Adelaide Wisdom Benjamin, a queen of Carnival who became a lawyer and philanthropist whose gifts of money, determination and leadership helped save New Orleans’ symphony orchestra, died Saturday in her sleep at her New Orleans home. - NOLA.com
As board chair of what was then the New Orleans Symphony, she worked tirelessly to save an organization which was $3 million in debt and had stopped paying musicians. She subsequently helped its transition into the Louisiana Philharmonic, the US’s first musician-run professional orchestra. - The Times-Picayune (New Orleans)
“From the first day I met him, when I was going through a period of frustration, I knew we would make special films, that he would elevate me to another level. He pressed my acting button again.” - El País English
Bessy was "a graceful French ballet star whose firm hand at the helm of the Paris Opera Ballet School for three decades made it one of the world’s top dance institutions, though her rigorous methods eventually drew stinging criticism.” - The New York Times
Sheung was "deeply invested in crafting an image of female autonomy and audacity at a time when women’s lives were constrained by traditional expectations.” - The New York Times
Lucas not only co-edited the first movie and Return of the Jedi but also made various Spielberg, Scorsese, and many other movies far, far better through her mad skills. - The Hollywood Reporter
Harpo (né Arthur) developed his silent persona due to his own stage fright; in later years he said he didn’t want to “tear down a character it took me decades to build.” On rare occasions, though, he did speak in public, though not when microphones were around — except for this one time. - The Guardian
“During her seven-year tenure (as executive director of the Municipal Art Society), she led pioneering campaigns to form historic landmark districts, renovate blighted blocks and rescue threatened edifices like Radio City Music Hall. … Saving Grand Central was her crowning achievement.” - The New York Times
Some musicians evolve, others effect personal revolutions. Rollins is in the latter category, and his work bears the shuddering force of his drastic, self-imposed transitions. To hear Rollins in the late fifties is to hear the lion roar. - The New Yorker
He was the last of the Mohicans1 — an essential piece of jazz’s midcentury-modern picture, the only surviving subject in Art Kane’s iconic yearbook photograph A Great Day in Harlem. But longevity is just one factor at play. - The Gig (Nate Chinen)
“Across a more-than-six-decade playing career, he recorded albums for the Chiaroscuro label, took requests from Nancy Reagan at the White House, delighted audiences at Wolf Trap and maintained a long-running association with the Smithsonian Institution, delivering song-filled lectures on American music that were broadcast around the country.” - The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
Highland Farm, just outside Doylestown in Bucks County, was where Hammerstein wrote the words for many of the musicals he created with Richard Rodgers. It is now the site of the Oscar Hammerstein Museum and Theatre Education Center, which plans to rebuild the barn as an exhibition space and education center. - PhillyVoice
“From his days as a teen phenom to his more measured solo work and experimentation with free jazz, Rollins was revered for his improvisational skill. He was among the last living greats of the bebop era and — with John Coltrane and Charlie Parker — one of the most influential saxophonists of his time.” - AP
“In a grisly case that shocked the art world, a Cuban-American man was found guilty of his role in a murder-for-hire plot that resulted in the stabbing death of his estranged husband, prominent New York art dealer Brent Sikkema, during a holiday in Brazil.” - The Wall Street Journal (MSN)
