PJW vs. Meryl Streep (and more on James Levine)

I think Meryl Streep is a terrific actress, unlike PJW, who uncharitably calls her "overrated" in his latest rant. That said, I think PJW validly points out Streep's current hypocrisy.


While we're on the topic of sexual assault: my brother Sean emailed me an anecdote regarding accused New York Met conductor James Levine, about whom I recently blogged. Sean writes (somewhat redacted for privacy's sake and edited for form and flow):

An anecdote posted by an older musician friend about Levine:

So my wife Susan's friend and fellow member of the [redacted: orchestra name], a bassoonist named [redacted: bassoonist's name], passed away a few years ago, to everyone's great sadness, as he was a wonderful musician, incredibly funny, and a fine human to be around. He [once told me] a story of being backstage at Carnegie Hall as a student, and Bernstein and Levine were both conducting an orchestra in which he was playing. Apparently, [the bassoonist] was backstage watching the proceedings, waiting for his particular piece, and [he] was approached by both Levine, who was about to go onstage, and Bernstein, who was waiting his turn. When Levine went onstage, Bernstein turned to [the bassoonist] and said, "To err is human—to post bail, Levine."

It sounds as though Levine, like many of the predatory people now cringing in the public spotlight, has been a known quantity for a long time. How unfortunate.