#E. K. Sedgwick

[oceannacaldin]

"Dans ses manifestations les plus intimes, cet apitoiement des hommes hétérosexuels est souvent considéré comme l'un des effets culturels du féminisme (bien qu'il semble les excéder) et est associé aux actes de violence, particulièrement contre les femmes quand il est pas invoqué pour les justifier. L'incroyable proportion de violence masculine dirigée contre des femmes séparées de leurs maris, contre des ex-femmes et des ex-petites amies ou contre des femmes sur le point d'établir un espace personnel qui leur soit propre, semble par exemple autant approuvée et guidée par le flot de livres et de films dans lesquels une telle violence semble être l'expression d'une personnalité sentimentale passionnée et non machiste, que reflétée par eux. (C'est sans doute l'une des raisons pour lesquelles les femmes sont mal à l'aise lorsque les hommes hétéros affirment avoir reçu du féminisme le don des larmes, la "permission de pleurer".).

E. K. Sedgwick, Epistémologie du placard

[my-deer-friend]

The post you reposted about not hating historians was really interesting, thank you for sharing it. Do you have recommendations for historians who are researching queer history in the 18th century?

Do I!

(Note that I'm using "queer" below in the modern sense of "behaviour outside the sanctioned/accepted gender or sexual norms of the time".)

Strands of scholarship

I've come to see two broad approaches in historical queer studies, at least those focused on the 18th century; these are my own observations, and not formal groupings (as far as I'm aware).

One one side, you have those scholars who have a very open and loose conception of queerness, and are usually interested in "queering the past" – aka using a queer scholarship lens to investigate historical social-cultural behaviours. They often focus on literary analysis and tend to be more liberal about applying modern queer terminology to the past, and usually lean social constructionist or postmodernist.

On the other side, you have strict queer scholars, who have much more stringent definitions of what is "definitely queer" and what isn't, and are interested in making sure that only those historical figures who are "truly" queer are labelled as such. They tend to focus on official documents like trial records and homosexual acts as the most valid kinds of evidence of queerness. These are most often critical realists.

The first group risks taking an over-broad approach to historical queerness, while the second risks being overly narrow, so the majority of scholars tend to fall somewhere in the middle. I do however think it's important to be aware of the differing entry points that a historian might be taking, so that you can read more critically.

All that said...

Here are some recommendations

Haggerty, G. E. (1999). Men in love: Masculinity and sexuality in the eighteenth century. Columbia Univ. Press. For me, this is the gold-standard starting point. Haggerty takes a very pragmatic and compassionate approach to investigating historical queerness. He has also published a more recent book about Horace Walpole which I've skimmed and it looks excellent (Haggerty, G. E. (2011). Horace Walpole’s Letters: Masculinity and Friendship in the Eighteenth Century. Bucknell University Press.)

Godbeer, R. (2009). The overflowing of friendship: Love between men and the creation of the American republic. Johns Hopkins University Press. Another excellent foundational work, this one focused more on America.

Tobin, R. (2000). Warm Brothers: Queer Theory and the Age of Goethe. University of Pennsylvania Press. This book focuses on queerness in late-18th/early-19th century German culture, but has lots of useful cross-cutting insights.

Sedgwick, E. K. (1985). Between men: English literature and male homosocial desire. Columbia university press. Sedgwick doesn't pull many punches, and that puts her ahead of her time; you'll find many theorists leaning on her study.

Malcolm, N. (2024). Forbidden Desire in Early Modern Europe: Male-Male Sexual Relations, 1400-1750 (1st ed.). Oxford University Press. I have heard great things about this book and it's somewhere on my long, long reading list – but by all accounts it's worth a look, and is the most recent source on this list, so it should contain the most up-to-date scholarship.

Cleves, R. H. (2014). Charity and Sylvia: A same-sex marriage in early America. Oxford University Press. This one takes place in the early 19th century, so not quite what you're looking for, but is an interesting investigation into (the scarcer field of) female same-sex relations.

Norton, R. (Ed.). Homosexuality in Eighteenth-Century England: A Sourcebook. Updated 17 December 2023. http://rictornorton.co.uk/eighteen/. An invaluable resource of source documents and analyses (with the small caution that Norton very blatantly uses modern queer terminology in historical context).

These are all books, so they serve as a good starting point for a broad exploration; all of these authors have also published academic articles, which go into much more depth on narrower topics. I also have some more focused resources, if there is a specific topic within this massive field that you have a particular interest in!

[nubreed73]

To draw the “homosocial” back into the orbit of “desire,” of the potentially erotic, then, is to hypothesize the potential unbrokeness of a continuum between homosocial and homosexual – a continuum whose visibility, for men, in our society, is radically disrupted.

Sedgwick, E. K. (1985). Between men: English literature and homosocial desire. New York, NY: Columbia University Press.

NOBODY EVEN LOOK AT ME THIS MAN IS A LIFERUINER AKA I watched Descendants of the Sun and got slammed with even more brainrot (FFS)

HAPPY PRIDE I GUESS

[joker1315]

All the actors you can find on this blog

Use the following link and insert the tag you want to see:

a: adam croasdell - aiden turner - aimee garcia - alan rickman - alan tudyk - alex kingston - alison sudol - allen leech - amanda abbington - amir wilson - amita suman - anatol yusef - andreas pietschmann - andrew garfield - andrew scott - aneurin barnard - annette badland  - anthony hopkins - anthony mackie - antony starr - anya chalotra - august wittgenstein

b: barry bostwick - bellamy young - ben barnes - ben mckenzie - benedict cumberbatch - benicio del toro - bernard cribbins - bill nighy - billie piper - billy boyd - brendan gleeson - brent spiner - brianna hildebrand

c: calahan skogman - cameron monaghan - candice bergen - carla gugino - caroline dhavernas - cate blanchett - catherine e coulson - catherine tate - catinca untaru - chadwick boseman - charlie chaplin - chris addison - chris cooper - chris evans - chris hemsworth - chris malcom - chris pine - christian bale - christian clemenson - christian tramitz - christiane paul - christina ricci - christopher eccleston - christopher lee - christopher lloyd - cillian murphy - colin firth - colin odonoghue - colin woodell - corey johnson - cory michael smith - craig parker

d: dakota fanning - daniel brühl - daniel craig - daniel radcliffe - daniel sträβer - danielle galligan- david bowie - david dastmalchian - david duchovny - david morrissey - david tennant - david thewlis - david wenham - deforest kelley - diego luna - dietrich hollinderbäumer - dominic cooper - dominic monaghan - dominic west

e: eddie karanja - elijah wood - elizabeth olsen - elton john - emilie de ravin - emily beecham - emma thompson - emma watson - ethan hawke - eve myles - ewan mcgregor

f: ferdinand kingsley - frankie adams - freddy carter - freema agyeman

g: gareth david lloyd - gary oldman - geoffrey rush - george eads - george takei - georgia tennant - georgina haig - gillian anderson - ginnifer goodwin - gwendoline christie - gwyneth paltrow

h: hadley fraser - harrison ford - harvey keitel - hayley atwell - heath ledger - helen mccrory - helena bonham carter - henry cavill - hugh dancy - hugh jackman - hugh laurie - hugh skinner - hugo weaving

i: ian mckellen - imelda staunton - inbar lavi

j: jack davenport - jack wolfe - jackie earle haley - jake gyllenhaal - james mcavoy - james spader - jamie lee curtis - jared padalecki - jason isaacs - javier bardem - jayne brook - jeff goldblum - jenna coleman - jennifer connelly - jennifer lawrence - jennifer morrison - jensen ackles - jeremy renner - jim beaver - jodie foster - joel rush - joey batey - john barrowman - john boyega - john hurt - john larroquette - john rhys davies - john simm - johnny depp - jonathan frakes - jose pimentao - joseph gilgun - josh dallas - jude law - julia stiles - julianne moore - julie covington - juliette binoche

k: kacey rohl - karen fukuhara - karen gillan - karl urban - kat dennings - kate capshaw - kathryn hahn - keira knightley - kevin alejandro - kit young - krysten ritter - kyle maclachlan - kyra sedgwick

l: lana parrilla - lara pulver - lars mikkelsen - laura allen - laura dern - laura fraser - lauren german - laurence fishburne - laurie kynaston - laz alonso - lee arenberg - lee pace - leonard nimoy - lesley ann brandt - lesley sharp - lindsay duncan - lisa vicari - liv tyler - lizzy caplan - louise hofmann - lucas till - luke evans

m: mads mikkelsen - maggie gyllenhaal - majel barrett - margo martindale - marion cotillard - mark gatiss - mark pellegrino - mark ruffalo - mark sheppard - mark strong - mark waschke - martin freeman - matt smith - max schimmelpfenning - may calamawy - meat loaf - megan boone - mel gibson - melinda clarke - melissanthi mahut - meret becker - mia wasikowska - michael benyaer - michael bully herbig - michael cumpsty - michael des barres - michael fassbender - michael gambon - michael raymond james - michael sheen - michelle gomez - mikael persbrandt - miranda otto - misha collins

n: natalie portman - ncuti gatwa - neil patrick harris - nell campbell - nichelle nichols - nicolas cage - nicole kidman

o: olivia colman - orlando bloom - oscar isaac - owen wilson

p: paddy ohagan - patricia quinn - patrick stewart - paul bettany - paul chahidi - paul lux - paul mescal - pedro pascal - penelope wilton - peter capaldi - peter falk - peter hinwood - philip glenister - phoebe waller bridge - pierce brosnan - pip torrens

q: qorianka kilcher - quentin tarantino

r: rachael harris - rachel weisz - rafi gavron - ralph fiennes - rayner bourton - reece shearsmith - rene russo - rhona mitra - richard armitage - richard obrien - rob benedict - robbie kay - robert carlyle - robert downey jr - robin lord taylor - robin williams - ronald guttman - rose mciver - rupert graves - rupert grint - russell crowe - ruth negga - ryan gosling - ryan reynolds

s: sam neill - samantha smith - samuel l jackson - scarlett estevez - scarlett johansson - sean astin - sean bean - sebastian stan - sherilyn fenn - shohreh aghdashloo - sky du mont - sophia di martino - stanley tucci - stellan skarsgard - steven strait - susan sarandon

t: tan caglar - taron egerton - tilda swinton - tim curry - tim roth - toby maguire - tom conti - tom ellis - tom felton - tom hiddleston - tom holland - tom payne - tom sturridge - tomer capone - tony curran - tony curtis - tricia helfer - troy garity

u: una stubbs

v: val kilmer - vanesu samunyai - viggo mortensen - vivienne acheampong - vladimir burlakov

w: walter koenig - william shatner

y: yasmin finney

z: zachary quinto

[scottdixon]

You put the cops on him? No. If I was, they’d be here, not me.

[ladyxskywalker]

song & url tag game

Rules: Make a new post and spell out your url with song titles, then tag as many people as there are letters in your url. ✨

tagged by @hdlynnslibrary 💜

no pressure tags @kalllistos @againstacecilia @mariesackler @ashotofspotchka @wolfish-desires @profkenobi @clydesducktape @tlcwrites @karasong @maybege @aerynwrites @purelyfiction @zinzinina @saradika @laserbrains & open to anyone else who sees this 💌 I'm driving myself nuts trying to remember everyone to tag

p -- paid for love, Ilan bluestone, gid sedgwick

r -- rise, doves

i -- interstate love song, stp

n -- nutshell, alice in chains

c -- club foot, kasabian

e -- everything starts, secret machines

s -- sleepless, northlane

s -- soul song, grey daze

x -- x & y, coldplay

k -- kick, push, lupe fiasco

e -- enemies like this, radio 4

n -- neutron star collision, muse

o -- otherside, rhcp

b -- ball and biscuit, the white stripes

i -- in my sleep, inhaler

[antigonick]

Here, have a bit of fun

Read E. K. Sedgwick’s Jane Austen and the Masturbatory Girl

[inclineto]

Books, July - August 2020

The Lawrence Browne Affair - Cat Sebastian [interesting: I liked this a whole lot more on rereading than I did the first time]

Notes from an Apocalypse: A Personal Journey to the End of the World and Back - Mark O’Connell [much funnier than I expected a book featuring this many libertarians to be; also, god damn Ayn Rand and her community- and compassion-fearing nihilistic fanboys]

Queenie - Candice Carty-Williams

Solitaire - Kelley Eskridge * [the only surprise is that I waited until Day 111 of isolation to reread this]

In Praise of Paths: Walking Through Time and Nature - Torbjørn Ekelund, translated by Becky L. Crook *

Her Body and Other Parties - Carmen Maria Machado

Crystal Line - Anne McCaffrey

A Children’s Bible - Lydia Millet *

Daughter of Witches - Patricia C. Wrede

The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller [you know, I can understand why other people despise this take, but it worked for me]

Folly - Laurie R. King

The Forgotten Beasts of Eld - Patricia McKillip

Boyfriend Material - Alexis Hall [The novel version of spending Friday night home alone on the couch with red wine and French bread-and-butter. Highly satisfying in the moment, and ruthlessly wink-and-nod in-the-know about (a particular sort of) internet culture, in a way that means it should be read now and not later. Although it probably doesn’t really need to be over 400 pages long, I’m not sure what I’d cut, and anyway there’s PINING. (But also: I think this needs a warning for somewhat disordered eating, which is a) a minor but believable characterization detail, and b) not the point of the novel at all, but c) it nagged at me in a really unpleasant way throughout until it was acknowledged)]

An Extraordinary Union - Alyssa Cole

Spirits Abroad - Zen Cho

The Equivalents: A Story of Art, Female Friendship, and Liberation in the 1960s - Maggie Doherty

The Ten Thousand Doors of January - Alix E. Harrow

Something to Talk About - Meryl Wilsner

The Terracotta Bride - Zen Cho

Under Another Sky: Journeys in Roman Britain - Charlotte Higgins

Stormsong - C. L. Polk

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous - Ocean Vuong

The Only Gold - Tamara Allen [new favorite terrible penis euphemism: “the instrument of contention”]

The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin

The Snow Queen - Eileen Kernaghan

Wives and Daughters - Elizabeth Gaskell [her character sketches, my god: ”Let Cynthia be ever so proud, ever so glad, or so grateful, or even indignant, remorseful, grieved or sorry, the very fact that she was expected by another to entertain any of these emotions, would have been enough to prevent her expressing them.”]

Fallen into the Pit - Ellis Peters

These Old Shades - Georgette Heyer *

The Genius of Birds - Jennifer Ackerman

Two Rogues Make a Right - Cat Sebastian [conclusion: the Sedgwicks are simply too wholesome for my taste, but I’m probably going to end up rereading the one with the vicar and the ducks anyway]

The Anarchy: The East India Company, Corporate Violence, and the Pillage of an Empire - William Dalrymple [dnf]

The Doctor’s Discretion - EE Ottoman

The Bishop’s Heir - Katherine Kurtz

The Life and (Medieval) Times of Kit Sweetly - Jamie Pacton

This Other London: Adventures in the Overlooked City - John Rogers [dnf]

Death and the Joyful Woman - Ellis Peters

The Glass Hotel - Emily St. John Mandel

The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water - Zen Cho

The King’s Justice - Katherine Kurtz 

Catherine House - Elisabeth Thomas

Flight of a Witch - Ellis Peters

Blackfish City - Sam J. Miller [dnf]

Crooked Hallelujah - Kelli Jo Ford

Devil’s Cub - Georgette Heyer * [on the one hand, it’s appalling that we’re meant to cheer for Dominic; on the other, chapter 18 is a comic masterpiece]

A Duke by Default - Alyssa Cole

The Night Watch - Sarah Waters

 It Takes Two to Tumble - Cat Sebastian [just as I predicted! and I remain unconvinced by these ducks; after all, I have met a duck]

Hild - Nicola Griffith

Water, Ice & Stone: Science and Memory on the Antarctic Lakes - Bill Green [dnf]

Have His Carcase - Dorothy L. Sayers [I do appreciate how Sayers juggles tonal registers, in order to break up the novel’s prevailing humor - ”A solitary rock is always attractive. All right-minded people feel an overwhelming desire to scale and sit upon it.” - with those raging gratitude-and-obligation scenes and the occasional peek at decisions mercenary and necessary.

A Study in Honor - Claire O’Dell [there’s something interesting here about the world-building dangers of using the present to establish the near future with too much specificity - I know most the books Watson is reading; I like many of them; I realize they’re name-dropped in part as thanks and homage; and I still found myself thinking, “has no one written anything since 2015?”]

The Sugared Game - KJ Charles [no surprise, Maisie and Phoebe are my favorites...now kiss]

Sorcery and Cecilia, or, The Enchanted Chocolate Pot: being the correspondence of two Young Ladies of Quality regarding Various Scandals in London and the Country - Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer * [yay!]

[psy304-adhd]

References

Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. (n.d.). CHADD.Chadd. https://chadd.org/

Kaleidoscope Society. (n.d.). Kaleidoscope Society. Kaleidoscope Society. https://www.kaleidoscopesociety.com/

Marraccini, M., Wyandt, L., Gudmunsdottir, B., Oster, D., & McCallum, A. (2017). Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: Clinical considerations for women. Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health, 62, 684-695. doi:10.1111/jmwh.12671

Okumura, Y., Yamasaki, S., Ando, S., Usami, M., Endo, K., Hiraiwa-Hasegawa, M., Kasai, K., & Nishida, A. (2021). Psychosocial burden of undiagnosed persistent ADHD symptoms in 12 year-old children: A population-based birth cohort study. Journal of Attention Disorders, 25(5), 636-645. DOI: 10.1177/1087054719837746

Souto-Manning, M. (2012). Critical narrative analysis: The interplay of critical discourse and narrative analyses. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education 27(2), 159-180. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09518398.2012.737046

Young, S., Adamo, N., Ásgeirsdóttir, B., Branney, P., Beckett, M., Colley, W., Cubbin, S., Deeley, Q., Farrag, E., Gudjonsson, G., Hill, P., Hollingdal, J., Kilic, O., Lloyd, T., Mason, P., Paliokosta, E., Perecherla, S., Sedgwick, J., Skirrow, C., Tierney, K., van Rensburg, K., & Woodhouse, E. (2020). Females with ADHD: An expert consensus statement taking a lifespan approach providing guidance for the identification and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in girls and women. BMC Psychiatry 20(404). doi.org/10.1186/s12888-020-02707-9

[slaaneshfic]

Proposal: Gothic Vectors and Gothic Lacuna: Gender, Reparative Love, and Unseen Agency in Tai Shani’s “Phantasmagoregasm”

Figure 1. Phantasmagoregasm Production Print. Reprinted from "Tai Shani", by Shani, T, 2019, Retrieved from https://www.taishani.com/shop/dark-continent-productions-print-set. Copyright 2019 by Tai Shani.

This is a proposal I’ve just sent this morning for the Sheffield Gothic conf. the deadline is the 9ths so still time to submit something. http://sheffieldgothicreadinggroup.blogspot.com/

The artist and 2019 Turner Prize collective winner Tai Shani has since 2014 produced artworks as part of a project called Dark Continent (DC), named for Freud's description of the sexuality of adult women (Freud, 2002, p. 90). DC takes inspiration from texts such as Christine de Pizan’s proto-feminist work “City of Women”, adapting and deviating from them to question “what consitutes the feminine” through a “messier and more agnostic model of gender that moves beyond the binarism of Pizan” (Crone, 2019, p. xi).

One artwork within DC is “Phantasmagoregasm” (Shani, 2018, 2019, n.d.), a narrative delivered by its titular character “an eighteenth-century hermaphrodite writer of gothic fiction” (Shani, 2019) which explicitly references Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Fall of The House of Usher” in its concern for the protean interrelations of bodies, objects, buildings, and affects. Shani however, offers a radical redeployment of the tropes and structures of the gothic, just as she does with those of gender.

Firstly, I draw from Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick’s concept of “reparative reading” (Sedgwick, 2002) with its calls back to Sedwick’s analysis of the gothic forms (Sedgwick, 1986), to consider how Phantasmagoregasm replaces the underpinning gothic presumption of paranoia, with queer care and love, via absense and affect. The reparative gothic position is used as a means to approach one of psychoanalyst Luce Irigaray’s rare direct addresses to art, “The Natal Lacuna” (Irigaray, 1994, 2006), and its related debates (MacCormack & McPhee, 2014; Robinson, 1994, 2006; Whitford, 1994). 

Secondly, I identify how, as a reconfiguration of the gothic form of barriers and transgressions, Phantasmagoregasm is concerned with vectors and pathways for energies witnessed only through their effects, particularly the repeated literary description of rapidly moving disembodied points of view, sound waves, wind, and abstract geometry. This “Vectorial Gothic” in Shani’s work is considered through the metaphor of director Sam Raimi’s agentic camera in “The Evil Dead” movies (Campbell, 2002; Raimi, 1981, 1987; Raimi & Spiegel, 1986; Semley, 2019), in order to create another approach to Irigaray’s text, via Sedgwick and theorist Katherine Hayles writing on Poe (Hayles, 1990). 

In conclusion, I consider how the queering of Gothic Desire and Gothic Space in Phantasmagoregasm readdresses structures of sexual difference and illuminates a feminist approach to art practice concerned with affect, love, and the negotiation of the unknown, or undescribable. 

Bibliography:

Campbell, B. (2002). If chins could kill: Confessions of a B movie actor: an autobiography (1st St. Martin's Griffin ed). New York: LA Weekly Books for Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press.

Crone, B. (2019). Wounds of Un-Becoming. In Our Fatal Magic (pp. vii–xxiii). S.l.: STRANGE ATTRACTOR PRESS.

Freud, S. (2002). Wild Analysis (A. Phillips, Ed.; A. Bance, Trans.). Retrieved from http://catalog.hathitrust.org/api/volumes/oclc/51108791.html

Graves, R. (2018). Tai Shani: Semiramis. Retrieved 27 November 2019, from Corridor8 website: https://corridor8.co.uk/article/tai-shani-semiramis/

Hayles, K. (1990). Chaos bound: Orderly disorder in contemporary literature and science. Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University Press.

Irigaray, L. (1994, June). A Natal Lacuna (M. Whitford, Trans.). Women’s Art Magazine, (58), 11–13.

Irigaray, L. (2006). The Natal Lacuna. In S. Lotringer (Ed.), & B. Edwards (Trans.), More & less 3: : Hallucination of Theory (pp. 39–43). Pasadena, CA; Cambridge, MA: Fine Arts Graduate Studies Program and the Theory, Criticism and Curatorial Studies and Practice Graduate Programs, Art Center College of Design ; Distribution, MIT Press.

MacCormack, P., & McPhee, R. (2014). Creative Aproduction: Mucous and the Blank. InterAlia Special Issue: Bodily Fluids, (9), 146–164.

Raimi, S. (1981). The Evil Dead. Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083907/

Raimi, S. (1987). Evil Dead II. Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092991/

Raimi, S., & Spiegel, S. (1986, May 5). Evil Dead II Shooting Script, Seventh Draft. Retrieved from http://www.bookofthedead.ws/website/evil_dead_2_in-print.html

Robinson, H. (1994, December). Irigaray’s Imaginings. Women’s Art Magazine, (61), 20.

Robinson, H. (2006). Reading art, reading Irigaray: The politics of art by women. London: I. B. Tauris.

Sedgwick, E. K. (1986). The coherence of Gothic conventions. New York: Methuen.

Sedgwick, E. K. (2003). Touching feeling: Affect, pedagogy, performativity. Durham: Duke University Press.

Semley, J. (2019). Naturom Demonto. How The Evil Dead Claims Evil from Both Literature and Cinema. In R. A. Riekki & J. A. Sartain (Eds.), The many lives of The evil dead: Essays on the cult film franchise (pp. 41–50). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc.

Shani, T. (2018). PhantasmagoregasmFinal.pdf.

Shani, T. (2019). Phantasmagoregasm. In OUR FATAL MAGIC. (pp. 139–153). S.l.: STRANGE ATTRACTOR PRESS.

Shani, T. (n.d.-a). DARK CONTINENT. Retrieved 27 November 2019, from Tai Shani website: https://www.taishani.com/dark-continent

Shani, T. (n.d.-b). DARK CONTINENT: PHANTASMAGOREGASM. Retrieved 27 November 2019, from Tai Shani website: https://www.taishani.com/darkcontinentphantasmagoregasm

Westengard, L. (2019). Gothic queer culture: Marginalized communities and the ghosts of insidious trauma. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Whitford, M. (1994, October). Woman With Attitude. Women’s Art Magazine, (60), 15–17.

[abcnewspr]

HIGHLIGHTS FOR ABC NEWS’ ‘GOOD MORNING AMERICA’ JANUARY 18 – JANUARY 23

The following report highlights the programming of ABC’s “Good Morning America” during the week of January 18 - January 23. “Good Morning America” is a two-hour, live program anchored by Robin Roberts, George Stephanopoulos, Michael Strahan and Ginger Zee is the chief meteorologist. The morning news program airs MONDAY-FRIDAY (7:00-9:00 a.m. EST), on the ABC Television Network.

Highlights of the week include:                                            

Monday, January 18— Host Dan Abrams (“Court Cam”); a performance by Tasha Cobbs Leonard

Tuesday, January 19— Actors Dakota Johnson & Casey Affleck (“Our Friend”); actress Kyra Sedgwick (“Call Your Mother”)

Wednesday, January 20— GMA covers the Inauguration of President-Elect Joe Biden

Thursday, January 21— Actress Yara Shahidi (“Grown-ish”); actress & author Candace Cameron Bure (“Candace’s Playful Puppy”); Deals and Steals with ABC e-commerce editor Tory Johnson GMA

Friday, January 22— Actor Jason Segel (“Our Friend”); GMA Book Club author Ashley Audrain (“The Push”); GMA’s Pet of the Week

Saturday, January 23— Binge This! with Lawrence K. Jackson; Deals and Steals with ABC e-commerce editor Tory Johnson GMA

– ABC –

[california-grizzly-rewilding]

Perspective

The reintroduction of Ursus arctos californicus, also known as the California Grizzly Bear, to California forests is necessary to restore the loss of biodiversity due to human interference.

General Information

California’s state animal and symbol of the state flag is the CA Grizzly, and yet many people aren’t aware that this species is extinct. The existing species currently inhabits most of North America and as much as 10,000 individuals used to reside in CA (Alagona 2016). The immigration of Europeans to North America (Crane 2019) and then the Gold Rush (Alagona 2016) caused a huge increase in human populations and human-bear conflicts which led to the eventual extinction of the CA Grizzly Bear. The last recorded existence of this bear was in 1924, ultimately removing the only subspecies to the common brown bear (Crane 2019).

How can they be reintroduced?

Conservationists working with national parks can reintroduce existing species from Montana’s Northern Continental Divide region and the Greater Yellowstone area to potential habitats, such as in the Sedgwick Reserve located in Santa Barbara, CA (Crane 2019). (Another national park that I think may be suitable is also Yosemite National Park because black bears, a close relative, also inhabit its forests.) The potential of success will be greater due to the fact that Grizzly bears still exist in other regions of North America and the environmental makeup of national parks in CA are well protected, and similar to non-CA parks. 

Sedgwick Reserve has an optimal ecosystem and food for these bears (Crane 2019). This reserve has shrubby hills, wild oats, and trails with various berries and insects that the Grizzly Bears could utilize with their strong jaws and large claws. Although people associate Grizzly bears to dense coniferous forests, they are also found in very dry areas such as the Gobi Desert (Crane 2019) which indicate that this is a very well adaptive species and can survive all types of environments as long as the food available provides nutrients for their entire life cycle. 

To ensure the adaption of the CA Grizzly, research is being conducted to observe stable isotopes in foods from the reserve to compare to the isotopes found in bone fragments of the CA Grizzly (Crane 2019). Equivalent isotopes of the foods found in the bone fragments would conclude that the diet of the Grizzly bears will be sustained in CA forests.

Why can we reintroduce the CA Grizzly?

Beth Shapiro, a professor of EEB at UCSC, states that brown bears share a common ancestor that migrated south from Beringia during the last ice age (Crane 2019). It is ethically and ecologically humankind’s responsibility to bring back this species that was naturally in the North American ecosystem before we took over their habitat. Genetic work has suggested that the extinct CA Grizzly is genetically equivalent to the extant species in other US regions (Crane 2019). The reintroduced Grizzly’s ability to adapt to the CA forests will mostly depend on these genes and will be successful because there is evidence of similar past and present bears living in North America.

Analysis of historical, geographic, and taxonomic analogies indicate CA continues to provide a suitable habitat for grizzly bears, brown bears species can coexist with humans, and using similar conservation strategies used on black bears can be applied to Grizzly Bears (Forbes et al., 2020). As long as lawmakers in CA provide proper regulations on human-bear interaction for the new Bears, then history will not be repeated again. Bear feeding should be prohibited and more campaigns should be broadcasted to educate park visitors about wildlife and negative human impacts.

A survey conducted by Hiroyasu et al., 2019 in CA indicated that ⅔ of the respondents were supportive of reintroduction; although only ¼ of them knew that the CA Grizzly was extinct. The lack of knowledge leaves room for managers to educate and offer sound plans in costs and benefits for reintroduction before making a political statement to the public.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the California Grizzly was a remarkable species that unfortunately was lost due to the expanding human population in California. But hopefully, we can bring life back to California’s official state animal again.

Sources

Alagona, P. (2016). About. https://www.calgrizzly.com/home-1.

CRANE, B. (2019). Return of an Icon. Discover, 40(3), 22. 

Forbes, E., Alagona, P., Adams, A., Anderson, S., Brown, K., Colby, J., et al. (2020). Analogies for a No-Analog World: Tackling Uncertainties in Reintroduction Planning. Trends in ecology & evolution, 35(7), 551-554. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2020.04.005 Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5n49v558 Hiroyasu, E. H. T., Miljanich, C. P. & Anderson, S. E. (2019). Drivers of support: The case of species reintroductions with an ill-informed public. Human dimensions of wildlife. Human Dimensions of Wildlife. doi:10.1080/10871209.2019.1622055

[rabbitcruiser]

Gettysburg National Military Park (No. 26)

The monument to Major General George Gordon Meade is south of Gettysburg on Cemetery Ridge. The monument was dedicated by the State of Pennsylvania on June 5, 1896.

Meade was ordered to take command of the Army of the Potomac just three days before the Battle of Gettysburg when General Joseph Hooker abruptly resigned. Before that Meade had been in command of the army’s Fifth Corps.

The monument features General Meade seated on his horse, Old Baldy. He is looking out over the field where Pickett’s Charge was turned back in what would come to be called the high water mark of the Confederacy. When the State of Virginia monument was built some twenty years later a mile away across the field, its statue of Robert E. Lee looks back at Meade. The two army commanders face each other across eternity.

Sculptor Henry K. Bush-Brown created the statue, which was cast in Philadelphia’s Bureau Brothers Foundary. Bush-Brown also created the equestrian statues of Generals Reynolds and Sedgwick at Gettysburg as well as the bust of Lincoln on the Lincoln Speech Memorial. Meade’s statue cost $37,500. It is over 11 feet tall and stands on a pedestal that is almost 8 feet high.

Old Baldy was a cavalry mount ridden by General David Hunter at the Battle of Bull Run. He was wounded there but returned to service. Meade purchased him in the fall of 1861.

Meade rode Old Baldy at Gettysburg. The horse was wounded on July 2nd by a ball that entered his stomach after passing through Meade’s trouser leg within a half inch of his thigh. Old Baldy again survived, but after another wound he was considered unfit for service in August of 1864, and Meade sent him back to Philadelphia for a well-deserved retirement. Old Baldy did so well in his retirement that Meade resumed riding him after the war. The horse survived the general by ten years, taking part in Meade’s funeral procession in 1872 as the riderless horse. Old Baldy died in 1882.

Source

[inkyardpress]

Excerpt: Someone To Love by Melissa de la Cruz

o n e

“It’s not that I’m rebelling. It’s that I’m just trying to find another way.”

—EDIE SEDGWICK

The stall door won’t shut all the way.

What the hell kind of bathroom doors does our school have?

The kind with crooked doors that don’t always latch. The kind you don’t want to get caught in. Not with your head above the toilet. Not when you’re kneeling on the floor, puking your guts out. Not with a fifth of vodka—which I desperately need right now.

Shouldn’t the stalls all lock? Doesn’t matter anyway. I’m done.

I wipe my mouth and take a stick of gum from my purse and unwrap the shiny paper. It makes me think of Andy Warhol’s famous art factory, all wrapped in silvery aluminum foil and pulsing with artists and conversation. I can see Edie Sedgwick’s haunting face. Her platinum pixie. Smoky circles around her eyes. Dangling earrings. That megawatt smile. She may have been one of Andy Warhol’s superstars— those grimy, glamorous muses—but Edie was his angel too.

An angel wearing a leotard and fur coat, hiding in the backs of limousines and dingy clubs. Skinny as hell.

I’d rather be in New York. Studying art. Living in my own art factory. Get out of this sunshiny, swimming pool state. I crumple the paper into a ball, toss it into the wastebasket near the door and head for the sinks. I turn on the faucet. Pump soap onto my hands. Scrub. Scrub. Stare at the water slip- ping down the drain. Don’t look up.

I hate mirrors. Glass is dangerous. Water is dangerous. Windows are dangerous. Anything that ref lects myself back at me is a threat. A punishment.

Welcome to my Monday morning. It’s Eastlake Prep’s year- book photo day. Yeah. That Eastlake Prep—the one with the five-figure tuition and super-fancy alumni. Famous people have gone here, and famous people send their kids here.

It’s the end of September—we’re already a month into school—but I can’t seem to get into the swing of school. And I also can’t show up at photo day with frizzy hair and a pim- ple on my chin. As much as I hate taking them, I know the power of a class photo. Thirty years from now, when every- one has moved away and no one is following each other on social media anymore, people are going to pull out their year- book and look at you. That’s what you’ll be to them forever.

Do you want to be the girl with the greasy forehead? Or the bad bangs?

No. I didn’t think so.

The spotless surface reflects my double. I smooth my hands over my long dirty-blond hair and examine my skin, slightly jaundiced under the bathroom’s unflattering fluorescent light. The problem with mirrors is that they show me only what’s already there. It’s I who has to see the potential, who has to see how much more there is to lose. How much smaller I can be. How much closer to perfection.

Speaking of perfection: Zach Park.

He’s gorgeous. Thick dark hair tousled like he’s been loung- ing on the beach all day. Wide green eyes with teardrop curves that seriously make me want to stop everything and get lost in them for an eternity. I’ve had a low-key crush on him since the end of freshman year when he transferred here from a Korean private school.

I had only one class with him—the last semester of first- year English—but I doubt he remembers me. I mostly drew pictures of other people in the class on my notes to avoid looking at him too much, even though I was always listening to him. He was so well-spoken and mature. So different from the other teenage boys who seemed to be interested only in playing video games or whatever party they were planning for the weekend.

Zach actually liked talking about ideas. Whenever the teacher called on him, he would say something insightful that I’d never thought about before, and I loved when he vol- unteered to act out scenes from the books the class was dis- cussing, because Zach would bring them to life. It was like whatever character he was playing had stepped off the page into the classroom and was standing in front of you.

Not that I ever really talked to him. Today’s the day. Maybe.

I just have to pull it together for the camera, in front of all

the other junior and senior girls with their immaculate hair and carefully coordinated outfits, in front of Zach and his perfect jawline and forearms. Even thinking about all of them staring at me, wondering who the loser is who wandered into their perfect midst, is enough to make me want to skip school and never come back.

I screwed things up enough my freshman year. I was dating this guy—Ollie Barrios—who was a really popular junior bas- ketball player. I’d just lost a lot of weight and he was my first boyfriend. It felt amazing to be noticed. To be wanted—no, desired—by someone. I should have seen the red f lags though. Ollie was always telling me what I should wear or who should be my friends. He’d even choose my food at restaurants.

I ended up gaining some of the weight back during the first few months of school, and Ollie dumped me. We were leaving from my house to go to the homecoming dance. Ollie stopped me before I could get in the car. “We’re not going,” he said. “What do you mean?” I asked, thinking maybe Ollie made other plans.

“That dress makes you look like a stuffed sausage.” “I—I can go change,” I stammered.

God. I was so stupid. That would have just been putting lipstick on a pig.

“How much weight have you gained? Ten? Fifteen pounds?”

“I don’t know,” I said.

My skin was crawling. I wanted to escape my body. “Don’t you keep track? Most girls weigh themselves every day.”

“I’ll start eating better. Exercising,” I pleaded with him. “Whatever, Liv. You obviously don’t care about yourself.” He left me crying on the doorstep.

Ollie spread his version of the story around the entire school. He said our relationship wasn’t working out because he was an athlete and I wasn’t “disciplined” enough, which was obviously code for eating too much and not exercising enough. Everyone looked at me like I was the biggest loser. But Ollie was right. I was a fat cow. I immediately went on a revenge diet. I started fasting for days at a time, but then I would get so hungry that I’d binge and eat way more than any normal person should—pasta, burritos, ice cream, what- ever was available—and feel so guilty about bingeing that I’d puke everything up.

I’ll never let myself gain weight again.

I’m a yo-yo girl. What goes down must come back up.

I’ve been keeping myself from bingeing pretty well the past couple of months, but I still have to purge. I hate the feeling of being full. It makes me nauseous.

I smash the gum between my teeth, partly to cover the acrid smell, but mostly to give my mouth something to do. Chomp. Chomp. Chomp. I try to push away the thoughts. I’m stronger than my hunger. I take a cleansing breath to clear my head.

One.

Food is disgusting. It never made you happy.

I exhale slowly. My breath is my mantra. My focus.

You are not a slave to your hunger.

Two.

I’m finally ready to take on this torturous rite of passage. I leave the bathroom and am walking around the corner  of Decker Hall when a guy staring down at his phone runs

into me, nearly knocking me over.

“What the hell?!” I say, then I realize I know him, a smile forming on my lips.

It’s Sam. We’ve been best friends since elementary school. “Sorry,” he says. “I was looking for you… You left class early.”

“Obviously.” I roll my eyes and make a sarcastic face at him. “I had to prep. Don’t wanna turn out wretched in my yearbook photo.” I look down at my simple, sleeveless black dress. The color suddenly seems so wrong. “What was I thinking? I look like a vampire. And not even the cool kind.”

“Oh please,” Sam says, laughing as he puts his arm around my shoulder. “You look great.”

“Greatly appalling,” I say. “Do we have to do this?”

I twist around to look into his deep blue eyes, trying to plead with him to cut class with me, but Sam doesn’t cut class. He actually likes school. He’s really smart—I’m sure he’s going to be a genius-level scientist someday—and handsome in that geeky, still-needs-to-fill-out kind of way, but there’s no way I’m ever going to tell him that.

“Why even bother asking?” Sam says.

“Fine,” I say, moving his arm off my shoulder. “You can at least walk me over to the shark tank. And button your shirt.” I don’t even wait for him. I start doing it myself.

Just like when we were kids. They don’t go anymore, but Sam’s parents used to take me sailing with him and his older brother, James, on the weekends. I remember standing on the deck, the boat going full speed, the wind whipping my hair back and forth across my face, feeling weightless and com- pletely free from the prison of my own body. Sam may not be the best at dressing up for yearbook photos, but he seemed so confident on those sailing trips. The way he handled the ropes so deftly, how he steered the boat with ease. I envied him, because Sam was the master of his own destiny on the water.

I miss those days.

“They’re yearbook photos. Who cares? We’re all just going to stuff them in our closets anyway,” Sam says.

“Wrong,” I say. “Yearbook photos are like diamonds. They’re forever.”

“Actually you’re wrong,” he says. “The whole concept of a yearbook is obsolete. Everyone blasts their lives on social media now, so what’s the motivation to rummage through some old book?”

He takes over buttoning his shirt when I get up to his neck. “Have you not seen the awful yearbook photos of celebri- ties on the internet? Just because they’re not on social media

to start with doesn’t mean they won’t end up there.”

A tie hangs limply from his pocket. “Do you know how to tie that?” I ask.

“I watched a tutorial,” Sam says. “It can’t be that hard.” I laugh.

We must look like a couple, but everyone knows we aren’t together. I love Sam. We always sit next to each other in classes because our names are so close. Sam Bailey. Olivia Blakely. He’s super smart and will probably do something ex- ceptional someday, like work on a giant particle accelerator. He’s also the most loyal guy I know.

He’s had a crush on a few girls over the years, but neither of us has been that lucky in love.

“We better get going,” I say, continuing on my way. “I want to be early.”

I start thinking about Zach. Again.

If only he knew that I exist. And that I’m totally in love with him. He’s always off and on with Cristina Rossi. God. That girl. Model gorgeous. And, since this is Los Angeles, she actually is a model. She even appeared half-naked for a Calvin Klein underwear campaign on a billboard next to the Chateau Mar- mont this summer. They both look like works of art. Ms. Day, my studio art teacher, might call them “aesthetically pleas-

ing.” Well-proportioned. Shapely. Statuesque.

Sam pulls the tie out of his pocket. He tries to tie it as he walks. It’s as defiant as his unruly hair. He can’t manage a Windsor knot to save his life.

“How ’bout just ditch the tie?” I say.

“Help me out, Liv. You’ve known how to tie these since the fourth grade.”

Out of the corner of my eye I see a guy with brown, slicked-back hair and a gray suit striding across the quad like he owns the school. Jackson Conti. He’s a mass of muscle and has the confidence to match. We sat near each other in biol- ogy sophomore year, but I haven’t hung out with him outside of school or talked to him much since then. I hear he’s plan- ning an event with Zach, who happens to be his best friend, in Marina del Rey on a 148-foot yacht that belongs to Sean Clark, an up-and-coming action movie star.

Did I mention that Zach is also an actor?

He played a minor part in one of Sean’s recent movies. Sean’s letting him borrow the yacht to throw a killer party for his friends and cast members while Sean’s out of town. It’s not the actors I’m interested in though—except Zach, of course. I overheard Cristina’s best friend, Felicity, whose fa- ther is a big art dealer, telling someone that Geoff LeFeber, a major contemporary artist, is supposed to be visiting from New York and might be going to the party. I guess one of the executive producers of the TV show Zach stars on knows him. It seems like a long shot that he’ll attend, but anything’s possible in Los Angeles. It’s a smaller place than people think. I have to be there. LeFeber’s my favorite living artist. He puts together these insane installations that completely alter your perception of reality. I’ve never been to one in person, but I watched a YouTube video the Museum of Modern Art put out that took you through this massive open room filled with tunnels of tape attached to the beams of the roof and pillars. It looked like you were caught in a giant spider’s web from the perspective of the f ly. Besides looking otherworldly, the installation was supposed to illustrate the dangerous in- toxication of curiosity and wonder. I love how LeFeber can make simple shapes and materials seem dreamlike and surreal. I may be a painter instead of an installation artist, but I’d die to talk to someone like LeFeber.

My parents are well connected, but they’re not that inter- ested in art. They’ve taken me—or have let me take myself— to a lot of museums, but never to gallery openings or lectures where the artist is actually present. There are so many ques- tions I would ask him. How do you come up with your ideas? Did anyone believe in your work when you were young? When did you really know you were an artist?

I’m determined to get an invitation to the party. A girl can hope.

I glance behind me. Sam has finally managed to finish tying his tie on his own. I’m glad I ran into him before pho- tos. Being around him usually makes me less nervous.

Now that I know Sam looks put together, I have to drum up the courage to see what I can find out about that boat party.

“I’ll be right back. There’s someone I gotta talk to,” I say, leaving him so I can catch up to Jackson.

It’s not like people don’t know me. Dad’s position as the Speaker of the House is high profile, but his job also means that I’ve spent a lot of time on both coasts and helping out my parents with their projects—mostly Mom’s literacy campaign and whatever hot topic Dad happens to be dealing with at the moment—which means less time for making friends in LA. After the Ollie incident, I’ve mostly been a loner the past couple of years. It’s not like I don’t have any friends, but I don’t put myself out there that much.

“Hey…Jackson,” I stutter. My stomach instantly hurts.

“Olivia.” He smiles. Jackson’s all teeth and eyebrows. He talks to people like a salesman. Like they’ll all be potential clients someday. I’m not interested in him, but he’s the one hosting the party so I pretend to f lirt. I have to be there.

“Is…that a new suit?” I ask. “You look great.”

God. I’m an idiot. What a suck-up.

“You do too,” he says. “That color is hot on you.”

Did he really just say that? I try to stif le a laugh, but this ugly, garbled half chuckle, half groan comes out of my mouth. Who takes sexy yearbook photos?

I can feel Sam following behind, so I grab Jackson by the

elbow to get away. I haven’t told Sam about my plan yet. He would think I’m being stupid. Or shallow.

“Going inside?” I ask, propelling him forward. “I hate school photos but really love our photographer, don’t you?” I don’t even know what I’m saying. I do this thing when

I get nervous and start talking about anything to avoid an awkward silence.

“She’s all right,” he says without much enthusiasm. “Made my teeth look big.”

“No!” I say to Jackson. “I mean, not too big. Plus, big teeth are in these days. Don’t you watch Silver Lake?” The entire reality cast has giant teeth, like they’re a bunch of big- toothed piranhas about to attack the cameras and each other in every scene.

“No…” he says. “Should I?”

“They all have them,” I say. “That big teeth thing.”

He stops, runs his tongue across his top teeth. “They do?”

I turn around. The hall is filling up. Here comes Sam. And Zach. And Felicity Pace. She’s basically a teenage so- cialite, with her bouncy blond hair, which she swings back and forth as she walks down the hallway, linking arms with Cristina Rossi.

A massive crowd of students begins to descend on us like a horde of gorgeous, perfectly groomed, well-dressed zombies. No. No. No. I need to talk to Jackson alone. It’s the only way I’m going to get invited to that party. Maybe I’ll never have a chance with Zach, but I might still have one with LeFeber. I have to talk to him.

I grab his arm again. We head into the photo studio and join the queue.

“So that boat party,” I squeak. “The one in Marina del Rey?”

“What about it?” Jackson asks. “Dad mentioned…”

I don’t want to tell him I overheard Felicity. Embarrassing. “Yeah?” he says. “Aren’t he and Sean pals?”

I nod. Ever since Sean Clark campaigned for my dad for the House, they’re tight. Dad totally went Hollywood.

My family is nearly perfect—at least to the public. There’s

Mr. and Mrs. Blakely, the charming political power couple, Mason, who turned his life around after rehab and now works in venture capital in Silicon Valley, and Royce, who has al- ready had an article published in the New York Times while in college.

Then there’s Olivia Blakely.

I’m just trying to survive my junior year of high school. “That’s cool,” he says. He seems like he’s about to say some-

thing else, but he looks over my shoulder. I whip around to see Zach and his entourage walking toward us.

Cristina. Felicity, her best friend. Thin. Tan. Fashionable. “Do you need us to bring anything Friday?” Felicity asks. “My parents bought a case of St. Germain. It’s delicious with champagne.”

“You lovely ladies just bring yourselves,” Jackson says. “Zach and I will take care of the rest. And don’t worry, we’ll make sure the girly drinks are there.”

My feet feel heavy. My purse feels like it’s hiding an entire system of gravity and slings toward the floor. I barely catch it. The girls are laughing at something Zach says.

It’s like they’re all talking in slow motion. So charming. So at ease with themselves.

I can’t outwardly hate them. They haven’t actually done anything mean to me other than to be.

But they don’t have to weigh every single piece of food they put in their tiny bodies like I do. They don’t have to count ounces and measure milliliters. Their brains don’t constantly tell them that they’re ugly and fat and should give up on their diets because they’re never going to meet their goals anyway. They probably drink to have fun with their friends. Not to numb the hunger long enough to fall asleep.

Jackson turns away from me to talk to Zach. I don’t even register on his radar.

There goes my stomach again. It feels full. Gorged. I wish I hadn’t eaten at all this morning. I’ll be bloated for the pictures. Then I really start to feel it. The invisibility. The cloak.

Like an atmosphere, it surrounds the real me. The fullness is totally noticeable now. My stomach is bursting. My brain burns with shame. I’m fat. Everybody can see how huge I am right now. From my cheeks to my fingers. My waist. My hips. My thighs.

I just want to be perfect. I want to be worth noticing.

Is that too much to ask?

I ate half a grapefruit for breakfast. I drank two cups of green tea.

Took two pulls of the vodka hidden in my closet. Just to take off the edge.

I feel every pound I weigh, and every ounce, like my life, is too much. Even though I already threw up at the end of class, I feel like I have to get it all out again. I excuse myself and run back to the bathroom and start heaving in the empty stall.

Something has to come out. Something. Anything.

  t w o

 “Creativity takes courage.”

 —HENRI MATISSE

 “Can anyone figure out the origin of this painting?” Ms. Day asks, fluffing her afro with one hand. Her gold hoop earrings glint under the light of the projector.

My mind wanders from the class, thinking about how the photo I took the last period turned out. The photographer took the picture before I was ready, and I’m almost certain I had a deer-in-the-headlights kind of look, but they only take one shot before they shuffle you off and move on to the next person in line.

“Look at the subject,” Ms. Day adds, patiently waiting for the class to respond.

The painting on the screen behind her shows a young woman wearing a pale pink dress being pushed on a swing above an admiring young man. The two figures aren’t touch- ing each other, but the artist painted their movements so dy- namically that they seem like they’re about to leap across the painting to embrace each other. A lush garden surrounds the lovers. Every leaf and f lower has been painted with an in- credible amount of detail and attention to light and shadow.

 A girl at the front—Emma—raises her hand.

“The fashion definitely looks English or French,” she says. Ms. Day nods. She’s not giving any hints.

I have her for two classes. AP art history and studio art. She’s the only teacher I feel like I can actually talk to honestly about my future goals. Not because I like her subject the most—though that’s true—but because she never mentions my parents. Or my brothers. Not that they would have ever dreamed of taking an art class.

“I’d say French,” Emma’s friend sitting next to her adds. “Even though she’s wearing stockings, the way her legs are exposed is too scandalous to be English.”

“Forget her legs.” Nate, a boy who sits in the back, snick- ers. “He’s looking up her dress. Bet he’s totally going to get him some.”

“Our very own connoisseur of the romantic arts speaks,” Ms. Day says. “Tell us more, Casanova!” The other boys snicker, but Nate’s too embarrassed to say anything else. I love how salty she can be with her students. She’s my favor- ite teacher.

Ms. Day turns away from the painting and gives him some serious side-eye. She puts her hands on her hips and sighs. “It is French. French Rococo, to be exact. The painting’s official name is The Swing. It was painted right before the Revolution by an artist named Jean-Honore Fragonard. The painting was commissioned by the notorious French libertine Baron de St. Julien as a portrait of his mistress. That’s all I’ll say for now. What do you think this painting is about? What’s the context?” The class is silent again. “History is important to under- standing art,” Ms. Day continues, asking us for our analysis of the piece before she gives us her interpretation. “But be- coming a truly great artist means keeping your soul trained on the future. What will someone hundreds of years from now think or feel when they view your painting? What speaks across time and culture? Think about what truly moves you as a viewer.”

Emma raises her hand again. “It’s kinda playful.”

“That’s right.” Ms. Day paces across the front of the room. “Many of the painting’s critics called it frivolous. Why do you think they might have used that word?”

“Well,” I say, leaning forward in my seat to see the paint- ing better. “It’s not like the subject is an important religious or historical person or event or anything. And the painting’s focal point is clearly her pink dress.”

“You think there’s more to the painting than that…” Ms. Day walks up the aisle and pauses by my desk, gesturing to- ward the painting. “Don’t you, Olivia?”

“She always has something to say,” Nate groans.

I ignore him. This is pretty much the only class in which I feel in my element.

“That playfulness that Emma mentioned? I think she’s right. I also think the painting is about seduction. Except the moment doesn’t seem so planned out. It’s like their de- sire is spontaneous.” I wonder whether someone will ever feel that way about me. Why do so many things have to come together perfectly for people to fall in love?

“The French would call that joie de vivre,” Ms. Day adds. “That translates to a cheerful enjoyment of life. An exulta- tion of the spirit. Of the soul. Everything one does becomes filled with joy. Conversation. Work. Play. Eating.”

I wish I could feel joy when I eat. The only thing I feel is dread.

“Why do you think the painting is about seduction?” Ms. Day asks.

“Besides the fact that the man on the ground is pretty much looking up her dress?” I pause for a moment. The boys in the back laugh. “They know they’re being provocative. She’s let- ting her shoe f ly off her foot like she’s Cinderella. He’s her Prince Charming. They’re gazing directly into each other’s eyes. Maybe they’re in love.”

“Or lust,” Ms. Day says. The class murmurs like they’re scandalized.

I trail off, thinking about Zach’s eyes and what I might feel if he ever looked back at mine that way. I’d probably melt into a puddle on the f loor.

While I’ve been thinking about Zach, Ms. Day has moved on to analyzing other parts of the painting. “What details do you notice? Look at the background.”

The class goes silent. We’re stumped.

“See this statue of a cherub on the left?” Ms. Day walks up to the screen and touches the left side of the painting. “Can you see what he’s doing?”

“Oh my god,” Emma squeals. “I totally see it.” Everybody squints and leans forward. We’re still all confused.

“The little cherub? He’s holding his index finger in front of his lips. He’s trying to keep everything a secret.”

Ms. Day smiles and draws circles around the other statutes in the garden with her finger. “What about the other sets of cherubs? The ones below the humans looking up?”

A few students respond to her question. “They look concerned.”

“More like afraid for her.” “I think they’re scowling.”

“Yes. This is obviously an illicit love affair,” Ms. Day says. “Yet the painter casts off the moral concerns of the day to illustrate a moment of lighthearted pleasure. It is frivolous. Free. In fact, the painting’s alternate title is The Happy Acci- dents of the Swing.”

“They’re definitely, like, living life to its fullest or whatever,” Emma says.

“YOLO,” Nate adds.

“Exactly.” Ms. Day laughs. “Homework for tonight is to research…”

I lose myself in my thoughts while she gives us tonight’s assignment.

I can barely remember the last time I felt truly happy like the woman on the swing. When I was younger, tapping into that feeling of freedom seemed so much easier. I could ride my scooter fast down the street. I could get on a swing and pump my legs until I was soaring high over the playground. What happened to that girl? Did I lose her?

Am I living my best life? Am I even trying to?

The bell rings for lunch and all the students start piling out the door. I slowly put my notes and my textbook in my backpack while Ms. Day turns off the projector.

��Olivia,” she says. “I wanted to tell you something in stu- dio art this morning, but you were out the door too fast. Do you have time to stick around for a few minutes?”

Of course I have time. It’s not like I actually eat lunch anyway.

I have only one rule about eating at school. I don’t do it. “Yeah,” I say. “What’s up?”

“There’s an opportunity that would be great for you.” She walks to her desk and grabs a neon-yellow f lyer. “One of my old friends from grad school is part of the staff at an art gal- lery that wants to feature young artists from the area.”

My pulse quickens. This could be huge. “Which gallery?” I ask.

“It’s called the Wynn. It’s fairly small, but they have a great schedule of contemporary artists lined up for this year. It would be a huge deal when you’re applying to art schools to say you’ve shown your work there already.”

“Sounds…great,” I say, unsure.

I’ve heard of the Wynn before. It’s an up-and-coming gallery that mostly features artists early in their careers, but I’m not sure I’m good enough. I sketch and paint constantly, but I don’t like showing my work to people. I come up with these concepts in my mind, but I can never seem to execute them exactly the right way. Sometimes I feel as if my skill will never match up with my vision.

“It’s a ways off—the show won’t be until near the end of the school year—but you have to submit a portfolio to be considered. They’re going to take only two or three artists total.”

How can I pull off a full show in eight months?

I’m a perfectionist. I take forever to put together a painting. “That sounds pretty intense,” I say. “I don’t know what I would paint.”

Ms. Day puts down the f lyer and looks at me. “Olivia. You need to start believing in your work. Really. It’s time for you to push yourself. Find your voice. You’ve been experiment- ing with figure drawing lately. Why don’t you try painting live models?”

I want to ask Ms. Day what she means by finding my voice, and exactly how I should go about doing that, when the fire alarm goes off.

“Really?” Ms. Day shakes her head. “We’ve had three of these damn things this week already. Wish I could catch what- ever little delinquent is responsible for this.”

Lights flash on and off as the alarm buzzes. The school installed these alarms with strobe lights that practically blind you. It’s most likely a false alarm, but they’re so annoying they make you want to leave the room.

She heads for the door. “You don’t have to decide now,”

she says, holding the f lyer out to me. “You’re the only stu- dent I am recommending for this, so please promise to think about it.”

“Yeah,” I say, taking the flyer, my stomach tightening with nerves. “I promise.”

t h r e e

“You live but once; you might as well be amusing.”

—COCO CHANEL

I’m sitting with Mom and Dad at a table at Musso & Frank Grill on Hollywood Boulevard, dining under the chandeliers in the ambience of mahogany decor and literary ghosts. Faulkner. Hemingway. Fitzgerald. Steinbeck. Parker. You name the writer—they ate here. The restaurant is old Holly- wood classy. Waiters wear red jackets and black ties. Mom and Dad love this kind of stuff. A sense of history appeals to them. I had to go home after school to change just so I could go out to dinner with my parents, even though I have absolutely no interest in eating.

It’s Thursday. Today was supposed to be a fast day.

I’m trying to break a plateau. My goal is to get down to 100 pounds, and I’m not going to get there by eating ham steak or a rack of lamb or whatever.

When the waiter delivers my salad, Dad starts doing this thing he always does at these dinners, as if his life suddenly revolves around my eating habits.

“A house salad?” Dad asks. “That’s it?”

I get irritated with them at dinners because they’re always commenting on what and how much I put on my plate, making me feel guilty for whatever I do or don’t eat.

Believe me. I already judge myself enough for my own eating habits. Like those two Rice Krispies treats Mom made that I binged on yesterday? They made me feel terrible.

Words slip out before I have a chance to process. “Why do you care?”

Sometimes I want to stand on the table and inform the congressman: Sir, my life isn’t about shoving millions of calories of dead cow into my body.

They were the ones who encouraged me to lose weight in the first place. When I came home crying about how fat I was after Ollie dumped me freshman year, Mom was the first to help me go on a diet. She bought me weight loss guidebooks, exercise tapes and a food scale. I would give her a special list of what to pick up at the grocery store.

I counted every calorie. Weighed every ounce. Recorded every mile. It was healthy at first. I started to lose weight. Fast. I really did need to ditch some of the weight, but I couldn’t stop even after I lost all the weight I had gained.

And everyone, I mean everyone, was nicer to me. Even my parents. But I don’t want their attention anymore. They’re more controlling with me than they were with either Mason or Royce. Dad claims I’m more prone to extremes. Mom says I’m too hard on myself. I fail to see either. I’m pretty average.

Devastatingly average.

“Give me the benefit of the doubt,” he says. “I’m just saying that you don’t have to order the salad. Eat whatever you want. You used to like the Manhattan steak.”

I refuse to react. I take a small bite of lettuce, the smallest leaf I can find.

I chew thirty times, counting each one like a bead on a rosary.

30…29…28…27…

It’s way harder to come up with excuses for not eating at a restaurant, and I can’t go to the bathroom after dinner either. Too obvious. So I order light and chew my food for so long that when they’re ready to go, I end up leaving half my food on the plate.

I may be a fairly average teenage girl, but I’m strong-willed. Probably more so than any of those girls who hang around with Zach. I can put up a good fight.

I smile at Mom as if to say, Please keep the congressman behind the imaginary fence. She looks at me and shrugs. I guess I’ll have to fight this battle on my own.

So I feign deafness, take a sip of water and stare at the wood paneled walls, thinking about my conversation with Ms. Day right before lunch. Having my work shown at a real gallery would be an amazing experience. It would mean that I actually have the talent to be a professional artist someday. Just being good at art in your high school classes isn’t enough. I have to test myself outside of school too.

I want to put together a portfolio, but I don’t know where to begin. My mind goes blank every time I try to think of a concept or theme for the show. I need to find my inspiration.

If only I could talk to LeFeber…

“You might consider returning to Earth once in a while, Ms. Space Cadet,” Dad says. His mouth is moving, but his words are white noise. “Ground control to Olivia.”

I’m a disappointment to him. Not only am I not interested in his job, I don’t get as high grades as Royce and I’ll never be as popular as Mason was in high school.

He taps his fork on my plate, clanging the tines against the glass to get my attention. I stare at him, hoping my smoldering irises are enough to laser some more gray streaks into his hair. “I hope the rabbits across America aren’t starving…”

I scrunch up my forehead. What the hell is he talking about?

“You eat so much lettuce you must have tanked their food economy,” he says.

“Congressman Blakely,” I say, stabbing my fork into a leaf covered in sesame seeds, “I like salads, the rabbits will be just fine and, besides, I’m just not super hungry, okay?”

I started calling him Congressman Blakely about a year ago. I don’t know why, other than I thought it was funny. Maybe I was being a little mean. It’s a way for me to passively fight back in my own house. My own private revolution, for no reason other than that I’m a teenager. It’s practically my duty to get under my parents’ skin.

“Can you not be like this? I’d love to have a peaceful dinner.” Mom wipes a touch of water from her lips, then folds up her napkin into a perfect rectangle. She’s perfect. Intelligent. Tactful. Nothing—not one stray hair or wrinkled shirt— ever out of place.

I reach for my own napkin and realize it has fallen on the f loor. Compared to my mother, I’m a hot mess. I’m not diplomatic in social situations, and I can barely manage to find a clean pair of jeans in the mornings. I don’t know how I ended up so different from my parents. I would be the worst politician ever.

Dad has just opened his mouth to argue again when Mar- tin Barrios—Ollie’s father—approaches the table. Just seeing him makes me want to slink down in my chair and hide under the table. He’s wearing a black toupee slicked tight against his head and a blue suit that’s slightly wrinkled and damp from sweat. He’s fresh from the bar, face red, and too happy—way too happy for me anyway. He winks at Dad as if he knows some big secret. Not only is Mr. Barrios Ollie’s father, which is mortifying enough, he’s also worked with Dad on a big downtown renovation project, so there’s no getting away.

“Colin Blakely?” He squints at Dad and spills a few drops of his martini on the carpet. “Whoa! Don’t want to lose that,” he adds. “This is a Musso martini!”

Dad laughs. “I hope you brought that for me.”

“Why? Is this a celebration? I mean, I hope it is.” He looks at Mom. “You look lovely as always, Debra.”

“How’s Oliver doing at…” Dad pauses. “Where does he go to school again? Princeton? Or Dartmouth?”

“He’s a Princeton man. Double major in economics and Near Eastern studies.”

“That’s good to hear,” Mom says politely.

How can she keep smiling at him? I never told her exactly what Ollie’s comment was when he broke up with me, but she knows he said something horrible to me.

Then Mr. Barrios turns toward me, training his bloodshot eyes on my face.

“Olivia?” he says in faux surprise. It’s so fake I want to laugh.

“I’m her doppelgänger,” I deadpan. “The real Olivia has been claimed by the robotics industry and is now being mass manufactured.”

I imagine a hundred little replicas of myself and shudder. I can barely stand seeing myself doubled in a mirror, let alone a never-ending assembly line of Olivia Blakely dolls.

Mom shoots me a death stare. She doesn’t like when I’m sarcastic around adults. It’s a liability. I say they could stand to loosen up. Why take everything so seriously?

“Is she?”  He laughs  like  a factory-produced  automaton. “You’re all grown up,” he says. “You’ll be a marvelous woman. You have two great brothers. And mother…”

Gag. That’s when I stop listening. I shut him off completely. I’ve heard this speech before from a hundred different politi- cians. He’s lost interest within seconds anyway, because I’m not important to these kinds of people other than that I’m merely something to turn into a compliment for my parents. I check my phone. There’s a text from Sam. I answer as surreptitiously as I can. Mom and Dad don’t like when I text at the dinner table, but I can’t help myself.

SAM: Feeling better? LIV: Yep

SAM: Thinking about doing a bonfire at the beach. You down? LIV: I wish. Dinner with my parents

SAM: Bummer. Hang out tomorrow? LIV: Totally. I’m down.

SAM: I have a surprise for you. LIV: OoOoO. What is it?

SAM: It’s a surprise…

“Liv? Could you put your phone down, please?” Mom asks. She places her napkin on the table like she’s about to make a serious announcement.

“Yeah. One sec,” I say, rapidly texting Sam back.

LIV: Gotta go. Txt later

I was supposed to hang out with him after taking year- book photos yesterday, but I just felt like locking myself in my bedroom after the disaster with Jackson, so I gave him an excuse about not feeling well. I’m a terrible friend. I need to make it up to him.

Mr. Barrios has waded his way back to the bar. I really wish I could join him. Maybe he could buy me one of those fa- mous Musso martinis. I could use one.

Or three.

The buzz would help deaden the anxiety whirling in my stomach. I think about my conversation with Jackson— rehashing every tiny word and action over and over in my mind—until I convince myself that Jackson and all his friends, especially Zach, think I’m a freak who just wants to party with the popular people.

I’m feeling more nauseous by the second.

I’m just getting up to go to the bathroom when I realize Dad’s been trying to get my attention.

“Honeybee,” he says. He’s been calling me that since I stepped on a bee at my friend’s birthday at Griffith Park nearly ten years ago. “Don’t go just yet. I have something to tell the both of you.”

“Ugh,” I say and sit back down. “I have to pee. What is it?” Mom puts a hand on his arm. The news is something she’s been anticipating. I’ve always been able to read her. And Dad? He’s an open book. He’ll tell anyone whatever he’s thinking at any given moment. No secrets there. I guess that’s some- thing people admire about him, but I don’t understand. Ev-

eryone needs a secret to call their own.

“There’s a reason we went out on a school night,” he says. “What is it?” I ask absentmindedly, thinking about how much homework I have to get done tonight. I have at least

two hours’ worth. It’s going to be a late night.

Dad jolts me back into reality.

“I’m running for governor of California,” he says.

 My stomach drops.

“We’ve been waiting to tell you,” Mom says, her face full of joy. I’m pretty sure the expression on my face is communicating the otherworldliness of this announcement.

“Really?” I ask. “Are you serious?” “Couldn’t be more serious,” he says.

I should be happy for him, happy for his achievements, but this is terrible news. This means even more attention on the family and more stress during my junior year, which every- one knows is the hardest school year ever, especially since I have to start studying for the SAT, working on my portfolio and thinking about art school—or at least how I’m going to convince my parents to let me go there instead of a regular university.

All eyes are going to be on us. That means I have to be more perfect than ever. Stronger. Nothing should be able to take me down. Not food. Not school. Not this election.

I push the lettuce around on my plate and crush the croutons with my fork while Mom and Dad talk like old high school lovers, excited about this new opportunity.

“This is exactly what we need. Imagine not having to fly to Washington all the time.” I can tell that, in her mind, Mom is already decorating and ordering furniture for a new house. “We’ll live in the governor’s mansion. Sacramento is so lovely, and I miss having seasons.”

The timing couldn’t be worse.

My entire junior year is going to be taken up by this campaign. Probably part of my senior year too. Everything will be about him. Like always. Not to mention I may have to live in Sacramento for half of my senior year.

Sacramento? I mean, seriously, what’s in Sacramento? A river? Let me say it again: There’s. No. Way.

Might as well join the Mars Colony. They’re taking hip young up-and-coming artists ostracized from their power- hungry families, aren’t they? Sign me up.

A campaign for governor changes everything. Forget mak- ing any friends, let alone hooking up with Zach Park. Dad winning the governorship would ruin all that. And Dad’s scarily good at winning elections.

Fine. I’m just going to say it. Not out loud, but I’m going to say it in my head because it’s all I can think. I hope he loses. I hope his campaign completely tanks. There. Said it. I just need to get on the ball and focus on getting invited to Zach’s boat party.

That’s my only chance to get on his radar and to ask for LeFeber’s advice. I have to start living my best life. Stop constantly overthinking things and doubting myself.

No more being a wallflower.

No more being known only as the congressman’s daughter. Or Mason and Royce’s little sister.

I have to make a name for myself. For my art. Everyone needs to know who Liv Blakely really is.

[stnent]

Fall TV Preview 2017: Time To Tune In

Fall TV Preview 2017 Time To Tune In 1. Biggie: The Life Of Notorious B.I.G. This documentary, authorized by Biggie's estate, explores the life and career of the rap icon. The miniseries features interviews with his widow Faith Evans, his mom Voletta Wallace and a who's who of rap legends, such as Nas, Jay-Z and Sean "Diddy" Combs. (Monday, September 4, 8 p.m., A&E) 2. The Deuce: Go back in time to New York City, specifically Times Square in the 1970s, when the area was a haven for porn. The show stars James Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal and was written and created by David Simon ("The Wire"). (Sunday, September 10, 9 p.m., HBO) 3. The Orville: Seth MacFarlane created and stars in this live-action sci-fi comedy series that offers the "Family Guy" guru's take on the likes of "Star Trek." He plays the captain of the ship, who is paired with his ex-wife (Adrianne Palicki) as his first officer. (Sunday, September 10, 8 p.m., FOX/5) 4. The Vietnam War: The legendary documentarian Ken Burns and Lynn Novick tell the story of the Vietnam War in this 10-part, 18-hour series that culls from almost 80 interviews, tons of footage, and more. (Sunday, September 17, 8 p.m., WNET-13) 5. Star Trek: Discovery: Finally, after too many years, we get a new "Star Trek" series. The show has faced some issues, delays and staffing changes, but the early footage has been pretty great. The show, set before the original series, stars Sonequa Martin-Green as Spock's half-sister. (Sunday, September 24, 8:30 p.m., CBS/2, CBS All Access) 6. Young Sheldon: Spinning off from "The Big Bang Theory" comes this prequel following Sheldon Cooper at age 9 (Iain Armitage), a boy genius attending high school. (Monday, September 25, 8:30 p.m., CBS/2) 7. Me, Myself & I: Follow Alex Riley from childhood in 1991 at age 14, to now in 2017 at age 40 and in the future in 2042 at age 65. Starring Jack Dylan Grazer, Bobby Moynihan and John Larroquette. (Monday, September 25, 9:30 p.m., CBS/2) 8. The Brave: Anne Heche takes the lead in this new military drama about undercover soldiers tasked with saving innocents all around the globe. (Monday, September 25, 10 p.m., NBC/4) 9. The Good Doctor: Not a spinoff of "The Good Wife," this medical series, based on a South Korean show, is brought to the states from producer David Shore ("House") and certainly shares a bit DNA with "House." Freddie Highmore stars as a super surgeon with autism, working in pediatrics at a California hospital. (Monday, September 25, 10 p.m., ABC/7) 10. The Opposition with Jordan Klepper: Former "Daily Show" correspondent Jordan Klepper is the latest funnyman to take the former slot of "The Colbert Report," and aims to mock the alt-media on both sides. (Monday, September 25, 11:30 p.m., Comedy Central) 11. Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders: The long-running franchise hops onto the anthology trend with this new spinoff that will chronicle real-life cases, starting with the trail of Lyle and Erik Melendez. Starring Edie Falco, Anthony Edwards and Heather Graham. (Tuesday, September 26, 10 p.m., NBC/4) 12. Seal Team: David Boreanaz's post-"Bones" career begins with this military drama about one of the Navy SEALs' elite units, focusing on the tight group of soldiers as well as their family life. (Wednesday, September 27, 9 p.m., CBS/2) 13. Will & Grace: More than a decade since going off the air, the popular comedy starring Eric McCormack, Debra Messing, Megan Mullally and Sean Hayes is revived, allowing you to catch up with the characters for this 12-episode run. (Thursday, September 28, 9 p.m., NBC/4) 14. Marvel's Inhumans: This Marvel series begins unusually - with the first two episodes getting a limited run in IMAX movie theaters starting on Friday, September 1 (and then run again on TV). The series follows the powerful Inhuman Royal Family and your sure-to-be favorite character is the giant teleporting dog named Lockjaw. (Friday, September 29, 8 p.m., ABC/7) 15. Ghosted: The awesome duo of Craig Robinson and Adam Scott take the leads in this series about a skeptic and a believer who are brought in by the government to explore unusual occurrences going on around Los Angeles. (Sunday, October 1, 8:30 p.m., FOX/5) 16. Wisdom of the Crowd: An inventor comes up with an app that helps crowdsource murder investigations to help find out who killed his daughter. Starring Jeremy Piven, Richard T. Jones and Monica Potter. (Sunday, October 1, 8:30 p.m., CBS/2) 17. Ten Days in the Valley: Kyra Sedgwick stars in this drama about a television producer who is searching for her missing daughter. Also starring Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kick Gurry, Erika Christensen and Malcolm-Jamal Warner. (Sunday, October 1, 10 p.m., ABC/7) 18. 9JKL: This new comedy, based on the life of star Mark Feuerstein, follows a New York family living in three consecutive apartments. Feuerstein plays Josh Roberts, a divorced actor moving back to the Big Apple, taking an apartment wedged between ones inhabited by his parents on one side and his brother and sister-in-law on the other. Also starring Elliott Gould, Linda Lavin, David Walton and Liza Lapira. (Monday, October 2, 8:30 p.m., CBS/2) 19. The Gifted: This Marvel series in the "X-Men" world focuses on a family with young mutants forced to go underground to keep away from the government in this series. Directed by Bryan Singer, who is no stranger to the Marvel mutants. Starring Stephen Moyer, Amy Acker, Sean Teale, Jamie Chung and Coby Bell. (Monday, October 2, 9 p.m., FOX/5) 20. The Mayor: A young rapper runs for mayor of his California town for publicity and wins. Hilarity ensues. Starring Brandon Micheal Hall, Yvette Nicole Brown and Lea Michele. (Tuesday, October 3, 9:30 p.m., ABC/7) 21. Kevin (Probably) Saves the World: The great Jason Ritter stars as Kevin in this series about a man who returns home to live with his widowed twin sister and her daughter. And then he gets divine intervention, telling him to save the world. (Tuesday, October 3, 10 p.m., ABC/7) 22. Valor: Yet another military show, this one following a team of helicopter pilots tasked with secretive missions. (Monday, October 9, 9 p.m., CW/11) 23. Dynasty: The long-running 1980s prime time soap opera about bickering rich families gets rebooted, starring Grant Show, Nathalie Kelley, Elizabeth Gillies, Alan Dale and more. (Wednesday, October 11, 9 p.m., CW/11) 24. Mindhunter: This streamer is based on the book "Mind Hunter: Inside FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit" by Mark Olshaker and John E. Douglas, and is being brought to life by famed director David Fincher. Set in 1979, it stars Jonathan Groff and Holt McCallany as a pair of FBI agents investigating a nefarious case. (Friday, October 13, Netflix) 25. White Famous: Jay Pharoah makes the jump from "Saturday Night Live" to his own series, where he plays a young, up-and-coming comedian, an African-American talent looking to find a bigger audience let the show's title give you a clue. This is loosely based on the life of executive producer Jamie Foxx. (Sunday, October 15, 10 p.m., Showtime) 26. At Home With Amy Sedaris: The delightful Amy Sedaris takes you to her home to showcase her homemaking skills in this comedy. Each episode will be centered around a theme and will feature a guest such as Scott Adsit or Sasheer Zamata. (Tuesday, October 24, 10:30 p.m. Tru TV 27. The Last O.G.: Tracy Morgan stars in this new comedy about an ex-con returning to his old Brooklyn neighborhood, now gentrified, after a 15-year sentence. (Sunday, October 22, 10 p.m., TBS) 28. S.W.A.T: Shermar Moore stars in this remake of the 1975 series, later remade into a 2003 movie. Moore plays a sergeant in the tactial unit in Los Angeles, taking on some of the most dangerous missions. (Thursday, November 2, 10 p.m., CBS/2) 29. Future Man: This streaming series from Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and starring Josh Hutcherson and Eliza Coupe, follows a janitor with some serious video game skills who is recruited by some people from the future to save the world. Sounds a little like "The Last Starfighter," which is totally cool with us. (Tuesday, November 14, Hulu) 30. Marvel's Runaways: Young superheroes unite to take down their evil parents in this latest Marvel property, based on a modern comic book classic from Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona (Tuesday, November 21, Hulu) 31. She's Gotta Have It: Spike Lee's 1986 feature film gets turned into a series starring DeWanda Wise as a woman juggling relationships with three men. (Thursday, November 23, Netflix)

[piesack9-blog]

Notes on Music ♫

The eight Tony Awards-winning musical œOnce”, book by Enda Walsh, music and lyrics by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, is at the Arden Theatre now through Oct. 21, an œIrish-kissed” hit that took Broadway by storm, here staged by Producing Artistic Director Terrence J. Nolan with a cast of twelve including such local favorites as Greg Wood, Scott Greer, Alex Bechtel and Charlie DelMarcelle, along with Ken Allen Neely as a Dublin street musician and Katherine Fried whose love for his songs permits him to soar and dream, and œthe power of music to connect all of us”. 40 N. 2nd St. 215-922- 1122 for tickets and information on Post-Show discussions.

Mary Shelley™s œFrankenstein”, adapted and directed by Alex Burns in a Quintessence Theatre production, opens on Sept. 26 featuring Kevin Burgen, Jake Blouch, Lee Cortopassi, Leah Gabriel, Hannah Wolff and Michael Zlabinger, in a 200th anniversary tribute to Shelley™s tale of œhumanity™s obsession with knowledge and of the unintended consequences of scientific innovation”. Through Oct. 21 at the Sedgwick Theater, 7137 Germantown Ave., Mt. Airy. 215-987-4450.

Liebesfreud chamber group opens its new 13th season of free Last Friday concerts on Sept. 28 at 5:30 p.m. offering an hour-long performance of Mozart™s String Quartet in B flat, K. 458 (œThe Hunt”), and Mendelssohn™s String Quartet in A minor, op. 13. Geoffrey Michaels, Philip Kates, violins; David Giles, viola; Charles Forbes, cello. 251 S. 18th St. 215-545-4302.

Celebrated jazz pianist Fred Hersch, a twelve-time Grammy Awards nominee, appears in a solo concert on Sept. 28 at 8 p.m., performing works from throughout his illustrious career and from his more than three dozen albums. This Benefit for St. Stephen™s Episcopal Church Arts Programming is the first in a series of four such events, curated by Mr. Hersch and dubbed œThe Future of Jazz Piano Series”. St. Stephen™s is an historic parish founded in 1823 and is known for its strong commitment to the arts. 19 S. 10th St. Tickets at 215-922-3807.

The Philly POPS open their 40th season on Sept. 28 with Leslie Odom, Jr., local dynamo who starred on Broadway in the musical smash œHamilton”, earning a Tony and a Grammy, and here performs with Maestro Michael Krajewski in a lush American Songbook program that he feels Nat King Cole would perform today including” Autumn Leaves”, œUnforgettable”, œMona Lisa” and œWithout You”, working with his guitarist Steven Walker. Sept. 28 at 8 p.m., Sept. 29 and 30 at 3 p.m. Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce. 215-893-1999.

The Friends of the Wanamaker Organ™s big Fall Concert is set for Sept. 29 at 8 p.m., dedicated to the memory of beloved Philadelphia organ virtuoso, long-time member of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Wanamaker asst. organist and Friends board member Michael Stairs, performed by Peter Richard Conte and Joshua Stafford and including such Stairs favorite composers: Franck, Dvorak, Humperdinck, Sir Arthur Sullivan, Sowerby, Lemare as well as Disney hits. Flugelhornist Andrew Ennis will offer a cameo. In the hushed main floor of Macy™s, 1300 Market St. 215-241-9000, ex. 2408.

The Philadelphia Orchestra is in Verizon Hall on Sept. 29 at 8 p.m. with Maestro Yannick Nezet-Seguin on the podium for Dvorak™s œOthello” Overture, Rachmaninoff™s Symphonic Dances, and with guest soloist Lisa Batiashvili, Tchaikovsky™s Violin Concerto. Broad and Spruce, 215-893-1999.

The annual free Puerto Rican Day Parade will turn Sept. 30 into a massive and colorful event of music, dancing and floats as they march from their starting point at 16th and The Parkway. 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Further information at 215 627 3100.

Inis Nua Theatre presents, all the way from Scotland, David Greig™s œThe Monster in the Hall” with music by Nigel Dunn and Stephen Wright, directed by Claire Moyer, a dark tale of a daughter and father pretending to be fine, a random Norwegian woman in the closet, and a backup band to wipe away the gloom. With Eleni Delopoulos, Doug Durlacher, Jamison Foreman and Chris Park. Oct. 3 - 21 at the Louis Bluver Theatre at the Drake, 302 S. Hicks St. near 15th and Spruce. 215-454-9776.

The Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts opens its new season on Sept. 28 at 8 p.m. with œHumans”, performed by Circa, ten highly-skilled Australian circus performers and acrobats on a bare stage, illustrating” the expressive possibilities of the human body at its extremes”. Repeated on Sept. 29 at 2 p.m. 3680 Walnut St. 215-898- 3900.

œLove Never Dies”, Andrew Lloyd Webber™s sequel to œThe Phantom of the Opera”, gets its local premiere on Oct. 2 at the Academy of Music for eight performances including matinees through Oct. 7 in a revised working of the original 2011 Australian production. Broad and Locust. 215-790-5800.

Curtis-trained pianist Hanchien Lee and her Philadelphia Orchestra violist husband Meng Wang make their first-ever local joint appearance on Oct. 3 at 12:30 p.m. in an intriguing hour-long recital: Schubert™s Sonata in D Major D 384; Bruch™s Romance; and Brahms™ Sonata in E flat major, opus 120, no. 2. Free but with a goodwill donation always welcome. Church of the Holy Trinity, 19th and Walnut on Rittenhouse Square. 215-567-1267.

Source: http://ucreview.com/notes-on-music-p7973-86.htm