Signature Books Announces Management Change

The start of a new foundation by Signature Books publisher George D. Smith has led to a management change at the academic Mormon publisher. Longtime Signature associate publisher Gary Bergara will become the managing director of the new Smith-Pettit Foundation, and the associate publisher position will be filled by Bergara's associate and collaborator Ron Priddis, until now the company's marketing director.

Local History Book Includes Mormon Battalion Diary

Mormon diary entries from one hundred and fifty years ago are featured in the book, "Let This Be Zion". The book includes compelling stories of sacrifice and adventure come alive as the life experiences of Zacheus Cheney, a private in Company B in the Mormon Battalion, Amanda Evans and Mary Ann Fisher, travelers on the ship Brooklyn, are told first hand.

Card's 'Ender's Game' Joins Newer Titles On Bestseller Lists

As the paperback of Orson Scott Card's "Ender's Shadow" rises on bestseller lists after its release, fans are going back to the original. "Ender's Game" has appeared on Amazon.com's bestseller list 16 years after it was first published.

Public Invited to Hear Ryan Shupe and the RubberBand

Ryan Shupe and the RubberBand, known for their unique style of music, will perform at 7 p.m. on Saturday, January 27, 2001, in the new 500 seat theater at the Washington D.C. Temple Visitors' Center, 9900 Stoneybrook Drive, Kensington, Md.

Publishing

Card Speaks at Loscon 27 LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA -- Mormon science fiction writer Orson Scott Card spoke at the annual Loscon science fiction convention, held the week after Thanksgiving. The convention of the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society. Card, perhaps best known for his Ender series, was one of the draws for the convention.

Beam me to LA, Scotty Jerusalem Post 28Dec00 A2 By Helen Kaye

Prolific LDS Poet First Writes at Age 74 PROVO, UTAH -- Robert William Ernest is prolific, says his wife, Shirley. "He's written well over 2,000 poems," Shirley says. "Sometimes three or four a day." What is remarkable about the 82-year-old "poet laureate" of Edgemont, in northeast Provo, is that almost all of his verse has been written in the past eight years. When asked why it took him so long to write, Ernest says, "I didn't have anything to say." What emerged in 1994 was Autobiographical Verse, a self-published book containing Robert's life in rhyme. A Minnesota woman was so taken with Robert's poetry that she recently sent the Ernests a $5,000 check with a letter asking them to use the money and find a publisher. So during the past year, they have selected 78 of Robert's poems with the most universal appeal to include in the book.

Rhyme -- and a Reason Salt Lake Tribune 4Jan01 A2 By Mark Eddington: Salt Lake Tribune

Bushmans' "Mormons in America" Part of Lauded "Religion in American Life" Series CHICAGO, ILLINOIS -- A review in "The Christian Century" by Timothy Morehouse praises the 17-volume "Religion in American Life" series, which is aimed at secondary-school children, praised the series as well-written, well documented and thorough, while following First Amendment guidelines to inform rather than advocate a particular religion. Morehouse also says that the series comes from an impressive group of historians. He says "This is clearly an important series." The volume "Mormons in America" is written by well-known LDS historians Richard and Claudia Bushman (in spite of the erroneous attribution in the article to Edwin S. Gaustad), and has seen its share of good praise, noted on the publisher's website. Favorable reviews for the Bushman's book have appeared in The Christian Science Monitor, Booklist, the Wall Street Journal, Religious Studies in Secondary Schools, VOYA and Library Journal.

Religion in American Life Christian Century 13Dec00 A6 By Timothy L Morehouse See also: More about A. S. Byatt's "Possession: A Romance" at Amazon.com and Mormons in America Oxford University Press Website

Music

Lapsed Welsh Mormon's Band Gets Jump Start From HBO's 'Sopranos' NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- Rob Spragg, who grew up Mormon in Wales until age 17, has found rock-and-roll fame after the music of his band, Alabama 3, was picked as the theme song for the hit HBO TV series, "The Sopranos." According to the article, Spragg followed Mormon teachings "until he heard the Sex Pistols." "I was excommunicated at 17," he says.

'Sopranos' Jump Starts A3's Career (Long Island) NY Newsday (AP) 3Jan01 A2 By David Bauder: Associated Press Writer

Donny Appears with Jim Brickman PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA -- LDS musician Donny Osmond appeeared recently on PBS's broadcast of "My Romance: An Evening With Jim Brickman," and then went on tour with the Windham Hill pianist, whose style is 'the very definition of the term "easy listening,"' according to Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editor Scott Mervis. But Mervis is critical of Brickman for the broadcast and quotes other newspapers for saying the same thing.

Weekend Hotlist: Brickman's romance Pittsburgh PA Post-Gazette 29Dec00 A2 By Scott Mervis, Weekend Editor

Art

LDS Mission Sparked Interest in Art PARK CITY, UTAH -- LDS Artist Michael Albrechtsen says his mission to Thailand awakened his interest in art. "I had a companion that used to draw a lot," he says, and so he purchased a sketchpad and began to draw. After returning from his mission, Albrechtsen took an art class at Weber State University, and, after graduation, landed an illustration job with Hallmark, cultivating his interest in painting on the side. On a chance, Albrechtsen submitted some of his paintings to a gallery, and they sold. Soon he was selling so many paintings through galleries that he decided to leave Hallmark and paint full time. Albrechtsen was in Park City, Utah on Friday, December 29th for a show at the Meyer Gallery.

Art in the Spotlight Park City UT Record 26Dec00 A2 By Jessica Romine: Record Guest Writer

LDS Church Museum Features Two Photographers SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- The LDS Church Museum of History and Art approached Photographer Scot Facer Proctor to create an exhibit of his work and that of early LDS Photographer George Edward Anderson, highlighting photography from the first and last decades of the twentieth century. Proctor wrote about the exhibit in his on-line LDS e-zine, Meridian.

Another Witness of the Light: Church Museum of History and Art Showcases Two Twentieth Century Photographers Meridian Magazine 3Jan01 A3 By Scot Facer Proctor

Exhibit on "Valiant Pioneer Children" at LDS Church Museum SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- The LDS Church Museum of History and Art's second exhibit for children, "Valiant Pioneer Children," portrays the artwork of children's artist Julie Young, who's work has been seen extensively in the Church's "The Friend" magazine. Young has worked as an illustrator since 1971, including a stint at "The Friend" from 1976-77. Her artwork in the exhibit shows the sequence of a trip from Europe to Salt Lake Valley.

Julie Young and a trip with the Valiant Pioneer Children Utah co UT Journal 4Jan01 A3 By Gayanne Ramsden: Journal Publications

Exhibit on "Valiant Pioneer Children" at LDS Church Museum SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- The LDS Church Museum of History and Art's second exhibit for children, "Valiant Pioneer Children," portrays the artwork of children's artist Julie Young, who's work has been seen extensively in the Church's "The Friend" magazine. Young has worked as an illustrator since 1971, including a stint at "The Friend" from 1976-77. Her artwork in the exhibit shows the sequence of a trip from Europe to Salt Lake Valley.

Julie Young and a trip with the Valiant Pioneer Children Utah co UT Journal 4Jan01 A3 By Gayanne Ramsden: Journal Publications

Theatre

LaBute's Bash to Open in Dublin in April DUBLIN, IRELAND -- LDS Filmmaker and playwright Neil LaBute will direct his play, Bash, in Dublin this coming April. Bash, which features Mormon characters, has received critical praise in performances in New York, Los Angeles, Washington DC and elsewhere.

Everyone wants a slice of the pie Dublin Ireland Irish Times 30Dec00 A2 By Brian Boyd

USF Founder Fred Adams in Gilbert and Sullivan Opretta CEDAR CITY, UTAH -- Fred Adams, the LDS impressario who founded the Tony-award winning Utah Shakespearean Festival will appear in another of the Festival's plays this coming season. Adams will play the role of Major-General Stanley in Gilbert and Sullivan's "Pirates of Penzance," and take on the tongue-twister, "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General." Adams has performed before at the Festival, most recently in "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," where he played the role of Pseudolous. The Festival's 40th season begins June 21st.

Arts Briefs: And He Acts, Too! Salt Lake Tribune 30Dec00 A2

Film

LaBute 'climbed literary mountain' to Bring "Possession" to Screen NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- A recent issue of Newsweek says that LDS film maker Neil LaBute took on a difficult task when he agreed to direct the movie version of A.S. Byatt's "Possession." According to Newsweek, the task stumped earlier directors Sydney Pollack and Gillian Armstrong. Newsweek reporter Horn says, "The 555-page novel traces complex literary themes, evoking poets Robert Browning and Christina Rossetti. And the plot defies Hollywood categorization: a pair of modern-day academics explore the secret epistolary love between the two Victorian writers." But Horn quotes LaBute saying the tale is surprisingly contemporary. "We think of [Victorian poets] in a quaint way," he says, "but they have real passions. They are taking risks that characters in the present wouldn't dream of."

Movies: A Feast Of Film MSNBC (Newsweek) 1Jan01 A2 By John Horn See also: More about A. S. Byatt's "Possession: A Romance" at Amazon.com

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