How do we get in the mood? Let us count the ways: with chocolate, roses and diamonds, gyrating guys and tattooed thighs.
By CHRIS SHERMAN, BARBARA FREDRICKSEN, JOHN FLEMING, LENNIE BENNETT, DUANE BOURNE, GINA VIVINETTO and STEVE PERSALL
Published February 12, 2004
[Times photo: Douglas R. Clifford]
Robert Goepfert, a waiter at the Black Pearl, is partial to yellow roses, a sign of faithfulness, and chocolate, which “has all the elements of sex and none of the awkwardness.”
DUNEDIN - After 40 years in the restaurant business, Robert Goepfert, a waiter at the elegant Black Pearl, has seen and heard it all and handles it with discretion and finesse.
Valentine's Day will be the busiest day of the year at his place and, he says, the smoothest, for there's a set menu and clockwork organization.
Goepfert has seen lovers propose with a ring in a champagne glass and a film crew in the back. He has suffered bad violins and felt the pain of the stoodup suitor left holding the flowers and the ring.
The oddest place for a ring?
A lot of men want to put it in food, but women don't want a ring covered in chocolate. And if the men get anxious and don't ask, it could get eaten. Instead we use boxes, oyster shells, jeweled eggs. That's part of the competition for love, to be inventive.
Any problems attending to couples?
I've seen people get sort of amorous. . . . People discuss their sexual problem and tax evasions right at the table with a waiter present, like we don't have ears.
What are the foods of love?
We do themed dinners for Valentine's. This year it's spices and chocolate. Chocolate has all the elements of sex and none of the awkwardness. You get the elevated heart rate and you get flushed.
Also the kitchen will be doing dishes with spices, like lobster with vanilla. People wonder what that flavor (of an unexpected spice) is. It's a mystery and that's part of romance.
What do customers choose as romantic foods?
The classics. Oysters, filet for the men, lobster for the ladies. Dishes that can be shared.
Do you see any bad moves?
Be polite and don't presume. Guys have their own agenda; we're goal-oriented. Putting women under pressure is not smart. Overeager men are the biggest problem.
- CHRIS SHERMAN, Times food critic
How to pull off the full Monty
NEW PORT RICHEY - You've chosen the object of your desire, the two of you are alone and willing, and now it's time for some moves.
But exactly what moves?
The members of Tampa's Magnificent Men Male Revue, who performed recently at the Angel Cabaret Theatre, have mastered the fine art of creating excitement. But as they note, various decency laws mean they have to keep things within limits. This, as they note, is not a problem in the privacy of your own home.
How do you undress seductively?
"Get undressed slowly, but not too slowly," said Zsolt Meszaros, a native of Hungary. His cowboy act includes a warmup dance, slowly removing his sleeveless plaid shirt and turning to flex his muscles, then quickly ripping off his pants and chaps.
"We're not talking 30 minutes," Zsolt says of the boudoir strip. "But women like slow teasing."
What is essential to romancing a lady?
Music, music, music, says J.D. Dodds, the manager of the Magnificent Men and a longtime musician.
"Marvin Gaye's Sexual Healing or anything by Barry White," Dodds said. Joe Cocker's cover of Randy Newman's You Can Leave Your Hat On is a good one, too, Dodds said, "but it's more advanced than some might be able to do."
And the difficulty factor is because of?
Roll of eyes.
What is the most romantic thing you can do for someone?
"Sing to her," Zsolt said. "Even if it's off-key. She'll love it."
- BARBARA FREDRICKSEN, Times staff writer
The carat approach
CLEARWATER - As an actor, Paul Potenza specializes in American male archetypes. He has given powerful interpretations of Eric Bogosian one-man shows, and now he is in David Mamet's American Buffalo, playing a larcenous junk dealer in Jobsite Theatre's production at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center. Offstage, Potenza has another life as a jeweler. At Design I Jewelers, his store in a Clearwater shopping center, he does custom design, repairs and antique restoration.
What's the most romantic jewelry?
It's got to be the diamond engagement ring because it's the ultimate. A lot of people get engaged on Valentine's Day. When you're going to ask a woman to marry you on the most romantic day of the year, the stakes go way high.
What's your advice on an engagement ring?
I tell guys to be reasonable in terms of what their budget would allow. If you're going to do something nice for your girlfriend, fiancee, wife, show some involvement. To the woman it's just as important that you show you care, not just by putting your hand in your pocket and spending the money but by showing heartfelt interest in making her happy.
What's the strangest request you've ever had?
About 15 years ago I had a girl come in with a little envelope and she asked, "Could you gold plate this?" and she slid this little plastic thing on the counter. It looked like a plastic twist tie. I didn't know what it was. She said, "It's my IUD. My boyfriend was in a car accident and he's in a body cast. I want to gold plate this and wear it around my neck to show him that until he can have sex with me, I'm going to wait for him." Sooo . . . we got it done. It kind of looked like a pretzel, and she wore it on a chain. She loved it. Unfortunately, they broke up a short time later. It wasn't the lucky charm.
Any connection between jewelry and theater?
For me, on a personal level, there is. I have been asked lots of times to make wedding bands for my friends in the theater. These are passionate, smart, artistic people, and their approaching me to make something for them, that's the best.
- JOHN FLEMING, Times performing arts critic
An eye for women
TAMPA - Artist Jeff Whipple's most recognizable paintings are of people dealing with a barrage of incongruous objects. Those of women are especially arresting. Whether they are emerging seminude from a mountain of hot dogs or dodging a rain of guided missiles fully clothed, they are imbued with strength and self-confidence, often along with an infusion of humor and irony.
Whipple says that in most of the paintings, he uses professional models whom he pays, often actors he knows through his work as a playwright. Whipple lives at his studio in the Channelside district of Tampa.
Is art romantic?
It can be. I think (Gustave) Klimt is very sensuous. A lot of my art is about relationships; all of it is reacting to life, responding to it.
When you're getting to know a woman, do you ever ask her to come see your etchings, or use some variation of the old line?
Sure, I've done that. I think when someone knows you're an artist they want to see your work. Someone told me recently she'd have to come visit me many times to comprehend it. That pleased me a lot.
Do you ever draw women you're involved with?
I've done hundreds of portraits of girlfriends, mostly as drawings, not paintings. It's different to draw someone than to just look at them, to have that opportunity to really examine them.
What do you see in a woman that makes her a compelling subject?
When I work with an idea for a painting, I look for a model in the same way I cast a play. When I'm drawing someone I know, it's a form of communication. I like looking at them in a different way. I feel very obligated to capture their beauty.
Do you ever have to convince a girlfriend to pose for you?
It's more a question of how do you want to spend your time. We can talk and hang out or you can sit still for half an hour while I draw you. Someone has a busy life and maybe doesn't have time to sit for a long time. I'd draw all day if they'd sit for me. It gets down to the generosity of the model.
Even so, it must be flattering to them.
I've heard that.
- LENNIE BENNETT, Times art critic
A calculating heart
HUDSON - They say love hurts, and nobody knows it better than Roxie Hart, the femme fatale who is literally fatal to her faithless lover in the blockbuster musical Chicago.
To get Roxie's thoughts on love, we asked actor Meredith Inglesby, Roxie's alter ego in the current production of Chicago at the Show Palace Dinner Theatre in Hudson.
So, tell us, Roxie, where does a girl go to find a really wonderful fellow?
Church, definitely church. But wait a minute. I don't go to church. That's something my mother would tell you. Me? I say look around banks, swanky clubs, nice restaurants, anywhere the high rollers might be. Use your imagination.
What's the best way to handle a two-timing guy?
Oh, honey, don't let him get away with it at all, and I do mean permanently.
As a famous chanteuse yourself, what song would it take to woo you?
I love a lot of Barry White; Barry White talks to me, honey. I would take just a touch of Ella Fitzgerald.
Any other advice?
No matter what happens, move on. Don't let anything get in your way. There are plenty of booze and boys out there. Get your share of both.
- BARBARA FREDRICKSEN, Times staff writer
The whole flower thing
SPRING HILL - Nobody's busier at this time of year than florists, so we were glad to get a few moments with Tracy Mills, owner of Spring Hill's Sherwood Florist, to talk about hearts and flowers.
What's the most touching thing you've seen someone do for Valentine's Day?
Last year, we were here late on a Friday night and the phone kept ringing. Generally, we never answer it after hours, but something told us to answer it. It was some guy who needed to order flowers fast. I told him to call back on Monday. He said he won't be here on Monday. He was going to war in Kuwait. So, he ordered roses for his mother, sister and girlfriend before he went to war. He was so concerned that he would forget to give them something for Valentine's Day.
What's the dumbest thing someone has tried to do on Valentine's Day?
Call here on Valentine's Day and ask if we sell roses. (A caller) asked if we sell roses year-round. I said that's all we do.
Do you know anything more romantic than roses?
There is nothing else. Maybe two dozen roses. Mixed flowers are romantic, too, and they last longer. They should be delivered every hour on the hour.
- DUANE BOURNE, Times staff writer
A long-lasting impression
Tattoo artist Kimmie Glazier and her husband, Rob, have owned St. Petersburg's Tattoo Emporium, now on Central Avenue, since 1987.
What's your advice to those who wish to express their love through body art?
Don't get the name. We always tell them that, "Don't get the name, DON'T GET THE NAME.'
What's the shortest time somebody wanted a name tattoo removed?
A week. The guy's tattoo hadn't even healed yet, and he wanted her name off.
You had a young woman whose former boyfriend's name was inked in large black letters down her arm. What was the solution?
We turned it into a black panther. It looked pretty cool.
You warn against tattooing names, but you have PROPERTY OF SLOB (Rob's nickname) on your right ankle, and his portrait on your left thigh.
But I've got 20 years invested in him. And it wasn't until I was married 15 years that I did it.
What if you split up?
I'll just tattoo one of those red circles with a slash right over his face.
- GINA VIVINETTO, Times pop music critic
Call her Claire Voyant
ST. PETERSBURG - Dana Cruz de Leon, 35, is a self-described "spiritual adviser." She and her husband, artist Chris Orlando, 36, own the Monkey's Paw, an edgy boutique in downtown St. Petersburg. Cruz de Leon has been reading tarot cards for years, and does so at the store each Saturday (including Valentine's Day, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.), often for those seeking advice on matters of the heart.
What do you say when the cards offer bad news?
When the person is in a bad relationship, and that's clear to me, I don't just blurt that out. I'll say something like, "I am sensing some dissatisfaction with your current partner,' or "I am feeling emotional frustration.' I have them affirm that, kind of get their permission to open up those floodgates and discuss it.
Can you tell us about a case when the news was happy?
A year ago, a girl came to me. She was having problems with a live-in boyfriend who was cheating on her. I'm not one to play Cupid, but I told her to keep her eyes open. I kept seeing the number TWO. TWO. TWO.
Within two months, on her birthday, her live-in boyfriend totally blew it off, but a guy she worked with got her two dozen long-stemmed roses, a 2-pound box of Godiva chocolates and a 2-carat solitaire.
What have your "visions" meant to you personally?
I saw Chris in a dream before I met him. . . . He looked exactly the same, his hair, his eyes, except in real life his wrists were covered up with a big, fat wristwatch. When he took that off, I saw his tattoos - they're like Frankenstein stitches around his wrists - and I totally remembered them from the dream!
- GINA VIVINETTO, Times pop music critic
Lovers in the dark
TAMPA - AMC Westshore 14 can hold 3,144 people, meaning on busy nights there could be 1,572 couples there on dates. Through the box office windows, Kelly Bell greets lovers and other strangers spending time together the easy way, without having to make conversation.
"That's true, but you're in the dark," Bell said with a mischievous smile. "Something might happen."
Bell, 40, took a break during a busy Sunday matinee to consider her role as gatekeeper to the stars filling lovers' eyes.
Why is a movie theater such a romantic destination?
You think this is romantic? I wouldn't call this a romantic spot. A romantic spot to me is a candlelight dinner. (Going to the movies) is just easier because it's something guys like to do and girls like to do, too. I've had guys ask me to go fishing on a date. Hey, I don't want to go fishing. It's too cold.
Do some couples never make it inside the theater?
I see a lot of teenagers come in here like that. They come here because mom and dad are, maybe, against their dating so they meet here.
We've had kids who didn't go to the movie, maybe just walked around the mall, and they buy a ticket to take the stub home and show mom and dad. That's their system.
Are there last-minute disagreements between couples about which film to see?
With some of the girly movies, the guys don't want to go, but that's what she wants to see. Men argue about it, then they just give in. We can hear them over the speakers. They say it out loud, they make themselves known, that they don't want to go. Then they do.
Does working at a movie theater affect your own dating?
Guys want to come with (me and my colleagues) because we work here and they can get in for free.
