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JOE FERRIS WAY - PAGE 7
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DECEMBER 2021
FREE INDEPENDENT JOURNALISM
Seventy-Five Years Later, How Wonderful is "It’s a Wonderful Life"
A
by Dante A. Ciampaglia
rt that endures is art that evolves, that speaks to us across time and experience, that fully reveals itself only when we mature into its sensibilities. As Anthony Lane wrote in 2012, “The Portrait of a Lady that I read in my late teens bears the scantest relation to The Portrait of a Lady that I read today.” A book that was at first “a serene, rather aristocratic affair” became, in his middle age, “funnier, still sharp with the Jane Austen-like tartness of its predecessor, Washington Square, but it’s more than that. It’s a horror story.” This seeing with different eyes is something many of us can relate to. New doorways to secret rooms open each time I read The Great Gatsby. New revelations manifest each time I visit Giovanni di Paolo’s 1445 painting “The Creation of the World and the Expulsion from Paradise” at the Met. New
screwball absurdity bubbles to the surface each time I watch My Man Godfrey.
I expect, when revisiting my favorite books, paintings, and films, that they’ll reveal some new facet. Major, minor, doesn’t matter. A far rarer experience is returning to a work I don’t feel particularly attached to and finding it has aged into something radically different — which is what happened when I watched It’s a Wonderful Life, which turns 75 this year, for the first time in years.
By now the particulars of this wellworn story. directed by Frank Capra, should be well known. But as a refresher: Hard-luck George Bailey ( James Stewart) can’t seem to break out of sleepy little Bedford Falls. He dreams
James Stewart, Donna Reed, Carol Coombs, Karolyn Grimes, and Jimmy Hawkins.
of going to college and doing great things, but one disaster after another keeps him homebound: His father dies, leaving him in charge of the Bailey Building and Loan. His brother goes to college and returns with a wife and job, keeping George in town. He marries Mary (Donna Reed), who loves him unreservedly despite his often harsh attitude, but can’t go on a honeymoon because of the Depression. They have four kids and George helps build
A talk with District 38 Council Member-Elect Alexa Aviles by Brian Abate
BA: Thank you for taking the time to talk to me. Is it all right if I jump right in? AA: Yes, of course, I’m happy to. Go for it! BA: You went to Somos, the annual political conference that takes place in Puerto Rico. Did you make some good connections? AA: It’s a good question. Somos is a very interesting gathering. You know, when I was there, I did not meet with lobbyists and
or other special interests... I really saw it as more of an opportunity to connect with my colleagues who will be will be either in government soon enough like me or were working in government already. I viewed it as an opportunity to spend time with the people I will be working with. So one of the things I could think of that was distinctive was I organized, in collaboration with a few others, our own panel highlighting front-line organiza-
tions in Puerto Rico that were doing really critical work for the people on the island, given their very difficult conditions. BA: A question that has come up with others was how did it end up getting paid for? AA: No no, it’s a good question. I paid for my trip personally. BA: A big issue is land use. Gowanus, our neighbor has just approved a rezoning al-
(continued on page 5)
starter homes for many of his neighbors, incurring the ire of local wealthy banking caricature Potter (Lionel Barrymore), who tries to break the Building and Loan, then George.
He gets his chance when hapless Uncle Billy (Thomas Mitchell), George’s business partner, misplaces $8,000 on Christmas Eve, leading to possible professional ruin and likely prison
(continued on page 10)
Build a Gingerbread house from scratch! introducing our new Arts & Crafts column with PS 676's Marie Heuston page 15
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we get letters January 1, 2022 Dear Mayor Adams, I know you read this rag, so congrats on your election. Well, enough about you, let’s move on. Since you’re a Brooklynite through and through, we all presume you will have our backs. Here’s how you can help. Since nobody’s enforced alternate side parking in my neighborhood for the past five years, how about reinstituting those shaming stickers that used to be plastered on offending windshields: “I parked illegally.” Those stickers took forever to scrape off—a bigger deterrent than the tickets. And can you get Waze to stop sending the Ubers and big-ass trucks down my small one-way residential street in order to avoid the slow-moving traffic on the commercial strips where triple parking has been ignored by the Precinct since 2010? On social media in my neck of the woods, the Gen-X and Millennials advise residents not to call the police when experiencing ear-splitting music in the early-morning hours every night of the week. Instead, exercising extreme politeness and self-effacing humility, just ask the music-lovers
Gender and race
What I find most hilariously hypocritical about Kapernick is that the man is literally using a male supremacist platform (the NFL) to protest white supremecism. The man is simply not self-aware enough to be repulsed by his own hypocrisy. When will we acknowledge that male AND and white supremecism go hand-in-hand?— Mesmerelda
A Red Hook miracle worker
Sheryl Chisholm helped hundreds of young people in Red Hook. Her legacy of kindness and wisdom will never be forgotten. It lives in the hundreds of young people she gave to so selflessly, many of whom have left Red Hook and gone on and lived successfully and well. It’s an irreplace-
to turn it down a tad. You might also apologize for having this annoying habit of needing to sleep at 3 am. When that fails, as it usually does, just pop in huge earplugs, turn up the white noise app, and don’t forget to buy more foam to place around the windows and mirrors to reduce the vibrations caused by the 10-foottall sub-woofers booming those bass notes, baby. Do you detect a pattern in my list, Mr. Mayor? It seems older Brooklynites like me are not happy with the police, feeling they have become invisible, while the young folks would just as soon see them disappear. On the other hand, morale is at an all-time low in the Department as a result of the stupidlynamed “defund the Police” movement. Please solve all that, Mr. Mayor. Thanks. Moving on to traffic. From November to March, bike traffic ebbs due to early nightfall, the cold, and snowfalls. The rest of the year, when it rains, bike traffic craters. And yet we close off Prospect and Central Park to vehicular traffic year-round, 24/7, that could reduce some of the congestion. Many of the bike lanes built at the expense of car lanes are woefully under-utilized. able loss for Red Hook. We thank her family for sharing her with us, and hope they take comfort knowing she is at peaceful rest and in God’s hands. —James McBride, New Brown Memorial Music Program
Where were you?
George- I am a bit surprised that you are reporting this as if you had not attended many Red Hook Rising public meetings as well as other public and private meetings where this was all discussed: that the flood protection plan had to be built on government owned and controlled property- Streets. I thought you were up to speed on this, years ago. Mea culpa. I know that the O’Connell’s did not attend many of these meetings. We have all had nine years to figure this out. major proper-
Yes, yes, bike ridership is up but let’s not pin any more hope on expanded bike usage. Let’s get real: express bus lanes and light rail systems (NOT trolleys for the rich) would get more people out of cars than bike lanes! Thus, we would appreciate your speeding things up at the MTA to implement an Interboro light rail system using the LIRR/CSX/NY&A freight tracks through Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx to end transit deserts, enable more rail transit to the airports and crosstown, etc. The MTA doled out $1.3 million for a feasibility study 2 years ago for what was called a one-year study. Not to mention the millions the Port Authority has doled out to consultants over the past decade to study the same damn tracks. If I may quote one of our most insightful observers of the passing scene, Keenan Thompson of SNL, “What’s up with that? What’s up with that?”—Joe Enright
ty owners have a major stake. I find it completely disingenuous for any Red Hook resident or business owner, in 2021, to profess shock and indignation that some buildings will be on one side or another of the (still proposed) coastal protection. Let’s get the protection that $100 million will buy- let’s get the Red Hook Houses protected. Let’s get the small business protected. Let’s get everyone we can protected.—Steve Kondaks
On the Snyders
The Duke was special — but so was your father. Thanks for writing this nice piece Joe!—Janice Aubrey We want to hear from you - send your 3 cents worth to george@redhookstar.com
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December 2021
Opinion: Words by George
All they will call you will be deportees by George Fiala
While I’m a bit more positive about life, his comment about music resonates. Last week I took time off from everyday living to travel to Washington DC to hear Robert Earl Keen, who brought his Christmas show to the Lincoln Theater. It was a great night that reminded me of what life was pre-pandemic, when I went to shows all the time. Keen, who has a large following that can be both rowdy and thoughtful, makes the world come alive with his songwriting. Some of his songs are about drinking and partying—the Texas way—while others are keen (pardon the pun) observations of the human condition. In a song called "Mariano," he writes about Mexican migrants:
Their skin is brown as potter’s clay, their eyes void of expression. Their hair is black as widows’ dreams, their dreams are all but gone. They’re ancient as a vision of a sacrificial virgin Innocent as crying from a baby being born.
I spent the following day at the National Holocaust Museum, something I do from time to time. I was born less than ten years after the end of WW 2, and have spent a lifetime of wondering how people living just a short time before I came along could do such horrible things.
They hover ‘round a dying flame and pray for his protection. Their prayers are often answered by his letters in the mail. He sends them colored figures he cuts from strips of paper.
This time around, I learned about a conference held in France in 1938. Hitler was always very clear about his plans. He spent much of the 1930’s telling the world that if they didn't take the Jews off his hands, he would get rid of them himself—the Nazi way.
And all his weekly wages, saving nothing for himself. It’s been a while since I have seen the face of Mariano. The border guards, they came one day and took him far away. I hope that he is safe down there at home in Guanajuato. I worry though I read there’s revolution every day.
TALL GUY, SMALL GUY WHY DID YOU GET SUCH A BiG TRee?
YOU
The Evian conference (which took place at the same town where the water is from), was created by FDR to see if something could be done. Delegates from 32 countries met to try and figure out what to do. However, except for the Dominican Republic, no country (including ours)was willing to expand their immigration quotas— leaving the European Jews stuck in place. And we all know what happened.
BY MARC JACKS0N
KN0W
ME, I ALWAYS GO BiG OR G0 HOMe!
SAY
HAPPY HOLiDAYS, ReD H0OK!
Red Hook Star-Revue
Afghanis or Belarusians, or anyone else in a life-or-death situation, at least not more than our ‘quotas’ allow. And just like in Hitler’s day, much of that reasoning is used for political purpose—to gain or keep power for one political party or another. The City Council just passed a bill that would allow non-citizens, meaning those with green cards, to vote in municipal elections.
Looking back at history, this seems like a terrible indictment on the world that existed before me. But putting myself in the shoes of the time, and understanding the world I live in now, I get it.
I participate in an online discussion group with people I went to high school with, back in the day. These are my peers. Most of them were mad as hell about what their councilmembers were doing – saying that by doing this we are demeaning what it means to be a ‘citizen.’
It’s not too much different than the Robert Earl Keen song. Just as the Jews were not our problem in 1938, today’s refugees are not ours. We build walls to keep out Mexicans. It’s like pulling teeth to admit more than a few
I grew up believing that we are all citizens of the world. I look forward to a day when that may be true.
YEAH...
BUT, WHeN YOU
‘GeT H0ME’ IT WON’T FiT iNSIDe!
In the meantime, I guess we have Pandora.
THAT’S WHY I SeT-UP MY LIViNG R0OM HeRE ON THE STReeT!
mj
T
he German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer is known for concluding that earthly life is mostly misery, but making it all worthwhile is art, specifically music.
©COPYRIGHT 2021 MARC JACKSON AND WEiRD0 COMiCS #2
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December 2021, Page 3
TONY SAYS MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Flashback to Nydia Velazquez speaking at a 2016 Red Hook public meeting about flood resiliency planning. (photo by Fiala)
Hope remains for a better resiliency plan by George Fiala
L
ast month we wrote that a longplanned plan to protect Red Hook from future hurricanes failed to protect places like Food Bazaar, the Beard Street Warehouses, and the Red Hook Container Terminal, despite the city's claim that they consulted with the stakeholders from all those places. The claim was true, but they didn't listen to the stakeholders. A major property owner in Red Hook is the O'Connell Organization, who own the former two properties. Gregory R. O'Connell, speaking for his company, told us that the follow-up meeting that was held with Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez was a short one. "The city cut the meeting short and didn’t answer any questions," said O'Connell. He continued: "About ten businesses and residents introduced themselves and expressed their concerns. City’s response, “we hear you.” " "We will continue to work with our elected officials to push for a change. I get the feeling that this design doesn’t have any real backing or legs to stand on and we have a good chance of getting
back to the drawing board. Additionally this design does not address cloudburst storms i.e. Ida. Pretty big omission considering that storm was responsible for more deaths in NYC than Sandy." Congresswoman Velazquez said in a statement: “Flooding is one of the biggest challenges for the Red Hook community, threatening residences, businesses, and community spaces with physical as well as financial damage. We recently passed and the President signed into law the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill. It includes $47 billion for climate resilient infrastructure to help mitigate storms, flooding, droughts, and wildfires. Ultimately, we want to come up with a buildable, reliable, and effective solution, and fully fund it to protect the entire community.” Last week it was announced that lower Manhattan would be receiving $5 billion to fund their own flood protection. Jim Tampakas, who has been active in community affairs over his 40 years in Red Hook had this to say about that: "We got $50 million and Last Mile Warehouses to deal with.
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mended m o c e r s i r vaccine ld just like othe 9 1 D I V The CO en 5-17 years o e COVID-19 h r for child vaccinations. T ion against d t childhoo the best protec ing long-term av is vaccine verely sick or h -19 illness. ID se getting ions from COV INATED. 2-COVID19. t C a C c i A l V p D m co UR CHIL dvaccine or call 21 O Y T E G E LIVES. visit nyc.gov/covi V A S S E , 9 VACCIN COVID-19 vaccines 1 D I V O C re about o
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Page 4 Red Hook Star-Revue
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Health
Bill de Blasio Mayor Dave A. Chokshi, MD, MSc Commissioner
Health
Bill de Blasio Mayor Dave A. Chokshi, MD, MSc Commissioner
December 2021
Looking ahead with new Councilwoman Aviles (continued from front page)
lowing residential buildings up to 30 stories. Do you think that type of rezoning is appropriate for Red Hook? AA: It’s a good question. There are many parts of that rezoning that I have problems with. The environmental aspects feel very unresolved and concern me the most. In Red Hook, the ongoing wastewater treatment is an issue. I think I’m not fully versed in all the details, but we have to hold agencies both at the city and state level accountable for protecting the health and safety of Red Hook and Gowanus residents. BA: Are there any changes to zoning that you think might be appropriate for Red Hook? AA: I think the land use process that we use is antiquated, ineffective, and truly problematic. There’s a ton of work to create a process that works and that centers around community needs, that requires real environmental reviews, that requires mitigation and answers. The process right now really centers on developers, and it allows them to not really fully respond. The result is not thorough and objective. Essentially, developers pay professionals to say, “Yeah, there are some issues here, but you know, nothing with major significant impact on a community.” And we’ve seen that in tons of applications. As community members know, that is absolutely untrue. There are always many impacts and things that we have to hold developers accountable for and demand mitigation responses to. The whole process needs reform. You know, I would venture to say we should scrap the whole process and start again. This has many, many documented shortcomings that community members over the years across the city have fully articulated. And yet, because in our city the leadership has very much been in lockstep with real estate developers and most special interests, they have not reformed this process. We see the implications of that. We see mass displacement in communities, particularly of working-class people, plus people of color who have been long-term residents. There’s definitely an enormous amount of work to be done. BA: Have you had a chance to meet some of the local leaders in Red Hook like Jim Tampakis, John McGettrick, Jo Goldfarb, Greg O’Connell? AA: So some of them I’ve spoken to but I know who all of them are and know of their work. Jim has done an enormous amount of advocacy work on smarter, better truck routes, particularly around the last mile warehouses. And so we’ll definitely be following up with him about that and I’m looking forward to working with all of them. BA: How about Nydia Velazquez? AA: The congresswoman, myself, and all the elected officials that overlapped in Red Hook have been definitely doing a lot more collaboration and discussion right around what is happen-
Red Hook Star-Revue
ing in Red Hook because the issues at play are complex and multi-jurisdictional. Also, the congresswoman has a much longer tenure in the community and has a historical perspective that is really important and staff that has had some long, deep ties to many of the issues that the community has faced. So yes, we are often in meetings together and collaborating. BA: That’s good to hear. Are you aware of the upcoming Red Hook West Tenant Association elections? AA: I’ve also actually been observing the TA elections and I think we have been in conversation about the challenges of the process. The meetings that we’ve attended have fundamental challenges like lack of language interpretation or problems like basic confusion among residents. I think my interest is that the residents have access to a fair and democratic process. It is the same interest I hold for our regular elections at the local, state, and federal levels. BA: Have Red Hook organizations reached out to you already? AA: I’m looking forward to working with all the Red Hook organizations. There are some that I’ve known for a long time, like RHI. I’ve also received information from the council member around all the organizations that we currently support. So I’ll be looking through all those details. I've known Cora Dance for many, many years. Many have reached out, many are reaching out. Right now we don’t have staff. We are in this transition period working to staff up for January. So, you know, there are only so many meetings we can attend at this point. But our door will be open for any and all organizations. BA: Along those lines, do you have anyone that you’re planning to have on your staff that has a special connection and ties to Red Hook? AA: It’s a great question and a commitment that I’ve made from the beginning of the campaign. I think primarily in response to Red Hook residents saying they felt left out and often feel ignored. So we will certainly have one representative with ties that can really make sure that Red Hook is always a part of the agenda. So absolutely! BA: That’s awesome! And do you have any plans to introduce yourself to the Red Hook community, either with a town hall or other events? AA: Yes, absolutely. There’s a lot to be planned for sure. We have been doing lots of small events haven’t planned a big town hall yet, but that is definitely in the works. I’ve met with all the schools and the principals and so many parents and organizational leaders and residents, certainly over the campaign and before. We like to do town halls. We’re also thinking about the inauguration event and what that can look like. So there’s a lot to be planned and I’ll keep you all posted. BA: Are you familiar with the people on Community Board 6?
AA: Yes, I’ve actually attended Community Board 6 meetings. I had individual meetings with CB 6 members on different items related to rentals specifically. And also, I’ve met with a lot of residents who were interested in participating on the community board as well over the years. Clearly, because of Red Hook, we will be having a systematic connection to what is happening on that body. BA: And do you have any specific areas of interest regarding legislation? AA: One of the things that we’re going to be watching for is legislation that would be critical for our community, but somehow get stuck in council. So we want to watch for implementing critically important legislation that was passed but not implemented properly. We want to find that legislation that is kind of sitting in limbo. The other pieces that we’re looking at includes everything from land use to housing issues. I can’t talk specifically right now about particular legislation because we’re really just kind of exploring all the different ideas. BA: What committees do you think you might be on? AA: It’s a great, great question which I think about every single day. For me, what’s important is to be on committees that have a significant impact on our district. And so they include committees like public housing. It includes affordable housing and inclusive education since immigration doesn’t cause economic development. And certainly, small business and ensuring that we’re looking at economic development in more holistic ways. Committees are important places for oversight and also provide hearings in ways that can help improve city services, programs, and funding. BA: The Red Hook Houses have problems that never really get resolved. Any plans, on how to change that? AA: Absolutely, Brian, there are persistent, challenging issues in the Red Hook houses in particular. One of them is just the state of the buildings themselves and the conditions that residents have to endure every single day. I think NYCHA is an incredibly large, bureaucratic, and somewhat dysfunctional agency. I don’t have a silver bullet response for it. Sadly, I don’t think there’s a silver
bullet answer. NYCHA should not be the only agency that is solving these problems. We should be able to access other city services to come in and support residents in what they need. The state of public housing is truly, truly concerning and we’re going to need really bold ideas. We’re going to need our colleagues to be unafraid to try new things, to be unafraid to make some hard choices. Residents have been ignored too often in decisionmaking bodies. We need to change the paradigm to make sure residents are calling the shots and not just simply the people have to bear the impact of inadequate decisions. BA: How do you plan to balance your family with your political life? AA: Magic! I think with discipline. I work for the love of the public interest, love of community. I’ll spend some of my holiday weekend working but also remembering how important it is to be with my family and to do other things that also bring me joy. As a working mom, it’s always been a balance. How do we balance our work, lives with our family, lives with our kind of passion and interest? So I think it’ll be a work in progress. BA: The last thing is just if there’s anything else you’d like to say? AA: I’m looking forward to working with residents and I think we have a lot of trust to build and I’m here to do that. My door is open and we have a lot of work to do and I’m honored to be able to do that. And so again, I just really welcome people to come and ask questions and figure out how we can work together for our community. BA: Thank you so much, we really appreciate it! AA: Sure, thank you! Happy Holidays!
DoorDash, the online food delivery service, along with the Red Hook Initiative and Council Member-elect Alexa Aviles (left), gave out turkeys before Thanksgiving at the Red Hook Neighborhood Senior Center.
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357 Van Brunt St. December 2021, Page 5
it was pre-pandemic days, those who do use it most are elderly residents of the houses who have shared they will not be able to get over to Sunset Park,” Goldfarb said. “This will close off their only reliable, affordable way to exercise daily in Red Hook, particularly now that the track has closed down.” In years past the Rec Center has served as the location for neighborhood Christmas parties. (Star-Revue file photo)
Red Hook Recreation Center closes for a while because of Ida The Red Hook Recreation Center has closed indefinitely as Hurricane Ida which hit Red Hook in early September left the recreation center with a damaged boiler. I called the Parks Department but they weren’t able to give me much information on the situation and told me that the Recreation Center has no hot water and they’re not sure how long it will have to remain closed. Jo Goldfarb, the director of communications at BASIS Independent Brooklyn (the school is located just a block away from the Red Hook Recreation Center) said, “Staff has been reassigned to Sunset Park Rec Center ‘indefinitely' and the facility will not be used for testing/vaccinations.” “While the Rec Center is not filled as
The Sunset Park Recreation Center is located at 4200 7th Ave., which is 2.6 miles away from the Red Hook Recreation Center, so it may be difficult (especially for senior citizens) to get there during the winter. “I have health issues [diabetes and hypertension] so I relied on the Rec Center to get exercise for my health,” said David Small, a Red Hook resident. “It’s two buses plus walking to get to the Sunset Park Rec Center so it’s tough to get there. It feels like everything in the neighborhood is under construction and the key thing is we need to start getting results; we know the boiler is broken but that happened months ago, so when will this be open again?” Small attended a virtual council oversight hearing on access to recreational programs on December 7th, explained his situation, and asked for a timeline for the repairs on the boiler. Councilman Peter Koo said he would forward Small’s question to the Parks Department and get back to him via email. Jacqui Painter, a former District 38 council candidate and Red Hook resident also spoke at the hearing, saying “It’s extremely sad that the city isn’t
putting in the money to invest in a low income community like Red Hook. In the past two years because of construction Red Hook has lost over 400 trees, our outdoor parks have been closed because of toxic soil levels and we have last-mile trucking facilities popping up all throughout the neighborhood. We need this recreation center now more than ever.” Painter also said she’s heard from the Parks Department that there isn’t enough money to fix the boiler and that they’ve found additional damage from the flooding that needs to be fixed. Councilman Robert Holden called for a member of the Parks Department to give Small and Painter answers during the hearing but no one from the Parks Department responded. As of now, a timeline for the Red Hook Recreation Center remains unclear. —Brian Abate
Last-Mile Warehouse Update
There aren’t too many updates regarding the last-mile warehouses in Red Hook, but Community Board 7 met on November 30th to discuss some of the issues they could cause and looked at case studies in other cities. One of the case studies is a video about Fontana, California, which, like Red Hook, is a hub for last-mile warehouses. Jim Tampakis of Tamco Mechanical also sent me the same video. For years he has been a voice for Red Hook, pushing for last-mile warehouses to use the waterways and other green modes of transportation and
warning of problems that could stem from the facilities which are opening up in the neighborhood. Fontana has more than 50 warehouses in the city, including massive Amazon and UPS facilities near the local school. Red Hook is facing the imminent opening of five or six last mile warehouses. One positive development is that Amazon officials have been in contact and working with Jo Goldfarb, the director of communications at BASIS Independent Brooklyn. She says that Amazon has not had trucks or other vehicles on the street when kids are arriving at or leaving school. However, there are also health concerns. Places like Fontana and Red Hook have been called “diesel death zones.” On average, 10 percent of New Yorkers have asthma, but 25 percent of children in Red Hook have asthma and the increase in last-mile warehouses may lead to even higher asthma rates. Right now, Red Hook residents don’t have a choice in the matter as construction of massive facilities continues “as-of-right,” which means companies like Amazon are entitled to build these massive facilities in the neighborhood. It’s very important that local leaders like Tampakis and Goldfarb speak up about these problems and push for solutions that will help the neighborhood because these warehouses are here to stay and there will likely be even more of them coming to Red Hook in the near future.—Brian Abate
Thanksgiving in the schoolyard by Nathan Weiser PS 676 held a Thanksgiving celebration on a windy day in the schoolyard for community, parents and students. The food at this event was a real group effort provided by many people and local organizations. The food was a combination of homemade dishes from parents and school staff as well as donations from Redemption Church Red Hook, Red Hook Art Project and Hometown BBQ. Dishes that parents contributed included roasted turkey, rice and peas, curry chicken, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, maduros (sweet plantains), empanadas, cookies and brownies. The PS 676 PTA helped plan the event. The kindergarten and second grade
classes made gratitude signs that hung on a gate in the schoolyard. Each of the students wrote what they were thankful for and made a drawing for this Thanksgiving themed activity. Other community partners that helped were Pioneer Works, Cora Dance, PortSide New York, Brooklyn Public Library and NY Project Hope. NY Project Hope (Coping with Covid) had a table with information. They help people cope with many different issues COVID related. They offer individual crisis counseling, community outreach and engagement and an emotional support helpline (347-201-2208) to help callers talk through their emotions and find resources to help them cope with the challenges of COVID. It is a
program of the NYS Office of Mental Health that was founded by FEMA. The Red Hook branch of the Brooklyn Public Library (7 Wolcott Street) was signing people up for library cards and giving out information about their events. They will be having a holiday photo booth for families at 1 pm on December 18. The librarian gave out tote bags and bookmarks. PortSide New York has been a PS 676 partner for a few years. Carolina Salguero, the founder and executive director, brought free books from her pop-up library at PortSide Park. Pioneer Works, the cultural center located at 159 Pioneer Street, brought materials to make mosaics using beans, seeds and rice. Pioneer Works’s partnership with PS 676 started on October 30 when Jacqueline Coston (K-12 education associate) met the PS 676 social worker at a Halloween event. “We had a group come through, Brooklyn Raga Massive, and they did a live performance workshop with their fourth and fifth graders here,” Coston said. “This is the second event that we have been able to be part of here at the school.”
Project Hope's table at PS 676's Thanksgiving event
Page 6 Red Hook Star-Revue
Coston said a few kids had built their gardens and wrote notes of gratitude. Pioneer Works had two tables with different materials to use and kids were making little mosaics with the rice and beans that was provided that they could design into shapes and a
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Portside's Carolina Salguero is a frequent collaborator with what is to become the Harbor Middle School.
few people were rolling the smudges. “It is a hands on, interactive art project that they can do,” Coston said. “We tried to keep it harvest themed with natural elements.” Pioneer Works closed on December 1 for major construction, but are relocating to a remote location nearby at 133 Imlay Street. They will be open for smaller scale programming at the remote location. “Despite the temperature and wind, we were able to share a meal with our school families and Red Hook community and express to them how thankful we are for their support throughout the year,” parent coordinator Marie Hueston said.
December 2021
Joe Ferris remembered with a street sign
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n a cloudy November afternoon, a small crowd gathered at the southeast corner of 7th Avenue and rd 3 Street in Park Slope for a street naming event. It was the kind of ceremony I suspect Joe Ferris would have liked. Just family members, close friends and political allies. No press, no podium, no seats, no blocked traffic. Assemblyman Bobby Carroll kicked things off, recalling Joe’s iconoclastic life before COVID took him last June. An Army vet and high school teacher who also taught inmates at Riker’s Island, he got his political feet wet in the 1960s as one of the founders of the Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats, (CBID) briefly challenging an old school Democrat Congressman. In 1972 he took on the machine candidate for State Assembly and won the primary but lost the general election. By then he had quit teaching and was running the Shamrock Tavern on Flatbush near 6th Avenue
by Joe Enright in a building he owned. Brad Lander, our Comptroller-Elect, who arrived on a Citi Bike in a suit and tie, recalled the street unveiling months ago further south on Seventh Avenue, for another Irishman, Pete Hamill. As Lander spoke, a passenger in a shiny black sedan turning onto Third Street angrily yelled out her window that Lander was a traitor and liar about something or other. Lander remarked that we had just witnessed another example of Park Slopers being so passionate about their politics. Joe Ferris Jr. was next up, recalling how much his father loved this block from the minute he bought a house across the street in 1961, hard times in Park Slope. “How much did he pay?” someone asked. “About $12,000 I think.” Another old-timer yelled out, “He was overcharged!” Joe Jr. laughed and replied, “Well, I think they threw in the furniture too.”
Finally, Jim Brennan spoke, recalling how Ferris dusted himself off after his 1972 defeat in the Nixon landslide and won a hotly contested primary in 1974, then beat the incumbent Republican who was a PhysEd teacher at John Jay High School. Joe was sworn in alongside another rookie Assemblyman from the neighboring District, Chuck Schumer. In 1976, the Democratic machine supported a challenger, but Joe won the primary and was reelected. He was primaried again in 1978, 1980 and 1982 but won every time, retiring in 1984. Ferris passed the reform banner to his assistant, Brennan, who would serve for 32 years before handing the baton to Bobby Carroll. Now Joe Jr. pulled the string to unsheathe the new street name sign. The string broke. Lander was dissuaded from climbing the pole while Carroll rushed to Tarzian Hardware on the next corner to get a pole. Joe used it to swipe away the covering and thanked us all for coming. I asked Brennan why Ferris bowed out. “Joe really and truly hated Albany,” he said. But more than anything, it seems, he hated the old Democratic Party clubhouse politics. So much so that in 1989, ever an independent, he backed Giuliani over Dinkins for Mayor.
Jim Brennan, Brad Lander, Bobby Carroll & Joe Ferris Jr. (L to R). Assemblyman Carroll's grandfather was one of the founders of the CBID, along with Joe Ferris
Gender designation in Italy by Dario Pio Muccilli
Italian linguistic scholars were caught off guard by a wave of criticism of the lack of a neutral form in Italian to call non-binary people, who feel discriminated because of it. While a solution to this has not been agreed upon, proposals include the usage of a schwa (a backwards 'e')or an asterisk to replace the ending vowel, which for centuries have defined gender for every Italian word. Institutions such schools, colleges and public offices have still not received a directive from government, causing every institution to come up with their own solution, with the most divergent results. In schools, where we can affirm that language study is kept alive, the issue is felt keenly by students. The dialectical confrontation between students on the one hand and teachers and deans on the other has given life to different scenarios. In Turin the Classical Lyceum “Ca-
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vour”, one of the top high-schools in the country, decided to adopt the asterisk in its official documents, causing the prompt reaction of far-right politicians against the LGBTQ+ rights. Augusta Montaruli, MP for Brothers of Italy (a post-fascist movement), stated “There’s a way to be inclusive that does not damage the language. That is teaching our children the courage to stand for their identity, without hiding themselves behind an asterisk. That is the school’s role and I hope the Government will defend it.” Matteo Salvini, leader of the League Party, known for his anti-LGBTQ+ slant, went against Cavour’s decision: “It’s a mad race towards nothing”. Moved by the two politicians, many far-right students protested in front of the Lyceum with posters, flyers, slogans. A brawl occurred with those students in favor of the measure. The latter was defended by the Dean of the Lyceum, Enzo Salcone: “Our fundamental law forbids any discrimination. We did nothing revolutionary, except respecting what’s said in the state’s Constitution. We’re a demanding school where there’s care of
Back in July 1972, after visiting Joe’s first victory party, Pete Hamill wrote the people” However, not many schools followed Salcone’s lead, as elsewhere the dialectical confrontation did not reach an acceptable agreement as for gender neutrality. In Pisa, the city of the leaning tower, a school, Lyceum “Dini”, was occupied five days in November due to the refusal of the Dean and some teachers to approve the Alias career for a transgender student. Alias career is a way for transgender student to get recognized their new identity and name at school, while the legal procedures for changing them officially is not completed. The refusal caused a mess and a 1968-style occupation of the school for five days, which was heavily covered in the press. In Milan’s Lyceum “Bottoni," a teacher did not teach a lesson in his class due to the skirts worn by male students wanting to send a powerful signal against gender violence. “I do not want to teach some transvestites’ ‘ seems to have said the teacher, who was soon scolded by the Dean,
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this: “There were 200 of them packed in a small social club over a bicycle store on Union Street: middle class housewives from the old McCarthy campaigns, a dozen firemen, three saloonkeepers, two Puerto Rican bodega owners, a lot of young people, and a lot of the sons of the Irish and Italian working class. This was the politics of ethnicity and inclusion, of cases of beer, loud music, community, laughter and a sense of place. ‘Everybody’s welcome,’ Ferris was saying as a band pounded and people hugged each other and a few people cried.”
Giovanna Mezzatesta, who advocated the constitutional right to study of the alums. All those cases reflect a deep need in the youths for change, even if this one is not easy to reach. Whether changing the language is the solution or not, It doesn’t really matter. The Crusca, top authority in Italian linguistic science, has already excluded the usage of the schwa and asterisk as a solution to the gender discrimination, which in its opinion should be tackled, but in a different way. True or not, after all the mess, those who rule the country should bear in mind how hurtful is the malaise spreading through the youth, and they should understand opposing the language innovation is more a political stand than a true effort to provide a solution. Because, willing or not, those guys in the schools are the future establishment of the country, the future people who will matter, and soon or later they will address the problem and blame those who, in the past, didn’t do it for political convenience.
December 2021, Page 7
Red Hook's caviar connection by Brian Abate
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n Commerce St., right off of Van Brunt St., there’s a black door that says Pearl Street Caviar. I’ve passed by many times without ever paying attention to it, but Pearl Street Caviar product specialist Monica Olivares and founder Craig Page were kind enough to talk to me about their business and take me on a tour. Though I didn’t know much about caviar, Olivares reassured me that before she worked there, she didn’t know too much about it either. “I actually met Craig, our founder at my other job, and he was there helping at a fundraiser,” Olivares said. “I just happened to be placed at the caviar station and I guess Craig really liked the way I bonded with people and he landed me a job and I’ve been working here ever since.” Olivares told me what a typical day is like at Pearl Street Caviar. “We come in, we review our orders, and we process them,” said Olivares. I get to meet a lot of new people and experience a lot of events that I nev-
er thought I’d be at. It’s pretty great and it’s a whole different world when you’re in the caviar business. It’s so bizarre and I never thought I’d be here but I really like it here.” During my tour I got to see where they keep the caviar. They taste every batch themselves before sending out orders. I always thought of selling caviar as a big business but Pearl Street feels like a homegrown, local business. Their mission is “to make quality, sustainably-sourced caviar accessible to anyone who wants an experience that is indulgent and healthy, new and timeless, elevated and affordable.” Additionally, Olivares and Page take pride in making sure that their product is nutritious. Olivares said that their caviar has six times the amount of Vitamin D as the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) average and twice the amount of zinc as the USDA average for caviar. They focus on being environmentally friendly and sustainable. The website says, “For every domestic sturgeon we use, eggs are fertilized to
"I discovered it went really well with potato chips."
revive the wild sturgeon population. From farming to transportation to packaging we focus on minimal impact.” “We use Woolcool for our orders [to keep them cold],” Page said. “They’re made from the wool on the side of sheep’s coats that would usually be wasted.” Page wants Pearl Street Caviar to reach more people and they’ve partnered with NBALAB to do just that. NBALAB is a business incubator for products that are considered for sale at NBA basketball venues. “It was really exciting having our caviar in Scotia Bank Arena [The Toronto Raptors arena] during the NBA playoffs,” Page said. Monica and Craig, the caviar mavens of Red Hook “They were available to people in any seats in the arena during the went really well with potato chips. NBA Finals, which represents one of “It’s not a combination I expected at our larger goals. We want caviar to be first but now it’s one of my favorites,” something that younger people are Olivares said. “And we want to show excited about. We want it to be for people that caviar doesn’t just have to people in the bleachers, not just those be served at big events. It’s also somein suites.” thing to have at home as a treat and While the coronavirus pandemic pre- something that goes really well with vented fans from attending playoff crackers or potato chips. We’ve been games in 2020, fans are back at games working towards that and I’m excited now and so is Pearl Street Caviar. for the future of Pearl Street Caviar.” One of the fun parts of getting a tour of was getting a taste, and I discovered it
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Artwork by Sam Meyerson.
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December 2021
Beware of F-Boys & Trife-Gyaals this Christmas by Roderick Thomas
To be an F-boy or a Trife-gyaal So what the heck is an F-boy or Trifegyaal? Pronounced, [eff- boy] and [try-ff-guh-yaal], shortened versions of, F*ck Boy and Trifling Girl. How do either of these terms impact your fall/winter? Ladies, gents and distinguished non-binaries, you’re about to find out. An F-boy and their Trifegyaal counterpart are creatures that live all over New York City (and other cities), especially in Bed-Stuy, Harlem, Long Island and the Upper West Side. These entities are notorious for wasting your precious time and energy—unanswered messages or relentless “heyy” texts on a full moon. As we move further into fall, be on the look-out, this could be the worst F-boy fall, Trife-gyaal season in decades. Before we discuss the various species of ‘F’ and Trife, here are some rules. F-boys and Trife-gyaals are irrationally scared of two things... truth and accountability. Therefore, keep those things very close. Protect yourself this F-boy/Trife-gyaal season. Now, here are some species of F-boys and Trife-gyaals:
THE F-BOY BEARD All your lives you’ve been indoctrinated your whole life to accept these well-groomed bearded types. Which thick-bearded man neglects you the whole year, then shows up in winter? Santa, yes people, him too. Where was Mrs. Clause while he was hanging out with some woman singing “Santa Baby?” Watch out for these perfectly tapered, faux lumberjacks. They may wear plaid and claim to love drinking whiskey...but it’s a lie.
I GET BORED EASILY This phrase may seem innocent, but don’t be fooled, this is an indicator of someone who wants you to be their entertainment. In the fall, F-boys and Trife-gyaals become increasingly bored. No summer festivals, brunches, or warm outings, these creatures will want nothing more than to “chill.” Beware of requests to “chill” this season, especially when preceded by the name of any streaming service ie. Spotify and chill, Netflix and chill, Hulu and chill.
UNSOLICITED PICS It’s midnight and suddenly your phone lights up and vibrates. You open up your phone, only to see an unsolicited nude from a potential romantic interest or complete stranger. I’m so sorry, but this is a clear sign that you’ve encountered a basic, low-level F-boy. Close your phone, sleep well, and in the morning send a few laughing emojis and never respond again!
PATRIARCHY PETE This brand of F-boy wants you to fall in line with every traditional role... to your detriment. If Patriarchy Pete demands a submissive/dominant relationship dynamic, I suggest you move on. These jerks are the types to man-spread on public transportation. “Manhood” doesn’t require you to do a full split on the train. To sum it up, these types live to dominate you, but that won’t be happening this fall, not on my watch!
FAKE VEGANS These time wasters are known to dwell in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. They scream at you about veganism and recycling then break their newly found 2-day vegan “lifestyle” to eat all the pork in the land, with any plastic utensils they can find. Who needs that kind of hypocrisy? Not you boo...not you.
PATRIARCHY PATTY Who is Pete without Patty? Pete probably doesn’t give a damn, but Patty sure wants him to. This Trife-gyaal is known for saying things like “I don’t really hang out with girls,” “I’m not like most girls.” She does everything to be the ideal girl for the Petes of the world. Here’s a tip, go find the girls she doesn’t like to hang out with and hang out with them instead.
YOU COMPLETE ME F-boys and Trife-gyaals are very fond of phrases like, “I’m looking for my better half,” and “you complete me.” If you ever hear this, remind them that neither Tom Cruise nor them being half a person is your issue. You, my darling, are a whole human being who deserves another whole human being.
THE TUCK If you encounter anyone in any sort of preliminary romantic setting, a date perhaps, and their shirt looks like the picture above, back away slowly. If
The Tuck is dated and wack.
they don’t know whether to keep their H&M shirt tucked or untucked, most importantly, do they know if they want you? As a result, this style may be a signal of their indecisiveness. Lastly, it just looks dated and wack.
FAKE NERD These F-boy and Trife-gyaal types are so easy to detect. They’ll tell you (without prompt) how “nerdy” or “random” they are. Yet, mention anything actually nerdy, Anime, Star Trek, or World of Warcraft for example, and they’ll have no clue what you’re talking about. Lastly, wearing glasses and a Star Wars t-shirt doesn’t make you a nerd. These ones are almost as tryhard as Fake Vegans.
SKIPS LEG DAY He’s constantly bragging about his bench-press and showing off his arms. However, one glance down is all it takes to see he doesn’t stand for much. If he doesn’t have the patience to grow his own legs, he doesn’t have the patience to grow a relationship. If you meet this creature, they’re likely shaped like the letter “T” and you should run! They won’t be able to chase after you, I promise.
ARE YOU IN A RELATIONSHIP?
The known cheater says all the right things.
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It’s a shame you have to ask this question when being approached romantically. However, these F-boys and Trife-gyaals are as shady as they come. If by chance they didn’t exhibit any of the aforementioned traits, as a solid line of defense, make sure you ask, “are you seeing anyone else romantically?” And no matter the answer, follow up with a social media investigation. Hell, check Venmo if you have to, you don’t have time to waste this season.
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THE KNOWN CHEATER So, you find yourself fancying a known cheater, who says all the “right things,” and you’re considering dating them. Stop right there! What makes you think they won’t do the same to you. News flash, you’re not special. You shouldn’t be the reason someone else doesn’t behave badly. I don’t expect rainfall to stop because I stepped outside, or Melania Trump to like her husband. Rain falls, Melania hates her man and cheaters cheat. Move on.
HI, I’M AN F-BOY Sometimes an F-boy or Trife-gyaal will identify themselves, but only in an effort to seem endearing and selfdeprecating. Well, in the event this happens, be grateful and turn the other way. However, there’s nothing endearing or interesting about the last 18 traits mentioned here. In conclusion, decline their beards, requests to “chill,” cheating, patriarchy, unsolicited pics,, leg-day skipping, strugglelove endorsing, fake veganism, fake nerdiness, Instagram modeling and live your best life this fall/winter.
INTUITION So this insnt a species of F-boy or Trife-gyaal. however it is an ultimate defense against their kind. This fall/ winter, use intuition in times when you can’t quite put your finger on it, but know something doesn’t sound right. People, this is a sign that you should rethink your relationship choice. You’re probably sensing his, their or her F-boy/Trife-gyaal ways. Take a break and go consult your intuition, trust me, you’ll be glad you did! Roderick Thomas is an NYC based writer, filmmaker, Instagram: @Hippiebyaccident, Email: rtroderick.thomas@gmail. com, Site: roderickthomas.net)
December 2021, Page 9
Capra's classic is much more than just a Christmas movie, especially today (continued from the cover) sentences for fraud. George, at the end of his rope, decides to kill himself — until guardian angel Clarence (Henry Travers) shows up to save George by showing him what the world would be like without him. (Spoiler alert: It’s awful.) George begs to live again, returns to his world, and finds the whole town has come out to save him from disaster. Cue the bells and carols.
For many people, thanks to endless television airings, Capra’s 1946 film is a rite of holiday passage. ’Tis not really the season until the family gathers around the tube to cheer on George as he runs through the snowy streets of Bedford Falls, cheering and hooting as he celebrates life. It’s a film embedded in the firmament of American popular culture, with it’s bygone-Americana images and dialogue (“Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings’’) appearing on greeting cards, seasonal swag, and in hazy post-Thanksgiving memories. It’s a Wonderful Life was certainly a presence in my house growing up, albeit in a butchered network TV form. NBC played it all the time, typically in a gnarly pan and scan transfer with out of whack contrast and terrible sound that reduced all nuance, and most dialogue, to meaninglessness. The endless commercial breaks didn’t help, nor did the occasional reminiscences of celebrities blathering on about some moment from the film that meant something to them once. All of this had the effect of wanting to spend as little time with the movie as possible, which meant coming in for the world-without-George stuff and the spirit-soaring climax. This had the effect of making It’s a Wonderful Life feel sickly saccharine and maudlin, a decades-old Hallmark card fallen behind the rack come to dusty life.
I never felt the need to revisit it until reading Mark Harris’ superlative book Five Came Back, about Hollywood directors Capra, John Huston, John Ford, George Stevens, and William Wyler making documentary and propaganda films for the U.S. government during World War II. All five were altered by their experiences, regardless of their assignments. Stevens captured footage of the liberation of Dachau; Wyler documented airmen who were shot out of the sky. And while Capra was stationed in Washington, overseeing the epic series Why We Fight, he nonetheless returned to Hollywood a changed (and shaken) man. And that manifested in It’s a Wonderful Life, his first post-war film. (It was the first film back for Stewart, too, who served in the Air Force.)
followed by a tilt pan up to the heavens where two galaxies standing in for angels blink as they talk to one another and, later, a blip of a star representing Clarence. And then the plot hinges on Clarence showing George a world in which he didn’t exist — undoubtedly the earliest instance of the multiverse to appear in cinema.
But those are the bookends. What’s in between is creaky in execution — Capra leans unironically into the rose-tinted nostalgia of early 20th century America — but shot through with regret and resentment, buried under miles of small-town politesse and voyeurism. (There’s also a critique of capitalism, in the Potter/George dynamic, that feels both divorced from the anti-communist fervor of its time and totally of our eatthe-rich moment.) George’s dreams of travel and adventure, of building bridges and skyscrapers and seeing the world, are constantly dashed and undercut by his first-born-son sense of duty; the folly, carelessness, and selfishness of family and friends; and his inability to pull himself free from the unseen force exerted by Bedford Falls. He gets married, has a family, makes a home, but it often feels like a facade. This is what is expected of him, but this Bedford Falls existence is temporary. When the walls finally close in, after hapless Uncle Billy misplaces the money, George’s mounting frustration — with his kids, his rickety house, his precarious freedom, his more successful friends and brother — is taken out on this little corner of his living room. It’s a kind of workshop where he’s built mockup bridges and skyscrapers. In the entirety of his giant old house, George gets a small nook where he tries to conjure his ideas and dreams into scalemodel reality. And in a thrash of flailing arms and kicks, it’s all gone.
In a film full of heartbreaking moments, this is the most devastating. It’s an act of finality that pushes George fully into the abyss. He leaves home, seeks final refuge in the tentacles of Potter — who, after learning George has $500 equity in
a $15,000 life insurance policy, tells him, “You’re worth more dead than alive” — and finally contemplates suicide. That, of course, leads to Clarence and the alternate timeline and George’s salvation. Still, hard to believe no one wanted to see that kind of despair in the triumphant glow of winning the war. The film was nominated for five Oscars, including Best Picture, but otherwise flopped. It was only salvaged later thanks to television, which leaned hard into it’s Christmas spirit. Except Christmas feels kind of incidental. Despite the holly and tinsel in the opening credits, It’s a Wonderful Life’s reputation as a Christmas movie is earned entirely by the last third of the movie. The climax could be set at Easter or the Fourth of July or Arbor Day and it wouldn’t much matter. The message — “No man’s truly a failure who has friends” — would still resonate. And still feel a bit discombobulating, given everything we’ve just seen.
As a kid, all I saw when I watched It’s a Wonderful Life was an old Christmas chestnut that conjured memories of winter juniper and musty boxes of decorations. Now, though, the experience was full-bodied and emotional. George’s moments of disappointment and despair land more forcefully after having lived some life, not all of it wonderful. I all-too-well recognize George’s anger, frustration, and prematurely gray hair. I know what’s behind the look he gives that wily bannister top that keeps popping loose. I know what’s behind those far away, hangdog looks he gives after blowing up his workbench. And I know what powers that explosion of joy when he returns to his own timeline. Christmas doesn’t factor into any of it. It’s a Wonderful Life is hardly Capra at his best, but it’s a revelation just how mature the film is. Pop culture wants us to believe that this is the be-all-endall of holiday uplift. I see something different. All that “Auld Lang Syne” optimism at the end feels a bit like if the conclusion of The Graduate was lopped off before the runaway couple realizes
"And then the plot hinges on Clarence showing George a world in which he didn’t exist — undoubtedly the earliest instance of the multiverse to appear in cinema." they’re probably screwed. George and his family and friends are happy now, but their problems and frustrations are deep-seated and intractable. There is no magic cure for disappointment. There is no erasing what George has seen and been through. He will persevere, but what comes after this turmoil? What’s after his war?
It’s a question Capra faced when making the movie, and it’s one we, as viewers, confront every day, especially in the wake of a global pandemic and in the face of rising fascism. He didn’t have any answers, which surely frustrated him the way it does George — two men of ramrod virtue used to solving all problems. But strip away all the holly-jolly yuletide schmaltz and bring to it some living and you’ll find Capra crafted a challenging film whose celebration of the endurance of the human spirit is worth more than seasonal banality. It’s a Wonderful Life might not be a masterpiece, but it is a classic worth revisiting — and not just at Christmas.
To paraphrase Anthony Lane, the film I saw this time bears the scantest resemblance to the one I grew up with. And it was no life-affirming confection.
Before watching Paramount’s excellent 75th anniversary Blu-ray, which was released in November, I never truly realized just how many tears are shed in this movie. It’s also unquestionably weird. After all, it opens on a montage of homes with the voices of the inhabitants praying that God protect George Bailey,
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December 2021
Subways were the WPA of the 1970's by Mike Fiorito Again, taking the RR subway on 36th Avenue. I came onto the platform and BOOM! Right there parked, on the train was a Don1 piece (short for masterpiece). I was flabbergasted! The letters were colored in cascade green with polka dots. He replaced the letter “O” with a cartoon of himself smoking a joint. A big cloud with a dancing snoopy next to it! It was nothing short of just amazing to me.”
I
’ve known Louie Gasparro for over forty years. We both grew up in Long Island City, Queens. In my earliest memory of Louie, he is wearing a red pinstripe baseball uniform. We were both about eleven at the time. “Who’s that kid?” I ask my best friend, Lan. Louie looked like a jock. “That’s Louie Gasparro. That kid does it all, baseball, football, basketball. He’s going to play baseball in Japan.” Louie had an intense look about him. He wasn’t talkative or boastful, like some of the guys in our neighborhood. He was steady and serious. In the Long Island City of the seventies and eighties, the trains were often bombed with graffiti. We’d see them on the elevated platforms roaring over our heads. Some of the graffiti was garish. Some of it was beautiful. I can’t say exactly when, but I remember Louie began tagging the trains with his art. Louie’s work really stood out. He had a knack for combining brilliant and evocative colors and creating original designs. When I saw some of his art, I said, “Wow, this guy can draw too.”
Like all the graffiti artists we knew growing up, Louie snuck into train yards and into tunnels when the trains weren’t in service. He walked on live tracks, carefully avoiding the third rail. Doing graffiti was a high-wire act. You had to be both sneaky and daring. Kids put their lives at risk scaling buildings, hanging upside down, or dangling from the edge of a building to tag a surface. As legendary graffiti artist Al Diaz has said, in the early days, the average age of graffiti artists was nine to fourteen. Whether you deemed yourself an artist, or not, you had to have balls of steel to tag your work in a public place. And the more dangerous the situation, the more admired the work was. For kids like us, graffiti was a way to make a mark. To be seen.
Louie’s second book, Kolorstorm: The Art of Louie “Kr. One,” details his 30-plus year career. The book chronicles his graffiti work through dozens of photographs, sketches, paintings, illustrations and more, including an introduction to “graffantasy” — a term he coined to describe the convergence of graffiti with fantastical images. As graffiti has moved from underground to mainstream, Louie has been selling his artwork all over the world. And while graffiti was Louie’s first love, he has also been a performing musician since his twenties, touring with bands all over the world. In the nineties, Louie played drums with Blitzpeer, a heavy metal group. He developed the logos for most of the bands he was involved in. Louie was recently featured in 5Pointz, an awardwinning documentary film. He has more film projects, as director, writer and actor, in progress.
I had been thinking about Louie for the past few years, having seen him talking about his art on social media. We’ve been orbiting the same circles. He’s done some art exhibits with Al Diaz and other people I know. But we hadn’t seen each other since about 1985. I sent him a note via Instagram, but who reads their DMs, right? A few weeks ago, Louie read an article I had written where I mentioned his artwork. He reached out and we met up to talk. Even though we hadn’t seen each other for about thirty-six years, we didn’t skip a beat. Walking up to each other on the street, we started sparring, throwing fake punches in the air. Just like the old days. We were both out of breath quickly. And laughing. “Some people say I look like Mussolini now that I don’t have hair,” said Louie. I giggled.
“I guess that means you agree since you laughed,” he added.
We spent the night having a few drinks and talking. One of eleven children, most of whom were born in Bari, Italy, Louie speaks the Barese dialect. All dialects
sound funny to other people. Barese sounds like Italian mixed with Chinese. Having heard Sicilian growing up and studying Italian in school, I speak, if speaking is what you’d call it, a hybrid FlorentineSicilian dialect.
“You gotta stop speaking that Florentine,” said Louie. “What are you, Dante?” As mentioned, Louie is now in post-production on a few films. One is about Don1.
“I get to portray him. It’s an amazing story. It’s based on my book and a one man play I’ve written about him. It’s called Pumpin’ Cool. My writing partner and I have another film titled Chronicles of a Missman.” Before Louie left, he pulled out a USB drive containing his old photos, drawings, and paintings. “This is the only backup I have of these images.”
“Can I make a copy of this?” I said scrolling through this trove of historical artifacts. The images were beautiful, a mixture of his graffiti from the seventies and recent artworks.
Louie looked at me. “I don’t even know what’s on this drive,” he said. After thinking about it he looked me in the eye and said “I trust you. Guard this with your life.” “You know I will,” I said.
Louie Gasparro https://www.imdb.com/name/ nm9156477/ Instagram: @originalkr1 Kolorstorm@ gmail.com duran.eddy@gmail.com
But what always stood out with Louie’s graffiti work was its originality and vision. Even as a kid. Louie always was and still is, first and foremost, an artist. An exceptional artist.
I didn’t know how big Louie’s career had blown up until I’d read his debut book Don1, the King from Queens: Life and Photos of a NYC Transit Graffiti Master. In this epic work of NYC history, Louie writes about his fascination in discovering the work of Don1. After eventually finding Don1, Louie details the relationship that he developed with the older artist. Louie has said that Don1 became an enigma to him. “I first noticed his name when I was 10 years old.
Doing graffiti was a high-wire act. You had to be both sneaky and daring. Red Hook Star-Revue
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Anime NYC Returns to Javits Center by Erin DeGregorio
M
idtown Manhattan’s Jacob K. Javits Center–which was designated the United States’ largest vaccination site at its peak 10 months ago–served a new purpose and reminded many of a pre-pandemic past. It hosted the 5th Annual Anime NYC, an immersive and interactive pop culture festival that celebrates Japanese animation and culture, from November 19 to 21.
“While we were able to build a free online version of the event with Japanese guests, panels from our partners, and screenings last year, what was really missing was the community,” Anime NYC founder Peter Tatara told the Star-Revue ahead of this year’s event. “Yes, you can certainly transition content from a live experience online one, but the experience changes. There’s something very different from watching a concert on YouTube, to being in the front row of an auditorium.” “This year’s show was never promised,” added Tatara, explaining that planning began in the late spring due
to the ever changing pandemic situation. “We’re in this amazingly fortunate position to present the first large Japanese pop culture celebration in the United States in 20 months … in part due to the hard work and efforts of those who worked in this very building throughout all of 2020 and 2021 when the Javits became a field hospital and then a mass vaccination site.” Over the weekend, thousands of vaccinated fans from the Big Apple and beyond attended panel discussions with internationally renowned anime directors, producers, and actors; met their favorite voice actors at meet-and-greet autograph opportunities; watched exclusive film screenings; and dressed to the nines in their cosplay creations and character costumes.
A Real-life Hero
For New Jersey native Maria “Maweezy” Chante – who has earned the reputation of designing unique and original “mash-up” pieces of work through her
Anime NYC 2021: Q&A with Cosplay Entertainer Azulette While covering the return of Anime NYC 2021 at the Jacob K. Javitz Center, I also spoke with Mexican-born cosplayer entertainer and self-taught costume designer Azulette, who currently calls New York City “home.” She discovered her passion for cosplay during high school when her classmates gave her her first costume of Cardcaptor Sakura as a gift. Since then, she has made more than 300 costumes in the genres of comic books, video games, anime/manga, and fanart, and has appeared at both national and international conventions as a panelist, judge, performer, and host. Azulette served as a special guest at the Official Anime NYC Afterparty held on November 19, the first night of the three-day-long convention. Azulette cosplayed as Chun Li (from Capcom’s “Street Fighter” video game series), Ada Wong (from Capcom’s “Resident Evil” franchise), and Princess Daisy (from the “Mario” franchise) during this year’s Anime NYC.
ED: The past 20 months have been difficult on so many different levels, but one could say that one silver lining is that new fans were introduced to the world of cosplay – whether it was scrolling through TikTok to see character cosplays/ transformations or cosplaying on their own for the first time. How have you seen the cosplay community grow in that respect and how has it been to see that during the pandemic? A: I noticed how many people started
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to do cosplay for TikTok – it is very inspiring. During the lockdown, I lost my drive to do cosplay. I personally started to question a lot of things in my life, and one of them was if I should continue doing it. But when I saw people doing fun stuff on TikTok, it helped me to approach cosplay in a different way, and it has been super fun!
cosplay costumes and has gone viral with her homemade “Boba” Fett costume (combining Boba Fett from “Stars Wars” with the bubble tea drink) – returning to Anime NYC for the third time, in person, meant everything.
Maweezy worked as a full-time COVID-19 ICU nurse throughout the pandemic and helped fellow healthcare workers go viral in an April 2020 video inspired by the “pass the brush” challenge on social media (wherein creators edit together a compilation of make-up videos that start and end with participants appearing to physically and pass a make-up brush between different scenes seamlessly). “I had to put cosplay and conventions on the back burner to focus on my duty as a registered nurse,” Maweezy said, “but I thought what are some ways that we–other nurses, healthcare workers, and photographers from the cosplay scene–could express our creativity?” The approximately three-minute-long video (titled “Heroes Behind the PPE”)–which featured the before-and-after looks of 23 healthcare professionals –has garnered over 49,300 views on Instagram as of November 27.
“The biggest misconceptions I’ve heard myself is that people who dedicate a lot of time and effort into cosplay have no life,” Maweezy explained. “I stun people … because I have my career and then I have my hobby, which I’m very passionate about.” “And the ‘Heroes Behind the PPE’ video shows medical professionals can totally be nerdy and cosplayers, too,” she added.
ED: What is it about cosplaying that you love so much? A: Cosplaying with my friends, scouting the perfect location for a photoshoot, creating memories and the satisfaction of seeing a project finally done. When I finish a costume, I put it on the mannequin and look at it for hours, like “I am finally done with you, my child!”
ED: Tell me a little bit about your cosplay costume creation process – how do you choose the next character you’ll cosplay? And do you have a go-to place for materials/props or repurpose materials you’ve already used/worn? A: Every time I watch a movie, I am always analyzing how they might have made the costumes. But when I choose one, it is because it strikes me. I first have to fall in love with the character’s personality. I imagine myself wearing it, I visualize it, and if in my daydream it feels good, a couple of minutes later I›m researching for photos, wigs, fabrics, etc. It is like a crazy rush of energy that I get – it makes me feel alive and inspired. For fabrics I love to visit Mexico City’s fashion district and Mood Fabrics [in
Chalk Artist Wows Fans
New York City’s Garment District]. Every time I get there it’s like a rush of adrenaline!
ED: How has cosplaying evolved/ changed the most through your point of view?
A: I think right now it’s easier to get wigs, complete cosplays, props, etc. than it was before. Also, I notice a lot of celebrities are getting into the world of cosplay, which I find cool, because it may bring more people to conventions – which means more investors and more fun for us as fans!
Across the room on November 20, artist Eric Maruscak took a brief 15-minute break from his massive chalk mural to take in the hustle and bustle surrounding him and his stanchions. He was nearing the 18-hour mark of his drawing of “The Faraway Paladins.” The mural, about 9 feet wide by 13 feet high, ultimately took 25 hours to complete over the course of three days and was finished before Anime NYC closed on November 21.
“This is my first Anime NYC and I’m extremely loving it and having a great time,” said Maruscak, who has created nearly 100 giant chalk murals as live performance art for conventions and festivals since 2006. “I love the interactivity aspect of this–people coming up to me and asking questions.” ED: What’s the biggest misconcepMaruscak admitted he felt a little hesition about cosplaying and how do you tant to be at Anime NYC as an exhibitor, debunk it? because he last worked at an in-person A: There is this idea that “real cosplay- convention in August 2019. But, he said, ers” have to do their own costumes. his fears quickly subsided after seeing fans I believe that whether you make it walking around in masks. “This feels like an anime convention,” Maruscak said. or buy it, it doesn’t mean anything. Cosplay is about having fun. —story “This is the most normal I’ve felt in two years back, doing what I love.” and photo by Erin DeGregorio
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December 2021
band is likely to keep filling the cloud with albums that, frankly, only sound so different from one another, sometimes there’s one that shines through. Metta, Benevolence is a good opportunity for non-obsessives to check in.
ON DECK
The Sunn in the cloud. It’s not difficult to make an argument in support of a new Sunn O))) album, it’s just hard to fathom to whom one is arguing. With the band’s flooding of the marketplace and the fanatical fan base waiting in earnest, it might not be so off base to imagine that 95% of the buyers for their new, longtitled long-player Metta, Benevolence BBC 6Music : Live on the Invitation of Mary Anne Hobbs reserved copies of the double album (on transparent blue vinyl if still available_ on the first day of pre-orders. But for non-completist Johnny-come-latelies, it is available as a download, and streaming in full, on the Sunn O))) Bandcamp page. Or one of the two pages, that is, because there’s also a page where they’ve posted about 150 live sets.
What makes Metta, Benevolence (available now digitally and physically next month via Southern Lord) stand out, and it does stand out, is how absolutely sublime it is. It is, on the one hand, an hour of their usual, slow, reverberating, distorted, grumbling and grinding drones. But within those depths, they’ve been hitting new highs with their last couple of studio albums, and this one (recorded in at the BBC studios at the end of a 2019 UK tour) finds their mind altering and/or expanding music in grand effect.
While they are still, more or less, a guitar band, this incarnation includes trombone and organ and all six musicians play synthesizers as well, so it’s heavy on texture. The second half of the program is taken up by “Troubled Air” from 2019’s Life Metal, and it’s actually quite beautiful—sinister, sure, but beautiful. While the
1919 Studio Sound by Rocio Gomez
New York is a place to be where you can make it in the music business. Or not. Starting from scratch is something very emblematic of New York, the city of immigrants, where people come from all over to start over. They face the duality of being not only a foreign, but also looking for space in a very saturated city and industry. Sami the Producer” came to New York after seven years living in Canada where he went to study music. Originally from Nassau, Bahamas, Sami, whose real name is Craig Mitchell, got his love for music in his early teens
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Silk Sonic is everything. Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak weren’t just the best thing about the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards broadcast way back in March, they were the only thing actually entertaining in an altogether dire broadcast. The pair made their new Silk Sonic known that night and, last month, made good on the promise with their first album. There’s nothing groundbreaking about An Evening With Silk Sonic (Aftermath/Atlantic), there doesn’t need to be and they never said there would be. It’s a quick half hour of attitude and old school grooves that floats from the speakers (think Stylistics, Commodores, Chi-Lites) with none other than Bootsy Collins calling out through the proceedings. It’s not all throwback—lyrically they’re not trying to hide their youthful age—but the fellas, with a veritable orchestra of strings and horns, are firmly entrenched in nostalgia for music a good decade older than they are. “Smokin Out the Window” may well be the jam of the year, and should, at least make Spielberg realize how big a boat he missed by not casting them in West Side Story.
To name but Phew. The singer Hiromi Moritani, known for more than 40 years by the stage name “Phew,” has always been hard to pin down, even within the ever eccentric realms of Japanese experimental rock. She’s established close relationships with German Krautrock and industrial elders and Downtown New York players, while working with the likes of the always inventive Otomo Yoshihide and Boredoms guitarist Seiichi Yamamoto back home. A reissue of her long out-of-print recording debut with the band Aunt Sally doesn’t do much to help pin her down, but it’s good fun trying. The band’s 1979 self-titled and sole release (out Dec. 2 digitally and on vinyl via Mesh-Key) is a wonderfully perplexing mix of anything-goes punk attitude with a childlike sense of innocence and discovery. While Aunt Sally is
from his cousin, who was a DJ in the Caribbean. Now in his thirties he looks back and sees how everything evolved. “I liked music, so I used to go with him to parties, and follow the scene in Bahamas," he says.
He developed his music skills teaching himself guitar, and he ended playing with some of the biggest reggae and dance hall artists such as Elephant Man and Burning Spear. Music is a huge component of Caribbean culture so he learned all the technical aspects of the business as well.
In addition to industry challenges, he had to cope with the harsh realities of racism and gentrification in New York.
regarded as one of Japan’s first punk bands, there’s not much that sounds punk on the album. Closer parallels might be drawn to 60’s iconoclasts Captain Beefheart and Can or the British punk-era band the Raincoats. (In recent years, in fact, Phew has been working with Raincoats co-founder Ana Da Silva.) The album is barely a half hour but it’s simple joys (including songs built around “Heart and Soul” and “Frère Jacques”) make it easy to leave on repeat play. Shilpa Ray is sick of it all. It’s been a long four years since Shilpa Ray cemented in song the glory days of Lower East Side indie rock on her Door Girl, documenting the desperation and violence of a scene she was pushing her way through. That album deserves to go down with the first records by New York Dolls and Blondie as love songs for the ugliness of the city. Recent Ray songs have been slow in coming, showing up on comps here and there or as digital singles, but taken together makes a strong suggestion that she’s as sick of society as she used to be of the scene. Her recent Bandcamp upload “Bootlickers of the Patriarchy” shows that not even the sisters get a pass in her taking of no prisoners. Hopefully there’s an album in the works. The world can’t wait much longer.
ON STAGE
Last month I wrote at length in these pages about Patti Smith, in particular about the power of her live shows. It’s something that shouldn’t be missed, and she’ll be playing her almost annual birthday concert (marking her 75th) at Brooklyn Steel on Dec. 28. But I can’t in good faith suggest going and I can’t in honesty say that I’ll be there. The emergence of the Omicron variant should demonstrate to anyone who doubted as much that we’re still in the midst of a pandemic.
As of press time, masks aren’t required indoors in New York state if proof of vaccination is shown at the door, but that isn’t a policy that’ll stop the spread, and there’s nothing prohibiting venues from being stricter than state guidelines. Bowery Presents venues—including Brooklyn Steel—aren’t requiring masks (also as of press time). The vaccine doesn’t keep anyone from carrying and transmitting the virus and symptoms might not show up for days after contamination, meaning anyone in a crowd could be unknowingly infected. I’ve been vaxxed and boosted and I’ll be sticking with venues where masks are required. Acting like we’re out of the woods is what’s keeping us in the woods.
“In Manhattan there were apartments where I was not allowed to move in because of my skin color. I used to wonder ‘why not if I have the money!’ It is something I understood later on”.
He persisted through it all and a chance meeting with Whitney Houston’s engineer gave him the opportunity to work in multiple recording studios. He discovered how competitive the field is. “Manipulation is one of the challenges in the music business. There is too much confusion. Not everybody is good, so people try to use you and use your abilities. We become tools.” After several years working for other music studios he decided to open his own recording studio in Brooklyn. He
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Inside the studio
found a studio at 37 Greenpoint Avenue, in a warehouse close to the river.
He built the space from walls to floors enabling him to keep working on what he loves.
(continued on page 14)
December 2021, Page 13
1919 Studio Sound (continued from page 13) He spoke of the reason he decided to go on his own. “You can not get done what you want to do otherwise. It's unjust to get paid minimum wage for something I know how to do. I'd rather freelance for my friends and clients, and team with them.”. Sami has the consistency and focus of someone skilled in something he knows very well and believes in. He has worked with Fred The God Son, Ja Rule, Asap Ferg, Casanova, Dave East among many others, and at ‘Sisterhood of HipHop’ on TV. He plays piano, guitar, bass and drums, being able to make beats alive at the same time he merges the sounds together. He creates the loop for sounds in
every piece making his productions clean and unique.
His job goes from recording, engineering, and producing to fixing vocals, mixing, instrumentation, and finding cohesiveness. His work has touched almost all genres from Rock and Roll to Hip Hop, R&B and Pop, winning an award for ‘Panda’ of rapper Desiigner as recording engineer/producer in 2017. Fifteen years of work in which he was mentored by one of the best producers in the world, Jack Richardson, in Fanshawe College, Ontario, Canada, where he studied and looked up to the immaculate sound of a genius.
well done shining by itself.
Find and check his work @1919studios www. facebook.com/1919Recordingstudios, and Sami in social media @craigtheengineer in Twitter, IG and Facebook.
“I see the studio as an investment for my future”
Despite gentrification in Brooklyn, Sami has found a space to open the doors to those who, like him, walk away from the overpricing and undervaluation of the music business in New York. Named “1919” to honor his grandfather, the studio keeps the vibes of a job
Rapper Desiigner is one of Sami's clients.
Peter Mancini Licensed Real Estate Associate Broker
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get your message out.
An ad in the Star-Revue puts you in print
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December 2021
Marie's Craft Corner Turn your empty delivery boxes into holiday crafts. by Marie Hueston ’Tis the season—to get lots and lots of packages! Before you flatten the boxes to put out with your recycling, consider transforming them into holiday crafts. Here’s a step-by-step guide to turn empty cardboard boxes into festive gingerbread houses. Choose your box. For this project, look for boxes that already resemble the shape of a house. Think rectangular rather than long and flat. The size of the box can be as large or small as you wish. Small boxes look great on a mantle or tabletop, medium to large boxes can be displayed on a windowsill or might even work as a doll’s or child’s playhouse. Gather your materials. Besides your box, you’ll need flat pieces of cardboard to make a roof, white paint, paintbrushes, cotton balls, candy, construction paper, glue stick, and either school glue or a hot glue gun (adult supervision needed for the latter). Keep some newspaper handy to protect your floor or table when you are painting, and plan to wear a smock or work
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clothes you don’t mind getting paint or glue on.
Find inspiration. Search online for images of gingerbread houses. There are so many to choose from it can be hard to decide on just one. If you’d like, you can combine details from multiple examples into one house. It’s up to you. Prepare your box. Remove address labels and packing tape. If you’d like to start with a perfectly smooth surface, open the box on top and bottom and locate the reinforced edge inside the box. You can separate that edge and turn the whole box inside out. Re-glue the box along the same edge and then glue the top and bottom shut.
Build your roof. Bend a flat, rectangular piece of cardboard in half and position it on top of your box. Hot glue along the edges to adhere it. School glue will also work but it will need to be held in place for a longer amount of time in order for it to dry completely. Cut small triangles out of another piece of cardboard and glue them in place to cover gap between the top of the box and the inside of the roof. Grab a paintbrush. The great thing about cardboard is that it’s already the color of gingerbread; white paint detailing will look just like like icing trim. Start by painting your roof according to the design you chose. It might be solid white for snow or a show drift effect. You can also paint a scalloped border to look like
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roof shingles or strings of holiday lights. When you’re done, place your brush in water until it’s time to put on the final details.
Make a door and windows. You can paint these details onto your box or you can cut shapes out of construction paper and adhere them with a glue stick. I used construction paper to make a red arched door and blue rectangular windows.
Glue on candy details. I used small candy canes, peppermints and DOTS. This can be a great way to use left over Halloween candy if you don’t feel like buying new candy. You don’t even need to use actual candy. You can paint candy designs or cut and paste colorful construction paper circles to look like candy.
Paint white trim on windows, doors and walls. Wipe off your brush and get more white paint ready to create details like window panes, icicles, door trim, polka dots and any other decorations you’d like to add. A thin brush is best for creating clean lines.
Let it snow. Add cotton ball “snow” for a finishing touch. Pull cotton balls apart and glue the fluff around the edge of the roof and the base of your house. Share pictures of your creations! Send pictures of your gingerbread houses to: george@redhookstar.com. I hope you enjoyed this craft idea!
Marie is the Parent Coordinator at PS 676
December 2021, Page 15
our warmest regards
Steve’s Authentic key lime pie www.keylime.com
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December 2021
Art Briefs
First Ever Black Collective of Family Musicians nominated for GRAMMY®!
Aya World Productions released the first Black collaborative family music album titled All One Tribe on Juneteenth, June 19th, 2021. The project is distributed by iconic label formed by Bob Marley, Tuff Gong International. The 25-track project from the newly organized 1 Tribe Collective celebrates the rich culture and diversity that Black voices bring to family music by presenting the sounds of 24 family music artists from across the country.
On Tuesday, November 23rd, The Recording Academy announced that All One Tribe was one of five albums honored with a nomination for Best Children’s Music Album.
All One Tribe spans musical genres and is suitable for families and children of all ages.The track list addresses topics of STEM, vaccinations, family, Black history, and the beauty of differences. Their collective single, “One Tribe” brings the artists together for an energetic expression of universal belonging and unity. “If we can dance together, we can live together,” the artists affirm. “We are one love, one light, one heart, one mind, one tribe for life.”
“The 1Tribe Collective and this album are historic. This project represents the dreams and hopes of our people. It’s an incredible honor to work with so many voices representing the rich diversity of Black and Brown artists, says album executive producer, Aaron Nigel Smith.” This music speaks to families today and recognition from the Recording Academy demonstrates a step in the direction for equity in the family music space ” adds co-producer Shawana (“Shine”) Kemp. In 2020, the overt exclusion of Black “Best Children’s Album” Grammy nominees sparked a larger conversation about lack of representation in the family music space. That, combined with nationwide protests following the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, inspired Kemp and fellow musicians Amelia Robinson and Aaron Nigel Smith to join forces and bring this project to life.
The project sets out to expand public awareness of the excitement and excellence of these diverse children’s songwriters, and to remind the world that Black families do not represent a monolith.The 1 Tribe Collective hopes to reprogram society’s perception of Black youth while giving young people and families permission to live out loud and celebrate their uniqueness. “We need Black leadership at the table,” says Amelia Robinson, co-producer of All One Tribe.“You can’t do a project about Black lives without Black voices.”
Ain’t Misbehavin’ Opens December 2 at Gallery Players
This December, Gallery Players presents an inspirational new production of AIN’T MISBEHAVIN’
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the Fats Waller Musical Show – a sassy and sultry celebration of Fats Waller›s legendary jazz music and winner of the 1978 Tony Award for Best Musical. Opening Thursday, December 2, the show will run for 15 performances through Sunday, December 19. Performances are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00PM, Saturdays at 2:00PM, and Sundays at 3:00PM.
Featuring five dynamic performers and set in a jazz venue like the old Cotton Club of Harlem, this musical revue encompasses the mood of the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s and 1930s. Director Irvin Mason, Jr points out the connection from that resurgence to the current offerings and opportunities for black artists. Through innovative casting and imaginative direction, Mason has created a production of a classic that showcases modern sensibilities and freedoms available to artists today.
The music in Ain’t Misbehavin’ was written by Thomas «Fats» Waller. The musical was conceived by Richard Maltby, Jr. and Murray Horwitz, and was created and originally directed by Richard Maltby, Jr. It was originally produced by the Manhattan Theatre Club. Bringing Ain’t Misbehavin’ to the Gallery stage are: Irvin Mason, Jr, Director; Matthew Everingham, Music Director; Gabriella Mack, Choreographer; Sophie Landeck, Assistant Director; Nic Neipert, Scenic Designer; Jennifer Chi, Costume Designer; Bill Toles, Sound Designer; Abi Quinn, Lighting Designer; Megan McQueeney, Props Designer; Bailey Reynolds, Production Stage Manager; Kirill Polich, Assistant Stage Manager; Marty Goldin, Producer; and an ensemble featuring Alexander J. Brown, Saritha Gateau, Miranda Holliday, Brianna Justine, and Kat LeBlanc. Tickets are $35 for adults and $30 for seniors over 65 and children under 12. Tickets can be purchased online at http://galleryplayers.com. Ain’t Misbehavin’ is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). IMPORTANT: Please note that everyone entering the theater will be required to show proof of full vaccination along with photo ID. Audience members will be required to wear masks at all times. Gallery Players is located at 199 14th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11215 (between 4th and 5th Avenues in Park Slope). Take the F, G, or R train to 4th Ave - 9th St. Website: http://galleryplayers.com
Smith Street Stage returns
Brooklyn based company, Smith Street Stage has been bringing award-winning theater of the highest quality to our community since 2010. In addition to their record of artistic excellence, Smith Street Stage is also a company whose values align with those of The Actors Fund. They are committed to creating and maintaining a work environment in which all people are treated with dignity and respect and where creativity can flourish. Like The Actors Fund, they work toward diversity, equity, inclusion, and creating work that reflects our community and its needs. The residency will be inaugurated with a mainstage production in fall 2022, and will also include workshops, open classes, and a premier of Smith Street Stage’s film documentary - shot at The Mark O’Donnell Hamlet Rehearsed.
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Smith Street Stage’s record of coordinating with other non-profit organizations makes them an exciting and logical partner for The Actors Fund Arts Center. In past seasons they have partnered with charitable organizations that address gender equality, antiMuslim discrimination, and immigrant rights. Their longest running program, Shakespeare in Carroll Park, is partnered with The Friends of Carroll Park, a community volunteer group that provides services and programming to its neighborhood. Through its partnership with The Actors Fund, Smith Street Stage will be providing free weekly classes to residents of The Schermerhorn in which professional instructors teach yoga, physical expression and vocal technique and health.
We are thrilled for this residency, and for the opportunity to support and be enriched by the art and artists of Smith Street Stage.
Pioneer Works Renovation and Accessibility Upgrades
As we approach 2022, we’re amazed at the ways we came together over the last year. You all, our community of creative practitioners and supporters, showed up and showed out in support of our mission to create an open and inspired world, and we can’t thank you enough.
Now, we’re looking towards the future and we’re thrilled to announce the first major renovation of Pioneer Works since we opened our doors to the public in 2012. This renovation represents the next chapter in our history as we look towards the tenth year of being Pioneer Works. Our first phase will expand our capabilities as a cultural center, increasing our programming space and visitor experience with greater accessibility and access to all areas of Pioneer Works. We are addressing important infrastructure work, building two mezzanines, adding accessible garden pathways, and constructing an interior elevator to extend greater access to all of our building. We hope that this renovation project will enable us to serve a larger community of artists, musicians, scientists, creators, makers, and everyone in between. This work will allow us to continue to program events that only happen at Pioneer Works—events that illustrate the inherently interconnected nature of art, science, music, and technology. As our space prepares for the next phase, there are a few updates on how we’ll present exhibitions and programs in the coming year.
To accommodate the first phase of our construction, our 159 Pioneer Street location will be temporarily closed from December 2021 through May 2022.
Pioneer Works at Red Hook Labs
We’ll take on a temporary home at Red Hook Labs (133 Imlay Street), just down the road from our normal location. During this time, we’re excited to welcome you to our temporary space where we’ll be hosting exhibitions and programs while construction is swiftly underway. Our satellite location at Red Hook Labs will open to the public in February. Send your Art Briefs to george@redhookstar.com
December 2021, Page 17
Books by Quinn For Whom the Bell Tolls Review of Fierce Love: A Bold Path to Ferocious Courage and Rule-Breaking Kindness That Can Heal the World by Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis Review by Michael Quinn
My partner is a Christian. He’s been seeking a spiritual home. Prior to the pandemic, he spent many Sundays trying out different churches throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan. Some, he felt, had a drowsy, old-fashioned quality. Some felt like cults. Some were inhospitable to gay people.
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One Sunday, I accompanied him to the East Village’s Middle Collegiate Church. Twenty-five years earlier, I’d lived across the street. I have dim recollections of hearing its bell toll through my weekend hangovers. I’d never once stepped foot inside.
The place was packed with all kinds of people. It thrummed with energy and excitement, like the buzzing before a sold-out show. There was no curtain to go up, no spotlight, no stage. Yet we were definitely in the presence of a star. Preaching her philosophy of “Love. Period,” the charismatic pastor took command of the room, taking stock of the doomsday headlines—racism, transphobia, global warning—and urging everyone to “pray with your feet”: to stand up, march, make a difference. Her words radiated compassion and intelligence, but also a vibrant joy. My partner was stunned by the radical politics. This direct address of the most pressing social issues of our time was not what I was expecting at a church service, either, but my reaction was different: I felt invigorated.
That singular star-quality shines through in Reverend Dr. Jacqui Lewis’s stirring new book, Fierce Love: A Bold Path to Ferocious Courage and RuleBreaking Kindness That Can Heal the World, which outlines her manifesto for a new way of living in these “hot-mess times.” The first African American, the first person of color, and the first woman to lead Middle since its founding in 1628, Lewis is “not trying to convince you about God,” she explains, but to get you to witness, understand, and believe in something far more universal: the power of love.
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Lewis takes as her starting point the Zulu philosophy of ubuntu: “a person is a person through other people,” she explains. She outlines nine behaviors that gradually nudge our absorption from ourselves to the people we care about to the world at large. They involve
things like kindness; authenticity; moral courage; speaking truthfully; and loving ourselves unconditionally. To illustrate these ideas in action, Lewis shares stories from her life. Fierce Love is, in part, a kind of spiritual autobiography: an accumulation of hard-won life lessons and a stripping away of everything else. A child of the 60s, the eldest of six, Lewis had her first encounter with racism in a New England elementary school. Although she’d never even heard the word the little white girl from Mississippi spat at her, “Her nastiness made me feel nasty,” she writes. Recounting the incident at home, Lewis got different reactions from her parents: her mother gently explained and soothed, her father demanded (and got) apologies from the little girl and her family. Lewis grew up to possess a little of each of her parents’ superpowers: the love and the fierceness. A high-achiever with “good girl syndrome,” she first studied chemical engineering before switching to psychology. A successful sales career with Kodak moved her around the country. She married one white man, then another—relationships that frayed the rope of her relationship with her father. Like many people of the cloth, Lewis’ road to the pulpit was a winding one. Privately, she struggled to break free from the “evangelical churchliness” of her upbringing and “have a relationship with God.” After a pastor “sees the calling” in her face, she enters seminary school, which “was about learning and unlearning what it meant for God to have a say in guiding human life.” As a pastor, Lewis also has a sizable role in guiding people. Fierce Love touches on some of the incredible work around social justice Lewis is leading at Middle—even without a physical place to congregate. Last December, a vacant building next door caught fire and the church was destroyed. Only its 800-pound New York Liberty Bell miraculously survived the blaze. In June, right before it was carted away to the New York Historical Society for safekeeping, it rang 19 times—struck by Lewis, in a hard hat and a colorful robe—in honor of Juneteenth, the emancipation of enslaved AfricanAmericans. The building may be gone, but Lewis’ commitment to social justice seems everlasting.
This commitment is, in itself, a kind of faith. And hope springs eternal. Lewis writes, “Just imagine what we can do, together, if we own our power every single day to live justly, to choose fairness and equality.” Fierce Love is an invitation to share in this vision and make it a reality. When it comes to the power of love, Lewis’ pull-no-punches account will make a believer out of you.
WE HAVE PLENTY OF LOVELY TABLES & BOOTHS OUTSIDE WITH HEATERS IF YOU ARE NOT VACCINATED.
284 Van Brunt St | Brooklyn NY
Page 18 Red Hook Star-Revue
www.star-revue.com
December 2021
Jazz by Grella The Song’s The Thing By George Grella
“melodic” hip hop, and two megastars in particular, Adele and Taylor Swift, have recent releases that have cemented their stature. But the music on Red (Taylor’s Version) or 30 is just not the same as what you’d hear on an album from Crosby or Holiday or Sinatra. It’s not about styles—those change superficially but except for modern production techniques and some rhythms that come out of contemporary Black music, things are not drastically different—it’s about subjects. It’s about songs.
T
he idea of the “star,” a celebrated and famous performer, isn’t new in and of itself. It goes back at least to the career of pianist Franz Liszt, who in the mid-19th century caused such public sensations during his European tours that he begat a new word, “Lisztomania.” And before Lady Gaga and even Barbra Streisand, there was the first, 1937 version of A Star is Born, starring Janet Gaynor. We’ve had stars in popular culture even before there was anything identifiable as popular culture. But the meaning and quality of the word has changed through the generations, and certainly stardom in the film/radio era is a very different thing than in Liszt’s, although Lisztomania is a phenomenon that continues. Like stars gradually coalescing and igniting out of scattered gasses, so has the meaning of stardom changed. The ingredients of Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, television, Top 40 radio, The Beatles, Andy Warhol, Elvis, Elizabeth Taylor, the Baby Boom, glossy magazines, MTV, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Kim Kardashian, and social media platforms mean that stardom in 2021 is very different from stardom in 1921. That difference is greatest in music, and because the idea of music is dominated by pop music, the stars have mostly been singers, and singers are different these days. Music has changed, yes. One hundred or so years ago, after Louis Armstrong—who was a star—invented modern pop music (which he did), the singing stars were Bing Crosby, Holiday, Sinatra. They were greats and had styles that set them apart and had other musicians learning from them. Singers still dominate the scene today, across pop music and into what is called
When Swift or Adele sing, they are singing about themselves, they are the centers of their own universes, socially and musically. The songs and albums are about their relationships, their breakups, their heartaches, not about yours. This is not necessarily better or worse, that’s a matter of taste, but it is a different quality, and it’s that, stars expressing things about themselves and not about much of anything outside themselves, that makes identification with them so unsettling. The joke in Spinal Tap, about “when you’ve loved and lost like Frank has,” then you’d appreciate the crooners, has become true in an odd way. Have the fans of Swift and Adele loved and lost like those two singers have? Maybe, but what matters is that those fans are on the singer’s teams, on their side, suiting up in the keyboard battles over reputation and status, who wronged whom, who’s a winner and who’s a loser. Not just fans, but stans. The songs aren’t the things—the songs on these albums are polished and well-made but not really memorable, except in the way that they cement the solidarity of the armies of fans—and the songs are a distant second in importance to the singers.
When Billie Holiday sang “All Of Me” or “Don’t Explain,” when Sinatra made Sings for Only the Lonely, or sat for the incredible picture on the cover of No One Cares, sitting alone at the bar, staring in desolation at his drink while the packed crowd around him enjoys itself, they were central figures but they were singing songs that reached outside themselves. Holiday sings “I,” but she’s not singing to Jake Gyllenhaal or John Meyer, she’s a woman singing to someone whom she loves but who is breaking her heart. Even if Holiday had a person in her head when singing, we don’t hear who that is. This is true for Sinatra too, he’s not singing from a metaphorical stage, he’s sitting next to you at the bar, and he’s never mentioning a name. They’re singing about their experiences with strong musical egos but transparent personal ones, the songs are there to tell the listener that we’re all in this together.
Adele sings about her divorce, and maybe that connects to the listener, but what she is saying is “listen to me tell you about my divorce.” When Sinatra sings, it’s about us, about how he, and we, have loved and lost. Sinatra was a star, Holiday was a star, but their stardom was not about anyone being on their sides, it was about how they were on our side, they were with us on the high and low, in good luck and beaten down, in and out of love. Both singers recorded the wonderful ballad, “What’s New,” with the agonizing line, “I haven’t changed / I still love you so”—no accusations, no blame, no righteousness, just a song about living with the experience of being in love, losing that, and still carrying the weight and tenderness of that
feeling around. Because they were such wonderful artists, they made that real for anyone with that same experience, they articulated what it is the listener felt, they explained it to us, their fans.
That’s the generosity of a great artist. Swift and Adele sound great, but they don’t move me in anyway, they don’t have that generosity, the self-effacement to put their personality and experience entirely into their voices and sing to us as peers, rather than stand on stage as stars and have us admire them. What they are doing is so specific that it’s impossible to imagine them expressing anything other than the fallout of a standard heterosexual relationship—I can’t imagine “All Too Well” ending up in the context of an LGBTQ+ performance, and the covers of it by other singers heighten the oppressive blandness of the song. Sinatra contributed lyrics to “I’m a Fool to Want You,” an American standard. The song comes out of his stormy relationship with Ava Gardner, but it’s so concentrated, elegant, and such a song about life— not his life, but everyone’s—that anyone can sing it. It’s on his classic album, Where Are You?, and it’s the first track on Holiday’s thrilling and harrowing Lady in Satin. There’s no scarf, there’s no sister’s house, there’s no drinking wine, there’s just “I” and “you,” and trying to let go and fighting memories. There’s only one Taylor Swift and one Adele, but we are all an “I” to ourselves and a “you” to someone else, and it’s not the stars that are the thing, but the songs.
"The songs on these albums are polished and well-made but not really memorable, except in the way that they cement the solidarity of the armies of fans." Red Hook Star-Revue
www.star-revue.com
December 2021, Page 19
Famous to Open the 1989 BAM Next Wave St^dNSOlJND DlEOK^* STORY INSIDE ON PAGE NINE
WE VOl
L a u rie A n d erso n (G ille s Larra in Photo)
RED HOOK HISTORY
as chronicled in the paper of Brownstone Brooklyn June 1979 Mike Armstrong, Editor Zoning Change Could Make Top Of 4th Ave. a
Corridor Scores ofH i “Rise Red Hook Residents Protest Board Six Proposals BY D EN N IS HOLT The NYC Planning Department is slow ly, but steadfastly, m oving to the point a few m onths from
to Com m unity Board Two (CB2) a variety o f zoning changes within its district, the m ost significant in volving Fourth A ve. from Pacific BY LINUS GELBER then reinvest a percentage of its to U nion St. Amid shouts of “ Build housesSt.Unless pofits in continuing minds are changed for the develop first!” and “ We need our jobs!”one reason ment orofanother, the third a second one ostage, f from some 300 residents of the Red those berth proposals facilitate“the forcould the port. I think if you building o f 13-story structures for Hook watefront, Community Board have a healthy waterfront in this on Fourth Ave. between Six held a public hearing June housing 7 area, you’ll have a healthy com Pacific St. and Warren St. and detailing the proposed plan for 8-story a munity,” Weinstein buildings from Warren tosaid. Port Authority containerport and U nion. This would meandescribed the Gelber then the Urban potential o f building unveiling a new Urban Renewal Renewal Planstructures for Columbia St., a tw o to three tim es the height o f plan for the area. new part of the containerport what now exists and has for at Residents, angered by the pros package. It provides, least 100 years along this six blockshe explain pect of relocation, demolition and stretched, o f Fourth Ave. construction of 57 for the proposalbuildings being mulledon Columbia the elimination of jobs in the Another two-family
(Phoenix Photo by Tom Sullivan)
Following Pesce’s speech, the audience began changing, “ Built a house, don’t tear them down...we don’t have to relocate,” and yelling questions and complaints at the Board officials and representatives on the stage. Soon after, Chair woman DeMartini adjourned the hearing more than two hours after it began. M "H “ I think it was a good meeting,” Wmm<-y>» med she strain ard, hoarse flBB tafterw % v mmm: from shouting. “l 1 may not have a WB i.ii.HW (Continued On Page Five) This area of Fourth Ave., looking south from A tlantic w ould be rezoned neighborhood, came out in force to and President S ts., with the voice left tomorrow, but I think a lot protest the plans and to demand additional rehabilitation by the city got said here tonight.” more say into the governmental of 34 units of existing but damaged At its June 13th Board meeting, process, chanting and carrying housing along the strip. Eleven Board members will discuss and signs exhorting, “ W ork, work, lots in the area, now vacant, will be vote on the proposals. Board ir o o k iy n .H d g h ts ::||« p i b e lte r. B oth work” and ‘No unemployment.” turned weekend into neighborhood parks mthendations will then be ThkpssL the diy finally got its or arerecom o ^ U n g d r doors sbbts, and are M r“ We are here tonight to protectffrg paved asstore, appropriate. up by tothe m e of over, what*$ in in the. w ayof She j Mtaken j j f t r volunteer:s s ta ffCity the Planning our houses and our jobs—we mustweat&fc saidforthat the housing project the coming months. And whilehad Com m ission and the Board of Marilyn Gelber from the Planning Commission details breezes in theaftetm ath o f Charities Harfight and be heard!” cried resident erisp T^e BfooMyh Heights ImmMih Shelter already lined up Catholic Estimate. new plans for the redevelopment of Columbia Street at a Huso were refr&hins to most they m f m m m m 0 m to r about s e w years* Freddy Roman to applause as the as a potential sponsor. weft the annual harbinger of the roughest, according to P eering com m ittee member public meeting of Community Board Six June 7. (Cuiccio hearing began. Board Six Chairwoman half ofWhen the year for New York’s homeless Petar D o lrc ri; and p ro v id e beds fro m O c Photo) Presented by Marilyn Gelber fromp o p ila tfo it. DeMartini threw the meeting tober 1 through M ay fo r 12 men each night Anita the questions, homeless are forced the City Planning Commission and€ openo f to most tocentered at area churches. B o im n says rise men w ho the winter months in subways, alleys stay in the shelter are sent by the Bond Ed W einstein from the Portspend around complaints from residents and donrwsvs each vear tw o area O r n tv malthough r * n t* r nnH they sir#* «**^*w nearly sixhut years. mittee, had? «W the . BY JUDITH KURENS Authority, the plans call for ahomeless who were losing jobs or houses, or shelters make life a PSA little less drug and m to enialchoose problemamong s. DeLaCour says combines option the eight Two containerport private developers haveharshfeared 70-acre to be build the of effects of additional for a handful men without homes In the past, the h ite rfa ith Shelter has theshelter talents ofBrooklyn three architects. bidders. HPD, working in been to the City’s*? fhe at the Society for in He for therecommended Port Authority centering demolition and abandonment an rotated its lo catio n throughout the hand year says his own expertise is in historic Housing Preservation and Develop Ethical Culture in Park Slope, and the {Continued Oh Preserva Page Four) around the Atlantic Basin, extend already crumbling area. Many hand with the Landmarks aspects of cities his experience one ment their and bidKing for expressed .. mmmmmm ing from(HPD) Wolcott,in Ferris a fearandthat those dis tion Commission, will choose has been in renovation and design developer for the city owned land, reconstruction and rehabilitation Sts. on the southern end alongof placed would never sec the houses of private them, residences. are priced at $285,000. Block 207, 1.28 and acre Columbia site with promised Imlay, Van aBrunt posingHisa skills scenario buttressed by David Park According to Martha Gershun of seven vacant buildings on the Sts. finally to Baltic St. on the where the city, short Hirsch, on fundsa as it architect and Locke Walca- the Public Affairs Office of HPD, corner oftip. Poplar andis Fulton northern This a step Streets down isSlope now, might leave the plan only bage, a landscape architect who HPD will begin an in-depth evalua in North Heights byde an half-completed, from the Brooklyn project originally ruining the area helped create Pierrepont Park. PSA tion of the two projects and Ad-Hoc Committee for Block 207. signed in 1973, which described a and leaving local people without staff also include a contractor, developers to determine ability to The two developers, 230-acre facility sprawling Poplar from homes. expert, financer and StreetSt. Associates for m“ortgage Kane down to and the Recycling Erie Basin. What kind of track record has meet stated goals, evaluate the lawyer, DeLaCour says. design, the feasibility of the Housing Partnerships, were chosen Weinstein urged the audience to New York City got for relocation?” Recycling for Housing Preseva- proposal including finance capabili on the basis their commitment support the of containerport, savingto Gelber was asked by local Albert tion (HPD) is worst knownis for adhere the“ lost guidelines by Toriani. that the to area several set ship “ The the conver United ty and conduct a screening process sions of the ExLax Co-Op on of the developer’s past “ track HPD according to Nancy Wolf, ping-related industries and several States!” Later, citing Weinstein’s Atlantic Avenue and the Doehler record” with HPD, the city and chairperson the Ad-Hoc hundred jobsofbecause the Commit city did comments about Die Building on toning Court down Streetthein past employers. tee, and for additional feature not go ahead with the last plan.” containerport area, Toriani grum Carroll Gardens. HPD should reach a decision in benefits such as inclusion of Current designs, he said, will bled, “ 100 jobs or 200—what are The two developers were chosen about seven weeks, according to playground and park facilities.and relocate 20 units of housing we doing, selling potatoes?” from eight bidders after each Gershun. The project will then HPD the seven cause the requires loss of “that five firms and Assemblym an M ichael submitted proposals to anPesce, open follow a six month long Uniform existing buildings be renovated, 200 jobs as opposed to 80 firms and who arrived late in the meeting, that jobs” any new structures be not meeting of the Ad-Hock Committee Land Use Review Procedure 1000 under the previous told the crowd that he felt “ the first higher thanThe 50 containerport feet, and thatwill an and Brooklyn Heights residents. (ULURP), starting with Community program. priority is to save the jobs, and the The decision followed two evenings Board Two, then to the City’s underground garage and p lay School District 15 held a music fair in Carroll be built in three stages: the first second priority is to stay where you of closed session meetings of the Planning Commission and the ground be built. Gardens Park June 14, bands two, financed by the city and state, are now. And, with the kind of More than 300 Red Hook residents came outlast to aThursday, public hearing heldwhen by Community Ad-Hoc Committee, Wolf says. Board of Estimate. It is not feasible Poplar andtor choruses from containerport. IS 293 and JHS They 142 performed willWids cost DeLaCour, $20 million of and allowStreet the community activism we have here Board Six on June 7 to discuss plans a waterfront protested the HPD narrow ed the selection to expect that construction will Associates (PSA), is a resident for browsers and listeners in the area. (Cuiccio Authority to immediately move intoof tonight, I think you will start the plannext design, process to the two developers begin current until early year, which says will close 5 firms and eliminate 200 jobs. (Cuiccio Photo) Brooklyn Heights and a practicing Photo) one berth; the Port Authority will machinery to do just that.” architect at 27 State Street for recommended by the Ad-Hoc Com Gershun.
Heights Chooses Developers City Considers Choice
State Comptroller Now Says BAM Board SixProperly Dismisses No-Show Members; Spent $$$ AfterThree His Audit Alleged Misspending
Also Approves Modified Red Hook W aterfront Plans
BY IRENE VAN SLYKE The Brooklyn Academy of Music, LINUS GELBER cited in aBY March audit of the New Y'orkCommunity State Council Arts BoardonSixthereduced (NYSCOA) State at Comptrol its roster bybythethree its last ler’s OfficeonofJune misspending meeting 13 when $62,346 it ousted ofmembers its $310,000 Statenot grants, whoinhad come now to a has beenBoard clearedmeeting by that inoffice. single over a A May letter signedBarbaby year. The24th three, Angela Arthur Gordon, Directorand Metro gallo, N. Frances Crisafulli Joan politan says: after “ ...we Hanley,Area wereOffice sent letters the now believemeeting that warning NYSCOA’s last Board that $310,000 grant wastheir properly they stood to lose seats, ap but plied fundedtoartthem. programs. did to notState respond BarbaHowever, also feel that,from in the gallo haswebeen absent the future, BAM’s records should Board since Feb. 15, 1978, and be the mother aintained and ted April to two have beenp resen out since NYSCOA 19, 1978.in a manner more clearly indicating all expenses and alloca “ It doesn’t do my heart good to tions expenses do threlevant is ,’’ remtoarked Board and Six State funding awards.” chairwoman Anita DeMartini as Even thoughupthe State she counted votes on Comptrol a motion to ler’s Officethem, audit “was State remove but ofI the think it’s Council on theThe Arts,Board’s in a sampling necessary.” By-Laws ofprovide 17 organizations of more for the removal after than three 1000 organizations receiving grants successive non-escused absences, from or a the totalCouncil of five between absences,1974-78, excused the Brooklyn Academy of year. Music or non-excused, over the and DeMartini another Brooklyn organization, also read a letter sent the New Muse Community Muse um, were also audited. A fin*'
was sent to BAM. Council staff have met with BAM officials and CPA with officials of the Comptrol by Borough P resident Howard ler's officeasking to discuss Comptrol Golden, that the attendance be ler’s analysis funds. taken threeof disallowable tim es during the BAM's preparing a report meetingCPA to isinsure a continued inquorum response will be wore sent on, to as which the evening the for discussion with the butCouncil the Board chose to ignore this Comptroller's office. Should there in favor of keeping tabs on the benumber funds of that must bestill returned members presenton by this contract, it vote. will be recom counting up each "If the City mCouncil ended that be charged holds they quorum calls all against grants through future the day, BAM then I’m willingtoto alleviate a potential flow go by their ru le s ,” cash protested problem the organization.” memberforJohn Gmelch, claiming BAM’s response theunjustly audit, that local Boards hadtobeen however, April 24 three singled outdated for poor attendance. “ If weeks gives they an explanation they earlier, don’t, then can go to later accepted by the Comptroller’s hell.” Office. said inout, part attendance that “ the As BAM it turned allocation of above the Academy’s ‘Other stayed well the quorum mark until the openis another session term held for for Income’ (which non-State gifts, grants, to andair contri non-Board members their butions) auditors is views atbythetheendState of the meeting, inaccurate and misleading. when attendance dropped After from deducting from the to‘Other about thirty down 20 or Income’ less than only those contributions restricted a quorum. to programs not funded by the The Board then set to voting on a Council, the auditors attribut three-part legislativehave package for ed all remaining contributions and grants raised during that year to 1 hr < slaln-fiinrtr>H nrnorams " the response said. “ This method leads one erroneously to the conclusion arrived at by the New York State Council on the Arts. It is the
fundraising can be applied to all of the Academy’s programs.” TheRed five page reply goes on the Hook BAM waterfront, which towas demonstrate the alleged the subject that of a “crowded and overfunding of programs rowdy public hearing supported the week bybefore. the State as reported byatthe Community residents the auditors incorrect,primarily and that to there hearing isobjected the isrelocation a substantial of deficit houses,in NYSCOAbusinesses funded programs.” and jobs by a 70-acre containerport The Cthat om will ptroller’s re faciltiy be built Office for the Port sponse states, repeating BAM’s A uthority around the Atlantic contention, In our report, we Basin. The “following items were offset Statebyfunded program costs approved the Board: with• The all unrestricted income. basic proposal for the BAM requested unrestricted construction of that the containerport income bewaterfront allocated was based on a along the approved, on the condition that two local b u sin esses, the W illiam sburg Stock Co. and the Candida Manu facturing Co., STERNLIGHT both located on BY JEAN Sackett St. at Van Brunt St. and Community Planning Board employing numbers of local Two, which large covers the Brooklyn resid en ts, be left area, out is of cur the Heights-Fort Greene containerport area and rently searching for allowed a Boardto function to instead being Manager replaceofBob Bishdemo who lished; effective April 20th of this resigned • An Urbancommittee Renewal has Planbeen for year. A search Columbia for the formed andSt.,is which being calls chaired by construction 57 two-family board member of Reverend Keiler. The other committee members are Donna Cambas, Ann Faulkner, r ’n n n ip M p w c n m liin h 's m it h ' ' ’ *R---J --Victoria W illiams, and Howard www.star-revue.com Zimmerman. According to Reverend Keiler, a June 22 deadline has been set for
number of proposed formula. We determined that the allocation on unrestricted income in the same houses on and adjacent to Presi proportion as earned income (11 dent St. as well as providing for the percent non-State to 89 percent^ city-sponsored rehabilitation of 34 State funded programs)units appeared existing but damaged along reasonable...in thisapproved circumstance.” Columbia St. was on the There seems to be controversy condition that buildings on Carroll on manner whichand theColum audit St. the between VaninBrunt was comment in bia, released. originallyThe to last be demolished, BAM’s to the remain reply standing andComptroller’s intact. Office tht lease if BAM had been • A says 50-year between the given "the to discuss city and theopportunity Port Authority for the the the containerport State audit land findings on whichof the prior publication, the on differ will betobuilt was approved, the ences would properly condition thathave the been Port Authority submit landscape designs for spots where the facility borders on residential areas to the Community received the be search committee Board, and responsible for will the meet to interview m aintenance of the the candidates property and will then recommend three leased. finalists to the Board.from the City Marilyn Gelber Grantly Crichlow, Board Planning Commission and Two Pat Chairman, says thatof ads the Zedalis, chairman the for Board’s position have been placed in both Land Use Committee, noted that “the The changes Phoenix" m and “ The Brooklyn andated by the Heights Press” , and also will be placed Board were changes requested in other local papers as at several the public hearing. well. "To my knowledge seven applicaitons have been received”
explained, and the controversy avoided." The State Comptroller’s Office said that the audit was of the In other business, an application State council on theLines Artstoand that by Greyhound Bus operate “aatnewa route conference prior Ave. to was the down Fourth issuance of the ourBoard draftbecause, report, said we rejected by were informed that want NYSCOA will Zedalis, “ we don’t any more review and request a traffic our on findings our streets.” She did refund funds if as warranted. expressof such puzzlement to why Without receiving any notice the Greyhound would want to runtoa bus contrary, we then our to draft down Fourth Ave.; issued according the and final report, to whihe NYSCOA application, she explained, the bus concurred with the almost of our is bound from Port allAuthority recommendations.” station in Manhattan to Washing ton, D.C. and makes no stops in Brooklyn. “ T h a t’s the dopiest route in the world,” observed member Gmelch. Board members absent from the committee chairman Claudia meeting without excuse were Cor Vito win explained although Bish D’Erasmo and that Nancy Gooding. resigned 20th,were he Members effective absent andApril excused had accum ulated Buccellato, seven weeks Reverend Sebastian Ed worth of overtime and annual leave Carcaci, former Board Chairman at his $20,000 year salary. Gerard Carey,per Elinore Flynn, Bish Ira was owed ninety hours of Salvatore overtime Levine, Donna Maggiore, pay, and Scotto Corwinandsaid the “ Buddy” Cliffthat Weber. Board "is also responsible for his accumulated leave from previous city jo b s ." Board Chairman Crichlow explained that the Board is making these payments to Bish on a biweekly basis, rather than in December 2021 a lump sum, and hopes that the new manager will be able to take over “ bv the second week in
Community Board Two Seeking New D istrict Manager
Board Two Approves Eagle Warehouse Conversion, Settles Block Dispute, And Looks For Abandoned Homes a n H it
r\f
State Council was released, the Page 20 Red Hook organization had 90Star-Revue days to re spond and in a reply dated May 17 signed by Kitty Carlisle Hart,
rhus far. Crichlow said.
According to Reverend Keiler, no matter how quickly he or she is selected, the new Board manager c a n ’t start serving until July