Although the novels have not aged well, I’ll always have a soft spot for Patrick Dennis (especially The Joyous Season and The Pink Hotel). His most famous character never stole my heart, but she’s still got major fans, according to Vanity Fair:
… Bridesmaids, which was based on many of Annie Mumolo’s experiences serving as a round-the-calendar bridesmaid to her many cousins, resonated with a wide audience, including one revered dramatic actress who became an unlikely pen pal: Tilda Swinton…
“She’s like, from another world,” Mumolo says, in awe of her e-mail pen pal—the type of mythical celebrity who inspires the best fan fiction. “She’s one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever encountered. She’s so funny. Her e-mails are like works of art, truly. They should be published. The way she communicates is just beautiful and poetic.”
With time, the e-mails built to a professional collaboration.
“She asked me, ‘Have you read Auntie Mame?’” Mumolo remembers, referring to Patrick Dennis’s 1955 novel about a boy and his over-the-top eccentric aunt. “I said, ‘No, I haven’t read the book but I’ve seen the other version of it made into a film version in the 50s.’ She said, ‘Would you take a look at it? I want to see if you are interested in writing a modern-day adaptation.’ I said yes, because you say yes to Tilda Swinton when she asks if you want to do something.
“I read the book and it was one of the most fun reads I’ve ever had. It’s totally different from what I had seen in the movie versions,” Mumolo says. “We had meetings and then, as I got a little overwhelmed with a few other work things, I brought on a co-writer to work together on this, because it’s a huge job and an adaptation. I brought on a friend of mine—Stan Chervin [the Oscar-nominated Moneyball co-screenwriter].”…
But speaking of outdated cartoons…
If experience is necessary for being president, name a political topic I can't master in one hour under the tutelage of top experts.
— Scott Adams (@ScottAdamsSays) July 28, 2016
First Topic: The Dunning-Kruger Effect https://t.co/VBXA2G1bRu
— Wyeth Ruthven (@wyethwire) July 28, 2016
schrodinger's cat
Anne Laurie@top
I finally sent you the garden photos from India as promised several months ago.
divF
Not a moment too soon. A nasty troll just showed up in the thread below.
ETA: We’re Patrick Dennis fans around here. Auntie Mame (both book and film), as well as a dog-eared copy of Little Me, a takeoff on celebrity tell-all autobiographies.
Ian Abrams
“Auntie Mame” is fine, but Patrick Dennis’ masterpiece was “Little Me.”
Mnemosyne
I’ve actually seen both movie versions of Auntie Mame — the still-entertaining Rosalind Russell version and the horrible Lucille Ball version. I saw the Ball version first and came to the strange realization that both movies had the exact same plot in pretty much the same order, but for some reason the twists and turns were far more logical and easier to follow in the Russell version.
And, yes, I think it might be fun to see a modern-day version of it. Don’t forget, Mame is a total liberal — she ruins her nephew’s engagement because she doesn’t want him to marry into a family of anti-Semites.
Anne Laurie
@schrodinger’s cat: Got ’em, thanks! Now I’m set for tomorrow morning!
PsiFighter37
I’m thinking of traveling for some GOTV before the election. Thinking of be below locations – thoughts? (no interest in the boonies and coming from NYC)
-Pittsburgh
-DC suburbs
-Charlotte
-Cleveland
-Madison or Milwaukee
RandomMonster
Scott Adams has a seriously unhealthy preoccupation with Trump, among other things.
Omnes Omnibus
@PsiFighter37: Milwaukee. GOTV there is key to winning WI. In addition, you’ll like the bars.
Hal
Was Scott Adam’s this adamant about the need of experience when constitutional law professor, former state Representative and junior senator Obama was running for president?
schrodinger's cat
Trump Antidote
Allah Hi Reham (Ali is Mercy)
Composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy for the 2010 movie, My name is Khan, written by Niranjan Iyengar.
S-E_L are Hindu-Muslim-Christian respectively. Niranjan Iyengar is a Tamil Hindu and the song is in Urdu.
Sung here by Shankar Mahadevan
Here is the movie version sung by the maestro of Hindustani Classical music, Rashid Khan.
Its from a big budget Hindi movie not some PSA for unity in diversity (India’s version of E Pluribus Unum)
RaflW
GOP operative Rick Wilson is having an epic twitter storm this evening.
Just a taste
Fetid corpse of the Republican Party has a nice ring to it.
We’ll see what happens, I mean, the Russian hacking thing seems like months ago already, and because of the outrage du jour nature of Trump will probably wash away.
Kahn will be on MTP tomorrow morning, so we should see some more cycling on this one. Oh, and Pence referred reporters to “the Trump campaign” this afternoon over this. As if he isn’t it!
SiubhanDuinne
@Mnemosyne:
My sister does a spot-on impression of Joanna Barnes as “Little Glory” in the “I stepped on the ping-pong ball” scene.
Arclite
Not sure what brick got stuffed up Scott Adam’s ass.
Shame, Dilbert is observant, topical, and funny.
Also, Dunning-Kruger Effect. LOL.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
Trentrunner
Correct me if I’m wrong, but not one GOP congressperson has defended Khan and repudiated Trump, correct?
Also, I now predict Trump will “apologize” within 48 hours. Meaning, of course, he will say he was joking or misunderstood or misquoted or that the media is in the tank for Hillary.
Also also, not that I care, but has some major outlet published naked photos of Melanoma? Shit’s weird, man. Also, not in the mood to defend her. Remember, she MARRIED Trump nearly 20 years ago. She knows and approves.
Luthe
@RandomMonster: I lost all respect for him when I found out he was an unrepentant MRA. Blech.
Keith
Funny to see this post now. I decided on a whim to reread Patrick Dennis’ novel “Genius” for the first time in at least 20 years just this weekend. I loved revisiting it, through- as Anne Laurie points out- parts have not aged well. Patrick’s own self-loathing about being gay comes through in numerous ways, along with the usual sexisms and classisms of the time. Funny as hell though and would make a great film, despite the creaky parts.
dmsilev
What was really remarkable about the Scott Adams thing was that Bill Kristol (yes, that Bill Kristol) burned him but good with a response that was less than 10 characters long:
Strange times we live in.
RaflW
@PsiFighter37:
Oh, hey, I’ve been wanting to find out if an even vaguely viable Dem is running against Ryan in his Janesville, Wi area? Maybe I’m silly, but I am holding some hope that as trump-stink gets permanently into all of Wunderkind Paul’s cheap suits, a decent campaign to unseat him could get mounted?
Otherwise, I am at least hopeful that WI will return Russ feingold to the Senate. I’m sure he could use some help!
Fair Economist
I played Little Patrick in community theatre as a boy and I would LOVE to see an updated version. Can you imagine Mame as a barista? LOL! As a boy I found the first act much funnier but as an adult I think the second act is.
Fair Economist
@RaflW:
Very vaguely. The best candidate is a plumber. He has been active in the Democratic party for many years but never held elective office.
Frank
My favorite Dennis book is Genius.
Omnes Omnibus
@RaflW: Last polling I saw showed Feingold at 50% and Johnson at 35%. The RNC has supposed written off Johnson and is allocated money elsewhere.
Epicurus
Much love and respect for Ms. Swinton’s entire career. It came and went a few years ago, but she did a “vampire movie” with Tom Hiddleston which was awesome. I have no idea if it’s available for streaming, but I walked out of the theater with my head spinning. Ah, here is a link: “Only Lovers Left Alive.”
RaflW
@Fair Economist: Is the plumber the bernie guy? If so, his web site lists events from the 4th of July on the home page. Today.
The other guy is a flat-taxer/pay off the debt guy (though he also wants single payer and infrastructure investments, so he is 2X clueless).
I guess the question really is, where can my political $$s have the most impact in MN, WI and CO. Those are the three states that matter most to me for reasons of geography and family. I support Russ’ run in WI (and supported Tammy Baldwin — so strange that WI can have Wanker Walker and her both in statewide offices). I supported some Coloradans in ’14 with mixed success.
I know I want to keep slimeball scion Tim Mills out of the MN Iron Range/Duluth House dist. And John Klein’s open seat in the T.C. Metro would be a major pick-up.
Any regional knowledge from the BJ commentariat is appreciated!
Vince
@PsiFighter37: The Clinton campaign seems to think that Georgia could be in play so maybe Atlanta/Atlanta suburbs/Savannah?
Trentrunner
@Trentrunner: Well, as predicted, he “apologized,” via a released statement, basically calling Khan a “hero,” but saying that the same Muslim terrorists who killed him are trying to kill us here. Also, Hillary is responsible for all this. Not even kidding.
Anne Laurie
@Hal:
Like Andrew Sullivan, Adams luvs him some Alpha Male Strong Daddy. Pretty much your standard techie-libertarian, but with more exposure to people who don’t agree with him. From what I remember of his politics in 2008, he thought Obama was kinda beta, but at least he had a penis — unlike that other Dem candidate.
Adam L Silverman
@Trentrunner: The naked photos are from years ago, but they were published in a magazine and can be found with a basic keyword search.
Omnes Omnibus
@Adam L Silverman: You link to almost everything, but not this?
Adam L Silverman
@Omnes Omnibus: Three key words are to hard for you (melania trump nude)?
Fine!
http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/donald-trump-melania-trump-knauss-first-lady-erections
Felonius Monk
@Omnes Omnibus:
I think she’s in Klown makeup, so Adam didn’t want to offend you. :-)
Omnes Omnibus
@Adam L Silverman: I was yanking your chain. Besides, this a fucking family blog, for fuck’s sake.
Fair Economist
@RaflW: If you’re looking for competitive House districts, try this. In those states, the most flippable districts in decreasing order are CO-6, MN-1,WI-7, WI-8, and WI-1 (Ryan’s). Next would be CO-3 but if we’re flipping R+5 districts we’ve already won.
RandomMonster
@Luthe: No kidding. Before that I thought he was just a weird guy who used a lot of generalizations to come to shocking conclusions. The MRA stuff just made me think he’s an asshole.
Fair Economist
@Adam L Silverman: My, that’s an interesting link title! Especially the way it gets cuts off in my browser.
Sandia Blanca
My favorite book by Patrick Dennis is under one of his pseudonyms, Virginia Rowans. “Oh, What a Wonderful Wedding” was published two years before “Auntie Mame” and it is hilarious! Yes, it is dated, but it provides a fascinating glimpse of the culture of the 1950s.
Adam L Silverman
@efgoldman: It was someone who saw Nate Silver’s current prediction and was having a reaction.
Omnes Omnibus
@Adam L Silverman: The Chicken Little? Not a troll. A panicker.
Adam L Silverman
@Omnes Omnibus: Given the time hack of the complaint in this thread, it lines up with the person you told to get a grip in the previous one. I went to check and make sure our friend had slipped his surly bonds and escaped his bin of sin.
greennotGreen
@schrodinger’s cat:My Name is Khan is a wonderful movie that should have received much more attention in the states than I think it did, but I’m not up on the movie scene. I just happened to be clicking through channels and came across it. I’d like for it to be run about once a week, along with Dead Zone and Idiocracy until the election.
For those unfamiliar with these three dissimilar films, subjects include in this order: a devout and good Muslim man trying to make his way in a fearful post 9/11 U.S., a mentally disturbed and dangerous candidate for President, and the results of electing a moron to that office.
ThresherK (GPad)
Okay, I’ll bit on the title question: Are the two White Sox throwback unis charmingly retro yet?
schrodinger's cat
@greennotGreen: I haven’t seen the movie but love the song I linked here earlier.
RaflW
@Fair Economist: Thanks, this is quite helpful! CO-6 looks interesting. WI-7 might be worth a look as well.
I don’t really worry about MN-1, though I guess Walz is always a bit vulnerable as a farm-region Dem (and Rochester is conservative, lotta rich Mayo docs vote ‘R’ I guess over tort reform!). I think Nolan can hold MN-3, but I’ll help out a bit there too.
nutella
@Ian Abrams:
Belle Poitrine saying ‘Jack Hughes?’ is a great moment in literature.
Mnemosyne
@Trentrunner:
In my more paranoid moments, I suspect that the Trump campaign released the photos to try and gin up sympathy for Melania. Donald would approve such an action so everyone can envy him for having such a hot wife.
Splitting Image
Did somebody mention Tilda Swinton?
To Tilda goes the credit for getting me interested in dressmaking and Virginia Woolf.
RaflW
@Mnemosyne: I thought that too.
Soylent Green
So every citizen of Iraq who resisted the U.S. occupation of their country is a terrorist?
sukabi
@RaflW: maybe Pence will be submitting his resignation from the campaign soon….
hitchhiker
Um, Scott? You don’t just have to master one difficult subject one time. You have to master 7 or 8 every day for years, and your experts aren’t going to agree on what you need to learn. Also being an arrogant ass is pretty much guaranteed to get you in trouble no matter how much you admire your own brain.
Tehanu
@Keith:
Glad to know I’m not the only remaining Patrick Dennis fan. I’ve always loved Genius and I also re-read it fairly recently. It’s very much a period piece — though a dramatic version could probably be brought up to date without too much effort — but it still makes me laugh. As for Little Me, I saw the stage version with Sid Caesar when I was in high school; I don’t remember much about it, except that Caesar was hilarious, and I was really surprised years later to find out that at the time, he’d been so steeped in alcohol he could hardly remember the whole gig.
Anne Laurie
@Keith: I have to dig out my copy of Genius; haven’t re-read that one since I was in my 20s, and I suspect I’ll be able to sympathize more now with a nice polite middle-aged couple faced with a frenetic ‘celebrity’ narcissist.
From what I remember, there should definitely be a Kickstarter by some alternative theatre in NYC / Los Angeles / Portlandia to mount a theatrical version where ‘Leander Starr’ wears a cotton-candy-made-from-piss-colored toupee…
redshirt
Tilda Swinton can never die.
PurpleGirl
@Trentrunner: GQ (British edition) had nearly nudes on their cover a few years back. She she was naked but holding up sheet to “cover herself”.
PurpleGirl
I love the Rosalind Russell version of Mame. I can’t stand the Lucille Ball version and I’m not sure why.
Citizen_X
@Epicurus: I love Only Lovers Left Alive. I like a lot of Jim Jarmusch’s work, but I think I like that movie even more than Ghost Dog.
laura
@SiubhanDuinne: as soon as I read that I immediately thought of lock jaw!
What a swell movie. For me, it was Peggy Cass as Agnes Gooch.
A Tilda Swinton redo will be genius, genius I tells ya!
bystander
A. Love “Genius”.
B. “Tony” is very revealing..about Tanner.
C. You can skip “How Firm a Foundation”.
I have a whole shelf devoted to Dennis. Sorry I missed this thread.
bystander
I was out one night with a few friends, all now deceased. They were A-List gays in Manhattan through the postwar era. I asked if any of them knew Patrick Dennis as a gay man. Everyone agreed he frequented a gay bar – now defunct – on the East Side. One friend commented, “He always wore those ridiculous raccoon coats.”
Another 70+ year old quips, “You never could tell him apart from Edward Gorey.”
“Well, they both had those ridiculous Van Dyke beards.”
It was a really fun evening. They had even better stories to tell about a certain Mayor’s twin brother. (All deceased.)
bystander
I thought Swinton could be a genius solution. The posters at allthatchat have long debated who could succeed Russell and Lansbury. Then they all trot out the time they saw Giselle MacKenzie and she was brilliant.
Needless to say, they send Ms. Swinton packing.
sdhays
I used to read Dilbert every day for many years, but in the last few years it really started to go downhill at an ever increasing speed. Earlier this year, I made the mistake of reading one of his blog posts (he had a blog for awhile more than a decade ago which could sometimes be entertaining; as I recall, he stopped it because it wasn’t generating enough money to justify his investment at the time).
The post was about Donald Trump. I thought it might be an homage to “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift. Instead, it was one of the most cringe-worthy, stupidest things I’ve ever read, and that’s keeping in mind that we’ve all been exposed (willingly or unwillingly) to lots of stupidity regarding Donald Trump over the last year, at least. He was trying very, very hard to be “clever” and “counter-intuitive” about how he actually thinks Barack Obama is one of our better Presidents, but “if you think about it”, he should be succeeded by Donald Trump because up is down, right is left, and seriously, you guys, you’ll start smelling lavender if you just shove your head far enough up your own ass. For a guy who clearly thinks highly of his own intellect, the logical “witty” contortions he was tying himself into were just…sad. Really sad. Pathetically sad. I almost felt sorry for him, but millionaire assholes don’t deserve anyone’s pity.
Scott Adams is a guy whose success really, really went to his head. He fancies himself an “entrepreneur” when he’s really a guy with a limited wit who has a cartoon which, while once clever, has completely run out of steam and should have been retired years ago. I didn’t know this, but apparently he has fashioned himself into some kind of self-help guru where people or companies pay him lots of money to hack their brains. Lord, help us. As a conman squeezing all of the juice out of his celebrity, it’s no surprise that he admires a fellow traveler like Donald Trump. He probably considers Trump a mentor.
smedley the uncertain
@schrodinger’s cat: Thank you.
smedley the uncertain
@Omnes Omnibus: Check the New York Post.