS A-F.

A MASTERPIECE ”

“

“AN

UNFORGETTABLE NAIL-BITER.”

“IF

YOU NEED A REMINDER OF WHAT A FINE, NUANCED ACTOR NICOLAS CAGE CAN BE, TAKE A LOOK AT JOE.” VERY DEFINITION OF A RETURN TO FORM FROM NICOLAS CAGE AND DAVID GORDON GREEN.”

-Tina Brown

THE STORY OF AMERICAN POWER PURSUED AND ” MISUSED “

-Jon Frosch,

“THE

“NICOLAS

CAGE HASN’T BEEN THIS INTENSE SINCE LEAVING LAS VEGAS.”

A FILM BY ACADEMY AWARD WINNER ®

ERROL MORRIS

CENTER CITY PFS Theater at the Roxy (267) 639-9508

BRYN MAWR Bryn Mawr Film Institute (610) 527-9898

CHECK DIRECTORIES FOR SHOWTIMES NO PASSES ACCEPTED

NOW IN THEATERS, ON ITUNES & ON DEMAND

ACADEMY AWARD WINNER ® ®

NICOLAS CAGE TYE SHERIDAN Child’s Pose

✚ NEW

✚ CONTINUING

CHILD’S POSE | B+ Poised somewhere between Mildred Pierce and Medea, Calin Peter Netzer’s film is built on the solid rock of Luminita Gheorghiu’s performance as Cornelia, a highpowered architect whose protective instincts take over when her estranged son (Bogdan Dumitrache) is arrested for killing a young boy with his car. That Cornelia also dabbles in stage design is no accident: From her arrival at the police station, she endeavors to manage and where possible rewrite the circumstances of the incident, telling her son to edit his statement to say he was going the speed limit in full view of the policewoman who’s been interrogating him. Gheorghiu, the calming paramedic in The Death of Mr. Lazarescu, plays the opposite here, a malignant, if not alien, presence who only stops to consider the family that’s already lost a son when she realizes decorum demands it. Netzer is rather too enamored of the Romanian New Wave’s hand-held house style, to the extent that the camera’s anxious back-and-forth seems like more of an affectation than a stylistic choice. The approach does, however, convey the intended urgency in a story that amounts to a cry of protest against the corrupting influence of money in a society once nominally insulated from it, and a searing question about whether the end of Communism caused as many problems as it solved. —Sam Adams (Ritz at the Bourse)

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER | BCaptain America: kicking ass, getting chicks … and voicing thoughtful concerns about our civil liberties? Letting go of the page-turn-y super-camp present in 2011’s The First Avenger, the Russo brothers’ sequel shelves “the greatest generation” massaging in favor of fresher Stateside stresses. But it’s still a yay-freedom blow-’em-up of the most cracking caliber, never skimping on dumb fun but stumbling in duller places. Living the government life in D.C., stiff-jawed Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) struggles to settle into 21st-century existence, flummoxed by future-person topics like Nirvana and Thai food. He’s equally skeptical of his employer, S.H.I.E.L.D., and its plan to launch what’s basically a drone program to preemptively zap targets — a necessary measure “after New York,” the unsubtle post-9/11 phrasing Marvel uses to thread The Avengers through everything. Cap’s suspicions, of course, turn out to be accurate, forcing him to recruit snappy/lethal co-worker Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and high-flying combat-vet buddy Falcon (Anthony Mackie) to rip open the conspiracy. Beyond the vaguely contemporary issue authorizing the action, The Winter Soldier is a protein-rich comic-book property, strongest every time His Shieldness clashes with the titular masked assassin. (The opening sequence, with brawling, from MMA icon Georges St-Pierre, makes for a better-than-good-start.) It lags most — and it’s noticeable, given the XL run time — when the chatter stretches beyond banter and into attempts to make the big guy more emotionally available. If there’s any superhero that’s earned exemption from the share-your-feelings workshop, it’s Captain America. He literally wears what he’s

FINDING VIVIAN MAIER | B See Sam Adams’ review on p. 23. (Ritz Five)

citypaper.net [ BRAND SPANKIN’ NEW ]

EXCLUSIVE ENGAGEMENT

STARTS FRIDAY, APRIL 11 CENTER CITY Landmark’s Ritz at The Bourse (215)440-1181

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

all about on his chest. Now let him get back to beating up people who hate it here. —Drew Lazor (Wide release)

ENEMY | AStirring together hypersexual creepouts with campier tropes straight from a Twilight Zone storyboard, Denis Villeneuve’s latest is calibrated to stoke conversation. But all that analysis might actually distract from Enemy’s biggest strengths, which sit above the surface. Shot in tandem with Villeneuve’s bleak, mechanical Prisoners, Enemy is run on a motor of mood, and absorbing its aesthetics is the key to unlocking its more furtive motives. Based on José Saramago’s The Double, the movie presents itself as a doppelgänger tale, with humdrum schoolteacher Adam (Jake Gyllenhaal) discovering a man who looks exactly like him. Anthony, also played by Gyllenhaal, is married with a pregnant wife (Sarah Gadon), but is involved in some highly questionable dealings outside the workplace. Adam, who lectures to his classes about totalitarian strategies to squelch individualism, doesn’t seem to fully grasp that he’s trapped in an anonymizing ego-masher of his own design. Adam and Anthony’s eventual meeting, and the swift unraveling of comforts and expectations that comes as a result, can be sliced and diced into whatever shape the audience pleases. It’s Villeneuve’s determined pace, informed by a morose and elegant sense of style, that brings the whole thing a notch above X-Files exposition. —DL (Wide release)

LE WEEK-END | B+ Meg (Lesley Duncan) and Nick (Jim Broadbent) have been married long enough to know all of each other’s weak spots, and during what’s meant to be a revivifying few days in Paris they jab at them relentlessly. Although it’s played with the airy lightness of a comedy, Roger Michell and Hanif Kureishi’s film draws real blood, and not just metaphorically. The couple’s barbed banter starts off adorably prickly: He’s proud he found the hotel they stayed in during their honeymoon; she thinks it’s a dump and refuses to set foot inside. But before long it’s clear there’s real enmity between them. You feel the spite, but gradually you come to see that their tumultuousness is a sign of life; they’re still actively working out how they feel about each other, for worse and for better. Nick and Meg aren’t easy to get close to, even for the audience. Kureishi deliberately leaves us to reverse-engineer the origins of their long-standing grievances, as if the hurt has lingered after its source has vanished from memory. But it’s worth enjoying — and enduring — their company, if only for one of the most rapturous finales in recent memory. —SA (Ritz Five)

THE UNKNOWN KNOWN | B Errol Morris’ feature-length conversation with Donald Rumsfeld may turn out to be a pivotal point in his career, not because it’s a breakthrough but because it feels like the end of the line. Over the last couple of decades, Morris has increasingly put his faith in the Interrotron, a kind of invisible

question-asking machine that allows his subjects to see his face while looking directly into the lens. The idea is to remove any apparent obstacle between his subjects and the lens, creating the illusion of direct interface with the audience and letting us, in effect, peer into their souls. In Rumsfeld, however, Morris has met his match. Let Rumsfeld talk, and he will tell you exactly what he wants you to hear. Like Bob Woodward, Morris has traded inquisitiveness for access, as if we haven’t already had ample opportunity to hear Rumsfeld justify himself. It’s a give-’em-enough-rope approach, but Rumsfeld slips the noose like an escape artist. In Mr. Death, Morris focused on a figure even more odious than Rumsfeld: a Holocaust denier. But there, he felt a moral imperative to point out the holes in his subject’s story. In The Unknown Known, he just lets Rumsfeld’s smug rationalizations drone on. Those who’ve made up their mind on him will find plenty to buttress their views — no matter what they believe. —SA (The Roxy)

VERONICA MARS | BAs the architect of the most successful film campaign in Kickstarter history, Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas crowd-funded his way into a weird position. Should he use the jumbo theatrical platform to lure fresh eyes to his high school noir universe, or pander to the small but voracious following responsible for getting the project made in the first place? Thomas has clearly locked into the latter plan of action, filling his full-length feature with

in-jokes and Easter eggs only wellversed Mars freaks will appreciate. Smart-ass heroine Veronica (Kristen Bell) has ditched shadowy Neptune, Calif., for the NYC law world. But just as she’s making headway with a highpowered firm, she’s drawn back to the West Coast by the murder of a pop star (Andrea Estella). Frustrating her family, friends and bland-ass boyfriend Piz (Chris Lowell) with her obsession over the case, Veronica must weigh the super-sexy danger of her old life against the stability of her new one. All told, the message Thomas seems keen on screaming is that the past always trumps the present. It’s unlikely anything here will cultivate new fans, and both the mastermind and his loyal “marshmallows” seem to be at peace with that. —DL (Wide release)

✚ CINEDELPHIA FILM FESTIVAL PHILAMOCA 531 N. 12th St., 267-519-9651, philamoca.org. Life of Pia: The world premiere of Video Pirates’ feature-length collage film about the Razzy-winning ’80s actress. Fri., April 11, 8 p.m., $10. 7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964, U.S., 100 min.): One actor plays seven different mythological characters. Sat., April 12, 1 p.m., free. Fun in Balloonland (1965, U.S., 52 min.), The Secret of Magic Island (1957, France, 63 min.): A surreal video shot at the 45th Gimbels Thanksgiving Day Parade, and a kid’s film starring fuzzy animals acting like humans. Sat., April

[ movie shorts ]

12, 7:30 p.m., $10. Computer Error: The Worst of CGI (2012, U.S., 98

min.): A compilation of cringe-worthy effects. Sat., April 12, 10 p.m., $10. Geteven (1993/2007, U.S., 90 min.): A low-budge movie that fans of The Room will love. Sat., April 12, midnight, $10. Axe (1974), Kidnapped Coed (1976): Two exploitation movies by cult director Frederick Friedel. Sun., April 13, 7:30 p.m., $10. Filmadelphia: The Sequel: Irv Slifkin returns with another installment of his local footage showcase. Mon., April 14, 7:30 p.m., $10.See p. 17 for more Cinedelphia coverage.

✚ SPECIAL SCREENINGS INTERNATIONAL HOUSE 3701 Chestnut St., 215-387-5125, ihousephilly.org. The Chase (1946, U.S., 86 min.): A film noir set in Miami. Thu., April 10, 7 p.m., $9. Eadweard Muybridge, Zoopraxographer (1975, U.S., 59 min.), Robert Frost: A Lovers Quarrel with the World (1963, U.S., 51 min.):

An unconventional biography of the photography pioneer preceded by a doc about the American poet filmed shortly before his death. Fri., April 11, 7 p.m., $9. L’Avventura (1960, Italy, 145 min.): The stark, existential film that cemented Michelangelo Antonioni’s status as a major director. Sat., April 12, 7 p.m., $9. Sundance Film Forward: If You Build It

(2013, U.S., 85 min.): A look inside a high school class that has students design and build innovative projects. Discussion about the intersection of film and music post-screening. Sun., April 13, 1 p.m., free with R.S.V.P. Philly Shorts: Reelblack presents a series of shorts by local filmmakers. Q&A with directors post-screening. Tue., April 15, 7 p.m., $10. The Stuart Hall Project (2013, U.K., 95 min.): A doc about the Jamaican-born cultural theorist. Wed., April 16, 8 p.m., $9.

“GRADE A.

THE MOST MESMERIZING DRAMA Of British Lowlifery Since ‘Sexy Beast’.” Owen Gleiberman, ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

“JUDE LAW Makes This Hyper Articulate Ruffian

THE MOST INTRICATELY SOULFUL CHARACTER IN CURRENT MOVIES.” David Denby, THE NEW YORKER

More on:

citypaper.net ✚ FOR COMPREHENSIVE EVENT LISTINGS, VISIT C I T Y PA P E R . N E T / L I S T I N G S .

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

38 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

f&d

foodanddrink

cocktailhour By Adam Erace

MILK PUNCH ➤ AS DRINKERS, we romanticize the past — a

time when the world seemed populated by beautiful ingénues and dashing criminals and a cut-crystal decanter of whiskey was always in arms reach. A time when people knew how to drink. And how to make drinks. But hindsight is 20/20, and the lives of our liquorswilling forbearers weren’t all juleps and buttered rum. Pre-Prohibition, you didn’t have a refrigerator unless your last name was Gatsby or Rockefeller, a challenge that had given rise to the practice of preserving milk in acidified alcohol as early as the 17th century. In other words, milk punch. “The process was developed out of necessity,” explains Vincent Stipo, who crafts the fine milk punch at Vernick.“People would use a classic punch recipe and combine it with heated milk that would otherwise go bad.” But wait — combining hot milk with an alcoholic punch. Wouldn’t that … curdle? “It curdles instantly,” says Stipo. “But as it settles over a few days, it separates naturally. Then you filter out the milk solids and you’re left with a clarified punch.” The milk punch Stipo is currently making at Vernick starts with Batavia arrack — “100 proof so the integrity of the alcohol doesn’t get lost in the citrus and sugar” — and smoked black tea leaves, which “add depth and character.” The two infuse, then Stipo introduces orange peel, ginger and toasted and ground allspice and black pepper for a secondary infusion. The flavored rum gets blended with fresh lime, fresh yuzu and a vanilla-lime caramel to make a punch that would be perfectly quaffable on its own. That’s when the hot milk comes in, curdling the punch on contact. After settling and straining, Stipo bottles the clear 24-carat elixir and stores it in the fridge. Once chilled, it goes right from bottle to cup. “It’s a delicious, well-crafted batch drink. In a business sense, it’s a high-quality drink that’s really easy to sell,” he says. It’s also something of a mind fuck — a drink that’s clear to the eye but possesses a luscious, creamy mouth feel. No wonder Stipo is already on his seventh batch. For Stipo's milk punch recipe head over to citypaper.net/mealticket. (adam.erace@citypaper.net)

LUXE LIFE: Garces went all out for Bar Volvér converting the space that once held a gift shop. NEAL SANTOS

[ openings ]

CHAMPAGNE WISHES CAVIAR DREAMS Jose Garces’ Bar Volvér aims for a taste of luxury. By Caroline Russock onceptually, no one can even try to put chef Jose Garces in a corner. With diverse restaurants that range from Mexican street food to Cuban diner fare, and include Spanish tapas, American whiskey and burgers and even a Peruvian-Chinese concept, Garces’ outlook on his empire has always been global. More on: His latest venture, Volvér , a jewel box chefs’ counter restaurant and Champagne bar in the Kimmel Center, is his most ambitious yet. Nearly two years in the making, Volvér — Spanish for to return — has been one of the city’s most hotly anticipated openings and one that comes with more than a few questions. When is it going to open? (April 16 is the date for the first official service.) With restaurants in Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Chicago, Palm Springs, Scottsdale and plans to open in New York, how often would Iron Chef Garces be cooking at the chefs’ counter? How will Philadelphia react to the ticket-dining concept (guests purchase

citypaper.net

seats in advance through the restaurant’s website, parties of two, four or six only, please), especially when the price point ranges from $175 to $250 a person before beverage pairing? And what about the ambitious bar concept? How will a bar devoted to two of the finest things in life, i.e., sparkling wine and caviar, fare? Even before opening, Volvér has given us much to talk about. In a somewhat unexpected turn of events, diners primed to get a first taste of Volvér can head to the swanky Champagne bar a week before the dining room opens. With a gorgeous marble-topped oval bar, floor-to-ceiling backlit wine storage and some very ritzy lounge seating, Bar Volvér is all about approachable luxury. “The centerpiece at Bar Volvér is sparkling wine from all around the world,” explains sommelier Gordana Kostovski. “It’s something that chef Garces is very passionate MORE FOOD AND about.” Kostovski is a huge Champagne DRINK COVERAGE fan herself, and it’s more than apparent AT C I T Y P A P E R . N E T / with her by-the-glass list that’s home to M E A LT I C K E T. eight whites, two rosés, 12 reds and eight bubblies ranging from Spanish cava, Italian prosecco, American sparklers and French Champagnes. But unlike the prix fixe dining room, the prices at Bar Volvér are set to accommodate a range of clientele, with by-the-glass pours ranging from $10 to $35. Kostovski’s wine list, which will be accessible to diners by way of iPads, is a thoughtful, well-curated selection with something for everyone. Familiar Californians like Far Niente and Grgich Hills share cellar space with lesser-known bottles from the Balkans and >>> continued on page 41

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

40 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

✚ Champagne Wishes Caviar Dreams

[ food & drink ]

<<< continued from page 39

“We didn’t hold back on anything,” Gordana Kostovski says. Greece. The Champagne selection includes flashy grande marques and grower Champagnes where the grapes are processed, bottled and aged at the same vineyards where they were harvested. But drinks at Bar Volvér are hardly limited to wine. There’s an intriguing cocktail menu, thanks to head bartender Scott Rodrigue. He’s created a menu that speaks to the luxe ingredients available in Volvér ’s kitchen. The Truffle Rush is a play on the Gold Rush. Rodrigue sees the Gold Rush’s simple bourbon-honey-lemon recipe as a perfect jumping-off point to incorporate the singular aroma of the world’s fanciest fungus. In place of workaday clover honey, Rodrigue uses a truffled lavender honey that lends a slight earthiness to the new classic. His Basil Chile Smash works hand-in-hand with the kitchen, topping off a vibrant green coupe of basil and lemon-infused gin with fiery orbs of roasted-tomato chile oil. “We didn’t hold back on anything,” Kostovski points out, citing Schott Zwiesel glassware and the marble-andleather bar, complete with stitched-leather purse hooks. “Everything is so glorious.” Of course, there’s no place where the gloriousness of Bar Volvér is more apparent than on chef de cuisine Natalie Maronski’s menu. Maronski, who has been with the Garces Group since 2007, has been co-authoring the menus at Volvér with Garces for a while now. Her menu reflects the level of refinement of the space. The menu isn’t overwhelming — three tartars, three brochettes, three tiers of caviar offerings and a handful of meats and cheeses. The tuna tartar arrives in a two-piece serving vessel with perfect glistening diced magenta tuna below a beautifully composed bouquet of Japanese mayonnaise and edamame puree, topped off with wasabi caviar, crisp garlic chips, young ginger and the same chile-tomato oil that floats atop the Chile Basil Smash. And then there’s the caviar service. Before Volvér, Maroniski had only worked with caviar as a garnish. “Being able to see it on its own is really special,” she says. Her caviar knowledge came by way of Robert Gardner of American Caviar Company, the importer that Volvér works with to bring in American and Siberian sturgeon and osetra, all sourced using sustainable aquaculture. The caviar is served on a velvet, matted silver platter with traditional accompaniments: finely chopped egg, crème fraîche, chives and brioche toast with a trio of miniature mother-of-pearl spoons for scooping. Maronski explains a method she learned for tasting all of the delicate nuances of caviar: “You taste it on the back of your hand,” she demonstrates. “Smear it right behind your thumb and then lick it off.” “It’s an intimate experience,” Kostovski chimes in. “You really get the true essence of the caviar. This is the place to come on a hot date. This is the place to come when you want to make it an occasion, rather than having an occasion to celebrate.” (caroline@citypaper.net)

[ great sandwiches ]

✚ INTRODUCING BRAD SPENCE ➤ EDITOR’S NOTE: In the days leading up to our inaugural Great Sandwiches Event (get your tickets at citypaper. net/greatsandwiches), we’re going to be introducing the sandwich-centric heavy hitters taking part in this totally awesome celebration of sandwiches. First up is Brad Spence, Jersey dude, Adidas enthusiast, chef-partner at Amis (412 S. 13th St.) and competitor in our live action sandwich-making competition. Favorite sandwich ➤ Milanesa from Los Gallos (951

Wolf St.). Least favorite sandwich ➤ Anything on a croissant. Most memorable sandwich experience ➤ When I was the chef at Vetri, me and my sous chef Adam Leonti took the kitchen staff to a then-unknown Paesano’s (1017 S. Ninth St., 152 W. Girard Ave.) to try every sandwich on the menu. Best Philadelphia sandwich ➤ Italian hoagie at

Sarcone’s (734 S. Ninth St.). Sandwich deal breaker ➤ Only thing I can’t eat is hot canned tuna … like a tuna melt. Can’t do it.

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

Classifieds Employment Announcements Announcements

Special Services Personals SPIRITUAL READER

To place an ad, please call Real Estate Townhouses for Rent BENSALEM, PA TOWNHOUSE

1-866-938-3010

Merchandise Apartments for Rent Country Manor Apts 2151 Lincoln Highway Middletown Twp.

Transportation Apartments for Rent

Warehouses

Langhorne small 1BR, private entance & parking, all utilites included w/cable & internet. Proof of income and pass background check. $750 month. Call Bruce at 215-397-8530

Bristol Twp./Croydon 1 Story building, 3,000 sq.ft. warehouse with A/C office, 19’ ceilings, fire sprinklers, gas heat, off street parking. $1300. 215-785-1000. Avail 6/1

Mill Creek Village PENNDEL

Call for Specials Mr. Kadera, the man with his natural god, gifted power of second sight. successfully helping people for past, 20 years. Problems with love, life, marriage, family, relationship. Master of breaking all sort of evil eyes. Call

267-565-8858 or 718-213-9945 Beautiful Home Cleaning Family Owned & Operated for 15 Yrs Residential & Small Commercial Reasonable Rates & Senior Discounts Free Estimates. Stacey, 267-934-3259

Adoptions ADOPTION - Will provide a financially secure home with endless love and opportunities to share! Expenses paid. Call 1-888-503-7093

Donations Wanted Your SPRING CLEANING CAN HELP FIGHT CANCER! Call for convenient pick up of your unwanted clothing, housewares & furniture. Raising funds for Fox Chase Cancer Center, Fein Chapter for 20+ years. Call 215.842.1638 Receipt provided.

LOOKING TO RENT YOUR APARTMENT? Call our classifieds today.

1-866-938-3010

42 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

Administrative

2 BR, 1½ BA, LR & DR, Kitchen, all appliances, storage closet, fenced in yard, off street park. $1,250 mo. Call 215-639-2991 or 215-651-8525

Apartments for Rent Bensalem BUCKS MEADOW APTS 1, 2 & 3 BR Apts. Starting at $730 mo. Apply now and get ½ off 1st month Many Amenities. Call 215-245-1133

OFFICE MANAGER Established Chalfont, PA construction firm seeking office manager for payroll, accounts receivable/payable, bookkeeping, light accounting & general office work. Salary negotiable ($50,000+), 401K, insurance, bonuses & vacation. Resume to: rjpollio@gmail.com

Trades PEST CONTROL TECH w/good driving record. Training considered. Email resume to: lethalext@netcarrier.com; Fax to: 215-355-4944

Southampton 55+ community. New luxury 2BR, 2 BA. All appliances, balcony, garage, storage, elevator. $1750 + utilities.Call 215-783-2224

BENSALEM COMMONS

Call us to start your classified ad.

1-866-938-3010

215-375-7688 Ask About Our No Security Deposit Alternative www.westovercompanies.com

Feasterville CROFTWOOD APTS/ CHALET VILLAGE

Alternative Security Deposit

` 1 and 2 bedrooms apts ` New Kitchens, bath, flooring & more ` Most utilities included ` Pet welcome, call for restrictions ` Neshaminy School District 1-888-463-0424 www.westovercompanies.com Perkasie 2BR, exc cond,heat included washer/dryer. $980/mo. Avail 4/1. 215-257-9215. JP2156@comcast.net

Ideal setting for a lawyer’s office, medical office, real estate office or just about any professional office. Great Location, over 2400 sq. ft. of rental space, handicap access, ample off and on street parking, large reception area, kitchen, 3 zone heating and A/C, & plenty of storage CONTACT JOHN RICHARD 215-637-8235 ext. 1005

Mobile Homes New & Pre-owned Mobile Homes in Bensalem. Please Call Terry’s Mobile Homes 215-639-2422

Autos Wanted

Philadelphia- Center City. 1BR, 1 BA, $1200/mo + utilities. 1BR, 1½BA, $1800/mo + utilities. All brand new kitchen & bathrooms. 215-238-0197

Call 215-639-7900

BUY IT! SELL IT!

Private Entrances Fitness Center

CARRIAGE PLACE APTS

Real Estate Rentals Condos for Rent

WARMINSTER 1BR $825 • 2BR $950 Close to Train and Shopping center Hartsville Realty Call 215-674-4880

Commercial for Rent NE Philly Professional Office

Bensalem SPRING IS HERE and it is time to check out your next home! RENOVATED 1 & 2 BR APTS Ê Apts have updated Kitchen/Bath Êspacious closets, dishwasher, patio ASK ABOUT OUR

Miscellaneous

SAVE $$ ON GAS CONVENIENT TO TRAIN

COZY 1 & 2 BR APTS Reasonable Rates. Heat, Hot Water and Cooking Gas Included. Great Senior Citizen Discount

Call 215-244-0689 Visit our website for other specials

phillysuburbapts.com

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

ONE BEDROOM SPECIAL! ‘ Rent Starts at $875! ‘ Free Heat ‘Free Water ‘No Application Fee! ‘ Reduced Security

SOUDERTON: 1 BR $750. Includes Heat and Hotwater. Onsite laundry. No pets. Non smoking. Good credit req’d. Senior Citizen Discount. 215-723-6333

Buying all cars up to $2000. CASH Bad engines or Trans. Junk cars to $500. 609-977-5337

YARDLEY Studio Bell Avenue 2nd Floor, Large Yard. $750/mo. Call: 215-579-1773

BUY IT! SELL IT!

Homes for Rent

Call Today! 215.355.3048

BRISTOL BORO 3 BR, 1½ BA, newer kitchen, back yard, $1350/mo. Call 215-579-1773

Call us to start your classified ad.

Hatboro/Horsham Penthouse Apt 1500 sq. ft. 2BR, 2 bath with den. $1325. @ 50 S. Penn Street. Call for detail at 215.317.3059

Line Lexington-Ranch type 2BR, 1BA Kitchen, LR, Laundry Room. Lg Yard. Attached 3½ car garage. $1200/mo+ utilities. Call 215-362-0505

1-866-938-3010

Public Notices AIRLINE CAREERS BEGIN HERE

Get trained as FAA certified Aviation Technician training. Financial Aid for qualified students. Job Placement assistance. Call Aviation Institute of Maintenance 1888-834-9715. PREGNANT? THINKING OF ADOPTION?

Ta l k w i t h c a r i n g a g e n c y specializing in matching Birthmothers with Families Nationwide. LIVING EXPENSES PAID. Call 24/7 Abby’s One True Gift Adoptions. 866-413-6293. Void in Illinois/New Mexico/Indiana. SAWMILLS

SAWMILLS from only $4897M A K E M O N E Y & S AV E MONEY with your own bandmill-Cut lumber any dimension. In stock ready to ship. FREE Info & DVD: www. NorwoodSawmills.com/300N 1-800-578-1363 Ext. 300N.

Automotive Marketplace

CASH FOR CARS:

HELP WANTED

Any Car/Truck. Running or Not! Top Dollar Paid. We Come To You! Call For Instant Offer. 1-888-420-3808. www. cash4car.com

Heavy Equipment Operator Career! High Demand fo r C e r t i f i e d B u l l d o z e r, Backhoe, and Trackhoe Operators. Hands-On Training Provided. Fantastic Earning Potential! Veterans with Benefits Encouraged to Apply. 1-866-362-6497.

Business Services REGULAR MASSAGE THERAPY

HELP WANTED

Special Price! $45/hr. Call (215)-873-4835. (1218 Chestnut St.)

Help Wanted – General

HELP WANTED DRIVER

$1,000 WEEKLY!!!

M A I L I N G B RO C H U R E S From Home. Helping home workers since 2001. Genuine Opportunity. No Experience required. Start immediately. www.mailingmembers.com

CA$H FOR CAR$!! Any Car, Any Condition! We Pay Top Dollar-Fast FREE Pick-Up! Get Cash Today! 215-6001104 Sell Your Car Now!

Daily Express needs Contractors for regional and OTR Stepdeck and Lowboy hauls; Daily Expedited, Heavy Haul and Specialized Divisions available. FREE Trailers! www.dailyrecruiting.com or 1-800-669-6414.

AFRICA, BRAZIL WORK/ STUDY!

HELP WANTED DRIVER

Change the lives of others while crating a sustainable future. 6, 9, 18 month programs available. Apply today! www.OneWorldCenter.org (269) 591-0518 info@OneWorldCenter.org

HELP WANTED DRIVER

HELP WANTED

AUTOS WANTED

PICKUP TRUCKS NEEDED NOW! Move RV trailers from Indiana and deliver all over the USA and CANADA. Many trips headed EAST! Go to: horizontransport.com

Heating and Ventilation Technicians in Demand Now! Fast Track Hands-On Certification Training Provided. National Average is $18-22 Hourly. Veterans with Benefi ts Encouraged to Apply! 1-877994-9904.

Drive-away across the USA even if you don’t own a car. 22 Pickup Locations. Call 866-764-1601 or www.qualitydriveaway.com Dr ivers- CDL-A SOLO & TEAM DRIVERS NEEDED. Top Pay for Hazmat. OTR & Regional Runs. CDL Grads Welcome. 700+ Trucks & G r ow i n g ! 8 8 8 - 9 2 8 - 6 0 1 1 www.Drive4Total.com

PAY/Freight lanes from Presque, Isle, ME, Boston-Lehigh, PA. 800-277-0212 or driveforprime.com HELP WANTED DRIVER

Hiring OTR Professionals who want Consistent Milesaverage 2,700+; consistent pay-average $51,400 per year; 2011 or newer trucks; Call Fischer Trucking today 1-800-486-8660. HELP WANTED/SALES

EARN $500 A-DAY: Insurance Agents Needed; Leads, No Cold Calls; Commissions Paid Daily; Lifetime Renewa l s ; C o m p l e t e Tr a i n i n g ; Health/Dental Insurance; Life License Required. Call 1-888-713-6020. !NOW HIRING!

F L AG G E R F O R C E I S HIRING NOW FOR CREW MEMBER/FLAGGER POSITIONS! PAY STARTS AT $11.50/HR. INCLUDING 401K, MEDICAL/DENTAL/ VISION INSURANCE AND PAID TIME OFF. TO APPLY VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.FLAGGERFORCE QUALIFIED CANDIDATES M U S T H AV E A VA L I D DRIVER’S LICENSE, PERSONAL VEHICLE, AND CELL PHONE.

MODEL IF YOU THINK THAT YOU LOOK CUTE IN TIGER STRIPE ( CAMOUFLAGE) BDU’S...Canadidates should be pretty, authletic, and fit. So if you have the looks, figure and youth I WANT YOU! For a “Period” calendar shoot. Call 267-970-3202 or email to ioriophotography215@yahoo.com submit photo and contact number.

OPIATE TREATMENT 160 /MONTH

Health Services

LOTS/ACREAGE

HEALTH

WERE YOU IMPLANTED W I T H S T. J U D E R I ATA D E F I R I L L AT O R L E A D WIRE between June 2001 and December 2010? H ave yo u h a d t h i s l e a d replaced, capped, did you receive shocks from the lead? You may be entitled to compensation. Contact Attorney Charles Johnson 1-800-535-5727.

Suboxone/ Subutex. Initial visit 100 (2 weeks of treatment) then 160 dollars/ month. Appointment only & insurance not accepted. Discreet non-clinic environment. Center City. 267-687-2032.

Land/ Lots for Sale Waterfront Lots-Virginia’s Eastern Shore. Was $325k, Now From $65,000. Community Pool/Center, 1 acre+ Lots, Bay & Ocean Access, Great Fishing, Crabbing, Kayaking. Custom Homes. www.oldmillpointe.com 757824-0808.

Three+ Bedrooms 24XX S. 3RD, PHILA.

2 story rehab, 4 bed, 2 bath,

new kitchen, new appliances, washer & dryer, hardwood floors, $1500/mo plus utilities. 215-824-0440. BEAUTIFUL 3BR RITTENHOUSE

Beautiful 3 large bedrooms, 1,350 sqft, 1.5 bath, excellent location (The Coronado @ 2201 Chestnut Street), doorman/elevator building, fully renovated including washer & dryer, central air & heat, free extra storage for bikes & things, $3,000/ month including hot water and heat. Call Albert 610453-6671.

Roommates ALL AREAS-ROOMATES. COM

Browse hundreds of online listings with photos and maps. Find your roommate with a click of the mouse! V i s i t : h t t p : / / w w w. R o o m mates.com.

ALL AREAS-ROOMATES. COM

Browse hundreds of online listings with photos and maps. Find your roommate with a click of the mouse! Visit: http:// www.Roommates.com.

Vacation/ Seasonal Rental OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND

Best selection of affordable rentals. Full/Partial Weeks.. Call now for FREE brochure. Open daily. Holiday Real Estate. Online Reservations: 1-800-638-2102 www.holidayoc.com

Real Estate Marketplace 20 ACRES

$0 Down, Only $119/mo. NO CREDIT CHECKS! Near El Paso, Texas. Beautiful Views! Money Back Guarantee 866882-5263 Ext 81 www.sunsetranches.net

Situations Wanted

HELP WANTED DRIVER

I WANT YOU!!!

Exp. Reefer Drivers: GREAT

GIRLS, YOU TOO CAN BE A

er 0 st il 2 Ea pr A is

Personalized Easter Gifts!

Furry Fluffy Froggy Chicky or Bunny! With our huge collection of plush Easter baskets and décor, you’ll find it hard to choose your favorite styles and designs.

All In One Rag Doll Basket

Bunny Bears

Sports Easter Basket

Quick, Order now! • Purchase 1 item and get 20%* off your order • Purchase 2 items and get 25%* off your order • Purchase 3 items or more and get 30%* off your order

up to

Give personalized gifts from $1499 that your family will love! +s/h

Plush Bunny Basket

To redeem this special offer, go to

PersonalCreations.com/adore or call 1.800.938.0785 *Take 20% off the first item in your cart, 25% off the product subtotal when purchasing 2 items, or 30% off when purchasing 3 or more items. Discounts: (i) will appear upon checkout, (ii) cannot be combined with other offers or discounts, (iii) do not apply to clearance items, and (iv) do not apply to shipping, care and handling, or taxes. Offer expires 4/18/2014.

C I T Y PA P E R . N E T | A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

[ i love you, i hate you ] To place your FREE ad (100 word limit) ➤ email lovehate@citypaper.net CAT FOOD DOUCHEBAG Fuck you! I’m walking down the street minding my business and there you are handling me packets of free cat food. You said my cat would love it. Well my cat ate that fucking shit and became violently ill—-Maximus vomited and shat about my house for two days. I had to spent $160 at the vet to have her tell me he had food poisoning. If I see your punk ass again, I’m gonna fuck you up. You’re going to find out the firsthand what contaminated food tastes like. Believe that.

safely and hope to be back on the road this week. I am certain that the universe will reward you for your kindness.

peel and seal. How are you going to get them to open up if they didn’t ?

THE PIE SAYS IT ALL LET ME! You really should let me take care of you...I am not going to say your name because everyone with that name is going to think that is about them... so let me just call you “Handsome” and that is your nickname that I call you! I love you already and I know that you know that...let me show you how

I didn’t realize I loved you until you were gone. I know you probably won’t see this as you flip back to the crossword puzzle, but I needed to tell you and the world that I am in love with you. It kills me that we aren’t together and that I can only be your friend. It’s so hard to live with this burning desire to be with you and still keep my distance. I know

I was having the most wonderful dream this morning as our daughter woke me up. We were actually in agreement, our laughter was endless and we loved each other. You were so understanding, so kind, so willing to go forth with me and spend the rest of our lives together. You see, it was only a dream I had. A dream that will never come true. It felt good having you with me as I dreamed about you, your closeness and the love I thought I shared with you. Just thought I would share this with anyone who has gone through heartache. Its a good thing we dream. Just let the nightmares in life fall off your shoulders and do not ever let anyone pull you down.

WALMART CASHIER STALKER!

ESCAPE WITH ME

GAME OF THRONES You approached me specifically after getting off the trolley to tell me that I looked like Robb Stark, and we had a fun conversation as we walked to 30th St Station. I don’t watch the show, but I admired your boldness, and your face, cute hair and funky glasses. You told me to have a great night as you went off to a different train platform than where I was headed. I wondered if I was reading too much into this chance encounter, but I should have at least asked your name if not your number. I’m on OKC as Probably-Fake if you’re reading this and wanted to chat some more. Flirting or just being friendly, I hope you had a great night either way.

FULL SERVICE, FRIENDLY, AWARD WINNING, WORLD FAMOUS, CUSTOM CLASSIC PORTRAITS BRIGHT COLORS, BLACK GREY, SLEEVES BODYWORK, COVERUPS, GIFT CERT’S OPEN 7 DAYS, 12 TO 12

621 SOUTH 4TH ST. 215 922 7384 IN THE MIDDLE OF TATTOO ROW, AND STILL 1

much I love you...you need to let that girl go and be with me...for Godsakes she can’t even take care of you when you are sick...I just want to know what you see in her and I know she is a fat-ass slob...you can do better...with me! Not only do me...be with me! We could conquer the world together!

44 | P H I L A D E L P H I A C I T Y PA P E R |

that you don’t love me back, and you would stop seeing me altogether if you knew how I really felt. I can’t ever tell you to your face, but I’ll keep saying “I love you” with every “accidental” touch, every compliment and every slice of pie.

TIRED OF HEARING

KINDNESS OF STRANGERS Thank you so much to the kind woman and two male construction workers who came to my aid on Sunday morning after I took a nasty fall under the Ben Franklin Bridge. I don’t know what I would have done if you had not responded with your concern, kindness and humor. I made it home

TO STOP COMPLAINING FROM LAST WEEK Once upon a time, I was involved in a poly-amorous relationship. The man subsequently moved to SF and now dresses as a woman. I support that. I have been monogamous and happy with my partner for 5 years. We got married (self-united, thank you Quakers) 2 years ago for financial and legal reasons. I say this to demonstrate openmindedness. I almost supported you, except that you mostly express a thinly-cloaked, deep hatred of women. There are many paths through love in this life - even the scared, pimp-user type you choose.

DREAMS ARE JUST DREAMS

I want you to look in my eyes with deserving eagerness and state that you love me and want to be there for me so that my heart can rest...I love you more than anything and thank you for contacting me again. let us let the past be the past and move on with our lives. I can’t wait until the weekends when we make love on my couch and I think to myself that I am the luckiest woman in the world to get filled with your graces. I know that we would be a good couple if you would just try to be the most real you that you can possibly be. Love, Girl Six.

is exhausting. You think with your new look you’d have some positivity or mental stability but it sadly seems to be going in complete reverse. We think you’re great and want you to be well but we also need to be free from the constant stream of info about your personal life so that we can do our jobs without an oppressive sob story every day. You are old enough to know better. Learn some boundaries!

MEN LISTEN SINGLE MEN please remember when approaching women either in person or on a dating site NSA (no strings attached ) relationships do not work. Everything in life has a string ,zip tap, a zipper, buttons,snaps, a pull tap, a flip top, a slide bar,or

A P R I L 1 0 - A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 4 | C I T Y PA P E R . N E T

You are making work awkward. You claim you have PMS every other day— what the fuck does that have to do with us? It’s not our responsibility to pamper you every week. Your personal life is in complete shambles no matter what it is that happens to you- a bad date, a gray hair. The drama

Now my life is all shady, Dark cold and empty, For 365days, I live outside always, Looking up at the heavens, It is beautiful, Girl you are most beautiful, In the place where you are, From where I am, You are too far, Impossible not to see, That I do try for you, Baby, Please give me a chance, To have your friendship, Please come into my life, I so need your friendship, Your butt is the most beautiful thing, I have ever seen, I need you in my life.

WANNABE PLAYBOY This is to my wannabe ex-boyfriend Troy! You told me that you were married I don’t give a shit! Marriage is not the same like it used to be anyway... I remember when I was younger that people actually respected marriage...but now..shit..it is definitely not the same! does your wife know that you are cheating on her? Cause you are and you know you are...I am glad that we don’t speak anymore because you are a waste of human skin.I wonder if she has felt the wrath of your temper yet! Good luck to two losers!

YOU BROKE MY HEART My husband, the love of my life, you broke my heart. I forgave you for fucking another woman right in front of me, but I can’t get the nasty images out of my mind. This is incredibly difficult for me, so don’t be a dick and tell me to try to have a good day when you leave for work in the morning. You fucked up and need to realize that this will take some time for me to get over it. Just be my man, and only MY man. That’s all I ask. And don’t fucking talk to her ever again.

✚ ADS ALSO APPEAR AT CITYPAPER.NET/lovehate. City Paper has the right to re-publish “I Love You, I Hate You”™ ads at the publisher’s discretion. This includes re-purposing the ads for online publication, or for any other ancillary publishing projects.