He was convinced that for a society to be not merely affluent but livable (an important distinction now all but lost) it had to put more political and economic power in the hands of people who exercised very little of it.
Tag: 05.03.06
Art Against The Fuhrer
“A Leipzig performance artist has found an original way of disrupting neo-Nazi marches and demonstrations. When the skinheads come to town, the German Apple Front is there to meet them — complete with its very own Führer of fruit. The group was founded after the right-wing NPD party was voted into the Saxony state parliament.”
Chichester Festival Theatre – Chance For A Turnaround?
“After years of surviving, and surviving handsomely, as a strictly commercial operation, the theatre is now one of the most generously subsidised regional theatres in the country, with an Arts Council grant of some £1.5 million this year. What’s more, over the past three few years, the theatre, built by the public subscription of local citizens in the early 1960s, and so often derided by some of my colleagues as being irredeemably safe and middle-class, has been winning golden critical opinions.” But the box office went wrong, the theatre’s leadership resigned, and now there’s someone new to try to fix things…
Frist Pushes Tough New Broadcast Indecency Regs In US Senate
US Senator Bill Frist is trying to push through a tough new version of indecency standards for US broadcasters through Congress. The new regulations would impose a tenfold increase on fines for indecent broadcasts…
Movie Industry Counts Cost Of Piracy
For the first time, the movie industry has counted up what it says the costs of piracy are. “The MPAA released its first comprehensive study of movie piracy late Tuesday, estimating that the major studios lost $6.1 billion last year to bootlegging, illegal copying and Internet piracy.”
Where Does Life Evolve The Fastest?
In the tropics. “A census of all the plants and animals around the world would reveal that species richness is uneven: it is highest in the tropics, the regions of Earth near the equator, and lower the closer one goes toward the planet’s poles.”
Church To Show Trailer Refuting Da Vinci Code
Sydney’s Anglican Church is showing a trailer in 250 movie theatres giving its side of the story on “The Da Vinci Code.” “The 20-second trailer depicts Jesus’s reaction to the book’s claim that the church lied about a secret bloodline. The Dan Brown novel explores the theme that Jesus has living descendants. The trailer tells cinema-goers about a special website which challenges the truth about the theories in The Da Vinci Code.”
Longtime Portland Orchestra Director Retires
Conductor Toshiyuki Shimada gives his final concert as music director of the Portland (Maine) Symphony. He led the orchestra for 20 years. “The crowd filled the hall with applause and roars of approval. Audience members, whom Shimada always has viewed as an extended family, stood and cheered for nearly 10 minutes.”
EMI Makes Another Bid For Warner
The recording giant is trying again. “The negotiations are the latest in a series of on-and-off talks between the companies that have unfolded over several years. EMI unsuccessfully bid to buy Warner from its previous parent, Time Warner, in late 2003 before losing out to an investment group led by Mr. Bronfman. Before that, European regulators blocked a proposed merger of the two giants.”
Music Critic Leighton Kerner, 79
“Leighton studied at Tufts University and Boston College, receiving degrees in chemical engineering and journalism, before beginning his writing career at Women’s Wear Daily, in 1951. In 1955, he moved to The Voice, which carried his byline until 2004. His honors during his Voicetenure included two ASCAP/Deems Taylor Awards and a letter of distinction from the American Music Center. He also wrote for Musical America and Travel + Leisure.”