News

The January 16 announcement that former Governor Bill Owens and his wife, Frances, will be divorcing after 33 years of marriage was handled briefly and with decorum by the Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News. This decision echoes the approach taken by the papers around the time of the…

In 1998, Westword published its fifteenth Best of Denver issue, a celebration of the city that saluted everything from Best Local Girl Made Good (Pam Grier, an East High grad and ’70s star suddenly back in fashion with Jackie Brown) to Best Game: Super Bowl XXXII, that day in January…

A crew of friends from Denver traveled thousands of miles to help the children of Haiti, the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country, and were profiled in the January 3 feature “The Social Conscience of a Missionary.” They brought shoes, school supplies, clothes, money and, most importantly, friendship to Haitians from kindergarten…

Back in November Westword published “The Poisoned Pen of Fort Lyon,” which examined the toxic history of Fort Lyon, a frontier fort turned veterans’ hospital turned prison. Since the place was turned over to the Colorado Department of Corrections in 2001, there have been numerous instances of inmates being exposed…

Chipotle is the great democratizer. Unlike other fast food companies, our home-grown burrito chain attracts a wide cast of characters into its space shuttle-like eateries. It’s earth-friendly enough for the hippies. Quick enough for the corporate lunch break drones. And cheap enough for the broke folks. The Barack Obama of…

Colorado Public Radio has finally landed a second FM signal in the Denver area. On January 16, the network announced that it had agreed to acquire KFDN, at 88.1 FM, from California-based Educational Media Foundation for $8.2 million. Once the Federal Communications Commission approves the transaction, as all parties expect…

“Cry, Cry Again,” Patricia Calhoun, January 10 A Crying Shame I thought “Cry, Cry, Again” was interesting, informative and amusing. Deep down, it made it uncomfortably clear to me that, again, sexism in this country might prevent a very qualified woman from being president. That’s a shame. We must get…

When most of us leave one job for another, we might get a week or two off to put our affairs in order if we’re fortunate, and considerably less time if we’re not. By this standard, Rick Reilly is the luckiest man in the galaxy. In late October, ESPN announced…

On a sunny afternoon last fall, Muhammad Ali Hasan walked into a diner in Meeker, a farming town in Colorado’s northwestern corner. It was the thick of hunting season, and the Meeker Cafe, an old brick building dotted with mounted deer heads, was filled with men who had just come…

The trial began Wednesday against three people, Glenn Morris, Julie Todd and Koreena Montoya, who were arrested on October 6 and charged with blocking the annual Columbus Day Parade. Charges against a fourth anti-Columbus Day agitator, Russell Means, were dismissed by a Denver County Court Judge (eliciting a cheer from…

Somebody with the Guerilla Garden — the erstwhile graffiti advocacy syndicate and clearinghouse for corporate entities who want graf writers to throw up paid ad pieces — has been busy these days. Seen above, the Garden’s gorilla mascot has been popping up all over the city recently. Here are some…

It’s a simple meal. Two eggs, four strips of bacon, wonderfully greasy hash browns, a biscuit, a side of gravy for said biscuit, five coffee refills, and as many pint-glass mimosas as the good and responsible barkeeps at Dixon’s Downtown Grill will allow me to order. I could probably spend…

Anti-tax crusader Douglas Bruce has long been an object of intense study here at Westword. This morning, media columnist Michael Roberts compiled this great list of notes we’ve taken on Bruce in his natural habitat. But it was the act that occasioned this list, the kicking of Rocky Mountain News…

How do you order right? I wish the answer were as simple as saying, “Order the simple stuff, forget the complicated” — or the reverse, “Order the authentic, the difficult to pronounce, and ignore the rest.” But at Ali Baba, it’s not that easy. This place has a learning curve,…

Nolan Ryan vs. Ventura Major League Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan will be honored as grand marshall of the National Western Stock Show parade today for his Nolan Ryan Guaranteed Tender Beef. Ryan’s unique tenderizing process is exhibited here on Robin Ventura. Click here for more info on the parade…

Douglas Bruce began his career as a Colorado representative with his best foot forward. On January 14, the pride of Colorado Springs booted Rocky Mountain News photographer Javier Manzano for the sin of snapping a shot of him during the state house’s morning prayer. The kick, as captured on video,…

American as Apple Pie and Daisey-Cutters, Olde Tyme Drafts and Dawgs hosted their monthly hot dog eating contest on Saturday. Read all about the gluttonous glory here. And again Denver proves that its local music scene is truly something special with Saturday’s hi-dive show featuring Eric Bachmann, Ian Cooke, and…

“Yeah, I need some money, I got a warrant out.” Sentences like that are, for some reason, never uttered quietly. I’m always amazed by this, because I wouldn’t want everyone around me to know about my warrant (don’t worry, I took care of it.) I suppose in the context of…

The rules of the competition were simple: the first person to eat fifteen hot dogs (or “dawgs” to use the preferred spelling) wins a year’s supply of these tubular meats. A two-hour time limit was enforced and all trips outside and to the bathroom had to be accompanied by a…

At last, the pairings for the two NFL conference championship games are set: The San Diego Chargers face off against the New England Patriots in the AFC contest, while the Green Bay Packers take on the New York Giants for NFC supremacy. These aren’t exactly dream matchups for Colorado football…