PAGE ONE COMMENTARY: Mysterious Criminal Citation on Wisteria Island Leads to Hornets’ Nest of Questions

IF YOU THINK THAT THE DEVELOPMENT OF WISTERIA ISLAND IS DEAD, THINK AGAIN. DEVELOPERS ARE VERY PATIENT

by Rick Boettger

Don Bilodeau sells live bait from his barge, anchored behind Wisteria Island. Last April he was ticketed for walking his dog on the beach on Wisteria Island by a Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC) officer. He was charged with trespassing on private property.

“I’ve been taking Captain, my pureblood island dog, for a stroll on the Wisteria beaches for 10 years,” Bilodeau said. “The Florida Constitution reserves all beach areas below the mean high water mark for public use. I’ve hired an attorney, and I will fight this to my last breath!”

His defense is that the beach is public property. His case went before Judge Wayne Miller this week, on Thursday, after press time.

New Year’s Eve in Key West

NEW YEAR’S TRADITION— Okay, okay. So up in New York City, they drop some kind of a crystal ball at midnight on New Year’s Eve. And everybody freezes their back sides off. A New Year’s tradition in Key West is the lowering of the pirate wench from the 75-foot high mast of the Schooner Adirondack III, docked in front of the famous Schooner Wharf Bar at the Historic Seaport.

CAROLYN GORTON FULLER: The Bottle Wall

EDITOR’S NOTE: Carolyn Gorton Fuller died last August at the age of 88. If you have been a resident of Key West for any length of time, you probably knew Carolyn or you knew who she was. You have probably seen her famous bottle wall at her house across the street from the cemetery where Angela Street intersects with Margaret Street. That is her topic this week She was not a regular columnist in Key West The Newspaper, but every once in a while she would send us a letter or commentary– hardly ever involving a controversial issue. Not the kind of thing you normally see in KWTN. But her humor was so subtle and her writing was, well, sweet. Rarely did something she sent us not appear in print. Since her death, we have been republishing some of Carolyn’s columns.

THE CONTINUING SAGA OF THE BOTTLE WALL

By Carolyn Gorton Fuller

This column was originally published in Key West The Newspaper on January 2, 1998

Many years ago I built a wall out of bottles on the corner of Angela and Margaret Streets. I want to get some things straightened out about the fate of that wall.

During the 20-odd years that I maintained it, the wall was broken many times, partially through vandalism but mostly by drivers leaving town taking that corner too fast – the left turn off Passover onto the foot of Margaret and then a hard right onto Angela Street.

Elvis Sighting

ELVIS AT THE BULL— Bobby J has the Elvis thing down pat. You can often see him perform during the early gig— 10:30am to 1pm— at the Bull Bar on Duval Street at Caroline.

RHONDA: In With The Old

by Rhonda Linseman-Saunders

In the spirit of new beginnings in the new year, I’ve decided to replace the picture that runs with my column every week. The previous one had been there since the beginning of time. Or at least since the beginning of my time at KWTN. And even then the picture was old.

But I wasn’t fooling anybody with that old photo of a care-free, wrinkle-free me. I mean, this is a small island; we see each other in person and up close a lot. We know what our neighbors really look like. We’ve seen everybody, at least once, trying to run in and out of the grocery store for coffee creamer on Sunday morning in pajama bottoms, a ball cap, and yesterday’s make-up.

So yeah, there I am in all my updated thirty-cough-year-old glory. My daughter took the photo right before some rare event for which I let my hair down, in every interpretation. Probably the Key West Burlesque Ho-Ho-Hodown. Who knows. But I’m definitely letting it all hang out up there. With my little old lady glasses stored on top of my head, as always. I don’t necessarily need them. I just keep them up there in case I need to, um, see.

O'BOYLE: Harnessing Ants So Hoppers Can Ride

by Hal O’Boyle

Fighting capitalism is a thankless task that requires not only a colossal arrogance, but a masterful mendacity. A notable example is the Obama administration’s bragging about having created 640,000 jobs with $159 billion of “stimulus” money.

Whether that many jobs were created seems doubtful to me, but let’s assume it is true. We will also ignore that those numbers work out to $250,000 per job. The real questions are, “What are those 640,000 people doing for the money?” and “How does it stimulate the economy?”

We can be fairly certain the new job holders are not producing anything anyone wants. These are, after all, government jobs, which is to say, jobs that depend not on what they produce, but on funds drained from or borrowed on behalf of the productive economy.

Continue reading here.

FILM: What’s on at the Tropic

by Phil Mann

Guess you can’t argue with success. The hot threesome of BLACK SWAN, THE FIGHTER and THE KING’S SPEECH are held over for another week. Each is a Golden Globe Best Picture nominee, and each is drawing record crowds. One of them will probably be squeezed out by next week, so take your chance while you have it to see any you’ve missed so far.

I’d also recommend highly the less-high-profile feature HOWL, also held over. James Franco personifies Allen Ginsburg throughout, but the actual words are from transcripts of the poet himself. Even if you’re not a poetry lover, you’ll appreciate the down to earth way in which the film explains and gives insight into this beat generation literary icon.

Three threads, all set in the fifties when “Howl” was first published, run through the movie — Ginsburg reciting his poem in a San Francisco café, Ginsburg giving an interview about it and his work, and testimony at the censorship trial of his publisher — each giving a window into the meaning of key passages. A movie as original and innovative in its own way as “Howl” itself.

IT’S THE LAW: Who Regulates Business Opportunities in Florida? PART 2

by S. Brandon Dimando and Michael Barnes

The task of regulating business opportunities in Florida is handled by the Florida Division of Consumer Services of the Department of Agriculture (the “Division”) and Consumer Services. Sellers who offer business opportunities in Florida must register their business opportunity with the Division before doing so.

Before investing in a business opportunity, purchasers should first call the Division to verify that the seller has registered. The Division’s phone number is presently (800) HELP-FLA or (850) 488- 2221. The Division can confirm registration and give you the complaint history on all registered companies. The Division reports compl

Does a business seller need to provide purchasers with any written information before a contract is signed or any money paid? Yes. Similar to the Federal Law pertaining to this issue, (see Part 1 of this series published here two weeks ago), Florida law mandates that all sellers of business opportunities must provide prospective purchasers with a detailed “Disclosure Statement.”

EVENTS: Fight Night in the Keys

The Key West boxing tradition, whose fans included legendary author Ernest Hemingway, is to be celebrated Friday, Jan. 14, with an eight-bout match scheduled at Mallory Square overlooking Key West Harbor.

Titled “Fight Night in the Keys,” the open-air sporting challenge offers spectators the chance to view big-name boxing in a subtropical waterfront setting. For those who can’t travel to Key West, the match is to be broadcast on ESPN2’s “Friday Night Fights.”

The scheduled main event is a 10-round bout between super middleweights Peter Manfredo and Daniel Edouard. Manfredo has a record of 36 wins, 20 of them knockouts, and six losses. His competitor Edouard boasts 23 wins, three losses and two draws.

THEATRE: One More Week to See “Lend Me a Tenor”

The comic masterpiece “Lend Me A Tenor” by Ken Ludwig continues at the Waterfront Playhouse. Directed by the Waterfront’s artistic director, Danny Weathers, “Tenor” features an all-star cast; a breath-taking set by Michael Boyer; gorgeous period costumes by Jose Rivera and Carmen Rodriguez; evocative lighting by Kim Hanson (“Key West Nutcracker”) and a high energy tale that will have you teary-eyed with laughter.

“Lend Me A Tenor” is sponsored by KEY TV and runs to January 8.

Audiences from Miami to Minsk have been laughing themselves silly at “Lend Me A Tenor” since it first appeared on Broadway in the 80’s. “Tenor” has been translated into 16 languages and produced in 25 countries.

The 2010 Broadway run garnered a Best Revival of a Play Tony nomination. A sold-out production was performed at the Waterfront in 1991 with Mary Falconer and Tom Luna, who will be reprising their roles.