Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/558491
GregStevens,Publisher Chip Thompson, Editor EDITORIALBOARD How to have your say: Letters must be signed and provide the writer's home street address and home phone number. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and no more than two double-spaced pages or 500words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section will be published. Email: editor@ redbluffdailynews.com Fax: 530-527-9251 Mail to: P.O. Box 220, 545 Diamond Ave., Red Bluff, CA 96080 Facebook: Leave comments at FACEBOOK.COM/ RBDAILYNEWS Twitter: Follow and send tweets to @REDBLUFFNEWS IthinkitwasMomsMab- ley who stated, "It takes a vil- lage to buy an old theater." Ok, maybe Moms didn't say that, but I am pretty sure she would have if she had been a part of the effort to pur- chase, restore and operate the historic State Theatre. Another thing Moms would tell you is that if you intend to operate a theater as a Perform- ing Arts venue, it is best that your theater includes a sizable Green Room — dressing room — to accommodate groups like the Glenn Miller Orchestra, which will appear at the State Theatre on Aug. 28. Upon acquiring the theater in early 2011, we soon realized that our stage-side dressing room was woefully inadequate in terms of space for perform- ing artists exceeding the num- ber of one—or maybe two if they were married or planned to marry in the immediate fu- ture. The 35-square-foot off-stage dressing room is actually a very cool art deco, mirrored- wall Green Room that fits well with the State Theatre dé- cor. The Robert Minch family made a very generous finan- cial contribution to the the- ater in honor of daughter Ma- dalyn, who was taken from the Minch family and her com- munity far too early. We are proud to feature the Madalyn Minch Dressing Room at the Historic State Theatre. By sheer serendipity, the owner of the 1,000 sq. ft. building across the alley from the theater offered the build- ing for sale shortly after we opened escrow on purchase of the theater. The building sits on the lot originally occu- pied by the late Gene Penne's Shell gas station. While I can- not cite the total list of tenants who have occupied the build- ing, I know that the space has been used for insurance, real estate sales and mortgage company purposes. I believe Barbara Moore had her office there for a decade or so; and as most of you know, Larry Carper had a pretty good run in the building with Taste of Tehama. Even though finding funds to purchase the theater itself seemed an improbable task, the State Theatre board real- ized that acquiring the build- ing across the alley likely of- fered the last best chance to acquire a critically needed Green Room for concert per- formers. So as we often do, we swallowed hard, bit the bullet and wrote a check to acquire the building. For financial reasons, we de- cided to subdivide the build- ing. While renting out the front portion of the building, we could also create a very serviceable Green Room space in the rear. Unfortunately, buying the building proved to be far easier than renting the building. We did have some inter- est from a potential restau- rateur—but only if we built a full service kitchen and pro- vided seating for 50 patrons. A tattoo parlor owner also ap- proached us, and while I cer- tainly have nothing against tattoo parlors — I have a cute little butterfly tattoo on my left ankle — somehow it just didn't feel like the right deal. And then, we experienced ser- endipity again. Sometime in early 2012, we were contacted by higher-ups from the Tehama County Arts Council expressing their inter- est in leasing the building. The Council has long been a part- ner and anchor supporter of the State Theatre. The Coun- cil's mission very much mir- rors ours, in that they seek to promote artistic opportuni- ties within the community. If we were able to hand-pick a Green Room tenant, the Te- hama County Arts Council would certainly be at the top of the list. As with almost everything we do, we enlisted community volunteers to remodel the en- tire building for use as an art studio in the front portion, and a newly created Green Room in the rear portion of the building. While the ravages of old age will likely result in my fail- ure to recognize all who as- sisted in the project, I would like to recognize community volunteer Brandon Grissom and State Theatre board mem- ber Brandon Minch for han- dling the remodel of the build- ing. We thank the artistic John Miller for his beautiful work on the Green Room facade. We thank Dale's Carpet and De- sign for donating flooring ma- terials. We thank Stan Mor- gan for assisting with lighting, and Bruce Sale for plumbing services. We thank the Furni- ture Depot for donating fur- niture, and we thank Moule's Glass for providing windows and mirrors. Mostly, I would like to thank our good friends at the Tehama County Arts Coun- cil for their support, and for the great work they do in pro- moting the arts in Tehama County. If you would like more information regarding Green Room classes or other Tehama County Arts Council activities, please contact them at con- tact@tehamaarts.org or call 527-1874. •••• In May of 2013 we de- cided to hold a big deal neon blade lighting ceremony, uti- lizing the Green Room pa- tio and the alley separating the theater and Green Room properties. The only prob- lem with our plan was there was no Green Room patio, and the alley had potholes so deep that we are still look- ing for at least one little old lady who fell in while walk- ing down the alley. Ten days before the event, I called Ben Sale and asked if he might tear out the old al- ley and Green Room park- ing area. I called Kevin Brunnemer of Foothill Ready Mix and asked if he would donate concrete for a pa- tio. I called Rob Douglas to see if he would pour and fin- ish a new patio. I called Tullis Inc. in Redding to see if they might donate asphalt for the alley. I called Mike and Scott Dudley to see if they might lay the asphalt. I called Mark Lathrop at Sierra Pacific to ask for patio fencing, and I called Red Bluff Fence to see if they might build a fence around the patio. In 10 short days these won- derful people worked in con- cert to create the most beau- tiful patio and alleyway in all of California—at no cost to the State Theatre. It takes a vil- lage to buy an old theater…. and what a village we live in. •••• Happy 11th birthday, Wy- att Brimhall. Grandma and Grandpa love you very much. •••• Coming Attractions: Aug. 28 World Famous Glenn Miller Orchestra. Tickets are going fast. Call 529-2787. BillCorneliusisalifelong resident of Red Bluff, a retired Chief Probation Officer, a champion of the State Theatre and an exceptional athlete. He can be reached at bill. cornelius@sbcglobal.net. William Tells How the Green Room came to pass Cartoonist's take Editor's Note: This column is an excerpt from Tom Purcell's book "Comical Sense: A Lone Hu- morist Takes on a World Gone Nutty!" available at amazon.com. I'm turning into my father. My father was born in 1933. He was a paper- boy in the days when paperboys stood on city cor- ners and shouted "Extra!" In my father's home, the news- paper still is king. He has two de- livered daily. He reads every inch of both. He does the crossword puzzles in both, too — with a pencil. (Note to people under 25: A pencil is a small, yellow stick that leaves a mark when its tip is pressed against paper.) My father knows that peo- ple can do crossword puzzles on their computers — and cell phones or BlackBerrys — but the idea is nutty to him. Only an id- iot would bring electronic equip- ment into the bathroom. To be sure, my father has shunned the communications marvels of modern times. He uses my mother's cell phone — but only to avoid long-distance charges. He has never sent or received e-mail. He never searches the Web. He uses the White Pages or Yel- low Pages. (Note to people under 35: The White and Yellow Pages are thick directories of people and businesses that are left at your door once a year.) And there are two other things my father will never do: use Facebook or Twitter. Facebook.com is a social-net- working Web site where people post important updates for their electronic "friends," such as de- tailed descriptions of what they had for breakfast. Twitter.com is similar to Face- book, except the descriptions are brief (140 characters or less): "Ate oatmeal today. Was good." There certainly are upsides to these technologies. The Wall Street Journal re- ports that Twitter — with its ability to rapid fire messages to millions — can be a powerful communications tool. Sure, ce- lebrities use it to update fans on their latest banalities, but emer- gency organizations are also us- ing it to alert people during di- sasters. As for Facebook, it is surely helpful to stay-at-home par- ents who are isolated from other adults. There is an upside to swapping personal information, even if it is over the Internet. Facebook has helped me lo- cate — and be located by — friends I haven't talked to for years. Some 300 million are us- ing the tool; there is a good chance people from your past are using the site, too. Which brings us to the down- side. Maybe there is a reason your old friends and old girl- friends are old friends and old girlfriends. Maybe you've al- ready told them everything you had to say — with the ex- ception of what you just ate for breakfast. I was at a party recently where I was accused of being "old" — I'm 46 — because I have never "drunk texted" friends (or old friends or girlfriends). (Note to people over 50: tex- ting is when you press both thumbs against a miniature cell- phone keypad to bastardize the English language.) My generation preferred to "drunk e-mail" old friends and girlfriends. The generation be- fore mine preferred to "drunk phone call." My father's genera- tion would "drunk walk to the person's house and knock on the door." In any event, recent reports suggest that people are tiring of technology-enabled social net- working. Craig Kinsley, a professor of neuroscience at the University of Richmond, told the Associated Press why: humans crave con- tact and human interaction, but interaction over the Internet is without substance. Which brings us to my father. He hasn't wasted a moment on superficial online communi- cations. He is doing just great in the real world of the White Pages, printed newspapers and books. (Note to people under 25: A book is a compact device in which words are printed on sev- eral pieces of paper; the paper is glued to a spine.) When my father wants to communicate, he approaches other human beings, usually my mother, and uses his voice. Sometimes he uses facial ex- pressions to emphasize a point. I think he's on to something. Though I'm beginning to use Twitter for useful and interest- ing updates — and LinkedIn. com for business networking — I don't use Facebook much any- more. Like my father, I prefer to meet people for breakfast (and see firsthand what they're eat- ing). Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Comical Sense: A Lone Humorist Takes on a World Gone Nutty!" is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send comments to Tom at Tom@ TomPurcell.com. Tom Purcell Facebook fatigue and tiring of social technology Tom Purcell Maybe there is a reason your old friends and old girlfriends are old friends and old girlfriends. Maybe you've already told them everything you had to say — with the exception of what you just ate for breakfast StateandNational Assemblyman James Gallagher, 2060Talbert Drive, Ste. 110, Chico 95928, 530895-4217, http://ad03.asmrc.org/ Senator Jim Nielsen, 2634Forest Ave., Ste. 110, Chico 95928, 530 879-7424, senator. nielsen@senate.ca.gov Governor Jerry Brown, State Capital Building, Sacramento 95814, 916445-2841, fax 916 558-3160, governor@ governor.ca.gov U.S. Representative Doug LaMalfa, 507Can- non House Office Build- ing, Washington D.C. 20515, 202225-3076 U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, One Post St., Ste. 2450, San Fran- cisco 94104, 415393- 0707, fax 415393-0710 U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, 1700Montgomery St., San Francisco 94111, 510286-8537, fax 202 224-0454 Local Tehama County Supervi- sors, 527-4655 District 1, Steve Chamb- lin, Ext. 3015 District 2, Candy Carl- son, Ext. 3014 Your officials Bill Cornelius OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, August 19, 2015 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A6