ARCHITECTURE COLUMN HARBORING Harbors/1543358981_harboring_success.pdfIn many ways, Global Harbors...
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MONDAY 06.09.2008 C I F I COULD HAVE THE AT- tention of the male reading audience, today we discuss the phenomenon that is the new movie Sex and the City. Men, at the risk of stating the obvious, this movie is not for you. We all know why. But let me list a few reasons, anyway. There’s the wild fascination with designer clothes and jew- elry. The $700 stiletto heels. The sipping of those froufrou hot-pink cosmopolitans. The talk about Botox and bi- kini-waxing. The gooey kissing. The wedding sequence that goes on longer than the Demo- cratic primary. You don’t want to see any of that. Let’s face it, when you go to a movie, you want to see gun bat- tles, car chases, helicopter crashes, things blowing up. You want to see sex, sure. But preferably it’s the old- fashioned kind that’s over in two minutes, with no soaring music and smoldering stares and gauzy close-ups of endless acrobatics. Not to mention — yuck — the endless cuddling afterward. By keeping the sex scenes short, this leaves more time for the important stuff: your gun battles, your car chases, your helicopter crashes, etc. Yet the sad truth is that many of you men will be asked to see Sex and the City with the women in your lives. Oh, sure, much has been writ- ten about this being the ulti- mate chick flick that women are going to see with other women. They’re getting all dolled up and hiring limos and slurping cosmos through a straw before the show. They’re bonding, elevating their sisterhood, celebrating their femininity and so on. They’re talking shoes with sis- ters who appreciate shoes. But that’s just some women. Lots of others are trying to drag their husbands and boy- friends along to see the movie. In fact, I myself am getting tac- it pressure to see it with my wife. And I have a few friends who are experiencing the same kind of pressure, the pressure that comes with this kind of sen- tence slipped in: “C’mon, we’re always going to movies you want to see.” Naturally, I have resisted, as all men of sound mind must re- sist. I know Donald Trump went Avoid Carrie, rent ‘Patton’ KEVIN COWHERD ONLINE Read more about Sex and the City at baltimoresun.com/ sexand thecity [Please see COWHERD, 3C] GO TODAY FELICE BROTHERS IN CONCERT The Felice Brothers, who merge the sounds of folk, revivalist rock and Americana to come up with their own distinctive style, will be on stage at Rams Head Tavern, 33 West St., Annapolis. Tickets are $15 for the 8 p.m. show. Call 410-268-4545 or go to ramsheadtavern.com. INSIDE MOVIES 3C // HOROSCOPE 4C // BRIDGE 4C // COMICS 4C-5C // CROSSWORD 5C // SUDOKU 5C // TV 6C ONLINE TODAY Get summer sleep strategies for kids at Kate Shatzkin’s parenting blog at baltimoresun.com/ charmcitymoms F OR BALTIMOREANS ACCUS- tomed to seeing their home- town depicted in less than glowing terms on television se- ries such as The Wire and Homi- cide: Life on the Street, a new produc- tion takes a rosier point of view. Global Harbors: A Waterfront Renais- sance is an hourlong documentary about Baltimore’s revitalized water- front and how it has become a model for ports around the world. It airs at 10 p.m. tomorrow on Maryland Pub- lic Television (Channels 22 and 67). Instead of fictional drug dealers and city officials with questionable ethics, viewers will meet Susan Leviton, an urban homesteader who paid $1 for a house that she renovated in Otter- bein, even though her grandmother cautioned that she spent “50 cents too much.” They’ll also meet Sandy Hillman, a public relations executive who feared she was moving to the “armpit of the world” when her hus- band announced the family was relo- cating to Baltimore, but who ended up promoting it to others by organiz- ing city fairs and ethnic festivals. Instead of exploring the city’s underbelly, viewers will be treated to picture-postcard views of the down- town skyline, tourist attractions filled with smiling vacationers and neigh- borhoods that have improved over time. In many ways, Global Harbors is the Un-Wire. It doesn’t deny the existence of crime and poverty and dysfunction in the city, but it starts with the prem- ise that the glass is half-full. It shows Baltimore as a place where good things can happen when people put their minds to it. It dares to suggest that 50 years of rebuilding may be paying off. “It’s great for Baltimore,” said M. Jay Brodie, president of the Baltimore Development Corp. and one of the civic leaders who was interviewed for the program. He saw a preview last week. “It will be a terrific marketing piece. Different folks will have differ- ent views of who did what when. But it’s a fascinating study.” Global Harbors was produced by journalists Cari Stein and Kim Skeen of Ivy Media and narrated by Balti- more-born actor and director Charles Dutton. It examines how the redevel- opment of the Inner Harbor trans- formed a blighted stretch of water- front into a cultural and entertain- ment destination that became a model for the rejuvenation of other harbor cities around the world. Much of the information came from Martin Millspaugh, a Baltimore na- tive who, as a journalist, public offi- cial, private developer and planning consultant, has devoted much of his life to the city’s revitalization. In the 1950s, Millspaugh covered ur- ban affairs and city government for The Evening Sun. From 1960 to 1985, he managed nonprofit organizations that oversaw the redevelopment of Charles Center and the Inner Harbor. He later joined with developer James Rouse to show leaders of other cities HARBORING SUCCESS Sydney, Australia’s revitalized Darling Harbour was inspired by the Inner Harbor. Both have an aquarium and festival marketplace. [PHOTOS FROM "GLOBAL HARBORS: A WATERFRONT RENAISSANCE"] A documentary explores how the redevelopment of Baltimore’s waterfront became a marvel, then a model for cities across the globe Martin Millspaugh, a Baltimore native, has devoted much of his life to the city’s revitalization. by Edward Gunts ................................ [ SUN ARCHITECTURE CRITIC ] ....................... >>> ON TV Global Harbors: A Waterfront Renaissance airs at 10 p.m. tomorrow and 9 p.m. July 22 on Maryland Public Television (Channels 22 and 67). ONLINE Read more about arts and enter- tainment in Baltimore and beyond at baltimoresun.com/ criticalmass [Please see HARBOR, 2C] ARCHITECTURE COLUMN After about a decade in the mar- gins, the guys of Death Cab for Cutie are full-fledged rock stars — whether they want to be or not. Known for its novelistic lyrics and crisp synthesis of pop and progressive rock, the unas- suming quartet from Bellingham, Wash., topped Billboard’s pop album charts two weeks ago with its new CD, the engaging Narrow Stairs. The disc — the follow-up to Plans, the band’s platinum 2005 major-label debut — has garnered mostly glowing reviews, and its chart-busting success has ce- mented the former indie band’s sta- tus as a mainstream act. “This record is more relaxed. It was made with clearer heads than be- fore,” says Chris Walla, the band’s gui- tarist. He and his band mates — vo- calist-guitarist Ben Gibbard, drum- mer Jason McGeer and bassist Nick Harmer — play Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia tonight. “Nar- row Stairs was a more comfortable record to make.” During the three years between Plans and the new album, Death Cab for Cutie made some artistic readjust- ments. After signing to Atlantic Re- cords in 2004, Walla says the band set out to make a big pop record, some- thing a little sleeker than its previous four efforts on the independent Bar- suk label. “We were really interested in trying to make a hit record,” says Walla, who was at tour stop in Minneapolis last week. “We hadn’t tried to do that be- Indie-pop darlings make it personal Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie performs in Las Vegas. The band’s latest CD, “Narrow Stairs,” has gotten mostly positive reviews. ETHAN MILLER [GETTY IMAGES] Death Cab for Cutie, at Merriweather tonight, says new CD pleases band first and foremost by Rashod D. Ollison ........................................ [ SUN POP MUSIC CRITIC ] ....................... >>> IF YOU GO Death Cab for Cutie performs at 7:30 tonight at Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia. Tickets $25-$40. Call 410-547- 7328 or go to ticketmaster.com. [Please see CUTIE, 4C]
Transcript of ARCHITECTURE COLUMN HARBORING Harbors/1543358981_harboring_success.pdfIn many ways, Global Harbors...
MONDAY06.09.2008 C
IF I COULD HAVE THE AT-tention of the male readingaudience, today we discussthe phenomenon that is thenew movie Sex and the City.
Men, at the risk of stating theobvious, this movie is not foryou.
We all know why. But let melist a few reasons, anyway.
There’s the wild fascinationwith designer clothes and jew-elry.
The $700 stiletto heels.The sipping of those froufrou
hot-pink cosmopolitans.The talk about Botox and bi-
kini-waxing.The gooey kissing.The wedding sequence that
goes on longer than the Demo-cratic primary.
You don’t want to see any ofthat.
Let’s face it, when you go to amovie, you want to see gun bat-tles, car chases, helicoptercrashes, things blowing up.
You want to see sex, sure.But preferably it’s the old-
fashioned kind that’s over intwo minutes, with no soaringmusic and smoldering staresand gauzy close-ups of endlessacrobatics.
Not to mention — yuck — theendless cuddling afterward.
By keeping the sex scenesshort, this leaves more time forthe important stuff: your gunbattles, your car chases, yourhelicopter crashes, etc.
Yet the sad truth is that manyof you men will be asked to seeSex and the City with the womenin your lives.
Oh, sure, much has been writ-ten about this being the ulti-mate chick flick that womenare going to see with otherwomen.
They’re getting all dolled upand hiring limos and slurpingcosmos through a straw beforethe show.
They’re bonding, elevatingtheir sisterhood, celebratingtheir femininity and so on.
They’re talking shoes with sis-ters who appreciate shoes.
But that’s just some women.Lots of others are trying to
drag their husbands and boy-friends along to see the movie.
In fact, I myself am getting tac-it pressure to see it with mywife.
And I have a few friends whoare experiencing the same kindof pressure, the pressure thatcomes with this kind of sen-tence slipped in: “C’mon, we’realways going to movies youwant to see.”
Naturally, I have resisted, asall men of sound mind must re-sist.
I know Donald Trump went
AvoidCarrie,rent‘Patton’
KEVINCOWHERD
ONLINERead more about Sex and theCity at baltimoresun.com/sexand thecity
[Please see COWHERD, 3C]
GO TODAY
FELICEBROTHERS INCONCERTThe Felice Brothers, whomerge the sounds of folk,revivalist rock and Americanato come up with their owndistinctive style, will be onstage at Rams Head Tavern,33 West St., Annapolis. Ticketsare $15 for the 8 p.m. show.Call 410-268-4545 or go toramsheadtavern.com.
INSIDE M O V I E S 3 C // H O R O S C O P E 4 C // B R I D G E 4 C // C O M I C S 4 C - 5 C // C R O S S W O R D 5 C // S U D O K U 5 C // T V 6 C
ONLINE TODAYGet summer sleepstrategies for kids at KateShatzkin’s parenting blogat baltimoresun.com/charmcitymoms
FOR BALTIMOREANS ACCUS-tomed to seeing their home-town depicted in less thanglowing terms on television se-ries such as The Wire and Homi-
cide: Life on the Street, a new produc-tion takes a rosier point of view.
Global Harbors: A Waterfront Renais-sance is an hourlong documentaryabout Baltimore’s revitalized water-front and how it has become a modelfor ports around the world. It airs at10 p.m. tomorrow on Maryland Pub-lic Television (Channels 22 and 67).
Instead of fictional drug dealers andcity officials with questionable ethics,viewers will meet Susan Leviton, anurban homesteader who paid $1 for ahouse that she renovated in Otter-bein, even though her grandmothercautioned that she spent “50 centstoo much.” They’ll also meet SandyHillman, a public relations executivewho feared she was moving to the“armpit of the world” when her hus-band announced the family was relo-cating to Baltimore, but who endedup promoting it to others by organiz-ing city fairs and ethnic festivals.
Instead of exploring the city’sunderbelly, viewers will be treated topicture-postcard views of the down-town skyline, tourist attractions filled
with smiling vacationers and neigh-borhoods that have improved overtime.
In many ways, Global Harbors is theUn-Wire. It doesn’t deny the existenceof crime and poverty and dysfunctionin the city, but it starts with the prem-ise that the glass is half-full. It showsBaltimore as a place where goodthings can happen when people put
their minds to it. It dares to suggestthat 50 years of rebuilding may bepaying off.
“It’s great for Baltimore,” said M. JayBrodie, president of the BaltimoreDevelopment Corp. and one of thecivic leaders who was interviewed forthe program. He saw a preview lastweek. “It will be a terrific marketingpiece. Different folks will have differ-
ent views of who did what when. Butit’s a fascinating study.”
Global Harbors was produced byjournalists Cari Stein and Kim Skeenof Ivy Media and narrated by Balti-more-born actor and director CharlesDutton. It examines how the redevel-opment of the Inner Harbor trans-formed a blighted stretch of water-front into a cultural and entertain-ment destination that became amodel for the rejuvenation of otherharbor cities around the world.
Much of the information came fromMartin Millspaugh, a Baltimore na-tive who, as a journalist, public offi-cial, private developer and planningconsultant, has devoted much of hislife to the city’s revitalization.
In the 1950s, Millspaugh covered ur-ban affairs and city government forThe Evening Sun. From 1960 to 1985,he managed nonprofit organizationsthat oversaw the redevelopment ofCharles Center and the Inner Harbor.He later joined with developer JamesRouse to show leaders of other cities
HARBORINGSUCCESS
Sydney, Australia’s revitalized Darling Harbour was inspired by the Inner Harbor. Both have an aquarium and festival marketplace.[ P H O T O S F R O M " G L O B A L H A R B O R S : A W A T E R F R O N T R E N A I S S A N C E " ]
A documentary explores how the redevelopment of Baltimore’swaterfront became a marvel, then a model for cities across the globe
Martin Millspaugh, a Baltimore native, has devoted much of his life tothe city’s revitalization.
by Edward Gunts
................................
[ S U N A R C H I T E C T U R E C R I T I C ]
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>>>ON TV Global Harbors: A Waterfront Renaissance airs at 10 p.m. tomorrow and 9 p.m. July 22 on Maryland Public Television (Channels 22 and 67).
ONLINERead more about arts and enter-tainment in Baltimore and beyondat baltimoresun.com/criticalmass
[Please see HARBOR, 2C]
ARCHITECTURE COLUMN
After about a decade in the mar-gins, the guys of Death Cab for Cutieare full-fledged rock stars — whetherthey want to be or not. Known for itsnovelistic lyrics and crisp synthesis ofpop and progressive rock, the unas-suming quartet from Bellingham,Wash., topped Billboard’s pop albumcharts two weeks ago with its new CD,the engaging Narrow Stairs. The disc— the follow-up to Plans, the band’splatinum 2005 major-label debut —has garnered mostly glowing reviews,and its chart-busting success has ce-
mented the former indie band’s sta-tus as a mainstream act.
“This record is more relaxed. It wasmade with clearer heads than be-fore,” says Chris Walla, the band’s gui-tarist. He and his band mates — vo-calist-guitarist Ben Gibbard, drum-mer Jason McGeer and bassist NickHarmer — play Merriweather PostPavilion in Columbia tonight. “Nar-row Stairs was a more comfortablerecord to make.”
During the three years betweenPlans and the new album, Death Cabfor Cutie made some artistic readjust-ments. After signing to Atlantic Re-cords in 2004, Walla says the band setout to make a big pop record, some-thing a little sleeker than its previousfour efforts on the independent Bar-suk label.
“We were really interested in tryingto make a hit record,” says Walla, whowas at tour stop in Minneapolis lastweek. “We hadn’t tried to do that be-
Indie-pop darlings make it personal
Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie performs in Las Vegas. Theband’s latest CD, “Narrow Stairs,” has gotten mostly positive reviews.E T H A N M I L L E R [ G E T T Y I M A G E S ]
Death Cab for Cutie, at Merriweather tonight,says new CD pleases band first and foremost
by Rashod D. Ollison
........................................
[ S U N P O P M U S I C C R I T I C ]
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>>> IF YOU GO Death Cab forCutie performs at 7:30 tonight atMerriweather Post Pavilion, 10475Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia.Tickets $25-$40. Call 410-547-7328 or go to ticketmaster.com. [Please see CUTIE, 4C]
