“The Chicago director did honest, steady, truthful work around Chicago for many years,” and his “career toddled quietly along.” Then, suddenly, you “couldn’t pick up a newspaper without reading a Cromer profile. … So it goes in the theater. Either nobody wants you or everybody wants you everywhere at once.”
Tag: 05.12.10
At Instrument Storage Facility, Nashville Flood Devastates
Nashville’s Soundcheck is, in part, “a so-called cartage company that delivers gear to the professional studio musicians when they arrive at recording sessions. That means a significant percentage of the great guitars in Music City were stored in the same place. And last week, that place was underwater.”
Norton Simon Museum Makes Way For Goslings
“[T]he geese were first spotted crossing Colorado Boulevard during a harrowing rush-hour escapade Thursday morning. … But once safely across the busy boulevard, attempts to gently herd them around the building to the pond didn’t work. So a mad dash across the lobby, past the Ellsworth Kelly painting and the Henry Moore bronze, was the only solution.”
Objection! No. Cal. Critic Tars Dudamel As ‘Short,’ ‘Chunky’
Reviewing the Los Angeles Philharmonic in San Francisco, “Bay Area critics dutifully remarked on Dudamel’s celebrity status and his infectious energy. But they did not give the conductor a free pass when it came to his interpretations of the Mahler — or even his physical appearance.”
David Koch: Naming Rights Should Be Renewable Resource
“Naming rights have factored into many of Mr. Koch’s charitable gifts, and the industrialist has recently embarked on a campaign to ensure others will have similar naming opportunities available. Mr. Koch has imposed a legally binding expiration date on the naming rights attached to one of his biggest gifts, so that the rights eventually can be resold, he said.”
Kindle Will Have Separate Bestseller List For Free E-Books
“A representative at [Amazon] has confirmed that the company will be splitting its Kindle bestseller list, creating one list for paid books and another for free titles. … Currently the top ten bestselling titles on Amazon’s Kindle bestseller list are free downloads, a fact that speaks to how publishers are testing the free model to get attention for certain authors.”
Richard Serra Wins Spain’s Prince Of Asturias Prize
“U.S. sculptor Richard Serra, renowned for his large-scale metal structures, has been named the winner of Spain’s prestigious Prince of Asturias award in the arts for his innovative ability to integrate urban spaces in his work … Each prize includes a €50,000 ($63,000) cash award and a sculpture by Joan Miró.”
Political Ruckus In South America Over Kathryn Bigelow’s New Film
“South American politicians [have] reacted angrily to plans for Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow’s latest project, an adrenaline-filled exposé of life in the notorious triple border region between Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay.”
Ballet Star Playing ‘Mao’s Last Dancer’ Finds Acting ‘Weird’
“Ballet dancer Chi Cao can leap through the air with an athleticism that defies gravity, but he says those spectacular jumps are easy, compared to the challenge of trying to cry on cue. Chi … is making his acting debut in Mao’s Last Dancer, a film based on the true story of his countryman, Li Cunxin.”
Doris Eaton Travis, Last Of The Ziegfeld Follies Girls, Dies At 106
She began her showgirl career before her 14th birthday and kept going, along with her sisters, until the offers dried up with the onset of the Depression. “Eight decades after her initial bout of fame, she again found an audience … when she appeared with four other graying Ziegfeld veterans” in the first of a dozen annual theatre benefits.