June 25 - July 8 / Vol. 4, No. 13 / ErieReader.com Gilbert Gottfried Q&A: On The Beatles, Talking Ducks, Summer In The City: and the Art of Telling Jokes Too Soon Jobs Program Steers At-risk Fine Art and Erie Economics Youth Toward A Better Path Waterford Authority Crumbles Plans for Potato Chip Plant pARTy on the Patio • Basement Transmissions’ Grand Reopening • MoChester at Docksider • 8 Great Tuesdays Kick-off For more information or to register, call 814-459-8000 or visit www.JESerie.org. Visa, MasterCard, AMEX and Discover accepted. SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE. Day / Date /Time Title Instructor Program Type 2014 Summer Schedule Wed./July 9/7:00-8:30 The British Royals Visit “The World of Tomorrow” David Cope, M.Ed. Lecture All programs are held at times Thurs./July 10/7:00-8:30 The Arctic: Resources, Russia, and Geopolitics Richard Buys, M.S., Lt. Col. USAF (Ret.) Lecture scheduled at the Jefferson Distinguished Visiting Educational Society, Tues./July 15/7:00-8:30 Good Hunting: An American Spymaster’s Story Jack Devine, M.A.* and Vernon Loeb* 3207 State Street. Speaker Lecture Wed./July 16/7:00-8:30 The Virginia Dynasty William P. Garvey, Ph.D. Free Lecture Breakdown of Program Costs An Evening of Political Satire with Mark Russell: An Ice Distinguished Visiting (unless otherwise noted): Sun./July 20/6:15-8:30 Mark Russell* Cream Social Speaker Lecture Distinguished Visiting Speaker Lectures: Distinguished Visiting Mon./July 21/7:00-8:30 An Evening with Teddy Roosevelt Joe Wiegand, Re-enactor* $15/person; $25 with a guest Speaker Lecture Lectures: Tues./July 22/7:00-8:30 A Musical Odyssey from the Great American Songbook The Four Grads Free Lecture $10/person; $15 with a guest Historical Tour: Wed./July 30/7:00-8:30 The Erie Economy: How Do We Move Forward? Jim Kurre, Ph.D. Free Lecture $800 per person; $1,500 with a guest Project Icebreaker: Unlocking the Offshore Wind NWPAGE/Clean Air (an extra $150 will be charged to those Thurs./July 31/7:00-8:30 Eric Ritter, B.A.* who want a single occupancy hotel room) Potential of the Great Lakes Council Free Lecture Free Distinguished Tues./August 5/7:00-8:30 Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!: The Evolving Artistry of the Beatles Kenneth Womack, Ph.D.* Payments must be recieved at registration. Visiting Speaker Lecture Wed./August 6/7:00-8:30 Songs of Summer, Acappella Lake Erie Sound Free Performance Act 48 hours for the Erie Catholic Diocese, Erie Day School, Erie School District, Sat./September 20 – Corry, Fort LeBoeuf, Girard, Harborcreek, Virginia Dynasty Tour Jefferson Society Staff Historical Tour Tues./September 23 and Wattsburg teachers apply to ALL programs at no additional cost. *Denotes Visiting Lecturer from outside the Erie Community mer Smiles! Where Sum ! Toll Free 1.877.817.1009 Free Parking! 814.838.3591 Located at entrance to Presque Isle State Park. Free Admission to Amusement Park! (some exceptions fireworks days & holidays) Water World open Tues. thru Sun. at 11am (except Thursdays - open at 10am) Waldameer open Tues. thru Sun. at noon Season Pass sales end June 29th! waldameer.com 2 | Erie Reader | ErieReader.com June 25, 2014 CONTENT June 25, 2014 Editors-in-Chief: Brian Graham & Adam Welsh Managing Editor: News & Notes Culture Ben Speggen Contributing Editor: 4 Street Corner Soapbox 7 Street Fashionista Rebecca Styn Music Fashion Editor -at-Large: Batting Lessons Cory Vaillancourt 5 The Way I See It 11 Fine Art and Erie Copy Editor: Alex Bieler Waterford Authority Crumbles Plans for Economics Contributors: Potato Chip Plant Can the Erie market Alex Bieler support paintings with high Mary Birdsong 6 Just Toyin' Witcha price tags? Pen Ealain Rick Filippi Erie’s East Side Food Desert Iggy Imig 12 If We Were You James R. LeCorchick 6 Considering the City Here's what we would do John Lindvay The Congress for New Urbanism Lili Morton 16 Music Reviews Dan Schank Ryan Smith 9 Summer in the City 17 The Soulful Sounds of Jay Stevens Jobs Program Steers at-Risk Youth Summer Rebecca Styn Toward a Better Path Bryan Toy Gloria Reuben Kicks off Cory Vaillancourt 22 ER Sports Romolo Music Series Jim Wertz Local sports with James R. LeCorchick Cover Design: 19 Gilber Gottfried Q&A Leah Yungwirth A Wonderful Hypocrisy Photographers: Ryan Smith Brad Triana 20 Geeked Out Designer: Action Toy Man Leah Yungwirth Design Intern Liz Venuto Writing Interns: Jessica Courter From the Editors Khadija Djellouli Tom Ricci Will Taylor 32 W. Eighth St. #302 few weeks back, we wrote about the “Poverty” remains an ever-present headline. the unemployment rates, a decrease in crime, Erie PA, 16501 importance of laying the foundation And as more employers continue to look for violence, and poverty will follow. [email protected] A for education at an early age. That prospective employees with job experience In this issue, you’ll find Jim Wertz’s feature discussion surrounded high-quality Pre-K already under their belts, getting even an en- on the Erie Summer Jobs Program — the de- The Erie Reader is Erie’s only free, independent education in Pennsylvania and how it serves try-level job without that prior experience is tails of that march, the work the Erie Com- source for news, culture, and entertainment. The as the cornerstone upon which we can invest becoming virtually impossible. munity Foundation is doing, and what these Erie Reader is a forum for ideas and discussion, today for a bright future in the years to come. That is, invest now in our youth-about-to- means for our region moving forward in the and seeks to drive two-way communication with its readers. At the Erie Reader, we endeavor to But immediate challenges still lie in front next few months. highlight the best of Erie by providing in-depth, of us. What do we do about the youth popu- Invest now in our youth- As of June 13, over 160 applications have magazine-style journalism that cuts to the lation that not a decade and a half from now about-to-become-adults, and been received to Erie Summer JAM (Jobs And heart of the issues that matter to Erie. The Erie but in the next couple of years will face the More). Before these applicants begin employ- Reader is published every other week at The see results now — because Corry Journal, 28 W. South St., Corry, Pa. 16407. world as adults, seeking employment, ed- ment with various institutions come the of- The Erie Reader is distributed at over 250 high ucation, something more than a puncher’s when these minors enter the ficial start date of July 1, they will have com- foot-traffic locations in Pennsylvania from North chance at a good life? workforce as adults in a few pleted 20 hours of soft-skills training at the East to Girard to Edinboro. The Erie Reader is A few months back, there was a community Venango Training and Development Center. also available by mail subscription; one year years, they enter with a stronger, march. Co-led by Gary Horton, director of the Then, they’ll begin entering the workforce. (26 issues) for $49.99. Send check or money more developed resume, and order payable to Flagship Multimedia, Inc., to Urban Erie Community Development Corp., In Jim’s feature, Horton told him that, the address below. In addition to appearing and Bishop Dwane Brock, leader of the Vic- they stand a better chance at “There’s no better time than the present to in print, Erie Reader adds new content daily tory Christian Center, 125 people took to the continual employment. show unity and solidarity.” And he’s right. at ErieReader.com as well social media sites. All rights reserved. All content © Flagship streets and headed to the Erie Community Without strong building blocks now — in the Multimedia, Inc, 32 W. Eighth St., Suite 302, Erie, Foundation to seek financial support for a become-adults, and see results now — be- present — our future doesn’t stand a chance. Pa, 16501. No part of this publication may be summer jobs program in Erie County. cause when these minors enter the workforce Let’s hope that come the end of August, uni- reproduced without permission. The opinions of A summer jobs program geared toward an as adults in a few years, they enter with a ty and solidarity amongst the community our columnists and contributors are their own adolescent population — community lead- stronger, more developed resume, and they — not just a segment of our community, but and do not always reflect that of the editorial board or organization. Direct inquiries to ers hope — will curtail the rise in crime and stand a better chance at continual employ- the whole community — will triumph over 814.314.9364 or [email protected]. violence plaguing our region. As we know, ment. Which suggests that with a decrease in despair and disconnect. June 25, 2014 ErieReader.com | Erie Reader | 3 News of the Weird Street Corner Soap Box By: Chuck Shepherd Batting Lessons LEAD STORY — Too Cute! arking Japan’s latest unfathomable so- By: Jay Stevens Mcial trend, two paperback photo books — both consisting only of portraits of the his time about a year ago, Chris Cron – father’s hitting tips. It wasn’t until he went too tired from chemotherapy and radiation rear ends of hamsters — have experienced manager of the Erie SeaWolves – and I away to college – University of Utah – that treatment to speak. He’s been plagued by surprising and still-growing printing runs. Tsat in his office and complained about he started to get it.