HOME RERUN TIME—CELEBRATING A SCRAWNY GUY “WANTING TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY” PART 2
YESTERDAY WE BEGAN GLEANING tidbits about Elisha Cook Jr., who is typically recalled as Kasper Gutman’s psychotic sidekick in The Maltese Falcon and as a doomed informer in The Big … Continue reading
HOME RERUN TIME—CELEBRATING A SCRAWNY GUY “WANTING TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY” PART 1
I’VE SAVED SEVERAL CLASSIC FILMS FOR HOME RERUNS, each re-viewed when the spirit moves me. These include Pandora’s Box, the 1929 silent flick (its operatic version Alban Berg’s Lulu); Bogart/Astor/Greenstreet/Lorre’s … Continue reading
DALÍ DIALING
“YOU’VE GOT SALVADOR DALÍ ON LINE ONE.” Ask Dalí at the Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida. Image by Martin Pagh Ludvigsen/Goodby Siverstein & Partners via NPR. Details are given … Continue reading
ART DECO AT THE METROPOLITAN OPERA
I REALLY ENJOY ART DECO. And if you do too, have I got a deal for you on this Wednesday, April 24, 2024: The Metropolitan Opera HD Encore presentation of … Continue reading
GEE, I THOUGHT I HAD STUFF
THE HISTORIC ENGLAND WEBSITE recently posted “Birkenhead’s Hidden Gem of Outsider Art ‘Ron’s Place’ Newly Listed.” An Unassuming Victorian Villa—Not. Historic England writes, “Concealed for over 30 years within an … Continue reading
SOCAL ART SCENE—ONE CELEBRATORY, THE OTHER PUZZLING PART 2
YESTERDAY, SHEPARD FAIREY’S ART at the Glendale Central Library was celebrated here at SimanaitisSays. Today in Part 2, Voice of America reports an art puzzle, also occurring in SoCal. Where’s … Continue reading
SOCAL ART SCENE—ONE CELEBRATORY, THE OTHER PUZZLING PART 1
MY LITTLE CORNER OF THE WORLD is in the art news. One is celebratory, an exhibit of the works of Shepard Fairey called “Peace is Radical.” The other is puzzling, … Continue reading
A RESOURCEFUL METROPOLITAN OPERA
AS I NOTED BACK IN “Managing Opera Chaos Part 1,” “The Met’s Franco Zeffirelli-designed production of Turandot is a perfect example of why it’s called Grand Opera.” Calaf and the … Continue reading
RIDING THE RAZOR EDGE
SIR PETER USTINOV SAID (and I never tire of quoting) “Opera rides the razor edge of absurdity.” Even sans mythical beings, opera verismo (Italian: “realistic opera”) fits Sir Peter’s characterization. … Continue reading
AN AMERICAN IN PARIS TIDBITS
HAVING RECENTLY MENTIONED An American in Paris, I thought it would be fun to go tidbit-gleaning about this 1951 musical flick. Sources include Wikipedia, IMBd, Silver Screen Modes, Thomson’s The New … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 