Sunshine

What’s in the Arts+ section of The Official Newspaper of Gil Roth today?

  1. a review of two biographies of Han van Meegeren, the famous Dutch forger of paintings,
  2. a review of Richard Todd’s essays on authenticity (nice complement/contrast to the forgery review),
  3. a review of a biography of Jacob Riis, the man who chronicled the horrors of tenement life in late 19th century Manhattan,
  4. a review of a book on the New Urban Renewal and today’s gentrification,
  5. Otto Penzler’s review of Anton Chekhov’s crime fiction.

Sometimes I think their editors say to each other, “Remember that thing Gil was muttering to himself about in 1997, when he thought no one was listening? We should assign an article on that topic!”

Morning Sun

It’s a comparatively slow day at the Official Newspaper of Gil Roth:

  1. a review of the new book by James Wood, How Fiction Works,
  2. a review of an anthology on New Criticism, and
  3. a brief history (with slideshow) of Art Deco.

So I guess I oughtta flip over to the NYObserver, which is more hit-and-miss in its Gilcentric writing:

  1. the decline of newspaper reporters in NJ, and
  2. an interview with Amtrak president/CEO Alex Kummant about transit plans in NY/NJ and the need for new rail capacity?

Looks like I have nothing to complain about.

This is getting ridiculous

Today, the NY Sun (Official Newspaper of Gil Roth) managed to put out more articles of interest to me than any other paper would in a month:

  1. Revising our views on Arcimboldo in light of the Allegorical Head of the Four Seasons
  2. Revising our views on neoconservatism via World Affairs magazine
  3. Revising our views on Columbus Circle post-TW Center
  4. Edward Hopper: Wanna see my etchings?
  5. Death of a niche magazine shop in NYC
  6. And an art installation by my favorite electronic band, Underworld . . . ?

Talk about an embarrassment of riches! I half-expect tomorrow’s edition to include articles on Miller’s Crossing, Danny Wilson, and Roger Langridge.

And still champ!

I’ve been so busy lately, I haven’t checked the goings-on at The New York Sun. I wonder what’s in today’s Arts+ section?

  1. A review of David Lebedoff’s new book on George Orwell and Evelyn Waugh
  2. A review of Cyril Connolly’s “Enemies of Promise”
  3. A review of the best gins for G&Ts
  4. A sidebar on niche tonic-waters

I feel like Cliff Clavin on Jeopardy!, when the categories were “Civil Servants, Stamps from Around the World, Mothers and Sons, Beer, Bar Trivia, and Celibacy.”

Glad to see the Official Newspaper of Gil Roth is still earning its keep.

China on the Mississippi?

When I write about how the NYSun is the Official Newspaper of Gil Roth, please keep in mind that I’m referring to its arts, culture and sports writing. Its op-ed section, on the other hand, can get pretty wacky.

Take today’s piece by Gordon Chang, for example. A Communist-Made Disaster discusses how the huge death-toll from the earthquake in China can be chalked up to policies of the communist party (he doesn’t blame the earthquake itself on the party; that’s India’s fault) and the local corruption that the regime breeds.

Mr. Chang seems to be arguing that a democratic system would push for regulation of building standards, deter public officials from skimming off or mis-allocating taxpayer funds, and allow the people to hold the government responsible for building safer schools.

All of which made me wonder, “Has Mr. Chang heard of New Orleans?”

Rich white guys RULE!

In the Official Newspaper of Gil Roth, Tim Marchman has an article today on how the “corporate ownership” wave in baseball never came to fruition, looking back on the 10th anniversary of the Piazza trade from LA to Florida. Marchman makes the key point that, as the decade has passed, the ranks of MLB ownership includes more smart, rich, white guys (and hispanics) and fewer Belgians. And that’s a sentiment we can all get behind.

(BONUS! Today’s ONGR also has an obit for Irena Sendler, the righteous woman who helped smuggle 2,500 Jewish children out of the Warsaw ghetto. I got choked up while reading her story at the lunch table, but no one else was in the room, so I didn’t have to kill anyone.)

Sun Roth

Today’s edition of the New York Sun’s Arts+ section continues to defend its title as Official Newspaper of Gil Roth (and several other Roths, as seen in #s 1 and 2):

  1. Roth Time Redux, discussing the impact of Dieter Roth,
  2. a new exhibition on Philip Guston, with a shout-out to Philip Roth,
  3. MoMA’s screening of Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West,
  4. Daphne Merkin reviewing a book on the history of crazy-ass women, and
  5. and an absolute smackdown of Benny Morris’ version of the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Even better: my coworkers believe the Sun must be “too conservative,” so they avoid reading it in the lunchroom, leaving me a pristine copy! However, since the owner of our company canceled our subscription to the NYTimes, which he believes is “too liberal,” the only other choices are the Wall Street Journal and the NYPost. . .

(BONUS! Today’s Sun also has a John Stossel op-ed piece on why the FAA’s inspections of airlines (and governmental inspections in general) are useless at best.)

The official newspaper of Gil Roth

Recently, we began receiving the New York Sun, I think as an add-on to our Wall Street Journal subscription. I’m not entirely sure. I mean, I do know that the owner of our company canceled our office subscription to the New York Times a few years ago because he, um, disagreed with its political agenda.

Anyway, I was reading the Arts+ section of the Sun at the lunchtable today when I discovered that the section’s editor is actually . . . my alter ego!

How else can we explain the page 18 & 19 spread of today’s paper featuring this double-whammy:

Mysticism in Youth – Barbara Probst Solomon’s review of the early diaries of Jewish mystic & scholar Gershom Scholem

With Gasol, Lakers Now Look Unstoppable – John Hollinger’s weekly power rankings of the NBA

Toss in a front-page piece on Louis I. Kahn’s travel sketches, and the only conclusion to draw is that my lack of sleep is merely a cover for Tyler Durden-like plot to redefine arts & leisure in my own demented image.