Buzz

bbc writes about world's first rock concert in cleveland
In the lead-up to the 27th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, articles on the birth of rock and roll are as inevitable as the encore at a rock concert.
 
Writing for the BBC, Jude Sheerin delves into the start of it all, right here in Cleveland.
 
"Sixty years ago the world's first rock concert was staged in Cleveland by two men whose passion for music bridged the racial divide in a segregated U.S.," says the writer.
 
Those "two men" were Alan Freed and Leo Mintz.
 
"One of them was the [Moondog Coronation Ball] MC, Alan Freed. The other was Leo Mintz, owner of a music store on the fringes of Cleveland's black community."
 
Sheerin goes on to describe the coining of the phrase 'rock 'n' roll, the events that lead up to the "world's first rock concert," the Moondog Coronation Ball, held March 21, 1952 in the old Cleveland Arena, and the pandemonium that ensued when gatecrashers stormed the 10,000-seat venue.
 
Spoiler Alert: It did not end as planned.
 
Read the rest of the liner notes here.
the atlantic puts cleveland in context with the world
In an interesting piece titled How Big is Your City, Really by Samuel Arbesman for The Atlantic, readers are shown to look at scale and context in how they view the world.
 
Interesting factoids noted include the first moonwalk by the Apollo 11 crew occurred in an area no larger than a baseball diamond and that a super-dense neuron star would fit within the Boston metropolitan area.
 
“We often have a certain sense of cities’ importance and size, but this is too often founded on a fairly parochial context; our perceptions of cities are based on other cities we are familiar with or that are around it, and we neglect to recognize how big or small cities really are.” States Arbesman.
 
The story goes on to mention that Cleveland, for example, has a metropolitan population greater than that of Dublin, Amsterdam, and Brussels, but that it pales in comparison to importance in global affairs.
 
Read the entire feature here.
local editor shares her ciff picks with the huffpo
“One of my favorite events of the year is right around the corner -- the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) from March 22 to April 1," writes Stefanie Penn Spear, editor of EcoWatch for the Huffington Post.
 
Spear states in her lengthy feature that while she enjoys a wide variety of offerings the festival offers, environmental documentaries are always her favorite. 
 
EcoWatch is sponsoring a film in the festival titled Dirty Energy,which documents the personal stories of those directly affected by the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and their struggles to rebuild their lives amidst the economic devastation and long-term health risks afflicting the area.”
 
Spear goes on to detail another film titled Cape Spin, which she was given the opportunity to preview, about a political battle over the 2001 proposal for a Cape Wind’s energy project.
 
Read the detailed story here.
newsmax previews rock hall renovations
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is gearing up to unveil it $6.9 million renovation project writes Sandy Fitzgerald in a brief report for Newsmax. This latest renovation is the most extensive since the museum opened in 1995.
 
The renovations were completed just in time for the upcoming sold-out induction ceremonies that will take place on April 14.
 
Among the improvements made is the red carpet entrance, as well as new interactive displays, improved signage, and revamped exhibits with more of a natural flow.
 
“Ninety percent of the people who come to the museum love the experience,” said Terry Stewart, president and CEO of the museum. “But what don’t they like? What have we learned over the years that we can do better? We stepped back and compiled those improvements, to make it a better experience without trying to transform it into a brand-new museum."
 
Read the full article here.
washington d.c. welcomes great lakes brewing co.
Great Lakes Brewing Company -- arguably the best thing out of Cleveland since Michael Symon’s soul patch -- is finally available on draft in NoVa starting this week,” writes Anna Spiegel of the Washingtonian in her Best Bites Blog, which highlights the Washington, D.C. area’s food, restaurant, and dining scene.
 
While we'll forgive her clichéd snub of Cleveland, we'd have to agree that Great Lakes makes killer beer (and Symon -- now soul patch-less -- is pretty cool, too).
 
Spiegel goes on to talk about GLBC’s appearances at Virtue Feed & Grain and Rustico, restaurants that will hold a series of “tap takeovers” to give the Northern Virginians a taste of what we Clevelanders have loved for years. 
 
“The Great Lakes crew will be hopping around handing out free swag,” Spiegel closes with a witty pun.
 
Read the full post here.
new moca home makes news out west
As plans fall in to place for the fall opening of Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (MOCA) in its new home, word continues to spread. In this Sacramento Bee piece, the Cleveland museum and its opening exhibition, "Inside Out and from the Ground Up," are discussed.
 
"MOCA's new building is designed to serve as a catalyst for creativity and growth in a cosmopolitan Cleveland neighborhood, which is home to one of the country's largest concentrations of cultural, educational and medical institutions," the reporter states.
 
Designed by Iranian-born Farshid Moussavi, the 34,000-square-foot museum is 44 percent larger than their original home on Carnegie. The four-story hexagonal building rises 60 feet and is wrapped in black stainless steel, which will reflect its surroundings.
 
As for the opening exhibit, the article states, "Organized by David Norr, Chief Curator at MOCA Cleveland, Inside Out and from the Ground Up will feature sculpture, painting, installations, photography, and video."
 
Read the rest here.
news spreads of uci's $100m development plan
"Nonprofit plans $100M development in Cleveland."
 
Columbus' Business First picked up the recent news that University Circle Inc. is planning to spend $100 million developing 2-plus acres near the intersection of Euclid and Mayfield.
 
UCI has hired Cleveland-based Coral Co. and Panzica Construction Co. to develop an office building, apartments and a 700-space garage on the property. Three buildings would share retail and start-up space on the first and second floors, with offices and apartments above. Also in the plan is more than 100,000 square feet of offices and 96 apartments, the newspaper reports.

Read the entire report here.
gund foundation grants $700k to 'bold' cleveland schools plan
The George Gund Foundation awarded a $700,000 grant to support the bold strategy to reinvent public education in Cleveland proposed by Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson and Cleveland Metropolitan School District CEO Eric Gordon.

"The Foundation has been investing in a portfolio of new, innovative and excellent schools in Cleveland for many years in partnership with the Cleveland Foundation, and we enthusiastically support the expansion of this investment as outlined in Cleveland’s Plan for Transforming Schools," said David Abbott, executive director of Gund.

"This plan calls for a transition from a single-source school district to a new system of district and charter schools that work in partnership to create achievement gains for every student. The plan is built upon growing the number of excellent schools in Cleveland, regardless of provider, and giving these schools autonomy over staff and budgets in exchange for high accountability for performance."

The grant was among 75 totaling $3,645,349 approved by the Foundation’s board at its first meeting of 2012.
See the rest of Gund's recent grants here.
an in-depth look at the 'rembrandt in america' exhibit at cma
Writing for Akron's West Side Leader, Roger Durbin, professor emeritus at The University of Akron, provides an in-depth look at the Rembrandt in America exhibit at the Cleveland Museum of Art.
 
"This lushly appointed exhibition, which is on display through May 28, is the first major exhibition to explore how the desire for Rembrandt van Rijn paintings by American collectors has fueled research about the artist’s work," he writes.
 
Billed as "the largest number of the artist’s authentic paintings assembled from American collections in a century," the exhibit contains more than 50 of Rembrandt's works assembled from private collections and American art museums.
 
Read the rest of the article here.
huff post lauds cleveland and its new urban agrarianism
In an article titled "Rust Belt Cities and the New Urban Agrarianism," Huffington Post writer Aaron Bartley states, “Cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Milwaukee and Buffalo have shown special promise as sites of food production. By melding a critical analysis of the corporate food chain with innovative and resourceful community-based production techniques, grassroots groups in these cities have reclaimed large swaths of vacant land for a range of urban agricultural experiments."
 
Cleveland, like so many other Rust Belt cities, is experiencing poverty, depopulation, and overall deterioration.  With such decline also comes the opportunity to do something great for the benefit of all.
 
In a detailed story highlighting numerous cities, Bartley mentions that in Cleveland, Evergreen Coops broke ground last November on a massive greenhouse operation on five acres of urban land that will eventually produce three million heads of lettuce and 300,000 pounds of herbs annually to be sold and distributed across Northeastern Ohio. 
 
The facility, named Green City Growers, is set to open this spring.
 
Read the full Huffington Post story here.
rta's bus rapid transit the envy of detroit boosters
“It won't be easy or cheap, but creating a new bus rapid transit system could help metro Detroit restore reliability to public transportation, attract new riders and spur economic redevelopment,” writes Matt Helms of the Detroit Free Press, in regards to the city’s public transportation concerns.
 
Helms writes that "Cleveland -- a Rust Belt city like Detroit that many had written off -- has seen $4.3 billion in economic expansion along its main thoroughfare, Euclid Avenue" through speedy and modern transit improvements that have boosted ridership and led to redevelopment in once rundown areas.
 
"If our attitude was rail or nothing, it would have been nothing," Greater Cleveland Regional Transportation Authority general manager Joe Calabrese is quoted in the piece.
 
While Detroit’s transportation issues cannot be solved with a "quick-fix" solution, similar cities such as Cleveland at least show working-model solutions that can solicit a desired outcome.
 
Read the full Detroit Free Press story here.
cbs news says ohio's bottom line stands to gain from shale drilling
Citing a recently released study, CBS News reports that Ohio stands to gain $4.9 billion and 65,000 new jobs from shale drilling.
 
Led by a team of economics, energy and geology experts from Cleveland State University, Ohio State University and Marietta College's Department of Petroleum, the study looked at the probable economic gains that would come from the controversial practice of "fracking" -- hydraulic fracturing.
 
"By 2014, about $4.9 billion would be invested in Ohio's economy by the industry; almost 66,000 jobs would be created or 'supported' by industry growth; $433 million in local and state taxes would be generated; and energy companies would be paying wages and benefits totaling $3.3 billion," the item states.
 
"Altogether, the industry will generate $1.7 billion for Ohio's economy this year, $5.8 billion next year, and nearly $10 billion in 2014, the research found. Gross state product could grow by 1 percent, a significant increase from the 0.6 percent average for the past 13 years."
 
Read the rest of the news article here.

See the Ohio Shale Coalition Study here.
symon pulls off three-peat at south beach burger bash
Just as every chef clears his or her schedule to attend the annual South Beach Wine and Food Festival (they don't call it Spring Break for chefs for nothing), so too do members of the media, all promising to swap ink for access.
 
It's no surprise then that media outlets from all across the nation gladly trumpeted news of Cleveland chef Michael Symon's win at the annual Burger Bash. Besting chefs from around the globe, Symon claimed top honors for an unprecedented third year in a row at the sold-out event.
 
B Spot served up approximately 2,100 Porky burgers, beef and pork patties topped with pulled pork, slaw, spicy pickle and Stadium Mustard.
 
When asked what his secret was, Symon told reporters, "You want to know the secret? Great people -- that's the secret."
 
Read one example here.
chef symon brings b spot to horseshoe casino
Celebrity chef and Cleveland native Michael Symon is expanding his culinary empire once again with the opening of his fifth B Spot location, inside the city’s soon-to-open Horseshoe Casino, according to a PR Newswire press release on the Wall Street Journal’s Market Watch.
 
In addition to his B Spot -- a gourmet burger bar -- concept, Symon operates the acclaimed Lolita in Cleveland’s Tremont neighborhood, his flagship Lola on E. 4th Street, and Roast in Detroit.
 
B Spot will join Corky & Lenny’s Deli in the casino’s three-restaurant food court.  The establishment will also feature a 400-seat buffet restaurant, all expected to open in May. The menu will feature a selection of his award-winning burgers such as the Fat Doug, his signature Lola fries, and unique milkshakes. The new location will create about 20 jobs. 
 
"We are ecstatic to have the opportunity to be part of this groundbreaking project in the heart of the greatest city in the nation," said Symon. "We can't wait to fill the Horseshoe with the aroma of our delicious burgers, brats and bologna."
 
Read the full Wall Street Journal story here.
rock hall inducts backup groups, not just frontmen
Groups such as Buddy Holly and the Crickets and Bill Haley and the Comets are known and loved throughout the music world. Up until now, just the frontmen are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Earlier this year, the Rock Hall announced it would induct the backup groups for six previous solo inductees, according to a story by David Hinckley of the New York Daily News.
 
The six groups include the Famous Flames, who backed 1986 inductee James Brown; the Crickets, who backed 1986 inductee Buddy Holly; the Comets, who backed 1987 inductee Bill Haley; the Miracles, who backed 1987 inductee Smokey Robinson; the Midnighters, who backed 1990 inductee Hank Ballard; and the Blue Caps, who backed 1998 inductee Gene Vincent.
 
Other notable bands left out of this initial induction include the Belmonts, who backed up Dion, the E Street Band, who backed up Bruce Springsteen, and the Wailers, who backed up reggae legend Bob Marley.
 
The six groups will be inducted at the Hall’s annual dinner, which will take place on April 14 in Cleveland.
 
Read the full New York Daily News story here.
horseshoe casino cleveland slated to open mid-may
The Horseshoe Casino Cleveland, half owned by Caesars Entertainment Corp., is scheduled to open the week of May 14, 2012, according to an article written by Howard Stutz of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
 
The Casino will feature 2,100 slot machines, 65 table games including a World Series of Poker-themed room, as well as several restaurants, such as Corky & Lenny’s Deli and Michael Symon’s B Spot.
 
Caesars, along with Ohio developer Rock Gaming, owns the $350 million downtown development. The pair is also developing the Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati, which is slated to open in spring of 2013.
 
Read the full Las Vegas Review-Journal story here.
whalen's food praised at taste of the NFL
Chef Rocco Whalen of Tremont’s Fahrenheit restaurant continues to get national praise not just for his weight loss efforts on Food Network’s "Fat Chef," but also for his food.  Lou Harry of the Indiana Business Journal listed the chef's Nuekse’s Bacon-Wrapped Dates with Chorizo among his favorite dishes at the popular Taste of the NFL event.
 
"Nuekse's Bacon Wrapped Dates Stuff with Chorizo courtesy of Rocco Whalen, chef for Cleveland's Fahrenheit Restaurant. Note to self: Next time in Cleveland, it's date night at Fahrenheit," wrote Harry in his Arts & Entertainment column.
 
The charity event, this year supporting Gleaners Food Bank, is held annually the evening before the Super Bowl.  The event features chefs from each of the NFL team cities as well as an autograph friendly alumnus from that town’s team.
 
While Whalen continues to receive attention for his physical transformation, his food continues to be praised wherever he is.
 
Read the full Indiana Business Journal story here.
case alzheimer’s research talk of the science world
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine neuroscientist Gary Landreth and colleagues reported Thursday that bexarotene quickly cleared away beta-amyloid plaque, believed to cause the cognitive deficits of Alzheimer's disease, from the brains of genetically engineered mice, reports the Los Angeles Times.
 
While this is undeniably an exciting breakthrough in Alzheimer’s research, it is important to realize that even in the best-case scenario, usage of bexarotene in humans for treatment is at least six years away.
 
The excitement from this latest finding lies in the potential to find additional clues in the puzzle of Alzheimer’s disease.
 
"It's very uncommon, so far, that treatments for mice translate for humans," Dr. Lon S. Schneider, an Alzheimer's researcher at USC's Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles said. "People should not get immediately excited, or try to buy this drug from Canada."
 
Read the full Los Angeles Times story here.
writer's goal was to 'walk where langston hughes walked'
Ervin Dyer writes for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that, "In Cleveland, my goal was to walk where [Langston Hughes] walked and uncover Hughes' connection to this grand American city."

In this lengthy feature, she does just that.
 
"Born 110 years ago, the poet laureate of black Americans is indelibly linked with Harlem," she writes. But Hughes' literary sense was shaped in Pittsburgh's mirror city on Lake Erie.
 
Langston Hughes, called the poet laureate of black Americans, lived in Cleveland from 1916 to 1920. The first day of February marked the 110th anniversary of his birth. Hughes lived at 2266 E. 86th Street, boarded in the attic, alone, as his mother and stepfather had returned to Chicago for work. 
 
Hughes attended Cleveland’s Central High School, one of the first public high schools to enroll black students before the Civil War. It was there where he began to hone his craft as the editor of the school’s annual and the class poet.
 
In a 1957 letter, written while living in Harlem, Hughes said that his "most valuable guidance" in writing came in high school.

Read the full Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story here.
cleveland's 'fat chefs' mentioned in time
There is no denying that Rocco Whalen, chef-owner of Fahrenheit in the Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland, is one of the most beloved people in Cleveland. His warm personality and outgoing demeanor still could not hide the fact he was morbidly obese.

While the mainstream media depicts the modern chef as a healthy tattooed rock star, in many kitchens across the country and in Cleveland, chefs often battle with their weight due to “tasting” during the day and large “gorging” meals when work is done for the evening, only to continue the same pattern day in and day out according to the TIME article "When Chefs Get Fat," written by TIME food writer Josh Ozersky.
 
Whalen appeared on Food Network’s “Fat Chef” along with Auburn Township’s Kimberly McCune Gibson, a chef-caterer. The show chronicles the struggle of chefs and their attempt to lose the weight they have packed on over the years.
 
While sometimes hard to watch, the show is also remarkably inspiring. As for Whalen, he has shed well over 100 pounds and is now living a healthier lifestyle as he continues to work toward his goal weight.
 
Read the full TIME story here.