Category: people

In the fall of 1978 French philosopher Michel Foucault went to Iran to be a journalist. “Foucault’s Iranian adventure was a “tragic and farcical error” that fits into a long tradition of ill-informed French intellectuals spouting off about distant revolutions, says James Miller, whose 1993 biography “The Passion of Michel Foucault” contains one of the few previous English-language accounts of the episode. Indeed, Foucault’s search for an alternative that was absolutely other to liberal democracy seems peculiarly reckless in light of political Islam’s subsequent career, and makes for odd reading now as observers search for traditions in Islam that are compatible with liberal democracy.”

Getty Center chief executive “Barry Munitz is a man of grand appetites, a player among Los Angeles’ elite whose effusive personality and risk-taking management style have won praise even as they have alienated some of the trust’s most respected staff members. During his seven-year stewardship, Munitz has led the Getty through a trying period of change. But he has also pushed the limits on how nonprofit organizations use their resources. Documents show that Munitz has spent lavishly, traveling the world first class at Getty expense, often with his wife, staying at luxury hotels and mixing business with pleasure.”

Weda Kaplinsky is head of the Juilliard piano faculty. She was also a judge at this year’s Van Cliburn competition, and seven of her students were among the 35 pianists admitted to the competition. For the past several months “Kaplinsky has been the target of an anonymous, orchestrated smear campaign, consisting of harassing e-mail messages, an anonymous letter, Internet postings, ominous late-night phone calls and a threatening statement overheard last week at Bass Hall.”

Jonathan Karp has unexpectedly resigned as editor-in-chief of Random House. He apparently left of his own accord, and sources at the publisher have speculated that he wants to start a new business, possibly a publishing company of his own. Karp’s duties at Random House will be assumed by the company’s existing executive editor-in-chief.

Andre Previn is now pulling back from the 90-plus concerts he performs a year to concentrate on composing. Why is the self-confessed “conductor who composes” now putting composition at the heart of his musical life? “I am so peripatetic,” he says. “I run around so much that I finally reasoned that composing is the one musical endeavour which you can do anywhere, anytime. I like writing, but it’s only in the past 10 years that I’ve written a lot. Now, happily, I’ve got a whole file full of commissions.”

“Bancroft was awarded the Tony for creating the role on Broadway of poor-sighted Annie Sullivan, the teacher of the deaf and blind Helen Keller. She repeated her portrayal in the film version. Yet despite her Academy Award and four other nominations, “The Graduate” overshadowed her other achievements.”

As president of PEN/America, Salman Rushdie is campaigning for the American government to loosen laws on banning importation of some literature. “It seems somewhat ironic that Rushdie should survive a period of life-threatening danger, living in 30 houses in nine years, and wind up in the land of the free only to discover that he must start campaigning for freedom all over again.”

“Maybe he will ultimately be cleared of all charges, but for now [Alberto] Vilar appears to be perp-walking straight into that grand and storied American pantheon of Alleged Super Rich Frauds. The back story is always the same — the start-with-nothing origins, the struggle to conspicuous wealth, the strenuous social-climbing and then the spectacular run of damning headlines as creditors and feds close in… Vilar’s unique twist on this stock character is a love for classical music and opera that veered toward the obsessive, and a thirst for public recognition that only opera houses around the world could slake…. If prosecutors are correct, he was Robin Hood for the ‘La Boheme’ set, stealing from the rich to give to the Met.”

Unable to make the $10 million bail set by a Manhattan judge, disgraced philanthropist Alberto Vilar and his attorneys begged the court to consider accepting a lesser sum raised by the defendant’s friends and family. After some wrangling, Vilar was released on the promise of a $4 million bond. Vilar will also be required to turn over his extensive art collection to the court, and some friends are putting their own multi-million-dollar homes up as collateral. The judge in the case agreed to reduce bail once it became clear that prosecutors would need a significant amount of time to sort through all the documents in the case.

Pavarotti has canceled a Three Tenors performance in Mexico because of laryngitis. “Pavarotti recently cancelled a Dublin performance because of a throat infection and has postponed two UK concerts to have neck surgery. The 69-year-old opera star is currently on an extensive farewell tour.”