Everyone loves watching a giant home theater screen.
But no one loves the space it takes on a wall, during the many hours no one is watching.
Three years ago, Mark Motyl looked at that wall. He saw a beautiful opportunity.
The longtime Westporter — whose 2 previous careers were trading bonds and building spec houses — embarked on a third.
His company, Vivid-Tek, creates customized furniture: credenzas, benches, dressers. They hide a large screen.
It emerges — when needed — with the push of a 6-button remote. When not in use, it retracts back into invisibility.
Three hidden big screens — and one that’s risen up, for viewing.
Vivid-Tek — later named Vanish Media System — grew quietly but substantially. Its systems can be seen (or not seen) in homes in Greenwich, Westchester, the Hamptons and Manhattan. They’re in 10 states, and Canada.
In 2021 Motyl opened a showroom in the plaza near Fortuna’s. Customers saw the system in action.
They could also book the space for private viewings. Julia Marino’s family and friends watched the snowboarder win a silver medal at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Watching Julia Marino’s silver medal snowboard performance, at the Vanish showroom.
A few months later, I enjoyed World Cup soccer matches there. With Dolby Atmos Surround Sound and a 4k projector, it was just like being in the stadiums. Except I was much closer to the action.
(Like the host country of Qatar, Motyl did not sell beer. But he provided snacks, and was plenty of fun to watch games with.)
A few months later Vanish moved closer downtown, across the street from Design Within Reach.
Vanish showroom, downtown.
Soon, Vanish’s showroom will vanish.
But the company is not going anywhere. In fact, it’s flourishing.
The website (VanishDesigns.com) does an effective job of explaining how the video systems work, and why many people are moving away from large, wall-mounted TVs.
Between the site and word of mouth, a showroom is no longer necessary.
Vanish sells a couple of systems each week. For every one, they average 2 more sales to friends of the client, after they experience it firsthand.
Motyl also sees a broader shift away from traditional basement home theaters. Many homeowners realize they can have an immersive experience in the parts of the home they love spending time in: living rooms, family rooms, great rooms with views.
A credenza conceals a powerful sound system and 110-inch 4K screen in this Manhattan apartment, under an original Calder tapestry.
“Large TVs are increasingly at odds with good interior design,” Motyl says.
“Beyond dominating wall space, they offer a viewing experience that is less immersive that what today’s ultra-short-throw projection technology can deliver — especially when that technology is hidden inside elegant, low-profile furniture.”
Motyl has also begun selling directly to AV integrators at trade pricing. That further reduces the need for a retail presence.
Vanish will continue to be based in Westport. “We are deeply grateful to the town and its residents for making our experience here so rewarding,” Motyl says.
Congratulations, Mark Motyl, on Vanish’s next move.
But I was looking forward to watching World Cup matches this summer in the Vanish showroom. The price would have been a lot lower, for sure. A seat for the final at MetLife Stadium will go for up to $8,680.
Or I can just buy a system myself.
(“06880” often covers the business and retail communities in Westport. If you enjoy stories like these, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
The 3-time Tony Award winner brings her “Don’t Monkey with Broadway” show to the Westport Country Playhouse. The special event is June 15 (8 p.m.).
It’s an appropriate concert for the 91-year-old stage. LuPone explores classic Broadway tunes by Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart, Jule Styne, Stephen Schwartz, Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, Cole Porter and Irving Berlin.
In between, she describes her life-long love affair with Broadway, and the unpredictability of the Great White Way.
Tickets are $250, $150 and $75. All audience members are invited to a post-performance party. Click here to purchase.
After an eggs-ceptional first year, Westport Moms’ 2nd annual Easter egg hunt is back. The magic is set for this Sunday (March 26), at the Long Lots Elementary School playground.
They learned a couple of lessons. They pre-stuffed eggs with toys — not candy — and will offer 2 different hunts. Ages 2-5 begin at 11:30 a.m.; kids 6 and up begin at 12:15 p.m.
Also on hand: food trucks, sweet treats, entertainment (dance party, sports games, art projects, make your own cookie, balloon twisting, face painting) — and of course the Easter Bunny.
Eggs-tra special: 40 gold eggs with gift cards to the Toy Post.
Westport Moms know that Easter is not until April 9. But with spring sports and the upcoming school break, they’re getting a (bunny-hop) jump on things.
The cost is $20 per family. Click here for tickets.
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Westport Police report 7 custodial arrests between March 15-22
Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, illegal carry of a firearm while under the influence, operating a motor vehicle without a license, operating an unregistered motor vehicle, misuse of registration marker plate, insufficient motor vehicle insurance (following a traffic stop on Post Road East for registration credentials that did not match the vehicle
Forgery (creating and selling fraudulent Texas license plates and paperwork)
Larceny and conspiracy to commit larceny (after shoplifting from Ulta Beauty in February, of merchandise with a GPS tracking device)
Disorderly conduct (2 people, both for domestic violence incidents)
Violation of parole, 2 counts (following a traffic stop)
Failure to appear (after a traffic stop).
The police reporting system still does not include citations.
The only legitimate Texas license plates are those issued by the Lone Star State.
The Westport Library is hosting “United Against Hate: Identifying, Reporting and Preventing Hate Crimes.” The interactive learning program focuses on the difference between a hate incident and a hate crime. Participants will learn who to contact when an incident occurs, and why reporting is important.
The event is set for next Tuesday (March 28; 6 p.m. reception, 6:30 program). Registration is required; click here.
“United Against Hate” is held in collaboration with the US Attorney’s Office, Westport PRIDE, Westport and Norwalk chiefs of police, and the Connecticut State Police’s Hate Crimes Unit.
Four years after being halted due to permit violations, construction has begun again at 233 Hillspoint Road.
Scaffolding surrounds the chimney, at the site of what was once Positano restaurant. Since 2019, it’s been a blue-swaddled eyesore near Old Mill Beach.
As the Staples High School boys basketball team continues to bask in the glow of the Wreckers’ best season since 1937 — they reached the finals of both the state and FCIAC tournaments — former player Chuck Haberstroh sends along a reminder that the crew was destined for stardom from a young age.
Seven years ago, 6 members of this year’s squad were part of the undefeated Westport PAL Blue team. They were champions of both the Fairfield County Basketball League regular season, and postseason tourney.
The 2016 Westport PAL basketball team (top row, from left): Coach Drew Carothers, Henry Levin. Jack Watkins, Will Holleman, Cameron Lyons, Chris Zajac, Gavin Rothenberg. Bottom: Noah Ambrifi. Cody Sale, Gavin Murphy, Charlie Honig. Ty Levine. Holleman, Zajac, Rothenberg, Sale, Honig and Levine went on to play for Staples.
The Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport hosts 2 great activities this weekend.
Hone your Jeopardy skills at Trivia Night tomorrow (Friday, March 24, 7:30 p.m.). Everyone is welcome (adult-supervised childcare available).
The annual Spring Choral Concert presents “Sondheim” at the church’s Sunday service (March 26, 10 a.m.). The choir will sing several works, offering attendees a look at their own lives and relationships. Chris Beaurline, Mike Costantino and Marcella Calabi are guest singers. The public is invited.
Stephen Sondheim will be at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation on Sunday — well, his songs will be, anyway.
Y’s Men of Westport and Weston and guests enjoyed a tour of the Housatonic Art Museum this week.
There were a couple of local connections, on the Housatonic Community College campus. The museum’s Burt Chernow Galleries are named for the longtime artist, teacher and founding member of the Westport Arts Center. Chernow also played a key role in establishing the Housatonic collection of modern art.
And included in the permanent collection: 2 pieces by Westport artist, Staples High School graduate and Artists Collective of Westport co-founder Miggs Burroughs.
Y’s Men member and event organizer Jay Dirnberger welcomes the group at the Housatonic Art Museum. (Photo and hat tip/Dave Matlow)
MoCA Westport invites anyone interested in learning more about art collecting to a discussion that demystifies buying and collecting.
Panelists include Takako Nagasawa (Phillips Auction House), Diana Mashia (Founder and CEO, Invest In Her Art) and Elizabeth Gorayeb (executive Director, Wildenstein Plattner Institute).
The event is March 30 (6 to 7 p.m.). Participants can explore MoCA’s current exhibition, and buy drinks or cocktails. It’s free for members, $10 for non-members.
College students are invited to apply for a very cool local internship.
Vanish Media Systems — the Post Road showroom for huge TV screens, which innovatively disappear into custom-built cabinets and other furniture — is looking for 2 talented and energetic interns.
Skills needed are product design and engineering, digital marketing and social media, creativity, website design, e-commerce and easy relationships with people.
To apply, send a resume, plus 5 sentences explaining Vanish Media Systems products, and how you’d market them, to hello@vanishmediasystems.com. To learn more about Mark Motyl’s Westport-based company, click here.
A room with water views on Beachside Avenue becomes a screening center, with a Vanish Media system.
La Plage — the popular Longshore restaurant — offers a special 3-course prix fixe Easter menu on Sunday, April 9 (noon to 7 p.m.). Click here to see how chef Frederic Kieffer showcases the flavors of spring.
The cost is $85 per person; $45 for children under 12. For reservations, click here for reservations, email laplagewestport.com, or call 203-684-6232.
PS: For information on a variety of Westport restaurants, click on our “Restaurants” at the top of the page (or click here).
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Green’s Farms Church will livestream this Sunday’s 4 p.m. Duruflé Requiem Memorial Concert, honoring the life of longtime organist Rick Tripodi.
Click here to see. The concert will also be recorded, and available at that link.
And finally … Bobbi Kelly Ercoline — the 20-year-old woman whose photo, wrapped in a blanket with her boyfriend of 2 months (and then, for 54 years, her husband) became a symbol of Woodstock when it became the cover for the album that was the movie soundtrack of the same name — died Sunday.
She was 73 years old. (Click here for a full obituary. Hat tip: Matt Murray)
Bobbi and Nick Ercoline, well more than 10 Years After Woodstock.
(From Westport to Woodstock, “06880” has got you covered. Please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
Last week, “06880” reported on the hard luck suffered by the cast of Staples Players’ “Guys and Dolls.” Henry Carson (Nathan Detroit) fell ill just before the show opened. Freshman Will McCrae stepped spectacularly into the breach.
The next day, understudies Graham Griffin (also a 9th grader) and junior Finley Chevrier took the stage, in other roles.
In the week between opening and closing, nearly 2 dozen of the cast and tech crew got sick. By the final performance, all but one had recovered. The show went on — fabulously.
But without its regular pit orchestra conductor.
Staples music teacher Carrie Mascaro is in the hospital with pneumonia. Her colleague Luke Rosenberg — the school’s choral director — stepped up big time. He learned the score, then led 14 musicians in a flawless performance.
The show must go on. And it did.
But it’s a good bet (ho ho) that directors David Roth and Kerry Long will tell the improbable “Guys & Dolls” story to future Players for many years to come.
Conductor Luke Rosenberg in the pit last night. (Photo/Dan Woog)
If you can’t be in Qatar for the opening match — the hosts vs. Ecuador, 11 a.m. EST — you can do the next best thing.
Head to Vanish Media System‘s showroom, in the strip mall near Fortuna’s and Greens Farms Spirit Shop.
Mark Motyl’s company builds state-of-the-art home theaters that disappear into customized credenzas or benches.
He’s got several in the showroom. With Dolby Atmos Surround Sound and a 4k projector, it’s just like being in the stadium. Except at Vanish Media, you’re much closer to the action.
Like Qatar, Mark does not sell beer. But he provides snacks, and is plenty of fun to watch a game with.
There’s an open invitation for today’s 11 a.m. match. If you’d like to arrange a private viewing party for an upcoming game of interest, call or text Mark: 203-246-2011.
In February, Julia Marino’s family and friends gathered in the Vanish Media showroom to watch her silver-winning snowboard performance at the Beijing Olympics. Today, the action switches to soccer’s World Cup in Qatar.
Over 80 Westport-Weston Y’s Men visited Bridgeport Boatworks Friday morning.
The highly specialized business provides a wide range of maintenance and storage services for boat clients around the world, including New York ferries and super yachts. Its 2 lifts can haul up to 200 tons.
Y’s Men at Bridgeport Boatworks. (Hat tip and photo/Dave Matlow)
Longtime Westport resident Mary Kinser died peacefully in her sleep on Friday, at home. She was 92. Her family calls her “a tiny package with a huge impact.”
Born in Kentucky and raised in West Virginia, she attended business school and worked as a bookkeeper. She married Bill at 20, and a year later their daughter Mary Jo was born.
The family traveled all across the US and Europe. In 1966 they moved to Toledo, then 14 years later to Geneva, Switzerland for Bill’s work. Mary loved to ski and hike in the Alps.
After her husband died in 1982 she moved to Westport, where her daughter lived. She knew no one here, but began working as a receptionist at the Westport YMCA, a real estate assistant and a babysitter.
She loved Compo Beach: walking, combing for shells and enjoying sunsets. She also found joy and excitement in New York City’s arts and culture scene.
Mary served the United Methodist Church of Westport and Weston for over 40 years. She taught Sunday school, prepared communion, babysat in the nursery and visited sick parishioners.
She also volunteered at the Gillespie Center and food bank, delivered meals to shut-ins, and raised money for the less fortunate.
Mary was preceded by her sisters Mabel Rumbaugh and Mearilyn Auvil. She is survived by her daughter Mary Jo (Greg Hawkins) Kinser; brother John Hackworth, and many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews, and step-granfchildren.
Funeral services will be held in West Virginia on Saturday (November 26, noon). Click here for the livestream, or to view later. A memorial service is set for March 11 at United Methodist Church of Westport.
Last week, “06880” reported on the hard luck suffered by the cast of Staples Players’ “Guys and Dolls.” Henry Carson (Nathan Detroit) fell ill just before the show opened. Freshman Will McCrae stepped spectacularly into the breach.
The next day, understudies Graham Griffin (also a 9th grader) and junior Finley Chevrier took the stage, in other roles.
In the week between opening and closing, nearly 2 dozen of the cast and tech crew got sick. By the final performance, all but one had recovered. The show went on — fabulously.
But without its regular pit orchestra conductor.
Staples music teacher Carrie Mascaro is in the hospital with pneumonia. Her colleague Luke Rosenberg — the school’s choral director — stepped up big time. He learned the score, then led 14 musicians in a flawless performance.
The show must go on. And it did.
But it’s a good bet (ho ho) that directors David Roth and Kerry Long will tell the improbable “Guys & Dolls” story to future Players for many years to come.
Conductor Luke Rosenberg in the pit last night. (Photo/Dan Woog)
If you can’t be in Qatar for the opening match — the hosts vs. Ecuador, 11 a.m. EST — you can do the next best thing.
Head to Vanish Media System‘s showroom, in the strip mall near Fortuna’s and Greens Farms Spirit Shop.
Mark Motyl’s company builds state-of-the-art home theaters that disappear into customized credenzas or benches.
He’s got several in the showroom. With Dolby Atmos Surround Sound and a 4k projector, it’s just like being in the stadium. Except at Vanish Media, you’re much closer to the action.
Like Qatar, Mark does not sell beer. But he provides snacks, and is plenty of fun to watch a game with.
There’s an open invitation for today’s 11 a.m. match. If you’d like to arrange a private viewing party for an upcoming game of interest, call or text Mark: 203-246-2011.
In February, Julia Marino’s family and friends gathered in the Vanish Media showroom to watch her silver-winning snowboard performance at the Beijing Olympics. Today, the action switches to soccer’s World Cup in Qatar.
Over 80 Westport-Weston Y’s Men visited Bridgeport Boatworks Friday morning.
The highly specialized business provides a wide range of maintenance and storage services for boat clients around the world, including New York ferries and super yachts. Its 2 lifts can haul up to 200 tons.
Y’s Men at Bridgeport Boatworks. (Hat tip and photo/Dave Matlow)
Longtime Westport resident Mary Kinser died peacefully in her sleep on Friday, at home. She was 92. Her family calls her “a tiny package with a huge impact.”
Born in Kentucky and raised in West Virginia, she attended business school and worked as a bookkeeper. She married Bill at 20, and a year later their daughter Mary Jo was born.
The family traveled all across the US and Europe. In 1966 they moved to Toledo, then 14 years later to Geneva, Switzerland for Bill’s work. Mary loved to ski and hike in the Alps.
After her husband died in 1982 she moved to Westport, where her daughter lived. She knew no one here, but began working as a receptionist at the Westport YMCA, a real estate assistant and a babysitter.
She loved Compo Beach: walking, combing for shells and enjoying sunsets. She also found joy and excitement in New York City’s arts and culture scene.
Mary served the United Methodist Church of Westport and Weston for over 40 years. She taught Sunday school, prepared communion, babysat in the nursery and visited sick parishioners.
She also volunteered at the Gillespie Center and food bank, delivered meals to shut-ins, and raised money for the less fortunate.
Mary was preceded by her sisters Mabel Rumbaugh and Mearilyn Auvil. She is survived by her daughter Mary Jo (Greg Hawkins) Kinser; brother John Hackworth, and many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews, and step-granfchildren.
Funeral services will be held in West Virginia on Saturday (November 26, noon). Click here for the livestream, or to view later. A memorial service is set for March 11 at United Methodist Church of Westport.
As Breast Cancer Awareness Month draws to a close, “06880” shines a light on one of our lesser known — but crucially important — local organizations.
The Breast Cancer Emergency Aid Foundation is a grassroots, volunteer-driven non profit. It was founded in 2006 by 2 breast cancer patients, one of whom lost her battle.
They wanted to make a difference for other people undergoing treatment — especially those less fortunate — by focusing on patients.
While they were glad that much funding goes to research, education and finding a cure, too little money is available for the day-to-day, non-medical, financial issues breast cancer patients experience as they go through treatment.
BCEAF provides grants of up to $500 a year for non-medical expenses, like rent, utilities, transportation, prostheses, specialty bras and babysitting.
Insurmountable bills pile up — in addition to the sickness, anxiety, depression and pain associated with treatment and surgery.
Some patients are unable to work during treatment. Others lack medical insurance. Unmanageable finances can be a barrier to beginning or continuing treatment.
Financial support for non-medical needs alleviates some of the crippling financial burden, and enables patients to continue with treatment.
Since 2007, BCEAF has provided over $950,000 in aid to 2,184 patients — thank in part to the generous support of Pink Aid, over the past 10 years.
BCEAF raises funds without a big fundraiser. For more information and to help, click here.
The other day, “06880” highlighted Staples High School graduate/former teacher/current resident Amanda Parrish Morgan’s new book. “Stroller” is — as its title suggests — a cultural, historical and memoir-infused look at an everyday object that has become suffused with symbolic importance, on way too many levels.
Great minds think alike.
The New Yorker magazine’s Peter Baker has just weighed in on “Stroller.” He likes it — and he adds his own thoughts on the subject.
Click here for the full story. (Hat tip: Wynne Bohonnon)
Amanda Parrish Morgan, her kids and a stroller in Grand Central Terminal.
Vanish Media Systems — Mark Motyl’s Westport company that designs and builds large-screen TVs that disappear when not in use — hosts viewing parties for movies, and big events like Julia Marino’s Olympic snowboard competition.
This past Sunday morning, it hosted a live event from Africa.
The live celebration of Ugandan culture — dance, music, conversation, food, humor, you name it — was done via a video link with the Tender Talents Magnet School there. Every moment — and all its colors, energy, joy and sound — was broadcast on Vanish Media’s impressively clear 10-foot, 4k-quality screen.
The Uganda event, on Vanish Media System’s 110-inch TV..
Attendees also had a chance to speak with students, and the founder of Tender Talents. Speaking in their second or third language, they took part in a moving Q-and-A session that touched on issues of race, culture, and the divisions and commonalities between people.
The event was organized by Creative Connections, a Norwalk cultural education organization celebrating its 30th year fostering communication between students around the world.
You won’t yawn through this one: On Friday (October 28, noon to 1 p.m.), Positive Directions offers a free webinar on “Sleep Routines and the Impact of Technology.”
Representatives from the Yale University Mood Disorder Research Program discuss the pros and cons of technology, and offer advice on how to help youngsters streamline their routines.
Zoom launched in 2012. But it took another 8 years — and a global pandemic — for most people to understand that you don’t need to be in the same room (or even on the same continent) to attend a meeting.
It did not take that long for Mark Motyl’s idea to take off. But it was no instant success either.
Mark Motyl
The longtime Westporter had 2 previous careers — he traded bonds and built spec houses — before starting Vivid-Tek. The company builds customized furniture — credenzas, benches, dressers — that hides the components of a large home theater screen. It emerges when needed with the push of a 6-button Apple remote; when not in use, it retracts back into invisibility.
It was a brilliant, elegant solution to the problem of an enormous black rectangle that would otherwise dominate a living room or bedroom wall.
“We help architects and interior designers deliver on the nice spaces they promise to clients,” Motyl says. “You can hide this TV right underneath really nice artwork, or a big window.”
A credenza opens up into a wide-screen TV.
But in the first year after opening a Post Road showroom in the Greens Farms Spirit Shop/Fortuna’s plaza, sales were slow.
Motyl thought he had” reinvented entertainment.” Instead: crickets.
Now though, he sells a unit a week. Two Bridgeport cabinet workshops are humming. He’s ready to put Westport on the entrepreneurial map.
Part \of the reason is enhanced marketing. But word of mouth is important too. It just took a while for that word to spread.
In February, Julia Marino’s family and friends gathered in the showroom to watch her silver-winning snowboard performance at the Beijing Olympics.
The word is out now about Vanish Media Systems. Motyl changed the name (suggested by a Staples High School intern) when he realized “Vivid-Tek” was hard to explain. The hyphen and odd spelling of “tech” did not help.
Word of mouth means that Vanish units are located in clusters. There’s one in Manhattan; others in areas like Hilton Head, South Carolina and Center Harbor, New Hampshire. Systems are already installed in 8 states.
One cluster is right here, in Motyl and Vanish Systems’ hometown. An installation in a Beachside Avenue room redesigned by Roger Ferris + Partners, transforms the space from one with water views to a high-quality screening room — then back again.
A room with water views on Beachside Avenue becomes a screening center.
There’s more ahead. Motyl also worked with architect Ronni Molinari and technologist Gioel Molinari to create a walnut system on casters, with a 110-inch screen, for Autostrada, the couple’s very cool event space next to Fire Department headquarters,
Motyl is collaborating too with Staples High to develop a mobile unit. In the future: a fleet of installation vans, for the tri-state area.
One area of Vanish Media Systems has not yet taken off: the showroom.
“Very few people stop in,” Motyl acknowledges. But with comfortable seats and plenty of snacks, it’s a welcoming space — and available for private events, like inviting friends for a movie, or watching the World Cup.
“There’s zero sales pressure” when anyone comes, Motyl says. Call ahead, though: 203-246-2011.
Sam Seideman (2nd from left) invited a group to watch his appearance with Gordon Ramsay, in the Vanish Media showroom. The unit vanishes into the seat below.
“I’m not an industry professional,” Motyl notes. “But innovation often comes from outsiders.”
And although he’s not an industry professional, he plays one — very successfully — on TV.
(“06880” is your hyper-local blog, filled with stories about Westporters doing interesting and innovative things. Please click here to support our work.)
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