2017 Editions

Michael Stanley

There’s No Place Like Home

By Breanna Mona

First, a flashback:

Heavy smoke shoots from a fog machine and rolls over the hill at Blossom Music Center. A crowd filled with restless young fans, hair teased to wild heights, chants, “MSB! MSB! MSB!”

Michael Stanley and his band finally emerge from the smoke clouds, and they give the crowd what they want — music, and lots of it. Energetic rock that keeps fans on their feet. Quieter ballads. The fans know every word to every song. Hits such as “Lover,” “My Town” and “Falling in Love Again” gave the band a phenomenal fan base that built a cult-like obsession in Northeast Ohio.

MSB performed at Blossom 17 times over a six-year period, with an astounding four-night run in 1982 that drew a total attendance of 74,404 — still a record for that venue. The band not only reached regional fame, but also landed on Billboard’s Top 40 list twice. Their music video for “He Can’t Love You” played on MTV.

Musician, Grandfather

Stanley is still very much a performer and a celebrity in his hometown. Since the Blossom days of the ’80s, Stanley has worked with several bands and done solo work. He estimates he’s made more than 30 albums.

Today he performs in venues all over Northeast Ohio and — fittingly — is an afternoon drive host at the classic rock station 98.5 WNCX. He and his band The Resonators in April sold out the Akron Civic Theatre. He’s working on another album from his home studio.

At a recent photo shoot at the Agora Theater and Ballroom on Euclid Avenue, he caught up with a handful of people who stopped by to say hi.

Stanley is reflective and private. Anyone who hasn’t seen him since their college days in the ’70s or ’80s would immediately recognize him.

Arts

Concert & Festival Season

No Excuse to Stay Home

By Breanna Mona

Summer may just be getting started, but it’s already sizzling with these red hot shows and festivals.

Whether you prefer your outings big or small, your seasonal calendar just got a bit fuller. Check out these sensational headliners and something-for-everyone festivals — and good luck picking just one.

Star-Studded Lineup

Quicken Loans Arena is hosting a couple of major milestone performances this season. First up, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Neil Diamond celebrates the big 5-0 with his 50th anniversary 2017 world tour May 30. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers are on what may be their final tour, celebrating 40 years. Petty recently confessed to Rolling Stone Magazine, “I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was thinking this might be the last big one. We’re all on the backside of our 60s. I have a granddaughter now I’d like to see as much as I can. I don’t want to spend my life on the road.” They’re coming June 10.

Other concerts: It’s always hip to be square with Huey Lewis & The News. Check out their Hard Rock Rocksino performance June 10. Paul Simon’s 2017 tour proceeds will benefit the Half-Earth Project, an initiative of the E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation. Be a part of the effort June 13 at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica.

Billy Joel knows how to fill a stadium, after breaking records with over 33 consecutive shows at Madison Square Garden. Perhaps the most anticipated show of the summer, Joel is up to bat at Progressive Field on July 14. Rod Stewart & Cyndi Lauper will make quite a pair at Blossom Music Center on July 28, right before James Taylor & Bonnie Raitt hit the same stage Aug.

Hobbies

Lessons Learned

The Sounds of Music

By Margaret Briller

Maybe you were a piano lesson dropout, or gave up the guitar after mastering a few chords. Or perhaps money was scarce — and time and attention were even scarcer.

These local music lovers put music lessons back on their bucket lists and are glad they did.

Going for It

Rick Brouman of Pepper Pike started guitar lessons at 63.

“I’ve wanted to play since I was a kid, but my mother always wanted me to play piano, so I played piano,” Brouman says.

“As time passed, life — working and raising a family — got in the way, so I had to put this hobby on the back burner. I’ve always loved the guitar, and the time seemed right, so here I am now.”

Brouman takes lessons from instructor John Rupert at the Sam Ash Music Store in Lyndhurst. He purchased a striking red PRS SE Custom 24 electric guitar.

“I’m a sucker for red,” Brouman says. “The bird inlays are a pretty cool option on many PRS models. But I didn’t want to make the investment without taking lessons from a qualified instructor. I’ve only had four lessons so far, and I’m still at the stage where I might struggle to find the correct placement of my fingers. But I have noticed that I can now pick up the guitar and play some chords reasonably well. I’m thrilled that I am starting to actually make sounds that resemble music, and I’m looking forward to getting better with time”

Having a flexible work schedule gives Brouman more time to pursue his dream. “I work from home so I can pick up the guitar and practice multiple times during the day, which I do.”

Cursive

It’s the Write Thing to Do

I nearly missed out on a church raffle prize (a $10 Subway gift card) when the announcer couldn’t read my scrawled signature.

Maybe a cold cut combo isn’t worth an overhaul of my cursive writing skills, but wouldn’t it be nice to have legible handwriting?

State Rep. Marilyn Slaby of Akron agrees. She’s spearheading a movement to require cursive writing instruction for elementary students.

“I feel strongly children still need to learn cursive writing. They need their signature. Many grandparents said they have written their grandkids, and they can’t read it because they haven’t learned cursive,” Slaby says.

“Having taught cursive as an elementary teacher, I understand some of the problems adults have. Yes, I can do cursive so it can be read, but my husband is terrible. He makes me write everything for him. I tell people to slow down and usually write bigger. By slowing down you can concentrate on each letter.”

Slow down. Concentrate. That’s good advice for a lot of things we do. Elevate your cursive game by downloading practice worksheets online. Win write.

This is Super, Man

From Cleveland to Krypton

Superman was born on Krypton, but he was created in Cleveland.

The original superhero is getting a supersized tribute at the Cleveland Public Library starting this month and running through the end of the year.

“Superman: From Cleveland to Krypton” honors not only Superman but also his creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in an exhibit that stretches across three floors of the main library at 325 Superior Ave.

The exhibit follows the world’s greatest superhero from his creation in Cleveland to his growing international popularity, his influence on the current superhero craze, his connection to social justice and immigration issues, and the pride Cleveland maintains for its homegrown hero.   

Highlights include a supersized Superman statue by David Deming, rare items from the Mike Curtis Collection of Superman Memorabilia and other prominent collectors, and a costume worn by Brandon Routh in the 2006 movie “Superman Returns.”

Curtis, the writer of the Dick Tracy comic, donated more than 15,000 items to the library.

Aging

A Key Decision

When a Loved One Shouldn’t Drive

By Paris Wolfe

The unexplained scratches and dents on Grandpa’s beige Crown Victoria made it obvious the time had come for him to give up driving. But he didn’t want to part with his independence and control. He resisted until back pain kept him from the steering wheel.

Grounding an adult isn’t easy. And with a large aging population — more than 2 million licensed drivers 85 years old and over — an increasing number of caretakers are facing that task.

A Decision with Dignity

“Chronological age isn’t a predictor of driving ability,” says Lori Cook, safety adviser for AAA East Central. “You don’t reach a magic age and stop. What counts is performance, physical and mental. I’ve seen people drive into their 90s.”

Many folks, she says, are self-regulating when they perceive diminished ability. “As we get older and wiser, we realize that speeding doesn’t get us anywhere faster,” Cook says. Other adaptations she sees are driving only during daylight as well as avoiding bad weather, heavy traffic and freeways.

“It’s not innate that people will know when to stop,” says Anne Vanderbilt, CNS, CNP, a clinical nurse specialist with the Cleveland Clinic Department of Geriatric Medicine. “Driving is complex because it’s so much of our independence and identity and autonomy.”

Signs that it’s time to minimize or stop driving include:

• Experiencing frequent minor accidents or near misses
• Being honked at frequently for being too slow or taking too long to turn
• Having difficulty reading ordinary road signs
• Being spoken to about your driving by the police, family or friends
• Getting lost on familiar roads

An eye exam and new glasses or a wide-angled rear view mirror might help. But if dementia requires a GPS to navigate everyday destinations, it’s time to surrender the keys, Cook says.