Features

Spotlight on the District

On a quiet Georgetown morning last week, the block of 35th street between M and Prospect, usually packed with cars, was bare. Two men dismantled the street signs at the bottom of the cobble-stoned hill, apparently impervious to the possible consequences. On the other side of the street, three men huddled in front of the former Dixie Liquor, one relating a story that somehow involved Martin Sheen.

Then Hollywood arrived.

Trucks carrying thousands of dollars of camera, sound and lighting equipment rolled in. A crew of camera men, production assistants, electricians and numerous others swarmed the area. Several Metropolitan Police Department cars and officers stationed themselves at the top of the hill to seal off the block and control the crowd. Then, to the crowd’s delight, George Clooney appeared on the set, sweaty and bearded but instantly recognizable.

By Sam Sweeney November 8, 2007

Leisure

Deadbeats

Girl Talk is coming to Georgetown. No, not female chatter, but the “mash-up” artist the University will host on November 17. Girl Talk intertwines syncopated hip-hop passages and indie-rock morsels... Read more

By Traviss Cassidy November 8, 2007

Voices

Gyrating hunks, not courtside dunks

My friend didn’t have to work the Championship game and managed to obtain two floor seats. The significance of this game was lost on me. I made other plans. Instead of opting to watch ten tall, athletic men compete in a basketball game, we decided to watch 15 tall, athletic men strip, dance and gyrate like helicopter propellers. I picked my friend up from work and we stumbled out of Madison Square Garden and downtown to Club Avalon, home of the USA Hunk-o-Mania Show. (God bless America.)

By Cathy Vargas November 8, 2007

Editorials

Increase financial perks for filmmakers

The lack of sufficient economic incentives makes it financially unfeasible for most productions to film in D.C. for an extended period of time. The District should increase these incentives in order to give the local economy a boost and let lesser-known neighborhoods get their share of screen time.

By the Editorial Board November 8, 2007

Editorials

Keep the District’s gun ban alive

The Supreme Court should take Fenty’s case and uphold the constitutionality of the District’s gun ban.

By the Editorial Board November 8, 2007

Editorials

Don’t show GUSA the clubs’ money

GUSA already has significant control over student activities funding, including the final say, but it should not take over SAC’s job of allocating money among individual clubs.

By the Editorial Board November 8, 2007

Voices

Never stop exploring

The thump of the chopper’s rotors is deep, felt more than heard. I look out the window and see swirls of snow flying away from the chopper’s side, down the 11,000 feet of mountain slope hanging beneath us. In the distance, the Grand Tetons reach up toward the sky. Next to me are my brothers, Cameron and Graylan, and my dad; like me, they’re helmeted, goggled and gloved, boots buckled tight against their feet, jackets zipped to the top. We look like the Tenth Mountain Division, but we’re not soldiers. We’re skiers.

By Tyler Stone November 8, 2007

Leisure

Wristcutters: A Love Story

I really wanted to love Wristcutters. It’s populated with actors I adore, and the idea seemed charming. If they could make it work, it would be so beautiful. It is beautiful, and the actors really are that cool. But I had to settle for, “I liked it a lot, most of the way through.” I hate artistic disappointment.

By Shira Hecht November 8, 2007

Leisure

Good eats pho cheap

Hiding behind a gas station, just a 10-minute walk from the Rosslyn Metro Station, is Vietnamese cuisine’s gift to the poor college student: Pho 75.

By Vivian Chen November 8, 2007

Leisure

Critical Voices: Daft Punk, Alive 2007

Daft Punk manages to be all things to two people: the drunken partygoer and the electronic music aesthete. Providing aural brain teasers for the latter and a chance to discover new rump-shakers for the former requires some serious Venn diagram technique. Alive 2007, a live album recorded in Paris last June, is a worthy addition to that sweet overlap.

By Will Sommer November 8, 2007