Scarlett Johansson for The One Ah, perfume commercials. The beautiful women, the graceful music, the complete lack of logic . . . what's not to love? As the rest of the advertising industry moves forward, scent-inspired ads have stubbornly remained the same. Whether they show an anorexic model writhing around on concrete for Calvin Klein or a French ingénue floating about in a black dress for Chanel, they've all been done before, and they always seem to border on complete parody. Dolce & Gabbana's new, grandly self-indulgent "film" for The One certainly does. "Oh, I love Italy," our "eternal diva" tells her unseen interviewer, cameras flashing in her face. "I had an Italian boyfriend once. His mother broke up with me. . . . How ... Continue reading →
Copyright © 2012 National Public Radio®. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required. NEAL CONAN, HOST: This is TALK OF THE NATION. I'm Neal Conan, in Washington. Each year, too many people die waiting for a transplant. Just about everybody agrees that the current system to distribute organs is both ethical and fair, but it simply doesn't provide enough, and some argue it's time to change. A federal law makes it illegal to buy or sell organs for transplant. This month, an opinion poll by NPR and Thomson Reuters finds that about 60 percent of Americans would support modest compensation. The survey asked about kidneys, bone marrow, parts of a liver, organs that can be removed from ... Continue reading →
Virginia Postrel's "The Substance of Style" is smart, fun to read, and correct. She tells us that we have entered the "Age of Aesthetics," a time when beauty and style are to be found everywhere, at least for market economies. Every product, every place, and every experience now is supposed to offer a touch of the aesthetic. The reason is simple: increasingly wealthy and sophisticated customers demand "an enticing, stimulating, diverse, and beautiful world." (p.4)The book surveys a wide variety of trends -- from fashion to cosmetic surgery to restaurant design -- and shows how they fit this common pattern. We hear about Martha Stewart, Starbucks, the iMac, fashion magazines, tiled floors, nice salad bowls, and the Michael Graves brush from Target. The age of ... Continue reading →
Read an Excerpt The Substance of Style How the Rise of Aesthetic Value Is Remaking Commerce, Culture, and Consciousness By Virginia I. Postrel Perennial Copyright ©2004 Virginia I. Postrel All right reserved.ISBN: 0060933852 Chapter One The Aesthetic Imperative People don't generally go to Selkirk, New York, to look for the future. Manhattan, yes. L.A., San Francisco, even Seattle. But not Selkirk. There are a million people in a fifteen-mile radius, my host tells me, but you wouldn't know it as we drive past snow-covered fields. The place looks empty. We're a few miles outside Albany, in what might as well be rural New England. Western Massachusetts is less than half an hour away, Vermont not much farther. The area is much more influential than the ... Continue reading →
Virginia Postrel's "The Substance of Style" is smart, fun to read, and correct. She tells us that we have entered the "Age of Aesthetics," a time when beauty and style are to be found everywhere, at least for market economies. Every product, every place, and every experience now is supposed to offer a touch of the aesthetic. The reason is simple: increasingly wealthy and sophisticated customers demand "an enticing, stimulating, diverse, and beautiful world." (p.4)The book surveys a wide variety of trends -- from fashion to cosmetic surgery to restaurant design -- and shows how they fit this common pattern. We hear about Martha Stewart, Starbucks, the iMac, fashion magazines, tiled floors, nice salad bowls, and the Michael Graves brush from Target. The age of ... Continue reading →
From Hollywood blockbusters, to romantic comedies, to action-packed adventures, there's nothing like a good movie this summer -- and there's no better way to score your tickets than with Fandango. Take advantage of today's deal and pay $6 for one movie ticket (up to a $12 value). Ordering tickets with Fandango is as easy as 1-2-3. Use their website or mobile app to select your movie. Then, choose when and where you'll see it. You can print your tickets at home, have them held for pickup at the theater, or have them sent to your smartphone for mobile scanning (where available). Fandango sells tickets for 20,000 screens across the country -- so no matter where you are or what you want to see, you're never ... Continue reading →
May 24th 2012, 13:55 by W.W. | IOWA CITY ARKANSAS and Kentucky held their primaries on Tuesday. While Barack Obama's feeble primary performance in states where he is unpopular is good for a snicker or a sigh, the real story of the night is the surprise blowout victory of Thomas Massie (pictured), a Ron Paul-style conservative, against the GOP establishment candidates in Kentucky's 4th congressional district. As the Republican candidate in a right-leaning district, Mr Massie is expected to win the forthcoming congressional election. What's unusual in this story is that Mr Massie, currently the "judge executive" (sort of like city manager) of Lewis County, took the nomination with the generous help of a super PAC bankrolled by a wealthy 21-year-old student from Texas. The ... Continue reading →
May 24th 2012, 13:55 by W.W. | IOWA CITY ARKANSAS and Kentucky held their primaries on Tuesday. While Barack Obama's feeble primary performance in states where he is unpopular is good for a snicker or a sigh, the real story of the night is the surprise blowout victory of Thomas Massie (pictured), a Ron Paul-style conservative, against the GOP establishment candidates in Kentucky's 4th congressional district. As the Republican candidate in a right-leaning district, Mr Massie is expected to win the forthcoming congressional election. What's unusual in this story is that Mr Massie, currently the "judge executive" (sort of like city manager) of Lewis County, took the nomination with the generous help of a super PAC bankrolled by a wealthy 21-year-old student from Texas. The ... Continue reading →
