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Brooklyn |
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Barbra is arguably the most famous
personality to be associated with the borough of Brooklyn, but she
is not alone. A fair share of the entertainment world's notables
hailed from Kings County (Brooklyn's official name). Barbra's been
back to the old neighborhood a few times. She filmed several scenes
from "For Pete's Sake" at Brooklyn Borough Hall. And in 1993, Barbra
showed up with New York Mayor David Dinkins at the Brooklyn Academy
of Music, but not to perform. She was there to make a speech on
behalf of the Mayor's reelection bid. |
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The Brooklyn Academy of Music - 30 Lafayette Ave., Brooklyn
Brooklyn born Barbra returned to her old neighborhood on October 27,
1993. The occasion was to stump for David Dinkins who was
seeking reelection as Mayor of NYC. Dinkins was severely lagging
in the polls behind Rudy Giulliani and called on local girl Barbra to
inject some excitement into his campaign. Barbra spoke for about 15
minutes on local politics and the stark differences between the two
candidates.
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Erasmus Hall
- 911 Flatbush Ave., Brooklyn
Many have said that
Barbra Streisand is indisputably the most distinguished alumnus of
Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn. She graduated in 1959. But did
you know that many other celebrated people attended Barbra's alma
mater as well? Here are some notables who roamed the halls of Erasmus,
each with a direct (or very indirect) connection to Barbra:
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Artie
Butler
(class
of
1960)
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Musical
arranger, scored "What's Up, Doc?" and "For Pete's
Sake." |
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Shirley
Booth
(class
of
1916)
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Booth was
the first to play Dolly on the screen in 1958's "The
Matchmaker." |
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Clive
Davis
(class
of
1949)
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Columbia Records chief
Clive
Davis
convinced Barbra to record "Stoney End." |
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Neil
Diamond
(attended
1950s)
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Neil
Diamond
attended
Erasmus
with
Barbra, but did not know her. |
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Bobby
Fischer
(class
of
1960)
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World
champion chess master Bobby Fischer was a class pal of
Barbra's. |
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Eleanor
Holm
(class
of
1932)s
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Eleanor
Holm
is the
only
Erasmus
alum
portrayed in a Streisand film. |
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Lainie
Kazan
(class of 1956)
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Lainie Kazan was Barbra's understudy in "Funny Girl" on
Broadway. |
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Dorothy
Kilgallen
(class
of
1932)
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Kilgallen
was a
panelist for both of Barbra's "What's My Line?"
appearances. |
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Arthur Laurents
(class of 1933)
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Wrote "The Way We Were" and directed Barbra in
"Wholesale" on Broadway. |
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Stephanie
Mills
(class
of
1977)
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Performed "Home" in "The Wiz," later recorded, but never
released by Barbra. |
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Barbra
Streisand
(class
of
1959)
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Graduated
with a 93 average and a medal in Spanish. Member of
chorus. |
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Eli
Wallach
(class
of
1932)
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Veteran
actor
Eli
Wallach
co-starred
with
Barbra
in the
film, "Nuts." |
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Barbra Streisand
attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, graduating in 1959. The
school has one of the most historical pedigrees in American education.
It was founded in 1787 by Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr and John Jay.
Around the original structure are three buildings with gothic
architecture. Erasmus Hall still exists today, but functions as five
separate schools, each with its own administration and academic
discipline. Erasmus Hall has not escaped the fiscal fate of other
public schools in New York City; adequate funds have not been
apportioned for the school's upkeep and the campus buildings are in
dire need of major renovation and repair.
OK, we all know that
Barbra attended Erasmus Hall. But exactly who was Erasmus? Desiderius
Erasmus was a theologian, scholar and humanist who lived in the 15th
century. He resided, among other places, in England and dedicated much
of his life to religious scholarship.
A&E's Biography
website has an extensive
profile on Erasmus, if you'd like to learn more.
Barbra's
Place of Honor at Erasmus
July
17, 2012 (UPDATE)
The accomplishments of
Erasmus Hall's most notable alumni
are immortalized on
various displays throughout the historic
Brooklyn campus. And what
a way to inspire students.
But did you ever wonder
how Erasmus honors a
particular graduate named
Barbra Streisand?
Thanks to an article
published today by
Fordham
University,
along with a recently
produced film short
entitled
Brooklyn
Memories,
we now know that Barbra
(class of '59) is accorded
at least two places of
honor within the hallowed
halls of Erasmus.
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"The Chapel" at
Erasmus Hall
This is the Chapel auditorium (or more formally,
the Erasmus Hall,
hence the school's
moniker) where Barbra sang as a member
of the school's Freshman Chorus and Choral Club. It's
easy to see how any student performing in this magnificent
space might be inspired to greatness.
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Nowadays, when anyone
enters the auditorium,
they will see 17 year old
Barbara Streisand's
official yearbook
photo and caption
hanging on the
right-hand wall.
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The caption reads: |
Streisand, Barbara
Freshman Chorus 1, 2
Choral Club 2 - 4 |
And in
case you're wondering, the
guy to the left of Barbra
is Doug Moe (Erasmus class
of '56). He was head coach of
the Denver Nuggets in the
1980s. His pal is
unidentified.
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Central
Corridor at Erasmus Hall |
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This is the central corridor at Erasmus Hall
which boasts a makeshift mural showing off some of the school's
notable alumni. The caption reads "Famous Erasmus Hall
H. S. Graduates."
Of course, Barbra is a
prominent part of this
tribute.
And that's none other than "Nuts"
co-star, Eli Wallach (class of 1932) on the wall to the left of
Barbra. |
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Loews Kings - 1025 Flatbush Ave., Brooklyn
As a
child, Barbra would lose herself in a fantasy world provided courtesy
of her local movie house. The Loews Kings was and still remains a
landmark structure not too far from Prospect park and the neighborhood
where Barbra grew up.
 
Loews Kings: then and now
The glory days of the Loews Kings,
however, are long gone. The building no longer functions as a movie
theatre and
is in a sad state of
urban decay.
New Life for Loews Kings
July 17, 2012 (UPDATE)
The
folks
in
charge
of
the
$73
million
Loews
Kings
restoration
project
are
reporting
progress;
a
noted
developer
has
been
hired
to
carry
out
the
project
and
complete
restoration
is
promised
by
2015.
The
Loews
Kings
Theatre
will
then
become,
simply,
the
Kings
Theatre
and
will
be
added
to
the
National
Register
of
Historic
Places.
April 6, 2011
In February, 2010,
the New York Times reported that Loews Kings will begin a
multi-year renovation designed to bring the revered movie palace
back to its former glory. The $70 million facelift is expected
to be completed in 2014.
Loews Kings has sat dormant and in total disrepair since 1977,
the last time a feature film was shown there. On her web site
today, Barbra posted her delighted that the Loews Kings will
once again assume its position as a jewel of Brooklyn
entertainment:
"I was happy
to hear recently that the Loew's Kings Theater in Brooklyn,
New York will be undergoing renovations for a reopening in
2014 . It was one of those beautiful old movie houses of the
past. I was 13 years old when I first started spending many a
wonderful afternoon there, partly because it had double
features, air conditioning and great ice cream cones."
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Brooklyn Borough Hall
-
209 Joralemon St., Brooklyn
Then and Now
In
1974, Barbra Streisand returned to Brooklyn to film a movie. It was
big news for locals, who came out in droves to watch Barbra film "For
Pete's Sake" (you can actually see people lined up behind police
barricades to watch the filming).
 
Borough Hall:
then and now
While most of the film was actually
shot on the back lot of Warner Bros., several key scenes were actually
filmed on location in downtown Brooklyn, not too far from where Barbra
grew up. One such scene, where Barbra goes undercover to drop off a
package, was filmed in front of Brooklyn's historic Borough Hall. |
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