Our Native Daughters: The Sequel

Posted on July 23, 2022 | Comments Off on Our Native Daughters: The Sequel

Exactly 3 years ago — July 23, 2019 — the Levitt Pavilion made a bit of history.

Our Native Daughters — 4 gifted women who reclaim 1800s minstrel music, with power and pride — kicked off their summer tour here.

The next day, the group performed at The Smithsonian Museum of African American History & Culture in Washington, DC. Another tour stop was the Newport Folk Festival.

Spurred by a MacArthur “genius grant,” and with banjos, other instruments and willowy, jazzy and soulful phrasing, Our Native Daughters redefine roots music. Long the purview of whites wearing blackface, they seize it back, showing how storytelling and songs from Black women have been the bedrock of the African American family, from antebellum America to the present.

Our Native Daughters

A crew from the Smithsonian Channel was at the Levitt 3 years ago, to film this show.

The 2021 trailer features the pavilion right at the start:

The Smithsonian has now released the full documentary. It’s available on several platforms, including Paramount+ and Amazon.

But the Levitt is hardly living in the past.

Allison Russell — one of Our Native Daughters’ founding members — returns here on August 21. Her show is part of the “Stars on Tour” series.

On her Grammy-nominated debut solo album, “Outside Child,” Russell shared the story of her abusive childhood in a moving song-cycle of courage, empathy, hope and love.

She made history as the first Black artist to win a Juno for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year. The New York Times named it the #2 Best Album of the Year, and the song “Nightflyer” made Barack Obama’s annual list of favorites.

Click here for tickets, and more information.

Allison Russell

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Pic Of The Day #1922

Posted on July 22, 2022 | 4 comments

Sherwood Island Mill Pond (Photo/Sunil Hirani)

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Library Re-Purchases Controversial Book

Posted on July 22, 2022 | 20 comments

A controversial book on transgender issues will soon be back on the Westport Library shelves.

Last month, after “Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing our Daughters” was taken out of circulation, a group of residents accused the Library of “political censorship.” They asked the Library to re-purchase it.

The Library said the book by Abigail Shrier was rejected by the Purchasing Committee because it included misinformation about scientific studies on transgender issues, and omitted other information.

The residents called the decision “unacceptable and most likely unlawful.” 

Today — noting that the Library’s appeals process works as intended — executive director Bill Harmer says the book has been re-evaluated. It will be re-purchased.

The decision was announced in an email to Alessandra Gordonos, who made the original complaint. Harmer said:

In accordance with the Library’s Challenged Materials Procedure, the Library has reevaluated the book in question in the context of the Library’s Collection Development Policy.

As a result of this reevaluation, the Library has made the decision to re-purchase the book for the Library’s collection.

The Library is committed to its mission of empowering the individual and strengthening the community through dynamic interaction and the lively and open exchange of ideas.

In furtherance of its mission, the Library also is committed to the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights, and The Freedom to Read Statement of the ALA Council and AAP Freedom to Read Committee.

The Library is committed to making available books and materials that promote diversity of thought and opinion, and deepen patrons’ understanding of issues.

I note that inclusion of any materials in the Library collection does not constitute or reflect an endorsement of any particular opinion, idea, or viewpoint by the Library.

The Westport Library first added “Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters: to the Library’s materials collection in February 2021.

To the best of our knowledge, the book circulated only once, and was withdrawn in June 2021. In July 2021 and again in September 2021, you made separate requests for the Library to re-purchase the book for the collection.

After review, the Library’s selection committee decided not to re-purchase the book, due in part to the mixed reviews that the book had received during that summer — reviews that highlighted omitted information and misinformation from some of the results from the studies the author cites in the book.

The Library’s collection manager indicated to you that the Library had a selection of other recent books on this topic in our collection, and offered to borrow a copy of the book for you from another library.

The Westport Library’s collection is always in flux. (Photo/Lynn Untermeyer Miller)

In selecting materials for the Library’s collection, the Library follows its Collection Development Policy. The fact that this item was once in the Library’s collection and was then removed is not unusual, given space considerations and in keeping with Library best practices.

The Library’s collection, at any given moment, is always in flux. We are not an archive. Much of our collection comes in based on interest, and leaves — is replaced — when interest wanes. Out-of-date books, for instance, are removed by librarians, as are multiples of a book as its popularity decreases.

Library staff constantly reviews items in our collection against the Collection Maintenance criteria in our Collection Development Policy, to determine whether any items should be withdrawn.

The Library also has a Contested Materials Policy and Procedure to ensure that all patrons have an opportunity to appeal any decision reached by the selection committee — and to provide us with a complete system of checks and balances.

“Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters” has been reevaluated in accordance with the Library’s Challenged Materials Procedure. The book represents a current, diverse viewpoint on culturally significant subjects (gender identity and expression, gender dysphoria, being transgender, adolescence, and development) that are relevant to the community. The book and its author have gained widespread public attention and are relevant to the contemporary discourse concerning the subject matter of the book.

The Library recognizes that public response to the book has been divided; that the book endorses theories concerning gender identity and gender dysphoria that are controversial and disputed; and that the book’s accuracy and objectivity have been challenged.

In reaching this decision, the Library also takes into account the extent to which other materials addressing gender identity and expression, gender dysphoria, being transgender, adolescence, development, and related topics are available in the Library’s collection, as well as the Library’s commitment to providing materials that reflect a diversity of thought and opinion.

The Library’s collection includes more than 100 physical books, over 900 e-books, and other materials concerning these subjects, rounding out the body of information available to patrons and permitting patrons to educate themselves, test ideas, draw conclusions, and make their own, informed decisions abou what to read and believe.

The Library’s collection is dynamic. Materials in the Library’s collection are subject to ongoing evaluationm and may be retained or withdrawn by the Library as circumstances change or warrant. Decisions concerning the development and maintenance of the Library’s collection will continue to be guided by the Library’s Collection Development Policy.

I also reiterate that inclusion of materials in the Library collection does not constitute an endorsement by the Library of any particular viewpoint, idea, or opinion.

Thank you for taking an active interest in the Library’s resources. Please feel free to contact me directly with any further questions you may have

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Friday Flashback #306

Posted on July 22, 2022 | 18 comments

I have only a vague recollection of The Separate Shop. That’s okay — I was not the women’s clothing store’s target audience. Plus, it opened before I was born, and was in my early teens when it was sold.

I have better memories of The Ice Cream Parlor — a teeny bit in its first location (most recently, by Tavern on Main), much better after it moved to Post Road East (next to Colonial Green, opposite Salsa Fresca).

The Ice Cream Parlor, on the Post Road.

But those memories pale compared to Butzi Moffitt’s. She owned them both.

And at 94, she talks about them as if those 1950s and ’60s days were yesterday.

Butzi’s Southport home is filled with photos. (And — in the kitchen — an actual wrought-iron Ice Cream Parlor table.)

Those photos include Butzi with Marilyn Monroe. She was great friends with Milton Greene, the Weston photographer who helped make the actress famous.

“She was sweet, caring, gentle,” Butzi recalls. “Not a tough cookie at all.”

Marilyn Monroe (right) and Butzi Moffett (left), at a New York party. (Photo/Milton H. Greene)

Butzi became a store owner in 1952. She worked for a woman who owned an “unsuccessful” dress shop.

“I thought women’s sportswear would be more popular,” Butzi says. The Separate Shop opened in Sconset Square — then called Sherwood Square — and soon there were “lines out the door.”

At Christmas, customers filled out “want books.” They told their husbands just to go to The Separate Shop; Butzi and her staff would pick out what the wives wanted.

The store delivered too — via horse — within a 1 1/2-mile radius.

The Separate Shop, in Sherwood (not Sconset) Square.

The store’s name comes from her plan to sell items — skirts, blouses, etc. — “separately.” She had always found it difficult, as a “short-waisted woman,” to buy a one-piece dress without alterations. She realized that a wardrobe of separates could solve problems of those who were “too tall and long-waisted, the top-heavy, the large hipped, the too round and too thin,” a Westport Town Crier story said.

It added: “One of the first of the so-called ‘country stores’ to combine high style with more conventional items, the Separate Shop is often referred to in the garment business as ‘the grandmother of the trade.'”

An undated story in a retailing magazine noted, “The Separate Shop now does $200,000 woth of business a year and has achieved etailing fame as a major launching point for such now-established items as Shetland sweaters, Bermuda shorts, car coats and, more recently, the long ‘at home’ dinner skirt.”

Marilyn Monroe was a regular customer, Butzi says. She bought cashmere sweaters in 3 sizes — 32, 24 and 36 — to wear in different seasons.

The Ice Cream Parlor opened in 1953. She and her then-husband, Robert Beach, could not find good old-fashioned ice cream around here.

They learned of a country store going out of business in Saratoga Springs, New York. The bought what they needed, and brought it to Westport.

The concept was “nostalgia” — in the 1950s, for an earlier time. The old-fashioned ice cream parlor featured a marble soda fountain, wire-backed chairs, nickelodeon, penny candy and syrup in wax bottles.

Outside the Ice Cream Parlor …

It boasted that its “ice cream concoctions” were part of “the pomp and splendor, the gaudy, gay and garulous [sic] of an era past and a child’s wildest dreams come true.”

It was an instant hit, Butzi says.

… and inside. (This is from a 1955 Seventeen magazine photo shoot.)

The Separate Shop and Ice Cream Parlor were not Butzi’s only successes. She owned the Pack Roads men’s store, opposite Remarkable Book Shop at the Main Street entrance to Parker Harding Plaza (near where the Separate Shop relocated in the 1960s).

Pack Roads, near the second locatio nof the Separate Shop. (Photo/Peter Barlow)

Butzi also helped design costumes, and the scrim, for the Westport Country Playhouse.

She owned an apartment one block from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and spent 50 years as a docent.

Butzi married Peter Moffitt in 1962. She sold the Separate Shop 2 years later, when their twins were born.

Noting the closing, the Town Crier wrote: “While wishing the new owners of the Separate Shop all sorts of luck and Butsy [sic] Moffitt a happy retirement, we have a sneaking suspicion that her boundless energy will probably take her out of the house and back into the business world before long.”

Nearly 60 years later, the Separate Shop, Pack Roads and Ice Cream Parlor are part of Westport’s long-ago past.

Less than 6 years away from her 100th birthday, meanwhile, Butzi Moffitt, still has plenty of energy.

And many, many memories.

Butzi Moffett in her Southport home. She put the earrings on the portrait of Judy Garland. (Photo/Dan Woog)

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Roundup: The Porch, Hooked, Playhouse Gala …

Posted on July 22, 2022 | Comments Off on Roundup: The Porch, Hooked, Playhouse Gala …

“06880”‘s Unsung Hero feature runs every Wednesday.

But this story — reported first on Facebook’s “Westport Front Porch” page — deserves to be told today. J. Van Burke wrote:

“Huge shout-out to The Porch @ Christie’s.

“My friend and her family were visiting from Kansas. As parents of a child with Down syndrome they wanted to support a business that gives employment opportunities to all, so we went for breakfast at The Porch.

“My friend left her purse there, and only realized it when they were on to their next stop in Rhode Island.

“The lovely folks at The Porch had it overnighted to her — and even included some treats for her kids to enjoy in the parcel. Such thoughtfulness and kindness should be applauded.”

Absolutely! Among Westport’s treasures, The Porch @ Christie’s stands @ the top of any list.

The Porch @ Christie’s co-owner Bill Pecoriello, on the porch.

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Westport was hopping yesterday evening.

The Levitt Pavilion was packed, for a Santana tribute band. Restaurants were jammed too, with outdoor diners. A huge crowd thronged Compo’s South Beach, for the 9th annual “06880” blog party.

Meanwhile, elsewhere at Compo, on one of the most beautiful nights of the year, Hook’d — the concessionaire — closed early.

At least they gave a few folks warning, via text. (Hat tip: Sal Liccione)

Despite the posted hours, Hook’d closed early last night. (Photo/Matt Murray)

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Sure, it’s hot. But the show must go on.

So it will: indoors.

Tomorrow’s (Saturday, July 23, 7 p.m.) “Broadway through the Ages” concert at MoCA will be inside the gallery, rather than out on the lawn. It stars 2013 Staples High School graduate Michelle Pauker, with music direction by Juilliard & Oxford Academy composer Jake Landau — a 2013 classmate of Michelle’s.

Entry to the museum’s “Women Pulling at the Threads of Social Discourse” exhibit is included in the admission. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.

Michelle Pauker

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Renée Elise Goldsberry — Angelica Schuyler in “Hamilton” — headlines the return of the Westport Country Playhouse’s gala benefit. She’ll perform Broadway, pop and soul songs on Saturday, September 17.

The evening begins with a 5:30 p.m. cocktail party, including a live auction and raffle. Her 8 p.m. performance is followed by an after-party, with a DJ and dancing. The host is Robin de Jesús, from “In the Heights.”

Click here for tickets, and more information.

Renee Elise Goldsberry

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Congratulations to Mo Deegan: a recent inductee into the Little East Conference Hall of Fame.

The Staples High School graduate is one of the most accomplished multi-sport athletes in Eastern Connecticut State University history. She earned All-America, All-Region and All-League honors in field hockey and lacrosse. Several of her records still stand.

This is her second Hall of Fame. In 2014, she was inducted into ECSU’s Athletics Alumni HOF.

Mo Deegan

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Julie Blume enjoyed this beautiful visitor to her Bonnie Brook Road home yesterday.

There’s always something new — and wondrous — in our “Westport … Naturally” world.

(Photo/Julie Blume)

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And finally … you might not know his name, but if you grew up in the 1970s you knew his voice.

William Hart, lead singer and songwriter of the Grammy-winning group the Delfonics, died last week in Philadelphia, from complications during surgery. He was 77. Click here for a full obituary.

(“06880” relies on reader donations. Please click here to contribute.)

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“06880” Blog Party: Who Was There?

Posted on July 22, 2022 | 1 comment

Among the attendees at last night’s “06880” blog party: professional photographer JC Martin.

He took dozens of great shots. Here’s a sampling of the very fun evening.

View from the drone.

1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker and Westport Downtown Association president Maxx Crowley.

“06880” photographers John Videler (far left) and Ted Horowitz (far right) are usually on the other side of the camera.

RTM member Harris Falk.

Some of the swag, courtesy of Savvy + Grace.

 

(All photos/JC Martin)

 

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“06880” Blog Party: The Best Of Westport

Posted on July 22, 2022 | 5 comments

The idea is simple: I pick a date. I get a permit from the Parks & Recreation Department. I announce it a few times on the blog

And our “06880” community does the rest.

It’s an organic event. Everyone brings food, drinks and beach chairs.

A small part of the 150 or so guests. The table on the right held swag for the guests (with thanks to Savvy + Grace, the Main Street gift shop).

Folks who have lived here for 70 years, and others who have been here for 7 weeks (literally), mix and mingle. (Special shout-out to 93-year-old Tom Lowrie!)

A small part of the large crowd. (Photo/Dennis Jackson)

Politicians (of both parties) chat with people who want to tell them a thing or two — and others with no idea who they are.

Ann Sheffer and Bill Scheffler live much of the year in California and New York. But they came to the “06880” party too. And yes, that’s 1st Selectwoman Jen Tooker on the left, photobombing the shot.

The police chief talks with an old friend from Staples.

Police Chief Foti Koskinas (right) and Staples High School Class of ’79 classmate Terry Brannigan.

Party-goers introduce themselves to strangers, then recognize the names of frequent commenters and frequent photographers. Jack Backiel — one of the most frequent commenters of all — made a special trip up from Maryland, just to see the town he lived in decades ago (and still feels connected to).

Jack Backiel (right) and his longtime friend Dennis Jackson.

It was the 9th annual “06880” blog party. If you were there last night, you know all that already.

If you  missed it: See you in 2023!

Staples High School 2020 graduate Dylan Curran.

PS: A tip of the “06880” hat to Parks & Rec for helping the event run so smoothly. Particular thanks to Luke in Guest Services, for toting tables and going out of his way to help. 

Westport Downtown Association president Maxx Crowley.

PPS: And thanks too to the weather gods. The predicted thunderstorms never came. In

It was not even as hot as predicted, and a soft breeze helped. Go figure.

Nicole Klein and Jerry Kuyper take a selfie with some random dude. (Photo/Matt Murray)

Dorothy and Jon Fox. Love her hat!

Warren Bloom entertains.

Michael Calise

The women of Westport. (Photo/Tom Lowrie)

From left: Judy and Jack Backiel, and Gloria Gouveia, enjoy some shade.

Mark Yurkiw has not forgotten his native Ukraine. (All photos/ Dan Woog, unless otherwise noted)

An added bonus: a spectacular sunset. (Photo/John Dodig)

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Pics Of The Day #1921

Posted on July 21, 2022 | 2 comments

Dark skies over Compo Beach this afternoon …

… and Longshore. (Photos/Patricia McMahon)

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Wanna Have Fun? Cyndi Lauper At The Levitt!

Posted on July 21, 2022 | 1 comment

The Levitt Pavilion has hosted some Big Names.

Willie Nelson played at the annual gala. So did Ray Charles, Smokey Robinson, John Fogerty, and a host of others.

Add Cyndi Lauper to the list.

The Grammy winner — and the first woman in history to have 4 songs from her debut album hit the Top 5 — headlines this year’s fundraiser. It’s set for Friday, September 30 (8 p.m.).

With classics like “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” “Time After Time” and “True Colors,” she’s a sensational performer — and a Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee.

Lauper is a tireless advocate too, for women, people living with HIV/AIDS, and the LGBTQ community.

Levitt Pavilion members can buy tickets now. Tickets go on sale to the public Saturday, July 23, at 9 a.m..

Click here for tickets (concert only, and concert plus gala), and more information.

Cyndi Lauper

 

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Roundup: Hartford HealthCare, Rachel Robinson, Pequot Library …

Posted on July 21, 2022 | 6 comments

Hartford Healthcare recently opened a new Post Road location, opposite the Exxon station at Maple Avenue North.

I hope it’s a good addition to Westport.

I also hope it’s a lot more efficient than their eldercare division.

For over a month I’ve received several dozen calls, texts and voicemails from them, all asking me to set up a consultation for “Chante.”

I have explained to several phone center operators that they have the wrong number. I am not Chante’s caregiver. I don’t know Chante. I ask for my number to be removed from the list.

Each caller promises to do it, immediately. But the calls keep coming.

They’re from a variety of area codes. I don’t want to block them, because — like so many people nowadays — one of my real doctors is, or may at some point be, part of Hartford Healthcare.

Meanwhile, my opinion of the health network keeps plummeting.

PS: If you know Chante, please have her call Hartford HealthCare ASAP. They’re looking for her.

 

 

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On Tuesday, Rachel Robinson turned 100

In 1999, Westport photographer Larry Silver took a series of images of her. The founder of  the Jackie Robinson Foundation — a non-profit  providing educational and leadership opportunities for minority students, named after her late husband — was featured in an American Express ad, as a woman of color who made great contributions to society.

Rachel Robinson (Photo/Larry Silver)

Happy 100th, Rachel!

And thanks, Larry, for sharing.

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I don’t usually link to Channel 12 news reports. They’re great. But “06880” and News12 are usually on different wavelengths.

Tuesday’s feature on Jazz at the Post was outstanding.

In just 3 minutes they covered every aspect of the weekly series at VFW Joseph J. Clinton Post 399: the venue, the music, interviews with key people — especially the famed piano that was once the pride of the Village Gate club in New York.

The series continues tonight (Thursday, July 21, 7 and 8:30 p.m.; dinner service at 6:30 p.m.; $10 cover). Meanwhile, click here for the news clip.

Screenshot from the Cablevision News12 story.

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Sure it’s over the border (barely). But many Westporters know and love the Pequot Library’s summer book sale.

So here’s the scoop on the Southport institution’s 61st annual event: It runs from tomorrow (Friday, July 22) through Tuesday (July 26).

The squintillion items include over 250 “collectibles” (online). Click here to see.

Click here for hours, pricing, special events and more information.

The Pequot Library — without the book sale crowd.

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David Dear has a trail cam at the edge of his Westport yard.

At 6:30 a.m. recently, it captured this bobcat with kittens. Showing the wildlife around us — much of which we seldom see — it’s a perfect image for our “Westport … Naturally” feature.

(Photo/Dave Dear)

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And finally … despite Hartford Healthcare’s continuing and annoying calls, there is one Chante I don’t mind hearing about:

 

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