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ISSUE . July 17th, 2008
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Cover Story


Who Will Pray For Camden?
Seeking justice for Jason Santos, a young man who died on the streets of a bleeding city.
by Mike Newall

This year has been a particularly bloody one for Camden. If the current homicide rate holds, Camden could surpass its 1995 homicide record of 58, and once again be pegged America's most dangerous city.

"It's been a tough year," says police officer Bill Wiley, "and the summer's just getting started."


Web Exclusive
Camden, Immigrant Haven?
Cops in Camden are too busy to worry about illegal immigration — which is why Federal Street is thriving.
by Lauren Feeney

Camden, N.J., may be a portrait of urban despair. But one neighborhood in this downtrodden city is slowly coming back to life. Federal Street in



Opinion


Slant:
Photographs and Memories
Even in anonymity I'd like some dignity.
My dad served in the Air Force during the Korean War. Along with my mom, he raised four sons and put them through college. My dad was a businessman, a Mason, a man I proudly think of as a solid citizen. Will his great-great-grandchildren know what a great guy he was or even who he was?

Editor's Letter:
You Are Drawn to Us
Our second annual Comics Issue
by Patrick Rapa
Calling all comics.

Loose Canon:
The Phantom Garden
The sight of 10-year-old girls slamming hammers gave her hope.
by Bruce Schimmel
A trophy case contains ample evidence that the Horatio B. Hackett School once had a garden — and a big one, too. "So, where's the garden?" Cidney Alexander would ask herself, looking around the schoolyard and seeing mostly grass.

Feedback:
Letters to the Editor
What You Say
"They questioned me about who I was and threatened to arrest me if they had to come back. They did return several times since then but have left me alone for the most part, apparently satisfied that I am not a menace."


Naked City


Naked City :: Free to FlyFree to Fly
The famous Tuskegee Airmen — the all-black WWII fighter pilots — touch down in Philly.
by Mark Maurer
Though the Tuskegee Airmen is said to be the only fighter group to never lose a bomber to the enemy, time has shrunk their numbers — making this Philadelphia symposium an even-more-rare opportunity.

Icepack
Amorosi on the news, nightlife, gossip and bitchiness beats.
by A.D. Amorosi
"It's fucked up and extremely troubling. Someone should do a story on it before people start dying."

Running Numbers
A scholarly look at the digits that matter.
by Nick Norlen
No funny business on the registration form this time; chemists have about the same sense of humor as my high school administrators.


News


News :: Ad HeavenAd Heaven
Should companies be allowed to put their logos on skyscrapers?
by Andrew Thompson
Though the Art Commission gave the go-ahead for the Unisys sign, some members expressed concern over what precedent they might be setting. Would logos begin sprouting on skyscrapers across Center City?

The Bell Curve
City Paper's Quality-o-Life-o-Meter
When news breaks in Philadelphia, we make jokes.

Web Exclusive
Political Notebook:
Nutter's Gay for the Gays
by Mary Patel
Politically charged films were showcased at the opening week of the 14th annual Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, which began last Thursday night.

They Know Where You Are
Can location-specific advertising generate revenue for WiFi?
by Timothy J. McLaughlin
When Network Acquisition Co. took over EarthLink's network, it proposed a hybrid business model: steady revenue from wired broadband for large businesses combined with a free public access network that could generate revenue from advertisements.


Arts


Arts :: Sweet Relief
Art:
Sweet Relief
How one North Philly woodworker is carving a niche in his community.
by Ptah Gabrie
Bonus Web Content
Robert Shabazz spends time each weekday morning sweeping and picking up litter. His business is art and music, but his devotion to neighborhood improvement and preserving Latino culture in Philadelphia are evident throughout the community.

Full Exposure:
Remembrance of Things Pabst
John Vettese sees what develops
by John Vettese
There's a sense of discovery and awe in trying to capture the way a location has remained in stasis for however long.

Book Review:
Lost Boys
Steve Niles and Gary Panter stop in Philly to promote their new collaboration.
by A.D. Amorosi
"There aren't many projects where sharing, caring and creativity are the main points to be stressed. Usually it's murder, monsters and mayhem."

Arts Picks:
Velo+City
Opens Thu., July 17, with a reception and live music from The Extraordinaires and Tavo Carbone, 6-9 p.m., runs through Aug. 14, free, Lisa M. Reisman et Cie, 1714 Rittenhouse Square, 215-735-2781, lisart.com
by Lori Hill
Opening today at Lisa M. Reisman et Cie, Velo+City is a small but substantial show of prints, posters and historical ephemera that will spin any bicycle devotee's wheels.

BalletX
Wed.-Sat., July 23-26, 8 p.m. and Sun., July 27, 2 p.m.; "Celebrating Female Choreographers in Ballet" panel discussion, Thu., July 24, 4 p.m.; $20-$25, Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St., 215-546-7824, wilmatheater.org
by Janet Anderson
What does it mean when most dancers are women and most choreographers are men? BalletX's season-ending project is intended to encourage that discussion.


Arts Agenda


Arts Agenda :: Last ChanceLast Chance
Catch it or Regret It
by Tami Fertig
Michael Froio: Relic | Welcome to My World | Collaborations at the Echo Lake Conferences: The First Ten Years

Arts Agenda Picks:
On The DL
Contemplative Spaces
by John Vettese
He taps his knuckles along their faces like a tabletop drummer, fixating on the different tones he creates by pattering on different areas. He makes a ghostly swirl of white noise by sweeping his hands across the grain.

Just Do It
Yale MFA Photography 2008
by Dominic Mercier
Sarah Stolfa spent two years traveling the country investigating 21st-century America, and she presents images like Glendale, TX, where a lone figure stands in a field, dirty blanket over his shoulder, watching something — his house? — burn.

Galleries
Galleries are usually open Tuesdays through Saturdays; please call the gallery for exact days and hours. Receptions are denoted with Reception 13 NORTH ART GALLERY

Museums/Exhibits
Museums and exhibits have varying schedules;please call for exact days, hours and prices. ABINGTON ART CENTER , 515 Meetinghouse Rd., Jenkintown, 215-887-4882. METAMORPHOSIS, Features work

Performing Arts
Please call the phone number listed with the venue for specific dates, times and ticket information. dance ALL-FEMALE CHOREOGRAPHERS PROJECT BalletX presents its season finale

Readings/Book Signings
ALLEN HOEY The former Bucks County Poet Lareate reads from his recent work at the latest installation of the Poets and Prophets series. An open


Movies


Week Two Shorts
Right on Q
Reviews for the second week of the 14th annual Philadelphia International Gay & Lesbian Festival Festival

French Connection
Catherine Breillat's latest frames intense performances with relative restrain.
by Sam Adams
Breillat's film makes few concessions to the conventions of costume drama. The images look more like worn marble than burnished wood, without the gloss and decorum of past-life fantasies.

Repertory Film
Your weekly guide to local film events, festivals and under-the-radar screenings.

Send repertory film listings to tami.fertig@citypaper.net.



Music


Music :: For ScienceFor Science
How the city's hottest new avant garde jazz series landed on a West Philly Ethiopian restaurant.
by Shaun Brady
A West Philly Ethiopian restaurant wouldn't be the first place one would think of to start a weekly avant-garde jazz series. But Dan Scofield and Jon Barrios saw the potential in Gojjo's unique setup and a niche that the city needed filled.

Reconsider Me:
Back on the Map
M.J. Fine does it again
Trust Sheryl Crow, a woman whose personal life has been pretty stormy, to find a silver lining in Hurricane Katrina, Mideast fighting and the world's dwindling supply of fossil fuel.

Soundadvice
Get Out!
Pistolera | Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin | Anthony David | The Death Set/The Mae Shi | Gregg Mervine's Mingus Thing

Music Picks:
The Ting Tings
Wed., July 23, 9 p.m., $10, Johnny Brenda's, 1201 Frankford Ave., 866-468-7619, johnnybrendas.com
by Kevin Pearson
Formed in 2006, the band is an amalgamation of the members' previous musical experiences: Katie White did time as a teenager in a girl-group, while Jules De Martino had a stint as a struggling indie rocker.

Tommy Guerrero's Blktop Project
Thu., July 17, 8 p.m., $10, with Bing Ji Ling and DJ Orb, at Johnny Brenda's, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 215-739-9684, johnnybrendas.com
by A.D. Amorosi
The Spanglish soul, the hippity-hop, the cool jazz and the hardcore skate punk. Smooth.

Quintero
Thu., July 17, 9 p.m., $8, Audible Eye, Death of Jason Brody, the Khyber, 56 S. Second St., 215-238-5888, thekhyber.com
by Deesha Dyer
Bonus Web Content
"We take pride in the fact that we've been able to fuse not only downtempo and trip-hop but also include dub, jazz and a bit of live drum 'n' bass, and do all of it live."


Food


Food :: Club MedClub Med
How Apothecary has revolutionized the Philly cocktail scene.
by Trey Popp
Why have I had more fun drinking at Apothecary than any other place I've opened my mouth in the last 10 years?

Feeding Frenzy
Restaurants opening, closing and pending
by Drew Lazor
Ekta | Pub & Kitchen | Four Worlds Bakery

All is Fulya Love
A new café offers Turkish charm in coffeehouse form.
by Elisa Ludwig
Are these the beginnings of some kind of local Ottoman restaurant empire? Fine by me.

Top 5:
All-You-Cans
Belly Busters
by Kelly White
1 Sweet Lucy's Smokehouse | 2 Zot | 3 Aso | 4 New Delhi | 5 Jose Pistola's

What's Cooking:
What's Cooking
Get Out!
by Claire Bullen
Bar Ferdinand's Two-Year Anniversary Party | Pork Barbecue at the Speaker's House | Memphis Taproom: First Firkin Flows Forth | Good Food, Good Beer, and the Rest is History


Agenda


Agenda :: Old Flame
Agenda Lead:
Old Flame
Tim Kinsella on Joan of Arc's latest
by A.D. Amorosi
Bonus Web Content
As the band's only permanent member, nervous-sounding front man Kinsella has created some of pop's nastiest yet wisely informed and emotional songs.

Web Exclusive
Agenda Picks:
Just Do It
Jamie Lissow
by Mark Maurer
"I majored in mathematics and I always think of joke writing as a bit of a math equation. I also did a lot of drinking in college, which brought out the performance side of me."

In The Event That...
Noah and His Ark Were Getting Old
by Andrew Thompson

Marc Letourneau, leader of the northeast region of the U.S. Raelians, will break it all down at a lecture at Germ Books.


Just Opened
The Toy Shop
by Colleen Brogan
Tue.-Sat., 11 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sun., 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; 716 N. Third St., 267-687-3673, penntoys.com

What We Heart
Fuzzy Monster T-Shirts
by Rebecca Grites
Philly-born and -bred artist Nick Cassway has turned the endearingly creepy sketches of his college years into a line of Fuzzy Monster tees.

Just Do It
Urban Farm Bike Tour
by Jakob Dorof
Finding anything more agrarian than a Whole Foods in this city is no easy task. But a closer look reveals that an increasing number of Philly farms are gradually sprouting to the surface.


 
 
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