You’ve got to read these
True love’s kiss
A Ukrainian-Canadian artist has just concluded an interactive art project called “Sleeping Beauty,” in which five attractive young women took turns sleeping under dim lights in Kyiv’s top gallery, each under a pledge to marry the visitor who woke her with a kiss.
Any unmarried museum-goer could kiss the woman in the hope of making Beauty fall in love and awaken.
Taras Polataiko, a Ukrainian-born artist now based in Canada, said the goal of his exhibit was to recreate the famous fairy tale and witness the birth of love.
But it also had political undertones, symbolizing the patience of the Ukrainian people trapped by what he calls the oppressive government of President Viktor Yanukovych, and hopes that the nation will one day awaken to true freedom.
“I am turning the fairy tale into reality, the Prince fell in love with her deeply, strongly and this love woke her up,” Polataiko told The Associated Press. “Strong love happens by chance.”
The nearly three-week exhibit ended Sunday, and as of Friday, only one Sleeping Beauty had woken up to a kiss — only to discover that her Prince Charming was actually a princess. It is unclear what the two women will do, given that Ukraine forbids same-sex marriage and that Princess Charming has a boyfriend of her own.
Romantic tension and anticipation were palpable in the ground floor room at the National Art Museum of Ukraine, where each Sleeping Beauty lay on a high white bed two hours a day. But the project was more of an artistic experiment than an act of match-making. The marriage pledges that visitors signed were not legally binding, and some of the Sleeping Beauties admitted they would not get married to someone they disliked.
A work of art
An upstate New York strip club says its nude lap dances are an art form and should be exempt from state taxes. So far, the state tax department and an appeals court disagree and want Nite Moves in Albany to pay up $124,000 it says it owes in taxes. Nite Moves claims the dances are exempt under state tax law as “live dramatic or musical arts performances.” The exemption also applies to theater or ballet. The club is relying on testimony from a cultural anthropologist who has studied exotic dance and visited Nite Moves.
A lot to swallow
Authorities say a 35-year-old man tried to swallow counterfeit $50 bills after he was caught trying to use the bogus money at a New York amusement park. Deputies were called after the man bought french fries with a $50 bill. A park employee spotted the fake and called security. While being taken away, the man stuffed five bills into his mouth and tried unsuccessfully to eat them. Investigators say he told them he received the bills as pay for a remodeling job.
Me vs. Wi
The prize-winning author Philip Roth said he’s furious with Wikipedia over its entry about his novel “The Human Stain.” In a letter posted Friday by The New Yorker, Roth said Wikipedia editors had said the book was inspired by the life of author Anatole Broyard. Not true, Roth responded. The character was based on the late Melvin Turin, of Princeton University.
Roth said he privately reported the error to Wikipedia and was told that he needed a secondary source. So Roth made his case to the public. By Friday afternoon, the Wikipedia entry had been updated to include Roth’s comments and to note that some had “incorrectly speculated” about the novel’s origins.
Garden of pot
A western Pennsylvania man has been arrested and charged with growing marijuana on a church’s property. The 28-year-old was arrested after the Beloved Disciples Church reported that two suspected marijuana plants were growing on their property. Authorities found a small path that led from the plants to the backyard of a nearby home. The man confessed to growing the plants after being contacted by law enforcement.