To Ride an Avalanche in Yosemite

At the turn of the 20th Century, naturist JOHN MUIR, never one to shirk a chance for first-person experience in the wild, rode an avalanche down a mountain Yosemite National Park. And lived to tell about it, as he does here.
by David McGee
 

 
 

When Jack London Rekindled Surfing in Hawaii

JACK LONDON REKINDLES SURFING IN HAWAII: A brief history of surfing in Hawaii from Captain Cook to Duke Kahanmoku, and how author JACK LONDON ignited the modern surfing era in the islands.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Frédéric Chopin: ‘Sublimity Through Sweet Sounds’

From his turn-of-the-20th-century travels, ELBERT HUBBARD chronicles a visit to the home of composer Frédéric Chopin and uncovers a link to American novelist STEPHEN CRANE.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Leave Her To Heaven (1945)

Directed by John M. Stahl with vivid cinematography by Leon Shamroy, LEAVE HER TO HEAVEN, a 1945 film noir entry, features beautiful GENE TIERNEY at her most captivating.
by David McGee
 

 

 

My Summer Romance: Laughter, Tears & Tenderness

MY SUMMER ROMANCE: LAUGHTER, TEARS & TENDERNESS in three stories and a poem about summer loves. Music by MEL CARTER, SPANKY & OUR GANG, et al.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Dame Kiri Turns 70, Bids Farewell to Opera (But That’s Not All, Folks)

Celebrating her 70th birthday today, DAME KIRI TE KANAWA is appearing at Covent Garden in a Donizetti farce--her last opera role, she says. But it's not the last we'll hear of her. Deep Roots pays tribute to a great.
by David McGee
 

 

 

The Land Remembers

A new biography resurrects the enduring achievements of conservation writer BERNARD DEVOTO and his activist wife AVIS.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Man of the Forest (1933)

Man attraction: Man of the Forest, a classic 1933 western starring Randolph Scott and Verna Hallie. Directed by Henry Hathaway, adapted from the Zane Grey novel. Selected short: Gus Visser and His Singing Duck (1925).
by David McGee
 

 

 

From Senegal to Many Ports of Call

Senegalese singer-songwriter-guitarist NURU KANE has released his most ambitious work yet, EXILE, described by our reviewer as 'an eclectic, franco-african-diasporic fusion album.."
by David McGee
 

 
 

Shimmying Down the Chimney

Not wanting to be the only artist on the planet without a Christmas album, MARIA MULDAUR delivers a holiday evergreen in MIDNIGHT AT THE OASIS, recorded live in San Francisco.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Curiosity Rover Delivers Billion-Pixel View of Mars

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover delivers the first gigapixel image from the Red Planet's surface in a panoramic view that captures actual Mars lighting conditions.
by David McGee
 

 
 

October Knowledge

In an exclusive seasonal essay, CHRISTOPHER HILL poetically, evocatively reflects on the passage from summer to fall to the cusp of winter, and the ghosts and dreams in the air along the way.
by David McGee