Dec27

FRIDAY, DEC. 27, 2013

We saw you at...

Pius X vs. Mahanoy Area boys’ basketball game

For a review of “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” see Page 3

Welcome 2014

See Page 2

Mike and Kelly Heater, Mahanoy City, and daughter, Brianna, 9 months

Tarkita Reeves, left, and Tracy Dudash, both of Mahanoy City For more photos from the game, see Page 4

In with the new ...

Events in Schuylkill set to usher in 2014

BY ERIC PEDDIGREE COPY EDITOR

epeddigree@republicanherald. com

A

range of activities are planned around Schuylkill County for residents looking to ring in 2014 in grand style.

In Tamaqua, eagles will take flight up the county’s tallest building at midnight, illuminating “2014” to officially welcome the new year.

Linda Yulanavage, executive director of the Tamaqua Area Chamber of Commerce, said the annual event has become a New Year’s Eve tradition for many in the borough since 1998.

“It’s a family-friendly event and people look forward to it,” she said.

Disc jockey Brandon Fritz will provide entertainment on East Broad Street.

Starting about 11 p.m., a large Jumbotron will provide a live feed of activities in New York City’s Times Square.

In similar fashion to the iconic ball drop in Times Square at midnight, the ascending eagles will be the highlight of the night in Tamaqua. The lighted eagles will begin their journey up the front of ABC Tamaqua High Rise, 222 E. Broad St., shortly before midnight. When the clock strikes 12 a.m., the eagles 2

will reach the top, illuminating an oversized “2014.”

The display will stay lit throughout January.

Yulanavage said the Dec. 31 tradition will be held whether the forecast calls for sleet, snow or below freezing temperatures.

“We do have the event no matter what the weather,” she said.

According to the National Weather Service, the eagles will have a dry but cold night for their flight. Mostly cloudy skies are predicted with the temperature dropping to about 15.

The City of Pottsville will toast the new year with a large bottle of Yuengling.

Since the mid-2000s, the tradition with “America’s Oldest Brewery” has become the main attraction for activities at Garfield Square. Shortly before midnight, a bottle of Yuengling will climb the flagpole in the square, hitting the top as the calendar flips over to 2014.

Organizers said the celebration will feature a countdown courtesy of Bartush Signs, Orwigsburg.

For residents looking for a warmer way to celebrate, Our Haven Foundation will host Rockin’ Walk In New Year’s Eve from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the art center at 220 Parkway, Schuylkill Haven.

Doors will open at 8:30 p.m.

Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 at the door. The event

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2013

is for people ages 21 and older.

The event will feature the Sterling Koch Band. Hot and cold appetizers will be available, as well as dessert, coffee, beer and a champagne toast. For information, call 570-732-3728.

In Frackville, the Elks will host a New Year’s Eve party at its 307 S. Third St. lodge. The gala is scheduled from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. with music by The Legends. The party will feature a catered meal and a champagne toast.

Tickets are $25 and reservations are required. For more information, call 570874-2500.

Bingo events are also planned for Dec. 31 that will continue into the new year.

The Saint Clair Lions Club will host a bingo event from 8 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. on McCord Avenue. Tickets are $35 and include dinner. Reservations are required and will be accepted on a firstcome, first-served basis. For information or to make a reservation, call 570-4290549.

The Joliett Volunteer Fire Company will hold its bingo night from 9 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. at 401 Main St., Tremont. Tickets are $25 and include food and drinks.

Covered dishes will be accepted but not required.

For information, call 570695-3624.

POTTSVILLE (PA.) REPUBLICAN HERALD

JACQUELINE DORMER/STAFF PHOTOS

Mike Messner, left, of Pottsville’s West End Hose Company No. 7, and John Thompson set up the Yuengling Lager beer bottle on the 75-foot pole for the 2011 New Year’s Eve festivites in Garfield Square, Pottsville, atop Ladder 51. INSET: A blinking eagle crafted by Francis Fabrizio, Brockton, is lit up on the side of the ABC Tamaqua High Rise for New Year’s Eve festivities.

‘Walter Mitty’ gets life after slick start “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” shouldn’t be any good at all.

It’s a remake of a 1947 film that wasn’t screaming to be remade, even if the idea of doing just that has been kicking around Hollywood since the mid-’90s. With a reported budget of almost $100 million, it seemed like the classic case of money masking a lack of imagination.

For much of its first half, during which visuals replace vision, “Walter Mitty” stumbles down a rabbit hole of technological triumph. But then something unexpected happens: it turns into a sweetly engaging blockbuster. That may be its biggest special effect of all.

Based on a short story by James Thurber, “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” revolves around an underachieving man who enlivens his dull life with an overactive imagination. Danny Kaye starred in the ’40s version and Ben Stiller stars in and directs this revamped edition and, from a director’s point of view, the idea of bringing Mitty’s wildest dreams to life with the aid of computer graphics must have had magnetic appeal.

Mitty is decidedly oldschool, working as a photo negative archivist at a dying Life magazine. He spends his days with few friends and pining silently for a co-worker, single-mom Cheryl (Kristen Wiig). In between, he experiences vivid daydreams where he accomplishes heroic feats.

He gets to make those dreams reality after Life is taken over by a group of corporate drones — fronted by the heartless Ted Hendricks (Adam Scott). They plan to turn the legendary publication into a website, but they want the magazine to go out with a bang, publishing its final issue with a memorable cover.

MOVIE REVIEWS The magazine’s most celebrated and elusive photographer, Sean O’Connell (Sean Penn), has said he has sent in a negative of a photo that he says would be the perfect journalistic goodbye. But no one can find the negative. So Mitty takes it upon himself to track down O’Connell, one of his few friends at the magazine, and find that photo.

This is when “Walter Mitty,” literally, starts to soar as Mitty the man wings his way to Greenland, Iceland and Afghanistan, the last places where O’Connell was thought to have been. It’s here that “Mitty” relies less on annoying CGI — a daydream fight between Mitty and Hendricks looks like something from “Thor” or one of those endless battles at the climax of “Man of Steel” — and more on the simple but breathtaking beauty of natural landscapes. A scene where Mitty skateboards down an Icelandic road may do as much for Icelandic tourism as “Lord of the Rings” did for New Zealand’s.

By the end, viewers may not have completely forgotten about “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’s” troubled start, but they will be more inclined to forgive it.

“The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” a Twentieth Century Fox Film release, is rated PG for some crude comments, action violence and mild language. Running time: 114 minutes. Three stars.

‘47 Ronin’ A Japanese legend with roots in reality, the tale of the 47 ronin has been adapted into just about every medium imaginable, from ballet to movies to graphic novels.

Now Keanu Reeves stars in “47 Ronin,” an American-

ized, or perhaps internationalized version, of one of Japan’s most treasured tales.

It’s the story of Oishi (Hiroyuki Sanada), leader of a group of samurai living in peace under their master, Lord Asano (Min Tanaka).

But when Asano is killed by Lord Kira (Tadanobu Asano) and his nameless Witch (Rinko Kikuchi), the samurai become masterless ronin scattered throughout the countryside. To regain their honor and avenge their master, they must kill Kira, even though it may mean their own death.

Where does that leave Reeves? He’s an add-on to the story, a half-breed named Kai who was raised by demons.

He is mistreated, Cinderella-style, by the samurai, until the now-masterless Oishi needs his help. Slowly but surely, Kai earns the soldiers’ respect.

What’s most impressive about “47 Ronin” — its strict adherence to the ancient Japanese honor code of bushido DON’T JUST SEE A MOVIE, EXPERIENCE IT AT

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SHOWTIMES FOR FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27 THROUGH WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1 BARGAIN TUESDAYS ALL SHOWS ALL DAY $5.25 (EXCLUDING IMAX, ADDITIONAL FEE FOR 3D)

NOW SHOWING IMAX:

THE HOBBIT: DESOLATION OF SMAUG IMAX3D (PG13) 12:00, 3:30, 7:00, 10:30 FEATURING IN REALD DIGITAL 3D:

47 RONIN IN DIGITAL 3D (PG13) 10:35 WOLF OF WALL STREET (R) (12:00, 3:45), 7:00, 10:10 GRUDGE MATCH (PG13) (1:20, 4:20), 7:20, 10:05 THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY (PG) (1:10, 4:10), 7:10, 9:45, 10:00 47 RONIN (PG13) (1:35, 4:35), 7:35 ANCHORMAN 2 (PG13) (12:55, 4:05), 7:30, 10:05, 10:40 AMERICAN HUSTLE (R) (12:30, 4:05), 7:05, 10:05 SAVING MR. BANKS (PG13) (12:45, 4:10), 7:10, 9:55 WALKING WITH DINOSAURS (PG) (1:30, 4:30), 7:20 THE HOBBIT: DESOLATION OF SMAUG (PG13) (1:00, 4:00), 7:20, 9:40 FROZEN (PG) (1:20, 4:40), 7:40

CHILDREN UNDER 3 NOT ADMITTEDTO PG13 or R RATED MOVIES AFTER 6PM SHOWTIMES SUBJECTTO CHANGEWITHOUT NOTICE

— is also what finally drags it down. The themes of honor and death that run through the movie may not instinctively resonate with American audiences. “47 Ronin” would have been more fun if it kept swinging its sword instead of falling on it.

“47 Ronin,” a Universal Pictures release, is Rated PG13 for violence. Running time: 119 minutes. Two stars.

‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ “The Wolf of Wall Street” comes shackled with impossibly high expectations.

It’s the latest film from Martin Scorsese (arguably this country’s greatest living director), features two of the era’s most notable leading men (Leonardo DiCaprio and Matthew McConaughey) and runs three hours (Hollywood

proof that this is “important,” people).

It also happens to be of the cultural moment, based on Jordan Belfort’s bestselling memoir about his days as a young, ruthless Wall Street warlord. As the country continues to struggle its way out of the 2008 financial collapse, there’s still interest in how it all might have gone down.

At the film’s start, working-class Belfort (DiCaprio) is at his first menial Wall Street job, being treated like dirt by his supervisor but getting some sage — and hilarious — advice on how to survive in this shark tank by a coworker (McConaughey in a far-too-brief cameo). But the year is 1987, and the firm is taken down by that year’s financial crisis. Belfort is back to square one.

His life turns into a nonstop party, and no one parties harder than his business partner, Donnie Azoff (Jonah Hill). Their slow-motion brawl while whacked out on quaaludes is going to be one of those scenes that filmgoers will be talking about well into the spring.

Of course, what goes up must come down, and helping along with that is federal agent Patrick Denham (Kyle Chandler), who’s looking for just the right opportunity to bust Belfort’s entire operation.

“The Wolf of Wall Street,” a Paramount Pictures release, is rated R for strong sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use, strong language, and violence. Running time: 180 min. Four stars.

Schuylkill Mall For Showtimes: 570-874-2505 • www.schuylkillmalltheatres.com www.facebook.com/schuylkillmalltheatres Playing 12/27 - 12/31

AMERICAN HUSTLE R 12:00P 6:30P WOLF OF WALL STREET R 3:00P 9:30P WALKING WITH DINOSAURS PG 12:15P WALKING WITH DINOSAURS 3D PG 3:30P 6:30P 9:00P ANCHORMAN 2 PG13 12:45P 4:00P 7:00P 10:00P

47 RONIN 3D 21+ PG13 4:00P 9:30P SECRET OF WALTER MIT 21+ PG 12:30P 7:00P

47 RONIN 3D PG13 12:30P 6:45P SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MIT PG 3:45P 9:45P FROZEN 2-D PG 12:00P GRUDGE MATCH PG13 2:30P 5:00P 7:30P 10:00P THE HOBBIT: SMAUG PXC PG13 12:00P 3:15P 6:30P 9:45P

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AMERICAN HUSTLE 21+ R 3:30P 10:00P WOLF OF WALL STREET 21+ R 12:00P 6:30P

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2013

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We saw you ... at the game on Saturday From left, Dr. Francis Kane, Dr. Patricia Kane, both of Friedensburg, and Champ and Christine Holman, Barnesville

From left, James C. Wronski III, James C. Wronski Jr. and James C. Wronski Sr., all of Mahanoy City

Janine Schaffer, Mahanoy City, and son, Brian, 2 Matt Tacelosky, Mahanoy City, and son, Parker, 3 Photos by Andy Matsko

Erin Noon, 17, left, and Paige Mahmod, 20, both of Mahanoy City

NEWYEAR’S DAY January 1st

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4

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POTTSVILLE (PA.) REPUBLICAN HERALD

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Theft of delivered package dampens day, but not writer’s spirit of Christmas season I hope everyone enjoyed Christmas with their families.

I’m sure I will have had a merry one, too, but I’m writing this Monday evening because of holiday deadlines.

Something today put a bit of a damper on my Christmas spirit and I’m certain it’s something most people have dealt with at one time or another.

I was stolen from.

I went out onto my front porch to get the mail anticipating, due to my last-minute ways of buying presents, the arrival of a gift. I know, I was really cutting it close.

I was expecting a unique present I had ordered for my father, who is likely the best man who ever lived on this earth in my humble opinion.

As I opened the front door, I was elated to see there was, indeed, a package waiting for me. That elation, however, turned to utter deflation when I realized the box had been torn apart and the contents of it removed with the exception of some crumpled up packing paper and a packaging slip.

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kind of mishandling during shipping. No, someone took it upon themselves to walk up the four concrete steps onto my front porch in broad daylight, pick up the package containing my father’s Christmas present, rip it open and deem it good enough to keep as their own. Perhaps they plan to regift it; I can’t be certain.

What I can be certain of is that those who steal are among some of the lowest forms of life on this planet. I understand there are those who face desperate times, but stealing makes you nothing but a filthy, rotten thief and no one trusts a thief, so good luck living a life of lies in which you are trusted by no one.

I have been down and out and never, in my life, have I considered taking from someone else for my own personal gain. You want more in life? Just work harder for it; it’s as simple as that. If you want it bad enough, you’ll achieve it, but through honest outlets, not by breaking the law.

I am also certain that I, and the bulk of decent human beings, work

Sovereign Majestic Home for the Holidays

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octopus guy that hooked up to my hose whose arms flailed about sending water Jenna in all kinds of directions during the summertime, Wasakoski and other packages have also gone missing as well.

I’ve filed police reports, I’ve had a locked mailbox installed, but nothing really stops a thief. I lived in downextremely hard to make town Baltimore and never ends meet and afford themdealt with what I have localselves the opportunity to ly, in a small town where, buy things for those they when I was a kid, it was love during the holidays.

The audacity of someone to unheard of to even lock your doors whether you be home violate another by taking or not. something that does not In the spirit of the holiday belong to them sickens me. season, though, I can’t let And for me, this was just myself be overcome with one package, but it really anger. I’m considering going chapped my candy cane all Kevin McAllister from because it was the eve of “Home Alone” with my Christmas Eve. It’s such a place, but that’s going to take shame to think someone would be out robbing people a lot of time and effort. I’ll most likely just install camat such a time. I guess their eras. form of shopping is different from the rest of us.

This hasn’t been an isolated incident, either. I’ve had my mail stolen, lawn furniture, a disco ball which hung Presents from under our deck, a little

Lakeside Ballroom

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What happened is just unfortunate and my parents claim they want nothing but photos of me as a brunette to display in their house since all they have now are photos of me from my days as a blonde.

They are good eggs, they don’t expect much. I knew this gift would make my dad very happy and put a smile on his face. I reckon spending time with me does the same, if you ask him, but that’s not the point.

People steal for many different reasons and I understand everyone finds themselves in a tough spot here and there but, never is the answer to take what is not yours. In this case, I think it was just something done to act cool or to impress someone else, although I’ll never know for sure.

The moral compasses of many have taken a plunge south and that is a shame. I may come across as a flaming liberal to some throughout the life of this column, but I still believe in and have core set of values which include “thou shall not steal.”

If someone is down and out, there are plenty of resources to help get back on their feet, never should one turn to taking from others.

Happy holidays readers, and thieves, consider a resolution to turn it all around in the new year. As human beings, we can always improve, so even for you, it’s not too late.

(Wasakoski, a News-Item editor, is a graduate of Von Lee School of Aesthetics and is certified as a professional makeup artist.)

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FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2013

5

What’s all the commotion?

Dear Mark: I love the slot machine Wheel of Fortune. Surprisingly, I even get my fair share of bonus spins. My question is, does it matter when I press the Spin button, or is the outcome already predetermined?

Kaye S. No matter what casino you play at, be it in Vegas, Atlantic City or somewhere in between, you can’t help but hear the notorious “Wheeeeeel of Fortuuuune!” jingle identifying someone playing the bonus round.

OK, sure, I am not one to promote slot play in this column, but loads of players love this machine, so much so that the Wheel of Fortune progressive slot continues to be one of the most popular slot machines of all time.

Did I mention that the three-reel game is often

start your bonus spin on a Wheel of Fortune machine.

When you press the button, all the machine does is poll Deal Me In the RNG (random number generator) to get a number that it will use to determine where the wheel will stop.

The probability that the wheel stops on any particulinked to a big progressive lar spot is the same on every jackpot that can pay out spin regardless of whether some ginormous prizes? you wait one second five secThe first progressive jack- onds or after a five minute pot ($1,736,401) was hit at the bathroom break.

Luxor in Las Vegas in One mistake that many November 1997. players make is to not bet I actually witnessed one the maximum coin amount. such jackpot ($1,231,000) at Only then can you get a shot Bill’s Casino in Lake Tahoe at the bonus Spin Function in May 1998. Like most — or hit the progressive super-sized jackpots on pro- jackpot for that matter — if gressive machines, the priyou place the max bet. mary prize is paid in annual Since the Spin Function is installments. where your profits occur, As to your question, Kaye, playing without giving yourit really doesn’t matter when self a chance at a Bonus Spin you press the spin button to takes away from all the fun.

Mark Pilarski

Middleport Inn 2501 West End Avenue Pottsville - 570-622-8741

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6

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Reservations being accepted. Sign up early to make sure you have a lane.

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Friday

Chicken Pot Pie With Crust $8.95 Roasted Lemon Cod W/ Broccoli Almond and Romano Sauce-$10.95 Grilled Bacon Wrapped Scallops-14.95

New Year’s Day

Benefit for Boy Scout Troop 624, Orwisburg Date: Wednesday January 1, 2014 Masonic Lodge 1000 East Market St., Orwisburg 11am-4pm

B-P-B-B-P-P-P-Bs on a baccarat scorecard, even if there Dear Mark: is no advantage to doing so, I have seen many baccarat does add some excitement to players filling out the scorethe game. card for every bet placed.

The strategy that I would Does that really matter for recommend is that since the increasing the winning house edge for the Bank odds? hand is slightly lower than Vince W. for the Player hand (1.17 perSit down at almost any cent vs. 1.36 percent), just baccarat table, Vince, and keep betting on the banker you will find pencils and and pass on the scorecards. scorecards provided for the Now, Vince, please allow players to track the outcome me to contradict myself. of each hand.

Sure, I advocated betting the What they are doing is Banker hand and dismiss analyzing their card for scorecards, figuring the trends as winning hands numbers support the Bankswitch back and forth er bet as the statistically betbetween the Player and ter wager, even if the differBanker. ence between the Player and Personally, I believe they Banker hand is ever so are wasting their time. slight.

Assuming, as you should, The problem playing this that the shoe and dealer are legit, the next hand is an independent, random event.

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Spinach, Roasted Pepper and Sweet Italian Sausage Rotini Pasta $8.95 Yuengling Beer Battered Haddock$10.50 Chicken and Shrimp Veronique $13.50

Sunday

Herbed Turkey Meatloaf $8.95 Grilled Pork Cutlets on Bed of Smothered Parmesan Green Beans $9.95 Crab Cakes $11.50 Check our Facebook page For our breakfast specials

POTTSVILLE (PA.) REPUBLICAN HERALD

Apple Cider Apple Butter Thank You for Your Patronage in 2013!

Mon.-Fri. 8am-5pm Sat. 8am-4pm, Sun. 11am-4pm

1615 Panther Valley Rd. Pine Grove, PA Phone 570-739-4418 www.stonemountainwinecellars.com

way is that the game action becomes monotonous. Who wants to sit down at a baccarat table and bet the same wager (B-B-B-B-B-B-B-B) all night long?

You’re trading the fun of gambling for a minuscule statistical gain. There is that “fun factor” to guessing that I don’t want to overlook here.

Gambling wisdom of the week I have stepped out onto the Las Vegas strip with a smile on my face that you couldn’t have wiped off with a shovel.

— Edward Allen, “Penney Ante” (1992) (Pilarski can be reached at pilarski@markpilarski.com)

Taking New Year Reservations New Year’s Eve Hours 3-8 p.m.

The Station House Fine Food & Spirits Corner of Railroad & Willing Llewellyn

570-544-4456

Dining Open Tues-Thurs 4pm-8pm • Fri & Sat 11am-9pm

Pine View Acres SUNDAYS BIG BREAKFAST BUFFET

Open Saturdays 4 - 8 pm Saturday, Dec. 28th.

“DIASPORA”

Restaurant & Cocktail Lounge

Sonny’s Smoked & Tiki Bar Now Open

SPECIALS

FRIDAY SEAFOOD BUFFET

King Crab Legs-Steamed Clams Haddock-Shrimp (Fried & Cocktail) Includes Dessert & Salad Bar & 12 other items

$19.95

December Specials

8 oz. Chicken Breast w/ Hot Pepper Raspberry Sauce $9.95 Chicken Coq-Au-Ben $9.95 Everyday Special 10 Jumbo Smoked Wings & Pitcher of Yuengling Light Lager $10.95

570-628-3207 • Chamberlaine Ave., Pottsville

We Now Accept EBT Cards

WEEKEND CALENDAR TODAY BALLROOM DANCE CLASSES — 7 to 9 p.m., Trinity Episcopal Church, Centre Street and Howard Avenue, Pottsville (use Second Street entrance). Sponsored

by Pottsville Recreation Commission. Call 570-622-6619.

SMOKE-FREE BINGO — 6:45 p.m., doors open 5:30 p.m., Summit Station Fire Company, 88 Firehouse Road, Summit Station. Food available.

SummitFire34@comcast.net for more information.

FOOD PANTRY — Hosted

by New Life in Christ Ministries, 3:30 to 5 p.m., 217219 Market St., Cumbola.

To qualify for food pantry you

must have a PA state-issued ID card and fall at or below the income guidelines. Emergency food pantry available by appointment only, call 570-277-6041.

SATURDAY HOLIDAY YOUTH LINE DANCE — 7 to 10 p.m., Freidensburg Fish & Game, 169 Stone Mountain Road, Friedensburg. Music by DJ Chicken Nugget. Admission $6.

HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS CONCERT — 7 p.m., Sovereign Majestic Theater, 209 N. Centre St., Pottsville. Featuring many winners of Sovereign Majestic Awards including this year’s vocal winners Makenna Copeland, Carrollynn Schwent and Jacob Tar-

conish. Other winners from years past that are scheduled to participate include Shaina Graff, Tom Guastavino, Bridget Mealia, Daniel Romberger, Julia Schultz and Samantha Wood. Tickets available by calling the theater box office at 570-628-4647. Tickets will also be available at the door the evening of the show.

MEAT BINGO — 7 to 10 p.m., Mahanoy City Elks, 135 E. Centre St., Mahanoy City.

BINGO — 6:30 p.m., doors and kitchen open 5 p.m., Coaldale Ambulance building. Free coffee and tea and weekly door prizes. Call 570645-2050.

BINGO — 6:45 p.m., American Legion, 3 E. Spruce St., Minersville.

SUNDAY CHRISTMAS TOUR OF HAMBURG AND AREA CHURCHES — 1 to 5 p.m., begins at Hamburg Historical Society, 102 State St., Hamburg, and ends at Friedens Church, 28 Wolf Creek Road, Shartlesville. Free. Sponsored by Hamburg Historical Society. Call 610-562-4142.

CELEBRATE RECOVERY — 5 to 6 p.m., Faith Church, 1168 Centre Turnpike, Route 61, Orwigsburg. Biblical and balanced program created to help people overcome life’s hurts, habits and hangups.

Free. Mailing address is P.O. Box 323, Orwigsburg, PA 17961.

FREE BREAD, PASTRY

AND ROLLS — 12:15 to 1:30 p.m., pick up at Living Waters Church of God, 155 S. Balliet St., Frackville. Accepting non-perishable food for redistribution. Call 570874-1585.

FREE FEEDING PROGRAM — Soup kitchen open 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. every Sunday, New Life in Christ Ministries, 217-219 Market St., Cumbola. Full meal for families in need. Call 570-277-6041.

MEETINGS — Alcoholics Anonymous, noon and 7 p.m.

Sunday, Monday, Thursday and Friday; noon to 8 p.m.

Tuesday; noon Wednesday and Saturday, St. Stephen Center, 45 W. Fourth St., Mount Carmel.

OPEN HOUSE — 1 to 5

p.m., Ashland Area Historic Preservation Society headquarters, 316-318 Centre St., Ashland. Display of Santa Clauses and other Christmas personages. True bayberry candles and Gertrude Hawk chocolate bars available.

PIEROGIE SALE — After 8:30 a.m. Mass, St. Ann Roman Catholic Church, Spring and Line streets, Frackville.

Call 570-874-2395 or 570874-3001.

WINGS — Noon until sellout every Sunday, Rainbow Hose Company, Dock Street, Schuylkill Haven. Cost $9 per dozen. Also burgers, cheesesteaks and chicken finger platters. Free delivery in town, including businesses. Call 570-385-1511.

PBS series ‘Downton Abbey’ to start 4th season Jan. 5

BY TISH WELLS MCCLATCHY WASHINGTON BUREAU

But change is in the air both above stairs and below. In the first minutes of the first episode, a main character leaves, and what happens will usher in events that will affect the entire household.

The new season is set in the1920s, when many of society’s conventions of the past were being broken, especially for women.

Matthew’s widow, Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery), is still frozen in the depression brought on by the awful moment when she heard of

The oldest of sayings is that you can’t avoid death and taxes. Both of those dominate the opening episodes of the new fourth season of “Downton Abbey.”

Six months after the death of the heir, Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens), in a car accident, the future of the great house, land and family are still in turmoil. In particular, the death taxes may mean hard decisions over land use and ownership.

315 N. Centre St., Pottsville

570-628-4220 www.thegstone.com

Season’s Eatings TONIGHT

Friday, December 27th

“Jon Stephen” (From Accouco)

Starting at 8:00pm

Tuesday, December 31st

New Year’s Eve Featuring

Dinner Served Till 10:00pm

DJ CHUBB Starting at 10p.m.

Complimentary Hats, NoiseMakers & Champagne Toast

RING

IN 2014

Make You Reservations Now!

her loss. Her outlook is summed up when she calls her son an “orphan.”

Finally, her practical grandmother Violet, the dowager countess of Grantham (Maggie Smith), tells her, “You must choose either death — or life.” Mary wonders why.

Mary’s sister Edith (Laura Carmichael) has become a writer, independent of her family and attracting the attention of her married editor.

The youthful feeling of rebellion

is summed up in Downton’s visitor, Lady Rose MacClare (Lily James), who loves to dance to the new music, but sometimes in inappropriate company for her social standing.

The men are locked in the battle over the future of the estate. Tom Branson (Allen Leech), the Irish chauffeur who married Mary’s late sister Sybil, had worked with Matthew to improve the holdings. Now Branson, lacking support, is at odds with the lord of the manor — Robert,

Celebrate the New Year with Schuylkill County’s Finest

Foods, Spirits and Entertainment Crossroads Inn McKeansburg Hotel Mt. Valley Golf Course Restaurant O’Neal’s Pub Port Clinton Hotel Lakeside Ballroom The Wooden Keg St. Clair & Pottsville Francesco’s • Raudy’s Tavern Blue Mountain Summit Roma Pizzeria • Vito’s Coal Fired The Brickhouse Grill Oak Hill Inn • The Greystone

Schuylkill County Visitors Bureau MONDAY - FRIDAY: 8:00 AM-5:00 PM 570-622-7700 • www.schuylkill.org One Progress Circle, Suite 100, Pottsville

Lord Grantham (Hugh Bonneville).

The servants downstairs deal not only with the death above, but the exit of a major character. Branson’s daughter, Sybil, and Matthew’s son, George, now have a new nanny who runs afoul of the staff.

One of the great pleasures of watching “Downton Abbey” is the rich settings and period dress. The fashions of the period on display are split between the richly opulent period dress and the new age of the flapper.

DID YOU KNOW… You can get your GED for Free??

Ages 17-21 We have the inside scoop on GETTING JOBS !!

*What local employers want *Info on entering into Higher Education LIMITED SEATS call or email TODAY to verify eligibility!

Tommie Ann McShaw @ 570-622-5253 ext. 147 tamcshaw@redcogrp.com

www.pacareerlink.state.pa.us 203 E.Arch Street, Pottsville, PA 17901

POTTSVILLE (PA.) REPUBLICAN HERALD

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2013

7

Big bands’ allure endures for ‘Swingin’ Years’ host

BY CHARLES FLEMING LOS ANGELES TIMES

LOS ANGELES — Chuck Cecil went to his first big band show in 1939, driving with three high school friends in a Model A Ford to the L.A. suburb of South Gate to see bandleader Jimmie Lunceford at the Trianon Ballroom.

The following year, he was at the opening of the Hollywood Palladium to see Tommy Dorsey and a skinny singer named Frank Sinatra.

Nearly three-quarters of a century later, Cecil is still swinging to the same music: His weekly big band radio show, “Swingin’ Years,” has been on the air almost continuously since it debuted in 1956.

It began as filler for an empty Saturday morning slot on Hollywood’s KFI-AM station and was later syndicated to more than 300 stations nationwide and broadcast internationally, on 240 ships and 170 military bases, by Armed Forces Radio Network.

Though the show is now heard only on Long Beach, Calif.’s KKJZ-FM and Long Island, N.Y.’s WPPB-FM, it reaches an average of 46,000 listeners a week.

His cheery Midwestern tones larded with corn-pone quips like “Let’s split an egg and fry a watermelon,” Cecil intersperses big band music with factoids about the songs and firsthand memories of the men and women who recorded them — the Detroit Tigers, for instance, were winning the World Series the day Bing Crosby recorded “Only Forever.”

Just turned 91, the host seems a little mystified by the show’s longevity — but not by the long-lived popularity of the music.

“It was an emotional time, and a hardship time, but it was a survival time,” said the slim, white-haired Cecil, dressed in denim jeans and a chambray shirt that brought out the blue in his eyes. “That’s why the music was so treasured. It did lift people’s spirits during the Depression and the war.”

Cecil was born the day after Christmas 1922 to a rancher who lost hundreds of heads of cattle and 650 acres of good Oklahoma land in the drought that brought on the Dust Bowl and preceded the Great Depression.

When his father couldn’t feed his family of six anymore, he loaded them into a truck and drove to California, installing them in an apartment in Hollywood while he began building a house in what is now Sherman Oaks.

At Van Nuys High, he double-dated with local girls Jane Russell and Norma Jean 8

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2013

Baker before they became movie stars (and Miss Baker changed her name to Marilyn Monroe). A drama teacher told him he had a good voice for radio.

During World War II, despite a childhood injury that left him with a lifelong limp, Cecil left a note for his mother saying he was going to enlist and might be late for dinner, and went off to join the Navy. He trained to fly Grumman Wildcats, and had just qualified for combat duty when the war ended.

By then, Cecil had already studied broadcasting at Los Angeles City College. Newly out of the service, he landed a job at a new station in Klamath Falls, Ore. The gig included doing a “remote broadcast” of a local performance by a 17-piece big band accompanied by a 16-year-old female vocalist.

Her name was Edna. When she turned 17, Cecil married her.

That was 1947. “Their” song was Perry Como’s “They Say It’s Wonderful.”

When Cecil was hired by KFI in 1952, the big band years were already over. “Swingin’ Years” was an exercise in nostalgia, right from the start.

“Big band music was in decline,” Cecil said. “The big bands themselves were fading in popularity. It was vintage music.”

But the show was a hit and became a weekly feature.

Chuck and Edna set up house in the San Fernando Valley, when it was still mostly orange groves, and raised four children.

Cecil, by now a local celebrity, was made honorary mayor of Woodland Hills and asked to ride in open cars in local parades.

The show grew in popularity. Disneyland hired Cecil to do a series of “Swingin’ Years” shows in 1961. Ronald Reagan did a “Swingin’ Years” TV special in 1962. Cecil even hosted “Swingin’ Years” cruises, sailing the Caribbean with bandleader Freddy Martin.

Cecil hung out with Harry James, lunched with Artie Shaw and Bing Crosby, and interviewed Peggy Lee in her boudoir.

(He sat on the bed while the singer reclined.)

Cecil recorded and archived the interviews, using them to introduce his listeners to the men and women behind the music.

Bandleader Shaw, Cecil remembers, invited him to his house and then insisted on doing the interview while driving to lunch.

“It was the most terrifying drive of my life,” Cecil said. “He was a wild driver.”

POTTSVILLE (PA.) REPUBLICAN HERALD

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