#william astor

[endless-oc-creations]

Mimi's Mini Plot Bunnies

Name: William Astor

Title: Written in Blood

Fandom: Saltburn(2023)

Faceclaim: Daniel Radcliffe

Love Interest: Oliver Quick

Pinterest Board: Link

Summary: Will is an outsider, he has been his whole life. He has little to no family and they even don't want anything to do with him. Then Will only has only one friend...Oliver Quick. Oliver and Will have been 'friends' since they were children. Will would always go along with what Oliver wanted, no matter how sick his games were since Oliver would always tell him that he would be the only one in WIll's life that would accept him. So, when the two attended Oxford University, Will went along with Oliver's plan against Felix. Not saying anything even when Oliver would tell Felix things about his life that actually had happened to Will. Or even when Oliver was acting like William...Every time William tried to break from Oliver's spell, Oliver would just pull him back into the plan by using sweet words or touches of affection. Maybe deep down William was just as sick and twisted as his friend and lover Oliver Quick?

💕 Everything Taglist: @bravelittleflower​ @sunlitscribe​​​ @eddysocs​​ @raith-way​​ @waterloou​​​ @decennia​​ @hiddenqveendom​ @aaronhotchstuff​ @foxesandmagic​ @nejires-hado  @asirensrage​​​​  @lucys-chen @arrthurpendragon @daughter-of-melpomene @thatmagickjuju @ginevrastilinski @ginger-grimm @oneirataxia-girl💕

[thepastisalreadywritten]

By Leslie Patrick

1 August 2023

Anne Boleyn (c. 1501 or 1507 – 19 May 1536), King Henry VIII's second queen, is often portrayed as a seductress and ultimately the woman responsible for changing the face of religion in England.

In reality, she was a fiercely intelligent and pious woman dedicated to education and religious reform.

But after her arrest and execution on false charges of adultery and incest in May 1536, Henry VIII was determined to forget her memory.

Her royal emblems were removed from palace walls, her sparkling jewels tucked away in dark coffers, and her precious books disappeared from the pages of time.

One of Boleyn’s books that has reappeared is the Book of Hours, a stunning prayer book, printed around 1527 with devotional texts designed to be read throughout the day, features hand-painted woodcuts — as well as a rare example of the queen’s own writing.

In the margins of one of the beautifully decorated pages, she penned a rhyming couplet followed by her signature:

“Remember me when you do pray, that hope doth lead from day to day, Anne Boleyn.”

The book vanished with Boleyn’s execution in 1536, then resurfaced around 1903 when it was acquired by the American millionaire William Waldorf Astor (31 March 1848 – 18 October 1919) after he purchased Hever Castle, Anne Boleyn’s childhood home in the English countryside.

The hiding place of the disgraced queen’s devotional tome had been a mystery for centuries, until recent research by a university student uncovered hidden signatures that helped trace its path through history.

The discovery

The book’s whereabouts in the 367 years between Boleyn’s death and its reemergence remained puzzling until 2020 when Kate McCaffrey, then a graduate student at the University of Kent working on her master’s thesis about Anne Boleyn’s Book of Hours, found something unexpected in the margins of the book.

“I noticed what appeared to be smudges to the naked eye,” recalls McCaffrey, assistant curator at Hever Castle since 2021.

Intrigued, she borrowed an industrial-strength ultraviolet light and set it up in the darkest room of Hever Castle.

Ultraviolet light is often used to examine historical documents because ink absorbs the ultraviolet wavelength, causing it to appear darker against the page when exposed.

“The words just came through. It was incredible to see them underneath the light, they were completely illuminated,” the curator recalls.

McCaffrey’s theory is that the words were erased during the late Victorian era when it was popular to cleanse marginalia from books or manuscripts.

But thanks to her extraordinary detective work, these erased words turned out to be the key that unlocked the tale of the book’s secret journey from certain destruction at the royal court to safety in the hands of a dedicated group of Boleyn’s supporters.

The guardians

Indeed, various pages throughout the text reveal the names and notations of a string of Kentish women — Elizabeth Hill, Elizabeth Shirley, Mary Cheke, Philippa Gage, and Mary West — who banded together to safeguard Anne's precious book and keep her memory alive.

While it’s unclear how the book was initially passed to these women, Anne Boleyn expert Natalie Grueninger suggests it was gifted by Anne to a woman named Elizabeth Hill.

Elizabeth grew up near Hever Castle, and her husband, Richard Hill, was sergeant of the King’s Cellar at Henry VIII’s court.

There are records of the Hill’s playing cards with the king, and there may have been a friendship between Elizabeth and the queen that prompted Boleyn to pass her prayer book on before her execution.

“This extended Kentish family kept the book safe following Anne’s demise, which was an incredibly brave and bold act considering it could have been considered treasonous,” says Grueninger, podcaster and author of the book The Final Year of Anne Boleyn.

Anne’s Book of Hours was passed between mothers, daughters, sisters, and nieces until the late sixteenth century, when the last name makes its appearance in its margins.

“This story is an example of the women in the family prioritizing loyalty, friendship, fidelity, and a personal connection to Anne,” says McCaffrey.

“The fact that the women have kept it safe is a really beautiful story of solidarity, community, and bravery.”

The book, currently on display at Hever Castle, is a touchstone of the enigma that was Anne Boleyn.

Castle historian and assistant curator Owen Emmerson points out that the book contains Anne’s DNA on the pages from where she touched and kissed it during her daily devotions.

“This was a really beloved possession of hers,” says Emmerson.

“Because of what happened to Anne Boleyn, we don’t have a vast amount of information in Anne’s own words. But the physical remnants of her use of the book, and the construction of that beautiful little couplet, have her identity in them.”

While Anne’s Book of Hours has finally found its way home, the research into this intriguing historical mystery is not yet over.

McCaffrey continues to chart the book’s provenance through the centuries to find out where it was hiding all this time.

The discovery of the inscriptions illuminates the book’s furtive journey, providing us with a glimpse into the controversy, loyalty, and fascination that Anne Boleyn has engendered for the past 500 years.

[citizenscreen]

Ginger Rogers, Warren William, and Mary Astor star in Roy Del Ruth’s UPPERWORLD, which hit U.S. theaters 90 years ago today #OnThisDay

[mariocki]

Pathfinders to Mars (ABC, 1960 - 1961)

"You know, Henderson, the progress of true science depends not only on the cold, calculating types, but also on the adventurers and dreamers. There's a place for all of us under the sun."

"Yes... as long as we don't get too close to it."

[maudeboggins]

such a lovely fan letter to photoplay, 1927

[letterboxd-loggd]

Holiday (1930) Edward H. Griffith

April 25th 2024

[destinylordoffreaks]

have y’all ever done something like really really stupid that you know you shouldn’t have done but you did it anyway and now have to live with the consequences of that Well I did that a few years ago part 2

so I started deciding to work on putting good things into my brain instead of you know, following my ADD rabbit hole brain into places I shouldn’t be so I started looking into artist and things that I really enjoyed and I initially started this by looking into Glenn Keene, a man whose art I have been a huge fan for a very long time like I would dare say his work on the little mermaid is probably the reason I’m an artist and I enjoyed that so much that I decided to continue looking into other artists and the next person that really struck out to me was a man named William Joyce, who had written my favorite children’s TV show roile poile olie

like when my anxiety gets really bad that’s one of those go to shows that makes me feel better and helps me calm down. It is still a favorite of mine but when I was looking up, I discovered that he had also been the man behind another little known TV show I watched growing up, called George shrinks

and a movie that I had always wanted to watch, but had never seen called rise of the guardians

which I promptly googled, figured out where it was free to watch and watched it, and I loved it but then I discovered something else it had an entire book series and me being my neurodivergent ADD self absolutely info Dumped all over my mom about this

now I’ve already mentioned before I’m dyslexic I don’t like reading but I had info dumped so hard about these books that my mom bought me the entire collection for Christmas/my birthday, which is the same week by the way and like I said I don’t like reading it takes me forever to read things and I actually had a whole lot of anxiety but the fact that my mom had bought me these books because because it was terrified, I was gonna read them and not like them and then my mom is gonna have wasted all that money on books that I didn’t want but I ended up loving them once I got past the anxiety anyway, I love them so much that I did something I’ve never done before I read the entire five book series plus the three illustrated books in 2 1/2 months that is a record for me. I’ve never read that fast ever it would take me like six months to read Harry Potter book guys and I read all of the guardians of childhood books in 2 1/2 months and you know what I did something else I’ve never done I reread the entire series. I have never reread an entire series before the only books I can ever recall having reread any of where the Disney fairy books so this is a huge step for me. They are still my favorite book series to the point that I currently have one sitting on my bedside table right now because I was rereading it. In case anyone’s interested I think my favorite book is probably booked 4. I just really like Sandy and the fact that all of the backstory flashback pages are black with white lettering, makes them so much easier to read like I got so excited the first time those pages showed up now for anybody who’s interested the books and the movie are too very different stories. They are both excellent stories that I love but very different. It’s kinda like two alternate universes, but still both absolutely phenomenal. At least in my opinion I would highly recommend them to anybody who wants to read something that isn’t too little kiddush, but doesn’t get too dark, but can deal with darker topics such as you know death without making it overwhelming or trivial, and it just has its overall whimsy to it that I really like and honestly if William Joyce wanted to write more adventures that the guardians have gone on, I would totally be down for that needless to say, William Joyce is pretty much made my childhood, and it still has a special place in my heart. if I knew how to get in touch with him and let him know that he has meant this much to me I would, but I wouldn’t even know where to start anyway, I just wanted to share this with you because this is actually around the time of year that I discovered the rise of the guardians books, so it seemed fitting 

Anyways here’s ⬆️ an illustration Of Katherine and Nightlight by William Joyce

colored by me (DestinyLordOfFreaks)

He has so many beautiful illustrations in his books I couldn’t resist coloring at least one

[leatherhearted]

Mary Astor in DODSWORTH (1936, dir. William Wyler)

[blackramhall]

The murder starts in the heart, and its first weapon is a vicious tongue.

Hush... Hush, sweet Charlotte - Robert Aldrich (1964)

[from1837to1945]

Grant Withers' care-free personality is well served in this talkie with Mary Astor.

"Other Men's Women" is a triangle railway melodrama in which a young fireman falls in love with the wife of his friend the engine-driver. In a jealous fight, the engine-driver is injured and blinded, but realises in the ensuing weeks that he has misjudged his friend and his wife. Finally his melodramatic death leaves the two free to marry.

Grant Withers left the world of journalism to become a film extra. He is as successful in talkies as in silent pictures.

[gatutor]

William Powell-Mary Astor "Matando en la sombra" (The kennel murder case) 1933, de Michael Curtiz.

[ha-ha-one]

okay, let me explain-

I have wanted to do oc shit for some time but I did not think it would be good enough/weird/out of nowhere, but fuck it. I’m putting it in the drabbles for now cuz I don’t feel like committing to a series yet. Idk, I’ll see how this goes.

[cw: recapture, referenced captivity, referenced tortutre, intimate/creepy whumper, defiant whumpee turned sad whumpee, fucked up mentality by whumpee, self-destructive behaviour (alcohol abuse), noncon (?) touch (non-sexual), crying, alcohol, lmk if i missed anything]

//

The rough stone wall of the alleyway grinds against his back as he slides down to the ground. Lucas was barely holding onto his consciousness, his vision blurry and unfocused, heavy breaths creating fog from the cold environment. His hands shake, one gripping a leaking bottle of beer. 

Since he left William’s place, it had been a struggle for Lucas to keep going. He was exhausted from sleepless nights serving the man who owned him, hurt from the relentless beatings he received, and angry at himself.

Angry because he cries, angry because he shakes, angry because he runs from his problems, angry because he’s weak and afraid and yearns for someone to take care of him.

But he’s alone.

He’s alone in an alleyway in the cold night. Drowning in alcohol to escape the pathetic reality that is his life.

Lucas closes his eyes, tears starting to run down his cheeks, and he lets it happen. He cries, curling up and hiding his head between his knees. He runs his free hand through his blonde curls, then gripping it with such force that he feels some locks being ripped out of his scalp. It all hurts; his head, his chest, his arms and legs. It hurts so much and he hates it.

He doesn’t know how much time passed, for how long he sat there, but it felt like an eternity. A painful eternity of misery and anger.

And before he could calm down, an unfortunately familiar voice startled him.

“Well, look who we have here…”

He is brought back to the present, to the sight of a tall man a few feet away. The man from his nightmares, the man who Lucas had to serve for months and who he thought he would never see again.

“W-William…” Lucas breathes, his voice raw and shaky. He quickly wipes the tears off his cheeks and throws the bottle further into the alley.

William walks toward the younger man, a condescending smile on his face that Lucas unfortunately recognised. His steps are slow but confident, his dress shoes contrasting with the dirty gravel. 

“What are you doing here, darling? All alone in a place so dangerous.” He coos, and Lucas shivers when he crouches in front of him.

Too close too close too close too close–

“None of your business…”

“Everything about you is my business, Lucas. Have you forgotten your rules?”

William grabs Lucas’s knees, slowly lowering them and revealing the man’s dishevelled face. He brushes blonde locks out of his face and cups his cheeks, caressing it with his thumb.

And Lucas lets him, to his own surprise. He hates William; hates him for his snobbish smugness, hates him for how fucking egocentrical he is, hates him for what he put him through. 

But he’s so lonely, he thrives for company… so he lets William touch him as he pleases. He lets himself be pulled into a hug, a hand on his hair and back. He lets himself be fondled and caressed, like they were a couple reuniting after years without each other.

A part of him wants to kick him away, scream at him to fuck off and run as far as he could. A part of him still wants to prove to the man that he won’t listen to him, he will not submit.

It’s too late for that now. He’s exhausted and hurt, he’s scared and miserable. 

He’s broken, and William knows that.

“Let’s go home, hm?”

//

(part 2 here)

tags: @oddsconvert

[movie-titlecards]

The Kennel Murder Case (1933)

My rating: 6/10

Pleasant little whodunit with many a good dog (most of which survive) and just the teensiest hint of bigotry, and even that comes from a character that's supposed to be a bit of a buffoon. Not bad, for 1933.

[outoftowninac]

A SUCCESSFUL CALAMITY

1940

A Successful Calamity is a two-act comedy by Clare Kummer first produced in 1917. 

Clare Beecher Kummer (1873-1958) was the great niece of American writer Harriet Beecher Stowe (Uncle Tom’s Cabin). In addition to being a playwright (mostly of comedies), Kummer also wrote music and lyrics for the theatre. Perhaps her most successful play was Her Master’s Voice (1933), which was filmed in 1936 and was twice made for television. 

The entire play takes place in the Wilton home in New York. In it, a wealthy industrialist (Henry Wilton) tests the loyalty of his spoiled children and selfish wife by pretending to be broke.

The original production opened on Broadway at the Booth Theatre on February 5, 1917. Produced by Arthur Hopkins, the cast featured William Gillette (Kummer’s cousin) as Henry Wilton and Estelle Winwood, as Emma Wilton. It ran 144 performances. The play took the summer off and returned on October 10, 1917, this time at the Plymouth Theatre (now the Gerald Schoenfeld).  

In February 1934 there was a revival at the Cherry Lane Theatre (now considered off-Broadway) starring Paul Gilmore as Henry and his real-life daughter Virginia Gilmore as Emily, Mr. Wilton’s daughter. In addition to owning and managing the Cherry Lane Theatre, Mr. Gilmore also produced and directed the production.  

A new production of A Successful Calamity opened in Atlantic City at the Garden Pier Theatre on July 29, 1940. It starred Walter Hampden, dubbed ‘the first gentleman of the stage’. By 1940, the Garden Pier Theatre was one of the last legit venues in Atlantic City to be programming live theatre, albeit only in the summertime. Instead of new plays, the Garden Pier presented established Broadway hits with name stars aimed at vacationers. 

This was Hampden’s Atlantic City debut. 

Walter Hampden (1870-1955) was a classically-trained actor who had played Hamlet three times on Broadway. In 1925 he took over management of a vaudeville house on Upper Broadway, and renamed it Hampden's Theatre. Hampden was president of the Players' Club for 27 years. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in 1952. 

The production was supposed to kick off in Mount Kisco NY on July 15, 1940, but postponed due to Hampden’s film work in Hollywood. Instead, it began on July 23rd at the New Brighton Theatre in Brighton Beach, NY. 

“What was sharp and up-to-the-minute in '17 seems to need a shot in the arm in 1940. Little comedies like this should trot along briskly but last night, particularly in the first act, the cast frequently seemed to be dragging it along by the halter.” ~ ROBERT FRANCIS, BROOKLYN DAILY EAGLE

Hampden’s supporting cast included: Mildred Baker, Alexander Campbell, Arthur Tell, Norman Stuart, Robert Kerr, Henry Mawbray, Harry Neville, Arden Young, Tamara Choate, and Florence Young. David Leonard directed the production.

In November, Hamden and the production launched an extensive tour of the Southern States starting in Hagerstown MD. During the tour, Hamden was also appearing on movie screens in Cecil B. DeMille’s North West Mounted Police, alongside Gary Cooper and Lon Chaney Jr. 

In 1932 a feature film adaptation was released starring George Arliss and Mary Astor. 

The film opened in Atlantic City at the Warner Theatre on the Boardwalk on September 17, 1932. 

[mariocki]

Pathfinders in Space (ABC, 1960)

"Now, the remainder of us have fifteen hours of oxygen left. That leaves fifteen hours in which to complete our research here."

"Well, what's the good of all that if you can't come back with it?"

"The moon never destroys her treasures, Henderson. We shall leave a record and it'll be preserved in the vacuum of the caves. And the future expeditions you mentioned, they will find it."

[letterboxd-loggd]

Easy to Love (1934) William Keighley

December 30th 2023