Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Starving Artists: A Trip to Bohemia in Girl Without a Room
Steyn On-Line ^ | May 24, 2025 | Rick McGinnis

Posted on 05/25/2025 8:56:19 AM PDT by Twotone

As a place on a map, Bohemia is roughly half of what we call the Czech Republic today. As a neighbourhood or a state of mind it can be found all over the world, in big cities, where it suddenly coalesces in insalubrious districts, flourishes briefly, raises the value of the real estate and then dies off in a flurry of media coverage regretting how these things never last.

When a Bohemia dies it usually leaves behind a few architectural remnants, a historical plaque or two, maybe even a museum, and a venerable and overpriced tourist trap like a café or tavern whose precarious survival inspires even more media coverage describing the long-gone Bohemia's heyday. As a general rule a city's first Bohemia is in some neglected downtown enclave and moves further from the centre until its artistic denizens are finally priced out of that city altogether.

My own hometown, Toronto, has had nearly half a dozen Bohemias in its history, and is a textbook example of how you can use artists as unwilling advance guards for real estate speculation. I spent much of my career as a photographer in one of those Bohemias until I was priced out. Original Bohemias can remain in place for a generation or more, but as a rule of thumb the lifespan of each successive Bohemia gets shorter and shorter until a point when the first article celebrating its attractions marks the moment when it's over.

Hollywood was never a Bohemia, but movie people consider themselves artists and love to tell stories set in some Bohemia in the near or distant past. A Complete Unknown, the recent Bob Dylan biopic, is set in New York's original and archetypical Bohemia...

(Excerpt) Read more at steynonline.com ...


TOPICS: History; TV/Movies
KEYWORDS: bohemia; bohemians; movies
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-24 last
To: PAR35

Exactly, which is basically what the Vichy French did.


21 posted on 05/25/2025 12:03:52 PM PDT by FreedomPoster (Islam delenda est)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: Twotone

Interesting fact about Czechs leaving the rural areas of the country. Non of the Czechs that went to the cities immegrated to the US. Those that came to the US came directly from the rural areas.


22 posted on 05/25/2025 12:30:39 PM PDT by Cold Heart (It's a good time to be ashamed to be a democrat)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: aumrl

In the States, visit Ennis or West Texas to name a couple Czech communities.


We always made a point to stop at the Czech Bakery in West.

I am always afraid Buc-ee’s is going to put them out of business, so I always go there when I can.


23 posted on 05/25/2025 3:16:59 PM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: PAR35

In short, the General Government was run by the Germans, the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, on the other hand, was run by a puppet Czech government (although Germans in the Protectorate were exempt from control of the civilian government.


Reynhard Heydrich was the Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, until Operation Daybreak. Even though technically Emil Hacha was the President of Bohemia and Moravia, but he had little power.

Slovakia, on the other hand, was more like a true Puppet State, with Josef Tiso and the leader.


24 posted on 05/25/2025 3:21:33 PM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-24 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson