KatharineHepburn Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Girls on Film: The Femmes Who Defy Convention
Filed under: Fandom », Columns », Girls on Film »
A big revelation hit the wire yesterday. Belle de Jour -- a writer named after the film by Luis Buñuel -- came out of the literary closet. She's the British woman who anonymously blogged about her time as a London call girl, wrote books about her experiences, and saw them morphed into television form with the Billie Piper series Secret Diary of a Call Girl.
Her name is Dr. Brooke Magnanti, and as the Times describes: "Her specialist areas are developmental neurotoxicology and cancer epidemiology. She has a PhD in informatics, epidemiology and forensic science and is now working at the Bristol Initiative for Research of Child Health. She is part of a team researching the effects of exposure to the pesticide chlorpyrifos on foetuses and infants." Not quite what you were expecting, eh? Over the years, many have sworn that she couldn't be real. She must be a figment of some man's imagination, writing to make sex work look glamorous and ease the mind of lonely types who buy their sexual gratification. But here she is, 100% woman, 100% real, adept not only at the written word, but also medical pursuits.
On the one hand, I worry that this will inspire Hollywood towards a new torrent of prostitution-laced fare, adding to a business that's already over-saturated as if every Jane, Sue, and Mary have a side gig giving sex for cash. The biz already has more than enough of it, and they really don't need extra encouragement. On the other hand, I find myself enamored with her guts and how perfectly she challenges assumptions on sexuality, intelligence, and artistic flair. Naturally, this made me think about the women of film who defy convention.
Girls on Film: Remembering Women Who Rock
Filed under: Fandom », Columns », Girls on Film »
Welcome to Girls on Film -- not as skin-laden as the Duran Duran song, but a new Cinematical column full of female-centric musing, rants, love, and aggravation.
There are two ways you can go with an introductory post -- you can either jump in randomly, or try for something all-encompassing. I was set on the latter, but the challenge is not just stating the obvious. We know that women struggle behind the camera, and we know what they get offered in front of it. But as much as gripes and arguments about women in film are necessary to improve the Hollywood landscape, they're only as good as the moments of praise and adoration. If we can't appreciate the good that's present today, and for that matter, was present yesterday, this cycle will never end because eyes set completely on the future never see the perks of the present.
It's a bad habit that pops up in any part of life -- so much energy is expended on the fight, and it's so easy to fall into an aggravation-filled rant, that we often forget the good. In the world of cinema, it's everywhere. We rant, rightly so, about remakes and sequels, but also forget when they transcend their mundane brethren to become a worthy feature. (The first Fly is wonderful, but can you imagine Hollywood without the remake?) When it comes to women, so much energy is thrown down the toilet ranting about talented women selecting crap -- Sandra Bullock's next dumb comedy, or another romcom about girls fighting over boys (I'm looking at you, Bride Wars) -- that we rarely chatter on about the good. And, if you follow that whole Law of Attraction thing, focusing on the absence is bad, but focusing on the good that's there brings more of it.
The Best Film Related Books and Biographies
Filed under: Fandom »
Despite being a film fan, and a reader who favors nonfiction, I don't read a lot of movie related books. I'm not exactly sure why, except that a lot of the biographies and behind-the-scenes stories can seem a bit tabloidy, and I like my screen gods and goddesses to remain exactly that.
However, I caved last weekend and read Katharine Hepburn's Me: Stories of My Life. It was sitting there on my sister's bookshelf and I suddenly felt ashamed that despite adoring the woman, I'd been less dedicated to learning about her than my sister had. All I can say is ... wow. What a brilliant read. Not only is it a glimpse into the golden era of Hollywood, it's also one hell of a self-help book (if you're feeling sorry for yourself, Hepburn has some advice for you), a historical document (Hepburn's parents were incredibly fascinating) and very much a work of art. Hepburn's stream of consciousness style can nearly rival Virginia Woolf's. It's also deceptively light hearted and funny, which abruptly switches to the deep and personal in the final chapters, as Hepburn finally discusses Spencer Tracy. Read it, if you haven't already -- and have the Kleenex waiting, because it's really rather haunting.
So now I think I've been a bit remiss in avoiding the film section of my bookstore, and I thought I'd use my hard lesson learned to spark a bit of discussion among you guys. Which film books and biographies and autobiographies have wound you up over the years ... and which ones are you still waiting for?
So now I think I've been a bit remiss in avoiding the film section of my bookstore, and I thought I'd use my hard lesson learned to spark a bit of discussion among you guys. Which film books and biographies and autobiographies have wound you up over the years ... and which ones are you still waiting for?
Hepburn's Writing & Memorabilia to be Displayed at New York Public Library
Filed under: Classics », Celebrities and Controversy », Fandom », Exhibition »
Some people like to air their private, dirty (or cleaned) laundry publicly -- Whitney Houston and Johnny Depp are two celebrities who have put undergarments up for auction (granted, for very different reasons). Some laundry, of the less-literal variety, stays hidden, or gets revealed by those hot, unauthorized biographies. And, just sometimes, the stories come out years after the star passes on. According to The Guardian, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, a place I've been dying to visit, has gotten one heck of a collection of loot -- Katharine Hepburn's writings and theater memorabilia.There's personal notes, fan mail from the likes of Judy Garland, Charlton Heston, Laurence Olivier, and Henry Fonda, receipts, stage dimensions, and records of some pretty funny stories. You see, people don't get in trouble with the law like they used to. These days, there's scary mugshots, racial slurs, and drunken craziness, but Kate, she knew how to handle a cop. Among the notes is her account of facing an Oklahoma state police officer: "She lambasted him for being a 'moron,' called him 'handsome in a dull sort of way,' and snapped that she was sorry she did not have a week to take off to deal with his complaint. Then she threatened that if she ever found an Oklahoma car in Connecticut 'I would flatten all the tyres.'" That lady had spunk. If you want to see the goodies for yourself, they'll go on display in February.
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