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One of my favorite children's authors is Beverly Cleary. I adored her books as a child, and plowed through all of the Beezus and Ramona series in my formative years. And I love her as a librarian, pressing her wonderful, crisply-written novels into the hands of my young patrons. If they read one, they want to read them all. She turns 96 today. Here's a lovely piece from last year's New York Times on her ageless appeal.
A former librarian who knew she could write a better children's book... and she did
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Well, the master/mistress could only be Google... and the latest foray into his/her/their mission to "organize the world's information" is terribly exciting: GoogleArtProject
Of course, in order to access it, you have to download Google Chrome Frame (for free, of course). After all, that's how they hook you--giving it to you for free.
Google approached over 150 museums and universities throughout the world and amassed 32,000 works of art for release in digital format: searchable by name, artist, location. What an amazing resource for art lovers, teachers and writers! Thank you, Google, may I have another? Dominate me at will.
Of course, in order to access it, you have to download Google Chrome Frame (for free, of course). After all, that's how they hook you--giving it to you for free.
Google approached over 150 museums and universities throughout the world and amassed 32,000 works of art for release in digital format: searchable by name, artist, location. What an amazing resource for art lovers, teachers and writers! Thank you, Google, may I have another? Dominate me at will.
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As you may have noticed, fairy tales are hot right now. From books to television
to movies, fairy tales in all their various permutations (straight-forward, fractured, updated, post-modern) seem to have the market cornered. The Grimm Brothers have certainly received their due; so let’s celebrate another man of fairy tale renown on his birthday: Hans Christian Andersen, who was born on April 2, 1805 in Odense, Denmark.
His is a classic poor boy-makes-good story. Born of a shoemaker father (I kid you not!) and a laundress mother, his family background flavors many of his tales, as he frequently explored class differences between the poor and the wealthy. He was teased by school mates for his ungainly appearance and was later bullied by a teacher who told him his writing was fit only for the trash can (any writer can relate to that!). At age 14, he left home to make his fortune. He dabbled in art, music and acting; was not especially successful at any of those trades, and sank into poverty. The director of the Royal Theatre took pity on him and gave him some money to continue his education. He high-tailed it to Copenhagen, the capitol city, entered the university and found a new interest in writing.
Andersen explored poetry, and finally found some success. Wealthy patrons sponsored his way on a Grand Tour of Europe. Through his travels, he became interested in writing for children and his first book of fairy tales was published in 1835. He hit the big time and followed it with numerous volumes of children’s stories, writing at the pace of almost one book a year. In his lifetime, he wrote more than one hundred and fifty fairy tales, and his stories have been translated into over 100 languages!
to movies, fairy tales in all their various permutations (straight-forward, fractured, updated, post-modern) seem to have the market cornered. The Grimm Brothers have certainly received their due; so let’s celebrate another man of fairy tale renown on his birthday: Hans Christian Andersen, who was born on April 2, 1805 in Odense, Denmark.
His is a classic poor boy-makes-good story. Born of a shoemaker father (I kid you not!) and a laundress mother, his family background flavors many of his tales, as he frequently explored class differences between the poor and the wealthy. He was teased by school mates for his ungainly appearance and was later bullied by a teacher who told him his writing was fit only for the trash can (any writer can relate to that!). At age 14, he left home to make his fortune. He dabbled in art, music and acting; was not especially successful at any of those trades, and sank into poverty. The director of the Royal Theatre took pity on him and gave him some money to continue his education. He high-tailed it to Copenhagen, the capitol city, entered the university and found a new interest in writing.
Andersen explored poetry, and finally found some success. Wealthy patrons sponsored his way on a Grand Tour of Europe. Through his travels, he became interested in writing for children and his first book of fairy tales was published in 1835. He hit the big time and followed it with numerous volumes of children’s stories, writing at the pace of almost one book a year. In his lifetime, he wrote more than one hundred and fifty fairy tales, and his stories have been translated into over 100 languages!
Hans Christian Andersen
The difference between Andersen and the Brothers Grimm is like the difference between directors Alfred Hitchcock and Quentin Tarantino: one goes for the soft-kill of psychological suspense and the other gives you the blood-and-guts.
Melancholy and longing permeate Andersen's stories. Many of his humble characters long for love and/or acceptance into a higher realm of society or what they perceive as a more exalted existence. A mermaid pines for a human prince; an ugly toad crawls up from the bottom of a well to seek something "higher"; a starving beggar child who sells matches on a streetcorner imagines ever more beautiful tableaux of prosperity as she freezes to death.
Melancholy and longing permeate Andersen's stories. Many of his humble characters long for love and/or acceptance into a higher realm of society or what they perceive as a more exalted existence. A mermaid pines for a human prince; an ugly toad crawls up from the bottom of a well to seek something "higher"; a starving beggar child who sells matches on a streetcorner imagines ever more beautiful tableaux of prosperity as she freezes to death.
Andersen was an expert of personification and throughout his stories you will find objects such as darning needles or candles that have thoughts, intentions, and feelings. He had a sharp eye for pretension and vanity, and often satirized these human flaws. The emperor in The Emperor's New Clothes is so fearful of being thought stupid that he (and his courtiers) allow themselves to be tricked into ridiculous behavior by a pair of charlatans. Andersen consistently elevated the stock figures of traditional fairy tales with human weaknesses and strong personal emotions.
Andersen's stories often have unhappy endings. In The Little Match Girl, a starving child dies alone in a freezing ally; in The Steadfast Tin Soldier, the toy is reduced to a lump of melted metal; The Little Fir Tree sees its protagonist thrown into a fire. Andersen eschewed the usual fairytale ending which endows the hero or heroine with love and wealth as a redemption or reward for suffering; instead he preferred to examine how integrity, humility and goodness can ennoble the final moments of a lonely and poverty-stricken life. The starving child does not truly die alone; we, the readers, feel sympathy for her plight. The toy soldier's love does not really remain an eternal secret; we, the readers, empathize with his unrequited emotions. The traditional fairy tale usually shows how bad luck can be tranformed (with a little magical intervention and plucky persistence) into amazing success. Andersen, a revolutionary in gentleman's clothes, instead focused on the beautiful glow of spiritual dignity in the face of the most relentless ill fortune.
"But he has nothing on!"
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After having spent two afternoons spring cleaning, including windows, I realized why the world needs George. Like Frank, he just makes everything more enjoyable. Classy, swanky, whatever. George even makes scouring the nooks and crannies of window sills tolerable! This guy, Johnbr02, understands:
And so does this guy:
And him, too:
And he's not just a pretty face; he actually knows music:
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Today I pose the question: Aging superstar most in need of a comeback?
My answer: George Michael
While I am sure that he would insist that he never left, I would posit that his potent, velvety-smooth voice has been missing from the top-of-the-pops scene for far too long. The man has one of the most versatile and beautiful voices ever recorded; he needs to be heard---NOW!
My answer: George Michael
While I am sure that he would insist that he never left, I would posit that his potent, velvety-smooth voice has been missing from the top-of-the-pops scene for far too long. The man has one of the most versatile and beautiful voices ever recorded; he needs to be heard---NOW!
George: the baby-faced years
When you think of 80's pop music, you probably think of Madonna, Duran Duran, the Bangles, Prince, Michael Jackson, and, yes, Wham!, the duo that George formed with his boyhood chum Andrew Ridgeley (who is definitely residing in the "where are they now?" file).
That's the dark and sultry Andrew on the right.
The Wham! era saw George blossom as a singer-songwriter possessed of pure pop craftsmanship. Even today, songs such as "Careless Whisper" and "Everything She Wants" sound fresh because of their precise construction. Okay, the synthesizers sound a little old in 2012 and that saxophone break in "Whisper" is a little cheesy, but I dare you to resist the glamorous melodies and the tight, spot-on lyrics. "Freedom" riffs on the luscious 60's girl-group sounds and "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" sounds as stupidly bouncy as ever!
George circa the Faith album
In the late 80's, George went solo and produced Faith, the album and the single, which resonated with its Bo Diddley beat. It's the epitome of a butt-shaker. Then there's the kinda-creepy, kinda-compelling "Father Figure:" "I will be your father figure, put your tiny hand in mine..." Hmmm, okay, let's not go there. Let's just enjoy the transcendant beauty of the music and the voice as the bridge overwhelms us and we do remember the ones who have lied, who said that they cared but then left as we cried and George reassures us that we won't be thinking of him in these moments because all he ever wanted... "is in your eyes."
George: revealing himself and asking us to listen without prejudice
In 1990, George took his Eighties pop sensibility and broadened and refined it
on Listen Without Prejudice, Volume I. The somber lead single, "Praying for Time," took a distraught look at the world's festering wounds (and is still astonishingly relevant to our society now, in 2012). In "Freedom 90," which combines dance beats with soaringly vital gospel choruses, George shared confessional secrets with his audience and challenged us to rise above. He wised-up enough to admit that, in the past, "it was enough for me, to win the race, a prettier face, brand new clothes and a big fat place, on your rock and roll TV." But he was endeavoring to leave the apparently embarrassing butt-shaking Faith era behind: "Posing for another picture, everybody's got to sell, but when you shake your ***, they notice fast, and some mistakes were built to last." This is a far cry from the man who unabashedly titled a Wham! album Make It Big. Here was a singer who wanted to be taken seriously as an artist.
on Listen Without Prejudice, Volume I. The somber lead single, "Praying for Time," took a distraught look at the world's festering wounds (and is still astonishingly relevant to our society now, in 2012). In "Freedom 90," which combines dance beats with soaringly vital gospel choruses, George shared confessional secrets with his audience and challenged us to rise above. He wised-up enough to admit that, in the past, "it was enough for me, to win the race, a prettier face, brand new clothes and a big fat place, on your rock and roll TV." But he was endeavoring to leave the apparently embarrassing butt-shaking Faith era behind: "Posing for another picture, everybody's got to sell, but when you shake your ***, they notice fast, and some mistakes were built to last." This is a far cry from the man who unabashedly titled a Wham! album Make It Big. Here was a singer who wanted to be taken seriously as an artist.
George in action
Unfortunately, George's fans seemed to prefer the butt-shaker, because Listen Without Prejudice, while a million-seller, never reached the heights of multi-platinum Faith. He fought with his record company, released a couple of CDs, came out, but never regained his place at pop's pinnacle. In 2008, George withdrew from touring, saying he wanted a "more private life" and that, at 45, he felt a bit old for the game: "I think pop music should be about youth culture," he told the BBC. "It shouldn't be an endurance test."
George: changed the way he played the game and got himself happy
Well, I'm here to say he's wrong. Some areas of pop culture may be for youth, but did Frank Sinatra cede pop music to the young? Hell, in his early 50's, he was topping the charts with "A Very Good Year," "Strangers in the Night," and his collaborations with Antonio Carlos Jobim. Did Tony Bennett cede pop music to the young? He's still recording duets in his mid-80's, and sounding fab. So why not George Michael?
This is an artist whose songs have been covered by everyone from Rufus Wainwright and Ben Folds to Limp Bizkit. He's sold 100 million records. George, wake up and smell the coffee! Your silver-tongued voice is still needed!
I propose an album of standards (yes, I know you did something like that awhile back with Songs from the Last Century, but you have to admit your choice of material on that one was quirky to say the least). Take on the Great American Songbook: try some Gershwin, have a go at Cole Porter, croon a Rodgers and Hart tune! If croaker Rod Stewart can do it, you can-- and better!
This is an artist whose songs have been covered by everyone from Rufus Wainwright and Ben Folds to Limp Bizkit. He's sold 100 million records. George, wake up and smell the coffee! Your silver-tongued voice is still needed!
I propose an album of standards (yes, I know you did something like that awhile back with Songs from the Last Century, but you have to admit your choice of material on that one was quirky to say the least). Take on the Great American Songbook: try some Gershwin, have a go at Cole Porter, croon a Rodgers and Hart tune! If croaker Rod Stewart can do it, you can-- and better!
George: ponders the idea of interpreting Harry Warren's "I Only Have Eyes For You"
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On Monday, we celebrated our favorite man-of-action, Bruce Willis, on his 57th birthday. Today we give a shout-out to a man of more, shall we say, cerebral talents. It would be Johann Sebastian Bach's 327th birthday, if he were still around to make fabulous music. As this blog is called, from the ridiculous to the sublime. (Just kidding, Bruce!)
If Bach had the opportunity to hang with Bruce for awhile, he might look like this...
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Monday, March 19th is Bruce Willis' 57th birthday... and given his status as a kick-ass, get-it-done kind of guy among librarians (sort of a librarian's librarian), we couldn't let it pass without a proper tribute. So here are just a few reasons why we love and emulate Bruce... that excellent bald man with the smirk... followed by a tasty compilation of the man-of-action in action.
The incomparable smirk... then... and now... whether with hair or without... it just reeks: "Shelve this, baby!"
Because a librarian will do what it takes: "Sorry, baby, but I had to crash that Honda...." as Butch Coolidge Pulp Fiction (1994)
Because a librarian always has a back-up plan -- when one resource fails, we always have another: "And this is the best that you c - that the-the government, the U.S. government can come up with? I mean, you-you're NASA for cryin' out loud, you put a man on the moon, you're geniuses! You-you're the guys that think this sh-t up! I'm sure you got a team of men sitting around somewhere right now just thinking sh-t up and somebody backing them up! You're telling me you don't have a backup plan, that these eight boy scouts right here, that is the world's hope, that's what you're telling me?" as Harry Stamper Armageddon (1998)
Because a librarian always has a back-up plan -- when one resource fails, we always have another: "And this is the best that you c - that the-the government, the U.S. government can come up with? I mean, you-you're NASA for cryin' out loud, you put a man on the moon, you're geniuses! You-you're the guys that think this sh-t up! I'm sure you got a team of men sitting around somewhere right now just thinking sh-t up and somebody backing them up! You're telling me you don't have a backup plan, that these eight boy scouts right here, that is the world's hope, that's what you're telling me?" as Harry Stamper Armageddon (1998)
None of you have to go. We can all just sit here on Earth, wait for this big rock to crash into it, kill everything and everybody we know. United States government just asked us to save the world. Anybody wanna say no?
Because librarians always maintain their cool under the most trying circumstances: “Play some rap music” as Joe Hallenbeck (context: Willis is held captive and mocked by bad-guy-in-chief Milo, who threatens him with a knife and chortles about wanting to hear Willis scream. But Bruce just wants to hear some gangsta tracks. BAD ASS with capitals! The Last Boy Scout (1991)
What you lookin' at? Bruce and Damon Wayans
Because, contrary to popular belief, librarians do have a sense of humor: “Now
I have a machine gun, HO HO HO”-- Hans Gruber reading John McClane's joke written in blood across a dead man's chest, Die Hard (1988)
Because librarians do wear sensible shoes (to work, anyway): "Nine million terrorists in the world and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister." as John McClane Die Hard (1988)
Because librarians answer the same questions, day after day after day, with a smile: "Oh man, I can't f---ing believe this. Another basement, another elevator. How can the same sh--t happen to the same guy twice?" as John McClane Die Hard 2 (1990)
I have a machine gun, HO HO HO”-- Hans Gruber reading John McClane's joke written in blood across a dead man's chest, Die Hard (1988)
Because librarians do wear sensible shoes (to work, anyway): "Nine million terrorists in the world and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister." as John McClane Die Hard (1988)
Because librarians answer the same questions, day after day after day, with a smile: "Oh man, I can't f---ing believe this. Another basement, another elevator. How can the same sh--t happen to the same guy twice?" as John McClane Die Hard 2 (1990)
"The Whole Ten Yards" / Jimmy Tudeski 2004 - "No. This is how a retired mass murderer acts when people show up uninvited."
Because this is what a librarian says when FBI agents ask for a patron checkout history: “This is the ’90s. You don’t just go around punching people. You have to say something cool first” (and have a subpoena) as Joe Hallenbeck, The Last Boy Scout (1991)
Because librarians understand the pure joy derived from helping our patrons solve problems (whether or nor they involve the use of a machine gun): “Yippee ki-yay mother!@#$%&!r” (If you’re looking for instruction as to how to be a good guy, I suggest John McClane as the ultimate mentor. Basic human kindness and wanton destruction are not necessarily mutually exclusive. By studying him, you come to understand that you can do anything, even run through broken glass without shoes, and that a smart-alek attitude will get you everywhere, especially if you’re dispatching terrorists left and right while cursing like a sailor.) as John McClane, Die Hard (1988)
Because librarians understand the pure joy derived from helping our patrons solve problems (whether or nor they involve the use of a machine gun): “Yippee ki-yay mother!@#$%&!r” (If you’re looking for instruction as to how to be a good guy, I suggest John McClane as the ultimate mentor. Basic human kindness and wanton destruction are not necessarily mutually exclusive. By studying him, you come to understand that you can do anything, even run through broken glass without shoes, and that a smart-alek attitude will get you everywhere, especially if you’re dispatching terrorists left and right while cursing like a sailor.) as John McClane, Die Hard (1988)
In a tight spot... but we know he will find a way out of it... because he thinks like a librarian!
So, happy birthday, Bruce! Feel free to turn in those books late.
Just this once. ;-)
Video runs a bit long -- but hey, it's Bruce!
Just this once. ;-)
Video runs a bit long -- but hey, it's Bruce!
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By the way, I love the fashion-industry misspelling "libarian" that occurs mid-way through the video...
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“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.” Sublime even when he didn't rhyme. Happy birthday, wherever you are, Theodor Geisel!
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Thankful to be turning the page on the calendar, at last, and finding myself faced with March 1. Still missing this immensely talented and incredibly self-destructive individual...click the play button below to hear John Belushi as the meteorologist...
SNL classic
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John Belushi - Comes in like a Lion