Recommended reading - Silent Movies (2007):

Silent Movies

The Birth of Film and the Triumph of Movie Culture

by Peter Kobel.

Preface by Martin Scorsese.

Foreword by Kevin Brownlow.

Published by Little, Brown and Company.

Published 2007.

Hardcover.

ISBN-10: 0316117919

ISBN-13: 978-0316117913

Description:

Drawing on the extraordinary collection of The Library of Congress, one of the greatest repositories for silent film and memorabilia, Peter Kobel has created the definitive visual history of silent film. From its birth in the 1890s, with the earliest narrative shorts, through the brilliant full-length features of the 1920s, Silent Movies captures the greatest directors and actors and their immortal films.

Silent Movies also looks at the technology of early film, the use of color photography, and the restoration work being spearheaded by some of Hollywood's most important directors, such as Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola.

Richly illustrated from the Library of Congress's extensive collection of posters, paper prints, film stills, and memorabilia – most of which have never been in print – Silent Movies is an important work of history that will also be a sought-after gift book for all lovers of film.

"If you ever wondered why film buffs get weak in the knees about the movies made before talkies, this book can help you understand. . . . it is beautifully designed with a dazzling array of movie stills, posters and promo material drawn from the Library of Congress' memorabilia collection." – San Francisco Chronicle.

"The definitive visual history of silent film." – New York Daily News.

"A handsomely designed and illustrated pictorial history of the voiceless cinema." – Los Angeles Times.

"A ravishing, oversize, million-pound study of the silent movie era, not just its films, but its promotion, its culture and the way these movies changed how we think about the world." – Washington Post Express.

"Kobel has lovingly detailed this world-from the zany publicity campaigns to the lavish scripts to the decadent star lifestyles. SILENT MOVIES is an essential addition to any film or design lover's library." – Encore magazine.

"Spectacular." – The New York Times.

"This isn't a coffee table book, though any coffee table would be lucky to be graced by it. The excellent text manages the trick of being exhaustive without being exhausting, while the photos – and stills, and posters, and lobby cards – are enchanting." – Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal Online.

Introvert insight:

Don’t underestimate me because I’m quiet.

I know more than I say, think more than I speak and observe more than you know.

– Michaela Chung.

I over-simplify and say I don’t like people,

when what I actually dislike are the surface-level interactions of most social gatherings.

– Rachel Ginder.

I simply don’t shine in company.

Mostly I prefer to retreat with a book.

– Barbara Hambly.

Not all introverts are shy.

You just haven’t seen them with their close friends circle.

Some people tremble at the idea of being alone.

I don’t understand.

I love my solitude.

My energy is never leeched; my feelings are never hurt.

I treat myself well, I entertain myself, but it’s peaceful.

– Sylvester McNutt.

The older I get, the more I would rather sit alone, in silence,

than with people who judge the way I live.

– Kristen Butler.

The smarter you get, the less you speak.

You grow to realize not everyone is worth confrontation.

Your time is valuable.

Your energy is priceless.

You won’t waste either on people who don’t deserve them.

World Introvert Day - January 2:

World Introvert Day

January 2

This is a day for the dreamers.

The thinkers.

The quiet ones.

The ones sitting in the back of the room or standing at the edges.

The ones who know more than they show and feel more than they let on.

Today we celebrate introverts.

– Jenn Granneman.

#WorldIntrovertDay

Jhumpa Lahiri, on books:

That's what books are for ... to travel without moving an inch.

- Jhumpa Lahiri.

Born on this day – Jean Adamson:

Jean Adamson

Writer

Illustrator

February 29, 1928 – December 15, 2024

Credits:

Books:

ABC: A Picture Alphabet (1962); Animal bounce (1969); Busy Builders (1997); Chestnut Tree (1974); Family Tree (1968); Hop Like Me (1972); Neighbours in the Park (1962); People who Help Us Stories (1999); Red Boots, Yellow Boots (1997); Surprises for Topsy & Tim (1971); Topsy & Tim Have Their Hair Cut (1989); Topsy & Tim's Safety Book (1973); Topsy + Tim Meet the Ambulance Crew (1996); Topsy and Tim and the Bully (1994); Topsy and Tim and the New Puppy (1992); Topsy and Tim at Granny and Grandpa's (1996); Topsy and Tim at School (1968); Topsy and Tim at the Bank (1985); Topsy and Tim at the Farm (1970); Topsy and Tim at the Seaside (1965); Topsy and Tim at the Supermarket (1996); Topsy and Tim Can Play Party Games (1981); Topsy and Tim Go for Gold (1977); Topsy and Tim Go Shopping (1977); Topsy And Tim Go Swimming (1973); Topsy and Tim Go to London (2014); Topsy and Tim go to the Hospital (1971); Topsy and Tim go to the zoo (1968); Topsy and Tim move house (1979); Topsy and Tim Stay with a Friend (1987); Topsy and Tim Visit the Tower of London (1976); Topsy and Tim: First Sleepover (2016); Topsy and Tim: Go Camping (1977); Topsy and Tim: Go on a Train (1990); Topsy and Tim: Go on an Aeroplane (1979); Topsy and Tim: Go to the Doctor (1982); Topsy and Tim: Halloween Party; Topsy and Tim: Have a Birthday Party (1971 / 2010); Topsy and Tim: Have Itchy Heads (1996); Topsy and Tim: Have Their Eyes Tested (1982); Topsy and Tim: Help a Friend (2005); Topsy and Tim: Learn to Swim (1973); Topsy and Tim: Meet Father Christmas (2013); Topsy and Tim: Meet the Firefighters (1989); Topsy and Tim: Meet the Police (1989); Topsy and Tim: Our Day Clock Book; Topsy and Tim: Play Football (1991); Topsy and Tim: Start School (2003); Topsy and Tim: the Complete Audio Collection (2017); Topsy and Tim: Visit London (2012); Topsy and Tim's ABC (1982); Topsy and Tim's Big Fun Book; Topsy and Tim's Friday Book (1961); Village Green (1972).

Television:

Topsy and Tim / 64-episode TV series (2013–2015).

On this day in music history - The album American II: Unchained, by Johnny Cash (1996):

American II: Unchained

Album by Johnny Cash,

released on November 5, 1996.

Track list:

Rowboat; Sea of Heartbreak; Rusty Cage; The One Rose (That’s Left in My Heart); Country Boy; Memories Are Made of This; Spiritual; The Kneeling Drunkard’s Plea; Southern Accents; Mean Eyed Cat; Meet Me in Heaven; I Never Picked Cotton; Unchained; I’ve Been Everywhere.

Recommended reading: The Ninth Configuration (1999):

The Ninth Configuration

By William Peter Blatty.

Commentary by Mark Kermode.

Published by Screenpress Books.

Published in 1999.

Paperback.

Screenplay.

ISBN-10: 1901680207

ISBN-13: 978-1901680201

Description:

“The finest large scale American surrealist film ever made” – People Magazine.

Towards the end of the war in Vietnam, an unusually high percentage of American servicemen suddenly manifested symptoms of psychosis. To investigate this mystery, the US government established a network of covert study centers.

They send the crazies to Center Eighteen. Men who think they can walk through walls. Men who want to stage the complete works of Shakespeare using dogs. Hudson Kane is plagued by nightmares and memories not his own. Only Hudson Kane is not an inmate. Hudson Kane is in charge…

William Peter Blatty – the creator of The Exorcist – directed this self penned script that quickly became a cult classic for its brave philosophic tone, remarkable visuals and endlessly quotable dialogue.

This is the first time that Blatty’s originally screenplay has been published. Fully annotated by acclaimed writer and critic Mark Kermode and illustrated with many previously unpublished stills.

This is the definitive edition of the script that its creator believes to be the true sequel to The Exorcist.

Winner – Best Screenplay Golden Globe Awards.