‘Self and Sound’ Theme for La Jolla Music Society’s Summer Programs

Exploring the theme, Self and Sound, this year’s Summerfest once again bears the stamp of the creative vision of Inon Barnatan, the music director of the La Jolla Music Society.   The concert pianist/head organizer has put together a 16-concert festival, with many ancillary free events, that promises to be pleasurable and challenging for its listeners. [Eileen Wingard]

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Eileen Wingard, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County

Deborah Lipstadt Named to U.S. Antisemitism Post

Emory University professor and historian Deborah E. Lipstadt has been selected to serve as the next U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism. Lipstadt is one of the world’s leading historians on antisemitism and is the author of the seminal book, Antisemitism: Here and Now. She has also served as a fellow at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and successfully faced down a lawsuit against notorious Holocaust denier David Irving. [ADL News Release]

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International, Middle East, USA

Harvey Weinstein loses bid to dismiss three LA sex crime charges

Published by Reuters LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – A Los Angeles judge on Thursday rejected an attempt to throw out three sexual assault charges against former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein ahead of his second trial later this year, the City News Service reported. Weinstein, 69, who was convicted of rape at a trial last year in

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Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Scarlett Johansson sues Disney over ‘Black Widow’ streaming release

Published by AFP Los Angeles (AFP) – Scarlett Johansson is suing Disney over its decision to release superhero movie “Black Widow” on streaming at the same time as in theaters, alleging a breach of contract which cost the star millions of dollars. Johansson, one of Hollywood’s biggest and top-paid stars, was entitled to a percentage

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Theatre, Film & Broadcast

Is Spain Backtracking on Its Promise of Citizenship for Sephardic Descendants?

While one form or another of “Holy Inquisition” ravaged Europe and the Iberian Peninsula for at least two centuries before and after the discovery of the New World, the year 1492 is often considered significant in the Spanish Inquisition as in that year – and in 1502 for Muslims – Catholic King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella of Spain issued an ultimatum, El Decreto de la Alhambra (the Alhambra Decree) ordering Jews to convert to Catholicism, or else be expulsed from Castile. [Dorian de Wind]

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Dorian de Wind, International, Jewish History

Former Israel ‘Hawk’ Tells of His Transformation to a ‘Dove’

It’s a well-worn political observation that “it took a Nixon to go to China,” meaning because President Richard M. Nixon was identified as a staunch conservative, he was trusted to go to mainland China and open a dialogue with that nation’s communist rulers, a dialogue that led to the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two adversary countries. [Donald H. Harrison]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Middle East

Frankenthaler Foundation Aids Timken Art Gallery’s Environmental Upgrade

The Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, named for the late Jewish abstract expressionist artist, has granted $100,000 to the Timken Museum of Art in Balboa Park to upgrade its heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system as part of the Foundation’s $5.1 million program to address climate change in behalf of the visual arts. [Timken Art Museum news release]

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Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County