Happy New Year from Both Coasts

Baltimore's Inner Harbor

Dear Readers: Vic lives on the East Coast and Laurel Ann lives on the West Coast.
Happy New Year and thank you for visiting us and leaving your welcome comments.
Have a safe and happy evening.
Seattle


Jane Austen Memorabilia at the Morgan Library Gift Shop

Janeites who are lucky enough to live within a day's drive of New York City and the exhibit at the J. Pierpont Morgan Library, and who have yet to see A Woman's Wit: Jane Austen's Life and Legacy, have until March 14, 2010 to make the trek. My visit was well worth while, and I shall be writing about my experience all next week. Meanwhile, you can visit the exhibit vicariously by clicking on this link. My only disappointment? No catalogue about the exhibit was for sale. While the online links are extensive, much of the fascinating text from the exhibit is missing. Perhaps the information will be added after A Woman's Wit has run its course.

The gift shop did have this merchandise for sale. The most surprising offerings were the mash up novels, which I feel have no place in a museum gift shop. A gag or humor shop, perhaps, but not among such August company.







Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

Mark Strong – the baddie in Sherlock Holmes

The new film Sherlock Holmes opened in the US on December 25th. After years of classic adaptations of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s cerebral sleuth and his side-kick Dr. Watson on Masterpiece Theater and on the big screen, the movie was not what I expected. In a nutshell, this Holmes bare-knuckle boxes like Tom Lefroy, forgets to bath and shave, and his cluttered flat at 221B Baker Street looks like a cross between the Old Curiosity Shop in the Dickens classic and Dr. Jekyll’s laboratory after an explosion.

Anyone who has not read Conan Doyle or seen any of the traditional adaptations might like this film. Visually it is stunning. Victorian London never looked so disparagingly seedy. However, the costume designer should know better than to put a lady in a shocking pink satin sharmuse gown in the middle of the day, but I was probably the only person in the state of Washington to notice this faux pas. Primarily the challenge lies in the original book vs. the Hollywoodization syndrome that we have also experienced with Jane Austen’s novels. Both have merit, but not in comparison.

Many of the performances were outstanding. Robert Downey, Jr. as Holmes and Jude Law as Watson make an interesting if not odd pairing and James Fox in a cameo as Sir Thomas Rotheram added old school class in a sea of younger talent. The baddie of the film, Lord Blackwood, portrayed by Mark Strong steals the film. Austen movie buffs will remember that he played an angry Mr. Knightley to Kate Beckinsale’s pert Emma Woodhouse in the 1996 television adaption of Jane Austen’s novel Emma by Andrew Davies. His interpretation of Austen's character is quite unique showing a disapproving side of Mr. Knightley that bordered on bad tempered during the dressing down scene at Box Hill. One wonders out loud if he loved Emma less, would he have been able to talk about it more nicely? Doubtful. Who would have guessed that his surly Knightley was a foreshadowing of a future career as villains? Maybe Miss Woodhouse?

A classically trained actor, Strong has really come into his own lately playing villains. He was in the recently released The Young Victoria, and will be seen as Sir Godfrey next year in Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood with Russell Crow and Mathew Macfadyen. It will be interesting to see what other baddies he chooses, and if we will ever see him as a romantic lead again. Hope so.

Read an interview of Mark Strong on his performance in Sherlock Holmes and his blossoming baddie career.

Cheers, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Jane Austen Movie Throwdown


This January PBS Masterpiece Classic will feature the new adaptation of Emma, the latest in a long line of recent Jane Austen novel adaptations to film. Which of her novels still leaves you wishing for another film adaptation? In other words:
Which novel has been given short shrift in cinematic form?

The Young Victoria groundswell

The Young Victoria was released in the US in limited release on 18th of December. Unfortunately, I and a mob of Anglophiles attempted to see it yeasterday in Seattle without success.

With so many new movies now released on Christmas day, it has become an event to go to the theater with the family and friends. I have not seen so many people in line for a movie since Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999) release many years ago. What a great surprise for a bonnet drama to garner such crowds. I must continue to be contented with the movie trailers until such time I actually can see the real thing.

I will attempt a second showing next week. I hope some of our readers actually got to see The Young Victoria, which has an incredible cast of former Austen actors (Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Jim Broadbent, Mark Strong, Harriet Walter and Morven Christie) outstanding production values and glowing reviews. Emily Blunt has been nomed for a Golden Globe and is expected to also be nominated for an Oscar. Bravo to all involved in this stellar production. Here's the trailer to tide you over until you can see it.

Cheers, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Regency World in 3-D

DAZ 3D is a fascinating site for people who are interested in creating 3-D art and animation. The site is filled with 3-D models and sets for purchase. The Regency gentleman is a bit plastic looking, but the site is fascinating nevertheless. There are models for men, women, children, exteriors, interiors - you name it. These images were pulled from the site:

Christopher for Regency

Hat and cane

Baroque Grandeur Interior

Sensibility Expansion Pack

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

Wishing you a wonderful holiday this season


Laurel Ann and Vic extend to you a safe and happy holiday. We thank you for being our loyal readers and look forward to writing about Jane in the New Year.

Happy Ever Afters: An Irish Comedy

Sally Hawkins and Tom Riley are two actors Jane Austen fans know well. Sally played Anne Elliot in 2007’s Persuasion and Tom Riley recently did a turn as Mr. Wickham in Lost in Austen. Both play the lead in a new Irish comedy, Happy Ever Afters’, scheduled to open after Christmas in Ireland.



The plot is goofy and improbable: Two wedding parties are double-booked and end up at the same reception venue. The bride from one wedding and groom from the other wedding realize they made a mistake in marrying their spouses as they fall for each other. Chaos ensues in what is described as an enjoyable slapstick film.


First-time director Stephen Burke chose two British actors to play Irishmen. Tom Riley described how he learned to speak with an Irish accent, which sounds like a comedy in itself:

“When I came on set the first day everyone was saying ‘Ok, that is too Dublin, nobody is going to understand you outside of Ireland’ and then there was ‘Can you sound more English?’. Now an English person doing an Irish accent trying to sound more English… well, I don’t know how successful I was. And especially because we were on a set where there are people from Galway, Cork and Northern Ireland and everyone is giving you their opinion. So I just decided to keep everything as neutral as possible and hopefully it’s ok, we’ll see how people respond.”

Learn more about the film in this article: Marrying Irish Humour & Filmmaking Talent, ‘Happy Ever Afters’ in Cinemas Dec 26

And read a review in Cinametic Concerns

Happy Ever Afters’ will be released in Irish cinemas on Saturday, December 26th. I can’t wait until it hits the U.S.



Harriet Walter Reflects on Jane Austen

The Morgan Library's website features a film by Harriet Walter, who reflects on Jane Austen: "I think one of the reasons people love Jane Austen is that she's quite wicked, but she's not really viciously cruel. She's sympathetic towards the people she's laughing at."

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

Reviews for Jane Bites Back

A Jane Austen spinoff that doesn't suck? Surely not polite language, however Nancy Knight, a Baltimore Sun reviewer, rather likes this book. Click here to read her short review.

Jane Austen Unscripted - An Improv Play

I rather like the idea of attending a play in which the assembled cast simply spoke their parts Jane Austen style without a clue as to what would come next. The play: Jane Austen Unscripted. The setting: Impro Theatre.

"The cast (at any given performance, one will see only eight or nine of the fifteen performers) asked the audience what topic they would like to have for the play’s opening conversation. Suggestions included vampires, the weather, and shoes.. .What transpired somewhat resembled Pride and Prejudice with a touch of Mansfield Park. If you get your Jane Austen plots mixed up, you’re not alone. That’s the whole idea of this unscripted crazy show."

The show ended with almost everyone coupled up and dancing rather badly. Jane Austen Unscripted ran through December 20 with afternoon tea served for $15 between shows. Most of the theatre goers who attended saw something different from what was described in the Santa Monica Mirror review, "but still somehow the same." - Santa Monica Mirror

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

R.I.P. Brittany Murphy

What better way to remember Brittany Murphy than as Ty in two clips from Clueless? She played the Harriet Smith character to Alicia Silverstone's Emma.

In Rollin' With the Homies, she is still mourning the loss of her perceived boyfriend.



Classic Clueless exchange:
Ty (aka Harriet Smith): "You're a virgin who can't drive."
Cher (aka Emma Woodhouse): "Ah, that was way harsh, Ty."

Jane Austen Movie Throwdown

The winter holidays provide time for leisurely gatherings around the dinner table. In this week's throwdown we ask you to which elegant dinner party would you have liked to receive an invitation? Lady Catherine de Bourgh's in 2005's Pride and Prejudice? Or the Weston's in A&E's Emma, 1996? Neither gathering was particularly pleasurable, but so much was learned about the characters in both:

Lady Catherine de Bourgh's table, Pride and Prejudice, 2005

Dinner at the Westons, A&E Emma, 1996

pollcode.com free polls
To which elegant dinner party would you have liked to receive an invitation?
Lady Catherine de Bourgh's The Westons'

Northanger Alibi: A Teen Vampire Adventure

Jeni James, author of teen modernized rewrites of Jane Austen’s novels, has written to announce that Northanger Alibi was picked up by Valor Publishing. It will be released on June 1st. Jeni knew “from the beginning that Northanger Abbey would be my biggest challenge to rewrite. Since it is the most unfamiliar/unread of all the Austen books. I love it! I think it is extremely funny and a complete satire of the gothic novels that were popular at the time. To modernize this, I needed to base my story off of massively popular modern gothic novels. Enter the Twilight Series.”

The Russo family, who live in Seattle, are no match for Claire Hart. Thanks to her obsession with The Twilight series, her savvy knowledge of all things vampire related is incomparable. Claire is positive that totally hot Tony Russo is a vampire, she only has to prove it! Northanger Alibi follows Claire's hilarious journey on her first summer adventure away from home, where she learns everything isn't what it seems, and in some instances, reality is better than anything she'd ever find in a book.

Valor has picked up the whole series of Jeni James’s teen modernized rewrites:
  • Northanger Alibi
  • Pride & Popularity
  • Persuaded
  • Emmalee
  • Mansfield Ranch
  • Sensible & Sensational

Who's Perfect for the Role of Zombie Slaying Mr. Darcy?


Gentle Readers,

As you know, Natalie Portman will play zombie-chasing heroine, Elizabeth Bennet in a feature film (not a mini-series, as once rumored). She will be producing Pride and Prejudice and Zombies along with another female producer, Annette Savitch. "Natalie and I are longtime passionate fans of Jane Austen's books," announces Annette. "And this a fresh, fun and thought-provoking way to approach her work."

There's been no announcement on which actor has been signed up to portray Mr. Darcy. I have a candidate in mind: Mr. Richard Armitage. Who is your favorite candidate for the role? Please cast your vote!

Join the birthday celebration for Jane Austen on the blogosphere

Today is Jane Austen’s 234th birthday. Join the celebration with fellow Janeites at these great blogs.

Happy Birthday, Jane Austen! at AustenBlog

In celebration of Jane Austen’s birthday at Austenprose

Happy Birthday, Jane Austen at Jane Austen’s World

Jane Austen’s Birthday and a glimpse at life in Steventon at Jane Austen Sequels by Jane Odiwe

Happy Birthday Miss Austen! ~ 234 never looked so good at Jane Austen in Vermont

Jane Austen: 234 years old, and as young as ever at Jane Austen Addict Blog

Happy Birthday, Miss Jane Austen! at Penguin Blog who have special festivities underway all day at their Penguin Classics Twitter account.

In celebration of Jane Austen's birthday on December 16th, Penguin USA will use the Twitter hashtag #AustenAddiction, following Penguin Australia's idea, and will promote our Austen titles, do a giveaway, link to online video and radio segments and any relevant pop culture tidbits through the day.

In an annual tradition, JASNA has published it's Winter 2009 issue of Persuasions online. Enjoy!

Be sure to leave a comment of good wishes and congratulations at each blog to build the momentum.

Happy b-day dear Jane!

Cheers, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

*Jane Austen cupcake from Pemberley meeting board

Firth, Blunt, Mulligan and Dorrit garner Golden Globe noms

Congratulations go out to Brit actors Colin Firth, Emily Blunt and Carey Mulligan for their nominations as best actor and actress respectively in the drama categories and Little Dorrit for best miniseries made for television. The nominees for a 2010 Golden Globe awards were announced this morning. All three actors have been in previous movie adaptations or inspirations of Jane Austen’s works. Little Dorrit has nothing to do with Austen, but we just liked it and would like to support bonnet dramas in general.

You can read the complete list of nominees here. Awards will be handed out on January 17th, 2010. Hope they win!

Cheers, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Cranford reprise on Masterpiece Classic

This Sunday December 20th, Masterpiece Classic returns to PBS with a reprise of last season’s highly acclaimed presentation of the mini-series Cranford based on Elizabeth Gaskell's classic novel airing in three parts on consecutive Sundays through January 3rd. Here is the description from the PBS website.

Welcome to Cranford, circa 1840 ... a rural English town where etiquette rules, undergirded by a healthy amount of gossip. Modernity is making a move in town as construction of a railway comes harrowingly close. Cranford's eclectic residents, among them Matty Jenkyns (Dame Judi Dench) her sister Deborah (Dame Eileen Atkins), and Miss Pole (Imelda Staunton), stay immersed in the sweet pleasures and sometimes heartbreaking realities of simple village life. But when a handsome, young doctor arrives with cutting-edge new techniques, it rapidly becomes clear that as the world changes, so Cranford will change with it. Based on three Elizabeth Gaskell novels (Cranford, My Lady Ludlow and Mr. Harrison's Confessions), and boasting an all-star cast, Cranford breathes life into one town during one extraordinary year.

This is really the wind up to the premiere on January 10th of the next two episodes of the saga, Return to Cranford. Yes, Miss Matty, Miss Pole, Mrs. Forrester and Miss Tomkinson, the amazons of the early Victorian small-town Cranford, return in a new production that is sure to charm and delight us. Produced by the estimable team of Sue Birtwistle and Susie Conklin who brought us Pride and Prejudice (1995), Emma (1996) and Wives and Daughters (1999), it may be the last bonnet drama produced by BBC/PBS for some time, so cherish every moment.

Visit the official Cranford site at Masterpiece Classic
Read Vic’s preview of Cranford at Jane Austen Today
Cranford is a Delightful Place to Visit at Jane Austen’s World
Some Say that Gaskell is Austen embellished with Dickens at Austenprose

Enjoy, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Jane Austen Movie Throwdown

Mrs. John Dashwood is like the "Grinch" who stole Christmas in Sense and Sensibility. On his deathbed, Mr. Henry Dashwood extracted a promise from his son, John, to take care of his stepmother and half sisters. In a masterful scene that only Jane Austen could write with such biting wit, John's wife, Fanny, persuades John to give them next to nothing. A portion of the couple's remarkable conversation sits below:

[John] "A hundred a year would make them all perfectly comfortable."

His wife hesitated a little, however, in giving her consent to this plan.

"To be sure," said she, "it is better than parting with fifteen hundred pounds at once. But, then, if Mrs. Dashwood should live fifteen years we shall be completely taken in."

"Fifteen years! my dear Fanny; her life cannot be worth half that purchase."

"Certainly not; but if you observe, people always live for ever when there is an annuity to be paid them; and she is very stout and healthy, and hardly forty."

This week we ask you:

Which actress played a Regency Grinch best?
Whose portrayal of Fanny Dashwood is most believable?

Amanda Boxer, Fanny Dashwood 1981

Harriet Walter, Fanny Dashwood 1996

Claire Skinner, Fanny Dashwood 2008

pollcode.com free polls
Best Regency Grinch, Fanny Dashwood
Amanda Boxer, 1981 Harriet Walter, 1996 Claire Skinner, 2008

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies the movie - undead in a theater near you!

It’s official. Variety reports that Natalie Portman will be the next Lizzie Bennet in the movie of adaptation of the best selling literary mash-up Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Portman will co-produce with Annette Savitch.

Natalie and I are longtime passionate fans of Jane Austen’s books and this a fresh, fun and thought-provoking way to approach her work,” Savitch said. “The idea of zombies running rampant in 19th Century England may sound odd, but it lends a modern sense of urgency to a well known love story."

Only this week co-author Seth Grahame-Smith had denied rumors of the movie deal on his Twitter account. Guess he changed his mind.

Jane Austen was vacationing in Tahiti and unavailable for comment.

Cheers, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Just in Time for Christmas: Pride and Prejudice and 30% More Zombies

Have you wondered what Sir William Beechey's portrait of Maria B. Fox looked like before she was zombified by Quirk Books? Check out her image on the left and on the deluxe edition of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies on the right. This new leatherette edition boasts 30% more zombies in its expanded version, a new preface by coauthor Seth Grahame-Smith, and thirteen oil painting illustrations by Roberto Parada.

Why does the publisher desire you to spend more money on this new edition? Because they've offered more carnage, more corpse slaying, and more gruesome cannibalism inside its 360 pristine white acid-free pages. With a satin ribbon marker and leatherette cover, you can confidently place it alongside the first-edition heirlooms on your book shelf.

Click on the image above for the enlarged version. Click on the links below to learn more about this runaway New York Times bestseller.

1. Many critics have addressed the dual nature of Elizabeth's personality. On one hand, she can be a savage, remorseless killer, as we see in her vanquishing of Lady Catherine's ninjas. On the other hand, she can be tender and merciful, as in her relationships with Jane, Charlotte, and the young bucks that roam her family's estate. In your opinion, which of these "halves" best represents the real Elizabeth at the beginning—and end of the novel?

2. Is Mr. Collins merely too fat and stupid to notice his wife's gradual transformation into a zombie, or could there be another explanation for his failure to acknowledge the problem? If so, what might that explanation be? How might his occupation (as a pastor) relate to his denial of the obvious, or his decision to hang himself?

3. The strange plague has been the scourge of England for "five-and-fifty years." Why do the English stay and fight, rather than retreat to the safety of eastern Europe or Africa?

4. Who receives the sorrier fate: Wickham, left paralyzed in a seminary for the lame, forever soiling himself and studying ankle-high books of scripture? Or Lydia, removed from her family, married to an invalid, and childless, yet forever changing filthy diapers?

5. Due to her fierce independence, devotion to exercise, and penchant for boots, some critics have called Elizabeth Bennet "the first literary lesbian." Do you think the authors intended her to be gay? And if so, how would this Sapphic twist serve to explain her relationships with Darcy, Jane, Charlotte, Lady Catherine, and Wickham?

6. Some critics have suggested that the zombies represent the authors' views toward marriage—an endless curse that sucks the life out you and just won't die. Do you agree, or do you have another opinion about the symbolism of the unmentionables?

7. Does Mrs. Bennet have a single redeeming quality?

If you relish reading passages like the following, then this book is right up your alley:
"Elizabeth passed the chief of the night in her sister's room, alternately tending to Jane's needs and amusing herself by keeping a dagger balanced on the tip of her finger for hours on end..."

Austen irony of the day

Reporter Stacy Vogel of The Janesville Gazette is yawning over the Jane Austen sequel industry.

Here's the thing: "Pride and Prejudice" is my favorite book for a reason. So why should I read these imitations (or reinterpretations, as they like to call them) when I have the real thing sitting on my shelf?

Hmmm? It’s quite obvious to moi. Maybe she should research why her cities founding fathers chose to name their metropolis Janesville. They certainly understood that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Cheers, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Comments That Are Beyond the Pale

Gentle readers,

Thank you for stopping by our blog. Jane Austen Today would not exist without you, and we thrive on your comments, which add dimension to our posts. Your thoughts and ideas, even your corrections regarding an erroneous fact, have been polite and informative and have followed the rules of blog etiquette. If we do disagree, our debates have been healthy and spirited. We, Laurel Ann and Vic, are truly fortunate to have such loyal readers.

A post that was written earlier this year received comments that went beyond the pale. The subject of this post was being stalked by a cyber troll who used abusive language and whose intent was slander. Unfortunately, we did not catch these comments when they were posted and they sat on the ether for a number of months.

Our policy is this: trolls are banned for life from this blog and their comments are removed as soon as we find them or are informed about them. We also remove reactionary comments, for they only serve to feed the trolls. We follow a 'one strike you're out' rule. No exceptions.

Here is how our regular, well-mannered readers can help us: please email us when you see a comment that you deem slanderous. This blog is for those who seek polite company. Trolls should see a psychiatrist or contact someone who cares.

On My Christmas Wish List: Silk Gloves

Mrs. Allen: "My dear do not you think these silk gloves wear very well? I put them on new the first time of our going to the Lower Rooms, you know, and I have worn them a great deal since. Do you remember that evening?

Catherine: "Do I! Oh perfectly."

Mrs. Allen: "It was very agreeable, was not it? Mr Tilney drank tea with us, and I always thought him a great addition, he is so very agreeable. I have a notion you danced with him but am not quite sure." - Northanger Abbey, Jane Austen

Silk gloves add an elegant touch to a ball gown, as Mrs. Allen described, or a luxurious note to a formal outfit. Silk is also an excellent insulator. Worn next to the body, the cloth holds in body heat. It is even used to insulate space vehicles! Better yet, silk threads are hypoallergenic and can be worn next to even the most sensitive skin. When knitted, silk provides the malleability most desired for gloves and active wear. Soft, luxurious, and durable, silk is the ideal gift for someone special. If you're looking for a unique gift that costs less than $25, look no more:
Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

Got Jane? Austen inspired gift giving suggestions

Only 16 more shopping days left until Christmas. Need suggestions for online shopping for your Janeite friends and family members? Not to worry, there is an abundance of Jane Austen inspired gift options on the net even if you do not have £10,000 a year or go by the moniker of Santa Darcy.

The Pemberley Shoppe has just released their beautiful selection of 2010 calendars. Among the hundreds of other gift possibilities, my personal favorite is the I Blame Jane ceramic travel mug.

The Jane Austen Centre Giftshop is the ultimate Janeite shopping destination online. It is like a virtual candy store of Jane Austen books, clothing and ephemera. Squee. Check out the All Things Darcy section.

CafePress has literally hundreds of Austen themed items from mouse pads, to T-shirts to coffee mugs listed from several vendors.

Etsy is the online hub for hand crafted items and Jane Austen is well represented with notecards, jewelry, prints, clothing, handbags and so much more.

In a hurry or clueless about which Austen inspired items to buy? Narrow down your choices with these three Austen inspired holiday shopping lists:

Jane Austen in Vermont asks “All I want for Christmas is … ” [anything Austen please!]

The Inkwell Bookstore Blog offers Gift Tips for the Bookish: Jane Austen Junk

Austenprose reveals My Jane Austen Inspired Holiday Gift Wish List for 2009

Happy Holidays to all, Laurel Ann, Austenprose

Jane Austen Movie Throwdown

Last week we asked you to choose which hero in uniform you liked best. And while many readers liked Colonel Brandon, the majority chose Captain Wentworth in his dashing navy uniform. This week you are asked to choose your favorite militia man from the three actors who portrayed Mr. Wickham.
The hero in uniform I like best (Part 2)

Adrian Lukis as Mr. Wickham , Pride and Prejudice 1995

Rupert Friend as Mr. Wickham, Pride and Prejudice 2005

Tom Riley as Mr. Wickham, Lost in Austen, 2009

Best Mr. Wickham in Uniform
Adrian Lukis, 1995
Rupert Friend, 2005
Tom Riley, 2009
pollcode.com free polls