Masterpiece

In defending the DGA's bone-headed decision to "retire" the D.W. Griffith Award, Ted Elliott's own words betray him ("The DGA Is Right, D.W. Griffith Was Wrong," Dec. 27). He writes, "It is given to honor a director whose lifetime achievements are deemed worthy of extraordinary recognition." Exactly. The award is being retired because of one film. It does not take into account Griffith's true masterpiece, "Intolerance," which he made primarily as an apology for "The Birth of a Nation."

Re "Strong Sense of Belonging Found in Crenshaw Area," June 13: On behalf of the residents of the Crenshaw district, I would like to thank the researchers at USC for enlightening the rest of Los Angeles about our community spirit. Since moving to the L.A. area in the early '80s, the broad strokes of the negativity paintbrush have seemed to cover our community like an artwork masterpiece, but through all that we still have persevered. We residents of the Crenshaw district know we have only ourselves to depend on, and it has finally come to light.

Sweden's most expensive painting is up for sale at a steep discount but on very special terms. The arts academy that owns Rembrandt's "Conspiracy of the Batavians Under Claudius Civilis" said Tuesday that it was willing to let the work go for $49 million, less than half its estimated value. The buyer, however, must agree to donate the masterpiece to Stockholm's Nationalmuseum, where it is one of the main attractions, said Olle Granath, permanent secretary of the Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts.

"Sideways" was a nice little film, but the fact that it led all Golden Globe nominees ["Dark Horses and Desperate Wives" by Robert W. Welkos, Susan King and Elaine Dutka, Dec. 14,] testifies to the fact that this has not been a good year for great films. In fact, the film pales in the shadow of Alexander Payne's true masterpiece, 1999's "Election," arguably the best comedy of the last decade! Jack Wolf Westwood I was delighted to read of the Golden Globes nominations of William Shatner and James Spader from my new favorite show, "Boston Legal" ["Spader and Shatner: Partners in Mischief," by Lynn Smith, Dec. 14]

St. Jerome's white beard is largely gone, his rich cloak looks like it was devoured by moths, and the roll of writing paper on his desk has disappeared. But in a kind of restoration miracle, much of the rest of a renowned Giotto fresco is back on the soaring ceiling of St. Francis Basilica, five years after an earthquake sent the masterpiece crashing to the floor in tens of thousands of fragments.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you may likely make a New Year's resolution related to books. You might announce that you will read a great book that's defeated you before. “I will read 'Ulysses' this year,” you might say, as I will this New Year's Eve. Over at "The Spectator," they've rounded up a bunch of writers who've made that kind of promise to themselves and then regretted it. They've tried to read that great book, and given up. They've decided, finally, that the problem isn't them -- it's the book.

I enjoyed Martin Bernheimer's review of the strangest performance of "Macbeth" I have ever seen ("Music Center Imposes Bizarre Kabuki Style on Verdi's 'Macbeth,' " Dec. 14). As a businessman--not a professional musician--I had some misgivings about telling my American friends what I thought of it. I come from a country that is called "underprivileged" or "Third World" by your compatriots. However, a performance such as the one I witnessed on a visit to Los Angeles would have been hissed off the stage in my country--Chile.

Re "Free 'The Gross Clinic,' " Opinion, Dec. 16 I find incomprehensible Henry Adams' assertion that this celebrated painting by Thomas Eakins "has been almost inaccessible for more than a century." When I lived in Philadelphia in the late '60s, the painting hung openly in the entranceway of old Jefferson Medical College; tourists and students could view it for free and at their leisure. In fact, so accessible to public viewing was this masterpiece that medical students had carved their initials and other marks into it. When I revisited the city in 1997 and wished to see the painting once again, I was told that owing to such student vandalism, it had finally been moved to a pavilion across the street.

Michael Cimino's "The Sicilian" is sinking faster than a body dumped in the Strait of Messina. The much-publicized, much-maligned movie--adapted from Mario Puzo's best seller about the post-World War II Sicilian bandit Salvatore Giuliano--opened in 370 American theaters Oct. 23 and deflected the slings and arrows of outraged critics to gross a strong $1.7 million in its first weekend. Once paying customers got a whiff of this thing, however, it was all over.