2003 EDITORS PICKS

Best Atmosphere To See Movies and More—Crest Theatre
They show first-run foreign films and classic revivals of your faves. In between screenings of such celluloid classics as Sunset Boulevard, Rear Window and The Graduate, the Crest has booked live concert acts including Etta James, No Doubt, Nirvana and Guns N’ Roses. Launched in 1913 as The Empress, the Crest (renamed in 1949) got a makeover in the late ’80s and still thrills movie-palace fans who flock here from throughout California. Best of all, you can still get popcorn for a buck.

Best Example of Talent and Efficiency—Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra
The Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra won the Arts Excellence Award presented by the Arts & Business Council of Sacramento in 2001, was 2002’s nonprofit of the year (awarded by the Nonprofit Resource Center) and earlier this year made its debut at Carnegie Hall. With more than 50 musicians and 200 vocalists led by president James McCormick and artistic director/conductor Donald Kendrick, the SCSO delights audiences with classical and romantic works . . . from Bach to Broadway.

Best Female National Champions of a Contact Sport—Sacramento Sirens
They may be the least-known national champions in town. With members ranging in age from 19 to 41, this team consists of stay-at-home moms, state workers, attorneys and teachers, among others. This past July, the Sirens won the (21-team) Independent Women’s Football League Championship, which was held on the campus of St. John’s University in New York City. Most have never played football before joining the team and, by the way, this is full-gear, tackle football. Incidentally, this past season, the Sirens typically won by more than three touchdowns, the biggest massacre being their 81-to-zip trouncing of the San Diego SeaCatz.

Best Sculptor of Monumental Stature—Gene Chapman
Roseville sculptor Gene Chapman’s work can be seen throughout California. Notable pieces include the engraving of the National AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park, the inscriptions on the granite pavers at the Federal Courthouse in Sacramento, and the installation and engraving of the entertainment industry’s Blacklist memorial at the University of Southern California. Chapman’s current work-in-progress is “The Guardian.” His first major noncommissioned piece, it is a 16-by-17-foot granite “temple wall” adorned with the face of a “guardian” from some unknown ancient civilization.

Best Local Champs—Sacramento Capitals
Now in their 18th season, the Sacramento Capitals have the distinction of holding the most league championships in World TeamTennis history with their record of five championship seasons. Perhaps more impressive, though, is the fact that during the 2003 season, the team set an attendance record for World TeamTennis in the United States, despite playing in a parking lot at Sunrise Mall.

Best Sculptor of Monumental Stature—Gene Chapman
Roseville sculptor Gene Chapman’s work can be seen throughout California. Notable pieces include the engraving of the National AIDS Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park, the inscriptions on the granite pavers at the Federal Courthouse in Sacramento, and the installation and engraving of the entertainment industry’s Blacklist memorial at the University of Southern California. Chapman’s current work-in-progress is “The Guardian.” His first major noncommissioned piece, it is a 16-by-17-foot granite “temple wall” adorned with the face of a “guardian” from some unknown ancient civilization.

Best Local Champs—Sacramento Capitals
Now in their 18th season, the Sacramento Capitals have the distinction of holding the most league championships in World TeamTennis history with their record of five championship seasons. Perhaps more impressive, though, is the fact that during the 2003 season, the team set an attendance record for World TeamTennis in the United States, despite playing in a parking lot at Sunrise Mall.

Best High School Baseball Coach—Guy Anderson
They say it’s a game of stats. He’s got ’em. In fact, he owns most of them. Since arriving at Cordova High School when it opened 40 years ago, Anderson has led his teams to 756 wins, ranking him fifth nationally in wins. The legendary coach has racked up five Sac-Joaquin Section championships (an area record) and has sent 11 players to the majors, including Jerry Manuel, Larry Wolfe and Geoff Jenkins.

Best Chocolate Martini—The Shari’s Berry Martini by Frank Fat’s and Shari’s Berries
Maybe this award should be called “Best-Dressed Martini.” The red-sugar-rimmed, chocolate-laced martini glass is filled with a blend of Stoli strawberry vodka, Godiva chocolate liqueur, strawberries and chocolate, and topped with one of Shari’s chocolate-dipped strawberries. You only can get these “berry tasty ’tinis” at Frank Fat’s in downtown Sacramento, which is currently closed for remodeling. When Fat’s reopens, check out the new decor—and the martinis. Chocolate cheers!

Best Little Hideaway on a Summer Night—The Patio of Aioli Bodega Española
The back patio courtyard at Aioli Bodega Española is almost like being in the womb . . . or the Mediterranean. The best time to dine there? On a hot summer night. Serenaded by Andalusian music and closed in on all four sides, diners are surrounded by ivy, fountains and candlelit lanterns. And Aioli serves some of the best tapas in town. You’ve got to try the gambas al ajillo (shrimp in garlic sauce) or the pollo andaluz (chicken sautéed with paprika, garlic and olive oil).

Best Band in Uniforms (Excluding Marching Bands)—Warp 11
This Sacramento quartet of three male musicians and one female singer—all with pointy ears— performs in “Star Trek” uniforms while they sing original tunes, including “Everything I Do, I Do With William Shatner,” “Trekkie Girl” and “Don’t Klingon Me.” They have a rabid following that also suits up in Trek-galia for the sci-fi singalongs at their performances. The band rocks at, well, warp 11. Look for Warp 11 in the sequel to the documentary Trekkies, which features a recent performance of theirs at Harlow’s.

Hardest-Working DJ—Sweet Lou Gallagher
He may be the hardest-working guy on local radio. Sweet Lou does the 6-p.m.-to-midnight shift on KOOL 101.9. It’s a high-energy show, with Gallagher playing the oldies but goodies, interspersed with countless features that he spends hours preparing for on a daily basis. Gallagher does bits as diverse as “horn psychic” (honk and he’ll tell you the make, model and year) and “the theme song of your life.” This is six hours of rapid-fire radio. In one break, we heard him scream a yabba-dabba-doo along with a Tarzan yell, certainly in violation of some FCC regulation.

Best Car Club—The Thunderbolts
The Thunderbolts, who have customized some of the “cherriest” street rods around (1956 and older), are famous for the annual Thunderbolts car show on Memorial Day at Depot Park in Rio Linda. They also host the area’s biggest car show—the Autorama—and maintain the longest running car club in America. The club currently has 26 members, ages 20-something to 70-something, whose rides carry estimated values of $60,000 to $100,000. We suspect a few of them also may be famous for being pulled over more than a few times by “admiring” police officers.

Most Successful Rock Musician—Timothy B. Schmit
He’s arguably the most high-profile, successful musician to come out of this town. In the ’60s, he was a member of The New Breed, which had a number of regional hits. Renamed Glad, that band eventually split, with Schmit accepting an invitation from Richie Furay (formerly of Buffalo Springfield, which counted Neil Young and Stephen Stills as members) to join Furay’s new band, Poco. That stint with the legendary country-rock band led to yet another invitation, in 1977, to join the Eagles. As bassist for the band that has the distinction of recording the best-selling American album of all time (Eagles Greatest Hits, 1971–1975), Schmit played and sang on Eagles recordings Hell Freezes Over and The Long Run, an album that includes his own chart-topping composition “I Can’t Tell You Why.” As one of the most sought-after studio vocalists in Los Angeles, Schmit has sung on Toto tracks such as “Africa” and “I Won’t Hold You Back,” Steely Dan’s “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number,” and “Wasted on the Way” with Crosby, Stills & Nash. “When we practiced in our mothers’ garages, we used to dream about this stuff,” reminisces Schmit, who counts among his biggest thrills playing in Ringo Starr’s touring band and cutting a track with boyhood heroes and Sacramento favorites The Beach Boys.

Best Rivalry—The Causeway Classic
The “bridge over troubled rice fields” that separates Sacramento and Davis is the moniker for the area’s biggest college football rivalry, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this year. The California State University, Sacramento Hornets and the UC Davis Aggies have pounded it out 50 times on each other’s fields (typically with sell-out crowds), with the Aggies coming out on top 34 times. The Hornets haven’t won since 1999. They’re due to sting some horse tail.

Best Local Troubadour—Jackie Greene
This 22-year-old multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter has been compared to such heavy hitters as Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen. Greene’s talent outstretches his years. Drawing from American music influences such as blues, country, rock and folk, he writes songs with a depth that belies the number of miles on his guitar case. Currently recording for Sacramento label DIG Music, Greene has garnered favorable attention on the music scene with his first CD, Gone Wanderin’. The local favorite has opened for the likes of Huey Lewis and the News and John Hiatt, and recently received a standing O at the Apple & Eve Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island, where the audience demanded an encore.

The Mayor of Arco—Tom Peterson
It’s like that joke about the nuns in St. Peter’s Square, gazing up at the two figures on the balcony: “I don’t know the one in the beanie, but the other guy is Tom Peterson.” Take one lap around the concourse of Arco Arena with Peterson, vice president of service development for Maloof Sports & Entertainment, and you’ll understand why we’ve dubbed him “The Mayor.” He can’t walk 10 paces without exchanging handshakes, hugs or smiles with Maloof employees and patrons alike. Peterson knows everybody’s name and they know his. He’s constantly putting out fires or eradicating problems—from escorting lost fans to their seats and making plans for repainting floors to finding a suite for disabled customers left seatless after a ticket mix-up. Constantly in motion, Peterson always has his customer service radar at full power.

Most Fun in a Grocery Store—Whole Foods Market
How much fun can you actually have in a grocery store? As it turns out, a lot. With more than 140 stores across the United States and Canada, Whole Foods, now the world’s largest retailer of natural and organic foods, opened a store this past spring in the Arden area. Now, we’re not trying to say that this place is like a free buffet, but at any one of the departments, there are samples to be had. Like the looks of that cookie? They’ll break a chunk off for you. See something in the deli case? Here comes a complimentary mini-cupful. Can’t resist the aroma of pizza coming from the in-store oven? There are bite-sizers right on the counter. Big fun!

Best Example of the Power of Declaration—The Five Dads of the M.I.N.D. Institute: Steve Beneto, Chuck Gardner, Rick Hayes, Rick Rollens, Dr. Louis Vismara
The idea hatched five years ago. Between them, the Five Dads—four of them pictured below—pooled their various talents, contacts, energy and unstoppable wills to develop a 110,000-square-foot facility on the campus of the UC Davis Medical Center, and it is now regarded as the world’s leading center for autism and neurodevelopmental disorder research. All fathers of children with autism, they screamed a collective “No more!” in response to the historical medical recommendation of institutionalization for children with autism. Since its inception two years ago, the M.I.N.D. (Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders) Institute clinic has seen more than 3,000 kids, giving hope to families where before there was little.

Best Power Couple—Biba and Dr. Vincent Caggiano
She’s food. He’s medicine. Together, they’ve been nurturing our bodies and souls ever since they emigrated from New York in 1969. As the medical director of the Sutter Cancer Center, Vincent Caggiano, M.D., earned the admiration of his peers and patients alike. Retired from that position, he continues to serve as principal investigator for the Cancer Surveillance Program, the regional cancer registry located at the Sutter Cancer Center, and also as principal investigator for the National Cancer Institute clinical trials program. Biba Caggiano, the pride of Bologna, Italy, who is known around the world just as “Biba,” has authored seven cookbooks on regional Italian cuisine, runs a successful midtown restaurant and has made a splash in the local and national media, including televised appearances on “Martha Stewart Living.”

Best Place To Bust a Move—Get Dancing Academy of Dance
This is the only studio in Northern California that teaches break dancing. For the past three years, hundreds of students also have learned hip-hop, ballet and jazz. Owned by Davette and Stephen Fournier, the school (located on Sunset Avenue in Fair Oaks) features classes taught by nationally acclaimed instructors Chad Morris and Ajax. Every year, Get Dancing puts on Floortaktics, a break-dancing competition with more than 1,000 dancers who come from all around the world to compete for cash prizes.

Best Place To See the Best in West Coast Swing—Capital Swing Dancers’ Annual Presidents Day Weekend Convention
It’s the biggest West Coast swing competition in Northern California. Every Presidents Day weekend in February, the Capital Swing Dancers and the Radisson Hotel Sacramento host 1,000 participants from throughout North America, where the best West Coast swing dancers in the nation come to compete for thousands of dollars in cash prizes. The Capital Swing Dancers club, which has about 175 members, meets every third Sunday of the month for a dance at The Ballroom of Sacramento on Folsom Boulevard.

Best Historian—Jim Henley
If you want to know where it’s buried, who said it or when it was built, go to historian Jim Henley. Since 1966, he’s been the manager of the History and Science Division for the city of Sacramento. As historian for the restoration of Old Sacramento, Henley deserves credit for much of its charm and authenticity. He worked on the concept and development of the California State Railroad Museum, the Discovery Museum, the Eagle Theatre and the Sacramento Archives & Museum Collection Center (off Richards Boulevard), where he’s based and which he refers to as the “safety deposit box” for the region.

Best Drummers With the Biggest Drums—Sacramento Taiko Dan
Tiffany Tamaribuchi, founder of Sacramento Taiko Dan, recently was recognized for her percussion skills when she won the international All-Japan odaiko soloist contest. Taiko literally means “big drum.” This may be an understatement. In fact, Sacramento Taiko Dan has the biggest odaiko drum in North America. Cut from a single tree trunk, the drum measures 41/2 feet high and 5 feet deep, weighs 800 pounds, and rests on a cart weighing 600 pounds. It takes 20 people and a hydraulic lift to move it. Although only about a couple dozen members of Taiko Dan are active performers, there are close to 100 children and adults attending classes at their dojo (school).

Strongest Kindergarten Teacher in Town—Katherine Redcher Bowling
She’s 33 years old, 4’10” and 140 pounds, and she teaches kindergarten. In the recent U.S. National Olympic Weightlifting Championships, Bowling took a first in the snatch event with a lift of 165 pounds and second in the clean-and-jerk with a lift of 203.5 pounds, earning her a gold medal in her weight class.

Best Kid-Show Hosts—Harry Martin, Bill Rase, Mitch Agruss, Charlie Duncan
They were the kid-show hosts who thrilled and entertained an entire generation (or two) of Sacramento’s young TV watchers. As Channel 3’s Captain Sacto, Harry Martin played the role of space volunteer from 1956 to 1963, with a secret airfield somewhere west of town in a mysterious underground laboratory run by Dr. Xavier. You didn’t have to change the dial to find Bill Rase, who as Bosun Bill hosted “Popeye and Bosun Bill” from 1959 to 1963. Also on aquatic duty over at Channel 13 during the ’60s and ’70s were the two Cap’n Deltas—Mitch Agruss and Charlie Duncan, skippers of the Valley Queen riverboat. All screened cartoons, all broadcasted live, and all were beloved by a generation of now-aging baby boomers.

Best Skipper of the Briefing Room—Gen. Vincent Brooks
He was regarded by many as the “Face of the War in Iraq.” This 1976 Jesuit High School graduate and athletic standout, who also was First Captain in his senior year at West Point, was on the tube more than the Big Three network anchors combined. As deputy director of operations at Central Command HQ in Qatar, Gen. Brooks delivered no-nonsense Central Command briefings to the press and became a fixture of daytime television during the war.

Best Face To Watch for in TV News—Lester Holt
He is a graduate of Cordova High School (class of ’77) and interned in the Channel 3 news department in the late ’70s. His “meteoric” rise to stardom included stops at KCBS-TV in Los Angeles and WBBM-TV in Chicago. Holt’s marathon coverage of the war in Iraq for MSNBC, and his stints on “The Today Show” for NBC, have turned this CSUS grad into a national face with a bright future.

Best Makeover—Music Circus
Ladies and gentlemen . . . the heat has left the building! The summer theater-in-the-round’s new home, Wells Fargo Pavilion, boasts a Teflon-coated tent with walls, an expanded lighting grid, twice the number of restrooms, upholstered seating and no nasty poles blocking the audience’s line of vision. And best of all: air conditioning! No more “sweatin’ to the hits.”

Best Place To Rehabilitate—Folsom Physical Therapy & Training Center
In addition to the standard physical therapy degree and training, all the therapists at Folsom Physical Therapy & Training Center have at least one year of full-time residency training in orthopedic rehabilitation and one year of classes devoted to examination and treatment skills. That’s why therapists come from all around Northern California to receive orthopedic rehab training here. Almost no other physical therapy center in Northern California has such stringent requirements. Care begins with a head-to-toe assessment of the patient’s condition. “Assessment is the most important tool,” says physical therapist and founding partner Michael Moore, “because it tells us what we need to treat and what precautions to exercise if we determine that physical therapy is appropriate for that patient.” Moore himself did a two-year orthopedic residency at a world-renowned facility in Norway in the late 1970s—at that time no such program existed in the United States.

Best School To Shake Your Belly and Your Booty—Jodette’s Belly Dancing Academy
For almost a half century, Jodette Johnson has taught thousands the art of belly dancing in Sacramento and has led workshops throughout the country. Her graduates currently perform at local restaurants like Casablanca Moroccan Restaurant and Cafe Morocco. “It’s the oldest exercise in the world,” says Johnson of the art form that originated in the Middle East. “When you have fun, you lose inches.”

Top Cats in Town—Sacramento River Cats
The Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland A’s went 92–52 in the regular season, accomplishing something that hasn’t occurred since 1939, when the Sacramento Solons won the Pacific Coast League Championship. Despite losing a number of players throughout the season to the Oakland A’s, the River Cats convincingly capped off this year by steamrolling their way through the playoffs with a 6–0 run. Way to go, champs!