"It's worth asking now, five years after Roth’s death, whether they have eclipsed the actual work that Roth produced, or any true reckoning with the man himself. … Will (his) literary output enjoy the same immortality as that of the persona he created?" - The Atlantic (MSN)
Employment in motion pictures and sound recording climbed by 11,400 jobs to 463,000. After months of declines, industry employment began rising again in November. - Deadline
Last spring, the library in Lake Luzerne announced, as a one-time event, a drag queen story hour. After months of strife that included a bomb threat and a fistfight at a council meeting, most of the staff and board resigned and the library had to shut down. - The New York Times
Has comedy changed dramatically in purpose in our era? Or have its ideological trappings gone pious in ways that are at odds with what comedians have always done? - The New Yorker
In Suffolk, where roughly three-quarters of the population qualifies as "wealthy" or "comfortable," the county announced that it will end all core arts funding as of April 2025. Arts organizations issued a joint statement saying that the amount (£500,000) is tiny for the council but will severely affect them. - The Guardian
“This expectation that all artists per se should have a particular responsibility to be overtly political flies in the face of what I believe about art being directionless research. Or sometimes I like to say that art is useless. And that’s one of its absolute strengths." - New Statesman
"While recent rumors suggest the pair had a falling out, (Benny) Safdie insists his split with Josh is amicable. 'It’s a natural progression of what we each want to explore,'" says Benny, who has found himself with a healthy acting career. - Variety
There is the giving up that we can admire and aspire to, and the giving up that profoundly unsettles us. What, for example, does real hope or real despair require us to relinquish? What exactly do we imagine we are doing when we give something up? - The Guardian
"The Cleveland Ballet has severed all ties with the School of Cleveland Ballet, which was co-founded by its currently suspended Artistic Director Gladisa Guadalupe, and will now be launching its own dance academy in mid-January amid an investigation into 'serious and disturbing workplace allegations.'" - WKYC (Cleveland)
Dmitry Rybolovlev has been pursuing dealer Yves Bouvier from country to country with lawsuits alleging that Bouvier fraudulently inflated prices for multimillion-dollar artworks (such as Salvator Mundi) and pocketed the difference. Rybolovlev accuses Sotheby's of assisting Bouvier, and the trial starts next week. - The New York Times
"'Most contracts have arbitrary termination clauses and offer paltry fees, especially to newcomers,' says a leader of the Indian equivalent of the Writers Guild of America. … 'They also don't pay writers for reworking drafts and give producers the right to decide whether a writer should be credited for their work.'" - BBC
"The first on the chopping block is a March program curated by Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen. … The orchestra added that future plans for SoundBox will include just two programs per season — a reduction from the three to five that have generally made up the series." - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)
Eike Schmidt's widely-praised tenure at the city's flagship museum just ended, and he's been appointed director of the Capodimonte Museum in Naples. But last summer Schmidt floated the idea of running for mayor with a nationalist party, and now he says only that he can't do both jobs. - The New York Times
"(Her) effervescence and crackling husky voice — which she attributed to 'slightly twisted' vocal cords that permitted the air to hit 'the soprano and the contralto at the same time' — made her a distinctive presence in nearly 60 films, dozens of TV appearances and scores of theatrical productions." - The Washington Post (MSN)
"The appointment as Principal Conductor is effective immediately. Spano will remain in the post until the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra & Music School hires a new, permanent Music Director. That search is ongoing." - Broadway World
