Greater Morristown weekend preview: Talk is cheap…and fascinating

Candy Land is just one of the family board games awaiting you at the Morristown & Township Library.
Candy Land is just one of the family board games awaiting you at the Morristown & Township Library.
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Compiled by Katrina Langer and Kevin Coughlin

With days growing shorter and colder, it’s time to seek amusement indoors.

Greater Morristown abounds with fascinating talks this weekend. Learn about Hitler and Hollywood. Meet a Morristown author. Get the lowdown on Ben Franklin. Quiz a parenting expert. Explore Lifestyles of the Lenapi.

The usual variety of great musical choices beckons, of course.

You never can go wrong with board games. The Morristown & Township Library has a plethora of them to share on Saturday.

And if that’s not vigorous enough, there is ladies’ roller derby — where rooting is a contact sport.

Scroll down for details. Need more choices? Check our handy calendar .


THURSDAY, NOV. 13, 2014:

hollywood and hitler by thomas dohertyHollywood has advocated for many causes over the last century, but in the 1930s it dropped the ball on one of the most urgent ones of all: Shining a light on the Nazis’ rising persecution of Jews.  Why did American cinema turn a blind eye, at a time when public opinion might have made a difference? The Drew University Center for Holocaust/Genocide Study will explore this complex story at a daylong conference,  Hollywood and Nazi Germany, 1933–1945, Stories Told/Stories Untold.  The first presentation will start at 9 am; the day concludes with a panel discussion at 3 pm. A schedule is here.   Registration is $20, space is limited. Please call (973) 408-3600 or email here.  

Susan Hubbard
Susan Hubbard

Nationally-recognized Morristown author S.W. Hubbard will discuss her most recent mystery novel, Another Man’s Treasure, at the Morristown & Morris Township Library at 7 p.m. USA Today.com: “The breathless reader can scarcely keep up with all the twists and turns in Audrey’s life once this story’s wheels start turning.”  And the setting is inspired by Morristown. Admission is free; refreshments will be served.  At One Miller Road, Morristown.

There was more to Ben Franklin than almanacs, kites and pot-bellied stoves. Learn how much more from Professor Perry Leavell. His talk, Benjamin Franklin and the 18th Century: Perfect Together, starts at the North Jersey American Revolution Round Table  meeting at 7:14 pm. It’s at Washington’s Headquarters Museum auditorium, 30 Washington Place, Morristown. Admission: Free.

Robin Berman
Robin Berman

Attention, parents: Ever wish your kids came with a manual? It’s here, and you can quiz the author. Psychiatrist Robin Berman, who wrote Permission to Parent: How to Raise Your Child with Love and Limits, will share secrets about setting limits while maintaining loving, respectful families. The UCLA associate professor , who has appeared on The Today Show and Good Morning America, speaks at 7:30 pm at Morristown High School, courtesy of the Morris Educational Foundation. It’s the first in a series of parent education programs from the MEF. Admission: Free.

Drew University presents Chekhov’s Three Sisters, at 8 pm at the Thomas H. Kean Theatre on the school’s Madison Avenue campus in Madison. Admission: $10; two-for-one tickets for this show only.  Additional performances on Friday at 8 pm and Saturday at 2 pm and 8 pm. Email for reservations.   Call 973-408-3627 for more.

Styx brings its classic rock from the 1970s and ’80s to Morristown’s Mayo Performing Arts Center at 8 pm. Hits include Lady, Renegade, Come Sail Away  and Too Much Time on My Hands. Tickets: $59-$99. At 100 South St. Call 973-539-8008 for more.


FRIDAY, NOV. 14:

Jay Campbell will perform at St. Peter's in Morristown. Photo by Beowulf Sheehan
Jay Campbell will perform at St. Peter’s in Morristown. Photo by Beowulf Sheehan

Award-winning cellist Jay Campbell kicks off a three-part Discovery series at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church at 7:30pm. Sponsored in part by Morris Arts and the Bergen Foundation, the series showcases young classical talent from the Concert Artist Guild (CAG), a New York based nonprofit.  Each concert includes a 4 pm talk for schoolchildren. Praised by The New York Times for his “electrifying performances,” Campbell has collaborated with everyone from Pierre Boulez to members of Radiohead. Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for students, and free for children, and can be purchased at the door, or at the church website above. St. Peter’s is at the corner of South Street and Miller Road in Morristown.

Happy Traum
Happy Traum

 The Minstrel in Morris Township presents a split bill, starting at 8pm.  Jim Kweskin, whose famous Jug Band of the 1960s was instrumental (pardon the Minstrel pun) in resurrecting jug band music from the ’20s and ’30s, will put the genre through its paces. If you ever attempted to teach yourself to play guitar, chances are you have a how-to book from Happy Traum.  With his late brother Artie, Happy set the standard of finger-style guitar playing for the Folk Revival in the 60’s and 70’s. Admission: $9; ages 12 and under are free. At the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy Heights Road.

Drew University presents Chekhov’s Three Sisters, at 8 pm. See Thursday entry for details.

Paul Anka performs signature hits such as You Are My Destiny, Lonely Boy and Put Your Head on My Shoulder at the Mayo Performing Arts Center, at 8 pm. Admission: $69-$125. At 100 South St., Morristown. Call 973-539-8008 for more.


SATURDAY, NOV. 15:

Grab a camera or phone and stop by the Haggerty Education Center for this month’s nature Photo Scavenger Hunt. Take a photo of every item and get a prize. Theme and prizes change monthly. Bring the whole family.  Scavenging starts at 9 am and ends at 3:30 pm, at 353 E. Hanover Ave,, Morris Township. Cost is $10 per family. For more information, please visit www.arboretumfriends.org, or 973.326.7603.

Candy Land is just one of the family board games awaiting you at the Morristown & Township Library.
Candy Land is just one of the family board games awaiting you at the Morristown & Township Library.

Board is the Word! From Candy Land to Risk, the The Morristown & Morris Township Library  has board game fanatics covered. An exhibit highlighting classic games runs through Dec. 1. Even better, you can play all these games from 10 am to 3 pm, as part of the American Library Association’s seventh annual International Games Day @ The Library. Challenge your kids, your friends, or the library staff! The fun is free.  The library is at One Miller Road.

Long before the Turnpike ran through New Jersey, the Lenape tribe did.  Join John Kraft, director of Lenape Lifeways, for Lenape Family Day. Activities focusing on Lenape culture — including masks, clothing, musical instruments and tools–run from 11 am to 2 pm at The Morris Museum.  Also discover cornhusk doll-making, weaving, and learn about Native American legends and sports. Admission is free for members; $7 for children; $10 for adult non-members. The museum is at 6 Normandy Heights Road in Morris Township.   

Spring cleaning is long gone, but it’s never too late to recycle your old things. Stop by the Woman’s Club of Morristown between noon and 5 pm for America Recycles Day. Bring your ink cartridges, soda tabs, plastic water bottle caps (clear only), towels, blankets, sheets, eyeglasses, manufacturers coupons, suitcases, yarn and fabric, or bras (gently used or new). Email here for more information. The Woman’s Club is at 51 South St. in Morristown.

Drew University presents Chekhov’s Three Sisters, at 2 pm and 8 pm. See Thursday entry for details.

jerzey derby brigade posterIf you missed seeing the Jerzey Derby Brigade’s Corporal Punishers take on the Philly Block Party in September, you’re in luck. The rematch is at 7 pm! These ladies have a score to settle and it’s bound to get interesting, at Inline Morristown. Doors open at 6:15 pm; admission is $12 at the door, $10 in advance. Children 12 and under are free. Please bring a nonperishable food item for the Interfaith Food Pantry. If it’s your birthday this month, pick up a free treat at the concession table. The rink is at 38 Dumont Place.

Comedian Ron White (Blue Collar Comedy) returns to Morristown for an adults-only evening of humor, at 7 pm and 9:30 pm at the Mayo Performing Arts Center. Mature content, language. Admission: $49-$99. At 100 South St. Call 973-539-8008 for more.

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center presents a program of Dvorak and Schubert at 8 pm, at the Dorothy Young Center for the Arts on the campus of Drew University in Madison. Admission: $55. A pre-concert talk is scheduled for 7 pm.  Call 973-455-7008 for more.


SUNDAY, NOV. 16:

The Morristown Farmers Market is winding down its 24th season, courtesy of the Morristown Partnership. From 8:30 am to 2 pm, you can find produce from North Jersey farms, baked goods, and more, in municipal parking lot 10, behind the post office. Lots of entertainment and wellness events will be sprinkled throughout the year. The Farmers Market is open on Sundays through Nov. 23.

Grab a camera or phone and stop by the Haggerty Education Center for this month’s nature Photo Scavenger Hunt. See Saturday’s entry for details.

saving fairylandRainbow Magic Live! presents Saving Fairyland,  at 1:30 pm and 4 pm at Morristown’s Mayo Performing Arts Center. Follow children’s book characters Rachel and Kirsty “as they help their fairy friends while having lots of fun along the way.” Ages 4-10 Admission: $12-$15. At 100 South St.  Call 973-539-8008 for more.

Today is your last day to see the Morris Museum’s traveling sports show, Hometown Teams: How Sports Shape America. Ever wonder why Americans are so obsessed with sports in their hometowns? Find out from noon to 5 pm at the Museum on Main Street  exhibit, presented by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service. Admission: $10 for adults; $7 for children, students, and senior citizens; free for museum members.  At 6 Normandy Heights Road, Morris Township.

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