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Sirs Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen Auction Coney Island Tees for Charity

Posted in Auction, Photography, tagged City Harvest, Coney Island, eBay auction, eBay Giving Works, Gogo and Didi Do NYC, Sir Ian McKellen, Sir Patrick Stewart, T shirt, Waiting for Godot on March 27, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Image on autographed T-shirts being auctioned on eBay Giving Works to benefit City Harvest

A series of photos of actors Sir Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellen hamming it up at New York City tourist spots during rehearsals for their Broadway run in Waiting for Godot and No Man’s Land has been a hit on twitter. Called “Gogo and Didi Do NYC,” the social media campaign took the bowler-hatted duo from the Empire State Building and Katz’s Deli to Coney Island’s Wonder Wheel and Nathan’s. With their last performance set for March 30th, McKellen and Stewart are now inviting fans to bid on three autographed T-shirts custom-printed with their image at a Coney Island souvenir shop during their September visit.

Sirs Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen riding Wonder Wheel,

Sirs Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen riding the Wonder Wheel, Coney Island, September 2013

Current bids on the shirts (small, medium and large) range from $560 to $625, making them the most expensive Coney Island Tees in history. It’s for a good cause. The proceeds of the eBay auction, which ends on April 3rd, will benefit City Harvest. As Stewart writes:

In Waiting for Godot, Gogo and Didi are two old tramps, needy indeed. They don’t know where they’ll sleep that night, they don’t know where their next meal will come from, and they hoard their meager resources, sharing whatever they do have. In short, they’re hungry. It seemed a natural fit—Gogo and Didi and City Harvest. City Harvest helps to feed nearly two million New Yorkers facing hunger each year. So bid early, bid often, bid high, and know that you’ll be funding a vital and important organization.

Sirs Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen in Coney Island

Sirs Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen eating at Nathan’s, Coney Island, September 2013

As for Stewart and McKellen’s trip to Coney Island, it was memorable…

But one day in particular was unusually fun—we went out to the famous Coney Island and had a marvelous time. We played skee ball, hopped on the Wonder Wheel (the view from up there is lovely), and went and scoffed hotdogs at Nathan’s. (Ian, being a pescatarian, delighted in corn-on-the-cob and clam chowder.) In a truly bizarre moment, to our surprise we found Leonard Nimoy, seated outside a few tables away, himself indulging in Nathan’s for the first time. After lunch, we strolled back to the boardwalk. Ice cream for me, candyfloss for Sir Ian, on a bench, on the Coney Island boardwalk…two old(ish) Brits enjoying a classic American seaside landmark. As we left the fairground area and the late afternoon was approaching, we stopped off at a souvenir vendor’s booth and posed for a silly portrait that we impulsively had printed up onto three t-shirts.

Photo Album: Gingerbread Coney Island in City Harvest Extravaganza

Posted in Events, Photo Album, Photography, tagged Aperitivo Restaurant, Christmas, City Harvest, Coney Island, Cyclone, gingerbread, Gingerbread Extravaganza, Le Parker Meridien, Rolling Pin Productions on December 13, 2013| Leave a Comment »

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Rolling Pin Productions with Aperitivo Restaurant, Brooklyn. Gingerbread Extravaganza, Le Parker Meridien. Photo via Rolling Pin Productions

Coney Island’s Cyclone, Parachute Jump and Carousel are among the gingerbread wonders on display at the Le Parker Meridien through January 8th to benefit City Harvest. Created by Susanna Caliendo of Rolling Pin Productions and Mario DiBiase of Brooklyn’s Aperitivo Restaurant, the Coney Island-themed confection is among 13 whimsical structures in the 5th annual Gingerbread Extravaganza.

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Rolling Pin Productions with Aperitivo Restaurant, Brooklyn. Gingerbread Extravaganza, Le Parker Meridien. Photo via Rolling Pin Productions

The fondant Santa Claus and his elves ride the wreath-bedecked gingerbread coaster, which has tracks made of licorice and cookies. The Carousel’s poles are made of colorful candy canes. Caliendo researched and took great care in the making of the exquisitely detailed horses. She estimates that it took 60-80 hours of work for the two chefs to create the elaborate structure. DiBiase’s training as an engineer before getting into the culinary field was essential to the task of replicating the curve of the Cyclone’s track.

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Rolling Pin Productions with Aperitivo Restaurant, Brooklyn. Gingerbread Extravaganza, Le Parker Meridien. Photo via Rolling Pin Productions

This year’s theme of “Quintessential New York” inspired the city’s top bakeries, pastry chefs, and restaurants, to craft such icons as the Chrysler, Empire State and Flatiron Buildings, the Guggenheim Museum, Katz’s Deli and New York Brownstones.

“With the constant change that is a part of the New York City evolution, Coney Island is one of the few major landmarks that keeps the nostalgia of the ‘old days’ going strong,” said the Gingerbread Coney Island’s creators Caliendo and DiBiase in their artists statement. “Surviving Hurricane Sandy and continuing on despite difficult times will always be a testament to the ‘quintessential’ strength of all of us here in New York City.”

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Rolling Pin Productions with Aperitivo Restaurant, Brooklyn. Gingerbread Extravaganza, Le Parker Meridien. Photo via Rolling Pin Productions

You can vote for the structures on display in Le Parker Meridien’s atrium, which is open 24 hours, or online by selecting it on this page. Purchase one ticket for $1 or 5 tickets for $5 through the concierge desk or online to vote for your favorite. Each vote enters the donor in a raffle to win a 5-night stay at the Parker Palm Springs.

All proceeds benefit City Harvest, the world’s first food rescue organization, where every dollar rescues four pounds of food.

The creation with the most votes will receive the Gingerbread 2013 People’s Choice Award in January.