by Will Gottlieb
Coastal Journal staff

BATH — The Southgate Family Restaurant is located at 510 Washington St., Bath, conveniently close to BIW, which is a great place to buy a boat, we hear. Open Monday through Saturday 5 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Sunday 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. Inquiring minds may ask more of the friendly staff by calling 442-8185.

We arrived on the morning of President’s Day during a rush, and so we seated ourselves at the counter. And this counter is surely one of the finest pieces of Americana in the area, clean and comfortable, right out of the ‘50s, a diner with soul. The interior is well-lit, and the windows look out on operations at the Iron Works. A great part of the city, if you haven’t been there.

We tried to affect a manly persona as we swaggered through the room, but lost all credibility with the BIW crowd as we stacked our camera, notebook, netbook, iPod, iPhone, iPad and funny little hat on the counter. Ah, well.

L. Jaye Bell
special to the Coastal Journal

LINCOLNVILLE — The crackly voice of the storyteller accompanied by the gentle guitar notes fools the ear into believing that its owner is an old timer on the verge of leaving the surly bonds of earth for a loftier place.  When the song is done and the owner speaks, the voice miraculously shape shifts to match the appearance  and age of its owner.   

A balladeer, a storyteller in the genre of songwriters such as Chuck Brodsky, Sean Mullins and Tom Kimmel, Morrissey knows how to get the audience’s attention. His vocal chords crackle and pop like a warm wood fire, yet his speaking voice smoothes out the between spaces of the songs as he’s tuning his guitar.  The consummate storyteller, one doesn’t even realize he is tuning as he is still telling stories between songs. 

Colin Firth as Bertie, King George VIreview by Gina Hamilton
Coastal Journal staff

BRUNSWICK -- One of the films expected to do very well at the Academy Awards this year, The King's Speech, opened this week at Eveningstar Cinema to sold-out audiences, and rightly so.

The film, written by David Seidler and directed by Tom Hooper, is based on the true story of Albert, Duke of York and later King George VI (Colin Firth), who ascended to the throne on the eve of World War II, after his brother David (King Edward VIII, and later, the Duke of Windsor, played by Guy Pearce) abdicated the throne to marry twice-divorced (and American!) Wallis Simpson (Eve Best). The new king also ascends, unfortunately, as radio's star rises. Bertie has an uncontrollable stammer that has plagued him since childhood, and cannot give even a short address without it.