Divamensch

Maya Angelou got the 1995 Best Spoken Word Grammy for her album "Phenomenal Woman." Here's a fabulous, phenomenal video of her performing...

I turned on my TV this morning to the news that Pope Francis had died at the age of 88. He had recently been hospitalized with double...

Sometime around 1985, in the heyday of cassette tapes, my brother Howard gave me a tape by a band I'd never heard of, Working Week. He...

This was one of those classic CDA moments: "That dude was still alive...?" Wink Martindale died the other day at the age of 91. I grew up...

Just in time for my birthday, the 1994 Grammys were centered on improbable hero Tony Bennett. Who could have predicted THAT? His MTV...

Karen and I saw *Floyd Collins* at the Vivian Beaumont Theater on Apr 10, 2025. The show was originally produced off Broadway in 1996 and...

I read in the Times yesterday about the death of Jean Marsh, age 90. She wasn't just one of the stars of Upstairs, Downstairs , she and...

I heard Voices of Mannahatta on Apr 8, 2025. It wasn't a concert by Voices of Ascension but a concert presented by V of A as part of...

It's been such a long time since I featured a Mystery Guest. YouTube suggested this Richard Chamberlain appearance in 1973. He comes on...

I was sad to read in The Times that William Finn had died (age of 73). He was a writer of musicals, often the lyrics, music, and book - -...

This week I'm highlighting a couple of categories I probably haven't touched on yet. We're at the 1993 Grammys, by the way. Diva: Best...

I'm not a huge fan of Kathy Griffin but I give in to clickbait on YouTube now and then. I was lured by the headline to a 30-minute vlog...

I was saddened to see an obit in The Times for Val Kilmer. He died of pneumonia at the age of 65. Can you believe I forgot that he played...

The Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female for 1992 went to k. d. lang for the song "Constant Craving." Diva: lang's voice, really...

I was sad to read in The Times about the death of Richard Chamberlain, who died at the nice round age of 90. He was king of the TV...

Susan and I saw *Love Life* at City Center Encores on Mar 28. 2025. It's a musical by Kurt Weill and Alan Jay Lerner from 1948. It had...

My favorite opera aria ever is "Depuis le jour" from Louise by Gustave Charpentier. The opera is a snooze but this aria is...

Stephanie and I saw *Moby-Dick* at the Met on Mar 25, 2025. It's an opera with music by Jake Heggie and a libretto by Gene Scheer, it...

The Best Opera Recording Grammy for 1991 naturally went to the Met's recording of Götterdämmerung. Ho jo to ho, throw the ring into the...

Christian Marclay's 24-hour film The Clock was in New York in the summer of 2012. I saw nearly all of it over the course of five...