EventsJuneteenth Celebration will be back Saturday for...

Events

Juneteenth Celebration will be back Saturday for its sixth year. Presented by the Orange County chapter of the NAACP, the daylong event in Santa Ana will commemorate the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation and the subsequent abolition of slavery in the United States. It starts at 10 a.m. and will include gospel music, a fashion show and a celebrity basketball game with actors Anthony “Chicago” Hall, Antwon Tanner, Nigel Miguel, A.J. Johnson and Shar Jackson; deejay Corn Dog; comedians Flex, Alex Thomas and Darryl Heath, and others.

* What: The Juneteenth Celebration.

* When: Saturday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

* Where: Lillie King Park, 500 W. Alton Ave., Santa Ana.

* Whereabouts: Take the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway to MacArthur, head west to Flower Street and turn right. Go to Alton Avenue and turn right. The park is on the right.

* Wherewithal: Free.

* Where to call: (714) 262-7868.

Jazz

Keiko Matsui is known for lush, impressionistic keyboard pieces inspired by the music of her native Japan. But she also likes to strap on a guitar-like, shoulder-slung electric keyboard to wail on the blues. She plays two shows tonight as part of the Hyatt Newporter’s Summer Jazz Series.

* Who: Keiko Matsui.

* When: Tonight at 7 and 9.

* Where: The Hyatt Newporter, 1107 Jamboree Road, Newport Beach.

* Whereabouts: Take the San Diego (405) Freeway to Jamboree Road. Go west on Jamboree to Newporter Drive and turn right into the Hyatt grounds. Or take Coast Highway to Jamboree, go east and turn left.

* Wherewithal: $15-$20.

* Where to call: (714) 650-5483.

Kid Stuff

These days, there’s a lot of talk about Olympic athletes going for the gold, but what does it have to do with garden-variety kids? Plenty, says Patricia Korzec. The director of children’s education at the Bowers Kidseum in Santa Ana believes that children--and many adults--forget how to dream of great things and settle too easily for second best, so she’s bringing in Bruce Furniss, a two-time gold medalist in the 1976 Olympic Games, to remind us. On Saturday, Furniss, an Anaheim Hills resident who has excelled in sports despite a serious arthritic condition, will present a motivational program for school-age children that will encourage them to set goals and follow their dreams. He also will bring along his gold medals and show a short video of his ’76 competition. The program will be interpreted in Spanish.

* What: “If You Don’t Do It, Someone Else Will,” a motivational program by Olympic gold medalist Bruce Furniss.

* When: Saturday at 1 p.m.

* Where: The Bowers Kidseum, 1802 N. Main St., Santa Ana.

* Whereabouts: From the Santa Ana (5) freeway, exit at Main Street and drive south.

* Wherewithal: Free with Kidseum admission ($1.50 to $4.50; children under 5 free. Good for same day entry to the Bowers Museum of Cultural Art).

* Where to call: (714) 480-1520.

Pop

With Thermadore’s debut album “Monkey on Rico,” Robbie Allen, a perpetual sidekick on the O.C./Long Beach rock scene since the mid-’80s, finally becomes a chief honcho-- and makes the most of the opportunity, with songs that range from funny and crusty to brooding and poignant, and styles that move from heartland rock to folk jangling, from Pearl Jam density to pure pop. Backing Allen are drum expert Josh Freese and Mary’s Danish alumni Chris Wagner on bass and David King on guitar.

* Who: Thermadore, Mike Martt and the John Oszajca Band.

* When: Tonight at 9.

* Where: The Foothill, 1922 Cherry Ave., Signal Hill.

* Whereabouts: Take the San Diego (405) freeway to the Cherry Avenue exit, go left (toward the beach) about one mile. The club is on the left, just before 19th Street.

* Wherewithal: $7.

* Where to call: (310) 984-8349 (taped information).