Haute & Cool: On Shirley's Radar

On my radar for summer:
es·pa·drille/ˈespəˌdril/

1. "Espadrilles are normally casual flat, but sometimes high heeled shoes originating from the Pyrenees. They usually have a canvas or cotton fabric upper and a flexible sole made of rope or rubber material molded to look like rope. The jute rope sole is the defining characteristic of an espadrille; the uppers vary widely in style.
   
   "The term espadrille is French and derives from the Occitan & Catalan name for the shoes, espardenya, which derives from espart, the Occitan/Catalan name for esparto, a tough, wiry Mediterranean grass used in making rope. Espadrilles have been made in Pyrenean Occitan a and Catalonia since the 14th century at least and there are shops in the Basque country still in existence that have been making espadrilles for over a century. Traditional espadrilles have a canvas upper with the toe and vamp cut in one piece, and seamed to the rope sole at the sides. Often they would have laces at the throat that would be wrapped around the ankle to hold the shoes securely in place. Traditional espadrilles are worn by both men and women."
   -From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



2. Espadrille
   A canvas shoe with twisted rope soles, originally worn in Spain, but popular for beach and sportswear for visitors to Spain and France from the 1920s. Expensive designer versions have been made, but the original style, impractical in wet weather, is the disposable summer footwear of choice for many Europeans.”
   -From Berg Dictionary of Fashion History (M & later F) Period: 1920s onwards

Disposable? Not so happy about that…impractical in wet weather…really?

In any case, if you were me, you’d pick some up! Where: at the Columbia College Bookstore or that other store that has the red bulls-eye for a logo! Just look at these beauties!




Fashion musings by Shirley Bennett.

Movies in the Park

IT’S SUMMER! (OK, not really until June 20th at 6:09 pm…but close enough.)

So…let the summer movies begin! Chicago Park District kicks off it's 12th annual Movies in the Park series this week.

And, yes - it's FREE!

Tuesday, June 12

Pee Wee's Big Adventure
Millennium Park
201 E. Randolph Street

Wednesday, June 13

Mr. Popper's Penguins
Mary Richardson Jones Park
1240 S. Plymouth Ct.

Check out the full schedule on their site.

Ray Bradbury, 1920-2012

Ray Bradbury, science fiction author of classic books such as Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles, has died at 91.  In 2009 Columbia College Chicago awarded Ray Bradbury with an honorary degree.
Columbia College faculty member and Bradbury biographer, Sam Weller spoke at the commencement ceremony and introduced a video from Ray Bradbury.

Mr. Bradbury's remarks begin at 7:42.
  

Ray Bradbury will be deeply missed. 

Summer Movies in the Collection

You may be excited to see this year's summer blockbusters but there are plenty of movies about summer to keep you busy too!

Here are some favorites - all available in the library collection.  What are some of your favorites?

Parent Trap (1961) 
Description: Hayley Mills stars as two young girls who, while at summer camp, discover that they are long-lost twin sisters, separated shortly after birth. Reunited at last, they launch a coast-to-coast campaign to rekindle romance between their estranged parents.  Performers: Hayley Mills, Maureen O'Hara, Brian Keith, Charlie Ruggles.  Director: David Swift

In the Heat of the Night (1967)
Description: A small town Southern sheriff finds himself in an uneasy alliance with a big-city black homicide detective as they investigate a murder. Performers: Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates, Lee Grant. Director: Norman Jewison




American Graffiti (1973)
Description: This nostalgic, episodic comedy follows a group of teenagers through their last summer night together before some of them leave for college. Notable for its excellent rock-n-roll soundtrack & its large cast of future stars.  Performers: Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Charlie Martin Smith, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips, Harrison Ford, Cindy Williams, Wolfman Jack.  Director: George Lucas

Jaws (1975)
Description: Spielberg pits three men against a Great White Shark that has been attacking swimmers at an island resort in New England. The film redefined the word "blockbuster," and John Williams' score still haunts swimmers around the world. Performers: Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss, Lorraine Gary, Murray Hamilton, Carl Gottlieb, Jeffrey C. Kramer. Director: Steven Spielberg

Breaking Away (1979) 
Description: The Academy Award winning comedy about an idealistic young man and his friends and their pursuit to find jobs and a purpose to life in their hometown of Bloomington, Indiana. Performers: Dennis Christopher, Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, Jackie Earle Haley, Barbara Barrie, Paul Dooley, Robyn Douglass. Director: Peter Yates


Friday the 13th (1980)
Description: Camp counselors are stalked and murdered by an unknown assailant while trying to re-open a summer camp that was the site of a child's drowning. Performers: Betsy Palmer, Adrienne King and Harry Crosby (plus Kevin Bacon).  Director: Sean S. Cunningham


Do the Right Thing (1989)
Description: On the hottest day of the year on a street in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, everyone's hate and bigotry smolders and builds until it explodes into violence. Performers: Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Richard Edson, Giancarlo Esposito, Spike Lee, Bull Nunn, John Turturro, Rosie Perez, Joie Lee, Sam Jackson.  Director: Spike Lee


Dazed & Confused (1993)
Description: America, 1976. The last day of school. Bongs blaze, bell-bottoms ring, and rock and roll rocks. Eavesdrop on a group of seniors-to-be and incoming freshman. Performers: Jason London, Joey Lauren Adams, Milla Jovovich, Adam Goldberg, Anthony Rapp, Marissa Ribisi, Michelle Burke, Wiley Wiggins, Ben Affleck, Parker Posey, Matthew McConaughey. Director: Richard Linklater


Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001)
Description: Two teens set off on a wild cross-country trip with seductive, 28-year-old Luisa. Luisa schools them in the finer points of passion, but will their mutual desire for her destroy their friendship forever?  Performers: Maribel Verdú, Gael García Bernal, Diego Luna.  Director: Alfonso Cuarón


My Summer of Love (2004)
Description: A spirited local girl finds herself drawn into the lush fantasy world of a prep-school rebel, but what started as a magical summer adventure soon becomes a dangerous friendship. Performers: Natalie Press, Emily Blunt, Paddy Considine. Director: Pawel Pawlikowski

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)
Description: Two girlfriends on a summer holiday in Spain become enamored with the same painter, unaware that his ex-wife, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship, is about to re-enter the picture. Performers: Javier Bardem, Patricia Clarkson, Penélope Cruz, Rebecca Hall, Scarlett Johansson. Director: Woody Allen

Adventureland (2009)
Description: When James Brennan has to cancel his dream summer vacation and make some money for grad school, the only job he can get is at Adventureland, a tacky amusement park where the games are rigged and the rides make you hurl. But it's where he meets Em, and his rollercoaster ride to nowhere turns into the best summer ever. Performers: Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig, Ryan Reynolds. Director: Greg Mottola