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Smart News / Smart News Arts & Culture

Stephen Sondheim sitting in a recording control room in 1987

Cool Finds

Stephen Sondheim’s Lost College Musical Was Found Hidden in Plain Sight

Live recordings from “Phinney’s Rainbow” had been sitting on a journalist’s bookshelf for years

Banning's viral tweet sparked an outpouring of stories from famous authors about under-attended book signings.

Two People Showed Up to Her Book Signing. Then, Margaret Atwood and Stephen King Commiserated

Famous writers around the world offered support to debut author Chelsea Banning

Beethoven’s handwritten manuscript for the fourth movement of his String Quartet in B-flat Major

Nazi-Looted Beethoven Manuscript Returned to Original Owners

The Czech Republic’s Moravian Museum gave the document to the heirs of the Petschek family

To select a winner, Oxford editors track trending words and phrases throughout the calendar year.

‘Goblin Mode’ Is Oxford’s 2022 Word of the Year

The term describes behavior that’s “unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly or greedy”

The dilapidated jet has been sitting at the Roswell Air Center in Roswell, New Mexico, for decades.

Elvis Presley’s Private Jet Is Going Up for Auction

The famous singer bought the JetStar in 1976, a year before his death

“It was traumatizing to watch such an important icon of civilization go up in flames,” composer Julian Anderson says.

‘Litanies,’ Inspired by Notre-Dame Fire, Receives Prestigious Music Award

Julian Anderson’s 25-minute concerto won the 2023 Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition

Jeanne Dielman is the first film directed by a woman to rank in the number one spot in the Sight and Sound poll.

These Are the 100 Greatest Films of All Time, According to 1,600 Critics

Chantal Akerman’s bleak drama “Jeanne Dielman” tops the prestigious Sight and Sound poll

Shirin Neshat's Offered Eyes

Public Art Installation Opens in Solidarity With Iranian Protesters

“Eyes on Iran,” located in a public park on Roosevelt Island, faces the United Nations across the water

Viva Magenta is Pantone's color of the year for 2023.

Art Meets Science

What Is Viva Magenta, Pantone’s ‘Brave’ and ‘Fearless’ Color of the Year?

As 2023 approaches, the bold pinkish-red is supposed to reflect the global zeitgeist

The French baguette has officially been given UNESCO protection.

As Traditional Bakeries Disappear, the French Baguette Receives UNESCO Protection

The agency adds the “artisanal know-how and culture of baguette bread” to its intangible heritage list

Christine McVie performing in Bloomington, Minnesota, in 1990

Christine McVie, Singer-Songwriter Behind Some of Fleetwood Mac’s Greatest Hits, Dies at 79

For decades, she was a powerful creative force in one of history’s most popular rock bands

The Colonna di Sant'Andrea landmark in Presicce

This Charming Italian Town Will Pay You $30,000 to Move There

Presicce, located in the heel of Italy’s boot, is trying to bring fresh energy to its older neighborhoods

Many of the cast members of KPOP are K-pop stars themselves, including lead actor Luna.

K-Pop Comes to Broadway

The new musical “KPOP” opened in New York City with an almost entirely Asian American cast

Throne 1, KK'in Lakam Chahk (785)

Rarely Seen Ancient Maya Masterpieces Go on View at the Met

It’s the first exhibition of its kind in the United States in a decade

Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap has been running at London's West End since 1952.

Agatha Christie’s ‘The Mousetrap’ Is Coming to Broadway

After 70 years in London, the beloved murder mystery is finally heading to the Great White Way

Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman in Gaslight, a film adaptation of the 1938 play Gas Light

‘Gaslighting’ Is Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year

Searches for the term, defined as the “practice of grossly misleading someone,” skyrocketed in 2022

Pieces of Forrest Fenn's treasure

You Can Own a Piece of Forrest Fenn’s Treasure

The valuable artifacts, hidden in the Rocky Mountains for more than a decade, are going up for auction

The colorful Sunday panel published in 1987

Hand-Colored ‘Calvin and Hobbes’ Strip Sells for $480,000

The cheeky panel, created by Bill Watterson, was a gift to his longtime editor Lee Salem

GPT-3 generated a Thanksgiving menu featuring "roasted turkey with a soy-ginger glaze" and "pumpkin spice cake with orange cream cheese frosting."

Should You Let Artificial Intelligence Plan Your Thanksgiving Dinner?

While A.I. recipe generation has come a long way, it won’t outdo humans anytime soon

Before changing his name to Bob Dylan, the popular singer-songwriter was Robert Zimmerman.

What Bob Dylan Wrote in His High School Love Letters

A collection of notes from the musician to his girlfriend sold for nearly $670,000 at auction

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