“When popular fiction written by, and mainly for, women tended to be classified either as ‘romantic novels’ or ‘historical sagas’, Joanna” — a great-great-great-grandniece of Anthony Trollope — wrote “about real situations and dilemmas that had relevance to modern women of all ages and circumstances.” - The Guardian
Carl Rinsch was convicted of wire fraud, money laundering and making illegal transactions in a case where he took $11 million in funding from Netflix for the series White Horse — and proceeded to spend the money on luxuries and blow it on a bad investment in a pharma company. - Variety
He was in his late 30s when he wrote the play, his first. It premiered in Los Angeles in 1976; it reached Broadway the following year, directed by Mike Nichols and starring Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn, and ran for over 500 performances, winning Tandy a Tony and Coburn himself a Pulitzer. - TheaterMania
“(The museum’s) security control room was not equipped with enough screens to watch every camera simultaneously, so the break-in was not watched in real-time. By the time guards had manually switched to the relevant live feed, nearly eight minutes after the heist began, the robbers were already getting away.” - Artnet
“The eight-member Arkansas Educational Television Commission, made up entirely of appointees of the governor, announced … that it planned to disaffiliate from PBS effective July 1, citing annual membership dues of about $2.5 million it described as ‘not feasible.’ … PBS Arkansas is rebranding itself as Arkansas TV and will provide more local content.” - AP
More than 14.7 million seats were filled in 2024-25, according to the latest audience-demographics report from The Broadway League. Among other findings is that, yet again, the average ticket-buyer is a 41-year-old, college-educated woman whose household income is over $275K a year. - Deadline
The 91-year-old acting legend, who has age-related macular degeneration, stopped performing because she can’t see her way around a set or read a script anymore. And she says, “I can’t remember what I’m doing tomorrow, I swear to you,” but can still remember quite a lot of Shakespeare. - The Guardian
Since 2020, well over a dozen novels have taken classical music as their setting. Of course, novels about classical music are nothing new. But what is notable about this recent surge in classical music fiction is that many of these texts center on a scathing critique of the industry itself. - Public Books
Well, because that person, Ian Potter, was extraordinarily generous, as his widow and his foundation continue to be. But when your sister gets angry because she was waiting for you at one Ian Potter Museum while you waited for her at another, you realize there must be a better way. - ABC (Australia)
Pittsburgh’s production has evolved its own traditions and superstitions. During some performances, performers pass a Heinz ketchup packet while onstage, like a hot potato. Whoever has it at the end loses. Another tradition: Dancers owe a dollar for every mistake. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The White House has explained the East Wing’s demolition as “renovation,” and the necessary prelude to a multimillion-dollar ballroom. This is the architectural equivalent of a celebrity-style makeover: a redo to admire as a luxury commodity, an old building rejuvenated, history erased. - The New York Times
The CPB is set to shut down after Congress approved President Trump’s request to rescind its funding. The Center for American Rights said the CPB shutdown should be used as an opportunity to reassign spectrum used by NPR and PBS stations to other entities. - Ars Technica
Verse was used as a political tool going back all the way to the Revolutionary War. Walt Whitman considered poetry to democracy, which “waits the coming of its bards … in the twilight of dawn.” And the connection of poetry to politics continues today with Joy Harjo and Amanda Gorman. - JSTOR Daily
Classical music’s survival instincts proved reliable. New leaders of L.A.’s arts institutions are bringing vitality to the region, empowering musicians and giving fans hope and optimism. - Los Angeles Times
After the Santa Monica Police Department responded to a call about an assault at a house around 9:20 p.m., officers found Sykes, 71, with critical injuries consistent with a stabbing, the authorities said in a news release. He was pronounced dead at the scene. - The New York Times
