Robert Devaney • May 10, 2013

Georgetown’s latest hotel — The Graham — opened to the public May 3, after a series of top-drawer opening receptions. The 57-room boutique hotel boasts the only rooftop lounge — the 3,000 square-foot Observatory — in Georgetown that is open to the public. The hotel named its signature restaurant A.G.B. After all, Georgetown is the neighborhood where inventor Alexander Graham Bell once called home. The Volta Bureau, the non-profit he founded, is on 35th Street. Generating lots of favorable buzz, the Graham’s rooftop Observatory lounge has already gotten on a Forbes list of rooftops to check out.
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Robert Devaney •

Kintaro Japanese Restaurant Opens on 33rd Street

Kintaro, a 100-percent Japanense restaurant with sashimi, sushi, ramen noodles, bento boxes and more, has opened at 1039 33rd St., NW., in the former L. Chocolatier space. Run by Tetsuro Takanashi and Ken Yamamoto, Kintaro is open for lunch and dinner — 202-333-4649.

Cafe Capitol Prague Opens

While the restaurant Capitol Prague is yet to open, its companion cafe is open for business — with coffee and strudels — near the restaurant at M and Potomac Streets. The restaurant should be open in June, managers said.

Max’s Best Ice Cream Loses Lease to Rocklands

Glover Park is losing its beloved ice cream shop, according to Glover Park Hyperlocal: “The owner of Max’s Best Ice Cream (2416 Wisconsin Ave.) received verbal notice last fall that his lease would not be renewed, says Raymond Ruppert, Jr. president of the Ruppert Real Estate property management firm. The reason: ‘Basically, Rocklands wants to expand, and they’re an older tenant.’ Rocklands indicated that it always wanted to expand but expected to do so only when Max’s was about to retire.

Govinda Gallery Space to Become a Yoga Studio

According to discussions at the latest meeting of the 2E advisory neighborhood, the former Govinda Galley space at 1227 34th Street, NW, will become a yoga studio with another nearby shop to be used for selling yoga merchandise. The multi-shop complex at the corner of 34th and Prospect will continue to have a dry cleaner and a hair salon, as their leases run through a few years from now. (Owned by Chris Murray, Govinda Gallery continues as an online business, closing its 34th Street location two years ago after decades of groundbreaking exhibits, including rock ‘n roll photography, and noteworthy receptions.)

CorePower Yoga Opens on Jefferson Street

But, wait, there’s more: CorePower Yoga has opened at 1055 Thomas Jefferson Street. The company explains: “the two-room yoga studio features a range of amenities, including changing rooms with showers and private lockers. A full retail boutique will showcase men’s and women’s yoga active wear and accessories for all of your yoga and lifestyle needs.”

Shell Gas Station Opens With Watergate Prices

After a fire ruined and closed the Georgetown Auto Shop and Washingtonian gas station at 1576 Wisconsin Ave., N.W., the intersection now is home to a Shell gas station, operated by Roland Joun, who used to run the Watergate Exxon. The high gas prices at the Shell station at Q Street and Wisconsin Avenue reflect its Watergate heritage. [gallery ids="101282,149511,149505" nav="thumbs"]

Robert Devaney •

Walk into the contemporary Prospect Street home of Jack Davies, and you are struck by a impressive bachelor pad which has a lofty view of the Potomac River and Washington landmarks. But Davies has not been a bachelor for many years and has put his shiny, super-cool, fun perch in Georgetown on the market–likely because he wed Kay Kendall last June 15.
“We’re oldlyweds,” Davies quipped. At the end of a seven-year courtship, he popped the question to Kendall in April last year atop the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. “I really was surprised,” she said. “I was not expecting it.” Davies said, “I got bonus points for the location.”

Both married before, Davies and Kendall tied the knot in the living room. They have been moving between their homes since and decided it was time for a new place of their own together.
Each an A-lister philanthropist after years of careers and raising children, Davies and Kendall represent one of Washington’s unique species: the power empty-nesters who appear to be working and playing as hard as ever and use their business savvy and money to foster non-profit goals. Theirs is a love story decades in the making. They met in 2000 through Katherine Bradley and were surprised by their complementary and common interests as well as mutual friends, some regularly seen at major charity galas.

Kendall is known around the city as the former board president of the Washington Ballet. She now works with CityDance, which has programs in D.C., Maryland and Virginia, and THEARC (Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus, run by Building Bridges Across the River) in Anacostia. “I love CityDance and THEARC,” she said. “Both are involved in transforming people’s lives and have great leadership.”

Davies is best known as the founder of AOL International as well as that guy who puts the inflatable hockey player or Santa Claus on his rooftop, easily seen from Canal Road and Key Bridge. Well, he is a co-owner of the Washington Capitals — now hot into the playoffs — by being a partner with Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which owns and operates the Capitals, Wizards and Mystics as well as the Verizon Center and Patriot Center. “The Stanley Cup playoffs involves white-knuckle stuff,” Davies said. “There is a whole new generation of kids who have embraced hockey. And it’s every sports fan’s dream to own a team — and they’re my friends.”

“I love how graceful hockey can be,” Kendall said. And you know Davies has gone to more than his share of ballets.

Our story may seem as simple as the dancer who met the sports fan in a mirror image embrace that goes beyond synchronicity. Yet, there’s more to it — more than the fact that both spent summers at Martha’s Vineyard for decades, before ever meeting each other.

Their friends and acquaintances, sometimes co-workers, and fellow fundraisers include names like Bradley, Cafritz, Case, Casey, Fernandez, Johnson, Kogod, Leonsis, Lerner, Mars, Ourisman, Pollin, Rubenstein or Snyder (sorry to leave out some names; the list would be too long). These Washington heavy lifters and givers bring their lifelong passions to the public arena, most of whom focus on education to lift all boats. Along with those who simply volunteer, they represent the lifeblood of philanthropy in America.

Such pro-social motivators make for a naturally happy couple. Kendall said of her husband: “We play every day. I love his sense of humor. He is someone I trust. I feel very safe with Jack.

If there’s a problem, he’ll fix it. I admire him. He is startlingly nice.” Davies said of his wife: “She’s beautiful, of course, but it is beauty from the inside. She is game to try anything. We laugh a lot. She enjoys life. I love her joie de vivre.”

Like many Washingtonians, the couple arrived from elsewhere: she from Chattanooga, Tenn., by way of Memphis with a son and daugh- ter and a husband who worked for President Jimmy Carter. Kendall’s father owned an oil and gas company in the Southeast and named it for her — Kayo Oil Company.

“Like everyone, I stayed,” Kendall said. “When the Carter Administration was over, I wanted to connect to older Washington — not the political part.”

A literature major at Hollins University and dancer in her early years, she stayed with dance, and it led to her years with the Washington Ballet. “I have been an American mother for foreign dancers,” said Kendall, who has also been involved with the Maret School. Now, it’s CityDance and THEARC, “a great state-of-the- art faculty. I’m so proud of what they’re doing in that part of town.”

At her 65th birthday party, Washington Ballet Artistic Director Septime Webre told the Washington Post: “She’s fabulous. She combines a Michelle Pfeiffer elegance with a Jennifer Lopez party-girl sensibility.”

“Kay Kendall embodies Septime’s vision of ballet,” said Mary Bird, who covers the social scene for the Georgetowner and also gives of her time and resources to charities. “Her support of THEARC and other outreach efforts to bring dance into everyone’s life is admirable and to be applauded on toe shoes or simply by artistic support.”

Davies hails from Meadville, Pa., and is proud of his Midwestern roots. Meadville is home to Allegheny College, where there are Davies family scholarship programs, and is the hometown of actress Sharon Stone.

A University of Rochester marketing grad, Davies worked for General Electric, Citicorp in London and then RCA Europe. It was America Online that brought him to Washington. He interviewed with AOL co-founders Steve Case and and Jim Kimsey in 1993. He went on to found AOL International, “going from nothing to operating AOL in nine countries and over $1 billion in revenues worldwide in less than five years,” Davies said. “I spent a lot of time in an airplane.” He retired four days before the Time- Warner merger with AOL in 2000. “Timing is everything,” he smiled.

Soon enough, he turned to philanthropy, working with non-profit visionary Mario Morino and Venture Philanthropy Partners. Davies has worked there as board member and executive committee member: “Since 2000, VPP has raised over $80 million from over 70 families to invest in growth plans for high-performing non-profits in the national capital region.”

Davies said he felt guilty being so busy with work and family: “I hadn’t done enough to give back to the community.” Such prin- ciples came from his parents. His father — John
Llewellyn Davies, Jr. — owned a car dealership in Meadville, Pa., and then got into commercial real estate and set up programs for Allegheny College, which his mother Ellie Davies still oversees. His first job at 14 was washing cars for his dad’s business.

Along with Teach for America and CharityWorks, Davies is involved with the See Forever Foundation and the Maya Angelou Charter School, where a John L. Davies Media Center will be built.

“If I could wave a magic wand, I would want every child — and especially those from low-income families — to receive an excellent education from high-performing schools, staffed by outstanding teachers,” Davies said. “I believe that education is the only way we can break the cycle of poverty in our society.”

And it looks like this couple — along with lots of help and other work from their Washington friends — are indeed starting to fracture that cycle. And the key to the best non-profits? “Great leadership,” Davies and Kendall said together.

If you doubt the Force is with them, consider the 1952 film “Curtain Up,” starring English actress Kay Kendall, which included a screen- writer by the name of Jack Davies. Spooky.

As for spooky movies, it should be noted that “Exorcist” author William Peter Blatty once owned and lived in Davies’s house. The home itself is about three doors from the famed Exorcist steps at 36th and Prospect. Neither Davies nor Kendall have seen the 1973 film. Webre did give Davies a copy of the movie script for the home.

Nevertheless, that great four-level man roost at 3618 Prospect Street will get another owner. Davies’s son Derek will miss his cool music- themed bedroom in D.C. The 25-year-old Davies has his own record label based in New York. “It’s a joint venture with Columbia Records,” Davies the father said. “His mother and I are very proud of him.” When Davies worked for RCA Europe, he dealt with the Eurythmics.

Kendall also has a son in the music business, Syd Butler, bassist for art rock group Les Savy Fav, and whose wife Amy Carlson is an actress on the CBS drama “Blue Bloods.” Kendall’s daughter Katherine is a dancer (trained with TWB), actress and photographer.

By the end of the year, the children will have to visit mom or dad in Kalorama, where Davies and Kendall bought a house together on Tracy Place.

Meanwhile, Prospect Street neighbors are asking: but who will inflate Santa Claus or the hockey player or Jack the Bulldog on the roof? Hey, they’re asking $4 million. It could be you with that great view, hot tub and inflatable. Give Davies’s friend and real agent Mark McFadden of Washington Fine Properties a call. Luke Russert just bought Matt Donohue’s old place next door.

“What I love about the neighborhood is its energy,” said Davies, whose place is across from 1789 Restaurant and, yes, almost next to Georgetown University.The couple can handle it. The night before their interview and photo shoot with the Georgetowner they saw Rihanna at the Verizon Center. Not bad for a guy, 63, and a gal, 68.

“We’re very blessed,” Davies and Kendall agreed.
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Robert Devaney • May 2, 2013

A unique dance theater premieres “Once Wild: Isadora in Russia” at Georgetown University May 3. Its multi-disciplinary outlook seems infectious as different kinds of people have come together to make the debut a success, as if moved by the spirit of Isadora Duncan.

To celebrate the opening, raise some funds and get the word out, an April 20 benefit was held at the home of Colman and Richard Riddell with neighborhood boosters along with members of the performing and visual arts communities. It was unique in itself with Word Dance Theater founder Cynthia Word performing for the guests and sculptor Claire McArdle offering her art for auction to assist the group.

The innovative performing arts company Word Dance Theater joins forces with Georgetown University’s Davis Performing Arts Center and award-­winning stage director Derek Goldman to produce the multi-­disciplinary theatrical collaboration, “Once Wild: Isadora in Russia.” Written by Helen Hayes Award-­winning playwright Norman Allen with original music by renowned composer Dominik Maican, and choreography by Cynthia Word (“Preludes: Duncan, Sand and Chopin”), “Once Wild” steps across creative boundaries to offer a bold, new vision of seminal artist Isadora Duncan, her work and her years in Bolshevik Russia.

The storyline: At the invitation of the Bolshevik government, Isadora Duncan and her adopted daughter Irma arrive in Russia determined to ignite its children’s minds and bodies through a new school of dance. Immersed in the revolutionary spirit, Duncan created some of her most groundbreaking work and faced some of her greatest personal challenges. Seen through Irma’s eyes, “Once Wild” explores Duncan’s Russian years, her romance with poet Sergei Esenin and her lasting legacy.

The central role of Irma Duncan, Isadora’s adopted daughter, will be shared by actress Kimberly Schraf and dancer Ingrid Zimmer. Philip Fletcher, known for his work with Synetic Theater, portrays volatile Russian poet Sergei Esenin, and Cynthia Word dances the lead role of Isadora.

“Isadora Duncan changed forever the way we think about dance and, thus, the way we think about theater,” playwright Allen said. “She broke the rules. It’s exciting to be immersed in a creative process that attempt to do the same.

“Cross-­discipline work breaks through the isolation of individual art-­forms. It challenges even the most collaborative of artists to work with unfamiliar tools, and to communicate with new artistic vocabularies,” choreographer Word said. “Because of the challenges inherent in the process, cross-­discipline work is also extraordinarily rich in possibility. It reflects a broader shift of consciousness toward global thinking, conflict resolution and problem solving that we feel throughout the culture. Perhaps most important, the work models our own belief in the capacity of the human spirit to be continuously reborn through hacks of creation.”

“The piece we are creating speaks to the connection between individual artistic vision and global politics,” said director Goldman. “By introducing us to Irma Duncan, one of Isadora’s disciples and adopted daughters, the piece engages questions about teaching, memory and revolution — and about how personal and artistic legacies are passed on from generation to generation, particularly in the ephemeral art form of performance.”

“Once Wild: Isadora in Russia,” co-­produced by Word Dance Theater and Georgetown University’s Davis Performing Arts Center Performance (Gonda Theatre), Friday and Saturday, May 3 and 4 at 8 p.m., Sunday, May 5 at 2 p.m. 37th & O Streets, NW. Tickets: $25, general; $18. faculty, staff, alumni, senior; $10, student. For tickets, visit performingarts.georgetown.edu — or call 202-687-­ARTS-2787. (Post-­performance reception on May 3 and discussion with artists on May 4.) [gallery ids="101273,148510,148481,148505,148487,148498,148494" nav="thumbs"]

Robert Devaney • May 1, 2013

W.T. Weaver & Sons owner Jim Weaver, 81, died April 24 at Georgetown University Hospital of complications from kidney cancer.

Founded in 1889, W.T. Weaver & Sons opened as a hardware store and is a fourth-generation Washington, D.C., business, providing ornamental hardware and other high-end household fixtures for residential and commercial projects and serving architects, designers, contractors and homeowners. It is located at 1208 Wisconsin Ave., NW.

A wake for Jim Weaver will take place, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., April 30 at National Funeral Home, 7482 Lee Highway, Falls Church, Va. A 11 a.m. memorial service is planned for May 1 at St. Luke’s Catholic Church, 7001 Georgetown Pike, McLean, Va. A private burial is set at Oak Hill Cemetery on R Street.

Speaking of his father, Mike Weaver who runs the business with his brother Bryce, said, “He loved everything about Georgetown.”

Retired Georgetowner publisher David Roffman learned of Weaver’s passing and had this to say about his friend: “Jim was a longtime champion of the mercantile interests of Georgetown, having served for years on the board of directors of the Georgetown Business Association. He is fondly remembered for almost single-handedly — along with Tim Jackson of Swensen’s Ice Cream Parlor and Arnie Passman of the Georgetown Lamp Gallery — organizing and staging the wonderful Georgetown parades that were held each September as part of the Francis Scott Key Star-Spangled Banner Celebration. Jim and his beautiful wife Peggy were always upbeat and cheerful and a delight to be around. I feel fortunate to have known him.”

The Georgetowner will update with additional details as they come it. Look for an appreciation in the May 8 Georgetowner. Visit the Citizens Association of Georgetown’s website — CAGtown.org/OralHistory — to read an interview of Jim Weaver.

Robert Devaney • April 25, 2013

“We look forward to working with Boston Outdoor Recreation as they continue on the tradition of providing a valuable service to visitors,” said the National Park Service’s Rock Creek Park Superintendent Tara Morrison said in a press release. “Visitors to the newly renamed Key Bridge Boathouse will find the same or similar services offered as before.”

With those words, Jack’s Boathouse is gone. The NPS awarded the new contract in March. “At some point, you can’t fight the Feds,” said Jack’s Boathouse owner Paul Simkin earlier this month. The new boathouse opened April 20. As for Boston Outdoor’s commitment to hire all of the old Jack’s Boathouse employees, that prom- ise appears to have hit a snag.

Meanwhile, the NPS continues its study of a new boating facility on Potomac in Georgetown.

The NPS states:
“The National Park Service is examining the feasibility of implementing a non-motorized boathouse zone along the District of Columbia’s side of the Potomac River waterfront upstream of the Georgetown Waterfront Park. This study represents an opportunity for the NPS to identify specific ways to enhance access to the river for user groups, as well as complement the riverside experiences provided by the Georgetown Waterfront Park and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park. This is particularly challenging, given that there is limited space for and a high amount of demand.

“The NPS will be studying what structures and facilities can be accommodated within this non-motorized boathouse zone that are related to waterfront, access to the river, and are con- sistent with the necessary and appropriate uses for this zone. This study will lay the ground- work for future decision-making regarding (1) scenarios for development/improvement of NPS facilities and (2) further planning and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)/National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) compliance as necessary to implement the non-motorized boathouse zone.”

The NPS will host a public meeting on this study, May 22, from 6 to 8 p.m., May 22, at the West End Public Library, 1101 24th St., NW. For more information, contact: Tammy Stidham, National Capital Region at 202-619-7474 or tammy_stidham@nps.gov.

Robert Devaney •

The terrorist Boston Marathon bombings on April 15 were a horrific shock to those on the scene and across America. Our prayers are with the dead, maimed and injured. The racers will return.

For two Georgetowners, the marathon and its after-effects were personal and shocking, of course.

Marsha Ralls, a business leader and owner of the Ralls Collection, ran the race until its last miles just as the bombs went off.
“I was at Mile 22 and saw all the runner looking at their phones,” Ralls said. “That was unusual, to say the least. At Mile 23, they told us they would stop the race at Mile 24. I did not yet know there had been a bombing.”

“My first reaction to all this is anger and shock,” Ralls said. “I will go back in honor of those killed.”

For runners tired, but happy to be close to the finish, “it was emotional,” she said. “No one could reach me at first. I didn’t know anyone’s number. Next time, I will have my boys’ numbers on me. My friends were going to the finish line to meet me.”
It was doubly emotional for Ralls, as she was running “for my mother and a little boy who died.”

The Boston Marathon is a race for elite runners. Ralls was stopped at Mile 24 with her time at 4:04. She is pictured at the top of Heartbreak Hill, about four miles from the finish line. Ralls plans to return for a third time to the marathon: “I am with you, Boston, and will be back next year.”

For Ryan Samuel, co-owner of Booeymonger’s on Prospect Street, the race was over in just over three hours. He had run with a friend, keeping his pace. The two were back in their hotel by the time of the bombing. Samuel, too, was angry and shocked but had no doubt the marathon would continue next year.