Here in the Hills

Monday, August 25, 2014

a little of this and that....

Since I haven't been blogging for a while.....many things have happened that I want to address, a least a little bit.....

Robin Williams death---such a loss to his family and friends and to the whole world. An insanely talented genius---he gave us so much joy and laughter, and also brought us to tears with his limitless gifts as an actor......The pain he lived with was the other side of this. And the aloneness he must have felt in those moments before taking his life.....

My heart goes out to all those who loved him----particularly his children.....

The day after Robin Williams died, one of the last of the Golden Age Stars of The Studio System---Lauren Bacall,---died, at age 89.

I'm surprised at how little has been written about her considering she was an 'Icon', and a 'Legend' in the truest sense.

Bogie and Bacall.......there never was and there never will be another pairing like those two.....

Her career was quite incredible.....films and then Broadway---winning two Tony's.....And finally, being given an Honorary Oscar, long overdue.

I met her once---very briefly---when she was married to Jason Robards and we did the CBS Television "special" of "SPOON RIVER"....we taped in in New York, and Robards was one of the four actors.

He was still drinking at the time and that made our rehearsals somewhat difficult.....

It was the middle of Summer in New York City, including all the heat and humidity one can imagine.....

The day of the 'taping', Bacall came to the backstage area where all of us were, having brought Jason something he had forgotten, at home. It was a very wifely thing for her to do, and I was reminded of the fact that we are all just people, trying to live our lives as best we can.......She was dressed in a very light weight summer cotton dress---just like the rest of us----but, it was hard to forget she was Lauren Bacall, the 'star', and yet---there she was, just being a helpful wife to her hung over husband.

That marriage ended and eventually so did Jason Robards drinking, Bless him.

For any of you who want to see a slew of her films, Turner Classic Movies is devoting September 15th, starting at 8pm, eastern time, I believe that will continue for 24 hours.

This will be a day worth watching, if you can.

Lauren Bacall had a good long life and a great career.....And as I said, she is the last of those very BIG Movie Stars......The end of an era.....

The Emmy's are tonight and I will be watching, having voted in a number of categories, as I do, each year.....

And my dear sweet longtime friend, the incredibly talented Mitzie Welch, will be included in the

"In Memorium" section, having died on
June 10th of this year.....

I was very touched to know she will be included, and rightfully so.....

She and her dear husband Kenny have won a bunch of Emmy's over the years, 5 to be exact, having written for The Carol Burnett show for all the years it was on Television----and they wrote a number of 'specials' , too......"Barbra Streisand and Other Musical Instruments", plus lots of other terrific television shows....to see all 14 of their Emmy Nominations, go here.

I've been watching a lot of films on TCM this month, and it has been glorious! Every August they devote each day to a different 'star'......Tuesday, August 26th is Sophia Loren, and each day after that is another wonderful actor or actress through August 31st.

Nothing else really happening here on my Hill.....just trying to get through each day, as best I can........

I've been away from my blog for a couple of weeks.....

I'm afraid my physical problems have kind of overtaken my life--Big Time!

Many many problems, but the most exhausting one is coughing up endless amounts of disgusting phlegm---sorry, TMI, I know......but, it is part and parcel of the lung disease I live with, and have been living with for many years now.....

And this problem has increased in volume.....

I should have stock in 'Kleenex'----I go through at last one big box, a day---sometimes more.

So......my energy is just depleted beyond words, from this----along with some other unspeakable problems....

Enough said.
I'll be back when I can....and I will visit you all when I can, too.....

More To Come.......

| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 2:04:00 PM

25 comments

Monday, August 04, 2014

birthday-part 3

Continuing on with our Gift Bags, you can see Bridget and Seemah and Lee going through their bags. You can see some of the goodies on the sofa----like the July 4th Fan, and on the table, too, (I'll be showing close-ups of some of the things, in a minute)----plus Bridget is holding a rather special little something in her hand....

Lee actually contributed two things to our Goody Bags this year......and this little Red Shoe is one of the two very special 'gifts' from Lee......it is a Miss America 'special' that can be hung on your Christmas tree.........

Isn't that pretty?

It's not something you can buy, as far as I know, but Lee, having been Miss America of 1955, is still very involved in The Pageant, as are all the former Miss America's......for those of you who live in other country's, this was a BIG deal, back in the day----and it was the premium and most famous of all the Beauty Pageants.......

Lee still looks Beautiful today, as you all can see in just about every picture she takes....

The other very special gift that Lee contributed to our fun bags was this below.....

Lee is a Lifetime Member of The Magic Castle.......And what is this amazing place?

It is a Private Club that features all of these Great Magicians.....it is housed in an old castle like home and one can eat dinner there, see all kinds of Magicians perform their truly amazing tricks and have an all round Fabulous Evening! This little card is a "pass" to anyone who is given it by a member, like Lee, and they can bring up to 6 people for a truly
"Magical" Evening!

Years ago I went to the Magic Castle a couple of times as a member's guest------it was a lot of fun! There are all sorts of surprises and unexpected 'magical' things happen, like a piano named Edna that plays itself and answers your questions in a very amusing musical way....

Back to the other gift bag goodies.......

Above, one of those Bubble Makers that I love to include in our bags---this one was especially appealing because it looked like a Big Fat Crayola Crayon. My very favorite since I was a little girl.....!
Below.......a pretty ceramic cup with kisses all over it. I thought it was so very sweet and reflects all the love I have in my heart for these dear sweet friends.......

Below......is this really cute Key Ring.....it has a tiny little book that you can write in, like.....if someone gave you their phone number or you wanted to write an address in it, or anything else, for that matter.......

And below.....

The little book when it is opened up.....

I just thought it was as cute as it could be, and practical, too........

I thought this was a very cute picture because Seemah and Lee, both wearing the glasses a different way.....more fun!

Then it was time for the cake.......

And the blowing out of the Candles......

It was all very yummy, and I was a very happy camper!

That Orchid behind me which had many blooms that would open as the weeks went by was Van's Birthday present to me.....So very generous and sweet!

Then it was time for the "poppers'. Even though we were in the living room, I still wanted us to have all that wonderful confetti!

Always the 'director'----me, explaining how we need to do this......It's really funny, because no matter how many times I explain the count, etc., it never works out that way......lol....

And the reason it never all goes off at the same time is---the bottoms all do not turn easily......some are easier than others......but look below........

Some went off and, eventually, they all went off.....

It's so very festive, isn't it?

So, there you have it......
My 83rd Birthday Lunch was a really lovely afternoon......The final picture is Lee putting a pink fuzzy Birthday crown with hearts on it, on my head......and, here it is below.

Thanks for waiting for all this to finally finish.....

More To Come......

Note: As I mentioned when I began this Birthday series, life has been overwhelming.....it mostly has to do with my Health Issues......

My energy level really sucks---I feel worn out, and I just don't feel like going on the computer, or blogging or visiting every one's blog or if I do, even commenting.

It's like a car running out of gas.....

I have to stop and fill her up.

So.....I'm going to take a little break......If I feel up to it, I'll visit......If I don't, I won't.

I just need to re-group here and when I feel up to it, you'll see something on your reader.....

I wish this weren't the case, but it is, at this point in time.

Thanks for understanding.....

I love you all.....

| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 3:03:00 PM

22 comments

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