FORMER NFL PLAYER NOW WORKING AS BORDER PATROL AGENT

Jamaal Green, a former player with the Philadelphia Eagles, Chicago Bears and Washington Redskins, talks to the Associated Press about his new career.

IMMIGRANT OF THE DAY: SHILPA PRIYA JAGADEESH - DIRECTOR

The Washington Post recently profiled Indian-born young film director Shilpa Priya Jagadeesh (who is know to her fans as Priyabharati Joshi). Ms. Jagadeesh is currently filming a Bollywood-style movie in the Washington, DC area. The film, titled e-Preeti, is intended, according to the director, to correct misconceptions people in India have about immigrant life in America.

FRESNO HOCKEY PLAYERS FACE UNCERTAIN IMMIGRATION FUTURE

The folding of the Fresno Falcons hockey team is bad news not just for the fans, but a number of players who suddenly are without a valid immigration status. Hopefully, their immigration lawyers filed to change their status to that of visitors before the terminations were effective.

MUSIC CRITICS AT USCIS NEARLY WRECK STAR'S US RECITAL

Those of us who regularly handle arts immigration matters before USCIS are used to this, but the readers of the New York Times might have been a bit surprised to learn what happened to Dutch opera singer Cora Burggraaf:

The rising young Dutch mezzo-soprano Cora Burggraaf has been gaining attention with operatic roles and recital programs from London to San Francisco. Still, presenting her New York recital debut on Sunday afternoon at the Frick Collection was clearly a personal milestone. She traveled to the United States just for this one performance. And in a wide-ranging program of French and German songs, she sang beautifully.

Yet there was one major complication. Because of a last-minute ruling from a regional immigration office, Ms. Burggraaf’s accompanist, the British pianist Simon Lepper, was denied a visa. As it routinely does, the Frick had applied for two visas well in advance. But the ruling, which came on Thursday, stated that these two artists had not performed together enough to make them a duo. So Ms. Burggraaf had to travel alone.

Fortunately, the Frick found an impressive substitute, Jonathan Kelly, an experienced vocal accompanist currently on the faculties of the Yale School of Music and the Manhattan School of Music. Still, the ruling on the visa application is another example of the inexplicable assessments of the immigration agency regarding touring artists in a post-9/11 world. Ms. Burggraaf and Mr. Lepper have performed together several times. If two artists feel that they make a compatible duo, how can their judgment be questioned?

IS INDIA THE NEXT BASEBALL HOTSPOT?

Sports Illustrated is reporting that two young Indians, Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel, have won a pitching contest in their native India and have been signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. They'll play in the minors for a couple of years in all likelihood and then if they've got the right stuff, they could become the first Indian immigrants to pitch in the majors.

PAVING THE WAY FOR LATINO NFL OFFICIALS

The New York Times had a story on the front page of the Sunday Sports section this morning profiling Cuban-born Alberto Riveron, one of the first Hispanic officials in the National Football League. It takes years to work up to ranks before one of the coveted NFL jobs opens and Riveron spent 15 seasons officiating college games before getting his NFL break.

SOPRANO WILL SKIP US TRIP DUE TO VISA HEADACHES

DC arts blog IONARTS reports

The Washington Chorus will present Bach's grand Mass in B-minor on November 16th with, among others, renown counter-tenor Daniel Taylor and tenor Charles Daniels, both associated with the Theatre of Early Music, a Montreal based early music group and choir, of which Taylor is the director. A promising assembly, but they will have to make due without another baroque specialist: The mezzo-soprano Clare Wilkinson (UK) who is scheduled to sing won't be able to come, because the London consulate would not issue her visa without a personal appearance. (She was on tour in Spain at the time, which complicated compliance somewhat.)

Hat tip to Dan Kowalski for the tip.