O-My-God-Zilla: A Famed Monster Makes a Comeback

The original Godzilla (or Gojira)

Get prepared DC and the rest of America - Godzilla, that Japanese king of all monsters, is back. And this month, it will be a double attack.

First up was the return of the original monster over the past 4 days. To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the movie's release, Rialto Pictures showed its new restoration of Honda Ishiro's uncut landmark 1954 film at the AFI Silver Theater and Cultural Center in Silver Springs.

The original film was chopped and butchered before it screened in America under the title Godzilla: King of Monsters in 1956. Actor Raymond Burr was inserted in the American version as the protagonist and only one hour of the original 98-minute running time was used. All the Japanese speaking roles were dubbed over. The restored version, named Godzilla: The Japanese Original, delivers the complete version with no dubbing.

For those few who might not be familiar with the Godzilla tale, it is the story of a radiation-breathing prehistoric monster, awakened after millenia by hydrogen bomb testing. Impervious to repeated shelling by the Japanese army, Godzilla wreaks havoc on a helpless Tokyo.

At the time, the monster - actually named Gojira in Japanese - was a visual metaphor for the feared effects of a nuclear attack and the aftereffects of radiation. It had specific resonance with Japan since they had been the scene of 2 nuclear attacks just 9 years before the movie's release.

But the short run of the restored film just served as a prelude to the expected huge release of the remake of the original on May 16.  In that film, simply titled Godzilla, the famed monster is pitted against malevolent creatures, who bolstered by humanity's scientific arrogance, threaten the existence of all humankind.

To celebrate the release of the new Godzilla (one of our favorite monsters of all-time and the only monster to be the central figure in a song by Blue Oyster Cult), here are a series of fun articles featuring the central figure of so many 50s and 60s nightmares.

Japanese are upset with supersized, fat American Godzilla. (from Science Fiction.Com)

In crossover ad, Godzilla chows down on a Fiat (from The New York Daily News)

Here's what you all have been waiting for - Jawzilla: A Godzilla and Jaws trailer mashup. (from Indiewire)

Godzilla versus Smaug from The Hobbit: Who would win that dragon duel? (from The Wall Street Journal)

The ever increasing size of Godzilla and its implications for sexual selection and urine production. (from Deep Sea News)

Pop Art on Display @Smithsonian

Bold and brash, the new form of art dubbed pop art that exploded onto the art scene in the turbulent 1960s used images lifted directly from advertising, news reports, and highway signs.

Although initially dismissed, pop art proved to demonstrate sly commentary on consumerism, a fascination with glamour, and the superficiality of contemporary American mass culture.

And, of course, it challenged the then-prevailing assumptions about what should be.

Currently, Pop Art Prints is the subject of an exhibition at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, a show which will run until Aug. 31.

Of course, the 4 best-known practitioners of pop art - Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Roy Lichtenstein, and Andy Warhol, are represented in the exhibition, which draws on works from the museums extensive collection.

But there are several works by lesser-known artists that are important to check out including:

• Tobacco Rose (1965) by Mel Ramos

• Untitled (1966) by Jim Dine

• Love (1967) by Robert Indiana

A Prices Do DC Extra

Here are 2 more posts about the Pop Art Prints exhibit:

1. "Pop Art Prints: A Closer Look at James Rosenquist" (from Eye Level)
2. "Pop Art Prints proves that Pop artists weren't shallow" (from The Express)

Diego Rivera: Man at the Crossroads

Reproduction of one of 3 parts of Diego Rivera's Man at the Crossroads

By 1933, Diego Rivera was recognized as an influential Mexican artist with international prestige. John D. Rockefeller, the fabulously wealthy American businessman behind Standard Oil, was one of the world's richest men and looking to create a symbol that would establish his name for all the ages.

In some ways, it might seem inevitable that the paths of the 2 men would cross. But it was equally inevitable that any transaction between the activist artist and the rich tycoon would not end well.

The new exhibition at the Mexican Cultural Institute details the intriguing story behind Man at the Crossroads: Diego Rivera's Mural at the Rockefeller Center.

The exposition, on view until May 17, centers around the destroyed, never-unveiled mural by reconstructing its history with reproductions of letters, telegrams, contracts, documents, photographs, and both small and large sketches.

The story began when Rockefeller decided to have a "city within a city" constructed in downtown Manhattan that would become the commercial, cultural, economic, and financial center of the world. The project, started at the height of the Depression, was designed to give employment to 40,000 workers.

Part of the fresco

Rivera lobbied for a contract to supply art, and, surprisingly to many given his leftist leanings, was given permission to create a mural for the 70-story project which would be titled Man at the Crossroads.

The first battle occurred when Rivera decided he wanted to create a fresco instead of a mural painted on canvas, arguing that "nothing can take the place of fresco in mural painting because fresco is not a painted wall, but rather a painting that is a wall."

Representatives for Rockefeller conceded to Rivera's demands and the artist began 6 weeks of intensive work on the project.

However, project officials soon discovered that Rivera was depicting Communist leader V. I. Lenin in his work, an image that they believed was totally unacceptable to welcome Rockefeller whenever he arrived at his office.

Rivera was ordered to remove Lenin's image. However, the artist refused, saying "rather than mutilate the conception, I should prefer the physical destruction of the conception in its entirety, but conserving at least the integrity."

The decision not to include Rivera's work sparked a series of protests, rallies, and marches. It also provoked a cultural debate around the world about freedom of expression and the roles of both the artist and patron.

Protest ensued and Rivera himself spoke at several rallies.

On February 9, 1939, nine months after Rockefeller architects had covered up the work, Man at the Crossroads was destroyed. All that remains today are the preparatory drawings, sketches, and a few pictures taken of the work in progress, many of which appear in the current exhibition. This is the first visual attempt in the United States to fully explore the mural's unique history.

There's More to Whistler than His Mother

DC's Smithsonian museums (there are 17 of them here in the city) are among America's most treasured and visited places. But the Smithsonian also publishes a series of some of the most interesting, fact-filled blogs appearing anywhere on the internet. Each Sunday, The Prices Do DC re-posts an entry that initially appeared in one of those highly-readable blogs. Hope you enjoy and maybe we'll see you soon at the Smithsonian.

"Old Battlesea Bridge" by Whistler

WASHINGTON — There’s more to the painter James Abbott McNeill Whistler than his mother. There are boats, cities, bridges, kimonos and a city transforming into a new age.

All of these are on display at a new exhibit, “An American in London: Whistler and the Thames,” at the Arthur M. Sackler museum in Washington, D.C., through Aug. 17. The well-known painting of his mother is not included.

This rare exhibit has more than 90 works from museums in the United Kingdom, including Tate Britain, and U.S. museums, including pieces from the extensive collection at the Freer Gallery of Art.

To continue reading this post which 1st appeared in McClatchy DC,.click here.

Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2014/05/02/226348/new-exhibit-on-whistler-goes-beyond.html#storylink=cpy

The Last Days of the Old Post Office Before Its "Trumping"

Each week in our Saturday Supplement, The Prices Do DC re-posts an entry of interest to both residents of the Washington area and visitors to DC that first appeared in another publication's website.

On the last day open to visitors at Washington’s Old Post Office Tower Wednesday, a pair of building workers were the first two people up a glass-walled elevator, way ahead of the tour groups and history buffs looking for their last chance to get an unencumbered view of the city. For one of the workers, it was his maiden voyage.

“It was nice. It was very interesting, because I learned more about the building in 30 minutes than I did in six years” working here, said Jamain Morgan, 34, who lives in Maryland. “Seeing a part of history that you didn’t know was there, that’ll definitely stay with me for a while.”

Hopefully so, because as of Thursday, things are about to change at the corner of 12th and Pennsylvania. Even though the quirky food court and souvenir shops have been closed since January, the last tenants of the building, including the National Park Service which managed the property, will now prepare for the dump trucks full of money that Donald Trump is bringing to town. He plans to renovate the facility into what his daughter once touted will be “the finest luxury hotel in the world.”

To continue reading this post that 1st appeared in The Washington Post, click here.

On Christianity and Capitalism and Cronyism

Despite contentions to the contrary, Christianity and capitalism are not incompatible. In fact, combined properly they might represent the best way to help the world's poor, a panel of authors who contributed to the new book For the Least of These: A Biblical Answer to Poverty contend.

The new book is the latest in a series by the Institute for Faith, Work, and Economics (IFWE), which cosponsored the panel presentation with the American Enterprise Institute (AEI).

Dr. Jay Richards, an analytic philosopher, intelligent design advocate, and author of the book Money, God, and Greed: Why Capitalism is the Solution and Not the Problem said that the purpose of For the Least of These is "integrating the truths of theology with the truths of economics."

"We are not going to learn everything from the Bible," Richards said. "There are certain intellectual insights we are morally obligated to learn from economics."

Rev. Art Lindsley, vice president of theological initiatives for IFWE, noted that "the Bible does command us to care for the least of these." However, he contended that that care should fall under the auspices of the church, not the state.

"We think as Christians that we are called to the consideration of poverty not only to help people survive, but to thrive," Lindsley said. The minister said the best way to assure that thriving is to combine Christian and capitalistic principles, rather than rely on charity and government handouts.

Dr. Ann Bradley, the vice president of economic initiatives at IFWE, pointed out that focusing on income inequality solutions can prove troublesome since "the way it is researched and measured is a complex thing."

"What if how we have been thinking about it is wrong?," she asked. For example, she pointed out that income inequality is far less in Afghanistan than it is in the United States. "But I don't think that knowing that is going to make you pack your bags and move to Afghanistan tomorrow," Bradley added.

"Income inequality can tell us some things, but it can't tell us everything," she said, noting that some might say anyone born in this age "has won the income lottery" since studies show that "life has really progressed for all people." In fact, some experts believe extreme poverty could be eliminated in the next few decades.

However, while she believes a combination of Christianity and capitalism is an answer to poverty reduction, she did offer a caveat.

"We have cronyism in government. The rich lobby for their own protection. Only the rich can lobby on K Street (the central home of wealthy lobbying firms in DC). And politicians are willing to listen to people with cash," Bradley said.

Peter Green, who wrote a chapter titled "Stop Helping Us: A Call to Compassionately Move Beyond Charity" said his years working in poor, under-developed countries had led him to 5 convictions.

1. If you talk only in economic, not personal, terms about poverty "we lose the debate before we say anything."
2. People talking to others about the problems with poverty need to "engage with the heart." Green talked about seeing mothers taking dirt and a small amount of flour, mixing it, drying it, and then baking it just so their children could have a little something to eat. "That's not OK in this world of plenty," he said.
3. Traditional ways of helping such as handouts with no concern about the lifestyle of those being helped often cause long-term harm. "In the wake of our good intentions, we leave a mess," Green said. "We create entitlements and dependency and leave the people with feelings of worthlessness and shame.
4. A job is better than a handout. Green says the organizations he works with try to deliver on that belief.
5. And finally, as good as that is, "a job is not enough." Green talked about a worker in Rwanda who his organization helped to establish a small business. However, when he returned, he saw the businessman's family and children were not benefitting from the new prosperity. The father was spending all his earnings on alcohol and prostitution and gambling. "Life is more than an accumulation of what we have," Green said.

"We don't want to end up empowering today's oppressed to become tomorrow's oppressors," Green concluded.

Biblical Tale Is Rooted in Ecology, Says Director of Noah

Scenes from Darren Aronofsky's telling of the tale of Noah.

For noted Hollywood director Darren Aronofsky, who describes himself as a not very religious Jew, the Biblical story of Noah has always been about humankind's relationship to ecology and the environment.

"To try to remove the ecological message from the story of Noah is harder than putting it in," Aronofsky, the director of the controversial spring hit movie Noah, says. "Noah is saving these animals."

Aronofsky, on the left, and co-writer Ari Handel

Aronofsky recently appeared on a panel program at the Center for American Progress (CAP) titled Noah and the Nexus of Faith and Environmentalism.

He was joined on the panel by:

• Ari Handel, the co-writer of the movie
• Danielle Baussan, the managing director of energy policy at CAP
• Michael Brunce, executive director of the Sierra Club and
• Jack Jenkins, a senior writer and researcher of faith and progressive policy at  CAP

Aronofsky said that he maintains a broad view of environmentalism. "I think violence of man against man is an environmental issue. War is an environmental issue. War destroys the planet," he said.

Responding to criticism that his film does not follow Scripture, Aronofsky pointed out that that wasn't the intention of the movie. 

"The mythical power of these early chapters is really inspiring," he said. "It's a question of what can we learn from them."

The director said he wanted to create a film that combined "the poetry of Genesis with the visuals of the movie screen."

"They are equally inspiring," he added. "They are not mutually exclusive. It makes for an incredibly beautiful way to look at what happened. We never questioned the text. We showed full respect for the text."

Aronofsky said he and his co-writer Handel faced many difficult choices in bringing the story to life. "Lots of questions came up. People have been wrestling with these questions for centuries.  For example, there is stewardship - does man have a moral responsibility to take care of the environment?" 

Brunce said the film, although set in early Biblical times, captured "the exact emotions and challenges" that environmental movement is facing today. "It (the destruction of the natural world) is a cause of great despair, but we have a greater awareness and a greater ability than ever to do something about it," he noted.

Baussan said the exposure of the issues raised in the film is a great way to focus more on the relationship between modern man and the environment. "Conversations around art can be a great way to do this," she said.

Aronofsky said that one of his goals was to restore the Noah tale to its original intent. "For a very long time, it has been turned into a children's story. But it was the first Apocalypse story. God had a question in his mind - does man have the right to continue. God is judging man," he said.

"I think I always related to the fact that I wouldn't have been good enough to get on the boat. For me, it was scary and traumatic," he added.

A Gathering for Science Geeks, Math Nerds, and Really Brainy Boys and Girls of All Types

With the stirring theme march of Star Wars and the loud pops of state-of-the-art science experiments as aural background, thousands and thousands of budding young scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians packed the Walter E. Washington Convention Center this past weekend for the free 2014 USA Science and Engineering Festival.

From astrophysics to zoology, if a subject involved science it was represented somewhere on the vast convention floor.

And when we used the word packed in our opening paragraph, we were engaging in understatement. How packed was it, you ask? Well, one of the guest speakers was basketball great and African-American student encourager Kareem Abdul Jabbar.  Now you would expect it would be easy to find a 7 foot, 2 inch man, right? Wrong. Despite searching for more than a half hour, the convention was so crowded we weren't able to find Jabbar's book signing spot.

But here is a pictorial capturing of some of what we did see:

You could learn about the science of sound ...

... or make some really loud music of your own.

Did we mention the crowd was large?

But there were a few quiet places to relax

You could explore something as big as the world ...

... or as small as a part of an atom.

There were robots that could do flips ...

... and robots that could fling frisbees.

You could build things and take them home ...

... become part of the big picture ...

... or use your nerd skills to create a weapon from scratch to stave off the Zombie Apocalypse.

You could visit the STEM Fab Lab ....

... or the giant Vortex welding truck.

You could see big name scientists like Bill Nye the Science Guy from a distance.  ...

... or  the less well-known science guy up close and personal.

You could encounter characters from science like Booker T. Washington and Nicola Tesla.

You could even get a hug if you needed one.

You could visit big space ships  ...

You could check out your favorite bugs ...

... or pick up some favorite science books.

But no matter what you chose to do, you found that Geek (and all its derivatives ) was not only the good word for the day, but a great way to use your talents and live your life.  So let's hear it for Brain Beats Brawn and Go Nerds.

It's The End of the World ... Again ... and Again ... And Again ... and Again ... And Again ... And Again

Everyone from everywhere wanted to be at Disasterthon! in DC

If you love disaster films and Apocalyptic movies, then the Hirshhorn was the place to be on Saturday as the museum presented Disasterthon! An All-Day Marathon of Cataclysmic Classics.

A total of 6 films were shown during the event, which began at noon and concluded after midnight.  Disasterthon! was scheduled to coincide with the Hirshhorn's current exhibit Damage Control: Art and Destruction Since 1950.

Five of the movies were selected by museum officials and they offered varying possibilities for the end of the world as we know it. They were:

• Miracle Mile (1988) - Nuclear destruction. Message from film - if a pay phone rings really early on a dark morning, don't answer it 
• The Host aka Gwoemul (2006) - A Korean toxic-chemical altered walking, climbing, bridge-swinging giant mutant lake creature. Message from film - don't dump environmentally unsafe liquids down the drain, even if ordered to by an American scientist upset with dusty bottles.
• War of the Worlds (2005) - Invading Martians intent on capturing Earth. Message from film - keep watching the skies and keep Tom Cruise nearby if you want to survive. 
• Sharknado (2013) - A Sci-Fi camp classic in which LA is threatened by sharks brought from the sea and dropped from the sky and one of the worst premises for a film (so bad it is actually good) ever created. Can't wait for its spawns - Sharknado 2 and Zombeaver) ever. Message from film - always have a big chainsaw handy for battling sky-dropping sharks. It works much better than a red-stooled, cast-iron bar seat.
• 28 Days Later (2002) - Speedy zombies take over England. Message from film - If you wake up in a hospital all alone, be prepared to encounter the environmentally-created living dead.

The 6th and final film was selected by online voters from a list of 25 titles submitted by the Hirshhorn. The winner was Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964). The Stanley Kubrick atomic-era classic captures the hilarious horror when an insane general triggers a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of political leaders frantically tries to stop. It  is filled with messages. Here's just one - if you are bent on unleashing a nuclear air attack, make sure you have at least one Cowboy character like Slim Pickens on board so he can ride the plane to destruction in the event of a mechanical failure.

After each film, viewers got a stamp on a special Disasterthon! passport from "an official government signatory" attesting to the fact that they had seen the film. Those who made it through all six would be eligible for special prizes. (For the sake of full disclosure. I had fully intended to watch all 6. I made it thorough and enjoyed Miracle Mile, The Host, and War of the Worlds. But I only lasted half-way through Sharknado, which, unfortunately I had seen twice before. You know a film is pretty bad if even Tara Reid's frequently bouncing breasts can't keep you in your seat for a 3rd viewing.)

Disasterthon! was designed to be an interactive event so live tweeting was encouraged. As you can imagine from the subject matter, the tweeting was both clever and engaging. Here are some of my favorites from the day. (To see all the tweets, click here and begin with April 26)

• OK, now you’re just wasting ammo. #shootingblindlyneverpays
• Ever since George Romero’s original Dawn of the Dead, shopping as a respite from the waves of undead has held a special charm.
• In a zombie movie, whenever there’s a discussion about the relative safety of routes, they pick the wrong one. #narrativeexigencies
• An adult chimp can rip your arm off and beat you like a dirty rug. A chimp infected with rage… #dontopenthecage
• Shouldn’t there be a sealnado and a manateenado as well? Seaweednado? Sandnado?
• I ripped it off from that mute chick who rode around with Charlton Heston in Planet of the Apes. #whatkindofnameisNova
• Collin should know better than to be a total d-bag in a shark movie. #fated
• #JawsSpoiler 20 minutes in and they shoot the oxygen tank. SMH

In between films, nuclear safety short films prepared by the government were screened, including one of my all-time favorites "Duck and Cover." I am certain the absurdity and inanity of Civil Defense propaganda films like these contributed to why so many of us took to the streets in protest in the 60s and early 70s. You can check out my theory by clicking on the "Duck and Cover" link above. This was actually produced and released by a government that expected to be taken seriously?

Here Deborah Horowitz (center) is with museum public information officer  Glenn Dixon, who has just realized that Saturday marks the 4th anniversary of Hirshhorn employment, and Rhys Conlon of the publication department.

And while the day was a fun event, there was an artistic purpose behind it, says Deborah Horowitz, the Director of Curatorial Administration and Publications for the Hirshhorn.

"The notion of end-of-the world destruction is terrifying, yet it is mesmerizing, too," Horowitz said. "The whole notion of spectacle is important to our culture. In many ways, we have become a culture of spectacle.  While this was fun, it also has weight."

So as one of the Hirshhorn's now-leading experts on damage and destruction, does Horowitz have a chosen way she would want the world to end?

"Quickly and not for a long time," she says. 

A Prices Do DC Extra

What else could you do at Disasterthon! beside watch end-of-the-world films? Here's a pictorial sample.

You could view the movie posters  created especially for the event by Hirshhorn artists

 You could picture yourself in Sharknado 2.

This is me meeting Jaws ...

... and this is Zoe, Deborah Horowitz''s 6-and--half -year-old fearless daughter

You could compete for Hat-astrophe prizes for best disaster-themed head wear.

 You could buy special Disasterthon! t-shirts and other end-of-the-world items.

Glenn with his Hat-astrophe and Deborah model the for-sale event t-shirts

Or you could view the art from the exhibit that started all this day of disaster-movie madness.