Daughter Judy … Jane, his wife! Meet the Jetsons, 50 years later. 1
Gotta admit I was blown away to learn that “The Jetsons,” the venerable prime-time cartoon show that lasted all of one television season, turns fifty years old tomorrow. The show, a huge American cultural event, first aired on September 23, 1962. Talkin’ ’bout my generation…. The insane hyped-up theme song, the lyrics for which got ...
Our great choreographer Merce Cunningham explained 2
Sep
20
2012
I’m in a Cunningham frame of mind. Please enjoy and learn from this wonderful Cunningham tribute by Alastair Macaulay, the chief dance critic of the New York Times.
Merce Cunningham’s “Winterbranch” by L.A. Dance Project 2
Sep
20
2012
SEPT 29 2012 UPDATE: CONCERT REVIEWED ON THE HUFFINGTON POST HERE. A wonderful dark and gloomy photo of Merce Cunningham’s “Winterbranch” (1964) with early cast members Carolyn Brown and Gus Solomons, Jr. We’ll watch the re-staging of this High Cunningham classic this weekend courtesy of L.A. Dance Project, the newly launched repertory dance company sponsored ...
Fly away, String Theory, fly away …
Sep
19
2012
The adventurous dance + music ensemble String Theory assembles its massive stringed harp instrument for a site specific performance piece at the Van Nuys Fly Away this coming weekend. Heidi Duckler’s troupe just performed at the mass transit hub as well. String Theory’s work, “Compositions of Sound and Space,” promises to infuse the plaintive bus ...
Only Marvin Hamlisch was missing. Pasadena Pops honors conductor.
A concert that culminates with the great lyricist Alan Bergman crooning in aching nostalgia The Way We Were, a song that he, his writing partner and wife Marilyn, and composer Marvin Hamlisch co-wrote for Barbra Streisand, is an event I’m interested in attending. Bergman is so special, a poet, really. The Pasadena Symphony’s high-quality tribute ...
How the Stones rolled through L.A.
Found: Photographs of the Rolling Stones, a month-long exhibition of twenty-six rare and candid photographs that document the Rolling Stones on their first American tour in 1964 opens soon at Dilettante, a creative theatre and gallery located in Compton. The Stones photo-booty was discovered in an unmarked box at a Central California estate sale — ...
Happy birthday, George Chakiris
One of dance’s smoothest operators, a suave and velvety mover whose smoldering good looks propelled him to stardom — and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1962 — George Chakiris, born in Ohio, reared in California, celebrates a significant birthday today. Dance Magazine Editor Wendy Perron calls Chakiris “the sexiest dancer on film ...
Jerry Lewis, amped on technology
Sep
14
2012
“That was so nice,” murmured Jerry Lewis, 86, in acknowledgment of the heartfelt standing ovation that erupted when he stepped onto the Samuel Goldwyn Theater stage on Thursday night. The comedian/actor/producer-director and all-around entertainment legend was being honored at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Still emitting zingers but notably less frenetic than ...
New programming duo at Film Society of Lincoln Center
Sep
13
2012
A familiar pair has been named as co-directors of programming at the Film Society of Lincoln Center, replacing the longtime Director Richard Peña, who will celebrate his 25th and final New York Film Festival later this month. Kent Jones, at right, will return to the Film Society next year to lead the New York Film ...
Thank you, Turner Classic Movies, for “Choreography by Jack Cole” 1
May I express my gratitude to the wonderful classic-movie channel for “Choreography by Jack Cole” broadcast Monday night? I co-hosted the program with TCM’s great veteran host, Robert Osborne. Together, we screened four movies studded with dance sequences that were created by the massively talented American choreographer. And a huge ‘thank you’ to Mr. Osborne, ...