I suppose I should not be surprised that someone has done such a thing, but a musical about Princess Diana has opened in southern Germany. Many of the 40 actors are British, but the show is in German, so 6 months of intensive language training preceded their opening this past weekend. Camilla is represented, but Charles is only heard from through Diana’s secretary. An English version of the show is scheduled to open next year in other European countries, but London will have to wait longer, “out of respect.”

That stupefyingly disrepectful British series, Absolutely Fabulous, is back on Comedy Central with new episodes and repeats of old ones. I can really use the laughs.

Iridium, recently saved from certain death by new investors and a large contract with the U.S. Department of Defense, is honing its marketing efforts. Airlines are looking at Qualcomm and Iridium for satellite network systems that can offer tamperproof monitoring of what is happening inside aircraft. Iridium is also concentrating on specific industries such as oil, gas, and maritime. A couple weeks ago, I saw my first Iridium flare. It was much brighter than I expected, but not particularly awe-inspiring.

A SF Chronicle writer takes a critical look at the Sony Metreon. As an “urban entertainment center”, it has failed to meld and blend with the active city life that surrounds it. The architects provided a view of the neighboring park; Sony blocked their views with movie posters and a Starbucks. For most city dwellers it has become more of a one-time curiousity which soon fades into the background as a glorified movie theatre and food court.

The New York Times has licensed 14 Norman Rockwell paintings to use for ads. Norman Rockwell made good money creating illustrations for companies such as Coca-Cola and Kellogg’s, so using his work in advertising is nothing new. But the Times is also altering the paintings so they fit in with current themes: a U.S. flag for a bunch of flowers, a map of Afghanistan for a blackboard, a Manhattan skyline for a sailboat. Rockwell’s sons approve of the changes and felt they were consistent with what their father would have done. They knew him better than I do, of course. But I feel that it is somehow wrong for the images to be changed after his death. I would not mind as much if he had made the changes himself. One of the joys of Rockwell’s paintings is noticing the details he added. Changing a work of art after the artist is gone feels very wrong to me, especially when the purpose is to sell a product. However, I will agree that the changes are in keeping with the spirit of what Rockwell always tried to do with his patriotic illustrations of American life. (via Media News)

At every college campus I visit, there’s a Kresge [something]. Kresge Auditorium, Kresge Theatre, Kresge Museum, Kresge Library… I can not even begin to find and link all the examples. But here, once and for all, I am going to figure out who this Kresge person is, because I have often discussed it with friends and yet we’ve never bothered to look it up. Ready to be enlightened? Here we go.

Sebastian S. Kresge began a business, the S.S. Kresge Company, in 1899 with $8,000 and two five and dime stores. They flourished and the company expanded, opening more and more stores. In 1924, on the 25th anniversary of company, Sebastian Kresge established The Kresge Foundation with $1.3 million. Their charter was “to promote the well-being of mankind.” They began by giving grants to colleges in the northeast, where the stores had first become popular. Sebastian died in 1966 (aged 99), having personally contributed over $60 million to the foundation. They have now given out $1.459 billion in grants.

You probably know the S.S. Kresge Company by its current name: the Kmart Corporation. The Kresge Foundation is no longer affiliated with it, remaining private and independent. Thank you Mr. Kresge!

Continuing our semi-regular topic of “if it exists, someone collects it”, here are sites for the International Business Card Collectors, American Business Card Club, and Bluewater Business Card Club. Learn how to store your cards properly (no PVC please), click through some impressive photo galleries (including 3-D popup cards), and then take a look at historic Victorian tradecards. I don’t exactly collect business cards, but I can’t remember having thrown any out. (IBCC via memepool)

If you happen to be like me and wondered what happened to the band Jesus Jones (of “Right Here, Right Now” fame), you can rejoice for they have a new album out. Called “London”, it is available in the U.S. and I’ve found it online at Amazon and Tower. There’s even a used copy at Amazon, which I suppose may not bode well, but the reviews there are positive.

The San Jose Merc delved a little bit more into the reasons locals have for barring IKEA from East Palo Alto. I admit I was selfishly expecting no resistance to having a more conveniently located source of cheap furniture and household items. But reading the residents’ comments made me realize what it would be like to have a monstrous blue and yellow building with a never-ending train of cars in my neighborhood. On the other hand, if any community could use the tax revenue boost and 500 new jobs, it’s East PA. The city council will revisit the issue on November 13. I don’t need to visit IKEA much, so I can be content with the trek up to Emeryville. After all, a couple years ago, we only had delusions of renting a U-Haul and taking it down to Southern California.

Items that no fine household should be without: cake breaker, salad crescent, asparagus tongs, asparagus server, marrow spoon, caviar spoon, strawberry fork, cranberry and tomato server, ice cream fork, grape scissors. What, you don’t have any of those either?