Quotation: George Eliot

Men’s lives are as thoroughly blended with each other as the air they breathe: evil spreads as necessarily as disease.

George Eliot (1819-1880) Discuss

 

Today’ Birthday: SARAH BERNHARDT (1844)

Sarah Bernhardt (1844)

The illegitimate child of a courtesan, Bernhardt was encouraged to pursue a theatrical career by one of her mother’s lovers. Her acting teachers did not consider her a particularly promising student, but they turned out to be sorely mistaken; Bernhardt went on to become the premier romantic and tragic actress of her day, touring all over the world during her six-decade career on stage and screen. What morbid possession may have helped “the Divine Sarah” reach her potential as a tragedienne?More… Discuss

 

POSSIBLE POLIO CASES REPORTED IN WAR-TORN SYRIA

Intense global eradication efforts over the past quarter century have cut polio incidence by more than 99% and eliminated it in much of the world. Today, it remains endemic in only three countries—Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan. However, the ongoing civil war in Syriahas made it impossible to effectively vaccinate much of the population, and now the World Health Organization has received reports of two suspected cases of polio there. Before this possible outbreak, wild poliovirus had not been reported in Syria in 14 years. More… Discuss

 

MARCUS LICINIUS CRASSUS

Crassus was the wealthiest man in Rome when he, along with Julius Caesar and Pompey, formed the First Triumvirate in 60 BCE. The three men were able to control Rome, and though Pompey and Crassus were jealous of each other, Caesar kept the arrangement going. However, seven years later, Crassus invaded Parthia, hoping for a victory to match the successes of Pompey and Caesar. His army of about 44,000 was defeated in the desert by 10,000 Parthian archers, and he was killed while trying to do what? More… Discuss

 

This day in the yesteryear: THE METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE OPENS WITH A PERFORMANCE OF FAUST (1883)

The Metropolitan Opera House Opens with a Performance of Faust (1883)

New York City’s Metropolitan Opera House is the leading US opera company. It opened in 1883 after having been founded by a group of millionaires who had failed to get boxes at the prestigious and exclusive Academy of Music. The “Met” soon outshined its rival and is now considered one of the world’s premier opera stages. Originally located at Broadway and 39th Street, it moved into the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in 1966. Who were among the Met’s founding millionaires? More… Discuss