Lynne Ramsay is a tremendously talented director, as anyone who has seen her films We Need to Talk About Kevin and Ratcatcher can tell you, which makes the latest ripple in her career quite a bummer: when production began Monday on her latest film, the Natalie Portman-fronted Western Jane Got a Gun, Ramsay was nowhere to be found. Deadline broke the story (so beware; that site is notoriously cozy with studio types who might have it in their interest to paint Ramsay as wildly — and litigiously — irresponsible), reporting trouble right up to the start date. Ramsay still hasn’t issued comment on the matter, but the film’s producers have already lined up a replacement in the form of Gavin O’Connor, director of Warrior and Tumbleweeds (and the pilot of The Americans). Deadline branded Ramsay’s departure a “SHOCKER,” but it’s not as rare as you’d think; despite the intense work of developing a picture and preparing it, filmmakers have frequently walked away from pictures before — or even during — production. We’ve got a few examples for you after the jump. … Read More
Tennessee Williams
The 10 US States With the Greatest Love Stories
Earlier this week, we noticed this map of the country, with a literary love story assigned to each state, over at Amazon. Though the US (and the world) has no shortage of amazing novels of passion, we’re betting you don’t have time to read 50 novels during this the most romantic of months. To help you out (and in case you want to get the perfect book for that special someone this week), we’ve picked the ten states that we think have the all-time best love stories in American literature. Click through to see which ones we chose — and feel free to disagree with us in the comments! … Read More
20 Excellent Photos of Famous Authors Partying
Whether they be bad boys (or bad girls), dirty old men or just legendary party animals, there’s no denying that the literary set knows how to get down. From dance parties to book parties to whatever’s going on in that car, writers are adept at letting off steam, and so this year, we thought we’d get a little New Year’s celebration inspiration from a few of our favorite authors. And hey, if you’re still trying to figure out your signature cocktail at this late hour, you can model that on your favorite writer too. After the jump, raise a glass with everyone from Ernest Hemingway to Rita Dove to Nora Ephron. Happy New Year’s Eve, everybody. … Read More
Photos of Famous Authors and Their Bicycles
It’s the height of bike riding season here in New York — it’s no longer so hot that you can’t do more than duck from air conditioned shop to air conditioned shop, but it’s still beautiful, and as the air continues to crisp, the cyclist will be out in numbers. And hey, in another life, one of them might have been Leo Tolstoy. We spotted this delightful photo of Leo Tolstoy and his bicycle — he learned to ride at 67! — over at Open Culture, and we were intrigued. Bike riding seems like an appropriate pastime for authors (all those bike-powered book tours and long lazy afternoons), so we thought we’d hunt around to see how many other famous writers liked to zoom about on two wheels. Click through to check out our gallery, and let us know if we missed your favorite snap of a writer on a bike in the comments. … Read More
Shoey Nam’s Multi-Faceted Portraits of Famous Writers
In Shoey Nam’s Loved and Labored series, which we recently spotted over at Juxtapoz, the London-based illustrator depicts some of his famous writers in lovely delicate line drawings. Even more interesting is the fact that each portrait is at least two — and sometimes three — portraits in one, depicting the subject at various stages of their writing life or even just in opposing moods, often with one version of the writer peering over the shoulder of the other, reminding him of his presence. Nam writes, “I chose to illustrate a set of literature figures, as writers have the tendency to carry a certain haggardness and cynicism of the world on their faces, which are often reflected in their words…. I tried to focus on depicting the figures’ mannerisms, such as the look on the face when concentrated, the way one smokes, holds objects, as well as the lines/traces/marks formed on faces that suggest their habitual face expressions.” Click through to check out Nam’s portraits of famous writers, and then be sure head over to his website to check out a similar series of musicians, plus even more of his work. … Read More
Take a Dip: Literary Greats In Their Bathing Suits
[Editor's note: Your devoted Flavorwire team is taking Memorial Day off, but we've left you with some of our favorite summer-related features that you may have missed the first time around. This post originally ran June 26, 2011. Enjoy!]
We don’t know about you, but now that it’s officially summertime, we want to spend as much time in our bathing suits as humanly possible, and so, it seems, did many of our favorite writers. After all, even the moodiest of authors needs a little sunshine now and again to chase the pain away. Whether that works or not is a whole other story. Click through for our gallery of literary greats in their bathing suits, but be warned — they’re not all pin-up shots. Sure, Sylvia and Anne are bathing beauties in addition to being quality wordsmiths, but old Ernest looks decidedly doughy around the edges. Oh well, he had other talents. All we wonder is, what were they reading on the beach? … Read More
71 Things You Didn’t Know About Tennessee Williams
The Glass Menagerie, A Streecar Named Desire, The Rose Tattoo, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof — all plays that wouldn’t have existed if Tennessee Williams hadn’t existed first. The American playwright did more to transform 20th-century theater than anyone else, and to celebrate the 71 years of his life we bring you 71 facts about the man whose birthday falls on March 26. After the jump, learn about a schizophrenic sister, a distant father, and a lonely son who felt compelled to write. … Read More
Required Viewing: Elizabeth Taylor’s Best Roles
We were saddened to hear the news that Elizabeth Taylor died overnight at the age of 79. While she was known as much in recent years for her private life and questionable marriage record as she was for her films, Taylor was one of the best actors of her generation, and her performances in the 1950s and 1960s defined a string of the era’s finest films. In celebration of a fine career, here’s a selection of her best roles. … Read More
10 Great Works of Literature for America’s 10 Most Literate Cities
The results are in on Central Connecticut State University’s annual study ranking the most literate cities in the United States. And guess what? Despite the literary mecca that is Brooklyn, New York doesn’t even crack the top 25. In fact, we’re pretty sure the top 10 will surprise you. But don’t worry if you’re not conversant in the literary classics of our most well-read cities. We’ve matched each with a book that’s set there. Take a virtual roadtrip through America’s most literate metropolises after the jump. … Read More
Some REE-ul Big Problems in Ten Blocks on the Camino Real
Photo: Yi Zhao
After hearing that Target Margin Theater was going to produce Tennessee Williams’ 1946 one-act Ten Blocks on the Camino Real (at the Ohio Theater until January 31), we picked up a copy to take along on a trip to Guatemala. We got around to reading it a few days after New Years, on the steps of the ruined Capuchinas on Dos Avenida and the Platerias in Antigua. This is how it begins:
The audience faces a little plaza. It should have grace and mystery and sadness: that peculiar dreamlike feeling that emanates from such squares in Mexico and from the popular songs of that country.
From where we were sitting, this read like a perfectly evocative description of a Latin town square, as fragrant with the sulfur of nearby volcanoes as the New Orleans of A Streetcar Named Desire would be with the combined odors of liquor, sex and sweat. However, Williams did make a tactical error in that stage direction: he included the word “dreamlike.” Any mention of dreams is an invitation to misuse the term “surreal” ― a ubiquitous cover for sloppiness when it isn’t accurately describing the concrete art pursued by Fellini and Dalí. Target Margin artistic director David Herskovits loves the word “surreal,” and his company’s production of Ten Blocks on the Camino Real is astonishingly sloppy. … Read More
Recent Features
-
5h
The "Gayest Album Ever," Haim, and Video Game Mash-ups: Links You Need to See
-
6h
Staff Picks: Flavorwire's Favorite Cultural Things This Week
- 6h
- 7h
- 8h
- 8h
- 10h
- 10h
- 11h
- 12h
Popular Posts
- 1d
- 2d
Actors and Directors Who Trashed the Remakes of Their Classic Movies - 2d
- 3d
- 4d
The 50 Books Everyone Needs to Read, 1963-2013
The 50 Greatest Summer Albums, 1963-2013
5 Great Novels That Will Mess With Your Mind
The Wedding Photos of 25 Musicians in Love
