sovay: (Lord Peter Wimsey: passion)
sovay ([personal profile] sovay) wrote2018-11-13 06:30 pm

Better to be rolled in oats than from the roll be dropped

My poems "Ariadne in Queens" and "A Vixen When She Went to School" are now available in the latest issue of The Cascadia Subduction Zone. The first was inspired by a comment of [personal profile] asakiyume's after I watched The Big Combo (1955) and influenced by a fifth-century vase painting; the second is not the story I thought of writing after the Boston Lyric Opera's A Midsummer Night's Dream in 2011, but it is Hermia/Puck, so I regret nothing. The rest of the issue contains poetry by Deborah Davitt and Lesley Wheeler, flash fiction by Susana Vallejo translated by Lawrence Schimel, and reviews including an appreciation of Le Guin's "The Shobies' Story" by Julie Phillips. Pick a copy up!

Otherwise I have a medical procedure tomorrow and that's about the most I can say for today. Have some links.

1. The Daily Beast provides a thoughtful consideration of Stan Lee and his legacy. That said, I remain amused by the comment I saw yesterday on Facebook: "With all the fuss about Stan Lee, you'd think he invented dying," immediately footnoted by someone else in sotto voce lowercase, "jack kirby did it first".

2. I didn't know Robin Robertson had written a novel inspired by film noir. I mean, I'd have read it. I like how he writes about the ten movies he kept returning to. (Hume Cronyn is not in the photograph the Guardian chose to illustrate Brute Force (1947), though, whatever the caption says. That little guy in the glasses is—wait for it—Whit Bissell.)

3. Having just seen the very noir, very Ida Lupino-directed Outrage (1950), I strongly disagree with Kino Lorber's description of The Hitch-Hiker (1953) as "the only classic film noir directed by a woman"—I'd rather see Lupino referred to as the only female director of classic film noir, without making her individual movies slug it out for the title—but at least my library system has a copy of their DVD, meaning I won't have to resort to YouTube. I hope to report back soon.

Last night I watched Felix E. Feist's The Threat (1949) and Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat's I See a Dark Stranger (1946). I am not sure I'll write about either, but the former offered me the chance to describe Charles McGraw to [personal profile] spatch as looking like "God punched a rock just enough to give it cheekbones."
gwynnega: (Leslie Howard mswyrr)

[personal profile] gwynnega 2018-11-14 12:52 am (UTC)(link)
It's an excellent issue of the CSZ!

I hope your medical procedure goes well.

looking like "God punched a rock just enough to give it cheekbones."

Very true.
umadoshi: (kittens - Claudia - pensive)

[personal profile] umadoshi 2018-11-14 03:41 am (UTC)(link)
I hope things go smoothly tomorrow!
cyphomandra: boats in Auckland Harbour. Blue, blocky, cheerful (boats)

[personal profile] cyphomandra 2018-11-14 04:18 am (UTC)(link)
Congratulations on your poems and good luck for your medical procedure!!

The crack in my phone’s screen protector meant that I read your post title as “Better to be rolled in cats”, which seemed highly likely..,
alexxkay: (Default)

[personal profile] alexxkay 2018-11-14 05:24 am (UTC)(link)
That Stan Lee article was good, but I thought Vanity Fair made most of the same points with text that was shorter and wittier.
alexxkay: (Default)

[personal profile] alexxkay 2018-11-14 06:52 am (UTC)(link)
I have Strong Feelings about Stan, and I thought the VF article reflected them near-perfectly. In general, I am glad that there are multiple journalists who are looking fairly at the negatives and positives of his life, without either demonizing or sanctifying him.
swan_tower: (Default)

[personal profile] swan_tower 2018-11-14 08:50 am (UTC)(link)
"God punched a rock just enough to give it cheekbones."

And once again you have demonstrated your amazing talent for describing things, and people in particular. :-D
thisbluespirit: (hugs)

[personal profile] thisbluespirit 2018-11-14 10:28 am (UTC)(link)
Congrats on the poems! I hope the medical procedure goes okay. :-/

<3
choco_frosh: (Default)

[personal profile] choco_frosh 2018-11-14 01:19 pm (UTC)(link)
Good luck with medical stuff!
asakiyume: (good time)

[personal profile] asakiyume 2018-11-14 01:48 pm (UTC)(link)
Yay! I'm happy about the poems--both.

Good luck with the procedure today. I'll be thinking of you. Stay warm, if possible.
selkie: (Default)

[personal profile] selkie 2018-11-14 02:33 pm (UTC)(link)
Good luck in all things medical, financial, spiritual, ecumenical, political, emotional, &c.

I STILL HAB A COAD. ID'S DOT FAIR. HOW CAD I BE A SUBBORTIB FRED WHED I HAB A COAD.
ethelmay: (Default)

[personal profile] ethelmay 2018-11-14 11:42 pm (UTC)(link)
There used to be a place near Bletchley where Turing and others were welcomed for tea and biscuits. It was called Code Comfort Farm.

(yes, I just made that up)