I grew up in a household where politics—paying attention to them, thinking about them, and forming reasoned positions—was not sport, it was an obligation as a citizen. My sister volunteered—at the age of 16—for Robert F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign, and after enduring the heartbreak of seeing her candidate murdered, she ended up working for Sen. […]

In 1975 I was 18 and the world was my oyster. Actually, back then I’d never had an oyster, but you know what I mean. I was a freshman in a triple dorm room that was pretty much identical to a double room except it had a bunk bed and three closets. Forbes Hall was […]

Sometimes, it’s good to feel miniscule and in total awe of a much larger world. It’s liberating. It’s enthralling. So that news last week about physicists detecting gravitational waves was good for the soul and the imagination. Sure, it’s healthy to be reminded of our importance, of our power and responsibility to make a difference […]

On the last day of January, Beth and I finally made it to see blues guitarist Buddy Guy play at his eponymous club. I say finally, because we’ve lived roughly three blocks away for 12 years, and we’ve been to Buddy Guy’s Legends, but we’d never seen the man himself play at his own place. […]

You think you know a person. And then you watch a documentary. So it was when I sat down on the couch to watch the latest edition of PBS’ American Masters series, this on a guy who’s one of the greatest filmmakers of our time—Mike Nichols. Now, I knew he was good. I just didn’t […]