To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird
seen on TV @ TCM
2.18.15

My copy of To Kill a Mockingbird looks like the kind you'd get in school. For one thing, it's got "Property of the Board of Education of the City of New York" stamped on the first page. I don't remember what grade I read the book in, but I imagine it must have made an impression on me if I kept it. Also, it's got a hardcover that binds the pages so tight, the gutter comes very close to swallowing the text, so I have to turn the book around a little in order to read. It goes without saying that I can't lay it down flat.

As I said, I don't recall when I first read the book. I imagine it was probably grade school. TKAM is a banned book - no surprise there - and as recently as 2011, the Office of Intellectual Freedom reported challenges against it. Throughout the book's history, it has mostly been banned in Middle America, but also in states like California and New Jersey, and even in Ontario, Canada.

In the wake of the recent news that an unpublished manuscript of TKAM author Harper Lee has been found and will be published later this year, I decided to revisit TKAM. I was going to write about the book and its legacy in a broad sense, until I saw that the film version was gonna be on TV and so I watched that again, too. I'll get to it later.

I had forgotten how much of a coming-of-age book TKAM is. For a long time, I had thought of it - and I imagine many people do as well - as a meditation on race through the eyes of a child, and it certainly is, but much space is devoted to Scout's world, rural Depression-era Alabama, which was inspired by Lee's own childhood. The case surrounding the Negro character, Tom Robinson, doesn't really get going for awhile, and after his fate is sealed, there's a good deal more to go before the finish. 

I admit, that kinda irked me a little bit, as if what happens to Tom doesn't matter in the ultimate scheme of things, but it's not his story. It's Scout's, and that's something I had to remind myself of on several occasions as I re-read the book. The civil rights movement, for instance, wasn't a thing in the time the story is set, but at the time Lee was writing it, it was alive and kicking, and part of me does kinda wish that the black characters in TKAM were a little more active... but it's easy to think that, over fifty years removed and after so many changes within society.

Then again, all that history shows us that some things never change. Though TKAM is a work of fiction, it is ridiculously easy to draw a straight line from Tom Robinson through Emmet Till to Rodney King and Eric Garner. Justice for a black man is still notoriously difficult to obtain in America, even today, and TKAM remains painfully relevant as a result.

As I re-read it, I also thought of Kathryn Stockett and The Help. Granted, these are two very different books, written from different perspectives in different time periods, but I wondered whether Lee would have gone through what Stockett went through if TKAM were released today? I suspect not: Lee doesn't attempt to speak for black people in any sense, an accusation that dogged Stockett during the successful run of her book. Though Atticus does tell Scout to try to step inside the shoes of another person in order to understand them, this applies as much to white characters like Boo Radley as to black characters.

In reading about the publishing history of TKAM, I couldn't help but think of my current struggle in trying to write a novel. Go Set a Watchman, the "new" Lee book, is actually an early version of TKAM that apparently reads more like a sequel now, since it features an adult Scout and a much older Atticus. (Shall we start speculating now on the cast for the inevitable movie? Anne Hathaway and Kevin Costner? Michelle Williams and Harrison Ford? Will Robert Duvall be involved?) Lee spent so much time writing and rewriting it, changing the flow and the narrative until it became what it became, and naturally she never expected it to succeed as wildly as it did.

Recently, I've hit a bad patch in my work in progress. My writing group came down kinda hard on a chapter I submitted for them to read, and I was bummed for awhile. Writing a novel is a huge leap of faith for one who has never done it before. You're investing a tremendous chunk of your time, your talent, and your faith in yourself on something that may never get anywhere, and even if it does, everyone will inevitably expect you to do it all over again. When I complained on Facebook about it, Vija advised me to think of Lee and to not take criticism personally. Just keep writing. That's what I'm gonna do, but damn, is it a scary prospect.

At this point, despite the huge demand for Watchman, we only have a general idea about how it compares to TKAM, and there has been speculation as to whether or not releasing it was Lee's idea at all. Even if it bombs, though, nothing can take away what she accomplished with TKAM.

Now, about that movie... 

I suspect that Gregory Peck probably clinched the Oscar on the strength of one scene. One excellent scene, but one scene nonetheless. That, and the fact that he was GREGORY PECK. I imagine one could make arguments either way for Peck or Peter O'Toole in Lawrence without ever reaching a satisfactory conclusion.

Some events are switched around, but it's a pretty faithful adaptation, with a number of scenes lifted verbatim from the book. I thought the trial played out better in the book, however. There's some stuff involving the Ewells that were left out of the film, which I would've liked to have seen. For instance, in the book, Mayella Ewell gets freaked out by Atticus upon taking the witness stand, after seeing him prove her father was left-handed. We don't see that in the film.

Neither book nor movie flinches in the use of the word nigger, nor should they. It's a bit shocking to see an innocent young girl ask whether or not her father's a nigger-lover, as it should be, but to omit the word would be to deny the reality of the world which Lee tried so hard to capture, one based directly on her own childhood in the American south during the Depression. I see so many works of art these days, in various media, that try to go for that same kind of truth yet pussyfoot around the word as if it were a landmine - and of course, you'll never see it in magazine or newspaper articles in an objective, clinical manner, one where it would provide some needed context. Individual artists of good will must do as their conscience dictates, but it bothers me that this is still a thing.

TKAM the movie still holds up. Not too long ago, I suggested that this would make a good movie to show on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Well, I can think of a much more appropriate one now, but it would still be nice if a movie like this aired on free TV on special occasions. It's the kind of film parents need to watch with their children - even if the marketing "geniuses" behind this poster didn't agree. (Seriously? A movie centered around children, with children RIGHT THERE ON THE POSTER, and it's still considered not suitable for them? Give me a king-sized break.)

One last thing: the previous owner of my copy of TKAM was someone named Alexandra Anglade, AKA "Alexandra the Great," as she wrote on that same first page. I actually looked her up on Facebook, but I got several different women by that name. If anyone out there knows her, ask her for me if she wants her book back!

Have I mentioned lately what an awesome artist Vija is?
Here's her portrait of Harper Lee.

Alone at the movies?

...When I was in my twenties, I developed the habit of going to the movies alone.  Of course, I go with friends, too, and sometimes my brother and sisters, but going alone can be cathartic.... I remember in Louisville hearing a woman say that she wanted to go to the movies alone, and wished she had the courage.  She ended up going with a bunch of other women to the bars that night, and I thought, "Jesus Christ, how will you have the courage to do anything in life if you can't even show up to the movies alone?"

This has nothing to do with Old Hollywood specifically, but the movie-going experience is a recurring theme here, and this is a subject I've seen come up now and then, so I figure it's worth talking about.

For generations, watching movies was very much a social experience. In fact, to find that stock image at the top of this post, I Googled the phrase "watching movies at the theater" and the vast majority of images that came up contained groups of people. Many of us grew up conditioned to think of the movies this way. I certainly did. But with the rise of home video, and especially now with Netflix and online streaming, a generation has been raised to rely more on having the movies come to them instead of vice versa, wherever and however they want, and these tend to be more solitary experiences, such as watching a movie on your cellphone while riding the subway. That's something I see fairly often.

And yet, some people these days seem to have an aversion to going to the movie theater alone - when they choose to go at all. It's an attitude I've seen expressed here and there, among friends and film bloggers, and I can understand it, to an extent, but what if you want to see something and you simply can't find another warm body to go with? Is it worth skipping the movie altogether?

Going to the movies alone has its advocates. Here's one recent example, written from the perspective of an older, single movie fan. This short video, by contrast, appeals to the younger generation:

Still, pieces like these all seem to come at it from a defensive position. There is a stigma attached to watching movies alone at a theater, which I find odd since no one says anything about watching a movie alone on a computer or an iPad. In a sense, this tends to confirm for me that there still is a value placed on theatrical movie-going, even in the Netflix age, and that pleases me.

In the link at the top, Michelle also talks about her film group. Regular readers here know that I'm in one too. Vija took it over from someone else and we go on a semi-regular basis, sometimes in small groups, other times in larger ones. We favor indie movies, and the tentative theme (not always followed, though) is art-related movies, since many of us are artists of one kind or another. Plus, there have been a number of such films being made lately! It's extremely informal; it's really just an excuse for a bunch of us to hang out. Every so often, we have debates about movies. I enjoy their company. Vija and I have gone to movies together for many years before this, and the addition of her friends, who have become my friends, has been a nice one.

Most of the time, however, I go to the movies alone. Why? I guess it's partly because I don't feel like waiting for someone to be available, partly compatibility issues (not everyone is interested in sitting through a black-and-white Polish film with subtitles), and partly because I simply prefer it that way. I don't always feel the need to have someone around, but I didn't always feel that way, and I wish I could pinpoint when that changed. Maybe when I became more discerning in my film choices? That would be around the time I started working in video retail, so that makes a kind of sense, but I can't say for sure.

It looks like this may have become less of a big deal now, but I suspect that there will always be those who look askew upon solo movie-goers, because generally, people tend to want to socialize with people. Live-tweeting movies and TV shows is a way to be alone with other people, and maybe that's a big reason why it's so popular. For me, I never thought of it as a conscious choice. Whether I see a movie with others or by myself matters less than actually seeing the movie.

Anybody wanna take a stand on this either way?

Just wanted to share this...

I saw this photo of Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli on Tumblr awhile ago. It isn't very often that I'm touched by photographs of celebrities, but something about this just made me sit up and take notice. It was taken in 1962 by a British photographer named Terry O'Neill, who made a pretty good living shooting celebrities.

Judy would've been only 40 years old at the time of this picture (she would die only seven years later!), but she seems so much older, don't you think? But I suppose that may have been the result of the hard life she had. Something about the expression on her face seems to capture that pain, that sadness, and yet it's also mixed with a sense of... acceptance, perhaps? In this moment, at least, she seems at peace, undoubtedly because of the presence of Liza, who would've been 16 at the time this was taken.

The bond between the two of them in this photo is so palpable. Judy's entire heart and soul is being poured into Liza, who looks so heartbreakingly innocent. It's as if she knows the burden she carries, being the daughter of a Hollywood icon, but to her, Judy is just Mom. There is a kind of secret wisdom in Liza's eyes, almost as if she knows Judy better than Judy knows herself.

This is all speculation, mind you. I'm not the type to get caught up in the turmoil and the controversy of celebrities, and for the most part, I don't care about any of it. I'm simply going by what I see here, and like I said, this moved me in a way celebrity photos normally don't because of its emotional intensity.

That's all I wanted to say.

Edward G. Robinson

The 31 Days of Oscar Blogathon is an event coinciding with Turner Classic Movies' "31 Days of Oscar" month-long celebration, in observance of the Academy Awards. In both events, the theme is the same: recognition of Oscar-nominated films throughout history. The blogathon is hosted by Once Upon a Screen, Outspoken & Freckled, and Paula's Cinema Club. See the links above for a list of participating blogs.

Alright, alright, youse mugs, gather 'round! Hey! You two in the back! Quit playin' pool and get over here! Whaddya think this is, a country club? Alright, now listen up, 'cause I ain't gonna tell ya twice!  Some o' youse know what this is all about - Muggsy, Rocco, Jimmy, Tony, you guys been in on it from the start. But as for the rest o' you mutts, here it is: we're gonna pull off a heist, see? An' this ain't gonna be no ordinary score, neither. This is more important than money. Pack yer bags, boys - we're goin' to Hollywood!

See this? This is a map o' the vault for the Academy o' Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. This is where they keep the Oscars, see? Those Academy guys been runnin' the Oscar racket a long time, givin' all them little gold men to them mooks in the picture shows. But they messed up, see? There's one guy they never gave an Oscar to. Never even nominated him for one! So we're gonna do what shoulda been done a long time ago!

We're gonna steal the Oscars for Edward G. Robinson!

What? O' course I know he's dead, ya friggin' mutt! He's been dead for years! That ain't the point! The point is those Academy bums ripped him off, see? Yeah! Those guys think they're such big shots. Every year, they hand out them Oscars like candy canes to whoever they think are the best, an' yet they never even nominated one o' the greatest actors who ever stepped in front of a camera! And don't tell me about that honorary Oscar they gave him, either! Nobody remembers rinky-dink awards like that!

What's the big deal? Rocco, all of a sudden I don't trust these mugs youse guys put together for this job! Anybody that don't know what makes Eddie G such a great actor don't belong in my crew - or for that matter, in life! But I'll explain it to youse bums, 'cause I need every man I can get!

Everybody knew Eddie G as the gangster's gangster: Little Caesar and movies like that. They helped put him on top. They made him big! But there was more t' him than that, see? Yeah! He could do comedy, he could do romance! He did film noir, sci-fi, even Westerns! Yeah, he could mix it up with other tough guys like Bogey, but he could give ya the soft soap too, when he wanted to! And he worked with great directors: Ford, Lang, Wilder, DeMille, big shots! I'm tellin' ya, he could do it all, and it didn't even matter than he wasn't a pretty boy like friggin' Cary Grant or somethin'! 

He was one of us, boys! An' that's why we gotta steal the Oscars for him - 'cause they stole from him first!

Now my guys here been arguin' 'bout which o' Eddie's performances deserves the Oscar the most. Muggsy thinks he shoulda won for Key Largo. And why not? It's the best movie he and Bogey ever made together! In the 30s, Eddie was the star and Bogey was the second fiddle, but then Bogey became a star too. But it sure didn't change what the two o' them had together on screen! I tell ya, boys, I could watch this one all day. That part at the end, when they're on the boat - forget about it!

And then Rocco keeps sayin' he shoulda won for Double Indemnity. I can see that, too. He's a tough-talkin' mug in that one, but he's also the good guy! I know, I know, but it's okay, see, 'cause in that one he's real smart - I mean razor-friggin'-sharp - and he keeps that sexy broad and her sap of a boyfriend on their toes! They don't know if they can get away with their murder job or not, and that's what makes the whole thing great to watch!

But Tony here, he likes pictures like The Woman in the Window. That's where you get Eddie the romantic. He falls for a broad who was in a painting, and yeah, there's some sappy, lovey-dovey stuff, but he kills a man in it too! And there's blackmail and other good stuff like that in it too! I'm tellin' ya, boys, when ya see him in a movie like this, it's like he's a different fella altogether! It's unbelievable!

And then there's Jimmy. He likes Eddie in comedies, like The Whole Town's Talking. This is one I really go for 'cause he plays two different people in the same friggin' movie! One o' them's a mug, but the other's a wimpy regular guy - and he gets took for the mug 'cause they look alike, see? Yeah, I know, what are the odds o' two mugs lookin' like Eddie G, but so what? I laugh my head off every time I see this one!

Me, I don't care either way. There are lotsa movies he coulda won the Oscar for. That's why I'm in this for as many o' them little gold men as I can get my hands on, see? Yeah! We're gonna teach them Academy bums a lesson they'll never forget once this job is through! Any questions?

Huh?

No, ya friggin' mook, them Bugs Bunny cartoons don't count!


Next: Rita Moreno

--------------
Movies by Edward G. Robinson:
Double Indemnity
Scarlet Street

Previously in this series:
Jack Lemmon
Jean Arthur

Steamboat Bill Jr.

The Buster Keaton Blogathon is an event saluting the silent film superstar, hosted by Silent-ology. For a list of participating bloggers, visit the link to the site.

Steamboat Bill Jr.
seen online via YouTube

In the spirit of this blogathon devoted to silent film, I'm going to attempt to make this a "silent" post, i.e., images only, intercutting stills from the film with pictures that will more or less represent my thoughts on it. To sum it up, I didn't think the film was that great until the final act. Hope this works...

2014 Top 10

No fancy introduction this year; let's just get right down to it...

Groundhog's links

So far, the new format seems to be going over well. The pageview numbers are roughly comparable with what they were before the Switch, and the announcement of the CinemaScope Blogathon generated a whole lot of interest. Thanks once again on behalf of Becky and myself to everyone who's joining us for that next month.

Among the stuff to look forward to this month will include another venture into the hullaballoo that is the #TCMparty on Twitter, only this time I'll devote a post exclusively to my experience with it, which will be a first. I have a tentative idea which film to watch. It's one that I'm quite familiar with, so dividing my time between my TV and my cellphone shouldn't be much of a problem. As I've talked about before in this space, I'm still not convinced that live-tweeting a film is a habit I'd want to obtain, but I can't deny its popularity, and it certainly can be fun - in the absence of watching with real live people.

The Top 10 for 2014 should be ready, if not this week, then next week. At this point, the only movies I still haven't seen which could affect my selection (and that I wanna see, of course) are Still Alice and A Most Violent Year. I hope to get to the latter, at the very least. Also, I'll post my Oscar predictions and a brief post-Oscar recap.

I've already started sharing excerpts from my novel with my writing group and I'd say they like it. One guy said, in all seriousness, that I should start thinking about getting an agent because he's convinced it's marketable. I don't know about that. It's a sports novel, and from what I've read, sports novels are a rare and tiny niche. But it's also a tragic love story, so there's that too. 

Regardless, I'm well over 40,000 words at this stage and it's a slow, uphill climb. I'm impatient about it because I want the writing part to end so I can start revising, and a lot of times, I'm paralyzed by the lack of words coming to mind. What I'll do - something I learned during NaNoWriMo but didn't apply to my own writing until now - is that I'll write a generic description of what it is that's supposed to go in a certain paragraph and highlight it in red. Then, when it comes time to revise, I can go back and fill it in with the necessary detail. That has helped me a lot.

Your links for this month:

Speaking of Bill Murray, did you know about the other sci-fi film he made in 1984 - the one that never got released? Allow Will to elucidate.

Raquel reflects on the death of a loved one through a Lionel Barrymore film.

The Lady Eve saw The Godfather with a live orchestra.

Monstergirl has a really weird-sounding Gothic horror flick about a girl school with some funny business going on.

Don't think I've ever mentioned The Hollywood Revue before, so I'll do so now. Here, Angela reviews a new book about epic filmmaker Cecil B. DeMille.

My new favorite movie blog title is Cary Grant Won't Eat You. And the blog is pretty good, too. Here, the author laments that comedic acting remains unappreciated at the Oscars, using The Grand Budapest Hotel's Ralph Fiennes as a case study.

In last week's new release roundup, I linked to my report on a second-run Forest Hills theater that gambled on American Sniper to save them from extinction. I'm proud to say that they gambled and won.

Great article about the Loew's Wonder Theaters (including the Loew's Jersey City), then and now.

Are kids' adventure movies on the wane?

Finally, the issue of Newtown Literary with my short story "Airplanes" is now available for the Kindle.