Closed. New Year’s Eve is traditionally a swank theater evening on Broadway, but this year the theaters and their unions have decided to stay dark. Backstage
Tag: 12.09.99
CANADIAN ENTREPRENEUR –
– begins rebroadcasting every TV channel available in Toronto live on the web. The picture quality ain’t great, but networks have a fit. They’re suing to prevent Icravetv.com from continuing the service. CBC
MARKET RESEARCH
In the old days, museum directors usually came from the ranks of academics and curators who had proven themselves amidst the collections. Now, with higher stakes and more complex business decisions to be made, the top job requires professional managers and those with the ability to market and promote. London’s V&A is a case in point. Financial Times
VERSACE ART SALE
Sale of the late designer’s art collection brings in $66 million in London. San Francisco Examiner
E-SURPRISE
Library circulation is down at the University of Texas at Austin. But newly-acquired e-books are flying through readers at a stunning pace. Maybe the public is more ready to “cuddle up with a good byte” than many think. – New York Times
A THING FOR TWENTIES
Bay Area librarian arrested after failing to turn in money for overdue fines she collected. She kept all the $20s – 6,500 of them over four years — averaging between $130 and $140 a day. – San Francisco Chronicle
TOUGH NUT
The New York City Ballet musicians strike is over, but the issues were legitimate. Says a former board member on the state of the music: “Ugly sound, wrong notes, missing notes have become increasingly familiar. The musical direction has grown slacker and slacker – it’s no secret that the company has been unable to hire a strong new musical director because of the absurd rules and attitudes that have come to govern the orchestra’s performance.” It was time to confront the issue. – New York Observer
METALLICA VS. CLASSICAL
You could be forgiven for thinking you’d wandered into an uber-thrash heavy metal convention. But look, oh, up there on the stage behind the heavy metalers – it’s none other than the Berlin Philharmonic. It was loud. Bloody loud. – Irish Times
BEETHOVEN SELLS
A newly-discovered manuscript of a string quartet by Beethoven lasting only 52 seconds, sells for £180,000 at auction. – BBC
AND THE WINNER IS…
The name of the biggest-selling American recording of the century was revealed this week. Move over Michael Jackson… – San Francisco Examiner