#Sally’s introducing Julie to the stars she knows!

[peachitykeen]

Stargazing!

[the-nosy-neighbor]

Sally's Pedrolino (part 3 of pedrolino theory)

First of all, Sally is dressed as Pierrot, not Pedrolino. (See the other pedrolino posts for the reasons and a history of the character)

Cone hat, ruff, big fluffy button detail. Her hat and the makeup and ruff are all traditional Pierrot costuming. It’s interesting that she chose the costume of a character that is closely associated with the moon, when she is supposed to be either a star, descended from a star, or a fallen star.

It appears that I’m not the first to wonder about Sally’s link to Pedrolino:

https://thecolourfulkingdom.tumblr.com/post/731153175684546560/importance-of-pedrolino

I really like that detail about there being “9 visible neighbors.” That might shoot a hole in my tower as a character theory. However, Colorful Kingdom does mention that same moon imagery that you find with Sally, something I have discussed before:

There is plenty here to be making a case that Something about Sally’s character is related more specifically to the moon. The images of Sally with one eye closed really makes me think that there is a duality to Sally during day/night. Part of the reason is the sun/moon on the door, but is also because of the clock concept art, dividing the clock into day and night involving open and shut eyes and different colored eyelids.

In the HH book/record, Sally introduces the concept of what happens at night in the neighborhood.

“It is looking for neighbors who are outside out past the daytime to gobble them up whole. That is why so few live here.

It moves through the streets at night, but it doesn't break into homes. However, on rare instances, it will find itself with an appetite, but unsatisfied by its aimless wandering. Even the occasional, unfortunate insect that has crossed its path is not enough.

Those who have lived through the night say it isn't quiet about it either. They always say you can hear when it gets closer to you. Do you know what sound it makes? I hear it every night. You can hear it too, if you listen. Especially if you wait next to your window.

First, there's rustling in the bushes. Then, the scratching on the pavement, on the walls as it crawls up. Finally, if you're quiet, you can hear its guttural sound.”

So, an actual creepy story where we learn that Sally has created this scary story for the neighbors, or an actual creepy thing that happens at night. It could potentially be a story meant to keep the neighbors inside, but for what reason? This could also be an attempt to explain missing neighbors or why the neighborhood is so small.

In my post about clocks, I go into this in more detail, but there is a definite dichotomy between the ideas of sun/star and moon, and the only timepiece to survive, Eddie’s watch, is clearly delineated between day and night.

This makes me think that there is something out there at night. I’ve also discussed in that post hints that we have gotten that there are people missing from the neighborhood:

• Where is Mama Beagle? (I know we saw her for Homewarming, but I’m not sure if that is current)

• Where are Julie’s siblings? They were important enough to have their own art in a book.

• “Nine visible neighbors” So are they invisible or no longer with us?

• Sunny was an original character and is no longer in the group. Perhaps we lost Sunny in an in-universe way, as opposed to written out.• Sally’s home and early buttons reference a sun and a moon

• This image has those buttons I was talking about.

This feels so much like Sally pointing directly at it and telling us that we are missing what happens at night. She really identifies the night beast’s actions and feelings too.

Have we seen anything that brings attention to the time and going home?

New idea, in terms of Eddie. “9 visible neighbors” could also lead to the idea that some are buried.

This picture is something I’ve shared before:

And this image has both Eddie and Sally. Hmm. Anyway, this is the item that is labeled what looks like “D” but with other letters mashed on top of it. There was obviously something missing here, so playing around, I was able to find this image. At first, I was convinced that this was some kind of Moonheaded man, the waxing gibbous type.

Now, though, I’m more of the mind that this is Sunny. Sally replaced Sunny, and Sunny is blue/teal. She is called a star, but I think her look is much more like how children draw the sun (which is a star).

He feels too bright to be the moon, and also, too green to be considered blue.

Also, the moon does not produce light. It is reflected sunlight. https://science.nasa.gov/moon/moonlight/ That makes it even more interesting to think that Sally is both, because she is producing the light, but it is also reflecting in another character that is connected with the moon?

What we know:

• Sally chose Pedrolino as a costume, despite Harlequinn (Arleccino) being the much more recognizeable character

(and I think you could argue the more fun, as Harlequin usually comes out on top and doesn't have the seriousness that Pedrolino does.)

Sally chose to wear a costume that belongs to a later iteration of the character. Either Sally is not as knowledgeable as she seems, or there is another reason for this. (Though Eddie recognizes it as Pedrolino, not Pierrot, from his book.)

I think when considering this difference, the author's/team's possible motivations have/has to be important.

• Pierrot is associated with the moon, specifically responding to the changes to the moon with changes in behavior

• Pierrot is focused on love, and the expression of the moon’s influence can be mental illness, but could also be a lovey dovey dopey experience (the word lunacy/lunatic comes from the belief that changes in the moon could make someone act insane)

• Sally has definite associations with the moon, with repeated symbols telling us that she is associated with the sun and the moon.

• The moon’s light is reflected from the sun

• Not discussed, but in pre-website lore, Poppy and Sally are an item.

• Sally is a singer, so are later versions of Pierrot

There is a female version of Pierrot, Pierrette. As little as most people know about this thing, Pierrette would be as good a character to choose as anyone.

• Pierrot is commonly known from the operatic (style?) performance, Pierrot Lunaire, which is a kind of anthology of music from the 1900’s. There may also be a separate opera, as you do see Pierrot as a role that a character plays in the Marx Brothers’ film, A Night at the Opera.

I think it is telling that Sally chose Pedrolino as opposed to Pierrot. She is dressed in a more classic Pierrot costume, but doesn’t have the lute and is not doing any kind of mime. You would expect Sally to get those details right, as a show offy theatre person (takes one to know one).

And why is Eddie the only other person to know what this is? He said he was reading about it in the post office. The only person we have seen with books (I think) is Frank. So does Eddie have book, did he get it from Frank. If so, where does Frank get his books? I think all of Franks books we have seen are about bugs. Is it a magical thinking kind of thing, or does Eddie bring books from our reality? Eddie delivers shipments to Howdy that we have seen, and Barnaby gets mail from outside the neighborhood, so are those from here or is it from some fictional location there?

All this to say, I do think that we can establish that this is giving us a strong hint about Sally's association with the moon and a potential importance of the day/night split and the nature of the neighborhood.

I am great at writing history, but less great at making the connections. I think there is still too much missing for me to make a reasonable guess as to what Sally's true nature is, but I definitely think that Sally's moon will make an appearance at some point and help us to understand what is happening in the neighborhood. I am confident that the moon will appear.

Since it has been useful to this point, a few notes from tv tropes.

God of the Moon--

Thus, fiction and mythology alike often personify it or associate it with a patron deity. Mirroring the moon's nature as a luminous body in a time of darkness, lunar deities can have complex relationships with the night and dark forces. On one hand, they may themselves be associated with darkness, the nighttime hours, and the things that dwell within them. On the other, they may instead be portrayed as standing against these things, providing safety and illumination during an otherwise dark and terrifying time and warding away the terrible things that lurk during the dark hours.

(required by law)

In personality, lunar deities are often portrayed as mercurial, changeable, and shifting, mirroring the constantly changing face of the moon itself. They also tend to be associated with cycles, such as the lunar phases and the tides. They may also have ties to madness, illusions, and mystery.

Under "Lunacy"

The Moon does things to people. Makes women crazy, drives the lunatics wild, or maybe is the external power source for some supernatural powers. The full Moon might bring out the monster in someone, or a new Moon may bring the human out of a monster. It may be tied to illusions, metamorphoses and inconstancy, mirroring the Moon's constantly cycling phases. In general, the Moon is often a catalyst in magical things.

"Night and Day Duo"

The elemental forces of day and night have always been considered polar opposites. The day, ruled by the sun, is bright and inviting. The night, ruled by the moon, is dark and often considered mysterious. It's no surprise that when two characters have abilities or traits based on these forces, they form a duo of Foils.

Despite their inherent differences, these characters usually form a team rather than fight in opposition. After all, keeping the balance is necessary in works that believe in The Sacred Darkness and Dark Is Not Evil. As such, this duo typically works together, even if it's just an Enemy Mine.

Share ideas about Sally and Pedrolino with me, and I'll update as ideas come in. I say Sally is Pierrot and Pedrolino is just a red herring to delay her association with the moon.

I might look at some other interactions between Sally and Eddie, as they seem to have a bit more to dig through.

[sunnie-writes]

is loving as good as they say?

pairing: wally darling x reader

tags: romantic fluff, love confessions, reader is a hopeless romantic !!

plot: a hopeless romantic all your life, you dreamed about the love you saw in movies and series, the type you would read in books that left you kicking your feet and giggling. cupid never seemed to be by your side, everyone who you fell in love with ended up not liking you back, so of course you were scared of another heartbreak when you moved to a new neighborhood and ended up falling for your newest neighbor, wally darling. although, it seemed that cupid didn't miss this time.

talk that talk, sunnie !!: so, this has been rotting in my google docs for almost a year already, so i thought i should post it already!! i hope you guys enjoy it, and you're more than welcome to read my other wally fics. thank you, and let's get to it!!

this fic is also available on ao3, you can click here to find it!!

A hopeless romantic, that's what you could call yourself.

You crave the love you would see on TV, those movies and series about romance had a grip on you that no one could explain, and don't get me started on the books. Even while being that amazed by the concept of being loved and cared by someone who you felt the same with, Cupid seemed to always miss his arrows.

Unrequited love was painful, you learned that the hard way. In your high school, you would watch all the high school sweethearts make their ways to classes while holding hands or eating lunch playfully with all the romantic atmosphere that came with it. What was the word you felt? Ah, that's right, you envied them.

Moving away from your town was both a relief and a scare, you would now be open to meeting new people, watching them enter your life. You hoped that they would stay.

And that's how you ended up here, in the lovely and colorful neighborhood that was Welcome Home. The name seemed silly, but you quickly learned that it was because of all the friendly behavior that those who lived there seemed to have. So friendly that they're always welcoming everyone.

All of the stars know that you would be lying if you said you weren't nervous. You never dealt good with talking to new people, you hoped that they could be friendly enough to start introductions first. Even if you were repeating how to introduce yourself like a mantra in your head, you were anxious about meeting so many people in just a day.

"Oooh! Are you the new neighbor?!" And that was your cue to use up all your social skills.

"Uh- yes?" You turned around to see who screamed, eyes meeting with a puppet girl with long blonde hair, and were those candy corn horns?

"Welcome Home! I was so excited to meet you! What is your name? What do you like?" She jumped up and down while popping multiple questions.

"I'm Y/N L/N, nice to meet you." You smiled, she's like a puppy. "I like reading and... animals, and I would love to be your friend!" There was no need to reveal your secret interest yet.

"That's amazing! You remind me of Frank, he also likes reading and animals! Well, specifically, flutterbies!" She spoke rapidly.

"Julie for the last time, they're called butterflies!" You looked to the side, seeing a gray man coming your way. "Oh, hello, I'm Frank."

You settled for waving at him. Julie, noticing your behavior, told him your name and interests. You're starting to think that Julie was sent from the angels as a way to help you enter this community.Then, you were pulled away from your thoughts as more puppet people started to gather in front of you.

"Oh my, the new neighbor has arrived already?" A girl with a sun head happily said. "My name is Sally Starlet, and you?"

"I'm Y/N L/N... nice to meet you!" You gave your best friendly smile.

Everyone introduced themselves to you, all colorful and adorable. Poppy was a pretty chicken who turned out to be an immediate mother figure to you, we also have Barnaby who is a big blue dog with a chill, kinda laid back personality that made you comfortable with his presence. Eddie Dear was the mailman, who Julie alerted you to not catch feelings for since Frank already had his eyes on him, and Howdy was a sweet man who owned the local market.

Judging by the numbers of houses, only one neighbor was missing. You pondered on how the last person could possibly be like, smiling at the idea of them being just as friendly as everyone in this colorful place that had you looking around nonstop.

"Ah, I see… am I late?" Someone spoke up, you turned around to finally meet your last neighbor.

And at that moment, you knew you were in trouble. He was absurdly pretty, with a blue pompadour and yellow skin, along with colorful clothing and eyes that pierced your soul and sent chills all over your senses. You felt your cheeks burn up, Cupid did it again and you weren't sure on how to stop staring at him.

"Woooow Wally, being late to meet our newest neighbor? How dare you!" Barnaby playfully dramatically gasped.

"I apologize, let me introduce myself." He went in your direction, standing right in front of you, who was currently almost out of breath. "I'm Wally Darling, the artist of the town, it's a pleasure to meet you…?"

"Y/N, Y/N L/N." Your voice almost cracked for a second, making your cheeks heat up even more. "Nice to meet you too…"

"How adorable, surely you're a great addition to our lovely neighborhood." He picked up your hand, giving a kiss on the back of your palm.

Stuttering, you thanked him for the compliment while trying your best to not fall on your knees. Julie came into the scene again and began telling Wally your tastes, he listened carefully while nodding and looking at you with a relaxed smile.

Eventually, everyone began slowly saying their goodbyes and going to their homes or jobs. You waved as Julie was the last one to leave and entered your house, closing the door behind you and holding your heart. It was racing, and you were well acquaintanced with the feeling.

Well, you failed, love followed your way again.

And now, what to do? You couldn't lie to yourself but it was hard to face the truth. It seemed too early for falling in love, you can just call it a crush and try to get over it, maybe this time it'll work! 

Yeah, just give it some time and it'll pass, you were sure of it!

— 

So, it didn't work.

That was obviously going to happen, and now you had your head in your hands while you walked around your house. On your bed, a pretty bouquet with your favorite color layed prettily there. Wally gave it to you, as a way to celebrate "your first week in the neighborhood", how sweet!

Your heart kept beating faster and faster each time you thought about the way he showed up on your doorstep, with his smug smile and bouquet in hands. He looked so innocent as your insides felt like melting from all the sweetness that gesture had.

And before you could control your feelings, you were already catching yourself humming to cheesy love songs and even singing them while cleaning the house. The radio echoed around your house, romantic tunes that you requested on the telephone to play there were all over the place.

Your once retired love books were now scattered across the floor as you giggled by imagining the scenarios with Wally. You didn't try to make a move and ask him out, your heart already had many bruises from past love delusions, and you really didn't feel like piling up another one for your heartbreak wonderland.

Instead, you just tried to become his friend while also trying to get your feelings to go away. That was, obviously, not a good idea, how could you try to stop falling for someone who you interact with everyday?

Before you could think properly on a better plan, a month had gone by. You still had your late night scenarios to giggle about, along with your hopeless romantic dreaming that pulled you into a cycle of trying to stop loving Wally Darling and learning how to love him all over again because of your weak heart.

Curse the Cupid, curse him and all of his pinkish love arrows who never found your way before. Of course you would be giving up on the first month, he never gave you what you wanted before, what could possibly make you think that now it would all go the right way?

Stupid, selfish Cupid.

—

Three months had passed, and you could say you were tired of waiting for the feelings to suddenly disappear.

You played with a doll's hand, carefully moving the antique treasure in your arms. Currently, you were at Julie's house, who was the only person who was aware of your huge crush on Wally. She giggled as she asked you questions of all the time you and "lover boy" had passed together.

"He just wanted to paint with someone, it's not like he wanted to paint alone with just me and nobody else!" You blushed while looking at the ground.

"I don't know, he never really let me or the other neighbors touch his painting supplies." Julie then whispered in a teasing manner, "Maybe he thinks of you as special, in a like-like way!"

You lowered your head while choking on your water, feelings all over the place. If there was something that Julie liked to do, it was to tease relentlessly. After you calmed down, you both started to ask each other random questions to pass the time.

"Now, as a hopeless romantic, what is your ideal date?" She questioned, looking happy as ever in your direction.

"Hmm, stargazing seems like a great date, picnics look a lot of fun too!" You bashfully chuckled. "Oh, a picnic on a sunset, that turns into a stargazing session! With sweet apple pies and cake, along with refreshing drinks!"

"Ooh, tell me more!" Julie smiled.

"Okay, then a cold wind blows and suddenly I shiver, then Wally puts his cardigan on me and hugs me closer!" You could easily feel your cheeks heating up just from your imagination.

And that earned a screech from Julie.

“Ugh, how are your scenarios always the best?!” 

“It’s the prize I get for being a dreamer.” You chuckled lightly.

—

Today was a special day in the neighborhood.

Apparently, everyone was going to the nearest lake, which is gigantic, you can say, and pop up some balloons and light up some fireworks because it was the neighborhood’s anniversary! 

You were currently trying to pick your best outfit, and that was because Wally was going to pick you up since you didn’t know the way to the lake. At least that’s what you told yourself so you wouldn’t freak out at the scenario. Seriously, that sounded like a romantic comedy.

After a while, you ended up settling for one of your favorite outfits, one that had stars on them. Then, a knock on the door was heard. You quickly put on your shoes and ran to open it, coming face to face to an adorable Wally, looking at you while holding a bouquet of red tulips and some amaranth.

“There we go, a bouquet of beautiful flowers for an even prettier one.” 

“Oh! Wally, you shouldn’t…” You blushed and took the flowers.

“Nonsense, you deserve only the best!” He chuckled raspily.

You giggled as he gave you his hand, pleading eyes for you to walk with him. You two started walking while holding hands in the direction of the lake, talking about everything that was going on in the neighborhood. It was a nice atmosphere, comfortable enough, and dare you say, romantic.

As you arrived there, Wally smiled and kissed the back of your hand before going to talk to a knowing Barnaby, who stared at you with a big smile and wiggling his eyebrows. Julie, who saw all of that, pulled you towards her and Frank immediately.

"Oh. My. Stars! What was that? Is that a bouquet? Are you two going on a date?" She excitedly spoke while flapping her hands.

"Julie, calm down. Pretty sure she is malfunctioning." Frank told the girl by his side. "But yeah, what exactly happened there?"

"I don't know, and I'm freaking out about it!" You giggled while holding the bouquet close to you, smiling.

"That was absurdly romantic, I think he is head over heels for you!" Julie exclaimed while whispering. "Besides, look at these flowers, they are so pretty!"

"They also have an exquisite meaning, you know?" Frank randomly spoke, dropping the fact like it was nothing.

You proceeded to hint at him to keep going.

"Amaranths mean eternal love, red tulips mean true love." Frank looked at you while raising his eyebrows. "That is literally a confession."

Julie, who was holding her energy back, gave a screech and started shaking your arm. Meanwhile, you had just bluescreened. Your cheeks heated up, and you felt your heartbeat increase rapidly, like it was trying to burst out your ribcage in a desperate manner. At that point, you were checking if you still even had some pulse.

Suddenly, someone started ringing a bell, and so, everyone looked to the front, seeing Poppy there. She smiled before starting to explain that there was food on the foldable table, fireworks and water guns, everything for fun. Poppy then started handing out glasses with juice to everyone before raising a toast for the neighborhood's birthday.

After that, all of you started talking to each other. You looked around, smiling when you saw Eddie talking to Frank, who was trying his best to cover up a blush while Julie looked at him with a knowing smile from across the field, Sally was braiding some of her long hair. Poppy and Howdy were discussing random things while Barnaby just laid down at the picnic blanket and stared at the stars.

And there, from across the room, your eyes met his. Something electrical went through your body, and you could swear you felt your world stop. Suddenly, there were no more friendly neighbors around you, the festivities and candy long forgotten in your mind. No, none of that mattered anymore, did it?

It was just you and him, across a field as he slowly made his way towards you.

Wait.

You were too late to process it, he's already in front of you.

"So, dearest, how are you enjoying the party?" Wally asked, igniting a fire in your belly to light up the butterflies who panicked and fluttered along you.

"Good, I- I think everyone is having fun, what about you?" You responded, trying your best to hide your reaction with the nickname.

“I could say I am.” He looks at you, up and down, down and up. And it sets your skin ablaze.

Icarus wasn’t able to resist the beauty that was the Sun to him, and maybe you wouldn’t survive the flirt that was Wally Darling. Every single thing he does sets you on fire, butterflies infest your stomach, it’s magical and so cheesy, all at the same time.

“Come with me, I wanna show you something.” His honey-laced words get to you, and you comply with a nod.

He holds your hand, and starts going into the trees, between all those primary colored leaves. You can feel your heartbeat increasing, all your muscles about to give up, it’s like dying but not exactly that, living in ecstasy, better than any drug.

You two stop at Swan Lake, where the stars reflect on the water and the feathered bEINGS float elegantly. Your eyes shine as you see them doing their little synchronized dance, until you notice that they end up doing a heart. You sigh, real romantic.

“Darling, could you look at me, please?”

You turn to see Wally, on one knee, his hand holding yours. You might start crying.

“You see, Y/N, ever since the day I saw you, I knew there was something special about you. With your smile, your way of expressing yourself, I knew you were gonna steal my heart, and I knew that I would never have it back. I’ve heard stories in the past about soulmates, loved ones made for you, and I didn’t believe any of that, before I met you. I’m an artist, not a poet, but you make me inspired dear, to dedicate you the most beautiful forms of art out there, paint and frame your face, have millions of words dedicating my love to you, and that still wouldn’t be enough for you to understand how much I desire you. I want to see your resting face every morning, I want to hold you in my arms and sleep for eternity, I want to grow every day by your side. Would you do me the owner, Dearest, and accept my confession? To finally be mine and let me be yours?”

You, unable to hold the feeling, giddily jumped around before throwing yourself on him, both of you falling on the ground. You cried tears of joy as you said yes a million times, while he patted your back and chuckled, kissing your forehead.

—

“You know,” Frank started with crossed arms while looking at you and Wally, happily holding hands while sitting on the picnic blanket, “One could say that you two were perfect for each other.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying!” Julie exclaimed, happy that you and your Darling were together, finally together.

“Ha ha ha, oh well, I knew they were the one for me since day one.” Wally answered, pulling you into another sweet and quick kiss, making you squeak.

“Ugh, don’t leave the picnic all sappy with your love.” Frank rolled his eyes at the sight.

“Don’t be jealous Frank, everyone knows you want to live that with Ed-” He covered Julie’s mouth before she could say anything else.”

“... Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I feel like I just won the lottery.” You proudly stated.

“Oh, they grow up so fast…” Poppy hiccuped for what seemed to be the eleventh time, being real emotional with your fresh new relationship.

“There there, Poppy.” Howdy patted her in the back.

“I’m really happy for you guys!” Said Eddie while sitting down next to Frank.

You smiled at him while Wally thanked the mailman. You grabbed yourself a piece of lemon pie to eat.

“Sooo, when’s the wedding?” Barnaby jokes.

And you proceeded to choke on your lemon pie.

[hypnautic-cereal]

I’ve shared about my Welcome Home au on Discord and TikTok, but not here yet

So, I introduce to you: the Wish Maker au!💫

A Welcome Home au of mine that spawned from a meme I thought of one time while I was in the shower. Essentially the WH crew in this au are able to grant different kinds of wishes, and strive to make any and all wishes come true for a more better earth

(Please note that I did each of these art pieces separately, so all the canon sizes are the ones up on this first one⬆️)

First of all, we have our Wally variant: Wally Starling💫

Wally is the newest neighbor to land on Planet Home, as he was recently born from the stardust of a recently died supernova. Wally is gifted the power to grant star wishes as well as a high/moon jump, and aspires to be Judy’s as great of a wish maker as his friends

Up next: Our spectacular star, Sally Starlet⭐️

Glowing wherever she goes, Sally Starlet is the leader and protector of Planet Home. Legends as true as wishes have told that a portion of Sally’s power was distributed among each of her friends. Who knows what power she could behold at full capacity?

Next on our list: Our lovable dog Barnaby B. Beagle🎤

It might not seem like it at first, but Barnaby B. Beagle is a dog of many cultures. Barnaby grew a swift and tight friendship with Wally Starling, even being the one who gave Wally his name when he first arrived on Planet Home! Inspired by 90s family game shows as a sign of his love for fun and friendship, Barnaby grants the wishes from different cultures (such as tanabata tags, and grapes from under the table on the new years countdown)

Next up, our dynamic duo: 🎂Julie Joyful and Frank Frankly📚

Always excited to celebrate any occasion, Julie is your girl to call for a party. Her partying expertise is always to serve for others happiness. With help from Poppy Partridge and Sally Starlet, there’s no party on Planet Home that won’t be ready on time. Once the birthday candles are blown, a dash of confetti from Julie’s hand will have the wish granted in no time

Although they’re always in a rush, Frank Frankly is the brightest/smartest neighbor on the wishful Planet Home. Any questions the neighbors have about anything, Frank is able to answer in various ways. His specialty lies in granted wishes found in nature (such as dandelion puffs or the first winter snow), as well as proofreading wishes to the wisher’s intent. With provided help from Julie Joyful and Eddie Dear, there’s no task to tough for our beloved brainiac

And last up: 🌙Poppy Partridge, Eddie Dear💌, and Howdy Pillar🐛

Looking over the dreams of those down on Earth, Poppy Partridge acts as a guide to those who don’t know what their hearts desire. A scent of lavender and lilac follow wherever she goes, as a sea of stars speckle her pillowy soft tail feathers. Her and Sally Starlet happily work side by side, making sure all goes right from day to night

Folk tales from the old west tell the tale of a person who retrieves the wishes that haven’t been granted so that they can be granted as soon as they can. That there is our confident yet clumsy and forgetful dreamer, Eddie Dear. With his Lasso of Limitless Length and Star of Time, there’s no limit to when and where ungranted wishes will be granted. He takes his job with pride, especially if Frank Frankly is by his side

Ever need that little bit of push when playing the lottery? Or need a wish from that coin you tossed into the well? Well, our terribly generous Howdy Pillar’s got your back. He’d be more than happy to grant you luck and fortune for whatever you might need for the day. He does seem to fall asleep quite often, even with all the energy he needs for the day, so he carries his pillow Benjamin in case he’s ever tuckered out (get it? Cause money…$100…Benjamin Franklin-). So, what Howdy’s Place deal are you looking for today?

JESUS OK FINALLY FINISHED WRITING ALL THIS😭

But yeah, I have a lot to share with you guys about this au, and I hope you all enjoy and stick around for all the stuff I wanna share for it! I even have a whole playlist for this au (as well as a discord server but that was made for the fun of it and doesn’t have any actual functionality lol)

[experimentfae]

Welcome home x GN Human! Reader Headcanons

Wally Darling

Wally seemed to be calm seeing you but in Reality surprised when he first saw you.

Very curious about you, you’re clothes, anything to do with where you came from and just about you in general.

Likes showing you his painting and don’t be surprised if he ask you about artist from you’re world.

If you know other types of apples Wally would be confused but curious even though he would prefer to stick to his classic red apples.

Would introduce you to home, it was awkward at the beginning but was thankful that you eventually warmed up to home.

Julie Joyful

She’s super excited about you she wanted to get to know you right away.

She would definitely love styling you’re hair, especially if it’s on the curly side she would love to touch, only when you allow her to of course.

She would definitely show you the games she invented and in return you could show her games you like to play. Julie would love to learn new ways to play.

She would make you part of her imaginary business no ifs or buts she hired you without you’re knowledge.

Frank frankly:

Definitely tried to study you no doubt about that.

Would constantly ask questions about human autonomy, you’re world and you’re culture basically is fascinated by you.

When you do give frank the knowledge that you are a human, they would probably looking for books about humans if they are lucky enough to find one and if they are not then they would write one themselves.

They would share there love for butterflies and maybe others bugs and ask you if bugs in you’re world look similar to the bugs in the neighborhood.

They would right down anything you told them about humans.

Eddie dear

He was actually the one to find you he got scared thinking you where dead but when you slowly woke up he was relieved, When he saw you at first he assumed you where just a big puppet.

But you informed Eddie that you are infact a human he begin wanting to know more about humans and you especially.

After you being at welcome home for a while he has the tendency to forget that you are not from here and that you are a human.

Eddie showed you his arts and craft hobby and would be happy if you enjoy it as much as he does, he even taught how how to make a paper chain.

Barnaby B.Beagle

Would be very shocked but definitely welcome you with open arms.

He calls you kid like everyone one in the neighborhood despite the fact everyone including you are around his age.

If you are homesick then Barnaby would tell you jokes to make you feel better.

Weirdly he wasn’t that interested in learning about humans he did ask questions but was rare for him to do so.

Sally Starlet

She was amazed by you she has never seen anything like you and wanted to learn about you.

Would ask questions about plays in your world and would also ask about the stars.

Sally would want you in one or more of her plays for sure she wants to make a play about what you told everyone about humans.

If you have a love for theater expect for her to involve you in her plays way more than before.

Howdy Pillar

When he first saw you he was bewildered and curious so he definitely asked a lot of questions.

He have asked about small businesses work in you’re world, you told him about currency and how business works he definitely shocked it’s the same but so different at the same time.

You often come and you found that in exchange for his stuff it was facts about world or other humans which you happily appreciated that form a currency.

Was confused on what some items you where talking about such as bandaids, or frozen foods.

Poppy Partridge

Which was confused by you’re appearance but soon learned what you are, she’s no longer surprised but now just confused.

Just like Barnaby she isn’t that curious about humans and there lives she’s more curious about you personally.

If you have a knowledge about baking she would ask what do humans make, of course you answer her questions which made her right it down immediately to remember for another time.

Poppy would be shocked to find that you need to eat to survive usually she just baked or cooked just cause she likes how the food looks, just like the other puppets so she would be very motherly and check on you daily to see if you ate enough today.

<- Back to MasterList or back to welcome home

[bisluthq]

A letter from Nat

25.7.21

Allow me to introduce a character, who will be known in these parts as Zombie Man.

Zombie Man got his name because when he first came to make my acquaintance he acted like a zombie. We had to ask the doctors for his name because he would stroll around - shuffle around rather - with his eyes mostly closed and drool leaking out his mouth. He would speak only to bum cigarettes, which one would have to lie for him, and the ash from which would inevitably burn holes in his pants, which appear to be his only pants (to be fair that’s in part a self drag because lots of my fellow patients are overawed by the range of “I mentally ill but make it cute in a practical way” ‘fits I have).

Still, Zombie Man’s Pants are the catalyst for today’s topic, so bear with me. They are green, turquoise + White checks, and have cigarette holes from his full zombification era (for the record, his zombie origin story was smoking some PCP mixed with amphetamines).

He speaks now, the semantic meaning is not an established strength.

Back to the pants. Yesterday he was skulking around, on the prowl to find a dummy to bum a cig off (me. He found me.) when the elastic in these storied green pants began to give way. He was not wearing underwear. Soon, half of Zombie Man’s bare ass was in my direct line of vision.

“My dude, pull your pants up or I won’t give you a ciggie next time,” I said. “What?” (He’s not hot with making much semantic sense, nor is listening for meaning a huge victory these days). “I said pull your pants up, man.” “Because you’re a lesbian?” Zombie Man blinked, confused. A male clinic friend of mine chimed in, “no because we don’t want to see your ass and we can guarantee none of the girls want to see your ass.” A lewd-leaning friend added, “She could eat dick for breakfast, lunch and dinner, fucking can’t get enough and still would not appreciate your naked ass.”

Why have I brought this anecdote up? Because it inspired me to want to discuss the topic I usually fucking hate: labels..

Because to a large portion of hetty people I meet I…am quite self-evidently a lesbian. I am interested in women. I have a girlfriend + ex-girlfriends. I did this neuropsych EEG test for libido (symptom of depression obvi, mine is doing fine) and I showed up as 100% gay. I had 0 neuron response to male porn stars but it was the 4th of July when I saw tits. So to that doctor, like, in also a lesbian. Now, is it relevant that they didn’t include a picture of Josh O’Connor and it was just beefcake hottie types? Honestly, not really, because as I said - to people out in the world that I talk to, in hella gay. It’s only inside the queer community that I’m regularly not gay enough.

And it’s occurred to me that it is respectability politics under a Scooby Doo villain disguise.

“I’m not a dirty slut, I’ve only had sex with my monogamous* girlfriends!”

“I’ve never been confused, I’ve known since I held Sally B’s hand in first grade”

…and so forth.

There is no perfect way to be gay. So just chill with the policing (unless it’s a girl who liked the taste of cherry chapstick one drunken night + now uses the word dyke with liberal abandon; drag her ass) and let people be + acknowledge that real life labeling doesn’t always work like woke gay Twitter wants it to, like not everyone is going to care what sexy label you worked out. They are going to label you how they know to.

Which is fine, because labels should be, in my opinion for self-identity, not to make some dude have to watch 10 Youtube videos + a PowerPoint.

Sometimes you just…laugh at Zombie Man’s naked ass, banter with some newfound straight bois (a whisperer! I tell you) and go to your room knowing you’re bi but heavily prefer women, and it’s not worth any discussion.

This also applies to bi girls who get labeled straight. Like, sure, that sucks. But that label is for you not an auntie who assumes you’re hetty because you have a boyfriend. It doesn’t matter.

If you know what you feel, no one can take it from you. I promise.

And fuck the self-appointed gay police, they really should, as the kids say, go outside and touch some grass.

Sending love,

Nat

xxx

PS Zombie Man just surfaced in new pants (Puma Shorts). Lmao imagine he’s a reader.

*kinda funny I find that word so impossible to spell. Ooops.

[the-dust-jacket]

The imminent release of Netflix’s Enola Holmes, starring Millie Bobby Brown, seemed like an excellent excuse to re-read the highly binge-able series while drinking lots of tea, which is really the only reason I’m clinging to sanity this week. 

Enola as a character is so close to my heart: clever, proud, fiercely independent, fiercely lonely, sheltered, self-possessed, compassionate, competitive, with a flair for the dramatic that always has me in stitches, she is so much more than Sherlock Holmes’ little sister. 

And her adventures are more than simple Holmes pastiche. They’re full of affection for Arthur Conan Doyle’s characters and world, while also diving into highly improper Victorian history and examining the sexism and brutal poverty that shaped 19th century London. 

Right, and they’re bite-sized, outrageously fun romps full of secret codes, cunning disguises, and derring-do. 

Inspired by Enola Holmes,, here is a collection of books across age groups for fans of Sherlockian pastiche, spunky girl detectives, codes and clues, and foggy Victorian atmosphere. 

(You can also check out Middle Grade Monday at Books of Wonder for more on the series, the about-to-be-released movie, adjacent book recommendations, and tea.) 

The Case of the Missing Marquess, by Nancy Springer: Enola Holmes, raised in seclusion by her eccentric and radically-minded mother, must outwit kidnappers, miscreants, and her own brilliant brothers when Mrs. Holmes vanishes and Sherlock and Mycroft determine to send Enola to finishing school. The series only gets better from here, with strange mysteries, wild corners of Victorian social and political history, and lots of foggy London atmosphere. 

Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories or The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes: the Sherlock Holmes stories were infamously such a hit that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was unable to escape his most iconic character, even by killing him off. 

The Sally Lockhart trilogy, by Philip Pullman: intrepid Sally Lockhart and her motley band of friends and allies attempt to outwit criminals, smugglers, politicians, industrialists, and the full force of Victorian patriarchy in this swashbuckling, gaslit tour of seedy London society.  

The Lie Tree, by Frances Hardinge: Faith is clever, and angry, and trapped--trapped on an isolated Chanel island, and by the role of dutiful Victorian daughter. After a shocking death and a supernatural discovery, Faith will go to any lengths to find the truth, in this tense and atmospheric homage to feminist Gothic horror. 

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place, by Julie Berry: when the girls of St Ethelreda’s School for Young Ladies find a pair of bodies at the breakfast table, they know something must be done. A murderer in their midst threatens their lives and their tea time---and worst of all, might get them sent home! 

The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, by Laurie R. King: When Mary Russel quite literally stumbles across Sherlock Holmes, retired and keeping bees in the Sussex Downs, an unlikely partnership begins. 

Greenglass House, by Kate Milford: a quiet Christmas holiday at home turns into a whimsical adventure when the Greenglass House Inn is invaded by all sorts of suspicious and unannounced guests. 

Oscar Wilde and a Death of No Importance, by Gyles Brandreth: real historical figures and real historical murders mix with frothy fictional adventure in this mystery starring Oscar Wilde, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert Sherard, and the hidden underside of the Queen Victoria’s polite society. 

Murder Is Bad Manners, by Robin Stevens: there’s not just a dead body at Deepdean School for Girls; there’s a dead body that has mysteriously vanished. Aspiring Sherlock Holmes-style detectives Daisy and Hazel are out to solve the murder--and prove it really happened. 

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter, by Theodora Goss: starring a wide range of Victorian pulp characters, from Rappaccini’s Daughter to Holmes and Watson, this is both a fast-paced, derring-do adventure and a sweet story of unlikely found family. 

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, by Alan Bradley: introduces Flavia de Luce, another intrepid girl detective with an odd and lonely upbringing and a delightful fascination with murder and poisons. 

The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin: cunning clues and larger-than-life characters abound in this meticulously crafted classic mystery. 

[dillydedalus]

what i read in july

THAT’S MORE LIKE IT aka i’m finally out of the (relative) reading slump for good & my bro james joyce was there

men explain things to me, rebecca solnit the original mansplaining essay is great, and still scarily relevant; the others in this collection (most on feminist issues) are also quite good; some aspects are a bit dated & problematic so be aware of that. 2.5/5

erschlagt die armen!, shumona sinha (tr. from french, not available in english) short but very impactful novella about a young french woman, originally from india, who works as an interpreter in the asylum system and becomes more & more broken by this system of inhumane bureaucracy and suffering, until she snaps and hits a migrant over the head with a wine bottle. full of alienation and misery and beautiful but disturbing language - the title translates to ‘beat the poor to death’ so like. yeah. 3.5/5

fire & blood: a history of the targaryen family I, george r r martin look, it’s a 700-page-long fake history book about a fictional ruling dynasty in a fictional world, and i’m just That Obsessed & Desperate about asoiaf (and i don’t even care about the targs That Much). anyway, now i know more about the targs than any ruling family from, you know, real history, which is like, whatever. this is pretty enjoyable if you are That Obsessed, although i will say that some bits are much better than others (there are some dry dull years even in everyone’s fav overly dramatic dragon-riding incest-loving family) and the misogyny really is. a lot. too much. way too much. BUT i did really like Good Best Queen Alysanne (her husband king joe harris is alright too i guess) and i found my new westerosi otp, cregan stark/aly blackwood, who both have Big Dick Energy off the fucking charts. 3.5/5 (+0.5 points for cregan and aly’s combined BDE)

the old drift, namwali serpell hugely ambitious sprawling postcolonial nation-building novel about zambia, told thru three generations of three families, as well as a chorus of mosquitoes (consistently the best & smartest parts). there is A LOT going on, in terms of characters, of plot points, of references to history (the zambian space programme) and literature (finally my knowledge of heart of darkness paid off) and thematically, and honestly it was a bit too much, a bit too tangled & fragmented & drifty, and in the end i probably admire this book more than i liked it, but serpell’s writing is incredibly smart and funny and full of electrical sparks 3.5/5

a severed head, iris murdoch the original love dodecahedron (not that i counted). iris murdoch is fucking WILD and i love her for it. this is a strange darkly funny little farce about some rich well-educated londoners and their bizarre & rather convoluted love lives. not as grandiosely wild as the sea the sea, but fun nevertheless. 3/5

midnight in chernobyl, adam higginbotham jumping on the hype bandwagon caused by the hbo series (very weird to call the current fascination with chernobyl a hype bandwagon but you know). interesting & well-written & accessible (tho the science is still totally beyond me) & gets you to care about the people involved. lots of human failure, lots of human greatness, set against the background of the almost eldritch threat of radioactivity (look up the elephant foot & see if you don’t get chills), and acute radiation syndrome which is THE MOST TERRIFYING THING ON EARTH . 3.5/5

normal people, sally rooney honestly this is incredibly engrossing & absorbing once you get used to how rooney completely ignores ‘show don’t tell’ (it works!), i pretty much read the whole thing in one slow workday (boss makes a dollar, i make a dime so i read books on my phone on company time, also i genuinely had nothing to do). i also think rooney is really good at precisely capturing the ~millenial experience in a way that feels very true, especially the transition from school to uni. BUT i really disliked the ending, the book never engages with the political themes it introduces (esp. class and gender) as deeply as it could and the bdsm stuff never really gets TIED UP LOL. so overall idk: 3.5/5

störfall: nachrichten eines tages, christa wolf quiet reflective undramatic little book narrated by a woman waiting to hear about the outcome of her brother’s brain surgery on the day of the catastrophe at chernobyl - throughout the day she puts down her thoughts about her brother and the events unfolding at chernobyl, as well as the double uncertainty she is trying to cope with. really interesting to read such an immediate reaction to chernobyl (the book came out less than a year after chernobyl). 2.5/5

the man in the high castle, philip k dick it was fine? quick & entertaining alternative history where the axis powers win the war, some interesting bits of worldbuilding (like the draining of the mediterranean which was apparently a real idea in the early 20th century?) but overall it’s just felt a bit disjointed & unsatisfying to me. 2.5/5

fugitive pieces, anne michaels very poetic & thoughtful novel about the holocaust, grief, remembrance & the difference between history and memory, intergenerational trauma, love, geology and the weather. i’m not sure how much this comes together as a novel, but it is absolutely beautifully written (the author is a poet as well) and very affective. 3.5/5

american innovations, rivka galchen short collection of bizarre & often funny short stories about neurotic women whose furniture flies away, or who grow an extra breast, or who are maybe too occupied with financial details. very vague & very precise at once, which seems to be the thing with these sort of collections. 3/5

fool’s assassin (fitz & the fool #1), robin hobb YAASS i’m back in the realm of the elderlings!!! i thought this was one of the weaker installments in the series - i still enjoyed it a lot, and Feelings were had, but it just doesn’t quite fit together pacing-wise & some of the characterisation struck me as off (can i get some nuance for shun & lant please?) and tbh fitz is at peak Selfcentred Dumbass Levels & it drove me up the fucking wall. molly, nettle & bee deserve better. still, completely HYPE for the rest of the trilogy. 3.5/5

JAMES JOYCE JULY

note: i decided not to read dubliners bc it’s my least fav of joyce’s major works & too bleak & repetitive for my mood right now AND while i planned not to reread finnegans wake bc……. it’s finnegans wake…. i kinda do want to read it now (but i also. really don’t.) so idk yet.

a portrait of the artist as a young man, james joyce y’all. i read this book at least once a year between the ages of 15 and 19, it’s beyond formative, it is burnt into my brain, and reading it now several years later it is still everything, soaring and searing (that searing clarity of truth, thanks burgess) and poetic and dirty, and stephen is baby, and a pretentious self-important little prick and i love him & i am him (or was him as only a pretentious self-important teenage girl reading joyce can be him - because this truly is a book that should be read in your late teens when you feel everything as intensely and world-endingly and severely as my boy stephen does and every new experience feels like the world changing). anyway i love this book & i love stephen dedalus, bird-like, hawk-like, knife-blade, aloof, alienated, severe and stern, a poet-priest-prophet if he could ever get over himself, baby baby baby. 5/5

exiles, james joyce well. there’s a reason joyce is known as a novelist. this is….. a failed experiment, maybe. a fairly boring play about an adulterous love-square and uh… love beyond morality and possession maybe??? about how much it would suck for joyce to return to ireland??? and tbh it’s not terribly interesting. 2/5

travesties, tom stoppard a wild funny irreverent & smart antic comedy inspired by the fact that during ww1, james joyce, lenin, and dadaist tristan tzara were all in neutral zurich, more or less simultaneously; they probably never met, but in this play they do, as dadaist poetry, socialist art critique, and a james joyce high on his own genius & in desperate need of some cash while writing ulysses, AND the importance of being earnest (joyce is putting on a production of it) all collide in the memories of henry carr, who played algernon & later sued joyce over money (tru facts). not my fav stoppard (that’s arcadia) but it’s funny & fizzy & smart & combines many many things that i love. 4/5 

ulysses, james joyce look i’m not really going to tell y’all anything new about ulysses, but it really has everything, it’s warm & human(e) & cerebral & difficult & funny & sad & healing & i always get a lot out of it even tho there’s bits (a lot of them) i’ll never wrap my head around. ultimate affirmation of humanity or whatever. also stephen dedalus is baby. 5/5

dedalus, chris mccabe the fact that this book (sequel to ulysses about what stephen dedalus might have done the next day) exists and was published ON MY BIRTHDAY is proof that the universe loves me. 

anyway this is very very good, very very clever, extremely good at stephen (less good at bloom but his parts are still good), engages w/ ulysses, portrait & hamlet (& others) very cleverly & does some cool meta and experimental shit. y’all it has stephen talking to a contemporary therapist about how he’s stuck in joyce’s text which is all about joyce & very little about whoever stephen is when he’s not joyce’s alter ego/affectionate but slightly amused look at younger self and ithaca is an interview w/ the author about how his relationship to his dad influenced his response to ulysses and I’M INTO IT. the oxen of the sun chapter replaces the whole ‘gestation of english prose’ w/ just slightly rewriting the first pages of about 10 novels published between ulysses and now & it does lolita w/ “bloom, thorn of stephen’s sleep, light in his eyes. his sire, his son’ and i lit. screamed. anyway i don’t want to give this 5 stars (yet) bc i think some of the experimental stuff ended up a bit gimmicky & didn’t add that much to the text but fuck. that’s my boy & i want to reread it right now. 4.5/5 ALSO it’s a crime no literary weirdo woman has written ‘a portrait of the artist’s sister’ about delia ‘dilly’ dedalus, shadow of stephen’s mind, quick far & daring, teaching herself french from a 3rd hand primer while her father drinks the nonexistent family fortune away and her older brother is getting drunk on a beach & starting fights w/ soldiers bc he’s a smartarse

[mamusiq]

Liza Minnelli Ruined Sally Bowles For Literally Every Other Actress By Tyler Coates  Mar 12, 2015

Liza Minnelli was miscast as Sally Bowles in Cabaret, and it’s the only time bad casting ever worked out so perfectly. Minnelli was absolutely wrong for the part, but she made it her signature role and ultimately ruined it for every actress that followed her.

Even though the role is most associated with Minnelli, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of Sally Bowles, she wasn’t the first person to play the nightclub performer. Based on the real-life British singer named Jean Ross that author Christopher Isherwood met during his time in Berlin just before World War II (which he would fictionalize in his 1939 novel Goodbye to Berlin, the basis for Cabaret), Sally Bowles first turned up in John Van Druten’s 1951 play I Am a Camera (later turned into a movie in 1955) in which she was played by Julie Harris. Fifteen years after I Am a Camera premiered on Broadway, Sally stepped back onto the Great White Way (this time portrayed by Jill Haworth) in John Kander and Fred Ebb’s musical. (Oscar winner Judi Dench even played her in the first West End production in 1968.)

Minnelli, who was just 26 when Cabaret was released in 1972, had already made a name for herself as a recording artist and a musical theater actor. It made sense, of course, as her mother was Judy Garland. She became a nightclub performer at the age of 16, won her first Tony at 19, released three albums through Capitol Records by 20, and received her first Oscar nomination by 24 for Alan J. Pakula’s The Sterile Cuckoo. By the time Cabaret was in development, she was a shoo-in for the role; her proposed co-star, Joel Grey, had been the original musical’s star on Broadway (he won a Tony for his role as the creepy Emcee, and would later also win an Oscar), and director Bob Fosse was offered the production with the instruction that Grey’s casting was non-negotiable.

It makes sense for Grey, whose identity was already attached to that of the Emcee’s, but not so much for Minnelli. Yes, she was a phenomenal singer, actress, and dancer — an honest-to-goodness triple threat. But as Sally Bowles? In Isherwood’s book, Van Druten’s play, and Kander and Ebb’s musical, Sally is a show-stopping character. She’s pretty much an actress’s dream role: she experiences moments of utter lightness and deep darkness, is irresistibly quirky, and is completely untalented. She’s a failed cabaret singer — in the first act of the show, she’s fired after a single musical number. She’s flighty and manic, which is part of her appeal to the rich men she seduces and convinces to take care of her living expenses. For an actress, it’s a golden opportunity: the best lines, the chance to show off, and the complete comfort that comes with not really needing to be a good singer.

With Minnelli in the role, though? Well, no one in their right mind could be convinced that her Sally is an untalented loser who desperately uses what little power she has — her looks, her smarts, her convincing charm — to get men to give her the funds to do what she wants to do. The film, naturally, strays from the source material (well, at least the musical source material — it’s more faithful to Isherwood’s original text). Minnelli’s Sally is, obviously, an American, and she’s a phenomenal performer. After her performance of “Mein Herr” in the first twenty minutes, even you’d be willing to raise hell if the owner of the Kit Kat Klub had the nerve to sack her.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CX-24Zm0bjk]

I mean, this is the definition of slaying. Liza Minnelli could chew every single one of those Kit Kat girls up and spit them out before they had the chance to finish a verse — in a halter top and heels, no less. She knows exactly how to handle her haters.

In the play, Sally is a bit of a tragic figure. She gets pregnant, as she does in the film, and briefly makes a plan with the character based on Isherwood (in the play, he’s an American named Cliff; in the film, he’s a British man named Brian). Despite offering her an idyllic, secure life away from the brewing political darkness in Berlin, Sally rejects it — she gets an abortion behind his back, putting her foot down in refusal of a hum-drum ordinary life. And that’s when she returns to the Kit Kat Klub (in the musical, she gets her job back; in the film, she never really left) and sings the titular song that has since become one of Minnelli’s standards.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moOamKxW844]

Minnelli’s “Cabaret” is a brassy and enthusiastic celebration of life, a stunning lightness compared to the growing darkness that exists outside the cabaret’s walls (and that is slowly seeping inside, as we see by the film’s end when the camera pans from the whimsical Emcee’s painted face to the mirrored walls, which reflect the audience full of Nazi officers). We don’t see what becomes of her after the film (although we can assume that things aren’t all wine, roses, and green fingernail polish once the Nazis assume power), and are left with her standing firm and proud, basking in the cabaret lights.

While Minnelli’s Sally Bowles isn’t tragic — the film ends with her standing by her principles, demanding her independence, and both acknowledging her flaws and celebrating them — the stage version makes Sally much more complicated, and modern theater audiences’ likely don’t see her as an empowering figure. In 1993, Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes mounted a drastically new production of Cabaret at London’s Donmar Warehouse, which eventually transferred to Broadway where it ran for just under six years. That production, so beloved that it returned once again to Broadway last April where it will run until the end of this month, made a star out of Alan Cumming, whose Emcee is highly sexualized and slightly demonic compared to Joel Grey’s clown. And it also introduced another generation to a slew of Sally Bowleses — Natasha Richardson won a Tony for her performance in 1998, and later Jennifer Jason Lee, Gina Gershon, Molly Ringwald, and Lea Thompson would all step into Sally’s shoes. This newer version of the revival opened last year with Michelle Williams in the role, who was later succeeded by recent Oscar nominee Emma Stone and Sienna Miller, bless her heart.

While all of these women brought something special to the role of Sally — the stage version of Sally, notably untalented and doomed, and a frail, waifish blonde compared to Minnelli’s tall, athletic brunette with a cherubic face — none of them delivered the unrelenting talent of Liza Minnelli. Part of this is because Sally Bowles was never intended to be the star that Minnelli made her; she’s intriguing and compelling, of course, but not the star. I mean, compare her rendition of “Cabaret” with Jane Horrocks — an actress who proved her immense vocal talent in the British musical drama Little Voice, but whose Sally Bowles is full of rage and resentment, and whose voice sounds like it’s being ripped out of her throat.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qw-CdMSJNPM]

No one could ever match what Liza Minnelli brought to the role, and we shouldn’t expect them to. But that Minnelli also set the bar so damn high — and that the role of Sally is written the way it is — are two reasons why no Sally Bowles will ever live up to Minnelli’s.

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https://decider.com/2015/03/12/liza-minnelli-sally-bowles-cabaret/

[trcydvs]

sloth

tracey looks up at the clouds and thinks, well, fuck.

sally-anne’s lying down next to her as the sun starts to set, the general chatter of the davis-perks band quieter than usual. she can smell her father burning vegetables on the grill, can hear her mother’s quiet laughter. the calendar in the living room reads july, and tracey feels the nervous energy trying to claw out of her skin.

they’ve been lying here… doing nothing… for ages, now. the perks’ arrived two days ago, and all their parents have been doing is speak in low voices about things that the two of them know, but shouldn’t. tracey’s cried over padma exactly three and a half times ever since sally-anne’s been here. finn’s tried to cheer her up with his usual antics, but the heavy atmosphere of the house hasn’t helped any of them.

tracey thinks of dumbledore’s body, falling down and down and down. she thinks of the ministry, slowly being overtaken by death eaters. she looks at sally-anne and remembers the names of the death eaters that escaped azkaban, recited like venom out of anne perks’ mouth. she thinks of her mother’s pursed lips, her father’s shaking hands, jonathan smiling them as he slides them out of the room.

they’ve been gazing at the clouds for as long as she can remember, now – the day before had been an absolute mess, and sally-anne had to drag her out the house to walk around holyhead for a bit when she got into a shouting match with her mother – and they’d come back, reluctant laughter at their lips, and tracey’d craved wine like she had never before. they’d stayed out underneath the old oak tree until four in the morning, whispering their worries and dreams and nightmares under the stars, listening to their parents’ drunken chatter. finn had been the one to collect them, deaf to their complaints. tracey’d fallen asleep with the thoughts of a nightmarish future where she would have to pretend to not even – properly know sally-anne, because sometimes being a slytherin means keeping completely to your own. they’d woken to their fathers knocking at tracey’s door, with sally-anne’s body splayed out on tracey’s sofa bed, breakfast floating behind them.

and now tracey is lying on the ground, with a blanket to separate their bare flesh from the grass, and she’s looking at the clouds and thinking about the ones shaped like the end of everything the night of dumbledore’s death, and feels like things can only spiral downwards. sally-anne speaks of her friends, the hufflepuff corridors, the house-elves – she speaks of nothing but everything in particular, and how these kids have shaped her life. tracey wants to understand that – she wants to feel that, just like she does, but she has a feeling that until blood supremacy becomes old-fashioned, she won’t be able to.

she can’t really keep her mouth shut about padma. they’re chewing at grapes as she talks about how – she’d fallen for her, completely, unapologetically – how she’d wanted to introduce her to her parents – how she couldn’t look at parvati’s face afterwards – and she wants to stop talking about how much she cried in the dungeons clinging on daphne and pansy and millicent and how terrible it was to have her heart ripped out of her chest and how everything has – beenawful ever since – but she can’t. the words spill like bitter honey out of her lips, and she wipes away the tears that fight to run down her cheeks. sally-anne listens, because she’s the single best person tracey’s ever met in her entire life, and she wonders how life twisted their paths so farther away from each other.

so they lie down, listen to wizard punk girl bands on tracey’s enchanted record player, and talk about petty little things – memories of the yule ball – gossip that doesn’t speak ill of anyone, because sally-anne is not like that – laughter about professors, but not the dead ones – and everything, for that moment, seems simple. in the longest time since she started avoiding padma and seeing more of her housemates and practicing more and more, she feels a weight being pulled of her shoulders. the sun shines down upon them, burning them in the sweet way that only dusk does, and tracey wishes things could always be like this. the smell of burnt vegetables, cooked meat, their mothers drinking their fathers under the table like absolute champs, finn laughing at them as they get drunk on two glasses of red wine. she wishes – that they could get trapped in this moment, continuously and infinitely, doing nothing with their time.

we’re not entirely sure how the ministry is going to respond to – these news, anne says, in the first moments of dinner as they settle down into a quietness that speaks volumes. tracey’s mothers takes a deep breath and sips her wine, and says we’re not sure if they are going to respond. jonathan and phillip look at each other, and finn squeezes tracey’s hand as it shakes on the table, and jonathan says, but no matter what, we want to make sure you girls stay safe. and tracey’s not really sure what that means, but her father looks at her with the saddest smile she’s ever seen for him, and thinks about how this is the second time they’re going through this. they’re actual veterans. tracey takes chugs a sip of beer down her throat – three sips, more likely – and nods.

and sally-anne looks at her, and she looks back, and they share a silent moment of panic. there isn’t much they can do, except lie down under the stars like they’ve been doing for the last few days and it seems like the perks may be staying them for quite some time, and tracey can’t help but feel relieved. sally-anne squeezes her arm in response, a shaky smile on her face, and then everything goes back to the hazy, rose-colored version it was moments ago.

so they spend the days under clouds and stars and drink cheap champagne and giggle about boys and girls and talk to franklin and share secrets and – tracey wishes, once again, that she could live in these moments for the rest of her life.

[bobbyshaddoe80]

Liberated Audio Reviews

Blake's 7 - Liberator Chronicles Vol. 4 Review

RELEASED MAY 2013

Recorded on: 22 February, 18 April and 3 July 2012, and 4 January 2013

Recorded at: Moat Studios

Review By Robert L. Torres

Promises by Nigel Fairs

'Saurian Minor. A dead rock in space.

Cally is alone with Travis, Blake's mortal enemy, both trapped on this desolate world - and someone has brought them here for a reason.

As they delve into the past, a long-hidden secret that links them both is uncovered.

Gradually, the truth about Scetona Clorensis will be revealed...'

This is a superb two hander/dual focused story starring Jan Chappell as Cally and featuring the return of Stephen Greif to the role of Space Commander Travis.

From the moment he was introduced alongside Jacqueline Pearce's Servalan in the Series A episode 'Seek-Locate-Destroy', I have loved the character of Travis. He was the Javert to Blake's Jean Valjean, and I was pleased as punch to hear Stephen Greif's dulcet tones give life to this character once more.

As an aside, I have always preferred Greif's portrayal of the character over that of Brian Croucher's. Nothing against Brian Croucher as a performer, as I feel he did great in 'Robots of Death' and the Kaldor City audios. However, Stephen Greif gave Travis a nuanced and layered performance, which gave his obsession with bringing Blake to justice a certain subtlety in its intensity... All of which was sorely lacking in Croucher's portrayal.

The story itself, which is very well written by Nigel Fairs, allows both actors to showcase aspects of their characters we never got to see portrayed onscreen while still remaining true to what was shown onscreen. Its interesting that this story is basically a sort of return match for Travis and Cally, and a great opportunity for Cally to get some payback following on from the events of the aforementioned 'Seek-Locate-Destroy'. Jan Chappell and Stephen Greif do exceptionally well with the material, as it was nice to see their antagonism focused and concentrated without the presence of Blake and company. It was rather nice having the tables turned between them, and for very specific reasons.

I loved how this story explored the events that ultimately led to Cally's introduction to the series in the episode 'Time Squad'. And it was also rather nice to gain some backstory on Travis and I especially loved how the dual focus for their stories was tied to the character of Scetona Clorensis.

9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

All in all, a great opening story to volume four.

Epitaph by Scott Harrison

'When the Liberator picks up a distress call from a stricken ship, Jenna and Vila teleport across. For Jenna, it's the chance for a reunion with a fellow smuggler.

But the cry for help is not what it appears, and Jenna will meet the surviving members of her family.

The reunion will take her on a deadly mission - one from which not everyone will come out alive...'

This is another fantastic story, this time focused on another one of my favorite characters from the first two seasons: Jenna Stannis, once again played by the lovely and talented Sally Knyvette.

Before getting into the story, I have to say that I thought Jenna was awesome right from the start. However, I felt that she wasn't given enough to do or much to work with over time. It was very disheartening to see this beautiful, badass ace pilot be reduced to, as Sally Knyvette herself put it, "the Liberator Housewife".

I felt it was quite unfair to her as an actress that her character got the short end of the stick in terms of character development, agency and plot relevance. Which is why its no surprise she left after Series B.

Kudos to BF for doing everything in their power to right this terrible wrong even before crafting this brilliant Jenna-centric story.

In Volume 1's 'Counterfeit', there is a point in the story where Blake describes a moment where Jenna actually posed as Supreme Commander Servalan for one of their missions. And you have no idea how much I would have loved to have seen that happen onscreen.

As an aside, credit to Nigel Fairs and Simon Robinson for the music composition work they've done on the Blake's 7 range. They manage to recreate the otherworldly retro future soundscape created on a Casio Keyboard that was very indicative of late 70s early 80s era low budget scifi on TV in the UK.

Anyway, this story sees Jenna reunited with her brother and sister-in-law, forcing her to deal with the ramifications and consequences of her decision to join Blake's fight against the Federation. Its a great story that is well supported by Michael Keating as Vila, as it allows Jenna to be the badass babe she was always meant to be. The plot provides Knyvette with some great character exploration, as well as some great introspection over whether being a stronger person equates with being a better person. As a bonus, the story even sows the seeds for Jenna to have her own Travis-like nemesis in the form of Marshall Cade.

9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

If Knyvette had been given more material like this during her time on the show, she probably wouldn't have left.

And don't worry... The Marshall Cade plot thread will be picked up again in the full cast audio 'Mirrors'. But that's a review for another time.

Kerr by Nick Wallace

'Supreme Commander Servalan believes she has a vital insight into the Liberator crew - a clone of Avon.

He looks the same. He sounds the same. He even appears to think the same.

And he offers to spring a trap that will bring down Blake and his crew.

But can the clone be trusted?'

We close out Volume Four with yet another excellent story.

The central focus of the story is once more on Supreme Commander Servalan, played to perfection by the late Jacqueline Pearce.  It is here that we witness Servalan's latest plot to ensnare Blake and the crew of the Liberator from the perspective of the Supreme Commander herself.  The plot itself involves utilizing a clone of Avon to devise a winning strategy, which also involves an old ally from Avon's past.

The notion of utilizing clones is familiar enough to anyone that saw the Series B episode 'Weapon' (ideas and concepts that will FINALLY be followed up on in the upcoming Worlds of Blake's 7 boxset 'The Clone Masters').

Despite the fact that LC Volume 4 indicates that this story is meant to take place during the events of Series A, it doesn't really feel like a first season story.  For one thing, Servalan didn't officially meet the Liberator crew until the Series B episode 'Pressure Point'.  For another, its during Series C and D that we have the back and forth sexual tension between Avon and Servalan.  As such it wouldn't make a lot of sense for Servalan to specifically have a clone of Avon created for one of her schemes before she even met him. So, setting this story between 'Pressure Point' and 'Trial' makes a lot more sense, especially given what transpires in the story itself.

Its an excellent story that showcases Servalan's fascination with Avon fairly early on, and highlights well the similarities and flaws in both Avon and Servalan. Both are intelligent as well as ambitious. Both tend to have ulterior motives and are not above employing subterfuge, guile, deceit and manipulation of others in order to achieve their goals and agendas.

While Avon often knows he is the smartest person in the room and often finds most people annoying (usually Vila), he doesn't completely dislike people. But his problem is that he doesn't completely trust people. And it seems that even his clone, Kerr, shares that particular character flaw.

Servalan shares with Avon a profound sense of confidence that borders on arrogance. But what compounds that arrogance is Servalan's smug, self-centered sense of superiority. She treats people as little more than disposable pets, useful and able to provide amusement, but otherwise are unimportant.

In addition, her egocentric narcissism essentially has her view everything and everyone as beneath her. She believes all and sundry are meant to serve her will without question or discussion, and rudely dismisses any attempt made by those she sees as lesser to engage with her socially or intellectually.

The only one she feels could even be CLOSE to her equal is Avon. And yet, even with a clone of Avon, Servalan cannot help but treat him as little more than a dog on a leash rather than as a person.

But of course, we all know what happens when a dog is mistreated too often by its owner... Don't we?

10 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

A brilliant story that also nicely foreshadows (in a retroactive manner) certain events in Series D, and may even provide some valuable context and insight into Avon's actions and mindset during the final moments of the series finale.

Final score for Liberator Chronicles Volume 4 in its entirety is 9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts.

An outstanding step up in quality that demonstrates Big Finish's enduring policy of maximizing potential in both character and story development that had otherwise been left unfulfilled. Highly recommended.

[papermoonloveslucy]

THE SURPRISE PARTY

March 10, 1951

“The Surprise Party” is episode #122 of the radio series MY FAVORITE HUSBAND broadcast on March 10, 1951.

Synopsis ~ Iris lets slip that one of Liz's friends is throwing a party Saturday night, and Liz and George aren't invited. But which friend is it?

“My Favorite Husband” was based on the novels Mr. and Mrs. Cugat, the Record of a Happy Marriage (1940) and Outside Eden (1945) by Isabel Scott Rorick, which had previously been adapted into the film Are Husbands Necessary? (1942). “My Favorite Husband” was first broadcast as a one-time special on July 5, 1948. Lucille Ball and Lee Bowman played the characters of Liz and George Cugat, and a positive response to this broadcast convinced CBS to launch “My Favorite Husband” as a series. Bowman was not available Richard Denning was cast as George. On January 7, 1949, confusion with bandleader Xavier Cugat prompted a name change to Cooper. On this same episode Jell-O became its sponsor. A total of 124 episodes of the program aired from July 23, 1948 through March 31, 1951. After about ten episodes had been written, writers Fox and Davenport departed and three new writers took over – Bob Carroll, Jr., Madelyn Pugh, and head writer/producer Jess Oppenheimer. In March 1949 Gale Gordon took over the existing role of George’s boss, Rudolph Atterbury, and Bea Benaderet was added as his wife, Iris. CBS brought “My Favorite Husband” to television in 1953, starring Joan Caulfield and Barry Nelson as Liz and George Cooper. The television version ran two-and-a-half seasons, from September 1953 through December 1955, running concurrently with “I Love Lucy.” It was produced live at CBS Television City for most of its run, until switching to film for a truncated third season filmed (ironically) at Desilu and recasting Liz Cooper with Vanessa Brown.

MAIN CAST

Lucille Ball (Liz Cooper) was born on August 6, 1911 in Jamestown, New York. She began her screen career in 1933 and was known in Hollywood as ‘Queen of the B’s’ due to her many appearances in ‘B’ movies. With Richard Denning, she starred in a radio program titled “My Favorite Husband” which eventually led to the creation of “I Love Lucy,” a television situation comedy in which she co-starred with her real-life husband, Latin bandleader Desi Arnaz. The program was phenomenally successful, allowing the couple to purchase what was once RKO Studios, re-naming it Desilu. When the show ended in 1960 (in an hour-long format known as “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour”) so did Lucy and Desi’s marriage. In 1962, hoping to keep Desilu financially solvent, Lucy returned to the sitcom format with “The Lucy Show,” which lasted six seasons. She followed that with a similar sitcom “Here’s Lucy” co-starring with her real-life children, Lucie and Desi Jr., as well as Gale Gordon, who had joined the cast of “The Lucy Show” during season two. Before her death in 1989, Lucy made one more attempt at a sitcom with “Life With Lucy,” also with Gordon.

Richard Denning (George Cooper) was born Louis Albert Heindrich Denninger Jr., in Poughkeepsie, New York. When he was 18 months old, his family moved to Los Angeles. Plans called for him to take over his father’s garment manufacturing business, but he developed an interest in acting. Denning enlisted in the US Navy during World War II. He is best known for his  roles in various science fiction and horror films of the 1950s. Although he teamed with Lucille Ball on radio in “My Favorite Husband,” the two never acted together on screen. While “I Love Lucy” was on the air, he was seen on another CBS TV series, “Mr. & Mrs. North.” From 1968 to 1980 he played the Governor on “Hawaii 5-0″, his final role. He died in 1998 at age 84.

Gale Gordon (Rudolph Atterbury) had worked with Lucille Ball on “The Wonder Show” on radio in 1938. One of the front-runners to play Fred Mertz on “I Love Lucy,” he eventually played Alvin Littlefield, owner of the Tropicana, during two episodes in 1952. After playing a Judge in an episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” in 1958, he would re-team with Lucy for all of her subsequent series’: as Theodore J. Mooney in ”The Lucy Show”; as Harrison Otis Carter in “Here’s Lucy”; and as Curtis McGibbon on “Life with Lucy.” Gordon died in 1995 at the age of 89.

Bea Benadaret (Iris Atterbury) was considered the front-runner to be cast as Ethel Mertz but when “I Love Lucy” was ready to start production she was already playing a similar role on TV’s “The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show” so Vivian Vance was cast instead. On “I Love Lucy” she was cast as Lucy Ricardo’s spinster neighbor, Miss Lewis, in “Lucy Plays Cupid” (ILL S1;E15) in early 1952. Later, she was a success in her own show, “Petticoat Junction” as Shady Rest Hotel proprietress Kate Bradley. She starred in the series until her death in 1968.

Ruth Perrott (Katie, the Maid) is not heard in this episode. 

Bob LeMond (Announcer) also served as the announcer for the pilot episode of “I Love Lucy”. When the long-lost pilot was finally discovered in 1990, a few moments of the opening narration were damaged and lost, so LeMond – fifty years later – recreated the narration for the CBS special and subsequent DVD release.

GUEST CAST

Elvia Allman (Sally Roman) was born on September 19, 1904 in Enochville, North Carolina. She started her performing career on radio in the 1920s, as both a storyteller and singer. Allman’s first episode of “I Love Lucy” is also one of the most memorable in TV history: “Job Switching” (ILL S2;E1) in September 1952.  She played the strident foreman of Kramer’s Candy Kitchen. Allman returned to the show as one of Minnie Finch’s neighbors in “Fan Magazine Interview” (ILL S3;E17) in 1954. Changing gears once again she played prim magazine reporter Nancy Graham in “The Homecoming” (ILL S5;E6) in 1955. She made two appearances on “The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour“ - first as Ida Thompson, Westfield’s PTA director in “The Celebrity Next Door” (LDCH S1;E2) and as Milton Berle’s secretary when “Milton Berle Hides Out at the Ricardos” (LDCH S3;E1) in 1959. On “The Lucy Show” she was seen in “Lucy Bags a Bargain” (TLS S4;E17) and in “Lucy The Babysitter” (TLS S5;E16).  Allman died on March 6, 1992, aged 87.

Shirley Mitchell (Fran Lewis) was born in Toledo, Ohio, on November 4, 1919. She started her acting career on radio in Chicago but soon moved to Los Angeles. Mitchell was a regular on radio in series such as “Fibber McGee and Molly” and “The Great Gildersleeve”. She became friends with Lucille Ball in the late 1940s when she was featured in four episodes of “My Favorite Husband.” Mitchell reunited with Lucille Ball on “I Love Lucy” playing Marion Strong, a member of the Wednesday Afternoon Fine Arts League in “Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress” (ILL S3;E3), “Lucy Tells the Truth” (ILL S3;E6) and “Lucy’s Club Dance” (ILL S3;E25).  Shirley Mitchell died of heart failure on November 11, 2013, seven days after her 94th birthday.

Fran’s husband is named Tom, although we do not meet him. 

EPISODE

ANNOUNCER: “As we look in on the Coopers  tonight, George and Liz have just finished dinner.”

Liz remarks on this being the first time they’ve stayed home in three weeks.

LIZ: “The way we’ve been going you’d think the government was going to ration fun.”  

Rationing in the US was introduced in stages during World War II. The Office of Price Administration (OPA) warned Americans of potential gasoline, steel, aluminum, and electricity shortages. Most rationing restrictions ended in August 1945 except for sugar rationing, which lasted until 1947 in some parts of the country.

The telephone rings and George tells Liz they should just let it ring, lest someone tempt them out of their homes. 

LIZ: “Maybe it’s ‘Sing It Again’ and we’re losing a jackpot.” 

"Sing It Again” first aired on CBS radio in September 1948. In several markets it was aired right after “My Favorite Husband,” which was true of this particular date (March 10, 1951). It worked like this: a song would be performed, then sung again (hence the show's title) with new lyrics, describing a famous celebrity. If the contestant (or a listener, phoned at random) solved the puzzle, they would have the opportunity to try to identify the ‘Phantom Voice’ from clues from the preceding weeks. The jackpot was huge for its time: $25,000 in cash and prizes. In 1950, it became one of the few programs ever to be simulcast on both radio and television.

George tells her to grit her teeth, but Liz can’t bear it and picks up the phone. It is only Iris. She is calling to ask Liz what she will wear to the party on Saturday night. Before Liz can ask “what party” Iris realizes Liz may not have been invited. Iris quickly hangs up before explaining.   Liz wonders who it is giving the party and why they weren’t invited. She doesn’t want to go, but wants to know who doesn’t like them enough not to invite them to a party. She dissolves into tears. George doesn’t care, but Liz can’t sleep until she knows who it is.  

Liz calls Sally Roman (Elvia Allman), who, Liz says, is invited everywhere. She will undoubtedly spill the beans. Sally says she is going to the party on Saturday night, but doesn’t say where or who is throwing it. 

SALLY: “Well, she’s your best friend!” 

Liz wonders if they are talking about the same party to get her to say a name - but she doesn’t bite. Liz calls Iris back but Iris hangs up!  Liz won’t quit - she continues dialing as the scene fades out. 

After 17 phone calls, Liz still hasn’t found out who is throwing the party. She tells George to put on his coat; they are going to confront Iris - despite it being ten o’clock at night! Liz says she can’t sleep until she finds out where it is they’re not going. 

End of Part One

A public service announcement talks about community spirit in Western Germany, where US GIs built a playground for a children’s home in a town heavily bombed during the war. “We are Americans. As we go, so goes America.” 

Part Two

ANNOUNCER: “As we look in on the Coopers once again, we find them on their way over to the Atterburys. The Atterburys, not knowing that they are going to have the pleasure of late evening visitors, have already gone to bed.”

Rudolph and Iris are snoring loudly in bed when the phone rings. Rudolph picks it up but no one is there. He realizes it is the front doorbell.  Rudolph reluctantly goes to answer the door - without his bedroom slippers - stubbing his toe.   Liz and George are at the door. Liz wants to ask Iris something, so Rudolph begrudgingly invites them in. Iris comes down to see who it is. Liz bluntly asks her who is having the party on Saturday night. Iris says she can’t tell her.  

LIZ: “Who? Who? Who?” RUDOLPH: “George, will you take your owl and go home?”

A variation on this owl joke was used on the very first episode of “I Love Lucy,” “The Girls Want To Go To a Nightclub” (ILL S1;E1):

ETHEL MERTZ (to Lucy, who is dialing the phone): “Who are you calling? Who, who, who?” LUCY RICARDO: “Quiet, you sound like an owl.”

And repeated in a new context on season one of “The Lucy Show,” “Lucy Buys a Sheep” (TLS S1;E5):

VIV BAGLEY: “Who got dinner last night? Who did the laundry last week? Who did the marketing yesterday? Who? Who?” LUCY CARMICHAEL: “Apparently some crabby blonde owl.”  

Liz gets Iris to tell her that the ‘friend’ lives three blocks away from the Coopers. Liz is satisfied that she can figure it out from that clue. Rudolph falls asleep immediately - standing up! Next morning, Liz’s breakfast is getting cold. She can’t stop thinking about the mystery party-thrower. She has come to the conclusion that it must be Fran Lewis. Now she has to call Fran and wangle an invitation. She doesn’t want to go - just to get invited - so she can decline! 

On the telephone, Fran (Shirley Mitchell) says she was just about to call Liz - about her missing cat. Liz invites her over to her house on Saturday night, knowing she’d have no choice but to invite her to the party Liz thinks she’s giving. But no - Fran accept her invitation. Liz hangs up. 

GEORGE: “Well? Did you find out who is giving the party?” LIZ: “Yes. We are! My little plan backfired!” 

At the bank, Mr. Atterbury tells George that he only got three hours sleep last night due to heart-burn, which she attributes to Liz. Rudolph confides in George that the girls in the club are giving the party on Saturday night - in Liz’s honor. The party is being given at Marge Van Tassel’s on Saturday night. George calls Liz and tells her the truth about the party and that it is in her honor. 

Later, Liz is talking to Fran on the phone. She tells Fran that her mother fell down and broke her leg so they have to break their plans for Saturday night.  That takes care of that! Now all she has to do is wait for Marge’s invitation! 

GEORGE: “Sometimes you amaze me.” LIZ: “Sometimes I amaze myself!” 

End of Episode

[clearfirechild-blog1]

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[themomsandthecity]

Pete Davidson Goes Blue in New Hair Change After Ariana Grande Breakup

Pete Davidson has changed up his hair again in the wake of his breakup from ex-fiancée Ariana Grande. The Saturday Night Live star, 24, is rocking some new sky blue hair thanks to a colorist named Aura at Sally Hershberger Salon, who shared a shot of his new ‘do to Instagram on Friday. “Had the pleasure of doing this funny guys hair,” she wrote. It’s a big change from the bleach blonde hair Davidson has had since July (and even had touched up in October). It appears to be similar to the look Davidson had earlier in the week during his headline-making SNL promo, in which he poked fun at his failed relationship to Grande. RELATED: Pete Davidson Gets Hair Refresh Following Breakup from Ex-Fiancée Ariana Grande View this post on Instagram Had the pleasure of doing this funny guys hair @petedavidson #skybluehair #bluedream #colorbyaura #auracolorist #petedavidson #snl @sallyhershberger_timrogers A post shared by Aura (@auracolorist) on Nov 2, 2018 at 7:13pm PDT //www.instagram.com/embed.js In the clip, posted Thursday, Davidson — who got engaged to Grande in June after a month of dating — introduced himself to musical guest Maggie Rogers and jokingly proposed to her in one fell swoop. “Hey Maggie, I’m Pete. You wanna get married?” Davidson said as host Jonah Hill, 34, cringed whole standing between them. Rogers, 24, quickly declined, and Davidson responded by saying he’s “0-3,” poking fun at his failed relationships. After the video was published, Grande, 25, wrote in a since-deleted tweet, “For somebody who claims to hate relevancy u sure love clinging to it huh.” She followed up with another that read, “thank u, next.” Grande also retweeted the SNL trailer posted by a fan who wrote: “SNL is about to milk their breakup just like they did with the engagement.” Grande simply added “.” Prior to Thursday, things between Grande and Davidson appeared to be very civil. The two called it quits in October after getting engaged in June. “It was way too much too soon,” a Grande source told PEOPLE at the time. “It’s not shocking to anyone.” Sources close to the couple told TMZ that the decision to split was a mutual choice, as both the pop star and Davidson felt the timing wasn’t right. The singer’s reaction to the promo prompted reports that Davidson was pulling a skit about their relationship from the weekend’s show. However, a source close to the comedian told PEOPLE that despite the backlash, Davidson may continue to reference their relationship. “It’s completely untrue that Pete got a skit about Ariana pulled from this weekend’s show,” the source told PEOPLE. “Anyone who knows SNL knows it’s still in the writing process even today, and no one knows what’s going on until dress rehearsal. Pete has always talked about his life on the show, and Ariana knows that. That’s where she met him in the first place.” The insider added, “Pete’s unfazed. It’s true they’re not in agreement about things after the breakup. A lot of people thought he was the wild card in the relationship, but that’s not true. Pete has and will always joke about his life, with or without her.” http://bit.ly/2RyqY0J

[londontheatre]

Julie Cheung-Inhin as Cassandra and Jamie Giles as Freddie – Credit Laura Henry Photography

It’s a bit odd seeing a scratch night of shows that includes two short plays that have already been developed into full-length productions, one of them I accepted an invitation to review last year, and the other on nationwide tour at the time of writing. But it goes to show that with this third edition of Untold Stories, put together by Untold Arts, and introduced by their producer Mark Lindow, that there can be life for a play after it has been performed at a scratch night (along with at least half a dozen other ones) to an audience heavy with ever-supportive friends and family.

Fruitcake by Jonathan Skinner sees a paralegal executive, Victoria (Cheska Hill-Wood) immediately breaching the fourth wall, as it is assumed the audience is here for a business-related seminar of some description. But this backdrop is quite irrelevant as the narrative swiftly becomes a very personal account of a fling she had with Daniel, her superior. Daniel’s wife, Sally, is not stupid, and doesn’t need everything spelled out for her, working out for herself what’s going on. Hill-Wood as Victoria has a very engaging manner, and as ever with monologues from a single perspective, it would have been good if the audience had heard from Daniel and/or Sally for their (presumably alternative) take on, ahem, events. The references to The Great British Bake Off were almost relentless, and the final line threw me slightly. “You’re heard the evidence, you may now retire to consider your verdict.” I wasn’t aware of the assumption that the audience was a jury sat in court.

I’m Just Here To Buy Soy Sauce by Jingan Young sees Freddie Reynolds (Jamie Giles) interviewing Cassandra Wu (Julie Cheung-Inhin). Or is it Cassandra interviewing Freddie? The play suggests foreign direct investment, particularly from China, is a key factor in the British property market, influencing the ever-rising and increasingly unaffordable prices far more than any political party, government policy or whether or not the United Kingdom leaves or remains in the European Union. This is further reflected in a follow-up scene, involving Fraser (Giles) and Charmaine (Cheung-Inhin), a young ex-couple who meet up again as Fraser happens to be passing through Charmaine’s area. “We can’t afford to live in our city,” Charmaine either declares or moans (I think the former), though she (and the play) are at a loss as to what can be done about that, if anything.

American Nightmare by Hassan Abdulrazzak came across to me as being set in a future generation, where the tables have turned and the good old United States finds itself on the backburner on the international stage. Sheik Nabil (Khalid Laith) recalls the father of Senator Ryan O’Reilly (Keir Carroll) calling his fellow countrymen “primitive”, amongst other derogatory terms, but now the Sheik and his colleagues have developed a piece of innovative technology that can help resolve a looming environmental catastrophe in the States, brought about by climate change. The Americans want it. But the Sheik won’t sign off the paperwork without first carrying out due diligence. What that due diligence is not what Ryan was expecting. At all. More fool him.

Hilda, written by and starring Carrie Cohen, is, depending on your disposition, one of those loveable pillars of the community who can be relied on whenever something needs sorting or somebody needs a listening ear. Otherwise, she’s a highly irritating town gossip who, frankly, should just go away. I wasn’t entirely sure where this play was going, as it rambles a lot with lots of description about who said what to whom. To be fair, she holds back from revealing absolutely everything she knows, saying some things are “a little too personal”. All the same, there’s some very amusing and witty observational comedy from a character that is plainly one of life’s great observers.

Octopus by Afsaneh Gray imagines life after a ‘hard Brexit’, in which anyone (irrespective of whether they are from a European Union member state) not considered ‘British’ according to set down criteria must undergo an interview with the Home Office to determine whether they do indeed have sufficient grounds to stay in the United Kingdom. Sarah (Samara MacLaren) chats away while Sara (Alexandra D’Sa) pays little attention until she is forced to respond to the incessant presumptions made by Sarah. It wasn’t offensive, but it was boring, listening to prejudiced remarks, and it is only when Scheherazade (Dilek Rose) joins the pair that the play perks up with some cutting remarks about the absurdity of the situation.

Carousel by Tom Collinson comes across from one of those plays from a bygone generation, or at least set in one. That doesn’t stop it from being innovative and clever. A disease is permeating modern society, and a local doctor (Chris Adlington) is determined to discover what’s going on. Symptoms include anxiety and depression, coupled with whining fatalism. The doctor lists scientific terms at a breakneck pace quite impressively, before concluding that existing medications are ineffective. He has, at least, established a cause, based on weeks of observing behaviour at the Wood Green branch of supermarket chain Morrisons. It’s as laughable as it sounds, but the play is an attack on mainstream media, having identified a direct correlation between the consumption of the content of newspapers and magazines with a negative mental attitude. Some, the doctor further observed, went to the checkout “to buy more cancer”, that is, purchase cigarettes. A highly thought-provoking play, even if I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Adlington, dressed in character in winter clothes on such a balmy June evening.

The Fox by Suzy Gill is a compelling monologue that comes across as a stream of consciousness, or at least someone who has so many thoughts and is trying to speak them all out unscripted, quite a difficult thing (I should imagine) to achieve. It begins with frivolity but gets increasingly darker. Rebecca (Evie Killip), still at school (the uniform being a giveaway), describes her relationship with her mother, which changes suddenly due to a critical incident. All of a sudden the carer must be cared for. But sometimes it takes a life-changing event to make people sit back and take stock, and there can never be enough reminders to retain a sense of perspective when it comes to what’s important in life.

A River Seen from a Hill by Mark Lindow, presumably named after the famed Turner painting, is one of those dark comedies with a tinge of absurdity. Jonathan Hansler and Clive Greenwood play characters known only as #1 and #2, who must deal with the fall-out from a prolonged drought. A lot of ivory tower blue sky thinking and brainstorming goes on, and while the narrative seems far-fetched, the company’s proposed response to the play’s events is quite feasible. Alarmingly so, in fact. 

A very broad evening (if an eight-show week can be exhausting, try an eight-show night in hot and sticky weather) but an enjoyable one nonetheless.

Review by Chris Omaweng

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