ackerman

Nowhere in the world celebrates Modernism better than Modernism Week in Palm Springs, California.  Every February, they have a huge architecture and design festival and for the last five years, USModernist has been there interviewing nearly all Modernism Week’s keynote speakers plus special guests at the USModernist compound, aka poolside at the hip Hotel Skylark. In our second Modernism Week show on interiors, George Smart meets with two experts on what makes the Modernist vibe so wonderfully livable:  Sarah Archer is a contributing editor at American Craft magazine and the author of The Midcentury Kitchen: America’s Favorite Room, from Workspace to Dreamscape.  She spoke at Modernism week on The Kitchen of Tomorrow: Space Age Design in the High Tech Modern Home.  Later on, George talks wth Laura Ackerman-Shaw who established Ackerman Modern and worked with her father, Jerome Ackerman, and Design Within Reach to re-release a collection of iconic Jenev ceramic vessels first produced in 1953, with new pieces produced based on the original plaster molds.

In Case You Missed It: Tom Gresham addresses some of the rumors and stories you've heard lately about the NRA, Wayne LaPierre, Ackerman McQueen, and the inner workings of the NRA Board. Tom calls for LaPierre to resign so that the NRA has a chance of survival, and can get back to their main cause - preserving the Second Amendment.

Tom Gresham's Gun Talk Spotlight from 7.14.19

Podcast host Midwest Dairy CEO Lucas Lentsch is joined by fellow CEOs Chad Vincent, Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin and Doug Ackerman, Dairy Alliance to discuss how they guide the work of checkoff.  The leaders share how their collaborative approach is resulting in stronger alignment with national, regional and local objectives to increase relevance with consumers, build trust in dairy farming and boost dairy sales.

Will Ackerman plays guitar beautifully and has inspired many people with the heart in his music, including his many records and the artists he produced as founder of Windham Hill Records. He listened to music all the time as a youngster, and used to call in to Jim Lange’s show on KGO radio to request songs. He was even interviewed by Lange when he was young and saw the record business. He also knew the members of the Kingston Trio while at Stanford, and learned that, “Music is made by people; it’s not a distant thing. … From a very young age, music was very important to me.”

He experienced many amazing coincidences in his life related to music, as he explains in the podcast. A neighbor, Michael Kilmartin, first put a guitar in his hands, and then ended up promoting Will’s first record nationally to radio stations. “There was almost nothing that was intentional,” he says. He found something in open tunings that really resonated with him when playing guitar; they allowed him to remove the intellectual aspects from the process and the only thing he had to work with was emotion and feeling. “It was just pure heart,” he says. Doors flew open for him, and that was also the story with the founding of Windham Hill and the many, many fantastic artists on its records.

“I found refuge in listening to music, and I think probably that informed my approach as to how I approached music in myself. … The process for me was utterly subjective. I wasn’t trying to change the world. I wasn’t trying to give the world a gift. I was only trying to be true to the emotion, and some very painful memories or new occurrences. I was somebody who needed deeply, emotionally, to express something that I think words were not capable of doing for me.”

He also has felt great solace through nature in his life, which is also sensed in his amazing music. Please enjoy a fascinating Planetary Gig Talk podcast interview with Will. You can find out more at www.williamackerman.com and contact him at will@williamackerman.com.

This week CTC takes a look back at 1996's Dragonheart.  We also pay tribute to Stan Lee and talk about new releases on home video and in theaters.