The Battle for New Jersey's Soul

Look at Muhammad Ali hammering Chuck Wepner and you get an idea of what the media has done to New Jersey. The Bayonne Bleeder withstood a lot vs. Ali and even knocked the champ down during the fight, but for a more apt example, imagine if the media was Mike Tyson and New Jersey was Michael Spinks. That quick knockdown is what it's been like for New Jerseyans to defend against the media onslaught over the past decade.

The initial punches for this generation were The Sopranos. But it got a pass from many because it was fictional, well-written, on HBO and artsy, even though the opening credits were jabs to the gut. Then came the uppercut to the jaw, MTV's Jersey Shore, followed by the roundhouses: Real Housewives, Jerseylicious, & Jersey Couture. Everyone across America was watching the fight and the world viewed via satellite TV. Even Iranian secret agents who tortured dissidents were enamored by what they saw as exciting - fast forward to 42:25 to see.

But now comes a new round in the larger heavyweight fight. If you were on vacation, Snooki from MTV's Jersey Shore made $32,000 speaking at Rutgers University recently. Here were some students' reactions:

Snooki's Rutgers Appearance Raises Eyebrows

The story blew up because it was slightly more money than Noble & Pulitzer winning writer, Toni Morrison will make at commencement. (Although according to nj.com, Snooki's fee was split some ways by related parties). Some initially feared that Idiocracy was upon us; others noted she was a cheaper alternative to many higher profile and more expensive acts. Writers may have hopped on this bandwagon because local stories dried up; some are tired of it already. But it's significant. It matters because a punch has been thrown back.

A facebook event has been posted to counter Snooki's appearance and get The Boss to return to Rutgers after a very long 30 plus year hiatus. Additionally, a petition (that lacks the political overtones) was started.

If Springsteen comes to Rutgers, it would be bigger than just vindicating the University's image post-Snooki and after the tragedy of Tyler Clementi. It could be a winning round on the scorecard of a losing fight. It matters because what's going on at Rutgers could be a microcosm of New Jersey's overall pulse. Social media is being used to galvanize the grassroots and counter the media who have for so long used us as their punching bag.

Maybe Bruce will come. Maybe he'll play and not be political about how this came about (unlikely for The Boss these days).

But let's not underscore this: timing is everything.

The New Jersey-themed reality shows are mostly petering out. Their 15 minutes are up. Even Jersey Shore, a show that has staying power and whose cast just got big bonuses, is rumored to be ending after season 4. People will forget the shows, but the stereotypes will live on. A show by Bruce Springsteen on the campus of Rutgers would represent New Jersey fighting back, while these shows are still relevant to many.

Jersey guy Chuck Wepner went to round 15 with Muhammad Ali and became the inspiration for Rocky. We're calling for you Bruce. Make this matter.

More to Jersey - part II

This was published on youtube a while ago. Sorry for the delay. You should follow Steve on youtube too.

More to Jersey - part I

Even the Media knows it's an East-West line

New Jersey's hot right now. So hot, we'll be boasting five reality TV shows come summer (take that California and New York). The New York Times even had a recent article on this entitled, "Going to New Jersey to find America."

But when looking at the locations of these reality TV shows - seeing a divide is obvious. Let's call it, "The Media Divide."

In, New Jersey: the Movie, we theorized the cultural dividing line in the state wasn't North or South, but East and West. We drew the line, but also mentioned the historic Keith and Lawrence lines. If you look at a map of the Lawrence Line (giving East Jersey the least amount of land) and where the reality shows are located; they all fall into old East Jersey:

You could argue that this is merely a product of East Jersey's population being much larger. You could say that East Jersey just has more Italian-Americans, which all five shows focus on. And having the Zeitgeist of "Mayberry" with the voltage and excitement of New York City doesn't hurt either.

But as a half-Italian kid growing up on the west side of this line; I always wondered why big media never focused on us. Even looking at fictional shows like, The Sopranos, and oft-forgotten, That's Life and movies like Date Night and Kevin Smith's Jersey trilogy, East Jersey OWNS NJ's media portrayal to America and they always have.

And outside of films focusing on Princeton University, all the West seems to have is Boardwalk Empire - which will most likely have its fair share of New Yorkers anyway.

West Jersey people would most likely say that they would never parade their lives on camera for lowbrow television. Maybe it's the Quaker values . . .

But it begs a question:

Are people in East Jersey just more interesting?

If you had an idea for a West Jersey reality show - what would it be?

How New Jersey is viewed by America . . .

 . . . AND why I think the most underrated reasons people specify they are from SOUTH or CENTRAL or WEST Jersey is because of these:

I'm getting some North Jersey friends on this for some defense.

Have a good time down the shore this weekend!

Toms River - North or South Jersey?

Some people think this is funny that I'm even brining this up. 

But we have a screening in Toms River  at the Toms River Branch of the Ocean County Library on Tuesday March 31st at 7pm with the band, Save Pluto and if I wear my Eagles' jersey there, reminding fans that the Eagles defeated the Giants in January - I don't think I'll get a warm welcome.

Reasons for North:

-Pretty much New York/ NJ Sports' fans - unless you drive farther south toward LBI
-Closer to fly out of EWR than PHL
-It is a sub here
-Have you seen rush hour traffic at (and north of) exit 80?? Even in the winter!
-Nearby Seaside Heights unquestionably becomes North Jersey for 3 months in the summer

Reasons for South:

-It is Pork Roll here
-It has sand
-Look at a map!
-Even though it is closer to EWR, many residents prefer flying out of ACY

-South of exit 80 and you're in the Pine Barrens

Debatable:  I still hear w's slipped into words like "coffee" & "chocolate" here - even by locals (especially younger residents).

Roller Derby anyone?

Not totally about New Jersey - but there was a great article in the NY Times Magazine about the resurgence of Roller Derby across the USA.  Of this, there are many New Jersey roller derby girl teams and we included the Jersey Shore Roller Derby Girls in our documentary.  

Here are the Jersey Shore Roller Girls explaining the flat-track game:

Here are many New Jersey teams that you should check out:

South Jersey Shore - Boardwalk Brawlers 

North Jersey Shore - Jersey Shore Roller Girls

South Jersey - South Jersey Derby Girls

Newark - Garden State Roller Girls

New Brunswick - New Jersey Dirty Dames

Morristown  - Morristown Madams 

Skylands - Sisters of Mayhem 

Band feature: Mike Mullane & the Bayonne Bleeders

If you have read this blog before, chances are that you know about Bennys. Well, Mike Mullane (who is originally from Bayonne . . the "B" in B-E-N-N-Y") was an unlikely source to come up with the unofficial Benny Go Home (BGH) Anthem, I'm a Benny, but the tune has become a staple at the North Jersey Shore. His band, "the Bayonne Bleeders," are coined after the famous Jersey boxer, Chuck Wepner, who famously went all 15 rounds with Muhammad Ali, and even knocked him down in the 9th round (and was the insipration for Rocky). Here is a pic of the band with Wepner:

The band has more to offer than just "Benny" related songs, and one of my favorites is a catchy tune and nice ode to our friends, the Jersey Shore Roller Girls. You can listen to the songs here at their myspace site and Mike has recently re-located from Bayonne to the North Jersey Shore, making his lyrics in Benny's coda prophetic. Listen to the lyrics . . . very clever and funny if you've hung out in Manasquan, Belmar, or Seaside on the summer weekends. I definitely know a guy who got rid of his rear car seats to put in speakers and, yeah, he was a Benny.

Buy Official New Jersey: the Movie t shirts!

We just got our t shirts yesterday and are SOOO excited! FRONT:
BACK . . . and you can see that there is a checklist:

You can use a sharpie (but we recommend a fabric marker) and check off how North or South Jersey you are! My marks are NOT consistent at all. . .

Anyway, you may purchase these at this link, using Pay Pal, which if is safe and secure. The shirts are $12 and shipping and handling is $3.50. We are personally shipping to you ourselves, to cut our costs (so you may write me a badgering email if you don't get them in time). We really went out there to try and raise more money and the shirts are AWESOME . . . . so please click below. Thanks to Jason Higgins for helping me set this up!

http://nsjersey.synthasite.com/

1210am sponsored screening - Cherry Hill - SOLD OUT!

We are SOLD OUT for this Tuesday's screening in Cherry Hill. If you look at the post below - we don't see a dime of the ticket purchases - it is all about exposure at this point. . . and we thank 1210am the Big Talker for their exposure of our film.

The next screenings:

Wildwood by the Sea Film Fest - two screenings -

Fri. Sept. 26th - Time and place TBA

Sat. Sept. 27th - 1pm - Wildwood Convention Center - Venue 4 - Wildwood, NJ

For Wildwood - you can purchase tickets by calling the number here.

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Reel Jersey Film Festival - Williams Center - cinema 2 - Rutherford, NJ - 3:30pm - Sat. Sept. 27th

For the Reel Fest - You can purchase tickets via paypal here - then select individual event ticket option - if that's all you want to see. You can call the numbers on their website for more info.

My friends and colleagues: Andrei and Alena

The time is coming. With 3 screenings this month - we are wrapping it up here at New Jersey: the Movie. And I would like to take this blog entry, to give a shout out to my two colleagues (and friends) Andrei and Alena.

They have endured two straight near sleepless weeks putting their touches on the film and finishing our New Jersey cut to have it ready at an earlier time than any of us thought. Andrei even moved apartments yesterday and is busy trying to setup his new station to finish the magic touches this weekend. . . all while Alena helps out and remains the guiding force of this project. That's dedication.

The first cut is a 27 - 32 minute cut geared toward the people of New Jersey. A more general cut is being made for non-New Jerseyans . . . and if someone or company would like to buy and mass distribute the film in theaters and DVD (after they see it for themselves) in my perfect world - it will have to be one and a half - two hours to accurately fit in everything I would like. In a perfect world . . .

A little bit about them:

Andrei is Russian and is originally from Kazakhstan (yes, the same country as Borat). . . and, yes, he loves to say, "very nice." He is a graduate of Temple film school and had a very popular blog, My Life with Bad English, that got critical acclaim. Clicking on this post for instance - will show you how Andrei dreamed of coming to America ever since he was a child. And Andrei has fulfilled his dream by recently becoming a US citizen. He gets home from work everyday and uses his free time to edit this film. The little that I have been able to fundraise to pay him - is not really what he is worth. . . but he takes it with the knowledge that he is working on something big here at NJ: the movie.

Alena is also Russian, and a former roommate of mine from the Jersey Shore. When I found out she was a "media criticism" (I think) major originally I laughed, because if you know Alena - she is very opinionated about everything . . but possess the knowledge about a lot to back it up too. She is also a graduate of Temple film school and has worked for free, for the past year. . . again hoping that this project was worth it. When Andrei and I complain (it happens a lot), we complain to her. She takes it all in and still micromanages everything. She is the great - but will probably read this post and be mad that I left something out . . . but she still demands the best.

You can come down to Ponzio's in Cherry Hill on Tues. Sept. 9th at 7pm to meet us and see what we've done. It will be sponsored by 1210am - The Big Talker. We will hopefully be selling our awesome t-shirts and we will (I'm warning you) also be looking for any donations.

Your money goes to copyright lawyer fees, trying to get copyright clearances and film festival fees. . . and of course paying Andrei a little more for what he is worth. How could it be a film about New Jersey without Bon Jovi music? Or Bruce? If we can clear it all - it's in. If we can't afford to - Andrei will find something - but it won't be the same. Right now is a critical time for what will actually be able to be in this film. . . there are many other bands who have music too and must get proper credit, and they will be featured on future posts.

We are definitely at a pivotal time. You can even still donate and guarantee your name will be in the film. It is paypal secured. There is more too: CLICK TO SEE. It is the least we can do for you - for helping us make an enjoyable ode to our state. . .that we hope can be enjoyed by all, have parties thrown around and even used in the classroom.

But I invite you to come and see for yourself. Tuesday - 7pm - Cherry Hill will be the first of many screenings. . . you can meet us and we'd love to know that you are reading this blog too. And if you want to throw us a couple bucks, so I can keep what is left of my savings account and stop eating ramen noodles (it has been dinner the past two nights) it would be very welcome. Thanks to all of you for reading!

September at the Shore

Just because "the unofficial end of summer" is now over, doesn't mean that it is reason to stop enjoying the Jersey Shore. Each town usually offers something unique until the end of October.

There is LBI's Chowderfest for one.

Also, did you know that I have been editing videos about the South Jersey Shore for author, Jen A. Miller? It was all shot in one long day to complement her book, The Jersey Shore: Atlantic City to Cape May.

She has her reasons for not including LBI. (I will point out that South Jersey Magazine doesn't include any of Ocean County in its publishings).

The last video, about Cape May, will be posted on her blog by mid-September. Below is the latest one - but remember - I'm not a professional editor . . . I just did her a favor because she did many for us and the film! Thanks again Jen! Buy her book!

Rocket Power Shoobies

Have you ever watched the Nickelodeon show, Rocket Power? They are kids who live in a beach town in California and mention outsiders, or shoobies often. The spreading of this term is quite interesting . . .

Bennys vs. Shoobies

You might have heard two different names that shore locals give to tourists: Benny and Shoobie. But at the Jersey Shore - they're divided too. You can read our interview on NJ.com's shore blog about this.

But, the above map is where the beach locals are divided. In the North (blue) they call tourists - Bennys. In the South (red) they call tourists - Shoobies.

Shore Locals to adopt Philly customs to separate themselves from North Jerseyans?

Just like hipsters in 2002 embraced Pabst Blue Ribbon . . . thereby starting a trend, the same thing could be happening at the North Jersey shore with sports teams. Allow me to elaborate first:

I got a lot of flack when I put up the sports' loyalty line. Mostly they were from Monmouth and Ocean County people - who continue to insist they share no possible common traits with the dreaded "Bennys" from North Jersey and beyond - though people in Burlington County and south would strongly disagree.

An interesting observation is that this "Benny" thing is becoming so ingrained into the Shore population's consciousness, even little kids are on board and you also heard about Belmar's mayor. To me it parallels the rise of groups like Benny Go Home who are championing the cause of locals at the shore, and are getting a much bigger and loyal following in the past couple years.

They're very articulate guys with interesting views on how visitors affect the shore: from abuse of eminent domain to cyclical trends on the decaying and revitalizations of shore towns, and how tourists fit into these equations. But other locals have taken the "word use" to a different level - claiming it relates to only guidos or all non-beach people. They have hijacked it, in some cases, and applied it to all North Jerseyans and Staten Islanders, amongst others. . . where the guys at BGH just define it as rude tourists from anywhere.

But now there has been more of an effort from some shore locals to separate themselves further from those up north - after my "pale attempts to paint them as brother and sister" as one reader wrote in. Some have emailed me that the shore sports teams are different. Where in North NJ - the Giants, the Yankees and Rangers are the teams du jour, at the Shore they would much rather follow the Mets and Jets - like Long Islanders - but split when it comes to their home state and have the strongest showing of support for the New Jersey Devils.

But more and more people have tried to hint that they also support the Philly teams (some claim it was their parents), like the Phillies and Eagles and Sixers (but not the Flyers) and like using the word hoagie recently because of the abundance of Wawas.

This weird, but noticeable trend in emails and comments to my posts have brought up this question: Like those hipsters who fueled PBR's comeback - could the people at the North Jersey Shore, whom I consider to be on the cutting edge of NJ culture - because of the great music scene and the skate and surf culture there - actually start to think it is cool to adopt some South Jersey/ Philadelphia customs to truly and finally separate themselves from the Bennys once and for all? Being that the word has seemingly become synonymous with North Jerseyans and New Yorkers, could it be something that could happen there?
Not likely . . . . "the city" will NEVER be Philly to the North Jersey Shore people . . . but watch out for other interesting developments there.

What is Central Jersey culture?

If you were to google "North Jersey" or "South Jersey" you can find many quizzes or other lists that start like . . . . "You know you're from North/South Jersey when . ."

There are others that say, "You know you're from New Jersey when . . . ." also.

But I have yet to find one that says "You know you're from Central Jersey when . . ."

Now if some of you think it is hard to convince me there is a Central Jersey, let me tell you that with one of our consultants; it is even harder. This person asked me today, "What is Central Jersey culture? If it is just a mish-mash of the two (North and South). . then I don't call that culture."
OK, and this has no bearing on our line and could be attributed to my native Mercer county pride, but I countered this person and told them that there is no bigger cultural difference in New Jersey than going from Mercer to Burlington. The cable changes, the sports loyalties go from mixed to solid Philly and the newspapers change (somewhat . . still Trenton papers, but the Star Ledger and Philadelphia Inquirer seem to flip flop) and even some voting patterns change.

But my consultant brought up a good point. What IS Central Jersey culture? I have written here before that Monmouth and Mercer county have little in common. I mentioned Kevin Smith (a Monmouth native) in my last posting. And when Clerks came out in 1994 - that movie might have well been set in a foreign country. I didn't know people who tawlked like that and really couldn't call it my Jersey (though I did love the street hockey on the roof). Chasing Amy (a movie I LOVED) also was different. Smith made it seem like every New Jerseyan just hops into "The City" easily; but during my college summers, I was much more likely to go to Philly than New York.
Hence my confusion and feeling like the South Jersey people were never fairly represented when people spoke of New Jersey.

Then, I moved to Margate City after graduating and had people tell me I was from North Jersey. When I argued, they cited the the fact I was an NJ Devils' fan and noted "those long-winded politicians in Trenton." Alas, I had to agree there was a faster pace of life in Mercer compared to Atlantic and even Burlington (that I mentioned earlier) . . .

So, after all of this rambling - the question still remains. What is Central Jersey culture? I challenge readers to come up with a quiz or posting . . . to answer this.

PS - It is acceptable to also say that there is no Central Jersey.

Why Jersey Pride is unfashionable . . . for some

Below I attempt to dissect why New Jersey has a wounded self-confidence that is unrelated to its oil refineries, traffic jammed roads or power plants. . . . let me know what you think.
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In October, Jon Bon Jovi was the host of Saturday Night Live. One of his first sketches was portraying Carlo, who works two no-show construction jobs around New Jersey. The game show studio was "located" in Secaucus, NJ and the premise was that anytime anyone found something offensive, they had to buzz in and say, "Ohhhhhhhh" and then explain why it was wrong.

Fred Armisen's character noted that substituting velveeta for ricotta when making baked ziti was like spitting on his grandmother's grave.All of the characters as well as the host were Italian-Americans from New Jersey and even the girlfriend who came on, was a whiny Italian woman who did the unthinkable: insult Frank Sinatra to her on-and-off boyfriend, the game show host.
Even, before the Sopranos - this has been the image of the iconic New Jerseyan: Italian, working class and thus, uncultured. When Ashley Dupre was revealed to be New York Gov. Spitzer's call-girl, this was only strengthened. (Since her mother's last name was Capalbo - it is safe to say that Dupre has some Italian heritage).

If I asked you to imagine what the prototypical Jersey girl is - she'd probably be the North Jersey Italian (or many times Jewish) girl- as describe here, "the dumb brunettes." Even MadTV had a sketch known as "Jersey ladies" which helped popularize the image of the Jersey Girl. . . though they are somewhat more diverse here:

It is true that not every joke about New Jersey goes back to Italians . . some could argue that the cultures have mish-mashed so much that we're all uniquely "Jersey" now. But, I still argue that the image others have about New Jersey - starts with that usual Italian, North Jersey caricature.

New Jersey has the second largest ratio of Italian-Americans in the US and because of the media's romance with the mafia - this is the image that has endured. It has usually been the North Jersey working class guy - "who tawlks with w's when ordering cawfee and chaw-klate" even though some of the largest Italian-American populations in New Jersey are in Hamilton, Hammonton and Vineland.

It is of important note that most are already third and fourth generation Americans, many have married non-Italians and thus cannot even utter a word of the mother-tongue. (Your writer here is half Italian . . . ma parlo italiano abbastanza bene).

Not all the stereotypes are about Italians, true, but many have started there. However, despite these labels - New Jersey is one of the most diverse states in the nation. We are many cultures, religions and ethnicities and have benefited from them all. We have a vast array of awesome ethnic restaurants because of this. And if you ever check out the New Jersey tourism guide - you can celebrate many ethnic and religious holidays at very big festivals - and gorge yourself on the food that - let me tell you - you cannot get in many other parts of the US. And if you can, the quality is questionable. (My parents now live in Arizona and my dad begs me to bring a piece of pizza or a bagel back from New Jersey . . . we won't even get into Taylor Ham Pork Roll).

When you are right next to the most cultured city in the US, and on your southern half, you have the birthplace of the nation, you will automatically have a complex like you're not good enough. This is why many educated people from North Jersey will tell out-of-staters that they are from "the New York area" or their southern brethren will say they are from "the Philadelphia area" and cringe if they had to utter . . . New Jersey.

While this is going on - many of the blue collar people that I spoke about earlier will embrace the tag of saying, "I'm from New Jersey" along with the Shore people who usually don't try to escape the tag either.

So Jersey Pride has mostly been equated with blue-collar, working class culture (and thus unfashionable for many of the more educated New Jerseyans). And though many musicians like Springsteen, Bon Jovi the band and director Kevin Smith have embraced the state in the media - the bad taste for many remains.

So people fear saying that they are from New Jersey would have them labeled as a "Guido" or perhaps even, "The toxic avenger." And up North, there are those who shun it too and I would think it is why they would rather be Ranger fans than New Jersey Devils fans . . . but let's stay on topic.

I have seen many people at the shore changing this image, whether they meant to or not. They do not hide their Jersey Pride, and although they clash with the group known as "Bennys" - they do share something in common with those Bennys from New Jersey - Jersey Pride, though it may be of a different variety.

So I believe that part of our complex (not the part related to North Jersey being thought of as ugly) is that New Jerseyans, right or wrongly have been stereotyped so much in the media, the North Jersey mafia-tied, Guido guy and big-haired girls- that we seem like such a culturally distinct group - such as the Cajuns in Louisiana - but an undesirable one at that.

And those of us that don't fit under these labels - shun the state as to avoid being labeled unfavorably. In my experience is it certainly why South Jerseyans would say "South Jersey" or "Philadelphia-area" before saying "I'm from New Jersey." . . . They don't want to be called Tony Soprano.

But New Jersey does have culture. We have a tremendous amount of museums, theaters, concert venues and trendy downtowns to make most states jealous. The iconic New Jerseyan as portrayed in the media does exist. . . most stereotypes aren't invented out of thin air and yes, the state has a lot of corruption, but they do blur some lines.

Part of my project in this film has been trying to explore the many New Jersey cultures and find things besides Springsteen and Bon Jovi that unite us and give us all pride. Going here is a big part of that pride for sure. . . but what is Jersey Pride for you?

Down the Shore . . .

Here is some footage from last year . . . since I'm in a Shore mood with this weather!

Enjoy!

On the NJ.com Jersey Shore Blog

Click here or the picture to get to the article.

Is Asbury Park in North or South Jersey?

OK, I was shocked at how one-sided the Flemington votes were (88% North, 11% South) so I decided to go across the state - way across - to the beach. Bruce Springsteen had a great speech about what it means to be from New Jersey at the New Jersey Hall of Fame induction ceremony a week back. . . so I thought it appropriate to pick the town which inspired his first album cover, Asbury Park.

Arguments for North:

-Residents get all New York local news and sports' channels
-NJ Transit train lines to Newark/ New York go through the town (and south of it) . . . no --Philadelphia linked train line.
-Residents are New York/ New Jersey sports' fans . . . not a Philly fan in sight
-People fly out of Newark
-It is a "sub" here
-They call tourists "Bennys" not Shoobies

Arguments for South:

-They get some Philadelphia network affiliates - it differs slightly with cable plan*, but both get at least 3 -4 channels
-It is Pork Roll, not Taylor Ham
-There are an abundance of Wawas around, complete with Philly soft pretzels
-It is south of the Raritan River
-It's at the Beach . . so a completely different attitude than those farther north . . . many flip flops around during summer months.

*Asbury Park is split with basic cable, some residents get Cablevision, some get Comcast.