• Books

    My top 10 favs of 2014: A year spent reading and watching some truly intriguing stories

    This year, I consumed 48 books, 37 movies and numerous TV programs. Herein are my favorites.

    (Note: Not all were released during the past 365 days.)

    MY FAVORITE BOOKS
     

    1. “One Summer: America, 1927” by Bill Bryson
    2. “The Golem and the Jinni” by Helene Wecker
    3. “Coming of Age: The Story of Our Century by Those Who’ve Lived It by Studs Terkel
    4. “The Yoga Store Murder: The Shocking True Account of the Lululemon Athletica Killing” by Dan Morse
    5. “Mr. Mercedes” by Stephen King
    6. “Altitude Sickness” by Litsa Dremousis
    7. “Revival” by Stephen King
    8. “As You Wish” by Cary Elwes
    9. “I Dare Me: How I Rebooted and Recharged My Life by Doing Something New Every Day” by Lu Ann Cahn
    10. “Blackbirds” by Chuck Wendig

    (Honorable mentions: “Thank You, Mr. President: A White House Notebook” by A. Merriman Smith, “Love Life” by Rob Lowe, “City Room” by Arthur Gelb, “Lexicon” by Max Berry, “Still Foolin’ ‘Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys” by Billy Crystal, “10,000 Steps Blueprint – The Daily Walking Habit For Healthy Weight Loss and Lifelong Fitness” by S.J. Scott, and “Die Trying” by Lee Child)

    MY FAVORITE TV SHOWS
     

    1. Supernatural
    2. Leverage
    3. Person of Interest
    4. The Americans
    5. The Good Wife
    6. Grimm
    7. White Collar
    8. CSI: NY
    9. The Following
    10. House of Cards

    (Honorable mentions: NCIS, Castle, Haven, Chuck, Forever, Once Upon A Time, Sleepy Hollow, Covert Affairs and Agents of Shield)

     

    MY FAVORITE MOVIES
     

    1. About Time
    2. That Guy…Who Was In That Thing
    3. Guardians of the Galaxy
    4. John Wick
    5. The Impossible
    6. The Hundred-Foot Journey
    7. Chef
    8. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
    9. Saving Mr. Banks
    10. Page One

    (Honorable mentions: The Monuments Men, Interstellar, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, Dracula: Untold, Maleficent and Edge of Tomorrow)

  • Oh Robin Williams, how you made us laugh… and cry

    Like millions of fans, I loved Robin Williams. I enjoyed his quick wit and no-holds-barred brand of comedy. I greatly admired his prolific career and Oscar-winning acting talent. Most of all, I adored his generous spirit. He touched so many lives in so many ways. I just can’t believe he’s gone.

    “What Dreams May Come”
    “Dead Poets Society”
    “The World According To Garp”
    “The Bird Cage”
    “Aladdin”
    “Dead Again”
    “Good Will Hunting”
    “Jumanji”
    “Awakenings”
    “Good Morning, Vietnam”
    “Mrs. Doubtfire”
    “FernGully”
    “Hamlet”

    These were the Robin Williams films that made me laugh… and cry. Over the years, his work imprinted upon me, creating a tapestry of people and places and stories and memories that remain evident in the person I am today. While I’m tempted to hold a movie marathon in honor of this cinematic legend, I know that if I did so now, there would be too many tears.

    Perhaps someday.

    Instead, I shall remember how often — and lovingly — Robin Williams spoke of his children: Zelda, Cody and Zachary. And how his wife Susan found the strength to give a beautiful and heartfelt statement so soon after losing her best friend.

    I’ll think back to the time Robin Williams helped save his friend’s life. After actor Christopher Reeve was left paralyzed by a horrible horse-riding accident in 1995, he seriously pondered pulling the plug. It was then that Williams showed up at the hospital, dressed as a doctor, and did what he did best; he made his friend laugh (no easy task in such a dire moment). Reeve later told Barbara Walters, “I knew then: If I could laugh, I could live.”

    I’ll recall Robin Williams’ many comedy specials, interviews and performances on television. These appearances, especially the one on “Inside the Actor’s Studio,” made me laugh until my cheeks hurt and my belly ached.

    I’ll look back on the two times I saw Robin Williams live, once during a fascinating conversation with Lillian Ross at The New Yorker Festival, and once during a promotional event for “Man of the Year.” In both cases, I marveled at his genius.

    I’ll search through my hard drive to find the Audible recordings Robin Williams created in the early oughts, years before podcasts were en vogue. I particularly enjoyed the chats he did with Oliver Sacks, Walter Cronkite and Harlan Ellison.

    I’ll pay tribute to his tireless efforts to raise money and spirits for charitable organizations like Comic Relief, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, the LiveStrong Foundation and the USO. Why, to many in the service, he was the Bob Hope of their generation.

    I’ll reminisce about how Robin Williams’ performance in “Dead Poets Society” inspired me to launch a similar organization at my university. Late at night, our small band of literati would gather in the dark and read poetry by candlelight. I later wed my soulmate near a poet’s grave.

    Lastly, I’ll remind myself of how much Robin Williams loved to make people laugh. Ultimately, that should be his legacy.

  • Actress

    There are only 3 ages for women in Hollywood: Babe, District Attorney and Driving Miss Daisy

    The process of choosing a favorite actress was much more difficult than selecting a winner in the actor category. It’s not that women are less talented. Far from it. It’s just that there are few great roles available to them (see above quote by Goldie Hawn).

    For example, according to Boxoffice.com, the biggest movies that played in theaters this weekend were:

    * “Transformers: Age of Extinction” (mostly male cast, geared toward male audience)

    * “22 Jump Street” (mostly male cast, geared toward male audience)

    * “How To Train Your Dragon 2” (mostly male cast, geared toward children)

    * “Think Like a Man Too” (mostly male cast, geared toward mixed audience)

    * “Maleficent” (woman lede, back story of a fairy tale villain which includes a metaphorical rape scene)

    In most Hollywood films, women are frequently relegated to roles that serve men: prostitutes, secretaries, strippers, maids, slaves, daughters to marry off, the token girlfriend, crime victims, etc. As such, talented actresses only have the opportunity to really shine in romantic comedies (which I love) or in films that are created/written/directed by other women. This situation is incredibly frustrating for the brilliantly skilled women working in the business, but also for women like me, who enjoy going to movies and seeing strong male and female characters on screen.

    So to choose just one favorite movie actress would be impossible. I can however, urge you to seek out films featuring performances by: Glenn Close, Emma Thompson, Meryl Streep, Kate Winslet, Cate Blanchett, Julia Roberts, Viola Davis, Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, Meg Ryan, Margo Martindale, Kathy Bates, Lois Smith, Allison Janney, Julianne Moore, Jane Lynch, Jodie Foster, Susan Sarandon, Halle Berry, Helen Hunt, Stockard Channing, Dianne Wiest, Christine Baranski and Sandra Bullock.

    (Photo by YunYulia.)

  • I am not going to New York to meet some woman who could be a crazy, sick lunatic! Didn’t you see ‘Fatal Attraction’?

    Being such a huge movie fan, it took some time to select my favorite film actor. There are so many talented thespians out there, yet few have the ability to consistently put my bum in a movie theatre seat based solely on the fact that his is in a picture.

    However, after much thought and a lot of searching on IMDb, I realized that my favorite actor is the great Tom Hanks. He’s brilliantly talented, versatile, prolific and, of course, (I’m told) a very nice guy.

    Now I know some people like Tom Hanks for his early comedies while others prefer his later dramatic efforts. But I have enjoyed just about every movie he’s worked on. These are my personal favorites:

    1. Sleepless in Seattle
    2. A League of Their Own
    3. Apollo 13
    4. Philadelphia
    5. You’ve Got Mail
    6. That Thing You Do!
    7. Toy Story
    8. The Terminal
    9. Catch Me If You Can
    10. The Polar Express

    (Awesome honorable mentions: Charlie Wilson’s War, Splash, Big, The Green Mile, Saving Private Ryan and Cast Away)

    What’s your favorite Tom Hanks flick?

  • dream doorway

    Weekend fun and dreams come true

    Today was a pretty good day. It was a weekend, of course, which meant I got to hang out with M, the love of my life. Few things are more enjoyable than that. We spent several hours in bed, drove down to Massachusetts and ate barbecue, heard the news that one of our closest friends had gotten engaged (woo hoo!), saw a double-feature at the movies then drove home under a full vanilla moon.

    Due to our schedules, I rarely have the opportunity to sleep with my husband. And when I do, I generally fall asleep faster and rest more fully. Today, I didn’t sleep for very long, but the dreams were tasty. One involved going to a Dunkin Donuts and ordering an entire box. The dream version of me stood in front of a fully-stocked counter of treats and picked out all the ones I wanted to try. Before I could take the first bite, however, I woke up.

    On the way home from the movies, we stopped by a DD for coffee. Lo and behold, the Munchkin racks were newly stocked (a rare occurrence late at night), so I ordered a small box just for the hell of it. And thus, in the course of just 12 short hours, I made a dream came true.

    (Photo by Palto)