you might recall that last year, tobias resigned his high-profile state department job when news came out that had been paying for "massages" from jeane palfrey's notorious DC escort service. but a little sex scandal can't keep a good tobias down... nor prevent him from putting his name on more stuff.
last week, we learned that mayor ballard plans to appoint tobias to head up the airport authority. the announcement didn't exactly inspire his disillusioned former supporters who are coming to realize that they didn't get what they thought they voted for.
and today, there's even more tobias news in the star:
The Indianapolis Museum of Art will join the ranks of major museums that have made movies a year-round staple, thanks to two local benefactors.
Tuesday, the IMA accepted a $1 million gift from Randall and Marianne Tobias to refurbish Tobias Theater and turn it into a major film venue. The Tobiases also gave $1 million toward the theater in 2003.
yes, yet another indianapolis structure will bear the tobias name, as the showalter pavilion becomes "tobias theater" or "the toby". this is a good PR move from the tobiases, as it gets randy's name back in the news, and the article doesn't even mention all that nasty business about escorts and penis massages. (then again, it also doesn't mention his upcoming job at the airport authority; only that he's currently vacationing in florida.)
personally, i think it's great that the IMA is going to show movies. there are currently only two places in town to see art house flicks—landmark and key cinemas—and they both have their flaws. i just hope they don't all end up competing for the same films, which could really hurt the small, independent key cinemas.
my one concern about showing movies at the IMA is parking. when we went to the rome exhibition a few months back, parking was tricky. adding a movie theater without adding more parking could just make things worse.
update: this IBJ story makes it sound like mayor ballard hasn't yet decided whether tobias is getting the airport gig. i guess we'll see whether jim shella was right after all.¶
