NYT: New Endowment Chairman Sees Arts as Economic Engine

[Heidi]

I love you already, Mr. Landesman! Congratulations! :)
________________________________________________________



New Endowment Chairman Sees Arts as Economic Engine
Published: August 7, 2009

Now that the Broadway producer Rocco Landesman is officially chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts — he was confirmed on Friday — his straight-talking style, Missouri roots and affinity for baseball and country music are expected to give him a leg up with many legislators.

But in his first sit-down interview since his nomination by President Obama, Mr. Landesman’s comments suggested that he may nevertheless raise hackles on Capitol Hill after he is sworn in in the next few days. Speaking recently in his office above the St. James Theater on West 44th Street, where Tony Awards abut baseball trophies — testament to his prowess as a producer and as a pitcher in the Broadway Show League — Mr. Landesman, 62, made clear that he has little patience for the disdain with which some politicians still seem to view the endowment, more than a decade after the culture wars that nearly destroyed it.

He was particularly angered, he said, by parts of the debate over whether to include $50 million for the agency in the federal stimulus bill, citing the comment by Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts, on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in February, that arts money did not belong in the bill. That kind of thinking suggests that “artists don’t have kids to send to college,” Mr. Landesman said, “or food to put on the table, or medical bills to pay.”

In American politics generally, he added: “The arts are a little bit of a target. The subtext is that it is elitist, left wing, maybe even a little gay.”

link:www.nytimes.com/2009/08/08/arts/08rocco.html|Read more]

[Manifestor_of_Light]

1. Very cool.

I would be glad to work for money as an artist and musician.

[Heidi]

2. Good morning, M_o_L!

I would be glad to have a drink with Mr. Landesman. I love his outspokenness. :)

[girl gone mad]

3. Mitt Romney is such a creep. n/t

[Heidi]

4. Link here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/08/arts/08rocco.html

[Merlot]

5. I like what he's saying except for the part about artists having children

to put through college. The arts endowment is about all Americans getting an education in art and how art is important to society. It's not about a handout to artists.

[Heidi]

6. NEA grants are not "handouts." They're earned and the review process is rigorous.

:hi:

[Merlot]

8. That's my point.

To me, he makes it sound like it's a handout to artists, when in reality it's about supporting the art. It's about bringing art appreciation to a broader society.

[JerseygirlCT]

7. They're just every bit entitled to fair pay for their work as

anyone, is the point. Like any other random citizen, they may have kids to put through college, or mortgages to pay.

I think he's pointing out for the uninformed that most artists aren't the multi-millionaire movie stars many think of. They're working people, who work awfully hard.

And we spend precious little on this segment of our economy compared to many others. These grants help to nurture some of the best things about our country and our culture - which benefits everyone, not just those working in the field.

[TexasObserver]

9. Recommend