Birthday – Part 2

The brochure from yesterday dealing with my birthday year got me to thinking about other things that may have happened during that “most momentous year.” This is some of the music which has survived from 1947:
1. Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah
2. White Christmas – Bing Crosby
3. Too Fat Polka (I Don’t Want Her-You Can Have Her-She’s Too Fat For Me) – Arthur Godfrey
4. One O’Clock Jump – Count Basie
5. All of Me – Frankie Lane
6. Almost Like Being in Love – Jo Stafford
7. Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better) – the Andrew Sisters, Bing Crosby, and Dick Haymes
8. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas – Frank Sinatra
9. Peg O’ My Heart – the Harmonicats
10. Night and Day – Frank Sinatra
11. I Wanna Be Loved (But Only By You) – Savannah Churchill and The Sentimentalists
12. Singing the Blues – Frankie Lane
13. Wiffenpoof Song – Bing Crosby & Fred Waring
14. Near You – Francis Craig
15. Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette) – Tex Williams
1947 was the year that “Annie Get Your Gun,” “Brigadoon,” “Finian’s Rainbow,” and “Oklahoma” all opened on Broadway.
Others who share my birthday year are David Bowie, Elton John, Meat Loaf, Iggy Pop, Tommy James, Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), Brian Johnson (AC/DC), Peter Noone (Herman’s Hermits), Greg Allman, Joe Walsh (James Gang & the Eagles), Buck Dharma (Blue Oyster Cult), and Dennis De Young (Styx).
I really am in great company.

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Upcoming Birthday

Next week, I will celebrate my 63rd birthday … not a milestone, but daunting nonetheless. Yesterday in the mail, I received a “Birthday Times” from my State Farm agent, Gary Cooper. It was quite entertaining, and I thought I might share some of it with you.
I was born in 1947. This is what the brochure says about “1947 in Review.”
* The Voice of America began its broadcast to U.S.S.R.
* Jackie Robinson, the first African American major league baseball player, won the Rookie of the Year Award.
* Harry Truman requested funds to fight the “Cold War.”
* The first ballistic missile was fired.
* Britain’s Princess Elizabeth married Duke Philip Mountbatten.
* The World War II Paris Peace Treaty was signed.
* The Department of Defense was created.
* The Atomic Energy Commission was formed.
* The Marshall Plan was established, and the U.S. provided millions in relief for foreign countries to recover from the war.
* The Taft-Hartley Act put limits on organized labor.
* A $4-billion tax reduction bill passed Congress.
I share my year of birth with Don Henley, Glenn Close, Cheryl Tiegs, David Eisenhower, John Larroquette, David Letterman, Carlos Santana, and the late Farrah Fawcett.
Actually, I am in very good company, and the celebration should be long and lovely.

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The Launch of Austen Authors Website

At the moment, I am enjoying a community based picnic/festival in the small village I live in outside of Charlotte, NC. It is a spectacular day…only in the mid 80s for temperatures, and the turn out is first class. We have a group in this subdivision that we call “SAGES,” the perfect word pun for the elderly. SAGES stands for Seniors Aging Gracefully with Enthusiasm and Spirituality. So, while my fellow Austen authors

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Actors Who Have Appeared in More Than One Austen Film

Daphne Slater took on the parts of Anne Elliot in Perusasion 1960 and that of Elizabeth Bennet in the 1952 production of Pride and Prejudice.
Phyllida Law played Mrs. Austen in Miss Austen Regrets and Mrs. Bates in Emma 1996.
Guy Henry portrayed the sleazy Mr. Collins in the 2008 film Lost in Austen, as well as the more likeable John Knightley in Emma 1996 (TV).
Hugh Bonneville has appeared three times: Rev. Brook Bridges in Miss Austen Regrets; Mr. Bennet in Lost in Austen; and Mr. Rushworth in Mansfield Park 1999.
Sylvestra Le Touzel played Mrs. Allen in Northanger Abbey 2007. Earlier she portrayed Fanny Price in Mansfield Park 1983.
Irene Richard played Charlotte Lucas in the 1980 version of Pride and Prejudice. The next year she became Elinor Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility.
David Savile took on the part of Charles Bingley in the 1967 version of Pride and Prejudice. Four years later, he portrayed Mr. Elliot in Perusasion.
Gemma Jones, who portrayed Mrs. Dashwood in the 1995 version of Sense and Sensibility, also played the role of Bridget Jones’s mother in the films based loosely on Pride and Prejudice.
I also found it interesting that Richard Owens, who played Mr. Woodhouse in the 1971 version of Emma is the father of Susannah Harker, who played Jane Bennet in 1995’s Pride and Prejudice.
It is a bit amusing that Hugh Grant’s birthday is Sept. 9, and Colin Firth’s is Sept. 10. They played the “Wickham” and “Darcy” roles in the Bridget Jones movies.
So, do you know of other similar roles I have missed?

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Excited and Frustrated with the New Website

I am extremely excited about the launch of our Austen Authors website tomorrow. It should be a grand experiment in creativity. However, I am still playing around with a slideshow of actors who have appeared in Jane Austen related films and who are celebrating their September birthdays. I am hoping Sharon Lathan can bail me out on this matter. My frustration level is still high, and I need a break from the computer. Sharon is very tech “smart” and should make it look like it should. I will need to master it before October as this will be a regular feature on the website. At least, that is what we are hoping.
This month you will see some familiar faces such as Colin Firth, Hugh Grant, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Greer Garson. Many of you will also recognize Rupert Penry Jones and Billie Piper, especially if you are fans of the BBC. Sabina Franklyn (Jane Bennet, Pride & Prejudice 1980), Peter Settelen (George Wickham, P&P 1980), Alan Badel (Fitzwilliam Darcy, P&P 1958), and Christopher Villiers (Tom Bertram, Mansfield Park 1983) may not be so recognizable to some of you. However, we are hoping you will return each month to view who is celebrating another birthday.
Another issue was that many actors only listed their year of birth in their bios. Some of Austen favorites give us no clue as to when we might acknowledge them. They include Amanda Root, J J Field, Elizabeth Garvie, and Simon Woods.

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Technology Sucks!!!

I have spent countless hours today trying to put together a montage of actors who have performed in Jane Austen related movies and who celebrate birthdays in September. At the moment, I am giving up. There must be an easier way of doing this. I have tried Flickr and Rock You repeatedly. I do not think it has anything to do with the sites. It is just that I will be 63 years old in 2 weeks, and my brain does not comprehend the intricacies of so many social networking choices. I will master it, but not right now. If I stay on the computer much longer, it will be flying out the window to rest in the middle of my cul de sac. If anyone out there has a better idea, please let me know. I am at a standstill.

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Best Authors on Facebook

Best Authors on Facebook
By Jason Boog on Sep 02, 2010 04:23 PM

http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/galleycat_reviews/best_authors_on_facebook_172455.asp
Who is your favorite writer on Facebook? Share your recommendation in the comments section and help us build a brand new GalleyCat Reviews directory.

Our Facebook page has grown rapidly this summer and more than 100 writers have already posted to our “New Books” section. However, a number of previously published authors emailed us wondering if they could include their work as well. Our Best Authors on Facebook directory will help them–allowing both published and self-published authors to connect with readers.

We’ve started the list with a few writers from our summer reading list, but the directory is hardly comprehensive. Share your favorite author on Facebook in the comments section below and we’ll add them to our growing directory.

Christa Allan: Author of Walking on Broken Glass.

Nicholson Baker: A contemporary American writer of fiction and non-fiction and professor at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland

L.A. Banks: Author of The Vampire Huntress Legend Series

Sonya Bateman: Author of Master of None

Meg Waite Clayton: Author of THE FOUR MS. BRADWELLS and THE LANGUAGE OF LIGHT is

Marcy Dermansky: Writer. Bad Marie, my book, is currently out in stores, occasionally placed on tables.

Morris Dickstein: Author of Dancing in the Dark: A Cultural History of the Great Depression and a distinguished professor of English and Theatre at CUNY Graduate Center.

Scott Edelman: American science fiction, fantasy, and horror writer and editor of SCI FI Magazine.

James Ellroy: Novelist and Death Dog of American Literature.

Robert Morgan Fisher: Novelist/Screenwriter/Musician/ Voice Actor.

Yasmine Galenorn: Author of The Sisters of the Moon series

William Gibson: Zero History, Spook Country, Pattern Recognition, and Neuromancer.

Laurell K. Hamilton: Author of the Anita Blake Series and the Merry Gentry Series

Monica Holloway: Author of Cowboy & Wills, story of Cowboy, the golden retriever puppy who changed her son’s life.

James Kaelan: Author of We’re Getting On and zero emission book tour advocate.

Kathleen Kaufman, author of The Tree Museum.

Karen Karbo: Author of The Gospel According to Coco Chanel: Life Lessons from the World’s Most Elegant Woman and How to Hepburn: Lessons on Living from Kate the Great

Nicole Krauss: Author best known for her novels The History of Love and Man Walks into a Room.

Erik Larson: “Isaac’s Storm (1999), about the experiences of Isaac Cline during the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic and Madness at the Fair That Changed America”

Mark Laxer: Author of The Monkey Bible

Laura Lippman: Author of fifteen books — the Tess Monaghan series, four stand-alones and a collection of short stories.

Melissa Marr: Author of the Wicked Lovely Series

Tom McCarthy: English novelist and conceptual artist.

Teresa Medeiros: Romance author of The Devil Wears Plaid and Some Like it Wild.

Rick Moody: Rick Moody is the author of eight published books and one forthcoming book (FOUR FINGERS OF DEATH).

Haruki Murakami: the author of Wind Up Bird Chronicle, and many other novels, short stories, and essays.

Amelie Nothomb: A Belgian novelist who writes in French.

Jason Pinter: Thriller writer/literary agent, author of The Mark, The Guilty, and The Stolen.

Nora Roberts: bestselling American author of more than 165 romance novels.

Gary Shteyngart: Author of The Russian Debutante’s Handbook, Absurdistan, and Super Sad True Love Story.

Rachel Shukert: Author of Everything Is Going to Be Great: An Underfunded and Overexposed European Grand Tour.

Clea Simon: Mystery author, most recently of “Grey Matters” with “Dogs Don’t Lie” (first pet noir!) and “Grey Zone” to come in 2011.

Andrew Smith: Author of GHOST MEDICINE and IN THE PATH OF FALLING OBJECTS

Vendela Vida: Author of The Lovers, Girls on the Verge, And Now You Can Go, and Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name.

Jennifer Weiner: Author of Good In Bed, In Her Shoes, Little Earthquakes, and Goodnight Nobody.

Of course, I would not mind my own name showing up this list or the number of comments which follow it, but I will not put my name on there as some authors did. I like the list though and could easily add to it. 

How about you? Whom would you add?

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Invitation to join the fun!

Writers of Jane Austen fiction

cordially invite you to the

Launch

of

‘Austen Authors’

and to share in our passion for her world

… because there’s never enough Jane Austen.

We look forward to the pleasure of your company on

Monday, September 6, 2010,

and daily thereafter.

Throughout September, during our Launch Extravaganza, there will be posts by many of your favourite Austen-related fiction writers as well as contests, quizzes, a scavenger hunt, oodles of information, spotlight guest Amanda Grange (Mr. Darcy Vampyre), new release parties, author introductions, entertainment, humour, polls, secrets, recipes, games galore, and giveaways of gifts and books from the authors and their publishers. Mark your calendar, join us, and be sure to post comments.

“My idea of good company is the company of clever, well-informed people who have a great deal of conversation; that is what I call good company.”
~ Jane Austen ~

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“Me” Day

Yesterday, I had a “me” day. I got up early and walked my 5 mile loop (seeing lots of my former students going off to school … I smiled thinking of retirement). Then I came home to do a little yard work. I shampooed the downstairs’ carpets (got company coming for my birthday in September), laid out in the sun for about 90 minutes, and then I read a novel for the rest of the day. Thank you Adele Ashworth for letting me escape into the world of Victorian England. I love doing this. I read voraciously, but with writing novels now, I have have less time to read. I normally read every night before I go to bed. Ashworth’s book had a compelling plot, interesting characters, some salacious scenes, and a bit of humor…all things to capture my attention.

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Rewrites!

I hate rewrites, but they are a necessary evil for authors. I have spent the last two days combing over sentence after sentence, looking for errors. I feel like I am back in the classroom again. Grammar is usually not my problem; I have a fairly good grasp of English constructions. For me, it is description and sometimes point of view. Even using an all-knowing narrator, things get boggled at times. This latest book is the first in a series. I needed to plant clues and details in this one, which will play out in the others, but that changes the point of view. I finally just let it go. Only another writer would criticize it, especially if the piece is entered in a contest, but what can I do? Sometimes, contest remarks are very helpful. Often, I enter to just to receive some feedback. If I know something is not working, and I do not know how to fix it, I will enter a contest (usually RWA sponsored) just to have someone tell me what I should fix. Most of the time, I do know; I just do not want to admit it. However, sometimes a person gives me a comment that really puzzles me. For example, I entered my vampire book in a paranormal category, and one judge told me it was in the wrong category. The books has a plethora of vampires, one dhampir, a cemetery slaughter, and several ghosts. How is that not paranormal, I wondered? Oh, well, I cannot judge for someone else. I pretend it does not matter what others say. I say “pretend” because we all care how others judge us.

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