Cover: Wet and Wild
A Japanese developer wants Bair Island--the bay's last patch of unprotected wetlands--for waterfront real estate. But environmentalists are holding their ground.

News: Burning Rubber
On the hills above Cupertino, Kaiser Cement plans to save big money burning old tires in its kilns instead of coal. But critics say airborne dioxin is the last thing this valley needs.

The Ghosts of Stanford Past: At the Stanford Tombs, family ghosts still haunt the abandoned gardens and fallen angels.

Polis Report: Bartender, another shot of oxygen.

Public Eye: Downtown residents are mad about "Mad City"

Fear of Depths: 'Vertigo' plunges again into the abyss of obsession.

To the Front of the Bus: Roger Smith talks about riding the movie bus with Spike Lee and company.

Dead Script Walking: John Grisham adaptation 'The Chamber' tips the death-penalty scales.

The Boys In the Projects: Life is a little sweeter in 'Beautiful Thing.'

Kiss, Kiss, Bust, Bust: Brutish 'Long Kiss Goodnight' dies for want of a script doctor.

The Geezers Are Alright: The Who relive the past with 'Quadrophenia' concert tour.

The Real Blues By Any Other Name: Lonnie Brooks keeps changing names, but the blues stays the same.

The Power of Commitment: Bassist Charlie Haden cares more about the music he plays than his place in musical history.

Audiofile: The latest CDs by Her Vanished Grace, Women for Women, Heltah Skeltah and Pansy Division.

Beat Street: Beck is anything but a loser at the Warfield.

Raising 'Caine': San José Rep distills the moral dilemmas of 'Caine Mutiny Court-Martial.'

Western Swing: San Jose Cleveland Ballet serves up a generous slice of Americana in Agnes De Mille's classic 'Rodeo.'

A Sharp 'Barber': Rossini's famous farce, 'The Barber of Seville,' offers both laughs and enduring melodies.

Blown Coverage: Nothing is sacred in the glass assemblages of Einar and Jamex de la Torre.

Novel Act: Gilmore darkens the romance genre.

Colorful Cajun Cuisine: At Palo Alto's Nola, barbecue and Jamaican jerk dishes jump-start meals that march on toward gumbos, grilled seafoods, jambalayas, adobos and a raft of warm, sensuous Southern-style desserts.

Bargain Bites: Burgers and spiritual guidance converge at In-N-Out Burger.