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Scultptor Lawrence J. Nowlan works on the Harry Kalas Memorial Statue in the artist's studio.
(Photo courtesy Lawrence J. Nowlan Sculpture)

Today is Opening Day for the Phillies and Phillies Fever has officially set in.

While the weather may not be cooperating perfectly, things are nevertheless looking up. Case in point: yesterday the Phillies announced that the team has gratefully accepted the fan-funded gift of a 7 and 1/2-foot bronze statue of Harry Kalas for placement at Citizens Bank Park.

The statue was presented to the Phillies as a gift from Dear Harry, Inc., a fan-based group organized solely to create a statue dedicated to the memory of the Phillies Hall of Fame broadcaster. The sculptor, Lawrence J. Nowlan, has received important commissions for public sculpture across the country and overseas.

The statue of Harry Kalas will be joining the already existing statues of Richie Ashburn, Mike Schmidt, Robin Roberts, and Steve Carlton at Citizens Bank Park. Details about the location of the Kalas statue at the ballpark are yet to be determined, as well as the date and time of the unveiling.

You can check out more photos from the making of the statue here.

Meanwhile, the Phillies starting pitchers grace the cover of this week’s issue of Sports Illustrated.

The accompanying article — “The Legion Of Arms” — is a great read. The writer employs a superhero metaphor to help tell the story of how the formidable rotation was came into being. Check it out below.

And as always, Go Phillies!

The Legion Of Arms – Are the Phillies’ starters more powerful than a locomotive? Faster than a speeding bullet? [Sports Illustrated]
Phils say yes to Harry Kalas statue [Philadelphia Inquirer]

'Spring Blooms' opens at Longwood Gardens on April 2. (Photo courtesy Longwood Gardens)

Happy “vernal equinox,” otherwise known as the first day of spring!

Celebrate by taking advantage of the nice day with an outdoor activity or two. And then maybe reward yourself with some free Rita’s.

We hope you are as excited as we are about the prospect of enjoying a lot of beautiful spring weather in the weeks and months to come!!

Arrow Swim Club will feature cabanas, lounge chairs, sundecks, hammocks, fire-pits, poolside food and beverage service and lots more. (Images courtesy Arrow Swim Club)

Arrow Swim Club, a new private swim club, is set to open this May in Northern Liberties behind the Piazza.

The Swim Club will feature a 1380 square foot pool, Balinese lounge chairs, portable sun umbrellas, luxury cabanas, oversized day beds, plus poolside food and beverage service, live DJ and music, hammocks for lounging, ping-pong tables, a shaded bar beneath the club’s upper level sundeck, and a cozy fire-pit lounge.

Memberships go on sale on Monday, March 7. See the Arrow Swim Club website for more information.

UPDATE: Check out a video preview, below.

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CHOOOOOCH! Phillies Spring Training kicked off this week with pitchers and catchers reporting for the start of voluntary workouts.
(Photo by M. Kennedy/Courtesy the Phillies)

In light of the weather forecast for today and tomorrow, we’re in an especially spring-ish state of mind.

And what says spring more than baseball?

This week marks the beginning of Spring Training for the Phillies as pitchers and catchers reported to Phillies Clearwater, Florida facilities for the start of voluntary workouts.

Which can only mean that Opening Day at Citizens Bank Park in South Philadelphia is just a few — six, but who’s counting? — weeks away.

We. Can’t. Wait.

P.S. Single game tickets went on sale today. We recommend you get your tickets now before they are all gone.

Philadelphia Phillies [Visit Philly]

 
This video is from our archives, but we are super proud of it, so we’re re-posting it today.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

With Love, Philadelphia XOXO® [Visit Philly]

It’s clear that creativity in Philadelphia is alive and well: we’ve received more than 2,000 entries to our Write-A-Billboard contest and the submissions keep coming.

You still have time to send in your own “With Love” line that could be featured on an I-95 billboard with your name. The contest runs through February 4th, 2011. Enter HERE.

Need some creative fodder? Below is a sampling of billboard submissions; take a look, vote for your favorite and maybe you’ll find some inspiration for a billboard entry that will be better than anything we’ve seen yet…

Remember: you have until Friday to enter.

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As Comcast finalizes its purchase of NBC Universal today, the Comcast World Headquarters in Philadelphia shines a little brighter. (Photo courtesy Flickr user kingfal)

Congratulations to Comcast, who today will finalize its purchase of NBC Universal after a year-long regulatory review.

The amazing photograph above comes to us via Flickr user kingfal, who brilliantly captured Philadelphia’s tallest building in the early evening light.

Below, check out a funny clip from last night’s episode of 30 Rock, touching on the merger. “Out with G.E.; in with Kabletown…” (more…)

 
With Betty White in its corner, we like Tastykake’s chances. Go Tastykake!

via

The NFL's first Tuesday night game in more than 65 years will be played tonight in South Philadelphia.
(Photo by Drew Hallowell/Courtesy the Philadelphia Eagles)

In a game with big playoff implications, Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles will take on the Minnesota Vikings tonight in South Philadelphia, marking the first time since 1946 that there will be a NFL game played on a Tuesday night.

After having already clinched the NFC East Division title, the Eagles will be playing for a chance at home-field advantage in the playoffs.

Game time is 8 p.m. on NBC. Follow the game action along with pre-game and post-game coverage on philadelphiaeagles.com.

Go Eagles!

(Image courtesy Tony Luke's)

This past weekend, Tony Luke opened a branch of his eponymous cheesesteak shop, Tony Luke’s, in Bahrain in the Middle East.

CNN caught up with the man and he had some pretty nice things to say:

The Cheesesteak IS Philadelphia. It is one of our most prized possessions. We love it. We represent it no matter what. We love our cheesesteak just as much as we love our sports teams and that’s a lot. [...] And I’m happy that we get to share the cheesesteak around the world now.

I’m a Philly guy through and through. I love this city; I’ve always loved this city. And to be able to not only share one of my favorite foods with the rest of the world, but to share the city that I’ve grown to love more than anything and grew up in… to be able to share that too to different cultures around the world… I feel like the luckiest guy in the world.

Congrats to Tony Luke’s on the international expansion. Sounds like Philadelphia has a great new ambassador.

Check out the full article and video on CNN. And check out some of Tony’s tweets from Bahrain.

Get Your Philly Cheesesteak On – In Bahrain [CNN.com]