AJ Four Ways: Text Only (by date) | headlines only
DANCE
IDEAS
- Pat Oliphant, One Of US’s Leading Political Cartoonists, Has Died At 90
“Across his six-decade career, he was just as likely to go after D.C. Mayor Marion Barry — whom Mr. Oliphant depicted as an Idi Amin-like, tea-addicted ‘King of Kolumbia’ — as he was President George H.W. Bush, whom he skewered as a purse-carrying wimp and a would-be Lawrence of Arabia.” – The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
- Louvre Jewel Robbery Suspects Say They Were Hired To Steal By Mastermind Client — Who Was “Disappointed”
“The suspects, named locally as Abdoulaye N and Ghelamallah A, claimed they had broken into the Louvre’s Apollo gallery on the orders of a client they refused to name out of fear for their families. … The alleged mastermind … ‘wasn’t happy’ with the outcome. ‘He thought we could have taken more.’” – The Guardian
- Trump Administration Is Keeping Smithsonian Board Seats Vacant, And Nobody Is Saying Much About It
“There have been three openings on the board since April, and by October, the terms of three more trustees will have expired. But the names proposed by the board, which have not been publicly disclosed, have yet to make their way to Congress, and without clear explanation.” – The New York Times
- Ex-COO At Atlanta’s High Museum Of Art Pleads Guilty To Embezzlement
“The U.S. Justice Department said on Monday that former High chief operating officer Brady Lum pleaded guilty to a single charge of felony theft. Prosecutors accused him of stealing more than $600,000 from the museum by doctoring invoices and approving personal purchase transactions.” – Georgia Public Broadcasting
- Strike Averted In London’s West End As UK Equity And Theatres Agree On Actors’ Pay
“The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) has reached a proposed three-year agreement with Equity covering pay and working conditions for performers and stage management working in the West End. The proposed deal runs from April 2026 to April 2029.” – WhatsOnStage (UK)
ISSUES
- Louvre Jewel Robbery Suspects Say They Were Hired To Steal By Mastermind Client — Who Was “Disappointed”
“The suspects, named locally as Abdoulaye N and Ghelamallah A, claimed they had broken into the Louvre’s Apollo gallery on the orders of a client they refused to name out of fear for their families. … The alleged mastermind … ‘wasn’t happy’ with the outcome. ‘He thought we could have taken more.’” – The Guardian
- Ex-COO At Atlanta’s High Museum Of Art Pleads Guilty To Embezzlement
“The U.S. Justice Department said on Monday that former High chief operating officer Brady Lum pleaded guilty to a single charge of felony theft. Prosecutors accused him of stealing more than $600,000 from the museum by doctoring invoices and approving personal purchase transactions.” – Georgia Public Broadcasting
- How The University Of North Texas Censored An Art Exhibition
Initially, the administrators discussed removing some of the pieces from the show. But then the provost texted that he wanted to take down the entire exhibition instead. Michael McPherson wrote, “I think it’ll be easier to manage any barking from our friends in Austin.” – NPR
- At Long Last, John Constable’s Most Famous Painting Is On View In Suffolk
“The famous work depicts a rural scene near the River Stour in Flatford, but it was actually painted in Constable’s London studio.” – BBC
- Reconsidering An English Artist Who Painted The Working-Class
A painter from Manchester, who focused on the working class, isn’t necessarily what Londoners think. “What we’re hoping to do is actually to bust a few myths. … [LS Lowry] wasn’t just an industrial painter. He certainly wasn’t naive or isolated.” – The Guardian (UK)
MEDIA
- Trump Administration Is Keeping Smithsonian Board Seats Vacant, And Nobody Is Saying Much About It
“There have been three openings on the board since April, and by October, the terms of three more trustees will have expired. But the names proposed by the board, which have not been publicly disclosed, have yet to make their way to Congress, and without clear explanation.” – The New York Times
- The Private Concierges Of Rome (Culture On Demand)
The secret to the company’s success lies in its network of “partners”—museums and churches and palazzi, but also artists and photographers and scholars. Each has something special to offer if they can be persuaded to provide it. – The Atlantic
- Why Debates Over Free Speech Can Lead To So Much Fury
“The free speech wars of recent years are not just about rules – they’re about what it means to be a good person.” – The Guardian (UK)
- The Question Remains
Can genAI art or writing ever, ever be more than mid? – Glasstire
- What Would A Post-Literate World Look Like, Though?
“We are making real trade-offs as we shift to communication through short-form video, and maybe it will be worth it, but we certainly are losing a lot.” – NPR
MUSIC
- The Fault Lines Of PEN America’s Support Of Free Speech
PEN America currently sits on a widening fault line, one that divides old-school liberalism, which treats the right to speak as more important than any particular ideology, from a surging and fiercely ideological left that sees Israel and Zionism as its enemy. – The Atlantic
- Could We Stop Demonizing BookTok Now?
Last week’s New Yorker has a rather intense article on the uselessness of BookTok for real book discussion. This woman begs to differ. – BBC
- Is TikTok Ruining Books, Or Publishing In General?
Personal testimony is paramount on BookTok; a book is deemed successful if it ‘breaks’ or ‘destroys’ a “reader. The most common book-review content on the app understands books as pleasure-spiking torment factories.” – The New Yorker
- Sometimes Book To Movie Adaptations Don’t Work Out For The Author
But this one may become legendary. “Tomi Adeyemi, the author of the bestselling fantasy Children of Blood and Bone, isn’t planning to see the forthcoming film adaptation — even though she co-wrote it.” – Los Angeles Times (MSN)
- Enjoying All Of The Agatha Christie Adaptations Out There?
Then you might want to read more Golden Age mysteries, including Josephine Tey (and not just Daughter of Time). – The New York Times
PEOPLE
- Pat Oliphant, One Of US’s Leading Political Cartoonists, Has Died At 90
“Across his six-decade career, he was just as likely to go after D.C. Mayor Marion Barry — whom Mr. Oliphant depicted as an Idi Amin-like, tea-addicted ‘King of Kolumbia’ — as he was President George H.W. Bush, whom he skewered as a purse-carrying wimp and a would-be Lawrence of Arabia.” – The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
- Louvre Jewel Robbery Suspects Say They Were Hired To Steal By Mastermind Client — Who Was “Disappointed”
“The suspects, named locally as Abdoulaye N and Ghelamallah A, claimed they had broken into the Louvre’s Apollo gallery on the orders of a client they refused to name out of fear for their families. … The alleged mastermind … ‘wasn’t happy’ with the outcome. ‘He thought we could have taken more.’” – The Guardian
- Trump Administration Is Keeping Smithsonian Board Seats Vacant, And Nobody Is Saying Much About It
“There have been three openings on the board since April, and by October, the terms of three more trustees will have expired. But the names proposed by the board, which have not been publicly disclosed, have yet to make their way to Congress, and without clear explanation.” – The New York Times
- Ex-COO At Atlanta’s High Museum Of Art Pleads Guilty To Embezzlement
“The U.S. Justice Department said on Monday that former High chief operating officer Brady Lum pleaded guilty to a single charge of felony theft. Prosecutors accused him of stealing more than $600,000 from the museum by doctoring invoices and approving personal purchase transactions.” – Georgia Public Broadcasting
- Strike Averted In London’s West End As UK Equity And Theatres Agree On Actors’ Pay
“The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) has reached a proposed three-year agreement with Equity covering pay and working conditions for performers and stage management working in the West End. The proposed deal runs from April 2026 to April 2029.” – WhatsOnStage (UK)
PEOPLE
- Pat Oliphant, One Of US’s Leading Political Cartoonists, Has Died At 90
“Across his six-decade career, he was just as likely to go after D.C. Mayor Marion Barry — whom Mr. Oliphant depicted as an Idi Amin-like, tea-addicted ‘King of Kolumbia’ — as he was President George H.W. Bush, whom he skewered as a purse-carrying wimp and a would-be Lawrence of Arabia.” – The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
- Louvre Jewel Robbery Suspects Say They Were Hired To Steal By Mastermind Client — Who Was “Disappointed”
“The suspects, named locally as Abdoulaye N and Ghelamallah A, claimed they had broken into the Louvre’s Apollo gallery on the orders of a client they refused to name out of fear for their families. … The alleged mastermind … ‘wasn’t happy’ with the outcome. ‘He thought we could have taken more.’” – The Guardian
- Trump Administration Is Keeping Smithsonian Board Seats Vacant, And Nobody Is Saying Much About It
“There have been three openings on the board since April, and by October, the terms of three more trustees will have expired. But the names proposed by the board, which have not been publicly disclosed, have yet to make their way to Congress, and without clear explanation.” – The New York Times
- Ex-COO At Atlanta’s High Museum Of Art Pleads Guilty To Embezzlement
“The U.S. Justice Department said on Monday that former High chief operating officer Brady Lum pleaded guilty to a single charge of felony theft. Prosecutors accused him of stealing more than $600,000 from the museum by doctoring invoices and approving personal purchase transactions.” – Georgia Public Broadcasting
- Strike Averted In London’s West End As UK Equity And Theatres Agree On Actors’ Pay
“The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) has reached a proposed three-year agreement with Equity covering pay and working conditions for performers and stage management working in the West End. The proposed deal runs from April 2026 to April 2029.” – WhatsOnStage (UK)
THEATRE
VISUAL
- Is It Really Possible To Map The Odyssey?
The ancient Greek polymath Eratosthenes, who was the first person to measure the circumference of the Earth, disputed that the Odyssey had anything to do with geography. He said: “You will find the scene of the wanderings of Odysseus when you find the cobbler who sewed up the bag of the winds.” – The Conversation
- Survey: Americans Support AI Companies Transferring Half Their Stock To A Public Fund
According to a new national survey of 1,690 adults from research firm Verasight, 69% said they support “forcing” AI firms to transfer half their stock to a public sovereign wealth fund that would, in theory, pour AI profits back into the economy and even provide direct payments to Americans. – Fast Company
- It’s Possible That We’re Coming To The End Of Literacy
How can we tell? Well, a lot of ways. One grim statistic: “Gambling has become a more common leisure activity than reading a book.” – The Atlantic
- Seneca, Worried About The Crisis Of Attention, Had An Idea For A Fix
Too much scrolling (of papyrus) in ancient Rome had the philosopher Seneca in search of an answer. His advice, “which he outlined in his Letters From a Stoic: Devote your attention to one idea a day.” – The New York Times
- As Yet Another Version Hits Cinemas, Why Are We Still So Obsessed With The Odyssey?
“The Odyssey – the story of a warrior’s homecoming, his long and tortuous journey to reintegrate himself within his own household – has passed into the bloodstream of many storytelling traditions,” from Finding Nemo to Game of Thrones. – The Guardian (UK)