Author Archives: sheila

“When I aim at praise, they say I bite.” — Alexander Pope

How happy is the blameless vestal’s lot! The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind! -— Alexander Pope, from “Eloisa to Abelard” Alexander Pope was born on this day in 1688. He was so huge … Continue reading

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“Boredom is very important in life. It helps you feel when something is wrong.” — John Strasberg

It’s John Strasberg’s birthday today. I told this story before on here years ago, when I used to write like this on here, on occasion. Figured I’d re-post it. He is very very important to me. Back in the late … Continue reading

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“There’s nobody as good as the Ramones, never will be.” — Joey Ramone

“To me, John Lennon and Elvis Presley were punks, because they made music that evoked those emotions in people.” — Joey Ramone It’s Joey Ramone’s birthday today. Nothing I can say will top my brother Brendan’s essay on seeing The … Continue reading

Posted in Music, On This Day | 4 Comments

April 2025 Viewing Diary, Supernatural Season 5, working backwards

If you’re following along: Season 6 viewing diary Season 7 Season 8 Season 9 Season 10 Season 11 Season 12-15 Supernatural, Season 5, episode 1 “Sympathy for the Devil” Written by Eric Kripke Directed by Robert Singer It’s good to … Continue reading

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Happy birthday, Big Joe Turner, “Boss of the Blues”

Before the advent of microphones, if you were a singer, you needed to be heard. “Blues shouters” were powerful figures known for shouting above the music. Big Joe Turner was a blues shouter from Kansas City, and also one of … Continue reading

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R.I.P. Paul Durcan

I just heard the news that acclaimed poet Paul Durcan has died at the age of 80. The couple of obits I’ve read have been fairly obligatory although I am sure there will be more in-depth pieces as the news … Continue reading

Posted in RIP, writers | Tagged | 1 Comment

The DMV of Love

In 2008, Keith and Dan had me out to their place in Brooklyn for dinner. They were new people to me, and I was just starting to “circulate” in the New York film critic community, through writing for Matt Seitz’s … Continue reading

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“It’s an absolute miracle that I’m still around.” — Dennis Hopper

It’s his birthday today. I’m so glad I used one of my columns at Film Comment -now on hiatus – to sing the praises of Dennis Hopper’s wild and nihilistic Out of the Blue, starring Linda Manz and Hopper. Of … Continue reading

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“I live life in the margins of society, and the rules of normal society don‘t apply to those who live on the fringe.” — Tamara de Lempicka

Spoken like a true exile of Jewish descent. For her birthday today: “Self Portrait in the green Bugatti” Fascinating woman, to say the least. Just a snippet from her teen years, okay? In 1912, her parents divorced and Maria went … Continue reading

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Chat GDT

From March. This has been my life for the last year. You actually can talk about Mary Shelley for a year and feel like you’ve just scratched the surface. Frankenstein book available October 14, and available for pre-order now.

Posted in Directors, Personal | Tagged , | 7 Comments