Fluff up the feather boa. Locate the leopard-print pants. Pull out the poodle skirt. It’s time for HonFest, when thousands of visitors descend upon Hampden for two days in June to dress up as Baltimore’s favorite icon—the Hon—and pay tribute to working-class women of an earlier era.

Supporters love the glamour of wannabe Hons as they parade along 36th Street in colorful attire, some preparing to enter Baltimore’s Best Hon contest—this year’s 30th pageant—with others just enjoying a chance to put on a costume of sorts.

Bonnie Hockstein—Hon name: Bonnie Marie Shiksakowski—saw HonFest on TV in the late ’90s and knew she wanted to be there. Her mother, Dorothy “Poopsie” Bucci, was the epitome of the women being celebrated. Bucci, who passed away in 2020, had been a longtime waitress at celebrated restaurants of yore like Haussner’s and Obrycki’s and later worked at the Dundalk crab house Ruggiero’s until she was 80.

“I wore her waitress outfit,” Hockstein says. “I did it as an homage to my mom.”

Hockstein, who now organizes the main-stage entertainment for the festival, being held June 10 and 11 this year, sees HonFest as a celebration of the women who worked at service jobs like cleaning houses and waitressing while their husbands and boyfriends served in World War II and the Korean War. If they had kids at home, the women would take in laundry and sewing for some extra income.

“My mother would call it ‘go-to-hell money,’” Hockstein says. “It was the beginning of women’s liberation.”

But not everyone is enamored with an event that seemingly celebrates a white culture in a neighborhood that was once an enclave for white, blue-collar Baltimoreans. Even Baltimore’s beloved “Pope of Trash” John Waters has dismissed the Hon culture that he helped to popularize, telling The Baltimore Sun in 2008 that “it’s used up” and “condescending now.”

At one time, Waters incorporated the Hon image in some of his movies, most notably in his 1988 film Hairspray. The original movie, which later became a musical and then a film again, featured teens and women of the early ’60s wearing exaggerated beehive and bouffant hairstyles. In the movie, the late Baltimore star Divine played the larger-than-life character Edna Turnblad, who delivered the line, “Fetch me my diet pills, would you, hon?”

Over the years, “hon,” a shortened version of the endearment “honey,” has secured a place in Baltimore’s lexicon.

“You used ‘hon’ because you didn’t know everyone’s name,” Hockstein says.

With the right accent, it’s pure Bawlmerese, a dialect that originated among the city’s white, blue-collar residents. Whatever its pronunciation, Waters told The Sun that he’s done with the word and the Hon image: “I used to say, ‘Come to Baltimore and you would see people with those hairdos.’ You no longer see that. They’re dead or in nursing homes.” The years haven’t softened his stance. When asked recently about the Hons, he said, through an assistant, that he feels like he’s already shared his opinion about the Hon phenomenon and has nothing fresh to add.

The Hons are also in a bit of a tussle with Waters. “He thinks we’re appropriating his characters. We think he’s appropriating our characters,” Hockstein says. “We go back and forth. It has never been settled.”

David Puglia, who wrote Tradition, Urban Identity, and the Baltimore “Hon”: The Folk in the City (Lexington Books, 2018), sees Hon folklore as a way for people to have meaning in their lives and create a group identity.

“It arises to meet an inferiority complex,” he says. “Baltimore, in my opinion, is often in the shadows of New York and Washington, D.C. It used to be one of the United States’ major cities. Perhaps not anymore, and so because of that, there appears to be in the celebration of Hon culture a way of calling attention to what makes Baltimore distinct or special.”

HonFest started benignly enough in 1994 when Denise Whiting, owner of the now-closed Cafe Hon, held a small pageant to find Baltimore’s Best Hon during Hampden’s annual Summer Fair. There were six contestants. “I always loved beauty contests,” Whiting explains. “The whole Hon thing harkens back to a softer time. It’s all those good, solid memories you have of growing up and watching your grandmothers and aunts.”

Whiting was also following, as many Baltimoreans were at the time, the escapades of a mysterious man dubbed “The Hon Man,” who would hang a sign saying “Hon” next to the “Welcome to Baltimore” sign on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, so it would greet motorists with “Welcome to Baltimore, Hon.”

Some officials and residents took offense, complaining that the moniker was patronizing to women as well as exclusionary to Black people. Others, like Sun columnist Dan Rodricks, supported Hon Man’s gesture. So did Whiting. “I did a petition to leave it up,” she says. She also put the word “Hon” on coffee mugs and had them delivered to Maryland elected officials. “It was something to talk about,” she says. “It was fun. It was celebrated.”

 

“THE WHOLE HON THING HARKENS BACK TO A SOFTER TIME.”

 

In 1996, Whiting, 64, parted ways with the Hampden Summer Fair, which folded the following year, and moved her festivities to Cafe Hon’s back parking lot, branding it HonFest. By 2002, the festival, which was drawing more visitors each year, spread out to Hampden’s main street—36th Street, or The Avenue as it’s known—to accommodate the hordes of people.

Whiting received a lot of support over the years. When city inspectors badgered her to pay a hefty fee to keep the 30-foot pink-flamingo structure on her restaurant building, Baltimore citizens rallied around her in 2009, organizing a protest by staking smaller plastic pink flamingos in the ground at War Memorial Plaza. While John Waters titled his 1972 movie Pink Flamingos, the signature Baltimore lawn ornaments became popular years earlier. Instead of going to Ocean City to vacation, the newly working women of the mid-20th century would use their extra money to go to Florida, bringing back as many plastic birds as they could. They put them in their yards, so neighbors would know they could afford to visit the Sunshine State, Hockstein says.

While Whiting got to keep her giant flamingo, she had another idea that didn’t endear herself to many Baltimoreans. She trademarked the word “Hon,” planning to use the term to her commercial advantage. When word got out in 2010, protestors marched outside Cafe Hon. The restaurant’s business dropped 20 to 25 percent, according to a Sun article. British celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay showed up with his Kitchen Nightmares crew, embarking on a redo of the troubled Cafe Hon and Whiting’s reputation. Whiting eventually offered a teary apology on MIX 106.5 FM and gave up her trademark in 2011. She acknowledged at the time, “Trademarking the word has not only almost killed me but has just about killed the business.”

Despite the unsettling hiccup, HonFest continued that year without repercussions. And even Cafe Hon’s closure in April 2022 hasn’t deterred the annual ode to Hons from proceeding.

“I didn’t realize HonFest was going to happen even though Cafe Hon is gone,” says Mary Rizzo, author of Come and Be Shocked: Baltimore Beyond John Waters and The Wire (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2020). “At first, I found HonFest really fascinating because of the contradictions that it represented. I loved the kitschiness and campiness of the people dressing up like Hons and competing.”

But Rizzo, who started going to HonFest in 1999 when she was working on her dissertation about class identity in the United States and how people mold their class identity through clothes and fashion, also found the concept more complicated.

“This was a neighborhood going through a transition, a demographic transition that you might call gentrification,” she says. “As working-class people were being pushed out or were leaving the neighborhood or were passing away, they were being replaced by middle-class and upper-class people, who were then taking on the sort of costume of the working class.”

Rizzo says today’s working-class people in Baltimore don’t fit the typical image of the Hon of the past since Baltimore is not a majority-white city anymore.

“There have been changes to who competes for the Best Hon title and who participates in HonFest,” she says.

Baltimore rapper, songwriter, and philanthropist Anthony Parker—aka Wordsmith—never expected to perform at HonFest in Hampden.

“I never felt like it was a festival where I would be wanted or that I would want to go to,” he says. “Prior years, the Black community has not been represented.”

But this year, the hip-hop artist, who is also an artistic partner with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, is looking forward to taking the stage on June 11. It will be his first visit to the community, thanks to the efforts of Hockstein and HonFest emcee Judy Templeton to make HonFest more inclusive.

“They see that there’s been a void for years in inviting the Black community, and not just the Black community but all of Baltimore to feel welcome to HonFest,” says Wordsmith, 43, who has lived in Baltimore for 25 years. “I see two women who want to do the right thing. They see where we are in America right now, and they’re trying to do what they can to open people’s eyes.”

Hockstein, who doesn’t want to reveal her age, and Templeton, who gives her age as “timeless,” have been working steadily to broaden the festival’s reach.

“When we talked to Black men and women in the community, it turned out they were afraid to come to Hampden because it still had a white feeling that they didn’t necessarily feel a part of,” Templeton says. “We want to start changing that.”

She also realized that the festival had a stereotype of being about only white women. “But women who contributed in Baltimore were many different races and had their own stories,” she says.

Templeton, who grew up in a rowhouse on the west side of Baltimore, attended her first HonFest more than a decade ago and found herself in the Best Hon contest that day. She made it to the top 10 but didn’t win, though she was later picked Baltimore’s Best Hon 2021. HonFest founder Whiting named Templeton and Hockstein, crowned Best Hon 2020, as reigning title holders while the event was on hiatus during the pandemic. “We both share an extreme love for Baltimore,” Templeton says of Hockstein. “We feel as passionate now, because there’s more work to be done.”

One success was convincing Naomi Burrell, an African-American mother of three who was raised in West Baltimore, to come to HonFest in 2017. “That was my first time when I was invited,” says Burrell, who met the two women at the Baltimore Flower Mart. “Everybody was there to have a good time.”

Templeton and Hockstein eventually encouraged Burrell to enter Baltimore’s Best Hon contest. She was resistant for years but succumbed to the two Hons’ pleas last year. “I don’t know what made me agree,” Burrell says. “I guess it’s because I trusted them.”

 

“PRIOR YEARS, THE BLACK COMMUNITY HAS NOT BEEN REPRESENTED AT THIS FESTIVAL.”

 

She went on to win the crown in the competition, during which the top 10 contestants are picked on Saturday and then come back on Sunday to perform a talent and discuss their goals to make Baltimore a better place. On the first day, Burrell, inspired by the lemon stick, a classic Baltimore treat, wore a dress splashed with print lemons, accessorizing with a red- and-white headband with a bow and matching gloves. On stage, contestants were asked to say a Bawlmerese word. Burrell’s word was “tin foil” (yes, aluminum foil).

“Growing up in Baltimore, this was a no-brainer,” she says with a laugh. “Tin foil, you wrap your food in it.”

On the second day, she serenaded the audience with Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds,” wearing a Caribbean outfit that included a grass skirt and lei. She chose Baltimore’s hidden treasures as her platform.

“I’m a Baltimore native, and there is so much here that people don’t know about,” she says.

When the judges announced her name, Burrell, 40, experienced a range of emotions, from shock to joy. She wasn’t the first POC winner—Hockstein says there were two previous winners of color: one Native American, the other from a Black and Italian background—but Burrell appreciated its significance.

“It’s why my win is so important,” she says. “Hons are from all cultures, especially African Americans. I’m grateful we’re getting to a place where we’re being included.”

Chris Riehl, a longtime Baltimore tour guide who also sings at the festival, will be judging this year’s contest for the second time.

“It’s more than big hair and outfits,” he says, describing what he looks for in a winner. “It’s a combination of energy, creativity, spirit, and enthusiasm, and how they will find ways to make Baltimore better.”

Besides the adult contest, two other pageants are held during HonFest: Lil’ Miss Hons for ages 3-7 and Honettes for ages 8-14. The youngest Hons don’t compete for a title. Instead, each youngster is given a crown and a goodie bag.

The organizers were still deciding at press time about whether to select a Honette winner this year. They have in the past, but they feel like the contestants have been through enough after COVID. Still, they look for future Hons among the group—an effort to stave off the belief that the Hon is a dying breed. “We do recruit them,” Hockstein says.

And why should Baltimoreans care that the tradition continues? Well, first and foremost, it’s a fun event, but the HonFest Hons aren’t just about dressing up for two days in June. There is a philanthropic arm called Hon Hive, where participants donate their time and talents to various causes like Baltimore Station, a residential treatment program for veterans; Hampden Family Center, a community program that offers support groups, youth activities, and other services to area residents; and HER Resiliency Center, which helps women between the ages of 18 and 25 who may be facing domestic violence, sexual exploitation, substance abuse, and homelessness.

The Hon Hive also engages in outreach by performing at events throughout the year. “We get to do fun things,” says Templeton. “Our goal is to connect Baltimore, so it’s not just one little pocket here or one little pocket there.”

A criticism that’s been leveled against the Hons is that out-of-towners, who have no connection to Baltimore and Hon culture, are adopting a Hon persona when they attend the festival, which, to some, seems insincere. That accusation doesn’t bother the Hons at all.

“The tourists love us,” Hockstein says. “We invite everyone. We’re diverse and inclusive.”

Editor’s Note: After this piece was published, Hotel Revival’s Virtual Happy Hour scheduled for Friday, June 12 was unexpectedly cancelled.

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EAT

June 14: Bake Sale for Black Lives Matter

Peabody Heights Brewery. 401 E 30th St. 1-4 p.m.

This weekend, you can quell sweet-tooth cravings while supporting the Black Lives Matter movement. The Charm City Night Market is partnering with Peabody Heights Brewery to raise money for two local organizations including Black Yield Institute, a Cherry Hill-based initiative that works to end food apartheid, as well as the Baltimore Action Legal Team, which provides legal support to those protesting against racial injustice. Chef Cai Lindeman from Noona’s will be running the sale at the brewery with options from local favorites including Codetta Bake Shop, Bramble Baking Co., Dutch Courage, Black Rock Orchard, Red Emma’s, and True Chesapeake Oyster Co. To limit contact at the bake sale, you can buy virtual vouchers in advance to redeem for your goodies of choice. If you can’t make it out, donations are also being accepted online.

DRINK

June 12: Hotel Revival Virtual Happy Hour

Instagram Live. 5-7 p.m. Free.

After a long week, there is no better way to unwind than with your favorite summer cocktail or an ice-cold beer. While we’d love to enjoy our drink of choice in-person at Hotel Revival’s upstairs garden bar, tuning in to this virtual happy hour from your cozy couch or breezy porch is still a worthy way to start your weekend. Head to the Mount Vernon hotel’s Facebook or Instagram account to bump along to beats spun by DJ Trillnatured and turn your living room into a dance party of your own.

SEE

June 12-21: Maryland Film Festival’s Virtual Fest

Times and prices vary.

For all of the film buffs and cinephiles out there—this Friday the Maryland Film Festival is bringing the big screen to you. Although the Parkway Theatre is temporarily closed due to COVID-19, the show must go on, and this year the annual movie event is going virtual. Unlock access to 17 feature films and 15 short films or browse the website and buy individual tickets to the movies you know you can’t miss. TT the artist’s Dark City Beneath the Beat will kick off the festival and explore Baltimore City through its club music and dance scene. Don’t forget the popcorn!

HEAR

June 12: Lafayette Gilchrist Trio Streaming Concert

7 p.m. $5.

There’s nothing like listening to live music, especially when it’s coming from acclaimed pianist and local legend Lafayette Gilchrist. This Friday, An Die Musik will stream a performance by Gilchrist alongside his jazzy trio as a part of the venue’s quarantine concert series. The group will be previewing their new album Now, ahead of its October release. Get your tickets and listen to Gilchrist and his fellow musicians use their instruments to confront social issues, such as police brutality and wealth gaps, affecting Baltimore.

DO

June 13-14: Virtual HonFest

11-4 p.m. Free.

Not everyone’s got what it takes to be one of Baltimore’s Best Hons, but if you’re fluent in Bawlmerese and no stranger to a wash-and-set hairdo, you may just get the gold. This annual festival honors the working women of America, but especially the working women of our cherished Charm City. No need to go downy Hampden, hon—this year the competition is virtual. Don your Bawlmer fashion and snap a picture to share on social media using the hashtags #HONfest2020 and #SaferatHomeHON to have your shot at local fame. Just remember, the higher the hair the closer to god.

You study U.S. history. What struck you about Baltimore’s identity in particular that made you want to write this book?
I’d been studying HonFest for a few years when I got the idea for this book. About a decade ago, I was being filmed for a reality TV show pilot about a group of Baltimore Hons, which was a surreal experience. But even though the show never got picked up, it made me realize that Baltimore had a cultural meaning. It meant something to people, even those who had never been there. Culture was part of what defined that.

This was solidified for me in 2016 when former Baltimore Mayor and Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley ran in the Democratic primary. It seemed like someone at every debate and interview asked him about The Wire, a fictional TV show about Baltimore’s drug trade. This cultural text about Baltimore had become the image of the city, so much so that it affected national politics. I wanted to dig into how that happened historically.

How did you get involved with HonFest?
I learned about HonFest through a documentary film about social class in America called People Like Us in 1999. At the time I was in grad school, studying class identity and culture and was fascinated by HonFest. I went that summer. Back then, HonFest was more a regular neighborhood festival, rather than the behemoth it is now. But it still had the Best Hon competition in which women dress up as Baltimore Hons, or white working-class women of the 1960s. That year, and for a few years after, I interviewed Hons, business owners, neighborhood residents, and people on the street, trying to understand this phenomenon of reviving this kitschy history while Hampden was gentrifying.

While I’m critical of how HonFest simplifies Baltimore’s history to make it palatable for tourists, through this research I got to know some of the Hons, like Rita Moore, Heidi Moore Trasatti, and Charlene Osborne, who are lovely, generous people, and who dress up as Hons with a great deal of respect and love for their family history.

Why was it important for you to look at Baltimore’s history through the lens of the arts, rather than, say, business/industry, ethnic customs, neighborhoods, or other factors that play into a city’s identity?
The arts are connected to all those things. We often think of art as a separate sphere unsullied by the base concerns of the world, but the arts have been connected to politics, the economy, and racial, ethnic, and neighborhood identity in Baltimore for decades. In fact, it’s the deep relationship between politics, the economy, and the arts that makes it an important lens to see Baltimore’s history through. I argue that starting with Mayor William Donald Schaefer’s administration in 1971, the arts explicitly became a way to create an image of Baltimore to draw visitors and new residents and an economic force in their own right. From the Charm City PR campaign in 1974 to Artscape today, the city government has made art and image central to the city’s renaissance.

In what ways can the arts can be more effective than politics in ushering in new movements?
Look at John Waters’ early movies. In Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble, he’s got these great scenes of Divine with full makeup, dress and heels, sashaying through downtown Baltimore like she’s on a fashion runway. Those are real people reacting to her, not extras. Imagine what it was like for queer kids around the country to see someone so unabashedly and visibly queer walking on public streets in the middle of the day. At a time when a gay rights movement was still cohering, Waters’ films had a pretty radical vision of gender and sexual non-conformity. I think you can draw a line between those films and what trans and gender nonbinary activists are doing today.

You, as well as others, write about Baltimore being a city divided. Do you see ways in which people or ideas are bridging that gap, or do you see it widening?
One of the points I make in the book is that Baltimore is a microcosm. Its problems are the problems facing all medium-sized cities in this country. Baltimore’s problems are America’s problems.

I’d like to be hopeful, but I don’t see substantive, positive change happening in our current political climate, either locally in Baltimore or nationally. It’s not just a republican versus democrat issue. It’s an issue of promoting policies that will benefit average people, not just those at the top. For decades, Baltimore prioritized its image to outsiders over the needs of its people, which exacerbated divisions by pumping money into downtown areas to spur gentrification and displacement. That needs to change.

Art has a role in this, by the way. Artists have big imaginations. They can help us understand the problems facing the city in nuanced ways, like David Simon does in The Wire or Theo Anthony in Rat Film. They can also help us come together to find solutions. I’m so inspired by the young poets I’ve met through Writers in Baltimore Schools and DewMore Baltimore who definitely have the vision to help us map out a better future if we listen.

Can you talk a little about the Chicory magazine you discovered during your research for this book, and why you were inspired to make it available online?Chicory was a magazine published by the Enoch Pratt Free Library from 1966 to 1983, thanks to two librarians, Evelyn Levy and Thelma Bell. Using money from the War on Poverty, they hired local poet Sam Cornish who worked with kids and teens in East Baltimore, one of the poorest neighborhoods in the city, to create a poetry and art magazine.

What made Chicory special was that it wasn’t edited. What people submitted was basically published as is. They even published what the editors overheard as a kind of poetry called “Street Chatter.” For a historian, this is an amazing peek into what regular people thought about the world during a tumultuous time in the city’s and country’s history. People wrote about local and national politics, from the 1968 riot to police suppression of the Black Panther Party. They also talked about their daily lives. This magazine was the voice of black, working-class Baltimore in its time. And some people who published in it went on to become well-known writers, like poet Afaa Michael Weaver, Terry Edmonds, the first African American presidential speechwriter, and journalist Rafael Alvarez.

Because its content is still relevant, I wanted to make sure that it was accessible to folks today. I worked with Pratt to digitize the collection, which is now online through Digital Maryland. You can also follow on Instagram, where we feature poems and art from the magazine.

Read our review of Rizzo’s latest book, here.

EAT

June 8: Feastival

Sandlot, 1000 Wills St. 12-4 p.m. $100-1,000.

This annual foodie fundraiser takes the saying “put your money where your mouth is” to a whole new level. On Saturday, head to Sandlot in Harbor Point to sample all-you-can-taste bites and drinks from local purveyors to benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Dig your toes into the sand at this waterfront oasis and spend the afternoon enjoying snacks from top-notch eateries like Duck Duck Goose, Minnow, and Blue Pit BBQ and sip on area craft beers and cocktails made by the Baltimore Bartenders’ Guild.

DRINK

June 7: Beers for Queers

Union Craft Brewing, 1700 W. 41st St. 7-10 p.m. Free.

From Pride Night at Camden Yards to the last Pride Fest at Grand Central, there are countless events and parties being thrown during Pride month in celebration of the city’s vibrant LGBTQ+ community, and we couldn’t be more excited by the outpouring of support from local businesses and beyond. Start the weekend festivities at Union Craft Brewing with beats by DJ Kim Brannan, a glitter station, high-energy drag performances by local queens including Bambi Galore, and, of course, free-flowing pours of the brewery’s signature brews. Snag a limited-edition Union Pride hat and drink up because a portion of the proceeds benefit Baltimore Pride.

SEE

June 8-9: HonFest

The Avenue in Hampden, 36th St. Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 12-6 p.m. Free.

Although it’s been a few decades since the workingwomen of Baltimore strutted through the streets wearing beehive hairdos and brightly colored house dresses, the legacy of those proud women comes alive every June during this neighborhood-wide celebration. For two days, the streets of Hampden will transform into a colorful block party complete with the Lil’ Hons parade, an oyster-shucking contest, tons of local craft vendors, and ongoing entertainment from local dance and musical acts. Cheer on your favorite gussied-up contestant in the “Best Hon” competition or, if you’re confident in your Bawlmerese, enter to be the next winner of this Charm City tradition.

HEAR

June 9: Concert in the Park: Cara Kelly & the Tell Tale

27 S. Patterson Park Ave. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Free.

There’s no shortage of outdoor summer concerts in the city, but there’s something about stretching out under the Pagoda at Patterson Park and listening to local jams that always pulls us in. Round out your weekend with the first concert in this free summertime series, featuring Baltimore-based Americana band Cara Kelly & the Tell Tale and its soulful and soaring harmonies. Hear this five-person band serenade the crowd as the sun sets and mark your calendars for Charm City Junction’s performance at the Pagoda on June 25.

DO

June 9: Tour Dem Parks, Hon

Druid Hill Park. 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. $20-55.

It doesn’t matter if you’re new to Charm City or a tried-and-true Baltimorean, this two-wheeled tour is the best way to get to know the city’s parks in one fell swoop. Dust off your helmet and hop on for this 17th annual recreational bike ride on one of four routes that give riders an up-close view of our parks and neighborhoods. Be it via the breezy five-mile ride or the 35-mile adventure, this cycle around the city is the perfect way to cruise into summer.

It may seem easy to don a feather boa and recite phrases like “downy ocean” in Bawlmerese, but the annual Baltimore’s Best Hon contest proves that there’s more to being a true-blue Hon than meets the eye. Ahead of this year’s Baltimore Honfest on June 8-9, we consulted past contestants Bonnie Hockstein, Megan Brockway, and Amber Nelson for tips on what it takes to become “the sequins in Charm City’s crown.”

EAT

June 9: Feastival

Sandlot, 1000 Wills St. 12-4 p.m. $65-5,000. 410-628-0795.

All you need to make a difference this weekend is an appetite. On Saturday, head to Sandlot, Harbor Point’s buzzy waterfront oasis, for an all-you-can-taste foodie fundraiser to benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Maryland. With your toes in the sand, sample eats from the event’s stellar lineup of local vendors, including Blue Pit BBQ, The Charmery, and Wit & Wisdom, and sip on free-flowing cocktails made by the Baltimore Bartenders Guild.

DRINK

June 9: The Ready Room Grand Opening

Old Line Spirits, 4201 E. Pratt St. 5 p.m.-12 a.m. Free. 443-218-9984.

Since opening its doors last February, Old Line Spirits has become a popular destination for local whiskey and rum connoisseurs. This Friday, founders Mark McLaughlin and Arch Watkins will celebrate the grand opening of the Highlandtown hoochery’s full-service cocktail bar with libations made from their award-winning spirits. Soak up the specialty cocktails, sample bites from chef Nancy Longo of Pierpoint Restaurant, and revel in the city’s first-ever distillery bar.

SEE

June 9: Baltimore Floatilla

Canton Waterfront Park, 3001 Boston St. 8 a.m.-2 p.m. $40. 443-743-3308.

The Waterfront Partnership’s Healthy Harbor Initiative is making a big impact on our local waterways—we might be able to swim in the Inner Harbor by 2020—but there’s still plenty of work to be done. This Saturday, do your part by paddling as part of a kayak and canoe fleet dressed in Baltimore-inspired costumes as it glides from Canton Waterfront Park to the Inner Harbor to benefit local restoration efforts. Don’t have your own vessel? Show your support from the shoreline with banners and cheer during its annual rally and after party to continue the fight for clean waters.

HEAR

June 9: The Crown Five-Year Anniversary Party

The Crown, 1910 N. Baltimore St. 8 p.m.-1:30 a.m. Free. 410-625-4848.

It feels like we blinked and five years of killer karaoke and all-night dance parties flew by at this Station North arts staple. To celebrate a half-decade of shows, screenings, events, and the city’s DIY arts scene, The Crown will host a packed lineup including a medley of local musical acts like R&B duo Chiffon, clubby singer-songwriter Hunter Hooligan, electronic pop artist Micah E. Wood, and psychedelic rockers Bubble Wand, plus Detroit’s futuristic noise group The Imaginatron. Just be sure not to miss Brendan Sullivan, the venue’s former manager and Weekends bandmate when he returns from New York for a homecoming set.

DO

June 9-10: Honfest

W. 36th St., Hampden. Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 12-6 p.m. Free.

This weekend, Bawlmer’s pride and joy turns 25 and is only getting better with age, hon! Get gussied up in your wildest feather boas and bejeweled shades for this annual two-day festival that honors the city’s historic working-class women with a can’t-miss block party. On Saturday and Sunday, stroll through the streets of Hampden to hear live music by local acts, like Soul Cannon and J Pope and the HearNow, browse through dozens of eclectic craft vendors, and, of course, cheer on your favorite Hon in the annual “Best Hon” competition.

HonFest 

June 9-10. The Avenue, Hampden. 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Free. Five years after winning the Baltimore’s Best Hon contest at the annual HonFest in Hampden, Stacy Hurley can still recite her interview question by heart: “Do you like the smell of Jean Nate or does it just keep the bees away?” With her hair stacked into a beehive and a dead-on Bawlmer accent, Hurley, right, stole the show by evoking her grandmother, who doused herself in Jean Nate powder after swimming in the ocean. “It made me realize how much of a Hon I’ve always been,” says Hurley. She now helps with the contest herself by encouraging others to don feather boas, cat-eye glasses, and sky-high hair and embrace the Hons’ blue-collar spirit. Bonnie Hockstein, who will manage the 25th anniversary contest with a wash-and-set hairdo as she has for the past decade, says Baltimore’s Best Hon is about honoring the legacy of the city’s working-class women. “It’s not a costume—you’re not acting,” says Hockstein. “It’s just you and your Hon self.”

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Maryland Half Marathon & 5k 
June 9. The Maple Lawn Community, 8161 Maple Lawn Blvd., Fulton. 8 a.m. $20-75. 410-328-8530. This race is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a brand-new course that takes racers through the rolling hills and tree-lined roads of Howard County. Whatever your fitness level, join hundreds of athletes participating in the 13.1-mile half marathon, 5K, or kids’ fun run to benefit the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center. At the finish line, celebrate with post-race festivities such as live music and awards for category winners.

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Tour Dem Parks, Hon 
June 10. Druid Hill Park, 900 Druid Park Lake Dr. 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. $20-55. From laid-back cruises to a challenging 56K ride, take a two-wheeled tour of Baltimore’s 6,000-acre park system full of trails, historical sites, and waterways. Experience the city’s diverse neighborhoods from the seat of your bike during this 16th annual event, and stick around for a post-ride barbecue and live jazz performance in Druid Hill Park.

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Luke Bryan 
June 14. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. 7 p.m. $56-299. In the past year, he sang the National Anthem at Super Bowl LI, began judging
on American Idol, and now, for one night only, Luke Bryan will perform his boot-stomping hits on the
Merriweather stage. Hear this Southern superstar play songs from his latest album, What Makes You Country, along with classic country anthems such as “Play It Again” and “Kick the Dust Up.”

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Boundary Block Party 
June 16. Pennsylvania Triangle Park, Pennsylvania Ave. & Presstman St. 1-4 p.m. Free. 410-728-1199. For the past 11 years, Jubilee Arts and local advocacy group No Boundaries Coalition have thrown this annual block party to bring together Central West Baltimore residents across boundaries of race, class, and neighborhood. Celebrate the strength of the West Baltimore community with family-friendly art activities, a resource fair, fresh produce, and live performances by youth dance program Dynamic Force and the Twilighters Marching Band.

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Baltimore Wine Fest 
June 16. Canton Waterfront Park, 3001 Boston St. 12-7 p.m. $11-95. 410-409-7123. baltimorewinefest.com. Nothing says summer in the city quite like strolling through Canton Waterfront Park with a glass of red, white, or bubbly in hand. During this fourth annual wine festival, sip on more than 160 vinos from around the world, take in a wine seminar or a cooking demonstration, and sample eats from local favorites including Ekiben and Wicked Sisters.

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Def Leppard and Journey 
June 16. Royal Farms Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St. 7 p.m. $49.50-179.50. 410-347-2020. royalfarmsarena.com. It’s been 12 years since legendary rock bands Def Leppard and Journey, pictured, shared a bill, but this month, die-hard fans can relive the ’80s during their one-night stop in Charm City. With 40-plus years of music catalogs and touring under their belts, these heralded heroes of rock have set the bar for generations of musicians across the world. Hear them perform smash-hit classics including “Pour Some Sugar on Me,” “Rock of Ages,” “Don’t Stop Believin’,” and “Faithfully.”

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Baltimore Pride 
June 16-17. Old Goucher, Charles North, & Station North. Locations & times vary. Free. This year’s Baltimore Pride theme—United We Shine—highlights how the city will come together for the 43rd annual celebration of its LGBTQ community. During this rainbow-colored weekend, head to Station North for streetwide dance parties, an 11-block parade, and a high-heel race up Charles Street, followed
by an all-day, family-friendly festival in Druid Hill Park.

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Chesapeake Crab & Beer Festival 
June 23. Rash Field, 201 Key Hwy. 11 a.m.-3 p.m. & 5-9 p.m. Free-$95. 410-878-9900. mdcrabfest.com. As Marylanders, we all know that on a hot summer day there’s nothing better than breaking into a bushel of Old Bay-encrusted crabs accompanied by an ice-cold beer. Now in its fifth year, the largest crab feast in the city returns with more than 30,000 crabs and 50 beers, plus wine, spirits, and plenty of crab-cracking mallets to go around. Stake out a shady spot, spread out the brown picnic-table paper, and get crackin’ at this annual all-you-can-taste extravaganza.

Five things to eat, drink, see, hear, and do with your Charm City weekend.

 EAT

June 10-11: St. Anthony’s Italian Festival

St. Leo’s Church, 227 S. Exeter St. Sat. 12-8 p.m., Sun. 12-7 p.m. Free.

It’s easy to eat your heart out in Little Italy, and this weekend, beach bodies beware—the tiny neighborhood will be celebrating the Feast of St. Anthony with even more Italian food. All weekend long, enjoy live music, cooking demonstrations, bocce tournaments, mass amounts of vino, and plenty of pasta, pizza, and cannoli. Just be sure to swing by on Sunday, to participate or observe, for the Roma Sausage-eating contest. Chin chin!. 

 DRINK

June 9: Pints in the Park

Center Plaza, N. Chares & Fayette St. 5-8 p.m. Free.

On second Fridays through the summer, head to the heart of downtown for al fresco drinking under the city skyscrapers and setting sun. During these monthly happy hours at Center Plaza, start your weekend with Heavy Seas beer, tiki bar cocktails, and Linganore wines, plus BrickNFire Pizza bites, corn hole, ping pong, and live music, this month by Brave Noise. Kids and pets are welcome, know before you go: the bar is cash only.

 SEE

June 10-11: HonFest

1002 W. 36th St. Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 12-6 p.m. Free.

There are few more truly “Bawlmer” celebrations than HonFest in Hampden. This weekend, for the 24th year, don boas, beehives, and other 1960s garb to honor the blue-collar spirit and historic workingwomen of Baltimore. It’s a rite-of-passage block party with lots of local food, three stages of live music (Caleb Stine, Raindeer, Fractal Cat, etc.), dance contests, and, of course, the colorful crowning of Baltimore’s best hon.

 HEAR

June 9: Paul Simon

Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. 6 p.m. $55-175. 

After a handful of memorable concerts at Merriweather over the course of his five-decade career, Paul Simon will once again grace the Baltimore region for the first time in more than 10 years. This Friday, catch Rhymin’ Simon for a night of enduring favorites from his classic albums—fingers crossed for “The Boy in the Bubble,” “Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes,” and “Obvious Child”—and new hits from his most recent release, Stranger to Stranger. (He’s also bringing Lilith Fair songstress Sarah McLachlan along for the ride.) We, indeed, are still crazy for Paul Simon after all these years.

 DO

June 11: Tour Dem Parks Hon

Druid Hill Park, 900 Druid Park Lake Dr. 7 a.m. $20-55.

With this weekend’s weather looking like something close to perfection, there’s no better way to soak up that fine line between spring and summer than hitting the pavement for this 15th annual bicycle tour of Baltimore’s local parks. With the wind in your hair, cycle through the city’s diverse neighborhoods and luscious green spaces and make new friends along the way. Best of all, there’s a post-ride barbecue with live jazz.

Baltimore Wine Festival
June 17. Canton Waterfront Park, 3001 Boston St. 12-7 p.m. $15-95. 410-409-7123. Calling all vino lovers. The third annual Baltimore Wine Festival is back with more than 160 vintages from around the world. Seasoned sommeliers and Franzia fanatics alike can stroll through Canton Waterfront Park and enjoy everything from rieslings to rosés, with gourmet food from more than 30 area eateries like The Local Oyster and Dooby’s, live music, cooking demos, and family fun along the harbor.

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Promenade: Baltimore
June 2-25. Single Carrot Theatre, 2600 N. Howard St. Thu.-Fri. 6:30 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 2 & 6:30 p.m. $30-35. 443-844-9253. All the city’s a stage in this new show from Single Carrot Theatre, now in its 10th year. As part of a “love letter to Baltimore,” audience members will board buses and explore city sites while actors create an immersive theatrical experience, fusing fantasy with the everyday.

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Flock of Dimes  
June 8. Ottobar, 2549 N. Howard St. 9 p.m. $14-16. 410-662-0069. It’s been nearly two years since Wye Oak lead singer Jenn Wasner left the city streets of Baltimore to live a simpler life in rural North Carolina. It was there, from a quiet bungalow in the Old North State, that Wasner wrote her first full-length release under her solo moniker, Flock of Dimes. Released last fall, If You See Me, Say Yes is an accomplished feat, connecting the past with the present through bright, buoyant rhythms and introspective melodies. For one night, hear Wasner back in her hometown to promote her beautiful new tracks like “Birthplace” and “Semaphore.” 

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Paul Simon
June 9. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. 6 p.m. $55-175. 410-715-5550. After more than 10 years, Paul Simon graces the Baltimore region (this time, with Lilith Fair songstress Sarah McLachlan in tow). For one night only, expect enduring favorites from his classic albums—fingers crossed for “The Boy in the Bubble”—and new hits from his most recent release, Stranger to Stranger. We, indeed, are still crazy (for Paul Simon) after all these years.

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HonFest
June 10-11. 1002 W. 36th St. Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 12-6 p.m. There are few more truly “Bawlmer” celebrations than HonFest in Hampden. For the 24th year, don boas, beehives, and other 1960s garb to honor the blue-collar spirit and historic workingwomen of Baltimore. It’s a rite-of-passage block party with local food, lots of live music, and, of course, the contest for Baltimore’s best hon.

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Tour Dem Parks Hon
June 11. Druid Hill Park, 900 Druid Park Lake Dr. 7 a.m. $20-55. In the early days of summer, hit the pavement for this 15th annual bicycle tour of Baltimore’s local parks. With the wind in your hair, cycle through the city’s diverse neighborhoods and luscious green spaces and make new friends along the way. Best of all, there’s a post-ride barbecue with live jazz.

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Janet & Walter Sondheim Finalists Exhibition
June 17-Aug. 13. The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Free. 410-547-9000. Before Artscape kicks off in July, head to The Walters to get to know the winners of Baltimore’s most prestigious visual art award—including city native Kyle Tata and his mixed media work. 

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Baltimore Pride
June 17-18. Charles North & Station North. Locations & times vary. Free. For one weekend each year, the heart of Baltimore runs ROYGBIV. Follow the rainbow at the 42nd annual Baltimore Pride celebration, feting the city’s LGBTQ community with block parties, dance parties, the iconic high heel race, and a festive, float-filled parade. 

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John Legend
June 20. Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. 7:30 p.m. $59-499. 410-715-5550. With an adorable new baby, a shelf-load of awards (Hello, Oscar!), and a hilarious supermodel wife, John Legend is on quite the winning streak. Hear the R&B singer-songwriter and pianist do what he does best when he graces the Merriweather stage with hits like “Ordinary People,” tearjerkers like “All of Me,” and sounds from his latest album, Darkness and Light.

The Avett Brothers
June 3-4. Pier Six Pavilion, 731 Eastern Ave. 8:30 p.m. $38-55. 410-783-4189. With the warm sun on your face and cool breeze in your hair, there’s no better way to settle into summer than with a little live music on the Inner Harbor. The Avett Brothers are a perfect band for the season, with their Southern folk rock as pure and American as a cold beer in hand on a hot June night. Dig on fan favorites like “I and Love and You” and “Head Full of Doubt,” as well as new songs like “Ain’t No Man” from their brand-new album, True Sadness.—LW

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Design for Mobile Living
June 1-Nov. 27. The Baltimore Museum of Art, 10 Art Museum Drive. Wed.-Fri. 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Free. 443-573-1700. Step into the art and culture of Eastern Africa’s nomadic societies. In this exploratory exhibition, admire jewelry, accessories, and gear from the 19th and 20th centuries, and discover the ways in which artwork can be lightweight, functional, portable, and adorned.

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Taste of Three Cities
June 4. Patterson Park, 2806 Eastern Ave. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. $16.74-69.24. 410-276-3676. Calling all foodies. Once again, Patterson Park will transform into a food-truck playground with the region’s top 40 four-wheelers offering culinary indulgences that range from lobster rolls and barbecue to grilled cheese and cupcakes. Spend your summer Saturday touring their treats, voting for your favorites, cooling off with wine and beer, and listening to live music. Proceeds will benefit Meals on Wheels, a nonprofit that delivers food to people in need, and the (RED) Campaign, whose global efforts are fighting to end AIDS.

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Hairspray: In Concert
June 3-5. Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, 1212 Cathedral St. Fri. 8 p.m., Sat. 3 & 8 p.m., Sun. 3 p.m. $43-109. 410-783-8000. We have Diner, we have Avalon, we have parts of Sleepless in Seattle, but few films are more iconic for Charm City than John Waters’s Hairspray. Back by popular demand, the famous musical will take over the Meyerhoff stage for the first time since 2013. Relive the favorites in this semistaged concert production, featuring Waters himself as narrator alongside members of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.

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Beyoncé
June 10. M&T Bank Stadium, 1101 Russell St. 7:30 p.m. $45-305. 410-261-7283. Beyoncé is the queen bee of pop culture, with five platinum records, 20 Grammys, and her own HBO documentary, plus flawless fashion, kickass choreography, and once-in-a-lifetime concert tours. (Not to mention her much talked about marriage to hip-hop royalty, Jay Z.) Over the years, she has brought us such seminal smash-hits as “Say My Name,” “Drunk in Love,” and “Single Ladies,” and this past winter she released her first new single in three years, “Formation,” which instantly skyrocketed to the top of the charts. It also sparked BeyHive hysteria for her latest album, Lemonade, which set the internet on fire when it suddenly dropped this spring. For one Friday night, see what all the buzz is about as the living legend brings down the house on our very own Ravens turf.—LW

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Tour Dem Parks, Hon!
June 12. Howard Peters Rawlings Conservatory & Botanic Gardens, 3100 Swann Drive. 7:30 a.m.-2 p.m. $20-48. For one Sunday in June, put your rubber to the road as hundreds of bicyclists take a trip through Baltimore’s beloved parks. Whether you opt for a difficult trek or family-friendly cruise, you can swing through the likes of Druid Hill, Clifton, and Patternson parks, followed by a picnic lunch, live music, and lovable rescue puppies, all to benefit Baltimore’s beautiful outdoor spaces.

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HonFest
June 11-12. The Avenue in Hampden, 36th Street. Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 12-6 p.m. Free. Get your hairspray, boas, and high heels ready for the 23rd annual HonFest. At this weekend-long festival in Hampden, honor the historic working women of Bawlmer in true eclectic Charm City fashion. Join thousands of attendees for three stages of live music, plus food, crafts, and, of course, a contest for the Best Hon.

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Baltimore Wine Fest
June 18. Canton Waterfront Park, 3001 Boston St. 12-7 p.m. Free-$85. 410-409-7123. For the second time, Canton’s waterfront will turn into a vino lover’s paradise with more than 100 wines from all over the world, gourmet local eats, and live music. Grab a glass, sip some samples, then stumble home.

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Chesapeake Crab & Beer Festival
June 25. Rash Field, 201 Key Hwy. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. $29-89. 410-396-7931. As Marylanders, we all know there is nothing better than a June afternoon with a bushel of crabs. Now in its third year, this annual tradition has upped the ante, becoming the largest crab feast in Baltimore with more than 22,000 people, 30,000 crabs, and 50 beers, plus wines, spirits, live music, and arts and crafts. With enough brown picnic-table paper to stretch across the harbor and back, this festival is ready to dig in, rain or shine.

Homeward Bound

Eastern Avenue
June 13, 2015

“Feel how soft this bird is,” says Dave Glorioso, handing a pigeon to a slightly nervous young girl outside at the annual Maryland Traditions Folklife Festival. “Go ahead. You can let him go, too. He’ll find his way home.”

Glorioso, 63, has been raising racing pigeons—also known as homing pigeons—for four decades, keeping a couple hundred birds behind his house in Lansdowne. With his son, Fish, he’s brought about 50 birds here.

Big races start as far away as Georgia, with the birds’ speed calculated by how long their return flight takes. “Nobody really knows how they do it,” Glorioso says. “I think it has something to do with the sun. On cloudy days, it takes them longer.”

Pigeon racing used to be very popular in Baltimore, Glorioso continues. “Men would work in the factories, give the little money they made to their wives, and then go in the backyard and fool around with their birds,” he says. “The women may not have been crazy about the hobby, but at least they knew their husband wasn’t down the street at the bar.”

When on form, the birds can make it back from, say, a race in North Carolina faster than Glorioso can in his pickup. Once, he pulled into his driveway after a six-hour trip—only to find them already there, waiting in the coop. “It’s estimated they flap those little arms a million times during a 500-mile flight,” he says. “I’m dead tired after driving that far. Of course, they’re dead tired, too.”

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Windows Into Life

Gough Street
June 13, 2015

“By 1950, there were more than 100,000 painted screens in Baltimore,” explains Amanda Smit-Peters, a manager with the nonprofit Southeast Community Development Corporation, during the midday, “painted-screen” walking tour of Southeast Baltimore. Discussing the craft’s current revival in Highlandtown and the neighborhood’s immigrant roots, she notes that nearby Butchers Hill was largely settled by Germans, and the painted-screen phenomenon itself—the peculiar, row-house folk art of those pre-air conditioning days—was started by a Czech grocer named William Oktavec. She also points to a screen painting down the street depicting the nearby Ukrainian church’s iconic golden domes.

And, actually, a good number of the recent screen paintings here pay homage to Baltimore’s unofficial mascot “Mr. Boh,” whose very name is a nod to the Central European Bohemians who also established roots here.

At one stop, a newer Salvadoran immigrant steps out from his row house to describe how the brightly colored rural scene on his window screen depicts the village where he grew up. Not far away, at the century-old DiPasquale’s Italian Marketplace, there’s a freshly painted door-screen portrait of Al Capone—fedora and blue suit—holding a bag of fruit, vegetables, and bread. The future mobster, it turns out, once worked in the building as a bookkeeper for another Italian family. “He was 19 or 20 then,” Joe DiPasquale says. “It was before his promotion.”

Capone, of course, later landed in Chicago, and then federal prison. He returned to Baltimore upon his release, however, to seek treatment for syphilis at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. “It’s a small world,” DiPasquale says. “We get a lot of our lunch orders from Hopkins.”

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Hon Speak

West 36th Street
June 14, 2015

Accompanied by a bald, mutton-chopped Elvis impersonator in a blue polyester jumpsuit, the 10 finalists at the 22nd Annual Baltimore’s Best Hon Contest take the stage one at a time for the talent portion of the show. Variously jitterbugging, hula hooping, and skateboarding across the platform, the surprisingly diverse group channels the working-class fashions and towering beehives of Charm City past, later blowing kisses and tossing Berger cookies to the adoring crowd on The Avenue in Hampden.

Most of the women perform ballads expressing their deep affection for their boyfriends, their football team, and their town. However, the eventual winning “hon”—Nikki Bass, an Aberdeen Proving Ground scientist by day—demonstrates how she helps her Department of Defense colleagues understand her “Bawlmerese” dialect.

It’s worth noting that Bass, who grew up in Parkville, is also the first multiracial Best Hon. “Moms of the brown girls, the Latina, African-American, and Asian little girls entered in the [earlier] Miss Honette contest brought their daughters up to me and my mom,” she says later.

Utilizing a classroom periodic table, Bass literally spells out “Bawlmer” for the crowd, employing element symbols. “Ba, for example, is for barium,” she begins. “As in, ‘It’s best to barium flower seeds after Mother’s Day, hon.’” Donning safety goggles to protect her eyes “from all the Aqua Net” on stage, she continues: “W is for tungsten, as in, ‘You better make sure every pin is tungsten all the way, hon, otherwise that hairdo won’t hold together.’”