Zim

After serving Baltimore for four decades, Zim American Israeli Co. has suspended its service here, becoming the latest major container line to abandon the port.An agent for the company said the low volume of cargo, combined with Zim's year-old vessel-sharing arrangement with Pan American Independent Line, resulted in the decision to bypass Baltimore."Pan American has always called [at] Norfolk, not Baltimore," said Tom Campbell, president of Penn Maryland Steamship Corp., which has represented Zim here since the late 1960s.

It takes a Big Band sound to battle the disco, punk, thrash rock, heavy metal and country-pop now dominating national soundtracks. But that's exactly what the Zim Zemarel Band has done in the greater Baltimore area for the better part of 50 years. And even though Zemarel himself died in 1999, at age 82, his former band mates Gene Bonner, 77, of Perry Hall, and Wayne Hudson, 68, of Pasadena, are still carrying the torch for the band, and for Tommy Dorsey- and Benny Goodman-style 1940s Big Band music itself.

An Israeli shipping line has begun service between Baltimore and South America, in a move that Maryland Port Administration officials contend shows that the port of Baltimore is continuing to gain ground slowly in spite of the recession.Zim Israel Navigation Co. Ltd. of Haifa, Israel, will provide service every two weeks to the South Locust Point Marine Terminal, connecting Baltimore to ports in Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil and Uruguay, the MPA said yesterday at its board meeting in the World Trade Center.

Where: Towson Courthouse Plaza, 400 Washington Ave., Towson. When: 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Sunday Why: Because you can check out Zim Zemarel, an orchestra that's been playing swing, jazz and big-band music in Baltimore for more than 30 years - and the rain or shine concert is totally free. Information: www.swaz ze.com

As surely as racing at Pimlico, steamed crabs in the backyard or Fourth of July fireworks over the Inner Harbor, the swinging big-band sound of the Zim Zemarel Orchestra evokes summer in Baltimore.Not to mention winter, spring and fall. Zim Zemarel is a man for all seasons -- except maybe rock and roll. He's not quite as dogmatic as the old bluesman, Mississippi Fred ("I do not play no rock and roll!") McDowell, but he still warns people booking the band for weddings: "You're not buying a rock band."

Where: Towson Courthouse Plaza, 400 Washington Ave., Towson. When: 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Sunday Why: Because you can check out Zim Zemarel, an orchestra that's been playing swing, jazz and big-band music in Baltimore for more than 30 years - and the rain or shine concert is totally free. Information: www.swaz ze.com

Norma Virginia Beck Zemarel, who worked with her popular bandleader husband Zim Zemarel, died Thursday of heart failure at Stella Maris Hospice. She was 73.Mrs. Zemarel ran her husband's office and handled bookings for the orchestra he led for nearly 40 years."She was my administrative assistant with the band and also spent her time raising our children," said Mr. Zemarel, who had worked in record promotion for CBS and is semi-retired from the band."We met at a USO dance on St. Paul Street in 1942 when I was serving in the Coast Guard as a band leader," he said.

NEW ORLEANS - The Mississippi River's main channel remained closed yesterday, stranding dozens of commercial and cruise ships for a third day as officials searched for the crew of a sunken supply vessel and scrambled to remove its wreckage. By last night, the bodies of three of the missing men had been recovered, but officials expressed doubt that two others would be found alive. Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Jeff Murphy said the bodies might be trapped in the sunken ship. Meanwhile, contractors battling strong currents and a thunderous storm 80 miles southeast of New Orleans held out hope that they could get a strap around the ship's stern to move it out of the commercial channel as early as today.

ZIM Zemarel, the late Baltimore bandleader, was a determined exemplar of the swinging Big Band sound that -- with the likes of Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw and Tommy Dorsey -- filled night clubs, dance halls and the national radio airwaves in the 1940s. His cheerful, enthusiastic manner, both in directing his band and in private conversations, was such that the nickname Zim (his real surname was Emil) could be truly equated with Vim. Several interview appointments with him in his Baltimore County home in the 1970s were repeatedly interrupted by telephone callers setting dates for appearances by the band or by a smaller group of the band members.

THE MARYLAND BALLET celebrated the close of its fifth anniversary season and the opening of its sixth with a fund-raising July Fourth bash aboard the Bay Lady. Dancers from the company were on hand to greet guests, along with special entertainment and dancing to Top 40 hits. A moonlight cruise and a dazzling Inner Harbor fireworks display made for a memorable evening.RADIO ACTIVITY: Local attorney/financial consultant Michael Hodes, whose "Financial Focus" show has aired Saturday mornings on WCBM-AM since 1984 (making it the longest running specialty talk show in the area)

NEW ORLEANS - The Mississippi River's main channel remained closed yesterday, stranding dozens of commercial and cruise ships for a third day as officials searched for the crew of a sunken supply vessel and scrambled to remove its wreckage. By last night, the bodies of three of the missing men had been recovered, but officials expressed doubt that two others would be found alive. Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Jeff Murphy said the bodies might be trapped in the sunken ship. Meanwhile, contractors battling strong currents and a thunderous storm 80 miles southeast of New Orleans held out hope that they could get a strap around the ship's stern to move it out of the commercial channel as early as today.

In Baltimore City Two men arraigned in April shooting of east-side toddler Two men have been arraigned in Baltimore Circuit Court on charges stemming from an April shooting in which a 2-year-old east-side boy was struck in the head by a bullet, the city prosecutor's office said. Kenneth Kelly, 24, of the 1700 block of N. Durham St. and Samuel L. Mumford, 19, of the 2300 block of Orleans St. pleaded not guilty Monday to charges of attempted first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, assault and handgun crimes, the prosecutor's office said.

ONCE A year, the Four Rivers District of the Baltimore Area Council Boy Scouts of America honors an adult member who made an outstanding contribution to the organization and the youth of the area. This year, Linthicum resident William D. MacLeod, assistant Scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 550, was selected to receive the District Award of Merit, and it was presented to him at a recognition dinner June 11 at Pasadena Methodist Church. Troop 550 is part of the Four Rivers District that encompasses most of Anne Arundel County.

In the Region Hunter Group combined into Cedar company Cedar Group PLC, a British software and consulting firm, said yesterday that it has combined the Hunter Group Inc., a Baltimore-based information consulting group it purchased last fall for $72 million, Sotas of Boston and Cipher Systems Ltd. of Canada into a company called Cedar. Cedar Group also said it plans to base its North American headquarters in Baltimore. The new subsidiary will help the company make a greater push into the North American market, said Chief Executive Officer Tom Rump.

ZIM Zemarel, the late Baltimore bandleader, was a determined exemplar of the swinging Big Band sound that -- with the likes of Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw and Tommy Dorsey -- filled night clubs, dance halls and the national radio airwaves in the 1940s. His cheerful, enthusiastic manner, both in directing his band and in private conversations, was such that the nickname Zim (his real surname was Emil) could be truly equated with Vim. Several interview appointments with him in his Baltimore County home in the 1970s were repeatedly interrupted by telephone callers setting dates for appearances by the band or by a smaller group of the band members.

Emil "Zim" Zemarel, whose big-band music was part of Baltimore's cultural, social and political life for more than 40 years, died Christmas Eve at Stella Mans Hospice of heart and kidney failure. A longtime resident of Riderwood, he was 82, said family members. Mr. Zemarel was well-known for his swing orchestra, the Zim Zemarel Big Band, which played at functions big and small across the metro area and beyond: weddings, sporting events, and political functions, including presidential inaugurations.

In Baltimore City Two men arraigned in April shooting of east-side toddler Two men have been arraigned in Baltimore Circuit Court on charges stemming from an April shooting in which a 2-year-old east-side boy was struck in the head by a bullet, the city prosecutor's office said. Kenneth Kelly, 24, of the 1700 block of N. Durham St. and Samuel L. Mumford, 19, of the 2300 block of Orleans St. pleaded not guilty Monday to charges of attempted first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, assault and handgun crimes, the prosecutor's office said.

In the Region Hunter Group combined into Cedar company Cedar Group PLC, a British software and consulting firm, said yesterday that it has combined the Hunter Group Inc., a Baltimore-based information consulting group it purchased last fall for $72 million, Sotas of Boston and Cipher Systems Ltd. of Canada into a company called Cedar. Cedar Group also said it plans to base its North American headquarters in Baltimore. The new subsidiary will help the company make a greater push into the North American market, said Chief Executive Officer Tom Rump.

As surely as racing at Pimlico, steamed crabs in the backyard or Fourth of July fireworks over the Inner Harbor, the swinging big-band sound of the Zim Zemarel Orchestra evokes summer in Baltimore.Not to mention winter, spring and fall. Zim Zemarel is a man for all seasons -- except maybe rock and roll. He's not quite as dogmatic as the old bluesman, Mississippi Fred ("I do not play no rock and roll!") McDowell, but he still warns people booking the band for weddings: "You're not buying a rock band."

After serving Baltimore for four decades, Zim American Israeli Co. has suspended its service here, becoming the latest major container line to abandon the port.An agent for the company said the low volume of cargo, combined with Zim's year-old vessel-sharing arrangement with Pan American Independent Line, resulted in the decision to bypass Baltimore."Pan American has always called [at] Norfolk, not Baltimore," said Tom Campbell, president of Penn Maryland Steamship Corp., which has represented Zim here since the late 1960s.