Ars Gratia Artis

Art and Politics

One of the most tiresome aspects of modern life is the degree to which we are relentlessly hectored to conform our tastes in the arts to the political moods of the moment. We are told that certain movies (e.g., American Sniper), television programs (e.g., NCIS), writers (e.g., Andrew Klavan), musicians (e.g., the majority of country music artists), etc., are to be disdained because their political views are considered Wrongthink.

A newsworthy current instance of this kind of thing is the controversial outcome
of this year's Hugo Awards, in which "No Award" was the result of balloting in five different categories at Sasquan, the 73rd World Science Fiction Convention.
If declining to give out an award at an awards convocation seems unusual, that's because it is. In the entire history of the Hugo Awards prior to this year, "No Award" had only occurred five times total. The last time "No Award" occurred at all was nearly 40 years ago (1977, in the "Best Dramatic Presentation" category, and not surprising given the nominees).

2015 Hugo Award Trophy

This is the 2015 trophy design. It's almost as if they wanted it to be insipid on purpose. Such a shame...












This worldview, where we are told we must be mindful of an artist's political stances when choosing whether to support their work, has never made any sense to me. Frankly, I have a difficult time imagining a world in which I only partake of writing, music, painting, theatre, etc., produced by artists who share my own political perspective. At the very least, that would deny me the pleasures of...

Harlan Ellison

Brilliant writer, childishly silly left-wing politics...

Great band, one of my favorites, infantile left-wing politics...

Joss Whedon

Creator of Firefly, Serenity, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, etc., all favorites of mine. Completely idiotic left-wing politics...








To be clear: one of the reasons I read literature, listen to music, watch movies and television shows, look at paintings and sculpture, attend theatrical productions, etc., is to escape from politics (and the toxic rhetoric employed therein these days).

I believe that, if you want the citizenry to be more engaged and better informed politically (a good thing, on balance), it is counter-productive to ask them to view every pleasurable thing in their lives through the lens of politics.

Just one curmudgeon's opinion...

Things That Make Me Happy: Rally Cap Edition

Baseball is truly an unpredictable game. You can never take anything for granted until the final out is recorded. The finale of the four-games series between my beloved Kansas City Royals and the Boston Red Sox yesterday afternoon at Fenway Park is a case in point.

If I told you that your team would be trailing 6-4 heading into the 9th inning of a game, and that both the first AND last outs of your final turn at bat would be runners getting thrown out at home plate, wouldn't you assume your team would lose the game?

And yet, that is exactly what happened yesterday in the Royals' 8-6 victory. In between 2B Omar Infante (who had tripled) and DH Kendrys Morales getting thrown out at home, the Royals scored four runs on four singles, a walk, and a double. Chris Young (9-6, 3.26 ERA) picked up the win after recording the final out of the Boston half of the 8th inning, and Wade Davis got his 11th save with relative ease in the 9th.

The hitting star for the Royals was 3B Mike Moustakas, who had an RBI double in the 4th inning, a solo home run (his 13th of the season) in the 6th, and a bases-loaded double in the 9th that drove in the winning runs.

"Bada bing, bada bam, bada boom!"

Having wrapped up the six-game road trip with a 4-2 record, the Royals return home to Kauffman Stadium tonight to begin a four-game series with the Baltimore Orioles. Kris Medlen (1-0, 2.51 ERA) makes his first start as a Royal after seven appearances in relief, facing the Orioles' Ubaldo Jimenez (9-7, 3.97).

Irresistible

I collect pens (mostly Hallmark and Waterman, but I have a few other nice ones, too) and guitars (I have been introducing members of my "harem" from time to time ever since I started this project), so how could I possibly have resisted this when I saw it at Dietze Music in Omaha?

Gibson Les Paul Ballpoint Pen

"Wait, what??? You bought something on impulse? I don't believe it!"

I sometimes act on other impulses, too, so watch your step, buster...

Things That Make Me Happy: Rehab Edition

Yesterday afternoon Alex Gordon appeared in a game for the first time since suffering a severe groin injury on July 8. Playing for the Omaha Storm Chasers in front of a sellout crowd at Werner Park in Omaha, Alex was 1-4, the one hit being a 2-run home run in the 5th inning of a 4-3 Storm Chasers win over the Sacramento River Cats (which might especially sweet since they are the AAA affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, the team that bested Alex and my beloved Kansas City Royals in seven games in last season's World Series).

Boom!

I'm planning on seeing a Storm Chasers game this coming weekend, and it will be great to watch Alex play in person for the first time in a couple of years. We're hopeful he won't be in Omaha long, as the Royals certainly need their Gold-Glove All-Star left fielder back as soon as possible!

Until Next Time...

Just a couple of days ago, I was reading a column by an author I read mostly for his political commentary, but in this particular column he was talking about songs, and in particular a Leonard Cohen song I'm very fond of, "Dance Me To the End of Love." I actually encountered the song for the first time before I knew Cohen had written it. I was directing a production of Cynthia Mercati's play To See The Stars, which calls for the use of klezmer music. I was not familiar with the style before directing that show, but I came to appreciate it, and still listen to it occasionally to this day.

It was during my research of this style of music that I encountered today's send-off, a rendition of Cohen's song by the Klezmer Conservatory Band that I have used as curtain-call music for both of the productions of TSTS that I have directed. Enjoy...