The City's Backyard

Extraordinary 98-Year 'Young' Bea Franklin Serves As A Real-Life Witness To History!

Her House-guests included a former US President + TV & Sports Stars

Bea Franklin is quite something. At 98 years of age (99 this June), when most people her age are quite inactive, this treasure is an oxymoron. Breast cancer survivor Bea is living, quite possibly, some of the best years of her life as she tells her extraordinary life story for anyone who'll listen. And she is quite worthy of the attention.
From a 1942 rooftop concert at the Astor Hotel where she saw legendary crooner Frank Sinatra and Tommy Dorsey to her household friends that included boxing legend Rocky Graziano to being the daughter of the Founder of the automotive legend, The Pep Boys, which later morphed to the Strauss Stores. She was actually present for the iconic "Kiss" of that unknown sailor in Time Square 8 days after the two atomic bombs exploded in Hiroshima and Nagasaki (Japan) at the end of World War II. These were just some of iconic moments Bea Franklin bore witness to.
*Witnessing the famous iconic "Kiss" in Time Square and how she managed to be at the right place at the right time

Her late husband of 51 years, Jerry's experiences photographing President Roosevelt and other historic dignitaries

Her famous Dad who co-founded The Pep Boys

A United States President + TV & Sports Stars who she welcomed into her home

MUSIC & ART COLLIDE
Frankie Vinci's Rock 'n' Roll journey has led him to create the Pop Art he’s so passionate about today. These raw-colorful Pop Art / Mixed Media pieces are reflective of his years as a troubadour and his Rock 'n' Roll experiences performing in the iconic clubs and concert halls from NYC to LA , all of this has become part of his tapestry as a Pop Artist.
Frankie is a Multi-Platinum songwriter / recording artist and has shared the stage and or worked in the recording studio alongside iconic names such as : Aerosmith, Van Halen, Alice Cooper, Meat Loaf, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Tim McGraw, Roberta Flack, Dino Danelli & Gene Cornish (Rascals), Wally Bryson (Raspberries), Ricky Byrd (Joan Jett, Roger Daltrey), Robert Lamm (Chicago), Phil Ramone, Eddie Kramer, etc...
Frankie's also had a successful career as a composer / producer in NYC advertising. He composed / produced national jingles for some of the biggest brand names internationally.
A pinnacle of his career was composing The Super Bowl Theme for CBS that also aired on the "NFL Game of the week" for 10 years.
Frankie’s Pop Art is inspired by music, fashion, film and the vintage billboards that have been distressed by weather and time. The multi-layered backstage passes, concert posters covering the dark alleys and backstage walls in Rock clubs like CBGB’s, all add fire to Frankie's creativity. Frankie’s artful eye sees the beauty in subway graffiti, random paint drips, metal rust, torn paper, combined with detailed painting and carefully composed layouts. His flair for color combinations and the placement of iconic images over his canvases is creating a buzz in the art community.
With a name like Frankie Leonardo Vinci what else would you expect but a modern day renaissance man capturing his life and times on canvas.
Mark your calendars for Frankie's opening on 7/13/2023 , 6-9pm at D Colabella Fine Art Gallery , 446 Main Street , Ridgefield, Ct. , Check out my new pieces, including “FIRE” , a tribute to my favorite guitarist Jimi Hendrix . Also in the exhibit is the talented guitar craftsman Tim Sway and the amazing artist Greg Cohan. See you there !! Show runs until September 11!

https://www.vincipopart.com/

Rock Icon Carmine Appice drops by to chat about Vanilla Fudge history and their local tour dates in the NorthEast in May! Carmine was in various bands after Vanilla Fudge, including Cactus, Beck, Bogart and Appice, Rod Stewart, King Cobra, Blue Murder and even toured with Ozzy Osbourne!
Vanilla Fudge was one of the first American groups to infuse psychedelia into a heavy rock sound to create “psychedelic symphonic rock” an eclectic genre which would, among its many offshoots, eventually morph into heavy metal. Although, at first, the band did not record original material, they were best known for their dramatic heavy, slowed-down arrangements of contemporary pop songs which they developed into works of epic proportion. Originally, Vanilla Fudge was a blue-eyed soul cover band called The Pigeons, formed in 1965 with organist, Mark Stein, bassist, Tim Bogert and drummer, Joey Brennan, and guitarist, vocalist and US Navy veteran, Vince Martell. They built a following by gigging extensively up and down the East Coast, and earned extra money by providing freelance in-concert backing for hit-record girl groups. In early 1966, the group recorded a set of eight demos that were released several years later as “While the World Was Eating Vanilla Fudge.”
In 1968, Vanilla Fudge headlined the Fillmore West with Steve Miller. The group then performed “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” on The Ed Sullivan Show, and released their second album, “The Beat Goes On.” Despite its avant-garde conceptualization and execution, the LP was a hit and climbed into the Top Twenty. That summer, Atco reissued “You Keep Me Hangin’ On,” and the second time around it climbed into the Top Ten. It was followed by Renaissance, one of Vanilla Fudge’s best albums, which also hit the Top Twenty. The band had three albums in the Top One Hundred, two of which were in the Top Twenty and one in the Top Five Single. The band toured with Jimi Hendrix, played dates equal billed or headlined with groups such as Cream, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, among many others; late in the year, they toured with the fledgling Led Zeppelin as their opening act.
For more on Vanilla Fudge click on the link
https://vanillafudge.com

This episode we go out to Nashville and talk with American Drummer Chad Cromwell!
In 1987, Cromwell began a collaboration with songwriter Neil Young. The initial sessions became Neil Young & The Bluenotes. Since then he has recorded and toured with Young on several occasions, and appears on albums such as Freedom (1989), Prairie Wind (2005) Living with War (2006) and Chrome Dreams II (2007). He has also appeared in Heart of Gold, a documentary capturing the debut of Neil Young's album, Prairie Wind (along with other Young classics). This was filmed at the Ryman auditorium and directed by Jonathan Demme.

Cromwell is also known for his contributions to Mark Knopfler's solo albums Golden Heart (1996), Sailing to Philadelphia (2000), The Ragpicker's Dream (2002) and Shangri-La (2004). He was also part of Knopfler's band during the tours of his first solo albums.

Cromwell toured with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in the summer of 2006

He has also worked with many other artists including Dave Stewart, Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Lady Antebellum, Diana Krall, Willie Nelson, Jackson Browne, Boz Scaggs, Wynonna, Trisha Yearwood, Miranda Lambert, Bonnie Raitt, Peter Frampton, Allison Moorer, Chris Knight, Joss Stone, Rodney Crowell, Marty Stuart, and Stevie Nicks.

In the mid-2000s, Cromwell formed the band Fortunate Sons along with Michael Rhodes, Ga

Actor PETER FLIHAN is our guest on this episode! We talk with him about his acting career and of course his latest appearances on two New York TV shows: East NY and Blue Bloods!
New York City born and bred, Peter Flihan got his first taste of acting as the “M” in “Merry Christmas” in the kindergarten play. But it was behind, and later on, the stage with Fordham University’s “Mimes & Mummers” in the Bronx where he got really hooked. It would only take 13 years and 2 prior careers as a foreign exchange broker and then a sales manager for a teddy bear company to finally allow him to become a working commercial actor.
With typical perfect timing, he started his pursuit right before the SAG and AFTRA strike in the Spring of 2000. But with the incredible support of his wife and children, a difficult start became a rewarding journey that continues over 20 years later. His scope of work has grown over that time to include healthy aspects of voiceover, film, and television roles.
As a dedicated community firefighter since 2003, Peter has attained the rank of Captain in a Ladder Company, and is the current President of that Company. An active freemason, Peter seeks a sense of shared purpose in every family he enjoys being a part, especially the creative one of acting.
Here is the link to see Peter's scenes on East New York! Click to watch this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5g1ImDgvk8