Published On: Wed, Nov 30th, 2016

Barrys Buzz – Dec.16, 2016

barry blue        

     Bring the kiddies tomorrow night to downtown Boca for the street parade including a new four car train on display for the first time.

      Financial adviser Marc Allen Brown has filed to run for Mayor as a Republican, which may be illegal as City Council races are non-partisan.

      A former financial adviser from Boca Raton will have to pay $1 million for the cost of searching for him after he faked his death at sea. But Richard Winsor Ohrn, 46, won’t have to go to prison. He was sentenced Tuesday to a year of probation. He and his wife are selling their Estuary Drive home, which has an assessed value of $550,000, and Ohrn has agreed to pay his half of the proceeds to the government. He must also pay $400 per month in restitution.

    President-elect Donald Trump is planning to name investor and former Goldman Sachs executive Steven Mnuchin as Treasury secretary, opting for an industry insider with no government experience to helm the agency in charge of the nation’s finances, according to people familiar with the matter. Mnuchin (pronounced mah-NEW-chin) joined Trump’s whirlwind campaign in May as finance chairman, despite the fact that he has never worked in politics and that he donated to Democrats in the past. He quickly earned Trump’s trust as he worked closely with the Republican National Committee to raise substantial amounts of money in a short period of time. On the policy front, he was instrumental in crafting the details of Trump’s proposal to overhaul the tax code. Mnuchin is the latest member of Trump’s top advisers to secure a high-level and influential post in the coming administration, emphasizing the importance the president-elect puts on loyalty as he builds out his White House team, including Tom Price as Secretary of Health and Human Services.

           A shopping plaza in West Boca was evacuated after reports of shots fired. A gunman wearing a disguise to conceal his face vanished from a West Boca shopping plaza after causing frightened bystanders to scream and run for cover. Despite the scare, there were no reported injuries. Eric Lipson, 54, of Boca Raton, recalled being inside the Community Family Thrift Store at Boca Center, when two people ran inside shouting, “He’s got a gun!”. SWAT and deputies wearing tactical gear tried to find the gunman, but he got away. Authorities evacuated plaza, situated in the 23200 block of U.S. 441 (State Road 7), following reports of shots fired there. Shortly before noon, after the all-clear, customers and workers were allowed to go back to their businesses and vehicles. The gunman had first targeted Academic High School at 23123 N. State Road 7, demanding access to a safe. When he was told the school did not have a safe, he traveled down U.S. 441 to the nearby plaza, where he began trying to get inside businesses. The gunman approached a beauty supply store in the plaza, where two employees were working. They panicked and ran out of the store. Suspecting the gunman might still be inside, SWAT searched each business in the plaza. Deputies did not find the gunman in the business or at the shopping plaza. The thrift store manager locked the door and gathered about 14 people in the back room of the store, from where they called 911. The employees said there still was a customer in the beauty supply store when they fled. It took about 40 minutes for the Sheriff’s Office to evacuate those who had taken cover inside the thrift store. Scott Green, 57, of Boca Raton, said the experience was surreal. At one point, two beauty supply store employees showed up at the thrift store. Green recalled one of them appeared shaken. “She was terrified and shaking,” he said. A stretch of U.S. 441 near the scene was closed to motorists for most of the late morning. It was reopened shortly after 12:30 p.m. The Sheriff’s Office asks anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-458-8477 or by providing an anonymous tip through the sheriff’s app, which can be download from the Apple or Google app stores.

        Sister Act the Musical is at the Wick Theatre Nov. 25-Dec. 23. Tickets at www.thewick.org or 561.995-2233, becoming one of the top theatre venues of South Florida.

     The Hip Hop Nutcracker is at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, Tickets at www.broward Center.org call

     An American in Paris is at the Kravis Center Dec. 6-11 Tickets at www.kravis.org or 561.833-8300 celebrating its 25th year.

 Bad Santa 2, Bleed for this, Nocturnal, Rules Don’t Apply, Doctor Strange, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk and Allied, opens at the Boca and Boynton Cinemark theatres. Harry and the Snowman and The Eagle Huntress opens at the FAU Living Room Theatres. Allied and Rules Don’t Apply opens at the Classic Gateway Theatre. See http://www.publicrelations.nu/movie-capsules-barry-epstein-nov.16-2016/.

     West Boca Leaders is the best networking group in the area. One of a kind networking group. First and Third Thursdays. Next meeting is Dec.17, 2016, 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. Tulipe Café, Boca Grove Shopping Center on Powerline Road between Glades and Palmetto Park Roads. $60 per quarter. Fill out form on site if you qualify and bring $60 for fourth quarter. For more information or questions, call 561.702.0000.

        The Friends of the Boca Raton Library’s “Sunday Matinee Music Series” presents 33 YEARS band with Paula and Kevin Tolly, John Grillo, and Dr Robert Watson, Sunday, December 4th, 3-4pm, at the Downtown Library located at 400 NW 2nd Avenue in Boca Raton. Reservations are required.  Computer users need to enroll via the Library Event Calendar on the Library website, www.bocalibrary.org. Non-computer users may call (561) 807-7141 for enrolling.

     FAU Dept. Of Music December concerts include Handel’s Messiah is 7pm, Dec. 11, University Theatre. Conducted by Patricia P. Fleitas, Handel’s Messiah features FAU choral students past and present, in collaboration with the Delray Beach Chorale. Tickets: $20.

     My Son the Waiter is at the Mizner Park Cultural Arts Center in Mizner Park, 201 Plaza Real. Boca Raton. Call toll free, 1,844 HIT Show or visit MySonThewaiter.com.

    Tickets are now on sale for the Marmot Boca Raton Bowl game to take place at 7 p.m. on Dec. 20 at the Florida Atlantic University Stadium. The game will be broadcast on ESPN. It will be the third annual bowl game for FAU. Spectators will have a choice of seats, suites and for the first time a VIP section in the football stadium on FAU’s Boca Raton campus. Purchase tickets by calling the ticket office, 561-362-3650 or visit http://thebocaratonbowl.com/tickets or email tickets@thebocabowl.com.

    The big 31st Annual South Florida Singles Lifestyle Expo is back at the Pavilion Grille…..Sun. Nov 20, 2016………..3pm -11pm………..100 exhibitors, 1,000 attendees, seminars, speed dating, dance party…..free parking and admission………….305 448-7976….Al Barry……WWW.MULTI-EXPO.COM 

 Arlene Herson presents the Showtime Entertainment series and is master of Ceremonies.  Shows are at Spanish River High School Theatre. Thursday, December 8 at 7:30, Sarge and the Turnstiles, Thursday, January 26, at 7:30pm Julie Budd and Sal Richards.  Tuesday, February 14 at 7:30 Bobby Rydell and David Konig, Wednesday, March 15 at 7:30 Yavov Smirnoff.  Call 561-883-7760 for tickets.

    Gold Coast Tiger Bay Club presents California political comedian Eric Golub on Dec. 14. RSVP at http://www.goldcoasttigerbayclub.com/event/eric-golub-political-comedian/.

     My son the waiter, A Jewish Tragedy is Dec. 14-Jan. 29 at the Mizner Park Cultural Arts Center, 201 Plaza Real Mizner Park, Boca Raton. Show Times are Thurs. and Sat. 2 and 7:30, Fri. 7:30, Sun. 2 p.m. Tickets: 1-844-448-7469 or visit mysonthewaiter.com.

     Congratulations to all 2017 OPAL Awards Honorees. The event, which will take place January 14 at Boca West Country Club, will have the following as Honorees: Jordan Zimmerman, Arthur Adler, Yvonne Boice-Zucaro, and Peter & Carmel Baronoff. The OPAL Awards honor outstanding people and leaders that have contributed through volunteerism to make our community a better place to live, learn, work and play. Proceeds from the gala will benefit the Rotary Club of Boca Raton’s service missions including Youth Scholarship Programs.

     Dr. Robert Watson has a one-hour lecture describing the incredible untold story or the doomed ship in WWII followed by a book signing of his new book the Nazi Titanic, 3 pm Jan. 16 at Temple Shaarei Shalom, 9085 Hagen Ranch Road. Boynton Beach. $44 includes a signed hard cover copy of the book, ($26 Value), refreshments served. Register online at www.GrandEdventures.com or call 1.877.354.1077.

      Sun-Sentinel, The Forum, South Florida Business Journal, Palm Beach Post contributed to this column.    

    Barry Epstein, APR, is a noted public relations, marketing and political consultant based in Boca Raton, president of the goldcoasttigerbayclub.com, the luxurychamber.com, the westbocaleaders.com and the founder and former president of the West Boca Chamber of Commerce; His motto is: Public Relations is the enemy of anonymity. Email: pr@publicrelations.nu, or fax column items to 561.451.0000.  Read his blog on www.barry’s.buzz. His blog is also on bocatribune.com, facebook.com/BarryEpstein and on his website: publicrelations.nu.

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