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- “When liberty is taken away by force it can be restored by force. When it is relinquished voluntarily by default it can never be recovered.” — Dorothy Thompson
- “Art is theft, art is armed robbery, art is not pleasing your mother.” — Janet Malcolm
- “I’m one of those people who thinks you can have a happy life and still be an artist.” — Shelley Duvall
- “There’s a difference between writing about something and living through it. I did both.” — poet/novelist Margaret Walker
- “I believe what Camus says. When the curtain rings down, your job is done.” — Warren Oates
- Physical Media Booklet Essay podcast interview
- “My voice isn’t an instrument I can just hang up on a hook.” — Audra McDonald
- “You can’t be on top all the time. It isn’t natural.” — Olivia de Havilland
- “If I don’t feel it, I can’t play it.” — James Cotton
- “I don’t have to be an imitation of a white woman that Hollywood sort of hoped I’d become. I’m me, and I’m like nobody else.” — Lena Horne
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Category Archives: Actors
R.I.P. Ian Holm
Ian Holm, “The Sweet Hereafter” I was very sad to hear the news of the death of exquisite actor Ian Holm. Probably most well-known to a large audience for playing Bilbo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings movies. But … Continue reading
Happy Birthday, Errol Flynn
“He had a way of making a simple walk down a country lane into a Grand Adventure.” — Patricia Flynn, on her husband Errol’s acting ability. And, just for fun, check out three great stories from Dean Stockwell about Errol … Continue reading
Excerpt from Slouching Towards Bethlehem: ‘John Wayne: A Love Story’, by Joan Didion
For John Wayne’s Birthday A second excerpt from the essay collection: Slouching Towards Bethlehem: Essays (FSG Classics), by Joan Didion This is one of the best things written about John Wayne. It’s not just an essay about who he was … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Books, On This Day
Tagged Elvis Presley, essays, Joan Didion, John Wayne, Slouching Towards Bethlehem
46 Comments
Recommended Books: Memoirs
More recommendations: Recommended Fiction Recommended Non-Fiction MEMOIRS The Fervent Years: The Group Theatre And The Thirties, by Harold Clurman Probably the most famous of all the Group Theatre-related books. Harold Clurman writes his memories of that time and what those … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Books, Directors, Music, writers
Tagged Anjelica Huston, Austria, Baby Doll, Benjamin Franklin, Bruce Springsteen, Carroll Baker, Czechoslovakia, Diane Keaton, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Elia Kazan, Ellen Terry, Elvis Presley, Frank McCourt, Ginger Rogers, Goldie Hawn, Group Theatre, Harold Clurman, Ireland, James Salter, Jeanette Winterson, John Strasberg, Katharine Hepburn, Kathleen Turner, Lana Turner, Lauren Bacall, Lee Strasberg, Marlon Brando, Maud Gonne, Memoirs, Patricia Bosworth, Primo Levi, Robert Evans, Rosalind Russell, Russia, Shane Leslie, Shelley Winters, Shirley MacLaine, Stefan Zweig, Steve Martin, The Kid Stays In the Picture, Victor Serge, WWII
2 Comments
Recommended: Biographies
For starters: My recommended Fiction books My recommended Non-Fiction books BIOGRAPHIES: American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, by Joseph Ellis I’ve written a lot about Joseph Ellis’ work here. While I love David McCullough’s work so much, Ellis is … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Books, Directors, Founding Fathers, James Joyce, Theatre, writers
Tagged A. Scott Berg, Abigail Adams, Alexander Hamilton, American Sphinx, Benjamin Franklin, Biography, Bruce Springsteen, Charles Lindbergh, Charlotte Bronte, David McCullough, Dean Martin, Edie Sedgwick, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Ellen Terry, Elvis Presley, Emily Bronte, George Washington, Henry Irving, His Excellency, Howard Hawks, Howard Hughes, James Dean, Jerry Lee Lewis, John Adams, John Wayne, Joseph Cornell, Joseph Ellis, Marlon Brando, Mitford sisters, Montgomery Clift, Nick Tosches, Nureyev, Orson Welles, Oscar Wilde, Patricia Bosworth, Patricia Highsmith, Richard Ellmann, Ron Chernow, Sam Cooke, Simon Callow, Tennessee Williams, Thomas Jefferson, Truman Capote, W.B. Yeats, Zelda Fitzgerald
9 Comments
My final column at Film Comment: on Jonathan Demme’s Citizens Band
As some of you may be aware, Film Comment is going on an “indefinite” hiatus during this uncertain time. There have been a lot of layoffs at the Film Society of Lincoln Center, and Lincoln Center itself is struggling. While … Continue reading
Interpreting Lady Macbeth: Sarah Siddons vs. Ellen Terry
For Shakespeare’s Birthday Ellen Terry Sarah Siddons Michael Holroyd’s A Strange Eventful History: The Dramatic Lives of Ellen Terry, Henry Irving, and Their Remarkable Families tells the story of 19th century theatre-manager Henry Irving, and his lead actress Ellen Terry. … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, On This Day
Tagged Charles Lamb, Ellen Terry, Henry James, Macbeth, Oscar Wilde, Sarah Siddons, William Shakespeare
15 Comments
The Film Comment podcast: On Jean Arthur and Dead Ringers
I so appreciate the editors of the various outlets where I work, keeping things up and running as much as possible, especially in lieu of the massive shutdown of theatres and arthouses, with movie premieres pushed back indefinitely. I still … Continue reading
Present Tense: on Jean Arthur
For my next Present Tense column at Film Comment (because life goes on and I am very grateful that all of my work is web-based and can continue in this climate): I wrote about one of my favorite actresses, whom … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies
Tagged Frank Capra, Jean Arthur, Only Angels Have Wings, Present Tense
2 Comments
R.I.P. Max von Sydow
Max von Sydow’s contributions to world cinema are so vast and so important that only hyperbole will do. He is now familiar to three generations – or maybe four? – from those who got to know him first through Ingmar … Continue reading