What's Playing At 78th Playstreet?

Closed Street Quickly Becomes Intrinsic Part Of Park

August 5, 2011 / Jackson Heights Neighborhood / Queens Buzz. I went to check out Friday Night At The Movies, which spontaneously began the last week in July on 78th Playstreet next to Travers Park in Jackson Heights. Don and Katha Cato, organizers of the Queens World Film Festival, came up with the idea. And they implemented it with the help of a few friends, notably Elliott and Elena Madison of the Jackson Heights Green Alliance.

The weekly Friday Night At The Movies on 78th Playstreet will continue Friday, August 12th beginning at dusk [between 8 and 9 pm] at 78th Playstreet, which is adjacent to Travers Park and provides additional recreational space for families and kids living nearby in Jackson Heights.

Recycling Indie Films – New Green Initiative

The films being aired are from the first Queens World Film Festival. The films shown the night I attended included 38 minutes of shorts, and … Click here to read more about Friday Night At The Movies At 78th Playstreet.

How To Start A Cultural Movement

Where Art & Culture Meet Immigrant Movement

May 1, 2011 / Jackson Heights & Corona / Ethnic & Religious Culture / Queens Buzz. I was out covering one story when I caught wind of another. The other was the Immigrant Movement which is an art / social experiment going on this year in the Corona neighborhood of Queens.

I happened upon it in late April when I noticed a large crowd standing outside of the Immigrant Movement building in Corona Queens. The crowd had an artsy look - a look I have happened upon in Corona only occasionally ... so far.

It seems the Immigrant Movement is a three party collaboration, lead by performance artist / social activist Tania Bruguera of Cuba. The project is funded by the Queens Museum Of Art which periodically takes avante garde art initiatives, as well as by Creative Time which is a modern art organization in the metro NYC area. This creative approach to art and culture was provocative enough to capture my curiosity, so I stepped through the doorway to find out more.

Click here to read more about the Immigrant Movement in Corona Queens.

Queens World Film Festival

New Film Festival Debuts In Jackson Heights

March 2, 2011 / Jackson Heights / Queens Buzz. This report includes all the info about the first Queens World Film Festival in Jackson Heights, including a link to their website.

Click here to read more about the Queens World Film Festival in Jackson Heights.

Julio Of Jackson Heights

Film Delves Into LGBT Parade

February 10, 2011 / Jackson Heights / Queens Buzz. I just returned from a screening of an unfinished documentary film about the origins of the LGBT Parade in Jackson Heights. A Jackson Heights resident had tipped us off about the screening, because he was moved by the quality of the film documentary.

The documentary movie covers the brutal murder of Julio Rivera, and the subsequent social activism ignited by this young man’s death. The unfinished film has a lot of texture, including some history of the gay community and gay activism in the NYC metro area.

Click here to read more about the film Julio Of Jackson Heights.

Bulova Corporate Center

Queens Was Once On Bulova Time

The Bulova Watch Company & Building

Jackson Heights / Queens Buzz. We had occasion to visit the Bulova Corporate Center recently. The art deco Bulova Corporate Center building caught our interest because of its interesting architecture. And the history of the Bulova Watch Company, which has been a Queens mainstay since the 1950's, is as interesting as the building that was once home to an American icon.

Currently the building is occupied by the offices of a number of organizations including the Queens Chamber Of Commerce and American Airlines. The following piece is a history of the J. Bulova Watch Company and the building they once occupied: the Bulova Corporate Center. Click here to view our report on the Bulova Corporate Center in Jackson Heights. The photo at right was from one of the original murals of the Bulova Watch Company.

Buddhism In Queens

The Holy Day Of Visakha Puja

The full moon of the fifth lunar month is the most important holy day in the Buddhist religion. It is the anniversary of the birthday, the enlightenment and the death of Siddhartha, who became the awakened one or the enlightened one and began teaching Buddhism over two and a half thousand years ago.

Buddhist Temples & Buddhism In Queens

There are about 23 Buddhist temples in Queens, of which more than half are located in Flushing; with the next largest grouping of them in the Elmhurst / Woodside area. The Buddhist temple I visited on this holy weekend, Wat Buddha Thaithavornvanaram, is located in Elmhurst on 46th Avenue near 76th Street. The temple was founded in 1994 and is open for traditional services to all who wish to attend.

Click here to read our full report on the most Holy Day at one of the Buddhist Temples in Queens.

Elmhurst Hospital - Jackson Heights

April 19, 2010 / Elmhurst & Jackson Heights / Queens Buzz. I arranged to conduct an interview and take a tour of the Elmhurst Hospital in Queens. The hospital’s Associate Executive Director of External Affairs, Dario Centorcelli made time in his schedule to accommodate my visit. I arrived mid morning and we immediately struck up a lively dialogue about Elmhurst and Queens hospitals which would last past lunchtime. During that time I found Dario had a near encyclopedic mind about the hospitals in Queens. In the photo to your left you see surgery being performed at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens.

Click here to read the rest of the story including numerous photos and a slide show of Elmhurst Hospital in Queens NY.

Vaughn College - Queens NY

A Step Back In Time & A Vision Of The Future

Jackson Heights / March 14, 2010.  I spent the better part of  a fascinating day visiting Vaughn College, which used to be the Casey School of Aeronautics near LaGuardia Airport. Vaughn College is one of the nation’s leading educational institutions dedicated to the arts related to flying. The arts include aviation [flight simulation and classroom training], engineering and technology [airframe, power management and mechatronics] and general management. I suppose these days it might be more appropriate to call it the arts of air transportation.

Click here to read about Vaughn College of Queens NY.