September 16, 2015 Issue
Crossword: 'Crop circles'
Across 1. Bruce Lee role 5. Survey's result 9. Sweatshirt size 14. Word's representation? 15. Plains native 16. Sardinia's country 17. Receptionist's cry 18. Moves to get y more
On the cover: Joshua Emerson Smith
Marcial Torres 28, holds his youngest son, Brian, in the drive way of his parents' home in Vista, where he and his long-term girlfriend live with their three sons. He watches almost blankly as his five-year-old Damien and two-year-old Derri... more
Letters: Awkward and funny
I love Ryan Bradford's Well That Was Awkward column. It is consistently funny. I mean, laugh-out-loud-three-or-four-times-per-column funny. more
Shamir on the regular
Pop artist and Las Vegas native Shamir Bailey has penned his own paean to his home city, “Vegas” but it's one that comes with the authority of someone who spent his formative years coming up in its less grossly capitalist parts. more
Mayor Morales?
"We need to stop with the happy talk and actually deal with what's going on.” Those words demonstrate that Gregory Thomas Morales is not your prototypical political candidate in the making. more
Deputy whose repeated Taser shots cost man his legs back on beat
After the third electrical shock, Marcial Torres stopped moving. He was lying face down on the ground, and the 28-year-old Latino man would not regain the ability to get up for another three months more
Contiguously speaking
Could making the good citizens of San Diego wonder whether a local institution will pull up roots and move out of town become a trend? more
#Instabrand
Instagram is one of the best marketing and branding tools visual artists have today. That's not a novel thesis, but some artists are better at Instagram than others. Some artists don't post enough. Some post too much. more
Not your average fish story
Imaginative” is the word that best describes Big Fish, Moonlight Stage Company's closing offering of its outdoor amphitheater season. more
In 'Black Mass,' Johnny Depp goes nuts
Be wary of the film that confesses too much. Black Mass commits this sin regularly, using long and dramatic speeches to convey its “honor among thieves” edict in relation to the true story behind infamous Boston kingpin James “Whitey” Bulge... more
Michael Field
Signs of life in bleak landscapes
Michael Field had a dream when he was a young boy. That dream, however, had nothing to do with being an artist. more
Photo by Seth Combs
The Macro Views and Micro Wonders
Cathy BreslawPhoto by Seth Combs It's hard not to assume something when Cathy Breslaw says she's fascinated with "space." One could easily mistake her large-scale, mixed-media pieces as some more
What's in local musicians' ears?
A semi-regular feature in which we ask local musicians about the music they've been digging lately. more
Mike Krol, Hum and more San Diego concerts
Mike Krol's specialty is super-short (two minutes or less) power-pop songs with a garagey, punk-inspired sneer. more
'Pawn Sacrifice' showcases Tobey Maguire's worst tendencies
I'm convinced Tobey Maguire has never been a strong actor. He's all crazy eyes and smirk, both aggressive and meek (how is that possible?). more
Reform to police review board needed
On the one-year anniversary since her department began using body cameras, and under the false pretense of public safety and maintaining the peace, San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman doubled-down last week on her previously stated and... more
Photo courtesy of San Diego Theatres
Cinema @ The Balboa, Made in America: Craft Icons of the 50 States and San Francisco Comedy Competition
San Diego certainly has options when it comes to seeing classic or cult films on the big screen. And while places like Ken Cinema and Cinema Under the Stars have charm, they're comparatively small next to a venue like the Balboa Theatre. more
Slummy day real estate
People often ask how we were able to afford a house. Yes, how indeed? When wages don't match the rising cost of standard of living; when the Union-Tribune calculates that it takes 18 years for a college-educated household to save enough for... more
