What’s up with all of the remakes, which shows get remade the most, and why is the BBC so good at writing about itself? No, but really: “Shows like Criminal Justice, The Office and Luther have stories that are universal. … Characters, situations, predicaments – they travel very well. When cast with powerful local actors, set in domestic milieus and written in the spoken dialect of the region, these shows become our own.” – BBC
Blog
How They Filmed That Huge ‘Rocketman’ Scene At Dodgers Stadium
This is what happens, the director says, “when you choose to take Elton John’s story and turn it into a phantasmagorical dancing play rather than a standard biographical picture.” Bring on the glitter. – Vulture
The Radical Vision And Joy Of Keith Haring
Haring died almost 30 years ago, but his art remains as fresh, and as relevant, as ever. “Haring did much more than provide cute cartoons. He was publicly minded. His art faced outwards. He wanted to inform, to start a conversation, to question authority and convention, to represent the oppressed. Those cute figures are political.” – The Observer (UK)
Fox Petitions To Be In Emmy Consideration For Its Live-ish Version Of ‘Rent’
So here’s how Fox (successfully!) argued for putting the show in the variety special (live) category, after the broadcast turned out to be somewhat previously taped due to injury: “Although an unforeseen injury dictated that only a portion of Rent was broadcast live, the entire program was performed in front of live audience without edit or interruption. The TV audience was able to experience the production as intended by our extraordinary cast and crew.” – Variety
Tote Bags Might Be A Fun ‘Weird Media Flex,’ But It’s Also Time To Admit They’re Terrible
This is a thorough takedown of tote bags, media people, tote-toting people, and New York, with a couple of arrows aimed directly at Brooklyn. “the tote is a stand-in for being in-the-know. ‘Yes, after Bon App called Portland the country’s best food city, I did make a trip up to Maine,’ suggests a tote from Rose Foods, while a bag from NPR indicates how arts-friendly you are by supporting public broadcasting. Last year,New York Magazine quite literally ran a round-up titled The Coveted Tote Bags That Scream ‘Status.”” – Vice
Leah Chase, Creole Chef Who Fed Freedom Riders And Presidents, Has Died At 95
Chase wasn’t just a chef, thought “she would argue that there is no greater calling than feeding people. She spread her message through cookbooks, countless media interviews and television shows. Princess Tiana, the waitress who wanted to own a restaurant in the animated Disney feature The Princess and the Frog, was based on Mrs. Chase. [Tiana] was the first African-American princess in a Disney movie.” – The New York Times
Leonardo Expert Will Not Certify ‘Salvator Mundi’ As His Work
Carmen Bambach, a curator at the Met, says no. “In her forthcoming four-volume study of the polymath – a vast project spanning more than 1m words and 1,500 images – Bambach attributes most of the picture to Leonardo’s assistant, Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio, with only ‘small retouchings’ by the master himself.” – The Guardian (UK)
One Place The Print Newspaper Is Still Relevant: Deadwood
The paper that plays a major role in the series and new movie, The Black Hills Pioneer, is real, and it’s still around … and you can read the archives. “The editorial voice of the paper stayed constant. It reads more like a blog than a modern newspaper: There’s no faux-disinterested ‘view from above’; the Pioneer is clearly the product of specific people with a specific point of view.” – Slate
Will The U.S. Ever Get Net Neutrality Back?
Advocates for net neutrality say it just needs a big push from the public – support is high, and no one believes the FCC. But on the Senate floor, Mitch McConnell says legislation restoring net neutrality is “dead on arrival.” – Wired
Mindy Kaling, Who Created Her Own TV Show And Now Has A Movie Out With Emma Thompson, On Being A ‘Diversity Hire’
Kaling was initially embarrassed about that when she was on The Office, but she’s over it. And now, as a 39-year-old movie writer, she says, “It does feel amazing to have done this, but I’ve worked so hard to get here, so it’s not a big surprise. A journalist asked me if I have impostor syndrome and I said: ‘I actually don’t, because I’ve really put in the time.’ And I could tell he thought I was kind of cocky.” – The Guardian (UK)