“An unidentified woman attending a museum class ‘lost her balance’ and crashed into the artwork,” leaving a 6-inch rip in the canvas. “‘Actor’ was worth about $130 million, according to a New York art dealer.”
Author: Laura Collins Hughes
‘Here We Speak English,’ A Bookstore Orders Its Employees
“Especially in recent years, New Haven has gone out of its way to distinguish itself as a place welcoming to immigrants, regardless of their legal status. Atticus,” an independent bookstore and café in a Yale building, “appeared to fit comfortably, even enthusiastically, into this mosaic.” Then came the news of its English-only policy for employees.
Justice At Last: Building Britons Hate Will Be Razed
“In 2005 the Channel 4 programme Demolition asked people which building they would like knocked down and the Imax,” a hulking leisure complex in Dorset, “was judged first in line in England.” Now that dream will come true.
How Tyler Perry Keeps Theatregoers In Line
Anyone who arrives late at the play “Madea’s Big Happy Family” should “be prepared for a scolding from Madea herself. During a recent performance at the Kodak, she singled out latecomers as they scurried to their seats. ‘Sit the hell down!’ she said. ‘People pay good money not to have you crawling all over them in the dark.'”
Try As They Might, Critics Don’t Review In A Vacuum
“As soon as you open the press release, you’re forming a view; open the programme and you’ll find a piece by the director. Resistance can start to feel futile. Then there’s the audience: sometimes, particularly on a West End first night, those in the auditorium seem to have been paid to persuade everyone present what a great night we’re all having.”
Judging A Publisher By Its Covers, Observers Cry Racism
Though the heroine of “Magic Under Glass” “is described in the book as black-haired and brown-skinned … the cover chosen by Bloomsbury USA Children’s Books shows a white, brown-haired girl.” Last year, the same publisher put “a white girl on the cover of Justine Larbalestier’s novel Liar, about a black girl.”
Canada’s Arts Publications Imperiled By New Funding Rules
Almost all “small publications with a total annual paid circulation of 5,000 copies or less are ineligible” for assistance from the new Canada Periodical Fund, which replaces two longtime funding streams. “Most of the country’s literary, arts and scholarly periodicals … fall into the ‘small publications’ category,” and they will likely die.
Athol Fugard On Why He Lives In San Diego
“I’ve become a bit reclusive. Five years ago, when I took the decision to stop acting or directing, I found this situation ideal. Nobody in San Diego is too much interested in literature. They’re interested in the length of your surfboard.”
The Mystery Of The Jane Austen Phenomenon
“While she didn’t quite invent the romantic comedy (Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado About Nothing,’ a clear inspiration for ‘Pride and Prejudice,’ can probably claim that honor), Austen surely conceived and perfected it in its modern form; no one has ever surpassed ‘Pride and Prejudice,’ and not due to any lack of trying. Still, literary achievement can hardly explain the Austen craze.”
Amazon Tries To Lure Authors With 70% Royalty Rate
The company said “that it would give authors a 70% cut of the sale of e-books sold for its Kindle readers, net of digital delivery costs — essentially offering writers a way to bypass traditional book publishers. In a direct swipe at print publishers, the company asserted that authors would make more money if they published digitally with Amazon.”