I have been on a motorcycle exactly three times, the last of which was the day before yesterday, and never really on a freeway. Nonetheless, I am standing fully suited in borrowed gear (funny looking boots with steel plates on the shins, leather pants and jacket, a spine guard that is distinctly turtle-ish, heavy gloves, […]
Marjorie Skinner
Marjorie Skinner is the Portland Mercury's Managing Editor, author of the weekly Sold Out column chronicling the area's independent fashion and retail industry, and a frequent contributor to the film and other arts and feature sections of the paper. She has been writing about Portland life and culture for the Mercury since 2001, produces one of Portland's largest annual spring fashion shows, and occasionally answers emails.
Posted inFashion
Shopping Is The New Activism
Put Some Progress in Your Pants
It really, really sucks being a liberal these days. In fact, it makes being Republican look pretty good. They’re apparently really rich–or convinced they’re going to be–and are comfortably basking in both their election victory and moral righteousness. Meanwhile, we liberals live our lives in constant fear of incoming AlterNet newsletters, and trying diet fads […]
Posted inNews
What a Knockout!
Girls Duke it Out at the Oregon Golden Gloves
Broken faces. Black eyes. Brain damage. Historically, boxing is not a hobby for the ladies. But suddenly, women’s boxing is becoming the fastest growing sport in the world, spurned by a recent media blitz coinciding with the Hollywood hit Million Dollar Baby, in which Hilary Swank dukes it out in the ring with the help […]
Posted inNews
Sex Survey Results
Hello, I’m Dr. Wm. Steven Humphrey of the Mercury Institute for the Advanced Study of Sexuality. And while “sex” does occasionally “make a baby,” it’s also one of the least understood of human functions. That’s why every year the Mercury asks our readers to help us lift the shroud of sexuality, stick our fingers inside […]
Posted inMovies & TV
Patty Hearst: Terrorist
More Proof That Hippies Are Nuts
Guerilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst dir. Stone Opens Fri Jan 28 Cinema 21 We may never know what Patty Hearst was thinking. Kidnapped by the militant Symbionese Liberation Army at the age of 19, the heiress eventually joined her captors in a bizarre revolution/crime spree. While Guerrilla documents those events, the SLA’s version of […]
Posted inMovies & TV
Unlikely Hero
Kevin Bacon’s Best Shot
The Woodsman dir. Kassell Opens Fri Jan 21 Cinema 21 Hollywood so rarely offers thoughtful challenges to its audiences that when they do, it’s hard not to automatically be grateful. Luckily, The Woodsman–which features Kevin Bacon as Walter, a pedophile–not only offers such challenges, but deserves some gratitude. (It also helps that Bacon’s performance is […]
Posted inMusic
Winter Dance Party Warm-Up Round-Up!
Yes it’s cold out, and yes the distance between your bed and the car door seems like an epic journey across the frozen tundra. But get real–you live on the West Coast! And just so you don’t wake up in April with a spare tire around your waist and atrophied leg muscles, wondering how you […]
Posted inMusic
Wax Nostalgic
Wax, the New No Po Hiphop Hub, Keeps It Old School– While Helping Out the Community
At some point, hiphop suffered a split. What began as a culture that prided itself on its resourcefulness and inventiveness now blares from mainstream radio as a swaggering pissing contest of bling, bitches, and violence. In retaliation, Sara Moskovitz and Shannon Guthrie, owners of Portland’s latest hiphop space, Wax, are dedicated to celebrating the elements […]
Posted inNews
20 Things Not Invited Back to 2005!
When we started the Mercury in 2000, we had one goal in mind: ridding Portland of every stinking hippie. With the last remaining few hippies safely imprisoned on Hawthorne, we now have the luxury of turning our attention to other nagging annoyances. While the following 20 things may have been popular in 2004, now it’s […]
Posted inUncategorized
We Hate Candy And We Don’t Like Cookies Either
A Counterpoint/Counterpoint Discussion
Candy sucks. And this stupid candy issue sucks worse. Candy is just a gimmick designed to kill children, and this issue is just another Mercury gimmick to lure in an idiot readership. “Oh, hey there, idiot. You like candy, right? You know what else you might like? The Mercury! It’s like candy for your brain!” […]
Posted inMusic
The World of the Juggalo
Zac Pennington and Marjorie Skinner Attend the Insane Clown Posse Concert and Discover “the Way of the Juggalo”
Circling the perimeter of the Expo Center parking lot in nervous awe of the hundreds of menacingly painted clown faces, we slowly work up the courage to mingle with the Juggalo. On the surface, the task of defining the Juggalo seems an easy one: clinically speaking, a Juggalo is–like the Deadhead or the Misfits’ Horror […]
Posted inMovies & TV
Weed for Woody
How the Mercury Rolled the Perfect Joint for Woody Harrelson
Sometimes you do interviews with celebrities just because you can. And Woody Harrelson was in town to promote his new documentary Go Further, about a road trip he and some friends took in a hemp oil-fueled bus, spreading the good cheer of sustainability. The film’s big on good nature and low on information, amounting to […]