Manhattan has the Metropolitan Museum of Art, MOMA, the Guggenheim and more but Brooklyn Heights has snagged the Toy Museum.  The Brooklyn Eagle reports:

Brooklyn Eagle: Marlene Hochman, founder of The Toy Museum of New York (formally known as The Doll and Toy Museum of NYC) and local public officials will host a preview of the museum’s exhibitions at its new home on the second floor of 157 Montague St., this Thursday at 5:30 p.m.

The museum, which possesses more than 500 toys, has opened a new, unique space to share its treasures with the community. Visitors are encouraged to come and enjoy this charming and magical setting located in historic Brooklyn Heights.

Most baseball fans know about the great Brooklyn Dodger teams of the 1950s…Jackie Robinson’s signing, the magic of Ebbets Field, or the meteoric rise of Brooklyn’s own Sandy Koufax. But did you know that baseball’s first superstar was a Brooklynite? And that the “Trolley Dodgers” began playing in Park Slope? This bike tour takes you from the roots of Civil War era “base ball” to the exodus of the Dodgers in 1957… all while rolling along one of the finest circuits of urban bike paths in the country. The route is about 10-miles long, includes some uphill biking, and takes about 3 hours.

Meet in Park Slope, Brooklyn in front of the Brooklyn Bicycles shop (some bike rentals available at a special daily rate of $25) at the corner of 9th St. & 6th Ave. Trains: F/G to 7th Ave.; or R/M to 4th Ave.

Our pal Brownstoner just posted this dispatch:

A few minutes ago Mrs. B was side-swiped on Pierrepont Street in a hit-and-run by a yellow cab with medallion number 3Y65; there were three small children in the back of the car. No one was hurt but we’re out a side view mirror. We reported it to TLC but don’t have a lot of faith they’ll do anything about it. It will be interesting to watch the slow wheels of bureaucracy turn though.

We’re glad no one was hurt.   The cabbie fled the scene.  Brownstoner says the hack knew he’d done some damage because, “Mrs. B chased him for a couple of blocks honking her horn so we’re pretty sure he was aware!”

As for the movie itself, Japan Times writer Mark Schilling notes:

This is pretty much the approach of the entire film, which rounds off the original’s rough (that is, interesting) edges, particularly Paul Giamatti’s prickly wine-snob writer, while re-engineering the story for Japanese tastes.

This makes box-office sense, since a direct translation of the original would jangle local sensibilities like merlot in a sake cup. Gluck’s “Sideways,” however, has a play-pretend quality, like the Japanese boomers who dud themselves up in cowboy gear to listen to Hank Williams tunes at a club in the Harajuku area of Tokyo. Not that there’s anything wrong with it — but you would never mistake it for the real thing, would you?

You really need to see the trailer… after the jump.

Brooklyn Heights-DUMBO Brahmin/ Brooklyn Bridge Park Coalition board member/ former Fulton Ferry Landing Association president Gary van der Putten is quoted in the report saying, ““I have lived in the neighborhood for 25 years and I have never objected to any new restaurant or establishment … But what happens is that these kinds of places get cabaret licenses then, all of a sudden, they deteriorate into clubs.”

In a blog post prior to the CB2 meeting, the FFLA reports that “over this last weekend, local Fulton Ferry residents complained about booming vibrations and shouting in the street from what appeared to be two all-night events at One Front.”

One Front owner Marcelo Pevida claimed that dancing [for the community!] would only be offered on the second floor of the venue while the first would remain dedicated to dining. Upon hearing that one DUMBO resident in attendance shouted “we don’t want to dance!”

The Vito Lopez protege won 91% of the vote against Conservative Party candidate Elizabeth Tretter’s 9% (who we’re not sure even knew she was running… really… seriously… anyone hear anything about her?).

This also marks the end of the Yassky era in D-33.  Godsky speedsky David and good lucksky to Mr. Levin.

Flickr photo via Paint the Town

What’s on your mind?  Comment below!

Brooklyn Paper: A decade of complaints about the existing noise led to the Oct. 30 meeting with the Economic Development Corporation, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Brooklyn Heights Association, state Sen. Daniel Squadron (D-Brooklyn Heights), Councilman David Yassky (D-Brooklyn Heights) and Assemblywoman Joan Millman (D-Carroll Gardens). But all that the chopper opponents learned at the confab was that there is very little accountability where helicopters are involved.

“We came out of the meeting with a lot less than we expected,” said Judy Stanton, executive director of the Brooklyn Heights Association.

But Squadron was happy to have been at the table, seeing it as a first step towards trimming non-essential tourist flights.

“We’re working on ending the lack of government oversight of the helicopter business,” he said. “The best way to do this will be to have helicopter companies, the EDC and the FAA at the table.”

GUDER, Graffiti Goon, Defaces North Heights

BHB Photo Club pic by twofones

BHB Photo Club member TwoFones caught this  refreshing “bottle” of ginger ale  Trick or Treating in Brooklyn Heights on Saturday.

BHB pal/tipster EJ Cory snapped a photo of 97 Atlantic Avenue sans the Magnetic Field awning.   The Roebling Inn  -  a new venture from the folks at the Brooklyn Inn - is expected to open there soon.  As we’ve mentioned before, the BHB gang is ready to lead the welcome wagon parade on opening day.

Lost City photo

Lost City calls the pumpkin-scape at 24 Willow Street  ”Jack-o-Lantern Overload”!  We call it “awesome”.

Pierrepont Playground was packed today following the Annual Brooklyn Heights Halloween Parade.  If you were there, please add your photos to the BHB Photo Club on Flickr and we’ll post a slideshow here soon!

Sure the folks over at the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society aka Jehovah’s Witnesses don’t “celebrate” Halloween but they took to the streets of the North Heights this morning to “Trick or Tract”.

We’ve discussed the unneighborliness of Watchtower knocking in the Heights before and this morning’s doorbell ringing was no exception.  While it was amusing to hear a woman on the intercom who sounded like Cloris Leachman in Young Frankenstein it was still an unnecessary violation of my personal space.   So, Watchtower folks we’re sorry you’re bummed the world is ending soon but next time just Tweet us your “good news”.

Photo: Tiger in the Kitchen

Brooklyn Heights resident and food blogger Cheryl “Tiger in the Kitchen” Tan recently posted a recipe for Chicken Wing Stew.  We haven’t cooked it up yet (ahem… paging Mrs. Fink) but if Ms. Tan’s photos of the dish are any indication it looks outrageously good.   Find the recipe here.

Mr. Junkersfeld files this companion dispatch to go along with his latest film:

Nabeguy wrote early this year - “These photos were taken in November 1961 by my father, who, along with other like-minded neighbors, was in opposition to the proposed zoning variance that would allow for construction of the Cadman Towers. He wanted to illustrate the variety and depth of the 19th-century architectural heritage that was at stake. In one of his last-ditch efforts to forestall the wrecking ball, he lobbied to have the building on Cranberry St. in which Walt Whitman set the type for “Leaves of Grass” designated a National Landmark. Obviously, his attempts were in vain, but we do now have the Whitman Townhouses, and these photos, as reminders of what was lost.”

This short subject film was created in response to 11 super photographs taken by nabeguy’s prescient father in 1961. It was the efforts of like-minded individuals who successfully won the designation of landmark status in 1965 for Brooklyn Heights preserving the area’s historical and architectural significance.

These pictures were my first glimpse of what was then Fulton Street and later became Cadman Plaza West. Cadman Plaza’s incongruence with the rest of landmarked Brooklyn Heights always intrigued me.

This short film is about other Cadman Plazas around the North Heights that some may not know about. An example is the demolition at Poplar and Willow, among other sites, some of which are depicted in this short film.

In the 1977 movie The Sentinel, the top rear window of 10 Montague Terrace served as the really spooky Gate to Hell where a blind priest stand on guard for demons and the undead.

The movie does boast some scary moments (Sylvia Miles naked! Arrr!) and any movie featuring Christopher Walken is a-ok in our book.

Brooklyn Paper: But the BHA has an ally in Councilman David Yassky (D–Brooklyn Heights), who urged EDC not to relocate the non-essential tourist rides to the East Side heliport in the wake of August’s fatal helicopter collision in the Hudson. The anti-copter campaign is making a lot of noise, but EDC spokesman David Lombino said that the BHA is misinformed, saying that the number of flights out of the West 30th Street Heliport this year was half of what it was last year. Also, calls regarding helicopter noise to 311 have decreased, according to Nicholas Sbordone, spokesman for the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications. Then again, Community Board 6 District Manager Craig Hammerman offered one explanation for the drop-off: The operators don’t take calls about helicopter noise because such noise can’t be logged without an actual street address, he said.

Yankee Fair

A community-wide festival filled with family fun and holiday shopping
Saturday, November 14, 2009
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Brooklyn, NY, October 28, 2009 – On Saturday, November 14, Plymouth Church hosts a favorite November tradition in Brooklyn Heights. Yankee Fair is for everyone – young and old, from the local community and beyond.

On the day of Yankee Fair, the Orange Street block between Hicks and Henry Streets and the ground floor of the Plymouth Church campus are transformed into a fairground of activities and shopping. This daylong event combines a festive mix of children’s activities, home cooking and handcrafted gifts and decorations with a shopping bonanza of antiques, collectibles, vintage and designer clothing, prepared foods, books, toys and gently used children’s clothing.

Yankee Fair is organized and staffed by volunteers from the Plymouth Church congregation and the Plymouth Church School Parents’ Association. This year the proceeds go toward a program of major renovations and expansions to the Plymouth buildings that will ensure these historic structures remain in good shape to serve the community for decades to come.

There’s something for everyone at Yankee Fair. Highlights include these events and activities:

Fun for Kids

Bouncy Inflatables
Pony Rides and Carriage Rides
Lucky Dip and Tombola – a prize every time!
Face Painting
Candy Sculpting, Wreath Weaving and Hat Trimming
Dressing-Up House
Instant Portraits!
Candy Count Competition
50-50 Raffle

Shopping

Antiques and collectibles
Books, DVDs, CDs, DVDs and computer games
Crafts Handmade at Plymouth, Gifts and Stationery
Kids’ Clothing
Toys, Games and Books
Vintage and Designer clothing
White Elephant – bargains!

Performances and Special Activities

Isto: Familiar standards as you’ve never heard them and original numbers from the guitarist-singer-songwriter a.k.a. Chris White (12:30)
Liam the Magician, Gasps and laughs in equal measure from Brooklyn’s own conjuring genius (11:30)
Jon Samson and CoCreative Music, kid-pleasing, foot-stomping music show (2:00)
Broadway and off-Broadway performer Will Erat (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Godspell) performs songs from your favorite hit shows (1:30)
Tour of Plymouth Church our National Historic Landmark, with details on Henry Ward Beecher and the Underground Railroad in Brooklyn, led by church historian Lois Rosebrooks (10:30 & 12:15)
Soprano Alexis Lum and Contralto Lisa Chavez entertain with a repertoire from Irving Berlin through Shubert all the way to Verdi (2:00)
Chamber Music, a string quartet from the Brooklyn Conservatory plays Schumann, Mozart, Beethoven and more (11:30-12:15)
Balloon Animals (10:30-11:30)
Historical Scavenger Hunt with prizes! (1:30)
Antique Wurlitzer Band Organ plays vintage carousel music (all day)

Food

Lunch (11:30-1:30) featuring three kinds of premium chili, plus sandwiches and kids’ meals
Country Kitchen with bakd goods and sweet treats, bread, cakes and pies, ready made meals, jams and chutney’s all made in Brooklyn kitchens
Freshly Made Popcorn and Cotton Candy

More Details

Admission is free for adults. Children’s activity bracelets, providing admission to all kids’ activities, are available for $16 per child, $30 for two, $40 per family.

Yankee Fair will be held, rain or shine, on Saturday, November 14, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Plymouth Church is located on Orange Street between Hicks and Henry Streets in Brooklyn Heights. Plymouth is easily accessible by subway, via the 2 or 3 line at Clark Street, or the A or C line at High Street. For more information, fairgoers may contact the Plymouth Church Office at 718-624-4743, or visit the Plymouth web site at www.plymouthchurch.org.

The Jewish Week: “We wanted to convey a calm feeling,” says Kiddie Korner Director Shternie Raskin. “We told the architects we were going for a Zen feeling, something that was like a yoga studio.”
While yoga studios have become a dime a dozen in New York, day care centers like Kiddie Korner, where parents can bring children as young as 2 months old, are shockingly rare.

Village Voice: But you’d be hard-pressed to find much game in New York restaurants, aside from a smattering of wild boar Bolognese sauces, a few plates of bunny here and there, and a special game menu that Picholine has done in the past. But in Brooklyn, Henry’s End chef/owner Mark Lahm is quietly cooking an extensive wintertime game menu, which he’s been running October through March since 1986. Reindeer, bear, turtle, kangaroo, and antelope–if you can eat it, Lahm has served it. Fork in the Road chatted with Lahm about the ins and outs of cooking and serving game.

BHB Photo Club pic by fkuffel

What’s on your mind? Comment away!

Graffiti goon GUDER "tags" 68 Hicks Street

A Graffiti Goon using the “tag” GUDER is on a rampage in the North Heights. BHB community member Andrew Porter sent us photos of some of this social misfit’s “art” sprayed on various surfaces around Hicks Street including the side of the lovingly restored 68 Hicks Street.

If you see this GUDER person (we prefer the more accurate “putz”) in action call the cops. If you’ve been a victim of this “artist”, you may be eligible for clean up funds from the city.  And if you know this GUDER character, just rat him out - judging by his actions he’s (or she) is the type of sociopath who’d turn you in.

Chopper noise is so bad now, Calet tells the paper that “[w]e can no longer sit on our balcony because even nose-to-nose conversation is impossible.”

The Brooklyn Heights Association has publicly stated that it wants an outright ban on the helicopter flights.

This dispatch and photos came in from Matthew Parker this afternoon:

Queens bound Traffic has been completely stopped for 45 minutes.

Multiple-vehicle collisions, including a mini schoolbus with kids. One oil tanker involved that was punctured and leaking. Several passenger cars also involved.

Three ambulances taking away injured drivers and passengers. Some injuries look serious. Several trucks and cars have damage.

One witness said oil truck could have gone over railing to fall on Brooklyn bound traffic, but the driver controlled the truck.

Walentas Looks to Clock Sucker Punch Recession

BQE Rehab Progress Report

Fake Bomber Acquitted

Park Progress: Thirty First Report

Matt Damon Films on Fulton Landing

84th Precinct Police Blotter – 10/20/09

Mr. Junkersfeld Talks Brooklyn Bridge Park Finance

From Cobble Hill Blog:

Jonathan Lethem Returns to the ‘Hood

Cycle of Life

BHB contributor Karl “the Count of the North Heights” Junkersfeld surveys the ghoulish holiday decorations  around Brooklyn Heights.