Global AsiaVolume 6, No. 2, Summer 2011East Asia FoundationThe year 1979 ought to be studied one day as perhaps the pivotal point in East Asia’s history. In South Korea it is remembered as the year in which the dictator Park Chung-hee was assassinated, ending his 18-year rule and heralding the tumultuous ‘80s, in which the people fought the government for greater liberties. Also in 1979, the last

Books July 29, 2011

RALEIGH, North Carolina ― Grown-ups and kids, all clad in swimsuits, all holding paper plates, queue up before the dinner buffet: beef brisket, pork ribs, pasta salad, hash brown casserole, tossed salad, rolls, vegetables and dip, pita chips and dip, watermelon and lemon bars.The spread is even more impressive given the location: a campsite at Falls Lake State Recreation Area north of Raleigh. The

Food July 29, 2011

WARSAW, Poland (AP) ― A valuable 19th century Polish painting that went missing during World War II has been returned to Poland after being removed from auction in Germany, the culture minister said Wednesday.Aleksander Gierymski’s “Jewish Woman Selling Oranges” was unveiled to reporters by Culture Minister Bogdan Zdrojewski, who said the painting was returned to Poland after many months of on-and

Performance July 28, 2011

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Harry Belafonte says Hollywood has yet to explore the breadth of black experience and that the industry will “never ever yield to the needs of people of color.”The 84-year-old entertainer made the remarks at a presentation on artists and activism Wednesday during the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s 102nd annual convention in Los Angeles. Harry Belafo

People July 28, 2011

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) ― The hunt for Alaska’s most infamous serial murderer is about to get the Hollywood treatment.Academy Award-winning actor Nicolas Cage will star in “Frozen Ground,” a movie detailing the police investigation of serial killer Robert Hansen, Variety reported Wednesday. He will play an Alaska State Trooper who investigated the murders.Filming is scheduled to start in Anchorage

Film July 28, 2011

 HAVANA (AFP) ― Perched on a wooden dais in front of 600 workers rolling Cuba’s legendary cigars, Grisel reads aloud ― poems, novels and even sex tips from the newspaper ― keeping workers entertained, their attention rapt, just the way it has been done for 150 years.Grisel, 55, a petite former teacher who wears reading glasses she adjusts frequently, may have a job that predates electricity. Cuban

People July 27, 2011

BAYREUTH, Germany (AFP) ― An Israeli orchestra made history Tuesday by performing a concert in Bayreuth, the spiritual home of Hitler’s favorite composer Richard Wagner, and received a standing ovation.“It was a joy for us to play Wagner here,” Roberto Paternostro, the conductor of the Israel Chamber Orchestra, said after the first-ever performance by an ensemble from the country in this southern

Performance July 27, 2011

LONDON (AFP) ― The family and close friends of British soul singer Amy Winehouse were Tuesday set to hold a private funeral after a post-mortem failed to establish a cause of the 27-year-old’s death.A family spokesman said the ceremony for the troubled diva, who was found dead at her London home on Saturday, will be confined to family and close friends. He did not disclose the location or the time

Performance July 26, 2011

KEY WEST, Florida (AP) ― A white-bearded, 64-year-old Florida man has won the annual Ernest Hemingway look-alike competition at a Florida Keys bar once frequented by the author.Matt Gineo of Jensen Beach, dressed in a wool fisherman’s sweater to emulate photographer Yousuf Karsh’s famous portrait of Hemingway, bested 120 other entrants after an unprecedented tie-breaker vote. It was Gineo’s 12th t

People July 25, 2011