Jean Craighead George, on reading:

 

I love to travel, but when I really want to escape, I read a book.

- Jean Craighead George.

Recommended reading - The Name of the Rose (1980)

 

The Name of the Rose

The Name of the Rose
 by Umberto Eco.
 
Published by Harper.
First published 1980.
Paperback.
 
ISBN-10: 0063279630
ISBN-13: 978-0063279636
 
Description:
 

Italy, 1347. While Brother William of Baskerville is investigating accusations of heresy at a wealthy abbey, his inquiries are disrupted by a series of bizarre deaths. Turning his practiced detective skills to finding the killer, he relies on logic (Aristotle), theology (Thomas Aquinas), empirical insights (Roger Bacon), and his own wry humor and ferocious curiosity. With the aid of his young apprentice, William scours the abbey, from its stables to the labyrinthine library, piecing together evidence, and deciphering cryptic symbols and coded manuscripts to uncover the truth about this place where "the most interesting things happen at night."

 

First published in 1980, The Name of the Rose became an international sensation, beguiling readers around the world with its mix of history, humor, and intellectual heft. This beautifully designed modern edition, illustrated with exclusive original drawings created by Umberto Eco, will enchant a new generation of readers and entice old fans to fall under its spell once again.

 

Now available in a deluxe fortieth-anniversary paperback edition featuring never-before-seen illustrations by the author, the beloved internationally bestselling historical mystery about a brilliant monk called upon to solve a series of baffling murders in a fourteenth-century Italian abbey.

 

“Explodes with pyrotechnic inventions, literally as well as figuratively. Hold on till the end.” – New York Times.
 
“Whether you're into Sherlock Holmes, Montaillou, Borges, the nouvelle critique, the Rule of St. Benedict, metaphysics, library design, or The Thing from the Crypt, you'll love it. Who can that miss out?” – Sunday Times (London).

Recommended reading - The Black Eyed Blonde (2014)

The Black Eyed Blonde

The Black Eyed Blonde
by Benjamin Black.
 
Filmed as Marlowe (2022), directed by Neil Jordan.
 
Published by Picador.
First published 2014.
Paperback.
 
ISBN-10: 144723670X
ISBN-13: 978-1447236702
 
Description:
 
A Philip Marlowe novel.
 
Raymond Chandler’s incomparable private eye is back, pulled by a seductive young heiress into the most difficult and dangerous case of his career.
 

“It was one of those summer Tuesday afternoons when you begin to wonder if the earth has stopped revolving. The telephone on my desk had the look of something that knows it’s being watched. Traffic trickled by in the street below, and there were a few pedestrians, too, men in hats going nowhere.”

 

So begins The Black-Eyed Blonde, a new novel featuring Philip Marlowe – yes, that Philip Marlowe. Channeling Raymond Chandler, Benjamin Black has brought Marlowe back to life for a new adventure on the mean streets of Bay City, California. It is the early 1950s, Marlowe is as restless and lonely as ever, and business is a little slow. Then a new client is shown in: young, beautiful, and expensively dressed, she wants Marlowe to find her former lover, a man named Nico Peterson. Marlowe sets off on his search, but almost immediately discovers that Peterson’s disappearance is merely the first in a series of bewildering events. Soon he is tangling with one of Bay City’s richest families and developing a singular appreciation for how far they will go to protect their fortune.

 

Only Benjamin Black, a modern master of the genre, could write a new Philip Marlowe novel that has all the panache and charm of the originals while delivering a story that is as sharp and fresh as today’s best crime fiction.

 
Praise for The Black-Eyed Blonde:
 

“Somewhere Raymond Chandler is smiling, because this is a beautifully rendered hard-boiled novel that echoes Chandler’s melancholy at perfect pitch. The story is great, but what amazed me is how John Banville caught the cumulative effect Chandler’s prose had on readers. It’s hard to quatify, but it’s also what separated the Marlowe novels from the general run of noir (which included some damn fine novelists, like David Goodis and Jim Thompson). The sadness runs deep. I loved this book. It was like having an old friend, one you assumed was dead, walk into the room. Kind of like Terry Lennox, hiding behind those drapes.” – Stephen King.

 

“Banville channeling Chandler is irresistible – a double whammy of a mystery. Hard to think anyone could add to Chandler with profitable results. But Banville most definitely gets it done.” – Richard Ford.

Coffee and a book ... my perfect day!

Coffee and a book ... my perfect day!

Born on this day – F. Scott Fitzgerald:

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Writer

September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940

Credits:

Books:

100 Years of the Best American Short Stories (2015); 40 Short Stories (2004); A Short Trip Home (1927); A Treasury of Civil War Stories (1991); All of the Belles (2020); All the Sad Young Men (1926); American Fantastic Tales: Terror and the Uncanny from Poe to the Pulps (2009); Babylon Revisited (2023); Bernice Bobs Her Hair and Other Stories (2019); Black Water 2 (1990); Classic Works (2018); Flappers and Philosophers (1920); Golden Age Whodunits (2024); I'd Die for You (2017); Parties (2020); Spires and Gargoyles (2010); Tales of the Jazz Age (1922); Taps at Reveille (1935); Tender Is the Night (1934); The Beautiful and Damned (1922); The Best American Short Stories of the Century (2008); The Best of F. Scott Fitzgerald (2021); The Complete Fitzgerald Collection (2019); The Crack-up (1945); The Cruise of the Rolling Junk (1924); The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Other Stories (2020); The Diamond as Big as the Ritz (1922); The Fantasy and Mystery Stories of F Scott Fitzgerald (1991); The Great Gatsby & Related Stories (2023); The Great Gatsby (1925); The Great Gatsby and Other Classic Works (2021); The Great Gatsby, All the Sad Young Men & Other Writings 1920 - 26 (2022); The Jelly-Bean (1920); The Last Tycoon / aka The Love of the Last Tycoon (1970); The Letters of F. Scott Fitzgerald (1964); The Love Boat and Other Stories (2019); The Moonlight Traveller (1949); The Oxford Book of American Short Stories (1992); The Oxford Book of Twentieth-Century Ghost Stories (1996); The Pat Hobby Stories (1962); The Platform Edge (2019); The Popular Girl (2005); The Popular Girl (2018); The Stories of F. Scott Fitzgerald (1951); This Side of Paradise (1920); Vampires, Wine and Roses (1997); White Fire (1991).

Movies and television:

A Curious World (2016); A Yank at Oxford (1938); American Playhouse (1984); Armchair Theatre (1959); Az édenen innen és túl (1971); Berenika (1995); Bernice Bobs Her Hair (1976 / 2015); Biography (1997); Bookmark (1988); Boulevard of Broken Dreams (1988); Calvin Klein: Obsession (1990); Climax! (1955); Contretemps (2007); Curtain Call (1952); Duels (2016); Einer meiner ältesten Freunde (1994); Ernest Hemingway, quatre mariages et un enterrement (2021); Everything Happens at Night (1939); F. Scott Fitzgerald and 'the Last of the Belles' (1974); F. Scott Fitzgerald's Head and Shoulders (2014); Fate's Shadow (2019); Fate's Shadow: The Whole Story (2021); Frankly Speaking: A Conversation with Frank Howson (2012); Front Row Center (1955–1956); Gatsby in Connecticut: The Untold Story (2020); Gatsby: The Movie... Kind Of (2016); Grit (1924); Hemingway (2021); Honeymoon in Bali (1939); I riassuntini (2020); Indiánské léto (1995); Izmedju dva aviona (1964); Kraft Theatre (1955–1958); Kraft Theatre / The Philco Television Playhouse (1949–1952); La France en face (2013); Look Up and Live (1958); Lux Video Theatre (1952); Marie Antoinette (1938); Million Dollar American Princesses (2016); Nash Airflyte Theatre (1950); New York: A Documentary Film (1999); Perfidi incanti / Segment: Il Viaggio (1985); Playhouse 90 (1957–1958); Ponds Theater (1954); Project Twenty (1956); Pusher-in-the-Face (1929); Raffles (1939); Red-Headed Woman (1932); Robert Montgomery Presents (1951–1956); Schlitz Playhouse (1953); Star Tonight (1956); Starlight Theatre (1950–1951); Suspense (1953); Tales from the Hollywood Hills: Pat Hobby Teamed with Genius (1987); Taví zadok (1979); Teletale (1963); Tender Is the Night (1962 / 1985); The Beautiful and Damned (1922 / 2009); The Bridal Party - F. S. Fitzgerald (2021); The Chorus Girl's Romance (1920); The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008); The Dashing Mr. Lowell (2012); The Dick Powell Theatre (1962); The Glimpses of the Moon (1923); The Great Gatsby (1926 / 1949 / 1974 / 2000 / 2013); The Great Gatsby Live Read! (2021); The Husband Hunter (1920); The Jazz Age (1968); The Last Time I Saw Paris (1954); The Last Tycoon (1976); The Last Tycoon / TV series (2016–2017); The Lost Decade (2012); The Off-Shore Pirate (1921); The Offshore Pirate (2013); The Sensible Thing (1996); The Twentieth Century (1960); The Women (1939); Three Comrades (1938); To theatro tis Defteras (1977); Winter Carnival (1939); Zelig (1983).

Born on this day – Audra Lindley:

Audra Lindley

Actress

September 24, 1918 – October 16, 1997

Credits:

Absolute Strangers (1991); All-Star Family Feud Special (1978–1979); American Inventory (1954); An American Girl (1958); Another World (1964–1969); Armstrong Circle Theatre (1952–1963); Barnaby Jones (1975); Best Friends (1982); Biography (2009); Bridesmaids (1989); Bridget Loves Bernie (1972–1973); Brilliant But Cancelled (2002); Cannery Row (1982); Chico and the Man (1975); Cybill (1996–1998); Dangerously They Live (1941); Deadline for Murder: From the Files of Edna Buchanan (1995); Dean Martin Celebrity Roast: Suzanne Somers (1978); Desert Hearts (1985); Dinah! (1979); Doc (1976); Entertainment Tonight (2016); Family Feud (1980); Fay (1975–1976); Friends (1995); From These Roots (1958–1961); Getting Married (1978); Good Morning America (1979); Goodyear Playhouse (1956); Hands of Mystery (1951–1952); Hart to Hart: Crimes of the Hart (1994); High Incident (1996); Horizons (1954); Insight (1981); Just My Imagination (1992); Kraft Theatre (1953–1958); Kraft Theatre / The Philco Television Playhouse (1952); Kraft Theatre / The United States Steel Hour (1963); Lamp Unto My Feet (1955); Lifestories: Families in Crisis (1992); Lights Out (1951); Love Story (1954); Lux Video Theatre (1950–1951); Manpower (1941); Married Is Better (1974); Matlock (1987); Maude (1975); Modern Romances (1954–1956); Murder, She Wrote (1995); Naked City (1961–1962); Nothing Sacred (1997); One Foot in Heaven (1941); Pat Boone and Family Christmas Special (1979); Pearl (1978); Perry Mason: The Case of the Lady in the Lake (1988); Playhouse 90 (1957); Ponds Theater (1955); Revenge of the Stepford Wives (1980); Robert Montgomery Presents (1951–1956); Route 66 (1963); Search for Tomorrow (1951–1986); Shadow of the Cloak (1951); Shoot the Moon (1996); Sisters and Other Strangers (1997); Skyward Christmas (1981); Spellbinder (1988); Stamp of a Killer (1987); Sudden Death (1995); Take My Daughters, Please (1988); Taking Off (1971); Tales from the Crypt (1989); Tales from the Hollywood Hills: Golden Land (1988); The 6th People's Choice Awards (1980); The Alcoa Hour (1955–1957); The Big Story (1952); The Bob Crane Show (1975); The Canterville Ghost (1974); The Corpse Had a Familiar Face (1994); The Day the Bubble Burst (1982); The Edge of Night (1956–1984); The Girl with Something Extra (1974); The Heartbreak Kid (1972); The Hidden Room (1991); The Love Boat (1977–1981); The Magical World of Disney (1986); The Male Animal (1942); The Merv Griffin Show (1972); The Mike Douglas Show (1978–1979); The Mommies (1994); The New Age (1994); The Relic (1997); The Ropers (1979–1980); The Silent Lovers (1980); The Web (1951–1954); Three's Company (1976–1982); Three's Company (1982); Troop Beverly Hills (1989); True Story (1957–1958); When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder? (1979); Zoo Ship (1985).

Born on this day – Bert I. Gordon:

Bert I. Gordon

Director

Visual effects artist

September 24, 1922 – March 8, 2023

On this day in movie history - The Name of the Rose (1986)

The Name of the Rose

directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud,

written by Andrew Birkin, Gérard Brach, Howard Franklin and Alain Godard,

based on the novel by Umberto Eco,

was released in the United States on September 24, 1986.

Music by James Horner.

Cast:

Sean Connery, F. Murray Abraham, Christian Slater, Dwight Weist, Helmut Qualtinger, Elya Baskin, Michael Lonsdale, Volker Prechtel, Feodor Chaliapin Jr., William Hickey, Michael Habeck, Valentina Vargas, Ron Perlman, Leopoldo Trieste, Franco Valobra, Vernon Dobtcheff, Donal O'Brian, Andrew Birkin, Lucien Bodard, Peter Berling, Pete Lancaster, Urs Althaus, Lars Bodin-Jorgensen, Kim Rossi Stuart.

On this day in movie history - Michael Clayton (2007)

Michael Clayton

directed and written by Tony Gilroy,

was released in the United States on September 24, 2007.

Music by James Newton Howard.

Cast:

George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Michael O'Keefe, Sydney Pollack, Danielle Skraastad, Tilda Swinton, Wai Chan, Alberto Vazquez, Brian Koppelman, Tom McCarthy, Denis O'Hare, Julie White, Austin Williams, Jennifer Van Dyck, Frank Wood, Richard Hecht, Bill Raymond, Jonathan Walker, Sharon Washington, Cynthia Mace, Michael Countryman, Ken Howard, Amy Hargreaves, Susan Pellegrino, Rachel Black, Matthew Detmer, John Douglas Thompson, Merritt Wever, Brian Poteat, Christopher Mann, Edward Furs, Katherine Waterston, John Gerard Franklin, Remy Auberjonois, Pun Bandhu, Jason Strong, Robert Prescott, Paul Oquist, Terry Serpico, Heidi Armbruster, Pamela Gray, Andrew Hunter Sherman, Kevin Hagan, Julia Gibson, Sean Cullen, Susan Egbert, David Lansbury, David Zayas, Douglas McGrath, Gregory Dann, Cathy Diane, Sam Gilroy, Maggie Siff, Sarah Nichols, Susan McBrien, Jordan Lage, Neal Huff, Paul Juhn, Patrick Askin, Angelo Bonsignore, Kevin Cannon, Pat Chambers, Clem Cheung, Tony Gilroy, Emelie Jeffries, Richard Kelly, Owen Lund, Josh Mowery, Kimmy Suzuki, Robert Torres, Steven Weisz, Kenneth G. Yong.

On this day in movie history - 2:22 (2008)

2:22

directed by Phillip Guzman,

written by Mick Rossi, Phillip Guzman and Eric Saavedra,

was released in the United States on September 24, 2008.

Music by Danny Saber.

Cast:

Mick Rossi, Robert Miano, Aaron Gallagher, Jorge A. Jimenez, Peter Dobson, Val Kilmer, Bruce Kirby, Sile Bermingham, Sean Power, Luis Caldeira, Brian Foyster, Eric Shani, Tom Knight, Laura McLean, Cheryl Meyer, Sandy Duarte, Maja Mandzuka, Manny Barbosa, Vicki Rivard, Dan Fox, Steve Boyer, Andrew Robichaud, Jean-Marc Fontaine, Christian Bako, Beverley Ellis, Kelly Ames, Donald Mitchell, Domenic Bitondo, Mathew Bitondo, James LaMarr, Angela Froese, Darrel Gamotin, Louis Rossetti, Zach Humphreys, R Austin Ball, Roberto Caprara, Mike Guzzo, Philip Roy, Phillip Guzman, Katelyn Vanier, Mike Woodbridge, Alex J. Campbell, Richard Hasan, Matthew Campbell, David M. Frost, Billy Barbosa, Frank Consiglio, Vincent Tedesco, Diego Caprara, Anna Caprara, Rolando Marcello, Katie Spencer, Serena Karson, Andrew Risi, Loraine Guzzo, Michelle Guzzo, Manuel Brito, Salvatore Cangialosi, Seymour Abramovitz, Tommy Massis, Nikola Caloger, Natali Jones, Justin Kelly, Matt Greyson, Gene Burns, Gabriel Byrne.

On this day in movie history - The Guilty (2021)

The Guilty

directed by Antoine Fuqua,

written by Nic Pizzolatto,

was released in the United States on September 24, 2021.

Based on The Guilty (2018), directed by Gustav Möller.

Music by Marcelo Zarvos.

Cast:

Jake Gyllenhaal, Riley Keough, Peter Sarsgaard, Christina Vidal, Eli Goree, Ethan Hawke, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Christiana Montoya, David Castañeda, Adrian Martinez, Oscar Balderrama, Becky Wu, Bret Eric Porter, Maurice Webster, Beau Knapp, Edi Patterson, Paul Dano, Gillian Zinser, Terence J. Rotolo, Bill Burr, Dillon Lane, Marlene Forte, Jaime FitzSimons, Aileen Burdock, Jonathan Hunt, Brad Abrell, Yeni Alvarez, Rajia Baroudi, Joe Cappelletti, Keena Ferguson, Jackson Gutierrez, Amad Jackson, Terence Mathews, Nan McNamara, Gustavo Rex, Deena Rubinson, Elia Saldana, Lloyd Sherr, Stephen Stanton, Kirk Thornton, Debra Wilson, Serah Henesey.

On this day in movie history - Marlowe (2022)

 

Marlowe

directed by Neil Jordan,

written by William Monahan,

based on the novel The Black-Eyed Blonde by John Banville,

was released at the Donostia-San Sebastián International Film Festival in Spain on September 24, 2022.

Music by Marcelo Zarvos.

Cast:

Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, Jessica Lange, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Colm Meaney, Daniela Melchior, Alan Cumming, Danny Huston, Seána Kerslake, François Arnaud, Ian Hart, Anton Antoniadis, Julius Cotter, Darrell D’Silva, Kim DeLonghi, Billy Jeffries, David Lifschitz, J.M. Maciá, Patrick Muldoon, Mitchell Mullen, Rosa Rovira, Mark Schardan, Gary Anthony Stennette, Stella Stocker, Michael Strelow.

On this day in music history - Young Girl Blues, by Sue Foley (1992)

Young Girl Blues

by Sue Foley,

was released on September 24, 1992.

On this day in music history - Pieces of Forever, by Laura Sullivan (2021)

Pieces of Forever

by Laura Sullivan,

was released on September 24, 2021.