Three months after Woodstock, the hippie scene shifted south.

To the boondocks west of West Palm Beach.

On Thanksgiving weekend, 40 years ago.

See anyone you know in the crowd? (Courtesy Ken Davidoff)

And the local ruling class didn’t like it one bit.

Then-Palm Beach County Sheriff Bill Heidtman vowed to make life miserable for the free-loving, pot-smoking, anti-establishment youngsters who gathered at the Palm Beach Pop Festival. He threatened to herd alligators toward the crowd, gathered at the Palm Beach International Raceway. And he swore he’d have his good ole’ boys dig out fire ant colonies and relocate them at the venue.

Yet, 50,000 people showed up for the three-day event, the only one of its kind ever in this area. And they got to calling Heidtman “Sheriff Eichmann,” after Hitler’s henchman, Adolf Eichmann.

Mick Jagger at the 1969 Palm Beach Pop Festival (Courtesy Ken Davidoff)

The lineup of bands was nearly the same as the earlier New York state rendezvous. Except that Jimi Hendrix couldn’t make it. He was replaced by a little band known as The Rolling Stones. Janis Joplin belted out a few tunes, as did The Byrds, Sly and the Family Stone, Johnny Winter, Grand Funk Railroad, Spirit and Jefferson Airplane.

Florida rocker Tom Petty was there, too, after hitch-hiking south from his hometown of Gainesville.

Palm Beach society shutterbug Ken Davidoff remembers the festival well. At 19, he scored a gig as the event’s official photographer.

Janis Joplin and Johnny Winter at the 1969 festival (Courtesy Ken Davidoff)

“It was rainy and freezing cold and people were ankle deep in mud,” Davidoff said. “There were 50,000 at the beginning, but by the time the Stones got on stage on Sunday, there were maybe 3,000 left. The weather and delays just drove people away.”

Among the delays, Davidoff cited the Stones’ arrival after authorities forced the band to wait on their jet on the tarmac for six hours, sorta, kinda, on purpose.

Davidoff recently built this Web site for the anniversary and stuffed it with some of the 600-plus pictures he took that weekend. He’s also interviewing festival-goers, roadies and promoters for a documentary.

“The festival was definitely a historical event that very few residents knew about,” Davidoff said.

For more photos, click here. And for some of the sounds, click here.

Bruce Helander (Michele Sandberg/Special to Page2Live)

West Palm Beach collage and pop artist Bruce Helander, a darling among Palm Beach’s art collectors and a popular figure on the society circuit, may soon lose his beloved classic home.

The bowler hat-wearing artist and his wife, Claudia, were notified last week that the U.S. Bank National Association filed a notice to have the home sold on the proverbial courthouse steps unless the couple comes up with $945,033.

That includes the principal on an $882,970 mortgage in 2006, and more than $2,060 in late fees.

Helander bought in 1998 for $195,000 but, according to court records, routinely borrowed against it. The digs are well-known for being the stage for some of the best parties in town and its second-to-none lush backyard.

Helander, whose art has been shown nationally, was the first hipster to buy a home in one of the downtown’s most neglected and blighted areas. He was soon followed by dozens of others, and Grandview Heights became livable again.

Helander listed the house in 2005 for $1.2 million.

“We didn’t know the bank was filing,” Helander said. “We were negotiating a new traditional mortgage. But this is a classic case of being upside down. The house appraised at less than $500,000.”

Deputy Chief Ralph Phillips (Courtesy Delray Beach Police)

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating whether a deputy chief at the Delray Beach Police Department interfered with his own cops in incidents involving his sons.

The FDLE is also looking at accusations of official misconduct against the sergeant who arrested one of the kids. He is accident homicide investigator Vinny Gray, and has since been reassigned in what he says is clear retaliation.

Deputy Chief Ralph Phillips, a 26-year veteran of the 150-member police force, confirmed to Page2Live that an investigation is underway.

Phillips declined to talk about the details. DBPD Chief Anthony Strianese and City Manager David Harden didn’t return calls.

According to a document obtained by Page2Live, Gray invoked the whistleblower protection act to prevent retaliation when he faxed a letter about Phillips to Harden last month.

“Deputy Chief Phillips has been using his official position and authority to secure more favorable treatment of his family by law enforcement,” Gray’s later starts.

Scott Phillips (Courtesy PBSO)

According to the missive, Delray cops started experiencing trouble with Scott Phillips, 19, the chief’s oldest son, in 2007. On July 10 that year, Gray wrote that his night crew found Scott and a convicted felon named Dustin Inman street racing. Both allegedly tried to flee but eventually were caught.

After the deputy chief arrived at the scene of the capture, Gray wrote, Philllips got in his son’s truck and drove it home. Scott Philllips wasn’t charged.

Inman, meanwhile, was arrested and charged with fleeing police. His car was impounded.

Six months later, the state attorney’s office declined to prosecute Inman, according to court records.

Then in February, according to Gray’s letter, Scott Phillips allegedly tried to ram a Delray police car during yet another pursuit that also involved Boynton Beach PD. This time, Gray alleges, the deputy chief asked that he change the incident report. Gray refused, and Scott Phillips pleaded guilty to charges of attempting to flee police and hit-and-run. He was sentenced to two years probation and 100 hours of community service, court records show.

Then in May, it was Chief Phillips youngest, Jeffrey, who was pulled over. According to Gray, Scott was driving 30 mph over the speed limit. When he was notified of the stop, the deputy chief allegedly ordered his son’s release with no citation, no warning or incident report.

Finally, three months ago, Gray added, Scott Phillips was chased on foot by a private security guard at an undisclosed Delray location. Once again, Chief Phillips showed up as his officers considered criminal trespassing. No charge was filed. Scott was still on probation.

Gray ends the letter by claiming that his career took a nasty turn after he arrested the teenager.

“Things are not as they appear,” Ralph Phillips told me Tuesday. “The outcome of this investigation will be very different from the story.”

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Eisenberg, here with PBC Commish Burt Aaronson (The Palm Beach Post)

A respected Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office captain is under Internal Affairs investigation today for firing a gun in his cramped office, in the presence of two other people.

No one was hurt, but PBSO spokeswoman Teri Barbera tells me Capt. Matt Eisenberg, 49, a 25-year veteran of the agency and the commander of a district west of Boca Raton, is the target of the incident review.

“We still don’t know exactly what happened, but it appears there was an accidental discharge,” Barbera said. “I.A. will have to determine if procedures were properly followed.”

A PBSO source tells Page2Live that the captain was at his desk at District 7 on 441 with two Glock handguns. One was loaded and the other empty.

I’m told the captain mentally lost track of the loaded firearm when he received a phone call. After he hung up, Eisenberg supposedly picked up one weapon and placed it between his legs to dry fire it towards the floor.

A round went off — startling the commander and two others, a deputy and a civilian crime analyst.

Eisenberg remains at his post pending the I.A. report.

Jeffrey Donovan arrives at the gala Saturday night (Michele Sandberg/Special to Page2Live)

Some of the talk on the red carpet at the Boca Raton Resort on Saturday showed that stars, too, don’t mind a second job in this economy.

Among the celebs who answered the call from Chris Evert to help raise cash for childrens’ charities by playing tennis and partying in Boca, Burn Notice’s Jeffrey Donovan said he started a new business recently.

And so did area Olympic swimmer Dara Torres, who walked into fellow famous jock Evert’s ball using a crutch. She recently had knee surgery.

Said L.A. hunk Donovan, whose USA Network spy series is filmed mostly in the Miami area: “I’ve become a lover of Florida. I even went up to Tallahassee last week to ask the legislature for more incentives for film companies to shoot here. And even though I’ve been renting an apartment for the last few years, I’m looking to buy somewhere near Miami. I even started a new business.

“When producers come here to film, they always want to hire local actors. Fact is, local actors sometimes aren’t as good as Hollywood actors. So, I started acting classes.”

Torres, meanwhile, told reporters it’ll take her up to 18 months to recover from arthritis surgery. How does she spend the time? Speaking engagements, of the motivational kind. And according to her booking agency’s Web site, she commands between $35,000 and $45,000. Private planes are her preferred mode of transportation, according to the site.

For more, and Page2Live’s photo gallery, look below or click (Read more…)

(Courtesy Mavrixphoto.com)

Roger Daltrey, frontman of The Who, enjoyed a perk of stardom on the Palm Beach sand recently: A white-haired gentleman named Gordon sprayed suntan lotion all over his 65-year-old body! And Roger seemed to appreciate the tan assistant’s work thoroughly! (Read more about Daltrey’s Palm Beach vacation here.)

Lt. Paula Kronsperger, one of the highest-profile females at the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office, is out on worker’s comp as more allegations of sex-related wrongdoing rain on her.

Kronsperger, 41, the warrants and fugitives unit’s executive officer, went out on leave Oct. 11, according to PBSO spokeswoman Teri Barbera. Barbera couldn’t legally discuss the reason for Kronsperger’s temporary departure. But two sources at the department said months under Internal Affairs scrutiny and a new investigation by PBSO’s Human Resources have stressed out Kronsperger.

Four days before Kronsperger’s departure, as many as 20 of her employees descended on the office of HR honcho Joyce Stelling to file a federal EEOC complaint against Kronsperger.

Reason: Hostile work environment!

John Kazanjian, head of the local PBA police union, confirmed the existence of the EEOC complaint.

“The sheriff (Ric Bradshaw) called me to ask if I could hold off some of my members from joining the EEOC action,” Kazanjian said. “But I couldn’t do it.”

The troops, meanwhile, are grumbling that it is highly unusual for a PBSO employee to be allowed on worker’s comp for stress. Usually, stressed out employees have to use the Family Medical Leave Act.

FMLA leaves are unpaid. But because Kronsperger is on worker’s comp, PBSO continues paying her $104,000-a-year salary, Barbera confirmed.

Last month a member of Bradshaw’s cabinet, Maj. Michael Veccia, invoked the FMLA to take a leave the day he was supposed to be interviewed by Internal Affairs in connection with a hostile work environment complaint. He, too, told the brass he was stressed out.

Why the double standard? It’s nothing of the sort, Barbera said.

For more, and the poll, look below or click (Read more…)

Schmidt threw out the first pitch of the Phillies' World Series game against the New York Yankees Saturday (AP Photo)

Hall-of-fame third baseman Mike Schmidt has put on the market his home in the fancy Admiral’s Cove in Jupiter.

Schmidt bought the 8,500-square-foot home pre-construction in 1991 — just two years after he played his last game. He paid $425,000 for the land then another $1 million to build.

Now, he wants $4.5 million for it.

Realtor Rob Thomson, who has the listing with Admiral’s Cove Realty’s Dick Capozzi, said Schmidt, 60, and his wife, Donna, are looking for another home in Admiral’s Cove.

“They just want a change,” said Thomson, of Waterfront Properties. “The house was perfect for them and their two kids. Now the kids are gone, they want something that fits their lifestyle.”

With 548 career homers, Schmidt is No. 14 on the list of the top Major League homerun hitters.

Visit Schmidt’s home by clicking here, or check out the gallery below, courtesy of Waterfront Properties:

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Behind Blue Eyes, Roger Daltrey (Courtesy AP)

– The Who’s frontman, Roger Daltrey, is hanging at the Palm Beach Ritz-Carlton. He arrived Sunday afternoon and already has been spotted in the cooling, fall surf. Daltrey, who’s — gasp … 65! — is taking a break from his solo tour, his first in North America since 1985. In addition to catching some rays, Daltrey has been spotted at Bice restaurant in Palm Beach and was scheduled to go on a deep-sea fishing expedition this afternoon. Daltrey is scheduled to play the Seminole Hard Rock Resort in Hollywood Nov 29.

– Jupiter Island golfer Greg Norman is trying to unload his giant Colorado ranch for a whopping $55 million — five years after he bought it for $18.5 million. The reason for the sale wasn’t announced, and his Jupiter lawyer didn’t comment. But Norman is still paying his $103 million divorce settlement to his ex-wife, Laura Andrassy. Norman is currently married to Boca Raton tennis legend Chris Evert, but the two are separated. What does $55 million buy you these days? The Seven Lakes Ranch is located inside the White River National Forest, near Meeker, and features 11,600 acres of pristine rivers, mountains, valleys, lakes and forests. It’s prime land for fly fishing and big-game hunting, according to the real estate Web site zillow.com. The main lodge has 13,000 square feet with an adjacent dance hall!

Pam Anderson

– Baywatch babe Pam Anderson, who earlier this month donned her old bathing suit from the show for a Miami Beach fashion gig, returns to SoFla next week. This time, she’ll be fully dressed to emcee Ocean Ridge resident Al Malnik’s yearly Make-a-Wish Foundation gala. The affair is scheduled for Nov. 7 at downtown Miami’s Intercontinental. Gov. Charlie Crist returns as a guest of honor.

Chris Brown at a court hearing in June (AP Photo)

Chris Brown can be saved.

So says SoFla’s member of the Kennedy clan, Anthony Shriver.

Shriver, whose Best Buddies International raises hundreds of thousands in Palm Beach each spring, is having the man convicted of beating pop star Rhianna headline the non-profit’s Miami gala Nov. 20.

R&B singer Brown, who pleaded guilty to assault and is serving five years probation, is touring intimate clubs nationwide. He’s scheduled to play Shriver’s private shindig at the Mondrian Hotel on his way to a Richmond, Va., concert.

Shriver, the son of Sargent and Eunice Shriver and a nephew of former Pres. John F. Kennedy, founded Best Buddies 20 years ago as a college student. The group matches children with disabilities with mentors.

Is a Best Buddies gala really a good venue for Brown?

Shriver at the Best Buddies gala at The Breakers (Michele Sandberg/Special to Page2Live)

Absolutely, says Shriver. Especially since Brown joined Shriver’s cause and is donating some of the proceeds of his tour to Best Buddies.

““I support Chris Brown’s efforts to show the world why he deserves a second chance, given that the commitment he has made to Best Buddies – not only to perform at our Miami Gala, but also to join the Best Buddies family as a volunteer – is a huge step in the right direction,” Shriver told Page2Live in a e-mail.

“I also appreciate Chris’ generous offer to donate a portion of the proceeds from his tour to Best Buddies. I believe Chris’ fans will be equally inspired to support Best Buddies’ mission to provide opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities once they see his enthusiasm and commitment to the cause – and just how much his efforts mean to our participants.”

It’s unclear whether Brown actually will mentor handicapped youths.

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