FRIDAY: >> The city's free concert series follows MC Hammer with a rare appearance by salsa legend Willie Colon, 7-9 p.m. at Woodrow Wilson Center. >> President Nixon’s White House counsel John Dean will be at Politics and Prose to discuss his book, Broken Government, which examines "the institutional damage he believes the Republican Party has inflicted on the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government during the Bush administration." 7 p.m. He'll also be... more ›

Washington resident Dr. Haleh Esfandiari, director of the Woodrow Wilson Center's Middle East Program, has been released from prison, the Associated Press and the Washington Post are both reporting. Even after family members turned over 3 billion rials (nearly $325,000) in bail money, it remains unclear if the espionage charge still stand or if Esfandiari, 67, is allowed to leave Iran. Since May 8, Esfandiari has been held at Evin prison north of Tehran, a... more ›

Henry Rollins once said of Glen E. Friedman, "...he was there at the beginning of so much cool stuff in so many different areas it's not funny." Too true. Friedman documented the genesis of the 1970s southern California skateboarding scene as a teenager, took pictures of pretty much any early American punk legend you can name, as well as most of the earliest and brightest hip-hop names of the 80s. But if ever there was... more ›

MONDAY At Chapters, they’re mad for mystery writers on Mondays in March, and for alliteration at all other times. Today, they have a fine guest: Laura Lippman, who’ll be reading from her latest, What the Dead Know. 445 11th Street, NW, 1 p.m. TUESDAY Tom Bissell and his father, an ex-Marine who served in the Vietnam War, travel back to Vietnam on a journey that retraces both national and personal history. He’ll be in town... more ›

Not by Ashton Kutcher, but by Yellow Arrow, an arts and technology project initiated by the New York based mixed-reality and entertainment company, Counts Media. The May issue of Spin magazine reports that in June, Yellow Arrow and its M.A.A.P. (Massively Authored Artistic Publication) makers will be documenting the District's punk-rock scene by placing their signature yellow arrow stickers on various well known sites around the city. Which hardcore sites could you visit to find one of these stickers? more ›

In a city chock full of "newsmaking" events, there are a few we think worth pointing out. As you may have heard all of the members of the 9/11 Commission has decided to continue their work as a nonprofit organization even though they've issued their report. Calling themselves the "9/11 Public Discourse Project" they have scheduled a series of talks on various issues in D.C. this summer at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.... more ›