Tag: 06.07.00

MEMORIES FOR SALE

“Want a Roman baton from “Ben Hur”? A gladiator helmet from “Spartacus”? How about the baseball bat Robert DeNiro used in “The Untouchables” to pound a point home?” For the first time in its 100-year history, L.A.’s Ellis Prop Shop will put it holdings on the auction block next week – the largest auction of Hollywood memorabilia since MGM sold its backlot in the 1970s. – CNN 06/07/00

BEYOND BROADWAY

It’s been widely reported that this year’s Broadway season was boffo box office, with record-breaking ticket sales and the second highest attendance on record. Now the numbers are in from regional theaters around the country, and they’re equally encouraging: a combined box-office take of $1.2 billion and total attendance of more than 23 million. – Backstage

ITALIAN RENAISSANCE ON HOLD

Italian film lovers hoped when Roberto Benigni’s “Life is Beautiful won international success last year, Italian film would experience a resurgence. But the slump continues, perplexing many. Italian films don’t even make money at home. Why? “Because 30 percent of Italian moviegoers go in without paying,” says one producer. “I personally verified the receipts at one of our theaters last summer. There were 2,000 people there, and 400 didn’t pay for their tickets.” – The Star Tribune (Minneapolis) (New York Times) 06/07/00

WAR STORIES

What can theater do during a time of war? What use is drama when your country has been all but destroyed? Thirty-seven theatre critics, playwrights, and directors from 11 countries (18 from Yugoslavia) gathered in Serbia to address such questions during the International Symposium on Theater and War. – The Guardian

MORE THAN JUST STRANGE

Pianist Glenn Gould was renowned both for his talent and for his eccentric performance habits, which included rocking back and forth, humming loudly, and conducting to himself during concerts. Now the director of the music division at Canada’s National Library says evidence shows Gould suffered from Asperger’s syndrome, a kind of autism. “I went ‘Bingo.’ I’d suspected for a long time that this was more than just a weirdo.” – Yahoo! (Reuters)

MAESTRO ON EDGE

Wolfgang Sawallisch may be on his way out as director of the Philadelphia Orchestra, but he’s got a remarkable thing going in Philadelphia. “Although orchestra players traditionally complain about anyone who wields a baton, Sawallisch seems to inspire consistent affection from the orchestra, even amid observations that age has robbed his baton technique of some precision. But the mind behind the technique has gained precision.” – Philadelphia Inquirer

ORANGE CRUSH

London columnist Linda Grant’s first novel, “When I Lived in Modern Times” won the UK’s Orange Prize, beating out Zadie Smith’s much-hyped “White Teeth.” Now in its fifth year, the Orange Prize was set up to celebrate women novelists from around the world, after the Booker Prize repeatedly overlooked women authors in its shortlists. – The Independent (UK)

BOOK-WEIGHT PROSE

Everyone was talking e-books at this year’s BookExpo. Well, almost everyone; a few subversives still linger: “I think the book is an amazing bit of technology,” Martin Amis asserted with his familiar, welterweight edge. “I like to write on my books, bend the pages, make little marks. I read with a pen in my hand, and I would like to be read with a pen in the reader’s hand. Reading a book is communing with the author. I think you need the page in your hand, the weight of it, as part of that process.” – Philadelphia Inquirer