delmar loop | Joe? You’re not retiring, are you? Say it ain’t so, Joe! The Lou needs you! It’s definitely not so, according to Delmar Loop entrepreneur and city booster Joe Edwards. Ownership of entertainment destinations such as Pin-Up Bowl may have changed hands recently, but Edwards says it will be business as usual, with more fun to be had by summer when Magic Mini Golf opens across from the Pageant concert hall. Wash. U. has purchased nine properties—several buildings and two parking lots—both to the east and west of Skinker Boulevard, roughly the dividing line between the U. City and StL sections of the popular dining and attraction district. Both parties are holding purchase prices close to the vest. Edwards and wife Linda famously resurrected The Loop in 1972 when they opened Blueberry Hill, still going gangbusters after its 50th anniversary. Edwards and his urban-renewal spirit have steadily marched to the east—as far as Forest Park, if you count the on-again, off-again Loop Trolley—reviving the historic Tivoli Theatre, then building into the 21st century with The Pageant and Delmar Hall concert venues. Edwards says about half of Wash. U.’s acquisitions are in St. Louis, the other half in the U. City portion of The Loop. He’s confident the well-endowed private university will make wise decisions with the properties based on the moves already made. “This is a wonderful transaction for the future,” Edwards says. “It will be for long after I’m gone!” He’s sure they’ll fill the vacant second stories of some buildings, such as the one directly across from the Pageant that once housed President Barack Obama’s favorite pizza joint, Pi. He doesn’t anticipate anything will change substantially for Peacock Diner, a space he rents from Wash. U. It features one of the many bodacious splashes of neon throughout The Loop, beginning with Blueberry Hill and continuing through to the Tivoli marquee, Pin-Up Bowl and The Pageant. Speaking of neon, Edwards notes that we ain’t seen nothing yet. The curved neon sign at Magic Mini Golf, 6160 Delmar Blvd., will be 20 feet tall, featuring two golfers. “It will knock your socks off,” says Edwards, a tad modestly. So, wear golf socks before you come out to go in, because some footies, we muse, may even have been designed to withstand hurricanes.
st. louis
This season, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra will not be able to open in Powell Hall, with groundbreaking for its $100 million revamp projected to begin this April. The orchestra, which will start its fifth year under the baton of music director Stéphane Denève, is to split performances between Stifel Theatre downtown and the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center on the UMSL campus. Holiday concerts, to be staged at J. Scheidegger Center for Performing Arts at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, will also feature a special Lunar New Year concert in February 2024. Stifel Theatre began its long life in the 1930s as the Kiel Opera House, and SLSO performed there until the 1960s. Can’t get enough of maestros, you say? Enjoy a private screening March 7 of the Oscar-nominated film Tár, which stars Cate Blanchett and is based on a true story, featuring a Q&A before the movie with Stephanie Childress, SLSO’s assistant conductor. Ticket includes the Q&A and movie, plus popcorn and a fountain drink. More food and beverage options will be available for purchase at the Alamo Drafthouse in the City Foundry entertainment complex. For ticket info, visit classic1073.org/tar.
the metro
Hyundai and Kia car owners aren’t exactly fans of TikTok right now—and not just because the original song they recorded months ago hasn’t started trending. Imagine the shock and dismay you’d feel looking out from your bedroom window one morning to see that your new Kia Soul is no longer in your driveway. A similar scenario has played out hundreds more times than usual over the last year or so, such that the theft rate for the South Korean-made vehicles soared over 1,000% and some owners haven’t been able to find reasonably priced auto insurance. It all started with a TikTok video that went viral showing would-be thieves how to exploit anti-theft devices in the cars, making them easier to swipe. About 8 million cars, 3.8 million Hyundai, 4.5 million Kia, are vulnerable. Most of the affected models were made between 2015 and 2019 and use mechanical keys. Meanwhile, some relief is coming from across the Pacific Ocean: A fix for the computer glitch is being made available to dealers, and it takes little more than an hour in a service bay. Heavens to Betsy—auto thievery has changed a whole lot since the days when PSAs ran on TV reminding scatterbrained drivers that nincompoops lurk in the shadows, just waiting to pounce. “Don’t let a good kid go bad,” the voiceover went. “Lock your car. Take your keys.” Back in the day, as any Boomer will tell you, was also when juvenile delinquents could siphon gas out of your tank. And cars didn’t have computers. Or seat belts.
notable neighbors
olivette
The 28th iteration of the St. Louis Jewish Film Festival opens March 12 at Marcus Des Peres Cinema in Des Peres, and Rabbi Brad Horwitz, for one, couldn’t be more grateful that movie lovers will actually be able to go to the theater this year, rather than be able only stream the films at home, as was the case during the first three years of the pandemic. Yes, it was convenient, Horwitz notes, but there was that certain ‘something, an indefinable mojo, missing that’s so special about the communal experience. The crowd laughs, and cries, together. “We’re not a streaming service,” Horwitz says. “We’re a community builder.” As the J’s chief Jewish engagement officer, Horwitz knows a little something about that—it’s been his job for 17 years at the Jewish Community Center in Creve Coeur. “I keep the J in the JCC,” Horwitz emphasizes. “We’re making an impact in sharing Jewish culture with the Jewish community, as well as the wider community.” In short, you don’t have to be Jewish to find something you’ll love at the J! He’s responsible for programs and efforts as varied as the New Jewish Theatre, the J’s annual book sale and a mission called Song Leader Boot Camp, a program that invites varied leaders from all over the country—rabbis, cantors, teachers, camp leaders—to better create enthusiastic, welcoming environments for singers at every level of experience or talent. And, of course, he heads up the annual film fest. This year’s 14 selections are the end result of many dedicated volunteers watching dozens upon dozens of films, culling from them and agreeing, or agreeing to disagree, about the ones audiences will watch. A film lover himself, the rabbi says he knows enough about each film “to be dangerous.” A resident of Olivette, he’s grateful for Cinema St. Louis’ sponsorship of this year’s fest, which ranges from comedies and dramas to documentaries and a first-hand account of Nazi Germany’s Final Solution. Several films focus on music: There’s a film about composer and maestro Leonard Bernstein, a very complicated man. Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song is a definitive exploration of singer-songwriter Cohen as seen through the prism of his internationally renowned hymn, “Hallelujah.” Not only focused on the extraordinary Canadian folk singer with the gravelly voice, this feature-length documentary weaves together several creative strands: The somewhat inscrutable composition itself against a backdrop of the beloved songwriter and his times. Norman Jewison’s epic film Fiddler on the Roof gets an affectionate behind-the-scenes accounting, which Horwitz says is a fabulous ‘making of’ experience. Fiddler’s Journey to the Big Screen, March 16 at 7 p.m., brings the film fest to a close. “This is all about feeling good … healing the soul. I hope people take advantage of the experience. Go all in!” the rabbi exhorts; well, suggests. Updated information, film lineup and details, trailers, ticket prices (and packages) are available at stljewishfilmfestival.org, so visit early, visit often.
