Philip Roth may have thrown in the towel at 79, but the AP and CBC remind of us some colleagues who remain in the game: Elmore Leonard, David Ferry (who won this year’s National Book Award for poetry), Toni Morrison … Even 97-year-old Herman Wouk has a new book out. (Oddly, they neglected to mention Alice Munro.)
Tag: 11.28.12
Glenn Beck, Artist?
“Is it art, this potty spectacle of a white man ridiculing the work of black artist Andrès Serrano, placing a black man in a jar of urine (while also attacking the work of black artist Chris Ofili as an aside)?”
Chinese Communists And Political Satire
“The People’s Daily, a news site operated by the Communist Party of China, confused satire with reality this week, picking up on a story from The Onion declaring North Korean leader Kim Jong-un the ‘sexiest man alive’.” Do they not get such jokes? Actually, thanks to the Internet, “Chinese political satire is enjoying something of a golden age.”
The OED Removed-Words Scandal Is ‘Completely Bogus’
Jesse Sheidlower: “An article … in The Guardian … highlighted the claim that Robert Burchfield, the editor of the four-volume Supplement to the Oxford English Dictionary published from 1972 to 1986, ‘covertly deleted thousands of words because of their foreign origins.’ This claim is completely bogus.”
The Hermitage ‘Inches’ Into Contemporary Art
“It has been home to tsars and one of the finest art collections on Earth. Now with a new wing slowly opening to the public, the Hermitage in St Petersburg is inching its way into contemporary art, a controversial world in a country regularly accused of censorship.”
Astrotheology: Do Gods Need To Be Supernatural?
“As science advances, what we call “God” may be in need of serious revision. Especially if we do away with the supernatural when we think of deities.”
Abraham Lincoln’s Sense Of Humor
“We don’t make the distinction between ‘wit’ and ‘humor’ anymore, but in the nineteenth century people did. Wit was sarcastic and antipathetic while humor was congenial and empathetic. It’s the difference we note now when we distinguish between ‘laughing with’ and ‘laughing at.’ Lincoln was much more about ‘laughing with’ than ‘laughing at.’ And when ‘laughing at,’ it was often himself he was mocking.”
Egyptian Court Sentences Backers Of Anti-Muhammad Film To Death
“A U.S.-based Egyptian-American said to be behind the anti-Islam film Innocence of Muslims and six other Egyptian Christians were sentenced to death in absentia by a court in Cairo Wednesday. The film, which insulted the prophet Muhammad, sparked violent protests and attacks on U.S. embassies across the Middle East when it was released in September.”
Oregon Ballet Theatre’s Christopher Stowell Resigns
“OBT’s Board of Trustees has determined that the organization must adopt a new business model and, after much thought, I have come to the conclusion that I am not the best candidate to lead OBT into that future.” Stowell spent nine years as the company’s artistic director, presiding over a leap in OBT’s profile and stature.
At UK’s Regional Arts Orgs, The Boss Must Lead The Fundraising: Gov’t Report
“A government report examining how to increase philanthropy in regional cultural organisations recommends that arts chief executives should lead the fundraising effort rather than delegating this task to other employees. … Philanthropy Beyond London says that executives, as well as artistic directors, should become fundraising ambassadors for their organisations.” (Just like in the US.)