People

“If an artist is a bad person, should that change the way audiences interact with his art? In this particular case, if the author is a rapist, should that change the way we read Philip Roth: The Biography? Arguably, no. A book has an existence apart from its author, a truism that is extra true in the case of biography. When the biographer turns out to be a contemptible human being, his subject comes under suspicion too: What drew the biographer to this guy and not someone else? We owe it to this guy to be fair-minded.” – The Atlantic

A longtime soloist at the Met and a mainstay of New York Grand Opera’s summertime productions in Central Park, “over his 60-year career he gave nearly 800 performances in three dozen countries in opera productions (some 60 roles) and in concerts of arias, Broadway fare and Hellenic songs (a lifelong passion).” – The New York Times

The Lee family, including his widow and three children, expects to pay more than 12 trillion won ($10.8 billion) in inheritance taxes, which is more than half the wealth Lee held in stocks and real estate, Samsung said Wednesday. This would be the largest amount in South Korea and more than three times the country’s total estate tax revenue for last year. Giving away the late chairman’s vast collection of art masterpieces would reduce the taxable portions of his estate. – Toronto Star

Says the curator of a new exhibit on the Roman monarch at the British Museum, “Nero’s memory was contested after his death, and that really was divided along class divisions. You have a very hostile elite, but we also know that the common people in Rome, the plebs urbana, honored his memory for decades after his death. Already, you have an intriguing story with accounts that don’t quite match up. And this is really what we want to investigate.” – The Guardian

The actor didn’t appear on video for his Best Actor win, leaving the Oscars production with a big letdown of an ending. A Los Angeles Times article explained that “while at 83 years old Hopkins became the oldest winner of an acting Oscar in any category, it wasn’t worth the risk of being exposed to the coronavirus to travel to the British Film Institute in London to accept it.” He later posted a sweet video to his Instagram from his home in Wales. After praising Chadwick Boseman, he said, “I really did not expect this.” – The New York Times

Young was an acclaimed poet, but he also wrote novels – and always, always, worked jazz into his readings and his life. And along with music, he had his voice. “Writing a poem, Mr. Young believed, was only part of the process. Reading it live — something he did with a compelling, resonant voice — was the other.” – The New York Times

She spoke or could read 13 languages, ran the New York Marathon, and was the third-longest serving employee of the NYPL, where she catalogued rare books for more than 50 years. She wrote books, edited books, and told those taking tours of the underground steel stacks that catalogers were “the most important workers in the library.” – The New York Times

Ludwig was most prominently associated with the Vienna State Opera and the Salzburg Festival, but she also sang at the Met. She “rose from straitened origins in a shattered wartime Germany to the height of the singing world, aided by a sense of discipline instilled by her strong-willed mother — her only real teacher and a constant presence throughout her career. … Onstage, Ms. Ludwig brought a striking combination of acting ability, charisma and vocal beauty. Her voice had range and power, a security through all the registers and a broad array of colors.”- The New York Times

One says, “It’s kind of simpatico with Fern’s story [in the movie]. My husband died, and we don’t have kids, so I just sold everything and just thought that I would travel for a bit, and fell in love with it.” And, just like Fern, she says, “I can’t see me living a different way now.” – BBC

He left behind “thousands of audio and video recordings; the countless notes scrawled on countless piles of music manuscript paper; and, of course, the memories of family, friends, and fans.” Just about everyone who plays jazz today owes something to Corea, whether they know it or not (and most do). – Jazz Times

“As a record producer [he] guided the reissue of vast swaths of the classic jazz canon, and … as a broadcaster [he] helped build WBGO into the largest jazz radio station in the New York City area.” – The New York Times

“Routinely named in the same ardent breath as the great 20th-century ecdysiasts Lili St. Cyr, Blaze Starr and Gypsy Rose Lee, Ms. Storm was every inch as ecdysiastical as they, and for far longer. … [She] continued plying her craft until she was in her 80s — not because she had to, but because she could.” (And, by the way, she said about her way of working, “I think taking off all your clothes — and I’ve never taken off all my clothes — is not only immoral but boring.”) – The New York Times

The site, on land recently added to the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge on the Eastern Shore, includes ten acres that Tubman’s father, Ben Ross, was given when he was freed. What’s been discovered are the remains of Ross’s cabin, where he brought his wife (whose freedom he purchased) and sheltered Harriet, when she was aged 17 to 22, and several of her siblings who were still enslaved. – The Washington Post

“First at University College Dublin and later at New York University, Professor Donoghue carved out a middle ground in the contested landscape of late-20th-century literary studies, standing opposed to both the politicized theories of the left and the traditionalist pieties of the right. He was an ardent opponent of deconstruction, and … [his] fierce aversion to the impositions of postmodern theory earned him a reputation as one of the last great humanist critics.” – The New York Times

For 30 years, Mr. Peterson had been a composer, pianist and professor at San Francisco State University, respected by most musicians who knew his work and highly regarded by his students. The Pulitzer — and the ensuing squabble — changed his life. Another composition, Ralph Shapey’s hour-long piece for orchestra, “Concerto Fantastique,” had been the unanimous choice of the music jury — George Perle, Roger Reynolds and Harvey Sollberger, all distinguished composers and academics. Perle and Reynolds were past Pulitzer winners. – Washington Post

Prisant was a 51-year-old antiques dealer with no professional experience writing when she wrote to the autocratic editor of the British magazine The World of Interiors, asking for a job. There wasn’t one open in New York, but the editor created one for her. “‘She told the truth, but always with subtlety and lashings of wit,’ Rupert Thomas, Ms. Hogg’s successor at the magazine, said by phone, ‘and managed to be clever and learned without taking herself — or her interviewees — too seriously.'” – The New York Times

Kaluuya grew up on a council estate – the rough equivalent to “the projects” in the United States – the son of Ugandan immigrants to Britain. He took advantage of every possible free arts program, and, at 18, ended up bot a writer and an actor for the program Skins. And, years later, came Get Out. “By the time he won best ‘newcomer’ at the Baftas for Get Out in 2018, Kaluuya had been a professional actor for 10 years. ‘I am a product of UK arts funding,’ he told the audience, before dedicating that award to his mum and old teachers.” – The Observer (UK)

Hummel was 19 when she began working as an assistant for William Moulton Marston, the psychologist who had created the character and the comic a few years earlier. Jill Lepore writes in The Secret History of Wonder Woman: “At first, Hummel typed Marston’s scripts. … Soon, she was writing scripts of her own.” – The New York Times

Gregorian, an immigrant from Armenia who became a scholar and leader of Brown University and the Carnegie Corporation, “was best known for resurrecting the New York Public Library from a fiscal and morale crisis. It was a radical, midcareer change from the pastoral academic realm, and a risky plunge into the high-profile social and political wars of New York City, where the budget-cutting knives were out.” – The New York Times

McCrory’s husband, actor Damian Lewis, announced the news of her death on Twitter. “I’m heartbroken to announce that after an heroic battle with cancer, the beautiful and mighty woman that is Helen McCrory has died. … We love her and know how lucky we are to have had her in our lives. She blazed so brightly. Go now Little One, into the air, and thank you.” – The Guardian (UK)

Nancy Holt was always serious. Her journals show how other artists loved talking through ideas with her. She was very close to Michael Heizer, Richard Serra and Joan Jonas. She exchanged concrete poetry by post with Carl Andre and Sol LeWitt. But when I ask Le Feuvre if the men saw her as a peer, she answers: “Yes, but.” They valued her input . But she wasn’t exhibiting in the same places they were. Similarly, it’s not that critics were dismissive of her work. They just didn’t mention her at all. – The Guardian

“Tatsiana Hatsura-Yavorska, the director of the Watch Docs Film Festival in Belarus, has been released from prison and had charges against her dropped following an international outcry from film festivals and human rights organizations. [She] was arrested in Minsk on April 5, allegedly for her role in organizing an underground photo exhibition celebrating Belarusian health workers.” – The Hollywood Reporter

As Menand puts it in his new book, The Free World: Art and Thought in the Cold War, “Trilling thought that people’s literary preferences tell us something about the kind of human beings they wish to be and about the way they wish other human beings to be—that is, something about their morality and their politics.” – The Point

For nearly half a century, Lévy has been one of the most visible public intellectuals in France and a master at manipulating philosophical and political controversy. With his good looks and outsized ego, Lévy is a compelling performer. He is also an irresistible target for critics from the left, right, and center. – Foreign Policy

“Still in her teens, Ms. Moylan began to perform principal roles with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, where Balanchine, ever more enthusiastic about her work, was the resident choreographer. … [Her] career began and largely took shape before Balanchine formed Ballet Society and, in 1948, the New York City Ballet. But her career was closely associated with his work. … And yet her death, almost a year ago, went largely unnoticed in the dance world.” – The New York Times