What a guy! Ehrich Weiss, a.k.a. Harry Houdini
The absolutely fabulous “Houdini: Art and Magic,” which opens tomorrow at the Skirball Center along with its equally wonderful companion show, “Masters of Illusion, Jewish Magicians of the Golden Age,” injects fun, mystery and gamesmanship into the ether — right when we need it most. Jewish guys dressed in turbans and tuxedos, waving wands, and ...
Marilyn Monroe gets her very own Russian ballet
Of the many ballets included in the epic-length “Tour de Force II” program at Segerstrom Performing Arts Center in Orange County this Thursday night, one in particular caught our eye. It’s the West Coast premiere of one act from Boris Eifman‘s “Who’s Who” (2003), which was, according to the description, inspired by Some Like It ...
Melissa Hayden hops a train — just as she hopped into the arms of Jacques d’Amboise 2
Apr
26
2011
A characteristic shot of the inimitable New York City Ballet ballerina Melissa Hayden (1923-2006), nee Mildred Herman, a nice Canadian Jewish girl (who knew?) who wanted to be a champion swimmer, or so we learned from Milly’s habitual partner, Jacques d’Amboise, at an ALOUD book talk last week. D’Amboise reveled in stories about the extroverted, ...
David Dorfman’s late-hour conversation with Sly Stone saves “Prophets of Funk” performance
It was a harrowing few days for Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, CA, a sound man named Sam Crawford, eight members of David Dorfman Dance, and the choreographer himself, as the key underpinning of David Dorfman’s touring show “Prophets of Funk ” — the right to use a multi-song sound score by Sylvester ...
Sara Karloff, daughter of Frankenstein 33
Apr
24
2011
Boris Karloff’s only daughter doesn’t like frightening movies. “The Wizard of Oz” scared me when I was seven. Now I leave the room during “Murder, She Wrote,” said Sara Karloff, an elegant woman of a certain age, born when her father was 51. The dark-skinned beauty’s coal-black hair sports an amazing white streak, reminiscent of ...
You wouldn’t wish it on your worst enemy: street art
Apr
23
2011
It was a tough Friday morning when Jack Rutberg arrived at his handsome LaBrea Avenue art gallery. A “street artist” had been “creative” on his building. Here’s what Jack has going on inside. “Some Assembly Required,” a marvelous show of collage art.
Chasen murder, redux, on NBC’s Law & Order 1
Apr
20
2011
Mouse over the photos to learn the casting of a special episode of ‘Law & Order: LA.’ ♦ ♦ ♦ Says TV Guide: “They’ve been busy reading the Los Angeles newspapers at NBC’s revamped Law & Order: LA. On April 25, the show airs its episode based loosely on the mysterious murder of Hollywood power ...
Monk lives … at UCLA
Apr
20
2011
The Herb Alpert juggernaut of extraordinary arts philanthropy surges on the news that The Herb Alpert Foundation has again spurred jazz education at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music. The school will join forces with the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, a nonprofit organization devoted to jazz education now based in New Orleans. For ...
Barak Marshall’s MONGER danced in mameloshen 1
mameloshen: (yiddish) the mother tongue It’s been a Barak Marshall festival in Los Angeles lately and that’s the way it should be. Because this guy, a nervous bundle of Harvard-educated brains topped by a black-corkscrew hairdo, is the closest thing L.A. offers to a worldly — and if he continues on track — a world-class ...
Happy Birthday, Charlie Chaplin! 1
Anyone who trolls mid-city Los Angeles will recognize the wonderful Tudor-style building at right (you can click on the photo). Creative dynamo Charles Chaplin, one of L.A.’s real go-getters, built it in 1917. And, there, leaning against the wall of his very own film factory stands the lovely Chaplin. It’s a pretty proud moment for ...