Category Archives: Celebrity
Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil Brunch in Saugatuck
Oprah Winfrey’s favorite gay royal, India’s Prince Manvendra Singh Gohil, will be traveling to Saugatuck, Michigan on Sunday, August 17th to discuss his new public awareness campaign: “Free Gay India” during a royal brunch and Q & A session.
Fresh Cooking Ideas with Chef Tong June 22 @ Chicago Bontanic Gardens
Foodies and their friends will be flocking to the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden for this day of great tastes and gorgeous presentations.
Chef Christopher Tong of My Private Chef, one of Chicagoland’s most versatile Chefs, will share one of his favorite garden fresh recipes at Chicago Botanic Garden’s
popular annual Garden Chef Series.
Chef Tong will appear on Sunday, June 22, 2014 at 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. in the
Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden, Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, Illinois.
The Garden Chef Series promotes the Garden’s message of growing and using seasonal vegetables,
fruits and herbs. Chef Chris will use the spectacular open-air kitchen and amphitheater at the Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden to present his cooking demonstration.
People who are casual cooks or lovers of gourmet food get to ask questions, discuss preparation,
and come away with a fabulous recipe that they can try at home. Chef Tong will give tips on ingredients, and serving. And, everyone gets to have a taste! Seating is limited and on a first-come, first served basis.
Admission to the Chicago Botanic Garden and Garden Chef Series is free.
Parking is $25.00 per car; free for Garden members.
For more information about this Garden Chef Series event, call 847.835.5440
or visit www.chicagobotanic.org.
My Private Chef is enjoying popularity as one of Chicago’s favorite private gourmet dining services. Trained in European-style fine cuisine, Chef Tong established his reputation at fine restaurants and hotels in Florida, California, and Chicago. Now he has adapted his impressive skills to the world of private entertaining. My Private Chef offers enticing cuisine for a wide range of events, from intimate dinners
to weddings to corporate parties.
Chef Chris says: “Every event is different and I’ve met some wonderful people including many celebrities. Being part of very special occasions makes my work worthwhile. I also love doing cooking demonstrations where I get the feeling that audience members will go home and try some new dishes!”
Some recent appearances include cooking classes and demonstrations on local television, at Bloomingdale’s Home & Furniture Stores, Whole Foods Market, Gilda’s Club Chicago, Taste of Chicago and this return engagement at the Chicago Botanic Garden
For more information about My Private Chef, call Event Services at 773-370-8131 or visit www.myprivatechef.net.
Jennifer Hudson Loves Her Gay Fans
In an interview this week with ChicagoPride.com, superstar diva Jennifer Hudson talks about her fans, hometown roots, American Idol, drag queens in her likeness, a new album and her summer performance at Chicago’s Pride Fest on June 21, 2014.
Jennifer Hudson:
‘It was the gay community that loved me first’
Read it on Chicago Pride.com
Michael Urie Benefit Performance – Last Sunday in June
The charming Michael Urie, who is currently in Chicago with Jonathan Tolins’ BUYER AND CELLAR, is doing a benefit for About Face Theatre on his night off!
How great is that?!
JUNE 2nd! $20
What a steal!
Get Tickets Now!
VIP with Jennifer Hudson at Chicago PrideFest
JENNIFER HUDSON headlines Chicago PrideFest 2014!
Because bigger is always better, Chicago’s very own Jennifer Hudson will headline Pride Fest on Saturday, June 21. The hometown entertainer will take the stage at 2:40 pm at the iconic Boystown festival.
For an up close and personal view of the stage, an exclusive package is available. A limited number of VIP tickets remain.
Hudson joins Mya, Thelma Houston, Alex Newell, Betty Who and more for the two-day festival, which marks the beginning of Pride Week.
A full line-up is available here
Chicago Pride Fest
North Halsted between Addison and Byron
June 21, 22 11 am – 10 pm $10 Suggested Donation
Tyra Banks Does TransAmerica in Chicago
VH1 is continuing to serve as a voice for the transgender community.
Hollywood Reporter says…
The Viacom-owned cable network is teaming with Tyra Banks for docuseries TransAmerica, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
The eight-episode docuseries will chronicle a group of Chicago women united by the shared experience of being transgender. The series is described as an earnest look at a group of millennial women — who happen to be transgender — living, loving and building their careers. The series will explore how their sexuality impacts their lives.
Model/activist Carmen Carrera will lead the five women in the hourlong series slated to bow in late 2014 or early 2015. Banks (America’s Next Top Model) will executive produce alongside Gay Rosenthal (Behind the Music, Push Girls, Little People, Big World).
READ MORE ABOUT IT HERE
Michael Urie , Barbra Striesand and Buyer and Cellar, in Chicago
Barbra Striesands Basement of Stores in the where
BUYER AND CELLAR takes place.
These photos can not possibly do the show justice or capture its entertainment value!
It’s brilliant and funny! It’s a one man show that wildly entertains for 90 non-stop minutes.
Michael Urie is amazing and fresh and a wonderful story teller! Urie plays all of the characters, starting with a fictional out-of-work actor named Alex More who is hired to staff the underground mall of quaint shops that Streisand has built (really — this part’s true) beneath a barn on her Malibu estate.
And it is so refreshing, and so needed, for Broadway in Chicago to bring us an intimate show like this. THIS is what New York theatre is all about. Wonderful small shows in a small venue, where everyone can enjoy the actors talents and be pulled into the story! Chicago needs more of these types of shows.
Whether you like Barbra Streisand or not – this is a must-see entertaining show in Chicago, fresh from New York, and on it’s way to Los Angeles next. GO SEE IT!
Check out our interview with Michael HERE.
Michael Urie talks about Buyer and Cellar and Working for Barbra Streisand
Michael Urie is finally getting out of the cellar — and hitting the road.
The former “Ugly Betty” star will kick off a mini North American tour with Jonathan Tolins’ critically acclaimed, utterly charming and often wacky one-man show “Buyer & Cellar.” The tour makes it first stop in Chicago May 6TH!
Alex More has a story to tell. A struggling gay actor in L.A., Alex takes a job working in the mall in Barbra Streisand‘s Malibu basement. (Yes, she really has a STREET of stores in her basement that display her various collections. She has photos of it in her book My Passion for Design.)
He is employed to watch over the collections and keep things dusted. One day, the Lady Herself comes downstairs to play. It feels like real bonding in the basement, but will their relationship ever make it upstairs?
BUYER & CELLAR is an outrageous comedy about the price of fame, the cost of things, and the oddest of odd jobs. – The only factual element of Jonathan Tolins’s whimsical fantasy is the actual existence of a subterranean street of shops that Streisand had built in her barn to display her collections.
“This is like a Fantasia!” exclaims Michael. “It’s not a real story. Alex is not a real person. And Barbra Streisand probably DOES NOT have someone working in her basement. This whole story came from Jonathan Tolins imagination!”
Urie talked to us recently about what it’s like playing the fictitious store manager of Babs’s personal shopping mall.
It’s a pretty funny thing for we mortals to imagine. A street of stores! Although I myself am a collector and have lots of “stuff” – I wish I had a room or shop in my place to display everything!
Do you think the play is kind to her?
URIE: I do. I think there are snipes taken, mostly by Barry (Alex’s boyfriend, voiced by Urie), but I know Jon (Tolins) and I, and the director (Stephen Brackett), took great care in rehearsals to make sure it was fair and kind, and only what we found funny, as opposed to malicious. Barry is mean, and he says mean things, but the opinion of the piece and the narrator is love … with the caveat that having a mall in your basement is funny.
JONATHAN TOLINS (Playwright) is the author of Buyer & Cellar, which was named Best Unique Theatrical Experience by the Off-Broadway Alliance when it premiered at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. He explains,””What you’re laughing at is her need to control and to take herself so seriously. You’re not laughing at someone who’s actually a mess and endangering her life — she’s funny because she wants everything her way.”
How did you set about portraying Streisand on stage?
Urie: “As I say in the beginning of the play, I’m not going to do an impression. Really good impersonators can be uncanny and really funny impressionists.
I wanted the comedy of Barbra to come out of her behavior and not from gags. So I didn’t want to cross my eyes for instance. I just don’t want to gild the lily when it comes to sharing the fun of her idiosyncrasies. I’m only emulating her. So it’s a few faces here, and a few cadences there, the fingernails. I think what I focus on the most is the rhythms. I really watched her and studied her in Meet the Fockers. It’s a modern Barbra but playful and a bit silly.
Do you think that you will meet her some time?
Urie: “If she ever comes to show I would probably poop my pants! I hope someday that I can meet her. I don’t know what she’s really like. I feel that in private she’s probably more like when she’s acting than when she’s being interviewed. I have the sense that she’s more truthful as an actor. I was able to take gems—the voice and some of the cadences—from some of her interviews, but I kept going back to the movies, because I felt that’s more her.
At the end of the day, she really considers herself an actor more than anything. And it would make sense that she would give the most of private part of herself as an actor. She’s clever and witty at times in interviews and she makes good points, but she’s not alive and spontaneous, which is what I wanted for this show. She play-acts with my character. I didn’t want the withholding Barbra, because even in the in-depth interviews it feels like she’s withholding. I mean we all do—no offense! It’s still work when you’re being interviewed, whereas acting is more like play.”
Michael and his partner actor/writer Ryan Spahn have been together 5 and half years. And he hinted marriage is quite possibly in their cards.”We first met at a karaoke bar in Burbank. I noticed him and thought he was interesting and cute, but Ryan says he doesn’t remember meeting me. Our mutual friend tried to set us up, but I cancelled because a good friend of mine died. He’d had some unlucky dating experiences, so my excuse—my friend died—was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The ball was in my court, I guess, and I never rescheduled. Part of that was me being a flake. Part of it was, I was on TV. I was never a “man-whore,” but I enjoyed dating; I was enjoying the attention of being on Ugly Betty. A year later, a friend mentioned Ryan, and I told her to set something up. She said Ryan wasn’t interested. That’s when I felt bad.
The show moved to New York, and Ryan did, too. We supposedly kept crossing paths, but I didn’t realize it because by this time I didn’t remember what he looked like. It was sort of cruel. One night we were both supposed to meet a mutual friend, and she never showed up, so Ryan and I ended up getting a drink together. Of course, once he finally met me, I was completely irresistible!”
See more of the couple in OUT MAGAZINE
EVERYONE is saying this is must see Broadway! Even if you are not a Barbra fan, you will thoroughly enjoy this show!
Broadway In Chicago presents BUYER & CELLAR, starring Michael Urie. In Chicago for a limited engagement beginning May 6, 2014 at the Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place (175 E. Chestnut). Producers Darren Bagert ), Dan Shaheen , Ted Snowdon and Daryl Roth (“Kinky Boots,” “Love Loss and What I Wore”) bring this hilarious new comedy to Chicago.
Sneak Peak on YouTube
Broadway in Chicago – Buyer and Cellar
Michael Urie
Michael Uri
Justin Jedlica Plastic Surgery Expert and Consultant
If you could have free plastic surgery, what would you have done?
I think many gay people, especially gay men, pay A LOT of attention to their looks and to their body. Feeling good about yourself and getting compliments on how you look, give a person a boost of self confidence.
If I had the money, there are a number of things I would have done, trust me.
So why do so many judge Justin Jedlica, the human Ken doll, which by the way, I hate that label. Justin recently said, “I would say more of my inspiration stems from ‘manga’ or anime. I find that much more appealing in all honestly than a Ken doll. It’s sort of that over-stylized, cartoonish version of human form [that I like]. I have all these haters on my page being like, ‘Does that mean you want to cut off your penis?’ And I’m like actually, I wish it was dragging on the ground like anime. [Laughs] There’s actually this subgroup of people do that—they cut off their nipples and bellybuttons and castrate themselves!”
I have known Justin personally for about 2 years. He is very down to earth, very well traveled and educated. People assume he is a rich spoiled brat when in fact, he comes from a very simple lower middle class background. People who do not know him try to judge him and hate on him. I don’t understand that.
Justin and his husband of 5 years relocated to Chicago last year but Justin finds himself traveling all of time and most of his clients are in New York and Los Angeles naturally, where plastic surgery is more prevalent.
Your body is your temple, and Justin can act as the architect–your design specialist. From his many years of personal experience within the body modification arena, Justin now retains an arsenal of the most skilled, accredited, cosmetic medical specialists who act with the utmost discretion. Through his discreet referral, consultative and coordinator services, Justin and his team can assure you the most direct and comprehensive route to achieve your desired result (whether subtle or more extreme).
THERE IS A GREAT INTERVIEW THIS WEEK WITH THE DAILY BEAST.
He says, (and I totally agree), “Who are people to tell me that [my surgeries] looks weird? I mean, why is western culture the only correct perception of beauty? That’s just ridiculous. It’s a completely ignorant statement. There seems to be this overwhelming idea that you should be happy with what God gave you or what you were born with. There’s this weird stigma around allowing yourself to feel ownership over your own body and really take charge of how people view it. I don’t understand that at all.”
Don’t Hate! Appreciate!
My Private Chef of Chicago – Bloomingdales Event April 19th
Get a Taste of Spring with Chef Tong at Bloomingdale’s Home and Furniture Store
Bloomingdale’s Home & Furniture Store is celebrating the approaching warm weather.
In anticipation of Spring, Bloomingdale’s welcomes Chef Christopher Tong to demonstrate the preparation of a savory Spring menu.
A favorite with Bloomingdale’s shoppers, Chef Tong will prepare a Spring focused menu featuring:
Cold Cucumber Soup with fresh Dill
Herb-Marinated Chicken Breast, Orzo Pasta Primavera tossed with Arugula Pesto
Strawberries marinated with Balsamic Vinegar, fresh Mint and ground Pepper.
The demonstration will take place on Saturday, April 19, 2014 from 2-4 p.m. at the Bloomingdale’s Home & Furniture Store at Medinah Temple, 600 N. Wabash Avenue, Chicago.
For more information about this Bloomingdale’s event, contact 312.324.7678.
My Private Chef is enjoying popularity as one of Chicago’s favorite private gourmet dining services. Trained in European-style fine cuisine,Chef Tong established his reputation at fine restaurants and hotels in Florida, California, and Chicago. Now he has adapted his impressive skills to the world of private entertaining. My Private Chef offers enticing cuisine for a wide range of events, from intimate dinners to weddings to corporate parties.
Chef Chris says: “Every event is different and I’ve met some wonderful people including many celebrities. Being part of very special occasions makes my work worthwhile. I also love conducting cooking demonstrations where I get the feeling that audience members will go home and try some new dishes!”
For more information about My Private Chef, contact Event Services at 773.370.8131 or visit our web site: www.myprivatechef.net
Scarlet Bar – Chicago and Beyond
After the Chicago Fire of 1871, the city was reborn and rebuilt, bigger and better than ever before.
Similarly, after the fire at Scarlet bar in 2009, the bar was rebuilt and it was born anew.
General manager Robbie Baldwin remembers, “I was here helping with the new layout and the rebuilding and ended up just staying on as a full time employee and became General Manager.”
Year after year Scarlet places high on various top lists; Best gay bar in Chicago, One of the top 100 bars in Chicago, Best in Boystown, and even the Best Gay Club for Straight Folks! It’s almost as if after the fire, new energy was brought to the space.
It was in 2010 that Robbie crossed paths with designer Traver Rains, formerly of the outrageously successful Heatherette and currently of T Rains designs. “I walked into Spin one night and saw him sitting at the bar and introduced myself to him, ” remembers Baldwin. “We started chatting, he was in town scouting a location for an upcoming fashion show. We exchanged phone numbers and a few weeks later he called and said he wanted to come by Scarlet with then Chelsea Lately’s “Staff Homosexual” Guy Branum for a night of music, laughs and a great party to benefit the Trevor project. And they did! It was great fun!” (Photo at Scarlet of Johnny Weir and Traver Rains)
These days Traver is frequent fixture in Boystown, always hanging out at Scarlet and Taverna 750 when he is in town. “We’re kind of like family now, ” says Robbie. “He has designed shirts and hoodies for Scarlet but he really focuses his time on philanthropy and his photography.”
Another Scarlet regular is model/actor Austin Armacost, who first came into the public eye by way of The A List -New York, reality show. He dated designer Marc Jacobs for a short time.”After visiting Chicago for more than ten years, I find SCARLET to be the best place to just let loose!” says Austin.
“Fun crowd, fun staff, they are not cunty like some of the bars! I have celebrated my last three birthdays at SCARLET and I will be there on March 27th! I love the team there. I can dance on a speaker in my underwear and everybody is just like that’s SCARLET!”
You never know who you might see there. Brad Goreski, Jaslene Gonzalez, Candis Cayne…
Originators of The First Ward Ball, Frat Night, Liquid Brunch, Red Cup Party and Dance-off with Your Pants off, Scarlet strives to keep things fresh. “The gay community is constantly changing and evolving and you have to keep offering them something different to keep them interested. So we are always doing different themes. People know when they come here they can expect a crazy, fun, unique and memorable experience!”
Scarlet prides themselves on their list of DJ’s and their sound.
The Examiner once said, “If you’re a gay or female, chances are a drink doesn’t feel complete without dancing. And if it’s been a rough week, that preference becomes a legitimate need. If your preferences run to techno or rap, well, you can head to just about any club in the city. But if you’re looking for a DJ who will mix infectious top 40’s so seamlessly you won’t experience one of those annoying I’m-going-to-bob-my-head-because-I-have-no-idea-what-this-song-is lulls, then head to Scarlet.”
The Scarlet/Red Bull stage is always packed for Chicago PrideFest and Market Days. “Our internal motto at Scarlet is “We sell FUN” and that’s exactly what we try and do when we have our acts at these bigger events. The Djs will be playing great music you want to dance to, the Scarlet boys will be jumping around on stage and Trannika Rex, as always will be screaming into the mic and MC’ing. It’s over the top and it’s ridiculous!” says Robbie.
Scarlet throws numerous off site large scale events and the manage a team of Djs and talent. They have done several events with Macy’s and last year they were invited to Milwaukee PrideFest for a 2 hour DJ set and brought along Traver Rains who did a fashion show of his clothes. This year Scarlet will be doing 6 hours at Milwaukee Pridefest with DJs, dancing boys and the Trannika Rex Show plus ….who knows …maybe a surprise guest? At press time, contracts were still being negotiated. Don’t Miss Scarlet bar and friends Friday June 6th in MKE.
“It’s all very exciting!” exclaimed Robbie. “This year we are returning to Six Flags Great America OUT IN THE PARK private night and we have been invited to the St Louis Six Flags for their very first OUT IN THE PARK. Two of our DJ’s will also be playing the HEATWAVE LGBT charity event at Key Lime Cove in the Fall AND possibly we might be doing something in San Francisco later this year,” tells Robbie.
“We have really worked hard to develop a brand and we enjoy taking the brand on the road into other markets. One day it would be great to have several Scarlet bars in several cities.”
Scarlet Bar Chicago
3320 N Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60657 773-348-1053 FACEBOOK
| (773) 348-1053 |
Austin Armacost will Celebrate Birthday at Scarlet March 27th
Model and Actor AUSTIN ARMACOST will be in Chicago next week celebrating his birthday at his favorite bar SCARLET for what is sure to be a fun night of drinking, dancing and debauchery!
Fun starts about 9pm!
CHER and Cyndi Lauper June 7th Chicago
The tour not to miss in 2014!
CHER Dressed to Kill – with Cyndi Lauper in Chicago June 7th. 2014.
As Illinois celebrates Marriage Equality this month – what better way to celebrate!
More than 40 years of show business success Cher is that rare entertainment industry icon that defies classification. Continually referenced, adored, and examined, she belongs in the exclusive pantheon of performers who have not only outdistanced all of their contemporaries, <but have, decade in and decade out, stubbornly navigated the transient whims of public taste and carved a permanent place for themselves in the hearts and minds of cinema, television, music and pop culture enthusiasts everywhere.
Tickets and info online!
BRIDEGROOM Screening at Center on Halsted January 12
The MUST SEE movie of the year! Whether your gay, single, partnered or heterosexual – this movie will explain the need for marriage equality!
BRIDEGROOM is a documentary directed by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason that tells the emotional journey of Shane and Tom, two young men in a loving and committed relationship — a relationship that was cut tragically short by a misstep off the side of a roof. The story of what happened after this accidental death– of how people without the legal protections of marriage can find themselves completely shut out and ostracized– is poignant, enraging and opens a window onto the issue of marriage equality like no speech or lecture ever will.
We 3 Liza’s – A New Holiday Classic
Even if you don’t like Liza (with a Z!) You will LOVE WE 3 LIZA’S!
Ticklebottom’s life has hit a block. Once, Conrad and his purple box
ignited an entire movement in art and design, but now he finds himself
alone, forgotten and teetering on ruin.
Dallas Buyers Club at ShowPlace ICON Theater
An imperfect man fights for survival during an uncertain time in
America. Inspired by true events, Ron Woodroof’s story of strength is
told in Dallas Buyers Club, directed by Jean-Marc
Vallée from an original screenplay by Craig Borten & Melisa
Wallack. Spirit Award winner Matthew McConaughey portrays the real-life
character, whose self-interest is galvanized into something much more.
A son of Texas, Ron Woodroof is an electrician and rodeo cowboy. In
1985, he is well into an unexamined existence with a devil-may-care
lifestyle. Suddenly, Ron is blindsided by being diagnosed as
H.I.V.-positive and given 30 days to live. Yet he will not, and does
not, accept a death sentence.
Women for Women Event December 7th with Sandra Bernhard
Save the date for the next By Women For Women event on December 7th with Sandra Bernhard at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago,
as she arrives on stage with her band to perform a thrilling concert of
stand-up comedy and rock ‘n roll cabaret!
When Sandra Bernhard steps onstage, it’s a thrilling hybrid of
stand-up comedy and rock ’n’ roll—she performs with her four-man band
and “musicality to die for … a voice that swoops from the bluesey
basement to a top-floor falsetto and a campy soulfulness” (LA Times). Her take-no-prisoners shows are a raucous mix of political satire, pop culture commentary, and glamorous cabaret.
Bernhard arrives at MCA Stage with Everything Bad and Beautiful,
a work she originated in New York but has never before toured, in a
performance that careens through the worlds of fashion, celebrity, rock,
and religion.
Recommended for mature audiences
To reserve your tickets, call 773-661-0957.
Olympia Dukakis in ROSE November 16th
ROSE, by Martin Sherman, a one-woman play, is a portrait
of a feisty Jewish woman who has
survived some of the major events that shaped the 20th century with humor, guile, and
spirit. The play illustrates a remarkable life that began in a tiny Russian village, moved on
to Warsaw’s ghettos and ship called The Exodus, and
finally to the boardwalks of
Atlantic City, the Arizona Canyons and salsa-flavored nights in Miami Beach.
Dukakis first
performed ROSE in 1999 on stage at the Royal National Theatre in London and then in spring
2000 opened at the Lyceum Theatre on Broadway.
Recent praise for
ROSE “The
wonderful acting of Olympia Dukakis, herself a fighter for justice, an actress
with a forty-year
history of stage activity, as a university lecturer, the founder and director
of a New Jersey
theatre, in her classic roles, and especially in her total immersion into the
skin of a Holocaust
survivor as a symbol of the Jewish people and its suffering, make this play something so
sublime that the Cameri Theatre is deserving of applause for the third year of its cultural
enterprise (the International Theatre Festival).” – News1 Tel Aviv
4/18/2012
Long a vital,
respected actor of the classic and contemporary stage and the epitome of Mediterranean-styled
weariness, this grand lady did not become a household name and sought-after film
actress until age 56 when she turned in an Oscar-winning performance as Cher’s sardonic
mother in the romantic comedy Moonstruck (1987).
Since then movie (and TV) fans have
discovered — an acting treasure. Her adaptability to various ethnicities
(Greek, Italian, Jewish,
Eastern European, etc.), as well her chameleon-like versatility in everything from cutting edge
comedy to stark tragedy, has kept her in high demand for the past 30 years as of one
of Hollywood’s topnotch character players.
Olympia Dukakis
Starring in “Rose,” a concert reading by Martin Sherman
Saturday, Nov. 16 7:30 p.m.
Dorothy Menker Theater @ Moraine Valley Community College
9000 W. College Pkwy. Palos Hills, IL 60465-2478
Buy
Tickets
***Dinner and a Show: Enjoy 25% off your total bill at Cíao Ristorante (10296 S. 78th Avenue, Palos Hills) before or after any Mainstage Series performance by showing your tickets.
Reservations are required by calling Cíao at (708) 237-2426. Some restrictions apply.
Ronnie Kroell will walk 921 Miles from Chicago to New York City
Ronnie Kroell and Elliot
London, Co founders of THE FRIEND MOVEMENT will walk 921 miles, Chicago
to New York
Kroell and London will walk 921 miles – over 37 days to raise awareness for increased bullying prevention efforts
across the country.
The walk, to coincide with National Bullying
Prevention Month, will begin on Saturday, Oct. 5 from The Bean in Millennium
Park in Chicago and end on Sunday, November 10 in New York City. Both men are
from Chicago, and decided to start their journey there.
London and Kroell launched the FRIEND MOVEMENT, in response to the increasing number of suicides being committed
as a result of bullying. Both men were subjected to bullying, and the
two were inspired to establish the
movement in the wake of the suicide of Tyler Clementi, a Rutgers University
student who jumped to his death off the George Washington Bridge in New York
three years ago after being severely cyber-bullied by his dormitory roommate.
And they have filmed a documentary, “Friend” about bullying which is
currently in final stages of production.
London said, ” It is so important for me to make this
film. Our goal is to showcase the struggles of present day teens, and adults
for that matter, being bullied with the technology that we have all embraced.”
“Tyler may have been a young gay man, but bullying does
not discriminate.” said film maker London. ” It affects people
of all races, ages, religions, genders, sexualities, socio-economic backgrounds
and more,” adds London. “And the impact of bullying is
profound. It can lead to a plethora of physical and psychological problems
that can be life-long, in addition to suicide, which, by the way, is the number
one cause of death among school and college students in the U.S.”
Individuals can join FRIEND
MOVEMENT by visiting its indiegogo campaign, https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/friend-movement-walk.
For a $20 donation, participants will receive a specially made FRIEND MOVEMENT
watch, as well as a purple ribbon that can be sent back, in a postage-paid
envelope provided by the movement, to The Tyler Clementi Foundation with a
personalized dedication to a friend or family member. Each ribbon will be
placed on the site of the closing ceremony of the walk in New York City.
FRIDAY – OCTOBER 4th 6:30 CENTER ON HALSTED……
FRIDAY – OCTOBER 4th – Meet and Greet at
HAMBURGER MARYS in Andersonville
