Cover: High Lonesome
From show-biz hillbillies to singing cowboys... the secret history of country music in California.

Literary Quarterly
The Gay Golem: Gary Indiana delves into Andrew Cunanan's psyche; Maureen Orth reviles the homicidal homosexual.
Valley Visions: When the going gets wierd, the wierd end up in Colorado's San Luis Valley.
Into the Badlands: 'The Road to Kosovo' takes a horrific road trip.

News: Fire Alarm
As the Army burns Fort Ord, Monterey County residents watch their clear skies go up in smoke.

Uranium Cranium: Military deploys radioactive bullets in Balkans despite possible health risks.

Metropolis News Extras

• Los Gatos: Caltrans plans lane closures on southbound Highway 17.
  
• Saratoga: Council deadlocks on vote to eliminate two playfields.
  
• Campbell: Some shopkeepers say the Prunefest is the pits.

Phantom of the Sidewalk: The post-'Wars' generation follows the Force.

Midnight Man: Steve Wynn of Dream Syndicate delivers bittersweet, wryly spun songs on his second solo effort, 'My Midnight.'

Family Ring: June Carter Cash has a point of her own to make with 'Press On' album.

Electronica Goes Global: World music meets techno.

Puppet Show: 'The Phantom Menace' is more like a toy chest than a movie.

Family Trials: Australian justice isn't that funny, no matter how hard 'The Castle' tries

Basingstoke Blues: The minor, likeable 'Get Real' chronicles the perils a gay youth faces.

Perfectly Paolo's: Chef updates a San Jose classic.