- Richard Wagner, Bayreuth and Italy (german-way.com)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883) revolutionized classical music with his Tristan und Isolde (1859) and The Ring (1874). His tremendous influence on opera came from his “musical dramas,” including the “Ring Cycle” and the Meistersinger von Nürnberg. Because Wagner wanted the perfect stage for his productions, he custom built his now famous Festival Hall in Bayreuth, still today the home of the annual Bayreuth Festival (Bayreuther Festspiele). Wagner’s supporters say his music transcends his dark side as an antisemite, a deadbeat, and a philanderer. His life was also intertwined with that of King Ludwig II of Bavaria, who supported Wagner financially over many years beginning in 1864, but did not agree with the composer’s antisemitic views.
- Jimmy Carter (allthetropes.org)
Considering that it happened 43 years ago, a look around the Internet will astonish many readers with just how firmly James Earl “Jimmy” Carter’s presidency remains in Your Mileage May Vary territory. Conservatives declare that his watch was a mess, while liberals assert that he inherited a mess (Why does that sound familiar?): the huge Vietnam War deficit, an economy that for the first time ever suffered rampant inflation while stagnating, and a national post-Vietnam, post-Watergate funk which was described as a “malaise” – a word that is hung around his neck by conservative commentators (and The Simpsons) to this day, though Carter himself never actually used it. “Stagflation” was exacerbated by the 1979 oil crisis; long gas lines and high energy costs contributed to the national unhappiness. In an attempt to lead by example, the President lowered the thermostats in the White House and donned sweaters to keep warm instead – which became for many a hated symbol of the lifestyle sacrifices which they believed his policies had made necessary.