MORE ORGANISTS PULL OUT ALL THE STOPS!

See, that’s like a wacky organist joke. An organ stop is a component of a pipe organ that admits pressurized air to a set of organ pipes. Or, “stop” can refer to a particular register – the rank of pipe controlled by a particular stop. So the phrase “pull out all the stops” – meaning to do something elaborately or on a grand scale ≠ may be the only idiom to ever come to us from the organ player’s trade. None of which has much to do with the Organ Spooktacular taking place on Wednesday, Oct. 31, at Birmingham-Southern College, except that the organists performing plan to put on a frighteningly good show. The concert starts at 9 p.m., which means you have plenty of time to take the kids trick-or-treating before driving to the BSC campus. Get details 226-4952 or visit www.bsc.edu.

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Popularity: 12% [?]

THANK GOD – IF THERE IS ONE That our local NPR affiliate has got something a little different for us this week. Inquiring minds can tune in on Monday, Oct. 29, at 6:30 p.m. to hear “The God Delusion Debate” between professor Richard Dawkins, Fellow of the Royal Society and Charles Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, otherwise known as spokesperson for the “new atheism,” and Dr. John Lennox, popular Christian apologist, and Reader in Mathematics and Fellow in Mathematics and Philosophy of Science from Green College, University of Oxford. The debate, sponsored by a Christian thinktank called the Fixed Point Foundation, was presented to a sold out crowd at the Alys Stephens Center earlier this month. No word on whether or not any conversion went on that night, but if you were in attendance, how about giving it another shot; and if you weren’t, then hell, we all got here somehow, you might as well listen to these two guys hash it out for a little while from the comfort of your own home, perhaps over a serving of frog legs or fillet of soul? Following the broadcast on 90.3 FM in Birmingham and 91.5 FM in Gadsden, WBHM and WSGN will air a locally produced series, “God, Darwin and Dixie,” which explores how Alabama’s public schools and institutions of higher learning handle (or don’t) the questions of evolution and creationism. Fun stuff. Learn more at www.wbhm.org

Popularity: 9% [?]

Did someone say чудесно? You will, no doubt, if you attend the annual Russian Food Festival in Brookside, Ala., this Saturday and Sunday. A former mining town in western Jefferson County bisected by Five-Mile Creek, Brookside was settled by European immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th century. Sloss Iron and Steel Company owned and operated four mines in the area; many of the laborers who worked in the mines had been recruited from the former Czechoslovakia and other Eastern European countries. A Russian Orthodox Church called St. Nicholas was founded in 1916 and since 1981 has hosted an annual festival that includes tours of the temple as well as food, drink, music and dancing that reflects the citizens’ cultural heritage.
The ladies of the Sisterhood of St. Olga prepare hot foods and baked goods every year, including a beet-and-meat soup called borshch; kolbasa and kraut; a cabbage dished called holupki; a meat pie called piroshki; potato and cheese dumplings called pirogi haluski; kolachis, rolled loaves filled with pecans, cheese, poppy seeds or almonds; and much more.
Festival hours are Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. The “Russian Beauties” ensemble of the Nastasha Russo Dance Arts company will perform at 1 p.m. on Saturday. Directions to St. Nicholas and a complete menu are online at www.brooksidealabama.com

Popularity: 23% [?]

PUT YOURSELF IN THEIR SHOES

Or at least, put your eyes on their shoes. Dozens of empty pairs of combat boots will fill Kelly Ingram Park on Sunday, a silent representation of the lives lost in the war in Iraq. “Eyes Wide Open: The Cost of War to Alabama” will focus primarily on fallen soldiers from Alabama, but hundreds of shoes will also be displayed in remembrance of Iraqi civilians who have also lost their lives in war. The exhibit was first displayed in 2004 at Chicago’s Federal Plaza and has since been split up into smaller segments to memorialize people from different states. The Birmingham Friends Meeting, the Birmingham Islamic Society, the Birmingham Peace Project and Pax Christi sponsor the exhibit, which will be on display from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sunday. An interfaith memorial service will be held at the Church of the Reconciler on Saturday at 7 p.m. This marks the first time “Eyes Wide Open” will be shown in Alabama. For more information visit www.asfc.org/eyes.

Popularity: 23% [?]

EXPERIENCE THE SILENT SCREAMS When The Alabama Theatre presents a screening of the 1925 silent film version of Phantom of the Opera on Saturday, Oct. 27, with the soundtrack to be played on the theatre’s “Mighty Wurlitzer.” The movie follows the same tragic love story as Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical; Lon Chaney, Mary Philbin, Norman Kerry and others star. In 1929, Universal Studios re-shot the movie complete with sound however, that version has since been lost. It’s rumored that the ghost of Chaney haunts the soundstage where it was filmed. According to urban legend, part of the Opera House set still stands and deathly accidents have occurred when workers have tried to dismantle it. Doors of the “Show Place of the South” open at 7 p.m. and show time is 8 p.m. Admission is $12 for adults and $6 for children under 12. For more information, call 252-2262 or visit www.alabamatheatre.com.

Popularity: 18% [?]

A special prosecutor wants to know whether City Councilor Joel Montgomery participated in any sort of counciling or drug rehabilitation program, but today the councilor failed to show for a court hearing on the matter. In August, special prosecutor Don Colee dropped a public intoxication charge against Montgomery with the understanding that Montgomery would seek some sort of treatment.

A week later, Montgomery announced in a Birmingham City Council meeting that he had not been to rehab, nor was he going to go to rehab.

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Popularity: 12% [?]

Birmingham Police Chief Annetta Nunn will resign her position, the Birmingham Weekly has learned. Recently, the embattled police chief has been the target of criticism and even ridicule, being branded the “Singing Nunn” because of her interest in gospel music, including a recent solo album. During her four-year tenure, Birmingham’s murder rate spiked, although most other crimes have declined slightly, according to FBI crime statistics. The murder rate became a key issue during this year’s mayoral campaign. Nunn announced her intentions in an interview today with ABC 33/40. Sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Mayor-elect Larry Langford, Nunn said that the two of them had different philosophies. She will continue to serve the police department for one year as a consultant. In that role, she will complete technological projects underway and help with the new chief’s transition, she said.

— Kyle Whitmire

Popularity: 10% [?]

STRAINS OF BLUES AND CLASSIC ROCK Are evident in the right-now sound of Sons of William, playing at WorkPlay on Friday, Oct. 26. The band consists of Joe Stark on guitar, David Stark on drums and Jen Janet on the bass. The South Louisiana band’s name comes from the Stark brothers’ father because of his influence on their early musical education. William bought Joe his first set of drums at the age of two. This set would later be passed down to David and the rest was, as they say, history. An older cousin later introduced them to the music of The Beatles and Tom Petty, both of whom the band now claims as influences.The band released their first full album called What Hides Inside on Sept. 4. The show starts at 9 p.m. with The Pat McGee Band and Josh Kelley opening. Tickets are $15. For more information call 879-4773 or visit www.workplay.com.

Popularity: 13% [?]

The following e-mail “safety alert” was sent out to the UAB community at 3:09 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 25, from the UAB Emergency Management Team:

“An armed robbery occurred on the sidewalk in the 1000 block of 12th Ave. South, adjacent to the UAB campus, last night at around 8:15 p.m. The location is across from the Alys Stephens Center at the St. Andrews Church.

Two males approached a student and his friend asking for money; they gave the suspects a backpack and the suspects escaped in a light colored automobile that was parked in the driveway of UAB Lot 15D. The victims were not harmed.

Anyone who may have information about this incident, please contact the UAB Police Department at 934-6860 or 934-4434 and ask for Detective Sgt. Duane Cox or Capt. Aubrey Glasscock.

Please remember that the UAB Escort Service, 934-8772, is an after-dark service provided upon request to students and employees on the UAB campus. Students and staff can call for service from their office or cell phones, or they can use one of the designated white phones, located in 12 classroom buildings, to request an escort. A clearly marked UAB escort van provided by Parking and Transportation will pick up callers Monday through Friday beginning at 5:15 p.m. until 10:15 p.m. Security vans provided by the UAB Police Department are provided Monday through Friday 10:15 p.m. until 6 a.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from 5:15 p.m. until 6 a.m. There are 425 bright green emergency ‘Help’ phones with distinguishing blue lights strategically located around the UAB campus. The phones are directly linked to a UAB Police dispatcher who can automatically identify the caller’s location.”

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Popularity: 10% [?]

FINE ART & HAUNTING ARTIFACTS: Visitors to “Pompeii: Tales from an Eruption” will be treated to perhaps the most powerful exhibit that the Birmingham Museum of Art has ever had. For this week’s cover story, guest curator Robin Meador-Woodruff and exhibit designer Terry Beckham spoke to Glenny Brock about creating the exhibit.

Contemporary devastations are covered in this week’s edition too – in particular, the murder last weekend of Fernando Flores and the depressing prospect that, barring any unforeseen delays, Larry Langford will spend his first day as mayor of Birmingham in court rather than decorating his new office in City Hall. If it’s more bad news you’re looking for, check out how your home state scored in Forbes magazine’s annual survey of “America’s Greenest States.”

As always, the only solace to be found is to be found in art, food, music and fashion.

Popularity: 41% [?]