SFist Tonight Free Fun + One for Johnny Marr

We know we're saving up our money for countless Halloween-themed events this weekend, so tonight we're all about the free stuff.

Funcheap SF is an e-mail newsletter that clues in the city's under-employed, bored and frugal on the best in fun and cheap stuff to do. Tonight they're hosting the Cheap Bastard Fun Happy Hour at EZ5 Bar(682 Commercial St. at Kearny near the Holiday Inn in Chinatown). The event will feature cheap happy hour drinks, a little surprise for early-comers, and interactive trivia (with prizes) from Helene Goupil and Josh Krist, the authors of "San Francisco: The Unknown City," an alternative guidebook on the unknown, kinky, and just plain weird corners of the city. (6-8pm)

City Lights Bookstore (261 Columbus Ave. @ Broadway) presents a reading by Lynne Tillman, whose new novel American Genius, A Comedy has been called "a kind of Tristram Shandy for our time, if Tristram was American, and institutionalized." (7pm)

Feel like beta-testing your Halloween costume or your musical prowess or both? The Off Market Theatre ( 965 Mission between 5th and 6th) hosts the free Improv Slam Music Jam. Hilarity is guaranteed as singers and improvisors of all levels are welcomed and given stage time. Bring instruments, if you so desire.(8pm)

And finally, one for SFist commenter, Johnny Marr (who pointed out the similarities between this Chris Daly campaign event and this music video). We're not sure if our commenter is the former Smiths' guitarist and co-songwriter or even the John Marr from SF that published the Murder Can Be Fun zine, one of our mid-90s favorites.

The SF MoMA (151 3rd St. at Mission near the Burning Oracle Fest) presents a screening of Is It Really So Strange? a documentary by William Jones that examines the cult following of Morrissey—the former front man and singer/songwriter of British band The Smiths—that flourishes in the eastern suburbs of Los Angeles, primarily among Latino and Hispanic youth. (7pm in the Wattis Theater, free with museum admission)

This program is in conjunction with the video installation dünya dinlemiyor (the world won’t listen) by Phil Collins (not the Phil Collins whose solo records were favored by the main character in this movie who totally reminds us of gel-free Gavin in this picture.) Collins' video features young people in Istanbul performing karaoke versions of songs by The Smiths.