Normandie: The Tragic Story of the Most Majestic Ocean Liner

René Silvin on deck

Richard René Silvin

By Richard René Silvin and Robert Versteeg of Silvin Books

Richard René Silvin has now lectured for the membership of the Lifelong Learning Society at FAU Jupiter three times. On Thursday, April 21 at 3:15 p.m., René returns for a fourth presentation and invites you on board the SS Normandie, the 1930s flagship of the French Line, which is considered the most majestic ocean liner ever built. As always, René’s lecture aims to give the audience an entertaining experience which many guests say is “just like going to the movies.”

Some background: René’s parents lived on opposite sides of the Atlantic throughout his childhood. This unusual situation created the opportunity for him to travel frequently on the great French and British liners that survived the Second World War, like the Liberté, the Ile de France, the Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mary. These regular crossings constitute his happiest memories and gave rise to a life-long study of ocean liners, most notably the legendary “floating museum” Normandie.

Although Normandie had met her tragic end in 1942 in New York City, several years before René was born, everyone he met as a child, crossing the Atlantic on her successors, could not stop talking about the magnificent ship. His fellow passengers raved about Normandie’s art work, the magnificently decorated rooms, and the extraordinary service they remembered from the heydays of the Normandie. René envisioned himself one of the “mousses”, the red livery-clad bellboys who served first-class passengers on the ill-fated ship. He created imaginary stories of how it would have been to sail on Normandie; wandering around in the magnificent one-of-a-kind Winter Garden, helping passengers find their way around the museum-like hallways, and serving drinks in the art-deco bar to such stars as Marlene Dietrich, Bob Hope and the Disney brothers.

normandie_coverThis past year, René finally translated these fantasies into a book, Normandie, the tragic story of the most majestic ocean liner, and subsequently into a lecture, which uses rarely seen footage of Normandie’s launch in France, and life on board Normandie. She entered service in 1935 as the largest and fastest passenger ship afloat, and she remains the most powerful steam turbo-electric-propelled passenger ship ever built. Unfortunately, the glamorous story leads up to the tragic accident that resulted in a huge fire and Normandie’s tragic “death” in the harbor of New York City in 1942. Only two months after Americans saw images on TV of their Navy fleet lying on its side in far-off Pearl Harbor, the visual of Normandie capsized in the middle of New York brought the reality of America’s involvement in World War Two home. Images of medics rescuing workers as they were evacuating the doomed ship are eerily comparable to those of 9/11.

Much of the art, furniture and items saved from Normandie were sold at a series of auctions after her demise, and many pieces are considered valuable Art Deco treasures today. The rescued items include the ten large dining-room door medallions and fittings, and some of the individual Jean Dupas glass panels that formed the large murals mounted at the four corners of her Grand Salon. One entire corner is preserved at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The dining room door medallions are now on the exterior doors of Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Cathedral in Brooklyn, New York. René has been accumulating items and furniture for over thirty years including two large doors made of three different types of wood with brass inlays.

Normandie’s influence can be witnessed in many modern day cruise ships, where homage is paid to her with copies of her artwork and renderings of her image. René ends his book with a quote from Cicero: “The life of the dead is placed in the memory of the living. The love you gave in life keeps people alive beyond their time. Anyone who was given love will always live on in another’s heart.” This certainly goes for Normandie!

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Quot Libros, Quam Breve Tempus (-Augustus)

Sandi Page

 

 

 

By Sandi Page, Guest Blogger, LLS Student, Volunteer and Member of the LLS Jupiter Marketing Committee

 

Books! I love the feel of them, the smell of them. I need to be reading five or six books at the same time. My bookshelves are overflowing. A memorable day when I was 4 years old was the day I was able to write my name legibly, a requirement for being issued my own library card. The thrill of it, the pride, the freedom! It’s been a lifelong love affair ever since. The only difficulty is finding enough time to read, and reread, all the books that interest me or are dear to me.  So, I thought it would be fun to ask some LLS students, staff and faculty the following question: “If you were to be stranded on a desert island for five years, what books currently on your bookshelves would you want with you?” Judging from the enthusiastic replies, there are many, many bibliophiles in our LLS population! All agreed it would be difficult to have to limit their choices!

 

Here is my list (although I mourn already the ones left behind):

 

 

My Reading Life (with a fervent desire to also bring all the books referenced in this beautifully written work), by Pat Conroy; Beach Music, by Pat Conroy; A la Recherche du Temps Perdu (French and English versions), by Marcel Proust; Fables de la Fontaine; D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths, Tai Chi for Beginners, by Dr. Paul Lam; The Lyrics of Leonard Cohen;  A Moveable Feast, by Ernest Hemingway; David McCullough’s The Greater Journey – Americans in Paris; Sy Safransky’s A Bell Ringing in the Empty Sky – The Best of the Sun; Travels with Epicurus, by Daniel Klein; Archy and Mehitabel, by Don Marquis; The Piano Shop on the Left Bank, by Thad Carhart; Eleni, by Nicholas Gage; Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy; Chips off the Old Benchley, by Robert Benchley; Turner to Cezanne, Masterpieces from the Davies Collection, National Museum Wales; Quelque part dans l’inachevé, by Vladimir Jankélévitch and Béatrice Berlowitz; Le Petit Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery; Shakespeare’s Complete Works, The Dictionary of the Opera, by Charles Osborne; C. P. Cavafy Collected Poems, edited by George Savidis; Letters to a Young Poet, by Rainier Maria Rilke; The Essential Neruda – Selected Poems (bilingual); An Anthology of Modern Italian Poetry (bilingual), edited by Ned Condini; An Anthology of Twentieth Century Brazilian Poetry (bilingual), edited by Elizabeth Bishop/Emanuel Brasil; Seventy Poems by Wislawa Szymborska (bilingual), edited by Magnus Krybski/Robert Maguire; for guaranteed laughs every day, the three books of poems by Francesco Marciuliano “written” by dogs, cats and kittens; and, most importantly, my collection of language learning books (Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Modern Greek, Latin) with accompanying dictionaries plus lots of notebooks. I think the five years would pass by quickly with these wonderful literary and study companions in tow!

 

Now read on to see what books your LLS friends would want with them on a desert island!

 

René Friedman (LLS Jupiter Founder)

There are so many books I think I should take but I would sink before getting to the island!

However, if I were stranded on a desert island for five years, here are some I would want with me:

  1. Books on survival, as I would not make it five years without them….how to make wood tools, how to start a fire for cooking, what I could digest, how to catch fish, etc.;
  2. My mindfulness book to keep me in the moment and relieve my stress, maybe Wherever You Go, There You Are, by Jon Kabat-Zinn;
  3. Perhaps The Swiss Family Robinson, Robinson Crusoe and Life of Pi, all of which I haven’t read in a very long time (plus I would be able to relate to the experiences);
  4. I have always felt badly that I never read the Harry Potter books, so, on the island, I could finally settle down and read them (my grandsons would be proud of me);
  5. Oh yes, The Little Prince;
  6. And not sure which one, but one love story with a happy ending.

 

Dr. Benito Rakower (LLS Faculty)

I hope the ones I chose find merit with LLS members.

1) The Red and the Black, by Stendhal;

2} All of Shakespeare’s comedies and none of his tragedies;

3} The Psalms of David;

4) Tender is the Night, by F. Scott Fitzgerald;

5) Moby Dick, by Herman Melville;

6) Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens

 

Ginny Higgins

I read a lot so 5 years would actually require much more than the following list of books!
Let’s start with almost all of Shakespeare, War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy; Animal Farm, by George Orwell; The Lord of the Rings trilogy, by J.R.R. Tolkien; Maus, by Art Spiegelman; The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran; The Eight, by Katherine Neville; The Chalice and the Blade, by Riane Eisler; The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet, by Reif Larsen; The Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling; Room, by Emma Donoghue; The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak; The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini; How We Die, by Sherwin Nuland; To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee; all of Mark Twain’s books; The Day the Crayons Quit, by Drew Daywalt; The Ultimate Encyclopedia of Mythology, by Arthur Cotterell/Rachel Storm; the Iliad and the Odyssey; the Magic Eye books, all of Charles Dickens; The Art of War, by Sun Tsu; The Divine Comedy, by Dante; all of Karen Armstrong’s books, Iain Pears books, and the 10 books of civilization by Will and Ariel Durant.

 

John Klein

The Last Lion, Vols. 1-3, by William Manchester

Invisible Man, by Ralph Ellison

Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell

Sonnets, by Shakespeare

My Struggle, Vols. 1-4, Karl Ove Knausgaard

Personal History, by Katharine Graham

War & Peace, Leo Tolstoy

Sapiens, by Yuval Noah Harari

Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurtry

Cold Mountain, by Charles Frazier

Catch-22, by Joseph Heller

The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck

Poems of Emily Dickinson, by Emily Dickinson

 

Yvonne Peters

Three From Catfish Bend, by Ben Lucien Burman;

Jonathan Livingston Seagull, by Richard Bach;

The Art of Living, by Sharon Lebell;

The Republic of Plato

 

 

Paul Brown

Entertainment – The entire Stuart Woods series with Stone Barrington and the entire Lee Child series with Jack Reacher

Health – The Merck Manual

Survival – A book of matches!

Humor – Entire works of Calvin and Hobbes

 

Andrea Palmer

If I were stranded on a desert island, I would want a comfortable chair and the following books from my library:

All of the Great Books Series;

All of the Great Conversations Series;

All of J. M. Coetzee novels;

The Complete Essays of Montaigne;

The Second Sex, by Simone de Beauvoir;

Ulysses, by James Joyce;

Bleak House, by Dickens;

The Fabric of the Cosmos, by Brian Greene;

An American Tragedy, by Dreiser;

Compilations of short stories, by Alice Munro and Chekhov;

The Hidden Reality, by Brian Greene;

Seven Brief Lessons on Physics, by Carlo Rovelli;

Sapiens, by Harari;

Power Wars, by Charlie Savage;

Hamilton, by Ron Chernow

and a whole bunch of funny books that I have yet to purchase!

 

Barbara DePalma

Shantaram, by Gregory David Roberts;
Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien;
All the Light You Cannot See, by Anthony Doerr;
Sarum: The Novel of England, by Edward Rutherford;
Buffalo Afternoon, by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer

 

Judi Ross (LLS Staff)

The books I would take would be Shakespeare, all the novels of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Willa Cather, Louise Erdrich, David McCullough, Agatha Christie, Ruth Rendell, Maurice Mauriac, Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Flaubert, Sigrid Unset, Sholem Aleichem, Balzac, Dickens, Hardy, O’Neill, Poe, Twain, Werfel, Zola, Mann, Kafka and Maugham. For poetry: Heine, Gibran, the Brownings, Frost, Wordsworth, Dante, Whitman.

 

Emily Morton, (LLS Staff)

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee; The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho; Animal Farm, by George Orwell; The Good Earth, by Pearl S. Buck; Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury; Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck; Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain; The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd and finally, the Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold. To Kill a Mockingbird will always be my favorite book because my father read it to me when I was very young and it felt like time travel, going back to Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s.  I just fell in love with the characters in that book and I really identified with Miss Scout Finch.

 

 

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Connecting Women Through Film

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By: Kami Barrett-Batchelder

Each year, the FAU Lifelong Learning Society, Jupiter connects women through film when we host the LUNAFEST© Film Festival. If you have not had the opportunity to attend this film festival, you have missed one of the best short film festivals in the United States.

LUNAFEST is a traveling film festival of award-winning short films by, for and about women. This season, the program of six films – filled with stories of reflection, hope and humor – traveled to over 175 cities and were screened in front of 25,000 people. Various organizations bring LUNAFEST to their communities and raise funds for their local non-profits as well as the main beneficiary – Breast Cancer Fund.

The Lifelong Learning Society has hosted this film festival for more than eight years, and for the past four years, it has sold out.  On March 24, 2016, we held LUNAFEST and this season’s program of six selected films created discussion, made us laugh, pulled at our heartstrings and inspired us to make a difference in our community. From this event, we will be giving four $1,000 scholarships to female students and eight $100 scholarships to the Outstanding Academic Student Recipients of 2016 student of the year on the FAU Jupiter Campus. A donation of $2,025 will also be made to the Breast Cancer Fund. Rain or shine, our loyal supporters came out for this annual event and we appreciate it so much.

IMG_3525.2We would like to thank Berry Fresh Café, Tropical Smoothie and Chartwell’s for their tasty samplings. We appreciate your support and our attendees love your light bites. We would also like to thank all of the organizations and businesses that came out to share information with our attendees. The support from local organizations and businesses is what assisted us in the growth of this event and we could not have done it without you!  They are:

100 Women Who Care, Abacoa Community Garden, Art Affects, Extended Hands Community Outreach, FAU Pre-Medical Society, Gimme Shelter Animal Rescue, Healing Touch Buddies, Healthier Jupiter, Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies, Jupiter Medical Center, Liberty Signs, Loggerhead MarineLife Center, MorseLife, Mother’s Day Movement, Nutrition S’mart, Planned Parenthood, The Jupiter/Tequesta Women’s Club, The Palm Radio 95.9.

We would also like to thank the following businesses that donated items for our auction table:

IMG_3557.2Advanced Purification, Inc., Alex and Ani, Ballet Palm Beach, Belle Maison, Blue Man Group Orlando, Cabana Casuals, DK Salon and Spa, Doubletree by Hilton, Eastpointe Country Club, Gretchen Scott, Harbour Boutique Clothing, HEET, Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse, Loggerhead Fitness, Maltz Jupiter Theatre, Medieval Times Dinner, Spoto’s Oyster Bar, The Bungalow Boutique, The Gardens Mall, The Magical Animal, The Mixed Bag, Via Condotti, Village Bootery, Waterway Café, WonderWorks.

Hosting a LUNAFEST is a powerful and distinctive way to make an impact in our community and we hope to continue to support this film festival in the future.

 

kami

Kami Barrett-Batchelder, Associate Director of the Lifelong Learning Society

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GETTING TO KNOW YOU……….

Sandi Page

By Sandi Page, guest blogger, LLS student and volunteer, LLS Marketing Committee member

 

Whenever the credits roll at the end of a film, I am always amazed at the sheer number of people necessary to create the final product. Such is also the case with the lively, diverse and intellectually stimulating programs offered here at LLS. In previous posts, we’ve examined the roles that our wonderful volunteers play here at LLS and have highlighted some of our many inspiring Professors. This week, we’re putting the spotlight on our talented LLS staff. So that you can get to know them better, each staff member has provided an answer to the question “What you may not know about me is…………” To get the ball rolling, what you may not know about me is that I love to read English translations of Romance language poems. I then read the poem in its original language (a challenge as it is only French that I speak fluently) to compare the Latin-based words to their French counterparts and then compare the differences in sentence structure between the three languages. A strange hobby, to be sure, so you will not be surprised to learn that I also loved diagramming sentences as a child! Oh, and another thing you may not know about me is that I had to wear an eye patch my entire year of kindergarten. I looked like a little blond pirate. Arrrggghhh, Matey!


Now, prepare to be surprised and delighted by how our staff members finished the challenge sentence:

 

josette

Josette Valenza

Josette Valenza – Director

I have a 21-year-old stepdaughter that just got accepted into the Scripps Ph.D. program. I am so proud!

 

 

 

 

kami

Kami Barrett-Batchelder

Kami Barrett Batchelder – Associate Director

My first job coming out of grad school was for American Media, Inc. which owns and operates the leading celebrity and health & fitness media brands in the country. I am also a runner and love to participate in half marathons and marathons. I completed the New York City Marathon in 2010.

 

 

 

kristen

Kristen Robbins

Kristen Robbins – Assistant Director

I was a red belt in karate. A red belt signifies the ninth degree rank where the tenth degree is the highest attainable. As a child, martial arts taught me self-respect, confidence and conflict resolution.

 

 

 

 

donna

Donna Eberle

Donna Eberle – Senior Administrative Assistant

I have 5 awesome grandchildren whom I absolutely adore.

 

 

 

 

kimberly

Kimberly Bowman

Kimberly Bowman – Coordinator of Academic Programs

Given 20 attempts to shoot a basketball through a hoop, I would most likely “knock it down” just one single time – on a good day. However, given a brush, pastels, and a sketchbook or even sugar, cream, and flour – I could whip up 20 fabulously creative basketball renditions, in what I’d consider my type of slam dunk. I enjoy the creative process in just about any form.

 

 

 

suzie

Suzanna Wells

Suzanna Wells – Program Assistant

Hi, I’m Suzanna Wells, known around here as Suzie. I started at LLS in July 2014 as Program Assistant, having come from managing a very busy IT helpdesk in the heart of London. My husband, who works for an English publishing company, was relocated to their Boca office in 2011 and I followed him in 2012. What you may not know about me is that when I found out I was pregnant with identical twins in 1992, I thought it would be fun to become a magician, so I could make one child disappear and then reappear from elsewhere in the room! I never did do that trick, but I did complete a magic course in London and became a Children’s Magician for several years when my daughters were young. I went by the name “Dolly Daisy.”

 

wendi

Wendi Geller

Wendi Geller – Class Coordinator

My favorite activity in the world is going to rock concerts!

 

 

 

 

emily_morton

Emily Morton

Emily Morton – Class Coordinator

I am very passionate about martial arts and practiced Tae Kwon Do for a majority of my upbringing. I currently hold a red belt (second degree), my mother has her black belt (first degree), and my brother has earned his black belt (third degree).

 

 

 

judi

Judi Ross

Judi Ross – Class Coordinator

In November 1963, I was on staff at Harvard University as Head of Housing when President Kennedy was shot. He and his Cabinet were celebrated graduates of Harvard and at this horrifying event, the school and its environs closed up like a tomb. Every door, window and entry way was draped in black. No-one spoke on campus. The sadness was pervasive, paralyzing and incomprehensible. Our world and time had ceased.

 

 

 

justin

Justin Beyer

Justin Beyer – Audio/Visual Specialist

I am a native Floridian and while I love this state, my passion is traveling. I have traveled to over 20 countries around the world and plan on seeing many more.

 

 

 

 

ralph

Ralph Duckett

Ralph Duckett – Audio/Visual Technician

I played and captained championship Senior USTA tennis teams for 11 years. We went to State competition all eleven years and National competition three of those years.

I also have a sand collection from all over the world.

 

 

 

kassassir

Mahmoud Kassassir

Mahmoud Kassassir – Computer Support Analyst

I was born in Kuwait and lived there through the early parts of the Iraqi invasion in 1990.

 

 

 

 

stephanie

Stephanie Rosner

Stephanie Rosner – Office Manager

I have a CAM (Community Association Management) license from the State of Florida. I was a Community Association Manager for a number of years and changed careers to be the Office Manager at LLS. I just love my job!!!

 

 

 

 

mary_ellen

Mary Ellen Bernstein

Mary Ellen Bernstein – Receptionist

Like so many others here, I am a transplant. Until 1986, my home was in Blue Bell, Pa.

I have been a receptionist at Lifelong Learning for 6 years. It is impossible to consider my position as “work.”  How fortunate I am to meet people from all over the world and assist them in selecting lectures or courses to meet their varied interests. We at the Front Desk do our very best to make the signing-in process very easy and also to solve any problems our students may have. We certainly hope we have succeeded.

 

 

evelyn

Evelyn Reintanz


Evelyn Reintanz – Receptionist

After retiring twice – once from teaching and the second time from being an Administrative Assistant – I decided to come back to work part-time and, as a result, have spent the last ten years happily working at the Front Desk. I enjoy meeting the students and attending some of the classes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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THE HOUSE THAT RENÉ BUILT

By Judi Ross

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René Friedman

Who of you reading this has ever been to a “Love Fest”?  Not I, until a week ago, when I was privileged to attend a gathering at FAU/LLS Jupiter to celebrate the founder of Lifelong Learning Jupiter, René Friedman, on the occasion of her retirement.  It was an event that was inspiring, heartwarming and totally unique.

René’s staff, colleagues and FAU officials came together to praise her perseverance, dynamism and graciousness plus her extraordinary fundraising skills in building her ideal – a house of learning for retirees and all who wanted to spend time in furthering their education.  This would not be just an edifice of brick and mortar.  Her vision was to build a place which would offer the opportunity to gain knowledge, make new friends, improve one’s health with meaningful activity and be an attractive destination. All became a reality and we are the lucky beneficiaries!

149Renee2

Dr. Taylor Hagood, Dean Heather Coltman, René Friedman and Dr. Jeffrey Morton

Most impressive was the substance of each participant’s appreciative talk – how being hired by René meant having a caring “Boss” who made them better as teachers and better as human beings.   Speakers (in order of appearance) included Joe Scott, who also served as Moderator for the evening; Dr. Eliah Watlington, Associate Provost of the FAU Northern Campuses; Ms. Josette Valenza, Director of the FAU Lifelong Learning Society, Jupiter; Dr. Robert Watson, FAU/LLS Faculty, Mr. Milton Maltz, FAU/LLS Member and Supporter; Dr. Jeffrey Morton, FAU/LLS Faculty; Dr.Taylor Hagood, FAU/ LLS Faculty; Dr. Heather Coltman, Dean of the FAU Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters; Mr. Richard Yorks, Past President of FAU/LLS, Jupiter; Dr. Robert Rabil, FAU/LLS Faculty, Ms. Myrna Goldberger, FAU/LLS Faculty; Mr. Bill Deigan, President of FAU/LLS Jupiter, and then Mrs. René Friedman herself.

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René Friedman and Dr. Robert Rabil

René’s response, at the close of the evening’s program, was not only to thank everyone for making this such a memorable event, but to exclaim that now she, with all her fellow students, can awaken each morning, put her feet on the floor and say “Today I am going to school.”

And to that we can all say “Amen!” and “Thank you, René!”

Under the 19 years of René Friedman’s remarkable stewardship, the Lifelong Learning Society Jupiter went from 122 students meeting in various rented quarters around town to the present-day membership of more than 8,500 students housed in the beautiful Elinor Bernon Rosenthal Lifelong Learning Complex on the FAU John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter, Florida.  It is the largest Lifelong Learning Society in the United States with the most diverse subject matter offered.

 

judi

 

Judi Ross, in her 19 years at FAU/LLS Jupiter, worked closely with René Friedman and has worn a number of hats: she served on the original Advisory Board, wrote the LLS Jupiter newsletter for a number of years and now serves on the Curriculum Committee and is Class  Coordinator for LLS Jupiter, a position she has held for 13 years.  It was a labor of love for her to write this post about her dear friend and colleague, René Friedman.

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10 Ways Social Media & the Web Can Enhance Your Everyday Life

10 Ways Social Media & the Web Can Enhance Your Everyday Life

Chase Williams Blog

  1. Stay in Touch with Friends and Family
  • Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat offer ways to communicate with friends and family via use of comments or images. Comment on photos or posts to let your family and friends know you care.
  1. Learn About News and Current Events Instantly
  • The power of Twitter allows you to track events and happenings in real time by using hashtags (#) and reading user/business timelines. No need to wait for the 5 o’clock news or an article to be published on Fox or CNN. The most up-to-date information is in real time.
  1. Find New Cooking Recipes
  • YouTube and Google are great resources to learn new recipes for all skill levels. Cooking videos on YouTube provide easy-to-follow step-by-step guides to creating your new favorite meal.
  1. Preview Movies That Are in Theaters
  • Taking a break from the beach for a day or looking to avoid the rain by seeing a movie? Use YouTube to watch previews and even reviews of movies that are currently playing in the theater.
  1. Share Your Opinion
  • Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are great platforms to share your opinion. Reddit and Facebook allow you to comment on relevant news and articles. YouTube is great for sharing thoughts on your favorite videos. Twitter allows users to voice their opinions in only 140 characters or less on anything that comes to mind.
  1. Share Photos and Videos
  • Facebook and Instagram are great ways to share photos and videos with friends and loved ones.
  1. Find Funny and Entertaining Content
  • Sometimes television or a book just won’t cut it. Use Facebook and YouTube to find funny and entertaining content that will keep you occupied for hours.
  1. Meet New People
  • Facebook Groups and MeetUp.com are great resources to find new friends that share the same passions and interests.
  1. Find New Restaurants and Things to Do
  • Yelp is the perfect platform to find new and exciting places to eat and/or things to do. See what your meal looks like before ordering, find out how costly a restaurant is, or even read recommendations on where to park, etc.
  1. Get Inspired by Pinterest
  • Use Pinterest to find ideas for your next hair style, home décor venture or even an exciting recipe.

 

Catch Chase Williams’ Lecture “The Next Generation of Social Media – an Introduction to Today’s Most Popular Online Communities” on Monday, March 14 from 1:30-3 p.m. at FAU’s Lifelong Learning Society in Jupiter.

 

Useful Links

Facebook

Twitter

YouTube

Reddit

Pinterest

Google

MeetUp.com

Chase’s Blog

Chase’s LinkedIn

 

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Chase Williams is a Managing Partner for South Florida’s top Digital Marketing Firm, Market My Market and specializes in Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Search Engine Optimization (SEO), E-Mail Marketing, and Social Media Marketing/Management. Williams studied Marketing at the University of Central Florida and obtained his MBA at Baruch College in New York City. Williams has worked with companies such as ADP, Adobe, VistaPrint, Universal Music Group and Madison Square Garden.

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Thomas Hardy: On the Page and at the Movies

Portrait of Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy

Thomas Hardy

I’ve been teaching fiction at Lifelong Learning for eight years. Since 2014, my course has focused on some of the great novelists of the 19th century: Jane Austen, Charlotte and Emily Brontë. We approached these artists by exploring their novels (Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Jane Eyre, and Wuthering Heights) and by viewing film versions of these works. We learned about their lives, considered their times and savored these classic stories. I have enjoyed the bright and engaged people who come to my classes eager to talk about Elizabeth and Darcy, Jane and Rochester, Cathy and Heathcliff. Coming soon in the spring semester are Bathsheba and Gabriel, Tess and Angel.

Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) is the “star” of this year’s class. He was a major Victorian writer who wrote fourteen novels, including masterpieces such as Far From the Madding Crowd and Tess of the d’Urbervilles, which we’ll be reading and viewing. He abandoned novel writing after the scandalized furor that erupted in response to Jude the Obscure (1895). Hardy then returned to poetry, his first love, and is considered one of the great poets of the 20th century.

Hardy’s legacy includes his unforgettable characters, many of them women, and his deep sense of place in the landscape he calls Wessex — the West Country of England. He is equally renowned for his insight into the often-tragic consequences of rampant social change, rural poverty, male domination, sexual hypocrisy and the loss of religious faith. He speaks to our time, too.

For me, encountering Thomas Hardy in this course is a bit like running into a guy I dated nearly 40 years ago. I finished my doctoral dissertation on Hardy’s novels and poetry in 1980, but we drifted apart. I rarely taught him in my own academic career. Will I still find him attractive? Do his ideas and his manners hold up? Whatever made me choose him in the first place? Perhaps I’ll come up with some answers as the course unfolds.

nell_waldman

 

Nell Waldman, Ph.D., has a Ph.D. in English literature from Queen’s University (Kingston, ON). She was an English professor in Toronto for 26 years, specializing in literature and composition. Her doctoral dissertation is on Thomas Hardy’s prose and poetry. Professor Waldman has taught several well-received courses on Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters and short fiction at Lifelong Learning. Professor Waldman will teach a six-week course, “Thomas Hardy: On the Page and at the Movies,” beginning Tuesday, March 15 at 10 a.m.

 

 

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And the Oscar goes to…!

OscarThe 2016 Academy Awards show has now come and gone (but not without considerable controversy) and the Oscar for Best Picture went to “Spotlight.”  Did your favorite win?  What is your all-time favorite film and why?

As a child, my voracious reading habits created in me a deep passion for “far-away places.”  As a teenager, that fire was stoked by my preference for foreign films.  Two Oscar-winning films that I saw during that period had a profound effect on me and remain to this day my favorites:  “A Man and A Woman” by French director Claude Lelouch and “Z”, a political thriller by Greek expatriate director Costa-Gavras.  The sensual approach that the French bring to life, love, music, food and dance as portrayed by Lelouch in his film, plus the intoxicating music and lyrics of the soundtrack, thrilled me as I contemplated adulthood.  “Z”, with its superb cast and taut drama, fueled my fascination with Greece, its history, language, literature and poetry, and elevated my burgeoning political consciousness.  It is not a coincidence that I later spent 25 wonderful years in France and took over a dozen extended trips to the hauntingly beautiful Greece.  Ah, such is the power of films to entertain, enchant, educate, destabilize and mold us!   My poll of LLS students (in alphabetical order) as to why a particular film is their favorite yielded these intriguing replies (Congratulations go to Louise and Peter Lippman for having chosen this year’s Oscar winner as their favorite!):

 


Talented Mr. RipBarbara DePalma
– My choices narrowed down to two movies directed by Anthony Minghella: “The English Patient” and “The Talented Mr. Ripley.”  I have to give credit to the devilishly handsome Jude Law for tipping the scales toward “The Talented Mr. Ripley.” This movie has it all – a great script and direction, excellent acting with Matt Damon, Jude Law, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Gwyneth Paltrow, a wonderful soundtrack and beautiful cinematography depicting Italy during the 1950s. The suspense continually builds as plot twists create problems for the main character resulting in a stunning and tragic ending. This thriller portrays the making of a sociopath through the power of envy and yearning for a better life. It illustrates how actions a person takes can have consequences that will haunt him forever. Although I have watched this movie many times, I never tire of it and wish we had more like it. (5 Oscar nominations, 0 wins)

 

CasablancaJean Dessoffy  –  My favorite movie “Casablanca” brings back memories of my trip to Morocco, Casablanca, and Rick’s Café with the white piano.  Released in 1942, it starred Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Sydney Greenstreet, Peter Lorre, and Claude Rains.  The story depicts the trauma caused by the Second World War on the lives of two people who briefly cross paths in Paris and meet again in Nazi-occupied French Morocco.  After a brief encounter, they each go their own way to unknown fates.  The movie injected two phrases into the English language which are still heard today, “Play it again, Sam” and “We’ll always have Paris.” (8 Oscar nominations, 3 wins)

 


Spotlight
Louise and Peter Lippman
– We found “Spotlight” released in 2015 to be a most remarkable movie.  It provided meticulous detail concerning the 2001 public exposure of a major contemporary social embarrassment in the context of a superbly written screenplay, artful direction of a gripping drama and top-notch performances from a substantial group of well-known actors (including our old Katonah, New York friend Stanley Tucci).  Perhaps the most significant achievement of this film is its even-handed presentation of an important subject that just as easily could have been presented in a more intense black-and-white, good-versus-evil framework.  It portrays professional journalism at its best, while demonstrating the human weaknesses, inevitable in us all, that reporters and editors must and do largely overcome in the course of honoring their responsibilities. (6 Oscar nominations, 2 wins)

 


BridgesGene and Tom Monahan
– We recommend the movie “Bridge of Spies.” It recalls a very important period of history and the patriotism and courage of the lawyer played by Tom Hanks. It also shows the human side of the Russian spy and makes him a likable character. It is suspenseful and brings out the drama of the Cold War with the Soviet Union in a German location. Overall, a very good movie.(6 Oscar nominations, 1 win)

 

Darko

 

 

Paul NewtonOne of my favorite movies is the strange, anti-establishment love story “Donnie Darko”, a low budget movie that was filmed in only one month.  This unpopular teenage-centered sci-fi movie, released in 2001, barely covered its production costs.  Although the underlying plot is a bit hard to understand, the well-chosen cast beautifully portrays the story of an unpopular high school boy’s struggles growing up with many social challenges while trying to figure out life with no pause button or instruction manual.  Donnie lives this struggle for 28 days with an unusual inner demon.  Trying to make appropriate choices in such a bizarre environment leads to interesting predicaments.  The way that this movie portrays Donnie’s situation is brilliant, touching and very entertaining, especially so if you can relate to Donnie and his struggles.  This is a movie that needs to be watched more than once in order to appreciate all that is going on.  (No Oscar nominations but won numerous film awards worldwide)

 

DoctorFrancia Trosty It’s hard to pick only one movie as there are so many in different genres that I have enjoyed. But, if I had to pick one that encompasses all the elements of an engaging entertaining experience, it would be “Dr. Zhivago.” It has drama, a rich plot, history, romance, tragedy, handsome actors, beautiful scenes, artful direction, wonderful music and insights into another era.  (10 Oscar nominations, 5 wins)

 

OzLast but not least, the Oscar for youngest LLS favorite movie poll participant goes to Kiera (my adored 7-year-old niece and future LLS student in about 50 years) – My favorite movie is “The Wizard of Oz” because, near the end, the Wizard tells the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Lion that they already have everything they need.  (6 Oscar nominations, 2 wins)

 

 

  Sandi Page

 

 

 

 

By Sandi Page, guest blogger, LLS student and volunteer, LLS Marketing Committee member

 

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Noblesse Oblige – The Duke and Duchess of Windsor

Duchess of Windsor

By Richard René Silvin

The Duke and Duchess of Windsor

The Duke and Duchess of Windsor

Born in New York, Richard René Silvin grew up in Swiss boarding schools. After earning his bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University in 1970 and an MBA from Cornell in 1972, he spent 25 years in the investor-owned hospital industry. He rose to the head of the International Division of American Medical International, Inc., which owned and operated hospitals in 10 countries.

Silvin’s lecture on the Windsors is the result of his lifelong study aimed at understanding the complex lives of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and sorting out fact from fiction regarding the many rumors which surrounded the iconic couple.

Imagine being a twice-divorced, middle-aged woman of average looks, shunned by relatives, only to discover the most eligible bachelor in the world cannot live without you. Now imagine being that handsome, charming, royal bachelor who was taught nothing but tradition and duty in order to become a perfect King-Emperor destined to rule over one-third of the world.

Both of these extraordinary beings had the same secret dream: to break away with a soul mate from their apparent destiny, regardless of the costs and public outrage. So it was that in 1936, known as “the year of the three Kings”, Britain’s King Edward VIII abdicated his throne to marry Wallis Simpson – “the woman I love”- against the violent objection of the Royal Family, the Cabinet and the Church of England.

Unfortunately, their lives did not immediately become a fairy tale. Wallis fought desperately to avoid the abdication and yet she was demonized for England having lost its beloved King. The Royal family blamed her for the early death of King George VI, the Duke’s brother who assumed the throne, but who was woefully ill prepared to take on the kingly function.

In October of 1938, the Windsors made an ill-advised visit to Nazi Germany, which would haunt the Duke and Duchess for the rest of their lives, and beyond.

The Windsors became the “King and Queen of international high society” and their very public lives unfolded in front of the world due to relentless paparazzi, while the Duchess’ name and style became synonymous with chic fashion.

Richard René Silvin

Richard René Silvin

In the early 1970s, Silvin was hired by the U.S. State Department to take over the management of the famous American Hospital of Paris. At that time, the beleaguered hospital was the widowed Duchess of Windsor’s only charity and the sole beneficiary of her estate. Silvin, being the son of a friend of the Duchess’, became the Duchess’ confidant on what was occurring with her charity, and quickly turned into the widowed Duchess’ escort to the few social events she attended after the Duke died.

In “Noblesse Oblige – The Duchess of Windsor As I Knew Her,” Silvin recounts the tale of his encounters with the Duchess, intertwined with the history of the Duke and Duchess’ odd relationship. He owns one of the largest collections of pictures of the famous couple, and has access to the few televised interviews they ever made.

Although this is the second time this lecture is being offered at FAU Lifelong Learning Society in Jupiter, continued research has led to the creation of a new presentation.

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