The roar of the greasepaint

The roar of the greasepaint… by David Benjamin “Today we instinctively recoil at the sight of performers in the burnt-cork makeup and clownlike greasepaint that turned their skin pitch-black and their lips and eyes into giant cartoon features. But the foundation of American comedy, song, and dance was laid down by white and black minstrel…

Read More

With apologies to Dangerous Dan McGrew

With apologies to Dangerous Dan McGrew by David Benjamin MADISON, Wis. — This week marks the 40th anniversary of the Blizzard of ’78, a thousand-year northeaster that buried New England under four feet of wet snow in a span of a little more than 24 hours. The vortex of that storm was a little town…

Read More

What's in a statue?

What’s in a statue? by David Benjamin “If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence.” — Justice Louis D. Brandeis MADISON, Wis. — One of my favorite photo subjects is the…

Read More

Our common wealth

Our common wealth by David Benjamin “When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, ‘Will you give me a drink?’” — John 4:7 PARIS — The history of great cities always involves water — how much water the city consumes, where it comes from, what happens if there isn’t enough, who controls…

Read More

Where have all the soldiers gone…

Where have all the soldiers gone… by David Benjamin MADISON, Wis. — Used to be, you couldn’t swing a dead cat without hitting a GI. Well, a former GI. In the bygone halcyon days of universal conscription, every male had to do his hitch, or get really creative to duck Uncle Sam. My dad, who…

Read More

It's happening here

It’s happening here by David Benjamin PARIS — While visiting from Brussels, my 14-year-old godson, Benjamin, grew exasperated with the alarmism at the dinner table. He said, “All grownups do now is sit around, eating, drinking and talking about Trump.” Hey, music to Donald Trump’s ears. And Benjamin is right. No political figure in my…

Read More

Demagoguery, Nelson Algren and other campaign notes

Demagoguery, Nelson Algren and other campaign notes by David Benjamin “I don’t want to seem racist or nothing but the black heritage has been raised in a certain way that there’s no incentive to get out and work because all of a sudden you have five kids and there are no dads around.” — Jack…

Read More

The year of the Ape Man

The year of the Ape Man by David Benjamin “I am as free as nature first made man, Ere the base laws of servitude began, When wild in woods the noble savage ran.” — John Dryden, Conquest of Granada (1672) MADISON, Wis. — Lately, my know-it-all attitude has been getting me into trouble. A high-school…

Read More

Fix it, America

Fix it, America by David Benjamin “Knowledge is of two kinds. We know a subject ourselves, or we know where we can find information upon it.” — Samuel Johnson MADISON, Wis. — Sam Johnson’s observation on the nature of knowledge keeps coming back to me, sometimes unexpectedly. The latest occasion was a comment by Paul…

Read More