Once upon a time in a land not so far, far away, our head exploded. more ›

SPELLING BEES: The Re-bar's adult spelling bee was on Evening Magazine recently so there may be an even stronger turnout than usual. more ›

SEATTLE ARTS & LECTURES: Art Spiegelman's 1992 Holocaust tale Maus (based on a true story) won the first Pulitzer Prize awarded to a comic book. Its success paved the way for the graphic novels thriving today and led to Spiegelman's ten years on the staff of the New Yorker. In the Shadow of No Towers (2004) gathers his recent broadsheets of disenchantment with the war on terror. more ›

It seems that everyone in town is buzzing about Maya Lin's new exhibition at the Henry Art Gallery. Personally, we only really know Lin through her premiere memorial in DC, and, really, there is no denying the power and simplicity of that work. There is, however, great scope to her work. The Vietnam Memorial launched her career, but she is also responsible for another simple, powerful monument--the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama. Creating works which inspire reflection and hope without trivializing the events they commemorate is a difficult line to walk. With the amount of criticism she endured from her first project, her own resilience has also become a subtext of her work. In fact, the 1995 Academy Award winner for best documentary, A Strong Clear Vision, revealed that resilience and exposed the sensitive soul that accompanies it. more ›

To be fair, you didn't expect the Ray Harryhausen talk at the Science Fiction Museum last night to sell out either, did you? But it did, and even though we hinted that we were from a globe-spanning blog empire, they refused to let us in. "You know, Mr. Seattlest golfs with Mr. Allen frequently," we lied pathetically. But no soap. more ›

Only a couple minutes into Duma, the latest film from Carroll Ballard, king of mature-minded animal flicks (The Black Stallion, Fly Away Home), one thing becomes abundantly clear: Baby cheetahs are really, really f-ing cute. Their fur is all mottled and super fluffy. Rather than meowing, they make a little bird-like peep. We totally want one. more ›

If the Academy Awards---now but a distant, boring memory---got you feenin’ for some short films of the animated, live action, or documentary variety, you’re in luck. The Northwest Film Forum, located on Capitol Hill between Pike and Pine, is currently showing seven of the Oscar-nominated animated and live action shorts, all in one sitting. The selection includes both winners of the short film Oscars, Ryan for best animated and Wasp for best live action. Act fast, because these films will only be showing twice a night, 7pm and 9:15pm, now through Thursday. Tickets are $8, available here. more ›