Playwright August Wilson has won the 2004 Chicago Tribune Literary Prize. “With these awards we hope to celebrate great literary achievement, something very important in the history of Chicago and also a part of the Tribune’s long history. In committing to these awards we also aspire to bring attention and support to a variety of local literacy efforts, in our belief that literacy and literary achievement are linked.”
Tag: 08.02.04
Can Athens Be “Fixed” Before The Olympics?
The plan was to give Athens a makeover before the Olympics. “Greece has spent millions of euros building dozens of Olympic venues and is spending millions more to remodel Athens for the 2004 Games. So far, the fruits are impressive: a modern new airport, national highways, a new train and subway system, and the refurbishing of run-down neighborhoods. But the 24-hour growl, drill, and rattle of the massive project has also exhausted the city, especially in the hot summer. Olympic organizers had to rush to finish Olympic venues, leaving little time for the ambitious makeover of the city.”
Will Big Music Kill Music? Come On…!
“Some people are able to draw neat arguments around the consolidation of the music industry and its threat to music. I wish I could. I understand it in a practical sense. But then I succumb to the music and let it colour the whole argument, and I wonder if there isn’t another picture some might be missing. I see the music industry as one thing, and then I see Trenchtown rude boys, or Monterey hippies, or late-eighties ravers — pick your movement. These were people so committed to their music, they couldn’t have cared less what the industry happened to be dictating at the moment. Going against dictates was the whole idea.”
New Art In New China
China’s avant garde is flourishing. “Talk about a cultural revolution. It wasn’t long ago that government censorship severely curtailed creative freedom in China. Everything from nudity and abstract art to rock and roll and literary erotica was taboo. No longer…”
The Magazines Of “Buy This”
The hot new things in magazines? New publications with stories about the products they advertise. “While some traditionalists gag at the notion of these so-called mag-a-logs, fretting that the line between advertising and journalism is already too blurry at many magazines, the publishing industry has little interest in anything else. Confronted by an advertising recovery that seems to be skipping magazines and by marketers who are demanding ever more direct access to their readership, publishers see shopping magazines as a low-risk, cheaper alternative to investing in less product-oriented titles.”
Actors Union Sues Its Exec Director
“Members of the Screen Actors Guild have begun legal action against the executive director of their union, Robert Pisano, saying his membership on the board of an online DVD rental company creates a conflict of interest that makes him unable to negotiate on their behalf in critical coming labor talks.”
Welcome To The Library Of Unwritten Books
“An art project travelling the UK, this library is collecting stories and ideas for books people would like to write – but never have, and probably never will. Its two librarians – Sam Brown and Caroline Jupp – have collected more than 400 stories over the last two years, and are aiming for a total of 1,000. Armed with a ‘mobile recording unit’ – a converted shopping trolley – they have been eliciting stories from strangers before turning each tale into its own mini-book.”
Grammophones Go The Celeb Route
In an attempt to “sex up” the classical Grammophone Awards, a celebrity endorsement ad campaign will be mounted – translation: celeb endorsement ads for classical albums. “The celebrities, who have not been named, are being drawn from theatre, TV, film and the arts. All are said to be “passionate” about classical music. They are expected to appear in TV slots on BBC Four, as well as on BBC Radio 2 and Radio 3, in advance of the prize being presented on 1 October.”
UK Theatres Are Subtitling
More than 100 movie theatres in the UK are showing their movies with subtitles. New laws coming into force in October, “require businesses to offer an equal level of service to disabled people.”
Kuwait Bans Moore Film
Kuwait has banned Michael Moore’s Fahrenheit 9/11. The kingdom says the movie is “insulting to the Saudi Arabian royal family. Authorities in Kuwait, a US ally, also objected to the film’s criticism of America’s invasion of Iraq. ‘We have a law that prohibits insulting friendly nations’.”