Thoughts on Living the Life Creative
Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane (1895) - A young man yearns to join the fighting during the American Civil War, only to discover that the reality of the war and who he is are different than he imagined. This book appears on the list of "Required Reading in School" for a lot of... Continue Reading →
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold (1965) - A British agent is sent to East Germany on an undercover mission to disrupt the German intelligence service. Directed by Martin Ritt Starring Richard Burton, Claire Bloom,... Continue Reading →
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925) - The mysterious millionaire, Jay Gatsby, throws magnificent parties for the glitterati of the Jazz Age. Among the people swept into his life is his neighbor Nick, a young bond trader from the Mid-West, and Daisy, the great love of Gatsby's life. This was the first time... Continue Reading →
The Sweet Smell of Success (1957) - A ruthless newspaper columnist and an unethical press agent conspire to ruin the life of a young musician to keep him from marrying the columnist's sister. Directed by Alexander Mackendrick Starring Burt... Continue Reading →
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. LeGuin (1969) – A human ambassador arrives on the most distant planet ever settled by humanity. The people of this world are very different from any other strain of humankind. Both the ambassador and the people of the world called “Winter” will struggle to understand each other.... Continue Reading →
Safety Last! (1923) A young man goes to the city to make a success of himself. It will take all of his ingenuity to survive. Directed by Fred C. Newmeyer and Sam Taylor Starring Harold Lloyd, Mildred Davis Silent movies have been largely ignored by audiences for almost 80 years. Once sound... Continue Reading →
The Adventures of Pinocchio (1883) by Carlo Collodi. Stories about a wooden puppet who comes to life. Pinocchio is among the best-known children’s characters of all time. He appears in several books and dozens of movies dating back to the early days of silent films. 260 language translations. After the Bible, the most widely read... Continue Reading →
The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896) by H.G. Wells - A man is stranded on the island of a strange genius who is performing horrible experiments. Other than some lame movie versions, I didn’t know this story at all. Given its age, the book takes on some very “modern” topics. At the center of it... Continue Reading →
The Pride of the Yankees (1942) - Biopic of Yankee great Lou Gehrig, starting with baseball on the streets of New York to becoming one of the greatest baseball players of all time. Directed by Sam Wood Starring Gary Cooper, Teresa Wright Baseball can be divided into two eras, the Reserve Clause era and the... Continue Reading →
Battleship Potemkin (1925) - The classic Russian silent movie that memorializes (and embroiders) a pivotal moment in Russian history. The sailors of the Russian ship decide to join the growing revolution of 1905. Also, one of the greatest silent movies ever made. Directed by Sergei Eisenstein Starring Aleksandr Antonov, Vladimir Barskiy At some point in... Continue Reading →
Stories Are My Life 