Kansas City is fast growing a reputation as a soccer-mad city, and it's going to get another boost next year when a women's professional soccer club takes the field. The team will be called FC Kansas City and owned by the same owners of the Missouri Comets of the Major Indoor Soccer League. U.S. Soccer announced the creation of the league, which doesn't have a name yet, on Monday, and unveiled a unique structure meant to give the league stability. U.S. Soccer will pay the salaries of 24 players from the national team, and three national team players will be on each of the league's eight teams. The Canadian and Mexican soccer governing bodies will kick in salaries for 16 and 12 of their national players, respectively.
U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati told reporters in a conference call, "We're subsidizing the private sector to make the investments necessary by the private sector smaller."
FC Kansas City doesn't have a home field lined up yet (the comets play at the Independence Events Centers). It will join teams in Boston; Chicago; western New York; New Jersey; Washington, D.C.; Seattle and Portland. The league is planned to run from March or April through September or October. Women's pro soccer has a history of failure. Two previous women's leagues have folded, including Women's Professional Soccer, which was shuttered last year. (The story of the Boca Roton-based magicJack team's failure is fascinating.)
Young Guru. Wednesday, November 28, at Czar.
"It's Peyton Manning. Who wouldn't want a picture?"
That's what Kansas City Chiefs receiver Dwayne Bowe told KCTV Channel 5 after Sunday's 17-9 loss to the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead. Bowe and running back Jamaal Charles waited for the Denver QB for postgame autographs. (Charles told the TV station that the autograph was for his mom.)
We hope that Channel 5 didn't spoil Christmas for Charles' mom.
Pearce penned a first-person piece earlier this month for The Pitch about his own struggles to make friends ("Can't a Guy Just Make Some Friends Around Here? Maybe."). He's currently living in Los Angeles, working as a reporter for the Los Angeles Times. You can listen online or at 89.3 FM.
In stark contrast to its ill-conceived brethren, the cake is not mono-textured. A rush of cinnamon in the soft buttery top gives way to a crunchy under layer that is lady-in-a-commercial-relaxing-in-a-bathtub moist. Frannie Franks' cakes (original and pumpkin) are available at the Roasterie Cafe (in Brookside, Leawood and the West Side), the City Market on Sundays (from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and the Hy-Vee bakery department in Liberty. For those with a gluten allergy, Frannie Franks also makes gluten-free coffee cakes.
Authors Joel Butler, president of the Institute of Masters of Wine, and biblical scholar Randall Heskett, Ph.D., will both be at Seasons 52 Monday, December 3, to talk about their book over a wine tasting with passed appetizers. The 6 p.m. event on the Plaza is organized by Rainy Day Books and costs $20. Signed copies of the book will be available for purchase. You can make a reservation by calling Seasons 52 at 816-531-0052.
Ghostbusters II may have had the ghost train. But Kansas City has its very own ghost train station, at least according to the intrepid crew of Ghost Adventures. Tales of ghosts and the presence of decades-old bullet holes brought the Travel Channel show to investigate in September. The hourlong program features interviews with Union Station employees, a history lesson about the Union Station Massacre, and plenty of night-vision hijinks from the paranormal investigators.
Among the more memorable lines are "something just grabbed my pocket" and "ain't nobody can't evaporate." The episode (above) from the show's seventh season originally aired last Friday. What do you think? Is Union Station haunted?
Charles Ferruzza reviewed Poco's back in October and found the restaurant finding a balance between its classic dishes and those suggested by chef Robert Irvine, the muscled host of the extreme restaurant makeover show. The Poco's episode is slated to run at 10 p.m. and 1 a.m. Wednesday.
Local charity Care of Poor People says it's in a bind. People are donating cash and supplies to help the millions of people in the Northeast that were harmed and displaced by freak storm Sandy. That's great! Unfortunately for the local needy, Care of Poor People sent out a press release today stating, "Thousands of dollars of winter clothing and hygiene supplies scheduled to go to the poor and homeless of Kansas City have been diverted to the hurricane ravished Northeast." That's not so great.
The charity is asking everybody to chip in to bridge the gap. "We are still in need of new and used winter type clothing for men, women, and children, especially; long johns, hats, gloves, socks, and personal care items such as shampoo, soap, razors, deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes. However, we are accepting donations of all types of winter clothing," the press release says. They're also seeking clothing for women and children, as well as shoes. You can make a cash donation through PayPal on their site.
Care of Poor People is also holding its potluck and clothing-distribution dinner, Winter Survival Event 2012, on Saturday from 12 to 4 p.m. at the Midland Metals Building (1219 Lydia, in Kansas City, Missouri). They ask for volunteers to bring cooked food - hot dogs, ham, chili, baked beans, casseroles, pies, cakes, cookies, etc. Or, they say, "If there is a special item that you make, we have a place for it." Food can be warmed up on-site, and they ask that all dishes be brought in disposable containers.
See their website for more information.
Pitch Taste of KC beats the weather, draws 700 hungry people
Kanrocksas single-day tickets now on sale
The Gaf has closed in Waldo
Insane Clown Posse fans will be chugging Faygo in Lawrence tonight
Big Rip Brewing Co. opens to the world Sunday
Boulevard's Saison-Brett hits store shelves and taps Tuesday
KC Pride Festival 2013? Yes, it's still on
Rob Schamberger shows his paintings and sells prints of wrestling champions tonight with 100 percent of proceeds going to Make-A-Wish