Fort Myers

Radio Hosts Suspended for Telling Gullible Floridians the Water Supply Is Tainted With Water

In terms of humor, telling people that their water is tainted with "dihydorgen monoxide" is about on par with telling someone their epidermis is showing, but the dumb joke got two popular Southwest Florida country music radio hosts suspended.

Study: Miamians Slightly Less Miserable Than in 2011

Congratulations, we're 119th!Gallup has once again released its annual Well-Being Index, and of the country's 189 metropolitan statistical areas, the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano area came in 119th. Which still isn't that great, but it's a stark improvement from our 146th ranking in 2011.

Miami Ranked Seventh "Trashiest Spring Break Destination" in America

We in Miami, bitch. And we're beer-bongin' Coors Light at 11 a.m. on South Beach while riding a stolen DecoBike with our tits out, a brand-new bleeding tattoo disappearing into the crack of that fat ass, and a gut full of Starburst, naked Hooters wings, and Jell-o shots. That's why, according t ... More >>

No Newspaper Has Endorsed Connie Mack for Senate (And They're Not Nice About It Either)

Poor Rep. Connie Mack IV. He's trying his damnedest to turn the fact that he shares his name with his ex-senator dad into a Senate career of his own, but the latest polls show him trailing boring old incumbent Bill Nelson by anywhere from 5 to 8 points (a practical landslide for Florida's deeply div ... More >>

Obama Swept Off His POTUS Feet by Florida Pizza Shop Owner

President Obama probably has the most stressful and figuratively back-breaking job in the country, right? Wrong. Scott Van Duzer, owner of Big Apple Pizza & Pasta in Fort Myers, took the back-breaking spotlight yesterday afternoon when Obama made an unscheduled pit stop at his pizza shop and Van D ... More >>

Florida Boy Arrested for Pulling a Machete on Kids for Bullying Mexicans

A 13-year-old Fort Myers boy was arrested last Friday for allegedly brandishing a machete while chasing a group of elementary school children at a bus stop. The stunt was apparently in retaliation for the younger boys' bullying the knife wielder's 10-year-old friend and for "messing with Mexicans."

New law pits Florida tattoo artists against each other

Photos: Monster Van Crushes Car During Florida's Red Neck Yacht Club Event

​You know what happens when you mix a vehicle with five-foot tires, alcohol, self-proclaimed rednecks and Florida? That's right, something is getting smashed. Unfortunately, the thing that ended up getting smashed at the Redneck Yacht Club's annual "Swamp Cabbage Weekend" (yes, you read that corre ... More >>

Five Crazy Black Friday Shopping Frenzies

​For many Americans, this Thursday will be a day of thankful reflection over a meal the size of which a third-world family has never seen. But according to the National Retail Federation, about 152 million of those folks (that's about half the population) can be expected to line the cold shopping ... More >>

Florida Principal Reports Two Students Kissing As "Possible Sex Crime"

​This really is the only logical endpoint in a state so obsessed with sex crimes that we banished sex offenders to live under a bridge and unleashed prosecutors onto sexting teens: A teacher sees two 12-year-old students smooching in gym class and tells the school's principal, who then report ... More >>

Nine-Year-Old Girl Told Not to Eat Candy on School Bus Tells Police: "I Will F***ing Kill You!"

​A nine-year-old Florida girls loves candy almost as much as she hates police: a lot.What started as a request by the girl's school bus driver to stop eating candy on the bus ended with the girl getting pepper-sprayed and charged with four felonies.

Vapiano Brickell Will Cook Your Pasta While You Watch

Vapiano, a fast-casual Italian-food chain from Germany, is set to open this November at 1221 Brickell Ave. Already huge in Europe, the chain boasts 45 locations in Germany alone. And there are 11 Vapianos in the States.The concept is fresh fast food served in an upscale environment with cafeteria-st ... More >>

Florida Foot Fetishist Arrested After Apologizing for Touching Neighbor's Feet While She Slept

​Well, you can't say Salvatore Louise Pascucci isn't a pervert without manners. The 26-year-old Port Charlotte man developed a crush on his 36-year-old neighbor and decided the best thing to do was to break into her home late at night and put his hand on her thigh and feet while she slept. He ret ... More >>

Javarris James Arrested for Marijuana Possession in Fort Myers

​Well, at least he managed to keep out of trouble while he was with the 'Canes.Indianapolis Colts running back Javarris James was arrested last night by police in Fort Myers, Fl and charged with misdemeanor charges of marijuana possession. James, the cousin of former 'Canes and Colts legend Edgerr ... More >>

Tara Solomon: Queen of the SoBe Night

Bulletproof Tiger's Kris Huseby Talks Boxed Wine, Groupies, and Handmade CDs

Bulletproof Tiger at play.​Kris Huseby is a local musician, chef, syndicated sports columnist, and thong-sandal model. But he's probably better known for having pounded the drums with Fireside Social and currently fronting Bulletproof Tiger. The latter band recently got back to South Florida ... More >>

Alex Sink Picks Up Endorsement From Every Major Newspaper in the State

In an age when the broadsheets are struggling and anyone can make their own mini-endorsements on Twitter or Facebook, do newspaper endorsements still matter? The Democratic Governor nominee better hope so. She's walked away with the support of every major newspaper's editorial board in the state. Th ... More >>

Fort Myers Cop Fired After Staging a Crime in Desperate Scheme to Propose to Ex-Girlfriend

​It's a story as old as time. Boy cop meets girl cop. Boy cop and girl cop date for a while. Girl cop dumps boy cop. Boy cop stages a fake crime in hopes that girl cop will show up at the scene so he can propose to her and save their relationship. Sounds right out of a fairy tale, doesn't it?

Video: Bobby V. Releases Miami-Filmed "Phone #," Featuring Plies

public domain image, via Wikimedia CommonsBobby V. ​The week of Rick Ross' Teflon Don release madness, a whole slew of artists were around town partying or working. One was Bobby V., formerly known as Bobby Valentino until he ran into legal trouble with a British violinist of the same stage n ... More >>

Plies (And Young Jeezy) Cancel 2010 VH1 Hip-Hop Honors Appearances

​Contrary to music industry buzz, Fort Myers' hottest rapper, Plies, has just announced that he will not be performing at the 2010 VH1 Hip-Hop Honors airing next Monday, June 7 at 9 p.m. This is the first time ever that VH1 is honoring a particular geographic area for its contribution, and as you ... More >>

South Florida Voters and Winners in the Village Voice's New Pazz Jop Poll

​It's January, which means it's time for another edition of the Village Voice's annual Pazz and Jop poll of music critics. Yes, it's probably the latest, high-profile wrap-up of the best music of 2009, but it's also the biggest in sheer number of voices -- some 697 voters submitted ballots this ye ... More >>

Plies Surprises Fan by Paying for Her University of Miami Tuition

Fort Myers rapper Plies got criticized for tossing $50,000 into a crowd at a concert held by Atlanta radio station Hot 107.9 this summer.At the station's recent holiday concert, he returned, but this time instead of setting off a mellee after making it rain he brought one lucky fan onstage and prom ... More >>

Slip N Slide DJ Purfiya Can't R.I.P. Because He's Not Dead

via myspace/djpurfiyaDJ Purfiya with Suga Shack from Wild 98.7​DJ Purfiya is from the city of Palmetto, Florida, just south of Tampa. He's affiliated with Miami's own Slip N Slide Records as one of their official DJs.Wednesday, rumors hit the Internet -- namely Twitter -- that he had died due to c ... More >>

Crist Denies Endorsing Stimulus Bill; Owns Up to Accepting Reality

Capture of an anti-Crist ad paid for by the Club for Growth​Charlie Crist went on CNN yesterday and said that he didn't endorse the stimulus package. Huh? What? Riptide was there when he appeared with President Obama touting the stimulus in Ft. Myers. Even though the White House is claim ... More >>

Study: Miami Amongst 20 Weakest Metro Areas

via Brookings InstituteFlorida is the only state that starts with an FHere's the bad news: According to a new study of the 100 most populous metro areas in America by the Brookings Institution, the Miami area, including the rest of South Florida, is one of the 20 economically weakest metro areas in ... More >>

Pop-ska Band After The Fact to Play Area 7 on May 17

Fort Myers pop-punkers After the Fact will play Area 7 after streak-attacking the performers and audience at the Girls in Bands event the night before. The boys, though seemingly naked at all other shows as well as in this corresponding photo, will be dressed up as a chipmunk, pig and polar bear. Fo ... More >>

Girls in Bands To Kick Off Area 7's Avant-Garde Series on May 16

Area 7's new Avant-Garde Series will kick off May 16 wth "Girls in Bands," an event promoting acts that feature an experimental, noise, and/or indie sound and have at least one female member. The bands hail from across Florida, including Jacksonville, Miami, and Orlando. Curious Hair will open the s ... More >>

Kevin Burns Has a Campaign Gimmick Too

With a field for the 2010 Senate Race filled with a bunch of long shot candidates, everyone has to have a gimmick, because, hey, it worked for Walkin' Lawton Chiles and Bob "Work Days" Graham. Dan Gelber promises to complete 100 days of public service and buy up a million Google ads (net roots!). Ke ... More >>

Crist's Admirable Stim Support Makes 2012 Prez Run Unlikely

The economic stimulus is likely to be one of the defining actions of President Obama's first term. If it's perceived to be successful by November 2012, we're more than likely looking at four more years. But if, even as Obama himself admitted last week in Fort Myers, it's not, we might just have ours ... More >>

Crist Could Be Elected Ms. Florida if He Wanted, but Floridians Like Him as Gov

Oh, that Charlie Crist -- he's so popular. Quinnipiac, always interested in exactly how popular, finds that Charlie can be pretty much elected to anything he wants. But 41 percent of Floridians prefer he seeks re-election as governor, compared to 22 percent who would like to see him run for Senate. ... More >>

Live From The Barack Obama Stimulus Tour

Riptide is live today from Ft. Myers, Florida for Barack Obama's first visit to Florida as President of the United States of America. He'll be continuing the themes from his stop in Elkhart, Indiana and his first press conference last night, talking up the need for a stimulus package. The event ... More >>

Is There an Ulterior Motive to Picking Fort Myers?

Riptide just settled in at the Harborside Event Center in Fort Myers. President Obama is scheduled to kick off the next stop on his Stimulus Tour in about 30 minutes, and we'll begin the live blog then.So, why of all places is Obama in Fort Myers? The official line is that the city is suffering from ... More >>

Get Ready to Care About Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp

Did anyone really care about Lt. Gov Jeff Kottkamp before, say, a few weeks ago? You know, when those rumors surfaced that Charlie Crist might resign to run for Senate, leaving Kottkamp as our 45th governor. All of a sudden, media attention bumped up ever so slightly. The Sun-Sentinel did a little d ... More >>

The Robes of Justice

Death row inmate wants seat on state supreme court.

Death Row Inmate Wants to Be the Next Supreme Court Justice

Who says the electric chair should stand in the way of your dream job? Not Michael Lambrix. Sure, the 48-year-old waits on death row for fatally bludgeoning and strangling two people outside Fort Myers in 1983. But that hasn't stopped the articulate, overachieving inmate from applying to be Florid ... More >>

Plies' New Album, Da Realist, in Stores Today

For those that don't already know, Plies' highly anticipated second album of the year, Da Realist, is available in stores today. It's not common for artists, especially rappers, to release multiple albums in one year, but Plies, who was born and raised in Fort Myers, seems determined to prove someth ... More >>

Deep Throat Director Goes to the Big Porno Theater in the Sky

Photos that won't help the "MMA is not gay!" cause

Herald Bundles Controversial Documentary with Sunday's Paper

Letters from the Issue of May 15, 2008

"The public school system has created a shameful legacy."

Breakaway

Against long odds and even longer distances, a group of Miami-Dade teens competes for a shot at hockey glory

BEST WEEKEND GETAWAY

Captiva Island

Musical Feast

Lumpy Sue Acoustic Musicfest

Kulchur

How to win friends and influence people, el exilio style

Prosecution Complex

The strange saga of a smooth-talking hit man, jealous secretaries, and a ruined prosecutor

Where Man Meets Mud

Behold the swamp buggy races, South Florida's oddest racing tradition, where the engines roar, the muck flies, and the vehicles sometimes sink

A Bull Market

Interested in Miami's new minor-league hockey team? Prepare to shell out big bucks.

Creature Feature

Move over, Sasquatch. Beat it, Bigfoot. It's time you met South Florida's own: The great Skunk Ape.

When Vicki Met Syl, Part Two

Accused of bribery and public corruption, this power pair finds that love and justice prevail

When Vicki Met Syl

Fate introduced Miami lobbyist Sylvester Lukis to a rising political star named Vicki Lopez-Wolfe. Twenty-two felony charges later, South Florida is still reeling.