With the onset of the Cold War in the late 1940s, President Truman worked in close bipartisan partnership with Arthur Vandenberg, senior Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, to create a revolutionary new foreign policy for the United States to lead the free world. They did so at a bitterly partisan time that makes today’s partisanship seem tame by comparison. What can we learn from the history? What issues can form the basis of a new bipartisan foreign policy? Lawrence Haas, a former White House official and author of Harry and Arthur: Truman, Vandenberg, and the Partnership That Created the Free World, will discuss the history and its relevance to today.

With the onset of the Cold War in the late 1940s, President Truman worked in close bipartisan partnership with Arthur Vandenberg, senior Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, to create a revolutionary new foreign policy for the United States to lead the free world. They did so at a bitterly partisan time that makes today’s partisanship seem tame by comparison. What can we learn from the history? What issues can form the basis of a new bipartisan foreign policy? Lawrence Haas, a former White House official and author of Harry and Arthur: Truman, Vandenberg, and the Partnership That Created the Free World, will discuss the history and its relevance to today.

Sonic musical options took a giant leap forward when Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone in 1840. This hour is dedicated to celebrating the sax in jazz, classical and modern music. From Sonny Rollins to Ravel, from John Coltrane to Gabriel Faure . . . lush and wonderful diversity.

This lecture will examine the early life of Rembrandt van Rijn. Born the son of a miller, he was tremendously talented from an early age. He became an artist's apprentice at age 14 and opened his own art studio at age 18. His early success in Amsterdam, his marriage, his mastery and uniqueness, the influence of patrons, and the trends in art during this time will be discussed.

In the late 19th Century, advances in materials, iron, steel, and concrete coupled with the development of electricity, the elevator, heating, and cooling led to a building boom in the early 20th Century that created intense rivalries and the race to build the tallest. in the period up to the Depression. The focus shifts from incorporation of historic forms and styles to Modernism, stark forms rejecting ornamentation. By the mid-century, the skyscraper became the “glass box” ubiquitous, spread across the world burdening infrastructure, fueling congestion, and imposing environmental consequences. The lecture concludes with an overview of the current race for the tallest in Asia, the Middle East, and the supertall condominiums in Manhattan.

The children of immigrants, the Marx Brothers were stars of vaudeville who easily made the transition to Hollywood as they created iconic characters in some of the funniest movies ever made. This course will review the life and career of these extraordinary entertainers, and examine their influence on comedy, and f course include clips from some of their greatest films. We'll also discuss Groucho's later TV career, including his interviews with Dick Cavett and William F. Buckley.

The children of immigrants, the Marx Brothers were stars of vaudeville who easily made the transition to Hollywood as they created iconic characters in some of the funniest movies ever made. This course will review the life and career of these extraordinary entertainers, and examine their influence on comedy, and f course include clips from some of their greatest films. We'll also discuss Groucho's later TV career, including his interviews with Dick Cavett and William F. Buckley.

It’s the 1980s in Lee County, Virginia.  With a nod to Charles Dickens, this Pulitzer Prize-winning book gives readers a hard-scrabble coming-of-age story in the midst of the opioid epidemic. As the first-person narrator, red-headed Damon “Demon” Fields, grapples with his life he tells us what he thinks. Please read the book so you can participate in our structured, facilitated, Zoom discussion. Author: Barbara Kingsolver, 2022. (For other book discussions, see classes #314, 354, 383)

John Raitt, Alfred Drake, Yul Brynner, and Rex Harrison are just a few of the men who created legendary Broadway roles, using their unique on-stage personae to carve out their careers and individual brands. In this musically-packed session, you’ll learn about these men and the roles they created. Steve Friedman will infuse his presentation with many examples of the music, sung in his classically-trained tenor voice!

This class will focus on the top dozen cases, both civil and criminal, heard by the Court during the past year. Special emphasis will be placed on evolving trends and voting blocks on the Court. As always, issues related to criminal decisions will be discussed in depth.

John Raitt, Alfred Drake, Yul Brynner, and Rex Harrison are just a few of the men who created legendary Broadway roles, using their unique on-stage personae to carve out their careers and individual brands. In this musically-packed session, you’ll learn about these men and the roles they created. Steve Friedman will infuse his presentation with many examples of the music, sung in his classically-trained tenor voice!

This famous avant garde composer was forced by the Nazis to relocate to New York City in 1933. There, Weill reinvented himself as a Broadway composer, working in a new style, a new language and with new collaborators. amous pieces include "Threepenny Opera", "Lady in the Dark", "Lost in the Stars", "Street Scene".

In the first century, a Roman slave named Epictetus earned his freedom. Literate, well-read, and lame from torture, Epictetus rose from obscurity to fame, attracting many students to his philosophical discourses. Along with Marcus Aurelius and Seneca, Epictetus represents the best of the wisdom of Stoicism, a practical, down-to-earth philosophy of forbearance and fortitude in the face of fickle fortune. In our ongoing series on The Great Philosophers, perhaps none before or since spoke as intimately or insightfully as Epictetus about the specific challenges we face as human beings.

The latest biopic and box office smash, "Elvis," tell the story of one of the greatest and most popular entertainers ever and his manager. But there were a number of things the film left out. Daryl Davis will fill in some of those stories, with musical interludes.

Dr. A.C. Barnes made his fortune marketing patent medicine in “Mainline” Philadelphia. In establishing the Barnes Foundation, he sought to use art as a tool to teach students how to think critically. To that end, from 1912 until his death in 1951, Barnes purchased hundreds of works of art – from Impressionists to African masks – which he arranged into “ensembles” at his purpose-built gallery in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania.

When Rock'n'Roll became the latest craze, many Country and Western artists coming from a Hillbilly music background began trying to cash in on the latest trend. This hybrid that melded the two genres became known as Rockabilly. We'll learn about some of the great ones who popularized this sound.

As we get older, we all notice changes in our memory or thinking ability. Learn answers to common questions like: - What if when I go into the kitchen, I “forget” why I went there? - Why do I sometimes say things that I previously would have kept to myself? - What is classified as normal aging? - How do you identify when it is important to see the doctor?