Oak Ridge Today

Secret City Festival continues today, ends with Rick Springfield concert

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The Dirty Guv'nahs at Secret City Festival

The Dirty Guv’nahs played at the Friday night concert at the Secret City Festival in Oak Ridge, and Rick Springfield will perform tonight.

The two-day Secret City Festival started yesterday and continues today.

See this Secret City Festival website page for an events schedule. The schedule includes links to the entertainment schedule; youth, children’s, and toddlers’ games and entertainment; and World War II living history demonstrations, a new feature this year.

The festival ends tonight with a concert by Rick Springfield and Casey Abrams from “American Idol.” See www.secretcityfestival.com for more information, or see this previous story on Oak Ridge Today for a summary of events.

Secret City Festival features ‘something for everyone’

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Homemade Wine Band

The Homemade Wine Band played after the Friday morning opening ceremony at the Secret City Festival.

The annual Secret City Festival started today, and it features Manhattan Project bus tours and history displays, World War II living history activities and demonstrations, arts and crafts and antiques dealers, food vendors and exhibitors, a children’s festival area and youth events, and a car show and concerts.

“Join more than 20,000 visitors and residents to celebrate the end of World War II and the heritage of Oak Ridge from 1945 to the present,” a press release said.

Oak Ridge was built during World War II as part of the top-secret Manhattan Project, a federal program to build the world’s atomic bombs, and the festival celebrates the city’s heritage.

Festival organizers have provided an overview of some of the many activities and events taking place at this year’s festival:
 [Read more…]

Secret City Festival announces new concert security measures

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James T. Akagi

James T. Akagi

The Secret City Festival will have tighter security at the Friday and Saturday night concerts this year, and visitors could experience a few delays as organizers try to make the shows safer, a press release said.

No backpacks or coolers will be allowed into the concert site, and all bags will be subject to search, the release said.

“In light of recent events, we’re being extra vigilant in our protection of our attendees, staff, and the community during the festival concerts,” Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi said. [Read more…]

B&W Y-12 again a premier sponsor of the Secret City Festival

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B&W Y-12 Secret City Festival Check Presentation

Chuck Spencer, center, B&W Y-12 president and general manager, presents a $25,000 sponsorship check for the Secret City Festival to Oak Ridge Mayor Tom Beehan, left, and Mayor Pro Tem Jane Miller. (Submitted photo)

B&W Y-12 is returning to the Secret City Festival once again as the premier festival sponsor, a press release said.

“B&W has led the way in Secret City Festival sponsorships both financially and in kind for the past eight years,” the Oak Ridge Convention and Visitors Bureau said in a Wednesday press release. B&W Y-12 operates the Y-12 National Security Complex for the National Nuclear Security Administration.

Chuck Spencer, B&W Y-12 president and general manager, presented a $25,000 festival sponsorship check during a May 28 meeting. [Read more…]

Rick Springfield, The Dirty Guv’nahs to headline Secret City Festival

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Rick Springfield

Rick Springfield

Rick Springfield, the pop rock singer-songwriter and musician who won a 1981 Grammy for “Jessie’s Girl,” will headline the Saturday night concert at this year’s Secret City Festival, organizers said Thursday.

Springfield has sold 25 million albums worldwide, including 17 Top 40 hits, such as “Don’t Talk to Strangers,” “An Affair of the Heart,” “I’ve Done Everything for You,” “Love Somebody,” and “Human Touch,” a press release said. “Jessie’s Girl” was a No. 1 hit, and the song earned Springfield a Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal.

The Friday night concert at the June 21-22 Secret City Festival features Knoxville-native rock ‘n’ roll band The Dirty Guv’nahs. [Read more…]