April 26, 2012
Anatomy of an eBook: Sequel to Save The Best For Last and The Heat of Heat
For months now, my WIP has been hanging around, growing more each week, with no name other than "the sequel." I've decided it's time to name the baby.
I really liked All She Ever Wanted, a nice and fitting title, but one that is hardly original. Feeling optimistic, I checked to see just how many times this title has been used.
When I counted eight titles, I decided I needed to find something else. I work very hard to come up with storylines a little off the beaten path. Slapping a common title on a book is kind of negates those efforts, don't you think?
I decided, with some help from my Facebook friends, on Man of Her Heart, a title that, surprisingly, is not showing up at all on Amazon.
So my baby now has a name. What do you think?
April 14, 2012
Partial Disclosure
I'm tired of people manipulating facts to give a different impression of events or situations. I have several examples of this, most of which have occurred in the past week:
As a writer, I have to begin with the publishers who reissue books with different covers and try to bury the fact that it is a reissued title in the fine print at the end. This is particularly galling when they publish $20 hardcover versions of previously paperback novels (some dating back 20 or more years!) that can be bought at used book stores for $1. When readers see a newly available hardcover title, they do not expect it to be a reissue. I have seen authors get unfairly skewered when this deception is done by the publisher...most of the time. Which brings me to...
As authors receive rights to their previously published books and issue eBook versions, most do not indicate that these are reissues. Some are forced by the terms of their old contracts to change the titles of the same book but deliberately do not mention its previously published status in the book description. I'm sorry, but this is just plain sneaky. What satisfaction can there be in tricking people to buying your book?
Regarding current events, I'll begin with the despicable act of a network audio technician, who edited out part of the conversation George Zimmerman had with a police dispatcher when he called to report a suspicious person in the neighborhood. That person was, of course, the late Trayvon Martin. We all know that this young man ended up dead. I personally believe this was a case of racial profiling based on Zimmerman's near-pathologic desire not to let him "get away"--like the others who he mentioned in the conversation as always getting away--but that technician edited the tape to make it appear that Zimmerman's impressions (which are damning, given that the young man carried only candy and a drink) of the stranger looking like he was "up to no good" and like he might be high on drugs were immediately followed by the words, "and he's black." The truth was that those last three words were not spoken until several minutes later, and were in response to a question from the dispatcher. The edit made Zimmerman's words seem even more inflammatory than they really were, and I see no reason for this other than a desire to incite tensions that were already running high. This technician has since been fired. I think he deserved to be...and I hope that anyone else in this position takes dramatic license with audio to give a deliberate misconception remembers what happened to this man.
Speaking of the Trayvon Martin murder, there was a lot of righteous indignation from people who criticized the President for "speaking out" on this topic. Never in their outrage did they express that the President did not voluntarily make a statement, but rather made his very empathetic and sensitively phrased remarks in response to a question at a Rose Garden press conference that had been scheduled before the details of this tragic murder became the #1 news story. The President knew he would be asked to comment, and he had his words ready. Would these people have preferred it if the President refused to answer the question? That sounds like something that wannabe Mitt Romney would do.
Governor Romney's staff, on the other hand, was not prepared when they were asked a question about his stance on the Equal Pay (AKA Lily Ledbetter) Act. Luckily for him, the Governor had the opportunity to create a diversion from his own unpreparedness in what became a leading news story in the past few days. I am speaking of the Hilary Rosen comments about Ann Romney not being the ideal person for the Romney campaign to point to as understanding women's economic concerns. Yes, it was a poorly phrased comment (or at least the first part of it):
"His wife has actually never worked a day in her life. She's never really dealt with the kinds of economic issues that a majority of the women in this country are facing."
The firestorm that erupted from this was just unbelievable, as everyone from the President on down focused only on the first sentence and totally ignored the second, including, 95% of the time, the media. Even a fifth grader would know Hilary Rosen's intent was not to denigrate stay-at-home moms, but to point out that Ann Romney never had to worry about how to make those mortgage and car payments, how to pay for things like mortgages, cars, the kids' college tuition, and everyday expenses like new shoes and soccer leagues. Today's woman has to cope with rising gas prices that cut into their food budgets, plus rising food prices, wondering and worrying where all this extra money is coming from to maintain the same standard of living.
Those who were so morally outraged were quick to paint Rosen as a member of the President's campaign staff, which she is not...yet another case of deliberate misleading from people with an agenda.
White House staffers were as quick to distance themselves from Rosen as they would be to get out of a burning building, with David Axelrod declaring that the remarks were "offensive and inappropriate." While I really can't disagree with him, I do feel he could have come to Rosen's defense. Even if he reminded the public that the current administration feels that candidate's family members should be off limits (a wise position, in my opinion), he still could have said added that he didn't feel that Rosen's ill-chosen words were meant to demean stay-at-home moms because of the rest of her statement, thus reminding the public of the full context of Rosen's observations, before declining to discuss the matter further based on the administration's policy.
Vice President Biden also concentrated only on Rosen's first sentence, sprouting some politically correct rhetoric about how he wants his daughter to be able to choose whether to be a stay-at-home mom or to work outside the home (I half expected him to declare that America is a free country, since he's talking pointless jibberish that we all already know). This is a man who has on more than one occasion put his foot in his mouth...he couldn't say something in Rosen's defense?
As for the First Lady's tweet that all women should be respected again only addresses the first sentence of Rosen's remarks and easily could have been left out of the equation entirely.
But most disappointing of all for me was President Obama declaring that "motherhood is the hardest job there is." Really, Mr. President? Hilary Rosen, a mother herself, probably had no idea (yes, I'm being sarcastic). I would have a lot more respect for the President had he simply stated his well-known belief about candidates' family members being off limits and changed the subject, keeping that sanctimonious, self-serving statement to himself. I am ashamed that these men all chose to abandon Rosen like a sinking ship. Rosen ended up apologizing, which was all right with me because of the words she used, but it was a spirited apology, expressing regret at her word choice while simultaneously emphasizing her true intent, standing by it if not her original words. Apparently this did not satisfy someone (perhaps the person who signs her checks), because Friday morning there was a second apology that had no fire to it at all. She sounded as wimpy as the President did. I could practically see her tail wagging between her legs. This made me very sad.
Everybody knows damn well what Hilary Rosen meant, even though as late as Friday morning (I turned off the political discussion shows) it was either being addressed gingerly or with faux confusion (a political analyst on MSNBC said this morning that he was "still trying to figure out" what she meant). I don't understand why everyone is pussyfooting around the clear intent. No one can be that dumb where they can't grasp the meaning of the two sentences that appear above, ill-chosen words or not. If that's all it takes to be a political analyst, I'm going to apply.
Finally, it occurred to me that I have not watched the Today show since the day they brought in Sarah Palin to be a sort-of guest host. Instead I've kept Morning Joe on for that third hour. It wasn't until I found myself tuning in to Good Morning America that I realize I'd made an unconscious decision not to watch Today anymore. In probing my thoughts further, I realized that Palin's constant references to the President as "Obama" while the on-camera talent fell all over themselves to address her as "Governor" really grated on my nerves and was the final turn-off for me (it's also not much fun watching the somewhat strained interaction between anchors Matt Lauer and Ann Curry, but that's a topic for another day). I doubt that there's anyone in the country who doesn't know that Palin resigned from her elected office for various money-making opportunities, while the man she calls "Obama" is still the President, but it sure sounded as if they were trying to make people believe she is still a governor and that he is someone who simply wants to be President of the United States. I have no problem with utilizing the titles of former elected officials, but only when they complete their terms in office. I saw this as an attempt at manipulation no different from the others that I've mentioned, with the exception that this fooled no one.
Here's to full disclosure in the future...and while I doubt this will happen, at least the world knows I'm on to the games people play!
Partial Disclosure
I'm tired of people manipulating facts to give a different impression of events or situations. I have several examples of this, most of which have occurred in the past week:
As a writer, I have to begin with the publishers who reissue books with different covers and try to bury the fact that it is a reissued title in the fine print at the end. This is particularly galling when they publish $20 hardcover versions of previously paperback novels (some dating back 20 or more years!) that can be bought at used book stores for $1. When readers see a newly available hardcover title, they do not expect it to be a reissue. I have seen authors get unfairly skewered when this deception is done by the publisher...most of the time. Which brings me to...
As authors receive rights to their previously published books and issue eBook versions, most do not indicate that these are reissues. Some are forced by the terms of their old contracts to change the titles of the same book but deliberately do not mention its previously published status in the book description. I'm sorry, but this is just plain sneaky. What satisfaction can there be in tricking people to buying your book?
Regarding current events, I'll begin with the despicable act of a network audio technician, who edited out part of the conversation George Zimmerman had with a police dispatcher when he called to report a suspicious person in the neighborhood. That person was, of course, the late Trayvon Martin. We all know that this young man ended up dead. I personally believe this was a case of racial profiling based on Zimmerman's near-pathologic desire not to let him "get away"--like the others who he mentioned in the conversation as always getting away--but that technician edited the tape to make it appear that Zimmerman's impressions (which are damning, given that the young man carried only candy and a drink) of the stranger looking like he was "up to no good" and like he might be high on drugs were immediately followed by the words, "and he's black." The truth was that those last three words were not spoken until several minutes later, and were in response to a question from the dispatcher. The edit made Zimmerman's words seem even more inflammatory than they really were, and I see no reason for this other than a desire to incite tensions that were already running high. This technician has since been fired. I think he deserved to be...and I hope that anyone else in this position takes dramatic license with audio to give a deliberate misconception remembers what happened to this man.
Speaking of the Trayvon Martin murder, there was a lot of righteous indignation from people who criticized the President for "speaking out" on this topic. Never in their outrage did they express that the President did not voluntarily make a statement, but rather made his very empathetic and sensitively phrased remarks in response to a question at a Rose Garden press conference that had been scheduled before the details of this tragic murder became the #1 news story. The President knew he would be asked to comment, and he had his words ready. Would these people have preferred it if the President refused to answer the question? That sounds like something that wannabe Mitt Romney would do.
Governor Romney's staff, on the other hand, was not prepared when they were asked a question about his stance on the Equal Pay (AKA Lily Ledbetter) Act. Luckily for him, the Governor had the opportunity to create a diversion from his own unpreparedness in what became a leading news story in the past few days. I am speaking of the Hilary Rosen comments about Ann Romney not being the ideal person for the Romney campaign to point to as understanding women's economic concerns. Yes, it was a poorly phrased comment (or at least the first part of it):
"His wife has actually never worked a day in her life. She's never really dealt with the kinds of economic issues that a majority of the women in this country are facing."
The firestorm that erupted from this was just unbelievable, as everyone from the President on down focused only on the first sentence and totally ignored the second, including, 95% of the time, the media. Even a fifth grader would know Hilary Rosen's intent was not to denigrate stay-at-home moms, but to point out that Ann Romney never had to worry about how to make those mortgage and car payments, how to pay for things like mortgages, cars, the kids' college tuition, and everyday expenses like new shoes and soccer leagues. Today's woman has to cope with rising gas prices that cut into their food budgets, plus rising food prices, wondering and worrying where all this extra money is coming from to maintain the same standard of living.
Those who were so morally outraged were quick to paint Rosen as a member of the President's campaign staff, which she is not...yet another case of deliberate misleading from people with an agenda.
White House staffers were as quick to distance themselves from Rosen as they would be to get out of a burning building, with David Axelrod declaring that the remarks were "offensive and inappropriate." While I really can't disagree with him, I do feel he could have come to Rosen's defense. Even if he reminded the public that the current administration feels that candidate's family members should be off limits (a wise position, in my opinion), he still could have said added that he didn't feel that Rosen's ill-chosen words were meant to demean stay-at-home moms because of the rest of her statement, thus reminding the public of the full context of Rosen's observations, before declining to discuss the matter further based on the administration's policy.
Vice President Biden also concentrated only on Rosen's first sentence, sprouting some politically correct rhetoric about how he wants his daughter to be able to choose whether to be a stay-at-home mom or to work outside the home (I half expected him to declare that America is a free country, since he's talking pointless jibberish that we all already know). This is a man who has on more than one occasion put his foot in his mouth...he couldn't say something in Rosen's defense?
As for the First Lady's tweet that all women should be respected again only addresses the first sentence of Rosen's remarks and easily could have been left out of the equation entirely.
But most disappointing of all for me was President Obama declaring that "motherhood is the hardest job there is." Really, Mr. President? Hilary Rosen, a mother herself, probably had no idea (yes, I'm being sarcastic). I would have a lot more respect for the President had he simply stated his well-known belief about candidates' family members being off limits and changed the subject, keeping that sanctimonious, self-serving statement to himself. I am ashamed that these men all chose to abandon Rosen like a sinking ship. Rosen ended up apologizing, which was all right with me because of the words she used, but it was a spirited apology, expressing regret at her word choice while simultaneously emphasizing her true intent, standing by it if not her original words. Apparently this did not satisfy someone (perhaps the person who signs her checks), because Friday morning there was a second apology that had no fire to it at all. She sounded as wimpy as the President did. I could practically see her tail wagging between her legs. This made me very sad.
Everybody knows damn well what Hilary Rosen meant, even though as late as Friday morning (I turned off the political discussion shows) it was either being addressed gingerly or with faux confusion (a political analyst on MSNBC said this morning that he was "still trying to figure out" what she meant). I don't understand why everyone is pussyfooting around the clear intent. No one can be that dumb where they can't grasp the meaning of the two sentences that appear above, ill-chosen words or not. If that's all it takes to be a political analyst, I'm going to apply.
Finally, it occurred to me that I have not watched the Today show since the day they brought in Sarah Palin to be a sort-of guest host. Instead I've kept Morning Joe on for that third hour. It wasn't until I found myself tuning in to Good Morning America that I realize I'd made an unconscious decision not to watch Today anymore. In probing my thoughts further, I realized that Palin's constant references to the President as "Obama" while the on-camera talent fell all over themselves to address her as "Governor" really grated on my nerves and was the final turn-off for me (it's also not much fun watching the somewhat strained interaction between anchors Matt Lauer and Ann Curry, but that's a topic for another day). I doubt that there's anyone in the country who doesn't know that Palin resigned from her elected office for various money-making opportunities, while the man she calls "Obama" is still the President, but it sure sounded as if they were trying to make people believe she is still a governor and that he is someone who simply wants to be President of the United States. I have no problem with utilizing the titles of former elected officials, but only when they complete their terms in office. I saw this as an attempt at manipulation no different from the others that I've mentioned, with the exception that this fooled no one.
Here's to full disclosure in the future...and while I doubt this will happen, at least the world knows I'm on to the games people play!
April 7, 2012
Getting Back in the Swing of Things
It's been a very busy year. I began 2012 on schedule...by submitting chapters to my editor the end of that first week. My editor, unfortunately, had some personal issues that landed her in the hospital a few weeks later. This put her behind in her own to-do list, and we worked feverishly to get Isn't She Lovely? edited for ePublication. The situation wasn't helped any when my laptop "passed away" unexpectedly after a sudden illness. I had to buy a new one (thank heavens Office Depot always has good sales) and get my files loaded on it, plus the daunting task of learning Windows 7.
My editor and I managed to get in a three-hour dinner at the Outback when I visited Jacksonville in February, and that leisurely evening somehow gave us motivation to speed things up. The book was uploaded on March 5th.
I've gotten very little writing done in the month since. There are a few reasons for this. One, after releasing a new book I have to let everyone know about it, and that takes time. But usually after two weeks I'm ready to start writing again.
I didn't this time because, although all my files were reloaded on my computer, I had to re-load my software, including my Dragon dictation software, and re-train the software to recognize my voice. I've loaded the software, but haven't re-trained it yet. I've been busy, which brings me to the third reason I haven't done much writing.
My mother flew home to Wisconsin with me after my visit to Florida in late February, and she visited with us for six weeks. My husband and I both loved having her here, but you simply can't keep your regular routine when someone else is staying at your house, even someone who isn't really a guest. Those first weeks I would bring my laptop with me when she wanted to work out at the Y, and I'd sit and read over and revise text while she got on the machines (my mom will be 94 later this year, but she's always been a big believer in physical fitness and has been blessed with good health). After the book was uploaded I stopped dragging the laptop and usually ran errands while Mom worked out.
My mother flew home last week, and while I do miss her, it does feel good to not have to worry about keeping her occupied. So now it's just my hubby and me, doing our own thing...and I'm writing again. Before this weekend is over I'll have my Dragon software and will autotranscribe all the files I dictated prior to my laptop's demise. Right now I'm going over the manuscript for a backlist title.
It's good to be back!
Another
Getting Back in the Swing of Things
It's been a very busy year. I began 2012 on schedule...by submitting chapters to my editor the end of that first week. My editor, unfortunately, had some personal issues that landed her in the hospital a few weeks later. This put her behind in her own to-do list, and we worked feverishly to get Isn't She Lovely? edited for ePublication. The situation wasn't helped any when my laptop "passed away" unexpectedly after a sudden illness. I had to buy a new one (thank heavens Office Depot always has good sales) and get my files loaded on it, plus the daunting task of learning Windows 7.
My editor and I managed to get in a three-hour dinner at the Outback when I visited Jacksonville in February, and that leisurely evening somehow gave us motivation to speed things up. The book was uploaded on March 5th.
I've gotten very little writing done in the month since. There are a few reasons for this. One, after releasing a new book I have to let everyone know about it, and that takes time. But usually after two weeks I'm ready to start writing again.
I didn't this time because, although all my files were reloaded on my computer, I had to re-load my software, including my Dragon dictation software, and re-train the software to recognize my voice. I've loaded the software, but haven't re-trained it yet. I've been busy, which brings me to the third reason I haven't done much writing.
My mother flew home to Wisconsin with me after my visit to Florida in late February, and she visited with us for six weeks. My husband and I both loved having her here, but you simply can't keep your regular routine when someone else is staying at your house, even someone who isn't really a guest. Those first weeks I would bring my laptop with me when she wanted to work out at the Y, and I'd sit and read over and revise text while she got on the machines (my mom will be 94 later this year, but she's always been a big believer in physical fitness and has been blessed with good health). After the book was uploaded I stopped dragging the laptop and usually ran errands while Mom worked out.
My mother flew home last week, and while I do miss her, it does feel good to not have to worry about keeping her occupied. So now it's just my hubby and me, doing our own thing...and I'm writing again. Before this weekend is over I'll have my Dragon software and will autotranscribe all the files I dictated prior to my laptop's demise. Right now I'm going over the manuscript for a backlist title.
It's good to be back!
Another
March 10, 2012
Truth in Fiction/Non-Fiction
I've always been puzzled when readers point out that a novel contains factual inaccuracies and people respond by saying, "It's fiction, who cares?" A historical romance caught my eye the other day, and I briefly considered downloading it until I read the reviews. Several people who read the book stated that the numerous circumstances described either occurred too early or simply wouldn't have happened at all. Between those remarks and the complaints about a meandering storyline and three and four typos on a single page (I'm sorry to say it was an indie published eBook), I decided to stick to Beverly Jenkins, who makes a concerted effort to present accurate information to readers (and in the process informs us about facts we probably previously did not know).
I believe that writers owe it to their audiences to present as factual a story as possible, whether they write fiction or nonfiction, or current or historical. I am stunned by the mistakes readers have pointed out in nonfiction, like dates, for instance. Imagine writing a book that states that Columbus first set foot in the Americas in 1491! Okay, that's an extreme example, but if people buy a book to learn more about a subject they already know and incorrect information is given, they're probably going to spot it. I love movies, and I've seen books that made errors in release dates and the year of Best Picture Oscar wins. Even one error is unfortunate but is at least forgivable. Multiple inaccurcies is not.
Do you have any thoughts about inaccurate facts in fiction or nonfiction?
Truth in Fiction/Non-Fiction
I've always been puzzled when readers point out that a novel contains factual inaccuracies and people respond by saying, "It's fiction, who cares?" A historical romance caught my eye the other day, and I briefly considered downloading it until I read the reviews. Several people who read the book stated that the numerous circumstances described either occurred too early or simply wouldn't have happened at all. Between those remarks and the complaints about a meandering storyline and three and four typos on a single page (I'm sorry to say it was an indie published eBook), I decided to stick to Beverly Jenkins, who makes a concerted effort to present accurate information to readers (and in the process informs us about facts we probably previously did not know).
I believe that writers owe it to their audiences to present as factual a story as possible, whether they write fiction or nonfiction, or current or historical. I am stunned by the mistakes readers have pointed out in nonfiction, like dates, for instance. Imagine writing a book that states that Columbus first set foot in the Americas in 1491! Okay, that's an extreme example, but if people buy a book to learn more about a subject they already know and incorrect information is given, they're probably going to spot it. I love movies, and I've seen books that made errors in release dates and the year of Best Picture Oscar wins. Even one error is unfortunate but is at least forgivable. Multiple inaccurcies is not.
Do you have any thoughts about inaccurate facts in fiction or nonfiction?
March 9, 2012
Anatomy of an eBook: Sequel to Save The Best For Last & The Heat of Heat
I have a first sentence!
Cesca slumped down in the car as she raised the cell phone to her ear.
FYI, she is hiding from a policeman. In New York State, it is illegal to operate a motor vehicle while talking on a cell phone (unless it's a hands-free setup). It's probably not the most exciting first sentence in the world, but as these things go I don't think it's bad.
Anatomy of an eBook: Sequel to Save The Best For Last & The Heat of Heat
I have a first sentence!
Cesca slumped down in the car as she raised the cell phone to her ear.
FYI, she is hiding from a policeman. In New York State, it is illegal to operate a motor vehicle while talking on a cell phone (unless it's a hands-free setup). It's probably not the most exciting first sentence in the world, but as these things go I don't think it's bad.
February 27, 2012
My thoughts on that elusive little gold man
As the dust settles around the feet of those who were expecting Viola Davis to walk away with a Best Actress Oscar last night, I want to remind everyone that a Davis win was not a lock, Golden Globe win or not (I can't remember for sure, but I think Streep might have captured the SAG).
Many people are reasonable in their disappointment, acknowledging the seasoned talent of Meryl Streep. But some are making a huge fuss about Viola's non-win (I won't say "loss," because only five performances in a year are nominated for Academy Awards in four acting categories, making them all winners...and making their fees go up as well) with such vehemence that I have to ask...how many of them have actually seen both Viola's and Meryl's performances? My gut tells me most of them have not. How can you declare that someone was robbed if you haven't seen how the competition fared?
In all the comments I made about this last night, I failed to mention the one simple reason why the suspense of who would win went on until the very last second: The Academy loves performances based on real people, whether household names or obscure people with extraordinary lives. There have been several occurrences where both the Best Actress and Best Actor winners played real people.
The only time the Best Actress race ended in a tie both winners played real people (Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor of Aquitaine and Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice). Streisand's win was a rarity in that it was a musical, and musical biographies are usually too far from the facts to be winners, and also the fact that the stars cast are generally chosen for their abilities rather than their resemblance to the actual person. To this day I believe that both these factors worked against Diana Ross in her excellent performance as Billie Holiday; not only did she look nothing like the real Billie Holiday, in either looks, complexion, or stature, or sound anything like Holiday, but much of the plot was fictionalized. This might be due to the fact that many of the real people in Holiday's life were still alive in 1972, including her husband Louis McKay, from whom she was estranged at the time of her death and who was reported to be less of a nice guy than the shining knight portrayed by Billy Dee Williams. Likewise, Fanny Brice's ex-husband Nick Arnstein was also alive and reportedly threatened the producers of the original Broadway musical with legal action, so he was depicted by Omar Sharif as a much more sympathetic character than he actually was. But at least Streisand looked slightly like Fanny Brice, even if Streisand's musical abilities far outshone Brice's.
People who overcame disabilities are especially popular with the Academy, and a portrayal of a real person with a disability will probably win over a simple portrayal (such as the year Jamie Foxx's blind Ray Charles won over Leonardo DiCaprio's mentally unstable Howard Hughes and Will Smith's disability-free Muhammad Ali).
I was curious about just how many nominees and winners there have been over the years who played real people, and I was quite surprised at both the number of performances and how far back this practice dates. Here's my list, by decade, including both lead and supporting performances, with the winners noted (and there are plenty of winners):
**************
2000s
Ed Harris as Jackson Pollock in Pollock
Marcia Gay Harden (WINNER) as Lee Krasner in Pollock
Russell Crowe as John Nash (WINNER) in A Beautiful Mind
Will Smith as Muhammad Ali in Ali
Jim Broadbent (WINNER) as John Bayley in Iris
Jon Voight as Howard Cosell in Ali
Judi Dench as Iris Murdoch (the mature woman) in Iris
Jennifer Connolly (WINNER) as Alicia Nash in A Beautiful Mind
Kate Winslet as Iris Murdoch (as a young woman) in Iris
Adrien Brody (WINNER) as Wlladyslaw Szpilman in The Pianist
Daniel Day-Lewis as William "Big Bill" Cutting in Gangs of New York
Nicole Kidman (WINNER) as Virginia Woolf in The Hours
Charlize Theron (WINNER) as Aileen Wuornos in Monster
Jamie Foxx (WINNER) as Ray Charles in Ray
Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes in The Aviator
Don Cheadle as Paul Rusesabagina in Hotel Rwanda
Alan Alda as Senator Owen Brewster in The Aviator
Cate Blanchett (WINNER) as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator
Laura Linney (WINNER) as Clara McMullen in Kinsey
Sophie Okonedo as Tatiana Rusesabagina in Hotel Rwanda
Phillip Seymour Hoffmann (WINNER) as Truman Capote in Capote
Reese Witherspoon (WINNER) as June Carter Cash in Walk The Line
Catherine Keener as Harper Lee in Capote
Forrest Whitaker WINNER) as Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland
Will Smith as Chris Gardner in The Pursuit of Happyness
Helen Mirren (WINNER) as Elizabeth II in The Queen
Sean Penn (WINNER) as Harvey Milk in Milk
Marion Cotillard (WINNER) as Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose
Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth I in Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Casey Affleck as Robert "Bob" Ford in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Gust Avrakotos in Charlie Wilson's War
Frank Langella as Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon
Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela in Invictus
Helen Mirren as Sophia Tolstoy in The Last Station
Meryl Streep as Julia Child in Julie & Julia
Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar in Invictus
Christopher Plummer as Leo Tolstoy in The Last Station
Colin Firth (WINNER) as King George VI in The King's Speech
Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckenberg in The Social Network
James Franco as Aron Ralston in 127 Hours
Geoffrey Rush as Lionel Logue in The King's Speech
Helena Bonham Carter as Queen Elizabeth in The King's Speech
Brad Pitt as Billy Beane in Moneyball
Meryl Streep (WINNER) as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe in My Week With Marilyn
Kenneth Branagh as Laurence Olivier in My Week With Marilyn
1990s
Warren Beatty as Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel in Bugsy
Harvey Keitel as Mickey Cohen in Bugsy
Ben Kingsley as Meyer Lansky in Bugsy
Tommy Lee Jones as Clay Shaw in JFK
Robert Downey, Jr., as Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin
Denzel Washington as Malcolm X in Malcolm X
Daniel Day-Lewis as Gerry Conlon in In the Name of the Father
Liam Neeson as Oskar Schindler in Schindler's List
Laurence Fishbourne as Ike Turner in What's Love Got to Do With It
Angela Bassett as Tina Turner in What's Love Got to Do With It
Nigel Hawthorne as George III in The Madness of King George
Helen Mirren as Queen Charlotte in The Madness of King George
Martin Landau (WINNER) as Bela Lugosi in Ed Wood
Anthony Hopkins as Richard Nixon in Nixon
Ed Harris as Gene Kranz in Apollo 13
Joan Allen as Pat Nixon in Nixon
Geoffrey Rush (WINNER) as David Helfgott in Shine
James Woods as Byron de la Beckwith in Ghosts of Mississippi
Judi Dench as Queen Victoria in Mrs. Brown
Anthony Hopkins as John Quincy Adams in Amistad
Denzel Washington as Rubin "Hurricane" Carter in The Hurricane
1980s
Robert DeNiro (WINNER) as Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull
Sissy Spacek (WINNER) as Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner's Daughter
John Hurt as Joseph Merrick (name changed to John Merrick in the movie) in The Elephant Man
Jason Robards as Howard Hughes in Melvin and Howard
Joe Pesci as Joey LaMotta in Raging Bull
Warren Beatty as John Reed in Reds
Diane Keaton as Louise Bryant in Reds
Jack Nicholson as Eugene O'Neill in Reds
Maureen Stapleton (WINNER) as Emma Goldman in Reds
Elizabeth McGovern as Evelyn Nesbit in Ragtime
Ben Kingsley (WINNER) as Mohandas K. Gandhi in Gandhi
Jessica Lange as Frances Farmer in Frances
Meryl Streep at Karen Silkwood in Silkwood
F. Murray Abraham (WINNER) as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus
Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Amadeus
Sam Waterston as Sydney Schanberg in The Killing Fields
Haing S. Ngor (WINNER) as Dith Pran in The Killing Fields
Jessica Lange as Patsy Cline in Sweet Dreams
Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen in Out of Africa
Klaus Maria Brandauer as Bror Blixen in Out of Africa
Denzel Washington as Steve Biko in Cry Freedom
Sigourney Weaver as Dian Fossey in Gorillas in the Mist
Daniel Day-Lewis as Christy Brown in My Left Foot
Kenneth Branagh as King Henry V in Henry V
Jeremy Irons as Klaus von Bulow in Reversal of Fortune
1970s
George C. Scott (WINNER) as General George S. Patton in Patton
James Earl Jones as Jack Jefferson (obviously modeled on Jack Johnson) in The Great White Hope
Gene Hackman (WINNER) as Detective Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in The French Connection
Vanessa Redgrave as Mary, Queen of Scots in Mary, Queen of Scots
Janet Suzman as Empress Alexandra in Nicholas and Alexandra
Diana Ross as Billie Holiday in Lady Sings The Blues
Dustin Hoffman as Lenny Bruce in Lenny
Jason Robards (WINNER) as Ben Bradlee in All The President's Men
Jane Fonda as Lillian Hellman in Julia
Jason Robards (WINNER) as Dashiell Hammett in Julia
Gary Busey as Buddy Holly in The Buddy Holly Story
1960s
Greer Garson as Eleanor Roosevelt in Sunrise at Campobello
Burt Lancaster as Robert Stroud in The Birdman of Alcatraz
Peter O'Toole as T.E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia
Anne Bancroft (WINNER) as Anne Sullivan in The Miracle Worker
Patty Duke (WINNER) as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker
Richard Burton as Thomas Becket in Becket
Peter O'Toole as King Henry II in Becket
John Gielgud as King Louis VII in Becket
Debbie Reynolds as Margaret "Molly" Brown in The Unsinkable Molly Brown
Julie Andrews as Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music
Paul Scofield (WINNER) as Sir Thomas More in A Man For All Seasons
Robert Shaw as King Henry VII in A Man For All Seasons
Wendy Hiller as Alice More in A Man For All Seasons
Warren Beatty as Clyde Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde
Faye Dunaway as Bonnie Parker in Bonnie and Clyde
Gene Hackman as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde
Estelle Parsons (WINNER) as Blanche Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde
Peter O'Toole as King Henry VII in The Lion in Winter
Katharine Hepburn (WINNER - tie) as Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter
Barbra Streisand (WINNER - tie) as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl
Vanessa Redgrave as Isadora Duncan in Isadora
Daniel Massey as Noel Coward in Star!
Richard Burton as King Henry VIII in Anne of the Thousand Days
Genevieve Bujold as Anne Boleyn in Anne of the Thousand Days
Anthony Quayle as Cardinal Thomas Wolsey in Anne of the Thousand Days
1950s
Louis Calhern as Oliver Wendell Holmes in The Magnificent Yankee
Marlon Brando as Emiliano Zapata in Viva Zapata!
Susan Hayward as Jane Froman in With a Song in My Heart
Anthony Quinn as Eufemio Zapata in Viva Zapata!
Marlon Brando as Julius Caesar in Julius Caesar
Susan Hayward as Lillian Roth in I'll Cry Tomorrow
James Cagney as Martin "Moe the Gimp" Snyder in Love Me or Leave Me
Yul Brynner (WINNER) as King Mongkut in The King and I
Laurence Olivier as King Richard III in Richard III
Kirk Douglas as Vincent Van Gogh in Lust For Life
Ingrid Bergman (WINNER) as Anna Anderson in Anastasia
Anthony Quinn (WINNER) as Paul Gauguin in Lust For Life
Susan Hayward (WINNER) as Barbara Graham in I Want to Live
Shelley Winters (WINNER) as Petronella van Daan in The Diary of Anne Frank
1940s
Raymond Massey as Abraham Lincoln in Abe Lincoln in Illinois
Gary Cooper as Alvin York (WINNER) in Sergeant York
James Cagney as George M. Cohan (WINNER) in Yankee Doodle Dandy
Gary Cooper as Lou Gehrig in Pride of the Yankees
Teresa Wright as Eleanor Gehrig in Pride of the Yankees
Greer Garson as Marie Curie in Madame Curie
Walter Pidgeon as Pierre Curie in Madame Curie
Jennifer Jones (WINNER) as Bernadette Sourinous (later St. Bernadette) in The Song of Bernadette
Alexander Knox as Woodrow Wilson in Wilson
Cornel Wilde as Frederic Chopin in A Song To Remember
Laurence Olivier as King Henry V in Henry V
Larry Parks as Al Jolson in The Jolson Story
Rosalind Russell as Elizabeth Kenny in Sister Kenny
William Powell as Clarence Day in Life With Father
Ingrid Bergman as Joan of Arc in Joan of Arc
Broderick Crawford (WINNER) as Willie Stark (an obvious name change from Huey Long) in All The King's Men
1930s
George Arliss (WINNER) as Benjamin Disraeli in Disraeli
Charles Laughton (WINNER) as King Henry VIII in T
Paul Muni as Robert Burns (although the name of the character was changed to James Allen, this film very closely followed the real Burns' story so closely that I'm including it) in I am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang
Clark Gable as Fletcher Christian in Mutiny on the Bounty
Charles Laughton as Captain William Bligh in Mutiny on the Bounty
Paul Muni (WINNER) as Louis Pasteur in The Story of Louis Pasteur
Luise Rainer (WINNER) as Anna Held in The Great Ziegfield
Beulah Bondi as Rachel Jackson in The Gorgeous Hussy
Paul Muni as Emile Zola in The Life of Emile Zola
Alice Brady (WINNER) as Molly O'Leary in In Old Chicago
Norma Shearer as Marie Antoinette in Marie Antoinette
Robert Morley as King Louis XVI in Marie Antoinette
Spencer Tracy (WINNER) as Father Edward J. Flanagan in Boys Town
Brian Aherne as Maximilian I in Juarez
*********
Back to the present: Viola Davis is one of the hottest actresses of any race in Hollywood right now. From the beginning, her work has been lauded, no matter how small the role. Angela Bassett's career has been stalled for years. Halle Berry is becoming better known for her custody battles with her baby daddy than for her acting. Even the hardest-working woman in show business, Alfre Woodard, isn't as busy these days as she was a few years back.
So remember that name. Viola Davis. She has the potential to become as highly respected as that other Davis from New England, Ruth Elizabeth, better known as Bette.
My thoughts on that elusive little gold man
As the dust settles around the feet of those who were expecting Viola Davis to walk away with a Best Actress Oscar last night, I want to remind everyone that a Davis win was not a lock, Golden Globe win or not (I can't remember for sure, but I think Streep might have captured the SAG).
Many people are reasonable in their disappointment, acknowledging the seasoned talent of Meryl Streep. But some are making a huge fuss about Viola's non-win (I won't say "loss," because only five performances in a year are nominated for Academy Awards in four acting categories, making them all winners...and making their fees go up as well) with such vehemence that I have to ask...how many of them have actually seen both Viola's and Meryl's performances? My gut tells me most of them have not. How can you declare that someone was robbed if you haven't seen how the competition fared?
In all the comments I made about this last night, I failed to mention the one simple reason why the suspense of who would win went on until the very last second: The Academy loves performances based on real people, whether household names or obscure people with extraordinary lives. There have been several occurrences where both the Best Actress and Best Actor winners played real people.
The only time the Best Actress race ended in a tie both winners played real people (Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor of Aquitaine and Barbra Streisand as Fanny Brice). Streisand's win was a rarity in that it was a musical, and musical biographies are usually too far from the facts to be winners, and also the fact that the stars cast are generally chosen for their abilities rather than their resemblance to the actual person. To this day I believe that both these factors worked against Diana Ross in her excellent performance as Billie Holiday; not only did she look nothing like the real Billie Holiday, in either looks, complexion, or stature, or sound anything like Holiday, but much of the plot was fictionalized. This might be due to the fact that many of the real people in Holiday's life were still alive in 1972, including her husband Louis McKay, from whom she was estranged at the time of her death and who was reported to be less of a nice guy than the shining knight portrayed by Billy Dee Williams. Likewise, Fanny Brice's ex-husband Nick Arnstein was also alive and reportedly threatened the producers of the original Broadway musical with legal action, so he was depicted by Omar Sharif as a much more sympathetic character than he actually was. But at least Streisand looked slightly like Fanny Brice, even if Streisand's musical abilities far outshone Brice's.
People who overcame disabilities are especially popular with the Academy, and a portrayal of a real person with a disability will probably win over a simple portrayal (such as the year Jamie Foxx's blind Ray Charles won over Leonardo DiCaprio's mentally unstable Howard Hughes and Will Smith's disability-free Muhammad Ali).
I was curious about just how many nominees and winners there have been over the years who played real people, and I was quite surprised at both the number of performances and how far back this practice dates. Here's my list, by decade, including both lead and supporting performances, with the winners noted (and there are plenty of winners):
**************
2000s
Ed Harris as Jackson Pollock in Pollock
Marcia Gay Harden (WINNER) as Lee Krasner in Pollock
Russell Crowe as John Nash (WINNER) in A Beautiful Mind
Will Smith as Muhammad Ali in Ali
Jim Broadbent (WINNER) as John Bayley in Iris
Jon Voight as Howard Cosell in Ali
Judi Dench as Iris Murdoch (the mature woman) in Iris
Jennifer Connolly (WINNER) as Alicia Nash in A Beautiful Mind
Kate Winslet as Iris Murdoch (as a young woman) in Iris
Adrien Brody (WINNER) as Wlladyslaw Szpilman in The Pianist
Daniel Day-Lewis as William "Big Bill" Cutting in Gangs of New York
Nicole Kidman (WINNER) as Virginia Woolf in The Hours
Charlize Theron (WINNER) as Aileen Wuornos in Monster
Jamie Foxx (WINNER) as Ray Charles in Ray
Leonardo DiCaprio as Howard Hughes in The Aviator
Don Cheadle as Paul Rusesabagina in Hotel Rwanda
Alan Alda as Senator Owen Brewster in The Aviator
Cate Blanchett (WINNER) as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator
Laura Linney (WINNER) as Clara McMullen in Kinsey
Sophie Okonedo as Tatiana Rusesabagina in Hotel Rwanda
Phillip Seymour Hoffmann (WINNER) as Truman Capote in Capote
Reese Witherspoon (WINNER) as June Carter Cash in Walk The Line
Catherine Keener as Harper Lee in Capote
Forrest Whitaker WINNER) as Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland
Will Smith as Chris Gardner in The Pursuit of Happyness
Helen Mirren (WINNER) as Elizabeth II in The Queen
Sean Penn (WINNER) as Harvey Milk in Milk
Marion Cotillard (WINNER) as Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose
Cate Blanchett as Queen Elizabeth I in Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Casey Affleck as Robert "Bob" Ford in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Gust Avrakotos in Charlie Wilson's War
Frank Langella as Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon
Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela in Invictus
Helen Mirren as Sophia Tolstoy in The Last Station
Meryl Streep as Julia Child in Julie & Julia
Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar in Invictus
Christopher Plummer as Leo Tolstoy in The Last Station
Colin Firth (WINNER) as King George VI in The King's Speech
Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckenberg in The Social Network
James Franco as Aron Ralston in 127 Hours
Geoffrey Rush as Lionel Logue in The King's Speech
Helena Bonham Carter as Queen Elizabeth in The King's Speech
Brad Pitt as Billy Beane in Moneyball
Meryl Streep (WINNER) as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe in My Week With Marilyn
Kenneth Branagh as Laurence Olivier in My Week With Marilyn
1990s
Warren Beatty as Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel in Bugsy
Harvey Keitel as Mickey Cohen in Bugsy
Ben Kingsley as Meyer Lansky in Bugsy
Tommy Lee Jones as Clay Shaw in JFK
Robert Downey, Jr., as Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin
Denzel Washington as Malcolm X in Malcolm X
Daniel Day-Lewis as Gerry Conlon in In the Name of the Father
Liam Neeson as Oskar Schindler in Schindler's List
Laurence Fishbourne as Ike Turner in What's Love Got to Do With It
Angela Bassett as Tina Turner in What's Love Got to Do With It
Nigel Hawthorne as George III in The Madness of King George
Helen Mirren as Queen Charlotte in The Madness of King George
Martin Landau (WINNER) as Bela Lugosi in Ed Wood
Anthony Hopkins as Richard Nixon in Nixon
Ed Harris as Gene Kranz in Apollo 13
Joan Allen as Pat Nixon in Nixon
Geoffrey Rush (WINNER) as David Helfgott in Shine
James Woods as Byron de la Beckwith in Ghosts of Mississippi
Judi Dench as Queen Victoria in Mrs. Brown
Anthony Hopkins as John Quincy Adams in Amistad
Denzel Washington as Rubin "Hurricane" Carter in The Hurricane
1980s
Robert DeNiro (WINNER) as Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull
Sissy Spacek (WINNER) as Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner's Daughter
John Hurt as Joseph Merrick (name changed to John Merrick in the movie) in The Elephant Man
Jason Robards as Howard Hughes in Melvin and Howard
Joe Pesci as Joey LaMotta in Raging Bull
Warren Beatty as John Reed in Reds
Diane Keaton as Louise Bryant in Reds
Jack Nicholson as Eugene O'Neill in Reds
Maureen Stapleton (WINNER) as Emma Goldman in Reds
Elizabeth McGovern as Evelyn Nesbit in Ragtime
Ben Kingsley (WINNER) as Mohandas K. Gandhi in Gandhi
Jessica Lange as Frances Farmer in Frances
Meryl Streep at Karen Silkwood in Silkwood
F. Murray Abraham (WINNER) as Antonio Salieri in Amadeus
Tom Hulce as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Amadeus
Sam Waterston as Sydney Schanberg in The Killing Fields
Haing S. Ngor (WINNER) as Dith Pran in The Killing Fields
Jessica Lange as Patsy Cline in Sweet Dreams
Meryl Streep as Karen Blixen in Out of Africa
Klaus Maria Brandauer as Bror Blixen in Out of Africa
Denzel Washington as Steve Biko in Cry Freedom
Sigourney Weaver as Dian Fossey in Gorillas in the Mist
Daniel Day-Lewis as Christy Brown in My Left Foot
Kenneth Branagh as King Henry V in Henry V
Jeremy Irons as Klaus von Bulow in Reversal of Fortune
1970s
George C. Scott (WINNER) as General George S. Patton in Patton
James Earl Jones as Jack Jefferson (obviously modeled on Jack Johnson) in The Great White Hope
Gene Hackman (WINNER) as Detective Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in The French Connection
Vanessa Redgrave as Mary, Queen of Scots in Mary, Queen of Scots
Janet Suzman as Empress Alexandra in Nicholas and Alexandra
Diana Ross as Billie Holiday in Lady Sings The Blues
Dustin Hoffman as Lenny Bruce in Lenny
Jason Robards (WINNER) as Ben Bradlee in All The President's Men
Jane Fonda as Lillian Hellman in Julia
Jason Robards (WINNER) as Dashiell Hammett in Julia
Gary Busey as Buddy Holly in The Buddy Holly Story
1960s
Greer Garson as Eleanor Roosevelt in Sunrise at Campobello
Burt Lancaster as Robert Stroud in The Birdman of Alcatraz
Peter O'Toole as T.E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia
Anne Bancroft (WINNER) as Anne Sullivan in The Miracle Worker
Patty Duke (WINNER) as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker
Richard Burton as Thomas Becket in Becket
Peter O'Toole as King Henry II in Becket
John Gielgud as King Louis VII in Becket
Debbie Reynolds as Margaret "Molly" Brown in The Unsinkable Molly Brown
Julie Andrews as Maria von Trapp in The Sound of Music
Paul Scofield (WINNER) as Sir Thomas More in A Man For All Seasons
Robert Shaw as King Henry VII in A Man For All Seasons
Wendy Hiller as Alice More in A Man For All Seasons
Warren Beatty as Clyde Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde
Faye Dunaway as Bonnie Parker in Bonnie and Clyde
Gene Hackman as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde
Estelle Parsons (WINNER) as Blanche Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde
Peter O'Toole as King Henry VII in The Lion in Winter
Katharine Hepburn (WINNER - tie) as Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Lion in Winter
Barbra Streisand (WINNER - tie) as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl
Vanessa Redgrave as Isadora Duncan in Isadora
Daniel Massey as Noel Coward in Star!
Richard Burton as King Henry VIII in Anne of the Thousand Days
Genevieve Bujold as Anne Boleyn in Anne of the Thousand Days
Anthony Quayle as Cardinal Thomas Wolsey in Anne of the Thousand Days
1950s
Louis Calhern as Oliver Wendell Holmes in The Magnificent Yankee
Marlon Brando as Emiliano Zapata in Viva Zapata!
Susan Hayward as Jane Froman in With a Song in My Heart
Anthony Quinn as Eufemio Zapata in Viva Zapata!
Marlon Brando as Julius Caesar in Julius Caesar
Susan Hayward as Lillian Roth in I'll Cry Tomorrow
James Cagney as Martin "Moe the Gimp" Snyder in Love Me or Leave Me
Yul Brynner (WINNER) as King Mongkut in The King and I
Laurence Olivier as King Richard III in Richard III
Kirk Douglas as Vincent Van Gogh in Lust For Life
Ingrid Bergman (WINNER) as Anna Anderson in Anastasia
Anthony Quinn (WINNER) as Paul Gauguin in Lust For Life
Susan Hayward (WINNER) as Barbara Graham in I Want to Live
Shelley Winters (WINNER) as Petronella van Daan in The Diary of Anne Frank
1940s
Raymond Massey as Abraham Lincoln in Abe Lincoln in Illinois
Gary Cooper as Alvin York (WINNER) in Sergeant York
James Cagney as George M. Cohan (WINNER) in Yankee Doodle Dandy
Gary Cooper as Lou Gehrig in Pride of the Yankees
Teresa Wright as Eleanor Gehrig in Pride of the Yankees
Greer Garson as Marie Curie in Madame Curie
Walter Pidgeon as Pierre Curie in Madame Curie
Jennifer Jones (WINNER) as Bernadette Sourinous (later St. Bernadette) in The Song of Bernadette
Alexander Knox as Woodrow Wilson in Wilson
Cornel Wilde as Frederic Chopin in A Song To Remember
Laurence Olivier as King Henry V in Henry V
Larry Parks as Al Jolson in The Jolson Story
Rosalind Russell as Elizabeth Kenny in Sister Kenny
William Powell as Clarence Day in Life With Father
Ingrid Bergman as Joan of Arc in Joan of Arc
Broderick Crawford (WINNER) as Willie Stark (an obvious name change from Huey Long) in All The King's Men
1930s
George Arliss (WINNER) as Benjamin Disraeli in Disraeli
Charles Laughton (WINNER) as King Henry VIII in T
Paul Muni as Robert Burns (although the name of the character was changed to James Allen, this film very closely followed the real Burns' story so closely that I'm including it) in I am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang
Clark Gable as Fletcher Christian in Mutiny on the Bounty
Charles Laughton as Captain William Bligh in Mutiny on the Bounty
Paul Muni (WINNER) as Louis Pasteur in The Story of Louis Pasteur
Luise Rainer (WINNER) as Anna Held in The Great Ziegfield
Beulah Bondi as Rachel Jackson in The Gorgeous Hussy
Paul Muni as Emile Zola in The Life of Emile Zola
Alice Brady (WINNER) as Molly O'Leary in In Old Chicago
Norma Shearer as Marie Antoinette in Marie Antoinette
Robert Morley as King Louis XVI in Marie Antoinette
Spencer Tracy (WINNER) as Father Edward J. Flanagan in Boys Town
Brian Aherne as Maximilian I in Juarez
*********
Back to the present: Viola Davis is one of the hottest actresses of any race in Hollywood right now. From the beginning, her work has been lauded, no matter how small the role. Angela Bassett's career has been stalled for years. Halle Berry is becoming better known for her custody battles with her baby daddy than for her acting. Even the hardest-working woman in show business, Alfre Woodard, isn't as busy these days as she was a few years back.
So remember that name. Viola Davis. She has the potential to become as highly respected as that other Davis from New England, Ruth Elizabeth, better known as Bette.
February 23, 2012
Anatomy of an eBook (2): Untitled Sequel to Save The Best For Last/The Heat of Heat
Now that my vacation is over and I am still awaiting edits for Isn't She Lovely?, my writer's thoughts turn to my work in progress (because there's no time to waste!).
The work in progress is a sequel to my earlier books Save The Best For Last and The Heat of Heat, as mentioned in my earlier post. I was musing over how to structure the story because of the difficult timing, as part of the action occurs between these two books and another part occurs after the second book.
I've decided to keep it all as one book, one labeled Book One and another labeled Book Two. I want the story to be as complete as possible, so it doesn't make sense to split this up. I'll put some kind of notation under the subtitle of each "book" to clarify the timeframe.
With that settled, a little about the plotline. Liv and Brian's relationship is too messy to be resolved neatly, but there needs to be a complete development of a romantic relationship with at least the hint of a happily-ever-after ending, or else readers are going to be ticked off Big Time. With Gen from Save The Best For Last married, and sisters Chantal and Sinclair from The Heat of Heat happily in love, that leaves Cesca from Save The Best For Last. All readers really know about Cesca is that her father is quite wealthy and that she dislikes police officers, so it's a given who she'll find herself attracted to for maximum conflict. The police officer in question has actually already been introduced. For those of you who have read Save The Best For Last, you might recall the handsome young officer who assisted Gen when a mugger knocked her over and transported her to the emergency room for treatment and became suspicious when she didn't seem to know her husband's phone number. This is not a coincidence; the only reason he was introduced was as a love interest for Cesca in a future story. The objective was to do it subtly, so that it's not, like, in the reader's face...and so that if the book bombed and I changed my mind about doing a follow-up it can be forgotten about. As it turns out, these books were both pretty popular, so as far as that future story is concerned, the future is now!
Next time I hope to have a catchy first sentence to share with you.
Anatomy of an eBook (2): Untitled Sequel to Save The Best For Last/The Heat of Heat
Now that my vacation is over and I am still awaiting edits for Isn't She Lovely?, my writer's thoughts turn to my work in progress (because there's no time to waste!).
The work in progress is a sequel to my earlier books Save The Best For Last and The Heat of Heat, as mentioned in my earlier post. I was musing over how to structure the story because of the difficult timing, as part of the action occurs between these two books and another part occurs after the second book.
I've decided to keep it all as one book, one labeled Book One and another labeled Book Two. I want the story to be as complete as possible, so it doesn't make sense to split this up. I'll put some kind of notation under the subtitle of each "book" to clarify the timeframe.
With that settled, a little about the plotline. Liv and Brian's relationship is too messy to be resolved neatly, but there needs to be a complete development of a romantic relationship with at least the hint of a happily-ever-after ending, or else readers are going to be ticked off Big Time. With Gen from Save The Best For Last married, and sisters Chantal and Sinclair from The Heat of Heat happily in love, that leaves Cesca from Save The Best For Last. All readers really know about Cesca is that her father is quite wealthy and that she dislikes police officers, so it's a given who she'll find herself attracted to for maximum conflict. The police officer in question has actually already been introduced. For those of you who have read Save The Best For Last, you might recall the handsome young officer who assisted Gen when a mugger knocked her over and transported her to the emergency room for treatment and became suspicious when she didn't seem to know her husband's phone number. This is not a coincidence; the only reason he was introduced was as a love interest for Cesca in a future story. The objective was to do it subtly, so that it's not, like, in the reader's face...and so that if the book bombed and I changed my mind about doing a follow-up it can be forgotten about. As it turns out, these books were both pretty popular, so as far as that future story is concerned, the future is now!
Next time I hope to have a catchy first sentence to share with you.
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