The correct URL for the Community Bookstore website is: cbjupiterbooks.com better bookmark that because it might be tough to remember (I can’t seem to get it right).
Check out the site — it has tons of information about books for gift buying and other interesting, odd, and quirky elements.
From Fonda Sera:
I think that house on montgomery place was the one owned by cyril
golodner who, with her husband, raised their family there.i met cyril
quite a while ago, right after her husband passed away.
Her daughter
from way out of town had ordered flowers from me for mothers day and Cyril made her way down to the shop to tell me…in a really unpleasant
way…. just how much she didn’t like them.
I don’t know how i did it
but instead of getting all defensive and bent out of shape, i was able
to see how lonely she was and whatever i did, she left smiling. over
the next 10 years we became pretty familiar. she’d come to the shop and
ask me to fill a small vase when one of her kids was coming to visit.we
always had long conversations while i put the flowers together. she was
smart, funny, tough. i liked her alot. when she decided to put the
house on the market we had a long talk about how that felt for
her…..hard, and sad.
i heard she died recently, she’d moved away and
lost touch. so i am thinking of her right now and can just see her face
and hear that bark of a laugh she had…."6 million plus". yeah…you
go girl.
If it’s not cyril’s house then, gilda ratner it…."never mind"
From Bob Apfel
Fonda is right. It was Cyril’s and Harry Golodner’s house one owner before the most recent one.
When my wife and I moved to the Slope we knocked on heir door and
asked if we might purchase the house, since it had an elevator (and we
physically couldn’t handle the stairs in a brownstone).
Harry was a quasi-retired cardiologist who was in his late 70’s or early 80’s at the time (this was back in the mid-1990’s).
He and Cyril had lived in the house for about 30-40 years. They
raised their kids in the house…In fact, the childrens’ rooms were
still decorated just as they had been when the kids went off to college.
We visited the elderly couple about half-a-dozen times, to both
"size up" the house…and perhaps convince the Golodners that they
should sell the house to us….take the money…and travel to Spain and
other destinations that they said they’d like to spend some time in.
During our visits to the Golodners we dragged along our daughters
hoping that the elderly couple would conclude that our "traditional
looking family" would be well housed in their abode. These visits
turned into pleasant social calls that we enjoyed (as did Harry,
especially). He was proud of his house and enjoyed showing it off.
Harry loved the house and despite Cyril’s desire to "see the world"
or perhaps move to an apartment near Lincoln Center (they loved
attending concerts) Harry …. with a smile….finally concluded that he
would have to die in the house. Yes, he concluded that this was to be
his destiny.
"Come back when I’m dead….and the house will be yours," he joked.
In the spirit of humourous conversation with an old "trickster heart surgeon" I asked, "When will be that be Harry?"
With a smile, he responded, "Four years."
I am not sure when Harry passed on….but it might have been just
about four years after the date of that conversation in the beautful
vestibule of his house.
We had an immediate need for a house, so we bought a house around
the corner on Garfield Place where we have lived happily ever after.
I am sad to learn of Cyril’s passing.
I hope that she did have a chance to get out and see the world
beyond that which was visible from her bedroom on the second floor of
45 Montgomery.
After posting Fonda and Bob Apfel’s musings about that house on Montgomery Place, I found this 1998 article from the New York Times about Mr. Apfel’s house, which also has history and a good story. I believe I found a typo the Times’ article: they refer to Everett Ortner when I think they mean Evelyn Ortner, the neighborhood brownstone preservationist who died recently.
When Robert C. Apfel and his family moved into 313 Garfield Place
last June, they started work on the interior. They plan to begin work
on the facade shortly. ”Right now, we probably have the ugliest house
in Brooklyn,” Mr. Apfel said of the wide, gabled residence designed by
a turn-of-the-century architect, C. P. H. Gilbert. Mr. Gilbert designed
many famous Fifth Avenue mansions, including the Warburg Mansion at 92d
Street, now the Jewish Museum.The house, just west of Prospect
Park West, was resurfaced in terra-cotta-colored stucco (which now
looks orange) sometime, Mr. Apfel believes, in the late 1940’s. ”It’s
pretty ghastly,” his wife, Jai Imbrey, said. They hope to restore the
original red sandstone facade, which had been pitted by the elements.But
neighbors on the block, which is full of historic brownstones, are not
so sure the house is so ugly. Nor, they said, do they want to go
through another summer like the last, which they described as marred by
noise, fumes, dust and double-parked cars from workers at the house.
”I want to know what kind of chemicals will be released with the red
dust,” said Michele Finley, a neighbor. ”How much will blow in our
windows and choke our gardens?”The Landmarks Preservation
Commission plans to issue a work permit by next week. ”It’s all
restorative,” the commission’s chief of staff, Terri Rosen Deutsch,
said of the work. ”What they’re doing is great.” The architect,
Edward I. Mills and Associates, said the work would take about six
months.Mr. Apfel said the family bought the house because of
its elevator, its width (”26 feet, not that unforgiving space” of
most narrower brownstones) and the striking woodwork in the entrance
hall (”almost a Tudor feeling”).Now, his wife said, they are
”getting maniacal” about Mr. Gilbert, the original architect. They
organized a recent tour of other Gilbert houses on nearby Carroll
Street and Montgomery Place.Ms. Imbrey said she thought her
neighbors were ”jumping for joy” over the planned renovations. But
she seems to have misread at least some of them. ”I would just let a
sleeping dog lie,” said Everett Ortner, the chairman of the Brownstone
Revival Coalition, a 30-year-old preservationist group. ”Maybe it’s
better to go back to places that really need help, like those on Fifth
and Sixth Avenues,” in Brooklyn, ”the places that have been covered
in plastic siding.”–ERIN ST. JOHN KELL
Detres, the beauty salon above Connecticutt Muffin, suddenly went out of business. Or suddenly to me: I was walking across the street the other night and it was gone. Poof.
Anyway, Betty, who used to be at Detres is now at Frajean on Seventh Avenue between Berkeley and Lincoln Place: 718-622-4448
The people who cut and color our hair are indispensible. It’s good to know where they’ve gone.
Check out Seeing Green’s regular Monday feature: Green News of the Week.
Eat Smog but don’t Die! A while ago a friend of mine,
admittedly a Volvo fanatic, told me that Volvo radiators "eat smog."
Unlikely as this may sound, since 2000, Volvo radiators have had a
coating of "PremAir" which is a catalyst which, applied on hot
surfaces, destroys ozone as it flows over it. Comes now a whole
building, the euphoniously named Dives in Misericordia Church, that may do the same thing…
Park Slope Parents is teaming up with DWA FANM (WOMEN’S RIGHTS IN HAITIAN CREOLE) TO MAKE THE HOLIDAYS HAPPIER:
From Jennifer at DWA FANM:
Every holiday season, we hold a Holiday party for our clients and their children. We currently serve over 250 women in the community and their children. Hence, we are seeking donations such as:
• GOODIE BAGS FOR WOMEN:
Beauty products (nail polish, mascara, etc.), perfume, toiletries (soaps, shampoo, conditioner, etc.), jewelry, etc. for our client survivors of domestic violence.
• TOYS FOR CHILDREN:
Toys for the children in our program. Their ages range from
newborn-17, boys and girls. Gently used or new toys or books would
be greatly appreciated.
We would be happy to pick up any donations we may receive. Please
contact Jennifer @ 718.230.4027 x 313.
Dwa Fanm is a human rights organization committed to empowering all women and girls with
the freedom to define and control their own lives. Through service, education, advocacy and grassroots programs, Dwa Fanm works to end discrimination, violence, and other forms of injustice here and abroad. Since its formation in 1999, Dwa Fanm has developed its
programming in direct response to the needs of women and girls in New York City’s Haitian, Caribbean and other Black immigrant communities.
While Dwa Fanm is best known for its work on domestic violence, we understand the connections between various forms of hate and discrimination and the necessity to address these problems comprehensively and with leadership from within our communities. We
remain committed to addressing a broad array of issues of critical concern to the populations we serve through a model that integrates service, advocacy and empowerment, and we continually seek to develop more effective ways to synthesize these inter-connected
goals.
A reading you won’t want to miss. DECEMBER 7th at 7:30 p.m. at Community Bookstore: Seventh Avenue between Garfield and Carroll, Come hear Jason Weiss, Author of "Steve Lacy: Conversations"
Jason Weiss will join us for both a listening session with Lacy’s music as well as a reading of some of the interviews from this stellar collection, which brings together interviews that appeared in a variety of magazines between 1959 and 2004.
Conducted by writers, critics, musicians, visual artists, a philosopher, and an architect, the interviews indicate the evolution of Lacy’s extraordinary career and thought. They illustrate not merely the philosophical aspect of Lacy’s music, but the creative, emotional, and spiritual aspects as well. Often I (Josh) felt that I was overhearing a private conversation between friends, which really astonished me.
A voracious reader and the recipient of a MacArthur "genius" grant, Lacy was particularly known for setting to music literary texts—such as the Tao Te Ching, and the work of poets including Samuel Beckett, Robert Creeley, and Taslima Nasrin. Jason Weiss provides a general introduction, as well as short introductions to each of the interviews and to the selection of Lacy’s own brief writings that appears at the end of the book.
This story about turning 110 Livingston Street, the building that used to house the Board of Ed, into condos is from the New York Daily News.
Talk about a turnaround. The infamous Board of
Education headquarters in downtown Brooklyn is being redone as luxury
condos — and people who worked there are buying them.Despised as a symbol of bureaucracy gone wild, 110 Livingston St. was
sold to developer David Walentas when the Board of Ed was dismantled. A
former schools spokesman predicted it would be "the least missed
building in the history of New York City government."But he was wrong. Just ask Joan Rosenberg.
She and her husband, Neal Rosenberg, have purchased a two-bedroom condo
in the 1920s-vintage beige-brown brick building, which was designed as
an Elks Club by famed architects McKim Meade & White."We have fond memories of the building," said Joan Rosenberg, who was
assistant to the director of citywide programs from 1978 to 1983 and is
now a New York University professor. "We developed wonderful programs
for kids who would not have been able to stay in school."Also, it’s where she met Neal, who was working there as a Board of Ed lawyer.
Apartment buyer Brad Silver’s love of 110 Livingston dates back to his childhood.
His mother, Yaffa Silver, worked there in the 1990s as the head of the
music department. He’d visit her after school, and even sneak in to see
her when he was playing hooky.An avid amateur photographer, she took hundreds of pictures of the building.
"I’m going back into a part of history that my mom was obsessed with," he said.
The old Board of Ed building is one of a pair of historic
office-to-condo conversions in downtown Brooklyn — closely watched
projects in a nabe that’s been rezoned for denser residential and
commercial development.The other is the former Verizon building, a 27-story Art Deco landmark
on Willoughby and Bridge streets, known as 7 MetroTech Center until its
sale early last year to landlord David Bistricer. Its new name is
BellTel Lofts.The two projects are out in front of a wave of condo construction in
the area — including ground-up projects at 75 Smith St. across from the
Brooklyn House of Detention, and the 40-story Oro tower at 306 Gold St.Despite a citywide slowdown in condo sales, apartments are going fast
at 110 Livingston — where Walentas is adding a modern glass crown to
the building.There were nearly 1,200 people on the waiting list to visit 110
Livingston before marketing started 11 weeks ago. Since then, sale
contracts have been signed for 162 condos — more than half the
building’s 300 units, said Asher Abehsera of Two Trees Management,
Walentas’ firm.Part of the appeal is the pricing — which has averaged $678 per square
foot, he said. That’s a deal compared with Manhattan condos, which go
for an average $1,171 per square foot, according to appraisal firm
Miller Samuel.The smallest apartment that’s been sold at 110 Livingston was a
$340,000 studio. The priciest — a 1,680-square-footer with a
wrap-around terrace — was sold for $1.425 million.The building’s makeover includes a trompe l’oeil painted on its
courtyard facade by famous muralist Richard Haas. And space that was
the Elks’ grand meeting hall will become a cultural center. Eight
bidders are vying for it; the winner gets it rent-free for 10 years.The other historic property, BellTel Lofts, has a good architectural
pedigree. The 1920s-vintage tower was designed by preeminent Deco
skyscraper architect Ralph Walker, and built as the Long Island
headquarters of New York Telephone Co.
Apartments at the orange-brick building have been on the market for
five weeks. Contracts have been signed for 13 condos, and drawn up for
another 14 condos, said Hal Henenson of Prudential Douglas Elliman,
which is handling the sales.Asking prices start at $500,000. Two duplex penthouses will be offered
for nearly $3 million apiece — after most of the building’s 219 units
have been sold.If things go according to plan, residents will have an upscale place to
grocery-shop right on the premises.
Elliman’s retail-leasing maven Faith Hope Consolo has offered space in
the base of the building to Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and D’Agostino."We’re pushing for a food retailer," she said.
Oh Glory be Prospect Park on a Sunday autumn morning. Oh Glory be.
Smartmom
was composing a euphoric post, an ode to her great park, so blessed did
she feel out in the morning air, the trees changing from deep red to
brown, And she was running with no pinky toe pain — so it was a great,
great day. Okay, some guy was wretching over by the lake, a skeezy
looking alocoholic puking into a rusty garbage pail. "Ignore that," she
said aloud to noone, "It’s getting in the way of my poetic moment."
But
truly the park is every runner’s secret paradise. That 3.2 mile loop
around the park provides a pleasing view of meadows and trees, the
lake, the Grecian temple, the skating rink, the boat house, the
carousel (some days even the caliope plays), the zoo, the dog walkers
and their dogs in the dog run, Grand Army Plaza and more.
And
there are so many runners out there. Even this late in the season. The
park is a symphony of harmonious difference: body sizes, abilities,
skin colors, ethnicities, languages, styles, accents, and attitudes.
And there’s this feeling of harmony as you go around — smiles of
encouragement and familiarity, of shared pain and accomplishment.
See
the Russian ladies walking; the serious yuppie runners — track stars
in college; the Carribeans running and talking; the middle-aged women
in pairs yakking about their lives, their jobs, their children; the
super serious Rastafarian runners; the lone runners with their i-pods;
the hip young black girls running to stay fit; teenagers running track;
the big, big women and men running slow with cardio meter arm bands;
the fathers running with jogger strollers (the babies sleeping through
it all); the guy who seems to run all day, every day; the marathoners
who speed by; the mothers running with overweight children saying,
"Keep going, you eat too much!"; the Hasidim walking with their big
families…
Some run in packs, some in pairs, some brave it
alone. Alone is a wonderful way to hear yourself think, to sing, to
compose blogs, to admire the park in its majesty. Alone is a great way
to feel alive on a Sunday autumn morning in the park oh glory be. So
blessed is Smartmom to be part of the great symphony of runners, the
runners of Prospect Park.
Gowanus Lounge has nothing but praise for the LA Times story about Broken Angel. I am on a mission to read the LA Times as a good high school friend is the OP ED Editor there and I promised him I’d read it more often. Meghan Daum has a column there. The paper is going on my Bookmarks toolbar…
NEW YORK — Turn down a side street in the Clinton Hill neighborhood and
a strange structure rises above the skyline. It is wooden, and
handmade, and — depending on your angle of approach — it can resemble a
15th century flying machine, or a warped Gothic cathedral, or a pile of
sharecroppers’ shacks poised deliriously over Brooklyn.The
building is the work of Arthur Wood, a slight man of 75. For 27 years,
Wood’s neighbors have watched him climb to the top of his building to
begin work on its next level. Wood builds without exterior scaffolding
or a harness, and often with no assistance except for his wife,
Cynthia. The structure has risen to 108 feet. Wood says it is about
one-third finished."Broken Angel," as Wood and his wife
named the building, is loved by many in Brooklyn, and recently it was
the backdrop for the documentary "Dave Chappelle’s Block Party." But on
Oct. 10, Wood’s solitary work ran into trouble when a fire broke out on
an upper story. The fire triggered an inspection by the city Department
of Buildings, which declared the building "highly cannibalized" and a
"deathtrap." When Wood would not vacate the premises, the department
ordered his arrest… read more here
Trouble on Third Street. Last Friday, during a rehearsal of Teen Spirit’s band, Cool and Unusual Punishment, in Drummer Boy’s apartment, the downstairs neighbors (DNs) called up and told them to cease and desist.
Immediately.
Apparently, the DNs, who were having houseguests, had sent an e-mail to Drummer Boy’s parents that explicitly asked the band not to rehearse over Thanksgiving weekend.
Understandably, the DNs were pissed. The music is cruel and unusual punishment for anyone sitting in his living or dining room.
You’d have to be a saint to live below a drummer (and these nice people seem willing to put up with his daily practice). But the ear-splitting band rehearsals are, quite truthfully, beyond the pale.
Smartmom ran into Drummer Boy’s parents on Third Street. They felt terrible about not reading the DN’s e-mail until it was too late. And now, the DNs don’t want the boys to practice in the apartment anymore. Ever.
Looks like it’s time to find a rehearsal space for the boys. And that spells the end of an era.
The boys have been rehearsing in Drummer Boy’s apartment for almost three years. They even wrote a song called “2L.” The people who used to live in the apartment below were noise-tolerant, rock aficionados.
Only once did they call during a rehearsal. The kids got scared — unnecessarily, it turned out: “Please play ‘Where is my Mind’ again. It’s one of our favorite songs,” one of the DNs said.
Phew.
The Pixies-loving old neighbors moved out and the new ones are not nearly as enamored of the pounding bass, the banging drum, and the migrane-inducing guitar feedback.
You really can’t blame them.
Clearly, Drummer Boy’s parents don’t want to aggravate their neighbors. But they also want to support their son. It’s tough to be the parents of a rock and roller these days.
And, apparently, it’s not all that unusual, either. All over the Slope, kids are forming rock bands. An article in the Styles section of the Times called it the “Kid Core” scene. What seemed merely cute a few years ago isn’t just cute anymore: it’s serious. And these bands — Cool and Unusual Punishment, Fiasco, Care Bears on Fire, Dulaney Banks, Tiny Masters of Today, Hysterics — are talented and career oriented.
“They are developing a following on New York’s burgeoning under-age music circuit, where bands too young for driving licenses have CDs, Web sites and managers,” the Times wrote.
Perhaps the Times should have called them “momagers.”
That phrase was coined by Drummer Boy last year when the moms of Cool and Unusual Punishment helped them organize a Teens for New Orleans benefit concert at the Old Stone House.
The moms (and dads) transported equipment, sold food and tickets, and helped clean up afterwards. They cried during the sad songs and clapped along with the audience during the rowdy ones. They had to force themselves not to get up and dance.
It’s embarrassing enough for their kids that they’re in the audience at all.
Truth is, the parents are as into it as the kids. And why not? The kids are showing real initiative and creativity. They’re developing responsibility, ambition, and even musical chops.
It’s also a perfect retort to that classic Seventh Avenue question, “So what’s your kid up to?” He may not be enrolled at Stuyvesant, a star athlete, or racking up countless social service credits for college apps. But “He’s in a band” surely counts for something.
And among the alt-parent scene in Park Slope, it’s practically a badge of honor to have a kid in a band — especially among parents who wish they’d had the talent (or the kind of parents it takes) to be a successful rock and roller.
In the Slope, well-connected, media-savvy parents are helping their kids big time when it comes to the Big P: Promotion. Care Bears on Fire and Fiasco have already been featured in New York Magazine and the Times. What’s next: The Brooklyn Papers?
Being in a band keeps the kids off of Seventh Avenue on weekend nights when other Slope kids pay off homeless guys to buy them cheap vodka.
And the parents love the music. For the most part, it’s what they grew up on: punk, New Wave, roots rock. Teen Spirit loves to hear Hepcat talk about the Ramones at CBGBs, the Talking Heads at the Mudd Club and the B52s at the Pyramid.
For them, rock and roll is a way to connect — like other fathers and sons use baseball.
So you can imagine that not having a space to rehearse is a big problem for the Cool and Unusual boys. For that matter, it must be problem for many local teen rockers.
Where do all these other bands practice?
If it’s true that a lot of these kids have famous parents (Lucian Buscemi, son of Smartmom’s fave, Steve, is in Fiasco) which means that they probably get to practice in their parent’s brownstone or palatial apartment. Grrr, they don’t have neighbors to worry about.
Really, who’s going to complain to the guy who played a killer in “Fargo” that his kid is making too much noise playing the drums?
But what’s an apartment-dwelling Park Slope teen rocker supposed to do? Dulaney Banks, a local blues guitar and vocal duo, practices in the Ninth Street subway station.
That won’t work for Cool and Unusual Punishment because of Drummer Boy’s kit and Teen Spirit’s bass amp, each of which weighs at least 100 pounds.
Hopefully, Drummer Boy’s parents, a lawyer and a political speechwriter, can negotiate a workable agreement with their downstairs neighbors. Otherwise, the boys will be out looking for another place to practice.
Prospect Park is safer than ever, right?
Diana Kane, the stylish, somewhat pricey, but lovely lingerie and accessories shop on Fifth Avenue, is opening a Seventh Avenue store. It is going into the old Kiwi location on Seventh Avenue between Berkeley and Union. So I was wrong, I thought Peek-a-Book Kids was going in there. Nope, they’re going into the space occupied by Mi Casa, the fabric store on the corner of Berkeley.
Kiwi, a clothing star owned by local designers, which also sells other designers, too, has moved into a large shop on Seventh Avenue between President and Carroll.
Diana Kane is IN, Mi Casa is OUT. And Peek-a-Boo Kids, the Slope’s best kid’s shoestore, is moving down the block. Lots of movement on Seventh Avenue.
BIG NEWS and I mean BIG NEWS. Community Books has a WEB SITE. Yes, you heard me right. They’ve been working on it for quite while and I keep asking. Now it’s up and running. YAY to Catherine Bohne and staff.
It’s big news because Catherine is an admitted Luddite. A card-carrying Luddite. The store only recently replaced their computers—computers they’ve had since the early 1990’s (or earlier).
Luddite or not, she obviously recognizes the importance of having a web site because it’s such a great way to spread the word about a great bookstore, a store which is such an important place for many in this community.
I think the previous owner had a web site — they created it right before Barnes and Noble came to Seventh Avenue. At that time, the store took numerous measures to insure their existence on Seventh Avenue (web site, discounts, a cafe). They survived! Sadly, another Seventh Avenue bookstore, Book Link, fell victim to the economic pressures caused by the big mega-bookstore invasion.
In this day of mega-stores, I think the small, quirky, interesting stores have EVEN more value. A store like Community Books is a perfect antidote to all the sameness — the McDonald-ization of the world. What’s wrong with quirky, eccentric and unexpected?
So, a web site for Community Books is a great way to get the word out about all the interesting events at the store and elsewhere.
Today, she also sent out her yearly newsletter in PDF form with gift suggestions—it happens to be a great resource for all you book-buying gifters — BOOKS MAKE SENSATIONAL GIFTS I THINK.
cbjupitarbooks.com is the URL. Better bookmark that one because it’s hard to remember. The site has all sorts of cute illustrations of reptiles and rabbits. I’d say the site really conveys the vibe of the store, in all of its quirky splendor, quite well.
Here are some gift suggestions from the bookstore:
Theories of Everything : Selected, Collected, & Health-Inspected Cartoons by Roz Chast 1978-2006
by Roz Chast (Bloomsbury, $45.00): Everything from “Tuesday Night
Fever” to the “Prozac Mist Air Freshener” by our greatest chronicler of
the anxieties, superstitions, furies, insecurities, and surreal
imaginings of modern life. Yup. Even the “Flying Wall-to-wall carpet.”
Samuel Beckett : The Grove Centenary Edition
(Grove Press, $100.00): The definitive (and handsome) boxed set, edited
by Paul Auster. Two volumes of Novels, One of Dramatic Works, plus a
Fourth of Poems, Short Fiction and Criticism. Go Bananas.
In the Studio : Visits with Contemporary Cartoonists
by Todd Hignite (Yale, $29.95): Generously illustrated with full-color
reproductions, this unparalleled look at the cutting edge of the comic
medium provides interviews with the likes of Chris Ware, Daniel Clowes,
Art Spiegelman and Jaime Hernandez among others. Rare access to many
who usually decline to grant it.
Beautiful Evidence by Edward Tufte (Graphics Press,
$52.00): The long-awaited new book by the pre-eminent champion of
visual representation theory. “Science and art have in common intense
seeing, the wide-eyed observing that generates empirical information.
Beautiful Evidence is about how seeing turns into showing.” About how
representation can “delight both by the wonder of the spectacle and the
accuracy of expression.”
The Silver Spoon Cookbook (Phaidon Press, $39.95):
Considered the “bible” of authentic Italian cooking, this cookbook has
until recently never been available in English. 2,000 recipes cover the
basics, like the proper way to cook spinach (use just the amount of
water clinging to its leaves) to more difficult recipes, like braised
rabbit with rosemary. All three daily meals are accounted for–actually
four, because you must include dessert!
The Power of Art by Simon Schama (Ecco, $50.00):
“Great art has dreadful manners,” the author observes at the start of
this exploration of the power, and the purpose, of art. “The hushed
reverence of the gallery can fool you into believing masterpieces are
polite things … but actually the greatest paintings grab you in a
headlock, rough up your composure, and then proceed in short order to
re-arrange your sense of reality.” Schama focuses on eight
artists—Caravaggio, Bernini, Rembrandt, David, Turner, Van Gogh,
Picasso and Rothko—who, each in his own way, transformed the way we see
the world.
There are way more books in the continuation of this article:
This from NY1:
Less than a month after the
multi-billion dollar sale of Stuyvesant Town in Manhattan another of
the city’s federally-funded apartment complexes is reportedly up for
sale.Starrett City, which is now known as Spring Creek Towers, is on the
market. The 46-building development in the East New York section of
Brooklyn is home to some 14,000 residents. It’s the largest
federally-subsidized complex in the country.Experts say the sale could exceed one billion dollars.
Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper village were sold two weeks ago for $5.4 billion.
I think this event has been taking place for a few years. It sounds like fun. It’s in Williamsburg on Saturday, December 9th, 2006, from 11 am to 9pm. Bust Magazine is a pop culture feminist publication. Founded by Debbie Stoller in 1993 to provide a third-wave feminist perspective, many amous and influential woman have appeared on the cover, including Björk, Cher and Tori Amos.
Join BUST MAGAZINE for a massive holiday shopping bonanza running
all day (and into the night) at the Warsaw in Williamsburg, Brooklyn,
featuring crowds of crafters, cocktails, DJs, and dancing! Plus, a
special celebrity raffle!
Get jiggy with "Jingle Bells" and a gin and tonic
as you browse through hundreds of HANDMADE WINTER WARES from handbags
and knitwear to ornaments, jewelry, and cards. Last-minute holiday
shopping to do? Skip the mall and buy DIY!
COMPLIMENTARY COCKTAILS COURTESY OF Brooklyn Brewery, Sailor Jerry Rum, and Working Girl Wines from
At 6-7pm! And if you need to take a break from shopping, hit the dance floor
while enjoying music spun by DJs Dirty Jean, Amylulita, Lady Byrd,
Peppermintwist, Ultra V, Mahssa, and Miss Modular. Admission is just $1,
which also gives attendees a shot at winning a BUST load of booty in the
Craftacular Raffle! See you ho-ho-hos under the misteltoe!
WHEN: Saturday, December 9th, 2006, from 11 am to 9pm
WHERE: The Warsaw, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 261 Driggs Ave [at Eckford]
Brooklyn, NY (718) 387-0505
The New York Times’ had a piece yesterday about a possible rehabilitation of one of the great Brooklyn movie palaces, The Loew’s Kings. All I can think of is Richard Grayson’s marvelous story about the movie theaters in Brooklyn in his collection "And to Think He Kissed Him on Lorimar Street."
THE KINGS
The Kings was the grandest theater in Brooklyn: a French Renaissance palace whose lobby featured ornate chandeliers, bronze statues, and walnut paneling. Baroque murals with sinister satyr figures danced on the ceiling, and an ornamental peacock reigned above the stage. It was one of five “Wonder Theaters” that the Loews chain opened outside Manhattan in 1929.
In junior high, Eugene and I and the guys we hung out with would freeze our asses off waiting in long lines on Saturday mornings for the first showings of Goldfinger and A Hard Day’s Night.
In the early 1970s, as the neighborhood changed, white moviegoers abandoned the Kings and the other theaters on Flatbush Avenue for the newer twin theaters in shopping centers like Georgetowne and Kings Plaza. But Randi and I used to go here a lot, to avoid the Friday and Saturday night crowds at the suburban-like movie houses.
The last film we saw here was The Tamarind Seed, with Julie Andrews and Omar Sharif. We were practically the only white people in an audience of about a hundred, dwarfed in a theater meant to seat 3,500 people.
A documentary about the Kings appeared on PBS in the late 1980s and there always seems to be talk about reviving it now that the neighborhood has boomed again, saved by middle-class West Indians and Haitians. A deal for the Kings to reopen as part of the Magic Johnson chain fell through in the late 1990s because the theater is just too expensive to renovate.
The hulk of The Kings remains: shuttered except for occasional tours by select architecture and design students. Some of them have spotted pigeons flying over the dusty, cobwebbed maroon seats in that blasted ruin, a Sistine Chapel for connoisseurs of decay. — Richard Grayson
THIS FROM THURSDAY’S NEW YORK TIMES:
Everything looked good for the palatial Loew’s Kings Theater in
Flatbush, Brooklyn, for all of about six weeks, the period between its
opening on Sept. 7, 1929, and the stock market crash known as Black
Thursday. The ensuing Great Depression would quickly render it a palace
of misplaced optimism.
The vaudeville acts, which had
performed twice a day, dropped as if through a trap door in the stage
inside of a year. Silent films were fading away, too, and the
Robert-Morton Theater Pipe Organ, or “Wonder Organ,” was soon reduced
to playing during the sing-along “Follow-the-Bouncing-Ball” songs
between films.
Still, the gargantuan movie house with more than
3,600 seats, one of only five “Wonder Theaters” in the region, remained
in the business of showing films for almost 50 years, closing its doors
to everyone but thieves, vandals and vagrants in the late 1970s.
There
is no curtain to raise today, just another rattling metal gate on
Flatbush Avenue, beneath a stripped facade and facing a row of discount
clothing stores and crowded buses where trolleys used to pass.
The
city took ownership of the Loew’s Kings in 1979, and after false starts
since then, a new push is under way to return it to something like its
old self. There have been two tours of the theater for potential
developers in the last month, providing a rare glimpse at a little bit
left of what the theater used to be.
TODAY’S WEATHER: What’s it gonna do today?
HAPPENING: DECEMBER, 2006
Most of these listings are from Go-Brooklyn, a section of The Brooklyn Papers. Check it out for more news, reviews, events, and local advertising. For additional events always check Barbes for the best music in the Slope. And for what’s going on at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and the BAM Rose Cinema go here. For movie times at the Pavillion and other local movie theaters go here.
HUMMINGBIRDS: Musical fun for the 3 to 5 year-old set and their caregivers. 2 pm to 3 pm. Prospect Park Audubon Center. Enter park at Lincoln Road and Ocean Avenue. (718) 287-3400. Free.
HEALING TALK: Vajradhara Meditation Center offers the talk "Healing Family Relationships." 2:45 pm to 4 pm. Area Yoga Center, 320 Court St. (718) 797-3699.
BAMCINEMATEK: presents "Czech Modernism: The 1920s to the 1940s." Today: "On the Sunny Side" (1933). In Czech with English subtitles. $10, $7 children and seniors. 6:50 pm. Also, "The Strike" (1947). 9:15. 30 Lafayette Ave. (718) 777-FILM. www.bam.org.
PLAY: Long Island University presents "The House of Bernarda Alba." $13. 7 pm. Flatbush Avenue and DeKalb Avenue. (718) 488-1089.
RECEPTION: Galeria Janet Kurnatowski presents "Untitled Number Something," new abstract paintings by Shane McAdams. 7 pm to 9 pm. 205 Norman Ave. (718) 383-9380. Free.
NEXT WAVE: Brooklyn Academy of Music presents "Red, Hot and Riot Live!: The Music and Spirit of Fela Kuti." Program celebrates music of the late Afrobeat king, Nigerian musician Fela Kuti. $25 to $65. 7:30 pm. BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, 30 Lafayette Ave. (718) 636-4100. Also, "Hedda Gabler." 7:30 pm. See Sat., Dec. 2.
BURLESQUE: Kick-off party and performance for The Great Boston Burlesque Exposition, a gathering of performers and educators. $8. 8 pm to 10 pm. Dance and cocktail party. $8. 10 pm. Or $12 for both events. Galapagos Art Space, 70 N. Sixth St. (718) 384-4586.
CUBAN MUSIC: Cunjunto Guantanamo performs. 9 pm to 11 pm. Five Front Restaurant, 5 Front St., between Dock and Old Fulton streets. (718) 625-5559.
ST. ANN’S WAREHOUSE: "Woyzeck." 8 pm.
GALLERY PLAYERS: "Torch Song Trilogy." 8 pm.
The gift guide is just about done. I am only missing a few stores. In the next few days I will fill in missing stores. New this year: Honey Bee and Me on 5th Street off of Fifth Avenue. She has odd hours so check her website. The guide will permanently live at its own site. Click on the OTBKB Holiday Guide logo on the right hand column of this blog. One click and you’re there.
5th Avenue 5th Avenue 5th Avenue 5th Avenue
FIFTH AVENUE Bergen to St. Marks
Lulu’s: Schylling tin toys — robot, elephant, clown Jack-in-the-Box and more — great for children and adults.
FIFTH AVENUE St. Marks to Prospect Place
Buttercup’s Paw-tisserie: coming soon…
Umkarna: Necklace with black lava beads on a stretchy string. Red and black and Chartreuse and black. Very striking ($170). Silky slip shirts or lingerie by Twelfth Street by Cynthia Vincent in lovely colors ($160).
Gorilla Coffee: Wooden box with a red and black gorilla printed on it with three one pound bags of coffee ($38).
Tabeel Aromatherapy Gift Shop and Hair Locking Center: last year I liked these microwavable teddy bears for muscle soreness, arthritis, backaches, sprains and headaches ($35). Glycerine soaps by the slice in various flavors and colors including grapefruit (pictured).
FIFTH AVENUE Prospect Place to Park Place
Flirt: coming soon…
The Chocolate Room: coming soon
FIFTH AVENUE Douglas to Degraw
At Home: coming soon…
Wrappers Delight: OUT OF BUSINESS
FIFTH AVENUE Degraw to Sackett
Reverse: coming soon…
FIFTH AVENUE St. Johns to Lincoln
Romp: Giraffe and monkey wall animals hand cut from vintage wallpaper ($60-$80). Customized book about your family from Good Stock — buy a book, pick out colors, fill in family tale worksheet, review up to three proofs. (All for $124). Pregnant Mommy mobile. The Time is Now — Nikki McClure calendar. Water Wizard drawing board.
Body Essentials: coming soon…
FIFTH AVENUE Lincoln to Berkeley
Organic Cafe: OUT OF BUSINESS
FIFTH AVENUE Sackett to President
Cog and Pearl: Various lamps made from Hurricane Katrina debris ($100.). Copper reliquary boxes — ery beautiful ($70. – $170). Distressed metal pocket mirrors by Vallerie Galloway with vintage looking photos of the Brooklyn Bridge, water towers, mannequins — comes with a velvet pouch ($36). Hand printed vintage leather and suede gloves ($48). Decoupage paper weights and dishes by John Derain ($60. and up).
FIFTH AVENUE Berkeley to Union
Extraordinary: Key rings with small metal high heels, wing tips, ballet slippers, high tops ($15). Small music box with Klimt painting and music from La Boheme ($20). Begamot bath oil in an interesting bottle with a purple synthetic orchid ($25).
FIFTH AVENUE Union to Carroll Streets.
Something Else: Rubber rain boots with black skeletons and red roses.
Bob & Judi’s Coolectibles: Handmade in Brooklyn: Mah Jong tile Hanukkah menorahs ($42). Vintage Brooklyn news
photos ($10). Tiny Betty Boo tea set. Vintage plastic charm
bracelets ($10). Pool balls ($5). Vintage 1940’s Santa wrapping
paper ($3).
Goldy and Mac:
Beacon’s Closet:
FIFTH AVENUE President to Garfield Streets.
Matter: Still life fruit bowl — ceramic and wood ($79)
Scaredy Kat:
Diana Kane: The Hanky Panky silk lace thong in a multitude of colors. Everyone loves these ($18). Silver locket with yellow gold chain. Holds two pictures. ($196).
Eidolan:
Nancy Nancy:
Hers and Mine: OUT OF BUSINESS
FIFTH AVENUE Garfield to 1st Streets.
3R Living: Sweep Dreams Dust Pan and Broom ($15 and $22).
Lucia:
La Rosa Dance Supply:
FIFTH AVENUE 1st to Second Streets
Jonathan Blum: Paintings by Brooklyn’s hometown artist.
FIFTH AVENUE Second to Third Streets
Zelda Victoria: To come.
FIFTH AVENUE 3rd to 4th Streets
Living on Fifth :
Serene Rose:
FIFTH AVENUE 4th to 5th Streets
Pink Pussycat:
Under the Pig Antiques:
FIFTH AVENUE 5th to 6th Streets
Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co:
Zuzu’s Petals: Framed, hand-embroidered samplers
"Love me when I deserve it least, it is when I need it most." ($18-$60). Father Christmas figures in 3 sizes ($35, $48, $90). Woven throws for cold winter nights; very frothy and snuggley ($75 and $85). Handthrown pottery: Nicholas Mosse from Ireland, French from Provence ($25- $250). Mistral soaps, bath and body products from France. Custom decorated fresh balsam wreaths and arrangements.
Honeybee and Me: fluffy wool coats, hats, mittens, scarves and pillows in fabulous colors. Range of prices. Nice jewelry from Turkey. Patent leather backpacks
FIFTH AVENUE 7th to 8th Streets
Office Equipment and Furniture: OUT OF BUSINESS
Save on
Fifth: Assortment of cool alarm clocks and wall clocks.
FIFTH AVENUE 8th to 9th Streets
Galaxy Comics: 12 inch Yellow Submarine Beatle’s figurines.
Record and Tape Center: Huge collection of used LPs and CDs.
Tip Top Gifts:
7th Avenue 7th Avenue 7th Avenue 7th Avenue
SEVENTH AVENUE Berkeley to Union
Orange Blossom Kids: Baby tee with Dalai Lama
Slope Sports: Running cap with sushi design
SEVENTH AVENUE Union to President
Blue Apron (just east of 7th Avenue): coming soon…
Newstand: Lottery ticket.
Facets: Colorful baubles and stones: necklaces by David Aubrey ($60 and up).
Area: Radiant Baby wooden yo yo’s by Keith Haring and French Yo yo’s ($9 and $11). Wooden pens with funny faces ($5).
Aersoles: To come
SEVENTH AVENUE President to Carroll
Loom: "Subversive Cross Stitch: 33 Designs for you Surly Side" by Julie Jackson ($14.95).
Lisa Polansky: Brown monkey scarf and matching hat.
Sound Track: Out of Business
SEVENTH AVENUE Carroll to Garfield
Jack Rabbit: $250. buys any pair of running shoes and tuition in the Beginner Running Clinic.
D’Vine Taste: Dried Fruits. Halvah. Fancy olive oils. Proustian Madeleine Cakes.
Community Bookstore: "We Tell Ourselves Stories in Order to Live: Collected Non-Fiction
by Joan Didion ($30).
Little Things: Mini, posable Groovey Dolls ($4.99). Best Buddy monkey rolling backpacks ($24.99), Doodle Coloing Book by Taro Gomi — author of Everyone Poops — Chronicle Books ($18.95). Ugly Dolls ($5.99 – $100).
Back to the Land: Dr. Hanuschka, Avalon, Kiss My Face, California Baby, and other skin and hair care products.
Possibilities:
Garfield to 1st
Artesana: Square dog paintings by a Thai artist in a wide variety of breeds ($75).
The Clay Pot: cross, om, heart, and star pendant by Jane Diaz ($64).
Treasure Chest: Gold necklace with one of a variety of charms: pistol, handcuffs, wishbone, pineapple, dragon fly, seahorse, and eagle ($75). Menorah with nine small chairs. 
Lolli: Sock monkey by Paul Frank ($15). Paul Frank sock slippers (price TBD).
Mr. Choi: Hot Sox in a wide variety of patterns including Hanukah menorahs, cappuchino, bandannas, and polka dots (3 for $15).
SEVENTH AVENUE 2nd to 3rd Streets
Seventh Avenue Books: "ABZ: More Alphabets and Other Signs" edited by Julian Rothstein and Mel Gooding. Chronicle Books. "Anthology of Graphic Fiction" from Yale University Press. "So What is the What" by Dave Eggers 
Park Slope Books: "On this Earth: Photographs from East Africa" by Nick Brandt (price TBD).
Good Footing: Kitson LA laceless sneakers (price TBD).
Tarzian West: Simplehuman brushed steel single pod coffee brewer ($129).
SEVENTH AVENUE 3rd to 4th Streets
The Cocoa Bar: Nicely packaged chocolate treats.
Lion in the Sun: Moleskin notebooks in all sizes.
SEVENTH AVENUE 4th to 5th Streets
Lumiere: Pylones lady in skirt cheese grater, cake knife, massage device, and other fun items.
SEVENTH AVENUE 7th to 8th Streets
Root Stock/Quade: What could be better than a " surprise " bouquet at your door on the 20th of the month!? Seasonal blooms chosen and arranged in a vase to complement the bouquet designed by Kerry Quade to arrive on your Brooklyn doorstep for three consecutive months. A one time delivery charge of $25.00 to be applied in addition. Delivery in Brooklyn only ($300). Floral Design Lesson with Kerry Quade ($350).
SEVENTH AVENUE 8th to 9th Streets
Brooklyn Industries: Thigh high tights ($12). 
Fargo Bomber Hat ($52).
Park Slope Stationers: Claire Fontaine notebooks.
SEVENTH AVENUE 9th to 10th
Otto: Adorable Senger stuffed animals. "3 dots" polka dot cashmere sweaters (pricey). Bathing cap
bags. Nethermeade Perfume from Brooklyn Apothecary Sexy underwear
SEVENTH AVENUE 10th to 11th
4 Play: CP Cotton Phase camisole in variety of colors. Very simple, comfortable (2 for $30).
Park Slope Sports: Brooklyn tee’s hoodies. Great scarf/hat for winter runners.
SEVENTH AVENUE 11th to 12th
Nest: Paper curtains
SEVENTH AVENUE 12th to 13th
El Milagro: Frida Kahlo earrings, necklaces, pins, bracelets, etc.
SEVENTH AVENUE 13th to 14th
Sweet Charity:
Neda:
Music Matters:
SEVENTH AVENUE 14th to 15th
Toy Space: Anatomically correct soft baby dolls ($10.00).
Baby Bird: Snoopy t-shirts for babies.
Bird:
15th to 16th
Rare Device: Black sake set ($72). Elegant money clip($72). Pop-up Menorah card ($6).
Greenjeans: Handcrafted toys.
Here’s a story. This from NY1:
Police investigating a suspicious shoebox behind the Spring Creek
Apartments on Linden Boulevard in Brooklyn were surprised to find a
Caiman inside.Caimans are part of the Crocodile family. Animal control officials
believe the reptile was illegally obtained through mail order.“I’m guessing that the owners of this pet realized that they got in
far beyond what they can handle and they did not know how to properly
deal with the situation,” said Ruth Allen of Brooklyn Animal Control.
“So instead of trying to be a responsible pet owner and do the right
thing, they decided to tie the animal’s mouth and dump him in the
garbage.”Animal control officials say the animal was cold when it was
brought in. They’re keeping it warm under a heating lamp until they can
give it to the proper recovery facility.
This from Bloomberg Media:
Astroland Amusement Park on the Coney
Island boardwalk, which offered rides and thrills to a generation
of Brooklynites, was sold to a developer planning to turn it into
a year-round resort.The park will close after the 2007 summer season as part of
an agreement Thor Equities LLC, a New York-based development firm,
according to a statement released by the sellers, the Albert
family. Dewey Albert, father of the current owner Jerome Albert,
opened the amusement park in 1962, the statement said.No price was given. The owners said they couldn’t afford to
convert the park to year-round operation. The Alberts will
continue to operate the landmark Cyclone roller-coaster, which
will be 80 years old next year, under a contract with the city of
New York, according to the statement.
Last year we stayed in New York for Christmas for a change. And this year we’re doing that again. Here’s what I wrote last year. It still feels new and exciting to be here at Christmas.
We’ve decided to stay in Brooklyn for the holidays. Well, it was my
idea. I told Hepcat I needed to be here instead of on the farm, the
walnut farm, in Northern California.It took days to get up the nerve. I knew Hepcat wouldn’t take it
well. He looks forward to our visits to the family farm he grew up on. Our twice-yearly trips make him feel grounded; they connect him to his
past. They’re also a much-needed chance to spend time with his mother,
his siblings, their children, and other members of his family.For as long as we’ve been together, we’ve spent the holidays out
there. That’s a lot of years and a lot of Chirstmases with my husband’s
family. I don’t even know what the holidays are like in New York with
my family anymore.I must say, Christmas in California is pretty special: a real
goyisha treat for a Jewish girl from the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
There’s a tall Christmas tree festooned with family heirloom ornaments.
The house, fragrant with mulled cider and eucaplytus branches, is
decorated with colorful Mexican folkart Mexican nativity creches. There
are hot cinnamon buns on Christmas morning.Best of all, my kids get to spend days on the farm with their
cousins in a
kind of free-form indoor/outdoor existence that’s so unlike life in
Park Slope. Climbing a fig tree, taking walks in a walnut orchard,
lighting sparklers in the backyard, it’s all part of the Christmas they
know.So I finally blurted it out one night before dinner in the kitchen. "I don’t think I can go to California this Christmas."
There was a stunned silence.
I offered up my reasons like non-sequiters: My work. Teen Spirit’s New
year’s Eve gig at the Liberty Heights Tap Room. Our new niece, Ducky.
Hepcat immediately looked disappointed but he seemed to understand.
"Well, I guess that means I’ll be going to California with Teen Spirit and OSFO," he said.Teen Spirit, who was standing by the sink, cleared his throat, "Um, Dad, if
you don’t mind I think I want to stay in New York with mom," To which Hepcat replied,
"Well, I guess it’ll just be me and OSFO."
"I’M NOT GOING WITHOUT MOM," she shouted from the dining room where she was working on her homework.
"Well, I guess I’m going alone," Husband said sadly. "I’m sorry, Dad," Teen Spirit aid, giving his dad a big hug.
By morning Hepcat had decided that he was going to spend Christmas in Brooklyn with us.
"I don’t want to go without my family."
So it was decided that we will spend the holidays in Brooklyn.
Together. We’ll have to figure out what to do here: reinvent our
holiday ritual as we rediscover New York at Christmastime.Ice skating in Prospect Park, Christmas decorations in Dyker
Heights, fireworks on New Years Eve at Grand Army Plaza, after the show
at the Liberty Heights Tap Room…
It just might be fun to do something a little different.
–written in 2005
So I finally got over to Fourth Street yesterday to check out the Soprano situation. The show was shooting all day in Inaka Sushi on Seventh Avenue between 4th and 5th Streets. The actors and crew may have been in the sushi place, but all the equipment trucks, actor’s trailers, and Teamsters were lining Seventh Avenue; what a scene.
At approximately 8 p.m., a small group of local fans gathered in the Street at 4th and Seventh Avenue and waited for the wrap. A crew member came out of the sushi place saying "Cut" and it was determined that the shoot was over.
Fairly soon after, a very friendly Tony Soprano came out on the Avenue and graciously posed for pictures and signed autographs. The guys from the barber shop on Seventh Avenue near 4th Street brought a carousel horse out onto the street and asked Tony to pose in front of it. "Hey Tony, pose in front of the horse," one of the guys said. "I’m posing next to a horse’s ass?" he said.
Tony, who is much taller than I expected, was in a good mood and seemed happy to pose for cell phone cameras. A festive atmosphere prevailed in the minutes after the wrap. I had somewhere to be so I grabbed a few cell phone shots and was on my way.
HOT NEWS FLASH, 6 p.m., Tuesday: Rosemary writes—30 Rock is shooting today at the Grand Prospect Hall between 5th and 6th aves. I saw Alec Baldwin in a tux at 8 a.m.
NEWS FLASH, 11:25 a.m., Tuesday: The Sopranos are filming in Inaka Sushi, according to Hepcat who just walked by. And he says 30 Rock won’t be on PPW until Thursday.
Old Story:
A neighbor told me last night that The Sopranos are shooting on Fourth Street today. He saw a sign. I already knew but I acted surprised. It’s boring always being the one who knows what’s going on.
When Hepcat came home he said that 30 Rock, the new comedy show with Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin about a Saturday Night Live type of show, is shooting on Prospect Park West today on THURSDAY. He said he saw signs. That was news to me. I was surprised and I didn’t know.
Funny coincidence. 30 Rock vs. The Sopranos. Shooting on the same day in the Slope.
Today Gowanus Lounge is running a gift guide. But he’s got an interesting theme. Give the gift of good karma, support an organization that you believe in that’s doing good things in Brooklyn or the world.
Our focus in today’s first installment will be memberships in or donations to Brooklyn organizations or Brooklyn-based groups that would make cool holiday gifts. The guide is very selective and we’ve probably left out obvious choices or favorites, but here goes…
Added Value. You can’t become a member of Added Value–the
good people that run programs for young people in Red Hook and operate
a community farm and farmers markets–but you can certainly make a
contribution to the cause in someone’s name. They do good work. Helping
them would make a cool gift. Check out their donation page here.Slope Street Cats. No membership here, but you can donate to Slope Street Cats,
a Park Slope group that works to control the population of feral cats
and links a lot of people to adoptions of cats. They run educational
programs and do a lot of good work and you can make a donation here in someone’s name as a gift and get a big deposit of Good Kitty Karma to boot.Check in on Gowanus Lounge all week to see what other gift ideas he has.
Quite the hoopla inside Prospect Park at Grand Army Plaza. Klieg lights, a marching band, Chirstmas choirs, and a duo of Brooklyn Philarmonic trumpeters playing a festive fanfare.
What for?
It was a a big celebration for the lighting of the lights. Paid for by
Mort Zuckerman of the New York Daily News, there are light installations at all the entrances to Prospect Park.
Mayor Mike Bloomberg
introduced a host of city officials, commissioners. Notable in his absence was Marty Markowitz.
The Mayor led a countdown and then Abigail, the daughter of Mort Zukerman, got to turn on the lights with him. Maybe they wouldn’t let Marty do it and he didn’t want to come.
Maybe there was too much political star power. Maybe he has issues with Mort Zuckerman? Whatever. The lights are lovely. There’s a Christmas tree made of lights underneath the Grand Army arch. The lights change color and it’s very pretty. There are other lights decorating the top of the arch. Brooklyn Record had this to say about the lights:
"These aren’t just normal Christmas lights either, but fancy LED ones
that change color and do other cool things, designed by renowned
lighting designer Jim Conti (who actually teaches Lighting at
Parson’s). The project is sponsored by New York’s favorite paper
(maybe), The Daily News, and also includes free trolley
service on weekends around the park to see all the lights. They’ll be
up till January 7th, so if you aren’t festive yet, you’ve got time
(though, seriously, what’s your problem?)"
It’ll look great when that big Lubavitch menorah shows up for Hanukah. Lots of lights for everybody.
What fun to be in the Park in the evening. Bloomberg thanked God for the moon and Zuckerman and others for the lighting. A lovely ceremony and I’m sorry I didn’t know about it to blog about it so more people woulda known about it.
photo by www.flickr.com/photos/suzun