‘The Love Boat’ in Times Square
NEW YEAR’S EVE *1/2 Forget counting down from 10 as the ball drops in Times Square; here instead is a countdown of the 10 key points in New Year’s Eve, which proves to be even tougher to take than director Garry Marshall’s previous all-star holiday romp, Valentine’s Day. 10. A cocky messenger boy (Zac Efron)…
Days of infamy and inspiration
Seventy years ago this week, the United States entered World War II after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. Less than four years later, it was all over. In this era of multiple, open–ended, decade–plus U.S. occupations in the Middle East, it never ceases to amaze me that World War II – the crucible which formed…
Heeding the call
J.B. Murray was called, by a higher power, to do something totally outside his sphere of understanding. And so, in a way, was Mary Padgelek. Murray (1908–88) was an illiterate potato farmer in Mitchell, a tiny, rural town in northeast Georgia. At the age of 70, he said he had been visited by the Holy…
Flip-flopping away
With a name like Flip Flop Tiki Bar & Grill, you would expect a warm ocean breeze blowing across your table while pelicans soar overhead. But that’s not the case for this new addition to the historic district dining scene. The beach theme is unmistakeable, the menu definitely influenced by island culture — but high…
Organic decisions
Eyes that watch the organic food industry were all on Savannah last week. Why? The Desoto Hilton hosted the biannual meeting of the National Organic Standards Board, where several key decisions made will impact what food products get the organic stamp of approval. The 15–member NOSB, composed of farmers, enviromentalists, scientists and retailers, submits organic…
Dr. Dan Matrazzo, George Porter Jr.
DR. DAN MATRAZZO & THE LOOTERS At 9 p.m. Friday, Dec. 9 Live Wire Music Hall, 307 W. River St. $7 “I’m half Japanese and half Italian,” says jam-band keyboard wizard Dr. Dan Matrazzo. “But I’m a redneck at heart.” Matrazzo’s father is from Baltimore, his mother from Tokyo, and it was in that Japanese…
Taking care of business
Three men ended up in custody after running into Savannah–Chatham Metropolitan Police Department’s annual “Jingle Bell Patrol” on Black Friday. Christopher Phillips, 24, of the 7100 block of US 17, and Bryan George, 22, of the 100 block of Hermitage, both in Richmond Hill, and Robert Baker, 23, of the 200 block of Mt. Olive…
The nice man cometh
Every interview with Vince Gill is punctuated by frequent laughter. Not only is he the most honored man in country music, with 20 Grammys and a garage–full of Nashville industry awards, he’s really, really funny. He’s also refreshingly candid. In a business where humility is usually just something an artist pulls out of a drawer…
On with the wind
Wind energy tends to generate excitement among the environmentally conscious and business–minded alike: It’s renewable, pollution–free and there’s plenty of it to sell. It seems awfully simple. However, the process of figuring out where to build the giant turbines it takes to pull electricity from thin air is much more complex. And then there’s the…
Jaws 1.0
We’re all lucky to enjoy Savannah while it’s on dry land. Throughout earth’s history, this entire region’s been underwater much longer than it’s been above it. Bill Eberlein knows this better than most. After a successful career at Gulfstream and Savannah Tech, he decided to go full–time with his real passion: scuba diving. Not the…
Words on the Street
From a distance, it looks like total madness. In the middle of Forsyth Park, a group of grown–ups are running wildly back and forth, carrying giant letters. Shrieks of "Peel!" and "Dump!" pierce the afternoon air, and there's more maniacal laughter and skipping than at a playground serving free Red Bull. Closer observation reveals that…
