The Friends of the Historic Terrace Theatre is taking legal action to save the Terrace Theatre, the one-of-a-kind 1951 Space Age Movie Palace located just ten minutes outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Everyone deserves to experience the grandeur of the Terrace Theatre once again.

See PART 1 of the Terrace Theatre story.

Do you know of anyone who would be interested in our story of corporate bullying, unethical moves, unjust and bad faith treatment of a grassroots group by the city and by million/billion dollar corporations? Let us know!

This is a David an Goliath Battle. We need to get maximum word-of-mouth visibility for the cause. Please sign, share this change.org petition and you’ll get story updates in your email.
Please, if you can, please donate at Friends of the Historic Terrace Theatre.
http://www.terracefriends.org

Here’s an update from the change.org site from 082816.
A One-of-a-Kind Space Age Movie Palace is about to be demolished! Help us Negotiate a win-win solution.

A Private Citizen Who Wishes to Save the Historic Terrace Theatre

AUG 29, 2016 — Dear Friends,
http://www.terracefriends.org
Do you know of anyone who would be interested in our story — corporate bullying, unethical moves, unjust and bad faith treatment of a grassroots group by the city and by million/billion dollar corporations?

Not gonna mince words here. Please donate Bernie-style if you can. We really need to get broad visibility of this David and Goliath drama.
http://www.terracefriends.org

It’s been a very dramatic two weeks for our mid-century modern Terrace Theater, but the Space Age Movie Palace is still standing.

On Tuesday August 23nd, the City Council voted to demolish the theater a full month earlier than had ever been mentioned before, without even having an application request on file. We had just three days to take action.

Here are two articles that review the events of the last two weeks:
“Attorneys agree to pause in Terrace Theatre demolition, judge sets Sept. 13 hearing.”
http://post.mnsun.com/2016/08/25/terrace-theatre-demolition/
“Robbinsdale council approves Terrace Theatre teardown; lawsuit filed to halt demolition. Vote comes as lawsuit seeks restraining order against site’s razing.”
http://www.startribune.com/as-robbinsdale-city-council-debates-terrace-theatre-teardown-lawsuit-is-filed-to-halt-demolition/391110101/
In the past two weeks there have been a series of seemingly unethical moves which threw us into a legal panic.
If we had not had an attorney who was able to act in two days, it would have been a completely different story.

As of 4:30 Thursday, Aug 25, we have a Temporary Restraining Order until our next court date on Tuesday, Sept 13th.
As near as I can gather, here’s a dateline of the last two weeks of actions to a sudden acceleration to demolish:

– Aug 16th Tuesday
The grassroots group meets with their attorney for the first time.
He will bring the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act (MERA) suit that has saved other the mid-century modern Peavey Plaza in Minneapolis.
He tells us we have a solid case. It is in fact a very historical building in many ways.
We must also prove it is in reasonable condition for restoration and will need a court-recognized Structural Engineer’s assessment.

– Aug 18 Thursday
The grocer HyVee makes a surprise announcement that it has “pulled back” because of a boycott petition –
http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/news/2016/08/19/hy-vee-halts-robbinsdale-grocery-store-plans-due.html
We think this is a good sign. That is not at all the case.

– Aug 19th Friday
The very next day Brixmor (worth millions) / Blackstone (worth Billions) applied to the city for DEMOLITION –
A full month earlier than had been ever stated.
Luckily someone saw it posted on the city site otherwise the results might have been catastrophic.
We alert our attorney.

– Aug 23nd Tuesday evening
the City Council votes to demolish, even though they state they have no such application request on file.
– The grass root group’s new Temporary Restraining Order is prepared and may now be filed.
There is a well-qualified rumor that demolition will begin early morning before it can get to court the next day.
 Volunteers watch throughout the night to be sure no heavy machinery is staged at the site or at any adjoining properties.

– Aug 24th, Wednesday
At 8:31am we were notified, “the hearing for the Temporary Restraining Order is set at the Hennepin County Government Center Thursday at 12:30 in room C953.” The site is quiet. Volunteers keep watch throughout the day.

– Aug 25th, Thursday
At 10:00am, attorneys for the owners Brixmore/Blackstone, ask to delay the hearing. We asked, “Why delay? That means more time for them to prepare. Be wary. Brixmor does this all the time … they know the ways to win …”.
 Only then did we learn that a demolition permit had been applied for through the state pollution board on Friday Aug 19th for demolition by large contractor Fratallone for this coming Monday the 29th — way too close for comfort.

– Aug 26th, Friday, and through the weekend
We’ve been wary of utility trucks and workers marking the site. Otherwise, it’s been quiet.

– Aug 29th, Monday
Volunteers will be on hand to watch to be sure Frattalone, who has the contract for demolition, is not on site.

Our Attorney tells us we have  a solid case. It is not only beautiful, it is in fact a very historical building in many ways.
Along with an Architectural Historian we will need a Structural Engineer to describe the condition of the theater as we must also prove it is in reasonable condition for restoration, a solid business plan which seems to be in the works and fundraising, fundraising, fundraising. Please donate and share here:
http://www.terracefriends.org

Paul Rand’s essay on “The Politics of Design”.

Graphic designer Paul Rand created classic logos and striking book covers during his career. Steve Jobs talked about working with Paul Rand in 1993.

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One of the more common problems which tends to create doubt and confusion is caused by the inexperienced and anxious executive who innocently expects, or even demands, to see not one but many solutions to a problem. These may include a number of visual and/or verbal concepts, an assortment of layouts, a variety of pictures and color schemes, as well as a choice of type styles. He needs the reassurance of numbers and the opportunity to exercise his personal preferences. He is also most likely to be the one to insist on endless revisions with unrealistic deadlines, adding to an already wasteful and time-consuming ritual. Theoretically, a great number of ideas assures a great number of choices, but such choices are essentially quantitative. This practice is as bewildering as it is wasteful. It discourages spontaneity, encourages indifference, and more often than not produces results which are neither distinguished, interesting, nor effective. In short, good ideas rarely come in bunches.

The designer who voluntarily presents his client with a batch of layouts does so not out prolificacy, but out of uncertainty or fear. He thus encourages the client to assume the role of referee. In the event of genuine need, however, the skillful designer is able to produce a reasonable number of good ideas. But quantity by demand is quite different than quantity by choice. Design is a time-consuming occupation. Whatever his working habits, the designer fills many a wastebasket in order to produce one good idea. Advertising agencies can be especially guilty in this numbers game. Bent on impressing the client with their ardor, they present a welter of layouts, many of which are superficial interpretations of potentially good ideas, or slick renderings of trite ones…

Expertise in business administration, journalism, accounting, or selling, though necessary in its place, is not expertise in problems dealing with visual appearance. The salesman who can sell you the most sophisticated computer typesetting equipment is rarely one who appreciates fine typography or elegant proportions. Actually, the plethora of bad design that we see all around us can probably be attributed as much to good salesmanship as to bad taste.

Excerpt from A Designer’s Art, Paul Rand, Yale University Press (1985)

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The more design variations you show seems to be in direct correlation with the vagueness of the project brief/goals/objectives.

It’s usually a sign that things moved into the visual exploration stage too early in the process. Proper design requires properly defined objectives to design against. Once those are properly defined, the range of potential successful design solutions is narrowed significantly.

Household furnishings, 1968 style.

On the TV: Cissy of “Family Affair” gets hip to 1968.

Could Spock be rejecting trippy space psychedelia?

Bewitching.

Pop culture artifacts, 1968.

“Arms Up” 1.0

“Arms Up” 2.0

Jane Fonda is “Barbarella”.

The exhibit was originally mounted by the Minnesota Historical Society, where my  sister-in-law, Wendy, is Head of Museum and Education Programs (if it were up to me, I’d just tell you Wendy invented 1968).

There’s plenty to see at the Oakland Museum, including the first retrospective of graphic novelist, Daniel Clowes, a 1960’s protest poster exhibit, and Oakland’s great permanent collections.

After August 19th, the exhibit heads off for dates in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and St. Louis, through 2014. Highly recommended.

Read more about this year’s history in Mark Kurlansky’s book, 1968: The Year That Rocked the World.

All photos by Jay F. Miller.

Thousands of Green Bay Packer fans became a part of something they believe in today.

In their first stock offering in 14 years, the Packers sold 1,600 shares of stock at $250 per share in the first 11 minutes of the sale.

As espn.go.com reports, “The stock isn’t an investment in the traditional sense: Its value doesn’t increase, there are no dividends, it has virtually no re-sale value and it won’t give buyers a leg up on the 93,000 people on the waiting list for season tickets.”

The Packers have been a publicly owned nonprofit since 1923. More than 112,000 Packers stockholders own a total of 4.75 million shares. No other NFL team is owned by its’ fans.

These lucky Packer fans bought shares to become a part of something they believe in.

Your prospective customers want to know how you fit into their life. They want to know how your brand’s meaning intersects their life and what it stands for. If your brand measures up, they’ll want to become a partner with you as well.

When you’re building your brand nation, test it against the Packer’s fans loyalty.  Offer compelling reasons to believe in your brand. Offer values to live by, ethics, a movement, and a reason to be that your customers will want to become a part of.

These are the brand evangelists who will spread the good news about you and your brand.
These are the people who will become your brand nation.

Kurt Schwitters’ evocative collages are composed of the discarded stuff of life—arcane retail bags and paper, tickets, and newspaper classifieds combined into jewel-like miniatures not much bigger than your iphone, though some are more than double that size.

This exhibit is  gathered from a wide array of sources—some from the private collections of artists Ellsworth Kelly and Jasper Johns, and the Schwitters family itself.

Schwitters talked about his work in mostly formal terms—his collage materials were extensions of color and paint—but its’ strong recalled memories cannot be resisted. It’s as if you’re looking down to what’s beneath your feet, long discarded by those before you.

Along with famous artists Hanna Hoch, Hans Arp and El Lissitsky, Schwitters created the Dada-like revolutionary Merz Magazine.

Also on display is a recreation of one room of his Merzbau environment, a multi-room composition without boundaries—like walking through Arp sculpture punctuated with bits of Max Earnst imagery. You’ll leave wanting to wander through twenty times the wonder we’re allowed here.

Kurt Schwitters Color and Collage, at the Berkeley Museum of Art—BAM / PFA.
Ends Sunday November 27, 2011.

(No photographs of the exhibit are permitted, so here are some images of the cantilevered M. C. Esher, Labyrinth aesthetics of The Berkeley Museum of Art, BAM.)

The study suggests that Millennials are much more likely to promote actions for the good of the larger group than the individual.

This will change the way America thinks.

Millennials are pragmatic about the way they plan to achieve their goals. They’ll work with one another to solve problems and generate change locally from the bottom up. They’ve rejected the idea that the most effective solutions have to come from top-down leadership. And the authors note that top-down solutions have rarely created real, innovative change.

Contradictors’ comments offer anecdotes complaining about the uninvolved, slacking, and unprepared in this age group. And no comments seem to be from Millennials themselves—after all, they’re really not watching television news like the News Hour any more.

In my experience, I’ve found the Millennials thoughtful and bright. I get smarter when I listen to them. And in fact, I’d sign on to be in “Club Millennial” if I could.

Many generations have promised to change the world. Maybe this time the Millennials’ pragmatic grassroots organization and experiences may actually create something new and more effective for all of us.

It’s a great transformative moment when a story captures our imagination so much so that we willingly allow ourselves to be taken on a grand, new adventure. We become invested. We enter the author’s world full of anticipation.

There are books that we immediately become absorbed in. Others we forget quickly. What causes us to become absorbed in a book rather than abandon it?

In his recent book, How to Write a Sentence, and How to Read One, Stanley Fish suggests one reason is a great first sentence.

Think of your brand message as the first sentence in your book.

It should be absorbing. It should be promising. It should convince your prospect to press on further.

Your brand message is the inspiring idea that gives your prospect a sense of what they will experience. It captures the essence of your brand, and as Stanley Fish describes, it gives it “lean”.

Your brand message gives your customers a way to think about your product in a different way. It tells your story. It gives your story promise for what is to come.

Your brand helps define who you are in the environment in which you exist—in your community, your region, or on the web.

Your best brand research—that is, learning how people think about you and differentiate you from your competition—will come from your current customers.

But that’s just the beginning, because you’ve also got to be able to interpret that information in a fresh and transformative way for your branding to be effective.
When your message is too familiar, you’ll be confused with your competitors.

When your branding is done right, your brand will help your customers understand that you “get them”, and that you are a perfect fit.

It’s how you begin building your brand—and your brand nation of loyalists and evangelists.