Monthly Archives

June 2011

Music

Brooklyn Bugle Sessions: The Kin

June 28, 2011

Aussie brothers Thorald and Isaac Koren along with a former subway performer/percussionist known only as Shakerleg make up the NYC based combo The Kin.

In our latest Brooklyn Bugle Session they perform their own “Downtown Train” along with a rousing cover of Bill Withers’ “Who is He and What is He to You”.

Check out our interview with them and learn more about the unique way they’ve invented to spread the word about their music. It might just surprise you!

The Kin are currently playing a residency at Rockwood Music Hall [196 Allen Street, Manhattan] every Thursday.

From the Web

Events, LGBT

Straight Guy Embraces Gay Pride Parade [Video]

June 27, 2011

What a glorious day on beautiful 5th Avenue on Sunday June 26th, 2011. If the annual Gay Pride Gala Celebration wasn’t enough to get your juices flowing, the newly passed gay marriage bill brought the festivities to a crescendo.

Individuals from all walks of life came out in large numbers to celebrate. Governor Andrew Cuomo lead the parade followed by many a New York politician. The political tide is turning rapidly on sentiment regarding gay marriage and it doesn’t take a clairvoyant to appreciate that this issue will be significant in upcoming elections especially in New York State.

The latest statistics estimate as many as 70% of individuals 18 to 34 approve of same sex marriage. Enough of the politics, please enjoy my attempt to capture the euphoria associated with this wonderful day in super New York City.

From the Web

Books

Brooklyn Bugle Book Club: City of Tranquil Light

June 27, 2011

Like her first book, Bo Caldwell’s new novel is set in China. Instead of bustling, commercial, cosmopolitan Shanghai, in City of Tranquil Light Caldwell tells the story of Will Kiehn, a Mennonite missionary in a remote provincial town. Arriving in 1906 and staying until 1933, Kiehn and his wife Katherine survive the upheavals in China, making friends with various neighbors, converts, and functionaries.

The pacifist missionary makes a surprisingly effective observer of life on the other side of the world—and Caldwell inserts passages from his late wife’s diary to illustrate a different perspective on events, when he’s not. Don’t let the missionary’s point of view put you off, this is a book describing a half-century’s worth of cross-cultural encounters worth reading regardless of your religious views.

My only reservation is the regular appearance of a bandit, Hsiao Lao. He’s there for purposes of plot, not parable, but he arrives at too many opportune moments not to appear contrived.

Have you read this book? Discuss below in the comments!

From the Web

Arts and Entertainment, Profiles

Mark Stansberry: Riding the Subway to Animation Dreams

June 24, 2011

Stansberry

Chances are, you’ve heard his pitch before.

“Good morning, everybody. My name is Mark. I’m a local filmmaker here in the city. I make animated films and cartoons about this litter girl on my t-shirt; her name is Puddin’.”

Everyday, between 6 o’clock in the morning and noon, 46-year old Mark Stansberry rides the subways selling his DVD, which features six short, hand-drawn cartoons, to the people of New York City for, as he puts it, “a small donation of only one dollar.”

He’s right: one dollar is a relatively small donation, next-to-nothing for many subway riders. For Stansberry, it has meant the opportunity to live his dream.

“I have an agent now, and that’s how I met him—on the D train,” he recalled recently over beverages at Café Pedlar on Court Street. Though he fired that agent last week, he noted, “I have somebody else who wants to represent me. I have somebody who wants to manage me. I have somebody who wants to actually market and license the character.”

Six hours a day on the trains over two years has netted Stansberry a distribution deal for Puddin’ with the digital media company The Orchard (he met the CEO on the subway); steady development meetings with NBC since November; and, he estimates, somewhere between $80-90,000 in cold, hard cash.

“When I started the trains, I wanted to make a little money for the films, support myself, buy supplies, and make more films,” he said. “But now it’s about the huge network, and the people, and the audience, and the brand that I’ve begun to build in the last few years.”

One-on-one, Stansberry, who has loved and practiced animation for as long as he can remember, is more low-key than he appears on the train. The tenor of his voice is softer, his diction less sing-songy and rehearsed. But he is no less passionate about Puddin’ today than he was back in 1994, when he created her.

“Earlier in my life I spent a lot of time in church, and got to see a lot of kids, a lot of little girls,” he said. “So I decided to design a character around one particular little girl, who used to always ask me for money and change in church.”

Puddin'

“Puddin’” was his wife’s childhood nickname, and the character, who is a ten-year old African-American girl, lives in a diverse Brooklyn community, though Stansberry never indicates exactly where. The cartoon also features her older brother Nate, her parents, and her best friend Ling, who is Chinese.

Though he was born and bred in Baltimore, Stansberry insists New York has always felt like home. He arrived here at the age of 19 and interned at a few animation studios, which, he says, “allowed me to look over other animators’ shoulders.” The rest, he says, he learned from books, and while he is respectful of technological advancements like 3-D and CGI, Stansberry prefers more traditional animation methods, and draws every single Puddin’ frame by hand.

The cartoons of the 1970s were, in his view, the height of entertainment, and he spoke wistfully about the days when parents and kids enjoyed these shows together. “Sunday nights, as a kid, the whole family would watch ‘The Wonderful World of Disney,’” Stansberry said. “That’s it. Everybody would watch the same thing.”

Talks with NBC have been difficult because they see Puddin’ as a kids’ show, whereas Stansberry thinks it has a wider demographic. “Based on the feedback I get from people,” he said. “It appeals to everybody, and everybody takes something different away from it.”

After years of weekly separation, Stansberry, his wife, and their eight children (four boys, four girls) are finally all under one roof in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Up until last spring, Stansberry commuted between New York and Baltimore, staying at hostels in the city four days a week and going home on weekends, when he’d burn more DVDs to prepare for the following week’s subway sales.

Stansberry’s time on the trains has molded him into more than just an animator. He is now also a savvy marketing entrepreneur, and a New York City celebrity of sorts, having been featured in various local newspapers and radio programs.

“I don’t have much fear,” he said, but copped to feeling nervous before making his first official pitch on the subway. “I take a lot of risks, as an artist and financially. To me, that was just another risk: to look silly or stupid to some people.”

Most people respond positively to Stansberry’s approach, and he cited the 4 and 5 lines for their particular generosity. He is mindful that his selling tactic might bother straphangers, many of whom would rather be anywhere else at the moment he barges into their lives.

“People are surprised because it’s not the typical, ‘I need help,’ thing,” he said. “I always tell my wife, I wish I could tell people, whether they panhandle or whatever they do…never apologize for being there. That’s the first mistake.”

After all, if he’s learned anything, it’s that New Yorkers are not as hard as they seem. Just don’t tell them he said so.

Check out Puddin’ at Stansberry’s You Tube Channel

From the Web

Food

The Whole Schmear – Brooklyn’s Best Bagels Open Thread

June 15, 2011

La Bagel Delight crew with Brooklyn Beep Marty Markowitz

With all the recent fuss about Montreal style bagel joints opening around the borough, we figured it was time to get back to basics and talk real Brooklyn bagels.

What makes a good bagel joint? Well, first off, a shop with a steady supply of hot ‘n’ fresh bagels shoots right to the top of any list. Then there’s the variety factor – how may toppings and spreads do they offer? For some folks, hours are important because they want their fix anytime the urge hits. But most of all, size matters. Brooklynites like ’em big.

So as you contemplate your favorite bagel spot, check out  Yelp’s Top 10 list to get things started and then comment away below!

1705 86th St
Brooklyn, NY 11214
(800) 303-3001

 

2. Terrace Bagels
224 Prospect Park W
Brooklyn, NY 11215
(718) 768-3943

3. Montague Street Bagels
108 Montague St
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 237-2512

4. Dyker Park Hot Bagels
713 86th St
Brooklyn, NY 11228
(718) 836-6336

5. Bagel Boy
8002 3rd Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11209
(718) 748-0366


6. La Bagel Delight
252 7th Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11215
(718) 768-6107 

7. La Bagel Delight
90 Court St
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 522-0520

8. The Bagel Store
754 Metropolitan Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 782-5856

9. Bergen Bagels
473 Bergen St
Brooklyn, NY 11217
(718) 789-7600

10. Court Street Bagels
181 Court St
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 624-3972

From the Web

Music

Brooklyn Bugle Sessions: Locksley

June 12, 2011


Even if you’re not an avid follower of new music and bands, you’ve heard a Locksley song. “The Whip”, performed in our Brooklyn Bugle Session, has been used on many TV shows, movie trailers and commercials thanks in part to a licensing deal with MTV.

As for the song, “It’s about cool cars and Indiana Jones,” vocalist/guitarist Jesse Laz tells us half-jokingly in our Brooklyn Bugle interview. But seriously folks he adds, “It’s about a guy who’s under his woman’s thumb. ‘Whipped’ some might call it.”

The band was formed in 2003 while most of its current members were attending high school in Madison, Wisconsin.

They went their separate ways for college but quickly realized that “college sucks” and moved to Brooklyn to pursue life as a band. Jesse’s younger brother Jordan joined them three years later fresh out of high school.

Watch our full interview with Locksley here:

Bonus Track!

The band perform Bob Marley’s “I Need You So” –

Connect with the band:

Website: http://www.locksley.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/locksleymusic

Twitter: http://twitter.com/locksleymusic

 

From the Web

Food

Open Thread: Kings of Pizza – Beyond Brooklyn’s Best

June 7, 2011

By now you’re totally up to speed on last week’s “Pizza Summit” between TV personality/real estate developer/Obama’s punchline Donald Trump and  1/2 term Alaska governor/TV personality/not a presidential candidate Sarah Palin.  After eating at a La Famiglia chain pizzeria, Palin commented that it was “real New York pizza.”

Anyone who is even remotely from New York knows that’s as far from the truth as you can get.  The statement sent pizza aficionados into a tizzy – most notably  The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart.   The comic also noted that Trump had double stacked his slices and ate with a fork — something the Trumpster defended  to pizza blog Slice as a weight loss tactic.

In Stewart’s rant he mentions several of NYC’s best pizzerias including many in Brooklyn.

We all know the obvious go-to pizza places here:

  • Grimaldi’s Pizza DUMBO (Fulton Ferry Landing District for you sticklers)
  • Di Fara Pizza Midwood
  • L&B Spumoni Gardens Bensonhurst
  • Totonno’s Pizza  Coney Island
  • Lucali’s Carroll Gardens

But aside from these “Joe DiMaggio/Mickey Mantles” of abeetz we’re pretty sure there are some unsung heroes in Brooklyn.  For us, it’s My Little Pizzeria on Court Street in Brooklyn Heights or Sal’s Pizzeria in Cobble Hill.  Neither are the coal oven Nirvana that some of Brooklyn’s superstars are but they are solid above average go-to places.

What pizzerias would you put on an “undiscovered” list?  Comment away!

From the Web

Events, LGBT

Drag Rugby and More at Brooklyn Pride This Weekend

June 7, 2011

Photo: Brooklyn Borough President's Office

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz and local LGBT community members raised the rainbow flag over Borough Hall this afternoon to kick off Pride Week. Brooklyn will host many events including a “Drag Rugby” Saturday, 5pm, at the Old Stone House (JJ Byrne Park, between 3rd and 4th Streets and 4th and 5th Avenues).

Beep Markowitz also took the opportunity of today’s ceremony to make his stand on Marriage Equality, saying, “We are engaged in a fundamental right for equal rights—the right of same-sex couples to enter in legal marriages,” said BP Markowitz. “Now I admit there was a time a few years ago when I was on the wrong side of this issue. But then it became clear to me—as it should be to everyone else—that love is love! It really is that simple.”

Here’s the official press release for Brooklyn Pride:

BROOKLYN PRIDE’S 15TH ANNUAL PRIDE CELEBRATION: “THE MANY FACES OF PRIDE” SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

 

Visit www.brooklynpride.org and www.lgbtbrooklyn.org for updates.

 

MONDAY, JUNE 6

7:00pm Interfaith Service

Union Temple of Brooklyn (17 Eastern Parkway)

A spiritual group comprised of many faiths comes together to a worship service of the LGBT community.

Speakers: Rabbi Linda Henry Goodman, Revs. Ann Kansfield & Jennifer Aull and Bishop Zachary Jones

 

THURSDAY, JUNE 9

Brooklyn Borough Hall (209 Joralemon Street)

Pride Reception (by invitation only)

LGBT art exhibit, “Lights of Color,” in the Brooklyn Borough Hall Community Room

Hosted by the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office

 

FRIDAY, JUNE 10

PRIDE Fundraising Dance at Langston’s

$10. All door proceeds go to Brooklyn Pride

10:00pm–4:00am

1073 Atlantic Avenue (between Classon and Franklin Avenues).

Sponsored and hosted by Club Langston

Co-Hosted by: GMAD (Gay Men of African Descent), Brooklyn Men (K)onnect and Shades of Lavender

 

SATURDAY, JUNE 11

Pride Day 2011

Prospect Park at Bartel-Pritchard Square

15th Street and Prospect Park West

Pride 5K Fun Run (registration begins at 8:00am)

A fun event for the LGBT community and friends in a festive, healthy and inclusive environment. A portion of the proceeds go to a local LGBT organization.

 

Multicultural Festival (11:00am–6:00pm)

It’s more than your usual street fair! Featuring stage performances, family zone, shopping and great food. Most importantly, it provides opportunities for the community to learn about community organizations, issues and business.

 

Kids Space (12:00pm–4:00pm)

Kids come join the fun at Brooklyn Pride with your own space! We will have sing a song, puppet making workshops, story time, bookmaking and much, much more!

 

Drag Rugby Game (5:00pm)

Old Stone House (JJ Byrne Park, between 3rd and 4th Streets and 4th and 5th Avenues)

Brooklyn Women’s Rugby and the Gotham Knight’s RFCs have teamed up with Brooklyn Pride to present a Drag Rugby Game at the Old Stone House. The game is free, but donations to Brooklyn Pride are always welcome. Come down for a fun time and a great sport.

 

5th Avenue Pride Happy Hour (5:00pm–7:00pm)

Brooklyn Pride and the Park Slope 5th Avenue BID are co-sponsoring the first ever 5th Avenue Pride Happy Hour. For two hours, participating bars and restaurants will offer food and drink discounts. Sit and grab a bite to eat while you wait for the parade festivities to start.

 

Night Pride Parade (7:30pm kickoff)

5th Avenue – from 14th Street to Sterling Place

Join the fun with the first “Night Time Parade in the Northeast,” a celebration of our pride and heritage

Grand Marshals: Revs. Ann Kansfield & Jennifer Aull – Greenpoint Reformed Church; Carl Siciliano, executive director, Ali Forney Center

 

 

THE BROOKLYN COMMUNITY PRIDE CENTER WILL BE SPONSORING THE FOLLOWING EVENTS:

 

MONDAY, JUNE 6

8:00pm, Brooklyn Arts Exchange (421 Fifth Avenue)

Benefit reading of “Sorry…” a new play with music by Steve Fisher inspired by the life of Tyler Clementi, the gay 18-year-old freshman at Rutgers University who jumped to his death from the George Washington Bridge after his roommate live-streamed him having an intimate encounter with another young man. Donation: $50, includes wine and cheese reception with the cast and creative team. Tickets: http://lgbtbrooklyn.givezooks.com/events/benefit-reading-of-sorry

 

7:00-11:00pm, Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture (53 Prospect Park West)

In partnership with and held at the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture, BCPC will host “Out in Brooklyn,” a teen dance with food, music and safe solidarity for queer and questioning youth. Free.

 

SATURDAY, JUNE 11

Pride Day 2011 (Prospect Park at Bartel-Pritchard Square)

 

11:00am-6:00pm, Brooklyn Community Pride Center at the Festival. Representatives and volunteers from BCPC will be available to answer your questions about the Center and its programs.

 

1:00pm-4:00pm, Family Fun & Frolic in the Park. Join other LGBT families for an array of exciting activities.

 

7:30pm-9:00pm, Pride Parade. Join representatives from the Brooklyn Community Pride Center and partnering organizations as we march down 5th Avenue!

 

9:00pm-2:00am, Brooklyn Lyceum (227 4th Avenue between President and Union Streets)

Post Parade Pride Party. DJ, cash bar, prizes and a live performance by Brooklyn Indie band Tayisha Busay. $15 in advance, $20 at the door. Tickets: http://lgbtbrooklyn.givezooks.com/events/post-parade-pride-party

 

SUNDAY, JUNE 12

11:00am, Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture (53 Prospect Park West)

“Nurturing Pride in Brooklyn.” Brooklyn Community Pride Center Executive Director Marianne Nicolosi will share the growing pains and pleasures of establishing the borough’s first LGBTQ Center.

 

THURSDAY, JUNE 23

7:00am-9:00pm, Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture (53 Prospect Park West)

“Getting the Love You Want,” an introductory couple’s workshop for the Brooklyn LGBT community sponsored by BCPC.  For additional information, contact:jzimmerman@lgbtbrooklyn.org

 

From the Web