Two primitive stone axes unearthed in downtown Miami were made hundreds of years ago by people who lived 530 miles away in central Georgia. The discovery suggests that ancient South Floridians were active traders and extensive travelers. Miami Herald
Tag: 09.24.99
CULTURE CLUTCH
The US senate has ditched an idea for a full-blown Committee on American Culture in favor of a much less powerful panel – a task force – which the entertainment industry still fears will be a forum to scapegoat Hollywood for school violence. Variety
Taller, thinner, prettier
Staffers at the real White House comment on how the new series “West Wing” portrays their world. “Everything was more exciting than it is in real life,” says one former White House aide. Los Angeles Times
When we loved movies
Susan Sontag recently claimed that cinephilia is dead. With a mass culture awash in moving images, what happened to the ideal of cinema as Art? Jean Douchet’s sumptuous book about the French New Wave recalls the days of art. National Post
VIRTUAL VCR
No going out in the rain, no late charges…movies on your computer are the Next Big Thing at what’s being billed as the ”world’s first virtual video store.” You can keep it, says Patti Hartigan, struggling to decide which of the 67 movies available she wants to see. Boston Globe
Toronto Symphony strike looms
Even Canadians run out of patience eventually. – CBC
Atlanta Ballet orchestra musicians go out on strike
They say they will picket company’s opening of Hunchback of Notre Dame next week. Performance to use recorded music. Atlanta Journal-Constitution
BETTER ALTERNATIVES?
Stern publishing puts its chain of alternative weeklies up for sale (Village Voice, Seattle Weekly among them) but the price is so high, observers predict it’ll be gobbled up by a media giant. If so, what will be so alternative about them? – Chicago Tribune
The real thing
The authenticity of some of Van Gogh’s paintings have been in doubt for years. This week Amsterdam’s Van Gogh Museum announced a project to clear up any questions. AP
CLOSE TO THE THRONE
The closest thing to a papal election in the British art world is deciding who will be the new president of the venerable Royal Academy. The job has grown in recent years – but so have the RA’s fortunes and the intrigues behind getting the job. Financial Times