“The auction house thought the portrait was a 17th century Rembrandt knockoff, and valued it at just $3,100. But experts have confirmed “Rembrandt Laughing” — bought for a bargain price of $4.5 million at an English auction house in October — is a self-portrait by the Dutch master himself.”
Tag: 06.18.08
Spielberg, Dreamworks Talk Mega-Deal With Indian Media Giant
“The deal amounts to a marriage of some of the biggest names in the Hollywood and Indian business worlds. In Reliance, the DreamWorks team also would have an unusual and ambitious partner in the film business: an Indian firm with interests in telecommunications, financial services and entertainment that wants to build a media empire by financing Hollywood pictures.”
Academia, The Plagiarism Problem
“The admission of the leading psychiatrist Raj Persaud of a ‘cut and paste error’ – ie substantial plagiarism – in one of his books will come as no surprise to some academics whose grumbles about their work being pillaged by more starry writers have been getting louder by the week.”
Rethinking Richard & Judy’s Book Club – UK Publishing Titans
“Four years and many real books later, the R&J Book Club accounts for 26% of the sales of the top 100 books in the UK, and Amanda Ross, the club’s creator and book selector, is the most powerful player in British publishing. Now, though, the club faces a crisis.”
High School Musical – Trying To Recreate The Phenomenon
High School Musical is a small screen phenomenon. It has a huge following. But will it translate to the West End stage?
Questioning Quality (Not The Best Way To Go)
Want to know what your audience thinks about your play? There are much better ways than making them fill out audience surveys…
Columbus Ohio Prepares To Say Goodbye To Its Orchestra
“How could a city so precipitously consider abandoning something it has cultivated for more than a half century? Columbus is a metropolitan area of nearly two million, similar in size to both Cincinnati and Cleveland. But Columbus’s musical aspirations were never as high as those other Ohio cities’, nor has the orchestra enjoyed the same kind of community largesse.”
Retro Trend – Record That Music
“From iTunes to the iPlayer, you might think that you don’t need to record anything anymore. It’s just out there, all the time, waiting to be Googled. But the hunter-gatherer instinct is alive and well.”
London’s Hairspray Sets Record In Breaking Even On Investment
West End musical Hairspray has become the quickest show ever to recoup at the Shaftesbury Theatre, earning back its entire £3.5 million capitalisation in 29 weeks.
Copernicus Book Sells For $2.2 Million
“The 1543 copy of Copernicus’ “De revolutionibus orbium coelestium” (On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres) was among more than 300 books offered Tuesday at Christie’s auction. It was expected to sell for up to $1.2 million.”