It's Queens Fall 2013

It’s

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QUEENS PLUS: TOP 5 GIFT SHOPS, THE LITERARY SCENE, RICHARD ROMANO

THE MAGAZINE

FALL 2013 | Volume 5.3

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It’s

QUEENS THE MAGA ZINE

Publisher Walter H. Sanchez Executive Editor Shane Miller Senior Editors Andrew Pavia Andrew Shilling Contributors Hoyt Jacobs Chase Collum Audrey Dimola Gloria Tsoi Art Direction/Graphic Design Matthew Stefani Susana Diaz Photographers Michael O’Kane Joanne Gibson Advertising Kathleen Connell

Volume 5 Number 3 – Fall 2013

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It’s Queens is published quarterly. Postmaster, send all address changes to It’s Queens – PO BOX 780376 – Maspeth, NY 11378. It’s Queens is a consumer magazine covering the people who move and shake Queens, from real estate trends to transportation, politics to entertainment, It’s Queens will bring our readers the ins and outs of the borough.

It’s Queens is wholly owned and published by the Queens Ledger/Greenpoint Star Weekly Newspaper Group. We know enough about the borough, covering it week in and week out since 1873. Bulk mail Flushing, NY Permit #652. Copyright ©2008 It’s Queens. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without the permission of the publisher is prohibited. Any news or feature solicitation for publication in It’s Queens should be done so without expectation of use and without expectation of return to solicitor. Send correspondence to editor@itsqueens.com . Subscriptions are $7.95 per year. Inquiries for subscriptions - Mail to PO BOX 780376, Maspeth, NY 11378. (718) 639-7000. www.itsqueens.com

On the Cover: Elizabeth Crowley (Photo: Joanne Gibson) 4 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

FEATURES

Contents 10 Knick-Knacks

It’s Queens ranks the Top 5 Gift Shops in Queens.

16 Persistence Pays Off

Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley never gave up on her dream of holding elected office.

26 The It’s List

These 15 Queens College Students are making waves in the real world.

38 Exotic Drinks

Hoyt Jacobs knocks back a few in some of the borough’s most cuturally jarring bars and taverns.

DEPARTMENTS

7 Buzz

What’s hot and what’s not in Queens.

10 Technology

New app puts Queens at your fingertips.

12 The Arts

The Queens literary scene comes together.

48 Food

S Prime brings high-end beef to Long Island City

56 Interview

The other Romano brother from Queens enters showbiz.

FALL CALENDAR p. 59 www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 5

Publisher’s Note WALTER SANCHEZ

A Great Few Months for Queens What a great few months for Queens.

The U.S. Tennis Open was top notch this year, and the election season was thrilling to say the least.

The primary in the borough president’s race and all of the higher city offices were compelling enough that few could predict who would be victorious. In the general election, after meeting with the candidates for Queens borough president it would be difficult to pick against Melinda Katz, and the bigger races for citywide offices are hardly contested.

from Glendale, she opens up to us in a way that is quite enlightening. She gives us insight about issues from her battles with Speaker Christine Quinn to improvements in her district.

Queens College has had some notable students indeed. In this issue we go over some of our top picks.

Queens is a great place. Ridgewood might just be the next Williamsburg.

How about that?

Enjoy.

In this issue of It’s Queens we go out on a limb and pick the Top 5 Buildings and Neighborhoods in Queens that are not landmarked. The problem is whenever anyone deals with historical spots, people get quite snippy. Please know that we believe in landmarking. These spots deserve our attention. If your favorite building is not listed, send us a note.

It’s approaching holiday time so we figured we would give you some fairly cool Gift Shops that might not come to mind. Buy a gift from any of these shops and you ensure nobody else in your family got the same gift you did.

Take it from us, after this election QueensWay - the old abandoned rail line which goes from Forest Hills to the Rockaways - will be a hot topic. It’s a one-track line that might just be what we need to solve the transportation problem from South Queens through Western Queens and into Manhattan. Some think it should be a long narrow park. See page 7.

For a keen insight into the life of a council representative, check out our cover story on Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley. A mother of two 6 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

Walter H. Sanchez Publisher

Queens Buzz

A quick rundown of what Queens residents are talking about, as well what they no longer care about.

QUEENSWAY There is a big controversy about to boil over in Queens, and it surrounds turning a defunct rail line that runs from the Rockaways to Forest Hills into a High Line-style park. Proponents of the QueensWay, as it has come to be known, have a lot of h i g h - p o w e re d support on their side, including the Trust for Public Land and the state, which gave them a grant to conduct a feasibility study. However, there is a growing chorus of people, particularly in the Rockaways, who would like to see train service restored and a group of people in Woodhaven whose backyards abut the old rail line who are perfectly content to see either proposal fail.

Expect this issue to heat up over the next couple of months.

ANTHONY WEINER In the summer issue of It’s Queens, Anthony Weiner was on the “Hot” side of Queens Buzz, but for this issue he has decidedly moved to the “Cold” end of the collective consciousness thermometer. When Weiner first announced he was running for mayor, the man couldn’t go anywhere without a small army of press following him. But once news broke that maybe he never actually quit his sexting ways, interest in his candidacy quickly turned to disgust. Weiner would eventually come in a distant 5th place, and we don’t think we’ll be seeing him back in politics anytime soon, but hey, we bet there’s a cable news show somewhere that has a half-hour to fill!

SANDY RECOVERY Almost exactly one year after Superstorm Sandy devastated coastal areas in Queens, the recovery from all of the damage and destruction still remains a big issue and topic of conversation and debate in the borough. And with FEMA on the verge of issuing new flood maps and cutting subsidies, some homeowners are going to see the rates they pay for mandatory flood insurance skyrocket.

It’s doubtful they are all going to be able to afford to remain in the places they once called.

PLANE NOISE Between a runway expansion at JFK Airport and a new takeoff procedure at LaGuardia Airport that is wreaking havoc in northeast Queens, the borough’s residents are all abuzz about the impacts – particularly the noise and the pollution - that come with hosting the city’s two airports, which are among the busiest in the nation.

MATT HARVEY’S ARM Citi Field was a veritable ghost town for much of the baseball season, except when pitching phenom Matt Harvey took the mound. Every game he was handed the ball, fans knew they were about to witness something special, and he didn’t disappoint, flirting with a no-hitter several times he took the mound. And then there was some slight discomfort in his pitching arm, and next thing fans knew he was headed for Tommy John surgery. Harvey will miss the entire season, so there probably won’t be any Cy Young chatter in Flushing this year.

POLITICAL SCANDAL It seems like at the beginning of the year, we couldn’t go a week her in Queens without some sort of scandal involving our elected officials being uncovered.

State Senator Shirley Huntley was sent to jail and was more than eager to take any of her former colleagues that she could down with her; State Senator Malcolm Smith and Councilman Dan Halloran were caught up in a bribery scheme involving the Queens GOP; and to a lesser extent there was the trial of Jenny Hou, the campaign treasurer for John Liu’s bid for mayor, who was sentenced to ten months in prison for bundling contributions. And those were just the big ones, unfortunately.

But thankfully, things seemed to have quieted down - and as much as politics can be – been on the up and up. www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 7

HOLIDAY

Top 5 Gift Shops

By Chase Collum

Finding something special for everyone on your holiday gift list can be a daunting challenge.

If you have someone who is especially difficult to shop for, It’s Queens suggests you try the gift shops of some of the borough’s many cultural institutions, which are stocked with unique gifts, many of them locally made. Better yet, you’ll feel good knowing that your money is going to support arts and culture in Queens. Here’s our top five favorites.

FLUSHING TOWN HALL 137-35 Northern Blvd. Flushing

flushingtownhall.org

The gift shop at Flushing Town Hall features handcrafted works submitted by over 30 Queens and Long Island-based artists. Items include curated, local consignment products like jewelry, puppets, toys, a board game created by a local artist, a jazz trail map produced in-house, pottery, t-shirts and more. Prices range from $3.50 to around $50. All proceeds above consignment costs go toward programming at Town Hall. The hall will be hosting its annual Holiday House Tour and gift shop holiday sale on December 8 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

QUEENS BOTANICAL GARDEN 43-50 Main St. Flushing (718) 886-3800 queensbotanical.org

The gift shop at the Queens Botanical Gardens offers a wide selection of naturerelated books and accessories. The garden’s gift shop sells books for hobbyists and avid outdoorsmen, along with some other locally produced goods with a portion of all proceeds from in-store and online sales going back to QBG. For seasonal shoppers, the garden will be transformed for the annual solstice celebration on December 8 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., which will include a holiday market alongside several craft activities, live music and a tree lighting ceremony to be held at 4:30 p.m.

QUEENS COUNTY FARM MUSEUM 73-50 Little Neck Parkway Floral Park (718) 347-3276 queensfarm.org

The Queens County Farm, home now to the Queens County Farm Museum, has been in operation since 1697 and is New York City’s largest remaining undisturbed tract of farmland.

It is also home to the city’s only commercial vineyard, making it a great stop for anyone with a wine aficionado on their list this year. The museum’s gift shop also offers a variety of locally-produced gifts, including farm-inspired toys, personal accessories, canned goods, soaps, seeds from the Hudson Valley Seed Library, beeswax candles and a wide selection of books – some by local authors. There is also a plant shop on site that sells reasonably-priced houseplants, annuals and perennials. The museum will also be selling Christmas trees and poinsettias throughout December, and hosting wreathmaking workshops on December 7 and 8 at 10 a.m., 12 p.m and 2 p.m.

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GIFTS

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After an extended closure for renovation, the Queens Museum will re-open its doors on November 9. The expanded space will be hosting several simultaneous exhibits, and the staff of the museum’s gift shop is once again on a mission to bring together the work of Queens’ most talented local artists to stock their shelves. The gift shop at the museum also specializes in World’s Fair memorabilia for those seeking a nostalgic gift, and has a constantly rotating selection of curated artwork for sale.

Community For Over 30 Years!!!

Thank You For Your Support and Friendship Throughout The Years

Ridgewood Middle Village 62-70 Fresh Pond Rd. 79-47 Metropolitan Ave. 718.821.5999 Williamsburg 718.894.8700 133 N. 6th St. 718.782.4411 www.crifasi.com

ASTORIA MARKET 29-19 24th Ave. astoriamarket.com

An artisan market, selling handmade, baked and vintage goods, the Astoria Market is based out of New York City’s oldest beer garden, Bohemian Hall, which has been open for business for more than 100 years. The market runs every Sunday, with special events being held at the Hall on November 10, and December 8 and 15. A portion of proceeds are used to support the children’s events and foreign language studies that also take place at Bohemian Hall. www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 9

It’s Queens

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APPS

Fulfilling dreams, one degree at a time.

Meet Christina Woo, a Hospitality Management graduate

from a prestigious New York university. Despite obtaining a well-recognized, much-admired degree, Ms. Woo realized she needed real, tangible skills that would qualify her to begin a dream career in Health Information Technology. She knew that returning to the large university where she was just another student in the crowd just wouldn’t do it.

PLAZA COLLEGE Est. 1916

“On a big campus, you can lose yourself and fall behind in your studies. This time, I wanted to try to attend a smaller college and compare my experiences.”

Now, thanks to her degree from Plaza College, Ms. Woo is finally fulfilling her dreams of working in a valuable role within the healthcare industry.

“I have applied everything I learned at Plaza College to my current position. The skills I acquired in billing and coding, medical terminology, virtual labs, and insurance reimbursement have helped me excel to no end. Plaza College prepared me, and I was able to jump into my position and not be afraid of anything.”

In addition to thriving in her job, Ms. Woo will be returning to Plaza College in January 2014 to obtain her BBA in Patient Information Management.

Christina Woo

H.I.T. Graduate 2013

An integral part of the medical field:

Every time a patient receives treatment, a record is created. These records are essential in ensuring appropriate and quality patient care as well as the financial health of hospitals, doctors’ offices, nursing homes and many other healthcare organizations. Health Information Technologists are the integral part of the “behind the scenes” medical team that combines health care, business, and information technology to manage the medical records process.

• Health Information Technology is one of the nation’s most in-demand professions. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, employment of Health Information Technologists is projected to grow 21% from 2010 to 2020 - that’s much faster than the average for all other occupations1!

• The daily responsibilities of a Health Information Technologist include organizing and maintaining paper and electronic health records; ensuring the quality, accuracy, and confidentiality of vital medical documentation; and utilizing various classification systems to code health records for reimbursement processes.

• Professionals in this field are prepared to work anywhere health information is collected. This includes, but is not limited to, hospitals, physician practices, nursing homes, pharmaceutical companies, government and research agencies, and legal firms.

THE NEW YOU IS WAITING. •ASSOCIATE & BACHELOR DEGREES • TRANSFER STUDENTS WELCOME •SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES • MEDICAL & BUSINESS PROGRAMS •CAREER PLACEMENT SERVICES • FLEXIBLE CLASS SCHEDULES

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866-509-0110 PlazaCollege.edu/info

1) http://www.bls.gov/ooh/Healthcare/Medical-records-and-health-information-technicians.htm For more information on our programs, please visit plazacollege.edu/disclosures

www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 11

ANOTHER CHAPTER

The literary scene in Queens continues to grow with the first-ever meet up for the borough’s By Audrey Dimola Photos: Audrey Dimola/Queens Council on the Arts writers, sellers & book lovers.

W

hat can I say about the first ever Queens Literary Town Hall? Thanks to the enthusiasm, the initiative, the energy of everyone in the room – it was incredible.

Held on October 18, the inaugural event of Queens Council on the Arts’ new 3rd Space series was a platform in which representatives from the Queens literary community – reading series curators, bookshop owners, festival organizers, workshop leaders, and so on – could come together to introduce themselves, present their work, and make connections with each other and with the writers, literature lovers, and locals in attendance.

As a born and raised Astoria/Long Island City girl, local pride has always come easy to me. I’ve been writing about, promoting, supporting, and participating in Queens culture as a journalist, writer/editor, poet, curator, press consultant, and volunteer since my college years, and crusading for Queens has become an increasingly important part of my life. Our beautiful borough is so widespread – vibrantly colored with diversity like no place else, each neighborhood serving as a world unto itself. It’s exactly what makes Queens what it is – but coupled with our longtime lack of literary hubs, the result is a community existing in pockets, left mostly to stumble upon each other’s efforts in happy accidents.

Thankfully, things have slowly but surely been changing – especially ramping up in the past year. We have two new bookstores in Astoria, our first formal literary journal, reading series emerging and continuing, and many opportunities to write, workshop, take classes, and perform popping up in different neighborhoods across the borough. We are becoming more aware that we need to help each other, reach out to each other, and capitalize on the new spaces locals are flocking to because they literally have 12 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

not been able to find any fellow writers or lit lovers in their area – despite the fact that there are countless creatives unbeknownst to them all over Queens!

Even through getting the word out about the Town Hall and beginning the curating process, I came in contact

Audrey Dimola

with new groups, projects, and efforts for the arts and literary community in Queens I was completely unaware of.

At this pivotal point at the beginning of the 2013-2014 season, I knew that if

I could get all of these talented, driven people I was meeting together in a room – and invite anyone else who was interested to join in – we could all communicate, celebrate, and collaborate in an effort to spread awareness and keep our literary community strongly moving forward.

Sometimes we need to take that breath to come together and facilitate the conversations, the connections, the friendships, and the projects that in some cases wouldn’t happen any other way. The groups and representatives I reached out to were so excited and eager to help, and the public response was just the same. The RSVP filled to capacity in advance, and Queens Council on the Arts ended up standing room only. We talked, presented, and performed to a full house for the entire duration of the event – and I couldn’t be happier.

We were joined by a representative from Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer’s office; Queens Poet Laureate Paolo Javier; Richard Jeffrey Newman of First Tuesdays Reading Series and Open Mic (Jackson Heights); Claire LaPlaca and Kea DeVay of Enigma Bookstore (Astoria); Tim Fredrick of Newtown Literary Journal; John Rice, Ann Podracky and Brian Kim of Oh, Bernice! Reading Series (formerly Sunnyside, now Astoria); Deborah Emin of REZ Reading Series (Kew Gardens) and the new Richmond Hill Library Readings; Aida Zilelian-Silak of Boundless Tales Reading Series (Astoria); Bridget Bartolini of Five Boro Story Project; Samantha Inniss of Art, Food & Soul (Jamaica); Lexi Beach of Astoria Bookshop; Continued on pg 29

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where are the thinkers who will foresee the forces of nature?

Changing the world requires revolutionary thinking

OPEN HOUSE Saturday November 9 and 16 10 a.m.

that goes above and beyond, and at Vaughn College that’s the type of thinking we instill in you. Our students come with vision and expectations and leave ready to challenge the ordinary in the fields of engineering, technology, management and aviation.

Vaughn offers an array of master’s, bachelor’s and associate degree programs — including one of the only degree programs in mechatronic engineering in the New York metropolitan area — and a faculty that is grounded in real-life experience. It’s no wonder that 92 percent of our graduates are employed or continue their education within one year of graduation.

Set your sights on Vaughn College and start thinking above and beyond.

Reserve your spot now!

www.vaughn.edu ENGINEERING

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Persistence Pays Off

It was almost eight years from the time Elizabeth Crowley first ran for office to the day she was elected to the City Council. That determination is what makes her such an independent voice in Queens Politics.

By Shane Miller Photos: Joanne Gibson

www.itsqueens.com  Fall 5.3 2013 • 17

O

August morning, Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley made her way up the steps of City Hall to a meeting of the Rules, Privileges, and Elections Committee, where, among other items, members were voting on an appointment to the city’s Public Design Commission, the powerful review agency that has the authority to hold up any number of public works projects.

Normally the approval would be a rubber stamp, but on this day Councilman Lew Fidler of Brooklyn was using it to air a number of grievances he has with the commission itself. n a steamy

you saw in there with ““W hat Lew Fidler getting angry is because he only has three more months in office and 18 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

in all likelihood will not serve in public office again, but he’s been frustrated by the Art Commission,” Crowley told It’s Queens later as she sat at her desk in the City Council chambers.

But as heated as things were in the committee meeting, on this particular day a meeting of the full council would be even more tense, as it was scheduled to vote on an override of the mayor’s veto of the Community Safety Act, a piece of legislation aimed at limiting the NYPD’s use of the controversial practice of stop-and-frisk. Later that afternoon and with the support of Speaker Christine Quinn, who was also using the vote to help curry favor with minority voters in what would become a failed run for mayor, the City Council overrode the veto by one vote, but not with

Crowley’s support.

“Just like all public employees, you are going to have a few bad apples, and I understand the frustration out there,” said Crowley just hours before the vote. “But if this veto passes today, I believe it will prevent police officers from being proactive, and increase crime because of the reduced number of stop and frisks.”

C

rowley was elected to office in 2008 to represent residents in Middle Village, Maspeth, Glendale, Ridgewood, Woodhaven and Richmond Hill. She says she first got interested in politics as a member of a construction union.

“It was back when I was working on a job site as a decorative painter.

It was there that I got active in my union, and through the political ac-

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tion committee they had I became more and more interested in how important it was for people to have a voice in government,” recalled Crowley. “At the time I didn’t feel like I had access to government on a local level, and I knew that things were about to change. I was aware that term limits were going to give new people the opportunity to hold office.”

That was in 2001. Crowley won a Democratic Primary, but would go on to lose in the general election. “I had no regrets after that campaign was over because I had the chance to get my vision out there,” she said. “I was able to win a primary and was running against two people who had already been elected to the school board, and at that time a significant number of people came out to vote in school board elections.”

While Crowley credits her union experience for pushing her to enter the world of politics, it’s more likely her interest in public service was ingrained in her as a young child growing up in Middle Village. Crowley’s father was elected to the City Council in 1985, but served less than one year before he passed away. At the time, Elizabeth Crowley was just seven years old, the youngest of 15 children. In addition to raising the children, many of whom were still under the age of 18, Crowley’s mother, who earned a master’s degree at a time when many women didn’t even go to college, ran for the school board and won in 1986. She would eventually become president. “I was fortunate to have a strong mother,” said Crowley.

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F

ast-forward to 2013, and Crowley now finds herself in the City Council about to cast a vote on one of the biggest issues to come before that legislative body in years. Public safety has been a big priority for Crowley since she took office. She has been a vocal critic of the city’s overhaul of the 911 system and the reported flaws that have sometimes led to long delays in first responders getting to emergency situations. She also led

the fight again and again to restore budget cuts to keep firehouses across the city open.

“Mayor Bloomberg tried to balance budgets by closing firehouses, which he did seven years ago,” Crowley said. “Philosophically, I believe that is not an area where we can afford to make cuts.”

In fact, sometimes Crowley has been too far out in front of the issue. When similar budget cuts were restored in 2010, Crowley’s office

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sent out a press release announcing that several firehouses slated for closure would remain open, but did so before Speaker Christine Quinn’s office was ready to make the disclosure. Quinn responded to the seemingly innocuous gaffe by slashing the money Crowley could allocate to community organizations and groups in her district That wouldn’t be the last time Crowley would run afoul of political leadership. In 2010, she decided to run for Congress, which, according to political insiders, upset her cousin and head of the Queens Democratic Party, Congressman Joseph Crowley, who was supporting then-assemblywoman Grace Meng. Meng would eventually win the primary and go on to win the election, but some saw Crowley’s decision to run and possibly lose the support of the party leadership as a potentially costly one, espe-

cially since the district she represents is as likely to vote Republican as it is Democrat, but her political career has weathered the storm.

“If you look at the issues facing the city, they are different than those facing a congressional office.

In Congress, you have the opportunity to influence change on a national level, and sometimes on an international level, and at the time I felt that I was the best candidate to represent the district,” Crowley said. “I did weigh the pros and cons, and I felt that it was the right choice to run.”

And Crowley knows that some of the decisions she makes on the City Council won’t always sit well with her constituents, but she can only do what she thinks is right. “You have a role to your constituents, but there is going to be a time when your constituents are not going to agree with every vote you take,”

“I had no regrets after that campaign was over because I had the chance to get my vision out there...”

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she said. “But I know that my constituents have enough confidence in me to elect me. Nobody ever gets 100 percent of the vote, so you have to have thick skin and realize that you are here to make decisions.

At the end of the day, you can’t assume that you are going to please all of the people all of the time and make everybody happy.”

C

rowley’s district consists of mostly single-family homes and is predominately white, but it does have a growing Latino population. Most families own cars, and don’t rely as much on public transportation. There’s also less turnover than some other neighborhoods in Queens, as families tend to put down roots for generations.

“When people grow up here, often they want to stay and raise their own family. And when they are fin-

ished raising their family, they look to retire and stay here,” Crowley told It’s Queens at her district office on Dry Harbor Road in Middle Village about one week after the controversial veto override. “So we care about public safety and quality of life issues. The need for good education is one of the most important concerns, and I feel like we have been able to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time.”

A new high school was recently built in the district, and several other schools have expanded. But Crowley says, ironically, the improvements have made the schools more desirable, spreading even increased resources thin. “Ten years ago, a lot more kids were going to parochial schools,” explained Crowley. “Even though these schools have expanded, they have become more desirable to parents who once sent their kids to Catholic schools.”

Crowley has also focused recently on improving Forest Park, where she once worked as a teenager. She has tried to attract prominent members of the community to the board of directors to help raise money for the park and steer it into the future.

She also advocated strongly for landmarking the park’s historic carousel, which was achieved earlier this year. “The carousel raises the profile of the park, and the park is a resource that many in the surrounding area don’t take advantage of,” she said.

Crowley can still serve one more term after her current term, so could be in office for several more years, drawing on the experience she gained during her first four in office. “I learned how to advocate and how to make sure the energy you are using toward a certain issue is getting spent the right way,” she said. “When you first get here, you don’t exactly know who in the

mayor’s office is working on certain issues, and you have to establish relationships with them. I’ve learned that’s very important.”

But even she realizes that someday it will be her turn to leave behind the life of a public servant, and hopes her accomplishments during that time will be remembered favorably. “I hope I’m remembered as somebody who worked hard and took my job seriously,” she said. “A council member that has been persistent with proven results, and that the city is a safer city to live in because of the work I’ve done; that the city is a better place to educate your child.

Queens is going to keep growing, and I want people to continue to want to be here. I’m not afraid of a New York City with a growing population, and I want to be remembered as somebody who fostered that growth.”

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AN EDUCATION FIT FOR

QUEENS

There are, of course, other colleges and universities in the borough of Queens, but it’s Queens College, founded in 1937, that has become the face of the borough in the CUNY system. There’s any number of entertainers, politicians and celebrities that were born and raised in Queens, and as you can imagine many of them received their education here as well. While they didn’t all make it to graduation day because their career came calling, their experience at Queens College no doubt prepared them for the bigger and better things they would go on to. For this issue of It’s Queens, we give you the Top 15 Students of Queens College.

28 0

This former Queens College student broke into the NYC radio scene back in 1971 with WNEW-FM and became known for his legendary interviews with rockers like Elton John, Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney and John Lennon. Today, Elsas can be heard on Sirius XM Satellite Radio’s Classic Vinyl channel.

DENNIS ELSAS

Attended in the mid-60s

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28 0

HELEN MARSHALL Class of ‘72

With a Bachelor of English from Queens College, former City Councilwoman Helen Marshall was elected the 18th Queens Borough President in November 2001 and has since become the face of the borough. Now serving in her third and final term as borough president, Marshall placed a deep focus on education, health care, housing and making Queens a tourist destination.

JON FAVREAU Attended in the mid-80s

Jon Favreau first made his way into the hearts of the American movie world with his supporting role as D-Bob in the film Rudy in 1993. But before that, this Flushing native went to Queens College for three years and dropped out for a job on Wall Street. He came back in 1988 and left again with just a few credits to go, but this time he hit it big after working his way through the Chicago comic-improv scene. He took several television roles on shows like “Seinfeld” as Eric the Clown in the episode “Fire” and as Monica Geller’s boyfriend for several episodes on “Friends.” He has since continued to star, direct and write in several films, including Couples Retreat, Cowboys and Aliens and, most notably, Iron Man.

www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 27

CoNVENIENCE & CHoICES

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The Queens Literary Scene Wendy Angulo, Peggy Robles Alvarado, Erik “Advocate of Wordz” Maldonado, and Mark A. Vigo of Canvas of Words; Nancy Agabian of Heightening Stories workshop (Jackson Heights); Megan DiBello and Dan Dissinger of Poetry Teachers NYC, and Emily Herzlin of Mindful Writing and other workshops.

I also represented my roving reading and live writing series Nature of the Muse, offered a special promotion for Jackson Heights-founded Theatre 167’s new show “PIRIRA,” and read a statement from theatre arts collective Mission to (dit) MARS (who run the Propulsion Lab playwrights’ workshop and the Launch Pad Reading Series for plays) because they couldn’t be there in person.

It was a night filled with promise – created by Queens, for Queens, in Queens. As the host and curator, I was overwhelmed with utmost pride for my

borough and the people who feel as passionately about it as I do. At one point during the spoken word performance of Canvas of Words, tears came to my eyes. We sometimes get so consumed by the logistics – always rushing, rush-

ing, rushing through our endless to-do lists, myriad jobs, and day-to-day grind.

It was so special to just sit there in that moment and feel the resonance – to remember all over again just why I do this,

continued from page 12

why we all do this: for the love of words.

Poetry, prose, novels, plays, spoken word, and everything in between – there is an inherent magic in sharing our stories and expressions, and together that night we proved to ourselves and to each other that Queens has so much more to share and do. We are constantly creating the kind of culture we want to be a part of. I always say – if we don’t do it, who will?

For more info on Audrey visit audreydimola.com, for an up-todate list of Queens literary resources visit boundlesstales. com/queens-lit-resources, and to learn about Queens Council on the Arts’ 3rd Space opportunities visit queenscouncilarts.org/3rd-space or email qca3rdspace@gmail.com.

www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 29

JOE CROWLEY Class of ‘81

0

Joe Crowley first became a member of the U.S. House of Representatives in 1999. Now, as the vice-chair of the Democratic Caucus, this Queens County representative is the highest seated congress person in the state and among the highest ranked in the country, all of which could not have been possible without his education from Queens College, where he received a degree in political science. Crowley has been involved in New York politics since the age of 24, beginning his career in the state Assembly.

JOY BEHAR Class of ‘64

Before she was an actress, a comedian and the cohost on “The View” and later host of “The Joy Behar Show” on HLN, this Williamsburg native earned her Bachelor of Sociology from Queens College in 1964 and later a Master of English from SUNY at Stony Brook in 1966.

Behar first got her foot in the show business door as a standup comedian in the 1980s before taking a number of roles on the big screen in Woody Allen’s Manhattan Murder Mystery and This is My Life.

30 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

FRAN DRESCHER Attended in the mid-70s

Famous for her nasal-voice, thick New York accent and role as Fran Fine in “The Nanny” in the 1990s, this Queens College student grew up in the Kew Gardens community and attended Hillcrest High School in Jamaica. Before hitting it big on primetime television, Drescher took roles in Saturday Night Fever, American Hot Wax and Summer of Fear.

ADRIAN BRODY Class of ‘94

Born and raised in Woodhaven, this big-screen actor went to I.S. 135 Joseph Pulitzer Middle School and Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Performing Arts, before finally making his way to Queens College.

Best known for his lead role in Roman Polanski’s The Pianist in 2002, Brody became the youngest actor to win the Academy Award for Best Actor. Over the years he has starred in hits like The Thin Red Line, Spike Lee’s Summer of Sam and the remake of King Kong.

www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 31

MICHAEL SAVAGE Class of ‘63

0 11 28 0 ROBERT MOOG Class of ‘57

A pivotal innovator and pioneer in the modern electric music scene, Robert Moog changed the game when he invented the Moog synthesizer. After graduating from Queens College with a degree in physics in 1957, Moog went on to Columbia University for a degree in electrical engineering and later got his Ph.D. in engineering physics from Cornell University. In 1964, he invented one of the most widely used electronic musical instruments when he produced the first voltage-controlled subtractive synthesizer, after he was approached by electronic music pioneer Raymond Scott with the request.

Upon its development, Moog presented his synthesizer via keyboard control, and in 1966 he filed the patent for what would later mark his place in music and Queens College history.

32 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

Host of the nationally syndicated “Savage Nation,” Michael Savage, graduated from Queens College in 1963 with a degree in biology.

With an estimated 10 million listeners per week on 400 stations, this New York City native built a radio empire back in the mid-to late-1990s with his politically conservative driven talk show.

He has written nearly 30 books, eight under his name, several of which made it to the New York Times Bestsellers List.

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CHARLES WANG

Class of ‘67.

Born in Shanghai, China, Charles Wang came with his family to Queens when he was eight years old and grew up and attended high school in Fort Greene. Before establishing Computer Associates in 1976 and becoming part-owner of the New York Islanders in 2000, Wang earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Queens College. He went on to Columbia University’s Riverside Research Center to further peruse computer technology. In 1989, it was reported that CA Technologies became the first software company to reach $1 billion in revenues.

MARVIN FREDERICK HAMLISCH Class of ‘67.

This child prodigy started his college education out early as a Juilliard School Pre-College Division by the time he was seven years old, however it wasn’t until he attended Queens College that he earned a Bachelor of the Arts degree. Throughout his career, Hamlisch took to the stage as the pianist for Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand; his song “Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows” was picked up by greats like Liza Minnelli; and he wrote music for Woody Allen early on in the director’s career. Hamlisch is one of the most well known in the business and was recognized for his success throughout his career with Emmys, Grammys, Oscars and even a Tony Award.

34 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

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www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 35

RAY ROMANO Attended in 1975

A native of Forest Hills Gardens, Ray Romano graduated from Hillcrest High School in 1975 and later studied accounting at Queens College.

While he never pursued a career in finance, this television sitcom star, best known for the CBS hit “Everybody Loves Raymond,” soon took to the comedy circuit. He competed on the “Johnnie Walker Comedy Search” in the late 1980s and later picked up a reoccurring role on the sitcom “NewsRadio,” and even had a voice over on “Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist.” Whether he became a bookkeeper or auditor, no matter what, Queens will always love this comedic television star

CAROLE KING Attended in 1958

The Manhattan native began her legendary music career when she first met her music partner and lyricist Gerry Goffin while attending Queens College in the 1960s. Carole King later went on to write one of her most famous songs, “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” with Goffin, and well over 100 pop hits that reached the Billboard Hot 100 and UK singles charts over the years. This four-time Grammy Award winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer holds the record for an album with the most weeks at number one with 1971’s Tapestry, which featured hits like “It’s Too Late,” So Far Away” and “I Feel the Earth Move.”

36 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

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38 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

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PAUL SIMON Class of ‘63

After graduating from Forest Hills High School, rock legend Paul Simon briefly attended Queens College for his undergraduate in English and later earned his degree in English Literature. Simon was also a brother with the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity while attending the school. He later went on to become one of the most influential American musicians and singer-songwriters of our time as half of the legendary Simon and Garfunkel, formed in 1964, with hits like “The Sound of Silence,” “Mrs. Robinson” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, Simon played a key role in pop culture history and helped to shape modern rock and folk-rock music.

40 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

JERRY SEINFELD Class of ‘75

Before forever changing the way we watch television sitcoms and launching the most successful show about nothing, Jerry Seinfeld transferred to Queens College for his degree in Communications and Theater. After graduating in 1976, he took to the stand-up circuit at open-mic nights across New York City and later landed his first television gig on “Catch a Rising Star.” Next, it was on to one of his most well known first early sightings on Rodney Dangerfield’s HBO Special, before later launching his career into superstardom.

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Pain Management Specialists of New York and its founder Ari B. Lerner, M.D. specialize in diagnosing and treating pain arising from a wide variety of situations including sports, motor vehicle and work place injuries. Dr. Lerner knows what attorneys and insurance companies are looking for and will serve as a seamless component of a legal or insurance team in moving their clients through the medical process to alleviate or eliminate pain or provide expert testimony in a court of law. In their new state-of-the-art facilities, their specialists provide individualized outpatient care for transient, acute or chronic pain.

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and expertise to handle a broad scope of interventional (minimally invasive spine surgery where the focus is on the spine) and non-interventional treatments, such as medication, rehabilitation, physical therapy, acupuncture, TENS (trans-cutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) and biofeedback to manage pain.

Ari B. Lerner, M.D. Founder

mon pain complaints from lower back pain, sciatica, hip and neck pain to arthritis and pain arising from the aging process.

Insurance is accepted, including 1199, BCBS, HIP, Medicaid (only Part 2), Medicare, Fidelis, Workers Compensation, No Fault, Personal Injury and more.

With an education from Columbia University and SUNY Downstate, Dr. Ari. B Lerner focuses his medical services on pain medicine and specializes in interventional procedures. He is Board Certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology in both Pain Medicine and Anesthesiology. Dr. Lerner was also a recipient of the Award for Academic Excellence in Anesthesiology.

For a consultation, call Dr. Ari Lerner at Pain Management Specialists of New York today.

Board Certified in anesthesiology and pain medicine, the staff of Pain Management Specialists have the training

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For more than three decades, Stephen D. Hans & Associates, P.C. has represented New York businesses involved in labor disputes, employment lawsuits and employment-related government agency investigations.

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Stephen D. Hans & Associates is located at 45-18 Court Square, LIC, Queens 718-275-6700

718-275-6700 www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 43

When it Comes to Investing, You Need Solid Advice advertorial

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44 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

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Television you can’t find anywhere else.

Go To

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to view the award-winning video

Queens Public Television · Daniel J. Leone, President/CEO · Board of Directors - Patrick J. DiMotta, Chairman · Nayibe Berger, Sandra Delson, Stuart Domber, John B. Haney, Alfred Harris, Henry Kee, Joan Serrano-Laufer, Ruth Schlossman For more information contact Roslyn Nieves, Community Development Manager: (718) 886-8160 ext. 324 communitydevelopment@qptv.org 41-61 Kissena Boulevard, Suite 2077, Flushing, New York, 11355 FAX (718) 886-8168 | QPTV Information Line (718) 886-4880 www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 47

HIGH END BEEF COMES TO LIC

by Gloria Tsoi

“F

unk. There’s a funkiness to it.”

That is how Joel Reiss, Executive Chef of S Prime Steakhouse, describes the effect of dry aging on beef. Funk may not be the most appealing adjective, but how about meatier, sweeter, more tender and for lack of a better term, beefier?

Dry aging is a long and complicated process that allows for

the enzymes in the meat’s muscle cells to break down the proteins, fats, and carbohydrates into amino acids, fatty acids, and sugars. These amino acids, such as glutamate, are a source of umami, a deeper, richer flavor. The sugars make the beef sweeter and the dry aging process weakens the connective tissue around protein strands, tenderizing the meat. The meat also 48 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

loses moisture, so there is even more concentrated beef flavor. Given the expense, space, time and care dry aging takes, it is not surprising that it can only be found in the finest restaurants.

At S Prime, a boutique steakhouse in Long Island City, Chef Reiss takes it a step further; instead of purchasing his dry aged beef from Pat LaFrieda, a high-end meat distributor, he has developed his own dry aging program. “I’m a little OCD and a

cardboard and plastic wrap, so the room is strictly dedicated to the beef. He plans to line another wall with oak from whiskey barrels to impart even more flavor. The prime Black Angus beef is from Creekstone Farms, where it is 80% grass fed and finished with corn feeding; the result is a beautifully marbled, flavorful and tender steak.

When you have such an amazing product, you can cook it simply to let the meat shine. The steak is

control freak, I want to do it myself,” he shares, “Every piece of meat has the price, the date, the weight, the name of the guy I got it from.”

He created a special dry aging room that is temperature controlled, humidity controlled, bathed in UV lights, and lined with Himalayan rock salt for extra flavor. He learned that the meat will absorb any flavors from the environment, including

generously seasoned with salt and coarse ground black pepper and then cooked to perfection in a 1600-degree infrared broiler. The steak is allowed to rest, so that the juices can re-circulate, and then it is bathed in a ladleful of “Love.”

Reiss explains, “We take the fat that we trim off the dry aged meat and render it down. We call it ‘Love.’”

The amber gold fat adds even more

flavor to the steak.

At S Prime, you can get a 28day aged rib eye or porterhouse, a 35-day aged NY strip or sirloin or you can opt for the signature rib eye that is aged for 60 days.

“I’m just passionate about food; I’m always playing and trying different things,” Reiss says. He is currently experimenting with aging a steak for 120 days.

It is hard to talk about steak in New York without mentioning Peter Luger, the gastronomic temple of beef that has been around for over 125 years.

Peter Luger dry ages its sublime signature porterhouse for two; however, they refuse to reveal the exact number of days. It was here that Reiss first encountered dry aged steak and he speaks

highly of it: “It’s a classic steak house, one of the best in the city.” But he also notes that “we are different, we are more modernized – people nowadays want more.”

What would be Chef Reiss’s perfect meal at S Prime? “I would start with the agave braised pork belly with pickled cabbage and homemade mozzarella

tomato salad. Cajun rib eye is my favorite steak in the world and I would have Lap Cheong fried rice for a side.” He tells me that the mozzarella couldn’t be fresher – it is pulled to order for each customer.

Reiss isn’t just passionate about food; the wine and bar selection at S prime includes a $3200 bottle of wine and “a great bourbon and scotch selection. I take pride in that.” Reiss also serves a Manhattan that has been aged in oak barrels for 30 days.

What if you aren’t in the mood for steak? S Prime also has other options: roasted chicken that has been brined and served with a roasted garlic jus, crispy organic Scottish salmon, pan seared tuna that is locally sourced

from Montauk and “a scallop benedict that people go crazy for.”

S Prime Steakhouse is located at 35-15 36th Street in Long Island City. For reservations, call (718) 707-0660 or online at sprimenyc.com.

A LOCAL BOY RETURNS

Joel Reiss was born and raised in Queens, and although he has worked in many impressive Manhattan restaurants, The Post House, Maloney & Porcelli, Orsay and Artisanal, just to name a few, he is happy to be back in Queens.

He was approached by the S Hospitality Group (whose owners are from Jackson Heights) and when he saw the spot he “fell in love with it – it’s a beautiful little spot.” Long Island City is “up and coming – it’s booming with restaurants, good little places. People should come check it out, expand their horizons.”

Reiss lives in Oceanside and tries to support the local community as much as he can, participating in events such as Taste of Long Island City and donating gift certificates to local charities.

He hopes that he will attract not just the locals but that people will make the trip from Manhattan as well. He states that “most steakhouses in the city aren’t doing what I do here.” He points out that from Midtown, it is only a quick 15 minute train ride to the restaurant.

www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 49

Endangered History Top 5 Non-Landmarks of Queens With a such a rich history, it goes without saying that Queens has a number of buildings and neighborhoods that have been landmarked - from Douglas Manor to the Unipshere - to preserve them for future generations. But there are plenty of other historic buildings and neighborhoods that the borough risks losing forever if they aren’t protected, or as we like to call them: “Non-Landmarks.”

Transfiguration Church 64-14 Clinton Avenue Maspeth Transfiguration Roman Catholic Church has been serving the Maspeth community since it was founded in 1908, becoming the first Lithuanian national church in the neighborhood. It was originally located at Hull Avenue, but today is housed in a unique church on Clinton Avenue. While not necessarily as “old” as other landmarks, the building is covered in beautiful Lithuanian folk art and the front door is adorned with the words, “Mano Namai Maldos Nami,” which means, “My house is a house of prayer.” Even today, many of the services are still offered in the Lithuanian language, giving Queens not only a building with unique architecture, but one that represents the historic diversity of the borough.

5

Ahles House

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39-24 213th Street Bayside The Ahles House in Bayside, built in 1873 by Robert Bell for his daughter Lydia and her husband John William Ahles, is a reminder of a 19th century Bayside characterized by suburban villas and farmhouses. The Ahles House came close to being landmarked in 2009, when it was calendared for a hearing by the Landmarks Preservation Commission, but nothing ever came of it. When Ahles died in 1915, his obituary in the New York Times made mention of the grandeur of the house, which is thought to be one of the oldest surviving homes in Bayside. Two other mansions that Bell built have already succumbed to development pressures: one was demolished for office space, the other for a funeral home.

3

Flushing Meadows Corona Park While there are individual landmarks located in the park, much of the infrastructure and history associated with the 1939 and 1964 World’s Fairs is not protected. In addition to the fairs, the United Nations briefly called the park home when it was first formed.

You might not think there would be a need to protect parkland, but even the city’s open spaces aren’t immune from development, as the borough recently found out when Major League Soccer proposed a new soccer stadium. If the city is apprehensive about landmarking the entire park, it should at least consider preserving iconic structures like the Tent of Tomorrow that have become synonymous with the borough.

Cornell Farmhouse 73-50 Little Neck Parkway Floral Park When the commission considers a site for landmarking, one of the criteria is if the location has any historical significance. Well, the Cornell Farmhouse has that covered. A rare example of a colonial farmhouse, the oldest buildings on the farm date back to the mid18th century and reflect the mixture of Dutch colonial and New England influences that were common among Long Island homes. The home is already listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and while that is a great distinction, it doesn’t prevent the home from possibly being torn down and lost forever.

2

Broadway-Flushing

1

Just a few minutes from the hustle and bustle of Downtown Flushing is a quiet neighborhood with stately homes and spacious yards known as Broadway-Flushing. This planned community was developed in 1906, and was designed to be a suburb in an urban setting. The homes reflect a variety of styles, and Broadway-Flushing is a sister neighborhood to Douglas Manor, which has been landmarked by the city.

While deed restrictions created by the developer places limitations on what can be built or altered, it hasn’t stopped some people from taking advantage of the large lots to build homes many feel are out of character with the original vision for the community. Over 1,300 buildings make up the Broadway-Flushing Historic District, which was added to both the National and State Registers, but so far the city has refused to landmark the neighborhood.

www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 51

by Hoyt Jacobs

Into an Exotic Land

Queens is the second most populous borough in NYC, and the most culturally diverse urban area in the world.

And with almost 50% of the population here born in another country, there outta be an abundance of culturally shocking bars to whet your whistle. Or so we reasoned, as we hit the streets looking for something more than the standard Irish and German bars to toss back pint after pint after pint. And, well, we had to cheat a little (we assure you, the Irish and German places in the following pages are anything but standard). Presented for your vicarious drinking pleasure, five of the most culturally “foreign” watering holes in Queens.

Murphy’s Bar 48-20 Skillman Ave, Sunnyside, NY 11104

Flitting shade and shadows cast by wind and trees on a Sunnyside street. Blinking in the early evening light. Occasional traffic punctuating the steady roar of curse-infused conversation.

Much like in the home country, outside Murphy’s Bar the locals congregate to smoke and trade stories between pints inside a nondescript watering hole filled with live music, food, and, yes, more colorful stories of colorful Irishmen and women told in varying shades of brogue. Over the course of a single Guinness pint, this casual eavesdropper was introduced to a world of broken horsemen, hard women who “got the job done”, and schoolboy bar crawls which hung like clouds and rainbows Murphy’s Bar over the bar, threatening to distract from all the fun everyone was currently having.

Being in Murphy’s is like walking into a Pogues song. Or inhabiting Joyce’s “The Dead” just before everyone got too drunk to be fun anymore.

Polish German Clubhouse We were a bit confused walking into the Polish German Clubhouse in Ridgewood one sunny afternoon –what would we find? Patrons gleefully chasing wodka with applesauce slathered pierogi?

Lederhosened men singing “Deutschlandlied” and slinging steins of Hefeweizen? Some combination of the two involving a steel and leather arm wrestling station? Based on recent history, we treated these possibilities as best case scenarios as we nervously approached…

And fortunately, it turns out we had nothing to worry about. The Polish-German puzzle has a lot more to do with the compounded diaspora of ethnic minorities from Europe to America –an historical niche whose exposition is prohibitively rich. (We’re already running out of space here.)

That said, you’d be hard pressed to find a more welcoming bar than the Polish German Clubhouse. Expect a cozy, family friendly space with an extra helping of Polishness. Regulars are friendly and welcoming, if not quite as off-theboat as some other bars we visited.

Friday and Saturday nights are for merrymaking and song sessions, when a corner of the bar –the one with the fireplace— is filled with local musicians and travelers playing serious music and laughing between songs. The patrons know what they’re doing, but expect to have a bit of someone’s pint kindly sloshed on you before the night’s over. It’s that kind of bar. Which, one imagines, is exactly like it is in the home country.

Polish German Clubhouse www.murphysbarnyc.com

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576 Fairview Ave, Ridgewood, NY 11385

www.yelp.com/biz/ polish-german-clubhouse-ridgewood

Into an Exotic Land

Andre’s Carne de Tres

Zum Stammtisch

51-05 58th St.

69-46 Myrtle Ave. Glendale, NY 11385

“Glass or a Stein”, the bartender asks me. I glance sidelong at the Dirndl clad waitress and order a glass, which I immediately regret. The rest of the bar is crenelated with robust steins and I feel out of place with the stem of my schooner resting delicately between my thumb and index finger.

Otherwise, I’m feeling right at home: with ornate steins, Jagermeister paraphernalia, and taxidermy lining the walls, Zum Stammtisch may have the look of a German bar, but rest assured it’s a Glendale local through and through. That isn’t to say Zum Stammtisch we aren’t in a foreign land here. Indeed, the patrons are an accent and a pair of lederhosen away from Bavaria, giving Zum Stammtisch a kind of skewed authenticity: one feels as though they have been transported to a working class German bar… where the locals speak perfect English.

Adjacent to a spacious (and aesthetically enticing) restaurant area, the bar at Zum Stammtisch is all cozy and dark wood, with plush red benches lining the walls, and just enough space to squeeze through the crowd without bothering the frequent toasts that lend that sense of fraternal goodwill everyone associates with German drinking establishments. Sadly, no round of “Über den Wolken” was to be heard.

But a table in the restaurant did do a smashing rendition “Happy Birthday.” www.zumstammtisch.com

Woodside, NY 11377 Even though it’s location on 58th St. is flanked on three sides by graveyards, it takes me a few beers to figure out why Andre’s Carne de Tres, ostensibly Columbia’s answer to Applebee’s, gives me the creeps. Inside, the restaurant/bar is filled with lively music and blinding disco lights (even at 5 in the afternoon on a Thursday the ambiance is Friday Night, which doesn’t seem to bother the few scattered families in the restaurant one bit). Life-size cardboard effigies of Rocky Balboa and carnival cutouts stand among more standard roadhouse bric-a-brac on the walls, ceiling, and floor. The restaurant space sprawls between two small bars; it’s impossible to imagine a Saturday night here sans impromptu dance party.

But, like I mentioned, it gives me the creeps the second I walk in the door. My guts roil and the words “Columbian Coffin” play repeatedly in my brain. It is the sense of unexpectedly walking into a haunted house: tacky and loud, Margaritaville gone nightmarish. Which of course means that I love it.

After a couple of beers, my eyes adjust to the wild interplay of dark wood and laser lights. I begin to see the haunted bric-abrac lying sprung and waiting in Andre’s nooks and crannies.

A light traces briefly over a rafter, giving the faintest glimpse of a taxidermy deer head. A clown painted in the style of John Wayne Gacy guards the exit. There is a bloody Halloween head sitting next to the taps only a few inches from my beer. I am trembling. Just another round of Dutch courage before I set out on my long walk home. It is already dark outside… www.yelp.com/biz/el-rancho-deandres-carne-de-tres-woodside

Andre’s Carne de Tres www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 53

Into an Exotic Land

Platinum Lounge

It’s a win-win situation: the men-folk get drunk faster and the girls make more money while enjoying a refreshing sip of 41-16 Fuller Pl, whatever neon concoction they’re drinking… while maintainFlushing, NY 11355 10:30pm: I am scrutinized by the security guard outside a con- ing a decidedly sober level of poise. Suddenly my ten dollar verted apartment building in a narrow street on the industrial Coors doesn’t look so bad. (It still tastes bad, however.) side of Flushing. He trusts neither me nor my NY State issued ID. I ask him what time they close. He tells me “later.” And 11:15: More girls are brought into the lounge. Dressed in what time do they open? “I don’t know.” I am eventually al- “something more comfortable” than the bartenders, they relowed to take the elevator to the 2nd floor bar, though all the cline on couches, openly suffering the same level of boredom signs taped to the foyer walls indicate the 3rd floor is where it that those of us seated at the bar are fervently trying to deny with dice and drinks. After about ten minutes the couch ladies is really happening. Whatever it is. stand, line up, and dutifully move toward an open door in the 10:45: The first thing that hits me when the elevator doors corner of the lounge. Ten girls disappear behind into the room open is the smell of cigarettes. I can’t tell where it’s coming and are quickly quarantined by a heavy black door. from –none of the girls or clients is smoking. But I just quit smoking and the smell is almost unbearably welcoming. I 11:30: I’ve watched drunken men young and old chat it up with settle onto a bar stool, scanning the room for butts, terrible composed and collected hostess girls, abandon their drinks on pop music and disco lights washing over me, security guards the bar, and stumble off for ten or fifteen minute intervals more times than I can count over an hour of nursing my beer. While I scrutinizing me from both corners of my eyes. want to know the secret things that happen behind closed doors 10:55 : There are a minimum of four bartenders in daisy duke here –those magical interludes that return men to their bar shorts and sweaters behind the bar at all times. Why they are stools looking as detached and disappointed as they did when wearing sweaters in a relatively warm bar I don’t know, and they left them. I want to laugh and drink and roll dice on the bar with security breathing down my neck I don’t want to risk rock- and make the girls squeal with delight when I “lose” (and, well, ing the boat with any questions, odd or otherwise. They’ve had I want that concession drink too.) But I don’t have the credit card me pegged as an outsider from the start, a fact that is driven minimum in my back account, so it’s time to go. home when my bartender comes back informing me that they don’t have change for the ten dollar bill I used to pay for a As I clear my things off the bar, my favorite hostess - the one Coors Light. Oh, and the credit card minimum is $100. She with the (no doubt revenue generating) braces on her teeth— seems so sincerely concerned about the dilemma that I don’t pouts in flawless American English, “You’re leaving already?” bother fighting it. This is a hostess bar, after all. I am here to It is my first personal interaction with anyone in the bar. I tell her it’s past my bedtime. She giggles in a way that I choose to play at being a rube. believe is sincere, but is caught short when she realizes I’m not 11:10: The ambient noise at Platinum Lounge offer perfect making a joke. “Ok, bye.” She moves two bar stools down and complement to the carnival mix of pop songs, lasers, smoke, picks up a cup of dice. and neon drinks compulsively sipped via over-long straws by the hostesses. Almost everyone at the bar is engaged in some www.yelp.com/biz/platinum-lounge-flushing kind of agitating sound production: the shrill conversational tones of the hostesses; the patrons playing a dice game whose minutia I remain ignorant of, but whose overriding rule seems to be encouraging everyone to drink more.

54 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

’s

Q&A with Richard Romano about The Investigator and his search for the existence of Jesus Christ

By Andrew Shilling ashilling@queensledger.com

Until now, RICHARD ROMANO, the oldest brother of comedian Ray Romano, has never thought of himself as a part of the showbiz community.

Growing up, the Forest Hills Gardens native was raised by his parents Albert and Lucie Romano in a middle-class family on sports and Catholic school.

As depicted in his brother Ray’s television show, “Everybody Loves Raymond,” Romano later went on to become a police officer with the NYPD and to pursue a life he always felt was his duty.

It was there where Romano saw things he said could not be unseen and soon began questioning his faith in God, something he said he always blindly accepted as fact.

He eventually retired and landed a job teaching criminal justice and coaching a local high school baseball team. Romano wrote the screenplay for the 2013 film The Investigator about his class at the school and their search for factual evidence of the existence of Jesus Christ.

I met up with Richard at his childhood home in Forest Hills last week to discuss his investigation, his Hollywood debut and whether he found what he was looking for.

It’s Queens: What was it like growing up in Forest Hills?

Richard Romano: I thought it was great. It was a great community. You could just walk out of the house and you go knock on somebody’s door and you played in the street, you played in the schoolyard, it was really great and it was a lot of fun.

IQ: What school did you go to?

RR: We went to P.S. 34 over here, and me and my brother Ray went to Queen of Our Lady Martyrs, my younger brother went to Our Lady of Mercy, only because it wasn’t open yet when we were that age, and we walked all over the place.

We hung out through our teen years at P.S. 34 playing sports.

IQ: What was your favorite sport to play growing up?

RR: We played softball, basket-

ball, handball, stickball; we loved it.

I don’t know how other towns were, but we were so close in this town.

We had the teen club at Our Lady of Mercy. The church was a big thing in this town for us.

the neighborhood?

RR: Before I was a cop I coached in Little League baseball, Forest Hills Little League, and also in a football league based in Forest Hills.

IQ: In the movie you are depicted as a police detective who coaches and inspires the lives of children on a baseball team. Did you coach in

IQ: How did you get into that?

RR: I don’t know, I just remember they needed coaches and there were some kids down by the www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 55

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schoolyard who said something.

And actually, me and my brother Ray both coached over there. We loved baseball, we love kids and we had fun. I did that for like 10 years and I think Raymond did it for like five, and it was great. Then when I became a police officer, my time became limited and I stopped.

IQ: What made you decide to join the police force?

RR: That was just my dream since right around age 15. There was just something put on my heart and I felt compelled to help people and I thought it was an honorable job. I just felt like it was something that I was called to do.

IQ: Which precinct?

RR: I started over here at the 110th Precinct in Corona and Jackson Heights. As a rookie, I was there for about two years, then I went to Manhattan, Harlem, Spanish Harlem and I made sergeant and spent the rest of my career in Harlem and other parts of Manhattan.

IQ: When did you retire?

RR: I retired right after 9/11.

IQ: Were you a first responder?

RR: I was there the next day. And I lived in Queens my whole life up

until that point, and then I decided to move out east. The houses were a little cheaper, and I moved to Mount Sinai and then Nantucket.

IQ: How do you like living out there?

RR: I hate it. (laughs) I don’t know if you can print that but I feel like a fish out of water there.

IQ: So this movie is about you, and your “investigation.” Can you explain what that is and how that came about?

RR: There were a few incidents in the Police Department where there was a shooting, I was in narcotics and one of my officers shot an unarmed man. It was a political event, there was a lot of publicity and I had a lot of notoriety because I was the supervisor in charge and also because Ray Romano is my brother.

IQ: I’m sure that got played up pretty well in the NY Post.

RR: Yeah, I think one of the headlines was something like, “Everybody Doesn’t Love Raymond’s Brother.” So I was advised that I should retire after 20 years because I was too high profile and after that I had a personal tragedy. My wife at the time lost a baby and it kind of shook up my faith. I was just questioning things.

IQ: Growing up, what was the faith like in the Romano household?

RR: We were Catholics and we were sent to Catholic grammar school, Catholic high school and all the way up to St. John’s University.

We did everything: the communion, the baptism, the confirmation and all that stuff. When you’re Catholic, you’re just told what to believe. Sometimes things aren’t explained to you as much as many other denominations. So I was just blindly following. I guess everybody has their own personal hells and demons to live with, but as I was a police officer maybe I had more.

IQ: How did you go about searching for the truth in God? RR: At that same time, I happened to have just landed a job at a school that needed a baseball coach and a criminal justice teacher, and it just so happened to be a Christian school. Right around that same time those students had their own crisis of faith because the youth pastor there was arrested and did a lot of bad things.

The students there believed the messenger and not the message.

In other words, whatever he taught them about Christ went out the window because he was arrested,

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so they kind of lost their faith in everything.

Just as a coincidence, it was at the same time I did. Because I was teaching them criminal justice we were doing investigations on the John F. Kennedy conspiracy and all that, and one of them asked me to do an investigation on Jesus Christ, to see if he really lived or existed.

IQ: Where did you go to find that out?

RR: The first thing I had to do was tell myself - and I told them - that I was not going to use the Bible because the Bible could be prejudiced. I went through theologians, and mostly historians, and the study of historical documents and just analyzing the credible historical documents that were not prejudiced for Christianity because I didn’t really care what the Christian documents said.

IQ: Who was one of the historians that broke the case for you?

RR: There was a Jewish historian, Josephus, who wrote about the time of Christ, and he wrote about the existence of this leader, Jesus Christ, who led Israel astray, as he says.

But he validated the existence of

Christ, and I was kind of stunned there. I said, “Wow, so he is a real figure.” So there’s a lot of neutral and anti-Christian sources that say that Christ was a real figure, and I went on from there.

IQ: What about sources that questioned faith in Jesus and God? RR: For me, I didn’t care about that stuff. I didn’t really care about having faith or having blind faith.

I needed more. After you finally believe in him, then your faith takes over, but I couldn’t use that. I had to take a logical perspective and take that leap of faith.

After I found out he really lived, I also found out there was debate of his so-called miracles. They were written off as magic and sorcery.

It got me saying, “Hm, something happened there.”

IQ: In your search, what did it have to take for your own satisfaction?

RR: I finally concluded that if I could see if he rose from the dead, well that’s a pretty fantastic event, but if he rose from the dead then I’ll believe that he’s the son of God, and then I’ll believe that’s the most fantastic story in the Bible and I’ll believe the rest of it.

IQ: In The Investigator, the team you were coaching at the time plays a big role in this investigation.

How did they help you in this search?

RR: In the beginning, a few kids wanted to say a prayer after the game and not many joined in; I didn’t join in either. It just so happened that the end of the baseball year paralleled the end of our “investigation.” I remembered thinking, “I don’t know how my investigations going to end.”

IQ: What would have happened if you didn’t find any hard evidence?

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That must have been pretty intimidating?

RR: Yeah, it was scary. I almost quit. I was going to quit, but something just prompted me to stay.

IQ: How did you know you were done?

RR: It was perfect timing. It was God’s timing. It was literally to the last day of the school year when we just finished up our last piece of evidence. I made it a point not to ask any of our students what their verdict of God was. I thought it would be unfair since they were still getting over the youth pastor and how he betrayed them, so I didn’t want to put any pressure on these young 18-year-old men and women.

The last day, one of them asked me, “ What church do you go to Mr. Romano?” And I told them, “It doesn’t matter what church I go to.”

So I could see that at the end there, that I wasn’t sure how they felt. I didn’t want to ask them because it was a personal thing. You have to remember it was a criminal justice class, so it wasn’t a Bible class and it wasn’t a theology class. I used to tell them, “ Your Bible teacher or your pastor or priest can preach to you about having the faith, but I’m not going to do that.”

So it was the last day of school, and most of these students were on the baseball team. And maybe not as a dramatic fashion as it was in the movie, but we lost a championship game and the next thing I knew, they were all kneeling down and praying. I kind of figured the investigation worked, and they started believing again.

Richard Romano is also currently working on a book on his investigation with a working title Sergeant Romano’s Investigation of the Homicide of Jesus Christ.

Entertainment Calendar A Roundup Of All The Cool Happenings In Queens

NOVEMBER FRIDAY, NOV. 1 Farmers Market Friday Shop for a variety of fresh produce, nuts, coffee and butter. @ 8:30 p.m. | The Queens Botanical Garden Farmers Market in Kissena Corridor Park, 43-50 Main St., Flushing.

Teeny Tiny Trick O’Treaters A special carnival just for children will be hosted at Alley Pond Center with fun, and not-too-scary crafts, yummy Halloween snacks, games and more creative activities.

Free. @ 1 p.m. | Alley Pond Environmental Center, 228-06 Northern Blvd., Douglaston Shape Up NYC- Dance Fitness Every Friday, instructor Narupa Denoarine will teach easy dance steps that will increase cardiovascular fitness, tone your body and dance your way to losing that unwanted and regretful postThanksgiving fat! Classes are all for free but space is limited so hurry on up! The event will also run on Nov., 8, 15, 22 and 29. @ 5:30 p.m. | Richmond Hill Library, 11814 Hillside Ave., Richmond Hill

Art Lecture The Noguchi Art Museum in LIC will be staying open for later hours to discuss various artworks in their museum that centers on Japanese art. A cash bar with wine and beer will also be open for those 21 and older. Meet people while analyzing beautiful artwork for this monthly event. @ 5 p.m. | Noguchi Art Museum, 9-01 33rd Road (at Vernon Boulevard), LIC. Film Series Several films from American and Norwegian film director Anja Breien are screened, starting with the 1977 love story, “Games of Love and Loneliness (Den allvarsamma liken)” for the opening night reception. @7 p.m. | Museum of the Moving Image, 36-01 35th Avenue, Astoria. * Ongoing through Nov. 9. Visit (www.movingimage. us) for dates and times.

Theatre Performance The Black Theatre Network is presenting the play, “Smell the Power.” The play is set in Queens and is all about the social, political and ethical issues that arise in many African American families living in the city. @ 8 p.m. | 88-7 Merrick Boulevard, Jamaica.

SATURDAY, NOV. 2 Park Cleanup Day Join the QueensBoro Hill Neighborhood Association for a park cleanup by planting bulbs, mulching, raking leaves and an all-out litter cleanup. @ 9:30 – 1:30 p.m, P.S. 20 (in Browne Playground), 143-20 Barclay Ave., Flushing.

THURSDAY, NOV. 7 Theatre Performance The Poetics Theatre presents William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. $15 - $18. @ 7 p.m. | The Secret Theatre, 44-02 23rd Ave., LIC. * Ongoing through Nov. 16.

Visit (www.secrettheatre.com) for additional dates and times.

Wildlife Weekends This family fun day includes a an intimate look at birds-of-prey, frogs, bugs and animal shows. There will also be hayrides, pony rides and animal feeding. @ 11 a.m.

– 4 p.m. | Queens County Farm Museum (in Queens Farm Park), 73-50 Little Neck Pkwy., Glen Oaks.

FRIDAY, NOV. 8 Theater Performance The Public Theater presents a performance of William Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing.” Free. @ 1 p.m. | Roy Wilkins Recreation Center, 177th Street and Baisley Boulevard, Jamaica.

Classical Music Performance Performers Josh Deutsch and Miki Hirose will showcase their musical talent with the trumpet instrument.

Tickets are $15 for the general audience and $10 for members and students. @ 8 p.m. | Flushing Council on Culture and the Arts, 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing.

18th Century Tavern Nights

TUESDAY, NOV. 5 Deconstructed Flowers Exhibit H. David Stein’s deconstructed flower mosaics are on display, showing the intricacies behind each petal. @ 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. | The Queens Botanical Garden Farmers, 43-50 Main St., Flushing. * The exhibit runs from Tuesdays through Saturdays.

Enjoy an eighteenth-century supper with an open hearth, period tableware, traditional recipes and 1770s decor to recreate these historical tavern nights that occurred long ago in history.

Participants will not only receive a history lesson, but also a meal in itself! $85 per person for nonmembers and $80 for members. @ 8 p.m. | Queens County Farm, 73-50 Little Neck Pkwy., Floral Park SATURDAY, NOV. 9 Queens Museum of Art Reopening The Queens Museum of Art reopens with a bang, offering a full weekend of events such as musical performances, video www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 59

screenings, lectures and plenty of new art exhibits for all. These events and workshops are for those of all ages. Whether you love art or not, a fun time is guaranteed. | Queens Museum of Art, Flushing Meadows Corona Park.

Hands On Art Spend time with the family and make a family tree and play a variety of historic parlor games.

Free. @ 12 – 3 p.m. King Manor Museum (in Rufus King Park), 15003 Jamaica, Ave. Art Exhibition SculptureCenter presents “Tue Greenfort: Garbage Bay” art exhibition by Polish artist Agnieszka Kurant. @ 5 p.m. | Sculpture Center, 44-19 Purves St. LIC. Sunday, Nov. 10 Lions Club 1st Anniversary The Lions Club from Richmond HillSouth Ozone Park is celebrating its first year of existence and service to the community. There will be music, food, dancing and more!

Donation is $75 per person, it is suggested to RSVP by October 31st. | Villa Russo Catering, 10112 Lefferts Blvd., Queens.

Autumn Concert Pop and jazz flautist Stephen C. Josephs and pianist Josh Feldmen perform a number of seasonal tunes. $12, $10 members. @ 2p.m. | The Voelker Orth Museum, 149-19 38th Ave., Flushing.

Autumn Wine Tasting For those 21 and older, Dominick Bruccoleri of Papazzio Restaurant in Bayside invites you for an afternoon of fine wine tasting. A variety of aged and international wine selections and hor d’eouvres will be available. The wine tasting event starts at 2 p.m. and is $50 for each and $45 for Bayside Historical Society members. | 216th St. and 42nd Ave., Bayside.

THURSDAY, NOV. 14 The Little Engine That Could Earn Her Whistle Two performances of “The Little Engine That Could Earn Her Whistle”, the heartfelt story adapted from the children’s story “the Little Engine That Could” will be at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Families are welcome to feast their ears and eyes upon this memorable performance that showcases the overall moral about finding 60 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

your courage and strength when times get tough. Tickets are $14. | Queens Theatre, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, 14 United Nations Avenue South, Flushing Make Origami Wallets The Queens Botanical Garden craft table will be moving into Skyview Center on level D to welcome all in making origami wallets, all for free. This event will not only get you a new wallet but will also teach participants about Japanese culture and the talent of origami folding. | The Shops at Skyview Center, Level D, 40-24 College Point Blvd., Flushing Little Makers: Gingerbread House Children and families are welcome from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to make some yummy gingerbread cookie dough to design and build your own gingerbread house! Get into the holiday spirit a bit earlier this season in this fun activity, only $8 per family with materials provided. | New York Hall of Science, 47-01 111th Ave., Flushing Meadows Corona Park FRIDAY, NOV. 15 Dance performance Join the Mestizo Dance Company with Harold Gutierrez and his band for the Heartbeat of Latino America, a music and dance performance. @ 8 p.m. $35, $32 for students and seniors. $30 on Fridays.| Thalia Spanish Theatre, 47-17 Greenpoint Ave., Sunnyside. * Ongoing through December 15.

Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m.

and Sundays at 4 p.m.

SATURDAY, NOV. 16 Art Exhibition “The unpopular environment?” art seminar is presented in conjunction with the exhibition, “Tue Greenfort: Garbage Bay” for a unique perspective on nature and landscapes of Jamaica Bay. @ 1 p.m. | Sculpture Center, 44-19 Purves St. LIC. A Concert with the Jacob Teichroew Group Jazz “Jacob Teichroew Group” will be performing class Jazz sounds from musicians like Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon and John Coltrane.

The group will improvise and create new jazz sounds as well, honing to Jazz tradition. This performance is completely free and invites everyone with an ear for Jazz! @ 2:30 | Forest Hills Library, 108-19 71st Ave., Forest Hills.

Sunday, Nov. 17 The Hungarian State Folk Ensemble One of the most talented and highest regarded folkloric dance companies, the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble will be performing alongside groups Folk Orchestra and Gipsy Orchestra live on stage. Learn about Hungarian culture through their exciting folk dance styles. | Queensborough Performing Arts Center, 222-05 56th Ave., Bayside Food Workshop Traditional and cultural foods from the Americas, Europe and

Asia will be available for tasting and secret recipes to those who attend, starting at 1 p.m. Tickets are $10 for the general public, $5 for children and free for members.

Excite your taste palette with tasty empanadas, juicy beef patties, dumplings, kim chi, pickles and more! |Flushing Council on Culture and the Arts, 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing.

MONDAY, NOV. 18 New York Cares Meeting The volunteer organization “New York Cares” will be hosting a meeting at the Forest Hills Library to recruit new members and volunteers interested in raising money and helping out various communities. The organization works with 56,000 service volunteers each year helping New Yorkers in need. Who said New Yorkers weren’t nice? | Forest Hills Library, 08-19 71st Ave., Forest Hills.

NOVEMBER 23 New Musical All are welcome for the 7 p.m. performance of “Two People”, a new musical about two people who go through multiple dating disasters in the populated island of Manhattan, passing each other by as strangers on the streets until finally they meet and fall in love. | The Secret Theatre, 4402 23rd St., LIC Legislative Acts 2013 Queens borough’s elected officials will be performing acts of singing,

dancing, acting and comedic talents starting at 7 in the evening.

Parodies of classic TV shows and well known musicals will be showcased as well. The whole evening is a ball of fun and talent. | LeFrak Concert Hall at Queens College, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing.

Friday, Nov. 29 Puppet Workshop Bring out the family for this hourlong puppet-making workshop, and recreate some of your favorite characters on television or make your own using a variety of simple materials. $10, $5 for family members. Ages 7 and up. @ 1:15 p.m. | Museum of the Moving Image, 36-01 35th Ave., Astoria. * Ongoing through Dec. 1.

Barbara Podgurski with the piano to create a harmonious but new sound. @ 7:30 p.m. | The Churchin-the-Gardens, 50 Ascan Ave., Forest Hills.

SUNDAY, DEC. 8 Holiday Market Find your inner holiday spirit with musical performances, a Holiday Marketplace, botanical arts n’ crafts

Dome), 22-25 Jackson Ave., LIC. SATURDAY, DEC. 21 Season of Giving All are invited to create beautiful and intricate Christmas wreaths using fabrics, beads and ribbons.

These wreaths will be donated to local senior centers in Queens to embrace the holiday season of giving and receiving! @ 1p.m. |

SATURDAY, JAN. 25 String Quartet Performance The fresh young string quartet, “PUBLIQuartet” will perform classical string music with a unique spin and all are welcome to listen to this modern sound. @ 7:30 p.m. | The Church-in-the-Gardens, 50 Ascan Ave., Forest Hills.

DECEMBER SUNDAY, DEC. 1 Hanukkah Oh Hanukkah!

The Flushing Council on Culture and Arts hosts two performances of Hanukkah celebrations. Don’t miss the Festival of Lights act with storyteller Robin Bady and violinist Deni Bonet who share stories, songs, traditions and more. @ 1 and 3 p.m. | Flushing Council on Culture and the Arts, 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing SATURDAY, DEC. 7 Wreath Making Workshop All are invited to prepare for the holiday season in this free wreathmaking workshop. Real evergreen and other materials are offered by the Museum. Make your wreath unique and special to decorate your door from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. | Queens County Farm Museum - 73-50 Little Neck Pkwy.

Queens Farm Park.

Film Screening Check out a screening of the 2007 Adnrew Dominic film, “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford,” starring Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sa, Shepard, Mary-Louise Parker and Sam Rockwell. $20, $12 for museum members and free for Silver Screen members. @ 6 p.m. | Museum of the Moving Image, 3601 35th Ave., Astoria. * A second screening will air on Sunday, Dec. 8 at 7 p.m.

Making Music with the Marimba Professional Japanese marimba performer Makoto Nakura showcases various musical styles of marimba playing. Nakura works with Jesse Mills on violin and

All are invited to attend the 11th Annual “After the Holidays” electronic waste event where unwanted or broken electronics such as i-pods, game controllers and such are disposed of in an environmentally healthy way. The Lower East Side Ecology Center and the Queens Botanical Garden are working together to reach their goal of collecting 100 tons this January! Help support their goal from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St., Flushing

and a Garden tour at the Queens Botanical Garden. The event is completely free and runs from 1 – 5 p.m. The Tree Lighting Ceremony will also be hosted @ 4:30 p.m. | Queens Botanical Garden, 43-50 Main St., Flushing.

SATURDAY, DEC. 14 Video Game Exhibition IndieCade presents a number of their newest titles and IndieCade 2013 award winning video games for museum visitors to play and experience. Open during museum hours. | Museum of the Moving Image, 36-01 35th Ave., Astoria. * Ongoing through March 2.

TUESDAY, DEC. 15 Listening Session Primary Information art and publisher James Hoff and art historian Branden Joseph discuss and play music from the career of Detroit noise artist Mike Kelly. $18, $20 day of the event. @ 1 – 6 p.m. | MoMA PS1 (in the VW

Flushing Council on Culture and the Arts, 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing.

THURSDAY, DEC. 26 Tour the Queens County Farm and enjoy a variety of children’s activities while sipping on some mulled cider. Free. @ 12 – 4 p.m. | Queens County Farm (in Queens Farm Park), 73-50 Little Neck Pkwy., Glen Oaks.

FRIDAY, JAN. 31 Latin Musical Original music arrangements set the scene for this world premier musical, “TANGO 5 sentidos,” that explores the world of tango with Latin Grammy winner Raul Jaurena. $35 $32 students and seniors. $30 on Fridays and Valentines Day (Feb. 14) is $50. | Thalia Spanish Theatre, 47-17 Greenpoint Ave., Sunnyside. * Ongoing through Sunday, March 23.

JANUARY SATURDAY, JAN. 5 Music with Branden Joseph and James Hoff followed by X-TG featuring Chris Carter and Cosey Fanni Tutti. $18, $20 day of the event. @ 1 p.m. | MoMA PS1 (in the VW Dome), 22-25 Jackson Ave., LIC. SUNDAY, JAN. 12 Recycling Event www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 61

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Blogs of Queens

Rockawayist rockawayist.com Audience: Resident Interested in the Rockaways One year ago, Hurricane Sandy tore through the Rockaways and disrupted what was a bit of a resurgence for the peninsula, as new people were beginning to discover the charm of this beachfront community. Visitors were pouring in, restaurants were opening up...heck there was even a floating hotel for a bit.

Well, there’s still a lot to see and do, and you can keep tabs on what’s happening here.

Queens Politics queens-politics.com Audience: Borough Political Junkies Queens Politics is an oft-updated blog devoted to bringing its readers analysis of politics in Queens and occasionally the tidbit of insider information, often with an anti-establishment bias.

66 • Fall 5.3 2013 www.itsqueens.com

Rego-Forest Preservation Council regoforestpreservation.blogspot.com Audience: Those Interested in Rego Park & Forest Hills Pretty much what its name suggest, this is a blog focused on the historic preservation of Rego Park and Forest Hills, as well as a place to check out what is going on in the neighborhood today.

Project Woodhaven projectwoodhaven.com Audience: People Who Are All About Woodhaven If you want to know what is going on in Woodhaven, then you have to be tuned in to the Project Woodhaven blog. More than just a blog, it’s actually a clearinghouse for all sorts of information about Woodhaven across a variety of platforms. The site will post not only news and events going on the neighborhood, but videos and other media, as well.

Why Leave Astoria WhyLeaveAstoria.com Audience: Astoria Lovers If you love Astoria (whether you live there or not), chances are you’re a member of the bloggish social networking site WhyLeaveAstoria. com. Why indeed, when there’s so much to do; the popular site features upcoming events of all kinds, throws great parties, and serves as a forum for groups of like-minded individuals.

LIC Post licpost.com Audience: People With an Interest in Long Island City LIC Post is an active blog with the most up-to-date information on local happenings and news in the neighborhood of Long Island City.

Queens MaMa’s queensmamas.com Audience: Mothers (and Fathers, too) For a mother in a borough the size of Queens, finding healthy and wholesome activities to do with the kids can be an overwhelming and duanting task. Enter www.queensmamas.com. This website does all of the work for you, giving you thousands of ideas, activities, and events that will be fun for the whole family. (Yes, even dads, too.) The site was founded by Leni Calas, a Queens native with two daughters. Queens Mama’s receives thousands of visitors per month, and in 2010 won 1st place in the Queens Economic Development Corporation’s StartUP! Business Plan Competition.

It’s still going strong.

The Newtown Pentacle newtownpentacle.com Audience: People Interested in Issues Surrounding Newtown Creek Over the past decade, this long-overlooked (and neglected) waterway separating Brooklyn and Queens was a natural disaster.

But thanks to people like Mitch Waxman - the creator of The Newtown Pentacle - the creek is starting to get a little love, and a federally mandated cleanup is underway. Heck, even if you don’t care a lick about Newtown Creek, you should visit this blog just to check out the stunning photography, which is some of the best we’ve seen in a while. www.itsqueens.com Fall 5.3 2013 • 67

Celebrating 125 Years Reinvesting in Our Communities Queens Banking Offices 80-10 Eliot Avenue, Middle Village, NY 11379 • 718-651-4600 79-21 Metropolitan Avenue, Middle Village, NY 11379 • 718-326-520 60-20 Fresh Pond Road, Maspeth, NY 11378 • 718-366-4700 455 Beach 129th Street, Belle Harbor, NY 11694 • 718-634-0333

Administrative Office 79-21 Metropolitan Avenue, Middle Village, NY 11379 • 718-326-6300 Brooklyn Banking Offices 731 Metropolitan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211 • 718-388-4400 Bronx Banking Office 791 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx, NY 10462 • 718-828-5600

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