Barely revealing Barry

MY compliments to writer Geoff Boucher for his March 12 Calendar feature on Barry Manilow [“Barry, Going the Distance”]. As a 41-year-old “Fanilow,” it was rather refreshing to see the L.A. Times give Barry his due after so many years of lambasting. Like it or not, you cannot deny Barry’s commitment to music, a commitment that is profoundly enduring.

It is a disappointment, however, that this piece could not go a little deeper than a rehashed spin on Manilow’s press kit for his latest CD. For example, there was not a single mention of Barry’s Broadway-bound musical, “Harmony,” or of his charitable foundation, the Manilow Fund for Health and Hope, that raised over $4 million to aid Hurricane Katrina survivors. There is so much more to Barry’s artistry than “I Write the Songs,” which, by the way, speaks to the spirit of musical creation, not that Manilow himself writes all the songs that make the whole world sing.

I live in hope that one day a music journalist (besides the brilliant Bill Zehme) will finally get his or her facts correct and portray Barry’s career without mocking his appearance or stereotyping his fans.

KELLEY OSWALT

Sherman Oaks