Black Swan is Magnificent Dark Beauty

Black Swan Movie Review: Every actor was perfectly cast in this artful dark drama. It was kind of 'The Turning Point' meets the original 'Dracula' (with Bela Lugosi), a la Hitchcock. Wholly captivating, unpredictable and driving, the pace is relentless as we crawl inside the mind of Portman's Nina. She brilliantly portrayed this character in such a way that she allowed us to come inside for a peek and revealed more and more as we craved it. Deliciously dangerous!

The Passing of a Great Director

Blake Edwards, one of my all-time favorite directors, who was also a great producer and writer known for clever dialogue, poignance and occasional belly-laugh sight gags in "Breakfast at Tiffany's," "10" and the "Pink Panther" farces, has passed away. Blake's wife, Julie Andrews, and other family members were at his side.

At the time of his death, Edwards was working on two Broadway musicals, one based on the "Pink Panther" movies. The other, "Big Rosemary," was to be an original comedy set during Prohibition, Schwam said.

"His heart was as big as his talent. He was an Academy Award winner in all respects," said Schwam, who knew him for 40 years. [more...]

The Passing of Elaine

Elaine Kaufman, the colorful restaurateur whose East Side establishment, Elaine's, became a haven for show business and literary notables, died today at the age of 81. Kaufman was a veteran waitress and cafe manager in Greenwich Village when she bought a small bar-restaurant near the corner of Second Avenue and 88th Street in 1963. It was never about the design or the food - basic Italian fare. It was all about the owner-hostess, an outsized mother figure in a tentlike dress, and her friendships with the famous. Norman Mailer, Gay Talese and George Plimpton quickly became regulars, and over the years the glitterati joined the literati. Even Jackie Onassis went there. [more...]

I've been to Elaine's for several book signings and got to meet her once or twice.  She always seemed cranky to me and was never very hospitable... but I relished the wonder of the ghosts in that place and could feel the history.  I first remember seeing Elaine's in Woody Allen's "Manhattan" - I was the young teenage girl played by Mariel Hemingway - or so I thought.  Once I sat at the bar with (now the late) Ron Silver and he looked at me like I was insane while I told him how much I'd enjoyed "Enemies: A Love Story," then knocked over a bunch of glasses!  I got to meet (now the late) Walter Cronkite and his wife at that bar, too... and so many other stars. 

Once, I brought along a copy of my CD and tucked it behind the books on one of the shelves that displayed many of the famous authors who'd been celebrated there.  I wonder if someone ever found it?  R.I.P., Elaine!

Smith: Let Not Technology Kill Books

Patti Smith was among the major winners of the U.S. National Book Awards on Wednesday, choking up with tears before urging book publishers not to let technology kill traditional books.

Smith, a 63-year-old American singer-songwriter and poet, turned emotional as she accepted the nonfiction award for "Just Kids," which chronicles her struggles in her youth and relationship with American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe.

"There is nothing more beautiful than the book, the paper, the font, the cloth," said Smith, whose book was published by Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins. "Please, no matter how we advance technologically, please never abandon the book."

Tom Wolfe, whose list of best-sellers includes "The Bonfire of the Vanities," "The Right Stuff" and "The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test," was awarded the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.

The night featured a sprinkling of jokes about the state of the book publishing industry, which is going through a tumultuous period as it deals with the nascent market for electronic books. [more...]

Stern's Satellite Gift: The Piano Man

Howard Stern is right about the dismal state of talk shows today.  Talk TV is the worst, with its endless interruptions, commercial breaks, its shuffle-the-guests-in-and-out syndrome, all the phony one-liners, too many hosts shouting over each other... it's hardly worth all the effort.  Like Carol Burnett used to sing at the end of her show, "Seems we just get started and before you know it comes the time we have to say 'so long.'"  But even talk radio has its limitations.  Radio interviews are much more intimate and stream-of-consciousness, true, but terrestrial radio is almost as bad as talk TV these days with all the commercialism.

I had my doubts about "pay radio" (satellite) in the beginning; but now I think it was the smartest move Howard ever made and his recent discussions about it seem to be gelling into a brand new way of life in the talk radio interview genre that is so popular today.  With (supposedly) only 13 more shows to go on his contract and his career hanging in limbo (or so he'd like us to believe), Howard has been dropping coy hints about a choice he has to make and has let us in on quite a few possible new paths he may or may not take.

I, for one, believe Howard is one of the best interviewers in the history of talk radio AND TV.  He has a gift of bringing out the heart and soul of an artist - illustrated grandly once again by his groundbreaking interview with Billy Joel yesterday.  Like so many Americans, I'd always loved Joel's music, but had forgotten what an American treasure he truly is... until Howard let us in on an uninterrupted visit with one of the greatest musical talents America has ever known.

I was so moved (as Howard reiterated over and over, got "goosebumps" and was even swooning right along with him) as Joel's immense talent, filtered by a genuine humility about his legacy (the unpretentiousness that charmed us all in the first place - his everyman "Levittown" guy quality) oozed out of my speakers as improvisation after improvisation flowed effortlessly from the great "Piano Man."  In this intimate setting, he felt comfortable tuning his voice and retuning, changing key, allowing us to hear the cracks and swells as he aligned himself with his audience, eventually settling into his comfort zone. 

It was thrilling to listen to Joel showcasing great classics - everything from his own prolific catalogue, to music still inside his head waiting to be borne, to his renditions of his self-proclaimed hero, Steve Winwood's sterling voice singing "Dear Mr. Fantasy," to his pounding of those golden Steinway keys imitating his idol, Paul McCartney, singing the great Abbey Road medley including "You Never Give Me Your Money."  And then there was the revelation that, contrary to popular belief, "Uptown Girl" was about Elle MacPherson, not Christie Brinkley.  It was a terrific piece of Americana light that shone bright from the otherwise bland bevy of 2-5 minute interviews seen and heard on late night TV and anywhere else in the talk radio and/or TV interview genre.

But there's a better reason Howard should end his current talk radio format and take the plunge by pioneering a whole new interview format - one he does best.  For aging rockers like Joel, who might've gotten fat, gray, or worse... talk radio on satellite is the perfect forum to reflect upon and showcase who they once were, what made them great, leading up to who they are today.  Howard's magnanimous spirit was the perfect host apt to let us in on Joel's "secrets" - what inspired his music, how he writes a song, where he finds his muse, how he spends his days (though resting on his laurels) and so much more.  And it seemed to bring out the best in his own personality.  This talk format on satellite allows us to listen to these still youthful sounding, endlessly talented, great musicians without the visuals as constant reminders that a lot of time has gone by and we've all gotten older.  It's entertaining, stimulating and inspiring.  I believe, as a pioneer of talk radio, Howard Stern as host has come full circle and must move on to greener pastures... and he knows full well where the greenest pastures lie. 

Mystic-Art in the U.K.

Positivity

(12x16) watercolors, marker, pencils

Mystic Artist Sandy Frazier's artwork to grace the album cover of Leigh Stothard's "Live Your Life" - excellent musician in the U.K. - http://www.myspace.com/eargoggles1/ - out on iTunes.

The First Picture of Humans

It's almost impossible to fathom a time when photographs of people were nonexistent. But rest assured that such a time did exist - and it really wasn't that long ago in the grand scheme of things.

So, the recent discovery of what appears to be two men near the river's edge in a photo of Cincinnati taken in 1848 is kind of a big deal among photography historians.

The photo was taken by Charles Fontayne and William Porter who were standing on the other side of the Ohio River on Sunday, September 24th, 1848, 162 years prior to Krulwich's post about it.

The photo is what's known as a daguerreotype - an image developed via an early photographic process developed in France. When zooming in on the photo, Krulwich noticed what appeared to be two human figures. [more...]

Recommended Documentary: The Art of the Steal

The Art of the Steal is an amazing documentary that every artist, student of art or art history needs to watch.  It's stunning, shocking and a piece of American history that not many people know about.  It was riveting - I was glued to the screen throughout the entire film and couldn't believe what a saga unfolded before me.

Don Argott’s gripping documentary The Art of the Steal chronicles the long and dramatic struggle for control of the Barnes Foundation, a private collection of art valued at more than $25 billion. In 1922, Dr. Albert C. Barnes formed a remarkable educational institution around his priceless collection of art, located just five miles outside of Philadelphia. Now, more than 50 years after Barnes’ death, a powerful group of moneyed interests have gone to court for control of the art, and intend to bring it to a new museum in Philadelphia. Standing in their way is a group of Barnes’ former students and his will, which contains strict instructions stating the Foundation should always be an educational institution, and that the paintings may never be removed. Will they succeed, or will a man’s will be broken and one of America’s greatest cultural monuments be destroyed? [more...]

Blast from the '80s Past on Video

I haven't seen this video since 1987. It's the greatest... Kate Bush & Peter Gabriel - "Don't Give Up" [go here now]

I remember seeing this video on one of those great late-night video programmes on VH-1 (back in the days when they actually played music) and loved it so much. This was hi-tech in the '80s... but listen to the music. It's glorious. Jerry Goodman "On the Future of Aviation" [go here now]

Yoko's Purpose Still Strong at 77

This is a piece of pottery Yoko gave
us to keep from her 2006 show
at the Guggenheim

I've always admired Yoko Ono and believe she's been terribly misunderstood by so many.  She deserves a lot more credit as an artist than most are willing to grant her.  And, at 77, she's still going strong communicating, through her unique brand of conceptual art, the ideas of hope and peace.  I remember when John Lennon was shot in 1980, she sent out a message to the world, "John loved and prayed for the human race; let's do the same for him..." and that inspired me to no end. 

Her new exhibition in Berlin is a continuation of the work she began long before she met John Lennon in the '60s.  At the center of Yoko Ono's new installation is a perfectly round bullet hole shot through a large pane of glass that John Lennon's widow says challenges viewers to confront "incredible violence and abuse" in the world today. [more...]

Read my article about Yoko - after I got to see her in Manhattan in 2006.
Read One Day at a Time - a wonderful book about John & Yoko in their prime.