Icepack

Amorosi on the news, nightlife, gossip and bitchiness beats.

by A.D. Amorosi

I'll be honest with you kids-gone-fishing at SxSW and WMC. We didn't miss you. Same crowded bars and packed gigs. Truthing? We didn't know you weren't here. I'm only realizing you're back because I've spied a few o' you with planter tans — you mentioned being in Austin and Miami. Blahblah. Then again, I've been busy with these dumb local sports movies: squinting to imagine Bernie Mac without that afro in Pride; slow-backward-ing my Blu-ray Rocky Balboa to find buds standing near Canulli's. Cavones! Then I read that foxy Carla Gugino got an offer from local director Tim Chambers and producer Pat Croce for Our Lady of Victory, a Philly film about Immaculata College/Mighty Mac b-ball coach Cathy Rush. My teeth start gnashing. Not because Croce's involved. Because I'm tired of filmmakers concentrating solely on Philly sports heroes. Real ones (Vince Papale). Imaginary ones. Suddenly NoLibs' Eve Saint Girard don't sound so stupid about picketing the Rocky statue after Stallone's snag at Sydney's airport for growth hormones. Filmmakers must celebrate other locals. Where's the Harry Jay Katz Story? David Carroll's tale? Jerry Blavat's bio-pic? Matthew Fox is from here. Lost has gotta end soon. IT HAS TO. He can play the Geator. Oh, when will the balls stop bouncing?

► This reminds me: Did you know Philly has a new film company, Belvedere? That it's run by local director Nick Briscoe and ex-Kixx soccer team VP/White Men Can't Rap producer Charlie Pasquale with ex-Tweeter PR gal Donna Coghlan doing marketing? That they've got Briscoe-directed, Nikki Forston-written flicks in the pipeline: Meal Ticket, Cripta, the company's launch lenser Blur, which hits Ritz at the Bourse April 3? Sad thing is, by the time Blur opens, that Ritz and the rest o' Philly's Ritz theaters (not Jersey; go figure!) will be owned by Landmark Theatres, Mark Cuban's art-flick jawn. (Also Halle Berry and Giovanni Ribisi will've hit Ritz Five for Perfect Stranger by the time you see this. Ribisi's a fox. Dunno what Berry looks like anymore.) 

► Tickets on sale at Foodery and AKA Music? Capitol Years at Urban Outfitters March 24? It's Ben Morgan's buddies Popped! Fest gathering steam weeks before it hits. Feel it. 

► All hail new Brat Production Producing Artistic Director Michael Alltop. Fergie — the bar owner, not the "a-licious" girl — had a party at his house in Alltop's honor. 

► Tinto's open, Jose Garce's Spanish Basque country-inspired haunt on 20th. What's he eating? Bocadillos: Tinto's jamon 'n' abbaye de belloc sammiches. "I've been so busy, bocadillos are the only thing I've time to eat," says Garces, who has far more elaborate items on his menu, and on his schedule: third and fourth joints in West Philly (Chilango) and Chicago, along with a book. Still. "Know what's sweetest about this? That there's an audience for my cooking as I put my heart and soul into both restaurants." Even more so, the whole Latin Evolution (his book's name) has Jose psyched — that people are moving from Tex-Mex to embrace traditional Mexican and Argentinian cookery; "that things like ceviche, chimichurri sauce and huitlacoche aren't far out anymore." Check Tinto on that tip. 

► Large Marge Wexler's Sherman Presents hits Green Line Cafe for a cozy wood 'n' wires all-ages gig with Philly cartoonist/syn-folkie Sam Amidon, Impossible Shapes and Red Heart the Ticker March 23. Sweet. 

► Despite trying to foist bottles of Jerry-brand rum down our collective gullets, Gyro Inc. is trying to class up the joint. Steve Grasse hired Rachel Furman's Rachel Inc. to host its Sailor Jerry store-opening soiree in da B3 March 22. 

► Walking to catch Carl Michaels at Pure's Pink Party, I got a personal note from the DJ. "Just got a call — I'm switched to Woody's Friday nights," wrote Michaels. Thus the beginning of the Weiss Dynasty — the family's first weekend owning Woody's, Pure and Bump. 

► WHOWHATWHERE: Not only did Byard Lancaster hit Vernon Reid's show at Tritone. So rapt with the zigaboo laid forth by opener Phil Moore Browne, Lancaster jam-joined them. That was not Hall & Oates standing on Broad Street last Sunday in honor of H&O Day. It was Circles' Nick Millevoi and Trilobite George Korein (the latter's new CD, Too Many Days, is a moody masterwork) dressed like the duo, standing near their's Philly Music Award plaque, handing out Halls Mentho-Lyptus and whole oats while blasting H&O hits from a boombox and singing along. The actual day was last year, March 17. But Korein & Millevoi insist it will be an annual event. A batch of hockey players — Simon Gagne, namely — did the VIP bottle thing at Bamboo for DJ Brendan BringEm. Poison guitarist C.C. DeVille was at Abington Hospital. Not unskinny bopping — model gal-pal Shannon Malone had his baby hair-metal man. Congrats.

► I remember Intrepid Jam-mer Jen Marmon's Fusion at Emerald City like it was yesterday. Ah. Now her 12-bands/12-bucks goth/ebm/'80s live gig/after party hits the Troc March 23.

► Rhythmatist Joe Ankenbrand not only left Jukebox Zeros before their March 24 show (Justin Lee jukes for the Whiskey Dix gig). Joe's retiring from the skins after 30 years of Bunnydrum-ing. He's missed already.

► While checking rumors that recently arrested/more-recently-set-free Philly emcee Gillie Da Kid was in talks with Geffen for his just-wrapped Get It How Ya Live ("Yeah," claims G about nearly crossing "t"s), I found Ice T in a heap of problems with Dauphin County cops. Though coming to lecture in Harrisburg — Law&Order-like April 26 — the police department is still pissed about "Cop Killer" and has registered complaints, even though all proceeds benefit crime victims of Dauphin County. Stay tuned.

(a_amorosi@citypaper.net)