Mike Webb's Dead

Michael Hood, one of our area's saltiest journalists and a onetime Weekly contributor, has confirmed on his blog that former KIRO-710 radio personality Mike Webb's dead body was the one found decomposing in his Queen Anne rental home the other day. (UPDATE: King County officials say Webb was murdered with a blunt instrument.) Webb had faced tumult in his personal life since he was canned in the wake of being charged with insurance fraud at the outset of 2005, a plight chronicled masterfully in the Weekly's pages by ex-contributor Geov Parrish.

In other death-related news, furniture baron, Norwegian immigrant, Ingraham High grad and U.S. Army veteran (thank you, Seattle Times obit page) Inge Skarbo passed away last week at the age of 60 due to complications from multiple sclerosis. Although I didn't know Mr. Skarbo well, I used to produce a nonprofit newsletter with his wife, Kathi, in the study of their Lake Burien home in the late Nineties. She was a very sweet, down-to-earth woman who would often flip for sandwiches at a deli in downtown Burien (the name escapes me) when we needed a break (I always fetched, in an act of non-monetary reciprocation). Inge was wheelchair-bound, so the Skarbo home had to be retrofitted to suit his needs — and Kathi and her kids always seemed to assist him without grousing one bit. I always admired this family, and my heart goes out to them as they prepare to memorialize their industrious patriarch. Tilt your head skyward toward Inge next time you purchase a coffee table, okay?

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Trouble at SIFF?

(Tucker on opening night; photo by Michelle Moore, courtesy of SIFF)

Gary, was it something we said? Or wrote? A surprising e-mail went out to Seattle media yesterday, announcing that SIFF PR maestro Gary Tucker, long the fest's best and funniest public face, is departing. On his own terms, mind you. He wrote the press release, pimping Cinema Seattle's upcoming summer events like a good soldier to the end, even as he dropped this grenade:

This year’s festival did not quite reach the goals we’d been aiming for, so with a potential capital campaign looming in our future, a few sacrifices have to be made in order to end the year in the black."

The same e-mail states without bitterness that his was to be a new, year-round position for the non-profit Cinema Seattle, which has recently increased its scope with the SIFF Cinema at McCaw Hall and a new series of bookings there beyond the festival (which concluded June 17). And I would bet that Gary will be back for SIFF '08 on a contract basis, delivering his witty annual pre-show remarks at the gala opening night feature.

Still, what were the financial goals, and how disappointing were festival revenues such as to force the staffing cuts? A prior press release from SIFF said the fest "saw record-breaking attendance" and "is projecting a 6% increase in overall box office sales." So that wasn't enough? Or those projections were wrong? Or costs were too high? Too many films were booked? Or the sponsors didn't come through? (For the record, SW is a minor sponsor of SIFF.)

So many questions. To which I'll add another: Who'll answer the phone at SIFF now that Gary's gone? More details—and I hope a few answers—to follow soon. 

Topics: Film

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No Welcome to the Marriott

Which is worse for Pioneer Square: a slightly taller hotel or another damn office building? That’s still an open question following yesterday’s inconclusive city council meeting, which was to consider a zoning exemption for extra floors to be added to the historic 103-year-old Alaska Building. Though the building’s owner is intent on all (conversion to a 250-room Marriott hotel) or nothing (the same dingy 15-story office tower), council member Nick Licata succeeded in adding language to the proposed zoning amendment that would deny the extra floors to any purpose but housing.

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Topics: Real Estate

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School Race Plan Rejected

In what is becoming an almost predictable 5-4 vote on politicized legal issues, the U.S. Supreme Court today rejected the Seattle School District plan that in part uses race to decide which public school a student can attend. Though the district had stopped using the "open choice" assignment plan, it had hoped to reintroduce it.

Under open choice, race was sometimes used as a tiebreaker (to determine which students could attend preferred schools) when the schools were more than 65 percent white or 75 percent minority. In 2000-01 for example, race was factored into 300 of 3,000 9th grade assignments. 

The court also turned down a similar plan used in the Louisville, Ky. District, and the ruling is expected to affect hundreds of U.S. districts that diversify schools by regulating their blance based on skin color of students - sometimes preventing students from attending schools in their own neighborhoods. Reports the Associated Press:

The court split, 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts announcing the court's judgment. Justice Stephen Breyer wrote a dissent that was joined by the court's other three liberals.

Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote a concurring opinion, the AP reports, in which he said race may be a component of school district plans designed to achieve diversity. While he agreed with Roberts that the Seattle and Louisville methods went too far for balance, he said that - to the extent that Roberts' opinion could be interpreted as foreclosing the use of race in any circumstance - "I disagree with that reasoning."

Bloomberg News noted that Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Breyer dissented. Stevens pointed to what he called the cruel irony of Roberts's invocation of the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education school desegregation decision.

It is my firm conviction that no member of the court I joined in 1975 would have agreed with today's decision," Stevens wrote.

The Bush administration opposed the Seattle and Louisville plans, siding with parents who sued after their children couldn't enroll at preferred schools.

The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for four of the court's justices.

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Are Critics Necessary?

Okay, we probably slept through the SIFF panel discussion that featured our esteemed former colleague, Tim Appelo. We're lucky to have the guy still contributing freelance stage reviews to SW, and we count him as a friend. The bone we pick is with his buddy Anne Thompson, with whom he's done a lot of mutual logrolling back during her days at The Hollywood Reporter. Now she's moved to Variety, where she devotes this week's column to a pair of SIFF panels. (Sorry no link; Variety is a pay site.) Whose invited participants included—yes, you guessed it—herself and Appelo, along with David Ansen (Newsweek), Jon Powers (Vogue), and some honcho from Amazon. Synergy! Thompson explains, "Appelo left his critic post at the Seattle Weekly for a more remunerative job as content editor at Amazon Unbox; he writes a blog that steers Amazon readers to his fave raves." Because this is where the movies are going, according to Thompson: Fiercely independent and trustworthy bloggers, untainted by commerce or the MSM, help sell digital content for friendly little mom-and-pops like Amazon; and in this way, they're now rivaling the importance of establishment film critics like Roger Ebert. Except when they don't, also according to Thompson. Confused? So am I.

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Topics: Film

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If I told you I wasn't Gary Busey, you wouldn't have wanted to go out with me

It's not every day that our inbox is graced with a tale of deception, seduction and starfuckery involving one of Hollywood's great hellraisers, Gary Busey. But then, not every day is like today. The sun's shining, the Red Sox are in town, and Antonia Greco granted us permission to print the following tale on this here blog. Her dalliance with the wannabe Busey, in Greco's words, went as follows:

Bird season may be over; but look out, ladies, because douchebag season is in full bloom! Next time you are out in Seattle, pay attention because you never know just who you may run into. It very well could be famous actor Gary Busey! Or could it be his not-so-famous but equally-as-manic impersonator?

For those of you who aren't familiar with Gary Busey, go to Blockbuster and rent "The Buddy Holly Story," "Under Seige," or even "Point Break". Watch closely, though. The golden blonde hair. The unmistakable chiclet sized teeth. It would hardly be possible to confuse him with someone else. Or would it be?

This past weekend as my friends Kevin, Jessica and I sat down in a booth at a trendy Belltown hot spot, we couldn't help but stare at a particular gentleman at the bar.

Kevin :"He looks like he's a sailor who just got off a boat in Costa Rica".
Jessica: "I think he looks like a used car salesman".

There was only one way to find out. "Excuse me, sir, my friends and I are a wee bit curious as to what your story is. By any chance are you a sailor or a car salesman?"

He chuckled. "Sailor or car salesman, huh? Actually, I am into film. Just tell your friends, ‘Busey'".

I walked back to the booth in partial confusion to settle the debate. "He says his name is ‘Busey' and he's into film".

Jessica: "Busey? As in the actor Gary Busey!" 

As I bellied back up to the bar, I ordered our new famous friend a shot of Jameson and invited him to sit with us. He told us about his private island, his multiple homes and his random life experiences. How cool were we? We were hanging out with Gary Busey!

As the evening winded down, Jessica and I wrote down our numbers to give to this Hollywood relic and we gloated our way down 1st avenue. Later the next day, my phone began to ring and although I didn't recognize the number, I answered it. The voice staggered slightly on the other end, "Hi there, we were briefly acquainted last night and.." [I interrupt] "Gary?!?!" He just laughed. "Oh, so you do remember me?"

Later on that evening, Gary wanted to meet up. He invited me to a very high end Seattle lounge. From the second we walked in the door, we were shuffled along and received VIP treatment from our server. We chatted for a while, and by the time it was closing time, it was also time to pay the bill. As Gary reached in his pocket, he pulled out a credit card and smacked it on the table. I peered at the name on the card. The card definitely did not say "Gary Busey."

"Can I see your driver's license?" He looked at me a bit surprised. "Why do you want to see it?" he quipped as he reached into his pocket and surrendered it to me.

[furious] "Joe Blow? <real name omitted> You're not Gary Busey! You're a poser!"

"Well, if I told you I wasn't Gary Busey, you wouldn't have wanted to go out with me," he replied.

Shocked and appalled, I got up and walked out of the room. "I guess this means I probably won't see you again?" he yelled as I made my exit.

At least the sociopath was right about one thing.

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Project Pilot Gives Pilots a Face-Lift

The Cessna at Galvin Flying Center.
Photo by Sean Gumm.

Becoming a licensed pilot is getting easier, cheaper, younger, and prettier, at least that’s what Project Pilot wants you to think. The new flight training initiative of the non-profit Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association is changing the face of flying from that of a good old boys club to something accessible, almost trendy. They were even willing to prove it, by offering any idiot, I mean reporter, a free introductory flying lesson.

Down at good old Boeing Field, I walked into Galvin Flying Service yesterday afternoon, and was met with the new face of flying, well one at least. Amongst the throng of older white-haired, “I fly to my cabin in the San Juans” type of men, stood my instructor, Katie Crown, 23, pretty, young, and about to teach me all I needed to know about planes and flying to put me in control of an airplane.

Showing me around the flight school she explained that she doesn’t get to do a whole lot of these introductory flights, and when she does they are usually for guys whose “girlfriends or wives thought this was the coolest present they could think to give them.” Otherwise Crown spends her time teaching full-time students, ones on their way to becoming pilots. She says the people coming through are just what you would expect, “young, pre-30’s training for a career, or the post-40’s type who are set in life and just want to get a plane.” Project Pilot advertises flying as the next boating, or motorcycling, and Crown agrees on some points, describing some pilots and their planes as just another example of “men and their toys.” Crown is obviously used to being the standout girl in her field, saying, (as many women who break into typically male fields), “I don’t even notice really, all the guys here are incredibly nice, and treat me like one of them.”

Project Pilot is trying to get more people like Katie Crown into the business of flying by offering introductory lessons like the one I took at extremely low prices, anywhere from $49-89 as opposed to the $100-200 it usually costs. Crown showed me the plane, we did the maintenance checks, I sumped (that’s an airplane term, probably the only one I picked up all day) the fuel to make sure we had enough and that nothing strange had gotten in the tanks, and that everything on the plane was working. Finally, we climbed into the little 4-seater Cessna, hit the runway, and I took off. Crown let me keep the controls almost the entire hour-long flight, and it really was easy, I can barely ride a bike, but I could totally fly a plane.

Seeing Snoqualmie Falls and the Seattle skyline from the sky would totally be worth what that intro lesson normally costs anyway, and if you can afford the approximately $12,000 price tag for the license plus $130-170 an hour to rent a plane, I say go for it. Crown sat down to discuss licensing procedures and costs afterwards, pointing out the numerous dollar signs on the page she says, “it’s not cheap…it’s not an investment, it’s a deposit, but for people who have the ability to make it a hobby, they’ll find immense freedom.”

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Searching For T.J.'s Bar

Screen capture "borrowed" from imdb.com. 

 What's in a name? Well, it's enough to spur an idea to blog about a movie that came out when I was three. You remember An Officer and a Gentleman? Of course you do. You're singing "Up Where We Belong" right now. Don't lie, it only makes it worse.

The question of the day is this: Is T.J.'s Bar, as seen in An Officer and a Gentleman, a real bar? To answer this, a bit of AOAAG (try saying that, it's fun) history is in order.

The first thing to know is that they couldn't shoot the film in Pensacola, Fla., where the story is properly set. The Navy wouldn't let the production crew on the base, so another location had to besought out. Say hello to Port Townsend. A fitting substitute, Port Townsend offered naval base access, beach-front properties, and enough locals to fill the roles of extras.

But does it have a bar called T.J.'s? In the category "Port Townsend bars used in movies" show me T.J.'s!

X 

Sorry. T.J.'s bar is based on a now closed Pensacola bar called Trader John's. Frequented by officer's candidates, the defunct bar was the site of many encounters between "ice cream suits" and "Debs," just like in the movie. Fret not my friends. Those bar scenes had to be filmed somewhere, right?

For this information, we turn to an inside source. Someone who was in the movie! Think back to the officer's ball (no, not the one of the naked Richard Gere, you perv) scene. See that band? All local guys, one of whom is the father of SW's very own Aja Pecknold. Greg was the band leader in the scene, and I'm told is a dead ringer for Ralph Lauren.

"Paramount (the studio that produced AOAAG) called the musician's union and asked if they could put some guys together," Greg says. "We thought thought they wanted a good band, but it turned out they wanted a cheesy band. They had us play 'Tie a Yellow Ribbon Around the Old Oak Tree' and "Feelings,' which is the stereotype for cheesy songs. It was a bunch of good players sounding bad. We did our best."

And as for the bar...

"There were two bars in the movie," Greg says. "The one where the fight happened and the other one. The bar where they shot the fight was called the Town Tavern (now the Water St. Brew Pub) and they did that scene right in front of it. The other place, they built on a set somewhere."

There you have it. Not only is the bar T.J.'s is based on closed establishment, but T.J.'s in the movie was a set. For everyone listening to Dire Straits "Tunnel of Love" right now, my apologies.

If you still want to get close to An Officer and a Gentleman, you can always visit the Tides Inn. There's a plaque on the door of the room where Richard Gere and Debra Winger made sweet love. Who knows, maybe it's even the same bed.

Topics: Film

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Bridge Crashers

The P.I. reports today that Governore Gregoire is dropping a half-mil on a pair of Colorado-based mediators who are supposed to help warring factions come to some sort of agreement on how to expand and revamp the Evergreen Point Bridge. Their names? Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, who successfully negotiated a divorce settlement between Dwight Yoakam and Rebecca De Mornay in Wedding Crashers, Kevin MacDonald's Oscar-nominated 2005 documentary about marriage in America. But here's what's got me perplexed: Doesn't getting competing interests to arrive at some sort of compromise fall under the purview of some existing government agency or individual bureaucrat? And if this truly is a stalemate, wouldn't it be more efficient for the Governor and her staff to simply assess everyone's best laid plans and go with the one (or a hybrid even) that they feel has the most merit, even if it pisses a few people off? Just asking.

Topics: Politics

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Feel Like You're Digging out of a Hole?

How to break this gently... You live in one— an 8-kilometer hole to be exact. That's how deep the Seattle Basin is, according to Craig Weaver, Pacific Northwest coordinator for the U.S. Geological Survey's national earthquake program. He told city council members this morning that the Seattle Basin is the second deepest hole in North America. The other one, located on the backside of the Sierra Nevada Mountains is about 10 kilometers, he said, adding that the Seattle Basin was created by millions of years of rocks being displaced downward.

Why is it bad to live in (or on top of) a sedimentary hole, you ask?

"Once an earthquake hits the hole it rattles inside," Weaver explained. "It means you get an extra ride." 

The USGS has been hard at work updating local geohazard data. They plan to release a new natural hazards map for Seattle and the surrounding environs later this summer. Here's a preview: they've found a tsunami source in Lake Washington. No lie. A 9- to 11-foot fault break that zags generally east-west through Genesee Park and continues along the bottom of the lake. Another thing to add to the worry list of wary commuters still having nightmares from that WashDOT simulation of an earthquake hitting the 520.

"The 520 bridge can take 12- to 15-foot displacement," Weaver said. "Unfortunately, the scarp out there is bigger. [The transportation department] is aware of that. It's under study."

Good thing they have some time. For you bettin' folk, here's the USGS's round up of regional earthquake probability over the next 50 years:

-A repeat of the Nisqually Earthquake, (February 2001, magnitude 6.8, along the Juan de Fuca plate): 84 percent chance.

-A devastating earthquake of similar magnitude, but shallower, along the Seattle fault, (located west of the city in Elliott Bay): 5 percent chance.

-THE BIG ONE, along the Cascadia Subduction Zone (which stretches from Vancouver Island to Northern California): 15 percent chance. 

Cue Council President Nick Licata: "Excellent presentation. Very informative, and a little scary."

Topics: City of Seattle

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Pride Weekend 2007 notes

Click the photo for a slideshow of Seattle Pride 2007. Photos by Renee McMahon. 

On Saturday, Seattle Metro had assigned one of those long, bendy-straw buses on the #8 route from Queen Anne to Capitol Hill to accommodate extra pride-march revelers, and it was indeed nearly full when it emptied at Broadway just before 11. The outdoor seating at Cafe Septieme, Julia’s, and Broadway Grill was full, though there was plenty of prime spots on the curb in places where spectators in past years had been three or four deep. Straight couples strolled by, holding hands with what seemed to be a faint, self-conscious ostentation. At 11:20, still no sign of the march. Promptly at 20 minutes to noon, the 11 a.m. march launched with the traditional contingent of roaring Dykes on Bikes. It was a day for representing rather than pageantry, organizations and banners rather than flamboyance.

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And Counting

Since January, troops with ties to the state have been dying at a relentless average of more than two or three a week in Iraq. The 23 (!) newest obituaries added to the Facing Our Losses pages brings the 2007 toll to 61 - 208 since the war began. In the five days since that posting, three others have died. It is tragic enough they perished, but doubly so when the body count continues to soar long after the Bush administration's justifications for the war have proved false. Even if the fighting ended today, the toll will long rise on the home front, as experience shows. To that point, the Associated Press has launched a series on the war wounded, how they're coping and whether the government is serving those who served the country. History shows you can count on the U.S. breaking that promise, as the Washington Post's February expose of Walter Reed Army Medical Center shows. Most recent case in point: The psychiatric wards at Seattle and American Lake VA hospitals flunking their May accreditation inspections, which found imminent threats to the lives of mental-health inpatients. One veteran hanged himself in a bathroom. He might have survived a war but not the hospital.

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The Mexican Does Broadway

The New York Times has a glowing Sunday Styles profile of Gustavo Arellano, aka "The Mexican" of "Ask A Mexican" fame. Herein, the Mexican fills us in on his life's aspirations: "Though Mr. Arellano's job description may be professional Mexican, his ambition is decidedly American: he dreams of being the host of a one-hour radio show about 'The Simpsons,' which he cites as a major influence in teaching him how 'to be hilarious and offer substance at the same time.' For now, he has another book due for Scribner that is part memoir, part history of Orange County. With his advance in 'the mid-six figures' for the two-book deal, he bought a 1974 Cadillac Eldorado convertible. But always instructive, he noted that doing so was not necessarily a Mexican thing. 'The Mexican thing would be to buy a humongous truck,' he said. 'That would be Mexican.'"

Topics: Newspapers

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Night and Day

Today, Day Watch, the sequel to the Russian blockbuster Night Watch, begins playing for a week at the Neptune Theater. Having let the film sit with me for a week, I’ve come to the conclusion that it was ridiculous, preposterous and often hard to keep up with. But, it was also quite fun to watch. I’d say that I liked Night Watch more, but Day Watch continues the story better than I would have imagined and the CGI is incredible for a relatively unknown effects house. Also notable are the incredible subtitles. Both Night Watch and Day Watch have the best subtitles I’ve ever seen on film because they are environmental and change with what is happening on screen. For example, a man swings his sword and he cuts through the text. Bottom line: If you liked the first one, check it out. Otherwise don’t bother. Read the full review by Nathan Lee HERE.

Topics: Film

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Hanging With the Fishies is Her Specialty

Stephanie Bower 

One cold November day, in the wee hours of the morning, the aquarium staff and a few lucky onlookers, including Mayor Nickels, stood under the Alaskan Way Viaduct (shut down for this purpose) and watched a giant crane remove the temporary roof off the new part of the aquarium, and lower down a 55,000 lb, 12.5” thick, window sliding into the new Window on Washington Waters exhibit due to open tomorrow.

Today, behind that 40’x 20’ window is 120,000 gallons of bonafide Puget Sound water, and approximately 407 fish (they can’t get an accurate count because they keep eating each other, damn you Mother Nature!). According to Public Relations Director Laura Austin “the tank is supposed to be a slice of Neah Bay…we wanted something that was unique, that was one big window, one big view, that makes you say ‘wow.’” 

The exhibit certainly has that ‘wow’ factor, especially when faced with so much water, fish, and glass looming over you, but wait, there’s more. Imagine taking in this artificially simulated natural oasis with your own two eyes, and suddenly a scuba diver floats by, and a booming voice fills the entire lobby, coming from inside the tank! Three times a day, one of five divers will be on hand for a ten-minute or so “show” and Q & A session that will be conducted through this 12.5” of plexi-glass. There will be another diver on the outside interpreting and convincing the young children in the crowd that this isn’t a space alien, or Darth Vader, and that despite the fact that you can’t see her mouth moving, she is the one speaking.

Andrea DosSantos, the lead diver of her all-female quintet of SCUBA-ers has a B.S. in Biology, but says, “most [divers] probably don’t.” She is visibly excited about the tank as she shows me her specially made mask, complete with microphone and headphones, “It’s a dream come true! I get to dive and talk about fish at the same time!” Andrea and her team were the first people granted access to the tank, even before the fish, and have been in there for the past month, several times a day working on their presentation on marine conservation, although she wishes they had more time. “The AV system only got up and running a week or two ago, there has definitely not been enough practice time, but we’re all getting more comfortable [in the tank].” 

The upcoming summer vacation time means probably no class field trips to the aquarium for the big opening, but DosSantos says it’s not just for kids, “we tried to gear the presentation towards people of all ages, there is some adult humor in there that the kids won’t get.” Not only will the professionally written script (they hired a theater producer) include props, and jokes, but I also got word of dancing, somersaulting, and even got a first-hand preview of DosSantos' one-side conversation with a group of rock fish. While she says they will try to hold each performance off to about ten minutes, the divers are actually breathing surface air and could potentially stay down there forever, “except for bathroom and freezing,” DosSantos adds, “those are our two problems.” Though she says the 51 degree water is manageable due to their full dry suits, and their active routine.

The obvious enthusiasm and “hands-on” approach to learning about marine life that has become synonymous with the Seattle Aquarium for years, is obviously only expanding with their, um, expansion.

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