Hellooooo.... we are at Hump Day after a long Holiday Weekend. I'll tell you, these past few weekends have been kicking my butt !!! That said, I got to experience, first hand, the 5th annual Pork Roll Festival. Big shout out to Scott Miller for inviting me out to capture the vision.... Pork Roll, originating in Trenton, NJ....
With all the crazy weather lately, the heat and humidity was brutal .....yet that didn't stop people from coming out to the festival.... The park was filled with food trucks and vendors.... amazing food and cool items for purchase including t-shirts and collectibles from the festival...Like these smokers...oh my.....
....and of course there is the Pork Roll Queen....this year we congratulate LYNN ANZUINI
and I also got to hear some great music from SCHOOL OF ROCK band.....
It was truly a fun event.... Even got to meet the cool DJ....
AND...some other fun people....staff of the event and I even Marcia and Steve !!!!!
I was blown away by all the food trucks....with lines at each one to try pork roll mac and cheese, pork roll signature sandwiches and even a cupcake truck from cupcake wars !!!
I got my signature sandwich from WTF, Where's the Food, Food Truck...YUM!
This was a BBQ sandwich with cole slaw and came with fries...it was soooooo good !
We are slowly getting back to Sunday posts...for now...Make it a great Monday and a great week !
Today would have been my Mom's birthday. Many of you know we lost her to brain cancer.... so I find myself reflecting on all things good today and trying to stay positive in times of turmoil .... that said, let us celebrate art with my good friend and Celebrity Junior Celestino Ortiz....
Celestino interviewing on his TV Show
We met through a couple of mutual friends yet we hit it off right away and I've enjoyed the brief times I have worked with Celestino at events....
He is a Visual Artist, Podcast Host, TV Host and more.... Celestino lives in Puerto Rico. Traveling and showing his Art is one of the things he enjoys doing. Take a look at a cool video of him in action.....
(SPANISH)
Let me say that it is so fun with technology today to see how Celestino interacts with his work in New York, Francy, Italy and then back to his TV Shows and Podcasts in Puerto Rico.....
Here is an 8 min clip, just under 8 min, if you care to indulge, from Brooklyn, NY ( my home town)
during a show with #AwesomeTV
There is not a lot I can say about Celestino where his work doesn't speak for itself and of him. His talent and the way he presents his talent is amazing. I love the creativity and I'm honored to know him and call him a friend.
Celestino Junior Ortiz is proud to have mentored under the Master Painter Rafael Rivera Rosa
We are hoping to have an event back in NY soon so stay tuned....
We don't get to see each other often yet when we all get together it's always a time of fun, reflection, hard work and a genuinte love of the Arts....
So let me start by saying that I missed you all last week and we are again into "hump" day.... that said, this post is a 2 part entry so stay tuned for part too and again this is for
MEAT LOVERS ONLY...
The 1856 Taylor Pork Roll factory in Trenton is still operating and employing people.. yes we are talking Pork Roll , made popular in Trenton New Jersey....
Today, Pork roll is trendy for those that love meat... you can find signature pork roll sandwiches all over the Country....maybe even the World !
For whatever reasons, the Taylor Pork Roll restaurants that were located in many of our shore towns around New Jersey wound up closing down.....
Now Pork Roll is part of pop culture, if you may.....
Enter Scott Miller.... founder of the original Pork Roll Festival..... yes, you heard it, Pork Roll Festival.
FIND THIS OFFICIAL PAGE ON FACE BOOK
Below see some images I found from previous years . If you are in the area, join me at the 5th annual in Trenton on May 26th.... 10AM-7PM 9 W Front Street Trenton, N.J.
Plenty of food and pork roll... LOL.... food trucks, eateries, outside activities for a family friendly event. With entertainment throughout the day and even the Pork Roll Queen contest, you can't go wrong coming out to this interesting festival ! Woo Hoo... I'm excited to attend this event and bring you part 2 of the Pork Roll festival this year.....
In speaking with Scott, he tells me that this has been a strange journey since early 2014....
The first event had over 5,000 people in attendance. Having to move to a larger space, the festival seems to grow each year.
The festival is now held at a 6 acre park in Trenton. This Historical Park is where the Battle of Trenton was won in 1776.
Parking is free and tickets are only 5.00 or 4 for 15.00 !
Come out to this family friendly event if you are around....
If you are not in the area, or just want to enjoy in the fun on line, check out my posts on the Pork Roll Festival !
....taking a look at the documentary just released....THE SEARCHER....and some other thoughts...
Welcome all and hello. We are spilling into mid-week with a special post on Elvis, the Artist as seen in the documentary THE SEARCHER. If you haven't seen it on HBO there are several showings available for you to check it out. What a remarkable documentary. It really takes a look at the Artist and how he lived his life and put together a career that is still going strong, over 40 years after his passing.....
This is just a look at Elvis from where I sit at this juncture in my life...... I don't know how I became as big of a fan as I am now, I just know that my family loved Elvis. I remember watching him on TV with my family and I remember exactly where I was when he passed.....
Over time, I didn't even realize all the Elvis "things" that were around me in my life.... it's weird that I am a HUGE fan now and I see all this stuff around me....so I guess I was always a huge fan....just didn't know it til recently. LOL
If you haven't seen the Searcher, it's such a touching story of the way Elvis was about his life, career and his music. I feel like he had 2 different careers....one that started before he went into the Army ....
.....and one that started again after what became known as the 68 comeback special....
Elvis was terrified at that time. This was a TV show that was either going to be the start or the end of his career, according to Priscilla....
Elvis never ever forgot how he came from poverty and what his family went through during that time. His Mother, Gladys, was working so hard at a time when Vernon (Elvis' Dad) went to prison for forging a check to put food on the table. Elvis and his Mom were extremely close . His family ties were amazing..... His Dad was so embarrassed by all of this yet eventually this was put behind them...
I think all of this left a certain mark on Elvis, especially going through a time that was crazy with infusion of different types of music.... Gospel, Country etc... with every turn of the dial.... by that I mean how music was pulling into radio...all genres could be heard with a turn of that dial...then the move to TV was next....his
Elvis was born in Tupelo, Mississippi in a small shack. Moving to Memphis was a game changer for him. The music scene was so amazing there at the time.
From the very beginning and even through all his "learning" stages, Elvis always wanted to challenge himself to do better....to be better....
There is so much we could cover here and it is just amazing.... you could find any genre of music that you like and find a connection to Elvis. He is one of the only artists that could sing 5 genres of music.... Pop, Rock, Country, Blues, and Gospel....In fact, he loved Gospel music and received his only Grammy's for his Gospel music.
After he made the film GI blues, he recorded a full length Gospel Album.
FROM THE FILM GI BLUES
Elvis had a real connection to his songs and to his audience. There came a time, with a whole inside back story, that Elvis became disenchanted with the music that was coming out for his films....for the films itself and he wanted to get away from that and get back to his connection with music and to a live audience.... with that, there are several great films that came out over his career and great music...even when some of those films seemed contrived, the music survived and is still loved today.... I loved "Girl Happy" and I have not seen "King Creole" yet I hear it's one of the best.... it's on my to do list... LOL.... "Blue Hawaii" was also one of the biggest movie sellers and produced some of the greatest music along with Jail House Rock. If you remember, Jail House Rock was supposed to be a James Dean film about a boxer...then the fatal accident. They didn't even want to look at the suggestion of Elvis in this role, yet when he met the director the rest became history and Jail House Rock was now about a singer.....
What was then to be known as the 68 Comeback special, Elvis was going through all sorts of emotions while getting ready for that show, including the death of Robert Kennedy . When he decided to close the show with "If I could dream"...he was dedicating that to ALL that was happening in the World at the time. Priscilla says, in the documentary, that it was nice to see Elvis smile again. (Referring to the whole Comeback Special performances). She says they all sat in silence watching it and when the phone calls started coming in afterwards they knew this was going to be the new launch of his career moving forward.
Many artists give commentary in this documentary like the late Tom Petty, and Bruce Springsteen just to name a couple....The movie, if you may, goes through a 2 part series from the very beginnings of Elvis' career... through Sam Phillips, Colonel Parker, Sun Records and then beyond....
Elvis' life took on many changes in music, time, and decision making.... eventually, he was able to take control of his own decisions....yet by that time, he was doing 2 shows a night, exhausted and turned to prescription drugs to stay on top of things.... as we all know, that didn't keep him on top, just dragge his whole psyche down to eventually his death....
What a ride he had though and today his career is still going strong...
From performing with Frank Sinatra in that iconic song role reversal to Vegas to doing it in his own style.... there isn't a day that goes by that you can't find an "Elvis Sighting". LOL....
I am thrilled to be such a fan these days and to have had the opportunity to tour Elvis' home at Graceland and meet some awesome people.... to be friends with some great ETA's like Richie Santa , Jimmy Elvis and Gentleman Jim to name a few.... I so love that Elvis' music is around to be passed onto generations and the Searcher is an amazing look at his life and his music.
Trailer for THE SEARCHER
I honestly think that the people that aren't that thrilled with Elvis are just people that misunderstood him. He was truly a gift to us !
