Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Lucy Mangan: Our Planet [on Netflix] review - Attenborough's first act as an eco-warrior (The Guardian)
Towards the end of the caribou scenes, he cuts the ground from under us by noting that the herd we are watching is 70% smaller than it was 20 years ago. And the awe-inspiring scenes of 75m tonnes of ice, a chunk the size of a skyscraper, breaking off an ice shelf in Greenland is followed by the fact that such losses are now coming twice as fast as they were a decade ago, along with a description of their effects on sea levels, salinity and - tying it back to the start of the show - currents like the Humboldt, on which seabirds depend to bring them their anchovy feast and the birth of their next generation.
Lucy Mangan: "7 ways to address the sexist housework gap" (Stylist)
"This!" I said, stabbing at my phone with a frantic finger and forcing my friend to put down her glass and pay attention. "This! This is what I'm talking about, see! This!" 'This' was a tweet from writer Robin Beth Schaer (@robinschaer) of such shimmering perfection that it deservedly went viral. It ran thus: "My friend and her husband lived in an apartment that had a soap dispenser installed on the edge of the kitchen sink. When they moved out after two years, he marvelled to her: 'It's amazing how that dispenser never ran out of soap in all this time.' Women's work is truly invisible."
Michael Gregor, MD: The Disconnect Between Science and Policy (nutritionfacts.org)
This reminds me of the recent survey of doctors that found the number-one reason doctors don't prescribe heart-healthy diets was their perception that patients fear being deprived of all the junk they're eating. After all, Philip Morris reminded doctors in an ad that we want to keep our patients happy and to "make a radical change in habit…may do harm."
Hadley Freeman: Want to know where influencers spring from? Look at their parents (The Guardian)
How my heart leapt when the US college admissions scandal drew in a sitcom star and her Insta-famous daughter.
Suzanne Moore: Why did Pose make me cry? Because it's about the fabulous families we choose (The Guardian)
The BBC2 drama revolves around the 1980s New York underground ballroom scene at the height of the Aids crisis. Movingly, it shows families formed in the face of rejection.
Commencement Addresses (Humanity)
I've been studying commencement speeches for thirty years and would like to offer a few words to the speakers of 2019.
[This site includes many excellent commencement addresses.]
Neil Gaiman: "Make Good Art" (Humanity)
And now go, and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here. Make good art.
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Presenting
Michael Egan
took the day off.
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
from Bruce
Anecdotes
• The famed dance team of Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn almost never happened because Ms. Fonteyn, who was older than Mr. Nureyev, worried about "mutton dancing with lamb." Fortunately for ballet, she overcame her hesitation. While rehearsing Swan Lake with Mr. Nureyev, they discussed some changes that he wanted to make to the choreography. At one point, objecting to a change, she said, "Rudolf, I have been doing this ballet since 1938." He began to giggle, so she said, "I suppose that was before you were born." He replied, "No - just exact year." Once, a woman fan who had been talking in Russian with Mr. Nureyev in a restaurant suddenly noticed Ms. Fonteyn and asked Mr. Nureyev in English, "Who is that? Your mother?"
• When Ruth St. Denis was very old, she asked dance critic Walter Terry why a certain publication was always so kind in covering her activities. He investigated and discovered that an executive on the publication had had a romance with Miss Ruth long ago - a romance that Miss Ruth had totally forgotten but which the executive had never forgotten. Once, the executive approached Miss Ruth and Mr. Terry, and Mr. Terry just had time to whisper the name of the executive's publication and the reminding phrase "night in moonlight California." Miss Ruth looked into the executive's eyes and said, "It has been so long …." The favorable publicity continued.
• Near the end of Ted Shawn's life, Norbert Vesak visited him. Mr. Shawn told him, "Remember, I always said that my heart always beats in 3/4 time? Well, now I even walk in 3/4 time." Mr. Shawn then used the furniture to help support himself as he walked across the room, saying, "You see? Chair, two, three / Table, two, three / Doorway, two, three / Banister, two, three." Years later, Mr. Vesak saw Katherine Hepburn in the play West Side Waltz. At the end of the play, Ms. Hepburn's character used a walker to get across a room - Walker, two, three / Walker, two, three - and saying, "You see! Now I even walk in waltz time!"
• Catherine Shipley was both a Quaker and a character. When she was old and living alone, her children became worried about her, so they hired a companion for her. Knowing that Kate didn't want a companion, they told the companion not to leave Kate's home, even when requested to do so. The companion arrived at Kate's home and was entertained, and she did not leave even when Kate requested her to once, twice, and three times. However, Kate was master of her own home, and she called the police, who carried the companion off to jail.
• Ellen Terry (1848-1928) was a much beloved Shakespearian actress. Once, close to 80 years old, she was playing Portia, but forgot the words to the "quality of mercy" speech. She struggled to remember, could not, and then said to the audience, "I am a very silly old lady, and I cannot remember what I have to say." The audience cheerfully shouted out the words to the speech, and Ms. Terry continued with her performance.
• When George Burns got old, he used to say that his memory was getting bad, so bad that he hired a secretary with a good memory so she could nudge him when someone was approaching and remind him who the person was. One day, the secretary nudged him and said, "The fellow coming your way is your brother Willie."
• While traveling in the Orient, American dance pioneer Ted Shawn watched Madame Katayama perform a geisha dance, in which she kneeled on the floor, then bent backward until her head touched the floor between her feet. When she performed the dance for Mr. Shawn, Madame Katayama was 88 years old.
• When Pierre Monteux was in his eighties, he signed a contract that made him principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra for the next 25 years - but he insisted that the contract include an option allowing him to conduct for an additional 25 years.
• Olga Preobrajenska was a very strong ballerina and teacher of ballet. As an old lady, she lived in a nursing home, but whenever she was fed up with the nurses, she stacked all the bedroom furniture against the door so that they couldn't come in and bother her.
• A wealthy old man was interested in a young, beautiful gold digger. He asked his friends, "How old should I tell her I am? My real age of 70? Or a younger age of 60?" His friends advised, "Tell her you're 90."
• A woman objected to buying a Renaissance painting of a young girl because it had been restored. Lord Duveen told her, "My dear Madam, if you were as old as this young girl, you would have to be restored, too."
• Ethel Barrymore was once told that a woman who had been at school with her wished to see her. Ms. Barrymore replied, "Wheel her in."
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© Copyright Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
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Bonus Links
Jeannie the Teed-Off Temp
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
JD is on vacation.
Visit JD's site - Kitty Litter Music
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
So much to do.
Agrees to Six-Day Delay
WGA
The Writers Guild of America has announced a six-day delay on implementing tightened rules on Hollywood agents, temporarily averting a potentially chaotic scenario that has unnerved the industry in recent days.
The WGA announced in a message to members at 9:26 p.m. Pacific Time on Saturday that it would wait until 12:01 am on April 13 to implement its new "Code of Conduct." The rules - which would have required WGA members to fire their agents had they not signed the code - would have gone into effect a few hours later at 12:01 a.m. Sunday.
The move came after a three-hour meeting between guild leaders and talent agents a few hours earlier on Saturday afternoon, according to the WGA's negotiating committee. The get-together at WGA West headquarters in Los Angeles had been kept under wraps and many were caught by surprise when the delay on implementing the WGA code was announced. Neither side disclosed specifics on the apparent compromises.
The WGA was repped by WGA West Executive Director David Young, showrunners David Shore and Mike Schur and screenwriter Michelle Mulroney. The agencies were repped by WME's Rick Rosen, UTA's Jay Sures, CAA's Bryan Lourd, APA's James Gosnell and Karen Stuart, executive director of the Association of Talent Agencies. Gosnell is president of the ATA.
The Code of Conduct, which was overwhelmingly approved by WGA members in late March, requires that agencies agree to eliminate television packaging fees and ownership interests in production companies - demands that the agents had contended were not feasible. The WGA has asserted that the practices amount to inherent conflicts on interest and threatened several times to file suit against CAA, WME, UTA and ICM Partners.
WGA
JFK Profile in Courage Award
Nancy Pelosi
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been named the recipient of the 2019 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award.
Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of the late president, said in a statement Sunday that the California Democrat is "the most important woman in American political history."
Pelosi is being honored because of her efforts to pass former President Barack Obama's 2010 health care law and for helping Democrats reclaim control of the U.S. House during last year's elections.
Pelosi, who has served in the House since 1987, called the award "a great personal and official honor."
The award will be presented to Pelosi on May 19 during a ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston.
Nancy Pelosi
Jokes
Obama
Barack Obama has joked that his wife would leave him if he ever ran for political office again.
The former US president cracked his joke while speaking at a town hall in Berlin for an event organised by the Obama Foundation where he was was joined by "emerging European leaders" to discuss topics including climate change, inequality and nationalism.
He explained the organisation which bears his name was non-partisan, before making the joke about Michelle Obama.
"I've held my last political office," the 57-year-old said. "Michelle would leave me if I ever ran for office again."
He was greeted by a smattering of laughter from the audience, while Mr Obama continued talking with a straight face.
Obama
Announces Engagement
Don Lemon
Don Lemon announced his engagement to boyfriend Tim Malone on social media Saturday.
The CNN anchor shared a post on Instagram showing two dog tags with a message engraved on each, reading: "Daddy will you marry Papa?"
Malone, a real estate agent, shared a photo on Instagram on Friday that featured him with Lemon and friends celebrating the eve of his birthday. The pair, who have been connected for at least two years, memorably shared a New Year's kiss in New Orleans on live TV as they rang in 2018.
The year prior, the CNN host told viewers at home during a New Year's broadcast from the same New Orleans bar that he was resolving to be "less self-centered" and that he was "open to a relationship."
Lemon later revealed that Malone was actually at the same bar at the time, celebrating the last moments of 2016.
Don Lemon
Should Be Frozen
Bering Sea
Humans are living through a dramatic transformation of the planet's surface due to climate change, with the most obvious sign being the rapid decline in Arctic sea ice. And now, imaging has revealed perhaps a new chapter in that decline: The Bering Sea, which under normal circumstances should remain frozen-over until May, is almost entirely free of sea ice in early April.
Part of what makes this event so stunning, as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) pointed out in a statement, is that the Arctic sea ice should be reaching its annual maximum right now. The summer reduction in sea ice normally only begins around now. And that process has, throughout recorded history, left the region between Russia and Alaska frozen at this time of year. But 2019 already has the lowest Arctic sea ice extent on record (beating 2018, which was also a record-breaker). And that's manifesting in an unseasonably liquid sea off Alaska's northwest coast.
The dramatic ice-melt in the Arctic won't drive up sea levels directly. That ice was already floating in the ocean, so it already counted toward the ocean's total volume. But the melting will have tangible effects both on the planet's climate and on the people and economies that rely on the Arctic region.
Surface ice acts as a kind of climate regulator. The surface of ice is bright white, so it reflects sunlight back into space. When the planet has lots of ice on its surface, less of the sun's energy stays on Earth, and the planet warms more slowly.
But open water is darker and absorbs more sunlight, turning it into heat. So, while sea ice loss is caused by climate change, it also causes climate change to speed up.
Bering Sea
Settles Lawsuit
Motel 6
The national chain Motel 6 agreed Thursday to pay $12 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Washington state claiming names of hotel guests were improperly provided to immigration officials for two years, the state attorney general said.
The information led to targeted investigations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, who went after people with Latino-sounding names, Attorney General Bob Ferguson said.
Some people staying at seven Motel 6 locations in the state were detained or deported, he said.
"Motel 6's actions tore families apart and violated the privacy rights of tens of thousands of Washingtonians," Ferguson said in a statement. "Our resolution holds Motel 6 accountable for illegally handing over guests' private information without a warrant."
The company said in an email that it will enforce its guest privacy policy, which prohibits the sharing of guest information except in cases where a judicially enforceable warrant or subpoena is present or local law requires release of the information.
Motel 6
Blankets For Privacy
Beardstown
One school in Illinois has shocked students, and parents alike, after they made the decision to remove the doors from bathroom stalls after a student allegedly wrote a note in the bathroom threatening a school shooting.
Despite both students and their parents being outraged by the decision, the Beardstown School District is standing by their decision, ABC 20 reports.
After the initial shock of discovering their privacy had been taken away from them, some students have been forced to get creative.
"Mostly girls have been bringing blankets from their house and hanging it up in the stalls so people can't see them… Yesterday people started putting their shoes and boots in front of the stall so people would know they're in the bathroom," Juan Juarez, a Beardstown High School student, where the door-ban has taken effect, told the outlet.
In fact, many female students have raised their concerns over the lack of privacy, but the Beardstown School District says that they will be permitted to use the private restroom in the nurse's office. This, however, raises concerns if it unfairly causes female students to miss out on class time by not only traveling to the nurse's office but also having to wait to use the one private restroom available.
Beardstown
Have in Common
Cult Leaders
Charles Manson was living in squalor at an old Western movie lot anticipating a race war. Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, the guru featured in the documentary "Wild Wild Country," was indulging a penchant for Rolls-Royces while preaching spiritual enlightenment. Despite wide differences in goals, ideologies and lifestyles, cult leaders have some key traits in common. From studying the writings and biographies and witness accounts of cult leaders, researchers have pieced together certain characteristics that unite this rare group.
"I'd say first and foremost, probably every cult leader is a narcissist, and the extent to which his or her narcissism is negative - as one scholar called it, 'traumatic narcissism' - that's going to have an effect on how the group is shaped," said Janja Lalich, a cult researcher and professor emerita of sociology at California State University, Chico.
Traumatic narcissism isn't the narcissism of a movie star, for example, who is full of himself and inspires the admiration of others, Lalich said. Traumatic narcissism has a "deleterious effect" on others.
For a good example of traumatic narcissism at work, Lalich said you could look at the alleged sex-cult NXIVM (pronounced "nexium") that sold itself as a self-help group to empower women. NXIVM founder Keith Raniere will go on trial in New York later this month on sex trafficking and and forced labor charges. An exposé in The New York Times in 2017 detailed how women in NXIVM were branded with a symbol that included Raniere's initials and forced to follow "near-starvation diets" to be physically appealing to him. Former members have also alleged that they were coerced into sex with Raniere.
How do cult leaders persuade others into these abusive situations? Most cult leaders are very charismatic. But, as Lalich said, charisma is in the eye of the beholder; not everyone responds in the same way. (That's why, when you see footage of Charles Manson, you might be deeply confused about how he was able to attract dozens of followers.) Cult leaders' charisma also helps them set up a power imbalance between them and their followers.
Cult Leaders
Weekend Box Office
'Shazam!'
Seven films in, the DC Extended Universe is finally flying with some wind behind its back. The well-reviewed, relatively modestly budgeted "Shazam!" debuted with $53.5 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday, handing DC its latest critical and box-office success.
"Shazam!" came out well ahead of the weekend's other top draw, "Pet Sematary." Paramount Pictures' remake of the original 1989 Stephen King adaptation opened in a distant second with $25 million. It's a solid start for "Pet Sematary," though far from the haul that the last big-screen adaptation of King's conjured up: "It" opened with $123.4 million in 2017.
Last week's top film, "Dumbo," slid steeply in its second week. Landing in third, the Disney DIS, +0.22% live-action remake dropped 60% with $18.2 million.
In fourth was Jordan Peele's horror thriller "Us," which added $13.8 million in its third week. Its cumulative global total stands at $216.6 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included.
1. "Shazam!" $53.4 million ($102 million international).
2. "Pet Sematary," $25 million.
3. "Dumbo," $18.2 million.
4. "Us," $13.8 million.
5. "Captain Marvel," $12.7 million.
6. "The Best of Enemies," $4.5 million.
7. "Five Feet Apart," $3.7 million.
8. "Unplanned," $3.2 million.
9. "Wonder Park," $2 million.
10. "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World," $2 million.
'Shazam!'
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