As a commenter asked, the film is called DESK SET and it is one of the most utterly charming movies Hepburn and Tracy made together, though of course very dated. But that’s one of the fascinating things about it: you see how the world was, just a few decades ago, with women offering men their measurements, careers meaning spinsterhood, computers that took up whole rooms….the sorts of manners that were common; it was “scandalous” to find a man and woman... Read more
Conan O’ Brien gave the commencement address at Dartmouth college, and it is longer than usual, but stick with it for the sheer entertainment value. At about the 18 minute mark, O’Brien gets serious and personal, and the speech goes from enjoyable to sublime. Discussing his professional journey and its disappointments, he says: “There are few things more liberating in this life than having your worst fear realized.” You can tell he means it; between quips, he speaks passionately and... Read more
UPDATE: Just finally watched the show, myself, and realized that I had referred to Tim Pawlenty as “capable” but too white-bread-middle-manager. Seems some would agree I totally love, love, love Jane Hanson’s dress! Read more
My column at First Things today poses a question prompted by last Sunday’s Tony Awards, during which the prize-winning dramatist and AIDS activist Larry Kramer remarked, “To gay people everywhere, whom I love so dearly, The Normal Heart is our history. I could not have written it had not so many needlessly died. Learn from it and carry on the fight. Let them know that we are a very special people, an exceptional people, and that our day will come.”... Read more
Charming. And wonderful choreography. I enjoyed it much more than the “Anything Goes” finale which I had expected to prefer, but which kind of bored me: Read more
I had the pleasure of meeting CUA’s new president, John Garvey a couple of months ago, and came away impressed with his energy and his obvious interest in his students. That sincere interest is on display in his very “counter-culteral” move to re-establish same-sex dormitories at Catholic University: “Virtue,” Aristotle concludes, “makes us aim at the right mark, and practical wisdom makes us take the right means.” If he is right, then colleges and universities should concern themselves with virtue... Read more
It doesn’t always flow so easily, or so naturally, especially when the family has been shattered and new people are coming in and out of the framework. When I was 14, two things happened. First, he met a woman, moved in with her, and got engaged. Second, I entered high school. The future he and I had talked about so hopefully became foreshortened; like Tony Manero’s, my future was tonight. With startling speed, my father changed from a wise and... Read more
Adorable kid, adorable pup. My kids sounded just like this when they laughed — Elder Son while watching Winnie the Pooh, and Buster while playing with a sword… Read more
I have issues with textbook-free campuses, and so, it appears, does Jesse Jackson, Jr. And some of our issues are the same. I too have wondered what happens to all the publishing houses, all the paper producers, the raw-material-providers, all the book binders, all the designers, all the office-workers, all the shipping and trucking jobs that disappear if campuses become “textbook free.” I am also concerned about what happens to our understanding of the past — or even our present... Read more
Oy. Deacon Greg has an an update to the Kansas City-St. Joseph story that seems to be a triumph of naivete and just not getting it: The sad story of the troubles in Kansas City has taken a new twist: The Catholic official who oversees sex abuse complaints against priests in the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese, has himself been accused of past sexual improprieties. You can read it all there. A friend of mine was quick to email about this... Read more
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