Latest news with #DelToro
Eater
5 days ago
- Business
- Eater
The Violet Hour, Chicago's Trailblazing Cocktail Bar, Has Permanently Closed
The Violet Hour won't reopen along Damen Avenue, ending an 18-year run. The news comes three weeks after owners at One Off Hospitality Group announced that the pioneering cocktail bar was closed indefinitely due to landlord negotiations over plumbing issues. There were faint hopes that Violet Hour could reach an agreement with its landlords to complete what the bar described as 'substantial' fixes. But that evaporated after 'extensive efforts and negotiations' failed, according to a rep. The bar opened in 2007 at 1520 N. Damen Avenue. It had been closed for weeks and was forced to relocate a recent pop-up event hosting Portland, Oregon's Scotch Lodge over the James Beard Awards weekend. 'The Violet Hour has remained an essential fixture in Wicker Park and a quiet icon on the national cocktail scene,' a portion of a statement from the bar reads. 'From the artists who painted our ever-changing facade to the bartenders who opened their own award-winning bars, we're proud of the role we played in sparking a cultural shift in how this city drinks and gathers.' The statement also teased that this wasn't 'the end of The Violet Hour as a brand,' and that customers 'may see us again somewhere down the line.' The closure pulls the curtain on a transformative time for Wicker Park, Bucktown, and One Off Hospitality. Violet Hour's opening predated Big Star's arrival across the street, where it replaced Pontiac Cafe & Bar, a dive with live-band karaoke and customers who sat on the patio. After opening the Violet Hour, One Off invested further in the area with the arrival of Dove's Luncheonette. In 2016, the group opened Publican Anker, a spinoff of the Fulton Market restaurant. Anker is now a Foxtrot. Violet Hour's landlord is Magic Carpet LLC, part of Newcastle Investors. Newcastle acquired the property two years ago. But even before Violet Hour, the space carried a history vital to the rise of Wicker Park as a restaurant and bar destination. One Off partner Terry Alexander ran MOD from 2000 to 2005. Del Toro would replace MOD with Alexander, handing the reins to Andrew Zimmerman, who went on to open West Loop icon Sepia. To locate the Violet Hour, customers would wander to an unmarked storefront, leaving their name and phone number for a call back. Queues would ruin the mystique and were discouraged. Murals from local artists covered the door, and once through the heavy door, past the check-in stand and curtain, guests would be whisked away to a candle-lit space with Mad Hatter chairs inspired by Alice in Wonderland . The neighborhood, then surrounded by dives slinging Pabst Blue Ribbon in cans, had never witnessed such a scene. The bar earned several accolades, and in 2015 won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Bar Program. The house rules became legendary. The Violet Hour discouraged cell phone usage, warned bros that Budweiser and Jägermeister weren't available, and — more importantly — demanded that customers 'not bring anyone to Violet Hour that you wouldn't bring to your mother's house for Sunday dinner.' But as Chicago's cocktail scene proudly embraced highbrow/lowbrow tavern culture with drinkers equally into cocktails with less familiar ingredients as they were with an Old Style and a shot of whiskey, Violet Hour didn't disappoint. This fancy cocktail lounge even served malört, albeit a knockoff version from Leatherbee, a local distiller. Violet Hour alum Brad Bolt would describe the experience in Josh Noel's Malört: The Redemption of a Revered and Reviled Spirit . Violet Hour's acceptance of malört accelerated the drink's recent resurgence. Bartenders in other cities, especially in New York, quickly took notice of Violet Hour's success. There was mild shock that a Midwestern city with a hard-drinking reputation could create sophisticated drinks. Violet Hour is credited as the originator of the Paper Plane and The Art of Choke, two standards featured on cocktail lists around the world. Bars, including Cure in New Orleans and the Silver Dollar in Louisville, were heavily influenced by the Chicago trailblazer. Bolt later opened the fabled Bar DeVille a few blocks south on Damen. He was just one of the bar's noted alumni. Bartender Mike Ryan took what he learned in Wicker Park and brought it downtown when Kimpton Hotels opened Sable Kitchen & Bar. The late Michael Rubel went on to Estereo. In Lincoln Park, long a neighborhood crowded by sports bars and recently graduated frat boys, Barrelhouse Flat brought classy cocktails to Lincoln Avenue thanks to Violet Hour alum Stephen Cole. Nandini Khaund brought her talents to Cindy's off the Mag Mile. Other notable alumni include Toby Maloney and Abe Vucekovich. The latter recently opened a new bar, Friends of Friends, with Alexander. Of course, the Violet Hour wasn't for everyone. Some customers writhed while waiting for bartenders to mix their drinks. There was a resistance to the rise of the mixologist. Parks & Recreation didn't call out the Violet Hour by name, but a memorable scene from the NBC sitcom used Illinois native Nick Offerman's Ron Swanson to protest esoteric drinks by having a 'cocktail' spritzed on his hands as if it were skin moisturizer. The fictional Indianapolis bar, Essence, specialized in 'molecular mixology.' See More: Bars Chicago Restaurant Closings
UPI
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- UPI
Benicio Del Toro: Imagination runs amok in 'Phoenician Scheme'
1 of 5 | Benicio Del Toro attends the photo call for "The Phoenician Scheme" at the Cannes Film Festival on May 19. Photo by Rune Hellestad/UPI | License Photo NEW YORK, June 6 (UPI) -- Oscar-winning actor Benicio del Toro says writer-director Wes Anderson meticulously plans every scene in his movies, but still welcomes input from his cast. "The approach is the same approach that I do on any movie I do. Just, I think, Wes wants you to be in the moment. He wants you to tell the truth, whatever that means," Del Toro, 58, said in a recent virtual press conference to promote his second collaboration with Anderson, The Phoenician Scheme, in theaters nationwide on Friday. "You have all this dialogue," Del Toro said, "but you can still bring a piece of yourself into it. And there's room for the imagination, too, to run amok. And you've got to have fun. Even if you're drowning, you've got to have fun." Co-starring Scarlett Johannson, Michael Cera, Bryan Cranston, Bill Murray and Tom Hanks, the espionage comedy is set in 1950 and follows Zsa-zsa Korda (Del Toro), an industrialist and arms dealer who wants to bring his estranged daughter Liesl (Mia Threapleton) -- a Catholic nun -- into his dangerous, top-secret business. It's Wes Anderson's world, we're just scheming in it. Focus Features (@FocusFeatures) June 6, 2025 "It's layered. It's full of contradictions, which makes it really yummy for an actor to try to bring to life," Del Toro said. "There is an element of my character wanting a second chance at mending a broken relationship. And I think that in the process in order to achieve that, he has to change and he does change. And I like to think that people can change. Not everyone changes, but I think some people can, and for the better." After previously working with Anderson on the 2021 hit The French Dispatch, Del Toro is used to the filmmaker's dense, quirky language. But, this time around, he has a larger role and a lot more to say. "There were a couple of moments where I went up to Wes and I said: 'Well, maybe we can take this dialogue out.' And, then, I went back to it and it wasn't as good," Del Toro recalled. "I had to go up to him and go like, 'I think you need to put it back because we're passing information that I think you need.' But that's why I couldn't join these people [in the cast] every day for dinner. I had to go up into my room and talk to myself." "You had a lot to say," Anderson agreed. "You took the time to absorb everything." Del Toro said another contribution he made to the project concerned Michael Cera's character Professor Bjorn, the tutor of Zsa-zsa's nine sons, who has a habit of sticking around when sensitive information is being shared. "I remember telling Wes, 'Well, I'm giving a lot of private information to my daughter and there is this stranger sitting right there. I feel uncomfortable as the character, giving all this information in front of a stranger. I'm telling her about my bank accounts and my everything, deals, with secrecy,'" Del Toro said. "Wes said to me, 'Well, we'll polygraph him.' And I went, 'Well, OK.' And, very quickly, he came up with this idea of a lie detector, which is a portable pocket polygraph," he added. "In 1950, it was probably the size of this building, but he made it into the pocket version." Despite the heightened reality, Anderson said this is essentially a father-daughter tale. "His whole business plan is really a mechanism for him to get back together with her," Anderson said of Zsa-zsa and Liesl. "He's acting like he's making her his successor and, really, it's more about what's going to happen between the two of them right now," Anderson added. "The business plan almost becomes like a ritual for him to be reunited with his daughter. ... In that sense, his plan goes great." Anderson first approached Del Toro about starring in this film after they wrapped up The French Dispatch. "I had a sort of the idea of a Euro tycoon, somebody who would've been in a [Michelangelo] Antonioni movie or something, that visual," Anderson said. "I did have this idea that he was probably hurting, that he was going to be in physical distress. Somehow, that was the image of this guy who you sort of can't kill." Over the course of time, however, this fictional man with a plan in a suit started mixing with Anderson's father-in-law Fouad Malouf, who, the filmmaker described as "an engineer and a businessman and he had all these different projects and different places." "He was a kind, warm person, but very intimidating," Anderson said. "He had all his business in these shoe-boxes. He walked [Anderson's wife] through his work at a certain point, because he thought if he is not able to see everything through, she needs to know what he's got. "And her reaction was what you say in the movie," Anderson turned to Threapleton, who immediately chimed in, "This is just crazy." "So, yeah, it was a mixture of those two things," Anderson quipped. "Fouad and whatever the first thing I said was."
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Guillermo Del Toro's ‘Frankenstein' Debuts First Teaser At Netflix Tudum
Netflix on Saturday unveiled the first teaser trailer for Frankenstein, Guillermo del Toro's long-in-the works adaptation of the 1818 literary classic from Mary Shelley, which is slated for release this November. In the upcoming film, Oscar Isaac stars as Dr. Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant but egotistical scientist who brings a creature (Jacob Elordi) to life in a monstrous experiment that ultimately leads to the undoing of both the creator and his tragic creation. More from Deadline Lady Gaga Closes Out Netflix's Tudum With Mesmerizing On-Theme 'Wednesday' Performance Featuring Viral Dance Lady Gaga's Cameo In 'Wednesday' Confirmed As Netflix Premieres Season 2 Footage 'Stranger Things': Netflix Reveals Premiere Date For Season 5, Split Into Three Volumes Known for his imaginative creature features, Del Toro has been working on his Frankenstein passion project for over a decade. At Tudum, he called it 'the culmination of a journey that has occupied most of my life,' adding, 'Monsters have become my personal belief system. There are strands of Frankenstein through my films.' Del Toro also touched on the importance of Shelley's work to his career in 2018, while accepting the BAFTA Award for Best Director for The Shape of Water, starring Sally Hawkins. 'The most important figure from English legacy is, incredibly, for me, a teenager by the name of Mary Shelley, and she has remained a figure as important in my life as if she were family,' he said. 'And so many times when I want to give up, when I think about giving up, when people tell me that dreaming of the movies and the stories I dream are impossible, I think of her.' Coming off his third Oscar win for Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio, another literary adaptation for Netflix, Del Toro's Frankenstein also stars Mia Goth (X), Felix Kammerer (All Quiet on the Western Front), Lars Mikkelsen (The Witcher), David Bradley (Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio), Christian Convery (Sweet Tooth), Charles Dance (Game of Thrones) and Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds). Del Toro directed from his own script and produced alongside longtime collaborator J. Miles Dale and Scott Stuber. Netflix debuted the teaser for Frankenstein during Netflix Tudum 2025: The Live Event, a preview of its upcoming slate streamed live from the Kia Forum in Los Angeles. Other films teased today included Happy Gilmore 2, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, and The RIP. Check out Del Toro's latest above. [youtube Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds 'Poker Face' Season 2 Guest Stars: From Katie Holmes To Simon Hellberg 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More
Edinburgh Live
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Live
First trailer for chilling Frankenstein adaptation filmed in Edinburgh
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info A first trailer has been released for Guillermo Del Toro's chilling Frankenstein adaptation, which was filmed here in Edinburgh. The movie, which is hitting Netflix in November, stars Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as Frankenstein's monster. Cast and crew took over the capital back in September. Mia Goth, who also stars in the film, was spotted with Del Toro on set by locals. Now, a trailer has been released - and it certainly sticks to the creepy vibe of Mary Shelley's classic novel. During filming, actors fully clad in period costumes descended to the Royal Mile. Parts of the Canongate were closed off for filming, with horse-drawn carts and actors sporting top hats spotted making their way through the Old Town. A group of actors were seen standing together in costume with what appeared to be blood-stained aprons - possibly a nod the gruesome story. Local photographer Peter Fraser managed to catch some snaps of the actors while they took their breaks. He told EdinburghLive: "Guillermo Del Toro, The Director was more than happy to pose for a photograph between sets of Frankenstein, on Friday September 13. "I also managed to some photographs of some other character actors and actresses, walking from one set to the next set, in period costume, giving a ghostly feel as they tread on Edinburgh cobbled streets once again. Sign up for Edinburgh Live newsletters for more headlines straight to your inbox "Guillermo Del Toro certainly brought the City of Edinburgh's past alive." Del Toro has previously spoken of his interest in Shelley's work. He said: 'The most important figure from English legacy is, incredibly, for me, a teenager by the name of Mary Shelley, and she has remained a figure as important in my life as if she were family. "And so many times when I want to give up, when I think about giving up, when people tell me that dreaming of the movies and the stories I dream are impossible, I think of her."
Dubai Eye
02-06-2025
- Sport
- Dubai Eye
Team Emirates-XRG makes history at Giro d'Italia
Crossing the finish line in Rome amongst the peloton, Isaac del Toro brought the 2025 Giro d'Italia to a historic close for the UAE Team Emirates-XRG - placing second overall on his debut. The Mexican cyclist becomes the second-youngest podium finisher in race history and the first from his country to ever win the young rider's classification. In fact, Del Toro is the first Mexican to ever wear the Maglia Bianca, adding this to a long list of accomplishments he has achieved over the last three weeks. It has been a stellar race for both the 21-year-old and his UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammates, all of whom took to the podium in Rome to celebrate winning the team classification. The Emirati squad end the first Grand Tour of the season with two memorable stage victories, taken by Juan Ayuso and Del Toro. The first, won by Ayuso on stage 7, saw the Spaniard triumph on the race's first summit finish, with his Mexican teammate crossing the line in second. It was a maiden Grand Tour stage victory for Ayuso, with Del Toro following suit in the third week. Through the next 11 days of racing, Del Toro came of age on the grandest stage, riding with a maturity beyond his years to have Mexico dreaming of its first Grand Tour success. In surpassing Fausto Coppi's record from the 1940 Giro d'Italia, Del Toro became the youngest rider in history to wear the Maglia Rosa for 11 consecutive stages. Ending the race with Del Toro on the podium, Brandon McNulty in 9th, victory in the team classification and a credible 7th place for Filippo Baroncini on stage 21, UAE Team Emirates-XRG can be proud of everything it has achieved between the Grande Partenza in Albania and Sunday's final stage in Rome.
