MISC. WORLD for 6/29/99 Blunted 'Edge' BOOKING A WOMEN'S CONVENTION by the religious-right pressure group Focus on the Family the same weekend as ArtsEdge was the best Seattle Center scheduling serendipity in years. Even better than situating the big Cobain memorial in '94 right outside, and just after, a Sonics playoff game. Alas, no catfights or shouting matches broke out between the blue-haired conservatives and the green-haired artsy-types--not even with the entrants in the tattoo contest, some of whom paid as little heed as was legally possible to the contest's fine-print rule, "If your tattoo is in an area normally covered by clothing, please be prepared to wear clothing that reveals your tattoo but not the genital area. Ladies, that means nipples too--sorry, it's the law!"). The body art was among the highlights at the third ArtsEdge. Other notables: The parade of art cars, the Butoh Race (three women in angel-of-death-white makeup tried to run as slowly as possible without stopping), musical gigs by Rockin' Teenage Combo and the Bosnian emigres of Kultur Shock, the neo-vaudeville of Circus Contraption and Cirque de Flambe, and Elaine Lee's art installation in which short tales involving the artist's "secrets" were stored inside beautifully-lit, small metal boxes. A lot of it was fun and entertaining. Some of it was even art. Little of it, though, had any edge. The problem: economics, natch. This year's ArtsEdge, like the two prior installments, failed to attract many of the region's best fringe art-theater-music people due to its policy of not paying them. (The event's $100,000 budget goes entirely to Seattle Center staff and facilities services and to publicity.) As long as the Seattle Center management's allowed to think "edgy" art means art by young adults who'll do anything for a public showcase, you'll get an ArtsEdge that's got little art and almost no edge. This year's event proved it could be popular, even under less-than-ideal weather conditions. It could be more popular if more pro alterna-artists, with their already-built followings, were added. Consider this another case of the "If-we-can-build-these-big-ass-sports-palaces-why-can't-we-..." routine, which we'll talk a little more about on Thursday and Friday. Tomorrow: More reasons why Pokemon is such a hit with the kids and so incomprehensible to the grownups. Recent highlights: The final weeks of Another World show how soap operas as a whole might be saved. Some important disciplinary times and lengths for the true pop-cult artist. A new visual-art zine with no pictures; plus the anomie of Starbucks' in-store magazine Joe. Are Seattle singles too PC for their own good?; plus the Fremont parade's joyous exhibitionists. A U.K. social critic looks at "sexual liberation" and finds consumer-narcissism and fear of intimacy. Why Seattle loves being Dr. Evil's home in the new Austin Powers movie. More of our party roundup, the Insta-Poem contest. Our party roundup starts with the MISC.-O-Rama questionnaire. Introducing the daily MISC. World. The column's 13th anniversary inspires thoughts on changing views of popular culture. Archives: 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1996, 1995, and 1986-94 columns Longer articles and essays Background info about MISC. Media Hints at some of our future projects

CLARK'S CULTURE CORRAL BOOKS, MOVIES, MUSIC, ETC. REVIEWED AND SOLD Currently Featured: Romantic and ethereal music from Rusty Willoughby, Marc Olsen, and Jeff Grienke and Anisa Romero. Archives: Literature and art Nonfiction and cultural criticism Movies and videos Music and noise Search: Books Popular Music Classical Music Video Enter keywords... (Support MISC. Media; make your Amazon.com purchases thru this link.) X-WORD PUZZLES (UPDATED FRIDAYS) This Week: Built for X-Word, Not for Speed! MISC. TALK DISCUSSION BOARDS Does Seattle suck? Why/why not? Stake your case at our MISC. Talk discussion boards. SLIGHTLY WEIRD FICTION Currently Featured: 'Naked women and what they do.' THE BIG BOOK OF MISC. The best Misc. items ever, in one handy and way-fun collection. Read more about it here. Get it here. LOSER THE REAL SEATTLE MUSIC STORY How a subculture of misfits and scenesters turned 'indie rock' into a global craze, followed by media inaccuracies and industry backlashes. Pre-order your copy of the updated second edition. CYBER STUFF Hundreds of cool, useful, and odd sites. THINGS I LIKE My favorite people, places, and things. Plus a few things I hate. FLY THE MISC. Media FLAG! Download a MISC. Media link button and wear it on your website. MISC. MEDIA UPDATES As of June 14, 1999, your doses of pop-cult confusion are now titled MISC. World and come to you every weekday. The shorter "MISC." title lives on in The Big Book of MISC., now shipping. As of April 29, 1999, we've got a new URL. Re-set your bookmarks for http://www.miscmedia.com. To learn about these and future changes, join the Misc.-l mailing list. Email Majordomo@lists.speakeasy.org. Leave the "subject" line blank, and in the body of the message write: SUBSCRIBE MISC-L (your email address) Questions? Suggested topics? Email to clark@speakeasy.org. Joe Newton drew the caricature at the top of this page. Charlotte Quinn helped originally design the site.