You should read this for 9/19/2021: Art, Music, and Film Meet the Little-Known Genius Who Helped Make Pixar Possible “Alvy Ray Smith helped invent computer animation as we know it—then got royally shafted by Steve Jobs. Now he’s got a vision for where the pixel will take us next.” His former colleagues at Pixar are unanimous in recognizing his contributions. But after he left, Smith’s name was removed from the website, an excision that he feels was somewhat of a betrayal. Catmull says he doesn’t see websites as historical documents. Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language Via @tubbyandcoos: We’ve found that…

You should read this for 9/5/2021: Art, Music, and Film A2: One night only Wednesday August 19 Stream Green Knight Tickets have a 4-hour viewing window starting Wednesday, August 18 at 9:00pm EDT. Available in US only. Exclusive Q&A with the cast and crew after the film. Twelfth Night review – impeccable staging of Shakespeare’s merriest romp Grammy-winning folk artist Nanci Griffith dies at 68 Biden Begins Biden faces mounting criticism as Taliban advances across Afghanistan – US politics live Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language Fairy Tales Could Be Older Than You Ever Imagined It turns out that it’s pretty…

You should read this for 8/8/2021: Biden Begins The quiet Biden-GOP talks behind the infrastructure deal Biden’s phone call with Cassidy was only one example of Biden’s contact with Republicans during the talks. He regularly called GOP senators, White House aides say, while presidential counselor Steve Ricchetti was on virtual speed dial on the Republican negotiators’ phones. After he inadvertently angered Republicans by attaching public conditions to the deal, Biden personally phoned Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) to ask how he could quell the uproar. Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language H/T Bob Stein: Sell This Book! Corporate publishing wants to turn…

You should read this for 8/1/2021: Art, Music, and Film Video: Patrick Stewart Had No Clue Who Sting Was When They Worked Together on ‘Dune’ The thing that made this version of Dune work for me was mostly Patrick Stewart as Gurney Hallack. Video interview: Dev Patel wants ‘The Green Knight’ to push the limits of a hero’s journey Dev Patel dazzles in David Lowery’s captivating ‘The Green Knight’ I do not know at what point The Green Knight won me over. David Lowery’s feature film, which adapted from the Arthurian story Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, is exceedingly…

You should read this for 7/26/2021: Art, Music, and Film ‘Boundless invention’: British Museum to show more than 100 unseen Hokusai works At some point, possibly in the 1840s when he would have been in his 80s, Hokusai decided to embark on a project titled The Great Picture Book of Everything for which he let his imagination run wild. His idea was to present vignettes from Buddhist India, ancient China and the natural world. It was never published so the drawings were instead put in a box and have not been seen publicly since. Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language Good…

You should read this for 7/11/2021: Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language Queer readings of The Lord of the Rings are not accidents There Is No Debate Over Critical Race Theory “Pundits and politicians have created their own definition for the term, and then set about attacking it.” The United States is not in the midst of a “culture war” over race and racism. The animating force of our current conflict is not our differing values, beliefs, moral codes, or practices. The American people aren’t divided. The American people are being divided. Republican operatives have buried the actual definition of critical…

You should read this for 7/31/2021: Art, Music, and Film The mystery of the Georgian papier-mache horse – in pictures Vija Skangale, a curator, grew up in Tbilisi, Georgia, in the 1980s, and now lives in London. One day, looking through childhood photos, she found an image of her four-year-old self atop a papier-mache horse at the local zoo. “All my Tbilisi friends have a similar photo,” she says, “but I knew nothing about the photographer.” So she posted on social media and was overwhelmed by the response. Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language I was born in poverty in Appalachia….

You should read this for 6/26/2022: Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language Coronavirus | COVID-19 ‘Are you kidding me?’ Fauci responds to rightwing attacks over emails In his interview with the Times, Fauci pushed back. “It is essential as a scientist that you evolve your opinion and your recommendations based on the data as it evolves,” he said. “… And that’s the reason why I say people who then criticise me about that are actually criticising science.” He added: “The people who are giving the ad hominems are saying, ‘Ah, Fauci misled us. First he said no masks, then he said…

You should read this for 6/19/2022: Art, Music, and Film George Oates Returns to Revitalize the Flickr Commons Books, Libraries, Writing, and Language Top 10 novels told in a single day “From James Joyce and Virginia Woolf to Nicholson Baker, the ‘circadian novel’ can pack lifetimes of experience into 24 hours” Oxford University Press to end centuries of tradition by closing its printing arm Oxford University’s right to print books was first recognised in 1586, in a decree from the Star Chamber. But the centuries-old printing history of Oxford University Press will end this summer, after the publishing house announced…

You should read this for 6/6/2021: Art, Music, and Film H/T Kira Cee: That Fat, Jolly Fella Isn’t Buddha Biden Begins ‘I’m a car guy’: Biden zips around in electric Ford truck to boost clean-energy agenda The day revealed Biden not so much in rare form but in his truest form. His entire life has been crafted, in many ways, around cars. The affection for automobiles is as much a part of Biden as his Irishness and his love of ice cream, and it’s one that has deepened over the years. The event on Tuesday also married that longtime love…