Are things looking up at the contemporary art museum that lost its founder and saw labor complaints related to abuse by a staff member? Maybe. – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Archives for December 2018
The BBC’s Long-Running ‘Film’ Is Dead; What’s Up Next?
What with an explosion in podcasts – and a terrible lack of attention from the corporate overlords – what can the BBC possibly do? “The BBC has promised to replace Film with another show, but the challenge is how do you cover movies for a BBC One audience? The problem the BBC has is that movie broadcasting has been subject to a populist online revolution.” – The Guardian (UK)
There’s A Lot Of History Going On In Zines, And Zine Libraries Highlight Marginalized Voices
Fifteen years ago, Jenna Freedman “established the zine library at Manhattan’s Barnard College, where she is still zine librarian. Today, the collection consists of over 10,000 zines and focuses heavily on material created by marginalized communities, with topics as varied as mothers and daughters documenting holidays together to searing political collections about racism in punk rock.” – BuzzFeed
Fire Up That To Be Read Pile For Lit Hub’s ‘Most Anticipated Books Of 2019’
That’s right, it’s almost 2019. And just in case you’re panicking about all of the books you didn’t get to in 2018, well, add a stack to the teetering pile (or add some gigabytes to your phone). – Literary Hub
Norman Gimbel, Oscar-Winning Lyricist Of ‘Girl From Ipanema’ And ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song,’ Has Died At 91
Gimbel was “a Bronx-born songwriter who studied under Frank Loesser, the celebrated composer of Guys and Dolls” and who wrote the themes for Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley. – The Washington Post
Can We Still See Frida Kahlo’s Art Without The Scrim Of Kitsch In Between?
Honestly, everything from Frida Kahlo air fresheners to Frida Kahlo teacups are available. But “would an anticapitalist, whose 1932 painting Self-portrait on the Borderline between Mexico and the United States contrasts indigenous Mexican flowers and artefacts with the smoke-belching chimneys of a Ford factory, be pleased by the commodification of her image?” – The Guardian (UK)
Eight Months With A Flip Phone
Why would someone not 90 years old use a flip phone? “Motivating me in those early days, during the brain-shock of the new-old, was a thought experiment of my simple invention: Suppose the Dalai Lama had a smartphone.” – Wired
Netflix’s New Movie Is Interactive, And That Took A Major Leap In Software
Everyone’s talking about the new Black Mirror movie, Bandersnatch, partly because it’s a choose your own adventure movie – but how does that work, with Netflix? Whew: The network created an entirely new software called Branch Manager. “The final product — which looks like islands of flowcharts that branch out to include series of if-then options — creates an infinite number of variations to the story because of the ‘state tracking’ technology that tracks viewer choices as the experience progresses.” – The Hollywood Reporter
Mrinal Sen, Legendary Indian Filmmaker, Has Died At 95
“Along with his contemporaries Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak, Sen was part of a troika of directors from the Eastern Indian state of Bengal that put Indian cinema on the global stage. During a tumultuous time in Bengal politics in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Sen and Ray both made Calcutta trilogies, with Sen choosing to be overtly political.” – Variety
British Theatre Industry Leaders Make Some 2019 Predictions
Lighting designer Paule Constable sums it all up: “Theatre isn’t entertainment alone – it needs to challenge, to bring together, to reflect. There are so many complex issues to grapple with at the moment: diversity, sustainability, Brexit, pressure on resources, gender, representation. We need art to help us to think – to work out a way forward.” – The Stage (UK)
The Centuries Old, Heartbreaking, Beautiful Love Story Of Rembrandt And His Wife, Saskia
“Rembrandt was 28 when he married Saskia in 1634; 36 when she died, leaving him with a baby son and a sorrow so destructive he gave up painting in oils for several years. The measure of his loss is apparent, too, in the nature of these images of Saskia and their happiness, made before (and in one case after) her death. Here is the artist’s heart.” – The Observer (UK)
For People Who Are Type A, Being Mediocre At Piano Is Perfect
Adults who take piano lessons, and who simply can’t be perfect at it, can find something new. “Playing the piano has accomplished what all that yoga and meditation never could. I can quiet my mind and focus entirely on something: not my breath, but the music.” – The New York Times
Is ‘Scientology Did It First’ A Good Defense For Running A Bullying Sex Slave Ring In Hollywood?
Yes, this sounds salacious, but it’s sadly, depressingly real: Smallville actress Allison Mack offered that defense in court. “Mack’s lawyers argued that Mack’s threat to release naked photos and disparaging statements made by cult members against their relatives doesn’t rise to the threat of ‘serious harm’ required to prove someone engaged in forced labor.” – Deadline
The Re-Rise Of The Antenna
That’s right: Rabbit ears are back, baby. Or, well, people are turning to “over-the-air digital antennas — a one-time investment of as little as $20 — as a way to slash their monthly video subscription costs.” – Los Angeles Times
Why Many Americans Don’t Know Their Grandparents’ First Names
This revelation comes courtesy of the Big Data of Ancestry.com, one of the most popular genealogy (and DNA testing) sites. Ancestry and demographers provide a variety of explanations, from immigration and language changes to smaller family sizes meaning there’s no one left to ask. – The Atlantic
The Young Mezzo Taking The Opera World By Storm
Anita Rachvelishvili, 34, has impressed conductors, directors, and the opera world in general. Riccardo Muti: “Rachvelishvili was for me a revelation. … She is without doubt the best Verdi mezzo-soprano today on the planet. Without. Doubt.” – The New York Times
Dame June Whitfield, Star Of BBC Comedies Including ‘Absolutely Fabulous,’ Has Died At 93
Whitfield spent decades being sought out for famous British male comics to play off her superb timing – but then she found her own stardom on TV in Terry and June and then as Edina’s mother in Absolutely Fabulous, which was, and still is thanks to streaming, international comedic gold. – BBC
What Happens If You Log Off Social Media And Just Read?
This is going to surprise everyone: When people get off Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Slack, and more, they get a lot of books read. However! “My only real distractions were hunger and cold. My heat came from a small wood-burning stove, and keeping the tiny house at the right temperature, it turned out, required the same kind of constant low-level attention as my Twitter feed.” – The Guardian (UK)
These Two Male Conductors, Fired For Treating Women Badly, Are Back On The Podium, But Why?
Yikes, and yuck. “The rapid return of Mr. Gatti and Mr. Dutoit has led some to ask whether the cult of personality that surrounds maestros in a tradition-bound field has won out, particularly in countries like Italy and Russia where the reaction to #MeToo has been relatively muted.” The New York Times
Hogwarts Fanfiction Is How To Turn College Students Into Screenwriters
One perhaps charmed USC student says, “The things that we’ve learned in this class are so universal, not just in regards to Harry Potter, but to becoming a good writer and understanding storytelling as a whole.” – Los Angeles Times
The Books (And Movies, And Music) That 44th President Barack Obama Enjoyed In 2019
No surprise, his favorite book was Becoming, by Michelle Obama. But of course, many of us who enjoy streaming platforms live for his playlists, and this year’s no different. – The New York Times
How Did Viral Dance Moves Become The New Music Videos? [VIDEO]
Those aren’t really viral dances – they’re witty and very smart social media moves for established performers. To quote a CEO, “Dance sells.” – BBC
Watch Out, Pinterest: Khalil Gibran’s ‘The Prophet’ Is About To Enter Public Domain
The Prophet, and a lot of other work, is public domain on January 1. Sure, the estates are going to lose money. (But honestly, who cares? This is great for readers.) – The New York Times
Netflix Churns Through Its Data To Create And Deliver Movies Like ‘Bird Box’
Truly, the movie isn’t that great. But it’s a great example of how Netflix uses all of that data we give it when we start, stop, walk away, return, and finish (or don’t) movies and TV shows. – Slate
Using Theatre To Provoke Debate
“Wise Fool, founded in Santa Fe almost 20 years ago as both a performing arts and social justice advocacy organization, combines clowning and circus artistry with storytelling in its popular productions, some of which have become holiday traditions — such as the Circus Luminous show held at the Lensic Performing Arts Center each year on the weekend after Thanksgiving.” – Santa Fe New Mexican