Thanksgiving Day is the most common day for home cooking fires to break out in the U.S., according to the organization. On Thanksgiving Day in 2021, fire departments across the U.S. reported receiving about triple the number of daily home cooking fires compared to the daily average. (Christmas Day and Christmas Eve are the second- and third-most risky.)

It’s easy to get distracted while cooking Thanksgiving dinner, but staying focused on what you’re doing and not leaving those pots unattended are critical matters of safety, says Lorraine Carli, vice president of outreach and advocacy at the National Fire Protection Association.

“Thanksgiving is a hectic holiday with multiple dishes cooking and baking at the same time, along with lots of guests, entertaining and other distractions that can make it easy to lose sight of what’s on the stove or in the oven,” she says. “With all these factors at play, it’s not surprising that the number of cooking fires spikes so dramatically.”

Here are a few of the association’s tips and recommendations to stay safe while cooking this Thanksgiving:

• Never leave the kitchen when something is cooking on the stovetop.
• Stay at home, while you’re cooking turkey. Check it regularly.
• Use timers, especially for dishes with longer cooking times.
• Keep children and pets at least three feet away from kitchen heat sources.
• Store hot foods and liquids away from table and counter edges.
• Store oven mitts, wooden utensils, food wrappers, towels and other flammable materials at least three feet away from the cooking area. Keep long sleeves and hanging fabrics away from heat sources.
• Keep a lid beside your pan at all times.
• To stop a small grease fire, smother the flames by sliding the lid over the pan and turning off the burner. Keep it covered and let the pan cool for a long time.
• To stop an oven fire, turn off the heat and keep the door closed. Only open the oven when you are sure the fire is completely out, and stand to the side as you do so. Contact the fire department for help if you have any doubts.
• Turkey fryers that use cooking oil are highly discouraged, as the oil can cause devastating burns. Consider buying your fried turkey from a grocery store or using an oil-free fryer instead.

What version did you grow up with? Maybe you turned up your nose or shook your head with the “no way” universal food language of “please remove that red concoction from the house.”

Let’s step back a little before we pass too much judgment on this traditional holiday side dish. We all agree that cranberries look pretty; they’re shiny, red and just the right size to pop in your mouth. But a raw cranberry can be bitterly tart eaten straight up. On the bright side, as a kid when you saw the bags of cranberries show up in the grocery store, you knew Thanksgiving was getting close and Christmas was not far behind.

First, the name. The internet says “cranberry” was originally called “craneberry,” in 1647, so named after the German word kraanebere by John Eliot, a Native American missionary from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Seeing cranberries for the first time in their new country, Eliot, and perhaps other colonists, saw the resemblance of blooming cranberry flowers, petals and the stem growing on the shrub to the head, neck and bill of a crane.

Back in the day, Native Americans picked lots of cranberries. Algonquins called them sassamenesh, which translates to “sour berries.” They pounded cranberries into the first-ever energy bar, combined with dried deer meat and fat, and stored them in small animal skin sacks to last several months. Tasteeee!

Cranberries have excellent antibacterial properties and were historically used by Native Americans to make poultices for wounds, to treat stomach problems and fevers. Dyes from the red skin of the fruit were used for clothing and jewelry.

Later, when European colonists arrived, they figured out quickly that cranberries and all their vitamin C helped keep away scurvy, a disease caused by lack of vitamin C in a diet. Today, cranberry juice and tablets are often taken to prevent urinary tract infections. Cranberries are full of the chemical proanthocyanidins, which keeps bad bacteria from sticking to the surface of the tract.

(So much for passing on that dish of cranberries at Thanksgiving, right?)

The cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) is native to the swamps of the Northeast. It belongs to the heather family (Ericaceae), which also includes huckleberries, blueberries and rhododendrons. The latter two and cranberries don’t grow well in the Western U.S. because of our dry, alkaline soils.

Cranberry shrubs are low-growing, woody perennials with small oval leaves on their vine-like shoots. They form dense mats from their runners, or horizontal stems that grow and root along the soil surface.

Cranberries flower dark pink from May to June, which then form berries in late September to October. The shrubs don’t constantly grow in a lake of water like the television commercials. Rather, fields are flooded for ease of harvest.

Today, five states grow the most cranberries: Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington.

Now for the decision. Do you prefer molded jellied cranberry? Directly out of the can, slices of this wiggly gelatinous tube slide witih simple ease onto any plate no matter how highly piled with other Thanksgiving Day tasty eats.

Or, do you prefer the stove-top cooked version of whole cranberries with cups (the number is up to you) of added sugar? The end result looks more like pie filling.

I’ll take whatever you’re serving on Thanksgiving!

Cosmic Rewind, which opened this spring, is an indoor roller coaster with a storyline that swings through outer space and is set to a pop-music soundtrack. Bermuda Storm, a motion-simulator attraction at Chimelong Spaceship theme park in Zhuhai, China, also was recognized in the attraction division.

SeaWorld’s Yas Island in Abu Dhabi won in the indoor marine park category.

Other outstanding achievement winners were Disney Encanto x CAMP in New York (retail experience, limited budget), Mussikkfabrikken Hunderfossen at Hunderfossen Eventyrpark in Norway (attraction, limited budget), Geneva Journey of Switzerland (live spectacular), Deutschlandmuseum of Berlin (museum attraction, limited budget), “Le Mime et L’Etoile” at Puy De Fou in France (live show), Titanic Belfast of Northern Ireland (visitor experience re-envisioned, limited budget), Johnnie Walker Princes Street in  Edinburgh, Scotland (brand experience), Aura: The Forest at the Edge of the Sky in Haikou, China (immersive mall experience), Peaky Blinders: The Rise at Camden Stables Market of London (live interactive experience), Colored (Noire) of Centre Georges in Paris (extended reality exhibit) and Eatrenalin of Europa-Park in Germany (experiential dining attraction).

Individuals recognized include Su Zhigang, chairman and CEO of Chimelong Group, for the Buzz Price Award; Paul C. Hutton, principal and director of Regenerative Design at Cuningham for the Thea Catalyst Award, and David Green and Lisa Passamonte Green of Visual Terrain for the Peter Chernack Distinguished Service Award.

Liseberg, an amusement park in Gothenburg, Sweden, received the Thea Classic Award.

Winners will be honored at a gala in Hollywood, California, in March. IAAPA Expo at Orange County Convention Center continues through Friday.

dbevil@orlandosentinel.com

In an email to the Orlando Sentinel, De Groft said he was “going to war to get my good name back, my professional standing and personal and professional exoneration.”

De Groft was fired by the museum’s board in June 2022, shortly after the FBI raided the “Heroes & Monsters” exhibition and seized art purportedly by acclaimed artist Jean-Michel Basquiat as part of a fraud investigation. The museum’s lawsuit, filed in August against De Groft and the owners of the artwork, claims they colluded to use the exhibition to raise the value of the art and thereby increase personal profits by selling the art later.

Orlando Museum of Art, defendants negotiating lawsuit settlement

“I have kept my head down and suffered slings and arrows and humiliations when I did nothing wrong and all everyone else did was lie, misreport, make things up, get so much wrong,” De Groft wrote to the Sentinel.

In his countersuit, De Groft strikes at the center of the museum’s case: That he and the owners knew the artwork was fraudulent.

“OMA’s lawsuit against Defendant is based on the false premise that the 25 Basquiat paintings in the exhibition Heroes & Monsters (“Exhibition”) were fakes, Defendant actually knew they were fakes, but Defendant nonetheless represented to OMA that they were authentic because he wanted to sell them and receive a hefty sales commission from the owners,” his filing begins. “There is not a kernel of truth to this absurd allegation.”

Despite lawsuit’s claims, Orlando Museum of Art tight-lipped about how much damage it has suffered

De Groft goes on to accuse the museum of firing him illegally and orchestrating a campaign “to destroy him.”

A museum spokeswoman told the Sentinel, “At the advice of counsel, the Orlando Museum of Art is not offering any comment on this pending litigation.”

While the museum’s original suit says De Groft breached his fiduciary duty to the museum by failing to follow the proper procedures to authenticate the art, his countersuit points the finger at former board chair Cynthia Brumback, who left the organization last December.

De Groft says Brumback never told the board of trustees about an FBI subpoena received by the museum —  a claim that has been corroborated by several former trustees.

“As a result, the Board was completely in the dark about such an extraordinary, unprecedented and dangerous situation,” De Groft’s suit says. “The Board should have been immediately informed by Brumback. Brumback outrageously breached her fiduciary duty in masterminding this cover-up.”

The countersuit, filed Tuesday, also takes aim at Akerman, the law firm retained by the museum to investigate the affair and currently representing the institution in the lawsuit. De Groft says Akerman — as well as the FBI — advised him and Brumback there was no reason to cancel the “Heroes & Monsters” exhibition, thereby fortifying his belief the paintings were authentic.

The countersuit notes the original legal filing shows that Akerman was aware the firm had been engaged to investigate the exhibition without the knowledge of the full board.

“Akerman thus became a co-conspirator with Brumback in the coverup and flagrantly breached its fiduciary duty to OMA,” De Groft’s countersuit states.

The countersuit calls for Akerman to recuse itself from the lawsuit because Florida ethics laws prohibit lawyers from being both witnesses to the issue at hand as well as advocates for one party in the dispute.

“If Akerman does not immediately withdraw, Defendant will file a motion for their disqualification,” De Groft’s suit threatens.

Orlando Museum of Art said it filed its suit because the actions of De Groft and the owners harmed both its reputation and finances. De Groft’s countersuit says he has suffered the same fate because of the museum’s failings.

“OMA’s lawsuit is a transparent public relations stunt intended to save face and to wrongfully make Defendant a scapegoat for the FBI’s seizure of the 25 paintings,” the countersuit states.

While De Groft did not specify what sort of damages he sought beyond the legal category of “in excess of $50,000,” the countersuit indicates big money could be in play.

“Defendant’s conclusion that the 25 Basquiats are authentic will be proven at trial, thereby dealing a much-deserved, fatal blow to OMA’s lawsuit and exposing [the museum] to tens of millions of dollars for its outrageous treatment of [De Groft] and deliberately trashing his excellent reputation,” the suit says. “Acts have consequences, and intentionally malicious acts are punished harshly. An Orlando jury will teach OMA a lesson that it will never forget.”

Follow me at facebook.com/matthew.j.palm or email me at mpalm@orlandosentinel.com. Find more arts news and reviews at orlandosentinel.com/arts, and go to orlandosentinel.com/theater for theater news and reviews.

Orlando’s Little Radical Theatre is staging the musical in a raucous, exuberant production that will hit the right buttons for “Rocky Horror” fans — and heaven knows, there are a lot of them. The production is full of energy and has the right subversive attitude. But as for the show itself, well, the times they are a-changin’.

When “The Rocky Horror Show” debuted in 1973 — two years before the film adaptation that would turn the musical into a cult favorite — it was celebrated (or derided, depending on your point of view) as a reflection of the growing sexual liberation of the times. Set up as a spoof of the sci-fi B-movies of Hollywood’s early years, the story follows Brad and Janet, a couple of “squares” who succumb to the oversexed world of a mad scientist from outer space Frank-N-Furter, who’s determined to create a perfect sexual being, the Rocky of the title.

But as the social climate changes, it feels odd now to hear the show toss around words like “transvestite” and “transsexual.” (Does anyone even say “transvestite” or “transsexual” anymore?) And in an era focused on sexual consent, scenes where Frank tricks Brad and Janet into sex are more off-putting than humorous, as originally intended.

The Little Radical production, directed by Travis Eaton, mitigates these problems somewhat by focusing on the show’s ultimate message of “Don’t dream it, be it” and shaking up the genders in casting.

Jennifer Rae Paxton, who uses she/they pronouns, is the lecherous Frank and gives the scientist a troublemaking sneer while gleefully romping through the production numbers. Rocky, the object of Frank’s affection, is a nonbinary creation, portrayed with glee by Marlo Coffin.

Brad and Janet stick to traditional gender roles, with Ryan Bassett playing up Brad’s nerdish qualities and Kristie Geng relishing Janet’s newly discovered sexual freedom. Yet even her stripping down to pasties can’t possibly feel as shocking in this sexualized age as it did decades ago.

In his staging, Eaton has smartly found a middle ground between a typical play in which the audience sits quietly and the now de rigueur interactive movie screenings, in which audience members dress up, yell out lines between the filmed actors’ words and throw things at the screen.

I walked into the theater during a preshow game as an audience volunteer was agreeing to be flogged. Goodie bags are available filled with props to be used during the show. And, yes, the audience is encouraged to rise and dance the iconic “Time Warp.”

But the most interesting idea is the insertion of a master of ceremonies, who sometimes leads the audience in the standard interjections — how many times do we hear “Castles don’t have phones!” — but also adds his own witty one-liners, some with on-point Florida-specific references to Gov. Ron DeSantis or Walt Disney World.

Kenny Robinson plays this role with a devilish twinkle akin to the narrators in Broadway’s “Shucked.” About 90% of his comments land solidly, with the other 10% drowned out by the other onstage action. And there is plenty of onstage action: choreographer Shawn Lowe has fun with his big ensemble.

Ensemble members even take to the aisles in the Shakespeare Center’s Mandell Theatre, but oddly face the stage instead of the audience; how much more fun it would be to see their faces while they are among us.

One final note: Musical director Nishaa Johnson’s band sounds great and adds immeasurably to the energy, with a special shoutout going to saxophonist Jesse Dean. The sweet sound of his sax? Now that’s sexy.

‘The Rocky Horror Show’

• Length: 2:30, including preshow games and an intermission
• Where: Lowndes Shakespeare Center, 812 E. Rollins St. in Orlando
• When: Through Nov. 19
• Cost: $30 ($25 students and seniors)
• Info: littleradicaltheatricsinc.com

Follow me at facebook.com/matthew.j.palm or email me at mpalm@orlandosentinel.com. Find more arts news and reviews at orlandosentinel.com/arts, and go to orlandosentinel.com/theater for theater news and reviews.

“R-Evolution,” a kinetic sculpture depicting a nude standing woman known for appearing at the Burning Man festival, was unveiled on the 400 block of Lincoln Road on Tuesday morning ahead of Miami Art Week next month.

The artwork, designed by artist Marco Cochrane, was brought to Miami Beach by the Lincoln Road Business Improvement District in partnership with the City of Miami Beach. It is on view until April 2024.

In recent years, Lincoln Road publicly exhibited works by Colombian artist Fernando Botero and French artist Richard Orlinski on its promenade.

“We wanted something that was monumental, that was large and could be a conversation piece that wouldn’t get lost in the breadth of Lincoln Road,” said Lyle Stern, the Lincoln Road BID president. “We also wanted something that signaled a major statement for conversation, and I think we can all agree that this did it.”

Cochrane, an American sculptor, debuted “R-Evolution” at Burning Man in 2015. The sculpture, which was modeled after singer and dancer Deja Solis, was the third sculpture in Cochrane’s series.

Unlike most California girls, “R-Evolution” traveled from the west coast to Miami on two semi trucks. The work features 16 motors inside the chest to make it look like she’s breathing. It was designed to shine brightly during the day and glow with LED lights at night.

Outgoing Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber thanked Stern, the BID and Miami Beach residents for supporting the arts. (Last year, residents voted to approve $159 million in bonds to fund local cultural institutions.)

“The best kind of art is free art, and the very best kind of free art is public art,” Gelber said. “Because you can walk down the street and just see something that gives you a sense of place and a sense of marvel, and that’s what we’re aiming for in our city.”

In between interviews with press, Cochrane stopped to take selfies with some residents who saw the sculpture for the first time. Luz Cevallos, a longtime Miami Beach resident, shook his hand and congratulated him.

“How beautiful,” Cevallos said in Spanish as she took photos on her phone. She enjoys coming to Lincoln Road to walk and said the artwork is a great addition.

“Precious, divine,” she added, describing the sculpture. “There are no words.”

Cochrane said it’s thrilling to have his work seen by residents and visitors, especially during Art Week.

“I really didn’t know it was going to be like this,” he said. “There’s a lot of people here. It’s by far the most people she’s ever been around. I feel like it really fits in here.”

Cochrane said “R-Evolution” was inspired by female empowerment and humanity.

“It’s just about how powerful it is to be — just to be,” he said. “The world is really busy and crazy right now, crazier than ever. I want to remind people that being, just being, is enough.”

Want to check out the “R-Evolution” sculpture? It’s located outside on the 400 block of Lincoln Road, next to the 407 Lincoln Road building and until April.

Radar is a weekly digest of theme park news and notions. It appears on OrlandoSentinel.com on Wednesdays.

Mrs. Claus stirs things up

SeaWorld Orlando has sprinkled some new elements into its Christmas celebration, which is now underway on select evenings. Among the additions is “Mrs. Claus’ Magic Kitchen,” a stage show in Seaport Theater.

“You get a sneak peek into the culinary habits of the Clauses,” said John Minneci, manager for entertainment. In the story, “Mrs. Claus is getting all into social media. She wants to be the next TikTok trend.”

The plot involves her doing a video shoot on how to make the cookies that Santa loves most, he said.

“At the end, we learned a little lesson about how Mrs. Claus does her magic,” Minneci said.

It’s SeaWorld’s first holiday season with Pipeline, the roller coaster that opened this spring. The park is divided into “seas,” and the area around the ride has been designated Sea of Memories. The pathway is lined with trees decorated to represent different decades of holiday traditions, Minneci said.

“We took a lot of inspiration just from the ride itself,” he said. “The ride has a kind of retro vintage kind of vibe.”

Orlando theme parks: 10 things we’re thankful for in 2023

Among the holiday holdovers at SeaWorld are “O Wondrous Night,” “Elmo’s Christmas Wish Show,” a Christmas parade in Sesame Street Land, “Winter Wonderland On Ice,” the Sea of Trees display and the “Holiday Reflections” fireworks show.

The Christmas Market has moved into the Wild Arctic area.

“One thing that we really wanted to do this year was kind of elevate the theming of the seas that you see in the park. … Each one [sea] has a different theme based on the different holiday feeling, and it’s been like that for years,” Minneci said.

“What we wanted to do is really find ways that we could still enhance that and make sure that our guests know what those feelings are. So you’ll see a little bit more, you’ll see some signage, you’ll see some decor that kind of really helps tell the story of each land,” he said.

For dates and showtimes, go to SeaWorldOrlando.com or use the park’s official app.

Getting Very Merry

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is back in full swing at Magic Kingdom. It’s a hot ticket again: 17 of the 29 nights have sold out already. And beware, every night was a sell-out in 2023.

Here are notes taken from opening night.

• Among the new offerings: A boy band called the Collective 5ive performs pop holiday songs on the Rockettower Plaza Stage in Tomorrowland. A three-piece country-western group called Reindeer Wranglers was in the streets of Frontierland. Most visibly, “Frozen Holiday Surprise” (Elsa, Anna, Kristoff, Olaf, castle projections) kicks off the event at the base of Cinderella Castle.

• Some attractions have mild holiday makeovers. A surprise: From the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover, you get a red-and-green lit glance of Space Mountain and its rockin’ soundtrack. As we passed by, we got a look at the whole attraction in moody blue/black lighting.

• If you thought you’d be the only one there in pajamas, you’d be wrong headed. Folks have shifted into holiday dressing mode for the event, although we can probably agree that flannel in Florida is pushing the season.

• Things I had forgotten about in “Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration”: Clarabelle cow doing her best Mariah Carey and making a cowbell joke, Daisy Duck’s song about texting, Mickey Mouse breaking into a version of the Carlton.

• Very Merry begins at 7 p.m., although ticketholders can enter at 4 p.m. There can be a rush at the turnstiles for the event and to get the required wristband. A workaround for annual passholders: Go in through “regular” gates (you’ll need reservations on Saturdays or Sundays still) and get banded inside.

Mr. Gold standard

Mr. Gold has moved into Legoland Florida. He’s a sought-after minifig that the Winter Haven theme park uses to encourage interaction between visitors and employees (a k a model citizens or MCs.)

“Every day, some of our team will have a Mr. Gold,” said Kelly Hornick, head of marketing and communication. “Some days, there’ll be multiples, you don’t know who has it. It could be me, it could be the park president, it could be the ride operator.

Mr. Gold has been a staple at Legoland California and is popular with annual passholders. But anyone can just ask a worker if they have Mr. Gold.

“If we have Mr. Gold, which is a pop badge with Mr. Gold on it, we’ll give it to the kid and then the family gets to go up to guest services and get some really awesome prizes,” Hornick said. “The prizes, honestly, will change throughout the days. … But they’ll always be something really fun and new for the kids and for the families to do.”

There are consolation prizes too.

“For those of us who aren’t lucky enough to be Mr. Gold for the day – even though we’ll get asked about 40 times a day now when we are around the park – we have more pot badges and fun things just to give the kids for being brave enough to talk to the grown-ups and take the time to chat with us,” Hornick said.

First look: Disney Jollywood Nights debuts at Hollywood Studios

Weekend outlook

• Island H2O Water Park’s new Holiday Nights show, featuring light presentations, live entertainment, family activities and a holiday market, starts Nov. 15 and continues on select nights through Dec. 31.

• The Dinos in Lights holiday show is now playing at Orlando Science Center through Jan. 9.

• The Santa Workshop Experience is now open at Icon Park. St. Nick is scheduled for appearances through Dec. 24.

• Gaylord Palms’ “ICE” exhibit based on “A Charlie Brown Christmas” begins Friday and runs daily through Jan. 3.

• Universal Orlando’s holiday celebration, including a parade and Grinchmas festivities, launches Friday and goes through Dec. 31.

• The movie for Saturday’s Beach Nights event at Aquatica water park is 2018’s “The Grinch.”

• At Walt Disney World, the new Disney Jollywood Nights event at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is sold out for Saturday but tickets are available for Nov. 20. At Magic Kingdom, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is sold out through Nov. 22 and at least seven other dates.

• The final day of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival is Saturday.

What’s on your radar? Email me at dbevil@orlandosentinel.com.

I was unknowingly battling its symptoms of depression and anxiety before being diagnosed. I had no idea what was happening to me. I had no mental health struggles my whole life (I’m 45) until this medical condition changed my behavior considerably.

My wife of almost 20 years left me before I was diagnosed.

After diagnosis, doctors were able to stop the blood loss. The anemia and its symptoms went away, and I returned to my normal self.

I was sure my wife would reconcile with our family after my diagnosis, but instead she said I was using the illness as an excuse for my behavior. She does not understand it was the cause.

She doesn’t understand these symptoms went away once the illness was successfully treated and believes I am permanently mentally ill.

She believes the illness brought out my true personality, when that is not true at all. What happened was a complete accident.

My wife and family are my whole life. We have a 4-year-old daughter who I am a great father to. I never would have gotten this medical condition on purpose.

My wife is throwing away our family and is trying to take me away from our daughter because I had a curable illness, which I no longer have.

How can I save my family from this tragedy?

– Heartbroken Husband

Dear Heartbroken: I understand that depression and anxiety are possible side effects of anemia, but you don’t note precisely what considerable changes in your behavior emerged during your illness. If this change in your behavior had a significant and direct impact on your wife and child, then it is important for you to acknowledge and own any specific episodes that might have been alarming or harmful to them.

This falls under the “sickness and health” portion of the marriage contract, and your wife obviously does not have the fortitude to stick it out.

You should find a couples therapist as soon as possible, in order to discuss this in a calm and controlled environment, with someone who could help you two to communicate your concerns.

Sadly, people leave marriages for all sorts of reasons – and sometimes for seemingly no reason at all, despite the life-altering disruption to the lives of children.

Once a spouse has decided to leave, there is not always a clear path toward saving a marriage, and if your marriage is ending, therapy (and the advice of a good attorney) could further help you to accept this, and to clarify your own choices moving forward.

Dear Amy: My husband and I have a friend in her early 70s whose husband is in his early 80s.

He has dementia and will need a care facility soon. He knows that.

She wants to stay in their home after he moves, but we believe this would be a mistake.

Should we share with her other options?

How should we proceed?

– Concerned

Dear Concerned: You don’t note why you think it would be a mistake for your friend to stay in her home after her husband moves. If she is healthy, a person in her early 70s likely can enjoy many years of independent living before making her own move.

In my opinion, staying in her home could be the very best thing for her to do – for now. If her husband moves, being in her home during the period of his decline could provide the sense of stability she needs.

If she asks for assistance or advice to review her housing options, you could be very helpful by researching local places and offering to tour them with her. Even if she decides not to move right away, being aware of her options will help her to make the decision later.

When I was hosting one Thanksgiving feast, my mother decided to have everyone around the table take a letter from T-H-A-N-K-S-G-I-V-I-N-G and say what they were thankful for.

My elderly father got the S and he could think of no word other than sex, so he said it. Mother was horrified and never made that suggestion again!

– Still Thankful

Dear Thankful: I may be feasting on your anecdote this year. Thank you!

You can email Amy Dickinson at askamy@amydickinson.com or send a letter to Ask Amy, P.O. Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068. You can also follow her on Twitter @askingamy or Facebook.

The traveling attraction is the dream-turned-reality of a Knoxville-based couple who saw room to improve with other family events they visited.

“My wife and I have three children. We’ve been to children’s events around the country. We went to one event and thought that it could have been so much better; that it didn’t capture the magic of being a child,” said Patrick Mines, who co-founded the event with his wife, Lauren. “We started brainstorming and ended up landing on unicorns.”

The immersive experience puts children and families into an enchanted forest with animatronic unicorns before leading out into areas with arts and crafts, unicorn stables, a ball pit, a bounce house village and more.

In the last year, Unicorn World has traveled to 18 cities across the United States, and the reception has been greater than Mines had ever expected.

“There are so many people out there, children and adults alike, who love unicorns,” he said. “The response has been bigger than we thought. We stumbled upon this whole mythical, magical unicorn desire that was out there.”

While the event is targeted toward children ages 2-10 and their families, the event organizers have found broader appeal among some adults and seniors as well.

“I think this gives people a big break from their daily lives to come out and be a kid again,” Mines said. “It’s been cool to see people’s enthusiasm for it.”

Whether it’s indulging in arts and crafts, playing in the ball pit or meeting fairies and exploring myriad photo ops, the attraction aims to help visitors leave reality behind and find themselves inside another land.

“We want to make it an immersive experience where you are transported to another place and feel like you’re in a different realm,” Mines said. “We’re creating a story where people can leave the regular world and get lost in a fun world for a little bit.”

If you go

Unicorn World is open from 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Nov. 18 and 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Nov. 19 at 9860 Universal Blvd. in Orlando. Timed-entry tickets are available online for $39 per adult and children ages 2-17 (before taxes and fees). Children younger than 2 years old enter for free. Unlimited passes are available as an add-on, granting unlimited access to bounce houses and unicorn rides. For more information, visit theunicornworld.com.

Find me @PConnPie on Instagram or send me an email: pconnolly@orlandosentinel.com.

This wasn’t just any book: It marked the first time all of Shakespeare’s works were published together — no mean feat back in those days when many of his plays existed only in his drafts or the bits and pieces handed out to actors.

In fact, without this remarkable book, there would have been no published script for “Macbeth,” “Twelfth Night,” “Julius Caesar,” “The Tempest,” “Antony and Cleopatra” or “As You Like It,” just to name a few. Nearly half of Shakespeare’s output would have been lost.

And without his complete body of work to awe and inspire, Shakespeare likely would never have reached the cultural heights he has.

On Friday, Nov. 17, PBS’s “Great Performances” celebrates the 400th anniversary of the book in “Making Shakespeare: The First Folio.”

“The First Folio” is the name of this book of 36 plays. Well, actually, it’s not. The proper title is “Mr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies.” But it’s commonly called the First Folio by modern scholars; folio is a publishing term that indicates the way the book was printed, resulting in large-size pages.

Early in the program, narrated by Broadway superstar Audra McDonald, a participant describes the First Folio as “the most important secular book in the history of the Western world.”

Hyperbole? Well, the speaker is renowned Shakespeare scholar Jonathan Bate, so clearly, he has a bias toward its cultural significance. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t speaking accurately.

The First Folio is certainly the most expensive book going. In 2020, a copy auctioned by Christie’s sold for $10 million — the highest price ever paid for a work of literature at auction.

It’s estimated about 750 copies of the First Folio were printed. Today, 235 are known to still exist. PBS looks at a famously stolen copy, a recently discovered copy — in a public library in a small French town, no less — and a very royal copy.

In that latter segment, King Charles III examines a First Folio owned by his predecessor of some 15 generations, King Charles I, which is still in royal hands at Windsor Castle. That first Charles came to an unhappy end: His forces were defeated in the English Civil War, and he was executed in 1649 as the monarchy was abolished.

But, some comfort, we are told that even while imprisoned before his execution, Charles I was allowed to keep his copy of the First Folio. The copy contains his notes, in which he has written character names in the margins, perhaps to highlight his favorites — or maybe to keep the various comedy couples straight: “Is this the one with Beatrice and Benedick or the one with Helena and Bertram?”

There is something satisfying in learning that it was Shakespeare’s friends, two actors, who were the driving force in organizing whatever source material they could round up, collecting the plays and getting them published for posterity; after all, Shakespeare has been creating work for actors ever since.

(Side note: As a “Macbeth” fan, I also enjoyed learning that Shakespeare’s rough drafts are known as “foul papers” while the later, cleaned-up versions are called “fair copies.” “Fair is foul, and foul is fair…”)

In their effort to pay tribute to their deceased friend and preserve his legacy, John Heminges and Henry Condell also had to deal with some legalese that still exists in the modern arts world: Obtaining the rights to the works. The rights to many of Shakespeare’s plays were owned by those who had first printed them individually in various other formats, and the pair had to do some wheeling and dealing.

Lest you think the program has its eye solely on ancient history, it should be noted that the amusing stories of the First Folio are interspersed (sometimes smoothly, sometimes more clunkily) with the inspiring way Shakespeare impacts the world today, especially through the efforts of the Public Theater of New York City.

There’s “The Comedy of Errors” as a bilingual musical, Kenny Leon’s version of “Hamlet” for Shakespeare in the Park, a student production of “Romeo & Juliet” with children learning English as a second language. It’s all heartening to lovers of classical theater.

A favorite quote from the program comes from Oskar Eustis, artistic director of the Public, as he ponders why Shakespeare endures. When the playwright creates his tales, whether comic or tragic, Eustis says, “he sees the worth of every human being.”

How to watch

• On TV: 9-11 p.m. Nov. 17, on WUCF-TV, Channel 24
• Online streaming: At pbs.org/show/great-performances

Follow me at facebook.com/matthew.j.palm or email me at mpalm@orlandosentinel.com. Find more arts news and reviews at orlandosentinel.com/arts, and go to orlandosentinel.com/theater for theater news and reviews.