From: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com (aml-list-digest) To: aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: aml-list-digest V1 #764 Reply-To: aml-list Sender: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk aml-list-digest Tuesday, July 9 2002 Volume 01 : Number 764 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 10:46:31 -0600 From: "Richard C. Russell" Subject: Re: [AML] S.L. Newspaper Wars There is already morning competition between the papers two days a week. I don't think that the Trib is worried about competition nearly as much as the loss of its independent editorial voice. Robert Kirby's job is threatened if the deal goes through. Rolly and Wells will not be far behind. They regularly write mild critiques of Mormon culture. ********************************************* Richard C. Russell, SLC UTAH www.leaderlore.com, lderlore@xmission.com "There is never the last word, only the latest." ********************************************* This e-mail is a personal communication sometimes intended merely for the sake of discussion. Its contents represent solely the opinions of the author and not necessarily those of the author's employer nor those of any organization with which the author may be affiliated. It is specifically not intended to be a representation of LDS Church doctrine. - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 10:52:45 -0600 From: "Richard C. Russell" Subject: Re: [AML] Unbiased Presentation (was: S.L. Newspaper Wars) - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Scott Parkin" To: Sent: Saturday, July 06, 2002 11:22 AM Subject: [AML] Unbiased Presentation (was: S.L. Newspaper Wars) > Is there any such thing as unbiased presentation, as unslanted storytelling? > I know that many historians reach for that level of accuracy but I'm not > sure it's really possible. My question is: Is it desirable, and why? Isn't > it in the slant that we see others' perspectives, and isn't that the best > purpose of telling a story? > > Scott Parkin I don't believe it is possible to be unbiased or unslanted in any recreation or retelling of any account. It might be desirable (though I can't see why) but it wouldn't be interesting and interest is the lifeblood of storytelling. We don't have to agree with the other viewpoint but it might change and challenge us. Where it gives us a new insight, it is precious. That is good storytelling. ********************************************* Richard C. Russell, SLC UTAH www.leaderlore.com, lderlore@xmission.com "There is never the last word, only the latest." ********************************************* This e-mail is a personal communication sometimes intended merely for the sake of discussion. Its contents represent solely the opinions of the author and not necessarily those of the author's employer nor those of any organization with which the author may be affiliated. It is specifically not intended to be a representation of LDS Church doctrine. - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 11:03:55 -0600 From: "Jacob Proffitt" Subject: RE: [AML] Unbiased Presentation - ---Original Message From: Scott Parkin > > Is there any such thing as unbiased presentation, as > unslanted storytelling? I know that many historians reach for > that level of accuracy but I'm not sure it's really possible. > My question is: Is it desirable, and why? Isn't it in the > slant that we see others' perspectives, and isn't that the > best purpose of telling a story? I hate it when I get all relativist and all, but I'm not sure unbiased presentation is possible, or even very useful. For one, to be truly unbiased, you'd have to avoid editing or summary (because the very act of editing will emphasize some things and negate others and you have to make choices to do that and your opinion and judgment--i.e. bias--will play a role in that). I'd settle for *stated* bias. If the position of a news source is known, then it is possible to make adjustments based on your knowledge of their position with relation to your own. It's when bias is unstated, or worse denied, that it becomes damaging. I guess that I'm saying I'd settle for honesty if I felt I could find it. An honest bias beats assumed authority (or so-called objectivity) any day. Jacob Proffitt - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 11:05:31 -0700 From: "Kim Madsen" Subject: RE: [AML] S.L. Newspaper Wars Alan Mitchell wrote: "It is true that the Trib does not want a morning competitor, and because the NAC does the printing for both, it is problematic." The words "it is true" raise a big red flag for me. I don't think either side of this issue has disclosed "the truth" as God sees it. I don't root for either party in this ridiculous business power play that has slopped over into public life, but I thought it only balanced to put out the Trib's response to the Deseret News "20 questions" if anyone's interested. It's obviously a biased editorial, but at least they had the grace to put it on the opinion page and not in a hard news section. Does anyone else feel like they are witnessing a mudslinging contest between two selfish teenagers with their own personal agendas as their only goal? I'm weary of the whole thing. It's only convinced me there is a lack of journalistic integrity on both sides. I'll continue subscribing to the Trib, only to get Robert Kirby's article hot off the press. He's about the only thing worth reading in the paper these days. As for news, I'll have to get it from three or four sources and decide for myself. Most days I feel I'm better of trying to live a life of peace, get along with my neighbors, be kind to my husband and kids, without wallowing in "news". My sister pointed out to me on a recent visit that I was fairly news deprived. I don't watch TV news very often, I can go days without reading the paper, and pick up bits and pieces on the radio as I drive. If something BIG is going down, then I make more effort (Sept 11, local wildfires, etc.)I don't feel deprived, but she couldn't see how I could stand it. Anyway, check out the Tribune's response to the "truthfulness" of the Deseret News' answers to 20 Questions. http://www.sltrib.com/07072002/opinion/751257.htm Kim Madsen - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 11:21:51 -0600 From: Christopher Bigelow Subject: RE: [AML] S.L. Newspaper Wars I agree with Ardis Parshall and Scott Parkin that "independent" does not necessarily mean fair, balanced, or impartial. However, in the case of the Salt Lake Tribune, I honestly do feel that "independent" means they have the freedom to play the whole spectrum of news coverage related to the LDS Church, and play the full spectrum they do, with overall worthwhile results, I would argue. Our experience publicizing the Sugar Beet has been instructive. Two individual Deseret News reporters contacted us and did interviews, and one even admitted she wasn't sure the editors would let it through. Sure enough, a story never appeared (to my knowledge--did I miss anything?). The Salt Lake Tribune, on the other hand, interviewed us and then let several weeks go by before they ran the story on the front page. The story finally ran during the week after general conference. It is not hard to imagine the Trib editors reasoning that it would be more balanced to run a lighter, less-orthodox piece on Mormons right after running lots of straight general conference coverage. Maybe it was a coincidence, but I know that as an editor I've often done things like that to help maintain balance (for instance, juxtapositioning an Irreantum interview of rebel Brian Evenson with a more orthodox Anne Perry interview). However, at the Deseret News apparently it wasn't even an option, and you can imagine that kind of heavy-handed editorial gatekeeping happening quite often with anything Church-related. Of COURSE the Deseret News and its backers would like to muzzle the Tribune's Church coverage--OF COURSE they would, because that's in the nature of an agenda-heavy, propagandizing institution like the Church. To that end, it's clear they are playing some legal and other kinds of games with ownership issues. But they should not be allowed to, I feel, or we will lose an important counter-balance in our society and be left without a real statewide newspaper. While there are some things I admire about the Deseret News, I think there should be separation between church and press. Chris Bigelow - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 12:11:17 -0700 From: "Richard R. Hopkins" Subject: Re: [AML] Unbiased Presentation Scott Parkin wrote: > Is there any such thing as unbiased presentation, as unslanted storytelling? > I know that many historians reach for that level of accuracy but I'm not > sure it's really possible. My question is: Is it desirable, and why? Isn't > it in the slant that we see others' perspectives, and isn't that the best > purpose of telling a story? When I was a young journalism student in high school, my teacher (this was much longer ago than I will admit) taught us strictly unbiased reporting. What has today become common place in all journalism used to be labeled "yellow journalism" in my day. My journalism teacher is no doubt rolling in her grave over today's biased reporting. For us at that time, the challenge was to tell the facts, and only the facts, in a way that was interesting to read. That was hard. Maybe that's why they don't do it any more. Richard Hopkins - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 11:21:05 -0700 From: Yeechang Lee Subject: Re: [AML] S.L. Newspaper Wars Alan Rex Mitchell says: > I recall that the Trib sued to block the sale of the NAC just a > couple of years ago because the buyer was a Mormon from Colo. or > somewhere (they lost). Dean Singleton, the CEO of MediaNews, is not LDS but Baptist (though I have read one account of how he apparently thought seriously about baptism at one point when much younger). I did find it amusing that when MediaNews emerged out of nowhere to scoop the _Tribune_ up, the _Tribune_ management spent considerable energy trying to paint Singleton and MediaNews as some kind of LDS Church stooge. This was possible, I think, because MediaNews--despite being a substantially-sized newspaper holding company--is relatively obscure compared to Knight-Ridder, Gannett, Tribune, Dow Jones, and the New York Times Company, due to its private ownership. As a result, I recall reading a fair number of _Tribune_ articles on the subject that gave absolutely no sense of how large MediaNews the company was, or what papers it owned. As if the owners of the _Denver Post_ would act as a stalking horse for anyone, let alone the Church! Yeechang "The _Times_ and the _Journal_ for me, thank you" Lee - -- Yeechang Lee | I am a child of God | And he has sent me here | Has given me an earthly home "Work?!?" -Maynard G. Krebs | With parents kind and dear - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 11:27:42 -0700 (PDT) From: William Morris Subject: Re: [AML] Unbiased Presentation - --- Scott Parkin wrote: > Is there any such thing as unbiased presentation, as unslanted > storytelling? > I know that many historians reach for that level of accuracy but I'm not > sure it's really possible. My question is: Is it desirable, and why? > Isn't > it in the slant that we see others' perspectives, and isn't that the > best > purpose of telling a story? > I'm don't think it's possible. As I've stated in the past, I believe that decisions on content, tone and form are always ideological (not in the strictly political sense but because presentation always involves choices--and choices inevitably feed on into discourses that carry their own biases, histories and ideologies). But even though I'm a good little post-modernist (okay, with a heretical, moral absolute core because of my Mormon beliefs), that doesn't mean that I don't want historians and newspaper reporters to try and approach the mythical stance of objectivity. Seeing others' perspectives are fine if those perspectives bring value to a discussion (and here my own ideological biases are revealed). So, for instance, with most newspaper stories I want the basic facts. I want as many of the facts as possible. And I want witnesses and/or expert opinions from as many points of view as possible. It's like the difference between the classical freshman comp essays of argument vs. dicussion. If a history or reportage is strictly an argument essay, esp. one that is not well written, that ignores credible sources, it is not very valuable to me. I like discussion: here's what other people think/report and, if appropriate, here's the conclusion I've come to. With 'classic' American reporting that second part (the reporter's conclusion) is missing, and that's why, I think, people get angry about 'so-called' objective reporting---the only way the bias can be shown is in the reporting itself because the reporter cannot insert him or herself into the story. That's one of the reasons that I find the blogging phenomenon so interesting because it combines links to 'conventional' reporting with individual, unabashedly subjective commentary (Jacob Proffitt can speak more authoritatively on this subject because he is a bona fide member of the blogging community). But to get back around to the original question. I think there are degrees to which a slanted perspective can be useful to readers. Just as a so-called un-biased report glosses over its ideological perspective (esp. by what is not included) so too do slanted reports gloss over other perspectives. Some people (how's that for a straw-man?) claim that therefore the best thing is to read multiple perspectives on a particular event and topic. The problem that I find with that approach is that a) some perspectives aren't that useful b) it involves a much larger time investment c) because of the business of publishing there are important perspectives that don't make it out into the realm of public discourse. Literature is an interesting case because no one claims that it should be unbiased. And yet, for some (esp. those who buy into Bakhtin's ideas), the more the work of literature removes itself from the author's bias (i.e. the freer reign characters are given to be 'themselves' instead of simply acting as vehicles to express the author's point of view) the better it is. ~~William Morris __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Sign up for SBC Yahoo! Dial - First Month Free http://sbc.yahoo.com - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 08 Jul 2002 12:33:07 -0600 From: margaret young Subject: [AML] _I Am Jane_ Performance in So. Ca. For AML members--_ I Am Jane_, a play about Jane Manning James (who, as Nan mentioned, was referred to in the Nauvoo Temple dedication) will be performed THIS WEEK in Southern California (Friday 11 and Sat 12, I THINK.) If you have family members in that area of friends or acquaintances who would have an interest, please give them this toll-free number so they can get more information. We are especially interested in having African American members or non-members see this play, but you are welcome to come even if you're white. Thanks! The number is: 1-888-495-JANE. If you have further questions, you can e-mail Marvin Perkins at mcperk@concentric.net. The truth is, I don't know all that much about this production. My priority list puts my almost-hear grand-daughter first, my breech-position novel second, and the _Jane_ play a distant fourth or fifth. The cast is good enough that I am quite dispensable at this point. I know they'll do a beautiful job. [Margaret Young] - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 12:45:08 -0700 From: "Richard R. Hopkins" Subject: Re: [AML] Satan Figures > Linda Adams wrote: > > > Without going into too much depth outside temple walls, I have another > > theory which makes more practical sense. What if Satan, by tempting Adam > > and Eve, thought he could usurp Christ's role? and Scott Parkin wrote: > Except that I think this is exactly what he didn't want to do in the first > place. He wanted the glory that would be accorded to the Savior but he > wasn't interested in the actual suffering and atonement part. I think these thoughts and the opinions expressed in this area have great literary merit (not just doctrinal, though they are closely related, of course). I'm kind of a theologian myself, and I agree with the thoughts many have expressed here. What's interesting about this (and I'd love to see it depicted in fiction) is Isaiah 14:12-23 in the Old Testament. Note in verse 17 that it suggests Satan did not open the house of his prisoners. That has a great deal of symbolic meaning associated with it, relating to the Savior's plan of salvation for the dead. We are all considered prisoners of our sins, and the opening of our house is through the atonement. The implication is that Satan offered to be our Savior, but it was clear, given his characteristics (as detailed in the preceding and subsequent verses) that he would not accomplish that objective. Interesting scenarios come to mind from all this. I'm thinking that he offered to atone for all the sins anyone would ever commit in such a way that repentance was unnecessary. That would be the PR version anyway. It would certainly be a crowd-pleaser, and when you think about it, it would destroy our agency as well, since it would eliminate the line between good and evil. All behavior being acceptable, we would not have to choose. Richard Hopkins - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 08 Jul 2002 14:54:08 -0600 From: "Eric R. Samuelsen" Subject: Re: [AML] S.L. Newspaper Wars [MOD: I appreciate Eric's discussion of how this entire question relates to Mormon letters. Some of the comments we've been getting on this thread are focusing on who's right and who's wrong in this dispute, and who is considered more trustworthy and so forth and so on. I don't think that's a terribly profitable direction for us to go on AML-List--but comments like Eric's, and Scott Parkin's broader question on the possibility/desirability of "objective" storytelling, illustrate (in my view) why it's a good idea, for now at least, to keep this discussion open. In other words: I don't think that arguing about the central dispute is really a key function of AML-List, and I'd like to see us move beyond that point. However, the peripheral issues raise some really interesting interesting questions that *are* on-topic for us here.] Okay, I've read this, and I've read other stories from both the Trib and = the News, and I have to say I have no idea who's right. It's deteriorated = to a genuine neener neener neener name calling spat. Read the Trib's = side, and you think the News is wrong; read the New's side and you think = the Trib's wrong. In terms of editorial content and slant, I greatly = prefer the Trib. In terms of the far more important issues (comics and = getting late baseball scores from the West coast), I much prefer the News. = (Apologies to Eric Snider, but I just can't read the Provo Herald. I get = my local news from neighbors). =20 Basically, as far as I can tell, it goes like this; both papers share = ownership of a third company, the NAC, which runs the printing press and = takes care of paper delivery. The Trib has been sold, and that sale = required permission from the NAC, which means, in practical terms, that = the News can block the sale, which they did. The News wants to become a = morning paper, because most readers prefer a morning to an afternoon = paper, but claims that that move has been blocked by the Trib. (I only = take the News because I prefer an afternoon paper, largely because of the = late baseball box scores issue. But I'm in a minority here). So the = Trib says the News is blocking a sale and the News says the Trib is = blocking a move to mornings. And both sides say the other side is all = wet. =20 How does any of this relate to Mormon letters? Well, is journalism part of 'letters?' I think it very much is. So = that's important. Utah culture is reflected in this dispute, and that has = a marginal value to our continuing discussion on the list. So does the = general subject of newspaper reading habits. We could ask questions like = this: are newspapers even relevant anymore, or do we mostly get our news = from television or, increasingly, the internet? Do we prefer an afternoon = or a morning paper? Does the editorial stance of the paper matter, and is = there a disconnect between editorial stance and the larger coverage of the = news? Generally, the editorial stance of the DN is conservative, and the = stance of the Trib is liberal. Both papers, of course, include on their = opinion page guest columns from both liberal and conservative writers. = But can we trust the News to, for example, cover fairly stories that might = tend to show President Bush in a bad light? There's an interesting line = that both papers must walk; objective reporters of the news in some = contexts, while holding strong opinions about the news which surface in = other contexts. These are all very interesting questions. >From a literary point of view, it seems to me we do this all the time. We = create characters, and those characters have opinions, which surface from = time to time in conversations we write for them. But can a character have = an opinion which differs from our own, and if so, how do we handle that? = =20 Me, I'm a liberal but I subscribe to the 'conservative' paper of the two. = I do this for a few reasons: 1) baseball box scores, 2) cartoons, = particularly Sherman's Lagoon, 3) Ann Cannon's weekly column, 4), because = I think it's a good window into a culture that I frequently write about, = and 5) because I think, politically, I'd rather read a paper so I can get = to know the enemy than read it just to have my own opinions reinforced.=20 There is one LDS author whose work regularly appears in the Deseret News = who I absolutely cannot stand. I won't say much about her here, but her = name is Marianne Jennings, she's LDS, she's an editorial columnist, and = she's the most awful writer in creation. So of course, I read her every = week; she's my personal mongoose writer: someone who you loathe, and can't = not read. And it's really bad for me to read her, because my blood = pressure goes up and I'm sure she's going to give me a stroke some day. = Do y'all have mongoose writers of your own? The Star Wars movies have = become mongoose movies for me. Thomas Harris is a mongoose writer. Random thoughts, y'all. About SLC newspaper wars: I have no idea who's = right. Hope it all gets resolved in such a way that both papers survive. = That's as profound as I get, especially when it's 105 out. =20 Eric Samuelsen - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 08 Jul 2002 17:45:33 -0600 From: "Eric R. Samuelsen" Subject: [AML] LARSON, _Wake Me When It's Over_ (Performance) Fellow AMLers. I'm passing on a press relief from a current BYU student who I think is = really something special as a young LDS writer. I know this play very = well, and I think it's terrific. Anyway, from here on in, an announcement = from Melissa Leilani Larson: >Hello to all my friends, ex-lovers, and the privileged >few who are enemies: >Ben and Grace have been married three years. Problem >is, he's slept through two of them. Intrigued? Good. Then you'll come see WAKE ME WHEN IT'S OVER, written and directed by me. The show is the inaugural performance for the new Center Street Theatre in Orem (50 West Center Street, next door to the dance studio), and performances run 17 - 20 July 2002. Tickets are $6 for general admission and $5 for students (I have to pay the rent for the space, remember) and 2 for 1 coupons are available in the BYU Theatre & Media Arts department office or from me.=20 Let me know if you want one, or several, and I'll set you up. We have a FABULOUS cast, an award-winning script, and a cameo appearance by Billy Joel. Does it get any better than that, I ask you? And hey, if you are wonderful enough to come and be on time, you will be treated to a staged reading of a hilarious new 10-minute play by Amy E. Jensen, VARIATIONS ON A THEME OF CINDERELLA, a Marxist/feminist reshaping of the fairy tale classic.=20 Very funny. Hugely funny. I love you all . . . Please come see my show . . . Please . . . Bring your friends . . . Support me in my directorial debut and I might just love you more than I do now . . . Is that even humanly possible? Let me know if you have any questions . . . Or if you want to donate the cause . . . And if you're so inclined, do forward this message to anyone you've ever met . . . Ever . . . cheers, melissa leilani Passed on to AML from Eric Samuelsen - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 08 Jul 2002 17:54:55 -0600 From: "Eric R. Samuelsen" Subject: [AML] Killing your Darlings A purely writerly-type question for a change. I'm a big fan of William Goldman, and particularly of his books about = screenwriting, Adventures in the Screen Trade and Which Lie Did I Tell = This Time. Anyway, he's got a phrase that's a real favorite of his, and = which I use all the time teaching writing. The phrase is: 'you've got to = kill your darlings.' In other words, those phrases and words and = sentences and paragraphs and descriptions and snatches of dialogue which = you love the most, and which you're absolutely convinced are genius = personified and which you know are going to win you the Pulitzer/Oscar/AML = Award, are the phrases and words and sentences and paragraphs and = descriptions and snatches of dialogue which don't belong in your story and = which you absolutely must cut. =20 Well, I agree with this . . . in principle. I think he's absolutely = right. But what I want to know is, how do you tell something that's a = darling from something that genuinely does work and is particularly = effective? I'm having this debate with my wife right now. I'm working on an LDS = novel, and I'm well into it, but the first sentence of the novel is this: = "The Church ain't true." This line is spoken by a character who just got = called as bishop. It's supposed to be funny. I like it, I think it = works, and I think that the rest of the novel will, of course, show that = that's not what he really thiniks or means. My wife thinks it's a darling = and that I need to kill it. Kill it daid. So how do you tell? What's a darling? Okay, I'm prone to purplish prose, = and I can usually recognize it when I see it, and I can be quite ruthless = with myself. And I think I know when I'm being just gratuitously preachy. = And I can cut those bits too. I just read the new Stephen Carter novel: = an engrossing read by a terrific writer, and at least half again too long. = He needed to butcher darlings left and right. But what about something = that you really do think is good, but that sort of might not be. What do = y'all think? Eric Samuelsen - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 9 Jul 2002 07:29:34 -0700 From: "Dorothy Peterson" Subject: [AML] re: Satan Figures Kari wrote: > If we believe this supposition then God planned to let Adam and > Eve succomb to Satan's tempations. I find it hard to believe that God would > devise a plan whose outcome was *dependent* on a sin. I don't believe = God > works that way, He wants us all to be sinless. My understanding is that this is exactly what God "worked." He had to separate us from himself in order to test us, to see which of us would freely choose the right--follow his will without a perfect knowledge of = his existence. But being a just God he could not banish us from his = presence until we earned that punishment through our own choice. Here's a good literary tie in--John Milton understood that Eve made the difficult = choice between two good things, the one that was necessary in preference over = the other, which was simply obedient. The implication that we as humans = should be more than "simply obedient" is an interesting one. It embraces the = notion=20 that we need to be thoughtful/introspective with regard to our = stewardships in=20 this life and is a significant part of the gospel. A good example is = implied in=20 Christ's word's to Martha when she complained to him about Mary not = helping. Mary understood what the "one needful thing" was that she was to do = while Martha apparently did not. It seems to me that our task in this life is = to find that "one needful thing" and then do it; it requires thought and = introspection and is easily stated but hard to do. > Lucifer was attempting, *again*, to usurp the power and authority of Christ > by enticing Adam and Eve to partake before it was time. I have a personal (gospel according to Dorothy) response to this. I = think Satan was so devoid of the "light of Christ" that he could not see the = truth of the plan, nor its workings. He simply did not understand the depths = and ins and outs of how it was to work. It seems unlikely that he would not have understood the language of the gospel, but he clearly did not have = a personal testimony of it. How a temporal understanding of things works against a devine conviction is another discussion, but I believe there = is something there that Satan, with all his intelligence, missed. There is = a lesson there too for us. It is what we perceive through our innermost feelings that teaches us devine truth, not what we perceive through intelligence alone. Dorothy W. Peterson LDS-Index.org http://www.lds-index.org dorothy@lds-index.org - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 09 Jul 2002 12:15:17 -0500 From: "Preston" Subject: [AML] Weekly Box Office Report, Pt 1, July 5 Feature Films by LDS/Mormon Filmmakers and Actors Weekend Box Office Report (U.S. Domestic Box Office Gross) Weekend of July 5, 2002 Report compiled by: LDSFilm.com SUDDENLY UNEXPECTED AUDITIONS: The official website for Mark Potter's upcoming Latter-day Saint-themed feature film "Suddenly Unexpected" is now online (http://www.suddenlyunexpected.com). The site includes a brief plot synopsis, character list, and instructions about when and where the auditions will be held (Houston, Texas on August 3rd; Provo, Utah on August 5th). The comedy about missionaries will be shot entirely in Houston. DANSIE AUDITIONS: Tucker T Dansie's "Quarters & Rocks": Auditions are Saturday, July 13th, 2002, 1:00-5:00 PM. Please call and schedule a time. Call Judy @ 262-0594 or e-mail judy@dansie.com Come prepared to read sides from the script, which can be obtained on Dansie's website (http://www.tuckertdansie.com). NON-UNION/NON-PAY FOR EXPERIENCED ACTORS ONLY NO HEADSHOTS OR RESUMES NECESSARY Parts for: 1 woman 20-30 years old: The Cashier - young, bubbly personality, makes friends with the child. 1 woman 20-40 years old: The Mother (pregnant mothers welcome!) - a good mother, firm, but not mean. 1 child (boy or girl) 4-7 years old: The Child: Loves to play in the rocks! And have fun! ELDER ELIJAH WOOD: Non-Latter-day Saint actor Elijah Wood (the star of "The Lord of the Rings") is set to star as "Justin Cobb" in Mike Mills' feature film adaptation of Walter Kirn's novel THUMBSUCKER. Walter Kirn is a convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but is no longer an active churchgoer. His novel is about a young man (to be played by Wood) with an oral fixation who overcomes thumbsucking but replaces the behavior with other habits. In the novel, "Justin" joins the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and serves a mission. "Thumbsucker," currently in development, will be Mike Mills feature film directorial debut. "Thumbsucker" will also star Scarlett Johansson (Eight Legged Freaks; Ghost World; The Man Who Wasn't There; The Horse Whisperer; Home Alone 3; North), as a girl that Justin has a crush on. Tilda Swinton (Vanilla Sky; Orlando) will play Justin's mother (the character is also a Latter-day Saint convert). Mike Mills, whose previous film credits include a Moby music video, should NOT be confused with Latter-day Saint filmmaker "Michael Mills", the producer/writer/director of the videos "He Took My Licking" (2001) and "Bear River Massacre", both sold in Latter-day Saint bookstores. JACK WEYLAND ON CHARLY: Deseret Book's "Mormon Life" online forum has posted a new interview with author Jack Weyland about the upcoming movie adaptation of his novel CHARLY: http://deseretbook.com/mormon-life/entertainment/one-article ?article_id=1896 NEIBAUR'S BIG CATS: Latter-day Saint director Bruce Neibaur's latest IMAX film is now playing in 3 theaters. "India: Kingdom of the Tiger" can currently be seen at the Dr. Philips Cinedome at the Orlando Science Center in Florida, the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Quebec and the IMAX Discovery Theatre in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It is already scheduled to be shown at 17 other theaters in India, Kentucky, Virginia, Connecticut, Taiwan, Nebraska, British Columbia, Boston, Germany, Washington D.C., Austria, The Netherlands, London, Alberta, California, and Georgia. Big Movie Zone interview with Neibaur: http://www.bigmoviezone.com/articles/?uniq=102 More information about theater locations: http://www.bigmoviezone.com/filmsearch/movies/coming_soon.ht ml?uniq=221 Bruce Neibaur is now working with astrophysicist Stephen Hawking on an IMAX documentary about Hawking's life and discoveries about the cosmos. NEW SLOVER VIDEO? Actor Marvin Payne has announced on his website that BYU has asked him to do a multiple camera shoot of Tim Slover's critically acclaimed stage play "Hancock County", about the courtroom prosecution of the people who killed Joseph Smith. Hopefully this means there will be a video available of the play. Latter-day Saint playwright Tim Slover wrote the documentaries "Minerva Teichert: A Mission in Paint" (PBS; 1988) and the Emmy-nominated "A More Perfect Union: American Becomes A Nation" (PBS; 1989). He is best known for his off-Broadway plays "A Joyful Noise" and "March Tale." Marvin Payne is best known for playing the "dad" in videos such as "Saturday's Warrior", "Man's Search for Happiness" and "Pure Race." Payne has never played the "mom." GWYNETH AND AARON - TRUE LOVE WAITS: We're only reporting this because it's in the national news -- we have no desire to be a seedy (or non-seedy, in this case) gossip column. But here's the news report carried by IMDb and an increasing number of Hollywood news publications. I did some checking on the web. This story has been re-circulated by dozens of sites, and has been translated into at least half a dozen languages. (Source: Celebrity News, 31st May 2002, http://us.imdb.com/WN?20020531#2): [QUOTE] PALTROW'S NEW LOVE BANS HER FROM SEX: Gwyneth Paltrow's new boyfriend Aaron Eckhart is refusing to sleep with the sexy star. The Hollywood babe, who met Aaron on the set of the upcoming movie "Possession", recently confessed she has difficulty keeping lovers because she wears them out in the bedroom. But she appears to have finally met her match in 34-year-old Eckhart--the hunk is very religious and doesn't believe in sex before marriage. A friend of Eckhart says, "Aaron has very strong convictions and doesn't give them up for anyone... He accepts the church's ruling that forbids pre-marital sex." But friends of Oscar-winner Gwyneth say the actress is so besotted with the Mormon actor, she's agreed to go without sex--and is even considering marrying him. Paltrow's pal says, "She's lost her heart to Aaron. We hear big things are planned for late this summer. People thought it was a joke when started dating, but now see the relationship is for real." [END QUOTE] TRIFFO/GOETZ TV SERIES: The award-winning Canadian documentary film team of director Chris Triffo and producer Ron Goetz (both are Latter-day Saints), has several new projecs in the works or arriving on TV sets as we speak. "ExtraOrdinary Lives" will premiere on the Life Network, on date July 12, 2002. Fridays at 10pm, 3:30am, Saturdays at 9:30pm, 2002 EST. More information, from the production company's website (http://www.partnersinmotion.com/partners/opnomination.html) : Emmy-award winning Regina-based film production company Partners In Motion is looking for unsung heroes, tales of strength, triumph and courage, and other extraordinary feats performed by ExtraOrdinary Lives. "ExtraOrdinary Lives" is a 13-part series that will run on the Life Network in Canada, featuring ordinary people who have experienced an extraordinary event during their lives. A documentary format will be used to tell their stories, capturing their emotions and their experiences in their own words. If you know someone who is a quiet hero, mentor, survivor or rescuer, we want to hear from you. We want to tell the stories of these "ExtraOrdinary Lives" who are your neighbours, friends, relatives and co-workers. For example: Dave Rodney is the first person in Canada to climb to the summit of Mount Everest twice, despite losing a teammate on his first attempt. Krista Rempel is an Emergency Medical Technician who was first on the scene of two separate cases of babies who nearly froze to death, but survived with her help. Partners in Motion Inc. produces documentary programs like Disasters of the Century and 13 Seconds: The Kent State Shootings, which won an Emmy in 2001. For more information or interviews on ExtraOrdinary Lives, contact Nova Herman at Partners in Motion. To nominate someone you know (even yourself!) contact Casey Markus at Partners in Motion. The TV series "Disasters of the Century" is already airing: History Television, Mondays at 10pm, 1am, Sundays 7pm, 3am 2002 EST. Official website: http://www.disastershq.com/ The Emmy-winning team of Triffo and Goetz are also working on a new feature-length documentary: "Ghosts of War: Canada and Vietnam." NELEH TV: Neleh Dennis, the Latter-day Saint star of CBS' extremely popular "Survivor: Marquesas" TV series, is the new art and culture correspondent on KUTV's "2-News This Morning." WINNIE THE POOH: BLUTH ON DVD; SANSOM IN THEATERS: The 25th Anniversary DVD of "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" features a trailer for "Piglet's Big Movie," a new Disney animated feature set for theatrical release on April 11th, 2003. Latter-day Saint actor Ken Sansom (the voice of "Rabbit") will reprise his frequent lagomorphic role, with the movie's 3rd or 4th billed role. (Sansom had the 3rd billed role in "The Tigger Movie") and provides the voice of "Rabbit" on the Disney Channel TV series "The Book of Pooh." Sansom did NOT voice "Rabbit" in the "The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh", by the way -- he has only had the role since 1988. But legendary Latter-day Saint animator Don Bluth was one of the main animators on that 25-year-old Disney classic. More information about the upcoming Piglet feature can be found at Greg's Movie Previews: http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hp&cf=prev&id=1808413969&intl =us SINGLES WARD COMING TO OTHER THEATERS NEAR YOU: According to the movie's official website (http://www.singleswardthemovie.com/theaterlocs.html), "The Singles Ward" is winding down its run in initial states: It is now playing in only 1 Arizona theater (Gilbert), 2 Idaho theaters (Boise, Idaho Falls), 1 Nevada theater (Boulder), and 3 Utah theaters (Cedar City, Lewiston, Logan). Now, 5 months after its premier in Utah, the "Singles Ward" will be opening soon in New Mexico, Colorado, Montana and California. To date the world's first Latter-day Saint genre feature comedy has earned over $800,000 at the box office. DAY OF DEFENSE: A ton of new behind-the-scenes information about the upcoming Latter-day Saint-themed courtroom drama "Day of Defense" has been posted on the official website at: http://www.dayofdefense.com/bts.asp New revelations include the names of the lead actors, producers, screenwriters, and composer. As far as we know, "Day of Defense" will NOT have a commercial theatrical run, but will be released directly to video. DRAGON'S LAIR, the animated feature to be produced and directed by Latter-day Saint animation legend Don Bluth is being screenwritten by comic book legend Rob McFarlane, of "Spawn" fame. Although his comic books have been adapted to the screen, this will be McFarlane's debut as a screenwriter. LABUTE TO ADAPT VAPOR: It has been reported that Neil LaBute is writing a screenplay adaptation of Amanda Filipacchi's novel VAPOR, which he will direct. The feature film is being produced by Catch 23 Entertainment and Renaissance Films. The story is described as "a love story with a Pygmalion twist... a romance about an artist who helps an aspiring actress find success." LaBute's "Possession" has yet to appear on screens (although we know it is finished, and scheduled to premier in six weeks), and he's probably still working on "The Shape of Things" (which should debut late this year). Other films LaBute has in various places been reported to be working on or intending to work on include: The Wicker Man (starring Nicholas Cage), The Danish Girl, The Burnt Orange Heresy, Blue Angel, Leave Her to Heaven, and Bleeder. KEVIN SHARP ON CNN WITH CHUNG: During the first week of July the new primetime Connie Chung show on CNN featured a great segment about Latter-day Saint counry singer Kevin Sharp. The popular singer discussed how as a teenager his bout with cancer led to the Make-A-Wish Foundation granting his request to meet top music producer David Foster. Afterwards Sharp sent the producer a demo of his music. The producer had planned to break the news to Sharp that he didn't have what it takes to break into music -- until he actually heard the music. He was immensely impressed. Quite a heartwarming story. Sharp sings on the video animated "Annabelle's Wish," but othewise he has not done any film work. Sharp has won numerous country music awards and spots on Billboard's Top 10 lists. He has sung and been interviewed on several national television shows, including "Live with Regis & Kathie Lee," "Entertainment Tonight," CNN, ESPN, "Good Morning America Inside Edition," and the CBS newsmagazine "Coast To Coast." Sharp is now the national spokesman for Make-A-Wish Foundation. And his cancer - which was supposed to be fatal -- is completely in remission. ENDERCON: The "EnderCon" was held in Utah County at Utah Valley Community College, on July 5th and 6th. The convention, celebrating the 25th anniversary of Orson Scott Card's short story "Ender's Game," was unusual in that it was a science fiction built around a purely literary series, and not a TV show or movie franchise. The status of "Ender's Game" as prose-only will change, of course, now that Warner Brothers is developing the "Ender's Game" feature film. WILL ORSON SCOTT CARD MAKE YOUR STORY INTO A MOVIE? Probably not. But it's a possibility. Card's first "Phobos" anthology is going to be published in September 2002: EMPIRE OF DREAMS AND MIRACLES: THE PHOBOS SCIENCE FICTION ANTHOLOGY. This book is the result of an annual contest in which writers could submit science fiction stories. There is no cost or fee. Every eligible story is evaluated. The twelve best stories are chosen by a panel of 12 judges and each writers receives $500. The top 3 stories receive an additional $500. These top stories are then considered for publication in the PHOBOS anthology. More information on Card's official website (http://www.hatrack.com/misc/empire.shtml) and on the Phobos website (http://www.phobosweb.com/). The contest seems remarkable familiar to the renowned Writers of the Future Contest, founded by the late L. Ron Hubbard. Card has written for and judged for WoTF in the past, and Card's friend, fellow writer Dave Wolverton has a frequent editor of the annual WoTF anthologies. Actually, this doesn't have anything to do with movies, except I thought I read somewhere that Card plans to consider Phobos contest winners for possible projects for his film production company. - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ End of aml-list-digest V1 #764 ******************************