Bibliotheca Schoenbergensis:
An Exhibition from the Collection of Lawrence J. Schoenberg.
Illuminated
books.
'...
For three decades, Lawrence Schoenberg has been collecting in an area
reserved for the few: illustrated manuscripts from the medieval and early
modern periods
...'
'What is most striking about the collection is its breadth. Stretching
from the eleventh to the eighteenth century, it includes monastic,
university, and lay texts. There are manuscripts not only in Latin and
western European vernaculars, but also in Hebrew, Persian, and Arabic.
Texts in the collection deal with everything from prayer and liturgy to
mathematics and horse breeding. Its codices contain spectacular
illuminations as well as utilitarian illustrations. For the scholar,
Mr. Schoenberg's collection is a rich banquet at which to dine. Here
one can study the contrasts between public and private devotion, the
evolution of the school curriculum, the practices of history, and some
chapters in a yet-to-be written history of science and technology. '
Race & Slavery Petitions Project.
'In the summer of 1991, Loren Schweninger, a professor of history,
began traveling the South visiting courthouses and state archives in
search of legal petitions related to race and slavery. He expected to
find dry facts buried in legal terminology. What he actually found was
a wealth of new information about peoples' lives and circumstances
between the American Revolution and the Civil War. The petitions portray,
in vivid and personal terms, the contrasts, ambivalence, contradictions,
ironies, and ambiguities that comprise southern history. He began a
project that became a journey. You can follow in his footsteps.'
Japanese Shunga. Prints - not safe for work
viewing.
'In these examples of Japanese shunga we see a great variety of
lovemaking techniques, situations, positions and possibilities. Whether
heterosexual or homosexual, the diversity of sexual behaviors expressed
within this artform offer a glimpse of the sexual freedoms available in
previous eras and cultures.'
Trafalgar Online.
'September 2005 marks the 200th anniversary of Horatio Nelson's
victory at the Battle of Trafalgar. As part of the national SeaBritain
campaign, which celebrates Nelson's achievement and Britain's maritime
heritage, this selection of images from the collections at London's
Transport Museum's shows how one of Britain's greatest heroes and
Trafalgar Square, built in his honour, have come to represent the spirit
of London.'
Motel Postcards from the Era of the
Open Road.
'Nostalgia for old motels, like most forms of nostalgia, is selective
and dishonest. We like to imagine a pure world before the soulless
hotel chains took over, a landscape of lovely neon, local charm, and
individuality. No doubt this was the case, occasionally, in the 50s
and early 60s, but it was only part of the story. Standardization has
its benefits. Franchise outfits have their rules. Every Holiday Inn may
feel the same, look the same, but you're reasonably sure there won't be
bugs in the mattress or Norman Bates peeping through a crack in the
bathroom tiles...'
Hero, Hawk and Open Hand. Native American art.
'Hero, Hawk, and Open Hand: American Indian Art of the Ancient Midwest and
South explores the themes of a major branch of early civilization in the
Americas that is virtually unknown to the public?that of the midwestern
and southern United States. The exhibition assembles some 300 masterpieces
of stone, ceramic, wood, shell, and copper created between 2000 B.C. and
A.D. 1600 and presents them in the context of large-scale plans and
reconstruction drawings of major archaeological sites. Sculptural forms
embrace a wide range of human, animal, and vegetal motifs, as well as
composite imaginary creatures, abstract shapes, and embellished vessels,
implements, and items of ritual paraphernalia. '
Seurat and the Making of La Grande Jatte.
' Sunday on La Grande Jatte?1884 is one of the most beloved, famous, and
frequently reproduced paintings in the world. Seen by tens of millions of
viewers since it entered the Art Institute's collection in 1924, the
painting is an icon and a destination in itself for visitors. This
exhibition of approximately 130 paintings and works on paper at once
celebrates and sheds new light on Georges Seurat?s masterpiece by bringing
together approximately 45 of the artist?s paintings and drawings related
to the picture?from rich, yet delicate, conté crayon studies to oil
sketches on small wood panels to nearly full-size paintings. The
exhibition presents some of Seurat?s early works and shows the remarkable
transformation of his colors and subject matter around 1883?85, when he
started to explore the modern-life subjects, high-keyed colors, and broken
brushwork of Impressionism. The exhibition features paintings by Claude
Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, and Camille Pissarro, all painters whom
Seurat greatly admired. These artists? depictions of figures at the
seaside, boating, or promenading through fields would resonate in Seurat?s
unabashed tribute to modern leisure. Also included are works by Paul
Signac and Lucien Pissarro, artists who shared similar interest in the
pointillist technique and whose works were featured in the same exhibition
that launched La Grande Jatte to a Parisian public.'
Taoism and the Arts of
China.
'The exhibition Taoism and the Arts of China is on view at The Art
Institute of Chicago from November 4, 2000, to January 7, 2001, and at the
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco from February 21 to May 13, 2001. This
is the first major exhibition of Taoist art in the United States,
showcasing 151 works of art illustrating many facets of the Taoist
religion. The exhibition includes paintings, calligraphy, sculpture,
porcelain, lacquer, and ritual robes and implements from museums and
private collections in the United States, Europe, Japan, China, Taiwan,
and Hong Kong. These items date from the Warring States period to the Qing
dynasty and demonstrate the development of Taoism and Taoist art from its
earliest precedents to its "renaissance" in the late imperial age.'
Window on the West: Chicago and the Art of the New Frontier
1890-1940.
'Ambitious businessmen, industrialists, and a hardworking population of
laborers made the city the agricultural, livestock, and railroad hub of
the nation. Chicago's economic leaders also became its most prominent art
patrons, working together to establish powerful institutional networks.
These leaders also supported artists who were drawn to subjects
celebrating the American West. Without patrons such as Charles Hutchinson,
Oscar Mayer, Carter Harrison, and George Harding, and institutions such as
the Art Institute, the Newberry Library, the Field Museum, and the Santa
Fe Railway, western art would have had little national recognition at the
turn of the century. More than 100 works of art?paintings, sculpture,
decorative arts, and works on paper?trace the ways in which class,
ethnicity, and the city's often infamous politics determined collecting
habits and how these, in turn, affected the images that artists used to
depict the West, from the rugged cowboys and scouts of Frederic Remington
to the abtract desert landscapes and still lifes of Georgia O'Keeffe.'
The Coit Tower, Telegraph
Hill, San Francisco.
Its history and art.
'It is a matter of historical record that the Coit Tower art project was
the prototype for the decade of the New Deal art that followed, 1933-43,
halted finally by World War II. Utilizing carefully selected artistic
talent, the project provided an iconography of the "American Scene" for
the largest of all the art programs at that time, the Works Progress
Administration's Federal Art Project (WPA-FAP) which followed a year after
the PWAP. '
'The themes of agriculture, education, urban and rural life, social
protest, and New Deal Idealism established at Coit Tower were to become
the subsequent subjects of those same artists and of others who took up
paintbrushes and sculptors' tools under further government-sponsored art
programs throughout the nation. '
Meiko
Kaji.
'Undisputed queen of 70's Japanese exploitation cinema
next to Yumi TAKIGAWA or Naomi TANI, the name of Meiko
KAJI has for decennia been familiar to any lover of B
– and the cult continues, especially following Quentin
TARANTINO's recent threefold tribute to her in the
captivating KILL BILL.'
Via Geisha
Asobi.
Back
from the
Depths.
'On 24th March 1984 Scream! hit the shelves of
newsagents around the world. The fantastic stories
within its pages had kids shaking in their shoes in a
way no other comic has ever achieved. Then, after only
15 issues, Scream! mysteriously ended. Rumours of
strikes at IPC Magazines, the comic's creators, could
have been the cause. Declining comic sales in the UK
another. Possibly the grizzly nature of Scream! caused
hordes of desperate mothers to get the comic banned.
Who knows? Maybe a darker mystery is at the heart of
this puzzle, a bizarre twist that no one has the
answer to. Whatever did happen the fact remains the
Scream! was an awesome comic, nearly forgotten
forever…nearly, but not anymore.'
Via
Bibi.
Ellen
von Unwerth.
"Ellen
photographs women like objects, almost like a voyeur.
They're very sexy photos. If you look at her photos,
you would say a man made them. I would say an older
man who likes young girls." -- Isabella
Rossellini.
Via Bibi.
The West Midlands
Ghost Club.
'Established in 1991, to study and investigate (alleged) Paranormal
Activity within the West Midlands, South Staffordshire and immediate
surrounding area.'
A Thousand Miles Up the Nile, by Amelia B.
Edwards.
"published in 1877, this book has been out of print for several years.
I have therefore very gladly revised it for a new and cheaper edition.
In so revising it, I have corrected some of the historical notes by the
light of later discoveries; but I have left the narrative untouched. Of
the political changes which have come over the land of Egypt since that
narrative was written, I have taken no note; and because I in no sense
offer myself as a guide to others, I say nothing of the altered
conditions under which most Nile travellers now perform the trip.
All these things will be more satisfactorily, and more practically,
learned from the pages of Baedeker and Murray. " - Amelia B. Edwards,
1888.
The 1966 Batman TV Tribute Site.
'Thirty years ago, Americans from all walks of life were glued to their
TV. sets watching a brand new show. It took the country by storm and
caused Bat Mania. Young and old alike were taken on a roller coaster
ride that was called BATMAN'
Isaac Newton.
Biography - early life, Principia Mathematica,
later life, religious views, Occult studies.
link
18th November
Buddhism - The Art of Asia.
'Having originated 2,500 years ago, the Buddha's teachings have formed
the core of the religion known as Buddhism. Over the centuries, Buddhism
spread from India into all corners of Asia. As it spread, it transformed
into a wide variety of beliefs and practices. The artforms it inspired
are well represented in the museum's collection.'
Rembrandt's Journey.
'Dutch artist Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669) had a gift of visual
invention that spawned his productive and successful career. A master
across three media, he radically redefined the technique of etching
by bringing to it the freedom and spontaneity of painting and
drawing.'
'Rembrandt's Journey explores the dynamic evolution of the artist's
extensive and richly varied work in printmaking within the context
of his paintings and drawings. In the exhibition, the three media are
alternately presented as intertwined or parallel developments.
Following a broad chronological arc, the installation presents certain
themes to which Rembrandt repeatedly returned with fresh insights and
interpretations: biblical illustration, portraiture and self-portraiture,
daily life, landscape, and the nude. His choice of subject matter was
unusually wide, and his work demonstrates a Shakespearean mixture of
moods ranging from earthy comedy to somber tragedy.'
Jewish Languages.
'The Jewish languages are a set of languages that developed in various
Jewish communities, in Europe, southern and south-western Asia, and
northern Africa. The usual course of development for these languages
was through the addition of Hebrew words and phrases, used to express
uniquely Jewish concepts and concerns, to the local vernacular. Due to
the insular nature of many Jewish communities, many Jewish languages
retain vocabulary and linguistic structures long after they have been
lost or changed in later forms of the language from which they are
descended.'
Guiding Light. Ultra-long-running US soap.
'The series was created by Irna Phillips, who based it on personal
experiences in her life. After giving birth to a still-born baby at
age 19, she found spiritual comfort listening to sermons by a preacher
of a church centered on the brotherhood of man. It was these sermons
that formed the nucleus of the creation of The Guiding Light.'
'The radio show's original storyline centered around a preacher named
Rev. John Ruthledge, and all the people of a fictional suburb in Chicago
called Five Points. The townspeople's lives had revolved around him.
The show's title comes from a lamp in his study that family and residents
could see as a sign for them to find help when needed. Storylines in
this era touched on topics rarely discussed up to that point - character
Rose Kransky had radio's first out-of-wedlock baby...'
The Lenny Bruce FBI File.
'Lenny Bruce was born Leonard Alfred Schneider on October 13, 1925 in
Mineola, New York. Lenny's first big break occurs in October of 1948
on the Arthur Godfrey Talent Scouts show. The next
few
years were spent at numerous comedy clubs across the country refining
what became known as "sick comedy" routines...'
Fargo.
'Take a look at this picture, and tell yourself that things are better
today. Cities today: Big white malls, clean black parking lots with
a superstore rising like a cheap brick glacier, fast-food franchises,
landscapes indistinguishable from any other city. Bah. I don't want
to short-shrift convenience or harangue the auto culture, but they're
thin comforts, and they have no weight. You throw out your anchor and
it clatters at your feet. This picture shows a town usually used as
shorthand for America's arctic gulag, the end of the earth, a distant
outpost of igloos and teepees. But tell me this doesn't look like a
small civil corner of a long-gone golden time.'
The Newtown Project. The history of a Sydney
suburb.
'This web site has been created by volunteers working in the City of
Sydney Archives to bring together historical information about the
Municipality of Newtown. We hope it will be of information to
researchers, local residents and all who have an interest in Newtown. '
Mary MacKillop in Portland. The life of an
Australian nun.
'Mary MacKillop was born 1842 and was the eldest child of Scottish
immigrants Alexander and Flora MacKillop. The y had been married at in
St Francis Church, Melbourne had lived in what is now known as
Brunswick St Fitzroy.'
The James P. Cannon Archive.
American Marxist.
'James Patrick Cannon was born in February 1890 in Rosedale, Kansas
(today a part of Kansas City). His socialism came from his father, an
Irish republican and Populist who had become a socialist in 1897.'
'Cannon joined the Socialist Party in 1908; he left it in 1911 to join
the more militant Industrial Workers of the World. In 1912-14 he was a
travelling organiser and agitator for the IWW in the Midwest and during
the war he was active in its Kansas City branch...'
Chicago Defender.
'Founded in 1905 by Robert Sengstacke Abbott, the Chicago Defender, for
100 years, has been the voice of the African-American Community in
Chicago and across the United States. Using bold headlines and red ink,
the Chicago Defender spoke out against lynching, racism, and
segregation. The Chicago Defender led the movement known as the Great
Migration; promoted the activities of pioneering aviatrix Bessie
Coleman; led the charge to integrate the United States Armed Services;
and promoted the careers of Poet Laureate Gwendolyn Brooks and renowned
author Langston Hughes.'
Try Your Hand at Reading Body Language.
'The smile is a commonly used way of concealing our true feelings.
Consider the following three smiles. They represent three types of
smiles: Genuine, False, and Contempt. See if you can guess which smile
is which.'
link
17th November
The Story of
Mankind.
A wonderful history of the human race, published just
after World War I.
Diary of a Nobody. A Victorian satire in diary form.
"Why should I not publish my diary? I have often seen reminiscences of
people I have never even heard of, and I fail to see -- because I do not
happen to be a 'Somebody' -- why my diary should not be interesting. My
only regret is that I did not commence it when I was a youth. " -
Charles Pooter.
More Jataka Tales. Stories of Buddha's past lives.
'The Jataka tales, regarded as historic in the Third Century B. C., are
the oldest collection of folk-lore extant. They come down to us from
that dim far-off time when our forebears told tales around the same
hearth fire on the roof of the world. Professor Rhys Davids speaks of
them as "a priceless record of the childhood of our race. The same
stories are found in Greek, Latin, Arabic, Persian, and in most European
languages. The Greek versions of the Jataka tales were adapted and
ascribed to the famous storyteller, Aesop, and under his name handed
down as a continual feast for the children in the West,-tales first
invented to please and instruct our far-off cousins in the East." Here
East, though East, meets West!'
Woody
Guthrie. American folk musician.
'Woodrow Wilson Guthrie was born on July 14, 1912, in Okemah, Oklahoma.
Describing the small frontier town in Okfuskee County, Woody writes:
"Okemah was one of the singiest, square dancingest, drinkingest,
yellingest, preachingest, walkingest, talkingest, laughingest,
cryingest, shootingest, fist fightingest, bleedingest, gamblingest, gun,
club and razor carryingest of our ranch towns and farm towns, because it
blossomed out into one of our first Oil Boom Town ..."
Roads to
the Future.
Highway and transportation history - mainly
Washington DC, Virginia, Maryland.
Lilly Christine.
'There's not much for me to say about Lilly Christine, because I know so
little. I know that she is all over pin up magazines from the 50's, she
was known as "The Cat Girl", she is one of the most beautiful women I've
ever seen, and she danced primarily in New Orleans at Louis Prima's 500
club.
I have been told that she comitted suicide in the 60's. An interview of
Linda Bridgette, her successor at 500 Club, says she died of
peritonitis. According to the Internet Movie Database, she appeared in 4
movies.
Although she is often confused with and overshadowed by Lili St. Cyr,
Lilly Christine was a true original, a glamour girl for the exotica age,
and photos of her are still an exciting find for pin-up enthusiasts. '
Primo Levi's Last Moments.
'Sometime after 10:00 a.m., Saturday, April 11, 1987, on the third floor
of a late-nineteenth-century building in Turin, the concierge rang the
doorbell of Primo Levi's apartment. Levi-research chemist, retired
factory manager, author of our most humanly compelling accounts of the
Holocaust-had been born in that apartment 67 years earlier. He opened
the door and collected his mail from the concierge like every other day.
He was wearing a short-sleeve shirt. He smiled, thanked her as usual,
and closed the door. The concierge descended on foot the ample spiral
staircase occupied in the middle by a caged elevator. She had barely
reached her cubicle on the ground floor, she later told the police, when
she heard Levi's body hit the bottom of the stairs by the elevator. It
was 10:20. A dentist who lived in the building heard her screams. He
immediately saw, he subsequently reported, that Levi was dead...'
Leonardo. Leonardo da Vinci - life and work, machines,
manuscripts, etc.
You've Got Buckley's.
'In 1835 William Buckley appeared at the camp site of John Batman's Port
Phillip Association with a party of aboriginals who had told him about
the sighting of a ship at Indented Heads...'
'...
He had been sentenced to imprisonment at the age of 20 in 1802 for
stealing a bolt of cloth. He escaped from Sullivan's Bay, near the Port
Phillip Bay heads in 1803. Believing Sydney to be somewhere to the
North, perhaps 500 miles away William Buckley made his escape with five
companions at 9pm on 27th December, 1803.'
The
Russia Project. Radio and online stories
a decade after the Soviet Union.
William Penn:
The Fruits of Solitude.
'The aphorisms of the founder of Pennsylvania published anonymously so
as not to be reimprisoned for disloyalty epitomize the simple Quaker
truths upon which the Republic would be based.'
Fairground Heritage.
'Fairs were the main focal point of commerce in the UK for hundreds of
years before the industrial revolution, and many can trace their origins
back to charters and privileges granted in medieval times...'
Respectfully
Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations, 1989.
'The 2,100 entries in this eminently researched collection form the
constellation of collected wisdom in American political debate. In
fulfilling decades of requests from Members of Congress for citation of
quotations, the Library of Congress compiled the most frequently asked
questions of the legislature for the edification of every citizen.'
Mulholland Drive.
'...However, the film has gained cult status in recent times with many
interpretations floating on the internet about the film's meaning and
symbolism. Lynch, as usual for his works, has not given any explanations
about the film's "true meaning". The US and UK DVD release does contain
10 clues from the director on the inner sleeve, but this has only
promoted further speculation about the mysteries of the film.'
link
16th November
Encyclopaedia
Estonica. Estonia on the Internet.
'Atika, Kapri, Borodino, Soodoma, Kosova, Pariis - historical places of
the world? No, just some village names from Estonia. '
Genghis Khan: Treasures of Inner Mongolia.
'In 1206, a man known as Temujen was crowned Genghis Khan - "emperor of
all emperors". His mounted Mongol army swept out of the steppes of Asia
in an apocalyptic wave to conquer two thirds of the known world. Recent
finds in the arid lands of Inner Mongolia are casting a new light on
Genghis Khan. Although he was a conquering emperor, Genghis Khan was
also a supreme military strategist and clever politician. He was the
product of a rich cultural and artistic heritage dating back 6000 years.
'
Bye Bye Blackboard...
From Einstein and Others.
'Blackboards were wiped after use: they were meant for immediate
communication, not for record. Even as they were being used, their
messages were continuously revised, erased and renewed. But when
Einstein came to Oxford in 1931, he was already an international
celebrity. After one of his lectures a blackboard was preserved and has
become a kind of relic. It is the most famous object in this Museum.
'
'This exhibition marks the centenary of the Special Theory of Relativity
by inviting a number of well-known people in Britain today to chalk on
blackboards the same size as Einstein's. All these guest blackboards
have been prepared in the early months of 2005. The result is an
exhibition about science, art, celebrity and nostalgia. The blackboard
is fast disappearing from meetings, classes and lectures: 'bye-bye
blackboard'. '
The Cathedral of Magdeburg.
'The Cathedral of Magdeburg, officially called the Cathedral of Saints
Catherine and Maurice (known as Magdeburger Dom in German) was the first
Gothic cathedral in Germany and with a height of 104 m, it is the
tallest cathedral in the former East Germany. The cathedral is in
Magdeburg, the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany,
and is also home to the grave of Otto I the Great...'
John Dee.
'Dee straddled the worlds of science and magic. One of the most learned
men of his time, he had lectured to crowded halls at the University of
Paris when still in his early twenties. He was an ardent promoter of
mathematics, a respected astronomer and a leading expert in navigation,
having trained many of those who would conduct England's voyages of
discovery. At the same time, he immersed himself deeply in Christian
angel-magic and Hermetic philosophy, devoting the last third of his life
almost exclusively to these pursuits. For Dee, as with many of his
contemporaries, these activities were not contradictory, but particular
aspects of a consistent world-view.'
Winston Churchill.
'Churchill spent much of his childhood at boarding schools, including
Harrow. He was rarely visited by his mother, whom he virtually
worshipped, despite his letters begging her to either come or let his
father permit him to come home. He had a distant relationship with his
father, despite keenly following his father's career. Once, in 1886, he
is reported to have proclaimed "My daddy is Chancellor of the Exchequer
and one day that's what I'm going to be." His desolate, lonely childhood
stayed with him throughout his life. He was very close to his nurse,
Elizabeth Ann Everest (nicknamed "Woom" by Churchill), and was deeply
saddened when she died on 3 July 1895. Churchill paid for her gravestone
at the City of London Cemetery and Crematorium...'
History of Greenland.
'The history of Greenland, the world's largest island, is the history of
life under extreme Arctic conditions: an ice-cap covers about 84 percent
of the island, largely restricting human activity to the coasts.
Greenland was unknown to Europeans until the 10th century, when it was
discovered by Icelandic Vikings. Before this discovery, it had been
inhabited for a long time by Arctic peoples, although it was unpopulated
when the Vikings arrived; the direct ancestors of the modern Inuit did
not arrive until around 1200. The Inuit were the only people to inhabit
the island for several hundred years, but in remembrance of the Viking
settlement, Denmark nonetheless claimed the territory, and colonized it
in the 18th century. Colonial privileges were retained, such as trade
monopoly...'
Norma Talmadge. Silent movie star.
More.
'Norma Talmadge was one of the greatest stars of the silent era. She
began her film work as a teenager in 1910 at the Vitagraph Studios in
Flatbush, just a streetcar ride from her home. In 1916 she met and
married exhibitor Joseph M. Schenck, and together they formed the Norma
Talmadge Film Corporation, one of the most lucrative partnerships in
film history. Talmadge became one of the top box office attractions for
the rest of the silent era, evolving from a spunky teenager into one of
the finest dramatic actresses of the screen. One of the wealthiest women
in Hollywood, she retired after her two talkies proved disappointing at
the box office. She died on Christmas Eve, 1957.'
Pella Museum.
The geology and paleontology of Jordan.
SeniorNet. Bringing wisdom to the information
age.
'SeniorNet's mission is to provide older adults education for and access
to computer technologies to enhance their lives and enable them to share
their knowledge and wisdom.'
Centre for Political Song.
'Welcome to the Centre for Political Song. We exist to promote and
foster an awareness of all forms of political song; an appreciation of
the role of political song in the social, political and cultural life of
communities; and to facilitate research in all relevant areas of study.
'
Political songs.
Shunga Netsuke.
Japanese netsuke figurines. May not be safe for work.
The Loyalty Oath Controversy, University of California
1949-51.
'In 1949, during the Cold War, the Board of Regents of the University of
California imposed a requirement that all University employees sign an
oath affirming not only loyalty to the state constitution, but a denial
of membership or belief in organizations (including Communist
organizations) advocating overthrow of the United States government.
Many faculty, students, and employees resisted the oath for violating
principles of shared governance, academic freedom, and tenure. In the
summer of 1950, thirty-one "non-signer" professors--including
internationally distinguished scholars, not one of whom had been charged
of professional unfitness or personal disloyalty--and many other UC
employees were dismissed. The controversy raised critical questions for
American higher education.'
Bettie Page. May
not be safe for work.
'Nice and naughty, shy and daring, simple and exotic, Bettie shone with
a freshness never before seen in the modeling scene. Without elaborate
props, costumes, or set-dressings, Bettie produced some of the most
beautiful shots to ever grace the covers of hundreds of magazines.'
The H. L. Mencken Page.
'The most prominent newspaperman, book reviewer, and political
commentator of his day, Henry Louis Mencken was a libertarian before the
word came into usage. His prose is as clear as an azure sky, and his
rhetoric as deadly as a rifle shot. Frequent targets of his lance were
Franklin Roosevelt and New Deal politics, Comstocks, hygenists,
"uplifters", social reformers of any stripe, boobs & quacks, and the
insatiable American appetite for nonsense and gaudy sham. But his life
was not defined by negativity. He was positively enthusiastic about to
the writings of Twain and Conrad, the music of Brahms, Beethoven and
Bach, and the victuals offered up by Chesapeake Bay. '
Lucille Ball,
Everything Lucy.
'Lucille Ball was offered her own televison program by CBS in 1949, at
the dawn of television. Modeled after her hit Radio Program, My Favorite
Husband, Lucille Ball was excited by the new medium. She told CBS that
she would only do it if her husband, Cuban bandleader Desi Arnaz, could
be her co-star. CBS had more of an all-American couple in mind, and they
flatly turned her down. Not one to take no for an answer, Lucy raised
$5000 and, together with Desi, produced a pilot. That historic show did
not air ... but it contained all of the elements that would make I Love
Lucy an instant hit, and it convinced CBS to sign the deal...'
Flapper Culture.
'The flapper, whose antics were immortalized in the cartoons of
John Held Jr., was the heroine of the Jazz Age. With short hair
and a short skirt, with turned-down hose and powdered knees - the
flapper must have seemed to her mother (the gentle Gibson girl of an
earlier generation) like a rebel. No longer confined to home and
tradition, the typical flapper was a young women who was often thought
of as a little fast and maybe even a little brazen...'
Alicebot.
Artificial intelligence and chat 'robots'.
75 Years of Green Line Coaches 1930-2005.
From the London Transport Museum.
'To celebrate Green Line's 75th anniversary, we present a selection of
30 poster images from the Museum's archives. '
Exploits of Lord Krishna.
'While Lord Krishna is widely worshipped among Hindus as an avatar of
Lord Vishnu, the cause for his popularity is his intensely human form
as described in the Hindu epics. His exploits (collectively called
"Krishna Leela") are a popular theme for Indian artists over centuries.
Krishna is often depicted as an overgrown, naughty child stealing butter,
as a cowherd protecting cows, as a mischievous adolescent who stole
women's clothes, and a slayer of demons. He is also the supreme diplomat,
and especially the preacher of the sacred verse, Bhagavad-Gita at a time
of war.'
The Kingdom of Hawaii.
'The Kingdom of Hawaii was established in 1810 upon the unification of
the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lanai and the
Big Island of Hawaii through swift and bloody battles, led by a warrior
chief who later would be immortalized as Kamehameha the Great. Kamehameha
failed to secure a victory in Kauai, his effort hampered by a storm.
Eventually, Kauai's chief swore allegiance to Kamehameha's rule. The
unification ended the feudal society of the Hawaiian islands transforming
it into a "modern", independent constitutional monarchy crafted in the
tradition of European empires...'
Big Things: The Monuments of Canada.
'This website is dedicated to those fantastic and awe inspiring
monuments built by communities to draw tourist dollars into their
community. I am talking about the world's largest oilcan, the world's
largest Easter egg, the world's largest (fill in the blank)...'
Angkor
Guide.
'Angkor Wat?
Here's a translation of Maurice Glaize's popular and definitive
1944 guide to the Angkor Monuments for free.
Read it online or download the text with a useful map. '
Martin Chambi. Master photographer of indigenous
Peru.
'As the world has awakened to the enormous riches of historical and
contemporary Latin American art, renewed interest has been sparked in
the extraordinary work of Peruvian photographer Chambi (1891-1973).
Of Indian descent, Chambi was born in a small village in the Andes.
After moving to Arequipa and apprenticing for nine years in the studio
of Max T. Vargas, Chambi traveled to Cuzco and opened his own studio.
Between the early 1920s and the 1950s, Chambi documented Cuzco's
substantial cultural heritage. As a photographer, he "laid bare all
the social complexity of the Andes," says Vargas Llosa in his foreword,
with images that "place us in the heart of highland feudalism, in the
haciendas of the large landholders, with their servants and concubines"
and "in the colonial processions of contrite and drunken
throngs." ...'
Black Europeans.
'The figures featured in Black Europeans - Alexander Pushkin, Alexandre
Dumas, George Polgreen Bridgetower, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and John
Archer - all have a mixed European and African ancestry. Although they
were fully conscious of their mixed backgrounds, they also regarded
themselves as part of a European nation, and thought of their work
as a contribution to their own sector of the culture of Europe and
the world. And they were all figures whose public image and whose
activities have been generally accepted (both by their contemporaries
and by later generations) to be an important part of Europe's cultural
heritage - to the point where most people ignore, or have forgotten
about, the 'black' element of their identity and its significance in
their lives and work.'
The Chymistry of Isaac Newton.
'Isaac Newton, like Albert Einstein, is a quintessential symbol of the
human intellect and its ability to decode the secrets of nature. Newton's
fundamental contributions to science include the quantification of
gravitational attraction, the discovery that white light is actually
a mixture of immutable spectral colors, and the formulation of the
calculus. Yet there is another, more mysterious side to Newton that
is imperfectly known, a realm of activity that spanned some thirty
years of his life, although he kept it largely hidden from his
contemporaries and colleagues. We refer to Newton's involvement
in the discipline of alchemy, or as it was often called in
seventeenth-century England, "chymistry." '
'Newton wrote and transcribed about a million words on the subject of
alchemy, of which only a tiny fraction has today been published. Newton's
alchemical manuscripts include a rich and diverse set of document types,
including laboratory notebooks, indices of alchemical substances and
operations, Newton's transcriptions from other sources, and even
poetry.'
The Wonder World of K. Gordon Murray.
'K. Gordon Murray was a Florida-based producer and distributor
of low-budget motion pictures. From the late 1950's through the mid
1970's, Murray released at least 66 films, which can be broken down
into three categories:
1/ Murray imported, redubbed and released some 30 horror films from
Mexico.
2/ Murray released over 20 fairy tale films to a "Weekends Only"
matinee audience, virtually creating the highly lucrative "Kiddie
Matinee" marketing niche. These films were either redubbed imports,
rereleases of older films, or original productions.
3/ Murray released about a dozen exploitation films, risque adult
dramas designed both for drive-ins and adults-only grindhouses. These
included imported foreign films and original productions. '
'This fansite is a tribute to one of the most unique and enigmatic
independent filmmakers of an era long gone, a database for fans, and
a forum for folks who want to share their Murray memories, and perhaps
offer information on some of the "lost" films. We welcome feedback, guest
reviews, suggestions, etc. Click on any of the links below to enter the
Wonder World of K.Gordon Murray! '
Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia at Ferris
State University.
'I am a garbage collector, racist garbage. For three decades I have
collected items that defame and belittle Africans and their American
descendants. I have a parlor game, "72 Pictured Party Stunts," from the
1930s. One of the game's cards instructs players to, "Go through the
motions of a colored boy eating watermelon." The card shows a dark black
boy, with bulging eyes and blood red lips, eating a watermelon as large
as he is. The card offends me, but I collected it and 4,000 similar items
that portray blacks as Coons, Toms, Sambos, Mammies, Picaninnies, and
other dehumanizing racial caricatures. I collect this garbage because
I believe, and know to be true, that items of intolerance can be used
to teach tolerance.'
Dynamic Thought, 1923. Esoterica.
'Do not worry because you cannot follow the course exactly to the letter.
Do what you can of it, adapt it to your life, and do the best you can in
present circumstances.'
'The principal thing is to get twice daily into what is called the
Silence, to quieten the senses, and get in touch with the Unseen, i.e.,
God, Divine Mind, the Infinite, Principle of Good, First Cause, the
Absolute, the name does not matter, they all mean the same.'
link
13th November
Voices from the
Dust Bowl.
'Voices from the Dust Bowl: The Charles L. Todd and Robert Sonkin Migrant
Worker Collection is an online presentation of a multi-format ethnographic
field collection documenting the everyday life of residents of Farm
Security Administration (FSA) migrant work camps in central California in
1940 and 1941. This collection consists of audio recordings, photographs,
manuscript materials, publications, and ephemera generated during two
separate documentation trips supported by the Archive of American Folk Song
(now the Archive of Folk Culture, American Folklife Center). '
'Todd and Sonkin, both of the City College of New York (currently the City
College of the City University of New York), took disc recording equipment
supplied by the Archive of American Folk Song to Arvin, Bakersfield, El Rio,
Firebaugh, Porterville, Shafter, Thornton, Visalia, Westley, and Yuba City,
California. In these locales, they documented dance tunes, cowboy songs,
traditional ballads, square dance and play party calls, camp council
meetings, camp court proceedings, conversations, storytelling sessions, and
personal experience narratives of the Dust Bowl refugees who inhabited the
camps. '
Prague, The Crown of Bohemia, 1347-1437.
'Crowned king of Bohemia in 1347, Charles IV sought to make his capital
city-Prague-the cultural rival of Paris and Rome. The remarkable flowering
of art that resulted is being celebrated in an exhibition that draws
together some 200 stunning examples including panel paintings, goldsmiths'
work, illuminated manuscripts, sculpture, silk embroideries, and stained
glass. These little-known masterpieces attest to the wide-ranging
achievements of the hundreds of artists affiliated with Prague and the
Bohemian crown during the reign of Charles IV and his two sons, Wenceslas IV
and Sigismund. The exhibition draws on numerous collections in the Czech
Republic as well as other European and American collections.' Images.
Civil War @ Smithsonian
'is produced by the National Portrait Gallery and is dedicated to
examining the Civil War through the Smithsonian Institution's extensive and
manifold collections. Since the war itself, 1861–1865, the institution has
been actively collecting, preserving, and remembering America's most
profound national experience. Now through the World Wide Web, this site will
significantly expand that mission, giving the public increased access to
Smithsonian collections and archives. '
Transatlantic
Dialogue:
Contemporary Art In and Out of Africa.
'Over the centuries, a dialogue evolved across the Atlantic as Africans came
to the New World and blacks from America returned to their continent of
origin. An aesthetic conversation has recently developed between African and
African American artists as they work from different perspectives to
reconcile their African identity and heritage within the currents of
contemporary art. This exhibition explores the varied ways that African and
African American artists interpret their ideas and identities. Similarities
of style as well as diversity of expression emerge from a shared African
heritage.'
'Color, pattern and rhythm, improvisation and spiritual awareness are some
of the elements found in the work of these artists. Many explore the
performatory aspects of culture through music or ritual suggestions. Some
artists respond to environmental and historical circumstances in their work.
Most acknowledge a sense of spirituality that echoes older African
sensibilities. Perhaps it is telling that the works in this exhibition
cannot easily be identified as either African or African American; they are
all part of the same aesthetic conversation.'
Chicago: City of
the Century.
'City of the Century chronicles Chicago's dramatic transformation from a
swampy frontier town of fur traders and Native Americans to a massive
metropolis that was the quintessential American city of the nineteenth
century. The film tells how innovation, ingenuity, determination and
ruthlessness created empires in what was a marshy wasteland and describes
the hardships endured by millions of working men and women whose labor
helped a capitalist class reinvent the way America did business. Along the
way, this program revels in Chicago's triumphs -- among them the
architectural experimentation that gave the city one of the world's most
distinctive skylines -- and delves into the heart of Chicago's painful
struggles. Bringing to life the Windy City's rich mixture of cultures, its
writers and journalists, its political corruption and labor upheavals, this
film bears witness to the creation of one of the most dynamic and vibrant
cities in the world.'
Communist Propaganda Posters.
'Collection of 1400+ POSTERS from Russia, Czech republic, Poland and
Cuba.'
'Most posters in our collection are originals (exceptions are clearly
marked), political posters, made in the period 1950 - 1990, published with
the supervision of the Communist Party, and were designed to make people
work harder, be better communists and good patriots.'
Jainism
Potpourri.
'Along with Buddhism, Jainism is the most important reform movement to
separate from the main body of Hinduism and establish an independent unit.
The word is derived from Jina ("Victor," or "Conqueror") implying final
victory over bondage to life's misery. Jainism has the universal message of
nonviolence. The absence of a creator god in Jainism can be understood as a
reaction against the nature worship of early Vedic religion, the priestly
order of Brahmanism, and the theology of the Upanishads. Jain arts and
architecture has enriched the artistic heritage of India.'
'Jainism was founded by Rishabha, and attained a major status in India at
the time of Mahavira , who was born in about 599 B.C. in Northern India,
in the town of Vyshali, in the present day Bihar, in a royal family. When
he was about 30 years old, after he had been a householder, Mahavira decided
to abandon his aristocratic surroundings in favor of an ascetic life. He
cast aside his fine raiment, gave away his treasures, and embarked upon a
severe regimen. For twelve years he underwent castigation, enduring bodily
and spiritual injury, and emerged a teacher of many monks, a renowned
preacher, and a profounder of a new religion.'
The Works of Tacitus.
'This is the complete set of Church and Brodribb translations of Tacitus;
this etext includes parallel English and Latin text. Gaius Cornelius Tacitus
(56?-117 CE), writer, orator, lawyer, and senator, was one of the greatest
historians of antiquity. His Annals and Histories are a panorama of
first century Rome, from Tiberius to Domitian. His prose style is in the
first tier of Latin writers. Tacitus presents a vivid picture of the
high-water point of the Roman empire, and does not gloss over the toxic
corruption and brutality of the time. '
Churchill and
the Great Republic: An
Interactive Exhibition.
'On April 17, 1945, British Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill addressed
the House of Commons on the occasion of President Franklin Roosevelt's
death. He said of his friend and ally: "In war he had raised the strength,
might and glory of the great Republic to a height never attained by any
nation in history." '
'This exhibition examines the life and career of Winston Spencer Churchill
and emphasizes his lifelong links with the United States--the nation he
called "the great Republic." The exhibition comes nearly forty years after
the death of Winston Churchill and sixty years after the D-Day allied
invasion of Nazi-occupied France during World War II. It commemorates both
of these events.'
Climate of Kansas, 1948,
'complete text and illustrations. Contains searchable records covering
1887-1946, with some pre-1887 information. Data made available by the Kansas
Board of Agriculture.'
Historical
photos of
weather damage. Twisters and the Dust Bowl.
Food & Agricultures
of the World.
'Agropolis-Museum is a Science Center dealing with topics such as food,
nutrition, agriculture, with an historical approach on a worldwide scale.
'
The Banquet de l'Humanite.
'Although some people would say that «we are all in the same boat», the
«Banquet de l'Humanité» is here to show that each one eats according to
one's income, food resources and cultural background. Inequities are real
and it is necessary and urgent to pursue the struggle to provide each
inhabitant of this planet with proper food and decent living conditions.'
Bateman 365.
'An animated film a day for a year. How hard can that be? '
An American Ballroom Companion: Dance Instruction
Manuals ca. 1490-1920.
'An American Ballroom Companion presents a collection of over two
hundred social dance manuals at the Library of Congress. The list
begins with a rare late fifteenth-century source, Les basses danses
de Marguerite d'Autriche (c.1490) and ends with Ella Gardner's 1929
Public dance halls, their regulation and place in the recreation of
adolescents. Along with dance instruction manuals, this online
presentation also includes a significant number of antidance manuals,
histories, treatises on etiquette, and items from other conceptual
categories. Many of the manuals also provide historical information
on theatrical dance. All illuminate the manner in which people have
joyfully expressed themselves as they dance for and with one
another. '
History of 'The Protocols of the Elders of
Zion'. History of a conspiracy theory and a blood
libel.
'The Protocols of the (Learned) Elders of Zion is a fraudelent
document, frequently quoted and reprinted by anti-Semites, purporting
to describe a plan to achieve Jewish global domination. It has been proven
fraudulent by numerous independent investigations during the last 100
years. The Encyclopaedia Britannica describes the Protocols as a
"fraudulent document that served as a pretext and rationale for
anti-Semitism in the early 20th century".'
Dogpatch USA.
'Dogpatch USA is a defunct theme park located on State Highway 7 between
the cities of Harrison and Jasper in Arkansas, USA, an area known today
as Marble Falls. The park opened to the public in 1968. It was based on
the popular comic strip Li'l Abner, created by cartoonist Al Capp and set
in a fictional town called "Dogpatch." ...'
Race to the Moon.
'On Christmas Eve 1968, one of the largest audiences in television
history tuned in to an extraordinary sight: a live telecast of the moon's
surface as seen from Apollo 8, the first manned space flight to leave
Earth's gravitational pull and orbit the moon. The historic journey
captivated people around the world; many welcomed a technological triumph
in space after a year marked by assassinations, riots and war. '
'As this American Experience production reveals, however, the mission's
success was far from assured. The Apollo 8 astronauts had just four
months to prepare for the risky lunar orbit, and catastrophic failure
would have brought a halt to America's goal of putting a man on the moon
before the end of the decade... '
Mark Twain In His Times.
'This interpretive archive, drawn largely from the resources of the
Barrett Collection, focuses on how "Mark Twain" and his works were
created and defined, marketed and performed, reviewed and appreciated.
The goal is to allow readers, scholars, students and teachers to see
what Mark Twain and His Times said about each other, in a way that can
speak to us today. Contained here are dozens of texts and manuscripts,
scores of contemporary reviews and articles, hundreds of images, and
many different kinds of interactive exhibits. '
Contemporary African Database.
African movers and shakers.
'The Contemporary Africa Database is a continuously growing,
participatory online project, designed to provide easily accessible and
current information concerning prominent Africans, African
organisations, and dates in the African calendar. '
Paradise Lost.
'Paradise Lost (1667) is an epic poem by the 17th century English poet
John Milton. It was originally published in 1667 in ten books and
written in blank verse. A second edition followed in 1674, redivided
into twelve books (mimicking the way classical epics were divided) with
minor revisions throughout and a note on the versification. The poem
concerns the Christian story of the Fall of Man: the temptation of Adam
and Eve by Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden.'
A King Pays Homage to Rama. Indian art.
'This miniature originates from the Punjab Hills region, which, until
the nineteenth century, was divided into thirty-five feudal states, each
ruled by a Rajput and each supporting its own separate painting
school...'
The Oxford Book of
American Essays, 1914.
'From Franklin and Emerson to Whitman and Roosevelt, Brander Matthews
expertly selected 32 essays on topics literary, political and humorous
spanning over a century of this form's development in America.'
An American
Anthology, 1787-1900.
'These 1740 selections by 573 authors comprise an unparalleled verse
anthology in its concentration on representing a century of poetic
culture rather than selecting the laureates only. Next to those of
Dickinson, Poe, and Longfellow, the verse populi of Mother Goose, Negro
Spirituals and even "A Visit from St. Nicholas" are given their place.'
Divine Vehicles from Hindu Mythology.
'Most Hindu Gods have their own vehicles that they use to go
about their tasks and responsibilities. We bring you this fascinating
exhibition of pictures from Indian mythologies. '
Greater Toronto Area Digital Mapping Project.
'The Toronto region is rich in history and tradition, and one area
that it is particularly affluent in is its cartography. The cartographic
history of Toronto began during the settlement by the French at Fort
Rouillé, but it was not until British settlement in the late 18th
Century that a sustained effort was made to map the area. From the
first maps of Fort York and the harbour, to today's modern aerial
photos and cartography depicting its present day grandeur as Canada's
largest urban centre, the mapping of Toronto has continued non-stop.
Through all its developments and expansion, the Greater Toronto Area
has been sketched and mapped to the point where it currently boasts a
tremendously rich assortment of cartographic treasures accessible in
various repositories throughout the city...'
cetera.
'Ninety-eight percent of the net is crud. Ginohn is striving to make it
ninety-nine. ' Good stuff.
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