• Sherman Alexie‘s fiction backlist will finally be available in e-book format, starting October 15. (Alexie has famously held back from publishing e-books for years.) In a video announcement, Alexie admitted that he still has problems “with the politics and economic philosophies involved,” but that he has to reach out to a younger, “tech-addicted” audience. He also said he is “very excited about the aesthetics and artistic possibilities,” which makes us drool just thinking about an Alexie e-book experiment.
• Closing night of the 2013 Local Sightings Film Festival included a screening of 2013 Stranger Genius finalist Zach Weintraub‘s brand-new You Make Me Feel So Young, plus farewells to Northwest Film Forum program director Adam Sekuler and studio director Dave Hanagan. Both have done seriously important work for NWFF and the whole regional film scene. Best of luck to them, as well as to incoming program director (and former NWFF intern!) Courtney Sheehan.
• Hearts all over the city are breaking with the news that Demarre McGill may leave Seattle Symphony Orchestra. The remarkable young flutist was Ludovic Morlot‘s first principal-player hire in spring 2011, and he’s been snapped up by Dallas Symphony Orchestra. This year, he’s on leave from Seattle. Will he decamp to Dallas entirely? How can we influence your decision, sir?! Hear him play at UW’s Brechemin Auditorium on Sunday, October 13, at 3 pm.
• The Seattle Great Wheel held a contest Saturday in which participants were challenged to eat a “Big Burro” burrito, a pulled pork sandwich, a 10-inch pepperoni pizza, three pieces of fried cod, a cup of clam chowder, a cheeseburger, fries, and a 21-ounce drink in one hour. Contestants who experienced “Reverse Fortune” within 20 minutes were reportedly disqualified (they did not have to ride the wheel). In a contest like this, no one wins.
• Clyde Petersen, the Seattle artist who showed last month at Gallery4Culture and who works with youth making gender/queer-conscious media at Reel Grrls, documented this recent occurrence: “Someone just came to the door at [Reel Grrls], an older white male, dancing like he was perhaps stripping on a stage, and asked me, ‘CAN I GET A REAL GIRL?‘ as he kept dancing. Then he got to the point of quickly asking if we made porn here. When I said no, he said, ‘I’m just asking honest questions and trying to get some answers.'”
• The Thurber Prize, which calls itself “the nation’s highest recognition of the art of humor writing,” was founded in 1996. No woman has ever won the Thurber Prize. That is bullshit.
• Nicholas Sparks, author of The Notebook and several other books based on office supplies, enjoyed a Diet Mountain Dew while stroking his ego in front of millions of adoring fans at Seattle’s Town Hall last Tuesday.
• Chase Bank announced plans to buy the Space Needle and turn it into a Chase Bank. With every account you open, you will be stabbed. 