"This was a new kind of Christmas carol. It didn't mention the birth of Jesus, angels or wise men." Bing Crosby sang it in the 1942 film Holiday Inn, and "by December it was on every radio, in every jukebox. … The key reason was the nation’s entry into World War II." - The Conversation
I think that we’ve always been an international industry, but the pandemic has really illuminated that fact in some ways, both in physical production, as well as in content distribution. And that’s a good thing. - Variety
The original lyrics written for the film Meet Me in St. Louis began "Have yourself a merry little Christmas / It may be your last / Next year we may all be living in the past." For the version we know now, we can thank first Judy Garland and then Frank Sinatra. - Mental Floss
For many Brits, panto is their first experience in the theater. For some, it’s their only experience. It’s woven into the fabric of the holidays, and love it or hate it, you’re probably going. In fact, you’ve probably bought enough tickets to bring multiple generations of your family. - Gordon Cox
In 1998, Michelle Tea, who started the first series of events called "Drag Queen Story Hour," published her first novel with Semiotext(e), publisher of William S. Burroughs and Andrea Dworkin. Now Hedi El Kholti, Semiotext(e)'s co-editor (and Colm Tóibín's partner), will host Tea's new imprint, Dopamine. - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)
“New” is the key factor here. In compiling my best-of list for the year gone by — a list that has now swollen year-over-year from 12 to 14 — I found that contemporary offerings made up the bulk of my choices. No knock on Beethoven, but it’s good to hear some fresh perspectives. - San Francisco Chronicle
"The shell of Carlos Watson's Ozy Media (has) filed a lawsuit against Semafor co-founder Ben Smith, his news site and his former outlet, BuzzFeed, claiming that Smith stole trade secrets from the now-defunct (Ozy) and then forced its implosion" with a New York Times story revealing Ozy's lies about its readership." - TheWrap
The orchestra said that Runnicles will take up the post in the 2025-26 season and will lead the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra as Chief Conductor Designate from the coming 2024-25 season. - OperaWire
Paramount Global planned to sell the Black-oriented cable network earlier this year but backed off after deciding that the purchase offers were too low. Now Byron Allen of Allen Media Group has offered $3.5 billion for the BET Media Group, which also includes studios and the cable channel VH1. - Variety
The Italian-born choreographer was a principal at La Scala Ballet, created works for that company's ballet school, and founded his own company, Heliopolis, before working as artistic director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet (2014-17) and later co-founding the Sydney Choreographic Centre. - Calgary Herald
Li Cunxin, who found fame beyond the dance world with the memoir and documentary with that title, announced in June that he's retiring as artistic director of the Brisbane-based company due to health concerns. Succeeding him is the Queensland-born former Royal Ballet principal Leanne Benjamin. - ABC (Australia)
"This week (the union) released a letter of censure dated Nov. 20 in which Daniels was informed he was permanently barred from the guild. … The 57-year-old and his husband, Scott Walters, pleaded guilty to sexual assault of an adult, a second-degree felony, in Houston’s Harris County District Court on Aug. 4." - AP
Far higher than that of Americans as a whole, according to the Broadway League's demographic report on the 2022-23 season. Now we know why they can pay for those $200-and-up tickets. - TheaterMania
"A team led by scientists from England’s University of Bradford used artificial intelligence to determine that the face of Joseph in the Madonna della Rosa ('Madonna of the Rose') was painted by someone other than the Renaissance master." - CNN
