Thursday, April 26, 2001
Bloomberg victory forecast
LOOKING AHEAD by Wally Dobelis
Democratic turncoats always win in NYC Mayoralty elections
The question has been asked: what chance does a Democrat such as Michael Bloomberg (or, for this matter, a former Democratic Mayoralty candidate, such as Herman Badillo) have in running for Mayor on the Republican ticket? The answer is that it does not matter, two out of three of his Republican predecessors, Rudolph Giuliani and Fiorello La Guardia, were former Democrats, and the third, John V. Lindsay, became a Democrat.. What matters is whether the electorate will accept the idea that a successful business man can apply his experience in running this city, and whether they will buy into his Corzine-type mantra of incorruptibility, that by spending his own money in the campaign he can be a free man, not beholden to any backers.
The democratic opponents, frontrunner Mark Green and the contenders, Peter F. Vallone, Alan G. Hevesi and Fernando Ferrer, have strong weapons that Bloomberg lacks, experience and political records. Meanwhile they are trouncing each other while trotting out their "I’m more liberal, more law-and-order, pro-choice, pro-child, minority rights, balanced budget, police review and legalization of ferrets" candidature proofs. Bloomberg, possibly not facing a primary, will not have to engage in internecine warfare. He may not have to declare his innermost views and Conservative qualifications until the candidates emerge and debate each other.
T examine Bloomberg’s chances, let’s look at the modern history of mayoralty races. Giuliani (R-L) won in 1993 on his law and order record, with 49 to 46 percent of the vote, against a weakened David Dinkins (D)who was blamed for prolonging the 1991 Crown Heights racial upheaval.. Giuliani, a Democrat until his 1989 run, in the 1994 race continued to back Mario M. Cuomo for Governor, against the Republican George Pataki. That did not hurt him in his own 1997 race against Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger (D), which he won on his quality-of-life program, despite incurring many enmities with his headstrong outbursts and lack of compassion .
Coming back to 1989, Dinkins, the candidate of white liberals and minority groups, beat the three-term conservative Democratic Mayor Edward I. Koch in a crowded primary (with Harrison J. Goldin and Richard Ravitch also running), and overcame Giuliani, 48 to 45 percent.
Koch started his Mayoral career in 1977, after a six-participant Democratic primary (with Cuomo, incumbent Abraham D. Beame, Bella Abzug, Percy Sutton and Herman Badillo in the running), and a runoff with Cuomo, handily beating the latter (now on the ballot as a Liberal) and the Republican Roy M. Goodman in the general election .That election had one of the lowest turnouts in modern history, with under 1,400,000 ballots cast .Voters were exhausted by the infighting. The subsequent 1981 election saw Koch winning well, backed by both major parties, against a weak Unity opponent, Frank J. Barbaro. 1985 was another landslide for him, with Carol Bellamy (L) and Diane McGrath (R-C) barely registering on the scale. A mere 1,100,000 New Yorkers bothered to vote.
The voter turnout had started to dip in the 1973 election, to 1,700,000, when the diminutive accountant Beame outscored Badillo in the Democratic runoff, after a severe primary (which also included Albert H. Blumenthal and Mario Biaggi), to pass Blumenthal (L), Biaggi (C) and John J. Marchi (R) in the general election. The voter apathy had to do with the alienation of the working and middle classes resulting from the racial conflicts, strikes and fiscal problems under the stewardship of John Vliet Lindsay.
Lindsay, the congressman from our Silk Stocking District since 1959 (he was succeeded by Koch), turned to Mayoralty politics when Robert F. Wagner ended his three-term career, in 1965. Lindsey, as the Republican, Liberal and Independent Citizens’ candidate, defeated Beame (D) and William F. Buckley Jr. (C), in a general election that attracted 2,600,000 voters. The Democratic primary had also been interesting with Paul R. Screvane and two left-wing Democrats, William Fitts Ryan and Paul O’Dwyer, also in the running.
In the subsequent 1969 poll Lindsay lost the Republican backing to John J. Marchi (R-C) and won as a Liberal-Independent, also beating Mario Procacchino (D-minor parties) by a substantial margin. During the term he changed his allegiance to Democratic.
The three terms won by Robert F. Wagner (1953, 1957,1961) , son of the influential New Dealer, NY senator Robert Ferdinand Wagner, were not marked by party shifts, although they saw the collapse of Tammany Hall, Wagner’s original backer. Angered by the loss of their candidates in the 1958 election, the reform wing of the Democratic party, Herbert Lehman, Eleanor Roosevelt and Wagner, forced the removal of the last sachem, Carmine DeSapio, in the 1961 elections.
Wagner’s predecessor, the stormy Irish immigrant, prosecutor and Tammany stalwart William O’Dwyer (D-American Labor), safely won two elections - 1945 and 1949. In the latter he was opposed by the Communist-inspired Congressman Vito Marcantonio, who took the American Labor party from O’Dwyer. Suspected of crime affiliations, Big Bill resigned subsequent to his election in 1949, and was rewarded by an ambassadorship, to Mexico. His successor, City Council President Vincent Impellitteri, was rejected by all major parties and won the special 1950 election as the candidate of his own Experience party. Charges of incompetence and worse caused his loss in the 1953 primary, and he was rewarded by a judgeship.
As to the causes of the all-powerful Tammany’s downfall, its influence was damaged by the excesses of the dapper Mayor Jimmy Walker (1925, 1929, resigned 1931) The firs modern reformer was Congressman Fiorello H. La Guardia, essentially a New Deal-type populist unwilling to accept the corruption and the control of the bosses of the local Democrats. He ran as a Republican and won the 1933, 1937 and 1941 terms as the candidate of Republican-City Fusion- American Labor and Progressive parties. Arbitrary and impulsive, he cleaned up City Hall and built roads, bridges and public housing incurring substantial public debt.
Looking at the shifts and turns that the candidates and the electorate took in modern elections, it is evident that party affiliation is not the major factor in New York City politics, at least not since Tammany Hall lost its clout. And that is not so long ago, many major players, including Carmine DeSapio, are visibly among us, composing their memoirs as we reminisce of their histories.
If you were confused by last week’s title for this column, it was because a subtitle, Viewing the Vermeer Exhibition at the Met, got lost in the shuffle. Sorry!
Democratic turncoats always win in NYC Mayoralty elections
The question has been asked: what chance does a Democrat such as Michael Bloomberg (or, for this matter, a former Democratic Mayoralty candidate, such as Herman Badillo) have in running for Mayor on the Republican ticket? The answer is that it does not matter, two out of three of his Republican predecessors, Rudolph Giuliani and Fiorello La Guardia, were former Democrats, and the third, John V. Lindsay, became a Democrat.. What matters is whether the electorate will accept the idea that a successful business man can apply his experience in running this city, and whether they will buy into his Corzine-type mantra of incorruptibility, that by spending his own money in the campaign he can be a free man, not beholden to any backers.
The democratic opponents, frontrunner Mark Green and the contenders, Peter F. Vallone, Alan G. Hevesi and Fernando Ferrer, have strong weapons that Bloomberg lacks, experience and political records. Meanwhile they are trouncing each other while trotting out their "I’m more liberal, more law-and-order, pro-choice, pro-child, minority rights, balanced budget, police review and legalization of ferrets" candidature proofs. Bloomberg, possibly not facing a primary, will not have to engage in internecine warfare. He may not have to declare his innermost views and Conservative qualifications until the candidates emerge and debate each other.
T examine Bloomberg’s chances, let’s look at the modern history of mayoralty races. Giuliani (R-L) won in 1993 on his law and order record, with 49 to 46 percent of the vote, against a weakened David Dinkins (D)who was blamed for prolonging the 1991 Crown Heights racial upheaval.. Giuliani, a Democrat until his 1989 run, in the 1994 race continued to back Mario M. Cuomo for Governor, against the Republican George Pataki. That did not hurt him in his own 1997 race against Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger (D), which he won on his quality-of-life program, despite incurring many enmities with his headstrong outbursts and lack of compassion .
Coming back to 1989, Dinkins, the candidate of white liberals and minority groups, beat the three-term conservative Democratic Mayor Edward I. Koch in a crowded primary (with Harrison J. Goldin and Richard Ravitch also running), and overcame Giuliani, 48 to 45 percent.
Koch started his Mayoral career in 1977, after a six-participant Democratic primary (with Cuomo, incumbent Abraham D. Beame, Bella Abzug, Percy Sutton and Herman Badillo in the running), and a runoff with Cuomo, handily beating the latter (now on the ballot as a Liberal) and the Republican Roy M. Goodman in the general election .That election had one of the lowest turnouts in modern history, with under 1,400,000 ballots cast .Voters were exhausted by the infighting. The subsequent 1981 election saw Koch winning well, backed by both major parties, against a weak Unity opponent, Frank J. Barbaro. 1985 was another landslide for him, with Carol Bellamy (L) and Diane McGrath (R-C) barely registering on the scale. A mere 1,100,000 New Yorkers bothered to vote.
The voter turnout had started to dip in the 1973 election, to 1,700,000, when the diminutive accountant Beame outscored Badillo in the Democratic runoff, after a severe primary (which also included Albert H. Blumenthal and Mario Biaggi), to pass Blumenthal (L), Biaggi (C) and John J. Marchi (R) in the general election. The voter apathy had to do with the alienation of the working and middle classes resulting from the racial conflicts, strikes and fiscal problems under the stewardship of John Vliet Lindsay.
Lindsay, the congressman from our Silk Stocking District since 1959 (he was succeeded by Koch), turned to Mayoralty politics when Robert F. Wagner ended his three-term career, in 1965. Lindsey, as the Republican, Liberal and Independent Citizens’ candidate, defeated Beame (D) and William F. Buckley Jr. (C), in a general election that attracted 2,600,000 voters. The Democratic primary had also been interesting with Paul R. Screvane and two left-wing Democrats, William Fitts Ryan and Paul O’Dwyer, also in the running.
In the subsequent 1969 poll Lindsay lost the Republican backing to John J. Marchi (R-C) and won as a Liberal-Independent, also beating Mario Procacchino (D-minor parties) by a substantial margin. During the term he changed his allegiance to Democratic.
The three terms won by Robert F. Wagner (1953, 1957,1961) , son of the influential New Dealer, NY senator Robert Ferdinand Wagner, were not marked by party shifts, although they saw the collapse of Tammany Hall, Wagner’s original backer. Angered by the loss of their candidates in the 1958 election, the reform wing of the Democratic party, Herbert Lehman, Eleanor Roosevelt and Wagner, forced the removal of the last sachem, Carmine DeSapio, in the 1961 elections.
Wagner’s predecessor, the stormy Irish immigrant, prosecutor and Tammany stalwart William O’Dwyer (D-American Labor), safely won two elections - 1945 and 1949. In the latter he was opposed by the Communist-inspired Congressman Vito Marcantonio, who took the American Labor party from O’Dwyer. Suspected of crime affiliations, Big Bill resigned subsequent to his election in 1949, and was rewarded by an ambassadorship, to Mexico. His successor, City Council President Vincent Impellitteri, was rejected by all major parties and won the special 1950 election as the candidate of his own Experience party. Charges of incompetence and worse caused his loss in the 1953 primary, and he was rewarded by a judgeship.
As to the causes of the all-powerful Tammany’s downfall, its influence was damaged by the excesses of the dapper Mayor Jimmy Walker (1925, 1929, resigned 1931) The firs modern reformer was Congressman Fiorello H. La Guardia, essentially a New Deal-type populist unwilling to accept the corruption and the control of the bosses of the local Democrats. He ran as a Republican and won the 1933, 1937 and 1941 terms as the candidate of Republican-City Fusion- American Labor and Progressive parties. Arbitrary and impulsive, he cleaned up City Hall and built roads, bridges and public housing incurring substantial public debt.
Looking at the shifts and turns that the candidates and the electorate took in modern elections, it is evident that party affiliation is not the major factor in New York City politics, at least not since Tammany Hall lost its clout. And that is not so long ago, many major players, including Carmine DeSapio, are visibly among us, composing their memoirs as we reminisce of their histories.
If you were confused by last week’s title for this column, it was because a subtitle, Viewing the Vermeer Exhibition at the Met, got lost in the shuffle. Sorry!
Tuesday, April 10, 2001
Nabucco, the unknown giant among operas
LOOKING AHEAD by Wally Dobelis
Concealed behind the deceptively childish nickname of Nabucco, this seldom performed opera about Nebuchadnezzar, the murderous king of Babylonians who destroyed Jerusalem 2600 years ago and held the Israelites in captivity for 60 years, runs the full alphabet of operatic emotions, with musical themes to match. About the only subject missing is death by tuberculosis. This is the opera, written by the 29-year old Giuseppe Verdi in 1842, that inspired Italians during the Risorgimento, their fight for independence, and its choral theme, "Va', pensiero," was their unofficial anthem for over a hundred years; it is the only opera music that traditionally has listeners standing and applauding until the choir sings an encore, in any opera house in the world. Even Toscanini's 1897 edict against encores in Milan's La Scala was breached 90 years later, during the 1986 season's opening performance, when Richard Muti threw up his hands and joined the Nabucco choir. It has been the anthem of exiles and sufferers of oppression of all nations; a man in the line at the Met spoke of hearing it repeated in Cracow, outside the gates of Auschwitz, years ago, sung by a Soviet chorus.
Both opera houses and singers fear Nabocco, and managers mostly suppress it, because it has destroyed the voices of daring sopranos. That is why Metropolitan Opera has not produced Nabucco since the 1960-61 season, until now, the 100th anniversary day of Giuseppe Verdi's death. The role of Abigaille is the culprit, it requires bravura singing at full voice and in a wide range, and one could hear the strain in brawny Maria Guleghina's voice (she's also singing the part in Vienna this year) in the last scenes.
The opera opens with the Israelites in Jerusalem lamenting Nabucco's depredations. To protect his people, high priest Zaccaria (Samuel Ramey) holds a hostage, the ruler's daughter Fenena (Marianna Tarasova), belowed by the Hebrew's military leader, young Ismaele (Francesco Casanova), who in turn is loved by another supposed daughter of the king, the jilted and revengeful Abigaille. You get the drift.
When the conquering Nabucco (Juan Pons)appears, the priest threatens to stab Fenena, but his hand is stayed by Ismaele, whom the Hebrews now declare a traitor. Nabucco, in his hubris, declares himself divine and puts down both Baal and Jehovah. The dieties punish him with madness, and Abigaile usurps the kingdom, aided by the priests of Baal, and promises to kill all the Israelites in captivity. That includes her sister, who meanwhile has converted to Judaism, thus redeeming Ismaele.
After the intermission the scene opens on a giant choir of 110 Israelites, draped in sculpted poses of despair on a terraced cliff at the banks of Euphrates, singing of the golden wings on which their thoughts return to their lost homeland. Based on the 137th Psalm, the lines of "Va' pensiero" brought immortality to libretist Themistocle Solera, an adventurous character not otherwise known for lofty ideas. After the immense ovation and the encore (as an aside, the only other recent encore at the Met, in the memory of veteran usher, had been at Dame Joan Sutherland's retirement performance of I Puritani in 1990), the priest returns and predicts that the Israelites will overcome their plight with the Lord's help.
Help comes from an unexpected source - Nabucco wakes from his madness, sees Abigaille's followers lead Fenena and the captives to their executions and prays to the God of Hebrews for forgiveness, pledging to convert himself and his people. His plea is answered, the Babylonian soldiers rally around him and overthrow Abigaille, who takes poison and begs God to pardon her. The opera ends on notes of faith and hope.
Verdi (1813-1901), the organist of his native Busseto, moved to Milan to try his hand at opera in 1839. Nabucco, his 3rd opus, established the young composer's reputation, and started the flow of demand for his work that resulted in some 26 operas in 64 years, 16 of which continue to be performed. His pro-independence politics (as evidenced in Nabucco and I Lombardi) brought him, after the unification in 1861, into both the provincial and national parliaments, with an ultimate election as senator for life. The phrase, VIVA VERDI (also an acronym foe Victor Emanuele, King of Italy), painted on the walls of Italian towns during the long years of Garibaldi's fights with the Hapsburg Austrians was understood to stand for independence. Even today, shouted at the Nabucco performance, it evokes cheers and applause from the audience.
Verdi died a revered figure, with 100,000 Italians singing the theme at his funeral, under the direction of Arturo Toscanini. For its 100th anniversary Busseto called on the world for a "Va’ pensiero day," to which New York, Buenos Aires, London, Melbourne and other capitals responded, resulting in Nabucco performances. Although we will never see Verdi’s operas again in their full former glory - the Met has no entrance ramps that can carry an elephant for Aida - the old great beloved masterpieces will never fade. Viva Verdi, bis!
Wally regrets to inform that the last Nabucco performance of this short season was on April 6.
Concealed behind the deceptively childish nickname of Nabucco, this seldom performed opera about Nebuchadnezzar, the murderous king of Babylonians who destroyed Jerusalem 2600 years ago and held the Israelites in captivity for 60 years, runs the full alphabet of operatic emotions, with musical themes to match. About the only subject missing is death by tuberculosis. This is the opera, written by the 29-year old Giuseppe Verdi in 1842, that inspired Italians during the Risorgimento, their fight for independence, and its choral theme, "Va', pensiero," was their unofficial anthem for over a hundred years; it is the only opera music that traditionally has listeners standing and applauding until the choir sings an encore, in any opera house in the world. Even Toscanini's 1897 edict against encores in Milan's La Scala was breached 90 years later, during the 1986 season's opening performance, when Richard Muti threw up his hands and joined the Nabucco choir. It has been the anthem of exiles and sufferers of oppression of all nations; a man in the line at the Met spoke of hearing it repeated in Cracow, outside the gates of Auschwitz, years ago, sung by a Soviet chorus.
Both opera houses and singers fear Nabocco, and managers mostly suppress it, because it has destroyed the voices of daring sopranos. That is why Metropolitan Opera has not produced Nabucco since the 1960-61 season, until now, the 100th anniversary day of Giuseppe Verdi's death. The role of Abigaille is the culprit, it requires bravura singing at full voice and in a wide range, and one could hear the strain in brawny Maria Guleghina's voice (she's also singing the part in Vienna this year) in the last scenes.
The opera opens with the Israelites in Jerusalem lamenting Nabucco's depredations. To protect his people, high priest Zaccaria (Samuel Ramey) holds a hostage, the ruler's daughter Fenena (Marianna Tarasova), belowed by the Hebrew's military leader, young Ismaele (Francesco Casanova), who in turn is loved by another supposed daughter of the king, the jilted and revengeful Abigaille. You get the drift.
When the conquering Nabucco (Juan Pons)appears, the priest threatens to stab Fenena, but his hand is stayed by Ismaele, whom the Hebrews now declare a traitor. Nabucco, in his hubris, declares himself divine and puts down both Baal and Jehovah. The dieties punish him with madness, and Abigaile usurps the kingdom, aided by the priests of Baal, and promises to kill all the Israelites in captivity. That includes her sister, who meanwhile has converted to Judaism, thus redeeming Ismaele.
After the intermission the scene opens on a giant choir of 110 Israelites, draped in sculpted poses of despair on a terraced cliff at the banks of Euphrates, singing of the golden wings on which their thoughts return to their lost homeland. Based on the 137th Psalm, the lines of "Va' pensiero" brought immortality to libretist Themistocle Solera, an adventurous character not otherwise known for lofty ideas. After the immense ovation and the encore (as an aside, the only other recent encore at the Met, in the memory of veteran usher, had been at Dame Joan Sutherland's retirement performance of I Puritani in 1990), the priest returns and predicts that the Israelites will overcome their plight with the Lord's help.
Help comes from an unexpected source - Nabucco wakes from his madness, sees Abigaille's followers lead Fenena and the captives to their executions and prays to the God of Hebrews for forgiveness, pledging to convert himself and his people. His plea is answered, the Babylonian soldiers rally around him and overthrow Abigaille, who takes poison and begs God to pardon her. The opera ends on notes of faith and hope.
Verdi (1813-1901), the organist of his native Busseto, moved to Milan to try his hand at opera in 1839. Nabucco, his 3rd opus, established the young composer's reputation, and started the flow of demand for his work that resulted in some 26 operas in 64 years, 16 of which continue to be performed. His pro-independence politics (as evidenced in Nabucco and I Lombardi) brought him, after the unification in 1861, into both the provincial and national parliaments, with an ultimate election as senator for life. The phrase, VIVA VERDI (also an acronym foe Victor Emanuele, King of Italy), painted on the walls of Italian towns during the long years of Garibaldi's fights with the Hapsburg Austrians was understood to stand for independence. Even today, shouted at the Nabucco performance, it evokes cheers and applause from the audience.
Verdi died a revered figure, with 100,000 Italians singing the theme at his funeral, under the direction of Arturo Toscanini. For its 100th anniversary Busseto called on the world for a "Va’ pensiero day," to which New York, Buenos Aires, London, Melbourne and other capitals responded, resulting in Nabucco performances. Although we will never see Verdi’s operas again in their full former glory - the Met has no entrance ramps that can carry an elephant for Aida - the old great beloved masterpieces will never fade. Viva Verdi, bis!
Wally regrets to inform that the last Nabucco performance of this short season was on April 6.
