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- ADAPTING GATSBY. (1)
- Mary Jane Schaefer: I think these are crucial, important decisions, what to leave out of any literary work, maybe any...
- DAMIEN HIRST—AN ART MARKET BUBBLE?. (1)
- Kate Bush: I hope you enjoy my visit to the Damien Hirst show as much as I did The Technical Impossibility of...
- THE MOST IMPORTANT EPISODE OF THE SIMPSONS ? (COMMENT). (1)
- Nick: Homer does has success as the team’s best hitter until Mr. Burns places a bet with a rival factory owner...
- THE “RIGHT TO EDIT”. (1)
- Lee: A relevant Simpsons clip.
- ULYSSES—VIRGINIA WOOLF LIKED THE BOOK, DESPISED THE AUTHOR. (3)
- A DEFENSE OF INVASIVE SPECIES. (3)
- Dick Weisfelder: Today’s Toledo Blade has an article on the importation of live Asian carp to Canada to serve...
- Lee: The downside is that red squirrels are way cuter than their gray cousins. Hitchens on the subject.
- THE OLDEST FANTASY BASEBALL LEAGUE STARTS ITS 32ND SEASON. (COMMENT). (5)
- frank martin: Have been in a an Al only Roto league since 91… started at Ohio University were we all went to...
- DEATH OF A BUMBLEBEE. (1)
- Nick: By contrast, I remember witnessing the entire thing. I was surprised by Annalisa’s reaction and...
- ANOTHER VOTE ON UMBRIDGE. (1)
- Dick Weisfelder: When I look back at one of the Potter books, it’s usually this one. There are just a lot of...
- THE SCARIEST VILLAIN IN HARRY POTTER? (1)
- Dick Weisfelder: Didn’t we all meet her somewhere in grade or high school?
- ADAPTING GATSBY. (1)
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Monthly Archives: April 2010
MARK TWAIN’S GREAT SUBJECT.
MARK TWAIN’S GREAT SUBJECT. Putting to one side HUCKLEBERRY FINN, Mark Twain would remain a giant. I read somewhere (and have looked for it unsuccessfully on Google) that Henry James had missed out on the great subject of the development … Continue reading
Posted in History, Literature
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DICKENS—ARE GREAT BOOKS ENOUGH?
DICKENS—ARE GREAT BOOKS ENOUGH? Dickens is a difficult comparison for Twain. A lot of great writers can’t match the number of great books that Dickens wrote (Consider Tolstoy, for example. Balzac, of course, is a different story.). From time to … Continue reading
Posted in Literature
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COLD WATER ON THE MARK TWAIN CENTENNIAL.
COLD WATER ON THE MARK TWAIN CENTENNIAL. Today is the centennial of Mark Twain’s death. The local Connecticut papers have celebrated the event with articles. The weekend Financial Times (April 17/18) carried a book review by John Sutherland of a … Continue reading
Posted in Literature
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SELLING A CALL.
SELLING A CALL. One of my brother Elmer’s favorite baseball stories is about a call Ron Luciano made. Ron Luciano was an umpire in the majors from 1969 to 1979 who was known for his flamboyant calls. Luciano told the … Continue reading
Posted in Baseball, Sports, Uncategorized
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MY FAVORITE BASEBALL MOVIE.
MY FAVORITE BASEBALL MOVIE. My favorite baseball movie is still The Bad News Bears because of its truthfulness. But my favorite baseball segment in a movie—also because of its truthfulness—is from The Naked Gun. It’s the scene where Frank Drebin … Continue reading
Posted in Baseball, Sports
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HARD TIMES FOR UMPIRES.
HARD TIMES FOR UMPIRES. Umpires have always been criticized, but umpires are in a worse position than they have ever been. Instant replay and special cameras for strike zones expose almost every bad call. TV announcers show those bad calls … Continue reading
STUDYING BUREAUCRACY.
STUDYING BUREAUCRACY. Lawyers spend so much time dealing with bureaucracies that I find it natural to look at umpires as bureaucrats. Yet the problems presented by bureaucratic politics, bureaucratic imperatives, and bureaucratic behavior don’t seem to make it into the … Continue reading
Posted in Literature
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UMPIRES AS BUREAUCRATS.
UMPIRES AS BUREAUCRATS. I posted earlier in the week about the controversy over a veteran umpire’s harsh criticism of the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees because they take too long to play their games. This article confirms … Continue reading
Posted in Baseball, Politics, Sports
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CHINESE SYMPATHY.
CHINESE SYMPATHY. One major difference between Chinese audiences and American audiences gives me second thoughts about our culture. The Chinese don’t seem to have the tough-mindedness—or inhumanity—of American audiences. I take for granted the things we laugh at. The Carolyn … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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CHINESE STANDUP.
CHINESE STANDUP. Standup audiences are supposed to be different from country to country. Nick was warned before he did standup in London that the audience wouldn’t laugh at American material, but he found that what worked for him in America … Continue reading
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