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Kathleen
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Username: Kathleen

Post Number: 2207
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Wednesday, April 11, 2007 - 10:23 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Just received this press release today....

The documentary film Dom Polski: Dance Hall Days of Detroit’s Polonia will have two premiere showings, in April and May, one on the west side and one on the east side.

The WEST SIDE showing will take place on Saturday afternoon, April 28, 2007, at The Village Theater at Cherry Hill, a 400-seat premiere performance venue at 50400 Cherry Hill in Canton Township (at Ridge Road), from 1:00 until 4:00 p.m. A special one-hour public viewing version of the film will begin at 1:30 p.m. Dessert, coffee, and tea will be served afterwards. Admission for the event is $5.00 per person, which includes the reception.

The EAST SIDE showing will take place on Friday, May 11, 2007, at the American-Polish Century Club, 33204 Maple Lane (Hoover Road, north of 14 Mile Road) in Sterling Heights. The one-hour public showing version of the film will begin at 6:30 p.m. in Hall 2. A variety of desserts, coffee, and tea will be served during the film. A cash bar will be available in the dining room. Admission for this event is $5.00 per person. A special “Polish Platter” dinner is being offered in the front dining room from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. for $11.00 per person (tax included, but does not include gratuity). The dinner includes two pierogi, kie³basa and kapusta, city chicken, and mashed potatoes. Beverages are extra. There will be a cash bar.

The full, two-hour version of the film will be for sale before and after both the east side and west side premieres in DVD and videotape formats for $20 (tax included; cash or check only).

The Dom Polski film has been in progress for over three years and is a celebration of Polish immigrant life and culture in Detroit’s east and west side communities. It preserves the history of the early twentieth-century Polish-American immigrants and their cultural traditions—in particular, their musical traditions. The film focuses on the landmark structures that the immigrants built in Detroit and the cultural events that took place in them. It documents the many small clubs in which Polish-American musicians performed for various events including dances, wedding receptions, all-day bridal showers, christenings, and other cultural events. Among the structures that are highlighted and whose histories have been documented are the two Dom Polski (Polish Home) halls—one on the east side of Detroit at 2281 Forest, west of Chene Street, and one on the west side of Detroit at 3426 Junction, south of Michigan Avenue (which recently received listing in the National Register of Historic Places).
The film seeks to foster a greater appreciation for the musical culture that was created mostly by second-generation Polish-American musicians who came of age during the Great Depression. It reveals how they were influenced by jazz, swing, big band, Latin, and popular music styles while they simultaneously upheld the traditions and values instilled in them by their parents. It discusses the influences of radio, recording, and television and shows how the entrepreneurial and highly adaptive Polish-American musicians used these new media to their advantage rather than allowing the media to displace them. It reveals how their music impacted the American culture and proves just how resilient, innovative, and even radical the art form of polka music is.

Laurie A. Gomulka Palazzolo (B.S., Madonna University; M.A., Wayne State University), the film’s producer, director, and scriptwriter, is the author of Horn Man: The Polish-American Musician in Twentieth-Century Detroit, released in October 2003 with distribution through Wayne State University Press. Her associate in the production of the film is Susan F. Tyszka (M.A., University of Michigan), who has an interest in family history and genealogy. Over 1,700 vintage photos were captured in the film, along with vintage rolling footage, vintage audio from early television, and interviews with distinguished scholars and prominent musicians from the era depicted.

Advance reservations are highly recommended for both the west side and east side film premieres and are being taken by Laurie Palazzolo at 248/477-8518 or lauriepalazzolo@hotmail.com. For further information, log on to the Polish Genealogical Society of Michigan’s Web site at www.pgsm.org or www.hornman-detroit.com.
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Brandon48202
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Username: Brandon48202

Post Number: 164
Registered: 12-2004
Posted on Thursday, April 12, 2007 - 11:43 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Here is what the 3426 Junction location looks like:
Junction
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Kathleen
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Username: Kathleen

Post Number: 2213
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Thursday, April 12, 2007 - 3:09 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Thanks, Brandon. That building looks very similar to the Eastside Dom Polski on Warren near Chene. Anyone know if they used the same plans to build each one?

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