Cover Story
Could a new analysis finally prove Mario Willis’s innocence in Detroit firefighter’s death?
Part IV in our ongoing investigation into the case of Mario Willis. Clara Mitchell was preparing for a funeral. Mitchell, who would pastor her own congregation years later, served as executive secretary of Community Christian Fellowship Church on Detroit’s east side in 2008 when parishioner Walter Harris died. “I lost a good friend,” she says.…
How Many Calories in a Sweet Potato? Health Benefits & Nutrition Facts
Sweet potatoes are affordable, delicious, and full of fiber and nutrients. Yet, you might be wondering how many calories are in a sweet potato if you consume this tasty root crop. A single sweet potato has around 80 calories, but it surely depends on its size. Let’s check out the basic facts about sweet potato…
A rural energy co-op in northern Michigan wants a nuclear revival
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between IPR and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization. The historic restart of a shuttered nuclear power plant is planned for later this year on the shores of Lake Michigan, and a northern Michigan energy cooperative is playing a major role. Last fall, the Biden administration finalized…
Ann Arbor Folk Fest headliner Waxahatchee is a little bit country, a little bit indie rock
When Katie Crutchfield (who performs under the name Waxahatchee) performs at the Ann Arbor Folk Festival on Friday, fans shouldn’t expect to hear a show that encompasses all six of her studio albums. Instead, she’s been focusing on her three most recent releases — 2020’s Saint Cloud, last year’s Tigers Blood, and Plains, a 2022…
Michigan Attorney General won’t investigate Duggan over file destruction, leaving innocent inmates in limbo
The Michigan Attorney General’s Office officially declined to investigate Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan for allegedly destroying critical records when he was the Wayne County prosecutor. In a letter to Mark Craighead, who was exonerated after spending more than seven years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit, Robert Liddell, chief of Criminal Trial Divisions…
Former Vondie’s On The River owner opens Minnie’s Detroit
For as long as Yvonne Byrd can remember she’s loved Detroit’s music and nightlife scene. In 2008 Byrd took that love and opened Vondie’s On The River (her nickname), a bar known for live entertainment and garlic-flavored chicken wings. It quickly became one of the cornerstones for Detroit nightlife and music in the mid-2000s. Artists…
Prominent attorney Todd Perkins joins Detroit mayoral race
High-profile attorney Todd Perkins announced Tuesday that he’s officially running for mayor of Detroit. Perkins is at least the sixth candidate for mayor after Mike Duggan announced in November that he wasn’t seeking a fourth term. Perkins said he made the decision after creating an exploratory committee to assess “the feasibility” of a campaign. “I…
‘Warp & Weft’ weaves history and culture at The Shepherd
The Big Bang, the Jacquard loom, indigenous traditions, Afrofuturism, dream logic, the Northern Migration, the Industrial Revolution, and Detroit techno. It takes a remarkable fabric to weave all these threads together in one vibrant tapestry. But that deft narrative exploration is exactly what’s on offer at Warp & Weft: Technologies within Textiles, an exhibit opening…
R.I.P. David Lynch
We lost the artist David Lynch on January 15, just five days before his 79th birthday. As a writer, director, painter, and designer, he spent his entire career finding ways to map the human subconscious, making movies that feel like glimpses of half-remembered dreams, scripts that turn dream logic into tactile reality, and paintings that…
Jury awards $133K to Detroit casino worker who declined COVID-19 vaccine
A federal jury has ordered MGM Grand Detroit to pay $133,000 to a former warehouse manager from Canton who was fired after refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccine on religious grounds. The jury determined Thursday afternoon that the casino violated Hratch “Harry” Yeremian’s rights by denying his request for a religious exemption. Yeremian, an Apolostic…
Detroit Lions are America’s favorite playoff team, according to data
Half of America is now roaring for the Detroit Lions as the once-hapless team enters the divisional round of the Super Bowl tournament as the top-ranked squad in the NFC. After an impressive 15-2 season, the mighty Lions host the Washington Commanders at 8 p.m. Saturday. The Lions are 8.5-point favorites to win that game.…
Green Dolphin in Hazel Park shows why small-craft cannabis matters
Welcome to The Straight Dope, our weekly series that explores the best cannabis products in Michigan. With more than 550 licensed growers in Michigan, the recreational cannabis market is overflowing with choices. Some are gems, others not so much. While massive corporate growers tend to get the most attention, small-batch cultivators are often lost in…
Lapointe: Trump to drop the gloves with Canada
Long before Justin Trudeau became Canada’s prime minister, his father held the same job. And Pierre Elliott Trudeau famously described the United States in 1969 in a speech to the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. “Living next to you is, in some ways, like sleeping with an elephant,” the elder Trudeau said that day.…
Detroiter Lawrence Lamont talks ‘One of Them Days,’ his new buddy comedy starring SZA and Keke Palmer
There’s a subtle but poignant moment in One of Them Days where Dreux (Keke Palmer) is preparing for a job interview and her best friend Alyssa (SZA) is emptying out her mental drawer of supportive phrases in efforts to fill Dreux with confidence. The moment is cute, playful, and a microcosm of the charming sisterhood…
Little Caesars franchise violates child labor laws in Farmington Hills
A Little Caesars restaurant in Farmington Hills is under fire for hiring minors to operate hazardous equipment and work beyond the legally permitted hours in violation of federal child labor laws, according to an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. JMP Pizza Inc., the franchise operator, is accused of instructing…
Mike Posner, Gmac Cash to perform at Lions rally at Detroit Auto Show
Michigan musical acts Mike Posner and Gmac Cash have been tapped to perform as part of a Lions rally at the Detroit Auto Show ahead of Saturday’s big game. The concert is set for Friday, Jan. 17 at the Grand Riverview Ballroom at Huntington Place. Posner is a Grammy-nominated singer from Detroit, while Gmac Cash…
Sterling Heights’s Hug Baan Thai is a pleasant surprise
Hot and sour tom yum soup is a Thai staple that can start off a meal at virtually any restaurant. At its best, it’s glorious: bright and intense with a complex palate, at once spicy, sour, sweet, garlicky, peppery, citrusy, and often holding a little funky punch from chili paste. At its worst, it’s a…
Wait, box-office bomb ‘Better Man’ is actually kind of awesome
Tell me if you’ve heard this one before: So, you take the traditional musical biopic like A Complete Unknown or Walk the Line, but instead of casting some popular actor like Lil’ Timmy Chalamet or Joaq Phoenix to play the subject, you instead have the musician played by a computer-generated monkey. Yeah, me neither. But…
Detroit techno exhibit coming to MSU
The thumping sounds of Detroit techno are the subject of a new exhibition hosted by the Michigan State University Museum. Techno: The Rise of Detroit’s Machine Music will offer attendees “an innovative exploration of Detroit’s role as the birthplace of Techno music and its connection to Afrofuturism,” a cultural movement that explores the Black diaspora…
Watchdog demands Oakland University end controversial animal research
A twice-suspended research project at Oakland University that involved allegations of animal neglect and staff endangerment has drawn strong criticism from a national watchdog group. Stop Animal Exploitation Now (SAEN), an Ohio-based organization that monitors research facilities for fraud and animal abuse, filed an administrative complaint with Oakland University President Ora Hirsch Pescovitz calling for…
Checker Bar holds fundraiser for employees after ‘devastating’ fire
Checker Bar in downtown Detroit launched a fundraising campaign for its employees after a “devastating” fire broke out early Tuesday morning. “The impact of this fire reaches far beyond the building—our dedicated team of bartenders, servers, & cooks are facing financial hardships as the bar will be closed for an unknown period of time,” the…
Michigan Science Center’s planetarium theater is getting a $2.6M upgrade
The Michigan Science Center planetarium theater is getting some big upgrades in 2025 thanks to a $2.6 million grant from Ballmer Group. Dubbed the “Hyperspace Initiative,” the upgrades include inclined seats, an updated 5.1 audio system, 8K digital projection, and a seamless dome. The project also includes the addition of educational outer space-related exhibits outside…
Free Will Astrology (Jan. 15-21)
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Abdulrazak Gurnah is a Tanzanian writer who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2021. He has also been shortlisted for four other prestigious awards. I find it odd that his acclaimed novels have received mediocre scores on the prominent book-rating website, Goodreads, which has 150 million members. Why is there…
