Mystic Seaport

Thanksgiving eve seems an appropriate time to focus attention on Mystic Seaport, where the world’s largest collection of ships — including the last surviving whale ship — tells the story of the Pilgrims’ prosperity at sea in the 17th, 18th, and 19thcenturies. Whatever difficult times the Pilgrims encountered on New England’s soil, their shipbuilding and trading skills served them well.

The Seaport’s challenge has been in luring visitors. Last year attendance dropped 3%, as did the ticket revenue. The Seaport is revamping the visitor experience by building new indoor exhibition spaces and creating more temporary exhibits with the idea of turning the Seaport into an allweather destination that can attract repeat local visitors, instead of a place tourists flock to in the summer.

The Seaport is also expanding the scope of its exhibits. Recent ones have focused on female and black mariners, as well as yachts and racing boats. New programs are targeting families who live nearby. For example, on Friday and Saturday, the Seaport is conducting 19th-century games on its village green and offering horse and carriage rides.

Private donations have offset ticket-revenue declines, so the Seaport is putting more energy into fund raising and development. One such effort included a dinner at the St. Regis Hotel last week to present yacht designer and Seaport trustee Olin J. Stephens II with the inaugural Mystic Seaport America and the Sea award. On hand were Mystic Seaport trustees Charles Hamm, Richard Vietor, and Wade Thompson, and the president of the museum, Douglas Teeson.

Museum of Modern Art

“Can you imagine being a kid and walking in to see that car hanging on the wall?” the president of the Museum of Modern Art, Marie-Josée Kravis, said Monday in the lobby of the Lewis B. and Dorothy Cullman Education and Research Building.

Ms. Kravis’s point is well taken: The museum contains many works that are childfriendly, and certainly one of the successes of the new building’s design is that children are presented with one — a red sports car — right as they walk in.

Yoshio Taniguchi conceived the design of the buildings and as guests discovered at the event, the buildings connect physically, from open stairwells and hallways, as well as in spirit, across the sculpture garden.

“This is the final finishing touch of a project that is 8 or 9 years old,” building benefactor Lewis Cullman said. “In my fondest dreams I never thought I’d see a building as beautiful as this.”

The director of the museum, Glenn Lowry, noted the milestones of the day. “This is our second anniversary to the date, and also the day on which our 5 millionth visitor walked through the door,” he said. But he didn’t look truly happy until he announced, “It also marks the day I am out of the real estate business.”

Mr. Lowry also acknowledged the board member who most helped the museum get through several years of construction, Jerry Speyer.

Zionist Organization of America

The 2006 Zionist Organization of America’s 109th Annual Awards Dinner on Sunday was a grand expression of support for Israel.

“It is my privilege to be a part of this community of people who are such strong supporters of Israel,” the recipient of the Justice Louis D. Brandeis Award, Mortimer Zuckerman, said. “We have the obligation to speak about that which we believe in so strongly. I pledge to continue doing this for as long as I can.”

Kenneth Abramowitz said he spends 85% of his time managing a hedge fund and 15% of his time supporting Israel. “Israel desperately needs our help, not only our financial, but also our intellectual help,” he said.

The founder of Palestinian Media Watch, Itamar Marcus, said the Zionist Organization of America is an organization that seeks truth, as opposed to an organization that seeks raw acceptance.

In a pre-recorded message, the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, James Woolsey, added historical perspective. “We all need to understand that voyages, rightly conceived, to freedom are not easy,”

It was a serious night, but there was room for humor. Congressman Weiner identified himself as coming from “the ZOA wing of the Democratic party.”

Ronald Lauder and James Tisch were the co-chairmen of the event at the Marriott Marquis.

agordon@nysun.com