Categories
Brick Bats Reportage

Hail to The Chieftains

Before The Chieftains review — which it’s not, because I lost my Lamy Al-Star pen following a disaster of a restaurant meal so I couldn’t take notes — a roundabout. I try to be a jack of all journalism tricks. I even covered a lecture and poetry reading by ex-NBA star Tom Meschery in about […]

Categories
Life Lessons

It Takes Villages

Copyright 2010 Ben S. Pollock Something that’s amazed me my entire adult life is how lousy a predictor childhood is of adult success. Children reared with all the advantages, the latest psychology and/or consistent discipline — turn out as anything from national leaders to routinely stable mid-levels to layabouts. Children born in abusive families or […]

Categories
American Culture

Blued: Revue Review

The performance in Fayetteville of Blue Man Group filled my mind too full to write about immediately. A deadline would’ve been wonderful. So now it’s time to free up to brain cavity. Past time. We saw the third of its eight shows at the Walton Arts Center, during the first week of September. The company […]

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Brick Bats Reportage

Rock in Rococo

A concert by Mark Knopfler and his band, seen April 21 in Kansas City, promoting his album Get Lucky, was tremendous. If you live within 250 miles (the distance from Fayetteville, as it happens) and have some extra 20s for tickets, try to see it; otherwise listen to the record. Though usually featuring electric instruments, […]

Categories
Body, Home, Street

Cultural Indifferences

The wonderful thing about having a well-run auditorium in town is opportunities it provides. If you follow Paul Simon or were listening to pop music in the mid-1980s you know of his album Graceland, which introduced to the West the South African men’s chorus that was in Fayetteville last weekend. Its name can seem a […]

Categories
Life Lessons

Man and Superboy

Copyright 2010 Ben S. Pollock Seeing the backstage drama Crazy Heart down at the Malco on its opening weekend here in Northwest Arkansas gave me lots to think about, being a good movie. It’d be fine to wait for a home viewing, but leisurely, panoramic views of New Mexico increase the worth of a cineplex […]