South Florida Museum hosts "Science on the BIg Screen"

   The South Florida Museum in Bradenton has a very cool Friday night film series going on through mid-December.
   "Science on the Big Screen" offers some great films with a science theme, ranging from sci-fi classics such as the 1960 version of "The Time Machine" to last year's excellent documentary "Particle Fever."

Rod Taylor in "The Time Machine"

   The films are screened in the Bishop Planetarium. The planetarium got a new, very high-tech projection system not long ago, and the quality is remarkable. It's a cool place to see a movie because it's inexpensive ($5, or $3 for museum members) and you can buy beer or wine in the lobby and bring it into the theater.
   The films start at 6 p.m. It's a good idea to make paid reservations in advance. Call 941-746-4131.
   The museum is at 201 10th St. W., Bradenton.

   Here's the schedule:
  
    Oct. 17: "The Time Machine" (1960) Rated PG, 103 mins.
    Oct. 24: "Jurassic Park" (1993) Rated PG-13, 127 minutes.
    Oct. 31: No film
    Nov. 7: "Robot and Frank" (2012) Rated PG-13, 89 mins.
    Nov. 14: "Particle Fever" (2013) Not Rated, 99 minutes.
    Nov. 21: No film.
    Nov. 28: No film.
    Dec. 5: Madame Curie (1943) Not Rated, 124 minutes.
    Dec. 12: Soylent Green (1973) Rated PG, 97 minutes.
    Dec. 19: Iron Man (2008) Rated PG-13, 126 minutes.

Sci-Fi film series takes off in Bradenton

   This weekend, the South Florida Museum kicks off a new film series called “They Came From Outer Space.” 
   At 6 p.m., every Friday through June (except May 3)  the Bishop Planetarium Theater will host classic and not-so-classic films about flying saucers, UFOs, and various kinds of alien monsters abound throughout this survey of the history of space invaders on film. 
   Admission is $5. The South Florida Museum’s Bishop Planetarium Theater is at 201 10th St. W. in downtown Bradenton. 
   
   Here's the full schedule:
 
   April 19: "It Came From Outer Space" (1953) Rated G, 80 minutes.
   An amateur astronomer and a school teacher are the only residents of a small Arizona town to suspect alien influence when people begin acting strangely.

   April 26: "The War of the Worlds"  (1953) Not rated, 85 minutes.
   Gene Barry stars in the classic film adaptation of H.G. Wells’ Martian invasion novel about a vicious alien attack.

   May 10: "It: The Terror From Beyond Space" (1958) Not rated, 69 minutes.
   The story of a rescue mission sent to Mars to see what has become of a marooned expedition crew is a precursor to such later classics as "Alien."
 
   May 17: "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1978) Rated PG, 115 minutes.
   Donald Sutherland stars in the remake of the 1956 classic about a San Francisco man who suspects that everyone he knows is being replaced by an emotionless alien clones.
 
   May 24: "Little Shop of Horrors"  (1986) Rated PG-13, 88 minutes.
   The musical adaptation of the Roger Corman camp classic. Rick Moranis stars as the nerdy skid row florist who makes the discovery of a lifetime – a talking, singing plant with a taste for human flesh.

   May 31: "The Blob" (1988) Rated R, 94 minutes.
   This gruesome remake of the 1958 cult classic features a rebellious group of teenagers who can’t quite convince the local adults that a giant, quivering blob is threatening to consume their entire population..
 
   June 7: "Contact" (2005) Rated PG, 150 minutes.
   Jodie Foster stars as an astronomer trying to find proof of alien existence. From Carl Sagan’s novel.
 
   June 14: "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"  (2005) Rated PG, 109 minutes.
   Adapted from Douglas Adams’ popular book. A British everyman is saved from Earth just minutes before its destruction by aliens, but that's just the beginning.

   June 21: "District 9" (2009) Rated R, 112 minutes.
   A thought-provoking film that depicts what happens after alien refugees become second-class citizens of earth. A blend of alien invasion and apartheid, with plenty of gore.
 
   June 28: "Attack the Block" (2011) Rated R, 88 minutes.
   A teen gang becomes neighborhood heroes in South London in the wake of an extraterrestrial attack.

Bradenton Riverwalk has food truck serving tasty breakfast, lunch in museum parking lot

Don Popowski poses outside his food truck On the Roll, which opened Jan. 2, 2013, in the parking lot of the South Florida Museum across from the western entrance of the Bradenton Riverwalk. Photo by Wade Tatangelo

Add On the Roll, which opened Wednesday in the parking lot of the South Florida Museum across from the western entrance of the Bradenton Riverwalk, to my list of eating destinations.

Just had a most tasty breakfast sandwich there called "The Porky Clucker." It's a hefty portion of egg and cheese on a fresh, toasted roll with ham plus a side of warm, crispy, homemade potato chips for a mere $3.50.

You can also have it with bacon or sausage.

Add $1.50 for a cold can of Diet Coke.

Plus the dollar tip and we're still talking quality food from a local businessman for prices similar to those found at the Golden Arches. 

Oh, and my order took about three minutes.

"Good food and fast service is the theme of this business," said Don Popowski, the proprietor who lives on a houseboat at the Twin Dolphin Marina and opened On the Roll with help from the owner and chef of nearby restaurant Pier 22 and permission from the South Florida Museum.

Popowski puts the finishing touches on my Porky Clucker.

Before noshing on my delicious breakfast sandwich, I toured Popowski's pristine kitchen, which he built himself from a bread truck he purchased while still living in Oxford, Conn. While we were inside, he proudly showed off his ServSafe Certification, the State of Florida catering license issued to the Don Miller Development Corp that owns Pier 22 and a vending permit issued by the City of Bradenton.

"I'm a retired businessman," Popowski said. "If I wasn't doing this I would just be sitting around reading books."

His four sandwiches, which all cost $6, are the prime rib packed  Godfather, the ham-and-turkey stuffed Surfer, the Angus-filled Elsie-Burger and the Kansas BLT featuring a whole wheat tortilla.

"The Godfather and the Surfer are two excellent sandwiches that are not common in the restaurant business," Popowski said.

He also plans to serve weekly specials.

One item you won't find on the menu, though, is frankfurters.

"We intentionally aren't serving hot dogs so we don't compete with the downtown vendors who have been serving hot dogs for years," Popowski said. "We're looking to part of the family not the competition."

On The Roll is cash-only and open for breakfast and lunch 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. People can just stop by like I did or place an order in advance by calling 941-962-0029.

Restaurant to go: Food trucks coming to Manatee

World ends Dec. 21? Mayan scholar discusses myth at South Florida Museum, Bradenton

The world ends Dec. 21, 2012.
 
Yep, that's the final date of the 5125-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar used by the Maya.

But Mayan scholars, at least the one who will be at South Florida Museum in Bradenton on Wednesday, say we don't need to worry about the "2012 phenomenon."

This month, South Florida Museum will host two Mayan-themed events to put the December 2012 “End of the World” myth into context. From 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, research scholar at New College of Florida and noted Mayan expert Dr. Gabriele Vail, and Director of the Bishop Planetarium Jeff Rodgers, will spend the evening discussing the Mayan myth and putting it into context.

“Gabrielle Vail is one of the world's most respected Mayan scholars, so we couldn't ask for a better perspective on what the Mayan calendar really has to say about the end of the world,” Rodgers said in a statement issued by the museum.

On Dec. 15 from 7 to 8 p.m., the museum will host another program "2012: The Return of the Goddess." It's a listening experience composed by artist Paul Ramshaw who was inspired by myths surrounding the Mayan Calendar and ripples of gravitational waves predicted by the Theory of Relativity. The ambient musical arrangements will be accompanied by subtle, complimentary graphics projected on the Planetarium dome.

“Paul Ramshaw's work has earned international acclaim. With '2012: The Return of the Goddess,' Paul has created an evocative blend of art, science and culture that captures the expanse of time and mythical cycles of rebirth. It is a uniquely impactful work that invites both introspection and connection with the grand scales of the cosmos,” Rodgers said in a statement.

Ramshaw noted it's an experimental piece.

"The 'music' you will hear has not been created using a conventional scoring of notes and instruments, but by 'reorganizing' the sound (timbre) of samples of operatic and choral voices within different frameworks of time, with a conceptual input inspired by the myths surrounding the Mayan calendar and 2012,” Ramshaw said in a statement.

Tickets to the Dec. 15 event are also $10.

Information: 941-746-4131 or www.southfloridamuseum.org.

Bradenton's South Florida Museum displays community nature photos with compelling stories

'Skyway Sunrise' from Robinson Preserve by Paul Bayard, Bradenton.

On the second floor of the South Florida Museum you'll find a Bradenton backyard where countless adventures began.

The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is there, too, awash in a brilliant sunrise.

It's also where you'll locate the "hugging trees" adored by a 13-year-old girl.

Many more special scenes and stories are there, shared by your friends, neighbors and folks who travel from across the state to enjoy the Museum in downtown Bradenton.

The photos, about 50 total, were submitted by members of the community and visitors to coincide with the museum's current exhibit, the critically acclaimed "Preserving Eden: Clyde Butcher's Florida Photographs."

The community photos comprise the "Walk Far. Look Deeply" exhibition that runs through the end of the year.

To celebrate the event, a private reception was held for the photographers at the museum Thursday.

"There has been a lot of energy," said Samantha Sprague, curator of education at the museum. "To have something directly respond to the (Butcher) exhibit is very exciting."

The "Walk Far. Look Deeply" images include a short explanation of why the place matters to the photographer.

Sara Vaught invites museum attendees to visit her Bradenton "Backyard." It's her favorite place in Florida, a place that reminds her of going on numerous adventures with her father, who lost his battle with cancer three years ago. Father and daughter would explore the greenery, the creek and search for "little critters."

Read more.

Get some 4.5 billion-year-old meteorite dust at South Florida Museum in Bradenton

A fragment of the 4.5 billion-year-old Campo del Cielo meteorite, nicknamed “FeNi” for its elements, has landed at the South Florida Museum in Bradenton.

And it's yours to touch.

Or take home.

The public is invited to visit the South Florida Museum on Friday (Oct. 5) from 5 to 9 p.m. to experience the object said to be the "oldest you will ever encounter."

The event is free.

The first 500 children will receive his or her own free vial of meteorite dust (see photo). Guests will be able to touch, feel and experience the meteorite.

The unique opportunity is designed to allow the community to experience the original materials that made up our solar system. This fragment will bring a piece of space to the Bradenton area community and be on permanent display at the museum.

At Friday's event the museum will also host a special-themed star talk, science demonstrations and cosmic-themed activities centered around the Campo del Cielo meteorite, which plummeted to earth sometime around the year 2500 BC.

The pieces rained down on an area now called Campo del Cielo – the Field of Heaven – a crater field in northern Argentina. More than 100 tons of the Campo del Cielo meteorite have been recovered, including the 138-pound fragment now found in Bradenton.

Details: 5-9 p.m. Oct. 5, The South Florida Museum, 201 10th St. W.,  Bradenton. Admission: Free. Information:  941-746-4131 or visit www.southfloridamuseum.org.

—Photo of Campo del Cielo dust provided by South Florida Museum.

WANTED: Nature photos for South Florida Museum in Bradenton

The South Florida Museum has extended its deadline for submitting photos to coincide with its exhibition, "Preserving Eden: Clyde Butcher's Florida Photographs," which is on display through Aug. 26.

Florida photographer Clyde Butcher 'preserving Eden' at South Florida Museum: interview 

The Bradenton museum seeks photographs of a natural place that is important to you and that you think others might find inspiring, as well.

Send a photograph along with a short explanation (200 word maximum) of why this place matters to you to at:myplacematters@southfloridamuseum.org

At the end of the submission period, which has been extended through August, a selection committee will choose the photographs and stories it finds inspiring and will host them in an exhibition at the South Florida Museum.

Photos must be 8x10 at 72dpi in jpg format, no more than 3 MB in size. Place text in the body of your email.

More information. 

Read more here: http://www.bradenton.com/2012/04/29/4016601/florida-photographer-clyde-butcher.html#storylink=cpy

The South Florida Museum, 201 10th St. W., Bradenton, 941-746-4131 or www.southfloridamuseum.org.

Read more here: http://www.bradenton.com/2012/04/29/4016601/florida-photographer-clyde-butcher.html#storylink=cpy

—Photo by Scott F. Odell courtesy of South Florida Museum.
 

What are you doing this weekend?

Steve Buscemi in "Fargo"

I'm planning on not leaving the sofa.

Or at least not straying too far from it.

But for those of you who are a bit more adventurous here are some Manatee County selections from our "Go & Do" list starting with a great movie that starts in a couple hours.


Film Fridays: South Florida Museum, 201 10th St. W., Bradenton

The South Florida Museum will host Film Fridays Series “Winter Stories” at 6 p.m. Fridays. The series, celebrating the start of the winter season, includes “Fargo,” Dec. 9, and “Groundhog Day,” Dec. 16. Seating is limited; reservations are recommended. Admission: $3 members, $5 nonmembers. Information: 941-746-4131, ext. 27, or visit www.southfloridamuseum.org/ThingsToDo/Filmfridays.aspx.


Farmers market: Main Street, Bradenton

The downtown Bradenton Farmers Market is open 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays featuring local grown and organic produce, olive oil and bread, fresh fish, organic coffee and tea, jewelry and craft vendors, and live music and cooking demonstrations. Information: 941-840-0017 or visit www.bradentonfarmersmarket.com.

Bridge Street market: Bridge Street, Bradenton Beach

The Bridge Street Market on Historic Bridge Street will be 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sundays through April 28. The market will feature area produce and plant vendors, arts and craft vendors, funky beach style gifts, jewelry, clothes, home decor, food, fun, music and more. Information: 215-906-0668.

—Publicity photo from the movie "Fargo"

Read entire list.