A: Is for Children and Art!

A fund raiser dear to my heart was held tonight at Phillips de Pury for The Children's Museum of Art located at 182 Layfette. A live auction hosted by supermodel Iman wife of David Bowie mother of Alexandria was wonderfully auctioned by Aileen Agopian. Tonight was one of the reasons New York is so amazing. Andy Warhol's photo of Yves Saint Laurent went for $25,000 and Jordan Eagles "New Blood" went for a record $30,000, but it was all for a great cause. Bruce Weber, David Salle (who has created a piece specifically for this event!) and Yoko Ono were also represented. It was a pleasure to talk to Roberto Camacho from Buchbinder and Warren who lost by a mere 5,000 the Warhol piece. His generosity of spirit showed that people still care in giving.

The Children's Museum of the Arts provides stimulating, interactive exhibitions and programs for children under ten years old, encouraging them to develop their full creative potential through the visual and performing arts. The CMA is like an art studio for kids. The exhibits are actually workspaces where children can experiment with creating their own art and there are plenty of materials for sculpting and making collages. Everything in the museum is cut to half size, so adults might feel like they have entered Gulliver's Travels and the land of the lilliputians. There are several areas and each offers a unique way to encourage and help your child grow in artistic expression The creative play area designed for children five and under, and includes the Art House for slide viewing, the WEE (Wondrous, Experimenting and Exploring) Art Station, and other interactive exhibits. The Artist’s Studio is designed for children over five, and is reminiscent of a working artist’s studio. Children find daily art projects that encourage problem solving and exploration of a variety of artistic materials. The Artist’s Studio also welcomes artists from the community to work side-by-side with children. The Actor’s Studio offers costumes, musical instruments and story starters to encourage character development and expression of ideas through acting. The Ball Pond is designed as a kinesthetic experience for all children to allow movement and motor skill play. It is a cushioned area filled with large, brightly colored physioballs. The surrounding environment evokes the feeling of being surrounded by water through the color, light and texture of materials used. Often used as a warm-up activity, the Ball Pond allows children to get comfortable in the Museum. Magnetic Masterpieces are reproductions of famous artworks, cut into magnetic puzzle pieces, and displayed for children to arrange. These large-format puzzles focus on the three themes of portraiture, landscape, and abstraction, and showcase artists of diverse age, gender, and race. Information about the artist and the era in which he/she lived is available, and this activity has proven to be a successful method for parents and children to talk about art. Is your child the next Stephen Spielberg? The CMA media lab has been featured in the Tribecca Film Festival. If you are looking for a great place to spend your child's birthday there is no better place than here. Looking for a Halloween treat that doesn't cause cavities? Sunday, October 26th a day of spooky surprises, Halloween projects for all ages, and a Costume Fashion Show! The Annual Trick or Treat Parade is available upon admission and will begin at 3pm sharp. Everything is included with the price of admission. CMA members are invited to a Halloween Kick-off party from 10am - 12pm, featuring a Sugar Skull Workshop with Chef Rene Ortiz. For more information visit www.cmany.org

Art is the purest form of human expression and that is an encouraging F.A.C.T.

F: Is for Food thats lasted a Century!

What could be better than a restaurant celebrating it's 100th Year anniversary and offering a day of 1908 Prices. On Thursday, October 23rd John’s of 12th Street, located at 302 East 12th Street (between 1st and 2nd Avenues) will roll back their prices on their menu to the year the hallowed establishment opened its doors. From 11AM – 4 PM patrons can dine on signature dishes (including Manicotti, Sausage & Peppers and Veal Parmigiana) all priced under a dollar. Born and bred New Yorkers, owners Mike Alpert and Nick Sitnycky conceived of the event as a way to celebrate the restaurant’s century milestone with their patrons, the neighborhood, and all of New York City. Patrons though the years include an eclectic range of bold face names including Jackie Kennedy, john and Caroline, Ben Stiller (who dines with his parents), Pete Townsend (lore has it he sketched the idea for Tommy on a napkin), Christian Slater (who had his 9th birthday party in the restaurant’s back room), Tom Cruise who waited for an hour for a table, and Kelly Ripa (her first date with now husband Mark Conseulo was at John’s). John Pucciatti The original owner,came to New York City from Bevagna (a small hamlet in Umbria, Italy) with his wife, and a slew of recipes.



Keeping with tradition the menu is largely the same today as it was at the turn of the century, with occasional additions or substitutions. At that time the area was heavily populated with Italian immigrants. “This was the Lower East Side before it was the East Village. It pre-dates the emergence of Little Italy.” During prohibition they kept a “hootch” still in the backyard behind the kitchen and made wine in the basement. John opened a speakeasy upstairs and patrons would enter through the restaurant, serving the brews in espresso cups in case of a raid. To celebrate the end of prohibition, John put candles on each of the tables in the restaurant and started the wax candelabra which is still in use and being added to nightly in the back room. Its now grand formation started in 1938 and is trimmed when it reaches the ceiling. Eventually the resturaunt sold the establishment to Nick and Mike in 1973 and they have run it together ever since, 36 years and counting.

Word of warning John’s does not accept credit cards, so make sure you have cash in hand. For additional information visit www.johnsof12thstreet.com. This is the perfect recession relief and that is a blessed F.A.C.T.

S: Is for Succulent Pampering!

Spa week is coming to a closes so of course I had to indulge. Recently it seems that Dashing Diva stores are popping up all over the place so my curiosity was peeked. Plush and designed for comfort, Dashing Diva calls for the girl in all of us to indulge. I settled on the Fall special the "Autumn Harvest Enzymatic pedicure. Comfortably seated like a queen I was offered coffee brown rice green tea or water with lemon. I opted for the tea which was soothing. The tub was filled with jelly, rose petals and lavender. When your submerge your tootsies, like a day at the beach. The you are lavishly worked on as you toes are shaped and callouses soaked off. I am a big razor fan as I develop lots of calluses, so I was a little apprehensive when I was told they don't use them, but I was here to enjoy. As my legs and feet were scrubbed with an Autumn Berry Buff I felt the tension of the day melt away and I started to really relax. Next a pumpkin mask that smelled heavenly. After the mask my feet and hands were enveloped in baggies full of warm wax. Word of warning do not get this wax on your clothes as it will stain them. When the wax molds cool, your skin feels renewed and you are lightly massaged in a orange spice lotion. Then painted. Dashing Diva has their own brand of nail polishes, over 150 but my one complaint to Dashing Diva is get another brand. This brand smears and peels within days if not hours. Diva offers a variety of “diva” manicures and pedicures, facials, waxings and mini massages. The nail spa even offers a signature service, virtual nails, that is a fun way to have nails for an event and still go back to playing the piano. No filing, no damage and better yet done in record time. Like all good Diva this one offers some great ways to become addicted. On a Thursday and Friday evening “Girls Night Out”, offers Cosmo’s to help you unwind. On Saturday mornings helping with those hang over blues, a light contenential breakfast before noon. For the diva's in training (8 and under) their are services for you too. Wondering where to throw your next birthday here is a hint ;). The best thing about Dashing Diva is their commitment to cleanliness. On your first visit you must purchase your own nail file, buffer and cuticle pusher and every piece of equipment is sterilized to make sure you are kept safe. It has now been 3 days since I had my treatment and my legs are smoother and younger looking, my feet have yet to have developed another callus (I do believe in miracles) and I now know what a Diva feels like.

And for those diva's who love shopping Shecky's national shopping party/event's last day is today. So hurry on down to the Puck building. Jewelry, purses, clothing, accessory, etc. designers are available at a discounted rates. For $10 you also get Chambord, Finlandia, Bacardi, Heinken, Bud and my personal favorite Borba skin balancing water with no calories and great
taste. For $30 you also get a gift bag with over $100 worth of product. Next week features some of the great products I discovered.

T: Is for Ticking Down the Election!

The 2008 presidential debates are over now. McCain did not score the knockout blows that many Republicans had hoped. Instead he acted like a smirking attack dog. I keep expecting him to turn into Charlie Brown who has just lost the football.....again, because though he contains himself physically in his persona I see this angry boy jumping up and down for not getting his way. Obama, surprises me with his cool demeanor, because I seriously would find it hard containing myself sitting next to McCain. As McCain, mocked Obama and interrupted him to try and correct the record. Obama largely ignored these verbal (and nonverbal) jabs. Tonight, McCain couldn't seem to decide which line of attack he wanted to focus on. He did break the Ayers seal but also threw in ACORN, negotiating with rogue leaders, taxes, and a lack of international experience among other issues. Though the Ayers association is in the past, ACORN is in the present and does need to be addressed. Why couldn't McCain stick to the F.A.C.T.S. he maybe would of had my intrests. As I have stated in previous columns, I don't really like either one, however I do like Bidden and Palin SCARES me and that enough has gotten me to register to vote. It completely annoys me when she claims to know mine or anyone else's opinions and tries to link mine to hers. I oppose almost everything she stands for. Despite our many differences of opinion, I'm sure there is one thing that Sarah Palin and I could agree on: a domestic terrorist (i.e. one who encourages violence against the government or the citizens of the U.S.) should not be given a national audience on mainstream, public airwaves. Sarah Palin a domestic terrorist? What??? Well, maybe Palin herself isn't one, but she does "pal around" with them and insights them. Dozens, perhaps hundreds, of them. You see, when Sarah Palin started suggesting that Barack Obama is a domestic terrorist because he served on two of the same nonprofits boards as Bill Ayers, a professor at the University of Illinois and former 60's radical, the crowd began to shout things like "terrorist" and "kill him" in regards to Obama. Palin and her staff did nothing to discourage the crowd. Instead, Palin gave one of her trademark folksy "Aww shucks... you guys!" expressions. In recent days John McCain has tried to distance himself from the shouts of hate coming from the crowd, but only because he was slammed in the press over it. When he called Obama a "decent person", his own supporters began to boo him. Did McCain really expect that he could put the lid back on the Pandora's box of bigotry and hatred he and Palin opened? Sarah Palin continues unabated. In fact, it has been reported that McCain and Palin have even argued over the issue. McCain, perhaps, wants to go out with what little honor he has left (which, in my opinion, is none). Palin on the other hand is drunk on enthusiasm and political greed. The angry mob she whips up at her rallies seems to enforce in her the idea that she is somehow the savior of her party. By applying Palin's flawless logic, because she associates with these people, even in a very indirect way, she must be a domestic terrorist herself. Therefore we must act according to the wisdom she has passed down and demand that 1) she explain her association to these people and 2) call or e-mail SNL in order to deny her a national audience where she can spread her terrorist ideas. McCain has little time left. He has been been cheated in other elections. Troubled and distracted, he has forgotten his strong words about honor.



I leave you with a John Cleese video. Sometimes out of great comedians come the truth and that is a sobering F.A.C.T.

C: Is for Curtis...Tony Curtis!

There was a time we lived across the street from Jamie Leigh Curtis. My sister Kim was a dead ringer for her and the two of them became close. When you grow up in Hollywood you know the dirt. So as the confessions spew out and are unearthed in the tell all books you simple shrug your shoulders as if to say, oh here goes another one. They are glimpses into an era gone by and for those who love trashy novels they are a quick read. The stuff to talk about at the water cooler and make you feel just a little bit better about your life. American Prince (Harmony, $25.95), is the newest to come out. Tony Curtis's memoir is of the Golden Boy in a Golden Age. A prince of the silver screen whose dashing looks and smooth charm earned him fame and women. Elvis was so enamored he copied his look and the Beatles honored him on their Sgt. Pepper album cover. American Prince chronicles Hollywood during its heyday. Curtis revisits his unforgettable classics such as Houdini, Spartacus, and Some Like It Hot—and regales us with stories of his associations with Frank Sinatra, Laurence Olivier, director Billy Wilder, and film industry heavyweight Lew Wasserman. Curtis offers intimate glimpses into his succession of failed marriages, his destructive drug addiction, and his passion as a painter. Curtis now 83 spends a lot of time with his painter's brush touching up copies of a photo. Like the picture of Dorian Gray he has done so many times. "I embellish them. I keep making more of them," "I want to find another quality about me that's in there somewhere." Maybe that is why he revisits his poverty-stricken upbringing in the home of a physically abusive mother who was later diagnosed with schizophrenia, a mental illness which also affected his brother Robert and led to his being institutionalized. When Curtis was eight, he and his younger brother Julius were placed in an orphanage for a month because their parents could not afford to feed them. Four years later, his brother Julius was struck and killed by a truck. 12 year old Curtis had to identify the body. His addiction to sex resulted in the destruction of five marriages and estrangements from his children, with the untimely death of his youngest son at 23. His first (and most famous) wife was the actress Janet Leigh. Curtis, admits to cheating on her throughout their marriage and left Leigh in 1962 for a 17-year-old German co-star of his latest film, Taras Bulba. He has been married to his sixth wife, Jill, since 1998. With only bit roles in films and TV shows offered, he spends much of his time painting in his studio. The veteran of more than 120 films, Tony Curtis is an accomplished painter and has his work in the permanent collection of the MoMA. Curtis spares few intimate details about his years as a Hollywood lothario, including his teenage affair with a redheaded, ponytailed Marilyn Monroe and his sexual dalliances with Yvonne DeCarlo, Natalie Wood and more than a few Playboy Bunnies. Curtis says he may have been addicted to sex.

Out next Marcia, Marica, Marcia ....you did what? Glimpses into other peoples lives make us value their own and that is a F.A.C.T.

A: Is for Art that keeps us Thinking!

As I left Primary Stages production of 'Body of Water', I was torn between laughing hysterically or crying uncontrollably. There is no way to leave this play unaffected. Lee Blessing's play gets underneath the surface of where we live and challenges us to examine our psyches. Like Edward Albee's 'The Goat or Who is Sylvia,' you will want to communicate. It will feel as if you don't express what Blessings words have uncorked you will crumble.








How much do our words, our buried thoughts or unexpressed actions effect us and more importantly those around us. What is real and even when we say good-by do we escape our own inner turmoil? Written like a mystery, it is a 90 minute roller-coaster ride into what is reality. It is easy to see why 'Body of Water' won the prestigious Steinberg/American Theatre Critics Association New Play Award. Lee Blessing’s words cut to the heart of the matter and unsettle us with humor. Moss and Avis, are the mouthpieces trapped inside themselves. Waking up together, naked day after day, having no idea who they are, or even where they are. They are forced to relive each day as if it’s their first. Enter Wren, who may be their daughter or is she their defender and in the same breath their accuser. Neil Patel's set offers us a glimpse of the beauty that hides what is behind the horror. Three Monet esq paintings create the psychical body of water that releases and entraps. Bart Fasbender music creates a solace that turns maddening. Christine Lahti's best known for her role in Chicago Hope, is riveting as Avis whose distraught calmness is a wound that never heals. Michael Cristofer, known for his words in the Pultizer and Tony Award winning play The Shadow Box unearths Moss's vulnerability ina way that is heartbreaking. Here is a man afraid to be alone, afraid to express and willing to except his guilt. Laura Odeh brings to Wren a mixture of warmth, cruelty and a frailty as she copes with the burden that has been placed upon her. It is through her we question our existence. Maria Mileaf's direction leaves us plenty of clues to get to the crux of the matter and discover what has been there all along.

A Body of Water opens October 14th and plays until November 16th at 2:00 p.m. Tickets run $60 with specially priced tickets available for $20 to patrons 35 and under. Primary Stages is located at 59 E 59. www.primarystages.org

There are times, plays touches us and leave us exploring our own vulnerability and those around us. They ask us to question and help us connect both to ourselves and others. This is that play and I for one am grateful to it and that is a F.A.C.T.

F: Is for Earth Friendly Fashion!

Eco-friendly fabrics are showing up in more and more designer collections and stores. Frei, the ecofriendly line from designer Annie Novotny uses hemp and bamboo woven into wool, vegetable-based dyes, and recycled materials. Even her garment tags are made with old office paper. Frei Designs offers elaborate constructions, with layering, color and fabric choices that seem both original and individualistic. Frei seamlessly combines skilled artistry with a social conscious creating a product that is both fashionably-forward and eco-friendly.
Designer Anne Novotny believes that style begins with a well-defined concept with each collection. Her Spring 2009 collection is inspired by Angulimala, an important early figure in Buddhism, whose story is known as the "garland of fingers.” The story teaches followers that it’s never too late to return to the right path, a theme that directly relates to the sustainable fashion movement. Anne also uses over-stock from other designers, which is a unique way to re-use what other designers disregard. The Collection’s color palette is made up of vibrant oranges that emulate monks’ robes, a charcoal, cool gray that is obtained from a Brazilian bark, and hints of robin’s egg blue and cream. Together these create a peaceful and graceful feeling, much like that of the Buddhist thought. The Zen-like garments immediately invoke feelings of calamity and relaxation, giving the wearer a fashionable sense of style all while offering the peaceful notion that she is supporting sustainable fashion where the overall effect can be monumental to the future of the earth. Fabrics are purchased from farms and mills associated with ecologically sensitive practices, and dyes used are non-toxic. Boasting an exceptional sense of wear-ability, excellent craftsmanship, and an artisan attention to detail, the garments cater to an underserved market for sustainable clothing that retains a signature sense of style.Through the production of ecologically conscious, artfully designed, high-end fashionable garments, Frei aims to make style and fashionable innovation synonymous with green ethics.


Tell me this is not the coolest belt. This eco-friendly belt is made from "reclaimed" bike tubes (you know, those dead and over-patched punctured ones), the Spare Tire Belt has a great alternative to black leather look. Since its rubber, will it stretch to fit? Don't forget the rivets and belt fasteners. A steal at 45$US from Snack On.snackondesign.com/articles/spare-tire

I totally want this "White Mod Tent Dress by Columbia College Chicago senior fashion design student Kaelyn Garcia; organic cotton and undyed natural silk sateen - 300 silk circles hand applique sewn". Featured at the Chicago Fashion Focus week currently going on. This dress is featured at the Museum of Sustainable style exhibit curated by Pivot Boutique. They are Chicago’s eco fashion leader in promoting sustainable fashion design. The boutique has many modern affordable eco fashion pieces. You can order online. www.pivotboutique.com

Fashion can save the earth and that is a F.A.C.T.