Back in the day
The Rite of Spring is a landmark ballet by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky that provoked a riot when it premiered at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris. Expecting the demure conventions of classical ballet, the audience was caught off-guard by Stravinsky's dissonant score and Vaslav Nijinsky's violently untraditional choreography depicting fertility rites. Fistfights broke out between detractors and supporters, and chaos ensued. What Disney film popularized the ballet?
Feature
Living statues are mimes who stand perfectly still for hours on end, pretending to be statues. They are sometimes painted with a metallic sheen or another color so that they appear to have been cast from metal or carved from stone. Often, they are so still that bystanders believe they are actual statues and—as has been shown on many a hidden-camera television show—create quite a commotion among startled onlookers if they disrupt the illusion by moving. When did the first living statues perform?
Born on a day like today
Famous for his "ski-jump" nose, superb timing, and irreverent attitude, Hope was an immensely popular American comedian. He debuted in vaudeville in the 1920s and later performed on radio, television, stage, and in more than 50 films. He hosted the Oscars a record-breaking 17 times over 38 years. A master of comic monologues and mildly bawdy one-liners, he was a tireless entertainer of US troops overseas. When asked on his deathbed at age 100 where he wanted to be buried, how did he respond?
Last updated on Tuesday, 29th May 2012
Next to trying and winning, the best thing is trying and failing.
