Piney Woods Live July 2013

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july 2013

36TH ANNUAL GREAT TEXAS BALLOON RACE THE

GLADEWATER OPRY

TEXAS SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL THE EAST TEXAS OIL MUSEUM AND MORE!

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Several times a day patients thank me for helping them with their health problems. But I don’t “cure.” I perform specific spinal adjustment to remove nerve pressure, and the body responds by healing itself.

“When I head about spinal decompression, I was a skeptic. After one month of using the spinal decompression machine, I was a believer. After Doris Cummings my treatments, I was 100%.” “When I first came to the Spinal Decompression Clinic, I could not sit down or ben over. After a few weeks of decompression treatments, I’ve gotten more and more of my Victor Whitfield range of motion back. I would recommend this therapy to anyone seeking an alternative to surgery.”

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SUMMER FUN & FESTIVALS

“A Artt iss defi fine ed as a p pro rodu d ct du c of de delibe era ate ely ging ele ements in a wa ay th hat appea e lss to arrrang the e sen nsess orr em motions ns. Pin ns neyy Woo ods Livve is an n exp xpresssio on of the h com omm mun nity ty it serr ve es.”

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Seven Stra Se Seven S Strands t and nds of Pearl by Ben Valencia

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Cele Celebrate ebrate eA America merica

by Claudia Lowery

10 0 Fashion Fashio on Inspired In nspired by Art by Ben Valencia

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Kirk Kirk kA Allemand lle emand Photogaphy

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A Solid S lliid So So S Sound und Man

by Dawn-Renée Rice

by Claudia Lowery

feature The Gladewater Opry

by Tony McCullough

Join us this issue as staff writer Tony McCullough gives a historical account and helps celebrate the 25th Anniversary of The Gladewater Opry where Saturday night is still show time!

ABOUT T ABOUT THE HE COVER...

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Edib Edible ble A Art rtt

Our model, Shea Vogel, sports fashion with a patriotic twist inspired by a painting by local artist Jan Statman. Cover & fashion photography by Ben Valencia. Styled by Andrea Johnson and Ben Valencia.

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Hi tory Hist Hi History ory Matters Matt tter ers er s

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Fa Fashion ashio on St S Statement tatem men ent

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36th G 36th Great reat att T Texas exas Balloon R Race ace

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Hopk Hopkins pkin ins County County Dairy Festival Festiva al

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East T East Texas exas Oil Museum

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Liisa R Lisa Rachel ache he el Horlander

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Zont Zo Zonta naC Club’s lu ub b’s F Friendship rien ri e dship p Quilt Qu uilt il

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Ca C Caching acch hing in ng In nO On n Su S Summer mmer F Fun un

by Tony McCullough

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Te Texas exa x s Sh S Shakespeare hak akes espe p ar pe are e Fest F Festival estiv ival al

by Jan Statman

Top, Monoreno, Crystal Spur Boutique, $37.50; Shorts, Color Denim, Crystal Spur Boutique, $26.40; Scarf, Taleen, J & Co., $22.98; Earrings, Calamity Jane’s, $8; Cross Bracelet, Calamity Jane’s, $30; Red Bracelet, Calamity Jane’s, $20.

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by Dawn-Renée Rice by Jan Statman by Dawn-Renée Rice

by Andrea Johnson

by Jan Statman

by Jan Statman by Jan Statman

STAFF Publishers / Editors Tracy Magness & Gary Krell Publ Pu blic icis ists ts Andrea Johnson & Ben Valencia Adve vert rtiisiing Di Dire rect c or Suzanne Warren Cont nttri rib buting Wri rite t rs

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Th he Face ces s off Piney ey yW Woo ods LLive e by Dawn-Renée Rice

18 Artist 18 st’s Wor orld ld by Jan Statman

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Centter Sta age g Cuisi ui ine by Claudia Lowery

Jan Statman, Tony McCullough, Dawn-Renée Rice, Claudia Lowery, Andrea Johnson, Ben Valencia G ap Gr aphi h c Arti hi Artists s Jeremiah Shepherd, Joni Guess, Tracy Krell, Ben Valencia, Andrea Johnson Sale Sa les s Ben Valencia, Andrea Johnson,Carolee Chandler, April Harlow, Kathy Hollan, Cookie Bias, Suzanne Warren, Lori Martin, Shea Vogel

Sign up for our newsleettter by going to our website: Piney yWoo ods sLive e.co om www.face ebook.com/Piney yWoodsLiv ve © 2013 by Piney Woods Live. All rights reserved. This publication, its associated website and their content is copyright of Piney Woods Live. Any reproduction of part or all of the contents in any form without the expressed written consent of the publisher is prohibited.

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How to reach us : 903-758-6900 or 800-333-3082 info@pineywoodslive.com Fax 903-758-8181 100 W. Hawkins Pkwy., Suite C. Longview, Texas 75605

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Publisher’s ETRA ARTISTS Ron Bigony, Budd Dunn, Amanda Hancock, Tamara Robertson, Gayle Waterman, Angilee Wilkerson

July 13 - August 31 | 7-9pm

Ladies Night: July 18 7 – 9 pm (BYOB) Anup Bhandari, Instructor $20 ******************************

July 1-3

IPAD Art APPS Mary Squier, Instructor 10-noon $30

July 1-3

Art The Nevelson Way Amy Brown, Instructor 10:30-noon $50

July 1,2,3 & 5

July 22-26

Digital Photography Sheryl Phillips, Instructor 10:30-noon $50

July 22-26

Digital Photography Sheryl Phillips, Instructor 1 – 2:30 $50 ******************************

July 29-August 2

Introduction to Art Journaling Christy Adair, Instructor 1–3 pm $30 ******************************

Zen Doodle Amy Brown, Instructor 10-noon $50

July 29-August 2

July 8-12

Zen Doodle Amy Brown, Instructor 1-3 pm $50

Paper Mache Animal Masks Jessica Riggs, Instructor 10-noon $50 Plaster Wrap Mask Amy Brown, Instructor 1-3 pm $50 ******************************

******************************

August 5-8

Introduction to Glazing Bisque ware Jeff Hull, Instructor 9:30-11:30 am; 1-3 pm; or 6:30-8:30 pm $100

August 5-9

July 16-19 (Tues-Fri)

Dog Days Of Summer Ann Werline, Instructor 10:30-noon $50

July 15-19

August 5-9

Fused Miniature Quilts Nneka Gamble 1:30-3 $65

Mini Abstract Fiber Art Nneka Gamble, Instructor 1:30-3 $65

Longview Museum of Fine Arts 215 E. Tyler St. • Longview, TX 75601

Gary Krell Co-Publisher

July is the time when summer activities really get into full swing in the Piney Woods. In addition to the usual Independence Day celebrations in nearly every city and town, many other events promise to fill those long summer days and evenings. The Texas Shakespeare Festival brings a group of theater professionals to Kilgore to produce and perform live comedy and drama for us. The Great Texas Balloon Race, with a venue spread over the entire area of Gregg County, will occupy the final week of July. We will give you a preview of both of these events in this issue. If something slower paced is more to your liking, the local art museums all have interesting exhibits that run through the summer, offering cool, quiet refuges from the heat. You can find a sampling of other area events in our “Up and Coming Events” feature, as well as detailed information on these and 200+ more events on our website at www.piney woodslive.com. Today has been a day of decompression for me after two intense days immersed in the T-Bone Walker Blues Festival in Linden. This annual event, now in its eighth year, is a relatively undiscovered treasure in our East Texas music scene. Two evenings of entertainment on two stages bring some of the world’s great blues talent to our area. The tickets are cheap. Even a VIP admission, which gives you the opportunity to literally rub shoulders with the performers, is moderately priced. It’s a great experience that no music fan should miss. Recently, I had the good fortune to find myself in Dallas on a beautiful Sunday afternoon with some spare time. The Dallas Museum of Art has always been one of my favorite attractions in this city, and it has recently become more accessible since they began offering everyone free general admission earlier this year. You can find all of the details on their excellent website. When I consulted it on that Sunday morning, I quickly found two exhibits, both free, that were of interest. DallasSITES: Charting Contemporary Art, 1963 to present, focuses on the distinct art communities that grew up in seven areas of the city like Deep Ellum, Cedar Springs and Oak Cliff. It consists of some period art objects that include photos and video, but mostly it is documented by the “ephemeral” objects of the time, such as invitations, posters, flyers and advertisements. Most of the art, it seemed to me, was from the period of the mid 70s and early 80s. A central part of the exhibit was the work of a group of artists who became known as the Oak Cliff Four. Interestingly, their work became widely known beyond Dallas due to a 1973 exhibition at the Tyler Museum of Art. The catalog from that exhibition, Green, Mims, Roche, Wade, which included “audio sculptures” on four 45 rpm records, is included in the DMA exhibit. The other DMA exhibit is Hotel Texas: An Art Exhibition for the President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy, that features works installed in the president’s suite during his fateful visit to the city in 1963. The collection that was originally assembled from collectors and institutions in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area includes works by Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and others, plus lots of contextual material from 1963. The highlights for me were Thomas Eakins’ Swimming and Charles Russell’s Lost in a Snowstorm. I’m sitting down to write these few hundred words on Sunday afternoon, only a few hours away from my deadline to submit them for inclusion in this month’s Piney Woods Live. After review by an editor, who will no doubt make a few changes to improve the clarity of a my thoughts and correct my grammer, the completed publication will be whisked off through cyberspace to a printing press a few hundred miles away. Two days later, 22,000 bundled copies will return to our office via truck, where they will be delivered to our distribution partners for placement in racks and on countertops across the Piney Woods. And so, they make their journey into the hands of readers like you. We hope these efforts succeed in bringing you the type of information that you want and need. We always want to hear ideas from our readers, so please let us know how we can do our jobs better. <

Paint Till You Faint Ann Werline, Instructor 10:30-noon $40

NOTE

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s d n a r t S of

Pearl

A cookbook of art, memories and the empowerment of women. Article by Ben Valencia Photos Submitted by Amanda Hancock

It’s It t’s a al all ll in tthe he ssenses. en ense nsess. SSight, touch, smell … and you y u co yo cconnect con onnect with th h tthe h aart. he Loc L oca oc al artist an nd educator Amanda Hancock Local and uses us es a sspecial pecial th h theory that helps viewers connect with th h eerr work. work. This theory promotes utilizing all her he senses sen nsees and is evident in all of her works. It is of the om a book written by Nicolas Bourriaud, taken from called Relational Aesthetics. “What I am focusing on is painting giant, closeup moments and items that are indicative of fellowship (coffee, desserts, garden spaces). My hope is that the artwork itself will create an intimate space for the viewer to become an active participant in the art,” Amanda said. “In doing so, I want to actually offer baked goods like those that I am painting up close. So when the viewer is standing in the moment, engaging with the work, his or her senses are activated and he or she is not only seeing the work, but he or she is smelling, tasting, feeling, hearing, and even touching the work (via the baked goods that is in one’s mouth). This practice pulls a piece of domestic arts into the work, as well as the “viewer” (now participant) into the intimate space of fellowship.”

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In a recent project, Amanda has created a cookbook entitled Seven Strands of Pearl. The project is part of her educational requirements with Goddard College, referred to as a “practicum.” The practicum requires that students set up a project of their own using their practice to affect changes in the community. The cookbook was inspired by Amanda’s desire to preserve the memory of a beautiful bond between eight women – her grandmother and her six sisters, children of her great-grandmother, Pearl. “As the book progressed, it became a reclaiming of the feminine and the domestic arts among women,” Amanda said. “As a graduate student (again), I have been exposed to much rhetoric and research concerning feminism. While I appreciate the efforts of many women who have blazed the trail in feminine freedom, I have striven to find my place on this continuum of study. I have learned that women of America have gone through many waves of feminism – from suffrage, to economizing and capitalizing domesticity (home economics), to establishing careers, to bra burning. I have respectfully read and listened to these varying views.”

Although Amanda appreciates the feminist movement and the activists who were and are involved in making a freedom trail for women in America, she is not drawn to feminism as a source for artistic inspiration. “My agenda is one that is more peacefully obscure of ‘I exhort femininity.’ In particular, my artistic interests include feminine rest, fellowship, nurturing and beauty. I seek to capture moments when time stands still and others who are in the presence of feminine rest may simply breathe. Not by chance does my artwork also have an essence of spirituality, an interconnectedness among women who, as a crown of creation and the matriarch of humanity, alone can decipher among themselves. It is the unspoken communion among us that I wish to express visually.” And she expresses this idea not only through her paintings, but in the cookbook as well. Amanda says that at the beginning of the cookbook project, she asked her grandmother if she ever felt like she had no other choice but to marry and have children.

PineyyWo oodsLive.com m

“The threads of their lives have been woven in their predecessors ...” “Her answer was a firm ‘no,’ in an aggravated tone,” Amanda said. “She and her six sisters were given every opportunity to be whoever they wanted to be, and yet each girl chose a life of homemaking and motherhood. Some of the sisters chose to work outside the home but never at the cost of their families. They haven’t lived according to anyone’s expectations, rather, their own desires. The familial nurture that they received influenced their desire to nurture. Consequently, they are menders, quietly knitting holes in the world with their love. They are individual women who have had independent thoughts, feelings and goals, and all of those attributes included their most sacred of their relationships – their families.” Amanda painted an image to represent each sister in the cookbook. “I have painted an image for each sister,” Amanda said. “These effigies are to honor the memories of each of the strands of Pearl. They are illustrations of the simplest kind: an ice cream freezer, a rose, an electric mixer, a pie, etc. And yet, in the midst of their simplicity, is a deep, rich sentimentality that grips each generation that has followed these beautiful women.

The threads of their lives have been woven in their predecessors, and because of them, I am a proud domestic artist!” Seven Strands of Pearl is a cookbook that tells a story through recipes, artwork and memories – all celebrating the empowerment of women. Amanda recently had one book made for her project, but is currently searching for a publisher who will take on her cookbook and help share it with the world. “It’s all about the process, not the product,” Amanda said. “The journey is the reward.” Some of Amanda’s artwork will be on display at the Longview Museum of Fine Arts’ East Texas Regional Arts Exhibit. The exhibit begins on July 13 from 7 to 9 p.m. for a sneak preview for members and their guests. The exhibit will remain at LMFA through August 31. Cookbooks can be ordered upon request, and those who would like to order a copy may contact Amanda at 903-9180528 or by email at HancockA@TatumISD. org. Amanda’s artwork can be found online at www.AmandaHancock.com and is shown on a regular basis at MoJoe’s Coffee Cafe in downtown Henderson.

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The of by Dawn-Renée Rice Tony McCullough is a jack-of-alltrades in the arts community – he’s an actor, writer, artist, singer, and a musician. His monthly articles in our magazine delight and inform our readers with historical facts and fictional stories based on details about the early days of music in East Texas. Tony began writing for Piney Woods Live in 2012 with his first article “Just an Extra Day at the Office” published in the August 2012 issue. “In July of 2012, I was talking with Piney Wood’s sales manager Suzanne Warren, and she mentioned the magazine needed some more writers. I had written some things in high school and college, and it sounded interesting. I wrote an article about being an extra in the movies. I guess it was well-received, because I was asked to write something else for the next issue,” he explains. To date, his work has only been published in Piney Woods Live, but he is currently writing two books – a biography of a well-known East Texan and a music history book of East Texas. Prior to writ-

c ing for PWL, McCullough worked for eleven years at KYKX as a top-rated DJ in East Texas until 2000. “I still do some film work, mostly just as an extra now. Recently, I started ‘Gallery T’ to start selling artwork, which I had previously just been giving away. I have been very blessed with the art sales on consignment so far. Oh… and I write!” said McCullough. A quintessential East Texan, McCullough grew up about two miles south of East Mountain north of Longview, where he lived in the country and attended White Oak schools. “No other kids lived near me until I was in the 8th grade, so I entertained myself by exploring the woods and drawing. My dad was an old time country musician, so I was constantly dragged all over East Texas to informal music gatherings and dances,” he explained. “I learned to play the mandolin at about six years old [because] my fingers weren’t long enough to play guitar,

then [learned the] guitar later. I was never that great, so I stopped playing once I got to high school, and it wasn’t cool to play country music.” As a youngster, McCullough wanted to be a singer but was very shy and unwilling to sing in front of others. “I still get butterflies before every single show and rarely will sing in front of just a few people. Once I got to high school, I got into drama to get over the shyness. I loved acting and soon wanted to be an actor when I graduated, but at that time, you had to move to LA or New York, and I would never live in a large city,” he said. In his senior year of high school, McCullough received a “Best Thespian Award for the State of Texas” and went to Kilgore

College as a theater major, passing up a chance to go to Disney University to study animation. “At Kilgore, I became ‘the Voice’ of the Rangerettes. Many of the former ‘voices’ had gone into radio, so I followed suit at KYKX after Kilgore College,” he explained. Aside from writing for PWL, he is also the front man and singer for the band BORDERLINE. He continues to work in the film industry, concentrating on the Dallas and Shreveport area, and has also filmed in New Orleans. “The travel arrangements became expensive, and I grew tired of being on the road so much. I have recently started selling art, mostly detailed pencil drawings. In the near future [writing] a Broadway musical and a screenplay are also very possible,” he said. “I am working toward making the writing and artwork lucrative enough to make that my full time job. I enjoy it and can work 16 hours straight with no complaints. I hope soon to have enough work to do shows or even open my own gallery. I would like to have my first book written by the end of the year and begin working on the musical. “I plan to keep singing with BORDERLINE, but wouldn’t mind forming a gospel band on the side. I will continue to work as much as possible with charities in our area, especially those helping children,” said McCullough. Writer, actor, singer, musician, artist – it seems McCullough brings a lot of talent, energy, and drive to the artistic outlets he enjoys. As a talented writer for our magazine, he continues to entertain and inform our readers with historically driven articles about East Texas music and musicians who have come and gone.

No matter the medium, we’re pleased to support the Arts in East Texas. “There is incredible power in the arts to inspire and influence.” Julie Taymor American Director

3700 Gilmer Road 202 Hollybrook Dr. 903-759-0751 springhillbank.com ju uly 2013 - page e8

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Live Music

Local Music Wednesday

Daily Food & Drink Specials Billiards UPCOMING EVENTS

LIVE MUSIC WEEKLY!

RAMOTH GILEAD/JUST US ONLY BAND April 3, 2013 @ 7 p.m.

Stop by, shoot some pool, listen CHRIS EDWARDS April 10, 2013 @ 7 p.m. to the bands, and check out our JUST US ONLY BAND April 17, 2013 @ 7 p.m. NACONICHE’ 19, drink 2013 @ 8 p.m. awesome food April and specials!

STEREOTYPICAL RADIOACTIVE BLUES BAND April 5, 2013 @ 8 p.m.

RAMOTH GILEAD April 24, 2013 @ 7 p.m. Č†ÇšČ‡ČˆÇľČ‰Č†ÇľČ‚Čˆ ÇźČƒČ‰Č†Č‡ <ZY & BL_ [X & [X ǜǾȆ ÇźČƒČ‰Č†Č‡ <ZY & CS`]^ [X & [X g 5]T & BL_ [X & LX ǡČ€ČƒČ‡ǚǸ ȇȉȂǸǾČ?

CELEBRATE

America by Claudia Lowery The Marshall Regional Arts Council continues its annual membership drive with a closing reception on Thursday, July 18, of its CELEBRATE ART competition. The full exhibition of nearly 50 entries will still be available for viewing at the Marshall Visual Arts Center at 208 E. Burleson during regular business hours Monday through Friday until the closing reception. Anyone who joins the Marshall Regional Arts Council at the basic level of $25 or more receives a raffle ticket (for each $25), and if their ticket is drawn, they may have their choice of any piece of artwork in the show. The artist’s work that is chosen will receive an award of $1,000. With each membership comes the benefit of voting by ballot for their personal top three choices with an award of $100 to the top three receiving the most votes.

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After the grand prize artwork is chosen by the raffle winner, remaining artwork is available for sale to those interested. In addition to their regular entry, artists were required to complete either a 6�x6� canvas or tile using their interpretation of the theme “Celebrate America� any way they were inspired. At the closing reception, all proceeds from the silent auction of these donated artworks will go directly to the arts council to support local arts and award grants through art education in the TriCounty area that includes Harrison, Panola, and Marion counties. Special thanks go to Sunbelt Mfg. for donating fifty canvases and Lowe’s for donating fifty ceramic tiles for use in the silent auction fund raiser benefitting the MRAC. The public is invited to attend the closing reception on Thursday, July 18, from 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. For more information, call the visual arts center at 903-938-9860.

jully 20 013 - page 9

Fashion

inspired by art Photos by Ben Valencia Styled by Andrea Johnson & Ben Valencia Model Shea Vogel

Top, Doremi, Calamity Jane’s, $32; Skirt, Calamity Jane’s; Hat, Just Add Jeans, $16; Purse, Calamity Jane’s, $52; Necklace, Calamity Jane’s

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Top, Blacksheep Clothing, Crystal Spur Boutique, $44; Shorts, Color Denim, Crystal Spur Boutique, $26.40; Bandeau, Crystal Spur Boutique; Necklace, Just Add Jeans, $26.

Shirt, Just Add Jeans; Bandeau, Crystal Spur Boutique; Hat, Just Add Jeans, $16; Skirt, Calamity Jane’s; Necklace, Calamity Jane’s; Purse, Pouchee, J & Co, $39.98. Fashion inspired by local artist Jan Statman’s “Stars and Stripes Forever” from her Red, White and Blue Series.

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Kirk Allemand • Drums D • Guitars • PA Systemss • DJ & Lighting • Karaoke • Band Instruments • Pianos & Keyboards • Effect Pedals

Photography

2312 Judson Road • Longview 903-758-8872 • www.mundtmusic.com Monday-Friday 9-6 • Saturday 9-5

by Dawn-Renée Rice

Recently retired and ready to take his photography to a new level, Kirk Allemand transforms the photographs he takes of birds, landscapes, and other scenery into works of art through the use of digital photography and sophisticated computer programs.

A

llemand’s interest in photography started at a young age when as a teenager surfing the ocean, he felt the desire to buy a telephoto camera to capture the beauty of what he saw. But his plan didn’t come to fruition until a few years later when he joined the army and was sent to Korea during the Vietnam War. “There was nothing to do while I was there, so I bought my first 35mm SLR camera and started shooting what I saw. I took a course offered in the city of Seoul. I really got a chance to learn

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black and white and developing it, printing, dodging, burning, and all the stuff you have to do to make a black and white photo,” Allemand explained. After the war, he returned to the states, where he continued capturing special moments as a commercial photographer doing weddings and corporate parties in his spare time. He worked full time in the Federal Aviation Administration as a controller in Hobbs, New Mexico, and ultimately made his way to East Texas. “I was transferred here to Longview but was eventually let go from air traffic controlling due to government budget cuts. I went back to school and got my degree from UT Tyler, where I received

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a bachelor’s degree in technology and then went to work at Eastman as an operator. They were changing over from Apple computers to Microsoft and made me the training and safety coordinator for one of their divisions. “When one of the first digital cameras came out, I would take pictures and put them into a program I was writing. It was pretty innovative at the time. I started buying digital cameras for myself and began shooting weddings with film and landscapes with the digital camera,� he explained. Through the years, he continued filming weddings, corporate parties and other commercial type work, but he also began to shoot artistic photographs using digital photography as his medium. “I took a course called the New York Institute of Photography professional course, which took about three years to complete. At one point, I took a trip to High Island south of Winnie, TX, on the Gulf Coast. It’s the highest point on the Texas coast for birds flying from Mexico and South America. There’s a place called the Boy Scout Camp, and May and April is a great time to go. “As I was walking along the lake, I kept seeing egrets flying over with huge branches in their mouth. I wondered what they were up to, so I followed them along the trail and discovered they were making a levee. All around were these huge birds – egrets, spoonbills, and snowy egrets. “So, I took pictures of them and what they were doing, and several of the photos are displayed at Shannon’s gallery downtown. I also took a trip to Colorado and took photos of flowers and the landscape while I was there.� When he really became interested in photography as an art, he bought a

program called Painter 10 and started playing around with it, exploring the different ways he could transform a photo into a piece of art. Between that program and Photoshop, he’s able to use a wide variety of brushes on his pressure sensitive tablet to make a photograph look as if it were painted. “[The program] allows you to set the length of your stroke and how wide. It also works a lot like a regular brush. If you see the one of the San Antonio River Walk at Shannon’s gallery, it took me a year to do. The program lets you just mess with the colors and blend things differently. It’s a multilayered process you go through, then put it back in Photoshop to adjust the brightness and colors,� he explained. “What I’m really getting into now is called HDR or high-dynamic-range photography. There’s a photo at the gallery now of a truck 11,000 ft. up in Colorado. It shows the view of the valley, but the truck is high up, and the clouds are real stormy looking. When you take a photo, you only get a certain range with other types of cameras. The dark part doesn’t show up. But with HDR, you can bring all of the detail out,� Allemand said. Allemand’s photography is inspired in several ways – through his interest with the NAPP (National Association of Photoshop Professionals), past photos he’s already taken, and the images that come to mind, which leave him wondering how to create them artistically through film. A visit to Shannon’s Beading Basket & Artists’ Gallery at 207 N. Horaney St. in Longview gives viewers a chance to see his photography, and you can also view and purchase his work online at KirkAPhoto.com

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BEHIND EVERY GREAT SHOW IS

A SOLID SOUND MAN

S

uspended 50 feet in the air in a bosun’s chair, Jim Stoufflet managed a spotlight on Alice Cooper during the mid-1980s Trash Tour at the Celebrity Theater in Anaheim, California. It was long before wireless digital technology reigned, and communication had failed. So, he had to climb into that chair and take a fearless flight upward during a critical moment in the show. He manually worked the spotlight on Alice Cooper for three shows, and then that thing happened that stage crews only dream of… the star of the show, Cooper himself, came to give the crew a literal pat on the back and said to Jim, “Man, you were on cue!”

by Claudia Lowery

New Orleans was home for Jim during the 1960s, where he grew up within a family of musicians and club owners, where legends like Pete Fountain and Al Hirt played. By the time he was a teen, Jim knew he wanted to be a part of that scene. Although he played some guitar, his real desire was to make other musicians look and sound their best by becoming the man behind the scenes running lights and working soundboards. By the time he was eighteen, he was a stage manager and ran sound for many local musical groups. Traveling on weekends along the gulf coast area, he worked with bands that opened for acts like Charlie Daniels, the Marshall Tucker Band, Black Oak Arkansas, Steppenwolf, J. Monque’D Blues Band, Allen Toussaint, and Charmaine Neville, gaining backstage access to a world of experience. Taking off in 1986 to Los Angeles, he began to work on the Sunset Strip at legendary clubs like The Whiskey, The Roxy Theatre, and Gazzarries. Jim worked the first Lollapalooza tour in Irvine, CA, with Red Hot Chili Peppers, Fishbone, and Jane’s Addiction. During a two year span, he worked shows for Alice Cooper, Tom Jones, Todd Rundgren, Steve Miller, W.A.S.P., Engelbert Humperdinck, George Carlin, Sam Kinison, Tanya Tucker, K.T. Oslin, and more. His band from New Orleans was also being promoted during this time, but after 16 years, the band broke up, leaving Jim with the decision to come home and raise a family. Setting up a small sound company during the mid90s and working with local acts, Jim used this time to pass on his musical knowledge to his son.

Fast forward to 2009, and Jim makes a move to Marshall, Texas, to work in the oil and gas industry. One night, he stops at a local pub where a group of young musicians are playing outside purely for the love of the music. “I was blown away by the talent of these young men. All my years on the road came back to me of why I love live music.â€? Jim first a fan, then became their friend, and eventually began helping them in any way he could. “I knew what they were in for‌ long nights, low pay, and the many pitfalls of the industry. I helped them any way I could: cooking, setting up at gigs, and working sound to show support.â€? So, Jim Stoufflet was finding his way back into the world of music, where his heart had always been. He fell in love with Marshall and its people, especially the Zachry’s: Rudy, Sarah, and Rachel. Jim became like a member of the family as they shared their dream and vision for Charlie’s BackYard Bar, which was to become one of the best live music venues in the ArkLaTex. When he was asked to be the house engineer, Jim had come full circle. Over 140 shows later, he’s still in the “dog house,â€? Charlie’s sound booth, making every act sound great. When Jim was asked what value he placed on his work regarding the performers’ needs, he was very specific. “What I do is very important because I want them to have a great show and be at ease. Their job is to make music. They should never have to worry about anything. I give every band 100%. Every musician gets my very best, whether you are the opening act or the headliner. Also, technology has changed a lot over the years of my career, but there is no substitute for experience and a good ear. That’s what I bring to the show.â€?

The quality of his work shows as performers are known to share their positive experience with other musicians. When Jo Dee Messina played at Charlie’s, she even took time to meet and thank the staff for a great night. When asked if there had ever been any acts that were impossible to please, he said that not all artists are as friendly and supportive. However, Jim is the consummate professional and kept the names of the few he’d run across during his many years confidential, unwilling to divulge their names while maintaining a positive outlook. The musicians Jim met that night in Marshall were Nick Brumley, Chris Dean, Eric Gardner, John Fox, Sam Kilpatrick, and Pap Watson. The Mansion

Family was eventually born out of that group, and Jim moved into “the mansion� that several of the band members share. He’s fully integrated into the music scene of East Texas, and even if you don’t see him, he’s there – sliding the controls, tweaking the lights, and wrapping up mic cords. When you go to Charlie’s to see your next live show, and you like the band, Jim says to let them know by your loud applause. “That’s how I know I did a good job.� Jim Stoufflet may be contacted by searcing Facebook for James B Stoufflet, by phone at 504-982-6244 or during regular business hours at Charlie’s Backyard Bar at 303 N. Columbus Street, Marshall, TX.

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A twelve-year-old boy with his guitar strapped around his neck nervously waits in the wings off the old wooden stage. His first guitar had been a Christmas present from his mom and dad when he was just six years old. Along with his six string present, he had received three lessons from a local seasoned picker, and like the words in a John Cougar song, “He played it ‘til his fingers bled.” As he played his favorite songs along with the radio and his dad’s old albums, he began to sing with remarkably accurate pitch. His parents soon noticed his ability to learn music quickly and had him playing for family gatherings and church picnics. As the audiences and local musicians became more and more impressed with the boy’s talent, some called him a prodigy. (He never says who this is… messaged Tony on Facebook.) Many local bands invited him to sit in at their gigs, but unfortunately, most of the venues booking those bands served alcohol or were smoke filled bars, and the young man’s parents just didn’t believe that was the appropriate atmosphere for a boy of his age. But just as a bird needs to fly, a true musician needs to play. The boy played local festivals, but that added up to just a few days a year, hardly filling the performance requirements for such a young man. While playing at one of the Gusher Days festival in Gladewater, he met a man named Jim Ivy who offered him a long-awaited opportunity. Jim is the owner of The Gladewater Opry, a local live music show that offers family entertainment every Saturday evening in the old Cozy Theater building in downtown Gladewater. Jim explained to the young boy that they held auditions 4:30 p.m. every Saturday at the theater for the show that evening. That very same day, the boy showed up with his guitar and with high hopes. As he played and sang at the audition backed by the house band, Texas Smoke Band, the musicians glanced at each other with that ever so slight “look,” which is more of a telepathic type of communication commonly used onstage with performing bands. This kid was good. Now he waited for his turn to entertain this Saturday night crowd of over 200, complete with mom, dad, and grandmother in the third row. He had found a place to perform on a semi-regular basis with quality musicians and a family atmosphere perfectly suited for a boy of his age.

Opry by Tony McCullough

Celebrating 25 Years of Musical Talent Photos courtesy of The Gladewater Opry & The Gregg County Historical Museum

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G ladewater

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The beginning of the Gladewater Opry traces back to the early 1980s as Dean and Diane Tyler searched for a location in East Texas to open a live music venue to host a family show. Grand Ole Opry type shows were becoming very popular throughout the south, giving amateur musicians and singers a place to display their talents in front of an audience. At the time, there was no such venue anywhere in Longview, Tyler, or the surrounding areas. As the Tylers searched, they decided to purchase the Cozy Theater building in Gladewater. The theater had been built downtown on Commerce Street during the oil boom in the early 1930s. As most theaters of the time were designed, it was complete with a stage for live performance, as well as a traditional movie screen (which still hangs behind the stage set). The theater held 240 audience members and had already been lightly written into the music history books as being the first place Jim Reeves, a local DJ at the time, had performed live in 1949 (for which the Carthage native received $11). Dean and Diane Tyler opened the doors to their new music venue, which was well-received by East Texans. With the success of the Tyler’s Opry style show in Gladewater, many local singers who had previously avoided the tedious task of finding musicians to form a band with long hours of practice, along with the financial burden of acquiring expensive sound equipment to perform at mostly bars and honkytonks, decided to follow the trend and sing at the Gladewater Opry for their public debut. Another venue, The Hayloft Saturday Night, opened soon afterwards in the old school gym that has become the Glenwood Community Center and is located just a few miles north of Spring Hill on Highway 726. One of the musicians hired to play bass guitar in the house band in Glenwood was an Amarillo native songwriter named Jim Ivy. Jim had started playing professionally in 1965 for various touring acts and traveled across the nation playing country music. Jim, his wife Nancy, and daughter Gina had settled in East Texas when Jim decided to leave the road. Jim continued his music career playing for the Hayloft Saturday Night until he and a partner decided to branch off and open their own show in Gilmer. They called it the Big G Jamboree. Jim Ivy played guitar in the Gilmer variety show as they attempted to build their weekend audience for the venue. In 1989, Jim Ivy was offered a job playing bass guitar for the Gladewater Opry. Seeing the success the show in Gladewater had held throughout the years, Jim accepted the offer. Jim said he enjoyed the Gladwater Opry’s variety of audience and the talent that showed up to perform there. He continued to play guitar and act as band manager. In 1994, Jim and Nancy Ivy bought the little theater. They made a few renovations in the building. Jim said, “I had always wanted to play the Ryman (the Ryman Auditorium was an old church converted to the original home of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville) and loved the old barn backdrop set there. I didn’t make it there in time (before the Grand Ole Opry was moved to its new location northwest of Nashville), so I made my own. The “set” of the Gladewater Opry is an old, red barn very similar to the one that once stood at the Ryman.”

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Upon entering the former Cozy Theater building, you feel like you are taken back in time to one of the small town theaters found anywhere on Main Street America 50 to 60 years ago. You pay your admission at the box office window, walk past the small concession area savoring the smell of hot, buttered popcorn and enter the doors of the theater. The seats, although reupholstered, are the same fold up theater seats placed there many years ago. There is a feeling of nostalgia as you claim one of the 240 chairs facing the red barn backdrop lined with amplifiers and tuned musical instruments. As the typical Saturday night crowd starts to fill the room, you will see country music fans of all ages. Jim says, “It’s amazing the variety of ages in the audience. People actually come to hear music without all the smoke and alcohol. Some people have been regulars here for 15 years now.” Jim is also very specific to point out, “This is a family venue. There is nothing here in our shows to offend anyone.” Jim and Nancy have worked hard to keep the best musicians in their house band, the Texas Smoke Band. They are quick to brag about the talent in the group, which some nights includes recording artist Sherry Lee on keyboards and features the very high energy fiddle player, Lacie Carpenter, who not only puts on a show while playing old time fiddle songs, but also earned a degree in classical music on violin. The other musicians include Tony Wilson on keyboards, Johnny Gilmore on drums, Jimmy Barnes on bass guitar, Jim Ivy on lead guitar, Melissa Evans as backup vocalist, and the entertaining Sylvia Carpenter as emcee. The guest performers of the Gladewater Opry, which include stars Neal McCoy, Kasey Musgrave, and a few other popular names, come not only from the East Texas area but from across the state and some neighboring states. One duo that stopped in to perform one Saturday night was touring the US from Australia. Jim and Nancy said the audience is not strictly local either. They have welcomed guests to the audience from China, Israel, Germany, France and England. “It’s kind of funny. The audience here is more like family,” says Jim. “They don’t mind being lively and showing support. The singers and musicians are so in touch with the audience. People in the crowd get very involved and become a part of the show.” The Gladewater Opry is 25 years old this year. Nationally, there has been a decline of this type entertainment and many opries have now closed their doors, but The Gladewater Opry is holding its own each Saturday night for their regular shows. They have also been able to add one Friday night Gospel Music Show each month. Jim and Nancy Ivy hope the little theater and the live music show will survive so that future generations can enjoy the family entertainment they offer each weekend. Jim hopes one day, after retirement, he and Nancy “can come and sit in the audience and just watch and enjoy a show,” but with 25 years of success behind the Gladewater Opry, Saturday night is still show time. For more information about the Gladewater Opry, please check their website at www.thegladewateropry.com

july 201 13 - page 17 7

to a person’s age, state of mind, character, even where that person grew up and went to school. When we were children, a handwritten note or letter was easy to recognize. A letter from your aunt, who was a third grade teacher, looked totally different from a letter from your uncle who was overseas in the army. They both looked different from a letter sent by the junior high school girl down the street who dotted her I’s with sweet, little valentine hearts. Hard to describe how and why they all looked so different. They just did. When the postman delivered the letter to your mailbox, you didn’t even have to look at the return address. You knew instantly who sent it. And that was a good thing. In the age of ballpoint pens, fountain pens have become collectibles. There are organizations and clubs that specialize in collecting some of these remarkable writing implements. However, an expensive writing implement is not necessary or even important if you want to learn how to do calligraphy. All you need is a pen with a metal nib. The nib is what the metal pen point is called. Calligraphy kits are easy to find at craft shops. Most of them include a small container of blue or black ink and a nicely balanced pen and nib. If you can’t find a class to attend, most of them also include a book about how to do calligraphy. Learning how to do calligraphy will give you and your children a friendly and fun opportunity to become fluent in reading and writing in cursive script. Those who cannot understand how to read and write cursive easily will have a hard time trying to understand some of the world around them. I have some personal understanding about what it is like not to be able to read a variety of different kinds of manuscript writing. My father could read and write both printed and script characters in Hebrew and Yiddish. Both of these are written in the Hebrew alphabet. When I was a child, friends, neighbors and even strangers would arrive at our door carrying the last letters that were spirited out of Europe from their lost loved ones, or the names of relatives on old family photographs. Of course, my father would always oblige and he would translate the messages or the names of those lost relatives and ancestors that were

AArtirtist's World by JANSTATMAN

If you are looking for something that is exciting and worthwhile to do with the rest of your summer, why not take a class in calligraphy? Better still, give your children a class in calligraphy. It will make all the difference in the world. So, what exactly is calligraphy? Technically speaking, calligraphy is a way of producing beautiful writing by using special pens and special inks on quality papers. It is an art form like no other art form. Realistically speaking, there is nothing more dramatic than handwriting in script. Yes indeed, when you get past the intimidating name, it is manuscript writing that is also known as longhand, cursive and plain old handwriting. Calligraphy is the fine art of careful penmanship. It has been used to create important documents since as far back as the days of the ancient Greeks and Romans. The ability to create smooth, precise letters that are not only artistic but are also easy to read is not as easy as it might sound. Since the invention of computer printers and the all-powerful use of email, cursive writing has become a rather rare skill. Skills that are rare often become valuable. The result is that in our technical day and age, appre-

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ciation for the art of calligraphy has grown incredibly. Calligraphy can become a fun hobby. It can turn into a business. It can be a creative art form. Competent calligraphers are in great demand because they can create formal and personalized announcements, important certificates, and elegant invitations to weddings, anniversaries and other gala celebrations. Once upon a time, one of the nicest compliments that could be used to describe a cultured or educated person was to say that person wrote with a “beautiful hand.” Pleasant handwriting was considered to be a courtesy to the person who read it, and it was a source of pride for the writer. Of course, beautiful handwriting was always easy to read. It had evenly spaced letters. It looked wonderful on a good sheet of nice, quality stationary. Even more interesting, it turns out that every person’s handwriting is different. Handwriting analysts say you can tell a lot about someone’s personality when you examine an example of a person’s handwriting. The way people form their letters and words can indicate more than five thousand different personality traits. An example of handwriting can give clues

written on the backs of all of those old photographs. At the same time, my great-uncle could make out the difficult old style German script. Another whole group of friends or neighbors would come to his door asking him to read and translate the same things for them. These were not ignorant people. They were all Americans like you and me. They were educated and literate, and they were fluent in English, but they had never learned how to read and write in the foreign scripts. If they couldn’t find someone to read for them, everything they had was lost to them. Since they couldn’t read the unfamiliar manuscript writing, they might not ever know what their letters said. While it is true that computers have taken over most forms of communication, the ability to easily read and write script and the ability to understand messages written in cursive letters is absolutely important to all of us. Once you have figured out that strange way of making the letter s that looks like the letter f, you can read the Constitution of the United States in its original form. You can read our Declaration of Independence. You can read the love letters your grandfather wrote to your grandmother. You can research your family’s genealogy. You can discover your own personal history. You can read about your ancestors’ lives. You can read all the information that was carefully handwritten in church or civil documents or even in an old family Bible. Learning calligraphy is a beautiful way for everyone to become familiar and comfortable with manuscript writing. It is not only worthwhile for keeping in touch with our history, it is also a great way to explore a beautiful craft. Much to the disappointment of the wonderful elementary school teachers at PS 92 who tried their best, I could never conquer the practice arcs and curls of all those penmanship classes. Those wonderful ladies would never understand how I could easily use a pen and ink to draw their portraits on paper, but I could never make the written word look pretty. My own handwriting is easy to read, but it is anything but lovely. In fact, it has always been described as the unfortunate scratching of an evil-eyed chicken lost in a monstrous mud pit.

Jan Statman is an award winning artist whose paintings are owned by museums in Europe and the USA. She is listed in Who’s Who in American Art and many other biographical references.

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by Dawn-Renée Rice Where do you go to buy cakes and cookies for the special occasions in your life? If you’re like most people, you visit the local grocery store bakery counter and browse through a book full of designs that you can find almost anywhere. But what if you have a specific design in mind? There is a bakery in Longview that will help you customize your designs. Edible Art, owned and operated by Debbie Fontaine, provides East Texans with delicious and creatively made cakes and shortbread sugar cookies for weddings, corporate events, birthdays and other special occasions. As we celebrate another Independence Day, Edible Art has been busy artfully creating cakes and cookies with a patriotic flair – from bald eagles to their best-selling American and Texas flag cookies. But their patriotism isn’t reserved just for the July 4th holiday. Ms. Fontaine and her crew work tirelessly to create tasty sweets for the troops overseas – bagging them individually with care, boxing them up, and carefully shipping them so the cookies are still intact when they arrive at their destination. Aside from patriotic cookies, Ms. Fontaine also provides original, one-of-akind cakes for weddings and graduation events. When people order cakes from Edible Art, they’re not getting a “cookiecutter” (excuse the pun) commercially made cake. Fontaine makes it a point to meet with each person in order to get the exact picture of what’s in the customer’s mind so that she can translate it onto her “canvas.” With a degree in art from the University of Texas at Tyler and a love for baking, she makes every effort to create the masterpieces her clients envision. As part of her creative process with clients, she sits down with them and asks them what their vision is and what they like. Children will bring her pictures of what they would like for their birthday cake, and between the child and their mom, she has enough notes to sketch out an original design for the child’s birthday. She also does the same for sweet sixteen birthdays, and as she sits with both the parent and the child, she encourages the teen to color the cake sketch so she knows exactly what is wanted. Afterwards, they can sign their name at the bottom and take a copy home to show their friends or keep for a scrapbook. Fontaine also takes the same approach with brides-to-be, who sometimes come in with a vision of their cake they’ve held since they were little girls. She’s seen a rise in popularity in the past five years of brides choosing the oldfashioned look and wanting her to create vintage, buttercream cakes. Although many of her orders are custom, she also creates her own cookies and cakes based on things that inspire her. “I’m inspired by everything,” Fontaine says with a chuckle. “A tree is an inspiration, like one you see on the side

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of the road with cherry blossoms. I can hardly go to Michaels and Hobby Lobby without being inspired and spending hours looking at everything. I’ll find material with interesting patterns and design a cake based on it. I’ve also been inspired by some of the artwork I’ve seen in Piney Woods Live magazine. I tear stuff out of other magazines all the time, and I have a huge file box filled with all these pictures. I’ll sit down with my sketch book and lay out some designs I like, and before I know it, I’ve sketched a cake.” Fontaine’s background in art and a previous cake decorating job certainly helps her create these amazing confections, which delight her customers. “I come from a background of cake decorating, which I started around the ages of 15 or 16 at Brookshire’s in Monroe, LA. When I was in high school, I was never very athletic or anything, but when it came to drama, I was the one who sketched all of the stages and the backdrops. I also started working at a T-shirt shop in the mall in the 80s during my senior year. It was the kind where you would do the name and then a Hawaiian scene or something like that. While I was working at Brookshire’s, I was the cleanup girl after the cake decorator. “A couple of people needed cakes, and I did this air brush scene like I learned at the mall. The manager loved it and asked me to make some dummy cakes for the display, so I did,” she explains. Tim Brookshire visited the store one day while she was working, and as he passed through the bakery, he was impressed with the decorated dummy cakes. After he found out who made them, he asked Fontaine to come to Tyler and teach at the corporate headquarters, but because she was 17, her parents would not allow it. After six months, Mr. Brookshire asked her parents to let her move to Tyler and offered to pay for college to pursue an art degree while she trained other bakers at the corporate office. “I worked for them 11 years and went to school at UT in Tyler. I majored in art but, thanks to the advice of the school counselor, also minored in business and marketing, which helped tremendously once I started my own business,” she explains. “After school, I wanted a ‘real job’ so I came up through Brookshire’s as the first female store assistant and left after eleven years. I started decorating cakes for my daughter out of the house because her first four birthdays, there was always something wrong – a misspelled name two years in a row and things like that. On her fifth birthday, I made a threetiered cake, which I hadn’t made in nearly twenty years. There were at least 21 people at the party and about ten moms ordered a cake for their child’s birthday. “Then each one of those birthday parties would have around four moms who wanted me to make their cake, so it was a nice little business to have at home and

gave me some fun money. ey. In October of that year, Ms. let Pat from the Longview Ballet ecand Tony Erskine, the director, found me and came to my ped house with a swan-shaped cookie cutter. I was asked if I could make a cookie out of it and package them for a fundraiser they were having. They planned to give the cookies to the valets who would then place them on the dashboard of the patrons’ cars. When se those cookies left with those hone people in their cars, my phone nce, and hasn’t stopped ringing since, that was seven years ago,” she said. As a former art studentt and an artistt in her own right, she’s also actively involved as an advocate for the arts in Longview as a sponsor of Play it Forward. She’s also on the Cultural Arts Commission for the City of Longview and involved with the culinary arts program with Kilgore College. To order a special, custommade cake or cookies, visit Edible Art online at www.edibleartcakesandcookies.com

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History Matters by Gary D. Joiner Book Review by Jan Statman When Gary D. Joiner insists that history matters, he is not just “whistling Dixie.” In fact, he can probably quote exactly when, where, why and how that particular phrase entered the language and came to mean “meaningless claims” or “hollow wisdom.” Joiner’s claims are carefully researched, and his wisdom is unquestionable and entertaining. Red River Radio published his most recent book, History Matters, in 2012. It contains selections of short, entertaining and highly readable chapters. Many of them were first heard as comments on his Red River Radio program, which can be heard on Red River Radio every Tuesday morning at 7:30. Joiner has the unique ability to make historical events fun. He can convince his readers that what happened in the past is important to what is happening today. It is clear that he loves history. He is careful to say that history tells the story of the world. More than that, he reminds the reader that history is the “ultimate soap opera.” Too often, people concentrate on the names and dates of events that happened in the past without considering why they happened. What led up to the event? Who was really involved, and what were they truly up to? Was there actually some kind of scandal behind these names and dates? How did it all turn out? When people begin to consider why things happened in history, they begin to understand how the past can affect our modern lives. Joiner makes an important case for preserving history. He agrees that it is not possible to preserve everything related to the past because that could hinder progress. At the same time, he is careful to speak of the dangers of destroying significant buildings and historic locations or of discarding valuable books, papers, documents and letters. By destroying important records of the past, we can be destroying our ability to recognize what can happen to us in the future. The book is divided into five distinct sections. These sections include: Philosophy, Regional Topics, Heroes and Villains, War and Military, and The Whole World.

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The first section deals with Joiner’s philosophy of why history and preservation are important. He explains that historians are not simply recorders of long ago names and dates, but people who can use those events to analyze human behavior. By knowing what happened in the past, they can often predict how things will turn out in the future. He quotes the historian and philosopher George Santayana who wrote, ”Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” The second section deals with regional history. How did it happen that when Robert Fulton invented the steam engine and put that little engine on a small ship called the Clermont on the Hudson River in New York that his invention would eventually bring goods and settlers through Jefferson, Texas, to all points west? Who would have thought that when Henry Shreve and the Army Corps of Engineers opened the Great Raft log jam on the Red River, the great and mighty river port of Jefferson would dry up and become a tourist attraction while the open cotton fields of the Chalk Level plantation would become Barksdale Air Force Base. Joiner’s section on heroes and villains records both the good and the bad. He tells stories about people who turned out to be both, including C.C. Antoine, Louis St. Denis, General Nathaniel P. Banks, Robert E. Lee, and of course, the Long brothers of Louisiana. Louisiana governor Huey Long was famous for building roads and bridges. His less known and possibly more important accomplishment was in providing free textbooks for all school children in his state. Free textbooks made it possible for poor children whose families could not afford to buy textbooks for them to go to school. By getting an education, these children were able to better their own lives and the lives of people in the Texas and Louisiana area. Even though he is best known for his outrageous behavior, Huey’s brother Earl Long not only continued highway and construction programs, he estab-

lished vocational and technical schools, and he bravely fought for civil rights at a time when that was not always a popular cause. The section on war and the military begins with a chapter about why it is important to study military history. The section includes chapters about individuals like General Richard Taylor, hero of the Red River campaign. It also includes such interesting information about how the Roman legions, the basic ancient Roman army unit, not only perfected the military model and set the stage for warfare of the future, but at the same time carried forward the ideas of Roman civilization that are reflected in most parts of the western world. In writing about the wider world, Joiner explains how the changes in the earth’s formation over thousands of years has had an effect on civilization and the people who settled in different areas of the world at different times. He begins with opinions about the Middle East and then explains why the architecture of the pre-Roman Etruscans, who lived in the Tuscan hill country of Italy, can still be seen in Mediterranean style houses in America and why Etruscan law still forms the basis of modern commercial codes. There is a chapter on the War of 1812. There are slave narratives, and there is a most amazing chapter on The Wizard of Oz. Generations of people know the book and the movie as a much loved children’s fairy tale. How many know that Baum actually wrote it as an allegory for political events of the 1890s?

Joiner and his wife Marilyn live in Shreveport where he is a member of the faculty of the Department of History and Social Sciences at Louisiana State University. He also serves as director of the Red River Regional Studies Center at the university. Not only is he a regional historical and archaeological expert, he has been a consultant for television projects that include the history of the Red River. He has also appeared as a panelist/expert on MSNBC. Author of several books, Joiner is a popular speaker on military history issues for Civil War forums and study groups. He and his wife are founders of the Friends of the Mansfield Battlefield, dedicated to preservation of battle sites of the Red River Campaign. He has edited the Journal of the North Louisiana Historical Association and was president of the DeSoto Parish Historical Society. An expert on maps, he owns a professional cartography firm that provides governmental mapping and historical consultation to governmental agencies. He has provided maps for numerous scholarly publications and has developed geographic information systems (GIS) for civil war projects, which include the mapping of Vicksburg National Military Park and mapping projects for the Civil War Preservation Trust. His community service activities have included the local board of directors of the U.S. Civil War Center at LSU in Baton Rouge and the presidency of the Civil War Roundtable of North Louisiana. Contact the author at gdjoiner@bell south.net

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FASHION STATEMENT by Dawn-Renée Rice

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any people might think fashion and art don’t mix, but it can and it does. If you’ve read recent issues of our magazine, you’ve seen how we’ve taken inspiration from local artists and showcased jewelry and clothing options based off the color or theme of their artwork. But there are other ways to mix fashion and art and include America’s favorite past time – baseball. Stephanie Buchanan, a local Hallsville resident, sells bracelets and flip-flops made or adorned with the leather from used baseballs, and they are becoming a huge hit. It first started with bracelets; she got the idea almost two years ago when she spotted a leather bracelet made from a baseball which sold for a higher price than she was willing to pay. “My son Cace is on two different baseball teams and plays year round baseball. I saw a bracelet made with just the leather – no decoration or anything on it – but [the store] wanted $45.00 for it. If I think I can make it instead of paying for it, then I will. So, I made one for me and a lady bought it off my arm at a ball game. I kept getting orders for them, and then a girl told me she wanted flip-flops,” she explained. “I kept telling her no, but she kept insisting on it, so after several months, I started practicing with it and figuring out how to make them. I made a prototype and from there, it just went crazy. I’ve sent orders to Indiana and went to a Little League World Series game in Mississippi where I sold out of everything I had.”

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Buchanan spends her time at her son’s ball games stripping the leather from the baseballs and re-stitching them. She does everything by hand, and whenever she’s sitting somewhere or finds free time, she’s working. Once the leather is ready to be fashioned into a bracelet or flipflop, she adds the adornment. “I buy old jewelry wherever I am – garage sales, thrift stores, and places like that. If I like it, I buy it. I have it all laid out on my dining room table – which is no longer a dining room table, of course – and put things together. I make bracelets with school themes, like a bobcat paw for Hallsville, and a lot of ideas come from customers trying to push me out of my comfort zone. I had a lady recently ask me to dye the leather pink and do black stitching and add a black paw. She has a cat rescue place, so she wanted the name of the business painted on it as well,” she said. “I have more custom orders for flipflops, but the bracelets I make ahead of time and sell them to places like Purple Passion Boutique in Hallsville, where they resell them. I create them with used baseballs so they’re distressed, but glue them to brandnew flip-flops. I can use new baseballs if someone asks me to, but usually, the ones I’ve used have been through a few practices. I buy boxes of balls that have been used at my son’s practices and then start ripping them apart to make the bracelets and flipflops,” she explained. Buchanan also makes her fashion accessories for people by using their child’s homerun baseball and sometimes uses football leather, but finds it more challenging than baseball leather. “I can make bracelets without a brooch; emboss the child’s name and jersey number on it. I also know a girl who was hit with a ball from a Texas Ranger’s baseball game, and she brought it to me along with her grandmother’s brooch, and I made a bracelet for her,” she said. Like most artistic people, Buchanan is always looking for inspiration and finds herself waking up in the middle of the night with a vision of something to create. “I have one of those minds that if I’m not working

on something, I’m always thinking of something – like waking up in the middle of the night dreaming of something, and I have to try to figure out how to make it. So, I constantly have to have a project – whether it’s making something or painting something. I paint furniture, artwork, murals, nurseries

for babies, and that kind of stuff,” she explained. Her creative “Americana” style fashion accessories can be bought by going to www. etsy.com/shop/FleamarketFunky and from the Purple Passion Boutique in Hallsville located at 204 Renaissance Street.

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his year will mark the 36th year of the Great Texas Balloon Race, but this year, Longview and East Texas will have a full week of high-flying balloons in the sky because the Balloon Federation of America’s Hot Air Competition Division holds the United States National Championship race in conjunction with the event. An early morning practice flight will be on Monday, July 22, for the National Championship competitors. Competitive flights for the National event will start Tuesday and continue each morning through Sunday, July 28. The Great Texas Balloon Race will join the ongoing competition on Friday, July 26, and go through Sunday, July 28. After the Friday morning flight over Longview, the festival for the balloon races will open at 4 p.m. at East Texas Regional Airport. Ten special shape balloons will grace the 2013 Great Texas Balloon Race at the East Texas Regional Airport in Longview. Bringing back some of the favorites from years past and adding exciting new shapes, the Special Shapes Spectacular at 8:15 p.m. both Friday and Saturday nights will be full of family fun and excitement. Special Shapes will inflate each evening before the competition balloons at the Balloon Glow to allow families to enjoy these whimsical balloons up close. New this year to the Great Texas Balloon Race is The Old Lady in the Shoe, a huge boot shaped balloon with the likeness of the old lady’s children dangling from shoe laces. Hummingbird is also making its debut at the race.

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Returning to the race this year will be a family of favorites. The Little Bees, Joey and Lilly and their Little One, Joelly, will be back for the third year. These whimsical characters are always entertaining as they dance, hug and kiss their way across the sky. Also returning is the gigantic Arky, a likeness of Noah’s Ark. Gumball, Coco the Clown, Betty Jean the Butterfly and Ham-let will also be entertaining the crowds. The 2013 Great Texas Balloon Race will run July 26-28, 2013, at the East Texas Regional Airport. Known as the longest running hot-air balloon event in Texas, The Great Texas Balloon Race began in 1978. It is a Balloon Federation of America sanctioned race and produces the State of Texas Champion and a Special Shapes Champion. As always, the Great Texas Balloon Race festival will have live concerts both Friday and Saturday nights. This year will feature Cody Canada & the Departed on Friday, and the legendary Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers on Saturday. No GTBR festival would be complete without the fantastic Balloon Glows, which nightly entertain crowds with an awesome display of color and excitement. Understandably, they have become one of the most popular things to do at the event, even allowing the public to get up close and watch how balloons are inflated and operated. Kids Land is a safe and restricted area for children, which requires a small separate entry fee. Activities and attractions differ from year to year, but it is always a fun time. Vendors display their arts, crafts and other merchandise in booths lined up along an improvised midway. Food vendors make sure there is always enough to eat and drink during the day and evening. Considered by many of the competing pilots to be the best run event on the circuit, the Great Texas Balloon Race earned Longview the official designation as “The Balloon Capital of Texas” by the Governor of Texas in 1985. And this year, Gregg County was named the Balloon Race Capital of Texas by the 83rd Legislature of Texas. All competitive flights, Tuesday through Friday, will take place and be viewable over the City of Longview and parts of Gregg County (not at the East Texas Regional Airport). Each morning the flight launch and targets will be determined based on prevailing winds.

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It’s a hot June day, and I’m on the road. I pass through th small town of the Quitman, over the bridge of f l L k peaceful Lake Fork, and arrive in front of a sign that says “Welcome to Sulphur Springs.� I glance up and see a sea of colors and floating apparitions, but they aren’t scary. They are beautiful masses filled with hot air just floating and gliding above the horizon. People are gathered on the streets and pulled over in their vehicles watching in amazement. Most would ask what in the world is going on in this bustling, historical town? But I had found out about this hidden jewel weeks prior while attending a concert in the new and revamped historic area of downtown Sulphur Springs. I had arrived at the annual Hopkins County Dairy Festival. Early settlers came to this land of opportunity with a family milk cow fastened to the back of the wagon to provide the family with milk, butter and cheese. She sustained our forefathers and built a foundation that has lasted. We can only imagine the hardships that fresh churned butter, milk in the sistern and hand cranked ice cream assuaged as the settlers looked forward to a better life. p The Hopkins Countyy Dairyy Festival is n annual ann nnual an

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ccelebration ell of the rich heritage of Hopkins Co o County. The economic development of the ind industry was boosted when the Carnatio tion Milk Company began operations in SSulphur Su u Springs back in the 1930s, provvi id viding an economic outlet for commercial pro pr r production of milk and dairy products that continues to be the county’s number one agriculture enterprise. The festival is a tribute to the area’s hard-working dairy farmers and their families, who contribute to their local economy and quality of life in Hopkins County. The Hopkins County Dairy Festival, which began in 1959, has observed its Golden Anniversary and is now working on its second half century as talented young ladies compete for the crown of Hopkins County Dairy Festival Queen, hot air balloons grace the skies, and cows are still hand milked beneath the shade trees in the milking contest. The Dairy Festival Parade winds its way down the streets, prepping the community for the naming of the new queen on coronation night. One of the favorite activities at the festival is the State Champion Homemade Ice Cream Contest. It brings folks from all over to sample everyone’s favorite summer treat and decide who is the best ice cream maker in the county! The history of the festival is very intriguing, but I also discovered that Sulphur Springs is a hidden jewel buried in the rou rough of the tall piney woods, lakes, an fields of East Texas. The commuand n t is friendly and welcoming, supni nity po p o porting local artists and musicians. T They want to see their town grow. F From revamping their downtown, i in including a splash pad and weekly a activities on the square, to creating a insane bathroom experience, an and yes, I did say bathroom experience. Featured on television travel shows, Sulphur Springs is the proud home of what I call “the glass house bathrooms.� Each one is a box made up of oneway mirrors, and the best part is, nothing is visible from the

outside in, just from the inside out. These cubes of “weirdness� are quite beautiful in appearance and very functional. Not only has this community come together to beautify their quaint town, but they are also creating more music venues and galleries. They are opening unique shops and restaurants that can only be found hidden in the corners and streets of Sulphur Springs. Finding the Dairy Festival was just an added bonus. For more information on the Hopkins County Dairy Festival, you can go to www.hopkinscountydairyfestival.com

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A Step Back in Time to the

EAST TEXAS OIL MUSEUM by Jan Statman The East Texas Oil Museum is easy to find. It is located at Highway 259 and Ross Street at 1100 Broadway Blvd. in Kilgore. Just look for the old-time 1930s style wooden drilling rig towering outside in the sunlight on the Kilgore College campus. There is a huge mural that is seen through the big plate glass front windows welcoming visitors inside. The mural is based on a famous oilfield picture of wildcatter C.M. “Dad” Joiner shaking the hand of geologist Doc Lloyd while H.L. Hunt, wearing his dapper straw hat, and several other men stand by. They are in front of the Daisy Bradford No. 3 discovery well. It also includes life-sized portraits of famous oilmen and scenes of early oil production, where men worked hard to wrestle “black gold” from the earth. The museum offers interesting displays and TV monitors that give a brief story of the oil museum. A life-size statue of H.L. Hunt dominates an entire room. He was the successful oilman who founded the company that originally financed the museum and made it possible to open the doors during the Kilgore Centennial Celebration in 1980. Walls are filled with fascinating posters, portraits, oilfield photographs, cityscapes and panels of information. A large upright radio of the sort that dominated everybody’s living room in the 1930s is filled with the living voices of oilfield pioneers. It is possible to simply push a button and hear the story told by a mother who raised her children in an oilfield tent. Listen to the voices of roughnecks, drillers, riggers, storekeepers, and law officers. They tell exactly what life was like in the oilfield because they lived it, and they remembered it well. A gospel hymn plays softly from a display that includes a stained glass window, a hymnal, a prayer book, a candelabra and other religious artifacts donated by Kilgore residents to honor the various religious organizations that prospered in the rough, and often wild, oil towns. While thinking of hearth and home, a wood burning stove and a pantry cabinet are displayed with exactly the right kind of kitchen utensils, pots and pans, and dishes a mother wearing her frilly apron might have used to prepare meals for her family. A shiny, black luxury automobile with white wall tires is typical of the era. It sits on a pedestal at a reproduction of the Gladewater gas station, where authentic gas pumps and gas station signs lead the way to what was once considered to be the latest advances in automotive progress. The museum’s mission statement says, “The East Texas oil museum at Kilgore College is a tribute to the independent oil producers and wildcatters, to the men and women who dared to dream as they pursued the fruits of free enterprise.” After hearing the voices of oilfield pioneers and seeing the Hunt sculpture, the photos and memorabilia, the diorama, and the other interesting items, an unassuming doorway in the corner of the exhibit hall looks for all the world like the entry door to a moderate-sized home. Stepping over the threshold causes visitors to gasp with surprise. This particular doorway is actually a time machine. Open the door and be instantly transported into Boomtown, USA. The time is the 1930s. The street is filled with mud. A mule wagon is overflowing with household goods. A truck is loaded with supplies. A bright red roadster revs its engine, trying desperately to free itself. All of them are all stuck in the thick deep mud. The grey and ominous cloud-filled sky overhead still threatens rain. Remember, it rained forty days and forty nights that first year of the oil boom. Be careful not to step in the mud. Walk carefully but quickly along sidewalks that are often wooden, sometimes cement, but are always uneven. Go directly down the street

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to the movie theater. Don’t be fooled by the lady in the ticket booth. She will let you in without having to buy a ticket. The dusty, narrow lobby with its boldly printed carpet brings back images of downtown Saturday matinees. Even the movie posters take visitors back in time. Coming attractions will always feature Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. The theater seats are wooden and may be a bit narrow for twenty-first century moviegoers. No need to worry about what’s playing. It is always the same movie. It is the story of Kilgore and the story of the oil boom. Kilgore was founded in 1872 when the International Great Northern railroad completed the first phase of the line between Palestine and Longview. The town was built on land sold to the railroad by Constantine Buckley Kilgore, who gave it his name. By 1885, the population had reached two hundred fifty. By 1929, the bustling city had two banks, several retail businesses, and one thousand people. Many of them were cotton farmers. But then the cotton crop failed, bringing disaster. If that wasn’t bad enough, the Great Depression hit. Businesses that once were prosperous were shuttered. By 1930, the population was reduced to only four hundred. Kilgore was headed toward becoming a ghost town. But that disaster did not happen. On October 3, 1930, wildcatter Columbus M. “Dad” Joiner struck oil. The Daisy Bradford No. 3 came in a gusher in Turnertown near Henderson. The discovery of the vast East Texas oilfield brought on an oil boom. Kilgore was immediately transformed into a bustling boomtown. The population increased to more than twelve thousand almost overnight, and Kilgore’s skyline was suddenly crowded with oil derricks. As moviegoers settle back into their seats, they will notice a display rise up from the ground in front of the screen. Lights flash on to map the Black Giant, the great East Texas oilfield. The documentary film begins. Black and white photos show life during the boom era while the voice-over explains the experience. The curtains part as the screen widens. Actors explain the good and bad. They tell stories about the deep, black mud, the hot oil, and the crime wave that brought famous Texas Ranger “Lone Wolf” Gonzaullas and his partner Bob Goss into town. Visitors should be prepared for a surprise. The film ends by simulating the ground-shaking experience of a 1930s oil well bringing in a blowout gusher. Once back out on the busy street, it is possible to stroll leisurely through a time and place that has passed. Screen doors swing open to reveal a busy newspaper office with printing presses, typewriters and the typical clutter of paper and ink. Inside another screen door, a perfectly ordered pharmacy is complete with a marble topped soda fountain, a jukebox that plays big band sounds, and a wall of patent medicines. The post office displays boxes that wait for letters from home. The figures in the well-outfitted barber shop actually breathe as they discuss the day’s events. Roughnecks forever wrangle a drill stem in the oil field equipment company building. A video that tells how an oil well works is found inside a piece of pipeline pipe. A blacksmith is busy in his shop welding oilfield machinery. A water pump with a gourd dipper is just beyond the blacksmith shop, waiting for a hard-working roustabout or roughneck to take a welcome sip on a hot and humid day. The next stop is a journey to the center of the earth in an elevator, and this is no ordinary elevator ride. Once the rickety metal doors close shut, the elevator starts to shake and rattle for the “dangerous” trip. A window shows the different strata as the elevator begins its journey down. When a faded, red velvet curtain opens, two smart-talking marionettes become the guides for this particular trip. The elevator “travels” 3,800 feet below the earth’s surface

to where oil deposits lie. The puppets offer a short geology course. They tell about the layers of the earth under the museum and under the oilfield. They are interrupted by a drill bit that drops into their scene just as they explain the earth formations where oil production is found. They become alarmed. “We better get out’a here!” they shout. The elevator shakes and rattles. The different strata of the earth zoom past. It propels itself back to the surface and the metal doors clatter open. Strolling down the street past the big mules and past the mud, the latest exhibit is the Rural Electric Association lineman who is working at the top of a utility pole. When he pauses in his work to look down, he talks about how the Rural Electric Association came to East Texas to provide electricity for the oil boomtowns. Before that, people had to work by gaslight and cook over wood stoves. Each time a visitor sees him, he will have something different to say. The boxes of fruit and vegetables that sit outside the general store feature the remarkably low prices of the 1930s. Here again, a screen door leads carefully back into yesterday. The fully stocked store is typical of the time and place. Before the days of credit cards, a ledger box behind the wide, oak counter lists family names and what is owed for purchases. Canned goods line the shelves. A big, red coffee grinder stands ready to grind coffee. Ladies’ and gentlemen’s clothing is displayed. Toys and dolls are carefully arranged. Lace trimmed tablecloths, napkins, hats and costume jewelry are tucked away in display cases. Useful items hang from the ceiling. There is farm equipment. There are tables, chairs and even a coffin. The general store is the place to find everything one might need for life in a boomtown. Although the East Texas Oil Museum does not claim to be a research facility, it has assisted in the production of a number of PBS documentaries. Its artifacts collection includes photographic negatives and a slide library of several hundred images of the East Texas oil boom and the preboom periods of the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. The museum also sponsors educational programs, hosting ten thousand school children from various local schools each year. There is an active volunteer docent program. Docent guided tours are available for groups that make advance requests. Museum hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults and $5 for children ages 3 to 11. Children under the age of three are admitted free. Joe White, long-time director of the museum, explained that all proceeds from entry fees and from purchases at the museum’s shop are used for the upkeep and development of the museum. For further information or to arrange special tours, contact the museum by phone at 903-983-8605 or by fax at 903-983-8600. View the website at www.easttexasoil museum.com or e-mail at info@easttexasoilmuseum.com

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When I watch episodes of Restaurant Impossible, Restaurant Stakeout, Bar Rescue or any other program involving the makeover of an eating/drinking establishment, I’m amazed at the cluelessness of the management and owners. They all seem to begin with good intentions, but over time, they seem to miss the simplest things that could either boost business or even salvage a failing one. Rating their food a ten, service A+, and décor a sentimental favorite has demonstrated that love is blind and ignorance is bliss. This month’s column will focus on things my friends and I have noticed over time that could potentially prevent a place from being considered “center stage.” No names will be mentioned because the issues are broad and far reaching. If you work in a restaurant and are in a position to “fix” these things, we hope you’ll take note and improve because we want every place to succeed.

Staff

You never get a second chance to make a first impression, and when customers walk in the door, they need to be greeted promptly by warm, friendly staff. Hospitality sets the tone. Keep the entrance clean and uncluttered. Servers need to act professionally at all times – no silly jokes with either customers or other staff members. A server’s age isn’t important, but maturity and common sense are expected. They should know the menu and how everything is prepared. One attempt at upselling an item is fine, but make sure that if there is an extra charge involved that customers are told. When the ticket comes, customers don’t like surprises. Servers standing off to one side wasting time texting is just wrong, so cells should be out of sight. Management and owners need to keep an eye on their staff because “when the cat’s away, mice will play.” Don’t believe for one second that they will follow every rule when you’re not there. Some will, some won’t, but the ones that do take their job seriously end up carrying the slackers, and it transfers negativity to the customer.

Customer Service

Customers can have special needs, dietary and otherwise, so please handle requests with attention, kindness and efficiency. Servers are human, but if they are condescending because they’ve had a rough day, it will serve no good purpose to take it out on the next person. And finally…THE CUSTOMER IS KING. Whatever the complaint, smile and make it right. Do you want the customer to not only return but also spread the word to friends? Then make them happy and, hopefully, they will tip generously or at least be a loyal customer driving business your way.

Dust

Most people can live with a tolerable amount of it at home, but when they go out to eat, please don’t let them see it on faded, old silk plants and knick-knacks. Bring in a set of fresh eyes to give you an unbiased opinion. It’s amazing what the human brain misses on a daily basis, so clean your restaurant, including the menus. It’s gross being handed a sticky, food encrusted menu. That’s a little chore that idle staff can do while waiting on an order. Update the establishment by

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CenterStage C|U|I|S|I|N|E

What’s not to like? with Claudia Lowery

removing outdated wall decorations and other memorabilia. Purse hooks underneath tables and bar ledges would be such an easy addition that could be installed in minutes and female customers will actually use them. Check for the “chewing gum hen” that has laid “eggs” under table tops. Disgusting – please remove! Freshen up a little, brighten up the walls, and change things up. Just because your restaurant has a fifty year legacy doesn’t mean customers want to sit in fifty years of dirt.

Food

And then there’s the food. Fresh is best, but if it has been frozen, I hope you’re a genius at disguising that fact. Salads that

contain huge chunks of iceberg lettuce need a little chopping, so include a knife at the table, dressings on the side and NOTHING with brown edges. Please don’t drown food in cheese or sauce. Yes, customers want reasonable portions, but after melting all that cheddar, there is usually a river of fat to swim through. Serving shrimp? DEVEIN IT! Maybe everyone doesn’t know what that little line of dirt is trailing down a shrimp’s tiny back, but most people do, so please clean the shrimp. Serve hot food hot and cold food cold. It’s so disappointing to receive a plate of lukewarm food after waiting a long time, only to have to watch friends dive into a meal while yours is reheated or worse, microwaved.

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Bars that serve food need simple, tasty bar food like grilled sliders, nachos with freshly grated cheese, grilled fish tacos, wings, or seasoned fries. Drinkers need food for alcohol absorption, and it keeps customers thirsty. Keep some inexpensive bar mix snacks available, even if it’s fresh popcorn. Don’t try to serve every kind of food on the planet. Choose a variety of items that your chef does well and stay with it. Introduce variety over time. Give the chef some freedom to try new dishes and ask for honest customer feedback. Not all owners know good food as well as their chefs. Taste buds have been somewhat wrecked by overindulgence in fast foods and lack of training. Have off-hour tastings where another chef comes in, tries your food, and gives you their expert opinion. Set your ego aside in order to move forward. So, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Actually, I realize what a tough business the food industry is, and I don’t pretend to be an expert. However, these are all things customers have experienced many, many times. An establishment may succeed in one area only to fail miserably in another. I’m sure it takes great skill to juggle so many balls and make everything land properly. And when you read about a restaurant or bar in “Center Stage Cuisine,” it’s probably because they have managed to excel in most or all of these areas. That’s how we know it’s not mission impossible. What’s not to like? Well, a lot of things, but we think the customer and a restaurant’s reputation are worth the effort because, in the long run, when you strive for excellence, everyone wins.

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july 201 13 - page 25 5

THEARTOF

Lisa Rachel Horlander

by Jan Statman

Lisa Rachel Horlander always uses both her first and middle names when she introduces herself because both names are special to her. She likes to combine them as if they were one word, one name, and one thought. Using both names reminds her of her childhood, and using them makes her happy. She laughed when she said that most children only hear both their names used when they are in some sort of serious trouble. First name, middle name, followed by, “Don’t you ever dare do that again!” However, she said her family used both names as a sign of endearment. They would say things like, “Lisa Rachel, you are a good girl,” or “Lisa Rachel, you have done well.” When she is painting, the Tyler artist likes to listen to the music of the 90s, which she heard when she was growing up. She finds inspiration from many sources. She enjoys the songs of the Man in Black, Johnny Cash. The creative, young artist also

likes to listen to the music of Eisley, a popular Tyler rock band that features four other creative young Texans. They are siblings Chauntelle, Sherri, Stacy, and Weston DuPree and their cousin Garron DuPree. Although music is important to her, Horlander admits that nature is the greatest motivation for her art. She enjoys painting out of doors. She even enjoys the idea of keeping her studio door open so she can hear the birds sing while she works. “I love savoring the unnoticed parts of life that make up every day,” she said. “I am inspired by the breeze rustling the leaves of a tree or by the way hot concrete smells when the rain hits it.” As a wife and mother, the artist credits her husband Ben and her young son Asher with encouraging what she calls “anything that might be clever” in her art. “I find life is busy when you have a young son and a husband to keep you enjoying life,” she added. “But finding time to make things, to paint things, and to draw things helps me slow everything down.”

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Unforgettable

And then there are her cats. “Cats are beautiful animals.” She spoke with enthusiasm and affection, “The cats are all so funny. They do funny things, and they really do want me to paint them.” However, her greatest influences come from what she finds in life in general and in her life experiences in particular. She cannot imagine a time when she did not create art. She cannot imagine any reason why she would not be creating art. “Art is like breathing to me,” she said. “It is absolutely necessary. I have always wanted to communicate with others, and my art is the way I can do it.” She explained that art is important to her because she wants her work to connect with people and to reach them in a visual way. “I focus on creating things that are lovely, and I try to capture lovely memories and emotions by using bright colors,” she said. She is careful to use colors that are both calming and pleasant to look at in order to create a sense of peaceful enjoyment. She said, “I hope to share my art with others, to help them to slow down and enjoy the things we often take for granted.” She wants her paintings to bring a sense of nostalgia and happiness to viewers. She wants her art to say something that is significant. “My paintings have a lot of thought processes and emotions behind them.” She would like to share those personal images. “It is important to me to get what is inside out, to capture a picture of what is inside my mind.” The artist took her first painting classes at Robert E. Lee High School in Tyler, but she admits that she has been busy drawing all her life. Even when she was a young child, drawing was her way of seeing and responding to her surroundings. “I had a very imaginative childhood,” she explained. “I spent most of it making up my own stories and drawing them into being. I find my art still lingers in my madeup stories but also mingles with the memories and favorite moments of my real life experiences.” She studied with Derrick White and Chris Stewart at Tyler Junior College. She was graduated from TJC with an associates degree in fine arts. When she was a student, she helped organize and was the first president of the still active Arts Club. She exhibited her paintings in various art shows during her time in college, but she admits she only recently became interested in seeking out op-

portunities for professional exhibits. She has participated in area art walks in East Texas and in several juried shows. In listing her exhibit experiences, she said, “I have taken part in the “Six by Six” shows in Rochester, New York, for several years, The “Sketchbook Project” a few times, and solo shows at Cafe Tazza, Salon Verve, and Tyler Junior College. I have exhibited with group shows with ArtHash in Dallas and in other East Texas group shows.” Although creating art is still the most important part of her work, exhibiting has become an important part of her life as an artist. She expressed the feelings of many artists when she said, “The saddest thing in the world to me is to see two paintings looking at each other, silent, and not able to say anything to anybody because nobody has bought them and taken them home to enjoy them and to love them. As much as any artist loves the work that is completed, it is exciting and joyful when the work is purchased, and the artist knows it will be going to a good home.” One of her proudest moments happened in 2012 when her painting was chosen for the First Annual Benefit Auction of Original Works by Texas Artists to benefit the Heart Fund of Trinity Mother Frances Foundation, supporting patient care at the Louis and Peaches Owen Heart Hospital. Her inspiration for the work was “Heart and Trees.” She used various layers of color to create depth in order to give the painting a restful, peaceful feeling. She was selected to be “Artist of the Year.” Her painting was used for banners and logos that were seen all across the city. “I was driving along, and suddenly, there it was! My painting was up there on that giant billboard, bigger than life!” she said. “It nearly blew me away to see my painting up there. I was so excited I had to stop the car to pull over and catch my breath. It was wonderful to see it. It was even more wonderful to know that I was able to do something for the community and for the hospital.” To see more of Lisa Rachel’s art, you can go to her Facebook fan page at www.face book.com/artfulsoles. To purchase her art, go to www.etsy.com/shop/ArtfulSoles.

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Evening Zonta Club’s

Friendship Quilt

by Jan Statman

The Longview Evening Zonta Club has taken on an artistic, creative effort to fashion a memory quilt. Quilters often call this type of quilt a friendship quilt. This project came about with the help of the Piney Woods Quilter’s Association, which created the quilt, designed the individual squares, and did the stitching. In keeping with Zonta’s greater theme of promoting opportunities for education for women and girls, the Evening Zonta Club’s memory quilt is made up of individual squares, each of which has a special meaning for the women of greater East Texas. Each square is dedicated to a special woman’s contributions to the community, her expertise, or the important place she holds in the heart of the donor. Each square includes the outline of a person’s hand. Each hand is made to be a bit different from the others in order to highlight the differences, as well as the similarities of each woman’s life. “All the squares for this year’s memory quilt have been sold,� Ms. Wood said. The Evening Zonta Club sold the squares that make up the quilt to members and friends who wanted to say something special about an important woman in their lives. Plans are underway for the completed quilt to be exhibited in museums, libraries, bank lobbies, and other public venues in the area. Sales of squares for the memory quilt have helped the organization raise four thousand dollars. The money will be used to fund scholarships for women who live in the community. These scholarships are intended to help young women who are trying to better their lives through education or who are trying to qualify for specific certifications. The group’s scholarships have traditionally been for $250 or $750, depending on the applicant’s need. Although this may be considered a relatively small sum of money compared to the greater costs of education, the group believes that even a small scholarship can offer the encouragement and help that means the difference between success and failure for the women involved. “At some time we hope to be able to continue to give a scholarship recipient several consecutive scholarships so that we can help her to continue to move forward so she can get to where she wants to be,� Wood said.

The confidence and mentoring that the group offers can go a long way to encourage a scholarship recipient to continue working toward her goals. One of the group’s current scholarship recipients was given a scholarship to help her earn her Certified Nursing Assistant Certification. Another recipient was helped through nursing school and still another has earned her real estate license. The Longview Evening Zonta Club is the newest club in the area. It was chartered in September 2007. “We are so excited to be part of Zonta,� board member Elise Frigon said. “We all feel privileged to be able to give back to the community and to offer a special hand-up to help local women improve their lives.� Some of the qualities the group looks for in scholarship applicants include aptitude, desire, and motivation. Their unusual application process has always been conducted in a more friendly and comfortable way than the formal structured procedures which other groups may use to award scholarships. Women and girls who have received the Longview Evening Zonta Club’s scholarships have been chosen through recommendations by their schools and other organizations or by personal contact with one or more club members.

“Everybody knows about the big Longview Zonta Club that has the fabulous Antiques Show,� Suzanne Wood, secretary of the Longview Evening Zonta Club said. “How can everybody not know about it? Longview has the biggest Zonta Club in the world! It is famous. Their group uses the proceeds of the antiques show to give scholarships to women and girls and to make valuable grants to deserving local organizations. Our Longview Evening Zonta Club is not nearly as big,� she added. “We are the little guy that meets in the evening, but our aims and our goals are just as grand. We only meet once a month, but we manage to move mountains.� In addition to their Memory Quilt Project to collect money for scholarships, the Evening Zonta Club contributes bath and toiletry items to a local woman’s shelter. They meet the second Tuesday each month at Johnny Cace’s Seafood restaurant and are now in the midst of a membership drive. Both Longview Zonta Clubs are members of Zonta International. The international organization was founded in 1919. It now has more than 30,000 members who belong to more than 1,200 Zonta Clubs located in sixty-four countries and geographic areas. Zonta members all over the world volunteer their time, their talents and their support to local and international service projects, as well as to scholarship programs aimed at fulfilling Zonta’s mission and objectives.

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Those objectives include both local and worldwide efforts to improve the legal, political, educational, economic, health, and professional status of women. Zonta Clubs and their members do these things by service and by advocacy. Zontians believe it is important to promote justice and universal respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. They choose to be united internationally to foster high ethical standards, to put important service programs into practice, and to provide mutual support and fellowship for members who serve their communities, their nations, and the world. It is important to note that Zonta International, its districts and its clubs are nonsectarian and nonpartisan. Zonta members work for the advancement of understanding, goodwill and peace. Membership in Zonta is open to a worldwide network of executive women who are in decision-making positions in business, the professions and the arts. For more information about the Longview Evening Zonta Club and its scholarship programs, applicants are asked to contact club officers, President Sharon Graves, Vice President Carol Walker, Treasurer Sally Le Jeune, or telephone Treasurer Suzanne Wood at 903-4453780. Reach her by email at SuzanneBWood@ gmail.com or contact Elise Frigon, at EFri gon228@gmail.com

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downtowntylerarts.com july 201 13 - page 27 7

Summer

Caching in on

FUN East Texas is a beautiful place in the spring and summer with huge oak and pine trees towering over creeks, rivers and lakes. It’s a time when many East Texans look to the outdoors for family entertainment, whether it be a backyard barbecue, a pool party, or a trip to the lake for fishing or swimming. Over the past decade, a new activity has been encouraging families and kids to step away from the Xbox and TV and spend quality time together exploring the great outdoors. It is called geocaching and can be a great, inexpensive form of entertainment for the warm days of spring and summer. As a child, did you ever dream of finding a pirate’s map that would lead you to buried treasure? Following the map through places you have never been to discover your hidden prize would be a great adventure. This is the basic idea of geocaching. In this activity, the map has been replaced by a GPS device that is either hand-held or downloaded as an app on your smartphone. The pirate becomes someone who decides to give you a reason to go on this adventure. It all starts with a “cache.” A cache is a hidden waterproof container. It can be as large as an army ammo box or as small as a 35mm film canister. Within each cache, there will always be a signin log for those who have found the container. Also in the cache, one might find toys, trinkets, prizes – whatever the cache owner decides to put in it, and sometimes it contains only the log. The owner of the cache finds a location to hide the container. Many times it is in or near a park. It could be near a landmark that the owner would like to point out to the seeker for educational purposes. Some caches are placed for the sole reason of bringing the searching person into a natural setting. Once the owner of the cache finds their special place and hides their cache, they use either their hand-held GPS or their phone GPS app to log in the location. The owner then names his cache and goes online to the geocaching website to publish his information about the cache and its coordinates. The information listed usually includes the size of the container, name of the cache, a brief description of where it’s located, and a hint in case the cache is not easily found. Once you are ready to start your adventure to find a hidden treasure, you can go online to one of the geocaching websites to see what caches are hidden in the area in which you wish to hunt – www.

ju uly 2013 - page e 28

Article & Photos by Tony McCullough

groundspeak.com or www.geo caching.com. Once you locate the cache you wish to find, you may either download the information into your hand-held device, such as a Magellan, or locate them in your downloaded smartphone app from geocaching.com (a basic app is free with a more complete listing app for $9.99). With this information set, it is time to go exploring. Usually the general information about the cache listed on the app will take you to the general area of the hidden cache, such as a park or an old cemetery. From there, you can either follow the map or the compass of your GPS device until you find it. Your search may take you “over the river and through the woods,” but the hunt is usually enjoyable for both kids and adults. The caches are usually well-hidden so they will not be taken by a non-geocacher (known as a mogul in geocaching terms). Once you find the container, proper geocaching etiquette suggests you open the cache and sign the log book. After signing, you look through the prizes left in the container. You may take a souvenir if you like, but if you take a prize, you are asked to leave something in its place. Once completed, you should close the container and return the cache to its hidden location exactly as you found it. To make the activity more interesting, some caches will contain “travel bugs” or “travel coins.” These come in many different shapes and sizes, something like a dog tag attached to a keychain, but all contain a serial number on them. You can look it up by the serial number on the geocaching website. Many times it will have a goal listed for the bug, such as “wants to make it to Alaska.” After looking up the travel bug and logging online that you found it, you are expected to leave it in another cache somewhere in a future hunting experience. If you would like to purchase your own travel bug and track its travels throughout the country, you can purchase one for about $5 from Geocaching. com or Amazon. If you are new to geocaching, you will be amazed at the thousands of hidden containers that are logged and hidden in your area. You probably passed within a block of at least one on your way to work this morning or as you made a stop for lunch. Within the last few years, Texas Parks and Wildlife has even entered the geocaching game, hiding many caches full of prizes and information in our state parks. Lakes are also a popular hiding and seeking spot for geocaching. Always remember to respect private property and never risk your safety by hunting in the dark.

Geocaching is great outdoor summer entertainment for the family. As an adult, you will quickly see that the trinket or keychain found as a prize in the cache isn’t nearly as rewarding as the adventure of the hunt and the quality time you spend with your loved ones exploring the great outdoors of East Texas.

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july 201 13 - page 29 9

TEXAS Shakespeare Festival THE PLAY’S THE THING by Jan Statman

W

hy would otherwise reasonable and sensible people who are professional actors be willing to travel long distances, work long hours, share a college dorm room with a total stranger, have only half of their weekly meals paid for, receive a stipend that is less than minimum wage, and do it all in the heat and humidity of the blistering East Texas summer? They do it because they are dedicated to their craft. They do it because they have competed and won the opportunity to be part of the Texas Shakespeare Festival. The Texas Shakespeare Festival is the only professional theater company in East Texas. It was recognized by the Austin American Statesman as being “indisputably the best Shakespeare Festival in Texas.” More than that, it has an international reputation for excellence. Thousands of outstanding people audition for the opportunity to participate, but only a few can be chosen. Working through a demanding audition process, the festival chooses actors with classical and musical training or experience who are willing to work in a true rotating repertory company. What that means is that every actor and every acting intern plays a role in three of the shows of the four-show series. The acting interns are also on stage for the children’s production. There are four consecutive opening nights and performances every Tuesday through Sunday during the season, as well as special matinée performances for the children’s play. This year’s company will have eleven men and four women and an acting intern company of five men and two women. To make the season run smoothly, there are also technical theater artists for every technical area. These include costumes, lighting, properties, scenic, scene painting, sound, and stage management, to say nothing of manning the ticket office and

ju uly 2013 - page e 30

gift shops. The director and choreographer are members of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. Equity actors who participate in the festival are able to do so on a special waiver from Equity. “Many of the actors who have been part of the festival at one time or another have gone on to major roles in theater and in films,” festival founder and artistic director Raymond Caldwell said. “It’s fun for audiences to recognize some of their favorite actors when they see them later, performing on stage and on the screen. Others have gone on to become directors, acting coaches, and professors in college drama departments.” When the program for the Kilgore Shakespeare Festival’s twenty-eighth season was announced, Caldwell explained that all plays in the Shakespeare Festival are not Shakespeare plays. “The very name ‘Shakespeare’ has become synonymous with theater itself,” he said. “Every Shakespeare festival includes other shows. Our goal is to encourage people to enjoy live professional theater. By including two Shakespeare plays, a comedy, a musical, and a special production for children, the audience is attracted to the variety of programs available. Some people love the opportunity to see Shakespeare plays performed. Others want to relax and laugh their way through a comedy. Still others want to enjoy the special excitement only a musical can provide.” The two Shakespeare productions are Comedy of Errors, and Winter’s Tale. Comedy of Errors is directed by Chuck Ney. It has been called Shakespeare’s most outrageously funny comedy. It is a fast paced mix-up involving two sets of identical twins, misunderstood intentions, and mistaken identities, which lead to confusion, mayhem, chaos and laughter. Matthew Earnest directs Winter’s Tale. Even though it is one of Shakespeare’s later plays, it has been described as a grown-up fairy tale filled full of youthful optimism.

The play starts with a lighthearted romance and ends with a miracle. The lovely story deals with serious issues such as the evil that happens when jealousy appears, and the power that comes with forgiveness. As a rare change from classic Molière plays and literary choices, The Foreigner is a 20th century American comedy. It is directed by artistic director Raymond Caldwell. This will be a rare treat since Caldwell admits he has not directed for some time. Imagine an incredibly shy and modest Englishman arriving at a fishing lodge in rural Georgia. The local folks decide that since he is a foreigner, he obviously can’t understand a word of English! They stand right in front of him and talk about their most personal lives, their deepest secrets and their darkest plans. He is too shy to speak up for himself, so he remains silent. Eventually though, he becomes involved in a plan to untangle their tangled lives. The story is funny and heartwarming and has some surprising plot twists. The big musical is the always popular, always magical Camelot. It was adapted from T.H. White’s The Once and Future King. It tells the story of how King Arthur brought peace and order to his realm by creating the Knights of the Round Table. At the same time, it tells the sad story of his wife Guinevere who falls in love with the dashing French knight, Sir Lancelot. Among the beautiful Lerner and Loewe lyrics are the title song “Camelot,” as well as “If Ever I Would Leave You,” and “What Do The Simple Folk Do?” The special children’s play is The Enchanted Forest. The original production was written and directed by Jason Richards, author of last year’s Quest for the Lost Chalice. It is a fable about the powers of hope, faith and courage, and it is filled with mysterious and magical events.

In expressing appreciation to Kilgore College for its continued support, the Shakespeare Festival website is careful to say, “Kilgore College, in addition to providing the majority of funding for the Festival, is being more than generous in its support by providing rehearsal facilities, office spaces, the Van Cliburn Auditorium, dormitory housing and meals for the entire company, scholarships for the apprentices, printing, publicity and public relations. No theatre effort has ever had more encouraging, enthusiastic and consistent support.” Managing Director John Dodd is sure to remind audiences that the plays begin on June 27 in The Van Cliburn Auditorium, which is a comfortable, climate-controlled indoor theater. Matinee performances begin promptly at 2:00 p.m. Evening performances begin promptly at 7:30 p.m. For further information or to purchase tickets, call the box office at 903-983-8601, fax 903-903-8124, or see the festival web page at www.texasshake speare.com

PineyyWo oodsLive.com m

10

1- Rafael Padron gets his glow on at RMC’s Blacklight Prom that took place on June 22, 2013. 2- Carmel and Kevin Johnsen perform at Los Pinos Vineyard Ranch, May 24, 2013. 3- “Mus” Gillum and Daniel Smalley at Charlie’s BackYard Bar, May 18, 2013.

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PHOTO BOOTH

4- Gallery Main Street 6x6 Fundraiser, June 6, 2013.

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5- The Jive Jumpers at Auntie Skinner’s Riverboat Club, May 25, 2013.

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6- Jim Cobb of the Jive Jumpers.

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7

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7- Mike Acoustic Trio - Jeremy Flowers, Natalie Rose and Michael Gonzalez, at Gallery Main Street, June 6, 2013. 8- Sylvia Carrell of the Jive Jumpers. 9 & 10- Hopkins County Dairy Festival, June 7, 2013.

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11- Raphael Espinoza, T-Bone Walker Festival, June 22, 2013

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12 & 13- Behind the scenes of the cover shoot, June 12, 2013

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Check out all of our photo galleries att www.pineywoodslive.com/photos or scan the QR code below.

Up and Coming

EVENTS July 2 10:00 a.m. Deco Japan: Shaping Art and Culture, 1920-1945, Tyler Museum of Art Hoover Watercolor Traveling Exhibit, Michelson Museum Of Art July 3 11:00 a.m. Kid’s Day / Night Out at Create ART! in Longview 6:00 p.m. Hotel Drifters, KE Cellars in Tyler 7:00 p.m. White Christmas, Jefferson Transportation Center Jive Jumpers, OS2 Restaurant & Pub in Marshall 8:00 p.m. Jason Cassidy, Coaches & Cowboys in Tyler July 4 2:00 p.m. Freedom Celebration and Fireworks Festival, Maude Cobb Convention Center in Longivew Camelot, Van Cliburn Auditorium in Kilgore 4:00 p.m. Patriotic Concert, First Presbyterian Church in Tyler 7:00 p.m. White Christmas, Jefferson Transportation Center 8:00 p.m. King Richard & The Bayou Boys, Fresh by Brookshire’s in Tyler July 5 10:00 a.m. Deco Japan: Shaping Art and Culture, 1920-1945, Tyler Museum of Art Ellie Taylor Contemporary Impressionism, Winnsboro Center for the Arts 6:00 p.m. AlabamaCoushatta Music Festival & Fireworks at The AlabamaCoushatta Tribe of Texas, Lake Livingston Dustin Becker, KE Cellars in Tyler 7:00 p.m. White Christmas, Jefferson Transportation Center 8:00 p.m. Robin and the Blue Birds , Downtown Kilgore Blue Tin Roof, Texas Players Club in Longview The Darrin Morris Band, The Back Porch in Kilgore Chris Watson Band, Stanley’s Famous Pit Bar-B-Q in Tyler

July 5 8:30 p.m. Lacie Carpenter and The Southern String Line Band, The Corkyard in Jefferson July 6 3:00 p.m. The Goonies, Liberty Hall in Tyler 7:00 p.m. Country Music Hayride “Dusty Boots”, The Esquire Theater in Carthage White Christmas, Jefferson Transportation Center 8:00 p.m. Ally Venable Band, Tyler’s Iron Horse Saloon 9:00 p.m. Sammy Fox & The Intervention, Charlie’s BackYard Bar in Marshall July 10 6:30 p.m. Jedidiah Crisp, The Back Porch in Kilgore July 11 6:00 p.m. Adult Night Out!, Create ART! in Longview 7:00 p.m. Patrick James Freden, The Forge Bistro in Ben Wheeler 7:30 p.m. Footloose, Tyler Civic Theatre Center July 12 10:00 a.m. American Legacy: Our National Parks, Michelson Museum Of Art 6:00 p.m. Genealogy Lock-In, Longview Public Library 10:00 p.m. MEGANAUT and Baron Von Swagger, Venue 717 in Longview July 13 12:00 p.m. Marshall Main Street Second Saturday, Downtown Marshall 6:00 p.m. Nick Brumley, The Blue Frog Grill in Marshall 8:00 p.m. Darby Warren Project, OS2 Restaurant and Pub in Marshall 9:00 p.m. Mark Allan Atwood, Diamond B Franchise in Jefferson Guitarded, Auntie Skinner’s Riverboat Club in Jefferson July 14 2:30 p.m. Footloose, Tyler Civic Theatre Center 7:30 p.m. The Foreigner, Van Cliburn Auditorium July 18 7:00 p.m.Wesley Pruitt, The Forge Bistro in Ben Wheeler 7:30 p.m. The Winter’s Tale, Van Cliburn Auditorium in Kilgore

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july 201 13 - page 31 1

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