An Autumnal Sunshine Blogger Award

Cecilia at Craft, Coffee, and Cake has tagged me with a Sunshine Blogger Award!  Thank you, Cecilia!

Rules:

1. Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog. 
2. Thank the person who nominated you. (Thank you again, Liz.) 
3. Provide a link to your nominator’s blog. 
4. Answer your nominator’s questions. 
5. Nominate up to 11 bloggers. 
6. Ask your nominees 11 questions. 
7. Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog post

Cecilia's Questions:

1. If you had to live out the events in a book as the main character, which book would you choose? 

I'd like to be Miss Mary Russell in The Beekeeper's Apprentice for a run through the book, and get to be mentored and befriended by Sherlock Holmes.

2. Favourite weird combination of flavours that everyone else hates? 

Hmm.  I don't make them often, but I do enjoy peanut butter and onion sandwiches.

3. Whom are your favourite actor and actress? 

John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara!  How lucky I am -- they made five movies together!

4. If you had all the money in the world to buy an outfit for a ball, what would you wear? (The sky's the limit for this one - you can wear any dress, shoes, bag, hairstyle you like!) 

I'd wear anything from White Christmas that would look nice on me -- probably any of Rosemary Clooney's outfits.  These are two of my favorites:

5. Quote from a film that makes you smile/laugh? 

So many!  Basically every single line from Support Your Local Sheriff (1969), which we quote alllll the time.  "I don't really have much to say about old Millard, as he only arrove amongst us a few days ago and was promptly struck down by whatever deadly disease it was that struck him down" tends to be a big favorite, oddly enough.

6. Social situation from a book/film to which you completely relate? 

Again, so many!  How to choose one?  Maybe, let's go with the exchange in The Avengers (2012) where Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is confused by Nick Fury's (Samuel L. Jackson) casual mention of "flying monkeys," and Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is all pleased with himself for understanding the reference.  I have been all three of those characters in various situations like that, at different times.

7. Most inspiring quote from a non-religious book? 

I mean, choosing just one is almost impossible.  I do find this line from The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery to be very inspiring, though:

She brushed the old years and habits and inhibitions away from her like dead leaves. She would not be littered with them.

(From my Instagram)

8. What personal quality do you think, if everyone possessed it, would make the biggest difference to the world? 

Cheerfulness.

9. You have to have one antagonist from a novel tag along with you for the next six months. Who would it be? 

Oh my.  How about Severus Snape from the Harry Potter books?  He's a dear favorite of mine, but Harry certainly considers him an antagonist in every single book.  And, odd as this might seem, I don't think I would mind having him living in my house for half a year.  If he got sarcastic about my cooking, I would get sarcastic back.  If he ridiculed my coffee, I'd have an excuse to buy an espresso machine and teach him how to use it.  I'd introduce him to chocolate-chip pancakes and peppermint mocha and sitting outside on the swing reading a book.  Maybe I'd even manage to make him smile once or twice.

10. Can you speak another language? If so, which one? If not, which one would you like to learn? 

I can speak a little bit of German.

11. Would you rather be an amazing homemaker and housekeeper, or be able to write beautiful poetry?

I can write poetry already, and I enjoy doing homemaker things like cooking and baking and arranging nice flowers for the dining room table and switching out some decorations with the seasons... so I pick some kind of magical spell that will turn me into a better housekeeper!  Because I am not good at keeping my house clean and tidy like I ought to be.

Now, it's my turn :-D

My Questions:

1. Thanksgiving or Halloween?

2. Candy apples or caramel apples?

3. Hot apple cider or cold apple cider?

4. Walnuts or almonds?

5. Pecan pie or pumpkin pie?

6. Caramel corn or Chex mix?

7. Bonfire or a fire in a fireplace?

8. Hiking or camping?

9. Canoeing or kayaking?

10. Sweaters or hoodies?

11. Gloves or mittens?

I Nominate:

Anyone who wants to answer these!  I haven't had much time for blogging lately, as you might have noticed, so I'm not going to pick anyone for this.  If it looks fun to you, consider yourself tagged!

A Summery Sunshine Blogger Award

Sally Silverscreen of 18 Cinema Lane has awarded me with a Sunshine Blogger Award :-D  Thank you, Sally!

The rules of this award are pretty simple:  answer the 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you, then nominate 11 other bloggers and ask them 11 questions of your own.  Always good fun, because the questions can be new every time!

Here are Sally's questions for me:

1. Which actor or actress do you wish had starred in a historical fiction/historical period picture?  

Most of my favorite actors and actresses HAVE starred in period dramas.  But I do have a running list of actors I dearly wish would make a western.  And they are:

Chris Hemsworth

Luke Evans

David Boreanaz

Henry Cavill

Charlie Hunnam

Come on, guys, get yourselves some hats and horses and let's go!

(Not at all coincidentally, I have cast all of those guys in western books I've written).

2. What two shows would you pair for a crossover? 

I want a Perry Mason (1957-66) and Dragnet (1951-59) crossover!  I want Paul Drake (William Hopper) and Joe Friday (Jack Webb) working together to solve a crime involving someone Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) is defending.  Please, and thank you.

3. Which food-related movie promotion would you bring back? 

Back when Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) came out, they released a limited edition Snickers bar with coconut in it that I LOVED.  I wish they made those still.

4. You’ve been tasked with designing a popcorn bucket! What movie do you choose and what does its popcorn bucket look like? 

This year is the 70th anniversary of my favorite musical, Guys and Dolls (1955), and I would design a very cool bucket similar to this Dutch poster:

I want bright and cheery yellow streaks, little multi-colored stars, and the main characters in their vivid clothing all around the popcorn bucket.  

Actually, now I really want a coffee mug like that.  May have to go see if anyone has made one.

5. When was the last time you saw a made-for-TV movie? 

I watched The Shadow Riders (1982) with my husband a few weeks ago.  It's such a fun romp of a western -- I probably will review it for Legends of Western Cinema Week next month.  (Yes, that event is returning!  We will be announcing it pretty soon!)

6. What is your least favorite trend in movies? 

I am sick of the big Hollywood studios putting out movies that they think audiences should like instead of putting out movies audiences actually do like and want to watch.

7. Which movie would you like to see from a different character’s perspective? 

Hmm.  You know, I'd like to see what Dave (1993) would look like from the perspective of Ellen Mitchell (Sigourney Weaver).  

8. Is there a movie poster or trailer you wish you could fix? If so, which one? 

The trailers for The Lone Ranger (2013) made it look like it was going to be a straight-up western and failed to prepare people for its quirky, fantastical twists.  Likewise, The Man from UNCLE (2014) trailers were dark and serious and totally missed both the humor and the retro panache of the film.  As a result, both films failed to land their target audiences and kinda fizzled.  And that makes me very angry because I would happily be watching sequel after sequel for both of them.

9. What is your least favorite film from your favorite actor’s or actress’s filmography? 

My favorite actor is John Wayne.  I will probably never watch The Shootist (1976) again because it's too sad.  I also don't care much for Rio Lobo (1970) or Legend of the Lost (1957).

My favorite actress is Maureen O'Hara, and I honestly didn't care much for How Green was My Valley (1941).  I know it's widely admired, so I feel like I should give it another chance.  Maybe I will, some day.

10. What movie-related mystery would you like to see solved? 

Who killed the chauffeur in The Big Sleep (1946)?  Author Raymond Chandler, who wrote the original book, didn't know.  Nobody knows.  I suspect a couple different people, but it sure would be nice to know.

11. Is there a “lost” or “partially lost” film you wish was recovered? If so, which one?

Many!  We have lost so many of Rudolph Valentino's early films, and even some made after he became famous.  I dearly wish someone would find prints of A Sainted Devil (1924) and The Young Rajah (1922) squirreled away in someone's attic.  We did find Beyond the Rocks in 2003, after all!  Parts of The Young Rajah have been found, and a version has been cobbled together from that partial print plus publicity stills and what is know of the script, but still... the whole movie isn't with us anymore, and I'm bummed.

And now, it's my turn!

My Questions:

1. What classic movie have you seen most recently?

2. What modern movie have you seen most recently?

3. What's movie that was made in your birth year that you really enjoy?

4. What's a movie you wish you had seen much earlier than you did?

5. What movie are you hoping to watch soon?

6. What's a movie you have been wanting to see for years, but still haven't?

7. Have you ever watched the same movie more than once in the movie theater?

8. What movie needs a sequel but never got one?

9. How do you watch most movies?  (Streaming?  DVD?  Theater?  TV?)

10. Have you ever changed your mind and started liking an actor/actress you formerly disliked?

11. Have you ever visited a filming location?  (Share photos if you can!)

And I Tag:

Along the Brandywine

Any Merry Little Thought

The Flapper Dame

Holds Upon Happiness

I Am Charles Baker Harris (And I Can Read)

Maidens of Green Gables

Meanwhile, in Rivendell...

Musings of an Introvert

Sidewalk Crossings

Taking Up Room

VT Dorchester

Play if you want to!

A Wintery Sunshine Blogger Award

Yes, it's true.  I'm here with another Sunshine Blogger Award post!  This time, I was nominated by Astrya of Inkling Corner.  Thanks, Astrya!  I have such fun with these sorts of posts :-) 

Here are the Sunshine Blogger Rules:

1. Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog. 

2. Thank the person who nominated you. 

3. Provide a link to your nominator’s blog. 

4. Answer your nominator’s questions. 

5. Nominate up to 11 bloggers. 

6. Ask your nominees 11 questions. 

7. Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog posts.

And here are Astrya's questions!

1. What was the last book you read? 

Snowhawk by Deborah Koren, book two in her Dark Throne duology.  These books are high fantasy, meaning they take place in a fictional world (as opposed to low fantasy, which takes place in our world but with magical elements).  They're edge-of-your-seat, high-stakes adventures with ordinary people stepping up to save their kingdom from those within and without who are poised to destroy it.

You can read my review of Balefire here and my review of Snowhawk here.

(From my Instagram account)

2. What are you looking for in a ‘perfect’ movie adaption of a classic?  

The same thing I'm looking for in a good movie adaptation of a modern movie or play:  capturing the characters in a way that feels true to the characters in the book, and portraying the story in a way that makes sense for the medium.

It's no secret that I'm not a "purist" when it comes to movie adaptations ;-)  I even made this little button illustrating that fact years and years ago, and it remains in my blog's sidebar to remind people of this.  You cannot translate a work between two different mediums without changing things, because every medium -- be it print, radio, stage, or film -- has its own peculiar restraints, its own strengths and weaknesses.  A slavish reproduction in a new medium of a story created in a different medium will inevitably fail to work in some way or other.  And what is the point of creating an exact replica of a story in a different medium?  Bring something new to the story!  I have learned more about Hamlet from the 20+ stage and film versions I have seen than I would have from only reading the text itself (though I usually pick up a new nuance or detail when I reread it, too).

3. What’s your favourite season of the year and why? 

Winter!  I love snow.  And, yes, I know whereof I speak -- I lived in Iowa and Michigan as a kid (and in the Thumb of MI, where Lake Effect snow is magnificently mountainous), and in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Connecticut as an adult.  I've had to drive to work through snowstorms, I've had to shovel my driveway more than once in the same day, and I've had to help get my car out of a ditch.  Yet I still LOVE snow.

4. If you could go anywhere in the world for one week, where would you go? (This could also be a fictional place.) 

New Zealand so I could see all the Middle-earth filming locations and sets and so on.

5. If you could choose your own name, what would it be? 

Reid James.  I might use that as a non de plume at some point.

6. If you had to write a short story about anything, what would it be? 

I've written more than a hundred short stories over the past 30 years.  And I'll be writing another beginning in January.  If I want to write a short story about something, I do it, or I plan it out to write in the future.  

My next one will be about a fur trapper who's left a poke of gold by a deceased friend, but discovers the gold is being held in the safe of a greedy saloon owner who is unwilling to let go of it (or all the other semi-legally-gotten money in his safe).  It'll be part of an anthology of western short stories being put together by Allison Tebo.

Meanwhile, I do have ten short stories out in a collection called Prairie Tales: Volume One.  You can learn more about my books here.

7. What was the worst movie you watched this year and why? 

Probably Pan (2015).  I didn't care about any of the characters, a lot of the special effects were kind of kludgy, and even though I love Hugh Jackman very much indeed, he actually managed to annoy me in that movie.

8. British or American spelling? 

Well, I'm an American, so I tend to stick to American spellings, except for the word 'grey.'  I much prefer the British spelling, 'grey,' to the American spelling, 'gray.'  It simply looks more grey.

9. Desert or Forest? 

Forest.  I love forests, but I hate deserts.  Well, actually, I just hate both heat and dryness, but that means deserts are a huge NO from me.

10. What is your favourite piece of music (or two, or three, because I know how hard these questions are)? 

Well, I'm always partial to "Mack the Knife" when sung by Bobby Darin, I've been jamming to Harry Connick Jr.'s "We Three Kings" rendition on repeat this week, and I never get tired of the main theme from The Magnificent Seven written by Elmer Bernstein.

11. What was the last movie you watched?

Horizon: An American Saga, Chapter One (2024), which I rewatched this week while chatting online with my best friend while she watched it too.  I loved it when I watched it twice in the theaters this summer, I loved it again this week while watching the DVD at home, and I am ridiculously impatient for them to get a move on and release Chapter Two already!!!

Also, I've realized that my favorite character in the whole thing is Sgt. Major Thomas Riordan (Michael Rooker).  I thought he was my second-favorite, but this third viewing made me realize I really love him best.  (But I still have high hopes for Junior Sykes [Jon Beaver] to get a cool redemption arc of some kind.)

Now it's supposed to be time for some nominations.  However, I just tagged a whole lot of people with The Christmas Movie Tag, and this is a really busy time of year, so... I'm actually not going to tag anyone.  However!  I WILL provide eleven questions for anyone who wants to join the fun.  If you like my questions, you can consider yourself tagged, fill out the questions, link back to this post, etc.  If you do that, please leave me a comment here with a link to your post so I can see your answers!

My Questions:

1. Movies or books?

2. Singing or dancing?

3. Walking or swimming?

4. Cotton candy or popcorn?

5. Road trips or airplane rides?

6. Snow or rain?

7. Fantasy or sci-fi?

8. Ketchup or mayonnaise?

9. Elephants or polar bears?

10. December or July?

11. Hot dogs or hamburgers?

Play if you want to!

Double the Summer Sunshine Awards

Both Taking Up Room and Nitrate Glow have nominated me for a Sunshine Award!  Thank you, lovely movie mavens!  I'm going to answer ALL their questions in this post :-D  ::flexes fingers::

Zee usual Sunshine Award Rules:

• Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog
• Thank the person who nominated you
• Provide a link to your nominator’s blog
• Answer your nominator’s questions
• Nominate up to 11 bloggers
• Ask your nominees 11 questions
• Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog posts

Here are my answers to Taking Up Room's questions:

1. Which movie of 2024 has been your favorite so far? Your least favorite? 

If we're saying strictly movies released in 2024, my favorite has definitely been Horizon: An American Saga, Chapter One (2024), and my least-favorite has been The Ministry for Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024), and that is entirely misleading and horrible to say, because I enjoyed Ungentlemanly Warfare enough to buy a DVD copy for my shelves -- but those are the ONLY new movies made in 2024 I have seen this year.  It has been a sucky year for movies, yo.  There have been a few others I wouldn't mind seeing at some point, but I didn't want to see them enough to get me in the theater.

Now, if you want me to pick from all the movies I have watched for the first time in 2024, that's more interesting.  Then my favorite is probably The Train (1964), which is spellbinding, and my least-favorite has absolutely been Sherlock Holmes and the Leading Lady (1991), which was so abysmal I couldn't even finish it, not even for Christopher Lee's sake.

2. Do you like superhero movies or are you over them? 

I love them.  I'm so excited that my kids are getting old enough to really dig them!  But, at the same time, I am no longer watching the new MCU movies and shows because the first couple that came after Avengers: Endgame (2019) soured me deeply on where they were taking the franchise, so I am simply choosing to end the MCU there in my headcanon.

3. You have the chance to visit any movie studio or any movie production at the height of the studio era. Which studio or movie do you pick and why? 

I pick the production of The Blue Dahlia (1946) because it gives me the best shot at meeting both my favorite author, Raymond Chandler, and my dearly beloved Alan Ladd.  Plus his best friend, William Bendix

4. What do you like best about your favorite film genre? 

I love westerns because they make me happy.  I simply can't be uncheered by a cowboy!

5. Who are your favorite film critics? 

My blogging friends.  I pay basically no attention to "real" movie critics.  If they agree with me, it doesn't change anything, and if I disagree with them, I often get mad at their wrongness, and who needs more anger in their life?  Not me.

6. Are there any movies you regret reviewing? 

Ugh, yes.  I made a list nineteen years ago of my bottom 10 movies, and I really wish I could go back in time and stop myself from watching them.

7. Have you ever changed your opinion of a movie and if so, which movie was it? 

Goodness, yes!  Many times.  Especially as I gradually revisit movies I disliked when I was a teen.  3:10 to Yuma (1957), Hour of the Gun (1967), and The Proud Rebel (1958) are all movies I disliked or found boring as a teen, but dearly love now.

8. What are some of the other things you like doing besides blogging? 

I homeschool my kids, I read a lot of books, I write and publish books, I teach literature, I grow flowers and bake yummy snacks and take pretty pictures of books for Bookstagram.  I crochet.  I write a monthly newspaper column on Old West history.

9. Are there any movies that you think might make good video games? If you have any interest in video games, that is. 

I do enjoy video games now and then, particularly if they are movie-related.  I get a big kick out of the Lego Hobbit game, for instance.  It would be really fun to have a sort of film noir mash-up game where you get to choose what classic noir detective you want to be, and then you go around solving cases inspired by noir films.

10. If you could write about any celeb or other film-related topic, what or who do you write about? 

You mean, if I could write, like, a newspaper column on movies?  I could write about western movies and shows for months/years.  Or, if you mean, who or what could I write a nonfiction, film-related book about, again, westerns!  Maybe Alan Ladd's westerns, specifically.  Or Hamlet adaptations.  I keep watching more of those, and I could totally write a book reviewing a few dozen of them.  Which doesn't sound like a bad idea for a book, actually...

11. Who do you most enjoy seeing movies with?

I enjoy watching movies with people who are ready to enjoy them.  If I'm in a theater, give me a crowd that is going to laugh aloud at funny things, maybe clap at something awesome.  If I'm at home, give me companions who are NOT going to talk over the dialog all the time, but who are ready to laugh and maybe clap, maybe gasp, maybe quick share a "that's so cool!" kind of reaction.

Here are my answers to Nitrate Glow's questions:

1. What is the best theatrical experience you have ever had? 

When I was fifteen, we went to see Apollo 13 (1995) in the theater.  At the end, when the big, happy, wonderful reveal happens, the stoic Iowa farmers in that theater around us stood up and clapped.  I get tears in my eyes just remembering it.

2. Any opinions on the future of movie theaters?

I think theaters that are showing classic films alongside new ones will stay strong.  Theaters that only show new releases are going to struggle.  This is entirely based on my personal experience, in that I have gone to see two new releases this year, but by the end of this month, I'll have been to 9 re-releases of older films.

3. Is there a universally despised movie you think isn’t so bad? 

Well, The Lone Ranger (2013) is in my top five for all-time favorites...

4. Name a movie you enjoy from a genre you don’t usually like. 

I don't watch horror much at all, but I really like Dracula Untold (2014).  They put a very unique spin on his origins that I very much dig, as a writer.  Also, Luke Evans.  ::insert heart-eyes emoji here::

5. What do you think your best post to date is? 

I've been blogging for 22 years.  One best post?  Ouch.  Hmm.

Here are three I'm very proud of:

• My fake review of Murder Most Foul (1943)
• My poetic analysis of the song "Hurt" melded with Hamlet
• My post about finally figuring out why I love Hamlet so much

6. What is your favorite film from 1939? 

Destry Rides Again.  So quotable!

7. What are some classic film related books you would recommend? 

I really loved Sixguns and Society: A Structural Study of the Western by Will Wright.  Film Noir: Light and Shadow by Alain Silver and James Ursini is a delight.  I learned a lot from We'll Always Have Casablanca by Noah Isenberg.

8. What movie has the best cinematography you’ve ever seen? 

Well, this is tricky, because what does "best" mean?  Most-sweeping visuals?  Best composition?  Most striking use of color?  Gotta say, the best one I have seen in a long time is Midway (2019) -- they don't waste anything in their frames, and their shots showing what it was like to actually be in a dive bomber, diving on an enemy ship -- they're spectacular.

9. Name an underrated filmmaker/performer/creative in the industry you always champion. 

Have you heard me natter on for pages on end about Alan Ladd and how under-loved he is these days, how really good he was in serious roles even though the critics usually dismissed him as just a tough guy, how sweet and kind he was as a person?  If not, you must have not been reading my blog much for the past eight years...

10. Favorite movie soundtrack? 

I love a lot of soundtracks, so I'm just gonna go with Bruce Rowland's score for The Man from Snowy River (1982) because that's my favorite movie.  And the soundtrack is the first CD I ever bought.  And all three of my kids were born while that soundtrack was playing in the birthing room.

11. What movie are you itching to write about but haven’t yet?

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023) -- but I'll be reviewing it this weekend for the Barbarians at the Gate blogathon I'm co-hosting!

And now, the nominees are...

Nobody.  I just got nominated with a third Sunshine Blogger Award a couple days ago, so I'm going to save my tagging for when I answer that one...

The Sunshine Award, March-style

Gill at Reelweegiemidget Reviews nominated me for the Sunshine Award several months ago, and I am finally finishing off my post for it!  Thank you, Gill -- I'm sorry it took so long to finish this.

The Rules:

• Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog. 
• Thank the person who nominated you. 
• Provide a link to your nominator’s blog. 
• Answer your nominator’s questions. 
• Nominate up to 11 bloggers. 
• Ask your nominees 11 questions. 
• Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog posts.

Gill's Questions for Me:

Who would be your dream interview subject and why? 

I'm going to limit this to people who are currently alive and say Harrison Ford.  He doesn't like to talk much.  I don't like to talk much.  It would be a really short interview in terms of words, but I'd love to just... meet him and tell him how much I enjoy his movies, and maybe ask him if there are any questions nobody ever asks in interviews, but that he's always wanted to answer.

What’s your favourite blogathon that you have either run or taken part in? 

I have REALLY loved co-hosting Legends of Western Cinema Week for the past five years!  Speaking of which, I need to get in touch with my usual co-hosts and see if they're ready to start planning this year's event :-D

You have the choice of a film festival to attend in 2024 in an all-expenses paid trip, which do you choose…? 

I would love to attend the Lone Pine Film Festival someday!  So many amazing westerns were made in that area.  I had the pleasure of visiting their museum years and years ago, and would love to go back one day.

What film-inspired present would you buy for me if you had 50 dollars (or your own currency) to spend…? 

I really enjoy reading scripts, so I would try to find you a script for a movie or show that you love :-)

Imagine that you are moving house, which actor or actress would you choose as your next door neighbour? 

Hugh Jackman.  He's reportedly extremely nice and non-intimidating.  He bakes bread.  He likes to do jigsaw puzzles.  I bake bread and like to do jigsaw puzzles.  He reads books.  I read books.  I'm pretty sure we could start a book club together, where we do jigsaw puzzles, eat bread, and talk about books.  Fun times!

What’s your favourite film franchise? 

The Peter Jackson/New Line Cinema Lord of the Rings films.

Which year is your favourite in film, and support your answer with your top 3 movies from this time…

So, this question stumped me for a long time.  Every time I would pull up this post to work on it, I would get to this question and give up.  I just couldn't figure out a good way to answer it, because I love so many movies from so many eras!  My list of 100 favorite movies has movies ranging from 1921 to 2023!  How to choose one year?

I finally decided to go through that list of 100 favorites and tally up what year each movie is from.  And that gave me an answer for this question at last, which is: 1995.  There are six films from 1995 on my list of 100 favorites.  And that makes total sense, because I was 15 in 1995 and really starting to take notice of movies and study them, and that was about when I made friends with some other avid moviegoers. My top three favorite movies from 1995 are While You Were Sleeping, Sabrina, and Toy Story.  The first two are in my top 20, so I think that's a really good answer, even if it took me forever to figure out!

Recommend a film to me that you think would easily fit in my blog. 

Gill, you enjoy quirky and underrated movies.  Have you seen Ishtar (1987) yet?  My college bestie and I watched that over and over and over together, and it is a really fun ride.  I can still sing snippets of some of the songs.

Without saying who the murderer is, which Agatha Christie inspired movie would you change the murderer in… 

I've never seen a movie version of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, but I'm sure there is one, and I figured out who the murderer was about halfway through the book, which annoyed me a lot.  So changing it up for a movie version might be a jolt of surprise awesomeness!

What’s your favourite film related biopic? 

I love Beyond the Sea (2004), a charming, not-meant-to-be-strictly-realistic biopic of my beloved Bobby Darin.

Who was the first celebrity who responded to you on social media and who was the last…?

I don't really interact with any celebrities on social media, aside from authors.  I suppose the first would be Laurie R. King, who graciously let me interview her when I was doing a read-along of The Hound of the Baskervilles a few years ago on my book blog.  Most recently, Katherine Reay replied to a comment of mine on Instagram.

Well, there we have it!  My answers to Gill's questions at long last.

My life has been very, very full right now, and I have not done much blog reading for the last couple of months.  But I'm going to go ahead and nominate people for this anyway, and make myself catch up on reading some blogs by reading their latest posts and commenting on them with a link to this!  

So, my nominees are:

Classic Film and TV Corner

18 Cinema Lane

I'm Charles Baker Harris (and I Can Read)

The Midnite Drive-In

Movies Meet Their Match

Musings of an Introvert

Phyllis Loves Classic Movies

Sidewalk Crossings

Silver Scenes

Taking Up Room

The Texas Lass

And here are MY 11 questions for my nominees:

1. What's the first movie you have a memory of watching?

2. Have you ever written a fan letter to a celebrity?  (If so, did you get a reply?)

3. What are the three funniest movies you have ever seen?

4. What movie do you really want to change the ending of?

5. What movie do you wish had a sequel, but it doesn't?

6. Who were were favorite actor and actress when you were a teen?

7. Who are your favorite actor and actress now?

8. Does anyone else in your family love movies?

9. If you could pick an actor/actress to play you in a movie, who would you choose?

10. Do you ever watch a movie in the theater more than once?

11. Are there any movies coming out in 2024 that you are looking forward to?

Have fun!  Play if you want to ;-)

Behold! A Sunshine Blogger Award!

Samantha at Bookshire has awarded me the Sunshine Blogger Award!  Thank you, Samantha!

The rules:

• Thank the blogger who nominated you in the blog post and link back to their blog 
• Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you
• Nominate 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions
• List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog

1. Have you ever had an encounter with an unusual animal (either in the wild or otherwise)? 

Well, I've ridden elephants and camels, and I've petted stingrays.  Those were all pretty unusual.  None of them were in the wild, though.

(At the Circus World Museum in Baraboo, WI)

2. Would you dog-ear a library book? If not, what's a weird thing you've used as a bookmark? 

I would.  But I would probably dog-ear the bottom corner so it would be less noticeable to other readers and not irk them so much.  I've used a lot of random stuff as bookmarks, though, including hair ties, necklaces, earrings, and a comb.

3. What's your favorite Christmas song? (I know I'm out of season to ask this, bear with me) 

I love Christmas too much to pick only one.  My top three are:

• Elvis's version of "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful" (listen here)
• Bobby Darin's version of "Go Tell it on the Mountain" (listen here)
• Dean Martin's version of "Marshmallow World" (listen here)

4. Have you ever been out of the country? If so, where? If not, where would you like to go? 

Yup!  I've been to Canada many times, to Mexico for an afternoon, to Poland for a few hours, to Ukraine for a little over a week, and to a couple islands in the Caribbean for a few hours.

(In Montreal a dozen years ago)

5. What's your least favorite book? 

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, closely followed by Lord of the Flies by William Goldman.  I've linked both those titles to my reviews of them if you want to know why I hate them.

6. What's your favorite cuisine? 

American!  I love cheeseburgers and peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches and pumpkin pie :-9

7. Favorite miniseries? 

The Blue and the Gray (1982) -- it's a sprawling Civil War epic following a Virginia boy who sides with the North, plus delving into the lives of his brothers and sister, cousins, and friends.  Some fight for the South, some fight for the North, and some try not to pick sides.  I owe my lasting interest in the Civil War and its effects on people to this miniseries, which I watched with my family many times when I was growing up.

Over the course of the miniseries, we get to see most of the major battles and meet up with many of the most-important figures of the war, including Abraham Lincoln, whom I will forever be convinced looked and sound like Gregory Peck for real, thanks to this.

8. Would you rather try to wrestle a bone away from a dog, or a chicken wing away from a cat? 

It depends on the dog and the cat.  If it was my dog Westley I had when growing up, I'd pick trying to wrestle a bone away from him because he'd think we were playing tug-of-war and eventually let me have it. 

9. Have you ever had surgery? 

Alas, yes.  When I was 12, I broke my arm while roller skating and had to have surgery to set the bones.  When I was 18, I had my wisdom teeth removed, which involved full anesthesia, so I think it counts.  When I was in my 30s, I had to have my gall bladder removed.  And when I was 42, I broke my arm while roller skating (same arm, about an inch below the first break) and had to have surgery to set the bone.

10. What's your favorite kind of day? (you can answer this however you want, whether it be in weather, activities, books read, &c) 

A lovely, quiet day where I don't have any errands to run or appointments to keep, but can stay home and enjoy my family, my books, my movies, my hobbies, and my home.

11. Do you have a favorite board game, and if so, what is it?

I love Scattergories a lot!

(Random picture of me from back when
my hair was red and the grass was green)

So, now it's time for me to tag nominate blogs for this award and ask them 11 questions!  I hereby nominate:

The Caffeinated Fangirl

Classic Film Observations and Obsessions

Finding Freedom, Living Loved

Holds Upon Happiness

I'm Charles Baker Harris (and I Can Read)

Musings of an Introvert

Phyllis Loves Classic Movies

Realweegiemidget Reviews

The Sacred in the Secular

Taking up Room

VT Dorchester

And here are my 11 questions:

1. What's the farthest you've ever been from home?

2. Do you like Shakespeare?

3. Do you have a green thumb?

4. What musical instrument would you like to learn if time and money were no object?

5. Have you ever watched a silent film?

6. Do you like kumquats?

7. Have you ever dyed your hair?

8. Have you ever been to a rock concert?

9. What's the last movie you watched?

10. What blogs do you think more people should know about?

11. What inspired you to start blogging?

Play if you want to! :-)

A Liebster Award

Eva did not tag me with the Liebster Award on her blog, Caffeinated Fangirl.  She didn't tag anyone, she just invited people to participate if they wanted to.  I haven't done one of these for a long time, and I really like her questions, so... thank you for the non-tag, Eva!  And, here we go!

Rules

• Thank the blogger who gave you the award. 
• List eleven random facts about yourself. 
• Answer the eleven questions given to you. 
• Tag eleven other bloggers. 
• Ask them eleven questions.
• Notify your nominees once you have uploaded your post.

Eleven Random Facts About Me:

1. I've ridden an elephant and a camel.
   
   
2. I own 182 candles.
   
   
3. My favorite fruit is pears.  Or apricots.  Unless I can get a fresh-off-the-tree peach.
   
   
4. I was in 4-H for 7 years.
   
   
5. I love peppermint mochas and will drink them any time of year.
   
   
6. I write a monthly column on Old West history for the newspaper the Prairie Times.
   
   
7. Orange is my least-favorite color.
   
   
8. I prefer Coca-cola to alcohol of any sort.
   
   
9. I've broken my right forearm twice, thirty years apart, both times while roller skating.
   
   
10. Brownies are my favorite dessert, over any pie or cake or other confection.
    
    
11. I like to reread The Blue Castle by L. M. Montgomery every New Year's Day.

Eva's Questions:

Describe your favorite notebook. 

I just bought a new notebook at Walmart the other day that has Saguaro cacti, a peachy-gold-pink sunset, and the words "Give yourself space to dream" in shiny gold letters.  It's my new favorite :-)

Last five star read? 

Song of the Valley by Britt Howard.  Modern day cowboys, you say?  Yes, please!  You can read my review here.

Last one star read? 

Summer by Edith Wharton.  I almost never give one-star ratings because if I'm disliking a book that much, I tend to just not finish it.  And I almost never review books I DNF (Did Not Finish).  But man, that one, I just kept hoping it was going to have a really good twist right at the end and have things work out in a good way... but nope, didn't happen, and I was really disappointed.

Instrumental or vocal movie soundtracks? 

Both!  I love both.  And I love movie soundtracks so much, I review them :-)  Here's the list of the ones I've got posted here so far.

Movie musicals or Broadway musicals? 

Well, the only thing I've ever seen on Broadway was Hamlet, and it wasn't a musical, but I've seen lots and lots of movie musicals, so I'll go with movie musicals.

Favorite animated movie? 

Robin Hood (1973).  Everything about it is absolutely perfect.  I was super disappointed that the only Robin Hood merch we found at Disney World back in March wasn't even at Disney World, it was at the big souvenir shop in Disney Springs.  And it was just one small enamel pin.  I was vexed.  And saddened.  Because a movie that wonderful deserves ALL the merch!  I did pick up a cute mug from the BoxLunch store at our mall this weekend, though.

Top three favorite fictional characters of all time? 

1. Sergeant Saunders from Combat! (1962-67)
2. Sherlock Holmes from the canon by A. Conan Doyle
3. Wolverine from the X-Men comics and movies

What’s your go-to snack? 

A spoonful of peanut butter with a handful of chocolate chips.

What’s your favorite thing about where you live? (House, state, country…) 

Well, Tir Asleen is the first house we've ever owned, and I love it because it is all ours.  And it is beautiful.  It has a wood-burning fireplace, a library, plenty of space for guests, and almost a third of an acre (which is a huge lot around here) with nearly 20 trees.  I love it.

Top three favorite scents? 

Amber, cinnamon, and lavender.  Maybe not all in one candle, though -- that would be weird.

Do you own any LEGOs?

Personally?  Yes, maybe ten sets.  Most are from my childhood, but some are sets I've bought in the last few years.  Our family, though... owns hundreds of thousands of Legos.  And I am not exaggerating.

The library is also known as the Lego Room...

I am going to be rebellious and not tag anyone, since I wasn't tagged for this myself.  If you want to answer Eva's questions, go right ahead!  Just be sure to credit her post, not this one.