Train

Is it just me, or do you always think of Buster Keaton when someone mentions a train too?

This drawing was instantly inspired by a scene in one of Buster Keaton's best movies, The General (1926). You can see it here:

Now, see how brave Comet can be? (This seat is not recommended.)

(Illustration Friday: April 19, 2013)

Wild!

When in the backyard, kitty instincts typically take over... Happy Earth Day, everyone!

(Illustration Friday: April 12, 2013)

Hometown Glory

My heart has been with my hometown this week.

I think Stephen Colbert put it best:

 

The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive

Buckle on your hats and stay strong, Bostonians!

Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp Film #31--The Libertine (2004)

[What is Johnny Kitties? See Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp for all the details.]

My part was just a slice of the pie, and it felt great to have that collaboration with everybody--from the focus puller to the extras to the DP to the director. We were all in there swinging at the same beast and fighting for what was right. It was very intense, down and dirty, swinging and clawing the whole way. I'm very proud of the film.

-- Johnny Depp on making The Libertine 

"You will not like me." 

The Libertine (Johnny Depp) is John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester (1647-1680), a favorite of and foe to England's King Charles II (John Malkovich). Director Laurence Dunmore explores Wilmot's gritty world torn between his domestic country life with his wife (Rosamund Pike) and precarious existence in London as outspoken writer, promiscuous drunk, and  popular wit. Loved and hated by the king, who had high hopes for his prodigy, Wilmot lived his short life to the fullest, said and did what he wanted, and usually got away with it. He died at age 33, probably of syphilis. Before that happens, you'll catch a glimpse of his fast-paced life and the guts it took for him to speak his mind. An avid fan of theatre, the Earl also falls in love with upcoming actress Elizabeth Barrie (Samantha Morton), who breaks his heart. Yeah, this is a cheery one, alright. 

It was a long, bumpy road. 

This movie was at least 10 years in the making. Talk of it would appear, disappear, and reappear while Johnny made other movies. It all started with John Malkovich, who starred as the Earl in The Libertine, the play, in Chicago in 1995. He got the playwright, Stephen Jeffreys, to adapt it to the screen. And, after working with Laurence Dunmore on a commercial, he hired him to direct the movie. He met Johnny for dinner and asked him to play the starring role. "Why don't you play the part?" Johnny asked, since John Malkovich had already received critical acclaim for the role in the play. "Because I want you to do it," he responded. Good choice!

The Libertine was plagued with financial, scheduling, and whatever other problems for years. I saw it as a labor of love among the small group of people involved from the very beginning, even though I knew nothing about the story or this guy it was all about. I wasn't sure if it would ever come to life.

By the time it did, I was excited to see it just because it had taken so long. Even during production, the British government cracked down on filmmakers shooting in Great Britain, closing a loophole for filming incentives and ultimately taking away more than 30% of production funding. Some films shooting there had to shut down completely and were lost, but The Libertine survived! "I think everyone across the board who was involved in this production put their hands into their own pockets," Director Laurence Dunmore says. 

Before this film was released, the MPAA threatened to slap it with an NC-17 rating, unleashing the imaginations of Johnny Fans everywhere. I didn't know what all the fuss was about when I saw the film in the theater. It was only after the fact that I realized what I saw was rated R. 

It was a muddy, mucky, chaotic world. 

Reviews for The Libertine were mixed. I remember a couple of bad ones saying how dark, muddy, and unpleasant everything is. To me, that's a success because I figured it looked that way for a reason. "I wanted this film to be swamped with mud and smoke and mists and rain!" the director confirms. "You've got to literally smell the film." Johnny concurs, "It was really down in the dirt. You got in there, and it beat you up." It works! Practically everything is lit by natural light and candles, mud and mist are everywhere, and most of the filming is done by hand-held camera so you feel as though you're in it. 

This movie is grimy in look and feel. And, being completely unfamiliar with John Wilmot, I even found his life story sometimes confusing to follow, but I guess it's because you can only fit so much into 2 hours. "Normally when you're faced with writing a dramatized biography, you invent a lot of stuff to make it more interesting," Writer Stephen Jeffreys says. "With Rochester, it was the other way around. I had to leave all this stuff out because it's so much." If you're really interested, the DVD's director's commentary is helpful in understanding all the background and course of events in Wilmot's life. 

Even though I don't crave to watch this movie very often, every time I do watch it, I marvel at it all--the cinematography, direction, design, costumes, acting. This film has its own distinctive look, energy, and personality. Even if you didn't know all the trouble they went through to make it, you could feel the passion everyone involved felt for it. Every performance is fantastic. Though Rosamund Pike plays Wilmot's tormented wife in only a few scenes, she won a well-deserved British Independent Film Award for her amazing work. 

While watching through the lens of a hand-held camera usually has me craving stillness after just a few minutes, it works so well in The Libertine that I don't even think about it. You feel as though you are there with them in that world. All these ingredients make for an extremely intimate film-going experience. 

"I am up for it, all the time." 

Some of the things that John Wilmot pulled off are so outrageous, it's hard to believe that this guy was a real person--living in the 15th century as a member of the king's court, no less! He was continually banished to the country, most notably for creating a scandalous satire about the king's obsession with sex. Even if you don't like what he has to say, you have to admire a guy who has no fear of speaking out the way he did. 

As always, Johnny thoroughly researched his role. He travelled to all the places where Wilmot lived and where he died. He read his letters, available in the British Library, took notes on them, and incorporated Wilmot's own words into the script. He had dreams that he was Wilmot! "I felt this very strong responsibility to play him right--so much so that I became obsessed," he says. "Without wanting to sound all kind of New Agey, I do believe he paid me at least a few visits." 

All his research revealed myriad layers of the man. "He was written off as a satirist, rogue, hedonistic lunatic, complete drunk, pornographer, and all those things, and he was all those things," Johnny says. "But he was also a beautiful poet. He was a loving father, a confused and tormented husband. He was a very tortured man. He was obsessed with honesty. He couldn't allow for a lie. He had no tolerance for it from anyone, not even from King Charles, which got him in a lot of trouble. I salute that!"  

But even the king couldn't deny Wilmot's talent, which at times was the only thing that held their strained relationship together. "He was a guy who was, I think, probably two or three hundred years ahead of his time," Johnny says of the Earl. Stephen Jeffreys agrees, "Nobody writes like Rochester. Nobody wrote before him like that. Nobody really writes in the same vain about sexuality until the 20th century." But I think Samantha Morton sums up the man most efficiently: "He was a poet, an artist, and revolutionary of his day. And if he were alive today, he'd be certainly very rock and roll!" 

Johnny rocks it!

Johnny is Amaze-balls! in this movie--capital A, exclamation point! He is in nearly every scene of The Libertine, a grueling 45-day shoot, and you can tell he's in it for love! 

"From an actor's standpoint, when you read that opening monologue and then the ride commences, you know when you're reading that beautiful dialogue and these incredible scenes--one after the next--that you'll never ever see the likes of it again," he says. Since the movie is based on a play, it very much feels like one because of the heavy dialogue and long scenes. Wouldn't it be fantastic if Johnny were ever in a play? Well, this is as close as you're going to get for now. 

Of course, Johnny's dedication goes deeper than saying some gorgeous prose. He got to know the person behind the story and how he really lived. "Why? How do you arrive there? How do you arrive at that need for such excess and the need for self-medication because I don't think it was about fun for him," he says of Wilmot. "My angle was ultimately an attempt to understand the guy, and then trying my best to please him. It's ultimately a kind of love letter to him. Hopefully it comes off that way." 

Long before shooting began, Johnny and Laurence Dunmore worked collaboratively on his character and how Wilmot impacted everything, from the cast and story to the movie as a whole. "Our process was one of continual discussion. It was a constant collaboration and a constant evolution that I certainly found immensely rewarding," the director says. "Johnny was very engaged and absorbed in Rochester as a man, as a historical figure, and as a writer. I think we were both informed and yet we were also empowered to interpret Rochester and how he comes across on screen." 

Johnny admits that had they made the film when originally planned a decade before, it wouldn't have been the same. "It might have been okay, but I don't know that I was ready or that I could've understood so much of Rochester," he says. But, of course, everyone had great faith in their star: "Johnny Depp possesses an incredible ability to engage both on an individual level and an audience as a whole," Laurence Dunmore says. "His power in this piece, I think, is a testament to his ability as an actor to both transform and also to bring an audience into a world that he exists in." And, Writer Stephen Jeffreys points out what I'm always thinking: "You could look at his face for a minute and it's never doing the same thing twice in all that time. He just has that ability to convey deep feeling and what's going on in his head through his eyes and his mouth and these tiny moves of the face, and I think that's an incredible skill." It's true!

And, it's not always pretty. He is dying of syphilis through about half the movie, and he's quite wretched by the end. Johnny admits it wasn't an easy road: "It was a long, long way from sitting with John Malkovich in Chicago, and sitting in a restaurant saying, 'Yeah, I'd love to do it,' to suddenly, you're standing there almost 10 years later, and you realized what you've gotten yourself into: You've made a serious commitment, and you now have a very serious responsibility to this guy. You've got to dig down deep. You've got to get a little squirrly here and there and go places you don't necessary enjoy going to. I think, as an actor, you have to constantly test yourself, or push yourself, to go places that maybe you're scared to go to or places you haven't wanted to go to. I think you have to put yourself in a situation where you go, 'I could fail miserably.' I felt myself there. But I've felt myself there in a lot of things I've done. And I think it's a good thing." The Libertine brought out some of Johnny's best acting ever. Ever! 

Who knew Gordon could get there too? 

I was afraid of getting to this movie for Johnny Kitties. Was I bound to draw some Kitty-inappropriate scene? It turned out to be an easy choice. 

I love that, in this movie, nearly everything indoors is lit by candles! It's beautiful! In one of my favorite scenes, John Wilmot visits his latest muse, Elizabeth Barrie (Mini), at the theatre to help her with her acting. Gigantic chandeliers hang low above the stage at mid-day, as everyone is preparing for that evening's performance. It's as if the room is on fire as Johnny and Samantha Morton play this intense 11-minute scene. 

You can tell by the movement of the camera that Laurence Dunmore is following them around with the equipment on his shoulder getting in their faces. (At one point, lost in the moment, he actually did catch fire and the actors rushed to put him out.) Despite such distractions, these actors are deep in it! The director says that each time they shot those 8 pages of dialogue was a single take. I mean, come on! Where are the acting Oscars for this one?  

What's next? 

Johnny gets a little lighter...and frothier...as Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  

The Libertine images © The Weinstein Company;  Illustration © Melissa Connolly

Egg

This week's illustration was inspired by one of my favorite Warner Brothers cartoons. It's perfect for welcoming Spring. (Feel free to sing along. I always do.)

© Warner Brothers

But who's to say that this drawing isn't an accurate depiction of Gordon's birthday too? (He will neither confirm nor deny it. Typical.)

(Illustration Friday: March 29, 2013)

Whisper

Sometimes when you sit in the backyard, you can hear The Kitties whispering through the trees.

(Illustration Friday: February 22, 2013)

Swim

Most kitties don't like water.

(Illustration Friday: March 22, 2013)

I love Lucy!

Hi everyone,

You might remember that when I saw Rufus Wainwright at 9:30 club in February, his sister Lucy Wainwright Roche served as his opening act. At the end of her set, she told us all to mark our calendars to join her at The Kennedy Center on March 24, where she'd perform as part of the Millennium Stage series. So, I did.

Every day at 6 p.m., Millennium Stage offers free hour-long performances of all sorts of visual arts, from theatre and spoken word to dance and music. It's fantastic! The seats for Millennium Stage are first-come, first-served. I got there early and found one front and center.

The Pre-Show Entertainment
To my left sat a studious middle-aged groupie, who edited documents and wrote notes until the show started. I guessed she was a professor, but who knows? To my right was an ex-Mormon missionary, who had never seen Lucy Wainwright Roche before. (Doesn't this sound like the beginning of a joke?)

I kept to myself, writing in my journal while waiting for the show to start. The ex-Mormon instantly chatted away with the couple next to him, whom he had just met, because the husband in the pair was also an ex-Mormon! (What are the odds?) Among other things, they talked about where they've traveled and what they thought about The Book of Mormon. "I knew the South Park guys wrote it, but I didn't expect it to be so South Parky," the guy next to me said. (I will find out for myself when I see it in August!)

Behind us, two elderly friends were catching up when one of them got a phone call. I wasn't listening until I heard "run it under water" and "put some Neosporin on it." I began imagining 911 calls and ambulances. Someone is actually calling in the case of an emergency for once! But it couldn't have been too serious because she changed the subject, telling the person where she was and what she was doing: "We're seeing someone named Lucy Wainwright....No, no, but she's Rufus's sister." Right after the word "Wainwright," the professor whipped her head around. I felt her glare even though it wasn't aimed at me and knew what was coming: "It's Lucy Wainwright Roche."
"What?"
"Her name is Lucy Wainwright Roche."
"Oh, it's Lucy Wainwright Roche that we're seeing," the lady told the person on the phone. Her friend asked the professor if she were a member of the family. "No, I just know a lot about the family," she nodded and turned back around. She reminded me of 6-year-old Maisy's school principal in Uncle Buck! ("And, frankly, I don't think she takes a thing in her life or her career as a student seriously!")

The lady behind us got off the phone as the lights dimmed and explained to her friend, "My 44-year-old son has a splinter."

The Main Event

© Lucy Wainwright Roche

Lucy Wainwright Roche was just as delightful as the last time I saw her. I love how clearly she sings. I can understand all the lyrics, which is always appreciated. But I don't have to tell you about the show because you can watch the whole performance online here! (Thanks, Kennedy Center!)

So far, I've learned that Lucy Wainwright Roche is very chatty during her shows, which adds to the charm of it all, and I felt the urge to say lots to her by the time she finished this performance: "I saw you at 9:30 club, and you said to come here, so here I am, and I think you're great!" or "I have the same problem with my cat as you do with your dog. What should we do about it?" or "I went to school in Ohio too, but not the same one."

She stuck around afterward to sign CDs and t-shirts, faced by a big crowd. Since I couldn't decide what to say, I didn't bother waiting my turn. Instead, I bought her CDs to listen to at home. You should get them too! You'll miss out on all the talking I was surrounded by, but sometimes that's a good thing.

Enjoy!

Eye glasses

Of all The Kitties, Simon needs his eye glasses most.

(Illustration Friday: March 15, 2013)

Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp Film #30--Finding Neverland (2004)

[What is Johnny Kitties? See Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp for all the details.]

Do you believe in fairies? If you believe, clap your hands! 

"What I liked very much is that it didn't feel like the kind of movie that you see all the time. I thought it was sweet and heartbreaking, but in an honest way. It didn't feel like it was trying to be something; it felt like it was something." Johnny Depp on Finding Neverland

"I'm not Peter Pan, he is."

Based on Andrew Birkin's biography, J.M. Barrie and The Lost Boys, Finding Neverland introduces author J.M. Barrie (Johnny Depp) who, in 1903, is on the verge of creating his masterpiece. After his most recent play flops in London's West End, his producer (Dustin Hoffman) encourages him to write something new. A chance encounter with Silvia Lewellen Davies (Kate Winslet) and her four boys--George (Joe Prospero), Jack (Nick Roud), Peter (Freddie Highmore), and Michael (Luke Spill)--marks the start of a lifelong friendship with the widow and her sons, to the dismay of her socialite mother (Julie Christie) and most of the rest of society. But inspired by the boys' sense of play and imagination, "Uncle Jim" creates Peter Pan's world of pirates, fairies, and endless adventure in Neverland.

Although it may seem slight today, putting on a full-scale West End production based on a boy who never grows up was risky at the time, particularly a play that involves flying, a dog serving as a nanny, ocean adventures, clock-swallowing crocodiles, and more nonsense never before attempted on the stage. Learning the inspiration behind it all makes this story even more extraordinary.

Bring on Neverland!
I could barely wait to see this movie, not only because of Johnny and the other great actors joining him, but because Peter Pan is one of my favorite stories. When I was a kid, I watched the Disney cartoon endlessly. I even had its soundtrack album. In grade school, I won an art contest prize of tickets to see Peter Pan on the stage. Recently, though, I saw a bit of the Disney cartoon on TV and thought Peter Pan was a brat and Tinkerbell had a big attitude problem! I'm not sure what my fascination with it is--maybe the adventure of it all, the fairies, the flying, and the idea of not having to grow up.

I've seen lots of different versions of Peter Pan. But I'm not the only one who loves it. Dustin Hoffman recognizes how everyone relates to J.M. Barrie's idea of Neverland: "Neverland is the place that exists for all of us in the wish part of our brain," he says. To some people, Neverland is a place where one never grows old or dies. Others think of it as the place where the imagination lives.

In the preface to the original play, J.M. Barrie noted that the actors only need to bring with them a child's outlook. "I think what Barrie was saying was to do your best not to grow up so quickly," Johnny says. "You can grow old and be an adult but maintain those beautiful qualities." Like Johnny, the filmmakers took Barrie's direction to heart. Producer Richard Gladstone explains, "We thought of how to watch all of this through a child's eye, how to approach that, how to manifest that on film."

I was in New York when Finding Neverland opened Halloween weekend. Johnny was also in New York that weekend to receive the Lee Strasberg Artistic Achievement Award (Yay!), but we never ran into each other. Instead, I saw him on the big screen in one of the best movies ever!

What's to love? Lots!

The story: Written by David McGee, this historical period piece explores the creative process of a writer moving from thought to page to stage. "We wanted it to be about creating art, and we wanted it to be about what someone saw and felt and how they translated that onto paper," says producer Nellie Bellflower.You'll meet James Barrie's inspirations and see how his wheels turn to create Nanny, Captain Hook, fairy dust, and all the rest of it. In this great script, you're recognize familiar lines and plot points from the classic story and know that the author plans to write all these moments down in his journal to include in his developing play. This film's blend of adult and child perspectives, history, imagination, creativity, and drama is moving and inspiring.

The director: Involving a beloved children's story with cute kids in the cast could have made this movie overly sentimental, but I was confident that wouldn't happen when I heard Marc Forester was directing it. At the time, he had just won a bunch of awards for Monster's Ball, a dark film that couldn't be more different from this one. As I had hoped, Finding Neverland has a perfect balance of playfulness and drama without any excess sticky sweetness.

The production: One of my favorite things about this movie is how seamlessly the story weaves between imagination and reality. There are little moments, like when James Barrie imagines that it's storming in the theatre as his latest play goes sour or when he opens his bedroom door, revealing the sunny open field he pictures in his mind. And, when Silvia comes down with a cough at the summer cottage, the beautiful day turns cloudy and windy in Peter's eyes. In more elaborate sequences, as James Barrie plays Cowboys and Indians with the Davies boys or takes them aboard a pirate ship, the film switches back and forth between them running around in their garden to being in the Old West or soaked by choppy waves on the high seas. Give another star to Marc Forester for coming up with these ideas. "For me, the visual effects basically are to underline the transformation of imagination," he says. Even though the imaginative scenes are obviously fake, they're beautifully done without taking you abruptly out of the story. Instead, they draw you in even more, letting you see what they are seeing. "The goal was to give people an idea of where that line's drawn between fantasy and reality and how thin it was was," says visual effect designer Kevin Tod Haug. It works!

The stars: If you haven't figured it out by now, I usually see movies because of the actors involved. And, when Johnny gets to be in movies with people I admire, I'm thrilled about it. Imagine spending your days at work with Kate Winslet, Julie Christie, and Dustin Hoffman! "I've been so lucky in my career to work with some of the people I've worked with," Johnny says. "Going to work everyday with Dustin Hoffman is once again an amazing gift!" Everyone is perfectly cast in this movie. You'll even find some old friends from Pirates of the Caribbean in here: Mackenzie Crook as the theatre usher and Angus Barnett as the actor playing Nana.

The real stars: But it's really all about the kids, George, Jack, Michael, and especially Peter. When Kate Winslet and Johnny caught Freddie Highmore playing a scene as Peter, they knew they had to up their game: "Freddie just elevated the level of truth for everyone," Marc Forester says. As Peter, Freddie Highmore may have the meatiest role as the one whose on the brink of  completely losing his childhood too soon, but all of the Davies brothers are fantastic. They will make you laugh. They will make you cry. They steal the show.

"He is quite handsome!"
- Dustin Hoffman

My favorite star: It's always a treat when Johnny dresses down and quiets down for a role. One of the things I admire most about Johnny as an actor is his ability to say so much without saying anything. But the bonus here is that when he does speak, it's with a flawless Scottish accent! Johnny was the first actor in mind to play J.M. Barrie, and he was the first to sign on to Finding Neverland. It doesn't surprise me that he found such a connection to the author and this story. "What I feel is important is the freedom to invent things, however ridiculous," he says. "Don't be afraid to take risks, to be creative and try things."

I think this is one of Johnny best performances, displaying such a range of emotions as a creative artist stuck among grown-ups: "It's a surprisingly difficult role because it has to be a man who's mature enough so that you have respect for him but still have a kid inside the whole time," writer David McGee says. "He does an amazing job."

Some of my favorite scenes are of Johnny interacting with the kids. You can tell that they all got along really well. As Kate Winslet says, "Working with Johnny Depp is like working with a fifth child. I have four children in the movie, and then I have Johnny." For those of you who like Johnny Trivia, look for some of his own inventions early on in this movie, including the mirror attachment to his cane and the ball-retrieving fishing pole. In the tense dinner scene, try to keep a straight face knowing that Johnny got all the kids to laugh throughout by installing his trusty remote-controlled fart noisemaker under Julie Christie's chair before the director called "action." I think Kate Winslet is right!

At the 2005 Oscars with Vanessa Paradis

To my great surprise (followed by infinite elation), Finding Neverland earned Johnny his second Oscar nomination for Best Actor! This nomination was practically sweeter than the first, just because James Barrie isn't as flashy as Captain Jack. (No one is as flashy as Captain Jack.) I didn't think anyone else would notice Johnny's fantastic work in this! I so wanted him to win, but I knew he wouldn't because Jamie Foxx was winning everything everywhere for his portrayal of Ray Charles in Ray. Still, the Oscars are so much more exciting when Johnny is in attendance! I'll take it!

Finding Neverland was also nominated for Best Picture and several technical Oscars. It won for Best Original Score by composer Jan A.P. Kaczmarek. I agree! This movie's beautiful music is a perfectly-suited complement that sweeps you into the moment.

Finding Neverland and the cast were nominated for lots of awards at other ceremonies worldwide, and they (mainly Kate Winslet and Freddie Highmore) won quite a few. Yay!



The Kitties can fly!
I didn't expect to pick the scene that appeared in all the commercials and previews, but it really does sum up Finding Neverland. Here's an example of how James Barrie was inspired to write his story. As Silvia (Lily) scramble around to get her defiant boys (B.J. as George, Norman as Jack, Comet as Peter, and Simon as Michael) to bed, they are more interested in pillow-fighting. Watching the giggling boys bouncing around on their beds, Uncle Jim suddenly "sees" the windows magically open and the boys fly off into the night. With a little bit of fairy dust, they'll be in Neverland by morning.

"Never put young boys to bed. They always grow up a day older, and before you know it, they're grown."

And now, let's talk about fish. 

Kate Winslet and Johnny enjoyed working together on Finding Neverland so much that they jumped at the chance to do it again, even if it was just in a recording studio. In 2006, they narrated the IMAX documentary Deep Sea 3D. Funnily, I also saw this in New York too. It was a Friday and apparently field trip day for all the grade-school kids in the immediate vicinity. "Are you sure you want to go to this showing," the cashier asked me. "That's a lot of kids." Let me tell you, a nature documentary is so much more fun and interesting when you're surrounded by excited kids in oversized 3D glasses who are actually paying attention and screaming every time a shark swims toward them. We had fun!

What's next? 
Johnny is The Libertine. You will not like him.

Image credits: Finding Neverland images © Miramax Films; Image of Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis at the 2005 Academy Awards © unknown; Deep Sea 3D image © Warner Brothers Pictures; Illustration © Melissa Connolly

Talent

As you know, The Kitties are brimming with various talents--dancing, singing, circling, staring.... But they all share a universal one for uplifting spirits instantaneously. This always occurs to me when I'm greeted at the door by my friend Lily. This is a true story of our typical routine.

(Illustration Friday: March 1, 2013)

The Sum of Our Days

Hi everyone,

I didn't know about The Sum of Our Days but found it when my dad and I stopped in the World Bank's bookstore, Infoshop, on our way to lunch. Who knew that the World Bank had such a great bookstore in the middle of D.C. and that inside on sale was a sequel to Isabel Allende's amazing book Paula?

I've read most of Isabel Allende's books. Paula, her 1995 memoir about dealing with her daughter's illness and death, is among my favorites. Of course, whenever I tell someone that, they ask, "Why would you want to read that?" Since The Sum of Our Days continues the story of Isabel's journey, you may ask the same question. But I still highly recommend both books!

Paula Frias Allende suffered from porphyria, a hereditary disease that attacks the nervous system and skin. When she fell into a coma, Isabel started writing her a letter about what she was missing so that she could easily catch up when she awoke. She died in 1992 at age 28.

Obviously, parts of this book are really sad. But, overall, its a moving celebration of Paula's life and her family and their strength in getting through an unimaginable experience. By the time you finish reading, you'll know Paula, her family and friends, and all the lives she touched. They are an entertaining bunch, described by an amazing storyteller. She will make you laugh, no matter how dark this topic sounds. Paula doesn't die until the end. That's when you'll cry.

In The Sum of Our Days, Isabel continues her letter to her daughter 15 or so years later, bringing her up to speed on all that's happened since she left them. Among other interesting stories, I learned all about Isabel's husband Willie, their marriage, and his side of the family. This time, his daughter--who battled drug addiction--made me cry. But, it's okay because plenty of other moments in this story made me laugh too.

In this book, you'll catch up with the members of the Allende family who were introduced in Paula, including Paula's husband Ernesto and her brother Nicolas. You'll also meet new friends, girlfriends, boyfriends, and even surprise relatives. While Paula's memory is a constant presence throughout this book, it's uplifting to read how the family has grown to live without her physically there. They rely on each other now more than ever before and work at strengthening their bonds. It was another kind of joyful celebration, one of inner-strength and the importance of love and family.

Once again, I was sad when this book ended: there were no more pages to read. Isabel Allende is surrounded by her family, who all live in the San Francisco Bay area. By the time I finished reading, I wanted to live there too! It's no wonder she's such a prolific writer, surrounded every day by such a vibrant cast of characters. Don't you want to meet them? Go get these books!

Best,


P.S. Check it out: Isabel Allende is going to be at National Geographic, here in D.C., on May 1st!
Buy yourself a ticket ($22) for this entertaining evening, and I'll see you there!

Wool

I almost skipped this week's Illustration Friday topic because I wasn't sure why any of The Kitties would need some wool. But, then, the word reminded me of one of my favorite Pepe Le Pew cartoons, in which a little dog was in need of a more luxurious fur coat. (Yes, this is how my mind works.) You can watch it here:

  "Scent-imental Over You" (1947) © Warner Brothers

She just wants to fit in, as Simon does so well here:

(Illustration Friday: February 15, 2013)

Storm

The Kitties know what to do when it's stormy out there.

(Illustration Friday: February 8, 2013)

Beautiful Voices!

Hi everyone,

Last Tuesday, I headed down to 930 club to catch Rufus Wainwright on his "Solo" tour. I'd never seen him in concert before, though I have a couple of his covers on my iPod. Intrigued that he'd be playing alone, I didn't know what to expect. I hardly ever go to concerts on a hunch, but I had a good feeling about this one. Rufus has got talent.

I held off buying a ticket until the day of the show. I read a few days beforehand that another Wainwright would serve as the opening act and knew I'd regret not going to what was bound to be a special concert. Maybe sings with his musical family all the time and I just don't know it. In any case, you can't beat seeing someone cool in the intimacy of 930 club's tiny venue.

I arrived after work, feeling lucky and perplexed that the show was not yet sold out. About 20 other early birds and I waited in line for only a few minutes before being escorted into the club early through a side door I didn't know existed. I could get used to this V.I.P. treatment, but letting us in the room before the later arrivals must just be a new crowd-control strategy.

I typically like to be front and center for 930 club concerts so I can see the performers up close, but I headed up to the balcony for this one because I think the sound is better up there. Since I had no knowledge or expectations of what I'd be hearing, I wanted to hear it in the best spot.


© Lucy Wainwright Roche

I made a good choice because The Wainwrights are fantastic! The
opening act was Rufus Wainwright's little sister Lucy, who played a few of her own songs on acoustic guitar. Not only does she have a great voice and lovely sad songs set to happy tunes, she was also really chatty, friendly, and funny. She greeted us with, "So, you guys don't care about the State of the Union, huh?" After the first couple of songs, she asked, "Does anyone have any comments or questions so far?" People yelled out from the audience and, in her effort to help us get us to know her better, she actually answered most of the questions--everything from her favorite color to the kind of car she drives. (Actually, she didn't answer that one, saying, "It's a long story....It's on its last legs.") Some people in the audience knew her from her Science Channel show, Stuff You Should Know, which she discussed excitedly when asked about it. Someone near me commented, "She's delightful," which is a perfect description of Lucy Wainwright Roche. Her new album will be released in May.

When she mentioned that her half-hour set was coming to a close, people obligingly groaned with disappointment. "Oh, you're sweet," she said. "Don't be sad because Rufus is going to come out here, and he's going to blow your minds."

It was no lie. Her brother was amazing! The room filled up more and the crowd screamed louder for Rufus Wainwright. "Forget the Union, let's have some anarchy!" he suggested. "That's what you guys sound like...and I like it!"

© Rufus Wainwright

The only songs I knew were "The Maker Makes," which I recognized from Brokeback Mountain, and "Hallelujah," which everyone knows. But it didn't matter because all of the songs were great. They included "Martha," about his older sister, "Going to Town," which he dedicated to the House of Representatives, and "Memphis Skyline," which he wrote as tribute to Jeff Buckley. His sister showed up again to duet on a few songs too.

What impressed me most about this concert was hearing the bare bones of the music. He sang, playing on either a grand piano or Lucy's acoustic guitar, until one of its strings broke and the 930 club's sound guy came to the rescue with a spare instrument. "This is what happens when you don't sell enough records; you can't afford roadies," he said while waiting for the sound guy to get back to his spot.

I love these kinds of little mishaps that make a show intimate and one-of-a-kind. During a fantastic song, called "Vibrate," he missed a note and called out his mistake (which I didn't notice). While covering his mother's song, "The Walking Song," he thought he didn't play a piano section well enough. "That was no good. I have to do that again. It was the sandwich," he said, referring to his pre-show "vegetarian hoagie" dinner. Without interruption, he repeated that refrain to get it right. (It sounded fine to me both times.) We all laughed along when these things happened, as if we were joking around in his living room, but then snapped back immediately transfixed by each song.

I've always seen noisy bands at 930 club, great ones blasting electric guitars, drums, and booming bass lines, who get us jumping and singing along to every note. I've never been there in this atmosphere, with an audience so calmly attentive. The acoustics were perfect and all-encompassing. Rufus Wainwright's voice really commands a room! I expected that but also discovered he's an amazing musician. It was as if he were playing intricate classical music on that grand piano, layering it with a unique melody and well-written lyrics. All of the songs grabbed my attention and made me, for the most part, forget everything going on around me. That's a performer!

Here's a sampling, thanks to YouTube. He sang this song, "Montauk"--from his latest CD, Out of the Game--as part of the encore. This song made me want to run home and buy all of his albums. (You should too so that he can afford a roadie.)

© Studio Q

Don't miss Rufus Wainwright when he comes to your town or back here to D.C. He'll leave you inspired.

In the meantime, you can catch Lucy Wainwright Roche at The Kennedy Center as part of Millennium Stage's Songwriters Series on March 24th.  She mentioned it during her set and was disappointed that we didn't whip out our smart phones to mark our calendars. I prefer my mental calendar and plan to attend. Join me! She's delightful.

Best,