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| She
won’t be forgotten: Hudson’s Mrs. Greenthumbs. |
Remembering
Mrs. Greenthumbs
Several
Hudson organizations have banded together to make July 21
the first annual Mrs. Greenthumbs Day: a day celebrating the
life and work of the late Cassandra Danz, a longtime Hudson
resident who has, through books, plays, and television appearances,
become known to the rest of the world as her alter-ego, Mrs.
Greenthumbs.
Several open-to-the-public events have been officially planned
for Mrs. Greenthumbs Day by groups such as Fourthdown, 7-Up
(the new coalition of Warren Street merchants and residents
above 7th street) the Hudson Opera House, the Hudson
Gardeners, and the Promenade Hill Restoration Committee, but
the event is not officially sponsored by any particular group.
All interested Hudson residents are encouraged to contribute
to the further beautification of the area. Plans already in
place include decorating of shop windows with plants or cut
flowers, starting a garden in an undeveloped patch of Hudson
ground, and opening a personal garden to the public for the
day. Of course, refreshments will be served. “Every year [Fourthdown]
does a clean-up day and spruces up their area,” said Danz’s
longtime friend and Hudson resident Don Christensen. “They
decided that this year they’d make it Mrs. Greenthumbs Day.
There are now some magnificent gardens right on Warren Street.”
Since she moved to Hudson 18 years ago (she was one of the
first people to help transform it into the cultural center
that it’s become), Danz—who melded her love of sometimes ribald
comedy with her passion for gardening—has become widely known
for her critically acclaimed books (1993’s Mrs. Greenthumbs:
How I Turned a Boring Yard Into a Glorious Garden and How
You Can, Too and 1998’s Mrs. Greenthumbs Plows Ahead)
and television appearances on programs such as Live With
Regis and Kathie Lee and The Rosie O’ Donnell Show.
However, before the world discovered her, she was known in
Hudson for her exuberant personality and her magnificent,
idiosyncratic garden. “Her garden in Hudson, though she wasn’t
famous at the time, was important,” said Christensen. “People
would come into Hudson and drive out of their way to pass
her garden.”
Danz, a wife and mother who also cofounded the all-female
comedy group the High Heeled Women in 1980, produced and directed
Mrs. Greenthumbs Plows Ahead on the New York City stage,
and had small roles in films such as Tootsie and 9½
Weeks. She died of breast cancer at the age of 52 on May
26. “Inspiration was what she offered,” said Christensen.
“It’s a great loss.”
—Ben
Sher
ARt
BEAT
New
York Foundation of the Arts will conduct a free informational
seminar on NYFA Artists’ Fellowships at the Arts Center of
the Capital Region on Tuesday, July 23, at 6 PM. The informational
seminar will address questions about the application process
for NYFA’s $7,000 cash grants, which are offered to New York
state artists of all disciplines. The seminar will also inform
artists about other funding opportunities and areas of career
development. Customarily, 150 to 170 artists are selected
for fellowships via a peer-panel process. One of the fellows
will receive the annual NYFA Prize for “exceptional promise,”
which bestows an additional $25,000. To be eligible for a
NYFA fellowship, an artist must have resided in New York for
at least two years at the time of application and cannot be
enrolled in a degree program of any kind. Applications will
be available at the seminar. Application deadline is Tuesday,
Oct. 1. For more information, call (212) 366-6900. . . . Artist
Jessica Menrath of Delmar was honored last month when her
graphite pencil sketch, Flight Through the Forest,
was unveiled along with winning entries from across the country
as part of An Artistic Discovery, a yearlong exhibit
in Washington, D.C. Menrath was the winner of the 2002 Congressional
Arts Competition from New York’s 21st Congressional District,
which includes all of Albany and Schenectady counties, most
of Montgomery County, a portion of Rensselaer County, and
the Town of Waterford in Saratoga County. Menrath and her
family were flown to Washington, D.C., where Menrath and her
father met Congressman Michael R. McNulty (D-Green Island).
McNulty joined them at the exhibit’s ribbon-cutting ceremony
at the Canon House Office Building on July 25. . . . Send
your Art Beat items to metroland@metroland.net.
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