Tuesday, December 30, 2008
happy new year - 2009
New Years Is Almost Upon Us.......
So Lift A Glass To Welcome This New Year In.......
Or, Lift Two Glasses........
Or Three, If That Is Your Way........
Or Just Celebrate In Whatever Way That Pleases You....Like, Maybe....Blow That Horn.....Or......
Eat Some Chocolate.......! Or Possibly........
Some "HAPPY NEW YEAR" Cake......Yum Yum! But Whatever You Decide To Do, I Hope It Will Be Lots Of Fun, And That You Will Be Ushering In This Little Guy Below........
In A Big Big Way......!
To One And All......May 2009 Be A Healthy, Happy, Prosperous Year For You And Yours........
See You Next Year, My Dears..........More To Come.........
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 1:24:00 AM
Friday, December 26, 2008
more flowers
Oh My, Oh My, Oh My.....! Gorgeous....Breathtaking......the Colors are Mind-Boggling.....! More Rose 'Magic' on view here.......I mean....this is more than fantastic! You've got Orange and Yellow and Pink and White/Beige and Purple/Lavender and shadows that create other subtle colors, too. What is thrilling to me is that my Camera can 'capture' all this beauty.....It is there, if you can just see it and capture it.
Some more Rose layers, above....there is something so beautiful about the way Rose petals layer and layer upon each other...Again, the variation of color is quite astounding.......
This Rose above is a very beautiful subtle shade of 'tan'. I had never knowingly seen a Rose quite this color before.....And yet, as you look much closer you see that there are variations of color here, too......
Especially as the light hits it, you know? Depending on how the light hits it and the time of day, etc....Here below another slightly different view......
I wish I knew the name of this Rose...(Maybe 'Kenju' can tell us....Oh I hope so.....) It is such an unexpected color, you know? And below, another close look at a different Rose....again, so very many colors are visible.....
I am completely in love with Roses. Always have been and always will be....Everything about them. I think they are the most Beautiful flower of all.....One of the great things about all the 'arrangements' from Van at 'The Conservatory' is that not only do I get to enjoy them while they are here, but because I try to take pictures of each of them----I get to enjoy them all over again, years later....Looking at the pictures brings back everything about the arrangement and specifically about each flower.....
Such beauty! Such artistry! The 'art', the colors, the delicacy of it all.....! I am in awe of nature, once again.....always and forever.....! Looking at this flower above, makes me so very very happy.....and I think....How lucky I am to be able to see what I see and enjoy it so very much.....! I mean, just look at those edges....! God is everywhere here and God is in the details.......If anyone has doubts about this----well, this Rose above is irrefutable evidence that there is a 'Higher Power'.......More To Come........
NOTE: Two more Giants left us in the last few days. The Great Great Playwright HAROLD PINTER, who's work changed the English and American theatre, forever....And who upon winning the Nobel Prize, had the courage to really let George Bush have it---Big Time! RIP, Mr. Pinter.
AND, EATHA KITT, who's life and career has been amazing in every way....She is best remembered for her recording of "SANTA BABY", but she was so much more than that one recording....RIP, Eartha!
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 1:08:00 AM
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
merry christmas
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,
Let Your Heart Be Light,
From Now On Our Troubles Will Be Out Of Sight......
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,
Make The Yule-Tide Gay,
From Now On Our Troubles Will Be Far Away.......
Here We Are As In Olden Days,
Happy Golden Days Of Yore........
Faithful Friends Who Are Dear To Us,
Gather Near To Us Once More..........
Through The Years We All Will Be Together,
If The Fates Allow......
Hang A Shining Star Upon The Highest Bough.......
And Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas Now.......!
To All My Fellow Blogger's, I Hope You Will Have A Very Very Merry Christmas...............
And that you are surrounded by your loved ones, your dear friends, and the warmth of the Season......What is your favorite Christmas Song....?
More To Come.........
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 6:25:00 AM
Saturday, December 20, 2008
flowers
Jumping around subject-wise the way I do.....Here are some close-ups of some very pretty roses and some other flowers, too......By the time I took these, the flowers had been here four days or so......I am very partial to seeing the multi-colors of petals on certain roses....like in the picture above. (Be sure to click on all of these to see them larger....). The yellows, the pinks, the almost white....and the veins, too......
I just think seeing the true colors in all their variety, is thrilling.....And the shape of these particular Roses....Gorgeous! And most of them kept their shape as they dried, which, as you know, isn't always the case, at all.....
Above.....Oh My! Isn't that pretty? Look at the variety of color in this closer look at just one section of the above Rose.....I just think it is so very stunning----and especially when you see it in a bigger format....
And above....another Rose.....This one a true Pink, but as you can see from the edges there....not just pure Pink. I love the lower left corner where you see the very Pink edge going into a pale cream white.....The many shades of coloring here are quite startling....
And the lower half of this same Rose.....I love that the outside petals have this light green tinge....Nature.....it is awesome! I know I am always saying how fantastic Nature is...well, that's because it is!!! This is where I see and feel what I call God.
I love this Bright Shocking Yellow above.....! It is so rich in color....Beautiful, Beautiful. Then, below, a very lovely Lavender one.....
My favorite Rose, above.....Sterling Silver, I believe. Larry Parks had the most beautiful Rose Garden....he planted them all and tended them all too, till he died....Then, his son Garrett took over the care of this very sweet Rose Garden......Back in the day, I bet I took 1000 slides of the Roses in Larry's Garden. Some day, I will find the way to best scan them in to my computer........
Switching gears here for a moment or two.....This is one of the prettiest Orchids I've ever seen.....It is as if God took a paint brush and just dripped some drops onto that lovely white petal.....So very stunning....And below, here is a closer look at the centerpiece of this Orchid.....
Breath taking....! There are more....but I will save them for another time.......I know everyone is getting ready for Christmas and Hanukkah, too......And the eight days of Hanukkah begins on Sunday, December 21st, at Sundown....So, from my heart to yours, I wish all of you who celebrate this Holiday, a Very Very Happy Hanukkah......
More To Come........
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 12:04:00 AM
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
gravesites
We are back at "Hollywood Forever".....I thought It might be interesting to see some of the Hollywood History that abounds in this beautiful place. Many of the early Giants of The Picture Business are buried here, and as was pointed out to me by "The Fat Lady", a frequent commenter here, many many many other important people in the film business like Costumers, Grips, Editors, Property People, etc., etc., are buried here as well. In that picture above, right there in the center....close to the ground is the Cohn crypt.....Harry Cohn was the Heart & Soul of Columbia Pictures---the founder of Columbia Pictures, which by the way is just a few blocks away from this beautiful Cemetery.....
A slightly closer side view of this simple but elegant crypt.....And below, the details, as we see them and take them in.....
And then the further details, below......
It is over 50 years since Harry Cohn died.....His Funeral, they say, was SRO---Standing Room Only. They also say...."Give the people what they want, and they will come....". Harry Cohn was one of the most hated men in the industry, at that time.....But, Columbia Studios was one of the Giants.
That big building, behind the Cohn crypt is one of the two Mausoleum's at Hollywood Forever. That is where some of those Beautiful Stained Glass Windows are located.....
It is rumored that those Windows were designed by Tiffany, but I don't know if that is accurate, or not.....What I do know is that this is where Rudolph Valentino is buried, (Remember I showed his Crypt....?) as well as many many other people......Do you remember this man?
Peter Finch is best remembered for his stunning performance in the important film, "Network", (Original Screenplay by Paddy Chayefsky) , where he uttered those now oft quoted words...."I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore!".....He won the Best Actor Academy Award that year, posthumously.....He had died soon after finishing that film. And though he had given many great performance besides 'Howard Beale'.....this was his last and according to his peers, the Best that year! I agree, completely!
Above, Tyrone Power's lovely spot here in Hollywood Forever.....It is a very beautiful Bench on a slight slope, with a built in Urn for flowers.....
And, as you can see above.....someone has left a pot with flowers right on top of the Bench.....Carved into the top of the bench is a quotation from Shakespeare's "Hamlet"......
Tyrone Power was one of the handsomest men in pictures back in the 30's and 40's.....and even in to the early 50's.....I think in many ways his 'beauty' overshadowed his talent, which sometimes happens when someone is so very perfect looking....But he was indeed, a truly wonderful actor.....And his spot in Hollywood Forever is a very beautiful tribute to this talented man. There are always flowers there, at least there have been, every time I've ever been there......
This is a Mini Mausoleum....a very pretty little building....with some lovely detail on it......The doors are locked of course with only the family havinf the keys....... 
The above, taken from behind the little building....The color of the building no longer effected by the late afternoon sun.....And here below, a detail of the back of the building......
And you probably would like to know who's Mini Mausoleum this is....Well, from the front, once again, the late afternoon sun affecting the color.....Here is the family name.
Douras. Yes, that "V" is really a "U".....And who, might you ask, is that??Well, this was Marion Davies family name. So buried in this little building are the infamous Marion Davies, some of her family, including one of her sisters daughters and that daughters husband, Arthur Lake, who played 'Dagwood Bumstead' in the "Blondie" movies, opposite Penny Singleton.....! Patricia Van Cleeve Lake, (Arthur's wife) was in actuality rumored to be the illegitimate daughter of Marion Davies and William Randolph Hearst. Whatever the truth is, both Patricia and Arthur Lake are buried in the Douras Family Mausoleum at 'Hollywood Forever'......
This picture above....Well, this is probably, to me, the most important monument in Hollywood Forever. Oh yes, I will show a closer look.....This is now where Hattie McDaniel is buried. Remember her? One of the Great Great Performances in "Gone With The Wind"....She played 'Mammy', and she was more than magnificent.....She actually won An Academy Award for her performance back in 1939-40---the very first person of color to win an Oscar. The scene that clinched it was Mammy walking up the stairs with 'Melanie'...All One Take---ONE TAKE.....Telling Melanie what happened after little Bonnie Blue Butler, the daughter of Rhett and Scarlett, died in a Horse riding accident, as Melanie and Mammy walk up that long, long, long flight of stairs.... Hattie McDaniel always wanted to be buried in The Hollywood Cemetery----Now, Hollywood Forever.....But at the time of her death and for many years later...This Cemetery was 'all white'. In 1999, Hattie McDaniel git her wish and her remains were moved to 'Hollywood Forever'.....righting a terrible terrible wrong and giving her, her very last wish.........As Blanche Dubois said..."Sometimes there's God so quickly...."
Oh, do, click on this to make it bigger and then you can read what they said........I so admire the people who own 'Hollywood Forever' now, for 'righting' this wrong......
And another very elegant grave site. The DeMille Family. Cecil B. DeMille, another true Giant in the film industry.....this is their burial ground.
And if you do not know who DeMille was....well, he spanned 'the silents' to the "talkies"......He made so very many incredible films.....and, appeared in some, too, including the great Billy Wilder film, "Sunset Blvd.", where he played himself.....This is the DeMille Family Plot.
And remember that lovely Angel Statue where the little black bird was sitting? Well, that is Don Adams plot.....There is even a picture there of him just sitting on the ground, which did seem rather strange to me, but, as you can see, there it is......
I have absolutely no desire to be "buried" under the ground....But if I did.....this is the place I'd like to be.....It is so peaceful and beautiful, and has so much "life" all around the grounds what with the Mallard Ducks and The Canadian Geese, etc......This would be the place for me if I didn't want my ashes strewn to the winds right here in my own garden.......More To Come.........
5:41 pm--Note: Danny Miller left a comment regarding Hattie McDaniel's remains, correcting my mistake. She was buried in Rosewood Cemetery, though it was indeed her wish to be buried in The Hollywood Cemetery. The new owners of now Hollywood Forever, did want to right that wrong and give her, her last wish. But her family did not want to disturb her remains after so very many years, and declined the offer. But, the owner's of Hollywood Forever wanted to at least erect a monument to her, right there near the Pond, which they did. But Hattie McDaniel remains in Rosewood......Thanks Danny, for the correction.
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 1:15:00 AM
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