James Dean Film Festival February 21-23, 2013 in Downtown Indianapolis

Star.

Legend.

Icon.

James Dean, Indiana native and film icon, shook the movie industry with his rocket-launched career. Shooting to the top of popularity with just three silver-screen titles under his belt, the star crashed tragically to the ground with an early death at the age of 24.

The country mourned the loss of the Rebel without a Cause and his name has forever been etched in the "Cool" Hall of Fame alongside the likes of Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe and Humphrey Bogart. The intense, dramatic style of the quiet star earned the adoration of females of every age. 

In his brief career, Dean starred in just three movies, but managed to capture the hearts and attention of the country before his life ended at the age of 24. These one-time showings will be presented digitally via video projector.

Film Schedule

East of Eden

Thursday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m.

Rebel Without a Cause

Friday, Feb. 22 at 7 p.m.

Giant

Saturday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m.

IMAX Theater in the Indiana State Museum will host a three-day James Dean Film Festival in conjunction with the Dean exhibit at the Indiana State Museum. The festival and exhibit honor the Hoosier-born actor whose life and promising future was cut short.

Parking is always free in the White River State Park parking garage. Patrons should bring in parking tickets for validation by the IMAX box office. To purchase tickets or to get more information, visit ImaxIndy.com.

Elizabeth J. Musgrave is a syndicated fine-living, travel columnist, freelance writer and photographer, and performing arts and restaurant critic for Gotta Go. Read Infused, her spirits, wine & beer lifestyle column, at www.GottaGo.us and www.FoodDigital.com and catch her as Indy’s Entertainment Adviser on 93 WIBC. Gotta Go is published on www.Gottago.us, www.BroadwayWorld.com, an in print. Follow her on Twitter @GottaGo, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Free Admission to White River State Park for MLK, Jr. Day Jan. 21

*Press Release*

INDIANAPOLIS – For the 13th year in a row, visitors to White River State Park attractions will receive free admission and free parking on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 21, with a canned good donation (one can per person, per attraction).

MLK DAY FREE ACTIVITIES

Indianapolis Zoo

Visitors can walk the grounds and see lots of animals, especially the ones that love the cooler temperatures. Favorite activities include the 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. dolphin shows, indoor shark petting in the nation’s largest shark touch pool and heating things up with the meerkats in Deserts Dome.

IMAX Theater

Born To Be Wild and To The Arctic will be shown for free until 5 p.m. Born To Be Wild follows young orphaned elephants and orangutans on the trip of a lifetime, from birth to their rebirth into the wild. This family friendly documentary transports moviegoers around the world to the far stretches of Kenya and Borneo and inspires them to take action and save earth’s precious creatures. To The Arctic is an emotional, kid-friendly story of love, family and hope. Captivating and intimate footage brings moviegoers up close and personal with this family’s struggle to survive in a frigid environment of melting ice, immense glaciers, spectacular waterfalls, and majestic snow-bound peaks.

NCAA Hall of Champions

Warm-up with a complimentary cup of hot chocolate or coffee and learn more about what it takes to be an NCAA student-athlete. Ronald Nored, a former basketball student-athlete from Butler University will be on hand from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will have a storytime for children. There will be continuous screenings of "Game of Change," a documentary that reaches far beyond sports, demonstrating the significance of the game of basketball in the struggle for racial equality. There will also be opportunities to win official NCAA merchandise throughout the day.

Indiana State Museum

Films, activities, poetry and performance art fill the museum as the life and times of the great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are celebrated. “Tragedy, Trains, Truth & Tales” will be performed by Arts for Learning actors as part of the Indiana Affiliate of Young Audiences. And, in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, visitors can view original signed copies of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 13th Amendment, which outlawed slavery. The Canal Café and the historic L.S. Ayres Tea Room will be serving lunch; reservations recommended for the Tea Room.

Eiteljorg Museum

Visitors can immerse themselves in Native American and Western cultures with the museum's many exhibits. Don't miss your chance to visit National Geographic: Greatest Photographs of the American West. The exhibit features the best images of the West published by National Geographic over its 125-year history and includes works by nearly 80 photographers including Ansel Adams, Edward S. Curtis and Annie Griffiths. And be sure to check out the lunch specials at the Eiteljorg Museum Cafe.

Victory Field

 From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., health care professionals from Wishard will offer health screenings and general information about Wishard services. Nurses will also be available to discuss the importance of primary and preventive care. Health screening participants will each receive two free tickets to Opening Day at Victory Field (April 4). Plus, Rowdie, the Indians mascot, will stop by for autographs.

FREE PARKING

The Park is also offering complimentary parking on MLK, Jr. Day. Visitors may park in the underground garage located off Washington Street in front of the Indiana State Museum, in the surface parking lots at the Indianapolis Zoo and Victory Field, and in the surface parking lot across from Victory Field next to the Park's Visitor's Center. Parking is not guaranteed and is on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Park’s partnership with Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana has resulted in more than 75 tons of non-perishable, canned food donations over the years from this one-day, annual event. That weight of food is the equivalent of approximately 28 zoo elephants, or 15 mastodons that once roamed Indiana, or 150 western horses, or 468,000 professional baseballs, or 273 full-length IMAX movie reel platters, or 109,000 collegiate-level basketballs.

Images provided by WRSP
For more information about White River State Park, visit WhiterRverStatePark.org.

Elizabeth J. Musgrave is a syndicated fine-living, travel columnist, freelance writer and photographer, and performing arts and restaurant critic for Gotta Go. Read Infused, her spirits, wine & beer lifestyle column, at www.GottaGo.us and www.FoodDigital.com and catch her as Indy’s Entertainment Adviser on 93 WIBC. Gotta Go is published on www.Gottago.us, www.BroadwayWorld.com, an in print. Follow her on Twitter @GottaGo, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit

I boarded the RMS (Royal Mail Ship) Titanic, the finest ship of the White Star Line on April 10, 1912. With my fiancé and my brother in second class accommodations, I, Miss Dagmar Jenny Ingeborg Bryhl, am traveling from Sweden to America.

RMS Titanic

Thus began my journey at the Indiana State Museum, through the exhibit of the artifacts of the most famous maritime disaster in history.
With more than 240 pieces the journey winds through various rooms stocked with artifacts and recreated first- and third-class cabins. The 'iceberg room' gives the sensation of the freezing air the night of the sinking complete with an iceberg for touching.

Weaving through the displays and reading the well-researched stories behind the relics gives a connection to the actual people who died while doing just as we all do, living our daily lives. From a perfume salesman to the well-known Unsinkable Molly Brown to the individuals transferred to the ill-fated ship from other ships, the sense of reality is more readily felt with the biographies and personal items.

Recreated first-class cabin

 Hair combs, perfume samples, letters, wallets and eyeglasses are available for viewing with the identities of the owners alongside. The dinner menus served in all three classes, along with the china and glassware displayed side-by-side, emphasizes the differences in the social classes.

The eeriness of acquiring an actual passenger's identity upon entering the exhibit is significant in bringing home the reality of the tragedy's magnitude. Not knowing if you survive or perish until the end circumvents the 'just another set of statistics' detachment which occurs with many exhibits.

I disembarked, alive in a lifeboat; one of only 711 to survive. More than 68 percent were lost due to panic, inadequate quantity of lifeboats, general disbelief of the inevitable and freezing water temperature.
According to the British Parliamentary Papers, there were 2224 people aboard. Other reports contain varying numbers due to inaccurate records, people traveling under aliases and passengers boarding and leaving at various stops.

My fiancé, Ingvar Enander, and my brother, Kurt Bryhl did not survive.

Recreated hull of Titanic

Bottom Line: An educational opportunity exists with this exhibit, ripe for parents to encourage children to share their thoughts. An absolute must: watch Titanica, the 45-minute documentary at IMAX, attached to the museum, immediately prior to visiting the exhibit itself. Especially for children, it enhances the experience by showing how everything was rescued.

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit and Titanica continue at the Indiana State Museum through January 16, 2011. For more information visit imax.com/indy and indianamuseum.org.

Photos submitted by Indiana State Museum
Elizabeth J. Musgrave is a syndicated columnist, travel writer and theater critic. Catch her as Indy’s Arts & Entertainment Adviser on 93 WIBC and follow her on Twitter @ejmusgrave1 and Facebook. Gotta Go is published in the following newspapers: South Sider Voice, Indiana Weekender, West Side Community News, New Palestine Reporter, West Indianapolis Community News, Pendleton Times Reporter and Fortville-McCordsville Reporter.

Robin Hood

Oscar winner Russell Crowe teams up once again with director Ridley Scott (Gladiator) for this prequel version of the centuries-old fable of outlaw, Robin Hood. Knowing the talent of Crowe, I looked forward to this film.

With so much controversy surrounding the validity of the man known as Robin Hood, the adventures and English folklore have grown and evolved over the centuries. While historians argue amongst themselves as to whether there was such a man and what his true identity is, moviegoers never tire of each new version of the tale.

Although no one I know has spoken of the elephant in the room, this critic shall whisper the thought which occurred almost immediately upon realizing the direction of the film. If this epic film is staged as a prequel to the familiar movies based on the famed archer, why is a man 46 years old playing the character? Shouldn’t a younger man by a couple of decades be in that position? Cate Blanchett, at 41 years of age, is also unbelievable in that respect as Lady Marian.

All in all, considering all we moviegoers have been willing to forgive over the years, the age factor can be overlooked as well, I suppose. Especially when given the fact that this film is rather enjoyable and different than its predecessors. Gritty, gray in color and harsh, Hood stands up to the worth-watching yardstick. This is fortunate since the fact that it is set as prequel means that there will most likely be a sequel or two.

Given that Crowe is a destination actor, and Mark Strong is entrenching himself as the best villain since Alan Rickman (Die Hard) viewers will undoubtedly enjoy the action scenes, scenery and medieval castles. With mixed reviews from critics and the public, the movie will most likely do well at the box office, with opening weekend earnings reported at $32 million, twice that of chick-flick Letters to Juliet.

Bottom Line: Best viewed on the big screen, IMAX if possible, Robin Hood is not Crowe’s best work, but even his less-than-fabulous movies are worthy of the ticket price.

Elizabeth J. Musgrave is a syndicated columnist, theater critic, and travel writer. You can now follow Elizabeth on facebook or Twitter and catch her as Indy's Arts & Entertainment Adviser on 93 WIBC's Saturday Morning News Show, giving a quick Gotta Go list of things to do in the Indy area, including restaurants, festivals, events, theater and films.

For comments and questions e-mail her at Elizabeth@gottago.us.

--This post was originally published under "Gotta Go" in the West Side Community News in Indianapolis, and the West Indianapolis Community News.