New Year's Eve 2012 40th Anniversary of Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve

Tonight was the 40th anniversary of Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve on ABC and they pulled out all of the stops with entertainment from Robin Thicke, Lady Gaga, Carlos Santana and a wide assortment of performances from remote stages from around the country. The performances were held on the main stage at Times Square in New York as well as remote stages in Los Angeles and at Disneyland in California. Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve 2012 was hosted by Dick Clark himself, Ryan Seacrest, and Fergie.

Dick Clark made yet another courageous appearance this year after suffering a major stroke in 2004. Clark was positioned at an indoor studio, where he assisted in the commentary prior to the countdown to 2012. Dick did an amazing job once again this year helping us bring in the new year.

The main theme of this year's New Year's Eve 2012 celebration seemed to be LED lighting. LED lighting has just taken over recently, and every stage was brilliantly lit by thousands of computerized LED lighting. Only a couple of the "bands" that performed actually had any musical instruments of any kind, most of the musical acts were rappery / singerish - dance and spaz around the stage with LED lights going crazy. I suppose that is ok, but it would have been nice to have seen at least one actual band with talent. Oh well, maybe next year.

New Year's Eve here in Kansas City was mostly laid back, with most people choosing to have small parties at their homes to keep from driving around. Some other Kansas City New Year's Eve parties included The Zeros at the Brooksider, a small party at Union Station with some random garage band (who happens to own the catering company that put on the party), and a few other small gatherings. The days of the big new year's eve parties in Kansas City are almost over, but it's probably a better idea to have small parties among good friends and stay out of trouble.

Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve 2012 was a great production, although it seemed to lack in talent and originality, except of course Lady Gaga's outfits, which continue to amuse, confuse and keep the tabloids busy with something to write about. Happy New Year Kansas City! Let's have a great 2012.

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Kansas City Plaza Art Fair in it's 80th Year

Now in it's 80th year, The Plaza Art Fair in Kansas City 2011 kicked off Friday night and will run through 6pm on Sunday. Although cumbersome to those who live on the plaza and have to try to find a place to park to get to their home, the Plaza Art Fair attracts over 300,000 visitors each year to take a gander at over 240 artists, 26 local Kansas City restaurants, and three live music stages with Kansas City bands that will line up throughout each day as follows:

MAIN STAGE - Plaza Art Fair 2011

Friday, Sept. 23
5 p.m.-6:30 p.m.| Low Standards
6:45 p.m.-8:15 p.m.| LipRiddle
8:30 p.m.-10 p.m.| The Zeros

Saturday, Sept. 24
10 a.m.-11:30 a.m.| LauraChalk
11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m.| Az One
1:30 p.m.-3 p.m.| Lester Estelle & Friends
3:15 p.m.-4:45 p.m.| Kim Osborne Band
5 p.m.-6:30 p.m.| Red Guitar
6:45 p.m.-8:15 p.m.| Jeff Jenkins
8:30 p.m.-10 p.m.| Perpetual Change

Sunday, Sept. 25
11 a.m.-12 p.m.| Sara McMullen
12:15 p.m.-1:45 p.m.| Menage of Twang
2 p.m.-3:15 p.m.| The Shanks
3:30 p.m.-5 p.m.| Jayson Kayne

Techno / Emo Stage
Friday, Sept. 2

5 p.m.-6 p.m.| Dollar Fox6:15 p.m.-7:15 p.m.| DJ Sheppa of Nomathmatics & Brandon Draper of Quixotic7:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.| Atlantic Fadeout8:45 p.m.-10:00 p.m.| Making MoviesSaturday, Sept. 2410 a.m.-11:00 a.m.| Blackbird Revue11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m.| Everyday/Everynight12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m.| Quiet Corral1:45 p.m.-2:45 p.m.| Vi Tran Band3 p.m.-4 p.m.| Antennas Up4:15 p.m.-5:15 p.m.| Spirit is the Spirit5:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m.| Hermon Mehari & Diverse6:45 p.m.-7:45 p.m.| David George Band8 p.m.- 8:45 p.m.| White Girl9 p.m.-10 p.m.| The Latenight Callers

Sunday, Sept. 25
11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.| Margo May
12:45 p.m.-1:45 p.m.| She’s a Keeper
2 p.m.-3:15 p.m.| Sara Swenson & The Pearl Snaps
3:30 p.m.-5 p.m.| Grisly Hand

Acoustic Stage - Plaza Art Fair 2011

Friday, Sept. 23
5 p.m.-6:30 p.m.| Heather Thorton
6:45 p.m.-8:15 p.m.| A La Mode
8:30 p.m.-10 p.m.| Lyal Strickland

Saturday, Sept. 24
10 a.m - 11:30 a.m.| Brandon Miller
11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m.| Brian Ruskin
1:30 p.m.-3 p.m.| Casey Todd
3:15 p.m.-4:45 p.m.| Brendan McNaughton
5 p.m.-6:30 p.m.| Sara B & Michael B
6:45 p.m.-8:15 p.m.| Silver Soul Delight
8:30 p.m.-10 p.m.| Terry Wright

Sunday, Sept. 25
11 a.m.-12:15 p.m.| KC Raindogs
12:30 p.m.-1:45 p.m.| Troy Ganson
2 p.m.-3:15 p.m.| Kathleen with Quattro
3:30 p.m.-5 p.m.| Sean McNown

Broadway Restaurants - Plaza Art Fair 2011

810 Zone
Royal bleu balls, Philly buster sandwich, smoked salmon salad, corn dog on a stick

California Pizza Kitchen
BBQ pizza, cheese pizza, pepperoni pizza, tacos, margaritas, Long Island ice tea, cherry sparkler, Bud Light, Oktoberfest, Boulevard Wheat, Corona, white wine, red wine

The Capital Grille
burgers, chicken sandwiches, steak sandwiches, Christopher Elbow ice cream, draft beer, bottled water, soda, wine, Stoli Doli

Coal Vines
Coal Vines award winning meatballs, pizza by the slice, wine by the glass, frozen drinks, beer

Fiorella’s Jack Stack Barbecue
Southern Jack pulled pork sandwich, brisket sandwich, turkey sandwich, beef burnt ends, hickory pit beans, cheesy corn bake, beer, wine, soda, bottled water

Ingredient
Ingredient chopped salad, chicken fajitas, beer, and wine

Kona Grill
Chicken satay, shrimp skewers, Las Vegas roll, tuna roll, California roll, mojito, Boulevard Wheat, Bud Light, Free State Ad Astra

M&S Grill
grilled steak sandwich, smoked pulled chicken slider, potato bacon chowder in a sourdough bread bowl, red velvet cupcake

Central Restaurants - Plaza Art Fair 2011

Bo Ling’s
egg rolls, crab rangoon, sichuan chicken dumplings, sesame chicken, vegetable fried rice, homemade almond cookies, NEW! Bo Ling’s custom cake, Bo Ling’s combo plate: Egg roll/ crab rangoon/ sesame chicken/ vegetable fried rice, soft drinks, iced tea, bottled water

Classic Cup Café
thai pizza, hummus, artichoke dip, black bean chili, chicken corn chowder, nachos, quesadillas, crab dip, curry dip, lamb gyro, cookies, brownies, wine, beer, soft drinks, liquor, coffee, bottled water

Figlio Italian Restaurant
sausage and pepper sandwiches, breadsticks & marinara, Sonoma cheese tortes, chicken spedini, Boulevard Wheat, Boulevard Pale Ale, Bud Light, Miller Light, sangria, chardonnay, cabernet, white wine

Fogo de Chao
Grilled rib eye, grilled chicken breast wrapped with bacon, grilled sausage, Brazilian potato salad, peper dews, lime and strawberry caipirihnas, Xingo beer, gurana soda

Fred P. Ott’s
hamburgers, hot dogs, bratwurst, full bar, Boulevard Wheat, Boulevard Pale Ale, Boulevard Stout, Stella Artois, Boulevard Pilsner, Bud Light, Miller Light, Newcastle

Houston’s
grilled chicken salad, chili, hot dogs, artichokes, spinach dip, dip trio: guacamole, salsa & cheese dip, steak sandwich, tortilla soup, chips, baby back ribs

P.F. Chang’s China Bistro
chicken lettuce wraps, chicken fried rice, pork tacos

Starker’s Restaurant
fried green tomatoes with creole remoulade, Mexican grilled corn, creole rice fritters, bookbinder soup, chicken and andouille gumbo, gumbo z’herbs (Vegetarian), Carolina braised pork sandwich, shrimp remoulade sandwich, campo lindo chicken salad with local tomatoes, cucumbers and balsamic vinaigrette, steak sandwich with garlic bordelaise and aged provolone, Starker’s fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy, creole beignets, Boulevard Pale Ale, Wheat, Pilsner, and Bob’s 47, Miller Lite, white wine, red wine, rose wine, watermelon coolers, Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, water

Topsy’s Popcorn
popcorn, limeades, ice cream, hot dogs, Italian sausage, flavored popcorn, soda, bottled water

Ward Parkway Restaurants - Plaza Art Fair 2011

Blanc Burgers + Bottles
grilled burger, jalapeño cheddar brat burger, hand cut fries, sweet potato fries, lentil burger, gouda fries

Brio Tuscan Grille
lasagna, meatball sub, Italian sausage, margarita panini, hot dogs, anti pasto, carpaccio, Tuscan tasters, salads, funnel cakes, cannollis, peach bellinis, beer, wine, cocktails, soft drinks

The Granfalloon Restaurant and Bar
cheeseburgers, brats, chili, Caribbean chicken salad, margaritas, liquor drinks, Red Bull, beer

McCormick & Schmicks
chocolate cones, calamari, baja tacos, chowder bowls, blackened tilapia, red and white sangria, Sauza Gold margaritas, Jeremiah Weed Sweet Tea Vodka, Bud Light, Boulevard, Stella, Smirnoff Vodka and Red Bull, red and white wine, soft drinks, bottled water

The Melting Pot
chocolate fondue with pound cake, strawberries and brownies, shrimp with teriyaki dipping sauce, beef and chicken kabobs, chocolate martinis, margaritas, beer, wine, Coke products, bottled water

O’Dowd’s Little Dublin
chicken salad pita, turkey and avocado wrap, smoked salmon salad

Plaza III Steakhouse
steak sandwich, burger sliders, shrimp cocktail, steak soup, soft drinks, beer, wine, martini’s

Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse
prime sliders, crab cake sliders, tenderloin steak sandwiches with horseradish cream, mash potatoes, mixed drinks, beer, frozen margaritas and daiquiris

Zocalo
grilled chicken and pork carnitas tacos, braised beef sandwich, roasted garlic mushroom hongos, churros with dipping sauce, margaritas, sangria, Corona, Dos Equis, bottled water, soft drinks

The Plaza Art Fair in it's 80th year in 2011 has been blessed with near perfect weather, ranging from the mid 60's to the mid 70's throughout the day. If you're heading down to the Plaza Art Fair be ready to be dazzled by some great art, some delicious food and some of Kansas City's best live bands.

Jazzoo 2011 at the Kansas City Zoo Friday June 3rd

Jazzoo 2011, Kansas City's largest charity event, gets underway at 6:30pm Friday night.  Jazzoo 2011 tickets are still on sale and range in price from $175.00 for an individual ticket all the way up to $15,000.00 for a group donation package.  We opted this year for the corporate package and will be sponsoring The Kansas City Zoo for the 4th year in a row.  We have requested that our donation go toward the Panther cage as that cage is the most pathetic cage in the entire zoo, (although we know that we cannot "direct" our donation dollars, we joke about this situation with the FOTZ every year - sometimes over the microphone on the main stage).

Information about Jazzoo 2013

Entertainment for Jazzoo 2011 will feature local 80's tribute band The Zeros, who have requested their own stage this year to separate their fans from the old folks who typically stay near the main stage.  We interviewed "Shawn Zero", The Zeros band leader and he remarked about last year's Jazzoo problems with The Zeros sharing the main stage with elder band ELO.  "Yeah, we opened up for ELO, or whatever they are calling themselves, they weren't even the real ELO, more like an ELO tribute band with most of the original members long gone [notably the band's founder, main songwriter and lead singer Jeff Lynne] and they were bitchin' at us about our stage show.  We had our light boxes on the stage for the hot girls to dance on and they were backstage throwing a fit about it.  The manager was yelling at us trying to get us to get the girls off the stage but we were like 'hey man, this is part of our show, you old fuckers are just going to have to deal with it'."  So this year, The Zeros were given their very own stage.  The entertainment on the old folks stage for Jazzoo 2011 will feature The Little River Band and The Rainmakers.

Jazzoo 2011 will once again feature a wide array of Kansas City cuisine, represented by over 50 Kansas City restaurants including The Oak Room Intercontinental, The Skies Restaurant, and one of our favorite plaza fine dining restaurants Fogo De Chao.  It will be a hot one out there so dress appropriately.  Dress at Jazzoo is notoriously referred to as Creative Black Tie, you are supposed to improvise on some form of tuxedo or formal wear.  You will definitely see some strange get-ups at Jazzoo 2011, and some of them will probably be us.  See you all there!