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Remembering Muriel Spark

The author of “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie was 88 when she died this week. “In literary terms she was the last of a generation, just younger than Evelyn Waugh and Graham Greene [all Catholic converts], who helped her and sent her money early in her career. She was one of the most original prose stylists ever.”

Texan Amateur Searches For Pyramids In Bosnia

A bizarre dig in Bosnia threatens an archaeologically rich area. “The prospect of their own Valley of the Kings has captured the imagination of many Bosnians desperate for a way to boost the shattered economy and raise the national pride of a country racked by conflict. Opponents of the project are, however, horrified at the prospect of irreparable damage to an area they believe is important enough to be a tourist attraction without a pyramid, yet warrants further archaeological research.”

Leonardo Image Altered In “Da Vinci Code” Promos

One of Leonardo’s most famous images is being used to promote “The Da Vinci Code” movie. But in licensed images, the figure’s “private parts” have been deleted from the image. Why? “The art was G-rated for products so they’d be accessible worldwide. Those interested in the unrated version can find it in the Da Vinci gallery of our movie website.”

Phillips Collection – Hiding Behind The Facade

DC’s Phillips Collection has built an extension behind its traditional facade. “Preserving this facade was a big mistake,” writes Benjamin Forgey. It was “a fruitless exercise in neighborhood nostalgia. After nearly 30 years of experience with our preservation ordinance, we as a city ought to have learned not to fear the architectural future, but to embrace it. And then to apply the law accordingly. Thus, a great opportunity was lost. Instead of getting a new building that speaks honestly about what is behind its facade — and that speaks for the 21st century while respecting its neighbors — we got a timorous fake.”

Page: Handicapping The National Symphony’s Leadership Prospects

Who should be Washington’s National Symphony’s next music director? The orchestra ought to have more respect. More stature. Matter more. The orchestra has always been tough to lead, and Leonard Slatkin is only the latest conductor to be told his services were coming to an end. There are brilliant conductors out there, but the National probably doesn’t have the stature to play in the big leagues, writes Tim Page. So who can the orchestra get?

Is It True There Are No British Intellectuals?

“The claim that Britain lacks ‘real’ intellectuals is usually based on a normative model derived primarily from France, where the term ‘intellectuels’ was applied to the members of a group of writers who supported Alfred Dreyfus in 1898. Since at least the eighteenth century, the British have constructed their national identity by contrasting themselves with the French. When the image of intellectuals as a dissident and cohesive group intimately involved in politics began to emerge in France, in the early twentieth century, it was only natural that the British should define themselves in opposing terms…”

Kakutani – A Book Critic Who’s Right But Too Judgmental?

Michiko Kakutani is a critical institution. She’s been book critic at the New York Times for 25 years. “Her main weakness is her evaluation fixation. This may seem an odd complaint—the job is called critic, after all—but in fact, whether a work is good or bad is just one of the many things to be said about it, and usually far from the most important or compelling. Kakutani doesn’t offer the stylistic flair, the wit, or the insight one gets from Kael and other first-rate critics; for her, the verdict is the only thing.”