Tale Of Two Women From An Iconic Civil Rights Photo

In 1957, Little Rock, Arkansas became the first battleground in the fight to integrate public schools.  On a September morning, nine African American students tried to enroll for class at a local high school and were confronted by the National Guard as well as an angry, vocal mob.  A local photojournalist named Will Counts snapped the above picture that morning as one of the students arrived at the school, forever immortalizing the two women caught in its frame; Hazel Bryant (left) and Elizabeth Eckford. Instantly, this image became one of the most iconic photos of the Civil Rights era.

Last night, there was a story on the PBS Newshour about these two women and the surprising lives they've lead, both separately and together, since that fateful day in 1957.  The story was tagged to a new book that's out from writer David Margolick which tells their unusual story over the past 50-odd years entitled ELIZABETH AND HAZEL.  Also, you can read a lengthy excerpt from the book that was published in VANITY FAIR earlier this fall.  It's a fascinating story of two lives randomly caught in a moment of history and how that experience has affected them ever since.

Watch Book Tells How Iconic Civil Rights Era Photo Changed Lives of 2 Women on PBS. See more from PBS NewsHour.

Vivian Maier's Beautiful Photos Of New York In 1940s

About a year ago, I posted about the discovery of a treasure trove of photos taken by a Chicago nanny that are an artful record of mid-Century American urban life.  A Chicago real estate attorney discovered thousands of her photos a couple years ago, taken when she was off duty as an upper-class nanny, and has been sifting through them ever since.

I recently found some of Vivian Maier's photos posted on one of my favorite photo sites, How to Be A Retronaut.  Unlike the majority of her work  that depicts Chicago, these photos were of New York City in the 1940s and they are just extraordinary.  I am posting two of my favorites here but I encourage you to check out the rest on the site.  They are really remarkable given her compositions, the characters she finds and her subtle use of available light.  Earlier, critics likened her work to Walker Evans but, based on these new pictures, I'd say she's more like Henri Cartier-Bresson, with a mad touch of Diane Arbus thrown in there too.

The first NYC exhibit of her work opens today at Steven Kasher's gallery in Chelsea. I look forward to seeing them in person as beautiful photos like these should be seen; printed, framed and hanging on a wall.

TIME'S Person Of The Year is "The Protestor"

Today, TIME magazine named its Person of the Year and it's actually more than one.  "The Protestor" is their "person" who has had the biggest effect on the world's event in 2011.  I thought they might be more specific, like chosing "the 99%", the phrase that has been popularized by the Occupy Wall Street movement, or the young men and women who bravely brought about an Arab Spring.  But I think using the more general term is actually more apt, in that it shows what a remarkable and broad range of protest this tumultuous year has seen around the world.

In fact, just two days ago, protestors took to the streets of Moscow to express their anger over what has been called a fixed Russian election, where longtime leader Vladamir Putin's party remained in power despite popular unrest. In some ways, it seems the world has a bit of a protesting virus that just keeps spreading.  First it was the Middle East, where protests in one country seemed to inspire those in another, eventually leading to the unthinkable toppling of Egypt's longtime leader Mubarak.  In the US, who would have guessed that the handful of original protestors who camped out in a park a couple blocks from Wall Street would have sparked a national movement encompassing thousands of people in less than a couple months?  

One of the main runners-up for TIME's honor this year was Admiral McRaven, who orchestrated the attack that killed Osama Bin Laden.  But the death of the leader of a weakened and increasingly marginalized Al Qaeda is less momentous than the birth of a global movement in which the masses, in the still-prophetic words of the fictional Howard Beale, are mad as hell and are not going to take it anymore.

Droids In Dubai: Photographer Brings STAR WARS Down To Earth

This striking photo was in the TIMES art section this weekend.  It is the work of a French photographer named Cedric Delsaux who has created a book in which characters from the STAR WARS series inhabit the earth. The photo above has droids from Episode 3 hanging out in a rough and tumble section of Dubai. A number of his other photos place STAR WARS characters, including Darth Vader and C3PO, in Paris.

Delsaux, 37, was a true STAR WARS baby as the movie inspired him as a child....and still inspires him today.  He even found a fan in the often litigious George Lucas, who actually wrote the introduction to his book of photos featuring these characters, DARK LENS. It could be the perfect gift for the STAR WARS fanatic in your life.

Paul Rudnick Creates A New Kinsey Scale

Over on the New Yorker website, I came across this very funny essay by Paul Rudnick in which he creates a new version of the famous Kinsey Scale of sexuality.

With 24-points, this is a much more nuanced version than Alfred Kinsey's 6-point scale marking the degrees of sexuality from 100% hetero to 100% homo. Rudnick's new scale has entries that take into account some very modern factors in calculating someone's sexuality, such as Regis and Kelly (#14) and the revival of FOLLIES (#24).  One only wonders where Rick Perry might fall on here...

A Round-Up Of The Week's Rick Perry Memes

There was an explosion of memes this week surrounding Rick Perry's hateful YouTube "commercial" for his failing Presidential campaign.  The spot was desperate ploy to revive a campaign that has crashed and burned since his infamous "oops" moment during a Republican Presidential debate where he could not remember his own talking points. And now, with more than a million views on YouTube and more Dislikes than Rebecca Black's "Friday", the "ad" has inspired a lot of gay outrage....and humor too.

 I love the Teletubby in the background version of his ad below but I'm especially fond of the Brokeback pic, given that Perry has some rumors about his own sexuality.  Of course, there are even some YouTube spoofs. One in which Perry is remixed to "lisp" through the whole ad.  Another where someone stands in for Perry.

The bottom line is Perry's campaign is going nowhere and, even with all this Internet attention, he'll be lucky to get single digit support in Iowa's Presidential caucus next month.

A NYC Novelist Scams An Internet Scammer

I came across this unusual story on The Awl recently.  Teddy Wayne, a NY writer and novelist, received a friend request and then some back in August.  This Facebook "woman" claimed to be in love with him and in desperate need of his help.  Since then he has been carrying on a hilarious back and forth with the scammer who has been trying to get him to wire "her" (fake profile picture, left) money to a Western Union account.

Essentially, Wayne scams the scammer in the wryly absurdist manner of, well, a New York novelist, leading "her" on and giving "her" false Western Union numbers and wondering at length how true "her" vows of Internet love are, especially when he reveals to his beloved a case of chronic gastro-intenstinal problems.  This exchange went on for three months and ended with the scammer begging and pleading Wayne to leave them alone!  Genius.

The entire exchange is a bit long to read but for anyone who has ever received an email from a Nigerian bank, it is sweet revenge that is long overdue. The pen may not be mightier than the sword, but a keyboard in the right hands can do some serious mental damage that's for sure.

Historic Speech By Clinton On International Human Rights Day

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made an historic speech yesterday on International Human Rights Day. Speaking before an audience at the UN in Geneva, she stated unequivocally that "gay rights are human rights and human rights are gay rights." The speech coincided with a remarkable statement that President Obama released yesterday as well (which you can read in full here) which also tied future U.S. foreign aid to how countries around the world deal with their gay citizens.

This comes at a time when human rights violations against gays and lesbians are on the increase internationally, especially in Muslim countries like Iran and some African countries where death is the government-sanctioned punishment for being openly gay. Even in nations like Poland and Russia, there have been recent upswings in violence against gays and lesbians and government actions to ban gay groups and even public discussions of the topic, like in St. Petersburg.

Clinton's speech got scant coverage in the NY TIMES but more comprehensive and nuanced coverage in the Chicago SUN TIMES.  You can also watch Clinton's speech on Towleroad, which did a lot to publicize this major story.  For all the complaints about President Obama on the left, it's safe to say that this sort of statement would never have come from any of the Republicans currently challenging him.  It's clear the President is not only on our side, but on the right side of history.  So liberals better man-up and get behind the President who is taking bold actions domestically and internationally so that gays and lesbians are treated equally.

Getting Down With "The Low Line"

Down under Delancey Street, at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge, lies an old trolley terminus that has been sitting vacant for 60-some years.  Now there is a push to revive the space and maybe turn it into an underground park.

The NY Times recently did a piece about what has come to be known as "The Low Line", a nickname for the project inspired by the success of another reuse of abandoned rail infrastructure, The High Line. Though the two guys who are trying to make this happen are optimistic and the MTA is very eager to lease some of its real estate, the project has a long way to go, both financially and even theoretically. 

I think it's gonna be tough to get people to hang out underground near a major subway station, even if they filter in natural sunlight as pictured above.  A similar project was attempted in Washington DC in the '90s where a food court was developed in an old trolley terminus at Dupont Circle that met with disaster and lawsuits.  Below is the MTA's recent video showcasing the space, which is roughly 600ft x 100ft.  It looks pretty bleak but then again, so did the High Line ten years ago. Time and corporate backing will tell....

West Village Bar PIECES Saved By New Lease

For nearly 20 years, the West Village bar PIECES has been a popular gay hangout on Christopher Street. It was due to close next year but its landlord has changed their mind, based on community support for the bar.  You can read the full story on NEXT magazine's website (where I occasionally do nightlife coverage).  I was asked to do an exclusive interview with the establishment's owner Eric Einstein over the weekend as he wanted to get out the word that bar was going to stay in it's current home for a few more years at least.