Doin' The 'D'

It's official.... I'm a dinosaur.

Last night I finally got to use the theatre tickets I received for Christmas. I showered, washed my hair, put on some make-up and donned my best little black dress. I thought that was standard procedure for people bound for the 'legitimate theatre' in a major city. How wrong I was!

Yes. Detroit has a thriving theatre and cultural district. But I digress.

My excursion into culture shock began at the restaurant, an iconic Italian gem of the best old-school sort, with tuxedo'd waiters and antipasto platters on every table. Seated all around us were fellow patrons dressed in perfectly appropriate attire - for a backyard barbeque. Honestly, people. I know it's Wednesday night, but couldn't you clean up a little?

As I suspected, most of the restaurant's great unwashed were also theatre-bound.

Detroit's premier live-theatre venue is the Fisher Theatre, housed in Detroit's historic Art Deco treasure the Fisher Building. The 1928, Albert Kahn-designed skyscraper is so magnificent it is often called Detroit's largest art object.  The Theatre entrance, located in the building's lavish vaulted lobby, is shown in this photo.

When you aren't motivated to fix yourself up a bit for this, my guess is you just don't care enough to make the effort for anything.

You ain't seen nothin' yet.

I thought the tennis shoes, T-shirts and jeans were bad, but it was about to get worse.  The young woman seated next to me, clad in tank top and stretch pants, pulled off her shoes, put her white-footie-sock'd feet IN THE SEAT and plopped a huge box of candy between her legs from which she noshed throughout the performance.  Really.

More evidence of the coarsening of our society.

Silly me.  Even in a blue-collar town, even in difficult economic times, I still think there are things worth dressing up for, if for no other reason than to show respect for the occasion.  Who knows; it might even help us feel better about ourselves for a little while. You know... special.

Ah, respect for self and others.  Another antiquated notion.  I miss it.  See?  I am a dinosaur - and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Heartwarming Hearth-Warming Story

Who says there's no good news anymore.... WXYZ Channel 7 Action News in Detroit reports on a local business donating new furnaces to needy families in the area: (The embed code isn't working, but you can see the video at the WXYZ link)

Wanda Frazier has been without heat all winter.

Wanda Frazier:
I had on layers of clothes like I was gong skiing. Sometimes I’d be so cold I’d lay right on top of that space heater.

Pat Wilson’s furnace went out in October.

Pat Wilson:
We have curtains everywhere, trying to keep out the drafts.

Their old furnaces are shot and neither had the money to replace them.

Wilson: It’s been hard.

Frazier: I wore pajamas, jogging suit, 2 or 3 jogging suits, house coats, sweaters.

But thanks to Lennox Industries they won’t have to endure another cold day. The Troy company gave Wilson and Frazier a free new furnace. They are among five families to get one. Tim Palmer, the Detroit district manager for Lennox, got the idea to donate the furnaces when his heat went out this winter.

Tim Palmer/Lennox Industries:
I had no heat one night in the winter, the coldest part of the winter, and I have two small children and you really go into panic mode.

Fortunately, he was able to get his heat back on the next day. But not everyone is so lucky, especially in these tough times.

Palmer: We were able to pay for that service and get our heat back on in less than 24 hours. And there are so many people who are not able to do that.

People like Frazier and Wilson. Palmer asked Action News to help find those in need of a new furnace. Frazier, a senior citizen, is on a fixed income and has health problems. Wilson does child care. Her husband is disabled and doesn’t work.

Palmer: It really makes us feel good to help someone out there who is truly in need.”

Lennox called on several companies to install the furnaces. Pritchard Incorporated in Livonia agreed to install Pat’s for free and haul away the old one. Majestic Heating in Detroit put in Frazier’s new boiler at no charge.

Marty Gold/Majestic Heating:
I feel pretty good about that. I’m going to be flying high just thinking about this all day.

So are Frazier and Wilson.

Frazier: I would like to say thank you, and I really appreciate what you doing for me.

Wilson: “It was like wow! It was a blessing. All I could think about is we’re going to be warm, we’re going to be warm.

Along with Lennox Industries, three companies installed the furnaces for free: Williams Refrigeration and Heating in Warren, Main Heating and Cooling in Shelby Township and Circle Heating of Melvindale.

Can Lions' Schedule, Rule Changes Restore The Roar?

2009 DETROIT LIONS SCHEDULE

September
13................Taft Junior High School
20................Cub Scout Troop #101
27................Detroit Academy for the Blind

October
04................Spanish-American War Veterans
11................Guardian Angel Orphanage
18................Eloise Mental Hospital
25................Girl Scout Troop # 353

November
01.................St. Benedict Monastery
08.................Fraser Boy's Choir
15.................Korean Amputees
22.................National Association of Hospital Ministers
26.................Great Lakes Synchronized Swim Team

SPECIAL MONDAY NIGHT GAME
December 08......Grand Rapids Quilting Society

In addition, the following rules shall apply beginning in the 2009 season:

1. When playing polio patients, the Lions may not disconnect knee braces.
2. When playing the Blind Academy, the Lions must not hide the football under their jerseys.
3. The Lions will be allowed 20 men on the field at all times.
4. Detroit may substitute with band members, cheerleaders, water boys or fans at their discretion.
5. The Lions may take up to 10 timeouts.
6. Detroit will be awarded a first down with each gain of 3 yards.
7. A touchdown will be awarded each time the football is carried across the goal line (included for Lions fans who have never seen this occur). It will still be worth 6 points.
   

Lions owner William Clay Ford was quoted as saying, "Who needs personnel, management or ownership changes when we have a schedule like this? I think we actually have a shot at a winning season now!" He angrily denounced as vicious rumor a report that claimed he was changing the team name to 'The Pussy Cat Dolls'.

R.I.P. Levi Stubbs

The soulful, evocative voice of Levi Stubbs has been silenced. Mr. Stubbs died yesterday at home in Detroit. He was 72.

This proud daughter of Detroit is lucky enough to have The Four Tops in the soundtrack of her childhood. No boy band, pop tart princess or rapper performing today can touch the range of human emotions Levi could express with his haunting voice. Thank you, Mr. Stubbs, for the music and the memories. You were a class act, and you will be missed. God bless.

The Four Tops perform in 1966. If this doesn't send shivers down your spine, check your pulse!

This is perhaps my personal favorite Four Tops song, recorded live in Miami, including Levi Stubbs on lead vocals. The date of this performance is in question; it has been widely reported as 2004, but that is unlikely since Mr. Stubbs had suffered a stroke by then. It was more likely recorded a year or two earlier. He was in his mid-60's then, and still had a voice that could break your heart. Bernadette:

The Detroit News has a wonderful tribute, including fabulous old photos, in today's edition: 'At Motown, Levi Stubb's Voice Was Tops'

Newt Gingrich on the Failure of Detroit

This is a brief (4 minute) clip from a speech Mr. Gingrich delivered to the American Enterprise Institute. He challenges Barack Obama to discuss the real reasons for Detroit's demise, what we must do to restore the city and how racial politics are hampering efforts to help. Newt's position is that we can't have an honest discussion about these things nationally if we won't honestly discuss Detroit. Don't hold your breath waiting for Barry to rise to the challenge....