Sep
21
Rex Nelson’s Southern Fried Blog Story -
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The Dreamland Ballroom
Historic preservation is rarely quick or easy.
Just ask Little Rock’s Kerry McCoy. She fell in love with Taborian Hall in 1991. Bill Clinton wasn’t even the president yet.
Almost two decades later, she’s still trying to restore the old place.
Here’s how she describes it at the website www.dreamlandballroom.com: “I first fell in love with Taborian Hall from its outside appearance, a stately, three-story, red brick building, standing alone on Interstate 630, abandoned, with a huge hole in the roof letting in the sun and rain. I always envisioned my company, Arkansas Flag & Banner, housed in a building of such grandeur.
“After driving by many times, I finally got up the courage to come inside. Stepping over debris and skirting the homeless people, I worked my way to the third floor and … it was beyond love at first sight. Because the roof was missing, birds were flying around and the sun was illuminating the room. Staring across the open hole in the floor to the Dreamland stage and box seats, I had a feeling that was indescribable, a kind of euphoria. It could have been because I was pregnant with my third child and my nesting instincts were heightened, but whatever it was, it sent me on a chain reaction that I have never regretted.
“I love this old building and have had many offers from people wanting to purchase it, renovate it, make a club of it or some apartments and even a school. But I keep to my original vision. Maybe it’s not the best business decision, but it’s a decision of the heart — to renovate the Dreamland Ballroom into an event center to be shared with the whole community. If you are ever lucky enough to go upstairs and see the Dreamland, I think you will feel its magic too.”
McCoy created the Friends of Dreamland, a nonprofit organization to raise money for the restoration. Additional information can be found at the website. Those wishing to donate also can call (501) 255-5700 or send an e-mail to friends@dreamlandballroom.com.
Taborian Hall, at the corner of Ninth and State streets in downtown Little Rock, was part of the Ninth Street business corridor. For years that corridor was, in essence, the Main Street for blacks in Arkansas. Earlier known as Taborian Temple, it was built for the fraternal insurance organization known as the Knights and Daughters of the Tabor. A black contractor named Simeon Johnson went to work on the building in 1916 and completed construction two years later.
More than 1,500 people were in attendance for the 1918 dedication of Taborian Temple.
In August 1918, the Negro Soldiers Club opened on the first floor to provide a recreational outlet for black soldiers stationed at Camp Pike. The building also would house the offices of black doctors and dentists, along with a pharmacy, through the years.
The website picks up the story in the 1930s: “By 1937, the Dreamland Ballroom was firmly established on Taborian’s third floor. The popular dance hall with its famous ’swing floor’ was a hotbed for big bands, jazz and blues and the scene for dances, socials and basketball games. It was a regular stop for the Chittlin’ Circuit, a national touring company of professional black entertainers, revues and stage shows.
“With the advent of World War II, the USO bought the building and turned the first to the third floors into a club that served thousands of black soldiers from Camp Robinson and the Stuttgart Air Base. The Dreamland ripped and rollicked during those war years and beyond with legendary musical artists including ‘Fatha’ Earl Hines, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie and Ella Fitzgerald, and comedians Redd Foxx and Sammie Davis. Local stars cut their musical teeth in the Dreamland too.”
The Taborian Temple became known as Taborian Hall in the early 1950s and soon housed the Twin City Club in the basement, the Waiters Club on the second floor and the Club Morocco where the Dreamland had been. B.B. King and Ray Charles were among those who performed on Ninth Street in those days.
By the early 1970s, though, what was known as urban renewal (but was actually the massive destruction of city neighborhoods across the country) had laid waste to the Ninth Street corridor. Taborian Hall stood empty until McCoy purchased it in 1991.
She estimates the cost of fully restoring the upstairs ballroom to be $1 million. She had hoped to finish the third-floor restoration work in 2012, though the Great Recession has slowed fundraising efforts considerably.
The Friends of Dreamland’s new executive director is Amber Jones. The native Arkansan is an Arkansas Tech graduate who earlier had worked at Curran Hall. An initial $50,000 will be used to install hardwood flooring on the third floor so fundraising events can be held there.
Ann McCoy, Kerry’s mother-in-law, told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette earlier this year: “My favorite thing now is the view from the big windows. You can see the Capitol building, Philander Smith. It just has a beautiful view.”
A recent story by Becca Bona in The Daily Record described Kerry McCoy this way: “It’s important to note that McCoy is one dynamic individual. She has always been a go-getter, apparent from her hard work of starting a business when she was 20 years old with a mere $400. When the lively entrepreneur fell in love with the crumbling building, she knew that a project would ensue. She didn’t know about the inside of the building until later. … She said she had planned to restore the third-floor ballroom and make it open to the public by 2000. Unfortunately, the price range for renovation was always a hair out of her reach.”
McCoy told Bona: “I love this project, but it’s overwhelming. I can’t stand lost opportunities.”
Let’s hope Little Rock’s business leadership, which has failed to capitalize on so many opportunities through the years (note the impending destruction of historic Ray Winder Field by UAMS), will step up to help Kerry McCoy achieve her dream while preserving an important part of this state’s largest city.
Sep
7
RAZORROCK FINALIZES WEEK OF EVENTS LEADING TO RALLY, NIGHT OF ARKANSAS MUSIC
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Little Rock) – RazorRock, which debuted in 2009 as a “Central Arkansas’ weeklong football rally,” will return in 2010 the week of September 6th through the 11th in advance of the Razorback Football Team’s first Little Rock game of the 2010 season.
And rather than just one week during football season, RazorRock is being repositioned to celebrate every time a University of Arkansas athletic team plays in Central Arkansas.
According to Greg Nabholz (Nabholz Properties), chairman of RazorRock, “Our intention is to enhance the Razorback fan experience for the residents of and visitors to Central Arkansas, with hopes of enticing our guests to spend another night or two in the region.”
RazorRock organizers are encouraging businesses, organizations and governmental entities to “Paint Central Arkansas Razorback Red” for the week. To that end, Metropolitan National Bank will change the lights on its tower from traditional blue to red and white for the week. The Big Dam Bridge will also be lit in Razorback colors.
In an effort to enhance visiting Razorback fans’ Central Arkansas experience, the Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau and North Little Rock Visitors Bureau are offering special packages to guests through links at RazorRockRally.com.
To benefit the Arkansas Alumni Association – Capital Chapter, RazorRock Wristbands are being sold, granting wearers discounts to participating local merchants and restaurants.
RazorRock 2010 will feature 17 associated events, culminating in a pep rally in the Riverfest Amphitheatre, followed by a Night of Arkansas Music concert, presented by The Oxford American magazine.
The rally will feature the University of Arkansas Razorback Marching Band, under the direction of Dr. Christopher Knighten, as well as the Cheerleaders and Pom Squad, coordinated by Jean Nail. Tusk III, the latest live Razorback mascot, will make his Little Rock debut, courtesy of Keith and Julie Stokes.
In addition to traditional favorites, the band will debut its new arrangement of Ring of Fire, a signature song of Arkansas’ own Johnny Cash.
10 Horse Johnson, billed as the “Ozarks-born/LA-bred/Little Rock-based country comedy band,” will deliver the first live performance of their new single – Woo Pig Fever. The band’s 25-minute, all-original, all-Arkansas set will transition from pep rally to The Oxford American Presents A Night of Arkansas Music.
Scheduled to perform at the concert are The Salty Dogs, Jim Mize and True Soul Revue.
While a complete and regularly updated list of offerings is available at www.RazorRockRally.com, the following 17 events were scheduled as of press time:
Monday, 9.6.10 (Labor Day)
RazorRock Kick-off
RazorRock Relay
Presented by River Trails Bike Rentals
Contact David Fike (501.374.5505, info@rivertrailrentals.com)
10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Arkansas Travelers vs. Springfield Cardinals (Season Finale)
Dickey-Stephens Park
1:00 pm
RazorRock Foodie Festival
Presented by Argenta Downtown Council
Dickey-Stephens Park
Contact Drue Patton (501.517.3127, dpatton@argentadc.org)
4:00 – 7:30 pm
RazorRock Movie Night
Presented by Little Rock Film Festival
Screening War Eagle Arkansas
Dickey-Stephens Park
7:45 – 10:00 pm
Tuesday, 9.7.10
Little Rock Touchdown Club
Embassy Suites Little Rock
11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Arkansas Alumni Association – Capital Chapter Reception
5:00 – 7:00 pm
RazorRock Ladies Night Out/Tailgate Shopping
Presented by Inviting Company/Revelry Jewels/Rubadubdub
Sticky Fingerz Chicken Shack
7:00 – 10:00 pm
Contact Sarah Mitchell (479.466.3416, sarahmitchell@sbcglobal.net)
Wednesday, 9.8.10
Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame
Brown Bag Lunch Featuring Former Razorbacks Kevin Scanlon, Anthony Lucas, Clint Stoerner
11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Arkansas Arts Foundation’s RazorRock Spirits: A Night of Art and Soul
Featuring Rock Town Distillery, Diamond Bear Brewery, Lombardi Liquors, Guillermo’s Gourmet Coffee, Wiederkehr Winery
Argenta Arts District
5:00 – 7:00 pm
University of Arkansas College of Engineering Alumni Reception with Dean Saxena
Courtyard by Marriott – Downtown Little Rock
6:00 – 8:00 pm
Thursday, 9.9.10
University of Arkansas Walton College of Business Lunch & Learn: Coaching Your Business Team to Their Full Potential
Presented by Walton College Executive Education
In Partnership with Walton College Alumni Society
Sturgis Hall, University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service
11:45 am – 1:00 pm
Contact Rachel Burton (479.575.5425, rburton@walton.uark.edu)
RazorRock After Hours at The Little Rock Zoo
Presented by Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce
In Partnership with Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau
Featuring New Red River Hog Exhibit, Pigs from Around the World
Hosted by Little Rock Zoo
5:00 – 7:00 pm
Click to Save on Advance Tickets
University of Arkansas Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences Alumni & Friends Reception
Embassy Suites Little Rock
6:00 – 8:00 pm
Click to Register
Friday, 9.10.10
Street Machine Nationals
Riverfront Park, Riverfest Amphitheater
All Day
Arkansas Alumni Association New Alumni Conference
All Day
Arkansas Alumni Association/Little Rock Razorback Club
Luncheon & Press Box Tour
War Memorial Stadium
11:00 – 1:00 pm
RazorRock Rally
Featuring University of Arkansas Marching Razorback Band, Cheerleaders, Pom Squad, Tusk III, 10 Horse Johnson
The Oxford American Presents
A Night of Arkansas Music
Featuring
The Salty Dogs
Jim Mize
True Soul Revue
Riverfest Amphitheater, River Market
7:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Saturday, 9.11.10 (Game Day)
Tailgate
War Memorial Park
7:00 am –
Street Machine Nationals
Riverfront Park, Riverfest Amphitheater
All Day
Arkansas Razorbacks vs. Louisiana-Monroe
6:00 pm
War Memorial Stadium
RazorRock is presented by the Arkansas River Cities Sports Commission, Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau and North Little Rock Visitors Bureau.
Partner sponsors include Argenta Downtown Council, Arkansas Flag and Banner, Career Sports & Entertainment, and Downtown Little Rock Partnership.
In addition to the Arkansas River Cities Sports Commission, producing partners include Argenta Downtown Council, Arkansas Alumni Association (Capital Chapter), Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, Arkansas Travelers, Downtown Little Rock Partnership, Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce, Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau, Little Rock Film Festival, Little Rock Touchdown Club, North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce, North Little Rock Visitors Bureau, Oxford American, Razorback Foundation, Razorback Navy, University of Arkansas, and War Memorial Stadium.
For more information, visit www.RazorRockRally.com.