[ Features Index | Santa Cruz Week | SantaCruz Home | Archives ]

Photograph by Covello & Covello Historical Photo Collection Historic Old Dream Inn 1963: This photo of the construction of our monumental insult to the environment and to aesthetics was taken April 26, 1963. I doubt if it had any designer or architect, it probably was just built. My guess of last week's historic aerial photo of West Cliff Drive caused Alison Reason, John Robinson, Mathew Simpson and Keith Meek to let me know that was the corner of Woodrow Avenue and West Cliff in the 1960 photo. Bruce Bratton KAZU'S SELLING OUT. With no warning to the listeners, the on-air people or anybody else, the California State University at Monterey Bay, with full cooperation of the station manager, stopped all local music programming at KAZU last week. No Celtic, gospel, opera, ragtime--just more of that NPR talk drivel. How many NPR stations can one listening community take? Car Talk, Fresh Air and All Things Considered are broadcast on both KUSP and KAZU and probably more, I wouldn't know. Having come of age in the golden years of KPFA-FM when all programming was local and at least half was news and information, I don't care for--or listen to--any NPR material. There's a wake for KAZU Sunday from 10am to 2pm at Laguna Grande Park in Canyon Del Rey at Seaside, next to the Russian Orthodox Church. DARK PLEASURES. I only saw The Emperor's New Clothes last week, but you should see it too when it opens at the Nick on Friday. Ian Holm plays Napoleon in this "romantic comedy," as the film company calls it. Well acted, nicely photographed, take your smarter tourist friends to it, No controversy, no deep thinking, just a fine film. I haven't seen Lilo & Stitch yet, but Kaua'i newspapers were reporting that both Hanalei and Hanapepe towns are featured in the background drawings. The Hawai'i Tourist Bureau is mad at Disney Studios for not delivering on their promise to promote Hawai'i through Lilo & Stitch, since Hawai'i's hurting for tourist business. Don't forget to see 13 Conversations About One Thing, and no, even after seeing it twice I'm not sure what that one thing is, or was. A DIVA'S RETURN. Alexis Magaro, former UCSC student, native Santa Cruzan and soprano, has been singing opera and giving recitals professionally in Paris, Rome and Prague, among other places. She's back here for a short time and will be giving a recital of Puccini, Bellini and Donizetti opera pieces. It'll be at the Calvary Episcopal Church at 3pm Sunday, July 7. The recital will be dedicated to Jean Lerner, whose memory remains very strong in this community, even after a year. Pianist-composer-conductor Stephen Tosh will accompany Alexis and the event is free, but you should give a donation. Call 426.0586 for information. UCSC TELESCOPES IN HAWAI'I. Jerry Nelson from UCSC's Center for Adaptive Optics emailed to say he has problems with what I was quoting from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs newspaper regarding telescopes at the W.M. Keck Observatory at the summit of Mauna Kea, on the Big Island of Hawai'i. Jerry says he knows of no Hawaiians buried in the summit area and that we all have different views of what is sacred. Nelson also states that it isn't correct to say that 76 telescopes are planned on Mauna Kea as I mentioned. He says it sounds like I was smoking too much, which is such an asinine remark it makes you wonder just what level his other thoughts come from, besides guilt. The two articles I quoted by Naomi Sodetani in the OHA newspapers talk about Mauna Kea as the world's largest observatory complex, using 600 acres of the 11,288 leased by the University of Hawai'i. Sodetani says that "since ancient times, Polynesians have revered Mauna Kea as the home of powerful deities, including Poli'ahu the snow goddess and her sister Lilinoe, the goddess of the mist." According to the OHA news, there are 13 existing telescopes there now. The current plan allows the building of 76 more in one issue and "at least 21 telescopes" in the next issue. It also says that a 1988 state audit strongly criticized the U. of Hawai'i and the Department of Land and Natural Resources' past management of the Mauna Kea Lands. NASA and UH officials refuse to comment on the lawsuit that OHA has filed to litigate the case against further expansion of the Keck Observatory. OHA's federal lawsuit notes that, "ironically, in their zeal to discover other life in the Universe, NASA and The Institute for Astronomy are ignoring life on these islands, degrading Native Hawaiian cultural resources, and risking the extermination of species." The May issue of the OHA paper relates that a new telescope "three times the size of Keck is now being designed at UC Santa Cruz and may be headed for Mauna Kea". All this material can be checked out at www.oha.org, and I suggest that UCSC's Center for Adaptive Optics' Jerry Nelson should do just that, before he writes anything else. BIG BASIN SHOW BUSINESS. I never knew that there is a summer performance series at Big Basin State Park, every Saturday afternoon at 4pm through Aug. 31. It costs $3 per car to enter the park--go early and take a history walk and stay after the show for a campfire. What a great way to spend a Saturday night. Next Saturday is the Indian Dance Company Shri Krupa; July 6 a dozen harpists play Celtic and contemporary rock; Watsonville Taiko plays July 13; Kaisahan Filipino Dance Company performs July 20. The Cupertino Symphonic Band entertains on July 27, the San Jose Multicultural Artist Guild performs on Aug. 3, the Mission Chamber Orchestra plays Howard Hanson on Aug. 10, San Lorenzo Valley Community Band plays on Aug. 17 and the Tarantula Bluegrass Band plays Tin Pan Alley favorites and rockabilly standards in jug band style on Aug. 31. The season is produced and presented by the Mountain Parks Foundation and California State Parks. Go to www.mountainparks.org or call 335.3174 for more information. Bruce critiques films every other Thursday on KUSP-FM (88.9). Reach Bruce at [email protected] [ Santa Cruz Week | Metroactive Central | Archives ]