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August 30, 2007
The Epidemic
229 years ago, the Childs Family of Lexington, MA was in the midst of a terrible tragedy. There is a remarkable gravestone in the Lexington Burial ground that tells the story,
Abijah Childs and his wife Sarah suffered the loss of their six young children between August 19 and September 6th in 1778. The cause was presumably an epidemic...perhaps diptheria, or smallpox. This gravestone is just to the right as you walk into the main part of the graveyard.
Abijah was a member of Captain Parker's militia during the events of 1775. It would be interesting to know exactly what his children died of. To my knowledge, nobody in the Lexington Historical Society has been able to find any documentation that nails it down.
There is an interesting post on the Boston1775 blog about a similar grave relating to an epidemic three years earlier in Dedham . Check it out
Posted by rickbeyer at 08:04 PM | Comments (0)
God's Country?
I can't be the first person to be amused by the happy placement of two items on the New York Times Hardcover Non-Fiction Besteller's List this week.
At #4 is IT'S ALL ABOUT HIM, by Denise Jackson. The wife of the country music star Alan Jackson describes how religious faith restored her marriage.
At #5 is GOD IS NOT GREAT, by Christopher Hitchens. Religion as a malignant force in the world.
Its only a guess, mind you, but I'm thinking there is not a lot of overlap between the audiences of those two books.
A few rungs down at 7 is THE WORLD WITHOUT US, by Alan Weisman. What Earth would be like if humans disappeared.
Well, for one thing, it would put an end to all this arguing about God.
Posted by rickbeyer at 09:51 AM | Comments (0)
August 17, 2007
The King and I
There are those who say that I look like author Stephen King. Once, in a grocery store, I actually had to produce ID for a disbelieving cashier who was convinced that I really WAS Stephen King. My wife does not see the resemblance. She loyally argues that I am far better looking. (Sorry Stephen!)
But it turns out that we have something else inc common, as a news story out of Sydney Australia demonstrates.
King was a mistaken for a vandal this week when he walked into a bookstore in the Australian Outback and began writing in some of the books. This was more than a little upsetting to bookstore owner Bev Ellis: "you see someone writing in one of your books you get a bit toey (touchy, for those of you don't speak Austsralian)!" Of course the books he was writing in where his own, and he was signing them. Everything was cleared up quickly withs smiles all around.
What I love about the story is the fact that King, after selling 42-gagillion books, ringing up millions in movie rights, and earning international acclaim for his writing, still can't walk by a bookstore without ducking in to see if his books are on the shelves, and then signing a few of them. My god, he's just as insecure and ego-driven as the rest of us!
Which leaves the burning question...does he haunt the Amazon rankings list like some other authors I know (but who shall, mercifully, go nameless.)
Posted by rickbeyer at 07:30 AM | Comments (0)
August 14, 2007
Charity Badge Campaign update
We are making excellent progress on The Ghost Army charity badge campaign. But we still need help to reach our goal of earning a matching funds grant.
A big THANK YOU to everyone who has already donated. As of August 14, forty people have contributed $1505 to the project through the badge. This generous response has earned us a spot in the top 10 badges! Amazing and wonderful! We need to be in the top 6 to earn matching funds from sixdegrees.org, and we are very much in the running.
A number of people have also posted the badge to blogs and websites, helping us get the message out to more potential donors. Here's one.
I also have some terrific news to share. Two generous donors responded to the campaign by offering to match all the money we raise through the charity badge. So if someone makes a $10 donation, $30 will go to the film. And if we attract enough donors to win the matching funds grant, that will be doubled again. So a $10 donation could actually result in $60 going the film! Rarely has there been a chance for a small donation to do so much.
We have until September 16th to earn the matching money, so if you haven't already clicked on the badge and made a donation, we encourage you to do so now. The key thing is the number of people who donate, not the amount of the donations. A donation of just $10 is all it takes to move us toward our goal.
Go to the badge, click on the DONATE button, and it will take you to a page where you make a tax deductible credit card or Paypal donation donation to The Center For Independent Documentary. (That's our 501(c)3 non-profit sponsor.) ***Important: On the “Designation” line please type in THE GHOST ARMY.
I am extraordinarily grateful for the many people whose support has made possible all our efforts to date. It would be great if we could depend on the government, or large foundations, or PBS for funding, but the reality is that filmmakers depend on individuals like you. To all of our donors: Thank you so much for being part of our team.
Posted by rickbeyer at 12:27 PM | Comments (0)
August 12, 2007
My Horse, My horse, My Kingdom for a Horse
We went to see the Redfeather Theater Company's performance of Richard III last night. The play was performed in a delightful outdoor amphitheater in Worcester's Greenhill Park. Who knew you could find so much culture in Worcester? (OK, I am now readying myself for the deluge of criticism from outraged Worcesterians, or whatever people who live there call themselves.)
The play was Shakespeare's first break-out success, and it is wonderfully entertaining. Richard is evil incarnate, but a source of amusement as well, as he shares with the audience all his dastardly plans, joking about all the people he has a) already murdered or b) is about to murder. The body count really piles up. Richard kills off a half dozen characters--enemies, friends, innocent children--all of whom come back to haunt him in his dreams the night before the Battle of Bosworth Field, where he was killed in 1485.
The role of the original "Tricky Dick" is one that actors from Burbage to Olivier have gloriously inhabited (and who can forget Richard Dreyfus preparing to play a gay Richard III in the movie The Goodbye Girl.) Our friend Tim Smith played the role last night, and he did an exquisite job, alternatively menacing, charming, frightening and funny.
I spotted two women handing out flyers at halftime, asking audience members if they wanted to know "the real story." It turns out that the women (and the flyers) were from the Richard III Society. This is an organization dedicated to convincing people that Shakespeare gave Richard a bum rap. Or, as stated in their mission statement:
In the belief that many features of the traditional accounts of the character and career of Richard III are neither supported by sufficient evidence nor reasonably tenable, the Society aims to promote, in every possible way, research into the life and times of Richard III, and to secure a reassessment of the material relating to this period, and of the role of this monarch in English history.
How British!!
Shakespeare was writing in the time of Queen Elizabeth, who was the granddaughter of Henry Tudor, the man who defeated Richard and became Henry VII. Someone wanting to get on Liz's good side (e.g. an up and coming playwright) would do well to lay it on thick when it came to Richard's villainy.
I don't know enough about Richard to say whether or not Shakespeare did him wrong, but I do think it is absolutely wonderful that there are people so into history that they want to spend time and energy trying to correct the record. And even better, that there is an American Branch carrying on that business on this side of the pond. Hear Hear!
Posted by rickbeyer at 12:30 PM | Comments (0)
August 05, 2007
World War II Veterans called upon to go to Iraq
Perhaps the Ghost Army will soon be seeing service again. Honestly, I can't decide if this is funny or scary.
Posted by rickbeyer at 02:42 PM | Comments (0)
August 01, 2007
Ghost Army on Youtube
I have posted a version of the Ghost Army Trailer on Youtube. I added some explanatory type at the beginning and the end. This is the version people see when they click on the charity badge. Check it out and let me know what you think!
What's cool is that other people can easily link to it...see what my friend harry Forsdick did in his blog.
Posted by rickbeyer at 12:19 PM | Comments (0)