In response to a new policy on e-book purchases imposed by Macmillan Publishers and effective Nov. 1, King County Library System will be boycotting the publisher’s upcoming e-books, declining to purchase any new Macmillan books in that format. Seattle Public Library will not be boycotting, but warns readers that they may notice long delays in obtaining new Macmillan e-books. – Seattle Times
Blog
Square Dancing: Should It Be The American National Folk Dance?
“That question took us on a journey from Appalachian front porches, to dance classes across our nation, to the halls of Congress, and finally a Kansas City convention center. And along the way, we uncovered a secret history of square dancing that made us see how much of our national identity we could stuff into that square, and what it means for a dance to be of the people, by the people, and for the people.” (audio) – Radiolab
‘The Mountain Retreat For The Liberal Elite’ — A Week At The Aspen Institute
“Though it calls itself a ‘nonpartisan forum for values-based leadership and the exchange of ideas’, it is more accurately described as a cross between a think-tank, a celebrity summer camp and a liberal-arts college.” – 1843 Magazine
PS1: How An Abandoned School In A Gritty Queens Neighborhood Became MoMA’s Mecca For New Art
“Around 1975, the art curator Alanna Heiss came across a hulking dilapidated schoolhouse in Long Island City during one of her scoping expeditions for exhibit spaces. … Heiss, who came to New York City in the late 1960s, had a reputation for transforming old and funky spaces into dramatic staging grounds for contemporary and experimental art.” And with this one, she outdid herself. – Gothamist
Robert Evans, Large-Living Hollywood Producer Of Landmark Films, Dead At 89
“As Paramount’s head of worldwide production from 1966 to 1975, he was credited with helping lift the company’s sagging fortunes with a staggering variety of popular and often critical hits. … He was long considered one of the savviest production chiefs in Hollywood, but cocaine abuse gradually derailed his career.” – The Washington Post
World’s Largest Treehouse Burns Up In 15 Minutes
That would be why the fire department in Cumberland County, Tennessee ordered it closed seven years ago. Horace Burgess, a landscape architect and ordained minister, began building the 97-foot-tall structure around a large white oak in 1992, after, he says, God showed him the design in a vision, and he spent the next 12 years constructing it across the oak and well over a dozen adjacent trees. – The New York Times
Start Casting More Trans Actors In Cisgender Roles, Says UK Equity
Said a statement from the actors’ union, “The fact that [a performer] is trans may be completely invisible in the role or production, but it powerfully represents diversity in the industry. This ‘invisible’ diversity is just as important as more physically recognisable forms of diversity.” – The Guardian
Ravinia Festival CEO Welz Kauffman To Step Down
“When Kauffman steps down [following next summer’s festival], he will have finished his 20th year in a post held by only two other ‘full-time, professional’ leaders, according to the festival: Edward Gordon (1974-1989) and Zarin Mehta (1990-2000).” – Chicago Tribune
Why Theatre Isn’t My “Other” Job
Only two per cent of actors actually make a living from acting alone and 90 per cent of actors are out of work at any given time so that means, more often than not, actors have to make money elsewhere. – Metro News
Remember When Blockchain Was Going To Change How The World Worked? It Hasn’t
Two years ago, ICOs lured billions of dollars into blockchain companies and spawned a cottage industry of pilot projects. For a while, a blockchain seemed a salve for just about any problem. Many were scams from the start. But even among the more legitimate enterprises, there are relatively few winners. – Wired