Charles Runnells | Naples Daily News
If you see a lantern-jawed dude wearing a hat and fake mustache at next week’s Cars on 5th, don’t get your hopes up: It’s not Jay Leno.
He promises.
The former The Tonight Show host and famous car collector has heard the stories about him going undercover at car shows. But they’re simply not true, he says.
“I don’t go in disguise,” he says. “I just go as myself.”
He’ll be doing exactly that next week at the Naples Automotive Experience, the 21st annual event that includes the popular car show Cars on 5th on Fifth Avenue South in downtown Naples.
No fake mustaches: People can see Leno’s famous, smooth-shaved face performing stand-up comedy at Hertz Arena (Thursday, Feb. 6), attending a sold-out display of curated cars (Friday, Feb. 7) and likely visiting the main event, Cars on 5th (Saturday, Feb. 8).
Read the full article and interview with Jay Leno on naplesnews.com.
Are you looking for a home in the Naples, Florida area? Contact David at David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Liz Freeman | Naples Daily News
If all hospitals performed as the best, more than 173,000 lives would be saved
Several Southwest Florida hospitals made a list of the best 50 hospitals in the U.S. from Healthgrades, a leading rating organization.
In Lee County, three Lee Health hospitals earned the distinction. They are Cape Coral Hospital, Lee Memoria Hospital, and HealthPark Medical Center. Gulf Coast Medical Center made the top 100 hospitals nationally.
In neighboring Collier County, NCH’s two campuses, Baker Hospital and North Hospital, made the top 50 list.
Healthgrades evaluates risk-adjusted mortality and complication rates for more than 30 of the most common conditions and procedures at roughly 4,500 hospitals nationwide.
Earning the recognition of being among the 50 best hospitals means they are part of the top 1% nationally.
Medicare medical claims are used for the analysis for the most recent three-year period available. No hospital can opt-in or opt-out, nor can they submit their own data for overall care excellence.
Read the full article on naplesnews.com.
For more information about buying a home in the Naples, Florida area contact David at David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Dave Osborn | Naples Daily News
The Naples Winter Wine Festival reached a milestone this weekend.
At the 25th anniversary of the event, those attending the Jan. 25 live auction in a tent outside The Ritz-Carlton Naples, Tiburón, bid on 52 auction lots and help raise more than $34 million.
This brings the total amount raised by the Naples Winter Wine Festival to more than $336 million since its inception in 2001. The money goes to nonprofits that support at-risk and underprivileged children in Collier County.
What were some of the winning bid and auction lots
One couple took home a 2025 Bentley Continental GT Speed Convertible with a winning bid of $1.7 million. The lot also includes a four-night VIP Bentley experience at Monterey Car Week from Aug. 14-Aug. 18, beginning with roundtrip, first class airfare from any major city in the United States or Canada to the California Bay Area.
Read the full article and see video of the event on naplesnews.com.
If you are looking for a luxury home in Naples, Florida, contact David at David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Gina Birch | Special to naplesnews.com
The sun may’ve been golden, but the festival was silver representing its 25th anniversary. Saturday afternoon at The Ritz-Carlton Naples Tiburon, festival goers dressed to impress with lots of designer sparkling and sequined tops, skirts, bags, and jackets, along with shiny silver boots, and stilettos.
One end of the Grand Tasting tent was lined with tables burgeoning with rare and vintage wines, many that are seldom accessible to the general public.
At the other end of the tent was a massive dessert display filled with creations that were works of art. Wowing the crowd was a 35-inch paella pan filled with apple pie. Along the perimeter, top chefs from around the country served a variety of exquisite savory bites.
Next, the Gulf Coast High School Drum Line led the group into the auction tent with its lively beats. The energy under the auction tent was explosive as auctioneers took turns coaxing the crowd to open their wallets to support the Naples Children & Education Foundation (NCEF).
Since its inception, the foundation has raised some $302 million for underserved and at-risk children in Collier County.
See lots of photos and read the full article on naplesnews.com.
Charles Runnells | Naples Daily News
America’s Got Talent star Mandy Harvey celebrating World Ukulele Day. The soothing sounds of “yacht rock.” Opera Naples’ event-packed Festival Under the Stars. Blues-rocker Kenny Wayne Shepherd.
Those are just some of the great concerts you’ll find onstage this February in Fort Myers, Naples, Cape Coral, Bonita Springs and the rest of Southwest Florida. Here are our picks for the best shows to see this month.
We’ll add more concerts as they’re announced. See naplesnews.com.
Kate Cimini| Fort Myers News-Press
Most nights, the residents in and around Kings Lake, Naples, listen to screaming, crying, and howling.
All because of a few lonely limpkins.
Known as Florida’s loudest bird, several limpkins haunt the shores of Kings Lake each year, searching for a mate. Once considered endangered, limpkins are a version of a rail, roughly the size of a heron, and are mostly brown and black, with white and yellow feathers peeking out between.
The limpkin has a long, downward curved beak, which it uses to snag its favorite snails from the bottom of freshwater marshes and lakes.
According to the National Audubon Society, the limpkin is a wading bird with no close relatives. It feeds largely on freshwater apple snails in Florida and southern Georgia, and spends most of its time alone.
Naples neighbors of the limpkins say they are generally easy neighbors. They spend most of their days in the tall pines that dot the skirts of King’s Lake, and residents say they don’t have to take special precautions to avoid bothering the birds — but the birds don’t have the same compunctions.
Read the full article on naplesnews.com.
