Talking Business: Star-struck city treasures ‘National Treasure’

By Dan Daly, Journal staff | Thursday, May 03, 2007

Previous Page

Share

• del.icio.us
• Digg
• NewsVine
• Fark

Print

Email

JetBlue, the popular discount airline, began daily service to Rapid City on Wednesday.

OK, it was only one day of daily service to Rapid City.

In fact, it was just one flight, a big chartered jet that landed at Rapid City Regional Airport to pick up the cast and crew of “National Treasure: Book of Secrets.”

The airport staff, like about everybody in town, had a “National Treasure” story to tell.

Movie-star sightings abounded as the “National Treasure” crew wrapped up more than two weeks of rain-interrupted filming at Mount Rushmore and other locations.

Jon Voight was seen having coffee at Alternative Fuel downtown. Harvey Keitel reportedly had dinner at Botticelli’s. And film folks were swarming around the Radisson Hotel for two weeks.

And area tourist attractions, never known to miss a good promotion opportunity, made the most of it.

Last week, after some of the actors showed up at Bear Country USA to see the bear cubs, Bear Country immediately sent out a news release.

And Johnny Brockelsby at Reptile Gardens weighed in with his own “National Treasure” story. He said Nicolas Cage and his wife showed up at the attraction shortly before closing time on Thursday.

He said Cage asked if there was time to see Reptile Garden’s Komodo dragon. He got a complete after-hours tour of the whole facility.

After seeing Maniac the giant crocodile, Cage remarked, “That’s the most magnificent creature I have ever seen, and I’ve traveled the world.” (This is from Brockelsby, who is — by the way — director of public relations. However, he didn’t get a picture.)

And the following night, actor Justin Bartha and girlfriend Lydia Hearst (fashion model and daughter of Patty Hearst) got a tour of Reptile Gardens, as well.

Bartha, who plays Nicolas Cage’s sidekick in this film as well as the original “National Treasure,” has an interest in reptiles, Brockelsby said. This time, Johnny snapped a photo of the couple.

New gallery features Dakota images

Most people know Joe Lowe the firefighter. Former Gov. Bill Janklow brought him out from California to set up and operate the South Dakota Wildland Fire Division. With several hot, dry summers in a row, Joe Lowe has been a very busy guy.

But fewer people know Joe Lowe the fine-art photographer. He took photography in college, but that was pushed to the back burner by a 32-year career in firefighting.

In recent years, his scenic Black Hills surroundings have rekindled his interest in photography. He started shooting photos again.

“Now I get to use my creative side,” he said.

Although he’s not giving up his day job, the photography has kindled Joe’s entrepreneurial side. He and wife Wendy have opened a downtown Rapid City art gallery.

Reflections of South Dakota officially opens Friday at 507 Sixth St. The grand opening open house will be from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on the same day.

It’s a small gallery, but they’ve packed a surprising amount of art onto its colorful walls.

There are original paintings by Dorothy Snowden and Mick Harrison. And of course, there a number of original photos from Lowe. There’s ceramic pottery, decorative gourds and a number of prints and reproductions. There’s even some furniture pieces - with wood salvaged from the Battle Creek Fire - and other home furnishings.

The gallery even has T-shirts with reprints of Don Montileaux.

It’s in a key location, halfway between Hotel Alex Johnson and Prairie Edge Gallery. That one-block stretch of Sixth Street is sort of the bus-tour corridor. In summer, bus tourists stroll from the hotel to the gallery each night after dinner.

The gallery basement will serve as a classroom, where Lowe will teach photography workshops that begin in the basement and conclude in the outdoors. Other artists will be invited to teach at Reflections of South Dakota as well.

Normal hours at the gallery will be from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, call 341-3234.

Rapid Spa is back at the mall

Rapid Spa, the local dealer that moved into a big showroom on East Omaha Street a few years ago, has opened a new retail shop in the Rushmore Mall.

The new shop opened its doors in the Sears concourse, right across from Old Navy, last month, reports Rapid Spa’s Tara Reub. She said the space used to be home to KB Toys.

Rapid Spa had a mall presence three year ago; in fact, it was in the spot now occupied by Old Navy. The company is by no means giving up its big Omaha Street showroom, the former Harley-Davidson dealership.

“We also wanted to be back in the mall,” she said. “We feel we can serve our out-of-town customers a lot easier from the mall.”

You can shop for spas or billiard tables, but you can also pick up spa chemicals and supplies.

For more information, call 348-0520.

Workshop staffer gets back to roots

Black Hills Workshop is no longer in the greenhouse business. The service for disabled workers got sold it about the same time it got out of the aluminum-recycling business two years ago, Susan Norskov said.

Norskov, who worked at the greenhouse and is still a workshop employee, and her husband, Jim, bought the business. They run it as a private enterprise, named Roots Greenhouse.

They have a relatively new service: people can bring in pots to have them filled with an array of living, coordinated and fertilized flowers.

She said the new service has been popular among older residents who like the color of potted plants but not the mess and work of planting.

Pots range in size from 10 to 14 inches, she said. If a pot is too large, Roots can deliver.

The address is 3609 Range Road. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m,. seven days a week, while supplies last. For more information, call 484-4475.

Music studio opens in Black Hawk

Rejoice Music Studio, a new business that offers piano and voice lessons, has opened in Black Hawk’s Steel Horse Plaza, 8000 Black Hawk Road.

Owner Debra Hardrick has been teaching music since 1994. She launched Rejoice Music Studio four years ago in California. She and her husband moved to the Black Hills recently.

She said they were looking for peace and quiet that was elusive in California. And they wanted to be closer to their son and daughter-in-law, who are in the Air Force and stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base.

Debra said she decided to move her business with her.

For more information, call 415-3854.

Talking Business appears Thursdays in the Journal. Contact Dan Daly by telephone at 394-8421, by fax at 394-8463 or by e-mail: dan.daly@rapidcityjournal.com.