How much more appropriate can one be in catching a drive-in movie in the Motor City? This Saturday MOCAD is screening “Cry, Dr. Chicago,” preceded by short films including Invisible City - a look at Detroit - by Jack Cronin.

the title of this post looks more sinister than it is. i’m not going to start throwing my weight around about the UAW, concessions, health care and that sort of thing because i don’t work in the auto industry and i really have no idea about any of that stuff for i am but a humble retail man with no big business experience. what i’m wondering is if the title “The Big Three” is still relevant? maybe they should now be called “The Local Three” or is it time to (dare i say) include “those other guys“? they are selling just as much product (and in some cases more) than the home team so maybe it’s time to update it to “The Fab Five”? or perhaps this is going to be one of those situations where the name has stuck and will always be used wether it still applies or not. sorta like how Madonna, who has had dozens of hit songs, is always referred to in any media report as the “material girl” (based on one of her songs from the ’80s)…or like how Elvis Presley is called the “king of rock & roll” but blow in a call to WCSX for a request and the chances of hearing Viva Las Vegas on the air are about as slim as getting Jack White to buy another house in Indian Village. the mere mention of something like this has me fearing i’ll disappear into the trunk of a 1977 Coupe DeVille and a dozen years from now someone will be digging up a parking lot after getting tipped off.

Things I am upset about on Thursday: Lines for one. I don’t understand why we have to wait in lines. How many times have I been at the end of a long line at the CVS on Woodward? Three registers and one clerk. How about the bank. How many times do you catch yourself standing in line to make a deposit or cash your check on a Friday afternoon and six of the eight windows are empty. The station at the grocery store with the most customers waiting is called the “Express Line.” The time of day when we are caught in bumper to bumper traffic on the freeways is called “Rush Hour.” Come on!!

I am sick of hearing over and over again how Stephen Grant hacked up his wife. I don’t need to know that she ended up in 14 pieces. Jack Kevorkian gets out of prison a convicted murderer and is paraded around the media like a celebrety claiming the Ninth Amendment guarantees assisted suicide. Huh?

How bout’ this? Michigan State Troopers are restricted to 40 miles per eight hour shift in their patrol cars in the budget crunch in Lansing. So if I recieve a ticket and I find out the trooper was over the limit, do I get it tossed out because he shouldn’t have even been on the road? Nate Robertson is relieved in the first inning of Tuesdays game against Texas because he couldn’t get even one out. He faced six batters and they all scored. Come on!!

And finally, Juergen Schrempp, the designer and head ramrod of the doomed DalmlerChrysler merger, a merger that reduced the value of Chrysler over nine years by $12.6 billion and saw the loss of 40,000 jobs, has stock options worth $139 million. Come ooooonnnnn!!!!!!!!!

Last night Wayne State University Press held its book launch for its second year of the Made in Michigan Writers series at the Detroit Historical Museum. This event hosted 200 book and art enthusiasts to celebrate the books and art that adorns the covers of the books. Readings by Jack Ridl, Vievee Francis, Doreen O’Brien, and Andy Mozina was followed up by a champagne and dessert after-glow. I am most certainly bias towards the literary as I work for the Press, but it is great to see such support for the local written word.

Wayne State University Press is teaming up with the Detroit Historical Museum on Tuesday, June 5th, 2007 to celebrate the release of two new books of short stories in the Press’s Made in Michigan Writers series. This is a free event, open to the public, that will feature readings by Doreen O’Brien and Andy Mozina, as well as last year’s authors Jack Ridl and Vivee Francis. We all know that the creative live in and around the city, come out and celebrate this talent with a bit of champagne and dessert. RSVP soon so we make sure to have enough food for you. See you there.

There is a new magazine in town. Michigan In Play is the brain child of publisher Jack Rosenberg of Livonia. He is a contributor to BizX, the “Crains” of Windsor and, in itself, a great publication. Jack wanted to fill a niche by creating a magazine that reports exclusively on Michigan sports. The first issue, printed last week is an excellent example of what you can do if you take the time to do it right. As a prime example, go to their web site to get the answer to the question that everyone has been asking of late. Will Ilitch build a new stadium or remodel the Joe. It looks like my guess was wrong. “New Home for the Wings?” April 10th.

Koser and Probert loom large on the cover and Bob is writing a column for the mag, giving us some insite into the NHL rarely seen. Just about every sport, professional or leisure, is covered inside the pages of Michigan In Play. You can pick up the latest issue at any of 375 locations around SE Michigan, including Cobo Center, Ford Field, the Palace, Ren Cen, auto plants and all major area attractions. Look for it in your favorite Pub and check it out. It’s a great read filled with information, interviews and photographs of sports in Michigan.

I am replacing my post earlier today on GP history thanks to Max, who pointed out that Rikkus just posted on it recently : > Thanks for the heads-up, Max.

In its place, I want to address something related to Mollika’s Entertaining in the City post about the lack of grocery stores in Detroit, and that there are few options if you work 9 - 5. I have heard this from a number of other Detroiters and wanted to offer a tip.

While I agree that we need more competition here, for some reason I feel like city-dwellers in the near east and near west area often overlook the Farmer Jack at 11250 East Jefferson.
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No top ten list of favorite Tigers players is complete without The Bird on it. He was an eceletic guy and a fan favorite. When the Bird was on the team, fans used to boo when Jack Morris was throwing. Read past the jump for more.
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Starting this second, we are going to count down our favorite Detroit Tigers players of all time. Therefore, without further ado, I am starting at number 11 because I don’t think he should be in the top 10 but he was a fun guy.
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Most of us are aware that during the past 6 months, Detroit-rocker Jack White moved to Nashville and put his Indian Village home up for sale.

Kelly from Nashville tipped me off on Jack White’s new digs, a 1910 white colonial in the tiny suburb of Oak Hill near Nashville.

After reviewing stats on Oak Hill - the population was 4,629 in 2003 - White’s new city is nothing like Detroit - or the rocker’s eccentric, larger-than-life personality.

Anyone want to place bets on how long White stays in this sleepy town?