What are You Reading?

[Danny-Darko]

1 hour ago, WilliamM said:

Jose Ferrer: Success and  Survival by  Mike and  Eros

First by Puerto Rican to win  an Academy Award for  Acting

He seems to have been forgotten.

 

Forgotten except on the island of Puerto Rico where he is revered. He donated his Oscar and is on view in the foyer of the main theater at the University of Puerto Rico. 

Thanks for reminding me of him and the place. 

[+ WilliamM]

I believe his Oscar was  stolen for a short time.

Jose had a wonderful memory, given how many times he appeared on Broadway and elsewhere in Plays and musical as well live television 

[Danny-Darko]

38 minutes ago, WilliamM said:

I believe his Oscar was  stolen for a short time.

Jose had a wonderful memory, given how many times he appeared on Broadway and elsewhere in Plays and musical as well live television 

I didn't know that. But I do know he donated it to the UPR which treasures it in an encasing in the center of the University's theater's foyer as one walks in. Impresive thing one can't miss when entering and needs to walk around it. 

[Danny-Darko]

1 hour ago, Danny-Darko said:

I didn't know that. But I do know he donated it to the UPR which treasures it in an encasing in the center of the University's theater's foyer as one walks in. Impresive thing one can't miss when entering and needs to walk around it. 

His Oscar stands incased on a pedestal of sorts as one walks in those two main doble doors one sees in the picture. They are very proud of it and him and especially the Dramatic Arts Faculty which is a building next to the theater on the right-hand side. 

I tried to find a pic of the Oscar itself but to no avail. 

Edited January 10, 2024 by Danny-Darko

[+ WilliamM]

Jose graduated Princeton where he met people like Jimmy Stewart 

[Danny-Darko]

26 minutes ago, WilliamM said:

Jose graduated Princeton where he met people like Jimmy Stewart 

I wonder why the UPR would have his Oscar then? He wasn't even raised or educated on the Island and the Puerto Ricans do claim him as one of their own! I've seen the Oscar myself there back in the 1980's, yet I couldn't find a pic not any information on it to pass on! Now I'm curious. 

[+ BobPS]

[MikeBiDude]

On 10/22/2023 at 12:15 PM, Rod Hagen said:

Read this on a flight back from NYC this week.  Quite good.

Amazon.com

WWW.AMAZON.COM

Just finished this. Good recommendation @Rod Hagen

[+ WilliamM]

Another strong recommendation for Liz Cheney's book.

[Rod Hagen]

FInished it last night.  Loved it.  Critics Love it.  Jimmy Fallon Loved it. 

Buy On Amazon

People online seem to have a different, pissed off, take:

 

 Book Club Discussion: TOMORROW AND TOMORROW AND TOMORROW | Patreon

WWW.PATREON.COM

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Get more from Film Crit Hulk on Patreon

What did you think?

[Zippo5]

23 hours ago, Rod Hagen said:

FInished it last night.  Loved it.  Critics Love it.  Jimmy Fallon Loved it. 

Buy On Amazon

People online seem to have a different, pissed off, take:

 

 Book Club Discussion: TOMORROW AND TOMORROW AND TOMORROW | Patreon

WWW.PATREON.COM

---

Get more from Film Crit Hulk on Patreon

What did you think?

I loved it.  Recommend to everyone. One of my favourite recent reads.

[Rod Hagen]

Just finished this Gay Korean (most of it takes place in Seoul) novel.  It did very well in Korea.  It's Excellent.

Love in the Big City

READ.AMAZON.COM

---

Free Book Preview from Kindle

Review:

 

Book Review: ‘Love in the Big City,’ by Sang Young Park - The New York Times

WWW.NYTIMES.COM

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Sang Young Park’s English-language debut, “Love in the Big City,” is already a best seller in Korea.

 

 

Great interview, he's adorable!

 

 

Edited March 8, 2024 by Rod Hagen

[MikePDNA51]

"Beautiful Things" by Hunter Biden.  Does not get good until Hunter's married life starts completely falling apart with Kathleen.  Even more exciting in chapter 5 when crack dealer, Bicycles/ Ria, moves into his DC apartment.  

I am a very proud political independent.  In most books I love a good crack dealer, drama, and street excitement. 

[Rod Hagen]

On 9/17/2023 at 6:23 PM, Brock O said:

I see the Captain Cook book at the bottom of the pile. The cottage where he grew up in England was dismantled and reassembled in the park across from our apartment in Australia...stop by and see it!

I saw that book at the bottom too.  When I think of Captain Cook,  my first thought is usually what he said about Antartica, Terra Australis.  It was something along the lines of "I make bold to declare that nothing shall come from it."  I quoted it in a paper of mine 32 years ago; online now, I can't find the quote.

Edited March 9, 2024 by Rod Hagen

[Rod Hagen]

On 2/11/2024 at 8:37 AM, Zippo5 said:

I loved it.  Recommend to everyone. One of my favourite recent reads.

I'm going to message you privately, to make sure you get it, but in case anyone else here reads and likes this book, I highly recommend the very good TV show that haunted my dreams each night I watched it, Halt and Catch Fire*, not just because it's also about computers and takes place around the same time as the book does, but the characters share the same frustrating flaw of being too smart to stay connected for very long. (But that's not what the show is about, read the NYTimes critical appraisal AFTER you finish the show, to find out what it was really about.)  Enjoy!  p.s. Each season is better than the last.

*It comes with AMC+, otherwise you can buy it on Halt and Catch Fire on Amazon Prime

Edited March 9, 2024 by Rod Hagen

[MikeBiDude]

8 hours ago, Rod Hagen said:

I'm going to message you privately, to make sure you get it, but in case anyone else here reads and likes this book, I highly recommend the very good TV show that haunted my dreams each night I watched it, Halt and Catch Fire*, not just because it's also about computers and takes place around the same time as the book does, but the characters share the same frustrating flaw of being too smart to stay connected for very long. (But that's not what the show is about, read the NYTimes critical appraisal AFTER you finish the show, to find out what it was really about.)  Enjoy!  p.s. Each season is better than the last.

*It comes with AMC+, otherwise you can buy it on Halt and Catch Fire on Amazon Prime

I *loved* “Halt and Catch Fire”, and it paralleled a time of my “computer life’ that I could really relate to. And Lee Pace for the eye candy factor thank you 😉

[Rod Hagen]

11 hours ago, MikeBiDude said:

I *loved* “Halt and Catch Fire”, and it paralleled a time of my “computer life’ that I could really relate to. And Lee Pace for the eye candy factor thank you 😉

I find him super sexy too.  I am glad that he is totally out, and partnered, though it was always a very open secret.  Very glad you enjoyed the show and related to it.  I watched and loved it years ago, and am now rewatching it for the second time and having the same positive reaction.  

 

Here is the NYTimes assessment of the show, it's dead-on:

How Failure Made ‘Halt and Catch Fire’ Great - The New York Times

WWW.NYTIMES.COM

---

The underappreciated AMC series, whose finale aired Saturday, dramatized the joy of creation and the beauty of struggle.

 

 

Edited March 10, 2024 by Rod Hagen

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

Charles Busch's memoir, Leading Lady 

Woody Allen's memoir, Apropos of Nothing

[Guest MikeThomas]

Apropos of Nothing was a great read.  Put certain things in perspective.

I am currently listening to Edward III: The Perfect King.  Fascinating.

[Rod Hagen]

On 3/9/2024 at 9:21 PM, MikeBiDude said:

I *loved* “Halt and Catch Fire”, 

I know this is the Literature thread, but such a literary show.  I'm on S3 now in my rewatch and although I'm not there yet, I'm terrified of this conclusion to S3E8

 

"I, Ryan Ray, released the MacMillan Utility source code. I acted alone. No one helped me, and no one told me to do it. I did this because security is a myth. Contrary to what you might have heard, my friends, you are not safe. Safety is a story. It’s something we teach our kids (children--RH) so they can sleep at night, but we know it’s not real. Beware baffled humans, beware of false prophets who will sell you a fake future of bad teachers, corrupt leaders and dirty corporations. Beware of cops and robbers… the kinds that rob your dreams. But most of all, beware of each other, because everything’s about to change. The world is going to crack wide open. There is something on the horizon. A massive connectivity. The barriers between us will disappear, and we’re not ready. We’ll hurt each other in new ways. We’ll sell and be sold. we’ll share (expose--RH) our most tender selves only to be mocked and destroyed. We’ll be so vulnerable, and we’ll pay the price. We won’t be able to pretend that we can protect ourselves anymore. It’s a huge danger, a gigantic risk, but it’s worth it, if only we can learn to take care of each other, then this awesome, destructive new connection won’t isolate us. It won’t leave us in the end so… totally alone. "

Gorgeous writing, shot stunningly.

 

Edited March 13, 2024 by Rod Hagen

[MikeBiDude]

On 3/7/2024 at 11:19 PM, Rod Hagen said:

Just finished this Gay Korean (most of it takes place in Seoul) novel.  It did very well in Korea.  It's Excellent.

Love in the Big City

READ.AMAZON.COM

---

Free Book Preview from Kindle

Review:

 

Book Review: ‘Love in the Big City,’ by Sang Young Park - The New York Times

WWW.NYTIMES.COM

---

Sang Young Park’s English-language debut, “Love in the Big City,” is already a best seller in Korea.

 

 

Great interview, he's adorable!

 

 

OK @Rod Hagen you are now 2 in a row winner picks for me, “Love in the Big City” was great! “Old Gods Time” the other.

What’s next for me? 🤣

[+ Lucky]

I sure would like the Literature Forum to be about literature. There are other fora for tv shows and movies, even if based on a book.

[Rod Hagen]

On 3/19/2024 at 7:04 AM, Lucky said:

I sure would like the Literature Forum to be about literature. There are other fora for tv shows and movies, even if based on a book.

The two posts were related to a book I had recommended, seems a reasonable aside.   Asking people to not deviate briefly and potentially helpfully onto a parallel subject seems excessive, even controling.

Edited March 21, 2024 by Rod Hagen

[dutchal]

I just finished an M/M Romance, "Something Wild and Wonderful" by Anita Kelly (2023).  I've read dozens of M/M romances, and I can't remember another where I enjoyed both the main characters and the story as much as I did in this one.  The book is, ultimately, about journeys.  It is about two gay guys who meet while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, which physical journey is both the armature for the plot and a metaphor for both the individual journeys of self-evaluation, self-discovery, self-realization, and self-repair the two men are each on and the emotional journey that their romance becomes.  Yes, this is very much a slow burn, and yes, as in most of these books, they eventually hit a crisis, and yes there is an HEA ending.  But the two characters are drawn in such wonderful, even emotive detail that you are barely conscious of the tropes.  By the end of the book, you know them so well, and like both them and their relationship so much, that you are left with a powerful desire for a sequel, which, alas, is not available.  But you are also left with two of the sweetest gay characters you've ever met and one of the most sensitively portrayed gay romances you can find in this fiction genre.

https://www.amazon.com/Something-Wild-Wonderful-Anita-Kelly/dp/1538754886

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/something-wild-wonderful-anita-kelly/1141725049

You can find the blurb at the Amazon and Barnes and Noble links, and there are customer reviews there, too.

Here's a review that captures a lot of why I enjoyed it so much (and you can also read the generally gushing reviews at goodreads):

https://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/reviews/something-wild-and-wonderful-by-anita-kelly/

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/61399138

 

Edited March 27, 2024 by dutchal

[samhexum]

• Jared Kushner’s brother has bought LIFE Magazine and intends to bring back the print version.