Arts News from the Outback

Anna Nicole isn't alone
"A lawyer for James Brown's partner says an agreement has been reached over obtaining DNA samples from the late soul singer's body. Brown's trustees wanted DNA samples to help sort out several paternity claims made against the singer since he died two months ago."
(Thanks to The State, the daily of Columbia, S.C.)

Remembering a local legend
"[Lewis Anderson] Muse was black, the rest of the Tides were white. Although he appeared with the Tides only a few times -- never on television -- Muse was a popular entertainer who sang, played the ukulele, danced and told tall tales for two generations of fans of all colors. His mix of blues, country and pop standards made him a radio and festival favorite for six decades. This year marks the 25th anniversary of his death, but his voice and music can still be heard on CD and on the Internet."
(Thanks to Ralph Berrier Jr. of the Roanoke Times)

The (literally) crumbling state of arts education
"The Cleveland School of the Arts needs help from Halle Berry, Paul Newman and, especially, you. After all, the kids there are among the best and most talented attending the city's public schools. I can't think of a reason anyone would deny them firstrate classrooms and performance spaces. Every morning, some 630 students journey from every corner of the city to enter a 97-year-old building that is falling down around them. Literally. It's one of the worst school buildings in the region."
(Thanks to Sam Fulwood, columnist for the Cleveland Plain Dealer)

Work by former columnist for altweekly made into major play
"'Your Negro Tour Guide,' the one-woman play adapted from the personal archives of University of Cincinnati professor and former CityBeat columnist, Kathy Y. Wilson, is scheduled to be performed Monday night at Playhouse in the Park. The play is adapted from her anthology, 'Your Negro Tour Guide: Truths in Black and White,' a collection of columns tackling the issues of race, class and gender in and beyond Cincinnati."
(Thanks to Ryan McLendon of the University of Cincinnati student newspaper The News Record)