City Weekly June 6, 2025

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BOX

“Swear It”/“Grand Old Flags”

May 22 Soap Box/

May 15 Hits & Misses

I have been getting neck strain from my headshaking bewilderment caused by the absurdity of Brendan Ryan’s adoration of swearing, especially “f--k” and its derivatives.

This letter could only have come from a devoted member of the unintelligentsia who had a very limited opportunity to learn meaningful communication.

Swear words have significance only to the degree that they are severely limited in use—like how Trump’s repeated use of “the greatest (whatever)” has even reversed the meaning and you know it’s in no way great, whatever he’s doing.

I feel sorry for anyone who is assaulted by this member of the illiterati declaring, “I’m so f--king in love with you,”—him thinking it “is stripped of its pretense, [and so] carries more truth.” His sincerity is a statement more likely to be heard in a bar, resulting from too many drinks, or when it’s closing time and all the better choices have left the premises. Sad that so much space would have been used so poorly.

And then we have… flags. Regarding Kathy Biele—and many others’— pleasure at Mayor Erin Mendenhall and the Salt Lake City Council finding a way to circumvent the new flagflying restrictions, while giving the

finger to its proponents. Really dumb!

A little context. I moved here a few years ago, only because the city is liberal—red politics give me a serious moral and ethical rash.

But despite my leanings, the overthe-top degree of in-your-face push by the left angers me. Why? Because it is insulting to good people who are more central, and you’re not smart enough (nationwide) to realize how it has destroyed so much progress made by you/us.

Because of how furious you made the opposition, we had Trump 45 (the worst thing to ever happen to America, nothing else close!), who was able to stack the SCOTUS with enough far-right ideologues who are willing to ignore the Constitution, precedent and the will of the majority of Americans to do serious damage to our principles for the next couple decades, at least.

And now you clearly don’t get that

the left extremism has upset so many more that this debacle called Trump even won the popular—not just the electoral—vote this time! And look at what he’s done to everything good that’s existed for a century or more. Enough said. I hope you might make the effort to give more respect to moderates who don’t agree and thus regain the chance to recover lost victories. As to the flags, specifically, the government should fly only the national, state and neutral local flags. Government is for all the citizens, even those with whom the ones in power don’t agree. Or were you upset at the elimination of the Confederate flag? I’m not.

DAVID HORN Salt Lake City

Care to sound off on a feature in our pages or about a local concern? Write to comments@ cityweekly.net or post your thoughts on our social media. We want to hear from you!

THE WATER COOLER

If you were to write a book, what would it be about?

Scott Renshaw

If I were to write *another* book, it would be the one I’m sniffing around now: the history of “spoilers” in movie coverage/conversation/marketing.

Wes Long

I’m actually attempting one now. And for extra fun, it’s in the realm of fiction. That’s all I’m willing to say at present.

Bryan Bale

I’d probably expand on a sci-fi short story I wrote many years ago. It’s about a sheriff who investigates complaints of power issues at a warehouse in the desert. Not long after that, he awakes, looks out a nearby window, and discovers that he’s in orbit around the Earth. He’s on a ship constructed by an alien species, whose recent development of a certain new technology has split them into two factions—one that intends to exploit the Earth and its resources, while the other faction is here to prevent that.

Benjamin Wood

I’d love to write a book in the style of The Power Broker, only looking at the interstate freeway system and the oftenrepeated decision to destroy majorityminority neighborhoods and split cities down the middle.

Christa Zaro

A book on my recent life. Trust me, it’s juicy.

OPINION

BY CHRISTOPHER SMART

Courting Conflict

OK, who do these federal district judges think they are, anyway? They can’t just stop a president who was elected by a landslide from doing the people’s will.

Those judges weren’t elected. This “balance of power” and “checks and balances” thing can go just so far.

That’s why Utah’s delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives—Blake Moore, Celeste Maloy, Mike Kennedy and Burgess Owens—voted for Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” It contains this clause: “No court of the United States may use appropriated funds to enforce a contempt citation for failure to comply with an injunction or temporary restraining order if no security was given when the injunction or order was issued ...”

So if the “Big Beautiful Bill” passes the Senate, then it doesn’t matter what the courts rule—President Trump can “Make America Great Again,” anyway he wants. He can redirect congressionally-approved funding; he can shut down congressionally-approved agencies; he can fire every one of those stinkin’ deep-state bureaucrats who hate America. Judges can rule however they want, but it won’t make one lick of difference—because if Trump and his minions don’t follow the court’s orders, there’s not a damn thing they can do about it.

See, our Republican delegation—Moore, Maloy, Kennedy and Owens—get it. How are you going to have a Hungarylike autocracy if the judiciary is an equal branch of government and courts keep ruling that Trump’s mandates are unconstitutional? It’s a no-brainer.

Elon Musk—Let’s Get High and Wreck Stuff Hey Wilson, did you know the guy in charge of government efficiency is a stoner? News flash: Elon Musk takes ecstasy, magic mushrooms, Adderall and Ketamine. We are not making this up.

You and the guys in the band know as well as anybody how messed up you can get on a cocktail like that.

Think of Elon Musk up on a stage, waving around a chainsaw. Think of Elon Musk ending a campaign speech with the Hitler salute.

At the time, people just thought he was a crazy genius— but no, he was stoned out of his gourd. The world’s richest drug abuser gave candidate Trump $275 million for his campaign and, coincidentally, President Trump gave him sweeping power to do anything he wanted in the name of efficiency: the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—aka, the Department of a Crazy Stoner with Chainsaw (DCSC).

Just when you think things can’t get any weirder, the guy who is in charge of cutting funding for scientific research, Medicare, nutrition for poor kids, Social Security, the IRS and on and on is not only a whack job, but he’s a stoned whack job.

This was hard to pin down, of course, because Musk was in the presence of Donald J. Trump, who is as predictable as a tornado. It looked like they had both sipped too much of the Kool-Aid.

Ever wonder why Musk had 15 children by four or five different women? He was quoted as saying that he is willing to give his sperm to anyone who wants a baby.

Think “efficiency.”

Top 10 Ways to Cash In on The Presidency

10. Open a back channel so your staff can suggest to the court of Qatari emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani that if the emir offered a $400 million 747 jet airplane, the president would accept.

9. Sell gold “Never Surrender” high-top basketball shoes—$399.

8. Launch a cryptocurrency that investors can buy into if they want access to the president. Drop a hint to the United Arab Emirates they may want to buy in for $2 billion.

7. Hawk Trump signature “God Bless the USA” Bibles—$60.

6. Convince Jeff Bezos at Amazon to put up $40 million for a documentary on First Lady Melania Trump—$28 million will go right into Melania’s pocket. People will love it.

5. Market Trump Victory silver gold watches—$499.

4. Make Donald Trump, Jr. open a private club in Washington, D.C., with memberships going for $500,000. Lobbyists, tech industry leaders and whoever else wants in with Trump may want to join.

2. Market Trump hoodies and tank tops that say: “Trump Was Sent By God.”

1. Get the emir of Qatar to help finance the Trumpbranded beachside golf and luxury villa project in his country, worth $5.5 billion. And tell the emir that Trump likes his harem—a lot.

Postscript—That’s a wrap for another Orwellian week here at Smart Bomb, where we keep track of imports so you don’t have to. Wilson, did you know that we depend on Canada for live pigs? See, you learn something new every day.

We get a lot of cocoa beans from Ecuador. Who knew? We import a lot of rolled tobacco from Nicaragua. From the Philippines, we import a huge amount of coconut oil. We get 50% or our imported pianos from Japan. It’s true.

All this stuff is going to cost more with Trump’s tariffs. Did you know that we get almost all of our imported baby carriages from China?

The U.S. imports almost all of our vanilla from Madagascar. We get sheep and goat meat from Australia; tapioca from Taiwan; rubber apparel from Malaysia; vermouth from Italy. How much will all those imports cost next month? Who knows. “Make America Great Again.”

Here’s something: On Wall Street, Trump is called the TACO president—an acronym for “Trump Always Chickens Out,” referring to his flip-flops on tariffs.

Here’s something from our “dig deeper” file: Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa fended off criticism of Medicare cuts at a town hall. “Well, we are all going to die,” she said.

The blowback was swift and far reaching. So, Ernst said: “I apologize, and I’m really, really glad that I did not have to bring up the subject of the tooth fairy as well.” But she wasn’t done: “For those that would like to see eternal and everlasting life, I encourage you to embrace my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” You can stop digging now, Joni. CW

Private Eye is off this week. Christopher Smart writes the weekly “Smart Bomb” column, an unnecessary news analysis, available at cityweekly.net.

HITS & MISSES

BY KATHARINE BIELE

MISS: Chain Reaction

In the age of postpubescent DOGEbros, it makes total sense that Utah would want to put its nuclear future in the hands of a 25-year-old high school dropout. To give Isaiah Taylor his due, he did teach himself to code and apparently to persuade energyhungry government officials of his vision. The Salt Lake Tribune calls for caution, although Gov. Spencer Cox seems giddy over fast-tracking a small nuclear facility that purports to offer energy to data centers and spark national interest, for what it’s worth. Taylor hasn’t yet built anything—but by gosh, we just know he will. And in one of his multitudinous executive orders, Cox’s lord and savior Donald Trump calls to speed up approvals for small reactors. The Utah News Dispatch points to the billions of dollars nuclear would cost the state, despite cheaper renewable sources. And by billions, we mean far above the entire state budget for 2025.

MISS: Death and Taxes

Utahns did vote to put Donald Trump back in the White House, but not in the numbers of other red states. Still, Trump seems to be flying high, even as tariffs, grocery prices and social services are taking a hit in the gut. The Hill reports that the president’s approval is trending up for reasons only older Trump supporters can tell you. Of the many curious targets of the administration is Medicaid, whose fate under the “Big Beautiful Bill” is uncertain at best. There are so many promises—and threats. If you heard Sen. Joni Ernst remind her constituents that “Well, we are all going to die,” that may show you the depths of compassion from the GOP elite. While representatives say that the people who need Medicaid will be protected, it all depends on how you define “need.” Analysts say some 80,000 Utahns could lose coverage and the state itself would lose $381 million from federal Medicaid cuts. The good news is “we’re all going to die” anyway.

HIT: Condo Attitude

Well, let’s try this since communities don’t like high-rise apartments—the starter condo may be just the ticket to home ownership. The governor likes the idea. Developers could “take advantage of smaller and odd-sized lots, particularly around public transit stations,” the governor’s senior adviser Steve Waldrip told the Deseret News. There could be legislation to make insurance more affordable and to cut some of the federal regulations. The positive aspect of the startercondo idea is potentially narrowing the wealth gap between renters and owners. That is if they get built and bought. KUTV ran a cautionary story about a Kearns neighborhood built by Habitat for Humanity where HOA fees

each

Local Time

The last time we made a fuss in print about City Weekly’s 40th anniversary was about a year ago, with the conclusion of our Rewind series. But some of our most devoted readers (*respect*) may not be aware that the party kept going, in a different forum.

Since last May, City Weekly has been republishing archive material to our website. Called FLASHBACKS, these weekly installments turn back the clock on 40 years of alternative media in Salt Lake City. And with the recent conclusion of this project, the complete Rewind and FLASHBACK collections can now be located under the “40th Anniversary” section of the News tab on CityWeekly.net.

Remember in 1997, when John Harrington penned his withering review of then-District Attorney Neal Gunnarson’s probe of then-SLC Mayor Deedee Corradini? How about Christopher Smart’s look at Utah lawmakers’ 1995 effort to turn public lands over to a developer in the name of the Winter Olympics? Both works are available to read online for the first time since their initial publications in print.

Curious about Salt Lake City’s underground music scene, circa 1989? We’ve got that. What about the 2000 debut of Larry H. Miller’s extravagantly kitschy Mayan restaurant? It’s there.

Remember the time that the Olympic Committee threatened to sue City Weekly in 1999? We certainly do. What’s more, we’ve got details about the Utah Arts Fest from 1984, the experiences of gay military personnel under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 1993, and a tribute to the departed Centre Theatre movie palace from 1988.

What you’ll find in the FLASHBACKS are snippets of the paper as it served readers during any given time, whether in the form of investigative journalism, unique commentary and even examples of our video and blog content. While these newly-transcribed and -digitized entries are relatively few in number compared with the mass from which they were pulled, they represent a greater whole—countless people who have contributed to and read this paper under its assorted titles, page counts and fortunes.

Since CityWeekly.net contains sporadic bits of our output from the midaughts back to 1998, we largely favored materials that weren’t on the website already. Added to these considerations were the desires to represent each year of our paper’s lifespan with something at least once, and to touch upon a variety of topics and authors.

As you peruse the contents, ask yourself whether the issues they treat lend themselves to greater reflection. Even for the shorter pieces involving places and people that are no longer with us, I hope they elicit gratitude for what has been (or as the case may be, for what is not any longer).

But whether the year is 1985, 2005 or 2025, the truth of the matter remains that we have a fascinating, complicated and rich community about us that is worth writing about.

That warrants an extended celebration, don’t you think? CW

TRUE TV

Mid-Century Modern

Queer TV Comedies

LGBTQ+ dramas get the critical glory, but the comedies shouldn’t be overlooked.

BY BILL FROST comments@cityweekly.net

Groundbreaking and genre-defining LGBTQ+ TV dramas like Queer as Folk, The L Word, Pose, I May Destroy You, Looking and many more have been rightfully praised in critical circles over the decades—but what about comedies? In honor of Pride Month, here are eight gay and gay-adjacent series that bring the funny.

Mid-Century Modern (2025; Hulu): TV critics were skeptical about a Golden Girls throwback sitcom with tiny sets and canned laughter (guilty), but Mid-Century Modern proved us wrong. The halfhour comedy centers on three older gay men (Nathan Lane, Nathan Lee Graham and Matt Bomer) living together in Palm Springs, where wackiness does, indeed, ensue. While Bomer’s comedy chops are no match for Lane’s and Graham’s, he more than makes up for it with his character’s Mormon backstory. Mid-Century

Modern’s rapid-fire laughs don’t obscure its found-family sentiment, the show’s true heart.

Somebody Somewhere (2022–2024; HBO Max): The idea of found family runs through all of the series here, especially Somebody Somewhere. Fortysomething Sam (Bridget Everett) moves back home to Nowheresville, Kansas, to care for her dying sister, then ends up stuck there after the latter passes—so far, not so funny. The comedy is small and relatable, and the show’s gay characters—like Sam’s BFF Joel (Jeff Hiller)—blend into the rural fabric as regular folk, not targets. Somebody Somewhere may be a red-state fantasy, but it’s a nice one to aspire to.

A League of Their Own (2022; Prime Video): The 1992 movie hinted at queerness, but the 2022 TV adaptation of A League of Their Own went all in on lesbian, bisexual and transmasculine characters, and even featured some who aren’t white—such “woke” TV. Since it’s 1943, the world is none-too-hospitable for any of them, certainly not the Rockford Peaches, a women’s team daring to play the all-American game of pro baseball. Unfortunately, a home-run cast, including Broad City’s Abbi Jacobson and The Good Place’s D’Arcy Carden, and shutout reviews couldn’t save the League from cancellation.

Steven Universe (2013–2020; Hulu): It’s been referred to as “the gayest kids’ cartoon ever” for years by adults who were smart enough to watch it with (or without)

their children, but Steven Universe is more than just that. Rebecca Sugar’s five-season Cartoon Network series is fantastical and dazzling, but also rooted in the reality that loving relationships aren’t tethered to gender or sexual orientation. The Crystal Gem aliens of Beach City split their time between everyday activities and saving Earth from evil outsiders, while halfhuman/half-Gem boy Steven Universe takes it all in. Oh, and it’s musical AF.

Harley Quinn (2019–present; HBO Max): Where Steven Universe was kid-friendly, DC Universe animated series Harley Quinn goes out of its way to be a raunchy, adultsonly affair. After being dumped by the Joker, Harley (voiced with manic glee by Kaley Cuoco) sets out to rule the criminal underworld of Gotham City, and assembles a crew that includes her bestie, Poison Ivy (Lake Bell, all measured cool). Harley and Ivy eventually become a power couple, “Harlivy,” trading cute romantic asides and occasionally having city-shaking sex—literally. Harley Quinn also drops more F-bombs than Deadwood Los Espookys (2019–2022; HBO Max): The weird and wonderful Los Espookys, about a group of young friends who stage supernatural illusions for hire in a mysterious Latin American country, has a subliminal queer underbelly that’s never fussed about. Andrés (show co-creator Julio Torres) is Los Espookys’ most outwardly gay member, Úrsula (Cassandra Ciangherotti) prefers women, and her sister Tati (Ana Fabrega)

marries Andrés’ obviously non-straight ex (“No one likes men, but everybody needs a husband,” she notes). Los Espookys only produced 12 episodes, but it packs in 12 seasons’ worth of quirky stories.

Will & Grace (1998–2006, 2017–2020; Hulu): The most high-profile gay comedy of them all ran for eight seasons on NBC, and then made a successful comeback in 2017 as an answer to Trump’s America 1.0, a feat that Murphy Brown couldn’t pull off (that trainwreck revival has been rightfully disappeared from streaming). Will & Grace was a trad New York City sitcom by all outward appearances, but Will (Eric McCormack), Grace (Debra Messing), Jack (Sean Hayes) and the iconic Karen (Megan Mullally) snuck the Gay Agenda into the country’s living rooms week after week. We might need another W&G revival.

The New Normal (2012–2013; YouTube): Between Will & Grace’s two terms, NBC tried out The New Normal, a Ryan Murphy comedy that answered the unasked question, “What if Modern Family was all about just Cam and Mitchell?” The series centered on a wealthy gay Los Angeles couple (Andrew Rannells and Justin Bartha) adopting a baby from brash midwestern surrogate Goldie (Georgia King), much to the chagrin of Goldie’s homophobic Republican mother (Ellen Barkin). Identifying with mom, a Utah NBC affiliate refused to run The New Normal, even though it aired all 11 seasons of Will & Grace. Huh? CW

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Randy Feltface @ Wiseguys West Jordan

“Rant comedy” has been its own subgenre of standup ever since George Carlin’s 1992 Jammin’ in New York special. There are few things funnier than watching someone absolutely pitch a fit, but any anger intense and genuine enough to be funny is only ever a few expletives away from becoming uncomfortable—or even frightening—and rant comedy requires walking an extremely fine line between levity and unbridled emotion as such. After all, you can’t do it without a real human up on stage, screeching and howling and wetting themselves—or can you?

Enter Randy Feltface, a cuddly-looking purple puppet who wouldn’t look far out of place in a Jim Henson production. His onstage persona, though, is anything but G-rated: crass, self-important, and prone to bouts of hysteric rage that leave him heaving for breath, flopped over the desk that conceals his puppeteer, Heath McIvor. Feltface’s blank-yet-instantly-charming smile holds an unmatched power to counterbalance even the bitterest kvetching, and his sharp insights on the absurdity of modern life blend seamlessly into meta asides on his lack of functioning eyes. Since finding international viral fame with a pirated YouTube clip from his 2018 special Randy Writes A Novel, Feltface has staked his claim as one of the hardest-working puppets in showbiz.

First Banana, Feltface’s sixth original special in as many years, comes to Wiseguys Jordan Landing (3763 W. Center Park Dr., West Jordan) June 6 and 7, 7 p.m. & 9:30 p.m.; select performances are sold-out at press time. Tickets for the 21+ show are $30 at wiseguyscomedy.com. (Kerry Renshaw)

Utah Asian Festival

For nearly 50 years, the Utah Asian Festival has been evidence of the richness and diversity not just of Utah’s population, but of the many cultural traditions that can be gathered under the designation of “Asian.” The festival had its origins in an attempt to unify those traditions in the name of mutual support, and now provides not only ongoing evidence of that unity, but a chance for people of all backgrounds to experience the diversity within that designation.

Returning to the Utah State Fairpark shows how successful the event’s mission has been. “The growth of the festival exploded recently thanks to an influx of younger volunteer organizers,” says Margaret Yee, a founder of the original event, via a press release. “They share the founders’ unwavering commitment to uplifting our many cultures, but have brought with them novel ideas propelling the festival to new heights as a grand celebration for the entire state. My heart runs full to see the fruits of our labor still ripe after 48 years.”

Visitors will once again find an event full of more than 60 traditional and contemporary performances of dance, music, theater and more. Children can experience crafts and other age-appropriate activities, food vendors representing a range of cultural traditions, vendor booths and artisans.

The 2025 Utah Asian Festival takes place at the Utah State Fairpark (155 N. 1000 West) on Saturday, June 7, 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. The event is free and open to the public; visit utahasianfestival.org for venue map, festival guide, performance schedule and more event information. (Scott Renshaw)

Jane Austen Regency Festival

For fans of Jane Austen—and if popular culture is any indication, they remain plentiful—2025 marks an auspicious occasion, as the 250th anniversary of the birth of the celebrated author. Austen’s unique perspectives on gender, class and romance and the indelible characters she created remain engaging centuries later, and have inspired ongoing fascination with the British Regency period in which she was active. That interest manifests itself locally in activities like the 2nd annual Jane Austen Regency Festival—a Cedar City-based gathering of those who share an interest in celebrating Austen and her time.

In the tradition of Renaissance festivals, the Jane Austen Regency Festival is an immersive event which expects attendees to dress in period-appropriate attire; the festival’s website, Instagram and Facebook pages include suggestions for how to thrift or create such costumes. Scheduled events include a promenade through the Southern Utah University campus, a Regency marketplace, lawn games, a Friday ball with catered dinner, Saturday afternoon tea, movie night and more. Completely unfamiliar with how to dance in the Regency style? Never fear—a workshop will be provided ahead of the ball by a Southern Utah University instructor in ballroom dance.

The 2025 Jane Austen Regency Festival takes place in and around the Southern Utah University Campus in Cedar City. Tickets are $160 per person for the full festival experience including swag bag; guests who wish only to attend the ball and accompanying dinner can purchase individual tickets for those events at $85 per person. Visit jaregencyfest.com to purchase tickets and for additional event information. (SR)

THE LONG VIEW

THE HISTORY OF LGBTQ+ PEOPLE FIGHTING FOR THEIR RIGHTS HAS ALWAYS INCLUDED TRIUMPHS AND SETBACKS.

BY BEN WILLIAMS COMMENTS@CITYWEEKLY.NET

Our 2025 Pride Issue guest editor, historian Ben Williams, has documented the history of LGBTQ+ people in Utah for decades.

LGBTQpeople have always lived through turbulent times. In the 1950s, homosexuals were seen as subversives and national security risks. If discovered, people could be arrested and lives ruined. However, a small group of individuals formed homophile organizations like the Mattachine Society and the Daughters of Bilitis. The early gay civil rights movement focused on decriminalizing homosexuality, recentering it as being a mental issue instead. In 1962, Illinois became the first state to decriminalize homosexual behavior.

The 1960s saw the rise of a youth movement to challenge society’s positions on racial inequality and the inequality of women’s roles in society. The Vietnam antiwar movement fueled the call for equality before the law for other minorities and marginalized people.

In June 1969, a spark of resistance at a New York gay bar called Stonewall ignited what became the Gay Liberation Front. The movement was different from earlier homophile organizations, as Gay Liberation revolted against the need for heterosexual approval and declared that LGBTQ people were defined as a “folk,” and not by a behavior.

This idea resonated among the youth culture, and immediately Gay Liberation groups began to spring up on college campuses—even here at the University of Utah in October 1969. A paradigm shift had taken place. In 1973, the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality as a pathology due to pressure by gay people and allies. Prior to 1969, there had not been a single gay organization in Utah; by 1975, there were several gay and lesbian churches, multiple gay bars, a community center and a newspaper as well as several social groups, such as the Royal Court of the Golden Spike Empire.

The end of the 1970s saw a national backlash against gay rights, starting with Anita Bryant’s Save the Children Campaign [see page 34]. Ronald Reagan conservatives swept out many of the reforms from the 1970s, such as the Equal Rights Amendment and the repeal of gay anti-discrimination laws. The 1980s saw gays being vilified as the spreaders of a disease called AIDS; however, Salt Lake’s gay and lesbian community, heroically, not only took care of the sick and dying, but we thrived by unifying as never before. As no help was coming forth from the state, gays and lesbians formed t wo AIDS organizations in 1985: the Salt Lake AIDS Foundation and AIDS Project Utah. In 1986, the Gay and Lesbian Community Council of Utah was formed to serve as a forum for all the various organizations and factions to come together. The council took over Pride Days and the Anti-Violence Project, and created the Utah Stonewall Center, which over time has morphed into the current Pride Center.

Not until 30 years after homosexuality was no longer seen as a mental illness, in 2003, did the Supreme Court declare sodomy laws invalid, which decriminalized consensual homosexual behavior.

As hard as times seem now—especially the attacks on the transgender community—it’s important to know that even for every two steps forward, we are pushed back one. Nevertheless, we are still making progress, for we are a resilient people—and a movement based on love, not hate. CW

PRIDE ISSUE 2025

(LOL)GBTQ+

SLC’S QUEER COMEDY SCENE FINDS HUMOR IN COMMUNITY AND “PUNCHING UP.”

BY SCOTT RENSHAW scottr@cityweekly.net

This strange year of 2025 might feel like it would present a particularly hard challenge for a queer comedian to find things to laugh about. But another way to think about it is that it’s a particularly important time to find things to laugh about.

“Comedy is such an interesting art form,” says local comedian Kit Cactus. “It’s supposed to not be taken seriously, but some of the most influential people on the [political] right are comedians. Comedy normalizes ideas; if you can laugh about something, you can normalize it a little bit. So I think it is important, pushing back in a different way, and not just fighting everything with logic all the time.”

Cactus is part of a lively community of queer comedians performing in Utah, many of them regulars in the All Queer Comedy showcases organized by Crowdsourced Comedy impresario (and multi-time City Weekly Best of Utah “Best Comedian” winner) Craig Sorensen. Together, they have created a uniquely safe—and uniquely funny—space for LGBTQ+ comedians to share sharp perspectives on their own lives and the circumstances of this time and place.

“That fight’s been the same for a while; it’s just more prominent,” Sorensen says. “So it’s important we keep doing this now. Doing this kind of show is a kind of protest.”

For Sorensen, finding humor in his personal circumstances has always been part of his creative iden-

tity—not just from growing up gay and Mormon, but from having a physical disability. “I don’t resent the things that made me stand out,” he says. “My little hand spurred me into comedy. If you have a disability that’s so ripe for jokes … I owned that really early in life, and that became part of my voice.”

Though Sorensen started his own performing career with improvisational comedy, and continues it through his performances with Crowdsourced Comedy, he eventually added standup to his résumé. He also saw an opportunity in the community to allow venues for those who didn’t typically get center-stage in the standup comedy world—specifically, straight cisgender white men—to shine.

“Personally, I started to identify my own traits as a comedian—progressive, I hate punching down, I like to be on the right side of history with that stuff,” Sorensen recalls. “In the early days of Crowdsourced, we did an all-woman show, and it was such a powerful experience, that right after COVID, we knew we had to bring that back. It was obvious how much that was wanted. … Earnestly, I wanted to do a show, and I didn’t know if it was possible, but it would be so cool if we did an all-queer show. Once we started getting more queer performers, it became one of our staples. If you’re disadvantaged, you belong on my stage.”

Among those who became part of the All Queer Comedy showcases was Ash Anderson, an Idaho native who started their performing career as a child on community theater stages, and joined a sketch comedy group at BYU-Idaho in 2013. “Even in school,” Anderson recalls, “if there was a creative assignment where you could do anything you wanted, my first thought was always, ‘Let’s do a skit, or a funny video.’”

The transition to standup, however, initially seemed daunting, thanks to the kinds of environments they encountered. “I went to a lot of Wiseguys open mics, and saw there’s a lot of audacious men,” Anderson says. “As someone who’s pretty femme-presenting, even the way female comedians are received, there’s

a barrier to entry. I thought, ‘There’s never going to be a way to validate myself this way.’”

Kit Cactus recalls a similar experience with early forays into standup. She too has early memories of falling in love with being funny on stage, although in a seemingly unlikely venue. “I started performing cello when I was young, and also did a lot of theater as a kid,” Cactus says. “I’d play cello at a recital, and got permission from my teacher to stop and tell a joke, then I’d play a little more. At about 8 years old, you can tell I was more excited about the jokes than about the cello.”

Yet for Cactus, there was a similar experience to the one Anderson encountered in terms of the predominant demographic among standup comedians. “First, nobody would go with me to any of the open mics, because it was like, ‘I can’t stand to hear one more racist, misogynistic, violent joke,’” she says. “And I had to stop, because I wasn’t willing to sit through an hour of hate to get my three minutes.

“[The Crowdsourced Queer Comedy showcase] was my only way into comedy, because it was my only safe way into comedy, to have a group of people that are like-minded and safe.”

Sorensen says that providing that kind of safety and community is the centerpiece for the whole concept, overtaking any possible sense of professional competitiveness. “Honestly if you’re in the room with the right kind of people—there’s no time for that shit,” Sorensen says. “But there’s so few really professional queer performers in Salt Lake, that we all really know each other, and when we’re together, it’s a really supportive environment.”

“I love Crowdsourced, and I think what we have in Utah is so special,” Anderson says. “Everyone’s so supportive; even every criticism feels so constructive. If we can help each other, we do. That environment is why it felt safe to start doing standup: We’re all on your side, but we recognize you’re still a growing artist, and we’re going to help you.”

Continued on page 18

COURTESY PHOTO

COURTESY PHOTO

Craig Sorensen (far right) and fellow Crowdsourced Comedy performers Kit Cactus

These comedians also find a place where, like Sorensen, they can bring everything about themselves to their performances. “When I got back into standup, part of it is that I was sick of cis white men telling jokes about my life, about what it’s like to be trans,” Cactus notes. “That was so annoying, that they were telling my story for me. So when I got back on stage, it was like, ‘What if I can talk about transness, or mental illness, that lets people into it? … I can show you there is funny stuff about being trans, and let people think about my experience in a different way.’”

“I’m always at a point of processing everything that’s happened in my life,” Anderson adds. “The personal is universal. This experience might feel really niche, but the way people can relate to a very specific story or experience, because of the humor behind it, that’s why I don’t really deviate from that.”

That need to find humor in the personal experiences of their lives extends to how the queer community is being impacted by events on a local and national level. For all of the comedians involved in these shows, there’s a recognition that—as Sorensen noted above—there’s a form of rebellion in deciding to keep laughing in such times.

“At first no one wanted to talk about it; we were all just suffering together,” Sorensen recalls. “But the more we started talking about it and making jokes about it, it became easier. Unapologetic queer joy is the answer. That’s not just my message, that’s what I learned from iconic drag queens. At first it was collective fear, collective angst. But ‘screw Donald Trump’ jokes do really well.”

“It’s interesting, because you’ll be on your phone or out in the world, and everything feels like a pressure cooker,” Anderson says. “But every time I’m at Why Kiki or with Crowdsourced, it feels so safe and needed. With comedy, it’s not escapism. Because while it’s really scary, it’s also really absurd. If we shy away from those things in our comedy … it’s like the elephant in the room, and there’s a way to address it in a way that’s not scary. I think people need that release, both for the comedian and the audience.

“Comedy is disarming for a lot of people,” Anderson continues, “because there’s a kind of ‘jester’s privilege’ to go to those places. As a writer, you can’t even start to write comedy well until you master the art of drama. The funniest people can see the depth of all the hardship, the nuances, the points of fear.”

And Cactus has found the same sense of power in pushing back comedically. “I think we’re all much more direct about everything now,” she says. “Our jokes can be a little bit more bold about our political stances and our needs and our rights. … I think one thing is that we’re also just still doing it. And that is maybe more important: That we’re not scared of doing it, that we’re not pulling back.” CW

ALL QUEER COMEDY SHOW Friday, June 6, 7:30 p.m. Why Kiki

Continued from page 16

An All Queer Showcase performance from 2024

PRIDE WITH A FERVOR

SLC’S LGBTQ+ AND BIPOC MUSIC COLLECTIVE FOCUSES ON COMMUNITY-DRIVEN LIBERATION

BY ARICA ROBERTS comments@cityweekly.net

This year, Utah became the first state to prohibit flying LGBTQ+ Pride flags at schools and all government buildings. But in Salt Lake City, we know our city is still very queer. The Utah Pride Festival and SLC Pride show just how mainstream Pride events around here have become; however, it’s the niche, underground scenes that have always carried the culture forward.

FERVOR, a grassroots rave collective, was founded by Gizmoe Alonzo (he/them) a few years ago to provide the kind of inclusive dance spaces for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC communities that were lacking in Salt Lake City’s nightlife scene. Alonzo moved to Salt Lake in 2016, and as a queer person of color who is both a DJ and long-time raver, he quickly noticed the lack of diversity and inclusivity in many of the city’s LGBTQ+ spaces. The first FERVOR event sold out in seven minutes, so he also quickly realized there was very high demand for these types of spaces.

FERVOR is “a passionate and intense feeling,” Alonzo explains. He aims to evoke that feeling with the ever-growing demand for spaces that center marginalized groups and stay true to the original reasons for Pride events in the first place. “Pride was a protest and Pride was about liberation. But in order to feel liberated in a certain space, that can be really difficult

as a queer person or as a POC when you’re in a sea of something that doesn’t reflect that,” he states.

The first Pride march took place in New York City on June 28, 1970 to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall riots, a catalyst highlighting the injustices faced by LGBTQ+ (and primarily BIPOC) individuals and demonstrating resistance to police harassment and discrimination. FERVOR continues this legacy by prioritizing representation, equity and community-based decision-making in all aspects of their events, from artist curation to safety and harm reduction.

For example, FERVOR takes an anti-capitalist approach, operating without corporate sponsorships and offering sliding-scale ticket pricing to improve accessibility. They also work with Salt Lake Harm Reduction Project, a non-profit that offers things like free water, earbuds, small snacks, Narcan, fentanyl test strips and sexual wellness items, such as condoms and at-home STD tests. While the security team focuses on protecting the event from the outside, the safety team wears Narcan on their tags and are not there to police, but to help if something happens on the inside. Alonzo has even taken extra measures such as putting the teams through specific nightlife security training related to queer nightlife, which focuses on de-escalation and consent in all forms.

The impact this approach has had on underground spaces in Salt Lake City cannot be overstated. “Nobody was doing harm reduction and nobody was doing community guidelines. And that was just like three or four years ago,” Alonzo says. “That’s in our underground scene. Now, it’s been standard.”

The community guidelines are equally important because they emphasize that FERVOR deliberately avoids labeling their events as “safe spaces” or “inclusive spaces,” instead focusing on clear communication of their values and guidelines.

“We understand that it’s not for everyone. And so we don’t say it’s ‘all-inclusive,’ because it’s not made for everyone. We don’t have the resources to make it available for everyone,” Alonzo clarifies. “If you are an ally or even beyond that, I’m going to speak honestly; if you’re a cis man or a cis white man, gay or not, we

ask and request that you’re cognizant of the people around you that are not, and navigating that kind of power dynamic.”

The upcoming FERVOR Pride event takes place June 6-8. Along with new interactive art installations led by Dani Elvis Mendez, it will feature national and local artists across multiple venues, with a focus on queer and BIPOC talent.

Chicago is the birthplace of house music, and its underground roots are part of queer and BIPOC history. So it’s only fitting that alongside the plethora of local talent, Friday and Saturday’s private events will also feature Chicago-based artists. Friday’s headliner is disco and house artist Hercules and Love Affair, and Saturday’s headliner is scheduled to be Ariel Zina, a trans woman known for her high energy techno and Chicago house inspiration.

“I think she really embodies a lot of what we like from an artist,” Alonzo shares, “they’re from Belize, and their music is a mix of country ballroom, high energy techno, but also Latin-based and infused drums and rhythms. That’s who I’m most excited about.”

Sunday is a day-party collaboration with local collectives ¡Dyked! and ETA45MINS at Drift Lounge called Tea Dance. Originating in New York in the 1950s and 1960s, tea dances are queer events organized on Sunday afternoons. Police would conduct raids on establishments selling alcohol to gay people until the mid-1960s, so gay men began to hold tea dances outside the city as an alternative venue for meeting. Drift Lounge’s Tea Dance is limited in capacity, but it will be open to the public with RSVP. Local artists curated from ¡Dyked! will play on the outdoor stage, while the rooftop stage will include a lounge vibe featuring ambient DJs from ETA45. There will also be a full bar, along with vendors and food trucks. To end the weekend, stay for the special back-to-back with Alonzo (Gizmoe) and Miel Franco Pérez, founder of ¡Dyked! (VI:BRA).

RSVP for FERVOR’s Pride events, stay informed on future events, and familiarize yourself with the community guidelines by visiting their Instagram: @fervor.slc. As always, stay respectful and accountable. CW

NOW QUEER THIS

AN INTRO TO LGBTQ+ MUSICAL ARTISTS GIVING UTAH A RAINBOW FLAIR.

BY EMILEE ATKINSON music@cityweekly.net

Bly Wallentine: Bly Wallentine is all over the music scene. She of course makes her own brand of amusing and curious music, but Wallentine is also an incredible producer. You’ll find her name on the credits of many indie artists, both locally and beyond. Wallentine also plays with the group Little Moon, which won the NPR Tiny Desk Concert competition in 2023. On her BandCamp, Wallentine describes her music as “songs of spirits puk[ing] from my frothing esophagus into the leafy conundrum from which I cannot seem to relieve myself.” Her music draws elements from pop, folk, shoegaze and many others. In fact, it might be shorter to list the genres Wallentine doesn’t dabble in, but she definitely has something for everyone.

Shecock With a Vengeance: SLC has tons of great pop acts, but if you’re looking for something with a little more bite, Shecock is your group. This punk band is composed of trans folks who know how to bring the noise. As described on their YouTube bio, the band is all about “fuckery of the status quo,” and what’s more punk than that? Their 2023 EP Trannosaurus boasts three loud-and-fast tracks that are perfect for any headbanging playlist. Shecock is always out playing around town and can, of course, be found at different Pride events for the month, so don’t miss the chance to rock with Shecock With a Vengeance live. You won’t regret it.

Marqueza: Multi-disciplinary artist Marqueza hangs out in SLC “doing Pisces shit,” they told Canvas Rebel in 2023. In addition to writing and recording music, they also produce, dance and do a lot with visual arts and crafts. Marqueza is Japanese and Venezuelan, and you can find influences of their heritage in their music library. Their 2023 single “INAKA” (“countryside” in Japanese) is an instrumental track that feels like floating, very on-brand with Marqueza’s water/sea creature-inspired vibe. Marqueza’s sound is contemplative, dynamic and not something you’ll tire of easily.

Mended Hearts Club: This indie-folk duo is based way down south in St. George, but still deserve a shout-out for their unique blend of folk, rock and beat poetry. Aiden Barrick (he/him) and Judith Rognli (she/they) have a connection and chemistry that’s palpable, allowing them to deliver such strong tracks. They draw influence from artists like Brandi Carlile and Bonny Light Horseman, while offering a sound that’s wholly their own. There’s something so cozy about folk in general, and Mended Hearts Club definitely fits into that category.

Christian Scheller: Hailing from Ogden, singer/songwriter Christian Scheller is a one-of-a-kind artist blending soul, blues and folk to create a soundscape that’s hard to resist. Scheller has been on the scene for a long time, but in 2023 he released his first official single, “Nate’s Song,” written for his husband. It’s a beautifully-crafted song that is unmistakable in its feelings. Sometimes love songs don’t fully capture that unique sensibility, but “Nate’s Song” radiates affection and emotion.

Pho3nix Child: Entrenched in SLC’s underground hip-hop culture, Pho3nix Child is on a mission to desexualize the feminine perspective of women in the hip-hop/rap world, and make the scene more inclusive for femme and LGBTQ+ artists. Pho3nix Child’s sound is crisp and incisive; they don’t stutter, and their rhymes flow easily. The title of their atmospheric track “Energy” might suggest intensity, but it actually has a laid-back vibe that’s great to have playing in the background, or to really dive into with some great headphones. Pho3nix Child posted on Instagram weeks ago that they had lots planned for the summer, so keep an eye out.

Icky Rogers: “Saint of Saturday night” Icky Rogers is a queer hip-hop artist who blends new school with retro sounds to create his unique style of cosmic hiphop. Rogers has a love for the genre that’s obvious in his music—his tight and concise rhymes flow without difficulty, and you can hear the joy and happiness in his voice with each track he’s on. There’s a sense of pride in his music that’s distinct as well, his love for the genre shining through. “I think that hip-hop has always given a voice to the voiceless, and it’s a genre that speaks truth to power in its purest form,” Rogers told City Weekly in 2023. His newest single, “Femme Fatale” featuring the one and only Sequoia is out now, so be sure to add that to your Pride playlists. CW

Christian Scheller

Shecock With a Vengence

Pho3nix Child

Icky Rogers

DUAL FESTIVALS, NOT DUEL FESTIVALS

UTAH PRIDE FESTIVAL AND SLC PRIDE EXIST SIDE BY SIDE TO CELEBRATE THE QUEER COMMUNITY.

BY SCOTT RENSHAW scottr@cityweekly.net

It would have been easy to view Salt Lake City’s Pride events of 2024 as a sign of schism—a division in the local queer community during a time that should indicate unity. Instead, it might be more accurate to think of it as a time of birth and rebirth.

As the Utah Pride Center—the organization behind the traditional Pride Parade and Festival—underwent organizational changes last year in response to concerns about its finances and operations, the new SLC Pride was launched. Instead of emerging as competing events, however, both managed to find success in the ways that mattered to the organizers.

For Bonnie O’Brien, the Festival Director for SLC Pride, the sense for whether the inaugural event hit its mark came down to a feeling rather than anything more concrete. “I think that the committee … the ones who put in a ton of hours, were incredibly and happily surprised with the vibe,” O’Brien says. “I’m not talking about how many of this or that we sold, or how many attended—just the straightup experience when you walked through the gates. We were willing to go into debt to make sure that what it felt like was what people asked for. … It wasn’t about a booth; nobody gives a crap what you’re selling. That’s not the festival. It’s a feeling of acceptance and authenticity.”

As an example, O’Brien cites the soliciting of feedback from potentially marginalized groups within the marginalized group of the queer community, like the sobriety community and the neurodivergent community. “There were conversations that were happening because of intentionally-curated spaces, not about whatever kind of rainbow merchandise is for sale,” O’Brien notes. “We had a lot of really intense conversations with therapists of queer kids and neurodivergent kids, and had a lot of conversations with parents and other groups, saying, ‘What does a teen youth and neurodivergent space feel like.’ And we had kids coming in to see if their words were coming true, dragging their parents in and saying, ‘See, this is what we’re talking about.’”

O’Brien acknowledges that there were still lessons to be learned from the first event, and improvements to be made; “We planted some seeds, and of all of them, two or three really took off,” she says. Ultimately, though, she thinks it does come down to that “vibe,” of thinking about things like how to make the drudgery of Continued on page 26

TRINITY MACHAN

The annual Utah Pride Parade will wind through Salt Lake City on Sunday, June 7.

Restylane

Sculptra

manning a table at a big event feel more engaging, while also growing the organization to one that puts on events year-round. “We want to focus on organizations and bands that are local to give them a platform, to show Utah as a place for queer people that is safe and enriching,” O’Brien says.

The more established Utah Pride, meanwhile, was focused on building back trust in the organization’s infrastructure. When speaking with City Weekly before 2024’s Pride, then-new Utah Pride Center Director Chad Call said that in terms of the challenges facing the organization, “there’s still a long road ahead.” When assessing the state of that road a year later, Call says, “It’s honestly been really kind to us. We’re fully back into all of our programming, and settled into our new location. And we have a pretty stable forecast for the future. A lot of that stability is because of the financial success of the 2024 Pride Festival.”

That meant thinking much more in terms of measurables, Call says—like how many people marched in the parade, and how long people stayed at the festival— rather than anecdotal evidence about people’s sense of the festival. They did, however, look at two very specific changes for 2025: once again allowing parade entrants to distribute items to people in the crowd, and reducing the cost for potential festival vendors by allowing folks to set up their own tents.

“We had to stop the distribution [by parade entries] in 2023 and 2024 because of safety concerns,” Call says. “We were able to condense the parade route down a little bit, allowing us to bring in crowd control measures. The change with the vendors, were able to seek approval through the city to do that. … We realized it was one of the more expensive festivals in Utah, and while we felt the value was worth it, we realized it could cause accessibility issues. It was a way to significantly reduce the overhead that we were experiencing.”

Now on a firmer financial footing, including more transparency with Utah Pride Center financials with the community, the festival is building out again, including being able to bring in David Archuleta as a national headliner. While the desire is still there for a celebratory event, that doesn’t mean a lack of attention and awareness to the challenges the queer community faces both locally and nationally at a governmental level.

Call believes that Utah Pride Festival’s 2025 theme of “Radical Love” taps into the reality of current events. “A good theme should be relevant to the times,” he says. “We had a few themes on the table we were looking at back in December and January, and decided to pivot to this theme in light of legislative actions locally. We thought it embodied hope, and the idea that we do need something a little more than ordinary right now. But this is also a celebration, a time to love. There are a lot of complex emotions.”

For O’Brien, SLC Pride’s 2025 theme of “Outlaws” similarly meets the moment. “If you’re going to make us and our flags illegal, then we’re outlaws, hell yeah, and we’ll own that and encompass that,” O’Brien says. “If there’s an unjust law, it doesn’t apply. And we have folks that are willing to protest until it hurts in the queer community. … The fun part about being an outlaw is there’s community in that. Yeah, there are groups of people in our community that are scared and tired and worried. Let your voice shake, but let it be heard.” CW

UTAH PRIDE PARADE & FESTIVAL June 7-8 Washington Square & Library Square 210 E. 400 South Parade: June 8, 10 a.m. utahpride.org SLC PRIDE June 28-29

Gateway, 400 W. 200 South slc-pride.org

Continued from page 24

Dancers perform at the inaugural SLC Pride in 2024.

ALTERNATIVE PRIDES

WHETHER YOU’RE A FAN OF PARADES OR A MORE INTROVERTED TYPE, THERE’S A WAY FOR YOU

TO CELEBRATE.

BY CAT PALMER comments@cityweekly.net

June is here, and so is the glitter-soaked, rainbowdrenched magic of Pride. But before we dive into the confetti, let me say this loud and clear: I love the direction the Utah Pride Center is heading in. Yes, I said it. I’m genuinely thrilled about the work Chad Call is doing as the new Executive Director. We don’t have to sugarcoat the past—there were real issues. We hold space for that. But we also hold space for growth, for healing, and for hope. And this year, I’m feeling all three (utahpridecenter.org).

For my chosen family, marching down State Street with flags flying is our annual ritual. This year, I’ll be waving my genderqueer flag for the first time—and let me tell you, it’s giving freedom. It’s giving truth. I’m also here for other ways to celebrate, because

queer joy is not one-size-fits-all. Not everyone thrives in packed streets and pounding music. Some folks find their pride in quieter, more intimate moments.

I have a dear friend who transforms his backyard in Heber into a gay wonderland each June, with water features, outdoor movies and snacks galore. It’s tender, silly, sacred and exactly what Pride should be: chosen, cherished and deeply ours.

Other gatherings like Burning Sissy Valley are yearround, while Sissy Talk is held monthly on the third week of each month for QTPOC. Some need spaces where their black, brown, or trans bodies feel safe and sovereign (instagram.com/burningsissyvalley). Others hit Punk Rock Pride for bands like Shecock and call it good (June 7 @ Aces High Saloon).

For those looking for sober-centered celebrations, Queer and Sober needs to be on your radar. On June 14 from 6–9 p.m., don’t miss Midsummer Night’s Slay at Fit To Recover, which will be a gorgeous night of queer celebration—minus the booze, plus all the sparkle (sliding scale). Because community should be affirming and accessible, especially for our sober siblings (queerandsoberslc.com).

Also, consider volunteering. Pride doesn’t run on rainbows alone; it takes labor, and many hands make that labor lighter.

Every event—from SLC Pride to Project Rainbow to Queer Spectra to the Queer Film Festival (utahqueerfilmfestival.org)—needs you. Speaking of SLC Pride (slc-pride.org, see p. 24), can we give Bonnie, Roberto and the whole team their flowers? Accessible and pure joy! And can we talk about HK Brewing’s Sip & Slay drag show? It’s a full-bodied, high-heeled masterpiece (hkbrewing.com).

If you want an easy and meaningful way to show your pride—whether you’re an ally or a member of the community—Project Rainbow has you covered.

Sign up to have a Pride flag staked in your yard during June (or year-round). It’s a quiet but powerful act of visibility and solidarity, especially in those neighborhoods where queer folks may not always feel seen (projectrainbowutah.org).

Or if you’d rather celebrate artfully, check out Red Butte Garden’s Blooming with Pride exhibit on June 13 (redbuttegarden.org/events/blooming-with-pride). Utah County folx, don’t sleep on Queer Haven in Provo. Every second and last Thursday of the month, it offers a welcoming space for LGBTQIA+ community to connect, vent, laugh, cry, and breathe.

And if you, like my sweetheart, are overwhelmed just reading this list, you can curl up with some queer poetry. Discover local poet Andrea G. Hardeman’s Love the Journey—a soft, powerful reminder that queer love belongs on the page, in the home, and everywhere in between. It was poetry, after all, that first stitched my spouse and me together. That’s queer sacred space (papillonskies.com/books).

Pride doesn’t end on July 1, either—not for me, not for you. I spend nine months of the year programming the Utah Queer Film Festival, watching story after story of queer resilience, hilarity, heartbreak and joy. That’s Pride, too.

So whether you’re lit by stage lights, moonlight or the soft glow of your porch, plan to celebrate this June in whatever way feels right for you: loud or low-key, in a crowd or on your own.

We all deserve a Pride that meets us where we are. All of it counts. All of it is holy. CW

Blooming with Pride at Red Butte Garden

Utah Queer Film Festival

Love the Journey by Andrea G. Hardeman

RAW KOMBUCHA & WATER KEFIR

NO MORE CLOSETS

SENIORS OUT AND PROUD SUPPORTS THE OLDER LGBTQ COMMUNITY.

BY CAROLYN CAMPBELL comments@cityweekly.net

Larry Quinn says he could win an Oscar for his performance as a heterosexual; he kept his identity a secret for eight decades. Realizing he was gay in his early teens, Quinn says, “I prayed to God to make me like other guys. Nothing happened.” When he graduated from ninth grade in 1949, social pressure was high to stay in the closet. At that time, the “Lavender Scare” was a parallel to the Red Scare. Even as Joseph McCarthy and his allies accused individuals of being Communist sympathizers, they also accused homosexuals of being security risks.

As a BYU student, Loreen Major flew under the radar regarding having a girlfriend. Then she reported herself to her Latter-day Saint bishop. “I was forced to go through conversion therapy,” Major says. “They gave me ipecac, so that I would throw up when I saw pictures of naked women.”

Afterwards, she says, she packed her identity away, moved on, and married a man who had a daughter from a previous marriage.

For Quinn and Major, the support of SOAP—Seniors Out and Proud—has been a lifeline. Quinn fondly recalls how the group helped him “learn how to be gay.” He emphasizes the importance of having a community where he can belong, especially for those who, like him, were lonely and lacked gay friends. Major echoes this sentiment, highlighting how SOAP’s activities helped her combat loneliness.

SOAP was born from Deb Hall’s work with LGBT seniors. As a Pride Center volunteer and employee, Hall grew to understand how significant aging is in the LGBT community. “Historically, there has been discrimination, loneliness, social isolation and increased suicidality,” she explains, adding that LGBTQ seniors are twice as likely to live alone and four times as likely not to have a family. They also have an increased risk of cognitive decline. “There is a high rate of smoking, substance abuse disorder and obesity,” Hall says. “We have to do things to combat that loneliness, to decrease the rate of cognitive decline and those other issues.”

Using a multi-pronged approach, Hall and co-founder Angie Salot oversee SOAP’s mission to re-imagine aging so that LGBTQ seniors will cherish the journey. For example, there are biking, kayaking, history groups and a book club. An established SOAP/Eccles partnership makes the arts accessible, bringing opportunities to attend events such as Salt Lake Acting Company plays and Utah Opera performances for income-qualified individuals. A group of SOAP seniors attends the

LARRY QUINN

Larry Quinn (left) and partner Carl Blake

FRIDAY JUNE 6

SUNDAY JUNE 8

BLOCK PARTY

dress rehearsal performances at Pioneer Memorial Theater. SOAP’s goals are to reduce social isolation and loneliness, improve the health and well-being of older adults, and empower them to lead meaningful and connected lives in which they are engaged and participating in the community.

It may be hard for LGBTQ folks of later generations to understand why this kind of support is needed, and what life was like for gay people 40–50 years ago. Quinn only married for the first time because people kept asking him, “Who are you dating? When are you getting married?” Back then, he was 27. Quinn recalls that many people were already married with children by that age. His two marriages totaled 28 years, and he was single for eight. “I should have come out when I was single,” he says. Adding that he has considered suicide throughout his life, he remarked, “I joked that I was in the closet and couldn’t find the door.”

Quinn says his first marriage was good as long as he stayed closeted. He and his wife joined groups and sailed on five cruises; they raised two children from her previous marriage. A friend told Quinn she wished her marriage were as good as his. “It was happy, until my wife realized I was gay,” Quinn recalls. “I tried very hard to supply my wife’s needs, but your life has a big hole if you marry someone you can’t fully love,” says Quinn. Their divorce was amicable; “We just split everything down the middle.”

Quinn had no plans to come out to his second wife. He hoped he could be his authentic self and still be married. Before their wedding, his future bride found nude photos of men that he had collected over the years. Quinn admitted, “‘That’s me. What are you going to do about it?’ She pondered, and then decided to go ahead with the marriage.” That union, too, ended in an amicable divorce.

Major and her husband had a son, and her husband received visitation after the couple divorced. When her son was four years old, Major met Arlene. “She ended up being my wife, and we were together for 24 years before she died of cancer. After she passed away, I was looking for people to be with. I found SOAP and started attending the activities because I was lonely.”

There are now six SOAP chapters in Utah. While participating in Pride, they give out small hotel-sized soaps to help increase awareness. Major met a woman who is now her partner through the Utah County Chapter she started. “I dated many women, trying to find someone because I wanted to be coupled again,” says Major. “I have found someone I think will be my last partner.”

Quinn also feels that without Hall, he wouldn’t have met his current partner, Carl D. Blake. Quinn is 90 years old and still active, while Blake is 66. “I have a very scientific background, a doctorate in chemistry, and a master’s in public administration. He appreciated my analytical view of life. He has a bachelor’s in interior architecture. He’s much more artsy than I am.”

He adds, “To have someone I can love fully and completely in a gay way—it’s just wonderful.” CW

Continued from page 30

Deb Hall

ANOTHER ORANGE BIGOT

REMEMBERING THE LOCAL PROTEST AGAINST ANTI-GAY ACTIVIST ANITA BRYANT.

BY BABS DE LAY comments@cityweekly.net

In an age of protests just like we’re experiencing now, I think back to the 1970s, when I was young and full of … well, you know. There were massive marches and demonstrations against the Vietnam War and the illegal invasion of Cambodia—especially after four innocent college students who had been bystanders to a campus protest were gunned down by the Ohio National Guard at Kent State University. This was followed by the largest-at-that-time civil disobedience gathering known as the “May Day Protests” in 1971, with more than 12,000 protesters arrested in Washington D.C.

Native Americans, Chicanos and disabled persons—along with draft protesters—respectively picketed from coast to coast throughout the decade for basic rights. But locally, I remember the 1977 silent protest against singer and anti-gay activist Anita Bryant, who was performing at the Utah State Fair that September.

The Stonewall Riots happened in NYC in 1969, which was a turning point for the gay rights movement in the U.S. And we gays started coming out and marching for our rights with the first Pride parade in the country happening a year after Stonewall in NYC. Utah had gay bars back then, but we didn’t have a parade until 1990. We did, however, make our presence known when Bryant came to town.

Bryant had three top 20 hits in the U.S. after gaining fame as the 1958 Miss Oklahoma beauty pageant winner; her 1960 recording of “Paper Roses” was covered by Marie Osmond 13 years later.

She was known for traveling on holiday tours with Bob Hope during the Vietnam War. Bryant performed at multiple White House functions, was nominated for two Grammys for best Sacred and Spiritual Performance and, in 1969, became the spokeswoman for the Florida Citrus Commission.

In 1977, Florida sponsored an ordinance that prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation, and Bryant immediately created a campaign to repeal the ordinance, as she was especially concerned that it would allow homosexuals to teach in Christian schools. In her speeches across the nation, she perpetuated the idea of gays “recruiting children through child abuse to become homosexuals,”

LARRY QUINN

Singer/activist Anita Bryant in 1971

Button from 1977

Continued on page 34

and her friend Jerry Falwell came to Florida to endorse her Protect America’s Children campaign. The ordinance protecting gays was overturned that same year, and legislators there passed a law prohibiting gay adoption (overturned in 2008).

Immediately, gay bars in Utah and around the country stopped serving orange juice and screwdrivers, some replacing it with the “Anita Bryant Cocktail” of vodka and apple juice. People wore buttons and T-shirts with the anti-Bryant message “Anita Bryant Sucks Oranges.”

Nevertheless, Bryant was hired to perform at the Utah State Fair in 1977— at the peak of her bigoted activism.

We locals opted to protest one of her two performances, and the cops got wind of our plans. Rev. Bob Waldrop— the pastor of the “gay” Metropolitan Community Church here—led us to protest silently without violence. Basically, we paid to get into the fair, got into the bleachers and when she started to perform, we all stood up quietly and walked out while she sang.

What was crazy were the number of police and highway patrol officers and their vehicles, all of which surrounded the fairgrounds and the bleachers, probably convinced we were going to be violent and disruptive. We left quietly and without incident, and went to Memory Grove, where we gathered to commemorate the slaying of three gays the previous year.

This was by far the largest protest of its kind here at the time for us gays—we didn’t have an alphabet back then—and we felt empowered to make a statement at the fair against Bryant’s hatred toward us. We were happy to gather afterwards at Memory Grove, a notorious cruising spot we felt comfortable with.

We weren’t terrified by the police presence at the fair. But they used tear

gas to drive us away from the park and to our local bars, where we felt safe.

Bryant’s political activism of hate caused irreparable damage to her career. She rapidly became the butt of jokes, as her image shifted from being a model Christian spokeswoman to that of a priggish, self-righteous bigot. The decline of her reputation was aided by Tonight Show host Johnny Carson and other comedians, who mocked her daily.

She was fired as a spokesperson for Florida oranges in 1980 and passed away in 2024. Bryant’s granddaughter came out in 2021, after publicly announcing her marriage to a woman. CW

City Weekly’s Best Of Utah Top 10!

What better way to accentuate—or as the case may be, start—one’s day than with a brunch and maybe even a cocktail? Lots of great places are available along the Wasatch Front for such outings, but the following locations excel in their combination of a delicious menu with relaxed environs. Give them a try!

BEST LGBTQ+ FRIENDLY BAR

What creates a successful bar? Is it the music? The programming? The drinks? The clientele? These elements combine to make a unique cocktail of experiences that appeal differently to every taste and need. Here within the Salt Lake Valley, we are proud to have such successful mixtures so near at hand for our LGBTQ community:

Each week, City Weekly will publish, email to our Best of Utah list and post on our socials an expanded version of our beloved Best of Utah issue. With over 400 categories to choose from, we selected our favorites to post from now til the Best of Utah issue in November. Remember, always support local! CONTACT

Cocktail Hour

Alpine Distilling 7132 N. Silver Creek Road, Park City 350 Main, Park City 435-200-9537

AlpineDistilling.com

Beehive Distilling

2245 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake 385-259-0252

BeehiveDistilling.com

Clear Water Distilling Co. 564 W. 700 South, Pleasant Grove 801-997-8667

ClearWaterDistilling.com

The Hive Winery and Spirits Company 1220 W. Jack D Drive, Layton 801-546-1997

TheHiveWinery.com

Holystone Distilling 207 W. 4860 South, Salt Lake City 503-328-4356

HolystoneDistilling.com

Moab Distillery 686 S. Main, Moab 435-259-6333

TheMoabDistillery.com

Dented Brick Distillery 3100 S. Washington St, South Salt Lake 801-883-9837

DentedBrick.com

Distillery 36 2374 S. Redwood Road, West Valley 801-983-7303

Distillery36.com

Eight Settlers Distillery

7321 S. Canyon Centre Pkwy, Cottonwood Heights 385-900-4315

EightSettlersDistillery.com

High West Distillery 703 Park Ave, Park City 435-649-8300

HighWest.com

Simplicity Cocktails

3679 W. 1987 South #6, Salt Lake City

801-210-0868

DrinkSimplicity.com

Spirits of the Wasatch Distillery

3697 W 1987 S Building 5, Salt Lake City

855-927-2824

wasatch.co

New World Distillery 4795 2600 North, Eden 385-244-0144

NewWorldDistillery.com

Ogden’s Own Distillery 615 W. Stockman Way, Ogden 801-458-1995

OdgensOwn.com

Outlaw Distillery 552 W. 8360 South, Sandy 801-706-1428

OutlawDistillery.com

Silver Reef Brewing and Distillery

4391 Enterprise Drive, St. George 435-216-1050

StGeorgeBev.com

Sugarhouse Distillery

2212 S. West Temple #14, Salt Lake City

801-726-0403

SugarhouseDistillery.net

Vintage Spirits Distillery 6844 S. 300 West, Midvale 801-699-6459

VSDistillery.com

Waterpocket Distillery 2084 W 2200 South, West Valley City 801-382-9921

Waterpocket.co

Spirit of the Week

Distillery: Ogden’s Own Distillery

Spirit of the Month: Five Husbands Vodka

Distilled from 100% corn and pristine Utah mountain spring water, Five Husbands is a testament to nature’s purity. A portion of every bottle sold goes straight to supporting the LGBTQ community in Utah.

Cocktail Recipe

Morning Wood

Ingredients:

1.5 oz Five Husbands Vodka

0.5 oz Strawberry Vanilla Syrup

2 oz Grapefruit Juice

Garnish: Grapefruit Twist, Rosemary Sprig, Half Salt Rim

Directions: Combine ingredients into a shaker - shake it (and your ass) - pour over ice, garnish, enjoy.

Visit fivehusbandsvodka.com for more information.

Writer of the Lost Oligarch

The Phoenician Scheme gets both silly and serious about what makes rich dickheads tick.

BY SCOTT RENSHAW scottr@cityweekly.net @scottrenshaw

Anatole “Zsa-Zsa” Korda (Benicio Del Toro)—the main character of Wes Anderson’s The Phoenician Scheme—is not Elon Musk. Not specifically, anyway. It’s certainly easy to note some points of similarity, given that Korda is a wealthy businessman with a number of children even he can’t seem to keep track of, and whom he generally ignores. Yet while it would be fun to snicker at the idea of this somehow being a stealth roman á clef takedown of a hated figure, I don’t think that would give Anderson enough credit for taking one of his meticulouslycrafted comedies and once again finding a way to give it a surprising heart—even if it asks you to find some sympathy where it may otherwise be hard to find it. Because let’s face it: Korda is exactly the kind of master-of-the-universe dickhead we all now have to spend way too much of our lives thinking about. In a story set in 1950, Korda is trying to finalize his latest attempt at a mega-deal, one that will bring infrastructure to an undeveloped area provided he can complete it before one of his many enemies succeeds either in killing him or ruining him financially by colluding on raising the project’s costs. Desperate to hold the deal together, Korda sets out to persuade his many co-financiers to fill in the shortfall, accompanied by the daughter—novitiate nun Liesl (Mia Threapleton)—that he hopes will become his heir. Much of what follows is fairly episodic,

as Korda and Liesl visit those co-financiers, most of them played by veterans of previous Anderson movies: Tom Hanks and Bryan Cranston as brothers; Scarlett Johansson as a distant cousin of Korda’s; Mathieu Amalric as a French club owner; Benedict Cumberbatch (from Anderson’s Oscarwinning Roald Dahl-adaptation short film) as Korda’s estranged brother. There’s a lot of wonderful silliness built into the film’s first half, much of it involving time-honored devices like exaggerated accents (most notably Michael Cera’s Swedish Chef-style Norwegian lilt as Korda’s new personal secretary) or crazy facial hair, and it would certainly be easy enough to enjoy it simply on a level of surface pleasures—in other words, the level that Anderson’s most fervent detractors say is his only level.

Yet The Phoenician Scheme also applies its sneaky humor to skewering the existence of the very rich, both in terms of the way they see the world and the capriciousness with which they carry out their affairs. We do get some pointed dialogue in which Korda tries to weasel his way into a justifi-

cation of slave labor, but mostly things are a bit more subtle than that. When Korda and a Middle Eastern prince (Riz Ahmed) take on Hanks and Cranston’s brothers in a game of H-O-R-S-E to determine whether or not the additional financing will come through—with a well-considered cutaway from the actual result—it feels like the bet between the Duke brothers in Trading Places in suggesting how blithely millionaires approach matters that will have life-changing impacts on others. There’s a reference to family squabbles involving poison gas developed as part of war profiteering, and a running gag in which Korda casually offers each of the people he’s soliciting a hand grenade as swag. As Brian Cox’s patriarch from Succession might say of these economic titans, they are not serious people.

It’s perhaps a bit surprising, then, that Anderson ultimately finds something resembling compassion for people who only seem to see the world as transactional. While Del Toro and Threapleton adopt much the same deadpan demeanor as the rest of the cast, they find interesting ter-

ritory in approaching the relationship between father and daughter as a negotiation. Meanwhile, Anderson keeps dropping oblique references to Korda’s own backstory, and the events that might have turned him into someone who doesn’t understand how to have real familial relationships, leading up to a surprisingly affecting finale. While the period-piece setting offers a bit of distance, The Phoenician Scheme finds something pretty contemporary in the notion of people who focus on their big swings on big stages because it’s the only way, in the absence of individual personal connection, they can see to find purpose. Not that we’re naming any names. CW

THE PHOENICIAN

Threapleton

Benicio Del Toro and Mia Threapleton in The Phoenician Scheme

Burgers From the Barrio

Mexico, Venezuela and Colombia share their best burgers with the Wasatch Front.

BY ALEX SPRINGER comments@cityweekly.net @captainspringer

Aside from the encroaching scorch that tries to kill us around this time of year, I like summers in Utah. It’s when the air fills with the smell of backyard cookouts and the sound of families airing their grievances.

As the humble hamburger is often the focal point of these outdoor get togethers, I have been thinking a lot about some of the Mexican, Venezuelan and Colombian burger places that are popping up all over town. Inspired by each culture’s own storied grilling history, these burgers are truly marvels of meat-based engineering. Here’s a list of a few favorites that will be on my burger rotation this summer.

Loco Burger (Multiple locations, locoburger.com): The South Salt Lake location of Loco Burger was the place that initially opened my eyes to the meaty possibilities when Mexican street foods like tortas team up with a flame-broiled hamburger. The tried-and-true classic is the appropriately named Loco Burger, which tees up a spectacular burger that can be even further customized depending on your mood. The original comes with a quarter pound patty, grilled ham, melty mozzarella cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion and avocado. There is much to be said about including an avocado on a burger; it imparts

DINE

a great creamy texture to the meat, and it elevates the flavors of the other veggies on the bun. I’d also like to point out how important it is to shred the iceberg lettuce before it goes on the burger—neat little ribbons of cool, crunchy lettuce is simply far superior to full leaves of the stuff. The burgers on this list are known for incorporating a wide variety of proteins, and the Loco Burger can be further customized to include bacon, pork loin, and salchichas, all three of which are available on the legendary Super Loco Burger.

A Lo Marachucho (Multiple locations, alomaracucho.com): First and foremost, West Jordan’s A Lo Maracucho is all about Venezuelan comfort food. The cool thing about Venezuelan comfort food is that a lot of it consists of tasty grilled meats, which often lend themselves to bodacious burgers. If this is what you’re after during a visit to A Lo Maracucho, then you have to check out the Street Burger. At its most basic level, you can kind of manage to pick this guy up and eat it like its more demure burger cousins. A Double Street Burger can be handled safely by burger professionals, though this is not recommended. A Triple Street Burger requires a knife and fork at all costs; many brave souls have attempted to summit this meat monolith by hand, and all of them have paid dearly. The laws of physics simply do not play with a burger patty, smoked sausage, pulled pork and grilled ham in addition to all the trimmings. Just trust me on this one, friends.

V Burger (1669 W. 9000 South, 385491-8989, vburgers.net): V Burger shares many similarities with A Lo Maracucho: It’s Venezuelan, it’s in West Jordan and it absolutely doesn’t skimp on the meats. However, I feel like the V Burger here is a great way to get the same stacked variety in a slightly more manageable package. You can by all means debauch your-

self with the V Burger Plus when craving all the meats, but the classic V Burger lets you appreciate the Venezuelan flavors without having to lick them off your forearms. You’ve got the lettuce and tomatoes, but you also get the creamy sauce and crunchy shoestring potatoes. I also think the bun game at V Burger is toptier—as the restaurant’s burgers tend to be enormous, they need some serious consideration when it comes to carb engineering. The buns at V Burger are super soft, but they also have the necessary elasticity to keep the stack of ingredients in check. I think it’s inspired by the arepa school of thought when it comes to sandwich engineering. Either way, it’s working very well for V Burger.

Parcerito Parrilla Colombiana (10949 S. Redwood Road, 801-205-9068, mirazurparrillacolombianaut.com): A recent entry to the world of insane burgers, Parcerito—formerly known as Mirazur— has brought a wide variety of Colombian cuisine to South Jordan. Colombian food definitely doesn’t skimp when it comes to proteins, and the menu is packed with classics like the stir-fried rice dish called calentao and some pretty decently-priced steaks and ribs. It’s a grill-forward menu, so it makes sense to see its fast-food menu that includes plenty of overstuffed hamburgers and hot dogs. The Parcerito Burger, for example, comes with thick bacon and smoky chorizo. Like the V Burger, it’s easy to see each layer of this burger as soon as it comes to the table. It has a bit more height than the V Burger, though it’s still possible to eat it by hand; slicing it in half helps a lot. The Super Parcerito Burger is what you’ll want when you don’t mind diving in with a knife and fork. It adds fried plantain and shredded chicken to the mix—and the whole affair has me convinced that plantains are nothing short of a burger miracle. CW

Among the formidable stylings of A Lo Maracucho Burger

2 Row Brewing

73 West 7200 South, Midvale

2RowBrewing.com

On Tap: “Czech One-Two” Czech Pilsner

Avenues Proper 376 8th Ave, SLC avenuesproper.com

On Tap: Steamy Wonder Rye Steam Ale

Bewilder Brewing

445 S. 400 West, SLC

BewilderBrewing.com

On Tap: Pink Boots - Pink Pony Pilz

Bohemian Brewery 94 E. Fort Union Blvd, Midvale BohemianBrewery.com

NEW Releases: Kölsch, Dusseldorfer “Alt” Bier

BonnevilleBrewery.com

On Tap: Peaches and Cream Ale

Chappell Brewing 2285 S Main Street

Salt Lake City, UT 84115 chappell.beer

On Tap: Playground #13 - Hazy Pale with Lemondrop & Sultana

Corner Brew Pub Sugar House

2110 S. Highland Drive, SLC saltlakebrewingco.com/ wasatch

On Tap:  Top of Main Mother Urban’s Parlor Blonde Ale

Craft by Proper 1053 E. 2100 So., SLC properbrewingco.com

On Tap: Steamy Wonder Rye

Desert Edge Brewery

273 Trolley Square, SLC DesertEdgeBrewery.com

On Tap:  Centennial Steamer, California Common Lager

Epic Brewing Co. 825 S. State, SLC EpicBrewing.com

On Tap: 2024 Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stouts

Etta Place Cidery

700 W Main St, Torrey ettaplacecider.com

On Tap: Wassail Cider, Pineapple Passion Fruit Session Mead

Fisher Brewing Co.

320 W. 800 South, SLC FisherBeer.com

On Tap: A rotation of up to 17 Fresh Beers!

Mountain West Cider

425 N. 400 West, SLC MountainWestCider.com

On Tap: Mango Basil Hard Cider

Offset Bier Co 1755 Bonanza Dr Unit C, Park City offsetbier.com/ On Tap: DOPO IPA

Ogden Beer Company 358 Park Blvd, Ogden OgdenBeerCompany.com

On Tap: 11 rotating taps as well as high point cans and guest beers

Park City Brewing 1764 Uinta Way C1 ParkCityBrewing.com

On Tap: ALES for ALS - 5.0% hazy pale

Roosters Brewing

Multiple Locations RoostersBrewingCo.com

On Tap: Cranberry Lime Seltzer

SaltFire Brewing 2199 S. West Temple, South Salt Lake

SaltFireBrewing.com On Tap: Everyone’s Welcome Fruited SaisonPride Month Beer in can

Salt Flats Brewing 2020 Industrial Circle, SLC SaltFlatsBeer.com

On Tap: OPEN ROAD SERIES #3 - Barrel Aged Grand Cru

Scion Cider Bar 916 Jefferson St W, SLC Scionciderbar.com

Strap Tank Brewery, Lehi 3661 Outlet Pkwy, Lehi, UT StrapTankBrewery.com

On Tap: “Blood For Ra” American Sour with Tart Cherry and Vanilla; “Pineapple Haze” Hazy IPA with Pineapple

Strap Tank Brewery, Springville 596 S 1750 W, Springville, UT StrapTankBrewery.com

On Tap: “Orange Hopsicle” Hazy Pale; “Trouble” American Sour with Mango and Passionfruit TF Brewing

936 S. 300 West, SLC TFBrewing.com On Tap: Twelve taps and high point cans available.

Grid City Beer Works

333 W. 2100 South, SLC GridCityBeerWorks.com

On Tap: Cask Nitro CO2

Helper Beer

159 N Main Street, Helper, UT  helperbeer.com

Hopkins Brewing Co.

1048 E. 2100 South, SLC HopkinsBrewingCompany.com

On Tap: Guava Sour

Kiitos Brewing

608 W. 700 South, SLC KiitosBrewing.com

Now with a full bar license & draft beer cocktails!

On Tap: Fonio - 100% gluten free beer; Schwarzbier

Level Crossing Brewing Co. 2496 S. West Temple, S. Salt Lake

LevelCrossingBrewing.com

On Tap: El Santo Mexican Lager

Level Crossing Brewing Co., POST

550 South 300 West, # 100, SLC

LevelCrossingBrewing.com

On Tap: Fruit Bat Sour Ale

Moab Brewing

686 S. Main, Moab TheMoabBrewery.com

On Tap:  Arnie (Co-Lab with 2 Row brewing): cream ale base with Lychee black tea and fresh pasteurized lemon juice.

Policy Kings Brewery 223 N. 100 West, Cedar City PolicyKingsBrewery.com

Prodigy Brewing 25 W Center St. Logan Prodigy-brewing.com On Tap: 302 Czech Pilsner

Proper Brewing/Proper

Burger 857 So. Main & 865 So. Main properbrewingco.com

On Tap: Steamy Wonder Rye Steam Ale

Proper Brewing Moab 1393 US-191, Moab properbrewingco.com  On Tap: Blizzard Wizard Hazy Pale Ale

Red Rock Brewing 254 So. 200 West RedRockBrewing.com On Tap: Gypsy Scratch

Red Rock Fashion Place 6227 So. State Redrockbrewing.com

On Tap: Munich Dunkel

Red Rock Kimball Junction 1640 Redstone Center Redrockbrewing.com

On Tap: Bamberg Rauch Bier

RoHa Brewing Project 30 Kensington Ave, SLC RoHaBrewing.com

On Tap: Brewers Select Mercury Mustache Double IPA

On Tap: Scion Cider Mabel 5.3% ABV

Second Summit Cider 4010 So. Main, Millcreek https://secondsummitcider. com

On Tap: Blackberry Lime 6.5%

Shades Brewing 154 W. Utopia Ave, South Salt Lake ShadesBrewing.beer On Tap: Fresh Hop IPA (with homegrown local hops)

Shades On State 366 S. State Street SLC Shadesonstate.com On Tap: Six Wheat Under Hefeweizen; Black Cloud Lager

Silver Reef 4391 S. Enterprise Drive, St. George SGBev.com

Squatters Corner Pub –Valley Fair 3555 Constitution Blvd, West Valley City squatterscornerpub.com

On Tap: Salt Lake Brewing Co. Acapulco Gold Mexican Lager

Squatters Pub Brewery / Salt Lake Brewing Co. 147 W. Broadway, SLC saltlakebrewingco.com/ squatters On Tap: Salt Lake Brewing Co. Dog Lake Pale Ale

Talisman Brewing Co. 1258 Gibson Ave, Ogden TalismanBrewingCo.com On Tap: American Red Ale

Thieves Guild Cidery

117 W. 900 South, SLC thievesguildcidery.com

On Tap: Garden Wall - lemon basil cider | semisweet | 6.5% ABV

Top of Main Brewery

250 Main, Park City, Utah topofmainbrewpub.com On Tap: Top of Main Brewery Off The Tree Juicy IPA

Uinta Brewing 1722 S. Fremont Drive, SLC UintaBrewing.com On Tap: Was Angeles Craft Beer

UTOG

2331 Grant Ave, Ogden UTOGBrewing.com On Tap: Golden Grant 5% ABV.

Vernal Brewing

55 S. 500 East, Vernal VernalBrewing.com

Zion Brewery

95 Zion Park Blvd, Springdale ZionBrewery.com

BEER NERD

Global Pints

A taste of the wider world, made locally.

BY MIKE RIEDEL comments@cityweekly.net

@utahbeer

Offset - Aus Cascade: Created in 1972 by combining English Fuggle and Russian Serebrianka hops, the Cascade varietal was definitely a workhorse in American craft beer. If you’ve been drinking IPAs and pale ales from the 1990s and on to today, you’re probably quite familiar with them. Cascades are also grown throughout the globe, but changes in climate and soil tend to alter the hop’s character a bit. This Australian version of Cascade was used in a new brew from our pals at Offset Bier in Park City. How does it compare to our domestic varieties?

A not-too-aggressive pour reveals a hazy, vibrant, sun-kissed yellow, reminiscent of ripe apricot. As the beer settles, a pristine, rocky white head forms. Bringing the glass to my nose, the initial impression is a bright, captivating burst of citrus. This is unmistakably the Australian Cascade, with its unique expression of grapefruit and lime zest, perhaps a touch more subtle and less aggressively piney than its American cousin. The first sip leads the charge with a vibrant zestiness that immediately cleanses the palate. Grapefruit and lime are prominent, but there’s a delicate sweetness that rounds out the citrus, preventing it from becoming overly fruity—somewhat resinous, not sharp, but precise and remarkably clean. Mid-palate, the subtle tropical fruit notes from the Galaxy peek through—a fleeting hint of passionfruit and a soft, juicy stone fruit character that adds complexity and depth. It’s mediumbodied, offering a satisfying weight on the tongue without being heavy or filling. The 5.0 percent ABV feels absolutely appropriate here.

Verdict: This “single-hop” pale ale does show a nuanced touch with the Galaxy hops. It’s a testament to the beauty of a well-executed single-hop showcase, allowing the unique characteristics of

Australian Cascade to truly shine, while the subtle addition of Galaxy adds just enough intrigue and complexity without detracting from the primary hop. I would happily reach for it again, especially when seeking a truly expressive and well-crafted pale ale.

Epic - Matsumoto Rice Lager: Creating a beer named for Utah’s sister city in Japan, the team at Epic has made a new Japanese-style lager that was crafted using traditional Japanese rice and historical brewing techniques like decoction mashing. This promises to be a departure from the typical American lager, offering both a unique cultural as well as sensory experience.

The beer pours with impeccable clarity, a brilliant straw gold that shimmers in the light. It’s remarkably bright, with a slight hint of haze. The whiff is notably clean and subtle. There’s a faint, sweet malt character, reminiscent of fresh white bread or a hint of steamed rice, that is beautifully complemented by a delicate, floral hop note—extremely mild and almost imperceptible, offering just a whisper of Noble hop character.

The first sip is elegant and simple. The initial impression is one of crisp, clean malt sweetness, delicate and refined, mirroring the rice character I anticipated. This isn’t a sugary sweetness, but an almost starchy roundness that glides across the palate. The hop bitterness is incredibly restrained, acting as a clean counterpoint rather than a dominant flavor, leading to a perfectly balanced profile. There are no bold flavors vying for attention; instead, the beauty lies in its harmonious integration and the purity of its components. The decoction mashing likely contributes to a perceived richness and fullness of flavor despite the light body. The finish is remarkably dry and exceptionally clean, leaving the palate refreshed and ready for the next sip. The mouthfeel is exquisitely light-bodied at 5.7 percent ABV.

Verdict: This Japanese-style lager is a beer that celebrates purity of ingredients and meticulous brewing. The use of rice and traditional techniques truly shines, delivering a lager that is exceptionally clean, crisp and refreshing.

Small batches of both of these are available, so don’t wait too long. As always, cheers! CW

BACK BURNER

BY ALEX SPRINGER | @captainspringer

Post District Welcomes Mensho

I had a chance to check out Salt Lake’s newest ramen player as the team behind Mensho (mensho. com) hosted a soft opening for its first Utah restaurant. Mensho is a Tokyo-based restaurant that has locations all over the world and operates a Michelin-star location in San Francisco. Brand founder Tomoharu Shono presided over the event, where he welcomed guests and oversaw every noodle pull and knife slice personally. Salt Lake has had a wealth of great ramen spots open recently, and Mensho seems like a huge get for Utah dining. The ramen I tried was replete with textural balance and rich, garlicky flavor profiles, so I feel like this place will become a go-to haunt for local ramen nerds this year.

Park Silly Sunday Market Kicks Off

Park City’s family-friendly Park Silly Sunday Market kicked off earlier this week, and it will be in operation every Sunday for the rest of June. The vibes at this chill outdoor market are always friendly, and it’s honestly nice to get up into the mountains for a few hours while the sun bakes the valley. It’s one of Park City’s most popular events, and this year’s market will have the same great local vendors, food, music and events. The Sunday market sets up shop along Park City’s historic Main Street, and will be in operation from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., rain or shine.

Curated Cocktails from Water Witch at Sunspell

Our friends at Water Witch (waterwitchbar.com) were recently invited to curate the cocktail menu at Sunspell Pool and Provisions located within the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley. It’s a gorgeous pool and patio area that offers amazing views of Park City’s mountainous vistas. As resort season is starting to pick up, it’s cool to see a swanky spot like the Grand Hyatt eye local talent for their summer season. Water Witch has been a fixture in the Central Ninth neighborhood for nearly a decade, and based on their James Beard Award-nominated bar program, the drinks at Sunspell this summer will be spectacular.

Quote of the Week: “Luck exists in the leftovers.” – Japanese proverb

Faces in the Crowd

Becoming part of an iconic artwork turned two local musicians into John & Paul.

BY ARICA ROBERTS comments@cityweekly.net

You may be familiar with the SLC Pepper mural on 250 S. 400 West, which is a remake of The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover. It was created by Jann Haworth, the same artist who co-created the original, and who lives in Utah. The mural includes popular historical figures like Björk, David Bowie, Martin Luther King Jr., and Pablo Picasso. There are also a few blank spaces where the Beatles would be on the original cover. If you look closely, the spots where John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s faces are located, you will see none other than local bandmates of John & Paul, Jason Dickerson (John) and Tucker White (Paul). How did this happen?

It all started seven years ago, when Dickerson and White were having coffee at The Rose Establishment. “We were sharing a cookie, and we looked across at Salt Lake City Pepper, and we were like, ‘There’s no Salt Lake City people on it,’” White recalls. Maybe it was a couple of mural restorationists who gained favor with the property owners of the building, and stenciled on images of Dickerson and White over John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s blank faces. We may never know.

To commemorate the event of seeing their rock and roll images on the mural, Dickerson and White decided to take a leap of faith and start a band despite neither of them having much musical training. “Through

MUSIC

the John and Paul mural, as we found out, we had a lot of fertile ground for creative chemistry and collaboration. So we recorded an album of Beatle covers, and then we had a show,” Dickerson explains. While their first performance was a house party, they quickly formed a fan base who encouraged the pair to continue their music project.

When COVID-19 lockdowns were in full force, Dickerson and White—like many musicians in 2020—used the time to make music. “We had all of the time in the world. And so to be getting together and just being able to work on songs and music and art like that was a nice outlet for those trying times,” Dickerson explains.

In a little less than two years, the duo wrote and recorded more than a hundred songs of original material. Taking further inspiration from The Beatles, they decided to release the plethora of music in a series of anthologies on streaming platforms.

“Once we started opening that box, it was so much fun, and there were so many ideas happening and so many songs and sketches,” White adds.

Over the past few years, they’ve built a loyal local fan base through organic word-

of-mouth and energetic live performances. How do John & Paul have the stamina and creative flow to produce so much musical content? Dickerson explains, “In John & Paul, we always say, ‘Let duende guide you’.” What is duende? It is a Spanish term first theorized and enhanced by Andalusian poet Federico García Lorca, and is used to express a heightened state of emotion, expression and authenticity.

“It’s our guiding force. It’s our guiding light. Duende comes from beneath you. It starts in the soles of your feet and goes up through your legs, grabs you by the heart and just bursts out of your head. And it’s just this creative force that is beyond any thought,” White expounds.

This process of embodying duende allows John & Paul to lose themselves in the moment. “So long as you’re lost in the moment, there shall you always remain,” Dickerson says. And it’s really about the spontaneity and fun that comes with the creative process, as well as performing.

“We’re just here to have a good time, make people happy,” Dickerson puts it simply.

In November John & Paul released their first studio album, The Tale of the Big Ol’

Toad. Their sister band, Proto-Titties, had just recorded an album with Marmalade Music, run by one of John & Paul’s previous studio musicians, Chris Bjornn. All the instruments at the studio were lying around, so John & Paul spontaneously decided to record just one song for as long as possible, and the end result is an hour-long psychedelic fever dream. The album cover conceptualizes its tone, reminiscent of a surrealist fairy tale.

What are John & Paul up to next? “We are slowly chipping away at recording another album, but mostly getting the anthologies done,” White announces. They’ve made five albums’ worth of anthologies, the last of which is a live anthology; three more anthologies are in the works with songs spanning from 2020-2023.

To experience one of John & Paul’s provocative, energetic performances, check them out on July 8 at International Artist Lounge (342 S. State St). They now have more than 150 released original songs, so perhaps set aside a few days to listen to all their work. You can find them on Instagram: @johnkilledpaul and streaming platforms such as Spotify and Bandcamp. CW

John & Paul

MUSIC PICK S

Spin Doctors @ Egyptian Theatre, 6/5 – 6/8

Flash forward to past precedent. The Spin Doctors—known for their hits “Two Princes” and “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong” from their 1991 album Pocket Full of Kryptonite —provided the perfect prescription for fusing pop precepts with an album-oriented sound, and attracting fans from either side of the divide. Unlike some bands that sacrificed credibility in favor of commercial concerns, the Spin Doctors never found it necessary to give up either. They staked out that stance by touring with the first incarnation of the H.O.R.D.E. festival, sharing the stage with jam bands like Widespread Panic, Phish and Blues Traveler, the latter of which first found John Popper sharing his skills with Spin Doctors’ initial incarnation called Trucking Company. The group’s original vocalist, Chris Barron, continues at the helm of the Spin Doctors’ current line-up, and despite a dozen years since their last album, If the River Was Whiskey, the band is back making music courtesy of the single “Still A Gorilla,” released last January, and a new album, the humorously- and self-effacingly-titled Face Full of Cake. The fact that they’re holding court in our environs over the course of four nights—offering a different musical experience each evening—makes it clear that a renewed check-up with your primary-care Spin Doctor is long overdue. The Spin Doctors perform at the Egyptian Theatre in Park City, June 5 - 7 at 8 p.m. and June 8 at 5 p.m. Tickets cost for June 5 cost $49-$59, and $55-$65 for June 6, 7 and 8. Visit parkcityshows.com. (Lee Zimmerman)

UPCOMING SHOWS

6/5

6/6

6/7

6/8

6/9

6/12

Kirk Dath

Raccoon Rodeo

Enemy of Fate

Tomarum

Jameson Tank

Planet of Little Green

Men

TUESDAYS

WEDNESDAYS

MUSIC PICK S

OMD @ The Union 6/6

OMD is so good it’s humbling. It isn’t just that their songs are poptastic melodically; it’s how different and experimental they so often sound, while always retaining that standard of brilliance. Their newest LP, Bauhaus Staircase, ticks all of the boxes and extends new ideas, even if co-founders Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys are five decades in the game. “I guess we’re old-fashioned,” McCluskey told ClassicPopMag.com in April. “We try to make a complete album that flows and has light and shade, all because we like to express ourselves in different ways and we have different things that we like to talk about.” They might be the most underrated band in British pop history, and boast a back-catalog that is the envy of a number of media darlings … but where to begin? The plinky-then-whoosh intro to the song “Messages” off their debut self-titled studio record remains one of those rare intros that immediately make you feel that all is well with the world. However, 1981’s Architecture & Morality is pretty much the perfect synthpop album. If you like any of the tunes “Souvenir,” “Joan of Arc” or “Maid of Orleans,” the rest of this album should fit together nicely for you. I so miss the era when a group could have chart hits about phone booths, genetic engineering, French saints and World War II aeroplanes. Walt Disco opens. Catch these musicians at The Union on Friday, June 6. Doors at 7 p.m., show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets for the all-ages show are $84, and can be found at ticketmaster.com. (Mark Dago)

MUSIC PICK S

The Renegades @ Fear Factory, 6/7

Mutiny Presents brings their third annual rave, The Renegades, to your favorite local haunted house. AC Slater (Aaron Clevenger), the Los Angeles-based DJ and producer, is playing at Fear Factory this week. Clevenger refers to himself as “The King of Heavy Bass House in America,” and he’s not wrong. He is known for making bass house a distinct genre over the past few decades, from his 2016 single “Bass Inside” to 2018’s “Can’t Come Down.” More recently, in 2023 he’s taken a tech-house direction with his album Together. But don’t worry: He’s still making plenty of hard bass like his 2014 single “Bass Face.” There are definitely influences from ’90s hip-hop, as well as old-school rave such as U.K. bass music. This year’s lineup also showcases a variety of artists including Kyle Watson (for tech-house) and Deeper Purpose (for house music). Raecola, a twin female duo that’s part of Chicago Next Generation House, will make their debut in Salt Lake City with a bass house set full of the breaks and juke influence. As always, go early and support the local artists, Maplo and Mike Stern. The best part? You can dress up in spooky Halloween costumes without being cold! Get your tickets for Saturday, June 7 at Fear Factory (666 W. 800 South). Doors open at 7 p.m., and will go late until 2 a.m. Tickets cost $66.98 for general admission at wl.seetickets.us. (Arica Roberts)

They Might Be Giants @ The Depot, 6/10 – 6/11

They Might Be Giants are often funny; their songs are droll and clever. But it would be a mistake not to take them seriously. Starting in 1982 as the duo of John Flansburgh and John Linnell, TMBG scored with their quirky, literate approach. Tunes like 1987’s “Don’t Let’s Start,” 1990’s “Birdhouse in Your Soul” and their cover of the 1953 novelty song “Istanbul (Not Constantinople)” showcased a unique worldview, one that had a rock sensibility but often made use of non-rock elements like accordion. Today, nearly 40 years after their recorded debut, They Might Be Giants are still going strong. The group expanded to a full band several years ago, and in recent years has added a tight horn section, with the current lineup brilliantly showcased on their latest album, 2024’s live set Beast of Horns . With a deep

catalog—nearly two dozen studio albums, plus half a dozen live albums that avoid serving up the same material again and again—TMBG is also notable for successfully taking the indie route before it was fashionable (or financially feasible) to do so. While most long-running bands tend to coast on past glories, TMBG is still making music that stands up against its very best work. The group comes to The Depot for a pair of 16-and-up shows, Tuesday and Wednesday June 10 and 11 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $65 and up at livenation.com.

(Bill Kopp)

Styx, Kevin Cronin & Don Felder: The Brotherhood of Rock Tour @ Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre, 6/11 A concert tailor-made for lovers of classic-rock radio circa the 1970s and 1980s, The Brotherhood of Rock Tour finds three prominent “album-oriented radio”(AOR)era personalities sharing the stage and delivering distinct musical memories. After all, each member of this storied trio boasts impressive credentials. Styx, of course, contributed to the soundtrack of AOR with standout songs like “Lady,” “Come Sail Away” and “Mr. Roboto” that remain nostalgic staples. Kevin Cronin, meanwhile, made his name at the helm of REO Speedwagon, his distinctive vocals illuminating the anthems “Can’t Fight This Feeling,” “Keep On Loving You,” “Ridin’ the Storm Out” and “Time For Me To Fly.” Likewise, the songs of ex-Eagle Don Felder made a memorable impression all their own, with “Hotel California” and “Victim Of Love” ensuring a certain immortality. His bitter break-up with his former band was well documented in his book “Heaven and Hell: My Life in the Eagles (1974-2001),” but his musical trajectory is best illuminated by his new album The Vault (Fifty Years of Music), all newly-recorded versions of songs originally demoed over the past five decades. Ultimately, then, this particular band of brothers is poised to present one rocking retro reunion. Styx, Kevin Cronin & Don Felder: The Brotherhood of Rock Tour comes to Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre in West Valley City on Wednesday, June 11 at 6:45 pm. Tickets cost $26 - $132 (fees included) at concerts. livenation.com. (LZ)

free will ASTROLOGY

BY ROB BREZSNY

ARIES (March 21-April 19)

You have had resemblances to cactuses in recent days. It hasn’t always been pleasant and cheerful, but you have become pretty skilled at surviving, even thriving, despite an insufficiency of juicy experiences. Fortunately, the emotional fuel you had previously stored up has sustained you, keeping you resilient and reasonably fluid. However, this situation will soon change. More succulence is on its way. Scarcity will end, and you will be blessed with an enhanced flow of lush feelings.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20)

I foresee abundance emerging from modest sources. I predict that breakthroughs will arise out of your loving attention to the details of the routine. So, please don’t get distracted by poignant meditations on what you feel is missing from your life. Don’t fantasize about what you wish you could be doing instead of what you are actually doing. Your real wealth lies in the small routine tasks that are right in front of you—even though they may not yet have revealed their full meaning or richness. I invite you and encourage you to be more alert for grandeur in seemingly mundane intimate moments.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20)

It’s time for your Uncle Rob to offer you some fundamental advice for living. These tips are always worthy of your contemplation, but especially now. Ready? Being poised amidst uncertainty is a superpower. You may attract wonders and blessings if you can function well while dealing with contradictory feelings, unclear situations and incomplete answers. Don’t rush to artificial closure when patience with the unfinished state will serve you better. Be willing to address just part of a problem rather than trying to insist on total resolution. There’s no need to be worried or frustrated if some enigmas cannot yet be explained and resolved. Enjoy the mystery!

CANCER

(June 21-July 22)

Acclaimed Cancerian poet Lucille Clifton published 14 books and mothered six children. That heroism seems almost impossible. Having helped raise one child myself, I know how consuming it is to be a parent. Where did she find the time and energy to generate so much great literature? Judging from the astrological omens, I suspect you now have access to high levels of productivity comparable to Clifton’s. Like her, you will also be able to gracefully juggle competing demands and navigate adeptly through different domains. Here’s my favorite part: Your stellar efficiency will stem not from stressfully trying too hard but rather from good timing and a nimble touch.

LEO

(July 23-Aug. 22)

One of the seven wonders of the ancient world was the Colossus of Rhodes, located on a Greek island. Symbolizing power and triumph, it was a towering statue dedicated to the sun god Helios. The immediate motivation behind its construction was the local people’s defeat of an invading army. I hereby authorize you to acquire or to create your own personal version of an inspiring icon like the Colossus, Leo. It will symbolize the fact that the coming months will stimulate lavish expressions of your leonine power. It will also help inspire you to showcase your talents and make bold moves. P.S.—Be alert for chances to mobilize others with your leadership. Your natural brilliance will be a beacon.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s biggest structure built by living things. Lying beneath the Coral Sea off the east coast of Australia, it’s made by billions of small organisms, coral polyps, all working together to create a magnificent home for a vast diversity of life forms. Let’s make the Great Barrier Reed your symbol of power for the next 10 months, Virgo. I hope it inspires you to manage and harness the many details that together will generate a robust source of vitality for your tribe, family, and community.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

One of my favorite poets, Arthur Rimbaud, wrote all of his brilliant work before he became an adult. I suspect that no matter what your age is, many of you Libras are now in an ultra-precocious phase with some resemblances to Rimbaud from age 16 to 21. The downside of this situation is that you may be too advanced for people to thoroughly understand you. You could be ahead of your time and too cool for even the trendsetters. I urge you to trust your farseeing visions and forward-looking intuitions even if others can’t appreciate them yet. What you bring to us from the future will benefit us all.

SCORPIO

(Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Blacksmiths still exist. They were more common in the past, but there are many 21st-century practitioners. It’s a demanding art, requiring intense heat to soften hard slabs of metal so they can be forged into intricate new shapes. The process requires both fire and finesse. I think you are currently in a phase when blacksmithing is an apt metaphor. You will need to artfully interweave passion and precision. Fiery ambition or intense feelings may arise, offering you raw energy for transformation. To harness it effectively, you must temper your approach with patience, restraint, and detail-oriented focus.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir were feisty, independent, strong-minded French writers. Beauvoir was a trailblazing feminist and Sartre was a Nobel Laureate. Though they never married, they were a couple for 51 years. Aside from their great solo accomplishments, they also gave us this gift: They proved that romantic love and intellectual equality could coexist, even thrive together, with the help of creative negotiation. I propose we make them your inspirational role models for now. The coming months will be a favorable time to deepen and refine your devotion to crafting satisfying, interesting intimate relationships.

CAPRICORN

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Over 2600 years ago, ancient Babylonian astronomers figured out the highly complex cycle that governs the recurrence of lunar and solar eclipses. It unfolds over a period of 18 years and 11 days. To analyze its full scope required many generations of researchers to carry out meticulous record-keeping with extreme patience. Let’s make those Babylonian researchers your role models, Capricorn. In the coming months, I hope they inspire you to engage in careful observation and persistent investigation as you discover meaningful patterns. May they excite your quest to discern deep cycles and hidden rhythms.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

I invite you to try this visualization exercise, Aquarius: Picture a rosebud inside your body. It’s located in your solar plexus. Imagine it’s steadily and gently opening, filling your body with a sweet, blissful warmth, like a slow-motion orgasm that lasts and lasts. Feel the velvet red petals unfolding; inhale the soft radiance of succulent fragrance. As the rose fully blooms, you become aware of a gold ring at its center. Imagine yourself reaching inside and taking the ring with your right hand. Slip the ring onto your left ring finger and tell yourself, “I pledge to devote all my passionate intelligence to my own well-being. I promise to forever treat myself with tender loving respect. I vow to seek out high-quality beauty and truth as I fulfill my life’s mission.”

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20)

I foresee the arrival of a living fossil, Pisces. An influence you thought was gone may soon reappear. Aspects of your past could prove relevant to your current situation. These might be neglected skills, seemingly defunct connections, or dormant dreams. I hope you have fun integrating rediscovered resources and earmarking them for use in the future. P.S.—Here’s a lesson worth treasuring: While the world has changed, a certain fundamental truth remains true and valuable to you.

Data Analyst (Job ID#: DA0409) sought by IDFL Laboratory and Institute Inc. in Salt Lake City, UT: Visualize data per each dept & office needs; Create Power BI reports & conduct data analysis for GOTS; Perform training to teams on GOTS & visualization tools; Provide data to support the HQ mgmt team making strategy plans; Coord w/ global offices & address their needs; Make decisions & managing the projects for GOTS; Monitor the OS system & working w/ IT to solve the tickets; Inform global offices on any updates or new functions; Help w/ the global GOTS audits & conduct needed investigation to the operational teams if incidents occur, implmt the GTB (Global Trace Base) system; Manage the GOTS d/base & ensure the accuracy of the records, & represent IDFL to communicate w/ 3rd parties for all GOTS rltd cases. Reqmts: Bachelor’s Deg in Info Systems, Data Science, or a rltd field. Knowl of Python, SQL, & VBA. Apply, mail CV w/ Job# to Kristin Lieber, 1455 South 1100 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84105.

urban LIVING

Housing Watch

Of course, I read and listen to a variety of news sources. That’s what Boomers do. And about 50% of the articles I’ve read say our real estate market in Utah is going to crash and a recession is about to happen—big time. The remaining 50% say we’ll be just fine with property values going up slightly.

What’s my gut feeling? Well, I’m a data person so here’s some data around the country and locally:

MarketWatch says that many local U.S. housing markets have more sellers than buyers; and that there were nearly 500,000 more sellers than buyers in April, as reported by Redfin. That is the highest figure since they began tracking their data in 2013. There were 1,943,699 sellers and 1,453,628 buyers, meaning it’s a “buyers’ market” in many places.

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

ACROSS

1. Kids’ carrier

6. Low voice

10. Rabanne of perfume and fashion

14. Clinton successor

15. Treats a sprain

16. Grad

17. Old arcade game where you eat dots from talc to diamond?

19. Japanese beef city

20. Mendes of “Ghost Rider”

21. Bedding item

22. “Freaky Friday” actress Lindsay

23. Incessantly

25. Actress Kelly of “The West Wing”

27. “Over here!”

28. ABBA musical

31. Rock vanquisher

34. Be part of the crowd

35. Hall of Fame defenseman Bobby

36. 2001 Apple debut

37. Naval group

38. Actor Driver

39. “The Matrix” hero

40. Advanced exams

41. Untethers

42. Volcanic cloud

The strongest buyers markets were in cities all over Florida, where the market there is crashing due to high HOA insurance costs and insurance cancellations due to hurricanes—now and in the future.

Sellers’ markets are still out there in really populous states, such as New York and Pennsylvania, where home prices are up 12.2% over last year.

Listed homes in the U.S. are spending more time on the market than they have in years, where about 44% of home listings in April showed that they had been on the market 60 days or longer. This is sad—sellers are pricing high because many of them bought high during the peak of the market and want to try and get back their investment. Redfin says, “Many sellers are overpricing their homes, using skyhigh comps from the recent seller’s market that aren’t realistic today.”

UtahRealEstate.com shows that listings are up in Salt Lake County by about 850 over last year (2,957 currently for sale), with 12,581 statewide for sale. “Under contract” listings (sale pending) in Salt Lake County are only up by 24 properties—Utah county up 120; Davis County down by 5 properties; Washington County up by 60 properties; Weber is up by 30 homes.

What is striking from the MLS data is that “sold” listings that have closed escrow to a new buyer are down substantially over last year. There have been 3,118 total closings as of May, 608 less than in the same time period during 2024 (statewide). With approximately 19,000 active realtors in Utah, that suggests not many are making a living right now selling real estate.

The Utah Association of Realtors reported back in April that home-sale prices were up in most locations, with Weber County up 3.7%, Washington County down 7%, Salt Lake County up 0.4%, Summit up 27.9%, Garfield County up 23.2%, and Daggett up 25.5%. The average price of a home sold in Salt Lake County in April was $527,250. Zillow reported it was $518,516 in 2024.

My gut says this won’t be a banner year for home price increases and we’ll start seeing more foreclosures and short sales due to federal job cuts. ■

be released after all)

8. Neighbors on a plane

44. Mineral source

45. Scout’s reward

46. Anticipating

50. Fern seed

52. Britpop band scheduled to reunite in July 2025

54. Gershwin the lyricist

55. Deli counter call

56. Ensure there’s only one presenter on any TV show?

58. “Moral ___” (Adult Swim show)

59. Intro to sphere

60. Major Orlando attraction

61. Like a picture with too much going on

62. “Over here!”

63. Night lights

DOWN

1. “Little ___” (Louisa May Alcott novel)

2. From the beginning, in Latin

3. Depeche Mode lead singer Dave

4. Chanted syllables

5. Music download source, in the early Internet days

6. Arm muscle, familiarly

7. “Coyote vs. ___” (upcoming film that will

9. 9-digit ID

10. Deep-fried South Asian snack

11. Setting that’s very Hawaiian?

12. Largest island in the Caribbean

13. It’s a sign

18. “Greetings, sailor!”

22. Describe in detail

24. Place to put pruners

26. Leave out

28. Kitchenware brand that means “honey”

29. “Dies ___” (Latin hymn)

30. “(I Just) Died In Your ___” (Cutting Crew song)

31. “Escape (The ___ Colada Song)”

32. “Planet of the ___”

33. Crates in the Hundred Acre Wood?

34. Spectacular failures

37. ‘60s dance craze

38. Interior measurement

40. ___ English 800 (malt liquor)

41. Revive

43. Somewhat

44. The O of B&O Railroad

Limit

Midwest exclamation

Last week’s

Complete the grid so that each row, column, diagonal and 3x3 square contain all of the numbers 1 to 9. No

46. Broad neckwear

47. Studio 54, for one

48. “What the Butler Saw” playwright Joe

49. Goes without food

50. Arrogant sort

51. Cuzco’s home

53. Cash dispensers

NEWS of the WEIRD

Awesome!

Twenty-nine-year-old Oliver Widger arrived on May 24 in Waikiki, Hawaii, with his cat Phoenix in tow, the Associated Press reported. But he didn’t fly there. Widger and Phoenix sailed from the Oregon coast in a boat he bought without knowing how to sail. Widger was diagnosed four years ago with a syndrome that carries the risk of paralysis, so he quit his managerial job with $10,000 of debt and used his retirement savings to buy and refit the boat. “You know, you’re grinding at your job all day long and ... everybody’s just trying to do enough to get by and that just wears you out,” Widger said. “I think people have seen that it’s possible to break out.” Upon reaching Hawaii after several weeks at sea, he didn’t have a clear plan for what’s next but said he might sail to French Polynesia.

Surprise!

An East Shoreham, New York, homeowner who started the happy task of uncovering the backyard pool for the summer season on May 25 was shocked to find a man’s body in the water, NBC New York reported. The Suffolk County medical examiner has yet to identify the body or discover how he died, but officials said it may be Matthew Zoll, 23, who has been on the run since stabbing his father to death in November in Rocky Point, New York. Neighbor Paul Gawreluk said he wondered “why somebody would try to get under the (pool) cover. It’s not a smart thing to do.”

Holier Than Thou

Mount Athos is a self-governed monastic territory in Greece, where 20 or so monasteries coexist peacefully—one would think. However, on May 22, the Associated Press reported, one young monk was hospitalized after allegedly being attacked by brothers of the Esphigmenou Monastery, whose members have defied court and church orders to leave the premises. The dispute began in the 1970s and has involved violent clashes, legal battles and supply blockades. According to police, the rebel monks used garden tools to injure the victim. However, the accused brotherhood denied the claims. “It is a well-known tactic for these perpetrators to play the victims,” they said. “They feigned injury in a performance worthy of an acting class.”

News You Can Use

If you’re one of those impatient flyers who’s up out of the seat as soon as the wheels touch the ground, you’d better not land in Turkey. The New York Times reported on May 28 that Turkey will now fine passengers who leave their seats before the plane has stopped taxiing, to the tune of about $67. The Turkish Directorate General of Civil Aviation said the banned behavior includes unfastening seat belts, opening overhead compartments and moving into the aisle before it’s your turn.

Florida

■ Residents of Fort Myers Shores, Florida, who own pets are taking extra precautions about letting them out at night, Gulf Coast News reported on May 27. That’s because cane toads are spreading through the community, especially near parks, canals and gardens. The invasive toad secretes a toxin from glands on its back that “can kill very quickly,” said Jordan Donini, a biology professor at Florida Southwestern State College. “They can lay anywhere from 8,000 to 32,000 eggs in a single clutch,” he said, noting that female toads “are a priority for removal.” Donini said the toads have to be removed humanely and encouraged contacting local wildlife control services for help.

■ Researchers from the University of Florida have just published a study identifying a new hybrid breed of termite, Gizmodo reported. “I was hoping never to find it,” said the lead author of the study, Thomas Chouvenc. The insects are the result of breeding between the Formosan subterranean termite and the Asian subterranean termite, both of which are voracious chewers of wood. In October 2024, the scientists found a colony of the hybrid termites in a park in Fort Lauderdale that they think may have been there for five years. “This may be a Florida story now, but it likely won’t stay just in Florida,” Chouvenc said.

Rude

Three men came to blows on May 16 at CSL Plasma in Wilkes-Barre Township, Pennsylvania, after one of them, ahem, let one rip while standing in line, the Times Leader reported. Chazz Pearson, 39, was standing behind an elderly man who dropped a bomb, then apologized. But—and this really stinks—Pearson allegedly struck the man in the head, and when the man’s son stepped in, hit him, too. Pearson faces charges of simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct.

Nature Gone Wild

On May 28, 90% of the village of Blatten in Switzerland was buried after the Birch Glacier collapsed, the Associated Press reported. Rock and ice tumbled down the mountainside; the village had been evacuated of people and livestock earlier in May as a precaution. However, one 64-year-old man was missing after the avalanche. Police said the search-and-rescue operation to find him had been suspended on May 29 because of falling debris. Local officials said a lake is forming where the accumulated debris blocked the Lonza River: “The challenge lies in the behavior of this accumulation of water and the Lonza River, which could cause a torrential lava flow if the river flows into the deposit.”

Truth Is Stranger Than Netflix

On May 24, forest rangers responded to a 911 call from Cascade Mountain in the Adirondacks, the Associated Press reported. Two hikers told a steward at the mountain’s summit that the third member of their party had died and they were lost. The steward, however, realized that the hikers “were in an altered mental state,” and a ranger escorted them to an ambulance. Turns out the hikers had taken hallucinogenic mushrooms and their friend wasn’t dead. After being treated at a hospital, the trio met up at their campsite.

Animal Antics

Residents of one Cape Coral, Florida, community may want to start shouting “Duck!” at their neighbors, Fox 4-TV reported on May 23. That’s because an aggressive Muscovy duck is terrorizing them. James Sepulveda, who likes to catch sunsets from a chair on his front porch, said he had his eyes closed when, “All of a sudden, I felt a jab on my hand and it was bleeding.” The fowl has even tried to follow Sepulveda into his home. Another resident, Richard Guy, said, “I stood up and I made some noises ... Next thing I know, its wings come out, you know, like it’s going to attack me.” Sepulveda said he wants to “get rid of” the duck, but the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said the species is “protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.” As such, they have to be removed humanely or by “use of a firearm on private property during daylight hours with landowner permission.” That’ll work.

Comp Physics Eng (SLC): Capture high fidelity physics of HVAC systems/simulators. Create math/num models & software. Automate testing & validation. Work with AI team to integrate simulators. Debug building geometry imports. Req: MSME & 6 mos exp, w/ Heat Transfer, Fluid & Thermo Dynamics, Num Modeling & Optimization, EnergyPlus & Swift/Python. Resumes to hannah@passivelogic.com