But plenty of Westport who root for the Queens team were nonetheless excited in the 9th inning of last night’s Game 1 of the National League Championship Series.
Ben Casparius — the 2017 Staples High School graduate, who was called up to the majors in August, and has responded well in relief — closed out the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 9-0 win, at Dodger Stadium.
The Mets went down 1-2-3, in the fourth-largest shutout win in postseason history.
The Dodgers have now matched the 1966 Baltimore Orioles for the longest scoreless streak ever — 33 innings — in a single postseason.
Game 2 is today at 4 p.m. EDT (Fox/FS 1).
Ben Casparius (Photo courtesy of Dave Briggs)
Click here to watch the inning he pitched. Click below for a great post-game interview.
Three days ago, our Friday Flashback referenced the many bands that played concerts at Staples High School, in the 1960s and ’70s.
If it sounded too good to be true — a hallucination, perhaps — here’s proof.
“The High School That Rocked!” — the 2017 documentary that chronicles concerts at Staples by the Doors, Cream, Rascals, Animals, Remains, Sly and the Family Stone, and others (including a very young, pre-Aerosmith Steve Tyler) — is available to stream today.
Fred Cantor — a 1971 Staples grad who, to his everlasting regret, missed those shows — made the film with Casey Denton, a 2014 Staples grad who was born way after that golden era. The film earned kudos on the festival circuit.
Lynsey Addario’s latest New York Times story is one of her most harrowing.
“Mom, I Want to Live” chronicles the struggles of a young 6-year-old Ukrainian girl. She’s battling cancer, while her country battles the Russian invasion.
Her father was killed on the front line.
Addario — a Pulitzer Prize and MacArthur “genius grant” winner, who graduated from Staples in 1991 — contributed both the compelling photos and riveting text.
Click here to see, and read. (Hat tip: Mary Condon)
Lynsey Addario’s photos capture the heartbreak — and occasional joys — of a 6-year-old girl in Ukraine. (Photo/Lynsey Addario for the New York Times)
Today is both Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples Day.
The second holiday began in Berkeley, California, in 1992, to coincide with the 500th anniversary of the arrival of Columbus in the Americas (October 12, 1492). It recognizes that America was not “discovered”; millions of people already lived here.
Indigenous Peoples Day has since been adopted by other cities and states.
In 2021, Joe Biden became the first president to issue a proclamation honoring the holiday.
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2011 Staples High School graduate Dylan Meissner pleaded guilty Thursday in US District Court to wire fraud. He was charged with stealing nearly $4.5 million from the crypto company, where he was vice president of finance.
He played baseball at Staples. According to his LinkedIn profile, he graduated with a BS in accounting from Pennsylvania State University in 2015, where he was active in the Penn State Investment Association.
In 2016, Meissner received an accounting MS from Penn State’s Smeal College of Business.
Though his company was not identified, his LinkedIn profile says he was VP of finance at Delphi Digital, during the time frame covered by the court. An FBI investigation found that he diverted $4,461,828 in the firm’s funds to cover “significant personal trading losses.”
Wire fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years. He will be sentenced on October 11. In the meantime, he has been order to pay restitution of $4,633,424.99.
Kami Evans has announced her candidacy for Connecticut’s Senate District 26.
Democratic incumbent Ceci Maher is serving her first term in Hartford. Evans — a former Westport resident — now once again lives here. The district includes Westport, Weston, Wilton, Redding, and parts of Ridgefield, New Canaan, Darien and Stamford.
In her announcement, Evans — who has worked for non-profits and in public relations, and is running as a Republican — said: “I’m here to champion family values and focus on community strength. Our journey together will be about uniting, uplifting, and creating endless opportunities for our district that everyone will benefit from.
“Your voice matters, and I’m here to listen. Let’s engage in meaningful conversations and work hand in hand to rejuvenate our district. Together, we can achieve greatness and build a brighter, stronger future for all.”
Yesterday’s Roundup included a photo of the “Welcome to Westport” sign at the Sherwood Island Connector and Post Road East.
Actually — depending on which direction you’re traveling — it now says “Welcome to Estport” or “Welcome to Westpor.” A recent accident sliced off a bit of the wood.
How recent? “06880” Mary Lou Roels reports: “The sign was hit on June 29, and the car caught on fire. I approached after midnight to see this (below). Fire crews managed the scene.”
For 10 years, The Ruden Report has been the go-to site for coverage of FCIAC high school athletics. All 16 schools in the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference get plenty of ink — well, pixels — in a wide variety of boys and girls sports.
Now, the multi-platform source — the brainchild of 1978 Staples High School graduate Dave Ruden — has been acquired
Westport-based Connoisseur Media is the new owner. Their resources — including 6 radio stations, and various digital brands — will enable Ruden to expand reporting throughout the area.
Connoisseur operates and/or owns WEBE 108, STAR 99.9, WYBC, WICC, 99.1 WPLR, and 95.9 The Fox in Connecticut.
The 1971 Staples High School graduate produced 2 films. In the span of a week, both will have their television premieres on CPTV.
“The High School That Rocked!” — a 2017 documentary that chronicles concerts at Staples by the Doors, Cream, Rascals, Animals, Remains, Sly and the Family Stone, and others (including a very young, pre-Aerosmith Steve Tyler) — is set for October 14 (9 p.m.).
Cantor made the film with Casey Denton, a 2014 Staples grad who obviously was born way after that golden era. The film earned kudos on the festival circuit.
A week later (October 21, 9 p.m.), Cantor’s “It’s a Hollywood Life!” debuts.
That film — released this year — focuses on longtime Westport resident Susan Granger’s 80-plus years connected to the movie business. (Spoiler alert: She started in childhood, appearing with some of the biggest stars during the Golden Age of Hollywood.)
BONUS REEL: People in and near New York City can see “It’s A Hollywood Life!” in a theater. Its NYC premiere is next Saturday (July 27, at the Chain NYC Film Festival). A Q-and-A after the screening features co-director Maya Weldon-Lagrimas, who recently received the Howard R. Lamar Prize in Film from Yale — the school’s top film prize. Click here for ticket information.
Jazz at the Post has announced 3 upcoming dates: August 1 (Melissa Newman), August 15 (Uri Caine) and August 29 (Janice Friedman).
Shows are 7:30 and 8:45 p.m., at VFW Joseph J. Clinton Post 399 on Riverside Avenue. Dinner service starts at 7 p.m. Click here for tickets, and more information.
In other jazz news, on Wednesdays (starting September 11), Greg “The Jazz Rabbi” Wall will coach 2 adult ensembles: beginners and intermediates/ advanced. Both provide “a gentle and stimulating opportunity to learn and refine the repertoire and language of jazz.”
All levels of musicianship and experience are welcome. The first 2 sessions are free. To learn more, email jazzrabbi@gmail.com. Include your instrument and phone number.
Former Westporter Kathryn McCabe died June 30. She was 97, and lived in Fairfield.
The Michigan native, and 1948 graduate of the University of Michigan, spent 43 years in Westport.
She was a social worker in Detroit and Norwalk, where she worked for STAR. Kathryn also volunteered at Earthplace.
She enjoyed reading, opera, the outdoors, water and snow skiing, tennis, boating, playing piano and ukelele, and singing.
Kathryn loved animals, especially her cats and dogs. She celebrated her 90th birthday with horseback riding.
Survivors include her twin daughters, Janet Gibbons (Ken) of Hyde Park, Vermont, and Marjorie Wroblewski (Broni) of Fairfield; son Richard (Donna) of Acton, Massachusetts; grandchildren Greg Gibbons (Jennifer), Geoff Gibbons (Melissa), Lauren Wroblewski (fiancé Ferg Young) and Ryan McCabe, and great- grandchildren Emma, Colin, James, Beckett and Jackson. Kathryn was predeceased by her brothers Richard, Norman and Jack Ellison. She was predeceased by her husband, Barry McCabe.
A celebration of her life was held at the Gaelic-American Club in Fairfield.
Kathryn McCabe
==========================================
Among the underappreciated assets of Westport: the flower pots on Soundview Drive.
Paid for and maintained by the Compo Beach Improvement Association, they serve 2 purposes.
They slow traffic (theoretically, at least).
And — changing with the seasons — they are beautiful.
Check out one of them, as today’s “Westport … Naturally” featured photo.
And finally … Bernice Johnson Reagon, “whose stirring gospel voice helped provide the soundtrack of the civil rights movement, then went on to become a cultural historian, a curator at the Smithsonian Institution and the founder of the women’s a cappella group Sweet Honey in the Rock,” died Tuesday in Washington. She was 81.
She was a remarkable, multi-talented woman whose accomplishments may be unknown to many. Click here for her full obituary.
(Another day, another weekend … and “06880” keeps keeping you informed on all things Westport. It’s what we do — but we can’t do it without your support. Please click here to help. Thank you!)
Sergeant Dan Paz, Corporal Craig Bergamo and Officer Dominique Carr represented the Westport Police Department yesterday, at the Long Island funeral of Jonathan Diller.
The New York Police Department officer was killed Monday, during a traffic stop in Queens.
The trio helped with the escort, in Massapequa Park.
More than 200 police motorcycles, and thousands of officers from around the country, attended the service.
“It really hits home for the officers working the road, and their families, any time an officer is killed,” says Westport Police Chief Foti Koskinas.
“But even more so when it’s so close to home. We are very fortunate to have the unwavering support of our community.”
Dan Paz, Dominique Carr and Craig Bergamo, at Jonathan Diller’s funeral yesterday.
Westport’s Lighthouse Church children’s choir kicked off Easter weekend yesterday with a double dose of joy.
They sang for seniors and nursing home staff at Cambridge Health & Rehabilitation Center in Fairfield, and Northbridge Healthcare Center in Bridgeport.
But the egg hunt fun continues next Saturday (April 6). At 10:30 a.m., the Westport Book Shop hosts kids and families on Jesup Green, across the street from their popular store.
In addition to eggs, there’s a reading and signing by children’s author Diana Blau, face painting and snacks.
Reserve a spot by email (bookshop@westportbooksaleventures.org) or phone (203-349-5141).
Later in the month (April 25, 6 p.m.), the Book Shop’s Short Story Book Club discusses 2 short stories about parent-child relationships, and parents’ aspirations for their children.
They’re “Rules of The Game” by Amy Tan (originally part of her novel “The Joy Luck Club”) and “I Stand Here Ironing.” Copies of the stories are online, and included in many short story compilations.
Space is limited. Email bookshop@westportbooksaleventures.org, or call 203-349-5141.
The Westport Book Shop hosts events inside, and on Jesup Green.
This fall, the state’s public television channel will air television premieres of two short films produced by the 1971 Staples High School graduate.
“The High School That Rocked!” explored the magical years when great bands — the Doors, Yardbirds, Cream, Rascals, Remains and more — played at Staples.
The award-winning film was the only documentary short selected to screen at The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Film Series in 2018.
Cantor’s latest documentary, “It’s a Hollywood Life!,” focuses on longtime Westport resident Susan Granger’s 80-plus years connected to the movie business.
But you don’t have to wait until fall for that one. The Ridgefield Independent Film Festival screens the Hollywood film May 18. Immediately after, there’s a Q-and-A with Granger, Keir Dullea and Mia Dillon, and the directors. Click here for tickets.
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Comments Off on Roundup: Easter, Westport PD, Lighthouse Church …
In the latest installment of Westport’s ongoing, fun mystery, TV reporter Anne Craig reports on the unknown knitter’s latest creation.
But in addition to showcasing her work on Compo Beach Road — right by the marina — Anne also makes an offer.
The Yarn Bomber wants to help someone who needs a colorful, lively, humorous pick-me-up. That’s right: a “gift bomb.”
“It can be someone on the front lines, or someone who has suffered a loss,” Anne says. “Someone who has been through a lot, or has given a lot.
All that’s needed is a nomination. So watch Anne’s new video below — it’s another winner! — and if you know someone who could benefit from a yard bomb, put his or her name in the YouTube comments section.
Bombs away!
“The High School That Rocked!” — Fred Cantor’s documentary about the amazing bands that played in Westport back in the (glory) days — is going national.
From June 26-28, it’s part of the Albuquerque Film & Music Experience’s online “Best of the Fest” programming.
In 2017, the film was chosen as Best Short Documentary 1st runner-up at the event.
“THSTR” is part of 6 music documentary shorts and videos. The cost to watch all is just $1. Proceeds are split 50/50 between the festival and filmmakers — but Cantor is turning his share back to the organizers.
To see this intriguing film — and 5 others — click here.
One consequence of COVID-19: closures and reductions in summer programs has left working families without affordable childcare options.
Westport’s Department of Human Services can help. They’ve created a Campership Fund, to help cover the cost of programs.
The average weekly cost of a day camp is $300. Donations of any size can help a child attend for a day, week or the entire summer. Contributions can be made online (click here), or by check (payable to Westport Human Services “DHS Campership Fund,” 110 Myrtle Avenue, Westport, CT 06880.
Summer camp is always fun. (Photos/Jaime Bairaktaris)
This year’s National History Day them was “Breaking Barriers.”
Long before the eyes of the nation focused on forgotten Black heroes, Staples High School sophomores Emma Nordberg and Lea Rivel chose Robert Smalls. A former enslaved man who stole a Confederate vessel and joined the Union, he convinced President Lincoln to allow African American men to join the army, was the first Black commander of an American warship, and became one of the first Black congressmen during Reconstruction.
The coronavirus forced this year’s History Day competition into cyberspace. But working together, Emma and Lea placed 4th nationally. It’s a great achievement for them, and their US History teacher Drew Coyne.
That’s not the first National History Day competition for Westport students — or even for a Nordberg. In 2016 Emma’s brother Konur and 4 Bedford Middle School classmates won 1st place at the state level, and went on to the national competition. They interviewed Claudette Colvin, the first Black woman who refused to give up her son, even before Rosa Parks’ famous act.
Congratulations, Emma and Lea!
Emma Nordberg
And finally … let’s all keep thinking about (and being aware of) stereotypes.
That’s my usual response when organizers ask me to publicize their upcoming or recent event. If I do one, I say, I’ll have to do them all. And — sorry, guys! — your reunion just isn’t that interesting to 99.99% of “06880”‘s daily readers.
But rules are made to be broken. And if any class has experience breaking rules, it’s the rockin’, rollin’ Staples High School class of 1969.
So here goes:
Last weekend, 131 no-longer-teenage-but-still-young-at-heart former Wreckers gathered for their 50th (!) reunion.
There were no cell phones — or selfies — back in 1969. In 2019, these reunion-goers make the most of theirs.
They were rebels, back in the day. But in 2019, they got a ton of help from all corners of the town they grew up in. Former — and still — class president Peter Krieg reports:
Assistant principal Rich Franzis was a tremendous help. He helped prep Krieg for his tour of the “new” school, worked with Geno Heiter to post 1969 visuals on the lobby TV screen, and enlisted head custodian Horace Lewis and one of Lewis’ staff to guide the group around.
Not far from a banner welcoming the Class of 2023 to the “new” Staples, the Class of 1969 gathered for a group photo.
The tour culminated in the library, where librarian Jen Cirino helped screen the “High School That Rocked” movie. The film depicts the amazing (Doors, Yardbirds, Cream, Sly & the Family Stone, Rascals, Animals, Beau Brummels) concerts that so many of those former Stapleites attended.
Producer Fred Cantor — the young (Class of ’71) producer — was there.
So was former social studies teacher and administrator Gordon Hall. Now in his 90s — and living in the same Westport home as then — he spoke to the returning alums.
“He was inspiring, knowledgeable and very funny,” Krieg reports. “His comments about retirement were not just appropriate; they were a teaching moment for us.”
Krieg is giving gifts to everyone who helped. Hall, for example, will receive a framed photo of his talk.
New Staples principal Stafford Thomas gets one too. (“He was keenly interested in ‘The High School That Rocked,'” Krieg says — even though he had not yet been born when those bands were hot.)
The way we were … or at least, the way we think we were, today.
Krieg gives a shout-out to Westport’s Parks & Recreation Department as well. They provided great help for the Saturday night Compo Beach party: tent permits, use of the Ned Dimes Marina, and passes for vehicles.
The marina building was decorated with professionally produced ’69 posters and memorabilia. Organizers raffled off 3 unique pieces of art. They’ll donate (appropriately) $1,969 of the proceeds to Staples Tuition Grants.
Of course, no reunion is complete with a party at the Black Duck. Pete Aitkin hosted a boisterous crew on Friday night.
“The support we got from the school, from one of our teachers, and the town was really special,” says Krieg.
“This was Westport at its best. It felt like the Westport of old. In some ways, Westport hasn’t changed at all.”
Neither have the members of Staples High School’s Class of 1969.
Even if they did graduate half a century ago.
It’s been 50 years. But some friendships never fade.
Ever since 1995, a video of Steve Tyler’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame speech has played on an endless loop in the Cleveland museum.
In 1966 his band — the Chain Reaction — opened for the Yardbirds. And that, Aerosmith’s leader said, inspired him to have a career in music.
That concert — along with others by the Doors, Cream, Rascals, Animals, Remains and Sly and the Family Stone — has become legendary. “The High School That Rocked!” — a documentary by Fred Cantor (Staples ’71, perhaps the only Westport teenager of that era who did not go to one of those concerts ) and Casey Denton (Staples ’14, who obviously was born way after that golden era) — pays homage to them. It was released last year, and earned high praise on the festival circuit.
Now it too has reached the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
On Saturday, February 17, the documentary will be screened — on its own loop — prior to the Tri-C High School Rock Off Final Exams. That’s the championship round of a competition for teenage groups. Prizes include cash, scholarships, and an invitation to play during this year’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction week.
It’s all part of the Rock & Roll Hall’s 2018 film series. Other subjects explore rap, Lady Gaga, Nina Simone, Native Americans in popular music history, the music executive who signed Metallica and White Zombie, the Monkees, Prince and Hüsker Dü.
You may not get to Cleveland for the Staples concerts video. You may have missed it at its sold-out showings here in Westport.
But — in the words of Neil Young — “rock and roll can never die.”So click here to download “The High School That Rocked!”
Tell ’em Steve Tyler sent you.
ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME BONUS FEATURE: Click below for the Steve Tyler video mentioned above.
It was the like one of the 1960s Staples High School concerts with the Doors, Yardbirds or regular Byrds: Sorry, sold out!
Fifty years after those legendary shows, a Westport Cinema Initiative showing of a documentary about them left plenty of folks standing in the lobby.
The movie — “The High School That Rocked!” — was a labor of love. Class of ’71 alum Fred Cantor (who somehow managed to miss all of those concerts, back in the day) teamed up with 2014 grad Casey Denton (an Emerson College film major who had a better reason for missing them: He would not be born for another 3 decades).
The resulting story of how the Doors, Cream, Sly & the Family Stone, Yardbirds, Animals and Rascals came to Staples — and what happened when they did — is fascinating and compelling. Also very, very cool.
Last summer’s SRO audience of 300 in Town Hall loved the video. Thousands of others wondered if they could see it too.
Now they can.
Earlier today, Vimeo released “The High School That Rocked!” in the US and Canada, via video on demand. (Click here to stream it now.)
It’s well worth the half hour. And I’d say that even if I was not one of the interviewees.
Though he’s glad the film is now available to all current and former Westporters, Cantor believes there’s a much wider audience out in Vimeo land.
He’s right. You don’t need any connection with Staples to download “The High School That Rocked!” You just have to be a fan of the best music ever.
Of course, if you don’t know anything about Westport, you won’t get the sly reference in the credits at the end.
The film was produced by “Sally’s Record Dept. Productions.”
For the sold-out crowd in the Town Hall auditorium last weekend, Fred Cantor’s documentary “The High School That Rocked!” combined Woodstock and class reunions with a trip down memory lane.
Men with far less — but grayer — hair than in the mid-’60s, and women wearing not granny but actual glasses smiled, laughed and clapped as the true story of how the Doors, Sly & the Family Stone, Rascals, Cream and Yardbirds played at Staples High School was told by folks who Really Were There.
There were plenty of anecdotes. Two Westport girls baked a cake for the Rascals; another touched Jim Morrison’s face.
Ed Baer
And then there was the tale told by Ed Baer. A former WMCA radio “Good Guy” and longtime Westporter, he spoke on camera about the astonishing effect the Beatles had on everyone at the time. The example he used was a contest his station sponsored. The grand prize: a locket of Ringo Starr’s hair.
The audience smiled knowingly.
But one woman could not believe her ears.
Leslie Schine graduated from Staples in 1971 — Cantor’s year. But in 1964 she was 11 years old.
And she won the same contest Ed Baer described in the film.
A Bridgeport Post news story shows 11-year-old Leslie Schine clutching her Beatles album.
At a reception after the showing, she mentioned the astonishing coincidence. And, she said, she had not even entered the contest. She did not know who sent in her name.
A 1964 story in the Bridgeport Post suggested it was a colleague of her father’s. Leonard Schine was a noted local attorney, and a former Westport Town Court judge.
The lock of hair — clipped from Ringo’s head on the Beatles’ 1st US tour — arrived at Leslie’s Bayberry Lane home, along with a photo of the Beatles cutting his hair; an affidavit signed by Ringo; a letter from WMCA, and a fan club postcard signed by all the Beatles (except John).
More than 50 years later, Leslie Schine mimics her previous pose. Here, she holds a photo she was sent by WMCA, showing “the Good Guys” cutting Ringo’s hair. (Photo/Carlotta Grenier Schaller)
When Leslie told this story last weekend, she thought she still had it “somewhere.”
Sure enough, the next day — in just 15 minutes — she found it in her attic.
Along with the documentation.
“I seem to remember bringing it to Coleytown Elementary, and handing out single strands to friends,” Leslie says.
It’s amazing. Of all the anecdotes Ed Baer could have told, that’s the one he chose.
And of all 300 people in the auditorium last weekend, one of them was Leslie Schine.
Ed Baer was there too. Unfortunately, neither he nor Leslie knew of the coincidence, so they did not meet.
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