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Yes, you've found Lou Harry's A&E, IBJ's home for opinion, debate and discussion on arts and entertainment matters in Indy and beyond. Thanks for stopping by.
Recent Blog Posts
Heartland's Oscar buzz
November 19, 2008
Comments(2)You know how, when you're gathered in the living room filling out you Academy Award ballot with friends
and there are the inevitable jokes about nobody having any idea what the nominated documentaries are about?
Well, this year, it could be...
MoreNew art windows on Penn
November 17, 2008
Comments(5)Every once in a while, I'll turn the blog over to reporter Kathleen McLaughlin, who is now covering the
arts business beat for IBJ. Welcome her aboard and look for her writing here and in the print edition of
IBJ.
Take...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
November 17, 2008
Comments(7)Before I get to the regular portion of the Monday blog, I'd like to take a moment to note with sadness
the death of Matthew Oskay, director of the Warren Performing Arts Center. Matt, 30, was one of our town's
four arts...
MoreQuick notes Friday
November 14, 2008
Comments(4)I'm still a little groggy from the midnight showing of "Quantum of Solace" last night, so I'm kicking off
a new occassional short-attention-span feature here that I'm calling Quick Notes Friday. Welcome aboard.
--This was actually my second time seeing the...
MoreHating contemporary art
November 13, 2008
Comments(8)A whirlwind of a day started with my earlier-than-usual weekly Fox 59 segment (if you missed it, you can
catch it here later today) and will end with the IBJ Night at the Movies midnight screening of "Quantum
of Solace"...
MoreReview: "Whirl of the Divine"
November 12, 2008
Comments(2)It was encouraging to a see a packed house at the Central Library for the Nov. 9 performance of "Powered
by Poetry-- Whirl of the Divine."
It was even better to see that the production itself--a collaboration between Butler University Departments...
MoreConservative theater-an oxymoron?
November 11, 2008
Comments(6)An interesting Wall Street Journal piece (read it here) asks why we don't see conservative political theater.
Apart from Tom Stoppard and David Mamet, the writer of the piece "can't think of a single well-known American
or British playwright...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
November 9, 2008
Comments(5)So, did you go Spirit-and-Place-ing this weekend? (I got to the "Madness and Creativity" conversation at Butler
University and the remarkable "Whirl of the Divine" performance at the Central Library.)
Do some First Friday gallery hopping? (Maybe we crossed paths at IMOCA or the...
MoreReview: B.J. Novak at Clowes
November 7, 2008
Comments(0)At his strongest when addressing the largely student audience on generationally-specific subjects, stand-up B.J.
Novak--best known from his role as Ryan on NBC's "The Office"--riffed smartly on OnStar, iTunes, Bill Nye,
Wikipedia and GoogleMaps during his Thursday night set at...
MoreIBJ movie nights: Bond, etc.
November 5, 2008
Comments(40)In the past, I've hosted a wide range of IBJ Night at the Movies screenings.
The next two, however, are a little different. The tickets I'm giving away are, to be accurate, for IBJ
LATE Nights at the Movies. Midnight, to be specific.
First...
MoreCultural two-fers
November 5, 2008
Comments(4)One of the more convenient excuses given for not going to cultural events is the cost.
Well, with the 25th anniversary Zoobook now in release, that excuse has once again been mitigated.
Yes, I know that there are those of you...
MoreFictional Presidential match-ups
November 3, 2008
Comments(7)Here, for your entertainment, some fictional election match-ups (ignoring party affiliations). Who gets your
vote?
Peter Sellers in "Dr. Strangelove" vs. Michael Douglas in "The American President" vs. Morgan Freeman in "Deep
Impact"?
Next round:
Martin Sheen on "The West Wing" vs. Donald...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
November 2, 2008
Comments(4)For me, the weekend included catching up with shows at the Phoenix and the Indianapolis Museum of Art. It
also involved stealing moments to read, flipping between David Wild's goofy new "He Is...I Say: How I Learned
to Stop Worrying...
MoreRandom tricks/random treats
October 31, 2008
Comments(6)Some random thoughts on cultural horrors.
--Boris Karloff may be Hollywood's most underrated golden-era star. Watch him in "Son of Frankenstein" if
you get a chance (although the film itself isn't as good as the perversely fun "Bride of Frankenstein").
--When we...
MoreBookstore booze to be tested
October 30, 2008
Comments(7)According to the Western Michigan Business Review, Schuler Books and Music in Grand Rapids (an outstanding
locally owned chain) is looking to go beyond the cafe-and-sweet-treats ammenities that have become stapes in
bookshops.
The downtown store has applied for a...
MoreFilm: Can 'best' = 'most popular'?
October 28, 2008
Comments(3)Interesting stat in today's New York Times: The last four winners of the Academy Award for Best Picture ("No
Country for Old Men," "The Departed," "Crash," and "Million Dollar Baby") combined didn't bring in the box
office money of 2003's...
MoreOn celebrity interviews
October 28, 2008
Comments(5)Peter Bart, one of the smarter guys in Hollywood, has an interesting blog over at Variety. His topic: Celebrity
interviews. (Find it here.)
In the piece, Bart elequently points out something I've felt for a long time now: That most...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
October 26, 2008
Comments(8)There was a lot to choose from this weekend.
Did you pick Hubbard Street Dance or David Byrne at Clowes? Or Gregory Hancock's "Oh My Goth"? Stop in
at the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Indianapolis Museum of Art, or the...
MoreEmptying the arts notebook
October 24, 2008
Comments(0)Today, some random notes from around the arts world:
--Chris Jones at the Chicago Tribune has an interesting item today about customer service in theaters. See
it here. Have you had any overwhelming negative or positive experiences from the front-of-the-house...
MoreHaunt-ing for real reporting
October 23, 2008
Comments(0)This is the time of year that otherwise respectable news outlets begin publishing or broadcasting stories
about haunted houses--not just the "guy jumps out at you with a chainsaw" haunted houses but also the allegedly
real ones.
Problem is, many of...
MoreWere 'Great Books' a great idea?
October 22, 2008
Comments(3)The 54-volume Great Books of the Western World series, a set of books that sold more than a million copies
in the 1950s and '60s, was:
a. an empowering, groundbreaking effort to bring brilliant writing to the masses.
b. a sales stunt perpetrated by Encyclopedia...
MoreHigh school musical memories
October 20, 2008
Comments(8)Between the upcoming release of Disney's "High School Musical 3" in theaters--as both an arts journalist and
the father of teenage girls, I know a lot about HSM--and my kid's own real life high school musical (Pike
High School's production...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
October 19, 2008
Comments(4)Truly moved by anything at the Heartland Film Festival? Catch Dance Kaleidoscope's season opener? Visit a
haunted house or, like me, were you part of the jury at the trial at the Benjamin Harrison Home?
So what did you get to...
MoreReview: 'Striped Pajamas'
October 16, 2008
Comments(2)The Heartland Film Festival kicks off tonight with the North American premiere (which I incorrectly stated
was a World Premiere in my weekly e-mail) of "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas."
Landing a major studio premiere is a coup for Heartland...
MoreReview: "Avenue Q"
October 15, 2008
Comments(3)A few month's back, I travelled to Louisville to catch the national tour of "Avenue Q." Not only was I
anxious to see the Tony-winning show, but I also wanted to catch it before it came to Indy, the better
to...
More
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Many serial killer types and psychopaths work as lowly bureaucrats, just waiting to impose their wrath on a powerless person, child, or pet. Don't forget, the BTK killer was a dog catcher.
If a television station wants to improve viewership, get rid of the local blackout. I was born by the brickyard, and have attended 15 or more races. I have children now, I won't attend unless circumstances are perfect. As those with growing families know, they never are. I'm always impressed that upwards of 250,000 people attend the 500. However, as a growing, or, more apt, sprawling city, Indianapolis and its immediate suburbs count almost 2.2 million. Show the race live, let the venue get a kick-back on revenues, and open-wheel racing might have a fighting chance to be relevant again. Just in time for those tax-payer lights to make sense.
John Moore, I too have had the same issue recently. A property next to my house was on the Land Bank and I was interested in purchasing. When I tried to contact Reggie, I got back emails that had nothing to do with what I asked about. Actually my latest response from him was on this past Friday. I had asked about how to buy the property and if it was still available. His response to me was to contact the mayor's office to get the schedule of his appearances. (???) Hopefully the city is able to do something to fix what this guy has done, it would be nice if they would take the properties back and sell them properly so land owners like me and you mother would have a fair chance.
I too work in the industry, with over 25 years of experience and your political spin has probably nothing to do with any rebranding. "Let's dress it up" would have nothing to do with the government "telling us how and what to eat." Give it a political rest. And being a producer for a radio show doesn't mean you've been involved in advertising and branding for 30 years.
Ms. Morris did not understand the ways of the business world, otherwise, like the IMS, she could have petitioned the State Legislature for a handout of State Funds for her charity work. Ms. Morris should consider becoming a state lobbyist for Lemonade Stand Operators.