Category Archives: Events

World premiere of Anthem on stage in Austin

It sounds like Jeff Britting, whom many of you may recognize as the manager of the Ayn Rand Archives for the Ayn Rand Institute, has been up to interesting stuff lately.

From a new article at WeAreAustin.com:

Austin Shakespeare opens 2011 with the world premiere of a new stage production based on the Ayn Rand novella, Anthem, adapted by Hollywood composer Jeff Britting. The new drama plays in the Rollins Studio Theatre at The Long Center from Jan. 19 -23.

Adapted by Hollywood composer Jeff Britting, who wrote the score for the Academy Award-nominated documentary Ayn Rand: A Sense of Life, the work will include an original score and projections also crafted by Britting. Staged as an oratorio, the production will function as a play with music underscored throughout the production.

Based on the Ayn Rand novella of the same name, Anthem addresses the importance of individualism in a totalitarian world. The staging includes a strong video component to compliment the intimate setting of The Rollins Theatre.

See the full article for much more.

“Atlas Shrugged: The Making of a Movie” event in NYC on December 7, 2010

Want to see a ten-minute clip from the Atlas Shrugged movie, including the first scene from the movie? If you’re in New York City, you’ll get your chance on December 7th.

An announcement from the Atlas Society:

The Atlas Society is proud to present Atlas Shrugged: The Making of a Movie. After years of anticipation, John Aglialoro has completed filming Part I of what will be a trilogy. David Kelley, Atlas Society founder and CEO, consulted on a script that is true to the characters and philosophy of Ayn Randâ??s epic novel.

The program will feature a ten-minute, first-time viewing of an Atlas Shrugged film clip, which will include the first scene from the movie. Youâ??ll hear special remarks from producers John Aglialoro and Harmon Kaslow, Kelley, and select cast members. The event will be followed by a general cocktail reception. There will also be a VIP reception with an opportunity to meet and mingle with the producers and cast members.

Donâ??t miss this opportunity to celebrate the cinematic achievement of Aglialoro, Kaslow, and their team in bringing Randâ??s great literary achievement to the screen. Join us in the historic Hudson Theatre for an evening to remember.

See the full announcement for more information and registration details.

PS. Ed Hudgins sends the following information for Atlasphere members: Those who want to receive our lower member price can get an intro membership for $50 which will get them our quarterly, The New Individualist, newsletters, event discounts, and other goodies.

“Objectivist Investing” talk by financial analyst Greg Feirman at Free Minds 2010 conference

From financial analyst Greg Feirman, founder of Top Gun Financial Planning and author of The Odyssey of Star Stock Trader Tim Sykes:

I will be giving a participant-sponsored talk on Objectivist Investing at the 2010 FreeMinds Summer Seminar.

It’s going to be a good talk starting with Rand’s distinction between the primacy of existence vs. the primacy of consciousness. It will cover the two main schools of investing – fundamentals vs. technicals – and how one naturally aligns with the primacy of existence and the other the primacy of consciousness. It will conclude with a synthesis showing that the stock market reflects the facts of reality as filtered through the minds of all its participants.

I will also be talking about specific investors such as Warren Buffett and the Objectivist Jonathan Hoenig of Capitalist Pig Asset Management who writes the TradeCraft column for SmartMoney and appears on Fox New’s stock market show Saturday mornings. I will address the current stock market and how to interpret
it.

Because it is participant sponsored I am worried about people not knowing about it and low turnout. I will be on a panel on Objectivist Investing the afternoon of Saturday July 3. I am hoping to be able to move the talk to after that panel so I can mention it to people who might be interested.

Yaron Brook on the Glenn Beck program this coming Tuesday

From the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights:

We have a special announcement! Dr. Yaron Brook, president of the Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights, is scheduled to appear on the Glenn Beck program on Fox News Channel, Tuesday, June 15th for the entire hour to discuss â??when fiction becomes fact.â? It is a special program dedicated to â??Atlas Shruggedâ? and Vince Flynnâ??s book â??Term Limits.â? The show starts at 5 p.m., Eastern time (2 p.m., Pacific time).

If you are unable to see the live airing of this program, please consult your local listings for a possible rebroadcast.

Ayn Rand’s “Intellectual Bankruptcy” manuscript coming up for auction in New York on June 18th

From reader Caroline Johnson:

An original Ayn Rand manuscript will be up for auction at Sotheby’s New York on Friday, June 18 at 10:00 AM. This is the first major original Rand manuscript to come to auction in many years, and Sothebys has noted that handwritten Rand manuscripts of this size are rare at auction.

This work is Rand’s manuscript for her first speech at Ford Hall Forum, “The Intellectual Bankruptcy of Our Age,” delivered on March 26, 1961.

Atlas Shrugged fan Ron Johnson mounts self-funded campaign to unseat Feingold

A new column by George Will titled “Running vs. shrugging” begins:

Before what he calls “the jaw-dropping” events of the last 19 months — TARP, the stimulus, Government Motors, the mistreatment of Chrysler’s creditors, Obamacare, etc. — the idea of running for office never crossed Ron Johnson’s mind. He was, however, dry tinder — he calls Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” his “foundational book” — and now is ablaze, in an understated, upper-Midwestern way. This 55-year-old manufacturer of plastic products from Oshkosh is what the Tea Party looks like.

He is trim, gray-haired and suddenly gray-suited. For years, he has worn jeans and running shoes to his office, but now, under spousal duress, he is trying to look senatorial — “My wife upgraded me to brown shoes.” He has been endorsed by the state party and will almost certainly win the September primary for the Republican nomination to run against Russ Feingold, who is seeking a fourth term in a year in which incumbency is considered a character flaw.
George F. Will Logo

Former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson led Feingold in polls and froze the race on the Republican side before deciding not to run. But in this season of simmering resentment of the political class, a neophyte such as Johnson might be a stronger candidate than a recycled executive. Johnson can fund himself. Asked how much of his wealth he will spend, if necessary, his answer is as simple as it is swift: “All of it.”

And concludes with this gem:

From 2000 through 2008, sales of “Atlas Shrugged,” which was published in 1957, averaged a remarkable 166,000 a year. Since Barack Obama took office, more than 600,000 copies have been sold. The novel’s famous opening words — “Who is John Galt?” — refer to a creative capitalist, Rand’s symbol of society’s self-sufficient people who, weary of carrying on their shoulders the burden of dependent people, shrug. Ron Johnson would rather run.

See the full column for more.