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LucyFest 2012


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Ok, this has nothing to do with this year's festival, but I've checked and the Best Western is already all booked up for next August's festival. What are some of the other hotels close to all the activities and do they have shuttles from the airport and all that? Thanks to all the J-towners who would know. :lucythrill:

 

 

There are AT LEAST 5 hotels within 2 miles of Jamestown; the airport is about 5 miles - an easy cab ride; not sure if the hotels have shuttle services; but, it is worth a try. Best Western and Holiday Inn (new name about every year or so) are walking distance, one on Third Street, and one on Fourth Street.

 

I've even heard (years ago) of people who open their extra rooms to Lucy visitors; that would take some classified ads to be run, of course; or possibly the Museum et al employees would know of folks who do that; but, now is always a good time to be in advance of that sort of planning. Good luck! JK

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There are AT LEAST 5 hotels within 2 miles of Jamestown; the airport is about 5 miles - an easy cab ride; not sure if the hotels have shuttle services; but, it is worth a try. Best Western and Holiday Inn (new name about every year or so) are walking distance, one on Third Street, and one on Fourth Street.

 

I've even heard (years ago) of people who open their extra rooms to Lucy visitors; that would take some classified ads to be run, of course; or possibly the Museum et al employees would know of folks who do that; but, now is always a good time to be in advance of that sort of planning. Good luck! JK

 

I done booked us a reservation. Yay! I can't wait another 11 months. :marionstrong:

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The documentary being shot in Jamestown over the Festival Weekend is now in post production and been accepted into its first film festival:

 

http://www.sungazette.com/page/content.detail/id/583081/Area-director-documents-celebration-of-Lucille-Ball.html?nav=5154

 

I wonder if we're all on the cutting room floor. LOL

 

We BETTER NOT be on the cutting room floor! I missed Round 2 of the trivia contest for that interview. :angry: LOL.

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The 'folks' you mention, THOSE GIVING ARTIFACTS TO BE UP FRONT IN THE MUSEUM et al should, EVERY ONE OF THEM, send letters to Journey Gunderson and demand she either prove their existence, or non-existence, and correspond what is planned for those items....

 

I've heard, FOR YEARS NOW, that there are valuables having been donated that have never seen the light of day - you protect the guilty parties by NOT DEMANDING ANSWERS....

 

To me, that is insulting to the memory of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, their heirs, the Museum itself, and yourselves for allowing so much time to have gone by with no response about your donation(s)...

 

Respectfully submitted, Joyce Kellogg

 

This is indeed old news as I'm sure you know, but correspondence has taken place several times that I know of over the past few years, and some of these items cannot even be accounted for. They were all there in the inventory when initially sent.

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Would be a wonderful 'coup' if we could AT LEAST get them to drop by here with their GREAT KNOWLEDGE of our girl.... we're VERY HUNGRY for that knowledge and those memories; much of it needs to be preserved....I'm one trying to do that, as all our Lucy authors are.... If you know one or some of them, urge them to join us; we are a loyal bunch....Loving submitted, JK

 

I'm sure you know they aren't going to join in without being invited by the powers that be. Gunderson, et. al are the ones that are letting the Ball drop (pardon the pun), overlooking milestones and dismissing valuable input from outstanding participants.

 

If the North can't separate from the South and get the job done, let's just throw this whole thing in and go back to Cuba.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Paula was surprisingly hilarious! The first thing I had seen Paula in in years was Craig Ferguson the other night and I wasn't very impressed. But she can really connect to an audience (tonight's had a surprising number of Canadian schoolteachers). She really put on a good show.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed Paula too. Her spontaneity is great as is how well she connects with the audience.

 

Had she called on me should would have found a substitute teacher who's going to Canada in two years.

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Well there were many newbies at the festival and I doubt many will be back. They were not impressed with what the got for the money they paid. Just because the food has always been bad does not mean they should not try to improve it. In fact it gets worse. People pay $45 and cannot even eat the dinner served...that just doesn't seem right. If they

cannot provide decent food then why not modify the events to just eliminate the food altogether.

 

I get the impression the center will continue to expand the comedy events and offer the same old events for the Lucy fans every year so they can say they still honor her legacy. If they get the comedy hall of fame in Jamestown you can expect the condition of the Archives to get worse and maybe eventually the museum will even be closed and they will just put some Lucy items it the hall of fame. That is the direction this is heading.

 

yes the Lucie event was as advertised. It was very clear she was brought to Jamestown to attract the Lucy fans and to deliver the message that new comedy is the direction and future of the Center.

 

IMHO, the quality has been okay. What I really mind is the portion size. I pay $45 for the Ricardo and Mertz dinner (BTW, I thought the program was great!) and I get rather small portions...probably not much (if any) more than what I would get for the $35 or $25 lunch, which is somewhat sparse. Just my thoughts, though.

 

Mary Jane Fan

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Ok, this has nothing to do with this year's festival, but I've checked and the Best Western is already all booked up for next August's festival. What are some of the other hotels close to all the activities and do they have shuttles from the airport and all that? Thanks to all the J-towners who would know. :lucythrill:

Try calling the Best Western (716-484-8400) as there may be rooms still available. I've had that happen with Best Westerns sometimes - the web site says sold out, but there are still rooms left in the block. Tell then you'll be attending the Lucy Fest.

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Try calling the Best Western (716-484-8400) as there may be rooms still available. I've had that happen with Best Westerns sometimes - the web site says sold out, but there are still rooms left in the block. Tell then you'll be attending the Lucy Fest.

 

Thanks. I did call them a couple weeks ago and was able to book a room. So happy because that's the one that is closest to everything. :marionstrong:

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I've been away for the Lounge for far too long and am now catching up. Here are some (more) of my thoughts on this strand.

 

1) If there were to be a museum/center created in her name, Lucy wanted it to be something on new comedy and to foster/support new comedians coming into the profession. I'm all for that and I think the Center can have a role in that, but does that really mean bringing to people (new comedians, etc.) to Jamestown? In all due respect, what's there to motivate people to come to Jamestown to learn comedy? Couldn't the Center do something like out reach or something with other places throughout the country to develop comedians? I think the museums and other facilities in Jamestown should be focused on preserving artifacts and other parts of Lucy and Desi' legacy/memory.

 

2) On that note, further develop (as has already been said) the archives. I've heard from several sources that the archives are in sad shape. They've had archivists and interns on staff supposedly to maintain the archives, but I wonder how much has been accomplished? Perhaps someone with graduate work in archives or a closely related area and practical experience in an archival setting plus who's a Lucy fan would be a good person to get things into shape? (Not to go off-topic or seem self-serving, but isn't it a coincidence that I have a master's degree in library science, have worked in an archives, am a Lucy fan, and am between jobs right now? ;):D )

 

3) For employees they don't necessarily need to have people who are fans so much as individuals who have both the love of Lucy and the training to do various jobs/responsibilities that make a non-profit successful. While I'm not necessarily saying they don't have anyone like this on staff now, this is just what it takes to run an organization successfully.

 

4) For the festivals, they seem to be getting a nice balance...events for Lucy fans as well as events for the new comedy angle. I think keeping a balance is good.

 

5) We need to remember - like the person who made the comment about Graceland being focused on Elvis - that Jamestown needs to be focused on Lucy. There's only one Lucy and the fans will visit a place honoring her where they can learn about her and celebrate her.

 

Just my thoughts...now back to your regularly scheduled program. :D

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I've been away for the Lounge for far too long and am now catching up. Here are some (more) of my thoughts on this strand.

 

1) If there were to be a museum/center created in her name, Lucy wanted it to be something on new comedy and to foster/support new comedians coming into the profession. I'm all for that and I think the Center can have a role in that, but does that really mean bringing to people (new comedians, etc.) to Jamestown? In all due respect, what's there to motivate people to come to Jamestown to learn comedy? Couldn't the Center do something like out reach or something with other places throughout the country to develop comedians? I think the museums and other facilities in Jamestown should be focused on preserving artifacts and other parts of Lucy and Desi' legacy/memory.

 

2) On that note, further develop (as has already been said) the archives. I've heard from several sources that the archives are in sad shape. They've had archivists and interns on staff supposedly to maintain the archives, but I wonder how much has been accomplished? Perhaps someone with graduate work in archives or a closely related area and practical experience in an archival setting plus who's a Lucy fan would be a good person to get things into shape? (Not to go off-topic or seem self-serving, but isn't it a coincidence that I have a master's degree in library science, have worked in an archives, am a Lucy fan, and am between jobs right now? ;):D )

 

3) For employees they don't necessarily need to have people who are fans so much as individuals who have both the love of Lucy and the training to do various jobs/responsibilities that make a non-profit successful. While I'm not necessarily saying they don't have anyone like this on staff now, this is just what it takes to run an organization successfully.

 

4) For the festivals, they seem to be getting a nice balance...events for Lucy fans as well as events for the new comedy angle. I think keeping a balance is good.

 

5) We need to remember - like the person who made the comment about Graceland being focused on Elvis - that Jamestown needs to be focused on Lucy. There's only one Lucy and the fans will visit a place honoring her where they can learn about her and celebrate her.

 

Just my thoughts...now back to your regularly scheduled program. :D

Now if anyone there had any brains, they'd hire you from that post alone! :ill:

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Thanks. I did call them a couple weeks ago and was able to book a room. So happy because that's the one that is closest to everything. :marionstrong:

 

Please keep me posted on your upcoming attendance (happy to see you got a room near the 'action') - perhaps we can have a little 'get acquainted' in person over a Taco Hut marguerita(sp?) -in any event, you know what I mean.... Regards, JK :D

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I thoroughly enjoyed Paula too. Her spontaneity is great as is how well she connects with the audience.

 

Had she called on me should would have found a substitute teacher who's going to Canada in two years.

 

What brings you to Canada, MJF? Where are you going? What are you doing?

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  • 5 months later...

Added to the chronology this date, the following:

 

The Latest From Everything Lucy Website: Lucy Fest Documentary - "An untitled Lucy Fest documentary is now in post-production; a production of the Boonies International Film Festival in conjunction with Beniquez Films.  At 2012 Lucy Fest, a film crew interviewed comedians: Billy Gardell, Tammy Pescatelli, Paula Poundstone, and Lucie Arnaz.  The documentary hopes to take Lucy Fest to those fans that can not make it to Jamestown, NY, and explore how Lucille Ball continues to inspire comics and fans around the world.  Director, Lorena Beniquez says, 'The funny thing we learned through the filming process is people get really serious when it comes to talking about comedy and Lucille Ball.'  The Boonies, Inc. organized as a non-profit corporation, is created to support, educate and promote independent filmmakers of all ages, as well as promote Northwestern Pennsylvania's location and natural resources to the film industry. To that end, The Boonies will utilize film, visual arts, music and the newest and experimental technologies to enhance the experience of students, filmmakers and audiences," posted this date in 2013.

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Interesting about the documentary. I think Brock had mentioned something about this in his recap from last year.

Back when I was in college in Ithaca I had a professor for some of my TV production classes that was working on a documentary about small town festivals. He was showing us his footage one day of stuff he shot at Mark Twain days. I mentioned to him about Lucy Fest and that it was only about 3 hours west. I found out later that he did indeed shoot footage at that festival (May). It would have been in 2000(I wasn’t there that year). I never caught the finished doc, as I missed the on-campus screening, finding out about it when it was over.

 

Found this: It’s called Three Small-Town American Celebrations

And my alumni magazine had this article about it. http://www.ithaca.edu/icq/2002v2/chronreport/report2.htm

 

The Karalt thing is funny because in my Production and Direction lecture section we would watch an On the Road segment every class. Also had a professor that would show us an Ernie Kovacs show segment at the start of every lecture. I think I was the only one in the class who knew who Ernie Kovacs was.

 

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Added to the chronology this date, the following:

 

The Latest From Everything Lucy Website: Lucy Fest Documentary - "An untitled Lucy Fest documentary is now in post-production; a production of the Boonies International Film Festival in conjunction with Beniquez Films. At 2012 Lucy Fest, a film crew interviewed comedians: Billy Gardell, Tammy Pescatelli, Paula Poundstone, and Lucie Arnaz. The documentary hopes to take Lucy Fest to those fans that can not make it to Jamestown, NY, and explore how Lucille Ball continues to inspire comics and fans around the world. Director, Lorena Beniquez says, 'The funny thing we learned through the filming process is people get really serious when it comes to talking about comedy and Lucille Ball.' The Boonies, Inc. organized as a non-profit corporation, is created to support, educate and promote independent filmmakers of all ages, as well as promote Northwestern Pennsylvania's location and natural resources to the film industry. To that end, The Boonies will utilize film, visual arts, music and the newest and experimental technologies to enhance the experience of students, filmmakers and audiences," posted this date in 2013.

 

Is there a chance I could be there if they film this summer? I'mma be famous! :lucyhaha:

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Is there a chance I could be there if they film this summer? I'mma be famous! :lucyhaha:

 

Someone is always 'filming' at these events; but, this crew filmed during the 2012 fest; hopefully, we will see the 'product' of this sometime soon; everyone be on the lookout; perhaps, the Center will have it shown in this year's event.

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