The void on the North Pac Ave scene where Paddy Coynes once occupied one of Tacoma's most historic back bars has been filled by The Forum as of last Tuesday. I've heard good feedback in regard to the Forum's sister store in Puyallup and have been highly anticipating this location opening its doors.

Tacoma Forum's menu mirrors the Puyallup location and mostly consists of a wide array of sandwich options, both traditional and with a Forum twist on flavor, as well as some burger, salad and entree options. Among the many dishes I noshed on, the Juicy Lucy Burger ($9.95) is my recommendation to Eat Now. Like, right now.

First of all, a brioche bun is a good way to start any burger, but stuffing the meaty beef patty with cheese puts it well over the edge of awesome. It stood true to its name, oozing juicy cheesy goodness as I cut it in half in order to better devour it. To already improve upon a perfectly paired bun and patty, the Forum adds tangy pickles, caramelized onions and generous amounts of housemade sauce Andalouse - a creamy concoction of caramelized onions, tomato, paprika and mayonnaise. It's served with fries or a side salad, and I was in burger bliss. Side note, I'd recommend the salad, which was generous rather than the wimpy sort you often receive. The fries were good but nothing spectacular. And hey, some of us are still trying to stick to lofty resolutions which we've already ruined with cheeseburgers.

THE FORUM, 11 a.m. to midnight Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday, 21 and older, 815 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.830.2151

When you have eliminated the impossible, this is Nerd Alert, the Weekly Volcano's recurring events calendar devoted to all things nerdy. I myself am a Star Wars fan, mathlete, and spelling bee champion of long standing, so trust me: I grok whereof I speak.

FRIDAY, JAN. 17

Which movie character has been portrayed by actors who also played Lamont Cranston, Dr. Richard Kimble, Matt Murdock and Jack Frost? If you said CIA Deputy Director John Patrick Ryan, Sr., Ph.D., CPA, USMC (Ret.), KCVO (Hon), give yourself a hearty pat on the back. Of course, before Ryan was all those things, he was junior analyst Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit; his latest movie opens this week. Chris Pine joins a club whose officers emeritus are Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford and Ben Affleck. His latest installment is a reboot from an original screenplay by the guy who wrote, of all things, The Wings of the Dove. Ryan's sent to Moscow to match wits with Viktor Cherevin, a baddie played by the film's director, Kenneth Branagh. Ordinarily, when a film gets pushed back from Christmas to January, that's a bad sign, but this episode may surprise us. That's because Paramount moved Shadow Recruit to clear a slot for its own Oscar contender, The Wolf of Wall Street. Also, Branagh directed the surprisingly effective Thor, so he knows from both acting and action. Opening Friday as well (but not as good): two Ryan-fodder thrillers, Devil's Due and Reasonable Doubt.

I, on the other hand, must delay catching up with Agent Ryan, as I'll be at Tacoma Musical Playhouse for its premiere of Shout! The Mod Musical, a celebration of female musical artists of the 1960s. The show's song list includes such classics as "Downtown," "Son of a Preacher Man," and "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'," so I bet I won't mind the wait.

SHOUT! THE MOD MUSICAL, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday through Feb. 9, Tacoma Musical Playhouse, 7116 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, $20-$29, 253.565.6867

SATURDAY, JAN. 18

As Mia Wallace once opined, "Beatles people can like Elvis, and Elvis people can like the Beatles, but nobody likes them both equally." Well, I'm a Beatles guy, but far from immune to the allure of a soulful rendition of "Suspicious Minds." And that's where Robert Washington, Elvis impersonator extraordinaire, hip-swivels into the picture. This Saturday, the Capitol Theater presents Washington's tribute to the King of Rock and Roll. Don your gold-lamé jumpsuit, enjoy a documentary called Almost Elvis and then "Surrender" to a hunka, hunka "Burning Love." Incidentally, in a stirring tribute to color-blind casting, Mr. Washington - who does a pitch-perfect Elvis - is African-American, yet won the first Elvis World Championships down in peckerwood Memphis. Thank you ... thank you very much.

ELVIS BIRTHDAY BASH, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Capitol Theater, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia, $15, 360.705.1658

SUNDAY, JAN. 19

If you're a regular reader of this column, you know my respect for Doctor Who showrunner and head writer Steven Moffat knows no bounds. He's an absolute genius. His sitcom Coupling is legendary in the UK (though its U.S. incarnation fared poorly), and his Adventures of Tintin script for Steven Spielberg was admirably faithful to its source material. You can establish the quality of any Doctor Who episode by noting how proximate Moffat was to its script. For me, however, Moffat's crowning glory is Sherlock, the BBC's modern-day update of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's irascible detective. Each season (or "series" in British TV jargon) includes three movie-length episodes, all loosely based on classic Conan Doyle adventures. If you've never watched the show, I implore you to seek out all six previous episodes while adding Series 3, commencing Sunday with "The Empty Hearse," to your DVR. (In "The Adventure of the Empty House," Conan Doyle explained how Sherlock survived a seemingly fatal encounter with Professor Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls.) Oh, my friends and fellow Sherlockians, the game is once more afoot!

Until next week, may the Force be with you, may the odds be ever in your favor, and may I draw your attention to the curious incident of the dog in the night-time?

If you're going to bill your dining event as a farm-to-table experience, then you'd better make damn sure you're following in the footsteps of Chef Kyle Wnuk and co-owner Jaime Kay Jones, whose enlightening Marrow Kitchen and Bar walks the walk and talks the talk.

Tonight, the duo and their staff prepared a customized meal of worldly flavor with local ingredients for Patricia Lecy-Davis and her supporters in celebration of her run for Tacoma City Council. Lecy-Davis might have missed the mark last year, but she won tonight with sea urchin from Diver Dan of Anacortes, pork from Cheryl the Pig Lady of Puyallup, clams and oysters from Taylor Shellfish of Shelton, duck egg from Steibrs Farm in Yelm, vegetables from Terra Organics in Orting, Valhalla Coffee in Tacoma and several other local producers.

We experienced the cream of the culinary crop tonight: We're not talking about chefs (OK, we are), but farmers, who don't get nearly as much face time with food fans. Several of the local producers broke bread with us, including the folks from Terra Organics and Taylor Shellfish.

Jones explained each of the eight courses, giving nod to the local ingredients and Wnuk's style of preparation. Even if she didn't offer the descriptions, we could piece together the story line as we sliced into the tongue n' cheek tots, with sea urchin tongue aioli and pork cheek and German butterball potato. Or follow the oyster sauce foam as it dropped off the oyster stout mignonette puddled atop of a raw Shigoku oyster shell,

Below are snapshots of the deliciousness the supporters of Lecy-Davis enjoyed tonight at Marrow.

PACIFIC NORTHWEST: Sea urchin tongue aioli, pork cheek and German Butterball potato tots, Libertine celery leaf and Himalayan pink salt, micro amakanth

NORWAY: Bergamot tea smoked artic char and clam fiskesuppe, marina di Chioggia squash, celeriac

FRANCE: Pig's head terrine, pistachios, mustard seed, duck egg yolk, toast, shaved Brussel sprouts, grapefruit vinaigrette

INTERMEZZO: Wonderland (raw goat milk) cheese, French plum preserve

JAPAN: Raw Shigoku oyster on the half, oyster stout mignonette, oyster sauce foam

CROWD SHOT

KOREA: Braised pork belly salad, pickled black radish, kale, peanut butter gochujang sauce

MOROCCO: Coffee-sumac spiced lamb chop, sunchoke-parsnip puree, squash ribbons, Meyer lemon raisin chutney

ITALY: Tiramisu torte, coffee walnut creme anglaise

APPLAUSE: Jaime Kay Jones thanks the room.

GRAB A CUP & READ THE MORNING REPORT FOR 1.14.14 >>>

Congressional appropriators on Monday evening unveiled a massive federal spending bill that includes a full 2014 Pentagon appropriations measure that would provide nearly $93 billion to buy new weapons.

The $571 billion Defense appropriations bill would reverse cuts to retirement pay for medically retired veterans and survivor benefits that passed in last month's budget deal.

The House Armed Services Committee on Monday released hundreds of pages of transcripts of previously classified testimony about the September 11, 2012, attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya.

The Enlisted Voluntary Early Separation Program and Enlisted Involuntary Early Separation Program have some important changes that took effect Jan. 1.

A physician who was a former Army Special Forces combat medic designed a fellowship program, which he hopes will improve the survival chances of battlefield casualties.

Decisive action training environment preps Army lieutenants for future operations.

The US capital's politics are a mess, the Pentagon is muddled and observers might be excused for thinking that naval development is stalled, but think again.

Arrowhead Brigade sweeps over National Training Center.

A full-fledged OutKast reunion is on tap for this year, not just at Coachella.

The Newsroom was renewed for a final season.

What does this mean?: Jerry Seinfeld and Jason Alexander were spotted in front of Tom's Restaurant.

Today's list: A roundup of lesser-known vintage video games, like The Goonies II and The Blues Brothers.

No, here's today's list: 10 famous album covers recreated in Lego.

We apologize, here's really today's list: Seven strange but awesome gadgets from CES 2014.

TUESDAY, JAN. 14 2014 >>>

1. You're exchanging trail mix recipes at 7 p.m. with the Mountaineers Club folks when this mellow, Spanish transcendental lullaby creeps through the club's doorway and swirls around your soul. Instantly, thoughts of Madrid at midnight lighten your spirits. You drop your pen and waterproof notepad, and like a zombie saunter out the door and float into the neighboring Slavonian Hall. Award-winning British classical guitarist Michael Partington strums his acoustic guitar, showcasing his innate rhythmic understanding and sense for tonal color to form some of the most memorable phrasing you have ever heard on the guitar. You slip away into another world. After an hour, you re-enter this world. You wander back to the Mountaineers, but your head is in the clouds capping Mount Teide. You've been Partingtoned, as they say.

2. Imagine this scenario: You're happy. You have everything you could really need or want and if things continued this way for the rest of your days, you'd call it a pretty good life. Then, early one morning, you wake up to discover a hydroelectric dam in front of your house. It's big, it's loud and it's totally unwelcome, (like Roseanne Barr, only made of concrete). Every aspect of your life is negatively impacted by this thing. Running low on groceries? Good luck getting to the store; the dam's blocking your car in. Want to do a little gardening or mow the lawn? Your yard's flooded. Need to feed your pets? You haven't seen Genghis Dog or Chairman Meow in days. God only knows what happened to them. That's essentially the situation with which the Inuit people of Canada's Hudson Bay live as documented in the film People of a Feather screening at 2 and 6:55 p.m. in The Grand Cinema.

3. Oh, who doesn't love secrets? From now until Feb. 14 Brix 25 in Gig Harbor is having a secret envelope giveaway. Every time you dine in the fine-dining restaurant, you will receive an envelope. Don't tear it open! Upon your return visit between Feb. 15-April 15, the restaurant staff will tear open the envelop at the end of you meal to discover your discount. Prizes vary from $15 gift cards to $500 in value.

4. If hearing the sound of your own cackling voice echoing off the walls of your shower stall has you craving the sound of something a bit more harmonious, check out the local songbirds at Victory Music Open Mic at the Antique Sandwich Co. from 7-10 p.m. It's guaranteed to be jam-packed with gorgeous sounds and humbling verses, as the South Sound's greatest up-and-coming acoustic musicians bare their souls impromptu-style.

5. The Place Isn't So Bad and Walter & Perry rock Le Voyeur at 9 p.m.

LINK: Tuesday, Jan. 14 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

Lt. Shane Osborn was on The Michael Smerconish Program on Sirius' POTUS Politics. Osborn is running for US Senate in Nebraska. The 2001 story of his crash with a Chinese military jet, and subsequent 12-day detention by the Chinese, is incredible. Read his story in the April 2001 issue of The New York Times.

Osborn told Smerconish this morning that only two combat veterans currently serve in the Senate. Obviously, Orborn thinks there needs to be at least one more.

TICKETS ON SALE FEB. 7 >>>

Dave Matthews will waddle back to the Gorge with all the hot rock 'n' roll excitement of a beige sweater to kick out the DMB noodle jams Aug. 29-31.

A press release from Live Nation states:

"A Very Special Evening with Dave Matthews Band" will feature the group delivering two sets per evening, performing songs from throughout its career. Dave Matthews Band will wind through numerous configurations - from electric to acoustic, from full-throttle numbers featuring the entire band to more intimate moments featuring small groups of band members - including a stripped-down pairing of Matthews with guitarist Tim Reynolds, performing as an acoustic duo, as they occasionally do when the band is off the road. A variety of guests will join the band throughout the summer.

An online presale for all shows will begin on Thursday, January 16, at 10:00 AM ET at www.warehouse.davematthewsband.com for members of the DMB Warehouse Fan Association. Citi is the official credit card of the Dave Matthews Band Summer 2014 Tour. Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets through Citi's Private Pass Program beginning on Monday, February 3, at 10:00 AM local time for all shows except the August 29-31 dates, which will be available beginning on Monday, February 17, 10:00 AM local time. For complete presale details visit www.citiprivatepass.com.
 
Tickets will go on sale to the general public beginning Friday, February 7, at 10:00 AM local time for all shows EXCEPT the August 29-31 dates, which go on sale Friday, February 21, at 10:00 AM PT. For further details, see below or visit http://davematthewsband.com.

Matthews, of course, will sell out all three dates.

Arguably the most dysfunctional culture of the past few centuries, North Korea is a cosmically mad movie waiting to happen.

In the meantime, FRONTLINE will go inside the Secret State of North Korea tonight.

Using undercover footage smuggled out of the country, tonight's must-watch documentary delivers a rare and revelatory look at the realities of life in a country where:

• Just being caught with illegal DVDs could mean immediate imprisonment, or even execution.
• Until recently, it was illegal for women to wear pants instead of skirts or dresses.
• As many as one in 100 citizens is a political prisoner.

Secret State of North Korea premieres tonight at 10 p.m. on KCTS Channel 9.

The U.S. Army 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) - also known as Night Stalkers -  is a special operations force specializing in helicopter aviation support for general purpose forces and special operations forces. Its missions have included attack, assault, and reconnaissance, and are usually conducted at night, at high speeds, low altitudes, and on short notice.

Besides all that bad ass operations, the 160th SOAR - with the 4th Battalion, 160th SOAR at Joint Base Lewis-McChord - soar around the streets in the Starwood Motors Nightstalker custom Jeep. OK, maybe not all the Night Stalkers drive one, but the pilots of the 160th SOAR inspired the design.

Read the full story here.

GRAB A CUP & AND READ THE MORINING REPORT FOR 1.15.14 >>>

About 200 Fort Bragg soldiers are scheduled to leave for Afghanistan Sunday. The soldiers will be the first wave of troops to deploy from the 1st Battalion, 508th Parachute Infantry Regiment. An estimated 450 troops from the battalion will eventually deploy this month.

The chairman of the House Armed Services Committee on Tuesday said President Barack Obama is ignoring servicemembers who are deployed to Afghanistan and not speaking enough about the war.

The United States pledged today to send an additional $380 million in aid this year to help victims of Syria's brutal civil war, but warned that international efforts to ease their suffering will fail if Syrian President Bashar Assad refuses to let humanitarian assistance get to people who need it.

NSA to senator: If we were collecting your phone records, we couldn't tell you.

The U.S. Marine Corps is conducting a formal investigation into an incident in which Marines are allegedly shown defiling the bodies of what appear to be dead Iraqi insurgents.

Amid intense pressure from President Obama and the White House, Senate Democrats appear to be backing away from an immediate vote on a new Iran sanctions bill.

Experts and lawmakers said the Pentagon was the lucky winner after the $1.012 trillion omnibus spending bill was released, citing an increase of $5 billion in wartime funding above what the Defense Department had initially requested.  

Two Marines from the Corps' elite special operations unit will be awarded the Navy Cross this week for heroism during an insider attack in Afghanistan in 2012.

The Army National Guard's top officer was honored Tuesday as he prepares to retire after more than 40 years of service.

FX has ordered a comedy pilot that will be created by and star Zach Galifianakis, with Louis C.K. co-writing. Nice!

Twenty hilarious and ridiculous knock-off toys: Funny Pony, Titanic Legend, Mr. T Mighty Car...

Ladies and gentlemen, the Cheap American Beer Bracket!

Here's a lesson: Never let the Internet name your baby.

Be careful how you dance battle