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Showing posts with label actors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label actors. Show all posts

Monday, 23 June 2014

Me in a Nutshell

Posted on 05:18 by retino

* Sometimes I write sappy love scenes just for fun.
*When I was little I used to get up early in the morning and write at my desk with a legit feather pen and ink.
*Besides home, Colonial Williamsburg is my favorite place in the world.
* Pretty things make me happy.
* I think Dr. Mike and Sully are the most romantic couple in television history.
* On that note, I know more about Jane Seymour than most people I'm related to. I've read one of her books and seen her A&E biography about seven times.
* I don't have most of what I wrote as a child, to my dismay-- I guess at some point I must have decided it wasn't any good and got rid of it, but now I really wish I hadn't. :-(
* Mark Knopfler's songs are food for the soul.
* When I was about eleven or so I thought National Treasure was the greatest movie ever made, and my favorite character was totally Ian.
* My family didn't get a computer until I was twelve.
* When I was little I wanted to be a detective like Nancy Drew.
* I've seen the Barbie Rapunzel movie probably something close to 25 times (no joke) and can still quote it almost word for word.
* I write letters with an old-fashioned nib pen and ink.
* I've been officially engaged to John-boy Walton since the age of thirteen.
* Old photographs, cemeteries, old buildings, and historical artifacts are just some of the many things that give me inspiration.
* John Steinbeck's East of Eden is the standard of excellence by which all other literary works are measured of their value.
* East of Eden is also the best and most accurate adaptation of a book that I've seen-- it ties with True Grit and Lonesome Dove.
* Old, gritty westerns are my cup of tea-- or should I say, coffee. I don't drink coffee, but it sounds more western than tea.
* I'd rather watch Lonesome Dove all in one sitting than Pride and Prejudice '95. It goes without saying that I've done both. (Not recommended, btw, unless you're sick and have nothing better to do.)
* On that note, I'd rather watch Lonesome Dove than Pride and Prejudice, period. Please don't shoot me.
* The best roles in musicals are usually the male ones. One of my dreams is to play Jean Valjean.
* I think Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler are perfect for each other.
* Up until I was nine or ten, I wore my mother's red bonnet that my Grandma made for her as a little girl everywhere I went and stuck my tongue out at people who made fun of me.
* I always go completely nuts whenever a new Christian Book Distributors catalog comes in the mail. You can find me sprawled out on the living room floor with the catalog and a pen, circling all the books I want to read. :-)
* I sing Les Mis in its entirety, switching from part to part, all around the house on a daily basis.
* One of the best ways to vent one's feelings is to go to the piano and pound out 'The Point of No Return'. Singing it while playing, loudly, is even better.
* I want to go to Highclere Castle and see the sets of Downton Abbey.
* I like some classical music, but in general it bores me.
* I can't decide if John and Abigail Adams are my favorite historical couple or if William and Barbara Wilberforce are. You might come back here one day and see the pictures of them on my sidebar switched.
* Benedict Cumberbatch is William Pitt to me, not Sherlock Holmes. (Although please understand, I would certainly not be opposed to seeing him as Sherlock Holmes.)
* I'm highly sensitive to gluten and dairy, which makes life very difficult sometimes. Very.
* I wish I could speak Gaelic, but apparently it's so hard to learn that everyone who tries gives up.
* One of my dreams is to be in Celtic Woman someday. Then I'd HAVE to learn Gaelic.
* I don't like superhero movies. The real heroes are normal folks who do what's right and stand up against what's wrong, without all the flying around and blowing up buildings and wrecking perfectly good vehicles. Atticus Finch is much more of a hero than Captain America. (Oh boy, am I ever in for it now.)
* I love books and movies about lawyers and legal cases. They fascinate me.
* There never has been and never will be anyone quite like Clark Gable.
* I would have fit in more one hundred years ago than I do now.
* I cry over fictional characters. Newt Dobbs. SOBBBBB.
* Lynn Austin's books are some of my fondest companions. Her characters are real to me: I feel with them, laugh with them, cry with them.
* The dictionary and I have a very pleasant and longstanding relationship.
* The thesaurus is my best friend when I'm writing.
* Sometimes I start to talk like Dickens characters without realizing it.
* Nobody has ever been more perfectly cast than Robert Duvall as Augustus McCrae.
* My childhood was completely unlike that of most people I know. I grew up playing barefoot in the creek and the woods, writing stories, playing Barbies and acting out dramatic stories, and listening to Mark Knopfler. I told you I would have fit in more 100 years ago. ;-P
* I have a hard time sitting still and being quiet for long periods of time, and to be honest, church is sometimes a challenge.
* If there's anyone who brings out the fangirl in me, it's John Schneider.
* I've seen every episode of Christy at least seven times.
* Quaint, old-fashioned little towns, especially by water, are some of my favorite places to visit.
* There is hardly ever a time when I'm not singing.
* I laugh. A lot.
* No one makes me laugh like my family.
* I love everything western, but I live about as far east as you can get in the U.S.
* I could go on and on, but I think I'll stop now. : )

(Post idea from Michaela)


~Emma
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Friday, 13 June 2014

Period Drama Actors Game ~ Answers!

Posted on 06:51 by retino
Do I even need an excuse for using this? Good, 'cuz I don't have one. :-)

  The answers to last week's game! I hope y'all liked it. My sister said it was confusing....but oh well. Thank you for playing ladies! :-)

#1

Actor: David Bamber
Period drama 1: Pride and Prejudice (1995)
Character name: Mr. Collins
Period drama 2: Daniel Deronda (2002)
Character name: Mr. Lush
 
 
#2


Actor: Alan Cumming
Period drama 1: Emma (1996)
Character name: Mr. Elton
Period drama 2: Nicholas Nickleby (2002)
Character name: Mr. Folair
 
#3


Actor: Emily Blunt
Period drama 1: Agatha Christie's Poirot: Death on the Nile
Character name: Linnet Doyle
Period drama 2: The Young Victoria (2008)
Character name: Queen Victoria
 
 
#4


Actor: Anne Hathaway
Period drama 1: Alice in Wonderland (2008)
Character name: White Queen
Period drama 2: Becoming Jane (2007)
Character name: Jane Austen
 
 
#5


Actor: Tom Courtenay
Period drama 1: Nicholas Nickleby (2002)
Character name: Newman Noggs
Period drama 2: Little Dorrit (2008)
Character name: William Dorrit
 
 
#6

Actor: Romola Garai
Period drama 1: Angel (2009)
Character name: Angel Deverell
Period drama 2: Nicholas Nickleby (2002)
Character name: Kate Nickleby
 
 
#7

Actor: Johdi May
Period drama 1: Daniel Deronda (2002)
Character name: Mirah Lapidoth
Period drama 2: Emma (2009)
Character name: Anne Taylor Weston
 
 
#8

Actor: Tom Wilkinson
Period drama 1: Martin Chuzzlewit (1994)
Character name: Seth Pecksniff
Period drama 2: The Patriot (2000)
Character name: General Charles Cornwallis
 
 
#9
 
Actor: Timothy Spall
Period drama 1: Nicholas Nickleby (2002)
Character name: Charles Cherryble
Period drama 2: A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)
Character name: Mr. Poe
(This last one is a bit of a stretch, since it's not really a period drama. Although I suppose it could be considered one, since there's absolutely no way of determining what era it takes place in.)
 
#10
 
Actor: Justine Waddell
Period drama 1: Great Expectations (1998)
Character name: Estella Havisham
Period drama 2: Wives and Daughters (1999)
Character name: Molly Gibson
 
#11
 
Actor: Kate Winslet
Period drama 1: Sense and Sensibility (1995)
Character name: Marianne Dashwood
Period drama 2: Finding Neverland (2004)
Character name: Sylvia Llewelyn-Davies
 
 
#12
 
 
Actor: Elizabeth Spriggs
Period drama 1: Martin Chuzzlewit (1994)
Character name: Mrs. Gamp
Period drama 2: Sense and Sensibility (1995)
Character name: Mrs. Jennings
 
 
#13
 
Actor: Iain Glen
Period drama 1: Wives and Daughters (1999)
Character name: Mr. Preston
Period drama 2: Downton Abbey, season 2
Character name: Sir Richard Carlisle
 
 
#14
I'm always saving him for last, aren't I?
Actor: Paul McGann
Period drama 1: Horatio Hornblower
Character name: 2nd Lt. William Bush
Period drama 2: Our Mutual Friend (1998)
Character name: Eugene Wrayburn
 
 
Bonus Question: Five of these actors are all in one period drama together. What is the movie and who are the five actors?
 
(Chances are you've figured this out already by looking at the answers.) ;-P
 
Period drama: (1 point)
Nicholas Nickleby (2002)
 
Actors: (1 point)
Alan Cumming (Mr. Folair)
Anne Hathaway (Madeline Bray)
Tom Courtenay (Newman Noggs)
Romola Garai (Kate Nickleby)
Timothy Spall (Charles Cherryble)
 
 
~*~*~*~*~
 
Players' Scores
Sadie ~ 67 points
Miss Dashwood ~ 51 points
Naomi ~ 43 points
Birdie ~ 40 points
Hamlette ~ 18 points
 
 
Well done everyone!
 

 

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Friday, 6 June 2014

Period Drama Actors Game

Posted on 04:29 by retino
Just 'cuz I'm a crazy fan and I couldn't resist. ;-P

   Well, my readers, I have come up with a new game for this week! Huzzah! This is kind of a spin on a few different games I've seen around. Below are pictures of 14 different actors from two period dramas each. To play, just guess the name of the actor and what two period dramas the pictures are from. One point for each correctly guessed actor's name, one for each period drama, and one for guessing each characters' name. (Wow, that's a lot of guessing, isn't it?) Now, that shouldn't be too confusing. ;-) I hope you like this game!

 (Sorry if some of the pictures are a little blurry.)

#1


Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
(Period drama 1 meaning the picture on the left, and 2 meaning the one on the right. This is, of course, assuming that we all read left to right-- and if you don't, that's kind of weird.)
 
#2


Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#3
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#4
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#5
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#6
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#7
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#8
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#9
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#10
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#11
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#12
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#13
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 
#14
 
Actor:
Period drama 1:
Character name:
Period drama 2:
Character name:
 
 Bonus Question: Five of these actors are all in one period drama together. What is the movie and who are the five actors?
 
~*~*~*~
Happy guessing! ;-) Answers will be posted next Friday.
 
 

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Thursday, 1 May 2014

It's been awhile! :-)

Posted on 10:34 by retino

My favorite flowers: violets


Spring has finally come to my little valley! :-)

 Hello, my lovelies! Wow, it seems like it's been an age since I've blogged. Or at least, this has been a longer absence than usual. Truth be told, a lot has happened in the past month and I haven't had a whole lot of time for blogging (or else I just haven't felt like it), but hopefully I'll be getting back to posting regularly.


   I hope you all had a really wonderful Easter holiday! Unfortunately I got sick the week of Easter and so I spent Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Saturday in bed and was just well enough to go to church with my family. I couldn't sing in the choir, or sing the song my sisters and I had prepared, :( which was really disappointing, but I'm thankful I was able to go. I've had a nasty cold that lasted quite a while (and DEFINITELY outstayed its welcome, *ahem*) but thankfully I'm much better now, and let's hope it stays that way. : ) Whenever I'm sick for a while it's always difficult to get back into the saddle and back into the routine of things, so that took awhile, but I think I'm finally rolling again. :-)

   I watched so much television in those three days I was sick, it's really quite embarrassing. Two episodes of Lonesome Dove, an entire season of Downton Abbey, Pride and Prejudice '95, and the Felicity movie, which did my soul much good. That movie is a form of awesomeness. Sure, it's got cheesy parts (hello, it's an American Girl movie), but that doesn't matter because it's just so good. Food for the soul, my friends. 1775 Virginia, fiddle music, John Schneider-- what's not to love??? :-)

   Also, on Friday when my mom and sisters went out shopping (without me*sniffle*), my sweet sister Sadie bought Celtic Woman's newest concert DVD to cheer me up, and cheer me up it did. There's nothing like Lisa Lambe's voice to lift a person's spirits when they're in the depths of despair. And Chloe Agnew has the most adorable Irish accent ever, period.
  Of course, seeing them perform was delightful, but it's just not quite the same without Lisa Kelley. It's really a pity she left the group. : ( However, I really liked seeing their newest member, Susan McFadden, and she's now one of my favorites as well. She has an amazing voice, and I'm beginning to like her rendition of Caledonia just as much as Lisa's.


   Isn't her accent adorable? :-) If I had an accent like that, I'd never shut up. Actually, I rarely do anyway as it is.

   So anyways, besides being sick, a lot of exciting things have happened. One of them being April 12th, when I went to a concert with my dad. But not just any concert.....



    I went to see Kevin Costner and his band, Modern West.  No, I am not kidding. I actually went to see THE Kevin Costner.

   Now, before you come to any rapid conclusions, I am not one of those crazy, fawning Kevin Costner fans.  (Although that would accurately describe the two ladies who sat next to us, as well as most everyone else in the room.) First of all, he's before my time, and second of all, I've only seen him in one movie (Dances With Wolves) and I was not over-the-moon impressed with him in that (although I know a lot of people absolutely ADORE that movie, so if you're one of them and you think Kevin Costner's just the greatest, I apologize, but I just do not share your sentiments.) Anyway. I wasn't even aware that Kevin Costner had a band until I heard about the concert on the radio, and since it was so near us, and after all, he IS a movie star, I thought it would be very interesting to go. My Daddy said he would go with me, and fortunately we were able to find some not-too-ridiculously-expensive-tickets, and we went.

  Apparently not many people know that Kevin Costner is a country singer now, 'cause when I told my cousin I was going to see him, he said, "What does he do?" I said, "He sings". And my cousins said, "You've got to be kidding me."   :-P





the theater
    But yes, Kevin Costner does sing. He's not an amazing singer, by any stretch of the imagination, but he can hold his own and he's a pretty good performer, even if he's not an outstanding musician. But it wasn't really about him being a musician, it was basically just about him being Kevin Costner. As my daddy said, "It's all about Kevin."
   He had a guitar strapped around him, but he didn't really play it very much, and Daddy said he stayed on a D-chord the entire evening, so we think it was just for looks. Daddy also said that he better not quit his day job. :-P


Rock 'n roll meets country meets Kevin Costner. :-P



   It was like nothing else I've ever been to, let's just put it that way. :-P




   His daughter Lily opened the concert with five songs, which was a delightful surprise because I had previously heard some of her songs and had wished she would be at the concert, so I was super excited when she walked out on stage! Her part of the concert was my favorite. There was no fanfare, no fuss, just a polite applause when she introduced herself. I really enjoyed her performance and I'm now a big fan of hers. She sings a lot of ballads and folk-ish songs, which is right up my canyon. And, unlike her father, she actually played her guitar, and the harmonica too. :-)


   After Lily sang, there was a short break while they set the stage for the band, and then they played a lot of movie clips from all Kevin Costner's movies, mostly of him shooting people and doing daring stunts, and it ended with the "looks like a suicide" scene from Dances With Wolves. Then he came in near the back of the audience and walked up the aisle to the stage (the opposite side of the theater from where we were sitting, of course-- it would be that way :-P) and the audience went completely wild. Everyone was cheering and clapping and going completely nuts.


   Later on in the concert, Lily came back out and sang a song with her dad, which was very sweet. That was definitely one of the highlights of the evening.

Lily and dad singing 'Let Me Be the One'


   At the end of the concert, after Kevin Costner had already left the stage, he came back out and sang "Mr. Tambourine Man" and everyone stood up, so I did too. :-) It was really funny because he said he wasn't sure if he remembered all the words, so right before the last verse he stopped to say something, and then he said, "I'm just stalling because I'm trying to remember the words." :-P Haha.


   On April 15th, my mom took Sadie and I to see the Moscow Festival Ballet perform Swan Lake, which was absolutely amazingly awesomeness. PERFECTION, people. Watching them made me just a little bit blue, since I know I will probably never dance like that, but it was also very inspiring to me as a dancer. Also, last week I got new pointe shoes and two leotards, and of course we all know there's nothing like a new leotard to get a person psyched. : )


Trying to get a good picture of my shirt :-P

   My dance recital is coming up in less than a month!!! : ) I'm really super excited for this year, since I am one of the three principles in Les Sylphides and I'm also performing the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy from The Nutcracker (which has come such a long, long way from what it was when I performed it in January! *shudders*)
 


     April has been a month of music, flowers, long walks in the creek, Les Miserables, dreams, and lessons learned. I've been learning (or maybe just realizing again) that most often it's the little things in life that mean the most, to ourselves and what we do for others. Little, almost seemingly insignificant kindnesses are often the most appreciated, and it really doesn't take much effort!

    One thing I've learned to appreciate more lately is imagination. It's one of the best things ever, and it's extremely underrated these days. Imagination is a precious gift from God, and with it I can go anywhere, do anything. I can stand on the deck of the Indefatigable with Horatio and Archie, I can dine with the Crawleys at Downton Abbey, I can defend Geyser's Hill with John Geyser. I can track down outlaws in the Choctaw Nation with Mattie Ross, I can help the people of Cutter Gap with Christy Huddleston, and I can dance with Mr. Knightley at the Hartifled ball. Imagination makes life so much brighter, and everything more interesting. Imagination is not dead: not yet, anyway, but I think maybe it needs a little revival. So anyway, those are my thoughtful musings of the day. : )



   So how are you all, my dear readers? I've missed you these past few weeks! I hope you're all enjoying spring and all it brings. (Hey that, rhymed. You see, I'm a bit of a poet, and you did not know it.:-P) Like I said, hopefully I will not be so scarce around here in the future, and I have some posts planned (and even a blog series, but I'm still sorting it out in my head). And once again, thank you all so much for following and reading what I write here-- it really means a lot to me, and this blog would definitely not be what it is if it weren't for all of you. So thanks! :-)

~*~*~*~*~


   Oh yes, and I have an announcement! My darling sister Sadie, my dearest friend Naomi and I have started a Downton Abbey Fan Blog! We're all desperate fans (we love it madly, as Rose would say), and so we've made a blog dedicated expressly to writing about the show, the period, the actors, and anything having to do with it. Naomi and Sadie have already written some very diverting posts, and we'd love it if you'd stop by!



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