“We measure time not simply in terms of minutes and seconds, but in terms of concepts such as ‘early’, ‘late’ – or, for that matter, ‘fashionably late.’ What is the length of a ‘work day’? In the United States, Europe and Japan you’ll get three different answers.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Raging Against The Machines – Who Were The Luddites?
“According to legend, a young kid named Ned Ludd had smashed up a couple of [knitting machines] some time in the late 18th century. The Luddites of the early 19th century took up Ludd’s name and cause. They began smashing up factories and, occasionally, killing people.”
Well, Here’s A Blast From The Past: Rich Little Plans Broadway Revue
“[The] country’s pre-eminent impressionist in the 1970s and for years a fixture on talk, variety and game shows, … he is plotting his re-emergence courtesy of Jimmy Stewart & Friends, a hybrid of biographical theater and comedy that tells the story of that beloved actor’s life, as voiced by Mr. Little, with vocal cameos by dozens of luminaries who crossed Stewart’s path, and a few that did not. (Somehow, Dr. Phil pops up.)”
National Lampoon Gets Back In The Stage Business
“One of the most recognizable names in comedy, but one that has seen its brand image suffer in recent years,” is trying out a new stage review – Sketches from the National Lampoon, mostly featuring material from the vaults – in L.A. next month. The company folded its flagship magazine in 1998 and has gone a decade without a hit movie.
Stop Making Fun Of China’s Replica Eiffel Tower And English Village
“The Chinese tradition of duplication as power and control goes back to the Qing dynasty and earlier, and permeates modern Chinese culture.” The copies of European landmarks say, “We can pick and choose whatever we want, including owning a piece of the West. In fact, we’re so rich we can own the West without even having to go there.”
Excavating A 3,000-Year-Old City At The Edge Of Syria’s Civil War
“The Syrian civil war is not the first conflict to complicate Professor Nicolò Marchetti’s efforts to turn Karkemish, an ancient city site on the banks of the Euphrates, on Turkey’s southern border and inside a restricted military zone, into a public archaeology park.”
Cirque Du Soleil To Cut 400 Jobs
“Surging production costs, the strong Canadian dollar, and the worldwide economic downturn were blamed Wednesday by the Cirque du soleil for its decision to cut 400 employees. Most of the layoffs will be at the artistic giant’s headquarters in Montreal.”
Where Cirque Du Soleil Went Wrong
J. Kelly Nestruck: “Cirque has taken a serious hit to its artistic reputation along with its profits … and become a hit-or-miss company. Worse, Cirque has become the kind of organization that would produce a mediocrity like Banana Shpeel – and keep trying to foist it on its fans even when it was clear it wasn’t working.”
Islamist Rebels In Mail Are ‘Crushing Culture’
The militias are trying “to impose their authority, so there’s nothing to threaten them. That’s why they are attacking the traditional chiefs and musicians. And they’re using concepts of Islam that are 14 centuries old and have never been applied.”
Houston Symphony Selects Rising Young Colombian As Music Director
Says the orchestra’s CEO of 35-year-old Andrés Orozco-Estrada, “From the moment he made his debut with us in October, there was an instantaneous chemistry that we hadn’t yet felt or seen between a conductor and an orchestra.”