Philly offers
plenty of summer fun

By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

Most of the city’s crowded entertainment calendar has been set for months, but Mayor Michael Nutter last week found room for more.
Nutter held a news conference on June 24 in City Hall courtyard to announce two late entertainment offerings: City Hall Film Series: Movies Under Penn and The Music Movement: A Phillywide Summer Concert Series.
The movie series, held every other Friday night in July and August, will be the first in City Hall’s courtyard. The films will begin at sundown, with vendors on hand to sell popcorn, candy, pretzels and refreshments.
The big-screen offerings are The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (July 11), The Italian Job (July 25), Unbreakable (Aug. 15) and Invincible (Aug. 29).
The concert series replaces those traditionally held at the Robin Hood Dell East, which is closed this summer because its amphitheater has structural damage. Demolition will be completed next month, with construction beginning in September.
The concerts will be held on Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. at recreation centers, rain or shine, from July 10 to Aug. 28. A concert is scheduled for Aug. 21 at American Legion Playground, at Torresdale and Devereaux avenues in Wissinoming. The act hasn’t been signed, but it will be a pop/rock band.
"It’s tremendously exciting," Nutter said of the movies and concerts. "The summer’s going to be jumping right here in Philadelphia."
The weekend is also going to be jumping, with John Legend headlining a concert this Friday night, July 4, as part of the annual Sunoco Welcome America! celebration outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
The Stylistics — whose hits include You Made Me Feel Brand New, Betcha By Golly Wow and You Are Everything — will entertain before Legend takes the stage. A parade will precede the musical acts.
Fireworks will follow in the skies over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. The festivities will be televised on 6 ABC.
On Saturday, July 5, Boys II Men will perform at the Great Plaza at Penn’s Landing. A fireworks display over the Delaware River will follow.
"Landing John Legend and Boyz II Men for Sunoco Welcome America! is very exciting for us," City Representative Melanie Johnson said of the multi-Grammy Award winning rhythm and blues artists.
The weekend also includes an appearance by a United States Navy destroyer on the Delaware River at Walnut Street. Sailors will give tours of the ship to the public.
On Friday morning, Nutter will appear at Independence Hall for a ceremony that will include a reading of the Declaration of Independence. Later in the day, descendents of those who signed the document will ceremonially ring the Liberty Bell.
For the remainder of the summer, Penn’s Landing will be the site every weekend for entertainment-related activities such as concerts, movies and ethnic festivals.
Other events include an all-you-can-eat ice cream festival, a Taste of Philadelphia, the Feel Great! Fitness Series and a Labor Day picnic. The activities extend until Sept. 28 with Sippin’ by the River, a wine and beer tasting festival.
The second annual free Fam Jams concert weekend is set for July 26-27. Bianca Ryan, the 13-year-old Mayfair girl who won NBC’s America’s Got Talent show in 2006, will open the two-day concert series
"It’s going to be an entertainment summer in Philadelphia," Nutter said. "That’s what summer is about."
The city-sponsored entertainment will culminate on Labor Day, Sept. 1, with an "old school jam session" at the Mander Recreation Center, at 33rd and Diamond streets. The headliner will be the Sugarhill Gang.
Nutter, a former nightclub DJ and disco club manager, was asked if he will be taking the stage.
"My agent is in conversations with their people," he joked. ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com

Join the fun . . .

The city of Philadelphia will post its movie and concert listings on www.phila.gov
For more information on the Independence Day weekend activities, go to www.americasbirthday.com
Most of the events at Penn’s Landing are free. For more information, call the event hotline at 215-922-2FUN or visit pennslandingcorp.com