Women’s History Month: focus on Willa Cather

March 19, 2011

Willa Sibert Cather [1873-1947]—writer

–grew up in as part of a wealthy family in northern Virginia
–went to the University of Nebraska
–in 1891, as a freshman at the University of Nebraska, Cather writes an essay about Thomas Carlyle. It is published without her knowledge in the Nebraska State Journal in March.
–Cather becomes literary editor of the Hesperian, student publication of the University of Nebraska. She holds this position from 1892-1893. She’s then managing editor until graduation.
–worked as a reporter in Lincoln, Neb. and then in Pittsburgh
–was an arts critic
–Cather meets and begins a relationship with Isabelle McClung in 1899.
–In 1901 Cather takes a teaching job at a Pittsburgh high school and moves in with Isabelle McClung at the home of McClung’s parents.
–taught high school from 1901-1906.
–At 40, her famous novel O Pioneers was published in 1913.

–also wrote My Antonia [1918], The Song of the Lark [1915] and the Pulitzer-prize winning One of Ours [1922] among many others.
–Cather wrote about independent female protagonists in her book and included themes of frontier development and explored the idea of the small town and what it did to crush individuality.
–In 1929, Cather was elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters.
–On April 24, 1947 — Cather dies from a cerebral hemorrhage in New York City and is buried four days later in Jaffrey, New Hampshire.

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Posted by Amy Steele

Women’s History Month: some of my favorite films by women

March 16, 2011

Grace of My Heart [1996]
written and directed by Allison Anders
–Loosely based on the tumultuous rise of singer/songwriter Carole King, Grace of My Heart is a tour-de-force and one of my favorite films ever. Starring Illeana Douglas, Grace of My Heart takes viewers through the music biz from the famed Brill Building to communes and the hip 60s and beyond as one woman strives to find her own voice in a male-dominated industry.

Waitress [2007]
written and directed by Adrienne Shelly
–a charming and heart-warming film about an independent, spirited small-town woman [Keri Russell] determined to leave her abusive husband and make it big on her own.

Monsoon Wedding [2001]
directed by Mira Nair

Away from Her [2006]
written and directed by Sarah Polley
–a graceful love story about a woman with Alzheimer’s

Searching for Debra Winger [2002]
directed by Rosanna Arquette
–documentary on women in film, which includes amazing and very honest commentary from stars from Gwyneth Paltrow to Whoopi to Vanessa Redgrave to Salma Hayek to Charlotte Rampling to of course Debra Winger. It’s great that these women feel comfortable with age but sad to see the frustration and that there still is the issue of great roles for women over 30.

Broken English [2007]
Written and directed by Zoe Cassavetes
– story of Nora [formidable, immensely talented Parker Posey], a 35-year-old who seems stuck in a rut—both personally and professionally. Nora has become complacent and settled at her hotel job. She is beginning to delve into the Bell Jar after years of seeming to know what she wanted and now being at the age where she feels she should already be there.

The Namesake [2006]
directed by Mira Nair
–the story revolves around Gogol [Kal Penn], a mid-twenties architect who has been fighting against his traditional Indian family and heritage. He gets pulled back in by an unforeseen family crisis and it changes his outlook and future forever.

Bright Star [2009]
written and directed by Jane Campion
–wondrously languid, romantic and exquisitely filmed. It tells the story of the tender and tragic love affair between poet John Keats [Ben Whishaw] and his muse and love Fanny Brawne [Abbie Cornish] as told through her eyes.

Come Early Morning [2006]
written and directed by Joey Lauren Adams
–a woman [Ashley Judd] who struggles with alcoholism tries to get her life on track

Fire [1996]
Earth [1998]
Water [2005]
written and directed by Deepa Mehta

scene from Water

2 Days in Paris [2006]
written and directed by Julie Delpy
–an American and a Parisian talk a lot, fight a lot

Girlfight [2000]
written and directed by Karyn Kusama
–focus on female boxers

Somewhere [2010]
written and directed by Sofia Coppola
–a wayward actor [Stephen Dorff] and his heartfelt relationship with his daughter [Elle Fanning]

The Parking Lot Movie [2010]
directed by Meghan Eckman
–three years following the ins and outs of the attendants at a parking lot in Virginia. truly riveting. really.

SherryBaby [2006]
written and directed by Laurie Collyer
–after serving a three-year prison sentence, Sherry [Maggie Gyllenhaal] returns to New Jersey to try to re-establish family ties, including one with her daughter

The Hurt Locker [2009]
directed by Kathryn Bigelow
–heart-pounding thriller about the guys who diffuse IEDs in Iraq

The Kids Are All Right [2010]
co-written and directed by Lisa Chodolenko
–the teenage children of lesbian parents decide to contact the sperm donor and meeting him has implications on the entire family

Please Give [2010]
written and directed by Nicole Holofcener

Winter’s Bone [2010]
written by Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini
directed by Debra Granik
–a teenager [Jennifer Lawrence] searches for her father in dangerous, bleak meth-country

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Posted by Amy Steele

poem: EARTH by Amy Steele

March 14, 2011

The Portrait of Maud Abrantes, by Amedeo Modigliani

cool and damp
darkness surrounds me
claustrophobia engulfs me
but I don’t care anymore
I embrace it
Feeling the emptiness
my mind aches
my heart burns
my soul dissipates
Oxygen slowly escapes
this suffocating space
How did I get dirt caked under my fingernails?
Instinct
Because long ago I resigned myself to loneliness
To heartache
To disappointment
To an early, bitter, painful death

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Posted by Amy Steele

Women’s History Month: Focus on Jane Russell

March 12, 2011

Jane Russell [1921 –2011]—actress

–born in Minnesota
–she had four brothers
–in the 1930s, the family moved to San Fernando Valley, California
–Russell attended Van Nuys High School where she participated in drama and also took piano lessons
–after graduating from high school, she worked as a receptionist but also studied drama and acting with Max Reinhardt’s Theatrical Workshop
–In 1940, Howard Hughes discovered Russell and signed her to a seven-year contract
–Her film debut was 1943′s The Outlaw
–She played Calamity Jane opposite Bob Hope in The Paleface [1948] and Dorothy Shaw in the hit film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes [1953] opposite Marilyn Monroe for 20th Century Fox.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes [1953]

–to compare to actress of today, Russell was 5’9″ and her measurements were 38D-24-36
–In 1955, Russell and her first husband, former Los Angeles Rams quarterback Bob Waterfield, formed Russ-Field Productions. They produced Gentlemen Marry Brunettes [1955], The King and Four Queens [1956] starring Clark Gable and Eleanor Parker, Run for the Sun [1956] and The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown [1957].

The Fuzzy Pink Nightgown [1957]

I’m just a simple business girl. I sell a funny, phony little commodity called sex and if customers are hungry enough to buy it, I run my own factory in my own way.
–Laurel [Jane Russell]

–In 1957, Russell debuted in a successful solo nightclub act at the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas.

Russell remarked in 1999: Why did I quit movies? Because I was getting too old! You couldn’t go on acting in those years if you were an actress over 30.

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Posted by Amy Steele

Women’s History Month: focus on The Shirelles

March 8, 2011

–originally formed in 1958 in by four friends: Shirley Owens Alston Reeves, Doris Coley Kenner Jackson, Addie “Micki” Harris McPherson, and Beverly Lee. They were all students at Passaic High School in New Jersey
–The Shirelles debuted in 1958 at New York’s famed Apollo Theater
–first major female vocal group in the 60s
–first girl group to have a number one single on the Billboard Hot 100
–crossover phenomenon with white audiences
–successful in Britain with Will You Love Me Tomorrow (1960)

listen to: Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?

–wrote their own songs and also provided early hits for Brill Building songwriters like Gerry Goffin & Carole King, Burt Bacharach & Hal David, and Van McCoy
–hits include: Soldier Boy; Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow; Dedicated To The One I Love; Mama Said

–The Shirelles earned three gold records and were named Best Female Group in Billboard and Cash Box for five consecutive years.
–In 1983, for the group’s 25th Anniversary, The Shirelles received a citation in the Congressional Record.
–headlined the first integrated show in Alabama
–performed for Presidents Kennedy and Johnson
–The Shirelles work for AIDS and USO fundraisers and the Mental Health Association in Passaic (NJ) County for which Beverly Lee has served on the Board of Directors.
–inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996

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Posted by Amy Steele

Women’s History Month: focus on Pearl Buck

March 4, 2011

Pearl Comfort Buck [1892-1973]

–born to Presbyterian missionaries in West Virginia
–grew up in China where her parents served
–returned to attend Randolph Woman’s College from 1910-1914
–Buck returned to China to teach and met and married American agriculturalist John Lossing Buck in 1917
–she earned her masters degree in English from Cornell and continued to teach in China from 1925-1931

–her second novel, The Good Earth [1931], earned her the Pulitzer Prize and became a play and award-winning film
– champion of civil rights, women’s rights, children’s rights, and the rights of those with disabilities
–Buck divorced in 1934 and married her publisher Richard Walsh a year later
–Buck earned the Nobel Prize for her body of work in 1938
–other books include: Pavilion of Women [1946]; Angry Wife [1969]; Imperial Woman [1956]; and Of Men and Women [1971]

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Posted by Amy Steele

Women’s History Month: Emily’s List

March 3, 2011

In 1985, Emily’s List [Early Money is Like Yeast] was established as a donor network to ELECT PRO-CHOICE Democratic WOMEN to national office.

founder and president Ellen Malcolm wanted women to be as competitive in fund-raising efforts as men.

for more information: Emily’s List

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Posted by Amy Steele

Women’s History Month: focus on Eartha Kitt

March 1, 2011

Eartha Kitt [1927-2008]—entertainer

–born impoverished in South Carolina
–abandoned by her parents, an aunt raised her in Harlem
–Kitt joined a traveling dancing troupe and moved to Europe in 1948
–she became a nightclub favorite for her singing style in Paris and London
–after returning to the United States, Kitt signed a record contract with RCA in 1952
–Kitt soon earned as much as 10,000/ week for Vegas shows

– took over the role of Catwoman for the third season of the 1960s Batman television series,
–during the sixties, Kitt became active in teaching low-income youth in Washington, D.C. to dance
–she testified before Congress in 1967 about juvenile delinquency
–President Johnson named Kitt to a Citizens Advisory Committee on Youth Opportunity
–later it was revealed that Kitt had been under CIA surveillance since 1956
–Kitt wrote two autobiographies: Thursday’s Child (1956) and Alone with Me (1976)

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Posted by Amy Steele

Support Women in Film: 2010 films by female directors

January 25, 2011

Of all the films released in 2010, I found merely 14 directed by women:

The Kids Are All Right—Lisa Chodolenko
–smart film about family, relationships and when challenges threaten the status quo

Please Give—Nicole Holofcener
–darkly amusing film about a jaded New York couple and the two sisters that live in their building, who affect them more than expected

Somewhere—Sofia Coppola
–a spoiled film star gets real with an undeniably sweet, gentle relationship with his tween daughter

Country Strong—Shana Feste
–the challenges of staying young and relevant in the music industry without letting the pressures steal your individuality

The Extra Man—Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini

Going the Distance – Nanette Burstein
–cute rom-com about a long distance relationship w/ Drew Barrymore and Justin Long

The Greatest—Shana Feste

Just Wright—Sanaa Hamri
–Queen Latifah plays a physical therapist who gets her dream assignment: personal rehab to one of the New York Knicks. It’s funny and touching.

Nanny McPhee Returns—Susanna White

Ramona and Beezus– Elizabeth Allen

The Runaways– Floria Sigismondi
–pretty tame biopic of the all-girl punk rock band The Runaways with Joan Jett and Cherie Currie

The Tempest—Julie Taymor

Winter’s Bone– Debra Granik
–gritty, harrowing, suspenseful and one of the best films of 2010

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Posted by Amy Steele

A poem by Amy Lowell for the last day of October

October 31, 2010

Apples of Hesperides

Glinting golden through the trees,
Apples of Hesperides!
Through the moon-pierced warp of night
Shoot pale shafts of yellow light,
Swaying to the kissing breeze
Swings the treasure, golden-gleaming,
Apples of Hesperides!.

Far and lofty yet they glimmer,
Apples of Hesperides!
Blinded by their radiant shimmer,
Pushing forward just for these;
Dew-besprinkled, bramble-marred,
Poor duped mortal, travel-scarred,
Always thinking soon to seize
And possess the golden-glistening
Apples of Hesperides!.

Orbed, and glittering, and pendent,
Apples of Hesperides!
Not one missing, still transcendent,
Clustering like a swarm of bees.
Yielding to no man’s desire,
Glowing with a saffron fire,
Splendid, unassailed, the golden
Apples of Hesperides!

– Amy Lowell

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Posted by Amy Steele

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