“Believe it or not, this used to be a fairly common dining experience, offered by more than 100 such establishments in the United States in the 1970s and 1980s.” There are still three left in the U.S., and CityLab visits the one in Mesa, Arizona, which has a Wurlitzer bigger than the organ at Radio City Music Hall. — CityLab
Tag: 01.18.19
How Did The English Language Come To Be?
Is it fair to say it’s a mongrel language, drawing influence from all over. So it is important to remember that the formation of English was influenced by a huge range of ethnic and geographical forces. The emerging ‘England’ of this period was a melting pot. – BBC
What The Dance World Needs From Artistic Directors (And Doesn’t Always Get Enough Of)
“‘Oftentimes people get put into this position just because they were a star performer,’ says Sacramento Ballet artistic director Amy Seiwert. But leading a healthy, thriving dance company requires a lot more than charisma. Directors also need everything from business savvy to a commitment to nurturing their artists. So how can the dance world be more deliberate about shaping future leaders — and how can aspiring directors prepare themselves to succeed?” — Dance Magazine
Changing The Face Of Ballet, Both Onstage And Behind The Scenes
“Called ‘The Equity Project: Increasing the Presence of Blacks in Ballet,’ the three-year initiative, funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, is a partnership between Dance Theatre of Harlem, the International Association of Blacks in Dance and Dance/USA.” — Dance Magazine
How The Forward Burned Through Cash And Had To Give Up On Print
“The death of the Forward‘s print edition, and the slashes to its masthead, cap off decades of financial bleeding.” The publisher says the paper has run at a loss since 1945; recent losses have run to $5 million a year. The losses have been covered by drawing down its capital, which had already taken hits from the 2008 crash and Bernie Madoff’s scams. — Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Dancing Around The World
Matt Bray spent a year traveling all over the world filming himself dancing with whomever was where he was. He calls it the “1000 People of Dance” project, and it’s fun. – Mother Nature Network
Facebook’s Ten Year Challenge – The Perfect Way To Train Facial Recognition Programs?
Imagine that you wanted to train a facial recognition algorithm on age-related characteristics and, more specifically, on age progression (e.g., how people are likely to look as they get older). Ideally, you’d want a broad and rigorous dataset with lots of people’s pictures. It would help if you knew they were taken a fixed number of years apart—say, 10 years. – Wired
Movies Are Global – And That’s Changing Hollywood
Twenty years ago Hollywood earned 30 percent of its revenue internationally. Now it’s 70 percent. And that means what Hollywood makes is more and more influenced by the international market. – BBC
Study: UK Artists Earn An Average Of £16,150 – Only 1/3 Comes From Their Art
The research has shone new light on the portfolio careers of artists: 20% of respondents work three or more jobs, and of those taking jobs, a third have roles in fields with nothing to do with the arts. Similarly, the report finds only one in five visual artists believe their work/art balance is correct. — Arts Professional
How Photography Became The Definitive Record
In “A Chronology of Photography” photojournalist Paul Lowe and his contributors detail the medium’s swift progression from the purview of the scientists who invented it (noted astronomer John Herschel coined the term “photograph” in 1839, combining the Greek words for “light” and “drawing”) to its adoption by entrepreneurs who established thousands of photographic studios to meet the growing demand among members of the middle class for images of themselves, something previously available only to the wealthy. – Washington Post