#louise benton

[carpethedamndiemdejavu]

Louise Benton, Creation Sun

[commoninfected]

doodles of kewt boyz

[pigtailedgirl]

Never not laughing over Fraser's deadpan "Crabs and Things" restaurant suggestion of where Ray should bring Louise St. Laurent.

Absolute petty b move Benny Benton Fraser. I see you. Perfection.

[incorrectoldgodsquotes]

Clover: It’s hard to resist, I’m really sorry- I mean, considering your approach thus far, you’ve had us locked up in here for- what? Hours? And you haven’t even had us confirm what exactly we are?

Erebus: Well, what are you?

Clover: I’m a Virgo!

Jade and Anthony: HA!

[white-cat-of-doom]

A two show Caturday in Taichung City, Taiwan for Asia Tour 2022-2023 (15 July 2023).

We finally get a Griddlebone photo from the tour of Francesca Benton-Stace.

Il mio amore è importante 🤍.

Francesca as provides me with some Jellydots with Amy Louise Whittle as Jennyanydots.

We are not done with Jelly quite yet, with a nice mirror photo of Francesca.

Francesca also manages to sneak in with Katie Hutton as Rumpleteazer and Taryn Donna as Cassandra and their usual photo! Katie is back as Rumpleteazer after a two day break.

Gabrielle Parker covered Victoria both shows today, with Oliver Ramsdale as Admetus performing the lift.

A throwback to South Korea with Lydia Gerrard covering Grizabella and Quinlan Kelly covering Old Deuteronomy.

[therealmrpositive]

Cabin Fever (2016)

In today's review, I find some viruses never go out of fashion. As I attempt a #positive review of the 2016's Cabin Fever #SamuelDavis #GageGolightly #MatthewDaddario #NadineCrocker #DustinIngram #RandySchulman #GeorgeGriffith #DerrickRMeans #LouiseLinton

There was a time when the world didn’t feel as (for lack of a better term) wild as it does now. Sure, those days are long behind us now, and some may doubt there ever was a period of calm. In 2016, over 14 years after Eli Roth’s directorial debut, he’s back producing a remake of the odd virus story that became a cult classic, a tale of Cabin Fever. The cabin has had a facelift, but the story…

[thebestestwinner]

Top two vote-getters will move on to the next round. See pinned post for all groups!

[greensparty]

Remembering Melinda Dillon and Louise Harrison

Here is my combined remembrance of two we lost today:

Remembering Melinda Dillon 1939-2023

Actress Melinda Dillon has died at 83. She was one of those actresses you didn’t see too often, but was always good in everything she was in no matter how small the role. She was Oscar-nominated for two films: Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Absence of Malice. How awesome was she as single mother Jillian in Close Encounters, searching for her son! 

Dillon and Cary Guffey in Close Encounters

Other notable performances include Hal Ashby’s Bound for Glory, the hockey classic Slap Shot, Ralphie’s mom in A Christmas Story, and Reign Over Me. But one of her greatest performances was as Rose, the wife of Jimmy Gator in Magnolia. That’s an incredible cast and she definitely shined in the scene where she confronted Jimmy. She was also notable on Broadway, where she was Tony-nominated for Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf.

The link above is the obit from Hollywood Reporter.

Remembering Louise Harrison 1931-2023

The older sister of George Harrison has died at 91. She was 12 years older than George. After she got married she moved from Liverpool to the U.S. to Missouri. By 1963, she was now living in Benton, IL. Just as The Beatles were taking off, George went to visit his sister in Benton. He was the first Beatle to visit America. There’s a good documentary A Beatle in Benton Illinois all about George’s visit to Benton in 1963 to visit Louise. In 1964, when Beatle-Mania hit, Louise went on local radio to promote her brother’s band. She even wrote a book My Kid Brother’s Band A.K.A The Beatles.

George and Louise in 1964

The link above is the obit from Courier and Press.

[harrisonarchive]

Photo by Dezo Hoffmann.

George’s first American visit, part 2 —

“When the trio [George, his brother Peter, and sister Lou] arrived, they were informed that Marcia [Raubach] had already gone home for the day. At the station were Art Smith, an advertising salesman, and Joe Browning, the weekend announcer. Smith remembers George Harrison as being ‘a very nice fellow,’ and Browning agreed. But Browning added, ‘I thought he needed to get a haircut.’ […] When [Marcia] arrived [back] at the station, [she] recalls, [George] was very excited about the car she was driving. It was her father’s black 1959 Oldsmobile Delta 88 with tail fins. ‘He really looked it over; he asked me if it was my car,’ she said. ‘I told him no, but he was really impressed with it. He was impressed with a lot of things.’ Marcia recalls [George] as being ‘very, very clean cut,’ wearing a white shirt, jeans and brown sandals. […] Raubach said she found the young British musician to be ‘really soft-spoken and almost hesitant to ask me questions.’” - Before He Was Fab: George Harrison’s First American Visit (2000) “George told Marcia that he was an apprentice electrician, but that the Beatles were really taking off back home. ‘He really liked my dad’s Oldsmobile Delta 88,’ Marcia recalls. On her radio show that day she played ‘From Me To You’ and ‘She Loves You,’ but it’s her recollection that the songs made little impression on her listening audience. George gave her a copy of ‘She Loves You,’ which she keeps in a safe deposit box at the bank. ‘I wish I’d have asked him to autograph it,’ she says. Marilyn Lewis, who also interviewed George, for the Echo, the Benton Community High School newspaper, says she did it ‘mainly as a favor to Louise.’ […] George told her that so many fans mobbed his band at one appearance that they had to be smuggled into the venue in a garbage truck, but Marilyn wasn’t overly impressed. Was he cute? ‘Heavens, no,’ the now-retired Ohio teacher says. ‘He looked kind of pitiful.’” - Smithsonian Magazine Please note: You can find photos taken during this vacation featured in Living In The Material World. (x)

[starryclown11]

Gillion Tidestrider🪼⚡️

/Benton James Kessler/Eight by Sleeping at Last/Anonymous & b0nkcreat/Gillion Tidestrider/Destiny Calls by Megan Shumway/Louise Glück/Frank Bidart/Gillion Tidestrider/

[wondereads]

Personal Review (03/26/23)

Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton-Walker

Summary

In a version of New Orleans where magic is as common as cellphones, Clement and Cristina, twins, try to unravel an old conspiracy to protect their family. Clement has always admired generational magic, but his own attempts to practice it always seem to fall short. Compared to his sister, Cristina, who excels, he seems completely inept, but Cristina has stopped practicing magic due to a spell gone wrong that she's told no one about. When the twins discover a hex doll in their sick mother's bed, they are pulled into a mystery that spans generations and could change New Orleans for good.

TW: racism, homophobia (light), child abuse, blood, institutionalization, lynching

(Sorry I’ve been gone so long! You’ve no idea how busy I’ve been!)

Plot 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

This was a great combination between magical realism and mystery, bringing in healthy elements of each. The magic played a real and necessary role in the story, but it never overshadowed how important unraveling the mystery was. It was also a little unique in that the question wasn't who but how and why. Clement and Cristina know from the get-go who committed the murder, they just need to prove it to the public.

I also really like the magic of this story. It felt just more down-to-earth than the sweeping, dramatic spells that typically come with fantasy. There's a lot of detail about how certain spells work and how components contribute to that, and it feels like the author is familiar with the practice, or at least did a lot of research. The take on gods and their interactions with humans is also quite refreshing. The gods are involved in human life in a way I don't often seen in fantasy, with them appearing in bars and on people's doorsteps. Still, they don't lose the power and otherworldliness that would typically be associated with a deity.

One thing that I found difficult about this book was a general lack of urgency. While there are many great scenes with good tension, the moments were Clem and Cris are just researching or talking or anything, the momentum stalls. This is mostly because while this is a very important thing to the twins, there is ultimately no time limit. They aren't trying to get ready for an event or beat the clock on a spell or anything like that. As such, the tension, which is quite good in individual scenes, is lost in the in-between moments.

Characters 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

Cristina and Clement are twins and share most of the narration, but they're pretty distinct in terms of personality. They have different ideologies concerning a lot of things, such as magic and morality, which generates a lot of conflict. Cristina was my personal favorite, just because I found her guilt and flexible morality quite interesting, and her arc felt complete. Not that I didn't like Clem, I just prefer my protagonists willing to commit murder, though he seems on his way by the end of the book. The way this book deals with grief is quite good, and Clem bears the brunt of it.

My favorite side character was probably Valentina. Don't get me wrong, I despised her, but I found her to be a great character with a lot of insight into the other side of things. I'm really interested to see how she develops in the next book considering what she's going through at the moment. Jean-Louise, who gets one chapter from his perspective, is incredibly complex, but it doesn't seem like we'll be getting more of him, which sucks. The other perspective side character, Zachary, can rot in hell, I don't want to see anything about him.

While I appreciated how complicated things were in Cris and Clem's family, I feel like it isn't addressed enough. Their mother and aunts have been estranged for quite a while, and while this is only the first book, Mama and Aunt Ursula have a reconciliation that seems rushed. I also feel like the only aunt I really know is Ursula—the rest are barely there.

Writing Style 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

The writing itself didn't particularly stand out to me. There was nothing bad about it, but nothing took my breath away either. I think there's a good balance between the more archaic, flowery writing associated with magic and fantasy and the modern, casual speech of today. There are very few pop culture references, and they are kept vague enough that it won't date the material. I think the pacing was good; other than those stalls I mentioned earlier, the build is steady and feels like a natural progression.

My major gripe is probably the style of narration, in that it has little variation. While Cris and Clem are very distinct in terms of personality, their narration is very similar. I often found myself flipping back to the chapter title to check who was speaking or checking which twin was actually getting called by their name since it was in first person. My final issue is with the texting. There is no indication as to who is sending which text, and sometimes people were double- or triple-texting, and I basically had to make educated guesses as to who was speaking.

Meaning 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

This book isn't as focused on modern issues as other contemporary stories are, but it by no means ignores it. Cris and Clem are Black, which affects their day-to-day lives significantly, and the backdrop of the story is filled with 'Redeemers', those who advocate for regulating magic. Gen (generational) magic is specifically a Black practice, born from necessity during American slavery. White people have their own magic, light and shadow magic, but the desire of certain white characters to be involved in gen magic plays a huge role in the story, especially how gen magic is targeted more than light or shadow.

My one issue is that I can't really pinpoint how the author wants us to feel about the Redeemers. It is an obvious issue that their efforts are the result of a long-ago murder of a white woman (that ended in a lynching) and inordinately targets gen magic. However, direct comparisons are drawn between it and gun control, which makes me inclined to support at least some restrictions, especially considering how magic is utilized for truly horrible means in this book. The characters never outright say how they feel about the Redeemers, but it seems to be mostly negative, which I am hesitant to side with.

Overall 1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10

I think this is a good book. The plot is interesting with a unique take on magical realism, the main characters are complex, and it addresses some important issues with magic as a stand-in for all kinds of cultural practices. I have my issues, mostly with the lack of urgency, narration, and unclear message, but they are by no means dealbreakers. The cliffhanger is attention-grabbing, definitely enough to get a reader to want to read the next book, and I just love Cristina so much. This book comes out on April 4th, so be sure to give it a shot!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital advanced reader copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Author

Terry J. Benton-Walker: American, also wrote Alex Wise vs the End of the World and The White Guy Dies First

The Reviewer

My name is Wonderose; I try to post a review every week, and I do themed recommendations every once in a while. I take suggestions! Check out my about me post for more!

[sporadiceagleheart]

Here's my Tribute edit called your tears for Ava Jordan Wood, Saffie-Rose Brenda Roussos and Skylar Annette “Sky” Neese, Cal Franklin Blackerby, James Michael “JJ” Brown Jr., Christian Lee Chandler, Ethan Zane Frensley, Jesse McCord Lewis, Aadon Blu Olmsted, Chase Alexander Wethington Padgett, Ryan Wrigley Parmeter, Autumn Elayne “Auttie” Rust-Kukuk, Teagin Nathanial “Bubby” Rust-Kukuk, Kirsten Mariah Rust-Reynolds, Tiffany Lynn “Tiffy” Searle, Gage Michael Stevens, Jacob Frank Williams, Lincoln Grace Sutton, Rachael Marie Tisdale, Alyssa Kay Logue, Eric Jefferson Jones, Zoe Savannah Garcia, Evynn Chandler Michelle Garas, Veralee Marie Craft, Bella Jane Blackiston, Leontine Juliette Susan Amsterdam, 1 June 1931 – Auschwitz, 19 November 1943Reached the age of 12 years, Kaylie Kristin “KK” Russell, Jerris Rhea Pelts Beacham, Gerald Alfred Gaddy, Saffie-Rose Brenda Roussos, Lucia Isabella “Lucy” Jackson, Rosemary May “Rosie” Pazin Williams, Joyce Louise Tacadena Graham, Roberta Mae “Butch” Tacadena Bohannon, Kathryne Louise “Mo” Daley Tacadena, Dennis J. Delia, Nevada A. “Vada” Duncan, Theresa Eleanor Burns Perrine, Stella Frederick Camp, Nancy Elizabeth “Dollie” Haun Burns, Lydia Mary Bussing Buchanan, Frances Ann Cranston Bussing, Sophia Ruth Bussing Henry, Ruth Jones Graves Wakefield, Tyler Benton Bales, Barbara Minnich Bierly, Milton H. Bierly, Herbert Johnson “Herbie” Bierly, Uriah Lee Maguire, Christina-Taylor Green, James A Hellems, Fannie Koontz Roach, Lance Solomon Reddick, Richard Jay Belzer, Jimmy Dean, Johnny Paycheck, Lucy Craft Laney, Danielle Van Dam, Alicia Lynn Clark, Sarah Evelyn Isobel Payne, Murder of Sharon Lee Gallegos, Anna Celeste Lowe, Judith Barsi, Heather O'Rourke, Rachel Scott, MOA LEONTINE BJÖRK, Katelyn Nicole “Dolly” Davis, Amanda Michelle “Manda” Todd, Semina Mary Halliwell, Avery Jean Lane, Avery Lana Linda Brown, Sadako Sasaki, Dale Earnhardt American race car driver, Colonel Harland David Sanders, Bray Wyatt, Davey Allison, Chuck Connors, Young Dolph, Sir Michael John Gambon, and more as we honor those Colonel Sanders, Bray Wyatt, Davey Allison, Chuck Connors, Young Dolph, Sir Michael John Gambon, more names to remember

[commoninfected]

Jordan is really shy, but he and Axel like to go to events together and ruin them. Axel will crossdress and pretend to be Jordan's TERRIBLE girlfriend, and then they will have (fake) public fights at like. Open house showings for rich people's McMansions

[fredzeppelin]

This is a photo and related article my grandfather sent me by Email, I hope you guys enjoy

It Happened In The 60s

Before Beatlemania set in, George Harrison visited his sister in Illinois on 16 September 1963, becoming the first Beatle on American soil.

Beatle John has the story:

“When a young man with long dark hair and a thick British accent first told Dorothy Burkitt, a chaperone at the old West Frankfort Teen Town, that he played in a band called the Beatles, she laughed. ‘Why would you name a band after an insect?’ she asked. But other than that she didn’t give it much thought.

At the time, Burkitt and her husband, Fred, were both chaperones at the teen town, which was located above Van-Wood Electric in a two-story building on West Main Street. It was there that she had her brief encounter with George Harrison, although she doubted much of what he said. ‘He was so sweet,’ she recalls. ‘We must have talked for a good hour, but I’m sorry I didn’t even shake his hand.’ Burkitt said George told her he was visiting over here from England with his sister, and he came to the teen town to see the band and hear its vocalists. She remembers him sitting on an old red couch in the lobby.

The next time Burkitt saw George Harrison, he was on ‘The Ed Sullivan Show’ several months later. ‘Oh, my gosh, Fred, there’s that kid that came to our teen town,’ she said. ‘He was telling the truth.’”

- Before He Was Fab: George Harrison’s First American Visit (2000)

Additional background from George:

According to George, “I went to New York and St Louis in 1963, to look around, and to the countryside in Illinois, where my sister was living at the time. I went to record stores. I bought Booker T and the MGs’ first album, Green Onions, and I bought some Bobby Bland, all kind of things.” George also bought James Ray’s single “Got My Mind Set On You” that he later covered in 1987.

When the Harrisons arrived in Benton, George and Louise hitchhiked to radio station WFRX-AM in West Frankfort, Illinois taking a copy of “She Loves You” which had been released 3 weeks earlier in Britain and on the day of George’s arrival in America. “She Loves You” got a positive review in Billboard but very little radio play, although WFRX did play it. According to DJ Marcia Raubach: “He was unusual looking, he dressed differently than the guys here. He was very soft-spoken and polite.”

It’s often claimed that in June 1963 Louise took a British copy of “From Me To You” to WFRX that she had been sent by her mother and that Raubach played it. This is probably true but the claim that this was the first time The Beatles’ music was broadcast in America is not. “From Me To You” was released in Britain in late April and then topped the British singles’ chart for seven weeks’. With the Beatles at No. 1 in Britain, Vee Jay Records released their single of ‘From Me To You’ / ‘Thank You Girl” as VJ 522 on May 27, 1963. The single was made ‘Pick Of the Week’ by Cash Box magazine, but was not a success.

With the Beatles success in Britain in early 1963, Parlophone were anxious to take advantage of their new asset and so contacted their sister label in America, Capitol Records that was owned by EMI. Capitol was underwhelmed by the Beatles records and so decided against releasing any of their records. Instead, Parlophone turned to a small US label called Vee Jay, a company started by a husband and wife in Gary, Indiana that specialized in black R & B music.

It was an irony probably not lost on the Beatles who loved and had been influenced by exactly that kind of music. In February 1963, two days after “Please Please Me” made No. 1 in Britain, Vee Jay released it as a single in the US. VJ 498 did get some airplay from the major Chicago top 40 radio station WLS and it even made their own chart for a couple of weeks, but nothing happened nationally on the Billboard charts. Not helping the band was the fact that Vee Jay managed to miss-spell the band’s name on the record as “Beattles.”

Article thanks to Richie Havers at www.udiscovermusic.com

[bemtevis]

April 📚

• The Charm Offense by Alison Cochrun

I'm gonna preface this by saying I'm not the biggest romance reader. I liked it well enough, particularly its portrayal of mental health and the importance of friendships, which I always appreciate. The hype is understandable but it's not gonna be at the front of my mind when I think about my 2023 reads. 3/5.

• The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

This book made me feel emotions I didn't even know existed and that is not an exaggeration. It was slow at the beginning, but once I was hooked, I was hooked. I saw the ending from miles away but it was still so effective in its delivery and it tells such a beautiful, heartfelt and important story that it was impossible not to cry. 5/5.

• My Dear Henry by Kalynn Bayron

Like with Self-Made Boys, I did not read the novel this book was based on (Jekyll & Hyde), and will be judging it purely from an outsider's perspective. Knowing the answer to the mystery makes it quite frustrating to follow the protagonist as he eventually discovers it as well. Still, it brings an interesting perspective to a time period I'm not used to reading about. 3/5.

• The Art of Prophecy by Wesley Chu

As soon as I heard the premise of this book, I knew I had to read it. However, it's hard to summarize the actual story of this book without spoilers, so I won't try, but it ended up being very different from what I expected. Not in a necessarily negative way. I should say it was pretty slow-paced and my eyes kept skipping entire paragraphs. The story itself is cool, though, and the characters are a lot of fun, but it seems like something I'd have more fun discussing than actually reading. 3,5/5.

• Louis & Louise by Julie Cohen

This book was everything. Coming in, I expected a touching story about gender roles and parallel universes, and it was exactly that and more. The mystery element adds something deeply compelling to the plot, especially considering there are two different events that happened on the same night, one in Louise's life and one in Louis', but we don't know much about either one. Kept me hooked from start to finish. 4,5/5.

• Blood Debts by Terry J. Benton Walker

I was really hyped for this book and I wish I'd gone in with lower expectations. It's not bad at all, but it didn't capture my emotions as much as I expected, you know? It was very predictable and repetitive at times and it killed some of the tension. That one thing with Yves came out of nowhere but its aftermath is definitely the plotline that interests me the most. Pretty great for a debut! 3,75/5.

2023 Reads: January | February | March | April

[white-cat-of-doom]

The final Caturday (12 August 2023) in Asia Tour 2022-2023 and the penultimate day of the tour, as the cast now has the last two shows tomorrow on Taipei, Taiwan.

Francesca Benton-Stace can only cheat death as Griddlebone so long, and soon (and once again) she will be gone from English productions. With Matthew Levick as a Siamese.

Luckily Jellylorum lives forever, and Francesca shares the only good picture we have so far of Ian Jon Bourg as Asparagus.

Taryn Donna covered Bombalurina for the last time today.

Katie Hutton as Rumpleteazer is always so excited! Always! She shares her three Mungojerries in three days, with George Hankers and Cian Hughes covering, and Billy Mahoney as her principal partner.

Anita Louise Combe shows her Grizabella tears up the catwalk.

Cian Hughes as Carbucketty finds Amy Louise Whittle as Jennyanydots for a nice picture.

All is quiet once more, but tomorrow the National Theatre will see the end of these Kitties!

@the-cat-at-the-theatre-door