Oct 1, 2002 12:13 p.m. – 911 call from northwest Buncombe County; caller describes victim as bleeding and bruised. 12:22 p.m. – West Buncombe ambulance on the scene; crew reports victim missing and arrival of Buncombe County Sheriff’s Department deputy. 12:44 p.m. – Ambulance back in service. 1:53 p.m. – Sheriff’s department reports 911 response … Read more
A case of domestic violence, alleged to have occurred in Buncombe County on Oct. 1, could be just one more of too many such incidents. But contradictions and omission of key facts in official reports related to this case, plus foot-dragging by various local authorities and the allegation that Buncombe County Sheriff Bobby Medford‘s son, … Read more
Few issues cut to the heart of Asheville’s ideological wars like homelessness. Panhandlers, street kids and loitering are perennial sore spots in this city, and tempers tend to run high on both sides whenever these subjects come up. That was certainly the case at City Council’s Oct. 15 work session. “If you are a human … Read more
If a funny classical ballet sounds like a contradiction in terms, remember that opposites will attract. It’s a point the Shanghai Ballet gracefully demonstrates in its latest production, the playful caper Coppelia. So how did a Chinese dance company end up performing a resurrected French production? That, too, is a story of opposites attracting — … Read more
Want to know the dirt on a club owner? Ask another club owner in the same town. Want the dirtiest dirt you can find? Ask a new club owner about the place’s former owner. But this doesn’t seem to work when it comes to Jack and Lesley Groetsch. “These are genuine and honest people,” raves … Read more
The stage was dark. The house lights were down. And most everyone in the joint knew what was coming next. “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,” boomed a sexy growl of a voice, filling the sardine-tight space. “Welcome to the greatest club in Western North Carolina, the Orange Peel, and your own … Bite … ! … Read more
Before she became a writer, Joelle Fraser enjoyed a brief career as a painter. Like Georgia O’Keeffe, Fraser gravitated toward flowers as her subjects, filling the page with lush red hibiscus and yellow plumeria. She sold her watercolors herself, alongside the street vendors who thronged the park in Sausalito, Calif. This was the golden, uninhibited, … Read more
This is the true story of rural Appalachians, picked to live in a Beverly Hills mansion to find out what happens when real-world “hillbillies” stop acting polite and start getting real. “You’re not going to make this some kind of negative thing, are you?” asks local casting director Marty Cherrix when I consult her about … Read more
