Essence

CONGRATULATIONS are certainly in order for Essence magazine. Its December cover story, normally devoted to such earth-shaking subjects as "10 hot holiday looks," deals with a deadly serious subject: AIDS.At first glance, it's hard to juxta pose the picture with the words. For the woman on the cover, with the cafe au lait skin wrapped in a hot little red evening dress, appears to be your standard cover girl. But the words tell you that she's "young, educated, drug-free, and dying of AIDS." Wisely, there are no other words; anything else would have distracted from the seriousness of the subject.

The episode starts with a visit from Native American Ken Hotate, which sets up some great jokes about the Pawnee relationship with the local tribe, which Leslie describes as "murder-y. " Hotate is fun, poking the white people's political correctness and urge not to offend. In advance of their impending nuptials, Ben and Leslie are having their bachelor and bachelorette parties on the same night. Ann is planning Leslie's party with dancing, karaoke, booze, and "anything that can be penis-shaped, will be penis-shaped.

The novel "Crime and Punishment" is a gripping, modern psychodrama, a masterpiece of tension and suspense. A police detective seeks to solve a brutal double homicide without a shred of evidence — and sets himself the task of touching the conscience and saving the soul of the tormented young killer. It's a riveting story that probes the nature of good and evil and the sometimes blurry distinctions between enemies and allies. Why, then, in the stage adaptation currently running at Center Stage , does there seem to be so little at stake?

What's the best way to fill an open space with smiles for a summer night? Fit in a big, bright movie screen, and hundreds are sure to follow. Every summer, in every corner of Baltimore, the light of the silvery moon turns outdoor silver screens into magnets for fun-seekers. Even a movie presentation expert as exacting as restoration whiz Robert A. Harris ("Lawrence of Arabia") has taken a turn at open-air presentation. "We did it with 'Napoleon.' We sat 5,000 people outside the Colosseum.

It has been a long time since I've picked up a magazine and hated to put it down. But November's Essence is just that good. It's the 15th annual men's edition. Once each year, the women's magazine turns over its pages to honor and hear from African-American men.This year, the mix of male voices features a diverse group of young and old contributors. Blues singer B. B. King offers an excerpt from his new autobiography. Other writers include the late James Baldwin, self-taught clothing designer Karl Kani, and Cheo Hodari Coker, a Los Angeles Times reporter who writes with humor about his conflict over being a skinny man in a world where buff seems better.

WHEN DID ''cool'' come to mean ''fitting in''?Christmas being one of the holiest days on the Christian calendar, my youngest boys plan to rise early that morning, steal downstairs in the coolness of pre-dawn, kneel reverently before the tree and pray that when they open their eyes, they'll see Old Navy shirts and Air Jordan athletic shoes. These are priority items on their annual gimme lists.I used to think it was just all-American greed. Actually, I still do. But I've also come to realize that what motivates my boys is more complicated than avarice.

When Harriette Cole attended Western High, she knew what she wanted to do -- be a writer or involved in fashion. She managed to do both.Twelve years later, the former model and now fashion editor of Essence was back at her alma mater last Friday sharing her life and experiences with the students.She found the experience humbling and gratifying. "It was nice to be appreciated and have a place to share my successes," says Ms. Cole, 30.She told the all-girl student body about growing up in Forest Park, where her parents still live, and her high-profile job at the leading lifestyle magazine for black women.

City Council President Sheila Dixon is one tough woman, whether working out at the gym or playing hardball politics at City Hall. So, uh, Madam President Tough-As-Nails, what's the deal then with the honey-brown highlights, the sexy camisoles and the ... (gasp!) false eyelashes?! The truth is, folks, Dixon's steely, "don't-mess-with-me, don't-mess-with Baltimore" exterior belies a softer, feminine side not often seen at council hearings or Board of Estimates meetings. You might not have picked up on it, but the trained eyes at Essence magazine did, and - with the help of a makeup artist, a hairstylist and a fashion expert - gave Dixon a makeover.

WHEN THE twin towers fell and a cloud of dust rose in mournful tatters over the streets and buildings of lower Manhattan, we found it nearly unfathomable that, right before our eyes, so many had died. It was a heart-wrenching moment that was further amplified by new and unfamiliar fears. We wondered what was next. What public building in which American city would burn? What community would get sucked of life? How many of our people would die? And we continue to wonder these things. For the first time in many of our lives, the future is murky.

Earlier this fall, we wrote about a new catalog targeted at African-American women that will debut early in 1993; to be called "E Style," the catalog venture is being developed by Ebony magazine and Spiegel Inc.We've since learned that a catalog with the same target audience already exists. Essence By Mail catalog was launched seven years ago by Essence Communications, Inc., publisher of Essence magazine, and Hanover Direct, Inc., a mail-order retailer.Essence Catalog Director Michele Mullings, says, "We feature African-American women who model garments with the black figure (fit)

The exploration and discovery of new and exotic sensory realms inspires chef John Shields' zest for cooking. The owner of Gertrude's Restaurant at the Baltimore Museum of Art uses travel to foreign shores to nourish that quest. Often called "The Culinary Ambassador of the Chesapeake Bay," Shields hosts the PBS television series "Coastal Cooking With John Shields" and has written three popular cookbooks on bay cuisine. To say Shields is busy is an understatement, so when he has time to get away, simplicity is key. He finds that and more, in his ancestral home of Ireland.

The novel "Crime and Punishment" is a gripping, modern psychodrama, a masterpiece of tension and suspense. A police detective seeks to solve a brutal double homicide without a shred of evidence — and sets himself the task of touching the conscience and saving the soul of the tormented young killer. It's a riveting story that probes the nature of good and evil and the sometimes blurry distinctions between enemies and allies. Why, then, in the stage adaptation currently running at Center Stage , does there seem to be so little at stake?

It almost seems as if Jeff Holland can stand in the gallery of his museum for hours, just gazing at the pictures on its rugged walls. It isn't that he has nothing better to do. As executive director of the Annapolis Maritime Museum in Eastport, he's responsible for finding funds, planning events, installing materials and in general keeping the museum about life in and around the Chesapeake moving "full steam ahead," as he puts it in the museum's latest...

"Hairspray," John Waters' nostalgic tribute to 1960s Baltimore, seems to have been destined to play at Toby's Dinner Theatre of Columbia, where it has found an ideal home. The musical is based on Waters' 1988 film and features book by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan and music and lyrics by Marc Shaiman. It won eight Tony awards, including Best Musical and Best Original Score. I first saw it in 2003, before it won the Tonys. I was a fan from the opening scene, which re-creates a bygone Baltimore in all its Formstone glory, quickening the pulse of this native.

"So many people have condemned the play for its sordid theme," Vivien Leigh said in a 1950s interview about Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire," the vehicle for one of her most indelible achievements as an actress. "To me it is an infinitely moving plea for tolerance for all weak, frail creatures, blown about like leaves before the wind of circumstance." That plea seemed more affecting than ever as the Sydney Theatre Company's production of "Streetcar" unfolded Saturday night at the Kennedy Center, with Cate Blanchett inhabiting the central role of Blanche DuBois.

Last year, even as she grew weaker from an illness she'd had for many months, the Rev. Josephine Pinkard of Severna Park kept telling her daughter, Avanette, of a dream she couldn't get out of her head. "I see the roof [of your business] opening up, and God showering the place with blessings," she told Avanette, a beauty-and-wellness professional who owns Essential Essence, a Laurel day spa and beauty salon. "I see it growing by leaps and bounds." At the time, the imagery seemed absurd.

Will Sheila Dixon's service in Baltimore's highest office prove different than her male predecessors'? Some evidence of her femaleness comes tonight at the Inaugural Gala, in the newly sworn-in mayor's choice of the evening's mistress of ceremonies. No local television anchor or business mogul will announce the night's festivities; instead, Dixon has chosen as her emcee the head of one of the most popular fashion and beauty magazines in the country. Susan L.

Elizabeth Nead thought it slightly odd when Barry Holniker signed up for her senior graphic design class at the Maryland Institute a little more than 10 years ago. She didn't get many photography majors. But Mr. Holniker turned out to be the best student she ever had.She asked her students to bring in a portfolio of their work. Mr. Holniker brought in his photographs: "I realized right away he was incredibly talented."They became friends and colleagues."And from then on I watched him grow," Ms. Nead said, "which he did by leaps and bounds."

At midmorning, sunlight streams through three sets of windows, creating an elongated pane pattern on the floor of a Reisterstown house. "This is nice, because you have this floor, you have nice shadows on the wood," says photographer Craig Westerman, sizing up the room. Click. The image captures the breakfast room from the recessed lighting to the Brazilian cherry floors. It shows a slice of the kitchen at just the right angle to showcase the space's openness. As the owner/photographer of Hometrack in Baltimore, Westerman makes his living photographing houses for sale - and he's snapped thousands of photos in the area since starting a part-time business in 1996 and going to full time in 2002.

The song could be the unofficial anthem of modern black America. If there's a house party, barbeque, family reunion or nightclub packed mostly with African-Americans age 30 and older, the joint really jumps when somebody throws on "Before I Let Go" by Maze featuring Frankie Beverly. Usually at any of these events, the DJ will play the flashy synth-and-guitar intro to the 1981 classic, then he'll pause the track as the house stops and sings the first verse in unison: "You made me happy/This you can bet/You stood right beside me/And I won't forget."