Archives

29 June 2003

Cine Capri Returns to Valley

On Friday, Harkins Theatres opened the new Cine Capri at Scottsdale Road and the Loop 101 in Northeast Phoenix. It will boast Arizona's largest screen size, that will actually be 12 feet wider than the original Cine Capri, measuring nearly 70 feet. However, unlike the original, the theater will be tucked within a 14 screen multiplex complex. Also on site will be a Cine Capri museum with relics on display from the old theater.

This week, Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle is the feature flick. Seems like a crummy movie to grace the screen of such a magnificent theater. Next week, it's Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.

I loved viewing movies in the old Cine Capri and was saddened when it was bulldozed in 1998. Not enamored with the all of the frills of the gold curtains and other dressings, the giant screen was the primary appealing feature for me. I'd try to get in the front rows too, adding to the immersive experience.

16 June 2003

Bishop O'Brien Arrested for Hit-and-Run

Yes, the same Bishop Thomas O'Brien that recently admitted he covered up allegations of sexual abuse by priests for decades. He reportedly was involved in a fatal hit and run accident Saturday night that left a 43 year old man dead.

Everybody's been banging on the bishop, and for good reason. The windshield on the passenger side was concaved and fractured and he's told the police that he's the only one that drives the car, was in the area, and "might have hit something". But yet I find it difficult to believe the bishop knowingly left the scene of the accident or even that he may be a morally debased specimen of human life. Maybe the stress of the pounding just was too much and played a paramount role in this tragedy. Now news reports state that the bishop has been hospitalized.

There for the grace of God go I.

I reckon Arizona media is going to be deluging us with 24 hour round the clock Bishop O'Brien coverage. I don't get the glee that I hear some folks express phoning in to the local radio talk shows, or the sense that some sort of karmic justice has been served. Goodness, a man is dead. It seems folks are so rabidly judgmental - these same people might look at their getting their own lives in order before casting rocks at the tragic legacy of another.