Week
of July 30-August 3, 2001
1.
Special Interest
2. Dance
3. Media
4. Music
5. People
6. Publishing
7. Theatre
8. Visual Arts
9. Arts Issues
10. For Fun
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1. SPECIAL INTEREST
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#specialinterest
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FREE
- THE COSTLIEST TICKETS OF ALL: There's an all-star cast
performing in Chekhov's The Seagull this summer in New
York's Central Park, and amazingly, the performances are free. Or
are they? People are camping out overnight in line to get tickets,
and the experience is...shall we say, arduous: "It is a
farce. These tickets are paid for with time. More money can be
earned, borrowed, even won. But time, once gone, can never be
reclaimed. These are, perhaps, the most costly tickets of
all." Washington Post 08/01/01
PAYING
TO PLAY: A mysterious
amateur philosopher hires prominent philosophers to review a
paper. The pay's good, the paper's not bad, but the exercise says
something about the state of academic inquiry... Lingua
Franca 07/01
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2. DANCE
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#dance
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MORE
TROUBLE AT ABT: "Another high-ranking
executive at the scandal-ridden American Ballet
Theater has been hit with charges of sexual harrassment.
A complaint filed with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission accuses David Richardson, ABT's
assistant artistic director, of 'being sexually
affectionate' with male dancers, 'kissing them about
the face and mouth, hugging and caressing them' and
subjecting them to a 'sexually-harassing, hostile and
retaliatory environment.'" New
York Post 08/01/01
BOWING
OUT GRACEFULLY: It is never easy for a dancer to
retire. Unlike performers in nearly every other
discipline, dancers are forced to hang up their toe
shoes when their bodies give out on them, usually
sometime in their late 30s. For some, being told that
it's time to go is an unbearable insult, and the
occasional ugly battle between dancer and dance
company results. But one Canadian dance legend decided
to take the quiet route to retirement this year,
earning her even greater affection from colleagues and
audiences alike. National
Post (Canada) 07/31/01
DANCE
NEW ZEALAND: Gary Harris is the new artistic
director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet. He says he
wants to make RNZB the "ballet company of the
Pacific" with a busy touring schedule, presenting
a distinctly New Zealand style." New
Zealand Herald 07/30/01
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3. MEDIA
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#media
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
VIDEO
ISN'T THE SAME AS FILM. HERE'S WHY: "Footage shot on
digital video looks noticeably less crisp than footage shot on
film. Where film can produce a remarkable sensation of deep space,
video emphasizes the plane of the screen - its images seem
flatter... video encourages lo-fi, do-it-yourself effects to
achieve a completely natural, sketchlike style... just as you get
different kinds of sound from a compact disc and vinyl, it seems
clear that the new medium of DV will continue to have qualities
distinct from film." The New
Republic 07/31/01
NOT
SO SPECIAL: Movie special effects have become boring.
"Over the past decade, computing power has greatly increased
while the cost and complexity involved in using it has greatly
decreased. Computer generated images have become commonplace to
the point of banality. They now clutter everything from the
biggest Hollywood productions to the lowest-budget TV commercial,
and their magic and power - the ability to simply wow us - has
vanished. If a computer can create a screen image of anything the
mind can conjure, what is left to surprise us?" Toronto
Star 08/03/01
NOTHING
ON: What has happened to British documentaries? Once they
aspired to greatness. Now: "From the precious nonsense that
was served up as Modern Times, to the vapid, middle-class
obsessions of Cutting Edge, it would be easy to argue that
the box in the corner of your living room boasts little but a
white, English, terribly middle-class belly button." The
Times 08/03/01
ACTING
UP IN CANADA: American movie producers may have settled
contracts with the actors union, but the Canadian actors union is
just coming up on negotiations. "Among other issues on the
table, the union hopes to narrow the gap between the $510 Canadian
movie and TV actors earn for a day's work in Canada, and the $950
($636 U.S.) paid to American actors." Toronto
Star 08/02/01
THE
ULTIMATE ADVERTISING MACHINE: Internet movies have mostly been
flops. One series of shorts, however, has been highly successful.
As you might guess, they're commercials, "six-minute shorts
that are so unlike regular commercials, you could watch them
without recognizing the product being sold. An easy mistake to
make, since there's no advertising slogan, no pitchman and no
logos." Toronto Star
08/01/01
WHAT
DID YOU WATCH? NEVER MIND, WE ALREADY KNOW: Arbitron is
introducing the portable people meter. "The PPM, which is
carried by participants, detects codes that broadcasters place in
their programming... and records the signals, whether at home or
outside it. When the PPM is recharged on its base every night, the
base sends the collected codes to Arbitron." Chicago
Tribune 08/01/01
DOWNWARD
CHASE: British television seems to be spiraling downmarket in
an attempt to capture larger audiences. "The worst part of it
is that the more trivial and mindless the television offerings
become, the more eagerly the newspapers promote them in order to
play leapfrog." Financial Times
(UK) 08/01/01
LONGEST
FILM: A Scottish artist has taken John Wayne's film The
Searchers and slowed it down so it will take five years - the
length of time the film's story covers. It has been
"digitally slowed, real-time version, which runs at one frame
every 24 minutes rather than 24 frames a second." Sunday
Times (UK) 07/29/01
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4.
MUSIC
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#music
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ST.
LOUIS SYM IN CRISIS, PART XXXVI: Over the past couple of
decades, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra has gone from a
little-known regional entity to one of America's premiere
ensembles. But these days, despite a consistently high level of
musical performance, the organization seems to be in constant
crisis. Just last winter, a massive financial gift promised to all
but end the orchestra's fiscal problems, but somehow, it hasn't
happened. The orchestra's players, fans, and critics are worried
that the orchestra may be headed for that dreaded flashpoint: the
decision of whether to remain one of the best, or to retreat to
regional status. St. Louis
Post-Dispatch 07/29/01
GOING
FOR THAT HIGH 'C': No question that the musical landscape has
changed for orchestras. There are more of them playing at top
levels than ever before. So how to sort out who makes the
grade...? Philadelphia Inquirer
07/31/01
BSO
AND LEVINE MAY BE GETTING CLOSER: The slow-as-molasses
negotiations between conductor James Levine and the Boston
Symphony Orchestra appear to be making at least some progress
towards the goal of Levine being named the BSO's next music
director. "Matters still on the table include compensation,
details of schedule, the BSO's contractual work rules and the
ratio of rehearsal to performance, and Levine's health. Any one of
these could derail the negotiations, which is why the orchestra
continues to explore and expand the pool of alternative
candidates." Boston Globe
08/01/01
ORCHESTRA
IN THE TIME OF WAR: Nineteen-eighty-nine, as the Soviet Union
was coming apart was hardly the best time to start an orchestra.
But the Moscow Symphony Orchestra was founded that year by two
sisters, and "in the years since it has risen under their
management to the ranks of Russia's top orchestras without taking
one ruble from the government." International
Herald Tribune 07/31/01
DOMINGO
BLASTS BAYREUTH: Apparently, Wolfgang Wagner just can't get
along with anyone. The grandson of composer Richard has been
embroiled in a vicious battle with other members of his family
over control of the Bayreuth Festival, and now he appears to have
angered tenor Placido Domingo to the point that Domingo has said
he will not return to Bayreuth ever again. At issue: Domingo
actually dared to ask for some extra rehearsal time. The nerve. Gramophone
08/01/01
PRICE-FIXING
AND THE THREE TENORS: "Warner Communications Inc., a
leading music distributor, will halt a promotion policy that the
Federal Trade Commission alleged involved fixing prices for
recordings of the opera stars, The Three Tenors." Nando
Times (AP) 08/01/01
BILLIONAIRE
VS. BILLIONAIRE: Talks have begun between the recording
industry and the major media companies over who will reap what
percentage of the revenues once widespread online streaming of
music is a reality. Participating in the catfight are such heavies
as AOL Time Warner, Clear Channel Communications, and the
Recording Industry Association of America. At issue is how much of
a royalty record companies will receive each time their recordings
are streamed. BBC
07/31/01
BUYING
AMERICAN: Six major British orchestras are now being led by
American conductors. Why? "The answer, according to the
orchestras and the Americans themselves, is that while
continental, and particularly German, band leaders like to remain
aloof and concentrate purely on their music, the Americans are
prepared to muck in and get their hands dirty on the commercial
side of the business." The
Guardian (UK) 07/30/01
THE
SKY ISN'T FALLING: On first glance, classical music recording
may seem to be struggling. But the news isn't nearly so bleak as
some suggest. And there are some encouraging signs that the
business of recording may be evolving in positive ways. Andante.com
07/30/01
A
SIMPLE PREMISE: "MTV was launched in 1981 with a premise
so simple that even Butt-head could have grasped it. Record
companies made expensive videos to promote their acts, MTV showed
them for free, ergo: high-quality, low-cost TV. The start-up
budget was $25 million. Last year, revenues for MTV Networks were
$3.04 billion (£2.17 billion). Over two decades, MTV has expanded
to become a virtual empire, available in 140 countries and
comprising 60 channels worldwide." The
Telegraph (UK) 08/02/01
DIGITAL
DISASTER: "The recording industry is asking consumers to
try out a whole new concept of music ownership. Through the
services now in the works, most popular music wouldn't be owned at
all. Rather, songs would be rented by the month. Consumers would
pay a monthly flat fee for access to a predetermined number of
songs. Once they stop paying the fee, the downloaded files stop
working. It's hard to see how this scheme will add up. The average
consumer spends about $90 a year for six CDs and gets to keep them
forever. The new subscription services will ask consumers to pay
about $120 a year - and come away with nothing." Industry
Standard 08/06/01
- INTO
THE ARMS OF ANOTHER: The recording industry might have
shut down Napster. But without offering an immediate online
alternative, the industry has driven music fans to other free
services. Will they ever win them back? Industry
Standard 08/06/01
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5. PEOPLE
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#people
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ART
DONATIONS: Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham, who
died last week, left much of her art collection to Washington's
Freer Gallery and the National Gallery of Art. The National gets
"a cubist still life by Diego Rivera; it will be the second
Rivera painting in the gallery's collection." Washington
Post 07/28/01
JAZZ
KING: Jazz at Lincoln Center has named Bruce MacCombie, dean
of the School for the Arts at Boston University, as its new
executive director. He's a composer and former dean of Juilliard,
and he replaces Rob Gibson, who was removed from the job in
February in part because of his "divisive" management
style. The New York Times 08/01/01
(one-time registration required for
access)
SHYLY
OPTIMISTIC: Composer Gyorgy Ligeti is at the top of his
profession - he's just won a prestigious award and $350,000. So
why's he so glum? The Economist
08/02/01
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6.
PUBLISHING
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#publishing
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PENNY
PINCHING: Just how bad are Canadian book superstore
Indigo/Chapters' finances? The company has pulled its annual
sponsorship of this year's Word on the Street literary festival,
held in four cities. CBC 07/30/01
THE
AMAZON PROBLEM: "The reason people my age are not
ordering more books on-line may have a purely mathematical
explanation. The number of books that we own, but have not yet
read, and the number of years we might reasonably expect to have
left to read them, do not quite add up."
The Globe & Mail (Canada) 07/30/01
ABOUT
ONE'S SELF: "The subject of autobiography is always
self-definition, but it cannot be self-definition in the void. The
memoirist, like the poet and the novelist, must engage with the
world, because engagement makes experience, experience makes
wisdom, and finally it's the wisdom - or rather the movement
towards it - that counts." Chronicle
of Higher Education 07/30/01
CLASSIC
IGNORANCE: the absence of classical studies from contemporary
education is a bad thing, and it is time to argue that they should
be restored to a more salient place in the curriculum. Western
culture is so deeply imbued with its classical origins that a
proper appreciation of it is impossible without some knowledge of
these origins." New Statesman
07/30/01
HOW
TO WRITE: You see them in every bookstore, those books that
promise to teach you how to write. "Evidently there exists a
widespread belief that the good ol' Yankee can-do spirit - the
kind that helps you to learn how to puff a soufflé or lay a
garden path - extends to an imaginative realm like
novel-writing." If only it were so easy... Opinion
Journal 07/27/01
PRICE
OF POPULARITY: As African American literature goes mainstream,
some questions: "Whom do black authors write for, and who
should our audience be? Will the imprints of the major
houses—newly geared up to reach a broad black
readership—release mediocre work and ghettoize the literary
marketplace, or will they prove a boon for black voices?"
Village Voice 08/01/01
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7. THEATRE
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#theatre
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE
BOOMING WEST END: Tourism is down in the UK and some thought
theatre ticket sales in London might fall too. Not so, though -
sales are up 7 percent over last year. "Figures for April to
June 2001, released by the Society of London Theatres on Tuesday,
show sales rose from £2.4 million to £2.6 million in the same
period in 2000." BBC
08/03/01
BACK
IN THE BLACK: In the 1980s there were more than 200 African
American theatres in the US. Now there are fewer than 50. Thus the
importance of the National Black Theatre Festival opening in
Winston-Salem this week. "The event, which is held every
other summer, has become a dependable place for actors, directors,
playwrights and producers to network and recharge their
batteries." Winston-Salem Journal
07/30/01
HE'S
BAAACK: Twenty years ago actor Tim Robbins helped found LA's
Actors' Gang Theatre. Movie stardom ensued, and four years ago,
after piloting the theatre through "a long list of edgy
productions" Robbins relinquished artistic control of the
company. Now he's seized control again, provoking a rebellion in
the company. Celebrity? Money? Conflicting artistic visions?
LAWeekly 08/02/01
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8.
VISUAL ARTS
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#visualarts
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CURATORS
UNDER ATTACK: Is the traditional curator a dying breed? If not
dead, then certainly under attack: "The most penetrating
attack is one that some curators themselves are abetting. Instead
of insisting on carte blanche to research the past and present it
to the public, they are beginning to welcome to the table members
of the communities whose stories are being told. In the best
cases, this can result in more authentic and revealing
exhibitions; in the worst, blandness, incoherence, or
self-congratulation." The
American Prospect 08/13/01
GETTING
ON THE FRONT PAGE: The recent record-setting auction of a
sketch by Leonardo made front-page headlines all over the world.
But the stories didn't seem to be much about anything to do with
art. "Good art is difficult, slippery stuff, hard to get a
handle on for even the most expert. That's why we love an occasion
when we can substitute talk about something we're all at home with
-- like buying and selling, or an artist's life and times, for
that matter -- for real art talk. We believe that important art is
the kind of thing we ought to read about in our high-class morning
papers. But it can only make the news when it gets pulled out of
the bog of aesthetics, into the good, crisp world of business,
politics, sex or scandal." The
Globe & Mail (Toronto) 08/01/01
EVEN
THE QUEEN SUFFERS FOR THE SAKE OF HER ART: It's hot in England
this summer. While commoners are buying air conditioning at a
record pace, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother will have to grin
and bear it. “In certain rooms there are delicate artefacts and
collectibles which need to be kept in controlled environments to
preserve them. Consequently, it is generally thought that
air-conditioning is not suitable.” The
Times (UK) 08/01/01
LOOKING
FOR THE ART IN PUBLIC ART: The town of Hammond Indiana wants
to be a center of public art. As a first step, the city has
painted a 17-foot-tall reproduction of a Salvador Dali on a wall
above downtown. "It is the type of painting that brings
notice, and it is the kind of work that has people talking and
scratching their heads about it by its mere presence. Our goal is
to invite patrons of the arts and other interested parties to make
this location a Midwest mecca for public art - be it sculptures,
murals, fountains or reproductions such as this one." Ottawa
Citizen (AP) 08/03/01
PRESERVING
ANCIENT MONUMENTS IN FRANCE: The French government has committed
Ffr 600 million ($86 million) for restoration and preservation of
sites in the South of France. "These include the arena and
amphitheatre at Arles, the amphitheatre at Vaison-la-Romaine and
the amphitheatre and triumphal arch in Orange. Most of the sites
attract a large number of visitors and have suffered as a result,
to the point where they are forced to be partially closed to
prevent further damage. " The Art
Newspaper 08/01/01
BILL
GATES' ART SPREE: Billionaire Bill Gates has been active in
the art markets in the past year - $10 million for a William
Merritt Chase here, $20 million for a Childe Hassam there...
"They [Gates and his wife, Melinda] have given a shot in the
arm to American art," says one informed source. "Gates's
collection has grown to include more than a dozen top–quality
works, all by American artists." ARTNews
07/01
WILL
PURGE FOR FOOD: The secret sale of an important old map - the
first to chart the existence of the New World - to America by
German officials entrusted to protect Germany's national
treasures, is an indication of how broke Germany has become. It is
"a scandal of the first order." Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung 07/31/01
THE
RETURN OF MODERNISM? The free-thinking purveyors of Modernist
architecture enjoyed a brief period of wild popularity in the
mid-twentieth century, but their work was soon overtaken by a
return to traditionalism as the Cold War imposed a more sober
mindset on the world. But now, the work of the Modernists is
regaining the respect it originally had, and more Modernist
structures are being built than ever before. But some worry that
the trendiness of the movement has caused its principles to be
forgotten. Nando Times (CSM News
Service) 07/31/01
THIEF
TO THE STARS: Michel Cohen was a dealer to the dealers -
someone the high-enders used "to sell their Picassos and
Chagalls - secretly - to each other. Then he disappeared with
nearly $100 million of their money. Had they trusted the charming
Frenchman too much? Or their competitors too little?" New
York Magazine 07/30/01
ADMIT
FREE: How about making America's museums free? "Relieving
every one of America's 8,000 museums of the need to charge
admission fees - would cost $1 billion a year. From political
Washington's perspective, that would be $1 billion sluiced out
into every state and every congressional district. And it would be
a visionary, big-tent gesture of magnanimity that would generate
better press and far more good will than the Bush Administration
will ever get from the income tax rebate checks hitting the mails
right now." Public
Arts 07/30/01
MORE
THAN A CURIOSITY: Australian Aboriginal art is widely
purchased outside of the country. "But many Australians are
deluded about the health of the international market for
Aboriginal art, according to some experts." The work is not
seriously collected. “Aboriginal art is often regarded either as
an ethnographic curiosity or as an expression of mystic qualities
associated with ‘new-age’ thinking.” The
Art Newspaper 07/22/01
SAVING
THE ART OF A NATION: "Since the 1890s, the British
government has allowed owners of outstandingly important paintings
and objects to offer them to the nation in lieu of tax - aware
that unless such a mechanism existed, owners would sell their
pictures abroad in order to pay death duties." One man has
"saved" £150 million worth of art for the nation in
this manner. The Telegraph (UK)
07/30/01
SAVING
AUSTRALIAN HERITAGE: "How best to preserve our cultural
heritage is a constant behind-the-scenes battle at our museums and
galleries. A recent Australian Bureau of Statistics report found
that 41 per cent of all museum and gallery artefacts required some
treatment. While conservators at several institutions question how
such a figure was arrived at - virtually all artefacts require
conservation, argues one expert - all acknowledge that keeping up
appearances involves a difficult balancing act." Sydney
Morning Herald 07/30/01
UNDESIRABLE
JOBS: Regional British museums are having difficulty hiring
directors. "While billions of pounds in public funding
continue to pour into London and the South East, cuts in staff and
opening hours are the reality for impoverished museums in the
North." The Times (UK) 07/30/01
MAYBE
THE KIDS DON'T LIKE IT? When San Francisco's Zeum Museum for
kids opened three years ago, it was hailed as "a cross
between the Guggenheim Museum and the Starship Enterprise, a place
where thousands of teens could hang out and craft high-tech videos
and digital portraits." But the museum has drawn less than a
third of its expected attendance. Now "it now has a negative
net worth. And its debt is equal to its annual budget."
San Francisco Chronicle 07/30/01
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9.
ISSUES
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#issues
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NUMBING
DOWN: "Doesn't anyone ever get scandalized by art any
more? We live in tolerant times, but we also live in numb ones. It
takes a lot more than simulated sex or a bit of nudity to bring
out the pickets. Publicists are always trying to tell the world
their upcoming project is 'controversial,' but mainly it's wishful
thinking." The Globe & Mail
(Canada) 08/02/01
WHAT
ARE WE SPENDING? How is public money being spent on the arts
in the UK? A new report claims that "there has been a
consistent failure to establish dependable data on subsidies,
accompanied by a serious lack of analysis, which impairs both
decision making and policy outcomes. 'How can we know if we’re
getting value for money if the official bodies don't even know
where all the money is going, where it comes from, or how it is
spent'?” The Art Newspaper 07/28/01
UPPING
THE CORPORATE FACTOR: Australian businesses sponsor sports to
the tune of $282 million a year; but arts sponsorships amount to
only $29.2 million. One organization is trying to help the arts
catch up. Sydney Morning Herald
08/02/01
HELP
FOR IRISH ARTISTS: With Ireland's recent prosperity have come
rising rents. "An exodus of artistic types in recent years
has led to concern that the country's main cities will become the
preserve of go-getting Celtic Tiger sorts." Now a request to
city officials for cheap housing for artists." Sunday
Times (UK) 07/29/01
$300
FOR "THE LION KING" SUDDENLY SEEMS A BIT HIGH:
As the U.S. economy continues to tank, the effects are being felt
in all corners of the entertainment industry. For most folks, the
arts are considered a luxury, and when money gets tight, no one
much feels like ponying up for overpriced concert tickets,
inexplicably skyrocketing movie passes, or even expensive
hardcover books. The
New York Times 07/31/01 (one-time
registration required for access)
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10. FOR FUN
http://www.artsjournal.com/Arts%20beat.htm#forfun
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JERRY
SPRINGER - THE OPERA: The Jerry Springer Show is being turned
into an opera. "In the show, a pair of opera singers slug it
out in profanity-laced songs like Do You Ever Wonder Why Your
Imaginary Friend Committed Suicide? and Everybody Hates You."
New York Post 08/02/01
SOMEWHERE
BETWEEN OEDIPUS AND FATHER KNOWS BEST: Thirty
years ago a US sailor took a chunk of marble from an amphitheatre
in Athens; now his son has returned it to the Greek Embassy. A
simple case of returning an artifact to its original site, you may
say. But if you remember those ancient Greeks, the relationships
of fathers and sons was anything but simple.... Washington
Post 08/01/01
POSTAL
BUTTS: The Brooklyn Academy of Music wanted to promote a
low-budget film it is showing, with a postcard that shows a photo
of a line of men from the movie with their naked butts showing (an
admittedly not pretty sight). But the US postal service has
refused to let the cards go through the mail. "With bulk mail
we try to think about the few people who will have
objections." BBC 07/30/01
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