2020-07-17 17:12
Satchel Paige as a Cleveland Indian Missing Major League Baseball I can’t help but think of what was a temple of baseball in my youth, Parker Field, which was located where the Diamo… Read More
Blog Directory > Politics Blogs > Government Blogs > SLANTblog government Blog >
Slantblog Blog
slantblog.blogspot.com
Since 1985, in various formats, SLANT -- an independent voice based in Richmond's Fan District -- has offered its readers original commentary on politics and popular culture, including cartoons and selected sundries. Warning: Sometimes that means satirical content. All rights are reserved.
2020-07-15 20:17
Yesterday afternoon (July 14) Brent Bettinger was at the site of Richmond’s famous/notorious Lee Monument (some now call that location “Marcus-David Peters Circle”) to shoo… Read More
2020-07-12 02:48
Was talking on the phone with a pal. It seemed we both needed to confess that 2020’s accumulating sense of despair is taking a toll. Like me, he’s a geezer who’s been strug… Read More
2020-07-07 19:48
With the temperature now in the 90s maybe it's a good time for a snowball story.Maybe the best snowball shot I ever made was in the early '80s on West Grace Street. Rebby Sharp and I were… Read More
2020-06-21 15:25
In 1916 the fit young volunteers who were members of the Richmond Light Infantry Blues were dispatched to Brownsville, Texas, to watch over the border and chase Mexican bandit/revolutio… Read More
2020-06-12 22:23
In spite of alarming news of the incidents at the Lee Monument, involving the confiscation of guns -- but no shooting -- early Friday morning, the grassy circle at the intersection of Monume… Read More
2020-06-11 22:25
My depiction (2007) of Fred Monihan's sculpture of J.E.B. Stuart fading into the mists.Facing east on Monument Avenue I was waiting for the stoplight to change. It was about 35 years ago… Read More
2020-06-09 01:51
Let it be said: Just a few blocks from VCU, with its much-celebrated art school, Gen. Robert E. Lee lost his last battle ... to graffiti artists in June of 2020 Read More
2020-06-07 18:08
How fast will the Confederate memorial removal process ordered by Gov. Northam proceed? A telling first clue to answer to that question may be have been revealed by a fresh batch of signs… Read More
2020-06-07 16:11
Kennedy George and Ava Holloway celebrating the moment. Friday, June 5, 2020: The culture developing around the much-photographed base of the Lee Monument has continued to evolve. The metamo… Read More
2020-06-05 02:00
All day long people posed for pictures with the Lee Monument as a backdrop.8:45 p.m.: This morning I watched Richmond's mayor, Levar Stoney and Virginia's governor, Ralph Northam, both say p… Read More
2020-06-03 20:34
Not all the political messages were painted on the monuments.Last night, at approximately 7:20 p.m., thousands of demonstrators were assembling on the 1600 block of Monument Avenue. The gras… Read More
2020-06-02 21:23
Tuesday, June 2, 2020: As I toured the 1600 block of Monument Avenue with my morning coffee in hand I noticed the signs on front porches and in windows. Mostly, they supported Black Lives Ma… Read More
2020-05-25 17:07
Note: This piece was originally published on Sept. 5, 2013. All rights are reserved. As a setting for compelling stories the extremes of war have been useful to filmmakers throughout the… Read More
2020-05-01 22:49
May 4, 2019: Group shot at the 40th Biograph Derby Day party.Since 1980 the first Saturday of May has meant another Biograph Derby Day reunion party. A day of seeing old friends gathered. Th… Read More
2020-04-30 02:32
The Biograph Naturals in 1980. (Original photo by Phil Trumbo.) Referred to as the “hippie league” by softball players who played in the polyester-clad softball world governed b… Read More
2020-04-07 18:52
Oct.21, 2019: The Associated Press preseason Top 25 Poll ranked the Virginia Commonwealth University men’s basketball team as No. 25 in the nation. Thus, before a single game… Read More
2020-03-26 22:21
From: VCU's Chris Kowalczyk: The executive committee of VCU’s Board of Visitors on March 25 approved the purchase of 10.94 acres of land on Hermitage Road in Richmond, Va… Read More
2020-03-22 19:06
When I was a young I enjoyed hearing my grandmother tell about my affection for The Weavers recording of this song. Their version of "Goodnight Irene" was popular when I was two years old… Read More
2020-03-06 16:54
In the summer of 1994 O.J. Simpson-related material was on television round-the-clock. Meanwhile, a four-way race political race developed in Virginia, as three candidates emerged to c… Read More
2020-02-15 05:16
The most obvious change in the air in 1974 was the day-by-day unraveling of Richard Nixon's presidency, culminating with his resignation. The Vietnam War was over and with the passing of tho… Read More
2020-02-07 02:56
Note: This piece about Biograph Theatre anniversaries was first published 20 years ago by Richmond.com (Feb. 16, 2000). *Anniversaries are knives that can cut both ways. Althoug… Read More
2020-01-15 00:59
It's hard to believe it's been nearly 20 years since I wrote "A Beer With The Mayor," about Tim Kaine, for Richmond.com. It was published on Fri., Sept. 29, 2000. At that time I was writi… Read More
2020-01-12 20:25
It was a sunny, warm Sunday afternoon and I was in the neighborhood running an errand. So I snapped a few shots of a news-making statue that was installed on the grounds of the Virginia Muse… Read More
2020-01-02 20:55
Note: Last month the Byrd Theatre celebrated its 91st birthday. The non-profit Byrd Theatre Foundation took over operation of the theater in 2007. In the last few weeks there has been a sha… Read More
2020-01-01 03:55
With our opinions clashing thunderously, we, the beleaguered people, have survived the 2010s. Facilitated by social media, it seems to me that now we're ruled by our stubborn opinions even m… Read More
2019-12-25 19:58
Fiction by F.T. Rea Jan. 24, 1991: Bright sunlight lit up the thin coating of freezing rain that had painted the city the evening before. In the crisp air, Roscoe Swift, a slender mi… Read More
2019-12-22 00:44
Today VCU played hard on defense. The home team, Wichita State, played harder and smarter at both ends of the floor. One statistic speaks to that smarter observation -- the Shockers had 15 a… Read More
2019-12-18 00:39
Here's a piece I wrote for Style Weekly's Back Page in the summer of 1999. I don't remember what the title I suggested was. The editor of that page, Rozanne Epps, changed it to "Do Unto Othe… Read More
2019-12-06 02:54
Note: Carl W. Hutchins (1924-2006) was a professional boxer in his youth. He claimed to have been a contender in his day. Most people called him “Piggy.” This piece that follo… Read More
2019-11-22 18:04
Camelot at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave lasted 1,036 days. In particular, for the children in school on Nov. 22, 1963, the murder of President John F. Kennedy was stunning in a way nothing has b… Read More
2019-11-18 03:18
Photo by Dan DunivanAt the Siegel Center just before noon today a former basketball player who recently died was honored before the game. The player was Edward H. Peeples, Jr. (1935-2019)… Read More
2019-10-30 01:13
Nine years ago I was part of an ad hoc group devoted to saving Byrd Park from an intrusion that would have changed the nature of the park in a radical way that we couldn't abide. We wer… Read More
2019-10-25 17:32
After all of the investigating, it's ironic that new and solid evidence of President Donald Trump's impeachable acts suddenly parachuted into the picture. More may be on the way.Still, while… Read More
2019-09-22 21:04
This clipping is from Throttle's July 1982 issue. In 1982 the City of Richmond tweaked its City Code to crack down on the posting of unauthorized notices on fixtures in the public way. With… Read More
2019-09-02 22:40
As a kid and throughout my young adulthood I liked intense storms. Even liked being outside in them. Seeing a tornado, too close for comfort, in 1968, didn't change that. But growing older g… Read More
2019-08-16 17:16
Although Susan was quite attractive she wasn't the sort of heavenly brunette likely to stare at a viewer from the cover of a glossy fashion magazine. On the other hand, when she walked acros… Read More
2019-08-13 17:17
The controversy began with quarterback Colin Kaepernick's quite gesture in 2016. Here we are now three years later and the arguments for and against athletes taking a knee during the playing… Read More
2019-08-06 18:16
Don't tell me most of America’s mass-murdering shooters were just crazy killers who would simply have switched over to bombs or poison, if they couldn't have gotten a hold of… Read More
2019-07-30 19:33
Note: In December of 1999 the editor at Richmond.com, Richard Foster, asked me to do something with the much-in-the-news Y2K scare. He was happy to let me play with it. The gig had me filing… Read More
2019-07-20 17:15
Benny Paret (left) died 10 days after this beating.Note: In this piece I wrote 17 years ago, I anticipated the demise of professional boxing. Looks like I was wrong (again). It was originall… Read More
2019-07-19 23:34
First elected to the House of Representatives out of San Francisco in 1987, Nancy Pelosi (1940-) served as Speaker of the House from 2007 to 2011. Her fingerprints are all over some importan… Read More
2019-07-16 20:37
Norman Rockwell's painting of Ruby Bridges on her way to school in New Orleans, protected by federal marshals. The older I get the more amazed I am when looking back at the courage of… Read More
2019-07-08 15:41
In recent years our group has played the Stone Post Course on Sunday mornings. It was designed by Leo Rohr, who grew up playing Frisbee-golf in Byrd Park. The downhill approach to that targe… Read More
2019-06-25 20:08
Here's a flashback to an issue of SLANT 27 years ago. It was published when the infamous Joe Camel ad campaign was still popular, so I had to weigh in. In this time the USA's tobacco indus… Read More
2019-05-31 14:54
Note: This is an excerpt of Biograph Times, a work in progress that will hopefully become a book. Midnight Shows In the 1970s, during what some film aficionados call "the golden age of rep… Read More
2019-05-28 17:26
Note: This is an excerpt of Biograph Times, a work in progress that will hopefully become a book. Midnight Shows In the 1970s, during what some film aficionados call "the golden age of rep… Read More
2019-05-27 22:44
Here's a timely game for political junkies. It's about “electability.”There are 10 categories. I picked the categories based on my take on what seems to count most in 2019's poli… Read More
2019-05-27 16:23
The more I hear about “electability,” the more it seems to be something like beauty, because it appears to be a quality that lies in the eye of the beholder. However, from… Read More
2019-05-26 22:06
In the '80s, when greed was good, Donald Trump, the huckster/developer, saw President Ronald Reagan's popularity and he coveted it.Watching Reagan, a man who had been a mediocre second banan… Read More
2019-05-18 19:29
Built by art students, on May 30, 1989, the Goddess of Democracy was erected in Tiananmen Square as a symbol of their call for democratic reforms in China. The gathering protest in Tianan… Read More
2019-05-10 15:14
by F.T. ReaIntro: In 1955 RKO, which had just changed hands, became the first major Hollywood studio to sell the exhibition rights to its library of feature films to television. Consequen… Read More
2019-05-09 19:42
We expect the lights to come on when we flick on the wall switch. With usually brief weather-related exceptions, we've learned that's a reasonable expectation in Richmond, Virginia. We've be… Read More
2019-04-25 02:37
For lack of a better term, The Resistance was what we came to call a spontaneous, unprecedented reaction to 2016's presidential election. The outpourings of marchers who took to the streets… Read More
2019-04-15 21:34
The Biograph Naturals in 1980. (Original photo by Phil Trumbo.) Referred to as the “hippie league” by softball players who played in the polyester-clad softball world governed b… Read More
2019-03-20 00:41
Here's my take on VCU's men's basketball team's weekend that was and its much-anticipated weekend ahead in the limelight of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament.In recent years VC… Read More
2019-03-16 02:00
Final score in Brooklyn: Rhode Island 75, VCU 70.The loss sent Coach Mike Rhoades' (pictured left) team home from the A-10 tournament early, to shake it off and prepare for their first game… Read More
2019-02-27 21:26
Gov. Ralph NorthamOn Fri., Feb. 1, the blackface scandal dropped on the Governor's Mansion like a bomb from the sky. On social media the calls for Gov. Ralph Northam to resign erupted so qui… Read More
2019-02-19 22:08
On Nov. 8, 1992, the revenge-driven crime spree ended as the man I remembered as Drake the Flake blew out his brains with a .32 caliber revolver. In the 11 hours before taking his own li… Read More
2019-02-09 19:56
On Friday, February 1, Virginia's blackface scandal dropped on the Governor's Mansion (pictured above) like a bomb from the sky. On social media the calls for Gov. Ralph Northam to resign er… Read More
2019-02-09 04:05
On Friday, February 1, Virginia's blackface scandal dropped on the Governor's Mansion like a bomb from the sky. On social media the calls for Gov. Ralph Northam to resign erupted so fast it… Read More
2019-01-21 20:54
Today's projections from CBS Sports for NCAA March Madness brackets have Saint Louis getting the A-10's automatic bid and VCU getting an at-large invitation (First Four). Remember, this is… Read More
2019-01-14 00:56
My opinion? Of course I'll weigh in. A fair-minded observer would have to say the Democratic Party picked up some momentum from the 2018 elections. Aside from their legislative agenda… Read More
2019-01-09 01:01
by F.T. ReaEditor Ben Bradlee at the Washington Post. This installment of Five Film Favorites offers a special challenge. It touches on two industries I've poured years of my time and t… Read More
2019-01-06 01:16
Working in show business can be tough duty. Ask anybody who knows. It’s not all laughs.For instance, one evening in July of 1980 a couple of traveling porn queens came by the Biograph… Read More
2018-12-29 01:23
by F.T. ReaToday is Day Seven of the USA's third federal government shutdown of 2018. By the way, the longevity record for shutdowns also took in the holiday season, the 21 days of Dec. 16… Read More
2018-12-12 03:13
The 20th century gave us mass media: magazines that featured stories aimed at a national readership; feature films and newsreels distributed coast-to-coast; radio and television networks;… Read More
2018-11-26 23:01
From VCU's Chris Kowalczyk: VCU redshirt junior Issac Vann (Bridgeport, Conn./Maine) has been named Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Week, the league announced Monday. A 6-foot-6… Read More
2018-11-22 18:24
Fiction By F.T. ReaJan. 24, 1991: Bright sunlight lit up the thin coating of freezing rain that had painted the city the evening before. In the crisp air, Roscoe Swift, a slender middle-ag… Read More
2018-11-15 20:24
In its heyday RKO (for Radio-Keith-Orpheum) was known as one of the Big Five movie studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. It was also known for its ability to produce well-crafted, somet… Read More
2018-11-13 23:11
In 2001 I covered the Shad Planking for Richmond.com. That was my only visit to the annual event, which gradually lost its power to attract a big crowd. It seems to be mostly a thing of t… Read More
2018-11-11 17:18
In 1916 the fit young volunteers who were members of the Richmond Light Infantry Blues were dispatched to Brownsville, Texas, to watch over the border and chase Mexican bandit/revolutio… Read More
2018-11-03 00:42
For the first time in 20 years the 42-year-old Greater Richmond Frisbee-Golf Association will have a new baseball cap for its members and their friends to wear when such apparel is practical… Read More
2018-10-16 01:33
On May 29, 1890, the unveiling of the equestrian statue of Robert E. Lee began Monument Avenue's telling of a story. According to published reports, the ceremony drew over 100,000 spectators… Read More
2018-09-10 20:27
Maybe Trump will quit. After all, wouldn't he be happier making his own schedule, again? Just doing what pleases him all day? No cabinet meetings with little pissants like that traitor, Sess… Read More
2018-09-06 18:42
Well, here we are, going too fast down the road to hell, hoping desperately we that haven't passed the last off-ramp. Did the publication of the much-discussed New York TimesOpEd, written by… Read More
2018-08-16 18:54
Constructed of Indiana limestone, New Union Station opened for operation in 1919. It was later renamed Broad Street Station. The building now serves as the Science Museum of V… Read More
2018-08-07 14:31
My art has been appearing in print for over 50 years. My first caricature (of Hubert Humphrey) was published in 1965. And, I began inflicting my writing on the public in the 1970s. In all t… Read More
2018-08-06 15:33
In May of 1989 the original Goddess of Democracy was erected in Tiananmen Square. Made of chicken wire, papier mâché and plaster, it was built by art students. It symbolized… Read More
2018-08-03 20:30
Ask anybody. Making a living in the music business in Richmond isn't easy. Nonetheless, during the last five decades a good number of noteworthy musicians have called Richmond their home. So… Read More
2018-08-01 17:24
VCU basketball news from Chris Kowalczyk:VCU has added some shock value to its schedule the next two seasons. The Rams have agreed to a home-and-home series with Wichita State that wil… Read More
2018-07-17 17:25
Yesterday's bizarre performance by Donald “Q” Trump has presented an opportunity, a gift, to Democrats. By the way, the “Q” is for “quisling.” First of al… Read More
2018-06-29 14:55
Laura SchlessingerIf you write about certain public figures or particular hot topics it can bring on reprisals that can be startling. In 2000, when I took an assignment to write an opinion… Read More
2018-06-22 22:59
From VCU's Chris Kowalczyk: Justin Tillman will continue his quest for the NBA this summer. The 6-foot-8 forward, known for his dynamic skill set and on-court flair, says he has… Read More
2018-06-19 20:08
Note: The following information comes via VCU's Chris KowalczykVCU will face Temple in its return to Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. as part of the Championship Round of the 2018 Legends C… Read More
2018-06-05 19:54
The photograph above (lifted from the Internet) shows three men in Philadelphia Eagles uniforms. Unless it's a doctored photo we can probably assume they are real professional football playe… Read More
2018-06-01 19:05
The art for the 2018 GRFGA T-shirts is above. For what it's worth it's the ninth in the series I've designed. The ink colors will be black and white. So what you see above as black will be t… Read More
2018-05-18 15:14
Don't tell me most of America’s mass-murdering shooters would simply have switched over to bombs, or poison, if they couldn't have gotten a hold of their favorite tools. Those… Read More
2018-05-15 18:51
ZismIn the spring of 1983 the Biograph Theatre's owners, based in Georgetown, could see the bad trends from a hundred miles away. The growing impact cable television was having on repert… Read More
2018-04-18 18:08
Click on any of my ICA photos to enlarge them.Since its 2014 ground-breaking, Virginia Commonwealth University's Institute for Contemporary Art, at the southwest corner of Belvidere and Broa… Read More
2018-04-13 15:40
After the article below, written by Charles Slack (Richmond Times-Dispatch, Jan., 31, 1993), my concept for conducting discussions in a coffee shop was briefly adapted to radio. It lasted… Read More
2018-04-02 18:15
The 1981-82 Biograph Naturals, CBA champions. During the month of March, each year the NCAA’s men’s basketball tournament is a blessing. The surprises and suspenseful moments of… Read More
2018-03-22 00:31
Here's a flashback to an issue of SLANT 26 years ago. It was published when the infamous Joe Camel ad campaign was still popular, so I had to weigh in. In this time the USA's tobacco indus… Read More
2018-03-20 17:53
A ballot box was stolen from this Jackson Wardbuilding 147 years ago. Now it houses Gallery 5.When I hear stubborn politicians talking about absolutely refusing to compromise with their op… Read More
2018-03-20 14:50
"I don't listen to focus groups."In March of 2003, in dismissing the protests of millions in other countries who demonstrated against the invasion of Iraq, President George W. Bush said… Read More
2018-03-14 16:22
In February of 1981 I saw Pablo Picasso’s “Guernica” with my then-11-year-old daughter. When the Museum of Modern Art’s elevator doors opened the sight of the 25… Read More
2018-03-09 00:55
Point guard Johnny Williams at the Siegel Center.Game No. 3Final Score: VCU 77, Dayton 72.The lede: Trailing Dayton 70-65 with 3:16 remaining, VCU finished the game off with a 12-to-2 run, t… Read More
2018-03-01 16:43
Justin Tillman, No. 4, demonstrates the proper boxing out technique. Photo from VCU. Justin Tillman will play his last scheduled game at the Siegel Center tonight. He's currently sitting at… Read More
2018-02-19 18:53
Note: This was written in 2012. Upon hearing the news of Earl Scruggs’ death earlier this year (Mar. 28, 2012), my thoughts went straight to a 36-year-old memory connected to a… Read More
2018-02-13 21:42
by F.T. Rea The First Year: Over 200 Titles Note: The second of my three bosses, while I was manager of Richmond's Biograph Theatre, died on Tuesday. Lenny Poryles drew his last b… Read More
