Because of a new law passed “with a view to protecting children and young adults from ‘information detrimental to their health and development’,” The Simpsons will air with the “Itchy and Scratchy Show” segments blacked out. (The broadcaster promises to do the blacking-out wittily.) And because the death of Kenny in every episode might upset youngsters, South Park will only be shown during late-night hours.
Author: Matthew Westphal
But Classic Soviet Cartoons Won’t Be Censored Under New Law (Despite All That Smoking)
“Russian news reports this week speculated that a law on protecting children that takes effect Saturday could require extensive cutting of episodes of the cartoon Nu Pogodi” – “Just You Wait,” a Road Runner-style show with a wolf perpetually chasing a rabbit – “because the villainous wolf is a heavy smoker.”
Is Comedy Truer To Life Than Tragedy?
Terry Teachout thinks so, and he explains why – with reference to Shakespeare, Neil Simon, Mozart, Sondheim, and chuckling about funerals.
Syrian Filmmaker Seems To Have (Been) Disappeared
Orwa Nyrabia, who with his wife “formed the first production company in Syria independent of the government and founded Dox Box, a festival that brought international documentaries to Syria, … is believed to have been detained by Syrian security services as he prepared to board a flight from Damascus to Cairo.”
Julie Taymor, Spider-Man Producers Settle Dueling Lawsuits
“The Oscar-nominated director sued in November, alleging that producers including Michael Cohl’s 8 Legged Productions continued to make use of her creative contributions even after she left. After the lawsuit was filed, 8 Legged brought counterclaims that stated she failed to live up to her obligations on the high-profile show.”
Copenhagen Abandons Daniel Libeskind Urban Development Plan, Scandinavia’s Largest
Ørestad, a built-from-scratch district near the Danish capital’s airport and the Øresund Bridge and tunnel to Sweden, is meant to be a “crossroads of Scandinavia” and to eventually hold 100,000.”But ten years into Ørestad’s life, planners have quietly discarded its signature project, the 2006 master plan for a downtown designed by the Polish-American architect Daniel Libeskind. Why?”
Why Fact-Checking Candidates’ Claims May Be All For Naught
“Americans no longer expect or care about candidates making honest assertions in the public sphere. They no longer expect consistency and honesty from politicians, and the savvy political campaigner recognizes that there is no cost to making statements that contradict even their most well-known beliefs.”
Jerusalem Ballet Finally Goes Contemporary
“The company – which was founded by [artistic director Nadya Timofeeva’s] mother, Bolshoi prima ballerina Nina Timofeeva – used to be an old-style Russian ballet troupe in the shadow of the Bolshoi. But recently it has dared to embark on a new path.”
Nagano Replaces Dudamel – Sort Of – At Gothenburg Symphony
For five years, Gustavo Dudamel has led the Gothenburg Symphony as its principal conductor. With his term set to expire this year, the orchestra said … it has named Kent Nagano as principal guest conductor and artistic advisor”, effective immediately and for a three-year term.
How A Small-Town Indian Railway Worker’s Son Became An International Public Intellectual
“In 1988 Pankaj Mishra was a recent university graduate in the northern Indian city of Benares with big literary ambitions he had little idea how to fulfill. But when he heard that a local library was going to be auctioning back issues of The New York Review of Books as waste paper, he knew exactly what to do.”