Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
Novelist Judith Rossner admits that her characters’ antics often get so violent that they frighten her out of her own house. “The violence and the plots I come up with sometimes scare me,” Rossner said.
Walking around Jamie Weiss’ loft, guests are hard-pressed to find anything black. And with good reason. “I used to have all black lacquer furniture,” said the makeup artist and silverware designer. “After I gave all that away, I wanted to try something bright and different.”
Mark Harmon is hovering by the juniors department at Carson Pirie Scott downtown, but he’s not shopping. The star of “Chicago Hope” is preparing for his next scene, which is being filmed in an unused section of the department store’s second floor. The cast and crew of the fictional Chicago Hope Hospital fly to the Windy City two to three times each year to shoot on location.
Brian Liesegang didn’t have a difficult time finding a job out of college. After graduating with a degree in philosophy from the University of Chicago five years ago, Liesegang joined the rock group Nine Inch Nails.
Dismiss the ruminations about this being the Rolling Stones’ “401K” tour and faggadabout the Geritol jokes. The Stones may be the grandfathers of rock ‘n’ roll, but they also are consumate professionals who can still teach the youngsters a thing or two about how to put on a good stadium show.
With her first book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, Anne Fadiman poignantly documents the head-on culture clash between a family of Hmong refugees from Laos and the American physicians who treat their infant child. Each party wants whats best for the child. But neither is ready to acknowledge that whats foreign to them may be the best treatment for little Lia Lee.
Chicagoans are used to spotting bits of the Windy City on NBC’s hit drama “ER,” which kicks off its fourth season with a one-hour live broadcast at 9 p.m. Thursday on Channel 5. But when they spot the actors walking around their streets, they get a little rabid. For instance, one woman asked George Clooney – who plays womanizing pediatrician Doug Ross – to sign her baby’s Pampers.
You know their faces and you even know some of their names. They’re the family members, lovers and hangers-on who have littered the Rolling Stones’ lives during the band’s 35-year career. Some, such as Mick Jagger’s ex-wife, Bianca, have survived nicely, and built lives for themselves away from the excesses of rock ‘n’ roll. Others (Anita Pallenberg, Mandy Smith) still are getting used to not being on the world’s most famous guest list.
You’d think that having just released the fastest-selling album in British history might have mellowed Oasis’ infamously prickly leader, guitarist Noel Gallagher, just a little. But even though Be Here Now is setting records and debuted in the U.S. last week at No. 2, the elder Gallagher (brother Liam is the band’s lead singer) is as irascible as ever.
Shot over a nine-month period in Leichhardt, Australia, the documentary “Rats in the Rank” follows the absurd antics of 12 council members maneuvering to get their mayoral candidates elected to office.
Baring his soul with bold lyrics and plaintive vocals, singer-songwriter Peter Stuart has come up with a strong follow-up to his band’s debut. His protagonists suffer from heartache, but Stuart doesn’t wallow in misery. Like Matthew Sweet, he has a knack for marrying bittersweet words with pop melodies to create evocative vignettes. Grade: B+
The three-dimensional technology is nothing short of amazing. Forget those throwaway 3-D glasses of the past that did nothing but give you a headache. When you strap these high-tech 3-D glasses on (they perch on your head like a visor), you are transported deep into the action. (FYI: Without the headgear, the film is, in a word, blurry.)
The Artist Formerly Known as Prince has nothing on the Roots’ Ahmir Khalib-Thompson. Since the band formed 10 years ago, the drummer has billed himself as ?uestlove and B.R.O. the R. ?uestion, before settling on his first name (which not only sounds better than the other monikers, but also is less confusing).
It was a sad day for Anglophiles when John Squire left the Stone Roses. Without their lead guitarist and primary songwriter, the Roses withered away a few months after Squire quit last year. But he didn’t waste any time crying over what could have been. Instead, he put together the Seahorses, a tight rock ‘n’ roll outfit that made its Chicago debut Tuesday night at Metro.
“I think we’re five smart women who bring something different to TV,” said host Meredith Vieira, who spent more than two decades covering hard news for such programs as “60 Minutes,” “West 57th” and “Turning Point.” “We’re opinionated and not afraid of airing our views. Plus we’re live and unscripted, so anything could happen.”
The crowd at the Mercury Lounge wasn’t sure what to make of Big Blue Hearts when the four musicians made their New York debut. Dressed in black suits – with a big old cowboy hat for the 6-foot-5 bassist – the San Francisco-based musicians looked slightly nervous, peering at the skeptical crowd.
It was early in Los Angeles and Beck Hanson sounded tired. Phoning from LAX – where, in an hour, he would board a plane for Tokyo – the artist currently known as Beck spoke candidly and seriously about his metamorphosis from perceived one-hit wonder to the most important musician of his generation.
Sarah McLachlan knew it was time to start a music festival that celebrated female artists when she discussed the possibility of having Paula Cole open for her and a promoter told her that two women on the same bill would be too . . . well, you know . . . female.
Golf tees may seem like a strange souvenir to hawk at a rock ‘n’ roll club. But when the nigthclub is nestled in the heart of Myrtle Beach, S.C., it makes sense.
If you have MTV, try to catch the exclusive airing of Radiohead’s “Paranoid Android” video. The fully animated clip was drawn by Magnus Carlson, whose animated “Robin” series is a favorite in Great Britain. The band is briefly depicted in a bar at the end of the 6-1/2-minute video, but the music and the stark images are the stars.