Tag Archives: “the Remarkable Theater

Roundup: Downtown Parking, Remarkable Theater, Sweetgreen …

There’s no such thing as a free lunch — at least, if you’re eating in or taking out downtown.

Downtown parking though, has always been free — for 1 or 2 hours.

During the pandemic, enforcement of parking limits was suspended.

Tickets may soon return — but only after those parking limits are extended.

The second agenda item on Wednesday’s Board of Selectwomen meeting (August 16, 9 a.m., Town Hall auditorium) reads:

Acting in its capacity as the Local Traffic Authority, to re-establish the enforcement of timed parking limits previously suspended by the Board of Selectmen at its public meeting of June 10, 2020, and further, to establish uniform parking limits and times of enforcement throughout the town-managed and owned downtown parking lots known as Parker Harding Plaza, Sigrid Shultz Plaza, Baldwin, Bay Street, Jesup Road, and Taylor, and the Town roadways known as Main Street, Church Lane, Bay Street, and Taylor Place, by changing FROM the currently posted “1- and 2- hour parking” limits TO “3-hour parking” limits and enforcement times TO “8:00 AM to 6:00 PM.” And further, to request permission from the CT DOT to change the current parking term limits posted on Post Road East FROM “1- and 2-hour parking” TO “3-hour parking.”

Click here for the livestream of the Board of Selectwomen session, or watch on Optimum Channel 79. Comments may be sent to selectwoman@westportct.gov prior to the meeting.

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The 3rd agenda item for Wednesday’s Board of Selectwomen’s meeting is also of interest: a request from the Remarkable Theater to use the Imperial Avenue parking lot from August 28 through November 3 for a 4th season of drive-in movies.

From 2020 through ’22, the Remarkable’s season began in the spring.

Paul and Melissa Levy, at the Remarkable Theater.

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Jacqui O’Brien was one of several readers who sent photos of a strange object seen over Westport skies last night.

Susan Leone was the first to identify them as SpaceX Starlink satellites.

They were launched yesterday from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. It was the 9th flight for the first stage booster supporting the mission.

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As first noted on “06880” over a year ago — but denied vociferously by Organic Krush — Sweetgreens is indeed moving in to Compo Shopping Center.

Organic Krush has already moved out.

No date has been announced for opening. But the fast-casual salad-based chain — which emphasizes healthy eating and sustainability, and has 158 outlets in 13 states — already has Westporters excited.

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The recent food drive for Homes with Hope’s Gillespie Center and food pantry — which included a special, fill-my-shopping-cart trip by a mother and 2 children —  was celebrated yesterday, at the Sunrise Rotary Club’s weekly meeting.

The sponsors — including also the Westport Rotary Club, Westport Police Department and Saugatuck Rowing Club — presented a check for $1,105.62 to Homes with Hope.

Those cash donations were in addition to the hundreds of bags of groceries that were dropped off, as shoppers entered and exited the store.

From left: Liz Wong, Sunrise Rotary president; Rob Hauck, Rotary member; Helen McAlinden, Homes with Hope president; Paris Looney, HWH vice president, and Sunrise Rotary members Bruce Paul and Bruce Fritz. (Photo/James Wong)

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The link provided yesterday by Wakeman Town Farm for their September 9 Harvest Fest fundraiser was incorrect. Click here for tickets, and more information.

Wakeman Town Farm’s Harvest Fest is coming soon.

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Many Westporters love pickleball. Some hate it.

But all can agree: the Smart Shots Pickleball Social is great.

The September 30 event (6:30 to 9:30 p.m., Milford Indoor Tennis) is a fundraiser for A Better Chance of Westport.

Level-designated courts will ensure exciting matches. Vendors will offer pickleball services and products. A raffle includes special prizes. The Porch @ Christie’s is providing food (available for pre-purchase).

The event is sponsored by ATP (Alan & Tina Pickleball). Click here to register. Questions? Call 203-984-1949.

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We like to think of Long Island Sound as “ours.”

But — as Karen Como’s “Westport … Naturally” photo reminds us — humans were not here first.

(Photo/Karen Como)

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And finally … anyone who saw the 2012 Oscar-winning documentary “Searching for Sugar Man” knows that Rodriguez’s story is astonishing.

The Detroit musician wrote and sang haunting protest songs. But he never found an audience, and settled into a life as a laborer and office worker.

He was “discovered” in Australia however — and then, even more so, in South Africa during apartheid. According to the New York Times:

“To many of us South Africans, he was the soundtrack to our lives,” Stephen Segerman, owner of a Cape Town record store, said in the documentary.

“In the mid-’70s, if you walked into a random white, liberal, middle-class household that had a turntable and a pile of pop records, and if you flipped through the records, you would always see ‘Abbey Road’ by the Beatles, you’d always see ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ by Simon and Garfunkel, and you would always see ‘Cold Fact’ by Rodriguez. To us, it was one of the most famous records of all time. The message it had was ‘Be anti-establishment.’”

Astonishingly, Rodriguez did not know he had fervent fans in South Africa. Equally astonishingly, South Africans thought he was dead. One rumor was a drug overdose; another, that he had killed himself onstage.

In 1998, he was discovered — alive, and living in obscurity in Detroit. He was invited to South Africa, and played concerts at  sold-out venues.

He was “discovered” again more than a dozen years later, with the release of “Searching for Sugar Man” — a film about his strange but vibrant life.

Rodriguez — whose full name was Sixto Diaz Rodriguez — died Tuesday, in Detroit. He was 81.

Click here for a full obituary. Click below to hear Rodriguez.

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Roundup: Westport10, Yard Help, Remarkable Movies …

Westport Superintendent of Schools Thomas Scarice joined members of Westport10 — the civic and social organization of Black men and their families — for a tour of the Westport Library yesterday.

The group — founded by Library trustee Jay Norris — was very impressed with the innovative building, and inspired by Scarice’s vision for Westport schools.

At yesterday’s Westport Library event, front row (from left): Superintendent of Schools Thomas Scarice, Board of Education member Kevin Christie, Roy Anderson, Alie Diagne, Eric Freeman. Back row: Ryan Smith, Dale Mauldin, Abdul Ngnoumen, Jay Norris, Ted Parker.

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Get your oak saplings!

From now through 12:30 p.m. today (Saturday), the Westport Tree Board is giving them away. It’s part of “Oaktober,” at the Westport Book Shop fall festival. The festival runs until noon.

Westport Tree Board member Ed Picard offers an oak sapling to Dylan Rosen. (Photo/Frank Rosen)

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Outdoor chores are part of suburban life. As Westporters age, they sometimes need help.

Our Department of Human Services has a list of middle and high school students eager to help with outdoor chores. There suggested fee is $12 an hour.

Seniors looking for help — and students interested in helping –should email humansrv@westportct.gov, or call 203-341-1050.

Chances are you won’t need all this help. Just one kid can work wonders …

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The Remarkable Theater has a jam-packed schedule of movies at its Imperial Avenue drive-in theater site.

Many are geared to Halloween. There’s also “The Candidate,” in honor of Election Day.

Here’s what’s ahead:

  • Thurs., Oct. 13: “Slap Shot” (doors open 5:30 p.m.; movie at 6:30)
  • Fri., Oct. 14: “Coco” (doors 5:30, movie 6:30)
  • Sat., Oct. 15: “Saturday Night Fever” (doors 5:30, movie 6:30)
  • Sat., Oct. 22: “Rocky Horror Picture Show” (doors 5, movie 6)
  • Tues., Oct. 25: “The Candidate” (doors 5, movie 6)
  • Wed., Oct. 26: “Beetlejuice” (doors 5, movie 6)
  • Sat., Oct. 29: “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” and “Curious George: A Holiday Boo Fest” (doors 5, movie 6)
  • Sun.,, Oct. 30: “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (doors 8, movie 8:30)
  • Mon., Oct. 31: “Halloween” (Doors 6, movie 7).

Click here for tickets, and more information.

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Speaking of Halloween: It’s fun for kids.

And stressful for parents.

The United Methodist Church of Westport and Weston wants to make it easy for everyone. On Saturday, October 29 (2 to 4 p.m.), they’ll host their annual (and very popular) “Trunk or Treat.”

The parking lot will be filled with 30 car trunks, decorated for Halloween. Kids (up to age 12) can pick up candy and other goodies.

It’s free for the community — but there’s a chance to give back too. The church is collecting canned goods for the Person to Person food pantry. A donation of 5 cans of food per child attending is requested.

All are welcome at the United Methodist Church, 49 Weston Road — throughout the year, and of course at “Trunk or Treat.” (Photo/Dan Woog)

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The next big event after Halloween is Election Day.

Absentee ballots are available at the Town Clerk’s office in Town Hall Room 105 on weekdays (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except this Monday, Columbus Day.) Ballots are also available online; click here.

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Who says art has to be expensive? (Well, galleries, but that’s beside the point.)

The Artists Collective of Westport is dedicated to making art — and making it affordable.

Their 4th annual Affordable Art Trunk Show takes place Sunday, October 16 (11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Westport Library lower parking lot).

There’s music and food. Of course, admission is free.

Susan Fehlinger sells art out of — literally — her trunk.

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It’s been just over a year since beloved Westporter Jonathan Greenfield died of ALS. He had just turned 50.

Greenfield dedicated the last years of his life to building Breathe 4 ALS, with his wife Iris. The non-profit had 2 missions: raising money for genetic ALS research, and spreading awareness of the Wim Hof method of breathwork and cold therapy. It greatly improved Greenfield’s life, as he battled ALS.

The second annual Jonathan Greenfield Wim Hof Fundamentals Workshop is set for Sunday, October 16.

It’s limited to 30 participants, and is free for people living with ALS.

Jonathan was a photographer and filmmaker. He published a coffee table book, which is included as a gift with the ticket purchase ($225 donation).

People who cannot attend, but support the work with a $100 donation will receive the book as a thank you. Click here for tickets.

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Dana Buckmir’s memoir, Everything Will Be Okay, is a cautionary tale of online dating and domestic violence. On October 12 (7 p.m.), the Connecticut native brings her story to The Westport Library for a conversation with Ann Rodwell-Lawton, associate director of the Domestic Violence Crisis Center.

The event, a collaboration between the Library, The Domestic Violence Crisis Center, and the Westport Domestic Violence Task Force, will be held in person, streamed live, and recorded.

“Domestic violence and abuse impacts thousands of people, especially women, each day, in every community,” says Kerri Gawreluk, programming associate at The Westport Library. “Dana’s ability to articulate her own personal story from a place of clarity, strength, and empowerment is truly inspiring, and we’re incredibly grateful to host her at the Library.”

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Westport 12-year-old Vivek Kanthan is now on the Kart Racing World Circuit in Italy.

The 50+-nation competition is very difficult. Karts have different tire compounds and specifications. Tracks are very fast and highly technical.

In the Rok Cup Italia Competition, Vivek finished as vice champion. He has qualified to represent the US in the World Championship Rok Superfinal in Lonato later this month. Good luck, Vivek!

Vivek Kanthan, with his hardware.

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Today’s “Westport … Naturally” photo shows Andre the dachshund wishing everyone a Happy Halloween.

He’s now on another planet, says Bevi Bullwinkel. But he never forgot his favorite holiday, or his Westport home.

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And finally … on this day in 1956, Don Larsen pitched the only perfect game in World Series history. (Just think: The MLB post-season is only beginning now, with wild card games.)

(Movies, sports, Election Day info … it’s all available on “06880.” Please click here to support your hyper-local blog.)

A Remarkable 3rd Season Set

The Remarkable Theater — the Imperial Avenue drive-in that popped up during the first, frightened summer of COVID, then established itself as a go-to institution last year — is ready for Year 3.

This almost-post-virus season launches April 29. For the next 6 months — through Halloween — they’ll offer comedy, drama, classic, horror, kids, animated films (and much more) for anyone with a car, and a couple of hours.

This year, The Remarkable will announce over half its schedule in advance. That makes it easy for moviegoers to plan their evenings — including tailgates — with family and friends.

The 2022 season will include an increase in family films, discounted weekday screenings and special events.

The first selection of movies and dates will be announced and go on sale March 29. Coincidentally (or not), it’s the day after the Academy Awards.

The Remarkable Theater (Drone photo/John Videler for Videler Photography)

The Remarkable is a true community non-profit. One of its missions is to provide employment for people with disabilities.

This Wednesday (March 16, 6 to 9 p.m., Westport Library), they’ll host an Open House. Board members, staff and volunteers will meet movie-goers, hear suggestions for films and events, and register individuals with disabilities to work this season.

In addition, students can apply for internships for the spring, summer and fall

The Remarkable plays short documentaries, focusing on local stories and organizations, before each feature film. If you’ve got an idea for a short video, let the staff know at the March 16 open house.

The Remarkable Theater is the place to be!

Information will also be available about film school opportunities for aspiring filmmakers.

As in years past, The Remarkable is collaborating with local groups to sponsor special screenings. If you are part of an organization, school, business or non-profit that would like to host or produce a screening this year, come Wednesday night to meet with The Remarkable staff.

It should be a remarkable evening.

 

“The Graduate,” Starring … Miggs Burroughs?

For the second summer in a row, the Remarkable Theater has entertained Westporters by showing classic films, on the Imperial Avenue parking lot’s giant screen.

And films don’t get more classic than “The Graduate.”

Mike Nichols’ comedy is set for 7:30 p.m. on Monday, August 30. It’s a great chance to revisit — or see for the first time — the triangle involving  the older Mrs. Robinson, her daughter Elaine, and confused recent graduate Benjamin.

The movie famously stars Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross and Dustin Hoffman.

Although, except for a twist of fate — or a casting change — the movie that launched Hoffman’s career might have done the same for Miggs Burroughs.

In 1967 — 4 years after graduating from Staples High School — he was a senior at Carnegie Mellon University.* A drama major, he spotted an announcement for auditions on a bulletin board.

Miggs mailed a t-shirt, with his image. His roommate had fortuitously silk screened it, as a test of marketing “personality t-shirts” — a great idea, but one the roommate never capitalized on.

The t-shirt, with Miggs’ mug.

Soon, Miggs was asked to audition for the role of Benjamin:

Miggs showed up at the appointed time. He took the elevator, walked to the front studio, handed over his photos, and auditioned.

Miggs went back to school. He waited. A month later, this letter arrived:

Miggs went on with his life. He graduated. He left acting behind, and became an artist.

In the 50-plus years since, he’s earned fame as a Time cover illustrator, postage stamp designer, and — in Westport — everything from his lenticular images in the downtown and train station tunnels, to Westport’s 150th-anniversary flag, and just about every non-profit logo imaginable.

Miggs is a founding member of the Westport Artists’ Collective. He is one of our town’s true treasures. He’s a great artist, and an even better guy.

Take that, Mike Nichols!

And it’s funny how life turns out, isn’t it, Dustin Hoffman?

Miggs Burroughs. wearing a t-shirt with the Westport flag he designed. (Photo/Pam Einarsen)

* In 1967, the school was called Carnegie Institute of Technology. At Miggs’ graduation, the Mellon family announced they had bought naming rights, for about $400 million.