Kenneth C. Kaleta, PhD

Ken Kaleta was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, before moving to the Philadelphia area to attend Villanova University in 1969. He took his doctorate in Humanities at New York University in 1985. Kaleta currently lives in Philadelphia’s Society Hill with his RagaMuffin cat, Georges. A Professor of Cinema Studies at Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ, Kaleta is the author of David Lynch (1993), Hanif Kureishi: Postcolonial Storyteller (1998), and a collection of interviews with Hal Hartley. Hal Hartley, previously serialized on the web and collected and translated for publication in Spain and Poland, is to be published in the United States in early 2009. Kaleta is currently working on his next book, tentatively titled Dimly And In Flashes, a study of three digital artists.

With the Rich and Mighty: Emlen Etting of Philadelphia
by Kenneth C. Kaleta, PhD

Emlen Etting, the artist who created Phoenix Rising installed on the North Plaza of Philadelphia's City Hall, is one of the city's well-kept secrets. A painter, filmmaker, illustrator, translator, author, and teacher, Etting never rose to the national attention that his rich body of work deserved. Although Etting was a minimalist in his art, he and his wife Gloria Braggiotti were excessive socialites living with art as their passion and glamorous society life as their avocation. The couple’s home became a gathering place for the rich and famous of Philadelphia and beyond. With the Rich and Mighty: Emlen Etting of Philadelphia reveals the history and inspiration behind this influential figure’s work; and through Etting’s own art, life, and words, it provides a glimpse into the private world of a local legend whose art is central to the landscape of Philadelphia.

Available in softcover and e-book pdf format