#sondra jane

[unbound-shade]

My dog is such a grandma's girl.

[electronickingdomfox]

"The New Voyages 2" review

Another collection of short stories submitted by fans, similar to the first volume (which I reviewed here). This one was published in 1978, and was also edited by Marshak and Culbreath. More uneven than the first volume, but there are still some solid tales in here. It would have been better if Marshak and Culbreath had chosen other stories (ANY stories) to replace the ones written by themselves. But I guess that's the privilege of being the editors...

Some spoilers under the cut:

Surprise! (by Nichelle Nichols, Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath). Nichelle is credited as one of the authors, though judging by the info in the introduction, as well as the unmistakable style, I'd guess that most of it was written by the dreaded couple, while Nichols just provided the general idea and the ending. It's Kirk's birthday, and Uhura, together with the rest of the crew, try hard to keep the party a surprise, while Kirk gets more and more annoyed in the process. The story drags too much, since the plot doesn't really have all that meat to begin with. And everyone behaves weirdly out-of-character, supposedly because it's a comedic story. I found the whole thing more silly than funny, to be honest.

Snake Pit! (by Connie Faddis) is much better. Chapel and Kirk are abducted by an alien tribe who has recently turned hostile, and ceased commerce with a nearby scientific station. The tribe has also started to kill people in sadistic rituals involving snakes. Kirk is tortured in truly Kirk-style, and put naked inside a pit full of snakes, that bite him. He'll die if he isn't given an antidote soon. Then Chapel offers the natives a bet: if she can rescue Kirk from the pit without being bitten once, they'll have to release both of them. If she fails, well... you get the idea. So Chapel jumps also naked into the pit, armed just with a knife, and battles the snakes in glorious cavewoman fashion. There's action and tension, and the opportunity to see Chapel's most badass side.

The Patient Parasites (by Russell Bates). This author wrote the TAS episode "How Sharper than a Serpent's Tooth", and this story is actually the script for another TAS episode, which got rejected. Thus, it's presented in TV script form, not as a narrative. Some crewmembers are captured by a strange machine, whose mission is to retrieve knowledge from any species out there, and bring it to its masters. Kirk and co. must find a way to weaken the machine's force field and rescue the crew, before their allotted time expires. It ends with Kirk making the machine self-destruct through the power of logic. Pretty "meh!" and generic argument. It's no surprise it was rejected as an episode, given the static scenery and lack of action.

In the Maze (by Jennifer Guttridge) turned out to be my favorite story. This is the same author of the also great "The Winged Dreamers", in the first collection. Kirk, Spock and McCoy are investigating a strange cube building, which doesn't fit that planet's culture, when Kirk disappears through a portal. Spock and McCoy follow him, but end up in a total different place of the maze. Kirk is being held in a cage by a disgusting alien, with whom he's unable to communicate, while Spock and McCoy must brave the maze and several dangers to rescue him. All part of an intelligence test by the alien. Spock and McCoy suffer a lot (specially McCoy) and embrace a lot. And they even have to fight a tentacle monster, similar to that one in the lake before Moria (from "Lord of the Rings"). It's dark, it bears a resemblance to "The Empath", and it would have made for a great episode of the series.

Cave-In (by Jane Peyton) is a strange "free texture" poem, so it's up to interpretation, and it's not entirely clear what's going on. The dialogue seems to happen between Spock and McCoy while they're trapped inside a cave, and McCoy is prodding the Vulcan about his mixed heritage. Not much to comment. I don't get this stuff.

Marginal Existence (also by Connie Faddis) has the crew investigating an eerie planet, where all the inhabitants have been placed in "sleeper chambers" and pumped up with drugs. Most of them have been dead for centuries, anyway. It all turns very sinister once automated robots, which respond to the sound of voices, start putting crewmembers inside the chambers, and piercing them with needles and tubes filled with drugs, which causes them great pain. As it's discovered later, this hedonistic society chose to live permanently under the effect of drugs, but it all backfired once the pleasure turned into pain. Poor McCoy also suffers a lot in this one, this time from too painful pleasure. Yeah. It's an interesting, a bit macabre story.

The Procrustean Petard (by Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath). This one gave me actual brain damage. The awkward prose is mostly gone, at least, and replaced with supposedly witty banter (it isn't), and repetitions of the same bad pun that gives the story its title. It also takes a similar plot as "Turnabout Intruder", but turning the misogyny up to eleven. Let me explain. In the TOS episode, Lester can't be a starship captain because a law (described as "unfair") doesn't allow women to be captains. However, Lester doesn't become any better once she gets Kirk's body. She's just as deranged and tyrannical as before, no matter that she has now Kirk's muscles and hormones; that doesn't make her a better leader. And similarly, Kirk doesn't become a hysterical crybaby simply because he's now in a female body. In the end, what counts is the attitude, what is inside, and not the body in particular. This is completely subverted in this story. The Enterprise approaches a planet, which has the stupid quality of luring spaceships just to reverse the sex of everyone on-board, whether they want it or not (the point being what??). As soon as Kirk is turned into a female (not just any female; he's the same James Kirk, just with one chromosome changed), he becomes the most useless being in the universe. Nobody believes him capable of being a leader anymore, and the story proves this point time and time again. He faints in the bridge just because the ship is shaking a bit. He can't go alone anywhere. He distracts all men because he's too beautiful now. Starfleet wants to take away his command and give him a desk job. He can't even drive a shuttlecraft anymore because "oh! the controls are too big". This is a world where aliens of all shapes and sizes are accepted, but it seems that human females are still the most pathetic things in existence... Is Spock also turned into a woman? Hell no. The authors are Spock supremacists, so they spare him that indignity. Instead, the planet gives Spock an extra Y chromosome (because it does that to the strongest male on-board, of course) and this turns Spock into a super-macho, and an insufferable asshole. At once, he stops calling Kirk "Captain", since he's no longer worthy of the rank. Needless to say, everyone reverts back to their usual selves at the end, save Spock. Because super-macho Spock = good. There's also an appearance of the Klingon Kang (from "Day of the Dove"), which has lost his whole crew because they're all now useless women. No matter that in the series, Kang was married to a very capable female Science Officer... Sigh. The only one who remains more or less the same is McCoy, who doesn't see so much difference, save the purely biological, in being a woman. But I think I know what's the logic behind this. As McCoy is the most emotional of the triumvirate, the authors probably saw him as "less of a man" to begin with. Or, in their own rhetoric, as a "beta male".

The Sleeping God (by Jesco von Puttkamer). This author is an interesting case, since he's a NASA scientist, who later would help with technical details for TMP. (He's also, by his own admittance, one of the victims of Shatner's "habit of kissing men on the mouth"). This story is a bit longer than the others, and separated by chapters. A massive super-computer intelligence, called the Nagha, has conquered her own universe after millions of years, destroying every living being in her strive to become the only, supreme intelligence that exists. She's a malevolent counterpart to V'ger, even referenced as a "child" too. Which is curious since TMP wouldn't be released until 1979. Unless it's purely coincidental, it could be that Jesco knew something about the movie script beforehand, and took inspiration from it. Or it was Roddenberry who was inspired by this story instead. Anyway, the Nagha has found out how to invade the normal universe too, and is destroying planets. So Starfleet decides to wake up their ultimate weapon: a mutant with extraordinary mental powers, put in a sleeping chamber years ago. Of course, it's the Enterprise's task to carry the sleeping god and confront the Nagha. But it soon becomes apparent that the mental powers of the mutant are interfering with the crew. The plot isn't terribly original, but it's well-written and keeps the interest. A bit heavy on the technical details (as expected, given the author's background), but not to the point of being boring. McCoy keeps bitching about all the bullshit that's going on, which is fun.

After this come two short poems (Elegy for Charlie, by Antonia Vallario, and Soliloquy by Marguerite B. Thompson). I can't comment much on them, since poetry isn't my thing, sorry.

Spirk Meter: 9/10*. Not evenly distributed, but very much there.

Surprise! has Spock offering to tuck Kirk in bed, and after Kirk accepts, he becomes flustered. Spock also carries him in his arms for a minor injury (though there's a reason for it, since he's preventing him to enter the room with the surprise party). Both of them also share a chess room between their two bathrooms, and it's obvious they're going into there after taking a shower or such.

The Sleeping God has Kirk finding a naked Spock tied to a lab table, immediately running to him, and then being stripped himself and put on another table next to him. Spock keeps calling him "Jim" all the time, even when discussing mission details. Before the whole complex self-destructs, Kirk's last thoughts are for Spock to be safe.

And Soliloquy, a first-person poem about Spock, ends with the bold words: "I love you, Captain, written on my heart". Maybe I should give this book a higher score based in this line alone, but the poem is such a little thing in the scope of the book, that I don't know...

Spones also deserves an honorary mention. Cave-In has Spock and McCoy trapped in a cave and McCoy is really hot ("Hotter than you know"). Presumably because of the stuffy air inside the cave, but this is during an intense banter between both and... well, you get the idea. In the Maze has lots of love between the two, as they're both badly injured and keep comforting and healing each other. So yeah, it's like one of those episodes.

And Kirk is a bit touchy-feely with McCoy in The Patient Parasites.

*A 10 in this scale is the most obvious spirk moments in TOS. Think of the back massage, "You make me believe in miracles", or "Amok Time" for example.

[thebarroomortheboy]

RONALD COLMAN (Robert Conway) and JANE WYATT (Sondra) in LOST HORIZON (1937) | dir. Frank Capra

[ulkaralakbarova]

Tess McGill is an ambitious secretary with a unique approach for climbing the ladder to success. When her classy, but villainous boss breaks a leg skiing, Tess takes over her office, her apartment and even her wardrobe. She creates a deal with a handsome investment banker that will either take her to the top, or finish her off for good. Credits: TheMovieDb. Film Cast: Tess McGill: Melanie Griffith Jack Trainer: Harrison Ford Katharine Parker: Sigourney Weaver Mick Dugan: Alec Baldwin Cyn: Joan Cusack Oren Trask: Philip Bosco Ginny: Nora Dunn Lutz: Oliver Platt Turkel: James Lally Bob Speck: Kevin Spacey Armbriester: Robert Easton Personnel Director: Olympia Dukakis Alice Baxter: Amy Aquino Tim Rourke: Jeffrey Nordling Doreen DiMucci: Elizabeth Whitcraft Tess’s Birthday Party Friend: Maggie Wagner Tess’s Birthday Party Friend: Lou DiMaggio Tess’s Birthday Party Friend: David Duchovny Tess’s Birthday Party Friend: Georgienne Millen Petty Marsh Secretary: Caroline Aaron Petty Marsh Secretary: Nancy Giles Petty Marsh Secretary: Judy Milstein Petty Marsh Secretary: Nicole Chevance Petty Marsh Secretary: Kathleen Gray Petty Marsh Secretary: Jane B. Harris Petty Marsh Secretary: Sondra Hollander Petty Marsh Secretary: Samantha Shane Petty Marsh Secretary: Julia Silverman Jr. Executive: Jim Babchak Jim: Zach Grenier Dewey Stone Reception Guest: Ralph Byers Dewey Stone Reception Guest: Leslie Ayvazian Cab Driver: Steve Cody Dewey Stone Receptionist: Paige Matthews John Romano: Lee Dalton Phyllis Trask: Barbara Garrick Barbara Trask: Madolin B. Archer Hostess at Wedding: Etain O’Malley Bridesmaid: Ricki Lake Bitsy: Marceline Hugot Bridegroom: Tom Rooney Trask Wedding Orchestra: Peter Duchin Trask Secretary: Maeve McGuire Tim Draper: Timothy Carhart TV Weatherman: Lloyd Lindsay Young Bartender: F.X. Vitolo Clerk at Dry Cleaner’s: Lily Froehlich Heliport Attendant: Michael Haley Helicopter Pilot: Mario T. DeFelice Jr. Helicopter Pilot: Anthony Mancini Jr. Trask Receptionist: Suzanne Shepherd Rhumba Guy (uncredited): Matthew Bennett Staten Island Secretary (uncredited): Trish Cook Pretty Brunette Office Girl (uncredited): Priscilla Cory Cyn’s Aunt (uncredited): Marilyn Dobrin Trask Executive (uncredited): Kevin Fennessy Receptionist (uncredited): Anita Finlay Office Worker (uncredited): Tom Sean Foley Staten Island Ferry Commutor (uncredited): George Gerard Secretary (uncredited): Dhonna Harris Goodale Young Businessman (uncredited): Daniel Henning Office Party-Goer (uncredited): Eric Kramer Secretary (uncredited): Elisa London Secretary (uncredited): Karen Starr Petty Marshall Secretary (uncredited): Alison Wachtler Film Crew: Director of Photography: Michael Ballhaus Editor: Sam O’Steen Screenplay: Kevin Wade Costume Design: Ann Roth Makeup Artist: Joseph A. Campayno Makeup Artist: J. Roy Helland Art Direction: Doug Kraner Director: Mike Nichols Unit Production Manager: Robert Greenhut Set Decoration: George DeTitta Jr. Casting: Juliet Taylor Executive Producer: Laurence Mark Producer: Douglas Wick Hairstylist: Alan D’Angerio Gaffer: John W. DeBlau Production Design: Patrizia von Brandenstein Location Manager: Richard Baratta Supervising Sound Editor: Stan Bochner Transportation Captain: Tom O’Donnell Jr. First Assistant Camera: Florian Ballhaus Production Supervisor: Todd Arnow Boom Operator: Linda Murphy Still Photographer: Andrew D. Schwartz Assistant Costume Designer: Gary Jones Camera Operator: David M. Dunlap Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Lee Dichter Art Department Coordinator: Samara Schaffer Transportation Co-Captain: Louis Volpe Script Supervisor: Mary Bailey Assistant Art Director: Tim Galvin Production Coordinator: Ingrid Johanson Production Sound Mixer: Les Lazarowitz Music Editor: Patrick Mullins Sound Editor: Marshall Grupp ADR Editor: Michael Jacobi Property Master: James Mazzola Cableman: Mike Bedard First Assistant Director: Michael Haley Stunt Double: Vic Armstrong Original Music Composer: Carly Simon Stunt Coordinator: Jim Dunn Stunt Coordinator: Frank Ferrara Stunts: Phil Neilson Stunts: ...

[kalamity-animals-and-nature]

[in-the-shadow-of-the-valley]

Out on the trail with the pup!

[fawnvelveteen]

Sondra Peterson in Orlon fine-gauge knit three-piece cardigan suit by Jane Irwill, Du Pont ad, Vogue, November 15, 1961

[photomawf]

New collaborative shirt with artist Sondra Meszaros.

Limited edition  -  Purchase yours now at https://www.gaptoothsweatsuit.com

[dear-indies]

Weird request, but do you have any faceclaims that are gingers? It's so hard to find ginger faceclaims of different ethnicities, body types, etc.

Hey anon! I’m not sure if you only wanted diverse faceclaims only but below are 200+ ginger faceclaims and I have noted the diverse suggestions. Please let me know if you’d like more specific suggestions for example from a certain age range.

Big thanks to @katherine-mcnamara! 

Non-binary:

Nicky Endres (1982) Korean - non-binary, transfeminine, genderqueer and queer - they/she.

Olly Alexander (1990) - non-binary and gay - he/him.

Kaitlyn Alexander (1992) - non-binary - they/them.

Maggie McGill (?) - is non-binary, queer and fat/plus size- she/they,

Women:

Joy Behar (1942)

Sondra Currie (1947) 

Becky Ann Baker (1953)

Kay Adshead (1954)

Julianne Moore (1960)

Carol Alt (1960)

Andrea Arnold (1961)

Marcia Cross (1962)

Cheryl Hawker (1962) - is fat/plus size.

Amy Yasbeck (1962) Lebanese / Irish.

Kate Walsh (1967) 

Molly Ringwald (1968)

Debra Messing (1968)

Catherine Tate (1969)

Stephanie Belding (1971)

Brigid Brannagh (1972)

Nathalie Boltt (1973)

Alyson Hannigan (1974) Ashkenazi Jewish / Irish.

Amy Adams (1974)

Tina Campbell (1974) African-American.

Alicia Witt (1975)

Jen Richards (1976) - is trans and bisexual.

Isla Fisher (1976)

Lauren Ambrose (1978)

Natasha Lyonne (1978) Ashkenazi Jewish.

Itziar Castro (1977) - is a lesbian.

Jaime Ray Newman (1978) Ashkenazi Jewish.

Rachelle Lefevre (1979)

Ruth Connell (1979)

Nur Fettahoğlu (1980) Turkish.

Sarah Drew (1980) 

Bridget Regan (1982)

Bronagh Waugh (1982)

Lotte Verbeek (1982)

Alexandra Breckenridge (1982)

Kate Mara (1983)

Tuğçe Kumral (1983) Turkish.

Lynsey Bartilson (1983) Ashkenazi Jewish / Norwegian, Dutch, mix of English, Irish, and French.

Magda Apanowicz (1985)

Emily Beecham (1985)

Deborah Ann Woll (1985)

Natalya Rudakova (1985)

Sarah Power (1985)

Our Lady J (1985) - is trans. 

Mary Wiseman (1985) - is queer.

Sepideh Moafi (1985) Iranian.

Elçin Sangu (1985) Turkish.

Issa Rae (1985) Senegalese / African-American, Creole [African, French, distant Spanish], distant French-Haitian.

Katie Leclerc (1986) - has Ménière’s Disease.

Florence Welch (1986)

Laura Spencer (1986)

Gillian Alexy (1986)

Crystal Kay (1986) Korean / African-American,

Valorie Curry (1986)

Jessica Keenan Wynn (1986)

Sarah Snook (1987) 

Evan Rachel Wood (1987) - is bisexual. 

Genevieve Angelson (1987)

Nicola Coughlan (1987) - is fat/plus size.

Elena Satine (1987)

Sarah Hay (1987)

Stacey Farber (1987)

Christiane Seidel (1988)

Maggie Geha (1988) 

Amber Skye Noyes (1988)

Sabina Karlsson (1988) Gambian / Swedish.

Renee Olstead (1989)

Jessica Kellgren-Fozard (1989) - has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome with Marfanoid phenotype causing blindness in one eye and deafness - is a lesbian.

Clémentine Desseaux (1988) - is fat/plus size.

Jane Levy (1989) Ashkenazi Jewish / English, some Irish and Scottish.

Jessie Buckley (1989)

Renee Olstead (1989)

Jenna Thiam (1990) Armenian, Belgian / Senegalese, English, French.

Lee Sung Kyung (1990) Korean.

Galadriel Stineman (1990)

Başak Gümülcinelioğlu (1991) Turkish.

Coral Kwayie (1991) Ghanaian / British.

Carmen Solomons (1991) Mixed South African.

Su Kutlu (1991) Turkish.

Charlotte Spencer (1991) 

Colby Minifie (1992)

Alina Kovalenko (1992)

Eleanor Tomlinson (1992) 

Haley Ramm (1992)

Alexis Jordan (1992) African-American / Puerto Rican.

Anna Shaffer (1992) Black and White South African / South African Jewish.

Louisa Connolly-Burnham (1992)

Jennifer Stone (1993)

Mayra Tercero (1993) Honduran.

Olivia Cooke (1993)

Molly Quinn (1993)

Freya Mavor (1993)

Sharon Belle (1993)

Molly C. Quinn (1993)

Thiều Bảo Trâm (1994) Vietnamese. 

Janet Devlin (1994) - is bisexual. 

Ahsen Eroğlu (1994) Turkish. 

Madelaine Petsch (1994)

Jacqueline Emerson (1994)

Bronwyn James (1994) - is gay and fat/plus size. 

Khadijha Red Thunder (1994) Chippewa Cree, African-American, Spanish - is pansexual. 

Marina Ruy Barbosa (1995) Brazilian.

Aleece Wilson (1995) Metis, Afro-Canadian, Irish and Italian.

Ciara Baxendale (1995)

Phoebe Dynevor (1995)

Bree Kish (1996) 1/4 African-American 3/4 Spanish, Irish, Dutch - is fat/plus size.

Thanaerng Kanyawee Songmuang (1996) Thai.

Luca Hollestelle (1996)

Sue Ramirez / Sue Dodd (1996) Filipino / White. 

Katherine McNamara (1996)

Thanaerng Kanyawee Songmuan (1996) Thai-Chinese. 

Sierra McCormick (1997)

Toto Bruin (1997)

Ellie Bamber (1997)

Sydney Sierota (1997)

Bo Barah (1997)

Maddison Brown (1997)

Melis Sezen (1997) Turkish.

Kiera Allen (1997) - is paraplegic.

Jordana Beatty (1998)

Annalise Basso (1998)

Erica Gluck (1998) African-American, possibly other.

Sonny Turner (1998) Black British.

Mathilda Mai (1998)

Duda Brandão (1998) Brazilian.

Cheng Xiao (1998) Chinese.

Fujita Nicole (1998) Japanese / Polish, Russian.

Erin Kellyman (1998) Afro-Jamaican / Irish - is a lesbian. 

Emma Kenney (1999)

Juliette Angelo (1999)

Ellie Darcey-Alden (1999)

Julia Lester (2000) Jewish.

Kennedy Walsh (2000) 

Mina Sundwall (2001)

Talia Jackson (2001) African-American / White.

Alana Pancyr (?) 

Lynley Eilers (?) - is fat/plus size. 

Men:

William Atherton (1947)

David Caruso (1956)

Boris Becker (1967)

Tom Goodman-Hill (1968)

Morgan Alling (1968)

Toby Stephens (1969)

Tony Curran (1969)

Eric Johnson (1970)

Brendan Beiser (1970)

Zack Ward (1970) 

Michael Rapaport (1970) Ashkenazi Jewish.

Alan Tudyk (1971)

Anthony Rapp (1971)

Damian Lewis (1971) Welsh, English, Scottish, and 1/16th Jewish [Sephardi and Ashkenazi].

Scott Grimes (1971)

Michael C. Hall (1971) - has stated he’s “not all the way heterosexual.”

Brett Tucker (1972)

Ewen Bremner (1972)

Kevin McKidd (1973)

Mackenzie Astin (1973)

Kris Holden-Ried (1973)

Dash Mihok (1974) - has Tourette Syndrome. 

Michael Shannon (1974)

Seth Green (1974) Ashkenazi Jewish.

Jesse Tyler Ferguson (1975) - is gay.

Marc Menchaca (1975) 

David Lewis (1976)

Krondon (1976) African-American - has albinism.

Kristofer Hivju (1978)

Diego Klattenhoff (1979)

Ethan Cohn (1979) 

Ben Foster (1980) Ashkenazi Jewish / English, French, Irish, distant Welsh and Scottish (mother; who may have converted to Judaism).

Sam Heughan (1980)

Rolf Kristian Larsen (1983)

Jidenna (1985) Igbo Nigerian / English, German, Dutch.

Alex Saxon (1987)

Kerem Bürsin (1987) Turkish.

Rupert Grint (1988)

Chris Bylsma (1988)

Luke Newberry (1990)

Alan Ashby (1991)

Calum Worthy (1991)

Elijah Baker (1991) Black British and White.

Stephen Joffe (1991) 

Sean Berdy (1993) - is deaf and has bipolar disorder.

Cameron Monaghan (1993)

Niall Cunningham (1994)

Jack Kilmer (1995)

Elliott Jay Brown (1996) Black British.

Ralph Souffrant (1996) Afro-Haitian.

Iwahashi Genki (1996) Japanese.

Leon Seidel (1996)

Yoshino Hokuto (1997) Japanese.

Garet Allen (1997)

Kai Alexander (1997)

Jake Austin Walker (1997)

Louis Hofmann (1997)

Tashi-Jay Kwayie (1998) Black British.

Justin Tinucci (1999)

Gytis Gedvilas (1999)

Tucker Albrizzi (2000) - is fat/plus size.

Pierre Sekongo (2000) Ivorian / French.

Thomas Barbusca (2003)

Stacey Edward (?) African-American.

[unbound-shade]

Ok, my sibling just dug up pics of both of our dogs from the Facebook of the rescue we got them from and LOOK AT MY BABY 🥹🥹🥹💞💞

[hellodarjeeling]

Jane Wyatt as Sondra in Lost Horizon (1937)

[rachelkaser]

Stay Golden Sunday: Big Daddy’s Little Lady

Blanche’s father returns with a new fiancée who’s younger than his daughter. Dorothy and Rose write the world’s greatest song about Miami.

Picture It...

Sophia is skimming the obituaries for recent deaths to see if there are any widowers she can pick up for a date, to Dorothy’s disapproval. Rose enters, excited about a songwriting contest. It’s for a song about Miami, and there’s a $10,000 prize pool for the winner. Rose wants to enter, saying she’s written songs before, but Dorothy swiftly realizes her lyric-writing abilities are lacking. She offers her own experience poetry-writing and they agree to write up the song together. Blanche enters the kitchen just in time to get a phone call from her father. He’s apparently got a surprise for Blanche and is coming that weekend to reveal it.

DOROTHY: We could be the next Rodgers and Hammerstein! The next Simon and Garfunkel! The next-- ROSE: Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop! DOROTHY: ...I don’t think i could get my hand that far up your dress. But I’ll tell you, for $10,000 I’d be willing to give it a shot.

Rose and Dorothy are working at a piano in the living room (how they got a piano isn’t really explained), testing to see how Dorothy’s lyrics and Rose’s tune go together. The music is good, but requires messing with the lyrics. The two quickly get into a dispute over the word “thrice” and are forced to take a break. Dorothy says there are some words, such as “intrauterine” that don’t belong in a song (not that it stops Rose from trying). Blanche enters, as her father is about to arrive.

Mr. Hollingsworth arrives and delivers yet more compliments to both his daughter and to Sophia. (Sophia: “Get out the boots. He’s back.”) He tells Blanche that he’s met a widow named Margaret Spencer and they’ve been seeing each other for some time. Blanche wants to meet her, and Big Daddy reveals his surprise: He and Margaret are getting married. Blanche shrieks in glee and offers to throw the wedding herself, to which Big Daddy agrees.

Rose and Dorothy are trying out their latest composition before Blanche, and it’s going well until Blanche points out that the lyrics “M-I-A-M-I spells Miami Beach” aren’t accurate. Rose and Dorothy bicker about it, with Dorothy challenging Rose to come up with a rhyme for “Miami,” and Rose coming up with salami, pronounced “sah-lammy.” Blanche leaves the room to go prepare for the wedding caterer to arrive. There’s a ring at the bell, and Dorothy answers to admit a beautiful redhead, in her 40s at the oldest, who introduces herself as Margaret Spencer.

Rose, Dorothy, and Blanche, who enters at that moment, are surprised that Big Daddy’s squeeze is so young and attractive. Margaret attempts to make polite conversation with Blanche, who starts making barbed remarks about how young Margaret is. Coincidentally Big Daddy arrives and Dorothy and Rose quickly usher Margaret out to the lanai before the fireworks start. Blanche tells Big Daddy that she thinks Margaret is a “gold-digging hussy” and he’s making a fool of himself. Offended, Big Daddy takes Margaret and leaves, saying he’ll cut Blanche off if she can’t respect his decisions.

ROSE: Sometimes two people who seem to have the least in common turn out to be the most in love. That was certainly the case with Ollie Nofstetlermeyer and Molly Jane Doe. BLANCHE: “Ollie and Molly?” Must we take yet another trip to Petticoat Junction?

Later that night, Dorothy and Rose are having songwriter’s block and meet with Sophia in the kitchen for cheesecake. Blanche, still stressed about the situation with her father, enters and asks for a piece. They try to tell her that it’s not that bad, and older men frequently date younger women. Rose tells a St. Olaf story to prove her point about how love has no boundaries -- and it’s not anyone’s business. Blanche protests that it’s her business and decides to go confront them at their hotel. As she leaves, she drops a line that gets Dorothy and Rose’s creative juices flowing.

Blanche arrives at the hotel and asks to talk to her father. She tells him that she understands how being older and being a widower, he must be lonely, but doesn’t understand why he wants to marry such a younger woman. Big Daddy responds that it’s very difficult to watch the person you love die, and to find love again. Blanche thinks he means her mother, but he was actually referring to Margaret, whose first husband died years earlier after a long illness.

BLANCHE: Sophia, you know people in their 70s and 80s can have great sex. SOPHIA: Yeah, with people in their 70s and 80s. Put me in a bedroom with Tom Cruise, and you’d be peeling me off the ceiling. 

Blanche, stunned at this news, apologizes for being so protective of her father. He says he and Margaret still want her blessing, and Margaret returns just then. Blanche tells Margaret that she’s glad they both want the best for Big Daddy and welcomes the other woman into her family. They hug as Big Daddy looks on with a smile. Sometime later, Blanche shows Sophia a postcard from the honeymoon, and Sophia congratulates her on handling it well.

Rose and Dorothy return from the songwriting contest looking glum. Blanche asks how they did, and they say they came in second place. But they don’t have anything to show for it, and they were treated rudely while at the contest. Blanche asks to hear their song, and they put up a token resistance before running over to the keyboard. We close out the episode with the best musical moment of the entire series.

“Rose, play or die.”

Big Daddy returns just a few episodes after he made his first appearance, played by David Wayne following the death of Murray Hamilton. His decisions continue to be a bit questionable, but his decision to marry a gorgeous redhead half his age is a bit more understandable than his decision to try and hack it as a singer. However, his story is completely eclipsed by the songwriting part of the episode. But more on that in a moment.

ROSE: [telling a St. Olaf story] A lot people don’t know this, but the family drama Hey, That’s My Tractor got its start right there. DOROTHY: Wasn’t the musical version called Hey Hey, That’s My Tractor?

Blanche learns the same lesson this episode that she did in the previous episode Big Daddy was in (and that Rose learned when her mother was visiting), which is basically, “Don’t treat your parent like a child who needs correcting just because they make choices with which you don’t agree.” It’s getting a little repetitive, but to give her the benefit of the doubt, I do think Big Daddy's behavior is a little more worrying than Alma Lindstrom’s was.

Big Daddy’s been very blithe about his lifestyle choices in both episodes, and I don’t know if it’s just the inherent privilege of being a rich, older man that he doesn’t seem to realize how unusual his actions are. Starting a country-western singing career in your 80s and selling all your property to do it is worrying no matter which way you slice it. And while marrying a beautiful younger woman isn’t as bad, the fact that he says he didn’t tell Blanche because, “I didn’t think age mattered to you,” is either extremely naïve or nakedly manipulative, with his previous behavior making me lean towards the former.

BLANCHE: Rose, Dorothy, smell me! DOROTHY: I only do that with the milk, Blanche, you know the rules.

I’m all in favor of loving whoever makes you happy, but let’s be honest: Marrying a woman younger than your adult daughter, no matter how much you might genuinely love her (the wife, I mean), is unusual and not always indicative of a healthy partnership. Not telling your daughter about it and then acting shocked when she finds out and assumes the younger woman is taking advantage is the epitome of head-in-sandedness (I used to call this “ostriching,” but fun fact: Burying their heads is not a thing ostriches actually do).

I’ve learned via my usual sources that this episode originally featured much more dialogue from Margaret Spencer. Lots of Big Daddy’s dialogue was originally hers, or at least so actress Sondra Currie tells it (her friends said the finished episode features so much of the back of her head she might as well be auditioning for a shampoo commercial). I wonder if some of the lines, such as Margaret’s backstory about her late husband or the assertion that age doesn’t matter to her and Big Daddy, would have sounded better coming from her. I suppose we’ll never know.

Unfortunately for Big Daddy, we’re now 2-for-2 on episodes featuring him where the B-plot is significantly more interesting than the A-plot in which he features. Dorothy and Rose writing a song together and performing several iterations of it throughout the episode is just the best thing. The fact that this part of the episode is so memorable is why I feel comfortable giving it five slices even when I’m not crazy about the Big Daddy storyline.

Watching Dorothy and Rose clash over the piano is just perfect writing, and even their “bad” songs are better than a lot of other songs I’ve heard. I honestly can’t come up with anything else to say about it -- if you’ve seen the episode you know why every single part of the episode as it relates to their songwriting is solid gold and needs no introduction. Everything from “intrauterine” to “salamee” is worth a laugh, and the final song is a banger and I will fight anyone who says differently.

DOROTHY: You know, Rose, I have to confess I dabbled a little in poetry-writing in high school. ROSE: Oh, that’s nothing to be ashamed of. A lot of tall girls who couldn’t get dates wrote poetry in high school. [...] ROSE: Blanche, Dorothy and I have decided to enter a songwriting contest together! BLANCHE: Oh, now that sounds like fun! You know, I always wanted to write a song, but it’s kinda like writing poetry, which I was never any good at. Only the tall girls who couldn’t get dates ever seemed to be good at poetry.

Though they should have won the contest, I’m glad they didn’t win, because apparently part of the prize was having your picture taken with Anita Bryant -- who is infamously against gay rights and has campaigned to have them either revoked or not put in place at all, so fuck her. She also berated her granddaughter, Sarah Green, when she came out as gay, saying that homosexuality is a “delusion invented by the devil.” So again, fuck her. Fuck her in particular.

I’m a little disappointed Sophia didn’t have much to do this episode. It’s always a shame when the episode doesn’t give a lot of screentime. She’s only got two minor scenes related to trying to pick up dates from recently widowed men, which is fairly banal as far as humor goes, even if it does provide a counterpoint to Big Daddy dating a much-younger widow. Kind of makes me wonder why Big Daddy didn’t try dating Sophia since he always seems so impressed with her, though Sophia’s complete lack of patience with all things Southern would have quickly put an end to that.

Episode rating: 🍰🍰🍰🍰🍰 (five cheesecake slices out of five)

Favorite part of the episode:

Once more, for the road:

[kwebtv]

From the Golden Age of Television

Peter Pan  -  NBC  -  March 7, 1955  / January 9, 1956

Musical Play

A presentation of Producers Showcase

Running Time;  90 minutes

Stars:

Mary Martin as Peter Pan

Cyril Ritchard as Captain Hook / Mr. Darling

Kathy Nolan as Wendy Darling / Jane

Margalo Gillmore as Mrs. Darling

Sondra Lee as Tiger Lily

Heller Holiday as Liza

Joe E Marks as Smee

Norman Shelly as Nana / Crocodile

Michael Allen as John Darling

Joseph Stafford as Michael Darling (1955)

Tom Halloran as Michael Darling (1956)

David Bean as Slightly Soiled

Stanley Stenner as Curly

Paris Theodore as Nibs

Alan Sutherland as First Twin

Harold Day as Second Twin

Ian Tucker as Tootles

Richard Wyatt as Lion

Joan Tewskbury as Ostrich

Carl Eberle as Kangaroo

This 1955 musical production of the classic children's tale made history as the first Broadway musical adapted to TV with the entire cast and crew intact.

The title screens are from the 1956 production. 

[inknerd]

mid year book freakout tag

This year has so far had its ups and downs when it comes to reading; from one month where I read like crazy to another month where it felt like I hardly picked up a book at all. So far I would call this an okay year in regards to reading. ______________________________________________________________

Best book you’ve read so far in 2020: The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune. It’s just such a feelgood novel that manages to be funny and heartwarming at the same time.

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2020: I continued reading Witch Hat Atelier, and volume two and three were just as good as the first one!

New release you haven’t read yet, but want to: I want to read My Dark Vanessa, I’ve heard such good stuff about it!

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year: The Burning God, the third novel in The Poppy War series, is set to release in November I think? I can’t wait!

Biggest Disappointment: Might sound odd, but I read The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook and it was just such a disappointment? There were no pictures, the recipe for cooking bacon was repeated like four times and generally, it did not make me want to cook anything.

Biggest Surprise: Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. I had not heard of this book until a stumbled over a booktuber mentioning it in a video, and about five minutes later I was in deep. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it!

Favourite new author (debut or to you): I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading The Girl from the Other Side by Nagabe, and want to continue reading their work. Ocean Vuong is also someone I want to read more of.

Newest Fictional crush/ Newest favourite character: Wei Wuxian from Mo Dao Zu Shi.

Book that made you cry: Hmm, not exactly sad tears but I finished The Invisible Orientation: An Introduction to Asexuality by Julie Sondra Decker yesterday and it made me somewhat emotional.

A book that made you happy: Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Knisley was full of nice recipes and it really made me want to spend more time in the kitchen! I’ll Be the One by Lyla Lee was also so fun and nice to read--like the cover alone makes me so happy.

Favourite book to film adaptation you saw this year: I finally read Emma by Jane Austen and watched the newer film adaptation afterwards. I liked it!

Most beautiful book you’ve bought this year so far (or received): The Girl from the Other Side manga is so beautiful, and the graphic novel The Tea Dragon Festival was as pretty as the first volume. I also bought such cute little editions of some of Shakespeare’s plays at the annual booksale.

What books do you need to read by the end of the year? ....too many tbh. But I really want to read MXTX’s other novels, as well as My Dark Vanessa, The City of Brass, the Saga graphic novels, more of Mary Oliver’s poetry etc.

I tag anyone who wants to do this ♥ I hope your book year has been going well so far!