Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ron Protas

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was No consensus to delete. Black Kite 00:01, 12 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Ron Protas

Ron Protas (edit|talk|history|links|watch|logs) (delete) – (View log)

Decline a speedy on this because I thought consensus is a great thing. I know, WP:NOT#INHERITED, but the guy is mentioned in at least ten New York Times articles, and the legal battle could be something... I'm not sure about this one. Master of Puppets Call me MoP!☺ 06:35, 4 March 2008 (UTC)

He was not notable only for one event, the lawsuit. He became important in her life during the 1970s when she had to quit dancing because she had gotten too old. She descended into alcoholism and depression and almost died. He nursed her back to health, helped take care of her, and became increasingly important within the company itself, often conducting rehearsals, etc. Together, they restructured the company. Then, nearly 20 years later when she died, the lawsuit resulted. So, a span of 20-something years cannot be referred to as "one event." -- Andrew Parodi (talk) 09:01, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
  • Delete, per Dhartung. MrPrada (talk) 07:00, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
  • Keep. One of the criterion for notability on Wikipedia is not that a person be "famous" but that they be important within their genre. The Martha Graham Center for Contemporary Dance is the oldest continually performing modern dance company in the world. Martha Graham is the only dancer in US history to receive the Medal of Freedom. Time Magazine voted her the "Dancer of the Century". She is considered the most influential person in the history of modern dance. Ron Protas was her heir, became the most powerful man in her company, and almost brought it to the brink of closure. (In other words: 1. This is the most notable modern dance company in the world. 2. This means that within the genre Ron Protas was already notable even before the legal battle. 3. The legal battle received a great deal of coverage.) There are ample articles that mention him (in VERY NOTABLE publications), which would seem to suggest that he is notable enough for his own article. Take, for example, this article in The New Yorker which refers to him in the very first paragraph: The Martha Graham Dance Company returns to New York. I think he is a person of importance within the genre, and you will be depriving future scholars of a valuable resource if delete this page. Just because most of you don't care much about modern dance doesn't mean he isn't notable. -- Andrew Parodi (talk) 08:55, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
  • Comment Please do not insult other editors. Whether or not one believes Protas is notable has nothing to do with whether one "cares much about modern dance". That said, your edits are improving the article's demonstration of notability over what was there before, showing his professional standing within the troupe and within the dance world. --Dhartung | Talk 10:06, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
Thank you. By the way, I wasn't meaning to insult other editors. Thanks. -- Andrew Parodi (talk) 19:36, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
  • Merge to Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance as the material in the latter is a bit skimpy. Otherwise he is not notable. Mangoe (talk) 14:33, 4 March 2008 (UTC)
  • Keep this company is probably famous enough that even the associate director is notable; probably covered in some depth in biographies of her. DGG (talk)
  • Keep per DGG. Though on a personal note, if I ever have to watch this company dance again I'll cry. Hobit (talk) 02:31, 5 March 2008 (UTC)


The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.