Tag: museum
A Museum Of Wonder In San Jose, Mummy Approved

A Museum Of Wonder In San Jose, Mummy Approved

By Sam McManis, The Sacramento Bee (TNS)

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Great, this is all I need, another pointless and wholly irrational fear to further cinch the neural pathways of my knotted psyche.

Here I was, roaming the dimly lit hallways of the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in downtown San Jose, marveling at the Moorish architecture, the chiseled hieroglyphics, the two-level replica of a tomb, the everyday objects of ancient life (combs, hair extensions, kohl eyeliner applicators), when I came to a room called the “Afterlife Gallery.”

Among the exhibits, I came face-to-desiccated face with a mummy said to date from 1549-1064 BCE (Before Common Era). I thought I was prepared for this, figured it would be no problem, because when you mummify something, aren’t you wrapping the body up tightly in linen, hermetically sealed from cranium to metatarsal?

But here was this dude — and yes, the explainer card on the glass case read “Mummy of an Upper-Class Egyptian Male” — partially unwrapped like a burrito. Head, neck and shoulders exposed, bare arms clasped over his still-covered torso, he creeped me out, I don’t mind saying. His, uh, remains were of a charcoal tinge, the texture looking like something between leather and a barbecued suckling pig, sans apple.

What really freaked me out, though, was his facial expression. Eyes heavy-lidded, mouth agape, he looked almost alive, as if about ready to sneeze or maybe let loose with a sleep-apnea-induced snore. I kept expecting him to crane his neck to the left, put me in his sights and croak, Do ya mind, pal? I’m trying to get some rest here.

I started sweating. My pulse paradiddled. My stomach churned. I had an overwhelming desire to flee, journalistic responsibility the only thing keeping me rooted in place. I later learned — thanks, Google — that I was suffering from acute Pharaohphobia, fear of mummies.

Pharaohphobia?

Yeah, it’s apparently a thing.

I pass this along merely as a friendly warning. You may be perfectly fine ogling the mummies, even those partially unwrapped. And you’ll have many such opportunities, too, since the Rosicrucian has among the 4,000 pre-dynastic Egyptian artifacts four human mummies and also a mummified Nile catfish, pet gazelle and cats. Funny how the ancient ones adored cats, venerated the little beasts, adorned them in jewelry and buried their remains along side their owners, proving that crazy cat ladies existed way before our time. (I, fortunately, do not suffer from ailurophobia, fear of cats, but for those afflicted, do take note.)

The museum is more than a mummy mausoleum, of course. The Rosicrucian Order, AMORC — more on the mysterious New Age-y organization later — does not display all of its unearthed treasures but, depending on the rotation, you’ll see one of the seven known statues of Cleopatra, a 1.5 million-year-old ax, a re-creation of King Tutankhamun’s tricked-out coffin, fragments from the Book of the Dead, and assorted trays, utensils, amulets and scarabs entombed with the dead because you never know when you might need a mirror in the great beyond.

All told, the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts in the Western United States resides in the ornate building, which also features a library, a planetarium and, outside, lovely gardens with exotic foliage like papyrus and the trao plant and a rare bunya pine, whose cones can weigh up to 15 pounds. It’s also the North American headquarters for AMORC, part quasi-religious order, part fraternal organization, part philosophical think tank, many parts mystical, mythological and totally esoteric to a lay person.

AMORC, by the way, stands for Ancient and Mystical Order Rosae Crusis, whose roots date to the 1600s in Europe and spread to America in the early 1900s. San Jose became the mothership in the early 1920s, when the block-long edifice was constructed in what then was farmland but now is a bustling downtown.

Escaping the freaky mummy, I needed to get grounded and repaired to the information alcove, where I sat through all three video presentations the order offers neophytes. I’d like to say I went away with a firm grasp of the theology — I took assiduous notes — but I failed to grasped the abstruse teachings. Guess that’s why they call it esoteric.

The presentation started straightforward enough. AMORC is “open to men and women of all nationalities, all religions, and all social classes” and its purpose is to “pass on teachings that are both cultural and spiritual.” The video’s narrator then asked the question viewers were wondering: “What do the Rosicrucian teachings address?” Brace yourself: “… (It) incorporates the traditional major themes, including the origins of the universe, time and space, life and conscious, psychic phenomena, the nature of dreams, the functions and characteristics of the soul, the mysteries of death, the afterlife and reincarnation, traditional symbolism, the science of numbers and other mystical subjects.”

Yup, that about covers it.

But what, like, do they believe? I had to sit through a lot before getting an answer. AMORC “transmutes the faults of human nature into opposite qualities, pride into humility. … If there is evil on Earth, it’s because humans delight in their weaknesses and do not sufficiently aspire to good.”

I wondered what that freaky mummy, the so-called upper-class Egyptian male, would’ve thought about the Rosicrucian tenets, whether, in mummification, he still retained his pride or found a transcendent humility. I wondered, but no way was I heading back to ask him myself.

ROSICRUCIAN EGYPTIAN MUSEUM

Where: 1660 Park Ave., San Jose

Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays-Fridays; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays; closed Mondays-Tuesdays

Cost: $9 general, $7 seniors and students with ID, $5 children ages 5-10

More information: www.egyptianmuseum.org; 408-947-3635

©2016 The Sacramento Bee (Sacramento, Calif.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Photo: This mummy of an “upper-class Egyptian male” is displayed at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose, Calif., on November 6, 2015. (Sam McManis/Sacramento Bee/TNS)

 

Paley Center Looking To Reinvent Itself For Digital Age

Paley Center Looking To Reinvent Itself For Digital Age

By Meg James, Los Angeles Times (TNS)

LOS ANGELES — The Paley Center for Media sits in the axis of the media universe in New York.

The museum is within walking distance of the headquarters of CBS, NBCUniversal, 21st Century Fox, and Time Warner. There, television leaders hobnob during industry breakfasts and historians sift through the archives of 160,000 radio and television segments. Jimmy Fallon was a regular there watching old footage when he was preparing to take over NBC’s “The Tonight Show.”

But on a typical day, Paley Center’s gleaming branch in Beverly Hills is nearly empty.

Fewer visitors have stopped in since last summer when Warner Bros. packed up its popular exhibit that showcased props from shows, such as fictional mobster Tony Soprano’s bathrobe. The building these days features photographs from CBS’ hit reality show “Survivor” and L.A. real estate investor Steve Soboroff’s collection of 28 typewriters used by artists including John Lennon and Ernest Hemingway.

Paley’s shrinking profile in Los Angeles, staff cutbacks, and uncertainty surrounding its peculiar land lease has prompted concerns that it might shut down West Coast operations. But the center is scrambling to broaden its scope and reinvigorate its Beverly Hills outpost amid massive shifts in the media landscape.

“This is an industry that is changing so quickly,” said Maureen Reidy, who became chief executive of the Paley Center last spring.

The rise of the Internet and the financial crisis forced the nonprofit museum to re-examine its mission. The proliferation of DVDs and online video sites like Hulu and YouTube have enabled people to watch old TV clips whenever they pleased and diminished the uniqueness of the center’s vast archives.

“People weren’t coming in and putting on headphones to watch old episodes of ‘I Love Lucy,'” Reidy said. “People are looking for a multimedia, interactive experience.”

When Reidy became chief executive, she was tasked with re-imagining the nonprofit museum and bolstering revenue to erase its annual operating deficit.

The organization takes in nearly $20 million a year in revenue, largely from donations and special events. According to its 2012 tax filing, the nonprofit posted a $7.5 million operating deficit. In 2013, the most recent year in which tax forms are available, Paley boosted its fundraising efforts but still reported a four million dollar operating deficit. Paley said Monday that when including the increased value of its investments, the organization “generated a surplus” in those years.

Paley’s assets, including its building in New York, were valued at $126 million in 2013, according to its IRS form.

CBS’ legendary founder, William S. Paley, created the organization in 1976 as the Museum of Broadcasting to preserve the history of radio and television. It built the New York center into a cultural destination and decided to push west in 1996.

Today, the Paley Center boasts a well-heeled board of governors that includes Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Bob Iger, CBS Chief Executive Leslie Moonves, Warner Bros. Chairman Kevin Tsujihara, 21st Century Fox Co-Chief Operating Officer James Murdoch and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

But unlike in New York, television executives here are scattered throughout a sprawling region: Hollywood, West Los Angeles, Culver City, Studio City, and Burbank. Driving to Beverly Hills can be an hour-plus trip. Evening cocktail parties were nixed; people didn’t want to encourage drinking and driving.

And within a few years, the Paley Center’s decision to build an expensive building on land that it did not own turned into a colossal headache.

The Paley Center commissioned Richard Meier, the Getty Center architect, to design a sleek $16 million structure on Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills. The museum had a long-term lease on the property owned by a family trust and managed by Bank of America.

In an odd quirk, lease payments were tied to the price of gold until the land was sold to a development group for $47.25 million late last year. The Paley Center has a nine-year lease.

“We are not going anywhere,” Reidy said. “We simply have a new landlord.”

Television executives praise Paley’s programs in Los Angeles as top-notch. For example, this month more than 20,000 television fans flocked to PaleyFest, the annual television festival sponsored by the center. The profitable event featured sneak peaks of upcoming TV show episodes and discussions with actors and writers behind such hits as CBS’ “The Good Wife” and ABC’s “Scandal.”

Tickets for the festival at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood went for $30 to more than $100 a pop.

“The PaleyFest has been very successful, and in Los Angeles events that connect with the public have done well and made money,” said Gordon Crawford, a former board member. “They need to populate the whole year with public-facing events and that will work well for them going forward.”

Reidy acknowledged that the museum still is trying to figure out how best to involve Hollywood.

To some, Reidy did not seem a natural choice to lead the nonprofit because she lacked a television or corporate fundraising background. She began her career as a certified public accountant for PriceWaterhouse, then ran the Miss Universe Organization for Donald Trump and spent five years in former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration in marketing and tourism.

But her energy has impressed board members.

“She has not only designed a new model for Paley but initiated actions that target new sources of revenue and a revitalization and greater involvement of the Los Angeles entertainment and media community,” said board member and public relations guru Dick Lippin, whose firm includes Paley as one of its clients.

Almost immediately after she took the top job at Paley, Reidy spearheaded a move to develop a multiyear business plan, and last year the group achieved a milestone by bringing in more money than it spent.

Reidy and the Paley staff stepped up fundraising efforts and introduced new programs and initiatives to broaden its scope. Now, Spanish-language media, technology, advertising, and sports programming will get prominent billing. The group recruited new board members, including Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred.

Paley tried to reconnect in Los Angeles by sponsoring a huge gala last fall that celebrated television’s role advancing diversity, including gay rights. And this year, Reidy hopes to make family programming a bigger focus, with exhibits to make the museum a destination for parents and children.

“Our foundation is solid, but we want to take the Paley Center to the next level,” she said.

Photo: Francine Orr via Los Angeles Times/TNS

Museum A Tribute To 9/11’s Lost

Museum A Tribute To 9/11’s Lost

By Tina Susman, Los Angeles Times

NEW YORK — “Listen, I’m on an airplane that’s been hijacked.”

The voice is calm, as if from a man running late for dinner, not from someone about to die.

The man speaking, Brian D. Sweeney, is gone, but his last message to his wife can be heard by picking up a handset in the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, which opens next week after years of debate over how to remember an event that spawned heartbreak, heroism, wars, political upheaval and finally the revival of ground zero.

On Thursday, President Barack Obama will speak at a dedication ceremony for the museum, which opens to the public May 21. On Wednesday, museum officials opened the doors to the media and to some of the officials, architects, planners and others, including 9/11 family members, who helped oversee completion of the 110,000-square-foot exhibition space at the site of the fallen World Trade Center towers.

“It was never easy, but it was essential,” said former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, chairman of the nonprofit foundation that manages the museum. Bloomberg and Joe Daniels, the foundation’s president and chief executive, said that despite the tragic overtones of items on display — the battered firetrucks, the shoes of office workers who died, the audio recordings of victims’ last voice mails — the goal was to honor the nearly 3,000 people who got up that morning, left their homes and never returned.

“In a very real sense, they were who we are,” Daniels said of the dead.

The museum also provides a history lesson about Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida, and about the hijackers who seized the jets on Sept. 11, 2001, and the attackers who bombed the World Trade Center in February 1993. Some Muslim groups objected to a short film, “The Rise of Al Qaeda,” which is part of the exhibit, saying it could lead viewers to blame Islam for the attacks. Some family members objected to the museum’s $24 admission fee, saying it would turn a site of tragedy and reflection into a moneymaking tourist stop.

But the film remains, and officials say that in the absence of federal funds to cover the museum’s $60-million annual budget, officials have to charge admission. Victims’ families, and police, firefighters and others who responded to the attack, will not be charged.

Most of the museum is 70 feet below ground, beneath what used to be the two World Trade Center towers and what is now the 9/11 Memorial, an outdoor plaza that opened in 2011.

The first thing visitors notice as they enter the bright, glassed-in lobby are two, five-story high steel columns resembling three-pronged forks, which were part of the north tower’s exterior support structure. The word “Save” appears in large letters on one column, painted by recovery workers who guessed that the pieces should be preserved.

From the lobby, the museum begins a gradual descent into the dim, cavernous exhibit space, where a progression of displays eases visitors into the heart of the tragedy.

It starts with a montage of audio recordings of people recalling where they first heard that America was under attack.

“I was in Times Square,” one says. “I was in Honolulu,” says another.

The voices echo through the chamber, gently overlapping, as photographs of stunned onlookers flash on mesh-covered panels.

Everywhere, there are remnants of the twin towers. There is a jagged chunk of steel that was on the exterior of one tower, between floors 93 and 99, at the point of impact of where American Airlines Flight 11 pierced the building. There is a portion of a ghostly white stairway, which provided an escape route for hundreds.

Broken cables protrude from a massive elevator motor retrieved from a tower. A nearly 20-foot-long piece of the north tower’s TV antenna is but a fraction of the original 360-foot structure.

The pieces are breathtaking for their size and for the stories behind them, but it is the smaller items that are the most haunting, for they underscore how normally the day began, and how quickly everyday people were caught up in tragedy.

“84th floor west office — 12 people trapped,” reads a hand-scrawled note on a crumpled piece of paper, found on the ground after the south tower fell. A quarter-sized splotch of blood on the paper was traced to Randolph Scott, who died in the attacks.

The white dust that coated lower Manhattan after the buildings fell clings to many of the hermetically sealed items, including the high-heeled black shoes, the sensible beige pumps and the men’s leather lace-up shoes on display.

The voices of victims, and of their worried friends and families, can be heard through the handsets.

One of those voices belongs to Sweeney, who was on United Airlines Flight 175 as it flew toward the south tower.

“It’s not looking good,” Sweeney told his wife, Julie Sweeney Roth, in the 23-second message on their home answering machine. “I just want you to know I absolutely love you, I just want you to do good, go have good times, same to my parents and everybody.”

Then Sweeney, trying to inject some optimism into the call, said, “Bye,” and added: “I hope I call you.”

AFP Photo/Spencer Platt