Simanaitis Says

On cars, old, new and future; science & technology; vintage airplanes, computer flight simulation of them; Sherlockiana; our English language; travel; and other stuff

Category Archives: And Furthermore…

FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT AND JAPAN

“EVER SINCE I discovered the print,” Frank Lloyd Wright wrote in his 1932 autobiography, “Japan has appealed to me as the most romantic, artistic country on Earth.” The Frank Lloyd … Continue reading

January 22, 2018 · Leave a comment

THE $1.3 MILLION VODKA BOTTLE CAPER

AT FIRST, it sounded like fake news, or maybe a 21st-century version of Dada art: The New York Times, January 6, 2018, reported, “It was meant to be a collector’s … Continue reading

January 11, 2018 · 3 Comments

LEONTYNE PRICE—DIVA EXTRAORDINAIRE; THE MET—OPERA HOUSE DITTO

THE OPERA HOUSE is an award-winning documentary by Susan Froemke about the Metropolitan Opera’s Lincoln Center home and its mid-1960s construction. One of its stars is diva extraordinaire Leontyne Price, … Continue reading

January 10, 2018 · Leave a comment

DAVID HOCKNEY AT THE MET

NEW YORK’s Metropolitan Museum of Art is celebrating the career of David Hockney. The exhibit runs through February 25, 2018, and has a preview, complete with short video, at David … Continue reading

January 8, 2018 · Leave a comment

TOADY, pl. TOADIES (THERE’S NO LACK OF THEM)

I FIND it odd that the word “toady” dates from not quite 200 years ago. One would have thought such “flatterers in hope of gaining favors” had been around long … Continue reading

January 5, 2018 · 2 Comments

MASANIELLO MAKING NAPLES GREAT AGAIN?

TOMMASO ANIELLO, Masaniello, for short, was a Neapolitan fisherman who led a populist revolt against Habsburg Spain in 1647. So far, so good. However, he was destined to be dissed … Continue reading

January 3, 2018 · 1 Comment

2017—WE MADE IT TO THE END!

IT HAS been an interesting year here at SimanaitisSays. I’ve had a ball researching and composing items at a rate far exceeding my pre-retirement editorial activities. Here, celebrating 2017’s passage, … Continue reading

December 31, 2017 · 3 Comments

РОССИЙСКИЙ РОК

ROCK MUSIC in Russia has an interesting history, as I was reminded while sorting some old vinyl LPs looking for Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band that appeared here at … Continue reading

December 28, 2017 · Leave a comment

HUZZAH FOR SETH MACFARLANE!

THIS PAST Friday evening, Wife Dottie and I “Celebrated the Holidays with Seth MacFarlane” at our local René and Henry Segerstrom Hall. A good time was had by all, albeit … Continue reading

December 24, 2017 · 2 Comments

SYCOPHANTS? NAILED ‘EM, ONE AND ALL!

THERE HAVE been people called sycophants since 1575. But why are we so plagued with so many of them today? For just two examples, see Trump cabinet lovefest, June 12, … Continue reading

December 23, 2017 · 2 Comments