“When I finished The World According to Garp in 1978, I was naïve enough to think that I will never write about this subject again; that our intolerance of our own sexual differences will surely go away, and that Garp will be seen someday as a relic of the post-sexual-liberation days … [But] it’s still the same damn subject. It’s still about our obstinate intolerance to sexual differences.”
Tag: 07.13.12
Why Procrastinators Make Better Decisions
“In his new book, Wait: The Art and Science of Delay, Partnoy claims that when faced with a decision, we should assess how long we have to make it, and then wait until the last possible moment to do so. Should we take his advice on how to “manage delay,” we will live happier lives.”
Of Good Intentions, Funding, And Exploiting Artists
“Using artists as cheap work-for-hire is a common theme among many of these large well-intention idea-focused organizations. They want to contribute to solving seemingly intractable problems and they acknowledge that sometimes people within the fields where those problems are happening are a bit too tied to existing ways of thinking, plus they have a general admiration for artists as creative thinkers, so they say, let’s bring in an artist to help us solve our problem.”
The Fast-Moving V&A Museum
“These are fast-changing times for the V&A. The museum has raised £120m over the past decade to transform its galleries, resulting in a three-fold rise in visitors. Now it has already raised £25m out of the £41m needed for the next phase.”
Are Accordions Cool (Again)?
“The accordion, with its distinctive reedy sound produced by bellows, has not been widely popular in this country since the 1950s and ’60s. But the American Accordionists’ Association, founded in 1938, has been trying to reverse that, putting emphasis on attracting young players. It’s not easy.”
Binge-Viewing Could Change (Almost) Everything About TV Series
“Bingeing breaks habits that have long supported the TV business, built on advertising and syndicated reruns.” What’s more, “besides unspooling a narrative week by week, year by year, writers must also keep in mind fans who take the story ‘in a giant inhalation’.”
Does The Web Make Music Criticism Meaner?
Anne Midgette: “This morning, I Tweeted … the question, … and a couple of artists promptly responded, unequivocally, Yes. … As someone who’s written my share of tough reviews, I thought a lot about this response. My basic stance on what the Web has done to music criticism is very positive: it’s allowed a lot more discussion and a lot more response.”
When Leipzig Choirboys Grow Up
“This a cappella quintet has had Bach on the brain since they met singing at St Thomas’ Church Leipzig. … The ensemble’s name, Amarcord, is drawn from Fellini’s Oscar-winning 1973 film of the same name. … The word means ‘I remember’ in the Romagnolo dialect.”
Theater’s Next Odd Couple: Bukowski And Sondheim
“It’s hard to imagine the writings of Charles Bukowski, the dyspeptic poet of drink and loneliness, being set to a jaunty musical theater score” – much less one by Stephen Sondheim. But that’s just what California Repertory Company director Joanne Gordon proposes to do in B.S.: Bukowski.Sondheim.
The End For Political Cartoonists?
“It’s easy to portray the future of political cartooning exclusively as one of doom and gloom, but there’s also opportunity on the horizon. And it comes, perhaps not coincidentally, from the same force that threatens the existence of print media – the all-consuming Internet.”