Posted // April 30,2013  - Annual event for vet comic fans & newbs Back in 2002, I owned and operated a small Utah comic-book store, and I was asked by the d ...

Posted // April 22,2013  - Ignore the controversy around comic master If you haven’t read a comic book written by Brian K. Vaughan, you’re doing it ...

Posted // April 9,2013  - Best new video games are old ones I’m a curmudgeonly old man who frequently wishes that the kids would get off of his ...

Posted // March 26,2013  - Disney's new direction for Star Wars For anyone who has been following this space, or my ramblings online, you’ll know th ...

Posted // March 12,2013  - DC Comics shakes up Justice League If you head to your local comic-book store to pick up the latest issue of DC Comics’ ...

Posted // February 26,2013  - Orson Scott Card hired to write Superman “Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No! It’s a homoph ...

Posted // February 18,2013  - A flashback to earlier age of geekdom As a young lad, I read every book I could get my grubby little hands on. I blew through Th ...

Posted // February 5,2013  - Violent games aren't cause of gun violence In the wake of recent shootings, a group in Connecticut decided that they wanted to hand o ...

Posted // January 15,2013  - One-man show comes to Kingsbury Hall As the intrepid Captain James T. Kirk from Star Trek, William Shatner has visited differen ...

Posted // January 1,2013  - Kick off 2013 with worthy goals How many times have you made New Year’s resolutions that you let fizzle a month or t ...

Posted // April 29,2013  - Exploring the philosophy of eating Over the past decade, no single writer has more diligently explored the myriad consequence ...

Posted // March 4,2013  - Stephan Pastis writes children's book Over the course of a long, circuitous journey from lawyer to cartoonist, Pearls Before Swi ...

Posted // September 10,2012  - A family's history with the black rock Good writers can take a subject you weren’t previously interested in and not only en ...

Posted // August 16,2012  - Required reading & gender confines Acclaimed Utah author Shannon Hale blogs. A lot. And her blogs often aren't about her upco ...

Posted // August 13,2012  - Real-world politics through fairytale lens Shannon Hale always planned to write a sequel to her Newbery Honor-winning 2005 book Princ ...

Posted // June 12,2012  - Memoir tells funny story of a fixer-upper The subtitle on the cover of Matthew Batt’s memoir, Sugarhouse, reads “Turning ...

Posted // May 21,2012  - New book tells stories of individual LDS members I normally try to avoid hearing what other people think about a book before reviewing it&m ...

Posted // February 6,2012  - Emily Pearson's memoir of an unbelievable life It probably sounds like a cliché to say that Emily Pearson’s memoir Dancing W ...

Posted // December 26,2011  - Trio of new books explores LDS beliefs Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman Jr. have both had to answer plenty of questions about Mormon ...

Posted // October 31,2011  - Utah author creates the back story The classic Dickens tale A Christmas Carol begins with the sentence, “Marley was dea ...

Posted // August 1,2011  - Comedian still pushing boundaries Humor and controversy have often gone hand in hand, with comedians like Lenny Bruce and Ge ...

Posted // April 13,2011  - And That’s the Truth: Lily Tomlin still embraces her classic characters after more than 40 years. It is sometimes difficult to imagine what entertainment legends were like before they beca ...

Posted // February 14,2011  - Comedian/podcaster Marc Maron isn’t afraid to let comedy get uncomfortably candid. Self-revelation has been a staple of comedy at least since Lenny Bruce, but Marc Maron tak ...

Posted // May 12,2010  - Serious Comedy: Former second-to-Last Comic Standing Marcus is set to bite The Hand That Feeds. Marcus talks about his stint on NBC’s Last Comic Standing as if it happened a decade ...

Posted // April 7,2010  - Medium Energy: Comedian Todd Barry creates high comedy with a low-key approach. You’ll be forgiven for not knowing comedian Todd Barry by name, but chances are you& ...

Posted // September 23,2009  - Totally Unmolested: Pot comic Doug Benson operates under the radar. Benson is a pot comic. Whether or not you're a toker, you know exactly what that means, al ...

Posted // April 15,2009  - What the Heckled?: Don’t be surprised if the comedy of Christopher Stephenson, Bob Montana and Levi Rounds pisses someone off. Christopher Stephenson, Bob Montana and Levi Rounds are hitting the local comedy scene wit ...

Posted // April 15,2009  - Don’t be surprised if the comedy of Christopher Stephenson, Bob Montana and Levi Rounds pisses someone off Salt Lake City's comedy scene includes performers associated with Uncensored Comedy, Under ...

Posted // September 17,2008  -   Andy Andrist is known for cringe humor—that which offends in order to further ideas, ...

Posted // May 7,2008  -   Guess where I am?” were the first words out of Scott Thompson’s mouth when rea ...

Posted // March 12,2012  - 'Invincible' artist working in SLC For decades, if you wanted to break into comic books as a writer or an artist, you had to ...

Posted // May 11,2011  - Are superheroes being played by movie stars even in the pages? Comic-book “casting” has been going on for decades. Artists, after all, have p ...

Posted // March 28,2011  - Comics publishers trot out still more universe-changing —and wallet-lightening—plot developments. Big, company-wide event comics have long been a standard of the industry. ...

Posted // December 22,2010  - What the comics world taught me in 2010. Another year gone and another box full of comics packed away. Before we move to 2011, ther ...

Posted // September 13,2010  - A local comic-book creator's new book reveals his past life as a jerk. Despite the title of his new book, Derek Hunter is actually a stand-up guy. But before mar ...

Posted // August 16,2010  - Comic Bytes: The move to digital could forever change comic-book collecting. I love comics. I love the way that a good writer can take his time crafting a long-form st ...

Posted // June 23,2010  - Jet Set: Dave Stevens’ Rocketeer tales are finally gathered in one place. In 1981, Steve Schanes—publisher of Pacific Comics—approached Dave Stevens abo ...

Posted // April 14,2010  - Graphic Designs:Comics and graphic novels—even obscure ones—become perfect movie fodder. In the early 1990s, Joe Eszterhas scribbled a movie concept on a cocktail napkin and sold ...

Posted // March 10,2010  - Cold Pulp: The Chill overtalks its attempt at detective noir. Starr makes an admirable jump from prose to comics, but needs a little more practice. It's ...

Posted // January 13,2010  - A rundown of the best comic books of 2009. From the Big Two publishers all the way down to the unknown independents, 2009 was a solid ...

Posted // April 23,2013  - Final show for Charlotte Boye-Christensen In 2002, the energetic and cosmopolitan Charlotte Boye-Christensen decided to accept a job ...

Posted // October 29,2012  - Onstage drawing heightens the tension Spoiler alert: By the end of the ballet, someone has to die. Not literally, of course; the ...

Posted // June 4,2012  - Dancers as "movement sculptures" According to Stephen Brown—the SB in SB Dance—audiences typically get the gist ...

Posted // February 20,2012  - 'The Rambler': Felt performance For many people, contemporary dance is not very accessible. Choreographer Joe Goode knows ...

Posted // August 22,2011  - Alumni dance performance returns With the arrival of the arts season each fall comes yet another opportunity to be inspired ...

Posted // May 5,2010  - Repertory Dance Theatre’s Green Maps create intuitive layouts of the community. When looking at maps, some simply see static icons. Linda Smith, Repertory Dance Theatre ( ...

Posted // April 21,2010  - Accidentally on Purpose: Propel disrupts the expected with choreographed improvisation. There is an oft-quoted John Lennon lyric from his song “Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy), ...

Posted // March 3,2010  - Click Up Your Heels: SLC Tap’s Deborah Robertson brings a classic dance style out of the shadows. It's early evening in the middle of the week in a Salt Lake City nightclub. Like many nigh ...

Posted // September 24,2008  -   Imagine a world in which a civilization celebrates its grand achievements by constructing ...

Posted // May 21,2008  -   Fourteen months ago, when Adam Sklute arrived in Salt Lake City to begin his tenure as Bal ...

Posted // January 9,2012  - Earlier work from 2011's Oscar noms It’s the most wonderful time of the year—when we movie lovers try to second-gu ...

Posted // July 12,2011  - Hollywood mines for fairy-tale gold Did you miss Beastly and Red Riding Hood at your local multiplex this winter? Chances are ...

Posted // March 28,2011  - But it can be tricky when movies try to talk about money. You think tax time is a plot to drive you mad with its incomprehensible financial gobbledy ...

Posted // February 1,2011  - Host your own pre-Academy Awards DVD festival to discover the nominees' roots. Chances are pretty good that at least a few of the actors who take home Oscar statues on F ...

Posted // November 8,2010  - Gridiron Blues: America loves football, but movies can’t quite seem to make it sing. I don’t get football. It’s not a great loss in my life, but it does mystify me ...

Posted // August 25,2010  - Hooked on Classics: When vintage TV shows finally hit DVD, do they hold up to our memories? It’s been almost a quarter of a century since Max Headroom—the visionary 1987- ...

Posted // June 28,2010  - Black Crude, Black Moo: Anger at the Gulf oil catastrophe isn’t mellowed by movies about petro-malevolence. Blowout preventer—that sounds pretty good right about now. Not for the crack at the ...

Posted // May 12,2010  - The performers behind the masks make comic-book movies soar. Explosions! Super-powered fisticuffs! Cool sci-fi gadgets! Caped flight! That’s all ...

Posted // March 24,2010  - Stream On: Roku, Netflix and Amazon present the brave new world of movies delivered straight to your TV. I've been a Roku user for almost a year, and it's edging so darn close to my dream— ...

Posted // February 3,2010  - The film industry still doesn’t seem to think sports movies can be for— or about—women. Whip It arrived on DVD on Jan. 26. What’s that? You’ve never heard of Whip It? ...

Posted // May 14,2013  - Searching for the yellow-billed cuckoo I’m working my way between trashcan-size balls of sagebrush. They’re just star ...

Posted // April 16,2013  - Find crystal-clear views and clean air On a recent Sunday afternoon between spring rainstorms, parking for the Bonneville Shoreli ...

Posted // April 2,2013  - Be ready for spring mud on mountain trails On a late-March weekend, I took my skis up Millcreek Canyon for a nice, mellow backcountry ...

Posted // March 19,2013  - Escape urban noise, find mountain beauty Deep in the winter, in February, I took a trip to the mountains. It was time to make an ex ...

Posted // March 5,2013  - Hit the ice before the weather warms up At first glance, everything is wrong with this picture: The sky is dark gray with wind-blo ...

Posted // February 12,2013  - Hit golf courses for valley skiing Crumpled in front of me in the snow lay my 7-year-old sister, a pile of pink & purple snow ...

Posted // January 22,2013  - Snowy downhill thrills, no lift ticket needed From the saddle below the radio towers, the snow muffled—nearly muted—the soun ...

Posted // January 8,2013  - Some advice to help you take the plunge There are many good ways to begin the new year—resolutions included—but one of ...

Posted // December 24,2012  - Bypass the traffic and be on your way When Park City gets crowded, it gets very, very crowded—like between Christmas and N ...

Posted // December 11,2012  - Start learning or polish your skills There are three kinds of older terrain-park riders: the experienced, who can still trick t ...

Posted // May 20,2013  - WWE's Intellectual Savior of the Masses Ordinarily, hearing a pompous, condescending, presumably overeducated man bloviate and sel ...

Posted // May 13,2013  - Things to do & see this summer You may think you’ve got Las Vegas covered, right down to your favorite place to sta ...

Posted // April 8,2013  - Discover the town founded by Buffalo Bill A certain national brand of beer has created a mythical “Most Interesting Man in the ...

Posted // March 18,2013  - Sideshow performer has carnival flair An encounter with Elias “Lefty” Caress leaves an indelible impression. Not so ...

Posted // March 11,2013  - Travel to Ireland to find family history On St. Patrick’s Day weekend, people wear green and proclaim, “Kiss me, I&rsqu ...

Posted // February 25,2013  - Leo exhibit preserves human history The Mummies of the World exhibit at The Leonardo has brought mummies and artifacts from ar ...

Posted // February 8,2013  - Find a romantic spot without flying to Paris There are a number of legendary romantic places around the world made famous in movies, no ...

Posted // January 28,2013  - Enjoy red rocks, no warm weather necessary With the natural beauty of Moab and its surrounding national parks less than a four-hour d ...

Posted // January 7,2013  - Location and attraction changes in 2013 With fiscal cliffs and end-of-days fears clouding the end of 2012 and even the start of th ...

Posted // December 21,2012  - Ring in the new year in a new place New Year’s Eve is a time for resolutions, parties and staying up all night—esp ...

Posted // May 6,2013  - Utah's reaction to Jason Collins coming out It’s hard to think of higher praise you could get from the greatest Jazzman of all t ...

Posted // March 25,2013  - Will Utah ever be home to MLB? Major League Baseball comes to Salt Lake City on March 30, when the Colorado Rockies host ...

Posted // October 17,2011  - What's SLC with no NBA? The Utah Jazz were supposed to open up their preseason schedule Oct. 10, with the regular ...

Posted // July 26,2011  - Adult ball league serious about fun For F.B.G.M., the clinking of $1 PBR cans is a triumphant sound. As other Beehive Sport an ...

Posted // May 17,2010  - Blitz to face Las Vegas Showgirlz. Attending a Utah Blitz football game is, in most ways, much like attending a high school f ...

Posted // October 28,2009  - Has Boozer eclipsed President Obama as Utahns’ favorite target for conservative bile? Boozer is the clear front-runner for Utah’s most hated ... ...

Posted // September 23,2009  - Zebra Rules: How to officiate a "lawless" sport on wheels. Online Exclusive: Local roller-derby referee Collin DeShotz (aka Niall Wade) officiates ga ...

Posted // September 16,2009  - Athletes relish the chance to visit Salt Lake City. Getting athletes to come to the Dew Tour stop in Salt Lake City isn't difficult... ...

Posted // September 2,2009  - Brandon Wood’s Major-League talent is still on display in a minor-league park. Brandon Wood's swing is a major-league swing. His hands start low, about chest level, and ...

Posted // May 13,2009  - No Further Revue: Summer pro hoops in Utah becomes a victim of its own success. It’s a sad situation that occurs over and over: A community builds an alternative, g ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Thursday May 12-Saturday May 14 @ Wiseguys Trolley Square Not many stand-up comedians can boast a 30-year-plus professional career before they&rsquo ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Through May 28 @ SLCC Grand Theatre In a town stuck in a 20-year drought, water is so scarce that private toilets are unthinka ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Thursday May 12-Saturday May 14 @ Sugar Space In this age of a highly politicized global culture, it seems suitable to explore the charg ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Friday May 13 @ The King’s English North Carolina author Sarah Dessen has been writing for teens since 1996, long before high ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Through May 21 @ Rose Wagner Center Sam Shepard’s 1980 play about the complicated relationship between two brothers does ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Sunday May 15 @ Cathedral of the Madeleine Jazz was created in brothels and bars in New Orleans and perfected in raucous New York Cit ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Through June 17 @ The Art Barn Self-taught local artist Justin Carruth’s oil paintings (detail of “Premonitio ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Friday May 13-Saturday May 14 @ Rose Wagner Center This challenge lies at the heart of the experimental Innovations, an evening of original w ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Thursday May 12-Monday May 16 @ Davis County Legacy Events Center This year’s spotlight bird at the 13th annual Great Salt Lake Bird Festival is not e ...

Posted // May 12,2011  - Saturday May 14-Sunday May 22 @ Capitol Theatre In the finale, with the entire company singing, the grand message of Falstaff can be under ...

Posted // May 7,2013  - PTC production is a Utah crowd-pleaser There was a time, not long ago, when you couldn’t look through local theater listing ...

Posted // May 7,2013  - Dark premise with "bitingly funny execution" Martin McDonagh has a particular flavor as a writer, even if his work sometimes feels clea ...

Posted // February 19,2013  - Play explores how we deal with "the other" The Neapolitan ice cream that Russ (David Manis) eats in the opening scene: It’s alm ...

Posted // July 24,2012  - Weekend fest offers more than productions “I just call it ‘Utah Festival,’” said Utah Festival Opera & Music ...

Posted // July 10,2012  - Rollicking cabaret show for "the rest of us" For as long as Utah’s cultural divide—that seemingly unbridgeable chasm that s ...

Posted // July 10,2012  - Singing/dancing the bee's knees, acting flat Chicago is a show for folks who like their social commentary and media criticism to come w ...

Posted // May 8,2012  - Where you sit surprisingly important Think carefully about where you sit in the Rose Wagner Studio Theater for Wasatch Theatre ...

Posted // May 8,2012  - Charles Morey's farewell production When a single song is as iconically associated with a musical as “The Impossible Dre ...

Posted // May 8,2012  - "Hysteria" gets an electrifying treatment The Gilded Age: The Civil War was over and Thomas Edison was ushering in a new age of inno ...

Posted // April 17,2012  - Breathing life into the classic text There are certain advantages to adapting a literary classic like The Scarlet Letter, playi ...

Posted // May 21,2013  - Overview of local contemporary art It’s long overdue. The first-ever Utah Biennial art exhibit at the Utah Museum of Co ...

Posted // April 15,2013  - Photography documents west-side changes Salt Lake City’s North Temple street is emblematic, but it’s a symbol of the c ...

Posted // April 1,2013  - Neutralize Negative Feelings analyzes etiquette Ana Prvacki’s Neutralize Negative Feelings looks at the code of etiquette that gover ...

Posted // February 4,2013  - Photographs contrast beauty and violence Photographers have described the world with light since the invention of the photographic ...

Posted // January 14,2013  - Paintings draw focus to unnoticed marks One of the roles of art is to show us things we otherwise might not see—segments of ...

Posted // December 31,2012  - Preview of visual art for the new year Some of the most exciting local art during the course of the year isn’t to be seen a ...

Posted // December 17,2012  - Art center finds new home in SLC Earlier this year, the Central Utah Art Center lost its home of 20 years—evicted fro ...

Posted // December 3,2012  - See local art & unique holiday gifts When it comes down to the end of the year, there’s a comfortable predictability to t ...

Posted // November 27,2012  - Paintings riff on past pop culture Installing her paintings at Kayo Gallery earlier this month was a moment of déjà v ...

Posted // November 5,2012  - Exhibit @ Leonardo explores work of namesake For many people, Leonardo da Vinci represents the stereotypical image of the artist— ...