🍂 Best of the fall fests | Morning Newsletter
And debate takeaways.
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The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Welcome to a warm and sunny Wednesday, Philly.
Last night’s presidential debate is the big story of the day. Read on for analysis and scenes from the event, onstage at the National Constitution Center and throughout the city.
Plus, it’s fall festival season in Philadelphia, and we found more than 20 must-go fests, street markets, and celebrations to add to your calendar. And in a sea of million-dollar properties, we have the story of the Jersey Shore homeowners keeping it tiny — and refusing to sell.
Here’s what to know today.
— Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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The stakes were high as Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump faced off in their first debate. Here are the top takeaways from a historic night in Philadelphia.
On the offensive: During the 90-minute debate, Harris cast Trump as the extreme candidate and baited him by talking about issues known to irk him, while Trump spent much of his time trying to tie Harris to Biden.
Watch this: Groups aligned with both major parties hosted debate-viewing parties in the city, including the Harris campaign’s official watch party at Cherry Street Pier, which she visited post-debate. (“The Man” by Taylor Swift played as she walked offstage following brief remarks — just moments after the Berks County-native pop superstar endorsed the Democratic nominee.)
Elsewhere in Philly: Pro-Palestinian protesters marched in Center City, and several were detained outside the National Constitution Center. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro spent debate night hyping up Harris. Earlier in the day, the Black Conservative Federation led a Black Voters for Trump bus tour through city.
So, who won? To The Inquirer Editorial Board, which operates separately from the newsroom, the winner was clear.
Next up: Both candidates are slated to attend Sept. 11 remembrance events today in Shanksville, Pa.
Autumn is a season for being outside, and Philadelphia’s cultural scene makes that easy with a slew of themed festivals.
No, it’s not just Oktoberfests — though you can find plenty of beer at these, too, if that’s your thing. Here’s just a sample of the 20-plus events slated for the fall:
🍂 For the crafters, Chestnut Hill Fall for the Arts Festival brings its 40th annual showcase and marketplace to Germantown Avenue this weekend.
🍂 For the pedestrians, Open Streets: West Walnut is closing Rittenhouse streets to cars every Sunday this September.
🍂 For the eccentrics, East Kensington’s Weirdo Fest is an ode to the wacky, from the arts to amateur wrestling.
Reporter Henry Savage has the full roundup.
What you should know today
The Philadelphia police officer who was shot during a traffic stop in Kensington in June has died, officials announced Tuesday night. Officer Jaime Roman, 31, was a six-year veteran.
A 23-year-old man was shot Tuesday afternoon on the subway platform of SEPTA’s 15th Street Station near City Hall, and a suspect was taken into custody after a foot chase, police said.
A Levittown beheading suspect described the January attack on his father as a “citizen’s arrest” while leaving court Tuesday. Prosecutors say he plotted the murder for months.
Former labor leader John Dougherty and his codefendants must pay nearly $1.7 million back to the union he led for nearly three decades, a federal judge has ruled.
The University of Pennsylvania will no longer make institutional statements in response to world events, except those that have “direct and significant bearing on University functions.”
After years of discord, Central Bucks School District’s new superintendent, who left Lower Merion to take the job this summer, says he wants to shift the focus back to education.
Longer happy hours are coming to Pennsylvania, starting Friday, under new state rules that will allow bars to extend their discounting from 14 to 24 hours a week.
A Friends’ Central High School grad is half of a Hollywood duo that just earned the coveted EGOT.
Linda Galer’s parents bought the Stone Harbor property she now owns for about $6,000 in 1960.
🏠“It’s like frozen in time,” the Montgomery County resident said of the 400-square-foot house’s screened-in front porch, wooden fence, and red exterior. “Even when we’re sitting on the porch, I still feel like it’s years and years ago.”
🏠Even so, in what’s become one of the ritziest zip codes down the Shore, it’s now worth more than $2 million.
🏠The tiny property is one of several bungalows still standing in Shore towns now flush with multi-story, multi-million-dollar homes. And their owners aren’t selling, despite persistent interest.
Take a tour of Galer’s home and two more adorable holdouts in Avalon and Brigantine.
🧠Trivia time
Which nationally known, locally based company just announced a new name?
A) Campbell Soup Co.
B) Five Below
C) Gopuff
D) Comcast
Think you know? Check your answer.
What we’re...
🎥 Anticipating: The SNL debut of Jane Wickline, an internet personality with Philly ties.
🧪 Learning: The science behind diabetes and weight loss drugs like Ozempic.
🇺🇸 Pausing: The noise with Pennsylvania’s new 9/11 remembrance law.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
The leafy Center City neighborhood just east of the Schuylkill, with a public park at its center
FEAR QUILTERS
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Joann Polk, who solved Tuesday’s anagram: Waxahatchee. The once-local band led by Katie Crutchfield is slated to headline this fall’s Philly Music Fest. (For the uninitiated: Start with “Right Back to It” from the latest album, Tigers Blood.)
Photo of the day
🪟 One last colorful thing: A little-known master stained glass artist is behind the restoration of Philly’s historic Mother Bethel AME Church windows after they were smashed by a vandal earlier this year. He is also raising money to build a museum to house his sculptures and other artwork.
Enjoy the rest of your Wednesday. See you back here tomorrow.
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