From Brian Stokes:
I kid you not. My beloved San Francisco Bay Area Puppeteers Guild is under investigation by Homeland Security. According to their latest newsletter, its assets have been frozen ever since my friend and Treasurer Pam Brown resigned after 20 years and passed the miniscule nestegg to a new bank account a few months ago. The bank apologizes but legally can’t do anything until Homeland Security determines this group of puppet fans and professionals is not planning to attack our country.This is the Guild where Jim Henson met a young Frank Oz and Jerry Juhl back in the 1960’s. Not long ago, I was President, and before that, Secretary. But now our government thinks it’s harboring terrorists.
(Via BoingBoing.)
This has been an increasingly frustrating experience in our very own Performing Arts department here at the Walker… there are times when I just want to shake the people who deny visas to our artists and yell “so-and-so did NOT start playing the pipa at age 3 to become a grand-master/virtuoso so that 30 years later she could gain entry to the U.S. and blow it up!” Grrrr.
Comment by Leigha — 8/22/2005 @ 1:27 pm