FROM LIONEL ROLFE'S The Uncommon Friendship of Yaltah Menuhin & Willa Cather:

"I had read some of Willa's books, and I was particularly taken by Death Comes for the Archbishop.

Later in life, when I began to write about writers, I was too busy focusing on California bohemian writers like Samuel Clemens and Jack London to go off on a tangent about my mother's "Aunt Willa." I was also taken with left-wing writers, and Willa was one of those who railed on against FDR.

There was even a tinge of racism in some of her writings, especially before she got to know people of other races. She was a product of her times, for better or for worse.

Willa loved tradition, in religion and in culture. Although she was not a Catholic, she was attracted to the trappings of tradition in Catholicism. That is why she was able to produce a book much beloved by Catholics: Death Comes to the Archbishop.

But she had bohemian links as well. For example, Cather had a friendship with Mary Austin, the histrionic but somewhat talented writer who was part of the California bohemian movement, especially when Austin was in residence at its Carmel colony which became its headquarters after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

It was only many years later that I began to realize that my mother's "Aunt Willa" was not just some crazy aunt. She was an incredible artist and writer with a profound, if not easily analyzed, connection to music. ..." READ MORE


MPUTHUMI NTABENI ON THE AFRICAN PSYCHE : " ... If the AU (African Unity) meetings are anything to go by, African leaders feel a grievous need for the West to recompense Africa for the funds the West garnered during the mercantilist era when it plundered the gold, slaves and other goods of non-capitalist primitive societies by force. When outside the mob psychology of AU meetings most of the African leaders retreat to conciliatory tones subservient to the demands of western institutions for economic development like the Washington Consensus.

Not Mugabe. Mugabe vents his anger against Western governments' double standards: like [the West's] preferring free trade when they've an advantage and protectionism when that advantage is threatened by outside competition. Most people on the ground of developing countries feel this anger. It is this that has endeared Mugabe to their hearts and endowed him with a romantic anti-imperialistic mantle, despite his shortcomings. ... " READ MORE


BRAD BALFOUR WITH JET LI: "Though Jet Li made his rep as the ultimate post-Bruce Lee Kung Fu star, he reinvented himself as an action hero for American audiences. His recent films, such as CRADLE 2 THE GRAVE, tarnished his star slightly, underwhelming audiences and critics alike. But his truly shining achievement, the Chinese-language film HERO, won accolades throughout Asia when it was a released a couple of years ago even garnering it an Oscar nomination. Yet it wasn't released in theaters here in the U.S. or on DVD until now. And it's getting acclaim once again.

G21: HERO WAS NOMINATED FOR AN ACADEMY AWARD LAST YEAR. WHY DID IT TAKE SO LONG TO GET A U.S .RELEASE? ARE YOU WORRIED THAT PEOPLE MIGHT HAVE SEEN IT ON DVD?

JET LI: Of course. I know lots of people, Chinese people, Asian and American people, who love Asian movies and have already seen the DVD. A Hong Kong company already calculated that they'll lose 20 million dollars because of DVD sales. ... " READ MORE

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