Mountain Views News          Saturday, June 4, 2016

B2

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Mountain Views-News Saturday, June 4, 2016 

Jeff’s Book Pics By Jeff Brown


A HERO OF FRANCE: A Novel by Alan Furst 

From the bestselling master espionage writer comes 
a riveting novel about the French Resistance in Nazi-
occupied Paris.1941. The City of Light is dark and 
silent at night. But in Paris and in the farmhouses, 
barns, and churches of the French 
countryside, small groups of ordinary 
men and women are determined to take 
down the occupying forces of Adolf 
Hitler. Mathieu, a leader of the French 
Resistance, leads one such cell, helping 
downed British airmen escape back to 
England.Furst’s suspenseful, fast-paced 
thriller captures this dangerous time as 
no one ever has before. He brings Paris 
and occupied France to life, along with 
courageous citizens who outmaneuver 
collaborators, informers, blackmailers, 
and spies, risking everything to fulfill 
perilous clandestine missions. Aiding 
Mathieu as part of his covert network 
are Lisette, a seventeen-year-old student 
and courier; Max de Lyon, an arms 
dealer turned nightclub owner; Chantal, 
a woman of class and confidence; Daniel, 
a Jewish teacher fueled by revenge; Joëlle, 
who falls in love with Mathieu; and 
Annemarie, a willful aristocrat with 
deep roots in France, and a desire to act.
As the German military police heighten 
surveillance, Mathieu and his team face 
a new threat, dispatched by the Reich 
to destroy them all.Shot through with 
the author’s trademark fine writing, 
breathtaking suspense, and intense 
scenes of seduction and passion, Furst’s 
A Hero of France is at once one of the 
finest novels written about the French 
Resistance and the most gripping novel 
yet by the living master of the spy thriller.

BRILLIANCE AND FIRE: A 
Biography of Diamonds by 
Rachelle Bergstein 

From the author of Women from the 
Ankle Down comes a lively cultural 
biography of diamonds, which explores 
our society’s obsession with the world’s 
most brilliant gemstone and the real-world 
characters who make them shine.“A diamond is 
forever.” Who among us doesn’t recognize this 
phrase and, with it, the fascination that these shiny 
gemstones hold in our collective imagination as 
symbols of royalty, stars, and eternal love? But who 
gave us this catchphrase? Where do these gemstones 
and their colorful legacies originate? How did they 
become our culture’s symbol of engagement and 
marriage? Why have they retained their coveted 
status throughout the centuries? Bergstein’s cultural 
biography of the diamond illuminates the enticing, 
often surprising story of our society’s enduring 
obsession with the hardest gemstone—and the 
people who have worked tirelessly to ensure its 
continued allure. From the South African mines 
where most diamonds have been sourced since the 
late 1890s to the companies who have fought to 
monopolize them; from the stars who have dazzled 
in them to the people behind the scenes who have 
carefully crafted our understanding of their value—
Brilliance and Fire offers a glittering 
history of the world’s most coveted 
gemstone and its greatest champions 
and most colorful enthusiasts

ECCENTRIC ORBITS: The Iridium 
Story by John Bloom 

In the early 1990s, Motorola, the 
legendary American technology 
company developed a revolutionary 
satellite system called Iridium 
that promised to be its crowning 
achievement. Light years ahead of 
anything previously put into space, 
and built on technology developed for 
Ronald Reagan’s “Star Wars,” Iridium’s 
constellation of 66 satellites in polar 
orbit meant that no matter where you 
were on Earth, at least one satellite was 
always overhead, and you could call 
Tibet from Fiji without a delay and 
without your call ever touching a wire.
Iridium the satellite system was a mind-
boggling technical accomplishment, 
surely the future of communication. 
The only problem was that Iridium the 
company was a commercial disaster. 
Only months after launching service, it 
was $11 billion in debt, burning through 
$100 million a month and crippled by 
baroque rate plans and agreements that 
forced calls through Moscow, Beijing, 
Fucino, Italy, and elsewhere. Bankruptcy 
was inevitable—the largest to that point 
in American history. And when no 
real buyers seemed to materialize, it 
looked like Iridium would go down 
as just a “science experiment.”That is, 
until Colussy got a wild idea. Colussy, 
a former head of Pan-Am now retired 
and working on his golf game in Palm 
Beach, heard about Motorola’s plans to 
“de-orbit” the system and decided he 
would buy Iridium and somehow turn around one 
of the biggest blunders in the history of business.In 
Eccentric Orbits, John Bloom masterfully traces the 
conception, development, and launching of Iridium 
and Colussy’s tireless efforts to stop it from being 
destroyed, from meetings with his motley investor 
group, to the Clinton White House, to the Pentagon, 
to the hunt for customers in special ops, shipping, 
aviation, mining, search and rescue—anyone 
who would need a durable phone at the end of the 
Earth. Impeccably researched and wonderfully told, 
Eccentric Orbits is a rollicking, unforgettable tale 
of technological achievement, business failure, the 
military-industrial complex, and one of the greatest 
deals of all time.


All Things Considered By Jeff Brown

COULD BRAIN INFECTION SET THE STAGE FOR 
ALZHEIMER’S?(SCIENCE FRIDAY INTERVIEW)

One of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease is 
the buildup of the protein amyloid-beta in the 
brain(plaque like substance). But amyloid-beta isn’t 
just limited to humans. It’s found in three-quarters 
of vertebrates. Even the coelacanth, a 400-million-
year-old fish, shares amyloid-beta genes with 
humans.That remarkable preservation across 
evolutionary time, and the protein’s resemblance 
to other antimicrobial compounds in the body, 
led neurobiologist Rob Moir to wonder about the 
function of amyloid-beta. Surely it couldn’t just be 
junk, gumming up the brain?Indeed, a few years 
back, Moir teamed up with neurologist Rudy 
Tanzi and others to show that amyloid-beta itself 
has antimicrobial properties. And now, reporting 
in Science Translational Medicine, they write that 
the protein acts as a foot-soldier against fungal 
and bacterial infection in vitro, and in the brains 
of nematodes and mice. Within just 48 hours of 
infection, they saw clumps of amyloid appear in the 
brains mice—and trapped in the center of each glob, 
the invading microbe.The new findings, they say, 
suggest that infection may spur the buildup of this 
plaque like substance,and that Alzheimer’s disease 
could be a toxic side effect.So it’s an inflammatory 
process against a slow buildup of pathogens that 
causes the amyloids which attacks the pathogens 
which then also suffocate the brain cells.Also ones 
lifestyle and genes also effects how one’s body deals 
with this.Their theory is provocative, and will 
probably get a great deal of pushback, says Moir. 
“We’re basically saying 30 years of assumption are 
wrong, and that’s not gonna go down great.”Rob 
Moir is a neurobiologist at Massachusetts General 
Hospital and an assistant professor at Harvard 
Medical School in Charlestown, Massachusetts.
Rudy Tanzi is a professor of neurology at Harvard 
Medical School and is vice-chair, neurology at 
Massachusetts General Hospital in Charlestown, 
Massachusetts.

On the Marquee: Notes from the Sierra Madre Playhouse

A VERY FULL PLATE


SEAN’S SHAMELESS REVIEWS 

WEEKLY UPDATE: 

NEW SONGS YOU MUST HEAR 

By Sean Kayden

SALES – “Seven’s Day” – Combined, Lauren 
Morgan and Jordan Shih make up SALES, an 
indie bedroom-pop band from Orlando, Florida. 
When I use the term “bedroom-pop,” it’s a way to 
describe exactly what they are—a band that makes 
pop music in their bedroom. In the case of SALES, 
their minimal pop tendencies are quite charming 
and greatly effective. In April, the band released 
their self-titled LP independently consisting of 15 
songs. It is a collection of mellow tracks ranging 
from a minute to three and half minutes long. 
They may be brief and soothing, but there is energy 
to be found. Morgan sings and plays guitar and 
Shih handles the beats and digital side. Morgan’s 
harrowing vocals over Shih’s pensive beats equal 
utter harmony. One of the songs called “Seven’s 
Day” is superb and relaxing in every way, shape, 
and form. Stream this one right now. 

The Temper Trap – “Burn” – “Burn” is The 
Temper Trap’s second soaring single. Bombastic 
drums, anthem-driven rock for the 21st century, 
and pretty arrangements, “Burn” blossoms into 
the idyllic summer jam. The track comes off the 
group’s highly anticipated upcoming album, 
“Thick As Thieves” due out June 10th. The third 
full effort by The Temper Trap sees the band 
collaborating with outside songwriters for the 
first time such as Justin Parker (Lana Del Rey, 
Bat For Lashes), Malay (Frank Ocean, Zayn), 
Pascal Gabriel (Kylie Minogue, Ladyhawke) 
and Ben Allen (Animal Collective, Deerhunter). 
The Temper Trap had already released the 
intoxicating “Fall Together” as their introduction 
single and with this new one being just as stellar, 
we can only hope for a phenomenal return to 
form for a band that made a huge first impression 
years ago with their debut record, “Conditions.”

Hot Hot Heat – “The Kid Stays in the Picture” 
- On June 24, Hot Hot Heat will release a 
final album—their first since 2010’s “Future 
Breeds”—before calling it quits. Their new single 
is a change of pace for the band. Frontman Steve 
Bays explains the song, “The Kid Stays in the 
Picture,” is about a childhood friend who lost 
his mojo as he grew older. The song feels like 
the band has aged perfectly. It appears to be 
the appropriate final single as the song has this 
reflectiveness attached to it. The track features a 
dance vibe that’s filled with poppy hooks. At the 
very least, this is a jaunty, upbeat return/farewell 
song for a band that could never achieve the 
same success after their debut album. However, 
this final, aptly self-titled record could very well 
become their best one ever.

Caveman – “80 West” – Here’s another terrific 
indie-rock track from a band that is consistently 
putting out solid material over the past few years. 
The indie act from New York are gearing up for 
their third full-length record entitled “Otero 
War.” “80 West” is tight, sharp, and a perfect 
track for a montage in a movie or television 
episode. The vibe here resemblances another 
great indie rock band called The War On Drugs. 
It’s a soaring, rock-driven tune that has a full-
on crescendo in its’ final stages. Once again, a 
song like this comes around to inform me (and 
you) that rock music isn’t dead despite popular 
belief. How could you not feel something when 
listening to a track like this? Chances are, the 
new Caveman album will go mostly unnoticed 
by millennials and that is a travesty. 

By Artistic Director, Christian Lebano

This is once again an amazingly busy time for us at 
the Playhouse. So much going on and just when our 
personal lives seem to be at their busiest too. It’s an 
awful lot of work for a really small team and we are all 
working on all cylinders to keep the Playhouse moving 
forward. I was so busy at my day job last week that I 
completely forgot to write my essay – I’m a thorn in 
Susan Henderson’s side, I’m sure. Thankfully, she is 
one of our strongest supporters and I really appreciate 
having this outlet to share what’s going on at SMP.

 The Glass Menagerie, our current play running 
through June 19, has been Ovation Recommended! 
We have gotten really wonderful reviews for this show, 
were named Top Ten Pick on Stage Raw (a theater 
review site), and are 100% Sweet on Bitter Lemons 
(a review aggregating site.) All of this hasn’t really 
translated into ticket sales, unfortunately. This may be 
the best reviewed show in Playhouse history but we are 
not selling out (we’ve had a few, particularly Sundays). 
I wish more people would come see it – I’m incredibly 
proud of this show. 

 We have two days of Carney Magic coming up on 
Friday and Saturday, June 10 & 11. John Carney is a 
remarkable sleight of hand magician who has been 
named the Magic Castle’s “Magician of the Year” 
several times. He’s appeared on all the late night talk 
shows. I do hope you will come out to see him – both 
shows at 8pm and suitable for the entire family.

 We have two Colburn Concerts coming up – this 
Sunday, June 5 we welcome Stephanie Tang in an 
evening of piano solos and on Sunday, June 18 we 
welcome back the Amoris Trio (their appearance last 
year was the best-selling Colburn Concert we’ve ever 
had – they almost sold-out.) If you have never been 
to one of our concerts, I hope you will come to one of 
these. One try and you will become a loyal attendee.

We began rehearsals for our summer musical last 
Wednesday. The 25th Annual Putnam County 
Spelling Bee is a wonderfully funny and ultimately 
heartwarming show about a group of pre-adolescents 
(played by adults) at a spelling bee. It is being directed 
by Robert Marra who did such a lovely job last year with 
Always…Patsy Cline. This show is not recommended 
for kids under the age of 16 because of language and 
one song.

 And we are busy with preproduction for Bee-
Luther-Hatchee by Thomas Gibbons. A beautiful 
play that I’ve long wanted to produce – AND act in! 
Yup, I’m finally getting back on stage in this one. It 
is a provocative play about cultural appropriation and 
who has the right to tell someone’s story. We have 
been reaching out to colleges and universities and plan 
to have symposia on the issues in the play as part of the 
production.

 A lot of plates to keep spinning! I do hope you 
will see some or all of these. This is your Playhouse. 
Please let me hear from you. Please visit our website 
at SierraMadrePlayhouse.org or call Mary at 
626.355.4318 to purchase tickets. 

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com