#Frank might be Michelle.. me thinks

[pynkhues]

Oh you know I need your dream cast for a Succession prequel, Sophie

(x)

Okay okay okay, SO first thing's first, my dream Succession prequel is set against the 80s clusterfuck expansion into parks because every little bit of canon we got about that era just cooks. You've got Logan meeting Frank (and probably Gerri), Logan's whirlwind romance then toxic marriage to Caroline, Logan starting to have the golden trio and reconnecting with Connor and dealing with the aftermath of what happened to, and with, Connor's mother! Plus Ewan may or may not be still involved in the company? (I choose to think he is!)

As a result, a lot of my casting is partially determined by the age the characters would be then, which means I've had to change some actual dream casting (Romola Garai as 40yo Gerri, my beloved), but it's also a pretty fun era to think about so that's fine.

Anyway, let David Tennant as Young(er) Ewan invite you in:

I really love the Snr. Roy's being from Scotland, and their backstory feels so entwined with Scottish WWII history, so I wanted to honour that a bit in the fancasting, but all the same, I think I probably would've cast David Tennant anyway. I think he can sell that simultaneous moral superiority and absolute hypocrisy in a way that Ewan needs, and honestly, I just love the idea of him reading Jesse Armstrong's dialogue, haha.

Was Karl working for Logan in the 80s? I choose to believe yes, because I love him. Jack Lowden's been one of those actors who's popped up in a few things I've watched lately - Fighting with My Family, Small Axe and Slow Horses in particular, and I've been consistently pretty impressed with him? I think he's got a good handle of comedic timing (important for anyone taking up the Karl mantle) but also is a compelling dramatic actor and I think he could kill it opposite...

David Rysdahl as Young Frank! I've always figured Frank would've been a bit younger than Logan, and I love that little glimpse we got in canon of Frank having been brought in to advise on the parks acquisition and then Logan basically making him an offer to stay. There's something extra crunchy there for me if Frank's a little wide-eyed at the time and Logan oozes that charm that we know that he can turn on when he wants to. I like the psychosexual drama, and I also like the idea of Frank having this weird sort of connection to Caroline and Kendall because he met them while he was still impressionable / in the midst of being swept up.

But yes, haha, David Rysdahl I think is a bit of an up-and-comer, which is kinda funny given he's been in a lot of stuff. I've liked him though in the newest season of Fargo, and lowkey think he looks a bit like a young Peter Friedman.

Honestly, I just loved her in Swallow a lot, and she played the smart, unhappy, unhinged, WASP-y wife there to such perfection that I think she'd be ideal for a young Gerri who's still better known as Baird's wife than as counsel. There's such an attitude and vulnerability to Haley too which I think would match J's quite well, plus they have a bit of a similar look too which works for me? I want to see her claw her way in! And I also want to see her toxic relationship with Caroline which leads to her being Shiv's godmother.

Speaking of...

Honestly, I went through a few people for Caroline and she was surprisingly hard to cast. A lot of actresses who felt like they might fit the bill - Michelle Dockery and Claire Foy were two that sprung to mind - didn't really work as I didn't think they could quite balance the acidity with the blunt charm and playfulness that Harriet Walter just does so well (and honestly is a testament to what an actress she is). But then! Jessie Buckley! I've loved Jessie in everything I've seen her in, from Women Talking to The Lost Daughter, but it was actually thinking about her turn in Misbehaviour which made me think of her for this, exactly because of how she can play, well playfulness.

Plus I think she'd be a lot of fun opposite...

I did say I''d go with a Scotsman! Ewan McGregor's been in a few mmm, less good things lately, which makes a turn in a role like Logan Roy could potentially be pretty great. He's always been a remarkable actor, and one who, I think, can find the heart in any role, which is arguably what any actor playing Logan needs. Plus I always tend to think Ewan has chemistry with everyone he acts opposite, and I think he could really sell Logan's naked charisma in this era in a way that would make sense given he's making some pretty questionable choices across the board in the 80s. Plus, y'know, to the point of the post that inspired this one, I think him playing Logan would do a lot of psychic damage to people who could only ever see Logan as perpetrator of abuse and never as product or victim.

[georgiapeach30513]

Not romantic chemistry, but overall onscreen chemistry...

I think in Marvel Chris basically had chemistry with everyone.

Actually, I think if he was still in the franchise they might actually be doing better. A while back on twitter fans were reminiscing how the old Marvel OGs vibed and hit way better than the new generation. People were saying Chris had fun with virtually everyone he was paired up with during those Avengers press tours and there was always laughter and hilarity in those interviews he participated in. His personality was just inviting and charismatic and I really think it rubbed off on a lot of people. Not everyone, but the majority. And I think now that he's no longer there, there is a hole.

He and RDJ really had chemistry. Hemsworth. Scarlett. Renner. Elizabeth Olsen. Chadwick.

Danai and him didn't have too many scenes on camera but IRL they vibed very well.

While not everyone appeared to get along with Brie Larsen when she first showed up, her and Chris vibe well.

Him and Don Cheadle have great hilarious snarky banter.

Even him and Frank Grillo - everyone has to hate on the whole Hydra thing but they actually had chemistry. It was weird but interesting. Makes that whole dynamic also intriguing and terrible.

Anthony Mackie and Chris have excellent chemistry. IMHO, Steve and Sam's friendship was one of my favorites - they immediately lit up the screen upon first meeting. I wish they explored that friendship more when they could have.

Outside of Marvel, I think Chris has great chemistry with Octavia Spencer. I also thought he did better with Betty Gabriel in Defending Jacob than Michelle Dockery. Maybe because Betty's character wasn't his wife and he just does better when he's teaming up with someone or portraying a friendship or even a nemesis.

Bryce Dallas Howard and him did pretty well. I think she's a really good actress too and that pairing of their characters actually worked for me.

Overall, I thought Chris and everyone else in Knives Out had great chemistry. Not a single miss IMHO. I also think that was one of the best casts of modern times. I'm a bit confused, annoyed, and irritated as to why they didn't get a Best Ensemble Cast nomination.

I agree with all this. No one has to ever complained about him on set. Everyone seems to get along with him well. He just can’t fake being in love 🤷🏻‍♀️ being a love interest is his weakness.

[docholligay]

Doc’s Quarterly Patreon Book Thing: Mystery/Crime

Okay, so, I’ve been trying to think about how I want to do this, which is basically letting my patreons force me to read a book. I have picked three genres I would say I do not read a lot of, but I know y'all do, and then the fourth quarter will be either open season, nonfiction, or as a children’s book for children, I haven’t decided.

SO. Nominations will be opened on the Patreon Apr 4th. RULES AND THINGS TO KNOW/HOW THIS WILL WORK:

It will be pitchless. You don’t need to pitch me! Just Title, Author.

One nomination per person. Your first nom will be considered your nomination, all others will be ignored.

Must be available in print

For this quarter, the genre must be MYSTERY OR CRIME (Nonfiction permitted). Below, I point out some fantasy novels I have enjoyed and negative-enjoyed, which’ll give you both an idea of what i like and what I might consider mystery/crime (A tough line). Just good faith effort.

Must think I would like it. You don’t have to think it’ll slay me and change my life, but this isn’t ‘let’s clown on Doc’. I am doing this in good faith and I assume you will nominate in good faith.

I will RANDOMLY DRAW FIVE of the novels. These five will then be PUT TO A VOTE on patreon. I will not read the comments so if you want to pitch, the comments on that poll will be a good place to do it.

Whatever wins the vote, I’ll read.

Okay, then, MYSTERY/CRIME BOOKS I REMEMBER TRULY ENJOYING OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, AS AN ADULT. (as the sections go on, this is getting harder for me, so be patient. I'm not going to be too crazy about what is or isn't a mystery/crime novel, as long as we're all trying)

The Witch Elm by Tana French

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

I'll Be Gone In the Dark by Michelle McNamara (nf)

Provenance by Aly Sujo and Laney Salisbury (nf)

Catch Me if You Can by Frank Abagnale (technically nf but uh....fiction)

The Maltese Falcon by Hammett

The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

MURDER/CRIME BOOKS I REMEMBER DISTINCTLY NOT-ENJOYING OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD

Anything else by James Patterson besides Kiss the Girls (which I would say is in that middle band)

Pretty much any true crime about serial killers

Anything by Janet Evonavich

The Butterfly garden by Dot Hutchinson

Anything by Sue Grafton

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware (full disclosure, I bought this under the presumption it was a paranormal book and my disappointment was immeasurable and my day was ruined)

(Yes I have read Holmes. It was fine.)

See?? Despite being an insufferable hater, I do like things! This list of course doesn’t include anything where I was like, “That was perfectly fine!” It’s made to show the highs and lows.

Does this make sense? I’ll put the nomination post on Patreon tomorrow!

Today is the day where you can ask any questions of me pre-nomination

[kanadabiscuits]

You get to cast the next Benoit Blanc movie. Who are the seven actors that round out the cast?

Oh damn. That'll take some thinking, gal! I might have a different answer when my brain is less tired but for now: Okay...

Willem Defoe Sophia Lillis (Just saw the D&D movie and that reminded me how INCREDIBLE she was in Uncle Frank) Pedro Pascal AND Lux Pascal. I feel like they deserve to play brother and sister in something and this feels like the correct kind of lunacy for that to happen. Sophia DiMartino Juno Temple Matt Bomer Penelope Cruz

Although I am also rather in love with the idea of Michelle Rodriguez (again the movie this afternoon reminded me that I love her). Also Denise Gough from Andor.

[michellepamelalyons]

Above is a local newspaper article / advert for a live version of the Muppet Show, which ran in late 1986 at the now-demolished Wembley Conference Centre in London. Whether the venue was chosen due to the way its name reminded people of Fraggle Rock is unknown. (/s)

Anyway, I attended this on one of the dates listed - I have a feeling it might have been before Christmas. My dad only took me along - my younger sister was still too young at the time to attend. We went as part of a special booked party for the employees (and employee's children) of Rank Xerox, which was based in Uxbridge in North London.

That's a photo of the front of Wembley Conference Centre there, taken at an unknown date. (I took it from Wikipedia.) I have a memory of all of us (employees and other kids) gathering in the car park in the sodium-lit winter evening dusk before we went in.

I remember there was a party beforehand held for us Rank Xerox people in one of the smaller conference rooms, and one of the pre-show "entertainments" laid on for us was a clown. I did not like the clown, but not because of the usual obvious reason. I've always viewed clowns more as tiresome nuisances rather than Brothers Of Pennywise.

Rather, I didn't like him because this clown's makeup reminded me too much of a clown I saw in an episode of The Avengers - not the Marvel Comics one, but this entirely different thing from 60s / 70s UK TV that everyone's forgotten - where both that clown and everyone else at a party died of bizarro germ warfare due to some James Bond-esque megalomaniac or something. I was faintly concerned that I was going to die of every disease ever, like in that episode, but there was a child-friendly buffet available so I quickly pushed it out of my mind. Incidentally, in that Avengers episode I think the scene afterwards went something like:

STEED: So, Doctor, what did the guests die of? SCIENTIST: Everything. STEED: What? That's impossible! How could they have died of everything? SCIENTIST: They died of measles, the common cold, typhoid, malaria, smallpox... and every other disease known to man. As I said, everything.

...Yes, us 80s kids really did see some mad shit on TV, even if it was from the 60s.

During this party we got to have our photos taken with one of the Muppets. As you might have figured out from the top picture, these were full sized costumes worn by actors. They sort of mimed to specially pre-recorded dialogue from Jim Henson, Frank Oz, etc, while on stage. The one Muppet who didn't have to talk was this janitor character who I can't remember the name of, and I assume that was the Muppet they chose for the photo op, as so not to break the illusion. For years we had a big framed picture of a grinning young me sat on the lap of this giant Muppet, next to my school photos. It's since vanished and I have no idea where it's gone. Maybe Oscar The Grouch nicked it.

As part of the merch we picked up at the show, my Dad bought me one of these things, which I think were relatively new at the time. I also got a felt flag thing of Kermit.

...And that's what Auntie Michelle did in London, about 36 years ago.

(The newspaper cutting came from the British Newspaper Archive, and the paper it was taken from was the Harrow & Northwood Informer, October 30th 1986.)

[mostlygibberish]

I liked the part with the big prosthetic cock.

Holy shit. We may only be ten days into 2024, but this might just be the worst movie I'll see this year. It's difficult to imagine that a group of people got together to spend the time and effort needed to make a feature length film, only to produce this steaming heap of garbage.

When I saw Michelle Rodriguez holding a handgun with the painfully generic title Revenger* slapped onto it, I hardly imagined I was in for a cinematic masterpiece. I was expecting fan service shots of her and her nice strong arms as she shot her way through a generic crime thriller plot. What I got instead was a bizarre, transphobic movie that absolutely should not have been made. 

Frank Kitchen (Michelle Rodriguez with a terrible fake beard) is a mafia hitman or some such, who is kidnapped by a mad surgeon (Sigourney Weaver) that performs impossibly perfect surgery on him to "turn him into a woman" against his will. There's also a half-baked romance that literally doesn't matter to anything.

The first thing he does after waking up like 24 hours after they captured him is remove his bandages to reveal he has the absolutely unmarred, unscarred, unblemished face and body of Michelle Rodriguez, because that's totally how that works. They "explain" this literal magic transformation by stating that the surgeon is just REALLY good.

The second thing he does is take hormone pills because the evil surgeon tells him to, as though he had no choice but to comply, despite being a cisgender man who shows nothing but sadness and anger at having had this done to him.

He even visits a real doctor to ask if he can "go back to being a guy", laments that he is going to "be a chick, except for in [his] head", then complains that the hormones he's still voluntarily taking for absolutely no reason are making him "soft".

It's an absolute clusterfuck of fundamental misunderstanding of gender dysphoria and outdated gender = genitals thinking. It's clear nobody involved in making this actually cared to treat the topic with any tact or respect. I'd hope all these well known actors were in this because they had massive gambling debts to pay off, or maybe they were being blackmailed, but I know better.

The rest of the movie was a generic hitman-kills-the-people-who-betrayed-him plot with an obnoxious flashback framing device and shitty comic book scene transitions, complete with bad whooshing sound effects.

Tony Shalhoub and Sigourney Weaver's scenes were as pointless as they were badly written. The best part was when she stated "It makes me so angry and sad." in a completely monotone, expressionless voice.

Offensively bad, as well as just plain offensive.

*For some reason (hmm, I wonder why?) this movie appears to have been released under like 20 different titles.

[mrlancer]

My Favorite Books of 2022

I think I did decently well at reading in 2022 and the book I'm reading now, I'm not anticipating finishing before the end of the year (it's The Stand by Stephen King), so now is the best time to post about my favorite books of the year.

This year, I read 80 books. 27 of those were the manga Blue Exorcist, and I'm never sure about whether to really count those in my book count, but I am going to count them as 1 big book for the purpose of this list! So, that takes me down to like 54 books.

So, let's go through my list each month, and pick out favorite book(s) from each month! Maybe I won't have a favorite from some months...

Bold means it was a good I really enjoyed! I

I'm going to hide the list under a keep reading line because otherwise this post might be too long for some people!

January

Dune Messiah -Frank Herbert

A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin

Memoirs and Misinformation - Dana Vachon and Jim Carrey

February

Mergers and Acquisitions - Dana Vachon

March

A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet - Becky Chambers

Everyone In This Room Will Someday Be Dead - Emily Austin

Diary of a Bookseller - Shaun Bythell

Call Me By Your Name - Andre Aciman

The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller

April

I read nothing

May

A Clash of Kings - George R.R. Martin

Almond - Sohn Won-pyung

Human Acts - Hang Kang

Love in the Big City - Sang Young Park

June

Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism - Amanda Montell

Kindred - Octavia E. Butler

July

Blue Exorcist 1-27 - Kazue Kato

Children of Dune - Frank Herbert

Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Serial Crime Unit - John E. Douglas

Hamnet - Maggie O'Farrell

Columbine - Dave Cullen

August

The Witches: Salem 1692 - Stacy Schiff

Get A Life Chloe Brown - Talia Hibbert

Alias Grace - Margaret Atwood

A Man Called Ove - Fredrik Backman

Shadow and Bone - Leigh Bardugo

The Benefits of Being an Octopus - Ann Braden

Siege and Storm - Leigh Bardugo

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War - Max Brooks

September

The Plague - Albert Camus

Ruin and Rising - Leigh Bardugo

I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki - Baek Se-hee

Cursed Bunny - Bora Chung

Crying in H Mart- Michelle Zauner

Shoko's Smile - Choi Eunyoung

I'm Glad My Mom Died - Jennette McCurdy

October

IT - Stephen King

Mexican Gothic - Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Know My Name - Chanel Miller

The Last Magician - Lisa Maxwell

The Cat Who Saved Books - Sosuke Natsukawa

November

Carrie - Stephen King

It Ends With Us - Colleen Hoover

The Final Revival of Opal and Nev - Dawnie Walton

They Both Die At The End - Adam Silvera

A Wizard of Earthsea - Ursula K. Le Guin

Salem's Lot - Stephen King

Tokyo Ueno Station - Yu Miri

The Tombs of Atuan - Ursula K. Le Guin

The Devil All The Time - Donald Ray Pollock

December

Circe - Madeline Miller

Babel - R.F. Kuang

Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror Stories - Aviaq Johnston, et al

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid

Hell Of A Book - Jason Mott

Picking an actual favorite from these is too hard. I read so many great books this year, and obviously some months I read better than others. Actually, I would probably bold more than I have, but I felt bad about bolding more than like 2 per month, though I did do that in like September.

There were only really like 5 or 6 that I didn't really like, but pushed my way through.

I'm quietly aiming for 100 books next year, but I'm not gonna force myself for that, because whenever I aim for goals like that, it just takes the fun out of reading, so I'm going to set my goal at like 5 books and anything more than that is going to be a win for me!

[the-firebird69]

Bradley GT2 Midnight Film

There are a couple looks here that capture the Bradley GT2 flavor and I want us when it's lower down and from behind the other is the side view but it's up high probably 20 ft in the air and you'll see what we mean the front is low and it looks good without a bumper on the outside and you need one on the outside no on the inside would be nice and the front could have some sort of cowl accent. The hood is unique it is redundant but it does have style the rear end needs a lot of work the viewport window is not necessary it should be a two-seater and the engine will be in the front and it should fit and I'm hearing just barely you might have to put a different style Hood should include a way to relocate it and the Volkswagens are four wheel independent and there's a trick to it but it's a little bit more complicated it's much more worthwhile.

Hera

Just statistics and the guys want to do it

Thor Freya

--+horsepower of the Volkswagen beetle the '90s to the 2008ish is 150 horsepower those are the ones we are going to use here in the example

--+original VW speed 0 to 60 is 5.4 seconds

--+original VW quarter mile 11.9 seconds

--+original VW top speed 183 mph

+++changing it over to the Bradley GT2 and that is the body kit the speed kit which is the top end of the exhaust tires rims suspension and complete kit by the way interior exterior all the glass all the trim on the inside and out and control and wiring harnesses included and instructions and maintenance manual

--+Bradley GT2 0 to 60 3.2 seconds

--+Bradley GT2 quarter mile 4.9 seconds

--+Bradley GT2 top speed 380 mph

Cooling kit would come with it but this is far too fast and we would have a limiter put on it and we would have to do the top end somehow or the top end would have to be left out which would make it a little slower that's more realistic without the top end you have to do the exhaust the top speed will be 320 miles per hour but you're still ridiculous and the limiter would probably limit it to 180 mph

Frank Castle hardcastle

These are incredible figures and numbers but the Volkswagen chassis well built in very light and perfect for a supercar and a little reinforcement will be included and we do think the numbers are very close or accurate. This is for the front engine if you put in the rear you get about 10 miles an hour more top speed and it saves off a few points on each 0 to 60 and the quarter mile and it handles better and we'd like him to do the rear engine kit it looks very very cool even with a VW motor because we have trim on it with the kit and a cradle will come with it and it's not that hard to do and he gain confidence that he needs back.

Duke Nukem Blockbuster

We're proceeding with this idea not really other people are though

Olympus

Let me get this straight it's a German car YouTwo designed the Volkswagen both versions and we do mean Hera and CAA and it's true and you both designed the Volkswagen bug and helped market and sell it and create a car that sold more cars in history at that time ever started a massive automobile industry and it was a huge kickoff for parts of world war II and also the VW bug revival was by these two it's their car and the Bradley GT 1 into came from them as an idea to make a kid car and they went to JC and Mary who are David and Carol mostly and or David and Michelle audette and are not brother and sister. And you came up with a design and had them engineer it and make the same shape and configuration with the old Volkswagen which are back then the new one was made it of course and they say yeah that's about it and also the concepts came up with the name and he says I don't remember that but we do and we have it recorded you said this will give him a good time and so far it has and nobody sees it and it's a vehicle and it's theirs the German Volkswagen and it's changed into a Korean a bit and we took a beating. I guess we would have to try and hook into it somehow is their code but they're taking hardware and making hardware and it's not the Bradley no it is but they make the Oshkosh too and I can't really drive a tractor around very funny though they have a couple designs that involve tractors and they're too small. For his growing body. There's a couple other things cuz this is really just rudimentary math he's wise guy about everything won't let us rest because we keep bothering him and it's not supposed to be that way it's trying to save money but he can't and we want to go backwards but he can't afford to buy a car you can't even afford to pay off his credit card so you won't even do this cuz it's a risk and he needs gas in the garage maintenance and it costs too much to have the Kia and he knows how it goes with kit cars and there's no disposable income and no reason to drive around. At all by the way we're there for you a couple years and we do know it's true and he keeps say we're holding there and it's really taught me out and I see the scenario and I see the moon and I see the code is damned awful it's a lot bigger and deeper than people think we have to get to it and work on it. This car idea is valid and I wonder what he's doing with hardware if anything and he was at that party and Bradley is the guy who hit our friend and he came to the house the next day and Brad said it and our friend here said who the hell is that I kept saying it was me neo and it probably isn't so we can take a look at it. The car is exciting the new version is exciting the changes are exciting the Volkswagen is the perfect chassis and fits better than anything else by size and motif and motives there's a lot of problems he doesn't have money storm ruined tons of cars he has no money to make a mistake and yeah I can't afford gas and oil insurance is a burden and those things can be fixed but nobody just trying to force him to do it and he has no kids and we don't have a kid I'm getting to work on that and moreover the code works for us. We did it last time and he didn't have one and we did pretty good but this time around we need someone to help and not hinder we have a lot of work to do to get anywhere near that and I'm putting in that we put this in the pipe

Trump

It's kind of like playing around and trying to get done and doing tons of things but we can do it. This idea is pretty good my friend was thinking about and decided not to say anything and they didn't for a while I'm kind of sat there for 30 minutes and pushed it out he says it didn't go anywhere before which is true. So we have a lot of Volkswagens we save them up we might make a kit so we're getting ready right now

Bja

You see what they're saying it's going to be a lot of work it'll take time and they probably won't do it but we might

The code works for us in a whole bunch of cars of code works for us and we have to decide

Olympus

He says he is not decided before and doesn't want to start so you put a whole bunch of them out there kind of what he did this one fits no matter what happens and it's really cool and when you modified and make it more modern it's very intense looking inside me and goes real fast and it would be instantly famous and he would be famous they might make money on YouTube and he's thinking about that it's a good idea we do have other things to talk about but this is a great idea and they're talking about it so we're going to publish

Thor Freya

It's a whole bunch of code that he left out that way your heat where our son would go and who's talking to after he gets out of the car what he's getting and you guys are right on him telling all the smack and not doing anything but you used to do a lot of it and with this it would be a lot more and intense so that's what we're saying

Frank Castle hardcastle

We need to get out of this wearing but he says we're going out west and we're going to try and go to the Midwest and the car might make him too hot and be stuck doing nothing it's something to think about

Brad

[gisapot]

hdakfhjs.note, a love letter to humss12d batch 2023-2024 / closing remarks to the sugbuhi documentary festival as we finish out creative nonfiction.

there is a misconception that writing creative nonfiction is traumadumping. that its talking about our worst experiences, projecting it onto our readers, and making them carry our burden, and that it's a dead and moot genre of literature that isn't as interesting to read and write like poetry and fiction and plays. no one will write creative nonfiction, no one reads creative nonfiction, no one even reads creative nonfiction! what for do i have to tell you how i know my parents hate me in such a dramatic fashion?

the department of education curriculum guide described the subject creative nonfiction in this manner: Focusing on formal elements and writing techniques, including autobiography and blogging, among others, the subject introduces the students to the reading and writing of Creative Nonfiction as a literary form. The subject develops in students skills in reading, and thinking critically and creatively, that will help them to be imaginative readers and writers.

what the deped and your nonchalant mindsets miss about the genre, sir jason and i had to take on the gargantuan burden of meeting: how do we reconcile the demands of teaching a loaded subject to a student body going through senioritis, and how do we mold you to write what you know from the heart, ergo, to write oa?

we had to go back to the basics and build up. throughout the midterms we had to rehash what you knew from CW on figurative language for poetry and fiction, and the elements of a plot to tell your personal stories. as my first ever creative nonfiction mentor johanna michelle lim said to me at the cebu young writers' studio, "to write creative nonfiction is easier than poetry. there is no form. there is no rhyme. there are no rules, just write."

but while for most of you the act of writing in a literary manner is as natural as breathing, formulaic, almost, sir jason and i realized a challenge as your teachers and you as budding nonfictionists. we had to work against a heavier thing that barred you from truly writing your best nonfiction piece, something sir jason and i could not feed you, something you had to resolve yourself that you yourselves also acknowledged: it's your fear to get naked.

Unlike your Grade 11 subjects COMM01: Oral Communication in Context or ENG01: English for Academic and Professional Purposes, where every sentence required a source in order to persuade your audience that this is a real phenomenon, we had to work reestablish you to get in touch with your emotions. in creative writing, you could worldbuild, rhyme to your heart's content and hide your hurt in between the lines.

but creative nonfiction is looser, more open, you are allowed. oa is valid. reflection is valid, and over the sem we worked to understand that.

as I said in a module i wrote for this subject, and i quote: this kind of writing requires a high level of maturity and reflectiveness as it requires you to think deeply about what you have experienced, the culture of the community you live in, and make observations about it. It is no longer about providing sources for every single sentence you write. Through the seamless weaving our opinions shine through in a frank description of what our reality looks like. As HUMSS students, we already have the background to write for this subgenre of nonfiction, as we are closest to the 'katilingban'. 

some of you might not have been ready to be mature or naked, but had to catch up in the challenge of taking this class. as you pass the midterm, you are then exposed to how your writing, while talking about you, is no longer JUST about you. now validated in what you have observed about the katilingban, you were then enjoined to participate in the rudimentary simulation of the creative writing workshop, through the blind critique. you were each other's panel through the annotation activities we did weekly, and you wrote critical responses on the essays your peers produced and got critiqued back to reconsider your choices in your work. the nakedness in creative nonfiction is not just in the fighting back against what tim kreider calls the "mortifying ordeal of being known". we had to allow ourselves to be poked at in order to become beautiful, and to write beautiful.

we then began work on the ethics of creative nonfiction and how that affects the writing of literary journalism, where everything from its elements to the language use came together to depict a person you have so admired in both the making of these documentaries and to write for this prestigious genre.

a writer is stereotyped as a disheveled shut-in, alone, in a dark room, dark rimmed eyes and stacks of empty cups of coffee on a coffee-stained table, writing nonstop with the curtains drawn so shut he can no longer tell if it is day or night. in a letter that i wrote to palanca awardee omar khalid, i said, while writing is a one-man act, it should be done with the presence of like-minded friends and seniors to spur you on to continue and do better [...] the people [...] showed me what a ‘writer’s rehabilitation’ could look like. like my former professor dr cindy velasquez said in one of the shortlisted documentaries and aligned with the carolinian core values, writing is a social responsibility, for the preservation of culture. you are with the katilingban. this, right now, is your writing rehabilitation: you write for the katilingban. so you must join the katilingban to write about the katilingban.

humss d has qr codes outside linking to their cnf ebooks, where they have compiled their best essays and the biographical profiles of their documentary subject. these are free, and the fruit of our sweet labor over this semester drafting, critiquing, and revising, contributing to the quietly loud field of creative nonfiction, naked and beautiful.

and with this culminating performance task, we finally conclude the litessay: creative nonfiction. congratulations not just to the winners, but to you, each and everyone. you have truly grasped not just the technicalities of creative nonfiction, but what it truly means to be beautifully naked.

people who are not interested in cebuano literature say cebuano lit is dead. how loud the outsiders are, how downplayed we may be, with you finishing CW, CNF, and hopefully graduating from humss, sylvia plath was right: "little or nothing. so many of us, so many of us! we shall by morning inherit the earth. our foot's in the door." writers, congratulations, and welcome to the cebuano literary scene.

[isagrimorie]

“If that pain tells us anything we are, who we say we are.”

Episode 5 might be my favorite episode of season 3. This conversation was so fraught and filled with messy emotions but it was also what was needed.

And honestly, I feel like Janeway and Seven have to have a similar frank discussion. I don’t think it would be fraught, Seven and Janeway’s relationship was different and also similar.

“You wanted to mold me in your image, your mentorship. Your affection. It was conditional!”

I don’t think there’s a lot of hurt feelings between them but there are complicated emotions.

I know, from s3 of Picard and 12 Monkeys, he and his team will write this well.

On the other hand Seven and Janeway have had this fraught conversation before. Especially in the early days when Seven chafed under all the rules Janeway imposed.

Going back to the scene though it’s just so crunchy and beautiful and so, so well acted.

I think that’s one of my favorites of season 3, the really crunchy scenes where characters who have history are in a room together and talk.

I love s3 Picard so much for bringing this.

Ensign Ro Laren was a hanging thread they never closed, and it was a shame they never closed it because Michelle Forbes is a phenomenal actress.

This is the kind of role and scene you bring Michelle Forbes in for!

[crmacgal]

A Hit, A Miss, and the In-Betweens

So if you read a book that’s not necessarily your favorite, does that annoy you or does it make you that much more appreciative for the ones that are really, really good?  In my case:  BOTH.  Although if I read too many that aren’t so great in a row, I get crabby---seriously.  Life is too short for just “so-so” books, right?  But on the other hand, how do you know when a lousy book is going to make some incredible shifts and turn out to be one of the best things you’ve ever read??  I don’t really think that happens very often, to tell the truth…but that doesn’t stop me from plowing through with hope, because you just never know!

Last Known Location by Eva Mackenzie

Gwen’s been having issues with her ex-boyfriend; he wants to play mind games and since she was in too deep, it’s hard for her to break free and move on.  When she goes on a quick hiking trip in her area, she meets a very nice, VERY good-looking man, but he’s left the campsite when she wakes up the next day so that’s that.  Until a few days later when Gwen is on her shift as a nurse at the hospital and this stranger is brought in---bloody and without a memory.  The story takes off from there, and while Gwen is trying not to get too involved with this stranger (who might be dangerous), it’s not until she realizes she’s being stalked that she knows for certain that something is up.  I think this story had a pretty good premise, although Gwen comes across as a bit naïve at times.  The problem was I didn’t find her very likeable, and then I found areas where the leaps of logic were just too great.  I wanted to like this one more, but in the end, it was just okay for me.

3 Stars (rounded up)

Note:  Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

All That Is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay

One day in 1975, Jane Larkin goes out to run some errands and never comes home, leaving her husband and three young children in an constant state of wondering what happened to her.  As the children grow up, the younger two (and investigators) begin to believe their father is responsible, and that their mother is likely dead.  Since there’s no proof and no body to be found, Jane’s husband is never charged with a crime…and even after her remains are found some 20-yrs later, there still aren’t any suspects.  This is the same author who wrote Defending Jacob, and just like with that book, I found myself completely immersed in the story.  The characters are so real, the descriptions so good, that I could practically see this all play out in my head like my own little movie.  Highly recommend!

5 Stars

Note:  Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Not That Kind Of Ever After by Luci Adams

Bella is an almost-30yr old singleton, living in London, dreaming about the perfect “happily ever after” she always read about as a girl and now mourns the fact that she simply cannot find it for herself.  After a particularly awful “date” (the term is being used very loosely here) and a very frank conversation with her best friend’s brother, Bella writes up her fairytale evening turned nightmare…and it goes viral.  So even though Bella was having a hard time before, now she has a full blown following, all waiting to see what comes next, and she’s  more than happy to oblige—at least until it all starts to spiral out of control.  Cute book, kind of predictable and a bit unrealistic, but a nice “chick lit” type of book to pass the time.

3 Stars

Note:  Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Book Woman’s Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson

As a follow-up to The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek, it’s now the early 1950s.  Although some progress has been made in favor of females and the “blue folk,” it’s really not to the point where 16yr-old Honey Lovett, the adopted daughter of Jackson Lovett and Cussie Mary (“Bluet”), can be truly free.  During a period of time when her parents can’t care for her, Honey needs to use her smarts and the kindness of her friends from Troublesome to gain independence---although, just like with her mother, this is easier said than done.  Even though both of these books can be emotionally distressing at times, given the fact that these women have to live during very hard times in places where the law is not in their favor, they are also incredibly rewarding.  Richardson is a brilliant writer, and I found myself falling in love with her characters---hoping she finds a way to give us more.

5 Stars

Not A Happy Family by Shari Lapena

It’s Easter Sunday, and the Merton family is gathering together at their parent’s home in upstate NY, the estate where each of the children were raised.  During the course of the dinner, Fred Merton (the father and patriarch of the family) manages to insult each of his three children, lording his extreme wealth and success over them until they reach a breaking point and all leave.   Two days later, the housekeeper finds Fred and his wife brutally murdered, and with millions of dollars as a motive, a father who is downright cruel and a mother who sits silently by, it’s only natural that the police look to the adult children as possible suspects.  Like her other works, this is a fast paced, hang by the edge of your seat mystery that I could not put down.  Without spoiling the ending, I’ll just say that all the the characters were a bit unlikeable, so I don’t think the “who dunnit” really mattered all that much!

4 Stars

When In Doubt, Add Butter by Beth Harbison

Gemma works as a personal chef, which doesn’t leave her much time for her own personal life.  But on a unexpected evening out with a friend, she meets a guy that she can’t seem to get over.  Unfortunately, with her work life going haywire, the last thing she has time to worry about is her love life.  At least, that’s the case until something comes up that makes her realize she’s going to have to make time---and soon.  Great story with fun, descriptive characters.  I love all of Beth Harbison’s books, especially when I need something a little lighter---would make a perfect vacation book!

5 Stars

[mrscorpio]

[Electronica/Beats] MrScorpio's HOUSE FIRE Podcast #289 - Most Dope For 2022 Pt 2 - 16 Dec 2022 Mixcloud: http://bit.ly/Mixcloud289 D/L: http://bit.ly/DL-HF289 Shows: http://bit.ly/ScorpioPodcasts Feat: Name/Artist/Album Washed Away/Kelela/Washed Away Darker Than You Think/Ohbliv/LewseJoints Eleven tattd/Knxwledge./HX.23 System/Sevdaliza/Raving Dahlia Blood And Marrow (Stro Elliot Remix)/Hiatus Kaiyote /Blood And Marrow The Avenues/Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad/Jazz Is Dead 011 Spirit/Cleo Sol/Mother Price Tags/Jazmine Sullivan/Heaux Tales/ Mo' Tales: The Deluxe Off The Wallstreet/Stro Elliot/Stro's Old Beat Farm You From London (feat. Little Simz)/SAULT/NINE Mercury/Steve Lacy/Gemini Rights Change The Beat(le)/MF DOOM & The Beatles/Sgt. Dumile's Lonely Hearts Club Band Ritz Barlton (Feat. Estee Nack) (Prod. By Don Carrera)/Westside Gunn/Peace Fly God Guilty By Association/Phro & Guilty Simpson/Guilty By Association EP Decadence feat. Kool G Rap, Revalation & DJ Jean Maron/M-Dot/Dining In Dystopia Don't Wanna Let You Go prod. by Oh No/Prozack Turner/Not Everybody Sleeps At Night (Casual, Guilty Simpson, Brother Ali, Ea- Ski, Jake One) Might Could Be Nice/Jimetta Rose/The Gift: Around The Way Queen Ninja Faire Défiler/Lord Beatjitzu/Ninja Terminator Sunshine/Homeboy Sandman/I Can't Sell These Edge Of Tomorrow (Feat. 2Mex) (Prod. By Mic Checkmate)/Wildchild/Omowale The Only Game/Bumpy Knuckles/Produced By Bumpy Knuckles Vol. 2 Mental (feat. Saul Williams/ Bridget Perez)/Denzel Curry/Melt My Eyez See Your Future Look To The Sky (Feat. Self Jupiter, Chali 2na & Gift Of Gab) (Prod. By Nottz)/Fatlip & Blu/Live From The End Of The World Vol. 1 Switch Sides /Method Man, Jadakiss, Eddie I, 5th PXWER/Meth Lab Season 3 : The Rehab Warm Thoughts/Flume featuring GrandeMarshall and Goldie Glo/Flume Essentials Sean Price (Prod. By Evidence)/Fly Anakin/Frank Kool (Feat. Fly Anakin & J Rocc)/LMD (LMNO, MED & Declaime)/Flying High F.I.E./Starvin B x DustVibes/Dad's House Runout/Knxwledge./VGM.19 Old Magic/E L U C I D/I Told Bessie The Unknown Comic/Your Old Droog/Yodney Dangerfield Black Pinot/Meyhem Lauren, Daringer, Action Bronson/Black Vladimir GHOST/SBTRKT, Leilah/GHOST Reverse Card/Domo Genesis/Intros, Outros & Interludes Hopeful feat. Jordan Rakei, Alfa Mist/Nocturne EP Come Hither/Buttering Trio /Come Hither Fazed Out/El Michels Affair/Yeti Season (Deluxe Version) Mountains/Charlotte Day Wilson/ALPHA Send me your tracks at Soundcloud: http://soundcloud.com/mr_scorpio Check out all your tracks on my show THE HOUSE FIRE/ every other Friday @6-8 PM GMT on InvaderFM: http://invader.fm Stream the podcasts at my Mixcloud: bit.ly/MrScorpiosShows Friend me up on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mrscorpio247 Look me up on Tumblr: http://mrscorpio.tumblr.com Shoot me your videos on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/MrScorpio Peace, Scorp

[jilisilver]

Oblivion the hit list

DOWNLOAD NOW Oblivion the hit list

Oblivion the hit list archive#

Oblivion the hit list full#

Thankfully, Mark had a habit of hanging on to anything that he thought might be important later. But when the era of the arcade ended, the city’s bigger game-makers began to go extinct, and they left reams and reams of material behind. The city was the birthplace of such familiar arcade games as Rampage, Mortal Kombat, and NBA Jam. He worked for numerous game-makers-Mindscape, Acclaim Entertainment, Konami, Midway Games, Atari, and NuFX, which became EA Chicago-at a time when Chicago was a video-game capital of the world. Mark amassed his collection during two decades in the video-game industry, first as a quality-assurance tester and later as a producer. Listening to them, I felt like a kid on an unchaperoned field trip. “This is the longest-running and most-subscribed-to video-game magazine in the U.S.,” Lewin observed. Cifaldi summarized it for me: “Here’s some stuff coming out about dinosaurs. The article about dinosaurs was buried in the back of the magazine, and it wasn’t even really about video games. “The early days of Game Informer were very out of touch,” Cifaldi, who is tall, with an air of intense concentration equal to Lewin’s, told me. Lewin, who is compact and laser focussed, suddenly pulled a magazine from a pile and exclaimed, “Year of the dinosaur!” She had discovered her favorite-ever issue of Game Informer, from the nineties.

Oblivion the hit list full#

The house, I noticed, was full of cat-themed décor. By the time I finally found the place, Cifaldi and Lewin were already hard at work in the living room, hunched over piles of old documents. The Flitmans live just down the street from a suburban high school, and their two-story brick house is so nondescript that I initially drove right past it. I tagged along to witness the work of the Video Game History Foundation. In June, Cifaldi and Lewin traveled to Chicago to visit another game designer’s trove, and they took the opportunity to revisit Mark’s stuff. senator’s list of wasteful projects.) The challenge isn’t just technical: it’s also about convincing the public that game history is history, and that it’s well worth saving. (One museum curator even told me that a federal grant for his game-preservation work ended up on a U.S. But games aren’t always treated as a serious part of the culture, and historians and archivists are only starting to preserve them. Generations of kids grew up playing these video games and helped to jump-start the digital revolution.

Oblivion the hit list archive#

They have been working to archive his collection ever since. Cifaldi and Lewin agreed to fly out to Chicago to sift through Mark’s hundreds of games and dozens of dusty boxes. He directs it alongside Kelsey Lewin, the co-owner of Pink Gorilla Games, a retailer that sells retro video games in Seattle. Two days later, she was on a Zoom call with Frank Cifaldi, a Bay Area preservationist who incorporated the foundation in 2016 and opened it to the public in 2017. It was downvoted enough times that it appeared at the very bottom of the thread, but Michelle decided to send the foundation an e-mail. One of these comments referenced an organization called the Video Game History Foundation. Out of a hundred and forty-nine comments, one or two urged Michelle not to sell the games and to preserve them for posterity instead. I’ll give you all of the money for it.” The most popular comment joked, “Do you need kidneys? I’ve got kidneys.” Another said, “I think I have some unwanted family members lying around here somewhere.” Someone else said, “I want that boxed copy of castlevania 4. “You can make a living out of these games,” one person told her. The thread quickly filled up with commenters who clearly saw the value of Mark’s stuff. “We plan on selling most of his collection. “​​My dad was a video game producer for multiple companies in the 90’s/2000’s,” she typed. When we spoke recently, she recalled a realization that she had: “Historians care about this stuff.” She decided to post photos of her dad’s collection-shelves of games in black-and-red boxes, some of them still in their original shrink-wrap-on a subreddit devoted to game collecting. Then, in college, she took a course on video-game history, and her professor nudged her to write a research paper. Michelle tried to interest YouTube hosts and Web-site owners in the relics she grew up with, but nothing came of those efforts. But to Michelle, they were part of the fabric of childhood, and she thought her father deserved some recognition. To her dad, Mark, they were the odds and ends of corporate life: he was a game producer and designer who worked on NFL Blitz 2003, Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage, and WWF Raw. Michelle Flitman, a recent art-school graduate who lives in a suburb of Chicago, grew up in a home full of video games.

DOWNLOAD NOW Oblivion the hit list

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Wanda Maximoff: I lost my husband to Thanos, resulting in me creating this alternate universe out of pure grief. It was fine at first, until S.W.O.R.D. and Agatha showed up. And now there's another Vision, but I think he might be evil or something.

Steve Rogers: Right after I asked Peggy out, I ended up crashing in the Arctic, resulting in me hibernating for several decades.

Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons: We had to deal with different planets, death, the Devil, evil robots, timeline shenanigans, and creatures from another dimension before we got out happy ending.

Matt Murdock: Elektra died in my arms during a fight with ninjas. She then got resurrected but was brainwashed to work for the ninja forces. After getting her back, we both decided to stay underneath the building to get crushed by rubble.

Frank Castle: MY WIFE WAS MURDERED BY THE FUCKING CIA.

Peter Parker: I had to watch Mysterio kill an illusion of Michelle, and then we both got caught in the middle of a drone war. Also, now we're both on the run because I got framed for terrorism.

Peter Quill: Gamora was killed by Thanos and now I'm chasing an alternate timeline version of her.

/

/

/

Scott Lang, turning to Hope van Dyne: Babe, our love story isn't going to be crazy like everyone else's right?

Hope van Dyne: Shhh! Don't jinx us!

[tommytranselo]

thinking about what the outcome would have been had Salieri asked Sam to walk in and kill Michelle instead of Tommy. how Sam would have emotionally reacted. how shit would have hit the fan QUICKER for Sam had Salieri found out he couldnt kill a “whore”. like. im having some Sam/Michelle feels cause its so obvious he had a heart for her and even though she wasnt killed until later on, it still tore him up that she had to leave/disappear. didnt speak to no one else not only bc he couldnt, but because no one else was Michelle

but speaking of Michelle, Sam goes by calling her her name throughout the game… until The Death of Art where he reveals to Tommy that Salieri found out he let her go and reffers to her as “the whore” which was a HUGE slap in the face bc bro werent you literally fidgeting at the table with Salieri and nearly about to shed tears about her possible death?

anyway, Sam finding out Salieri still had Michelle killed and after all those years, he still had a heart for her but just like with Paulie, he tried to shut it down and blank out those emotions and detach himself from her by referring to her as “the whore” knowing DAMN WELL he’s tore up about Michelle being killed also. So much shit had started to hit the fan AND on top of that he had to kill his best friend. Sam had a bigger heart than he thought and he tried so hard to fight against that and failed miserably, which is why it took a toll on his mental and he was literally Going Insane during the last mission.

he really said “fuck it, i just want this shit to be over. cant have SHIT in Chicago”

“can’t have SHIT in chicago” is cracking me up but god, you’re right.  she was in a lot of ways his emotional crutch; she was the only person he felt safe talking to, and after she skips town, even though he’s relieved she’s alive, he loses that support.  i feel like that was definitely a huge blow for him.

thing is...if sam was supposed to be the one to kill her, and he still lets her go...does salieri ever find out she’s alive?  i had kind of assumed he only thought to look for her after frank was found, because there was no reason to believe tommy hadn’t killed her until it came up that he hadn’t killed frank, and then salieri thought maybe he should look into michelle too.  but the for the sake of plot development let’s assume she is found–sam has an even bigger threat hanging over his head, and i assume salieri makes him finish the job himself (same with paulie, and then trying to with tommy).  he might be fucked even if he “proved himself” by successfully killing tommy.

you’re definitely right that he tries to play down his own concern for her and convince himself he doesn’t care by not even saying her name.  there seems to be a running theme about the dangers of having a heart in a heartless business...

[girlactionfigure]

Ellen Naomi Cohen was born on September 19, 1941.

She was mocked by people who didn’t know her heart, she was teased by supposed friends. Even after her death, the cruel joke was that she choked on a ham sandwich.

All this because of her weight.

The jokes hurt her, as it does many people who are called “fat,” who are ridiculed for the way they look, but she hid her pain well, as do many.

In high school, she adopted the name “Cass,” and, some time later, she would assume the surname “Elliot” in memory of a friend who had died.

According to a 2019 article by writer, Sheila Weller, “Cass—Ellen Naomi Cohen—was a middle-class Jewish girl from Baltimore who left high school six months before graduation to go to New York and try Broadway. She lost the role of Mrs. Marmelstein in ‘I Can Get It For You Wholesale’ to a budding young Jewish singer-actress who did her share to establish the rule that you didn’t have to be classically beautiful to be a star: Barbra Streisand. Cass then got a job as a coat check girl at a Manhattan nightclub, the Bitter End, singing and trying to get random agents’ attention, as she juggled hangers and quarters as tips.”

Cass Elliot had a wonderful, soothing voice, she had a wonderful personality, a beautiful soul, but the story is that initially not even John Phillips wanted her as part of his new group, which would become the Mamas and Papas. According to insiders, Phillips thought she was too fat and didn’t fit the image of the group. It was only when the group realized that she had a beautiful voice which actually made the group better that she was allowed more opportunities to sing.

When she was finally featured, she had to make up a story that she had a terrible voice until a pipe fell on her head, which somehow made her voice better.

Even after that, Elliot’s weight continued to be a source for jokes.

In one of the Mamas and the Papas biggest hits, “Creeque Alley”, Elliot had to join the chorus, singing, “And no one’s getting fat except Mama Cass!”

After she left the group, she tried to get away from the name “Mama” Cass to no avail.

“My mother was The Little Engine That Could,” her daughter Owen Elliot-Kugell told Weller. “Weight shaming was something she dealt with all her life. She was constantly insulted and hurt by people calling or thinking her fat. But she never talked about her pain, and when she performed, she hid that pain. But I know — I could tell—that it bothered her. As a child she was teased as a fatty. Her weight was something she bore the scars of for the rest of her life, be it failed auditions for Broadway shows or lonely nights after The Mamas and The Papas’ performances at Carnegie Hall or the Hollywood Bowl, coming home alone when everyone else had a partner.”

She once said, “I’ve been fat since I was seven and being fat sets you apart.”

“For others, that might have been a handicap but Cass turned it into a strength,” according to The Guardian. “She opened the door for others like Janis Joplin and Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane,” says DJ Annie Nightingale. “I adored her voice, you couldn’t help but like her and she helped establish a genre of independent women.”

“Cass’s impact on 60s teenagers with weight problems was significant,” said The Guardian. Nancy Roberts, founder member of the Spare Tyre Theatre Company, a group inspired by Susie Orbach’s Fat is a Feminist Issue, explains: “She was this wonderful sexy role model and inspiration who made it less of an incriminating burden to be fat.”

“Aside from breaking the weight-shaming stigma and rising as an improbable female icon, Cass was other things young women weren’t allowed to be then but can be now — a proud single-mother-by-choice and a working mother who supported her child alone,” according to Weller.

“At 25, Cass knew she wanted to be a solo mother — a bold choice at the time, even in bohemian circles,” according to NexTribe.

“She wanted me more than anything else in the world — she told people that,” her daughter said.

But, even with all her personal and musical triumphs and outwardly confidence, Elliot constantly felt the brunt of the fat jokes and the pressure to be slim.

“She said she’d never go on stage because Michelle was beautiful and she wasn’t,” says John Phillips, one of the Papas. She was persuaded to change her mind but no one stopped her trying dangerous diets.

Elliot tried desperately to lose weight, once going on a six-month long crash diet, losing 100 of her 300 pounds. This would lead to a stomach ulcer and throat problems, which was treated by drinking milk and cream, leading her to regain much of her weight back.

At age 32, Elliot would die in her sleep. Immediately, there were rumors that she either died because of drugs or that she died while eating a ham sandwich.

Frank Zappa would even reference the sandwich in his song, “We’re Turning Again” with the lyrics, “We can visit Big Mama, we can whap her on the back, while she eats her sandwich!”

As recent as 2007, even Snopes had to post an entry and dispute the ham sandwich myth of her death.

Owen Elliot was seven when her mother died. “It’s been hard for my family with the sandwich rumour,” she says. “One last slap against the fat lady. People seem to think it’s funny. What’s so darn funny?”

According to reports, there was no evidence to support the choking theory. The official autopsy revealed she had little to eat during her final hours. “There was left-sided heart failure,” wrote pathologist Keith Simpson. “She had a heart attack which developed rapidly.”

Heart failure.

Cass Elliot not only had a beautiful voice, but she also had a beautiful heart which few people got to see.

Anthony Kiedis of Red Hot Chili Peppers cited The Mamas & the Papas, and especially Elliot, as an influence, in an interview for Rolling Stone, saying, “There have been times when I’ve been very down and out in my life, and the sound of her voice has sort of given me a reason to want to carry on.”

“She was a one-woman triumph against adversity; she was ahead of her time; women now are finally doing what she did 50 years ago,” says her daughter. “I look back on her and realize that, just by example, she taught me, and others, not to accept it when someone says you can’t do something.”

“I’m proud to be my mother’s daughter,” says Owen. “When I’m having a tough day, for whatever reason, I think of all the ‘you can’t be this; you can’t do thats’ that my mother heard but ignored or conquered. She was a hero to me.”

The Jon S. Randal Peace Page

Ellen Naomi Cohen was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on September 19, 1941, the daughter of Bess (née Levine; 1915–1994) and Philip Cohen (died 1962) All four of her grandparents were Russian Jewish immigrants.