On this day in movie history - Pandorum (2009)

Pandorum

directed by Christian Alvart,

written by Travis Milloy, and based on a story by Travis Milloy and Christian Alvart,

was released in the United States on September 25, 2009.

Music by Michl Britsch.

Cast:

Dennis Quaid, Ben Foster, Cam Gigandet, Antje Traue, Cung Le, Eddie Rouse, André Hennicke, Norman Reedus, Delphine Chuillot, Wotan Wilke Möhring, Yangzom Brauen, Virginia Welch, Niels-Bruno Schmidt

On this day in movie history - S is for Stanley (2015)

S is for Stanley: 30 Years Behind the Wheel with Stanley Kubrick

documentary directed by Alex Infascelli,

written by Alex Infascelli, Vincenzo Scuccimarra and Filippo Ulivieri,

based on the autobiography Stanley Kubrick and Me by Emilio D'Alessandro,

was released at Fantastic Fest in the United States on September 25, 2016.

Music by John Cummings.

Cast:

Emilio D'Alessandro, Alex Infascelli, Roberto Pedicini, Clive Riche, Janette Woolmore.

On this day in music history - Crystal Bowl Sound Healing, by Tryshe Dhevney (2012)

Crystal Bowl Sound Healing

by Tryshe Dhevney

was released on September 25, 2012.

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!