Kansas City News Blog

Buck O'Neil

​Tomorrow would have been Buck O'Neil's 98th birthday.

In honor of the true Kansas City legend, all 10 local First Watch breakfast spots are donating all -- all -- of Friday's profits to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Pretty sweet deal.

Several old ballplayers will be signing autographs at the First Watches around the city. The NLBM knows who and where.

The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (1616 E. 18th St.) also has a day of events planned for Saturday, including $1 admission and free cupcakes!

It's still a shame that we can't get Buck in the Hall of Fame.

Photo via the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

​The Olathe Animal Shelter needs help. A lot of help.

Earlier this week, KMBC Channel 9 reported that the shelter could be shut down. Hey, Bite Club, how about you make yourselves useful? Adopt a pet. Or drop off some kitty litter or dog food.

The shelter is holding a fund-raiser on Saturday at noon on the corner of Park and Cherry streets in Olathe. There'll be pet weddings (I think) and a pet costume contest and parade. It's $7 to enter your pup (check out the flier for more info).

We can only hope that breastfeeding cat lady crosses the stateline and makes an appearance.

Photo via Costume Craze.

​West Bottoms haunted house, The Beast, has topped the Best Haunted House list at Haunted House Ratings.com.

The site names the top 31 haunted houses in the country based on user reviews. Another KC haunted house, The Edge of Hell, came in at number 13.

Kendall and I visited both last year. Full-disclosure: I was three sheets to the wind, and well past scaring. I did have a great time, though. This year, I'll try it without taking the edge off, and see how that goes.

Hat tip to NBC Action News.

Pitch theater critic Alan Scherstuhl tells me that "Into the Woods" is the best show he's ever seen at the Kansas City Rep. So if you're a public service employee and you're free Wednesday at 7 p.m., the Kansas City Repertory Theatre has a great deal. You can see the show for free.

Here's the full details: If you're a solider, police officer, firefighter, EMT, ambulance driver or a city or county worker in Jackson, Johnson, Wyandotte, Clay or Platte counties, then you're eligible for free tickets to the show at the Spencer Theatre in the James C. Olson Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Missouri-Kansas City. There is a limit: Four tickets per family.

For tickets, call the Rep's box office at 816-235-2700 or e-mail your request to info@kcrep.org (don't forget the promo code "thankyou"). Include your name, address, phone number and the number of tickets you want to reserve.  Also, don't forget to bring your employment ID when you pick up your tix.

Not sold? Check out this preview:

"Sacred Heart" by Trenton Matthews

Tonight, an art show at Mood Swings Salon asks "What the Fuck is Wrong With this Kid?"

​ 1. Do the art thing. It's already First Friday again. (While you're in the Crossroads, head over to Union Station, for the opening night of Andy Warhol Portfolios: Life and Legends. Get a free beverage if you arrive between 5 and 9 p.m.)

2. Get some culture in Lee's Summit. Today and Saturday, the Longview Campus of Metropolitan Community Campus is holding a literary festival with workshops, readings and lectures. Nearby, today through Sunday, there's also the Longview Art and World Music Festival.

3. Shop for unexpected treasures. Urban Mining Homewares -- which is open every First Friday, Saturday and Sunday -- is celebrating its fifth anniversary.

4. Ogle some hot cars. KCI Cruise Night is a car show (that actually happens during the day on Saturday, from 3 to 8 p.m.) near Kansas City International Airport.

5. Pick out a pumpkin! It being October and all, there are now would-be-jack-o-lanterns aplenty at City Market. The pu kin patch is open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.

6. Root on the Chiefs. KC's underdog football team takes on the New York Giants this Sunday.

For more ways to spend your weekend, see The Pitch calendar.

buycostumes.com

No matter what you think of Plog, this is still a really cute picture.

​This is nice. As part of the Kansas City Zoo's ZOOtennial (I don't condone the name) anniversary celebration, KCMO residents can get free admission in October and November.

According to the Zoo, the terms of the free entry require that you show up during regular business hours with a photo ID and proof of residence. That proof can be something simple, like a utility bill with your address on it.

That's a pretty good deal for the Zoo's 202-acres of animals and jungle habitat recreation. I'm going to see the North American River Otters, Jackie and Bill. I've got a thing for North American River Otters.

Flickr: Britt Selvitelle

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1. Take back the streets -- on a Schwinn! It's the last Friday of the month, and that means it's time for Critical Mass. Bicyclists gather at the Sun Fresh Market in Westport at 6 p.m.

2. See a black and white war in color. A new exhibit at the National World War One Museum presents the bright uniforms and other eye-catching elements of the Great War, which could not be captured in photographs from the period.

3. Laugh it up with comedienne Jennie McNulty, who's performing Saturday night at a benefit/poker tournament to support local women's sports teams.

4. Check out a goalie. The Kansas City Wizards take on the Colorado Rapids on Saturday at Community America Ballpark.

5. Get your face painted. That's one of the many activities offered during the Western Wyandotte Arts Festival on Sunday at Hollis Renewal Center in KCK.

For more ways to spend your weekend, see The Pitch calendar.

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The Kansas International Film Festival wraps up tonight at the Glenwood Theatre (9575 Metcalf Ave., Overland Park). One of the final films closing the fest is Left Field, a goofy and touching documentary about kickball -- the playground game that in recent years has been co-opted by twenty- to thirty-something jocks, hipsters and geeks.

A couple of guys with local ties -- Chris Batte (producer) and Ben Steger (director) -- collaborated on Left Field, their first feature-length film, which plays at 5:20.

Left Field is less about kickball games and wins and losses. The focus is more on the people who play the game.

"As we got more and more into it, we realized that there was this really amazing community of people -- artists, musicians, there's lawyers, architects," Batte says. "The kickball was fun and interesting, but we didn't think it was going to be interesting enough for a film. But we thought these people's lives were much more interesting."

Batte tells The Pitch that he always wanted to make a film but didn't know how. He had several friends who played in a kickball league at a park near his Chicago home. After two years of prodding, Batte finally checked out a game.

"When I got out there, it was a lot of hilarity," Batte says. "A lot of drunken shit talking, and everybody kind of shed any kind of social inhibitions and just went out and had fun. I just laughed the whole time I was out there."

He and Steger, who met at the University of Kansas and both now live in Chicago, decided to make a short film about a kickball team's "rise to fame and glory." They quickly cobbled together footage of games and player interviews, but before they could start editing the footage someone broke into Steger's apartment and stole the footage.

The two reassessed and decided that they were, Batte says, "a lot more committed to this project than just a short film." They decided to make a feature-length film about not just one team but the entire league. 

"Three years later, here we are," Batte says.

Warning: Spoiler alert!

Flickr: 0595

​ 1. Ogle some very buff, mostly naked men. Chippendales dance at VooDoo Lounge tonight.

2. Sniff out a good-for-nothin' train robber. Hold Up on Dead Man's Creek is an interactive murder mystery in production at the Hollywood Room downtown every Thursday, Friday and Saturday through Halloween.

3. Experience the steampunk version of Alice in Wonderland. Bellenwhissle Productions has put a trendy twist on its theatrical production of the Lewis Carroll classic, opening tonight at the Off Center Theatre in Crown Center.

4. Witness the percussive mastery of Tool drummer Danny Carey. He's participating in a drum clinic sponsored by Explorers Percussion at Shawnee Mission South High School on Saturday afternoon.



5. Take in an old movie. Gary Cooper stars in Sergeant York, screening for free at the National World War One Museum at 1 p.m. Saturday.

6. Appreciate the prettiest insects. There's butterfly festival happening at the Mr. and Mrs. F.L. Schlagle Environmental Library all weekend.

7. Get hot for burlesque dancers. The Kansas City Society of Burlesque performs Saturday night at West Bottoms bar Korruption.

8. Be a big spender -- for a good cause. Plaza Pzazz, the annual fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House features food, music and evening wear at Country Club Plaza on Sunday from 6 to 10 p.m. Tickets are $75.

For more ways to spend your weekend, see the online Pitch calendar.

​Tonight at the Brooksider is the second Twestival, a charitable event being pushed by the Kansas City Social Media Club and a few other social media users to raise money for Wayside Waifs.

Here's the deal: A $15 donation gets you in the Brooksider (6330 Brookside Plaza) and you can stuff your face with pizza from Pizza 51 (and food from Sysco and the Brooksider), drink all the beer from Boulevard and Barnyard Brewery (or Vitamin Water for the non-drinkers) you want and check out Reach and The Threes from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. And your $15 goes to Wayside Waifs. All of it?

"Every penny is going to go to Wayside Waifs," says Bonnie Goldberg, who's helping with the Twestival. "It really is incredible. Everyone is stepping up."

There's no overhead because everything is being donated, Goldberg says. Everyone involved deserves a big kudos to everyone involved.

Wayside Waifs will take the money and follow the immortal words of Bob Barker and spay and neuter cats and dogs.

If you just want to give to Wayside Waifs, there's an online donation site also set up (but then you won't get the pizza, beer and music). Try to say no after watching  this video of caged, sad-faced puppies.

custompapertoys.com

See Matt Hawkins' crazy custom toys at the Emerald Space.

​ 1. Appreciate art in the West Bottoms. Tonight, the Emerald Space hosts The Proper Assortment, a group show by Phil Shafer, Tyler Coey and Matt Hawkins.

2. Contemplate rape, society and victimhood. Those are the themes of Extremities, the heavy show opening tonight the Just Off Broadway Theater The production is presented by Minds Eye Theatre company.

3. Laugh your ass off. The Kansas City Improv Festival continues tonight and Saturday at the Off Center Theater.

4. Walk for your health -- and someone else's. On Saturday, Theis Park is the setting for Kansas City's Walk for PKD, which stands for the terrifying and deadly phrase "polycystic kidney disease."



5. Watch a movie that was made in KC. On Saturday, the Lawrence Arts Center is screening Fight Night, a movie about a chick with mad mixed martial arts ability.

6. Support local music. The Crossroads Music Festival brings some 25 KC-area bands to various Crossroads stages on Saturday.

For more ways to use up the weekend, see The Pitch calendar.

See art like this piece by Deng Wushu on display in the Crossroads.

​

1. Meander all over the Crossroads because it's First Friday, yo.

2. Party down in Independence Square, where the Santa Cali Gon Days Festival kicks off today.

3. Party downtown, where the Kansas City Irish Festival starts today.

4. Get ready for some football -- Australian style. On Saturday, local Australian rules football teams square off in Gillham Park.

5. Get greasy. The two-day rockabilly car/art/movie/drinking fest known as Greaserama happens Saturday and Sunday at Boulevard Drive-In.

6. Go swimming for the last time. Jackson County beaches close for swimming on Monday, which happens to be Labor Day.

Camp KC has a cool story about local radio personality and HIV/AIDS outreach worker Mario Canedo organizing the metro's first Latino Gay Pride event Saturday, Sept. 12, in Hyde Park. The free event is scheduled to run from 1 p.m. to 7 pm.  and feature soccer and volleyball, music, and discussions and education on LGBT issues. If you have a chance, you should check it out.

I wrote a profile of Canedo for this year's Sex Issue. Besides talking about adult issues on his La Super X radio show, Canedo does HIV/AIDS education work for the Good Samaritan

​Project. The organization's director of development, Paul Showalter, credited Canedo for major breakthroughs creating a dialogue with Latinos that no one had been able to talk to before. "Because of Mario, we've had major breakthroughs. He's engaging hundreds of people, in the course of a year, we wouldn't engage otherwise," Showalter says. "And things started to open up."

So if you've got some time on the 12th, stop by Hyde Park. Canedo's one of the good guys.

1. Do the time warp. Rocky Horror Picture Show is screening for free at City Market Friday night.

2. Cut it out. Comedian Dave Coulier (aka Uncle Joey to Full House fans) shares the laughs at Stanford's Comedy Club Friday night and Saturday.

3. Walk the dog. On Saturday morning, there's a charity dog-walking event called Too Cool to Drool happening at Frontier Park.

4. Embrace your inner geek. Lenexa Community Center is hosting the MO-KAN Comic Con all day Saturday and Sunday.

5. Breathe in the bacon. The salty smell of it, plus culinary and musical adoration of it will permeate the West Bottoms during Bacon-Fest on Saturday.

6. Eat for cheap in the Power & Light District. Sunday is the final day of District Restaurant Week, during which diners get discounted meals and go home with gift cards at the end of their meal.

1. Ogle a young Jake Gyllenhall. Donnie Darko screens at the Central Branch of the Kansas City, Missouri, Public Library tonight.

2. Ogle some urban fashion. The styles of local designer Clevon Jones will be on display tonight at America's Pub.

3. Look up. Trick planes will be overhead Saturday and Sunday during the Kansas City Aviation Fair and Expo.

4. Hang on the edge of your seat Saturday night at Municipal Auditorium as the Kansas City Roller Warriors do battle.

5. Learn how to live better during Greenfest 2009 at the Uptown Shoppes all day Saturday and Sunday.

6. Listen to a rock and roll poet. Charly "The City Mouse" Fasano reads aloud at Prospero's on Sunday night.

​CM Punk doesn't smoke, drink or do drugs. He's straight edge (even has a Pepsi logo tattooed on his shoulder). Of course, in the world of WWE, he's the bad guy.

Punk is chasing World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Hardy. It's a natural feud since Hardy has twice violated the WWE's "wellness policy" (three strikes and Vince McMahon growls, "You're fired," for real).

Punk and Hardy will rassle Sunday in a "tables, ladders and chairs" match at SummerSlam. But tonight, at the Sprint Center, Punk teams with the Hart Dynasty (Tyson Kidd and David Hart Smith) against a reunited Jeff and Matt Hardy (long story of brother betraying brother, arson and dog killing here) and John Morrison in the main event of Friday Night SmackDown. Bell time is 6:30 p.m. They'll also tape tonight's ECW show, which airs on Syfy at 9 p.m. Then it's SmackDown, which may be Jeff Hardy's last appearance on the show for a while (Hardy's contract is up, and he's supposedly taking time off).

1. Ooh and ah at some of the prettiest darn things in nature -- butterflies. Powell Gardens is hosting a Festival of Butterflies today through Sunday.

2. Go see a play under the moonlight. Chicago is on stage through Sunday at Starlight Theatre.

3. Go to Warrensburg. Kickass neo-classic country band Adam Lee and the Dead Horse Sound Company will be honky tonkin' at Bottomfeeder Bay on Saturday night.

4. Admire the genius of this guy:

Big Shots, an exhibit of photos by Andy Warhol opens Saturday at the Spencer Museum of Art on the KU campus in Lawrence.

5. Attend the Grammy Awards of Kansas City, aka the Pitch Music Awards. The red carpet (ok, not really) rolls out for the local music royalty at 8 p.m. Sunday at the Uptown Theater.

For more ways to waste your weekend, see The Pitch calendar.

The G.I. Joe movie wasn't that bad. It wasn't good. Lowered expectations make everything better. So the 2009 G.I. Joe Convention (starting August 13 at the Hyatt Regency) probably won't be as weepy as a Dashboard Confessional concert. Even so, Cobra Commander plans to crash the party.
 

Here's what we think you should do this weekend:

1. Wander aimlessly around the Crossroads because it's First Friday. As usual, there'll be tons of art to gawk at. Plus, there's a fashion show by Lovesick Clothing happening at Blue Bouquet.

2. Honor a decade of Anodyne Records. Tonight, Czar Bar is the site of the rockin' anniversary show, featuring Valley Arena, Roman Numerals and Little Brazil.

3. Take in a movie at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. There's a free screening of the super sexy Mississippi Masala, starring Denzel Washington, on Saturday afternoon.

4. Party like it's 1955. There's a Sock Hop happening at the Brick on Saturday night.

​ This lowrider rolled up for last year's Wild West Showdown.

5. Hang out with some lowriders. The second annual Wild West Showdown -- a block party and car show -- hits the West Bottoms, on Union Avenue between Mulberry and Santa Fe, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $1 or free if you bring a canned good.

The third best show on Adult Swim will be in Riverside tonight. That's not a knock by the way.

​They're competing with (1) Metalocalypse and (2) Aqua Teen Hunger Force, after all.

Series creators Seth Green and Matthew Senreich will be in town along with Gym Class Heroes to promote the DVD release of Robot Chicken Star Wars Episode II. In case you missed it on the air, you'll laugh your fucking face off. Promise. Unless you hate things that are hilarious in which case you suck and I hate you.

The event starts at 8 p.m. at the RiverRoll Skate Center, 4720 NW Gateway, in Riverside. But you can get in an hour earlier if you own a copy of the DVD, so you've still got time to hit a store. For a hint of what's to come, check out the Robot Chicken tour blog here.

Tags: Matthew Senreich, Robot Chicken, Seth Green, Star Wars Episode II

Majora Carter is serious about solving urban blight.

​ An event happening in Kansas City on August 20 rhymes with Red X. But just the fact that it's happening at the Nelson-Atkins Museum makes TEDx the diametric opposite of Riverside's favorite liquor and random supply store.

The concept behind TEDx is actually a little hard to get your head around. TED stands for "technology, entertainment and design" and is the acronym for a brainstorming conference that's been happening since 1984. According to a press release, the August 20 event is "a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. The August 20 event is called TEDxKC, where x=independently organized TED event." Three different speakers -- Majora Carter, John Gerzema and Adam Johnson -- will give presentations on the theme "Breakdown/Breakthrough: A Sobering/Uplifting Consideration of What's Next." Avant-garde local musician Mark Southerland will also perform with his Urban Noise Camp.

Although we're still unclear about just what's going to happen, the Nelson assures us that TEDx, which is free to attend, will fill Atkins Auditorium to capacity. So if you're curious about consumerism, urban renewal and how art museums balance art presentation and preservation, reserve your TEDx seat today.

​By far, the best new-to-me news of the day is that the 2009 G.I. Joe Convention will be held in Kansas City at the Hyatt Regency Crown Center two weeks from now. Can't wait for all the folks dressed up like Destro, Cobra Commander and, of course, the Baroness.

The convention comes a week after the release of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (August 7), so maybe we can all share a good cry over how terrible the movie was for all of the obvious reasons (Marlon Wayans, power suits, giving Cobra Commander a new outfit because he supposedly looked too much like a Klan member). That movie better have PSAs at the end.

The convention runs August 13-16. Friday morning, they'll be parachuting 300 limited-editon action figures from 42 floors up,  but the big shows will be Saturday (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and Sunday (9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.). Tickets cost $12 for adults and $8 for children (although kids 4 and under get in free). Here's the full brochure.

Knowing is half the battle.

1. Get to know a man-eating plant. Friday night at 9 p.m., there's a free, outdoor screening of the Little Shop of Horrors at 9 p.m. at City Market.

2. Hot it up. Starting Friday night at 8 p.m., Summer Salsa Fever at Harrah's VooDoo Lounge features some heavy hitters from the world of salsa music.

3. Reflect upon the art, life and legacy of wacky author William S. Burroughs. An exhibition of his artwork opens for one night only Saturday at Lawrence's DotDotDot Art Space. Another Burroughs-centric show opens Sunday at the Bourgeois Pig.

4. Check out some roller derby action. The KC Roller Warriors get brutal starting at 7 p.m. Saturday at Hale Arena.

5. Support Susan G. Komen for the Cure and rock out to Softee and others at Mammapalooza Saturday night at Crossroads Live behind Grinders. The show starts at 7 p.m. and a whopping 100 percent of ticket sales go to the charity to fight breast cancer.

For more ideas of how to waste your weekend (or at least get wasted), see The Pitch calendar of events.

  1. Party with us. Crossroads KC at Grinders is the site of tonight's Pitch Block Party, with rockabilly from the Rumblejetts and Rev. Horton Heat.

2. Head out to the K. The Royals take on the Texas Rangers tonight at 7:10 p.m.

3. Frolic around Waldo. Saturday's Frickin' Frolic Pub Crawl visits various bars and raises money for Allyson Frick Dobson, who suffered a massive stroke last year.

4. Take in a little disc golf. The PDGA Disc Golf World Championships are happening at courses around the metro from Saturday through August 1.

5. Go swimming! Jackson County's beaches at Longview Lake and Blue Springs Lake are open for the summer.

Caught Seth Green a couple of nights ago on the Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien (Yeah, I'm still watching), and Green talked about hitting a bunch of roller rinks to promote Robot Chicken's second Star Wars DVD (out Tuesday). Turns out Green's roller disco tour is coming to the KC area. Well, sort of. The KC stop is up north at River Roll Skate Center (4720 N.W. Gateway, Riverside, Missouri) on August 6. Green won't be alone. He's bringing along Breckin Meyer, Matt Senreich (Robot Chicken's co-creator) and Gym Glass Heroes (they'll perform). Strap on some skates (and knee pads) and roll with Green, Star Wars geeks and groupies (oh my!).

Man, I've been seeing ads for "Todd's" Downtown Banana Lounge showing up a lot lately.



The promise of free beer intrigues me. Strangely, the ads haven't said where Saturday night's grand opening party was located or what time the party starts. Hmm. So I dialed up the "Todd" in Todd's Downtown Banana Lounge: Todd Berkowitz.

Todd cleared up the oversight, saying everything starts at 7 and the place to be is the southwest corner of 18th and Central in the Crossroads. Todd's favorite drink, he was sure to mention, is Clear 10 Vodka with a banana wedge. Mm hmm. But this guy knows how to market a party. Who can resist "free beer" and "classy broads"? But Todd insisted that the grand opening is a VIP affair, though he told me he'd welcome all party people who e-mail him.

But how can I doubt Todd after the guys at Bicmedia, home of the Celsius Tannery jingle, vouched for him in song.

Laugh out loud at hillbilly jokes. Comedian Jon Reep performs at Stanford and Sons Comedy Club at the Legends tonight and Saturday.

See how some local actors compare with Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler. The musical theater adaptation of The Wedding Singer opens tonight at Theatre in the Park in Shawnee.

Munch on some tasty sweet corn. On Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Powell Gardens is having a Sweet Corn Fest.

On Saturday night, head downtown to Crosstown Station for some rock and roll and burlesque. The Ex Post Facto Show features Cretin 66, Rocket to Saturn and Two Gun Tease Burlesque.

Or, put the fishnets on yourself and watch the Rocky Horror Picture Show on Saturday night at Screenland.

On Sunday, hang out by the shuttlecock and watch a good, old-fashioned puppet show, presented by the StoneLion Puppet Theater, on the lawn of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.

This is an untitled piece of art by Greg Crawford.

 Spend some time at Writers Place. Tonight, Kansas Poet Laureate Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg and "Brown Suga Poet" Stacey Tolbert will read from their works, starting at 8 p.m. It's also opening night for a Greg Crawford: Stacks, a new art exhibition at mansion where writers mingle.

Get the song "Somewhere Out There" stuck in your head. The cartoon An American Tail screens for free at 7 tonight at the Kansas City Museum as part of the Free Fridays in July entertainment series.

Sidle up to a snake. The Kansas City Reptile Show happens at the Overland Park Holiday Inn Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Ponder the collage art of Lawrence record label owner/budding artist Zach Hangauer. His first exhibition opens Saturday at Wonder Fair: Art Gallery and How!

Celebrate America. Duh -- it's Fourth of July weekend. But seriously, Worlds of Fun is having a Celebrate America Festival every Friday and Saturday in July. Since you're probably not working today, you should just go now. As a reward for surviving the Orient Express, there will be fireworks in the evening.

If you want to wait until Saturday to get your Independence Day on, head to the Crossroads. Due to the holiday, some galleries are waiting until next weekend to hold their monthly openings. But some, like the Pi Gallery, are doing the regular First Friday thing.

Watch the skies for bursts of color! Click for info on a bunch of fireworks happenings across the metro.

Before it gets dark, though, you should totally head to the National World War I Museum and let Rin Tin Tin's great great great great (maybe some more greats) grandpuppy lick your face. His appearance is part of a bunch of patriotic activities planned at the museum on Saturday.


Image courtesy Flickr: delgaudm

July's First Friday is proximal to the patriotic distraction of Independence Day, and maybe you're not so much thinking about art. While it's clearly important to drink American beer while listening to Toby Keith and reading the Constitution by the light of exploding fireworks this weekend, there are some art exhibits open in the Crossroads Art District on Friday night, among which you'll find an informal non-reception at the Late Show (1600 Cherry) for artists Steven Frink and David Gant.

Gallery owner Tom Deatherage will mount a full reception for the artists next Friday, but if you're in the neighborhood this week, he'll have the doors open and Gant's exhibit, American Family, is a knockout. Reinterpreting a collection of old family photographs in an anxious, gestural style, Gant's impressionist figures are mundanity heightened to a painterly beatitude. His tactile brushwork both veils and exaggerates his subjects, and creates an urge to touch the canvas which I'll just stipulate here that I was able to suppress because I am totally a professional.

Likewise, Steven Frink's impressive abstractions are objects of careful craftsmanship, but we don't have any digital images to post. Just getting images of Gant's work from the beloved and crazy Deatherage was like pulling teeth; we figured a bird in the hand was worth two in the bush and you shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. "Why rock the boat?" we might have been heard to say.

Anyway, Frink's carefully layered paintings are a result of deliberately distressed canvas and successive passes of earthy colors and geometric patterns which are really kind of hard to describe, but which are very impressive in person. Thanks to Deatherage's eye for great work, his relationships with area artists and his constant search for emerging talent, the Late Show Gallery remains a mandatory First Friday destination for art collectors and enthusiasts.