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Restaurant at The Rhinecliff Finds Its Groove

By Kathryn Matthews As owners of the historic Rhinecliff Hotel, James and David Chapman—Englishmen and brothers—like to keep it fun. They spent five years and $5 million transforming the once dilapidated Queen Anne-style building into a nine-room boutique country hotel that re-opened three years ago.  But the rambunctious

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Community

20 Questions for 'Playdate' Author Thelma Adams

Thelma Adams's just published novel, Playdate (Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin's Press) is more than a comedy of manners about living the good life in Southern California. It's an affectionate and empathetic portrait of a house husband, whose dirty little secret is how much

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Community

RI's Second Annual Holiday Poem

Deck the Halls and Share the Bounty Greetings friends in Litchfield County. Hark to folks who hail from Dutchess, And Columbians, as much as, Those from Berkshire, self-possessed, We share a land, for which we're blessed. Not just in this festive season, But year ‘round, and with good

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Community

Community: Spreading the Love

We hear it every day, "I love Rural Intelligence."  And though we never tire of it, lately we find ourselves wondering, how can we turn all that good will into something more concrete, something that benefits both Rural Intelligence and the not-for-profits that play such a key role

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Community

Twenty Questions for Hudson's Brightest Light: Trixie Starr

Trixie Starr is getting her act together and taking it on the road. The wonder woman who masterminded the first annual Hudson Pride Parade last June has teamed up with actor and musician Tom Judson for Christmas with Tom & Trixie: Is That All There Is?, which promises to be

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Community

The 25th Annual Pine Plains Parade of Lights

If you're going to wait out in the cold for a parade, it better be worth it and the Pine Plains Parade of Lights did not dissapoint. For the past 25 years, the beginning of the Christmas season is heralded by the parade of fire trucks, hay wagons,

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Community

Feed Thy Neighbor: Sunday in the Country Food Drive

It's a few days before Thanksgiving, and Dave MacMillan of Millerton is already thinking about Christmas. "We'd like to be able to distribute Christmas turkeys and food baskets to every family who wants one," says MacMillan, whose not for profit group, Sunday in the

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Community

Art for Animals: More Than A Rock and Roll Benefit

Cultural correspondent Bess J.M. Hochstein reports: Lovers of animals, food, art, and music converge in Hudson this Friday as Club Helsinki hosts Rock ‘n Roll Rescue, a star-studded benefit for Art for Animals, an organization dedicated to helping animal rescue groups and educating young people about humane issues through

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Community

RIP Jill Clayburgh: A Good Neighbor, A National Treasure

In northwestern Connecticut, you become accustomed to seeing Broadway and Hollywood stars without their makeup. At the post office and polling place, you see actors and actresses who are frequently nominated for Tony, Emmy and Academy Awards. These men and women rarely get gossiped about in tabloids because they live

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Community

Gay & Arty: LGBTQ Exhibitions in Hudson & Pittsfield

The Hudson renaissance has always had a gay subtext with so many of the antique dealers, shopkeepers and home restorers being gay.  But it wasn't until this spring when the drag queen/event planner Trixie Starr organized (in just two months!) the first Hudson Pride Parade  that the

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Community

20 Questions for Millerton Sportswriter Peter Richmond

Peter Richmond's love for professional football the-way-it-used-to-be is clear from the books he writes. Last year, he co-wrote with Frank Gifford The Glory Game: How the 1958 NFL Championship Changed Football Forever, which made The New York Times best-seller list. Now, he's written a book about

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Community

Berkshire Forum : A Three Day Think Tank Debuts in Pittsfield

The Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield is being turned into a Think Tank called The Berkshire Forum from September 14 -16. Tina Chase and Mary Collins George—veteran organizers of the Gilder/Forbes Telescom Conferences who work out of offices above Tom's Toys in Great Barrington—are bringing together

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