[nfb-talk] Fw: News Release: April 30, 2008 -- Erik Weihenmayer

Thu May 1 06:55:50 CDT 2008

Beth;
It reached my computer the first time.  Thanks.

Terry Powers

-----Original Message-----
From: Beth Wright [mailto:beth.wright at mindspring.com] 
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2008 11:58 PM
To: nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: [nfb-talk] Fw: News Release: April 30, 2008 -- Erik Weihenmayer

Sorry, the message didn't get through.

Beth
----- Original Message -----
From: Ben Witherell
To: 'Ben Witherell' 
Sent: Wednesday, April 30, 2008 11:20 PM
Subject: News Release: April 30, 2008 -- Erik Weihenmayer

      Weekend at Fort Smith,  Arkansas 
      BLINDSIGHT Across the USA

      One of the many promotions for the Youth Summit in Fort Smith.    

      Weekend of Weekends in Fort Smith

      Arkansas youth are getting ready to "rock the Arkansas river" and welcome Erik to Fort Smith on May 16-18.  This historic town on the old western frontier,  on the Arkansas-Oklahoma border,  is the site of an unprecedented youth leadership event,  hosted by Comprehensive Juvenile Services,  a community-based agency providing support services to at-risk youth.  Governor Mike Beebe serves as the Honorary Chair.  Erik will speak at the opening of BLINDSIGHT at the local theater that evening,  then deliver the commencement address to the local Greenwood High School.  On Saturday morning,  he will join the pro cycling Tour Arkansas as part of its 4-day Celebrity Classic.  In the afternoon,  at the Youth Summit,  he will speak to 1000+ young people from a tri-state area,  and be honored by local artists with a musical soundtrack and video presentation,  entitled Climb High.  The weekend will conclude at Signal Hill Summit,  Arkansas' highest peak,  where Erik will trek and rock climb with blind athletes from the Arkansas School for the Blind. 

      The motto for the "Summit" weekend comes from a passage in Erik's first book,  Touch the Top of the World:  "A summit isnʼt just a place on a mountain.  A summit exists in our hearts and minds.  It is a tiny scrap of a dream made real, indisputable proof that our lives have meaning.  A summit is a symbol that with the force of our will and the power of our legs, our back, and our two hands,  we can transform our lives into whatever we choose them to be, whatever our hands are strong enough to create."    

      BLINDSIGHT Openings Continue    

      This award-winning film is opening at theaters as follows:

      Portland OR    April 18    Hollywood Theater  (extended)

      Pittsburgh    April 25    Harris Theater

      Minneapolis    April 25    Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival

      Waterville ME    April 25    Railroad Square Cinema  

      Brookline MA    April 25    Coolidge Corner Theater

      Hartford CT    May 2    Real Art Ways Theater

      Aspen CO    May 3    Wheeler Film Society

      Roanoke VA    May 4    Grandin Theater

      State College PA    May 9    State Theater

      Minneapolis    May 9    Oak Street Cinema

      May 9    Grand Rapids MI    Urban Institutes for Contemporary Arts

      Carbondale CO    May 11    Crystal Theater (following the 5Point Film Festival)

      Kahului HI    May 14    Harold K.L. Castle Theater

      Ft. Smith AK    May 16    Ft. Smith Cinema 

      Beverly MA    May 20    Cabot Street Cinema

      Los Angeles    May 30   Laemmle Sunset 5 Theater

      Peekskill NY    June 12    Paramount Center

      Montreal    June 13    Cinéma du Parc

      Carlisle PA    June 13    Carlisle Theater

      Gainesville FL    June 20    Hippodrome Cinema

      Anchorage    July 21    Bear Tooth Theater

      From an article in the Denver paper:  BLINDSIGHT pays tribute to the teenagers' high altitude bravery, but their stories didn't end with their return to flat ground.  One of the girls is now overseeing Sabriye Tenberken's school for the blind.  Another has just graduated, first in her class, from a school that didn't even want to accept her because she was (blind).  Two of the ex-climbers run the largest massage therapy clinic in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, and another has become the country's leading Braille publisher.

      Theaters are being added on a regular basis.  We will provide updates through our News Releases, but please go to www.blindsightthemovie.com for a complete listing.  There is also an exciting 2-minute preview on the website.  For a full slate of reviews, go to http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/blindsight/.  

      Please send this News Release to your friends and family and encourage them to see BLINDSIGHT when it comes to your city.

      We are getting calls about bringing BLINDSIGHT to cities not yet scheduled, often in connection with an organization that would like to host an affair around opening night.  Please direct such requests to Ed Weihenmayer.  It would help if there is a specific theater which has expressed interest in engaging BLINDSIGHT for a commercial run. 

      Erik and the BLINDSIGHT climbers crossing penitenties in Tibet.  Erik's calls it a "blind person's worst nighttmare."

      Farther Than the Eye Can See,  which has won 20 film festival awards,  is now available in audio-desciption.  Copies are available through Ben Witherell. 

       Go to Touch The Top Website
      www.touchthetop.com

     * For Erik's Speaking Engagements: Leading Authorities at 202/783-0300; www.leadingauthorities.com 
      * For Books and DVDs:  Ben Witherell, 303/903-8824 or ben at touchthetop.com 

      * For All Other Matters:  Ed Weihenmayer at 904/321-1938 

      * Erik's Website www.touchthetop.com