Eyes Wide ShutAbout four years ago, a colleague invited Myra Ottewell, a native Jacksonian and teacher in British Columbia, to speak to his class after they viewed "<b>Mississippi Burning</b>," the 1988 movie about the murders of civil rights workers Chaney, Goodman and …
Reveling in the DetailsHow do you measure the heft of a novel? I don't mean its weight in your hand, but its importance, its influence. If you're an inveterate reader, as in firmly established by long persistence, you realize you take in every …
Unapologetic FeminismJulia A. Fenton recalls a couple viewing one of her exhibits: They bent their heads together and discussed the image in front of them, she says.
Homespun HorrorWatching "<b>Night of the Loup Garou</b>" is like crowding into your friend's basement to screen a film you shot on the weekends and your evenings off.
Southern? Not So MuchYears ago, Oxford American magazine published an issue with a Southern Womanhood theme, featuring Ashley Judd in a University of Kentucky jersey. Men lusted after southern women in numerous articles.
Sundance BoundEvery year I gripe about the cold that chills my entire being when I'm in Park City, Utah, for the Sundance Film Festival. Despite the snow drifts and the messy aftermath of a daily freeze-thaw cycle, and even though I …
Ballet Competition Names MitchellThe USA International Ballet Competition has named Arthur Mitchell as the honorary chairman of the 2010 Jackson competition scheduled for June 12 through June 27, 2010. Mitchell is the founding artistic director of the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
Build a Cozy NestIn their new book, "The Comfortable Home: How to Invest in Your Nest and Live Well for Less" (Clarkson Potter, 2009, $35), co-authors Bob Williams and Mitchell Gold, business partners and owners of the home-furnishing company Mitchell Gold + Bob …
A Fun WorldMore than 130 brightly colored puppets and Jim Henson's original sketches for the television show "Sesame Street" and the film "The Dark Crystal" line the new exhibit "Jim Henson's Fantastic World."
Devil's DreamAt first glance, a novel on the life and times of Nathan Bedford Forrest may seem like a polarizing tale, but in "<b>Devil's Dream</b>" (Pantheon Books, 2009, $26) Madison Smartt Bell, a Nashville native, weaves an insightful story that reveals …
"Kings of Tort": A Royal Hit Job?The authors of the recent book "Kings of Tort: The True Story of Dickie Scruggs, Paul Minor and Two Decades of Political and Legal Manipulation in Mississippi" don't mince words when trying to convey a white-trash tale of former attorney …
Everybody's FineWhile "Everybody's Fine" may appear to be a light-hearted comedic drama, it plays out more like real life: full of ups and down with a little humor strewn here and there.
A Call from the Wild"Fantastic Mr. Fox" is rare breed. It unfolds slowly and on its own time. It never drags; its pace is leisurely but well measured. The art style and stop-motion photography are as unique as the story; the low-tech but painstaking …
A Blessed ManWyatt Waters unfolds the legs on his handmade wooden easel and sits down to paint a neighborhood scene in Belhaven. He is on one of those tree-lined streets with historic homes, neat lawns and attentive homeowners.
Master of PuppetsFor generations of American children, Jim Henson's imagination is hard to distinguish from their own. Henson's Sesame Street characters and Muppets have become enduring archetypes: Miss Piggy, the personification of frivolous vanity; Cookie Monster, a creature of pure id.
Wyatt Waters unfolds the legs on his handmade wooden easel and sits down to paint a neighborhood scene in Belhaven. He is on one of those tree-lined streets with historic homes, neat lawns and attentive homeowners.