Cranford Calendar
After an 1891 homicide near the South Street Seaport, New York’s coroner announced Jack the Ripper had arrived. As panic grew, authorities charged a North African immigrant with murder. He was finally freed over a decade later when a prominent New Jersey resident produced a mysterious artifact. Recently, author Luke Jerod Kummer discovered new evidence in this unsolved case, inspiring his Audible Original drama, “Takers Mad” (adbl.co/3ttLvrr). On Saturday, April 23rd, the Cranford Historical Society will host a special event for Kummer to present his findings and discuss this strange chapter in local history.
We are thrilled to welcome back Raconteur Radio for another in-person radio play! Join us at the Cranford Community Center on Wednesday May 11 at 7pm. Raconteur Radio stages theatrical presentations of vintage radio plays, classic works of literature/film, and pop culture parodies for live audiences at traditional and improvised venues throughout the Tri-State area. They’ve been called “family friendly guerrilla theater” by the New York Times and one of “the 7 best things to do in NJ” by the Newark Star-Ledger. Sponsored by the Friends of the Library.
Join us on Zoom Wednesday, May 18th at 6:30 pm for a Q&A with Tiffany D. Jackson, a New York Times best-selling, award-winning author of novels for young adults. Monday’s Not Coming, a book based on the unexplained, unresolved disappearances of Black children in America, received the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent from the American Library Association in 2019. Her novel Allegedly, about the struggle of a recently incarcerated teen girl, was an NAACP Image Award nominee. In 2021, she co-authored “The Awakening of Malcolm X,” about the activist’s adolescent years in jail, with his daughter Ilyasah Shabazz.
Please register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/
There’s still time to sign up for our annual golf outing supporting local scholarships and other programs. Sponsorships are also available for non-golfers who want to support our mission. Golf fees include lunch, snacks on the course, and dinner and drinks after.
In the spirit of Ken Burns’ breakout PBS documentary series on American country music, acclaimed guitarist and music historian Joey Leone presents “The History of Blues in America” a one hour program covering the history, influence and social impact of American blues music through songs, stories and historical facts. Joey highlights the influence of blues on virtually all styles of contemporary music over the past 7 decades playing a variety of songs on multiple guitars from his personal collection.
In addition to the live music segments, he touches on recurring themes of how the blues transcended racial boundaries, brought people together in times of celebration and times of healing, and show the blues followed the migration from the rural south to the urban north. Joey also ties in his upbringing in Brooklyn NY, and how important the Public Library System was for his discovery, passion, and education about music and music history. A lifelong career musician, he has toured and recorded as a guitar player for many high profile artists including Etta James, The Coasters, Sam & Dave, Wilson Pickett, Chaka Khan, and many more.
Sponsored by the Friends of the Cranford Public Library.
Beatles expert and rock historian Vinnie Bruno is back for another engaging lecture! Bruce Springsteen’s new album came out in November! If you love Bruce Springsteen, you won’t want to miss this program. Sponsored by the Friends of the Cranford Public Library.
Join us at the Community Center on Thursday, March 9 at 7pm!
Registration is appreciated: www.eventbrite.com/e/bruce-