Stories

Did Hollywood Really Need Netflix?

“The movie business needed Netflix to wake up. They needed a real disruptor... Maybe we are now entering a period where the relationship works the other way around, with Netflix being inspired by the movie business. I think the two worlds are additive.” - Deadline

To Say Goodbye To Her Dance Company, Lucy Guerin Performs Onstage For First Time In 13 Years

“I have found it incredibly confronting, to be honest,” she says, hours before the premiere. “Part of me thought I could still do all those things if I just got back in the studio and trained a bit. But I’m afraid that wasn’t the case.” - The Guardian

Netflix Is Making Money. That’s Not Enough

For the year, Netflix said, it expects revenue growth to be 13 percent, roughly in line with its previous estimates. Shares dropped more than 5 percent in after-hours trading. The company acknowledged the undercurrent that led to the recent tumult: concern about stagnating attention time on its service. - The New York Times

The Battles Over Jimmy Buffet’s Estate

Three years after Jimmy’s death, the family is locked in a legal dispute over that Margaritaville fortune. It has upended the fun-loving vibes the musician spent his life cultivating, with the family seeming rudderless without Jimmy as their figurehead, according to court documents and interviews. - The Wall Street Journal

Will Wikipedia Survive AI?

It was neither the first online encyclopedia—Britannica had a web presence by 1999—nor even the first that users could edit. Rather, its vitality arose from the community of obsessives whom it attracted, and its decline has coincided with the market’s capture of their creativity. - The New Yorker

Harry Houdini Did Not Die The Way Most People Think He Did

The received wisdom has been that a Montreal student named Joscelyn Gordon Whitehead punched Houdini in the stomach several times without warning, and the blows led to a ruptured appendix and peritonitis. Now a 77-year-old retired urologic surgeon has done a forensic medical investigation which challenges that narrative. - The New York Times

Jeffrey Daunt And The Culture Of Reading

Actually, in America, the reading of books is up. Sales of print books have increased nearly twenty-five per cent from a decade ago. The number of independent bookstores in the United States has climbed steeply since 2009, with a seventy-per-cent increase since 2020. - The New Yorker

When Music Teachers Are Gods

I have known countless music students who have gone on to distinguished careers who have described their teachers in God-like terms and continue to do so long after their student days. Often these descriptions are laced with affection and continued adulation. - Thomas Wolf

Phoenix Symphony Cancels Season And Shuts Down

Phoenix Symphony leaders announced today they are suspending programs and performances after their show on Nov. 1 due to ongoing operational deficits. They say they do not have the finances to continue the season. - Fox (Yahoo)

Two Out Of Three Microdramas Released In Past Three Months Were AI-Generated: Study

“Two-thirds of vertical drama releases outside China in the third quarter of 2026 from 20 top platforms were AI generated, according to the consulting firm Owl & Co.’s latest ‘What We Watched on Vertical’ report.” (In China, the figure is thought to be 95%.) - The Hollywood Reporter

Could AI Help Identify The Unknown Subjects Of Centuries-Old Portraits?

“Identifying a sitter in a portrait is a tricky art-historical task that involves a study of provenance, inscriptions, archival documentation, iconographic juxtaposition, collection history, and costume and jewelry. Could present-day technologies be another item in the researcher’s tool kit?” A project in Switzerland is giving it a try. - ARTnews

France Gets A New Literary Prize Specifically For Books Written With AI

“The Prix Pascal will open for submissions on 2 November, inviting French-language writers to submit manuscripts alongside an initial prompt of no more than 100 words and a technical account of the language model and generation process used. The competition is open to non-professional writers and those working in the literary sector.” - Firstpost

San Francisco Has Not Paid Artists The City Grants They Were Awarded This Year

“In typical years, grant agreements are sent in early July, with artists getting money in hand within four weeks. As of October, multiple artists still haven't received a dime, and at least two received their grant agreements only after the Chronicle wrote the commission to ask about the delay.” - San Francisco Chronicle (Yahoo!)

Philadelphia Orchestra Raises $344 Million

“The Philadelphia Orchestra and Ensemble Arts has coasted past the dollar goal in one of the city’s largest-ever fundraising campaigns for a cultural organization, … bringing in $344 million to support operations, build endowment, and fund special artistic initiatives.” One couple anonymously donated $55 million. - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

Historic City Hall Is Burned Down During French Riots

In Limoges, the 19th-century Hôtel de Ville, which had historic landmark status, was destroyed by arson during the violence that has convulsed much of France in recent days. One suspect has been arrested. - Euronews

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