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Most of the Best (S.J. Perelman)
•Among the allergens being released this June is a remake of "Around the World in 80 Days," the Jules Verne novel that launched a thousand travel articles. Perhaps Jackie Chan will inhabit the role of Passepartout in a fashion that surpasses the achievements of Cantinflas, "the world’s greatest comedian," according… -
Breaking the Mold (Eric Lax's book on the discovery of penicillin)
•Earlier this month I attended the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation research benefit for stem-cell research. Although James Taylor’s five-song set and Nancy Reagan’s acceptance speech were each memorable and moving, what I found myself thinking about most that evening was Eric Lax’s new book "The Mold in Dr. Florey’s Coat"… -
The End of 'Friends'
•The last episode of "Friends" airs May 6, and while we may all express a collective sigh of relief at the end of more than a year of shameless hype and exploitation, it doesn’t mean that we can’t stop to reflect on this moment in American cultural history. Or that… -
The Escapist (MIchael Chabon's "The Escapist" as metaphor)
•Jewish history has tradition of escaping and escapism It’s Sunday and I’m rushing over to my local comic book store, Hi De Ho, in Santa Monica to buy issue No. 1 of “The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist.†If the name is familiar, it’s not because you used to collect… -
Second Government (Bernard-Henri Levy)
•I’ve been thinking a lot recently about French philosopher, journalist and filmmaker Bernard-Henri Levy (only in France can philosopher hyphenate with filmmaker). We had lunch about six months ago. At the time, Levy’s English-language edition of "Who Killed Daniel Pearl?"(Melville House), had just been published. The book had received a… -
Sleep, Interrupted
•I remember, as a child, trying in vain to stay up to see the ball fall on New Year’s Eve. In later years, high school brought concerts that went past midnight and college introduced all-nighters of the studying and partying kind. In the midnight hour came inspiration and revelation and… -
A Sunny Hungarian Rhapsody
•As winter chill gives way to spring sun, it’s not too early to start planning a summer trip to Budapest. Budapest, Hungary’s capital, straddles the Danube, with historic old Buda on the hill, and Pest with its atmospheric 19th century and Art Nouveau architecture. In recent years, many of the… -
Schindler's Impact (The 10th Anniversary of "Schindler's List")
•In May 1995, I found myself in Lviv, Ukraine. My father died two years before, and I was there on a roots trip. I wanted to see the city where he grew up and perhaps unearth some of the information that he could never bring himself to share, such as… -
Conal's the Poster Boy for 'Art Attack' (Guerrilla Poster Artist Robbie Conal)
•You’ve seen them around town: a poster of a grinning, gnarly Arnold Schwarzenegger with red eyes and the words, "Achtung, Baby," scrawled in German Gothic type across his forehead. It may have made you smile; you may have felt it was in bad taste. Perhaps a bit of both. In… -
Newman Cares (Randy Newman)
•Are we the luckiest people in the world to live in Los Angeles, leading the lives others only dream about? Or is this the most unfair city in the nation, where the few are insulated from the harsh realities of the many? And what, you may wonder, does any of… -
The Living Desert (Palm Springs, The Desert and Deanne Stillman's "29 Palms")
•As I write this, it’s 64 degrees in Santa Monica and Sub-Zero is just a brand of refrigerator I covet. On the East Coast, there is a record cold spell and everyone is paying rapt attention to the wind-chill factor. The climatic difference can best be explained not merely by… -
When Television Challenged America (Rod Serling)
•Around this time of year, I’m often prone to recall Rod Serling, who was born on Christmas Day. I’m helped along by the fact that PBS ran their "American Masters" portrait of Serling over the New Year’s weekend even as the Sci Fi Channel ran a "Twilight Zone" marathon. It…