Brian Bain, a third-generation Jew from New Orleans, drove 4,200 miles through the South in an old Cadillac like the one his grandfather piloted years ago as he sold hats and ties. Re-tracing his grandfather’s route, Bain made a documentary feature film about the trip, "Shalom Y’all," which will be shown on Sept. 4 at UNC. Afterward, Bain will discuss the work, which portrays the Jewish experience in the American South through the eyes of a native son.

The free public showing, from 8-9:30 p.m. in 116 Murphey Hall, will be sponsored by the UNC Center for the Study of the American South, American studies curriculum, Carolina Center for Jewish Studies and North Carolina Hillel. For more information, call 962-5665.

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Reading French stories from 12^th and 13^th centuries has been a passion for Dr. E. Jane Burns, a UNC professor of women's studies and comparative literature. She noticed in these medieval writings repeated mentions of silk, imported from the Middle East, and used in clothing of royalty and the aristocracy.

"Silk from Baghdad or Constantinople was a key identifying marker of female heroines," Burns said. "Men wore these silks also. Knights wore them with their armor. The silks would flow out behind them when they rode their horses."

What do these silks reveal about medieval culture, trade and the history of textiles? About pilgrimages, and what was on people’s minds in the age of the Crusades?

To help Burns continue researching these issues, the American Council of Learned Societies, based in New York City, recently awarded her one of just 72 fellowships it gave to scholars this year for postdoctoral research in the humanities and humanities-related social sciences. The winners, chosen from among 1,018 applicants nationwide, are affiliated with 49 institutions in the United States and one each in Canada, Egypt, and France.

Burns, a former chair of Carolina’s curriculum in women’s studies, will be on leave from teaching this semester to complete the $50,000 ACLS Fellowship, the top amount awarded to full professors. Burns will work mostly in UNC libraries, but also in Paris. She aims to share her findings in

what will be her fifth scholarly book. On UNC’s faculty since 1977, Burns also has edited two essay collections.

Medieval French had at least a dozen different words for different kinds of imported silk, based on their varying textures and grades and collectively called Saracen silk. Burns will focus on what literary references to silk tell us about gender and the traffic in cloth in medieval French culture.

"It was not only something that people in the East wore, but it also defined the French court," she said. "It integrated an eastern identity into the West. They used it to decorate the insides of castles and for banners and flags at tournaments, bed coverlets, curtains and costly clothing."

The ACLS and its fellowship program are supported by individuals, colleges and universities, the National Endowment for the Humanities and foundations including the Andrew W. Mellon, Ford and Rockefeller. A nonprofit federation of 67 scholarly organizations, the council aims to advance studies in all fields of learning in the humanities and the social sciences.

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What should be covered in a history of the South?

What makes the South distinctive? What themes, topics and characteristics should be addressed in a comprehensive history of the region?

The public is invited to answer those questions in a free, interactive lecture at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 18 in Dey Hall’s Toy Lounge. Light refreshments will be provided.

Dr. Clyde Milner II and Dr. Carol O’Connor, history professors at Arkansas State University, will conduct the program, titled "South by West: Thoughts on Two Regions." The professors edited "The Oxford History of the American West" (1994) and now are considering a similar volume on the South.

The lecture is the first in this academic year’s "Centering the South Speakers Series" sponsored by UNC’s Center for the Study of the American South. For more information, call 962-5665.

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Spectrum Concert to showcase UNC music department groups

Music from Bach to be-bop will be performed Oct. 3 by a variety of instrumental and vocal ensembles and faculty soloists from the UNC music department.

The 11^th annual Spectrum Concert, at 7:30 p.m. in Hill Hall Auditorium, is designed to give listeners a sampling of what the department has to offer. It will be held during UNC’s annual Family Weekend, when students’ families are invited to campus for a number of events.

Light refreshments will be served at the concert. Tickets, available in advance in 104 Hill Hall and at the door, will be $10 for the public and $5 for students. Paid parking will be available to concert-goers in the Swain lot off Cameron Avenue. For more information, call 962-1039.

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Contact: L.J. Toler, 962-8589, laura_toler@unc.edu