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8770. alistairconnor - 4/20/2009 4:59:39 PM 
Dear old J.G. Ballard is dead.
You know him as the writer of the books of the movies : Spielberg's Empire of the Sun, and Kronenberg's Crash (which I've never seen).
For me, his early novels from the 60s and 70s were a big influence : The Wind from Nowhere, The Drowned World, The Drought and The Crystal World (four variations on the global catastrophe novel).
That was in my "science fiction" period, and he was one of those who helped me grow out of the genre.
Reading his obituaries, I feel inclined to check out his later work, particularly Millenium People.
(Footnote : unsurprisingly, he has a thing about Surrealism, and likes to be photographed with his Delvaux paintings... I was in Paul Delvaux land the other day, northern Flanders)
8771. alistairconnor - 5/1/2009 1:38:13 PM I never really thought of the Rolling Stones as an art-school band. Keef :
I mean, my experience of art school is basically sitting in the john all day playing guitar when I wasn't forced to draw some fat old lady [...] So then I went to study this stuff and I realised that these blues men, they're talking about getting laid. And there's me studying what they're doing, but I ain't getting laid. I mean, there was something missing in my life - obviously, to be a bluesman I have to go see what this lemon juice is, running down your leg. And you know, these guys are actually living a life - they're not studying. 8772. wabbit - 5/11/2009 2:11:04 PM AC, you might enjoy this, as you have moved the novel into mitochondrial territory. 8773. judithathome - 5/13/2009 2:41:17 PM Here's some breaking news in the art world:
Fort Worth Museum Acquires Rare Painting
In an extraordinary coup, the Kimbell Art Museum has acquired the earliest known painting by Michelangelo, one of only four free-standing "easel paintings" by the Renaissance master in the world.
8774. judithathome - 5/13/2009 2:42:55 PM The second paragraph I copied dropped off for some reason:
The Kimbell’s purchase, The Torment of Saint Anthony(1487-88), will be the only painting by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) to enter the permanent collection of a U.S. museum. Two of the other paintings are in London’s National Gallery and a third in Florence’s Uffizi Gallery.
8775. alistairconnor - 5/13/2009 3:44:19 PM Fantastic story, Judith. Fantastic painting, I hope to see it one day. 8776. wabbit - 5/13/2009 5:07:09 PM I used to have a re-strike of the Schongauer engraving. I'll definitely get to the Met to see this once it's on view. 8777. Ms. No - 5/16/2009 7:27:37 AM I love Camille Rose Garcia. I couldn't remember if I'd shared her work here before or not. Creepy-beautiful. These should all be incredibly depressing but somehow they make me feel good when I look at them. Indulgent, somehow.
This is from the Dreamtime Escape Plan series.
White Swan Deluge
8778. wabbit - 6/4/2009 7:44:18 PM Koko Taylor, a sharecropper's daughter whose regal bearing and powerful voice earned her the sobriquet "Queen of the Blues," has died after complications from surgery. She was 80.
Taylor died Wednesday at Northwestern Memorial Hospital about two weeks after having surgery for a gastrointestinal bleed, said Marc Lipkin, director of publicity for her record label, Alligator Records, which made the announcement.
The break for Tennessee-born Taylor came in 1962, when arranger/composer Willie Dixon, impressed by her voice, got her a Chess recording contract and produced several singles (and two albums) for her, including the million-selling 1965 hit, "Wang Dang Doodle," which she called silly, but which launched her recording career. 8779. judithathome - 6/8/2009 1:37:17 PM Anyone ever read books by Jeffery Deaver? We have a chance to see him in an appearence on the 16th...meet the author, chat him up, etc. 8780. wabbit - 8/2/2009 11:50:41 PM If anyone is in Boston and wants to see the Titian, etc. show at the MFA, I have a spare ticket for 11am on 8/6. Email me at viwabbit @ yahoo.com if you are interested. 8781. wabbit - 8/7/2009 1:09:19 AM RIP John Hughes John Hughes, the director and screenwriter who helped define a young generation with his ’80s films “Sixteen Candles,” “The Breakfast Club” and “Pretty in Pink,” has died.
The cause was a heart attack, according to a statement from the publicists Paul Bloch and Michelle Bega.
Mr. Hughes first began as a screenwriter, gaining notoriety for his screenplay for “National Lampoon’s Vacation,” which became a popular franchise.
But his true success came with his directorial debut, “Sixteen Candles,” which made a star out of its young lead, Molly Ringwald... 8782. alistairConnor - 8/28/2009 10:25:55 PM This is a TV show that my sister has been involved with (well actually she mostly does accounts and stuff for the production company but...)
The presenter, Chris Knox, is a legendary NZ musician and cartoonist, and a former neighbour of mine. He recently suffered a stroke, and is having a difficult recovery (plays a mean game of Texas hold'em, apparently, but has difficulty talking) 8783. wabbit - 8/29/2009 2:48:54 AM RIP James Lord
I haven't read Picasso and Dora, but I do have A Giacometti Portrait and the Giacometti biography, both of which are good reads. 8784. wabbit - 9/5/2009 12:37:33 AM I saw Jersey Boys Thursday night at the Shubert Theater in Boston. If you were a fan of The Four Seasons, or like me were too young to be a fan but enjoy the music now, and you aren't offended by profanity (iTs haow dey tawk in Jerzey), you'll enjoy this show.
The story is told by each of the four original members of The Four Seasons, starting with Tommy DeVito, who formed the group and recognized Frankie Valli's voice as something different. Bob Gaudio wrote many of the group's biggest hits and is still a financial 50/50 partner with Valli today. Nick Massi takes some of the shine off of the stories told by DeVito and Gaudio and is the only original member no longer alive. Finally, Valli gives his impressions of the rise, fall, and continued success of The Four Seasons.
It's funny, sometimes sad, and very musical. I was one of the younger members of the sold-out crowd and people were swaying and singing along throughout the show.
If you get the chance, see it, you won't be sorry. It's worth it just to learn where Joe Pesci (yes, *that* Joe Pesci) really got his start.
A side note for those in Beantown - the Shubert has tiny, horribly cramped seats ideal for people with short legs. The man to my right and I were relieved to have an empty seat between us so we could get our knees out of the seatbacks of the row in front of us. Row E, Mezzanine level - those are the primo seats. Believe me. We were in Row D.
But the show was worth it. 8785. wabbit - 9/13/2009 10:14:34 PM
OMG 8786. wabbit - 9/14/2009 7:50:38 PM
Kanye West is a jerk. No apology is going to give her back that moment. What an asshole. Good for Beyonce to try to make up for West's idiocy. 8787. arkymalarky - 9/14/2009 10:48:35 PM He's always been that way and I'm sorry, but he simply doesn't have enough talent to make him worth putting up with. They ought to quit inviting him to those things. 8788. wabbit - 9/18/2009 8:50:51 PM RIP Mary Travers Mary Travers, whose ringing, earnest vocals with the folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary made songs like “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “If I Had a Hammer” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” enduring anthems of the 1960s protest movement, died on Wednesday at Danbury Hospital in Connecticut. She was 72 and lived in Redding, Conn.
The cause was complications from chemotherapy associated with a bone-marrow transplant she had several years ago after developing leukemia... 8789. alistairConnor - 9/18/2009 10:42:24 PM Yes, I grew up listening to her.
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