šŸ„‚ 50th 50th Anniversary Celebration - West Coast*

In which city should the 50th Anniversary Celebration be based?

  • Downey

    Votes: 22 42.3%
  • Thousand Oaks

    Votes: 28 53.8%
  • Long Beach

    Votes: 4 7.7%
  • Other

    Votes: 2 3.8%

  • Total voters
    52
I'm disappointed in this ^^ I specifically asked if someone could at least give props to Paul Grein about how he championed for the Carpenters in all his articles in Billboard...many of which I posted here on the forum for everyone to read. I think it would have made him feel great that we were still reading these articles after all these years and more importantly that what he did made a difference in keeping the Carpenters in the spotlight in music magazines back then. It would have only taken a moment to mention since he was on the panel.

Rick, time constraints were the overriding deal here. So many questions, so little time....The Chuck Findley's flugelhorn solo that Chis May set up was torpedoed by the total lack of time... I personally put in a direct question to Randy Schmidt (before the event, at the request of the organizers) if he would do a "screenplay" to a big budget Karen biopic...nary a word!! This panel could've been adressing topics from now until Christmas...There just was not enough time.
 
Was their any discussion at all about Karen's solo album?
Oddly, no. Or at least I don't remember any.

That may have been for the best, actually. Considering how high emotions run whenever the topic comes up here, I can only imagine what mayhem would have ensued, if people with opposing viewpoints began arguing the merits of the solo album, face to face... would anyone have emerged from the room unbloodied? :boxing: :laugh: :wink:
 
That may have been for the best, actually. Considering how high emotions run whenever the topic comes up here, I can only imagine what mayhem would have ensued, if people with opposing viewpoints began arguing the merits of the solo album, face to face... would anyone have emerged from the room unbloodied? :boxing: :laugh: :wink:

I personally did not want to take it there for this very reason. Such a range of opinions and emotions that tie too closely with Karen's personal issues and eventual demise. Just didn't seem appropriate for as much as I DO think it's something very much worth having a dialogue about if that makes any sense.
 
^^^^^
I was only joking Chris! I don't believe for a second, that Carpenters fans would literally come to blows over Karen's solo album...


... "Goofus", however... :jester:
 
Considering how high emotions run whenever the topic comes up here, I can only imagine what mayhem would have ensued, if people with opposing viewpoints began arguing the merits of the solo album, face to face...

To be honest, the format of the panel discussion hardly involved the audience for the most part: each question was asked, the panel answered and we listened. Only at the very end of the night was the audience invited to ask questions and even then I think there was only time for two. Again, due to time constraints. There was so much to get through and everyone had already had their chance to participate by being invited to submit their question in advance of the day. It actually worked really well, Iā€™d just echo what others have said, there wasnā€™t nearly enough time for everything.
 
^^^^^
I was only joking Chris! I don't believe for a second, that Carpenters fans would literally come to blows over Karen's solo album...


... "Goofus", however... :jester:

Oh no, what you said was perfectly fine. I actually think if select members of a few of the Facebook groups out there celebrating the album were involved in a discussion like that, you very well MIGHT have some altercation. It's sad that there has been such a divisiveness over it to be honest. Had Karen's outcome been different, I think the overall dialogue would have gone another direction. Just my opinion :)
 
Had a great time, this was an amazing experience, unfortunately I didn't "connect" with many of you because I didn't know you by any name other than your "screen" name here. I asked numerous people "are you on the Carpenters A&M forum?" But only a couple said yes and they were not regular contributors, with the exception of one - and darned if I can remember his name here on the forums! We sat at the same table for the buffet dinner and panel discussion, and had a very nice conversation.

Karen's grave site was a somber, emotional experience. Richard selected a beautiful location for her/their resting place and the weather was perfect.

The hotel was nice but a bit disappointing; our room was right next to some remodeling they were doing and so we heard a lot of banging and machine tools. It's really unforgivable given all the effort made by the plumbers, drywall guys, and electricians, that another trade was missing.

:tiphat: HATS OFF to the amazing job the organizers did for this event; it was organized and packed with events and gatherings. Well done!


Hi David:
Bob Finholm here. I think that was me that sat at your table! LOL>> I was one of the two bald guys that sat down close to start time. I enjoyed talking with you, as well, and also loved hearing Tim's stories of working with them. Tim was the guy in the blue suit, if memory serves. It was great meeting you and your girlfriend, as well! I wish we'd all had more time to share stories.
 
Had a great time, this was an amazing experience, unfortunately I didn't "connect" with many of you because I didn't know you by any name other than your "screen" name here. I asked numerous people "are you on the Carpenters A&M forum?" But only a couple said yes and they were not regular contributors, with the exception of one - and darned if I can remember his name here on the forums! We sat at the same table for the buffet dinner and panel discussion, and had a very nice conversation.

Karen's grave site was a somber, emotional experience. Richard selected a beautiful location for her/their resting place and the weather was perfect.

The hotel was nice but a bit disappointing; our room was right next to some remodeling they were doing and so we heard a lot of banging and machine tools. It's really unforgivable given all the effort made by the plumbers, drywall guys, and electricians, that another trade was missing.

:tiphat: HATS OFF to the amazing job the organizers did for this event; it was organized and packed with events and gatherings. Well done!

Karen's grave site was a somber, emotional experience. Richard selected a beautiful location for her/their resting place and the weather was perfect.

Excellent comment David, I couldn't agree more...
 
For those interested, I uploaded a snippet of Saturday night's panel where Iā€™m demonstrating the Carpentersā€™ vocal stacking process. The event was taped professionally but this is taken from an iPhone. Still gets the point across I think...


Now....demonstrate the same thing for us with ā€œIā€™ll Never Fall in Love Again.ā€ It might take 20 minutes with all the stacking on that one but it would be well worth it! I love hearing stuff like this!!
 
Now....demonstrate the same thing for us with ā€œIā€™ll Never Fall in Love Again.ā€ It might take 20 minutes with all the stacking on that one but it would be well worth it! I love hearing stuff like this!!

Hahaha well with 13 parts overdubbed three times youā€™re probably right!
 
A take away from the last part of the bus tour; Friday April 26th. As we left the Hollywood Bowl and got back into the continual LA area traffic jam, Carpenters tunes were playing on the PA of the bus much to our delight. Many people singing along to the upbeat songs; Top Of The World, Please Mr Postman, Sweet Sweet Smile. A selection of songs from Karen's solo album were also played. As we transitioned onto the 101 Fwy westbound towards Thousand Oaks and our hotel, it was announced that the next and last stop on our journey would be the Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks Cemetery at Westlake Village. Randy Schmidt ,who happened to be riding on my bus for the last two days, would broadcast intros to the various sites we were seeing and relate the historical significance of the Carpenters to the site. He did his squib about the details of Karen's death and how she was first buried at Forest Lawn Cypress and then relocated to Valley Oaks. As he closed out his bit, the song Now immediately came on the PA. I almost "lost it", I had to fight hard to keep my composure. The buses left the fwy and parked at Costco (why they couldn't go into the actual cemetery I do not know), we snaked around and entered the front of the memorial park and made the long trek to the back of the cemetery to the Carpenter Mausoleum. The general mood of the gathering was not somber, sad, or depressed. It's what I would call "quiet reflection". Each one grappling with the enormity of loss that occurred on Feb 4 1983.

Not surprising, there was a a vast array of flowers, cards, stuffed Mickey/Minnie Mouses adorning the front entrance to the structure. Fans quietly waited their turn to snap a photo and awkwardly peer into the windowed entrance to get a glimpse/photo of Karen's final resting place, the marble that bier her signature and the words "A Star On Earth, A Star In Heaven". There was also a line of fans directly in the back where there is a much smaller window. This was the end of the tour, all the site seeing was over and we knew where it would end. In our own way, we paid our private respects to our beloved Karen; the greatest female pop singer who has ever graced this planet...


It you please, a few photos;



The Carpenter Mausoleum located on a gentle hillside in the back of the memorial park.



Fans wait their turn to pay their respects to Karen Carpenter.



The beautiful view from the Carpenter Mausoleum towards the southwest.
 
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The buses left the fwy and parked at Costco (why they couldn't go into the actual cemetery I do not know),

Hi, everyone. I can provide a bit of background information on the use of the Costco parking lot.

During the planning stages of the bus tours, the organizing committee anticipated that Pierce Bros. (not to mention the families of loved ones buried there) would not appreciate a couple of tour buses parking on the grounds of the cemetery.

We checked with a contact at Pierce Bros. and sure enough we were told to park elsewhere. Fortunately, Costco was willing to allow the 2 buses to park in their lot for a short time.

Admittedly it was a little inconvenient having to park next door, but doing so allowed us to keep on good terms with the folks managing the cemetery and more importantly it showed that we were trying to keep our visit dignified and respectful.

I hope this clarifies the reasons for parking at Costco. Feel free to private message me, if you have any further questions.
 
I found the walk through the cemetery grounds very pleasant and Iā€™m glad we did it. It was a beautiful day, a peaceful, relaxing place and the walk added to the anticipation of reaching Karenā€™s final resting place. Those of us who hadnā€™t visited before looked for her as we walked and saw her mausoleum perched on a hill in the corner from some distance away. It was very moving to see that sight. Ironically there is now an identical mausoleum to the right of hers, just a few feet away. I always thought for some reason that the one Richard had chosen was custom made.
 
Hi, everyone. I can provide a bit of background information on the use of the Costco parking lot.

During the planning stages of the bus tours, the organizing committee anticipated that Pierce Bros. (not to mention the families of loved ones buried there) would not appreciate a couple of tour buses parking on the grounds of the cemetery.

We checked with a contact at Pierce Bros. and sure enough we were told to park elsewhere. Fortunately, Costco was willing to allow the 2 buses to park in their lot for a short time.

Admittedly it was a little inconvenient having to park next door, but doing so allowed us to keep on good terms with the folks managing the cemetery and more importantly it showed that we were trying to keep our visit dignified and respectful.

I hope this clarifies the reasons for parking at Costco. Feel free to private message me, if you have any further questions.


Thank you for the explanation. As I look back on it now, all the better. Having two large tour vehicles actually in the site could've very easily ruined the whole reverent tone of the experience and of people not there specifically to visit Karen's site but that of their loved ones. I just thought it a bit odd at the time, believe me I am not complaining. I had the time of my life...

And also, once again, We can't thank you and the other organizers enough for putting on such a wonderful, memorable, emotional, informative, and FUN event!!:)
 
Would just like to add my thanks to Greg and the team for pulling this together. Despite the slight disappointment of RC not being around, it was a superb event. The organisers obviously worked extremely hard. The hotel was lovely, the coach tours were wonderful and the panel discussion outstanding. The programme and gifts are beautifully designed and new friends were made. Well done, all :)
 
The programme and gifts are beautifully designed

I forgot to mention, I thought the little gift left at each table place was a lovely touch. I didnā€™t take a photo but it resembles a giant commemorative coin inside a case, inside a black velvet pouch, engraved with the Carpenters 50th on one side and Karen and Richard on the other. I thought that was a really, really classy touch and I know others did as well. I attended the event on my own and when I was looking for somewhere to sit, I was told ā€œyou can sit wherever thereā€™s still a black velvet pouch in front of you on the tableā€. In other words, people had found a seat and snapped up their unexpected gift, even if they were still mingling! I really, really loved that.

Then of course, there were these as well...I was so engrossed in the panel discussion that I wasnā€™t lucky enough to snap one of these up :laugh:

 
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A take away from the last part of the bus tour; Friday April 26th. As we left the Hollywood Bowl and got back into the continual LA area traffic jam, Carpenters tunes were playing on the PA of the bus much to our delight. Many people singing along to the upbeat songs; Top Of The World, Please Mr Postman, Sweet Sweet Smile. A selection of songs from Karen's solo album were also played. As we transitioned onto the 101 Fwy westbound towards Thousand Oaks and our hotel, it was announced that the next and last stop on our journey would be the Pierce Brothers Valley Oaks Cemetery at Westlake Village. Randy Schmidt ,who happened to be riding on my bus for the last two days, would broadcast intros to the various sites we were seeing and relate the historical significance of the Carpenters to the site. He did his squib about the details of Karen's death and how she was first buried at Forest Lawn Cypress and then relocated to Valley Oaks. As he closed out his bit, the song Now immediately came on the PA. I almost "lost it", I had to fight hard to keep my composure. The buses left the fwy and parked at Costco (why they couldn't go into the actual cemetery I do not know), we snaked around and entered the front of the memorial park and made the long trek to the back of the cemetery to the Carpenter Mausoleum. The general mood of the gathering was not somber, sad, or depressed. It's what I would call "quiet reflection". Each one grappling with the enormity of loss that occurred on Feb 4 1983.

Not surprising, there was a a vast array of flowers, cards, stuffed Mickey/Minnie Mouses adorning the front entrance to the structure. Fans quietly waited their turn to snap a photo and awkwardly peer into the windowed entrance to get a glimpse/photo of Karen's final resting place, the marble that bier her signature and the words "A Star On Earth, A Star In Heaven". There was also a line of fans directly in the back where there is a much smaller window. This was the end of the tour, all the site seeing was over and we knew where it would end. In our own way, we paid our private respects to our beloved Karen; the greatest female pop singer who has ever graced this planet...


It you please, a few photos;



The Carpenter Mausoleum located on a gentle hillside in the back of the memorial park.



Fans wait their turn to pay their respects to Karen Carpenter.



The beautiful view from the Carpenter Mausoleum towards the southwest.


In a previous post, I had used the word" somber" to describe my feelings when visiting Karen's resting place. You have chosen a much better phrasing, and I agree completely; not somber as much as quiet reflection on exactly what you say - the enormity of the loss, in so many ways - to her family, the music, we fans, and Karen herself, whose life was cut far too short.
 
I forgot to mention, I thought the little gift left at each table place was a lovely touch. I didnā€™t take a photo but it resembles a giant commemorative coin inside a case, inside a black velvet pouch, engraved with the Carpenters 50th on one side and Karen and Richard on the other. I thought that was a really, really classy touch and I know others did as well. I attended the event on my own and when I was looking for somewhere to sit, I was told ā€œyou can sit wherever thereā€™s still a black velvet pouch in front of you on the tableā€. In other words, people had found a seat and snapped up their unexpected gift, even if they were still mingling! I really, really loved that.

Then of course, there were these as well...I was so engrossed in the panel discussion that I wasnā€™t lucky enough to snap one of these up :laugh:


!
Weren't those cupcakes amazing?!! I had a "Passage" cupcake. It looked so good I almost couldn't eat it, but I did!:) I agree, it was little touches like this that made the event so great. The organizers seemed to know what would delight us, and then gave it to us.
 
Hi David:
Bob Finholm here. I think that was me that sat at your table! LOL>> I was one of the two bald guys that sat down close to start time. I enjoyed talking with you, as well, and also loved hearing Tim's stories of working with them. Tim was the guy in the blue suit, if memory serves. It was great meeting you and your girlfriend, as well! I wish we'd all had more time to share stories.

Hi Bob, yes it was you - it was great chatting with you! And yes, Tim was the guy in the blue suit, directly to my right. Having worked with them directly several times, his stories were fascinating. He had invited my GF and I back to his room to see a few personal memento's he had brought, but alas, we got side-tracked by other events that required our attention and when we later went to look for him, couldn't find him.

The entire event was so much fun, great memories to have.
 
I forgot to mention, I thought the little gift left at each table place was a lovely touch. I didnā€™t take a photo but it resembles a giant commemorative coin inside a case, inside a black velvet pouch, engraved with the Carpenters 50th on one side and Karen and Richard on the other. I thought that was a really, really classy touch and I know others did as well. I attended the event on my own and when I was looking for somewhere to sit, I was told ā€œyou can sit wherever thereā€™s still a black velvet pouch in front of you on the tableā€. In other words, people had found a seat and snapped up their unexpected gift, even if they were still mingling! I really, really loved that.

Then of course, there were these as well...I was so engrossed in the panel discussion that I wasnā€™t lucky enough to snap one of these up :laugh:



My GF was kind enough to grab a couple of these delights for us and they were tasty! The images on them were a nice touch.
 
!
Weren't those cupcakes amazing?!! I had a "Passage" cupcake. It looked so good I almost couldn't eat it, but I did!:) I agree, it was little touches like this that made the event so great. The organizers seemed to know what would delight us, and then gave it to us.
Were the pictures edible too?
 
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