“An East Hampton man accused of selling dozens of fake paintings and sketches purported to be by famous artists, and using some of the money to buy a submarine, pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday to one count of wire fraud.”
Tag: 12.02.14
Is Internet Addiction Like Drug Addiction?
Maria Konnikova: “In some sense, they aren’t [the same]. A substance affects a person physically in a way that a behavior simply cannot: no matter how severe your trichotillomania, you’re not introducing something new to your bloodstream. But, in what may be a more fundamental way, they share much in common.”
Why The Novel Is Lagging
“The novel form isn’t the reason so much contemporary fiction seems uninspired; for that, we’d do better to consider other causes, of which there are plenty: an emphasis on documenting social conditions and modernity over the study of individual characters, a post-Freudian tendency to lean on secondhand psychoanalytic ideas as a cover for incomprehension or shallowness, a corrosive commitment to niceness at the expense of the kind of social and moral judgments that used to be at the novel’s center, MFA programs, to name just a few possibilities.”
Cirque Du Soleil – A Need To Reinvent Itself As Business Declines
“Following a bleak outlook report from a consultant, a spate of poorly received shows and a decline in profits, executives at Cirque say they are now restructuring and refocusing their business — shifting some of the attention away from clowns and acrobats, towards other business ventures.”
Maybe *All* The Designs For The Guggenheim Helsinki Are A Bad Idea
“There’s nothing especially wrong with any of the individual designs, but taken as a whole, they cast a cynical view of the purpose of architecture (as hype for a project). … “Finns are right to ask whether Helsinki needs the Guggenheim as much as the Guggenheim needs South Harbor.”
RSC to Begin on Restoration of Swan Wing at Stratford-Upon-Avon
“The Swan Wing, which contains the Swan Theatre, is the only remaining part of the original 1879 Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, which burnt down in 1926. It originally housed a library, reading room and picture gallery, and it currently includes the façade and entrance, hallway, bar area, staircase, Ferguson exhibition room and the bridge that links it to the Swan Theatre auditorium.”
Celebrating Fat Dancers (Sure Is Controversial, But Really…)
“You can’t make a simple work about body size because it’s an incredibly complex conversation. I personally use the word fat because I’ve reclaimed it and it doesn’t have any negative baggage. It’s just a description of my body, like tall or brunette.”
So How Come These Video Stores Are Surviving In The Age Of Streaming?
“I’m unconvinced that video stores are in direct competition with streaming services or Netflix any more so than a free concert in the park, the World Cup, a local film festival, or anything that distracts someone away from my shop on a Saturday night.”
What The Guys Who Hacked Sony Got That The Studio Didn’t Want You To See
“The breach exposed two things the secretive movie industry is extremely sensitive about — the piracy of films and details about executive compensation — and sent a ripple of dread across Hollywood to Washington.”
Tired Of The Same Old Christmas Music? Wait – This Is The Digital Age, And There’s An App For That
“We admire Pandora’s spirit of giving, but 28 choices may be a bit daunting. So to save you some trial and error, I have explored every single one of its options (listening to at least 10 songs on each station) and ranked them.”