Toronto

Anime North 2013 draws near! Colloquially known as AN, the event is Toronto's most popular convention for the celebration of Japanese pop culture, from animation and dramas to video games and music. Those heading out to this year's two venues can expect an exciting weekend of wackiness and wonderment. Like what, you ask? Well.. GUESTS The stars come out for Anime North! Voice actors like Katie Griffin, John Stocker, Eriko Nakamura, and Ryo Horikawa will grace the scene. Expect artists Ben Dunn, Sarah McNeal, and Steve Bennett to appear alongside veteran cosplayers and prop artists Nora and Bruce Mai and Kate Daley. And while they're fighting for your attention, Kevin Lillard will be round the corner documenting the whole kerfuffle. Serenading us this year will be AWOI, Chii Sakurabi, and Umbrella, so keep an eye out for them. Finally, wrestlers! Wrestlers?! Wrestlers! David "Darkstone" Ross, Shawn Spears, Sabrina Kyle, Ross Eight-Ken, and more! Check out the full list here. Oh, and there are more, like the rock band Hoshi*Furu, aerial acrobat Miranda Tempest, and the FancyWyldDead girls, and you can find out more about them right here. EXHIBITS AND LOCALES As always, one of the benefits of visiting a convention like Anime North is collecting all of the goodies that will be for sale (and on sale). The sprawling Dealer's Room will see several stores hocking their wares; local talents and amateur artists will be showing off their works all along the Comic Market, the Crafter's Corner, and the ever-popular Gallery Momiji. Also for those who want to kick their feet up, there's also going to be an honest-to-goodness maid cafe for you to enjoy, with all the proceeds spent there going to Sick Kids Hospital, so check out Cafe Delish if that's your thing. Keep your eyes peeled for the full list of programs, which should be released soon. EVENTS By the way, events! There's going to be dance party on Friday and a Masquerade on Saturday, a speed dating service, a Sunday afternoon tea party for aficionados of Lolita Fashion, and a music video content for viewing and submission. Oh and did I mention the panels, the LAN parties and various contests, the battle chess, and the live wrestling? Because it's there. Oh yes. Anime North will run from May 24th to May 26th. Weekend admissions are sold out, but single-day admissions are still available. Friday and Sunday admission will be $35, and Saturday admission will be $45. Lead photo by Paul Hillier

This Week in Home Video previews all the latest Blu-ray, DVD and on-demand titles hitting the street this week, plus lost gems, crazed Cancon, outrageous cult titles and the best places to rent or buy movies in Toronto. Side Effects (eOne) Prolific independent filmmaker Steven Soderbergh calls time on his increasingly mainstream career with this twisty thriller that starts off like an inverted version of Sidney Lumet's The Verdict, but ends up as an entirely different movie altogether. Rooney Mara delivers yet another blood cooling turn as an intensely scary and scarred girl, manipulating and manipulated in turn by a loveable white collar criminal (Chaning Tatum, re-uniting with Soderbergh after impressive turns in Contagion and Magic Mike), an increasingly desperate and crazy (or is he?) psychiatrist (Jude Law), and ultimately a lovelorn loony Catherine Zeta-Jones. While the massive U-turn into Fatal Attraction-esq sapphoric erotica ranks as one of the greatest WTF moments of the year in cinema so far, it is a shame that Side Effects didn't stick to its initial guns as a probing indictment of Pez-headed shrinks dispensing anti-depressants like candy. The cinematography, also Soderbergh, is in fine gripping form but matches the narrative as it morphs into something more conventional. Shame. Extras include Interviews with the cast and crew, a making of, a look at the career of Steven Soderbergh, a spoof Ablixa commercial, and more. Most exciting for film geeks - some of these bonus shorts are even shot in Super8! ALSO OUT THIS WEEK Parker (eOne) The latest in a strong lineage of tough Hollywood movies based upon Richard Stark's Parker character (Point Blank, The Outfit, Payback), Parker is the first to stay true to its literary roots, to a fault: it's hard to distinguish this from Jason Statham's seemingly endless line of frenzied, ADD edited crime movies. With Jennifer Lopez, Michael Chiklis, and a sweaty and sweary Nick Nolte. Extras included an in depth look at the violent world of Richard Stark's Parker, and a frank commentary from veteran director Taylor Hackford (Against All Odds, Ray). Stand Up Guys (eOne) Al Pacino, Christopher Walken and Alan Arkin basically playing themselves as aging criminals who decide to pull off another job together. Essentially a hang-out movie, who wouldn't want to spend 90 minutes with these guys, who are all in top form regardless of their creeping ages. And nobody swears as well as Pacino, although Arkin gives him a run for his money. Featuring a rather retro soundtrack from Jon Bon Jovi, who features prominently in the extras, along with deleted scenes, stunt driving snippets and a really great look at the art of bringing these legendary actors together. Medium Cool (Criterion Collection) Released in the watershed year of 1969, alongside Easy Rider, The Wild Bunch, and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, it's hard not to miss the anti-establishment fervor in the air. Robert Forester is effortlessly cool as the streetwise journalist whose view on exploding racial issues make him a natural pawn for the FBI, before throwing it all away and heading to the turbulent '68 Democratic convention, shot in the fashionable Godard style of the times. Criterion pulled out all the stops for this release, which features a new, restored 4K digital film transfer, extended excerpts from "Look Out Haskell, It's Real!," a documentary about the making of Medium Cool, "Medium Cool" Revisited, a new half-hour video about the Occupy movement's protests against the 2012 NATO summit in Chicago, and much more! The Last Stand (eOne) After almost a decade away playing politics with the maid and screwing California, one man army Arnold Schwarzenegger returns to his big dumb action movie roots with this hawkish enough 90 minute commercial for the NRA. While it will never come close to touching the kind of boss work he did the in 80s (Commando, Predator and

We're waiting to find out what Rob Ford's next move will be in the wake of last week's crack smoking allegations. The mayor cancelled his weekly Newstalk 1010 radio show and has so far been silent on accusations he was caught on video smoking the illegal drug, not to mention allegedly making some seriously dubious remarks about Liberal leader Justin Trudeau and the kids he coaches. A statement - hopefully more than a few lines - is expected today but the Toronto Sun says it won't be a confession. Ford is due to appear later at a special council debate to decide the fate of the proposed downtown casino. Speaking of which, the debate and vote could put the final nail in the coffin of the "essentially dead" concept. The meeting was cancelled by the mayor last week in the wake of news Toronto wouldn't get the hosting fee it expects from the province. Councillors revived the conversation in the hopes of removing any ambiguity around the city's position. A man is dead after an apparent stunt on a BIXI bicycle went awry. The incident happened in the early hours of Monday morning in the skateboard portion of Underpass Park; it appears the rider was trying to make a jump when he fell and hit his head on the concrete ground. He wasn't wearing a helmet. It's not clear whether alcohol was a factor. This summer will most likely be cooler and more balanced than last year's scorcher, according to the latest predictions from meteorologists. The season will likely have hot periods punctuated by cooler, more tolerable stretches. On balance, this summer will likely still be among the warmest recorded in Canada. Scorchio. Ultimate frisbee is quickly becoming a thing here in Toronto. The city's very own professional team, the Toronto Rush (after the band), played its first home game at Varsity Stadium to a record crowd of 2,293 people earlier this month. The side is part of the American Ultimate Disc League. Amazingly for a Toronto sports team, they're also undefeated so far this year, and it's almost half way through the season. Go, Rush, Go! Finally, here's a neat tilt shift video by Andrey Savin, a local tech student. Tilt-shift is a camera trick that deceives the eye into thinking it's looking a model using selective focus and a shallow depth of field. "Savin shared the video on Reddit this weekend. Enjoy. FROM THE LONG WEEKEND: The Best Splurge Sushi in TorontoHow's the lunch grub at this Eglinton West pub?TV, film, music combine for launch of Toronto art partyNew Queen St. shop makes old into newLeslieville yoga studio appeals to jocks and yogis alikeKillers' drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. steals the showElectric Island turns on for Victoria Day techno partyA brief history of the Riverdale ZooThis Week in MusicThis Week in ComedyThis Week in Theatre IN BRIEF: Man shot in leg in Etobicoke apartment building [CBC]Do high occupancy toll lanes really help congestion? [Toronto Star]One dead after shooting in Ossington Ave. area [Toronto Star]Monarchists oppose Victoria Day name change [Toronto Sun]York University students create comics to raise awareness about sexual violence [Toronto Star]Dickey, Encarnacion lead Blue Jays over Rays [CBC] Chris Bateman is a staff writer at blogTO. Follow him on Twitter at @chrisbateman. Image: Jonathan Castellino/blogTO Flickr pool.

It was a troubling week on Toronto's DineSafe database. If you love FV Foods, I'm sorry to have to inform you that it's been forced to close due to "gross unsanitary conditions" on top of food safety infractions involving temperature control maintenance. The establishment also failed to perform adequate pest control. FV Foods was the only closure this week, but 19 other restaurants received conditional passes following their inspections for such delicious mistakes like failure to wash hands and keep food cold enough. FV Foods(280 Wilson Ave.) Inspected on: May 15 Inspection finding: Red (Closed) Number of infractions: 12 (Minor: 4, Significant: 5 Crucial: 3) Crucial infractions include: Failure to prevent gross unsanitary conditions, failure to thoroughly re-heat hazardous food items, failure to maintain hazardous foods at 60 C (140 F) or hotter. Gourmet Pizza (133 Roncesvalles Ave.) Inspected on: May 16 Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass) Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 1, Significant: 3, Crucial: 1) Crucial infractions include: Failure to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated. Il Fornello (214 King St. W.) Inspected on: May 16 Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass) Number of infractions: 4 (Significant: 3, Crucial: 1) Crucial infractions include: Failure to maintain hazardous foods at 4 C (40 F) or colder. Shoeless Joe's (856 Eglinton Ave. E.) Inspected on: May 16 Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass) Number of infractions: 8 (Minor: 3, Significant: 5) Crucial infractions include: N/A Tabaq Restaurant (50 Danforth Rd.) Inspected on: May 15 Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass) Number of infractions: 4 (Minor: 1, Significant: 2, Crucial: 1) Crucial infractions include: Failure to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated. Pho Mi Asia (1008 Wilson Ave.) Inspected on: May 14 Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass) Number of infractions: 9 (Minor: 2, Significant: 4, Crucial: 3) Crucial infractions include: Employee failed to wash hands when required, failure to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated, failure to maintain hazardous foods at 4 C (40 F) or colder. Gourmet Burger (9 Charles St.) Inspected on: May 15 Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass) Number of infractions: 6 (Minor: 1, Significant: 4, Crucial: 1) Crucial infractions include: Failure to maintain hazardous foods at 4 C (40 F) or colder. JJJ Caribbean Restaurant (2180 Eglinton Ave.) Inspected on: May 14 Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional Pass) Number of infractions: 6 (Minor: 3, Significant: 2, Crucial: 1) Crucial infractions include: Failure to maintain hazardous foods at 60 C (140 F) or hotter.

JaBistro’s sashimi, cut expertly by chef Koji Toshiro, is outlandishly fresh and ­flavourful. One night, the selection included ocean trout, sea bream, uni and, for adventurous diners, the chewy and ethereally ­sea-scented lobster sashimi. $100. 222 Richmond St. W., 647-748-0222. The post Must-Try: the beautiful, fresh and flavourful sashimi at JaBistro appeared first on torontolife.com.

Toronto events on Tuesday, May 21, 2013 ENVIRONMENT | Grey to Green Conference Toronto's move from concrete jungle to a greener infrastructure is the topic of discussion at the Grey to Green Conference that begins this morning at the Evergreen Brick Works. Potential solutions and the introduction of green technologies will be presented by designers, engineers, urban planners, developers and government policy makers at Grey to Green through keynote speeches, workshops and a trade show. Special guests will include Gord Miller, the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, and John W. Campbell, CEO of Waterfront Toronto. Tickets range in price with extra sessions happening throughout the day. Evergreen Brick Works (550 Bayview Avenue) 8:30AM $175-$650 COMMUNITY | Architecture for Humanity Toronto Symposium Communities and architecture seem to be the hot topic today as on the other side of town, CSI Annex will be hosting Sergio Palleroni in an Architecture for Humanity symposium. The architect, professor and activist will discuss how communities shape architectural decision-making and vice versa, as well as his work in developing countries and with BaSiC Initiative, a program that supports community partnerships. This event is pay-what-you-can and will include a raffle to win a 3-month Community Membership to any CSI. CSI Annex (720 Bathurst Street) 6:30PM PWYC MUSIC | Piper Hayes Local folk singer-songwriter Piper Hayes performs a soulful acoustic set at 3030 this evening just because it's Tuesday. Joined by friends Hello Companion, an indie rock foursome from Toronto, the show will be a mellowed, laid-back alternative to tonight's events, helping to ease you into the week after a holiday. Tickets are $5 at the door. 3030 (3030 Dundas Street West) 8PM $5 MUSIC | 50s and 60s Music with The Dreamboats The Dreamboats play their regular Magpie Taproom show tonight if you're looking for a little pick-me-up after the long weekend. Playing some of the best pop and rock from the '50s and '60s, The Dreamboats cover the likes of Ritchie Valens, Chuck Berry, The Beatles and Buddy Holly. The show is free and yes, they are really dreamboats. The Magpie Taproom (831 Dundas Street West) 9:30PM Free ALSO OF NOTE: Graven Feather's Letterpress Card Making Workshop For more Toronto event suggestions, check out these posts: This week in musicThis week in fashionThis week in filmToronto food eventsThis week in theatreThis week in comedyToronto Concerts, May 2013 Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly. Photo by Victor Shum in the blogTO Flickr pool

So, what next? Well, I hear were going to get the full gory details of whatever new role Bryan Colangelo has coming to him sometime this morning – was still no official word on what precisely it was when a long day came to end last night – but that’s about it. No new president, no new general manager, I’m not hearing about any shuffling of any hands at the moment. The Flavour of the Month, Masai Ujiri, isn’t going to talk to Tim Leiweke before Wednesday or so people who would know are telling me so we can put that one away to rest for 48 hours or so. And who knows if it works out anyway, not sure Denver won’t come back with some equally-lucrative offer to keep their top executive. Masai’s repatriation is not slam dunk at all, at least that’s what I’m hearing in the last 24 hours or so. But as I’m thinking yesterday – and it was actually a long day of thinking and typing and being like a constant alarm clock (Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!) to some people – whatever happened to the concept of hitting a home run with whatever new guy comes on board? Some big name that’ll catch everyone’s attention; that idea seems to have drifted away in the weeks since Tim Leiweke first came on board and everyone got in a kerfuffle because he knows Phil Jackson. Well, here’s one for a home run that makes so much sense it doesn’t have a chance at happening. If I’m Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, I’d certainly give it my best shot to convince Wayne Embry to become the team’s president, let he and Ed Stefanski run the show with Dwane Casey and see where we go. You cannot imagine the respect with which Wayne is regarded around the NBA; he is an icon and a legend and has done everything imaginable in the game. Cannot be understated. I know for a fact he loves Toronto – he once told me that outside of championship seasons in Boston this has been the most enjoyable stop of his long and illustrious career – and in eight years here he knows where all the bodies have buried and has walked many a minefield. He massaged the Rob Babcock-Sam Mitchell relationship, he’s been a sage to everyone who works at the joint for the past half decade and when this thing was headed entirely off the rails last December, you know who was here to have meetings and private conversations? Wayne. He knows the game, the people in the game, he knows people and how to get the most of out them, how to make diverse personalities work for a common cause while putting aside any differences of opinion. He’s a presence. I don’t know who is going to be hurt the most in this changeover, how it shakes out cannot be even guessed at for certain right now, but if Tim Leiweke has a brain in his head, he will not – cannot – let a valuable resource and a great man like Wayne Embry get away. And if the board and ownership and whoever take the time to try to convince Embry to take on an even more significant role right now, that will be the best time they can spend. (Yes, I floated the name – entirely off the top of my head and a thought that came right of nowhere – of Russ Granik on the radio yesterday but that was just silly and should be taken as the rambling of a madman) - Ray Manzarek? Yeah, he had some music chops. RIP I know more than a few people were stung by the news of his passing yesterday. - Here’s a Did You Know. Did you know that if you settle on the deck to start typing about 10:30 in the morning that you have to shift around the table three times before 7:30 p.m. to make sure the sun doesn’t shine in either your eyes or on your screen. Not that I’d want to do that more than, say, once a year, but at least now we know. - I’ve got a thing this afternoon that means I can’t drink coffee this morning and you know those people to say they get grumpy when they don’t have their morning coffee? They’re 1,000,000 per cent right. - Super Dog digression; and a reason why this little Boston is among the

Why do weeks that include a day off for a holiday always seem so long? In the news: councillors will likely formally reject a downtown casino today, Rob Ford will face his council for the first time since crack allegations emerged, York U students use an unlikely medium to raise awareness about rape, and the Raptors will need a new GM. City councillors will vote today on a casino proposal that Mayor Rob Ford declared “essentially dead” earlier this month when it became clear that the city’s hosting fee would be much smaller than hoped. It’s expected that the proposal to build a casino in downtown Toronto will be rejected by a majority of the 45-member council at the special meeting. The meeting will also be the first time the mayor will face his council since allegations surfaced, via reports from the Star and Gawker, that he smoked crack cocaine and was videotaped. Ford has kept a low profile since reports of the video were released last week, only making a brief statement to media and cancelling his regular Sunday radio show with brother and councillor Doug Ford (Ward 2, Etobicoke North). Students at York University have created comics to raise awareness about sexual assault, as part of a class called Design for Public Awareness. Students Esther Hui, Sophie Qi, and Lily Li created a graphic novella called “The Monsters I See” that addressed the experiences of a fictional university student after she is assaulted by a friend; Helén Marton, Jane Kim, and Shayna Lauer designed a comic called “In a Tight Situation” that uses the superheroes Batman and Superman to address the issue of victim blaming. York’s Centre for Human Rights is hoping to distribute a booklet of “The Monsters I See” and print “In a Tight Situation” on T-shirts. Reports are that Bryan Colangelo is out as the general manager of the Toronto Raptors, though he is expected to stay with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment in a corporate role. Colangelo has been GM of the Raptors since early 2006, but he did not manage to repeat his successes with his previous team, the Phoenix Suns—the Raps haven’t made the playoffs for five seasons.

With more than 70,000 households languishing for years on Toronto’s affordable housing wait list and few public dollars available for new construction, the city is turning to its burgeoning condo market for help.Half a dozen condominium developers have inked deals with the city and non-profit housing providers to offer low-income families and individuals affordable rental and ownership units in their buildings.Proposed amendments to Toronto’s Official Plan to be debated by city council next month are designed to encourage more developers to play ball.The changes come in the wake of a http://housingopensdoors.ca/index.php?lang=en&ref=Partner trying to put affordable housing back on the political agenda, as low-income families and individuals struggle to pay rent in the shadow of hundreds of pricey downtown condominium towers.“It’s not a solution to the housing crisis,” says Councillor Adam Vaughan (Ward 20 Trinity-Spadina.)“But in the absence of a real national or provincial housing program, we’re going to have to find a thousand other small inventions to try and see what works and what can be done.“If one day Ottawa or Queen’s Park decide to get engaged, we’ll be ready to roll out these policies and models and deliver the housing we need.”Some condo buyers may balk at investing in a building that includes units for low-income people for fear it will depress property values.But Alan Vihant, senior vice-president of development for Great Gulf Homes, says he has had no pushback from purchasers at the company’s Charlie condo near King St. W. and Spadina Ave., which opened last fall.Great Gulf offered the city four affordable rental units in the 36-storey building, along with other public benefits, in exchange for added height and density.“At the end of the day, a lot of condos that are purchased are rented out,” Vihant says.The affordable units are really no different, he argues, as they are scattered throughout the building and have the same doors, finishes and square footage as the rest of the units.“As a strategy for affordable housing, I think it is actually much better to distribute a few units in every building as opposed to collecting 200 units of affordable housing and putting them all in one building,” he adds.Encouraging affordable rental and ownership units in condominium developments will prevent downtown Toronto from becoming a “vertical suburb,” says Vaughan.“We need a mix — from the person who works at the corner store in the base of the condominium to the person who cleans the office across the street,” he says. “They all deserve the opportunity to walk to work just like everybody else in the neighbourhood.”Artscape led the way in 2007 in response to the loss of affordable live-work space for cash-strapped artists in the rapidly gentrifying West Queen West area.It partnered with developer Urbancorp and community group Active 18 to include affordable ownership and rental units for artists in a traditional condominium complex.Artscape Triangle Lofts, which opened in 2011 and occupies the first three floors of the 18-storey Westside Gallery Lofts condominium development near Queen St. W. and Dovercourt, was a pioneer, notes Sean Gadon, the city’s manager of housing development.Gadon helped the project secure city benefits, such as property tax and development charge exemptions for those units, which are part of traditional affordable housing deals. It allowed Artscape to offer 48 below-market ownership units and 20 affordable apartments as well as gallery and café space for the artists. To keep costs down, the artists don’t share Westside’s pool or other amenities and use a separate entrance and lobby.Actor Jane Luk still can’t believe she scooped an affordable apartment at Triangle Lofts.A tenant since the building opened, Luk

Ask Rolling Stones' lead guitarist Keith Richards -- who turns 70 this year -- if he's a birthday guy, and he pulls no punches.