- The 4th Annual Walter Gretzky Street Hockey Tournament will take place in Brantford, Ontatio in early June (final dates will soon be confirmed). Last year, with only a month of pre-promotion, Kevin helped build the team tally to a staggering 94 teams (triple the previous year). THIS year, he’s setting out to do something else — Break the record for the largest number of street hockey teams in a tournament, EVER (currently at 192). Wanna help bust that record wide open? We sure do. Start chatting up your pals about making the trip and putting together a team. Also, stick close to our news feed, as in the coming weeks, we’re expecting information on potential View Askew sponsorships for teams as well.
In the meantime, take a peek at this story which officially announces Kevin’s plans to return in June 2010:
Kevin Smith strikes back
Filmmaker Kevin Smith will be returning to Brantfords Walter Gretzky Street Hockey Tournament this year.
In 2009, his primary goal was to meet Walter, one of his idols, and play net in the tournament which raises money for the Brantford Sports Facilities Infrastructure Legacy Fund.
This year, he has his sights set on two new goals.
My aim is to not vomit, because I did after the second game last year, and to break the Guinness record for street hockey teams in a tournament, as thanks to Wally, he said on the phone from his home in Los Angeles, California.
According to the Guinness World Records website, the current record for street hockey teams in a tournament is 192, set in Ladysmith on Vancouver Island in 2007.
I said Id be back and were coming back in a big way, he said. Its possible. We figured last year we had a lot of teams and we only really promoted it a month before.
Smith is known for films such as Clerks, Mallrats, Dogma and the upcoming film Cop Out, a detective film starring Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan.
The director, writer, producer, actor and cult phenomenon attended the tournament for the first time last year, after he stumbled across a poster for it online while doing a Google search of Walter.
He then called Pat Shewchuk of Brantford Parks and Recreation and said he would like to play in the tournament and sponsor three teams of his fans to play as well.
His attendance in the tournament was a huge success, not only did the number of teams competing nearly triple, to 94 in 2009, but he sold out a show at the Sanderson Centre and donated the $10,000 proceeds to the sports infrastructure fund.
While his intention was always to throw some weight behind the tournament, he also managed to fulfill a dream of meeting one of his idols.
I had such a blast last year, he said. That was one of the top 10 moments of my life. I still look at those pictures and smile.
Im used to working in front of an audience under circumstances I can control, but Ive never done anything remotely athletic in front a crowd.
Smith said the thrill of last years experience had provided more than enough incentive to commit to it again.
People always ask me what my motivation behind it is. I need nothing more than the motivation to play street hockey in Wayne Gretzkys home town in front of his father, he said.
The filmmaker has already started to promote the event on his website and through social networking tool Twitter, but said a big announcement as to the finer details of the tournament would be made during a press conference with Walter at Wayne Gretzkys Restaurant in Toronto on Feb. 3.
Shewchuk, of Brantford Parks and Recreation, said Smiths participation will provide an opportunity to make the street hockey tournament a huge part of the Brantford sports calendar.
Our vision is to make it a signature event, she said. I think with Kevins continued involvement, he wants to make it the biggest around.
Shewchuk said Smiths enthusiastic approach to the tournament allowed it to expand in a way that wouldnt be possible without him.
When you have someone of his stature promoting it, it has the potential to be one of the biggest the city has seen, she said. With someone of his notoriety promoting this isnt an opportunity that comes to everybody.
However, Smith isnt the only one who deserves credit, Shewchuk said.
The reason Smith attended and promoted the tournament last year was because he is a big fan of the Gretzky family, especially Walter.
(Smith) really admires Walter and that is the reason he attended, Shewchuk said. I dont think the city realizes how lucky we are to have him and everything he does for us.
Last year, in an interview with Brant News, Smith said of Walter: Hes the cream of the crop – I look up to him as a human being – theres always room for a guy like that in your world.
Gear up and get ready for a record-breaking tournament in June! We hope to see many of you there.
Archive for January 17th, 2010
Major Events Coming To Red Bank: July 31st & August 1st!
- Here’s all we know SO far — Kevin will return to Red Bank, NJ to celebrate his 40th birthday with a Q&A session. However, his tweet hints at even more this time:
Heads-up if you’re into me & my bullshit: keep open 7/31 to 8/1 – the weekend AFTER ComiCon. 40th BDay Q&A in Red Bank & something cooler…
We can only speculate on the “something cooler” — One past year included a View Askew “prom” event, so your imagination is really the limit. We’re sure love to see the return of “Vulgarthon” which could wind up being quite the weekend event. Previous ‘thons included mini Q&A sessions after each film, but imagine just doing the Q&A as one chunk and then a non stop film marathon? Could be fun. Again, just speculation. We’ll let you know details on the weekend as soon as we can. Clear those schedules!
View Askew NewsBites
- Entertainment Weekly gives the Kevin Smith iPhone app some much-deserved praise, listing it #3 in their widely-read “Must List” for this week’s issue. At a mere 99 cents, it’s a no-brainer purchase for any Kevin Smith or View Askew fan who’s got iPhone or iTouch and is reading this story. Buy Buy Buy.
- The “Night of the Living Kev” inaction figure is listed as shipping MID-FEBRUARY from the Stash, so expect it to arrive a little later than it was previously reported (not the Stash’s fault, just a slight production delay). For $17.95 you can get this limited figure signed by Kevin, only from the Stash and not anywhere else. Pre-order today, but order by itself if you’re ordering other items, ‘lest you don’t mind stuff all being held up until the inactions arrive next month.
- everythingiCafe also gives the app nice ink this week, listing it as their favorite among the iphone “Vanity Apps” out there right now:
Just had to save the best for last. Sure, this is an app for a celebrity, filmmaker Kevin Smith of Clerks fame, but it’s still a vanity app, so it counts. Smith has an entire app to himself with a feed of photos (photo blog), his Twitter feed, and other fun features (fan photos, a soundboard of Smith favorites, a custom-made ringtone hummed by Smith himself, and others). The app is powered by DenVog and most certainly costs buckets more to make than one from MotherApp or AppMakr. This is the only app on our list that isn’t free ($0.99), but I would say the Twitter feed and custom ringtone alone make it well worth the buck.
- To warp up the ‘bites for the weekend, here’s an interesting tweet from Kevin on the next 2 SModcast episodes:
Via @gloom303 “Is that a plural I see in Mom SMods?” It is. At least two weeks worth. Ending of the second one’s an instant classic.
Also, Kevin has been tweeting information on how we can help the situation in Haiti with our donations. He’s also donated signed pairs of Vans shoes that he’s worn throughout various gigs over the years. 100% of the proceeds will go to the Red Cross. You can bid at eBay with comfort knowing it’s all going to a good cause. Our other favorite way to donate: Use your phone to text the word ‘Haiti’ to 90999 and $10 will be put on your phone bill which will 100% go towards the Red Cross and their aid efforts. With the amount we’re spending on text and data every month, what’s another $10 to help out the cause? Please donate.
