May Newsletter: A Review of the Month’s Culture, Arts + Trends

FOR THE LOVE OF MAY

The beloved artist of LOVE, Robert Indiana (who changed his name from Robert Clark in honor of his home state), died this month on May 19. Originally a Christmas card that was commissioned by The Museum of Modern Art in 1965, his LOVE painting became the embodiment of peace and love of the ‘60s. He turned it into the famous sculpture that is erected in cities all over the world. It even became a U.S. postage stamp issued for Valentine’s Day 1973 … The design was his interpretation of the phrase “God is love” that he heard as a young boy raised as a Christian Scientist. The red and green of his first LOVE version were the colors from the Philips 66 gas sign, in memory of the company where his father worked. In the early 1960s, as a reminder of his mother, he created works with HUG, her word for affection.

 

THE FIFTH OF MAY

Line ’em up! Here’s to the merry month of May, a personal favorite. And of course the perfect toast is a Margarita to celebrate Cinco de Mayo! The holiday recognizes the victory of the Mexican army over the French army on May 5, 1862, at the Battle of Puebla.

 

STYLE AND SUBSTANCE

Jacqueline Bouvier always got right back on her horse after she fell. Figuratively and literally, as a child she toppled from her horse on her first day at riding camp. She was bookish and aimed for a career after college. In fact, she ranked being a journalist over landing a man. Until, of course, she met John F. Kennedy. When he became president, Jackie brought progressive ideas about art and culture to the White House. Intelligent and charming, she won over foreign dignitaries … After JFK’s assassination, she displayed unforgettable dignity and the “steel under all that beauty and style,” the steel that was always there. And oh yes, Jackie got right back on that horse, moved her children to NYC, helped save Grand Central Terminal from demolition, and became a revered book editor … Just Being Jackie, a Young Adult book by Margaret Cardillo with illustrations by Julia Denos, is great for anyone at any age as a reminder of this icon’s cool strength and backbone.

 

TRUTH

“If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him. We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth…[in a] democratic society, the highest duty of the writer, the composer, the artist is to remain true to himself…In serving his vision of the truth, the artist best serves his nation.” (President John F. Kennedy)

It was at JFK’s inauguration in 1961 that Robert Frost became the first inaugural poet, delivering an ode to the dream of including the arts in government which touched JFK deeply. Frost died two years later in January 1963. That fall, JFK spoke at an event honoring the poet at Amherst College. His speech mirrored Frost’s about the arts and celebrating the role of the artist in society.

 

THE DARCY DEFENSE

Would you be surprised to learn that many judges cite Jane Austen quotes in court? It is as an authority on relationships that her influence prevails in the courtroom. Although Harper Lee and Mary Shelley also show up in legal decisions, each is quoted from one work (Mockingbird and Frankenstein). On the other hand, quotes and references are taken from all of Austen’s many books such as Emma, Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey, and, of course, Pride and Prejudice. As well as from Jane Austen herself … In a fraud case involving friends who formed a partnership that went really bad, the judge cited Emma: “business…may bring money, but friendship hardly ever does,” and concluded that had the litigant “been mindful of the words of Jane Austen,” he would not have gotten himself involved in the lawsuit … In a gender discrimination case where a female plaintiff alleged her managers “did not tolerate intelligent and articulate female subordinates,” the judge quoted Northanger Abbey: “A woman especially, if she has the misfortune of knowing anything, should conceal it as well as she can.” Doing so, the judge used Austen’s satire to shine a spotlight on what the civil rights law at stake aimed to end … And to emphasize that “looks can be deceiving,” the judge wrote in a legal malpractice case: “…one must get the whole story in order to have an accurate picture of events. The seemingly haughty and prideful Fitzwilliam Darcy turned out to be a pretty nice guy by the end of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.”

 

AND THEY’RE OFF!

In May there’s also the Kentucky Derby. So here are some common phrases you might not know come from horse racing! … Hands down: To win something hands down means to win it easily. It comes from the practice of horse racing jockeys loosening the reins when it seemed certain that they would win … Give-and-take: The art of compromise or a lively exchange of ideas originally referred to horse races in which bigger horses were given more weight to carry, lighter ones less … Dark horse: In addition to meaning lacking light, dark also means concealed, secret, or mysterious. So a dark horse is a horse about whose racing powers little is known. And in politics, a dark horse candidate is one who unexpectedly comes up from behind … Front runner: The leading candidate in a contest or election and comes from the horse racing term referring to a horse that runs best while in the lead … Running mate: Another political term that we get from horse racing refers to a candidate for the lesser of two associated political offices such as a vice-presidential candidate is the running mate of a potential president. In horse racing, a running mate is a horse that sets the pace for another.

 

MEMORIAL DAY

“On Memorial Day, I don’t want to only remember the combatants. There were also those who came out of the trenches as writers and poets, who started preaching peace, men and women who have made this world a kinder place to live.” (Eric Burdon, musician)

 

DOG NEWS

Alexandra Horowitz, the author of Being a Dog: Following the Dog Into a World of Smell, explains how dogs perceive the world through their extraordinary organ. What every dog knows about the world comes mostly through his nose. Every breath of air a dog takes is loaded with information.

How can we tap into our dogs’ world of smell and enrich their lives? “Let them smell. If you live with a dog, start thinking about what the world is like from an olfactory point of view. Let them smell you (you are your scent, to your dog), let them smell each other (that’s how they find out who it is), and let them smell the world. Take walks for smelling (not just for peeing, or for exercise). The pleasure that comes from watching a dog snuffling down a path, nose to the ground and nose in the air, guided by nothing more than the filaments of odors that come his way, is to me unmatched.”

 

ENDNOTE: PHILIP ROTH
(March 19, 1933-May 22, 2018)

“The only obsession everyone wants: ‘love.’ People think that in falling in love they make themselves whole? The Platonic union of souls? I think otherwise. I think you’re whole before you begin. And the love fractures you. You’re whole, and then you’re cracked open.” (The Dying Animal by Philip Roth)

 

WE CAN HELP

Muhammad Ali, The Greatest, used his greatness as a catalyst to do great things for the world and, in turn, inspire us to do the same. The Muhammad Ali Center promotes respect, hope, understanding, and love, encouraging everyone everywhere to be as great as they can be. Your donation will help them continue to preserve and share Ali’s legacy and values.

 

Soundtrack to this Issue

The Beatles
All You Need Is Love 

Love fills May’s fair spring air. At Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s royal wedding, people all over the world saw the blossoming of love. Robert Indiana’s sculptures and paintings remind us of the endurance of love … John Lennon’s All You Need is Love was written for Our World, the world’s first ever worldwide televised satellite link-up broadcast to 25 countries. Its optimistic message captured the mood of the Summer of Love (1967), and its simple lyrics and disarming chorus perfect for a global audience. 

C’mon, sing along, you know the words:

Love, love, love
Love, love, love
Love, love, love
There’s nothing you can do that can’t be done
Nothing you can sing that can’t be sung
Nothing you can say, but you can learn how to play the game
It’s easy
Nothing you can make that can’t be made
No one you can save that can’t be saved
Nothing you can do, but you can learn how to be you in time
It’s easy
All you need is love, all you need is love
All you need is love, love, love is all you need

 

 

Who rescued whom?
So grateful for Barkley coming into my life.
Thanks to Westie Rescue of New England.

Buddha, stay. Good dog. z”l“…live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”
(Buddha)

 

Sources:
Jane Austen pic quote: Emma: A Novel, Jane Austen (1867)
Jane Austen references: Matthew H. Birkhold, Electric Literature
Dog News quote: Being a Dog: Following the Dog Into a World of Smell by Alexandra Horowitz (Scribner October 2016)
Philip Roth pic: Philip Roth
Soundtrack lyrics: John Lennon/Paul McCartney ©Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC 

May 28, 2018
All Rights Reserved

June Newsletter: A Review of the Month’s Culture, Arts + Trends

JUNE IS LOVE IS LOVE IS LOVE IS LOVE IS LOVE IS LOVE

As I walk through
This wicked world
Searchin’ for light in the darkness of insanity

I ask myself
Is all hope lost?
Is there only pain and hatred, and misery?

And each time I feel like this inside,
There’s one thing I wanna know:
What’s so funny ’bout peace love & understanding?

ALI: THE GREATEST LOVE

When I was a kid, my father took me to the simulcasts of Ali’s big fights at our local movie house, the Symphony on Broadway … As beautiful a boxer as Muhammad Ali was, floating on air and dancing on the lightest of footfalls, his bigger than life generous spirit was the thing I loved about him … I have a bookshelf dedicated to him. Many great books about him. But David Remnick’s King of the Word is must-read Ali. And any documentary about him is worth seeing. But When We Were Kings (1996) is must-see Ali.

I remember being in tears as I made my way through each exhibit and video at the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, KY. I cherish every moment I spent there with him … He has always been my hero. I will miss him and be thankful for him and to him forever.

FROM GRACELAND TO NOW

“If you don’t do it, who will write a Paul Simon song?” asked Philip Glass on the topic of Simon’s retiring … Although it’s been 30 years since Graceland, the sounds he created in that monumental work are updated to reflect the present time in his new album, Stranger to Stranger …. We sorely and surely need all the Paul Simon songs we can get. Just as the title track reassures us:

Still believing
That love endures
All the carnage
And the useless detours

Oh I love you, I love you, I love you
I love you, I love you, I love you,
I love you, love you, love you …

Words and melody
Easy harmony
Words and melody

HEY HO! LET’S GO … TO A MUSEUM!

Hey Johnny, Joey, Dee Dee, and Tommy Ramone, you are in a museum! For real! … In honor of the 40th anniversary of the Ramones’ self-titled debut album, Hey! Ho! Let’s Go: Ramones and the Birth of Punk is an exhibit at the Queens Museum until July 31. It shows the Ramones from their roots in Queens to Manhattan’s CBGB’s, where their fun brand of punk rock was manifest … “Just get me to the airport, put me on a plane, Hurry hurry hurry, before I go insane.” Then take a plane to the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles on Sept. 16 where, through March 2017, the band is seen in the larger context of music history and pop culture … Cheers to you, Joey, my Joey, I sure do miss talking to you.

NOW SERVING BREAKFAST!

That’s Kate Murtagh. We know her as the Supertramp waitress who is 95 now (she was 90 in this pic). Retired from acting, she is a resident at the Motion Picture and Television Country House and Hospital and takes improv classes … Roger Hodgson wrote the classic title track, Breakfast in America. “Never could I have imagined when I wrote this song at age 19 that it would be gaining in popularity, if that is even possible over 40 years later. It’s the playful, fun, jubilant quality that people love to hear and sing along to.”

MEAT LOAF: RECIPE FOR STAYING POWER

Meat Loaf collapsed onstage during a performance at the Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton, Canada. A scary moment, it was due to severe dehydration and according to his Facebook page, he has recovered. Good news for sure … But wait, there’s more good news! Meat will release Braver Than We Are, his long-awaited reunion with songwriter Jim Steinman on September 16. The first single, Going All the Way, is another majestic-rock epic that features vocals by Ellen Foley and Karla DeVito, Meat’s Paradise by the Dashboard Light partners … “My songs are anthems to those moments when you feel like you’re on the head of a match that’s burning…they’re anthems to the essence of rock and roll…the fury, the melody and the passion.” (Jim Steinman)

DOG NEWS

Bringing comfort to Orlando … Gracie, from Davenport, Iowa, is one of the specially trained Comfort Dogs sent to Orlando, FL to help the victims, their families, and the community deal with the tragedy. Joining Gracie was Phoebe from Texas, Kye from Illinois, Sasha from South Carolina, Barnabas from Indiana, Katie, a Comfort-Dog-in-Training based in Nebraska, and Jewel from Tennessee. Brave, sweet, and loving, champion comforters all.

What a good girl. There were 300 or so search dogs working at Ground Zero, using their mighty noses to try to find survivors. Sadly, the last of these brave dogs died at age 16. Bretagne, pronounced Brittany, a happy golden retriever, lived an adventure-packed life until the end. In addition to 9/11, she was also deployed in response to Hurricane Katrina and other disasters.

Check out the cover of Vanity Fair honoring Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday. Seems she was upstaged by her four dogs, two Corgis and two Dorgis (Dachshund and Corgi mix). Annie Leibovitz shot the pic starring Holly, Willow, Vulcan, and Candy. And, oh yeah, the Queen.

Intelligent and whimsical. That’s the Pumi, a high-energy Hungarian herding dog and the latest new breed recognized by the AKC, its 190th breed headed to compete at the Westminster Kennel Club. Cute, huh?

WE CAN HELP

The Muhammad Ali Center promotes respect, hope, and understanding, and encourages everyone everywhere to be as great as they can be. Your donation will help them continue to preserve and share Ali’s legacy and values.

There are more than 13,000 animal shelters across the US and combined they take in nearly 8 million cats and dogs per year. You can help your local animal shelter by donating: animal beds and blankets, dog and cat toys, laundry detergent and cleaning supplies, toys, crates and carriers, cat litter and boxes, leashes and collars, medical supplies, and your time and monetary donation.

Soundtrack to this Issue

Simon and Garfunkel’s The Boxer

Toward the end of his concert at The Greek Theater on June 3, Paul Simon strummed chords to The Boxer and announced, “I’m sorry to tell you this way, but Muhammad Ali has passed away.” And then he sang the final verse:

In the clearing stands a boxer,
And a fighter by his trade
And he carries the reminders
Of ev’ry glove that laid him down
And cut him till he cried out
In his anger and his shame,
‘I am leaving, I am leaving.’
But the fighter still remains

Who rescued whom?

At the New York Tartan Day Parade.
So grateful for Barkley coming into my life.
Thanks to Westie Rescue of New England.

Buddha, stay. Good dog. z”l

“…live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”
(Buddha)

 

Sources:
Peace, Love painting: United Nations Art for Peace Contest 2012, entrant (not winner) Armaan, a 7 year-old from Canada.
(What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding lyrics: Nicholas Orain Lowe ©Universal Music Publishing Group, Plangent Visions Music, Inc.
I Wanna Be Sedated lyrics: Dee Dee Ramone, Douglas Colvin, Jeffrey Hyman, Joey Ramone, John (Ramone) Cummings, Johnny Ramone ©Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Roger Hodgson quote: RogerHodgson.com
Stranger to Stranger lyrics: ©2016 Words and Music by Paul Simon/paulsimon.com
Jim Steinman quote: 1978 Rolling Stone profile of Meat Loaf
Gracie the Comfort Dog pic: Gracie Comfort Dog Facebook Page
9/11 Dog Bretagne pic: Denise Corliss
The Boxer lyrics: Paul Simon ©Universal Music Publishing Group

October Newsletter: A Review of the Month’s Culture, Arts + Trends

IT’S OCTOBER, STAY CALM + READ A BOOK

TAKE THE M TRAIN

“…Fred implored me to come and live with him in Detroit. Nothing seemed more vital than to join my love…saying good-bye to New York City and the aspirations it contained, I picked what was most precious and left the rest behind…”

Patti Smith blends a lifetime of memories with everyday experiences in her new book, M Train. In elegant prose and with sincerity, she recalls her favorite Greenwich Village café now closed, a cherished black coat now lost, her late husband, Frida Kahlo’s home, and Hurricane Sandy. Haunted by these intimate ghosts, she writes about the possessions (people, places, things) she has cherished, lost, and she reckons are now found as remnants in her soul, to be stored there forever … “The transformation of the heart is a wondrous thing, no matter how you land there.”

HIS AIM IS TRUE

“Songs can be many things, an education, a seduction, some solace in heartache, a valve for anger, a passport, your undoing, or even a lottery ticket.”

Elvis Costello’s new memoir, Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink, recounts his life which begins as the son and grandson of musicians. Destiny surely played its hand. In equal doses, as a fan and as a scholar, he writes about music and the artists he reveres. The wit and acute observations that we’ve come to recognize and appreciate in his songs are just as evident in his autobiography. Accompanied by a 38-track, 2-CD set, he tells the detailed stories, experiences, and emotions behind Alison, Accidents Will Happen, Watching the Detectives, Oliver’s Army, and Veronica.

NO MUSIC, NO LIFE

From modest beginnings in a small-town drugstore in 1960, Tower Records became the heart and soul of the music world, a cultural phenomenon with two hundred stores, in thirty countries, on five continents. All Things Must Pass, a new documentary from Colin Hanks, charts Ross Solomon’s dreams and the chain’s magical legacy and fateful demise in 2006. Tower was the place to spend hours going through records and talking about music. And you’d never know who you’d see there. A cherished memory: spending an afternoon with the one and only Bill Graham. Not just a store.

THE GREATEST COVER

“You feel his presence when you walk into the room. Even though he can’t really communicate with you, you hope that just by being near him, something rubs off on you.’’

That can only be one person. The Champ. The Greatest. Muhammad Ali, the world’s hero, my hero … He told Sports Illustrated in 1965, “I got a feeling I was born for a purpose. I’ve always had that feeling since I was a little boy. Perhaps I was born to fulfill Biblical prophecies. I just feel I may be part of something—divine things.” … On October 1, at The Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, KY, the Sports Illustrated Muhammad Ali Legacy Award was inaugurated to honor a former athlete who has used the platform of sports to improve the world. The ceremony was 40 years to the day after Ali overpowered Joe Frazier in the Thrilla in Manila … “How would you like to be remembered as an athlete? As the best heavyweight boxer of all time. As a person? As a good person who tried to be kind to everyone.”

DOG NEWS

“In times of joy, all of us wished we possessed a tail we could wag.” (W. H. Auden)

Wouldn’t you like to know why your dog behaves the way he does? The editors of Adopt-a-Pet.com just published a great resource for dog owners. The Total Dog Manual highlights behavior, training, and care. And Adopt-a-Pet.com should know – they are the world’s largest non-profit pet adoption website, helping shelters and rescue organizations find permanent loving homes for homeless pets. While they can’t speak, dogs do communicate to us.

So we should learn how to speak dog!

WE CAN HELP

The ASPCA just completed the expansion of the rehabilitation center to shelter and care for even more canine victims of cruelty in New York City. The Gloria Gurney Canine Annex for Recovery and Enrichment can house up to 50 dogs rescued through the NYPD/ASPCA Partnership at any given time. And, crucially, the dogs will receive personalized behavioral rehabilitation necessary to prepare them for adoption. Our donations help the ASPCA continue to do their fabulous, innovative, and necessary work!

Soundtrack to this Issue

Elvis Costello and the Imposters’ live performance of
Everyday I Write the Book

C’mon, sing along, you know the words:

Don’t tell me you don’t know what love is
When you’re old enough to know better
When you find strange hands in your sweater
When your dreamboat turns out to be a footnote
I’m a man with a mission in two or three editions
And I’m giving you a longing look
Everyday, everyday, everyday I write the book

Who rescued whom?So grateful for Barkley coming into my life.
Thanks to Westie Rescue of New England.

Buddha, stay. Good dog. z”l“…live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”
(Buddha)

 

Sources:
Book and a Dog pic: Edward Gorey
Patti Smith quotes: M Train (Knopf, October 2015)
Elvis Costello quote: Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink (Blue Rider Press/Penguin Random House, October 2015)
Ali pic: Sports Illustrated Cover, October 5, 2015
Quote under Ali pic: Dhani Jones, a former NFL linebacker who was a presenter at the night’s event, Sports Illustrated cover article, October 5, 2015
Ali quote: Muhammad Ali to Sports Illustrated’s Gil Rogin, 1965, Sports Illustrated cover article, October 5, 2015
Ali’s questions and answers: Sports Illustrated cover article, October 5, 2015
We Can Help pic: ASCPA
Elvis Costello’s Everyday I Write the Book lyrics: ©Universal Music Publishing Group

October Newsletter: A Review of the Month’s Culture, Arts + Trends

OCTOBER’S COOL IN EVERY WAY

Did you check out the colorful Melt to Earth metal sculptures by Aaron Curry that are planted all over Lincoln Center?…And the interesting docs keep coming. Three more to consider. HBO’s Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight looks at his Supreme Court battle about being a conscientious objector during the Viet Nam war…AKA Doc Pomus tells how Jerome Felder turned into the hit-making songwriter of Save the Last Dance for Me, This Magic Moment, and A Teenager in Love…And Film at Lincoln Center had a one-night only showing of Following The Ninth about four people whose lives were transformed, repaired, and healed by Beethoven’s Ninth’s message: “All men will be brothers.” Lest we forget, the Berlin Wall came down as Leonard Bernstein performed the Ninth as an “Ode To Freedom” in December 1989…Milk Gallery presented Ali: Photographs by Thomas Hoepker…Maestro Gilbert led the NY Phil in Beethoven’s Ninth (you’ve heard of it?) that included a finale featuring Manhattan School of Music’s Symphonic Chorus…Paul McCartney’s new album is called, wait for it, New. New songs that celebrate “the idea that pop music can still invigorate, inspire, and surprise – even if you had a hand in inventing it.”…At 92Y Talks, the great Boz Scaggs (did ya know he has a vineyard? Rosé, anyone?) talked with Anthony DeCurtis about his music, old and new. Heard Memphis yet? He’s still got it…So Alec Baldwin has a talk show on MSNBC and already peaked with Billy Joel. Will he top that?…Missed chances, lost time. Ah, Edith Wharton’s Age of Innocence as only Martin Scorsese could do it. Hope you caught it at Film at Lincoln Center’s NY Film Festival. A piece of art…Back when I produced an alternative music college radio show, Soul Asylum and Evan Dando kindly sat in. I was happy to hear that they played Webster Hall…Good news, guitar lovers! The NY Guitar Festival just announced its return in January for three weeks. Stay tuned for more…The first opera produced through the Met/LCT New Works program, Nico Muhly’s Two Boys is a modern tale with modern music. Is the Met taking up the slack since the loss of the NYC Opera? Maybe…But from out of the shadows we also have the Gotham Chamber Opera, whose 12^th season just opened…Totally sad news under the Big Bummer category, we lost Lou Reed. He left us with plenty to keep us busy, thinking, and appreciating. And y’know that Doc Pomus movie I mentioned? Passages from Doc’s private journals are read by his close friend, Lou Reed. All the more reason to check it out.

BOOKS THAT MATTER 

There are 650 letters to be discovered in The Leonard Bernstein Letters, a new book that affirms his love of composing…I discovered Humans of New York when a friend shared their blog posts on Facebook. Now comes a book! That these pics and stories are all too human, well, that’s the point. Because we are them and they are us. And everyone has a story…In time to commemorate Kristallnacht, re-reading Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning which confirms the sanctity of memory. And how one can positively move forward from atrocity…Mary Oliver’s Dog Songs, poems and pictures about the special love between, aw, you know. So here’s a taste. “Steadfastness, it seems, is more about dogs than about us. One of the reasons we love them so much.” Here’s another. “Said Ricky to me one day, ‘Why is it you don’t have a tail?’ Well, I just don’t.”…Media alert! Under the OMG category, just, just, just out is Mark Lewisohn’s Tune In, the first volume of All These Years, the possibly definitive bio trilogy about all four Beatles.

PLENTY OF GOOD DEEDS

Hoping to draw attention to humanitarian concerns in Russia, violinist Gidon Kremer sees his To Russia with Love concert in Berlin as, “a kind of a personal statement against injustice, expressed together with friends and everlasting music.” He goes on, “…we should for sure lend support to all discriminated people worldwide in peaceful actions using our abilities and art…After all, art is designed to bring people closer to each other and not to split them.”…The first Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards, celebrating individuals who have made significant contributions toward the attainment of peace and social justice, honored President Jimmy Carter, Christina Aguilera, and Michael Bolton. The Awards were inspired by the six core principles that have guided Ali’s life: confidence, conviction, dedication, giving, respect and spirituality. And yeah, The Champ did the presentin’!…Yo-Yo Ma’s 15^th annual Silk Road Ensemble, a peace-through-music project, at Carnegie Hall. And there’s a new album that he calls A Playlist Without Borders, demonstrating that with sounds and ideas from musicians from all over the world, there are no barriers for those approaching music with an open mind…Buddha did his part, too. Visiting seniors, he spread the love…Mitzvot abound.

THERE’S THIS BLOG, SEE…

Posts on Yvette Perry’s Blog include Lou Reed, Veronique Sanson, Underdogs, Okkerville River’s video game, Sherlock Holmes’s violin, Close Cover Before Striking, Cause Marketing (there’s wine and a dog), Mark Knopfler, and Yoko + Peace + Love…Also posted there is this newsletter so you can easily share it with your friends. Just click on any of the share buttons below each post.

Soundtrack to this Issue is Lou Reed’s Walk On The Wild Side
Lou Reed with Andy Warhol at the best place ever,
The Bottom Line, July 1978.

Buddha, stay. Good dog. 

“…live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”  (Buddha)

Sources:
AKA Doc Pomus pic: Documentary film poster
New quote: Kyle Anderson, EW
Humans of New York by Brandon Stanton: St. Martin’s Press
Dog Songs by Mary Oliver: Penguin Press
Gidon Kremer: Interview, NY Times
Concert in Berlin for Human Rights In Russia: To Russia with Love, October 7, 2013
Lou Reed pic at The Bottom Line: Ebet Roberts/Redferns

August Newsletter: A Review of the Month’s Culture, Arts & Trends

AUGUST LIVED UP TO ITS NAME

Majestic, grand, august…The rare blue moon appeared, not to be seen again in these here parts until 2015…The annual Perseid meteor shower peaked mid-month…Film at Lincoln Center’s retrospective David Bowie, Movie Star…In a little bit of book news, little book news that is, Chapter One of Genesis found in a book the size of a ladybug…Hidden in his personal archives for 50 years, Pavarotti’s first-ever recording, an aria from La Boheme taped on August 29, 1961 in Italy, just found, to be re-mastered and released…The first electric guitar patent awarded in 1937. Eric, Jimi, and Pete are grateful…The 50^th anniversary of the audio cassette tape. A revolution: small, cheap, and could be played in cars…Owning three Steinway pianos wasn’t enough, billionaire John Paulson now owns more, lots more. He bought the company for $512M…Harlem Week, now a month-long, with food, music, and loads of culture…Prayers to Linda Ronstadt whose beautiful voice is silenced by Parkinson’s…What’s love got to do with it? Everything for Tina Turner who married her beau of 27 years. Her debut single with Ike in August 1960, A Fool in Love, “…the blackest record to creep into the white charts since Ray Charles’…” went to #2 on the R&B charts. No fool, she. Oh yeah, mazel tov!…Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sid Bernstein, who brought the Beatles to Shea in 1964, was remembered for something much more than that at his memorial. His kindness. Amen to that…Lincoln Center’s Out of Doors celebrated Americana with country, rockabilly, Southern soul and rock ‘n’ roll…No mostly about it. The Mostly Mozart Festival’s closing concert led by Maestro Langrée was all Mozart…Could be a story by O. Henry. An acoustic ecologist who searches the world for nature’s quietest spots, Gordon Hempton the Sound Tracker, is going deaf. He’s racing to complete Quiet Planets, a 19-volume set of nature recordings…Left brain logical, right brain creative? New study says hooey. “The artistic network needs both sides of the brain…if art is really about communication about your emotions, if you’re not able to do that, you’re not much of an artist, are you? You always have to use both sides of your brain to be a functional human being.”…Spike Lee using Kickstarter to fund his new film. Is he doing the right thing? Discuss amongst yourselves…Richie Havens’ ashes were scattered over the site of Woodstock, where he was the opening act in 1969…August is Admit You’re Happy Month. Just as research from Scotland reveals links between culture, health and happiness. So listen to music, go see art, read books, see a movie. Find your happiness.

 CIVIL REFLECTIONS

The Butler was dramatic, emotional, thought-provoking, and inspiring, “…In this movie, history is more than a succession of public events, it is individual experience given a full measure of respect.” Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey imbued their characters with dignity and fortitude, taking us through the civil rights movement, Viet Nam, and beyond…About a lifelong hero of mine, I was looking forward to the new documentary, The Trials of Muhammad Ali. Having seen all the others, what could be new? With revealing details about his conversion to Islam and refusal to serve in Viet Nam, there were remarkable interviews with his second wife, the straightforward, no-nonsense Khalilah Camacho-Ali and his loving brother, Rahaman Ali. After a long legal fight that ended in 1971, the Supreme Court ruled in his favor. Ali was awarded the Dr. Martin Luther King memorial award in 1970 after his return to the ring. Coretta Scott-King told Ali he was “…a champion of justice, and peace, and human dignity.” Ralph Abernathy called him “…the living example of soul power, this was the March on Washington all in two fists.” Ali followed his faith, his conscience, his moral compass…Dr. Martin Luther King’s March on Washington, which culminated in his I Have A Dream speech, happened 50 years ago. A day of nonviolent protest, a day of speeches, prayer and song. Thousands were there to commemorate it 50 years later. Many who appeared in The Butler and The Trials of Muhammad Ali came and spoke: Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, Caroline Kennedy, and President Barack Obama. Dr. King’s moral voice and his honorable message memorialized. He lifted us on hope and he is ever with us as we keep his dream.

ART IS THE DRUG THAT I’M THINKING OF

Great works of art on billboards and bus-stops all over the streets of London for the Art Everywhere project…“Someday everything’s gonna be diff’rent when I paint my masterpiece.” Bob Dylan’s paintings at the National Portrait Gallery in London. Ties in with his new release, The Bootleg Series Vol. 10 Another Self Portrait (1969 – 1971). Ties in with his tour. An absolute marketing bonanza of tie-ins…Sounds of art at MOMA? Yes, sounds. Carsten Nicolai uses waves, mirrors and projections in exhibit of artists who use sound as their form of expression…Celebrating the 75^th anniversary of the first photographer to have a solo show at MOMA, Walker Evans’ pictures of American life in the 1930’s…And using light, color and space, James Turrell transforms the Guggenheim. 

DOGS+PANDAS GET THE MEDIA SPOTLIGHT

The first 24-hour channel for dogs, DogTV, launched on August 1…What’s your dog telling you? Learn their facial expressions. Raised eyebrow? Pay attention to me. Left ear back? I’m scared…Sunny, also a Portie, joins Beau at the White House…Did you know that the best bomb detector is a dog? After Boston Marathon attack, demand is up. Good dog, brave dog!…Alert the media! Baby news means Pandacams everywhere…“We have a cub.” The tweet heard ‘round the world for giant panda cub born at Washington, DC’s National Zoo…The first twin pandas born in America in 26 years at the Atlanta Zoo…My heart swelled and my eyes got teary watching the mother and child reunion at the Taipei Zoo, as the mother panda swept up her cub in her arms…And Scotland’s on panda-watch, she may be pregnant…With only 1,600 giant pandas left in the wild, their survival relies on this surge in births, giving us cause to hope, and hopefully cause to celebrate. 

LE BLOG C’EST MOI

We lost Elmore Leonard, but he left us Chili Palmer, Nestor Soto, Cundo Rey, Teddy Magyk, and Richie Nix. Tough guys all, but honest (in their own ways) and big hearted. Read my two tributes to him…Also posted: Glenn Gould on the arts, Patti Smith’s advice (clue: integrity!), Paul Simon’s songwriting method, marketing gone wrong, Stephen King, M&M’s+Meatloaf, before Bono there was Satchmo, and my Summer Reading List. What are you reading?…All this and more on Yvette Perry’s Blog…You can now easily share this newsletter with your friends. I have posted it there. Just click on any of the share buttons below the post…Lastly, yours truly is quoted in the Great Big Book of Things Marketers Say just published in video. Look for me at 4:57. My pearl of wisdom? “Listen.” 

Soundtrack to this Issue is Dream On from Aerosmith. Check out this version with the boys live at iHeartRadio Music Festival 2012.

 Buddha, stay. Good dog.“…live in the present moment wisely and earnestly.”  (Buddha)

Sources:
Steinway showroom pic: Steinway & Sons
Maestro Langree pic: Mostly Mozart
Tina Turner quote: I, Tina by Tina Turner and Kurt Loder
Brain Study quote: Dr. Gayatri Devi, CBS This Morning, August 27, 2013
The Butler quote: Richard Brody, The New Yorker
Scott King and Abernathy quotes and Ali pic: The Trials of Muhammad Ali
Make Art Not War print: Bob and Roberta Smith, Art Everywhere (London)
Bob Dylan lyrics: Bob Dylan official website
Aerosmith pic: iHeartRadio