Summer June 2010 AuthorsandArtistsMag.com
Authors & Artists Magazine Authors & Artists Magazine is welcoming June with this exciting issue! Jennifer Hudson is ready to star in her next project about Winnie Mandela…lots of drama about this! Zadie Smith has penned a great read – Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays. It’s time for Women in Film’s Crystal Lucy Awards. The list of honorees is special. Read more about it. Check out Photo Artist Martin Quinn’s beautiful collection of photo art. Visit Vision Light Gallery’s website to enjoy and purchase these incredible pieces. National Black Art’s Festival hosts a conversation with Mr. Howard Dodson – Curtis Mayfield: The Man, The Music, The Movement. Too much going on to mention here…Check it out…Here we go!
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Contents Family Ties, June 2010
By Danielle Steel Available at bookstores everywhere Annie Ferguson was a bright young Manhattan architect. Talented, beautiful, just starting out with her first job, new apartment and boyfriend, she had the world in the palm of her hand-until a single phone call altered the course of her life forever. Overnight, she became the mother to her sister’s three orphaned children, keeping a promise she never regretted making, even if it meant putting her own life indefinitely on hold.
Publisher’s Message………..Pg. 2 Authors……………………. Pg. 3 Authors on the Rise………...Pg. 3 Book Profiles……………….Pg. 5 Music……………………….Pg. 6 Cover Story…………………Pg. 7 Performance………………..Pg. 9 Film ………………………..Pg. 10 Art …………………………Pg. 12 Galleries & Museums……...Pg. 13 Actors Profile………………Pg. 14 Film in Development………Pg. 14 Calendar of Events…………Pg. 15
Then, just when least expected, a chance encounter changes Annie’s life yet again in the most unexpected direction of all. From Manhattan to Paris and all the way to Tehran, Family Ties is a novel that reminds us how challenging and unpredictable life can be, and that the powerful bonds of family are the strongest of all.
Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays By Zadie Smith
One of Zadie Smith's great gifts as a novelist is her openness: both to character and ideas in her stories, and to what a novel itself should be. That she's a novelist was clear as soon she broke through with White Teeth in her early twenties, but what kind she'll be (or will be next) seems open to change. Which all, along with her consistent intelligence, grace, and wit, makes her an ideal essayist too, especially for the sort of "occasional essays" collected for the first time in Changing My Mind. She can make the case equally for the cozy "middle way" of E.M. Forster and the most purposefully demanding of David Foster Wallace's stories, both as a reader and, you imagine, as a writer who is considering their methods for her own. The occasions in this book didn't only bring her to write about writers, though: she also investigates, among other subjects, Katherine Hepburn, Liberia, and Barack Obama (through the lens of Pygmalion), and, in the collection's finest piece, recalls her late father and their shared comedy snobbery. One wishes more occasions upon her. --Tom Nissley
It Happened to Me: A Teen's Guide to Overcoming Sexual Abuse (workbook) Published by Thomas Nelson Publishers By William Lee Carter At least one in four girls and one in seven boys endure some form of sexual abuse. And most of these sexual trauma survivors find the early adult years are crucial for recovery. During this time they have the best combination of motivation, capacity for insight, and support to begin the process of healing. Written by a psychologist who works with sexually abused teens, It Happened to Me helps young adults reflect on what happened, examine its impact on their lives, and begin to develop healthy relationships.
Michelangelo Tangelo - The Search for Self Identity By Wayne A. Gulley and Robin R. Gulley WAG Publishing www.michelangelotangelo.com Michelangelo Tangelo uses fantasy 'fruit beings' as metaphors to portray the shame and confusion that may occur when bi-racial individuals allow negative racial stereotypes to shape their self image. The bible teaches that God is not a 'respecter of persons', that is to say he does not show partiality to anyone. As society becomes more diverse, the story of Michelangelo Tangelo will remind us that our purpose and identity are revealed to us through a rightful relationship with our heavenly father.
Love, Drama, Sex, Family: All in a Day's Work Author Brenda Jackson
www.brendajackson.net
In June, Kimani Romance, an imprint at Kimani Press, Harlequin’s African-American romance publishing division, will release Hidden Pleasures, Brenda Jackson’s 75th book. That’s 75 books in 15 years, 10 of them being released across various Kimani lines in 2010 alone. Romance novelist Jackson, 57, plans to celebrate by, well, writing more. And reaching out to her readers; she is justly famous for taking very good care of them. Through monthly book giveaways featured in her electronic newsletter (www.brendajackson.net/page/brendas-newsletter), they will get to enjoy her anniversaries along with her. “I write family sagas,” Jackson says. “And I know my stories. They are already written in my head. I just have to get them down on paper.” Jackson’s fans can’t get enough of what is in her head: complex relationships, love, drama, and sex. Hidden Pleasures takes readers to Phoenix, Ariz., the home of the six Steele brothers, all successful, all playing the field, waiting to meet their one true love. “Each member of the Steeles is different,” Jackson says. “I wanted to show how African-American men bond. When I think of the Steeles, I think of togetherness.
WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH A BILLION DOLLARS?
Billion Dollar Winner By A.P. Jones www.billiondollarwinner.blogspot.com
"Senators,” Val said loudly, “This is the pain Mike Geffner presents of my community.” With that, Val held up a brand new crisp fifty dollar bill. She continued, “Far too many poor people in my New York City's hottest new poetry/spoken community because of the new multi-state word event in Manhattan! EVERY Thursday Lotto-50 lottery game are spending at least night! this very amount every time there is a www.inspiredwordnyc.blogspot.com drawing!”When was the last time a book made you "laugh out loud"? What about a book that was so good, you didn't want the story to end? Billion Dollar Winner- the novel does all that and a whole lot more!
The Inspired Word
Little Girl Blue: The Life of Karen Carpenter By Randy L. Schmidt
www.facebook.com/littlegirlbluekc Foreword by Dionne Warwick
Little Girl Blue is an intimate profile of Karen Carpenter, a girl from a modest Connecticut upbringing who became a Southern California superstar. Karen was the instantly recognizable lead singer of the Carpenters. The topselling American musical act of the 1970s, they delivered the love songs that defined a generation. Karen’s velvety voice on a string of 16 consecutive Top 20 hits from 1970 to 1976—including “Close to You,” “We’ve Only Just Begun,” “Rainy Days and Mondays,” “Superstar,” and “Hurting Each Other”— propelled the duo to worldwide stardom and record sales of more than 100 million. During their short musical career, the Carpenters released ten studio albums, toured more than 200 days a year, taped five television specials, and won three Grammys and an American Music Award. But that’s only a part of Karen’s story. Little Girl Blue reveals Karen’s heartbreaking struggles with her mother, brother, and husband; the intimate disclosures she made to her closest friends; her love for playing drums and her frustrated quest for solo stardom; and the ups and downs of her treatment for anorexia nervosa. After her shocking death at 32 years of age in 1983, she became the proverbial poster child for that disorder; but the other causes of her decline are laid bare for the first time in this moving account.
Little Girl Blue is Karen Carpenter’s definitive biography, based on exclusive interviews with her innermost circle of girlfriends and nearly 100 others, including professional associates, childhood friends, and lovers. It tells a story as touching, warm, and involving as any of Karen’s greatest songs.
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'Idol' Crystal Bowersox: 'I want to do the right thing by my son and career' By Korina Lopez
Newly single Crystal Bowersox lost the American Idol title to Lee DeWyze during the season finale Wednesday. USA TODAY caught up with the runner-up during a conference call on Friday. Q: Where do you see yourself musically? A: My music is pretty versatile, I have a lot of genres and styles. I don't think I should be pigeonholed into one thing. So we'll see where my career goes. Q: We've seen so much changeover the season. At one point, you said that your boyfriend would "man up" and marry you after the season. How did that breakup surprise and affect you? A: Tony's been my rock through all of this. He's been there for me and he's been amazing. I have a lot of love and respect. He's a small-town guy. And he wants the small-town quiet life. He wants to stay out of the spotlight and I respect that. But this is my career and I want to do the right thing by my son and my family. Q: If you didn't have American Idol, would you want the small-town quiet life? A: Definitely, but I love music and I want good things for my family, my community and the world. So I'm going to keep going with this. Q: Did you have any idea trying out how Idol could affect your personal life? A: Yeah, I'm a pretty smart girl. I knew what I was signing up for. But you never can comprehend a situation until you're in, and out, of it. So I just rolled with the punches.
Q: Any chance of you and Lee dating? A: Oh, no. He's like a brother to me. I love Lee dearly, but not in that way. Read the rest of this interview at www.usatoday.com.
Music Review Sean Kingston & Justin Bieber
“Eenie Meenie” Justin Bieber's duet with Sean Kingston is infectiously simple, its plot augmented by an equally simplistic video. The tale is told like this: Bieber and Kingston are getting hit on by the same girl, but she can't seem to decide between the two of them. "You can't make up your mind, mind, mind, mind, mind," they accuse. "Please don't waste my time, time, time, time, time." Bieber and Kingston chant about catching a "bad chick" by the toe, and they plead with her to give each of them "the night to show you, hold you." The video amplifies those whiffs of lyrical innuendo, featuring images of women in bikinis and midriff-baring tops at what looks like a frat-house kegger in a swank condo. The sexual undercurrent is further reinforced by the repeated line, "Shawty is a eenie meenie minie moe lover." But while 20-year-old Kingston looks very comfortable in the video, Bieber looks lost. And that's about the best praise I can give this young singer. A 16-year-old should look lost in that context. After all, there's nary a chaperone in sight, and he looks like the youngest person there by about five years. Not to mention the fact that lots of folks are carrying around plastic cups—the red variety that have come to be shorthand for beer in movies and on TV. So Bieber seems for all the world like someone's kid brother who snuck into somewhere he doesn't—and shouldn't— belong. And yet, there he is, flirting with the "Eenie Meenie" girl, leering at her as she walks away and checking out pictures of her clad in a bikini. He seems like a youth longing for a little corruption, longing to grow up way too fast. And from the looks of things here, Justin Bieber doesn't need any "Eenie Meenie" girl to contribute to his delinquency. His record-label handlers seem quite capable on that score.
Jennifer Hudson Set to Portray Winnie Mandela Jennifer Hudson continues to amaze. For starters, thanks to her role in Dreamgirls, she’s the only person to ever go from a reality TV show (American Idol) to winning an Academy Award (in her debut role no less). Now, despite being an actress with no leading roles to her credit and with her latest film, Fragments, being released straight-to-DVD, she has scored one of the best roles in Hollywood. Hudson will be portraying Winnie Mandela, the former wife of South Africa’s first black president, Nelson Mandela, in the titular bio-pic, Winnie. For more on this project, hit the jump. According to Variety, Winnie will start shooting on location in South Africa next May in Johannesburg, Cape Town and the Transkei and Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 of his 27 years behind bars. Directing will be Darrell J. Roodt, the South African director behind Yesterday, South Africa’s Best Foreign Film nominee at the Oscars. Working with a script based on the biography, “Winnie Mandela: A Life” by Anne Marie du Preez Bezdrob, the movie will not shy away from the less pleasant parts of Winnie Mandela’s history. Though she is often lauded for her efforts to get her then-husband released, efforts that actually resulted in her own jailing, Mandela has experienced her share of controversy. In addition to being convicted of fraud, she has also been associated with a bodyguard who brutally murdered a 14-yearold accused informant. It’s a challenging role but one that Hudson is ready to tackle, saying, “Winnie Mandela is a complex and extraordinary woman and I’m honored to be the actress asked to portray her. This is a powerful part of history that should be told.” As a fan of Roodt, I am looking forward to Winnie. Yesterday, the story of a mother who must shoulder the burdens of her AIDS afflicted husband and her own HIV while trying to secure a better future for her only daughter, is one of the most poignant and timely films about South Africa to be released in recent years and his direction was a big reason why. He is very good at not allowing artificial drama to dominate a story which is already ripe with it. More on information Winnie as it comes.
AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE PRESENTS ABTKIDS SATURDAY, JUNE 5 AT 11:30AM THE METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE Lincoln Center New York, New York 10023 Tickets and Customer Care 212-362-6000
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ABTKids, a unique hour-long program designed for children and families, will present a performance of highlights from the Company’s 2010 Spring Season on Saturday, June 5 at 11:30 AM at the Metropolitan Opera House. A special ABTKids Pre-Performance workshop, an hour-long introductory ballet workshop for children ages 12 and under, will take place at 9:30 AM. Narrated by ABT II Artistic Director Wes Chapman, ABTKids includes a special guest appearance by Angelina Ballerina™, the little mouse with big dreams, and performances by the acclaimed dancers of ABT. Students of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre will also perform the “Friends Dance” from the ballet classic Coppélia, as staged by Frederic Franklin. A post-performance meet-and-greet with Angelina Ballerina™ on the Grand Tier at the Metropolitan Opera House is free to all ticket holders. All tickets for ABTKids are $25 and are available at the Metropolitan Opera House box office or by calling 212-362-6000. The Metropolitan Opera House is located at Broadway and 65th Street in New York City. For more information visit www.abt.org. CA, Inc. is a sponsor of ABT’s Family Initiative. ABTKids is generously supported through an endowed gift from Thomas and Lydia West, in loving memory of Vivian B. West. Payless ShoeSource® is the underwriting sponsor of Family Day.
July 2 -4, 2010 New Orleans, Louisiana ESSENCEMUSICFESTIVAL.COM
J.P. Morgan is the Leading Corporate Sponsor of Make a Ballet. American Airlines is ABT’s Official Airline. Northern Trust is the Official Sponsor of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre. LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Inc. is the Official Sponsor of ABT II. Mandarin Oriental is ABT's Preferred Hotel. ABT is supported, in part, with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Recovery Act, the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.
It’s Time…The Crystal Lucy Awards The Crystal + Lucy Awards, honoring achievements in film and television, is Women In Film’s signature, annual fundraising event. An industry A-list of Hollywood insiders, representatives from major fashion brands and up-and-coming talent come to celebrate and support Women In Film’s not-for-profit programs and to honor the brightest talents our industry has to offer. The Crystal Award was established in 1977 to honor outstanding individuals who, through their perseverance and the excellence of their work in film, have helped to expand the role of women within the entertainment industry. The Lucy Award, for innovation in television, was established to pay tribute to the great star, comedienne, producer, director, studio owner and creator – Lucille Ball. The award is given annually to talented individuals who exemplify the extraordinary accomplishments embodied in the life and work of Lucille Ball. HONORING DONNA LANGLEY The 2010 Crystal Award
COURTENEY COX The 2010 Lucy Award
ZOË SALDANA The MaxMara "Face of the Future" Award
LISA CHOLODENKO CYNTHIA PUSHECK The Kodak Vision Award
The Dorothy Arzner Directors Award
Arch Slot by Martin Quinn Available through VisionLight Gallery The beauty of the natural environment has always drawn Martin and Cindy to explore new places. Their goal is to not only experience these places but to be there at the best time to capture the beauty of the location. Martin is a native of Ohio, he grew up hiking and camping various state and local parks around Ohio. Cindy was born in Canada but moved around most of her life as her father was in the military. She attributes her love of travel and different landscapes to the fact that although she has been to many places in the world, she hasn't made a dent in her list of places still to see. Cindy and Martin are now married and reside in Dayton Ohio. Every spare moment will find them either traveling to, or planning a trip. They both believe that you can savor the memory of a place with photography and that leaving it as you found it for future generations is THE most important thing a person can do. Martin and Cindy started their photographic careers using manual 35mm cameras then moved to Digital SLR's after a few years. Martin primarily uses a large format 4x5 camera because he loves the detail and large size of the photographs that this camera can give him. If you are going to take the time to make an image it should be the best image possible. Both have had their images published in leading magazines and books as well as in various advertisements. See more at www.visionlightgallery.com.
National Black Arts Festival Presents:
Curtis Mayfield: The Man, The Music, The Movement A Conversation with Mr. Howard Dodson and Dr. Portia K. Maultsby Thursday, June 17, 2010, 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum Spend an evening exploring the social commentary of Mr. Curtis Mayfield and The Impressions. Mr. Howard Dodson, Chief of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and Dr. Portia K. Maultsby, the renowned ethnomusicologist from Indiana University, will discuss and pay tribute to Curtis Mayfield, his music and his integral relationship to the Civil Rights Movement. Pre-registration is requested. The first 100 participants will receive copies of Dr. Maultsby’s essay on the legacy of Mr. Mayfield. Doors open at 5:30 pm. Refreshments and self-guided museum tours from 5:30 to 6:30. Panel discussion from 6:45 to 8:30. For more information, visit www.nbaf.org.
START TALKING UCR Senior Thesis Exhibition 2010 May 28, 2010 - June 12, 2010 Performance: 7:30 PM by Alex Meadows Every year, nearly 30 undergraduate art majors graduating from UCR have their final work presented in a senior thesis exhibition at the Sweeney Art Gallery that features paintings, photographs, drawings, videos, performance and sculpture. This years Senior Thesis Exhibition will be held at UCR/California Museum of Photography. For more information, visit www.ucr.edu.
Seniors presented include: Ada Ahn Carissa Ashley Gomez Zhi Wei Bi Clayton Ehman Edward A. Escalante Catherine Giles Liz Hoar Ying Hon Jenny Hua Wade Kan Jane Y. Kang Paul Kelley Nu Ri Kim Kiet M. Lo
Maria Lopez Alexander Bedwell Meadows Kenneth Pak Joshua Potter Paul Quilici Eddie Rico Giselle Ruiz Alexander Saleh Michael Sauvageau Ashley Schudar Meari Sugiuyama Courtney H. Taylor Amber Rose Tibb
21st Annual Pomona Valley Juneteenth Family Jazz Festival Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. From its Galveston, Texas origin in 1865, the observance of June 19th as the African American Emancipation Day has spread across the United States and beyond. Today Juneteenth commemorates African American freedom and emphasizes education and achievement. It is a day, a week, and in some areas a month marked with celebrations, guest speakers, picnics and family gatherings. It is a time for reflection and rejoicing. It is a time for assessment, self-improvement and for planning the future. Its growing popularity signifies a level of maturity and dignity in America long over due. In cities across the country, people of all races, nationalities and religions are joining hands to truthfully acknowledge a period in our history that shaped and continues to influence our society today. Sensitized to the conditions and experiences of others, only then can we make significant and lasting improvements in our society.
Actor Profile: Tina Fey Elizabeth Stamatina Fey was born in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, just west of THE online database of information related to movies, Philadelphia, in 1970 to Donald and actors, television and production. Jeannec Fey. Going by the name of Tina, Ms. Fey considered herself a "supernerd" during her high school and college years. She studied drama at the Subscribe Today! University of Virginia, and after graduating in 1992, she headed to Chicago, the ancestral home of American comedy. While working at a YMCA to support herself, she started Second City's first set of courses. After about nine months, a teacher told her to just skip ahead and audition for the more selective Second City Training Center. She failed but about eight weeks later, she re-auditioned and got into the year-long program. She ended up spending many years at The Second City in Chicago where many SNL cast members first started out. Then in 1995, Saturday Night Live came to The Second City's cast, including Fey's friend, Adam McKay, as a writer, searching for new talent. What they found was Tina Fey.
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For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf Lionsgate has picked up feature rights to Ntozake Shange’s stage play “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf.” Music video helmer Nzingha Stewart will direct and adapt the film. The play was first performed back in 1975 then made into a 1982 telepic for “American Playhouse” which starred Shange, Laurie Carlos, Trazana Beverly, Alfre Woodard and Lynn Whitfield. Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Whoopie Goldberg, and Kerry Washington are currently signed to star. The play consists of 20 poems which tell of love, domestic abuse, abandonment among other issues faced by many black women. Lionsgate said at its announcement on Wednesday - “leadership role in producing and distributing a diverse roster of motion pictures about black characters.” For casting, contact 34th Street Films, 8200 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 400, Beverly Hills, CA. P: 323-315-5743, F: 323-315-7117.
8th Annual Global Art Film Festival Tour – 2010 Hollywood, CA June 12, 2010 Presenting New & Emerging Screenplay Writers and Filmmakers Worldwide!
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Palm Springs International ShortFest 2010 June 22 – 28, 2010 What makes this year's ShortFest so exciting? The move to June means we've been getting a record number of entries - with even more great shorts than usual that are tickling our programmers' fancy! Our gifted programming team is putting together an amazing selection of more than 320 new short films, programmed in 90-minute packages featuring a splendid array of thematically-linked stories, including a dazzling selection of comedies, thrillers, films noir, dramas, romances, animated shorts and documentaries. This year's Festival line-up will include an especially exciting showcase of special programs, theme parties, seminars and master classes. An Oscar® qualifying event, in the Festival's first 15 years, 68 short films premiering at ShortFest have gone on to win Academy Award® nominations, including four of this year's nominees. This world-class Festival is the largest and most celebrated event of its kind in North America, and our acclaimed film selection is only one of the reasons why. Here's your chance to join the more than 20,000 film enthusiasts, filmmakers, industry members and press who attend the Festival each year, and kick off your summer with seven days of exhilarating experiences! Tickets and more information, call (760) 322-2930.
Temecula GospelFest Temecula Community Center June 26,2010 Gospelfest is coming around again and auditions are June 26th! We are eager to ramp up this fabulous show which benefits Oak Grove Center, a residential treatment facility for at-risk children. The positive impact Gospelfest has had on the kids of Oak Grove Center is immeasurable. Gospelfest's message of hope and giving has been instrumental in changing lives and encouraging them to be leaders and to help others. Be part of this effort for these children through your participation and support this year. Auditions for Gospel Fest 2010 will be held on June 26 from 10am to 2 pm at the Old Town Temecula MERC Theater. We are looking for individuals, ensembles and bands for our Sept 24-25 shows. We will also be having a Temecula Mass Choir and a Gospel Youth Choir. If you would like to be involved with either of these Choirs please contact choirs@temeculagospelfest.org. For more information or to register on-line: www.Temeculagospelfest.org
2010 Wine & Jazz Summer Concerts at Hollywood & Highland Center Tuesday, June 15 7:00p to 9:00p at Central Courtyard - Hollywood & Highland, Los Angeles, CA The Hollywood & Highland Center brings back the mega-popular Wine & Jazz Summer Concert Series occurring every Tuesday evening throughout the summer. This year's performers are to be announced. Past performers have featured Barbara Morrison, Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band and Jose Rizo’s Jazz on the Latin Side All Stars. The concert takes place in the Central Courtyard. There is a $10 donation for wine tasting which directly benefits Project Angel Food (www.angelfood.org).
Catherine Kirkwood Reads And Signs Her Novel "Cut Away" Sunday, June 6 5:00p to 6:00p at Skylight Books, Los Angeles, CA Seattle writer Catherine Kirkwood celebrates the release of her debut novel, Cut Away (Arktoi Books/Red Hen), around the corner from Elliott Bay at Richard Hugo House. "Erotic, dark, and intense, Kirkwood asks difficult questions about the relationship between appearance and identity in her debut novel of a plastic surgeon's obsession with a young drifter, and the results of her most avid patient's urgent transformation. An original, thrilling debut." - Alexander Chee. Cut Away is the third book produced by Arktoi Books, established in 2006 by Eloise Klein Healy to publish literary work by lesbian writers. Rebecca Brown is a Seattle (and international) treasure, most recently the author of a collection of essays, American Romances (City Lights). "If Rebecca Brown's talent for prose were any tighter, it would be a lyric—to a pop standard. An homage—a ménage—to America, exposing what's laid bare in a comic, tragic redux. I laughed till it hurt." - Van Dyke Parks.