“Robert Prosky, a craggy-faced, heavyset character actor who after 23 years in regional theater became a familiar face on Broadway, in movies and on television, notably as a gruff desk sergeant in the later years of ‘Hill Street Blues,’ died on Monday in Washington.”
Tag: 12.11.08
Bringing Jewish Music Into The Hard-Rocking Present
“Mazel Tov, Mis Amigos”? It may sound like something a sketch comedy team would come up with, but there seems to be “an informal scene of performers and music aficionados who hope to introduce [the] category of Jewish music 2.0 — built from folk tunes and religious chants, and upgraded with modern-day beats and instruments — to a wider audience.”
Belafonte Cancels MLK Auction After Estate Objects
“On the eve of a planned Sotheby’s auction of three documents related to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Harry Belafonte, the singer and a friend of Dr. King who owned the papers, withdrew the items for sale… After news reports early this week about the auction the King estate released a statement condemning the sale and saying that it believed the documents had been ‘wrongly acquired’ by Mr. Belafonte.”
Golden Globe Noms Announced
Slumdog Millionaire, Frost/Nixon, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button are up for best dramatic film honors, and Heath Ledger received his expected posthumous nomination for his turn as The Joker in The Dark Knight. Sean Penn is up for best film actor, and best TV actress nominees include veterans Tony Shalhoub and Mariska Hargitay, and TV newbie Anna Paquin.
Damaged Harpsichord Costs Orchestra 4 Mil
“An internationally renowned harpsichord manufacturer who filed a lawsuit against an amateur orchestra in Japan demanding compensation for breaking a harpsichord he made was awarded 4.4 million yen in compensation in a ruling at the Tokyo District Court on Wednesday.”
Princeton Gives In On Donor Intent Battle
“Princeton University has agreed to pay $90 million to the heirs of a large benefactor, ending a historic six-year battle over donor intent that mesmerized the philanthropic community and influenced the way it does business… Experts in charitable giving yesterday viewed the settlement as a victory for the heirs of the late Charles and Marie Robertson of the A&P supermarket fortune.”
We Will, We Will Rock You Until You Surrender
The use of rock’n’roll (played very loudly) as a military instrument of coercion is at least 20 years old. (Remember Manuel Noriega holed up in the Vatican Embassy in Panama?) Now, in the wake of Guantánamo, a group of prominent musicians is demanding an end to the practice.
NPR Cuts Two Programs And 7 Percent Of Staff
“Faced with a sharp decline in revenue, National Public Radio said Wednesday it will pare back its programming and institute its first organization-wide layoffs in 25 years.” The network will lay off 64 employees, about 7% of its workforce, and eliminate the weekday programs Day to Day and News & Notes.