Tracey Davis always knew growing up that her father, Sammy Davis Jr., loved her and her two adopted brothers, Mark and Jeff.But the legendary performer and member of the Rat Pack “was married to his work. He wanted a family. But he didn’t know how to prioritize family because work was his passion. I am not saying that he didn’t love us, but work was his driving force.”She admitted that he often didn’t know her phone number. And he didn’t even attend her college graduation. But their relationship

One does not casually read “Beowulf.” It takes commitment. It also takes a good translation, and few were better at that than Oxford don J.R.R. Tolkien, better known now as the author of “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.His son, Christopher, has finally, and reluctantly, published Tolkien’s version of “Beowulf.” As he says in his prologue, his father wrote the translation in 1926 before he went to Oxford as professor of Anglo-Saxon. He would continue to study the poem for decades and lecture on i

Enduring CourageBy Tish Wells(St. Martin’s Press)In “Enduring Courage” John F. Ross aims to revive the memory of World War I flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker, who was also an early racecar driver of renown, and the creator of now-defunct Eastern Air Lines.“I spent a lot of time reading about Eddie Rickenbacker, his buddies, the kids, the flyboys,” said Ross at a book gathering, “and the early American air service over northern France flying against the real pros, the Germans, the Flying Circus. You

LOS ANGELES ― Contestant No. 9 took the stage wearing satin gloves and a billowy chiffon gown. She had 35 seconds at the mike:“To be happy in life,” Gail Stebbins told the audience, “you have to learn to adjust to the things you can’t change.”When she lost her teeth years ago, she got new ones. When her hair fell out, she began to wear wigs. And when her bosom headed south, she gave it a lift with a little padding.It’s not exactly the kind of thing a beauty queen cares to admit. But Stebbins was

LOS ANGELES ― Susan Renaker Nikas still remembers the duck that saved her parents’ ceramics business nearly 70 years ago.The tiny bird was white and seemed to be gliding on a lake, designed on a whim by her mother. As an afterthought, her father added it to an order sheet for the dishware that the couple had been selling, somewhat steadily, despite a few nagging production problems.The duck, however, changed everything. Customers snapped it up.“From that point on, they decided to make animal fig

The National Museum of Korea’s revamped Unified Silla section, which opens to the public Tuesday, displays an undisputed new star: a larger-than-life Buddha statue made of cast iron. Placed in a spacious room right in the middle of the hall, the statue overwhelms visitors with its mystic beauty and half-smile. The exquisiteness of this artifact, which dates back to the late eighth or early ninth century, however, went unnoticed until recently.  Iron seated Buddha (National Museum of Korea)“This

GYEONGJU, North Gyeongsang Province ― Yi Young-hoon, director of Gyeongju National Museum, is one of the few who breathe fresh air into the otherwise dull local museum scene. Through a series of exhibits on royal tombs of the ancient kingdom of Silla, he brought to the spotlight a slew of long-forgotten relics from the backroom of the museum. “Rediscovery of relics from our own storage rooms is what I emphasize to most to my staff here,” Yi said at his office in the museum last week. “The concep

Conservators bring ancient relics back to life with technology

Pop musicSeoul Jazz Festival 2014: Every year the annual two-day Seoul Jazz Festival features a wide variety of musical acts, from legendary jazz musicians to popular contemporary figures. This year’s headline artists include Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice, jazz-pop musician Jamie Cullum, jazz pianist Eddie Palmieri, the Jack DeJohnette Trio and R&B soloist Eric Benet as well as local bands Jang Kiha and the Faces and Urban Zakapa. The 2014 Seoul Jazz Festival will be held at Seoul Olympic

Balance between accuracy and contextual meaning an ongoing debate among literary translators

German Ambassador Rolf Mafael poses for a photo during an interview with The Korea Herald at his home in Seongbuk-dong in Seoul. (Park Hae-mook/The Korea Herald)This is the first in a series of articles in which foreign envoys to Korea show the art of their countries displayed in their homes. ― Ed.The hilltop garden at the residence of the German ambassador on Mount Bugaksan commands a panoramic view of the elegant homes peppering the landscape of the exclusive Seongbuk-dong neighborhood below.

HONG KONG (AFP) ― Hong Kong’s tallest building will transform into a glowing art installation this week, a beacon showing off the city’s ambition to be recognized as a major cultural hub with its second Art Basel fair. With its knack for bringing in a global mix of wealthy buyers, artists, gallerists, VIPs and celebrities, the five-day show is the catalyst to a champagne-soaked itinerary of art fairs, exhibitions and happenings. German artist Carsten Nicolai was commissioned by Art Basel to turn

Pop musicSeoul Jazz Festival 2014: Every year the annual two-day Seoul Jazz Festival features a wide variety of musical acts, from legendary jazz musicians to popular contemporary figures. This year’s headline artists include Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice, jazz-pop musician Jamie Cullum, jazz pianist Eddie Palmieri, the Jack DeJohnette Trio and R&B soloist Eric Benet as well as local bands Jang Kiha and the Faces and Urban Zakapa. The 2014 Seoul Jazz Festival will be held at Seoul Olympic

One has not witnessed the true beauty of Changdeokgung Palace until seeing it unveiled under a full moon, the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation claims. And it is beautiful with the full moon rising above Buyongji Pond and brushing through the royal court of Nakseonjae and the Secret Garden. Prior to the foundation’s launch of the “2014 Moonlight Tour at Changdeokgung Palace,” all visitors had to exit this UNESCO world heritage site by 6 p.m. without exception. But thanks to the monthly special