Friday 20
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Over a 50-plus-year career as a photographer Arnold Newman has traveled the world, taking portraits of leaders both political and cultural. Tonight he’s the special guest of the local chapter of the American Society of Media Photographers, meeting at the Ross Ehlert Photo Labs, 225 W. Illinois. Newman will talk, show slides of his work, and sign his new book, Arnold Newman’s Americans, at the shindig, starting at 7. It’s $20, $10 for members. Calll 733-7798.
Saturday 21
Petronius was renowned for two things: The first was his friendship with Nero, who appreciated Petronius’s way around an orgy. (Tacitus, in his Annals, dubbed him “arbiter elegantiae”–“minister of fun,” roughly translated.) The other was his long picaresque prose ‘n’ verse novel Satyricon, which could have been subtitled “Encolpius, Ascyltus, and Giton’s Excellent Adventure.” Only fragments of the book remain, but they provide a vivid, sarcastic look at the debauchery of ancient Rome. Fellini’s epic CinemaScope film version is accordingly disjointed. It plays at Facets, 1517 W. Fullerton, tonight at 5 and 7:30, tomorrow at 6:30 and 9. It’s $5, $3 for members; call 281-4114 for more.
It’s that time of year again: the feud between lovers of latkes, otherwise known as potato pancakes, and hamentashen, or triangular pastries, has been going on in the abstract for 3,546 years and in the concrete–in the form of a debate at the University of Chicago–for the past 45. A panel of the university’s faculty, including professors Edward Kolb, Michael Fishbane, Anna Lisa Crone, and Norman Zide, are set today to face off on the literary, hermeneutical, linguistic, and astrophysical aspects of the issue. It’s at 7:30 at the Cloister Club of Ida Noyes Hall, 1212 E. 59th St. The debate is free, but there’s a suggested $2 contribution if you need to sample the wares to make your own decision. Call 752-1127 for more.
