FAVORITE PIANISTS (recordings) 1. Sergei Rachmaninoff (Chopin) 2. Arthur Rubinstein (Chopin, Brahms) 3. Dinu Lipatti (Chopin) 4. Friedrich Gulda 5. Walter Geiseking (Schubert, Schumann) 6. Geza Anda (Bartok) 7. Wilhelm Kempff (Schubert) 8. Rudolph Serkin (Marlboro, early Beethoven, chamber music, … [Read more...]

Funny, Craig Ferguson said this ("An armed society is a polite society...") on his show last week and I mistook it for a Scot's blandishment on American gun culture. Turns out to be Heinlein? GUILTY PLEASURES 1. Paul McCartney MCCARTNEY (1970) 2. Graham Nash SONGS FOR BEGINNERS (1971) 3. Alice … [Read more...]

DEATH CIRCUS Is Six Feet Under all about unsympathetic characters? Is Claire out of her mind? How unbearable is Ruth--more unbearable than last season? Will Rachel going to jump on her new boss? Will she jump on her new boss's family? Do Keith and David have the healthiest relationship on the show? … [Read more...]

BEAT IT : Michael Moonwalks Boston Herald (previously a winner for HELLFIRE!, after Waco. Why was there so little competition for this?) MUST BE A GOOD SIGNWhen the season-closer of a series makes you feel a sense of loss. THE SHIELD did this, despite the fact that Glenn Close's last scene, fired … [Read more...]

Why did "they" let Harry Shearer's Nixon into heaven? So he could "let off steam?" No, just hoping he and his toady Erlichman would "lose their edge [RA]. Sorta thing. LET US NOW PRAISE Chip Kidd … [Read more...]

Lisa Napoli at Marketplace talked to me for a short industry story this morning (RA). Thanks Vince! … [Read more...]

"Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes that you can do these things. Among them are a … [Read more...]

Oprah picks three Faulkner novels for her summer reading club, complete with free online commentaries by scholars... The Vintage box includes AS I LAY DYING, SOUND AND THE FURY, and LIGHT IN AUGUST, which is more like the novelist's broiling core than a 8th-grade educated audience's introduction. … [Read more...]

Don't let the opening number put you off: Mario Cantone captures Norma Desmond as well as Jim Morrison (the lost Christmas special), and his Laugh Whore Showtime special makes the direct and necessary connection between gay-bashing and lynching. Nobody's caught Liza quite this well, and for … [Read more...]

The Man Who Stole Ewan McGregor's Charisma ... and that makes Jimmy Smits the new... Billy Dee Williams? TWOFER NOT MO BETTER Although he gets a big piece of it wrong, Tierney's column last Monday in the TIMES cites SKL's book on the web page. While we're linking to Tierney, I can understand why … [Read more...]

LINGWEENIES ARE THE NEW PANSY HAWKS Merriam-Webster's Top Ten Faux Words GOOD FIT Richard Linklater signs to produce Fast Food Nation... … [Read more...]

This is a good example of a strong film nearly bleached out by its precious New Age score. It's worth seeing, but the neat script tidys things up perhaps too much, and it casts a shadow of self-importance offset by Cheadle's mournful expression. Can a critic complain about a literate script that … [Read more...]

"Who didn't flush the toilet...?" "Upstairs or downstairs?" "Why don't we flush the sky?! THE SOUND OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY TUMBLING INTO THE SEA Directory of mp3 Sites WHICH QUICKLY LED ME TO This mp3 blog roundtable on the redoubtable etc... (more roundtables)... … [Read more...]

From David Corn in Huffington: ...Yes, we all know how much McClellan and the White House are addicted to truth and honesty--especially when it comes to the war on terrorism. Seems to me that with a few slight amendments McClellan's remark might also apply to another institution that got an even … [Read more...]

"Making sure nobody walks in LA," Jiffy Lube, Santa Monica WHO KNEW? Los Angeles supports TWO classical radio stations: KUSC and KING ... AND NOW, THIS About time... … [Read more...]