Monthly Archives: August 2015

And the Baby Chimp’s Name Is….

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Mahale and JumokeThe votes are in, the results have been tabulated and the Little Rock Zoo is proud to announce that the name of its new baby chimpanzee is JUMOKE (pronounced joo MOH keh).

A total of 1,401 votes were cast in an online poll collected at the Little Rock Zoo’s website. Jumoke received 42 percent of the vote with 584 votes. Kibale received 36 percent of the vote with 504 percent and Kgosi received 22 percent with 313 votes.

The public was asked to participate in an online poll posted after the July 18, 2015, birth of its new baby chimpanzee to chimp Mahale (pronounced ma HAH lay). Keepers selected three possible choices from which the public would be asked to choose:

Jumoke – Swahili for “everyone loves the child”

Kibale – (pronounced kih BAH lay) named after Kibale National Park in Uganda. The baby’s mother, Mahale, was named for Mahale Mountains National Park in Tanzania.

Kgosi –   (pronounced koh see) a Setswana term for “king” or “chief”. The baby’s grandfather was named “King Richard”

This marks the second birth for Mahale who gave birth to Kendi (pronounced ken dee) on August 29, 2009. While paternity tests have not been conducted, keepers suspect the likely father of the baby is Kijana (pronounced key JHON ah) the alpha male chimpanzee of the group.

The new baby and the chimp family are most likely to be visible to the public during the 1:30 p.m. scatter feed at the Great Ape exhibit every day. However, keepers note that mom and baby have access to an indoor air conditioned area and have the choice to venture outside or stay inside.

The birth of this chimp comes as the result of the Little Rock Zoo’s participation in the chimpanzee Species Survival Plan (SSP) of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). The SSP is an organization with members from other AZA accredited zoos that makes breeding and companionship recommendations for endangered animals.  The Little Rock Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

Explore the Mindbender Mansion at the Museum of Discovery

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Mindbender_logo_CMYKIt’s hot outside, but there are plenty of cool things to do inside.  The Museum of Discovery has the exhibit “Mindbender Mansion” now through September 7.

Mister E. and the Mindbender Society invite you to enter the wonderfully puzzling world of Mindbender Mansion, an eclectic place full of puzzles, brainteasers, and interactive challenges guaranteed to test the brain power and problem solving skills of even the most experienced puzzlers. Adults and children alike will enjoy exercising their minds as they try to master each of the 11 individual brain teasers and the three group activities in this fun and unconventional new exhibit.

Visitors to Mindbender Mansion will be greeted by the wacky Mr. E., master brainteaser and puzzler extraordinaire, and current curator of the Mindbender Society. He will explain the mysteries of Mindbender Mansion and how to become a member of the eccentric Mindbender Society by gathering hidden clues and secret passwords. The clues can only be found by solving key puzzles found in select themed areas.

Throughout the exhibit visitors will find a combination of tabletop brainteasers they can solve on their own and larger group challenges that require assistance from their fellow mansion guests.

The group challenges include:

  • Feeding Frenzy-Kitchen mayhem is guaranteed in a race to beat the clock by filling T.V. dinner trays (with five kinds of food) on a fast moving conveyer belt.
  • Spelling Fever-Hopscotch meets Scrabble® in this race to spell correct words within a limited amount of time by hopping on letter squares that light up.
  • Amazing Maze-In this version of the classic steel ball labyrinth game visitors must work together to tilt a table in different directions, guiding a ball into six holes as quickly as possible.

Upon completing each of the select brainteasers and group challenges, visitors will have gathered the necessary clues and secret passwords to become a member of the Mindbender Society and add their portrait to the “Wall of Fame.”

Final day for Kaleidoscope Film Festival first year

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FSLR Kaleidoscope 2015This is the final day of Kaleidoscope, but there is still plenty to see.

At 12:15 at The Studio Theatre, the film Androids Dream (Suenan los Andoides) will be presented by Fantastic Cinema.  A lo-fi spin on Philip K. Dick’s “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” famously adapted by Ridley Scott in Blade Runner.  It is the year 2052, on Earth, in Spain, and the final days of almost everything. The city is a string of abandoned construction sites. Everyday there are fewer people and not all of them are human. A sheep costs four and a half million pesetas and you have to spend a lot of bullets to pay for one.

At 1:30 in The Lobby Bar, the “Time Change: Narrative Shorts” block will be shown.  Included are “Lady of the Night,” “My Personal Art History,” “Nothing,” “You.Me.Bathroom.Sex.Now,” “The Last Girl,” “Intrinsic Moral Evil,” “Life in Colors,” and “Devin.”

The film Driving Not Knowing will be shown at The Studio Theatre at 1:30.  Lee, a drug-addled yet sensitive musician, is in love with Will, an ambitious poet. Volatile and intense, Will is hesitant to make himself vulnerable to Lee’s affection. After a year apart, the two reunite for a weekend at Lee’s home in the country. Not knowing how to be free and connected at the same time, the men struggle to find what they are driving towards.

At 3:45pm at The Studio Theatre, the Center for Artistic Revolution/ Final Draft Student Short Film Prize block will be presented. Included in this are “Some Rainbows Never Gery,” “Water,” “Border Woods,” “Plunge,” “Falling Angels,” “A Kiss From Your Lips,” and “Southern Pride.”

The final film is S&M Sally which will be preceded by the short “Bad at Dancing.” These will be shown at the Studio Theatre at 6pm.  When Jamie finds out her girlfriend Jill has spent time exploring BDSM, her insecurities about falling behind in the bedroom push her to propose that they start going to underground clubs. Identifying as the butch one in a traditional butch/femme couple, Jamie assumes she will take the dominant role in their escapades, with Jill as her submissive, but Jill has ideas of her own. A provocative and hilarious ride, S&M Sally details the unexpected journey that happens when your insecurities push you outside of your comfort zone.

At 8pm, there will be a final party with a champagne toast in the Lobby Bar.

Last day to vote on new chimp name at LR Zoo!

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Mom and baby chimpYou have until midnight tonight to help the Little Rock Zoo select the name of the new male chimp.

He was born July 18, 2015, to chimp Mahale. Name choices for the baby were selected by keeper staff.  Presented in alphabetical order the choices are:

    • Jumoke – Swahili for “everyone loves the child.”
    • Kgosi – a Setswana term for “king” or “chief.” The baby’s grandfather was named “King Richard.”
    • Kibale – named after Kibale National Park in Uganda; this is similar to the baby’s mother, Mahale, who was named for Mahale Mountains National Park in Tanzania.

Voting will take place online at the Zoo website until TONIGHT!  Visit www.LittleRockZoo.com/babychimp to vote.  Results will be posted after noon on Monday, August 3.

This marks the second birth for Mahale, who gave birth to Kendi on August 29, 2015. While paternity tests have not been conducted, keepers suspect the likely father of the baby is Kijana, the alpha male chimpanzee of the group.

The best opportunity to see the new baby and the chimp family is during the 1:30 p.m. scatter feed at the Great Ape exhibit every day. However, mom and baby have access to an indoor air conditioned area; they have the choice to venture outside or not.

The chimp’s birth is the result of efforts by the chimpanzee Species Survival Plan (SSP) of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). The SSP is an organization with members from other AZA accredited zoos that makes breeding and companionship recommendations for endangered animals.

The Little Rock Zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.  Look for the AZA logo whenever you visit a zoo or aquarium as your assurance that you are supporting a facility dedicated to providing excellent care for animals, a great experience for you and a better future for all living things.  With its more than 200 accredited members, AZA is a leader in global wildlife conservation and your link to helping animals in their native habitats.  For more information, visit www.aza.org.

Little Rock Look Back: City Director Willie L. Hinton

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HintonOn August 2, 1947, future Little Rock Vice Mayor Willie Lee Hinton was born in Wynne and educated in Cross County.  He then attended what is now the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.

For twenty-eight years, Hinton was a vocational education teacher at the Arkansas School for the Deaf.  He was also very active in neighborhood activities as well as in grassroots community-building efforts.

In 1993, Hinton made his first race for the City Board of Directors.  After narrowly losing the Ward 2 race in a special election, he returned to run again the following year.  Hinton won the race in November 1994 and was re-elected in 1998 and 2002.  In 2003, he was selected to serve as Little Rock Vice Mayor for a two year term.

Long an advocate for neighborhood empowerment, Hinton had championed the transformation of the old Lee Elementary School into a resource center.  Under his leadership the building was purchased from the Little Rock School District in 1997 and opened in 2000 as the Neighborhood Resource Center.  Five years later, the Little Rock City Board of Directors voted to name it in his honor.  The building, which stands at 12th and Pine Streets, is a living testament to his vision of inclusiveness and the worth of every individual.

After battling a brain tumor for nearly two years, Hinton chose not to seek a fourth term on the Little Rock City Board.  His public service to the citizens of Little Rock ended on December 31, 2006.  On February 13, 2007, Hinton died at his home in Little Rock at the age of 59.  He was survived by his wife Blondell, two children and two grandchildren.  He is buried in the Graham Cemetery in Cross County.

The CALS Potter Marathon ends with HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS, PART 2 at 7pm tonight

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RRT HP 0801 2It all comes down to this as the Central Arkansas Library System’s (CALS) Ron Robinson Theater’s (RRT) Harry Potter Movie Marathon shows Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows, Part 2 tonight at 7pm.

In the epic finale, the battle between the good and evil forces of the wizarding world escalates into an all-out war. The stakes have never been higher and no one is safe. But it is Harry who may be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice as he draws closer to the climactic showdown with Lord Voldemort. It all ends here

David Yates directed this 2011 film, his fourth in the series.  Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Maggie Smith, and Michael Gambon return to Hogwarts for this film.

The cast also featured Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Domhnall Gleeson, Clémence Poésy, John Hurt, Helena Bonham Carter, Jason Isaacs, Helen McCrory, Tom Felton, Ciarán Hinds, Matthew Lewis, Afshan Azad, Freddie Stroma, Katie Leung, Bonnie Wright, Ralph Ineson, Jim Broadbent, Scarlett Byrne, Josh Herdman, Miriam Margolyes, Gemma Jones, David Thewlis, Julie Walters, Mark Williams, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Chris Rankin, David Bradley, Guy Henry, Nick Moran, Natalia Tena, Emma Thompson, Geraldine Somerville, Adrian Rawlins, Toby Papworth, Timothy Spall, Robbie Coltrane, and Gary Oldman.

The screening of all eight movies from Sunday, July 26 – Saturday, August 1 celebrates Harry Potter’s July 31 birthday. Special Harry Potter-themed concessions, activities, and prizes are part of the festivities at 100 River Market Avenue.

Tickets are $7 each for single tickets. Concessions will be available for purchase at every showing, and beer and wine are available at screenings scheduled after 5 p.m.

Some planned activities for movie-goers include being sorted into Hogwarts houses, competing for House Cup points, photo booths, and a horcrux scavenger hunt. Unique treats include candy from Kilwin’s and magical ice cream from Loblolly Creamery. Doors open and activities begin one hour before show time.

If you have seen one or all 8, be sure and use #CALSPotterMarathon on social media.

Day 3 of Kaleidoscope Film Festival

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sacred heartsFeatures, shorts and parties make up day 3 of Kaleidscope.

At 12:30 the feature film Naz & Maalik plays at The Studio Theatre.  Next door at the Lobby Bar, also at 12:30, there will be a block of short-films.  Altered Realities: Narrative Shorts 1 will include “Zac and Luc,” “Camouflage,” “Warpaint,” “Midnight,” “Brace,” “Good Morning,” and “Waiting Room.”

At 2:15 at The Studio Theatre, another block of shorts will be shown.  Love/Lust: Narrative Shorts 4 includes “Pretty Boy” and “Perpetual.”

At 3:15 at The Lobby Bar, the Adventurous Natures: Narrative Shorts 2 block will be shown.  It includes “hopefulROMANTIC,” “Caged,” “Dos Almas,” “Tomorrow,” ‘A Little Bit Country,” and “Carpe Jugular.”

At 3:30pm in The Studio Theatre, Director Mark Thiedeman discusses making LGBT movies in the South.  UCA Professor Bruce Hutchinson moderates the discussion as the audience watches clips of Thiedeman’s work over the last several years. Including the full 40 min award winning short film SACRED HEARTS, HOLY SOULS.  At the 2014 Little Rock Film Festival the film won the Charles B. Pierce Best Film Made in Arkansas and was nominated for Best Director and Best Actor (Quinn Gassaway).

At 5:30pm Club Sway will be the site for the screening of Club King. DOCUMENTARY – For the past 20 years, Mario Diaz has crafted his own iconic image as the premier LGBT nightlife king, throwing some of the sexiest and wildest parties from New York to LA, including the insanely appealing Hot Dog, BFD and Full Frontal Disco.  Must be at least 18 to attend.

The Studio Theatre will show Reel in the Closet at 5:30.  Prior to the start of the film, the short “The Damn Deal” will be shown.

Reel In The Closet is a feature-length documentary that transports us into LGBT life of the past through rare home movies of the people who lived it. Many of the moving images in this film are shown for the first time. Many more wait to be discovered in people’s closets but are being thrown out- sometimes on purpose.

At 6pm, there will be a free screening of “Not Safe to be Me” in the Lobby Bar. A bird’s eye view of the issues faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people from the early 20th century to the present. Director Laura D’Antoni examines bullying, coming out, history, religion and suicide through a series of interviews of LGBT people sharing their own experiences. Paralleling the stories is the biography of Miami-Dade educator Robert Loupo, whose own experiences with suicide and assault led him to create the “Safe Schools South Florida” to train teachers to recognize and intervene in anti-gay bullying.

From 8pm to 9:30 in the Lobby Bar, “Reel Journeys: Documentary Shorts” block will be shown.  Included are “A Mississippi Love Story,” “And Counting,” Purpose in the Pulpit,” “Born Wrong,” “First Clue,” and “Stella Walsh.”

The World premiere of the film Chasing Pavement will be at 8pm in the Studio Theatre.  Chasing Pavement stars Remy Mars as Elijah Young, an ‘urban’ porn star who is preparing to leave the adult entertainment industry and start a new career as a chef. His new roommate, Takeshi, played by Tokio Sasaki, is a Japanese immigrant who is looking for a new start in the information technology field. Takeshi, who feels completely invisible in the United States, becomes obsessed with his extremely visible flatmate. Takeshi’s obsession culminates in a violation of boundaries that brings the two together for a moment of intimacy that neither will soon forget. The movie also stars Antonio Biaggi as Bryson Colon, a man with a troubled past who frequently hires Elijah as an escort, but wants much more.

Starting at 10pm, House of Avalon Hosts the Official Kaleidoscope After Party at Club Sway.