Recommended reading - The Wall

 

The Wall

by Marlen Haushofer.

Translated by Shaun Whiteside.

Afterword by Claire Louise-Bennett.

First published 1963.

Published by New Directions.
Paperback.

ISBN-10: 0811231941
ISBN-13: 978-0811231947
 
Description:
 

While vacationing in a hunting lodge in the Austrian mountains, a middle-aged woman awakens one morning to find herself separated from the rest of the world by an invisible wall. With a cat, a dog, and a cow as her sole companions, she learns how to survive and cope with her loneliness.

 

Allegorical yet deeply personal and absorbing, The Wall is at once a critique of modern civilization, a nuanced and loving portrait of a relationship between a woman and her animals, a thrilling survival story, a Cold War-era dystopian adventure, and a truly singular feminist classic.

 

"An extraordinarily interesting writer, always underappreciated." – Elfriede Jelinek.
 

"The Wall is a wonderful novel. It is not often that you can say only a woman could have written this book, but women in particular will understand the heroine's loving devotion to the details of making and keeping life, every day felt as a victory against everything that would like to undermine and destroy. It is as absorbing as Robinson Crusoe." – Doris Lessing.

 

"Brilliant in its sustainment of dread, in its peeling away of old layers of reality to expose a raw way of seeing and feeling. Doris Lessing once remarked that only a woman could have written this novel, and it's true: I know of no closer study in claustrophobia and liberation, and of an independence whose severity is at once ecstatic and doomed. I’ve read The Wall three times already and am nowhere near finished." – Nicole Krauss.

 

Marlen Haushofer (1920–1970) was an Austrian author of short stories, novels, radio plays, and children’s books. Her work has had a strong influence on many German-language writers, such as the Nobel Prize–winner Elfriede Jelinek, who dedicated one of her plays to her. The Wall was adapted a film, directed by Julian Pölsler and starring Martina Gedeck.

Jane Austen, on novels:

It is only a novel ...

or, in short, only some work in which the greatest powers of the mind are displayed,
in which the most thorough knowledge of human nature,
the happiest delineation of its varieties,
the liveliest effusions of wit and humor,
are conveyed to the world in the best-chosen language.

- Jane Austen.

Born on this day – Pink Anderson:

Pink Anderson

Blues singer

Guitarist

February 12, 1900 – October 12, 1974

Credits:

Albums:

American Street Songs (1956); Baby I'm Going Away (2019); Ballad & Folk Singer, Vol. 3 (1963); Blues Legend (2011); Carolina Blues Man (1961); Essential Blues Masters (2010); Gospel, Blues And Street Songs (1987); Greasy Greens and a Mess of Blues (2012); Happy Hours (2015); In the Jailhouse Now (2021); Leisure Time (2014); Medicine Show Man (1962); Medicine Show Man, Volume 2 (1962); Pink Anderson: Carolina Medicine Show Hokum and Blues with Baby Tate (1984); The Blues of Pink Anderson: Ballad & Folksinger (1961); Vol..2 - Medicine Show Man (2018); Weeping Willow Blues (2021).

Songs:

Ain't Nobody Home but Me; Baby Please Don't Go; Baby Tate - See What You Done Done; Betty and Dupree; Big House Blues; Bo Weevil; Boweevil; C.C. & O Blues; C.C. And O. Blues; Chicken; Every Day In The Week Blues; Gonna Tip Out Tonight; Greasy Greens; He's in the Jailhouse Now; I Got a Woman 'cross Town; I Got a Woman 'Way Cross Town; I Got Mine; I Will Fly Away; I'm Going to Walk Through the Streets of the City; In the Evening; In the Jailhouse Now; I've Got Mine; John Henry; Meet Me in the Bottom; See That My Grave Is Kept; That's No Way to Do; The Boys of Your Uncle Sam; The Kaiser; The Titanic; Tippin’ Out; Travelin' Man; You Don't Know My Mind.

Television:

The Blues / documentary (1962).

Born on this day – Ann Gillis:

Ann Gillis

Actress

February 12, 1927 – January 31, 2018

Credits:

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968); The Saint (1963–1965); Espionage (1964); Man of the World (1963); The Madhouse on Castle Street (1963); Studio One (1951); Out There (1951); Big Town After Dark (1947); Sweetheart of Sigma Chi (1946); The Time of Their Lives (1946); Janie Gets Married (1946); Gay Blades (1946); The Cheaters (1945); A Wave, a WAC and a Marine (1944); In Society (1944); Janie (1944); Since You Went Away (1944); Man from Music Mountain (1943); Stage Door Canteen (1943); Hedda Hopper's Hollywood No. 6 (1942); 'Neath Brooklyn Bridge (1942); Bambi (1942); Tough As They Come (1942); Meet the Stewarts (1942); Glamour Boy (1941); Mr. Dynamite (1941); Nice Girl? (1941); Little Men (1940); My Love Came Back (1940); All This, and Heaven Too (1940); Edison, the Man (1940); The Under-Pup (1939); Beau Geste (1939); Peck's Bad Boy with the Circus (1938); Little Orphan Annie (1938); The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938); The Californian (1937); You Can't Buy Luck (1937); Off to the Races (1937); King of Hockey (1936); Under Your Spell (1936); The Man I Marry (1936); Postal Inspector (1936); The Singing Cowboy (1936); The Great Ziegfeld (1936); Men in White (1934).

Born on this day – Paul Shenar:

Paul Shenar

Actor

 Director

February 12, 1936 − October 11, 1989

Credits:

The Very Best of the Football Follies (1988); The Big Blue (1988); Best Seller (1987); Man on Fire (1987); Time Out for Dad (1987); The Bedroom Window (1987); Rage of Angels: The Story Continues (1986); Dark Mansions (1986); Raw Deal (1986); Dream Lover (1986); Streets of Justice (1985); Spenser: For Hire (1985); Dynasty (1983–1985); Brass (1985); Paper Dolls (1984); Scarface (1983); Scarecrow and Mrs. King (1983); Deadly Force (1983); The Secret of NIMH (1982); Richard II (1982); Today's F.B.I. (1982); The End of August (1981); Beulah Land (1980); Hart to Hart (1980); Family (1979); Suddenly, Love (1978); Lulu (1978); The Courage and the Passion (1978); Ziegfeld: The Man and His Women (1978); The Mask of Alexander Cross (1977); Logan's Run (1977); Young Dan'l Boone (1977); The Hostage Heart (1977); Hawaii Five-O (1976–1977); Roots (1977); Camera Three (1976); Wonder Woman (1976); The Bionic Woman (1976); Gemini Man (1976); The Keegans (1976); The Night That Panicked America (1975); Ellery Queen (1975); The Invisible Man (1975); Petrocelli (1975); Kojak (1975); The Execution of Private Slovik (1974); Great Performances (1974); Mannix (1974); Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law (1974); Columbo (1974); The ABC Afternoon Playbreak (1973).

Born on this day – Richard Lynch:

Richard Lynch

Actor

February 12, 1940 – June 19, 2012

Credits:

The Lords of Salem (2012); Gun of the Black Sun (2011); Resurrection (2010); Dark Fields (2009); Chrome Angels (2009); Laid to Rest (2009); Mil Mascaras vs. the Aztec Mummy (2007); Halloween (2007); Wedding Slashers (2006); The Great War of Magellan (2005); Corpses Are Forever (2004); Final Combat (2003); The Mummy's Kiss (2003); Ancient Warriors (2003); Fabulous Shiksa in Distress (2003); Charmed (2003); First Watch (2003); Curse of the Forty-Niner (2002); Crime and Punishment (2002); Six Feet Under (2002); Outta Time (2002); Reflex Action (2002); Ankle Bracelet (2001); Death Game (2001); The Korean War (2001); Strike Zone (2000); Eastside (1999); Enemy Action (1999); Battlestar Galactica: The Second Coming (1999); Acapulco H.E.A.T. (1999); Lima: Breaking the Silence (1999); Thinking About Africa (1999); Air America (1999); Love and War II (1998); Mike Hammer, Private Eye (1998); Armstrong (1998); Shattered Illusions (1998); Divine Lovers (1997); Ground Rules (1997); Under Oath (1997); We Are Angels (1997); The Garbage Man (1996); Vendetta (1996); Diamond Run (1996); Total Force (1996); Lone Tiger (1996); Phantom 2040 (1995–1996); Takedown (1995); Destination Vegas (1995); Warrior of Justice (1995); Terminal Virus (1995); Werewolf (1995); Baywatch (1995); Dragon Fury (1995); Highlander (1995); Terrified (1995); Roughcut (1994); Loving Deadly (1994); Thunder in Paradise (1994); Death Match (1994); Dangerous Waters (1994); Murder, She Wrote (1992–1994); Cyborg 3: The Recycler (1994); Midnight Confessions (1994); Scanner Cop (1994); Necronomicon: Book of Dead (1993); Cobra (1993); Showdown (1993); Star Trek: The Next Generation (1993); Merlin (1993); The Hat Squad (1993); Double Threat (1992); Inside Edge (1992); Maximum Force (1992); Super Force (1991–1992); The Last Hero (1991); Puppet Master III: Toulon's Revenge (1991); Jake and the Fatman (1991); Alligator II: The Mutation (1991); Dark Justice (1991); Trancers II (1991); Lockdown (1990); Invasion Force (1990); Return to Justice (1990); Aftershock (1990); The Forbidden Dance (1990); True Blue (1990); Kojak: Flowers for Matty (1990); Hunter (1989); CBS Summer Playhouse (1989); One Man Force (1989); High Stakes (1989); Speed Zone (1989); Bad Dreams (1988); Little Nikita (1988); Werewolf (1987); The Law and Harry McGraw (1987); Once a Hero (1987); Nightforce (1987); The Barbarians (1987); The Last Precinct (1986); Savage Dawn (1985); Airwolf (1985); Invasion U.S.A. (1985); Scarecrow and Mrs. King (1985); MacGruder and Loud (1985); Riptide (1985); Masquerade (1984); Treasure: In Search of the Golden Horse (1984); Partners in Crime (1984); The A-Team (1984); Cover Up (1984); Cut and Run (1984); Matt Houston (1984); The Fall Guy (1983–1984); Automan (1984); Blue Thunder (1984); Manimal (1983); T.J. Hooker (1983); The Last Ninja (1983); High Performance (1983); White Water Rebels (1983); Bring 'Em Back Alive (1982); The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982); The Phoenix (1981–1982); McClain's Law (1982); Sizzle (1981); Vega$ (1979–1981); The Formula (1980); Alcatraz: The Whole Shocking Story (1980); The Ninth Configuration (1980); Galactica 1980 (1980); Charlie's Angels (1979); A Man Called Sloane (1979); Delta Fox (1979); Vampire (1979); Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979); Barnaby Jones (1979); Steel (1979); Starsky and Hutch (1975–1979); Battlestar Galactica (1978); Deathsport (1978); The Bionic Woman (1978); The Baron (1977); Dog and Cat (1977); Stunts (1977); The Streets of San Francisco (1977); Good Against Evil (1977); Roger & Harry: The Mitera Target (1977); Police Woman (1977); Serpico (1976); God Told Me To (1976); Baretta (1976); Switch (1976); Bronk (1976); The Premonition (1975); The Happy Hooker (1975); Open Season (1974); The American Parade (1974); The Seven-Ups (1973); Scarecrow (1973); The Stoolie (1972); Tigress (1969); Trip to Where? (1968).

Born on this day – Brioni Farrell:

Brioni Farrell

Actress

Executive

February 12, 1940 – August 8, 2018

Credits:

A New Day in Eden (1982); Allan (1971); Appointment with Fear (1985); Bearcats! (1971); Bonanza (1966–1968); Capitol (1982–1987); Columbo (1975); Dallas (1991); Daniel Boone (1968); Death Valley Days (1967–1968); Family Affair (1968); Fantasy Island (1980); General Hospital (1981–1984); Hoover vs. the Kennedys: The Second Civil War (1987); Keefer (1978); La Femme Nikita (1999); Lancer (1969); Love (1982); Mission: Impossible (1968); My Tutor (1983); Night Heat (1985); Paradise Bay (1965); Partizani (1976); Police Story (1975); Project: Metalbeast (1995); Round Trip to Heaven (1992); Run for Your Life (1966); Search (1973); Star Trek / episode entitled The Return of the Archons, originally aired February 9 (1967); Street Legal (1989); Tales from the Darkside (1987); The Bait (1973); The Bionic Woman (1977); The Devlin Connection (1982); The Duke (1979); The Hitchhiker (1985); The Last Guerrilla (1974); The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1966); The Next Step Beyond (1979); The Other Wise Man (1969); The Rat Patrol (1968); The Rookies (1973); The Student Nurses (1970); The Wild Wild West (1967); To Rome with Love (1970).

On this day in movie history - Shoot to Kill (1988)

Shoot to Kill
a.k.a. Deadly Pursuit

directed by Roger Spottiswoode,

written by Harv Zimmel, Michael Burton and Daniel Petrie Jr.,

based on a story by Harv Zimmel,

was released in the United States on February 12, 1988.

Music by John Scott.

 
Cast:

Sidney Poitier, Tom Berenger, Kirstie Alley, Clancy Brown, Richard Masur, Andrew Robinson, Kevin Scannell, Frederick Coffin, Michael MacRae, Robert Lesser, Milton Selzer, Les Lannom, Walter Marsh, Frank C. Turner, Sam Hiona, Michael Chapman, Janet Rotblatt, Ken Camroux-Taylor, Howard Storey, Fred Henderson, Robyn Gildemeester, Jerry Wasserman, Gloria Lee, Freda Perry, Kevin McNulty, William S. Taylor, Ric Reid, Claire Vardiel, Blu Mankuma, Gary Hetherington, Allan Lysell, Michele Goodger, Beatrice Boepple, Darcelle Chan, Marynna Danguy, Craig Saunders, Carole Henshall, Andrew Rhodes, Bill Croft, Noah Beggs, John Douglas, John Molnar, John Ryan, Jim van Dijk.

On this day in movie history - The Wall (2012)

 

The Wall

original title: Die Wand,

directed and written by Julian Roman Pölsler,

based on the novel by Marlen Haushofer,

was released at the Berlin International Film Festival in Germany on February 12, 2012.

Music by Bernd Jungmair.

 

Cast:

Martina Gedeck, Luchs von Kyffhäuserbach, Karl Heinz Hackl, Ulrike Beimpold, Julia Gschnitzer, Hans-Michael Rehberg, Wolfgang Maria Bauer.

On this day in movie history - Land (2021)

Land

directed by Robin Wright,

written by Jesse Chatham and Erin Dignam,

was released in the United States on February 12, 2021.

Music by Ben Sollee and Time for Three.

Cast:

Robin Wright, Demián Bichir, Sarah Dawn Pledge, Kim Dickens, Warren Christie, Finlay Wojtak-Hissong, Brad Leland, Jordan Bullchild, Dave Trimble, Rikki-Lynn Ward, Mia McDonald, Barb Mitchell, Dennis Corrie, Valerie Planche, Laura Yenga, Randolph West, Darin Grisdale, Darren Poirier, Thomas Komarniski, Shawn Loo, Edmund Gee, Maureen Bronner, Matthew Godden, Jordan Gooden, Vattanak Khun, Bud Klasky, Faith Louissaint, Travis Gordon Phillips, Mike Richards, Jill Maria Robinson, Daniel D'Angelo Sparks, Steve Tsang, Travis Willier.

On this day in movie history - The Movie Man (2024)

 

The Movie Man

documentary directed by Matt Finlin,

was released at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in the United States on February 12, 2024.

Music by Kevin Drew.

Cast:
Keith Stata.

On this day in music history - The album Victoria And Her Blues, by Victoria Spivey (1962)

 

Victoria And Her Blues

by Victoria Spivey

was recorded on February 12, 1962.

Track list:

Grant Spivey; When I Was Seven; Talk About Moanin'; Mr. Daddy; So Long Buddy; From Broadway to 7th Ave.; Brooklyn Bridge; Thirteen Years; Cool Papa; New York Moan; New York Tombs; Buddy Tate.