Tarantino in the D — a Pulp Fact
Detroiters almost broke the Internet last weekend, posting about sightings of the master of cult classics, Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino is a longtime fan and supporter of Detroit. His 1993 film True Romance begins in the city and, during his cameo in Pulp Fiction, he’s seen sporting an Orbit magazine T-shirt underneath his robe (that’s the zine made infamous by artist-prankster Jerry Vile). Last weekend, Tarantino popped up in photos all over Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, allowing Detroiters to confirm his appearance at more spots in a weekend than most of us make it to in a month. Friday, Tarantino chilled with Larry Mongo and crew down at Café D’Mongo’s (that would be Ryan Gosling’s fave spot, for those who don’t know). Saturday, he did the sort of shopping you would hope Tarantino would do, making stops at UHF Records in Royal Oak, Hello Records in Corktown, iconic cult movie store Thomas Video in Clawson, and the MBAD African Bead Museum in Detroit. Saturday eve, he saw another of our favorite bars, the Garden Bowl next to the Majestic Theatre, but apparently skipped his reservation at Cliff Bell’s (despite the fact that we were patiently hoping he’d show). It’s cool, Quent, we forgive you.
Putting the ‘D’ in social
Andiamo Riverfront hosted the networking event Social D last Thursday, and we popped in to sip some champagne and nosh tiny bruschetta and cucumbers topped with spicy salmon. Jason Brown and Monica Cheick were in attendance, and we ran into Fox 2’s Lee Arcay, too. Though we milled about for a bit, enjoying the people-watching, especially the amazing outfits (shout out to the gentleman in the all-orange linen suit with matching fedora), it wasn’t until we were waiting in line for valet that we spotted the former mayor, Dennis Archer.
We’ll never be closer than this
Foster the People headlined at the Fillmore last Thursday, and while we love the “Pumped Up Kicks” singers, we couldn’t help but be more excited for show openers St. Lucia. Jean-Philip Grobler is known for being the man behind the name, but he was backed up by a band that included another singer, guitar player, drummer, and keyboardist. Though the weather was chilly (especially for May), the band brought the tropics to the venue, and we particularly loved the use of a wind machine to keep the lead singer’s pompadour breeze-blown and beautiful. In the crowd, we spotted Derek John, owner of and curator at the Storefront Gallery, along with his girlfriend, Heather Franklin. Pulp’s Adam O’Connor was in the crowd as well, and we spotted Jennifer Augustyn, too. Though we didn’t catch him at the show, we ran into former Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas band member Adam Davis slamming drinks at Park Bar.
Pajama house party!
There are few things better in life than going to the club in your pajamas, and thanks to Nick Monaco we were able to sport our PJs at the Grasshopper Underground this past Friday night. The event, a registered pajama party, made us feel like we were at a fifth-grade slumber party, except there was a bar and a dance floor. Jay Biggs got the night rockin’ early, followed by Golf Clap. Golf Clap’s Hugh Cleal and Bryan Jones were dressed in their best comfies, aside from Cleal’s upside-down visor (which he claims to wear in his sleep), and Biggs had on his favorite blue sleepwear. But the real winner was Monaco himself, who came dressed as a golden silk-robed version of a geisha, complete with hat and face paint. Monaco threw down a bumpin’ house set, and we spotted Kyle Jay, Amin “KO” Beydoun, Aboudi Issa, Kate Hyland, Kate Addy, and Alvin R. dancing the night away. Monaco included some Detroit-esque tracks throughout his set and closed with Pink Floyd — but not before shouting over the mic, “My name is Nick Monaco and I’m really high because someone gave me a G-pen!”
