ARTS Pick: The Rocketeer
The record-breaking success of 1989′s Batman green-lit a wave big-budget retro-adventure films, including the outlandish, neon ensemble piece Dick Tracy; the brash, moody grotesquerie of The Shadow; and the feather-light, straight-faced camp of latecoming entry The Phantom. Nestled
The Education Beat: City could scrap teaching requirement for principals
Last week, the Charlottesville School Board discussed relaxing its requirements for principals in order to allow candidates without teaching experience to fill the top administrative positions at city schools. In a discussion at the board’s regular meeting on June 13, three of the five members
Showtime, Charlottesville: Japandroids are in town
Let’s get this out of the way: The name Japandroids doesn’t mean anything. Both members of the Vancouver-based rock band happened to come up with two-word names before their first billed show. Neither of them liked the other’s suggestion, so they combined them. The result is a play on words
Worlds of difference: When it comes to wine, what’s special about old versus new?
Normally I try to avoid pigeonholing and categorizing wine too intensely; the thing about winemaking and viticulture is that they’re seemingly built to buck trends, to defy the accepted knowledge, to alter the industry’s trajectory one barrel at a time. And yet, one of the most overused
Housing symposium examines federal funding pinch
For Charlottesville, the shortage of affordable and public housing is a problem that must be tackled, and it’s an uphill battle. That’s the message delivered at a summit on housing issues at the Boar’s Head Inn on Friday, June 14, where federal, state, and local officials met to discuss the
A Recipe for Success
On March 1, 2013, Justin Drew Bieber tweeted that he had just experienced the “worst birthday.” It was later revealed that the vague message had something to do with a club’s owners throwing Bieber and his pals out because they suspected some were underage. Bieber disputed this, and I dispute
ARTS Pick: A Night at the Museum
After hours Your childhood dream of sneaking past the museum guards and playing among the art can finally come true. Spend the evening at UVA’s Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection with friends, Devils Backbone brews, musical accompaniment by the Judy Chops, Downbeat Project, and The Hill and
Mailbag: Charlottesville’s housing crisis is self-inflicted
Free market housing Recently this paper published an article about the well-documented problem of Charlottesville’s housing unaffordability. It claimed that nearly half the city’s population now pays over 30 percent of income on housing, making it Virginia’s second-costliest city. To a degree
Editor’s Note: Across the digital divide
Editors have always lived inundated by information, but now everyone is. It makes me admire the simplicity of the Lakota, who recorded hundreds of years of history on a single buffalo hide, one picture for each year to cue the memory of a person who had learned the stories over the course of a
One year on: What’s changed at UVA since the meltdown over Dragas-gate?
This story’s publication date marks a year to the day that UVA’s Board of Visitors defied public outcry for the reinstatement of ousted president Teresa Sullivan by holing up in the Rotunda for 11 hours and doubling down on its decision to force her out. It took eight more days for the
Into the bookless future: As the county invests $20 million in new construction, libraries come to a fork in the road
The universe (which others call the Library) is composed of an indefinite, perhaps infinite number of hexagonal galleries.–Jorge Luis Borges, “The Library of Babel” In September, Albemarle County will open a library in a brand new building in Crozet. Between now and then, it will also begin a
Say my name: When kids get to dub the family pet
This was his first visit after being adopted from the SPCA over the weekend. He was a bit pudgy at 40 pounds—a middle-aged Beagle mix with a lazy demeanor and drooping ears. He was adorable, but with his squat legs and lumbering gait, I could never describe him as dynamic. I glanced at his
Top cops respond to demands for details after recent shootings, stand their ground on flow of information
After an Albemarle County Police officer shot and killed 21-year-old Gregory Rosson on June 8—the third officer-involved shooting this year— public demands for information were immediate and fierce. It’s a reaction cops brace themselves for any time an officer fires a gun at a civilian, and
Overheard on the restaurant scene… This week’s restaurant news (June 18)
All good things come in pairs…er, pairs of pairs. Celebrate the fourth anniversary of tavola restaurant with Quattro: Four Courses and Four Arias. Tavola’s skilled chefs will prepare a four course pre-fixe dinner accompanied by performances from Ash Lawn Opera’s La Boheme on Saturday,
Connecting the dots: UVA takes part in a nationwide autism study
Eight local autistic children are participating in a nationwide study that could change the way developmental disorders are perceived and treated. Most existing autism medications only treat the irritability and aggressive aspects of the disorder, and for the first time, doctors are testing a
Enemy at the baby gate: When grandparents go bad
As a new father with no significant prior experience with small children, I worry I’ve missed something big and obvious about infant care. I’ve taken classes and read a little bit here and there, but there’s no substitute for experience. I have a gnawing suspicion there are things I should know
Primary tie-breaker: Fenwick beats Bellamy by five votes
Bob Fenwick is officially on the ballot for the November City Council election, having beaten fellow Democrat Wes Bellamy for the spot by five votes after a dramatic second-place tie on Tuesday. “It’s the darndest thing I’ve ever been through, I know that for a fact,” Fenwick said after the
Album reviews: Slim Loris, Eluvium and Eisley
Slim Loris Future Echoes and Past Replays/Record Union Swedish indie Americana rock group, Slim Loris, has made one of 2013s most surprising albums thus far. Euphoric, humorous and bittersweet, Future Echoes and Past Replays is a success. The band ensnares you with the lively and whimsical
What’s Happening at the Jefferson School City Center?
Women will be celebrating the many ways they have turned their live challenges into positive change tomorrow (Saturday), June 15 at The Women’s Initiative at the Jefferson School City Center. From 4:30 to 6:30 pm, writers and supporters will honor the women essayists who shared personal stories
LOOK3 Pick: Nick Nichols
Michael “Nick” Nichols’ years of work for National Geographic have taken him around the globe, providing an up-close look at some of the few corners of the world that remain untouched by human civilization. His recent work in the Serengeti uses state-of-the-art advances in photo technology to




















