Monthly Archives: August 2011

Sally White, Superstar

Posted on August 25, 2011 | 17 comments

With all the merchant-bashing that goes on in town (and here), it’s nice to hear a different perspective. 

“06880” reader Terri Gatti Schure sent this “open letter” to Sally White — the beloved (and longtime) owner of Sally’s Place.  It’s one of the last independent “record” stores in America — and Sally puts the “mom” in mom-and-pop shops.

Terri writes:

Dear Sally,

You were the topic of conversation at our recent Staples High School 40th reunion earlier this month. Several of us reminisced about you, and the memories were so fond and profoundly deep. We all agreed that your love of music came from the heart.  You had such passion — not just for the music itself, but for what the music created for us emotionally.

The incomparable Sally White

In 1967, the highlight of my Saturdays was going to Klein’s and listening to whatever you had on the “record player.”  You’d guide me through the latest and best artists, albums, top 10.  I could walk in and give you 2 or 3 words in the lyrics, and you knew exactly what song it was.

So it seemed fitting that this past Saturday, while in town to celebrate my Staples reunion, I would stop by with a dear classmate to see you.  Plus, I had these 2 songs I hadn’t been able to find…

Even though I hadn’t seen you in 40 years, you were the same old Sally.

And those 2 songs? One was about not paying the rent – an old R&B tune.  You wrote some notes in your spiral notebook — just like you did 40 years ago — and promised to do some research.  If anyone can find the song, it will be you.

The other song was more of a memory.  I told you that I recalled my mother sitting at the kitchen table in the dark,  in the late ’50s, smoking a cigarette, listening to this haunting song on the radio.  I could only recall that it had something to do with the earth being bitter.

You ran around the counter, grabbed a research book and then a CD, and said, “here it is!”

You took the CD out of the cellophane — not even caring that I might not buy it — and put it in your player.  “’This Bitter Earth’ by Dinah Washington,” you said.

As we listened to the song I was overcome with emotion, lost in the memory of my mother that night.  I looked at you through teary eyes, and of course yours were teary too.  That is what was always so special about you.  We could share a small piece of our heart with you, and you loved us all, because the music made it possible.

It was a pleasure and an honor seeing you again.  I want to thank you for sharing your music with me this past Saturday, as well as all those many, many Saturdays over 40 years ago.

Warmly,

Teri Gatti Schure

17 Comments

Posted in Downtown, Entertainment, Local business, Looking back, People

Tagged , , , ,

If You Thought The DMV Was Hell Before…

Posted on August 24, 2011 | 50 comments

…then you really don’t want to read this story.

It’s related by an alert “06880” reader named Jill.  Last week her 16-year-old son Jon went to the Department of Motor Vehicles to get his learner’s permit.  Jill took the day off to accompany him.

Literally, the day off.

Unknown to anyone — except everyone needing to go there — on August 12, the DMV “regionalized” certain services.  That includes testing for permits, road tests and out-of-state license transfers.

Those services are no longer offered in 8 offices — including, unfortunately for “06880” readers, Norwalk.

Only 4 DMV offices in the entire state now offer obtain permits and driver’s licenses.  Westport:  meet Bridgeport.

Here is Jill’s story.  It is not pretty.

We arrived at 12:45, and got on line.  When you get to the front, you tell a woman why you are there.  She tells you what you need to have.

(A friend of Jon’s spent 4 hours waiting, only to be turned away because he didn’t have an actual Social Security card — only the number.  The next day, he got a note from the Social Security office saying his card was in the mail.  He went back to DMV — and was told the note was not a “sufficient form of secondary ID.”  He finally succeeded — after going home to get his religious school confirmation papers.)

You then take a picture, to ensure it is actually you who are waiting.  They also assign you a number.

We were “B-485.”  They were up to “B-353.”  I asked for an estimate.  She said she was afraid to tell me.  I asked her to ballpark it.  She said it could be 2 1/2 to 3 hours.   I said, “Not too bad.”

She replied, “Or maybe more…”

Since Jon had just finished soccer camp and was hungry, we decided to go out for food.  We had pizza, and got back an hour later.  They were up to 377.

The numbers picked up a bit, but at 3 p.m. the “B”s ground to a halt.  I  finished my Kindle book and got up to check out lines 10-14, which had been servicing the “B”s (all licenses, I believe).

One person was working.  All the rest were on break.

25 minutes later, the lines began to move again.

The holy grail.

At 4 p.m. they announced they were no longer accepting new people for testing.  Anyone who arrived after that was turned away.  One mother lamented that she’d been there since 10, waiting for her son to get his license.  I felt so sorry for her.  Little did I know…

At 4:50 our number was finally called.  We got to the counter with the correct documents.  Jon wanted to get back to the evening session of soccer camp, so I asked if — because we’d already waited — we could get a “fast pass” to return another day to take the test.

We were told no.  Since we were already 4 hours in, we decided to finish the arduous task.  Total time at the counter was 2 minutes.  I’m not sure why this process goes so slowly, except maybe many people have the wrong paperwork.

We went to line 19.  We waited another 75 minutes before Jon could take his vision test (5 seconds), and the computerized 25-question test.

Because he’d had 5 hours to study, he got the first 20 correct, and was done.  Total time:  5 minutes.

We were sent back around the corner to sit and wait for our name to be called again:  20 minutes.  We paid another fee, then waited again to take a picture.

By this time the front part of the DMV was pretty empty.   The people behind the desk were working very efficiently, as they all wanted to go home.

Applicants for a Connecticut DMV learner's permit, midway through the line. They've been waiting since they were 16.

We got the picture and permit back in 40 minutes.  Earlier, people had waited well over an hour for the picture portion to be done.  (Others waited 6 hours to change their New York license to Connecticut.  All they needed was an eye test:  3 seconds.)

We left at 6:54.  Total time:  6 hours and 9 minutes.

I did meet 2 really nice inspectors (they do the driving tests).  Both complained about how awful it’s been all week.  They say that everyone getting a permit or license from  Greenwich to Guilford now comes to the Bridgeport DMV.

Both could care less about the overtime.  They just want to go home.  They also want all of us to complain, and get this situation fixed.

They confirmed what I thought:  The state is likely not saving a cent with all of the overtime they’re paying.  As we left, one jokingly grabbed my shoulders and said, “Take me with you!”

Jill says she can’t imagine what will happen when the school year begins, and students will spend an entire day waiting.

That’s a good point.  However, it’s not like they’ll miss out on their education.  In fact, they’ll get a real-life lesson:  in the way the actual bureaucratic, government world works.

50 Comments

Posted in Organizations, Teenagers

Tagged

Earthquake!

Posted on August 23, 2011 | 5 comments

Many Westporters felt this afternoon’s 5.9 magnitude earthquake, centered in Virginia.

I missed it.  The earth shook, apparently, but not enough to disturb me and my computer.

That’s fine.

In January 1994 I was in the Northridge quake — California’s most destructive since San Francisco in 1906, and the costliest earthquake ever in US history.

In fact, I was just a couple of miles from the epicenter.

I’d gotten to my hotel late that night.  Around 4:30 a.m., a plane crashed into the building.

At least, that’s what it felt like.

A bit of damage from the 1994 Northridge quake.

After several seconds of phenomenal noise — the earth moving, furniture breaking, the hotel jolting — I realized it was not a plane crash, but an earthquake.

Semi-awake, I vaguely recalled something about a doorway.  But I couldn’t remember:  get under one, or away from one?

It didn’t matter.  I was tossed around in my bed like a salad, and couldn’t get out.

Finally — a looooong 30 seconds later — it stopped.

I rushed to the balcony.  That was not the brightest move — it might not have been there — but luckily it was.

I felt foolish.  Perhaps I’d overreacted.  After all, Californians get hit with earthquakes all the time.

But I saw a guy standing on the balcony next to mine.  He was ashen-faced.

“Wow!” he said.  “I’ve lived in California all my life.  That was by far the worst!”

Then I heard the noise.  Every car alarm, burglar alarm and fire alarm in the area was going off.  The cacophony was incredible.

And smoke wafted over the Hollywood Hills.

The next few hours were tough.  Aftershocks came without warning.  I’d be walking down the street, trying to find a working phone or my rental car or something, and the ground would shake.  Not as bad as the first quake — but when an aftershock starts, who knows?

It would subside.  I’d start walking again.

Then a few seconds later:  bam!  A plate glass window would land at my feet.

Until I finally flew home 3 days later, I was constantly on edge.

So was everyone else in L.A.  And they had to stay there.

The epicenter of today's earthquake.


An earthquake is unlike any other natural disaster.  We get advance warnings of blizzards and hurricanes (hello, Irene!).  Even tornadoes signal their arrival with a sharp change in air pressure.

But earthquakes come completely out of the blue.

And they come from below.  The one fact that we know — the earth is firm — is shaken to the core.

So I’m glad I did not feel today’s earthquake.  Every time I read of a quake — in Haiti, Iran, Macedonia, wherever — I think of my experience in California, nearly 2 decades ago.

I now have a profound appreciation for the damage earthquakes can do.

And a solid understanding of the phrase “all shook up.”

5 Comments

Posted in Weather

Tagged ,

Remembering Nick Ashford

Posted on August 23, 2011 | 22 comments

Years ago  I’d see a good-looking black man, with long dark hair, jogging on the streets of town.

You don’t see a lot of black guys running in Westport.  But what I always noticed about him was his presence.   He wasn’t particularly fast, but he had grace and style.

One day I asked someone who he was.

“Ashford,” he said simply.

As in Ashford & Simpson.

Nick Ashford died yesterday in New York, of throat cancer.  He was 70.

Nick Ashford

He and his wife, Valerie Simpson, bought a 7.5 acre property on the corner of Cross Highway and Bayberry Lane in 1974.

They sold it in 2007.  Their impressive home became a tear-down — replaced by an even larger one.

According to Emily Hamilton Laux, who lived across the street, Ashford & Simpson used it primarily as a summer home.

Every 4th of July, there was a fantastic party.  Limos deposited a who’s-who of the R&B world.  Guests wore white linen — and bands like KC & the Sunshine Band  performed.

“People would walk around the neighborhood,” Emily says.  “We knew we couldn’t crash the party, but we’d listen to music better than anything you could hear in the best club anywhere.”

Ashford & Simpson were not active participants in Westport life — beyond jogging, eating out in local restaurants and going downtown — but those of us who knew they were here always included their names with pride.

“Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward live here,” we’d say.  “And Harry Reasoner, and …”  We’d add a few more names.

Then we’d say:  “And Ashford & Simpson.”

They were our little connection to Motown.  The duo wrote “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” “You’re All I Need to Get By,” and “Reach Out and Touch Somebody’s Hand,” among many others.

As performers, their biggest hit was “Solid as a Rock,” in 1984.

Ashford & Simpson were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984.

Nick Ashford always seemed larger than Westport.  He was in town, but not part of it.

Then I’d see him jogging, and I’d realize he was just another middle-aged guy who lived here and worked hard, trying to keep in shape.

Just a middle-aged guy who happened to write an important chunk of America’s impressive songbook.

22 Comments

Posted in Entertainment, Looking back, People

Tagged ,

“The Last 5 Years”

Posted on August 23, 2011 | 4 comments

Michelle Pauker and Clay Singer had major roles — Mary Magdalene and Judas — in this summer’s Staples Players production of Jesus Christ Superstar.  It was a huge time commitment — and very successful

Michelle Pauker (Photo/August Laska)

So when the show closed July 31, Michelle and Clay could have been expected to spend the final weeks before school begins chilling at the beach, hanging out with friends or just acting like rising Staples juniors.

Instead they put on another show.

They chose “The Last 5 Years,” a clever 2-person song-cycle musical that chronicles a relationship, from meeting to breakup (or backwards — you had to see it).

Michelle and Clay secured the rights and the stage; hired a 5-person pit orchestra; corralled their friends (and parents) into assisting as stage managers, lighting and tech crew, publicists, set and costume designers — and handled thousands of other details, like miking and a website.

Clay Singer (Photo/August Laska)

The show had a very successful run last weekend at Toquet Hall.  Michelle and Clay have beautiful voices.  They nailed every aspect of a complex, long relationship.  It was one of those unexpected treasures of summer.

But that was not the most impressive part of what these teenagers did.

Virtually every aspect of the the production was donated.  It was a fundraiser for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Here’s what Michelle wrote in the program:

Five years ago, at 11 years ago, my life was drastically changed when I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.  For “the last 5 years” of my life I’ve dealt with testing my blood sugar levels and giving myself insulin every time I eat something; excusing myself from classes and activities when my blood sugar gets too low, and experiencing the pain of needles every time I change my insulin pump site.

The day I was diagnosed, I thought my life as I knew it was over.  However, because of support from the JDRF, new technologies and treatments allow me to live an almost normal life.

However, I know that many people with type 1 diabetes are not as fortunate as I am, and have a more difficult time dealing with the disease.  I want to give back to JDRF for all it has given me, and by doing this project I hope to take another step toward finding a cure.

Michelle went on to thank her doctors and nurses at Yale; her parents; Clay, and everyone else who made “The Last 5 Years” possible.

She concluded:

Finally, most importantly, thank you to each and every one of you in the audience.  Each ticket purchased is a donation to JDFR, and each donation goes toward helping children with diabetes.

Thank you for joining me in the fight against this disease, and the journey to a cure!

And how did you spend your summer vacation?!

(Click here for more information on the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation — or to make a donation.)

4 Comments

Posted in Arts, Organizations, People, Staples HS, Teenagers

Tagged , , , ,

Wakeman Town Farm Transfers To Town Today

Posted on August 22, 2011 | 4 comments

The lease has been signed.  The transition is complete.

Today, the Town of Westport takes over Wakeman Town Farm from GVI.

Mike and Carrie Aitkenhead — the couple whose contract as “town farmers” was not renewed, leading to a townwide controversy and the resignation of 5 Green Village Initiative board members — have agreed to volunteer at the farm.

“They will be a very visible presence,” promises Elizabeth Beller, who heads the transition team.

The "GVI" sign may come down, now that the town has taken over operation of Wakeman Farm.

The transition group plans to continue the farm’s popular programs.  Mike’s Staples High School horticulture class will work at the farm; Staples’ Club Green, and the middle school environmental clubs, will also work there after school.

The full transition team will be appointed by first selectman Gordon Joseloff.  Former GVI members will be included.

Already, team members have met with the Board of finance a member of the Friends of Parks and Rec to discuss the umbrella organization that will help the Town Farm retain its not-for-profit status.

Additional meetings are scheduled for early next month.  That will pave the way for a $20,000 fundraiser.

“The Board of Finance naturally has questions about funding and capital expenditures,” Elizabeth says.  “The town wants assurances that the farm won’t cost them anything.  Right now, things look very good, and very positive.”

(A training session, for anyone interested in volunteering at the Wakeman Town Farm, is set for next Sunday, August 28 (9:30 a.m.).  Mike Aitkenhead will lead the session.  For more information, email elizbeller@gmail.com)

4 Comments

Posted in Environment, Local politics, Organizations, People

Tagged , , ,

Robert Kennedy’s Westport Connection

Posted on August 21, 2011 | 10 comments

Robert F. Kennedy has long been identified with Massachusetts and New York.  Tomorrow, the former attorney general and slain presidential candidate will be featured in a PBS documentary whose roots lie right here.

“RFK in the Land of Apartheid:  Ripples of Hope” (Channel 13, 10 p.m.) is produced and directed by Westonite Larry Shore, a film and media studies professor at Hunter College.

The film’s outreach director, John Suggs, lives — and serves on the RTM — in Westport.

Featuring never-before-seen archival footage, and interviews in South Africa and the United States, the film tells the story of Senator Kennedy’s influential 1966 visit to South Africa, during the worst years of apartheid.  It also explores the role of individual South Africans who challenged the oppression and made a commitment to change.

As with so many local creative endeavors, there’s a Westport Library connection.

More than 6 years ago, when Shore and Suggs were struggling for funding, they received vital assistance from library director Maxine Bleiweis and her staff.

She arranged an early public screening of the basic concepts and footage of the film.  It was a long shot for attracting money — but it worked.

To thank the library, Suggs and Shore returned in December 2009 for one fo the 1st public screenings of the final cut.   The event was co-sponsored by TEAM Westport.

Ethel Kennedy, Larry Shore and John Suggs, at the film's screening in Washington.

Since then the film has been shown all over the world — including the JFK Presidential Library in Boston; Washington, DC for dignitaries including Ethel Kennedy; the UN’s Geneva office, and throughout South Africa.

Closer to home, the film served as the 2010-2011 official common “text” for the students at Fairfield University.

Tomorrow night — thanks in part to Larry Shore, John Suggs, their neighbors and their library — the entire country can learn about this important, long-forgotten part of Robert Kennedy’s legacy.

10 Comments

Posted in Arts, Library, Looking back, People

Tagged , , ,

The Julian Frank Story

Posted on August 21, 2011 | 2 comments

As the 10th anniversary of 9/11 nears, renewed attention is being paid to the thousands of people — including several Westporters — killed in those awful terrorist attacks.

But that was not the 1st time a plane was used to kill people.

More than 50 years ago, a terrorist blew up a plane over North Carolina.  All 34 on board were killed.

The terrorist was believed to be Julian Frank:  a lawyer living in Westport.

It was January 6, 1960.  The flight — National Airlines #2511 — was bound from Idlewild Airport (now JFK) in New York to Miami.  At 2:38 a.m., it crashed near Wilmington, North Carolina.

A National Airlines Douglas DC-6B -- the type of plane allegedly blown up by Julian Frank.

According to Wikipedia, the remains of one passenger — Frank — were missing from the accident site.  His body was finally found — 16 miles away.

Frank’s autopsy showed that he had been killed by a dynamite explosion “originating either in his lap or (more likely) immediately under his seat.”

Investigators believed it to be a murder-suicide.  Frank was under investigation for fraud and embezzlement — and had taken out large amounts of life insurance just before boarding the plane.

A number of Westporters were questioned by the FBI, regarding what they knew about Julian Frank.  Yet authorities could never conclusively prove that he was the bomber.  No charges were ever brought — and the investigation remains officially open.

2 Comments

Posted in Categories, Looking back, People

Tagged ,

Why We Travel

Posted on August 20, 2011 | 10 comments

Move over, Tyler Hicks and Lynsey Addario.

The New York Times travel section carries a compelling photo by another born-and-bred Westporter.

Under the headline “Why We Travel,” the caption reads:

While traveling through Southeast Asia on a photographic tour, we stopped in Luang Prabang (Laos), one of the most charming cities I have ever seen.  I peeked in a window of a monastery, expecting to see attentive pupils, but instead caught this Buddhist technophile, framed in perfect Rembrandt-esque lighting.

The photographer is Susan Woog Wagner.

Yeah, I’m proud of my little sister!

10 Comments

Posted in Arts, People

Tagged , ,

TED Talks To Westport

Posted on August 20, 2011 | 4 comments

Some Westporters are addicted to cigarettes.  Others, to “American Idol.”

I’m addicted to TED.

Ted is not a person, though human beings are an integral part of TED.  The acronym stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design, but the tagline says it best:  “Ideas Worth Spreading.”

TED talks — available on its website — are bite-sized videos (18 minutes max) packed with compelling, mind-boggling lectures on topics as diverse as the life that teems throughout the universe, the world of penguins, and the upcoming “demise of guys.”

Like crack or heroin, once you’ve taken a hit of TED, you need more, more, more.

And just as certain drugs are “gateways” to others, TED leads to TEDx.

TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share TED-like experiences.  This Tuesday (August 23, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.), the Westport Library hosts a TEDx event.

In keeping with both TED and the library’s focuses on the future, this TEDx will examine what today’s innovators and tomorrow’s leaders are thinking — from finding new ways to live in a technologically integrated world, to helping senior citizens in their homes, and more.

And who better to explore those ideas than teenagers?

Ben Meyers — a June graduate of Staples, where he organized Ecofest — spearheads the upcoming TEDx.

Presenters on Tuesday include rising Staples seniors Carson Einarsen, Logan Rosen and Isaac Stein, and recent grad Adam Yormark.

If you’ve never seen a TED video — or been to a TEDx event — go.  You will be inspired, provoked, challenged and energized.

Not to mention, addicted.

(Click here for free online advance registration — it’s required.  PS:  Lunch will be served.)

4 Comments

Posted in Education, People, Staples HS, technology, Teenagers

Tagged , , , , ,