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Lions in the park July 3, 2009

Posted by zrants in Beaux Arts.
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lions

Beaux Arts Film buffs. July 3, 2009

Posted by zrants in Beaux Arts.
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Due to a new interest in the film history of Beaux Arts we may open a new blog soon with that in mind. Stay Tuned.

Guest Page July 3, 2009

Posted by zrants in Friends, Guest Page, History.
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Thanks for all your comments and stories. I’m having trouble keeping up with them. I’ve decided to post them on the guest page for people who haven’t figured out how to do that. None of the stories are edited. I am posting them as they come in with appropriate credits. If you are just sending a story for background information and do not want me to post it here, please indicate that in the email. You wishes will be honored.

Wade’s Van Dorn’s famous “Life Kills” Tombstone May 20, 2009

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Some questions arose recently regarding Wade Van Dorn’s Tombstone. I called on the one person I knew who I thought would know the answer – Malcolm Johnson. He got back to me with the following:

Wade Van Dore’s cremains burial spot near Tom’s has a small granite marker engraved with his name and dates. I think you may be talking about the large tablet that Tom had in the garden in Pinellas Park and St. Petersburg (It had been broken in half but was patched back together again). This was a copy of the original which I have no idea of where that is. I had heard that everything in that outside storage area had been picked up and junked. There is a possibility that someone locally saved that, but I have not heard anything as to who and where.

So, now we know. There may be more than one Van Dorn tombstone. Let us know if you know of any more where they are. More on Van Dorn and his friendship with Tom: http://www.beauxartsbook.com/Writers/Wade.html

Living Legends March 31, 2009

Posted by zrants in Beaux Arts, History.
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Looking up some Yevtushenko/Ferlinghetti photos, I ran across some some references to the Beauxtisans blog. John Balcomb and The Kids . Then I came to the living legends of Chelsea Hotel, which has a lot in common with Beaux Arts. Both enjoyed a glorious past, filled with trendy musicians and artists, who took it all for granted at the time, never thinking that the hey days would pass by so quickly. It’s very hard to know when you are at your hit your peak. You could always surpass yourself tomorrow.

http://www.chelseahotelblog.com/living_with_legends_the_h/2007/09/holy-moses-john.html

Henry Paul on Talent, Songs and Luck January 2, 2009

Posted by zrants in Beaux Arts, Music.
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Outlaws 2008

Outlaws 2008

I started a conversation with Henry Paul with a little phone conversation around Labor Day 2008. Here is the interview that preceded the phone call.

Henry called me around 3 PM from the road. He lives in Nashville, but spends a lot of time touring with his two bands, the Outlaws and Blackhawk.

The Florida Years: Henry lived in Temple Terrace, went to King High. He knew he wanted to be an artist and had settled on music by the time he left high school in 1967. He had the goal, and nothing else mattered once he locked onto music.

Someone turned him onto Beaux Arts, and he performed there from 1966 to 1969. He remembers Danny Finley, Stanley Powell, a dark-haired guy with glasses who tended a dam. Eric Van Schmidt was a big star at Beaux Arts who lived in the Sarasota area.

Henry kind of started out with the Buddy Klein, Richard and Michael group, which turned into Baldwin and Leps. We talked about Dewey Gatos and I told him about the Baldwin photos I shot in Dewey’s teepee, which are posted on the Beaux Arts site.

Rick Norcross had the 18th String in North Tampa, which he promoted quite heavily through connections at the Tampa Tribune. Rick pushed himself to national prominence and was responsible for bringing the national stars into the Tampa Bay Area with his self-promotions. Rick now lives in Vermont has a band called Rolling Thunder which opens for Henry sometimes.

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Goodbye Odetta December 4, 2008

Posted by zrants in Beaux Arts, History, Music.
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Goodbye Odetta

One of the worlds’ great voices graced the halls of Beaux Arts in the early years. Unfortunately, I missed her performance on Banjo Stage at the San Francisco Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 2008 Festival. To many Odetta was the voice of the Civil Rights movement. Her songs inspired a generation of young progressives that ended segregation and stopped an unjust war. She was a fighter, who never quit. She made us proud. She will be missed.

“Another man done gone…” December 2, 2008

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George and Llyn Johnson

George and Llyn Johnson, in front of the fountain in the garden at one of Tom's folk song festivals, June 1966.

“Another man done gone…” George Meyer Johnson was born in Onawa, Iowa, on May 28, 1945. His family moved to St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1954. He graduated from Northeast High School in 1964 and from St. Petersburg Junior College in 1967, in which year he was co-recipient of SPJC’s Carolyn Parker Award for Creative Writing. He was a regular guitarist at the Beaux Arts Coffeehouse during 1964-1967 and served as its manager for a time. In Sept. 1967, he moved to Tallahassee, Florida, to attend Florida State University, where he majored in philosophy. He resided in Tallahassee thereafter.

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Densmore Comes Out November 3, 2008

Posted by zrants in Beaux Arts, Film, Politics.
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John Densmore

John Densmore

Doors Drummer John Densmore Comes Out Of The Closet!
http://henhousestudios.com/

“I went over to John’s house recently to help him make this important video about the election. Hope you enjoy it!” – Thanks, Harlan Steinberger , Director of Hen House Studios

Investing wisely. Buy Beer October 10, 2008

Posted by zrants in Art.
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New investment strategy. Buy Beer. Recycle. Make Art.