Washington City Paper: Contents for Feb. 6

Burned Out
Man vs. neighbor. Man vs. car. Man vs. thief. Man vs. fire.

Cover Story

Nothing could protect Herbert “Tony” Copeland from the taunts. He could hear them as he tended his back yard. He could hear them as he entertained guests on his stoop. He could hear them as he drove through his block on Gault Place NE.

Play-ah! Play-ah!

His neighborhood was quiet and empty-seeming, in a perpetual overcast. If the houses weren’t run-down, they were abandoned. And the noise, especially human noise, traveled light. People heard your business. It was such that Copeland had no escape from the porch poetry of his next-door neighbor Sylvester “Wiggles” Monroe.

Play-ah from the Himalayas!

Morning, noon, night. Didn’t matter. Wiggles, then 32, would be there sitting on the concrete slab that made up his stoop, waiting. He had come home recently, on June 19, 2001, from prison, after serving nine-and-a-half years on an assault conviction. He claimed reformation, realizing that the only thing he could do while on parole was be loud.

Play-ah!

It was once original; no longer. Copeland was broad and built like a boulder, a single parent trying to raise his two young kids. He had found his dream home. He owned an antique shop. But he had never lived in one place for too long. Wiggles’ taunts were beginning to wear on him.... Continued

Issue of Feb. 6 - 12, 2004

News and Features

Burned Out
Man vs. neighbor. Man vs. car. Man vs. thief. Man vs. fire.
Cover Story By Jason Cherkis
Hound Off
Community group rejects ban on canines.
The City By Mike DeBonis
Prude, Where’s My Car?
Misbehaving? The District wants your car keys.
The City By Annys Shin
Pop-O-Meter
The City By Tom Scocca
Toe Tagged
District plans to bury its current short-term license plates.
The City By John Metcalfe
Tear the Roof Off the Sucker
The Mail By Laura A Veney
Road Rules
The Mail By Brad King
Rhyme Scheme?
The Mail By W. Douglas Maurer
Press Passed
The Mail By Daniel Borchers
Block That Metaphor!
The Mail By David Barrows
Book Marks
The Mail By John F. Lyons
Delta Dawn
The Mail By Elijah Wald

Columns

Slurs of Endearment
Cheap Seats By Dave McKenna
Counted Out
City Desk By Chris Shott
Water Works
City Desk By Chris Shott
Here We Go Again (Version 2004)
Loose Lips By Elissa Silverman

Eats

The Empire Strikes Again
Young & Hungry By Todd Kliman

Movies

Class Actions
Film Review By Mark Jenkins
You Got Served
Film Review By Tricia Olszewski
The Perfect Score
Film Review By Josh Levin
Miracle
Film Review By Tricia Olszewski

Music

’Play Boys
Music Review By Sean Daly
Good Mourning
A few of the things we’re listening to this week, in no particular order
Music Review By Anne Marson
Acid Eaters
A few of the things we’re listening to this week, in no particular order
Music Review By Pamela Murray Winters
Soul Finger
A few of the things we’re listening to this week, in no particular order
Music Review By Jason Cherkis
Dizzy
A few of the things we’re listening to this week, in no particular order
Music Review By Glenn Dixon
Who Came First
A few of the things we’re listening to this week, in no particular order
Music Review By Shannon Zimmerman
Welcome to the Wonderful World of Ed Ball
A few of the things we’re listening to this week, in no particular order
Music Review By Leonard Roberge

Theater

Days of Future Past
Theater Review By Bob Mondello
Hazy Shade of Winter
Theater Review By Trey Graham

Arts and Events

Stop Action
Art Review By Glenn Dixon
Canvasing the Kids
Storybook encounters with Jackson Pollock speak volumes about the kind of art lovers we’d like to raise.
Arts By Glenn Dixon
Flag Of Convenience?
Show & Tell By Robert Lalasz
On Top of Spaghetti
Artifacts By Mike DeBonis
Lobby Hero
Artifacts By Louis Jacobson