Monthly Archives: September 2015

Little Rock Look Back: There She Is – Miss America at a LR Razorback Game

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miss america axumTonight a new Miss America will be crowned.  This ceremony marks the 52nd anniversary since Miss America 1964, Arkansan Donna Axum, was crowned.

A native of El Dorado and a student at the University of Arkansas, during her reign as Miss America Miss Axum (or simply Donna as the newspaper headlines referred to her) made four public visits to Little Rock.  As the first Miss Arkansas to become Miss America, the state’s Capitol City was very interested in giving her a warm welcome.

After being crowned on September 7, 1963, her first visit to Arkansas was November 1 through 3.  In addition to stops in Hot Springs and El Dorado, she appeared in Little Rock to attend events including an Arkansas Razorback football game at War Memorial Stadium.  Her entourage included the top four runners up from the Miss America pageant.

In February 1964, she made a brief appearance in Little Rock which included a press conference.

Donna Axum spent nearly two weeks in Arkansas in May 1964 attending several pageants as well as spending time with family.  During that visit she appeared in Little Rock twice.  The second time she headlined a concert with the Arkansas Symphony (not related to the current Arkansas Symphony Orchestra) and the Arkansas Choral Society. It took place at Robinson Auditorium.

Grandparents Day Sculpture Vulture: Breaking the Cycle

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IMG_6022Today is Grandparents’ Day.  It is an appropriate day to revisit Kevin Kresse’s Breaking the Cycle.  This sculpture, in Riverfront Park, is located near the belvedere in the park (which is visible in the background of the photo below).

The sculpture depicts an older man (ostensibly a grandfather) being pushed in a wheelbarrow by a young boy.  The artist’s son, Roman, served as the model for the young boy.

Kresse’s piece was donated by Lisenne Rockefeller. Mrs. Rockefeller and Kresse have worked together before.  He sculpted the official bust of her late husband which is on display at the State Capitol.

In addition to this piece, Kresse’s art can be found throughout Little Rock, the state of Arkansas and the United States.

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Little Rock Look Back: Mayor Sharon Priest

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13632023960On September 12, 1947, future Little Rock Mayor Sharon Priest was born in Montreal, Canada. After marrying Bill Priest, she came to Little Rock. She began her public service at the grassroots level when she led the effort to bring flood relief to Southwest Little Rock and Pulaski County following the devastating flood of 1978 that killed 13 people in central Arkansas.

She was appointed to the Little Rock City Beautiful Commission.  Following that, she challenged an incumbent City Director and won her first elective office in 1986. In January 1989, she was named Vice Mayor of Little Rock by her colleagues on the City Board.  Two years later, she was selected Mayor becoming only the second female to serve as Mayor of Little Rock.  During her service to the City of Little Rock, she spearheaded the effort to create a Little Rock flag.  At the conclusion of her second four year term on the City Board, she decided to run for Secretary of State.

In November 1994, she elected Secretary of State, becoming the first woman to be elected to that position in Arkansas.  She was reelected in 1998.   In the summer of 2000, she became President of the National Association of Secretaries of State. After the 2000 presidential election, she was thrust into the forefront of the movement toward election reform. Ms. Priest testified before U.S. House and Senate Committees on election reform. As Secretary of State, restoring the Governor’s Reception Room and the Old Supreme Court Chamber of the State Capitol to their original splendor and restoring the rotunda marble are a few of her proudest achievements.

In January 2003, Priest was selected to serve as Executive Director of the Downtown Little Rock Partnership. She served in that capacity until early 2015.  She has also been a leading champion for the redevelopment of MacArthur Park, the City’s oldest park.

Prior to her work as an elected official, she worked as Director of Membership for Little Rock Chamber of Commerce and was founder and owner of the Delvin Company, a property management firm.

She was a Toll Fellow in 1995, and has won numerous distinctions including the Excellence in Leadership Fellowship, Women Executives in State Government, 1997 and TIME/NASBE Award for Outstanding Leadership in Voter Education, 1996.  In 2013, she was the featured honoree at the Big Brothers/Big Sisters Roast and Toast, becoming the first (and to date only) female to be so honored.

 

Special Movies in the Park tonight: KARK & LRCVB present GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

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MITP WPS GOTGMovies in the Park returns to downtown Little Rock as part of a special “Razorback Nation River Market Takeover” event the night before the Arkansas Razorbacks host Toledo in Little Rock.

KARK-TV and the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau will present a free showing of Guardians of the Galaxy at sundown around 8:00 p.m. Movies in the Park takes place at the First Security Amphitheater in Riverfront Park.

This 2014 super hero sci-fi film features Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Lee Pace, Djimon Honsou, John C. Reilly, Glenn Close, Benecio Del Toro and the voices of Vin Diesel and Bradley Cooper.

Following the movie, Razorback Nation will broadcast “Gear Up for Game Day” (10:15 p.m.) live from the River Market. One lucky fan who sticks around for the broadcast will win a pair of tickets to see the legendary Stevie Wonder in concert!

Prior to the movie, dining specials will be offered at various restaurants in and around the River Market.

Little Rock Look Back: Alderman Angelo Marre

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On September 11, 1842, future Little Rock Alderman Angelo Marre was born in Borzonaca, Italy.  He immigrated to Tennessee with his parents in 1854.

During the Civil War, he served in the Confederate Army. From 1865 to 1868, Angelo Marre worked for the Memphis Police Department but was forced to resign after he was accused of killing a man during an argument.  After his acquittal, he returned to the saloon business.  In 1872 Marre was convicted of stealing money and sentenced to three years in prison.

Tennessee Governor John Brown granted Marre a full pardon two years into his sentence, and he regained his citizenship in 1879.

After getting out of prison, he claimed an inheritance and joined his brothers in Little Rock.  He worked as a bartender at the Metropolitan Hotel.  He later opened a saloon and billiard parlor.

By the mid-1880s, Marre owned two saloons, a liquor import business, an office building in downtown LR, 3,000 sharesof stock in mining companies operating in Garland and Montgomery counties, and he was the first president of Edison Electric Company of LR.

In 1883, he was elected as an alderman on the Little Rock City Council.  He lost is bid for reelection in 1885. In 1888, he was an unsuccessful candidate for Pulaski County Sheriff.

villamarreAngelo Marre died February 18, 1889, as a result of his infection.  He is buried at Calvary Cemetery in LR. His custom designed, marble monument was ordered from Florence, Italy, and cost $5,000.

Marre is probably best known today as the builder of the structure now known as the Villa Marre.  Built in 1881, it is designed in the Italianate and Second Empire styles.  It was built in 1881 and 1882 on Block 21, Lots 5 & 6 of the Original City of Little Rock.  The cost was $5,000.

It was originally a red brick structure and has been modified and expanded several times as well as painted white.  It did not bear the name Villa Marre until the 1960s when historic preservation advocate Jimmy Strawn gave it that name.

After serving as the headquarters for the Quapaw Quarter Association for several years, it was returned to a private residence.  It is now available for special events and rentals.

The Villa Marre is probably best known locally and nationally for serving as the facade for the Sugarbaker design firm on the CBS sitcom “Designing Women.”  Though the interior of the house does not match the interior on TV, the building was featured in the opening credits as well as in exterior shots each week.

2nd Friday Art Night at Historic Art Museum has Joe Barry Carroll exhibit

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HAM 0915Historic Arkansas Museum has a special 2nd Friday Art Night with the free opening reception of Joe Barry Carroll: Growing Up..In Words and Images. It includes a gallery talk at 6 pm followed by a book signing. Enjoy live music by The Gentlemen Jazz and #ArkansasMade brews as our Year of Arkansas Beer continues with Vino’s Brewpub. The Year of Arkansas Beer is presented by the Arkansas Brewers Guild and sponsored by the Historic Arkansas Museum Foundation.  

Joe Barry Carroll: Growing Up…In Words and Images 

NBA All Star Joe Barry Carroll’s story begins in Pine Bluff, shooting baskets through a scavenged bicycle rim he nailed to the backyard shed. In Growing Up, Carroll’s colorful and evocative paintings from his memoir of the same name peer into facets of what he refers to as “shared humanity” – childhood, dreams, family ties, southern culture and self-discovery. “The best parts of my character and moral fiber flow from my family, my people and my early life experiences in Arkansas.”

Carroll led the Purdue University Boilermakers to the Final Four in 1980, graduated with a degree in Economics and was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1980 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors. He is now a wealth adviser, philanthropist, painter and writer. 

 

Toil and Trouble, Sound & Fury, Damn Spots on stage at Arkansas Rep

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ScottishPlayMurder, madness and magic haunt every shadowy corner in the most powerful of William Shakespeare’s great tragedies.

After receiving an ominous prophecy on a blood-soaked battlefield, the Thane of Cawdor and his ambitious wife claw their way to the Scottish throne, and damned be all who stand in their way! Each step closer to fulfilling his royal Fate leads the General deeper and deeper into a fiendish quagmire of carnage and corruption, from which none can survive; not even him.

“The original House of Cards. It’s fitting to start off a milestone season with the English language’s greatest author,” said Bob Hupp, Producing Artistic Director at Arkansas Repertory Theatre. “Shakespeare keeps us honest, and tests our mettle when we seek to tell great stories that demand to live on a stage. I’ve been reading and seeing productions of this play for more than 30 years, now I’m ready to direct it for you this fall.”

Join The Rep as it casts a spell on Arkansas audiences with this powerful production that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

The cast is lead by Michael Stewart Allen and Jacqueline Correa as the scheming couple.  Others in the cast are Ryan Allen, Oliver Archibald, Adam Cook, Courtney Bennett, Christina Clower, Berkeley Courtney-Moore, Brooklyn Courtney-Moore, Heather Dupree, Cary Hite, Robert Ierardi, Damon McKinnis, Joseph J. Menino, Gregory Myhre, Seth D. Rabinowitz, Jacques Roy, Marisol Sela, Kurt Benjamin Smith, Mitch Tebo, David Tennal and Damian Thompson.

The production is directed by Rep Producing Artistic Director Bob Hupp.  Other members of the creative team are Mike Nichols (scenery), Marianne Custer (costumes), Dan Kimble (lighting), Allan Branson (sound), Lynda J. Kwallek (props), Rob Pickens (wigs), Geoffrey Kent (fight director), Mark Binns (composer), Paige Martin Reynolds (dramaturg/assistant director) and Katie M. Dayley (AEA stage manager).

The production opens tonight and runs through September 27.