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nobEl PEacE PrizE mEdal auctionEd
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A worker holds Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov’s 23-karat gold medal of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize before being auctioned at the Times Center. >AP
Nobel sold for Ukrainian kids shatters record at $103.5M
Bobby Caina Calvan – The Associated Press
NEW YORK — The Nobel Peace Prize auctioned off by Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov to raise money for Ukrainian child refugees sold Monday night for $103.5 million, shattering the old record for a Nobel. A spokesperson for Heritage Auctions, which handled the sale, could not confirm the identity of the buyer but said the winning bid was made by proxy. The $103.5 million sale translates to $100 million Swiss francs, hinting that the buyer is from overseas. “I was hoping that there was going to be an enormous amount of solidarity, but I was not expecting this to be such a huge amount,” Muratov said in an interview after bidding in the nearly 3-week auction ended on World Refugee Day. Previously, the most ever paid for a Nobel Prize medal was $4.76 million in 2014, when James Watson, whose co-discovery of the structure of DNA earned him a Nobel Prize in 1962, sold his. In 2013, the family of his co-recipient, Francis Crick, received $2.27 million in bidding also run by Heritage Auctions. Muratov, who was awarded the gold medal in October 2021, helped found the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta and was the publication’s editor-in-chief when it shut down in March amid the Kremlin’s clampdown on journalists and public dissent in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It was Muratov’s idea to auction off his prize, having already announced he was donating the accompanying $500,000 cash award to charity. Muratov has said the proceeds will go directly to UNICEF in its efforts to help children displaced by the war in Ukraine. Just minutes after bidding ended, UNICEF told the auction house it had already received the funds.
Online bids had begun June 1 to coincide with the International Children’s Day observance. Many bids came by telephone or online. The winning bid, tendered by telephone, catapulted the bidding from the low millions to astronomical levels. Muratov had left Russia on Thursday to begin his trip to New York City, where live bidding began Monday evening. Early Monday, the high bid was only $550,000. The purchase price had been expected to spiral upward — but not over $100 million. “I can’t believe it. I’m awestruck. Personally, I’m flabbergasted. I’m stunned. I don’t really know what happened in there,” said Joshua Benesh, the chief strategy officer for Heritage Auctions. “We knew that there was a tremendous groundswell of interest in the last couple of days by people who were moved by Dimitry’s story, by Dimitry’s act of generosity, that the global audience was listening tonight,” he said. Muratov and Heritage officials said even those out of the bidding can still help by donating directly to UNICEF. Muratov shared the Nobel Peace Prize last year with journalist Maria Ressa of the Philippines. The two journalists, who each received their own medals, were honored for their battles to preserve free speech in their respective countries, despite coming under attack by harassment, their governments and even death threats. Melted down, the 175 grams of 23-karat gold contained in Muratov’s medal would be worth about $10,000. Muratov has been highly critical of Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and the war launched in February that has caused nearly 5 million Ukrainians to flee to other countries for safety, creating the largest humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II. Independent journalists in Russia have come under scrutiny by the Kremlin, if not outright targets of the government. Since Putin came into power more than two decades ago, nearly two dozen journalists have been killed, including at least four who had worked for Muratov’s newspaper. In April, Muratov said he was attacked with red paint while aboard a Russian train. Since its inception in 1901, there have been nearly 1,000 recipients of the Nobel Prizes honoring achievements in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and the advancement of peace.
Dmitry Muratov, Nobel Peace Prize laureate
McCartney marks 80th birthday with Springsteen, 60,000 pals
David Bauder – The Associated Press
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Hard to think of a better way for Paul McCartney to celebrate his 80th birthday than by singing “Glory Days” onstage with Bruce Springsteen or being serenaded by some 60,000 well-wishers.
That’s right, the “cute Beatle” turned 80 on Saturday. It’s one of those cultural milestones that bring a sharp intake of breath – has it been THAT long? – along with an appreciation of what he still has to offer.
For it has been more than a half-century now since the Beatles broke up, a realization that hits you like that 1970s-era joke about young people saying, “Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings?”
Like several other members of the “hope I die before I get old” generation, including Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones and former Beatles mate Ringo Starr, McCartney keeps working, keeps sharing his music from the stage. Another 1960s icon, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, was scheduled to play at the Starlight Theatre in Kansas City on his 80th birthday last Monday.
“He has a youthful exuberance that is ageless,” said Bob Spitz, a Beatles biographer. “There’s still some of that 21-year-old boy that shines through in all of his performances.”
It would be a cliché – and wrong – to suggest time hasn’t taken a toll. The fragility in his voice was evident while singing “Blackbird” on Thursday night at
MetLife Stadium, the final night of a brief U.S. tour. He struggled for the high notes in “Here Today,” his love letter to John Lennon, who was robbed of a long life by an assassin’s bullet.
The skill of a sympathetic band, along with the imagination and voices in the audience, patches over the rough spots.
“Yeah, yeah, right, I’ve got a birthday coming up,” McCartney said, scanning signs in the audience that reminded him. “I’m not trying to ignore it, but...” The crowd offered a spontaneous “Happy Birthday” serenade, even before Jersey guy Jon Bon Jovi brought out a fistful of balloons during the encore to lead them in another verse.
That other Jersey guy, Springsteen, joined McCartney for the duet on “Glory Days” and a version of “I Wanna Be Your Man.” He later popped up to join the guitar duel from “Abbey Road.” For most artists, the appearance of such local royalty would be a hard-to-top moment. Most artists can’t immediately whip out “Let it Be” and “Hey Jude” to follow it. To mark the birthday, Stereogum magazine asked 80 artists to pick their favorite McCartney song, and the choices were remarkable in their breadth – from the pre-Beatles 1958 cut “In Spite of All the Danger” (which McCartney performed at MetLife) to his 2016 collaboration with Rihanna and Kanye West “FourFiveSeconds” (which he didn’t).
David Crosby and Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys both chose “Eleanor Rigby.” Master showman Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips picked “Magical Mystery Tour.” Steve Earle selected “Every Night,” while Def
Paul McCartney performs during his “Got Back” tour, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. >AP Leppard’s Joe Elliott went against type with the gentle “Little Lamb Dragonfly.” Mac DeMarco picked the “Ram” epic, “The Back Seat of My Car.” Many remarked upon the unfairness of having to pick just one. How vast is the songbook? McCartney performed 38 songs at MetLife, 20 of them Beatles songs, and even managed to miss an entire decade. Remember the 1990s?
In fact, With the help of Peter Jackson, who reimagined the “Get Back” sessions for last year’s television project, McCartney was able to perform a virtual It would be “duet” with Lennon singing his part of “I’ve a cliché – and Got a Feeling” from the Apple rooftop concert. wrong – to suggest McCartney also paid tribute to George Harrison, time hasn’t taken who died in 2001, with a version of “Something” a toll. The fragility that began with Paul on a ukulele George gave him in his voice was and built to a full band version. evident while Spitz recalled a Beatles-era film clip of Lennon singing “Blackbird.” telling an interviewer that he’d be flabbergasted if it lasted more than 10 years. McCartney stood next to him laughing. Lennon was right about the Beatles as a unit, but not about the music. He couldn’t have imagined that in 2022, one adult standing in line to get into MetLife being overheard asking a companion: “Where are Mom and Dad?” Advanced birthday be damned, the irrepressibly cheerful McCartney left with a promise when the last firework burst and he walked offstage. “See you next time.”
From left, Michael J. Fox, Euzhan Palcy, Diane Warren and Peter Weir, who will be honored at at the Academy’s 13th Governors Awards on Saturday, Nov. 19, in Los Angeles. >AP Oscars to honor
Fox, Euzhan Palcy, Diane Warren, Peter Weir
All four will be recognized for their contributions to cinema and the world at large
Lindsey Bahr – The Associated Press
Diane Warren will finally be able to thank the Academy this November.
The oft-nominated songwriter has been selected to receive an honorary Oscar at the annual Governors Awards alongside directors Peter Weir and Euzhan Palcy.
Actor Michael J. Fox will also be bestowed with the
Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Tuesday.
None have won an Oscar before. “The Academy’s Board of Governors is honored to recognize four individuals who have made indelible contributions to cinema and the world at large,” David Rubin, the president of the film academy, said in a statement. The honorary Oscar statuette is given for
“extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the academy.” Warren, 65, is the most recent Oscar nominee in the class, having just been up for the original song award earlier this year. The prolific songwriter who has contributed original songs to more than 100 films has been nominated in the category 13 times since 1987 for songs including “Because You Loved
Me,” “How Do I Live” and “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing.” She’s worked with artists like Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Cher, Celine Dion and Whitney Houston. Rubin said, “Warren’s music and lyrics have magnified the emotional impact of countless motion pictures and inspired generations of musical artists.”. At age 77, the Australian auteur Weir, has also received many nominations over the year for both directing “Witness,” “Dead Poets Society,” “The Truman Show” and “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World,” which also got a best picture nomination, and writing “Green Card.” A leading voice in the Australian New Wave, Weir first made his name with “Picnic at Hanging Rock,” “The Last Wave” and “Gallipoli.” “Weir is a director of consummate skill and artistry whose work reminds us of the power of film to reveal the full range of human experience,” Rubin said. And though perhaps less widely known than the others in this Governors Awards class, Palcy, 64, has been a trailblazer for decades as a Black woman director. Born in Martinique in the French West Indies, Palcy made broke new ground with her debut feature “Sugar Cane Alley,” which won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1983 and a César Award. She also became the first Black woman to direct a film for a major Hollywood studio with MGM’s “A Dry White Season” in 1989, for which Marlon Brando got an Oscar nomination. Rubin said her, “groundbreaking significance in international cinema is cemented in film history.” Fox, meanwhile, will be feted with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his advocacy work in Parkinson’s research. The 61-year-old “Back to the Future” and “Family Ties” star was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease at age 29. His organization, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, which was founded in 2000, is a leader in the field. Though he’s never been Oscar-nominated before, Fox has won five Emmys, a Grammy and two Screen Actors Guild award. “Michael J. Fox’s tireless advocacy of research on Parkinson’s disease alongside his boundless optimism exemplifies the impact of one person in changing the future for millions,” Rubin said. The 13th Governors Awards will be held in Los Angeles on Nov. 19 in an untelevised ceremony.
