I just got home from the third Women’s March in San Francisco. The crowd size at Civic Center Plaza was a lot smaller this year. I got there earlier than usual so I could take a lot of photos. By the time the march started, about 45 minutes later than scheduled, my feet and lower back were protesting. I didn’t make it too far down Market Street. Still, I met some great people, and dogs, and enjoyed the day.
(Click on any photo to scroll through larger versions.)
Filed under Photography, Real Life
My photos from this year’s Grove Street Halloween party in San Francisco. I used my new camera, and I’m happy with the results. I can’t even pick a favorite! (Click on photos to see them larger.)
Filed under Photography, Real Life
Today was the Families Belong Together March and Rally in San Francisco. I missed the beginning, which started at Dolores Park. I joined in on Market Street. At the front of the march, Joan Baez marched behind a large banner. At City Hall, she was one of the first to speak at the rally, and she also sang We Shall Not Be Moved in English and Spanish. I made a sign with Mr. Rogers on it, because he was always kind to children. I met two different women with “What would Mr. Rogers do?” on their signs. Civic Center wasn’t as crowded as the first Women’s March, but it was a good turnout. I met interesting people and lots of great dogs.
I talked to a nice guy from KQED, and he included a photo of my sign here:
https://www.kqed.org/news/11678414/photos-bay-area-cities-join-nationwide-families-belong-together-marches
A video of Joan Baez at the rally:
Filed under Photography, Real Life
Today is the San Francisco Women’s March, and based on the sound of helicopters, it’s still going on downtown. I went to the rally at Civic Center Plaza, then started marching down Market Street before 2pm. (It’s so much easier to get home on public transportation when you finish early.) The weather was much nicer than last year when it rained most of the day. Today was bright and sunny without being hot. I believe there were less people, at least at Civic Center. I’m sure the news tonight will be comparing crowd estimates. I saw very few police and the overall mood was genial, in spite of the outrage expressed in many of the protest signs. It was a good mix of ages, races, and genders, with plenty of dogs. A special thank you to Daisy and Tonto for being such good company!
Filed under Photography, Real Life
Today was my friend’s very first American Halloween. We went to the Grove Street Halloween Block Party here in San Francisco. Every year, the blocks between Baker and Central are closed to traffic. The neighbors decorate their stoops, garages and yards, and parents dress up with their kids. There’s a costume contest, and this year a band from the University of San Francisco performed. So much fun! And the kiddies in their costumes…oh, my! Just precious! Be sure to click on photos to see those faces better…
Filed under Photography, Real Life
I’m still a member of Robert Fuller’s official fan group, even though I’m busy with other interests these days. A recent contest to create a new banner for the Fandom Facebook page presented a fun challenge. I got to use some newly-learned Photoshop tools, and I teamed up with my friend Jan. She provided some photos and some lively debate. We submitted several banners, none of which were chosen. That’s okay, because I get to share the best one here. A big thank you to my friend Pam for allowing me to use her recent photo of Fuller.
The biggest challenge was finding the best color photos with the different heads at just the right angle, and I wasn’t completely successful. At least one important role is not represented—I didn’t realize before that Fuller never once takes his hat off in Return of the Magnificent Seven, and the brim is almost always cut off at the top. The ears in the center photos of the banner were also a problem, and the end result is not as satisfying as I’d hoped.
Today is Robert Fuller’s 84th birthday, and he’s still going strong! Wishing him a happy birthday, with many more to come.
(l to r) Wagon Train, Emergency, Wagon Train again, Incident at Phantom Hill, Laramie, The Hard Ride, and Fuller now
Filed under Actors, Photography, Television, The Internet
I just finished binge-watching all six seasons of Game of Thrones. A couple of years ago I tried to watch it, but I only got through two episodes before deciding it was too brutal. I’m tougher now. With so many actors I like, and all that gorgeous Ireland scenery, I wish I’d joined the party sooner.
Over the years I couldn’t avoid plot spoilers, but there were still plenty of shocks and surprises. At this point, there’s not much I can say about Game of Thrones that hasn’t been said already. I love the characters I’m supposed to love (Arya, Tyrion, Brienne, Davos, etc), hate the ones everybody hates (Joffrey, Ramsey), wonder why baby Sam grows slower than any other child in Westeros, and wish I’d counted how many times Casterly Rock is mentioned.
Years ago, I saw two of the Game of Thrones cast members perform in plays in London, and I met them at the stage door with my camera.
In early 2001, I saw Charles Dance (Tywin Lannister in GofT) in Long Day’s Journey Into Night. The other cast members were Paul Rudd, Paul Nicholls, and Jessica Lange. My seat was right up close to the stage, which normally is too close but was just right for this one. Lange didn’t come out to meet anybody afterward, but the three men did. This was before gathering at the stage door after a show was popular in the West End, so there were only a few of us waiting. This was also before digital cameras, so I didn’t realize that my photo of Rudd caught him with his eyes shut. He was very friendly, and Charles Dance was very gracious.
Soon after, I went with two friends to see Stones in His Pockets with Conleth Hill (Varys in GofT) and Sean Campion. We laughed so hard, our ribs ached by the end. It was fantastic, with just the two men playing multiple roles, including women. We were the only ones waiting afterward. While we were waiting, Stefanie Powers came out the stage door. She must have been in the audience. I recognized her immediately, but I didn’t want to bother her. Hill and Campion came out together, and they were friendly and fun. I don’t usually pose for photos (I prefer taking them), but my friends grabbed the camera and I got sandwiched between two fantastic actors. Lucky me!
With Conleth Hill & Sean Campion
Filed under Actors, Photography, Television, Theatre
A few years ago, I shared photos from three trips to Dublin. Tanya, Chloe, Warren, Sherree, Danielle, Jamie, and many of their friends first hammed it up for my camera in 1997. It took a while, but eventually some of them found my post here, and they left comments asking to see more of their photos. My negatives and scanner are in storage, but today I found a few scans in an online album. Here they are, with the promise of more to come. Thanks for your patience!
I made the collage below years ago for my first blog, back when I didn’t know much about Photoshop. It’s not good—too much contrast—but some of these negatives have been lost.
Filed under Photography, Travel
I just got home from the Women’s March in San Francisco. What an amazing experience! It was so hard waiting for our march when most of the others across the US happened in the morning. Ours started at 3pm with a rally at Civic Center, with the march down Market Street to the Embarcadero starting at 5pm. It didn’t quite happen that way—I ended up behind the stage, where we couldn’t see or hear, so a lot of us started down Market Street somewhat early. It rained most of the time, but nobody seemed to mind.
I didn’t see any violence or misbehavior. The mood was friendly and sometimes boisterous. I enjoyed seeing the men, children and dogs who joined in.
A big thank you to Summer, Emily and Alex, who ‘adopted’ me for the march. You’re awesome!
Filed under Photography, Real Life
As promised, and long delayed, here are some more glamorous portraits of Barbara Stanwyck. As I was working on these, I couldn’t help wondering why we no longer see beautiful portraits of movie stars. How can we be satisfied with paparazzi shots of stars in sweatpants at the corner market? I don’t want to see beautiful people caught looking their worst. Bring back dazzle, photography as art, and great lighting!
Baby Face (1933)
The Mad Miss Manton (1938)
Lady of Burlesque (1943)
Paramount general publicity 1943
Filed under Actors, Photography
I recently watched the PBS documentary Pioneers of Television: Westerns, and I was struck by what Linda Evans said about Barbara Stanwyck, her co-star on The Big Valley. I didn’t know she was one of the nicest people in Hollywood, taking the time to get to know all the crew members and really enjoying herself on set. This led me to check out the book Starring Miss Barbara Stanwyck by Ella Smith from my local library. I haven’t read much of the text, because the portraits in the book are too wonderful. This book is now out of print, but here are some of those images, with more to come. Perhaps it’s a cheat, to fill my blog pages, but what a great way to cheat!
With Joel McCrea in Internes Can’t Take Money
Columbia general publicity 1930
Stella Dallas
Breakfast for Two
Filed under Actors, Movies, Photography
Today is Armistice Day, marking the end of World War I in 1918. Also known as Poppy Day and Remembrance Day in commonwealth countries. WWI began with bravado and confidence—most people believed it would last only a few months. Four long, bloody years later, the world had irrevocably changed.
This point was brought home to me over the summer. I attended a special screening of the silent documentary South, featuring the footage shot by Frank Hurley on Shackleton’s Antarctic expedition with the ship Endurance. The screening was accompanied by live music and narrated with excerpts from Shackleton’s journal, read by actor Paul McGann. The expedition began the week war broke out in Europe, on August 8, 1914. Shackleton and his men were isolated from the world and its news when the Endurance was trapped and destroyed by ice. When Shackleton finally made it to a whaling station in South Georgia two years later, the first question he asked was, “When did the war in Europe end?” He was told the war was still dragging on, with no end in sight. Many of his men, after surviving the hardships of the Antarctic, returned home to fight in the trenches of France.
They ask me where I’ve been,
And what I’ve done and seen.
But what can I reply
Who know it wasn’t I,
But someone just like me,
Who went across the sea
And with my head and hands
Killed men in foreign lands…
Though I must bear the blame,
Because he bore my name.
— Wilfred Gibson
Today is also Veterans Day in the United States. To those who have served in the armed forces, we thank you for your service.
Troops recite the oath of allegiance during a naturalization ceremony on an aircraft elevator on board the USS Midway Museum in San Diego, Nov. 6, 2012. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services sponsored the ceremony during which 41 service members from 19 countries became U.S. citizens.
Filed under Photography, Real Life
The Ugly Bug Ball 