Visitors to the Four Seasons Hotel caught a glimpse of a famous face this fall! Singer Katy Perry was in town on her latest concert tour, The Witness, and surprised newlyweds Hayley Rosenblum and Blonie Dudney by crashing their wedding reception at the hotel. We’re pretty sure they weren’t offended!


 


Former St. Louis Rams defensive end Chris Long recently kicked off his Pledge 10 for Tomorrow campaign, supporting educational equity for all students. He is donating his pay from 10 NFL games to be matched by contributions from fans and businesses. The campaign commemorates Long’s 10th year as an NFL player, and nonprofits from his three career cities—St. Louis, Boston and Philadelphia—also will participate. He’s the son of former Oakland Raider and current sports commentator Howie Long

 

Congratulations are due to local poet Michael Castro, who won the Saint Louis Literary Consortium’s 2017 Tradition of Literary Excellence Award. It honors a local author who has received national and international recognition. Castro’s latest volume, We Need to Talk: Selected Poems 1970-2016, is due out this month from Singing Bone Press.


Locals who are starved for great dining ideas will enjoy Suzanne Corbett’s new book, Unique Eats and Eateries of St. Louis. The area native has compiled a collection of 99 favorite food spots, from traditional to trendy. She also has written other volumes about local culinary history and won a Telly Award for a documentary short on Missouri wine
Available at local booksellers and reedypress.com


 

 

 

 

the main events

Help fight hunger at Operation Food Search’s Holiday Rap ‘N Pack event, which gathers winter coats, food and other items for those in need. Held at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 28, the fundraising evening features music, appetizers and adult beverages.

The New York Times bestselling author A.J. Jacobs will be at the Kirkwood Public Library at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 30 to talk about his book, It’s All Relative: Adventures Up and Down the World’s Family Tree. He writes about genealogy and ethnicity with a humorous twist.

Head to the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum Nov. 30 for the event, Jan Greenberg Presents Meet Cindy Sherman: Artist, Photographer, Chameleon. It begins with a 6:30 p.m. reception, and Greenberg, who co-authored the biography with Sandra Jordan, will be on hand to sign copies of the book.