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Best Local Politician Even if Nov. 2, 2004 Was the Most Depressing Day Ever to Be a Liberal
Bill Richardson
Governor, State of New Mexico
Santa Fe Star:
Not a day goes by when Gov. Bill Richardson-former US congressman, UN ambassador and energy secretary-fails to grab a headline. There's his breakneck schedule, his potential and much-speculated upon presidential aspirations, not to mention controversies such as the state's purchase of a $5.5 million jet and Richardson's much-reported highway speeding. Despite the latter, SFR readers picked him as best politician for the first time in this contest's history, and other statewide polls show him with a more than 50 percent approval rating.
No Rest for the Best:
Let's see, Richardson has been past chairman of the Western Governors' Association, the Border Governors' Conference and the 2004 Democratic National Convention. He recently addressed US mayors at the Sundance Summit on the topic of global warming, has been invited to North Korea ostensibly to discuss nuclear policy, has been closely involved with luring more major movies to the state, signed into law major DWI legislation requiring interlock ignitions on all DWI offenders' cars-and that was all mostly in one week's time. (He also squeezed in a photo shoot for our Best Of cover image). Richardson tells SFR his upcoming goals include focusing on education and the environment, particularly early-childhood development and renewable energy incentives. And, he adds, "not speeding."
Winner's Circle:
"I'm very honored by this because readers of The Santa Fe Reporter are issue-oriented," Richardson says. "They care about causes and are an important part of my constituency." (Julia Goldberg)
Second Place:
US Rep. Tom Udall, D-NM
Third Place:
US Sen. Pete Domenici, R-NM
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Best Celebrity Worth Acting like Paparazzi for
Gene Hackman
Santa Fe Star:
Distant, but always polite, Gene Hackman's old-school celebrity lends a sense of credibility and panache to Santa Fe without bringing the embarrassing antics today's younger stars thrive on. A sophisticate who ditched a career in the Marines to pursue life in the arts, Hackman fits the Santa Fe vibe as an actor who dabbles in painting, writing and committed culinary appreciation. Plus, having "Popeye" Doyle around is just plain cool.
No Rest for the Best:
The guy is in his '70s and he still works his ass off, which is a quality we can admire if not, you know, emulate. Though Hackman has kept a low profile in 2005 he's averaged two films per year for a decade, making six films in 2001 alone. Maybe he's working on a third novel with his fiction collaborator Daniel Lenihan. The pair released Wake of the Perdido Star in 1999 and Justice for None in 2004.
Winner's Circle:
Just after SFR spotted "Hack" in a regular chow-down session at Cloud Cliff Bakery, the hungry celeb's publicist claimed not to even know where he is these days. "Nope. Absolutely not," Susan Madore of Dick Guttman Associates says."He is not giving interviews or statements of any kind right now." It's cool, Gene, we dig the strong, silent type around here. (Zane Fischer)
Second Place:
Ali McGraw
Third Place:
Val Kilmer
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Best Local Author Worth Shelling Out For a First Edition
Tony Hillerman
Santa Fe Star:
Tony Hillerman fell in love with New Mexico on his drive through in 1945. In 1952 he was transferred back to manage the New Mexico wire service, and he's spent the subsequent years tapping out his novels about Navajo detectives Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee from his desk in Albuquerque. Hillerman loves the dry, empty country, the native sentiment and dry humor-and New Mexicans love him.
No Rest for the Best:
Hillerman's newest book bears the working title The Shape Changer, which should be available in the next year. In April he received the Robert Kirsch award for lifetime achievement, and will be trucking back to his home state of Oklahoma to receive it. But don't believe for a second all this veneration is going to Hillerman's head. "Now that I'm 80 years old I get up and think about when I'm taking my first nap." He laughs.
Winner's Circle:
"I don't know how the hell people pick these things! You've got to love [writing] or you may as well give it up. It's a terrible way to make money, but a great way to enjoy yourself. I really appreciate when people tell me they dig it." (Farren Stanley)
Second Place:
N Scott Momaday
Third Place:
Stanley Crawford
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Best Local Non-Profit 'Cuz Sometimes We All Need a Little Help From Our Friends
Santa Fe Animal Shelter and Humane Society
100 Caja del Rio, 983-4309
Santa Fe Star:
The Animal Shelter has been saving animals' lives since 1939, and this year it moved into a location almost four times its current size. This is great news for animal lovers because it means the shelter will be able to house many more rescues: "One of the main long-term goals of the shelter is to reach that day when every animal can find a healthy home," Kate Rindy, director of the shelter, says.
No Rest for the Best:
We're not kidding about "no rest." This place doesn't get any. On top of moving locations, Rindy is preparing for her departure from the shelter after her decade-long tenure there-and of course has spent more time planning the shelter's move than her own. Along with the new location, the shelter also will be providing pet parenting classes and basic training for its sheltered dogs to make them more adoptable. "For some shelters," Rindy says, "their main goal is to get every animal out. Our goal is to make a careful match and help people stay in that relationship."
Winner's Circle:
"Everything we do is made possible through the kind and caring support from the people in the community-I have never lived anywhere where so many people have and care about animals," Rindy says. (Laura Parisi)
Second Place:
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern New Mexico
Third Place:
Kitchen Angels
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Best Cerrillos Road Business even if it is Rush Hour
Jackalope
2820 Cerrillos Road, 471-8539
Santa Fe Star:
Jackalope has everything under the sun-literally-and more. It's the logical combination of open-air market, home furnishing center and petting zoo. It has entertainment on the weekends throughout the summer and features all sorts of products and livestock: pottery, rugs, food, beads, pots, tweezers, lemonade, prairie dogs, burros, and roosters. What more could anyone possibly want?
No Rest for the Best:
Owner Darby McQuaid has been in charge of the place for 29 years, and is currently working on opening a new location down in Albuquerque. But rest assured, the Santa Fe location is getting improvements of its own: A whole new furniture-only building is in the works.
Winner's Circle:
"I would like to thank Santa Fe for their continued support," General Manager Rob McKenna says. "We enjoy doing business here-we hope we're here for another 30 years." (LP)
Second Place:
Whole Foods
Third Place:
Artisan Santa Fe
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Best Outdoor Recreation Spot Because It's Green Out There
The Plaza
Santa Fe Star:
The popular sentiment goes, "All roads lead to the Plaza." It's the beating heart of the city and it's the place tourists and transients, couples and disaffected teenagers and dog lovers and artists can congregate together at any time of the day or night.
No Rest for the Best:
Steve Lewis, public relations liaison for the city's Parks and Rec department, says "there's nothing brand new coming up" for the Plaza, but "there's an ongoing effort to keep the Plaza looking good in terms of the grass." The Santa Fe Summer Bandstand program was re-introduced in 2005 and offers a broad lineup of music and entertainment throughout the summer.
Winner's Circle:
"This is demonstrative of some of the great things that Santa Fe offers, especially in terms of shopping, the arts, restaurants, even sitting outside and people watching. The Plaza has everything!" Lewis says.(FS)
Second Place:
Randall Davey Audubon Center
Third Place:
The Windsor Trail
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Best Art Gallery Openings-Pass the Wine and Cheese, Please
Gerald Peters Gallery
1011 Paseo de Peralta, 954-5700
Santa Fe Star:
The ponderous behemoth of a building on the Paseo contains a consistently rich, buttery spread of art on offer, from classic western to contemporary and quite a bit more to boot. Few other galleries are able to offer so much bang packed into a single building and opening receptions always feel more like royal galas than the usual art crawl. For the unsociable, the impressive bookstore beckons, packed with tomes on the gallery artists as well as rare and out-of-print art books of all stripes.
No Rest for the Best:
Due to the gallery's size and scope, staff often are maintaining and scheduling several concurrent and overlapping exhibitions at once. Still, favorites pop up-this year it's Subhankar Banerjee's breathtaking photographs of the threatened Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Don't let the construction-site-look stop you from going in; the exterior of the sprawling building is getting a facelift this year.
Winner's Circle:
"It's always wonderful to have the support of the community," says Public Relations Director Lisa Bronowicz. "I think the variety and quality of art and the incredible space that we display it in is part of the overall attraction and our staff is just spectacular." (ZF)
Second Place:
Nedra Matteucci Galleries
Third Place:
(tie) Site Santa Fe, Andreeva Portrait Gallery
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Best Movie Theater Even Though Apparently we Need a Few More
Jean Cocteau
418 Montezuma Avenue, 988-2711
Santa Fe Star:
From the legendary name to the curvaceous modernity of the design and the café and theater combo, the Jean Cocteau exudes a casual sophistication and a sort of Euro-flair Santa Fe would eat on a stick if it could. We love the screening room intimacy, the popcorn with tamari and brewer's yeast and the beret-brigade enthusiasm, all in accompaniment to our favorite indie and art house flicks.
No Rest for the Best:
The Cocteau has a knack for picking local favorites, like this year's filmed-in-New Mexico Off the Map. Owner Trans-Lux doesn't plan on messing with a winning formula, but there's still no official word on what strategy will be employed in the event of a new multi-plex theater opening in the Railyard, right in the Jean Cocteau's back yard.
Winner's Circle:
"Cool. Another one," Manager Juan Montoya says. "I think it's because we pay attention to the details in presenting each film and all the workers are great-we're allowed to have a little personality here and people see that. I guess people just feel at home here." (ZF)
Second Place:
The Screen
Third Place:
The Lensic
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Best Local Theater Group Where It's OK to be All About the Drama
Santa Fe Performing Arts
1050 Old Pecos Trail, 984-1370
Santa Fe Star:
It's hard to argue with 18 years logged as a community theater organization that works the full spectrum of Santa Fe's ethnically and economically diverse population. SFPA consistently offers something for everyone, with particularly ambitious programs for children and teens throughout northern New Mexico. An open-door policy makes it easy for adults interested in trying their hands as directors, technicians, actors-you name it-to approach the theater company with any level of dramatic immersion that feels comfortable.
No Rest for the Best:
After 10 years of uncertainty with the State Armory Board and the New Mexico National Guard serving as landlord, some fast legislative maneuvering early this year resulted in SFPA (and neighbors the Center for Contemporary Arts and the Santa Fe Children's Museum) moving their leases under the management of the more simpatíco Department of Cultural Affairs. Negotiations aren't final yet, but long-term and an attendant sense of public and philanthropic security appear likely.
Winner's Circle:
"Really? Thank you so much," Director Nicholas W Sabato, on hearing the news of SFPA's repeat Best Of win, says. "I think what really makes a difference is that we don't have some artistic director alone in a room thinking about what vision he finds interesting; our programming really comes out of the community itself and in that sense we're able to fulfill some needs and address issues that are real and present." (ZF)
Second Place:
College of Santa Fe Drama Department
Third Place:
Santa Fe Playhouse
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Best Museum with or without a Docent
Georgia O'Keeffe Museum
217 Johnson Street, 946-1000
Santa Fe Star:
Nearly lost to Española or Abiquiu when the fussy Historic Design Review Board initially balked at renovation plans, the O'Keeffe has become a cherished Santa Fe fixture since its arrival in 1998. Not only has the museum surpassed Canyon Road as the likely destination for tourists straying more than a block from the Plaza, but locals love it for its frequent rotation of new and exciting exhibitions housed in an intimate, manageable setting. An experience at the O'Keeffe leaves you culturally charged, but with the rest of your day free rather than lost to wandering sprawling halls and one too many epochs.
No Rest for the Best:
This year is a pivotal one for Santa Fe's favorite museum. The Georgia O'Keeffe Foundation, a separate entity from the museum, agreed to transfer its assets to the museum, which will have the effect of boosting the already significant collection of 140 O'Keeffe works with more than 2,000 additional pieces.
Winner's Circle:
"The combination of exhibitions, education programs and having the only research center in the country dedicated to American Modernism has created an exciting and distinctive museum," Executive Director George King says. "We're very proud of this honor and that Santa Feans are enjoying the O'Keeffe, especially as we recognize that there are many other excellent museums in the city and in the state." (ZF)
Second Place:
Museum of International Folk Art
Third Place:
Santa Fe Children's Museum
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Best Live Music Venue to Keep You Screaming for an Encore
The Lensic
211 West San Francisco Street, 988-1234
Santa Fe Star:
Since reconfiguring, refurbishing and reopening a little more than four years ago, the Lensic has proven a rare success story of urban renewal. Once a fancy but past-its-prime movie theater (it still shows the occasional classic or local film), the Lensic was transformed into an elegant but relaxed venue, where rabble-rousers like Steve Earle are just as welcome as an a cappella gospel choir, where wispy-voiced chanteuses butt up against the likes of improvisational wonders BING!.
No Rest for the Best:
Lensic General Manager Bob Martin must've been damn busy this past year as the venue hosted show after show after show, from alt.country goddess Neko Case to the sprawling, Fela Kuti-esque funk of the Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra. The key to making it all more than just an average show, Martin says, is never becoming complacent. "I've said it before," he says, "you can't rest on your laurels. So far there isn't anybody [who works] here who isn't taking it seriously. That's what keeps us alive and vibrant." The next vibrant music performance is the Aug. 3 Suzanne Vega show.
Winners Circle:
"We feel so proud that folks that read The Reporter and the community keep supporting us and feel what we do is important," Martin says. (Jonanna Widner)
Second Place:
Paolo Soleri Amphitheater
Third Place:
The Paramount and Bar B
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Best Local Musician or Band You Don't Want to Miss-Even on a Tuesday Night
Alex Maryol
Santa Fe Star:
It would be too easy to focus on Maryol's dreamy looks as the key to his success-even our large local contingent of women who, uh, let's say, really like softball find themselves making moon eyes at him. But that would be doing our local wunderkind a great disservice, because Maryol has worked his tail off and it shows. Two-and-a-half years of vocal training have given this 20-something local boy the voice of an 89-year-old Delta bluesman, and his prowess with the axe (be it plugged-in Tele or little acoustic nylon-string) is decidedly prodigal.
No Rest for the Best:
Maryol's spent much of the year busy in the music program at College of Santa Fe, but he's had time to continue his weekly gigs (along with his band-bassist Willy Magee and drummer Mark Valdez) at El Farol, the Cowgirl, WilLee's and blues festivals. Look for him Aug. 28 at Tacos, Tequila and Croquet (Intermezzo's Santa Fe Opera party); Sept. 2 at the Thirsty Ear Festival; and Sept 16 to 18 at the Telluride Blues and Brews festival.
Winners Circle:
"We love you, thank you," Maryol says to the folks who voted for him. "You guys rock." (JW)
Second Place:
Bill Hearne
Third Place:
South by Southwest
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Best Local Club DJ Because they Know How to Mix it Up
DJ Arrow
Santa Fe Star:
Consider DJ Arrow (who now goes by the moniker DJ Dynamik) the sleeper hit of the local turntable circuit. The 28-year-old has 12 years of spinning in spots like New York, Chicago and Boston under his belt, but recently hopped aboard the Chicanobuilt bus and helmed the Monday night Message parties at the Paramount before it closed. What sets Arrow apart from other hip-hop DJs? The man not only kicks old-school vinyl, he digs deep into classic soul, dancehall and Brazilian and Latin American gems (his mother's from Brazil), and he knows how to blend the genres: "I play a lot of De La Soul, Tribe Called Quest, because that stuff mixes really well into old soul," he says.
No Rest for the Best:
Since the Paramount closed, a number of DJs have been scrambling to find gigs, and Arrow's no exception, but he will be spinning at Sleeping Dog Tavern and house parties. Arrow also hosts the Latin-centered "Somos Son" radio show from 3 to 5 pm every other Saturday on KSFR 90.7.
Winners Circle:
"I'm pleasantly surprised," Arrow tells SFR of his win. "I really appreciate it because I do this all for the love of the music." (JW)
Second Place:
Melanie Moore
Third Place:
DJ Automatic
