Last Thursday, Bedford Square Associates took ownership of the former Westport Y. The complex — including the 1923 Tudor building — will be transformed into a retail, restaurant and residential center.
Today, the iconic Kwanzan cherry trees in front of the Bedford building were chopped down.
All that’s left are memories.
Old Mill’s loss is the Westport Country Playhouse’s gain.
Positano’s — the much-loved-but-too-seldom-visited restaurant kitty-corner from Elvira’s — is closing at its Old Mill Beach location. “06880” broke that news 2 months ago.
Positano’s, at Old Mill Beach near Elvira’s.
But it’s reopening in February, next to the Westport Country Playhouse. That’s the space was occupied for 8 years by The Dressing Room. The Paul Newman-created restaurant closed last January.
The Dressing Room, next to the Westport Country Playhouse.
Positano’s has been owned and operated by the Scarpati family for more than 15 years. Owner Giuseppe Scarpati was born on the island of Ponza, Italy. He learned to cook from his father, who studied with master chefs in Italy and was one of the island’s leading fisherman. Giuseppe focuses on all-natural cooking.
Under chef Michel Nischan, the Dressing Room was Fairfield County’s 1st farm-to-table restaurant.
So Positano’s stands poised to carry on that natural tradition — right next door to the 83-year-old Playhouse, with its own venerable history.
But the question remains: Will the tradition of an Old Mill Beach restaurant now be history, replaced by a large and imposing private home?
High school theater — at least in Fairfield County — is a special art form. It’s entertaining, provocative, and exceptionally high quality.
This weekend, local audiences can enjoy 2 very different shows. Both are well worth going far out of your way to see.
Staples Players presents “Hello, Dolly!” Directors David Roth and Kerry Long have pulled out all the stops. The classic farce — featuring memorable music and great choreography — promises to continue Players’ long tradition of Broadway-worthy productions.
Meanwhile, Weston High School’s Company presents “The Laramie Project.” The fascinating play draws on hundreds of interviews, conducted in Wyoming in the aftermath of the kidnapping and murder of gay college student Matthew Shepard.
Cast in some of their many ensemble “Laramie” roles are (from left) Jack Seigenthaler, Kevin MacWilliams, Sam Rosenthal and Preston Troxell. (Photo/Peter Friedman)
Twenty-six students play the parts of 68 Laramie residents, in this complex, well-crafted and many-faceted exploration of life and death in a Western town.
Director Kevin Slater is familiar to many Westporters, for his work with drama troupes in schools here. Cast member Jack Seigenthaler is also well known, for his portrayal of Conrad in Staples Players’ 2013 summer production of “Bye Bye Birdie.”
“The Laramie Project” is presented this Friday and Saturday, November 14 and 15. The Sunday, November 16 matinee will be followed by an on-stage talk-back with Andy Paris. A member of the original cast, he’s Skyped with cast members — providing powerful insights into what is already a stunning show.
(“Hello, Dolly!” is performed on Friday and Saturday, November 14, 15, 21 and 22 at 7:30 p.m., with 3 p.m. matinees on Sunday, November 16 and Saturday, November 22. For tickets — including the pre-show gala on opening night — click www.StaplesPlayers.com.
“The Laramie Project” is performed on Friday and Saturday, November 14 and 15 at 8 p.m., and Sunday, November 16 at 3 p.m. For tickets, click whscompany.com.)
Comments Off on Hello, Laramie!
Posted in Arts, Entertainment, Staples HS, Teenagers
Tagged "Hello, "The Laramie Project", Dolly!", Staples Players, Weston Company
Vivien Testa died 2 months ago. Until today, there has been no public notice of her death.
That’s astonishing. Vivien Testa was 102 years old. For decades, she was a legend in Westport. She was a superb art teacher, townwide director of art, and a mentor to countless students and teachers.
In 1936 she began teaching art at Bedford Junior High School (now King’s Highway Elementary).
She moved to Staples (now Saugatuck Elementary) in 1948.
Vivien Testa
Ten years after that, she was part of the new high school campus on North Avenue. (In fact — having minored in architecture — she helped design the place. She has an enormous slide collection from that time, which she donated to the Westport Library.)
Vivien Testa chaired the art department through the 1970s.
Several years ago, while writing my book Staples High School: 120 Years of A+ Education, I found an interview she recorded for the Westport Historical Society oral history project. Here is an excerpt:
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My family spent summers in Westport, so I knew the town in 1936 when I came to teach art at Bedford Junior High School. It was the Depression, and my father said I was taking a job away from a man who needed one.
In 1936 the school had a place in the life of the community. Teachers knew what they were expected to do and not do. For example, teachers were not supposed to smoke. But the faculty played basketball against the youngsters, and put on plays for them. There was a feeling we were all growing and learning together.
When Mrs. Holden, the arts supervisor, left in 1948, I took over. We had a lovely art room in the building on Riverside Avenue. It was good size, and well lit. There were 15 to 20 students in a class, and I taught 4 or 5 classes a day. Westport was growing as an arts colony.
The original Staples High School on Riverside Avenue.
I still carried nearly a full teaching load, but I was given one or two afternoons a week to supervise. There were three townwide directors in art, music and physical education. Those were considered special subjects, and the principals were not trained in them. But the Board of Education members and superintendent really knew teachers. They came into the classroom all the time.
Pop Amundsen was the custodian, and his wife ran the cafeteria. They set the tone for Staples. If they saw youngsters doing anything out of line, they let them know. Students respected them just as much as the principal.
Everything was in apple pie order. No one dared mark a desk. We were a small family. Education at that time was a family business. Teachers and students and parents all felt responsible for what was happening. There was no closing eyes to what was going on. Everyone respected what was happening.
We got help from a lot of places. The Westport Women’s Club had a $350 art competition, and when Famous Artists School came in they gave scholarships. Al Dorne [a founder of Famous Schools] always helped. He’d produce booklets for new teachers or students.He underwrote hundreds of dollars.
I was involved in the plans for the North Avenue building. I worked with the architects, Sherwood, Mills and Smith. I minored in architecture, so I was able to lay out my ideas about what I wanted to have. It worked nicely for me, except when they cut this, that and the other thing, and we ended up with just a mishmash. That was kind of too bad. But it was still better than you would find in many places.
The 1st version of the North Avenue campus: 6 separate buildings.
There were many bugs in the building that had to be taken care of. A 3rd art room was cut out of the original plan, and a wing in the auditorium was cut. We had to put all the crafts stuff – kilns, etc. – in 2 rooms designed for 2-D stuff. Then when they added Building 9 a few years later, they added a 3-D room, and extended the stage.
Before they did that, a ballet company came to use the stage. The stage had only been planned for lectures and assemblies, not theater – there was no room for stage sets. As you face the stage, there was a brick wall on the right, and a passageway and electric panel on the left. A handsome male dancer ran right into the brick wall. Performers had to dress in the art rooms, too. It was quite a mess.
There was one boys’ and one girls’ bathroom – none for the faculty. I learned a great deal about youth by using that bathroom. But we always took an interest in keeping our building beautiful, because art is beauty.
Veterans never tire of serving their country — or their community.
Each year, Bedford Middle School marks today by hosting veterans from the Y’s Men. They talk about what they did, why and how they did it, and provide an important link to yesterday for tomorrow’s leaders.
This morning’s event was lively. A number of veterans brought mementos of their service. Their stories were insightful, poignant — and often laced with a bit of humor.
Among the attendees were the 2 most recent grand marshals of Westport’s Memorial Day parade: Leonard Everett Fisher (left, below), and Bob Satter.
(Photo/January Stewart)
Both are World War II veterans. Though — except for their uniforms — you wouldn’t know it by looking at them.
Posted in Children, Education, History, People
Tagged Bedford Middle School, Leonard Everett Fisher, Robert Satter, Veterans Day 2014
For some Westporters, Veterans Day is a holiday. For others, it’s business as usual.
No matter what today is, all of us — all Americans, really — should take time to reflect on the millions of men and women who, over the years, have sacrificed greatly to serve our nation, and the world.
Here are just a few of the many Westporters who deserve our deepest gratitude.
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In March of 1944 Emanuel (“Manny”) Margolis turned 18. He was a student at the University of North Carolina, but lacked a deferment. Drafted into the Army, he was chosen as a candidate for Officer’s Training School, and taught Morse Code.
Sent to England as a forward observer radio operator, he carried a 100-pound radio on his back. He weighed just 118.
PFC Manny Margolis, age 18 in June 1944.
He went to France and Belgium, to the Rhine River. The Germans had blown up all but 1 bridge crossing — a railroad bridge near Remagen. Made of wood, it was not meant to handle heavy tanks and artillery. The Army sent 100 engineers to remove dynamite, and shore it up.
Manny was among the first in his unit to be sent over the bridge. Radio operators had to report back to artillery how far to set their cannon fire.
Manny was not far into the woods on the other side of the bridge when the Germans began firing. He lay down behind a tree, and was shot through the leg and kneecap. He asked to be sent back to his unit, but his war was over. It was March 17, 1945 — 1 day before his 18th birthday.
The Army got some tanks and artillery over the bridge, but it collapsed with 100 engineers working on the underside. Many were killed.
Luckily, Manny’s leg was not amputated. He had 3 major operations in England, and more after returning home in the spring of 1946. He was awarded a Purple Heart, went back to UNC and graduated in 1947.
Manny Margolis, at a Town Hall ceremony. (Photo/Craig Skinner)
Thanks to the GI Bill, Manny went to Harvard. He earned a master’s and Ph.D. in international law. He taught at the University of Connecticut, then was accepted at Yale Law School with 1 phone call (no LSATs or interviews).
Manny worked for civil rights and civil liberties for 55 years, and lived nearly all his adult life in Westport. He died in August of 2011, at 85 years old.
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Stanley L. Englebardt landed on the beach at Normandy a couple of days after the initial assault. He saw action on the front line during the Battle of the Bulge. Initially a corpsman, he was put into infantry when the Germans broke through Allied lines in 1944. A longtime Westporter, he died this past March.
Stan Englebardt, age 18, soon after entering the Army.
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Donald Snook was a B-17 pilot in the 369th Squadron of the 306th Bomb Group of the 8th Air Force. He was stationed at Thurleigh Air Force based north of Bedford, England during World War II. He flew 24 missions over Europe, and remained there with the Occupational Air Force until July 1946.
Don is now 91. He lives in Westport with his wife, Katherine.
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Bob Beeby served in the South Pacific during peacetime, just after the Korean War.
Bob Beeby
As a naval aviator he flew an anti-submarine aircraft to hunt for typhoons. With technology less advanced than that in today’s Prius, he went through the walls of a typhoons 1,500 feet above sea level, directly into the eye. He took readings with a sextant, and radioed the storm location to the fleet, in case they had to relocate.
Aircraft were often damaged by storms. Pilots risked their lives on emergency landings. Bob was one of them.
He has lived in Westport for 50 years. He logged over a million air miles a year as CEO of the international division of a major corporation. He is generous in time and spirit, and a loving father and grandfather.
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Byron Miller was a Special Forces radio operator in Vietnam. For the past 38 years, he’s been a psychotherapist in, and resident of, Westport.
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Tom Feeley at Fort Benning Airborne School, 1962.
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Robin “Bob” Custer Sr. graduated from technical school in 1965, with a degree in drafting. He then served in the Army, seeing combat duty with the 1st Infantry Division (the “Big Red One”) in Vietnam from 1967 to ’68.
For years, Bob has played a big role in Westport. He’s been the sexton at Greens Farms Congregational Church for over 20 years (giving students on the Jennings Trail Tour the church history), is quartermaster at VFW Post 399, and always marches in the Memorial Day Parade.
Bob Custer, standing amidst the flags he loves.
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Jay Dirnberger served with the 1st Cavalry Division in South Vietnam, in 1968.
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Kendall Gardiner Anderson was in Vietnam, with the U.S. Army
Kendall Gardiner Anderson’s husband, Lt. Cdr. Robert Gavin Stewart Anderson, served in Cyprus with Her Majesty’s Royal Navy. After moving to Westport and becoming a naturalized US citizen, he served on the Board of Finance and as second selectman.
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And let’s not forget the Gilbertie family. John S. Gilbertie Sr. volunteered in World War I, and was awarded medals by the US, French and Italian governments for bravery.
He enlisted at 17 — just 12 years after emigrating from Italy — and served as a scout behind enemy lines in the Argonne forest, among other locations. He became a founding members of Westport’s Joseph J. Clinton VFW, was grand marshal of the Memorial Day parade, and helped organize Memorial Day ceremonies on Jesup Green for many years. His name is on the Doughboy statue on Veterans Green (with the Italian spelling, “Ghiliberti”).
John’s son Mario went to Korea. Anthony, who was younger, was a member of the Army National Guard.
Several grandchildren also served. Jay was in Vietnam, and was a member of the 1st crew of the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy. Marty was in the Navy CBs during Vietnam. Tom joined the Air Force in the 1980s, while Peter was in the infantry then.
Trevor — a great-grandson — recently returned from Afghanistan, with the Army National Guard.
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Thanks to all the Westport veterans we’ve mentioned — and the many, many others who also served proudly served us, over so many years.
More than 3 decades after her brutal murder, Jean Donovan is back in the news.
The Westport native was 1 of 4 American churchwomen killed on December 2, 1980 by Salvadoran national guardsmen.
Jean Donovan
Jean — a junior high and Staples High School classmate of mine — was a lay missionary working in El Salvador, helping the poor.
She and 3 nuns were beaten, raped, shot in the head, then dumped by the roadside.
Now, the New York Times reports that 2 Salvadoran generals — defense ministers during the “blood-soaked” 1980s — may be deported.
The Times says:
They were allowed to settle there during the presidency of George Bush, who, like his predecessor, Ronald Reagan, considered them allies and bulwarks against a Moscow-backed leftist insurgency.
But administrations change, and so do government attitudes. Over the past two and a half years, immigration judges in Florida have ruled that the generals bore responsibility for assassinations and massacres, and deserve now to be “removed” — bureaucratese for deported. Both are appealing the decisions, so for now they are going nowhere. Given their ages, their cases may be, for all parties, a race against time.
Longtime Westporter John Suggs says that in progressive Catholic social justice networks, “Jean Donovan is considered a saint.”
A Jean Donovan Summer Fellowship at Santa Clara University — a Jesuit school — supports students interested in social justice, while in Los Angeles the Casa Jean Donovan Community Residence houses members of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps.
A tribute to Jean Donovan and fellow churchwomen, near the spot of their murder in El Salvador.
But, Suggs says, “in Westport she is all but forgotten.” The few who remember her, and mourn her passing each December, believe she has been forgotten by her town, her school and her parish. (There is a brief mention of her, he says, in the back vestibule of Assumption Church. And Staples graduate Cynthia Gibb played a character based on Jean in Oliver Stone’s “Salvador.”)
The New York Times has shed a new light on Jean Donovan’s murderers. Perhaps next month, she will not be mourned by so few.
(The New York Times story includes a fascinating 13-minute video.)
Posted in History, People, Politics, religion
Tagged El Salvador churchwomen murders, Jean Donovan, John Suggs, New York Times
Frontier is not the only phone company Westporters have issues with.
I should have known things would not go well when I called Sprint this morning to cancel my mother’s service. (She got an easier-to-use phone, not that it matters.)
I punched in her number. A voice chirped, “Sorry! I did not get that!” Which did not instill a lot of confidence in this particular telecommunications company.
After navigating the complex (and repetitive) phone tree, I reached an actual — though heavily accented — human being. When I said I wanted to cancel the service, I was disconnected. Instantly.
I called again. Again, the voice “did not get” the number I punched in. Once again, I eventually was answered by an actual person. Once again, when I said I wanted to cancel, the line mysteriously went dead.
I called a 3rd time. This time, I started by saying I’d been cut off twice by a phone company. The representative apologized, and took my number to call back “in case it happens again.”
I asked how that could possibly happen. She agreed it shouldn’t, but said by way of explanation that all cancellations must be handled by a supervisor. Of course!
I listened to gruesome music for 6 minutes. Then — silence.
Luckily, she had my callback number. Two minutes later, my phone rang.
My mother has a Toyota. Perhaps you’ve heard of it?
To make sure I was legitimately calling to cancel an account — perhaps this is a wide-ranging scam — she asked for the make of my mother’s car. “Toyota,” I said.
“Can you spell that?” she asked.
NO, I COULD NOT, I replied (yes, using capital letters.) I told her it was like the best-selling car in the world. She let it go.
She assured me I would not be disconnected again. When I asked how long it would take for the supervisor to pick up, she said, “One to 3 minutes.” No problem! That’s a sprint!
Eight minutes later, the music stopped. I was — yet again — disconnected by a telecommunications company.
This time, there was no callback.
I went online. I did not have an account, so I filled out a form. The password I chose was “SprintSucks1.”
The next part of the form was “Set access level.” I was happy to, except:
I clicked “Help.” A popup message said, “Questions? Check out our support site with answers to your questions 24/7, or chat with us.”
Which I was happy to do. Except, there was no way to access the support site from the page I was on.
Once more — a mere 50 minutes after starting — I called again. I explained everything I had been through since I started calling THIS TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY.
The representative pretended to be sympathetic. Miraculously, he did not need to contact a supervisor. He could handle this exceptionally difficult request — cancel the service — all by himself.
Which he did, after taking down my callback number just in case we were disconnected.
It was a simple process, with only 8 or 52 repetitive questions.
At last, it was done.
He had just one last question. Would I like an upgrade?
Why not? Yes! Of course!
I want Sprint to upgrade their !@#$%^&* customer service. Just kick it up a notch — from, say, “atrocious” to “abysmal” — and I’ll be ecstatic.
But I sure won’t call back to tell them that.
Paula Poundstone owes me a new pair of boxers.
I peed myself laughing at her Saturday night show. The comedian — best known for her regular appearances on NPR’s “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!” — rocked a sellout crowd at the Westport Country Playhouse.
It was a benefit for Homes With Hope. Between ticket sales and a live auction, the event raised huge bucks — 12% of their annual budget — to help fight homelessness. As a brief video by 4th Row Films pointed out, it’s a problem even in this prosperous town.
Paula Poundstone
Poundstone knew her audience. She picked a few random people. There was, incredibly, former Homes With Hope director Pete Powell (he’s an Episcopal priest — as an atheist, she had great fun with that), as well as a CPA, and a guy in budgeting for a film company (with, to Paula’s great delight, several assistants).
The theme throughout the night was Westport’s affluence. She joked about the difference between the pledges made at the Playhouse (2 people offered $20,000 each) and her kids’ PTA event (“we start at $1, and go down from there”).
She asked what the main industry in Westport is. “Money,” someone said. All night long, Poundstone returned to the idea of folks in the audience taking care of each other’s money.
It was all in good fun. This was a well-heeled crowd, but they were raising funds for their much-less-fortunate fellow citizens, who live here too.
Let no good deed go unpunished.
The theme of Paula Poundstone’s jokes — and some Facebook comments.
As a public figure, Poundstone updates her Facebook page often. Just before the show began, she posted: “I’m in Westport, Connecticut. I’m trying to reach out to the disenfranchised members of the 1%.”
Her fans responded. “You just keep taking care of the comical needs of those poor uptight old white folks Paula,” one wrote. “We appreciate it.”
“Good luck,” another said. “I hear that crowd is too lazy to work for a living.”
A woman in Westport on business huffed, “wouldn’t you know, the 1% grabbed all the tickets for themselves! Typically entitled, these folks are, I swear.”
“Talk to ’em straight, Paula,” a fan commented. “They need to hear from you what’s really going down outside their protected bubble.”
Over 700 people “liked” the post. Presumably, they liked her dig at the “1%.”
That’s fine. We loved Paula Poundstone. She loved Westport — and gave a great hour-long performance. And everyone loved raising oodles of money for Homes With Hope.
But she still owes me a new pair of boxers.
A mother and daughter are enjoying life at Wakeman Town Farm.
A mother and daughter alpaca, that is.
The woolly llama-like creatures came here yesterday from a farm in Clinton, Connecticut. Mother LeMay and daughter Autumn Joy are already getting along nicely with WTF’s goats and sheep.
LeMay (left) and Autumn Joy.
In other Wakeman news, steward Carrie Aitkenhead has joined the blogosphere. WTFCarrie is a lively spot to keep up with farm happenings, and read all about favorite animals and season recipes.
Recent stories covered recycling, a “green” greenhouse and chili.
I’m sure the alpacas will get their day in the sun too.
Posted in Environment, Organizations
Tagged alpacas, Carrie Aitkenhead, Wakeman Town Farm
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