Julia London's Blog, page 30

Funkytown Monday!

For some reason, I had the song in my head and started singing it (yes, out loud) the other day. My kids both gave me the look (the oh no Mom is so uncool look) and said, in unison, “Um, Mom… no one goes there anymore.”

Hahaha, smartass kids!

The song was a hit in 1980 for a group called Lipps Inc.– their only number one. It was remade in 1986 by an Australian trio, Pseudo Echo. But it made me think, wouldn’t it be fun to take a little trip to Funkytown? Maybe people should go back to Funkytown. Why not?

I imagine Morgan Freeman as Easy Reader (his character on 70s TV show Electric Company) would be Mayor of Funkytown. 

Click here to view the embedded video.

That dude is funky! And we would all be driving funky bright colored cars. 

Who wants the Pinto?

And wearing some easy breezy caftans, or velvet bell bottoms or maybe minis with go-go boots. Or our funky disco finest.

And we would drink Tang and eat fondue and Fruit Float and Twinkies.

 

Good times! No one goes to Funkytown anymore? Think again, kids. Think again.

What would you like to find in Funkytown? Any fond 70s-80s memories? Where would you go if you could visit any other time or place? Did you ever eat Fruit Float? Fond of fondue? Any big plans for the week? 

 

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Grave Expectations

Heaven knows, we need never be ashamed of our wolfish cravings. . . .

Bristly, sensitive, and meat-hungry Pip is a robust young whelp, an orphan born under a full moon. Between hunting escaped convicts alongside zombified soldiers, trying not to become one of the hunted himself, and hiding his hairy hands from the supernaturally beautiful and haughty Estella, whose devilish moods keep him chomping at the bit, Pip is sure he will die penniless or a convict like the rest of his commonly uncommon kind.

But then a mysterious benefactor sends him to London for the finest werewolf education money can buy. In the company of other furry young gentlemen, Pip tempers his violent transformations and devours the secrets of his dark world. When he discovers that his beloved Estella is a slayer of supernatural creatures, trained by the corpse-like vampire Miss Havisham, Pip’s desire for her grows stronger than his midnight hunger for rare fresh beef. But can he risk his hide for a truth that will make Estella his forever—or will she drive one last silver stake through his heart?

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Celebrity Kids

They’re not adults or celebrities in their own right, but they’re learning how to grow up and make mistakes in the public eye, and I do not envy them. Sure it must be nice to have VIP treatment, designer clothes, money, vacations, and access to movies and shows before the general public. But the downsides? Every ugly early moment caught on camera by paparazzi, people deciding who you are before you really know yourself, and trying to learn how to lead a normal life when everything about your life is superstar surreal. No thanks![image error]

Suri Cruise has become a tabloid favorite, and why not? She seems to be playing dress up every day of her life, and now her parents’ split has catapulted her into new detailed scrutiny. In a perfect world, both parents are out to protect her from the public eye. But even if her parents are protective, the tabloids have jumped in and made her front page news.

Suri wants to be with daddy! Mommy refuses to buy Suri a puppy! This girl is going to learn to hire her own team of publicists and play both sides to get what she wants before she’s a teen. If she hasn’t already. But her mother has reportedly enrolled her in Catholic school. Maybe the nuns will set her straight.

My favorite little celebrity cherub is Shiloh Jolie Pitt. That kid has her own style and what seems to be a whole bunch of “I don’t care who you are, I gotta be me” attitude. Let’s hope she can hang on to that. But it won’t be easy since the tabloids are already questioning her choices. The biggest tabloid fodder celebrity kids this week seem to be the Jackson kids. No surprise that you have some wild news coming from a family with children being raised by former child stars and an aging grandmother. After Michael Jackson’s death, Katharine (Michael’s mother) took custody of Michael’s kids, Prince, Paris, and Blanket. But then Katharine went missing, and the grandkids started tweeting theories that she had been kidnapped by her own children, who are contesting Michael’s will (which gives all the money to the kids and their guardian).Turns out Katharine was seeking rest and relaxation in Arizona, where she may or may not have been held against her will.

To make matters more tabloid-friendly, Janet Jackson was taped trying to wrench a phone from Paris Jackson. Slapfest ensued.

The two popular tabloid theories seem to be 1. That MJ’s siblings are money-grubbing wretches trying to wrestle their brother’s fortune away from his kids, or 2. that those children of MJ are major manipulative brats, or 3. The estate executors are up to no good. In the meantime, a cousin has been given temporary custody of the Jackson minor children. My one question is, who flies off to Arizona leaving minor children behind without a word? Shouldn’t she have just said, “Hey kids, Grandma’s going to a spa?”

Maybe I’m just not superstar enough to understand. But there’s a handy Jackson family meltdown guide on Jezebel. 

Who is your favorite celebrity kid? Do you refuse to follow gossip on celebrity kids? Do you think Katharine Jackson was kidnapped, or just needed a break? Does Suri Cruise stand a chance at finding any normalcy? 

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An Actor’s Actor

The first time I saw Robert Duvall as an actor, I had no idea who he was, but since he was playing one of my favorite literary characters, Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird, I expected great things.   And I wasn’t disappointed.  I just hadn’t fallen in love with the actor yet.

But there was more to come.  In  1970, Duvall was the first Major Frank Burns in the MASH.   And in 1979, he gave a memorable turn as consigliore Tom Hagen, in the Godfather (also part 2).   But it was his famous uttering of the line “I love the smell of Napalm in the morning” that brought him fully to my attention in the movie Apocalypse Now.  The role of  Lt.  Col Kilgore gave Duvall his second Academy Award nomination.

From there he went on to receive two more nominations.  One for The Great Santini (Bull Meechum) and a fourth for Tender Mercies (for which he won best actor).  It was Duvall’s role as Mac Sledge in Tender Mercies that first led me to fall in love with him.  His ability to immerse himself into a role so deeply that I forget that there is an actor involved at all, puts him among the best of the best as far as I’m concerned.  He’s gone on, it should be noted, with movies like The Apostle, to amass a total of six academy award nominations not to mention Golden Globes and SAG awards.

But for me the quintessential Duvall role was actually found on the small screen.   Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove is one of the best miniseries ever made as far as I’m concerned (the book was amazing as well).  And part of the reason the televised version was so good, was the casting of Robert Duvall as Gus McCrae.   (Of course Tommy Lee Jones as Captain Call is another reason—and another post )

Duvall, quite simply, was McCrae.  With his wry sense of humor and downhome wisdom, Duvall embodied the character and made me fall in love with him all over again.   Whether he was lecturing PeaEye or talking to Laurie about getting a poke.  From there he went on to capture small screen audiences playing Stalin in the television movie of the same name and Adolph Eichmann in a splendid TV movie, The Man who Captured Eichmann.   And most recently he returned to his western roots, playing yet another cowboy in Broken Trail on AMC.

But I find I am most delighted when he pops up as a secondary character—one we’ll most likely never forget—in movies I hadn’t expected to find him in.  A cabdriver for Steve McQueen in Bullitt, a crew chief in Days of Thunder, and the bad guy in the shootout with John Wayne at the end of Rooster Cogburn.

All in all one of my favorite actors by far.  And like Stanley Tucci (as usual Sherri is inspiring my posts) an actor first and a “star” after the fact.  They make it look so damn easy.

What about you?   Do you have favorite actors like Duvall and Tucci?  Someone who makes you forget you’re watching fiction?  Who reaches off the screen and pulls you deep into the character he or she is portraying?

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Literacy Signing tonight

Look for our very own Julia London at Booth 203

Are you attending the RWA annual conference in Anaheim?  Here’s where you can find the Whine Sister’s Julia London:  BOOTH 203 at the Literacy signing in the convention center, Wednesday, 5-8.  At the Pocket book giveaway Saturday, 12-1:30.  Take a pic and report back if you see her!!!

The rest of us are holding down the home forts!  But look for all of us in Atlanta in 2013!!!

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Travel Must-Haves

You guys know I am in Anaheim for the annual RWA conference this week.  It’s an extra long trip this year, from Saturday to the following Sunday.  I had to pack a lot of clothes.  A LOT.  Since I wear shorts and yoga pants every single day at my job (which is in my house), I am not used to dressing up for meetings every day.  So that took a lot of planning.  I had to figure out shoes, and evening events, and so forth.  I was so proud of myself that I got everything into one bag.  I was so proud that I figured out the shoe situation so I didn’t have to pack another whole bag for that.  I got here, I unpacked smugly, feeling like a veteran traveler.  And then I remember I’d left a banana on the counter at home.  Big deal, right?  I am going to be gone 9 days.  I am a little worried about that banana.

But not nearly as worried as I am about my face.  When I unpacked, I discovered I had forgotten sunscreen.  Sunscreen is probably not a big deal to a lot of people, but I am outside a lot, and I always have been, and my dewy baby-like skin is beginning to show the ravages of time and sun.  It is vitally important to my sense of well being.  If I don’t have it, I think that my face is burning to a crisp.  I get a little obsessed with it.

I also discovered, day one, that I did not bring any real sweaters.  Now, in my defense, in Texas, the last thing I am thinking about in July is sweaters.  But man, I wish I’d brought more than the little white one and flimsy green one, because this hotel is cold. You know what else?  There aren’t a lot of sweaters for sale in July.

I forgot walking shoes.  I was so obsessed with getting the right shoes for the meeting that I didn’t think about walking around Disney shoes.  So now I have to decide which shoes are the least likely to hurt when worn for distances greater than a quarter mile.

I always forget something.  Once, I went somewhere with my sister and forgot to pack undies.  Talk about a crisis.

I brought a lot of clothes and make-up, some of which will never grace my frame or face.  But I didn’t get all my must-haves.  It’s always something.  What are your travel must-haves?  What have you forgotten on trips that drove you nuts? Are you on your way to Anaheim?  If you are, please come see my at booth 203 during the literacy event on Wednesday, 5-8, at the Anaheim Convention Center!

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School days, school days…public school’s a-coming!

Me from my high school days. Found this one tagged as me on Facebook!

Well, it finally happened. Although I love homeschooling and believe strongly in the value of homeschooling, in just one short month, Catherine will be starting 5th grade as (da da DA DUM!) a public school kid!!!

This decision happened really fast (so many of our important family decisions have — the decision to buy our first house, to move back from California) and they all work out great. I’m telling myself that means it was a fabulous decision.

She brought it up. She wants the experience. I hope she doesn’t think it’s like what she sees on iCarly (fun! fun!) and the early seasons of Buffy (we don’t go to class, we live in the library!), sans demons and vampires.

And the truth is, her dad and I think she should have that experience. She sings, plays piano and violin, loves performing, and in the school system she’ll get to try out and go further with all those things. (We’re making her keep up with the Latin, though. I figure we’re doing her a favor in that she can gripe with her friends about how crazy her parents are. Bonding, doncha know).

And, yeah, it’ll be easier on both me and her sister. Catherine’s academic load is such now that it’s a full time job “doing school” with her. At Isabella’s age, it’s not yet, but Isabella needs some extra attention in reading, particularly in reading, and so it’s been hard on me doing the full time teacher thing and the full time writer thing and keeping the house spotless and all the clothes ironed and meals cooked (Oh, wait. I don’t actually do all of that house-related stuff). At any rate, it’s been hard. I absolutely 100% believe in homeschooling … but it was never about avoiding public school, so much as it was about the focus on our kids and their needs. And now, this new adventure is one of her needs. (And if it doesn’t work out — which I really don’t anticipate — we can pull her out).

The school is brand spanking new and just a block away. She can walk with her friends and be just as awed by the new building as they will be. We walked through the construction site the other day (it’s almost done) and It Is Freaking Awesome. I want to go back to school just to do elementary school there!

But, of course, it is public school, and this is my first experience putting my kids in public school. So tell me it’s gonna be great. Or share your horror stories.

I don’t actually have many horror stories. My experience was definitely more iCarly (fun! fun!). No kids being slammed against lockers and stuff like that. But there was still an undercurrent. In junior high, some kids were knifed in the bathroom (in junior freaking high!), but no one ever extorted my lunch money or blackmailed me to do their homework for them. About the worst I can say is that the busses needed shock absorbers and I usually felt ill by the time we arrived. And waiting in the rain…

So there you go. Tell me it’s gonna be great. Or tell me a horror story. I’d love to hear them!

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The Demon You Know

When daughter Allie finds herself knee-deep in demons, Demon Hunter Kate Connor must come to the rescue in this first short story featuring not only Kate, but fourteen year old Allie, too! (This story was originally published in Those Who Hunt Monsters, published by Edge Books in 2011)

Nook

Kindle

Coming soon to other retailers

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In which I blame Julia London for …

Julia London is in so much trouble.

Because, folks, I have things to do. Work to do. Life stuff to do. There are dishes that need cleaning and clothes that need washing.

But last night, instead of just going straight to bed, I told myself I’d start Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. Just one chapter, and then I’d savor the thing over the coming week.

It’s Julia London’s fault, and yet at the same time I should have listened to her. She told me it was compelling. She told me that you wanted to keep reading to see what happened, to see if your guesses are right, to see if she’s (the titular gone girl is dead or alive or abducted by aliens–okay, I don’t really think that last one).

And now here I am only 24% of the way in and I can already tell that it’s going to be way, way, way more a part of my weekend than I’d planned.

So thanks a lot, Julia London. I had things to do. Places to go. Laundry to fold.

Um, laundry to fold…

Yeah….THANKS!

Have you read Gone, Girl? No spoilers, please, but what did you think? What other Must.Keep.Turning.Pages books have you read recently?

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My Favorite Actor (Lately)

Stanley Tucci, love him. I’ve appreciated his work for a while now.

He’s versatile and believable in every role I’ve seen him in, whether he’s playing a stylist, or a futuristic TV host, a serial killer/pedophile, a humble and loving father next door– he nails every role. And as I watch him, I begin to forget Stanley Tucci and think only of the character he portrays.

Paul Child in Julie and Julia, Emma Stone’s dad in Easy A, Nigel in The Devil Wears Prada,

George Harvey in The Lovely Bones,

Caesar Flickerman in The Hunger Games,

I even watched Burlesque with Cher and Christina Aguilera because he was in it. I will watch anything for Stanley Tucci! He’s an Actor, with a capital A and without the ego. And he’s handsome, too. I think so. He doesn’t usually play the leading man, but why not? He could. He could do anything.

In fact, he wrote a cookbook. How’s that for versatile? 

I’ve always loved Stanley Tucci, but he moved up in my esteem when he survived an embarrassing personal moment on TV. After he played young Susie Salmon’s killer in the Lovely Bones, Elisabeth Hasselbeck on The View asked Stanley if his wife had seen his eerie portrayal. Stanley simply answered no, and changed the subject. But in fact, his wife Kate had died of breast cancer a few month’s earlier. My heart went out to him. 

But I was equally touched to hear that he recently became engaged to Devil Wears Prada co-star Emily Blunt’s sister, Felicity Blunt, a literary agent in London. Love!  There’s a role for Stanley in any book of mine that ever becomes a movie. Eldridge in The Scoundrel’s Vow, Uncle Pat in Once Wicked, Hades in To Hell with Love and Naughty and Nice (leading man!), Mr. Bokorhurst in Jane Slayre (my favorite), and Matthew Pocket, Pip’s werewolf mentor, in Grave Expectations.

I also happen to think he would make an excellent Rand, Amy’s father, in Gone Girl. This idea is, in fact, what led me to blog about Stanley Tucci today. I can’t get that book off my mind. Reese Witherspoon is producing the movie. I can only guess she plans to star. I would cast Mark Ruffalo as Nick to Reese’s Amy. And Blythe Danner as Amy’s mother. If you’re looking for a taut summer thriller, and you’ve already read everything by Dee Davis, pick up Gone Girl.

Who is your favorite actor? An actor so good, you would watch anything he’s in? Do you ever dream cast your favorite books? 

 

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