Great Undertakings

Sara Edlin-Marlowe sits in the KPBX broadcast booth, devising descriptions of her husband, Bill Marlowe. "He's like a big kid," she says, "though he's grown up a lot in the last 21 years" since the two of them first met in graduate school

• by Michael Bowen

Live From New York

It changed comedy, television and pop culture, and it unfolded from the most unlikely corporate, midtown Manhattan location: the 17th floor of NBC's Rockefeller Center. Lost in a haze of marijuana smoke, where sex partners were swapped li

• by Eric Boehlert

Out of Bounds

Who wouldn't be tempted? A picture-perfect ski run topped with virgin, cloud-soft powder. Nothing but pure, beckoning wilderness and untouched slopes. Just you and the mountain, slicing perfect S-turns in a state of total bliss. Every skiing m

• by Dan Egan

Recently Reviewed

by Inlander Staff Lindaman's -- Perched at the top of Grand Blvd., Lindaman's offers sophisticated-but-comforting caf & eacute; fare. A glass display case contains all the salads, entrees and desserts. Salads and pasta dishes are sold by the pound and vary in pric

• by n/a

Back to Hogwarts

The visit to Harry Potter's miserable home life is a mercifully quick one in the opening moments of the sequel (which is going to outdo the stunning blockbuster business of the first). Before anything beyond a mischievous sight gag or two is

• by Ed Symkus

Ban The Billboard

Instructed by the many billboard regulation and removal initiatives that are succeeding at reducing visual clutter in cities and counties across the country, our county commissioners -- two of them anyway -- have agreed on a course of actio

• by Robert Herold

Getaway - Mt. Bachelor

Any hope that residents of Bend, Oregon, may have had of keeping "their" backyard jewel of Mt. Bachelor a secret have been long since dashed. Twenty years ago, Bend was a depressed lumber mill town of 15,000 people, and M

The Contender

There's a sophisticated new kid on the block on Coeur d'Alene's Sherman Avenue. Brix opened last summer in a building that used to house an antique store in which the most notable items were huge taxidermied specimens of various North

• by Lauren McAllister

Horse Sense

Art is never about what it shows us. When we look at a painting -- say the "Mona Lisa" -- we see much more than some colored oils dried on a surface. Most viewers would even say that a description of the work as "a portrait of a lady" is i

• by Marty Demarest

Mountain Movies

Warren Miller's Storm -- The old man's at it again. For the 53rd time, Warren Miller delivers a ski and snowboard film set in exotic locations and full of reckless aerial antics. Let's just say that if the stunts in Storm are death-defyin

• by Michael Bowen

Opening Films

Auto Focus -- Director Paul Schrader's look at the life and dark times of Bob Crane -- the man who starred in Hogan's Heroes -- is aided by a spot-on performance by Greg Kinnear in the lead. But the story itself is continually fascinating.

• by Inlander Staff

The Real Deal

Sandpoint artist Stephen Lyman achieved remarkable commercial success prior to his death in a 1996 hiking accident at the age of 38. His precise yet ethereal paintings of wilderness and wildlife captured the hearts of a broad audience of

• by Ann Colford

& amp;quot;Don't Do Me Like That & amp;quot;

The man who told the world "I Won't Back Down," "Don't Do Me Like That" and "Don't Come Around Here No More" doesn't need any assertiveness-training course. Tom Petty's determined, sometimes defiant attitude has collided with the music busin

• by David Wild

Nosedive

So, the Democrats have paid the price for a cowardly, half-hearted, inept campaign, and they didn't even see it coming. The party used to be handy with campaign mechanics: good polling, energetic at the precinct

Recently Reviewed

by Inlander Staff Thrifty Scotsman -- Man, saving coin never tasted so good. The Thrifty Scotsman gets most everything exactly right in terms of quality, price and friendly service. And that includes big, juicy burgers. The $2.59 Super Bacon is essentiall

• by n/a

Get On The Bus

There's a moment in Flyin' West when two women are lamenting the absence of a third woman, their sister. Seems that Minnie has gone off to London with her high-falutin' poet-husband to live in high society -- worlds removed from the Kansas

• by Michael Bowen

Media Bias

Conspiracy theories have a certain appeal: the promise of order. If it was more than a lone gunman who shot JFK, or if the Kennedys killed Marilyn, or if Jeb Bush and Kathleen Harris conspired to throw the 2000 election -- then at least

• by Kathy M. Newman

Now Playing

Abandon -- A college senior (Katie Holmes) is tormented by visions of the boyfriend who disappeared during her freshman year at an Ivy League school. Her mysterious inside knowledge of the case makes her a suspect, and she finds herself

• by Inlander Staff

Tech Tip - Tablet PC

We Americans want our coffees "grande," our lunches "supersized" and our mini-vans to be not-so-mini. But when it comes to technology, smaller is better. So it's no surprise that Microsoft recently rolled out what it's touting as the nex

• by Marty Demarest

Letters to The Editor

Embrace the Dynasty -- The elections are over. Come celebrate our plutocracy! Bow to the wealthy and powerful, though we seldom see them. Forbes magazine has the list. Nations of people may fear us, but surely we Americans are not to b

• by Inlander Readers

Opening Films

Bowling For Columbine -- Documentarian and savage satirist Michael Moore points his cameras and his tough questions at the subject of guns in America. Starting with the massacre at Columbine High School, he goes on to look at murder and

• by Inlander Staff

Coast Of Utopia

South Pacific isn't just happily-ever-after fluff. One of the major characters dies near the end, and much of the plot zeroes in on race prejudice -- heavy matters for a half-century ago, and still not exactly escapist fare. So why does o

• by Michael Bowen

Made in America

Since 1988, Whitworth College's annual Redmond Reading program has been bringing talented writers to Spokane. Familiar names such as William Stafford, Tess Gallagher, Sherman Alexie and Joy Harjo have been among the authors brought to cam

• by Kris Dinnison

Movie Heaven

John Sayles may be American independent cinema's great proponent of getting intelligently lost. Or, as some might have it, he's our preachiest author of wonderful roles for talented actors, as well as lovely, smart dialogue. Sunshine State,

• by Ed Symkus

Snow Show

Take a large measure of Inland Northwest winter sports, sprinkle in some entrepreneurial spirit, mix well, and you've created a delicious marketing event suitable for serving thousands of local skiing and snowboarding fanatics. Your chef

• by Michael Bowen

Filling the Idea Vacuum

As discussed in this column a few weeks back, it's always been tough to make a case for the Democratic Party in this year's election. Even before 9/11, Democrats simply could not frame a clear message. Political disarray showed early on,

• by Robert Herold

Now Playing

8 Mile -- There's a reason that Eminem is so popular on the hip-hop scene: He's good at what he does. And he's also quite good, it turns out, at acting, here playing a slightly less edgy version of himself in director Curtis Hanson's (L.A. Confidential) f

• by n/a

Charting Difficult Territory

The physical world can be mapped in the cartographical sense, laid out in neat square-inch grids with the lakes colored in blue, the roads limned in black and red, the national forests neatly parceled out in green. But it can also be mapped

• by Sheri Boggs

Local Resort Report

49 DEGREES NORTH -- This year, 49 Degrees North has made some changes, from an amazing new run to pizza ovens in the lodge. John Eminger, owner since 1996, is excited about the new season. With the range of changes he has made in th

• by Megan B. McCarthy

WSU On The Rise

Time was, not so many years ago, when more than one critic suggested that Washington State should abandon the Pacific-10 Conference and join, say, the Big Sky Conference. Too small a school, many reasoned. Too isolated, others said. Why

• by Howie Stalwick

Skating Away

Remember that scene at the start of the Charlie Brown Christmas Special? The one where all the Peanuts kids skate around a little pond as snowflakes float down out of a cotton-gray sky? For me and lots of others who came of age in Americ

• by Ann Colford

Local Resort Report

& & 49 DEGREES NORTH & & -- This year, 49 Degrees North has made some changes, from an amazing new run to pizza ovens in the lodge. John Eminger, owner since 1996, is excited about the new season. With the range of changes he h

• by Megan B. McCarthy

Fish in a Barrel

The weird title comes from the fact that Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the two teens responsible for the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School, went bowling early in the morning before arriving at the school. The weird -- and terrific -- fil

• by Ed Symkus

Buzz Bin

Skate America Wrap-Up -- Well, folks, I think we can all agree that it was a big success. Not only did we get to see Michelle Kwan, Skate America's eleventh-hour replacement for Sarah Hughes, the world got to see a little bit of us, what

• by Inlander Staff

How to Build an Igloo

A basic snow fort or snowball fight bunker is easy enough to slap together. Snow can be rolled, scooped or shoveled and packed together into sprawling ramparts that provide some protection from your opponent's merciless volleys of icy whi

• by Mike Corrigan

Unveiling the Er-Hu

t's a wild, risk-taking endeavor on everyone's part," laughs Kendall Feeney, who on Friday launches her 12th and final season as the artistic director of Spokane's only contemporary chamber music ensemble with a concert called Asian Zeph

• by Marty Demarest

Simply MJ

Vacations at home -- Taking a vacation can be as simple as staying right where you are. Announce your plans to everyone around you and find at least two days -- a weekend maybe, or better yet three to five days -- and take a vacation at

• by Mary Jane Butters

Swords & amp;amp; Scoops

A new shop on Moran Prairie puts a different face on the customary pink, frou-frou ice cream parlor. At the Swordsman, the d & eacute;cor is straight out of Camelot, with gold trellises and gates, leafy wainscoting on the walls, immense swords ba

• by Susan Hamilton

DVD Review - E.T.

Even though his recent films A.I. and Minority Report have been the mildly disappointing, Steven Spielberg is still a major player in Hollywood, largely because of his past success. And back in 1982 when he broke all box-office records w

• by Marty Demarest

Two Keepers

Congress, Fifth District & amp; State Senate, Sixth District -- It's a sad fact: Spokane and Eastern Washington need all the help they can get. Despite all the national talk of war, this election has to be about economic development -- aka job

• by Inlander Staff

Quotes & amp;amp; Notes

$15.7 million -- That's the best guess as to how much money taxpayers have donated, willingly or not, to President George W. Bush's fundraising efforts over the past year. It's the price to ferry him around the United States on Air Force

• by Inlander Staff

CD Review - Peter Gabriel

There's no doubt that expectations for Peter Gabriel's new album Up were running a little high. After all, 1992's Us had delivered such memorable and radio-friendly fare as "Steam" and "Digging in the Dirt," and the fire that had originally

• by Sheri Boggs

Quotes & amp;amp; Notes

It's that time of year again. Sure, it's time to pick our leaders who will represent us as major decisions are pondered. Yadda, yadda, yadda. More important, of course, is that it's time for another installment of The Inlander's Campaign

• by Inlander Staff

Paying the Bills

Last year around this time, the first fight between the newly elected strong mayor and the city council was in full swing, but it was billed by everyone involved as a "learning experience." There was a new form of government to adjust to,

• by Pia K. Hansen

In Brief

PETA to the Rescue -- SPOKANE -- The world's largest animal rights organization, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), has sent a letter to Spokane County Prosecutor Steve Tucker. The letter was prompted by the recent arres

• by Inlander Staff

In Brief

At it Again -- SPOKANE -- The city's Office of Neighborhood Services will be hosting two open houses about the proposed annexation of the West Plains area next week. Representatives from several city departments, including deputy Director

• by Inlander Staff

Going For The Gavel

Position Four -- Patti Connolly Walker vs. John Rodgers Patti Connolly Walker Judges bring to the bench life experiences and legal backgrounds that are indelibly etched into their worldviews. The candidates for position No. 4 have dram

• by n/a

Flying the Flag

The Republicans' historic victories in last week's midterm elections owed a great deal to a surge in white voter turnout in the rural South, notably in South Carolina and Georgia, where incumbent Democratic governors, as well as U.S. Senat

• by Sean Wilentz

County Clash

District One -- When Gus Johnson took office back in January 2001, he says he already knew he would seek a second term as one of Kootenai County's commissioners. "You know, a two-year term is sort of a short time to serve," says Johnson

• by Pia K. Hansen.

CD Review - 8 Mile Soundtrack

It's become the trend to start taking Eminem seriously -- largely because he won't go away. Even with an endless number of true hip-hop artists -- most of them black and better -- America seems to wants its funky music from a white boy. And

• by Marty Demarest

A Winning Ticket?

When someone says "casino," the image readily comes to mind of little blue-haired ladies and balding men spending their social security checks, while sitting hunched over their favorite machines, readily comes to mind. But is that image f

• by Pia K. Hansen

Andrewmania

There was a time, you may recall, when rock had become boring, watered down, safe. The clean-and-sanitized-for-your-comfort plan opted for by the recording industry was killing the music of teen rebellion. Something had to be done. Someon

• by Mike Corrigan

Complex Kid

Where do you file a band like Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise? Under pop? Soul? Rock? Unless you are a radio programmer or a music store clerk, do yourself a favor and don't bother. With Blackwater Surprise, all things flow from sing

• by Mike Corrigan

Supreme Contest

Position Three -- Who is the fairest of them all? Each candidate in the race for the open seat on the state Supreme Court, Position Three, insists they will follow the law, not their own personal views. Jim Johnson, a folksy, passio

• by George Howland Jr.