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americangirlstar · 3 years ago

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American Girl Birthdays - updated through 03/18/2023

I got inspired by @addywalkerstan‘s quick analysis of AG birthdays and wanted to see 1) when every confirmed birthday was relative to each other, and 2) when the unconfirmed bdays could potentially be.

All of the Historical characters and a few Contemporaries have confirmed birthdays, either in the books or via American Girl’s social media. Here is my list of confirmed birth months and dates; under the cut will be speculation on the Unknowns.

Confirmed Dates:

January 01 - Melody Ellison (1954)

February 12 - Courtney Moore (1976)

February 28 - Ivy Ling (1966)

March 03 - Marie-Grace Gardner (1843)

March 18 - Blaire Wilson (2009)

March 19 - Josefina Montoya (1815)

April 04 - Rebecca Rubin (1905)

April 09 - Addy Walker (1855)

April 10 - Maritza Ochoa (2008)

April 11 - Alice Nanea Mitchell (1932)

April 14 - Joss Kendrick (2010)

April 21 - Felicity Merriman (1765)

April 22 - Molly McIntire (1934)

May 01 - Julie Albright (1966)

May 05 - Claudie Wells (1913)

~May 06-08 - Tenney Grant (2005) [sources under the cut!]

May 07 - Maryellen Larkin (1945)

May 15 - Luciana Vega (2006)

May 19 - Kit Kittredge (1923)

May 22 - Nicki and Isabel Hoffman (1990)

May 26 - Samantha Parkington (1895)

May 28 - Cécile Rey (1843)

June 08 - Kirsten Larson (1845)

July 14 - Evette Peeters (2008)

August 14 - Lea Clark (2005)

~August 15 - Kaya’aton’my (1755)

August 22 - Ruthie Smithens (1923)

August 25 - Makena Williams (2008)

September 13 - Kira Bailey (2010) AND Corinne Tan (2011)

September 17 - Grace Thomas (2005)

September 29 - Emily Bennett (1933)

September 30 - Kavi Sharma (2010)

October 08 - Saige Copeland (2003)

October 15 - Nellie O’Malley (1895)

October 22 - Caroline Abbott (1802)

November 5 - Elizabeth Cole (1765)

~November 8 - Isabelle Palmer (2004) [sources under the cut]

no confirmed birthdays for December

Isabelle Palmer Birthday: born Autumn 2004; she is nine in Isabelle, which takes place at the beginning of the school year, and she is ten in Designs by Isabelle, which ends around Winter Break. Isabelle states in Chapter 4 of Designs that her tenth birthday was the week before the book began. There are still “a few weeks” before the performance in December, so her birthday is late Autumn, likely late October–early November.

However, back in 2014, Isabelle’s actress Erin Pitt did make a post on November 8 2014, reading “Happy birthday Isabell![sic] I��m so glad I could spend that time with you.” [x] Not sure if she was referring to the girl she’s taking a picture with or the character, but considering Pitt was there with an Isabelle doll, Nov 8 is a likely date!

Speculated Dates:

Now, here’s how I’m going with speculation: I’m going to negate the time period in which the girls’ books take place, as their birthdays would have been mentioned. Gwen, Sonali and Logan could be exempt from this since they had no books from their POV, but this is speculation, not fact, so let’s go.

Lindsey Bergman - born 1991. Her book takes place during the school year, seemingly not winter, so likely Spring or Autumn. I wasn’t quite sure if her story took place during the beginning or end of the school year, which would help decode whether it was Spring or Autumn; if anyone knows send me a message. Otherwise, her birthday is likely in Summer or Winter. Though, personally, I think it would be cute if her birthday was September 01, since she was first released on that date in 2001.

Kailey Hopkins - born 1993. Her book takes place during the summer of 2003, so her birthday is likely during Spring, Autumn or Winter.

Marisol Luna - born 1995. Her book takes place from October 22-29 2005, so her birthday is not within those dates.

Jess McConnell - born 1996. Her book begins in January; Sarita is on school break, so it’s probably her winter break? So Jess was born anytime but mid-January.

Nicki Fleming - born 1997. Her series takes place from Spring to Autumn 2007, with a break over Summer and with the story ending around December 2. However, there is a break between November 2 and December 2, in which Nicki’s twin sisters age a month. Nicki’s specific age is not mentioned in the second book, so her birthday could be Summer, November 3-December 1, or later in Winter.

Mia St Clair - born 1998. Her first book takes place roughly in the autumn and ends in early January; her second book takes place the next autumn. So she’s likely a Spring, Summer or late Winter (late Jan-Feb) birthday.

Chrissa Maxwell, Gwen Thompson, Sonali Matthews - born 1999. Their story takes place during the Spring of 2009, around Valentine’s Day (February 14) and the beginning of the Autumn 2009 school year. The Minnesota 2009 school year ended at about June 30, 2009, and began again Tuesday August 25. So birthdays could be before February 14, during the Summer, late Autumn or Winter.

Lanie Holland - born 2000. Series takes place from Spring through Summer 2010, so her birthday is likely in Autumn or Winter.

Kanani Akina - born 2001. Series takes place over the Summer of 2011, so her birthday is likely in Spring, Autumn or Winter.

McKenna Brooks - born 2002. Her first book begins in September, with her gymnastics meet in November. Her second book begins two months before “March-fest,” which would put it in January. I doubt she has a December birthday as her aging up would have been mentioned, but it’s still possible. McKenna was born anytime between April–August or (unlikely) December.

Gabriela McBride - born 2006. Her series takes place June 23-November 11 2017. Her birthday could be any date but those.

Tenney Grant and Logan Everett - born 2005/2004 respectively. Theirs ended up being really complicated so see below.

Suzanne “Z” Yang - born 2004. Series takes place April 3 to Mid-Summer 2017, so her birthday could be January-April 2 or in Autumn/Winter.

Gwynn Tan - born 2015. Corinne’s first book takes place in the Winter, likely November as Corinne and Gwynn are in school and Winter Break is not mentioned. It does take place over several weeks, so perhaps November to early December? The second book takes place at the beginning of spring, so late March; we then have a camping trip that is at the beginning of Summer, and a three-month timeskip afterwards to the end of Summer. Gwynn could have been born January–early March, April–early May, mid-Summer or September–October.

Tenney and Logan information:

According to her journal, Tenney begins Saturday October 1 2016 and ends Monday November 14 2016, throughout which she is definitely twelve.

Tenney: In the Key of Friendship picks up March 4 2017 and ends May 2-5 2017; her journal stops at May 5 but the plot of In the Key ends at about May 2. Tenney is still twelve during this period (Chap.11 of In the Key)

Tenney Shares the Stage is still during the school year, and my research shows the 2016-17 school year ended in Nashville at ~May 25, so Shares the Stage is sometime in May. Logan is fourteen by this point (Chap.1)

A Song for the Season, meanwhile, takes place early November to December, with Chapter 1 being “already November”, and the tour taking place “six weeks” later, the “day after school lets out for winter break” and ending on Christmas. From what I can tell, Winter Holidays in Nashville schools went from roughly December 18 2017-January 2 2018. The six-week date was given to Tenney on a Wednesday, which would put that day at about November 8, and the beginning of the book was just a few days before, on a day before a school day, so I believe it was a Sunday, so that would be the 5th. Tenney and Logan’s ages are not stated in this book.

Logan’s birthday is not from November ~5 to December 25. Since he could be 13 in In the Key, it’s hard to tell if he was born anytime from March to May, but he was fourteen before ~May 6. He and Tenney were not friends by the third book so he likely wouldn’t have mentioned his birthday previous to it, however she did know he was fourteen by Shares the Stage, so I presume at some point she asked someone. So his birthday is before ~May 6, or sometime from roughly May 25–November 5.

Tenney’s birthday, meanwhile, may be easier to find. Because her journal was given to her for her birthday, as stated from a note at the beginning of the book. Tenney’s first entry is on the 9th, though it doesn’t mention her birthday, and neither does the end of her journal on the next May 5. Tenney’s birthday is somewhere between May 6-8.

#american girl #american girls #american girl dolls #beforever #girl of the year #world by us #birthdays #mine #americangirlstar

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desertdollranch · 4 years ago

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December photo challenge, day 13: Holiday traditions

In the first winter since the Larsons arrived in America, Kirsten wondered if Christmas would be just like it was in Sweden. Mama assured her that they’d try their best to make it a special time. Kirsten tells her that the traditions of Christmas help her remember the family and friends that she left behind in Sweden.

Saint Lucia day marks the beginning of the Christmas season. Now Kirsten is looking forward to making the little cabin as festive, bright, and cheerful as the one she left behind. Keep reading to see what she has made and done so far!

Kirsten’s scenes and settings book show several bits of Swedish Christmas festivities. At the heart of the room is the tree, which Kirsten has already decorated with strings of dried berries and apples.

If you look closely, you can see the straw ornaments hanging from the branches! There are hearts, stars, and angels.

Kirsten had to leave all of her ornaments behind in Sweden, but she was glad to show Anna and Lisbeth how to make them from straw so that they’d have enough to decorate their trees. Here are the star and the heart.

They have made lots of little straw angels too!

To make Kirsten’s ornaments, I used a picture from the Pleasant Company craft kit that was available in the 1990′s.

It’s a very hard to find item, and expensive when it is found. Since I don’t have the instructions for making them, I also looked up other tutorials for Swedish straw ornaments to get a better idea of what they should look like when finished.

The Looking Back section of Kirsten’s Surprise explains what this three-pronged thing outside is. It’s a sheaf of wheat offered as a Christmas feast for the birds! It started as a way to honor the birds and animals who were witness to the birth of baby Jesus. In Swedish tradition, a large flock of birds meant that next year’s wheat harvest would be bountiful!

The candle in the window is to serve as a guide to Jultomten, or the Yule gnome. Similar to Santa Claus, he brought gifts to good little children if they left a bowl of rice pudding for him!

Hanging colorful woven cloths from the rafters is also a Swedish tradition that Kirsten was eager to maintain in her new home.

This little straw Yule Goat is set right next to the base of the tree, near the spinning wheel and yarn, to guard the tree. The goat probably has ties to Norse mythology and so is a very old tradition.

And lastly, Kirsten shows her cousins how to make this sweet little tomte gnomes! They’re made from a few triangles of fabric and fur, with wooden beads for the noses.

#Happy Dollidays #kirsten larson #doll crafts

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kaileeandag · 4 years ago

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American Girl: Where Are They Now?

I wonder “What did the historical characters do when they grew up?” So,here’s what I think.

Kaya: becomes a famous warrior after inheriting the name Swan Circling. Contracts Yellow Fever in 1804 and passes away soon after, at the age of 50.

Felicity Merriman: becomes owner of her father’s shop when she was 20. Marries Benjamin Davidson at the age of 18, once the war is over. Passes away peacefully in her sleep in 1854, at the age of 89. Via adoption, her descendant is comedian Tommy Davidson.

Elizabeth Cole: becomes a schoolteacher. Is arrested in 1795 and executed for treason in 1796 at the age of 31.

Caroline Abbott: at the age of 25, becomes a ship captain. Passes away in childbirth five years later, leaving her daughter to be raised by her father.

Josefina Montoya: opens her own imports store in 1855 with the help of her nephews. Never has children and never marries, passing away in her sleep in 1900 at the age of 85.

Kirsten Larson: thanks to her teacher Miss Winston, chooses to become a teacher. Later becomes an advocate for better travel conditions for immigrants in honor of her friend Marta. Passes away at the age of 99 in 1943 surrounded by her family.

Cecile Rey: becomes a nurse along with Marie Grace. Passes away in 1930 at the age of 75 due to complications from Pneumonia.

Marie Grace Gardener: works as a nurse along with Cecile. Contracts Yellow Fever in 1872, but survives. Passes away in 1935 at the age of 90 due to Alzheimer’s Disease.

Addy Walker: becomes a schoolteacher. She never has children, but sees her nieces and nephews, as well as her students, as her children. Writes a book called Running In The Night, publishing it in 1917. Passes away in her sleep at the age of 93 in 1948.

Samantha Parkington: thanks to her aunt Cornelia’s influence, she becomes a suffragist. Votes for the first time in the 1924 Presidential election. Also becomes an advocate for open adoption sometime in the 1960s. Marries her rival Eddie Ryland in 1918, with whom she has two daughters, Deborah in 1931 and Sarah in 1941. Passes away at the age of 88 in 1983.

Nellie O’Malley: speaks out against child labor and advocates for safer work conditions after her adoptive parents Cornelia and Gardner approve of the idea. Is the only one of her siblings to make it to old age, after Jenny passes away in 1930 due to Breast Cancer and Bridget is killed in a car accident in 1920, although her niece survives the accident, and William passes away in 1945 after a sudden heart attack. Appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart in 2000 to discuss her cousin/adoptive sister Samantha’s legacy. Passes away at the age of 105 on September 11, 2001, hours prior to the attacks on the World Trade Center. Nellie’s son Joshua passed away in 1977 at the age of 50 due to Lung Cancer, while her daughter Jennifer (born in 1930) is still living at the age of 90.

Rebecca Rubin: becomes a famous actress, making her speaking debut in the 1933 adaptation of King Kong. Her final on-screen appearance is in the 1997 Kirsten Dunst and Britney Murphy film The Devil’s Arithmetic, playing a Holocaust survivor. Marries classmate Otto Geller and has one child with him, son David in 1931. David becomes an actor himself in the early 1960s, his career spanning 55 years prior to his passing in 2015. Passes away in October 2002 at the age of 97. Considered one of the most prominent Jewish-American actresses of all time.

Kit Kittredge: becomes a reporter in the late 1940s, with her first major article being about Joseph McCarthy’s attempt to purge Communism from the country. She criticizes McCarthy in the article, feeling he is fear mongering. Marries Will Shepherd in 1945 when he returns from combat after the end of World War II. After struggling to have children for close to fourteen years, they adopt twin children Justin and Augusta in 1961. Will and Kit become grandparents when their daughter gives birth to a daughter named Amelia in 1990 and when Justin’s son Skylar and daughter Olivia are born in 1992. Retires from journalism in 2010, but comes out of retirement temporarily following the Ferguson Missouri protests in 2014. Passes away at the age of 94 in 2017.

Will Shepherd: manages to make enough money so that he can bring his family to Cincinnati. Is drafted into the Army following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He promises to marry a now adult Kit if he returns home safely, a promise he ends up keeping. Upon his return, he attends college, graduating with his degree in History in 1950. Works as a high school History teacher until his retirement in the early 1990s. When he becomes a grandfather, he dotes on his grandchildren, always taking them to the movies when he is able to do so. Passes away on January 4th, 2019, at the age of 103.

Ruthie Smithens: becomes a nurse, being sent overseas to help injured Allied soldiers during the last year of World War II. Marries Stirling Howard prior to him being shipped off to war, having his daughter Heather in 1943 when he is away. Is diagnosed with Breast Cancer in 1978, but survives. Eventually, she passes away in 1995 at the age of 72 due to a lung fungus called Aspergillosis.

Nanea Mitchell: becomes an advocate for the rights of Japanese-Americans following the end of World War II. Marries her friend Lily Suda’s older brother Gene in 1952 and has twin children Thomas and Sarah with him in 1965. Later becomes a Hawaii state senator in 1980, despite her opponent’s efforts to discredit her because of a meeting she had with former Emperor Showa (Hirohito) to discuss peace between America and Japan. Becomes very popular in Japan due to her advocacy for the rights of Japanese-Americans, becoming an honorary citizen of Tokyo in the late 1980s. Meets with double atomic bomb survivor Tsutomu Yamaguchi in 2006. Passes away three days after her 88th birthday, on April 14th, 2020, due to natural causes.

Molly McIntire: becomes a lawyer in 1950. Becomes known in the Chicago area after being asked to defend John Wayne Gacy during his trial. Is shot into the national spotlight after Ron Goldman’s family hires her to work for them during the OJ Simpson trial. Marries Howie Munson in 1950, their marriage lasting for 16 years prior to their divorce in 1966. Molly and Howie move to England in 1963 and after the divorce, Howie moves back to the States, leaving Molly to raise their 2 year old son Austin. Becomes a grandmother when Austin’s wife gives birth to a daughter named Taylor in 1992 and son Richard in 1993. Molly moves back to Illinois in 1976 with a now 11 year old Austin, settling in Chicago. Becomes a United States Senator in 1996 and votes for senator Barack Obama in the 2008 and the 2012 presidential elections.

Emily Bennett: upon her finishing secondary school, attended college in order to become a teacher. Gives birth to a son named Albion on July 4th, 1964, the same day that Molly gives birth to her son Austin. Emily raises Albion as a single mother due to the father abandoning her shortly after her son’s birth. Moves to Chicago in 1983, reuniting with Molly after she moved back to the States. Publishes a series of children’s books about her friendship with Molly starting in 1988. Her grandson Alastair is born on September 14th, 1992. She publishes an autobiography in 2017, appearing on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah to promote it. Alastair drew the cover of the book, which depicts Molly and Emily as children sitting under an oak tree.

Maryellen Larkin: marries classmate Davy Fenstermacher in 1963 following her high school graduation. Her motive is believed to be that she doesn’t want Davy to fight in Vietnam, so she chose to marry him so he wouldn’t be drafted. Their son Thomas is born in 1965 and when Thomas is in 5th grade, Maryellen goes to college in order to get her degree. She becomes a special education teacher, working for 31 years prior to her retirement in 2011. Her choice to allow her students to take part in mainstream classes such as choir confuses her co-workers. However, this becomes the norm following the passing of the Americans With Disabilities Act in 1990. Her granddaughter Vanessa is born in July 1992 and due to her being her only grandchild, she spoils her rotten.

Melody Ellison: attends medical school, earning her medical license in 1983 at the age of 29. Gives birth to her only child Donna Summer Ellison on January 15th, 1992, on what would have been Martin Luther King Jr.’s 63rd birthday. Her daughter was conceived via In-Vitro Fertilization. Adores her only child and her various nieces and nephews. Is going to retire as a doctor in 2022, at the age of 68.

Julie Albright: wants to become a basketball player, but she is unable to due to the WNBA not existing until 1996. Becomes a professional wrestler in 1987 at the age of 21. She marries classmate T.J. Jefferson in 1989, during the few months she had off. Retires temporarily in April 1992 following the birth of her twin children Rachel Tracy Joyce and Damien Thomas Daniel. Her daughter’s middle names come from her aunt Tracy and maternal grandmother Joyce Albright, while Damian’s middle names come from his father and maternal grandfather Daniel Albright. Returns to pro wrestling in 1995, working with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) until its closure in 2001, retiring permanently soon after. When she was away wrestling, her children would stay with her sister Tracy, Tracy’s husband Mike Stenger, and Julie’s nephew Jonah (born 1988) and niece Aubrey (born 1992.) Becomes an advocate for the rights of LGBT individuals after her son Damian comes out as gay in his Junior year of high school and her nephew Jonah comes out in 2006, during his Senior year of high school.

Ivy Ling: works as a special education teacher until 2003, when she becomes a stand up comedian. She says that her primary influence for pursuing a career in stand up was Margaret Cho. Her daughter Julie was born in November 1991 and was named after her best friend Julie. Her daughter even inherited the nickname ‘Alley Oop’ from her honorary aunt.

Let me know what you guys think! This is just what I think happened.

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thefilmsnob · 3 years ago

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Glen Coco’s Top 10 Films of 2021

Consistent with the chaotic times in which we find ourselves, the film landscape has become a complete mess. Release dates are tentative, films premier at home the same day as in theaters (or four months later) and the particular streaming service where they arrive is anyone’s guess. But, amidst the logistical tumult, filmmakers continue to craft some great motion pictures. I don’t like preambles as much as I used to, so I’ll just get on with my top 10 films of 2021...after the runners-up and the standard bonus track...there’s always a bonus track.

RUNNERS-UP

-C’mon C’mon

-CODA

-Don’t Look Up

-Licorice Pizza

-A Quiet Place Part II (Full Review)

#10b. (Bonus Track) Nightmare Alley

Director: Guillermo del Toro

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Toni Collette, Richard Jenkins, Willem Dafoe

Missing out on the official Top 10 list for departing from the astonishing carnival setting too soon and dragging a bit in the second act, Nightmare Alley still deserves mentioning for its impeccable production design. Even when writer-director Guillermo del Toro’s scripts fall short, he makes up for it with stunning visual storytelling, exemplified here with richly detailed and colourful images of a 1930s carnival, contradicted later in the film by gorgeous art deco designs of city buildings. With a brilliant cast led by Bradley Cooper, del Toro maintains a disturbingly eerie atmosphere throughout despite eschewing his signature fantasy elements, producing a chilling, if imperfect, film noir that takes the viewer through dark corridors (figurative and literal) while examining the worst impulses of human nature.

#10. Tick, Tick... Boom!

Director: Lin-Manuel Miranda

Starring: Andrew Garfield

If conquering Broadway while also acting in and composing music for films wasn’t enough, Lin-Manuel Miranda has now made Tick, Tick... Boom! and you’d never guess it was his directorial debut. The film stars Andrew Garfield as Jonathan Larson, the playwright and composer of the smash hit Rent who sadly died the night before its off-Broadway premier. The film jumps back and forth between 1992, in which Larson performs the titular rock monologue that Miranda uses as a storytelling device, and 1990, in which the exhausted artist prepares for the workshop of his passion project Superbia, works at a diner, tries to maintain a relationship and strives desperately to be successful before turning 30. The movie’s seemingly unending action involving constant movement between time periods and within space, with no shortage of singing and dancing, might feel a tad busy, yet it perfectly captures that relentless creativity, passion and even frustration of the ‘starving artist’. Garfield is nothing if not a passionate performer and he sells every moment of both Larson’s mental anguish as well as elation with every fiber of his being. This is truly a whirlwind of a film.

#9. The Power of the Dog

Director: Jane Campion

Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Kodi Smit-McPhee

The great Jane Campion’s latest film is a western, to be sure, but instead of celebrating the genre’s classic traits, she scrutinizes them while shrewdly subverting the genre in the process. By telling a story about a miserable ranch owner who torments his brother’s new wife and her effeminate son, she critiques the idea of toxic masculinity and its harmful effects on, not just the targets of this behaviour, but the toxic individual himself. This film is a masterclass in subtlety, with a script that reveals its complex characters, their motivations and the various, often shocking, plot developments without spelling it out for the audience. A smart viewer will understand how, for example, a character’s repressed homosexuality can lead to isolation, jealousy, resentment and ultimately the exacerbation of toxic behaviour. This psychological thriller is set amidst Ari Wegner’s gorgeous shots of the New Zealand countryside filling in for 1920s Montana and the brilliant Jonny Greenwood’s appropriately disturbing score that compliments a character dynamic already brimming with tension.

#8. The Last Duel

Director: Ridley Scott

Starring: Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer, Ben Affleck

Let’s just get this out of the way: casting famous American actors as French knights using quasi-British accents is an odd choice but nowhere near unprecedented. Yes, it sounds strange at first, but you’ll quickly forget it as you’re swept away in the engrossing social commentary set during the middle ages. Yet, even if this is a time long passed, the themes are sadly still relevant as we’re given three different perspectives of what may or may not be the rape of a young woman. We see some events multiple times, but it never feels monotonous and some parts are different enough that we reevaluate how we feel about the situation and characters, one of whom shifts from a man of honour to a dirt bag right before our eyes. Accents aside, the acting is superb and includes a surprising turn from Affleck who’s a riot as the corrupt and debaucherous Pierre d’Alencon. Ridley Scott’s been inconsistent for a while, but he knows how to put a great historical epic on screen which he does here with grandiose sets and costumes, not to mention the titular last duel forming the film’s climax which is expertly staged and unapologetically brutal.

#7. King Richard

Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green

Starring: Will Smith, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Aunjanue Ellis

Will Smith has been in so many mediocre films that you might forget he’s a great actor. He gives possibly his best performance to date in King Richard as the father and coach of the young girls who will become two of the greatest tennis players ever: Venus and Serena Williams. With the help of director Reinaldo Marcus Green and writer Zach Baylin, Smith vanishes into this character who he portrays as a complex human being, by turns an honourable, nurturing father and a stubborn, sometimes selfish, old man. But, that’s what elevates what could’ve been a cookie-cutter biopic to an insightful character study and a great example of what a sports movie can achieve with powerful performances, excellent pacing and honest dialogue that doesn’t pander. Some have criticized the film for focusing on the male behind two female athletes’ success, but if it means providing a rare layered and positive portrayal of an African-American father then it’s a sound compromise. That said, the film doesn’t forget about the sisters nor their incredibly supportive mother, all played by excellent actors who make us root for this family whose members consistently excel despite so much working against them.

#6. Spider-Man: No Way Home

Director: Jon Watts

Starring: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Marisa Tomei

On paper, this film might seem like gimmicky fan service, but to believe that would be to underestimate Marvel Studios. Even if you’re wary of the corporate franchise film model, you have to give credit to this company; No Way Home is the 27th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, yet it’s still wildly entertaining, surprising and charming while continuing to connect to the other films in the franchise. Equally impressive is how a movie with so many characters and twists (no spoilers!) can maintain such a high level of coherence and a strong focus on character. In fact, despite all the moving pieces, this is actually one of the more poignant films in the series with huge emotional stakes. Director Jon Watts and writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers handle some very emotional scenes with tact, allowing them room to breath and time to sink in. They also show a willingness to take risks, a rare practice in this genre. Altogether, the film offers a perfect opportunity to get cozy, pig out on popcorn and escape reality for a few hours. Lord knows we could all use that!

#5. The Card Counter

Director: Paul Schrader

Starring: Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan, Willem Dafoe

Paul Schrader’s 2018 masterpiece First Reformed was overlooked by both audiences and awards voters and the same is true for The Card Counter. The writer-director excels at telling stories about deeply flawed and tortured men (Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver; Ethan Hawke in First Reformed) and he does so again with the exceptional Oscar Isaac who gives such a measured, disciplined performance, not just at times when he’s quiet and withdrawn but also during intense moments when he becomes a scary force of nature. Due to his controversial military past, a young man seeks his help with a plan to torture and kill a former army major who was known for his horrific interrogation methods. These are shown in flashbacks that feel more like nightmares; we view the acts through ultra-wide ‘fish eye’ lenses and hear pounding heavy metal music. As usual, Schrader peals back the layers of the story gradually and amps up the tension to an almost unbearable level. But, most importantly, he earns our complete investment in Isaac’s character and whether he’ll maintain his current situation as a successful gambler, sparing himself and the boy from a life of violence, or be an accomplice to a brutal act of revenge.

#4. Dune

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Starring: Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Zendaya, Stellan Skarsgard, Josh Brolin

Leave it to Denis Villeneuve, named director of the decade by the Hollywood Critics Association, to take a novel that many have called unfilmable--the awful ‘80s adaptation strengthening that argument--and make his version an aw-inspiring spectacle and indeed one of the best films of 2021. Unlike the original that loses you with a data dump in the first five minutes, the new version introduces you to this world and all its elements gradually and with a variety of strategic methods. It also helps that a handful of some of the greatest actors in Hollywood have assembled to lend their talent and credibility to this project with the prodigious Timothee Chalamet in the lead role. Most impressive, however, are the wondrous visuals; despite working with a seemingly baron dessert setting, Villeneuve brings it to life with gargantuan space ships, labyrinthine structures, giant deadly sand worms and various factions of people with elaborate weapons and armour. Thankfully, the wide shots and lingering camera allow us to marvel at these images instead of taking them for granted. Dune is a prime example of what a blockbuster epic can be when craft and imagination take precedence. *Note: Could’ve used more sand worm.

(Full Review)

#3. The Tragedy of Macbeth

Director: Joel Coen

Starring: Denzel Washington, Frances McDormand

William Shakespeare’s plays have been adapted countless times but rarely are they so striking and brimming with creativity. This is Joel Coen’s first film without his longtime collaborator and brother Ethan and he eschews their trademark dark humour while maintaining his mastery of the craft, making one pitch perfect decision after another. The most obvious one is casting Denzel Washington in the lead role, a subversive choice but the right one. The actor, who the New York Times critics named the best of the 21st century, works his magic, changing convincingly from a loyal and weary soldier to a murderous, power-hungry madman due to the ramblings of three witches and the coaxing of his conniving wife played by the peerless Frances McDormand. Coen shot this gem entirely on a sound stage with the final product at once feeling like a theater production yet utterly cinematic. This is done with the help of cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel, exploiting shadow, fog effects and black & white gloriously, enhancing the story’s suspenseful, occasionally nightmarish atmosphere. These elements combined with very simple yet effective angular stone sets produce a sort of otherworldly feel appropriate for this supernatural tale.

#2. West Side Story

Director: Steven Spielberg

Starring: Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez

Often when we think of someone like Steven Spielberg, an institution in film for decades, we take them for granted, forgetting how great they really are. I was not excited to see West Side Story, the second film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical. Maybe it’s because I saw another New York-based musical In the Heights earlier in the year or because the film lacks big names or because the idea of dance-fighting confuses me. Whatever the reason, it was quickly forgotten as I was being taken away by the true spectacle that Spielberg put on screen. Believe it or not, this is his first musical, yet he takes an otherwise chaotic series of events and dance numbers and makes it all completely comprehensible. The love story’s charming and the performances are great, but what he does with the routines is pure visual poetry, completely vibrant and full of energy. Even static, dialogue-heavy scenes are filmed with a sharpness that gives the movie a fantastical quality. The film’s highlight is a beautifully choreographed scene set at a dance in a gymnasium, involving virtually the whole cast plus extras. It starts with a continuous steadicam shot that seamlessly transitions to a cable cam shot as the gym doors open that brings us up into the air, providing a birds’ eye view of the the action before plunging us back down into the sea of dancers. It’s a wonder to behold.

#1. Spencer

Director: Pablo Larrain

Starring: Kristen Stewart

It’s appropriate that the late Princess Diana, née Spencer, is played by Kristen Stewart. Both women are shy, beautiful, talented, anxious, liked by many, ridiculed by many more, in the news for the wrong reasons. But if you’re expecting a standard biopic about this complex figure or stringent historical accuracy, look elsewhere. Pablo Larrain’s transcendent work of mostly fiction is too ambitious, unique and mesmerizing for the typical formulaic, decades-spanning account. Instead, it’s set over three days beginning on Christmas Eve at the Queen’s Sandringham estate during a turbulent point in Diana’s marriage. We’re shown how isolated and anxious she felt at the time, stuck in a remote house with cold, unloving in-laws, her only friend the Royal Dresser, Maggie, played by Sally Hawkins. We’re given an intimate look inside the tortured mind of Diana whose experiences are so surreal at times that it’s hard to discern between hallucination and reality in this psychological thriller that’s arguably a horror story; with the brilliant Jonny Greenwood’s sinister score, it definitely sounds like one. At the center of the horror is Kristen Stewart, giving the best performance of her underrated career, capturing Diana’s distinct mannerisms and vocal traits while easily gaining our sympathy. Perhaps the most satisfying part of the film is its final sequence, a deeply moving denouement that allows Diana to break free and enjoy a sense of liberation, a happy ending gifted to Diana the character but one that Diana the human being sadly never received.

#top 10 films #2021 films #movie review

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y2kbeautyandother2000sstuff · 2 months ago

Text

American Girl Doll Collection Catalogue

1991

Found on toysandcollectiblesmuseum.org

I still have Samantha's desk in the top of my closet!!! and her red Christmas outfit!!!

#1990s american girl dolls #1990s american girl #1990s american girl dolls catalogue #1990s felicity merriman #1990s kirsten larson #1990s samantha parkington #vintage pleasant company #vintage american girl dolls #vintage american girl #1990s childhood #1990s toys #1990s kids #1990s dolls #1990s nostalgia #1990s memories #1990s catalogues

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writemarcus · 7 years ago

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by Marcus Scott

EDGE Media Network Contributor

In the aftermath of the New York premiere of "Bella: An American Tall Tale," which ended its run off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons earlier this month, another production penned by musical theatre luminary Kirsten Childs, a revival of her satirical 2000 Bildungsroman dark comedy "The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin" boasts a thrilling production at New York City Center's Off-Center (a spinoff of the ever-popular Encores! series of musicals of the past, performed in concert and focusing on Off-Broadway show fare).

Risen like a phoenix from its ashes, when the show was first produced at Playwrights Horizons where it played a sold-out limited engagement off-Broadway, it featured a cast of theatre veterans such as Darius de Haas, Jerry Dixon, Duane Boutte, Cheryl Alexander and LaChanze.

For her efforts on the original production, Childs received Obie, Kleban, Audelco, Richard Rodgers awards; Rockefeller and John Larson grants; and was honored with Lucille Lortel nominations, NAACP nominations and Drama Desk nominations, among others. Despite its success, the show is virtually disregarded, despite the numerous acclaim its garnered from U.S. regional theatre companies and its European premiere at Theatre Royal Stratford East earlier this year, which received glowing reviews 17 years after making its initial debut off-Broadway.

Now in its fifth season, with the arrival of Childs' semi-autobiographical funk-driven opus at Off-Center, it's clear the essential mission of NYCC is to really tackle what is occurring in the zeitgeist: With the heart-skipping 1990 political drama musical "Assassins," a revue style satire of the men and women who attempted (successfully or otherwise) to assassinate various U.S. Presidents by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman (which also originated at Playwrights Horizons), audiences are forced to confront the precipitously flaring economic gulf in Trump-era America.

With its third show, the upcoming revival of the 1980 musical "Really Rosie" by children's book writer Maurice Sendak and iconic singer-songwriter Carole King, audiences are compelled to challenge what will become of the future of their children. "The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin" asks singular queries that not only color the themes and motifs of the aforementioned titles, but probes at something a little more nuanced and insidious.

Beginning in 1963, the narrative of this whimsical musical spans three decades in the life of Viveca Stanton (played by Tony-winning actress Nikki M. James), an effervescent color-struck middle-class black girl nicknamed "Bubbly," duplicitously celebrated in her community as "one of the good ones." With her parents having safeguarded her from the turbulence of the Civil Rights protests, Viveca becomes increasingly aware of the cultural climate of the time.

Growing up in Los Angeles with dreams of becoming a legendary dancer in the vein of Gwen Verdon's Lola in the film adaptation of "Damn Yankees," all of Viveca's role models are, for the most part, pronouncedly white. As a young girl, this becomes quite apparent when she tells her beloved white Chitty Chatty doll (modeled after the Mattel-manufactured pull-string "talking" Chatty Cathy) that she happily dreams of being a fairy tale princess wed to a white Prince Charming who would in turn liberate her from the curse of being black. Meanwhile, she chucks the black doll her parents impose on her.

When she catches wind that four little girls around her age (Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson and Carol Denise) are killed in a bombing at the 16th Street Baptist Church -- an act of white supremacist terrorism orchestrated by Ku Klux Klan members that occurred in the city of Birmingham, Alabama in 1963 -- the incident has a larger-than-life impact on her. It completely engulfs her psyche. It doesn't help that her father advises her that a smile is the best defense against life's challenges, and soon Viveca begins to free-fall through life, wearing a polite façade while retaining her ruthless enthusiasm even in face of adversity.

Not only does she maintain a positive attitude when it's announced a light-skinned student will get to dance the part of the ingénue in her upcoming ballet recital despite her dark-skinned gal pal being the best in the class, but her personality is later attacked in middle school when another girl labels her a "pathetic Oreo."

In high school, she reduces herself around her first boyfriend, a psychedelic white liberal hippie, who all but dismisses the Black Is Beautiful movement. Heading home after attending a house party with Gregory (a childhood friend played by theatre vet Korey Jackson), she soon watches in horror as he is accosted by the police simply for walking after dark.

Eventually, Viveca gets wise, and in college, adopts a militant attitude to blend in with the other black students, only she feels even more distanced from herself and her peers. Hoping to escape racial limbo, she moves to New York City to become a world-class dancer.

Upon her migration, Viveca moonlights as a secretary in a steno pool when she is not hoofing in tap class, working on perfecting her lines in ballet class, or poking her buttocks out in jazz class. However, when opportunity rings and she is offered the chance to audition for a Bob Fosse-esque director-choreographer, rollicking hilarity (a parody of "Chicago" by way of Elmer Fudd) and harrowing psychodrama surfaces, forcing Viveca to come into her own identity.

Directed by the incomparable Robert O'Hara (whose plays "BootyCandy" and "Barbecue" resemble the tonal shifts of various shows by Childs), this short-lived, no-frills concert performance musical directed with fiery spirit by Annastasia Victory is the stuff of dreams. Whether it's "The Skate," a gum-snapping integration block party get down set to R&B, or "Sticks and Stones," a downtempo jazz-soul oratorio about racial grief, Childs' eclectic score still astonishes.

With riffs on Motown, '60s girl group, James Brown funk sessions, le jazz hot flavored Kander & Ebb, and Rodgers & Hammerstein show tune flourishes, the score pivots without parachutes; much like the leading lady, whose myriad experiments of blackness performativity are adopted, cast-off and then fused to create something bigger and more nuanced. Nevertheless, there's something for everyone.

As Lucas, a man whom Viveca begins an affair, Julius Thomas III's thunder-and-silk tenor electrify in the pillow talk seduction number "Come With Me," a carnal come-hither song. As his grandmother, the awe-inspiring Kenita R. Miller brings down the house in the church holler injected "Granny's Advice" with the backwater gospel gusto of a true hierophant. Dancers Jo'Nathan Michael and Alex Wong wow in "Director Bob" and "The Skate" respectively.

Playing the show's protagonist with aplomb, James gives a torrential outburst of comic wit with stinging, sobering vulnerability that accentuates the rampant discrimination, colorism and misogyny the title character experiences throughout her life. However, various songs within the score, especially the funky, cathartic 11 o' clock number "Listen!" are lost due to the singer's airy, bright mezzo soprano, which is thin, nasal and lacks power, ultimately upsetting the urgency and the seriousness of the more intense moments. Given that she's following in the footsteps of another Tony winner, LaChanze, it's no cakewalk. But James delivers a sterling performance.

An heir to, say, Micki Grant and Charlie Smalls, Childs, a former chorus girl and Broadway dancer, has created a show that has only intensified as time as progressed; a show that really excavates and interrogates the American consciousness.

But with this revival, New York City Center's Off-Center raises some questions: Is Broadway afraid of writers of color? It should be. It should be very afraid. "Bubbly..." illuminates and implodes like a silent scream.

"The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin" runs through July 27 at the New York City Center, 131 W 55th St. in New York. For information or tickets, call 212-581-1212 or visit http://www.nycitycenter.org/

#Kirsten Childs #The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin #Edge New York #Edge Media Network #Marcus Scott #Write Marcus #Articles #Reviews

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