Remember my child: the mothers of Every Mother’s Son.

FOR THE KITTIES: That’s right, this notice is for those who love animals, those who love art and those who love animals and make art. In April, the Mohawk Hudson River Humane Society is sponsoring Art Saves Animals, a gallery sale and silent auction of art, the proceeds from which will be directed to help, well, the kitties and the doggies. Specifically, the event will be held at Albany’s Tantillo Gallery (488 Broadway) from April 25-29. (The silent auction will be held on the 29th.) Artists—yes, you—are invited to donate works of art in any medium for this event, and the MHRHS “encourages especially entries that portray animals.” If you would like to pitch in with a pooch portrait or sculpture (or whatever), e-mail Terri Cook at terricook@nycap.rr.com.

LET’S TALK: The folks at Hudson’s Time & Space Limited (434 Columbia St., Hudson) have teamed up with the producers of the PBS show POV to bring an ongoing, free series of movies that, they hope, “will foster dialogue” in the community. The first screening will be this Sunday (March 20) at 5 PM; the documentary to inaugurate the series will be Every Mother’s Son. The film is the moving, thought- provoking story of three women from diverse backgrounds (pictured) who each had a son killed by police officers.

When asked how the series came about, TSL’s Michael Chameides explained: “I approached them last January. I had been aware of the program and felt that it was time for TSL and Hudson to take advantage of this opportunity.” POV, he noted, provides the films for free, which enables TSL to do the same. “We will be pairing up the screenings with activists and speakers to help draw a crowd and encourage discussion of the movies.” (For Every Mother’s Son, activist Cathy Wilkerson will lead the post-film discussion.) The next POV screening at TSL will be on April 15, featuring the documentary A Panther in Africa. For more information about the series, call 822-8448.

PLEASE COME TO PITTSFIELD: ArtShow Amherst 2005 has released an invitation for artist applications to participate in a “series of eleven weekend juried art shows in Amherst and Pittsfield, Mass.” Invited to apply are artists who work in any of these media: photography, painting, drawing, sculpture, and “new and mixed media.” Not invited: artists who create crafts or functional art. The exhibitions will be held in Amherst at the end of May, and in Pittsfield on various, multiple weekends from June through October. There is an application form, with a $15 application fee, available for downloading at www.artshowamherst.org. You can also request a form to mail in from submit@artshow amherst.org. Along with the application (and fee), you’ll need to send a current résumé and up to three slides or digital images. For more info, call (866) KNOW-ART.

MEA CULPA: It is with some embarrassment that I must acknowledge a mistake I made on the movie pages last week. Mel Gibson’s re-edited version of The Passion of the Christ, which Mel smartly retitled The Passion Recut, was listed in the Film Openings section. Well, if you read through the rest of the movie schedule—which is done by someone a hell of a lot sharper than me—you would have noticed that The Passion Recut didn’t open anywhere. It never occurred to me that not a single movie theater in the region would book it. After all, whether you loved it or were horrified by it, POTC was a genuine box office phenom last year, bringing in folks who never went to the movies. Looks like the local exhibitors got the last laugh, however—it tanked in the few multiplexes that did run it.

—Shawn Stone

photo:Joe Putrock

Our own Pulitzer Prize-winner William Kennedy, longtime friend of the late Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, reads from The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved, an early story by Thompson that not only described the famous horse race, but also marked the first collaboration between Thompson and Ralph Steadman, the artist whose work became closely associated with that of the recently deceased gonzo journalist. Organized by the University at Albany’s journalism program and the New York State Writer’s Institute (for which Kennedy serves as executive director), the Readings for Hunter memorial featured audio excerpts from Thompson’s November 1998 visit to the school and readings from Thompson’s work—including some early correspondence between Thompson and Kennedy chronicled in 1998’s The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955-1967, a collection of letters written by and addressed to Thompson. Despite the event’s academic feel—somewhat ill-fitted for the celebration of a counter-culture icon—readings by Kennedy and journalism dept. director William Rainbolt provided some of the evening’s most potent memorials to the writer many credit as one of the fathers of “new journalism.” It was Kennedy’s unscripted account of Thompson’s memorial service in Colorado and the events leading up to it, however, that provided one of the evening’s most sincere tributes.

“At one point in the service, Jack Nicholson said he thought the whole thing was just one of Hunter’s stunts—that he’d show up in the middle of it all,” remembered Kennedy, deep in thought and gazing out over the picture of Thompson resting on the classroom’s podium.

“But no,” said Kennedy, shaking his head, “he didn’t show up.”

—Rick Marshall

rmarshall@metroland.net

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