The Orange Blossom Revue draws in hundreds upon thousands of visitors to the City of Lake Wales. Those visitors help generate hundreds upon thousands of dollars in taxable revenue for the city.
As such, the City of Lake Wales has decided to support this local music festival, which has almost become a local institution in itself, by donating more than $25,000 toward the Orange Blossom Revue.
At their regular meeting on Tues. Nov. 19, 2024, Lake Wales city commissioners voted unanimously to approve their consent agenda. One agenda item was a $25,000 grant for the Blossom Charitable Foundation to support the music festival’s infrastructure needs.
“The Orange Blossom Revue is an annual music festival that has become a significant cultural event for Lake Wales,” wrote City Clerk Jennifer Nanek. “The festival has grown substantially over the years, attracting a diverse audience and contributing to the local economy.”
“However, the event’s increasing popularity has also led to increased infrastructure needs, including power, fencing, and stage equipment,” she continued. “To ensure the continued success of the festival and its positive impact on the community, additional funding is required to support these infrastructure improvements.”
For more than a decade, the Orange Blossom Revue has attracted residents and visitors alike to scenic Lake Wailes Park for a “sophisticated soiree” of art and music.
This year’s lineup includes top-name musicians JJ Grey & Morfo, the War and Treaty, Robert Earl Keen, the Steep Canyon Rangers, the Sam Grisman Project, Emily Nenni, Wyatt Ellis, and Van Plating.
The Orange Blossom Revue will be hosted on Fri. Dec. 6 and Sat. Dec. 7 at Lake Wailes Park, located at 33 N Lakeshore Blvd., Lake Wales, FL 33853.
For more information, visit their website at: https://www.orangeblossomrevue.com
6pm – 6:30 Hot cocoa & cookies donated by Richards and Gourmet Goodies 6:30 – 7 Live music 7pm Official countdown to tree lighting o The City of Winter Haven in coordination with Main Street Winter Haven will host our City’s Annual Tree Lighting in Central Park located in beautiful Historic Downtown Winter Haven. Enjoy live music, and free hot cocoa and cookies for the first 100 guests.
The Lake Wales Police Department has released a statement today with regard to an incident involving a stolen vehicle in Lake Wales.
On November 21, 2024, officers responded to a stolen vehicle on Dr. J. A. Wiltshire Avenue. While on scene still investigating the incident, the stolen vehicle (2015 Chevy Malibu) was observed driving east on Florida Avenue. Officers attempted a traffic stop on the vehicle and the driver (Nicholas Reynolds) fled North on Scenic Highway. The vehicle slowed prior to the intersection of Chalet Suzanne Road and Scenic Highway when a passenger attempted to exit the vehicle. Reynolds accelerated while the passenger was exiting the vehicle, running over the passenger causing minor injuries.
The vehicle was located shortly after traveling on Waverly Road. Reynolds then abandoned the stolen vehicle at the intersection of Scenic Highway and Waverly Road and attempted to flee on foot through the orange groves. Reynoldswas quickly apprehended by officers and taken into custody.
The driver was identified as Nicholas Reynolds, 41, of Lake Wales. Reynolds was arrested and charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle, aggravated battery, fleeing to elude, driving while license suspended, and resisting an officer without violence.
On November 20, 2024 at 10:56 p.m., Polk County Fire Rescue (PCFR) crews were dispatched to 5729 Crystal Beach Road in Winter Haven in reference to a structure fire.
Crews arrived on scene at 11:01 p.m. and found a garage fire at a residence. After battling the fire for about 40 minutes, the scene was under control at 11:42 p.m.
There were no reported injuries and no transports.
The scene was cleared at 1:46 a.m. on November 21, 2024.
Initial reports were that an explosion was heard in the garage area of the residence and then shortly after the garage went up in flames. We reached out to PCFR Public Information Officer Nathaniel Gale to confirm the reports and he was able to confirm that it was a garage fire.
I will be honest: I don’t normally watch musical biopics. The last one I watched was Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, and I watched it because 1) it was about Weird Al, and 2) it was made in the most Weird Al way possible.
Thing is, as much as I love music, I’m not that wild about the actual musicians who make them. So while I like the songs made by Pharrell Williams (especially “Happy”, which is a real bop), I don’t really care much about the guy himself.
But you know what I do like? LEGOs! I love LEGOs. I used to play with them all the time as a little boy. And you bet your bricks I loved The LEGO Movie. It was one of the best animated movies of the last decade.
So, when I learned that Pharrell Williams was having his biopicdirected as an animated LEGO movie, my interest was immediately piqued. But was the hype worth it? Does this movie take creative liberties with its creative premise? Or does it lack the creative spark worthy of making it a Lego movie?
Piece by Piece tells the life story of musician Pharrell Williams, from his childhood growing up in Virginia Beach, to him winning a school talent show that landed him his first gig at a local record studio, to him creating beats for other popular musicians before eventually becoming a popular musician himself and releasing his signature song, “Happy.”
And that’s pretty much the movie in a nutshell, or rather, in a brick container. It’s essentially your run-of-the-mill documentary about an influential musician, with interviews from him and other figures in his life including family, friends, and fellow musicians.
However, undeniably the movie’s biggest selling point is the choice to film it all as an animated LEGO feature. Piece by Piece was produced by Pure Imagination Studios, which manages to animate the movie with the same charm as Illumination animated the original LEGO movies.
Filming the biopic in LEGOs was certainly a bold and creative choice, especially for a movie about a creative individual like Pharrell. The animation style evidently highlights the artist’s unmistakable creative vision in quite a creative style.
For example, one of the earliest scenes in the film is young Pharrell daydreaming while staring into a fishbowl. Later, he daydreams while listening to music, claiming he can see the color of the music playing from the speaker. The entire sequence captures the young artist’s chromesthesia quite vividly.
I’ll mention a few of my favorite scenes and moments from the movie. The first involves the young artist growing up and attending school. Pharrell explains his school experience wasn’tthe best. He often struggled to pay attention in class, socialize with other students, and do well in his studies. As someone who grew up Autistic, I empathize with his experience.
Another touch I enjoyed was how the movie touched upon his religious experience. Pharrell was inspired by his church and pastor to pursue his career in music. Later in the film, he returns to his pastor to explain the trouble he’s been experiencing in his career, and his pastor offers him words of encouragement.
Perhaps even more interesting was how Pharrell received equal motivation from both his church and from Carl Sagan’s Cosmos, emphasizing how much the sacred and the secular played an important role in shaping and influencing him.
Admittedly, if the movie has a flaw, it’s with its marketing. Currently, the movie has not performed well in the box office. Perhaps this is due to the film being unable to decide who, exactly, it is for. On the one hand, the movie is created using LEGO, giving it a kid-friendly vibe. But on the other hand, the film cover the life and career of an artist who, while not unsuitable for children, is certainly more geared towards adults. The result is a film that is to “kiddish” for adults and too “adult” for children.
Overall, if you’re a fan of Pharrell Williams or LEGOs or both, you’ll most likely gain some enjoyment from Piece by Piece. And even if you’re not a fan of either, well, it’s a relatively enjoyable film to watch nonetheless. However, you’re probably better off watching this movie on streaming or as a rental.
54-year old Richard Hallmark of Winter Haven got arrested by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday, November 19th.
A PCSO sergeant performed a traffic stop on a green Volvo S80 on Snively Avenue in Eloise; the car was not registered.
The driver was Richard, although he told the sergeant that his name was Robert.
While the two men were conversing, the sergeant noticed the very strong smell of marijuana coming from within the vehicle.
Richard was in possession of a backpack that contained small containers of marijuana and multiple baggies filled with methamphetamine.
Richard said that the backpack belonged to his brother Robert Hallmark. That was very interesting since Richard identified himself as Robert Hallmark.
Richard then admitted that he was indeed Richard, and that he lied about his name, because he had a warrant for Violation of Probation (Conspiracy to Deliver Meth).
Richard Hallmark was arrested on his warrant and taken to the Polk County Jail where he was additionally charged with two felonies and three misdemeanors.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol on 11/20/24 at approximately 4:26 pm, a traffic crash occurred on US 27 near Lake Isis Avenue, Highlands County.
A 2010 Ford Explorer, driven by an 18-year-old male out of Frostproof, Florida, was traveling north on US 27, approaching the intersection of Lake Issi Avenue.
Pedestrian (59-year-old Male from Avon Park) was traveling east, attempting to cross the northbound US 27 travel lanes.
The Ford Explorer collided with the Pedestrian on Northbound US 27.
The Pedestrian sustained critical injuries was transported to an area hospital and later pronounced deceased.
Bartow, Fla. (November 21, 2024) – In observance of the Thanksgiving Day holiday, there will be no curbside residential collection on Thursday, Nov. 28. Residential collection services scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 28, will take place on Friday. Friday services will take place on Saturday. A one-day delay will occur for each day of the week following the holiday. This includes furniture and appliance collection. Collection services for Monday through Wednesday will proceed as scheduled.
The North Central Landfill and the North Central Transfer Station will be closed on Thursday, Nov. 28, for Thanksgiving Day. They will re-open Friday, Nov. 29.
At approximately 7:08 a.m. on November 21, 2024, Lake Wales Police Department received a call regarding a traffic collision at US Highway 27 N. and Highway 60. The accident is approximately 1/2 mile south of Highway 60 on US 27 in the northbound lanes.
Three vehicles are said to be involved. Minor to moderate damage is reported injuries are being assessed at this time.
The northbound highway 27 roadway is partially blocked. Please avoid this area law enforcement work at the scene.
Vehicle 1, a Volkswagen Tiguan, driven by a 47-year-old Winter Haven man, was traveling westbound on SR-544. Vehicle 2, a Toyota Supra, driven by a 24-year-old Winter Haven man, was traveling eastbound on SR-544. At the intersection of 16th Street NW, Vehicle 1 turned left into the path of and was struck by Vehicle 2. Post-impact, Vehicle 1 rotated to final rest in the median and burst into flames while Vehicle 2 traveled off the roadway and collided with a utility pole resulting in a power outage in the area. Driver 1 suffered fatal injuries at the scene of the crash while Driver 2 was transported to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
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UPDATE 11/20 8:28 p.m.
Both directions of Havendale Blvd. from 15th Ct to 18th St. are shut down due to a serious crash. Drivers are being re-routed by authorities at this time.
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The Winter Haven Police Department, Winter Haven Fire Department and Polk County Fire Rescue are on scene of a very bad crash on Havendale Blvd. According to initial information the crash occurred at 7:17pm and involves multiple vehicles, vehicle on fire and a power pole out. The accident occurred near the intersection of Havendale Blvd and 16th St. NW.
Currently a helicopter medical evacuation is taking place. This a very bad crash and the roadway will be shutdown for an extended period of time. Please avoid the area!
