“That fans would run amok with the story was probably inevitable. Readers today often behave more like corporate shareholders than consumers, demanding a say in the direction a story takes and adding their own flourishes and twists. With thriving online fan communities, devotees of a franchise can easily find their niche.”
Tag: 06.19.15
Time For A Disloyalty Card For Theatres?
“It could be a way to grow audiences, possibly across the commercial and subsidised sector, the big subsidised houses and smaller venues, for the benefit of all.”
TV Credits Re-enter A Golden Age (Just Try To Get That ‘Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’ Song Out Of Your Head)
“As credits sequences shrank, many of the beloved elements—like catchy tunes and meta-references—were lost. But in the last year, a few shows have started to buck that trend.”
‘America’s Most Underrated Underrated Writer’ Dies At 90
“‘You can’t be admitted to the ranks of writers of importance unless you have sales,’ he said. Mr. Salter had to settle for an admiring readership on college campuses and critical acclaim, even if the praise came with a touch of sympathy.”
Twitter-Inspired Summer Reading For Everyone Who Wonders About The True History Of Charleston
“#Charlestonsyllabus was conceived by Chad Williams (@Dr_ChadWilliams), Associate Professor of African and Afro-American Studies at Brandeis University. With the help of Kidada Williams (@KidadaEWilliams), the hashtag started trending on the evening of June 19, 2015. … These readings provide valuable information about the history of racial violence in this country and contextualize the history of race relations in South Carolina and the United States in general.”
Alumni Of USC’s MFA Program Send Letter In Support Of Students Who Resigned
“This was an extraordinary and painful action for these graduate students to have taken, and presents evidence of serious wrongdoing and extensive problems in the School. … We do not want to see this jewel of the University recklessly discarded.”
Underground Economy: Ghost Writers For The Toast Or Talk You Have To Give
“At a time when everything is a branding opportunity, and toasts live on for posterity in social media, few people want to be memorialized “um”-ing, “you know”-ing” and “remember that time we got drunk”-ing their way into ignominy. And yet: Nobody wants to admit he Botoxed his son’s bar mitzvah toast with some punch lines from an “Everybody Loves Raymond” writer. A result is a little-known under-the-table economy.”
Conductor Condemns Vancouver Opera’s Decision To Abandon Season, Become Festival
Bramwell Tovey: “Deeply concerned at the announcement, I tweeted ‘Distressing to see @VancouverOpera news spun as visionary. It’s terrible news. Vancouver to be only major Cdn city without an opera season.’ Within the hour, VO had tweeted back it was “disappointed” with me, presumably for not following the party line. Like many others, I was taken aback by the news.”
Coming: Facial Recognition Software For All (Now Anyone Will Be Able To ID You The Street)
The lack of consensus means face recognition is moving into creepy territory. One example is California-based company Face First, which is rolling out a system for retailers that it says will “boost sales by recognising high-value customers each time they shop” and send “alerts when known litigious individuals enter any of your locations”.
Music Streaming Is The Future. So Who Will Win The Streaming Wars?
“More than 40m people currently pay to subscribe to a music-streaming service, and this number is increasing by 50 per cent each year. Outstanding questions about low royalty payments to artists persist, but for the customer, at least, the value proposition is obvious—for $120 a year, you get everything. Streaming services are pricey, but once you’ve subscribed to one, you know there’s no going back. Of the original subscribers to Spotify’s first premium offering in 2010, 70 per cent were still enrolled after four years.”