“Yes, beauty is only skin deep. Yes, we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Yes, critics shouldn’t disparage people for their God-given physical features. But we live in a visual age. Magazines — not to mention theater, opera, and dance companies — would be out of business if they pretended otherwise. Or do you think it’s a coincidence that there are no unpleasant-looking people on Good Morning America?”
Tag: 06.09.14
Spun-Off Time, Inc. Faces Long, Difficult Road
“What was once a jewel in terms of profit and stature is now a drag on the share price of Time Warner, its parent company, and is being spun off with little ceremony and a load of debt. Absent the diversified portfolio of Time Warner, Time Inc. will be going it alone with more than 90 magazines and 45 websites in a market that views print as a thing of the past.”
Stop Reader-Shaming People (It’s Stupid, Counterproductive, And Doesn’t Work)
“What’s wrong with reading for fun? Especially at a time when publishers are laying off staffers and bookstores are closing, why condemn others for what they choose to read?”
It’s Time To Stop Training So Many Actors For Work They Won’t Be Able To Find
Susan Elkin, The Stage‘s Education and Training editor: “Nobody embarks on medical training, an accountancy degree or business management training in the knowledge that she or he is highly unlikely ever to be able to make a living from it. It simply isn’t how training and work operates in a sensible world.”
What If Streaming Music Doesn’t Work Out?
“If you kill the idea of downloads, ring the death knell of the shiny disc, and streaming becomes ubiquitous, great! But, what if we only reach a combined total of say, 20-40 mil subs in the U.S.? Then what? It won’t be sustainable.”
Audra McDonald Criticized For Tony Speech
“I’m sure that you were not personally judging me and other concerned parents when you thanked your parents for not putting you on Ritalin.But damn it, you’re not making it any easier to live with our hard decisions. There’s anxiety and then there’s Audra-induced anxiety, which is more dramatic and accomplished than the regular sort.”
Spielberg Wants To Make Tony-Winning LBJ Play Into Miniseries
All The Way won statuettes for best play and best leading actor – Bryan Cranston, already a hot television property for starring in the just-concluded Breaking Bad. “Spielberg wants Cranston to reprise his role in a drama that begins with the Kennedy assassination, and spans the first year of Johnson’s administration,” including passage of the Civil Rights Act.
When I Met The Apartheid-Era Assassin I’m Now Playing Onstage
“Eugene de Kock was the head of South Africa’s death squad, which tortured and killed opponents of apartheid. Matthew Marsh, now playing De Kock in A Human Being Died That Night, recalls an astonishing meeting with the assassin in a Pretoria jail.”
The Problems With French Cinema, From a Producer Who Really Knows
Richard Brody talks with Marin Charmitz, who has produced films by directors from Godard, Resnais, Chabrol, and Malle to Kieslowski, Kechiche, and Kiarostami.
How The Arts Should Use Data (At Least Asking The Question)
“If we are to measure cultural participation, then we should clearly know exactly what it is we are measuring. We should also be open to the many empirical forms of cultural participation that exist whether we say they do or not.”