#margaret nicholson

[generic-lab-assistant]

Random Margaret Nicholson from my sketchbook

[movie--posters]

[filmreveries]

"Beneath everything else, we were women in love."

Novitiate (2017) dir. Maggie Betts

[ayakasaruto]

Novitiate 2017

[letterboxd-loggd]

Novitiate (2017) Margaret Betts

June 10th 2023

[jedivoodoochile]

Jack Nicholson holding a portrait of Ann Margaret.

[whileiamdying]

Sunday, June 4, 1978

Watched the Tonys on TV on the phone with Brigid. Liza was there with Halston, and she won for Best Singer in a Musical, and when they called her name Stevie Rubell jumped out of his seat next to Halston. Liza was running against Eartha Kitt in Timbuktu and Madeline Kahn in Twentieth Century.

Catherine called and said that Steve Aronson came over to her house the night before—the lady he was going to visit in Southampton wouldn’t let him bring his big dog so he didn’t go at all—so he and Catherine were both depressed together. Catherine is in love with Tom but doesn’t want to go out to Montauk and be a maid and Tom doesn’t want to be serious, and she once told me that she would never get serious about it but she is, so she was depressed. And Margaret Trudeau’s run off with Jack Nicholson or something. And we’re upset if there was a party for Liza and we weren’t invited. Yeah, I’m sure there was.

Excerpt From The Andy Warhol Diaries Andy Warhol & Pat Hackett

[mamaepossoler]

“Qualquer maneira de amor”

Essa, na verdade, é uma releitura. Precisava fazer uma pesquisa e lembrei deste livro que tanto me abriu os olhos no passado. Nesta antologia de textos, ilustrações e quadrinhos, várias autoras mostram o que é amor para elas e a ligação dos seus amores com o mundo geek.

Todo o preconceito contra meninas gamers, nerds e geeks no geral ficou no passado? É óbvio que não, mas há aquelas que através de suas paixões arrumaram alguém para amar (nem que seja a descoberta do amor-próprio). 

Nem todas as histórias têm final feliz, assim como na vida; os relatos deste livro são na maioria autobiográficos. As histórias são geralmente leves e engraçadas, mas cheia de representação de todos os tipos. Afinal, a sexualidade é plural. Além disso, a identificação para mim foi maior por ser geek também e por ser uma mente criativa. Aspectos sobre o processo de criação também são tocados neste livro.

“Você ama alguma coisa; se sente isolada; entra on-line; descobre que existem milhares de outras pessoas que amam aquela coisa tanto quanto você; fica toda quentinha, aconchegada e se sentindo aceita por dentro.” Sam Maggs.

[calilili]

“Carnal Knowledge “ and “Eve N’ God This Female is Not Yet Rated “ ; Call & Response ; Roe V Wade ; LGBTQ RIGHTS, Black Lives, Climate Justice , #SaveDemocracy

I saw Mike Nichols’ “Carnal Knowledge” movie for the first time yesterday! WOW. So – fyi – I made the Oscars 2020 Contender “Eve N’ God This Female Is Not Yet Rated “ ™️ in which I costarred with movie icon Wings Hauser and what’s amazing to me and my team – is, that my movie seems to be a natural “response” movie to Carnal Knowledge! Without ever seeing Mike Nichols’ movie, mine seems…

[daddy-long-legssss]

The Story Behind The Song: Arctic Monkeys’ early ambitions on ‘A Certain Romance’

Lucy Harbron – Far Out Magazine | January 17, 2024

It was 2006. Mortgages were crashing, and businesses were going bust. Tony Blair was on his last legs in office as the longest-serving prime minister since Margaret Thatcher, and the hangover of ‘Cool Brittania’ was beginning to set in with an unexpected ferocity. Things were bleak when a young Alex Turner sang, “There ain’t no romance around there” through the public’s speakers. Arctic Monkeys were about to write themselves into musical history as the voice of a new generation.

The final song on their debut album, there has always been something special about ‘A Certain Romance’. In 2022, after the release of their seventh album, The Car, Turner seemed to find himself reflecting back on that 2006 track. To the musician, that early cut holds a clue to everything that was to come as he said the piece “showed that we did actually have these ambitions beyond what we once thought we were capable of”.

Coming in at over the five-minute mark, ‘A Certain Romance’ almost feels like the Arctic Monkeys’ version of a rock opera, summarising all the themes, feelings and energy that came before it on their seminal album Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not. It has the cheekiness of ‘Fake Tales Of San Francisco’ and the catchy instrumentals of hits like ‘Dancing Shoes’ or ‘I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor’. Utilising the northern charm of ‘Mardy Bum’, it stands as a final, neatly summarising point on the social commentary found in their early tracks like ‘From The Ritz To The Rubble’ or ‘Riot Van’. Really, it could be argued that ‘A Certain Romance’ is the ultimate example of Arctic Monkeys’ original sound, perfectly encapsulating all the things that made the world listen up and pay attention.

It’s like they seemed to know that, too, always allowing the song a special place. In fact, it was really the band’s opening remark. Years before the offer of a debut album came around, the group were a well-oiled machine with their own local hits. They had the northern live music scene in their hands as their homemade demo CD was passed around like everyone’s worst-kept secret. Beneath the Boardwalk features eight out of the 13 songs that would be on Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, albeit in a slightly different, lower-quality version. But the opening number, ‘A Certain Romance’, sounds just the same.

It’s all there, from the rolling opening drums to that final guitar solo. Recorded and produced in a rented studio at only age 17, the existence of ‘A Certain Romance’, one of the band’s most explorative and energetic numbers, in this form this early in their career feels like a diamond sitting in a mine. It proves that they were always onto something special.

They never needed any help. In fact, their producer, Jim Abbiss, noted that they even seemed nervous about the help. “I think they were probably a bit weary, like ‘who’s this guy? And is he gonna make our sound this or that.’”

They didn’t want anything to change too much, as the group already had the songs figured out. Turner certainly did, as the track’s meandering narrative about hometown lads, fights, and local boredom is already there. Talking on a podcast, original member Andy Nicholson revealed the story behind the song. “We had a practice room with a pool table in, and we had a party in there, and we invited another band who were friends of ours, and we all had some drinks,” he said. “Then something happened, someone throws a pool cue, someone throws a pool ball, and everyone ends up fighting,” he added, explaining the lyrics, “there’s boys in bands / And kids who like to scrap with pool cues in their hands.”

But the magic of Arctic Monkeys lies in their nuance. What begins as a snooty analysis of his local landscape is a genuinely affectionate take. “Well, over there, there’s friends of mine / What can I say? I’ve known ’em for a long long time / And, yeah, they might overstep the line / But you just cannot get angry in the same way,” Turner sings, looking around at his bandmates and lifelong friends. ‘A Certain Romance’ is not only a time capsule for the group’s beginnings but is an ode to all the people who were there with them. It’s an ode to the hometown that made them and all its various characters.

But as the last guitar solo roars to life, there is an unspoken statement that they’re going to be bigger than what they came from. “I remember when we were recording ‘A Certain Romance’ and having a conversation with the producer about the final guitar solo,” Turner told NME, recalling the moment these songs were reworked for their debut. But they wouldn’t let anyone mess with ‘A Certain Romance’, knowing exactly what they were doing and trying to say with that one. In the 2003 demo version, all the feeling is already there, and Turner wouldn’t risk it.

“There’s something that happens at the end of that track where we break some rules in a single moment,” he continued. What happens at the end of the piece feels even more special, considering how the album was recorded. “These are the songs we wanna do, and I think this is the order we wanna do them in,” Alex Turner told their producer, recounting the conversation in 2007 to RadioX, “And he goes, ‘alright, we’ll try to record them in that order as well.’” As the final song, that last guitar solo is the last thing recorded for the album, standing as a cathartic outlet and a chance for the band to prove themselves.

“We focused on the [emotional] effect of the instrumentals over the words,” Turner reflected on the track, concluding, “and I feel like we’ve been trying to do that again and again since then.”

+

[valend]

"Hamilton then stepped forward declaring that if the parties were to contend in a personal Way, he was ready that he would fight the Whole party one by one. I was just beginning to speak to him on the Subject [of] this imprudent declaration when he turned from me threw up his arm & Declared that he was ready to fight the Whole ‘Destestable faction’ one by one. — Maturin [Livingston] at this moment arrived, he stepped up to him told him very cooly that he was one of the party that he accepted the challenge & would meet him in half an hour where he pleased. Hamilton said he had an affair on his Hands already with one of the party (meaning a quarrel with Commodore Nicholson) & when that was settled he would call on him. Neither Nicholson nor Maturin have as yet heard from him. I mention this Circumstance particularly that you may Judge how much he must be Mortified at his loss of Influence before he would descend [to] language that would have become a Street Bully."

-Edward Livingston to his mother, Margaret Beekman Livingston, on July 20, 1795

Hamilton here said he was going to fight an entire party and then agreed to two duels one after the other

this was after he had rocks thrown at him, one of which hit him in the head.

he was also told to shut up basically by nicholson

[jpbjazz]

LÉGENDES DU JAZZ

SERGE CHALOFF, LA DESCENTE AUX ENFERTS D’UN SAXOPHONISTE VIRTUOSE

‘’When Serge was cleaned up, you know, straight, he could be a delight, really to be around, a lot of fun. He knew how to handle himself. He had that gift. He could get pretty raunchy when he was strung out, but he could also be charming.''

- Zoot Sims

Né le 24 novembre 1923 à Boston, au Massachusetts, Serge Chaloff était issu d’une famille musicale. Son père Julius Chaloff était compositeur et avait joué du piano avec le Boston Symphony Orchestra. Sa mère était  la professeure de piano émérite Margaret Chaloff. Mieux connue sous le surnom de ‘’Madame Chaloff’’, Margaret, qui était professeure au New England Conservatory, avait notamment enseigné à des grands noms comme Leonard Bernstein, George Shearing, Keith Jarrett, Herbie Hancock, Steve Kuhn, Chick Corea et Dick Twardzik.

Chaloff, qui avait d’abord appris le piano à partir de l’âge de six ans, avait également suivi des cours de clarinette avec Manuel Valerio du Boston Symphony Orchestra. À l’âge de douze ans, après avoir entendu Harry Carney jouer avec l’orchestre de Duke Ellington, Chaloff avait dédidé d’apprendre à jouer du saxophone baryton en autodidacte. Comme Chaloff l’avait expliqué plus tard lors d’une entrevue accordée au critique Leonard Feather: ‘’Who could teach me? I couldn't chase [Harry] Carney around the country.''

Même s’il avait été influencé par Carney et par Jack Washington, le saxophoniste baryton de l’orchestre Count Basie, Chaloff n’avait pas tenté de les imiter. Comme l’avait déclaré son frère Richard Chaloff, Serge ‘’could play {baritone} like a tenor sax. The only time you knew it was a baritone was when he took it down low. He played it high.… He had finger dexterity, I used to watch him, you couldn't believe the speed he played. He was precise. He was a perfectionist. He would be up in his bedroom as a teenager. He would be up by the hour to one, two, three in the morning and I'm trying to sleep and he'd go over a phrase or a piece until it was perfect… I used to put the pillow over my head, we had battles.’’

DÉBUTS DE CARRIÈRE

À partir de l’âge de quatorze ans, Chaloff avait commencé à jouer au Izzy Ort's Bar & Grille, un célèbre club situé sur la rue Essex à Boston. Son frère Richard expliquait: ‘’He didn't have a permit to work but he was pretty tall and he went down to see Izzy Ort...and played for him and Izzy liked the sax...and he hired my brother to work nights… My mother used to pray on Sundays that that he'd make it outa there… My brother sat in with bandsmen that were in their thirties and forties… and here he was fourteen, fifteen years old and he played right along with them, and he did so well that they kept him.''

En 1939, à l’âge de seulement seize ans, Chaloff s’était joint au groupe de Tommy Reynolds comme saxophoniste ténor. Par la suite, Chaloff avait joué avec les groupes de Dick Rogers, Shep Fields et Ina Ray Hutton. En juillet 1944, Chaloff avait également fait partie de l’éphémère groupe de Boyd Raeburn aux côtés de Dizzy Gillespie et Al Cohn, avec qui il avait tissé une amitié qui avait duré toute sa vie. C’est d’ailleurs avec Raeburn que Chaloff avait fait ses débuts sur disque en janvier 1945, notamment dans le cadre de la pièce ‘’Interlude’’ de Dizzy Gillespie, qui s’était mieux fait connaître plus tard sous le titre de ‘’A Night in Tunisia.’’ Le son de Chaloff était particulièrement perceptible au début de l’enregistrement.

C’est durant son séjour avec le groupe de Raeburn que Chaloff avait entendu pour la première fois Charlie Parker, qui était devenu sa plus importante influence. Mais selon le critique Stuart Nicholson, plutôt que d’imiter Parker, Chaloff s’était inspiré du jeu très émotif de Parker pour bâtir son propre style. Richard Chaloff avait ajouté que son frère saisissait toutes les occasions pour jouer avec Parker à New York. Richard avait déclaré: ‘’Any time he had the chance he would pal with him. He would sit in with him at night… My brother used to say that he was up till 4,5,6, in the morning with the Bird… All the beboppers found each other out.’’

Mais les tournées avec le groupe de Raeburn étaient épuisantes. Chaloff se rappelait d’ailleurs avoir joué durant soixante soirs consécutifs et avoir parcouru jusqu’à 500 miles entre chaque contrat. C’est d’ailleurs au cours de son séjour avec le groupe que Chaloff avait commencé à consommer de l’héroïne et à ‘’marcher sur les nuages’’ comme il l’avait déclaré lui-même. Au milieu des années 1940, Chaloff avait également travaillé avec Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Harris, George Handy, Oscar Pettiford et Earl Swope. Le 21 septembre 1946, Chaloff avait enregistré sa propre version deu standard ‘’Cherokee’’ sous le titre de ‘’Blue Serge’’.

Après avoir travaillé en 1945-46 avec les big bands de Georgie Auld et Jimmy Dorsey, Chaloff avait enregistré avec de petits groupes de bebop de 1946 à 1947. Parmi ceux-ci, on remarquait le Sonny Berman's' Big Eight, le Bill Harris's Big Eight, le Ralph Burns Quintet et les Red Rodney's Be-Boppers qui comprenaient également Allen Eager au saxophone ténor. Au début de 1947, Chaloff avait d’ailleurs partagé un appartement avec Red Rodney, un autre grand consommateur d’héroïne. C’est ainsi que Chaloff était tombé dans un engrenage dont il avait pris des années à s’affranchir.

Commentant sa collaboration avec Chaloff, le saxophoniste Allen Eager avait déclaré: “Serge was a groovy guy to be around. The three of us were all pretty much in the same zone as far as musical leanings go.” En janvier 1947, Chaloff avait enregistré deux standards avec le groupe de Rodney: ‘’Elevation’’ de Gerry Mulligan et ‘’The Goof and I’’ d’Al Cohn. En 2003, les disques Uptown avaient publié du matériel inédit enregistré lors de cette session qui mettait en vedette  Eager, Chaloff, Jimmy Johnson et Buddy Rich. Toujours en janvier 1947, Chaloff s’était produit au club Three Deuces avec le sextet de Georgie Auld aux côtés de Rodney, Tiny Kahn et Lou Levy. “Wonderful band’’, avait déclaré Chaloff plus tard, même si sa collaboration avec le groupe n’avait pas été tellement lucrative. À la même époque, Chaloff avait également joué au Smalls Paradise de Harlem avec Leo Parker, un autre saxophoniste baryton qui était disparu avant de réaliser son plein potentiel.

Durant la même période, Chaloff avait enregistré deux 78-tours avec son propre sextet pour les disques Savoy. Trois des quatre pièces figurant sur ces 78-tours avaient été écrites et arrangées par Chaloff. La quatrième composition intitulée ‘’Gabardine and Serge’’, avait été écrite par Tiny Kahn. Le critique Marc Myers écrivait: ‘’All four tunes are daredevil cute and blisteringly fast. They showcase tight unison lines and standout solos by four of the six musicians, who are in superb form....(On 'Pumpernickel') Chaloff shows off his inexhaustible and leonine approach to the baritone sax.’’

Chaloff était devenu une grande vedette en 1947 lorsqu’il s’était joint au Second Herd de Woody Herman. Le groupe s’était mérité le surnom de Four Brothers Band après que la section de saxophones composée de Chaloff, Stan Getz, Zoot Sims et Herbie Steward (qui avait été remplacé plus tard par Al Cohn) ait enregistré la composition de Jimmy Giuffre du même nom. Chaloff avait également participé à plusieurs autres enregistrements du groupe, dont ‘’Keen and Peachy’’. Chaloff avait aussi joué en solo sur des pièces comme "The Goof and I" et "Man, Don't Be Ridiculous." Selon Nicholson, sur cette dernière pièce, Chaloff avait démontré ‘’an astonishing technical facility that was quite without precedent on the instrument.’’

En 1949, l’historien et critique Leonard Feather avait écrit dans son livre Inside Be-Bop que le jeu propre et le bon goût de Chaloff avaient fait de lui ‘’the No.1 bop exponent of the baritone.'' Chaloff était d’ailleurs surnommé le ‘’Charlie Parker blanc.’’

Malheureusement, Chaloff avait aussi imité Parker sur un aspect beaucoup moins enviable de sa personnalité: il avait développé une dépendance envers l’héroïne. Selon Gene Lees, à partir de 1947, Chaloff était même devenu non seulement le principal fournisseur du groupe de Woody Herman, mais son consommateur le plus important. Toujours selon Feather, Chaloff déposait une couverture au-dessus des sièges arrière des autobus dans lesquels il se transportait afin de pouvoir vendre sa marchandises plus discrètement. Le critique Whitney Balliett avait ajouté que Chaloff avait ''a satanic reputation as a drug addict whose proselytizing ways with drugs reportedly damaged more people than just himself.’’ Plusieurs musiciens avaient d’ailleurs blâmé Chaloff pour la mort du trompettiste de vingt et un ans Sonny Berman, qui était décédé à la suite d’une overdose le 16 janvier 1947.

Le trompettiste Rolf Ericson, qui s’était joint au groupe de Woody Herman en 1950, avait décrit ainsi l’impact de la consommation de drogues sur les performances de la formation: ‘’In the band Woody had started on the coast...late in 1947, which I heard many times, several of the guys were on narcotics and four were alcoholics. When the band started a night's work they sounded wonderful, but after the intermission, during which they used the needle or lushed, the good music was over. It was horrible to see them sitting on the stage like living dead, peering into little paper envelopes when they weren't playing.''

Commentant le séjour de Chaloff avec le groupe, le critique Gene Lees écrivait: ‘’Hiring him must be accounted one of Woody’s worst errors. Serge was a serious heroin addict and like so many of his kind, a dedicated proselytizer for the drug. He would hook a number of the Second Herd bandsmen.” À l’époque, on estimait qu’environ 50% des saxophonistes du groupe de Herman étaient des adeptes de l’héroïne. D’autres musiciens consommaient des amphétamines, ce qui avait incité Herman à conclure: “Everybody was on practically everything except roller-skates… I’ve chased ‘connections’ out of clubs from coast to coast”. Il y avait aussi quatre alcooliques dans la formation.

Lors d’une performance à Washington, D.C., Herman avait eu une violente discussion avec Chaloff au sujet de sa consommation de drogues. Comme Herman l’avait raconté plus tard au journaliste Gene Lees:

‘’He was getting farther and farther out there, and the farther out he got the more he was sounding like a fagalah. He kept saying, ‘Hey, Woody, baby, I’m straight, man, I’m clean.’ And I shouted, ‘Just play your goddamn part and shut up!'....I was so depressed after that gig. There was this after-hours joint in Washington called the Turf and Grid....I had to fight my way through to get a drink, man. All I wanted was to have a drink and forget it. And finally I get a couple of drinks, and it’s hot in there, and I’m sweating, and somebody’s got their hands on me, and I hear, ‘Hey, Woody, baby, whadya wanna talk to me like that for? I’m straight, baby, I’m straight.’ And it's Mr. Chaloff. And then I remember an old Joe Venuti bit. We were jammed in there, packed in, and… I peed down Serge's leg. You know, man, when you do that to someone, it takes a while before it sinks in what's happened to him. And when Serge realized, he let out a howl like a banshee.''

Mais Chaloff était parfaitement conscient de sa valeur pour le groupe. Lorsque Herman avait menacé de le congédier, Chaloff avait simplement répliqué: “That’s the baritone book. You can’t fire me because I’m the only one that knows it by heart.”

Un des partenaires de Chaloff dans l’orchestre de Woody Herman, le vibraphoniste Terry Gibbs, avait décrit ainsi  le comportement pour le moins erratique de Chaloff:

‘'He'd fall asleep with a cigarette all the time and always burn a hole in a mattress. Always! In about twelve hotels. When we'd go to check out, the hotel owner – Serge always had his hair slicked down even though he hadn't taken a bath for three years...the manager would say, 'Mr Chaloff, you burned a hole in your mattress and...' 'How dare you. I'm the winner of the down beat and Metronome polls. How dare you?'...the manager would always say, 'I'm sorry Mr Chaloff,'...Except one time when the band got off on an air-pistol kick....Serge put a telephone book against the door and was zonked out of his bird...he got three shots at the telephone book and made the biggest hole in the door you ever saw. So when he went to the check out, the guy said, 'Mr Chaloff, it'll cost you.'...He 'how-dared' him a few times. Couldn't get away with it. He said 'Well listen, if I'm gonna pay for the door I want the door.' It was twenty four dollars. So he paid for the door. I happen to be standing close by. 'Hey Terry,' he said. 'Grab this,' and all of a sudden I found myself checking out....We're walking out of the hotel with a door.''

Un autre collègue de Chaloff, le saxophoniste Al Cohn, se demandait même comment il avait pu éviter d’être assassiné. Cohn expliquait: ‘’I don't know how we kept from being killed. Serge would always be drunk. He was quite a drinker. Everything he did, he did too much. So one time we're driving, after work. It's four o'clock in the morning, and he makes a left turn, and we're wondering why the road is so bumpy. Turned out he made a left turn into the railroad tracks, and we're going over the ties.''

Pourtant, Chaloff pouvait être adorable quand il restait sobre. Comme l’avait déclaré Zoot Sims: ‘’When Serge was cleaned up, you know, straight, he could be a delight, really to be around, a lot of fun. He knew how to handle himself. He had that gift. He could get pretty raunchy when he was strung out, but he could also be charming.''

Curieusement, les problèmes de dépendance de Chaloff n’avaient pas semblé affecter outre-mesure ses performances sur scène. Comme Herman l’avait confirmé lui-même dans  le cadre d’une entrevue accordée à William D. Clancy: “Serge was probably the freshest, newest-sounding baritone that had come along in years.”

Finalement, n’en pouvant plus, Herman avait saisi le prétexte de la perte de popularité du swing (à l’époque, plusieurs big bands avaient été contraints de mettre fin à leurs activités pour des raisons économiques) pour mettre fin à l’existence de son groupe en décembre 1949. Il faut dire que l’orchestre avait perdu énormément d’argent: environ 180 000$, l’équivalent de deux millions de dollars au cours actuel.

Faisant référence de façon discrète au comportement de Chaloff au moment de démarrer les activités d’un groupe de plus petite taille à Chicago en 1950, Herman avait déclaré: ‘’'You can't imagine how good it feels to look at my present group and find them all awake. To play a set and not have someone conk out in the middle of a chorus.’’

DERNIÈRES ANNÉES

Après avoir quitté le groupe d’Herman, Chaloff avait passé une partie de l’année 1950 à jouer avec le All Star Octet de Count Basie, un groupe de taille plus modeste que le chef d’orchestre avait formé à la suite du déclin des big bands. À l’époque, le groupe, qui avait avait enregistré quelques pièces pour les disques Victor et Columbia, comprenait Basie, Chaloff, Wardell Gray, Buddy DeFranco, Clark Terry, Freddie Green, Jimmy Lewis et Gus Johnson. Plus tard la même année, Chaloff était retourné à Boston et avait joué avec de petits groupes dans des clubs comme le High Hat, le Petty Lounge et le Red Fox Cafe.

Après être retourné à New York, Chaloff avait formé son propre groupe avec des musiciens comme Earl Swope, Bud Powell, Joe Shulman et Don Lamond en vue d’une performance au club Birland en février 1950. Le critique Barry Ulanov avait commenté dans le magazine Metronome: “Serge Chaloff waved his big baritone horn at Birdland last month and inaugurated what will be a very interesting career as a leader.” Chaloff était alors retourné à Boston pour deux semaines et s’était produit avec une section rythmique avec qui il avait interprété du matériel associé au groupe de Herman.

Une performance de Chaloff au Celebrity Club de Providence, au Rhode Island, avait même été retransmise sur les ondes de la station radiophonique WRIV. L’enregistrement avait éventuellement été publié en 1994 par les disques Uptown dans le cadre d’un CD intitulée Boston 1950. Participaient également à l’enregistrement des musiciens comme Sonny Truitt, Milt Gold, Nat Pierce et Joe Shulman. Le CD comprenait aussi une entrevue de trois minutes avec Chaloff.

Le fait de jouer avec de petits groupes avait permis à Chaloff de retourner à la base et de développer un nouveau style de jeu. En 1951, Chaloff avait déclaré que le fait de se retirer du centre de l’action lui avait permis d’ajouter plus de couleur et de flexibilité à son jeu. Poursuivant dans le même sens, le saxophoniste Al Cohn avait ajouté que le jeu de Chaloff comme soliste ne s’était véritablement développé qu’à partir du moment où il avait décidé de cesser de se produire avec des big bands. En 1952, Chaloff était retourné à Boston et avait enregistré avec le pianiste Dick Twardzik, mais la session n’avait jamais été publiée. Il avait aussi fait des apparitions à la télévision et avait dirigé le groupe-maison d’un club local.

Devenu une grande vedette, Chaloff avait remporté les sondages des magazines Down Beat et Metronome comme meilleur saxophoniste baryton à chaque année de 1949 à 1953. Il avait aussi fait partie des Metronome All-Stars en janvier 1950 aux côtés de  grands noms du jazz comme Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Lee Konitz et Kai Winding.

Malheureusement, Chaloff avait continué de se droguer et de boire abondamment, ce qui l’avait empêché de décrocher des contrats sur une base régulière. Il avait même cessé complètement de jouer en 1952-53.

À la fin de 1953, Chaloff avait tenté de faire un retour sur scène après que le disc jockey de Boston, Bob 'The Robin' Martin lui ait proposé de devenir son gérant. Avec l’aide de Martin, Chaloff avait formé un nouveau groupe qui s’était produit dans des clubs de Boston comme le Jazzorama et le Storyville. Les partenaires musicaux de Chaloff à l’époque étaient Boots Mussulli ou Charlie Mariano au saxophone alto, Herb Pomeroy à la trompette et Dick Twardzik au piano.

Même si du propre aveu de Martin, Chaloff ne jouait pas beaucoup à l’époque en raison de ses antécédents liés à la consommation de narcotiques, il se donnait à fond lorsqu’on lui donnait  l’occasion de performer. Martin expliquait: ‘’You had to talk somebody to give him a chance to play. When you got him a gig in a club or a hotel, he would usually mess it up. But when he did show...and got playing...it was,'Stand back, Baby!’’ Le saxophoniste Jay Migliori, qui avait joué avec Chaloff au Storyville, se rappelait: ‘’Serge was a wild character. We were working at Storyville and, if he was feeling good, he used to let his trousers gradually fall down during the cadenza of his feature, 'Body and Soul.' At the end of the cadenza, his trousers would hit the ground.''

En juin et septembre 1954, Chaloff avait participé à deux sessions pour les disques Storyville de George Wein. Les enregistrements avaient été publiés sous la forme de deux microsillons dix pouces. La première session avait été présentée comme un album conjoint avec le saxophoniste Boots Mussulli, et mettait en vedette un groupe composé de Russ Freeman au piano, de Jimmy Woode à la contrebasse et de Buzzy Drootin à la batterie. Wein écrivait dans les notes de pochette: ‘’ 'An alternate title for this album could be 'Serge Returns'....Each selection in these six was chosen and arranged solely by Serge.'' L’album comprenait cinq standards ainsi qu’une composition de Chaloff intitulée ‘’Zdot’’. La conclusion de la pièce avait été écrite par la mère de Chaloff, Margaret. Sur le second album intitulé The Fable of Mabel, Chaloff s’était produit avec un groupe de neuf musiciens mettant en vedette Charlie Mariano, qui avait écrit trois des cinq compositions de l’album, et Herb Pomeroy, qui avait composé la pièce ‘’Salute to Tiny’’ en hommage au batteur et arrangeur Tiny Kahn. L’ambitieuse pièce-titre avait été écrite par le pianiste Dick Twardzik, qui avait déclaré dans les notes de pochette:

‘’'The Fable of Mabel was introduced to jazz circles in 1951-52 by the Serge Chaloff Quartet. Audiences found this satirical jazz legend a welcome respite from standard night club fare. In this legend, Mabel is depicted as a woman who loves men, music and her silver saxophone that played counterpoint (her own invention which proved impractical). The work is divided into three movements: first, New Orleans; second Classical; and third, Not Too Sad An Ending. The soulful baritone solo by Serge Chaloff traces Mabel's humble beginnings working railroad cars in New Orleans to her emergence as a practising crusader for the cause of Jazz. During her Paris days on the Jazz Houseboat, her struggle for self-expression is symbolized by an unusual saxophone duet Charlie Mariano and Varty Haritrounian. Mabel always said she wanted to go out blowing. She did. The sixth track, Al Killian's 'Lets Jump', was chosen by Chaloff, who said: 'Now that we've proven how advanced we are let's show the people that we can still swing.''

Un mois après avoir complété l’enregistrement, Chaloff était entré dans une profonde crise personnelle. En octobre 1954, sans argent et incapable de se procurer de l’héroïne, Chaloff s’était inscrit volontairement au programme de réhabilitation du Bridgewater State Hospital. Après avoir passé trois mois et demi à l’hôpital, Chaloff avait été libéré en février 1955.

La même année, le gérant Bob Martin avait convaincu les disques Capitol d’enregistrer un album avec Chaloff dans le cadre de la série ‘'Stan Kenton Presents Jazz.’’ Intitulé ‘’Boston Blow-Up!’’, l’album avait été enregistré à New York en avril 1955. Chaloff était accompagné sur l’album de Boots Mussulli au saxophone alto, de Herb Pomeroy à la trompette, de Ray Santisi au piano, d’Everett Evans à la contrebasse et de Jimmy Zitano à la batterie. À l’époque, Pomeroy, Santisi et Zitano avaient développé une très grande complicité, car ils se produisaient régulièrement au Boston's Stable Club, où ils avaient enregistré l’album live Jazz in a Stable pour les disques Transition en mars précédent. Quant à Mussulli, il avait fait partie de l’orchestre de Stan Kenton de 1944 à 1947 et de 1952 à 1954.

Malgré la mauvaise réputation de Chaloff, le critique  Richard Vacca avait écrit que la présence rassurante et stable de Mussilli, qui avait déjà participé à la série Kenton Presents en 1954, avait été d’un grand réconfort pour les disques Capitol. Dans le cadre de l’album, Mussilli avait composé et arrangé cinq nouvelles pièces, dont ‘’Bob the Robin’’, qu’il avait écrite en hommage au gérant de Chaloff, Bob Martin. C’est Pomeroy qui avait écrit les arrangements des standards qui figuraient sur l’album. Très satisfait du déroulement des sessions, Chaloff avait déclaré: ‘’When I came back on the music scene, just recently, I wanted a book of fresh sounding things. I got just what I wanted from Herb and Boots. I think their writing shows us a happy group trying to create new musical entertainment by swinging all the time. Jazz has got to swing; if it doesn't, it loses its feeling of expression. This group and these sides are about the happiest I've been involved with.'' Parmi les principaux faits saillants de l’album, on remarquait les ballades "What's New?" et "Body and Soul". Commentant cette dernière pièce dans le 1956 Metronome Yearbook, le critique Bill Coss avait qualifié l’interprétation de Chaloff de ‘’frightening example of Serge's form, moaning through a seemingly autobiographical portrayal of (his) Body and Soul', an enormously emotional jazz listening experience.'' Jack Tracy, qui avait attribué cinq étoiles à l’album dans sa critique publiée dans le magazine Down Beat, avait ajouté: ‘’'Serge, for years one of music's more chaotic personalities, has made an about face of late and is again flying right. It is evident in his playing, which has become a thing of real beauty… Chaloff offers the best display of his talents ever to be put on wax. It swings, it has heart, it has maturity—it is the long-awaited coalescence of a great talent.''

Le succès inespéré de l’album Boston Blow-Up! avait éventuellement permis à Chaloff de relancer sa carrière et de décrocher de nombreux contrats. La performance de Chaloff au Boston Arts Festival en juin 1955 avait inspiré le commentaire suivant à un critique du Boston Herald: ‘’The ingenuity of Chaloff as a soloist is enormous, and his use of dissonance always conveys a sense of purpose and of form. In 'Body and Soul', he exhibited his capabilities vigorously, taking a deliberate tempo and treating the music with a lyric, delicate, tonal standpoint....the harmonies of the group are tense and the melodies resourceful and they play with a kind of controlled abandon.''

En 1956, Chaloff avait continué de se produire un peu partout à travers les États-Unis, le plus souvent en compagnie d’un saxophoniste alto. Si Chicago, Chaloff était accompagné du saxophoniste Lou Donaldson, son partenaire à Los Angeles était Sonny Stitt. Le groupe comprenait également Leroy Vinnegar, qui était alors le contrebassiste le plus dominant de la Côte ouest.

Le succès de la performance de Chaloff à Los Angeles lui avait permis d’enregistrer un second album pour les disques Capitol en mars 1956. Avaient également participé à l’enregistrement le pianiste Sonny Clark et le contrebassiste Leroy Vinnegar. Comme batteur, on retrouvait Philly Joe Jones, qui était de passage à Los Angeles avec le quintet de Miles Davis. Décrivant l’enregistrement de l’album, Chaloff avait commenté:

‘’'My last record, Boston Blow-up! was one of those carefully planned things....But this time I was feeling a little more easy-going, and I decided to make a record just to blow. I picked out what I felt was the best rhythm section around and told them just to show up...no rehearsals...no tunes set...and trust to luck and musicianship....I'd never worked with these guys before except for jamming briefy with Joe Jones eight years ago, but I knew from hearing them what they could do....We were shooting for an impromptu feeling and we got it. It has more freedom and spark than anything I've recorded before. And I don't think there's a better recommendation than that when it comes to honest jazz.''

Vladimir Somosko écrivait dans sa biographie de Chaloff intitulée ‘’Serge Chaloff: A Musical Biography and Discography’’, publiée en 1998: ‘’'The rapport of the group was as moving as the music, and the net effect was of every note being in place, flawlessly executed, as if even the slightest nuance was carefully chosen for maximum aesthetic impact. This is a level of achievement beyond all but the masters, and from an ensemble that was not even a working group it takes on an aura of the miraculous.''

Analysant le jeu de Chaloff sur la pièce "A Handful of Stars", le critique Stuart Nicholson avait précisé: ‘’Paraphrase becomes central to his performance of 'A Handful of Stars' where he scrupulously avoids stating the melody as written. At one point he plumbs the baritone for a bumptious bass note and soars to the top of the instrument's range in one breath, effortlessly concealing the remarkable technical skill required for such seemingly throw-away trifles. This sheer joy at music making seems to give his playing a life-force of its own.'' Après avoir qualifié l’album de chef-d’oeuvre, Richard Cook et Brian Morton avaient écrit dans le Penguin Guide to Jazz: ‘’Thanks for the Memory" is overpoweringly beautiful as Chaloff creates a series of melodic variations which match the improviser's ideal of fashioning an entirely new song. 'Stairway to the Stars' is almost as fine, and the thoughtful 'The Goof and I' and 'Susie's Blues' show that Chaloff still had plenty of ideas about what could be done with a bebopper's basic materials. This important session has retained all its power.’'

Après la publication de l’album, Chaloff avait continué de travailler sur la Côte ouest, se produisant notamment au Starlite Club d’Hollywood en mai 1956. Durant le même mois, Chaloff avait été victime de douleurs au dos et à l’abdomen qui avaient entraîné une paralysie de ses deux jambes. Chaloff était retourné de toute urgence à Boston, où une opération exploratoire avait permis de découvrir qu’il était atteint d’un cancer de la moelle épinière. Le frère de Chaloff, Richard, expliquait: ‘’We took him down there [Massachusetts General Hospital] and they found he had lesions on his spine.....they operated and took most of the lesions away, and then he went on a series of X-ray treatments. Oh they were terrible. He must have had twenty or twenty-five in a row. And in those days they really gave you heavy doses of it. Then occasionally he got spots on the lungs''.

Malgré sa maladie et le traitement qui s’en était suivi, Chaloff avait continué de se produire en concert. Le 18 juin 1956, Chaloff avait dû se déplacer en chaise roulante pour enregistrer la composition "Billie's Bounce" de Charlie Parker avec les Metronome All Stars. Avaient également participé à l’enregistrement Zoot Sims, Art Blakey, Charles Mingus et Billy Taylor.

Chaloff avait fait son dernier enregistrement dans le cadre de l’album-réunion The Four Brothers... Together Again!. Le groupe était composé de Zoot Sims, d’Al Cohn, d’Herbie Steward et de Chaloff aux saxophones, d’Elliot Lawrence au piano, de Buddy Jones à la contrebasse et de Don Lamond à la batterie. Sur les dernières pièces de l’album, Charlie O'Kane avait remplacé Chaloff dans les parties collectives afin de lui permettre de conserver ses forces pour les solos. Décrivant l’enregistrement de l’album, Richard Chaloff avait commenté: ‘’He took a wheelchair down to make that recording, you know. They didn't think he was going to make it. I heard stories from people there. But when he stood up and played, you never knew he was a sick fellow. He played dynamic. If you listen to the record he sounds like the old Serge. He pulled himself together. I don't know how he did it. But he had tremendous drive, tremendous stamina.’’ Dans son compte rendu publié dans le magazine Down Beat, le critique Don Gold écrivait: ‘’'This last session before his death represents a fervent expression of a fatally ill man. It is a kind of significant farewell in the language he knew best.''

Chaloff avait présenté sa dernière performance au Stable Club de Boston en mai 1957. Lors d’une entrevue qu’il avait accordée en 1993, le pianiste Charlie ‘’the Whale’’ Johnson avait décrit les dernières performances de Chaloff de la façon suivante: ‘’'I remember pushing Chaloff's wheelchair into The Stable for his last appearances there. He was in bad shape but could still really play, standing leaning on a pillar. However, he didn't have much stamina. He couldn't really finish the gig. I also had to go get pot and booze for him. He was still using these steadily, even in the hospital at the end.''

Chaloff était à l’agonie lorsqu’il avait été admis au Massachusetts General Hospital le 15 juillet 1957. Selon son frère Richard, Chaloff avait apporté son saxophone ainsi que son singe miniature à l’hôpital. Richard expliquait:

‘'He still had the kinkajou monkey Mother got him to keep him company. And he had his horn. I was told they wheeled him into a vacant operating theatre so he could practise, and that was his last gig, his last public performance, solo baritone sax alone in an operating theatre. Nurses, doctors and even patients were standing outside and listening. He fought it to the end. Mother would visit him and urge him on, saying, 'You can beat it' and things. But that last day, they brought a priest to visit him, and the priest saw Serge in bed looking so wasted, and the priest thought he was supposed to perform the last rites. Serge woke up in the middle of it and really panicked, sliding away from him and yelling 'No! No! Get out!' But after that he seemed to give up. I think that's when he realized it was all over.''

Chaloff était mort le lendemain. Il avait seulement trente-trois ans. Chaloff a été inhumé au Forest Hills Cemetery, dans le comté de Suffolk, au Massachusetts.

Reconnu comme le premier saxophoniste baryton à avoir joué du bebop, Chaloff avait contribué à démontrer, à l’instar de ses pairs Leo Parker et Cecil Payne, que le saxophone baryton pouvait très bien s’adapter à l’évolution du jazz moderne.

©-2024, tous droits réservés, Les Productions de l’Imaginaire historique

SOURCES:

JACK, Gordon. ‘’Serge Chaloff: the bebop lowdown.’’ Jazz Journal, 11 mai 2021.

‘’Serge Chaloff.’’ Wikipedia, 2024.

‘’Serge Chaloff.’’ All About Jazz, 2024.

[sodascherrycola]

Instagram Intros (Matty and Caroline's Kids)

Isla Denise Healy (@isla_d_healy)

DOB: November 19th 2008 DOD: December 18th 2025 (17 years old) (Suicide) Hometown: London, England Nicknames: Eye, Izzy S/O: Kyle Nicholson Kids: None Best Friend(s): Elizabeth Macdonald, Michelle Turner, Andrea Maddox, and Mikayla Moore Aesthetic: Growing up Isla was the glue keeping her parents together. If it wasn't for the fact that Isla was there, Matty and Carrie wouldn't have kept in touch. She was very close with her parents especially considering her mum and dad were growing up with her being only nineteen when she was born. Isla struggled with her relationship with her father a lot during her childhood, loving him to death, but hating him because of his addiction and how it affected her mum and younger siblings. When Matty got clean when Margaret and Harrison were born it cut deep for Isla, crying to Carrie asking why he quit for them but not for her. Caroline didn't know what to say to her 10 year old daughter, hating seeing her so upset over this. Isla was too much like her father she found out, looking like her mother, acting like her father. When she got to high school she found herself drinking and staying out late with older boys with her friends. Her parents were extremely worried about her sudden attitude and behaviour. Isla often reached out to her Nana Denise for help, of course Denise helped as much as she could with her granddaughter. Isla eventually ended up locking herself in her room for months on end and became very depressed. Matty had pulled her aside one night to talk to her and ended up sleeping in her bed with her like when she was younger. She comitted suicide the next night.

Charlotte Grace Healy

DOB: May 6th 2015 Age: 10 years old Hometown: London, England Nicknames: Charlie, Lottie S/O: No One Kids: None Best Friend(s): Samuel Daniel Aesthetic: Charlotte Healy has always been a ray of sunshine. She was a very happy child and loved everything and everyone possible. Her Grandpa Tim was her favourite grandparent, and used to always spend time with him whenever she could, he absolutely adored little Lottie. Charlotte would gladly volunteered to sleepover at Grandpas if her parents needed a night off, her and her grandpa would have movie nights and living room concerts all night long, and he of course, gave her many sweets before dinner, something her father would've shook his head at. She was also very close with her older sister, Isla. When Isla passed away, her family was in complete disarray, and it hurt her so bad. She ended up being very quiet afterwards and surprise would have it, the only person who get through to her during those last couple months, was Tim.

Margaret Louise Healy

DOB: April 19th 2018 Age: 7 years old Hometown: London, England Nicknames: Maggie, Mags, Marnie S/O: No One Kids: None Best Friend(s): Eloise Daniel Aesthetic: Maggie is the trendiest out of all the Healy children. She was the biggest fashionista as a child, and was obsessed with clothes and shopping and makeup, very girly. She had Matty wrapped around her finger from the day she was born, he would do anything for his children, but little Maggie just knew how to charm him. She did ballet since she was two years old and wants to be a prima ballerina when shes older, already focused on that career at only seven years old. The whole family makes a show to come to every recital and competition she partakes in. Margaret has quite the attitude on her and is very sassy, knows what a good comeback is for sure. She's a bit of a smart mouth, and her mother has to remind her to use her manners once and a while, but Matt thinks its hilarious.

Harrison Timothy Healy

DOB: April 19th 2018 Age: 7 years old Hometown: London, England Nicknames: Harry, Haz, Hazza S/O: No One Kids: None Best Friend(s): Joseph Marks Aesthetic: Harry is the most polite, kindest little boy ever to exist. When he was born, he was the easiest baby Matt and Carrie had ever had, never cried, never woke up in the middle of the night. His parents never had to worry about Harry running off like his twin sister, and they never got a call home from school for bad behaviour. In fact, all of his teachers adored him, he was very bright for a seven year old and extremely sweet to his classmates and any other staff members. He was friends with everyone, though Joey Marks was his "bestest" friend in the whole world, never like to exclude anyone. He and Margaret got along quite well, though Maggie was a bit more eccentric than he was, she would fight anyone who dare say a thing about her brother. Nothing made Caroline happier than seeing her twins be so close together.

Arthur Flynn Healy

DOB: February 15th 2023 Age: 2 years old Hometown: London, England Nicknames: Arch, Archie S/O: No One Kids: None Best Friend(s): Sylvie Daniel and June Daniel Aesthetic: No one has bigger beef with Matthew Healy than his son himself. Arthur is the biggest mummy's boy you'll ever meet, and he has no shame in showing it. Him and Matty often fight for Caroline's attention and she most always has to break up her time for the two boys. It's especially hard for Archie when his father's been on tour and he's gotten mummy to himself for a whole year and now here comes daddy to take her away from him. If Matty ever tries to put him to sleep or feed him at all, he will cry and whine till Matt can't take it anymore and he'll just give him to Caroline like Arthur wanted in the first place. Nothing has changed even after Rosie was born.

Rosalie Anne Healy

DOB: June 30th 2024 Age: 1 year old Hometown: London, England Nicknames: Rose, Rosie, Annie S/O: No One Kids: None Best Friend(s): None Aesthetic: The cutest, happiest baby on the planet. Annie was definitely a surprise baby, born only 16 months after Arthur. Loved nonetheless by her parents and siblings. She is always giggling at something, her daddy's funny face usually, or the family's pet dogs. She was named after her father's Nana, and she never really gets called Rosalie unless she's being reprimanded. Her and Archie has always gotten along, being so close in ages, though he gets a little too aggressive with her, not understanding that he can't play with her just yet.

[gracie-bird]

Mrs. Frederic S. Claghorn (left) and Mrs. George J. Hauptfuhrer Jr. meet at the Chestnut Hill home of Mrs. Joseph S. Rambo (right) to complete plans for Oct. 30 gala being sponsored by women's division of Eastern Pennsylvania Multiple Sclerosis Society at Academy of Music.

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Sunday, October 12, 1969).

DANCE HONORS PRINCESS GRACE

Dance honors Princess Brace Princess Grace of Monaco will be guest of honor at a "champagne dance" on Thursday, Oct. 30, at the Academy of Music Ballroom. Mrs. Joseph S. Rambo, of Chestnut Hill, is honorary chairman of the gala being sponsored by the Eastern Pennsylvania Multiple Sclerosis Society to raise funds to support research in finding the cause and control of this disease.

Festivities will begin with cocktails at 5 P. M. followed by dancing to the music of Romig, Lewis and Carney orchestras.

CHAIRMEN LISTED

Mrs. William E. Milhollen, Mrs. William A. Roth and Mrs. A. Ardley Henkels, are cochairmen.

Assisting the chairmen in arrangements for the Oct. 30 dance will be Mrs. Lloyd M. Coates, Mrs. George Morris Dorrance, Mrs. Frank B. Axelrod, Mrs. Frank Garofolo, Mrs. Morris R. Shaffer, Mrs. Alan D. Ameche, Mrs. Kershaw Burbank, Mrs. Murray Firestone, Mrs. F. Howard Goodwin Jr., Miss Ann Jane Callan, Mrs. Margaret K. Con-Ian, Mrs. Sydney Daroff, Mrs. Michael Daroff and Mrs. Edward Dudlik. Also, Mrs. Frederick H. Le vis Jr., Miss Marian Hayes, Mrs. W.Thacher Longstreth, Mrs. George J. Hauptfuhrer Jr., Mrs. Paul R. Kaiser, Mrs.Frederic S. Claghorn, Mrs. Russell Levin, Mrs. William Levinson, Mrs. Donald LeVine. Others are Henry S. McNeil, Mrs. Walter J. Maiden, Miss Patricia Lockhart, Mrs. Charles Nicholson, Mrs. Elizabeth Orr, Mrs. B. Arthur Pinney, Mrs. William Putnam, Miss Mildred Rinker, Mrs. Henriette Wallace, Mrs. Stanley A. Welsh Jr., Mrs. Michael A. Walsh, Mrs. Thomas A. Wood Jr., Mrs. Douglas H. Worrall Jr., Mrs. Vernon D. Wright, Mrs. Charles Wilson, Mrs. Robert G. Wilder.

"OPENING NIGHT" IS THEM OF BALL

"Opening Night" is the theme of the sixth annual West Park Hospital Ball to be held Saturday evening at Radnor Valley Country Club.

The ball is sponsored by the Women's Auxiliary of the Hospital and is cochairmened by Mr. and Mrs. Aaron N. Cohen. Proceeds will benefit the hospital building fund campaign and a new cardiac unit.

LANEiBRiANT for Fine carpet. we design them. From you like investment in dedicated Wall-to-Wall Hardwick's Colors: Green, sq. yd..

[howardhawkshollywood]

Margaret Sheridan as scientific researcher Nikki Nicholson in a publicity still for The Thing (1951).

[kwebtv]

Masters of Sex - Showtime - September 29, 2013 - November 13, 2016

Period Drama (46 episodes)

Running Time: 60 Minutes

Stars:

Michael Sheen as Dr. William Masters

Lizzy Caplan as Virginia Johnson

Caitlin FitzGerald as Libby Masters

Teddy Sears as Dr. Austin Langham (seasons 1–2, recurring seasons 3–4)

Nicholas D'Agosto as Dr. Ethan Haas (season 1, guest season 2)

Annaleigh Ashford as Betty Dimello (seasons 2–4, recurring season 1)

Recurring:

Beau Bridges as Barton Scully (seasons 1–4)

Allison Janney as Margaret Scully (seasons 1–3)

Rose McIver as Vivian Scully (seasons 1–2)

Heléne Yorke as Jane Martin (seasons 1–3)

Kevin Christy as Lester Linden (seasons 1–4)

Julianne Nicholson as Dr. Lillian DePaul (seasons 1–2)

Ann Dowd as Estabrooks 'Essie' Masters (seasons 1–2)

Mather Zickel as George Johnson (seasons 1–3)

Cole Sand (seasons 1–2) and Noah Robbins (season 3) as Henry Johnson

Kayla Madison (seasons 1–2) and Isabelle Fuhrman (seasons 3–4) as Tessa Johnson

Greg Grunberg as Gene Moretti, Betty's husband (seasons 1–2)

Finn Wittrock as Dale (season 1)

Garrett M. Brown as Chancellor Doug Fitzhugh (seasons 1, 3)

Brian Howe as Sam Duncan (seasons 1–3)

Elizabeth Bogush as Elise Langham (seasons 1–2)