Local Culture by an International Photo Journalist

Dear Friends,

It is with great pleasure that the Cultural Association of the Molise Region in America, Universitas Civium Oratino, invites you to the opening of--
Tony Vaccaro: A Retrospective.

The BBC’s The Genius of Photography series called Vaccaro “the greatest combat photographer of WW II.” Celebrating a career spanning six decades, Vaccaro transitioned from serving as America’s first wartime photo journalist to photographing some of the twentieth century’s most notable cultural icons including Sophia Loren, Frank Lloyd Wright, Georgia O’Keefe, to name just a few. This exciting retrospective is not to be missed! We are particularly proud to sponsor this exhibit not only because of the extraordinary quality of his photographs (as you can see from the photo of a young Sophia Loren in the attached flyer) but also because Tony’s roots are from Bonefro, a city in Molise, Italy.

We hope you will join us, and Tony,

who will be sharing anectdotes about select pieces in the exhibit,

for the Opening Reception,

which will be held on Friday, December 4th from 7:00 – 9:30 PM

at The Buzzeo Building Gallery,

31-16 36th Avenue in Long Island City, NY, 11106,

The gallery can be easily reached by subway by taking the N or W train to 36th Avenue.

"lower-middle-class-hillbilly-hipster"

Tonight when I got home, Late Night with Conan O'Brien was on television and the red headed comic was interviewing Chris Colfer who plays Kurt Hummel on Glee. Since I'm a huge fan of Glee, and also very curious about the nature of Chris's sexuality, I left it on to watch the hijinks...and boy am I thrilled that I did! How I've lived this long without knowing who Rickie Lee Jones is, is ridiculous! She performed Wild Girl from her album Balm in Gilead on tonight's show, and she was ah-may-zeeng!

I couldn't find the Conan performance without linking you to the entire show, so here's a link to a live performance on Soundcheck:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnVV9qE96fY

from BALM IN GILEAD
Wild Girl
written by Rickie Lee Jones

Wild girl, you must have been a terror

When you were young

Your mamma must have let you run,

Let you run free...But it wasn’t very nice

Eating all that sugar and spice –

What they want a girl to be

And all the things a child learns

On their way from hope to here,

The innocence, the fury, the racism

Rage and fearI don’t remember –

tell me again –

The part no one wants to hear...

Well, that’s so many peoples story,

A lot of heartache but not much glory,

But glory, the truth be told

Tomorrow you are twenty–one years old

I say Happy Birthday tomorrow to you,

Go out and get some glory,

The only game in town.

You can live your life with regret

About the things you think you did wrong,

(A lot of people do)

Or over what some one would not give,

Or you can be grateful

When you open your eyes,

The story you write, you live

Well it’s hard to be older and poor

I don’t dig it that much anymore,

But every day of my life I’m so proud I became his wife

Because I got to raise Charlotte

And Charlotte’s learning

The only game in townWild girl in a red dress

Come on, speak up, say yes

This thing that makes you beautiful

Never comes out of a jarYou are a beautiful girl

Because you reach out from your beautiful world,

That is the daughter you are

Walk right and the real world knows it

Cuz you bring it back down into the real world

Walk right up the real world knows it

You’ll bring it back down into the real world

Say take me back babyI just wanna make a dream come true –

I came here to love somebody –

I just want to make my dreams come true...

And I’m trying

Because trying is

The only game,

Live to tell the tale –

The only game in town

A little history on "the new generation of hipster"...

Rolling Stone cover featuring Rickie Lee Jones crouching in a black bra and white beret - an issue that would become the largest selling issue in the magazine's history up to that time. Her appearance - as an unknown (her debut self titled record had been released less than a month before) - on the popular and prestigious Saturday Night Live television show in April 1979 sparked an overnight sensation. Following the cover of Rolling Stone and a successful world tour, Jones secured five nominations at the 1980 Grammy Awards and won the Grammy for Best New Artist. She was also voted Best Jazz Singer by Playboy magazine's critic and reader polls. Jones was covered by Time magazine on her very first professional show, in Boston, and they dubbed her "The Duchess of Coolsville."

After moving to New York City, Jones spent the majority of 1981 working on a follow-up album, written and recorded partly in reaction to the break-up of her relationship with Tom Waits sometime between late 1979 and early 1980. The songs were written between September 1979 and June 1981 - the recording sessions finally yielded Pirates in July 1981.

Shake your hips and wave your hands - this month is just made for social fun!

Being that it's December 1, I decided to let everyone who doesn't already know, about the best free monthly horoscope on the web...Astrology Zone by Susan Miller...check it out and tell me what you think!


Official Website:
http://astrologyzone.com/

The Princess and The Frog, the Broadway Musical, or so we thought....

So, I get to go to the Ultimate Disney Experience of the Princess and the Frog at the Ziegfield Theater tomorrow evening with my mother and my best friend Vanessa...did I forget to mention this was a gift from my mother for Vanessa's 31st birthday? Did I also forget to mention that my mother sold me on the idea by telling me it was a new broadway show? I later came to realize it was an early release of the movie with a princess meet & greet afterwards...of course, I was a little disappointed, but after watching the trailer on youtube, I have to take that back and say I can't wait to see this movie!

This will be the first time I have seen a Disney hand animated film in an actual movie theater, and from what I've seen, the movie looks like a beautiful throwback to older favorites like Fantasia and Cinderella. To top it all off, Princess Tiana is played by Anika Noni Rose who I adore on The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency on HBO and the queen herself, Miss Oprah Winfrey, is playing Eudora, Tiana's mother...it just doesn't get any better than that!

So check back in a couple of days for my review of the Ultimate Disney Experience of the Princess and the Frog, and for exclusive birthday pics of Vanessa with Pocahontas!

Official Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=queJpV6P0W4

My 1st Blog

I've finally joined the millions of you out there blogging your opinions, and sharing your points of view. It took me a long time to get with the program, and now that I'm here, I'm having a very hard time thinking of something to say. I'm not surprised, since I think that's the reason I never did this earlier. I've always imagined the pressure a blogger must feel to be interesting, entertaining, inspirational, or thought provoking, and that's exactly what I'm feeling it right now.

So as my first official post, I'm going to take the pressure off of myself. I'll always do my best to speak my mind about the things that matter most to me...everything from fashion to politics...but I'm also going to make it clear that sometimes I'll be dull and whiney or even cranky and annoying. All I can hope is that I can occasionally make you smile, introduce you to something you didn't know about before, or encourage you to see something from a different point of view...if I can do that, I would be very happy. That being said, welcome to my perspective on life and I hope you visit often!



-Gilbert