Author: Douglas McLennan

GREAT BOOKS AND THE MULTICULTURE

In the US, philosophies about learning have polarized;on the one hand there are those who believe in the “Great Books” idea, following Western culture. On the other, there are those who believe in the multicultural approach. From a teacher working in Singapore, the conclusion that: “these two desiderata do not necessarily conflict in practice. One can be a proponent of Great Works and a multiculturalist – even a radical multiculturalist, to the point that the curriculum is determined by the scholarly traditions of all ethnic groups in the classroom.” – Dissent

LONGING FOR BREVITY

Not a lot of consensus about the offerings at Cannes this year except for this: many of the films are too long. “It’s like that old joke, I didn’t have time to write a short speech, so I wrote a long speech,” filmmaker Brian de Palma said here last week, commenting on the increasing length of movies. “If you’re not sure what you want to say, it takes longer to say it.” – National Post (Canada) 05/19/00

TRUCE TIME

Time Warner chairman Gerald Levin announced at Thursday’s annual shareholders meeting that he has reached an agreement with Walt Disney Co. that should end the dispute between the two companies over program transmission on Disney-owned networks. – New York Times 05/19/00 

BUT WILL THEY EVER SELL AT AUCTION?

Sega’s soon-to-be-released video game “Shenmue,” has been in production for 6 years and cost millions to design. But will it turn any heads in the art world? “There is no real concept of the video game artist, and hence no one to wax pretentious about their work. Games will at some point become more a point for artists to gather about and discuss in the way that they now make work relating to film and cinema.” – The Times (UK) 05/19/00

AN EVEN LONGER DAY’S JOURNEY

Arthur and Barbara Gelb published the definitive biography of Eugene O’Neill in 1962 and helped establish his reputation as one of America’s finest playwrights. Nearly 40 years later, previously unavailable O’Neill papers have surfaced at Yale. The Gelbs decided to completely rewrite their 758-page book, which has been re-released this week. – New York Times

SAGGING JUDGMENT

An ad depicted an elderly African woman’s wrinkled breasts was placed in an advertising trade magazine mocking the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), whose members are currently striking against advertisers. The ad has drawn protests of racism and sexism by actors. – Washington Post