Blame It on the Bossa Nova at Central Library

Just after Carnaval week, join us in the West Meeting Room at 6:00 pm on March 4th for a celebration of Brazil’s fifty-year-old contribution to “cool” – the Bossa Nova. This music continues to fascinate and delight an international public with new artists and compositions. Since the days of “The Girl from Ipanema” and “Black Orpheus,” Americans have been an important part of the Bossa Nova story. Our program reviews the history and development of Bossa Nova through videos, musical excerpts, a look at the geography of Rio de Janeiro, and a review of lyrics in English and Portuguese. There will also be an exhibit of Bossa Nova memorabilia.

This program is a follow-up to the success of last year’s “Carmen Miranda Film Festival.” Latin American popular culture specialist and Fulbright scholar to Brazil Dr. Fred Dobb will also present this program. When not watching Carmen Miranda movies and listening to music, Dr. Fred Dobb teaches at California State University, Sacramento.

Also note that Dobb will be giving an encore of the "Carmen Miranda Film Festival" at the Belle Cooledge Library on Wednesday, February 18, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. Belle Cooledge is located on 5600 South Land Park Drive. Registration is not required.

Registration is encouraged for the Bossa Nova program, which is free, and can be done by calling 264-2920 or going to www.saclibrary.org.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH : FESTIVAL DE LA FAMILA

The 17th Annual Festival de la Famila is just around the corner ... like Sunday April 27th around the corner !! This is an event that you don't want to leave out of your Spring weekend calendar, one that will leave lasting memories as there will be numbers performers from throughout Latin America and even locally from the Sacramento region. Performers will include Salsa group "Tortilla Soup," Brazilian Capoeira dance troupe "Agua do Beber," Spain's "Flamenco Puro," and host of other performers. Also, come and visit the numerous vendor booths representing various Sacramento area civic and business groups such as the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Health Education Council and , of course, the Sacramento Public Library! Our friendly staff will be there to instruct attendees on the benefits of being a member of the Sacramento Public Library and to showcase the new services and ever-growing collections including SPl's exciting Spanish Collection.

Join us for a wonderful day celebrating California's and Sacramento's wonderful and rich Latino heritage April 27th at Sacramento's Cal Expo.

Carmen Miranda Film Festival

Born in Portugal and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha reigned as Hollywood's "Brazilian Bombshell" and number one box office attraction during the 1940s. The "Lady in the Tutti-Fruitti Hat" actually started as a hat maker and eventually brought Brazilian music and dance to the world with her extravagant musical performances alongside Alice Faye, Xavier Cugat, Cesar Romero, Groucho Marx, and Elizabeth Taylor. Join us to explore the cultural impact and film legacy of this often imitated, but never surpassed star. The program will be presented by Fred Dobb, Ph.D. director, Federico Films; and faculty member at San Francisco State University.

The program will be on August 22, from 6:00 to 7:30 in the Central Library's Sacramento Room at 828 "I" Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. To reserve a seat, please telephone (916) 264-2920 or visit http://www.saclibrary.org/.