View allAll Photos Tagged Unenthusiastic,
Although when I took this shot I was pleased with the clarity of the seed head, but the shot overall leaves me cold and unenthusiastic.
Note to self, must do better...
On Tuesday morning I ventured up to Dartmoor with Louis Goldman Photography for sunrise at Brentor Church. Unfortunately, when we arrived we were greeted with thick fog and cloud, despite the weather report saying different.
So we abandoned that plan and took a drive through the moors to see if the weather was any better. As we got to Princetown the sky was clear with patches of low cloud and mist, and it looked amazing. We'd definitely picked the wrong location!!
Feeling a bit unenthusiastic after the failure at Brentor, I was in two minds about going home or finding another spot to shoot at. I made a last minute decision to stop at the side of the road by Sharpitor and took a walk up Peek Hill and we came across this stunning looking tree.
I'm not a massive lover of trees, I find them difficult to photograph and make them interesting but the morning mist and low cloud helped out with this and the side light from the sun was superb. The Autumn colours are kicking off on the moor and I gave this shot a warmer colour balance to accentuate those wonderful brown colours. In the background, you can just see Leather Tor through the mist.
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As much as I appreciated comments and feedback I would request no Awards or flashy gif comments, please. They will be deleted. Thank you.
The Great Pagoda at Kew Gardens in southwest London was built in 1761 by Sir William Chambers as a present for Princess Augusta, the founder of the gardens. Constructed of grey brick, the pagoda comprises 10 storeys, totalling 163 ft (50 m) in height, with 253 steps to the viewing gallery. Closed for repairs in 2006, the pagoda was reopened in 2018 following a major programme of restoration. It is a Grade I listed building.
Princess Augusta, widow of Frederick, Prince of Wales, established the botanic garden at Kew in 1759.Augusta employed Sir William Chambers to construct a number of architectural features in the gardens, including temples, a ruined arch and the Great Pagoda. The 18th century saw great increases in trade between China and the West, and led to an explosion of interest in Chinese art and culture. Chambers' pagoda was an early example of this. Born in Sweden, although educated in England, Chambers enlisted with the Swedish East India Company making three voyages to China and Bengal in the 1740s. Later in life, he was to publish a Dissertation on Oriental Gardening and he had already, in 1757, produced a volume, Designs of Chinese Buildings. His initial view of the gardens at Kew was unenthusiastic; "The gardens are not large, nor is their situation advantageous, the soil is in general barren".
By instinct and training, Chambers was a Palladian architect. In his Treatise on Civil Architecture, he wrote, "Amongst the restorers of the ancient Roman architecture, the style of Palladio is correct and elegant". Nevertheless, he was quite willing to employ Chinese structural designs, although he considered them to be "toys", only suitable as inspiration for garden ornaments. Chambers himself described the inspiration for the pagoda in his The Gardens and Buildings at Kew in Surry, published in 1763.
A 2013 study by The Georgian Group looked at possible Chinese models for the Great Pagoda, acknowledging that Chambers, unlike almost all of his contemporary architects, had been to China and therefore had a wider range of possible sources on which to draw. Aldous Bertram, the paper's author, considers the Porcelain Tower of Nanjing as an inspiration but suggests two Cantonese pagodas as more likely sources, the Chigang Pagoda and the Pazhou Pagoda, both in the city of Guangzhou, both dating from the early 17th century, and both almost certainly seen by Chambers during his Chinese expeditions.
The Great Pagoda was completed in only six months. The speed of completion and the quality of construction were points of pride for Chambers; "the walls of the building are composed of very hard bricks...neatly laid, and with such care, that there is not the least crack or fracture in the whole structure, notwithstanding its great height, and the expedition with which it was built". 80 gilded dragons decorated the roofs of its ten storeys although these had been removed by 1784. The height of the building impressed contemporaries; in 1762, Horace Walpole wrote to a friend, "the Pagoda at Kew begins to rise above the trees and soon you will see it from Yorkshire".
During the Second World War the pagoda was used as a munitions test site, with holes being opened up through each floor to allow smoke bombs to be dropped the height of the tower
By the late 20th century, the pagoda was in a dilapidated state and was closed to the public. A major restoration project undertaken jointly by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and Historic Royal Palaces saw the restoration of the pagoda, including the re-carving and reinstatement of the dragons, and its reopening in 2018. The restoration worked towards reinstatement and restoration of as many original architectural features as possible, drawing on the available historical evidence. A master copy of one of the dragons was carved in African cedar wood, and seven more were replicated for the lowest roof. Carving was undertaken by Tim Crawley, Head of Historic Carving at the City and Guilds of London Art School. The remainder were fabricated in nylon using 3D modelling technology, as the weight of the wooden sculptures would have been too great for the roofs. The restoration has won a number of design awards.
«Italian windows are never innocent. When they are portrayed – in a painting, a film, or a song – there is a reason. […] Notoriously, we are unenthusiastic about air conditioning. It upsets our stomachs and discourages poetry.»
Beppe Severgnini, La Bella figura. A field guide to the italian mind
I don’t know what I expected to find as I scrambled over rocks and jutting cliffs to get to a point usually closed by the tide. Returning from our Derbyshire duties the evening before I had a desire to get down to the coast straight away, crazy really as we had only been in central England for 5 days. Beautiful as it is the idea of being so far from the coast gets to me. It was still quite dark and the tide was rising I knew I only had a few minutes before my escape route was cut off, but as it was only 10 minutes from sunrise I shouldn’t be here long. That sunrise was looking pretty bleak, the cloud suffocated the horizon, then a tiny bit of magic of fractured light as the sun found away to herald its arrival. I quickly picked some foreground interested, unenthusiastically snapped away trying to catch any sea movement to enhance my lacklustre composition. The colour disappears as quickly as it came and I needed to make my exit with the same speed. I made my way back along the sands trying to make the most of my 4:20 start but I felt it was a disappointing trip as I dropped my camera back in the house knowing it would be a few days before I rediscovered this morning.
A very enthusiastic "Ground Stab" and a rather unenthusiastic audience. :)
Sandhill Cranes
Monte Vista NWR, Monte Vista, CO
As the BNSF 7118 west rolled by L565 on the main, they hopped on the radio and exclaimed "Looks like you guys have your own personal photographers tonight!" "We've got a crowd every night. At least, ever since we got this old Rock Island engine," the 565's crew unenthusiastically replied.
At first, I was confused by the "Rock Island" part of that statement, but a quick Google search later confirmed their comment, as the GTW 5856 was built for the RI in November of 1978 as their 4374.
Regardless, we're at the west end of Peosta, IA, just one town west of Dubuque, and this unit has already caused its crew plenty of hassles. Apparently the sanders just wouldn't shut off, and piles of sand were accumulating in the cab and nose. This caused a call to the Diesel Doctor, who would relegate the unit to "Trail Only" status for future runs. Then, to make matters worse, they had to double the hill coming into Peosta, as the 5856 had stalled out. For us, it was a treat, but for the crews, it had to be an awful day at the office.
A red azalea in my back yard that has been a rather unenthusiastic bloomer for many years has decided that this is the year to show what it's capable of and it's loaded with the most beautiful crop of spring blossoms. I did nothing to encourage this and ascribe it to a perfect combination of rain/sun warm/cold Vancouver weather we had last winter, which seems also to have resulted in prolific city-wide spring blossoms.
18/04/2025 www.allenfotowild.com
I have quite a few photo ideas swimming in my head but I've been too busy and unenthusiastic to execute them. I managed to pick up my camera yesterday to do this one.
I've been wanting to take a photo of my old miniature perfume collecltion. This required more effort than it looks. I kept having to change the bottles' positions and switch camera angles to make sure the composition and light were just right (I hope).
Last week I posted a picture of the snowy mountains from sea level, from the Dungeness beach.
There is free entrance to the national parks on Martin Luther King Day and the road to the top of Hurricane Ridge (17miles and alt. 5242 feet) is plowed so our hiking group goes up to snowshoe, something that I wanted to try.
The drive is up is always interesting especially when you start out in the lowlands where it is 40 degrees and the sun is just coming up and there is no snow.It is impossible to imagine what the weather conditions will be like at the top. I checked the web cam and current weather site and tried to dress accordingly.
When we arrived and tried to step outside we were promptly reminded we were in a parallel universe.....the wind was blowing so hard I suddenly understood why its called Hurricane Ridge! Since I didn't have face covering or snow goggles, I realized I couldn't snowshoe as planned, but fortunately I had brought my camera. Thought you'd like to see what winter looks like at the top of the world. I think you can see the swirling winds and blowing snow and maybe can imagine the stinging ice pellets that find and assault every area of uncovered skin. Despite this, there were 100's of brave folks up there,
skiing, sledding, snowshoeing, hiking, and yes, taking pictures. I was amazed at the many infants and toddlers whose parents were introducing them to the wonders of outside winter activities. Some were unenthusiastic!
It’s been just me and Toby for the last few days as Carla has been down to see our daughter and have a day out in town, that being London. The times passed quickly as I had a busy day yesterday for retired do nothing. After the quick dog walk I rushed the car to Kwik fit for the new tyres only to arrive for a 9:00 appointment I’d been SMS’ed reminded about serval times, to be told by an unenthusiastic young man that we don’t have the tyres! If you are a regular reader of my spiel I don’t have to tell you my reaction, which was not helped by “I can see Ashington has some in” and “it’s online people fault there don’t tell us anything”, the fact he is looking at my order on the screen in front of him it didn’t occur to him to check the deliveries the day before and give me a heads up. So with the unhelpful advice we might get them in at 3:00 and I’ll phone, I left to play holy hell with customer services. After 20 minutes in a queue the first person I harangue tells me I’m mobile tyres and quickly forwards me on. After another 15 minutes wait I eventually talk to somebody who is on the case, gets it sorted and compensates me by removing the fitting charge to show good will. Like my man used to say, “shy bairns get nowt” and at 3:20 walking Toby I get a call, my tyres have arrived, another walk cut short for poor Toby. Between my tyre fitting saga I managed to fit new bathroom basin taps (I did say busy) which required some of my latent fitter skills and tools to remove a seized hot water tap. I didn’t tell you I was a mechanical fitter in the Power stations for 11 years before working in IT for 30 years. Todays photo is a beech tree in Herts I took in 2019, the same beech I recently posted entitled Oscar’s hill.
Nothing in this photo of junked vehicles congregating around an empty granary stirs warm memories in me. On our farm over a half century ago the month of January tested the will of family members and the very lives of our chickens, pigs and cows.
The golden warmth of summer and fall were small objects in the rear view mirror of our memories during winter. My dad kept a couple dozen Leghorn hens over most winters and we were lucky to get enough eggs to have for breakfast a couple of mornings each week. When I entered the ammonia atmosphere of the hen house their welcoming clucks were unenthusiastic and their few eggs were cold, sometimes frozen on especially bitter days.
Pigs and cows set aside animosity toward each other and slept as close together as they could in order to share body heat.
One of my coldest tasks in the dead of winter came when my dad told me to go to the granary and get a couple of 5 gallon pails of shelled corn for some animals. It took me until my teen-age years to realize that he usually gave me those instructions from his heated shop where he was working on something “pretty important.”
(Photographed near Mora, MN)
A teenage girl while holding an umbrella with both hands close to her head walks in light rain with unenthusiastic look on her face.
She might be tired already of getting her feet wet after nearly three weeks of incessant rains due to southwest monsoon, which still affects some parts of Luzon, including the Zambales province. Luzon is the largest and most populated island in the Philippines.
Captured in late morning along a village street in the town of Subic, in the aforesaid province and country.
Santa Cruz, Ca. shop window.
Teach 'em early......
This trip to Santa Cruz was really disheartening. There was smoke in the air and some ash covering every surface. the streets had few people except for the homeless and a few generally unenthusiastic tourists. Of course the pandemic has taken its victims, if not by outright disease, then by destroying the ability of businesses to survive, thus creating many yawning vacant storefronts and some boarded up or with papered windows. The city was not what I have known it to be over these many years of visitations.
And, I know it should not be overblown, but it does make one wonder if this is not the dystopian future we all are facing. At my age, it's not something I need to concern myself with. But to be young and to adopt the perspective I've described, must be terribly upsetting and perplexing.
The day before I was asked by one passer by if I had seen the Bald Eagles at the Upper Harbor. Then my neighbor chimed in that I surely have seen them! Let's get this straight: Aside from total strangers talking to me, nobody tells me anything!
If you are ever wondering, no I don't know! Tell me! Sorry, anyways, This is the first BIF photo of what may well be hundreds. The first eagles I spotted, though, were a pair sitting next to each other on a branch. I'm not sure if I ever saw them both in the air at the same time.
I took many photos of Bald Eagles carrying nesting materials into the blue gum trees. The eagles were half-heartedly pursued by 3 or 4 crows. Western Gulls would make a ruckus when the eagles took to the air. Again the attempts to actually get near them seemed pretty unenthusiastic. Going through the motions...
Today I went back and mostly watched one eagle actually working on a nest.
A Bald Eagle nest practically in my backyard! Is it too much to hope to see eaglets?
I know we are out of season with this week's photos, but it is the time of year when I start to plan my photos for my grooming clients. I start in September, and everyone gets a Christmas photo as a gift in December. I ordered a new back drop and was trying it out, and of course, poor Pixie was my unenthusiastic model. I grabbed the first prop I found, the Santa hat, and plopped it on her head. She gave me her best 'Oh, woe is me' look. She is so hard done by.
mmm.
well. i was on a roll last week - before i went to amsterdam - and it's gone. whoosh. so for now, we're stuck with run of the mill portraits from yours truly. many apologies.
because i say so:
ennio morricone's theme for the good, the bad & the ugly
(different movie but at least they're both directed by sergio leone...)
Previously in Chapter 6 The Two Societies
This piece gave me the title to this chapter and was what I listened to much of the time when writing. It perfectly sets the tone for these scenes and the events that take place in our story.
⚜️The voyage had been long, just as Tabitha Kinkade had predicted. And while not terribly eventful overall, there was one mystery that troubled them throughout their journey. Quite often they were watched by an ominous, dark figure. A man in a dark, hooded cloak. He always kept his distance, holding to the shadows. And while he never approached, he loomed over them the entire trip. At one point, Prince Jelani grew tired of the enigma and decided to confront the man. However, Tabitha advised caution, as situations such as these would usually reveal themselves in time. Tabitha had learned long ago in her training, that without provocation most things or people that lingered around her, would eventually proclaim their identity. And if provoked they might flee or be lost, which could result in a costly delay. Besides, he'd done nothing thus far that would warrant a confrontation. And so, they would allow circumstances to run their course.
⚜️Once safely landed at the port in Calcutta both Tabitha and Lexington needed a warm bath and some much-needed rest away from the constant bumping ride of the ship's cabins. One of their porters was from Algeria and spoke Tamazight, a native tongue of the Berber people. It was obvious that Lexington was delighted to talk to someone from his native lands, which made Tabitha smile watching her friend speak in a language she had not heard for so long.
⚜️When the two travelers finally arrived at their hotel, both Tabitha's and Lexington's multilingual skills came into play when dealing with her pets and the porter's fears. Tabitha had taken just two of her wolves on the journey, Rolf and Kiva, as they were natural mates. Neither offered any hostility toward the porters or anyone else for that matter without Tabitha's command. However, aside from their daily walks on board the ship, they'd spent a great deal of time in their cages and were quite restless. Fortunately, with some gentle persuading, they were able to calm the porters and settle into their rooms.
⚜️The next morning was Easter. It was Sunday and their contact from the Cathedral of the Most Holy Rosary had sent a carriage to pick them up for services.
"We're to attend the Christian services, my lady?" Lexington inquired as he held his hand to help her into the carriage.
Tabitha grinned politely before answering him with a lofty and nonchalant demeanor, as was her custom when jesting with her friend,
"But of course, Dear Lexington. It's Easter! You didn't believe we were going to escape services today of all days, did you?"
At which point, she patted the seat next to her in the carriage.
"Now, come along."
Lexington's grumbling, as the rickety carriage made its way along the bustling streets of Calcutta, nearly made her laugh aloud as they rode toward the church. Not having the heart to tease him farther, she looked over at the handsome Berber while placing her gloved hands around his arm.
"Dear Lex, I've gone too far this time."
At which time she did laugh.
"The look on your face.... oh, dear Lexington, I adore you so!"
Lexington began to smile a little himself watching Tabitha giggle then asked. "What has brought this on my lady?"
Tabitha finally composed herself and assured him that she didn't expect him to attend the Easter services at the church as it was not his faith. While Catholic herself, she nor her parents had ever forced Lexington into their religious beliefs. They believed the workings of the soul were God's work.
Lexington breathed a sigh of relief at the news but in the end decided to attend anyway, out of respect for Tabitha and for their host.
⚜️Father Thomas Haskell was a lean man in his sixties. His bald head looked slick and shiny in the bright sun and his white hair gleamed. When he shook Tabitha's hand, she felt how rough and callused they were, and his skin was leathery tan. It was obvious Father Haskell spent much of his time in the gardens around the church. He wore the traditional robes of a parish priest and as with most Catholic holy men of that day, he appeared humble and somewhat trite. After introductions were made, he did not hesitate to reveal to the duo that he not only believed in the evil beings that scoured the earth but were unfeigned in his support of the Shadowhunters.
"You and your kind my dear are destined to rid the world of these heinous creatures. I am at your disposal of course."
As the bells of the church rang and the church doors began to open the priest looked at the church and then smiled when he turned back toward his guest.
"It is a delight to have you both visit us this morning and if you'll forgive me Lady Kindake I must attend to my flock. Services are about to begin, and I am expected inside. I've reserved seats for you both, won't you follow me."
Tabitha nodded and smiled as did Lexington
"Of course, Father Haskell," she responded.
And with that, they both followed the priest toward the grand doors that opened to the church's foyer.
As they approached, both Tabitha and Lexington noticed a striking man standing near a fountain. His hair was dark as a raven's wing and his equally dark beard was neatly trimmed. He wore a very smart-looking cutaway coat and silk vest that gave away his social status and as the man began to walk in their direction Tabitha could see that he was of average height and appeared to be in his peak years. She also noted how mysterious and mesmerizing his eyes were, and it was at that moment a commotion could be heard at the entrance to the church which caught all their attention.
Father Haskell began to walk faster and broke into a run with Tabitha and Lexington close behind him. When they reached the onlookers, the priest was determined, but not overly aggressive as he made his way through the congregation that had gathered there. Once through the crowd, Tabitha was surprised to see that the mysterious man she'd noticed outside was already just inside the large doorway. Lexington reached to touch her arm quietly, his way of letting her know he'd noticed as well. Turning quickly to rejoin the priest, they were greeted with the most morbid sight. At the top of the staircase, hanging from her neck, and high into the massive, vaulted ceiling was a young woman. Her face, though discolored and contorted was still beautiful as her lifeless body swung several feet above the top of the staircase.
Wanting desperately to help, Lexington started to climb the staircase but quickly came back to his senses realizing the poor woman's body was well out of reach. Looking over at Father Haskell, Tabitha watched as he moved his hand over his chest making the sign of the cross. His eyes were filled with dread and tears as he gazed up at the woman's corpse. She thought he might be in shock as she walked over to him.
"Father! Father Haskell!"
Shaking his head, he looked at Tabitha and then back at the woman's corpse.
"Dear God, whatever shall we do?!"
Tabitha motioned for Lex to join her and as he approached, she responded.
"This is your church Father and your congregation. They're depending on you. I'd suggest you postpone services this morning or at least move them to another location as quickly as possible."
Father Haskell nodded, still bewildered when he gazed back up at the woman's body hanging there, but when he looked back at them both again, he appeared to be himself.
"Quite right Lady Kinkade. We can set up chairs and move services to the garden."
Lexington looked back up at the girl's body and then back to Tabitha.
"My lady, the local authorities will be here soon. I'd suggest, well, if Father Haskell would allow us to represent the church in this matter, we could begin an investigation."
Tabitha looked at the girl again then back at Father Haskell.
"Father, do you know this woman?"
He nodded as he answered.
"Yes, she came to me about a week ago, she told me she was having nightmares, very vivid nightmares that were very real to her."
Tabitha and Lex looked at each other then back at the priest.
"She said she'd been sleepwalking as well. I.. well, I just can't think. I must get this situation under control!"
Tabitha nodded, reaching to hold the priest’s hands. "That's quite alright Father. From what you've told us this young woman may hold clues to the mystery that's brought us to Calcutta and you. Will you allow us to represent the church and aid you?"
Father Haskell nodded as he knew the Kinkade name very well and Tabitha's father had been a friend. He also trusted Cardinal Antonio implicitly.
"Yes, yes of course. Cardinal Antonio has sent you to us after all. And as I said before, if there's anything you need, anything at all. Please let me know. For now, however, I have much to do and must leave you."
⚜️Her name was Malini Gadhavi. She had been a mother and wife and her father and mother owned a bakery in town. She helped her parents with the business as did her children. Her husband, Harshad worked on the docks. They had all been notified of her death. Malini's body was taken to a crypt beneath the church where so many people in the community had been taken for decades. Out of respect, Tabitha and Lex had not examined the body yet. When the family arrived, they both bowed their heads, watching as they were escorted to the undercroft. Neither Tabitha nor Lexington were looking forward to questioning them.
⚜️The afternoon wore on and with their interrogations near completion, they'd learned very little. That was until the woman's mother told them about one of Malini's dreams. Sitting with them in Father Haskell's office the poor woman stared blankly at a candle's flame as Tabitha held her trembling hands, listening. She said that on one occasion her daughter had been able to remember one of her dreams completely. Melini had said it was so clear in her mind, and unlike most dreams, it felt as though it had happened. In this nightmare, she had emerged from a cave not far from her home. She also told her mother there was a man there with her in a cloak and a hood over his head. This dark, ominous being followed her to the mouth of the cave. Malini said the man never came close but watched her from the shadows. Her daughter told her that in the dream she roared like an animal and when she peered into the trees, she could feel the forest come alive with the heartbeats and movements of every living creature. And then she told her mother that even at that distance she could not only hear but smell the people in town. It was then her mother began to cry. Tabitha comforted her, giving a nod to Lexington and Father Haskell. The interrogations were now over.
⚜️It had been a long day. Nighttime was upon them, and they all needed rest. Standing there in the small tomb, the air was cool, and the smell of old dirt filled their nostrils as they began to examine Malini Gadhavi's body. Her fingernails and toenails showed no signs of dirt, blood, or flesh. Her body, as well as her hair, was clean as though it had just been washed. There were also no injuries, not even a scar, and when they turned her on her side to look at her back there was no tattoo, no brand of any kind. Holding a candle over the young woman's corpse, Lexington glanced over at Tabitha.
"This is peculiar my lady. She should have some sort of brand on her even if she wasn't a member with the pack we seek."
Tabitha nodded but didn't look up as she continued to scan the woman's body for any evidence and clues.
"Agreed Lex, this is odd. Melini's dream was not an uncommon one for a werewolf, other than the presence of the dark man of course. And yet, I do not see a brand anywhere on her. Or any physical evidence she was Lycan for that matter. We must be missing something."
Lexington pulled his candle away to poor some of the melted wax onto the dirt floor and as he did, Father Haskell brought his lantern closer to help Tabitha see. Then just as Lex brought the candle back Tabitha gasped and cried out.
"Wait! I saw something. When you brought your candle back Lex. It was yellow like, like... It was something on her skin!"
Lexington and the priest looked at each other then back at Tabitha as she continued.
"The lights... somehow. Father, bring your lantern back to where you had it, and Lex you take the candle away, and then bring it back just as you did before."
Both did as instructed but Tabitha only sighed with disappointment asking them both to try again. Shaking her head, she was both exhausted and frustrated when she pounded her fist on the stone slab. After which time she folded her arms to lay her head down for a moment. Lexington watched her and then offered some sound advice.
"My lady let us retire for the evening and come back in the morning with rested eyes."
Tabitha looked up at him but didn't raise when she answered.
"No Lex, not yet. I know I saw something. We must find it!
With her head still laying on her arms, she looked at them both.
"Now let's do this again. And Lexington when you bring the candle back, do it very slowly please."
Lexington nodded unenthusiastically, then began to move the candle away from the woman's body when Tabitha screamed out.
"Stop! Don't move! Do you see it?! It's there on her shoulder. You must not move, either of you. It's the lights!"
Both men looked at each other, each wondering if the trials of this day had finally gotten the best of the hunter, then listened as she explained.
"It's the lights! Look see, the glass of Father Haskell's lamp is red, and so the flame gives off a deep red hue, while the candle's light of course is much brighter. Obvious of course but, if you carefully peer into the candle's blue flame and with the help of the red glow from Father Haskell's lantern you can see it!"
Taking a candle in hand she invited Lexington to take her place.
"Now as I hold the candle look through the blue of its flame Lex. Can you see it?"
Lex nodded and gasped, then excitedly scrambled for his journal. As he did, Tabitha looked at the priest's bewildered face and offered further explanation.
"My guess is it's phosphorous under the skin Father. The lights set off some sort of chemical reaction allowing it to be seen. Once Lex has studied the tattoo and made a drawing, we'll hold the lantern and candle so you can observe for yourself."
Having to peer through the flame made the study of the tattoo quite difficult, however, Lexington was able to examine it thoroughly.
"How very interesting Ms. Tabitha. The ink leaves no protrusions on the skin, and it's entirely undetectable under normal light conditions."
Tabitha smiled as she listened and nodded.
"Is it our pack Lex?"
"Yes, my lady. She was a member of the pack we're tracking.
Tabitha nodded once more and raised an eyebrow as she spoke.
"I think it's obvious that Malini Gadhavi was not a willing participant. The poor woman. Such torment."
Gathering herself she redirected her attention toward Father Haskell.
"Father, do you know of any caves in the area?"
The priest nodded as he spoke, the radiant red hue of his lantern causing his face to look very macabre under the low ceiling of the underground chamber.
"Why yes of course. There are several smaller caves, but Mawsmai Cave is the largest in the area. It's not far but it will easily be a day’s journey there and back."
Tabitha and Lexington listened intently,
"Could you show us on a map Father?"
"Of course. If you'll follow me to my office, I can set you on the right path."
Gathering their things, they followed Father Haskell from the dank black corridor where Malini Gadhavi's broken body lay. As they wearily made their way up the stone stairwell Tabitha muttered to herself.
"We will avenge you and your children Melini. Whoever did this to you will pay. I promise you."
A soft beam of light showed across the young woman’s corpse from the top of the stairs. From deep in the vault their faint voices could be heard and then the door closed, and all was dark, and all as silent, forever.
🐺🐺🐺🐺
⭐This capture and this chapter of this story could not have been possible without the help of some truly wonderful people who I'm honored to know as friends
.
⭐First of all I'd like to thank my dear friend and mentor Morgan Talbot who not only opened up his beautiful sim to me to I could take this shot but provided the build itself and many of the characters. He also took the time to model for this shot. Morgan's advice and support are always so very special to me. But perhaps calling him my friend is the most remarkable treasure of all. Thank you babes.💓
⭐Next, I would like to thank my dear friend Harper Blackwood for her help and for enduring my rough drafts for this chapter. Thanks for being the lab rat this time babes. Not a rat but like...in a lab. She gets it. lol But mostely I'd like to thank Harper for her support, her encouragement, and her precious friendship. You're the best girl.💓
⭐Lastly and as the say, certainly not least, I want to thank my very dear friend and mentor Marcus Strong. His unwaivering support and encouragement is precious to me. He's has always there to help in any way he can, whether thats advice, modeling, or just to tell me I'm doing a good job. I can never repay this man for all he's done for me. I'm honored to call him my friend. Thank you babes.💓
Dronfield,Derbyshire. Have you looked out of the bathroom window my wife says to me, I move into the bathroom with an early morning stoop complaining as I have been disturbed from trying to achieve another three darts into the 20 bed.
I think we should go out she said and with an unenthusiastic smile I agreed and we took a drive down towards Baslow Edge.
I had researched a new woods called Shillito Woods and I jumped out of the car once it had stopped and strode into the woods expecting the mist to be sitting at a low level and for me to make an award winning shot and all would be happy with the world.
Nope and you guessed right it was flat, featureless, very green with a concrete cross in the middle of the sparse scene in front of me two shots later and I returned to the car stooping even further down towards the floor.
Shall we drive further down the road my wife says and I agree and we suddenly arrive at the most misty looking patch of tress I have seen in years, it was raining at this point and I took my new chamois leather out of my bag and laid it down on top of my lens.
The pang of excitement you get when you find a new area should be bottled and sold for a small fortune, what more could I want I was very happy with the composition and I have about 50 shots I processed from the small area.
As ever I have been back numerous times again and no fog atmosphere or anything like the first time I was here.
Now where is that first time visit genie in a bottle.
1929 Minerva AK Town Car by Hibbard and Darrin
Sylvain de Jong began producing bicycles in Antwerp, Belgium in 1883. The transplanted Dutch citizen also produced motorized bicycles, a forerunner of motorcycles. The Minerva Motor Company began car production in 1902.
During World War I, they produced cars used by the allies to perform hit and run attacks on Germans. Luxury cars became the company’s focus after the war and the marquee became a favorite of the Kings of Belgium, Sweden and Norway. A major market was England where Charles S. Rolls of Rolls Royce fame was a dealer. The company fell victim to the Great Depression and production ceased in 1934.
The AK featured a six litre, six cylinder sleeve valve engine, an innovation of its time, eliminating traditional intake and exhaust valves.
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Minerva was one of the first manufacturers in the world to adopt the Knight-type sleeve valve engine that did away with conventional poppet valves. In these motors, a sleeve fitted between the piston and the cylinder wall slid up and down in a synchronized movement, so that ports in the sides of the sleeves aligned with the inlet and exhaust ports of the cylinders at the right moments. Volumetric efficiency and longevity were good. The main drawback was high oil consumption, as the sleeves moved in a bath of oil, resulting in the thick smoky exhaust. But this was outweighed by the wonderful smoothness and silence of a Knight when compared to the coarse running and loud clacking noises made by the conventional valve gear of competing engines.
Source: Bonhams
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continued from preceding
A Minerva Town Car was quite expensive, costing over $20,000 in 1929 (the equivalent of almost $290,000. in today’s market. Hibbard and Darrin bodied this model in aluminum, a very expensive metal at the time. It featured mahogany running boards and ostrich seats in the chauffeur’s compartment.
The original owner of this car is unknown as is how it made its way to the United States. Pacific Auto Rental owned it in the 1930’s. This car purportedly appeared in about a dozen movies.
Source: The display placard
It should be noted that I was very unenthusiastic in working this project as may be evident. Ultimately, however, I injected more time and effort than I wished. As you may note, I did return this car to its original country, England. The car was recorded in July of 2013 on a very wet, cold and overcast day at the St. John’s Concours d’Elegance, Plymouth, Michigan.
Can only hope some viewers might enjoy………………Cheers!
For the birders I found this article By Joe Eaton doing a search about the person this bird was named for. Here is a long quote. You can find the original article if you take the link at the bottom.
"...Somewhere between Audubon and Xantus comes William Hutton, of Hutton’s vireo. Hutton’s vireo is one of our more obscure songbirds: common in California oak woodlands (C. C. Van Fleet called it “the spirit of the live oak tree”), but inconspicuous in appearance and retiring in habit. And I suspect even a lot of birders misidentify these birds as ruby-crowned kinglets.
Both are small greenish-gray birds with white wingbars and nervous, twitchy demeanors. But the vireo has a heavier bill and slightly different facial and wing patterns, and it doesn’t twitch quite as much as the kinglet. Its call is also quite different: a whining, raspy “rheeee,” as opposed to the kinglet’s “che-dit.”
Vireos are a strictly New World family, related, according to genetic studies, to the corvids (crows, jays, magpies) and shrikes. They’re feisty as small birds go. Birding maven Rich Stallcup says you can always tell whether the bird you’ve trapped in a mist net is a vireo or a warbler by its attitude. Warblers go limp; vireos will try to bite you.
Most vireos are some shade of green, with white accents: eyestripes, spectacles, wingbars. Their vocal performances tend toward the monotonous.
The song of the eastern red-eyed vireo—the “preacher bird”—has been represented as “First on the one hand, then on the other,” repeated indefinitely. With one partial exception, all the North American forms are migratory. That exception is the Hutton’s, or at least the California population of the Hutton’s; some interior populations do move south for the winter.
Hutton’s has other quirks. For nest construction, it favors the hanging lichens—lace lichen, beard lichen—that festoon California oak trees. In winter, both California residents and those that winter in western Mexico join mixed foraging flocks: bands of chickadees, kinglets, warblers, and woodpeckers that roam the woods, apparently taking advantage of additional eyes to spot predators. The Mexican flocks may be composed of 18 or more species, but they almost always include a Hutton’s vireo or two.
There’s a lot ornithologists still don’t know about this bird: its territorial behavior, whether it’s single- or double-brooded, its migratory movements. The most recent studies of nesting in California were published in 1919.
And since the vireo’s nesting season begins early, it tends to be overlooked in breeding bird surveys. But we know a great deal more about Hutton’s vireo than we know about William Hutton. The Mearnses, who appear to be dogged researchers, were unable to determine when or where he was born, or when or where he died.
We know that he collected the vireo near Monterey in 1847 and sent its remains back east, where it came into the hands of John Cassin (Cassin’s auklet, finch, kingbird, sparrow, vireo), then working on a book about western birds. Hutton may have been a friend or protégé of Spencer Fullerton Baird (Baird’s sandpiper and sparrow) at the Smithsonian Institution, who asked Cassin to name the new species for him. Cassin was unenthusiastic: “This kind of thing is bad enough at best, but to name a bird after a person utterly unknown is worse than that,” he wrote to Baird. But he eventually gave in.
Correspondence between Cassin and Baird suggests Hutton was in the San Diego area around 1851. Then the flow of specimens stopped. Hutton may have been abandoned bird-hunting for gold-hunting; he may have returned east in time to be killed in the Civil War; he may have disappeared into Mexico, like Ambrose Bierce. It’s anyone’s guess.
An obscure bird with an even more obscure namesake, and even that tenuous claim to fame may soon be gone. The California and interior populations of Hutton’s vireo, separated by miles of desert, turn out to be genetically distinct.
Each may deserve separate species status. If the species is split, it’s likely that the old name will be dropped and each of the new forms will be rechristened, as happened when the plain titmouse was separated into oak titmouse and juniper titmouse.
William Hutton, whoever he was, will be consigned to taxonomic limbo. That’s immortality for you. "
VERSION 2 ...........
à suivre
Le Théâtre Antique d'Orange est le théâtre romain
le mieux conservé en occident, classé au patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO. Edifié sous l'empereur Auguste au Ier siècle de notre ère. Son mur de scène (37 mètres de haut sur 103 mètres de long), est l'un des mieux conservés du monde romain, et place le monument parmi les plus grands témoignages de toute la Rome Antique. Le théâtre occupait une place centrale dans la cité et la vie de ses habitants qui y passaient une grande partie de leur temps libre. Pour le pouvoir romain, le théâtre était un moyen de diffusion de la culture latine auprès des populations colonisées mais aussi un prétexte pour les éloigner de toute préoccupation politique. Véritables divertissements, les spectacles duraient toute la journée. Les Romains, peu passionnés par les tragédies grecques dont s'inspiraient au début les auteurs latins, préféraient un répertoire plus léger : dell'Arte. Les mimes, pantomimes, récitals de poésie, et surtout l'attelane, farce assez proche de la Commedia public populaire voulait avant tout du sensationnel : la mise en scène devint donc prédominante avec le développement de la machinerie. Le théâtre, gratuit, était accessible à tous et était le seul endroit public où l'on pouvait côtoyer les femmes. En revanche, la circulation dans les couloirs et les galeries était conçue de telle sorte que les spectateurs de statut social différent ne se mélangent pas. Aujourd'hui, le Théatre Antique d'Orange est un lieu culturel où des événements tels que le théâtre, l'opéra ou des concerts sont proposés. Sa capacité d'accueil est importante avec 9000 places réservées aux spectateurs.
The Roman Theater of Orange is the Roman theater
the best preserved in the West, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Built under the Emperor Augustus in the first century of our era. Its stage wall (37 meters high and 103 meters long), is one of the best preserved in the Roman world, and places the monument among the greatest testimonies of all the ancient Rome. The theater occupied a central place in the city and the life of its inhabitants, who spent a great deal of their free time there. For the Roman power, the theater was a means of spreading the Latin culture to the colonized populations but also a pretext to remove them from any political concern. True entertainment, the shows lasted all day. The Romans, unenthusiastic about the Greek tragedies that initially inspired Latin authors, preferred a lighter repertoire: dell'Arte. The mimes, pantomimes, recitals of poetry, and especially the attelane, a prank close enough to the Commedia public popular wanted above all the sensational: the staging became predominant with the development of the machinery. The theater, free, was accessible to all and was the only public place where women could be seen. On the other hand, traffic in corridors and galleries was designed in such a way that spectators of different social status did not mix. Today, the Antique Theater of Orange is a cultural venue where events such as theater, opera or concerts are offered. Its capacity is important with 9000 seats reserved for spectators.
El teatro romano de naranja es el teatro romano.
El mejor conservado de Occidente, declarado Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la UNESCO. Construido bajo el emperador Augusto en el primer siglo de nuestra era. Su muro escénico (37 metros de altura y 103 metros de largo), es uno de los mejor conservados del mundo romano, y coloca el monumento entre los testimonios más grandes de toda la antigua Roma. El teatro ocupó un lugar central en la ciudad y en la vida de sus habitantes, quienes pasaron gran parte de su tiempo libre allí. Para el poder romano, el teatro era un medio para difundir la cultura latina a las poblaciones colonizadas, pero también un pretexto para alejarlos de cualquier preocupación política. El verdadero entretenimiento, los espectáculos duraron todo el día. Los romanos, poco entusiastas con respecto a las tragedias griegas que inicialmente inspiraron a los autores latinos, preferían un repertorio más ligero: dell'Arte. Los mimos, las pantomimas, los recitales de poesía y, especialmente, el attelano, una broma lo bastante cercana a la gente de la comedia popular, sobre todo sensacional: la puesta en escena se hizo predominante con el desarrollo de la maquinaria. El teatro, gratuito, era accesible para todos y era el único lugar público donde se podía ver a las mujeres. Por otro lado, el tráfico en los pasillos y galerías fue diseñado de tal manera que los espectadores de diferente estatus social no se mezclaron. Hoy en día, el Antique Theatre of Orange es un lugar cultural donde se ofrecen eventos como teatro, ópera o conciertos. Su capacidad es importante con 9000 asientos reservados para espectadores.
statue de l'empereur Auguste au théâtre antique d'Orange, le théâtre antique d'Orange, site du patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO, Orange, France
fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Th%C3%A9%C3%A2tre_antique_d%27Orange
Le Théâtre Antique d'Orange est le théâtre romain
le mieux conservé en occident, classé au patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO. Edifié sous l'empereur Auguste au Ier siècle de notre ère. Son mur de scène (37 mètres de haut sur 103 mètres de long), est l'un des mieux conservés du monde romain, et place le monument parmi les plus grands témoignages de toute la Rome Antique. Le théâtre occupait une place centrale dans la cité et la vie de ses habitants qui y passaient une grande partie de leur temps libre. Pour le pouvoir romain, le théâtre était un moyen de diffusion de la culture latine auprès des populations colonisées mais aussi un prétexte pour les éloigner de toute préoccupation politique. Véritables divertissements, les spectacles duraient toute la journée. Les Romains, peu passionnés par les tragédies grecques dont s'inspiraient au début les auteurs latins, préféraient un répertoire plus léger : dell'Arte. Les mimes, pantomimes, récitals de poésie, et surtout l'attelane, farce assez proche de la Commedia public populaire voulait avant tout du sensationnel : la mise en scène devint donc prédominante avec le développement de la machinerie. Le théâtre, gratuit, était accessible à tous et était le seul endroit public où l'on pouvait côtoyer les femmes. En revanche, la circulation dans les couloirs et les galeries était conçue de telle sorte que les spectateurs de statut social différent ne se mélangent pas. Aujourd'hui, le Théatre Antique d'Orange est un lieu culturel où des événements tels que le théâtre, l'opéra ou des concerts sont proposés. Sa capacité d'accueil est importante avec 9000 places réservées aux spectateurs.
The Roman Theater of Orange is the Roman theater
the best preserved in the West, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Built under the Emperor Augustus in the first century of our era. Its stage wall (37 meters high and 103 meters long), is one of the best preserved in the Roman world, and places the monument among the greatest testimonies of all the ancient Rome. The theater occupied a central place in the city and the life of its inhabitants, who spent a great deal of their free time there. For the Roman power, the theater was a means of spreading the Latin culture to the colonized populations but also a pretext to remove them from any political concern. True entertainment, the shows lasted all day. The Romans, unenthusiastic about the Greek tragedies that initially inspired Latin authors, preferred a lighter repertoire: dell'Arte. The mimes, pantomimes, recitals of poetry, and especially the attelane, a prank close enough to the Commedia public popular wanted above all the sensational: the staging became predominant with the development of the machinery. The theater, free, was accessible to all and was the only public place where women could be seen. On the other hand, traffic in corridors and galleries was designed in such a way that spectators of different social status did not mix. Today, the Antique Theater of Orange is a cultural venue where events such as theater, opera or concerts are offered. Its capacity is important with 9000 seats reserved for spectators.
El teatro romano de naranja es el teatro romano.
El mejor conservado de Occidente, declarado Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la UNESCO. Construido bajo el emperador Augusto en el primer siglo de nuestra era. Su muro escénico (37 metros de altura y 103 metros de largo), es uno de los mejor conservados del mundo romano, y coloca el monumento entre los testimonios más grandes de toda la antigua Roma. El teatro ocupó un lugar central en la ciudad y en la vida de sus habitantes, quienes pasaron gran parte de su tiempo libre allí. Para el poder romano, el teatro era un medio para difundir la cultura latina a las poblaciones colonizadas, pero también un pretexto para alejarlos de cualquier preocupación política. El verdadero entretenimiento, los espectáculos duraron todo el día. Los romanos, poco entusiastas con respecto a las tragedias griegas que inicialmente inspiraron a los autores latinos, preferían un repertorio más ligero: dell'Arte. Los mimos, las pantomimas, los recitales de poesía y, especialmente, el attelano, una broma lo bastante cercana a la gente de la comedia popular, sobre todo sensacional: la puesta en escena se hizo predominante con el desarrollo de la maquinaria. El teatro, gratuito, era accesible para todos y era el único lugar público donde se podía ver a las mujeres. Por otro lado, el tráfico en los pasillos y galerías fue diseñado de tal manera que los espectadores de diferente estatus social no se mezclaron. Hoy en día, el Antique Theatre of Orange es un lugar cultural donde se ofrecen eventos como teatro, ópera o conciertos. Su capacidad es importante con 9000 asientos reservados para espectadores.
Le Théâtre Antique d'Orange est le théâtre romain
le mieux conservé en occident, classé au patrimoine mondial de l'UNESCO. Edifié sous l'empereur Auguste au Ier siècle de notre ère. Son mur de scène (37 mètres de haut sur 103 mètres de long), est l'un des mieux conservés du monde romain, et place le monument parmi les plus grands témoignages de toute la Rome Antique. Le théâtre occupait une place centrale dans la cité et la vie de ses habitants qui y passaient une grande partie de leur temps libre. Pour le pouvoir romain, le théâtre était un moyen de diffusion de la culture latine auprès des populations colonisées mais aussi un prétexte pour les éloigner de toute préoccupation politique. Véritables divertissements, les spectacles duraient toute la journée. Les Romains, peu passionnés par les tragédies grecques dont s'inspiraient au début les auteurs latins, préféraient un répertoire plus léger : dell'Arte. Les mimes, pantomimes, récitals de poésie, et surtout l'attelane, farce assez proche de la Commedia public populaire voulait avant tout du sensationnel : la mise en scène devint donc prédominante avec le développement de la machinerie. Le théâtre, gratuit, était accessible à tous et était le seul endroit public où l'on pouvait côtoyer les femmes. En revanche, la circulation dans les couloirs et les galeries était conçue de telle sorte que les spectateurs de statut social différent ne se mélangent pas. Aujourd'hui, le Théatre Antique d'Orange est un lieu culturel où des événements tels que le théâtre, l'opéra ou des concerts sont proposés. Sa capacité d'accueil est importante avec 9000 places réservées aux spectateurs.
The Roman Theater of Orange is the Roman theater
the best preserved in the West, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Built under the Emperor Augustus in the first century of our era. Its stage wall (37 meters high and 103 meters long), is one of the best preserved in the Roman world, and places the monument among the greatest testimonies of all the ancient Rome. The theater occupied a central place in the city and the life of its inhabitants, who spent a great deal of their free time there. For the Roman power, the theater was a means of spreading the Latin culture to the colonized populations but also a pretext to remove them from any political concern. True entertainment, the shows lasted all day. The Romans, unenthusiastic about the Greek tragedies that initially inspired Latin authors, preferred a lighter repertoire: dell'Arte. The mimes, pantomimes, recitals of poetry, and especially the attelane, a prank close enough to the Commedia public popular wanted above all the sensational: the staging became predominant with the development of the machinery. The theater, free, was accessible to all and was the only public place where women could be seen. On the other hand, traffic in corridors and galleries was designed in such a way that spectators of different social status did not mix. Today, the Antique Theater of Orange is a cultural venue where events such as theater, opera or concerts are offered. Its capacity is important with 9000 seats reserved for spectators.
El teatro romano de naranja es el teatro romano.
El mejor conservado de Occidente, declarado Patrimonio de la Humanidad por la UNESCO. Construido bajo el emperador Augusto en el primer siglo de nuestra era. Su muro escénico (37 metros de altura y 103 metros de largo), es uno de los mejor conservados del mundo romano, y coloca el monumento entre los testimonios más grandes de toda la antigua Roma. El teatro ocupó un lugar central en la ciudad y en la vida de sus habitantes, quienes pasaron gran parte de su tiempo libre allí. Para el poder romano, el teatro era un medio para difundir la cultura latina a las poblaciones colonizadas, pero también un pretexto para alejarlos de cualquier preocupación política. El verdadero entretenimiento, los espectáculos duraron todo el día. Los romanos, poco entusiastas con respecto a las tragedias griegas que inicialmente inspiraron a los autores latinos, preferían un repertorio más ligero: dell'Arte. Los mimos, las pantomimas, los recitales de poesía y, especialmente, el attelano, una broma lo bastante cercana a la gente de la comedia popular, sobre todo sensacional: la puesta en escena se hizo predominante con el desarrollo de la maquinaria. El teatro, gratuito, era accesible para todos y era el único lugar público donde se podía ver a las mujeres. Por otro lado, el tráfico en los pasillos y galerías fue diseñado de tal manera que los espectadores de diferente estatus social no se mezclaron. Hoy en día, el Antique Theatre of Orange es un lugar cultural donde se ofrecen eventos como teatro, ópera o conciertos. Su capacidad es importante con 9000 asientos reservados para espectadores.
12.9.15... urgh... middle child got picked to have fiddle lessons at school!! i'm so far very unenthusiastic about the screeching!
We caught a glimpse of these two near Longmire in Mount Rainier NP. What fun it was to watch her teaching her young'un to work for a living. :-) He/she was periodically just hanging around, and periodically trying his bill at the whole pecking thing. He /she seemed somewhat unenthusiastic and also spent a fair bit of time begging to be fed. Oh, those moody teenagers! lol Can you tell which is the moody teenager?
This picture was a snapshot with my Fuji S5000 camera in 2004. I love the dreariness and unenthusiastic mood in it.
WEBSITE www.n8fahrt.de
FACEBOOK www.facebook.com/n8fahrt.de
Perfect place, perfect time, almost perfect reflection :) We went up to Sprague Lake despite the weather prediction of clouds and rain all day. It was dull and gray and we thought we'd missed the best of what little color there was in the "pre" sunrise, so we were rather unenthusiastic as we trudged around the lake in the wind. Then the "post" sunrise happened and we did the happy dance :) There was about 15 minutes of incredible color as we scrambled to get the best view. After all these years, you'd think I'd learned my lesson to be patient and wait for the light - you just never know.
HDR, 3 exposure, Photomatix.
11.5.20... I went in to shut middle C's curtains and liked the reflection of his light in the sky! we had a very dull day and everyone is very unenthusiastic about home schooling at the moment!!
Lower Manhattan, 9:28 PM. The air is muggy, ensured by a constant drizzle that pelts the brick and mortar labyrinth. On a particular branch of this urban stretch sits a defunct sauna which, in outward appearance, is of no more import than its neighbors.
Through the natural drum of the downpour, a series of unorganized whirs and clanks can be identified, and then, a disproportionate shape lurches out of the grey veil and stalks along the parking lot on tall, winding stabilizers. It is a man riding atop them, his torpid state in opposition with the arms’ erratic lunging. They allow him to descend gradually as he reaches the awning outside the dead establishment, and the ensemble of flesh and machinery bobs to a standstill.
With an efficiency gained through repetition, Doctor Otto Octavius commands a tentacle to pluck the damp trilby from his head, resulting in a few droplets tagging his neck. He huffs, and sways a little like he wishes a bed would catch him. Then his lower-left pincer punches the lock out of the door and he lumbers inside.
Rain patters against the panes and roof. The sauna’s interior is even heavier than it is out in the streets; clearly, the back rooms are not out of service, nor locked. The light implements, on the other hand, are characteristically dark.
“Sauron!” barks the arrival. “It’s a dungeon in here! … Even Warren’s lairs aren’t this repellent…”
Over the din of the weather, a response slithers to Octavius’ ears:
“I hear now that thou wouldst barter with me. What is thy price?”
“Quoting the Silmarillion, hmph. So you do take your name from Tolkien,” a blasé Octavius verifies. “I happen to be aware of the swift betrayal met by the character offered the same. Come to think of it, it was the undoing of his companions as well. Showing our hand a tad early, are we?”
“As if.”
Sounding like a heavy tarp being splayed, something unfolds from the rafters above the waiting room, to Octavius’ left. It swoops down, and across to the reception area. Octavius sizes up the wide figure; its only prominent features in the gloom are three points, devilishly crowning its shoulders and head.
“Plead your case, Doctor, and I, Sauron, will be the godsend to your campaign.”
One of Octavius’ claws snips at the air. “It’s you who needs to impress me, Doctor.”
“Bah!” Sauron screeches. “You were not already satisfied by my resume?!”
“As for my ‘price’,” Octavius reprimands, “I submit to you a part to play in removing the thorn in our sides: Spider-Man. My end of the bargain was final; your contribution is what we will be reviewing.”
This ruffles Sauron. “I just wanted to say the quote, damn you!”
Octavius, frowning, flips open the dossier provided by a tentacle rooting through his trench coat. “Firstly, you claim a kill on one of the X-Men operatives. ‘Cannonball’.”
“Yes. Full disclosure: He came around.”
“From dying.”
“Yes.”
“Isn’t it just the way?” Octavius muses, continuing. “Flight capabilities. Energy-draining touch. Expertise in genetic modification. Professional hypnotherapist, and by extension, able to turn desired targets against one an-“
“FFFFIRE-breathing!” reminds Sauron, as he belches out a cone of flame over the duo’s heads. His form—that of an anthropomorphic pteranodon—is brilliantly exposed for an instant.
Octavius rubs the indentations on his nose, made by his shades. “I have a man that flies. I expect to be bringing in more that specialize in illusions and biological weapons. Should I become truly desperate, I do, regrettably, know a particularly intolerable vampire. With ALL of these candidates, in fact, I have greater familiarity, than I do you. Bearing this in mind… tell me why I might have need of you.”
“Did I not breathe fire before your mammalian eyes?!”
“I’m enthralled,” Octavius snarls. “You have thoroughly wasted my time. Good night!”
“I have the Spider-Man’s true name!” Sauron squawks after his departure.
“YOU-“ Octavius’ arms rattle, and he slams the door shut, jerking back around. “LEAD WITH THAT! BLAZES, MAN!”
Sauron hops over to a specific drawer in the front desk, crestfallen. “Just once I would like fire-breath to seal the deal.”
“How on Earth could you know the man behind the wall-crawler’s mask?”
“As it were: By saving his life. My other half did, that is.”
Octavius looks at his claws. They look back. “Your marital partner..?”
“What?” Sauron blinks softly, then shakes his beak. “… No, my former identity, Karl Lykos; that veritable pheasant! He banished himself to the Savage Land, allowing himself no interaction with superpowered persons, that which must be consumed to bring forth my glorious form!”
He produces a videotape from the drawer, and motions for Octavius to follow him to the flatscreen intended for patrons. There, Sauron had seemingly brought his own cassette player. Octavius’ lower-right tentacle sighs.
Sauron pops in the tape. “But much to Lykos’ dismay, the Savage Land beckoned adventurers. Spider-Man arrived and, unprepared for the trials that awaited him, was transformed, by the mutant Brainchild, into a feral arachnoid beast-“
“Why couldn’t he have contacted me?..” laments Octavius.
“-and was set loose upon the nobler natives of the Savage Land. Lykos prevented a massacre by sapping the false mutation from the Spider-Man, but at the cost of unleashing me! Lykos witnessed the vigilante’s face as he reverted… and I was freed.”
“And you managed to put the face to a name, how? Lykos knew his alter-ego?”
Sauron tuts. “Now now, if I told you everything, it would take no time at all for a man of your acuity to piece things together… and—my usefulness expired—you would cast me off.”
“Like a broken. Crayon,” says Octavius darkly.
“In that event, I shall keep my leverage! Ah, it wasn’t rewound.” Sauron pecks at his remote, and the VCR begins complaining.
“Armed with this secret,” Sauron resumes, “I made my way to New York. The brief ’taste’ I got of the Spider-Man’s power told me that he was… an individual kind of delicacy; the likes of which, I have found in only the most astonishing of X-Men. A full meal of one such person… I imagine it could facilitate my control over Lykos for years. A decade, even.”
“The X-Men, again,” Octavius notes the recurring topic, unsure. “Are you yourself, categorically, a ‘mutant’?”
“A titan among mortals, created by a metamorphic virus carried by apex organisms that were thought to be long-extinct!” boasts Sauron. “Oh yes, but ‘mutant’ will do. Blasphemy! Lumping me in with the same barbarians that…”
Sauron irascibly tosses around more cables.
“‘That’, what?” Octavius presses.
“Never mind, you! See here, my near-triumph over our common enemy!”
On cue, the display’s fuzzy picture and static subsides into the rustling of foliage. The camera was being pushed in short bursts through dense grass. Narrating the footage was an extraordinarily phony English accent; it was Sauron’s.
“It is here, in the undergrowth, where we will have a chance-“
Sauron grunted from behind the camera, likely performing a leopard crawl.
“-to spot Ka-Zar’s courtship ritual with the She-Devil.”
Sauron—not in the video—starts mashing buttons feverishly. Octavius grimaces.
“Never before has this unique mating behavior been documented to be released to the general… oh. Oh balls.”
The choppy audio picks up the far-off bellows of a woman, then those of a man. The camera view is shown shuffling for a moment, when a wooden spear embeds itself in the muck, inches from the lens. The visuals blur, and flapping can be heard. Then a very deep, feline snarl. Then a girlish yawp from Sauron. The last image is of two rows of pure-white incisors, when present-day Sauron finally locates the fast-forward feature.
The rain still beats down while the tape zips along.
“I was feeling silly.”
“You are detestable.”
“Yes, well… never let it be said that Sauron, Master of Malice, was too much the Boy Scout!” the villain recovers. “NOW, see here…”
The video plays at regular speed, and one of Sauron’s hands is seen clutching a mason jar, turning it over to agitate the sizable arachnid it houses. The creature has an atypically vibrant exoskeleton, and repeatedly attacks the glass at the slightest upset of its prison. The chuckling of both Saurons harmonizes.
“Before stowing aboard a ship braving the Drake Passage, I stowed with me a deadly specimen: One of many ready-made weapons housed by the Savage Land,” Sauron explains proudly. “Aggressive on her best days, and positively bloodthirsty when she’s carrying her young.”
A zoom-in showcases scores of fibrous pouches speckle the animal’s abdomen.
“My plan was direct. Elegant. No extraneous moving parts… so to speak.”
The perspective cuts to Sauron’s feet lighting on the uppermost ledge of an apartment building.
Octavius shoves past Sauron to absorb every pixel on the monitor. “This is where he lives? Where is this??”
Sauron ignores him. “The first snag came up before I even began. Spider-Man somehow saw me coming.”
Doctor Octopus’ concentration on identifying any landmarks on the skyline is broken. He squints at Sauron, almost disgusted. “That’s half of his act: Sensing things. I’m sorry, how many times did you say you actually fought-“
“Watcha doin’ up here, bud? Migration been rough this year?”
Sauron rack-focused to Spider-Man, on the adjacent ledge.
“Orchestrating your demise, morsel. You and I have a dinner engagement.”
Sauron smiles approvingly at his own delivery in the video. “I had that one written beforehand.”
Spider-Man tilted his head. “Oh hey, you’re recording this? Hi future-me, who’s going to be looking at this and finding all of bird-man’s embarrassing shower karaoke.”
“Lord above, he doesn’t shut up for anyone,” Octavius mutters.
The screen rocks from Sauron hobbling to a ventilation duct. “Mock your doom. Mock Sauron the Unspeakable! But YOU will be the one caught in a web this time.”
Sauron brandished the jar containing his spider.
“Awww…” Spider-Man cooed at it, wiggling a finger playfully. “Here’s the thing: I don’t have your Ring of Power or whatever you’re here for, but I’m going to have to insist you round up any and all Shelobs you have on your person and hit the road. I’m telling you, they’ve got a serious policy about pets, the guy two doors down from me had to have a friend look after his chinchilla for-“
“Quit your drivel! I am antagonizing you!”
“-of course Ms. Rasmussen has an emotional-support dog, that’s really the only exception! Hey! If your spiders help you detect low blood-sugar, you may be able to convince the landlord-“
“Enough!” Sauron crowed. His wicked smile could practically be heard through the recording. “They’re waking up.”
“That’s ominous,” Spider-Man decided. “‘kay I’ll take that now.”
The vigilante’s web-shooters both fired; the left, snaring the spider’s glass, and the right tangling around Sauron’s wing, and part of the camera’s lens. Before Spider-Man could reel in his catch, Sauron coughed up a fiery jet that snapped the sticky band leading to the jar, then dashed the vessel straight through the grating of the duct beside him.
The eyes on Spider-Man’s mask enlarged. “Oh god!”
He sprang after the lost jar, but the camera swirls and Sauron’s great wingspan blindsided the hero back onto the gravel at the far end of the roof. Sauron jabbed through the remaining webbing as his adversary rolled upright. Spider-Man didn’t try for the vent again; he flipped over the ledge, calling,
“Storks are really supposed to deliver babies wrapped in blankets! Just sayin’!”
Sauron pursued, capturing the image of Spider-Man swinging himself through a window two stories below.
“This,” Octavius commentates, “is not… entirely uninspired. Having him chase thousands of tiny tasks with minds of their own…”
“… so that he’s too distracted and tired to stop my killing stroke,” Sauron finishes.
The escapade carried on with Sauron peaking into the apartment. Spider-Man had interrupted a family of four’s board game.
“I’m real sorry but I need you to call the hospital,” he appealed to the parents, “tell them there might be a whole bunch of people with venomous spider bites at this location! You need to help me get everyone… where’s all the vents in-“
A clump of infant spiders dropped out of the hallway air conditioning system and spread like water across the wood flooring. The family screamed, and Spider-Man yanked a bookcase off the wall to spin one-hundred-and-eighty degrees on its corner and flatten the horde. He then webbed over the vent.
“REALLY sorry,” he apologized again. “Please go, bang on doors, and don’t let these things get on you!”
Spider-Man perked up as if he heard something, and immediately launched through the front door. Sauron clambered inside, trailing the family as they too exited. From the apartment entryway, the mic picked up Spider-Man’s cries for the building to be evacuated. Bouncing from one room to the next, he would pound on and occasionally break open the door in order to block off the endless invasion of hatchlings. Soon after multiple tenants had become wise to the situation, the fire alarm was activated.
Sauron kept his distance all the while, observing Spider-Man’s fatigue from his unabating alertness. The hero traversed the walls; back and forth he sped, several minutes into fighting the disaster and only just now moving on to clear the next floor of danger. Back and forth, for all the good he could do. His shouts had grown hoarse. Back and forth.
“EVERYONE NEEDS TO GET OUT! … -J’s going to burn me at the stake when this story makes the ne… ‘-ider-Man unleashes minions on unsuspecting families!’… -lding that dumb coffee mug, and using that voice, too!”
Doctor Octopus appears bored with the uncut footage. “Let’s cut to the chase, yes?”
“This… is the chase… Oh, very well,” Sauron begrudgingly conforms, realizing Octavius’ limbs are poising threateningly.
The tape skips, and Spider-Man—defending a male resident—is facing a kitchen teeming with the newborn killers. Sauron had been gradually encroaching on his prey as the exertion took its toll on the web-slinger’s faculties, and had now barged through the home’s entrance, meters away.
To make an example, the monstrous hybrid roasted some of the furnishing to his left, then pointed the camera back to Spider-Man.
“Are you quite through?”
“Running late, dear,” Spider-Man shot back unenthusiastically.
He bumped the civilian out the window to their backs, hastily calculating and fastening to the poor man a web that would rappel him to the street. The hero salvaged his own fall with three fingertips on the sill, shifting his momentum with a kick that would send him into the next apartment over. Sauron, anticipating the maneuver, crossed his room with a combative glide and ripped down the dividing wall, right onto the arriving Spider-Man, who was pummeled by insulation, a metal stud and a full china cabinet.
Sauron put the heat on his opponent by slicing his shin. Spider-Man retaliated with more webbing, but his larger rival shielding himself with the backs of his wings, then subsequently pulled the young man—and his left-hand web-shooter—into his waiting beak, which wedged into the gadget, rendering it inoperative. This was followed up by a stab to the do-gooder’s abdomen, pinning him to the carpet for agonizing seconds. The villain then gripped Spider-Man by the throat, a portion of which was no longer even negligibly protected by red and blue spandex, due to a tear. The captive choked and flailed. As his very life-force was being stripped, Sauron relished his prize off-camera.
“Ah. As good as I remembered.”
Spider-Man built up some vitality, and cracked him over the jaw. Sauron’s taloned foot put the second web-shooter out of the fight.
“Rest now,” Sauron chided. “Rest. It’s possible you saved them all; isn’t that a lovely thought? And you can always hope the first-responders are prepared. The spider’s toxicity is of a most exotic variety, however…”
Spider-Man’s words were strangled. “You endangered all these people… AAUGH… to get to me. Big…”
One hand tore free from Sauron’s trap,
“BIG”
and then the other.
“Mistake,” he said ferociously, as though possessed by an unrevealed, primal side of himself.
He took Sauron’s webbed wings in each fist, shredding palm-sized sheets out of them. Now it was Sauron who screamed. The image quakes violently from a wild blast of fire. The screen then goes blue.
The sauna is again silent; even the rain has moved on. Sauron hangs his head.
Octavius starts at the blank display, feeling cheated. “Well?”
“I fled! Time had run out, and there was no leeway in my plan for trading blows. It was only for his incomplete commitment to rescuing the building that the Spider-Man gave me up.”
Sauron hits “Eject”.
“I failed to factor in that his concern for bystanders might be as emboldening, as much as detrimental, to him.”
“There is much to repurpose with this course of action. Your efforts are commendable,” Octavius praises, but seems perturbed. “… In all my years, trying to best him, I’ve never seen him use his adhesion so… ruthlessly.
“It wasn’t that alone,” Sauron corrects. “It burned. Enough to undermine my own hold. These mutants, they’re full of such surprises. Tricky little devils.”
Octavius’ demeanor is made irritable in an instant. “No… now this has been avoided far too long: Your obsession with the mutants. You mean to tell me you’ve thought Spider-Man is one of their kind??”
“Naturally. They worked side-by-side in the Savage Land-“
Octavius’ upper-right tentacle squeaks as a pained rodent would. The doctor’s face nearly glows red. “Know-nothing! … inept layman! You almost killed the Spider-Man, robbing the rest of us... when you have no quarrel with him?!”
“Do not try to disillusion me, Octopus!” Sauron rebukes. “You wish to get rid of me, but recycle my genius! Spider-Man is one of the Brotherhood, and I-“
“He is neither an X-Man nor part of that supremacist cabal… THOSE are separate entities too, you might be interested to learn!” growls Octavius, pacing as he does so. “They wear uniforms and start wars! Spider-Man helps old ladies with their grocery bags and throws the same three puns at you when you happen to be given the name ‘Octopus’ by the news!”
The gears turn in Sauron’s brain. “… I would… still very much like to feast on his energies…”
Octavius roars, hurling a magazine rack. “You’ve been cutting in on our vendetta… the TRUE foes of Spider-Man! How could you be so blinded to the obvious? What did the Brotherhood do to you warrant this utter lapse in reasoning??”
Sauron squirms, like a child caught fibbing. “Nothing. Nothing of-“
“WHAT, you boob?!” Octavius demands.
“They killed my wife!”
…
“They wanted my power, and they used me to kill my… my Tanya. Oh…”
Sauron burrows into the waiting room’s sofa, weeping.
Knee-deep in the exceedingly awkward interlude, Otto Octavius finds himself whisked into the past: An unprecedented, reflective condition for him, since having chosen this sinister path. A fateful day pierces the villain’s psyche. A particular laugh embraces a small, brackish heart, confronting him with a name he had hoped yet hated to drown.
“Mary.”
Sauron slurps up some snot. “Who?”
Octavius’ resentment of Sauron transitions to momentary pity. Pity, to envy. Envy, right back to resentment.
Octavius stares down at him. “Maybe there’s less distinction between you and Lykos than you’d care to admit, or maybe there never was a distinction. Whatever the case, whichever of you is in there, I’m speaking to a lovesick idiot! And your wife lies dead, waiting for you, still!”
“I-I don’t…”
“YOU SHOULD FEEL BLESSED! Having faces to put to the injustice! That she wasn’t taken from you by an accident, and all you have left is an abyss to yell into! You have the opportunity to exact your pound of flesh! Find the ones that wronged you… Get it RIGHT this time, and end them! Let your wife rest!”
“You…” Sauron sits up. “You should really see someone about these types of things.”
Octavius gnashes his teeth, and stomps toward the VCR player.
“What are you doing?”
“Collecting my compensation!” Octavius jiggles the device, unsure of how to dislodge the halfway-expelled cassette. “If you insist on being a useless dolt, I will use this tape to extract any and all clues to Spider-Man’s identity!”
Sauron dives for the tape, snatching it away and defensively backing into a potted fern. “No! My home movies are on there too!”
“Out of my way!”
Sauron’s mouth glows like a forge. “Never!”
Octavius curses in frustration. Weighing the odds, he gives it up and storms off once more through the parking lot.
Sauron peeks out from the business’ entrance. “W-where are you going?”
“To rethink EVERYTHING to do with how I will find competent applicants! Never, I repeat, NEVER contact me. And I do mean ‘ever’!”
The doctor’s lower-right tentacle waves a goodbye to Sauron. Octavius keeps grumbling, well out of earshot of his bane.
“Four hours walking through sewers… for this. Never again. They’ll come to me. I’m in charge. A nice office to work from… yes…”
***
“Aaaaalllright, so you’ve got your account’s password, bio, all of that how you want it?”
“I believe so,” Sauron acknowledges, nibbling on a claw.
“Great! You can click the ‘Complete’ button; it’ll be green,” Screwball instructs over the video chat.
Sauron complies. “… There are little hearts raining down.”
“That should mean you’re all set, let me refresh. Ooh, sweet PFP my guy!”
The icon shows Sauron lounging in a wingback chair, with a derby hat precariously positioned on his crest.
“Oh, yes, well-“ Sauron blushes.
“On. Fleek.”
“I really should repay you in some way,” maintains Sauron.
“Listen, you hold onto Spider-Boy’s real name for me if I’m ever hurting for views, and that’s payment enough.”
Sauron glances over his desk to at a folded Daily Bugle newspaper, preserved from years past: The last piece he had needed, to the puzzle of the person behind Spider-Man’s mask. In an undeservedly small article, abruptly detailed is an expedition, taken by the socialite Warren Washington III, into the mystifying, Antarctic region dubbed “the Savage Land”. As photographed, accompanying Washington had been the column’s own author: An unassuming journalist named Peter Parker. His was the face Lykos had seen appear on the monster that he stopped all that time ago, just before Lykos himself had become another monster needing to be cured.
“Certainly, but,” Sauron taps his mousepad, evaluating. “you’re sure you wouldn’t like me to put in a word for you with this alliance Octopus is convening?”
Screwball sticks her tongue out. “They’re way too mainstream, my audience would think I’m getting desperate. But hey, if you ever get back into a crime kick, I could always use a camera with wings!”
“My leave from supervillainy will be… quite extended. Recent events have caused me to, well, reconsider where I may find fulfillment.”
“C’est la vie. Caaatch you later, dino-dude!”
Screwball’s feed closes out.
“They’re not dinosaurs…” Sauron protests, but returns to his new media platform.
“A match, already? … ’madamedracheXO : 33, mutant : Self-made entrepreneur : Flexible with long-distance relationships, fire-breathing is big plus.’ Hmm.”
***
~ DOCTOR OCTOPUS’ nefarious exploits will return in INTERVIEW WITH AN OCTOPUS: BLACK CAT! ~
КЛОД МОНЕ - Прогулка над обрывом в Пурвилле
☆
Location: The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, US.
Source: www.artic.edu/artworks/14620/cliff-walk
Literature: Daniel Wildenstain: Monet - Catalogue raisonnè, Vol. II. Wildenstain Institute, 1996, Nr. 758, illustrated p. 282
In February 1882, Claude Monet went to Normandy to paint, one of many such expeditions that he made in the 1880s. This was also a retreat from personal and professional pressures. His wife, Camille, had died three years earlier, and Monet had entered into a domestic arrangement with Alice Hoschedé (whom he would marry in 1892, after her husband's death). France was in the midst of a lengthy economic recession that affected Monet's sales. In addition, the artist was unenthusiastic about the upcoming seventh Impressionist exhibition—divisions within the group had become pronounced by this time—and he delegated the responsibility for his contribution to his dealer, Paul Durand-Ruel.Disappointed in the area around the harbor city of Dieppe, which he found too urban, Monet settled in Pourville and remained in this fishing village until mid-April. He became increasingly enamored of his surroundings, writing to Hoschedé and her children: "How beautiful the countryside is becoming, and what joy it would be for me to show you all its delightful nooks and crannies!" He was able to do so in June, when they joined him in Pourville.The two young women strolling in Cliff Walk at Pourville are probably Marthe and Blanche, the eldest Hoschedé daughters. In this work, Monet addressed the problem of inserting figures into a landscape without disrupting the unity of its painterly surface. He integrated these elements with one another through texture and color. The grass—composed of short, brisk, curved brushstrokes—appears to quiver in the breeze, and subtly modified versions of the same strokes and hues suggest the women's wind-whipped dresses and shawls and the undulation of the sea. X-radiographs show that Monet reduced the rocky outcropping at the far right to balance the proportions of sea and sky
American postcard by Classico San Francisco, no. 232-028. Photo: 20th Century Fox.
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars, with leading roles in three films: the Noir Niagara, which focused on her sex appeal, and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire, which established her star image as a "dumb blonde". Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was briefly suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project, but returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (1955).
Marilyn Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortenson in 1926 in Lemmon, South Dakota. She was the third child of Gladys Pearl Baker née Monroe, who suffered from mental illness and later worked as a film cutter at RKO. Marilyn was abandoned by her mother and she spent most of her childhood in foster homes and an orphanage. Just after her 16th birthday, she married 21-year-old aircraft plant worker James 'Jim' Dougherty. In 1943, Dougherty enlisted in the Merchant Marine. He was initially stationed on Catalina Island, where she lived with him until he was shipped out to the Pacific in April 1944; he would remain there for most of the next two years. While working in a factory as part of the war effort in 1944, Marilyn met photographer David Conover and began a successful modeling career. She began to occasionally use the name Jean Norman when working, and had her curly brunette hair straightened and dyed blond to make her more employable. As her figure was deemed more suitable for pin-up than fashion modeling, she was employed mostly for advertisements and men's magazines. By early 1946, she had appeared on 33 magazine covers for publications such as Pageant, U.S. Camera, Laff, and Peek. She divorced Dougherty in 1946. The work led to a screen test by 20th Century Fox executive and former film star Ben Lyon. Head executive Darryl F. Zanuck was unenthusiastic about it, but he was persuaded to give her a standard six-month contract to avoid her being signed by rival studio RKO Pictures. Monroe began her contract in August 1946, and together with Lyon selected the screen name of Marilyn Monroe. Among her first film parts were nine lines of dialogue as a waitress in the drama Dangerous Years (Arthur Pierson, 1947) and a one-line appearance in the comedy Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! (F. Hugh Herbert, 1948). After a series of other minor film roles, she moved to Columbia. While at Fox her role had been that of a 'girl next door', at Columbia she was modeled after Rita Hayworth. Monroe's hairline was raised by electrolysis and her hair was bleached even lighter, to platinum blond. She also began working with the studio's head drama coach, Natasha Lytess, who would remain her mentor until 1955. Her only film at the studio was the low-budget musical Ladies of the Chorus (Phil Karlson, 1948), in which she had her first starring role as a chorus girl who is courted by a wealthy man. After leaving Columbia in September 1948, Monroe became a protégée of Johnny Hyde, vice president of the William Morris Agency. Hyde began representing her and their relationship soon became sexual, although she refused his proposals of marriage. To advance Monroe's career, he paid for a silicone prosthesis to be implanted in her jaw and arranged a bit part in the Marx Brothers film Love Happy (David Miller, 1949). That year, she also made minor appearances in two critically acclaimed films: John Huston's crime film The Asphalt Jungle (1950) and Joseph Mankiewicz's drama All About Eve (1950). Following Monroe's success in these roles, Hyde negotiated a seven-year contract with 20th Century-Fox in December 1950. Over the next two years, she became a popular actress with roles in several comedies, including As Young as You Feel (Harmon Jones, 1951) and Monkey Business (Howard Hawks, 1952) with Cary Grant, and in the dramas Clash by Night (Fritz Lang, 1952) and Don't Bother to Knock (Roy Ward Baker, 1952) with Richard Widmark. Her popularity with audiences was growing: she received several thousand letters of fan mail a week. The second year of the Fox contract saw Monroe become a top-billed actress, with gossip columnist Florabel Muir naming her the year's 'it girl' and Hedda Hopper described her as the 'cheesecake queen' turned 'box office smash'. She began a highly publicized romance with retired New York Yankee baseball legend Joe DiMaggio, one of the most famous sports personalities of the era. A month later, Monroe faced a scandal when it was revealed that she had posed for nude photos before becoming a star, but rather than damaging her career, the story increased interest in her films.
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars with leading roles in three hits: the Film Noir Niagara, and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire. In Niagara (Henry Hathaway, 1953), she played a femme fatale scheming to murder her husband, played by Joseph Cotten. While Niagara made Monroe a sex symbol, the satirical musical comedy Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Howard Hawks, 1953), established her screen persona as a 'dumb blonde'. Based on Anita Loos' bestselling novel and its Broadway version, the film focuses on two 'gold-digging' showgirls, Lorelei Lee and Dorothy Shaw, played by Monroe and Jane Russell. It became one of the biggest box office successes of the year by grossing $5.3 million, more than double its production costs. Her next film, How to Marry a Millionaire (Jean Negulesco, 1953), co-starred Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall. It featured Monroe in the role of a naïve model who teams up with her friends to find rich husbands, repeating the successful formula of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Despite mixed reviews, the film was Monroe's biggest box office success so far, earning $8 million in world rentals. Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project. The suspension was front-page news and Monroe immediately began a publicity campaign to counter any negative press and to strengthen her position in the conflict. On 14 January, she and Joe DiMaggio were married at the San Francisco City Hall. They then traveled to Japan, combining a honeymoon with his business trip. From there, she traveled alone to Korea, where she performed songs from her films as part of a USO show for over 60,000 U.S. Marines over a four-day period. She settled with Fox and returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (Billy Wilder, 1955). Then followed the release of Otto Preminger's Western River of No Return (1955), in which Monroe appeared opposite Robert Mitchum. When the studio was still reluctant to change her contract, Monroe and photographer Milton Greene founded a film production company in late 1954, Marilyn Monroe Productions (MMP). She dedicated 1955 to building her company and began studying method acting at the Actors Studio. She grew close to the studio's director, Lee Strasberg and to his wife Paula, receiving private lessons at their home due to her shyness, and she soon became like a family member. In late 1955, Fox awarded her a new contract, which gave her more control and a larger salary. Monroe did a critically acclaimed performance in Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956). She played Chérie, a saloon singer whose dreams of stardom are complicated by a naïve cowboy who falls in love with her. She received a Golden Globe for Best Actress nomination for her performance. Then she acted opposite Laurence Olivier in the first independent production of MMP, The Prince and the Showgirl (Laurence Olivier, 1957), made in Great Britain. It was released in June 1957 to mixed reviews and proved unpopular with American audiences. The film was better received in Europe where it won Crystal Star awards and was nominated for a BAFTA.
Then Marilyn Monroe acted opposite Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in the classic comedy Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959). The film was an absolute smash hit, with Curtis and Lemmon pretending to be females in an all-girl band, so they can get work. This was to be Marilyn's only film for the year. She won a Golden Globe for Best Actress for her role. Monroe took a hiatus until late 1959, when she returned to Hollywood to star in the musical comedy Let's Make Love (George Cukor, 1960), about an actress and a millionaire (Yves Montand) who fall in love when performing in a satirical play. Her affair with Montand was widely reported by the press and used in the film's publicity campaign. Her last completed film was the drama The Misfits (John Huston, 1961), which Arthur Miller had written to provide her with a dramatic role. She played a recently divorced woman who becomes friends with three aging cowboys, played by Clark Gable, Eli Wallach, and Montgomery Clift. Monroe returned to the public eye in spring 1962: she received a 'World Film Favorite' Golden Globe award and began to shoot a new film for 20th Century-Fox, Something's Got to Give, a re-make of My Favorite Wife (Garson Kanin, 1940). Days before filming began, Monroe caught sinusitis; despite medical advice to postpone the production, Fox began it as planned in late April. Monroe was too ill to work for the majority of the next six weeks, but despite confirmations by multiple doctors, the studio tried to put pressure on her by alleging publicly that she was faking it. On 19 May 1962, she took a break to sing Happy Birthday on stage at President John F. Kennedy's birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden in New York. She drew attention with her costume: a beige, skintight dress covered in rhinestones, which made her appear nude. Monroe next filmed a scene for Something's Got to Give in which she swam naked in a swimming pool. To generate advance publicity, the press were invited to take photographs of the scene, which were later published in Life. It was the first time that a major star had posed nude while at the height of their career. When she was again on sick leave for several days, Fox decided that it could not afford to have another film running behind schedule when it was already struggling to cover the rising costs of Cleopatra (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1963). The studio blamed Monroe for the film's demise and began spreading negative publicity about her, even alleging that she was mentally disturbed. Fox soon regretted its decision, and re-opened negotiations with Monroe later in June; a settlement about a new contract, including re-commencing Something's Got to Give and a starring role in the black comedy What a Way to Go! (J. Lee Thompson, 1964), was reached later that summer. To repair her public image, Monroe engaged in several publicity ventures, including interviews for Life and Cosmopolitan and her first photoshoot for Vogue. For Vogue, she and photographer Bert Stern collaborated for two series of photographs, one a standard fashion editorial and another of her posing nude, which were both later published posthumously with the title The Last Sitting. In the last weeks of her life, she was also planning on starring in a biopic of Jean Harlow. Only 36, Marilyn Monroe died on 5 August 1962 from an overdose of barbiturates. She was discovered dead at her home at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood. She had a phone in one of her hands, her body was completely nude and face down, on her bed. During her life and also after her death, her troubled private life received much attention. She struggled with addiction, depression, and anxiety. She had two highly publicized marriages, to baseball player Joe DiMaggio and playwright Arthur Miller, which both ended in divorce. Although the death was ruled a probable suicide, several conspiracy theories have been proposed in the decades following her death. There are over 600 books written about her.
Sources: De Nieuwe Kerk, Marilyn Geek, IMDb and Wikipedia.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
American postcard by Classico San Francisco, no. 105-023. Photo: 20th Century Fox. Arthur O'Connell, Eileen Heckart, Marilyn Monroe and Don Murray in Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956).
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars, with leading roles in three films: the Noir Niagara, which focused on her sex appeal, and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire, which established her star image as a "dumb blonde". Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was briefly suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project, but returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (1955).
Marilyn Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortenson in 1926 in Lemmon, South Dakota. She was the third child of Gladys Pearl Baker née Monroe, who suffered from mental illness and later worked as a film cutter at RKO. Marilyn was abandoned by her mother and she spent most of her childhood in foster homes and an orphanage. Just after her 16th birthday, she married 21-year-old aircraft plant worker James 'Jim' Dougherty. In 1943, Dougherty enlisted in the Merchant Marine. He was initially stationed on Catalina Island, where she lived with him until he was shipped out to the Pacific in April 1944; he would remain there for most of the next two years. While working in a factory as part of the war effort in 1944, Marilyn met photographer David Conover and began a successful modelling career. She began to occasionally use the name Jean Norman when working and had her curly brunette hair straightened and dyed blond to make her more employable. As her figure was deemed more suitable for pin-up than fashion modelling, she was employed mostly for advertisements and men's magazines. By early 1946, she had appeared on 33 magazine covers for publications such as Pageant, U.S. Camera, Laff, and Peek. She divorced Dougherty in 1946. The work led to a screen test by 20th Century Fox executive and former film star Ben Lyon. Head executive Darryl F. Zanuck was unenthusiastic about it, but he was persuaded to give her a standard six-month contract to avoid her being signed by rival studio RKO Pictures. Monroe began her contract in August 1946, and together with Lyon selected the screen name, Marilyn Monroe. Among her first film parts were nine lines of dialogue as a waitress in the drama Dangerous Years (Arthur Pierson, 1947) and a one-line appearance in the comedy Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! (F. Hugh Herbert, 1948). After a series of other minor film roles, she moved to Columbia. While at Fox her role had been that of a 'girl next door', at Columbia she was modelled after Rita Hayworth. Monroe's hairline was raised by electrolysis and her hair was bleached even lighter, to platinum blond. She also began working with the studio's head drama coach, Natasha Lytess, who would remain her mentor until 1955. Her only film at the studio was the low-budget musical Ladies of the Chorus (Phil Karlson, 1948), in which she had her first starring role as a chorus girl who is courted by a wealthy man. After leaving Columbia in September 1948, Monroe became a protégée of Johnny Hyde, vice president of the William Morris Agency. Hyde began representing her and their relationship soon became sexual, although she refused his proposals of marriage. To advance Monroe's career, he paid for a silicone prosthesis to be implanted in her jaw and arranged a bit part in the Marx Brothers' film Love Happy (David Miller, 1949). That year, she also made minor appearances in two critically acclaimed films: John Huston's crime film The Asphalt Jungle (1950) and Joseph Mankiewicz's drama All About Eve (1950). Following Monroe's success in these roles, Hyde negotiated a seven-year contract with 20th Century Fox in December 1950. Over the next two years, she became a popular actress with roles in several comedies, including As Young as You Feel (Harmon Jones, 1951) and Monkey Business (Howard Hawks, 1952) with Cary Grant, and in the dramas Clash by Night (Fritz Lang, 1952) and Don't Bother to Knock (Roy Ward Baker, 1952) with Richard Widmark. Her popularity with audiences was growing: she received several thousand letters of fan mail a week. The second year of the Fox contract saw Monroe become a top-billed actress, with gossip columnist Florabel Muir naming her the year's 'it girl' and Hedda Hopper describing her as the 'cheesecake queen' turned 'box office smash'. She began a highly publicized romance with retired New York Yankee baseball legend Joe DiMaggio, one of the most famous sports personalities of the era. A month later, Monroe faced a scandal when it was revealed that she had posed for nude photos before becoming a star, but rather than damaging her career, the story increased interest in her films.
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars with leading roles in three hits: the Film Noir Niagara and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire. In Niagara (Henry Hathaway, 1953), she played a femme fatale scheming to murder her husband, played by Joseph Cotten. While Niagara made Monroe a sex symbol, the satirical musical comedy Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Howard Hawks, 1953), established her screen persona as a 'dumb blonde'. Based on Anita Loos' bestselling novel and its Broadway version, the film focuses on two 'gold-digging' showgirls, Lorelei Lee and Dorothy Shaw, played by Monroe and Jane Russell. It became one of the biggest box office successes of the year by grossing $5.3 million, more than double its production costs. Her next film, How to Marry a Millionaire (Jean Negulesco, 1953), co-starred Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall. It featured Monroe in the role of a naïve model who teams up with her friends to find rich husbands, repeating the successful formula of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Despite mixed reviews, the film was Monroe's biggest box office success so far, earning $8 million in world rentals. Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project. The suspension was front-page news and Monroe immediately began a publicity campaign to counter any negative press and to strengthen her position in the conflict. On 14 January, she and Joe DiMaggio were married at the San Francisco City Hall. They then travelled to Japan, combining a honeymoon with his business trip. From there, she travelled alone to Korea, where she performed songs from her films as part of a USO show for over 60,000 U.S. Marines over a four-day period. She settled with Fox and returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (Billy Wilder, 1955). Then followed the release of Otto Preminger's Western River of No Return (1955), in which Monroe appeared opposite Robert Mitchum. When the studio was still reluctant to change her contract, Monroe and photographer Milton Greene founded a film production company in late 1954, Marilyn Monroe Productions (MMP). She dedicated 1955 to building her company and began studying method acting at the Actors Studio. She grew close to the studio's director, Lee Strasberg and to his wife Paula, receiving private lessons at their home due to her shyness, and she soon became like a family member. In late 1955, Fox awarded her a new contract, which gave her more control and a larger salary. Monroe did a critically acclaimed performance in Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956). She played Chérie, a saloon singer whose dreams of stardom are complicated by a naïve cowboy who falls in love with her. She received a Golden Globe for Best Actress nomination for her performance. Then she acted opposite Laurence Olivier in the first independent production of MMP, The Prince and the Showgirl (Laurence Olivier, 1957), made in Great Britain. It was released in June 1957 to mixed reviews and proved unpopular with American audiences. The film was better received in Europe where it won Crystal Star awards and was nominated for a BAFTA.
Then Marilyn Monroe acted opposite Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in the classic comedy Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959). The film was an absolute smash hit, with Curtis and Lemmon pretending to be females in an all-girl band, so they can get work. This was to be Marilyn's only film for the year. She won a Golden Globe for Best Actress for her role. Monroe took a hiatus until late 1959, when she returned to Hollywood to star in the musical comedy Let's Make Love (George Cukor, 1960), about an actress and a millionaire (Yves Montand) who fall in love when performing in a satirical play. Her affair with Montand was widely reported by the press and used in the film's publicity campaign. Her last completed film was the drama The Misfits (John Huston, 1961), which Arthur Miller had written to provide her with a dramatic role. She played a recently divorced woman who becomes friends with three ageing cowboys, played by Clark Gable, Eli Wallach, and Montgomery Clift. Monroe returned to the public eye in the spring of 1962: she received a 'World Film Favorite' Golden Globe award and began to shoot a new film for 20th Century-Fox, Something's Got to Give, a re-make of My Favorite Wife (Garson Kanin, 1940). Days before filming began, Monroe caught sinusitis; despite medical advice to postpone the production, Fox began it as planned in late April. Monroe was too ill to work for the majority of the next six weeks, but despite confirmations by multiple doctors, the studio tried to put pressure on her by alleging publicly that she was faking it. On 19 May 1962, she took a break to sing Happy Birthday on stage at President John F. Kennedy's birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden in New York. She drew attention with her costume: a beige, skintight dress covered in rhinestones, which made her appear nude. Monroe next filmed a scene for Something's Got to Give in which she swam naked in a swimming pool. To generate advance publicity, the press was invited to take photographs of the scene, which were later published in Life. It was the first time that a major star had posed nude while at the height of their career. When she was again on sick leave for several days, Fox decided that it could not afford to have another film running behind schedule when it was already struggling to cover the rising costs of Cleopatra (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1963). The studio blamed Monroe for the film's demise and began spreading negative publicity about her, even alleging that she was mentally disturbed. Fox soon regretted its decision, and re-opened negotiations with Monroe later in June; a settlement about a new contract, including re-commencing Something's Got to Give and a starring role in the black comedy What a Way to Go! (J. Lee Thompson, 1964), was reached later that summer. To repair her public image, Monroe engaged in several publicity ventures, including interviews for Life and Cosmopolitan and her first photoshoot for Vogue. For Vogue, she and photographer Bert Stern collaborated on two series of photographs, one a standard fashion editorial and another of her posing nude, which were both later published posthumously with the title The Last Sitting. In the last weeks of her life, she was also planning on starring in a biopic of Jean Harlow. Only 36, Marilyn Monroe died on 5 August 1962 from an overdose of barbiturates. She was discovered dead at her home at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood. She had a phone in one of her hands, and her body was completely nude and face down, on her bed. During her life and also after her death, her troubled private life received much attention. She struggled with addiction, depression, and anxiety. She had two highly publicized marriages, to baseball player Joe DiMaggio and playwright Arthur Miller, which both ended in divorce. Although the death was ruled a probable suicide, several conspiracy theories have been proposed in the decades following her death. There are over 600 books written about her.
Sources: De Nieuwe Kerk, Marilyn Geek, IMDb and Wikipedia.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Inspired by an idea in Practical Photography this month, the children and I collected as many pretty autumn leaves as we could fit into the buggy hood on our walk home from school. Even Megan (who was initially unenthusiastic about the minor detour through the park) was enjoying herself by the end, all three children enthusiastically spotting potential trees and galloping off to find nice leaves around them. In fact, we were having so much fun, the natural light had nearly vanished by the time we made it home. Just enough for a quick play around with placement and to get the tripod out to help with slow shutter speed. Fun though, and I'm pleasantly surprised at the variety we managed to collect in such a small area of London.
American postcard by Classico San Francisco, no. 105-019. Photo: 20th Century Fox. Marilyn Monroe, Don Murray and Arthur O'Connell in Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956).
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars, with leading roles in three films: the Noir Niagara, which focused on her sex appeal, and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire, which established her star image as a "dumb blonde". Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was briefly suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project, but returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (1955).
Marilyn Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortenson in 1926 in Lemmon, South Dakota. She was the third child of Gladys Pearl Baker née Monroe, who suffered from mental illness and later worked as a film cutter at RKO. Marilyn was abandoned by her mother and she spent most of her childhood in foster homes and an orphanage. Just after her 16th birthday, she married 21-year-old aircraft plant worker James 'Jim' Dougherty. In 1943, Dougherty enlisted in the Merchant Marine. He was initially stationed on Catalina Island, where she lived with him until he was shipped out to the Pacific in April 1944; he would remain there for most of the next two years. While working in a factory as part of the war effort in 1944, Marilyn met photographer David Conover and began a successful modelling career. She began to occasionally use the name Jean Norman when working and had her curly brunette hair straightened and dyed blond to make her more employable. As her figure was deemed more suitable for pin-up than fashion modelling, she was employed mostly for advertisements and men's magazines. By early 1946, she had appeared on 33 magazine covers for publications such as Pageant, U.S. Camera, Laff, and Peek. She divorced Dougherty in 1946. The work led to a screen test by 20th Century Fox executive and former film star Ben Lyon. Head executive Darryl F. Zanuck was unenthusiastic about it, but he was persuaded to give her a standard six-month contract to avoid her being signed by rival studio RKO Pictures. Monroe began her contract in August 1946, and together with Lyon selected the screen name, Marilyn Monroe. Among her first film parts were nine lines of dialogue as a waitress in the drama Dangerous Years (Arthur Pierson, 1947) and a one-line appearance in the comedy Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! (F. Hugh Herbert, 1948). After a series of other minor film roles, she moved to Columbia. While at Fox her role had been that of a 'girl next door', at Columbia she was modelled after Rita Hayworth. Monroe's hairline was raised by electrolysis and her hair was bleached even lighter, to platinum blond. She also began working with the studio's head drama coach, Natasha Lytess, who would remain her mentor until 1955. Her only film at the studio was the low-budget musical Ladies of the Chorus (Phil Karlson, 1948), in which she had her first starring role as a chorus girl who is courted by a wealthy man. After leaving Columbia in September 1948, Monroe became a protégée of Johnny Hyde, vice president of the William Morris Agency. Hyde began representing her and their relationship soon became sexual, although she refused his proposals of marriage. To advance Monroe's career, he paid for a silicone prosthesis to be implanted in her jaw and arranged a bit part in the Marx Brothers' film Love Happy (David Miller, 1949). That year, she also made minor appearances in two critically acclaimed films: John Huston's crime film The Asphalt Jungle (1950) and Joseph Mankiewicz's drama All About Eve (1950). Following Monroe's success in these roles, Hyde negotiated a seven-year contract with 20th Century Fox in December 1950. Over the next two years, she became a popular actress with roles in several comedies, including As Young as You Feel (Harmon Jones, 1951) and Monkey Business (Howard Hawks, 1952) with Cary Grant, and in the dramas Clash by Night (Fritz Lang, 1952) and Don't Bother to Knock (Roy Ward Baker, 1952) with Richard Widmark. Her popularity with audiences was growing: she received several thousand letters of fan mail a week. The second year of the Fox contract saw Monroe become a top-billed actress, with gossip columnist Florabel Muir naming her the year's 'it girl' and Hedda Hopper describing her as the 'cheesecake queen' turned 'box office smash'. She began a highly publicized romance with retired New York Yankee baseball legend Joe DiMaggio, one of the most famous sports personalities of the era. A month later, Monroe faced a scandal when it was revealed that she had posed for nude photos before becoming a star, but rather than damaging her career, the story increased interest in her films.
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars with leading roles in three hits: the Film Noir Niagara and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire. In Niagara (Henry Hathaway, 1953), she played a femme fatale scheming to murder her husband, played by Joseph Cotten. While Niagara made Monroe a sex symbol, the satirical musical comedy Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Howard Hawks, 1953), established her screen persona as a 'dumb blonde'. Based on Anita Loos' bestselling novel and its Broadway version, the film focuses on two 'gold-digging' showgirls, Lorelei Lee and Dorothy Shaw, played by Monroe and Jane Russell. It became one of the biggest box office successes of the year by grossing $5.3 million, more than double its production costs. Her next film, How to Marry a Millionaire (Jean Negulesco, 1953), co-starred Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall. It featured Monroe in the role of a naïve model who teams up with her friends to find rich husbands, repeating the successful formula of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Despite mixed reviews, the film was Monroe's biggest box office success so far, earning $8 million in world rentals. Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project. The suspension was front-page news and Monroe immediately began a publicity campaign to counter any negative press and to strengthen her position in the conflict. On 14 January, she and Joe DiMaggio were married at the San Francisco City Hall. They then travelled to Japan, combining a honeymoon with his business trip. From there, she travelled alone to Korea, where she performed songs from her films as part of a USO show for over 60,000 U.S. Marines over a four-day period. She settled with Fox and returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (Billy Wilder, 1955). Then followed the release of Otto Preminger's Western River of No Return (1955), in which Monroe appeared opposite Robert Mitchum. When the studio was still reluctant to change her contract, Monroe and photographer Milton Greene founded a film production company in late 1954, Marilyn Monroe Productions (MMP). She dedicated 1955 to building her company and began studying method acting at the Actors Studio. She grew close to the studio's director, Lee Strasberg and to his wife Paula, receiving private lessons at their home due to her shyness, and she soon became like a family member. In late 1955, Fox awarded her a new contract, which gave her more control and a larger salary. Monroe did a critically acclaimed performance in Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956). She played Chérie, a saloon singer whose dreams of stardom are complicated by a naïve cowboy who falls in love with her. She received a Golden Globe for Best Actress nomination for her performance. Then she acted opposite Laurence Olivier in the first independent production of MMP, The Prince and the Showgirl (Laurence Olivier, 1957), made in Great Britain. It was released in June 1957 to mixed reviews and proved unpopular with American audiences. The film was better received in Europe where it won Crystal Star awards and was nominated for a BAFTA.
Then Marilyn Monroe acted opposite Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in the classic comedy Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959). The film was an absolute smash hit, with Curtis and Lemmon pretending to be females in an all-girl band, so they can get work. This was to be Marilyn's only film for the year. She won a Golden Globe for Best Actress for her role. Monroe took a hiatus until late 1959, when she returned to Hollywood to star in the musical comedy Let's Make Love (George Cukor, 1960), about an actress and a millionaire (Yves Montand) who fall in love when performing in a satirical play. Her affair with Montand was widely reported by the press and used in the film's publicity campaign. Her last completed film was the drama The Misfits (John Huston, 1961), which Arthur Miller had written to provide her with a dramatic role. She played a recently divorced woman who becomes friends with three ageing cowboys, played by Clark Gable, Eli Wallach, and Montgomery Clift. Monroe returned to the public eye in the spring of 1962: she received a 'World Film Favorite' Golden Globe award and began to shoot a new film for 20th Century-Fox, Something's Got to Give, a re-make of My Favorite Wife (Garson Kanin, 1940). Days before filming began, Monroe caught sinusitis; despite medical advice to postpone the production, Fox began it as planned in late April. Monroe was too ill to work for the majority of the next six weeks, but despite confirmations by multiple doctors, the studio tried to put pressure on her by alleging publicly that she was faking it. On 19 May 1962, she took a break to sing Happy Birthday on stage at President John F. Kennedy's birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden in New York. She drew attention with her costume: a beige, skintight dress covered in rhinestones, which made her appear nude. Monroe next filmed a scene for Something's Got to Give in which she swam naked in a swimming pool. To generate advance publicity, the press was invited to take photographs of the scene, which were later published in Life. It was the first time that a major star had posed nude while at the height of their career. When she was again on sick leave for several days, Fox decided that it could not afford to have another film running behind schedule when it was already struggling to cover the rising costs of Cleopatra (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1963). The studio blamed Monroe for the film's demise and began spreading negative publicity about her, even alleging that she was mentally disturbed. Fox soon regretted its decision, and re-opened negotiations with Monroe later in June; a settlement about a new contract, including re-commencing Something's Got to Give and a starring role in the black comedy What a Way to Go! (J. Lee Thompson, 1964), was reached later that summer. To repair her public image, Monroe engaged in several publicity ventures, including interviews for Life and Cosmopolitan and her first photoshoot for Vogue. For Vogue, she and photographer Bert Stern collaborated on two series of photographs, one a standard fashion editorial and another of her posing nude, which were both later published posthumously with the title The Last Sitting. In the last weeks of her life, she was also planning on starring in a biopic of Jean Harlow. Only 36, Marilyn Monroe died on 5 August 1962 from an overdose of barbiturates. She was discovered dead at her home at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood. She had a phone in one of her hands, and her body was completely nude and face down, on her bed. During her life and also after her death, her troubled private life received much attention. She struggled with addiction, depression, and anxiety. She had two highly publicized marriages, to baseball player Joe DiMaggio and playwright Arthur Miller, which both ended in divorce. Although the death was ruled a probable suicide, several conspiracy theories have been proposed in the decades following her death. There are over 600 books written about her.
Sources: De Nieuwe Kerk, Marilyn Geek, IMDb and Wikipedia.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
Amy wanted to wish all of our Flickr friends a Happy 4th of July !!!
She does look a bit sad and unenthusiastic here, but once we feed her some grilled burgers, she will be fine.
Oh, and she is requesting to hold some Sparkler fireworks, but I am afraid she will burn her cute little plastic face! lol.
American postcard by Classico San Francisco, no. 105-021. Photo: 20th Century Fox. Eileen Heckart, Marilyn Monroe and Arthur O'Connell in Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956).
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars, with leading roles in three films: the Noir Niagara, which focused on her sex appeal, and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire, which established her star image as a "dumb blonde". Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was briefly suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project, but returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (1955).
Marilyn Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortenson in 1926 in Lemmon, South Dakota. She was the third child of Gladys Pearl Baker née Monroe, who suffered from mental illness and later worked as a film cutter at RKO. Marilyn was abandoned by her mother and she spent most of her childhood in foster homes and an orphanage. Just after her 16th birthday, she married 21-year-old aircraft plant worker James 'Jim' Dougherty. In 1943, Dougherty enlisted in the Merchant Marine. He was initially stationed on Catalina Island, where she lived with him until he was shipped out to the Pacific in April 1944; he would remain there for most of the next two years. While working in a factory as part of the war effort in 1944, Marilyn met photographer David Conover and began a successful modelling career. She began to occasionally use the name Jean Norman when working and had her curly brunette hair straightened and dyed blond to make her more employable. As her figure was deemed more suitable for pin-up than fashion modelling, she was employed mostly for advertisements and men's magazines. By early 1946, she had appeared on 33 magazine covers for publications such as Pageant, U.S. Camera, Laff, and Peek. She divorced Dougherty in 1946. The work led to a screen test by 20th Century Fox executive and former film star Ben Lyon. Head executive Darryl F. Zanuck was unenthusiastic about it, but he was persuaded to give her a standard six-month contract to avoid her being signed by rival studio RKO Pictures. Monroe began her contract in August 1946, and together with Lyon selected the screen name, Marilyn Monroe. Among her first film parts were nine lines of dialogue as a waitress in the drama Dangerous Years (Arthur Pierson, 1947) and a one-line appearance in the comedy Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay! (F. Hugh Herbert, 1948). After a series of other minor film roles, she moved to Columbia. While at Fox her role had been that of a 'girl next door', at Columbia she was modelled after Rita Hayworth. Monroe's hairline was raised by electrolysis and her hair was bleached even lighter, to platinum blond. She also began working with the studio's head drama coach, Natasha Lytess, who would remain her mentor until 1955. Her only film at the studio was the low-budget musical Ladies of the Chorus (Phil Karlson, 1948), in which she had her first starring role as a chorus girl who is courted by a wealthy man. After leaving Columbia in September 1948, Monroe became a protégée of Johnny Hyde, vice president of the William Morris Agency. Hyde began representing her and their relationship soon became sexual, although she refused his proposals of marriage. To advance Monroe's career, he paid for a silicone prosthesis to be implanted in her jaw and arranged a bit part in the Marx Brothers' film Love Happy (David Miller, 1949). That year, she also made minor appearances in two critically acclaimed films: John Huston's crime film The Asphalt Jungle (1950) and Joseph Mankiewicz's drama All About Eve (1950). Following Monroe's success in these roles, Hyde negotiated a seven-year contract with 20th Century Fox in December 1950. Over the next two years, she became a popular actress with roles in several comedies, including As Young as You Feel (Harmon Jones, 1951) and Monkey Business (Howard Hawks, 1952) with Cary Grant, and in the dramas Clash by Night (Fritz Lang, 1952) and Don't Bother to Knock (Roy Ward Baker, 1952) with Richard Widmark. Her popularity with audiences was growing: she received several thousand letters of fan mail a week. The second year of the Fox contract saw Monroe become a top-billed actress, with gossip columnist Florabel Muir naming her the year's 'it girl' and Hedda Hopper describing her as the 'cheesecake queen' turned 'box office smash'. She began a highly publicized romance with retired New York Yankee baseball legend Joe DiMaggio, one of the most famous sports personalities of the era. A month later, Monroe faced a scandal when it was revealed that she had posed for nude photos before becoming a star, but rather than damaging her career, the story increased interest in her films.
By 1953, Marilyn Monroe was one of the most marketable Hollywood stars with leading roles in three hits: the Film Noir Niagara and the comedies Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire. In Niagara (Henry Hathaway, 1953), she played a femme fatale scheming to murder her husband, played by Joseph Cotten. While Niagara made Monroe a sex symbol, the satirical musical comedy Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Howard Hawks, 1953), established her screen persona as a 'dumb blonde'. Based on Anita Loos' bestselling novel and its Broadway version, the film focuses on two 'gold-digging' showgirls, Lorelei Lee and Dorothy Shaw, played by Monroe and Jane Russell. It became one of the biggest box office successes of the year by grossing $5.3 million, more than double its production costs. Her next film, How to Marry a Millionaire (Jean Negulesco, 1953), co-starred Betty Grable and Lauren Bacall. It featured Monroe in the role of a naïve model who teams up with her friends to find rich husbands, repeating the successful formula of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Despite mixed reviews, the film was Monroe's biggest box office success so far, earning $8 million in world rentals. Although she played a significant role in the creation and management of her public image throughout her career, she was disappointed at being typecast and underpaid by the studio. She was suspended in early 1954 for refusing a film project. The suspension was front-page news and Monroe immediately began a publicity campaign to counter any negative press and to strengthen her position in the conflict. On 14 January, she and Joe DiMaggio were married at the San Francisco City Hall. They then travelled to Japan, combining a honeymoon with his business trip. From there, she travelled alone to Korea, where she performed songs from her films as part of a USO show for over 60,000 U.S. Marines over a four-day period. She settled with Fox and returned to star in one of the biggest box office successes of her career, The Seven Year Itch (Billy Wilder, 1955). Then followed the release of Otto Preminger's Western River of No Return (1955), in which Monroe appeared opposite Robert Mitchum. When the studio was still reluctant to change her contract, Monroe and photographer Milton Greene founded a film production company in late 1954, Marilyn Monroe Productions (MMP). She dedicated 1955 to building her company and began studying method acting at the Actors Studio. She grew close to the studio's director, Lee Strasberg and to his wife Paula, receiving private lessons at their home due to her shyness, and she soon became like a family member. In late 1955, Fox awarded her a new contract, which gave her more control and a larger salary. Monroe did a critically acclaimed performance in Bus Stop (Joshua Logan, 1956). She played Chérie, a saloon singer whose dreams of stardom are complicated by a naïve cowboy who falls in love with her. She received a Golden Globe for Best Actress nomination for her performance. Then she acted opposite Laurence Olivier in the first independent production of MMP, The Prince and the Showgirl (Laurence Olivier, 1957), made in Great Britain. It was released in June 1957 to mixed reviews and proved unpopular with American audiences. The film was better received in Europe where it won Crystal Star awards and was nominated for a BAFTA.
Then Marilyn Monroe acted opposite Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in the classic comedy Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959). The film was an absolute smash hit, with Curtis and Lemmon pretending to be females in an all-girl band, so they can get work. This was to be Marilyn's only film for the year. She won a Golden Globe for Best Actress for her role. Monroe took a hiatus until late 1959, when she returned to Hollywood to star in the musical comedy Let's Make Love (George Cukor, 1960), about an actress and a millionaire (Yves Montand) who fall in love when performing in a satirical play. Her affair with Montand was widely reported by the press and used in the film's publicity campaign. Her last completed film was the drama The Misfits (John Huston, 1961), which Arthur Miller had written to provide her with a dramatic role. She played a recently divorced woman who becomes friends with three ageing cowboys, played by Clark Gable, Eli Wallach, and Montgomery Clift. Monroe returned to the public eye in the spring of 1962: she received a 'World Film Favorite' Golden Globe award and began to shoot a new film for 20th Century-Fox, Something's Got to Give, a re-make of My Favorite Wife (Garson Kanin, 1940). Days before filming began, Monroe caught sinusitis; despite medical advice to postpone the production, Fox began it as planned in late April. Monroe was too ill to work for the majority of the next six weeks, but despite confirmations by multiple doctors, the studio tried to put pressure on her by alleging publicly that she was faking it. On 19 May 1962, she took a break to sing Happy Birthday on stage at President John F. Kennedy's birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden in New York. She drew attention with her costume: a beige, skintight dress covered in rhinestones, which made her appear nude. Monroe next filmed a scene for Something's Got to Give in which she swam naked in a swimming pool. To generate advance publicity, the press was invited to take photographs of the scene, which were later published in Life. It was the first time that a major star had posed nude while at the height of their career. When she was again on sick leave for several days, Fox decided that it could not afford to have another film running behind schedule when it was already struggling to cover the rising costs of Cleopatra (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1963). The studio blamed Monroe for the film's demise and began spreading negative publicity about her, even alleging that she was mentally disturbed. Fox soon regretted its decision, and re-opened negotiations with Monroe later in June; a settlement about a new contract, including re-commencing Something's Got to Give and a starring role in the black comedy What a Way to Go! (J. Lee Thompson, 1964), was reached later that summer. To repair her public image, Monroe engaged in several publicity ventures, including interviews for Life and Cosmopolitan and her first photoshoot for Vogue. For Vogue, she and photographer Bert Stern collaborated on two series of photographs, one a standard fashion editorial and another of her posing nude, which were both later published posthumously with the title The Last Sitting. In the last weeks of her life, she was also planning on starring in a biopic of Jean Harlow. Only 36, Marilyn Monroe died on 5 August 1962 from an overdose of barbiturates. She was discovered dead at her home at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in Brentwood. She had a phone in one of her hands, and her body was completely nude and face down, on her bed. During her life and also after her death, her troubled private life received much attention. She struggled with addiction, depression, and anxiety. She had two highly publicized marriages, to baseball player Joe DiMaggio and playwright Arthur Miller, which both ended in divorce. Although the death was ruled a probable suicide, several conspiracy theories have been proposed in the decades following her death. There are over 600 books written about her.
Sources: De Nieuwe Kerk, Marilyn Geek, IMDb and Wikipedia.
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