The blog Architect of the Capital is excavating D.C. history.
The Cold War must have been a scary time for Washington. Ground zero for any potential nuclear attack by the Soviets, the city didn’t have much protection — but there sure were a lot of fallout shelters.
Maybe it’s just that I was spoiled by Inception, by the notion that a summer action flick could be both thrilling and smart. But then again, that’s also been the attraction of the Bourne series: the notion that adrenaline-based cinema doesn’t have to come with the caveat that one has to check their brain at the door. Not that action films are universally smarter these days, but the mindless and the thoughtful are generally…
MONDAY >>Satisfy your cheese cravings as former American Idol star (and Richmond, VA native) Elliot Yamin plays the 9:30 Club, with the Last Goodnight and Josh Hoge. $25, Doors at 7 p.m. >>Australian pop singer Ben Lee — he of the short-lived Bens and “Catch My Disease” moderate fame — comes to Alexandria’s Del Ray neighborhood to play the Birchmere. Joining him is are Cary Brothers. $19.50, 7:30 p.m. TUESDAY >>Dinosaur Jr. just can’t stop…
MONDAY: As part of a national book tour sponsored by Amnesty International, award-winning journalist and filmmaker Michael Otterman will be at the Penn Quarter Olsson’s to discuss his latest book, American Torture: From the Cold War to Abu Ghraib and Beyond. 7 p.m. Local author Edward P. Jones (All Aunt Hagar’s Children and Lost in the City) will be at Politics and Prose to introduce the latest stories in the popular annual collection, New Stories…
In Moscow this morning, three Capitals prospects played in the first game of a Summit Series between the best Russian and Canadian players under twenty years old. The series celebrates the twenty-fifth anniversary of the first Summit Series, in which Valery Kharlamov dominated for the Russians until, in a brave feat of patriotism, Bobby Clarke broke his ankle, ensuring a Canadian victory in the series and foretelling Western victory in the Cold War. Today’s less…
The Cold War Kids are the perfect complement to Muse. The boys from Fullerton, California stepped out into the Patriot Center last night with the same laid back attitude as if they were jamming in a friend’s garage. No props, no light shows, no flashy signs or confetti. They picked up their guitars and drumsticks in their partially tucked in shirts and just played, saving the over-the-top showmanship for their British conspiracy theorist headliners….
If you ask around, you’ll find a fair share of people who offer Fullerton, California’s Cold War Kids much affection. If your thing is fluid melodies, for instance, or taut pop hooks, you won’t find them in their repertoire. Their music could fairly be called repetitive. If you dressed sexy enough, I certainly wouldn’t kick you out of bed for calling them derivative. Some think their decision to release a full-length record distilled from previously…
How retro. Since embracing new technology — specifically mass text messaging — didn’t seem to reach far enough into the local constituency, Virginia emergency management personnel have decided to look backwards instead. They’re installing sirens of the Cold War variety to warn people of any impending doom. WTOP tells us Alexandria and Arlington have implemented a federally funded program that will pay for about ten to 15 sirens affixed to telephone poles and buildings around…
Remember the days of the Cold War, when Soviet and American diplomats would slyly meet in D.C. restaurants to share some moo shu in between bringing the world to the edge of nuclear annihilation? It seems the days of Spy vs. Spy aren’t as far in the past as we’d like to think. As you’ve no doubt heard, on March 1 Paul Joyal, an expert on Russian intelligence, was shot outside his Adelphi, Maryland home,…
