#St. Paul Gangster Tour

[vavandeveresfan]

Going on the St. Paul Gangster Tour for my birthday!

I was trying to figure out what to do for my 62nd birthday next month (no way I’m that fuckin old), and I remembered this!  It’s perfect as research for a kids book I’m working on, which includes the gangsters that ran around free in the 20s and 30s in St. Paul, MN.

The St. Paul Gangster Tour:

“The Original and best Saint Paul Gangster Tour (2 hours by Bus in comfort) is the only tour that starts at the historic Castle Royal Gangsters nightclub, preserved today as the Wabasha Street Caves. The Tour reveals why Saint Paul was a center for bootlegging operations and criminal activities during the 1930's prohibition era. Tour route covers all the gangster sights in the entire 5 miles radius of St. Paul where the gangsters lived it up as they planned and executed some of the most notorious crimes ever perpetrated in the upper Midwest. Notorious gangsters included John Dillinger, Baby Face Nelson, "Machine Gun" Kelly, Alvin "Creepy" Karpis, Fred Barker, Arthur "Doc" Barker, and Ma Barker. Your Guide will be a nefarious gangster hood or his moll, who will be informative and humorous. Tour will take you past the most infamous gangster hideouts and the famous nightclubs where many gangsters spent time socializing with the public. Explore with us the elusive sites of kidnappings, and gun battles associated with the 1930's gangsters.”

For  Prohibition, Jazz Age, and Gangster Era aficionados, here’s more about St. Paul’s gangsters haven:

[adventuressclubamericas]

Phryne’s St. Paul

In the 1840’s, the Wabasha Street Caves were born as silica mines. 

During prohibition, enterprising owners opened a speakeasy which later became Castle Royal, a glamorous and completely subterranean nightclub. Ordinary citizens danced to the music of Cab Calloway while rubbing elbows with notorious gangsters like John Dillinger. 

Rumors of the after hours murder of three Chicago area gangsters still persist.

Today the Wabasha Street Caves are open for tours and Thursday night swing dancing. 

This summer, they’ll be home to an exclusive Saturday event during Miss Fisher Con ’23!

#MissFisherCon #missfishercon2023 #MsFisher #MN #mnhistory #stpaul #stpaulmn #WabashaStreetCaves #saintpaulminnesota #saintpaulhotel #saintpaulmn

https://missfishercon.com/event-5137762

[scotianostra]

On October 28th 2010 Scotland sadly lost the very funny man Gerard Kelly.

Everyone loved the mop of black hair, the half-length trousers, the bright Dr Martens and the cry of "Hiya pals", but you could spend hours figuring out exactly what made Gerard Kelly such a physically funny pantomime star. It was something to do with the knobbly knees, the way one leg would drag coyly behind the other, and the impression of Kelly having feet that headed in opposite directions. The actor Karen Dunbar, who appeared alongside him in three Christmas shows at the King's theatre in Glasgow, has her own theory. "I think it came from his hips," she said. "He used his whole body."

Whatever his secret, Kelly – who has died aged 51 after a brain aneurysm – was a consummate performer who reigned supreme at the King's theatres in Glasgow and Edinburgh for 20 years. To do this for a dozen performances a week required formidable energy. A fortnight into Sleeping Beauty, at the King's, Glasgow, in 2007, he began suffering from sciatica and amazed his colleagues by carrying on regardless of the pain.

Typically, Kelly played the Buttons-type character, a lovable clown who never got the girl but endeared himself to the audience with his rascally grin, gift for comedy and unerring democratic instinct. His generosity of spirit was addictive. Kelly could keep everyone, from children to pensioners, on side. "He knew exactly how to play the audience," said the director Tony Cownie, who staged several of the pantos. "You couldn't direct him. The minute Gerard walked on to the floor, I just sat back. You can't tamper with genius."

A private man who kept a low media profile, Kelly was a team player and commanded tremendous affection. Born Paul Kelly (he changed his name when he got his Equity card), he was brought up in a family of five children in working-class Cranhill, in the east end of Glasgow. His father, Charlie, ran a chip shop, and his mother, Rose, was a hotel waitress. A teacher at St Gregory's secondary school in Glasgow encouraged him to act. From the age of 12, he landed parts with the help of the agent Winifred "Freddie" Young. He appeared in adverts and the TV adventure The Camerons (1974), for the Children's Film Foundation.

Kelly built an accomplished television career, with early work including a part as a teenager with learning difficulties in Donal and Sally, written by James Duthie, which was broadcast in the Play for Today strand on BBC1 in 1978. That year he auditioned for The Slab Boys, John Byrne's celebrated carpet-factory comedy, at the Traverse theatre in Edinburgh, but was considered too young for the part. He was, however, cast as the designer Spanky Farrell in the Play for Today adaptation of The Slab Boys in 1979. He returned to the role at the Traverse in 1982 in all three instalments of what had become a trilogy (with Cuttin' a Rug and Still Life). That production transferred to the Royal Court in London and was a major success.

Here in Scotland, Kelly is fondly remembered for his leading role as Willie Melvin, a bank-teller with literary pretensions and dodgy friends, in the 80s sitcom City Lights, set in Glasgow. He made many guest appearances in programmes such as Rab C Nesbitt, Victoria Wood: As Seen On TV, The Comic Strip Presents and Juliet Bravo, and was a regular on the sketch show Scotch and Wry, starring Rikki Fulton. In 2006, Kelly teamed up with Tony Roper in Rikki and Me, a stage tribute to Fulton.

After bad-boy parts in EastEnders, as the violent Jimmy in 1994, and in Brookside, as gangster Callum Finnegan from 1997 to 2000, Kelly turned in a viciously funny performance as Ian "Bunny" Bunton, a camp panto director, in Ricky Gervais's Extras (2005). His other stage appearances included Neil Simon's The Odd Couple in 1994 (revived in 2002) for the touring Borderline theatre and Iain Heggie's A Wholly Healthy Glasgow in a production that opened at the Royal Exchange in Manchester in 1987 before transferring to the Edinburgh festival and the Royal Court.

Intelligent and politically engaged, Kelly ran the radical 7:84 theatre company in Scotland with David Hayman for three years in the late 80s. He directed Hector McMillan's sectarian drama The Sash ; Raymond Briggs's When the Wind Blows , about a nuclear attack; and an anti-poll tax farce, Revolting Peasants , for the company, whose name derives from athe statistic at the time that 7% of the population of the UK owns 84% of the wealth, it is probaly not changed much since then, if anything will have grown wider.

He had been due to revive his role as the narrator in The Rocky Horror Show at the King's in Glasgow. The part was taken by his friend and City Lights co-star Andy Gray. "He knew what worked," said Gray of Kelly's pantomime work. "I don't think 'Hiya pals' will ever be said again. He did it year in, year out, but 'Hiya pals' worked every time because he did it with such gusto and conviction." Sadly we also lost Andy following complications caused by COVID-19 in January 2021, the two will be having a ball together up there.

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Fashion is an instrument through which you show you belong to a group.

- John Weitz

John Weitz was a man for all seasons. Handsome, intelligent, and debonair. He was a novelist, historian, businessman, spy, and above all a renowned mens and ladies fashion designer. James Bond was fiction but he was the real deal.

Born in Berlin in 1923, Hans Werner Weitz was the son of a prosperous clothing manufacturer and German first world war hero, who had won the Iron Cross in the infantry. The family was living well when Christopher Isherwood visited. But they were Jewish, quick to understand what was about to happen, and, in the early 1930s, moved to London, where the young Weitz went to well known private school, St Paul's in London. At St Paul’s he said it was normal to be caned if he didn’t wear morning clothes to class, so he always did with lapels rolled properly. “On weekends we wore blazers…correctly…with the collar up and with a scarf and with brown suede shoes, which were very new then….but never, of course, after six,” he once reminisced.

He was an apt pupil and Oxbridge seemed to be a seamless next stage. However he lasted only a year studying at Oxford University.

Instead he headed off to Paris to begin an apprenticeship with the women's tailor, Captain Edward Molyneaux. In 1938, at the age of 18, Weitz was falsely arrested as an enemy agent while working in the London office of the Paris fashion house Molyneux.

His father was already in America and in 1939, and when France was overuun at the outbreak of the war, Weitz could see he had to get out of Europe. After a tortuous trip through Shanghai, China and later Yokohama, Japan to reach the USA.

In 1943 and now a naturalised American citizen and aged 21, John (as he was now dubbed) was recruited by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner of the CIA, operating in Germany until 1946. He was fluent in both French and German which came in handy in his work during the war in Europe.

He would only ever describe his work in Germany until 1946 as "sensitive," though, much later, his publisher John Fairchild told the New York Times that Weitz "loved all that romantic part of his past. He was a perfect gentleman."  What is known about his OSS work was that he was part of a 1944 mission in support of the plan to assassinate Adolf Hitler  formulated by German Wehrmacht officers, under the instigation of Claus von Stauffenberg. After the war, Weitz helped to liberate the Dachau concentration camp

Weitz was also a man with connections, as when he confirmed that a former OSS boss had shown him gangster blackmail photos of the longtime FBI director J Edgar Hoover with his boyfriend, Clyde Tolson. In the 1970s, Weitz's friend Albert "Cubby" Broccoli, producer of the James Bond movies, teased him about his resemblance to the character - adding that Weitz was better looking.

Weitz returned to New York in the 1940s, a young garment trader well placed to pick up on American women's new taste for informal sportswear, leather coats and men's shirts.

Weitz founded his women’s sportswear business, John Weitz Designs, in 1954, and launched men’s wear a decade later. For his women’s wear, he often tailored the best of men’s designs for the female figure, with looks such as shaped houndstooth checked coats, formal shirts with jet buttons and cuff links, and corduroy pants.

“Whatever happens in women’s pants comes from the men’s pants,” he said in 1965.

In the Sixties, Weitz began phasing out his women’s and children’s apparel business to concentrate on men’s wear. By 1977, Weitz had 18 licensees and $150 million worldwide retail sales of products bearing his label, including sunglasses, belts, umbrellas and even cigars. That year, he also reentered the licensed women’s apparel category, because, he said, he saw the need for an alternative to coordinated sportswear merchandising.

“I’m rather sick of seeing American working women treated as children with prepackaged clothes,” Weitz said at the time.

In 1964, he launched his menswear range, applying the technical standards of manufacture he had learned from his father. Unusually, in that era of obsolescence, he went for ease and wear - clothes, he said, should be worn "as if they are old and valued friends".

Of course he committed fashion faux pas here and there. This was the 1970s after all. But the previaling zeitgeist had to be understood before we laugh or wince at the designs today. None left a lasting impression quite as strong as the posthumously awarded ‘king of the ‘70s’—the leisure suit.

Once hailed by top designers John Weitz and Calvin Klein as a garment with staying power, the leisure suit was ostracized from the kingdom of en vogue before the 1970s ever came to an end. Just as it had swiftly risen to the top of fashion, it fell into the leagues of comic relief twice as fast.  Today we laugh at the cheesy styles, feminine colors, and garish plaids. But what we seem to have forgotten is that the leisure suit did more than just provide us with years of laughs. The leisure suit helped men open themselves up to new ideas in clothing. It allowed them to experiment outside of the style box they’d been locked in for too many years. If the 1970s had passed without the leisure suit, “business casual” for men might never have developed as soon as it did. The leisure suit may have been a fashion catastrophe, but it laid the groundwork for men to strut their fashion stuff for decades to come.

He was his own dream model - "healthy and scrubbed," with a flat stomach - and toured stores showing off his new line of narrow, European-cut shirts, half the width of the standard American style. His navy suit, alphabet-patterned ties and aubergine socks are commonplace now, but were then part of a new, executive self-presentation, more about putting it together than design. By 1974, he had become a household name, with annual earnings of $18m and a Coty Award, fashion's prize for innovation.

Weitz skilfully let his name generate money by itself, using witty advertisements to maintain a high public profile. A poster on the back of New York buses announced, for example, "She ditched him, John Weitz ties and all".

He also used his writing abilities to promote the business image: his book Man In Charge, The Executive's Guide To Grooming, Manners And Travel (1974), became a bestseller, but was really just part of his trade in suavity and martinis. Even his headquarters was above Madison Avenue. There were also two well received novels, Friends In High Places and The Value Of Nothing.

Two other books, however, marked out Weitz as a historian of the Nazi period. He wrote Hitler's Diplomat, a biography of the third reich foreign minister, Joachim von Ribbentrop, and Hitler's Banker, about the president of the Reichsbank, Hjalmar Horace Greeley Schacht.

He was repeatedly asked about reconciling the sale of navy blazers and researching von Ribbentrop, but he saw no clash: "Who else but a fashion designer would understand such a worldly man?" Weitz certainly comprehended the Nazis genius for the projection of personal image, and, though never a major historian, established a sufficiently solid reputation as a researcher that the president of Germany consulted him on the subject.

Meanwhile, he lived the life of his executive book, raced cars at Sebring in the 1950s, and belonged to the New York Yacht Club and the Vintage Sports Car Club. In his Park Avenue apartment, a Chinese chef cooked dinner parties for his friends - among them the novelist Tom Wolfe- and film people.

In 1964, he married the actor Susan Kohner, and their two sons, Christopher and Paul, remembered Ingmar Bergman taking them to the circus, and film directors John Huston and Billy Wilder dropping in for coffee -"just nice old men around the house every once in a while". The boys' chief complaint about their father was that he made them wear blue blazers. Both Chris and Paul would go on to forge their own Hollywood careers as the producers and directors of such movies as American Pie (1999) and About a Boy (2002).

John Weitz had a deep fondness for cats which raised eyebrows amongst his more masculine following. But Weitz was unrepentent. Weitz adored their elegance, and was quoted on them more often than on the Nazis. "Even overweight cats instinctively know the rule: when fat, arrange yourself in slim poses," he wrote.

John Weitz died on 3 October 2002 at the grand old age of 79. He remained a dashing figure and aged well - like the American version of Gianni Agnelli. He had throughout his life the air of adventure, even danger. He was stylish fashion designer who lived up to the executive image of his clothes. It’s no wonder no one balked when he made a name for himself with the nowadays unthinkable ad slogan, “John Weitz designs for the woman who wishes her husband could afford her.” His was a life well lived.

[mysticalhearth]

K

The King and I - Brazil - 2010 (Pro-Shot's master) FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Tuca Andrada (Rei), Cláudia Netto (Anna Leonowens), Luciana Bueno (Lady Thiang), Bianca Tadini (Tumptim) The King and I - North Shore Music Theatre - September-October, 2011 (Pro-Shot's master) FORMAT:  VOB (with smalls) (SD) CAST: Kate Fisher (Anna Leonowens), Lorenzo Lamas (King of Siam), Lisa Yuen (Lady Thiang), Manna Nichols (Tuptim), Joshua Dela Cruz (Lun Tha), Ron Wisniski (Sir Edward Ramsey) NOTES: Proshot. Performed in the round, one camera on a tripod and sound patched in from the soundboard. The King and I - West End Revival - November 29, 2018 (Pro-Shot's master) FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Kelli O’Hara (Anna Leonowens), Ken Watanabe (King of Siam), Ruthie Ann Miles (Lady Thiang), Na-Young Jeon (Tuptim), Dean John-Wilson (Lun Tha), Edward Baker-Duly (Sir Edward Ramsey), Jon Chew (Prince Chulalongkorn), Edward Baker-Duly (Captain Orton), Billy Marlow (Louis Leonowens), Takao Osawa (Kralahome), William Michael Lee (Phra Alack) NOTES: Ruthie uses a walking stick throughout to aid her recovery from a previous car accident and loss of her two children. She gives an amazing performance. King Kong - Broadway - August 10, 2019 FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Christiani Pitts (Ann Darrow), Eric William Morris (Carl Denham), Erik Lochtefeld (Lumpy) NOTES: The full show, recorded from the rear orchestra on a phone. Most of the video is the August 10th recording but occasionally some promotional footage and the February 9th video are edited in to provide other views. The recording starts off with a lot of wandering, shakiness, and washout but gets better somewhat better as it goes on. Still not as good as an actual video filmed with a camera, but it exists. 1920x1080p, 4.29 GB. King Kong - Broadway - October, 2018 (Preview) (House-Cam's master) FORMAT:  MP4 (SD) CAST: Christiani Pitts (Ann Darrow), Eric William Morris (Carl Denham), Erik Lochtefeld (Lumpy), Harley Jay (Barman), Rory Donovan (Captain Engelhorn/Chief of Police), Jon Hoche (Voice of Kong) NOTES: Full stage shot with clear audio direct from soundboard. Kinky Boots - Broadway - March 15, 2013 (Preview) (Lanelle's master) FORMAT:  VOB (with smalls) (SD) CAST: Stark Sands (Charlie Price), Billy Porter (Lola), Annaleigh Ashford (Lauren), Celina Carvajal (Nicola), Daniel Stewart Sherman (Don), Marcus Neville (George), Jonah Halperin (s/b Young Charlie), Marquise Neal (Young Lola) NOTES: Fun show with a pertinent (but not obtrusive) message, Billy Porter is just amazing. This is somewhat more obstructed than other shows because the person in front was leaning forward and moving a lot, so there's a head in some of the scenes. Some shakiness and wandering in between, particularly at the beginning, but otherwise a good video with nice closeups. Complete show including curtain call. A- Kinky Boots - Broadway - July 17, 2018 (NYCG8R's master) FORMAT:  VOB (with smalls) (SD) CAST: David Cook (Charlie Price), Stephane Duret (s/b Lola), Carrie St Louis (Lauren), Caroline Bowman (Nicola), Daniel Stewart Sherman (Don), Marcus Neville (George), Corey Mach (Harry), Eugene Barry-Hill (Simon Sr.), Stephen Berger (Mr. Price), Adinah Alexander (Milan Stage Manager), Cooper Lantz (Young Charlie), Jesús Del Orden (Young Lola) NOTES: Quite a few latecomers that walk in front but nothing too distracting; otherwise very well filmed HD video with clear picture and sound throughout; great video A Kinky Boots - Broadway - May-August, 2017 FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Brendon Urie (Charlie Price), J Harrison Ghee (Lola), Taylor Louderman (Lauren) NOTES: Starts at Sex is in the Heel Kinky Boots - First National Tour - April 17, 2016 (SJ Bernly's master) FORMAT:  VOB (with smalls) (SD) CAST: Adam Kaplan (Charlie Price), J Harrison Ghee (Lola), Tiffany Engen (Lauren), Charissa Hogeland (Nicola), Aaron Walpole (Don), Jim J Bullock (George), Josh Tolle (Harry), Shawna M Hamic (Trish), Horace V Rogers (Simon Sr.), Tom Souhrada (Mr. Price), Zach Adkins (Richard Bailey), Patty Lohr (Pat), Annie Edgerton (Milan Stage Manager), Aidan Passaro (Young Charlie), Jomil Elijah Robinson (Young Lola) Kinky Boots - Netherlands Tour - October 27, 2019 FORMAT:  MOV (HD) CAST: Jonathan Demoor (Charlie Price), Naidjim Severina (Lola), Vajèn van den Bosch (Lauren), Linda Verstraten (Nicola), Dennis Willekens (Don), Paul Donkers (George), Jeroen Phaff (Mr. Price) Kinky Boots - Pre-Broadway/Chicago - November 4, 2012 (Closing Night) (SunsetBlvd79's master) FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Stark Sands (Charlie Price), Billy Porter (Lola), Annaleigh Ashford (Lauren), Celina Carvajal (Nicola), Daniel Stewart Sherman (Don), Marcus Neville (George), Andy Kelso (Harry), Jennifer Perry (Trish), Tory Ross (Pat) NOTES: Another beautiful HD capture of the last performance in Chicago before Broadway, where it would go on to win the 2013 Tony. This performance has many changes from the other Chicago Dvd of the first performance. Includes the new song written towards the end of the Chicago run and many line changes. Also includes curtain speech by Stark! A+   Kinky Boots - UK Tour - December 26, 2018 (Matinee) (shoeroom's master) FORMAT:  MOV (HD) CAST: Joshua St Clair (u/s Charlie Price), Kayi Ushe (Lola), Paula Lane (Lauren), Helen Ternent (Nicola), Demitri Lampra (Don), Adam Price (George), Daniel Conway (u/s Harry), Niki Evans (Trish), Fred Smiley (Simon Sr.), Andy Watkins (Mr. Price), George Grayson (u/s Richard Bailey), Lizzie Bea (Pat), Mary Fox (Maggie), Shaun Dalton (Hooch), Alfie Parker (Mutt), Portia Harry (Gemma Louise), Scarlet Gabriel (Milan Stage Manager), John Dempsey (Referee), Connor Collins (Angel #1), Toyan Thomas-Brown (Angel #2), John Dempsey (Angel #3), Chileshé Mondelle (Angel #4), Joshua Lovell (Angel #5), Damon Gould (Angel #6) Kinky Boots - UK Tour - September, 2018 (hitmewithyourbethshot's master) FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Joel Harper-Jackson (Charlie Price), Callum Francis (Lola), Paula Lane (Lauren), Helen Ternent (Nicola), Demitri Lampra (Don), Adam Price (George), Joshua St Clair (Harry), Niki Evans (Trish), Fred Smiley (Simon Sr.), Andy Watkins (Mr. Price), Daniel Conway (Richard Bailey), Lizzie Bea (Pat), Scarlet Gabriel (Milan Stage Manager), Connor Collins (Angel #1), John Dempsey (Angel #2), Damon Gould (Angel #3), Joshua Lovell (Angel #4), Chileshé Mondelle (Angel #5), Toyan Thomas-Brown (Angel #6) Kinky Boots - West End - November 27, 2018 (Pro-Shot's master) FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Killian Donnelly (Charlie Price), Matt Henry (Lola), Natalie McQueen (Lauren), Cordelia Farnworth (Nicola), Sean Needham (Don), Antony Reed (George), Jordan Fox (Harry), Anna Stolli (Trish), Robert Grose (Simon Sr.), Graham Kent (Mr. Price), Jonathan Carlton (Richard Bailey), Rosie Glossop (Pat), Emma Odell (Milan Stage Manager), Charlie Underhill (Young Charlie), Temba Mliswa (Young Lola), Jak Allen-Anderson (Angel #1), Jed Berry (Angel #2), Louis Clarke-Clare (Angel #3), Daniel Downing (Angel #4), Jemal Felix (Angel #5), Jon Reynolds (Angel #6), Abbey Addams, Ben Jennings, Ben Larcombe, Christopher Parkinson, David Haydn, Fred Wilcox, Hannah Price, Jude Muir, Kayleb Rene-gray, Keith Higham, Momar Diagne, Olivia Winterflood, Rio Lewis, Robert Jones, Samson Wakayu, Suzie McAdam, Tom Scanlon NOTES: Pro-shot. Filmed live on stage at the Adelphi Theatre (London, England) and distributed commercially. Kiss Me, Kate - British Television Production - April 21, 1964 FORMAT:  VOB (with smalls) (SD) CAST: Patricia Morison (Lilli Vanessi / Katharine), Howard Keel (Fred Graham / Petruchio), Isabelle Lucas (Hattie), Millicent Martin (Lois Lane / Bianca), Irving Davies (Bill Calhoun / Lucentio), Eric Barker (Harrison Howell), Danny Green (Gangster / First Man), Bill Owen (Gangster / Second Man) NOTES: This version was rewritten and abbreviated to fit within its 95-minute time slot. A little on the dark side, in black and white with a slight blue tinge, has producer’s counter numbers hard-coded on the screen in the upper third. This version of the show was produced for the launch of a new station in the UK. After months of preparing the launch of the new television station—with it’s brand-new 625 line resolution (until then UK TV’s had a resolution of 405 lines)—the night turned out to be a disaster. 50 minutes before the launch, a fire broke out at a local power station, cutting power to most of London but not the television station. They started the evening’s news show which was to be followed by this broadcast, but it soon became clear that there was no audience, and after a few minutes, the schedule was abandoned. The production was instead shown the next day. The date that’s superimposed on the video is April 20, 1964—the originally scheduled night. It is unclear if this is a fi Kiss Me, Kate - Third Broadway Revival - March, 2019 (NYCG8R's master) FORMAT:  VOB (with smalls) (SD) CAST: Kelli O’Hara (Lilli Vanessi / Katharine), Will Chase (Fred Graham / Petruchio), Adrienne Walker (Hattie), James T Lane (Paul), Stephanie Styles (Lois Lane / Bianca), Corbin Bleu (Bill Calhoun / Lucentio), Mel Johnson Jr (Harry Trevor / Baptista), Terence Archie (Harrison Howell), John Pankow (Gangster / First Man), Lance Coadie Williams (Gangster / Second Man) Kruimeltje de musical - The Netherlands - 2012 (Pro-Shot's master) FORMAT:  MP4 (HD) CAST: Joes Brauers (Kruimeltje)

[silent-era-of-cinema]

William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff was an English actor who was primarily known for his roles in horror films. He portrayed Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935) and Son of Frankenstein (1939). He also appeared as Imhotep in The Mummy (1932).

In non-horror roles, he is best known to modern audiences for narrating and as the voice of the Grinch in the animated television special of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966). For his contribution to film and television, Karloff was awarded two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Karloff was born William Henry Pratt on 23 November 1887,[2] at 36 Forest Hill Road, Dulwich, Surrey (now London), England. His parents were Edward John Pratt, Jr. and Eliza Sarah Millard. His brother, Sir John Thomas Pratt, was a British diplomat. Edward John Pratt, Jr. was an Anglo-Indian, from a British father and Indian mother, while Karloff's mother also had some Indian ancestry, thus Karloff had a relatively dark complexion that differed from his peers at the time. His mother's maternal aunt was Anna Leonowens, whose tales about life in the royal court of Siam (now Thailand) were the basis of the musical The King and I. Pratt was bow-legged, had a lisp, and stuttered as a young boy.[7] He learned how to manage his stutter, but not his lisp, which was noticeable throughout his career in the film industry.

Pratt spent his childhood years in Enfield, in the County of Middlesex. He was the youngest of nine children, and following his mother's death was brought up by his elder siblings. He received his early education at Enfield Grammar School, and later at the public schools of Uppingham School and Merchant Taylors' School. After this, he attended King's College London where he took studies aimed at a career with the British Government's Consular Service. However, in 1909, he left university without graduating and drifted, departing England for Canada, where he worked as a farm labourer and did various odd itinerant jobs until happening upon acting.

Pratt began appearing in theatrical performances in Canada, and during this period he chose Boris Karloff as his stage name. Some have theorised that he took the stage name from a mad scientist character in the novel The Drums of Jeopardy called "Boris Karlov". However, the novel was not published until 1920, at least eight years after Karloff had been using the name on stage and in silent films, opening the possibility that the Karlov character might have been named after Karloff after the novel's author noticed it in a cast listing and liked the sound of it rather than simply being a coincidence. Warner Oland played "Boris Karlov" in a film version in 1931. Another possible influence was thought to be a character in the Edgar Rice Burroughs fantasy novel H. R. H. The Rider which features a "Prince Boris of Karlova", but as the novel was not published until 1915, the influence may be backward, that Burroughs saw Karloff in a play and adapted the name for the character. Karloff always claimed he chose the first name "Boris" because it sounded foreign and exotic, and that "Karloff" was a family name (from Karlov—in Cyrillic, Карлов—a name found in several Slavic countries, including Russia, Ukraine and Bulgaria).

Karloff's daughter, Sara, publicly denied any knowledge of Slavic forebears, "Karloff" or otherwise. One reason for the name change was to prevent embarrassment to his family. Whether or not his brothers (all dignified members of the British Foreign Service) actually considered young William the "black sheep of the family" for having become an actor, Karloff apparently worried they felt that way. He did not reunite with his family until he returned to Britain to make The Ghoul (1933), extremely worried that his siblings would disapprove of his new, macabre claim to world fame. Instead, his brothers jostled for position around him and happily posed for publicity photographs. After the photo was taken, Karloff's brothers immediately started asking about getting a copy of their own. The story of the photo became one of Karloff's favorites.

Karloff joined the Jeanne Russell Company in 1911 and performed in towns like Kamloops (British Columbia) and Prince Albert (Saskatchewan). After the devastating tornado in Regina on 30 June 1912, Karloff and other performers helped with clean-up efforts. He later took a job as a railway baggage handler and joined the Harry St. Clair Co. that performed in Minot, North Dakota, for a year in an opera house above a hardware store.

Whilst he was trying to establish his acting career, Karloff had to perform years of manual labour in Canada and the U.S. in order to make ends meet. He was left with back problems from which he suffered for the rest of his life. Because of his health, he did not enlist in World War I.

During this period, Karloff worked in various theatrical stock companies across the U.S. to hone his acting skills. Some acting companies mentioned were the Harry St. Clair Players and the Billie Bennett Touring Company. By early 1918 he was working with the Maud Amber Players in Vallejo, California, but because of the Spanish Flu outbreak in the San Francisco area and the fear of infection, the troupe was disbanded. He was able to find work with the Haggerty Repertory for a while (according to the 1973 obituary of Joseph Paul Haggerty, he and Boris Karloff remained lifelong friends). According to Karloff, in his first film he appeared as an extra in a crowd scene for a Frank Borzage picture at Universal for which he received $5; the title of this film has never been traced.

Once Karloff arrived in Hollywood, he made dozens of silent films, but this work was sporadic, and he often had to take up manual labour such as digging ditches or delivering construction plaster to earn a living.

His first on screen role was in a film serial, The Lightning Raider (1919) with Pearl White. He was in another serial, The Masked Rider (1919), the first of his appearances to survive.

Karloff could also be seen in His Majesty, the American (1919) with Douglas Fairbanks, The Prince and Betty (1919), The Deadlier Sex (1920), and The Courage of Marge O'Doone (1920). He played an Indian in The Last of the Mohicans (1920) and he would often be cast as an Arab or Indian in his early films.

Karloff's first major role came in a film serial, The Hope Diamond Mystery (1920). He was Indian in Without Benefit of Clergy (1921) and an Arab in Cheated Hearts (1921) and villainous in The Cave Girl (1921). He was a maharajah in The Man from Downing Street (1922), a Nabob in The Infidel (1922) and had roles in The Altar Stairs (1922), Omar the Tentmaker (1922) (as an Imam), The Woman Conquers (1922), The Gentleman from America (1923), The Prisoner (1923) and the serial Riders of the Plains (1923).

Karloff did a Western, The Hellion (1923), and a drama, Dynamite Dan (1924). He could be seen in Parisian Nights (1925), Forbidden Cargo (1925), The Prairie Wife (1925) and the serial Perils of the Wild (1925).

Karloff went back to bit part status in Never the Twain Shall Meet (1925) directed by Maurice Tourneur but he had a good support role in Lady Robinhood (1925).

Karloff went on to be in The Greater Glory (1926), Her Honor, the Governor (1926), The Bells (1926) (as a mesmerist), The Nickel-Hopper (1926), The Golden Web (1926), The Eagle of the Sea (1926), Flames (1926), Old Ironsides (1926), Flaming Fury (1926), Valencia (1926), The Man in the Saddle (1926), Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1927) (as an African), Let It Rain (1927), The Meddlin' Stranger (1927), The Princess from Hoboken (1927), The Phantom Buster (1927), and Soft Cushions (1927).

Karloff had roles in Two Arabian Knights (1927), The Love Mart (1927), The Vanishing Rider (1928) (a serial), Burning the Wind (1928), Vultures of the Sea (1928), and The Little Wild Girl (1928).

He was in The Devil's Chaplain (1929), The Fatal Warning (1929) for Richard Thorpe, The Phantom of the North (1929), Two Sisters (1929), Anne Against the World (1929), Behind That Curtain (1929), and The King of the Kongo (1929), a serial directed by Thorpe.

Karloff had an uncredited bit part in The Unholy Night (1930) directed by Lionel Barrymore, and bigger parts in The Bad One (1930),The Sea Bat (1930) (directed by Barrymore), and The Utah Kid (1930) directed by Thorpe.

A film which brought Karloff recognition was The Criminal Code (1931), a prison drama directed by Howard Hawks in which he reprised a dramatic part he had played on stage. In the same period, Karloff had a small role as a mob boss in Hawks' gangster film Scarface, but the film was not released until 1932 because of difficult censorship issues.

He did another serial for Thorpe, King of the Wild (1931), then had support parts in Cracked Nuts (1931), Young Donovan's Kid (1931), Smart Money (1931), The Public Defender (1931), I Like Your Nerve (1931), and Graft (1931).

Another significant role in the autumn of 1931 saw Karloff play a key supporting part as an unethical newspaper reporter in Five Star Final, a film about tabloid journalism which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

He could also be seen in The Yellow Ticket (1931) The Mad Genius (1931), The Guilty Generation (1931) and Tonight or Never (1931).

Karloff acted in eighty movies before being found by James Whale and cast in Frankenstein (1931). Karloff's role as Frankenstein's monster was physically demanding – it necessitated a bulky costume with four-inch platform boots – but the costume and extensive makeup produced a lasting image. The costume was a job in itself for Karloff with the shoes weighing 11 pounds (5.0 kg) each.[13] Universal Studios quickly copyrighted the makeup design for the Frankenstein monster that Jack P. Pierce had created.

It took a while for Karloff's stardom to be established with the public – he had small roles in Behind the Mask (1932), Business and Pleasure (1932) and The Miracle Man (1932).

As receipts for Frankenstein and Scarface flooded in, Universal gave Karloff third billing in Night World (1932), with Lew Ayres, Mae Clarke and George Raft.

Karloff was reunited with Whale at Universal for The Old Dark House (1932), a horror movie based on the novel Benighted by J.B. Priestley, in which he finally enjoyed top billing above Melvyn Douglas, Charles Laughton, Raymond Massey and Gloria Stuart. He was loaned to MGM to play the titular role in The Mask of Fu Manchu (also 1932), for which he gained top billing.

Back at Universal, he was cast as Imhotep who is revived in The Mummy (1932). It was as successful at the box-office as the other two films and Karloff was now established as a star of horror films.

Karloff returned to England to star in The Ghoul (1933), then made a non-horror film for John Ford, The Lost Patrol (1934), where his performance was highly acclaimed.

Karloff was third billed in the Twentieth Century Pictures historical film The House of Rothschild (1934) with George Arliss, which was highly popular.

Horror, however, had now become Karloff's primary genre, and he gave a string of lauded performances in Universal's horror films, including several with Bela Lugosi, his main rival as heir to Lon Chaney's status as the leading horror film star. While the long-standing, creative partnership between Karloff and Lugosi never led to a close friendship, it produced some of the actors' most revered and enduring productions, beginning with The Black Cat (1934) and continuing with Gift of Gab (1934), in which both had cameos. Karloff reprised the role of Frankenstein's monster in Bride of Frankenstein (1935) for James Whale. Then he and Lugosi were reunited for The Raven (1935).

For Columbia, Karloff made The Black Room (1935) then he returned to Universal for The Invisible Ray (1936) with Lugosi, more a science fiction film. Karloff was then cast in a Warner Bros. horror film, The Walking Dead (1936).

Because the Motion Picture Production Code (known as the Hays Code) began to be seriously enforced in 1934, horror films suffered a decline in the second half of the 1930s. Karloff worked in other genres, making two films in Britain, Juggernaut (1936) and The Man Who Changed His Mind (1936).

He returned to Hollywood to play a supporting role in Charlie Chan at the Opera (1936) then did a science fiction film, Night Key (1937).

At Warners, he did two films with John Farrow, playing a Chinese warlord in West of Shanghai (1937) and a murder suspect in The Invisible Menace (1938).

Karloff went to Monogram to play the title role of a Chinese detective in Mr. Wong, Detective (1938), which led to a series. Karloff's portrayal of the character is an example of Hollywood's use of yellowface and its portrayal of East Asians in the earlier half of the 20th century. He had another heroic role in Devil's Island (1939).

Universal found reissuing Dracula and Frankenstein led to success at the box-office and began to produce horror films again starting with Son of Frankenstein (1939). Karloff reprised his role, with Lugosi co starring as Ygor and Basil Rathbone as Frankenstein.

After The Mystery of Mr. Wong (1939) and Mr. Wong in Chinatown (1939) he signed a three-picture deal with Columbia, starting with The Man They Could Not Hang (1939). Karloff returned to Universal to make Tower of London (1939) with Rathbone, playing the murderous henchman of King Richard III.

Karloff made a fourth Mr Wong film at Monogram The Fatal Hour (1940). At Warners he was in British Intelligence (1940), then he went to Universal to do Black Friday (1940) with Lugosi.

Karloff's second and third films for Columbia were The Man with Nine Lives (1940) and Before I Hang (1940). In between he did a fifth and final Mr Wong film, Doomed to Die (1940).

Karloff appeared at a celebrity baseball game as Frankenstein's monster in 1940, hitting a gag home run and making catcher Buster Keaton fall into an acrobatic dead faint as the monster stomped into home plate.

Karloff finished a six picture commitment with Monogram with The Ape (1940). He and Lugosi appeared in a comedy at RKO, You'll Find Out (1941), then he went to Columbia for The Devil Commands (1941) and The Boogie Man Will Get You (1941).

An enthusiastic performer, he returned to the Broadway stage in the original production of Arsenic and Old Lace in 1941, in which he played a homicidal gangster enraged to be frequently mistaken for Karloff. Frank Capra cast Raymond Massey in the 1944 film, which was shot in 1941, while Karloff was still appearing in the role on Broadway. The play's producers allowed the film to be made conditionally: it was not to be released until the production closed. (Karloff reprised his role on television in the anthology series The Best of Broadway (1955), and with Tony Randall and Tom Bosley in a 1962 production on the Hallmark Hall of Fame. He also starred in a radio adaptation produced by Screen Guild Theatre in 1946.)

In 1944, he underwent a spinal operation to relieve a chronic arthritic condition.

Karloff returned to film roles in The Climax (1944), an unsuccessful attempt to repeat the success of Phantom of the Opera (1943). More liked was House of Frankenstein (1944), where Karloff played the villainous Dr. Niemann and the monster was played by Glenn Strange.

Karloff made three films for producer Val Lewton at RKO: The Body Snatcher (1945), his last teaming with Lugosi, Isle of the Dead (1945) and Bedlam (1946).

In a 1946 interview with Louis Berg of the Los Angeles Times, Karloff discussed his arrangement with RKO, working with Lewton and his reasons for leaving Universal. Karloff left Universal because he thought the Frankenstein franchise had run its course; the entries in the series after Son of Frankenstein were B-pictures. Berg wrote that the last installment in which Karloff appeared—House of Frankenstein—was what he called a " 'monster clambake,' with everything thrown in—Frankenstein, Dracula, a hunchback and a 'man-beast' that howled in the night. It was too much. Karloff thought it was ridiculous and said so." Berg explained that the actor had "great love and respect for" Lewton, who was "the man who rescued him from the living dead and restored, so to speak, his soul."

Horror films experienced a decline in popularity after the war, and Karloff found himself working in other genres.

For the Danny Kaye comedy, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947), Karloff appeared in a brief but starring role as Dr. Hugo Hollingshead, a psychiatrist. Director Norman Z. McLeod shot a sequence with Karloff in the Frankenstein monster make-up, but it was deleted from the finished film.

Karloff appeared in a film noir, Lured (1947), and as an Indian in Unconquered (1947). He had support roles in Dick Tracy Meets Gruesome (1947), Tap Roots (1948), and Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff.

During this period, Karloff was a frequent guest on radio programmes, whether it was starring in Arch Oboler's Chicago-based Lights Out productions (including the episode "Cat Wife") or spoofing his horror image with Fred Allen or Jack Benny. In 1949, he was the host and star of Starring Boris Karloff, a radio and television anthology series for the ABC broadcasting network.

He appeared as the villainous Captain Hook in Peter Pan in a 1950 stage musical adaptation which also featured Jean Arthur.

Karloff returned to horror films with The Strange Door (1951) and The Black Castle (1952).

He was nominated for a Tony Award for his work opposite Julie Harris in The Lark, by the French playwright Jean Anouilh, about Joan of Arc, which was reprised on Hallmark Hall of Fame.

During the 1950s, he appeared on British television in the series Colonel March of Scotland Yard, in which he portrayed John Dickson Carr's fictional detective Colonel March, who was known for solving apparently impossible crimes. Christopher Lee appeared alongside Karloff in the episode "At Night, All Cats are Grey" broadcast in 1955.[17] A little later, Karloff co-starred with Lee in the film Corridors of Blood (1958).

Karloff appeared in Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1952) and visited Italy for The Island Monster (1954) and India for Sabaka (1954).

Karloff, along with H. V. Kaltenborn, was a regular panelist on the NBC game show, Who Said That? which aired between 1948 and 1955. Later, as a guest on NBC's The Gisele MacKenzie Show, Karloff sang "Those Were the Good Old Days" from Damn Yankees while Gisele MacKenzie performed the solo, "Give Me the Simple Life". On The Red Skelton Show, Karloff guest starred along with actor Vincent Price in a parody of Frankenstein, with Red Skelton as "Klem Kadiddle Monster". He served as host and frequent star of the anthology series The Veil (1958) which was never broadcast due to financial problems at the producing studio; the complete series was rediscovered in the 1990s.

Karloff made some horror films in the late 1950s: Voodoo Island (1957), The Haunted Strangler (1958), Frankenstein 1970 (1958) (as the Baron), and Corridors of Blood (1958). In the "mad scientist" role in Frankenstein 1970 as Baron Victor von Frankenstein II, the grandson of the original creator. In the finale, it is revealed that the crippled Baron has given his own face to the monster. Karloff donned the monster make-up for the last time in 1962 for a Halloween episode of the TV series Route 66, which also featured Peter Lorre and Lon Chaney, Jr.

During this period, he hosted and acted in a number of television series, including Thriller and Out of This World.

Karloff appeared in Black Sabbath (1963) directed by Mario Bava. He made The Raven (1963) for Roger Corman and American International Pictures (AIP). Corman used Karloff in The Terror (1963) playing a baron who murdered his wife. He made a cameo in AIP's Bikini Beach (1964) and had a bigger role in that studio's The Comedy of Terrors (1964), directed by Jacques Tourneur and Die, Monster, Die! (1965). British actress Suzan Farmer, who played his daughter in the film, later recalled Karloff was aloof during production "and wasn’t the charming personality people perceived him to be".

In 1966, Karloff also appeared with Robert Vaughn and Stefanie Powers in the spy series The Girl from U.N.C.L.E., in the episode "The Mother Muffin Affair," Karloff performed in drag as the titular character.

That same year, he also played an Indian Maharajah on the installment of the adventure series The Wild Wild West titled "The Night of the Golden Cobra".

In 1967, he played an eccentric Spanish professor who believes himself to be Don Quixote in a whimsical episode of I Spy titled "Mainly on the Plains".

Karloff's last film for AIP was The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini (1967).

In the mid-1960s, he enjoyed a late-career surge in the United States when he narrated the made-for-television animated film of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and also provided the voice of the Grinch, although the song "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" was sung by the American voice actor Thurl Ravenscroft. The film was first broadcast on CBS-TV in 1966. Karloff later received a Grammy Award for "Best Recording For Children" after the recording was commercially released. Because Ravenscroft (who never met Karloff in the course of their work on the show) was uncredited for his contribution to How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, his performance of the song was often mistakenly attributed to Karloff.

He appeared in Mad Monster Party? (1967) and starred in the second feature film of the British director Michael Reeves,The Sorcerers (1966).

Karloff starred in Targets (1968), a film directed by Peter Bogdanovich, featuring two separate stories that converge into one. In one, a disturbed young man kills his family, then embarks on a killing spree. In the other, a famous horror-film actor contemplates then confirms his retirement, agreeing to one last appearance at a drive-in cinema. Karloff starred as the retired horror film actor, Byron Orlok, a thinly disguised version of himself; Orlok was facing an end of life crisis, which he resolved through a confrontation with the gunman at the drive-in cinema.

Around the same time, he played occult expert Professor Marsh in a British production titled The Crimson Cult (Curse of the Crimson Altar, also 1968), which was the last Karloff film to be released during his lifetime.

He ended his career by appearing in four low-budget Mexican horror films: Isle of the Snake People, The Incredible Invasion, Fear Chamber and House of Evil. This was a package deal with Mexican producer Luis Enrique Vergara. Karloff's scenes were directed by Jack Hill and shot back-to-back in Los Angeles in the spring of 1968. The films were then completed in Mexico. All four were released posthumously, with the last, The Incredible Invasion, not released until 1971, two years after Karloff's death. Cauldron of Blood, shot in Spain in 1967 and co-starring Viveca Lindfors, was also released after Karloff's death.

While shooting his final films, Karloff suffered from emphysema. Only half of one lung was still functioning and he required oxygen between takes.

He recorded the title role of Shakespeare's Cymbeline for the Shakespeare Recording Society (Caedmon Audio). The recording was originally released in 1962. A download of his performance is available from audible.com. He also recorded the narration for Sergei Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf with the Vienna State Opera Orchestra under Mario Rossi.

Records he made for the children's market included Three Little Pigs and Other Fairy Stories, Tales of the Frightened (volume 1 and 2), Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories and, with Cyril Ritchard and Celeste Holm, Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes, and Lewis Carroll's The Hunting of the Snark.

Karloff was credited for editing several horror anthologies, commencing with Tales of Terror (Cleveland and NY: World Publishing Co, 1943) (compiled with the help of Edmond Speare). This wartime-published anthology went through at least five printings to September 1945. It has been reprinted recently (Orange NJ: Idea Men, 2007). Karloff's name was also attached to And the Darkness Falls (Cleveland and NY: World Publishing Co, 1946); and The Boris Karloff Horror Anthology (London: Souvenir Press, 1965; simultaneous publication in Canada - Toronto: The Ryerson Press; US pbk reprint NY: Avon Books, 1965 retitled as Boris Karloff's Favourite Horror Stories; UK pbk reprints London: Corgi, 1969 and London: Everest, 1975, both under the original title), though it is less clear whether Karloff himself actually edited these.

Tales of the Frightened (Belmont Books, 1963), though based on the recordings by Karloff of the same title, and featuring his image on the book cover, contained stories written by Michael Avallone; the second volume, More Tales of the Frightened, contained stories authored by Robert Lory. Both Avallone and Lory worked closely with Canadian editor and book packager Lyle Kenyon Engel, who also ghost-edited a horror story anthology for horror film star Basil Rathbone.

Beginning in 1940, Karloff dressed as Father Christmas every Christmas to hand out presents to physically disabled children in a Baltimore hospital.

He never legally changed his name to "Boris Karloff." He signed official documents "William H. Pratt, a.k.a. Boris Karloff."

He was a charter member of the Screen Actors Guild, and he was especially outspoken due to the long hours he spent in makeup while playing Frankenstein's Monster.

He married six times and had one child, daughter Sara Karloff, by fifth wife Dorothy Stine. His final marriage was in 1946 right after his fifth divorce. At the time of his daughter's birth, he was filming Son of Frankenstein and reportedly rushed from the film set to the hospital while still in full makeup.

He was an early member of the Hollywood Cricket Club.

Upon returning to England in 1959, his address was 43 Cadogan Square, London. In 1966, he bought 25 Campden House (in 29 Sheffield Terrace), Kensington W8, and 'Roundabout Cottage' in the Hampshire village of Bramshott. A longtime heavy smoker, he had emphysema which left him with only half of one lung still functioning. He contracted bronchitis in 1968 and was hospitalised at University College Hospital. He died of pneumonia at the King Edward VII Hospital, Midhurst, in Sussex, on 2 February 1969, at the age of 81.

His body was cremated following a requested modest service at Guildford Crematorium, Godalming, Surrey, where he is commemorated by a plaque in the Garden of Remembrance. A memorial service was held at St Paul's, Covent Garden (the Actors' Church), London, where there is also a plaque.

During the run of Thriller, Karloff lent his name and likeness to a comic book for Gold Key Comics based upon the series. After Thriller was cancelled, the comic was retitled Boris Karloff's Tales of Mystery. An illustrated likeness of Karloff continued to introduce each issue of this publication for more than a decade after his death; the comic lasted until the early 1980s. In 2009, Dark Horse Comics began publishing reprints of Boris Karloff's Tales of Mystery in a hard-bound edition.

For his contribution to film and television, Boris Karloff was awarded two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1737 Vine Street for motion pictures, and 6664 Hollywood Boulevard for television.[36] Karloff was featured by the U.S. Postal Service as Frankenstein's Monster and the Mummy in its series "Classic Monster Movie Stamps" issued in September 1997. In 1998, an English Heritage blue plaque was unveiled in his hometown in London. The British film magazine Empire in 2016 ranked Karloff's portrayal as Frankenstein's monster the sixth-greatest horror movie character of all time.

On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Boris Karloff among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.

[hclib]

LOCAL HISTORY PROGRAM Author Talk with Erik Rivenes: Dirty Doc Ames and the Scandal that Shook Minneapolis

Saturday, May 5, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.

Minneapolis Central Library, RKMC meeting room, 2nd floor

True crime fans and local history buffs alike will take interest in this account of turn-of-the-20th-century Minneapolis mayor Doc Ames—his political scandals, corrupt police department, and the downfall that helped jump start an era of reform. Erik Rivenes, founder of the St. Paul Gangster Tours, is a writer and historian who produces the Most Notorious podcast. He will share highlights from his new book, Dirty Doc Ames and the Scandal that Shook Minneapolis.

Books will be available for purchase and signing.

[timcimbura]

Super fun learning about St Paul and its history on the gangster tour led by “John Dillinger” with Arianna’s school. Ari stole my hat! (at Wabasha Street Caves) https://www.instagram.com/p/B7J1CgRH-FF/?igshid=1vvbsjuoc1mh9

[gigsoupmusic]

Gigsoup in Hamburg- Saturday: 'Stefanie Hempel's Beatles' Tour'

Pictures by Andy Xu. This article is part of our GIGsoup in Hamburg series! Make sure to check Zoe Anderson’s page for more coverage!

Steffi outside the Davidwache Police Station After our meeting with sound artist Andi Otto and David-Maria Gramse of the Ensemble Resonanz, we made our way from St. Pauli’s imposing WW2 Bunker towards the infamous Reeperbahn. This strip of strip clubs, bars and sex shops is many things to many people. Stray dogs prowl the streets while German tourists drift in and out of small theatres. Perhaps the most interesting part of this lively area, though, is the huge role it played in The Beatles’ early career as a rock and roll cover band in the sixties. This history is so tucked away, and oftentimes entirely lost, that you really need to know where to look in order to find it. And really, there is only one person you should trust to show you around the mean streets of the Reeperbahn: Steffi Hempel (who GIGsoup interviewed last year, you can read about it here). Steffi is widely regarded as one of the most-knowledgeable Beatles experts, and has been running her comprehensive musical tour of the area for over 15 years.

The place where the legendary Star Club once. It was the last place the group played before the skyrocketed to fame. MTV UK called Hempel’s Beatles Tour “the greatest Beatles tour of all time,” and is incredibly popular with both native and international guests. This musical journey is completely unique, with fans travelling from all over the world to see Steffi do her thing. Ukulele in hand, Steffi gleefully covers a huge range of classic Beatles tracks including ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ and ‘In My Life (There Are Places I Remember)’, placing these famous tracks geographically amongst St. Pauli’s snaking streets and alleys. “When the Beatles came to the city, they were all so young,” Steffi says, showing us the smooth black and white faces of Paul and John; the lesser-known and handsome Pete Best and Stuart Sutcliffe posing alongside for a dower photoshoot in Hamburg’s DOM theme park. “Can you imagine being so young and coming to somewhere like St. Pauli?” It is in this simple question that Steffi provides an insight into Hamburg and this little-known part of the Beatles’ career. A time where they were exposed to the sleaze of local gangsters, and, as legend has it, were accompanied on-stage by a stripper because they didn’t have enough songs to fill out their (often) six-hour sets at the Indra Club.

The old walls of the 100 Club Steffi’s unabashed love of the Beatles comes across as so pure and wonderful, that she immediately sweeps you up in the stories that she’s gathered over her many years of research. Even if you’re not a Beatles fanatic, the tour provides a snapshot of the St. Pauli club scene of the early sixties and helps elevate the city via this corner of its musical past. Steffi’s tour concludes next to the John Lennon Rock ‘n’ Roll Doorway, which is now part of one of St. Pauli’s many squats. The location is famously featured on Lennon’s 1975 album ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll’, but it looks very different now. Steffi has, of course, charmed the residents, greeting them with smiles and open arms. She makes sure to remind us to be respectful when taking photos—another insight into Steffi’s love and respect for St. Pauli and its people. Outside, the street is humming with life as Wohlwillstraßenfest, a yearly street party that takes over the area, continues on despite the drizzle. Shop owners chat with friends and passers-by, and the air is alive with music.  Check out Steffis website here! #gigsoupinhamburg Read the full article

[worldfootprints]

What once was old is now new in Florida’s Marion County. One of the “newest” attractions in the city of Ocala, has roots going back nearly 100 years, commemorating an epic FBI shootout with a notorious gang that ended the era of gangsters in the United States. Other attractions in the north-central Florida area are even older—dating back to the 19th century, though they have been repurposed to offer a unique Florida experience.

Ma Barker House

In January, the Ma Barker House, opened for tours to commemorate one gang’s demise in one of the most famous shootouts in FBI history, during an era notorious for gangsters like Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly. The Barker boys— Arthur, Herman, Lloyd, and Fred— committed a string of murders, robberies, and kidnapping across the country and were in and out of prison beginning in 1910. Abandoned by their father, their mother Kate Barker tried to protect and excuse them; some say she was one of the gang.

Fred Barker, the youngest son, born in 1901, began his criminal career as a juvenile but his first arrest as an adult was in 1926 when he robbed a bank in Winfield, Kansas. In prison, Fred joined forces with another gangster, Alvin Karpis, a burglar, and in 1931 they formed the Barker/Karpis Gang, which included some of the other Barker boys.

The gang operated between Chicago and St. Paul, Minnesota much of the time. In St. Paul, Police Chief Thomas Brown protected them so crime was profitable and safe until they kidnapped two prominent people. The FBI was brought into the case because kidnapping is a federal crime and the gang decided to flee the area and hide out in Florida where they were unknown.

Outside of Ma Barker’s House. Photo: Kathleen Walls

Hiding Out in Florida

Fred, Karpis and other gang members moved in with Kate “Ma” Barker, to the Marion County, Florida house she’d rented under the pretext that Ma was a grieving widow who needed some peace and quiet. She and her sons used the alias of Blackburn. The FBI discovered their hideout after Arthur (Doc) Barker was arrested and the FBI found a map of the area and a letter from Ma mentioning a large gator nicknamed “Gator Joe.”

The FBI traced the gang to the Ocala area and located their hideout. On January 16, 1935, when only Fred and Ma were at the house, the FBI raided it. They surrounded the house and ordered the two to surrender. Fred refused and both sides fired back and forth. The shootout lasted hours, until fire from the Barker house stopped and the FBI convinced a neighbor to enter the home. No one was left alive.

J Edgar Hoover’s Proclamation

After the shootout, J. Edgar Hoover, head of the recently established FBI, realized that shooting a 61-year-old widow might not look so good in the press. He claimed that Ma Barker was, “the most vicious, dangerous, and resourceful criminal brain of the last decade.”

In later years, surviving gang members, including Alvin Karpis, who was likely the real mastermind behind the gang’s activities, refuted that. Karpis and others said Ma was sent to the movies while crimes were being planned to keep her out of the way. Another bank robber friend of the Barkers, went so far as to say Ma, “Couldn’t even plan breakfast.”

Chair with bullet holes still in it from the Barker shootout with the FBI. Photo: Kathleen Walls

A Tour of the Gang’s Lair

Rumored to be haunted for years, the house where the shootout and the Barkers death took place, was moved from its original location outside of Ocala to county-owned land and turned into a museum. The house is furnished as it was at the time of the shootout.

The tour begins in the living room which has a brick fireplace and natural wood floors with rugs around. The furniture is nice but not luxurious. The place is filled with pictures of the original owners of the house as well as the Barker family.

Upstairs is the spooky part. One bedroom for the Barker boys contains an iron bed and another has a bed with no head or footboard. Pictures show there at the time, there were many cots set up all around the house to accommodate other gang members. Ma’s room is the nicest with a sled bed and Queen Anne type furniture.

The bodies of Ma and Fred were found in the upstairs front bedroom. That room holds a chair with bullet holes that would have been set near the window in the bedroom where Fred and Ma were shot. Many of the bullet holes from the shootout are still visible in the house.

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Silver Springs State Park

For a more uplifting outing in Ocala, visit nearby Silver Springs State Park, the gateway to the Ocala National Forest. It was originally known as Silver Springs Nature Theme Park, the oldest attraction in Florida dating back to 1878, but became a state park in 2013.

Statues underwater taken from the glass-bottom boat. Photo: Kathleen Walls

Glass Bottom Boats in the park take visitors over some of the largest artesian springs in the world with water so clear you can see the bottom. Aside from the natural formations, fish, turtles, alligators and grasses, there are remains from the many movies and television series that were filmed here. Three statures named for Greek gods lurk in the depths. They are remains of the 1960 television series I Spy filmed here.

Abundant wildlife can be found here including many birds like anhingas or egrets. You might even see a rhesus monkey in the trees on the bank, the result of a theme park import gone awry—the monkeys escaped and formed feral colonies all around the Ocala area.

If you want more watery adventures, you can rent a kayak or canoe. On land, you can hike on Ross Allen Island or visit a boardwalk that contains shops, café, an ice cream parlor, and an exhibit about the former reptile attraction, Ross Allen Reptile Institute.

Wading birds at Silver Springs. Photo: Kathleen Walls

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Ross Allen Exhibit at Silver Springs. Photo: Kathleen Walls

King snake. Photo: Kathleen Walls

The Canyons

The Canyons Zip Line and Canopy Tours, opened in 2011, is another “new” attraction with historical roots. At the turn of the 20th century, the area was full of limestone mines. It’s now been transformed into an attraction with canyons, springs, caves, horseback riding trails, and the largest zip line in the country.

Author at a cave in the Canyons.

In addition to three zip lines, that reach 60 miles per hour, there is a wagon tour, that gives the history of that place from the time of the mining operation. There are remnants of the old mines all around the property; an old train trestle, a huge rusted metal door from one of the old building, and even Civil War musket shot and artifacts from the Seminole wars.

Since Ocala is horse country you can also visit the stable and ride the horses, including to the top of a canyon where a sparkling blue lake lies over 100 feet below.

Marion County is one of Florida’s lesser-known treasures, with many historic sites updated for contemporary visitors.

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  Gangsters, Monkeys and Mines: Exploring the Diverse History of a Florida County What once was old is now new in Florida’s Marion County. One of the “newest” attractions in the city of Ocala, has roots going back nearly 100 years, commemorating an epic FBI shootout with a notorious gang that ended the era of gangsters in the United States.

[aprilgallaty]

http://www.yougonnameow.com/the-ahahoob-standard-ghost-nonsense/ Emily traveled to Minnesota to be a guest on her own show! Minneapolis/Saint Paul resident, Casie, has stories about dead nuns and 100% legit wizards as well as a hell of a tour planned. Come find out what local spooky flavor the midwest has been hiding as well as join the ladies on a ghost tour of St Paul where they try to talk to some ghostly Gangsters in a women’s bathroom. #boohaha #yougonnameow #yougonnameowpodcastnetwork

[adventuressclubamericas]

Where In The World Is Phryne Fisher?

Phryne stuck around another week in Minnesota! So much to see! 

While still in St. Paul, Phryne bumped into F. Scott Fitzgerald and found him a bit stiffer than when she once cavorted with him and wife Zelda during a previous visit to the city. Fitzgerald was born in St. Paul, lived there for much of his youth, and finished his first novel in the city at the age of 22. He returned several times and he and his wife were known to frequent some of the city's grander venues and speakeasies in the 1920s. F. Scott couldn't resist taking Phryne to see his namesake theater. Built in 1910, and still in use today, it is the oldest surviving theater space in the city. As with many historic buildings in St. Paul it is rumored to be haunted. Numerous sightings have been reported of a former stagehand named Ben walking the upper balcony with his broom.

The stop by St. Paul Cathedral was for Dot. The impressive cathedral was instigated by Archbishop John Ireland in 1904. Well-known French Beaux-Arts architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray was commissioned for the endeavor and given a budget of $1 million. He based the cathedral on the designs of French churches of Périgueux Cathedral at Périgueux and Sacre-Coeur Basilica in Paris, as well as French Renaissance and Classical themes. 

Phrases can be round imprinted in sidewalks throughout the city. This sentiment seemed very Phryne. “Sending warmth if you’re cold; Forgiveness if you are blamed; Justice if you are persecuted; and Love around the globe.

”The expected location for Miss Fisher Con 2023, the St. Paul Hotel, opened its doors in 1910. Known as St. Paul’s “million-dollar hotel," it has welcomed guests that ranged from presidents and royalty to movie stars and gangsters. Phryne would fit right in with any of them.

A former convent turned well-appointed watering hole? Phryne couldn’t pass the Celeste Hotel by! The last stop on Phryne’s St. Paul tour was the bar at the Celeste of St. Paul. The period details of this former convent and music conservatory from 1910 have been retained in its current form as a boutique hotel.

#flatphryne  #missfishercon2022  #missfisherandthecryptoftears  #missfishersmurdermysteries  #everycloudproductions  #AcornTV

[scotianostra]

Happy Birthday Scottish actor Martin Compston.

Born in Greenock on May 8th 1984 the second of two boys he attended  St Columba’s High School in nearby Gourock.  As a child he dreamed of becoming a footballer and at 17 left school  to pursue that dream, he was soon signed by Morton Football Team.

Before leaving school his acting career began when Ken Loach discovered him at an audition at his old high school and gave him the lead role in Sweet Sixteen, which also starred a friend of mine, Gary McCormack as Martin’s step dad, Stan.

The movie was filmed in Martin’s home area, including Greenock, Gorcock, Inverkip, Kilmalcolm, and Wemyss Bay and was a huge success, which shot Martin into full view of the public and even gave some fame to Inverclyde. However, many counsellors thought that this was bad publicity because the film has to do with drugs and underage drinking. However, Ken Loach then made a statement that the movie was not based on Greenock and Inverclyde - but was only filmed there, as that was where Martin was located.

Martin’s subsequent film career was comparatively low-key, as he wanted to “serve his apprenticeship” with a regular role in the  popular series Monarch of the Glen as  Ewan Brodie. Since then we have seen Martin in some of the most popular shows on TV including, Silent Witness,, Victoria and In Plain Sight. His film roles have included playing the gangster Paul Ferris in the movie, The Wee Man, and as Lord Bothwell in the latest Mary Queen of Scots film on which he commented “Riding about on a horse, with a sword. It’s fantastic “

Sometimes the sign of a good actor is how well you can adapt your accent for the roles, and Martin does this with ease in perhaps his most famous role as anti corruption officer Sergeant Steve Arnott in the police drama Line of Duty, he has been in the series since it’s start in 2012 and has confirmed he will be returning to play Steve in a new series, the read throughs’ started just before lock down started and we shall not see the new shows now until well into 2021. Many people did not realise that Martin is Scottish and does speak with a guid Scots accent.

As for his football career Martin says “ I don’t regret giving up football for acting. I love football and am very proud I played for Morton. But the truth is, I wasn’t going to get much higher in football.” He made two first team starts for the team in the 2001/2002 season.

More recently Martin was last on our TV screens in the TV shows, Traces and The Nest, both shot primarily in Scotland, he has been married to actress Tianna Chanel Flynn since 2016, Traces just finished it’s second series recently, since then he appeared in the mini-series, Vigil and Our House, I await with anticipation on his next mini-aeries, The Rig, which also stars Iain Glenn, Mark Bonnar and Emun Elliot, three Scottish actors that feature amongst my post throughout the year. 

As well as his acting work we will also see Marin on our screens with his friend and Gaelic television presenter, Phil MacHugh in Scottish Fling. The series will see the pair  tour the country and see how it's being shaped by its people and its landscape.  We will see them journey from the bustling cities to the wild highlands to meet the locals and visitors that share their special love for Scotland. I think some might compare it to the Men in Kilts from Sam Heughan and  McTavish, but I am hoping it will be a wee bit less frivol than that, and don’t think I mean that in a disparaging way towards them.

[demitgibbs]

What’s Hot Central Florida: October 2017

Friday October 6

NeiBEARhood Takeover returns to Southern Nights Tampa with DJ JB Burgos and Adult Video star, Fernando Del Rio.  Strip contest begins at 1am.  Admission is free before 11 and $5 afterwards.

The 2017 Fabulous Independent Film Festival, a production of Harvey Milk Festival, will take place in historic downtown Sarasota today and tomorrow at Burns Court Cinema. This year, the festival’s opening night film ‘Dreamboat‘ follows the lives of 5 gay men setting sail on a gay-only party cruise. This sometimes intimate, sometimes frolicking documentary offers audiences a passionate and hopeful glimpse into each of the men’s dreams and political/personal desires. For more information or to purchase tickets in advance, go to: fabulousiff.com.

The Tampa Bay International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival is celebrating a renewed focus on both sides of the Bay for 2017.  During this 28th year they are excited at the opportunity to bring unity between both Hillsborough and Pinellas within the CommUNITY. They look forward to welcoming back beloved guests from over the years and prepare for the best LGBTQ+ festival films, parties and festival goodness ever. The festival runs from today until October 14.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to TIGLFF.org.

An emulsion of fashion and culture, CITY is the signature fashion event at the Tampa Museum of Art that raises funds annually to bring art and arts education programs for visitors of all ages to our community. This year, CITY will be a “fashion event” in performance art style, a departure from a typical runway show, with Susanne Bartsch at the epicenter. Interactive vignettes – each created and styled by a different designer – will feature new looks inspired by Bartsch’s eccentric, avant-garde style and her impact on club kid culture, past and present. There will be a special guest performances by Tony Arias.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to: tampamuseum.org.

Saturday, October 7

The Straz Center presents “AC²,” An Intimate Evening with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen: Deep Talk and Shallow Tales. Unscripted. Uncensored. This night of conversation between Emmy-winning journalist Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen, the host of Bravo’s late-night talk show Watch What Happens: Live and the executive producer of the Real Housewives series, promises to deliver an unforgettable evening. Longtime friends the two interview each other and take questions from the audience in this off-the-cuff, interactive look behind the scenes of pop culture and world events. Tickets start at $59.50 at StrazCenter.org.

One of the most popular and highly recognized standup comedians on the road today, Chris Tucker will make a stop at AMALIE Arena in Tampa with special guest D.L. Hughley at 8p.m. Tickets start at $25 and are available at: AmalieArena.com.

The Parliament House presents PINK, benefitting Libby’s Legacy Breast Cancer Foundation. The event will feature raffles, giveaways, and Pink Drink specials.

The Flamingo Resort presents “Monster Mash” with a ghostly drag show at 11:30pm in the Blu Theater with hostess Iman.

Sunday, October 8

TIGLFF presents The Lavender Scare at Tampa Theater. Based on the groundbreaking book by USF professor David K. Johnson, the parallels in this historical documentary are more relevant today, than any of us want to think about. A movement started with assumptions born in bigotry and fueled by fear, and led to the persecution of thousands of gay men and lesbians that lasted for decades.

Wednesday, October 11

The Tampa Bay Diversity Chamber of Commerce presents their Autumn Cocktail Social at The Mill St Petersburg, which USA Today recently called, “an instant hit” since it opened its doors in 2015. There will be a small plate buffet, craft cocktails and a raffle. The event takes place from 6-8 p.m.

Thursday, October 12

Movies in the Park at Straub Park, St Petersburg presents Some Like it Hot, staring Marilyn Monroe.  Two Chicago musicians, Joe & Jerry, witness a gangster shooting and need to get away. To do so, they land a gig as women with an all-girl band heading to Florida – the laughs never end!   For more information visit GrandCentralDistrict.org. After the showing, dance the night away at the Red Hot After Party at Enigma featuring by DJ Blake Blaze, drink specials, and no cover!

Orlando Pride Launch Party at The Veranda in Thornton Park from 6:30 to 10p.m.. The countdown to Pride Weekend ramps up with energetic performances in a dazzling social setting that’s not to be missed.  Admission is free with VIP $35.

The Straz Center presents The Naked Magicians. The show features magic, mirth and more than a touch of mayhem as these two hot and hilarious magicians say abracadabra and take magic to a whole new level. Left without sleeves or pockets, the Naked Magician’s (Mike Tyler and Christopher Wayne) saucy magic is baffling and entertaining, bringing a new meaning to “now you see it.” This boisterous R-rated magic show strips away the top hats and capes, promising full frontal illusions. Good magicians don’t need sleeves, and great magicians don’t need pants. Price Level 1 tickets include a premium seat and a post-show meet and greet with the magicians. Tickets start at $45 at StrazCenter.org.

Friday, October 13

Get ready to party as Hamburger Mary’s and Pride Orlando presents “Pride On Church Street” from 8 to 11:30p.m. The event is free and features a fabulous list of entertainers.

Tim Evanicki Productions presents “Jeffrey” by Paul Rudnick, and directed by Eric Pinder at the Footlight Theater at Parliament House. He show runs until October 28 with Industry night on October 16.

Also at the Parliament House tonight s “Free Pride Friday” featuring from RuPaul’s Drag Race Laganja Estranja.

Saturday, October 14

Returning for the third year, the Big Gay Brunch presented by Orlando Immunology Center at The Abbey features an amazing brunch spread, bottomless mimosas, Tito’s Bloody Marys, DJs and live performances.  You can purchase your tickets at BigGayBrunchOrlando.com.

Come Out With Pride Festival is between noon and 10p.m. Join the LGBTQ+ community members and allies as we all come together for an unforgettable day long festival! Be sure to visit more than 100 vendors at the Pride Marketplace and Sponsor Walk between noon and 7p.m. Gather your friends to watch The Most Colorful Parade at 4p.m.  Come Out With Pride is looking forward to having a very moving and uplifting parade, and this is your chance to get excited and show thanks to the individuals who have devoted so much energy to strengthening and supporting our community. Shortly after 9 p.m., Come Out With Pride will continue the tradition of saying goodnight with a dazzling spectacle of fireworks above Lake Eola.  With nearly a mile of walkways around the water, there’s room for everyone to get a prime viewing spot. For more information: ComeOutWithPride.com.

The Parliament House celebrates PRIDE with special guest RuPaul’s Season 9 finalist Shea Coulee performing live. They will also feature free parking and shuttle to Lake Eola from 1 p.m. to 10p.m., Footlight Players at 10p.m.and 12a.m. and DJ Brianna spinning till 3 a.m.

The Flamingo Resort presents “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” at 11:30 p.m. at the Blu Theater with hostess Iman and sexy rocky dancers. In addition, they invite you to meet the Rocky Singers form Orlando poolside at 9:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 17

Country royalty comes to the Van Wezel stage with Willie Nelson! During his lengthy, award-winning career, he has brought us some of the most iconic country songs of all time – “Georgia On My Mind,” “Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain,” “On the Road Again” and countless others. One of his recent chart-toppers was “Beer For My Horses,” which was a duet with Toby Keith. Don’t miss this chance to hear the original Country rebel making waves with his unmistakable voice at 8p.m. To purchase tickets go to: VanWezel.org.

Wednesday, October 18 

The Adore Tour hosted by Pardon Moi French takes place at Southern Nights Orlando (and tomorrow Oct 19 at Southern Nights Tampa). See Adore Delano like you’ve never seen her before as she headlines The Adore Tour featuring brand new music from her third studio album, Whatever! This will be an incredible concert featuring opening acts from some of your favorite entertainers. Get your tickets today at TheAdoreTour.com. Doors open at 7p.m. with a meet and greet at 7:30p.m. with showtime at 8:30 p.m.

Thursday, October 19

Grammy Award winner and world-renowned, multi-platinum selling singer/songwriter/producer/director/musician, Bruno Mars, brings his The 24K Magic World Tour to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 8p.m. Tickets start at $75 and are available at: amaliearena.com.

Southern Nights Orlando presents the 10th Annual Blood Bath Party hosted by Kitana Gemini. The night will star DJ Dlux and StudPuffin Hookah with a 10:30 Freshman Lineup show hosted by MrMs Adrien and a 12:30a.m. Main Dance floor show hosted by Axel Andrews.

Friday, October 20

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill bring their “Soul2Soul The World Tour 2017,” to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 7:30p.m. Tickets start at $69.50 and are available at: amaliearena.com.

Saturday, October 21

Nick Fradiani, the American Idol Season 14 winner and (re)turned indie artist, will be at The Attic in Tampa. Fradiani is releasing his independent EP Where We Left Off  in the middle of October. The new album gets back to his East Coast roots with an Americana country spin on modern pop. The first single “I’ll Wait For You” is available now.

The Flamingo Resort presents “Thriller Night” starring Dani Panic and featuring the Flamingo’s Cast of the dead with special appearances by Bobby York and Ozzy Dave. The MC and hostess for the evening is Alexis De La Mer.

The Parliament House presents special guest Sherry Vine performing with the Footlight Players at 10p.m. and 12a.m. The night will also be the official after party for RuPaul’s Drag Race Werq the World, with free admission for anyone that shows their ticket.

Sunday, October 22  

Metro Wellness hosts Big GAY Brunch at Mise en Place. Between 12 and 2pm, prepare to GAY it up in high class at one of Tampa’s premier restaurants for Modern American cuisine.  Enjoy an exciting and dynamic fare, whose flavors reflect the Chef’s insatiable love of food.

Wednesday, October 25

Back by overwhelming demand for its fourth year, ‘Hocus Pocus Live On Stage’ brings The Sanderson Sisters to life before your eyes in this dazzling live-action movie spectacle. Join this trio of wacky witches (Starring Nicole Halliwell, Calypso Monroe and Nicky Monet) along with all your favorite movie characters as they run amuck – now for the first time in Orlando at Southern Nights!

Friday, October 27

The Dr Phillips Center in association with Live Nation present the band Chicago who performs at in the Bob Carr Theater. Hailed as one of the “most important bands in music since the dawn of the rock and roll era” by former President Bill Clinton, the legendary rock and roll band with horns, Chicago, came in at #9, the highest charting American band in Billboard Magazine’s recent Hot 200 All-Time Top Artists. Chicago is the first American rock band to chart Top 40 albums in six consecutive decades. Tickets start at $50.50, and are available at DrPhillipsCenter.org. You can also catch Chicago on Monday October 30 at the Van Wezel in Sarasotta . To purchase tickets go to VanWezel.org.

Ten time Grammy-Award, three time Latin Grammy-Award winning rock icon and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Carlos Santana and his band Santana will bring The Transmogrify Tour to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 8p.m. Tickets start at $66.25 and are available at: AmalieArena.com.

Saturday, October 28 

So You Think You Can Dance, the 14-time Emmy Award-winning show that sparked America’s fascination with dance, is set to captivate Orlando audiences with their live on tour show from 8 to 11 p.m. Tickets start at $47.50 at Ticketmaster.com.

The Parliament House features Orlando’s biggest Costume Contests with $5000 in cash to the best costume! Footlight Players take to the stage at 10p.m. in the theatre. DJ Brianna spins till 3 a.m.  Admission is $10 in advance and $15 at the door.  18+ Welcome!!

The Flamingo Resort presents a Halloween Costume Contest Party with $3,000 in cash and prizes with the winner getting $2,000 in cash. Sin up at the Cabana Stage at 10p.m. with the show hosted by Iman and the Blu Theater players at 11:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 31

The Parliament House features Orlando’s biggest Costume Contests with $3000 in cash to the best costume! DJ Brianna spins till 2 a.m.  Admission is $10 in advance and $15 at the door.  18+ Welcome!!

from Hotspots! Magazine https://hotspotsmagazine.com/2017/10/05/whats-hot-central-florida-october-2017/ from Hot Spots Magazine https://hotspotsmagazine.tumblr.com/post/166077878315

[cynthiajayusa]

What’s Hot Central Florida: October 2017

Friday October 6

NeiBEARhood Takeover returns to Southern Nights Tampa with DJ JB Burgos and Adult Video star, Fernando Del Rio.  Strip contest begins at 1am.  Admission is free before 11 and $5 afterwards.

The 2017 Fabulous Independent Film Festival, a production of Harvey Milk Festival, will take place in historic downtown Sarasota today and tomorrow at Burns Court Cinema. This year, the festival’s opening night film ‘Dreamboat‘ follows the lives of 5 gay men setting sail on a gay-only party cruise. This sometimes intimate, sometimes frolicking documentary offers audiences a passionate and hopeful glimpse into each of the men’s dreams and political/personal desires. For more information or to purchase tickets in advance, go to: fabulousiff.com.

The Tampa Bay International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival is celebrating a renewed focus on both sides of the Bay for 2017.  During this 28th year they are excited at the opportunity to bring unity between both Hillsborough and Pinellas within the CommUNITY. They look forward to welcoming back beloved guests from over the years and prepare for the best LGBTQ+ festival films, parties and festival goodness ever. The festival runs from today until October 14.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to TIGLFF.org.

An emulsion of fashion and culture, CITY is the signature fashion event at the Tampa Museum of Art that raises funds annually to bring art and arts education programs for visitors of all ages to our community. This year, CITY will be a “fashion event” in performance art style, a departure from a typical runway show, with Susanne Bartsch at the epicenter. Interactive vignettes – each created and styled by a different designer – will feature new looks inspired by Bartsch’s eccentric, avant-garde style and her impact on club kid culture, past and present. There will be a special guest performances by Tony Arias.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to: tampamuseum.org.

Saturday, October 7

The Straz Center presents “AC²,” An Intimate Evening with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen: Deep Talk and Shallow Tales. Unscripted. Uncensored. This night of conversation between Emmy-winning journalist Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen, the host of Bravo’s late-night talk show Watch What Happens: Live and the executive producer of the Real Housewives series, promises to deliver an unforgettable evening. Longtime friends the two interview each other and take questions from the audience in this off-the-cuff, interactive look behind the scenes of pop culture and world events. Tickets start at $59.50 at StrazCenter.org.

One of the most popular and highly recognized standup comedians on the road today, Chris Tucker will make a stop at AMALIE Arena in Tampa with special guest D.L. Hughley at 8p.m. Tickets start at $25 and are available at: AmalieArena.com.

The Parliament House presents PINK, benefitting Libby’s Legacy Breast Cancer Foundation. The event will feature raffles, giveaways, and Pink Drink specials.

The Flamingo Resort presents “Monster Mash” with a ghostly drag show at 11:30pm in the Blu Theater with hostess Iman.

Sunday, October 8

TIGLFF presents The Lavender Scare at Tampa Theater. Based on the groundbreaking book by USF professor David K. Johnson, the parallels in this historical documentary are more relevant today, than any of us want to think about. A movement started with assumptions born in bigotry and fueled by fear, and led to the persecution of thousands of gay men and lesbians that lasted for decades.

Wednesday, October 11

The Tampa Bay Diversity Chamber of Commerce presents their Autumn Cocktail Social at The Mill St Petersburg, which USA Today recently called, “an instant hit” since it opened its doors in 2015. There will be a small plate buffet, craft cocktails and a raffle. The event takes place from 6-8 p.m.

Thursday, October 12

Movies in the Park at Straub Park, St Petersburg presents Some Like it Hot, staring Marilyn Monroe.  Two Chicago musicians, Joe & Jerry, witness a gangster shooting and need to get away. To do so, they land a gig as women with an all-girl band heading to Florida – the laughs never end!   For more information visit GrandCentralDistrict.org. After the showing, dance the night away at the Red Hot After Party at Enigma featuring by DJ Blake Blaze, drink specials, and no cover!

Orlando Pride Launch Party at The Veranda in Thornton Park from 6:30 to 10p.m.. The countdown to Pride Weekend ramps up with energetic performances in a dazzling social setting that’s not to be missed.  Admission is free with VIP $35.

The Straz Center presents The Naked Magicians. The show features magic, mirth and more than a touch of mayhem as these two hot and hilarious magicians say abracadabra and take magic to a whole new level. Left without sleeves or pockets, the Naked Magician’s (Mike Tyler and Christopher Wayne) saucy magic is baffling and entertaining, bringing a new meaning to “now you see it.” This boisterous R-rated magic show strips away the top hats and capes, promising full frontal illusions. Good magicians don’t need sleeves, and great magicians don’t need pants. Price Level 1 tickets include a premium seat and a post-show meet and greet with the magicians. Tickets start at $45 at StrazCenter.org.

Friday, October 13

Get ready to party as Hamburger Mary’s and Pride Orlando presents “Pride On Church Street” from 8 to 11:30p.m. The event is free and features a fabulous list of entertainers.

Tim Evanicki Productions presents “Jeffrey” by Paul Rudnick, and directed by Eric Pinder at the Footlight Theater at Parliament House. He show runs until October 28 with Industry night on October 16.

Also at the Parliament House tonight s “Free Pride Friday” featuring from RuPaul’s Drag Race Laganja Estranja.

Saturday, October 14

Returning for the third year, the Big Gay Brunch presented by Orlando Immunology Center at The Abbey features an amazing brunch spread, bottomless mimosas, Tito’s Bloody Marys, DJs and live performances.  You can purchase your tickets at BigGayBrunchOrlando.com.

Come Out With Pride Festival is between noon and 10p.m. Join the LGBTQ+ community members and allies as we all come together for an unforgettable day long festival! Be sure to visit more than 100 vendors at the Pride Marketplace and Sponsor Walk between noon and 7p.m. Gather your friends to watch The Most Colorful Parade at 4p.m.  Come Out With Pride is looking forward to having a very moving and uplifting parade, and this is your chance to get excited and show thanks to the individuals who have devoted so much energy to strengthening and supporting our community. Shortly after 9 p.m., Come Out With Pride will continue the tradition of saying goodnight with a dazzling spectacle of fireworks above Lake Eola.  With nearly a mile of walkways around the water, there’s room for everyone to get a prime viewing spot. For more information: ComeOutWithPride.com.

The Parliament House celebrates PRIDE with special guest RuPaul’s Season 9 finalist Shea Coulee performing live. They will also feature free parking and shuttle to Lake Eola from 1 p.m. to 10p.m., Footlight Players at 10p.m.and 12a.m. and DJ Brianna spinning till 3 a.m.

The Flamingo Resort presents “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” at 11:30 p.m. at the Blu Theater with hostess Iman and sexy rocky dancers. In addition, they invite you to meet the Rocky Singers form Orlando poolside at 9:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 17

Country royalty comes to the Van Wezel stage with Willie Nelson! During his lengthy, award-winning career, he has brought us some of the most iconic country songs of all time – “Georgia On My Mind,” “Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain,” “On the Road Again” and countless others. One of his recent chart-toppers was “Beer For My Horses,” which was a duet with Toby Keith. Don’t miss this chance to hear the original Country rebel making waves with his unmistakable voice at 8p.m. To purchase tickets go to: VanWezel.org.

Wednesday, October 18 

The Adore Tour hosted by Pardon Moi French takes place at Southern Nights Orlando (and tomorrow Oct 19 at Southern Nights Tampa). See Adore Delano like you’ve never seen her before as she headlines The Adore Tour featuring brand new music from her third studio album, Whatever! This will be an incredible concert featuring opening acts from some of your favorite entertainers. Get your tickets today at TheAdoreTour.com. Doors open at 7p.m. with a meet and greet at 7:30p.m. with showtime at 8:30 p.m.

Thursday, October 19

Grammy Award winner and world-renowned, multi-platinum selling singer/songwriter/producer/director/musician, Bruno Mars, brings his The 24K Magic World Tour to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 8p.m. Tickets start at $75 and are available at: amaliearena.com.

Southern Nights Orlando presents the 10th Annual Blood Bath Party hosted by Kitana Gemini. The night will star DJ Dlux and StudPuffin Hookah with a 10:30 Freshman Lineup show hosted by MrMs Adrien and a 12:30a.m. Main Dance floor show hosted by Axel Andrews.

Friday, October 20

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill bring their “Soul2Soul The World Tour 2017,” to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 7:30p.m. Tickets start at $69.50 and are available at: amaliearena.com.

Saturday, October 21

Nick Fradiani, the American Idol Season 14 winner and (re)turned indie artist, will be at The Attic in Tampa. Fradiani is releasing his independent EP Where We Left Off  in the middle of October. The new album gets back to his East Coast roots with an Americana country spin on modern pop. The first single “I’ll Wait For You” is available now.

The Flamingo Resort presents “Thriller Night” starring Dani Panic and featuring the Flamingo’s Cast of the dead with special appearances by Bobby York and Ozzy Dave. The MC and hostess for the evening is Alexis De La Mer.

The Parliament House presents special guest Sherry Vine performing with the Footlight Players at 10p.m. and 12a.m. The night will also be the official after party for RuPaul’s Drag Race Werq the World, with free admission for anyone that shows their ticket.

Sunday, October 22  

Metro Wellness hosts Big GAY Brunch at Mise en Place. Between 12 and 2pm, prepare to GAY it up in high class at one of Tampa’s premier restaurants for Modern American cuisine.  Enjoy an exciting and dynamic fare, whose flavors reflect the Chef’s insatiable love of food.

Wednesday, October 25

Back by overwhelming demand for its fourth year, ‘Hocus Pocus Live On Stage’ brings The Sanderson Sisters to life before your eyes in this dazzling live-action movie spectacle. Join this trio of wacky witches (Starring Nicole Halliwell, Calypso Monroe and Nicky Monet) along with all your favorite movie characters as they run amuck – now for the first time in Orlando at Southern Nights!

Friday, October 27

The Dr Phillips Center in association with Live Nation present the band Chicago who performs at in the Bob Carr Theater. Hailed as one of the “most important bands in music since the dawn of the rock and roll era” by former President Bill Clinton, the legendary rock and roll band with horns, Chicago, came in at #9, the highest charting American band in Billboard Magazine’s recent Hot 200 All-Time Top Artists. Chicago is the first American rock band to chart Top 40 albums in six consecutive decades. Tickets start at $50.50, and are available at DrPhillipsCenter.org. You can also catch Chicago on Monday October 30 at the Van Wezel in Sarasotta . To purchase tickets go to VanWezel.org.

Ten time Grammy-Award, three time Latin Grammy-Award winning rock icon and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Carlos Santana and his band Santana will bring The Transmogrify Tour to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 8p.m. Tickets start at $66.25 and are available at: AmalieArena.com.

Saturday, October 28 

So You Think You Can Dance, the 14-time Emmy Award-winning show that sparked America’s fascination with dance, is set to captivate Orlando audiences with their live on tour show from 8 to 11 p.m. Tickets start at $47.50 at Ticketmaster.com.

The Parliament House features Orlando’s biggest Costume Contests with $5000 in cash to the best costume! Footlight Players take to the stage at 10p.m. in the theatre. DJ Brianna spins till 3 a.m.  Admission is $10 in advance and $15 at the door.  18+ Welcome!!

The Flamingo Resort presents a Halloween Costume Contest Party with $3,000 in cash and prizes with the winner getting $2,000 in cash. Sin up at the Cabana Stage at 10p.m. with the show hosted by Iman and the Blu Theater players at 11:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 31

The Parliament House features Orlando’s biggest Costume Contests with $3000 in cash to the best costume! DJ Brianna spins till 2 a.m.  Admission is $10 in advance and $15 at the door.  18+ Welcome!!

source https://hotspotsmagazine.com/2017/10/05/whats-hot-central-florida-october-2017/ from Hot Spots Magazine http://hotspotsmagazin.blogspot.com/2017/10/whats-hot-central-florida-october-2017.html

[hotspotsmagazine]

What’s Hot Central Florida: October 2017

Friday October 6

NeiBEARhood Takeover returns to Southern Nights Tampa with DJ JB Burgos and Adult Video star, Fernando Del Rio.  Strip contest begins at 1am.  Admission is free before 11 and $5 afterwards.

The 2017 Fabulous Independent Film Festival, a production of Harvey Milk Festival, will take place in historic downtown Sarasota today and tomorrow at Burns Court Cinema. This year, the festival’s opening night film ‘Dreamboat‘ follows the lives of 5 gay men setting sail on a gay-only party cruise. This sometimes intimate, sometimes frolicking documentary offers audiences a passionate and hopeful glimpse into each of the men’s dreams and political/personal desires. For more information or to purchase tickets in advance, go to: fabulousiff.com.

The Tampa Bay International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival is celebrating a renewed focus on both sides of the Bay for 2017.  During this 28th year they are excited at the opportunity to bring unity between both Hillsborough and Pinellas within the CommUNITY. They look forward to welcoming back beloved guests from over the years and prepare for the best LGBTQ+ festival films, parties and festival goodness ever. The festival runs from today until October 14.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to TIGLFF.org.

An emulsion of fashion and culture, CITY is the signature fashion event at the Tampa Museum of Art that raises funds annually to bring art and arts education programs for visitors of all ages to our community. This year, CITY will be a “fashion event” in performance art style, a departure from a typical runway show, with Susanne Bartsch at the epicenter. Interactive vignettes – each created and styled by a different designer – will feature new looks inspired by Bartsch’s eccentric, avant-garde style and her impact on club kid culture, past and present. There will be a special guest performances by Tony Arias.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to: tampamuseum.org.

Saturday, October 7

The Straz Center presents “AC²,” An Intimate Evening with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen: Deep Talk and Shallow Tales. Unscripted. Uncensored. This night of conversation between Emmy-winning journalist Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen, the host of Bravo’s late-night talk show Watch What Happens: Live and the executive producer of the Real Housewives series, promises to deliver an unforgettable evening. Longtime friends the two interview each other and take questions from the audience in this off-the-cuff, interactive look behind the scenes of pop culture and world events. Tickets start at $59.50 at StrazCenter.org.

One of the most popular and highly recognized standup comedians on the road today, Chris Tucker will make a stop at AMALIE Arena in Tampa with special guest D.L. Hughley at 8p.m. Tickets start at $25 and are available at: AmalieArena.com.

The Parliament House presents PINK, benefitting Libby’s Legacy Breast Cancer Foundation. The event will feature raffles, giveaways, and Pink Drink specials.

The Flamingo Resort presents “Monster Mash” with a ghostly drag show at 11:30pm in the Blu Theater with hostess Iman.

Sunday, October 8

TIGLFF presents The Lavender Scare at Tampa Theater. Based on the groundbreaking book by USF professor David K. Johnson, the parallels in this historical documentary are more relevant today, than any of us want to think about. A movement started with assumptions born in bigotry and fueled by fear, and led to the persecution of thousands of gay men and lesbians that lasted for decades.

Wednesday, October 11

The Tampa Bay Diversity Chamber of Commerce presents their Autumn Cocktail Social at The Mill St Petersburg, which USA Today recently called, “an instant hit” since it opened its doors in 2015. There will be a small plate buffet, craft cocktails and a raffle. The event takes place from 6-8 p.m.

Thursday, October 12

Movies in the Park at Straub Park, St Petersburg presents Some Like it Hot, staring Marilyn Monroe.  Two Chicago musicians, Joe & Jerry, witness a gangster shooting and need to get away. To do so, they land a gig as women with an all-girl band heading to Florida – the laughs never end!   For more information visit GrandCentralDistrict.org. After the showing, dance the night away at the Red Hot After Party at Enigma featuring by DJ Blake Blaze, drink specials, and no cover!

Orlando Pride Launch Party at The Veranda in Thornton Park from 6:30 to 10p.m.. The countdown to Pride Weekend ramps up with energetic performances in a dazzling social setting that’s not to be missed.  Admission is free with VIP $35.

The Straz Center presents The Naked Magicians. The show features magic, mirth and more than a touch of mayhem as these two hot and hilarious magicians say abracadabra and take magic to a whole new level. Left without sleeves or pockets, the Naked Magician’s (Mike Tyler and Christopher Wayne) saucy magic is baffling and entertaining, bringing a new meaning to “now you see it.” This boisterous R-rated magic show strips away the top hats and capes, promising full frontal illusions. Good magicians don’t need sleeves, and great magicians don’t need pants. Price Level 1 tickets include a premium seat and a post-show meet and greet with the magicians. Tickets start at $45 at StrazCenter.org.

Friday, October 13

Get ready to party as Hamburger Mary’s and Pride Orlando presents “Pride On Church Street” from 8 to 11:30p.m. The event is free and features a fabulous list of entertainers.

Tim Evanicki Productions presents “Jeffrey” by Paul Rudnick, and directed by Eric Pinder at the Footlight Theater at Parliament House. He show runs until October 28 with Industry night on October 16.

Also at the Parliament House tonight s “Free Pride Friday” featuring from RuPaul’s Drag Race Laganja Estranja.

Saturday, October 14

Returning for the third year, the Big Gay Brunch presented by Orlando Immunology Center at The Abbey features an amazing brunch spread, bottomless mimosas, Tito’s Bloody Marys, DJs and live performances.  You can purchase your tickets at BigGayBrunchOrlando.com.

Come Out With Pride Festival is between noon and 10p.m. Join the LGBTQ+ community members and allies as we all come together for an unforgettable day long festival! Be sure to visit more than 100 vendors at the Pride Marketplace and Sponsor Walk between noon and 7p.m. Gather your friends to watch The Most Colorful Parade at 4p.m.  Come Out With Pride is looking forward to having a very moving and uplifting parade, and this is your chance to get excited and show thanks to the individuals who have devoted so much energy to strengthening and supporting our community. Shortly after 9 p.m., Come Out With Pride will continue the tradition of saying goodnight with a dazzling spectacle of fireworks above Lake Eola.  With nearly a mile of walkways around the water, there’s room for everyone to get a prime viewing spot. For more information: ComeOutWithPride.com.

The Parliament House celebrates PRIDE with special guest RuPaul’s Season 9 finalist Shea Coulee performing live. They will also feature free parking and shuttle to Lake Eola from 1 p.m. to 10p.m., Footlight Players at 10p.m.and 12a.m. and DJ Brianna spinning till 3 a.m.

The Flamingo Resort presents “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” at 11:30 p.m. at the Blu Theater with hostess Iman and sexy rocky dancers. In addition, they invite you to meet the Rocky Singers form Orlando poolside at 9:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 17

Country royalty comes to the Van Wezel stage with Willie Nelson! During his lengthy, award-winning career, he has brought us some of the most iconic country songs of all time – “Georgia On My Mind,” “Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain,” “On the Road Again” and countless others. One of his recent chart-toppers was “Beer For My Horses,” which was a duet with Toby Keith. Don’t miss this chance to hear the original Country rebel making waves with his unmistakable voice at 8p.m. To purchase tickets go to: VanWezel.org.

Wednesday, October 18 

The Adore Tour hosted by Pardon Moi French takes place at Southern Nights Orlando (and tomorrow Oct 19 at Southern Nights Tampa). See Adore Delano like you’ve never seen her before as she headlines The Adore Tour featuring brand new music from her third studio album, Whatever! This will be an incredible concert featuring opening acts from some of your favorite entertainers. Get your tickets today at TheAdoreTour.com. Doors open at 7p.m. with a meet and greet at 7:30p.m. with showtime at 8:30 p.m.

Thursday, October 19

Grammy Award winner and world-renowned, multi-platinum selling singer/songwriter/producer/director/musician, Bruno Mars, brings his The 24K Magic World Tour to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 8p.m. Tickets start at $75 and are available at: amaliearena.com.

Southern Nights Orlando presents the 10th Annual Blood Bath Party hosted by Kitana Gemini. The night will star DJ Dlux and StudPuffin Hookah with a 10:30 Freshman Lineup show hosted by MrMs Adrien and a 12:30a.m. Main Dance floor show hosted by Axel Andrews.

Friday, October 20

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill bring their “Soul2Soul The World Tour 2017,” to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 7:30p.m. Tickets start at $69.50 and are available at: amaliearena.com.

Saturday, October 21

Nick Fradiani, the American Idol Season 14 winner and (re)turned indie artist, will be at The Attic in Tampa. Fradiani is releasing his independent EP Where We Left Off  in the middle of October. The new album gets back to his East Coast roots with an Americana country spin on modern pop. The first single “I’ll Wait For You” is available now.

The Flamingo Resort presents “Thriller Night” starring Dani Panic and featuring the Flamingo’s Cast of the dead with special appearances by Bobby York and Ozzy Dave. The MC and hostess for the evening is Alexis De La Mer.

The Parliament House presents special guest Sherry Vine performing with the Footlight Players at 10p.m. and 12a.m. The night will also be the official after party for RuPaul’s Drag Race Werq the World, with free admission for anyone that shows their ticket.

Sunday, October 22  

Metro Wellness hosts Big GAY Brunch at Mise en Place. Between 12 and 2pm, prepare to GAY it up in high class at one of Tampa’s premier restaurants for Modern American cuisine.  Enjoy an exciting and dynamic fare, whose flavors reflect the Chef’s insatiable love of food.

Wednesday, October 25

Back by overwhelming demand for its fourth year, ‘Hocus Pocus Live On Stage’ brings The Sanderson Sisters to life before your eyes in this dazzling live-action movie spectacle. Join this trio of wacky witches (Starring Nicole Halliwell, Calypso Monroe and Nicky Monet) along with all your favorite movie characters as they run amuck – now for the first time in Orlando at Southern Nights!

Friday, October 27

The Dr Phillips Center in association with Live Nation present the band Chicago who performs at in the Bob Carr Theater. Hailed as one of the “most important bands in music since the dawn of the rock and roll era” by former President Bill Clinton, the legendary rock and roll band with horns, Chicago, came in at #9, the highest charting American band in Billboard Magazine’s recent Hot 200 All-Time Top Artists. Chicago is the first American rock band to chart Top 40 albums in six consecutive decades. Tickets start at $50.50, and are available at DrPhillipsCenter.org. You can also catch Chicago on Monday October 30 at the Van Wezel in Sarasotta . To purchase tickets go to VanWezel.org.

Ten time Grammy-Award, three time Latin Grammy-Award winning rock icon and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Carlos Santana and his band Santana will bring The Transmogrify Tour to Tampa’s Amalie Arena at 8p.m. Tickets start at $66.25 and are available at: AmalieArena.com.

Saturday, October 28 

So You Think You Can Dance, the 14-time Emmy Award-winning show that sparked America’s fascination with dance, is set to captivate Orlando audiences with their live on tour show from 8 to 11 p.m. Tickets start at $47.50 at Ticketmaster.com.

The Parliament House features Orlando’s biggest Costume Contests with $5000 in cash to the best costume! Footlight Players take to the stage at 10p.m. in the theatre. DJ Brianna spins till 3 a.m.  Admission is $10 in advance and $15 at the door.  18+ Welcome!!

The Flamingo Resort presents a Halloween Costume Contest Party with $3,000 in cash and prizes with the winner getting $2,000 in cash. Sin up at the Cabana Stage at 10p.m. with the show hosted by Iman and the Blu Theater players at 11:30 p.m.

Tuesday, October 31

The Parliament House features Orlando’s biggest Costume Contests with $3000 in cash to the best costume! DJ Brianna spins till 2 a.m.  Admission is $10 in advance and $15 at the door.  18+ Welcome!!

from Hotspots! Magazine https://hotspotsmagazine.com/2017/10/05/whats-hot-central-florida-october-2017/