Punishing the DIA for ivory trade does nothing to stop illegal poaching of elephants
According to the DIA’s latest newsletter, the museum won’t be able to acquire any more objects like this sixteenth-century amber and ivory casket shown above anytime soon. That’s due to a recent federal crackdown banning the import of ivory intended to protect the slaughter of African elephants. It’s a noble goal, but one that bears “unintended consequences…
Circumcision prevention seminar comes to U of M campus
No doubt MT readers already know we have a fascination with circumcision round these parts. Michigan has a startling high rate of non-religious circumcision and we sought to find some reasons why when we wrote a cover story about it a couple months ago. Of course, the story of why some people are obsessed with…
‘The Murder Cup’ Returns to Detroit
According to newly released statistics from the FBI, Detroit is, once again, the Murder Capital of the United States.
Detroit financial review commission to meet for inaugural meeting tomorrow
Republican Gov. Rick Snyder this week named appointees to the state-mandated Financial Review Commission that will oversee significant financial decisions made by the City of Detroit. The board was established as part of the city’s bankruptcy-restructuring plan, which was approved last week by a federal judge. And while the imminent exit of Detroit Emergency Manager…
Help homeless veterans in Detroit
There’s a fundraiser for Detroit’s homeless veterans until 8 p.m. today at Detroit Tough Gym, 1224 Beech Street, Detroit. Donations of gently used or new clothing and items will be collected for the Michigan Veterans Foundation. There’s also an opportunity to sign up to walk (or run) a 2.5-mile route to distribute items to Detroit’s…
WATCH: Here’s an aesthetically pleasing time-lapse video of rural Michigan
Movoto, the “fun” real estate blog, published this video earlier this year. Rural Michigan really is quite breath taking. Watch below.
Check out late night talk show performances by Olivia Jean, Jessica Hernandez
On Monday night, late night talk TV was invaded by Michigan-raised artists. On Conan, Olivia Jean performed “Merry Widow” off of her debut solo record, Bathtub Love Killings. Meanwhile, on The Late Show with David Letterman, Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas performed “Sorry I Stole Your Man” from her latest release, Secret Evil. Check out the…
Jury finds Rasmea Odeh guilty; faces up to 10 years in prison, deportation
A federal jury on Monday found Rasmea Odeh, a Palestinian American activist and women’s rights advocate, guilty of lying on her U.S. naturalization application guilty. Odeh, 67, faces up to 10 years in prison, revocation of her citizenship, and possibly deportation. Supporters of Odeh, though, say it was clear weeks ago that her trial appeared problematic.…
Today in History: The S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald sank 39 years ago
Thirty-nine years ago, on Nov. 10, 1975, the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald sank into Lake Superior. All 29 of the American Great Lakes freighter’s crew, including Captain Ernest M. McSorley, were lost. When the ship was launched in ’58, she was the largest on the Great Lakes. The Edmund Fitzgerald remains the largest vessel to have sunk…
Detroit gets mapped in the new ‘Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’ video game
Detroit once again serves as the backdrop for fictionalized sci-fi violence, this time as a level in the new Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare video game. You can see a glimpse of the Renaissance Center (and a funky, futuristic version of the People Mover) in a screen shot from the new shooter above, which just hit stores…
Mark Hackel doesn’t understand why officials celebrated the conclusion of Detroit’s bankruptcy
Following U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes’ decision to approve Detroit’s proposed restructuring plan to emerge from bankruptcy, top officials involved in the process spent the better part of an hour congratulating one another on a job well done. That kind of attaboy! mentality carried over into the weekend, when one of the city’s restructuring consultants,…
Unsurprisingly, it looks like Lifetime’s unauthorized Aaliyah biopic is pretty bad
There are numerous problems with ‘Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B’ — but the biggest problem may be the portrayal of the controversial relationship of teenage Aaliyah to her producer R. Kelly.
Five Things the Mainstream Media Won’t Tell You About Detroit’s Bankruptcy
The five things the mainstream media is leaving out of its Detroit bankruptcy celebration.
B Spot Royal Oak opens today for lunch
Iron Chef Michael Symon’s wildly popular B Spot burger joint will officially open its new Royal Oak location today, beginning with lunch service. Chef Symon tweeted earlier this morning: big day..getting ready for lunch! pic.twitter.com/ysBNZVJgWG — michael symon (@chefsymon) November 10, 2014 The Royal Oak branch is the second of three Michigan locations to open;…
A borscht we missed: Christine’s Cuisine
We found out that another local place serves borscht, and you should try it!
Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas will appear on Letterman Monday night
Tomorrow night, Monday, Nov. 10, Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas will appear on The Late Show with David Letterman. The band announced they’d be making their TV debut via Facebook on Thursday afternoon. This year the band released their first full-length album, Secret Evil, and have been hitting some pretty big career milestones, the Letterman…
Online-only: Eight locally-owned shops that only do business on the web
Raise your hand if you’re not getting off the couch today. So, that’s all of us then? Sunday is a day for relaxation, recuperation, and retailing. Check out this slideshow of some locally-owned, online-only retail businesses in metro Detroit. You’d be surprised at the number of Detroit-owned enterprises that don’t have an actual brick-and-mortar storefront.…
This zombie comic-themed soda is the weirdest Detroit product yet
Before there were the hugely popular The Walking Dead comics and the rest of pop culture’s current obsession with zombies, there was Deadworld. Originally published by Ypsilanti’s Arrow Comics in 1986, the cult series will get revived in a strange new form: Deadworld Premium Zombie Soda (“All natural for the un-natural”). Talent from Towne Club, McFarlane toys, and…
Who Ruined the Board Games of My Childhood?
The games of my childhood used to have subtle but pointed barbs at the upper class. They’ve been redesigned without them.
Today in History: Nov. 9 was a big day for flight 110 years ago
A century and a decade ago on this day, Nov. 9 1904, the first flight to last more than five minutes took place. The Wright brothers had been working on it for a while – flight, that is – and their efforts were paying off. Brother Wilbur piloted the flight that covered nearly three miles…
MT Sunday interesting reads
It’s Sunday, which is a great time to relax and read. Hopefully you have a mimosa or a cup of coffee in hand, because here’s a couple pieces you should read right now: “The Unnatural History of the Dixie Cup” by Peter Smith — Smithsonian Last week, we spent some time with the “Biography of…
9 Movies about or set in metro Detroit on Netflix
It’s Saturday. It’s cold and rainy. It’s a Netflix kind of day. If you’re not going out in Detroit, you might as well be watching movies about it. Here are 10 movies you can find on Netflix that are set in or about our fairest metro area. Detropia This 2012 documentary focuses on the economic…
Shop Local this Saturday
Friends, as evidenced by the 60-foot Christmas tree that’s now standing in Campus Maritus, Christmas is upon us. Which means one thing: Christmas shopping. For some, this is a dreaded activity that fills that elicits unquenchable rage. We kind of like shopping, so we thought we’d put together this little guide of local places to…
Bankruptcy judge OKs Detroit’s plan to exit Ch. 9 bankruptcy
Calling Detroit’s woeful public services “inhumane and intolerable,” a federal judge on Friday approved the city’s restructuring proposal to exit bankruptcy — a plan that officials say gives the city an opportunity to grow and become viable once again. The proposal, called a “Plan of Adjustment,” could go into effect within the next 30-60 days.…
Detroiters celebrates America Recycles Day on November 15
For nearly a quarter-century, residents of the Grandmont Rosedale neighborhood have used its own monthly, volunteer-driven recycling program called Rosedale Recycles. The numbers alone are worth highlighting: In that time, the program has collected 2,782 tons of recyclables, about 9.66 tons per month. That doesn’t even include hazardous waste collected by the city, or the…
Appeals court upholds Michigan same-sex marriage ban
A three-judge appellate panel upheld Michigan’s 2004 constitutional ban on same-sex marriage today, almost certainly setting the stage for the U.S. Supreme Court to consider the issue of marriage equality once and for all. Thirty-four states now allow same-sex marriages. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals 36-page majority ruling, which upheld bans elsewhere in Ohio,…
$750,000 in total restitution awarded for 36 mortgage foreclosure victims in Michigan
Three-dozen Michigan residents who fell victim to a mortgage modification scam will receive a slice of nearly $750,000 in restitution, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette’s office announced today. The payouts stem from a scheme by Nationwide Consulting LLC, which specifically targeted families that largely lacked proficiency in English, Schuette’s office previously said. Individual reimbursements will…
Brooks Patterson doesn’t want Dan Gilbert to take Oakland County’s jobs
Metro Detroit was aflutter last night when Detroit Free Press reporter Bill Laitner filed a dispatch from a meeting where Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson opened his mouth. Patterson was on-site to talk about Oakland’s new tech initiative — a new county brand, or something? — when he said this: “I’ll fight to keep you here…
From our mailbox: Meet Roxy ‘Fired Up’ Firestone and Sissy P., the psychic dog
This is Roxy “Fired Up” Firestone (left) and Sissy P. (right). Miss Firestone left a message promoting a tailgating party she’s throwing on our voicemail, and at the end of the message casually dropped a series of nuclear bombs: Her dog Sissy P. is a psychic, and she (Firestone) is running for mayor of Detroit…
Calling all creative pervs: Dirty Show 2015 now accepting submissions
The Dirty Show, Detroit’s international erotic art exhibition, turns sweet 16 next year. Gosh, how time flies when you’re having fun! In case you haven’t heard yet, the call for entries for the 2015 Dirty Show is now underway, with a Dec. 15 deadline. Creative pervs, you know what this means: If you don’t already…
News Hits: Lame-Duck Forecast: What to expect in the Legislature over the next six weeks
In December of 2012, the Michigan Legislature shot for the stars. During that mostly acrimonious lame-duck session, the period after the November general election, but before the new year, when new lawmakers take office. In other words, it’s typically a time for lawmakers who have nothing to lose — because they lost their election bid.…
Evolution in just 15 years
While MT’s Lee DeVito and Michael Jackman spent last weekend learning about Creationism, scientists at Harvard recently published a paper looking at the evolution of green anoles, a type of lizard native to the United States. In 20 generations over just 15 years, the green anole has “evolved larger toe pads equipped with more sticky scales…
New Detroit homeowners need financing to restore purchased homes
Since this past April, the Detroit Land Bank Authority has been diligently working to attract prospective homeowners to the City of Detroit through a series of online auctions. In the first two months alone, the effort generated $1 million in revenue for the city from post-auction purchase commitments. But while it’s a positive sign to…
ICYMI: Tally Hall’s Rob Cantor made an epic video about Shia LaBeouf (the cannibal)
Remember Tally Hall, the funny, brightly-colored tie-wearing quintet from Ann Arbor who named their record after Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum? In recent years, the group’s Rob Cantor (he used to wear the yellow tie in Tally Hall) has been busy out in L.A., working on music under his own name. In case you missed it,…
It requires an insane amount of money to run a political campaign today
So last night, incumbent Gov. Rick Snyder won his bid for another four years as Michigan’s top official. The victory came with assistance from a number of groups, including the Republican Governors Association (RGA), which alone spent $14.1 million on 11 TV ads to support Snyder’s re-election bid. As the do-gooders over at the Michigan Campaign…
Detroit’s old ward system, 95 years later.
Looking back on Detroit’s history around election time, you’re always going to encounter some anniversaries. But this date is special, because, on Nov. 5, 1919, Detroit abolished its system of selection members of Detroit City Council by ward. And race had plenty to do with it.
This is the local beer you should drink when you watch a Pistons game, according to Thrillist
The NBA season is officially underway, and to celebrate the folks at Thrillist put together a list of the perfect beers to enjoy when watching your favorite teams. Any guesses on which Michigan-based brewing company and variety Thrillist picked to best represent the Pistons? That’s right, Founders Brewing Co.’s Double Trouble. Via Thrillist: For the…
Mr. LeVaux, the Russian mafia, and what makes a good bowl of borscht
In the dining car at the very end of the train, techno music was pumping as the train rocked its way through the Siberian darkness. The car was half-full of cardboard boxes. At the foot of these boxes, two babes in bright red lipstick sat at a table playing cards and smoking. They didn’t seem…
Lac La Belle find a fuller sound on ‘A Friend Too Long’
Armed with acoustic strings and a stand-up bass, Lac La Belle does not produce a typical Detroit sound. Then again, Lac La Belle is not a typical Detroit band. The duo, made up of Jennie Knaggs and Nick Schillace, hit the scene in 2010 playing old-time country and folk. Their latest release, A Friend Too…
A few local places that serve borscht
The Fiddler | 6676 Orchard Lake Rd., West Bloomfield; 248-851-8782; fiddlerrestaurant.com: The Fiddler serves a good variety of Russian and Jewish dishes, including a “Ukrainian borscht” — a steaming cup or bowl of beet, carrot, and onion, with a slight sweet-and-sour taste. It comes with sour cream, not mayonnaise (sorry, Ari). Krakus | 12900 Joseph…
Fear and Loathing at the Origin Summit
MT’s Michael Jackman and Lee DeVito go to Lansing in search of a higher truth.
Still Standing: The Russell Industrial Center is thriving
The cool thing about the Russell Industrial Center is that on the outside, it doesn’t look like much. It looks pretty beat up. It looks like it might even be abandoned. But inside is a culture and community that is thriving, utilizing a space that’s nearly 100 years old, a space that was meant for…
DDays: Day of the Dead at Imperial, Slowdive at the Majestic, and Halloween at Motor City Wine
Souls, Sugar Skulls, and Sangria DDays has certainly gotten our fill of Halloween over the last three weekends. We’ve seen enough sexy kitty costumes to last us until next year. So we were very excited to attend a festive event where we wouldn’t be visually assaulted by people dressed up like killer clowns, Michael Myers,…
Kyle Danley honors architect Albert Kahn with mural
Go for a drive around Detroit and you won’t get very far without passing a building designed by one Albert Kahn. In Detroit’s boom days, the architect designed many of the fixtures of our cityscape, from the Fisher Building to the Packard Plant, both the Detroit News and Free Press buildings, the Belle Isle Aquarium…
Retail Detail: American Jewelry & Loan’s got fur
Detroit loves fur, says American Jewelry and Loan office administrator Sarah Ullmann. As such, the pawn shop counts an extensive collection of fur coats among its wares, and Ullmann tells us that they’ve recently started working with a furrier. For a long time, the longer trench style was in vogue, but nowadays a cropped coat…
‘White People’ attempts to tackle the subject of racism
White people, the sociological group, desperately need space to talk about race, especially whiteness. Unfortunately, White People, the play, by Brooklyn playwright J.T. Rogers, is not that space. Instead, it’s Driving Miss Daisy for the 21st century. Our qualm is not with Puzzle Piece’s staging of the play or even D.B Schroeder’s direction, but the…
Feedback: Props for Pierre L’Enfant’s plan, bursting Bubble Tape’s bubble
French Twist Michael Jackman’s piece on the history of fire in Detroit got a good correction from eagle-eyed reader Michael Boettcher, who wrote: I’m surprised at Michael Jackman’s common error in an otherwise very thoughtful article: that Detroit’s post-1805-fire plan was inspired by Haussmann’s in Paris. In fact Georges-Eugène Haussmann who famously designed many of…
Face Time: Filmmaker Zeke Anders delves into the art of the vlog at the DIA
Though he currently lives in Los Angeles, Zeke Anders hails from Dearborn. But before he called the Michigan suburb home, he came from South Korea, where he was found abandoned as an infant in an alley by police. Anders’s adopted parents were white, and growing up in a mostly white community in Michigan led him…
Bankruptcy costs Detroit retirees
With U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Steven Rhodes preparing to announce a decision on Detroit’s “plan of adjustment” this week, many people are having their understanding of the situation framed by thumbnail synopses similar to this one posted by a local TV station on its website: “Judge Rhodes can confirm or dismiss Detroit’s plan of adjustment…
As seen on TV: American Jewelry & Loan has an interesting collection of merchandise
Most people might assume American Jewelry and Loan makes all of its money from Hardcore Pawn, the reality television show that has documented the day-to-day operations of Les Gold’s enterprise since 2010, or simply from the business of selling other people’s stuff. In reality, the store pays all of its bills from its pawn loans.…
The Loveseats offer up free self-titled EP
Detroit trio The Loveseats recorded this EP themselves, and it sounds like it — in the best way possible. For one, they sound like they’re having way too much fun to get outside forces involved. But more than that, it sounds good — or, it sounds exactly as it should. Make no mistake: This is…
Savage Love: “My wife and sister-in-law started making out.”
Q: Is this even Dan? Probably not, probably an assistant, but maybe this will eventually get to him. I have a spanking fetish. I love to be spanked. I live in Oakland, California, so San Francisco is 10 minutes away. Seems like I’m in one of the best places in the country to have a…
Five O’clock Somewhere: As Arkansas debates Prohibition-era ‘blue laws,’ let’s be glad for what we have in Michigan
We in Michigan are pretty relaxed about alcohol compared to some states. We’re known as a “control state,” and that may sound a bit intimidating, but it’s not as strict as some. You can still get your whiskey and beer in a place that sells Fritos, instead of some special state store, and the law…
George Lopez gets out of the barrel
George Lopez loves Detroit. He loves the Fox Theatre. We’ve been good to him here in the Motor City, and he is good to us. “I’ve worked hard my whole life,” he tells the Metro Times by phone. “There’s a feeling that I get when I’m there that I’m surrounded by people who have that…
All Dolled Up: Alexis Hubbard talks thrifting
Alexis Hubbard grew up shopping at thrift stores (with five kids, her parents didn’t have much choice but to buy their clothes secondhand). Like most teens, Alexis didn’t love getting used threads while her friends were wearing name brands and sporting the latest trends. But by the time she hit high school, this fashionista had…
Hot Shotz: Our/Detroit’s Sara Aldridge introduces us to ‘Mr. Bill’
Sara Aldridge has had a number of jobs around town, maybe too many to count. She’s worked in urban farming, she’s taught art, she’s been a catering manager, she was in the Girls Guide to Detroit, she worked at the Mercury Bar, the Majestic complex, and numerous bars and restaurants around town. She’s also known…
Chavis Chandler is Detroit’s newest chef on the mic
UPDATED: 5:40 p.m. Inside Greektown’s Detroit vs. Everybody store, Chavis Chandler is combing the shelves nonstop. “I remember when [owner Tommey Walker] was just starting out — and now look at him,” Chandler says as he pays for a black T-shirt. “I know so many people that have worked so hard to get where they…
Hamtramck’s Campau Tower recaptures the heyday of the hole-in-the-wall
There’s a beautiful symmetry, perhaps irony, in the parking signs reading “Wendy’s Parking Only, others will be towed” above the cars parked to eat at Campau Tower. After all, the Wendy’s is closed, and the corner of Campau and Caniff needs some kind of an all-night institution. Once upon a time, you might hear, Campau…
Drink Up
The name Pappy Van Winkle comes with a great deal of respect. The Old Rip Van Winkle Distillery was born from what Julian P. “Pappy” Van Winkle started in the 1800s. Four generations of whiskey-makers later, the company forged a bond with Buffalo Trace and their product has only flourished. People go to great lengths…
Lac La Belle combines modern stories with traditional forms
Updated 12:02 p.m. “Detroit, man!” That’s the exclamation from Nick Schillace as we walk into the home he shares with Jennie Knaggs, his musical partner and fiancée. This enthusiastic response comes after our admiring remark concerning their lovely Green Acres abode, and in case you’re wondering, yes, this is relevant to a discussion surrounding their…
Horoscopes (November 5 – 11)
Aries (Mar. 21-Apr. 20): Don’t be held back by thoughts that keep insisting that you can’t get around whatever the problem is. For someone who came here to light up the world, it’s hard to believe that you could feel flummoxed by any of the things that weaker mortals fall prey to. Don’t be too…
Five songs to listen to when you’re getting ready for a night out in Detroit
Sadie Q isn’t just a huge lover of music, she’s a huge lover of Detroit music. And she isn’t just a huge lover of Detroit music, she spends a lot of her time promoting Detroit music. She runs the blog Hip in Detroit and puts on shows everywhere from the Loving Touch to the Magic…
Burger Quest: At Tavern on the Main, it all comes down to architecture
Some guy named Steve wrote us at Burger Quest headquarters suggesting we give Tavern on the Main in Clawson a try. We dropped in on a Sunday afternoon to watch the game for a while, and try one of the joint’s “perfect burgers.” To call Tavern on the Main a “burger joint” would be inaccurate.…
‘Nightcrawler’ offers a scathing critique of modern media
The cult of the American entrepreneur is captured in all its amoral, sociopathological glory in writer-director Dan Gilroy’s pitch-black satire Nightcrawler. It comes in the guise of Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal), an intensely buggy mouthpiece for our country’s current obsession with self-actualization through capitalism. When we meet Lou, he’s stealing chain-link fence and manhole covers…
Higher Ground: Going Green
The tide of change in marijuana is pretty much in evidence across the country — even the most anti-drug states are going for CBD-only or hemp farming laws — and all kinds of businesses are involved in the booming marketplace. A recent national economic analysis on nerdwallet.com estimates that Michigan would gain $122 million a…
Wet your whistle with 100 different whiskeys at Royal Oak Farmers Market
Whiskey is the new black. Everyone loves it, it looks good on everyone, and there are so many variations, it’s easy to try a new one every day of the year. (That’s like the color black, right?) To help celebrate our ubiquitous love for whiskey, a special event is returning to the Royal Oak Farmers…
Ask a Juggalo: What will happen to Juggalo culture if it becomes mainstream?
Q: It seems, lately, that Juggalos are gaining a kind of cult popularity. Given that the central driving force of the subculture rests on unity — that is to say, family — in the face of adversity, what will happen to Juggalo culture if it becomes mainstream? A: I don’t think going mainstream is a…
How Detroit artist Ed Fella made his mark in graphic design
Ed Fella has it pretty easy now. The Detroit native recently retired from a 25-year stint teaching at CalArts university outside of Los Angeles, but he still gets to keep a small studio on the campus. “Like an honorary professor emeritus,” he explains by phone. “I’m the only one [here] who’s ever had this. Not…
Diamond in the rough
An old Negro Leagues ballpark might soon be getting a face-lift.
Patronicity gets crowdfunding dollars with an eye on Detroit
These days, seemingly everyone and their mother has a crowdfunding campaign, on platforms such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo, to help raise money for various projects. Some are practical, like raising money to open a new music store, while others are goofier — like building a statue in RoboCop’s likeness to, well, making potato salad. Patronicity…
Christopher Nolan’s epic space opera ‘Interstellar’ delves deep in the cosmos in search of higher ground
UPDATED 12:12 a.m. Interstellar / B+ It makes sense that Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan originally conceived Interstellar as a film for Steven Spielberg; it has the populist filmmaker’s DNA embedded firmly and contradictorily within its uncomfortably ambitious mashup of science fiction plots. Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey and Andrei Tarkovsky’s Stalker are…
Food Focus: Evie’s Tamales breakfast burritos are a bargain
Situated in a dense strip of Bagley Avenue in Mexicantown, Evie’s Tamales has been serving its cornhusk-wrapped tamales for over three decades. When we arrived on a recent Saturday morning, the restaurant was buzzing with activity, evident by the stream of customers arriving at a steady pace. Evie’s space has expanded into three locations around…
Raise the Bar: Traditions abound at the Old Miami
It can be said: The Old Miami is a weird place. It used to be a bar for veterans, and the interior has retained an aesthetic that pays homage to its history. And then some. The walls are plastered with pictures, posters, army badges, street signs, T-shirts, and a whole hell of a lot more.…
Politics & Prejudices: Our broken system
If you needed proof that our politics, our traditional media, and our political system are screwed up beyond belief, the Detroit Free Press provided it nine days before the election. “When it comes to education, (Gov. Rick) Snyder just doesn’t seem to get it,” the newspaper’s editorial writers wrote. They were even harsher on his…
