RIP Tom Wolfe
Writer Tom Wolfe has died at 88. Reading a lot of commentary around the web, I notice that Wolfe was a deeply meaningful writer to a great many people, some of whom say he changed their lives. I have to … Continue reading →
Category Archives: Arts
Funes and sudden genius
This article about how head injuries sometimes (although very very rarely) lead to savant powers made me think (once again) of the Jorge Luis Borges story “Funes, the Memorious.” Fortunately, the work appears in its entirety online, so if you … Continue reading →
All that Fosse
Another confession: I never much cared for Bob Fosse’s choreography, except for the very early stuff in “Kiss Me Kate” and “Damn Yankees.” And Gwen Verdon—that wonderful, wonderful dancer and impish spirit—was very much a part of my early admiration. … Continue reading →
Ta-Nehisi Coates and Kanye West
Ta-Nehisi Coates weighs in on the Kanye West Trumplove, as might be expected. I’ve written about Coates before (see also this). In that first post I wrote: The larger message [Coates received from his father’s treatment of him] was that … Continue reading →
“Re-imagining” the classics
“Re-imagining” works of art that have withstood the test of time is a trend, one I encountered last night when I attended this performance of the full opera “Hansel and Gretel” at the Yale School of Music. I’ve written about … Continue reading →
When we had to wait
While taking a walk the other day in a suburban area, I passed a yard with a tire swing tied to a large tree branch. Into my head popped a song lyric that goes like this: Life was just a … Continue reading →
For fun
How to walk downstairs with some zip in your step, by James Cagney (aka George M. Cohan): As a child, I loved that scene. In particular, I liked the fact that it builds to a peak and then calms down … Continue reading →
Why does hip-hop music get a pass from the #MeToo movement?
Good question, I think. And it’s one being asked by Gabriel Hays in this article: For the week of March 31st, 2018, eight of the top 20 songs in Billboard’s “R&B/Hip-Hop” chart were blatantly sexist and misogynistic. In these songs, … Continue reading →
Mud time
Frost again: The sun was warm but the wind was chill. You know how it is with an April day When the sun is out and the wind is still, You’re one month on in the middle of May. But … Continue reading →
The entertainment industry is shocked to discover that there might actually be money in catering to the half of America…
…that it usually ignores at best or insults at worst. In other words: [The first episodes of the Roseanne revival] worked, leaving many TV insiders shellshocked today by the magnitude of the revival’s ratings success that revealed the untapped potential … Continue reading →
Did you watch the “Roseanne” premiere?
I’m not ordinarily a sitcom viewer, but I watched about 10 minutes of the new “Roseanne” revival. Then my TV decided to have a problem, and by the time it was fixed I had forgotten about the show and it … Continue reading →
Three swans: Part III
I bet you’ve all been waiting with bated breath for Part III since the series first appeared back in 2012 (here are Part I and Part II). No? Well, here’s Part III anyway. Just to recap—“Swan Lake” is popular for … Continue reading →