“Sherry Jones, author of a controversial novel about the child bride of Muhammad, has accused British publishers of being too afraid to publish her book in the wake of a firebomb attack on the office of Gibson Square, the London-based publisher which had been set to release it last year.” In the U.S., “The Jewel of Medina” did find a new publisher after Random House dropped it on warnings of violence, but reviews were poor.
Author: Laura Collins Hughes
School Gets Right To Object In Google Book-Scanning Deal
“In a move that could blunt some of the criticism of Google for its settlement of a lawsuit over its book-scanning project, the company signed an agreement with the University of Michigan that would give some libraries a degree of oversight over the prices Google could charge for its vast digital library.” Under the agreement, the university could “object if it thinks the prices Google charges libraries for access to its digital collection are too high, a major concern of some librarians.”
Selling A Trilogy: No, You Don’t Have To See All Three
“Despite a raft of positive reviews and seven Tony Award nominations, this spring’s Broadway revival of ‘The Norman Conquests’ — Alan Ayckbourn’s trilogy of interconnected comic plays — has proved to be one of the biggest business challenges of the season, starting with deep losses at the box office that have only just begun to turn around. The plot is like a puzzle, and so too has been the challenge of marketing the show to theatergoers.”
Why DVD-Copying Software Is Hollywood’s Ally, Not Enemy
“Hollywood is suing yet another company for creating a product that allegedly violates copyright law. This time the defendant is RealNetworks, whose RealDVD software enables people to copy DVD movies onto their computers despite the discs’ electronic locks. … Rather than reflexively battling such companies, the studios should be working with them to find a legitimate way for people to free the movies they’ve bought from their shiny plastic prisons.”
At Auction, Two Of Hirshhorn’s Three Eakins Paintings Sell
“The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden gained $461,000 from the sale of two paintings by Thomas Eakins yesterday at a public auction conducted by Christie’s in New York. The museum had placed three works by the 19th-century American artist up for auction to build up cash in its acquisition fund. The third painting, a study for ‘Portrait of Mrs. Charles L. Leonard,’ did not sell.”
Tony Awards Jilt Longtime Accountants In Publicity Bid
“In a triumph of image over substance, accounting giant KPMG LLP has replaced the small firm that has tabulated Broadway’s Tony Awards votes for more than half a century. The change was made in the hopes of bringing a higher profile to the Tony Awards telecast, according to Alan Wasser, an executive with the awards.”
Were Shakespeare’s Sonnets Meant For His Eyes Only?
“First published 400 years ago, Shakespeare’s sonnets might never have been put to press had it been left to the author to decide things. As Clinton Heylin, the author of the new book So Long as Men Can Breathe: The Untold Story of Shakespeare’s Sonnets, explains, just as Bob Dylan’s basement tapes were never intended for a wide audience, such was the case with Shakespeare’s sonnets.”
Salinger Lawyers Called In On Catcher Sequel
“JD Salinger’s US literary agency is consulting lawyers after the publication of an unauthorised sequel to his seminal book The Catcher in the Rye. Salinger’s US agent, Phyllis Westberg at Harold Ober Associates, said: ‘The matter has been turned over to a lawyer,’ but refused to comment further.”
Best-Show Tonys Honor Producers, Not Writers. Why?
“[M]any theater people are increasingly concerned that writers, especially writers of nonmusical plays, are getting the bum’s rush at the Tonys. ‘Why doesn’t the playwright accept the award by himself?’ wonders composer and lyricist Maury Yeston…. ‘The bookwriter does, the lyricist does, the orchestrator does, even the person who runs the sound system does.'” But when the Tonys for best play and musical are announced, the stage is swarmed with producers.
To Get Brilliant Public Art, Let Artists Indulge Themselves
“The public artist’s lot in modern Britain is similar to that of the portrait painter. In this century, we’ve fallen in love with public art; every city wants its Angel of the North. But just as the British portrait has been restricted for centuries by the tastes of the commissioning classes, public art is never going to be great art so long as it has to conform to the prejudices, enthusiasms and assumptions of the majority.”