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There are a couple transit agencies that utilize high and low floor platforms on an alignment requiring different types of loading. Rather than having two sets of doors - one high level and another with steps for low level platforms - MUNI utilizes steps that raise and lower for each type of platform. Hence the sign on the pole advises Operators to raise the internal steps for the next platform which will be high level at Stonestown.
Wow this was some way to start the morning incredible performance from the Standard. Rounding the curve out of Grosmont ex BR Standard Class 4, 4-6-0 No 75029 Green Knight' makes an impressive sight.
Saturday 18th April 2015 NYMR
ROTC students practicing the ceremony . . . .
at UC Berkeley, Hearst Gymnasium.
(a cropped example; different exposure; see adjacent)
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Introduction
Every culture has their symbol of the triumph of "Good over Evil" . This is the statue of the Dancing Shiva, also known as Nataraj, which, in the Hindu culture, symbolizes the triumph of Good over Evil. It was a "mist"ical moment this morning. This statue of the Dancing Shiva reminded me of the Bharat Natyam and Kuchipudi dancers who, before every dance recital, and especially during the Arangetram (a graduation of sorts) ceremonies, say a prayer to him.
A note relating to my roots in Physics
"Fritzof Capra in The Tao of Physics beautifully relates Nataraj's dance with modern physics. He says that "every subatomic particle not only performs an energy dance, but also is an energy dance; a pulsating process of creation and destruction…without end…For the modern physicists, then Shiva's dance is the dance of subatomic matter. As in Hindu mythology, it is a continual dance of creation and destruction involving the whole cosmos; the basis of all existence and of all natural phenomena."
Here's an excerpt from a poem by Ruth Peel:
"The source of all movement,
Shiva's dance,
Gives rhythm to the universe.
He dances in evil places,
In sacred,
He creates and preserves,
Destroys and releases.
We are part of this dance
This eternal rhythm,
And woe to us if, blinded
By illusions,
We detach ourselves
From the dancing cosmos,
This universal harmony…"
Nataraj, the dancing form of Lord Shiva, is a symbolic synthesis of the most important aspects of Hinduism, and the summary of the central tenets of this Vedic religion. The term 'Nataraj' means 'King of Dancers' (Sanskrit nata = dance; raja = king). In the words of Ananda K. Coomaraswamy, Nataraj is the "clearest image of the activity of God which any art or religion can boast of…A more fluid and energetic representation of a moving figure than the dancing figure of Shiva can scarcely be found anywhere," (The Dance of Shiva)
The Origin of Nataraj
An extraordinary iconographic representation of the rich and diverse cultural heritage of India, it was developed in southern India by 9th and 10th century artists during the Chola period (880-1279 CE) in a series of beautiful bronze sculptures. By the 12th century AD, it achieved canonical stature and soon the Chola Nataraja became the supreme statement of Hindu art.
The Vital Form & Symbolism
In a marvellously unified and dynamic composition expressing the rhythm and harmony of life, Nataraj is shown with four hands represent the four cardinal directions. He is dancing, with his left foot elegantly raised and the right foot on a prostrate figure — 'Apasmara Purusha', the personification of illusion and ignorance over whom Shiva triumphs. The upper left hand holds a flame, the lower left hand points down to the dwarf, who is shown holding a cobra. The upper right hand holds an hourglass drum or dumroo that stands for the male-female vital principle, the lower shows the gesture of assertion: "Be without fear." Snakes that stand for egotism, are seen uncoiling from his arms, legs, and hair, which is braided and bejewelled. His matted locks are whirling as he dances within an arch of flames representing the endless cycle of birth and death. On his head is a skull, which symbolises his conquest over death. Goddess Ganga, the epitome of the holy river Ganges, also sits on his hairdo. His third eye is symbolic of his omniscience, insight, and enlightenment. The whole idol rests on a lotus pedestal, the symbol of the creative forces of the universe.
The Significance of Shiva's Dance
This cosmic dance of Shiva is called 'Anandatandava,' meaning the Dance of Bliss, and symbolizes the cosmic cycles of creation and destruction, as well as the daily rhythm of birth and death. The dance is a pictorial allegory of the five principle manifestations of eternal energy — creation, destruction, preservation, salvation, and illusion. According to Coomerswamy, the dance of Shiva also represents his five activities: 'Shrishti' (creation, evolution); 'Sthiti' (preservation, support); 'Samhara' (destruction, evolution); 'Tirobhava' (illusion); and 'Anugraha' (release, emancipation, grace). The overall temper of the image is paradoxical, uniting the inner tranquillity, and outside activity of Shiva.
[Text taken from hinduism.com, HDR by Photomatix Pro]
Disclaimer: I am not a religious person, but some people have accused me of being spiritual, which epithet I will graciously accept :)
"Jesus spoke the following parable to some people who prided themselves on being virtuous and despised everyone else: ‘Two men went up to the Temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood there and said this prayer to himself, “I thank you, God, that I am not grasping, unjust, adulterous like the rest of mankind, and particularly that I am not like this tax collector here. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes on all I get.” The tax collector stood some distance away, not daring even to raise his eyes to heaven; but he beat his breast and said, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” This man, I tell you, went home again at rights with God; the other did not. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the man who humbles himself will be exalted.’"
- Luke 18:9-14, which is today's Gospel at Mass (30th Sun in Ordinary Time)
Stained glass window from Most Holy Redeemer church in Detroit.
"When we were baptised in Christ Jesus we were baptised in his death; in other words, when we were baptised we went into the tomb with him and joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glory, we too might live a new life." – Romans 6:3-4, which is part of today's epistle at Mass.
This delightful medieval Trinity sculpture is from the church of the Holy Spirit (Spital Kirche) in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany.
Thorncrown Chapel was designed by world renowned architect E. Fay Jones. Fay was born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas in 1921. He studied at the University of Arkansas, Rice University, the University of Oklahoma, and finally under his mentor Frank Lloyd Wright at the Taliesin Fellowship.
Jones’ awards include the 1981 American Institute of Architecture National Honor Award for Thorncrown Chapel and the AIA Gold Medal (1990). Thorncrown was listed fourth on the AIA’s top ten buildings of the 20th century. When alive, Mr. Jones was recognized as one of the top ten living architects of the 20th century.
The inspiration for Thorncrown Chapel was Sainte Chappelle, Paris’ light filled gothic chapel. Fay affectionately labeled Thorncrown’s style as “Ozark Gothic.” The chapel rises 48 feet into the sky with over 6,000 square feet of glass and 425 windows. Its dimensions are 24 feet by 60 feet. The chapel is made with all organic materials to fit its natural setting. The only steel in the structure forms a diamond shaped pattern in its wooden trusses. The building has a native flagstone floor surrounded with a rock wall which gives the feeling that the chapel is part of its Ozark hillside.
In order to preserve Thorncrown’s natural setting, Fay decided that no structural element could be larger than what two men could carry through the woods. The building materials are primarily pressure treated pine 2x4s, 2x6s, and 2x12s. The larger elements of the building such as the trusses were assembled on the floor and raised into place.
"Raised To Life" Elevation Worship
www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhIGt0mq2JI&index=3&list=...
"Raised To Life"
Precious compassion that pours
From the wounds that have won our salvation
Sin was strong but the Savior is stronger
Come let us worship Him
Great was the debt that we owed
And how high was the price of our healing
Paid in full by the One who is worthy
Come let us worship Him
Raised to life with Christ the Savior
In His name a new creation
Now our song will rise
Adoring Christ the Lord
Death overcome by the Word
That was spoken before it was finished
Jesus Saves is our song everlasting
Come let us worship Him
Raised to life with Christ the Savior
In His name a new creation
Now our song will rise
Adoring Christ the Lord
Sin was strong
But Jesus is stronger
Our shame was great
But Jesus You're greater
[x6]
Jesus You're greater
Raised to life with Christ the Savior
In His name a new creation
Now our song will rise
Adoring Christ the Lord
[x2]
Sin was strong
But Jesus is stronger
Our shame was great
But Jesus You're greater
[x6]
Feeding the hungry is a greater work than raising the dead.
St. John Chrysosatom
tones: Isabelle Lafrance
texture: renquedochan and flypaper
hope you had a relaxing weekend and wish you a good new week :)
Chassis n° DB6/2753/LN
Zoute Sale - Bonhams
Estimated : 150.000 - 200.000
Sold for € 241.500
Zoute Grand Prix 2021
Knokke - Zoute
België - Belgium
October 2021
The culmination of Aston Martin's long-running line of 'DB' six-cylinder sports saloons and thus considered by many to be the last 'real' Aston, the DB6 had been introduced in 1965, updating the DB5. Although recognisably related to the elegant, Touring-styled DB4 of 1958, the DB6 abandoned the Carrozzeria Touring-developed Superleggera body structure of its predecessors in favour of a conventional steel fabrication while retaining the aluminium outer panels.
Increased rear-seat space was the prime DB6 objective, so the wheelbase was now 4" (101.6mm) longer than before, resulting in an extensive re-style with more-raked windscreen, raised roofline, and reshaped rear quarter windows. Opening front quarter lights made a reappearance but the major change was at the rear where a Kamm-style tail with spoiler improved the aerodynamics, greatly enhancing stability at high speeds. These many dimensional changes were integrated most successfully, the DB6's overall length increasing by only 2" (50.8mm). Indeed, but for the distinctive Kamm tail one might easily mistake it for a DB5.
The Tadek Marek-designed six-cylinder engine had been enlarged to 3,995cc for the preceding DB5 and remained unchanged. Power output on triple SU carburettors was 282bhp, rising to 325bhp in Vantage specification, complete with triple Webers. Borg-Warner automatic transmission was offered alongside the standard ZF five-speed gearbox, and for the first time there was optional power-assisted steering.
It is an irony that, having brought the original DB4 concept to perfection in the form of the DB6, Aston Martin chose to change direction with the larger DBS and successor V8-engined models. Today the accomplished DB6, despite being the most evolved and practical of the original DB family is also, somewhat paradoxically, the most affordable.
A left-hand drive example with the desirable five-sped manual gearbox, chassis number '2753/L', was despatched new to the importer J S Inskip in New York, USA and sold to a Mr Bernard Chaus of New Jersey. The accompanying guarantee form copy shows that the Aston was originally finished in Autumn Gold with natural Connolly leather trim. The following items of non-standard equipment are listed: engine breather system; 3.73:1 limited-slip differential; Normalaire air conditioning; chrome wheels; heated rear screen; Fiamm horns; Britax safety belts; 3-ear hubcaps; Bosch Köln radio; and two Marchal fog lamps
Nawab Nusrat Khan alias Khawaja Sabir belonged to a distinguished family of nobles and received the title of Khan-e-Dauran from Shah Jahan. He died at Lahore in 1659 and the present mausoleum was raised to his memory by Aurangzeb.
My Journey of Two years for getting permission to visit this Tomb:-
Two years back, I was searching the list of Tombs present in Lahore. Most of them, I had seen in past or at least know there locations. Then there was a name came in front of me, “Nusrat Khan Tomb”. I had never heard about it and also did not know about its location or see any of its pictures. I thought it might be vanished in past and may be some ruined exists of it. Only information which I got on internet that it was located few kilometers from Kokaltash’s tomb. At that time, I did not have idea that it is inside the grounds of carriage shop. So the search begins after my office work, I reached near Kokaltash tomb and asked from locals is there any tomb there. There were very funny interesting answers. Someone was telling me about Mian Mir Tomb and someone speaking me about Madhu Lal Tomb. Then I reached near the Chabacha stop there was railway line coming out of carriage railway workshop. Few railway policeman were standing there, I also inquired the directions from them. They were not sure about the name but they told me same structures like Kokaltash also exists inside the carriage workshop but it was using as Mosque and they did not know was there any grave inside . So at last the mystery solved. I asked them how to visit there. They told come at early 8 in the morning and take permission from inspector railway deputed at Railway Carriage. Next morning, I reached there and meet the inspector. There was quite interesting conversation. Firstly I told him my reason of my visit. He answered there is no tomb exists inside. Secondly he questioned, do I visit there for making documentary film? He again questioned, you looks an educated guy are you preparing report for some organization. I wanted to explain him I have passion to explore historical architectures but I could not able to convince him. When I was about to leave he smiled and advised take promise from headquarters or bring some media card with you, you might get permission.
I was not disheartened in fact I got more anxious to visit it. The second attempt was discussing this site with one of friend Syed Faizan also known as Lahore ka khoji. He tried to get permission but it was also in vain.
Thirdly I asked one of my friends and my table tennis coach as well Masood Ali, who plays table tennis for Pakistan railways to grant me permission from head quarters. He asked from seniors but they told the site is prohibited to visit as the area is sensitive.
I also asked one of my friend, who is editor in a renowned newspaper. But he also failed to get permissions.
After so many failed attempts, I again asked few of my friends who have passion of history and architecture like me. But none of them, able to get permission of visit.
At last after two years when I visited all the tombs of Lahore, I found a way how could I visit this last tomb a tricky way but it works. Someone told me meet railway worker union president. I found him and told him the reason of meeting. He was not willing first but I offered him some handsome fee for his great generous services :P. After few weeks he called me that I can come in morning but I am not allowed to bring DSLR camera with me. Well that I did not listen next I day I was there with camera bag and two mobile camera as well for Plan B. luckily at entrance they did not check my bag I have only two three minutes to see the great architecture. I took few shots all around, absorb the site in mind and left the place with feeling of accomplishment.
Location
Nusrat Khan's tomb is located at a distance of approximately ½ mile northwest of Zafar Jang Kokaltash's tomb in thegrounds of Carriage and Wagon Shops of Pakistan Railways. It can be reached by traveling north on Mughalpura Road until it ends on Workshop Road. Traveling some distance east on Workshop Road, you will reach the Pakistan Railways Carriage and Wagon Shops gate on your right. The tomb lies hidden deep within the grounds of the Carriage and Wagon Shops and is inaccessible to the general public due to the security requirements of the Pakistan Railways.
Construction
The tomb is a massive structure, built entirely of small Lahori bricks without the use of stone or Kashi Kari. The octagonal mausoleum stands in the centre of a platform of octagonal shape which is now covered with grass. The building has an ornamental niche decoration on its façade and pigeon-holes in a schematic way on its dome. The double shell dome is raised over a circular drum. There is a clear evidence of tendency towards the evolution of a bulbous dome. The monotony of the circular drum is broken by rectangular panels set back slightly. On the eastern side, the drum has been pierced with a small window giving an entry to the cavity between the two shells.
At the top of the dome, there can been seen the remains of a lotus base for a pinnacle that is no longer extant. The building is surmounted by turrets of much elegance and beauty. Many of them survive to this day, however; the domes have fallen off of a few of them. The interior was decorated with paintings of different colors but unfortunately now has been paint-washed in the traditional colors of the Pakistan Railways, green and yellow. The tomb has been converted to the use of a mosque for the employees of the Carriage and Wagon Shops. Most of the arched entrances have been closed up and metal posts have been used to support a tin roof over a portion of the first storey.
Historical Background
The tomb suffered extensive damage during the reign of Ranjit Singh when the marble embellishments were removed. The tomb was also used as a private residence by General Court, a member of Ranjit Singh's army. General Court added many rooms to the building but they had all been destroyed by the early 1890s except three arches in the upper storey to the west. It was further damaged during the British time when it was turned into a hall room for military officers. The structure came to be called Gumbad Bijjar-wala on the account of people from the Bijjar tribe having lived in it after the collapse of the Sikh government.
This is a single 30 second self-portrait under the Spruce Knob, WV Milky Way from May 2014. Slight green airglow is visible above the orange layer of light pollution and I used my red astronomy headlamp to illuminate the foreground. Shot with a Nikon D800 and Nikon 24-85mm lens at 24 mm and F/3.5
Mexican postcard by Sello, no. 216. Collection: Marlene Pilaete.
On 25 November 2020, Mexican singer and actress Flor Silvestre (1930-2020) passed away. She was one of the most prominent and successful performers of Mexican and Latin American music and was a star of classic Mexican films. Famous for her melodious voice and unique singing style, she was nicknamed "La Sentimental" (The Sentimental One) and "La Voz Que Acaricia" (The Voice That Caresses). Her more than 70-year career included stage productions, radio programs, records, films, television programs, comics, and rodeo shows.
Flor Silvestre was born Guillermina Jiménez Chabolla in 1930 in Salamanca, Guanajuato, Mexico. She was the third child and second daughter of Jesús Jiménez Cervantes, a butcher, and María de Jesús Chabolla Peña. Her sisters Enriqueta and María de la Luz also became singers. Guillermina was raised in Salamanca and began singing at an early age. Her parents, who were also fond of singing, encouraged her to sing. She loved the mariachi music of famous Mexican singers Jorge Negrete and Lucha Reyes, and also sang songs that belonged to the pasodoble, tango, and bolero genres, which were popular in Mexico in the late 1930s. Her family moved to Mexico City and there she began her singing career. In 1943, when she was 13 years old, she debuted at the Teatro del Pueblo. Her next performance at the Teatro del Pueblo was in the play 'La soldadera' (The female soldier), directed by López Santillán. She played a girl who comes out of a railway wagon and sings 'La soldadera', a song written for her by José de Jesús Morales. The play was also broadcast by Mexico's national radio station, XEFO, and 'La soldadera' became the first song she performed on radio. XEFO announcer Arturo Blancas chose the title of Dolores del Río's film Flor Silvestre (Emilio Fernández, 1943), as the young singer's new stage name, so Guillermina Jiménez became Flor Silvestre, which means 'wild flower'. In 1945, she was announced as the "Alma de la Canción Ranchera" (Soul of the Ranchera Song), and in 1950, the year in which she emerged as a radio star, she was proclaimed the "Reina de la Canción Mexicana" (Queen of Mexican Song). In February 1950, she was a part of the "numerous, hybrid, but useful cast" of '¡A los toros!', a revue about bullfighting staged at the Teatro Tívoli. It was written and presented by announcer Paco Malgesto, who would become her second husband. In the revue, she sang Mexican musical numbers associated with bullfights. Also in 1950, she signed a contract with Columbia Records and recorded her first hits, which include 'Imposible olvidarte', 'Que Dios te perdone', and 'Pobre corazón'. In 1957, she began recording for Musart Records and became one of the label's exclusive artists with numerous best-selling singles, such as 'Cielo rojo', 'Renunciación', and 'Gracias'. Many of her hits charted on Cashbox Mexico's Best Sellers and Record World Latin American Single Hit Parade. She also participated in her husband Antonio Aguilar's musical rodeo shows.
Flor Silvestre made her film debut in 1949 singing in Te besaré en la boca/I will kiss you on the mouth (Fernando Cortés, 1950). In 1950, Flor signed a five-film contract with Gregorio Walerstein, a leading film producer known as "the Tsar of Mexican films" She made her acting debut in his production Primero soy mexicano/First I am Mexican (1950), co-starring Joaquín Pardavé (who also wrote and directed the film) and Luis Aguilar and featuring Francisco "Charro" Avitia. She was reunited with Luis Aguilar and Francisco Avitia in the film El tigre enmascarado/The masked tiger (Zacarías Gómez Urquiza, 1951). She then appeared as the leading lady of actor Dagoberto Rodríguez in a film trilogy, El lobo solitario/The lonely wolf (Vicente Oroná, 1952), La justicia del lobo/Wolf justice (Vicente Oroná, 1952), and Vuelve el lobo/The wolf returns (Vicente Oroná, 1952). Between 1950 and 1990, she appeared in more than seventy films. Beautiful and statuesque, she became one of the leading stars of the 'golden age' of the Mexican film industry. In 1955, she appeared in her first color film, La doncella de piedra/The stone maiden (Miguel M. Delgado, 1956), one of the first Mexican CinemaScope productions. An adaptation of Rómulo Gallegos' novel 'Sobre la misma tierra', the film features Flor Silvestre in the role of Cantaralia Barroso, the mother of the novel's protagonist, Remota Montiel (played by Elsa Aguirre). Silvestre played opposite famous comedians, such as Cantinflas in the Eastmancolor comedy El bolero de Raquel/Raquel's Shoeshiner (Miguel M. Delgado, 1957). She received for the first time top billing in Pueblo en Armas/People in arms (Miguel Contreras Torres, 1959) and its sequel ¡Viva la soldadera!/Long live the female soldiers!(Miguel Contreras Torres, 1960). Director Ismael Rodríguez gave her important roles in the Mexican Revolution epic La cucaracha/The Soldiers of Pancho Villa (Ismael Rodríguez, 1959) opposite María Félix and Dolores del Río, and Ánimas Trujano/The Important Man (Ismael Rodríguez, 1962) with Toshiro Mifune, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and won a Golden Globe. In 1960, she starred opposite the popular comedy duo Viruta and Capulina in Dos locos en escena/Two Crazy Ones on the Scene (Agustín P. Delgado, 1960).
In 1973, Flor Silvestre played one of Pancho Villa's lovers in La muerte de Pancho Villa (Mario Hernández, 1973), and played Felipe Carrillo Puerto's wife, Isabel Palma, in Peregrina (Mario Hernández, 1974). She sang 'La palma' in Simón Blanco (Mario Hernández, 1975) and played the female leads in Don Herculano enamorado/Don Herculano in love (Mario Hernández, 1975), El moro de cumpas/The Moor of Cumpas (Mario Hernández, 1977), and Mi caballo el cantador/My horse the singer (Mario Hernández, 1979). She made her final film, Triste recuerdo/Sad memory (Mario Hernández, 1990). She was also the star of the comic book 'La Llanera Vengadora'. In 2013, the Association of Mexican Cinema Journalists honored her with the Special Silver Goddess Award. In 2015, her documentary 'Flor Silvestre: su destino fue querer' premiered at the Guadalajara International Film Festival. The 24-minute documentary features interviews with Flor Silvestre, who recounts her life and career; her five children, Dalia, Francisco, Marcela, Antonio, and Pepe; and singers Angélica María and Guadalupe Pineda. Flor Silvestre married her first husband, Andrés Nieto, in the 1940s. She gave birth to her first child, singer and dancer Dalia Inés Nieto, when she was 16 years old. Around 1953, Flor Silvestre married radio announcer and bullfighting chronicler Francisco Rubiales Calvo "Paco Malgesto", who would later become a famous presenter and pioneer of Mexican television. They had two children, translator Francisco Rubiales and singer and actress Marcela Rubiales. They lived in a house in Mexico City's Lindavista neighborhood. The couple separated and began divorce proceedings in 1958. Flor Silvestre's third and last husband was singer and actor Antonio Aguilar, who died in 2007. He was the love of her life. Their relationship began when they made the film El rayo de Sinaloa in 1957. They married in 1959 (or 1960, according to some sources) and had two sons who also became singers and actors, Antonio "Toño" Aguilar and José "Pepe" Aguilar. Aguilar built her a spacious home and ranch, El Soyate, northeast of Tayahua, Zacatecas. Flor Silvestre died on 25 November 2020 at her home in Villanueva, Zacatecas. She was 90.
Sources: Wikipedia and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Tree-mendous Tuesday
Now the roof is a good foot higher than it was. This will make walking inside the hoop house much easier.
Russian postcard by 'Goznak', Moscow, series 2, no. A 1725, 1927. The card was issued in an edition of 15.000 copies.
Danish silent film actress Asta Nielsen (1881-1972), was one of the most popular leading ladies of the 1910s and one of the first international film stars. Of her 74 films between 1910 and 1932, seventy were made in Germany where she was known simply as 'Die Asta'. Noted for her large dark eyes, mask-like face, and boyish figure, Nielsen most often portrayed strong-willed passionate women trapped by tragic consequences.
Asta Sofie Amalie Nielsen was born in the Copenhagen suburb of Vesterbro, Denmark, in 1881. She was the daughter of an often unemployed blacksmith and a washerwoman. Nielsen's family moved several times during her childhood while her father sought employment. When she was fourteen years old, her father died. Asta's stage debut came as a child in the chorus of the Kongelige Teater's production of Boito's opera 'Mephistopheles'. At the age of eighteen, Nielsen was accepted into the drama school of the Royal Danish Theatre. During her time there, she studied with the Royal Danish actor Peter Jerndorff. In 1901, twenty years old, she became pregnant and gave birth to her daughter, Jesta. Nielsen never revealed the identity of the father, and chose to raise her child alone with the help of her mother and older sister. In 1902, she graduated from drama school. For the next three years, she worked at the Dagmar Theatre, then toured in Norway and Sweden from 1905 to 1907 with De Otte and the Peter Fjelstrup companies. Returning to Denmark, she was employed at Det Ny Theater (The New Theatre) from 1907 to 1910. Although she worked steadily as a stage actress, her performances remained unremarkable. Danish historian Robert Neiiedam wrote that Nielsen's unique physical attraction, which was of great value on the screen, was limited on stage by her deep and uneven speaking voice.
In 1909, set designer and director Urban Gad encouraged Asta Nielsen to become a film actress and she starred in his Danish silent film Afgrunden/The Abyss (Urban Gad, 1910). Gary Morris observes in Bright Lights Film Journal: "this film established from the beginning key components of her legend: scandalous eroticism and a uniquely minimalist acting style." Asta plays a music teacher lured away from her stolid fiancee (Robert Dinesen) by a sexy but faithless circus cowboy (Poul Reumert). In a startling sequence of sexual intensity, she lassos her boyfriend and does a lewd dance, bumping and grinding against him. Morris: "This vulgar ‘gaucho-dance’ was what most viewers remembered, but critics of the time also applauded Asta's naturalistic acting." The film was a huge success so she was encouraged to continue. The following year Balletdanserinden/The Ballet Dancer (August Blom, 1911) proved to be another success. Nielsen and Gad soon married. A German distributor, Paul Davidson, invited Nielsen to Germany, where he was building a new studio. Eventually, this would become Europe's largest film studio - the Universum Film Union A.-G. (or Ufa). Asta signed a contract for $80,000 a year, then the highest salary for a film actress. In 1911, she moved to Berlin with Urban Gad. In a Russian popularity poll of that year, she was voted world's top female film star, behind French comedian Max Linder and ahead of her Danish compatriot Valdemar Psilander.
In the next six years, Asta Nielsen played every conceivable kind of character in both tragedies and comedies. In Die Suffragette/The Militant Suffragette (Urban Gad, 1913), she is an English female liberationist whose beliefs force her to become violent, placing a bomb in Parliament. In Zapatas Bande/Zapata's Gang (Urban Gad, 1916), she plays a highway robber. In the comedy Das Liebes-ABC/The ABCs of Love (Magnus Stifter, 1916), she pretends to be a man and takes her wimpy boyfriend out on the town in order to "bring out the man in him." Nielsen was so famous that the name Asta became a trademark for cigarettes and perfumes. In the Dutch city The Hague, a cinema was named after her. Her beauty was praised by the poet Guillaume Apollinaire as "the drunkard's vision and the lonely man's dream". One of Asta's most interesting productions was Hamlet (Sven Gade, Heinz Schall, 1921). Gary Morris: "Asta brings a subtle twist to her version not by playing a man, but by playing a woman disguised as a man, adding another level of gender complexity. Hamlet was based less on William Shakespeare than on a popular book of the time that said Hamlet was actually a girl forcibly raised as a boy in order to provide an heir to the Danish throne. At first, the effect is more puzzling than effective, but the actress's strategy becomes evident in sexually charged scenes between Asta/Hamlet and Horatio, who caress and coddle each other in what surely appeared to viewers of the time (as it does to modern audiences) as a gay tryst. Asta brilliantly imparts the gender-unstable nature of the character in these scenes with Horatio and others with Fortinbras, whose encounters with Hamlet are also clearly coded as gay. The actress's effortless creation of these subtle, sympathetic homosexual tableaux gives a tremendous vitality to this production. The fact that the film was truly hers — being the first film she made with her own production company — shows just how daring and modern she was."
Nowadays Asta Nielsen is best known for Die Freudlose Gasse/The Joyless Street (G.W. Pabst, 1925). Asta plays in this film an impoverished woman who resorts to prostitution and murder. In the original prints there were two equal-time female leads: Nielsen and a young actress from Sweden, Greta Garbo. Ruthlessly cut for American release, the film suddenly became a Garbo vehicle. Fortunately, the print has been restored recently and Asta triumphs in it as the increasingly unbalanced Marie. Nielsen continued to be a screen legend in Germany, and appeared in films like Dirnentragödie/Tragedy of the Street (Bruno Rahn, 1927) and in her only sound film Unmögliche Liebe/Crown of Thorns (Erich Waschneck, 1932). After the Nazis came to power she was rumoured to be offered her own studio by propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels. Understanding the implications well, she left Germany for good in 1936, settling in Denmark where she returned to stage acting and became a private figure. In her later years, Asta Nielsen wrote articles on art and politics and a two-volume autobiography, 'Den tiende Muse' (The Silent Muse) in 1946. She also became an acclaimed collage artist. In 1964, Nielsen had to come to terms with the most severe blow of her life: her daughter Jesta committed suicide following the death of her husband. At 86, Asta directed her first film. Luise F. Pusch writes in FemBio: "After a film about her life did not meet with her approval, she set to work on the project herself. The result was a work of art." At 88, Asta Nielsen married her third husband, Christian Theede, an art dealer 18 years her junior and the great love of her life. The two enjoyed their travels together so much that they decided to leave their fortune to a foundation to fund trips for the elderly. In 1972, Asta Nielsen died in Copenhagen after a leg fracture. She was 90.
Sources: Gary Morris (Bright Lights Film Journal), Luise F. Pusch (FemBio), Jim Beaver (IMDb), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
WEEK 40 – Hdo WM, Post-Remodel, Set IV
From that same vantage point, here’s a view turned more to the right, allowing us a good overview of the open front area of the grocery department. Notice anything different between the previous pic and this one? If any of you noticed the lighting… good eye, you’re exactly right! When the remodel was underway, new lights were installed above produce, replacing the previous spotlight fixtures… and they were placed quite low. As in, blocking-all-the-department-signage low. That seemed odd, but I assume the idea was simply the lower the light placement, the better illumination of the produce. However, someone must have either given up on that idea or realized that the sign blockage was not a good look, because the lights were raised up sometime not long prior to the date that this photo was taken on in late January 2018 (if I remember correctly, that is).
(c) 2018 Retail Retell
These places are public so these photos are too, but just as I tell where they came from, I'd appreciate if you'd say who :)