A contrarian proposal for Bike to Work Week 2008 in Madison It's time for a Drive to Work Day David Medaris on Friday 05/09/2008 12:00 pm I should preface this contrarian proposal by affirming my support for Bike to Work Week, which begins today, Friday, May 9, and continues through next Friday, May 16 here in Madison. As someone who commutes to work by bicycle whenever the weather and other circumstances allow, I'm all for encouraging more people to do so. It's fun. It's healthy. It's relaxing. It's inexpensive. It's pretty darn green. The city's network of bike routes also makes it pretty darn easy and safe to bike to work. Depending on your route, it can also be quite scenic. >More
Wilmington on DVD: One of the greatest silent symphonies La Roue, I'm Not There, and the films of Morris Engel and Ruth Orkin Mike Wilmington on Friday 05/09/2008 11:12 am Abel Gance, maker of the spectacular 1927 French epic Napoleon, was one of the great symphonic masters of the silent movie, and La Roue is one of his greatest symphonies. The story of La Roue (The Wheel) is, in many ways, pure silent-movie melodama, but done with such grace, style and deep feeling that it sweeps you up and thrills you, just as the silent melodramas of Gance's friend and admirer D.W. Griffith still do. >More
The Week[end]: May 9-11, 2008 on Friday 05/09/2008 10:06 am Get ready to run around, because it's one of those weekends in Madison when everything is happening all at once. Let's see... the big ones to remember the kickoff of Bike To Work Week, the opening of the Chris Farley Remembered exhibit at the Wisconsin Historical Museum and the Circus Celebration at the Chazen, along with the return of Cars on State, the Mad Rollin’ Dolls 2008 finals, and the fifth annual MAMAs. Also on tap are: productions of Mulan, Jr. and Lucia di Lammermoor; more Walking with Dinosaurs; and live music by Margot & the Nuclear So & So's, The Avett Brothers, 8889, Todd Carey and Alexa Wilkinson and Jonathan Clay, Scream Club, The Kills, the Wisconsin Chamber Choir, and New Monsoon with Run Side Down. >More
Blaska's Blog: Will the County Board please grow up David Blaska on Friday 05/09/2008 8:31 am I don’t blame the Wisconsin State Journal for suspending coverage of the largest unit of local government until this spring, when I got it to write about releasing jail inmates on ankle bracelets. County government did not take itself very seriously. >More
Madison Miscellany -- May 9, 2008 A daily survey of Madison blogs, press releases, and other online updates on Friday 05/09/2008 12:00 am The MPD speaks on the Joel Marino homicide investigation, concerns of the Zimmermann 911 call continue, WARF and the CDA, Jim White at the Orpheum Stage Door, The Blind Boys of Alabama the old civic center, an interview with distance runner Joe Kurian, UW men's tennis preps for NCAAs, and much more can be found in this latest round-up of online social media in Madison and Dane County. >More
Redacted report reveals nothing new on Brittany Zimmermann's 911 call Read the redacted report from Dane County Public Safety Communications Jason Shepard on Thursday 05/08/2008 9:08 pm, (1) Comment A heavily redacted copy of a 40-page report into the alleged mishandling of a 911 call for help from murder victim Brittany Zimmermann sheds little, if any, new light on a number of important questions. The report was released on Thursday night, minutes after the end of a joint committee of the Dane County Board in which embattled 911 Center director Joe Norwick answered questions from county supervisors about 911 center policies. >More
Dane County Board spins wheels on Zimmermann 911 call controversy Bill Lueders on Thursday 05/08/2008 9:04 pm, (1) Comment Scott McDonell began the meeting by stating that the matters under review could lead to litigation and anything said "can be used in court." It was the public-hearing equivalent of a Miranda warning. That was not the only admonition: McDonell, the Dane County Board chair, also explained that all questions would have to be screened and some could not be answered. >More
Overture Center announces its 2008-09 season Kristian Knutsen on Thursday 05/08/2008 8:18 pm The Overture Center for the Arts announced its new season of programming in a media soiree on Thursday afternoon, unveiling dozens of dates at its two primary venues of Overture Hall and Capitol Theater. A few big names include David Sedaris, Bill Cosby, Art Garfunkel, Travis Tritt, and Bobby McFerrin, along with productions of Avenue Q, Sweeney Todd, and a special Madison Repertory Theatre production of My Fair Lady. >More
Joel Marino's grandmother: I heard the killer Jason Shepard on Thursday 05/08/2008 3:15 pm, (9) Recommendations Joel Marino's grandmother says the Madison police told her not to talk to the press about her grandson's murder. Today, she broke her silence. "I think we have a right to know more than they're telling us," Betty Parman tells Isthmus. Parman was the last person known to have talked to Marino before he was stabbed to death inside his house on West Shore Drive, three blocks south of Brittingham Park, on Jan. 28. >More
Madison Art Bikes Rally 2008: The bicycle as creative medium Saturday's ride around the Capitol to showcase fanciful ingenuity David Medaris on Thursday 05/08/2008 3:06 pm, (5) Recommendations Last weekend's Madison Art Bikes open house provided an opportunity to admire some of the bicycles that will be part of this coming Saturday's art bike rally around the Capitol. Scheduled to start at 11 a.m. from the Madison Children's Museum, the annual event promises to once again be quite a spectacle of creative imagination. >More
Fox's Greta Van Susteren picks up Brittany Zimmermann story Watch video of Isthmus writer Jason Shepard discussing the case Jason Joyce on Thursday 05/08/2008 12:45 pm Isthmus reporter Jason Shepard appeared on Fox News' On The Record show hosted by Greta Van Susteren for the second time in a week Wednesday night and is scheduled to appear again Thursday night (9 p.m. CDT). >More
Dane County DA Brian Blanchard didn't insist on Zimmermann 911 tape secrecy DA weighs in on controversy over who isn't saying what why Bill Lueders on Thursday 05/08/2008 12:36 pm At her press conference on Tuesday, Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk repeatedly asserted that Madison police and Dane County DA Brian Blanchard drew a line in the sand as to what details the county was able to release regarding the 911 call from murder victim Brittany Zimmermann. >More
MadTracks -- 'All We Are' by 8889 April Williamson on Thursday 05/08/2008 10:43 am, (7) Recommendations Pop rockers 8889 have been working for a few years on their new album Zoology, the follow-up to their well-received 2005 debut release My Music Plan. If the five men behind the band have spent a long time in the studio, it's because they now have a growing reputation to uphold: "Dandelions" from that first album won the 2006 Madison Area Music Award for Best Pop Song. >More
Madison Miscellany -- May 8, 2008 A daily survey of Madison blogs, press releases, and other online updates on Thursday 05/08/2008 12:00 am Concerns grow over the Dane County 911 system, stiffer penalties for OWI offenses, new WARF licenses, entrepreneur Chad Sorenson, Rooney and Locksley at the Annex, Tegan and Sara at the Barrymore, eating calzones at Lovshack, a Chicagoan visits Ella's Deli, swimming lessons at the Goodman Pool, looking back at the Wisconsin softball 2008 season, and much more can be found in this latest round-up of online social media in Madison and Dane County. >More
The Kissers bid farewell to Madison An open letter from Ken Fitzsimmons Ken Fitzsimmons on Wednesday 05/07/2008 6:32 pm, (2) Comments, (8) Recommendations We decided to play our last show on June 7, 2008 at the High Noon (appropriate of course since it is the new incarnation of O'Cayz). Coincidentally this show will almost exactly mark the ten-year anniversary of our weekly gig at O'Cayz. >More
Harry Dumpty sits on a wall outside Madison Municipal Building Brent George presents an incredible inedible egg David Medaris on Wednesday 05/07/2008 4:12 pm, (2) Recommendations You've heard that story about Humpty Dumpty, who sat on the wall, had a great fall and so forth. This is not the story of Humpty Dumpty. This is a short tale about Harry Dumpty and how he came to be perched on a wall outside the Madison Municipal Building's west entrance overlooking Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. >More
Beer Here -- Kirby's Supper Club from the Great Dane and Capital Brewery Robin Shepard on Wednesday 05/07/2008 1:27 pm, (5) Recommendations The south-central Wisconsin brewing scene is truly unique -- where else would one brewery offer to host another local brewery's brewmaster? Capital Brewery's Kirby Nelson, famous or perhaps infamous for his distinctive personality and gray pony tail, teamed up with Rob LoBreglio of the Great Dane Pub and Brewery to make a special beer. Earlier this week the result of their collaboration debuted on the taps at the Great Dane in downtown Madison. >More
Comp Time with Noble Wray Madison police chief weighs in on Brittany Zimmermann 911 call controversy Nathan J. Comp on Wednesday 05/07/2008 11:31 am, (6) Recommendations When Dane County 911 Center director Joe Norwick said last week that Madison police forced him to keep mum on the emergency call made from UW-Madison student Brittany Zimmerman's cell phone shortly before she was murdered, Madison Police Chief Noble Wray countered hours later with a press conference of his own, disavowing this representation. Wray said he asked county officials to not reveal the contents of the call, not the call itself. But the blame game continues. >More
George Motz brings Hamburger America to Madison Hamburger man comes to munch at Dotty's Linda Falkenstein on Wednesday 05/07/2008 10:28 am, (3) Recommendations George Motz frequently punctuates his enthusiasm for hamburgers with a bubbling laugh. Motz is a director of photography and documentary filmmaker whose Hamburger America was shown on the Sundance Channel in 2005. He's now spun his cross-nation ramblings into a guidebook, also called Hamburger America, and subtitled A State-by-State Guide to 100 Great Burger Joints. I guarantee that a few moments paging through this book will have burger lovers doing two things. >More
Madison Miscellany -- May 7, 2008 A daily survey of Madison blogs, press releases, and other online updates on Wednesday 05/07/2008 12:00 am Falk and 911, growing gang involvement, four finalists named for UW-Madison chancellor position, UW Safewalk at full strength, Madison school board discusses new budget, MPD shuts down hip-hop show at Klnic, Tegan and Sara at the Barrymore, Dead Meadow at the High Noon, the new Dandelion food cart, Madison Scouts announce new season, the quintessential UW student-athlete, and much more can be found in this latest round-up of online social media in Madison and Dane County. >More
Falk defends Dane County 911 Center in Brittany Zimmermann call snafu Bill Lueders on Tuesday 05/06/2008 5:30 pm Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk began her press conference this afternoon on the 911 Center's botched handling of a call from slain UW student Brittany Zimmermann by saying all the "moms and dads, students and [other] citizens in Dane County should be assured they have a 911 system they can count on." By the end, she may have been the only person in the room who believed this. >More
Falk releases 'fact sheet' on botched Zimmermann 911 call Callback error leads to two weeks of misdirected investigation Kristian Knutsen on Tuesday 05/06/2008 3:56 pm The fallout over the mishandling of a 911 call made by UW student Brittany Zimmermann preceding her homicide on April 2 continues this week, as Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk held a press conference on Tuesday afternoon addressing the call and an internal investigation conducted by the Dane County 911 Center. >More
Enthusiastic crowd watches Public Enemies production in Madison Fans go crazy for Christian Bale, not to mention friends and family in shoot Erica Pelzek on Tuesday 05/06/2008 12:19 pm, (5) Recommendations As the Public Enemies production took over the Capitol Square on Monday, crowds gathered along the sidewalks and peripheries of the set to watch the spectacle. As the morning progressed, my fellow onlookers' morning coffee kicked in and their hunger for celebrity sightings intensified. Though many in the crowd hoped for a peek at Christian Bale or Billy Crudup, others sat patiently looking for their loved ones in the swarm of cast and crew members. >More
Encore Studio's Lost Track puts bipolar disorder in a new light Andrea Harris on Tuesday 05/06/2008 11:08 am, (2) Recommendations Encore Studio's mission statement promises to "communicate, through the performing arts, a challenging and authentic message about disability and culture." In Lost Track, which addresses bipolar disorder, the company lives up to this claim in every detail. The cast is diverse. The audience was diverse. And KelsyAnne Schoenhaar and Wendy Prosise's smart, sensitive and nuanced writing cultivates greater understanding of bipolarity and, perhaps more importantly, of society's reactions to it. >More
Win tickets to Blind Melon at the Majestic on Tuesday 05/06/2008 10:13 am The Isthmus Guest List is back with another round of free tickets to amazing concerts, shows and more fun events around Madison. This week's contests include tickets to: an advance screening of Young @ Heart at Sundance Cinemas; Blind Melon at the Majestic; Martin Short at Overture; and more. >More
Madison Miscellany -- May 6, 2008 A daily survey of Madison blogs, press releases, and other online updates on Tuesday 05/06/2008 12:00 am The 2009 Dane County budget, American TV knuckles under to Milwaukee radio ranters, Ogg Hall lives on, memories of Capitol Square, numerous Public Enemies production photo sets, Chris Farley at the Wisconsin Historical Museum, camping at Buckhorn State Park, and much more can be found in this latest round-up of online social media in Madison and Dane County. >More
Public Enemies shoot at Capitol wraps up at State Street Michael Mann directs Christian Bale and Billy Crudup in second Monday scene Kristian Knutsen on Monday 05/05/2008 8:14 pm, (6) Recommendations Following the morning and early afternoon shoots on the East Washington Avenue steps of the Wisconsin Capitol, the cast and crew of Public Enemies packed up and made their way to the State Street side of the building for the second major sequence on Monday. As was the case with the previous shoot, this scene featured Billy Crudup as FBI director J. Edgar Hoover and Christian Bale as agent Melvin Purvis in Washington, D.C., the latter tasked with leading the fight against the crime wave rolling over the Midwest in heart of the Great Depression. >More
UW Choral Union sets sail on Ralph Vaughan Williams' vast 'Sea Symphony' John W. Barker on Monday 05/05/2008 4:34 pm, (3) Recommendations Beverly Taylor replaced the beloved Robert Fountain as the UW Music School's choral director in 1995. One of her first concerts with the Choral Union was a brave presentation of "A Sea Symphony" by Ralph Vaughan Williams, together with the composer's "Five Variants on 'Dives and Lazarus'" for string orchestra. I attended that, and was mightily impressed by the performance and its enterprise. >More
Christian Bale stars in Public Enemies shoot in downtown Madison Director Michael Mann sets FBI scene on steps of Wisconsin Capitol Kristian Knutsen on Monday 05/05/2008 4:07 pm, (13) Recommendations As the grounds of the Wisconsin Capitol were transformed into a movie set for the production of Public Enemies, crowds gathered around the Square to catch a glimpse of the Hollywood magic on Monday. The best seat in the house, though, at least for a scene that was shot in the morning and early afternoon, might have been from the windows of Capitol offices facing East Washington Avenue, from which observers could look down on the action. >More
Public Enemies shoot at Capitol provides lunchtime show in downtown Madison Kristian Knutsen on Monday 05/05/2008 2:33 pm, (3) Recommendations Downtown workers, residents, and students were treated to a major dose of midday entertainment as the Public Enemies production continued in front of the Capitol on Monday. Gawkers gathered in force at the King Street and North Hamilton entrances to the building, as well as on the exterior sidewalk of Pinckney Street, all straining to catch a glimpse of the scene taking place on top of the Capitol steps leading down to East Washington Avenue. The talk among much of the crowd was the location and appearance of Christian Bale. >More
On the Agenda: Let the Madison city budget battle begin! Vikki Kratz on Monday 05/05/2008 1:31 pm Newly elected Common Council president Tim Bruer calls a meeting to discuss the upcoming (probably dismal) 2008-2009 budget. If you can't make it, don't worry. This is only the beginning of the lengthy budget process, which won't end until the council holds several, dusk-to-dawn meetings in the fall. >More
Mayor Dave's weekly whereabouts: What's a MIP? Jason Joyce on Monday 05/05/2008 11:37 am The MIP, started by Mayor Dave with UW Prof. Joel Rogers in 2005, is set to hold its annual meeting here in Madison at the end of July. In keeping with previous MIP meetings, the agenda includes four "big" topics: Transportation Choices, Community Supported Agriculture, Inclusive Neighborhoods and Federal Funding Opportunities. >More
Public Enemies with Christian Bale begins filming outside Wisconsin Capitol in Madison Kristian Knutsen on Monday 05/05/2008 10:51 am, (4) Recommendations The epic tour of Wisconsin that is Public Enemies finally made its debut in Madison over the weekend. While an overnight shoot running from Friday evening until Saturday morning was sequestered inside the Capitol, the production made its way outside to the Square on Monday morning. Dozens of crew members, extras, vintage autos, and as the word on the street goes, Christian Bale, are present for a shoot that centers on the East Washington Avenue steps of the Capitol building. >More
The Week: May 5-8, 2008 on Monday 05/05/2008 9:28 am Warm weather might finally be here to stay, as May gets rolling this week. The fun around town includes: music by Dave Barnes, Dead Meadow, Hard Lessons, Jeffrey Siegel, Tegan and Sara, Woven Harmony Ben Kenney & DJ Kilmore, Tantric, and Jim White; book readings by Lisa See and Judy Norsigian, and a look at the distant past in Walking with Dinosaurs: The Live Experience. >More
Blaska's Blog: Calling all chickens David Blaska on Monday 05/05/2008 9:16 am County Executive Kathleen Falk is now playing the blame game, suggesting that if only she had more taxes on cell and landline telephone users this might never have happened. But she always seems to have money to purchase more conservation acreage. >More
Madison Miscellany -- May 5, 2008 A daily survey of Madison blogs, press releases, and other online updates on Monday 05/05/2008 12:00 am Public Enemies comes to the Capitol Square, Dane County and the MPD squabble over the Zimmermann 911 call, weekend crime reports, lamenting the decline of the Mifflin Street Block Party, weekend live music pics, Louisianne's, Etc., UW athletics one step from winning another Border Battle, and much more can be found in this latest round-up of online social media in Madison and Dane County. >More
MadTracks -- 'Captain America' by Tangy Rich Albertoni on Sunday 05/04/2008 1:30 pm, (4) Recommendations I could be completely wrong on this, but I have to believe that at least one of the members of Tangy owned a copy of Boston's self-titled debut album back in 1976 -- yes, the one with the flashy UFO on the cover. Somewhere in the tender teen brains of Ken LaBarre or Michael Patrick, I'm thinking "More than a Feeling" and "Peace of Mind" made an indelible mark. >More
Brittany Zimmermann remembered at Mifflin Street Block Party Crowds and arrests down from last year at end-of-semester festival Erica Pelzek on Sunday 05/04/2008 11:20 am, (2) Recommendations As Madison recovers from its latest shock, the murder of University of Wisconsin-Madison junior Brittany Zimmermann, students, locals and out-of-towners were tentatively festive at this year's Mifflin Street Block Party on Saturday. Joviality and cooperation, among drunkenness, colored the fortieth annual gathering that originally intended to protest the Vietnam War. Fewer than 10,000 people attended this year's party, according to Madison Police Department Public Information Officer Joel DeSpain -- down from 2007. >More
Madison Miscellany -- May 4, 2008 A daily survey of Madison blogs, press releases, and other online updates on Sunday 05/04/2008 12:00 am Mifflin Street Block Party policing complaints, UW prof James Thomson named to TIME 100, Kathleen Edwards at the Majestic, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Parman's Service Station, another big new Wisco men's hoops recruit, and much more can be found in this latest round-up of online social media in Madison and Dane County. >More
"The Department is totally committed to solving this homicide for various obvious reasons to include helping to obtain closure for the family and friends of Joel Marino and also to take a dangerous person off the streets in our community" MPD
"Bridging theory, reality of high-stakes corporate finance" with UW business school professor Jim Seward The Wisconsin Idea
"In an attempt to deceive the Woodman's employees, supervisors and managers are pressuring and lying to workers on the clock in order to file another anti-union petition"ULN
Listen to The Blind Boys of Alabama perform at the Oscar Mayer Theatre in 2003 John Benninghouse
Seeking suspect in the armed robbery of an East Washington Avenue gas station on Friday afternoon MPD
An interview with Madison distance runner and marathon winner Joe Kurian Shelby Anderson
Wisconsin men's tennis sophomore reports from the first day of the 2008 NCAA Men's Championships in Los Angeles Michael Muskievicz @ UW Ath. Dept.
"The 33rd-ranked University of Wisconsin men's tennis team will open play in the 2008 NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championships against No. 32 Washington on Saturday morning" UW Ath. Dept.
"Family and friends of 46-year-old Marlene Manning are concerned about her welfare" MPD
Seeking three suspects in the armed robbery of a Bank Mutual on the southwest side on Friday morning MPD
Two men arrested at gunpoint early Friday morning after the armed robbery of an east side PDQ and attempted armed robbery of a motel MPD
"Every new day seems to bring further news of deeper problems and outrages regarding the Brittany Zimmermann case and the overall ability of emergency and police services to do their jobs well" Emily Mills
"I am so furious about this whole Brittany Zimmermann/911 debacle that my head is about to explode" "Kate and Gracie"
View photos of Jim White and Vid Libert playing on Thursday at the Orpheum Stage Door "Cheese"
"Jim White graced the Orpheum Stage Door theater last evening with his twist on Americana through stories and of course music" Daniel Brielmaier @ MoB
View photos of Tangy playing a CD release party along with The Arge on Tuesday at the High Noon Saloon "Cheese"
View photos of Dead Meadow and Dark Fog playing on Monday at the High Noon Saloon fourth anniversary party "Cheese"
View photos of The Classic Tawnies playing on Monday at the Crystal Corner Bar Kiki Schueler
"Lucy Mathiak's recent comments regarding the lack of substantive local media education coverage inspired a Mitch Henck discussion" Jim Zellmer @ SIS
An interview with Ark Improvisational Theatre member Jodi Cohen about the early comedic efforts by Chris Farley in Madison Brennan Nardi @ Mad. Mag.
"Why does WARF -- the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery -- want the CDA to give them $300,000 for their $180M bond project? " Brenda Konkel
View photos of Dietrich Gosser with Dan Kuemmel and Horse in Motion playing at the Corral Room last weekend Kiki Schueler
View photos of Jeffrey Foucault and Kristin Mooney with Eric Heywood playing at Cafe Carpe in Fort Atkinson last weekend Kiki Schueler
"I really want to have confidence in the Madison police department, but at this moment, I really just have a sinking feeling instead" Lukas Diaz
"Dane County needs the establishment of a paid citizens' committee composed of broad communities of interests, devoid of elected officials, and certainly free of civil servants" to review the 911 center Michael Leon
Watch Owen perform "The Ghost of What Should Have Been" at Club 770 last weekend Stacey Lansing
Madison arrested for scamming prescription drugs from the west side Oakwood Village retirement home in early March MPD
"The Wisconsin women's tennis team concluded the season by honoring its two seniors and handing out team awards last Friday night" UW Ath. Dept.
"I was pleasantly surprised by all of the great green products that were showcased" at the Going Green Expo Shayna Miller @ Mad. Mag.
Photographer and artist Angela Richardson discusses her Project 365 on Flickr Katie Vaughn @ Mad. Mag.
"Three opportunities are available for citizens to learn about and provide input to the newly drafted plan for Dane County Shoreland and Riparian Management" Dane County
"EMRs stimulate interest in personal health records" Wis. Tech. Net.
Reading The Book of Joe by Jonathan Tropper MADreads
The transcript from the Thursday night edition of On the Record with Greta Van Susteren and Jason Shepard on the Zimmermann 911 call FOX News
"If two need a crated 'zone on the side of State Street, then drop 15 bucks at the Lovshack" Eating in Madison A to Z
Looking back at an automobile baby bottle warmer lined with asbestos made by the Hankscraft Company of Reedsburg in the 1950s Wis. His. Soc.
"Invitrogen, WARF sign license agreement for human embryonic stem cells" UW Comm.
"WARF licenses influenza vaccine technology to FluGen" UW Comm.
"Stiffer penalties are a good idea and should be the first option on the table" for OWI offenders in Wisconsin John Benninghouse
"The Madison police have given the public very little reason to believe any of those three murders cases will ever be solved, and it leads me to believe the investigators are just incompetent" Brett Farrey
"A strange case: The Zimmermann 911 call and the stories told afterwards" Emily Mills @ Dane101
Seeking suspect in a Wednesday evening child enticement on the north side MPD
Watch Headlights play "Some Racing, Some Stopping" in an early April show at the High Noon Saloon Aaron Veenstra
"After selling the first company he founded for more than $1 million, UW-Madison engineering alum Chad Sorenson wasn't sure what to do next" UW Comm.
"Amid the discordant political backdrop, recriminations abound about whether the murder of a 21-year-old UW-Madison woman could have been prevented" Michael Leon
View photos of Ra Ra Riot, The Little Ones, and Hey Champ playing at the Annex on Sunday "Cheese"
View photos of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Duke Spirit playing at the High Noon Saloon on Saturday "Cheese"
Seeking suspect in early Thursday morning mugging near Schenk's Corners MPD
Two teenaged suspects from Cottage Grove arrested on Wednesday night after being seen holding a shotgun and vandalizing a street sign on Allied Drive MPD
"Several callers reported numerous shots fired" in the south side Bram's Addition neighborhood on Wednesday night MPD
View photos of six tasty dishes from Restaurant Muramoto on King Street "LoLo"
"While others are waiting for their chance to get a glimpse of Johnny Depp in the movie Public Enemies, several locals are anxiously waiting for a chance to be part of the movie"Beaver Dam Daily Citizen
"Though things got off to a late start, the May 2, 2008 show featuring Rooney, Locksley, and The Bridges at Madison's The Annex was worth the wait" Stacey Lansing
"Madison officials brag about how they've stonewalled the media" on the Zimmermann 911 scandal Bruce J. Redenz
"Did Madison's emergency responders develop clairvoyance so as to determine that no response was needed to some calls?" Michael DiGaudio
"Three years ago, The Badger Herald reported that the city of Madison would benefit from Dane County's newly enhanced 911 system, which would allow the dispatch center to trace cell phone callers to their exact location" Michael Dang
"I don't say this often, but there are a few places I will never dine at again, and Frida has made the list" "Mrs. Brunch"
Rabbi Bradley Hirschfield discussed religious fanaticism at annual conference organized by the Lubar Institute for the Study of Abrahamic Religions at the UW Phil Haslanger @ TCT
"Canadian indie pop group Tegan and Sara played to a boisterous, sold-out crowd at the Barrymore on Tuesday night" Emily Mills @ Dane101
The Great Madison Food Tour: Capitol Square Linda Falkenstein on Tuesday 04/29/2008 1:30 pm, (5) Recommendations I started thinking about what kind of easily walkable food tour we could rig up in downtown Madison. Not because I want to lead a food tour -- far from it -- but because this is apparently the kind of thing I start dreaming up when stopped for a long freight train on East Wash. And who knows -- maybe it's an activity conventioneers at Monona Terrace would love to take part in on a free morning. >MoreBeer Here -- Amnesia Baltic Porter from the Grumpy Troll Robin Shepard on Wednesday 04/23/2008 5:19 pm, (7) Recommendations Brewmaster Mark Duchow of The Grumpy Troll in Mount Horeb keeps racking up the awards for impressive beers. The latest: a gold medal in the World Beer Cup for his Baltic porter. Amnesia Baltic Porter was the top pick in its style category. The World Beer Cup, which the industry likes to call the Olympics of beer, featured more than 2800 beers from 58 counties in this year's competition. Earning a gold medal allows the brewer to claim "Best in the World" for that style. >More
Nueva kids music: an interview with Dan Zanes Michael Popke on Wednesday 04/30/2008 12:38 pm Not enough people sing and dance just for the heck of it anymore. So says Dan Zanes, founder of '80s roots-rockers The Del Fuegos and now leader of an eclectic, multicultural collective that makes what he calls "all-ages music." Fun, danceable, often educational and occasionally political, the songs of Dan Zanes and Friends provide "a shared experience" between children and parents, says Zanes, 46, who will bring his musical pals to the Overture Center on May 2 for a family pajama party. >MoreTrademark tiff: The Outer Toons drop anvil on The OuttaToons Orlando cartoon cover band demands Madison tunesters to drop their name Kristian Knutsen on Tuesday 04/29/2008 5:37 pm, (1) Comment, (14) Recommendations Cartoon characters looking to kill one another have vast animated arsenals at their disposal, but none of their weapons have as much firepower as a claim of trademark infringement. That's a hit the Madison cartoon cover band The OuttaToons got last week in the form of a certified letter from an Orlando law firm demanding the group drop its name. The claim? That it infringes upon the trademark rights of The Outer Toons, a cartoon cover band based in the Florida city that's ground zero for American animated pop culture. >More
Comp Time with Dave St. Amant Cab driver explains why he think he's better than Tammy Baldwin Nathan J. Comp on Wednesday 04/30/2008 11:08 am, (2) Recommendations Dave St. Amant wants to fix America. For him, that begins by supplanting five-term Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin with himself. Last month, the 51-year-old cab driver and freelance computer repairman announced his plan to run as a Democrat for Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District seat, which Baldwin has held since 1998. >MoreOn the Agenda: Madison makes haste to reduce waste City is poised to take recycling one step further Vikki Kratz on Monday 04/28/2008 1:12 pm, (1) Recommendation When I lived in San Francisco, I had a large bin that was divided in half: one side for mixed recycling, the other for compost. I also had a small garbage can, which I never filled up. Most of the household "waste" went into one bin compartment or the other. Then I moved to Madison, where people complained vigorously when Mayor Dave Cieslewicz went to a bin system to automate pickup of recyclables and later garbage. Cieslewicz is now promoting another initiative, for which he'll probably also be lambasted. >More
Blaska's Blog: What Obama has in common with Henry II David Blaska on Wednesday 04/30/2008 10:48 am I got to think Barack Obama is checking out a few books, books like Murder in the Cathedral, and Death Comes for the Archbishop. Perhaps he is repeating Henry II's lament, "Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?" >MoreBlaska's Blog: Bumbots and Bill Cosby David Blaska on Tuesday 04/29/2008 9:30 am, (2) Comments, (2) Recommendations Barkeep Rufus Terrill had enough of drug use, panhandling, and other anti-social behavior in his Atlanta neighborhood. So he put together what is basically a meat smoker mounted onto a three-wheeled scooter. Voila: the Bumbot! The gizmo allows Terrill to keep his neighborhood tidy via remote control with such armaments as a spotlight, a water hose and a loudspeaker. >More
Ed Grunewald kept it real with Club 5 Kenneth Burns on Tuesday 04/29/2008 11:41 am, (2) Recommendations It's a funny thing about Madison's gay nightlife. In a city touted as lavishly gay-friendly, there are relatively few gay bars. That was especially true before Woof's opened a few months ago. What with the closing in recent years of downtown's Rainbow Room and the east-side queer redoubts Ray's and Ce's, Madison was down to just two gay venues: the Shamrock, which is Irish-themed -- appealing in a gay bar, if unusual -- and Club 5. >MoreMadison Mallards preview 2008 roster, ballpark improvements A video scoreboard, burger stand and solid crew of freshmen highlight coming season Jason Joyce on Friday 04/25/2008 11:21 am, (5) Recommendations Proving that there ain’t no party like a Madison Mallards party, dozens of local baseball fans filed into the downtown Great Dane Thursday night to eat bratwurst, quaff beers and get a glimpse of what’s in store for the 2008 season from the team’s management. >More
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PUBLIC ENEMIES
Public Enemies shoot scheduled for Capitol Square in downtown Madison Michael Mann film hits Capitol grounds on Monday Kristian Knutsen on Wednesday 04/30/2008 9:13 pm, (4) Recommendations Preparations for the upcoming Public Enemies shoots at the Wisconsin Capitol were already underway on Wednesday evening as a police officer placed orange cones to block off parking spaces on the East Washington and Wisconsin Avenue driveways to the building. The production kicks off on Friday, May 2, and fter breaking for the weekend, the cameras are set to return on Monday, May 5 for shoots outside of the building along the sidewalks and steps facing State Street, Wisconsin Avenue, and East Washington Avenue. >MoreOn the set of Public Enemies with Michael Mann and Johnny Depp in Oshkosh Rod Melotte on Monday 04/28/2008 2:00 pm, (41) Recommendations Nearly two weeks ago, I was sitting inside the New Moon Café in Oshkosh waiting for a call to jump in an antique car and get to work on the set of Public Enemies. This historical gangster epic directed by Michael Mann and starring Johnny Depp as the infamous bank-robber John Dillinger was in the midst of a week-long shoot in the small Fox Valley city, the latest stop by the Universal Pictures production at numerous locations around the Badger State. There I witnessed a rookie extra -- in the opportunity of a lifetime -- display her dedication to getting it right. >More
