CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF ART DECO PART 1
READERS OF SIMANAITISSAYS MIGHT HAVE CAUGHT ON that I love Art Deco: See, for example, “Deco Dreaming,” “Soaring Art Deco—In The City of Angels,” and even, lamentably enough, “Art Deco, … Continue reading
LEST TRUMP FORGETS (AS IF HE EVER KNEW) PART 2
YESTERDAY’S MENTION OF ROAD TRIPS brought to mind The Negro Motorist Green Book published annually between 1936 and 1966. Perhaps it’s too much reading for the likes of Trump, what … Continue reading
LEST TRUMP FORGETS (AS IF HE EVER KNEW….) PART 1
SIDNEY BLUMENTHAL WRITES IN THE GUARDIAN, September 4, 2025, “Trump Wants to Rewrite American History. Maybe He Should Learn It First.” Blumenthal observes, “Of all the presidents, Donald Trump—the man … Continue reading
ANIMALES FANTÁSTICOS
“AT AROUND 20 FEET TALL,” PBS SENIOR ARTS Correspondent Jeffery Brown recounts, “they’re hard to miss, brightly colored and intricately designed…. fantastic animals that have their roots in Oaxaca and … Continue reading
ANTHONY COMSTOCK, CHAUCER’S LITHE-AS-A-WEASEL ALISOUN, AND PERSONAL CHOICE
AN ENLIGHTENED ENGLISH TEACHER ENCOURAGED US to master the first lines of Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales—in Middle English: “Whan that Aprill, with his shoures soote/ The droghte of March hath … Continue reading
ENOUGH ALREADY WITH PENCILS IN KNIFE FIGHTS
JIA LYNN YANG WRITES OF DEMOCRATS in The New York Times, August 15, 2025: “Will the battle over Texas’ gerrymandering lead to a new era for the party?” An interesting … Continue reading
TRUMP LIES LIKE A RUG
HOW CAN ANYONE TRUST A PATHOLOGICAL LIAR? As Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan famously said, “You are entitled to your opinion. But you are not entitled to our own facts.” Succinctly, … Continue reading
PARNELL THOMAS AND SAM SPADE??
GEEZ, HOW IS SAM SPADE LINKED with Parnell Thomas?? Spade was the classic sleuth of The Maltese Falcon, The Kandy Tooth Caper, and numerous other adventures, 1946–1951, recounted these days … Continue reading
ADMIRING THE ART OF MITCHELL JOHNSON
ART CRITIC DONALD KUSPIT IDENTIFIES THE APPEAL of Mitchell Johnson by noting this artist’s fusion of abstraction and realism. My introduction to Johnson’s oil paintings came from their occasional appearances … Continue reading
OUR QUEENS FELON’S MOB
I’VE HARPED ON THE QUEENS FELON MOB all too often at this website (I’d much rather write about my usual topics). Nevertheless, I was gratified that I’m not the only … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 