Play the “Name that Crime” Quiz!

HARD TIMES AT HARDEE’S

The victim was waiting for his sister’s boyfriend to pick him up from his job at the Blank Park Zoo around 5:30 p.m. on May 13, but his ride never showed up. So he walked to a nearby Hardee’s and waited for him there. When the suspect arrived, the two got into an argument which escalated. The suspect punched the victim in the face causing a small red mark under his eye, a scrape on his head and a scratch above his eye. The manager at Hardee’s witnessed the assault and confirms the victim’s story. The victim was told to wait for an officer to come take photos of his injuries, but when officers arrived he was gone.

FOUR WHEELS VS. TWO

Cops were called to Water Works Park regarding an assault with a motor vehicle around 4 p.m. on May 8. The victim was on his bicycle and went around a vehicle that was parked in the middle of the road. Suddenly the car came up on the cyclist’s back tire, then went around him and swerved in front of him. The driver slammed on his brakes, got out and came at the victim aggressively. The victim tried to put his bike tire in between himself and the man, but the man shoved him. A woman in the vehicle screamed, “Let’s go!” The suspects were gone by the time police arrived.

‘GANG THANG’

Police were called to the 1500 block of Dean Avenue regarding a drive-by shooting that occurred around midnight on May 8. A woman was grazed by a bullet on the side of her stomach, so she went inside. Winesses told police it was a “gang thing” between Des Moines “east-siders” and “west-siders.” CV

‘The Goodwin Games’ pits family members against each other

In Fox’s promising sitcom “The Goodwin Games” (Monday, 7:30 p.m.), three estranged siblings reunite after their father (Beau Bridges) dies only to learn that he has set up a series of competitions to determine which one of them will win his fortune. This questionable approach to an inheritance echoes his questionable approach to childrearing. The siblings have all been scarred by him, each in a different way. Henry (Scott Foley) is an overachiever, Chloe (Becki Newton) a flake, Jimmy (T.J. Miller) a criminal. “The Goodwin Games” is reminiscent of Wes Anderson’s “The Royal Tenenbaums,” another bittersweet comedy about adult children broken by a bad dad. Here, daddy dearest continues to torment them from beyond the grave.

“You children could have been magnificent,” he tells them in one of his posthumous videos.

As in “The Royal Tenenbaums,” though, nothing is black-or-white. In a mere half-hour, the pilot shades Henry, Chloe and Jimmy so that they emerge as people rather than comic types. Even Jimmy, the goofiest of the siblings (check out the priceless bit in which he tries, and fails, to be sarcastic), displays unexpected tenderness to his young daughter.

I have to correct old man Goodwin. These children are magnificent, at least as characters.

‘Shark Tank’

Friday, 8 p.m. (ABC)

In the season finale, the panel of five self-made millionaires hears intriguing pitches from budding business people. A woman named Val seeks a $200,000 investment for a curated dating service in which only appealing people are picked to participate. An 11-year-old boy named Ryan seeks $25,000 for his dog-biscuit-baking enterprise, with the irresistible name The Barkery.

The episode’s would-be entrepreneurs are all likable, while the panelists… well, not so much. They leer at Val and lecture Ryan. They insult each other and guffaw at their own stupid jokes. Beady-eyed Kevin O’Leary tells two earnest restaurateurs from Cincinnati: “The whole thing is crap. Is ‘crap’ the brand?’ ”

I don’t think any of these panelists is appealing enough to be picked by Val’s curated dating service.

‘North America’

Sunday, 8 p.m. (Discovery)

This seven-part nature documentary takes us on a stunning tour of North America, gliding from the Canadian tundra to the Utah desert to the Atlantic coast. It captures majestic views of mountains and oceans, along with intimate views of animals hustling for survival. The narrator says of the continent’s untamed wilderness: “In its splendor, brutality and beauty, we find our own story.”

Well, I don’t know if I’d go that far. I didn’t really find my own story in a pregnant mountain goat that climbs into the Rockies to have her kid on an isolated ice crop. Nor did I find it in a gang of killer whales who set upon a defenseless whale cub in Alaska, holding her underwater until she drowns.

Things lighten up a bit in the remote Costa Rican jungle. A dopey-looking little bird called a red-capped mannequin hops around in ridiculous fashion, trying to get the attention of a pretty female bird. The female takes one look at the pathetic spectacle and flies away in disgust.

Finally, I have found my own story. CV

Dean Robbins is a syndicated TV columnist from Madison, Wis. He graduated from Grinnell College and went on to become an award-winning journalist, but he’s been a committed couch potato long before he figured out a way to get paid for watching TV. See more of his work at www.thedailypage.com.

Courtesy of Beaverdale Books

Review by Fay Jones

Blue Rider Press

March 7, 2013

$26.95

322 pp.

Even if you don’t know Dorothea Lange’s “Migrant Mother” by the photographer’s name or the title of her work, you would most likely recognize the famous picture itself. Depicting a worn woman looking off to the side — her hand to her chin as two of her children lean into her — it helps define the sense of the era of the Great Depression. Marisa Silver’s powerful new novel is based on this photograph, and she provides an unflinching yet beautiful portrait of what it was like to live through this fierce time in history.

Silver uses three main characters to structure the novel. “Mary Coin” is based on the true subject of the photograph; she is a 32-year-old widow who we follow from the Oklahoma Dust Bowl to California as she struggles to find work in the fields and keep her seven children alive. Her immense strength, grit and dedication to her children are humbling, yet Silver also portrays her with very real shortcomings. Vera Dare, the woman who quickly photographed Mary and her children as they waited by their car near a pea picker’s camp, is semi-biographical of Lange. Silver offers a bare portrait of Vera, an unglamorous look at a woman whose philandering artist husband abandons her as she in turn abandons her children to devote herself to her work photographing for the Resettlement Administration. The third voice in the novel brings us to the 21st century and Walker Dodge, a professor who studies the importance of everyday small things and how they create history — and also struggles with his family, his children and his work.

Silver deftly and satisfyingly reveals how Walker is related to Mary and Vera, linking their histories. She explores the meaning of a photograph, a moment frozen in time, even as she describes Mary and Vera in old age — forced in the inevitable trajectory through time — as they refer to the famous photo and what it means to them. As well as a creative reimagining of Lange’s “Migrant Mother,” this is an intense depiction of the Great Depression with reverence for the raw struggles of those involved that will no doubt linger with most readers. CV

‘DRAGON’S DOGMA: DARK ARISEN’ (M)

***

Capcom

Xbox 360

In case last year’s “Dragon’s Dogma” wasn’t difficult enough for you, here’s “Dark Arisen” — a re-release of the original game with additional content — to cause you the requisite amount of grief. For the uninitiated, “Dragon’s Dogma” combines the role-playing of your standard RPG with the beast-slaying, third-person action of “Monster Hunter.” And since you have the ability to scale and grasp onto many of the gargantuan creatures you encounter, there’s a little “Shadow of the Colossus” in there as well. You portray the Arisen, a formerly dead warrior of your own design on a mission to reclaim his (or her) heart from the dragon that swallowed it. Accompanying you on your quest are a couple A.I. teammates, referred to unflatteringly as “pawns,” and considering the new content of “Dark Arisen,” you’re going to need them more than ever.

Before you enter Bitterblack Isle — the game’s major new area — you are politely informed that your avatar should be at Level 50 or higher if he wishes to survive. Initially, the recommended level of experience seems quite accurate, but crawling little more than half way through the dark dungeons of Bitterblack, you’re likely to hit a wall and find yourself impaled upon an unexpected spike in difficulty. Claustrophobic spaces filled with multiple enemies lead to frustrating cycles of rising to your feet only to be knocked back to the ground, over and over again. The choices at that point are to either devote all of your time to reviving your fallen pawns until you inevitably succumb to your own wounds or retreat to safer ground and grind your way up beyond Level 60. Neither option does a great deal to spare you irritation. But overall, “Dragon’s Dogma” is still filled with plenty of thrilling moments. Just be sure to experience all those other moments first, so your Arisen is nice and leveled up before he tackles Bitterblack Isle.

‘POKER NIGHT 2’ (M)

***

Telltale Games

Xbox Live Arcade

For the first few hours, “Poker Night 2” is the best game of cards you’ll ever play. Not only are you treated to the hilarious banter of competitors like Ash of “Evil Dead” and Claptrap from “Borderland,” but you’re also winning! Unfortunately, you’re winning because of the game’s unchallenging (and nonadjustable) level of difficulty, and it’s only a matter of time before you’ve heard all the wittiest lines from the dealer (GLaDOS of “Portal”) and are beginning to hear them again. Eventually it’s like playing Solitaire while listening to an infinite loop of a once-great comedy CD.

‘MONACO: WHAT’S YOURS IS MINE’ (T)

****

Majesco

Xbox Live Arcade

“Monaco” is like “Ocean’s Eleven” re-created with the top-down view and primitive graphics of “Pac-Man.” Either solo or, preferably, with the aid of a multiplayer crew of specialists, you knock over casinos and other environments of affluence while avoiding alarms and security patrols. What begins as a stealth effort devolves, more often than not, into a frantic getaway, with armed guards in hot pursuit. It’s a tense affair at every stage of the heist, and the context-sensitive score by “Journey” composer Austin Wintory accentuates every harried moment. CV

Kat Darling, one half of the band High Crest. This photo was taken at her solo performance at Ritual Café a couple weeks ago.

After watching four of the capital city’s female songwriters perform solo on the Ritual Café’s stage just a couple weeks ago, I’ve had the good fortune of catching two of them performing with their bands a short time after. Last week I got to see Lavonne McRoberts and Peace, Love and Stuff at Gas Lamp, and this past week it was off to The GrapeVine for Kat Darling performing with her husband Aaron Short as The High Crest.

The GrapeVine is a remarkable live music experience. Listening rooms are few and far between, and when you couple the devotion to audience attention with the venue’s tiny size, you’ve got a uniquely intimate opportunity to enjoy some great music.

When it came to holding up their end of that bargain, The High Crest did not disappoint. Darling had played many of the duo’s songs solo at the Ritual Café, but having Short on stage with her clearly adds a new dimension. Not only is Short an excellent guitarist, but the way he and Darling harmonize together creates a warm, complete sound that give the songs a feeling of warmth and depth that one voice just can’t provide.

There were a couple of spots early in the performance where Short’s fingers got ahead of him on the guitar strings but not enough to detract from the music. Extremely minor hiccups aside, it was a beautiful acoustic set. “Stay” remains my favorite of the duo’s songs, but this evening’s set was stolen by Darling and Short’s young daughter, who joined the pair on stage toward the end of the evening to help her dad sing a children’s song entitled “10 Foot Dragon.” It was a microcosm of the night: whimsical, lovingly performed and thoroughly charming. CV

Chad Taylor is an award-winning news journalist and music writer from Des Moines.

While there is definitely a high degree of nerdery when talking about “the cloud,” chances are you are already using several cloud services. YouTube, Wikipedia, WordPress, Dropbox, TurboTax, Gmail — all of these websites, and the service they represent, are examples of cloud computing.

So what is it? Cloud computing is the use of Web-based computing tools that replace the need for hardware and software traditionally stored on a computer. Any time you store a picture online, create an event on your web-synced calendar or web search for the definition of a word, you are computing in the cloud.

Why is this such a big deal? Think back to how you used a computer in 2000 and compare it to today. A little more than a decade ago, you probably stored every picture, document and mp3 on your computer. It was safe, but hard to access. Now consumers store all of those documents in the cloud and can access every possible piece of data from almost any Internet-connected computer. Businesses love it because their staff can securely access company data remotely, and consumers love it because they can share, store, find information and make purchases with a few easy clicks across the Web.

Even with all the benefits of cloud computing, there are still definite concerns. Whenever you entrust a website to house your personal data, there is an element of risk. If a Web service is hacked, the prize isn’t your password; it’s your financial information and personal records. So making sure you only patronize secure and established services is paramount.

Now before you swear off cloud computing for fear of being “hacked,” consider its most salient saving grace — data restoration. Say tomorrow you spill your morning coffee on your laptop and fry the hard drive. If you didn’t back up your important files to the cloud, I hope you at least have a back-up disc somewhere, or you can kiss your data goodbye. CV

Patrick Boberg is a central Iowa creative media specialist. For more tech insights, follow him on Twitter @ResponsiblyWild.                 

Also on May 16, Throw the Fight, Screaming for Silence and Mistaken for Halos perform at Krazee Kafe. Show starts at 7 p.m. and is 18 and older. Admission is $7 for folks ages 18-20 and $5 for the drinkers.

Then, on Friday, May 17, the Val Air Ballroom presents the Insane Clown Posse and its “Might Death Pop!” tour. That show kicks off at 8 p.m., and general admission tickets are $20 through www.valairballroom.com, with reserved box seating available for $50.

Also on May 17, James Biehn performs over at Gas Lamp. One of the city’s finest guitarists, Biehn takes the stage starting at 9 p.m., and admission is $5 at the door.

On Saturday, May 18, Vaudeville Mews has two good shows lined up. First, in the early slot, there’s the best thing to come out of Chicago since “Mr. T. and Tina,” The Locals. The indie poppers perform starting at 5:30 p.m. with admission of $5 at the door. Wolves in the Attic, Satellite State and Spidercake all open, and that show is all-ages.

Then, in the late show, Mews has local countrified roots-rock in the form of Randy Burke and The Prisoners. That one kicks off at 10 p.m. with admission running $7 at the door.

Also on May 18, The Underground has acoustic Ska, courtesy of Chris Murray, performing along with DJ Cosmo at 9 p.m. No cover.

Additionally on May 18, The Hull Avenue Tavern has Superchief, playing along with Minneapolis-based Red Desert and southeast Iowa’s Damn the Gods. Show starts at 9 p.m., and there’s no cover.

Sound Notes Pick o’ the Week: House of Bricks is the place to be on Sunday, May 19, as Richard Arndt and Jen Allen both perform in an all-ages show starting at 5 p.m. Five bucks at the door gets you in.

Also on May 19, The Des Moines Community Orchestra performs its Spring Concert at Drake University’s Sheslow Auditorium. The concert starts at 2 p.m. with a pre-show talk with the conductor taking place at 1 p.m. and a reception with the musicians to be held immediately after. The event is all-ages and free.

El Bait Shop gets you through the early part of your week with shows on back-to-back nights. First, on Tuesday, May 21, there’s Ben Wantland, and on Wednesday, May 22, the same stage will be graced by the Monday Mourners. Both shows start at 8 p.m., and neither has a cover.

Also on May 22, The Standard has Sons of Norway performing during happy hour from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. No cover. Mahalo. CV

She and Him

‘Volume 3’

Merge

M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel are entertaining enough people. Ward is a perfectly acceptable guitarist and Deschanel gamely holds up the vocals. But there’s this niggling part of me that can’t help but ask: If Deschanel was just another girl, would this group have two No. 1 albums on Billboard’s U.S. folk chart? The indictment is alluded to in the cover art — the focus clearly on She. “Volume 3” is an inoffensive mix of covers and Deschanel-penned originals. The best ditty off the album is probably the poppy “Somebody Sweet to Talk to,” but the whole album has a fairly uniform sound. If you’re into the Leslie Gore-throwback sound, pretty much all of She and Him’s catalogue will scratch that itch. But for what it is, “Volume 3” is the best of the duo’s efforts, and a lot of that is due to Deschanel’s songwriting, which has gotten stronger as she has gotten more confident. CV

Vampire Weekend

‘Modern Vampires of the City’

XL

Vampire Weekend has grown up. The band’s debut album was a big pile of fun but viewed largely as a passing fad. The suspicion appeared to be confirmed when its follow-up — 2010’s “Contra” — was largely a disappointment. But Vampire Weekend is back with newly refocused effort and clearly wants to put worries about its permanence to rest. The album starts with the typically indie-light “Obvious Bicycle” but quickly moves into deeper, more subtle territory with the back-to-back “Step” and “Diane Young.” The two tracks are both beautiful in composition and production and set the tone for the rest of the album. The next 10 tracks may never quite hit the heady highs of those two tracks, but the result is still high enough to be one of the most memorable albums of the spring. CV

Chad Taylor is an award-winning news journalist and music writer from Des Moines.

“Praire Breeze” by Mac Hornekcer at Campbell Park.

Art-driven image makeovers are being created around the metro this merry month of May. Consider Clive, surely the largest city in Iowa without a high school. Most towns identify predominantly with their schools, particularly with their high schools. Residents wear their colors, call themselves after their mascots, cheer their teams and stay connected for decades through their reunions. How does Clive manage to build an identity without a school system?

The town has developed a park system that is the first thing many outsiders learn about Clive. Its Greenbelt Park and Trail System particularly projects a positive image. Each year, Clive’s park board, art council, city council and chamber of commerce collaborate to commission sculptures of temporary public art for prominent placement along that 11.3-mile trail. Each May new works are installed for display through October. Art fans are then encouraged to vote for their favorite piece (https://www.cityofclive.com/residents/public-art-program/vote/art-along-the-trail.php). The Clive Public Art Advisory Commission then chooses one of the top two vote-getters for purchase for the city’s permanent public art collection. James Bearden’s “Paths Unite” was selected last year.

Last week I wistfully watched the installation of the late Mac Hornecker’s steel and ferroconcrete “Prairie Breeze” in Campbell Park, the site of the dedication ceremony for this year’s project (at 5 p.m. on May 21.) A generation of students who were influenced by the charismatic Buena Vista University professor should be touched to view it. Other 2013 artists, their pieces and locations along the Clive Greenbelt Trail are: John Brommel’s “Mist of Time;” Anna Modeland’s “Devine Intertwine;” Sue Berkey’s “The Red Coyote;” James Bearden’s “Tranquility;” and Hilde DeBruyne’s “Hope.”

In the East Village, Metro Waste Authority cleaned up its image by commissioning a three-story mural by Chris Vance, a Bondurant artist who has created a personal iconography that is adored and collected by many. For this project Vance incorporated typical metro waste — plastic bottles, newspapers, refrigerators, etc. — into his narrative. Many locals already love the mural, and some don’t, as usual. Not to blow wind on a dumpsite, but let us hope this is legal. Just a few years ago the city demanded that a similar mural, commissioned by Rosa Martinez on a wall at La Rosa restaurant, be painted over. Despite hundreds of letters of support, and no complaint, it was declared illegal in Des Moines because its dancing foods “referred to the product of the business.” Don’t plastic bottles and refrigerators also refer to the product of Metro Waste’s business? Or has the city lightened up?

Polk County’s Heritage Art Gallery needs a new image. Mainly it needs its own image. When I searched for it on Google last week, the main result directed me to a website (www.heritagegallery.org) that displayed links to “free adult web cam sex,” “the You Tube of porn,” “American heritage girls” and several similar things. The real Polk County Heritage Art Gallery (www.polkcountyheritagegallery.org) is trying to become younger and edgier, but a visit to its current show is unlikely to offend anyone.

“ ‘III’ A Medley of Sculpture, Light, and Canvas” is the first of multiple shows at the gallery for which Thee Eye’s Ian Miller will act as curator. It features oil paintings of blogger and Juice columnist, Cat Rocketship, a reconstruction of a burned piano by photographer Dan Welk and an installation of symbolic stop signs by screen printer Jon Pearson. On opening night, Pearson laid under one stop sign while Welk simulated burning piano aromas. Only Pearson’s feet were nude. CV

Jim Duncan is a freelance writer who has penned nine different columns for Cityview and its sister publications beginning in 1987.