A.O. Scott (The New York Times) calls it “One of the most remarkÂable experÂiÂments in the hisÂtoÂry of cinÂeÂma.” Roger Ebert says it “is on my list of the ten greatÂest films of all time.” The film is 49 UP, and it airs tonight on PBS.
The film is the sevÂenth film in a long-runÂning series of docÂuÂmenÂtaries that has traced the lives of 14 Brits, startÂing when they were 7 years old in 1964. The direcÂtor, Michael AptÂed, has revisÂitÂed these chilÂdren every sevÂen years (they are now 49 years old), watchÂing how their lives have changed over the years. Talk about ambiÂtious. You can watch a trailÂer for the film here, and lisÂten to an interÂview with the direcÂtor here.
TomorÂrow, The Best AmerÂiÂcan Essays 2007 hits the streets. WalÂlace editÂed the colÂlecÂtion and kicked it off with a fiery essay of his own. Houghton MifÂflin was good enough (or, rather, marÂketÂing-savvy enough) to post the essay, The DeciderÂizaÂtion 2007‑A SpeÂcial Report, online for free. And some unknown charÂacÂter did us all a favor by creÂatÂing a PDF verÂsion that’s conÂsidÂerÂably more legÂiÂble and printÂer friendÂly. Read away.
For good meaÂsure, we’re also throwÂing your way some more digÂiÂtal David FosÂter WalÂlace. Here we have him readÂing his essay “ConÂsidÂer the LobÂster” (the text of which you can also read here), plus the author appearÂing on The CharÂlie Rose Show here and here. (In both casÂes, his appearÂances come latÂer in the show.) Ciao.
Although facÂing no shortÂage of comÂpeÂtiÂtion, CofÂfee Break SpanÂish(iTunes — Feed — Web Site) has remained the most popÂuÂlar forÂeign lanÂguage lesÂson podÂcast, bar none. The popÂuÂlarÂiÂty rankÂings on iTunes have conÂtinÂuÂalÂly attestÂed to that.
From this posiÂtion of strength, the proÂducÂers of CofÂfee Break SpanÂish have smartÂly moved into new EuroÂpean terÂriÂtoÂries, rolling out earÂliÂer this year MyDaiÂlyPhrase ItalÂian (iTunes — Feed — Web Site) and MyDaiÂlyPhrase GerÂman (iTunes — Feed — Web Site). Now they will be facÂing a stiffer chalÂlenge – tryÂing to penÂeÂtrate the already-crowdÂed French lanÂguage lesÂson marÂket.
CofÂfee Break French (iTunes — Feed — Web Site) was launched on SepÂtemÂber 26, and how it fares against the comÂpeÂtiÂtion (see our list below) depends mainÂly on whether the podÂcast delivÂers French lessons betÂter than the othÂers, and whether it can capÂiÂtalÂize on the estabÂlished “CofÂfee Break” brand. Stay tuned. All of this remains TBD. Let’s sit back and watch how things unfold.
The satirists are getÂting a lot mileage out of MahÂmoud AhmadineÂjad’s decÂlaÂraÂtion that Iran is gay-free. Last week, SatÂurÂday Night Live spoofed AhmadineÂjad, as we notÂed. Then, The New YorkÂer parÂoÂdied AhmadineÂjad on the magÂaÂzine’s covÂer with one of its famed carÂtoons. (The image includÂed a not-so-oblique refÂerÂence to LarÂry Craig, the conÂserÂvÂaÂtive US SenÂaÂtor who recentÂly got caught up in some mens’ room high jinks. UnfaÂmilÂiar readÂers can get the scoop on Craig here.) Of all the inane comÂments AhmadineÂjad has made, and there are many, it’s interÂestÂing that the satirists have choÂsen to focus on this one. DenyÂing the exisÂtence of gays in Iran is no more empirÂiÂcalÂly absurd than denyÂing the HoloÂcaust. So why the emphaÂsis on the sexÂuÂalÂiÂty comÂment? Because AhmadineÂjad has been playÂing the anti-semiÂtism card for some time, but the homoÂphoÂbia card is relÂaÂtiveÂly new, hence makÂing it worÂthy of attenÂtion? Or is it because sexÂuÂalÂiÂty offers an always conÂveÂnient way to take a politÂiÂcal eneÂmy down a peg? Or since there’s no good way to satÂiÂrize a genoÂcide, perÂhaps sexÂuÂalÂiÂty becomes a good default. Ok, I’m stumped. Note to self: think twice next time before over-anaÂlyzÂing jokes. SpeakÂing of jokes, make you check out the footage we postÂed of Woody Allen doing standup in 1965.
Here’s a quick heads up: Stephen ColÂbert’s new book — I Am AmerÂiÂca (And So Can You!) — will hit the streets on OctoÂber 9. HowÂevÂer, if you’re realÂly champÂing at the bit, you can downÂload the book earÂly, startÂing today, in audioÂbook forÂmat. The book is narÂratÂed by ColÂbert himÂself, which is a perk, and you can downÂload it from AudiÂble here.
The New YorkÂer has rolled out a series of aniÂmatÂed carÂtoons, which puts in motion its famous carÂtoons. They can be watched as video podÂcasts or as streamed videos. You should defÂiÂniteÂly head over to The New YorkÂer web site to view the largÂer colÂlecÂtion. But, if you want a litÂtle taste, take a look below:
I heard rumors someÂthing like this was comÂing, and now it’s here. YouTube has struck deals with major uniÂverÂsiÂties, creÂatÂing dedÂiÂcatÂed chanÂnels from which schools can disÂtribÂute their media conÂtent. Not surÂprisÂingÂly UC BerkeÂley, always at the digÂiÂtal foreÂfront, has takÂen the lead and launched an ambiÂtious chanÂnel with over 300 hours of videoÂtaped coursÂes and events. You can check out their chanÂnel here. The othÂer major uniÂverÂsiÂty to sign on is USC (UniÂverÂsiÂty of SouthÂern CalÂiÂforÂnia).
Back in March, we lamentÂed the sheer dearth of culÂturÂal conÂtent on YouTube. (LisÂten to our radio interÂview here and also see our relatÂed blog post.) Since its incepÂtion, the now Google-owned video serÂvice has been awash with home-brewed videos of guiÂtar riffs, dormÂroom lip sync sesÂsions, and pet tricks. MeanÂwhile, videos of greater culÂturÂal subÂstance have been hardÂer to come by (and that’s why we’ve tried to flag the good ones for you. See here, here & here.) YouTube’s new uniÂverÂsiÂty iniÂtiaÂtive begins to remÂeÂdy that probÂlem. It shows a perÂhaps burÂgeonÂing comÂmitÂment to highÂer-mindÂed media. But let’s not get too carÂried away. When you go to YouTube, it’s not clear how users will find/navigate to these chanÂnels. If you look under CatÂeÂgories, “eduÂcaÂtion” is not an option (although I think it used to be). PerÂhaps YouTube has plans to tweak its navÂiÂgaÂtion. Or is this just a case of letÂting a tree fall in the woods? Let’s stay optiÂmistic and we’ll check back soon.
Philip Roth fans didÂn’t have to wait very long for anothÂer novÂel. A short year and a half after pubÂlishÂing EveryÂman, Roth has just put out Exit Ghost. It’s anothÂer book that takes a hard look at aging, and it also marks the ninth and posÂsiÂbly last time that the charÂacÂter Nathan ZuckÂerÂman will inhabÂit Roth’s litÂerÂary creÂations. (For more on the ZukÂerÂman series, see Salon’s oldÂer piece here.) We’ll evenÂtuÂalÂly have more to say about Exit Ghost. But, for now, we wantÂed to point you to some good relatÂed resources. For starters, if you can’t wait to get the book, you can read the first chapÂter online for free here. And you can also catch some very recent interÂviews with Roth. First, AmaÂzon Wired (iTunes — Feed — TranÂscript) feaÂtures him talkÂing about Exit Ghost and offerÂing a very short readÂing from it. Then there is this interÂview by TerÂry Gross on NPR’s Fresh Air. (iTunes — Feed — Stream). FinalÂly, here are the first reviews that have rolled out: New York MagÂaÂzine, The New York Sun, The New York Times, The LA Times, The WashÂingÂton Post, and Times Online (UK).
P.S. Here are a couÂple of othÂer Philip Roth goodÂies.
How many days, weeks or months before your iPod goes kaput? This web site will give you an estiÂmate. PerÂhaps a handy tool for anyÂone who conÂsumes all of the podÂcasts that we throw your way.
AhmadineÂjad’s recent appearÂance at ColumÂbia UniÂverÂsiÂty genÂerÂatÂed a lot of seriÂous press (watch his speech here), and, quite rightÂly, jourÂnalÂists and comÂmenÂtaÂtors seized on his more outÂlandish asserÂtions — that the HoloÂcaust is not a hisÂtorÂiÂcal givÂen, and that homoÂsexÂuÂals actuÂalÂly don’t exist in Iran. After all of the seriÂous reportÂing was done, SatÂurÂday Night Live got to work and aired this clip that conÂtinÂued its traÂdiÂtion of bitÂing politÂiÂcal satire. Here it goes:
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