Tag Archives: Elia Kazan

2010 Books Read

Round-up of the books I read this year, in the order in which I read them. I am nearly finished with one last book (a collection of stories by Miranda July, given to me by my sister Siobhan for my … Continue reading

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The 5 Most-Deserving Best Picture Winners

(I don’t like a lot of the Best Picture winners. I far prefer the “losers”, in general – some true classics there. It was hard to leave off a couple but I gave myself the task to pick 5. So … Continue reading

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Today in history: March 24, 1955

Tennessee Williams’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof opened on Broadway. It was directed by Elia Kazan and starred Ben Gazzara and Barbara bel Geddes. Williams was tormented by the writing of this play. He found it “messy”, and wrote … Continue reading

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Today in history: December 3, 1947

A Streetcar Named Desire opened in New York at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. Scene 5, Streetcar Named Desire BLANCHE: Young man! Young, young, young man! Has anyone ever told you that you look like a young Prince out of the … Continue reading

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Blanche Dubois and the Code

Wonderful post from Jose about Blanche’s monologue about her husband (“he was a boy”) in Streetcar, and how it had to be made much less explicit (meaning: not explicit at all) in the film version, due to the Production Code. … Continue reading

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Snapshots

— Shoeshine guy called out at a passerby, a middle-aged man with greying hair, “Young man! You are in a sorry situation, my friend!” I glanced at the man’s shoes, and saw that they were brown and horribly scuffed. It … Continue reading

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The Books: “The Time Is Ripe: The 1940 Journals of Clifford Odets”

Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir: The Time Is Ripe: The 1940 Journal of Clifford Odets : With an Introduction by William Gibson Clifford Odets (playwright in the 30s and 40s – inspiration to Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, a generation of … Continue reading

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The Books: “Timebends: A Life” (Arthur Miller)

Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir: Timebends: A Life, by Arthur Miller This is truly bizarre. Today happens to be Arthur Miller’s birthday. His is the next book on the shelf. So happy birthday, Arthur Miller. When Timebends came out, in … Continue reading

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The Books: “Elia Kazan: A Life” (Elia Kazan)

Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir: Elia Kazan: A Life, by Elia Kazan I met Elia Kazan once. It was in 1999 and I was working on a show at the Actors Studio. It was a production of Awake and Sing, … Continue reading

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The Books: “In the Moment: My Life as an Actor” (Ben Gazzara)

Daily Book Excerpt: Entertainment Biography/Memoir: In the Moment: My Life as an Actor, by Ben Gazzara It’s my favorite type of career. Long-lasting, diverse, a little bit chaotic, not overly managed, with moments of brilliance, moments of just good workmanship … Continue reading

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