Marvel has been killing it at the movies, with Avengers: Infinity War now officially the highest-grossing summer blockbuster of all time. But one department they haven’t been doing too well in is female representation. Where are Marvel’s badass superheroines? Luckily, Infinity War’s post-credits scene hinted at the debut of one such hero in the next Avengers movie - Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel, Earth’s Mightiest Hero.

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Sidney Bechet (May 14, 1897 – May 14, 1959) was a jazz clarinetist and saxophonist from New Orleans. His larger than life personality, violent temper and booming sound all contributed to making him one of early jazz's legendary characters.

Music:

- ' Si Tu Vois Ma Mère', Sidney Bechet

- 'Texas Moaner Blues', Clarence Williams' Blue Five

- 'Petite Fleure', Sidney Bechet

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A few months ago, my mother was diagnoses with an inoperable glioblastoma, one of the deadliest brain tumours known to us. On Mothers' Day, I reflect on the bond between mothers and their children, my decision to give up my goals to become her carer, and the canyon between our expectations for our lives, and what our lives actually are.

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New Orleans is a city that understands pleasure. Pleasure of the ear, pleasure of the loins, pleasure of the gut. In other words, New Orleans is the urban representation of Donuts. But the Big Easy is so much more than visceral pleasure. At its best, New Orleans embodies the highest ideals that America should aspire to.

Music: "Ring Shout (Peace of Mind)", by Wynton Marsalis (with JLCO, Yacub Addy and Odadaa!)

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The music of Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893) is virtually synonymous with the term "bittersweet" - it lives at the intersection of beauty and tragedy. In today's ART episode, I share some anecdotes about Tchaikovsky's tragicomical life, and the contrasts that so effectively made their way into his music.

Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/user/shalom82/playlist/2347bi0sq4NZkZNAKp4CMW?si=MXHvx92lTWiZUJ0BmYLUtA

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Thinking through the recent controversy that arose when Keziah Daum decided to wear a traditional Chinese dress to her prom. Is this racism? Is it cultural appropriation? Is cultural appropriation even a thing?

The most sensitive issues are precisely the ones where we should avoid relying on our outrage to make our minds up. We must instead apply rigour in our thinking, so that we make a positive, thoughtful contribution instead of just adding to the pointless noise. As ever, the moral of the story is "don't be an asshole".

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May the Fourth Be With You, nerds! It's Star Wars day, so in this Donuts episode, I take a little tour through all three seasons of this baffling series, trying and failing to understand what all the fuss is about. What's going on? Wasn't there supposed to be a pointy-eared fellow called Spock here? I like that Jar-Jar Binks guy though.

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Duke Ellington was a legendary composer who contributed more standards to the jazz repertoire than any other musician before or since. He is also singularly responsible for bridging the divide between jazz as popular dance music and jazz as art, giving the genre the respectability it still holds as "America's classical music". I briefly discuss the style, elegance and leadership skills that make Duke Ellington the Greatest American composer.

Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/user/shalom82/playlist/0hCuJ3sJMmbobB3du7xTBq?si=uLk_vu3WSHCZ_o4jI_ETgg

Music:

James P. Johnson - "Carolina Shout"

Duke Ellington - "Black Beauty"

Duke Ellington and his Kentucky Club Orchestra - "East St. Louis Toodle-oo"

Duke Ellington and his Famous Orchestra - "Caravan"

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A recipe for good living that isn't total bullshit - every day, a little ADT: Art, Donuts, and Transformation.

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It's the birthday of British philosopher, biologist, sociologist and all-round thinky person Herbert Spencer (1820 – 1903), who took Darwin's theories and applied them across almost *every* other discipline, formulating a fascinating worldview based on the notions of evolution and dissolution. Oh, and coining the phrase "survival of the fittest". Here's a few words about the guy.

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