Blood Diamonds

It's a creepy feeling, knowing these masked men have cased you for weeks, studying your every move. Leon Rozio had crossed paths with their kind before — highly organized South American theft gangs that employ sophisticated surveillance and commando-style assault tactics.

Rozio, age 64, is one of a dying breed of independent jewel dealers, and part of his work involves ferrying tiny amounts of precious gems. A typical load easily runs into the six figures. This time South American jewel thieves had followed him from Miami, along the toll roads and through the SunPass... full story >>

Enter Stage Right

Scene 1: Enter the prince

It's the first hour of the first day of rehearsal for Dallas Theater Center's first production of its 50th season. The show is The Who's Tommy, the sprawling rock musical based on a 1969 concept album about a "deaf, dumb and blind kid" cured by spiritual enlightenment. Opening September 2, it is the first show directed here by Kevin Moriarty, who is not quite a year into his job as DTC's artistic director, only the fifth in its history.

This meet-and-greet on an early August afternoon is in DTC's Kalita Humphreys Theater, the 491-seat house... full story >>

Barack Obama gives principal Michael Johnston extra credit

At 3:10 p.m. on May 28 — dismissal time on the last day of school at Mapleton Expeditionary School of the Arts in Thornton — 500 students in the seventh through eleventh grades gave a final cheer that echoed through the gymnasium. "Have a great summer!" a teacher shouted, giving the kids their cue to file out.

"No! No! You can't go!" principal Mike Johnston yelled as he came flying down the bleachers. "I've got another announcement!" Teachers who'd already suspected Johnston was stalling were now sure of it.

A few minutes later, the entire staff was gathered... full story >>

The Passion of Victoria Osteen

Every little Catholic boy and girl knows about the Stations of the Cross. (Maybe other religions, too; we can't speak for them).

For one glorious spring day, students get out of class to watch as priests mumble their way around the church. Legend has it the collars are talking about the various tortures and annoyances Jesus went through on his way to being crucified, but usually there's too much whispering and strenuous attempts to withhold laughter amongst the young'uns to hear much of what's going on.

The go-getters at Houston's massive Lakewood Church are about as far... full story >>

With the end of Bodies Revealed, Kansas City’s troubled Union Station faces another uncertain future

It's still spring, and tickets are selling strong for the Bodies Revealed exhibit in the bowels of Union Station.

On this late-April Saturday, the parents of two children — one boy and one girl — are picking up their exhibit tickets at the box office. Next to them, a woman paces in front of the ticket windows; some in her group weren't able to make it, and she's giving away a free pair.

The family enters the exhibit, seeing for themselves the plasticized corpses flaunted for months on banners and billboards and in newspaper ads. They seem as interested and... full story >>

A field guide to the Republican National Convention

After almost two years of anticipatory civic brouhaha and financial hand-wringing, the Republican National Convention is finally upon us. As you read this, more than 100,000 politicos, protesters, prostitutes, journalists, and other unsavory characters are beginning to descend upon the Twin Cities. Portions of downtown St. Paul streets have been shut off to traffic, transforming the usually fallow district into a carnival-like island of media-contrived madness and rank political posturing.

Morbid curiosity may compel some of you to visit Ground Zero and soak it all in. We don't... full story >>

Joe Arpaio’s men fail to justify criminally charging New Times reporter Ray Stern in a public records dispute

When I read our lawyer's interviews with the deputies in Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's most notorious division, I had one question: Who staged this piece of theater?

You too can read, for the first time, excerpts of deposition statements from Arpaio's leaders and foot soldiers. The chiefs and deputies drift between truculence, amnesia, and chivalry. The dialogue is worthy of David Mamet.

But that's just my take (and I have an obvious conflict of interest). You can decide for yourself whether the sheriff's men sound scripted.

The deputies from the Selective... full story >>

Going for Gold

A quick glance through a propped-open door at Kezar Pavilion reveals a dozen or so women of Amazonian proportions outfitted in snazzy black uniforms anticipating a serve. The red and black logos emblazoned upon the players' backs indicate the group is the Academy of Art University's volleyball team — that, in addition to the ubiquitous Academy of Art bus idling out on Stanyan.

Given the school's rapacious appetite for real estate and aforementioned bus fleet, just about the only place in San Francisco you might be surprised to see an Academy of Art insignia would be on a... full story >>

Kevin Slaten's Head Is About to Explode: The exiled sports-talk radio ranter needs to get some things off his chest

It sounds like Kevin Slaten's head is about to explode.

"If the story goes like that, there'll be a lawsuit against you and the RFT, and when I get back on the air I'm going to destroy you," the exiled sports-talk radio host's voice seethes from the telephone. "I'm telling you right now, I'm coming after you with guns blazing.

"I'm telling you. I'm not threatening you. I'm promising you. You go ahead and write bullshit about me, and you better not have one skeleton in your closet. I'll go back and find every guy in your life you've ever dated and I'll destroy you with... full story >>