Craigslist Furniture Update

Been while since I did one of these, but here are a couple of cool things in Arlington

Danish Modern coffee table: One owner, purchased in 1964. No-name modern. Teak. Will accept reasonable offers. The Dimensions are L -67 " H-17" W-25". $175.

Two green vinyl chairs: Original Vinyl in good shape. One has a couple very small dings in the vinyl but nothing major. Metal base. $50.

Rhapsody of Steel

Once on an old TV sitcom, I saw a bellboy ask for a tip. The cigar-chomping fatcat he was helping told him, "Buy U.S. Steel."

Well, U.S. Steel may have faded from its mid-century prominence, but some of their work endures, and not just in buildings and '57 Chevys. Rhapsody of Steel, was an industrial film like no other.

Not only did the U.S. Steelers hire former Disney staffer John Sutherland to produce the film and Oscar-winning composer Dmitri Tiomkin to score it, they hired legendary stylists Eyvind Earle (Sleeping Beauty, Pigs is Pigs) and Maurice Noble (Duck Dodgers, How The Grinch Stole Christmas) to create the bold, colorful illustrations. To see some of the images from the film, visit the Hollywood Animation Archive.

Frank Sinatra Birthday Party To-nite!

For those of you in Fort Worth, drop by Ricki Derek's fantastic new club, the Scat Jazz Lounge, for the Frank Sinatra Birthday Party for a ring-a-ding good time. The event is appropriately sponsored by Jack Daniels, the Chairman's drink of choice.

If you haven't been by the Scat Jazz Lounge, check out my review of the opening night festivities at West and Clear.

Fort Worth MCM Sale in Wedgwood

Anne Bourland is at 3501 Lawndale, Fort Worth, TX 76133. Wedgwood house has a Heywood Wakefield king bedroom set and (Appliance Porn Alert!) an avocado green fridge. From Southwest Loop 820 exit Trail Lake and go south, staying in the left lane to take Woodway. Go south a mile to Lawndale and turn left. Mapsco 89Z. Hours are Friday and Saturday 10-5, Sunday 1-4.

Kaufmann House Up for Auction

The Kaufmann House, a 1946 glass, steel and stone landmark built on the edge of Palm Springs by the architect Richard Neutra, has twice been at the vanguard of new movements in architecture — helping to shape postwar Modernism and later, as a result of a painstaking restoration in the mid-1990s, spurring a revived interest in mid-20th-century homes.

Now it's on the auction block with a presale estimate of $15 million to $25 million.

Such auctions are bringing a new level of scrutiny to a form that, little more than a decade ago, attracted so little notice that the Kaufmann House was being offered for sale as a teardown.

Although some preservationists would prefer that the houses like this one be tended by a public institution or trust that guarantees continued access for architecture students and scholars, one of the owners of the Kaufmann House, Beth Harris, begs to differ.

“It’s an odd thing, but the more money this house goes for, the better it is for preservation in my point of view,” she said. “I think it will encourage other people who have the income to go out and get places like these to restore, rather than just looking for some pretty palace somewhere.”

If it can get people to stop razing MCM houses to build McMansions, I hope she makes a bundle.

MCM Estate Sale in Dallas

Looks like a good one at 5210 Pershing Street, Dallas, 75206 (Dallas Mapsco 35V). Russel Wright dining suite, Vladimir Kagan coffee table and end table, Samson Burman credenza, a pair of Baughman tub chairs, Heywood Wakefield chest and end tables.

Times are Friday & Saturday, 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., Sunday 1 p.m. until 5 p.m.

Out of the Attic sales take cash, checks and credit cards (for purchases over $50.) And if you want the cool stuff, be there early Friday and be prepared to fight for it -- which is why I probably won't be there.

For a map, click here. For pictures, click here.

Fort Worth, Meet Ricki Derek

Fort Worth, you may not know Ricki Derek yet, but you will. That's because the Dallas-based jazz singer is coming to Fort Worth in a great big way.

In December, Derek is bringing jazz back to Sundance Square, filling the void left when the old Caravan of Dreams club closed its doors in 2001. His club -- the Scat Jazz Lounge -- located in the basement of the Woolworth Building, will bring sophisticated cool to the heart of Fort Worth.

But who is Ricki Derek? In Dallas, you can catch his show at the Cavern on Sunday nights or the Library Bar on Mondays. Maybe you can see him at one of the many private shows he plays for the hip hipsters -- weddings and such. His sound is Vegas cool swinging Mid-Century jazz. It's east to say he's a little bit of Frank Sinatra, a dash of Tony Bennett. But he really succeeds at being Ricki Derek -- a local original.

So take a few minutes to get to know him before he opens in Fort Worth. Drop by his Web site and listen to his music. My full interview with Ricki is available at West and Clear. Check it out and get hip to this guy's vibe!