Well, CHEO is over . . .

This Friday Mom spoke at CHEO. The new Akron conference center was really nice and we preferred it to the old Columbus one. Mom had a good sized crowd and we actually met some nice people afterward. So, as a friend wrote in a card to Mom this weekend, we are Praying for "seeds to be planted and roots to go down deep". Sarah and I spent some time in the Vendor's Hall looking at the Lamplighter Publishing booth. I got "The Lost Clue", an old mystery story that looks really interesting. Old mysteries are so different from Christie's.

This week we received two more great autograph responses. On Friday we received them from Jane Powell (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers). We sent a photo and piece of sheet music for each of us, and they came signed and personalized! We couldn't be more thrilled. I think they are so much more special when they personalize them. She has a beautiful signature too, with how the "J" loops down to become the "P".



The other ones we got back were from Joan Fontaine (Olivia de Havilland's sister). We sent two photos on June 1st and on the 10th we received our SASE back with only my photo which was signed and personalized. So, we sent another photo and two pieces of sheet music back the next Monday and yesterday received them back all signed.



Actually, we were kind of happy that she was the one that had a mistake because after we sent the first photos, Sarah decided to do her scrapbook on this line of papers that looks like old wallpaper. So she is matting all her autographed photos in picture frames. Well, when we went to reprint her photo for Joan Fontaine, she decided that it would be easier to print the frames on the photos (in case someone signs all the way to the edge). Also, I hadn't thought about sending pieces of sheet music from our collection until after, so that was nice that we got those autographed as well. We are both really happy about all the autograph responses that we have gotten so far!

Father's Day, White Pizza, and Books!

For Father's Day, we took Dad to Polaris for lunch at "The Cheesecake Factory". We had never been there before, so we thought it would be fun to try something different. (We are always trying to find "something different" in our house, whether it be food, movies, places to go etc. ) Sarah and I shared a white pizza. It had garlic, ricotta cheese, mozzarella, and spinach on it. We loved it! We are going to try making one here at home.

We walked around the restaurant where it is like a little town all it's own, similar to Easton. There was this huge Barnes and Noble, so we went in there to see if we could find something to spend a gift card that we've had for ages on. It was so big that it actually had escalators inside to go up and down to the second floor. I got these two really cool book sets to save for little Ellen. One is "Sense and Sensibility" and the other is "Little Women". They are cool boxes with a flap cover that opens to show a paperback book with the DVD of the matching feature film underneath. Each box has a scenery photo from a location from the film with a cardboard band that has a movie photo on it. Sarah got a really cool book with lots of photos of the Royal family (Windsors only). It was published by one of the big British newspapers.

So, all in all, it was a VERY fun day that we all enjoyed!

"And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." - Ephesians 6:4

"I'm singin', just singin' in the rain!"

This Sunday afternoon the Ohio Theatre played the classic musical "Singin' In the Rain". Starring Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, and Donald O'Connor, this is considered one of the best-loved musicals of all time! Well, on the big screen - it certainly is on the top! So far, it is my favorite film that we have seen in the theatre. I thought drama was pretty swell, but musicals are fantastic!

Clark Wilson is the organist who plays the Ohio Theatre's famous Morton organ. The organ has 324 stops which control more than 2,500 pipes! His playing is simply wonderful. He plays for half an hour before every film, fifteen minutes at intermission, and again at the end of the film. I've really enjoyed his playing every other time, but for "Singin' in the Rain" it was the best! He played every song from the film, even "Temptation". However, you've never heard anything as pretty as his rendition of "Would You". Positively gorgeous! We even stayed after the film to hear him.

Of course, the film was wonderful (as always)! My favorite part is still the end where Debbie Reynolds is behind the curtain and Jean Hagen is out front. The dance numbers are terrific, my personal favorite being "Good Morning" with the three stars. Debbie Reynolds, who was only 19 when filming this movie, commuted from her parents house every morning at 4:00am. Sometimes, to save time, she would just sleep on the set.

The role of Lina was originally written for Judy Holliday. However, when casting began, she had just made a huge hit in "Born Yesterday", so they cast Jean Hagen (who was Judy Holliday's understudy for "Born Yesterday") instead. A funny thing is that in the film, Debbie Reynolds is hired to dub Jean Hagen. Actually, Debbie Reynolds' voice was considered too young sounding to fit Jean Hagen and it is actually Jean Hagen's real voice that you hear when Kathy is dubbing Lina's lines! Jean Hagen was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance as Lina Lamont.

All in all, this was a very, very fun Sunday afternoon. So far it has been the best film on the big screen, and I am not sure anything can top it, so we'll see. "The Adventures of Robin Hood" might, though!

"Hath the rain a father? or who hath begotten the drops of dew?" - Job 38:28

It Happened One Night

Last night we drove down to Columbus again for another great classic film on the big screen. This time it was Frank Capra's "It Happened One Night", starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. It was swell! Miss Colbert is a spoiled rich girl who is running away from her Father. Mr. Gable is a newspaper reporter who discovers her true identity and decides to help her get to New York. As they are the stars and spend the next hour and a half together, they fall in love. Here is a photo of Sarah and me standing infront of the Ohio Theatre showing the marquee!

We just love seeing the old films in the theatre. You can really appreciate them, seeing how they were meant to be viewed. Also, the theatre is so beautiful. Sarah and I enjoy walking around before the film begins, just to admire the different rooms. Once we even walked all the way up to the highest point in the balcony. By the time you make it to the last set of stairs, they are practically a adder. It's like climbing a mountain!

"It Happened One Night" was the first picture to win the big five Academy Awards (Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Screenplay). Claudette Colbert was actually about to board a train on her way to take a vacation when the Academy officials arrived and whisked her to the ceremony so that Shirley Temple could present her with her Oscar!

The character of Bugs Bunny was based on several parts of this film. His character was based on Oscar Shapely, the guy who talks to Claudette Colbert on the bus. "Bugs" was taken from the heavy in Clark Gable's gangster story who is named "Bugs Dooley". Last, but not least, Bugs Bunny's style of eating carrots is taken from Clark Gable during the famous hitchhiking scene!

CAPA presents Princess Grace!

Every Summer, the Ohio Theatre down in Columbus plays old films on the big screen. We found out about it half way through the series last year, so this year we knew to look for the schedule. Turns out that we are going to go see six of them! Sarah and I are thrilled to get to see the old films and actors on the big screen. Yesterday we went and saw the first film of the season. Hitchcock's "Rear Window". We have never been great fans of the film, but it was much more enjoyable big and, as a friend in the UK would say - the experience was "gripping"!

However, the main reason I wanted to see it was to be able to experience Princess Grace on the big silver screen. Was she gorgeous! (Well, I think she is gorgeous any size, on any screen - but she sure was smashing on the large screen!) During her first scene she puts on a pair of white gloves - what class! However, the highlight of the entire film is the final shot that pans up from her feet to a beautiful close-up of her reading a book! So gorgeous, even in her casual clothes! Who else can wear penny loafers and jeans and still look like a million dollars?

Another fun moment from the film is when she climbs over a second story porch railing to climb into a window, all the while in high heels and a $1,000 dress. :o) She exhibits such an adventurous streak that is so-unprincessly that it is one of my favorite Grace Kelly moments! Mom and I had fun watching her in the beautiful green silk suit that she wears. When she takes the jacket off and casually tosses it onto the table. What a suit!

On Thursday they are playing Capra's "It Happened One Night", so back we go for another great silver screen experience! Sarah and I are really happy. (Although, I don't think Clark Gable is quite going to compare to Princess Grace! - Who does? )

"She will place on your head a garland of grace; She will present you with a crown of beauty." - Proverbs 4:9

Doris Day autographs

What a surprise! We came home from the Chiropractor and Dad told us that there was a surprise out in our mail box. A manilla envelope from the Doris Day Foundation with two lovely 8x10 autographed photos (one for each of us, of course)! This is very exciting! There are not a ton of people left from our favorite film era that still sign.

Who can ever forget Doris Day in "Calamity Jane" or "Romance on the High Seas"? Although her recordings of "Que Sera, Sera" and "Secret Love" are great, my favorite is "Tacos, Enchiladas, and Beans". If you've never heard her sing that song before, you should find it! (Click here to hear a sample of her recording.) Another great song of hers is "Put 'Em in a Box, Tie 'Em with a Ribbon & Throw it in the Deep Blue Sea" from her first film "Romance on the High Seas".
So, this is a very exciting response for us. We couldn't be happier! :o)

Sing aloud unto God our strength: make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob. - Psalm 81:1

A Visit from Gramma

Gramma Gail (Mom's mom) visited us this week. She arrived Tuesday afternoon and left on Friday morning. She is up here for her 55th High School reunion. We had a great time together and lots of fun. On Thursday, she drove Mom, Sarah, and Me to Cleveland to look at a bunch of the houses where she and Mom grew up. It was lots of fun. Going around Cleveland with her is like going through Miami with Dad. They remember everything!

Here is the house where Gramma grew up. This is the same house where Uncle Danny would pin her hair to the clothes line while he left to play baseball! It worked until their mother came home early one day! That is Gramma sitting on the front porch.

Here is the fire station where Gramma's dad worked for all those years. He drove the back of the old fire engines. Later on he was prooted to chief and worked all the valves on the engine. Mom has some of the buttons from his fireman's uniform.

Finally, here is a photo of the Terraces. They moved here when Mom was nine years old and stayed there until she was fourteen. This is where Uncle Donnie would climb out of his bedroom window, when he was supposed to be sleeping, to go out and play. That worked until one night he fell into the garbage can that sat under his window!

Lauren Bacall Autographs!

It has been an absolutely gorgeous rainy day today. Actually, the tornado sirens were going off in town for over an hour, but it was after the whopping storm that hit us. Well, when the weather cleared this afternoon, I went to rescue the mail from our leaky mailbox and guess what! There was an envelope from Lauren Bacall, with the three photos that Sarah and I sent last month signed and personalized! We couldn't be more thrilled! What a cool autograph to have - and personalized! Way too cool! Such a legend of Hollywood.

We sent photos of her with Humphrey Bogart from their wedding at Malabar Farm. Since we have been to Malabar many times, we thought that it would be cool to get those autographed! The other one is a publicity still from "The Big Sleep" which is classic Bogart and Bacall and one of their best films together.



"Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD." - Psalm 31:24