The Aug. 25 TFP Star is available as an e-edition.

More than 30 percent of Toledo-area residents are of German heritage, according to census figures. This may go a long way toward explaining why Tim Pecsenye is so busy this time of year.
As chairman of the German-American Festival, Pecsenye speaks with a great deal of pride and joy about the event he’s put his heart into — though he admitted in an interview that the stress can take its toll in the weeks leading up to it. When asked what he finds most rewarding about working on the Festival, Pecsenye laughed and simply said, “You should probably ask that question during the off-season.”

Pecsenye

One of Northwest Ohio’s oldest and most prized cultural traditions, the German-American Festival’s 2010 edition will be held on Aug. 27-29 in Oregon. This year, the event celebrates its 45th anniversary with its eternal blend of traditional German cuisine, music and atmosphere.
“It’s the largest ethnic celebration in the Toledo area,” Pecsenye said. “So this gives an opportunity to sort of relive their ethnic background, and eat some great food and have a good time with their friends and their neighbors.”
For Pecsenye, his work on the festival is the culmination of a lifetime of involvement in the German-American community in the Toledo area. After working within the community for more than 35 years, Pecsenye took over as festival chairman in 2007.
“My greatest satisfaction is that we raise enough to keep our Swiss-German Cultural Center out in Oregon going, and that we’re able to attract as many people as we are to the festival, and that we are able to make it a great community asset,” he said.
He has reason to be proud of the attendance. Modest figures show the German-American Fest attracts more than 25,000 people to Oregon. Pecsenye predicts that the actual number will easily exceed that. The event requires more than 2,000 volunteers just to keep it running each year.

The festivities will begin Aug. 27, with the symbolic tapping of the first keg, followed by fireworks, a first for the festival. In celebration of the 45th year, “we’re trying to do something a little special, and fireworks are part of that,” Pecsenye said.
Beer will play a large role in the festival, as always, with more than 20 different varieties of imported brew available to choose from, as well as other types of spirits. A new official event even centers around beer: “Masskrugstemmen,” where contestants hold a one-liter stein of brew at arm’s length. (The U.S. record is 13 minutes, 30 seconds.)
“We had tried that competition informally on the midway the last couple of years,” Pecsenye said. “When people come to a festival, they enjoy doing things other than just sitting around dancing and eating and drinking, they enjoy competitions like that.”
Also on tap for attendees will be a number of entertainment acts, including numerous bands that bring their own traditional German flavor to the festivities. Headlining the event on Sunday will be the returning Polka Floyd, an accordion-based Pink Floyd tribute band.

“The entertainment acts that we book lend themselves to their ethnic authenticity,” Pecsenye said, noting that no bands are from Germany this year. “We pick our bands very carefully so that we are ethnically correct.”
The festival’s other activities include Hummel figurine look-alike contests and face-painting for children, a Swiss stone-throwing contest, numerous amusement park rides, dozens of food choices (from pretzels to sauerkraut balls), soccer matches and more.
Diversity in planning is key to the event’s goal of providing something for everybody. Scheduling attractions to appeal to a wide range of people, Pecsenye said, is crucial for an event which faces as many challenges as the German-American Festival.
“We’re a rain-or-shine festival, but we are also weather dependent, and I guess we’re economy dependent, to some greater or lesser extent. Our lifeblood is to have plenty of people coming here.”
The long hours of preparation come to an end in just a few days. But for now, the chairman works hard to give every person who attends the festival something memorable.
“The one thing we insist on is that we provide excellent value for our customers, because everybody has a spot for their dollars. And we work very hard to maintain our position as the best festival in Toledo.

Two local health care providers have partnered to bring streamlined vision care into focus.

Mercy Health Partners and Reed Vision announced their partnership at the Aug. 24 unveiling of the Mercy Eye Center, located at 5085 Monroe St. in Toledo.

Dr. Stephen Reed, who founded Reed Vision in 1991, will serve as president and CEO of Mercy Eye Center. Reed Vision will be renamed Reed Vision by Mercy and work with Mercy Health Partners to provide continued vision care to Mercy patients.

“It’s a unique and progressive partnership between two strong area health care organizations,” said Andrea Price, Mercy’s president and CEO. “For our patients this represents an exciting new model of health care delivery that will provideboth … the expertise of Mercy as well as Reed Vision.”

Reed said the partnership would allow Mercy patients easier access to eye care. Likewise, he said Reed Vision patients would have easier access to treatment for health problems that might be detected through an eye exam.

“The bottom line is Mercy is going to be saving more lives and more vision,” he said.

Mercy Eye Center features multiple exam rooms in addition to areas for imaging and laser treatment. The center has four operating rooms and a recovery room to serve patients before and after an operation.

Physicians specializing in eye care will serve their residency period at the new center. The operating rooms have video feeds and viewing screens to educate resident physicians about surgical procedures.

“It serves as the training center for resident physicians here in this area, in Toledo, and across the nation,” Reed said. “It is a significant step for all the residents in this area because of the fact that Mercy, in its commitment to holistic approach to medicine, has brought eye care into its system.”

Mercy Eye Center is located near Reed Vision’s Talmadge Road office. Reed Vision also has offices on Hawley Street in Toledo, Navarre Avenue in Oregon, and North Monroe Street in Monroe, Mich.

The late, great George Carlin once said, “There’s a different group to get pissed off at you in this country for everything you’re not supposed to say.” To illustrate, he unleashed a torrent of racial slurs that would make the most staunch Klansman blush.
“There is absolutely nothing wrong with any of those words in and of themselves. They are only words,” he said. Up to this point, Carlin’s argument would seem to stand in support of the much-maligned Dr. Laura Schlessinger, who has come under fire for using racial epithets on her program. But then Carlin continued, adding a section she really should have listened to.
“It’s the context that counts. It’s the user. It’s the intention behind the words that makes words good or bad. The words are completely neutral. The words are innocent. I get tired of people talking about ‘bad words’ and ‘bad language.’ It’s the context that makes words good or bad.”
It is not the words she said that put Schlessinger in the situation she’s in. It is a genuine lack of understanding and of comprehension. And so it continues, in the days since.
On Aug. 10, Schlessinger took a call from a woman going by the name of “Jade.” The caller, who is African-American, was asking about a situation that had arisen with her white husband’s friends and family. They would often say uncomfortable things about race in her presence, including racial slurs.
Schlessinger did not let the listener complete her story before cutting her off and stating that she didn’t find the actions of her husband’s friends racist. “ … listen, without giving much thought, a lot of blacks voted for Obama simply ’cause he was half-black,” Schlessinger said, in a statement that had no relevance to the conversation.
“How about the n-word?” Jade said. “So, the n-word’s been thrown around, and … ” Once more, Schlessinger cut her off.
“Black guys use it all the time. Turn on HBO, listen to a black comic, and all you hear is n*****, n*****, n*****.”
The call continued, and Jade, who was becoming increasingly uncomfortable, said she couldn’t believe Schlessinger would use that word on the air. Schlessinger then continued to use it in response, blaming Jade for focusing on the use of it, and, hilariously, chastising Jade for not letting her finish a sentence.
“There is absolutely nothing wrong with the word n***** in and of itself,” Carlin continued in his monologue. “It’s the racist using it you oughta be concerned about. We don’t mind the word when Eddie Murphy or Richard Pryor uses it. Why? Because we know they’re not racist.”
Schlessinger gave her audience no such context before spewing her ill-conceived diatribe. Her use of “the n-word” was the least troubling part of it. She had already contributed a questionable remark even before the “n-word” was used, with her sudden pronouncement that all African-Americans voted for Obama without thinking, that it was “a black thing.” And her lack of comprehension about how wounding Jade’s situation was — proclaiming “I don’t think that’s racist” before she was even finished — didn’t help matters.
She then blamed her caller — indeed, all African American people — for being oversensitive to racism, calling it “black-think,” which is what made her diatribe more offensive than anything. This included her advice to Jade: “If you’re that hypersensitive about color and don’t have a sense of humor, don’t marry out of your race.”
Schlessinger’s conduct in previous years does not do wonders to the context she brought to that conversation. Other comments demonstrate a consistently skewed worldview. Her rants about homosexuality, including her infamous statement about how it was a “biological error that inhibits you from relating normally to the opposite sex;” Her rallying against feminists, including stating in a 1998 Vanity Fair article, “They nauseate and sicken me … They’ve destroyed the sanctity of motherhood;” Her claims that women are partially to blame when their husbands commit adultery. Statements like these help color everything Schlessinger has said since.
Her statements in the days since have only deepened her trouble. Public criticism has intensified. Schlessinger has announced that she is leaving her radio show in what she says is an effort to regain her “First Amendment rights.”
No. You exercised your First Amendment rights quite well. It guarantees us the right to freedom of speech, free from government intervention. It does not guarantee us freedom from criticism, nor freedom from consequence. Others have the right to speak out against your comments, Schlessinger. That’s part of free speech, too. You’d think a doctor would have figured that out by now.
Link to full call audio and transcript, which has apparently been excised from Schlessinger’s official website: http://mediamatters.org/blog/201008120045.

E-mail Jeff at PopGoesJeff@gmail.com.

MamaSox Nation and MamaSox Village Idiots are hosting an Aug. 28  pre-“American Idol” Live gathering in honor of Crystal Bowersox’s return to Northwest Ohio.
“We wanted to do this grass-roots for her. We thought it would be a great thing to do because this is really her homecoming and it’s not just the show itself,” said Jeff Bridge, of Tucson, Ariz., a member of the Village Idiots’ “Boared” who will be at the event.
The gathering will be the final day of the Sun Flower Project, an online fundraiser to benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund (JDRF) in Bowersox’s name. All funds raised during the evening will benefit JDRF.

Bowersox

“I definitely approve, but I’m not running it … I think it’s all good intentions and I’m all for it,” Bowersox said in a message to Toledo Free Press about the project.
Bowersox and the “American Idol Live!” tour come to the Huntington Center on Aug. 29.
Members of MamaSox Nation started the Sun Flower Project to raise money from June until Bowersox’s Toledo tour date. The Village Idiots, whose goal is to function as a fan partnership with Bowersox, assisting her causes and charitable endeavors, paired with MamaSox Nation for the evening to help raise money for the project.
“We want to help them raise as much money as we can that night, help them reach their original goal,” Bridge said. “We really want to help the Sun Flower Project finish strong.”
Approximately $1,200 has been raised for the Sun Flower Project and the groups hope to raise more money during the pre-show event, according to Michelle Reed, one individual in charge of the project.
The groups will raffle off signed Bowersox T-shirts, as well as a signed Bowersox pendant, Bridge said. The evening will also be live streamed online for those who cannot attend, he said. As part of the pre-show party Toledo Free Press will give away two tickets to the Aug. 29 “American Idol” Live! Tour for Aug. 29 to see Bowersox in concert.
“The fan club asked if they could meet here and we said yes,” said Tom Sullivan, executive chef at the Village Idiot. “Crystal played here for about a year before she was on the show. She considered this a place she started out.”
The Village Idiot will donate a portion of pizza sales to the JDRF at the end of the evening, Sullivan said. In addition to pre-show events, Andrew Ellis and the Setting Suns will play at the Village Idiot at 10 p.m.
The pre-show gathering starts at 7 p.m. Aug. 28. For more information, visit the website
www.mamasoxvillageidiots.com.
‘Holy Toledo’ singalong
MamaSox Village Idiots are using social media to get individuals to come out and sing “Holy Toledo” for Crystal Bowersox as she exits the “American Idol Live!” tour bus Aug. 29.
“We want to show that we care for her and give thanks to her,” said Sydney Conover, chief graphic designer and “Boared” member for MamaSox Village Idiots. “Holy Toledo’ was a song she wrote when she was 17 before she left town. It was a song she was able to sing when she came back to Toledo and it was the first original song they allowed played on ‘Idol’.”
The group hopes to have more than 100 people commit to coming out and singing “Holy Toledo” to Bowersox as she leaves the tour bus.
The Village Idiots are asking individuals to tweet “#holytoledo It’s time to give back to Mamasox. Need 100 people to sing Holy Toledo as Crystal leaves their tour bus. LET’S GIVE BACK TO MAMA,” to get the word out about the event.
The group is still working on tentative times for everyone to come sing for Bowersox, but will let everyone know through its website and through Twitter. Words to “Holy Toledo” can be found at the MamaSox Village Idiots website forum.
For more information, visit mamasoxidiots.com or www.twitter.com/mamasoxvillage.

In the past seven years, the electronic pop duo Wideband Network has met in person twice.
With three albums and five singles, Casey Clark of Toledo and Caesar Filori of Seattle, Wash., have their creative process down to a musical “Mad Libs” collaborative system. Tracks are created as Clark and Filori send bits and pieces of their recordings via MP3 files back and forth online.
“I’ll send him an idea. He’ll come up with his concept of the music and his interpretation of what I give him. I’ll send him vocals, he’ll send me his interpretation again,” Clark said, explaining how he works with Filori.
“I’ve got hundreds of hundreds of demos I’ve sent him,” said Clark. “They’ve got to really strike both of us on an emotional level for us to really dig in and make an investment in those songs.”
The rerelease of Wideband Network’s third album, “Oxygen and Atmosphere,” as a special edition in July garnered the duo a spot on the “New & Noteworthy” section of iTunes’ Dance page, landing at No. 34 out of the top 200 artists.
“I’m excited. I’m really excited,” Clark said with a wide smile. “We were up there with some of the big names in electronic.”

Wideband Network

Clark and Filori met in 2003 on a fan website for one of their mutual influences, BT, an internationally acclaimed recording artist and producer for stars like Sting, Britney Spears and Madonna. After Filori posted a song remix he had done, Clark checked it out and was “blown away.”
Although initial progress was slowed by dial-up Internet connections, they began sharing files and came up with their first song, “World of the Living.” Clark said although he gets tired of listening to the same songs on the radio every day, he uses bits and pieces as inspiration for demos he sends to Filori.
“A lot of songs are drawn from the influences of other artists that we’ve been brought up with over the years and then twisted and turned and made into our own sound,” Clark said.
“If you take Michael Jackson, Savage Garden and BT, put them in a blender, mix it up and sprinkle some Madonna on top, you’ve got yourself a Wideband Network smoothie,” Clark said.
Clark manages many of Wideband Network’s operations, from the album artwork and the website to making the music videos. Sharing and tweaking tracks to a synchronous groove, songs take from two weeks to a month to create. It’s almost impossible for Clark and Filori to work together in the same room; Clark said they tried once but it “didn’t feel right.” The duo thrives on doing their work individually, in their own space on their own time outside of their day jobs.
“This year is very interesting because Caesar just got married and just had a baby, so our whole dynamic has completely changed,” Clark said.
Wideband Network released its first two albums, “Universe” and “Ten Thousand Seconds” under Utah-based label A Different Drum and its third album, “Oxygen and Atmosphere” with New York-based label System Recordings.
Forgoing its label affiliations, Wideband Network’s next move stays true to its digital heritage. The band plans to release and sell their new music as extended plays (EPs) in groups of four to five songs on its website so it is distributed directly to its fans, Clark said.
“We’re going to go the other route and see what we can do,” Clark said. “It’s very easy for independent artists to use different sites online.”
Wideband Network earns $0.16 off each $0.99 song sold on iTunes since it doesn’t have a manager to pay, Clark said. Online exposure and music sharing has fueled the majority of its album sales, since Wideband Network doesn’t tour or play live.
“I’m probably more famous outside of Toledo than I am in Toledo,” Clark said.
Clark is opening a recording studio on the fifth floor of the Secor Building on Jefferson Street at the end of August, where he hopes to help solo artists and local bands take their production to the next level.
“People ask me, ‘Why aren’t you in California? Why aren’t you in New York?’” Clark said. “I’ve been doing more work from Toledo than I would probably be able to do from these other places that have a lot of really talented people.”

Owens Community College’s latest art exhibition is designed to inspire. The Ohio Designer Craftsmen’s Best of 2010 exhibit is set to grace the college’s Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery through Sept. 16. The juried show will close with a guest lecture by nationally known metalsmith and Ohio Designer Craftsmen and Bowling Green State University faculty member Tom Muir.
“Owens Community College is proud to open the current exhibition season with such a unique exhibit that showcases some of the finest craft works of art in Ohio,” said Wynn Perry, Owens part-time coordinator of the Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery.
Ohio Designer Craftsmen is a not-for-profit organization with more than 2,100 members, including craft artists, educators, students and other individuals who appreciate fine art. The organization was founded in 1963 to promote the fine crafts aesthetic by establishing a standard of excellence, encouraging creative growth, providing professional support to craft artists and building public awareness, appreciation and collection of fine art. Exhibitions are presented at the Ohio Craft Museum, founded by Ohio Designer Craftsmen in 1993. Located in Columbus, the complex is devoted to exhibiting and collecting fine art. Public programs include artist lectures, hands-on workshops for children and adults and a summer craft day camp for children.
“This is the first time we’ve hosted this exhibit. I had actually been speaking with the organization about another show when this one came together,” Perry said. “This show is actually more difficult to curate than others in terms of installation, as there are just so many different kinds of work. It’s very diverse. This is something we’d absolutely consider hosting again, after enough time has passed, as we like to keep exhibits fresh for our students. This is a great show that offers something for everyone.”
The exhibition is free and open to the public. The closing lecture will be presented in the Center for Fine and Performing Arts room 111 at 7 p.m. Owens’ main campus is located in Perrysburg at 30335 Oregon Road.
For more information, call (567) 661-7000 or visit www.owens.edu.

There are five key components in the Hip-Hop game; MCing, break dancing, DJing, beat boxing and grafitti. But Fashion is the ever-so-needed sixth man that helps wins the championship.
Ollie Nicole clothing has become a staple in Toledo urban fashion. It was taken over by Regginal “Reggie” Penrose in 2005 to preserve his cousin and original designer’s memory; and it has grown into a must-have for special events.
Dressed from hat to socks in Ollie Nicole, and proudly displaying the label’s emblem on his car’s license plate, Reggie says he is his biggest promotional tool. Even dressing his son in the brand every day, Reggie told me “you’ll never see me in anything other than Ollie Nicole.”
First impressions are everything, and in an industry where image means just as much as musical content, a Hip-Hop artist’s best friend should be a fashion designer. Toledo Hip-Hop artists have embraced Ollie Nicole, wearing it to their performances and even recording songs promoting the brand. Whenever an artist has a special performance, Reggie makes sure that the Ollie Nicole emblem is displayed proudly on his/her threads. But Ollie Nicole is not just for special events.

Penrose

According to the designer, Ollie Nicole is “everyday wear.” The biggest roadblock on the path to national recognition thus far has been the misconception that Ollie Nicole is only a specialty brand. But it doesn’t have to be anyone’s birthday to wear the brand. Reggie is working on a signature line now, in hopes that people will embrace Ollie Nicole as a casual line as well as an event line.
The only other issue with the Ollie Nicole brand is the price. For the amount of time and effort that goes into designing, sewing and delivering each piece of clothing, the clothes are extremely reasonable. But just like a local artist trying to sell his/her album for $10 because albums in the stores are that price, people think that until that person “makes it,” nothing he/she produces is worth it.
But what happens if that same local artist starts selling his/her album for $2? More albums may be sold, but the product will be looked upon as mediocre compared to albums that cost more. This is the trap that Reggie refuses to let Ollie Nicole fall into. He says that his prices reflect the economy, but “I don’t want to sell it too cheap, and people perceive it as cheap.”
Also, because the Ollie Nicole brand is not sitting on the rack next to national name brands (yet), people think the quality is not up to par, but Reggie said he’s seen “[rapper 50 Cent’s brand] G-Unit use the same exact stitching as me.”
For those people who absolutely need to see clothes on racks at department stores, the Ollie Nicole fall brand will be in a store, to be announced soon, in the upcoming months.
Most Hip-Hop artists (the smart ones) aspire to achieve mainstream success. Becoming a pop superstar isn’t a negative thing; “pop” is short for “popular,” and being popular is the goal, right? While Ollie Nicole was first embraced by Toledo hip hop artists, it’s reaching more people in different environments. Andre Savage, host of the  television show “Game Savvy Late Night,” wears the brand during each taping; the owner of Fat Fish Blue owns some clothing; even doctors are asking for it. When asked about his journey to national recognition, Reggie says “I’m already on the right path.”
The goal of Ollie Nicole clothing is no different than that of any aspiring rapper: to be on shelves across the country, next to those with national recognition. Reggie’s star has already taken off, and continues to rise, so the smart thing to do is take heed to his slogan: Get on. Get Ollie Nicole.
For more information on Ollie Nicole, or to make a purchase, contact Reggie at the website www.ollienicole.com, or at www.facebook.com/regginal.penrose.

Three separate events Aug. 28 — an AIDS walk, a rally and a carnival — will celebrate the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community in Toledo.
AIDS Resource Center Ohio (ARC) will sponsor the 2nd annual Northwest Ohio AIDS Walk, beginning at 8 a.m. Aug. 28 at International Park. The 5K walk is wheelchair accessible and leashed pets are welcome to attend.
“Many people are choosing between their families and their medication because they can’t afford it,” said Laurie Cohen, development officer for ARC Ohio. “Right now it’s really critical that we raise money, especially for people that are HIV positive,” Cohen said. “We have people that still need their medications and they’ve been taken off of the State of Ohio HIV Drug Assistance Program.”
Cohen said 300 people attended the first AIDS Walk in 2009, which raised $35,000 for the organization. Cohen said the organization is expecting 500 participants this year.
“We provide all services for people who are infected, affected and effected,” Cohen said of ARC Ohio. “Case management, financial assistance, core medical services, HIV counseling, testing and referral services and advocacy.”
Live entertainment will include female impersonator Hershae Chocolatae, DJ Tommy Moran, the Adrian, Mich. band Sound Advice, free massages, face painting and a mixer by Joe Veitch.
The Toledo LGBTQ Collective declared Aug. 28 “Toledo Gay Pride Day” and will host a March and Rally for Civil Rights at noon. The march begins at One Government Center on 604 Jackson St. and will journey over the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Bridge to International Park.
Lair Scott, founder of the first Toledo Gay Pride Day and March on June 25,1995, said 75 people attended but it hasn’t occurred since. This year, Scott is expecting 500 to 700 people, many from out of town.
Scott said he was inspired to try again after 15 years because of the death of Joe Wicks, former owner of Caesar’s Show Bar and a paternal icon of gay rights in Toledo, in April. The march and rally are dedicated to Wicks.
“When we lost Joe Wicks, we lost that arm that reached out to the homeless gay and lesbian community,” Scott said.
“The whole idea behind the march is to gain some knowledge behind the community because it’s lacking,” Scott said. “A lot of the things in Toledo that matter to the gay and lesbian community are being neglected. LGBTQ Collective’s main focus is not just to be active, but to try to see what we can do for our community, like building a community center with health center attached.”
The final event occurring Aug. 28 is the inaugural Toledo Pride event sponsored by OutSKIRTS and Equality Toledo. The Pride will be held at the Civic Hall in the Erie Street Market.
Lexi Staples, owner of OutSKIRTS bar, said that Toledo City Council just passed a resolution acknowledging Toledo Pride as an official event.
“They realized something the LGBTQ community in Toledo was missing,” Staples said.
Beginning at 3 p.m. there will be a “Community Connection Carnival” featuring live entertainment, belly dancers, the Glass City Rollers, food and artists. Information booths from local LGBTQ resources will be available, including First Unitarian Universalist Church, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church and Central United Methodist Church.
The carnival will end with dancing and a drag show lasting until 1 a.m. After 10 p.m., attendees under the age of 18 will be asked to leave the event.
“There are a lot of LGBT individuals and allies in Toledo, but never has it been assembled on this scale,” said Sherry Tripepi, executive director for Equality Toledo.
Admission is $5 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. and $7 from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Those age 14 and younger get in free. Proceeds go toward event funding and aid Toledo Pride in becoming a nonprofit organization in 2011. For more information, visit the website http://blog.toledocollective.org/.

Are you a weekend warrior when it comes to the silver screen? If so, the University of Toledo’s Department of Theatre and Film’s upcoming fall Film Fridays Series is for you. The season gets rolling on Aug. 27, with Mervyn LeRoy’s 1932 classic “I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang.” All of the selected films examine the theme of imprisonment.
“This is the first time that we’re showing films on almost every Friday night, not when we have stage plays running though. We’re calling it Film Fridays, and I really hope that the UT community and the community at large will come as regularly as possible and build a community around these films,” said Holly Hey, assistant professor of theatre and film. “I felt, as corny as it may sound, that all these films had something to teach me, particularly about the triumph of the human spirit, the determination of the characters’ will to better themselves in the most harsh situations.  Also, the prison crisis in this country is one that just doesn’t get talked about.”
The series will continue Sept. 3, with John Ford’s adaptation of John Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath.” Other films include “The Night of The Hunter” on Sept. 10, “Le Trou,” known by its English language title as “The Night Watch” on Sept. 17, “The Birdman of Alcatraz” on Sept.24, “Scared Straight” on Oct. 1, “First Blood” on Oct. 29, a special Saturday screening of “Mrs. Soffel” on Oct. 30, and Todd Haynes’ “Poison” on Nov. 5.
“I would love for people to use these films as a means for contemplating a part of the human condition,” Hey said.
Spring screenings have also been scheduled. All films are shown in the Lab Theater in the Center for Performing Arts building at 7:30 p.m. The screenings are free. There is a suggested minimum donation of $3 to benefit future offerings, as well as student resources. For information, call (419) 530-2202 or visit www.utoledo.edu/as/theatrefilm/.